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to us who are good. But since they are without a share of such good things out of conceit and negligence, they, being unbelieving, slander both those who have partaken and those who teach about such things.

88. What is the purpose of the incarnate economy of God the Word, which is proclaimed in all of holy Scripture and is read by us, but not understood, if not that, having partaken of what is ours, He might make us sharers in what is His? For the Son of God became the son of man for this reason, that He might make us men sons of God, leading our race up by grace to that which He is by nature, begetting us from above in the Holy Spirit and straightway leading us into the kingdom of heaven, or rather, granting us to have it within us, so that we are not in the hope of entering into it, but, being in possession of it, we cry out: “But our life is hidden with Christ in God.”

89. Baptism does not take away our free will and self-determination, but it grants us freedom (450) no longer to be tyrannized by the devil even against our will. It is up to us after baptism either to abide willingly in the commandments of Christ the Master into whom we were baptized and to walk in the way of his precepts or to turn aside from this straight way and to relapse to our adversary and enemy the devil through wicked deeds.

90. Those who after baptism yield to the wills of the evil one and commit the things he has devised estrange themselves from the holy womb of baptism, according to what was said by David. For none of us is altered or departs from the nature in which he was created, but having been created good by God—for God made nothing evil—and being unchangeable in the nature in which he was created and in his essence, such things as he chooses and wills by his own voluntary decision, these things he also does, whether good or evil. For just as a sword, whether one uses it for evil or for good, does not depart from its own nature but remains iron, so also man acts and does, as has been said, whatever he wishes, but does not depart from his own nature.

91. He does not save after showing mercy to one, but for despising one He sends to the fire. For "I was hungry and I was thirsty" is not said of a single time, nor of one day, but it indicates throughout one's entire life. So also our Lord and God confessed that He receives these things—to be fed, to be given drink, to be clothed, and whatever else accompanies these—not once but always and in all from His servants.

92. How do some enclose in one poor person Him who is indivisibly divided and is Himself whole in each one of the poor? Suppose then there are a hundred poor people as one Christ, (451) for Christ is not divided at all. He then who gives an obol to each of the ninety-nine, but insults or strikes or sends away empty the one, to whom has he done these things, if not surely to the one who said and always says and is about to say, “Inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these, you did it to me”?

93. He who has given alms to a hundred, but being able also to give to others, to give drink and to feed, having sent away many who were entreating him and crying out, will be judged by Him as not having fed Christ, since in all of those He is the one who is fed by us in each one of the least.

94. He who today has provided for all, everything they need, but tomorrow, being able to do this, shall neglect some of the brothers and allow them to be destroyed by hunger and thirst and cold, has overlooked Him to die and has despised Him who said: “Inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these, you did it to me.”

95. From these things it is possible to know one thing, how the Lord makes His own all the things of the poor and our brothers, saying to the righteous: “You did it to me,” to

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ἡμῖν ἀγαθοῖς˙ ἐπεί δέ ἀμέτοχοι τῶν τοιούτων ἐξ οἰήσεως καί ἀμελείας εἰσί καλῶν, καί τούς μετεσχηκότας καί περί τοιούτων διδάσκοντας ἀπιστοῦντες ἐνδιαβάλλουσιν.

πη'. Τίς ὁ σκοπός τῆς ἐνσάρκου οἰκονομίας τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγου, ὁ ἐν πάσῃ τῇ θείᾳ Γραφῇ ἀνακηρυττόμενος καί παρ᾿ ἡμῶν μέν ἀναγινωσκόμενος, μή ἐπιγινωσκόμενος δέ, ἤ πάντως ἵνα μετεσχηκώς τῶν ἡμετέρων κοινωνούς τῶν ἐκείνου ποιήσῃ ἡμᾶς; Ὁ γάρ Υἱός τοῦ Θεοῦ διά τοῦτο υἱός τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐγένετο, ἵνα υἱούς Θεοῦ ποιήσῃ τούς ἀνθρώπους ἡμᾶς, εἰς ὅπερ ἐστί κατά φύσιν ἐκεῖνος ἀνάγων κατά χάριν τό γένος ἡμῶν, γεννῶν ἡμᾶς ἄνωθεν ἐν Πνεύματι Ἁγίῳ καί εὐθύς εἰσάγων ἡμᾶς εἰς τήν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν, μᾶλλον δέ ἐντός ἡμῶν ταύτην ἔχειν ἡμῖν χαριζόμενος ὡς μή ἐν ἐλπίσιν εἶναι τοῦ εἰσελθεῖν ἡμᾶς ἐν αὐτῇ ἀλλ᾿ ἐν κατασχέσει ταύτης ὄντας βοᾶν˙ «Ἡμῶν δέ ἡ ζωή κέκρυπται σύν τῷ Χριστῷ ἐν τῷ Θεῷ».

πθ'. Τό αὐτεξούσιον καί αὐτοπροαίρετον ἡμῶν οὐκ ἀφαιρεῖται τό βάπτισμα, ἀλλ᾿ ἐλευθερίαν ἡμῖν χαρίζεται (450) τοῦ μηκέτι καί ἄκοντας ἡμᾶς τυραννεῖσθαι ὑπό τοῦ διαβόλου. Ἐφ᾿ ἡμῖν δέ ἐστι μετά τό βάπτισμα ἤ ταῖς ἐντολαῖς αὐτοθελῶς ἐμμένειν τοῦ εἰς ὅν ἐβαπτίσθημεν δεσπότου Χριστοῦ καί τῇ ὁδῷ πορεύεσθαι τῶν προσταγμάτων αὐτοῦ ἤ ἐκκλίνειν τῆς εὐθείας ταύτης ὁδοῦ καί πρός τόν ἀντίπαλον καί ἐχθρόν ἡμῶν διάβολον διά τῶν πονηρῶν πράξεων παλινδρομεῖν.

90. Οἱ μετά τό βάπτισμα τοῖς τοῦ πονηροῦ θελήμασιν εἴκοντες καί τά ἐκείνῳ βεβουλευμένα διαπραττόμενοι ἑαυτούς τῆς ἁγίας τοῦ βαπτίσματος μήτρας ἀπαλλοτριοῦσι, κατά τό ὑπό τοῦ ∆αβίδ εἴρημένον. Οὐδέ γάρ ἀλλοιοῦται ἡμῶν ἕκαστος ἤ τῆς καθό ἔκτισται μεθίσταται φύσεως, ἀλλά ἀγαθός κτισθείς ὑπό τοῦ Θεοῦ, κακόν γάρ ὁ Θεός οὐκ ἐποίησεν, ἄτρεπτος τῇ φύσει καθό ἔκτισται καί τῇ οὐσίᾳ ὤν, οἷα ἐξ ἑκουσίου γνώμης προαιρεῖται καί θέλει, ταῦτα καί πράττει εἴτε ἀγαθά εἴτε φαῦλα˙ ὥσπερ γάρ τήν μάχαιραν κἄν ἐπί κακῷ τις αὐτήν κἄν ἐπί καλῷ χρήσηται, τῆς ἰδίας ἐκείνη οὐ μεθίσταται φύσεως ἀλλά μένει σίδηρος ὤν, οὕτω καί ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἐνεργεῖ μέν καί πράττει, ὡς εἴρηται, ἅπερ βούλεται, τῆς δέ οἰκείας οὐκ ἐξίσταται φύσεως.

91. Οὐ μετά τό ἕνα ἐλεῆσαι σῴζει ἀλλά τό ἑνός καταφρονῆσαι τῷ πυρί παραπέμπει. Τό γάρ «ἐπείνασα καί ἐδίψησα» οὐ πρός τό ἅπαξ εἴρηται πάντως, οὐδέ τό ἐν μιᾷ ἡμέρᾳ ἀλλά τό διά βίου παντός δηλοῖ˙ οὕτω καί τό τραφῆναι Χριστόν, ποτισθῆναί τε καί ἐνδυθῆναι καί εἴ τι ἕτερον τούτοις συνέπεται, οὐ πρός ἅπαξ ἀλλά διά παντός καί ἐν πᾶσιν ὑπό τῶν αὐτοῦ δούλων ταῦτα δέχεσθαι ὁ Κύριος καί Θεός ἡμῶν ὡμολόγησεν.

92. Τόν ἀμερίστως μεριζόμενον καί αὐτόν ὅλον ὄντα ἑνί ἑκάστῳ τῶν πενομένων, πῶς τινες εἰς ἕνα πένητα περικλείουσιν; Ὑπόθου οὖν ἑκατόν εἶναι πένητας ὡς ἕνα Χριστόν, (451) οὐδέ γάρ μεμέρισται ὅλως ὁ Χριστός. Ὁ γοῦν τοῖς ἐνενήκοντα ἐννέα δούς ἀνά ὀβολόν, τόν δέ ἕνα ὑβρίσας ἤ τύψας ἤ ἐκπέμψας κενόν, τίνι ἆρα ταῦτα πεποιήκεν ἤ πάντως τῷ εἰπόντι καί ἀεί λέγοντι καί εἰπεῖν μέλλοντι, «Ἐφ᾿ ὅσον ἐποιήσατε ἑνί τούτων τῶν ἐλαχίστων, ἐμοί ἐποιήσατε»;

93. Ὁ τοῖς ἑκατόν δούς ἐλεημοσύνην, δυνάμενος δέ καί ἑτέροις δοῦναι, ποτίσαι τε καί θρέψαι, πολλούς παρακαλοῦντας αὐτόν καί βοῶντας ἀποπεμψάμενος, ὡς μή θρέψας Χριστόν κριθήσεται πρός αὐτοῦ, ἐπειδή καί ἐν ἐκείνοις πᾶσιν αὐτός ἐστιν ὁ καί ἐφ᾿ ἑνί ἑκάστῳ τῶν ἐλαχίστων τρεφόμενος πρός ἡμῶν.

94. Ὁ πᾶσι μέν πάντα τά πρός χρείαν σήμερον παρασχών, αὔριον δέ δυνάμενος τοῦτο ποιῆσαι, ἀμελήσει τινῶν ἀδελφῶν καί λιμῷ καί δίψῃ καί ψύχει ἐάσει διαφθαρῆναι αὐτούς, αὐτόν παρεῖδεν ἀποθανεῖν καί αὐτοῦ κατεφρόνησε τοῦ εἰπόντος˙ «Ἐφ᾿ ὅσον ἐποιήσατε ἑνί τούτων τῶν ἐλαχίστων ἐμοί ἐποιήσατε».

95. Ἐκ τούτων ἕν ἔστι γνῶναι, ὅπως ἰδιοποιεῖται ὁ Κύριος πάντα τά τῶν πενήτων καί ἀδελφῶν ἡμῶν, πρός μέν τούς δικαίους λέγων˙ «Ἐμοί ἐποιήσατε», πρός