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and then they will be found having no hope. Woe, soul, to those who have rest here, because from there they will have eternal affliction. Say, my soul, why are you sad, what do you seek of the things in life, tell me, and I will teach you the need of each one and learn and be taught the good in each. Do you wish, say, to be glorified, do you also wish to be praised? Listen then, what is honor, and what is dishonor: honor is to honor all, but God before all and to acquire His commandments as wealth, and to be insulted for their sake, to be reviled for their sake and for their sake to endure all kinds of reproaches. For when you undertake some matter, soul, in order to honor God, in order to glorify Him (351) and for this reason you are insulted and treated with contempt, then you have attained honor and abiding glory, because the glory of God will surely come upon you. Then all the angels will also praise you, because you honored God, whom they hymn. Do you wish, my soul, to acquire clothing and wealth? Listen, now I will show you eternal wealth: weep, repent, despise all things, become poor in spirit, become so also in heart, become possessionless of money, become a stranger to the world, become an enemy of your opposing wills and of only the will of your Master, and follow in His footsteps vigorously. And then the Master, walking more slowly, being willing, will be overtaken by you, wretched one; and seeing Him, shout and cry out loudly, and He will turn back with a gracious eye and will look and will grant you to see Him for a little while and again He will leave you, being hidden from your eyes. Then you will lament, wretched one, then you will weep painfully, then you will ask for death, not bearing the pain, not enduring the separation from the sweet Master. But He, the good one, seeing you in despair and vehemently persisting in weeping and sorrow, will again suddenly appear, again He will shine upon you, again He will show you the inexhaustible wealth, the unfading glory of the Father's countenance, and He will gladden you as before and will fill you with joy

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καί τότε εὑρεθήσονται μή ἔχοντες ἐλπίδα. Οὐαί, ψυχή, τοῖς ἔχουσιν ἀνάπαυσιν ἐνταῦθα, ὅτι ἐκεῖθεν ἕξουσιν αἰώνιον τήν θλῖψιν. Εἰπέ, ψυχή μου, τί λυπῇ, τί ζητεῖς τῶν ἐν βίῳ, εἰπέ μοι, καί διδάξω σε ἑνός ἑκάστου χρείαν καί μάθε καί διδάχθητι τό καλόν ἐν ἑκάστῳ. Θέλεις, εἰπέ, δοξάζεσθαι, θέλεις καί ἐπαινεῖσθαι; Ἄκουσον τοίνυν, τί τιμή, τί δέ καί ἀτιμία˙ τιμή τό πάντας μέν τιμᾶν, τόν Θεόν δέ πρό πάντων καί τάς ἐκείνου ἐντολάς ἐπικτᾶσθαι ὡς πλοῦτον, ὑβρίζεσθαί τε δι᾿ αὐτάς, δι᾿ αὐτάς λοιδορεῖσθαι καί δι᾿ αὐτάς ὀνειδισμούς ὑποφέρειν παντοίους. Ὅταν γάρ πράγματί τινι, ψυχή, ἐπιχειρήσῃς, ἵνα τιμήσῃς τόν Θεόν, ἵνα αὐτόν δοξάσῃς (351) καί διά τοῦτο ὑβρισθῇς καί ἐξουδενωθήσῃ, τότε τιμῆς ἐπέτυχε καί δόξης τῆς ἑστώσης, ὅτι ἡ δόξα τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐπί σε πάντως ἥξει. Τότε σε καί οἱ ἄγγελοι ἐπαινέσουσι πάντες, ὅτι ἐτίμησας Θεόν, ὅν ὑμνοῦσιν ἐκεῖνοι. Θέλεις, ψυχή μου, κτήσασθαι ἱματισμόν καί πλοῦτον; Ἄκουσον, ἄρτι δείξω σοι τόν αἰώνιον πλοῦτον˙ δάκρυσον, μετανόησον, καταφρόνησον πάντων, γενοῦ πτωχή τῷ πνεύματι, γενοῦ καί τῇ καρδίᾳ, γενοῦ ἀκτήμων χρήμασι, γενοῦ τοῦ κόσμου ξένη, γενοῦ τῶν θελημάτων σου ἐχθρά τῶν ἐναντίων καί μόνου τοῦ θελήματος γενοῦ τοῦ σοῦ ∆εσπότου καί ἀκολούθησον αὐτοῦ τοῖς ἴχνεσιν εὐτόνως. Καί τότε σχολαιότερον βαδίσας ὁ ∆εσπότης θέλων καταληφθήσεται ὑπό σοῦ τῆς ἀθλίας˙ αὐτόν δ᾿ ἰδοῦσα βόησον καί κραύγασον μεγάλως, αὐτός δ᾿ ἐπιστραφήσεται ὄμματι τῷ ἱλέῳ καί βλέψει καί παράσχει σοι μικρόν αὐτόν ἰδέσθαι καί πάλιν καταλείψει σε κρυβείς ἐξ ὀφθαλμῶν σου. Τότε θρηνήσεις, τάλαινα, τότε κλαύσεις ἐμπόνως, τότε αἰτήσεις θάνατον μή φέρουσα τόν πόνον, μή στέγουσα τόν χωρισμόν τοῦ γλυκέος ∆εσπότου. Αὐτός ἐξαποροῦσαν δέ ὁ ἀγαθός ἰδών σε καί σφοδρῶς ἐπιμένουσαν τῷ κλαυθμῷ καί τῇ λύπῃ πάλιν αἴφνης φανήσεται, πάλιν σε καταυγάσει, πάλιν καθυποδείξει σοι τόν ἀκένωτον πλοῦτον, τήν δόξαν τήν ἀμάραντον τοῦ πατρικοῦ προσώπου, καί εὐφρανεῖ σε ὡς τόν πρίν καί χαρᾶς σε ἐμπλήσει