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to cast down the poor and needy"? - They are not able to cast down the rich, they are not able to cast down one who has wealth "in all knowledge and in every word," but the poor and needy, even if he seems to be upright in heart, as I said before, like the wise man who is reproved and the just man who accuses himself; but indeed the sword, turned against those who whetted it, strikes and destroys them; likewise also the bow is broken. And it is well said: "Let their sword enter into their own heart." This harmful sword, the sword of enemies, is not congenital ----------- ------------ 19 and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied. ------------------------- ------ ------------------------------- 250 of those who nourish the soul, of those who give it drink. Indeed in the same prophet, where it is written: "I will bring a famine upon the land, not a famine of bread nor a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the word of the Lord," it adds: "many is the one who has fallen in every place, I will cast silence upon them." The famine is for those who have fallen. Upon these a silence of the divine word is brought. "In the days," therefore, "of famine they shall be satisfied." 20 For the sinners shall perish. Again we understand the destruction of sinners in two ways: either they perish in that they are sinners, or having had experience of painful things. The just "are not ashamed in an evil time," but the sinners are ashamed. When they are ashamed, knowing what evils they are in, and they blush because of their sinning, sometimes they despise sin and go outside of it, and thus they perish so as to be sinners no longer. 20 But the enemies of the Lord, as soon as they were glorified and exalted, failing like smoke, failed. Sinners can be enemies of the Lord. And it is possible to call sinners those who sin in moral matters, the transgressors of the divine commandments, but enemies of the Lord those who think impious things, those outside of piety, those who hold false opinions. These enemies of the Lord, therefore, as soon as they were glorified and exalted, immediately failed like smoke. And see, indeed, it always compares sinners to smoke. And indeed in another psalm it is said: "As smoke vanishes, let them vanish; as wax melts before the face of fire, so let the sinners perish from the face of God." The argument establishes that sinners are not of a different nature. Smoke is a consequence of fire, and wax of honey. But honey comes into being first. And since it is not otherwise constituted than in wax, the wax is constituted incidentally. Honey is not for the sake of the wax, but the wax for the sake of the honey, and fire is not for the sake of the smoke, but the smoke for the sake of the fire. Therefore the sinners vanish like smoke, being a consequence; for both sinning itself and being an enemy to the Lord is a consequence. And the rational creature came to be so that it might be receptive of virtue. But that which is receptive of something is not essentially such. But men are not good by essence; for they were created for this reason, that they might become good by participation in the truly good. And what is receptive of vice follows what is receptive of virtue. And just as evils are always after good things, after art is bad art, after hearing is disobedience. Sin, therefore, is a consequence of virtue; it would not exist if the sinning creature were not receptive of virtue. Likewise wax is also a consequence. Indeed it melts and is not destroyed into non-being, but changes into something better. And so sinners become smoke through wickedness itself; for wickedness is thus lawlessness "as an unripe grape is harmful to the teeth and smoke to the eyes, so is lawlessness to those who use it." You see that lawlessness becomes smoke to the eyes for those who use it. And smoke does not require great force to be overturned; for it is quickly overturned. For this reason, "as wax melts from the face of fire" are the sinners, and "as smoke vanishes, let them vanish." It is a consequence, as I said,

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καταβαλεῖν πτωχὸν καὶ πένητα"; - οὐ δύνανται καταβαλεῖν πλούσιον, οὐ δύνανται καταβαλεῖν ἔχοντα τὸν "ἐν πάσῃ γνώσει καὶ παντὶ λόγῳ" πλοῦτον, ἀλλὰ τὸν πτωχὸν καὶ πένητα, κἂν δοκῇ εὐθὴς εἶναι τῇ καρδίᾳ, ὡς προεῖπον, ὡς ὁ ἐλεγχόμενος σοφὸς καὶ ὁ κατηγορῶν ἑαυτοῦ δίκαιος· ἀλλ' οὖν γε ἡ ῥομφαία κατὰ τῶν ἀκονησάντων αὐτῶν στραφεῖσα πλήττει καὶ ἀναιρεῖ αὐτούς· ὡσαύτως καὶ τὸ τόξον συντρίβεται. εὖ δὲ καὶ τὸ φάναι· "ἡ ῥομφαία αὐτῶν εἰσέλθοι εἰς τὴν καρδίαν αὐτῶν". αὕτη ἡ ῥομφαία η῾̣ ἐπιβλαβής, ἡ πολεμίων, οὔκ ἐστιν συνφυὴς ----------- ------------ ̣19 καὶ ἐν ἡμέραις λιμοῦ χορτασθήσονται. ------------------------- ------ ------------------------------- 250 τῶν τρεφόντων τὴν ψυχήν, τῶν ποτιζόντων ··· αὐτήν. ἐν αὐτῷ γοῦν τῷ προφήτῃ, ἔνθα γέγραπται· "ἐπάξω λιμὸν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, οὐ λιμὸν ἄρτου οὐδὲ δίψαν ὕδατος, ἀλλὰ λιμὸν τοῦ ἀκοῦσαι λόγον κυρίου", ἐπιφέρεται· "πολὺς ὁ πεπτωκὼς ἐν παντὶ τόπῳ, ἐπιρίψω σιωπήν". τοῖς πεπτωκόσιν ὁ λιμός ἐστιν. τούτοις δὲ σιωπ̣ὴ τοῦ θείου λόγου ἐπάγεται. "ἐν ἡμέραις" οὖν "λιμοῦ χορτασθήσονται". 20 ὅτι οἱ ἁμαρτωλοὶ ἀπολοῦνται. διττῶς πάλιν τη`̣ν̣ α᾿̣πώλειαν τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν ἐκλαμβάνομεν· ἤτοι ᾗ ἁμαρτωλοί εἰσιν, ἀπόλλυνται ἢ πεῖραν λαβόντες τῶν ἐπιπόνων. "οὐ καταισχύνονται" οἱ δίκαιοι "ἐν καιρῷ πονηρῷ", οἱ δὲ ἁμαρτωλοὶ καταισχύνονται. ὅταν αἰσχυνθῶσιν γνόντες οἷ κακω῀̣ν̣ εἰσιν, καὶ ἐρυθριῶσιν διὰ τὸ ἁμαρτάνειν, ἐνίοτε καταφρονοῦσιν τῆς ἁμαρτίας καὶ ἐ´̣ξω αὐτῆς γίνονται καὶ οὕτως ἀπόλλυν̣ται ὡ´̣στε μηκέτι εἶναι ἁμαρτωλοί. 20 οἱ δὲ ἐχθροὶ τοῦ κυρίου ἅμα τῷ δοξασθῆναι αὐτοὺς καὶ ὑψωθῆναι ἐκλιπόντες ὡσεὶ καπνὸς ἐξέλιπον. δύνανται οἱ ἁμαρτωλοὶ ἐχθροὶ εἶναι τοῦ κυρίου. δυνατὸν δὲ καὶ ἁμαρτωλοὺς εἰπεῖν τοὺς κατὰ τὰ ἠθικὰ ἁμαρτάνοντας, τοὺς παραβάτας τῶν θείων ἐντολῶν, ἐχθροὺς δὲ τοῦ κυρίου τοὺς τὰ ἀσεβῆ φρονοῦντας, τοὺς ἔξω τῆς θεοσεβείας, τοὺς ψευδοδοξο̣ῦντας̣. οὗτοι οὖν οἱ τοῦ κυρίου ἐχθροὶ ἅμα τῷ δοξασθῆναι καὶ ὑψωθῆναι εὐθέως κατὰ τὸν καπνὸν ἐξέλιπον. καὶ ὅρα γε, α᾿̣ε̣ι`̣ τ̣οὺς ἁμαρτωλοὺς τῷ καπνῷ ὁμοιοῖ. καὶ ἐν ἄλλῳ γοῦν ψαλμῷ λέγεται· "ὡς ἐκλείπει καπνός, ἐκλιπέτωσαν· ὡς τήκεται κηρὸς ἀπὸ προσώπου πυρός, οὕτως ἀπολοῦνται οἱ ἁμαρτωλοὶ ἀπὸ προσώπου θεοῦ". κατασ̣κ̣ευάζει ὁ λόγος, ὅτι οὐχ ἑτέρας εἰσὶν φύσεως οἱ ἁμαρτωλοί. ἐπακολούθημά ἐστιν πυρὸς ὁ καπνός, καὶ μέλιτος ὁ κηρός. προηγο̣υμ̣ένως δὲ τὸ μέλι λαμβάνει γένεσιν. ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἄλλως οὐ συνίσταται ἢ ἐν κηρῷ, κατὰ συμβεβηκὸς ὁ κηρὸς συνίσταται. οὐ διὰ τὸν κηρὸν τὸ μέλι, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸ μέλι ὁ κηρός, καὶ οὐ διὰ τὸν καπνὸν τὸ πῦρ, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸ πῦρ ὁ καπνός. οἱ ἁμαρτωλοὶ οὖν κατὰ τὸν καπνὸν ἐκλείπουσιν παρακολούθημα ὄντα· καὶ γὰρ αὐτὸ τὸ ἁμαρτάνειν καὶ τὸ ἐχθρεύειν τῷ κυρίῳ παρακολούθημά ἐστιν. γέγονεν δὲ τὸ λογικὸν ζῷον, ἵνα δεκτικὸν ᾖν ἀρετῆς. τὸ δὲ δεκτικόν τινος οὔκ ἐστιν κατ' οὐσίαν τοιοῦτο. οὐ κατ' οὐσίαν δὲ ἀγαθοί εἰσιν οἱ ἄνθρωποι· διὰ τοῦτο γὰρ ἐκτίσθησαν, ἵνα γένωνται ἀγαθοὶ μετουσίᾳ τοῦ ἀληθῶς ἀγαθοῦ. παρακολουθεῖ δὲ τῷ δεκτικῷ τῆς ἀρετῆς τὸ δεκτικὸν τῆς κακίας. καὶ ὥσπερ ἀεὶ μετὰ τὰ καλὰ τὰ κ̣ακά ἐστιν, μετὰ τὴν τέχνην ἡ κακοτεχνία, μετὰ τὴν ἀκοὴν ἡ παρακοήν. παρακολούθημα οὖν ἐστιν ἡ ἁμαρτία τῆς ἀρετῆς· οὐκ ἂν συνίστατο, εἰ μὴ δεκτικὸν ἦν ἀρετῆς τὸ ζῷον τὸ ἁμαρτάνον. ὁμοίως καὶ ὁ κηρὸς παρακολούθημά ἐστιν. τήκε̣ται γοῦν οὗτος καὶ οὐκ εἰς τὸ μὴ ὂν καταστρέφει, ἀλλ' εἴς τι κρεῖττον μεταβάλλει. καὶ οἱ ἁμαρτωλοὶ οὖν καπνὸς γίνονται δ̣ι' αὐτὴν τὴν κακίαν· ἡ γὰρ κακία οὕτως οὕτως ανομια "ὥσπερ ὄμφαξ βλαβερὸς ὀδοῦσιν καὶ καπνὸς ὄμμασιν, οὕτω παρανομία τοῖς χρωμένοις". ὁρᾷς ὅτι ὄμμασιν καπνὸς ἡ παρανομία γίνεται τοῖς χρωμένοις αὐτήν. οὐ μεγάλης δὲ δεῖται βίας ὁ καπνὸς ἵνα ἀνατραπῇ· ταχέως γὰρ ἀνατρέπεται. διὰ τοῦτο "ὡς τήκεται κηρὸς ἀπὸ προσώπου πυρὸς" οἱ ἁμαρτωλοί εἰσιν, καὶ "ὡς ἐκλείπει καπνός, ἐκλιπέτωσαν". παρ̣ακολούθημά ἐστιν, ὡς εἶπον,