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in corruption and in dishonor but of light and constituted in day, being raised in incorruption and glory. But since they were thus formed of day and written in the book of God, God will be all in all, among them there is no one of the wicked and of those worthy of being despised. or perhaps where there is the multitude and the 'someone' and 'no one'; when through great perfection and restoration to one and the same identity number no longer exists, when all have arrived at the unity of the spirit, the 'someone' and the 'no one' will no longer be among them. A scripture is cited, having: Your eyes saw my unformed substance. And this might be understood in the same way as You understood my thoughts from afar, instead of 'The unformed substance of my thoughts;' before anything was accomplished, your eyes, which see all hidden things, saw. And the Gospels are full of such things. 1218 Ps 138,17.18a And the friends of God are those who have been born from faith and virtue. Thus it is said concerning Abraham: And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him for righteousness, and he was called a friend of God; and concerning Moses it says: That God spoke to him mouth to mouth, face to face, as someone would speak to his own friend. But each of the prophets also thus became a friend of God. And to the apostles, then (they have this friendship), Jesus says, I say to you, my friends. And their principalities, which they received authority from the king Christ, taking charge over ten cities or over five cities, are exceedingly mighty, since they reign with Christ. And their mighty principalities could be said, according to another meaning, to be the causes according to which they are friends of God. And these exceedingly honored friends of God, because of the multitude of contemplations and good energies which they possess, will be multiplied beyond the sand, that is, beyond perceptible and bodily things. For since the companions of material things happen to be around the sand or under it, as their foundation for building is established on it, which will very easily fall, or is buried under it, of which the Egyptian struck by Moses, having been hidden under the sand, bears a symbol, it is necessary for those who receive a super-cosmic disposition to be above the sand, being worthy of being numbered by God. 1219 Ps 138,21.22 It would be of the same man both to accept and honor the friends of God and to hate those who hate him and to consider as enemies those who think impious and godless things about God. For how are they not enemies of God who turn the deceived away from the truth, when God wills all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth? And it is a perfect hatred against such people, when one hates them for no other reason than that they are enemies of God. And just as someone has a perfect love for the good, desiring it for no other reason but for its own sake, so he who hates the adversaries of God for no other reason than that they are enemies of God, being consumed over them according to the prophet who says: I have been very jealous for the Lord Almighty, because the sons of Israel have forsaken you.

1220 Ps 139,2-4 An evil man is the deceitful and fraudulent one, but a man

is unjust who has surpassed this one in wickedness, so that through contriving and acting unscrupulously he is eager to wrong the rational nature, trying with some villainy to transfer it from virtue to wickedness. Wishing to be saved from both, the one speaking the preceding words beseeches God, since they devised injustice against him, hiding it in their heart, so that by concealing that they are such, they might be able to ensnare him, standing against him hostilely and in opposition through the whole time of his life. Therefore it is said: All the day long they arranged for wars, having no time of peace and rest, having sharpened their tongue instead of a sword, in order to utter a deceitful and wounding word, in imitation of

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φθορᾷ καὶ ἐν ἀτιμίᾳ ἀλλὰ φωτεινῆς καὶ ἐν ἡμέρᾳ συνισταμένης ἐγειρομένων ἐν ἀφθαρσίᾳ καὶ δόξῃ. ̓Αλλ' ἐπεὶ ουτως ἡμέρας πλασθέντων αὐτῶν καὶ ἐπὶ τὸ βιβλίον τοῦ θεοῦ γραφέντων πάντα ἐν πᾶσιν ὁ θεὸς εσται, ἐν αὐτοῖς οὐδείς ἐστι τῶν πονηρῶν καὶ τοῦ ἐξευτελίζεσθαι ἀξίων. η τάχα ενθα τὸ πλῆθος καὶ ὁ τίς καὶ οὐδείς· οταν διὰ πολλὴν τελειότητα καὶ εἰς εν καὶ ταὐτότητα ἀποκαταστάντων ἀριθμὸς μηκέθ' ὑπάρχῃ καταντησάντων πάντων εἰς τὴν ἑνότητα τοῦ πνεύματος, ὁ τίς καὶ ὁ οὐδεὶς οὐκέτι εσται ἐν αὐτοῖς. Φέρεται γραφὴ εχουσα Τὸ ἀκατέργαστόν μου ιδοσαν οἱ ὀφθαλμοί σου. νοηθείη δὲ καὶ αὐτὴ ὡσαύτως τῷ Σὺ συνῆκας τοὺς διαλογισμούς μου ἀπὸ μακρόθεν, ἀντὶ τοῦ Τὸ ἀκατέργαστον τῶν λογισμῶν μου· πρὶν ἐπιτελέσθαι τι οἱ πάντα τὰ κρυπτὰ ὁρῶντες ὀφθαλμοί σου ειδον. πλήρη δὲ τῶν τοιούτων τὰ Εὐαγγέλια. 1218 Ps 138,17.18a Φίλοι δὲ τοῦ θεοῦ εἰσιν, ἐκ πίστεως καὶ ἀρετῆς γεγενημένοι. ειρηται γοῦν περὶ τοῦ ̓Αβραὰμ ̓Επίστευσε δὲ ̓Αβραὰμ τῷ θεῷ, καὶ ἐλογίσθη αὐτῷ εἰςδικαιοσύνην, καὶ φίλος θεοῦ ἐκλήθη· καὶ περὶ Μωυσέως φησὶν Οτι ἐλάλησεν αὐτῷ ὁ θεὸς στόμα κατὰ στόμα ἐνώπιος ἐνωπίῳ, ὡς ει τις λαλῆσαι πρὸς τὸν ἑαυτοῦ φίλον. ἀλλὰ καὶ εκαστος τῶν προφητῶν ουτω φίλος τοῦ θεοῦ γέγονε. καὶ πρὸς τοὺς ἀποστόλους γοῦν (ταύτην εχουσι τὴν φιλίαν) ̓Ιησοῦς λέγει ̔Υμῖν λέγω τοῖς φίλοις μου. τούτων δὲ καὶ αἱ ἀρχαί, ας παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως Χριστοῦ εσχον ἐξουσίαν λαμβάνοντες ἐπάνω δέκα πόλεων η ἐπάνω πέντε πόλεων, λίαν κραταιοί εἰσιν ατε Χριστῷ συμβασιλεύοντες. ̔Ρηθεῖεν δ' αν καὶ κατ' αλλο σημαινόμενον αἱ ἀρχαὶ αὐτῶν κραταιαὶ αἱ αἰτίαι καθ' ας εἰσι φίλοι θεοῦ. ουτοι δὲ οἱ λίαν τιμηθέντες φίλοι τοῦ θεοῦ διὰ πλῆθος θεωρημάτων καὶ ἀγαθῶν ἐνεργειῶν ων εχουσιν ὑπὲρ αμμον πληθυνθήσονται, τουτέστιν ὑπὲρ τὰ αἰσθητὰ καὶ σωματικά. ἐπεὶ γὰρ οἱ τῶν ὑλικῶν ἑταῖροι περὶ τὴν αμμον η ὑπὸ ταύτην τυγχάνουσιν ὡς τὸν θεμέλιον τῆς οἰκοδομῆς αὐτῶν ῥᾷστα καταπεσουμένης ἐπὶ ταύτης ἱδρῦσθαι η ὑπὸ ταύτην κατορύσσεσθαι, ων σύμβολον φέρει ὁ ὑπὸ Μωυσέως παταχθεὶς Αἰγύπτιος ὑπὸ τὴν αμμον χωσθείς, ἀνάγκη τοὺς ὑπερκόσμιον διάθεσιν λαμβάνοντας ὑπὲρ τὴν αμμον ειναι ἀξίους τοῦ ἀριθμεῖσθαι παρὰ θεοῦ ὑπάρχοντας. 1219 Ps 138,21.22 Τοῦ αὐτοῦ αν ειη καὶ τὸ ἀποδέχεσθαι καὶ τιμᾶν τοὺς φίλους τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ μισεῖν τοὺς μισοῦντας αὐτὸν καὶ ἐχθροὺς λογίζεσθαι τῷ ἀσεβῆ καὶ αθεα περὶ θεοῦ φρονεῖν. πῶς γὰρ οὐκ ἐχθροὶ θεοῦ οἱ διαστρέφοντες ἀπὸ τῆς ἀληθείας τοὺς ἀπατωμένους, τοῦ θεοῦ θέλοντος πάντας ἀνθρώπους σωθῆναι καὶ εἰς ἐπίγνωσιν ἀληθείας ἐλθεῖν; Τέλειον δὲ μῖσός ἐστι κατὰ τῶν τοιούτων, οταν μὴ αλλου χάριν ἀλλ' η τοῦ ἐχθροὺς αὐτοὺς ειναι τοῦ θεοῦ μισεῖ τις αὐτούς. καὶ ωσπερ τελείαν ἀγάπην τις εχει πρὸς τὸ ἀγαθὸν μὴ αλλου του χάριν ἀλλ' αὐτοῦ ενεκα ποθῶν αὐτό, ουτως ὁ μισῶν διαφόρους θεοῦ μὴ αλλου του χάριν ἀλλ' η οτι ἐχθροὶ τοῦ θεοῦ εἰσιν, ἐκτηκόμενος ἐπ' αὐτοῖς κατὰ τὸν λέγοντα προφήτην Ζηλῶν ἐζήλωκα τῷ κυρίῳ παντοκράτορι ἀνθ' ων κατέλιπόν σε οἱ υἱοὶ ̓Ισραήλ.

1220 Ps 139,2-4 Ανθρωπος πονηρὸς ὁ δολερὸς καὶ ἀπατεών ἐστιν, ἀνὴρ δὲ

αδικος ὁ τοῦτον ὑπεραναβεβηκὼς ἐν κακίᾳ ὡς διὰ τοῦ πανουργεύεσθαι καὶ ῥᾳδιουργεῖν ἀδικεῖν σπεύδειν τὴν λογικὴν φύσιν ἐξ ἀρετῆς εἰς κακίαν πανουργίᾳ τινι πειρώμενος μεταβιβάζειν. ἀπ' ἀμφοτέρων σωθῆναι βουλόμενος ὁ τὰ προκείμενα φάσκων θεὸν παρακαλεῖ, ἐπείπερ κατ' αὐτοῦ ἀδικίαν ἐλογίσαντο κρύπτοντες αὐτὴν ἐν καρδίᾳ ἑαυτῶν, οπως διὰ τοῦ λανθάνειν οτι εἰσὶ τοιοῦτοι παγιδεῦσαι αὐτὸν δυνηθῶσι πολεμίως καὶ ἀντικειμένως πρὸς αὐτὸν ἱστάμενοι δι' ολου τοῦ χρόνου τῆς ζωῆς αὐτοῦ. διὸ ειρηται Ολην τὴν ἡμέραν παρετάσσοντο πολέμους, οὐδένα καιρὸν εἰρήνης καὶ ἀναπαύσεως εχοντες ἀντὶ ξίφους ἀκονήσαντες τὴν γλῶσσαν ἑαυτῶν ἐπὶ τῷ ἀπατηλὸν καὶ τρῶσαι δυνάμενον λόγον προφέρειν μιμήσει τῇ πρὸς