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were deemed worthy, and they had the voice from the signs advocating for them, and everything they said was henceforth readily accepted, with the facts proclaiming his power more clearly than a trumpet, and with no such scandal intervening in what was happening. Therefore, none are more blessed than the apostles, and especially the three, who were also deemed worthy to be under the same roof in the cloud with the Master. But if we wish, we too will see Christ; not as they did then on the mountain, but much more gloriously. For He will not come later in this way. For then, sparing the disciples, He opened up only so much of His brightness as they were able to bear; but later He will come in the very glory of the Father, not with Moses and Elijah only, but with the infinite host of angels, with the archangels, with the Cherubim, with those infinite multitudes; not with a cloud being over His head, but with heaven itself being rolled up. For just as when judges judge in public, the attendants, drawing aside the curtains, show them to all; so indeed then all will see Him seated, and all human nature will stand before Him, and He Himself will answer them by Himself; and to some He will say: Come, you blessed of my Father; for I was hungry, and you gave me to eat; to others He will say: Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a little, I will set you over much. And passing sentence on the contrary, 58.555 to some He will answer, that you Depart into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; and to others, You wicked and lazy servant. And some He will cut in two, and deliver to the tormentors; others He will command, bound hand and foot, to be cast into the outer darkness. And after the axe the furnace will succeed, and the things thrown from the dragnet will fall in there. Then the righteous will shine like the sun; or rather, more than the sun. But this much is said, not because their light will be only so great; but because we know of no other star brighter than this one, He wished to represent the future radiance of the saints by what is familiar. Since also on the mountain, when it was said that He shone like the sun, it was said so for the same reason. For that the light was greater than the example, the disciples showed by falling down. For if the light had not been unmixed, but commensurate with the sun, they would not have fallen, but would have borne it easily. The righteous, then, will shine like the sun, and beyond the sun, at that time; but the sinners will suffer the uttermost things. Then there will be no need of records, nor of refutations, nor of witnesses; for He Himself who judges is all things, both witness, and refutation, and judge. For He knows all things clearly; For all things are naked and laid open to His eyes. Neither rich, nor poor, nor ruler, nor weak, nor wise, nor unwise, nor slave, nor free will any appear there, but with these masks shattered, there will be only the examination of deeds. For if in the courts, when someone is judged for tyranny or murder, whatever he may be, whether prefect, or consul, or whatever, all his dignities fly away, and the one convicted pays the ultimate penalty; much more will this be so there. 5. Therefore, that this may not happen, let us put off our filthy garments, let us put on the armor of light, and the glory of God will clothe us. For what is burdensome in the commandments? And what is not easy? At least listen to the prophet saying, and then you will know the ease. Not even if you bend your neck like a ring, and spread sackcloth and ashes under you, not even so will you call it an acceptable fast; but loose every bond of wickedness, undo the knots of violent contracts. See the prophet's wisdom. For having first set down and removed the burdensome things, he deems it right to be saved by the easy things, showing that God does not require toils, but obedience. Then, showing that virtue is easy, but vice is heavy and burdensome, he establishes this from the bare names. For vice, he says, is a bond and a knot; but virtue is a release and a dissolution of all these things. Tear up every unjust bond; those of

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κατηξιώθησαν, καὶ τὴν ἀπὸ τῶν σημείων εἶχον φωνὴν συνηγοροῦσαν αὐτοῖς, καὶ πάντα ὅσα ἔλεγον λοιπὸν εὐπαράδεκτα ἦν, σάλπιγγος λαμπρότερον τῶν πραγμάτων ἀνακηρυττόντων αὐτοῦ τὴν ἰσχὺν, καὶ οὐδενὸς σκανδάλου τοιούτου μεσολαβοῦντος τὰ γινόμενα. Οὐδὲν ἄρα τῶν ἀποστόλων μακαριώτερον, καὶ μάλιστα τῶν τριῶν, οἳ καὶ ἐν τῇ νεφέλῃ ὁμωρόφιοι γενέσθαι κατηξιώθησαν τῷ ∆εσπότῃ. Ἀλλ' ἂν θέλωμεν, ὀψόμεθα καὶ ἡμεῖς τὸν Χριστόν· οὐχ οὕτως ὡς ἐκεῖνοι τότε ἐν τῷ ὄρει, ἀλλὰ πολλῷ λαμπρότερον. Οὐ γὰρ οὕτως ὕστερον ἥξει. Τότε μὲν γὰρ τῶν μαθητῶν φειδόμενος, τοσοῦτον παρήνοιξε μόνον τῆς λαμπρότητος, ὅσον ἠδύναντο ἐνεγκεῖν· ὕστερον δὲ ἐν αὐτῇ τοῦ Πατρὸς τῇ δόξῃ ἥξει, οὐ μετὰ Μωϋσέως καὶ Ἠλία μόνον, ἀλλὰ μετὰ τῆς ἀπείρου τῶν ἀγγέλων στρατιᾶς, μετὰ τῶν ἀρχαγγέλων, μετὰ τῶν Χερουβὶμ, μετὰ τῶν δήμων τῶν ἀπείρων ἐκείνων· οὐ νεφέλης γινομένης ὑπεράνω τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτοῦ, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτοῦ συστελλομένου τοῦ οὐρανοῦ. Καθάπερ γὰρ τοὺς δικαστὰς, ὅταν δημοσίᾳ κρίνωσι, τὰ παραπετάσματα συνελκύσαντες οἱ παρεστῶτες πᾶσιν αὐτοὺς δεικνύουσιν· οὕτω δὴ καὶ τότε καθήμενον αὐτὸν ἅπαντες ὄψονται, καὶ πᾶσα ἡ ἀνθρωπίνη παραστήσεται φύσις, καὶ αὐτὸς αὐτοῖς δι' ἑαυτοῦ ἀποκρίνεται· καὶ τοῖς μὲν ἐρεῖ· ∆εῦτε, οἱ εὐλογημένοι τοῦ Πατρός μου· ἐπείνασα γὰρ, καὶ ἐδώκατέ μοι φαγεῖν· τοῖς δὲ ἐρεῖ· Εὖ, δοῦλε ἀγαθὲ καὶ πιστέ· ἐπὶ ὀλίγα ἦς πιστὸς, ἐπὶ πολλῶν σε καταστήσω. Καὶ ἐναντία δὲ 58.555 ψηφιζόμενος, τοῖς μὲν ἀποκρίνεται, ὅτι Πορεύεσθε εἰς τὸ πῦρ τὸ αἰώνιον τὸ ἡτοιμασμένον τῷ διαβόλῳ καὶ τοῖς ἀγγέλοις αὐτοῦ· τοῖς δὲ, Πονηρὲ δοῦλε καὶ ὀκνηρέ. Καὶ τοὺς μὲν διχοτομήσει, καὶ παραδώσει τοῖς βασανισταῖς· τοὺς δὲ κελεύσει δεθέντας χεῖρας καὶ πόδας εἰς τὸ σκότος ἐκβληθῆναι τὸ ἐξώτερον. Καὶ μετὰ τὴν ἀξίνην ἡ κάμινος διαδέξεται, καὶ τὰ ἀπὸ τῆς σαγήνης ῥιπτούμενα ἐκεῖ ἐμπεσεῖται. Τότε οἱ δίκαιοι ἐκλάμψουσιν ὡς ὁ ἥλιος· μᾶλλον δὲ πλέον ἢ ὁ ἥλιος. Τοσοῦτον δὲ εἴρηται, οὐκ ἐπειδὴ τοσοῦτον αὐτῶν μόνον ἔσται τὸ φῶς· ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ τοῦ ἄστρου τούτου φαιδρότερον οὐκ ἴσμεν ἕτερον, ἀπὸ τοῦ γνωρίμου παραστῆσαι ἠβουλήθη τὴν μέλλουσαν λαμπηδόνα τῶν ἁγίων. Ἐπεὶ καὶ ἐν τῷ ὄρει εἰπὼν, ὅτι Ἔλαμψεν ὡς ὁ ἥλιος, διὰ τὴν αὐτὴν αἰτίαν οὕτως εἴρηκεν. Ὅτι γὰρ τοῦ ὑποδείγματος μεῖζον ἦν τὸ φῶς, ἔδειξαν οἱ μαθηταὶ πεσόντες. Εἰ δὲ μὴ ἄκρατον ἦν τὸ φῶς, ἀλλὰ τῷ ἡλίῳ σύμμετρον, οὐκ ἂν ἔπεσον, ἀλλ' εὐκόλως ἤνεγκαν ἄν. Οἱ μὲν οὖν δίκαιοι ἐκλάμψουσιν ὡς ὁ ἥλιος, καὶ ὑπὲρ τὸν ἥλιον τότε· οἱ δὲ ἁμαρτωλοὶ τὰ ἔσχατα πείσονται. Τότε οὐχ ὑπομνημάτων δεήσει, οὐκ ἐλέγχων, οὐ μαρτύρων· πάντα γὰρ αὐτός ἐστιν ὁ δικάζων, καὶ μάρτυς, καὶ ἔλεγχος, καὶ κριτής. Πάντα γὰρ οἶδε σαφῶς· Πάντα γὰρ γυμνὰ καὶ τετραχηλισμένα τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς αὐτοῦ. Οὐ πλούσιος, οὐ πένης, οὐ δυνάστης, οὐκ ἀσθενὴς, οὐ σοφὸς, οὐκ ἄσοφος, οὐ δοῦλος, οὐκ ἐλεύθερος οὐδεὶς ἐκεῖ φανεῖται, ἀλλὰ τῶν προσωπείων τούτων συντριβέντων ἡ τῶν ἔργων ἐξέτασις ἔσται μόνη. Εἰ γὰρ ἐν τοῖς δικαστηρίοις ὅταν τυραννίδος τις κρίνηται ἢ φόνου, ὅπερ ἂν ᾗ, κἂν ὕπαρχος, κἂν ὕπατος, κἂν ὁτιοῦν, πάντα ἀφίπταται τὰ ἀξιώματα, καὶ ὁ ἁλοὺς τὴν ἐσχάτην δίδωσι δίκην· πολλῷ μᾶλλον ἐκεῖ τοῦτο ἔσται. εʹ. Ἵν' οὖν μὴ γένηται τοῦτο, ἀποθώμεθα τὰ ῥυπαρὰ ἱμάτια, ἐνδυσώμεθα τὰ ὅπλα τοῦ φωτὸς, καὶ ἡ δόξα τοῦ Θεοῦ περιστελεῖ ἡμᾶς. Τί γὰρ καὶ φορτικὸν τῶν ἐπιταγμάτων; τί δὲ οὐ ῥᾴδιον; Ἄκουσον γοῦν τοῦ προφήτου λέγοντος, καὶ τότε εἴσῃ τὴν εὐκολίαν. Οὐδὲ ἐὰν κάμψῃς ὡς κλοιὸν τὸν τράχηλόν σου, καὶ σάκκον καὶ σποδὸν ὑποστρώσῃ, οὐδὲ οὕτω καλέσεις νηστείαν δεκτήν· ἀλλὰ λύε πάντα σύνδεσμον ἀδικίας, διάλυε στραγγαλιὰς βιαίων συναλλαγμάτων. Ὅρα σοφίαν προφήτου. Θεὶς γὰρ φορτικὰ πρότερον καὶ ἀνελὼν, ἀπὸ τῶν εὐκόλων ἀξιοῖ σώζεσθαι, δεικνὺς ὅτι ὁ Θεὸς οὐ πόνων δεῖται, ἀλλ' ὑπακοῆς. Εἶτα δεικνὺς ὅτι εὔκολον μὲν ἡ ἀρετὴ, βαρὺ δὲ καὶ φορτικὸν ἡ κακία, ἀπὸ τῶν ὀνομάτων γυμνῶν τοῦτο κατασκευάζει. Ἡ μὲν γὰρ κακία σύνδεσμος καὶ στραγγαλιὰ, φησίν· ἡ δὲ ἀρετὴ τούτων ἁπάντων ἀπαλλαγὴ καὶ διάλυσις. Πᾶσαν συγγραφὴν ἄδικον διάσπα· τὰ τῶν