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being naturally united with those who have loved it completely, and for the sake of desire for it, have readily endured all painful things with pleasure. But hearing of Abraham's bosom, we shall understand God who appeared to us in the flesh from the seed of Abraham, who is truly the provider of all things and to all who are worthy of grace, according to the quality and quantity of each one's virtue, like different pastures, imparting himself without division and in no way being cut along with those who partake, because of the naturally indivisible essence of his unity, and again, because of the different worthiness of those who partake, appearing paradoxically in their participations, in a distinctly defining way, according to an ineffable union (the Logos knows), to whom no one will be able to cross over who delights in the corruption of the flesh, and who takes more pleasure in the deceit of the world than in His blessed glory, nor will he who has been defeated by the world and, knowing this, wickedly exults in it, stand with him who has conquered the world. For divine justice has judged it not worthy for those who limit human affairs to this life, and live luxuriously in wealth and health of body and other dignities, and judge this alone to be blessed, while considering the goods of the soul as nothing, to partake of the divine and eternal goods, for which they had no care at all, being ignorant, because of their great zeal for material things, how much the virtues surpass wealth and health and the other transient goods.

A contemplation concerning the virtues. For virtues alone, and with other things, make a person blessed. With

other things, in breadth, as one of the wise in divine things said, but alone and by themselves, it is understood in outline, like two cubits, while that which is in breadth is like a heap. For if you take two measures from a heap, what is left remains a heap; and if from blessedness in breadth you take away the goods of the body and external things, but leave only the virtues, the blessedness remains thus undiminished. For virtue in itself is sufficient for the one who has it for happiness. Therefore, every evil man is wretched, even if he has all the so-called goods of the earth in sum, being deprived of the virtues; and every good man is blessed, even if he is deprived of all the goods on earth, having the splendor of virtue, with which Lazarus rejoices, having rest in the bosom of Abraham.

Another contemplation on, "If you are crucified as a robber." And again, a robber is well-disposed who has been deemed worthy to be crucified with Christ through the complete and entire repulsion of the passions, and is crucified with him on the right, that is, practicing every virtue with reason and knowledge, and maintaining his life without offense to all people, and having absolutely no motion of harshness discordant with the gentleness of the word, but an ill-disposed robber is one who, for the sake of glory or greater gains, hypocritically pretends to a life according to virtue in outward ways, and employs one and only one flattering speech toward outsiders in place of all virtue and knowledge, but toward his associates is perverse in mind, being altogether difficult to encounter, whom, as he blasphemes the way of God, one must indeed silence with understanding. For perhaps he will cease from slandering the word through his own way of life, by the exhortation of the one who rebukes him, just as happened on the cross to the robber who fearlessly offered blasphemy. For not to speak against the one who rebuked him

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ἐκείνοις συμφύεσθαι τοῖς αὐτήν ὁλοσχερῶς ἀγαπήσασι πεφυκυίας, καί τοῦ πρός αὐτήν εἴνεκα πόθου πάντα τά ἀλγεινά προθύμως μεθ᾿ ἡδονῆς ὑπομείνασι. Κόλπου δέ Ἀβράαμ ἀκούοντας τόν ἐκ σπέρματος Ἀβράαμ τόν κατά σάρκα ἡμῖν ἐπιφανέντα νοήσομεν Θεόν, τόν ὄντως πάντων χορηγικόν καί πᾶσι τοῖς ἀξίοις τῆς χάριτος ἀναλόγως τῇ κατ᾿ ἀρετήν ἑκάστου ποιότητί τε καί ποσότητι, οἷόν τινας διαφόρως νομάς ἀμερῶς ἑαυτόν ἐπιμερίζοντα καί τοῖς μετάχουσιν οὐδ᾿ ὁπωσοῦν συνδιατεμνόμενον, διά τήν κατά φύσιν ἄτμητον ὀντότητα τῆς ἑνότητος, κἄμπαλιν διά τήν διάφορον ἀξίαν τῶν μετεχόντων ταῖς μετοχαῖς παραδόξως καθ᾿ ἕνωσιν ἄῤῥητον ἀφοριστικῶς ἐπιφαινόμενον (οἶδεν ὁ λόγος) , πρός ὅν οὐδείς διαβῆναι δυνήσεται θρύψει χαίρων σαρκός, καί τῆς αὐτοῦ μακαρίας δόξης τῇ τοῦ κόσμου ἀπάτῃ πλέον ἡδόμενος, οὐδέ στήσεται μετά τοῦ τόν κόσμον νικήσαντος ὁ τῷ κόσμῳ ἡττηθείς και ἐπ᾿ αὐτῷ κακῶς εἰδώς ἀγαλλόμενος. Οὐκ εἶναι γάρ ἄξιον ἔκρινεν ἡ θεία δικαιοσύνη, τούς τῇ ζωῇ ταύτῃ τά κατά τόν ἄνθρωπον περιγράφοντας, καί πλούτῳ καί ὑγείᾳ σώματος καί τοῖς ἄλλοις ἀξιώμασιν ἁβρυνομένους, καί τοῦτο μόνον μακάριον κρίνοντας, τά δέ τῆς ψυχῆς ἀγαθά παρ᾿ οὐδέν τιθεμένους, τῶν θείων καί αἰωνίων μεταλαχεῖν ἀγαθῶν, ὧν οὐδ᾿ ὅλως ἐφρόντισαν, διά τήν πολλήν περί τά ὑλικά σπουδήν ἀγνοήσαντας ὅσον πλούτου καί ὑγείας καί τῶν ἄλλων προσκαίρων ἀγαθῶν αἱ ἀρεταί ὑπερέχουσιν.

Θεωρία περί ἀρετῶν. Μόναι γάρ καί σύν τοῖς ἄλλοις αἱ ἀρεταί μακάριον ποιοῦσιν τόν ἄνθρωπον. Μετά

μέν τῶν ἄλλων, κατά πλάτος, ὥς τις ἔφη τῶν τά θεῖα σοφῶν, μόναι δέ καί καθ' ἑαυτάς, κατά περιγραφήν νοεῖται, ὡς δίπηχυ, τά δέ κατά πλάτος, ὡς σωρός. Σωροῦ γάρ κἄν δύο μεδίμνους ἀφέλῃς, τό λειπόμενον μένει σωρός· καί τῆς δέ κατά πλάτος μακαριότητος ἄν ἀφέλῃς τά τοῦ σώματος καί τῶν ἐκτός ἀγαθά, καταλίπῃς δέ μόνας τάς ἀρετάς, μένει καί οὕτως ἀνελλιπές τό μακάριον. Αὐτάρκης γάρ καθ᾿ ἑαυτήν τῷ ἔχοντι πρός εὐδαιμονίαν ἡ ἀρετή. Πᾶς οὖν κακός ἄθλιος, κἄν πάντα συλήβδην ἔχῃ τά λεγόμενα τῆς γῆς ἀγαθά, τῶν ἀρετῶν ἐστερημένος· καί πᾶς ἀγαθός μακάριος, κἄν πάντων ἐστέρηται τῶν ἐπί γῆς ἀγαθῶν, ἔχων τῆς ἀρετῆς τήν λαμπρότητα, μεθ᾿ ἧς λάζαρος τήν ἐν κόλποις Ἀβράαμ ἀνάπαυσιν ἔχων ἀγάλλεται.

Ἄλλη θεωρία εἰς τό, "Ἐάν σταυρωθῇς ὡς λῃστής." Κἄν αὖθις λῃστής ἐστιν εὐγνώμων ὁ καταξιωθείς συσταυρωθῆναι Χριστῷ διά τῆς

παντελοῦς καί ὁλοκλήρου τῶν παθῶν ἐκκρούσεως, καί δεξιῶς αὐτῷ συσταυρούμενος, τουτέστι μετά λόγου καί γνώσεως πᾶσαν διεξιών ἀρετήν, καί ἀπρόσκοπον πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις τόν βίον διατηρῶν, καί μηδεμίαν ἔχων τό παράπαν τῆς τοῦ λόγου πραότητος ἀπᾴδουσαν δι᾿αὐστηρότητα κίνησιν, ἀγνώμων δέ λῃστής ἐστιν ὁ δόξης ἕνεκεν ἤ λημμάτων ἁδροτέρων τοῖς φαινομένοις τρόποις ὑπούλως τόν κατ' ἀρετήν βίον ὑποκρινόμενος, καί ἕνα καί μόνον πρός τούς ἔξω τόν κόλακα λόγον ἀντί πάσης ἀρετῆς τε καί γνώσεως μετερχόμενος, πρός δέ τούς συνήθεις σκολιός τις τήν γνώμην τῶν παντάπασιν ὤν καί δυσάντητος, ὅν δεῖ μάλα γε τήν ὁδόν τοῦ Θεοῦ βλασφημοῦντα μετά συνέσεως ἐπιστομίζειν. Ἴσως γάρ παύσεται τοῦ διαβάλλειν διά τῆς οἰκείας ἀναστροφῆς τόν λόγον, τῇ παραινέσει τοῦ ἐπιπλήσσοντος, ὥσπερ ἐπί τοῦ σταυροῦ πέπονθεν ὁ τήν βλασφημίαν ἀδεῶς προσενέγκας λῃστής. Τό γάρ μή ἀντιφθέγξασθαι τῷ ἐπιπλήξαντι