1

De iis qui in jejunio continenter vivunt

2. Of the same author, concerning those who are temperate in fasting, and the conduct of various prophets.

64.15 Athletes, by training every day, both increase their skill and easily obtain victory against their opponents; and runners, in the daily practice of agility, making their joints nimble, are sharpened for the swiftest expectation. In this same way, the fathers also permit us to teach more continuously, so that from the practice of the word we may swiftly acquire for ourselves security in teaching. Come then, beloved, having followed in the footsteps of Joseph, leaving behind the Egyptian sin, stripped of hatred, let us run out to temperance. For indeed, even if Joseph [lost] the covering of his flesh, yet did he not have a garment more splendid than the glory of temperance? The purity of temperance, having bound the fathers, served the world as pillars of adamant, stretching their prayers to heaven, and healing the souls of men on earth. The blessed Moses, having girded himself with temperance, became a pillar of salvation for the Hebrews in Egypt, and he cast down the doors of the firstborn of the Egyptians, and blessed the light-bearing children of the Hebrews; and as a pillar he stood against Pharaoh and the magicians, and Joshua the son of Nun, having temperance as his companion, commanded the heavenly luminaries; for he hindered the courses of the sun, and fixed the boundaries of the moon, and lengthened the light of the day. And when was this? When he conducted the war over Gibeon, he said: "Let the sun stand still over Gibeon, and the moon over the valley of Elom." This man cut through a river, saved a people, and brought the Hebrews back again to the holy land; this man threw down walls, and overthrew cities of the impious, saved Rahab, punished foreigners, glorified his kinsmen. And Samson the most courageous, while keeping his temperance, strangled a lion, and from the jawbone of a donkey made water spring forth, and from there received the cure for his thirst. And Elijah the Tishbite, cohabiting with temperance, became a life-giver to the poor widow; for a good blessing made her oil spring forth, and multiplied the handful of flour daily. The same Elijah, through temperance, possessed treasures of fire and water in the clouds; for upon the impious he rained heavenly fire, and for the failing world he emptied out heavenly springs. And Elisha, his disciple, possessing the same temperance as his teacher, in the barren womb of the Shunamite woman, through prayer made the ear of the child to sprout; and since he had to show miracles equal to his teacher, he raises one dead person; and after his death the remains of his bones raise the dead. And Daniel the most wise, like a two-edged sword having girt himself with temperance, throttled the secret-murdering wolves, and the 64.16 lamb of Hilkiah he kept unharmed. For neither was her bright fleece of temperance shorn by a defiled kiss, nor by the two-edged sword of sin were her breasts defiled. And the blessed Habakkuk, seized by the Holy Spirit, brought the workers' breakfast to the worker of temperance, Daniel. For was God not able to feed this one also, just like Elijah, by means of ravens? but so that he might not leave unconsoled the one among beasts

1

De iis qui in jejunio continenter vivunt

Βʹ. Τοῦ αὐτοῦ περὶ τῶν ἐν νηστείᾳ σωφρονούντων, καὶ διαγωγῆς διαφόρων προφητῶν.

64.15 Οἱ μὲν ἀθληταὶ καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν γυμναζόμενοι καὶ τὴν τέχνην αὔξουσι, καὶ τὴν κατὰ τῶν ὑπεναντίων νίκην ῥᾳδίως λαμβάνουσιν· οἱ δέ γε δρομεῖς ἐν τῇ καθημερινῇ μελέτῃ τῆς εὐστροφίας εὐκινήτους τὰς ἁρμονίας ἀπεργαζόμενοι πρὸς προσδοκίαν ταχίστην ὀξύνονται. Τὸν αὐτὸν δὴ τρόπον καὶ οἱ πατέρες συνεχέστερον ἡμᾶς διδάσκειν ἐπιτρέπουσιν, ἵνα τὴν ἐν τῷ διδάσκειν ἀσφάλειαν ἐκ τῆς τοῦ λόγου μελέτης ταχεῖαν ἡμῖν προσποιησώμεθα. ∆εῦρο τοίνυν, ἀγαπητοὶ, τὸν Ἰωσὴφ ἰχνηλατήσαντες, τὴν Αἰγυπτίαν ἁμαρτίαν λείποντες, γυμνοὶ τοῦ μίσους πρὸς τὴν σωφροσύνην ἐκδράμωμεν. Καὶ γὰρ, εἰ καὶ Ἰωσὴφ τὸ τῆς σαρκὸς κάλυμμα, ἀλλ' οὔ γε τῆς σωφροσύνης δόξης λαμπρότερον εἶχε τὸ ἔνδυμα; Σωφροσύνης ἁγνεία τοὺς πατέρας συσφίγξασα στύλους ἀδαμαντίνους τῇ οἰκουμένῃ ὑπήρεισε, τὰς μὲν εὐχὰς εἰς οὐρανὸν ἐκτείνοντας, τὰς δὲ ψυχὰς τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐπὶ γῆς θεραπεύοντας. Μωϋσῆς ὁ μακάριος σωφροσύνῃ ἑαυτὸν περισφίγξας, στῦλος σωτηρίας τοῖς Ἑβραίοις γέγονεν ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ, καὶ τῶν μὲν πρωτοτόκων θύρας τῶν Αἰγυπτίων ἐδάφιζε, τοὺς δὲ φωτοφόρους παῖδας τῶν Ἑβραίων ἐμακάριζε· καὶ τῷ μὲν Φαραὼ καὶ τοῖς μάγοις στῦλος ἀνθίστατο, Ἰησοῦς δὲ ὁ τοῦ Ναυὴ, τὴν σωφροσύνην σύνευνον ἔχων, οὐρανίοις φωστῆρσιν ἐκέλευε· τοῦ γὰρ ἡλίου τοὺς δρόμους ἐκώλυε, καὶ τῆς σελήνης τοὺς ὅρους ἐπήγνυε, καὶ τῆς ἡμέρας τὸ φάος ἐμήκυνε. Πότε δὲ τοῦτο; Ὅτε ὑπὲρ Γαβαὼν τὸν πόλεμον ἔλεγε· Στήτω ὁ ἥλιος κατὰ Γαβαὼν, καὶ ἡ σελήνη κατὰ φάραγγα Ἐλώμ. Οὗτος ποταμὸν διέτεμε, λαὸν περιέσωσεν, καὶ εἰς τὴν ἁγίαν γῆν πάλιν τοὺς Ἑβραίους ἐπέστρεφεν· οὗτος τείχη ἐῤῥίπιζε, καὶ πόλεις ἀσεβῶν κατέστρεφε, τὴν Ῥαὰβ διέσωζεν, ἀλλοφύλους ἐκόλαζεν, ὁμοφύλους ἐδόξαζε. Σαμψὼν δὲ ὁ ἀνδρειότατος, σωφροσύνην φυλάσσων, λέοντα ἀπέπνιγε, καὶ ἐκ σιαγόνος ὄνου ὕδωρ ἐπήγαζε, καὶ τὸ ἴαμα τῆς δίψης ἐκεῖθεν ἐδέχετο. Ἠλίας δὲ ὁ Θεσβίτης σωφροσύνῃ συνοικήσας, τῇ πενιχρᾷ χήρᾳ ζωοδότης ἐγένετο· εὐλογία γὰρ ἀγαθὴ τὸ ἔλαιον αὐτῆς ἐπήγαζε, καὶ τὴν δράκα τοῦ ἀλεύρου καθ' ἡμέραν ἐπλήθυνεν. Ὁ αὐτὸς Ἠλίας διὰ σωφροσύνην πυρὸς καὶ ὕδατος θησαυροὺς ἐν νεφέλαις ἐκέκτητο· τοῖς γὰρ ἀσεβέσι πῦρ οὐράνιον ἐπόμβρει, καὶ τῇ οἰκουμένῃ ἐκλειπούσῃ οὐρανίους πηγὰς ἐξεκένωσεν. Ἑλισσαῖος δὲ ὁ τούτου μαθητὴς τὴν αὐτὴν τοῦ διδασκάλου σωφροσύνην κεκτημένος, ἐν τῇ ἀτόκῳ μήτρᾳ τῆς Σωμανίτιδος, δι' εὐχῆς τὸν στάχυν τοῦ τέκνου ἐβλάστανε· καὶ ἐπειδὴ ἔδει αὐτὸν ἴσα τῷ διδασκάλῳ τὰ θαύματα δεικνύναι, νεκρὸν ἕνα ἀνεγείρει· καὶ μετὰ θάνατον τῶν ὀστῶν αὐτοῦ τὰ λείψανα τοὺς νεκροὺς ἀνεγείρουσι. ∆ανιὴλ δὲ ὁ σοφώτατος, καθάπερ μάχαιραν δίστομον τὴν σωφροσύνην περιζωσάμενος, τοὺς λαθροφόνους λύκους συνέπνιξε, καὶ τὴν 64.16 ἀμνάδα Χελκίου ἀβλαβῆ διεφύλαττεν. Οὔτε γὰρ ὁ λαμπρὸς αὐτῆς πόκος τῆς σωφροσύνης μιαρῷ φιλήματι ἐτέμνετο, οὔτε τῇ διστόμῳ ῥομφαίᾳ τῆς ἁμαρτίας τοὺς μαστοὺς ἐμιαίνετο. Ἀμβακοὺμ δὲ ὁ μακάριος ὑπὸ Πνεύματος ἁγίου ἁρπαγεὶς τὸ τῶν ἐργατῶν ἄριστον τῷ ἐργάτῃ τῆς σωφροσύνης ∆ανιὴλ παρεκόμιζε. Μὴ γὰρ οὐκ ἠδύνατο ὁ Θεὸς καὶ τοῦτον, καθάπερ τὸν Ἠλίαν, διὰ κοράκων ἐκθρέψαι; ἀλλ' ἵνα μὴ ἀπαραμύθητον ἐάσῃ τὸν μετὰ θηρίων