Книга 24 [глава 33, стихи 22–33, глава 34, стихи 1–18]

The last 11 verses of chapter 33 and the first 18 verses of chapter 34 are explained. Amazing truths are taught about Christ the Reconciler, contemplation, transformation. It also talks about pastoral ministry. 1. Speaking about the power of the Divine dispensation, Elihu mentioned the suffering of each of the elect, saying: And his soul draws near to decay, and his life to death (Job.33:22) 2041. And, speaking about the trials of one person, he shows what trials the entire human race goes through; and by mentioning specifically those to whom this has happened, he clearly implies that this happens, as a rule, in general. For he has so described the temptations of certain persons, one by one, that the temptation of all men in general may also be implied. The whole body of the elect suffers in this life under the weight of this work. Therefore he immediately introduced a general remedy to cure this common disease, saying: Verse 23, 24. If there is a messenger angel telling him one thing out of many to show a person the righteous path, He will have mercy on him (Job 33:23–24) 2042. 2. Who is this Angel if not the one who is called a prophet: the mighty protector Angel? (Isa.9:6) 2043. And since proclaiming is called “evangelizing” in Greek, the Lord, proclaiming Himself to us, is called “Angel” (Is. 63:9) 2044. And he says well: if there is a messenger (or angel) to tell him; because, as the apostle says, He intercedes for us. But let's listen to what is being said for us: One of many things. This is the way of medicine, sometimes similar, sometimes opposite remedies are used to cure a disease. Figuratively speaking, they often treat hot with hot and cold with cold; and vice versa, cold is hot, and hot is cold. Our Physician, therefore, having come to us from above and finding us suffering from such a strong illness, applies to our case both something similar and something opposite. For He came to us not only as a Man to people, but also as the only Sinless One to those who are in sin. He was like us in His human nature, He was different from us in the power of His righteousness. Sinful man cannot be changed by anyone except God. But this was necessary so that the one who heals becomes visible to us; so that He can correct our sinful lives, setting a pattern for us to imitate. But it is impossible for God to be visible to man. Therefore he became a man in order to be visible. The Holy and Invisible God appeared as visible to man, so that, while He had the same nature, He could teach us His holiness. And united with our condition in the truth of nature, He could put an end to our illness by His power. 3. Because when the Lord came in the flesh, He did not carry with Him either our guilt or our punishment as a necessity for atonement for guilt, (untainted by sin, He could not be involved in our state of guilt, and, therefore, voluntarily suffered our death, according to His will), therefore it is rightly said that what the messenger says: “one of many things”, because no other people were born like He, and there were none who died and rose again like He. For He was conceived, not by an act of nature, but by the Holy Spirit who descended on His Mother (Luke 1:35) 2045. And when He was born, the fertility of the Mother's womb was confirmed, which retained its virgin purity. But, again, we all die when we don't want Him; because we are limited by the sinfulness of our nature, and are unable to pay the debt of punishment. But He, due to the absence of any admixture of sin, is innocent and not subject to punishment. But since He covered our guilt, surpassing this, He suffered our punishment out of compassion for us; as He Himself says: I have power to lay down My life, and I have power to take it up again (John 10:18) 2046, who also before this said: no one will take it from Me; but I myself give it away. Again, He rose again, not like other people; because our resurrection will be delayed until the end of the world, while His was celebrated on the third day. And we, again, will be resurrected by Him, and He Himself was resurrected. For He who is God does not need, as we do, to be resurrected by someone else. This is also where His resurrection differs from ours, that we will not rise on our own as He did. For, since we are simple people, we need help from above so that we can be resurrected. But He, as God, demonstrated His power in the resurrection together with the Father and the Holy Spirit, although He alone in His human nature went through this experience. Since the Lord, although He was really born, really died, and really rose again, differs from us, in all these moments, in the greatness of His power, but coincides with us in the truth of His nature in these moments, He has well said that the Messenger, tells us one thing among many. For at all times He surpasses us in all His works by His immeasurable power, but during His earthly life He is no different in His nature from us. 4. He intercedes with the Father on our behalf by revealing Himself in the same nature as us. His intercession or intercession for us is His manifestation of Himself in human nature for man's sake. And it is good that when He says “one thing among many,” it is immediately added that He can show the righteous path. Because if He had not become like people, man would not have appeared before God. For He declares the righteous way, by virtue of the very fact that He graciously took upon Himself our weakness according to His desire (Heb. 2:16-17) 2047. That fatal agreement has defiled us all with this contamination of sin from the very beginning of our existence (Gen. 3:3) 2048. And there was not one who, speaking to God from sinners, could appear free from sin; Therefore, everyone who was created from the same mixture was bound by equal guilt. Therefore, the Only Begotten of the Father came to us and took on our nature without sinning. It was necessary that He who could intercede for sinners should be free from sin, because, without a doubt, He could not bear the guilt of others if He bore His own. Therefore, it is well said that by accepting our nature, He declared the righteous path. By interceding for sinners, He was such a righteous Man that He deserved forgiveness for others. Therefore it follows: Verse 24. He will have compassion on him, and will say: Free him from corruption; I found a way to appease him (Job 33:24) 2049. 5. The Messenger, as a mediator between God and man, the man Jesus Christ, shows mercy for man by taking the form of a man. Through this mercy and compassion, He speaks to His Father on behalf of the person whose sins He atones: free him from corruption. For, as we said earlier, His request to free us from decay is His appearance in the human body, taking it upon Himself. To this flesh, which He accepted and through His redemption, He gave freedom. This is the deliverance of the flesh, in truth, for ourselves, since it is bound in a state of putrefaction through our fault. But about the mighty Redeemer it is said: Therefore, if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed (John 8:36). And it is well said about the redemption of man that he will be freed from corruption. And it was said above, his soul should be approaching decay. As if He had said, he must know his weakness, and that he is not far from decay, then he will not descend to mortal decay. For he will indeed approach decay if he believes that by his own strength he can avoid this decay. And only because he approached the rot with humility can he be mercifully taken away from there; and that the more he confesses that he is weak by nature, the more he can be strengthened against the sins that attack him. For he who exalts himself above his actual state burdens himself with the burden of his pride, and sinks the lower, the more he sinks into the sin of pride, and distances himself further from the One who is truly exalted; (Luke 14:11) 2050, and he sinks even further to the bottom, from the very fact that he considers himself superior; as the prophet said to that soul that exalts itself: Whom are you superior to? go down and lie with the uncircumcised (Ezek.32:19) 2051. Anyone who neglects to consider the ugliness of his weakness, but looks through the arrogance of pride at his supposed strength, sinks lower. For while proud of himself for his merits, he falls into the very depths of destruction, because of the very qualities for which he considered himself worthy of honor. And he goes down and lies with the uncircumcised, because he perishes in eternal death with other sinners. Therefore, when a person humbly admitted that he was close to rotting, it is correctly said: free him from rotting so that he can avoid punishment the more he does not turn his eyes away from his wickedness. But since there was no one who had merits worthy to reconcile us with the Lord, the Only Begotten of the Father, taking upon Himself the image of our weakness, the Only One appeared only so that He could intercede for sinners. 6. And the Messenger, speaking on behalf of this redeemed man, says well: I have found a way to appease him. It is as if the Mediator between God and man had explicitly said: Because there was no one to appear before God as a righteous intercessor on behalf of man, I became Man to obtain propitiation for mankind; and in the manifestation of Myself as Man, I found a way to justly propitiate Him. And therefore the Lord, taking upon Himself the illness when He suffered our punishment in His death, abolished our decay after His resurrection, and the Messenger added a description of the suffering of our mortal state and showed pity for them, saying: Verse 25. His flesh is worn away by punishment, let him return to the days of his youth (Job 33:25) 2052. 7. Because when the first man apostatized from God, we were expelled from the joys of Paradise, and were involved in the suffering of this earthly life; (Genesis 3:23–24) 2053, and we feel, with the pain of our punishment, what a grave mistake we made by succumbing to the serpent’s persuasion. Having fallen into this state, we found nothing outside of God except sorrow. And since we have followed the carnal according to the command of our eyes, our suffering is caused by the very flesh that we preferred to God's command. For in it we suffer daily in sorrow, in it we are tortured, and in it we die; according to the wonderful dispensation of the Lord, with the help of what caused us to sin, our punishment also occurs; and the severity of the punishment arises from the same source that gave rise to sin; so that man may be disciplined in life by the bitter suffering of that very flesh in the pride of which he approaches death. 8. Since then, the human race has experienced the oppression of countless sufferings of this life in the flesh, but the guilt and punishment of our sin were destroyed with the coming of our Redeemer, therefore let it be said of the redeemed man: His flesh worn away by punishment, let him return to the days of his youth. As if he had said: through the punishment of his death, he came to the age of his old state; let him return to the days of his youth; that is, let him be renewed in the integrity of his former life, that he may not remain in the condition into which he fell, but return redeemed to the accomplishment of that for which he was created. Scripture often uses the words “youth” to mean newness of life. Therefore, for example, it is said about the coming of the Bridegroom: young maidens will love you, which signifies the souls of the elect, renewed by the grace of Baptism, who do not succumb to the habits of the old life, but who are adorned with the dispensation of the new man. For he actually mourns the age of an old man who languishes in the midst of sins, saying: I have grown old among all my enemies (Ps. 6:8) 2054, but someone also, on the other hand, advising a person to rejoice in strength, says: Rejoice, young man, in your youth (Eccl. 11:9) 2055. It was as if he were saying: let every man who is strong rejoice in his renewal; that is, let him derive his joy not from the pleasures of his old life, but from his new state. But since we have come to this new life not by our own strength, but by the mediation of the Redeemer, let the Messenger speak and intercede for us to return us to the days of our youth. And therefore, as our Redeemer intercedes with the Father on our behalf, we shake off the torpor of our former life, and are inflamed with a thirst for prayer, well communing with the redeemed man: Verse 26. He must pray to God, and He will be merciful to him (Job 33:26) 2056. 9 . He says that the Messenger pleads first, and man after Him; If the Lord had not first interceded with the Father through His incarnation, and prayed for our lives, our indifference would never have risen up to ask for those things that are eternal. But the prayer of His Incarnation was first, so that our awakening from laziness could follow. And because the light of truth flashes with secret joy in our hearts after temptations and often after great sorrows, about this man who was tempted and implored God, it is rightly added: looks at his rejoicing face (Job.33:26) 2057. 10. It was indicated above how God punishes us by revealing Himself. But now we are talking about how He pleases us while He reveals Himself. A person who has remorse, on the one hand, when looking inside himself, is horrified with the fear of his own sinfulness, and, on the other hand, looking at heavenly joy, he is strengthened in the hope of peace. Some emotions excite tears of pain and sadness, others tears of joy. This is called rejoicing when an inexpressible joy overcomes us, a joy that can neither be hidden nor expressed in words. This is felt in everything, although it is not expressed in any suitable words. Therefore, for example, the prophet David, seeing that the souls of the chosen ones experienced joy too great to express in words, says: Blessed is the people who know rejoicing (Ps. 89:16) 2058. He does not say “expressed” but “recognized,” because rejoicing can only be known in sensation, but cannot be expressed in words. This is such a high feeling that is experienced in him. But since the mind of the one who senses it does not find sufficient scope to realize it, how can the speaker's tongue say enough about it? Because when the light of truth penetrates our hearts, it makes us at one time full of sadness, from its display of strict justice, and rejoices us by revealing inner joy: after the bitterness of temptations, after the sorrows of adversity, it is rightly communed: he looks at his rejoicing face. 11. The fire of sorrow first rushes into our mind, since in itself it is blind, so that all the rust of sins can be burned away. And when the eyes of our heart are cleansed from sin, then the joy of our heavenly home is revealed to them, so that we will first wash away the grief that we have done, and then get a clearer idea of ​​what we seek after. First the fog of sin is destroyed, burning away sorrow; and this is precisely the enlightenment of the bright boundless light that illuminates us. After this, a kind of ecstatic peace is absorbed into the mind, and the mind is carried beyond its own limits, as if real life had ceased to be, this renewal of a kind of new being. The mind is then watered with an infusion of heavenly dew from an inexhaustible source. And there he discerns that he is not worthy of this joy, to which he was in such a hurry, and from a sense of truth he sees that he cannot comprehend how great the truth is. And the more he considers himself to be further from the truth, the closer he comes to it. 12. The effort of the mind increases when it is led towards it (the truth) by the bright outline of its boundless nature. Filling all things with herself, she simultaneously surrounds all things; and our mind does not expand itself sufficiently to comprehend the limitless object that surrounds it, because the imperfection of its own limited constitution keeps it within narrow limits. And he accordingly falls back into himself, and sees only a small trace of truth before he again remembers the feeling of his own baseness. But still this short-term, quick vision, which is the result of contemplation, or rather even a semblance of a vision, is called the face of God. For we who recognize a person by his face naturally call the knowledge of God “His face.” Therefore Jacob says: I have seen the Lord face to face (Gen. 32:30) 2059. It was as if he were saying, I know the Lord because He Himself has graciously known me. Paul says that this knowledge will be most complete at the end, saying: then will I know, even as I am known (1 Cor. 13:12) 2060. Because then, after the labors of trials, after a wave of temptations, the soul often experiences rejoicing that it can contemplate the knowledge of the Divine Presence (a presence which it can feel, but which it can never fully enjoy), it is also well said about this man who has passed through temptations and many labors: he will see his face in jubilation. But the more a person contemplates heavenly things, the more he changes his earthly deeds, therefore, after describing the grace of contemplation, the righteousness of his deeds is rightly added. And He will reward man with his righteousness (Job 33:26) 2061. 13. It is called our righteousness, not because it comes from ourselves, but as something given to us by Divine generosity: as we say in the Lord's Prayer: Give us this day our daily bread (Matthew 6:11) 2062. We call the bread “ours,” and yet we pray that it may be given to us. It is ours because we will receive it: but it is God's, because it is given by Him (Luke 11:3) 2063. And this, therefore, is God’s, it is His gift, and it becomes truly ours only after we accept it. It is in this sense that the phrase is understood here: gives a man his righteousness: not that a man has righteousness himself, but that he receives it, being created in such a way as to be able to receive it; but having dropped it, he will not pick it up again. God, therefore, gives man the righteousness which he was created to receive, that he may be comforted by clinging to God, but that he may fear His threatening judgment, and no longer trust the alluring promises of the cunning serpent. 14. Our ancient enemy does not stop doing the same thing every day that he did in Paradise. He is trying to tear the words of God out of the hearts of people, and plant in them false persuasions of his own creation. Day by day he softens God's warnings and invites faith in his false promises. For he falsely promises temporary benefits in order to soften in people's minds the idea of ​​\u200b\u200bthe eternal punishments about which God warns. For when he promises the glory of this life, what else does he do but say: taste, and you will be like gods (Gen. 3:5) 2064? It is as if he is directly saying: give in to worldly desires and rise in this world. And when he now tries to remove our fear of the Divine warning of punishment, what else does he say if not the same words that he used for our first parents: “why did your God command you that you should not eat of every tree of the garden” (Gen. 3:1) 2065? But since man has, by the divine gift, the righteousness restored in his atonement, which he had lost long ago after his creation, he makes a more vigorous resistance against the temptations of cunning persuasion, because he has learned by experience how obedient he must be to the covenants of God. And he, whom sin brought to punishment, is now restrained from sin by his own punishment: it is so arranged that the more terrible the offense, the more terrible the fear of punishment, and the more he would condemn the evil that he committed. It follows from this: Verse 27. He will look at the people and say, I have sinned (Job 33:27) 2066. 15. A person does not recognize himself as a sinner if he does not know righteousness. Because no one will discover their depravity unless they try to be honest. For he who is generally corrupt cannot realize who he really is. But the one who realizes that he is a sinner begins to be righteous to some extent, and, being already righteous, blames his behavior for where he is still unrighteous. And therefore, by blaming himself, he begins to become devoted to God when, undergoing righteous judgment in relation to himself, he condemns that in himself that he perceives as unpleasant to himself. This man then, having restored his righteousness, exclaims: I have sinned. And the expression that precedes this deserves attention: He will look at people; and only after this does he partake: and he will say, I have sinned. Some people don't know they have sinned because they don't watch others. If they had properly observed others, they would have been more willing to admit how far they themselves had fallen in sin. Holy Scripture is sometimes accustomed to use the word “people” for those who love to eat human things, as the apostle says: For if there is envy, strife, and disagreement among you, are you not carnal? , and immediately introduces you and don’t you live like people? (1 Cor 3:3) 2067. But sometimes the Holy Scripture calls “people” those whom reason distinguishes from animals, that is, who were given the power not to depend on the animal influence of passions. For whom the Lord speaks through the prophet: you are the flock of my flock, people (Ezek.34:31) 2068, for the Lord feeds them in truth, who are not influenced by carnal pleasures, as happens with animals. But, on the other hand, those who yield to the desires of the flesh are not called people, but beasts. As the prophet said about some dying in their sins: Beasts rot in their dung (Joel 1:17) 2069. The beasts that rot in their dung are carnal men who end their lives in the filth of lust. For them, as it is said, there is no name “people”, but only “beasts”, about which the prophet said: everyone laughed at his neighbor’s wife; (Jer.5:8) 2070 and about which another prophet says: Their flesh is like the flesh of donkeys, and the lust is like that of stallions (Ezek.23:20) 2071 and, therefore, it is said by David: a man who is in honor and foolish is like beasts, and will be with him as with them (Ps.49:21) 2072. Since then, only those who adhere to reason and justice are called people, and those who are slaves to carnal pleasures are called unreasonable animals, therefore it is well said about this penitent: he will look at people and say, I have sinned. It is as if it had been explicitly said that he sees the examples of the saints, and by comparing himself with them, he discovers that he is a sinner. For if a man would most fully know his own character, he must, doubtless, look at those who are different from himself: and, by comparing himself with their dress of righteousness, he can measure the extent of his own wickedness, in order then to abandon it. He who sees good qualities in abundance in others rightly believes that he himself is in need and sees his own ugliness in their beauty. A person who wants to expose the darkness must look at the light in order to use it to see what to think about the darkness because of which he cannot see. For if a sinner looks at himself without recognizing the character of the righteous, he in no way understands himself to be a sinner. For he cannot really see himself; not knowing the brightness of the light, what else does he contemplate when looking at himself, if not darkness? Then one should look at the behavior of the righteous in order to obtain accurate knowledge about oneself. Because they are offered to us as a standard for our behavior. 16. The life of the righteous is a training in the art of living; therefore the righteous are deservedly called the word “books” in the language of Scripture; as it is written: The Books were opened, and another Book was opened, which is the Book of Life; and the dead were judged according to the things that were written in the Books (Rev. 20:12) 2073. The Book of Life is the sight of the approaching Judge. All His commandments are written in it so that the one who contemplates it will quickly understand, by the testimony of his conscience, to what deeds he has sunk. The books, as they say, will be opened, because the behavior of the righteous is revealed, in whose actions the commandments of heaven were sealed. And the dead were judged by the things that were written in the books, because in the deeds of the righteous, which is set forth, they read, as in an open book, about all the good things that they refused to do themselves, and this is compared with those who did. Therefore, so that each of us then, looking at this, does not bitterly mourn our omissions when it is too late, let us now observe in them what we should imitate. And the chosen ones do not stop doing this. They study the behavior of their best, and move away from their loose line of behavior. 17. And therefore in the Song of Songs it is said about the Holy Church: your two breasts are like the twins of a young chamois grazing among the lilies. While the day breathes coolness and the shadows flee, I will go to the mountain of myrrh and to the hill of incense (Song.4:5-6) 2074. What do two breasts mean, if not two peoples, coming from Jews and from pagans, who are implanted into the body of the Holy Church, according to wisdom and in the mystery of the heart. And those who are chosen from these people are compared to a young goat, because they realize through their humility that they are weak and sinful; but if any obstacles are encountered on their worldly path, they, supported by the power of love, jump over them, and with leaps of contemplation climb to the knowledge of heaven. And in order to do this, they study the examples of saints who have gone through this before. Therefore it is said that they feed among the lilies. For what is meant by lilies, if not the behavior of those about whom it is said in the words of truth: we are the aroma of Christ to God (2 Cor. 2:15) 2075? The chosen one, therefore, in order to gain strength and to achieve the highest perfection, feeds himself to the fullest, looking at the fragrant and pure life of the righteous. Even now they thirst for the knowledge of the Lord, they burn with the fires of love in order to be satisfied in the contemplation of Him. But since they are unable to do this while still in this life, they feed on it from the examples of the fathers who preceded them. And, therefore, the time of their feeding on lilies is determined by the period: Until the day breathes coolness, and the shadows flee. That is, as long as we pass through this mortal state, until the dawn of the eternal day, we must be renewed by the examples of the righteous. But when the shadow of this temporary decay departs from us, when this mortal state has passed, because we ourselves see the light of day within us, we can no longer look for the kindling of this love in the examples of others. But for now, since it is not yet in us, we specifically need to ignite it by looking at the behavior of those who came before us. And then we will see how wonderful the deeds of those who strive to follow the righteous path are, and we will learn how shameful the laziness of our decline is. For as soon as we see the behavior of the virtuous, we expose ourselves to censure within us. The shame of the present attacks the mind; and soon our guilt already condemns us with heaviness: and we flare up with indignation even at insignificant earthly things, in which we accidentally still shamefully seek pleasure. 18. Therefore, Ezekiel said well: You, son of man, tell the house of Israel about this church, so that they may be ashamed of their iniquities and take away the measure from it, and be ashamed of everything that they have done (Ezek. 43:10) 2076. The church of God appears to the children of Israel to their reproach; as it is revealed to all sinners for their reproach, with what great holiness the soul of every righteous man shines, in which God dwells by His inspiration; so that they see in him the good in which they themselves have not grown up, and blush within themselves at the evil that they commit. But to remove the measure means to accurately weigh the behavior of the righteous. While we are taking the measure, we must feel the need to blush at everything that we have done: because the more accurately we take into account and study good deeds, the more seriously we expose ourselves to all our sins. But the prophet rightly said: build a church. For as long as the sinner does not go by looking at the righteousness of others, he can learn everything from the words of the preacher. And to announce the church to sinners means to correlate the deeds of virtuous people and those who do not yet recognize them of their own free will. Those who wish to reach the highest heights must necessarily always look to their best, in order that they may judge their own error with greater severity, seeing a higher object for imitation. 19. But why do we say sinners, even when we see them working in the field of righteousness? Because one receives the gift of wisdom, and yet does not achieve the grace of self-control. Another is endowed with great power of continence, but has not yet achieved the sublime contemplation of wisdom. Another is able to foresee all future events in the spirit of prophecy, but cannot yet alleviate the evil of the present with the gift of healing. Another gift of healing removes the evil that is tormenting us at this moment, but still does not have the spirit of prophecy and does not know the future. Another is able to give without sparing much of what he has to the poor, but cannot boldly confront the villains. Another bravely confronts evildoers in the name of God, but still refuses to give even a little of what he has to those in need. Another one is already restraining himself even from idle talk, having subdued the looseness of his tongue, but he still cannot overcome the anger that still rises in him. The other perfectly controls any passion, but still allows his tongue complete freedom. Why is it so arranged that one person needs that good quality in which another is strong, and most importantly, why does one, although powerful in many ways, still sigh due to the lack of some excellent qualities that he observes in abundance in others? Is it only because, according to a wonderful arrangement, with the help of the quality that another has, but this person does not, it would be possible to clearly see that the other is superior to this person. Thus, the more a person observes the virtues that he does not have, and that he is inferior to others in those that he does possess, he can more readily move towards humility. And thus, while each of them sees something worthy of admiration in the other, it keeps each of them from rising in pride, and kindles in them the desire for greater growth. We follow the path of our own improvement much more carefully when we observe in others a virtue which we ourselves do not possess. Therefore, the prophet Ezekiel, when he described flying animals, adds: and I heard behind me a great voice of thunder: “Blessed is the glory of the Lord from his place!”, and the sound of the wings of living creatures beating each other with their wings (Ezek. 3:12–13) 2077. What should we understand by the wings of living beings, if not the merits of saints? For when they despise the things of earth, they rise on their wings to heaven. Therefore, Isaiah said correctly: Those who believe in the Lord will renew their strength; they will mount with wings like eagles (Is. 40:31) 2078. The flying creatures then strike each other with their wings, because the minds of the saints, in their desires for heavenly things, are determined to mutually consider each other's merits. A man strikes me with his wing if he ignites me in the desire for better things by the example of his own holiness. And I beat a living creature nearby with my wing if I provide another person with my good deed as an example to follow. 20. But since we have already said that the behavior of the saints is indicated by these living beings, let us raise our eyes to the light, and consider carefully how by the mutual blows of their wings they support each other. Paul, when he had surpassed the industry of other holy men, laboring more energetically in preaching to keep himself from pride and nourish his strength in the bosom of humility, says, remembering his former cruelty, and contemplating the innocence of all the other apostles: For I am the least of the apostles, and am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God (1 Cor. 15:9). And yet the chief (“principatus”) of the same Apostles 2079, as if forgetting the superiority of the powers entrusted to him, as if endowed with less wisdom, admires the wisdom that Paul had, and says: just as our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, wrote to you. As he speaks of this in all his epistles, in which there is something too strong to be understood (2 Pet. 3:15-16) 2080. Behold, Paul admires the innocence of all the other Apostles; behold, the chief of the Apostles admires the wisdom of Paul. What is this if not an example of holy men mutually admiring something in others that they do not have, and what is this if not a blow of wings given to each other so that they can awaken each other to a higher flight, the more humbly they observe something in each other that is worthy of admiration? Therefore we must draw a conclusion from this, and realize with what anxiety we, who lie in the lowest depths, must study the lives of those who are our best; even if they, who were already in the holiness of the heights, still sought and found something to admire and imitate others in order that, walking along the path of humility, they could advance to greater things. 21. But the wicked do not know about all these things, for they have forever fixed their gaze on the lowest objects. And even if they ever come in the way of the Lord, they ignore the footsteps of those who are better, but always look to the examples of those who are worse than themselves. They do not look at the behavior of those in relation to whom they can humbly consider themselves inferior, but at those to whom they can proudly prefer themselves. For they look to those who are worse than themselves, to whom they can boast that they are preferable, and therefore they cannot move on to better things, because they think that it is enough for them that they are superior to the worst. Pathetic people! they go their own way, and yet they look back. In their hopes they really put one foot forward; but in search of evil examples they turn their gaze back. They are not concerned with appearing righteous, but with setting a crooked example by comparison to which they will be seen to be better. For if they want to know themselves as they really are, they must choose examples not from those who are worse, but from those who are better than themselves. And so they don't realize that they are sinners because they don't look at people. If they looked at people, they would know how far they are from being good people because of their sins. Therefore, he who seeks examples of good people repents in order to understand about himself how far he has strayed from virtue, it is well said: Verse 27. He will look at the people and say, I have sinned, and indeed I did wrong, and I did not get what I deserved (Job 33:27) 2081. 22. Even those who do not believe that they have sinned tend to admit that they are sinners. It often happens that people openly admit that they are sinners, but, having heard a true account of their sins, when others attack them, they boldly defend themselves, and strive to appear innocent. Each of them, in this case, when he says that he is a sinner, speaks falsely; for he declares himself a sinner not from the depths of his soul, but only in words. For, as it is said: The righteous first accuses himself (Proverbs 18:17) 2082. But if he admits his sin first out of a desire to save his reputation, so as not to be humiliated by others, this means that he wished, by blaming himself, to appear modest, without being so. If he truly wants to be humble in confessing his sin, he will not attack others when he is accused of doing so. The righteous man, judging by his own conduct, knows from the depths of his heart, from the example of the saints, that he has actually sinned in what he professes. He says: I sinned, and I really did wrong. And he adds with even greater pain that he is experiencing: and I didn’t get what I deserved. 23. Anyone who experiences punishment and thinks that he was punished more than he deserved underestimates his sins. But this man, because the more he considers examples of people better than himself, the more strictly he weighs his actions and tests himself, admits that he was punished less than he deserved. Because he sees in their righteousness how vile the guilt of his own errors is, and does not feel that his punishment is severe, knowing the severe guilt of his own conduct. It is very easy for a person, when he is not punished for his sins, to admit that he is a sinner. We fearlessly call ourselves unrighteous when we do not feel the punishment for unrighteous deeds. For in calm times we call ourselves sinners, but when we receive punishment for these very sins from the blow that falls on us, we begin to grumble. Punishment then is a test for us to see whether we really admit our guilt. Therefore, the righteous man, truly knowing his guilt, says even under the blow of punishment: I did not receive what I deserved. What follows: Verse 28. For He saves my soul from destruction (Job 33:28) 2083. 24. When Divine Grace goes before us in good works, our free will follows, and we who give our consent to God saving us are said to be saved. Therefore, when Paul says: I have labored more than all (1 Cor. 15:10) 2084, so that it would not seem that he attributes his labors to himself, he immediately added: nevertheless, it is not I, however, but the grace of God that is with me. For, since he followed with his free will the grace of God in himself, he correctly adds: with me, so that, on the one hand, he would not be ungrateful for the Divine gift, on the other hand, he would not alienate the merit of free will. But he, having received knowledge about himself and accepted the One who saves him, rightly says: He saves my soul from destruction. She will live and see the light. That is, the light of truth, which he could not see when he was dead at heart. Or, of course, because the Lord said: I am the light of the world (John 8:12) 2085, even the dead will also see the light, and all the wicked will see His coming in judgment in Human nature. But he lives and sees the light, being alive, who has the eyes of his heart open, and who contemplates Him in His Divine nature. Therefore it follows: Verse 29. God does all these things three times with each person (Job 33:29) 2086. 25. About this man, tempted and beaten by disasters, it was said earlier: his bread becomes disgusting to him in his life, and his soul turns away from his favorite food (Job.33:20) 2087. But later it is added: He must pray to God, and He will be merciful to him, and will look at his rejoicing face; and He saves my soul from destruction. She will live and see the light (Job 33:26) 2088. In these expressions, both the bitterness of the preceding sorrow and the joy of salvation that comes after are now gathered and accumulated together. And it is added that God does all this three times with each person. As if it were clearly said: everything that is said here about one person once happens three times to each person. But we must carefully consider what these three times are, in which each person suffers first in anxiety and sorrow, and immediately, after the grief goes away, the joy of salvation returns. For, as I said before, and as has been said more than once above, at first heavy sorrow oppresses us, and then great delight lifts us up afterwards. If we look closely, we find that these three stages of grief and joy succeed each other, in the mind of each of the elect, three times, that is: in his conversion, his temptations, and his death. 26. At that first time, which we are talking about, in conversion, the sadness of a person is great when, from considering his sins, he wants to break the shackles of worldly cares, and take the path of God, enter the saving abode in order to cast aside the heavy burden of temporary worries, and bear the light of the Cross of the Lord, in service of free will. For, he reflects on these things, and notices that the old familiar pleasures of the flesh, which have become inveterate, bind him the more the more time he spends with them, and the more reluctantly they allow him to escape. And then pain torments him, and anxiety of the heart, when the Spirit calls him in one direction, and the flesh calls him back, in the other direction. And his love for his new life invites him on the one hand, and his old vicious habits attack him on the other: on the one hand he glows with longing for his heavenly country, and on the other he must carry within himself these desires of the flesh, which he still likes, to a certain extent, even against his will. And thus, it is rightly said about man: His bread becomes disgusting to him in his life, his soul approaches rotting, and his life approaches death. But by Divine mercy we do not suffer long under these difficulties; He breaks the bonds of our sins, and brings us quickly into the consolation of the freedom of our new life; and the joy of success is greater than the former sadness. And thus the mind of every one, when converted, rejoices the more in the attainment of freedom, the more it remembers the pain which it endured in its undertakings. Unlimited is this joy of the heart: since in his hope of salvation he now draws near to Him whom he desires. And one can rightly say about him: He must pray to God, and He will be merciful to him, and will look at his rejoicing face. Or: He saves my soul from destruction. She will live and see the light. 27. The one who could not overcome previous adversities and after he religiously took the path of transformation, peace again leaves him. And, according to God’s dispensation, after his transformation, temptations are allowed to attack him. The Red Sea has already parted before him on the path of his conversion, but his enemies are still opposite his face, in the desert of real life. Our past sins are behind us, like dead Egyptians on the shore. But destructive vices still attack us like new enemies to hinder the path we take to the promised land. Our former crimes, like the enemies who persecuted us, have already been destroyed by the power of God. But the attacks of temptations meet us, face to face, like fresh enemies to fight against our own efforts too. Transformation in truth brings peace and security: but security is usually the parent of imprudence. In order to preserve safety and peace from the occurrence of carelessness, it is written: my son, when going in the service of God, be in justice and fear, and prepare your soul for temptation (Sir.2:1) 2089. He does not say “for rest,” but he says “for temptation,” because our enemy strives the more to conquer us while we are in this life, the more he sees that we have rebelled against him. He does not care to oppress those whom he perceives as his quiet possession. But he rebels all the more violently against us, the more harshly he is excluded from our hearts, as if he were expelled from his rightful possession, his own home. This is exactly what the Lord reveals to us in His person. For He does not allow the devil to tempt Him until the moment of His baptism, only after: thus offering us a kind of sign of our own future transformation (Matt. 4:1) 2090, saying that His members would have to endure more strictly the wiles of temptation, after they had begun to advance in the way of the Word of God. After the first incident, those sorrows and joys that everyone feels at the beginning of the transformation are repeated a second time. A person is attacked by temptations so that he does not relax in the carelessness of security. And he, as a rule, experiences an even greater sweetness from the consolation that he receives after the harsh labor of temptation than the sweetness that was at the beginning of his conversion. 28. There are in truth three states of transformation: beginning, middle, and perfection. But at the beginning the sweetness of consolation is experienced, in the middle - temptation, then the fullness of perfection approaches. First sweetness and security, then the bitterness of temptation and, finally, extraordinary delight to confirm them. Every man does the same with his bride. First he calms her down with sweet persuasion, then he tests her in union with him, and when fidelity is proven, he gives security and peace. It was the same with the people of Israel when they were called out of Egypt and God betrothed Himself in the sacred marriage of the soul, promising the sweetness of miracles; but, after marriage, a test is carried out in the desert, and after a trial based on the results of the test, the Promised Land is given in the fullness of virtues. First one is given a taste of the wonders that man must seek. Subsequently, he is put on rigorous tests to prove whether he can truly safely continue what he has experienced. And having passed these trials, he deserves to receive fuller pleasure from what he has retained through the trials of suffering. The gentle beginning thus calms the life of every convert, strength and fortitude are tested and tempered along the way, and then complete perfection gives him its strength. 29. New converts are often given either the most perfect peace in the flesh, or the gifts of prophecy, or the preaching of doctrine, or signs and wonders, or the grace of healing, immediately at the beginning of their journey. But after this they are persecuted by serious trials of temptations, from which, as they at the beginning decided, they had completely freed themselves. Divine mercy ordered this in its dispensation in order to save them from the attacks of acute temptations at the beginning of their journey. For if bitter temptations had pursued them at first, they would have returned with ease to those abandoned sins, being at a little distance from them. And they would again plunge into them because of their very proximity, into those sins that they at first immediately despised. Therefore it is written: When Pharaoh sent the people away, God did not lead them along the road of the land of the Philistines, because it was close; for God said: lest the people repent when they see the war, and return to Egypt (Ex. 13:17) 2091. War is removed from the path of those who came out of Egypt: because those who leave the world are first given a kind of peace, so that from the peace of their first beginning, they then return, through fear, to the world from which they fled. They feel, first, the sweetness of security that they received in peace and quiet. But having tasted this sweetness, they now fight temptations more patiently because they have found in God a higher object of affection. Where does Peter, raised to the mountain, first see the brightness of the Transfiguration of the Lord (Matt. 17:1-2) 2092, and then suffer in temptation from the question of the maid (Matt. 26:69) 2093, so that, having realized his condition due to his weakness, he could return in repentance and love to the face that he contemplated; and so that, when the wave of fear carried him forward to the ocean of guilt, the past sweets would remain as an anchor to preserve him. And the struggle with temptations often lasts as long as the joy of the first beginning. And it happens that more joy is given at first, and less difficult temptations in the middle. But more often it’s the other way around: less pleasure at first, and more challenges at the moment of birth. But the improvement of strength always exceeds the severity of temptation: and each of them is rewarded with perfection, according to the result of the tests. But the convert usually cannot escape the thought that he has received confirmation of perfection when he has received certain gifts of grace, in the sweetness of his first beginning: and, not knowing that this security, given only to beginners, he considers them to be the final completeness. Therefore it often happens that, overcome by any sudden storm of temptation, he begins to doubt whether he can still count on God, or whether he has lost Him forever. But if he had not been so self-confident at the time of his first beginning, he would, even in his first prosperity, have prepared his mind for adversity, and would have subsequently resisted the attacks of sin with additional firmness, as if they had been foreseen with foresight. Foreseeing this evil, he endures it with great calm. But this foresight will not reduce the fight against this evil, and our journey cannot be completed without passing the dust of temptation. 30. And every new convert, as a rule, is attacked by temptations with which he was never attacked before the grace of transformation: not because the roots of these temptations did not exist in him, but because they did not reveal themselves before their time. The human mind, when occupied with countless thoughts, often remains unknown to itself, and never sufficiently knows what it really suffers from, for while it is distracted by many questions, it is distracted from the inner knowledge of itself. But if he wants to have time to think about God, and cuts off the branches of distracting thoughts, then he sees unhindered those thorns that come forward from the secret depths of the flesh. For if a thistle grows on a road, it is crushed under the feet of those who travel along it, and its stem is worn away by the constant stream of travelers without ever appearing. But, despite the fact that the thorns do not show out and do not sprout, the root still remains hidden under the road. But if travelers stop trampling on it, the root soon rises to the surface and reveals itself. He progresses in his growth and the thorns he bears become visible. Also in the mind, some hidden root of temptation seems to grow with difficulty; he is placed, as it were, on the path of everyday life, he is crushed under the feet of thoughts that pass through him, and so trampled by countless worries, as if by many travelers, that he is not visible. But if the crowd of worries is removed by the grace of transformation from the path of the heart, so that neither the importunity of affairs carries the mind to and fro, nor any stormy thoughts oppress it, then what was previously hidden is seen, then the thorn of temptation arises from the root of sin, and freely inflicts a wound. But the hand of the righteous acts so against sin that, as far as possible, it does not spread further, and is not hidden, but is pulled out from the very roots. But until this is done, this thorn so troubles the mind of the convert, that he often feels as if almost overwhelmed by sudden temptation, and apprehensions that a mortal wound has been inflicted. 31. These attacks of temptation are often prolonged and become as if ordinary: they do not become more acute, but become longer lasting. And then they cause less pain, but they bring more evil, because the longer they hold the mind, the less scary they begin to look and the more familiar they become. The mind, therefore, when participating in these trials, is distracted here and there, and confused by the variety of attacks of temptations, and often, when rushing from one point to another, it does not know which sin has attacked in order to resist it, or which to begin to fight first. And it often happens that while rebellious sins seriously torture a man, they bring to the very brink of despair the mind of the man who endures them, afraid of this sheer upward path which he chooses, and he stumbles towards the top, one who is accustomed to stand firmly at the bottom. And it is so difficult for him to advance, struggling with the temptations that rage violently around him, that it can also justly be said about him: his bread becomes disgusting to him in his life (Job. 33:20) 2094, and his soul turns away from his favorite food; or, of course, that: his soul came near to decay, and his life to death (Job.33:22) 2095. But because God, in His mercy, sympathizes with us and proves by our temptations that we will not be abandoned (No temptation has overtaken you except what is human; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation will also make it easy for you, so that you can endure it (1 Cor. 10:13)). He quickly helps us with consolation, calms the growing pangs of temptation, and calms the inner peace, emotions and thoughts that rise up against Him. And then the mind soon receives great pleasure from its hope in heavenly things, from the contemplation of the evil that it has endured and overcome. So, to this man who endured temptation, it can also rightly be attributed that He will: look at his jubilant face, or: He saves my soul from destruction. She will live and see the light. When these two stages, conversion and trials, have been accepted in grief and joy, there still remains a third, whose bitterness he is still afraid of, but whose joy he also expects to receive. 32. Because after the struggle of the period of transformation, after the pain of the period of temptation, there still remains a difficult trial ahead, because man cannot arrive in the joys of perfect freedom without first paying off the debt of human nature. But every convert, being careful and desiring this portion for himself, still does not cease to think about the severity of the last Judgment that is coming, and he looks forward daily to his outcome, and from the approach of such fair justice, he does not know what the verdict will be. For, although he has escaped all the evil deeds which he has realized by approaching the strict judge, he is more afraid of those errors which he is not conscious of in himself. For who can understand how much evil we commit every moment by the uncontrolled movement of our thoughts? It is easy enough to avoid acts of iniquity, but it is very difficult to cleanse the heart from wicked thoughts. And yet it is written: Woe to those who plot iniquity (Mic. 2:1). And again: on the day when the Lord will judge the secret affairs of men (Rom. 2:16) 2096, and before that: their thoughts, now accusing, now justifying one another (Rom. 2:15). And again: Evil lips are in the heart, and in the heart they speak evil (Ps. 11:3) 2097. And again: You form iniquity in your heart, you put on the scales the iniquity of your hands on earth (Ps. 57:3). But after the soul has once left the immutability of eternity, and fallen into the mutability of temporal things, it is obliged, even against its will, to endure the urge to grow, and the fluctuations of changeable emotions, to which it strives on its own initiative, about to fall. And thus she is punished for her former pleasures, because she endures, in transformation, the labor of trials, in the very things for which she strived, while she received the perverse delight of temporary pleasures. But often sin, which they have skillfully discovered in themselves, and which leads to grave guilt in the eyes of God, steals the thoughts of the elect against their will. They are afraid of a strict sentence for all these things, and they are especially afraid when, having come to repay the debt, they see that they are approaching a strict Judge. And their fear becomes more acute the closer their eternity comes. But it is not empty imagination from the fantasy of thought that flashes at that time before the eyes of the heart: after all, when everything else has been removed, they think about themselves only, and about Him, to Whom they are approaching. Their fear increases as the retribution of righteousness draws nearer. And the closer the parting with the flesh is, the more severe the judgment comes, and the more they fear this moment. And although they are afraid of the sins that they know, they are even more afraid of the sins that they do not know about. Because it is because of them that they are unable to fully understand and judge themselves, and as the end approaches, they are persecuted by a subtler fear. Therefore our Redeemer, knowing His approaching dissolution, and maintaining the likeness of His members, fell down and began to pray more fervently. Although why could He ask to forgive Himself, when through the torment that awaited Him on earth, He had to return to heavenly gifts? But at the approach of death, He represented in His face the struggle that exists in our consciousness; in the consciousness of all who suffer from fear and horror as the moment of dissolution of the flesh approaches in the Eternal Judgment. And the mind of man is also horrified when it finds that after this brief state of being, it must remain unchanged forever. 33. For we know that there is no way for us to get through this life without guilt. We also know that even what we have done right is not exempt from some degree of guilt if we are judged without mercy. For which of us can surpass or even equal the fathers who came before us? And yet David says: And do not enter into judgment with Your servant, for not one living will be justified before You (Ps. 143:2). Paul, when he said: I am not aware of anything in myself, nevertheless carefully added: But I am not justified by this (1 Cor. 4:4) 2098. James says: For we all sin many times (James 3:2) 2099. John says: if we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us (1 John 1:8) 2100. What should sticks do when even the columns are shaking? Or how can the bushes remain calm, if even the cedars are shaking in fear? The soul, even of the righteous, often trembles from the threat of punishment as it approaches the dissolution of the flesh. And even if some peace continued for her in this life, she staggers when the moment of death comes; so this is rightly said about a person: his bread becomes disgusting to him in his life (Job.33:20) 2101, and his soul turns away from his favorite food; Or, of course, because of the punishment of fear, there is communion: his soul approached decay, and his life approached death. 34. But the souls of the righteous are often purified through the simple fear of death from any contamination, and enjoy the joy of eternal reward from the very moment of liberation from the flesh; not often, but it also happens that they experience inner joy, even before they lose their flesh; and because even while they are paying off the debts of their old nature, they feel satisfaction from the new gift, therefore it is also rightly said that He looks on his rejoicing face. And, of course, He saves my soul from destruction. She will live and see the light. The soul of the righteous sees God with jubilation, because it feels so much inner happiness within itself that it cannot contain it. And she will live and see the light, because she fixes her spiritual gaze on the rays of the eternal sun. She lives there and sees the light, because she tramples all the vicissitudes and shadows of variability and reunites with the reality of eternity. And, joining Him Whom she sees, she achieves resemblance to His immutability, and, contemplating the immutability of Him who created her, she absorbs this immutability into herself. He who has fallen through his own action into a state of changeability turns into an unchangeable state, looking at this changelessness. Elihu, therefore, first speaks of the bitterness of sorrow, and then of the joy of consolation, adding that God does all this three times with each person: in conversion, at the time of temptation, and in death. For in these three states, a person first suffers under the acute pangs of sorrow, and after that is consoled by the joy of salvation. But because each of the elect suffers in each of these three stages: the pain of transformation, the judgment of the period of temptation, the fear of parting with the flesh, and is purified and liberated by these sufferings, it is added: Verse 30. To lead souls away from the grave, and enlighten them with the light of the living (Job.33:30) 2102. 35. The light that we see with our bodily eyes is the light of dying. And those who still live in this world live in darkness, illuminated by the light of dying. And only those are enlightened by the light of the living who, despising the light of the world, return to the splendor of the inner light to live in that place where they can see, feeling it, the true light, where light and life are not different from each other, and where light itself is life, too; where light so surrounds us from the outside that it fills us from the inside; and so fills us from within that, being itself limitless, it does not limit us either. They are enlightened, therefore, by the light of life, and the more clearly they have seen it, the more purely they now live with its help. 36. Elihu spoke great and very powerful words. But it is characteristic of every boastful person that, speaking about truths and mysteries, he suddenly becomes confused in his statements, through the pride of his heart, and strays into some stupid and proud expressions. For he tries to please the world without having within him what is truth; and soon he is deprived of all truths, since, through the arrogance of pride, he comes from what is within him. And while trying to look outwardly like a learned man, he loses the inner fullness of wisdom that he should have previously learned. Therefore, Elihu (who, as we have said more than once, is arrogant), having tried on many deep and wise sayings, as soon as he uttered them, having discovered the truths and secrets, in delight with himself, became proud of this wisdom. And as his pride rightly deserved, his insides opened up in empty words. And he adds, saying: Verses 31–33. Listen, Job, listen to me, be silent, and I will speak. If you have something to say, answer; speak, because I would like your justification; if not, then listen to me: be silent, and I will teach you wisdom (Job 33:31–33). 37. He shows what opinion he has of himself through this expression in which he says: Listen, Job, listen to me, be silent, and I will speak. For it is a great pride to demand unquestioning respect from an elder, and to impose silence on him, and not on oneself. Holy preachers, when they reprove others, often turn to their own innermost thoughts, through the grace of humility, and, seeking to find out whether they have accidentally erred in what they reprove, give those whom they reprove freedom to explain in their own interests whatever they think. Therefore, arrogant people also sometimes want to imitate this. Therefore, putting aside their pride only in words for a while, they seek justification for those whom they have denounced, if it happens that they are able to find one. Not because this is their real feeling, but because they want to appear humble and are afraid of appearing proud and arrogant, which they really are. And therefore Elihu immediately adds, saying: If you have something to say, answer; speak, because I would like your justification. But because he did not say it sincerely, he did not wait to hear what he asked. For he immediately added: if not, then listen to me: be silent, and I will teach you wisdom. One who sincerely seeks to hear what he has asked for, waits patiently to hear what he seeks. But Elihu, because he did not sincerely ask the question, does not provide the opportunity to give an answer, and immediately flares up with what he is filled with, and shows how he values ​​​​himself in his own eyes, saying: Be silent, and I will teach you wisdom. For when proud people say any thing that sounds humble, they do not long remain in this state of feigned humility. If they accidentally ask for an answer, they immediately avoid the possibility of getting it by starting to talk; because the real desire manifests itself, which comes from the root in the heart, and very soon tests the words they speak superficially. And they soon prove that this external form of humility, which they have assumed only in appearance, is alien to their character, and they are no longer able to maintain it. See how Elihu, when he strives to learn the truth, offers to teach him. And see how his tongue, asking what is right, speaks as if bowing in humility. But he is immediately unable to contain his explosion of pride. For he added immediately: Be silent, and I will teach you wisdom. But because arrogant people are puffed up with the swelling of pride, they speak as if they are placed on high, and pretend to be sacred people, and speak with condescension towards others who are unworthy, the following verse is rightly added by the writer of this story in order to show this: Verse 1. And Elui spoke further, and said even more (Job.34:1) 2103. 38. What is meant by this word "speaking out" if not a puff of pride? This is precisely what is said to show that his words come from a deep root of pride, and are rushed forward with a great degree of arrogance. Thus, in fact, it is shown that all arrogant people tend to talk a lot. For they suppose that they have acquired a special understanding; and perhaps preach humility at the very time when they give an example of arrogance and pride. And therefore their preaching does not correspond to themselves; in their perverted pride they challenge this truth which they try to preach by saying the right words. For they present their words to a humble audience, not sincerely revealing their feelings on equal terms, but as if a little condescendingly towards them. For they believe that they are exalted on high, and, believing that they are much higher, they will hardly deign to bend towards their hearers from their high eminence of the brilliant wrapper of doctrine. But words that can bear the fruit of piety sprout only from the root of humility, and they can convey good advice only without boasting, but by sympathizing with others. For, according to the words of love, they will arrange the conversation in such a way as to be together with their listeners, among them, and so that their listeners learn from them what they teach, and they, in turn, learn from their listeners, and put them ahead of themselves. Let's listen to what Elihu says, imagining how he does it boastfully, not just speaking, but expressing himself, making a speech. What follows: Verse 2, 3. Hear my words, O you wise men, and listen to me, O you learned men. For the ear discerns words as the throat discerns the taste of meat (Job 34:2–3) 2104. 39. As if he had said, just as the ear does not distinguish meat, but the throat does not distinguish words, so a fool does not understand the words of a wise man. Listen, therefore, to what I say, you wise and learned men, who alone can understand the meaning of what is said. Let us see then how great is his pride, who imagines that his words can only be understood by the wise. After all, the true preacher of wisdom says: I am a debtor to both the wise and the ignorant (Rom. 1:14) 2105. But the arrogant one, on the other hand, seeks only the ears of the wise for his preaching. And he does not preach in order to impart wisdom to them, he seeks out wise men so that he can proudly show himself. For, as was said above, he does not seek to instruct them, he seeks to show off himself in front of them. He also does not think about how righteous those who listen to him are, but cares about how learned he will appear when they listen to him. But since no one will listen to the preaching of a proud man unless he clothes it in some semblance of humility, Elihu, after exalting himself with a burst of words, again condescends, as if placing himself on the same level of equality, saying: Verse 4. Let us choose solutions for us, and let us see among ourselves what is best (Job 34:4) 2106. 40. But we will easily know, by considering the words that follow, whether he really sought these decisions out of humility of heart. What follows: Verse 5, 6. Behold, Job said: I am right, but God has overthrown my righteousness. For in my judgment there is a lie: and my arrow wounded without sin (Job.34:5–6) 2107. He complains that Job said these things (see Job 27:2) 2108, although it is proven by the words of sacred history that he never said them. But the one who was looking for a fair solution continues to publish phrases of his own invention, exposing guilt. Therefore he continues: Verse 7, 8. Is there such a man as Job, who drinks mockery like water, who goes with the workers of iniquity, and walks with wicked people ( Job 34:7-8 ) 2109? Now, in search of the truth, he made a judgment; and after his own statement, without waiting for the statement of the blessed Job, he condemned him as deserving of condemnation for his association with the wicked. He says: Is there anyone like Job? So that we can immediately decide and answer – no, this doesn’t exist anymore. And he adds: whoever drinks mockery like water. Water is a liquid that, when you drink, it is very difficult not to swallow, even if you want to - it flows so easily. And to drink mockery like water means to mock God without any hindrance in your thoughts, without any fear even opposing pride to restrain your tongue or mind. But how far this judgment about blessed Job diverges from the truth, we learn from the solemn words of God, in which He says to the devil: have you turned your attention to My servant Job? For there is none like him on earth (Job 1:8) 2110? See how Elihu declares that he is the last sinner, the one whom Truth claims to be the first righteous. But this is the peculiar way of arrogant preachers, that they are more willing to rebuke their hearers severely, even when they repent, than to console them in love. They are taught to reproach and reproach for mistakes more than to encourage goodness with praise. For they are concerned with appearing superior to other people, and they are more pleased when anger raises their feelings than when mercy lowers them. They always want to find something to hit with rebuke. Therefore it is written: the mouth of a fool is the scourge of pride (Proverbs 14:3) 2111, because in fact he knows how to strike sharply, but does not know how to humbly sympathize. 41. Holy preachers also sometimes reprove their listeners with sharp words, and rage with strict severity against sins: as it is written: The words of the wise are like needles, and like driven nails (Eccl. 12:11) 2112. But their words are rightly called needles, since they do not deal tenderly with the sins of criminals, but know how to pierce them to the end. Were not the words of John needles when he said: You are a generation of vipers, who showed you to flee from the wrath to come (Matthew 3:7) 2113? Were not Stephen's words a needle when he said: you always resist the Holy Spirit (Acts 7:51) 2114? Were not Paul's words a needle when he said: O foolish Galatians, who has deceived you (Gal.3:1) 2115? and again, when he said to the Corinthians: if there is envy, disputes and disagreements among you, are you not carnal, and do you not live according to the customs of carnal people (1 Cor. 3:3) 2116? But we also need to look carefully: for righteous preachers first observe any good deeds in those whom they denounce, so that only after starting with this examination do they continue to denounce. Here! Paul, when teaching the Corinthians, and seeing them guilty of the sin of schism, began with this: I thank my God for you without ceasing, because of the grace of God which was given to you in Christ Jesus, because in Him you have been enriched in all things, in all speech and in all knowledge (1 Cor. 1:4-5). He praised them very much, praised them a lot, saying that they were enriched by Christ in everything. And, lo and behold! he again multiplies his soothing expressions, saying: for the testimony of Christ is established in you - (1 Cor. 1:6). He said, The testimony of Christ is established in you, as if they had confirmed in their conduct what they had learned from his teaching. And he adds at once, summing up their praise: so that you lack no gift, as you wait for the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 1:7). I pray you, O Paul, tell us to what use have you directed these many words of praise? And, lo and behold! follows, shortly after this: I beseech you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same spirit and in the same thoughts. For from the household of Chloe it became known to me about you, my brethren, that there are disputes among you (1 Cor. 1:10-11). He subsequently added to this statement, saying: if there is envy, disputes and disagreements among you, are you not carnal, and do you not live according to the customs of carnal people (1 Cor. 3:3) 2117? His praise is reduced to simple words of rebuke; with the gentle hand of kindness he opened the way for severe reproof in the hearts of his hearers. For at first he tried to bind the weapon of their pride with the bridles of persuasion and praise in order to subsequently reduce the pain of cutting out their pride with the knife of correction. The Corinthians actually had qualities that deserved praise as well as those that deserved rebuke. The skillful doctor first carefully grabbed the edges of the wound with affectionate praise, and then pierced the rotten cavity of the wound with a blow of a needle. This rule of teaching is used by all holy preachers, so that they prefer to preserve what is right and cut off with punishment what is wrong. 42. Often holy preachers hit hard. But it’s one thing when justice calls, and another when pride inflates. The righteous, even when strongly rebuked, do not lose the grace of inner sweetness. For they often resort to strict force in order to restrain the disorderly passions of the wicked, but they melt with the fire of mercy and glow with love for those against whom they raise heavy reproaches. And they humble themselves before them in the secret of their hearts, while they seem to scornfully punish them in the eyes of men with the severe stings of punishment. But they often seem to despise them without despising them, and despair without despairing, so that they can bring them into a state of fear and lead them away from sin, the more quickly they show them that the pit of decay is closer to them. But they also often note their own mistakes so that their students can hear and know how harshly they judge themselves for their own behavior. And they judge themselves more strictly, and more than once they humiliate themselves, because they do not forget humility in their discipline, and discipline in their humility. Paul encourages discipline when he says to the Corinthians: if there is envy, contention, and disagreement among you, are you not carnal, and are you not living according to the customs of carnal people (1 Cor. 3:3)? But even while maintaining discipline, he did not lose humility; he began with him, saying: I appeal to you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you (1 Cor. 1:10). Again he is confirmed in humility when, speaking in more detail than perhaps he would like, he reproaches himself, saying: I have become foolish (2 Cor. 12, 11) 2118. However, in this humility he did not abandon discipline, for he immediately added: you are forcing me. He also showed an example of humility when he said to his disciples: For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and we are your servants for Jesus (2 Cor. 4:5). But in this humility he did not lose the rightness of discipline, for he also says: What do you want? shall I come to you with a rod, or with love and a spirit of meekness (1 Cor. 4:21)? And so on. Holy preachers therefore know well how to regulate their skill in teaching moderation on both sides, and when they discover sins, they should skillfully rebuke them severely at one time, and condemn them humbly at another. But when arrogant people strive to imitate them, they receive sharp words of reproof from them, but do not know how to accept from them the sincerity of their pleas for humility. For they know how to be threatening much better than loving; and they learn, accordingly, how to establish themselves, and neglect to learn humility. And since they do not know how to instruct transgressors with meekness, and are accustomed only to be formidable in anger, they allow themselves to freely reproach even the good. And Elihu, as representing such people, does not console Job, but reproaches him, saying: Is there such a man as Job, who drinks mockery like water, who goes with the workers of iniquity, and walks with the wicked? And because pride is always alien to truth, he speaks in lies: Verse 9. For he himself said, man cannot please God, even if he is controlled by Him (Job.34:9) 2119. 43. But that he never spoke like that is recognized by everyone who has read the words of blessed Job. But still, what is surprising is why does someone who speaks with the sole purpose of proudly putting himself forward come up with something to find fault with another person? But he cannot adhere to the truth in his words of reproach, one whom the pride of the mind removes far from the same truth. Therefore it follows: Verse 10. Therefore, listen to me, you men of understanding (Job 34:10) 2120. Here again, puffed up with pride and arrogance, he seeks only those who are able to follow him, understanding him correctly; and thus bursts out with his thoughts, saying: Verse 10, 11. Unkindness is far from God, and iniquity from the Most High: for the deeds of a man He must deal with him, and will reward him according to the ways of everyone (Job 34:10-11) 2121. 44. He also said that lawlessness and unmercifulness are far from God Almighty. But what He added afterwards does not always take place in this life, namely, what He will do with everyone in accordance with his actions and ways (see Rev. 22:12; 2 Cor. 5:10) 2122. For many who commit unlawful and immoral acts, He prevents them by His grace, and transforms them into works of holiness: and those who devote themselves to good works He rebukes with the scourge, and smites those who please Him, as if they were displeasing to Him. As Solomon testifies, saying: There is also this vanity on earth: the righteous suffer what the deeds of the wicked deserved, and the wicked suffer what the deeds of the righteous deserved. And I said: and this is vanity (Eccl.8:14) 2123! God, undoubtedly, so commands in His invaluable mercy that disasters should torment the righteous, so that their deeds do not instill pride in them, and that the wicked should go through at least this life without punishment, because for their evil deeds they hasten to those torments that have no end. For this reason, the righteous are sometimes scourged in no way according to their deserts, and this is revealed to us precisely by this story that we are considering. The Judge Himself says before the searing scourging that blessed Job was not punished for any offense. Elihu, therefore, would have said more accurately if he had said, God has no mercy and iniquity, even when He does not seem to reward man according to his ways and actions. Often we do not understand the righteous justice of the secret court. But often arrogant preachers, even when they spread much nonsense, also often say many things that are true, Elihu rightly adds: Verse 12. Truly God will not condemn without a reason, and the Most High will not have an unjust judgment (Job 34:12) 2124. 45. The Lord said to the devil: You stirred Me up against him to strike him without cause (Job.2:3) 2125. But Elihu says that the Lord will not condemn without a reason. A statement that appears to be at odds with the words of Truth unless carefully considered. For to condemn is one thing, but to strike is another. He strikes, therefore, in a sense, without reason, but does not condemn without reason. Did He not strike Job, in some respects, without cause, since He did not strike him for sin, but to increase his merit? For He cannot condemn without cause, since condemnation cannot take place partly to achieve a certain end: since He punishes in the end all the wickedness that has been committed here. Nor will Almighty God have an unjust judgment: because, although our sufferings seem unjust, they are rightly inflicted by His secret judgment. Therefore it follows: Verse 13. Who besides Him provides for the earth? And who, besides Him, controls everything that He has created (Job.34:13) 2126? 46. Neither you can understand, nor anyone else. For He really rules the world that He Himself created: and He does not need the help of those in governance whose help He did not need when creating it. But these points are brought together in order that it may be clearly noted: if Almighty God does not forget to Himself govern the world which He has made, He will surely govern rightly what He has made rightly; He does not treat unmercifully what He has fashioned in mercy; and that He who provided for the existence of all before they were created will not forsake them after their creation. Who was the First Cause at their creation, therefore, does not forget to take care of us. Therefore it is added: Verse 14. If he directs his heart to Him, He will take away his spirit and his breath (Job 34:14) 2127. 47. The heart is twisted when it seeks base things. It stands upright when it seeks what is above. So, whoever directs his heart to the Lord, the Lord turns his spirit and breath to Himself. The spirit is for internal thoughts, but the breath that passes through the body is for external actions. For God to draw the spirit and breath of man to Himself means to change us both within and without, so as to turn us towards Him in our desires, so that nothing external can any longer attract the mind, and so that the flesh (even if it desires) cannot strive to achieve any object; but in order for the whole person to burn holistically in his inner desires towards Him, his source, and, perhaps, become closer to Him, complete self-discipline is necessary. Therefore it is added: Verse 15. All flesh must perish, and man must return to ashes (Job 34:15) 2128. 48. All flesh perishes when man is no longer a slave to his own desires; because the spirit that rules this flesh restrains all its vacillations, and destroys with a heavy sword all the evil that lives in it. Jeremiah, in truth, killed himself with this sword of discipline when he said: When I was converted, I repented, and after You showed me, I smote my thigh (Jer. 31:19) 2129. What is meant by thighs if not carnal pleasures? And what can his words mean: After You showed me, I smote my thigh, if not that after he had spiritually seen the heavenly things, he extinguished all the weak carnal desires that used him to live in him: after the heavenly objects were revealed to him, he could not feel pleasure in these lower things that he possessed. The more a person begins to live in things above, the more he begins to die to things below. As for the love of carnal affairs, all of Paul's flesh perished with him when he said: It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me (Gal. 2:20) 2130. 49. Elihu also correctly adds in this place: and man must return to the dust. Everyone who participates in sin forgets his mortal state, and while he swells with pride, he no longer remembers that he is dust and ashes. But when, after the grace of his conversion, he is touched by the spirit of humility, he remembers that he is ashes. David had already returned to the dust when he said: Remember, Lord, that we are dust (Ps. 103:14) 2131. Abraham returned to the ashes, saying that: I will speak to my Lord, although I am dust and ashes (Gen. 18:27) 2132. And although death had not yet turned living flesh into dust, in their own opinion, they were already what they were going to be. Therefore, he said in another place: if you take away their spirit, they die and return to their dust (Ps. 103:29) 2133. But what is meant by their breath, if not the breath of pride? Let their breath be taken away, if by it they may fall; they feel nothing in themselves when the breath of pride is taken away. And let them return to dust, that is, let them be humbled by their weak state. The saints, while they mingle with sinners, kindle them with the fire of their example, and reduce all their splendor to ashes. In the flames of holiness, they see themselves, see the infirmities of their condition, and realize that they are nothing but ashes. So that when the hardness of their pride is removed, they can use the words given before: Remember, O Lord, that we are dust. It is well said that when God turns a person's breath to Himself, all flesh perishes and the person returns to dust. These words of Elihu are true and important. But he betrays in the words that follow what was said earlier, arrogantly and saying: Verse 16. If you have understanding, hear what I say and listen to the voice of my words (Job 34:16) 2134. 50. All arrogant people have this peculiarity, that when they happen to mention a high feeling in a sermon, they instantly fall into the sin of pride, and despise the opinion of everyone in comparison with their own, and go into their own judgment about the merits of others. It is the fate of these unfortunate people to sink deeper into darkness the more they see; and the more they look at subtleties, the less they see themselves; and the more acutely they perceive their wisdom, the more fatally they fall into pride. This vision of subtleties would be useful if they saw themselves in what they were looking at. Elihu said before: If you have something to say, answer; speak, because I would like your justification (Job.33:32). But now he says: If you have understanding, hear what I say. See how his pride gradually increases. He had doubted before whether blessed Job could be rebuked, and this was just now. But now he asks such a question, and questions whether he can even hear what is being said. He first asks to tell me if there is anything in response. It was as if he were saying: say something, if at least you can answer something decent. But here he says: If you have understanding, hear what I say. It was as if he had directly said: listen to me if you want to be able to hear something worthy. These are the daily changes which take place in the very heart of sinners, by which they continually sink into a worse condition; because while they disdain minor faults, they fall into greater evils. Now his pride has led him to doubt whether blessed Job will be able to say anything worthy. But by neglecting to consider this impurity in himself, he falls into greater evil: he not only doubts that he can say something worthy, but even desperately doubts whether he will understand something if someone else says something worthy. Therefore the sin of pride must be torn out at once from the very roots; when it breaks through only it can be cut off vigilantly, so that it cannot gain strength from growth or strength from habit. It is difficult for a person to discover inveterate pride in himself, because in fact, the more we suffer under this sin, the less we see it. Pride gives birth to darkness in the eyes. Pride then grows gradually in the heart, and when it has expanded itself wider and wider, it completely closes the vision of the mind that suffers from it, and, suffering in its captivity, the mind still cannot see why it is suffering. But arrogant people, as we have said, sometimes say the right things in an unhealthy way, and know how to invent strong arguments, but cannot state them correctly; Elihu, after the arrogant pride with which he said: If you have understanding, hear what I say, and listen to the voice of my words, adds: Verse 17. Can he be healed who does not like the sentence? How can you accuse Him who is Righteous (Job 34:17) 2135? 51. He spoke the right instruction, but it should not have been spoken in the name of blessed Job. For in every thing that is said, we must by all means consider what is said, to whom it is said, where it is said, how it is said. But Elihu counts only what he says, and does not count to whom he says it. Blessed Job loved the verdict, because he knew how carefully each case was weighed by the Lord. And he did not blame Him for what was right: but humbly asked, when he was experiencing grief, why he was struck down if he was without sin. He loves judgment, he who studies his own affairs in detail, and enters into the secret chambers of his heart, and there ponders what the Lord will give him, and what he owes to the Lord. But Elihu says: Can he be healed, he who does not like the sentence? As if accusing blessed Job of disliking the sentence, and therefore, condemning him immediately, he immediately introduces the accusation of the One Who is Righteous, i.e. Gentlemen, and adds: Verse 18. Who says to the king: You are an apostate, who calls the princes wicked (Job 34:18) 2136? 52. We know that most of those who rule are greatly feared by their subjects, and that they want to be revered, if not as much as the Lord, but still as the Lord's representatives. For they rise with pride of heart from within, and despise everything beneath them in comparison with themselves, and they do not treat their subjects with condescension, but oppress them with power: for, they set themselves in high thoughts, and do not recognize themselves as equals with those over whom they rule. This pride is spoken of in the book of Ecclesiastes: Have they made you a leader? Do not exalt yourself, but be among them, as one of them (Sir.32:1) 2137. The Lord also denounces this pride through the prophet, speaking about the shepherds: but you ruled them with violence and cruelty (Ezek.34:4) 2138. Even the good advice that they offer to their subjects, they offer as a command, and not as advice with them: simply for the reason that to tell them on their own, as if they were on equal terms, they consider it a downfall for themselves. Their joy is in their own superiority, not in the equality of their creation. But because the Lord carefully examines these swellings in the hearts of rulers, it is correctly said: whoever says to the king: an apostate. Every arrogant ruler falls into the sin of apostasy as often as he takes pleasure in his superiority over people and rejoices in seeing differences in position. For he does not consider under Whom he himself is, and rejoices over his equals, in every possible way making them, as it were, unequal. But where does this root of evil spring into the hearts of rulers, unless it is from the support of the one who despised the company of angels and said, I will ascend to the heights of the clouds, and I will be like the Most High? Since then, every ruler, as often as he prides himself on ruling over others, is cut off by a fall into pride, from connection with the Chief Ruler of all: and, because when he despises his equals, he does not recognize by his deed the supreme power of Him, under Whom all are equal; therefore it is rightly said: Whoever says to the king is an apostate. 53. But since, while ruling over others, they lead their subjects to godlessness through the example of their pride, it is immediately attached: whoever calls princes wicked. They will lead them to the path of piety if they present a model of humility to the eyes of their subjects. But wicked princes who depart from the path of truth, when their heads fall, drag their subjects to the abyss. These are wicked princes who show the path of error by setting examples of pride. Paul was afraid of becoming such a prince when he refused the height of power, saying: We do not seek the glory of men, either from you or from others: we might have appeared in pomp as the Apostles of Christ, but we have become like children among you (1 Thess. 2:7) 2139. He became like a child among them, because he was afraid, and was careful not to set an example of pride in any way when he asserted himself among his disciples and carried his high position among them. He was justly afraid, in fact, that if he sought for himself the power of pastoral power, his flock would swiftly follow him through these precipitous places, and he, who should be the conductor of godliness, would lead to wickedness of those who followed him. 54. In this connection it is necessary that a man who occupies a high place should pay special attention to the example he sets for his subjects, and know that he lives for all over whom he is placed. He must be especially vigilant that he does not become proud because he is placed above others, that he does not begin to seek immoderate privileges from this power, that the supremacy of discipline does not turn into a reverence for pride, and that by the power which he possesses he restrains his subjects from evil, and rightly instructs the hearts of those over whom he is placed; and so that (as was previously said) he would not become a wicked prince because of his position. A person, however, should not take upon himself the leadership of others unless he knows how to lead those under him to a holy life; so that it does not happen that he, who was appointed to correct the shortcomings of other people, himself commits the sin that he should have cut off. Let rulers, therefore, take special care to live for those under them: to cultivate in the bosom of their minds the good that they do, and thereby provide an example of good behavior to those under them; correct the shortcomings of his subjects by judging them, but not be proud of the importance of this; to approach with mercy the exposure of certain shortcomings, and yet not to relax the bonds of discipline in this mercy; to watch over and correct evil, and yet not to be proud of its punishment. These things are very, very difficult, and, without Divine support, very difficult to accomplish. But the Book of Wisdom rightly says about the coming of the strict Judge: He will appear to you fearfully and quickly, and the judgment will be severe on those in authority (Wis. 6:5). Since people too often, for the most part, come from power to pride, and pride is counted as wickedness by the strict Judge, it is well said by Elihu: whoever calls princes ungodly. For when they are proud of their power, they lead by their example to the wickedness of those under them. 55. A person who is appointed to rule over people must be especially careful in the secret chambers of his mind, and take special care not to stray from a place of humility. And while others stand before him, when he gives his verdict, he must see Him with a vigilant eye, before Whom he will stand in the future at the Judgment and answer these very questions. Let him consider that he who is unlikely to be able, perhaps, to satisfy the strict Judge with the state of his own soul, must, by the right of his government, answer him separately and for as many subjects, or as many souls (so to speak), as are subject to him. And if this thought constantly penetrates the mind, it crushes all the shoots of pride. And the king will not say about a cautious ruler: an apostate, and will not be called a wicked prince, the more anxiously he treats the power that he received not as an honor, but as a burden. For, having received the right of judgment now, he does not feel pleasure from this, being in contemplation of the Judgment of the future. The number of offenses that are committed out of a desire to gain power is countless. But power is only correctly exercised when it is exercised not in love for it, but in fear. And in order for power to be correctly exercised, it is necessary that it be given not at our own request, but first of all, entrusted to us. But it should not be feared if it has already been imposed, and, again, it should not be perceived as an object of desire; one should not refuse out of fear, because a person, supposedly due to modesty, will be guilty of greater pride, as trying to escape from the Divine dispensation. And again, the more his own personal power over others gives him pleasure, the more he tries to throw off the yoke of his Heavenly Ruler. When power is given into the hands, it should not be greedily loved, but patiently endured; so that later, at the Judgment, it will be a small burden for us, the service that is now difficult for us to bear. And his soul approaches the grave and his life approaches death. If he has a mentor angel, one of a thousand, to show a person his straight path, God will have mercy on him and say: free him from the grave; I have found propitiation. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; the government will be upon His shoulder, and His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. In all their sorrow He did not abandon them, and the Angel of His presence saved them; out of His love and His mercy He redeemed them, took them and carried them all the days of old. The angel answered Her: The Holy Spirit will come upon You, and the power of the Most High will overshadow You; therefore the Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God. No one takes it away from Me, but I myself give it. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to receive it again. I received this commandment from My Father. For He does not receive angels, but He receives the seed of Abraham. Therefore, He had to become like the brethren in everything, in order to be a merciful and faithful high priest before God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. Only from the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God said, do not eat it or touch it, lest you die. God will have mercy on him and say: free him from the grave; I have found propitiation. for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. Who are you superior to? go down and lie with the uncircumcised. Then his body will become fresher than in his youth; he will return to the days of his youth. And the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he had been taken. And he drove out Adam, and placed Cherubim and a flaming sword that turned around in the east of the Garden of Eden to guard the way to the tree of life. My eye is withered by sorrow, worn out by all my enemies. Rejoice, young man, in your youth, and let your heart taste joy in the days of your youth, and walk in the ways of your heart and according to the vision of your eyes; just know that for all this God will bring you to judgment. He will pray to God, and He will be merciful to him; ... ...looks with joy on his face and restores to man his righteousness. Blessed are the people who know the trumpet call! ... ... I saw God face to face, and my soul was preserved. ... and then I will know, even as I am known. ... and restores to man his righteousness. Give us this day our daily bread. Give us our daily bread every day. but God knows that on the day you eat of them, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like gods, knowing good and evil. Did God really say: Do not eat from any tree in paradise? He will look at people and say: I have sinned... because you are still carnal. For if there is envy, strife, and disagreement among you, are you not carnal? and are you not acting according to human custom? and that you are My sheep, the sheep of My pasture; You are men, and I am your God, says the Lord God. The grains have rotted under their clods,... These are fattened horses: each of them neighs at the other’s wife. and she became addicted to her lovers, whose flesh is that of a donkey, and whose lust is like that of stallions. A man who is honorable and foolish is like animals that perish. ... and the books were opened, and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged according to what was written in the books, according to their deeds. Your two breasts are like the twins of a young chamois grazing among the lilies. While the day breathes coolness and the shadows flee, I will go to the mountain of myrrh and to the hill of incense. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. You, son of man, tell the house of Israel about this church, so that they may be ashamed of their iniquities and take away the measure from it. And my spirit lifted me; and I heard a great thunderous voice behind me: “Blessed is the glory of the Lord from his place!” and also the sound of the wings of animals touching one another, and the sound of wheels near them, and the sound of strong thunder. But those who trust in the Lord will renew their strength: they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not be weary, they will walk and not be weary. The Apostle Peter in Catholicism is traditionally considered the first Pope of Rome. and consider the longsuffering of our Lord to be salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, wrote to you, as he speaks about this in all his epistles, in which there is something difficult to understand, which the ignorant and unstable, like other Scriptures, twist to their own destruction. He will look at people and say: I have sinned and distorted the truth, and I have not been repaid. I couldn't find the corresponding quote. He freed my soul from the grave, and my life sees the light. ... but I labored more than all of them: not I, however, but the grace of God, which is with me. Now, God does all this two or three times with a person. and his life turns away from bread and his soul from his favorite food. He will pray to God, and He will be merciful to him; He looks with joy on his face and restores his righteousness to man. My son! If you begin to serve the Lord God, then prepare your soul for temptation. Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. But when Pharaoh sent the people away, God did not lead them along the road of the land of the Philistines, because it was close; for God said: lest the people repent when they see the war, and return to Egypt. After six days had passed, Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain alone, and was transfigured before them: and His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became white as light. Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. And a certain maid came to him and said, “You too were with Jesus the Galilean.” on the day when, according to my gospel, God will judge the secret deeds of men through Jesus Christ. ... flattering lips speak from a feigned heart. For although I do not know anything about myself, I am not justified by this; The Lord is my judge. for we all sin many times. He who does not sin in word is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. to take his soul away from the grave and enlighten him with the light of the living. And Elihu continued and said... Listen, you wise ones, to my speech, and incline your ears to me, you prudent ones! For the ear discerns words as the larynx discerns taste in food. I owe both Greeks and barbarians, wise men and ignorant. Let us reason among ourselves and discern what is good. Behold, Job said: I am right, but God has deprived me of judgment. Should I lie to my truth? My wound is inhealable without guilt. God lives, who deprived me of judgment, and the Almighty, who grieved my soul. Is there such a man as Job, who drinks mockery like water, associates with the workers of iniquity, and walks with wicked people? And the Lord said to Satan: Have you paid attention to my servant Job? for there is no one like him on earth: a blameless, just, fearing God and shunning evil. In the mouth of a fool is the scourge of pride; but the lips of the wise guard them. The words of the wise are like needles and like driven nails, and their compilers are from one shepherd. When John saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming to him to be baptized, he said to them: You brood of vipers! who inspired you to flee from future wrath? Fierce-necked! people with uncircumcised hearts and ears! you always resist the Holy Spirit, just like your fathers and you. O foolish Galatians! Who deceived you not to submit to the truth, you, who had before your eyes Jesus Christ as if he were crucified? Because he said: there is no benefit for a person in pleasing God. So listen to me, you wise men! ... ... There cannot be unrighteousness with God or unjustice with the Almighty, for He deals with a man according to the deeds of a man and rewards him according to the ways of a man. Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to everyone according to his deeds (Rev. 22:12). For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what he has done while living in the body, whether good or bad. (2 Cor. 5:10). There is also such a vanity on earth: the righteous suffer what the deeds of the wicked would deserve, and the wicked suffer what the deeds of the righteous would deserve. And I said: and this is vanity! Verily, God does not commit unrighteousness, and the Almighty does not pervert judgment. ... you stirred Me up against him in order to destroy him innocently. Who besides Him provides for the earth? And who rules the whole universe? If He turned His heart to Himself and took her spirit and her breath to Himself... suddenly all flesh would perish, and man would return to dust. When I was converted, I repented, and when I was admonished, I struck my thighs; ... and it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. Abraham said in response: Behold, I have decided to speak to the Lord, I, dust and ashes... if you hide your face, they are troubled; if you take away their spirit, they die and return to their dust. So, if you have understanding, then listen to this and listen to my words. Can he who hates the truth rule? And can you blame the All-Righteous? Is it possible to say to the king: you are a wicked person, and to the princes: you are lawless? If they made you a leader at a feast, do not be proud; be among others as one of them (Sir.32:1). The weak were not strengthened, and the sick sheep were not healed, and the wounded were not bandaged, and the stolen ones were not returned, and the lost ones were not sought, but they were ruled with violence and cruelty. We could appear with importance, like the Apostles of Christ, but we were quiet among you, like a nurse tenderly treats her children.