From this it follows, Christian: 1) The Word of God, as a great and heavenly gift, we must revere and love, as St. David did (Psalm 118). 2) For this great gift, thank the Heavenly Father from the heart. 3) To learn in it day and night. 4) According to His rule, to correct one's life and morals. 5) Ungrateful and senseless are those who cease to read or listen to it; who do not have time to read the word of God, but have time to read funny books; who are trying to find out what is happening in Italy, in Rome, in Asia, in Africa and other places, but do not want to know from the word of God what is going on in their souls and to what end they are going, to eternal life or eternal torment, which is undoubtedly a sign of a lost soul.

3. The Holy Bible, or the books that contain the word of God, are divided into the books of the Old and New Testaments. The books of the Old Testament are all those that were written before the coming of Christ, such as: the books of Moses, the Prophets, and others. The books of the New Testament are those written by the apostles after the coming of Christ, they contain the teaching and holy preaching of the saving coming of Christ, such as the four Gospels, the Apostolic Epistles, and others.

4. The Word of God, contained in the sacred books of the Old and New Testaments, is divided into two main parts: the Law and the Gospel. The Law of God is understood as the commandments of God, in which God either commands or forbids us to do something, such as: "Turn away from evil, and do good" (Psalm 33:15). The Gospel is understood to mean all His merciful and joyful promises to us, or those that have already been fulfilled, such as: about the coming of Christ the Son of God, Who has already come and accomplished the great work of our salvation, or those that have yet to be fulfilled, such as the general resurrection and eternal life for those who believe in Christ. All the power of the Gospel is contained in Christ's brief saying: "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:16).

5. The law of God, given to our forefathers Adam and Eve in Paradise, was written on their hearts, but then, written on two tablets from God, it was handed down to St. Moses on Mount Sinai and through him was announced to all people, as it is written in the Book of Exodus (Exodus 32 and 34). Christ the Son of God brought the Gospel from the bosom of His Heavenly Father to earth and preached: "And when He came, He preached peace to us, far and near" (Ephesians 2:17), as He says of Himself: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me; for he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor, and has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, to restore sight to the blind, to set the afflicted at liberty, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord" (Luke 4:18-19). About the Law and the Gospel, St. John the Evangelist wrote briefly: "The Law was given through Moses; but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ" (John 1:17).

6. Whatever the Word of God reveals to us, we must believe as surely as if we had seen it with our eyes, or even more, since our sense can more easily deceive us than the Word of God, spoken from a true God. We must believe Him more than He who has risen from the dead and told Him. For it is written: "If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, even if someone were to rise from the dead, they will not believe" (Luke 16:31). God's testimony, which is declared in the Holy Scriptures and confirmed by signs and wonders, is more reliable than the voice of the whole world. For "the testimony of the Lord is true" (Psalm 18:8). Any man can lie, but God, being Himself eternal truth, cannot lie. "The Lord is faithful in all His words" (Psalm 144:13). "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away" (Matthew 24:35; Luke 21:33). And therefore what God has revealed to us is irrevocably so, and what He has predicted will certainly come to pass in due time. There will certainly be the resurrection of the dead, there will be the second coming of Christ, as the first was, there will be His righteous judgment, there will be retribution for the righteous and the sinners, and so on.

7. The Word of God has been handed down to us from God and written by God-inspired men, so that we, holding on to it, may receive eternal salvation. "And these things are written," says St. John, "that ye may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing ye may have life in His name" (John 20:31). And St. Paul: "And all that was written before was written for our instruction, that we might keep hope in patience and comfort from the Scriptures" (Romans 15:4). That is why Christ directs the Jews to study the Scriptures: "Search the Scriptures, for ye think by them to have eternal life" (John 5:39). And although the forefathers and holy patriarchs were saved without Holy Scripture; but they were taught, instructed, and comforted by the living voice of God, as we read in the Book of Genesis. We should not expect such a voice and instruction of God, but from the written word of His holy word we should seek advice and instruction, according to the word of Christ: "Search the Scriptures." The Word of God is an indubitable, true, firm and unshakable rule given by God of holy faith and God-pleasing Christian life. For it is a lamp unto our feet, as the prophet confesses: "Thy law is a lamp unto my feet, O Lord, and a light unto my ways" (Psalm 118:105). And the Holy Apostle Peter teaches: "We have the most certain prophetic word; and ye do well that ye turn unto him as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day shall dawn, and the morning star shall rise in your hearts" (2 Peter 1:19). "The law of the Lord is blameless: it converts souls; The Lord's testimony is true: He makes infants wise; the justifications of the Lord are right: they rejoice the heart; the commandment of the Lord is bright: it enlightens the eyes of the heart (Psalm 18:8-9). "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, equipped for every good work" (2 Timothy 3:16-17). That is why the gospel of Christ is called and "is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes" (Romans 1:16), since "faith comes by hearing, and hearing is by the word of God" (Romans 10:17), by means of which we "believe" in Christ (John 17:20); thus, "it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save those who believe" (1 Corinthians 1:21). Therefore, all Christians who want to have the true and living faith, and to keep it to the end, and thus be saved, need to diligently read or hear the Word of God. Just as those who walk the path or do something need the light of the senses, so those who go to eternal life and abide in the struggle of faith and piety need the lamp of the word of God, so as not to deviate to the path of the wicked. And just as the body is strengthened every day with food, so that it does not weaken and, having weakened, does not disappear, so it is proper to strengthen the soul every day with the spiritual food of the word of God, so that it does not faint from hunger and perish. Man is blind in himself, and therefore requires enlightenment; weak, and therefore he needs reinforcement; he is lazy and despondent, and therefore he needs encouragement and consolation. And all this comes from the word of God. The Word of God warns us against many snares of the devil and the charms of the world, which all try to seduce the soul from the path of godliness. Consequently, those Christians are mistaken who depart from this Divine rule and, like the blind or in darkness, walk until they finally fall into the pit of perdition.

8. The Word of God, being the truest and most perfect rule of piety, as it has been said, is necessary for all Christians, but especially for pastors, that is, bishops and priests, for they have taken the "keys of understanding" (Luke 11:52), which is the word of God, and by this they must open the door to Christ the Living God and the source of life, and to eternal bliss, which was opened by His death. The holy Apostle wrote to Timothy, and in his person to every pastor: "Take heed to thyself and to the teaching; Do this continually: for by doing so, you will save yourself and those who hear you. And a little higher: Be occupied with reading, with instruction, with teaching" (1 Tim. 4:16, 13). Consequently, those pastors are defective in their calling who do not heed, according to the apostolic admonition, the reading of the Holy Scriptures. How can such a pastor teach others if he himself is ignorant? How can He enlighten others, if He himself is in darkness and blindness? How can he instruct others if he himself is mistaken? Christ likens such pastors to blind leaders: "They are blind leaders of the blind; but if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into the pit" (Matt. 15:14).

9. The Word of God, both to everyone in general and to each in particular, to me, and to you, and to others, has been equally transmitted and written. For God does not look at persons, but "wills that all men should be saved, and come to the knowledge of the truth" (1 Timothy 2:4). For this reason He commanded that His holy word be written for the sake of all and everyone, so that everyone who reads or hears it may receive eternal salvation. As God says to me in His word, "I am the Lord your God; thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself," and so on, so also saith unto thee (Lev. 19:18). And Christ commands everyone to search the Scriptures: "Search the Scriptures." And the Apostolic Epistles are addressed to all Christians, as everyone can see from those epistles. And the holy Apostle John wrote in his epistle: "I write to you, fathers, I write to you, young men, I write to you, young men," and so on (1 John 2:13). He wrote to the fathers, youths and youths, therefore: 1) to each and every person, and to people of every rank and rank, that is, sanctified and unconsecrated, noble and simple, men and women, it is possible and necessary to read and listen to him; 2) obliges everyone and every rank of people to obedience, that is, to avoid evil and do good; 3) those sin who believe and teach that the Holy Scriptures should not be read by ordinary people, but only by priests and other sanctified persons. And indeed, this opinion is a fiction and the intrigue of the devil, who leads people away from this soul-beneficial reading, so that, without reading the Holy Scriptures, they do not have true and living faith and thus would not be saved.

10. Since those who do not hear only the word of God are blessed, but those who hear and keep it, as Christ says: "Blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it" (Luke 11:28), we must strive both to hear and to keep what we hear with God's help. That is why the Apostle exhorts Christians: "Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For whoever hears the word and does not do it is like a man who examines the natural features of his face in a mirror: he looked at himself, went away, and immediately forgot what he was" (James 1:22-24). For God did not declare His word to lie only outside, on the charter, like a dead mark, but that within, in our hearts, it might have its fruit. For the Word of God is a living, divine seed, which must germinate on the earth of our hearts with spiritual fruits. What is the use of a seed sown in the ground if it bears no fruit? In the same way, the word of God, preached and heard, will not benefit us if it does not bear fruit in our hearts, that is, if we do not try to correct our lives according to its rule. A royal decree is published so that his subjects know and execute his will. In the same way, the word of God is published so that we may correct our lives according to his rule. There is no benefit in hearing the word of God, but not living according to its rule, moreover, the word of God heard and not kept will be in increased condemnation, as will be said below.

11. God in His holy word says to the human soul: "I am the Lord your God, and so forth; He says to the soul: Turn away from evil and do good; believe, humble yourself, love, endure", and so on. The soul must listen to the voice of God, obey, repent, believe, love, endure, and so on. And when evil thoughts arise, do not accept them, but when good advice is felt inside, follow it. Therefore: 1) There is no benefit in appearing to be in good order outwardly, but being defective inwardly; to humble oneself in one's body, but to be proud of one's soul; on the tongue to have faith and love, but in the heart unbelief and its fruits.

All this is hypocrisy. 2) Any sin first appears in the soul,

and then it manifests itself externally and bodily and is accomplished through the body. For example, murder, theft, fornication, and so on happen in the soul. For the hand will not kill, steal; the tongue will not slander or slander; The eye will not look, the ear will not hear the indecent, the belly will not overeat, the feet will not walk to evil, if the soul does not want to. In the same way, every virtue must be in the soul, and on occasion it must be outwardly manifested and manifest its action. For example, faith must be in the soul and on occasion show itself by confession; Love must be in the soul and on occasion manifest itself through works of mercy, and so on. Whoever has true love for his neighbor will not refuse him who asks. And God, when He says to a man: "Thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal," He does not speak to the hands, but to the soul, from which murder and theft occur and are committed through the hands; likewise, He does not say to the tongue, "Thou shalt not bear false witness," but to the soul that uses the tongue to bear false witness, and so on. That is why the Apostle calls the bodily members "instruments of righteousness" or "instruments of unrighteousness" (Romans 6:13). They are "instruments of righteousness" when the soul makes righteousness with them; "instruments of unrighteousness" - when the soul uses them to create unrighteousness. 3) Not only the murderer, or the predator, or the adulterer, etc., who sins by deed, does evil, but also the one who wants to do evil. "A good tree cannot bring forth bad fruit, nor a bad tree bring forth good fruit," says Christ (Matt. 7:18). Therefore, in God's word, murder is attributed not only to the one who kills a person by deed, but also to the one who hates a person. "Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer," says St. John (1 John 3:15). Likewise, fornication is called fornication by Christ. "Whosoever looketh upon a woman to lust after her hath already committed adultery with her in his heart" (Matt. 5:28). And although the civil court does not execute evil lusts, the judgment of God will execute them, since they are committed against His holy and eternal law: "Thou shalt not covet." God judges not only external sins, but also internal ones, at least outwardly, they did not manifest themselves before people.

12. God, commanding to turn away from evil, also commands to do good: "Turn away from evil and do good" (Psalm 33:15); forbidding stealing, stealing, he also commands to give: "Give to him who asks you" (Matt. 5:42). Therefore: 1) Both to the avoidance of evil and to the creation of good, we are equally obliged. 2) From this it follows that both what is forbidden to do and what is commanded not to do is contrary to the holy law of God, and therefore is a sin. For everything that is done against the law of God is sin. "Sin is lawlessness," according to the testimony of the Apostle (1 John 3:4). Not only for evil deeds, but also for neglect of good deeds, Christ sends Him into eternal fire. "Depart from me, you cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels," he will say to those who are on the left side in the day of his judgment. And why? "For I hungered, and ye gave Me not to eat," and so on (Matt. 25:41-42). This is taught by St. Basil the Great in his discourse on the judgment of God, and by St. Chrysostom in his discourse on the 3rd chapter of the Epistle to the Romans. From this it follows that those rich sin who do not give of their possessions to the poor who ask of them; in the same way do the rest of them sin, who conceal the gifts of God within themselves and do not benefit their neighbors, although they could. And these gifts are the very talents for which we should give an answer to our Lord on the day of His righteous judgment (Matt. 25:14-30).

13. Whoever wishes to read or listen to the word of God with spiritual benefit should note the following: 1) Since it is the most precious gift of God, he must read or listen to it with reverence, eagerness and diligence. If we listen to an earthly king or a lofty man who addresses us and converses with us, with attention, zeal and reverence, then