For this reason a wise man said: "If thou comest to serve the Lord God, prepare thy soul for temptation: set thy heart straight, and be strong, and be not troubled during the visitation" (Sir. 3:1-2). And a little lower: "For gold is tested in fire, but men who are pleasing to God in the furnace of humiliation" (Sir. 3:5). And in another place it says: "Do not reject the chastisement of the Lord, my son, and do not be burdened by His chastisement" (Proverbs 3:11). Whoever throws gold into the furnace knows how long it must remain in the fire, and when it must be taken out; wherefore the wise man says, "And be not troubled during the visitation," and Solomon, teaching the same thing, said, "Do not be troubled by His rebuke." Sorrow is a great deed, great for a person to become valiant and learn the virtue of patience. And what, someone will say, if by its excessiveness it shakes and overcomes (man)? "God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but when you are tempted he will also give you relief, so that you may be able to endure" (1 Cor. 10:13). If punishment comes from love, and abandonment without punishment from hatred (cf. Heb. 12:7-8), then it is impossible for one and the same person to love and hate the same person at the same time, to punish and at the same time to ignore him. Why, some will say, have so many fallen? Because they themselves fell away from God, and were not abandoned by Him. "For behold," says the Scriptures, "those who distance themselves from Thee perish" (Psalm 72:27). And they distance themselves by not tolerating God's admonitions, but are angry and indignant at them.

For this reason we are commanded to "endure and strengthen our hearts" (Psalm 26:14). But have you suffered much more grievously? - In the same way, educators of children do not assign equal and identical exercises to everyone, but weak ones, and give equally strong opponents to the strong; for whoever has an opponent weaker than himself will not have proper exercise, even if he struggles with him all day long. Why, some will say, has not God ordained all those who have devoted themselves to the same life to bear the same labors? Because God has more than one kind of exercise, and people do not all have need of the same things, even if they are in the same circumstances, just as many sick people suffering from the same diseases do not need the same medicines, but some have need of some and others others.

Each of these sufferings, in comparison with your misfortune, seems to you light and insignificant, but if you had experienced them yourself, you would have learned that your misfortune, of which you now lament, is much more bearable than them. However, if some are punished less than we are, we should not be tempted by this; for the increase of labor serves to increase the rewards, and is a firm bulwark against voluntary or involuntary attacks: it curbs pride, drives away carelessness, and makes us more prudent and pious. In general, if anyone wants to enumerate everything, he will find much benefit from temptations, and none of those for whom God cares much is without sorrow, although it does not seem so to us.

7. If Blessed Paul endured much, and there is no one greater than him or even his equal, then how is it possible that other people do not need this help? If some have not come to their senses with such sorrows, it is no longer through the fault of Him who sent the punishment, but through their own negligence. If medicine had not been applied to them, one might have thought that they had perished from inattention to them; And now not a little has been done in order not to blame the doctor for anything, but only to the patients themselves, and their inattention. Though some, who lived honestly before the temptations, fell after they were subjected to them; others, who gave themselves over to all kinds of vices, did not experience any sorrow; and others from the first age to the last breath endured innumerable misfortunes - but we should not be confused and fall (into despair) by anything of the kind. If we could and should know the actions of God's Providence and did not know them, then we should be discouraged and confused; but if he, too, who was a partaker of the ineffable mysteries and ascended to the third heaven, was troubled before this abyss, and, having penetrated into the depths of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God, was only amazed and immediately departed, why do we strive in vain to know the incomprehensible and to investigate the unfathomable (Romans 11:33)? We will not contradict the doctor when he prescribes the opposite of what seems to us useful, orders, for example, that a cold penis be dipped in cold water, and does many other apparently strange things; but having convinced ourselves beforehand that he does this according to the rules of his art, we willingly obey him, although he often makes mistakes. Why then shall we examine (the actions of) God, Who is so superior to us in all things, Who is Wisdom itself, and never errs? To whom an account should be demanded, let us believe unquestioningly; and from Him Whom alone we must believe, shall we demand justification and an account of His actions, and be indignant that we do not know this? Is this characteristic of a pious soul? No, I beg and beseech you, let us not go to such madness, but let us say of everything in which we are perplexed: "Thy destinies are a great abyss!" (Psalm 35:7). Even that which we do not know clearly is a matter of God's wisdom. If we obeyed God because we knew the causes of events, then our reward would not be great, and our obedience would not be an expression of faith; but when we, not knowing them, lovingly submit to all His commandments, out of true obedience and sincere faith, then we bring the greatest benefit to our souls. We must be convinced of only one thing, that God sends everything for our benefit, and that the very method is not to investigate, and not to grumble, and not to lose heart, when we do not know it. To know it is both impossible and useless for us; the first because we are mortal; the second because we are soon carried away by pride. With our children, we do many things that seem harmful to them, but in fact are useful for them; However, they do not dare to ask the reason, and we do not first convince them of the benefit of what we intend to do with them, but only inspire them to obey the commands of their parents and not to ask anything more. If we treat our parents in this way, who are of the same nature as us, and do not murmur against them, then we will grumble about God, Who surpasses us as much as God is higher than people, how can we grumble because we do not know everything? What can compare with such impiety? Blessed Paul indignantly said to such people: "And who are you, man, that you argue with God? Will the product say to him who made it, Why did you make me so? (Romans 9:20)? I pointed to the example of the children, and Paul gave a much better example, of the potter and the clay he was working on. As clay assumes whatever form is given to it by the hands of the one who works it, so a man should act in accordance with what God commands, and accept with gratitude what He sends, without in the least contradicting or trying to find out (the reason for this); for this is incomprehensible not only to us, but also to the holy and wondrous men who lived before us. Thus Job said: "Why do the wicked live, reach old age, and have strong strength?" and so on (Job 21:7). And the blessed David said: "And I, my feet were almost shaken, my feet almost slipped, I envied the fools, seeing the prosperity of the wicked, for they have no suffering until their death, and their strength is strong; in the work of man they are not, and with [other] people they are not struck" (Psalm 72:2-5). After him, Jeremiah also said, "Thou art righteous, O Lord, if I sue thee; and yet I will speak with thee concerning justice: why is the way of the wicked prosperous, and all the treacherous prosper?" (Jeremiah 12:1). They also were perplexed and asked, but not as the wicked, not murmuring against God and not accusing Him of injustice for His works. On the contrary, one of them said: "Thy righteousness is like the mountains of God, and Thy destinies are a great deep" (Psalm 35:7), and the other, who suffered much, "in all this did not say anything foolish about God" (Job 1:22); and in his book, speaking of creation and explaining the incomprehensibility of the wisdom and economy of God, he said: "Behold, these are parts of His ways; and how little we have heard of him!" (Job 26:14). And Jeremiah, foreseeing that some may doubt, before his question expresses the following judgment: "Thou shalt be righteous, O Lord," i.e. I know that everything is done by Thee justly, but I do not comprehend the way in which it is done. Well, did they learn anything more? No, they did not even receive an answer, as Blessed David explains in the words: "And I thought how to understand it, but it was difficult in my eyes" (Psalm 72:16). They did not receive an answer so that their descendants would learn not to ask about it. They asked only one thing, why the wicked enjoy prosperity and wealth, but even this they did not know; and the present ones want to know much more of them, because many more questions are being asked today than they did then. Let clear knowledge be given to Him Who knows all things before it is accomplished.

8. If, on the basis of what we already know, we ourselves should present some solution to the questions posed, in order to reassure those who are very anxious to know about it, then I say that after the kingdom of heaven has been revealed to us and the promise of recompense in the future life, it is no longer seemly to inquire why (on earth) the righteous live in sorrows, and the wicked in tranquility. If everyone there expects retribution according to his merits, why should he be indignant at the circumstances here, happy or unhappy? Through the calamities here, God strengthens those who are obedient to Him as courageous fighters, and the weaker, negligent, and unable to endure anything hard, He preliminarily disposes them to be ready for good deeds. Often the opposite also happens, that many of the righteous live in tranquillity and honor, and the wicked in dishonor and extreme calamity; This, first of all, refutes for us the preceding proposition, that the righteous suffer tribulations, and the wicked are blessed. If it still needs to be explained, then I will say that God does not arrange our good in the same way, but, as inexhaustible in means, paves for us many paths to salvation. Since many do not want to accept the teachings about the future life and resurrection, He still here shows in a small form the image of the (future) judgment, when He punishes the evil and rewards the good. This will be fully accomplished at that judgment, but it is being done in part now and here, so that those who, in view of the remoteness of the judgment, have given themselves over to sin, may at least be enlightened by the events of the present time. If none of the wicked were punished at all, and none of the good received a reward, then many of those who do not believe in the doctrine of the resurrection would deviate from virtue as the cause of evil, and would cling to sin as the cause of good; On the other hand, if all were to be rewarded according to their merits, some would think that the doctrine of judgment was superfluous and false. Therefore, so that this teaching may not be questioned, and so that the majority of the ignorant people may not become worse through carelessness, God is here punishing many of the sinners and rewarding some of the righteous; by not doing this to all, He confirms the doctrine of judgment, but by punishing some even before the judgment, awakening those who are asleep in a deep sleep. In view of the punishment of the wicked, many are corrected, fearing that they too may suffer the same; and because not everyone here receives the reward according to their merits, many involuntarily come to the idea that it has been postponed to some other time. A righteous God, of course, would not have allowed so many of the wicked to die unpunished, and the good to suffer innumerable calamities, if He had not prepared for both of them a different condition in the age to come. Wherefore He does not punish and reward all, but only some, such as the king of Persia and Hezekiah, though there were many wicked like that Assyrian, and virtuous like Hezekiah, but God did not do to all as He did to them; The reason is, as I said, the time of judgment has not yet come. And that this teaching is not mine, listen to Him Himself, Who will then judge us. When they came to Him and told Him about the death of those crushed by the tower, and about the folly of Pilate, which he showed in relation to the dead, mixing their blood with sacrifices, then what does Christ say? "Do you think that these Galileans were more sinful than all the Galileans, that they suffered thus? No, I say to you, but if you do not repent, you will all perish in the same way. Or do you think that those eighteen men on whom the tower of Siloam fell and slew them were more guilty than all those who dwelt in Jerusalem? No, I say to you, but if you do not repent, you will all perish in the same way" (Luke 13:2-5). This is the reason for the slowdown. For this reason God does not suddenly punish all who are worthy of punishment, so that through the misfortunes of some all others may become better. So let the proposed question be resolved. But perhaps you also wish to solve the question which has been proposed above, and which is much more difficult than this? However, I think that when this is explained by us as far as possible, then the first question is also the beginning of the solution. What is it that perplexes you? The fact that many from the first age to death struggled with many misfortunes. To this, as well as to the former, I will say that God punishes them, first, for their own vices; and then that others may benefit from their misfortunes. If this does not happen to everyone, it is because now is not yet the time of judgment. Why, then, will you say, are some, before they reach the age when they can distinguish between good and evil, who are already punished as great criminals? There is not one reason for this, but many different ones. This can occur from the intemperance of parents, and from the negligence of educators, and from changes in the air, and from many other similar circumstances. Moreover, God knows about many of them that they will be vicious, and therefore He binds them in advance with punishments, as if with some kind of fetters. Do you not see that even among the poor, many of the poor, in the most deplorable situation, commit many crimes, not from grief or hunger, but solely from their depravity? Once I heard from some people that beggars, seizing a noble and beautiful woman, dishonored her in a deserted place. What need, what grief impelled them to such a deed? What crime would they not have committed, if misfortunes had not restrained them like chains? And who could endure the frenzy and unbridled imprisonment? Those possessed by a demon behave no better than they do. I am not talking about what they do during the fits of demonic possession, but about what happens after these attacks have ceased: they indulge in gluttony, and steal, and drink, and do much more abominable deeds.

By this he disposes the wicked to abandon their wickedness, if they will, and makes the good more attentive, and shows his long-suffering, and confirms to all, as I said above, the doctrine of the resurrection.

However, there may be some other secret reason for this, known only to our Creator.

9. One more question remains: Why did those who lived righteously before the temptations fall after the temptations? But who truly knows those who live righteously, except "Who created our hearts in private, and who considers all our works" (cf. Ps. 32:15)? Many of those who appear to be virtuous often turn out to be the most vicious of all. This was also manifested in real life, but only in relation to some, on some occasion and out of some necessity. And when He who searches our hearts and wombs, "living and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, who pierces to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow, and judges the thoughts and intentions of the heart" (cf. Heb. 4:12), then you will see not only a few of the many, but all openly as they really are, and not a wolf will be hidden by a sheep's skin, nor the color of the coffin, its internal impurity; for "there is no creature hidden from Him, but all things are naked and open before His eyes" (Hebrews 4:13). Paul, explaining this to the Corinthians, said: "Therefore do not judge in any way before the time, until the Lord comes, who will also give light to what is hidden in darkness and reveal the intentions of the heart, and then everyone will have praise from God" (1 Cor. 4:5). However, leaving the hypocrites, let us say about those who live righteously: how do we know that, having many virtues, they did not neglect the main one - humility? For this reason God departed from them, so that they would know that they did good deeds not by their own power, but by the grace of God. But if anyone says that it is better to be proud of doing good than to humble oneself by sinning, he does not understand at all the harm of pride, nor the benefit of humility. Of course, you know very well that a man who does good with pride, if only it is possible to do good in this way, will soon come to utter destruction. Whoever has allowed himself to fall and has learned humility by falling, will soon, if he will, rise up and reform; but whoever does seeming good with pride and does not tolerate anything unpleasant, will never feel his sinfulness, but will increase the evil, and imperceptibly for himself will depart from here without good works, like the Pharisee who entered the temple, thinking of himself that he was rich in every virtue, and went out when he learned that he was poorer even than the publican (Luke 13:10). There is another kind of evil, which has great power to abolish good, gathered with great effort and labor, and that is the wind of vanity. It is indeed, like a rushing wind, blowing away all the treasures of virtue. Behold, the second reason for the fall of those who live righteously has been revealed to us, as thou hast said. Many, who seem to us to have endured and are enduring great labors for virtue, because they have done everything for the sake of honor with men, and not with God, are allowed to fall into temptation, so that, having lost human glory, for which they have endured all deprivations, and having learned that it is in essence no better than the flower of grass, they will finally cleave to God alone and do everything for Him. In addition, there are many other reasons for this, but, as I have said, they are hidden from us, and are known to our Creator - God. Let us not murmur against Him for what is happening to us, but let us give thanks: this is characteristic of grateful servants. You wonder that the unclean (spirit) attacked you, not in former times, when you were luxurious and surrounded yourself with worldly splendour, but now that you have given up all these things and given yourself entirely to God; but it is as if you were wondering why no one disturbs the spectators, but the one who has signed up for wrestling, prepared and went to the place of wrestling, is attacked by the opponent of all, strikes him in the head and hits him in the face. It is not surprising and deplorable that the demon grieves, oppresses, and troubles those who have decided to fight, for such is the law of struggle, but if it fights, and overthrows, and deprives of reward, this is terrible! And as long as he is not able to do this, he will not only do us no harm, but will also bring us the greatest benefit, giving us more honor by a strong struggle with us. In the same way, among warriors, the best is the one who can show the most wounds and who has engaged in single combat with the strongest of opponents; and of the wrestlers we are especially amazed at those who enter into battle with the invincible (as the bravest of opponents are called); and of the hunters, he is considered the strongest who goes out against the wildest animals. Is your demon shameless and fearless? But therefore I never cease to be amazed and amazed at you, that you, having received such an adversary, did not fall, did not betray yourself, but remained unyielding and did not yield to him in anything.

10. And what I now tell you without flattery, that indeed you have received the greatest benefit from your sorrow, let me speak plainly; for otherwise I cannot prove it to you. You know and remember your former life, that is, life before temptation; examine it attentively and compare it with the present life after the temptation, and you will see what benefit has come to you from this calamity. Now you have great zeal for fasting, and for night vigils, and for reading, and for the exercise of prayer; likewise, patience and humility have reached the highest degree in you; and before that you did not think at all about books, and used all your care and labor in caring for garden trees. Many, as I have heard, have even reproached you with pride, and have explained it by the nobility of your family, the glory of your father, and your upbringing in great wealth. How lazy you were in the night vigils, you know this very well. Often, when others got up hastily in the dead of night, you remained in a deep sleep and angry with those who woke you up. And now, since you entered into this struggle and struggle, all this has ceased and changed for the better. If you ask me why God did not allow the demon to attack you when you lived in luxury and were attached to worldly affairs, then I will answer that this also was the work of His providence; He knew that then the enemy would soon destroy you, finding you easily defeated. For this reason God did not call you to this struggle as soon as you entered the monastic life, but left you to exercise for a long time, and then, when you were strengthened, He led you to this difficult field. You also mention those who live in the world, and point to your servant; for I think you mean it when you say that many of the worldly people, having been subjected to the same disease, received a complete healing very soon. But, most dear, your servant and others who were subjected to the same calamity as him, did not suffer this for the same purpose as you do now: God allowed this beast to be used against him and others only to frighten them and make them better through fear, but against you so that you might fight bravely, win gloriously, and receive a crown for patience. And victory does not consist in the fact that the warrior avoids fighting the enemy even during the spectacle, but when he remains ready to fight at all times; then the adversary will not be able to bring him to any worthless thoughts even by despondency. And that this is really so, I plainly conclude from the following. Everyone knows, though you humble yourself, how much better your life is than that of your servant. For this reason God also cares for you more than for him. If this is clear, then it is also evident that if God's allowance had been the work of His wrath, He would not have subjected to it for so long the one whom He loves most, while He soon delivered from the demon another, who is much worse than you. This I can attest, not only by what has been said, but also, from what you conclude from which you conclude that God has forsaken you, I will try to prove that He cares especially for you. If you had not shown great diligence and had not made long journeys to converse with holy men and those who have the power to loose these bonds, then some of the ordinary people might have been perplexed, since the reason why God would have allowed (you to suffer) for so long would not have been very clear. But since you visited the places of the martyrs, where many were healed, even of those who (in demonic possession) bit people, you lived for a long time with wondrous, valiant men, and always succeeding (to heal the sick), and did not omit anything at all; what could have freed you from suffering, and yet you returned again with the same enemy; then you have brought a clear and intelligible proof even for very inattentive people of God's providence for you. God, of course, would not have deprived you of His grace, and would not have allowed His servants to be put to shame, if He had not seen from this great glory and greater benefit for you. Thus, what seems to be a sign of God's abandonment of you is a sign of His great love and goodwill towards you.

[1] In the Synodal translation, the meaning is different: "Do not be afraid of me, for you are my hope in the day of trouble."

[2] In the Synodal translation: "Thou shalt be a wanderer and an exile on earth."

[3] In the Synodal translation, "way" and "thought" are plural: "But as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts."

IN ADDITION, STAGIRISM

that despondency is worse than a demon.