and to another the action of powers: to another prophecy: to another the reasoning of the spirit, to another the birth of tongues (10). And all this works in one and the same Spirit, dividing by power as He willeth (1 Corinthians 12:11).

13. But since the Divine Scriptures say many different things simply about the Spirit, it is dangerous that someone should not fall into confusion of concepts through ignorance, not knowing what spirit to understand what is written; then it is good now to precaution to explain what kind of Spirit the Scripture calls Holy. For just as Aaron is called Christ (the Anointed One), and David, and Saul, and others are called Christs, while one is the true Christ: in the same way, since the name of the spirit is given to various things, it is necessary to know who is the Holy Spirit who is especially named; for to many things is given the name of the spirit.

An angel is called a spirit; our soul is called spirit; and this breathing wind is called spirit; and great power is called spirit; And a bad way of life is called a spirit, and the devil's adversary is called a spirit. Be careful therefore when you hear this, lest you be honored with one instead of another, because of the same name. The Scripture says of our soul: "His spirit shall go forth, and shall return to his land" (Psalm 145:4).

And it is said of this same soul in another place: "Build up the spirit of man in it" (Zech. 12:i). Angels are spoken of in the Psalms: "Make thy angels spirits, and thy servants a flame of fire" (Psalm 103:4). And it is said of the wind: "With a stormy spirit thou shalt crush the ships of Tarshish" (Psalm 47:8), and "As in an oak grove a tree shall be shaken by the spirit" (Psalm 47:5). And in another place: fire, hail, snow, bare, the spirit is stormy (Psalm 143:8).

The Lord Himself says of good teaching: "The words which I have spoken unto you are spirit and life are life" (John 6:63), that is, they are spiritual: but the Holy Spirit is not uttered with the tongue. He has life as the Most Wise, He gives the power to speak, and He Himself converses.

14. And do you want to know that he talks and speaks? Philip, according to the revelation of the Angels, went along the path leading to Gaza at the time when the Eunuch was riding. And the Spirit said to Philip, "Come and cleave unto this chariot" (Acts 8:29). You see? The Spirit speaks to the one who hears. And Ezekiel says thus: "The Spirit of the Lord hath come upon me, and saith unto me, This saith the Lord" (Ezekiel 11:5). And in another place: "The Holy Spirit said to the Apostles who were in Antioch, 'Set apart Barnabas and Saul for the work, where I have called them' (Acts 13:2). You see?

That the Spirit has life, separates, calls, and sends with authority. And Paul says: "Exactly, as the Holy Spirit testifies throughout all the cities, saying, 'For chains and sorrows await me" (Acts 20:23). For this good sanctifier of the Church, and helper and teacher, is the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, of Whom the Saviour said: "He shall teach you all things" (He did not say, "He will only teach"), but He will also remember all that is given to you (John 14:26)

; for there is not another teaching of Christ, but another of the Holy Spirit, but one and the same. He foretold to Paul what was to happen to him: that he, having learned these things beforehand, would be more complacent. This is said in order to explain the words: the words that I have spoken to you, the Spirit, so that, that is, you do not consider this Spirit to be a mere utterance of the mouth, but a good teaching.

15. Sin is also called spirit in the Scriptures, as we have said, but in a different and opposite sense, as, for example, it is said: "By the spirit of fornication thou wast deceived" (Hos. 4:12). An unclean spirit is called a spirit (Luke 11:24), the devil, however, with the addition, unclean. Each spirit is given its own name to designate its property. If the Scriptures call the human soul spirit; then with the addition: the spirit of man.

If he calls the wind a spirit, he calls it a stormy spirit (Psalm 47:8). If sin is called a spirit, then it is called a spirit of fornication (Oc. 4:12). If he calls the devil a spirit, he calls him an unclean spirit: so that we may know what kind of spirit he is talking about. Do not think that it says about the Holy Spirit, no; for the name of spirit is something general, and everything that does not have a gross body is usually called spirit.

Since the devils do not have such bodies, they are called spirits. But there is a great difference here. For an unclean spirit, when it attacks the soul of a man (may the Lord preserve the soul of all those who hear, as well as those who are not here!), is like a bloodthirsty wolf attacking a sheep in order to devour it. Its appearance is the most terrible, the most intolerable to the senses, to produce darkness in thoughts; you will attack his iniquity; he steals someone else's possessions by force, treats someone else's body as if it were his own, and with someone else's tool he overthrows the one who is standing; for he is an accomplice of him who has fallen from heaven; it perverts the tongue, distorts the lips, in which there is foam instead of words; man is darkened, his eyes are open, but the soul does not see them, and the unfortunate man groans terribly before death.

Truly, the enemies of men are the devils, who treat them in such a vile and merciless way.

16. No, the Holy Spirit is not like that; His actions, on the contrary, are directed towards good and salvation. And in the first place, His appearance is meek, with Him they received incense, His lightest burden. Rays of light and knowledge shine before His appearance. He comes with the love of a true Minister. For to come to save and heal, to teach, to admonish, to strengthen, to comfort, to enlighten the mind, first of the one who comes, and through Him the minds of others.

And just as he who was formerly in darkness, and then suddenly beheld the sun, receives light with his bodily eyes, and sees what he has not clearly seen: so he who has been vouchsafed the Holy Spirit is enlightened by the soul, and having risen above man, beholds what he has not seen. On earth with his body, and with his soul he looks to the heavens. He sees Isaiah sitting on the throne of the Lord high and exalted (Isaiah 6:1)