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The Third Commandment.

On the Love of Truth.

GAIN he said unto me, "Love truth, and let nothing but truth proceed out of thy mouth. So that the spirit which God hath fixed in this flesh may be found true among all men; and thus the Lord who dwelleth in thee shall be glorified. Because the Lord is true in all His words, and in Him there is no lie. They, therefore, who lie set at nought the Lord, and are robbers of the Lord, not delivering up to Him the deposit which they received, for they received from Him a spirit free from lies. If they shall return that to Him made false, they have polluted the commandment of the Lord, and have become robbers."

Now, when I heard these things I wept sore, and when he saw me weeping, he said, "Why weepest thou?" "Because, Master," I replied, "I know not whether I can be saved." "Wherefore?" he said. "Never in my life, O Master," I replied, "have I spoken a true word, but I have always spoken

craftily with all men, and I have exhibited my lies as truth among all men. And never did any one contradict me, but my word was believed. How then, Master, I said, can I live after having done these things?" "True and right is thine opinion," he said, "for it behoved thee as a servant of God to walk in the truth; nor should an evil conscience dwell with the spirit of truth, or bring grief on the spirit of truth and holiness." "Never," I reply, "did I hear clearly words such as these." "Now that you hear," he said, "keep them, in order that even the former falsehoods which thou spakest in thy business may become trustworthy, now that these things have been found to be true. For even thy former sayings may become trustworthy; if thou keep these things, and from this time forth speak nothing but truth. Then shalt thou be able to purchase life for thyself; and whoever shall hear this commandment, and abstain from the abominable wickedness of lying, shall live before God.

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The Fourth Commandment.

On Chastity.

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CHARGE thee," he said, "to observe purity;

By

and let no thought for another man's wife enter into thine heart, nor concerning any impurity, nor concerning any such like wickedness; for, by doing this, thou committest a great sin. ever remembering thine own wife thou wilt avoid this sin. For if this desire come into thine heart thou wilt sin, and if thou desire in like manner other evil things thou workest sin. For this desire is great sin for a servant of God. But if any one do this evil deed, he worketh death for himself. Beware, therefore, and abstain from this desire. For where holiness dwelleth, there sin ought not to ascend to the heart of a just man." "I said unto him, Master, suffer me to ask thee a few things." He answered me, "Say on." "I said unto him, Master, if a man have a wife that believeth in the Lord, and he find her in adultery,

"What then," said

doth the man sin if he continue to live with her?" "So long as he is ignorant," he replied, "he doth not sin. But if her husband know of her sin, and the wife repent not, but abide in her iniquity, and her husband live with her, he is guilty of the sin, and a sharer in her adultery." I, "O Master, shall the husband do if his wife abide in this case?" "Let him put her away," he said, "and let the husband remain by himself; but if, after he hath put away his wife, he marry another, he committeth adultery himself." "If, therefore, after he hath put away his wife, she repent, and wish to return to her husband, shall not she be received?" "Yea, verily;" he replied; "if, therefore, her husband receive her not, he sinneth and bringeth great sin upon himself, but the sinner that hath repented must be received, but not if she sin frequently, for there is but one repentance for the servants of God. But on account of her repentance her husband ought not to marry again. This is the case both with the man and the woman. Not only," he says, "is it adultery if any one pollute his flesh, but whosoever doeth things like unto the Gentiles committeth adultery; so that if a man abide in such actions as these, and repent not, keep thyself from him, and live not with him, otherwise thou art also a partaker of his sin. On this account, therefore, hath the commandment been given, that whether the man or the woman have sinned, ye should remain by yourselves, for in such cases there may be repentance. I there

fore," he said, " offer no opportunity that this deed should be committed, but merely that the sinner should sin no more. But concerning his former sin, there is One that is able to give a remedy, it is He that hath authority over all things."

II.

I asked him again, saying, "Since the Lord hath thought me worthy that thou shouldst always dwell with me, bear with yet a few more words from me, since I understand nothing; but my heart is hardened from my former deeds; make me to understand, for I am very foolish, and altogether know nothing." He therefore answered and said unto me, "I am set to preside over repentance, and give understanding to all who repent. Seemeth it not unto thee," he said, "that the very act of repentance is wisdom; yea, repentance is great wisdom. For he who hath sinned understandeth that he hath wrought evil before the Lord, and the deed that he hath done cometh into his heart, and he repenteth, and no longer worketh evil, but he doeth good lavishly, and humbleth his own soul, and tormenteth it, because he hath sinned. Thou seest, therefore, that repentance is great wisdom." "It is on this account," I reply, "O Master, that I inquire all things accurately from thee. In the first place, because I am a sinner, that I may know what works I may do and live, because my sins are many and various." "Thou shalt live," he says, "if thou keep my command