23. Abbâ Daniel used to say that Abbâ Arsenius told him a story, as if he were speaking of some other man, saying:—Whilst a certain old man was sitting in his cell, there came unto him a voice which said, “Come hither, and I will shew thee the works of the children of men”; and he rose up and went out. And the voice led him out and shewed him an Ethiopian cutting wood, and he made up a large bundle and wished to carry it away, but he was unable to do so. Then instead of making the bundle smaller, he went and cut down some more wood, and added thereto, and this he did many times. And when he had gone on a little further, the voice shewed him a man who was standing by a pit drawing up water, which he cast in a certain hollowed out place, and when he had thrown the water therein it ran down again into the pit.
And again the voice said unto him, “Come, and I will shew thee other things.” Then he looked, and, behold, there was a temple, and two men, who were riding horses, were carrying a piece of wood as wide as the temple was, and they wanted to go in through the door, but the width of the wood did not permit them to do so, for they would not humble themselves to go in, one after his companion, and to bring it in end-wise, and therefore they remained outside the door. Now these are the men who bear the yoke of righteousness with boasting, and they will not humble themselves to make themselves straight and go in the humble way of Christ, and therefore they remain outside the kingdom of God. And the man who was cutting wood is the man who laboureth in many sins, and who, instead of repenting and diminishing from his sins, addeth other wickednesses thereunto. Now he who was drawing water is the man who doeth good works, and who, because other things are mingled in his good works, destroyeth his works thereby. Now it is meet that a man should be watchful in his labour, lest he toil in vain.
24. On one occasion Abbâ Macarius was going from the wood to his cell, and was carrying [with him] some palm leaves, and Satan met him on the road holding a scythe [in his hand]; and when Macarius sought to wound him, Satan was afraid, and he fell down and did homage to the blessed man. Then the old man fled from that place, and he related to the brethren everything which had happened, and when they heard [it] they glorified God.
25. An old man used to say, “Be like a camel when thou bearest thy sins, and be thou tied closely to him that knoweth the way.”
26. An old man used to say, “Become not a lawgiver unto thyself, and judge no man, for thou art not under the Law, but under grace; but give thou everything to Him that is able to do everything, for thou art unable to do anything. Judge then [in] this [way], and do not sin at any time.”
27. He also said, “He who wisheth to dwell in the desert should become a learner, and he should not practise doctrine lest he suffer loss; and his occupation should be with a man who loveth God.”
28. Unto one of the old men Satan appeared in the form of an angel of light, and said, “I, even I, am Gabriel who have been sent unto thee”; and he said unto him, “Hast thou not been sent unto another? for I am a sinner”; and when Satan heard this he did not again appear. And the old man said, “If in very truth an angel appeareth unto thee, say, ‘As unto whom [hast thou come in coming] to me? I am not worthy.’”
29. When Abbâ Gregory was dying he said these [words]:—“God demandeth three things from the man who hath been baptized, true faith from the soul, and truth from the tongue, and chastity from the body.”
30. The old man said, “God seeketh nothing from Christians except true faith, and [belief] that the things which are spoken shall come to pass in deed, and that we should be persuaded by the orthodox fathers.”
31. An old man was asked, “How can a man find God? By fasting? By works? By watching? By mercy?” And he said, “By means of these certainly when they are mingled with discretion, but I say that there are many who have afflicted their bodies without discretion, and they have departed vainly, having gained nothing. Our mouth becometh foul through thirst, and we repeat the Scriptures with our mouth, and we go through all the Psalms of David in our service, but that which God requireth, and which is necessary we have not, that is to say, a good word for each other. For as a man cannot see his face in troubled waters, so the soul, unless it be cleansed from alien thoughts, is not able to appear before God in prayer.”
32. A certain monk was going along the road and he met some nuns, and he turned aside out of the path, and she who was leading them said unto him, “Hadst thou been a perfect monk thou wouldst never have regarded us as women.”
33. Abbâ Anthony used to say, “A man’s life or death cometh from his neighbour; if we benefit our brother we benefit ourselves, and if we offend him we sin against God.”
34. A certain brother came to Abbâ Theodore, and he began to talk and to speak about the things which he had not done; and the old man said unto him, “So far thou hast not found a ship, and thou hast not let down in it thy possessions, and before thou hast embarked thou hast gone to the city whereto thou wishest to go. First of all do the work, and then thou shalt arrive at that concerning which thou art now talking.”
35. A brother asked Abbâ Anthony, saying, “What [commandment] shall I keep so that I may please God?” And he answered and said unto him, “That which I command thee observe. Set thou God before thine eyes continually, wheresoever thou goest; whatsoever thou doest make to it a witness (or testimony) from the Scriptures; and in whatsoever place thou dwellest be not easily moved therefrom, but abide therein persistently. Observe these three things, and thou shalt be saved.”
36. They used to say about a certain old man that whensoever he sat in his cell toiling in the contest, he saw the devils face to face, and that he treated them with contempt and despised them through his contest. Now when Satan saw that he was being overcome by the old man, he appeared unto him in human form, and said unto him, “I am Christ.” And when the old man saw him, he winked his eyes and made a mock of him. Then Satan said unto him, “Why dost thou wink thine eyes? I, even I, am Christ.” And the old man answered and said unto him, “I do not desire to see Christ here”; and when Satan heard these things he departed from him and was no more seen.
37. Abbâ John used to say, that he saw in a vision one of the old men in a state of stupefaction, and behold, three monks were standing on the shore of a lake, and a voice came to them from heaven (or from the other shore of the lake), which said, “Take ye wings of fire and come to me”; and two of them took wings of fire and flew over to the other side, even as it was told them. Now the third remained behind, and he wept abundantly, and cried out, and at length wings were given to him also, but they were not of fire like those of his companions, for they were weak and feeble wings, and it was only with the greatest difficulty, and after dropping down into the water, and with most painful exertions that he reached the [opposite] shore. And even so is it with this generation, for although it taketh to itself wings, they are not the powerful wings of fire, but it forceth itself to take weak and feeble wings.
38. An old man used to say, “Every wickedness which is not perfect is not wickedness, and every righteousness which is not perfect is not righteousness; for the man who hath not good and evil thoughts is like unto the land of Sodom, which is salted, and which bringeth forth neither green herb nor fruit. Now good ground produceth wheat and expelleth tares from itself.”
39. Certain brethren came and asked Abbâ Anthony a question about the Book of the Levites, and the old man went forth to the desert, and Abbâ Ammon, who knew his habit, followed him secretly. And when the old man had gone some distance, he cried out with a loud voice, and said, “O God, send Moses unto me, and let him teach me [the meaning of] this verse”; and straightway a voice was heard holding converse with him. Now Abbâ Ammon heard this voice, and said, “I heard the voice which spake with him, but the force of the verse I never learned.”
40. On one occasion when Abbâ Poemen was a youth, he went to an old man to ask him [concerning] three matters, and having gone into his presence he forgot one of them, and he turned to go to his cell; and as he put the key [in the door] to open [it], he remembered the matter which he had forgotten, and straightway he left the key in the door and returned to the old man, and the old man said unto him, “Thou hast returned quickly, brother.” And Abbâ Poemen told him the story thus:—“When I put the key [in the door] to open [it], I remembered the matter which I wanted to know, and I did not open the door because I came back hither speedily.” Now the rocky ground which [he had traversed] in the interval was of no inconsiderable length. And the old man said unto him, “Thy name shall be spoken about throughout all Egypt.”
41. A brother said unto an old Abbâ, “Behold, I have entreated the old men, and they talk to me about the redemption of my soul, but I can lay hold upon nothing in their words; what is the use, then, of making them toil when I can do nothing [with what they say], for I am wholly in a state of uncleanness?” Now there were there two basins, and the old man said unto him, “Go, bring me one of these basins, and pour some oil into it, and rinse the basin round with it, and then empty it out”; and he did so twice. Then the old man said unto him, “Bring now the two [basins] together”; and the brother did as he told him. [And the old man said, “Look and see which basin is the cleaner,” and the brother said unto him], “That into which the oil hath been poured is the cleaner.” The old man said unto him, “And thus also is it with the soul, for even if it layeth hold of nothing through that which it asketh, it is cleaner than if it had never asked a question at all.”
42. A brother asked Abbâ John, and said unto him, “How is it that the soul which hath blemishes in itself is not ashamed to speak about its neighbour, and to calumniate it?” And the old man spake unto him a word concerning calumny, saying, “There was a certain man who was poor, and he had a wife, and he saw another woman who hearkened unto him, and he took her to wife also; now the two women were naked. And when there was a fair in a certain place the two women persuaded him to take them to it, and he took his two wives, and put them in a boat, and when he had gone up out of the boat he arrived at a certain place. Now when the day had waxed hot, and every man was resting, one of the women looked out and saw that there was no man outside, and she leaped up and went forth to a heap of waste rubbish, and chose therefrom some old rags and made a girdle for herself, and then walked about boldly. Meanwhile her companion was sitting down naked, and she said unto her husband, ‘Look at that harlot going about naked and without shame’; then her husband, with sadness, said unto her, ‘The thing to be wondered at is that, whilst she hath, at least, covered her shame, thou art entirely naked, and dost speak these words without being ashamed.’ Now a calumny [uttered] against a neighbour is like unto this.”
43. They used to say that one of the old men asked God that he might see the fathers, and he saw them [all], with the exception of Abbâ Anthony; and he said unto him that shewed [them] to him, “Where is Abbâ Anthony?” And he said unto him, “Wheresoever God is there is Anthony.”
44. Abbâ Poemen used to say, “This is what is written, ‘As the hart crieth out for the water-brooks, even so crieth out my soul unto Thee, O Lord’ (Psalm xlii, 1). For the harts in the desert swallow many serpents, and when the poison of these maketh them hot within, they cry out to come to the water-brooks, but as soon as they have drunk the burning which cometh from the serpents inside them is cooled. And thus is it with the monks who are in the desert, for they are burnt up by the envy of evil devils, and they wait for the Saturday and Sunday that they may come to the fountain of water, that is to say to the body of Christ, and they sweeten and purify themselves from the gall of the Evil One.”
45. On one occasion when the brethren were sitting with Abbâ Moses, he said unto them, “Behold, this day have the barbarians come to Scete; rise up and flee.” And they said unto him, “Wilt thou not flee, father?” He said unto them, “I have been expecting this day to come for many years past, so that might be fulfilled the command of our Redeemer, Who said, ‘Those who take the sword shall perish by the sword’” (St. Matthew xxvi, 52). And they said unto him, “We then will not flee, but will die with thee.” He said unto them, “This is not my affair, but your own desire; let every man look after himself in the place where he dwelleth.” Now the brethren were seven in number. And after a little he said unto them, “Behold, the barbarians have drawn near the door”; and the barbarians entered and slew them. Now one of them had been afraid, and he fled behind the palm leaves, and he saw seven crowns come down and place themselves on the heads of those who had been slain.
46. The brethren asked an old man, saying, “How is it that God promiseth in the Scriptures good things to the soul, and that the soul desireth them not, but turneth aside to impurity?” And he answered and said unto them, “It is my opinion that it is because it hath not yet tasted the good things which are above, and therefore the good things which are here are dear unto it.”
47. Abbâ Arsenius used to say, “The monk is a stranger in a foreign land; let him not occupy himself with anything [therein], and he will find rest.”
48. They used to say that on one occasion when Abbâ Macarius the Great went up from Scete, and was carrying palm leaves, he became weary and sat down; and he prayed to God, and said, “God, thou knowest that I have no strength,” and straightway he found that he was by the side of the sea (or river).
49. There was a certain old man in the mountain of Athlîbâ (Athribis), and thieves came to attack him, and he cried out; and when his neighbours heard [his cry] they hunted down the thieves, and they sent them to the governor, who shut them up in prison. And the brethren were sorry, and said, “They were delivered into our hands”; and they rose up and went to Abbâ Poemen, and informed him about the matter. Then he wrote to that old man, and said unto him, “Thou must understand whence hath come the first betrayal, and then thou wilt perceive how the second betrayal arose; for if thou hadst not been betrayed first of all by those that were within thou wouldst never have effected the second betrayal.” Now when the old man heard the letter of Abbâ Poemen, who was famous throughout all that country, and who kept himself strictly secluded in his cell, and never went out, straightway he rose up and went into the city, and took the thieves out of prison, and thus the assembly set them free.
50. On one occasion Abbâ Macarius, wishing to rebuke the brethren, said unto them, “There came here a young man with his mother, and he was under the power of a devil, and he said unto his mother, ‘Rise up, let us depart from here’; and she said unto him, ‘I cannot walk.’ Then the young man said unto him, ‘I will carry thee myself.’” And Abbâ Macarius marvelled at the wickedness of that devil, and sought to drive them away.
51. On one occasion five brethren came to visit a great old man, and he asked the first one, saying, “What kind of work doest thou?” And he said unto him, “I twist palm leaves into ropes, father”; and the old man said unto him, “God shall plait a crown for thee, O my son.” Then he said to the second brother, “And what dost thou do?” And he said unto him, “I make mats, father”; and the old man said unto him, “God shall give thee strength, O my son.” And he said unto the third brother, “And what dost thou do?” And he said unto him, “[I make] sieves, father”; and the old man said unto him, “God shall preserve thee, O my son.” Then he asked the fourth brother, saying, “What dost thou do?” And he said unto him, “I can write well.” And the old man said unto him, “Thou knowest.” Then he said unto the fifth brother, “And what dost thou do?” And he said unto him, “I weave linen.” Then the old man said, “I am not near,” and he said also, “If the twister of palm-leaf ropes be watchful with God He will plait him a crown for him; mat[-making] requireth strength because there is labour therein; and God must protect him of the sieves because he hath to sell them in the villages; as to the scribe, he must be humble in heart, for there is in his business exaltation of spirit, as regardeth the linen weaver, I am not near (i.e., concerned) to speak, for he is a merchant and he tradeth. But if a man seeth a brother afar off carrying palm branches, or palm-leaf mats, or sieves, he saith, ‘This man is a monk, for grass is the work of our hands, and he is avoiding the burning of the fire’; and if he seeth a man selling linen, he saith straightway, ‘Behold, the merchants have come, for the [selling of] linen is the work of this world, and it doth not benefit many.’”