Here Begins the Vision of Saint Paul the Apostle.

“But I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord:  I know a man in Christ fourteen years ago (whether in the body, I know not; or out of the body, I know not, God knoweth) snatched up in this manner to the third heaven:  and I know such a man, whether in the body or out of the body I know not, God knoweth; how that he was snatched up into Paradise and heard secret words which it is not lawful for men to speak; on behalf of such a one will I glory; but on mine own behalf I will not glory, save in my infirmities.”—2 Cor. xii. 1–5.

1.  At what time was this revelation made?  In the consulship of Theodosius Augustus the Younger and Cynegius,39023902    Theodosius the younger and Cynegius, Consuls, 388 a.d. a certain nobleman then living in Tharsus, in the house which was that of Saint Paul, an angel appearing in the night revealed to him, saying that he should open the foundations of the house and should publish what he found, but he thought that these things were dreams.

2.  But the angel coming for the third time beat him and forced him to open the foundation.  And digging he found a marble box, inscribed on the sides; there was the revelation of Saint Paul, and his shoes in which he walked teaching the word of God.  But he feared to open that box and brought it to the judge; when he had received it, the judge, because it was sealed with lead, sent it to the Emperor Theodosius, fearing lest it might be something else; which when he had received the emperor opened it, and found the revelation of Saint Paul; a copy of it he sent to Jerusalem, and retained the original himself.

3.  While I was in the body in which I was snatched up to the third heaven, the word of the Lord came to me saying:  speak to the people:  until when will ye transgress, and heap sin upon sin, and tempt the Lord who made you?  Ye are the sons of God, doing the works of the devil in the faith of Christ, on account of the impediments of the world.  Remember therefore and know that while every creature serves God, the human race alone sins.  But it reigns over every creature and sins more than all nature.

4.  For indeed the sun, the great light, often addressed the Lord saying:  Lord God Almighty, I look out upon the impieties and injustices of men; permit me and I shall do unto them what are my powers, that they may know that thou art God alone.  And there came a voice saying to him:  I know all these things, for mine eye sees and ear hears, but my patience bears them until they shall be converted and repent.  But if they do not return to me I will judge them all.

5.  For sometimes the moon and stars addressed the Lord saying:  Lord God Almighty, to us thou hast given the power of the night; till when shall we look down upon the impieties and fornications and homicides done by the sons of men?  Permit us to do unto them according to our powers, that they may know that thou art God alone.  And there came a voice unto them saying:  I know all these things, and mine eye looks forth and ear hears, but my patience bears with them until they shall be converted and repent.  But if they do not return unto me I will judge them.

6.  And frequently also the sea exclaimed saying:  Lord God Almighty, men have defiled thy holy name in me; permit me to arise and cover every wood and orchard and the whole world, until I blot out all the sons of men from before thy face, that they may know that thou art God alone.  And the voice came again and said:  I know all things; mine eye seeth everything, and mine ear heareth, but my patience bears with them until they be converted and repent.  But if they do not return, I will judge them.  Sometimes the waters39033903    The waters (not in Greek version); rivers in Syriac. also spoke against the sins of men saying:  Lord God Almighty, 152all the sons of men have defiled thy holy name.  And there came a voice saying:  I know all things before they come to pass, for mine eye seeth and mine ear heareth all things, but my patience bears with them until they be converted.  But if not I will judge them.  Frequently also the earth39043904    The earth (not in Greek version, but in Syriac). too exclaimed to the Lord against the sons of men saying:  Lord God Almighty, I above every other creature of thine am harmed, supporting the fornications, adulteries, homicides, thefts, perjuries and magic and ill-doings of men and all the evil they do, so that the father rises up against the son, and the son upon the father, the alien against the alien, so that each one defiles his neighbour’s wife.  The father ascends upon the bed of his own son, and the son likewise ascends the couch of his own father; and in all these evils, they who offer the sacrifice to thy name have defiled thy holy place.  Therefore I am injured above every creature, desiring not to shew my power to myself, and my fruits to the sons of men.  Permit me and I will destroy the virtue of my fruits.  And there came a voice and said:  I know all things, and there is none who can hide himself from his sin.  Moreover I know their impieties, but my holiness suffers them until they be converted and repent.  But if they do not return unto me I will judge them.

7.  Behold, ye sons of men, the creature is subject to God, but the human race alone sins.  For this cause, therefore, ye sons of men, bless the Lord God unceasingly, every hour and every day: but more especially when the sun has set:39053905    Cf. Test. of Abraham, Rec. B, iv.  for at that hour all the angels proceed to the Lord to worship him and to present the works of men, which every man has wrought from the morning till the evening, whether good or evil.  And there is a certain angel who proceeds rejoicing concerning the man in whom he dwells.  When therefore the sun39063906    Cf. Test. of Abraham, Rec. B, § 4. has set in the first hour of night, in the same hour the angel of every people and every man and woman, who protect and preserve them, because man is the image of God:  similarly also in the matin hour which is the twelfth of the night, all the angels of men and women, go up to God to worship God, and present every work which each man has wrought, whether good or evil.  Moreover every day and night the angels show to God an account39073907    Cf. Test. of Abraham, Rec. A, § 12. of all the acts of the human race.  To you, therefore, I say, ye sons of men, bless the Lord God without fail all the days of your life.

8.  Therefore at the appointed hour all the angels whatever, rejoicing at once together, proceed before God that they may meet to worship at the hour determined.  And behold suddenly it became the hour of meeting, and the angels came to worship in the presence of God, and the spirit proceeded to meet them:  and there came a voice and said:  Whence come ye, our angels, bearing the burdens of tidings?

9.  They answered and said:  We come from those who have renounced this world for the sake of thy holy name, wandering as pilgrims, and in caves of the rocks, and weeping every hour in which they inhabited the earth, and hungering and thirsting because of thy name, with their loins girded, having in their hands the incense of their hearts, and praying and blessing every hour, and restraining and overcoming themselves, weeping and wailing above the rest that inhabit the earth.  And we indeed, their angels, mourn along with them:  whither therefore it shall please thee, command us to go and minister, lest others also do it, but the destitute above the rest who are on earth.  And there came the voice of God to them saying:  Know ye that now henceforward my grace is appointed unto you, and my help, who is my well-beloved Son, shall be present with them, guiding them every hour; ministering also to them, never deserting them, since their place is his habitation.

10.  When therefore these angels had retired, behold other angels came to adore in the presence of honour, in the assembly, who wept; and the spirit of God proceeded to meet them, and there came the voice of God and said:  Whence come ye, our angels, bearing the burdens of the ministry of the tidings of the world?  They answered and said in the presence of God:  We have arrived from those who called upon thy name, and the impediments of the world made them wretched, devising many occasions every hour, not even making one pure prayer, nor out of their whole heart, in all the time of their life; what need, therefore, is there to be present with men who are sinners?  And there came the voice of God to them:  It is necessary that ye should minister to them, until they be converted and repent:  but if they do not return to me I will judge them.  Know therefore, sons of men, that whatever things are wrought by you, these angels relate to God, whether good or evil.

15311.  And the angel answered and said unto me:  Follow me, and I will show you the place of the just where they are led when they are deceased, and after these things taking thee into the abyss, I will show thee the souls of sinners and what sort of place they are led into when they have deceased.  And I proceeded back after the angel, and he led me into heaven, and I looked back upon the firmament, and I saw in the same place power, and there was there oblivion which deceives and draws down to itself the hearts of men, and the spirit of detraction, and the spirit of fornication, and the spirit of madness, and the spirit of insolence, and there were there the princes of vices:  these I saw under the firmament of heaven:  and again I looked back, and I saw angels without mercy, having no pity, whose countenance was full of madness, and their teeth sticking out beyond the mouth:  their eyes shone like the morning star of the east, and from the hairs of their head sparks of fire went out, or from their mouth.  And I asked the angel saying:  Sir, who are those?  And the angel answered and said unto me:  These are those who are destined to the souls of the impious in the hour of need, who did not believe that they had the Lord for their helper, nor hoped in him.

12.  And I looked on high and I saw other angels whose countenance shone as the sun, their loins girded with golden girdles, having palms in their hands, and the sign of God, clothed with garments in which was written the name of the Son of God, filled moreover with all meekness and pity; and I asked the angels saying:  Who are these, Lord, in so great beauty and pity?  And the angel answered and said unto me:  These are the angels of justice who are sent to lead up the souls of the just, in the hour of need, who believed that they had the Lord for their helper.  And I said to him:  Do the just and sinners necessarily meet witnesses when they have died?  And the angel answered and said to me:  There is one way by which all pass over to God, but the just having their helper with them are not confounded when they go to appear in the sight of God.

13.  And I said to the angel:  I wished to see the souls of the just and of sinners going out of the world.  And the angel answered and said unto me:  Look down upon the earth.  And I looked down from heaven upon the earth, and saw the whole world, and it was nothing in my sight and I saw the sons of men as though they were naught, and a-wanting, and I wondered and said to the angel:  Is this the greatness of men?  And the angel answered and said unto me:  It is, and these are they who do evil from morning till evening.  And I looked and saw a great cloud of fire spread over the whole world, and I said to the angel:  What is this, my Lord? and he said to me:  This is injustice stirred up by the princes of sinners.

14.  I indeed when I had heard this sighed and wept, and said to the angel:  I wished to see the souls of the just and of sinners, and to see in what manner they go out of the body.  And the angel answered and said unto me:  Look again upon the earth.  And I looked and saw all the world, and men were as naught and a-wanting:  and I looked carefully and saw a certain man about to die, and the angel said to me:  This one whom thou seest is a just man.  And I looked again and saw all his works, whatever he had done for the sake of God’s name, and all his desires, both what he remembered, and what he did not remember; they all stood in his sight in the hour of need; and I saw the just man advance and find refreshment and confidence, and before he went out of the world the holy and the impious angels both attended:  and I saw them all, but the impious found no place of habitation in him, but the holy took possession of his soul, guiding it till it went out of the body:  and they roused the soul saying:  Soul, know thy body whence thou goest out, for it is necessary that thou shouldst return to the same body on the day of the resurrection, that thou mayest receive the things promised to all the just.  Receiving therefore the soul from the body, they immediately kissed it as familiarly known to them, saying to it:  Do manfully, for thou hast done the will of God while placed in the earth.  And there came to meet him the angel who watched him every day, and said to him:  Do manfully, soul; for I rejoice in thee, because thou hast done the will of God on earth:  for I related to God all thy works, such as they were.  Similarly also the spirit proceeded to meet him and said:  Soul, fear not, nor be disturbed, until thou comest into a place which thou hast never known, but I will be a helper unto thee:  for I found in thee a place of refreshment in the time when I dwelt in thee, while I was on earth.  And his spirit strengthened him, and his angel received him, and led him into heaven:  and an angel said:  Whither runnest thou, O soul, and dost thou dare to enter into heaven?  Wait and let us see if there is anything of ours in thee:  and behold 154we find nothing in thee.  I see also thy divine helper and angel, and the spirit is rejoicing along with thee, because thou hast done the will of God on earth.  And they led him along till he should worship in the sight of God.  And when they had ceased, immediately Michael and all the army of angels, with one voice, adored the footstool of his feet, and his doom, saying at the same time to the soul:  This is your God of all things, who made you in his own image and likeness.  Moreover the angel returns and points him out saying:  God, remember his labours:  for this is the soul, whose works I related to thee, doing according to thy judgment.  And the spirit said likewise:  I am the spirit of vivification inspiring him:  for I had refreshment in him, in the time when I dwelt in him, doing according to thy judgment.  And there came the voice of God and said:  In as much as this man did not vex me, neither will I vex him; for according as he had pity, I also will have pity.  Let him therefore be handed over to Michael, the angel of the Covenant, and let him lead him into the Paradise of joy, that he himself may become co-heir with all the saints.  And after these things I heard the voices of a thousand thousand angels, and archangels, and cherubim, and twenty-four elders saying hymns, and glorifying the Lord and crying:  thou art just, O Lord, and just are thy judgments, and there is no acceptance of persons with thee, but thou rewardest unto every man according to thy judgment.  And the angel answered and said unto me:  Hast thou believed and known, that whatever each man of you has done, he sees in the hour of need?  And I said:  Yes, sir.

15.  And he saith to me:  Look again down on the earth, and watch the soul of an impious man going out of the body, which vexed the Lord day and night, saying:  I know nothing else in this world, I eat and drink, and enjoy what is in the world; for who is there who has descended into hell, and ascending has declared to us that there is judgment there!  And again I looked carefully, and saw all the scorn of the sinner, and all that he did, and they stood together before him in the hour of need:  and it was done to him in that hour, in which he was threatened about his body at the judgment, and I said:  It were better for him if he had not been born.  And after these things, there came at the same time, the holy angels, and the malign, and the soul of the sinner and the holy angels did not find a place in it.  Moreover the malign angels cursed it; and when they had drawn it out of the body, the angels admonished it a third time, saying:  O wretched soul, look upon thy flesh, whence thou camest out:  for it is necessary that thou shouldst return to thy flesh in the day of resurrection, that thou mayest receive the due for thy sins and thy impieties.

16.  And when they had led it forth, the customary angel preceded it, and said to it:  O wretched soul, I am the angel belonging to thee, relating daily to the Lord thy malign works, whatever thou didst by night or day:  and if it were in my power, not for one day would I minister to thee, but none of these things was I able to do:  the judge is pitiful and just, and he himself commanded us that we should not cease to minister to the soul, till you should repent, but thou hast lost the time of repentance.  I indeed was strange to thee and thou to me.  Let us go on then to the just judge:  I will not dismiss thee, before I know from to-day why I was strange to thee.  And the spirit confounded him, and the angel troubled him.  When, therefore, they had arrived at the power, when he started to enter heaven, a labour was imposed upon him, above all other labour:  error and oblivion and murmuring met him, and the spirit of fornication, and the rest of the powers, and said to him:  Whither goest thou, wretched soul, and darest thou to rush into heaven? hold, that we may see if we have our qualities in thee, since we do not see that thou hast a holy helper.  And after that I heard voices in the height of heaven saying:  Present that wretched soul to God, that it may know that it is God that it despised.  When, therefore, it had entered heaven, all the angels saw it, a thousand thousand exclaimed with one voice, all saying:  Woe to thee, wretched soul, for the sake of thy works which thou didst on earth; what answer art thou about to give to God when thou shalt have approached to adore him?  The angel who was with it answered and said:  Weep with me, my beloved, for I have not found rest in this soul.  And the angels answered him and said:  Let such a soul be taken away from the midst of ours, for from the time he entered, the stink of him crosses to us angels.  And after these things it was presented, that it might worship in the sight of God, and an angel of God showed him God who made him after his own image and likeness.  Moreover his angel ran before him saying:  Lord God Almighty, I am the angel of this soul, whose works I presented to thee day and night, not doing according to thy judg155ment.  And the spirit likewise said:  I am the spirit who dwelt in it from the time it was made, in itself moreover I know it, and it has not followed my will:  judge it, Lord, according to thy judgment.  And there came the voice of God to it and said:  Where is thy fruit which thou has made worthy of the goods which thou hast received?  Have I put a distance of one day between thee and the just man?  Did I not make the sun to arise upon thee as upon the just?  But the soul was silent, having nothing to answer:  and again there came a voice saying:  Just is the judgment of God, and there is no acceptance of persons with God, for whoever shall have done mercy, on them shall he have mercy, and whoever shall not have pitied neither shall God pity him.  Let him therefore be handed over to the angel Tartaruch, who is set over the punishments, and let him place him in outer darkness, where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth, and let him be there till the great day of judgment.  And after these things I heard the voice of angels and archangels saying:  Thou art just, Lord, and thy judgment is just.

17.  And again I saw, and behold a soul which was led forward by two angels, weeping and saying:  Have pity on me, just God, God the judge, for to-day is seven days since I went out of my body, and I was handed over to these two angels, and they led me through to those places, which I had never seen.  And God, the just judge, saith to him:  What hast thou done? for thou never didst mercy, wherefore thou wast handed over to such angels as have no mercy, and because thou didst not do uprightly, so neither did they act piously with thee in the hour of thy need.  Confess therefore thy sins which thou didst commit when placed in the world.  And he answered and said:  Lord, I did not sin.  And the Lord, the just Lord, was angered in fury when it said:  I did not sin, because it lied; and God said:  Dost thou think thou art still in the world? if any one of you, sinning there, conceal and hide his sin from his neighbour, here indeed nothing whatever shall be hid:  for when the souls come to adore in sight of the throne, both the good works and the sins of each one are made manifest.  And hearing these things the soul was silent, having no answer.  And I heard the Lord God, the just judge, again saying:  Come, angel of this soul, and stand in the midst.  And the angel of the sinful soul came, having in his hands a manuscript, and said:  These, Lord, in my hands, are all the sins of this soul from his youth till to-day, from the tenth year of his birth:  and if thou command, Lord, I will also relate his acts from the beginning of his fifteenth year.  And the Lord God, the just judge, said:  I say unto thee, angel, I do not expect of thee an account of him since he began to be fifteen years old, but state his sins for five years before he died and before he came hither.  And again God, the just judge, said:  For by myself I swear, and by my holy angels, and by my virtue, that if he had repented five years before he died, on account of one year’s life, oblivion would now be thrown over all the evils which he sinned before, and he would have indulgence and remission of sins:  now indeed he shall perish.  And the angel of the sinful soul answered and said:  Lord, command that angel to exhibit those souls.

18.  And in that same hour the souls were exhibited in the midst, and the soul of the sinner knew them; and the Lord said to the soul of the sinner:  I say unto thee, soul, confess thy work which thou wroughtest in these souls, whom thou seest, when they were in the world.  And he answered and said:  Lord, it is not yet a full year since I slew this one and poured his blood upon the ground, and with another (a woman) I committed fornication:  not this alone, but I also greatly harmed her in taking away her goods.  And the Lord God, the just judge, said:  Either thou didst not know that he who does violence to another, if he dies first who sustains the violence, is kept in this place until the doer of hurt dies, and then both stand in the presence of the judge, and now each receives according to his deed.  And I heard a voice of one saying:  Let that soul be delivered into the hands of Tartarus, and led down into hell:  he shall lead him into the lower prison and he shall be put in torments, and left there till the great day of judgment.  And again I heard a thousand thousand angels saying hymns to the Lord, and crying:  Thou art just, O Lord, and just are thy judgments.

19.  The angel answered and said unto me:  Hast thou perceived all these things? and I said, Yes, sir.  And he said to me:  Follow me again, and I will take thee, and show thee the places of the just.  And I followed the angel, and he raised me to the third heaven, and placed me at the entry of the door:  and looking carefully I saw, and the door was of gold, and two columns of gold, full above of golden letters, and the angel tuned again to me and said:  Blessed wert thou, if thou hadst entered into these doors, for it is not allowed to any to enter except only to those who have 156goodness and innocence of body in all things.  And I asked the angel about everything and said:  Sir, tell me on what account these letters are put upon those tables?  The angel answered and said unto me:  These are the names of the just, serving God with their whole heart, who dwell on the earth.  And again I said:  Sir, therefore their names and countenance and the likeness of these who serve God are in heaven, and are known to the angels:  for they know who are the servants of God with all their heart, before they go out of the world.

20.  And when I had entered the interior of the gate of Paradise,39083908    Cf. Ascension of Isaiah ix. 9. there came out to meet me an old man whose countenance shone as the sun; and when he had embraced me he said:  Hail, Paul, beloved of God.  And he kissed me with a cheerful countenance.  He wept, and I said to him:  Brother, why dost thou weep?  And again sighing and lamenting he said:  We are hurt by men, and they vex us greatly; for many are the good things which the Lord has prepared, and great is his promise, but many do not perceive them.  And I asked the angel, and said:  Sir, who is this?  And he said to me:  This is Enoch, the scribe of righteousness.  And I entered into the interior of that place, and immediately I saw the sun,39093909    And the sun.  Not in Greek:  Elias in Syriac. and coming it saluted me laughing and rejoicing.  And when it had seen (me), it turned away and wept, and said to me:  Paul, would that thou shouldst receive thy labours which thou hast done in the human race.  For me, indeed, I have seen the great and many good things, which God has prepared for the just, and the promises of God are great, but many do not perceive them; but even by many labours scarcely one or two enters into these places.

21.  And the angel answered and said to me,39103910    (Not in Syriac.) Whatever I now show thee here, and whatever thou shalt hear, tell it not to any one in the earth.  And he led me and shewed me:  and there I heard words which it is not lawful for a man to speak.  And again he said, For now follow me, and I will shew thee what thou oughtest to narrate in public and relate.

And he took me down from the third heaven, and led me into the second heaven, and again he led me on to the firmament and from the firmament he led me over the doors of heaven:  the beginning of its foundation was on the river which waters all the earth.  And I asked the angel and said, Lord, what is this river of water? and he said to me, This is Oceanus!  And suddenly I went out of heaven, and I understood that it is the light of heaven which lightens all the earth.  For the land there is seven times brighter39113911    Cf. Rev. of Peter. 15. than silver.  And I said, Lord, what is this place?  And he said to me, This is the land of promise.  Hast thou never heard what is written:  Blessed are the meek:  for they shall inherit the earth?  The souls therefore of the just, when they have gone out of the body, are meanwhile dismissed to this place.  And I said to the angel, Then this land will be manifested before the time?  The angel answered and said to me, When Christ, whom thou preachest, shall come to reign, then, by the sentence of God,39123912    Cf. Enoch. the first earth will be dissolved and this land of promise will then be revealed, and it will be like dew or cloud, and then the Lord Jesus Christ, the King Eternal, will be manifested and will come with all his saints to dwell in it, and he will reign over them a thousand years, and they will eat of the good things which I shall now show unto thee.

22.  And I looked around upon that land and I saw a river flowing of milk and honey, and there were trees planted by the bank of that river, full of fruit:  moreover each single tree bore twelve fruits in the year, having various and diverse fruits:  and I saw the created things which are in that place and all the work of God, and I saw there palms of twenty cubits, but others of ten cubits:  and that land was seven times brighter than silver.  And there were trees full of fruits from the roots to the highest branches, of ten thousand fruits of palms upon ten thousand fruits.  The grape-vines moreover had ten thousand plants.39133913    Cf.Papias. ap. Iren. Har. v. 33. 3, 4.  Moreover in the single vines there were ten thousand thousand bunches and in each of these a thousand single grapes:  moreover these single trees bore a thousand fruits.  And I said to the angel, Why does each tree bear a thousand fruits?  The angel answered and said unto me, Because the Lord God gives an abounding flood of gifts to the worthy, because they also of their own will afflicted themselves when they were placed in the world doing all things on account of his holy name.  And again I said to the angel, Sir, are these the only promises which the Most Holy God makes?  And he answered and said to me:  No! there are seven times greater than these.  But I say unto 157thee that when the just go out of the body they shall see the promises and the good things which God has prepared for them.  Till then, they shall sigh, and lament saying:  Have we emitted any word from our mouth to vex our neighbour even on one day?  I asked and said again:  Are these alone the promises of God?  And the angel answered and said unto me:  These whom you now see are the souls of the married39143914    (In Syriac, but not in Greek version.) and those who kept the chastity of their nuptials, containing themselves.  But to the virgins and those who hunger and thirst after righteousness and those who afflicted themselves for the sake of the name of God, God will give seven times greater than these, which I shall now show thee.

And then he took me up from that place where I saw these things and behold, a river, and its waters were greatly whiter than milk, and I said to the angel, What is this?  And he said to me:  This is the Acherousian Lake where is the City of Christ, but not every man is permitted to enter that city; for this is the journey which leads to God, and if anyone is a fornicator and impious, and is converted and shall repent and do fruits worthy of repentance, at first indeed when he shall have gone out of the body, he is led and adores God, and thence by command of the Lord he is delivered to the angel Michael and he baptizes him in the Acherousian Lake—thus he leads them into the City of Christ alongside of those who have never sinned.  But I wondered and blessed the Lord God for all the things which I saw.

23.  And the angel answered and said unto me:  Follow me and I will lead thee into the City of Christ.  And he was standing on the Acherousian Lake and he put me into a golden ship39153915    The Greek has not the golden ship, the angels or the walls.  They are given in the Syriac. and angels as it were three thousand were saying hymns before me till I arrived at the City of Christ.  Moreover those who inhabited the City of Christ greatly rejoiced over me as I went to them, and I entered and saw the City of Christ, and it was all of gold, and twelve walls encircled it, and twelve interior towers, and each wall had between them single stadia in the circuit:  And I said to the angel, Sir, how much is a stadium?  The angel answered and said to me:  As much as there is between the Lord God and the men who are on the earth, for the City of Christ is alone great.  And there were twelve gates in the circuit of the city, of great beauty, and four rivers which encircled it.  There was, moreover, a river of honey and a river of milk, and a river of wine and a river of oil.  And I said to the angel:  What are these rivers surrounding that city?  And he saith to me:  These are the four rivers which flow sufficiently for those who are in this land of promise, of which the names39163916    Not in the Greek, but given in the Syriac.  Cf. Genesis ii. 11 ff. are:  the river of honey is called Fison, and the river of milk Euphrates, and the river of oil Gion, and the river of wine Tigris, such therefore they are for those who when placed in the world did not use the power of these things, but they hungered for these things and afflicted themselves for the sake of the Lord God:  so that when these enter into this city, the Lord will assign them these things on high above all measure.

24.  I indeed entering the gates saw trees great and very high before the doors of the city, having no fruit but leaves only, and I saw a few men scattered in the midst of the trees, and they lamented greatly when they saw anyone enter the city.  And those trees were sorry for them and humbled themselves and bowed down and again erected themselves.  And I saw and wept with them and I asked the angel and said:  Sir, who are these who are not admitted to enter into the City of Christ?  And he said to me:  These are they who zealously abstained day and night in fasts, but they had a proud heart above other men, glorifying and praising themselves and doing nothing for their neighbours.  For they gave some friendly greeting, but to others they did not even say hail! and indeed they shewed hospitality to those only whom they wished, and if they did anything whatever for their neighbour they were immoderately puffed up.  And I said:  What then, Sir?  Did their pride prevent them from entering into the City of Christ?  And the angel answered and said unto me:  Pride is the root of all evils.  Are they better than the Son of God who came to the Jews with much humility?  And I asked him and said:  Why is it that the trees humble themselves and erect themselves again?  And the angel answered and said to me:  The whole time which these men passed on earth zealously serving God, on account of the confusion and reproaches of men at the time, they blushed and humiliated themselves, but they were not saddened. nor did they repent that they should recede from their pride which was in them.  This is why the trees humble themselves, and again 158are raised up.  And I asked and said:  For what cause were they admitted to the doors of the city?  The angel answered and said unto me:  Because of the great goodness of God, and because there is the entry of his holy men entering into this city:  for this cause they are left in this place, but when Christ the King Eternal enters with his saints, as he enters just men may pray for these, and then they may enter into the city along with them:  but yet none of them is able to have assurance such as they have who humbled themselves, serving the Lord God all their lives.