Exhortation to a Virgin
Sentences addressed to a virgin: An exhortation to a virgin. 1 Love the Lord and he will love you (Ps 37:3), and serve him and kindle your heart. 2 Honor your mother as the mother of Christ, and do not provoke the one who gave birth to you. 3 Love your sisters as the daughters of your mother, and do not abandon the way of peace. 4 As the sun rises, let it see the book in your hands, and after the second hour, let it see your work. 5 Pray unceasingly, and remember Christ who begot you. 6 Avoid the company of men, so that idols may not be generated in your soul and there may not be an obstacle for you in a time of prayer. 7 You have Christ as beloved; reject from you all men, and you will not live a life of sorrow. 8 Make anger and wrath far from you, and let resentment not nest within you. 9 Do not say, 'Today I will eat and tomorrow I will not eat,' for you do not do this with prudence. For there will be harm to your body and pain to your stomach. 10 To eat meat not good and to drink wine not good, but to offer these things to those who are weak, is required. 11 A reckless virgin will not be saved, and a profligate one will not see her bridegroom. 12 Do not say, 'The maidservant has grieved me and I will punish her,' because there is no slavery among the daughters of God. 13 Do not give your hearing to vain words, and flee from the stories of circulating women. 14 Do not see festivals through drunkenness, and do not enter into the weddings of others. For every virgin doing these things is unclean before the Lord. 15 Open your mouth with the word of God, and restrain your tongue from much talk. 16 Humble yourself before the Lord (Ps 37:6), and his right hand will exalt you. 17 Do not turn away from a poor person in a time of distress, and there will not fail oil in your lamp. 18 Do everything through the Lord, and do not seek glory from men, for glory...
Greek
Sententiae ad virginem Παραίνεσις πρὸς παρθένον. 1 Ἀγάπα τὸν κύριον καὶ ἀγαπήσει σε, καὶ δούλευε αὐτῷ καὶ φωτιεῖ τὴν καρδίαν σου. 2 Τίμα τὴν μητέρα σου ὡς μητέρα Χριστοῦ, καὶ μὴ παροξύνῃς πολιὰν τεκούσης σε. 3 Ἀγάπα τὰς ἀδελφάς σου ὡς θυγατέρας μητρός σου, καὶ μὴ ἐγκαταλίπῃς ὁδὸν εἰρήνης. 4 Ἀνατέλλων ὁ ἥλιος βλεπέτω τὸ βιβλίον ἐν ταῖς χερσί σου, καὶ μετὰ δευτέραν ὥραν τὸ ἔργον σου. 5 Προσεύχου ἀδιαλείπτως, καὶ μέμνησο Χριστοῦ τοῦ γεννήσαντός σε. 6 Συντυχίας ἀνδρῶν παραιτοῦ, ἵνα μὴ γένηται εἴδωλα ἐν σῇ ψυχῇ καὶ ἔσται σοι πρόσκομμα ἐν καιρῷ προσευχῆς. 7 Χριστὸν ἔχεις ἀγαπητόν· ἀπόρριψον ἀπό σου ἄνδρας ἅπαντας καὶ οὐ μὴ βιώσῃς ἐπονείδιστον βίον. 8 Θυμὸν καὶ ὀργὴν μακρὰν ποίησον ἀπό σου, καὶ μνησικακία μὴ αὐλιζέσθω ἔν σοι. 9 Μὴ εἴπῃς· σήμερον βρώσομαι καὶ αὔριον οὐ βρώσομαι, ὅτι οὐκ ἐν φρονήσει ποιεῖς τοῦτο. ἔσται γὰρ βλάβη τῷ σώματί σου καὶ ὀδύνη τῷ στομάχῳ σου. 10 Ἐσθίειν κρέα οὐ καλὸν καὶ πίνειν οἶνον οὐκ ἀγαθόν, προσφέρειν δὲ χρὴ ταῦτα ταῖς ἀσθενούσαις. 11 Παρθένος θρασεῖα οὐ σωθήσεται καὶ σπαταλῶσα οὐκ ὄψεται τὸν νυμφίον αὐτῆς. 12 Μὴ εἴπῃς, ὅτι λελύπηκέ με ἡ θεραπαινὶς καὶ τίσομαι αὐτήν, διότι οὐκ ἔστιν δουλεία ἐν θυγατράσι θεοῦ. 13 Μὴ δῷς ἀκοήν σου λόγοις ματαίοις, καὶ διηγήματα γραῶν φεῦγε κυκλευουσῶν. 14 Ἑορτὰς μεθύσων μὴ ἴδῃς, καὶ εἰς γάμους ἀλλοτρίων μὴ εἰσέλθῃς. ἀκάθαρτος γὰρ παρὰ κυρίῳ πᾶσα παρθένος ποιοῦσα ταῦτα. 15 Ἄνοιγε σὸν στόμα λόγῳ θεοῦ, καὶ κώλυε ἀπὸ πολυλογίας τὴν γλῶσσαν σου. 16 Ἔναντι κυρίου ταπείνου σεαυτήν, καὶ ὑψώσει σε ἡ δεξιὰ αὐτοῦ. 17 Μὴ ἀποστρέφου πένητα ἐν καιρῷ θλίψεως, καὶ οὐ λείψει ἔλαιον ἐν τῇ λαμπάδι σου. 18 Πάντα ποίει διὰ τὸν κύριον, καὶ μὴ ζήτει παρὰ ἀνθρώπων δόξαν, ὅτι δόξα
About this text
A spiritual guide for virgins offering practical advice on faith, humility, and avoiding worldly distractions.
Original English Translation of Evagrius Ponticus’s Sententiae ad virginem — new OET from PG 40 Greek.
Catalogue & scope
Khazarzar scan
Witnesses
- Copy-text PG 40 (Khazarzar) (Greek)
This is an AI-assisted study translation. Source fidelity and completeness have not been independently certified. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.