Nilus of Ancyra→Irenaeus (correspondent of Nilus of Ancyra)|c. 415 AD|nilus ancyra|From Ancyra|AI-assisted
To Irenaeus the Deacon.
I once saw a boy being whipped rather severely by his overseer; and in his great fear of the blows, because of his tender age, at each lash he leapt toward the one striking him so heavily, with a piteous cry, and clung gently to the one who was beating him in anger. Perhaps, then, we too ought in this way to keep clinging to the one who disciplines us through trials and misfortunes, namely God, and rather, in the more sorrowful condition, to flee to him for refuge and to hold fast to the divine judgment and providence; for he knows what is profitable for us better than we do ourselves. Let us therefore say to him the words of Scripture: "Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us, for we have been greatly filled with contempt, and we have become as men whipped all the day long, for our soul has been filled with evils, and our life has drawn near to Hades. O Lord, in affliction we have remembered you. Do not turn your face away from us, but have compassion on us, O Master, bend yourself toward mercy. Incline your ear to our supplication; rouse up your might, and come to save us, when you will and as you will, O only mighty one."
I once saw a boy being whipped rather severely by his overseer; and in his great fear of the blows, because of his tender age, at each lash he leapt toward the one striking him so heavily, with a piteous cry, and clung gently to the one who was beating him in anger. Perhaps, then, we too ought in this way to keep clinging to the one who disciplines us through trials and misfortunes, namely God, and rather, in the more sorrowful condition, to flee to him for refuge and to hold fast to the divine judgment and providence; for he knows what is profitable for us better than we do ourselves. Let us therefore say to him the words of Scripture: "Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us, for we have been greatly filled with contempt, and we have become as men whipped all the day long, for our soul has been filled with evils, and our life has drawn near to Hades. O Lord, in affliction we have remembered you. Do not turn your face away from us, but have compassion on us, O Master, bend yourself toward mercy. Incline your ear to our supplication; rouse up your might, and come to save us, when you will and as you will, O only mighty one."
AI-assisted translation - This translation was produced with AI assistance and has not been peer-reviewed. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek below for scholarly use.