I do?” The old man said unto him, “I believe in God, and that He will send His Grace, and will comfort thee, and give thee strength if thou will ask Him in truth and wilt make supplication unto Him. For I have heard that a matter like unto this took place in Scete, where there was a man whose rule and conduct were excellent, and he fell into temptation, and he became oppressed in his mind, and because he had no man in whom he had confidence to reveal the matter to, and none to bid him be of good courage, he made himself ready to depart. And behold, the grace of God appeared unto him by night in the form of a virgin, and she comforted him, saying, ‘Depart not, but dwell here with me, for not one of the things of which I have heard shall be performed’; and straightway his mind was healed, and he was consoled and strengthened.”
153. A certain brother used to say, “I knew an old man who dwelt in the mountain who would never agree to accept anything from any man; now he possessed a little water, and with it he used to care for and water a few garden herbs which he had. And he lived this life for fifty years, and he never went outside the fence of his cell. He was exceedingly famous because of the numerous cures which he wrought daily upon those who came to him. He died in peace, leaving in his place five brethren.”
154. There was a certain old man in Scete who toiled in the works of the body, that is to say, in fasting and in standing up; and in his thoughts he was a simple man, and he was neither keen in intellect nor learned. And he went to Abbâ John Kolob to ask him about his thoughts, and when the old man had spoken to him he returned and went to his cell, and forgot what the old man had said to him. And he came a second time to the old man, who told him what he had already said unto him, and when he had departed he forgot it again; and though he did this several times he always forgot what had been said to him. Then, after these things, he went unto the blessed man once more, and said unto him, “Thou knowest, O father, that I forgot [thy words] again; but I did not come to thee because I did not wish to weary thee.” Abbâ John said unto him, “Go, and light a lamp”; and he went and did as he commanded him. And Abbâ John said unto him, “Bring several lamps, and light [them all] from it”; and he lit [them] as he had told him. And Abbâ John said to the old man, “Is the lamp wherefrom thou hast kindled the many lamps in any way the worse?” and he said unto him, “No.” And the old man John said unto him, “If all Scete were to come unto him John would not be the worse for it, neither would the gift of
