Attention And Reward

Υἱέ ἐμῇ ῥήσει πρόσεχε τοῖς δὲ ἐμοῖς λόγοις παράβαλε σὸν οὖς. Ὅπως μὴ ἐκλίπωσίν σε αἱ πηγαί σου φύλασσε αὐτὰς ἐν σῇ καρδίᾳ, ζωὴ γάρ ἐστιν τοῖς εὑρίσκουσιν αὐτὰς καὶ πάσῃ σαρκὶ ἴασις Καθάπερ νηπίῳ τινὶ παιδίῳ ἔπαθλα ἀεὶ ταῖς προσοχαῖς τίθησι, αὶ διεγείρει ἔξω που διεπτσημενον. Πηγαὶ δὲ ζωῆς, αἱ ἀρεταὶ, ἀφ' ὦν τὸ ζῶν ὕδωρ, ἡ γνῶσις ἡ τοῦ Χριστοῦ. Τῷ κατὰ σοφίαν προκόπτοντι, πολλαὶ πηγαὶ, καὶ οὐ μία γίνεται· ἀλλὰ κατὰ τὸ πλῆθος τῶν ἀρετῶν. Τοῖς τὰς παραινέσεις, φησὶ, φυλάττουσι ταύτας, ζωὴ γίνονται· αὖται τὸ ἆθλον. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Παροιμιας, Κεφ' Δ’ Source: Migne PG 39.1628b

Attend to my words, O son, and incline your ear to my speech. Guard the founts in your heart that they not fail, for they are life to all who find them and the health of every flesh. 1 Just as a mindless boy may have his attention drawn by some reward and it may raise him up from where he has fallen. The founts of life are the virtues from where flows the water of life, which is the knowledge of Christ. According to advancing wisdom there are many founts not one, for they are as the number of the virtues. Those who observe these counsels, he says, they shall live, which is the reward Didymus the Blind, On Proverbs, Chapter 4 1 Prov 4.20-22 LXX