an alms from God. Then He sees this fruit not existing in thee, and he abides not with an unmerciful soul. But the Spirit being quenched, ye know what follows, as many of you as have walked on a road in a moonless night. And if it is difficult to walk by night in a road from land to land, how is it safe in the road that leads from earth to heaven? Know ye not how many demons there are in the intervening space, how many wild beasts, how many spirits of wickedness? If indeed we have that light, they will be able to do us no hurt; but if we extinguish it, they soon take us captive, they soon rob us of everything. Since even robbers first extinguish the lamp, and so plunder us. For they indeed see in this darkness, since they do the works of darkness: but we are unaccustomed to that light.1052 Let us not then extin- guish it. All evil doing extinguishes that light, whether reviling, or insolence, or whatever you can mention. For as in the case of fire, everything that is foreign to its nature is destructive of it, but that kindles it which is congenial to it; whatever is dry, whatever is warm, whatever is fiery, kindles the flame of the Spirit. Let us not therefore overlay it with anything cold or damp; for these things are destructive of it. But there is also another explanation. There were among them many indeed who prophesied truly, but some prophesied falsely. This also he says in the Epistle to the Cor- inthians, that on this account He gave “the discernings of spirits.” (1 Cor. xii. 10.) For the devil, of his vile craft, wished through this gift of grace to subvert everything pertaining to the Church. For since both the demon and the Spirit prophesied concerning the future, the one indeed uttering falsehood, and the other truth, and it was not possible from any quarter to receive a proof of one or the other, but each spoke without being called to account, as Jeremiah and Ezekiel had done, but when the time came they were convicted, He gave also the “discernings of spirits.”1053 Since therefore then also among the Thessalonians many were prophesying, glancing at whom he says, “Neither by word, nor by epistle, as from us, as that the day of the Lord is now present” (2 Thess. ii. 2.), he says this here. That is, do not, because there are false prophets among you, on their account prohibit also these, and turn away from them; “quench” them “not,” that is, “despise not prophesyings.” Seest thou that this is what he means by, “Prove all things”? Because he had said, “Despise not prophesyings,” lest they should think that he opened the pulpit to all, he says, “Prove all things,” that is, such as are really prophecies; “and hold fast that which is good. Abstain from every form of evil”; not from this or that, but from all; that you may by proof distinguish both the true things and the false, and abstain from the latter, and hold fast the former. For 1052 One ms., “that space,” i.e. between earth and heaven. 1053 [When the time of fulfillment or the contrary came, the prophets were convicted, and it was shown which were from the devil. But the power of discerning between good and evil spirits in their predictions would make it unnecessary to wait for the time of fulfillment.—J.A.B.] 655 1 Thessalonians 5:19-22