603 Matt. xxvi. 15.

604 Acts viii. 20.

605 From koinoj bioj (koinos bios), a common life.

606 Apparently an Egyptian word. It does not occur elsewhere.

607 In commune viventes.

608 From anaxwrein (anachorein), to withdraw.

609 These were monks who lived under no settled rule, but collected in little groups of two and three, generally in some populous place. They seem to have practised all the arts whereby a reputation for sanctity may be won, while they disparaged those who led more regular lives. Cassian (Collat. xviii. 7) draws an unfavorable picture of them. See Bingham, Antiquities, vii. ii. 4, and Dict. Xt. Ant., s. v. Sarabaitae.

610 Pannonia.

611 I.e. three o'clock.

612 Decani, "leaders of ten."

613 Cf. Letter LII.

614 Ps. lv. 6.

615 See Letter LXX. De Vir. LII. xi.

616 Josephus, The Jewish War, ii. 8.

617 I.e. the hermit of that name. See his Life in vol. iii. of this series.

618 Lam. iii. 27, Lam. iii. 28, Lam. iii. 30, Lam. iii. 31.

619 Lam. iii. 24.

620 1 Thess. v. 17.

621 In Jerome's time the seven canonical hours of prayer had not yet been finally fixed. He mentions, however, six which correspond to the later, Mattins, Terce, Sext, None, Vespers, and Nocturns. Cp. Letters CVII. CVIII. and CXXX.

622 Ps. l. 20.

623 Rom. xiv. 4, R.V.

624 Rom. xiv. 6, R.V.

625 Isa. lviii. 5.

626 Isaiah lviii. 3, Isaiah lviii. 4, R.V. marg.

627 1 Tim. i. 19, 1 Tim. i. 20; 2 Tim. i. 15.

628 1 Sam. xvi. 7.

629 1 Cor. vii. 34.

630 Luke i. 28.

631 Isa viii. 1, i.e. "the spoil speedeth, the prey hasteth;" or, in Jerome's rendering, "quickly carry away the spoils."

632 Isa. viii. 3. Jerome should have substituted "prophet" for "prophetess." As it stands the quotation is meaningless.

633 Isa. xxvi. 18, Vulg.

634 Matt. xii. 49.

635 Prov. vii. 3; Jer. xxxi. 33.

636 Col. ii. 14, Col. ii. 15.

637 Cp. the maxim of Cyprian: Extra ecclesiam nulla salus, "Outside the church there is no salvation."

638 Exod. xii. 46.

639 1 Peter iii. 20, 1 Peter iii. 21.

640 James ii. 25.

641 Founder of the widely prevalent sect of Manichaeans, which at one time numbered Augustine among its adherents. One of its leading tenets was that matter as such was essentially evil.

642 Matt. vii. 15.

643 Phil. iii. 8.

644 Rom. vi. 4; Gal. v. 24.

645 Rom. viii. 35, Rom. viii. 38, Rom. viii. 39.

646 An echo of the Nicene Creed.

647 Cp. Virgil, Ecl. iv. 61.

648 Cp. Ps. xcv. 4, Ps. xcv. 5; Isa. xl. 12.

649 Luke ii. 51, Luke ii. 52.

650 Ps. cxvi. 12, Ps. cxvi. 13, Ps. cxvi. 15.

651 Heb. xii. 6.

652 Cp. Matt. xxvi. 40.

653 Gen. xxix. 20.

654 Gen. xxxi. 40.

655 Ps. xxxviii. 2.

656 Ps. cxx. 5, Vulg.

657 Rom. viii. 18.

658 Rom. v. 3-5.

659 2 Cor. xi. 23-27.

660 2 Tim. iv. 7, 2 Tim. iv. 8.

661 Matt. xi. 12.

662 Luke xi. 5-8.

663 Is. xiv. 12, Is. xiv. 13.

664 1 Cor. ii. 9.

665 Ex. xv. 20, Ex. xv. 21.

666 A legendary virgin of Iconium said to have been converted by Paul.

667 Cant. ii. 10, Cant. ii. 11.

668 Cant. vi. 10.

669 Cant. vi. 9.

670 Viz. Paula, for whom see Letter CVIII., and Marcella, for whom see Letter CXXVII.

671 Matt. xxi. 1-9, literally "she-ass."

672 Isa. viii. 18.

673 Matt. xxi. 9.

674 Rev. xiv. 1-4.

675 Cant. viii. 6; the variant is peculiar to Jerome.

676 Cant. viii. 7.

677 In the English Version Ps. lxxiii.

678 Ps. lxxii. 20.

679 Ps. lxxiii. title.

680 Ps. lxxiii. 15.

681 I.e. the Old Latin Version superseded by Jerome's Vulgate.

682 2 Cor. iv. 7.

683 Rom. iii. 2.

684 One of the most distinguished men of his day, Praetextatus, had filled the high position of Prefect of Rome. As such he ironically assured Damasus that, if he could hope to obtain the papacy, he would immediately embrace the Christian religion (Jerome, Against John of Jerusalem,