But he rather listened to them than cared for the others. For his
acquaintances came up continually, expecting to find him dead, and
heard him singing, "Let the Lord arise, and his enemies shall be
scattered; and let them who hate him flee before him. As wax melts
from before the face of the fire, so shall sinners perish from
before the face of God." And again, "All nations compassed me round
about, and in the name of the Lord I repelled them." He endured
then for twenty years, thus training himself alone; neither going
forth, nor seen by any one for long periods of time. But after
this, when many longed for him, and wished to imitate his training,
and others who knew him came, and were bursting in the door by
force, Antony came forth as from some inner shrine, initiated into
the mysteries, and bearing the God. {45} And then first he appeared
out of the inclosure to those who were coming to him. And when they
saw him they wondered; for his body had kept the same habit, and had
neither grown fat, nor lean from fasting, nor worn by fighting with
the daemons. For he was just such as they had known him before his
retirement. They wondered again at the purity of his soul, because
it was neither contracted as if by grief, nor relaxed by pleasure,
nor possessed by laughter or by depression; for he was neither
troubled at beholding the crowd, nor over-joyful at being saluted by
too many; but was altogether equal, as being governed by reason, and
standing on that which is according to nature. Many sufferers in
body who were present did the Lord heal by him; and others he purged
from daemons. And he gave to Antony grace in speaking, so that he
comforted many who grieved, and reconciled others who were at
variance, exhorting all to prefer nothing in the world to the love
of Christ, and persuading and exhorting them to be mindful of the
good things to come, and of the love of God towards us, who spared
not his own son, but delivered him up for us all. He persuaded many