Hermas, Shepherd, Parable 9
After I had finished writing down the commands and parables of the Shepherd, the angel of repentance came to me and said, "I want to show you everything the Holy Spirit revealed to you in the form of the Church, because that Spirit is the Son of God. Since you were too weak in the flesh, it was not disclosed to you through an angel. But once the Spirit strengthened you and your power grew so that you could actually see an angel, the building of the tower was revealed to you through the Church, and you saw it all well and reverently, as if by a virgin. Now you see through an angel by that same Spirit, but you must learn everything more accurately from me. That is why the glorious angel sent me to live in your house: so you can see everything with power, without fear, and not as you did before."
He then took me to Arcadia, to a breast-shaped mountain, and seated me on its summit. From there he showed me a vast plain encircled by twelve mountains, each with a distinct appearance. The first was black as soot. The second was bare, without any grass. The third was covered in thorns and thistles. The fourth had grass that was half-withered: the upper parts were green, but the parts near the roots were dry, and some of the grass withered completely when the sun scorched it. The fifth mountain had green grass and was rough terrain. The sixth was entirely split with fissures, both small and large; grass grew in the cracks, but it was not thriving—rather, it was withered. The seventh mountain had cheerful grass, and the whole mountain flourished; every kind of beast and bird lived there, and the more they grazed, the more the grass thrived. The eighth mountain was full of springs, and every kind of the Lord's creation drank from those springs. The ninth mountain had no water at all and was completely desolate; it contained deadly wild beasts and reptiles that destroy people. The tenth mountain had very large trees and was entirely shady; under the shade of the trees, sheep lay resting and being sheared. The eleventh mountain was heavily wooded, and its trees were laden with fruit, adorned with various kinds, so that anyone who saw them would desire to eat from them. The twelfth mountain was entirely white, its appearance cheerful, and it was the most beautiful of all.
In the middle of the plain he showed me a great white rock rising up from the ground. The rock stood higher than the mountains and was four-sided, so that it could contain the whole world. The rock was ancient, with a gate cut into it, yet the cutting of the gate looked recent to me. The gate shone brighter than the sun, so that I marveled at its brilliance. Twelve virgins stood around the gate.
Greek
Μετὰ τὸ γράψαι με τὰς ἐντολὰς καὶ παραβολὰς τοῦ ποιμένος, τοῦ ἀγγέλου τῆς μετανοίας, ἦλθε πρός με καὶ λέγει μοι: Θέλω σοι δεῖξαι, ὅσα σοι ἔδειξε τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον τὸ λαλῆσαν μετὰ σοῦ ἑν μορφῇ τῆς Ἐκκλησίας: ἐκεῖνο γὰρ τὸ πνεῦμα ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ ἐστιν. ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἀσθενέστερος τῇ σαρκὶ ἦς, οὐκ ἐδηλώθη σοι δἰ ἀγγέλου. ὅτε οὖν ἐνεδυναμώθης διὰ τοῦ πνεύματος καὶ ἴσχυσας τῇ ἰσχύϊ σου, ὥστε δύνασθαί σε καὶ ἄγγελον ἰδεῖν, τότε μὲν οὖν ἐφανερώθη σοι διὰ τῆς Ἐκκλησίας ἡ οἰκοδομὴ τοῦ πύργου: καλῶς καὶ σεμνῶς πάντα ὡς ὑπὸ παρθένου ἑώρακας. νῦν δὲ ὑπὸ ἀγγέλου βλέπεις διὰ τοῦ αὐτοῦ μὲν πνεύματος: δεῖ δέ σε παῤ ἐμοῦ ἀκριβέστερον πάντα μαθεῖν. εἰς τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ ἐδόθην ὑπὸ τοῦ ἐνδόξου ἀγγέλου εἰς τὸν οἶκόν σου κατοικῆσαι. ἵνα δυνατῶς πάντα ἴδῃς, μηδὲν δειλαινόμενος καὶ ὡς τὸ πρότερον. καὶ ἀπήγαγέ με εἰς τὴν Ἀρκαδίαν, εἰς ὄρος τι μαστῶδες καὶ ἐκάθισέ με ἐπὶ τὸ ἄκρον τοῦ ὄρους καὶ ἔδειξέ μοι πεδίον μέγα, κύκλῳ δὲ τοῦ πεδίου ὄρη δώδεκα, ἄλλην καὶ ἄλλην ἰδέαν ἔχοντα τὰ ὄρη. τὸ πρῶτον ἦν μέλαν ὡς ἀσβόλη: τὸ δὲ δεύτερον ψιλόν, βοτάνας μὴ ἔχον: τὸ δὲ τρίτον ἀκανθῶν καὶ τριβόλων πλῆρες: τὸ δὲ τέταρτον βοτάνας ἔχον ἡμιξήρους, τὰ μὲν ἐπάνω τῶν βοτανῶν χλωρά, τὰ δὲ πρὸς ταῖς ῥίζαις ξηρά: τινὲς δὲ βοτάναι, ὅταν ὁ ἥλιος ἐπικεκαύκει, ξηραὶ ἐγίνοντο: τὸ δὲ πέμπτον ὄρος ἔχον βοτάνας χλωρὰς καὶ τραχὺ ὄν. τὸ δὲ ἕκτον ὄρος σχισμῶν ὅλως ἔγεμεν, ὧν μὲν μικρῶν, ὧν δὲ μεγάλων: εἶχον δὲ βοτάνας αἱ σχισμαί, οὐ λίαν δὲ ἦσαν εὐθαλεῖς αἱ βοτάναι, μᾶλλον δὲ ὡς μεμαραμμέναι ἦσαν. τὸ δὲ ἕβδομον ὄρος εἶχε βοτάνας ἱλαράς, καὶ ὅλον τὸ ὄρος εὐθηνοῦν ἦν, καὶ πᾶν γένος κτηνῶν καὶ ὀρνέων ἐνέμοντο εἰς τὸ ὄρος ἐκεῖνο: καὶ ὅσον ἐβόσκοντο τὰ κτήνη καὶ τὰ πετεινά, μᾶλλον καὶ μᾶλλον αἱ βοτάναι τοῦ ὄρους ἐκείνου ἔθαλλον. τὸ δὲ ὄγδοον ὄρος πηγῶν πλῆρες ἦν, καὶ πᾶν γένος τῆς κτίσεως τοῦ κυρίου ἐποτίζοντο ἐκ τῶν πηγῶν τοῦ ὄρους ἐκείνου. τὸ δὲ ἔννατον ὄρος ὅλως ὕδωρ οὐκ εἶχεν καὶ ὅλον ἐρημῶδες ἦν. εἶχε δὲ ἐν αὐτῷ θηρία καὶ ἑρπετὰ θανάσιμα διαφθείροντα ἀνθρώπους. τὸ δὲ δέκατον ὄρος εἶχε δένδρα μέγιστα καὶ ὅλον κατάσκιον ἦν, καὶ ὑπὸ τὴν σκέπην τῶν δένδρων πρόβατα κατέκειντο ἀναπαυόμενα καὶ μαρυκώμενα. τὸ δὲ ἑνδέκατον ὄρος λίαν σύνδενδρον ἦν, καὶ τὰ δένδρα ἐκεῖνα κατάκαρπα ἦν, ἄλλοις καὶ ἄλλοις καρποῖς κεκοσμημένα, ἵνα ἰδών τις αὐτὰ ἐπιθυμήσῃ φαγεῖν ἐκ τῶν καρπῶν αὐτῶν. τὸ δὲ δωδέκατον ὄρος ὅλον ἦν λευκόν, καὶ ἡ πρόσοψις αὐτοῦ ἱλαρὰ ἦν: καὶ εὐπρεπέστατον ἦν ἐν αὑτῷ το ὄρος. Εἰς μέσον δὲ τοῦ πεδίου ἔδειξέ μοι πέτραν μεγάλην λευκὴν ἐκ τοῦ πεδίου ἀναβεβηκυῖαν. ἡ δὲ πέτρα ὑψηλοτέρα ἦν τῶν ὀρέων, τετράγωνος, ὥστε δύνασθαι ὅλον τὸν κόσμον χωρῆσαι. παλαιὰ δὲ ἦν ἠ πέτρα ἐκείνη, πύλην ἐκκεκομμένην ἔχουσα: ὡς πρόσφατος δὲ ἐδόκει μοι εἶναι ἡ ἐκκόλαψις τῆς πύλης. ἡ δὲ πύλη οὕτως ἔστιλβεν ὑπὲρ τὸν ἥλιον, ὥστε με θαυμάζειν ἐπὶ τῇ λαμπηδόνι τῆς πύλης. κύκλῳ δὲ τῆς πύλης εἱστήκεισαν παρθένοι δώδεκα.