16. Rising[A] shall not be made for thee,
Nor shalt thou be obeyed;
If you be meek with these,
You will be guilty yourself.
17. For it is certain that you shall pay,
When the great assemblage comes,
Along with your own transgressions,
The sin of every one who is under your government.
FOR THE ABBOT OF A CHURCH.
18. If you be the chief of a church,
It is a noble distinction;
It shall be well for you if you worthily assume
The representativeship of The King.
19. If you be the chief of a church,
It is a noble distinction;
Administer with justice the church,
From the least to the greatest.
20. That which Christ, the All-pure, commands,
Preach unto them in full;
And what you command unto others,
Be it what you perform yourself.
21. The same as you love your own soul,
Do you love the souls of all others;
'Tis thine to promote all good,
And to banish all evil.
22. Not like a candle under a bushel,
Shall be thy learning without cloud;
Thine it is to heal all thy hosts,
Be they weak, or be they powerful.
23. It is thine to judge each according to his rank,
And according to his deeds,
That they may accompany thee at the Judgment,
In the presence of The King.
24. It is thine to exhort the aged,
Upon whom have fallen disease and grief,
That they beseech the Son of The King
With torrents of gushing tears.