Discourses, On the Same — In Plain English

Epictetus — The Slave

When you chase after what isn't yours, you lose what is yours. Zeus has already given you these clear instructions and impulses. So what more do you need from me? Am I stronger than Zeus? Am I more trustworthy than he is? If you follow his guidance, do you really need anything else? "But he hasn't given me clear orders," you'll say. Then look at your natural concepts. Look at the philosophical proofs you know. Think about what you've heard many times, what you've said yourself, what you've read, what you've thought deeply about. When you do this, you'll see that all these insights come from God.

Epictetus — The Slave Original

When you seek what is not your own, you lose that which is your own. Having such promptings and commands from Zeus, what kind do you still ask from me? Am I more powerful than he, am I more worthy of confidence? But if you observe these, do you want any others besides? "Well, but he has not given these orders," you will say. Produce your præcognitions ([Greek: prolaepseis]), produce these proofs of philosophers, produce what you have often heard, and produce what you have said yourself, produce what you have read, produce what you have meditated on; and you will then see that all these things are from God.