והנה באמת, גם מי שהוא מחומם מאד בטבעו, ופרנסתו היא להיות מיושבי קרנות כל היום
In truth, even he who is extremely passionate by nature, and whose livelihood obliges him to sit all day at the street-corners,
אין לו שום התנצלות על חטאיו, ומיקרי רשע גמור על אשר אין פחד אלקים לנגד עיניו
has no excuse whatsoever for his sins, and he is termed a rasha gamur ("an utter evildoer") for not having the dread of G‑d before his eyes.
כי היה לו להתאפק ולמשול על רוח תאוותו שבלבו, מפני פחד ה׳ הרואה כל מעשיו
For he should have controlled himself and restrained the feeling of desire in his heart because of the fear of G‑d Who sees all his actions,
כמו שכתוב לעיל: כי המוח שליט על הלב בתולדתו
This fear of G‑d would have enabled him to overcome his desires, despite the difficulties imposed by his surroundings and his nature for, as explained above,1 the mind has supremacy over the heart by nature of one's birth, i.e., it is man's inborn characteristic that his mind is able to master and restrain his heart's desires.
