having believed in God, he shone forth; those, therefore, who believe in God, even if they come from obscure and lowly origins, are raised up by God and are enrolled in the inheritance of Abraham's lineage, with their paternal low birth and impiety being no impediment to them. Or also otherwise. He who formed the first man from the earth and raised him up as the father of every man is able also from stones to form men on the earth and to raise them up and exalt them, so that they become heirs of honor and glory like that of Abraham. The phrase "from these stones" does not mean the stones themselves, but that from imperfect, unbelieving, and poor men He is able to make great and renowned men, if they are willing, just as Abraham, having believed in God, became renowned from being obscure. 9 Mt 3, 12 "Whose winnowing fork is in his hand," signifies the power and authority of judgment, by which the better is distinguished from the worse; and "in his hand" indicates that which is ready and effortless; for the judgment is not by practice and time and consideration, but is ready and immediate from the will of God. And the righteous are separated from the sinners, of whom He called the former "wheat" as bringing in nothing foreign to the good seed originally sown by God in nature, and the sinners "chaff" as having adulterated the whole kind and ending up in a strange nature through evil. For just as in other sciences there are certain instruments for distinguishing the good and the contrary according to the art, so also in agriculture there is the threshing floor and the winnowing fork; for on the threshing floor the wheat is distinguished from the chaff. To these he compares both the church and the discerning power of God which separates those who are not good from the good. 10 Mt 4, 5 8 "Then the devil takes him," instead of: the desire is granted and conceded to the devil, so that he might be put to greater shame; for he desired and wanted Christ to go up to the pinnacle and to the mountain so that he might wrestle with him through temptations; this indeed happens and our Lord goes up to the pinnacle and to the mountain and, having thrown him down, shames him from every side. "The devil takes him" does not mean that he took him with authority, but indicates that he took him by Christ's concession. And this was by divine economy, so that when the devil's desire was fulfilled he might be completely shamed and defeated. 11 Mt 5, 1 Christ sat down, so that the crowds might believe on account of the miracles done by him, and the disciples, being taught, might be further enlightened and understand that he is not only man, but also God; for he was a healer not only of bodies, but also of souls. 12 Mt 5, 13 "Salt of the earth," he says, are those who teach the divine oracles, strengthening and invigorating the mind of the hearers. 13 Mt 5, 17 "I have not come to abolish the law"; for he abolishes the law who does not fulfill the law. But he who fulfills the law, and not only fulfills but also brings it to a more perfect precision, how does he not rather keep it? Therefore, just as one who gives form to the shape of a man sketched in outlines, just as one who forms this by the addition and application of colors did not abolish the outlines pre-etched in it, but brought their incompleteness to completion and perfection, so also our Lord God did not abolish the way of life of the gospel which was, as it were, prefigured and sketched in the law—far from it—but he both manifested it and made it clear, filling up all the incompleteness in the law and advancing it to an unsurpassable perfection. He who fulfills the law and brings it to precision is one who rather keeps the law, not one who abolishes it; for he who fills in the outline of the image with colors would be called the perfecter of the image, rather than its destroyer; for Christ, having come, both healed and perfected the way of life previously sketched in the law. 14 Mt 5, 19 "One of the least of these commandments," those that seem to the many to be insignificant and easily despised; for those who make light of the lawgiver himself and
θεῷ πιστεύσας, διέλαμψεν· οἱ οὖν θεῷ πιστεύοντες, κἂν ἐξ ἀσήμων καὶ εὐτελῶν προέλθωσιν, ἐγείρονται ὑπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ τῆς Ἀβραὰμ γονῆς εἰς τὸν κλῆρον ἐγγράφονται τῆς πατρικῆς αὐτοῖς μηδὲν παρεμποδιζούσης δυσγενείας τε καὶ δυσσεβείας. ἢ καὶ ἄλλως. ὁ ἐκ γῆς διαπλάσας τὸν πρῶτον ἄνθρωπον καὶ παντὸς ἀνθρώπου τοῦτον ἐγείρας πατέρα δύναται καὶ ἐκ τῶν λίθων τοὺς ἐν γῇ ἀνθρώπους διαπλάσαι καὶ ἐγεῖραι τούτους καὶ ἀνυψῶσαι, ὥστε παραπλησίου τιμῆς καὶ δόξης τῆς τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ γενέσθαι κληρονόμους. Τὸ ἐκ τῶν λίθων τούτων οὐ τοὺς λίθους αὐτοὺς λέγει, ἀλλ' ὅτι ἐξ ἀνθρώπων ἀτελῶν καὶ ἀπίστων καὶ πενήτων δύναται μεγάλους τε καὶ ἐπισήμους ποιῆσαι, ἐάνπερ ἐθέλωσιν, καθάπερ ὁ Ἀβραὰμ πιστεύσας θεῶ ἐξ ἀσήμων γέγονεν ἐπίσημος. 9 Mt 3, 12 Οὗ τὸ πτύον ἐν τῇ χειρὶ αὐτοῦ, τὴν κριτικὴν δύναμιν καὶ ἐξουσίαν σημαίνει, δι' ἧς τὸ κρεῖττον ἀπὸ τοῦ χείρονος διακρίνεται· τὸ δὲ ἐν τῇ χειρὶ αὐτοῦ τὸ πρόχειρον καὶ ἀταλαίπωρον μηνύει· οὐ γὰρ μελέτῃ καὶ χρόνῳ καὶ διασκέψει, ἀλλὰ πρόχειρος καὶ ἐκ τοῦ παραχρῆμα βουλομένου θεοῦ ἡ διάκρισις. διαχωρίζονται δὲ οἱ δίκαιοι τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν, ὧν τοὺς μὲν σῖτον ὠνόμασεν μηδὲν ἀλλότριον τοῦ ἐξ ἀρχῆς ὑπὸ θεοῦ καλοῦ σπέρματος καταβληθέντος τῇ φύσει ἐπισύροντας, τοὺς δὲ ἁμαρτωλοὺς ἄχυρον ὅλον τὸ γένος διανοθεύσαντας καὶ εἰς ἀλλόκοτον φύσιν διὰ κακίας ἐντελευτήσαντας. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ἐπὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἐπιστημῶν ἐστι τινὰ ὄργανα διακριτικὰ τῶν κατὰ τὴν τέχνην καλῶν τε καὶ ἐναντίων, οὕτω καὶ ἐν τοῖς γεωργουμένοις ἡ ἅλως ἐστὶ καὶ τὸ πτύον· ἐν γὰρ τῇ ἅλωνι ὁ σῖτος ἀπὸ τοῦ ἀχύρου διακρίνεται. οἷστισι παρεικάζει τήν τε ἐκκλησίαν καὶ τὴν διακρίνουσαν τοῦ θεοῦ δύναμιν ἀπὸ τῶν ἀγαθῶν τοὺς μὴ τοιούτους. 10 Mt 4, 5 8 Τότε παραλαμβάνει αὐτὸν ὁ διάβολος, ἀντὶ τοῦ· ἐνδίδοται καὶ παραχωρεῖται τῷ διαβόλῳ τὸ ἐπιθύμημα, ἵνα πλέον καταισχυνθῇ· ἐπεθύμει γὰρ καὶ ἤθελεν εἰς τὸ πτερύγιον καὶ εἰς τὸ ὄρος ἀνελθεῖν τὸν Χριστὸν ὡς ἂν παλαίσῃ αὐτῷ τοῖς πειρασμοῖς· γίνεται δὴ τοῦτο καὶ ἄνεισιν ὁ κύριος ἡμῶν ἐπὶ τὸ πτερύγιον καὶ ἐπὶ τὸ ὄρος καὶ πανταχόθεν αὐτὸν αἰσχύνει καταβαλών. Τὸ παραλαμβάνει αὐτὸν ὁ διάβολος οὐχ ὅτι μετ' ἐξουσίας αὐτὸν ἔλαβεν, ἀλλ' ἐνδείκνυται ὡς παραχωρήσαντος τοῦ Χριστοῦ παρέλαβε. καὶ τοῦτο οἰκονομικῶς, ἵνα πληρωθείσης τῆς τοῦ διαβόλου ἐπιθυμίας καταισχυνθῇ τελείως καὶ ἡττηθῇ. 11 Mt 5, 1 Ἐκάθισεν ὁ Χριστός, ἵνα οἱ μὲν ὄχλοι διὰ τὰ ὑπ' αὐτοῦ γινόμενα θαύματα πιστεύσωσιν, οἱ δὲ μαθηταὶ διδασκόμενοι ἔτι ἐλλαμφθήσονται καὶ νοήσωσιν, ὅτι οὐ μόνον ἄνθρωπός ἐστιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ θεός· οὐ γὰρ σωμάτων μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ψυχῶν ὑπῆρξε θεραπευτής. 12 Mt 5, 13 Ἅλας τῆς γῆς φησι τοὺς τὰ θεῖα διδάσκοντας λόγια στύφοντα καὶ ῥωννύοντα τὸν νοῦν τῶν ἀκουόντων. 13 Mt 5, 17 Οὐκ ἦλθον καταλῦσαι τὸν νόμον· ἐκεῖνος γὰρ καταλύει τὸν νόμον ὁ μὴ πληρῶν τὸν νόμον. ὁ δὲ πληρῶν τὸν νόμον, μὴ πληρῶν δὲ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ εἰς ἀκρίβειαν τελειοτέραν ἀνάγων πῶς οὐ μᾶλλον φυλάσσει; ὥσπερ οὖν ὁ τὴν ἐν σκιάσμασι τυπωθεῖσαν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου μορφήν, ὥσπερ οὖν ὁ ταύτην τῇ τῶν χρωμάτων παρενθέσει καὶ ἐπιβολῇ μορφοποιῶν οὐ τοὺς ἐν αὐτῇ προχαραχθέντας τύπους κατέλυσεν, ἀλλ' εἰς ἀπαρτισμὸν καὶ τελειότητα τὸ ἀτελὲς αὐτῶν ἤνεγκεν, οὕτως καὶ ὁ δεσπότης ἡμῶν θεὸς οὐ τὴν ἐν νόμῳ οἱονεὶ προτυπωθεῖσαν καὶ σκιαγραφηθεῖσαν τοῦ εὐαγγελίου πολιτείαν κατέλυσεν, πολλοῦ γε καὶ δεῖ, ἀλλὰ ταύτην ἐφανέρωσέν τε καὶ ἐτράνωσεν πᾶσαν τὴν ἐν νόμῳ ἀναπληρώσας ἀτέλειαν καὶ προαγαγὼν εἰς ἀνυπέρβλητον τελειότητα. Ὁ πληρῶν νόμον καὶ εἰς ἀκρίβειαν ἄγων αὐτόν, φυλάττων μᾶλλον νόμον ἐστίν, οὐ μὴν καταλύων· ὁ γὰρ τὴν σκιαγραφίαν τῆς εἰκόνος ἀναπληρῶν διὰ τῶν χρωμάτων, τελειωτὴς ἂν λέγοιτο τῆς εἰκόνος, ἤπερ ἀναιρετὴς αὐτῆς· τὴν γὰρ σκιαγραφηθεῖσαν πρότερον ἐν τῷ νόμῳ πολιτείαν ἐλθὼν ὁ Χριστὸς ἐθεράπευσέ τε καὶ τετελείωκεν. 14 Mt 5, 19 Μίαν τῶν ἐντολῶν τῶν ἐλαχίστων, τῶν τοῖς πολλοῖς δοκούντων εὐτελῶν καὶ εὐκαταφρονήτων εἶναι· οἱ γὰρ αὐτοῦ ἐκείνου κατεπαιρόμενοι τοῦ νομοθέτου καὶ