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of the immortal drink, but yet because of the loveliness and praiseworthiness of the food and drink, the one who is satisfied still hungers and the one who drinks still thirsts, so as to be always sated and yet hungry. Which heaven does he mean here out of the three heavens, the primordial one, the firmament, the air; of these, one should understand none, but rather the as-it-were watchtower and state of God, which happens to be no other than his intelligible substance. And the "bread" "of life" "which comes down" is the nourishing Word of God, which the one coming to him eats by practicing virtue. Or also those who, by participation in his teaching, pursue practical virtue are said to eat, but in the intellectual examination of what is hidden in scripture are said to drink, as Christ says: "blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness," those who pursue both the practice and the understanding of it.

12 Jo 8, 51-52 When the Savior had said that the one who keeps

his word would not see death, the Jews who were present, being mistaken, supposed that to see death was the same as to taste of it; for it seems to them, based on their own words, that one who has not experienced worldly death has not tasted of death; but this seems to overturn the Lord's promise, since even those who kept his word have died, but their deception came from craftily interpreting his will based on a homonym; for the one who keeps the word of Jesus will not see the death that follows sin, even if he tastes of the common and bodily death. And since the prophets also said indefinitely "they died," without adding "all," it does not conflict with the fact that Enoch and Elijah did not die. 13 Jo 8, 56 It must be asked what day he means—the intelligible day of the Lord.

14 Jo 9, 37 He has been enlightened "in the eyes of his heart," being illuminated by

the true light. The one who is contrary to this, blinded by the ignorance he has, seems to have no sin because he did not commit grievous sins willingly. But ignorance itself is a sin in another way; for it was possible for him, being a rational creature, to have knowledge of good and evil. Therefore, for neglecting this, he is accused on account of the ignorance itself. For this, you will take the verse, "the servant who did not know his master's will shall be beaten with few stripes." 15 Jo 10, 9 The Word of God happens to be the door for those entering to God according to "enter into his presence with exultation"; in addition to these things, since the mind is the inner man and the more bodily part the outer man, the one who takes care of the inner man enters through the Word, which is the door, likewise the one who puts to death "the members that are on the earth" and carries about "the dying of Jesus in his body" goes out of himself "through the door," striving to be well-pleasing to him even while at home.

16 Jo 10,29 The Father gives to the Son those who have been qualified according to the good as

by an unsurpassed quality; for "all that the Father gives me will come to me," and "behold, I and the children whom God has given me"; for as the Son leads to the Father and delivers to him those to whom he attaches himself, providing himself for comprehension according to "he who has seen me has seen the Father," so the Father gives to the Son those to whom he makes him known, just as he did to Peter; for "flesh and blood has not revealed" the Son, "but the Father." All who have thus known the Son from the Father obtain what has been given to the Son on account of their surpassing perfection, this being the case. How then Judas? He too, being one of those given by the Father to the Son, according to "those whom you have given me" I have kept, and "none of them is lost except the son of destruction," fell from so great a height as to be called "son of destruction"; for no longer

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τοῦ ἀθανάτου πώματος, ἀλλ' ὅμως διὰ τὸ ἐράσμιον καὶ ἀξιέπαινον τῆς τροφῆς καὶ τοῦ ποτοῦ ὁ χορτασθεὶς ἔτι πεινᾷ καὶ πινὼν ἔτι διψᾷ ὥστε καὶ ἀεὶ κορέννυσθαι καὶ πεινᾶν. Ποῖον οὐρανὸν σημαίνει ἐνταῦθα ἐκ τῶν τριῶν οὐρανῶν, τὸν ἀρχέγονον, τὸ στερέωμα, τὸν ἀέρα· ἐκ τούτων οὐδένα χρὴ νοεῖν, ἀλλὰ τὴν ὡσανεὶ περιωπὴν καὶ κατάστασιν τοῦ θεοῦ, ἥτις οὐχ ἑτέρα τῆς νοητῆς αὐτοῦ οὐσίας τυγχάνει. "ζωῆς" δὲ "ἄρτος" "ὁ καταβαίνων" ὁ τοῦ θεοῦ θρεπτικὸς λόγος ἐστίν, ὃν ἐσθίει ὁ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐρχόμενος τῷ τὴν ἀρετὴν ἐνεργεῖν. ἢ καὶ οἱ κατὰ μέθεξιν τῆς αὐτοῦ διδασκαλίας πρακτικὴν ἀρετὴν μετιόντες ἐσθίειν λέγονται, κατὰ δὲ τὴν διανοητικὴν ἐξέτασιν τοῦ κεκρυμμένου τῆς γραφῆς πίνειν λέγονται καθώς φησιν ὁ Χριστός· "μακάριοι οἱ πεινῶντες καὶ διψῶντες τὴν δικαιοσύνην" οἱ καὶ πρᾶξιν καὶ νόησιν ταύτης μετιόντες.

12 Jo 8, 51-52 Τοῦ σωτῆρος εἰρηκότος μὴ θεωρήσειν θάνατον τὸν τηροῦντα

τὸν λόγον οἱ παρόντες Ἰουδαῖοι σφαλέντες τὸ θεωρῆσαι θάνατον ταὐτὸν εἶναι τῷ γεύσασθαι αὐτοῦ ὑπέλαβον· δοκεῖ γὰρ αὐτοῖς ὅJoν ἐπὶ ταῖς αὐτῶν λέξεσιν ἐκεῖνον μὴ γεύσασθαι θανάτου τὸν πεῖραν τοῦ κοσμικοῦ μὴ λαβόντα θανάτου· τοῦτο δὲ δοκεῖ ἀνατρέπειν τὴν κυριακὴν ἐπαγγελίαν, τεθνηκότων καὶ τῶν τηρησάντων αὐτοῦ τὸν λόγον, γέγονε δὲ αὐτοῖς ἀπάτη τὸ θέλημα πανούργως Joφίσασθαι ἐξ ὁμωνυμίας· ὁ γὰρ τηρῶν τὸν Ἰησοῦ λόγον τὸν ἑπόμενον τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ θάνατον οὐ μὴ θεωρήσει, εἰ καὶ γεύσεται τοῦ κοινοῦ καὶ σωματικοῦ θανάτου. ἐπεὶ δὲ καὶ ἀπροσδιορίστως εἶπον οἱ προφῆται ἀπέθανον μὴ προσθέντες τὸ πάντες, οὐ μάχεται τὸ μὴ τεθνάναι Ἐνὼχ καὶ Ἠλίαν. 13 Jo 8, 56 Ζητητέον τίνα λέγει ἡμέραν-τὴν νοητὴν τοῦ κυρίου ἡμέραν.

14 Jo 9, 37 Πεφώτισται "τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς τῆς καρδίας" ἐλλαμπόμενος ὑπὸ

τοῦ φωτὸς τοῦ ἀληθινοῦ. ὁ ἀπ' ἐναντίας ἔχων τούτῳ τυφλωθεὶς ὑφ' ἧς ἔχει ἀγνοίας δοκεῖ μὴ ἔχειν ἁμαρτίαν τῷ μὴ ἑκουσίως πράττειν ἁδρὰ ἡμαρτηκώς. αὐτὸ δὲ τὸ ἀγνοεῖν κατ' ἄλλον τρόπον ἁμάρτημά ἐστιν· ἐνῆν γὰρ λογικὸν ὄντα ἐπιστήμην ἀγαθοῦ καὶ κακοῦ ἔχειν. ἀμελήσεως οὖν τούτου ὑπὲρ αὐτῆς τῆς ἀγνοίας ἐγκαλεῖται. εἰς τοῦτο λήψῃ τὸ "ὁ δοῦλος ὁ μὴ γνοὺς τὸ θέλημα τοῦ κυρίου δαρήσεται ὀλίγας". 15 Jo 10, 9 Θύρα ὁ τοῦ θεοῦ λόγος τυγχάνει τοῖς πρὸς θεὸν εἰσερχομένοις κατὰ τὸ "εἰσέλθετε ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ ἐν ἀγαλλιάσει"· πρὸς τούτοις ἔσω ἀνθρώπου τοῦ νοὸς ὄντος, ἔξω δὲ ἀνθρώπου τοῦ σωματικωτέρου ὁ ἐπιμέλειαν ποιούμενος τοῦ ἔσω ἀνθρώπου εἰσέρχεται διὰ τοῦ λόγου ὄντος θύρας, ὡσαύτως ὁ νεκρῶν "τὰ μέλη τὰ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς" καὶ "τὴν νέκρωσιν τοῦ Ἰησοῦ ἐν τῷ σώματι" περιφέρων τῷ ἑαυτοῦ ἐξέρχεται "διὰ τῆς θύρας" φιλοτιμούμενος μηδὲ ἐνδημοῦντι εὐάρεστος αὐτῷ εἶναι.

16 Jo 10,29 ∆ίδωσιν ὁ πατὴρ τῷ υἱῷ τοὺς κατὰ τὸ ἀγαθὸν πεποιωμένους ὡς

ἀνυπερβλήτῳ ποιότητι· "πᾶν" γὰρ "ὃ δίδωσίν μοι ὁ πατὴρ πρὸς ἐμὲ ἥξει", καὶ "ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ καὶ τὰ παιδία ἅ μοι ἔδωκεν ὁ θεός"· ὡς γὰρ ἄγει πρὸς τὸν πατέρα ὁ υἱὸς καὶ παραδίδωσι αὐτῷ τοὺς οἷς ἅπτει ἑαυτὸν εἰς κατανόησιν παρασχὼν κατὰ τὸ ὁ "ἑωρακὼς ἐμὲ ἑώρακεν τὸν πατέρα", οὕτω δίδωσιν ὁ πατὴρ τῷ υἱῷ τούτους, οἷς γνωρίζει αὐτόν, καθάπερ τὸν Πέτρον· οὐ γὰρ "σὰρξ καὶ αἷμα, ἀλλ' ὁ πατὴρ ἀπεκάλυψεν" τὸν υἱόν. πάντες οἱ οὕτως ἐκ πατρὸς γνόντες τὸν υἱὸν ἐπιτυγχάνουσιν τῶν δοθέντων τῷ υἱῷ δι' ὑπερβάλλουσαν τελειότητα τούτων οὕτως ἐχόντων. πῶς Ἰούδας; εἷς ὢν καὶ αὐτὸς τῶν δοθέντων ὑπὸ τοῦ πατρὸς τῷ υἱῷ κατὰ τὸ οὓς "δέδωκάς μοι" ἐτήρησα καὶ "οὐδεὶς ἀπώλετο ἐξ αὐτῶν εἰ μὴ ὁ υἱὸς τῆς ἀπωλείας" μετέπεσεν ἐκ τοῦ τηλικούτου μεγέθους ὡς "υἱὸς ἀπωλείας" χρηματίσαι· οὐ γὰρ ἔτι