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righteous, and strong, and long-suffering, and not bringing on wrath every day. If you do not turn back, He will polish His sword; He has bent His bow, and prepared it, and in it He has prepared instruments of death. God says these things, not that He might judge us, but that we might not become more indolent. For if He wished to destroy us, He would not have shed His blood for us. He died, therefore, that He might bestow on you immortality; He hungered, that He might feed you with His own flesh; He thirsted, that He might give you His own blood to drink; He sat in a boat, that He might seat you above the Cherubim; He was baptized, that He might enlighten you; He was struck, that He might set you free; He journeyed, that He might make you tireless; He sailed, that He might make you fearless; He slept, that He might make you without care; He came forth from a woman, that He might pity the transgression in paradise; He was called man, that He might call you god 50.819; He was called Son of man, that He might call you son of God; He took what was ours, and gave us what was His; He prayed, that He might make you faithful, as He says concerning Lazarus; Father, glorify Your Son, that Your Son may also glorify You. And a voice came from the heavens, saying; I have both glorified, and will glorify again. I know that You always hear me, but because of the crowd standing by I said it, that all may believe that You sent Me. If He endured anything, therefore, He endured it not for Himself, nor for His Father, but that He might save the human race through the cross. And if you wish to know, beloved, the power of the cross, and how many praises there are concerning the cross, listen.

Cross, the hope of Christians, cross, the resurrection of the dead, cross, the guide of the blind, cross, the hope of the despairing, cross, the way of the wandering, cross, the avenger of the wronged, cross, the staff of the lame, cross, the comfort of the poor, cross, the bridle of the rich, cross, the casting down of the proud, cross, the repentance of the licentious, cross, a trophy against demons, cross, the victory over the devil, cross, the teacher of infants, cross, the resource of the needy, cross, the pilot of sailors, cross, the harbor of the storm-tossed, cross, the wall of the besieged, cross, the father of orphans, cross, the protector of widows, cross, the judge of the unjust, cross, the pillar of the just, cross, the relief of the afflicted, cross, the guardian of infants, cross, the head of men, cross, the end of the aged, cross, a light to those sitting in darkness, cross, the magnificence of kings, cross, the humanity of barbarians, cross, the freedom of slaves, cross, the wisdom of the uneducated, cross, the law of the lawless, cross, the preaching of the prophets, cross, the proclamation of the apostles, cross, the boast of the martyrs, cross, the asceticism of monks, cross, the chastity of virgins, cross, the joy of priests, cross, the foundation of the Church, cross, the security of the world, cross, the demolition of temples, cross, the overturning of altars, cross, the disappearance of sacrificial smoke, cross, a stumbling block to the Jews, cross, the destruction of the impious, cross, the power of the weak, cross, the physician of the sick, cross, the cleansing of lepers, cross, the strengthening of paralytics, cross, the bread of the hungry, cross, the spring of the thirsty, cross, the covering of the naked; and when I say nakedness, I do not mean that of the body, but that of faith. But when you have believed and are baptized, then you will hear yourself clothed. And listen to Paul saying: As many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. But when you hear Christ, do not think only of God, nor only of the economy in the flesh, but of both together. For I have often said, and I will not cease saying it now; For to me it is not tiresome to speak, but for you it is safe; for I wish all to be teachers. Christ, therefore, is so called, because He put on flesh; Jesus Christ is said, the name of His flesh; He is called Word, because He is Son of someone; Son, because He is from the Father; Only-begotten, because He is the only one from the only God; God, because He is creator. And listen to John saying: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God; He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through Him, and without Him was made

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δίκαιος, καὶ ἰσχυρὸς, καὶ μακρόθυμος, καὶ μὴ ὀργὴν ἐπάγων καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν. Ἐὰν μὴ ἐπιστραφῆτε, τὴν ῥομφαίαν αὐτοῦ στιλβώσει· τὸ τόξον αὐτοῦ ἐνέτεινε, καὶ ἡτοίμασεν αὐτὸ, καὶ ἐν αὐτῷ ἡτοίμασε σκεύη θανάτου. Ταῦτα λέγει ὁ Θεὸς, οὐχ ἵνα ἡμᾶς κρίνῃ, ἀλλ' ἵνα μὴ ῥᾳθυμότεροι γενώμεθα. Εἰ γὰρ ἐβούλετο ἡμᾶς ἀπολέσαι, οὐκ ἂν τὸ αἷμα αὐτοῦ ἐξέχεεν ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν. Ἀπέθανεν οὖν, ἵνα σοι ἀθανασίαν χαρίσηται· ἐπείνασεν, ἵνα σε τὴν ἑαυτοῦ σάρκα χορτάσῃ· ἐδίψησεν, ἵνα σε τὸ ἑαυτοῦ αἷμα ποτίσῃ· ἐν πλοίῳ ἐκάθισεν, ἵνα σε ὑπεράνω τῶν Χερουβὶμ καθίσῃ· ἐβαπτίσθη, ἵνα σε φωτίσῃ· ἐῤῥαπίσθη, ἵνα σε ἐλευθερώσῃ· ὡδοιπόρησεν, ἵνα σε ἀκάματον ποιήσῃ· ἔπλευσε, ἵνα σε ἄφοβον καταστήσῃ· ἐκοιμήθη, ἵνα σε ἀμέριμνον ποιήσῃ· ἐκ γυναικὸς προσῆλθεν, ἵνα τὴν παράβασιν τὴν ἐν τῷ παραδείσῳ οἰκτειρήσῃ· ἐκλήθη ἄνθρωπος, ἵνα σε θεὸν 50.819 καλέσῃ· ἐκλήθη Υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου, ἵνα σε υἱὸν Θεοῦ καλέσῃ· ἔλαβε τὰ ἡμέτερα, καὶ ἔδωκεν ἡμῖν τὰ ἑαυτοῦ· ηὔξατο, ἵνα σε πιστὸν ποιήσῃ, καθὼς λέγει ἐπὶ τοῦ Λαζάρου· Πάτερ, δόξασόν σου τὸν Υἱὸν, ἵνα καὶ ὁ Υἱός σου δοξάσῃ σε. Καὶ ἦλθε φωνὴ ἐκ τῶν οὐρανῶν, λέγουσα· Καὶ ἐδόξασα, καὶ πάλιν δοξάσω. Οἶδα ὅτι πάντοτέ μου ἀκούεις, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸν παρεστῶτα ὄχλον εἶπον, ἵνα πάντες πιστεύσωσιν ὅτι σύ με ἀπέστειλας. Εἴ τι οὖν ὑπέστη, οὐ δι' ἑαυτὸν ὑπέστη, οὐδὲ διὰ τὸν Πατέρα τὸν ἑαυτοῦ, ἀλλ' ἵνα σώσῃ τὸ ἀνθρώπινον γένος διὰ τοῦ σταυροῦ. Καὶ εἰ θέλεις γνῶναι, ἀγαπητὲ, τὴν δύναμιν τοῦ σταυροῦ, καὶ ὅσα δὴ ἐγκώμια περὶ τοῦ σταυροῦ, ἄκουε.

Σταυρὸς Χριστιανῶν ἐλπὶς, σταυρὸς νεκρῶν ἀνάστασις, σταυρὸς τυφλῶν ὁδηγὸς, σταυρὸς ἀπηλπισμένων ἐλπὶς, σταυρὸς πεπλανημένων ὁδὸς, σταυρὸς ἀδικουμένων ἔκδικος, σταυρὸς χωλῶν βακτηρία, σταυρὸς πενήτων παραμυθία, σταυρὸς πλουσίων χαλινὸς, σταυρὸς ὑπερηφάνων καθαίρεσις, σταυρὸς ἀκολάστων μετάνοια, σταυρὸς τρόπαιον κατὰ δαιμόνων, σταυρὸς διαβόλου νῖκος, σταυρὸς νηπίων παιδαγωγὸς, σταυρὸς ἀπόρων εὐπορία, σταυρὸς πλεόντων κυβερνήτης, σταυρὸς χειμαζόντων λιμὴν, σταυρὸς πολεμουμένων τεῖχος, σταυρὸς πατὴρ ὀρφανῶν, σταυρὸς προστάτης χηρῶν, σταυρὸς ἀδίκων κριτὴς, σταυρὸς δικαίων στῦλος, σταυρὸς θλιβομένων ἄνεσις, σταυρὸς νηπίων φύλαξ, σταυρὸς ἀνδρῶν κεφαλὴ, σταυρὸς πρεσβυτέρων τέλος, σταυρὸς φῶς τοῖς ἐν σκότει καθημένοις, σταυρὸς βασιλέων μεγαλοπρέπεια, σταυρὸς βαρβάρων φιλανθρωπία, σταυρὸς δούλων ἐλευθερία, σταυρὸς ἀπαιδεύτων σοφία, σταυρὸς ἀνόμων νόμος, σταυρὸς προφητῶν κήρυγμα, σταυρὸς ἀποστόλων κατάγγελμα, σταυρὸς μαρτύρων καύχημα, σταυρὸς μοναζόντων ἄσκησις, σταυρὸς παρθένων σωφροσύνη, σταυρὸς ἱερέων χαρὰ, σταυρὸς Ἐκκλησίας θεμέλιος, σταυρὸς οἰκουμένης ἀσφάλεια, σταυρὸς ναῶν καθαίρεσις, σταυρὸς βωμῶν ἀνατροπὴ, σταυρὸς κνίσσης ἀφανισμὸς, σταυρὸς Ἰουδαίων σκάνδαλον, σταυρὸς ἀσεβῶν ἀπώλεια, σταυρὸς ἀδυνάμων δύναμις, σταυρὸς νοσούντων ἰατρὸς, σταυρὸς λεπρῶν καθαρισμὸς, σταυρὸς παραλυτικῶν σφίγξις, σταυρὸς πεινώντων ἄρτος, σταυρὸς διψώντων πηγὴ, σταυρὸς γυμνῶν σκέπη· γυμνότητα δὲ ὅταν εἴπω, οὐ τὴν τοῦ σώματος λέγω, ἀλλὰ τὴν τῆς πίστεως. Ὅταν δὲ πιστεύσας βαπτισθῇς, τότε ἀκούσεις ἐνδεδυμένος. Καὶ ἄκουε Παύλου λέγοντος· Ὅσοι εἰς Χριστὸν ἐβαπτίσθητε, Χριστὸν ἐνεδύσασθε. Χριστὸν δὲ ὅταν ἀκούσῃς, μὴ τὸν Θεὸν λογίσῃ μόνον, μηδὲ τὴν ἔνσαρκον οἰκονομίαν μόνην, ἀλλὰ τὸ συναμφότερον. Πολλάκις γὰρ εἶπον, καὶ νῦν λέγων οὐ παύσομαι· Ἐμοὶ μὲν γὰρ τὸ λέγειν οὐκ ὀκνηρὸν, ὑμῖν δὲ ἀσφαλές· βούλομαι γὰρ πάντας διδασκάλους εἶναι. Χριστὸς οὖν εἴρηται, ἐπειδὴ σάρκα ἐνεδύσατο· Ἰησοῦς Χριστὸς εἴρηται, τὸ ὄνομα τῆς σαρκὸς αὐτοῦ· Λόγος εἴρηται, ἐπειδὴ ἔκ τινος Υἱός· Υἱὸς, ἐπειδὴ ἐκ Πατρός· Μονογενὴς, ἐπειδὴ μόνος ἐκ μόνου Θεοῦ· Θεὸς, ἐπειδὴ ποιητής. Καὶ ἄκουε Ἰωάννου λέγοντος· Ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ Λόγος, καὶ ὁ Λόγος ἦν πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν, καὶ Θεὸς ἦν ὁ Λόγος· οὗτος ἦν ἐν ἀρχῇ πρὸς τὸν Θεόν· πάντα δι' αὐτοῦ ἐγένετο καὶ χωρὶς αὐτοῦ ἐγένετο