3

«And I said: ‘O being Master Lord, behold, I do not know how to speak’»; he who is «wisdom», who is «the power of God», who brought to us «the fullness of the Godhead, which dwelt in him bodily», how then can «I do not know how to speak» be fitting for the Savior? But also «I am a youth» is forbidden with respect to the Savior, as one speaking it not well; for if the Lord says to him, «Do not say» this, it is clear that he forbids it as being not well said. Therefore these things are not fitting for the Savior, while those things do not seem to shame the Savior; and to say that these things refer to Jeremiah, but those things to the Savior, is not difficult. The sensible person, however, will be very troubled by the passage, seeing that to interrupt a sequence of words spoken either to Jeremiah or to the Savior, and to say that these things are fitting not for Christ but for Jeremiah, and that these other things, since they are greater than Jeremiah, are fitting not for Jeremiah but for Christ, is the mark of the insensible. Let the whole, therefore, be referred to Jeremiah, and let these things that seem 1.7 to be greater than Jeremiah be interpreted. Everyone who has received words from God and has the grace of heavenly words, received them for the purpose of «uprooting and tearing down nations and kingdoms», but if it is said that everyone who has received words from God is «uprooting» «nations and kingdoms», do not understand for me the nations and kingdoms bodily, but understanding that human souls are ruled by sin according to what was said by the apostle: «Let not sin therefore reign in our mortal body», and seeing also the many kinds of sins, interpret tropologically also the nations and the kingdoms, the evil things that are in the souls of men, which are uprooted and torn down by the words of God given either to Jeremiah or to anyone else whatsoever; and one can apply the first things, which are troubling with respect to the Savior, to Jeremiah, and the person who knows how to interpret tropologically can apply the second things to Jeremiah. One of the listeners will say to me: Exercise the other argument as well and try to present all the written things as fitting for the Savior; do not struggle with the second things; for it is apparent that the Savior uprooted the kingdoms of the devil and tore down the nations, having destroyed the gentile way of life; here, concerning what seems blasphemous with respect to the Savior, exercise the argument somehow, how the Savior can say: «I do not know how to speak, because I am a youth», and what follows. You see that the argument is in a tight spot; we know the Savior is Lord, we seek to refer these things to the Savior according to the dignity of the Word and according to the truth, it is necessary to take the scriptures as witnesses; for our attempts and our explanations are without witness and untrustworthy, and that «by the mouth of two and three witnesses every word shall be established» is more fitting for narratives than for people, so that I may establish the words of the interpretation by taking two witnesses from the New and Old Testament, by taking three witnesses from the Gospel, from the prophet, from the apostle; for thus «every word will be established». How then can we refer these things to the Savior? Bring a witness from the Old Testament: «For before the child knows good or evil, he refuses wickedness to choose the good», and this is clearly said about the Savior in Isaiah: «Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel», and there it adds: «before the child knows»; and if it is necessary to take an example from the Gospel, Jesus, not having become a man, but still being a child, since he «emptied himself», «advanced»—for no one who is perfected advances, but one who needs advancement advances; —therefore he advanced «in stature», he advanced «in wisdom», he advanced «in favor with God and men»; for if he «emptied himself» descending here, and having emptied himself he received again those things of which he «emptied himself,» having willingly emptied himself, what is strange about him also having advanced «in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and men» and for it to be true concerning him that «before he knows good or evil he will choose the good and refuse

3

«Καὶ εἶπα· ὁ ὢν δέσποτα κύριε, ἰδοὺ οὐκ ἐπίσταμαι λαλεῖν»· ὅστις ἐστὶ «σοφία», ὅστις ἐστὶ «δύ ναμις θεοῦ», ὃς ἤνεγκεν ἡμῖν «τὸ πλήρωμα τῆς θεότη τος, ὃ κατῴκησεν ἐν αὐτῷ σωματικῶς», πῶς οὖν δύναται ἁρμόζειν τὸ «οὐκ ἐπίσταμαι λαλεῖν» τῷ σωτῆρι; Ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ «νεώτερος ἐγώ εἰμι» ἀπαγορεύεται πρὸς τὸν σωτῆρα, ὡς λέγοντα αὐτὸν οὐ καλῶς· εἰ γὰρ αὐτῷ λέγει ὁ κύριος· «Μὴ λέγε» τόδε, δῆλον ὅτι οὐ καλῶς λεγόμενον ἀπαγορεύει αὐτό. Οὐχ ἁρμόζει οὖν ταῦτα ἐπὶ τὸν σωτῆρα, ἐκεῖνα <δ' οὐ> δοκεῖ δυσωπεῖν ἐπὶ τὸν σωτῆρα· εἰπεῖν δὲ ὅτι ταῦτα μὲν ἐπὶ τὸν Ἱερεμίαν ἀναφέρεται, ἐκεῖνα δὲ ἐπὶ τὸν σωτῆρα, οὐ χαλεπόν. Ὁ μέντοι εὐγνώμων πάνυ θλιβήσεται ἐν τῷ τόπῳ, ὁρῶν ὅτι τὸ διακόψαι ἐν εἱρμῷ λόγων λόγους εἰρη μένους εἴτε πρὸς τὸν Ἱερεμίαν εἴτε πρὸς τὸν σωτῆρα, καὶ λέγειν ταῦτα οὐ τῷ Χριστῷ ἀλλὰ τῷ Ἱερεμίᾳ ἁρμόζειν, καὶ ταῦτα, ἐπεὶ μείζονά ἐστιν Ἱερεμίου, οὐ τῷ Ἱερεμίᾳ ἀλλὰ τῷ Χριστῷ ἁρμόζειν, ἀγνωμόνων ἐστίν. Ὅλος οὖν ἐπὶ τὸν Ἱερεμίαν ἀναφερέσθω, καὶ ταῦτα τὰ δοκοῦντα 1.7 εἶναι μείζονα Ἱερεμίου ἑρμηνευέσθω. Πᾶς ὁ λαβὼν λό γους ἀπὸ θεοῦ καὶ ἔχων τὴν χάριν τῶν οὐρανίων λόγων, ἔλαβεν αὐτοὺς ἐπὶ τῷ «ἔθνη καὶ βασιλείας ἐκριζοῦν καὶ κα τασκάπτειν», ἀλλὰ «ἔθνη καὶ βασιλείας» ἐὰν λέγηται «ἐκριζοῦν» πᾶς ὁ λαβὼν λόγους ἀπὸ θεοῦ, μὴ σωματικῶς μοι νόει τὰ ἔθνη καὶ τὰς βασιλείας, ἀλλὰ κατανοήσας τὰς ἀνθρωπίνας ψυχὰς βασιλευομένας ὑπὸ τῆς ἁμαρτίας κατὰ τὸ εἰρημένον παρὰ τῷ ἀποστόλῳ· «Μὴ οὖν βασι λευέτω ἡ ἁμαρτία ἐν τῷ θνητῷ ἡμῶν σώματι», βλέπων δὲ καὶ τὰ πολλὰ εἴδη τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων, τροπολόγει καὶ τὰ ἔθνη καὶ τὰς βασιλείας, τὰ φαῦλα τὰ ἐν ταῖς ψυχαῖς τῶν ἀνθρώπων ὄντα, ἅτινα ἐκριζοῦται καὶ κατασκάπτεται ὑπὸ τῶν δεδομένων εἴτε Ἱερεμίᾳ εἴτε ᾡτινιοῦν λόγων τοῦ θεοῦ· καὶ δύναται καὶ τὰ πρῶτα, τὰ θλίβοντα ὡς πρὸς τὸν σωτῆρα, ἐφαρμόσαι τῷ Ἱερεμίᾳ καὶ τὰ δεύτερα τῷ εἰδότι τροπολογεῖν ἐφαρμόσαι τῷ Ἱερεμίᾳ. Ἐρεῖ μοί τις τῶν ἀκουόντων· γύμνασον καὶ τὸν ἄλλον λόγον καὶ ὅλα πειράθητι παραστῆσαι τὰ γεγραμμένα ἁρμό ζοντα τῷ σωτῆρι· περὶ τῶν δευτέρων μὴ ἀγωνία· φαίνεται γὰρ ὅτι ὁ σωτὴρ ἐξερρίζωσε τὰς τοῦ διαβόλου βασιλείας καὶ τὰ ἔθνη κατέσκαψε τὸν ἐθνικὸν βίον καθελών· ἐνταῦθα, κατὰ τὸ δοκοῦν δύσφημον ὡς πρὸς τὸν σωτῆρα, γύμνασόν πως τὸν λόγον, πῶς δύναται λέγειν ὁ σωτήρ· «Οὐκ ἐπί σταμαι λαλεῖν, ὅτι νεώτερος ἐγώ εἰμι» καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Ὁρᾷς ὅτι ὁ λόγος στενοχωρεῖται· τὸν σωτῆρα οἴδαμεν κύριον, ζητοῦμεν κατὰ τὴν ἀξίαν τοῦ λόγου καὶ κατὰ τὴν ἀλήθειαν ταῦτα ἐπὶ τὸν σωτῆρα ἀναγαγεῖν, μάρτυρας δεῖ λαβεῖν τὰς γραφάς· ἀμάρτυροι γὰρ αἱ ἐπιβολαὶ ἡμῶν καὶ αἱ ἐξηγήσεις ἄπιστοί εἰσιν, <καὶ τὸ> «ἐπὶ στόματι δύο καὶ τριῶν μαρτύρων σταθήσεται πᾶν ῥῆμα» μᾶλλον ἁρμόζει ἐπὶ τῶν διηγήσεων ἢ ἐπὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ἵνα στήσω τὰ ῥήματα τῆς ἑρμηνείας λαβὼν μάρτυρας δύο ἀπὸ καινῆς καὶ παλαιᾶς διαθήκης, λαβὼν μάρτυρας τρεῖς ἀπὸ εὐαγ γελίου, ἀπὸ προφήτου, ἀπὸ ἀποστόλου· οὕτως γὰρ «στα θήσεται πᾶν ῥῆμα». Πῶς οὖν δυνάμεθα ταῦτα ἐπὶ τὸν σωτῆρα ἀναγαγεῖν; Φέρε μάρτυρα παλαιὰν διαθήκην· «∆ιότι πρὶν ἢ γνῶναι τὸ παιδίον ἀγαθὸν ἢ κακόν, ἀπει θεῖ πονηρίᾳ τοῦ ἐκλέξασθαι τὸ ἀγαθόν», καὶ ἄντικρυς ταῦτα περὶ τοῦ σωτῆρος ἐν τῷ Ἡσαΐᾳ λέλεκται· «Ἰδοὺ ἡ παρθένος ἐν γαστρὶ ἕξει καὶ τέξεται υἱόν, καὶ καλέ σουσι τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἐμμανουήλ», καὶ ἐκεῖ ἐπιφέρεται· «πρὶν ἢ γνῶναι τὸ παιδίον»· εἰ δὲ καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ εὐαγγε λίου δεῖ λαμβάνειν παράδειγμα, Ἰησοῦς οὐκ ἀνὴρ γενόμε νος, ἀλλ' ἔτι παιδίον ὤν, ἐπεὶ «ἐκένωσεν ἑαυτόν», «προέκοπτεν»-οὐδεὶς γὰρ προκόπτει τετελειωμένος, ἀλλὰ προκόπτει δεόμενος προκοπῆς· -οὐκοῦν προέκοπτεν «ἡλικίᾳ», προέκοπτε «σοφίᾳ», προέκοπτε «χάριτι παρὰ θεῷ καὶ ἀνθρώποις»· εἰ γὰρ «ἐκένωσεν ἑαυτὸν» κατα βαίνων ἐνταῦθα, καὶ κενώσας ἑαυτὸν ἐλάμβανε πάλιν ταῦτα ἀφ' ὧν «ἐκένωσεν ἑαυτὸν» ἑκὼν κενώσας ἑαυτόν, τί ἄτοπον αὐτὸν καὶ προκεκοφέναι «σοφίᾳ καὶ ἡλικίᾳ καὶ χάριτι παρὰ θεῷ καὶ ἀνθρώποις» καὶ ἀληθεύεσθαι περὶ αὐτοῦ τὸ «πρὶν ἢ γνῶναι αὐτὸν καλὸν ἢ πονηρὸν ἐκλέξεται τὸ ἀγαθὸν καὶ ἀπειθεῖ