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he recounts the arrival of the many women, and after the sight of the two men who appeared to them, saying: “And returning from the tomb, they reported all these things to the eleven;” to which he adds, “Now they were Mary Magdalene,” and so on. For it was not unlikely that now again Mary Magdalene, who had arrived long before and remained intently by the tomb, was to be found, when many women who had come together from Galilee were going to the tomb bringing the spices, so that she too, along with the others, saw the two men and heard their words; then to return with the many women and relate it to the eleven. But the account can also be otherwise: to assign the first things to the women from Galilee, I mean the arrival at the tomb, and the bringing of the spices, and the appearance of the two men to them, and their words to them; that the report to the eleven was therefore no longer made by them alone, but by all of them together, each one relating what she had seen; among whom again was Mary Magdalene with the others, she too reporting to the disciples the things seen specially by her alone.

8. But I also ask this, how in Mark it is said that

when the Sabbath was past, they prepared spices, but in Luke they did this before the Sabbath, on Preparation day itself. And this too, being interwoven with the former questions, might obtain a similar interpretation to those; as we demonstrate that they were not the same women, but some were those before the Sabbath, on Preparation day itself, on which the Savior suffered, occupied with the burial, and others were those after the Sabbath. For Luke has clearly testified that these women did these things on the very day of the passion, in no way mentioning the name of the women, but simply saying women who had come with him from Galilee. But Mark recorded by name only three who by themselves had made provision for the spices, not on Preparation day, but after the Sabbath was past. And that these were different from those in Luke, what follows shows. For these women in Mark see the young man sitting on the right, who also says to them: “Do not be afraid; you seek Jesus of Nazareth; he has risen, he is not here.” But to those in Luke two men stood by in dazzling apparel, and they utter other words, saying: “Why do you seek the living among the dead?” and so on. and those in Mark, having heard, were to report to the disciples what they were commanded; they said nothing to anyone. but those in Luke went and reported to the eleven; so that from all these things it is concluded that they were not the same women; wherefore neither did they do the things recorded at one and the same time.

9. “And as they were saying these things, Jesus himself stood in their midst, and

says to them, Peace be with you.” Here someone might be perplexed how the Lord, having appeared to the eleven disciples gathered together after the resurrection according to Luke and according to John, who recorded these things in agreement, is no longer recorded in both as doing or saying the same things. That the two evangelists wrote of the same vision occurring at one and the same hour and day must first be established; and this would become clear to you by observing the Scripture closely. For John, having said before, “On the first day of the week Mary Magdalene comes, reporting to the disciples that she had seen the Lord and that he had said these things to her,” next adds, saying: “It being evening on that day, when the disciples were gathered together, Jesus came, and stood in the midst and said, Peace be with you.” So that it is clear from these things that it was done in the evening on the Lord's day itself of the resurrection

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τὴν ἄφιξιν τῶν πολλῶν γυναικῶν, καὶ μετὰ τὴν θέαν τῶν ὀφθέντων αὐταῖς δύο ἀνδρῶν διηγεῖται λέγων· «Καὶ ἀποστρέψασαι ἀπὸ τοῦ μνημείου ἀπήγγειλαν ταῦτα πάντα τοῖς ἕνδεκα·» οἷς ἐπιφέρει, «Ἦσαν δὲ ἡ Μαγδαληνὴ Μαρία,» καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Οὐκ ἀπεικὸς μὲν γὰρ ἦν, καὶ νῦν πάλιν τὴν Μαγδαληνὴν πάλαι προαφιγμένην καὶ παραμείνασαν εὐτόνως παρὰ τῷ μνήματι εὑρῆσθαι, ὅτε πολλαὶ ἀπὸ τῆς Γαλιλαίας συνελθοῦσαι γυναῖκες ἀπήντων ἐπὶ τὸν τάφον φέρουσαι τὰ ἀρώματα, ὥστε καὶ αὐτὴν ἅμα ταῖς λοιπαῖς τοὺς δύο ἄνδρας τεθεᾶσθαι, καὶ τῶν λόγων αὐτῶν ἀκηκοέναι· εἶτα σὺν ταῖς πολλαῖς ἐπανελθεῖν καὶ διηγεῖσθαι τοῖς ἕνδεκα. ∆ύναται δὲ καὶ ἄλλως ὁ λόγος, τὰ μὲν πρῶτα ταῖς ἀπὸ τῆς Γαλιλαίας γυναιξὶν ἀπονεῖμαι, λέγω δὴ τὴν εἰς τὸ μνῆμα ἄφιξιν, καὶ τὴν τῶν ἀρωμάτων κομιδὴν, τήν τε γενομένην αὐταῖς τῶν δύο ἀνδρῶν ἐπιφάνειαν, καὶ τοὺς τούτων πρὸς αὐτὰς λόγους· τὴν μὲν οὖν ἀπαγγελίαν τὴν πρὸς τοὺς ἕνδεκα μηκέτι παρ' αὐτῶν μόνον γεγενῆσθαι, ἀλλ' ὁμοῦ παρὰ πασῶν, ἑκάστης ἃ τεθέατο διηγημένης· ἐν αἷς πάλιν τὴν Μαγδαληνὴν εἶναι μετὰ τῶν λοιπῶν καὶ αὐτὴν τοῖς μαθηταῖς ἀπαγγέλλουσαν τὰ ἰδίως μόνῃ αὐτῇ ἑωραμένα.

Ηʹ. Ἐγὼ δὲ κἀκεῖνο ζητῶ, πῶς παρὰ μὲν τῷ Μάρκῳ εἴρηται, ὡς ἄρα

διαγενομένου τοῦ Σαββάτου ἡτοίμασαν ἀρώματα, παρὰ δὲ τῷ Λουκᾷ πρὸ τοῦ Σαββάτου τοῦτ' ἔπραξαν ἐν αὐτῇ τῇ Παρασκευῇ. Καὶ τοῦτο δὲ τοῖς προτέροις συμπεπλεγμένον ζητήμασι, τῆς ὁμοίας ἐκείνοις τύχοι ἂν ἑρμηνείας· ἀποδεικνύντων δὲ ἡμῶν μὴ εἶναι τὰς αὐτὰς, ἀλλ' ἑτέρας μὲν τὰς πρὸ τοῦ Σαββάτου ἐν αὐτῇ τῇ Παρασκευῇ, καθ' ἣν πέπονθεν ὁ Σωτὴρ, περὶ τὴν κηδείαν ἀσχοληθείσας, ἑτέρας δὲ τὰς μετὰ τὸ Σάββατον· σαφῶς γὰρ ταύτας Λουκᾶς μεμαρτύρηκε κατ' αὐτὴν τὴν ἡμέραν τοῦ πάθους ταῦτα πεποιηκέναι, οὐδαμῶς ὀνόματος γυναικῶν μνημονεύσας, ἀλλ' ἁπλῶς γυναῖκας εἰπὼν τὰς συνελθούσας αὐτῷ ἀπὸ τῆς Γαλιλαίας· ὁ δὲ Μάρκος ὀνομαστὶ τρεῖς μόνας ἀνέγραψε καθ' ἑαυτὰς πρόνοιαν πεποιημένας τῶν ἀρωμάτων, οὐ τῇ Παρασκευῇ, ἀλλὰ μετὰ διαγενέσθαι τὸ Σάββατον· ἑτέρας δὲ εἶναι ταύτας παρὰ τὰς παρὰ τῷ Λουκᾷ, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς ἐπαγόμενα δείκνυσιν. Αὗται μὲν οὖν γυναῖκες παρὰ τῷ Μάρκῳ τὸν νεανίσκον ὁρῶσι καθήμενον ἐν τοῖς δεξιοῖς, ὃς καί φησιν αὐταῖς· «Μὴ φοβεῖσθε· Ἰησοῦν ζητεῖτε τὸν Ναζαρηνόν· ἠγέρθη, οὐκ ἔστιν ὧδε.» Ταῖς δὲ παρὰ τῷ Λουκᾷ δύο ἄνδρες ἐπέστησαν ἐν ἐσθῆτι ἀστραπτούσῃ, καὶ ἑτέρας προφέρονται φωνὰς λέγοντες· «Τί ζητεῖτε τὸν ζῶντα μετὰ τῶν νεκρῶν;» καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς· καὶ αἱ μὲν παρὰ τῷ Μάρκῳ ἀκούσασαι τοῖς μαθηταῖς ἐπαγγεῖλαι τὰ παρηγγελμένα· οὐδενὶ οὐδὲν εἶπον· αἱ δὲ παρὰ τῷ Λουκᾷ πορευθεῖσαι ἀπήγγειλαν τοῖς ἕνδεκα· ὡς διὰ τούτων ἁπάντων συνάγεσθαι, μὴ τὰς αὐτὰς εἶναι· διὸ μηδὲ ὑφ' ἕνα καιρὸν πεποιηκέναι τὰ ἀναγεγραμμένα.

Θʹ. «Ταῦτα δὲ αὐτῶν λαλούντων αὐτὸς ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἔστη ἐν μέσῳ αὐτῶν, καὶ

λέγει αὐτοῖς. Εἰρήνη ὑμῖν.» Ἐνταῦθά τις ἀπορήσειε πῶς τοῖς ἕνδεκα μαθηταῖς ὁμοῦ συνηγμένοις μετὰ τὴν ἀνάστασιν ἐπιστὰς ὁ Κύριος κατὰ τὸν Λουκᾶν καὶ κατὰ Ἰωάννην συμφώνως ταῦτα ἀπομνημονεύσαντας, οὐκέτι παρ' ἀμφοτέροις ταὐτὰ πράττων οὐδὲ φάσκων ἀναγέγραπται. Ὅτι τὴν αὐτὴν ὀπτασίαν οἱ δύο συνέγραψαν εὐαγγελισταὶ κατὰ μίαν καὶ τὴν αὐτὴν ὥραν τε καὶ ἡμέραν γενομένην, παραστῆσαι δεῖ πρότερον· τοῦτο δ' ἂν γένοιτο φανερὸν ἐπιτηρήσαντί σοι ἀκριβῶς τὴν Γραφήν. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ Ἰωάννης προειπὼν, «Τῇ δὲ μιᾷτῶν Σαββάτων ἔρχεται Μαρία ἡ Μαγδαληνὴ ἀπαγγέλλουσα τοῖς μαθηταῖς ὅτι ἑώρακε τὸν Κύριον καὶ ταῦτα εἶπεν αὐτῇ,» ἑξῆς ἐπισυνάπτει λέγων· «Οὔσης ὀψίας ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ συνηγμένων τῶν μαθητῶν, ἦλθεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς, καὶ ἔστη εἰς τὸ μέσον καὶ εἶπεν, Εἰρήνη ὑμῖν.» Ὥστ' εἶναι σαφὲς ἐκ τούτων ὅτι κατ' αὐτὴν τὴν Κυριακὴν ἡμέραν τῆς ἀναστάσεως ὀψίας ἦν πεπραγμένα