in birth and after birth he kept her a pure virgin. Along with these things, hear also another light-shining and most wonderful image, and a similar likeness to those things. The pearl is formed in the Red Sea; and it is formed thus. The shores of the Red Sea are dry, having little flow of water. Certain sea shellfish are found there in that entire Red Sea, called pearl-mussels. Therefore, those pearl-mussels always stand gaping open, and receiving food for their nourishment. So then, as they stand gaping and receiving their own food, when many lightnings occur there, the lightning descends to the pearl-mussel, and finding the shells of the pearl-mussel 792 open, it enters into it; but the pearl-mussel, immediately contracting and closing itself, shuts the lightning within itself. And the lightning, being wrapped in the pupils of the pearl-mussel's eyes, illuminates them, and makes them pearls. And the pearls, coming out of the pearl-mussel, fall upon the shore of that sea, and thus those who seek them find them. Understand for me thus also concerning the incarnation of the Word. The sea is the world, and the Virgin is the shell. And the Virgin stood like a pearl-mussel in the temple, receiving the heavenly bread Christ the God, who, having descended and entered into her like lightning, and having been wrapped in the inward parts of her virginity, fashioned the all-holy flesh, which He assumed in becoming incarnate, into a luminous form; and thus was born from her as a pure and most precious pearl the Word of God without male intercourse. And just as the pearl is heavenly and earthly, heavenly according to the lightning, but earthly according to the combination of the pearl-mussel's eyes; so also Christ is heavenly and earthly; heavenly according to divinity, but earthly according to humanity. And just as the pearl is formed without intercourse of male and female, from lightning and the pearl-mussel, so also Christ was born without intercourse of male and female, from the divinity and the flesh of the Virgin. And just as when the pearl is crushed, often the matter of the pearl-mussel's eyes is crushed and dissolved, but the brightness of the lightning does not suffer, but while the brightness of the lightning remains impassible, the matter of the pearl-mussel's eyes alone is crushed and suffers; so also must you understand concerning Christ. For when our Savior was scourged, and suffered under the faithless Jews on the cross, the matter of the flesh, that is, the humanity, alone suffered, but the divinity remained impassible. And by saying these things, you silence the Theopaschites, and you teach the incarnate economy. Herein your doubt, beloved, is resolved by the grace of Christ. Quest. 20. Behold, all these things, Godlike Father, you have taught us fittingly. But we ask you to interpret for us also this difficult question: why did the divinity not teach man alone, and save him without flesh? For what was the need to wear the flesh? Answ. And concerning this you ask well; wherefore, listen well also to the answer. In the beginning, when God made man, and man was deceived by the devil, the devil did not conquer the divinity, but the humanity. Therefore it was fitting that this conquered humanity should again conquer its enemy the devil, and again receive the divine paradise which it had previously lost through him. For if the divinity had come naked, and conquered the devil, the devil would have boasted that it is no wonder, if he was conquered; for having attacked the divinity, he was conquered. And for this reason God did not deign that his naked divinity should wrestle with the devil, but he willed that the humanity which had been conquered by the

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ἐν τῷ τόκῳ καὶ μετὰ τὸν τόκον παρθένον ἁγνὴν δι εφύλαξε. Σὺν τούτοις δὲ καὶ ἕτερον φωτολαμπὲς καὶ θαυμαστώτατον, κἀκείνων παρόμοιον ἐκτύπωμα ἄκουσον. Ὁ μαργαρίτης ἐν τῇ Ἐρυθρᾷ θαλάσσῃ γίνεται· γίνεται δὲ οὕτως. Αἱ ἄκραι τῆς Ἐρυθρᾶς θαλάσσης ξηραί εἰσιν, ὀλίγου χύσιν ὕδατος ἔχουσαι. Εὑρίσκονται δὲ ἐκεῖσε ὀστρακοδέρματά τινα θαλάσσια ἐν πάσῃ τῇ Ἐρυθρᾷ θαλάσσῃ ἐκείνῃ, πίνναι ὀνομα ζόμενα. Ἵστανται οὖν αἱ πίνναι ἐκεῖναι ἀεὶ κεχη νυῖαι, καὶ ἐκδεχόμεναι βρώματα εἰς τροφὴν αὐτῶν. Ἐν γοῦν τῷ ἵστασθαι αὐτὰς κεχηνυίας καὶ ἐκδεχο μένας τὴν ἑαυτῶν τροφὴν, συχνῶν γενομένων ἐκεῖσε τῶν ἀστραπῶν, κατέρχεται ἡ ἀστραπὴ πρὸς τὴν πίνναν, καὶ εὑρίσκουσα τὰ τῆς πίννης ὄστρακα 792 ἀνεῳγμένα, εἰσέρχεται εἰς αὐτήν· ἡ δὲ πίννα, εὐθὺς συστελλομένη καὶ συσφιγγομένη καθ' ἑαυτὴν, ἐντὸς αὐτῆς ἀποκλείει τὴν ἀστραπήν. Ἡ δὲ ἀστραπὴ, τυλισσομένη εἰς τοὺς φορβείους τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν τῆς πίννης, καταλαμπρύνει αὐτοὺς, καὶ ποιεῖ αὐτοὺς μαργαρίτας. Ἐξερχόμενοι δὲ οἱ μαργαρῖται ἀπὸ τῆς πίννης, πίπτουσι πρὸς τὸν αἰγιαλὸν τῆς θαλάσσης ἐκείνης, καὶ οὕτως εὑρίσκουσιν αὐτοὺς οἱ γυρεύοντες αὐτούς. Οὕτως μοι νόει καὶ περὶ τῆς σαρκώσεως τοῦ Λόγου. Θάλασσα μὲν ὁ κόσμος, καὶ ἡ Παρθένος κογχύλη. Ἵστατο δὲ ἡ Παρθένος καθάπερ πίννα ἐν τῷ ναῷ, ἐκδεχομένη τὸν οὐράνιον ἄρτον Χριστὸν τὸν Θεὸν, ὃς καὶ κατελθὼν καὶ εἰσελθὼν ἐν αὐτῇ, ὡς ἀστραπὴ, καὶ ἐντετυλιχθεὶς ἐν ταῖς λαγόσι τῆς παρθενίας αὐτῆς, λαμπροειδῆ κατεσκεύασε τὴν παναγίαν σάρκα, ἣν προσελάβετο σαρκωθείς· καὶ οὕτως ἐγεννήθη ἐξ αὐτῆς ὡς καθαρὸς καὶ πολυτίμητος μαργαρίτης ὁ Λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ χωρὶς ἄῤῥενος συνουσιασμοῦ. Καὶ ὥσπερ ὁ μαργαρίτης οὐράνιός ἐστι καὶ ἐπίγειος, οὐράνιος μὲν κατὰ τὴν ἀστραπὴν, ἐπίγειος δὲ κατὰ τὴν συμπλοκὴν τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν τῆς πίννης· οὕτω καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς οὐράνιός ἐστι καὶ ἐπίγειος· οὐράνιος μὲν κατὰ τὴν θεότητα, ἐπίγειος δὲ κατὰ ἀνθρωπότητα. Καὶ ὥσπερ ὁ μαργαρίτης κατασκευάζεται ἄνευ συνουσίας ἄῤῥενος καὶ θήλεος ἐξ ἀστραπῆς καὶ τῆς πίννης, οὕτως καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς ἐγεννήθη ἄνευ συνουσιασμοῦ ἄῤῥενος καὶ θήλεος ἐκ τῆς θεότητος, καὶ τῆς σαρκὸς τῆς Παρθένου. Καὶ ὥσπερ ὁ μαργαρίτης συντριβόμενος, πολλάκις ἡ μὲν ὕλη τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν τῆς πίννης συντρίβεται καὶ διαλύεται, οὐχὶ δὲ καὶ ἡ λαμπρότης τῆς ἀστραπῆς πάσχει, ἀλλ' ἡ μὲν λαμπρότης τῆς ἀστραπῆς ἀπα θὴς διαμένει, ἡ δὲ ὕλη τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν τῆς πίννης μόνη συντρίβεται καὶ πάσχει· οὕτως καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ Χριστοῦ δεῖ σε νοεῖν. Μαστιζομένου γὰρ αὐτοῦ τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν, καὶ πάσχοντος ὑπὸ τῶν ἀπίστων Ἰουδαίων ἐν τῷ σταυρῷ, ἡ μὲν ὕλη τῆς σαρκὸς, ἤγουν ἡ ἀν-θρωπότης, μόνη ἔπασχε, ἡ δὲ θεότης ἀπαθὴς διέμεινε. Καὶ ταῦτα λέγων, ἀντιστομίζεις Θεοπασχίτας, καὶ τὴν ἔνσαρκον διδάσκεις οἰκονομίαν. Ἐντεῦθέν σοι τὸ ἀμφίβολον, ἀγαπητὲ, χάριτι Χριστοῦ διαλύεται. Ἐρώτ. κʹ. Ἰδοὺ ταῦτα πάντα, θεοείκελε Πάτερ, ἁρμοζόντως ἡμῖν ἐδίδαξας. Ἀξιοῦμέν σε δὲ, ἵνα καὶ τοῦτο ἡμῖν ἑρμηνεύσῃς τὸ ἀπορούμενον, διὰ τί οὐκ ἐδίδαξεν ἡ θεότης μόνον τὸν ἄνθρωπον, καὶ ἔσωσεν αὐτὸν ἄνευ σαρκός; τί γὰρ ἤθελε τοῦ φορέσαι τὴν σάρκα; Ἀπόκ. Καὶ περὶ τούτου καλῶς ἐρωτᾷς· ὅθεν ἄκουσον καὶ καλῶς τὴν ἀπόκρισιν. Κατ' ἀρχὰς, ὅταν ἐποίησεν ὁ Θεὸς τὸν ἄνθρωπον, καὶ ἐπλανήθη ὑπὸ τοῦ διαβόλου ὁ ἄνθρωπος, οὐκ ἐνίκησεν ὁ διάβολος τὴν θεότητα, ἀλλὰ τὴν ἀνθρωπότητα. ∆ιὸ καὶ ἔπρεπε πάλιν αὐτὴ ἡ νικηθεῖσα ἀνθρωπότης ἵνα καὶ πάλιν αὐτὴ νικήσῃ τὸν ἐχθρὸν αὐτῆς τὸν διάβολον, καὶ πάλιν παραλάβοι τὸν δι' ἐκείνου πρὶν ἀπολέσαντα θεῖον παράδεισον. Εἰ γὰρ γυμνὴ ἡ θεότης προσήρχετο, καὶ ἐνίκα τὸν διάβολον, ἔμελλε καυχησθῆναι ὁ διάβολος, ὅτι οὐ θαυμαστὸν, εἰ καὶ ἐνικήθη· ὑπὸ τῆς θεότητος γὰρ προσβαλὼν ἐνικήθη. Καὶ διὰ τοῦτο οὐ κατεδέξατο ὁ Θεὸς, ἵνα γυμνὴ ἡ θεότης αὐτοῦ προσπαλαίσῃ τὸν διάβολον, ἀλλ' ἠβουλήθη, ἵνα ἡ ἀνθρωπότης ἡ νικηθεῖσα ὑπὸ τοῦ

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