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and dignity and all the rest? But lest, by going through each particular, as by the continuous touch and sight of the dead, we should frighten the eye of the soul, let us leave them dead beside 46.1169 the water of the legal letter; but let us sing the hymn of victory to the philanthropic God, and having been nourished with the truly heavenly food, and having been given to drink from the stream of the true rock, let us come to the mountain of God, Horeb; that is, the lofty teaching of the Gospel, so that with the voice of the divine trumpets, with the words of the blessed Luke, we may bring to our inner hearing, as if from the holy of holies the mystagogy of the Spirit cries out: And it came to pass, when the days of their purification were fulfilled, the parents brought up the child Jesus to present him to the Lord, as it is written in the law of the Lord, that "Every male that opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord;" and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, "a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons." And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him, and it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ in the flesh, and he came by the Spirit into the temple. What is, "Waiting for the consolation of Israel?" That is, awaiting the manifestation of the truth, and the departure of the Israelite people from the legal shadow to it; so that having been freed from being under the elements of the world, he might be instructed in the school of truth, and be perfected in the perfection according to it. For one could not say that, as the Jews were in suffering and held in a certain captivity, he was awaiting their recovery and return to cheerfulness and their ancient state; since their entire ancient custom was well-ordered for them, and the temple was standing, and the sacrifices in it were being offered, and every other private polity belonging to their race was preserved.

But if it is put forward that they were under the Romans, and that Herod, who was of foreign race, had been established as king of Judea; let such a person know that the polity according to the law was in no way harmed by this, by Israel being ruled by a foreigner, so that the just old man should await the consolation concerning this. For it has happened in various ways, just as a certain seditious son is handed over by his father to a stern tutor for discipline, so Israel has often come under a foreign kingdom. And the very long sojourn of the people in Egypt shows this, and the prophet Jeremiah in the time of Zedekiah the king, speaking by divine command both to him and to the people under him, to come under the scepter of Nebuchadnezzar, and to go over to the Chaldeans.

46.1172 Not only was it not unlikely for these, being worthy of a more striking treatment, to be subjected to a foreign scepter; but already even some of the just, and of whom the world was not worthy, to speak according to Paul, the long-suffering of God showed to be not rulers, but ruled by barbarian and godless men; so that the proven character of their piety might be strongly manifested. And this is shown by Abraham, being in Egypt, and having his wife taken away by Pharaoh, and dwelling as a sojourner in the land promised to him. Likewise both his son, and that one's offspring, I mean Isaac and Jacob, and again that one's most temperate child Joseph, having become a slave, and being condemned to live in prison. Therefore, the wise Simeon was not awaiting the consolation of Israel for worldly glory and boasting; but the truly true one, the translation to the beauty of the truth. For it having been revealed to him before the change of his life to see that the Christ of the Lord would appear, he was awaiting the consolation of the people spiritually. He came therefore

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καὶ ἀξία καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ ἅπαντα; Ἀλλ' ἵνα μὴ τὰ καθ' ἕκαστον διεξιόντες, καθάπερ νεκρῶν συνεχεῖ ἐπαφῇ τε καὶ θεωρίᾳ τὸ ὄμμα τῆς ψυχῆς δειδιξώμεθα, ἐκείνους μὲν ἐάσωμεν τεθνηκότας παρὰ 46.1169 τὸ ὕδωρ τοῦ νομικοῦ γράμματος· ἡμεῖς δὲ τῷ φιλανθρώπῳ Θεῷ τὸν ἐπινίκιον ὕμνον ᾄσωμεν, καὶ τῇ ὄντως οὐρανίῳ τραφέντες τροφῇ, καὶ τῷ ἐκ τῆς ἀληθινῆς πέτρας νάματι ποτισθέντες, ἔλθωμεν ἐπὶ τὸ ὄρος τοῦ Θεοῦ Χωρήβ· τουτέστι, τὴν ὑψηλὴν τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου διδασκαλίαν, ἵνα τῇ φωνῇ τῶν θείων σαλπίγγων, τοῖς ῥήμασι τοῦ μακαρίου Λουκᾶ τὴν ἔσω ἀκοὴν προσβάλωμεν, καθάπερ ἐξ ἁγίων ἀδύτων βοῶντος τῆς μυσταγωγίας τοῦ Πνεύματος· Καὶ ἐγένετο ὡς ἐπλήσθησαν αἱ ἡμέραι τοῦ καθαρισμοῦ αὐτῶν, ἀνήγαγον οἱ γονεῖς τὸ παιδίον Ἰησοῦν παραστῆσαι τῷ Κυρίῳ, καθὼς γέγραπται ἐν νόμω Κυρίου, ὅτι Πᾶν ἄρσεν διανοῖγον μήτραν, ἅγιον τῷ Κυρίῳ κληθήσεται· καὶ τοῦ δοῦναι θυσίαν κατὰ τὸ εἰρημένον ἐν νόμῳ Κυρίου, ζεῦγος τρυ γόνων, ἢ δύο νεοσσοὺς περιστερῶν. Καὶ ἰδοὺ ἦν ἄνθρωπος ἐν Ἱερουσαλὴμ, ᾧ ὄνομα Συμεὼν, καὶ ὁ ἄνθρωπος οὗτος δίκαιος καὶ εὐλαβὴς, προσδεχόμενος παράκλησιν τοῦ Ἰσραήλ· καὶ Πνεῦμα ἅγιον ἦν ἐπ' αὐτῷ, καὶ ἦν αὐτῷ κεχρηματισμένον ὑπὸ τοῦ Πνεύματος τοῦ ἁγίου, μὴ ἰδεῖν θάνα τον, πρὶν ἂν ἴδῃ τὸν Χριστὸν Κυρίου ἐν σαρκὶ, καὶ ἦλθεν ἐν τῷ Πνεύματι εἰς τὸ ἱερόν. Τί ἐστι, Προσδεχόμενος παράκλησιν τοῦ Ἰσραήλ; Τουτ έστιν, ἀναμένων τὴν φανέρωσιν τῆς ἀληθείας, καὶ τὴν πρὸς ταύτην τοῦ Ἰσραηλίτου λαοῦ ἀπὸ τῆς νομικῆς σκιᾶς μεταχώρησιν· ἐπὶ τῷ ἀφεθέντα τοῦ ὑπὸ τὰ στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου εἶναι τῷ τῆς ἀληθείας στοι χειοῦσθαι διδασκαλείῳ, καὶ τῇ κατ' αὐτὴν καταρτίζεσθαι τελειότητι. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἂν ἔχοι τις εἰπεῖν, ὡς ἐν δυσπαθείᾳ ὄντων τῶν Ἰουδαίων, καὶ ἐν αἰχμαλωσίᾳ τινὶ κατεχομένων, τὴν τούτων ἀνάκτησιν καὶ πρὸς τὸ εὔθυμον καὶ ἀρχαῖον ἐπάνοδον ἐξεδέχετο· πάσης αὐ τοῖς τῆς παλαιᾶς συνηθείας εὐνομουμένης, καὶ τοῦ ναοῦ ἑστῶτος, καὶ τῶν ἐν αὐτῷ θυσιῶν προσαγομένων, καὶ πάσης ἑτέρας ἰδιωτικῆς τῷ γένει αὐτῶν ὑπαρχούσης πολιτείας πεφυλαγμένης.

Εἰ δὲ τὸ ὑπὸ Ῥωμαίους αὐτοὺς εἶναι προβάλλεται, καὶ τὸ καθεστάναι τὸν Ἡρώδην βασιλέα τῆς Ἰουδαίας ἀλλόφυλον τὸ γένος ὑπάρχοντα· γινωσκέτω ὁ τοιοῦτος, ὡς οὐδὲν παρὰ τοῦτο ἡ κατὰ νόμον πολιτεία παρεβλάπτετο ἐκ τοῦ ὑπὸ ἀλλοεθνοῦς τὸν Ἰσραὴλ βασιλεύεσθαι, ὥστε τὴν περὶ τούτου παράκλησιν τὸν δίκαιον πρεσβύτην ἐκδέχεσθαι. Καὶ γὰρ διαφόρως συμβέβηκε, καθάπερ τινὰ στασιώδη υἱὸν ὑπὸ τοῦ πατρὸς αὐστηρῷ τινι παιδαγωγῷ πρὸς σωφρονισμὸν παραδοθῆναι, οὕτω τὸν Ἰσραὴλ πολλάκις ὑπὸ βασιλείαν γενέσθαι ἀλλόφυλον. Καὶ δηλοῖ ἡ ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ τοῦ λαοῦ ἐπὶ πλεῖστον ὅσον διατριβὴ, καὶ ὁ προφήτης Ἱερεμίας ἐν τοῖς χρόνοις Σεδεκίου τοῦ βασιλέως ἐκ θείου προστάγματος πρὸς αὐτόν τε καὶ τὸν ὑπ' αὐτοῦ λαὸν διαλεγόμενος, ὑπὸ τὸ σκῆπτρον τοῦ Ναβουχοδονόσωρ γενέσθαι, καὶ προσχωρῆσαι τοῖς Χαλδαίοις.

46.1172 Οὐ μόνον δὲ τούτους ἀξίους καθεστῶτας πληκτικωτέρας διαγωγῆς, ἀλλοφύλῳ σκήπτρῳ ὑποτετάχθαι οὐκ ἦν ἀπεικός· ἀλλ' ἤδη καὶ τῶν δικαίων τινὰς, καὶ ὧν οὐκ ἦν ἄξιος ὁ κόσμος, κατὰ Παῦλον εἰπεῖν, οὐκ ἄρχοντας, ἀλλ' ἀρχομένους ὑπὸ βαρβάρων καὶ ἀθέων ἀνδρῶν ἡ τοῦ Θεοῦ μακροθυμία παρέδειξεν· ὥστε τὸ τῆς εὐσεβείας αὐτῶν δόκιμον ἰσχυρῶς διαφανήσεσθαι. Καὶ δείκνυσιν ὅ τε Ἀβραὰμ ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ γενόμενος, καὶ τὴν γυναῖκα ὑπὸ τοῦ Φαραὼ ἀφαιρούμενος, καὶ ἐν παροικίᾳ τὴν ἐπηγγελμένην αὐτῷ γῆν οἰκῶν. Ὡσαύτως τε ὁ τούτου υἱὸς, καὶ ἐκείνου γόνος, τὸν Ἰσαάκ φημι καὶ τὸν Ἰακὼβ, αὖθίς τε ὁ ἐκείνου σωφρονέστατος παῖς Ἰωσὴφ, δοῦλος γενόμενος, καὶ τὸ δεσμωτήριον οἰκεῖν καταδικαζόμενος. Οὐκοῦν οὐ τὴν εἰς κοσμικὴν εὐδοξίαν τε καὶ μεγαλαυχίαν παρά κλησιν τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ ὁ σοφὸς Συμεὼν ἐξεδέχετο· ἀλλὰ τὴν ὄντως ἀληθῆ, τὴν εἰς τὸ τῆς ἀληθείας κάλλος μετάθεσιν. Χρηματισθέντος γὰρ αὐτῷ πρὸ τῆς τοῦ βίου μεταλλαγῆς ἰδεῖν τὸν Χριστὸν Κυρίου συνανα φανήσεσθαι, πνευματικῶς τὴν τοῦ λαοῦ παράκλησιν ἐξεδέχετο. Ἦλθεν οὖν