John Chrysostom, Sermon on the Captive Eutropius

he dried it up; rivers from the desert; he set the mountains with a weight and the valleys with a balance. How shall I say? how shall I represent it? His greatness has no limit, his wisdom has no number, his judgments are unsearchable, his ways are past finding out. But this one, so great and of such magnitude, if it is safe to say this too, so great and of such magnitude. But what am I to do? I am a man, and I speak in a human way; I possess a tongue of clay, I ask pardon from the Lord. For not out of recklessness have I used these words, but because of the poverty of weakness, and of the nature of our tongue. Be merciful, O Lord, for not using them with recklessness do I say these words, but I have no others; nor indeed do I stand upon the meanness of the word, but I ascend on the wing of the thought. So great and of such magnitude. I say these things, so that you, not abiding in the words, nor in the poverty of what is said, may learn to do this yourself. Why do you marvel, if I do this, when even he himself, when he wishes to represent something that surpasses human things? Since he speaks to men, he uses human images, not sufficient, indeed, to represent what is being said, nor able to bring the whole measure into the midst, but sufficient for the weakness of the hearers. ιʹ. Pay attention, do not grow weary as the discourse is prolonged. For just as when he appears, he does not appear as he is, nor does his bare substance appear; (for no one has seen God, as he is; for at his condescension, even the Cherubim trembled; he condescended, and the mountains smoke; he condescended, and the sea is dried up; he condescended, and the heaven is shaken; and if he had not condescended, who could have borne it?) just as, then, he does not appear as he is, but as the one seeing is able to see; for this reason sometimes he appears old, sometimes young, sometimes in fire, sometimes in a breeze, sometimes in water, sometimes in arms, not changing his substance, but shaping his appearance according to the variety of the subjects. So indeed also when he wishes to say something about himself, he uses human images. For instance; he went up on the mountain, And was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the light, and his garments became white as snow. He opened up, he says, a little of his divinity, he showed them the indwelling God, And was transfigured before them. Pay close attention to the word. He says, And he was transfigured before them, and his garments shone like the light, and his face like the sun. Since I said, So great and of such magnitude, and I said, Be merciful to me, Lord (for I do not 52.405 abide in the word, but I am at a loss, and I do not have another word composed), I want you to learn, that from Scripture I was taught this. The evangelist therefore wished to show his splendor, and says, He shone. How did he shine? tell me. Intensely. And how do you say it? Like the sun. Like the sun, you say? Yes. Why? Because I have no other brighter star. And was he white As snow? Why, As snow? Because I have no other whiter material. For that he did not shine thus, is shown from what follows. And the disciples fell on the ground. If he had shone like the sun, the disciples would not have fallen; for they saw the sun every day, and did not fall; but since he shone beyond the sun, and beyond the snow, for this reason not bearing the splendor, they fell down. ιαʹ. Tell me then, O evangelist, he shone beyond the sun, and you say, Like the sun? Yes; wishing to make the light known to you, I have no other greater star, I have no other image that reigns among the stars. I said these things, so that you might not remain in the meanness of the word. I showed you the fall of the disciples. They fell to the ground, and were stupefied and overwhelmed. Arise, he says, and he raised them, and they were heavy. For they could not bear the excess of the splendor, but a stupor took their eyes; so the light that appeared was beyond the sun. But the said

ἐξήραινεν αὐτήν· ποταμοὺς ἐξ ἐρήμου· τὰ ὄρη ἔστησε σταθμῷ καὶ τὰς νάπας ζυγῷ. Πῶς εἴπω; πῶς παραστήσω; Ἡ μεγαλωσύνη αὐτοῦ πέρας οὐκ ἔχει, ἡ σοφία αὐτοῦ ἀριθμὸν οὐκ ἔχει, τὰ κρίματα αὐτοῦ ἀνεξιχνίαστα, αἱ ὁδοὶ αὐτοῦ ἀνεξερεύνητοι. Ἀλλ' οὗτος ὁ τοσοῦτος καὶ τηλικοῦτος, εἰ ἀσφαλὲς καὶ τοῦτο εἰπεῖν, τοσοῦτος καὶ τηλικοῦτος. Ἀλλὰ τί πάθω; ἄνθρωπός εἰμι, καὶ ἀνθρωπικῶς διαλέγομαι· πηλίνην κέκτημαι γλῶσσαν, συγγνώμην αἰτῶ παρὰ τοῦ ∆εσπότου. Οὐ γὰρ ἐξ ἀπονοίας ταῖς λέξεσι ταύταις κέχρημαι, ἀλλὰ δι' ἀπορίαν τῆς ἀσθενείας, καὶ τῆς φύσεως τῆς γλώττης τῆς ἡμετέρας. Ἵλεως ἔσο, ∆έσποτα, οὐ γὰρ ἀπονοίᾳ κεχρημένος ταύτας λέγω τὰς λέξεις, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἔχω ἄλλας· οὐ μὴν οὐδὲ ἵσταμαι ἐν τῇ εὐτελείᾳ τῆς λέξεως, ἀλλὰ ἀναβαίνω τῷ πτερῷ τοῦ νοήματος. Ὁ τοσοῦτος καὶ τηλικοῦτος. Ταῦτα λέγω, ἵνα μὴ ταῖς λέξεσι παραμένων, μηδὲ τῇ πτωχείᾳ τῶν λεγομένων, μάθῃς καὶ αὐτὸς τοῦτο ποιεῖν. Τί θαυμάζεις, εἰ ἐγὼ τοῦτο ποιῶ, ὅπουγε καὶ αὐτὸς, ὅταν βούληταί τι παραστῆσαι ὑπερβαῖνον τὰ ἀνθρώπινα; Ἐπειδὴ ἀνθρώποις διαλέγεται, καὶ ἀνθρωπίναις κέχρηται εἰκόσιν, οὐκ ἀρκούσαις μὲν παραστῆσαι τὸ λεγόμενον, οὐδὲ δυναμέναις ὅλον τὸ μέτρον ἀγαγεῖν εἰς τὸ μέσον, ἀρκούσαις δὲ τῇ ἀσθενείᾳ τῶν ἀκουόντων. ιʹ. Σύντεινον σαυτὸν, μὴ ἀπόκαμνε δὲ τοῦ λόγου μηκυνομένου. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ὅταν φαίνηται, οὐχ ὅπερ ἐστὶ φαίνεται, οὐδὲ γυμνὴ ἡ οὐσία φαίνεται· (οὐδεὶς γὰρ εἶδε Θεὸν, αὐτὸ ὅ ἐστιν· τῇ γὰρ συγκαταβάσει, καὶ τὰ Χερουβὶμ ἔτρεμεν· συγκατέβη, καὶ τὰ ὄρη καπνίζεται· συγκατέβη, καὶ ἡ θάλασσα ξηραίνεται· συγκατέβη, καὶ ὁ οὐρανὸς σαλεύεται· καὶ εἰ μὴ συγκατέβῃ, τίς ἂν ἤνεγκεν;) ὥσπερ οὖν οὐ φαίνεται ὅπερ ἐστὶν, ἀλλ' ὃ δύναται ὁ ὁρῶν ἰδεῖν· διὰ τοῦτο ποτὲ μὲν παλαιὸς φαίνεται, ποτὲ δὲ νέος, ποτὲ δὲ ἐν πυρὶ, ποτὲ δὲ ἐν αὔρᾳ, ποτὲ δὲ ἐν ὕδατι, ποτὲ δὲ ἐν ὅπλοις, οὐ μεταβάλλων τὴν οὐσίαν, ἀλλὰ σχηματίζων τὴν ὄψιν πρὸς τὴν ποικιλίαν τῶν ὑποκειμένων. Οὕτω δὴ καὶ ὅταν βούληταί τι περὶ αὐτοῦ εἰπεῖν, ἀνθρωπίναις εἰκόσι κέχρηται. Οἷόν τι λέγω· ἀνέβη εἰς τὸ ὄρος, Καὶ μετεμορφώθη ἔμπροσθεν αὐτῶν, καὶ ἔλαμψε τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ ὡς τὸ φῶς, τὰ δὲ ἱμάτια αὐτοῦ ἐγένοντο λευκὰ ὡσεὶ χιών. Παρήνοιξε, φησὶν, ὀλίγον τῆς θεότητος, ἔδειξεν αὐτοῖς τὸν ἐνοικοῦντα Θεὸν, Καὶ μετεμορφώθη ἔμπροσθεν αὐτῶν. Προσέχετε μετὰ ἀκριβείας τῷ λόγῳ. Λέγει, Καὶ μετεμορφώθη ἔμπροσθεν αὐτῶν, καὶ ἔλαμψε τὰ ἱμάτια αὐτοῦ ὡς τὸ φῶς, καὶ ἡ ὄψις ὡς ὁ ἥλιος. Ἐπειδὴ εἶπον, Τοσοῦτος καὶ τηλικοῦτος, καὶ εἶπον, Ἵλεώς μοι γενοῦ, ∆έσποτα (οὐ γὰρ ἐναπο 52.405 μένω τῇ λέξει, ἀλλ' ἀπορῶ, καὶ οὐκ ἔχω ἄλλην λέξιν συντιθεμένην), θέλω σε μαθεῖν, ὅτι ἀπὸ τῆς Γραφῆς τοῦτο ἐπαιδεύθην. Ἠθέλησεν οὖν δεῖξαι τὴν λαμπηδόνα αὐτοῦ ὁ εὐαγγελιστὴς, καὶ λέγει, Ἔλαμψε. Πῶς ἔλαμψεν; εἰπέ μοι. Σφοδρῶς. Καὶ πῶς λέγεις; Ὡς ὁ ἥλιος. Ὡς ὁ ἥλιος, λέγεις; Ναί. ∆ιὰ τί; ∆ιότι οὐκ ἔχω ἄλλο ἄστρον φαιδρότερον. Καὶ λευκὸς ἦν Ὡς χιών; ∆ιὰ τί, Ὡς χιών; ∆ιότι οὐκἔχω ἄλλην ὕλην λευκοτέραν. Ὅτι γὰρ οὐχ οὕτως ἔλαμψεν, ἀπὸ τοῦ ἑξῆς δείκνυται. Καὶ ἔπεσον χαμαὶ οἱ μαθηταί. Εἰ ὡς ὁ ἥλιος ἔλαμψεν, οὐκ ἂν ἔπιπτον οἱ μαθηταί· ἥλιον γὰρ ἔβλεπον καθ' ἡμέραν, καὶ οὐκ ἔπιπτον· ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ ὑπὲρ τὸν ἥλιον ἔλαμψε, καὶ ὑπὲρ τὴν χιόνα, διὰ τοῦτο μὴ φέροντες τὴν λαμπηδόνα, κατέπεσον. ιαʹ. Εἰπέ μοι οὖν, ὦ εὐαγγελιστὰ, ὑπὲρ τὸν ἥλιον ἔλαμψε, καὶ σὺ λέγεις· Ὡς ὁ ἥλιος; Ναί· γνώριμόν σοι θέλων ποιῆσαι τὸ φῶς, οὐκ ἔχω ἄλλο ἄστρον μεῖζον, οὐκ ἔχω ἄλλην εἰκόνα τὴν ἐν τοῖς ἄστροις βασιλεύουσαν. Ταῦτα εἶπον, ἵνα μὴ τῇ εὐτελείᾳ τῆς λέξεως ἐναπομείνῃς. Ἔδειξά σοι τὸ πτῶμα τῶν μαθητῶν. Ἔπεσον χαμαὶ, καὶ ἐκαρώθησαν καὶ κατεχώννυντο. Ἀνάστητε, λέγει, καὶ ἤγειρεν αὐτοὺς, καὶ ἦσαν βεβαρημένοι. Τὴν γὰρ ὑπερβολὴν τῆς λαμπηδόνος οὐκ ἤνεγκαν, ἀλλὰ κάρος ἔλαβε τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτῶν· οὕτω τὸ φαινόμενον φῶς ὑπὲρ τὸν ἥλιον ἦν. Εἶπε δὲ ὁ