you stop your ears, not opening or unfolding them for the reception of what is said, the saying will come upon you: 'Their venom is like the venom of a serpent, like that of a deaf asp that stops its ears, so that it does not hear the voice of charmers or of the cunning enchanter.' The outer man smells with his nostrils, perceiving fragrance and stench; and the inner man perceives the fragrance of righteousness and the stench of sins with other nostrils, a fragrance, as the apostle teaches, saying: 'For we are the aroma of Christ to God in every place, among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life.' And Solomon also says in the Song of Songs, from the person of the young maidens, the daughters of Jerusalem: 'We will run after you, to the scent of your ointments.' Just as, therefore, with our 19 nostrils we perceive a sensible fragrance and a sensible stench, so according to the inner man there is a perception for one who is healthy in the divine senses, of the fragrance of righteousness, which the apostle had, and of the stench of sins. What stench of sins? The one about which the prophet speaks thus: 'My wounds have become foul and festered because of my foolishness.' The outer man has the sense of taste, and the inner man has the spiritual sense of taste, about which it is said: 'Taste and see that the Lord is good.' The outer man has the sensible touch, and the inner man has a touch, that touch by which the woman with the flow of blood touched the fringe of Jesus' garment. She touched; for he who spoke testified: 'Who touched me?' And a little before, Peter had said to him: 'The crowds are pressing in on you, and you say, "Who touched me?"' He thinks that those who touch, touch physically, not spiritually. Therefore, those pressing on Jesus did not touch him; for they did not touch him with faith. But she alone, having a certain divine touch, touched Jesus and for this reason was healed; and since she touched him with a divine touch, for this reason the power 20 of Jesus went out to her divine touch. Therefore he says: 'Who touched me? For I perceived that power had gone out from me.' About this more divine touch John speaks. 'and our hands have handled, concerning the word of life.' Thus we have other hands, about which it is said: 'The lifting up of my hands as an evening sacrifice.' For if I lift up these hands, but the hands of my soul lie below, and I do not lift them up through holy and good deeds, the 'lifting up of my hands' does not become for me 'an evening sacrifice'. I also have other feet, concerning which Solomon promised me, saying: 'That your foot may not stumble.' Something <strange> is said in Ecclesiastes; for to one who does not understand it will seem foolish, but to the wise it has been said from Ecclesiastes: 'The eyes of a wise man are in his head.' In what head? For of every man, both the unintelligent and the foolish, the physical eyes are in a physical head, but 'the eyes of the wise man,' those aforementioned, which are enlightened by the commandment of the Lord, are 'in his head,' in Christ, since 'the head of a man is Christ,' says the apostle. The intellect is in Christ. 'My bowels, my bowels! I am in pain,' said 21 Jeremiah. What bowels are in pain? The ones in which we too are pained, in which since he was in travail for the people, 'I am in pain in my bowels' and 'the senses,' not these but 'of my heart.' And if I come to the subtle parts of the body, I see them incorporeally in the soul. 'O Lord, rebuke me not in your anger, nor discipline me in your wrath. Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I am weak; heal me, O Lord, for my bones are troubled.' What bones of the prophet were troubled? The harmony of his soul and the firmness of his intellect were troubled, and he pleads for the restoration of those bones. 'Our bones were scattered beside Hades.' What bones of the one speaking were scattered beside Hades? If you see for me the one who has sinned and see his harmonies in the place of sin, in the place of the dead, in the place of

βύετε τὰ ὦτα οὐκ ἀνοίγοντες οὐδὲ ἀναπεταννύντες αὐτὰ πρὸς παραδοχὴν τῶν λεγομένων, φθάσει ἐφ' ὑμᾶς τὸ «Θυμὸς αὐτοῖς κατὰ τὴν ὁμοίωσιν τοῦ ὄφεως ὡσεὶ ἀσπίδος κωφῆς καὶ βυούσης τὰ ὦτα αὐτῆς, ἥτις οὐκ εἰσακούσεται φωνὴν ἐπᾳδόντων φαρ μάκου τε φαρμακευομένου παρὰ σοφοῦ». Ὁ ἔξω ἄνθρωπος ὀσφραίνεται μυκτῆρσιν, ἀντιλαμ βανόμενος εὐωδίας καὶ δυσωδίας· καὶ ὁ ἔσω ἄνθρωπος ἀντιλαμβάνεται εὐωδίας δικαιοσύνης καὶ δυσωδίας ἁμαρτημάτων ἄλλοις μυκτῆρσιν, εὐωδίας μὲν ὡς ὁ ἀπόστολος διδάσκει λέγων· «Εὐωδία Χριστοῦ ἐσμεν τῷ Θεῷ ἐν παντὶ τόπῳ, ἐν τοῖς σωζομένοις καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἀπολλυμένοις, οἷς μὲν ὀσμὴ ἐκ θανάτου εἰς θάνατον, οἷς δὲ ὀσμὴ ἐκ ζωῆς εἰς ζωήν.» Φησὶν δὲ καὶ ὁ Σολο μὼν ἐν τῷ Ἄσματι τῶν ᾀσμάτων ἐκ προσώπου τῶν νεανίδων τῶν θυγατέρων Ἱερουσαλήμ· «Ὀπίσω σου εἰς ὀσμὴν μύρων σου δραμοῦμεν.» Ὥσπερ οὖν τοῖς 19 μυκτῆρσιν ἀντιλαμβανόμεθα αἰσθητῆς εὐωδίας καὶ αἰσθητῆς δυσωδίας, οὕτως κατὰ τὸν ἔσω ἄνθρωπον ἔστιν ἀντίλημψις τοῦ ὑγιαίνοντος κατὰ τὰ θεῖα αἰσθη τήρια, εὐωδίας δικαιοσύνης, ἣν εἶχεν ὁ ἀπόστολος, καὶ δυσωδίας ἁμαρτημάτων. Ποίας δυσωδίας ἁμαρ τημάτων; Περὶ ἧς λέγει ὁ προφήτης οὕτως· «Προσ ώζεσαν καὶ ἐσάπησαν οἱ μώλωπές μου ἀπὸ προσώπου τῆς ἀφροσύνης μου.» Ὁ ἔξω ἄνθρωπος ἔχει τὸ γευστικόν, καὶ ὁ ἔσω ἄνθρωπος ἔχει τὸ πνευματικὸν γευστικόν, περὶ οὗ εἴρηται· «Γεύσασθε καὶ ἴδετε ὅτι χρηστὸς ὁ Κύριος.» Ὁ ἔξω ἄνθρωπος ἔχει ἁφὴν τὴν αἰσθητήν, καὶ ὁ ἔσω ἄνθρωπος ἔχει ἁφήν, ἐκείνην τὴν ἁφὴν ᾗ ἥψατο ἡ αἱμορροῦσα τοῦ κρασπέδου τοῦ Ἰησοῦ. Ἥψατο· ἐμαρτύρησεν γὰρ ὁ εἰπών· «Τίς ἥψατό μου;» Καί γε πρὸ βραχέος ὁ Πέτρος αὐτῷ ἔλεγεν· «»Οἱ ὄχλοι θλίβουσίν σε καὶ σὺ λέγεις Τίς ἥψατό μου;»« Οἴεται ὅτι οἱ ἁπτό μενοι σωματικῶς ἅπτονται, οὐ πνευματικῶς. Οἱ οὖν θλίβοντες τὸν Ἰησοῦν οὐχ ἥπτοντο αὐτοῦ· οὐ γὰρ πίστει αὐτοῦ ἥπτοντο. Ἐκείνη δὲ μόνη ἔχουσα θείαν τινὰ ἁφὴν ἥψατο τοῦ Ἰησοῦ καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἐθεραπεύθη· καὶ ἐπεὶ θείᾳ αὐτοῦ ἁφῇ ἥψατο, διὰ τοῦτο δύναμις 20 τοῦ Ἰησοῦ ἐξῆλθεν ἐπὶ τὴν θείαν αὐτῆς ἁφήν. Λέγει οὖν· «»Τίς ἥψατό μου; Ἐγὼ γὰρ ἔγνων δύναμιν ἐξ εληλυθυῖαν ἀπ' ἐμοῦ»«. Περὶ ταύτης τῆς θειοτέρας ἁφῆς Ἰωάννης λέγει. «Καὶ αἱ χεῖρες ἡμῶν ἐψηλάφησαν περὶ τοῦ λόγου τῆς ζωῆς.» Οὕτως ἔχομεν ἄλλας χεῖρας, περὶ ὧν λέγεται· «Ἔπαρσις τῶν χειρῶν μου θυσία ἑσπερινή.» Οὐ γὰρ ἐὰν ταύτας ἐπάρω τὰς χεῖρας, κάτω δέ μου κέωνται αἱ χεῖρες τῆς ψυχῆς, καὶ μὴ ἐπάρω αὐτὰς διὰ τῶν ἁγίων καὶ ἀγαθῶν πράξεων γίνεταί μου «ἔπαρσις τῶν χειρῶν θυσία ἑσπερινή». Ἔχω καὶ ἄλλους πόδας, περὶ ὧν ἐπηγγείλατό μοι ὁ Σολομὼν λέγων· «Ὁ πούς σου μὴ προσκόψῃ.» Λέγεται <ἄτοπόν> τι ἐν τῷ Ἐκκλησιαστῇ· τῷ μὴ συνιέντι γὰρ δόξει ἀνόητον εἶναι, τῷ δὲ σοφῷ ἀπὸ Ἐκκλησιαστοῦ εἴρηται· «Τοῦ σοφοῦ οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ αὐτοῦ ἐν κεφαλῇ αὐτοῦ.» Ἐν ποίᾳ κεφαλῇ; Παντὸς γὰρ ἀνθρώπου, καὶ τοῦ ἀνοήτου καὶ τοῦ ἄφρονος, οἱ αἰσθητοὶ ὀφθαλμοὶ ἐν κεφαλῇ αἰσθητῇ εἰσιν, ἀλλὰ «τοῦ σοφοῦ οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ» οἱ προειρημένοι, οἱ φωτιζόμενοι ὑπὸ τῆς τοῦ Κυρίου ἐντολῆς, «ἐν κεφαλῇ» αὐτοῦ, ἐν Χριστῷ, ἐπεὶ «Κεφαλὴ ἀνδρὸς ὁ Χριστός», ὁ ἀπόστολος λέγει. Τὸ διανοητικόν ἐστιν ἐν Χριστῷ. «Τὴν κοιλίαν μου, τὴν κοιλίαν μου ἀλγῶ», εἶπεν 21 Ἱερεμίας. Ποίαν κοιλίαν ἀλγεῖ; Ἣν καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀλγοῦμεν, ᾗ ἐπεὶ ὤδινεν τὸν λαὸν «τὴν κοιλίαν ἀλγῶ» καὶ «τὰ αἰσθητήρια», οὐ ταῦτα ἀλλὰ «τῆς καρδίας μου». Ἐὰν καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ λεπτὰ μέρη ἔλθω τοῦ σώματος, βλέπω αὐτὰ ἄσαρκα ἐπὶ τὴν ψυχήν. «Κύριε, μὴ τῷ θυμῷ σου ἐλέγξῃς με, μηδὲ τῇ ὀργῇ σου παιδεύσῃς με. Ἐλέησόν με, Κύριε, ὅτι ἀσθενής εἰμι· ἴασαι με, Κύριε, ὅτι ἐταράχθη τὰ ὀστᾶ μου.» Ποῖα ὀστᾶ ἐτα ράχθη τοῦ προφήτου; Ἡ ἁρμονία τῆς ψυχῆς καὶ τὸ στερρὸν τῆς διανοίας αὐτοῦ ἦν τεταραγμένον, καὶ παρα καλεῖ περὶ τῆς ἀποκαταστάσεως ἐκείνων τῶν ὀστέων. «Ἐσκορπίσθησαν τὰ ὀστᾶ ἡμῶν παρὰ τὸν ᾅδην.» Ποῖα ὀστᾶ τοῦ λέγοντος ἐσκορπίσθη παρὰ τὸν ᾅδην; Ἐὰν ἴδῃς μοι τὸν ἡμαρτηκότα καὶ ἴδης αὐτοῦ τὰς ἁρμονίας ἐν τῷ χωρίῳ τῆς ἁμαρτίας, ἐν τῷ χωρίῳ τῶν νεκρῶν, ἐν τῷ χωρίῳ τῆς