82 Mt 16, 1-4 But indeed, neither does a physician fulfill the inopportune desires of the sick, seeking what is curative of the disease, not what is fulfilling of pleasure, nor does the Savior fulfill an irrational desire in order to show his power; for it is not profitable to lavish graces on such men who are not satisfied with those given, which are sufficient. But they ask for a sign from heaven, such as food as in the time of the fathers or the standing still of the elements as in the time of Jesus, son of Nave. And having called them a wicked and adulterous generation, he leaves them, as a bridegroom leaves the faithful city of Sion, the synagogue of the Jews, which has become a harlot. Neither does a physician grant an inopportune desire to the sick as if it would cure their disease, nor does he fill their pleasure with harmful foods, likewise also the Savior does not fulfill an irrational desire in order to show his power; for they have seen many signs from heaven; “the Spirit descending like a dove,” the heavens opened and the Father's “voice saying: This is my beloved Son.” 83 Mt 16, 23 But he does not by these things provide an excuse for those who inflicted the passion; for the mindset and plot of the Jews was not in harmony with the will of God, nor were they then eager for what God was arranging, so that for them the deed done was, according to their intent, an impiety, but for God it was both a wise plan and for men a saving benefit. 84 Mt 16, 27 And the *in the glory of his Father*; he says, in the glory of God, because even having become man he is the Son of God, as he shows by placing both in parallel, saying Son of Man and that he will come in the glory of his Father. And he confirms what is said by also *with his angels*; for the angels are of God, but not of any creature, much less of a man. For this reason, then, ‘Lord of hosts’ is also a name for God. And a name is a mark of proprietorship. And he says that such a one, when he appears, will render to each according to his deeds. 85 Mt 17, 5 The Father seems to be revealing the Son by the voice sounding from there, as if it too were an impression of the testimony coming from above to all; for one must not think it is an audible voice of God; for there is nothing sensible from the incorporeal. And just as “no one has ever seen God,” neither has anyone heard God. But the *hear him* has the force of a necessary distinction; for it says *him* rather than Moses or the prophets who introduced it, because it is now time to advance and to move on from the introduction to the perfection, from the types to the truth; for since the law was introduced through the epiphany from above, it was not possible for the greater thing to have force among men unless it was introduced by the epiphany from above.

86 Mt 17, 22-23 He says, therefore, what was going to happen in Jerusalem, when the time in which he must suffer was not yet even approaching, so that he might reveal both that his foreknowledge was divine and that he was going to suffer voluntarily, since he was not going in ignorance to where he was going to suffer. And it was for the disciples’ benefit, so that they would not be disturbed as if men had prevailed against him. 87 Mt 17, 24 This was a legal tax of the didrachmas, established through Moses who said: “Each shall give a ransom for his soul to the Lord, half a didrachma.” The Jews indeed collected these from all, and the didrachma was given as a ransom for two souls according to the law, with neither the rich man adding to what the law said nor the poor man subtracting “from the half of the didrachma.” which is, he says, according to the holy didrachma, the matter hinting at nothing other than the true ransom, since all things were prefigured for this. But the true ransom was the Lord, having the Father in himself by power, inasmuch as he is the divine impress, of which indeed the giving of the didrachma is a symbol, although it is a drachma that ransoms and not more than a

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82 Mt 16, 1-4 Ἀλλὰ γὰρ οὔτε ἰατρὸς ἀκαί ρους ἐπιθυμίας τῶν νοσούντων ἐμ πίπλησι τὸ τῆς νόσου λυτικὸν ζητῶν, οὐ τὸ τῆς ἡδονῆς πληρωτικόν, οὔτε ὁ σωτὴρ ἐπιθυμίαν ἄλογον πληροῖ πρὸς τὸ δεῖξαι τὴν δύναμιν· οὐδὲ γὰρ αὔξιμον τοῖς τοιούτοις ἐπιδαψι λεύεσθαι τὰς χάριτας οἳ μὴ ταῖς δοθείσαις ἱκαναῖς οὔσαις ἀρκοῦνται. ἐξ οὐρανοῦ δὲ σημεῖον αἰτοῦσιν οἷον τροφὰς ὧσπερ ἐπὶ τῶν πατέρων ἢ στάσιν στοιχείων ὡς ἐπὶ τοῦ Ἰη σοῦ τοῦ Ναυῆ. εἰπὼν δὲ αὐτοὺς γενεὰν πονηρὰν καὶ μοιχαλίδα καταλείπει ὡς νυμφίος τὴν γενο μένην πόρνην πόλιν πιστὴν Σιὼν τὴν Ἰουδαίων συναγωγήν. Οὔτε ἰατρὸς ἄκαιρον ἐπιθυ μίαν δίδωσι τοῖς νοσοῦσιν ὡς λύου σαν αὐτῶν τὴν νόσον οὔτε τὴν ἡδο νὴν αὐτῶν ἐμπίπλησι βρωμάτων βλαβερῶν, ὡσαύτως καὶ ὁ σωτὴρ ἐπιθυμίαν ἄλογον οὐ πληροῖ πρὸς τὸ δεῖξαι τὴν δύναμιν αὐτοῦ· πολλὰ γὰρ ἑωράκασιν ἐξ οὐρανοῦ ση μεῖα· «πνεῦμα καταβαῖνον ὡσεὶ πε ριστεράν », τοὺς οὐρανοὺς ἀνεῳγ μένους καὶ τὴν πατρικὴν «φωνὴν λέγουσαν· οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ υἱός μου ὁ ἀγαπητός ». 83 Mt 16, 23 Οὐκ ἀπολογίαν δὲ τοῖς δρῶσιν τὸ πάθος διὰ τούτων παρέχει· οὐ γὰρ συνέπνει τῇ τοῦ θεοῦ βουλῇ τὸ Ἰουδαίων φρόνημα καὶ ἐπιβούλευμα οὐδὲ τότε ἔσπευδον, ὅπερ ᾠκονόμει θεός, ὥστε ἐκείνοις μὲν κατὰ γνώμην τὸ πραττόμενον ἀσέβημα ἦν, θεῷ δὲ καὶ σοφὸν οἰκονόμημα καὶ ἀνθρώ ποις σωτήριον εὐεργέτημα. 84 Mt 16, 27 Τὸ δὲ ἐν τῇ δόξῃ τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ· τῇ δόξῃ φησὶ τοῦ θεοῦ, διότι καὶ ἄνθρωπος γενόμενος θεοῦ υἱός ἐστιν ὡς δηλοῖ παράλληλα τιθεὶς ἑκάτερα υἱὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου λέγων καὶ ἐν τῇ δόξῃ τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ παρεσόμενον. προσβεβαιοῖ δὲ τὸ λεγόμενον τῷ καὶ μετὰ τῶν ἀγγέλων αὐτοῦ · θεοῦ γὰρ οἱ ἄγγελοι, ποιήματος δὲ οὐδενὸς οὐχ ὅπως ἀνθρώπου. διὰ τοῦτο γοῦν καὶ «κύριος τῶν δυνάμεων » ὄνομα θεῷ. ὄνομα δὲ τῆς ἰδιότητος γνώρισμα. τὸν δὲ τοιοῦτον ἐπιφανέντα φησὶν ἀποδώ σειν ἑκάστῳ κατὰ τὴν πρᾶξιν αὐτοῦ . 85 Mt 17, 5 Πατὴρ υἱὸν μηνύων φαίνεται τῆς ἐκεῖθεν ἠχούσης φωνῆς οἷον ἐκτυ πούσης καὶ αὐτῆς τὴν ἄνωθεν ἐρχομένην παρὰ πάντας μαρτυρίαν· οὐ γὰρ ἐξάκουστον φωνὴν θεοῦ νομιστέον· οὐδὲ γὰρ αἰσθητὸν ἐξ ἀσωμάτου. καὶ ὥσπερ «οὐδεὶς ἑώρακεν θεὸν πώποτε », οὐδὲ ἀκήκοεν θεόν. τὸ δὲ ἀκούετε αὐτοῦ διαστολῆς ἔχει δύναμιν ἀναγκαίας· αὐτοῦ γάρ φησιν μᾶλλον ἢ Μωσέως εἰσηγησαμένων προφητῶν, ὅτι προελθεῖν ἤδη καιρὸς καὶ μετελθεῖν ἐκ τῆς εἰσαγωγῆς ἐπὶ τὴν τελειότητα, ἐκ τῶν τύπων ἐπὶ τὴν ἀλήθειαν· νόμου γὰρ εἰσαχθέντος διὰ τῆς ἄνωθεν ἐπιφανείας οὐχ οἷόν τε ἦν τὸ μεῖζον ἰσχῦσαι παρὰ ἀνθρώποις μὴ οὐχ ὑπὸ τῆς ἄνωθεν ἐπιφανείας εἰσηγμένον.

86 Mt 17, 22-23 Λέγει τοίνυν τὸ συμβησόμενον ἐν Ἰερουσαλὴμ οὔπω πλησιάζοντος οὐδὲ τοῦ χρόνου καθ' ὃν ἔδει παθεῖν, ἵνα καὶ τὴν πρόγνωσιν θείαν οὖσαν ἀνακαλύψῃ καὶ ὅτι ἑκουσίως πάσχειν ἔμελλεν, ἅτε μὴ ὑπ' ἀγνοίας ἀπιὼν ἔνθα πείσεσθαι ἔμελλεν. καὶ τοῖς μαθηταῖς δὲ πρὸς ὠφελείας ἐγίνετο πρὸς τὸ μὴ ταράσσεσθαι ὡς ἀνθρώπων ἰσχυσάντων κατ' αὐτοῦ. 87 Mt 17, 24 Νομικὸν ἦν τοῦτο τέλος τῶν διδράχμων διὰ Μωυσέως ὁρισθὲν λέγοντος· «δώσουσιν ἕκαστος λύτρα τῆς ψυχῆς τῆς ἑαυτοῦ κυρίῳ, τὸ ἥμισυ τοῦ διδράχμου ». ταῦτα δὴ συνέλεγον οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι παρὰ πάντων καὶ ἐδίδοτο τὸ δίδραχμον δύο ψυχῶν λύτρωσις κατὰ τὸν νόμον οὔτε τοῦ πλουτοῦντος προστιθέντος ᾧ ὁ νόμος εἴρηκεν οὔτε τοῦ πενομένου ἐλαττοῦν τος «ἀπὸ τοῦ ἡμίσεως τοῦ διδράχμου ». ὅ ἐστιν, φησίν, κατὰ τὸ δίδραχμον τὸ ἅγιον, οὐδὲν ἕτερον αἰνιττομένου τοῦ πράγματος ἢ τὸ λύτρον τὸ ἀλη θινόν, ἐπείπερ ἐσκιαγραφεῖτο πάντα εἰς τοῦτο. τὸ δὲ λύτρον τὸ ἀληθινὸν ὁ κύριος ἦν δυνάμει τὸν πατέρα ἔχων ἐν ἑαυτῷ, καθὸ χαρακτήρ ἐστι θεϊκός, οὗ δὴ σύμβολον τὸ δίδοσθαι τὸ δίδραχμον, καίτοι δραχμῆς οὔσης τῆς λυτρουμένης καὶ μὴ πλέον τοῦ

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