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in a day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. Everywhere he adds both "likeness" and "as," teaching us not to stop at this point, but to know that each of the visions is adapted to the need. For to the patriarch Abraham, the Master of all appeared as a man, and showed him nothing dreadful, being about to give good promises, both to him, and through him to the whole world. For the promise of Isaac also contains the birth according to the flesh of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ; for which reason the blessing of the nations was joined to the promise of Isaac. "For in your seed," he says, "all the nations of the earth shall be blessed." But when he foretold to him the bondage of his race, he did not appear so gracious, but showed a smoking furnace, and lamps of fire passing between the divided pieces. Thus, wishing to encourage Jacob who feared Esau, he appeared as a man. But to Moses he at first showed dreadful things, the fire in the bush, and the bush burning, but not consumed; but after these things he converses gently, showing nothing that could inspire terror. And wishing to frighten Israel, and to make known his own power, he shows the whole mountain smoking, and thunders crashing, and trumpets sounding, and a great darkness, and in short so terrified them, that they offered a supplication to the prophet, that God not speak to them, but that he himself convey the divine things. This difference of visions he also showed to the great Elijah: first an earthquake, then fire, then a wind breaking mountains and shattering rocks, and after these a breath of a gentle breeze, and in it the Lord; for he himself rejoices in goodness, and patiently and gently wishes to manage the affairs of men; but much impiety and lawlessness prepares him to use those other things as well. Therefore he said he was not in those things, but in the gentle breeze; since those things are not of his own will, but of the need of men; but goodness and love for mankind are proper to his own nature. Therefore, when you hear of different visions of God, do not suppose the Divine to be multiform; for it is completely incorporeal and without form, simple and uncompounded, and without shape, invisible and unseen, and not circumscribed by any limit; but he shows the visions, fashioning them according to the need; and 81.836 here, therefore, he showed those terrible things; but he also showed the coming benefaction for all men, I mean the incarnate economy of our God and Savior. For this reason he speaks of the human form, but of two natures: one of electrum, the other of fire, and one bearing, the other being borne; for the divine nature was clothed in the human; for which reason he says he saw above as the appearance of electrum, but from the loins and downwards, as the appearance of fire; the fire signifying the divine nature ("For your God," he says, "is a consuming fire"); and the electrum the human. For such is electrum, having a kind of mixed appearance, and resembling neither gold nor silver, but being as it were a mixture of both. Such also is the human body; for it is not only earth, nor water by itself, nor fire, nor air, but is compounded from the four elements; rather, such is the nature of man, neither rational soul alone, nor mortal body, but both in himself. For this reason the prophet sees from the loins and upwards, as the appearance of electrum, but also as a vision of fire within it round about. For the human nature of the Word of God became bright, and brilliant, and glorious, immortal and incorruptible by the indwelling nature; for which reason he fittingly said: "And I saw as the vision of electrum, as the vision of fire within it round about, from the vision of the loins, and even downwards, as the vision of fire." For the divine nature bore the human nature. "And its brightness was round about. As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness, round about." And these things are significant of the divine gifts; for going out from there like a radiance

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ἐν ἡμέρᾳ ὑετοῦ, οὕτως ἡ ὅρασις τοῦ φέγγους κυ κλόθεν. Πανταχοῦ καὶ τὸ ὁμοίωμα, καὶ τὸ ὡς προστίθησι, διδάσκων ἡμᾶς μὴ μέχρι τούτου ἑστάναι, ἀλλ' εἰδέναι ὡς τῶν ὀπτάσεων ἑκάστη πρὸς τὴν χρείαν ἁρμόζεται. Τῷ μὲν γὰρ πατριάρχῃ Ἀβραὰμ, ὡς ἄνθρωπος ἐπεφάνη τῶν ὅλων ὁ ∆εσπότης, καὶ οὐδὲν αὐτῷ φοβερὸν ἔδειξεν, ἀγαθὰς μέλλων παρέχειν ἐπαγγελίας, καὶ αὐτῷ, καὶ δι' αὐτοῦ πάσῃ τῇ οἰκου μένῃ. Ἡ γὰρ τοῦ Ἰσαὰκ ὑπόσχεσις, καὶ τὴν κατὰ σάρκα τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν καὶ Σωτῆρος Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ περιέχει γέννησιν· διὸ καὶ ἡ τῶν ἐθνῶν εὐλογία τῇ τοῦ Ἰσαὰκ ἐπαγγελίᾳ συνήφθη. "Ἐν τῷ σπέρματι γάρ σου, φησὶν, εὐλογηθήσεται πάντα τὰ ἔθνη τῆς γῆς." Ἡνίκα δὲ αὐτῷ τὴν τοῦ γένους δουλείαν πρού λεγεν, οὐχ οὕτω χρηστὸς ἐπεφάνη, ἀλλὰ καὶ κλί βανον ἔδειξε καπνιζόμενον, καὶ λαμπάδας πυρὸς διερχομένας ἀναμέσον τῶν διχοτομημάτων. Οὕτω τὸν Ἰακὼβ δειμαίνοντα τὸν Ἡσαῦ ψυχαγωγῆσαι θελήσας, ὡς ἄνθρωπος ἐπεφάνη. Τῷ δὲ Μωσῇ κατ' ἀρχὰς μὲν ἔδειξε τὰ φρικώδη, τὸ πῦρ ἐν τῇ βάτῳ, καὶ τὴν βάτον καιομένην, καὶ μὴ κατακαιομένην· μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα ἡμέρως προσδιαλέγεται, οὐδὲν ὑποδεικνὺς τῶν φρίκην ἐμποιεῖν δυναμένων. Καὶ τὸν Ἰσραὴλ δὲ φοβῆσαι θελήσας, καὶ τὴν οἰκείαν δύναμιν γνωρίσαι, τὸ ὄρος ἅπαν ὑποδείκνυσι καπνιζόμενον, καὶ βροντὰς κτυπούσας, καὶ σάλπιγγας ἠχούσας, καὶ γνόφον πο λὺν, καὶ ἁπαξαπλῶς οὕτως αὐτοὺς ἐξεδειμάτωσεν, ὡς ἱκετείαν τῷ προφήτῃ προσενεγκεῖν, μὴ τὸν Θεὸν αὐτοῖς προσδιαλέγεσθαι, ἀλλ' αὐτὸν τὰ θεῖα διαπορ θμεύειν. Ταύτην τῶν ὀπτασιῶν τὴν διαφορὰν καὶ τῷ μεγάλῳ Ἡλίᾳ ὑπέδειξε· πρῶτον μὲν συσσεισμὸν, εἶτα πῦρ, εἶτα πνεῦμα συντρίβον ὄρη, καὶ λεπτύνον πέτρας, καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα πνοὴν αὔρας λεπτῆς, καὶ ἐν αὐτῇ Κύριον· χαίρει γὰρ αὐτὸς ἀγαθότητι, καὶ μα κροθύμως καὶ ἠπίως βούλεται τὰ κατὰ τοὺς ἀνθρώ πους οἰκονομεῖν· ἡ δὲ πολλὴ ἀσέβεια καὶ παρανομία παρασκευάζει κἀκείνοις κεχρῆσθαι. ∆ιὸ ἐν ἐκείνοις οὐκ ἔφη εἶναι, ἀλλ' ἐν τῇ αὔρᾳ τῇ λεπτῇ· ἐπειδὴ οὐ τῆς αὐτοῦ γνώμης, ἀλλὰ τῆς τῶν ἀνθρώπων χρείας ἐκεῖνα· ἀγαθότης δὲ καὶ φιλανθρωπία τῆς αὐτοῦ φύσεως ἴδια. Ὅταν τοίνυν διαφόρους ὀπτασίας ἀκού σῃς Θεοῦ, μὴ πολύμορφον ὑπολάβῃς τὸ Θεῖον· ἀσώ ματον γὰρ καὶ ἀνείδεον παντελῶς, ἁπλοῦν τε καὶ ἀσύνθετον, καὶ ἀσχημάτιστον, ἀόρατόν τε καὶ ἀθέα τον, καὶ οὐδενὶ περιγραφόμενον ὅρῳ· δείκνυσι δὲ τὰς ὄψεις, πρὸς τὴν χρείαν ταύτας ἀνατυπῶν· καὶ 81.836 ἐνταῦθα τοίνυν ἔδειξε μὲν ἐκεῖνα τὰ φοβερά· ἔδειξε δὲ καὶ τὴν ἐσομένην πάντων ἀνθρώπων εὐεργεσίαν, τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ φημι καὶ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἔνσαρκον οἰκονομίαν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο τὸ μὲν εἶδος ἀνθρώπινον λέγει, τὰς δὲ φύσεις δύο· τὴν μὲν ἠλέκτρου, τὴν δὲ πυρὸς, καὶ τὴν μὲν φέρουσαν, τὴν δὲ φερομένην· ἡ γὰρ θεία φύσις τὴν ἀνθρωπείαν περιέκειτο· διὸ τὸ μὲν ἄνω λέγει τεθεᾶσθαι ὡς εἶδος ἠλέκτρου· τὸ δὲ ἀπὸ ὀσφύος καὶ κάτω, ὡς εἶδος πυρός· τοῦ μὲν πυρὸς τὴν θείαν φύσιν αἰνιττομένου ("Ὁ γὰρ Θεός σου, φησὶ, πῦρ καταναλίσκον")· τοῦ δὲ ἠλέκτρου τὴν ἀνθρωπείαν. Τοιοῦτο γὰρ τὸ ἤλεκτρον, οἱονεὶ μικτὸν τὸ εἶδος ἔχον, καὶ οὔτε χρυσῷ οὔτε ἀργύρῳ παρεοικὸς, ἀλλ' ὥσπερ ἑκατέρου κρᾶμα τυγχάνον. Τοιοῦτο δὲ καὶ τὸ ἀνθρώ πινον σῶμα· οὐ γὰρ μόνον ἐστὶ γῆ, οὐδὲ ὕδωρ αὐτὸ καθ' αὑτὸ, οὔτε πῦρ, οὔτε ἀὴρ, ἀλλ' ἐκ τῶν τεσσάρων στοιχείων συγκέκραται· μᾶλλον δὲ τοιαύτη τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἡ φύσις, οὔτε ψυχὴ λογικὴ μόνον, οὔτε σῶμα θνητὸν, ἀλλ' ἀμφότερα κατ' αὐτόν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ὁ προφήτης ὁρᾷ ἀπὸ ὀσφύος καὶ ἄνω, ὡς εἶδος ἠλέκτρου, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὡς ὅρασιν πυρὸς ἔσωθεν αὐτοῦ κύκλῳ. Καὶ γὰρ τὸ ἀνθρώπινον τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγου φαιδρὸν, καὶ λαμπρὸν, καὶ ἔνδοξον, ἀθάνατόν τε καὶ ἄφθαρτον ὑπὸ τῆς ἐνοικούσης ἐγένετο φύσεως· διὸ ἁρμοδίως ἔφη· "Καὶ ἴδον ὡς ὅρασιν ἠλέκτρου, ὡς ὅρασιν πυρὸς ἔσωθεν αὐτοῦ κύκλῳ, ἀπὸ ὁράσεως ὀσφύος, καὶ ἕως κάτω, ὡς ὅρασιν πυρός." Ἡ γὰρ θεία φύσις τὴν ἀνθρωπείαν ἔφερεν. "Καὶ τὸ φέγγος αὐτοῦ κύκλῳ. Ὡς ὅρασις τόξου, ὅταν ᾖ ἐν τῇ νεφέλῃ ἐν ἡμέρᾳ ὑετοῦ, οὕτως ἡ ὅρασις τοῦ φέγγου, κυκλόθεν." Καὶ ταῦτα δὲ τῶν θείων δωρεῶν ὑπάρ χει σημαντικά· δίκην γὰρ αἴγλης ἐκεῖθεν ἐξιοῦσαι