of his lord, that is, the one from Israel, but the unclean animal, the one from the nations. 14.83 «<That he> died,» Christ, «he died to sin,» not because he sinned—»for he committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in his mouth»—but [that] he died, so that we who died with him, when he died «to sin,» might no longer live «to sin.» For which reason it is said: «if we have died with him, we will also live with him»; therefore, just as we died with him when he died then, so we were circumcised with him when he was circumcised then; and after that circumcision, there was an economy through the former purification. For this reason we are no longer circumcised, because his circumcision was for our sake; 14.84 «in whom you were circumcised,» says Paul, «with a circumcision not made with hands, in the putting off of the body of the flesh, in the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith.» Therefore, his death also happened for us, and the resurrection and the circumcision. And necessarily the evangelist noted, saying: «his name was called Jesus, which was called by the angel.» For it was not fitting for it to be first named by men nor to be glorified by <them>, but by beings superior to the nature of men, for the adorable and honorable name «above every name» to be named. 14.85 And if it were stated for «the purification» of Mary alone, we would seek nothing; but now it says «their purification.» Does Jesus then also need purification? But see the boldness of the statement; remember what was said mystically in Job: «No one is clean from filth, not even if his life on earth is one day»; it did not say: from sin, but: «from filth.» That they are not the same, Isaiah says: «the Lord will wash away the filth of the sons and daughters of Zion, and will cleanse the blood from their midst»; 14.86 therefore every soul clothed in a human body is defiled. Hear Zechariah: «Jesus was clothed in filthy garments.» And the saying is useful also against those who say that the Savior did not take human flesh, but brought a spiritual body from heaven, <thinking> the spiritual body was defiled. 14.87 <For since> they will be able to say <these things and> will accept this, see them say that in the promises, when «it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body» is fulfilled, we are raised defiled, which ought not to be said. Therefore the Savior, as one «clothed in filthy garments»—the human and earthly body—needed purification to be offered for him as well. Infants are baptized «for the forgiveness of sins.» Of what sins? For when 14.88 did they sin? But perhaps, since «no one is clean from filth,» and one puts away filth through the mystery of baptism, for this reason infants are also baptized. But mystically «the days» are being fulfilled; for the purification is not at the same time as the birth, but just as it is written in the law: «that if a male is born, for seven days she is set apart in unclean blood, then for thirty-three in clean blood,» both she and the child, thus, since «the law has a shadow of the good things to come,» it is possible to see a purification taking place at some later time; and perhaps if we rise from the dead, we <need the> mystery that cleanses us ... I wonder if anyone rises pure of all filth; therefore in <this> rebirth 14.89 there will be such a mystery of purification, which Jesus performed at his birth. Therefore the males, being holy <since> opening the womb, had to be offered to the Lord at the altar, but Christ alone 14.90 opened a womb, being born of a virgin; for nothing else before Christ touched that holy womb; but of all the firstborn, even if they are firstborn, they do not open the womb first, but the husband. 15.92 As one who is in the prison of the body and sees that no one releases him from it, so as to be released from the world with hope, except for him whom he himself held «in his arms,» he says: «now you are releasing your servant according to your word.» 15.93 And see the addition, the «in peace»; he does not simply say: to be released 15.94

τοῦ κυρίου αὐτοῦ, ἤγουν ὁ ἐξ Ἰσραήλ, ἀλλὰ τὸ ἀκάθαρτον ζῷον, τὸ ἀπὸ τῶν ἐθνῶν. 14.83 «<Ὃ> ἀπέθανεν» Χριστός, «τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ ἀπέθανεν», οὐχ ὅτι ἥμαρ τεν-»οὐδὲ γὰρ ἁμαρτίαν ἐποίησεν οὐδὲ εὑρέθη δόλος ἐν τῷ στόματι αὐτοῦ»-ἀλλ' [ὅτι] ἀπέθανεν, ἵνα ἡμεῖς οἱ συναποθανόντες αὐτῷ, αὐ τοῦ ἀποθανόντος «τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ», μη κέτι ζῶμεν «τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ». ∆ι' ὃ λέ γεται· «εἰ συναπεθάνομεν, καὶ συν ζήσομεν»· ὥσπερ οὖν συναπεθάνο μεν αὐτῷ ἀποθνήσκοντι τότε, οὕ τω περιετμήθημεν αὐτῷ περιετμη θέντι τότε· καὶ μετὰ τὴν περιτομὴν αὐτὴν γέγονεν οἰκονομία ἡ διὰ τοῦ προτέρου καθαρισμοῦ. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ἡμεῖς οὐκέτι περιτεμνόμεθα, ὅτι ἡ περιτομὴ αὐτοῦ δι' ἡμᾶς γεγένηται· 14.84 «ἐν ᾧ περιετμήθητε», φησὶν ὁ Παῦλος, «περιτομῇ ἀχειροποιήτῳ ἐν τῇ ἀπεκδύσει τοῦ σώματος τῆς σαρ κός, ἐν τῇ περιτομῇ τοῦ Χριστοῦ, συνταφέντες αὐτῷ ἐν τῷ βαπτίσματι, ἐν ᾧ καὶ συνηγέρθητε διὰ τῆς πί στεως». Οὐκοῦν καὶ ὁ θάνατος αὐ τοῦ ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν γέγονεν, καὶ ἡ ἀνά στασις καὶ ἡ περιτομή. Ἀναγκαίως δὲ ἐπεσημήνατο ὁ εὐαγγελιστὴς λέγων· «ἐκλήθη τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἰησοῦς τὸ κληθὲν ὑπὸ τοῦ ἀγγέλου». Οὐκ ἔδει γὰρ ἀπ' ἀνθρώπων πρῶτον κληθῆναι οὐδὲ ἀπ' <αὐτῶν> δοξασθῆναι, ἀλλ' ἀπὸ κρειττόνων παρὰ τὴν τῶν ἀν θρώπων φύσιν καὶ κληθῆναι τὸ προσκυνητὸν ὄνομα καὶ ἔντιμον καὶ «ὑπὲρ πᾶν ὄνομα». 14.85 Εἰ δὲ ἔκειτο ὑπὲρ «τοῦ καθαρισ μοῦ» Μαρίας μόνης, οὐδὲν ἐζητοῦμεν· νυνὶ δὲ «τοῦ καθαρισμοῦ αὐτῶν» φη σιν. Ἆρ' οὖν καὶ Ἰησοῦς δεῖται καθαρισμοῦ; Ἀλλ' ὅρα τὸ τόλμημα τοῦ λόγου· μνήσθητι τῶν εἰρημένων ἐν τῷ Ἰὼβ μυστικῶς· «οὐδεὶς κα θαρὸς ἀπὸ ῥύπου, οὐδ' ἂν μία ἡμέρα ἡ ζωὴ αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς»· οὐκ εἶπεν· ἀπὸ ἁμαρτίας, ἀλλ'· «ἀπὸ ῥύπου». Ὅτι καὶ οὐ ταὐτά, λέγει Ἡσαίας· «ἐκπλυνεῖ κύριος τὸν ῥύπον τῶν υἱῶν καὶ τῶν θυγατέρων Σιών, καὶ τὸ αἷμα ἐκκαθαριεῖ ἐκ μέσου αὐτῶν»· 14.86 ἐρρύπωται οὖν πᾶσα ψυχὴ ἐν δεδυμένη σῶμα ἀνθρώπινον. Ἄκουε Ζαχαρίου· «Ἰησοῦς ἦν ἐνδε- δυμένος ἱμάτια ῥυπαρά». Τὸ δὲ ῥητὸν χρήσιμον καὶ πρὸς τοὺς λέγοντας, ὅτι ὁ σωτὴρ οὐκ ἔλαβε σάρκα ἀν θρωπίνην, ἀλλ' ἤνεγκεν ἀπὸ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ πνευματικὸν σῶμα, τὸ πνευματικὸν σῶμα ἐρρυπωμένον <νομίζοντας. 14.87 Ἐπεὶ> γὰρ λέγειν δυνήσον ται <ταῦτα καὶ> τοῦτο παραδέ ξονται, ὅρα αὐτοὺς λέγειν, ὅτι ἐν ταῖς ἐπαγγελίαις, ὅταν πληρωθῇ τό· «σπείρεται σῶμα ψυχικόν, ἐγείρεται σῶμα πνευματικόν», ἐγειρόμεθα ἐρρυπωμένοι, ὅπερ μὴ δεῖ λέγειν. Ἐδεήθη οὖν ὁ σωτήρ, ὡς «ἐνδε δυμένος ἱμάτια ῥυπαρὰ» τὸ σῶμα τὸ ἀνθρώπινον καὶ γήϊνον, τοῦ προσ ενεχθῆναι καὶ περὶ αὐτοῦ καθαρισμόν. Τὰ παιδία βαπτίζεται «εἰς ἄφεσιν ἁμαρτημάτων». Ποίων; Πότε γὰρ 14.88 ἥμαρτον; Ἀλλὰ μήποτε, ἐπεὶ «οὐ δεὶς καθαρὸς ἀπὸ ῥύπου», τὸν ῥύπον δὲ ἀποτίθεταί τις διὰ τοῦ μυστηρίου τοῦ βαπτίσματος, διὰ τοῦτο καὶ τὰ παιδία βαπτίζεται. Μυστικῶς δὲ «ἡ μέραι» πληρούμεναι· οὐ γὰρ ἅμα τῇ γενέσει ὁ καθαρισμός, ἀλλ' ὥσπερ γέγραπται ἐν τῷ νόμῳ· «ὅτι ἐὰν τεχθῇ ἄρσεν, ἑπτὰ ἡμέρας καθιεῖται ἐν αἵματι ἀκαθάρτῳ, εἶτα τριάκοντα τρεῖς ἐπὶ αἵματι καθαρῷ» καὶ αὐτὴ καὶ τὸ παιδίον, οὕτως, ἐπεὶ «ὁ νόμος σκιὰν ἔχει τῶν μελλόντων ἀγαθῶν», ἔστιν ἰδεῖν καθαρισμὸν γινόμενον ὕστερόν πο τε· τάχα δὲ ἐὰν ἀναστῶμεν ἐκ νε κρῶν, <δεόμεθα τοῦ> μυστηρίου <τοῦ> καθαίροντος ἡμᾶς ... θαυμάζω, εἴ τις ἀνίσταται παντὸς ῥύπου καθαρεύων· ἐν <τῇ> παλιγγενεσίᾳ 14.89 οὖν ταύτῃ τοιοῦτόν τι ἔσται μυ στήριον καθαρισμοῦ, ὅπερ ἐποίησεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἐπὶ τῆς γενέσεως αὐτοῦ. Τὰ οὖν ἀρσενικὰ ἅγια ὄντα <ἅτε> μήτραν ἀνοίγοντα ἔδει ἀναφέρεσθαι κυρίῳ παρὰ τῷ θυσιαστηρίῳ, μόνος 14.90 δὲ Χριστὸς διήνοιξεν μήτραν ἐκ παρ θένου τεχθείς· οὐδὲν γὰρ ἄλλο πρὸ τοῦ Χριστοῦ τῆς μήτρας ἐκείνης τῆς ἱερᾶς ἥψατο· πάντων δὲ τὰ πρω τότοκα, εἰ καὶ πρωτότοκά ἐστιν, ἀλλ' οὐ διανοίγουσιν αὐτὰ πρῶτα τὴν μήτραν, ἀλλ' ὁ σύμβιος. 15.92 Ὡς ἐν δεσμωτηρίῳ ὢν τοῦ σώ ματος καὶ ὁρῶν, ὅτι οὐδεὶς αὐτὸν λύει ἀπ' αὐτοῦ, ὥστε μετ' ἐλπίδος ἀπολυθῆναι τοῦ κόσμου, ἢ ἐκεῖνος, ὃν αὐτὸς κατέσχεν «εἰς τὰς ἀγκάλας» αὐτοῦ, φησίν· «νῦν ἀπολύεις τὸν δοῦ λόν σου κατὰ τὸ ῥῆμά σου». 15.93 Καὶ ἴδε τὴν προσθήκην, τὸ «ἐν εἰρήνῃ»· οὐχ ἁπλῶς φησιν· ἀπολυ 15.94 θῆναι