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and sat together with Christ, those who are not related to him by nature? But it is impious to say these things. For the divine apostle, when neither the common resurrection had yet happened, nor the kingdom of heaven had been given to those who believed, exclaims: "He raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus," teaching that since our first-fruits has been raised and has received the seat at the right hand, we too shall most certainly attain to the resurrection, and those who share in his nature and have partaken of the faith share in the glory with the first-fruits. {ERAN.} You have gone through many true arguments; but I wished to know the meaning of the gospel saying. {ORTH.} You do not need a foreign interpretation; for the evangelist himself interprets himself. For having said, "The Word became flesh," he added, "And dwelt among us," that is, having dwelt among us and having used the flesh taken from us as a kind of temple, he is said to have become flesh. And teaching that he remained unchanged, he added: "And we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth." For even when clothed in flesh he showed his Father's noble birth, and sent forth the rays of his divinity, and let shine the splendor of his sovereign authority, revealing by his miracles the hidden nature. Similar to these things are what the divine apostle wrote to the Philippians: "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men; and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." See the kinship of the proclamations. The evangelist 90 said, "The Word became flesh," the apostle said, "being made in the likeness of men;" the evangelist has said, "And dwelt among us," the apostle, "taking the form of a servant." The evangelist again said, "We beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father," the apostle, "Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God." And, to put it briefly, both teach that being God and Son of God, and being clothed in the glory of the Father, and having the same nature and power as the one who begot him, he who was in the beginning, and was with God, and was God, and created the creation, took the form of a servant. And he seemed to be only that which was seen; but he was God clothed in human nature and working out the salvation of men. This is what "The Word became flesh" signifies, and "being made in the likeness of men and being found in fashion as a man." For the Jews saw only this, which is why they said to him: "For a good work we do not stone you, but for blasphemy, because you, being a man, make yourself God;" and again: "This man is not from God, because he does not keep the Sabbath." {ERAN.} The Jews were blinded by their own unbelief, and for this reason they used these words. {ORTH.} But if you should find the apostles also saying these things before the resurrection, would you accept the interpretation? {ERAN.} Perhaps I will accept it. {ORTH.} Listen then to them in the boat, after the greatest miracle of the calming of the sea, saying: "What manner of man is this, that even the sea and the winds obey him?" {ERAN.} This has been demonstrated; but tell me this: why ever does the divine apostle say he was made in the likeness of man? {ORTH.} What was taken was not a likeness of man, but the nature of man; for it was the form of a servant. And just as the form of God is understood as the nature of God, so the form of the servant is understood as the nature of a servant. He himself, however, 91 having taken this, was made in the likeness of man, and was found in fashion as a man. For being God, he seemed to be a man because of the nature he had assumed. The

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τε καὶ συνεκάθισε τῷ Χριστῷ, τοὺς μηδὲν αὐτῷ κατὰ φύσιν προσήκοντας; Ἀλλὰ δυσσεβὲς τὸ ταῦτα λέγειν. Ὁ γὰρ θεῖος ἀπόστολος, μηδέπω μηδὲ τῆς κοινῆς ἀναστάσεως γενομένης, μήτε τῆς τῶν οὐρανῶν βασιλείας τοῖς πεπιστευκόσι παρασχεθείσης, βοᾷ· "Συνήγειρε καὶ συνεκάθισεν ἡμᾶς ἐν τοῖς ἐπουρανίοις ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ," διδάσκων ὡς τῆς ἀπαρχῆς ἡμῶν ἀναστάσης καὶ τὴν ἐκ δεξιῶν δεξαμένης καθέδραν, τευξόμεθα καὶ ἡμεῖς πάντως τῆς ἀνα στάσεως, καὶ τῇ ἀπαρχῇ κοινωνοῦσι τῆς δόξης οἱ κοινωνοῦντες τῆς φύσεως καὶ μετειληφότες τῆς πίστεως. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Καὶ πολλοὺς καὶ ἀληθεῖς διεξελήλυθας λόγους· ἀλλ' ἐβουλόμην γνῶναι τοῦ εὐαγγελικοῦ ῥητοῦ τὴν διάνοιαν. {ΟΡΘ.} Οὐ δεῖ σοι ξένης ἑρμηνείας· αὐτὸς γὰρ ὁ εὐαγγελιστὴς ἑαυτὸν ἑρμηνεύει. Εἰπὼν γάρ, "Ὁ λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο," ἐπήγαγε, "Καὶ ἐσκήνωσεν ἐν ἡμῖν," τοῦτ' ἔστιν, ἐν ἡμῖν σκηνώσας καὶ οἷόν τινι ναῷ χρησάμενος τῇ ἐξ ἡμῶν ληφθείσῃ σαρκὶ λέγεται γεγενῆσθαι σάρξ. Καὶ διδάσκων ὡς ἀναλλοίωτος ἔμεινεν ἐπήγαγε· "Καὶ ἐθεασά μεθα τὴν δόξαν αὐτοῦ, δόξαν ὡς μονογενοῦς παρὰ πατρός, πλήρης χάριτος καὶ ἀληθείας." Καὶ σάρκα γὰρ περιβεβλημένος ἐδείκνυ τὴν πατρῴαν εὐγένειαν, καὶ τῆς θεότητος τὰς ἀκτῖνας ἐξέπεμπε, καὶ τῆς δεσποτικῆς ἐξουσίας ἠφίει τὴν αἴγλην, ταῖς θαυματουργίαις ἀπο καλύπτων τὴν λανθάνουσαν φύσιν. Τούτοις ἔοικεν ἃ Φιλιππησίοις ἔγραψεν ὁ θεῖος ἀπόστολος· "Τοῦτο φρονείσθω ἐν ὑμῖν, ὃ καὶ ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ, ὃς ἐν μορφῇ θεοῦ ὑπάρχων οὐχ ἁρπαγμὸν ἡγήσατο τὸ εἶναι ἴσα θεῷ, ἀλλ' ἑαυτὸν ἐκένωσε μορφὴν δούλου λαβών, ἐν ὁμοιώ ματι ἀνθρώπων γενόμενος καὶ σχήματι εὑρεθεὶς ὡς ἄνθρωπος ἐτα πείνωσεν ἑαυτὸν γενόμενος ὑπήκοος μέχρι θανάτου, θανάτου δὲ σταυροῦ." Βλέπε τὴν τῶν κηρυγμάτων συγγένειαν. Ὁ εὐαγγελιστὴς 90 εἶπεν, "Ὁ λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο," ὁ ἀπόστολος ἔφη, "Ἐν ὁμοιώματι ἀνθρώπων γενόμενος·" ὁ εὐαγγελιστὴς εἴρηκε, "Καὶ ἐσκήνωσεν ἐν ἡμῖν," ὁ ἀπόστολος, "Μορφὴν δούλου λαβών." Ὁ εὐαγγελιστὴς πάλιν ἔφη, "Ἐθεασάμεθα τὴν δόξαν αὐτοῦ, δόξαν ὡς μονογενοῦς παρὰ πατρός," ὁ ἀπόστολος, "Ὃς ἐν μορφῇ θεοῦ ὑπάρχων, οὐχ ἁρπαγμὸν ἡγήσατο τὸ εἶναι ἴσα θεῷ." Καί, συλλήβδην εἰπεῖν, ἀμφότεροι διδάσκουσιν ὅτι θεὸς ὢν καὶ θεοῦ υἱός, καὶ τὴν τοῦ πατρὸς περικείμενος δόξαν, καὶ τὴν αὐτὴν ἔχων καὶ φύσιν καὶ δύναμιν τῷ γεννήσαντι, ὁ ἐν ἀρχῇ ὢν καὶ πρὸς τὸν θεὸν ὢν καὶ θεὸς ὤν, καὶ τὴν κτίσιν δημιουργήσας, μορφὴν ἔλαβε δούλου. Καὶ ἐδόκει μὲν τοῦτο μόνον εἶναι ὃ ἑωρᾶτο· ἦν δὲ θεὸς ἀνθρωπείαν περικείμενος φύσιν καὶ τὴν τῶν ἀνθρώπων πραγματευόμενος σωτηρίαν. Τοῦτο δηλοῖ τό, "̔Ο λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο," καὶ τό, "Ἐν ὁμοιώματι ἀνθρώπων γενό μενος καὶ σχήματι εὑρεθεὶς ὡς ἄνθρωπος." Τοῦτο γὰρ μόνον ἔβλεπον οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι, διὸ καὶ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἔλεγον· "Περὶ καλοῦ ἔργου οὐ λιθάζομέν σε, ἀλλὰ περὶ βλασφημίας, ὅτι ἄνθρωπος ὢν ποιεῖς σεαυ τὸν θεόν·" καὶ πάλιν· "Οὗτος ὁ ἄνθρωπος οὐκ ἔστιν ἀπὸ θεοῦ, ὅτι τὸ σάββατον οὐ τηρεῖ." {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ἰουδαῖοι διὰ τὴν σφετέραν ἐτύφλωττον ἀπιστίαν, καὶ τούτου χάριν τούτοις ἐχρῶντο τοῖς λόγοις. {ΟΡΘ.} Εἰ δὲ καὶ τοὺς ἀποστόλους εὕροις πρὸ τῆς ἀναστάσεως ταῦτα λέγοντας, δέχῃ τὴν ἑρμηνείαν; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ἴσως δέξομαι. {ΟΡΘ.} Ἄκουσον τοίνυν αὐτῶν ἐν τῷ πλοίῳ μετὰ τὴν μεγίστην τῆς γαλήνης θαυματουργίαν λεγόντων· "Ποταπός ἐστιν ὁ ἄνθρωπος οὗτος, ὅτι καὶ ἡ θάλασσα καὶ οἱ ἄνεμοι ὑπακούουσιν αὐτῷ;" {ΕΡΑΝ.} Τοῦτο μὲν ἀποδέδεικται· ἐκεῖνο δέ μοι εἰπέ· τί δήποτε ὁ θεῖος ἀπόστολος ἐν ὁμοιώματι αὐτὸν ἀνθρώπου γεγενῆσθαι λέγει; {ΟΡΘ.} Τὸ ληφθὲν οὐχ ὁμοίωμα ἀνθρώπου, ἀλλὰ φύσις ἀνθρώπου· μορφὴ γὰρ δούλου. Καθάπερ δὲ ἡ μορφὴ τοῦ θεοῦ φύσις νοεῖται θεοῦ, οὕτως ἡ μορφὴ τοῦ δούλου φύσις νοεῖται δούλου. Αὐτὸς μέντοι ὁ 91 ταύτην λαβὼν ἐν ὁμοιώματι ἀνθρώπου ἐγένετο, καὶ ἐν σχήματι εὑρέθη ὡς ἄνθρωπος. Θεὸς γὰρ ὢν ἐδόκει ἄνθρωπος εἶναι δι' ἣν ἀνείληφε φύσιν. Ὁ