16

he will be cleansed in soul and body. For this is the new and white garments. and he says to anoint your eyes with eye-salve, that you may see. to some of those who are dim-sighted concerning the spiritual light of the Lord, a chiding saying of Jeremiah says: Behold, your eyes are not nor is your heart good. For this reason he advises to undergo the repentance that encompasses such a blindness, just as the fruitless fig tree the public shaming by means of dung and a more dishonorable treatment. I, he says, whom I love, I rebuke and chasten. O the exceeding greatness of the love of Christ. For he professes to love these, being such as the word has described them, wherefore he both rebukes and chastens them to be zealous for better works, and to repent for those things in which they have sinned. Behold, he says, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with me. The Lord shows his own meekness and peacefulness. For the Devil with an axe and a stone-cutter's hammer shatters the doors of those who do not receive him, according to the voice of the prophet. But the Lord both now and in the Song of Songs says to the bride, Open to me, my sister, my bride. And if anyone opens to him, he enters. The supper with the Lord signifies the 67 communion of the holy mysteries. To the one who conquers, he says, the enemy, I will give to sit on my throne, that is, he will reign with me. For it has been said by the most wise Paul, if we suffer with him, we shall also reign with him. As I also have conquered, he says, and reign with my Father. For the Lord has also said in the Gospels: Take heart, I have overcome the world. And after these things I saw, and behold, a door opened in heaven; and the first voice which I heard as of a trumpet speaking with me, saying, Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things. Immediately I was in the spirit; and behold, a throne was set in heaven, and on the throne one seated, like an emerald in appearance. Not because there is some door in heaven that is at times closed and opened, but thus it appeared to the evangelist so that he might see the things above heaven. For when any door is opened, the things inside are necessarily seen. And I heard a voice, he says, which, sounding like a trumpet, said these things to me: Come up here, he says, so that you may see the things that are to come. And having ascended in spirit—for the ascent was not bodily nor perceptible to the senses—I see, he says, a throne, and God, and a spirit upon it like jasper and sardius. Not like these is God, far from it, nor like any of the perceptible things, or a body at all is the invisible and bodiless and formless one, whose invisibility the Seraphim show, covering their own faces with their wings. And to Moses also, when giving an oracle, God said: 68 no one shall see my face and live. But also the evangelist himself, as in a negation, says: No one has ever seen God. Therefore God was not seen as like anything, but from the energies of God his appearance was depicted in the revelation. For the jasper. This is a precious stone, somewhat emerald-like and green, resembling the venom of an asp, from which it also got its name. The sardius is another precious stone, fiery and blood-red. The jasper signifies to us the life-giving and providing nature of God, since also all food of men and of four-footed animals and of birds and of crawling beasts has its origin, and as it were its cause, beginning from green grass. For the prophet says: who makes grass to grow for the cattle, and green herb for the service of men, to bring forth bread from the earth. And wine gladdens the heart of man, to make his face cheerful with oil. And again in the creation of the world God says: Let the earth bring forth grass; the herb yielding seed according to its kind. The jasper, therefore, lays bare these things. But the sardius describes the fearful aspect of God; for our God is a consuming fire, says the hierophant Moses, but also the prophet cries out to him: you are terrible and who shall stand against you before your face? In harmony with this the wise apostle writes: It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

16

καθαρισθήσεται ψυχὴν καὶ σῶμα. τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι τὰ καινὰ καὶ λευκὰ ἱμάτια. καὶ κουλλούριόν φησιν ἐγχρῖσαι τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς σου, ἵνα βλέπῃς. πρός τινας τῶν ἀμβλυωπούντων περὶ τὸ νοητὸν τοῦ Κυρίου φῶς, ἐπονειδίζουσα ῥῆσις Ἱερεμίου φησίν· ἰδού, οὔκ εἰσιν οἱ ὀφθαλμοί σου οὐδὲ ἡ καρδία σου καλή. διὰ τοῦτο τὴν συνεκτικὴν τῆς τοιαύτης πηρώσεως μετάνοιαν ὑπελθεῖν συμβουλεύεται, ὥσπερ καὶ ἡ ἄκαρπος συκῆ τὴν διὰ τῶν κοπρίων ἐξαγόρευσιν καὶ ἀτιμοτέραν διαγωγήν. ἐγώ φησιν οὓς ἂν φιλῶ, ἐλέγχω καὶ παιδεύω. ὦ τοῦ ὑπερβάλλοντος μεγέθους τῆς ἀγάπης τοῦ Χριστοῦ. τούτους γὰρ τοιούτους ὄντας οἵους ὁ λόγος ἔγραψεν, ἀγαπᾶν ἐπαγγέλλεται, διὸ ἐλέγχει τε καὶ παιδεύει καὶ ζηλοῦν τὰ τῶν ἔργων κρείττονα, καὶ μετανοεῖν ἐφ' οἷς ἐξήμαρτον. ἰδού φησιν ἕστηκα ἐπὶ τὴν θύραν καὶ κρούω. ἐάν τις ἀκούσῃ τῆς φωνῆς μου καὶ ἀνοίξῃ τὴν θύραν, εἰσελεύσομαι πρὸς αὐτὸν καὶ δειπνήσω μετ' αὐτοῦ καὶ αὐτὸς μετ' ἐμοῦ. τὸ πρᾶον καὶ εἰρηνικὸν ὁ Κύριος ἐνδείκνυται τὸ ἑαυτοῦ. ὁ μὲν γὰρ ∆ιάβολος πελέκει καὶ λαξευτηρίῳ κατεάσσει τὰς θύρας τῶν μὴ δεχομένων αὐτὸν κατὰ τὴν τοῦ προφήτου φωνήν. ὁ δὲ Κύριος καὶ νῦν καὶ ἐν Τοῖς Ἄσμασιν τῇ νύμφῃ φησὶν ἄνοιξόν μοι, ἀδελφή μου νύμφη. καὶ εἰ μέν τις ἀνοίξει αὐτῷ, εἰσέρχεται. τὸ δὲ δεῖπνον τὸ μετὰ τοῦ Κυρίου τὴν 67 τῶν ἁγίων μυστηρίων μετάληψιν αἰνίττεται. τῷ νικῶντί φησιν τὸν ἐχθρόν, δώσω καθίσαι ἐν τῷ θρόνῳ μου, τουτέστι, συμβασιλεύσει μοι. εἴρηται γὰρ τῷ σοφωτάτῳ Παύλῳ, εἰ συμπάσχομεν, καὶ συμβασιλεύσομεν αὐτῷ. ὡς καὶ ἐγὼ ἐνίκησά φησι, καὶ συμβασιλεύω τῷ Πατρί μου. εἴρηκεν γὰρ καὶ ἐν Εὐαγγελίοις ὁ Κύριος· θαρσεῖτε, ἐγὼ νενίκηκα τὸν κόσμον. καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα εἶδον, καὶ ἰδού, θύρα ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ ἀνεωγ μένη· καὶ ἡ φωνὴ ἡ πρώτη ἣν ἤκουσα ὡς σάλπιγγος λαλοῦσα μετ' ἐμοῦ, λέγων ἀνάβα ὧδε, καὶ δείξω σοι ἃ δεῖ γενέσθαι μετὰ ταῦτα. εὐθέως ἐγενόμην ἐν πνεύματι· καὶ ἰδού, θρόνος ἔκειτο ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, καὶ ἐπὶ τὸν θρόνον καθή μενος ὅμοιος ὁράσει σμαραγδίῳ. οὐκ ἐπειδὴ θύρα τίς ἐστιν ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ κατὰ καιρὸν κλειομένη καὶ ἀνοιγομένη, ἀλλ' οὕτως ὤφθη τῷ εὐαγγελιστῇ ἵνα ἴδῃ τὰ ὑπερουρανία. πάσης γὰρ θύρας ἀνεωγμένης, τὰ ἔνδον ἐπάναγκες καθορᾶσθαι. καὶ φωνὴν ἤκουσά φησιν, ἥτις ὡς σάλπιγξ ἠχήσας τάδε εἶπε πρός με· ἀνάβηθί φησιν ὧδε ἵνα ἴδῃς τὰ μέλλοντα ἔσεσθαι. καὶ ἐν πνεύματι ἀνελθώνοὐ γὰρ σωματικὴ οὐδ' αἰσθητὴ γέγονεν ἡ ἄνοδοςὁρῶ φησιν, θρόνον, καὶ τὸν Θεόν, καὶ πνεῦμα ἐπ' αὐτῷ ὅμοιον ἰάσπιδι καὶ σαρδίῳ. οὐ τούτοις ὅμοιος ὁ Θεός, ἄπαγε, οὐδέ τινι τῶν αἰσθητῶν, ἢ ὅλως σώματι ὁ ἀόρατος καὶ ἀσώματος καὶ ἀσχημάτιστος, οὗ τὸ ἀόρατον τὰ Σεραφὶμ ἐνδεικνύμενα σκέπουσι ταῖς πτέρυξι τὰ πρόσωπα ἑαυτῶν. καὶ τῷ Μωϋσεῖ δὲ χρηματίζων ὁ Θεὸς ἔλεγεν· 68 οὐδεὶς ὄψεταί μου τὸ πρόσωπόν μου καὶ ζήσεται. ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ εὐαγγελιστὴς ὡς ἐν ἀποφάσει φησί· Θεὸν οὐδεὶς ἑώρακε πώποτε. οὐκ ἄρα οὖν ὤφθη ὅμοιός τινι ὁ Θεός, ἀλλ' ἐκ τῶν ἐνεργειῶν τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡ ὅρασις αὐτοῦ ἐζωγραφήθη τῇ ἀποκαλύψει. ἡ μὲν γὰρ ἴασπις. λίθος δὲ αὕτη τιμία σμαραγδοειδής τίς ἐστιν καὶ χλοερά, ἰῷ ἀσπίδος προσεοικυῖα, ἐξ οὗ καὶ τὸ ὄνομα ἐκληρώσατο. τὸ δὲ σάρδιον ἄλλη τιμία λίθος, πυραυγῆς καὶ αἱματώδης. αἰνίττεται δὲ ἡμῖν ἡ ἴασπις τὸ φερέσβιον τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ ποριστικόν, ἐπεὶ καὶ πᾶσα τροφὴ ἀνθρώπων τε καὶ τετραπόδων καὶ πτηνῶν καὶ τῶν ἑρπηστικῶν θηρίων τὴν ἀρχὴν, καὶ οἷον τὴν αἰτίαν, ἀπὸ χλόης ἀρχομένην ἔχει. φησὶ γὰρ ὁ προφήτης· ἐξανατέλλων χόρτον τοῖς κτήνεσι καὶ χλόην τῇ δουλείᾳ τῶν ἀνθρώπων, τοῦ ἐξαγαγεῖν ἄρτον ἐκ τῆς γῆς. καὶ οἶνος εὐφραίνει καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου, τοῦ ἱλαρῦναι πρόσωπον ἐν ἐλαίῳ. καὶ πάλιν ἐν τῇ κοσμοποιίᾳ φησὶν ὁ Θεός· ἐξαγαγέτω ἡ γῆ βοτάνην χόρτου· σπεῖρον σπέρμα κατὰ γένος. ἡ μὲν οὖν ἴασπις ταῦτα παραγυμνοῖ. τὸ δέ γε σάρδιον τὸ φοβερὸν γράφει τοῦ Θεοῦ· ὁ Θεὸς ἡμῶν γὰρ πῦρ καταναλίσκον φησὶν ὁ ἱεροφάντης Μωσῆς, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὁ προφήτης πρὸς αὐτὸν ἀναφωνεῖ· σὺ φοβερὸς εἶ καὶ τίς ἀντιστήσεταί σοι κατὰ πρόσωπόν σου; τούτῳ συμφώνως ὁ σοφὸς ἀπόστολος γράφει· φοβερὸν τὸ ἐμπεσεῖν εἰς χεῖρας Θεοῦ ζῶντος.