of the eleventh. And since choice, not time, is examined, which one has made in faith; for this reason to those who have done what is required from the time they were called is given the equal reward of salvation; the denarius, the spirit of the divine and most royal image, which was stolen at the beginning by the evil one through deceit during the transgression of the commandment, through which it seems to me to suggest the token of the kingdom itself, because the stamp of the denarius signifies the imprinted image of a king. Since, therefore, all those who have come to the vineyard, and the way of life of godliness, and have undertaken one and the same labor, it was just for them to partake of the same kingdom; for this reason the denarius, the symbol of the Kingdom, is fittingly given to all; of whom some were called in youth, others about the age of a young man, others about the middle time of human life, others having already reached and passed the age of a mature man; and others finally as old men, aged, and at the setting of their life. And one might say, explaining it differently, that the things shown by the parable apply to those from the beginning, from the first constitution of the world until the consummation of the age who are deemed worthy of the divine calling. So as to say that they were called early in the morning to the work of godliness the first ones who were saved at the beginning of the world 17.361; and second, those around Enoch and Noah; those at the third hour, those around Abraham; those at the sixth, those in the times of the prophets; and those at the eleventh, those after the saving theophany. That all of these indeed will be deemed worthy of one and the same reward indicated by the denarius, just as it is referred to the kingdom of God. All these intervals are equal in number to the senses. And touch is the first calling; whence it was said concerning the plant, You shall not touch it; and smell at the second; whence in the time of Noah the Lord smelled a fragrant aroma; and taste at the time of Abraham; for which reason he also sets before the angels cakes and a calf; and hearing in the time of Moses, when the voice of God was heard from heaven; and sight, the most honorable of all the senses, at the coming of Christ; when they saw Christ with their blessed eyes. And evening is the consummation of the age, when the last workers receive the reward first. For those who were formerly attested through faith did not receive the promise. For we, the acquaintances of Christ, expect to receive the reward first. CH. 14. V. 12; He also said to the one who had invited him: When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends, nor your brothers, nor your relatives, nor rich neighbors; lest they also invite you in return, and it become a repayment for you. V. 13. But when you give a reception, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind. V. 14. And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just. But we are not commanded literally not to invite friends and neighbors, but the poor and crippled, the lame and the blind. But mystically, perhaps friends would be those who, like us, rejoice in the doctrines of truth; brothers, those who hold brotherly doctrines; relatives, those who wish to be near us in these things; neighbors, those who are not encamped entirely far from our doctrines. And the term 'rich' must be understood in a general sense. Those therefore who announce hearings invite rich and poor; but he who serves the word for the sake of true glory has been set free from vainglory. And he invites the poor, that is, those inexperienced in words, that he might enrich them; the crippled, that is, those damaged in mind, that he might heal them; the lame, those who stumble in the word, that they might make straight paths; the blind, those who do not possess the contemplative faculty, that they might see the true light. And the phrase, 'They cannot repay you,' is equivalent to: They do not know how to carry on a discussion dialectically, with question or answer. V. 18. And they all at once began 17.364 to make excuses; that is, as if from one signal. The first said
τῆς ἑνδεκάτης. Καὶ ἐπεὶ προαίρεσις, οὐ χρόνος, ἐξετάζεται, ὃν ἐν πίστει πεποίηκέ τις· διὰ τοῦτο τοῖς ἐξ οὗ κέκληνται τὰ ἐπιβάλλοντα πεποιηκόσι δίδοται ὁ ἴσος τῆς σωτη ρίας μισθός· τὸ συλαθὲν κατ' ἀρχὰς ὑπὸ τοῦ πο νηροῦ δι' ἀπάτης κατὰ τὴν τῆς ἐντολῆς παράβασιν πνὶξ τῆς θείας καὶ βασιλικωτάτης εἰκόνος δη νάριον, δι' οὗ δοκεῖ μοι τὸ γνώρισμα τῆς βασιλείας αὐτῆς ὑποφαίνειν, ὅτι βασιλέως ἐντετυπωμένην εἰ κόνα τοῦ δηναρίου τὸ χάραγμα σημαίνει. Ἐπειδὴ τοίνυν πάντας τοὺς ἐπὶ τὸν ἀμπελῶνα, καὶ τὸ τῆς θεοσεβείας πολίτευμα παρελθόντας, μιᾶς τε καὶ τῆς αὐτῆς ἐργασίας ἁψαμένους, τῆς αὐτῆς βασιλείας μετασχεῖν ἦν δίκαιον· τούτου χάριν εἰκότως τοῖς πᾶσι τῆς Βασιλείας τὸ σύμβολον τὸ δηνάριον ἀποδίδοται· ὧν οἱ μὲν ἐν νεότητι ἐκλήθησαν, οἱ δὲ ἀμφὶ τὴν τοῦ νεα νίου ἡλικίαν, οἱ δὲ περὶ τὸν μέσον τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ζωῆς χρόνον, οἱ δὲ τὸν ἄνδρα τέλειον ἤδη καὶ ὑπερβεβη κότα ἀνειληφότες· οἱ δὲ κατὰ τὸν πρεσβύτην αὐτὸν γηραλέοι λοιπὸν, καὶ περὶ δυσμὰς ἔχοντες τοῦ βίου. Εἴποι δ' ἄν τις καὶ ἑτέρως ἐξηγούμενος ἐφαρμότ τειν τὰ τῆς παραβολῆς δηλούμενα, τοῖς ἀνέκαθεν ἐκ πρώτης τοῦ βίου συστάσεως μέχρι συντελείας τοῦ αἰῶνος καταξιουμένοις τῆς ἐνθέου κλήσεως. Ὥστε ἅμα πρωὶ κεκλῆσθαι λέγειν ἐπὶ τὴν τῆς θεο σεβείας ἐργασίαν τοὺς κατὰ τὴν ἀρχὴν τοῦ βίου 17.361 πρώτους διασωθέντας· δευτέρους δὲ τοὺς ἀμφὶ τὸν Ἐνὼχ καὶ Νῶε· τοὺς περὶ τὴν τρίτην τοὺς ἀμφὶ τὸν Ἀβραάμ· τοὺς δὲ περὶ τὴν ἕκτην τοὺς ἐν τοῖς χρό νοις τῶν προφητῶν· τοὺς δὲ περὶ τὴν ἑνδεκάτην τοὺς μετὰ τὴν σωτήριον θεοφάνειαν. Οὓς δὴ πάντας καταξιωθήσεσθαι ἑνὸς καὶ τοῦ αὐτοῦ μισθοῦ κατὰ τὸ δηνάριον δεδηλωμένους, ὥσπερ εἰς τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ βασιλείαν ἀναφέρεται. Τὰ πάντα ταῦτα διαστήματα ἰσάριθμα ταῖς αἰ σθήσεσι. Καὶ ἁφὴ μὲν ἔστιν ἡ πρώτη κλῆσις· ὅθεν εἴρηται περὶ τοῦ φυτοῦ, Οὐ μὴ ἅψησθε αὐτοῦ· ὄσφρησις δὲ κατὰ τὴν δευτέραν· ὅθεν ἐπὶ τοῦ Νῶε ὠσφράνθη Κύριος ὀσμὴν εὐωδίας· γεῦσις δὲ κατὰ τὸν Ἀβραάμ· διὸ καὶ τοῖς ἀγγέλοις ἐγκρυ φίας παρατίθησι καὶ μόσχον· ἀκοὴ δὲ ἐπὶ Μωϋσέως, ὅτε ἀκουστὴ γέγονεν ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ἡ φωνὴ τοῦ Θεοῦ· ὅρασις δὲ ἡ πασῶν τῶν αἰσθήσεων τιμιωτέρα, κατὰ τὴν τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐπιδημίαν· ὅτε ἑωράκασι τὸν Χριστὸν τοῖς μακαρίοις ὀφθαλμοῖς. Ὀψία δὲ ἡ συντέλεια τοῦ αἰῶνος, ὅτε οἱ ἐργάται οἱ ἔσχατοι πρῶτοι τὸν μισθὸν λαμβάνουσιν. Οἱ γὰρ πρότερον μαρτυρηθέντες διὰ τῆς πίστεως οὐκ ἐκομίσαντο τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν. Πρῶτοι γὰρ τὸν μισθὸν ἀπολή ψεσθαι προσδοκῶμεν οἱ Χριστοῦ γνώριμοι. ΚΕΦ. Ι∆ʹ. Στίχ. ιβʹ· Ἔλεγε καὶ τῷ κεκληκότι αὐτόν· Ὅταν ποιῇς ἄριστον ἢ δεῖπνον, μὴ φώνει τοὺς φί λους σου, μηδὲ τοὺς ἀδελφούς σου, μηδὲ τοὺς συγγενεῖς σου, μηδὲ γείτονας πλουσίους· μή ποτε καὶ αὐτοὶ ἀντικαλέσωσι, καὶ γένηταί σοι ἀνταπόδομα. Στίχ. ιγʹ. Ἀλλ' ὅταν ποιῇς δοχὴν, κάλει πτωχοὺς, ἀναπήρους, χωλοὺς, τυφλούς. Στίχ. ιδʹ. Καὶ μακάριος ἔσῃ, ὅταν οὐκ ἔχωσιν ἀνταποδοῦναί σοι. Ἀνταποδοθήσεται γάρ σοι ἐν τῇ ἀναστάσει τῶν δικαίων. Ἀλλ' οὔτε μὲν κατὰ τὸ ῥητὸν κελευόμεθα μὴ φί λους καλεῖν καὶ γείτονας, ἀλλὰ πτωχοὺς καὶ ἀναπή ρους, χωλοὺς καὶ τυφλούς. Μυστικῶς δὲ τάχα φίλοι μὲν εἶεν ἂν οἱ χαίροντες καθ' ἡμᾶς τοῖς τῆς ἀλη θείας δόγμασιν· ἀδελφοὶ δὲ οἱ ἔχοντες ἀδελφὰ δόγμα τα· συγγενεῖς οἱ πλησιάζειν ἡμῖν κατὰ ταῦτα θέ λοντες· γείτονες οἱ μὴ πάντα μακρὰν τῶν ἡμετέρων δογμάτων ἐσκηνωμένοι. Κατὰ κοινοῦ δὲ τὸ πλου σίους ἀκουστέον. Οἱ μὲν οὖν ἀκροάσεις καταγέλλον τες πλουσίους καὶ πτωχοὺς καλοῦσιν· ὁ δὲ πρὸς δόξαν ἀληθῆ διακονῶν τῷ λόγῳ κενοδοξίας ἀπήλλα κται. Καλεῖ δὲ πτωχοὺς, τουτέστιν ἀπείρους λόγων, ἵνα πλουτίσῃ· ἀναπήρους, τουτέστι βεβλαμμένους τὸ φρόνημα, ἵνα ὑγιάσῃ· χωλοὺς τοὺς σκάζοντας τῷ λόγῳ, ἵνα ὀρθὰς τροχιὰς ποιῶσι· τυφλοὺς τοὺς τὸ θεωρητικὸν μὴ ἔχοντας, ἵνα βλέπωσι τὸ φῶς τὸ ἀληθινόν. Τὸ δὲ, Οὐκ ἔχουσιν ἀνταποδοῦναί σοι, ἴσον ἐστὶ τῷ· Οὐκ ἴσασι πρὸς ἐρώτησιν ἢ ἀπόκρισιν διεξάγειν λόγον, καὶ διαλεκτικῶς. Στίχ. ιηʹ. Καὶ ἤρξαντο ἀπὸ μιᾶς παραιτεῖσθαι 17.364 πάντες· τουτέστιν, ὡς ἐξ ἑνὸς συνθήματος. Ὁ πρῶτος εἶπεν