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your works, it shall bring forth thorns and thistles to you”), and by the gall taking upon himself the bitter and painful mortal and passible life of men; and by the vinegar accepting the change of men for the worse, and bestowing the return to the better; by the purple robe signifying the kingdom, by the reed hinting at the weak and unsound power of the devil, by the blow proclaiming our freedom, enduring our insults, and chastisements, and scourges. His side being pierced in a manner similar to Adam, but not showing a woman coming forth from there, who gave birth to death through deceit, but a spring of life vivifying the world with a double stream; of which the one makes us new in the font, and clothes us in the immortal robe; and the other nourishes those who have been born at the divine table, just as infants with milk. 28. That through the sufferings of Christ our salvation has come to be. Our medicines, therefore, are the sufferings of our Savior; and teaching this the prophet cries: “He bears our sins, and suffers for us; but we considered him to be in trouble, and in stripes, and in affliction; but he was wounded for our sins, and bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him; with his stripes we are healed; we all like sheep have gone astray, therefore he was led as a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before its shearer is dumb.” And just as a shepherd, seeing the sheep scattered, takes hold of one of the sheep, and leading it to the pasture he wishes, draws the rest to himself through that one; so God the Word, seeing the race of men gone astray, taking the form of a servant, and having united this to Himself, through it turned back to Himself the whole nature of men, and led to the divine pasture those who were badly pastured and exposed to wolves. For these reasons our Savior took on our nature. For these reasons the Lord Christ accepted the saving passions, and being delivered to death, and given over to burial, he broke that ancient and long-standing dominion, and promised incorruptibility to those bound by corruption. For having rebuilt and raised the temple that was destroyed, he showed true and sure promises to those who lay dead and awaited his resurrection. For in the same way, he says, that the nature assumed from you, by the indwelling and union of the divinity, attained the resurrection, and putting off the corruptible with its sufferings passed over to incorruptibility and immortality; so you also shall be freed from the harsh slavery of death, and casting off corruption with its passions, you shall put on impassibility. Therefore he also sent out the gift of baptism to all men through the apostles. “Go 75.1469 therefore, he says, make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit.” Baptism is a certain foreshadowing and type of the Lord’s death. “For if,” says Paul, “we have become united with him in the likeness of his Son’s death, we shall be also of his resurrection.” 29. Proof from the writings of the Apostle concerning the perfect nature of man. Thus born was the Lord Christ, thus nourished, thus working wonders, for these reasons suffering, being crucified, dying, sending out the holy disciples as heralds to all men, he was taken up into heaven; and these things in summary, in what was written to Timothy, the Apostle taught us, saying: “Confessedly, great is the mystery of godliness, God was manifested in the flesh, was justified in the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached to the nations, was believed on in the world,

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ἔργοις σου, ἀκάνθας καὶ τριβόλους ἀνατελεῖ σοι»), διὰ δὲ τῆς χολῆς τὸ πικρὸν καὶ ἐπίπονον τῆς θνητῆς καὶ παθητῆς ζωῆς τῶν ἀνθρώπων εἰς ἑαυτὸν ἀναλαμβάνων· διὰ δὲ τοῦ ὄξους τὴν ἐπὶ τὸ χεῖρον τῶν ἀνθρώπων μεταβολὴν αὐτὸς δεχόμενος, καὶ τὴν εἰς τὸ κρεῖττον ἐπάνοδον χαριζόμενος· τῇ πορφυρίδι σημαίνων τὴν βασι λείαν, τῷ καλάμῳ τὸ ἀσθενὲς καὶ σαθρὸν τῆς τοῦ διαβόλου δυνάμεως αἰνιττόμενος, τῷ ῥαπίσματι τὴν ἡμετέραν κηρύττων ἐλευθερίαν, τὰς ἡμετέρας ὑπο μένων ὕβρεις, καὶ παιδείας, καὶ μάστιγας. Τὴν πλευρὰν τῷ Ἀδὰμ παραπλήσιον νυττόμενος, ἀλλ' οὐ γυναῖκα προϊοῦσαν ἐκεῖθεν δεικνὺς, τὸν θάνατον διὰ τῆς ἀπάτης γεννήσασαν, ἀλλὰ πηγὴν ζωῆς τῷ διπλῷ νάματι τὴν οἰκουμένην ζωογονοῦσαν· ὧν τὸ μὲν ἡμᾶς ἐν κολυμβήθρᾳ νεοποιεῖ, καὶ τῇ ἀθανάτῳ περιβάλλει στολῇ· τὸ δὲ τρέφει γεννηθέντας ἐν τῇ τραπέζῃ τῇ θείᾳ, καθάπερ τὰ βρέφη τὸ γάλα. ΚΗʹ. Ὅτι διὰ τῶν τοῦ Χριστοῦ παθῶν ἡ ἡμετέρα γέγονε σωτηρία. Φάρμακα τοίνυν ἐστὶν ἡμέτερα τὰ τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν παθήματα· καὶ τοῦτο διδάσκων ὁ προφήτης βοᾷ· «Αὐτὸς τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἡμῶν φέρει, καὶ ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν ὀδυνᾶται· ἡμεῖς δὲ ἐλογισάμεθα αὐτὸν εἶναι ἐν πόνῳ, καὶ ἐν πληγῇ, καὶ ἐν κακώσει· αὐτὸς δὲ ἐτραυματίσθη διὰ τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἡμῶν, καὶ μεμαλά κισται διὰ τὰς ἀνομίας ἡμῶν· παιδεία εἰρήνης ἡμῶν ἐπ' αὐτῷ· τῷ μώλωπι αὐτοῦ ἡμεῖς ἰάθημεν· πάντες ὡς πρόβατα ἐπλανήθημεν, διὸ ὡς πρόβατον ἐπὶ σφα γὴν ἤχθη, καὶ ὡς ἀμνὸς ἐναντίον τοῦ κείραντος αὐτὸν ἄφωνος.» Καὶ καθάπερ ποιμὴν τὰ πρόβατα διεσκεδασμένα θεωρῶν, ἓν τῶν προβάτων κατέχων, καὶ ἐφ' ἣν βούλεται νομὴν ἄγων, ἕλκει τὰ λοιπὰ δι' ἐκείνου πρὸς ἑαυτόν· οὕτως ὁ Θεὸς Λόγος τῶν ἀνθρώ πων τὸ γένος πεπλανημένον ἰδὼν, τοῦ δούλου λαβὼν τὴν μορφὴν, καὶ ταύτην συνάψας ἑαυτῷ, πρὸς ἑαυ τὸν δι' ἐκείνης ἐπέστρεψε πᾶσαν τὴν τῶν ἀνθρώπων φύσιν, καὶ εἰς τὴν θείαν νομὴν ἤγαγε τὰ κακῶς νεμόμενα, καὶ τοῖς λύκοις προκείμενα. ∆ιὰ ταῦτα ὁ Σωτὴρ ὁ ἡμέτερος τὴν ἡμετέραν φύσιν ἀνέλαβε. ∆ιὰ ταῦτα ὁ ∆εσπότης Χριστὸς τὰ σωτήρια κατεδέξατο πάθη, καὶ θανάτῳ παραπεμφθεὶς, καὶ ταφῇ παραδο θεὶς, τὸ μὲν παλαιὸν ἐκεῖνο καὶ πολυχρόνιον κράτος ἔλυσε, τοῖς δὲ τῇ φθορᾷ πεπεδημένοις τὴν ἀφθαρσίαν ὑπέσχετο. Τὸν γὰρ λυθέντα ναὸν ἀνοικοδομήσας, καὶ ἀνεγείρας, καὶ τοῖς κειμένοις καὶ προσδεχομένοις αὐτοῦ τὴν ἀνάστασιν ἀληθεῖς καὶ βεβαίας τὰς ὑπο σχέσεις ὑπέδειξεν. Ὃν τρόπον γὰρ, φησὶν, ἡ ἐξ ὑμῶν ἀναληφθεῖσα φύσις τῇ τῆς θεότητος ἐνοικήσει τε καὶ ἑνώσει, τῆς ἀναστάσεως ἔτυχε, καὶ τὸ φθαρτὸν ἀνα τιθεμένη σὺν τοῖς παθήμασιν εἰς ἀφθαρσίαν καὶ ἀθανασίαν μετέβη· οὕτω καὶ ὑμεῖς τῆς χαλεπῆς τοῦ θανάτου δουλείας ἀπαλλαγήσεσθε, καὶ τὴν φθορὰν ἀποῤῥίψαντες σὺν τοῖς πάθεσιν, ἐνδύσασθε τὴν ἀπά θειαν. ∆ιὸ καὶ τὸ δῶρον τοῦ βαπτίσματος πᾶσιν ἀν θρώποις διὰ τῶν ἀποστόλων ἐξέπεμψε. «Πορευθέν 75.1469 τες γὰρ, φησὶ, μαθητεύσατε πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, βαπτί ζοντες αὐτοὺς εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ Πατρὸς, καὶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ, καὶ τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος.» Τὸ βάπτισμα τοῦ ∆εσποτι κοῦ θανάτου σκιαγραφία τις ὑπάρχει καὶ τύπος. «Εἰ γὰρ σύμφυτοι, φησὶν ὁ Παῦλος, γεγόναμεν τῷ ὁμοιώματι τοῦ θανάτου τοῦ Υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς ἀναστάσεως ἐσόμεθα.» ΚΘʹ. Ἀπόδειξις ἐκ τῶν Ἀποστόλου γραφῶν περὶ τῆς τελείας τοῦ ἀνθρώπου φύσεως. Οὕτω γεννηθεὶς ὁ ∆εσπότης Χριστὸς, οὕτω τρα φεὶς, οὕτω θαυματουργήσας, διὰ ταῦτα παθὼν, σταυρωθεὶς, ἀποθανὼν, κήρυκας ἀποστείλας πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις τοὺς ἱεροὺς μαθητὰς, εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν ἀνελήφθη· καὶ ταῦτα ἐν κεφαλαίῳ ἐν τοῖς πρὸς Τιμόθεον γραφεῖσιν, ὁ Ἀπόστολος ἡμᾶς ἐδίδαξε λέγων· «Ὁμολογουμένως μέγα ἐστὶ τὸ τῆς εὐσεβείας μυστή ριον, Θεὸς ἐφανερώθη ἐν σαρκὶ, ἐδικαιώθη ἐν Πνεύ ματι, ὤφθη ἀγγέλοις, ἐκηρύχθη ἔθνεσιν, ἐπιστώθη ἐν κόσμῳ,