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being sung, not yet previously having been brought forward before He was incarnate. And what was the song? You are worthy, it says, to bring about this salvation for men, who was slain for us and by your blood acquired many from under heaven. And it said very securely 'from every tribe and tongue and people and nation'. For He did not acquire all, for many died in unbelief, but from all, those worthy of salvation. The prophet also said something similar: Arise, O God, judge the earth, for you will †inherit† in all the nations, but not all the nations. And He has made them for our God kings and priests, and they will reign on the earth. You can, therefore, understand this both literally, for the faithful and servants of Christ are both the kings and those who preside over the churches; you can also understand 'kings' as those who rule over their passions, and are not ruled by them; and 'priests' as those who offer their own bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God, according to what is 82 written. And not only, he says, the elders, but also the angelic and incorporeal powers sang a victory ode to Christ. And Daniel also proclaimed beforehand their number which has now been mentioned; and the song of the angels offers seven different honors to Christ, signifying through the seven that it is fitting for Christ to be crowned with myriad doxologies. And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and on the sea, that is, and all things in them, I heard saying to the one sitting on the throne and to the Lamb: The blessing and the honor and the glory and the power for ever and ever. And the four living creatures say, 'Amen'; and the elders fell down and worshipped. The present things declare the doxology offered in harmony from all creation, both heavenly and earthly, to God the Father, and to the incarnate and enfleshed Word, with the Holy Spirit of course being glorified along with them. And when he says I saw that the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and we heard one of the four living creatures saying as with a voice of thunder, 'Come'. And I saw, and behold, a white horse, and the one sitting on it had a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering so that he might conquer. And when he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, 'Come'. And another horse went out, a fiery red one, and to the one sitting on it was given to him to take peace 83 from the earth so that they might slay one another, and a great sword was given to him. The book being closed and sealed indicates the lack of boldness of the men written in it, and that their mouth is shut to every justification before God, according to what was said before. Therefore, the removal of the seals one by one signifies the gradual recovery of boldness and intimacy with God, which the only-begotten procured for us by becoming man, correcting our transgressions by his own righteous deeds. But it must be known that the loosing of each seal reveals one of the things wrought by the Lord for our salvation, and of the things done by him against our spiritual enemies, for the Lord's providence toward us is the destruction of their dominion. Let none of the readers be surprised that before the only-begotten became man; for the works and deeds before his coming to us are shown through the vision to the divine evangelist. Nevertheless, a lamb has been seen in the revelation as though slain. For the things seen by the prophets are accustomed to have a pre-proclamation of things that are to come. Thus a man wrestled with Jacob in the type of Christ; thus Isaiah saw the prophetess conceiving in her womb and bearing a son, whose name is also called, 'Spoil quickly, plunder swiftly'. Thus Daniel saw the yet-unincarnate God as a son of man, the Word coming to the ancient of days. Therefore the first good deed, the one toward our race from our savior, Christ, which loosed the first seal of the book and has made a beginning to lead us back 84 from whence we went out through the transgression in Adam and the

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ᾀδομένη, οὔπω πρότερον πρὶν σαρκωθῆναι προσαχθεῖσα. τίς δὲ ἦν ἡ ὠδή; ἄξιος εἶ φησὶ ποιῆσαι τὴν σωτηρίαν ταύτην εἰς ἀνθρώπους, ὁ σφαγεὶς ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν καὶ τῷ αἵματί σου κατακτησάμενος ἐκ τῆς ὑπ' οὐρανὸν πολλούς. ἀσφαλῶς δὲ λίαν εἶπεν ἐκ πάσης φυλῆς καὶ γλώσσης καὶ λαοῦ καὶ ἔθνους. οὐ γὰρ πάντας ἐκτήσατο, πολλοὶ γὰρ τῇ ἀπιστίᾳ ἐναπέθανον, ἀλλὰ ἐκ πάντων τοὺς σωτηρίας ἀξίους. ὅμοιον καὶ ὁ προφήτης ἔφη· ἀνάστα, ὁ Θεός, κρίνον τὴν γῆν, ὅτι σὺ †κατακρινομήσεις† ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς ἔθνεσιν οὐ μὴν πάντα τὰ ἔθνη. καὶ ἐποίησεν αὐτοὺς τῷ Θεῷ ἡμῶν βασιλεῖς καὶ ἱερεῖς, καὶ βασιλεύσουσιν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς. δύνῃ μὲν οὖν καὶ πρὸς τὸ γράμμα νοῆσαι, πιστοὶ γὰρ καὶ Χριστοῦ θεράποντες, οἱ τε βασιλεῖς καὶ τῶν ἐκκλησιῶν προστατοῦντες· δύνασαι δὲ καὶ βασιλεῖς νοῆσαι τοὺς κρατοῦντας τῶν παθῶν, καὶ οὐ κρατουμένους ὑπ' αὐτῶν· καὶ ἱερεῖς, τοὺς προσάγοντας τὰ οἰκεῖα σώματα θυσίαν ζῶσαν ἁγίαν εὐάρεστον τῷ Θεῷ κατὰ τὸ 82 γεγραμμένον. καὶ οὐ μόνον φησὶν οἱ πρεσβύτεροι, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἀγγέλων καὶ ἀσώματοι δυνάμεις ἐπινίκιον ᾖδον ὠδὴν τῷ Χριστῷ. τὸν δέ γε νῦν εἰρημένον αὐτῶν ἀριθμὸν καὶ ὁ ∆ανιὴλ προανεφώνησεν· τὸ δὲ ἄσμα τῶν ἀγγέλων ἑπτὰ διαφόρους προσάγει τιμᾶς Χριστῷ, διὰ τῶν ἑπτὰ δηλοῦντες πρέπειν μυρίαις δοξολογίαις στεφανοῦσθαι Χριστόν. καὶ πᾶν κτίσμα ὃ ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς θαλάσσης, σά ἐστι καὶ τὰ ἐν αὐτοῖς πάντα· ἤκουσα λέγοντας τῷ καθημένῳ ἐπὶ τοῦ θρόνου καὶ τῷ ἀρνίῳ· ἡ εὐλο γία καὶ ἡ τιμὴ καὶ ἡ δόξα καὶ τὸ κράτος εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰωνῶν. καὶ τὰ τέσσαρα ζῶα λέγουσιν ἀμήν· καὶ οἱ πρεσ βύτεροι ἔπεσαν καὶ προσεκύνησαν. τὴν ἐκ συμφωνίας παρὰ πάσης κτίσεως ἐπουρανίου τε καὶ ἐπιγείου προσαγομένην δοξολογίαν τῷ Θεῷ καὶ Πατρί, καὶ τῷ ἐνανθρωπήσαντι καὶ σαρκωθέντι Λόγῳ, συνδοξολογουμένου δηλαδὴ καὶ τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος, τὰ παρόντα δηλοῖ. καὶ ὅτε φησὶν εἶδον ὅτι ἤνοιξε τὸ ἀρνίον μίαν ἐκ τῶν ἑπτὰ σφραγίδων, καὶ ἠκούσαμεν ἐκ τῶν τεσσάρων ζώων λεγόντων ὡς φωνὴν βροντῆς, ἔρχου. καὶ εἶδον, καὶ ἰδοὺ ἵππος λευκός, καὶ ὁ καθήμενος ἐπ' αὐτὸν ἔχων τόξον, καὶ ἐδόθη αὐτῷ στέφανος, καὶ ἐξῆλθε νικῶν ἵνα νικήσῃ. καὶ ὅτε ἤνοιξε τὴν σφραγῖδα τὴν δευτέραν ἤκουσα τοῦ δευτέ ρου ζώου λέγοντος, ἔρχου. καὶ ἐξῆλθεν ἄλλος ἵππος πυρρός, καὶ τῷ καθημένῳ ἐπ' αὐτὸν ἐδόθη αὐτῷ λαβεῖν τὴν εἰρήνην 83 ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς ἵνα ἀλλήλους σφάξωσιν, καὶ ἐδόθη αὐτῷ μάχαιρα μεγάλη. τὸ κεκλεῖσθαι δὲ καὶ ἐσφραγίσθαι τὸ βιβλίον τὸ τῶν ἀνθρώπων τῶν ἐν αὐτῷ γεγραμμένων ἀπαρρησίαστον δηλοῖ, καὶ τὸ πεφράχθαι αὐτῶν τὸ στόμα πρὸς πᾶσαν ἐνώπιον τοῦ Θεοῦ δικαιολογίαν κατὰ τὰ εἰρημένα ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν. ἄρα τὸ περιαιρεῖσθαι κατὰ μέρος τὰς σφραγίδας τὴν κατὰ μικρὸν ἐπανάληψιν σημαίνει τῆς πρὸς Θεὸν παρρησίας καὶ οἰκειότητος ἣν προὐξένησεν ἡμῖν ἐνανθρωπήσας ὁ μονογενής, τοῖς οἰκείοις κατορθώμασιν τὰς ἡμετέρας ἐπανορθώσας πλημμελείας. ἰστέον δὲ ὅτι ἑκάστης σφραγῖδος λῦσιν, ἕν τι τῶν ὑπὸ Κυρίου ἐνεργηθέντων εἰς ἡμετέραν σωτηρίαν παραδηλοῖ, καὶ τῶν πραχθέντων παρ' αὐτοῦ κατὰ τῶν νοητῶν ἡμῶν ἐχθρῶν, ἡ γὰρ εἰς ἡμᾶς προμήθεια τοῦ Κυρίου ἐκείνων τῆς δυναστείας ὑπάρχει καθαίρεσις. μὴ θαυμάσῃ δέ τις τῶν ἐντευξομένων, ὅτι πρὶν ἐνανθρωπῆσαι τὸν μονογενῆ· τὰ γὰρ πρὸ τῆς εἰς ἡμᾶς ἐπιδημίας αὐτοῦ ἔργα καὶ πράγματα διὰ τῆς θεωρίας δείκνυται τῷ θεσπεσίῳ εὐαγγελιστῇ. ὅμως ὦπται ἀρνίον ἐν τῇ ἀποκαλύψει ὡς ἐσφαγμένον. προαναφώνησιν γὰρ ἔχειν εἴωθεν τὰ τοῖς προφήταις ὁρώμενα τῶν ἔσεσθαι μελλόντων. οὕτως ἄνθρωπος προσεπάλαιεν τῷ Ἰακὼβ τῷ Χριστοῦ τύπῳ· οὕτως ὁ Ἡσαΐας εἶδε τὴν προφῆτιν ἐν γαστρὶ συλλαβοῦσαν καὶ τεκοῦσαν υἱόν, οὗ καὶ τὸ ὄνομα κέκληται, ταχέως σκύλευσον, ὀξέως προνόμευσον. οὕτως υἱὸν ἀνθρώπου εἶδεν ὁ ∆ανιὴλ τὸν ἔτι ἄσαρκον Θεόν, λόγον ἐλθόντα πρὸς τὸν παλαιὸν τῶν ἡμερῶν. ἡ πρώτη τοιγαροῦν εὐεργεσία, ἡ εἰς τὸ ἡμέτερον γένος τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν, Χριστοῦ, ἥτις τὴν πρώτην ἔλυσε τοῦ βιβλίου σφραγῖδα καὶ ἀρχὴν πεποίηκεν ἐπαναγαγεῖν 84 ἡμᾶς ὅθεν ἐξήλθομεν ἐκ τῆς ἐν Ἀδὰμ παραβάσεως καὶ τὸ