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having freed them from the evils inflicted upon them in Egypt by Pharaoh and his army, and the whole account of their journey from Egypt was a type of the salvation in baptism. For it signified: Egypt, the world, in which by not living well we do evil; the people, those now being enlightened; and the waters, which mediated safety for the people, 39.697 signified baptism; Pharaoh and his soldiers, Satan and his servants; and Moses, by making the bitter water useful with his rod, foretold universal salvation. For he himself bore the type of Christ; the rod, of the cross; and the bitter water, of the blessed water of the font. which once seemed useless to the unbelievers, but was found by the faithful to be for all refreshment, and “As the dew of Hermon, that comes down upon the mountains of Zion.” The book of Kings also gives us an abundance of testimony for this, it too secretly suggesting things similar to what has been said, in the passage and story written below: “Elisha,” it says, “went with them; and they came to the Jordan, and cut down the trees. And behold, as one was felling a beam, the iron axe-head fell into the water; and he cried out, ‘Alas, master, for it was borrowed.’ And the man of God said, ‘Where did it fall?’ And he showed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in there, and the iron floated; and he said, ‘Lift it up to yourself.’ And he stretched out his hand, and took it.’” For there was signified, through Elisha the man of God who asked, “Where did the axe fall?” God who became among men, who long ago said, “Adam, where are you?” and through the one person, who was felling the wood and showing the place where the axe fell, Adam who answered the unerring God, “I am naked, and I hid myself,” and by such a word showed the place where, being ashamed, he was hiding; and furthermore, the plant was also signified, which he touched improperly; and through the iron that fell into the unseen depth, the power of human nature was signified, which fell from the light because of laying a hand on the tree of life; and through the saying that it was also borrowed, that the first-formed man had by God’s gift the power which he let go, which he ought to have returned to the one who gave it just as he had received it; and through the wood that was taken and cast upon the place holding what was sought, the much-hymned cross; and through the Jordan, the immortal baptism; for in the Jordan the one who made the Jordan deigned to be baptized for our sake. And through the iron floating on the waters and coming to the one who had lost it, being raised through illumination to the heavenly height, and receiving back the former grace, and regaining the ancient homeland; and through 39.700 the writing, “Lift it up to yourself,” and through, “He stretched out his hand, and took it,” the need to know that he who approaches the illumination must believe, and lift up, that is, glorify, in the way he is commanded to be baptized, and to stretch out now his hands rightly to God, which long ago, by the common principle of natural union with Adam, he laid wrongly upon the plant of life. But as for one who wishes to deny that this passage is also a prophecy concerning baptism, it is fair to demand what is the use of such words and narratives, with a view to which the sacred writer has set them down. And the bitter and barren-making water of the spring in Jericho, the same prophet, by making it sweet and fruitful, in putting salt and water into a new jar, and from it into the spring water, and saying, “Thus says the Lord: I have healed these waters;” he foretold, through the new jar and the water, the new font; and through the salt, faith and the benefit from it; and through the unwholesome water becoming fruitful and pleasant for all, he prophesied that those who associate with baptism cast off the tunics of the old gloom, and put away their burdens, and of the
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ἐπηρτημένων αὐτοῖς κακῶν ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ ἀπὸ Φαραὼ καὶ τοῦ στρατεύματος αὐτοῦ ἀπαλλάξασα, καὶ πᾶσα δὲ ἡ ὑπόθεσις τῆς ἀπὸ Αἰγύπτου αὐτῶν ὁδοῦ, τύπος ἦν τῆς ἐν τῷ βαπτίσματι σωτηρίας. Ἐμήνυε γὰρ, Αἴγυπτος μὲν τὸν κόσμον, ἐν ᾧ οὐ καλῶς βιοτεύοντες πράττομεν κακῶς· ὁ δὲ λαὸς, τοὺς νῦν φωτιζομένους τὰ δὲ ὕδατα, μεσιτεύσαντα τῷ λαῷ τὴν ἀσφάλειαν, 39.697 ἐδήλου τὸ βάπτισμα· ὁ δὲ Φαραὼ καὶ οἱ ὁπλῖται, τὸν Σατὰν καὶ τοὺς ὑπηρέτας αὐτοῦ· Μωϋσῆς δὲ, τῇ ῥάβδῳ τὸ πικρὸν ὕδωρ χρήσιμον ποιήσας, σωτηρίαν καθολικὴν προηγόρευεν. Αὐτὸς γὰρ τύπον ἔφερεν τοῦ Χριστοῦ· ἡ δὲ ῥάβδος, τοῦ σταυροῦ τὸ δὲ πικρὸν ὕδωρ, τοῦ εὐλογηθέντος ὕδατος τῆς κολυμβήθρας. τοῦ δυσχρήστου μέν ποτε φανέντος τοῖς ἀπίστοις, εὑρεθέντος δὲ τοῖς πιστοῖς εἰς πᾶσαν ἀνάψυξιν, καὶ "Ὡς δρόσος Ἀερμὼν, ἡ καταβαίνουσα ἐπὶ τὰ ὄρη Σιών." ∆ίδωσι δὲ ἡμῖν εἰς τοῦτο εὐπορίαν μαρτυρίας καὶ ἡ βίβλος τῶν Βασιλειῶν, καὶ αὐτὴ ἐν ἀποῤῥήτῳ τὰ ὅμοια τῶν προκειμένων ὑποφαίνουσα, ἐν ῥήσει καὶ ὑποθέσει τῇ ὑπογεγραμμένῃ· "Ἐλισσαῖος, φησὶν, ἐπορεύθη μετ' αὐτῶν· καὶ ἦλθον εἰς τὸν Ἰορδάνην, καὶ ἔτεμνον τὰ ξύλα. Καὶ ἰδοὺ ὁ εἷς ὡς καταβάλλει τὴν δοκὸν, τὸ σιδήριον ἐξέπεσεν εἰς τὸ ὕδωρ· καὶ ἀνεβόησεν· Ὦ κύριε· καὶ αὐτὸ κεχρημένον. Καὶ εἶπεν ὁ ἄνθρωπος τοῦ Θεοῦ· Ποῦ ἔπεσεν; Καὶ ἐπέδειξεν αὐτῷ τὸν τόπον. Καὶ ἀπέκλασε ξύλον, καὶ ἔῤῥιψεν αὐτὸ ἐκεῖ, καὶ ἐπεπόλασε τὸ σιδήριον· καὶ εἶπεν· Ὕψωσον σεαυτῷ. Καὶ ἐξέτεινε τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἔλαβεν αὐτό." Ἐδηλοῦτο γὰρ, διὰ μὲν Ἐλισσαίου τοῦ ἀνθρώπου τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῦ πυθομένου, "Ποῦ ἐξέπεσεν ἡ ἀξίνη;" ὁ μετὰ ἀνθρώπων γενόμενος Θεὸς, ὁ πάλαι εἰπών· "Ἀδὰμ, ποῦ εἶ;" διὰ δὲ τοῦ ἑνὸς προσώπου, τοῦ τὸ ξύλον καταβάλλοντος, καὶ ἐπιδεικνύοντος τὸν τόπον, ἐν ᾧ ἡ ἀξίνη ἔπεσεν, ὁ Ἀδὰμ ὁ τῷ ἀλαθήτῳ Θεῷ ἀποκρινάμενος· "Γυμνός εἰμι, καὶ ἐκρύβην," καὶ τῷ τοιῷδε ῥήματι δείξας τὸν τόπον, ἔνθα αἰδούμενος ἐκρύπτετο, ἔτι δὲ ἐδηλοῦτο καὶ τὸ φυτὸν, οὗ ἥψατο οὐκ εἰς δέον· διὰ δὲ τοῦ πεσόντος σιδήρου εἰς τὸ βάθος τὸ ἀφανὲς, ἡ δύναμις τῆς ἀνθρωπείας φύσεως ἐσημαίνετο, ἡ ἐκπεσοῦσα τοῦ φωτὸς ἕνεκα τοῦ ἐπιβαλεῖν χεῖρα εἰς τὸ ξύλον τῆς ζωῆς· διὰ δὲ τοῦ φάναι ὅτι ἦν καὶ αὐτὸ κεχρημένον, τὸ δόσει Θεοῦ ἐσχηκέναι τὸν πρωτόπλαστον, ἣν ἀφῆκε δύναμιν, ἢν καὶ ἔδει τῷ δεδωκότι, οἵαν εἴληφεν ἀποδοῦναι· διὰ δὲ τοῦ ληφθέντος ξύλου, καὶ ῥιφέντος κατὰ τοῦ τόπου τοῦ ἔχοντος τὸ ζητούμενον, ὁ πολυύμνητος σταυρός· διὰ δὲ τοῦ Ἰορδάνου, τὸ ἀθάνατον βάπτισμα· ἐν γὰρ τῷ Ἰορδάνῃ ὁ τὸν Ἰορδάνην ποιήσας, βαπτισθῆναι δι' ἡμᾶς κατηξίωσεν. ∆ιὰ δὲ τοῦ ἐπιπολάσαι τοῖς ὕδασι τὸν σίδηρον, καὶ ἐλθεῖν πρὸς τὸν ἀπολέσαντα, τὸ διὰ τοῦ φωτίσματος εἰς τὸ οὐράνιον ἀναφέρεσθαι ὕψωμα, καὶ τὴν προτέραν ἀποδέχεσθαι χάριν, καὶ τὴν ἀρχαίαν ἀπολαμβάνειν πατρίδα· διὰ 39.700 δὲ τοῦ γράφειν, "Ὕψωσον σεαυτῷ," καὶ διὰ τοῦ, "Ἐξέτεινε τὴν χεῖρα, καὶ ἔλαβε," τὸ δεῖν εἰδέναι, ὡς αὐτὸν τὸν προσιόντα τῷ φωτίσματι, πιστεῦσαι χρεὼν, καὶ ὑψῶσαι, τοῦτ' ἔστι δοξάσαι, οὕτως, ὡς βαπτισθῆναι προστέτακται, καὶ ἐκτεῖναι νῦν τὰς χεῖρας καλῶς εἰς τὸν Θεὸν, ἃς πάλαι, τῷ κοινῷ λόγῳ τῆς πρὸς τὸν Ἀδὰμ φυσικῆς ἑνώσεως, οὐ καλῶς εἰς τὸ φυτὸν τῆς ζωῆς ἐπέβαλεν. Τὸν δὲ ἀνανεύειν ἐθέλοντα, ὅτι καὶ τὸ χωρίον τοῦτο προφητεία περὶ τοῦ βαπτίσματός ἐστιν, ἄξιον ἀπαιτεῖν, τί τὸ χρήσιμον τῶν τοιῶνδε ῥημάτων καὶ διηγημάτων, πρὸς ὃ βλέπων ὁ ἱερὸς συγγραφεὺς ταῦτα τέθεικεν. Καὶ τῆς ἐν Ἱεριχὼ δὲ πηγῆς τὸ πικρὸν καὶ ἀγονοποιὸν ὕδωρ, προσηνὲς καὶ γόνιμον ἀποτελέσας ὁ αὐτὸς προφήτης, ἐν τῷ ἄλας καὶ ὕδωρ, καὶ εἰς ὑδρίαν καινὴν βαλεὶν, καὶ ἀπ' αὐτῆς εἰς τὸ πηγαῖον ὕδωρ, καὶ φάναι, "Τάδε λέγει Κύριος· Ἴαμαι τὰ ὕδατα ταῦτα·" προηγόρευσε, διὰ μὲν τῆς καινουργίας ὑδρίας καὶ τοῦ ὕδατος, τὴν νέαν κολυμβήθραν διὰ δὲ τῶν ἀλῶν, τὴν πίστιν καὶ τὴν ἐξ αὐτῆς ὄνησιν· διὰ δὲ τοῦ τὸ ἄποιον ὕδωρ, γόνιμον καὶ νόστιμον πᾶσι γεγενῆσθαι, προεφήτευσεν, ὡς οἱ προσομιλοῦντες τῷ βαπτίσματι, τῆς παλαιᾶς στυγνότητος ἀποδύονται τοὺς χιτῶνας, καὶ ἀποτίθενται τὰ φορτία, καὶ τῆς