26

of his glory, the temple in that place was about to be stripped bare and with the lintel removed, to be left desolate and to be full of smoke, having been given over to fire; for smoke is a sign of fire. The word, therefore, through these things hinted at the conflagration that would ultimately overcome the place, after which the whole earth was filled with the glory of the Lord himself; not of one house any longer, but of ten thousand throughout the whole world, much better than that one, having been established. In accordance with the cry of the seraphim, the prophet, having seen these things, was in agony, lest he too might perish with the multitude of the people; for understanding how it was said above, “the house to be full of the glory of God,” but at the cry that occurred, it was no longer of glory but of smoke. Rightly, inferring the change of the house for the worse, he is disturbed and in agony lest he might somehow be taken along with those on account of whom the place suffered these things, but also, comparing the surpassing glory of the Lord who was seen with mortal nature, he confesses, lamenting himself through it, he says: Woe is me, for I am pierced, because being a man and having unclean lips, I dwell in the midst of a people having unclean lips, and I have seen the King, the Lord of Sabaoth, with my eyes. He confesses himself to be unclean not in his soul nor in his whole body, since he was not conscious of any unclean act in himself, but he says that only his lips were unclean, as the rest of his body and his soul were pure, according to: “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” And he had unclean lips, from no other source than from association with the unclean; for, as was likely, being compelled to converse with unclean men, he spoke things worthy of their wickedness, by which he defiled his lips. So scrupulous was the life of the prophet that he was pierced even by the smallest thing, and at the same time he decries mortal nature as being full of corruption and dishonor. Therefore he says this: being a man; for it was sufficient for accusation even to be a man clothed in corruptible flesh. 1.42 To the prophet Jeremiah who had said, “O Sovereign Lord, behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am a youth,” “the Lord stretched out his hand and touched his mouth and said to him: Behold, I have put my words in your mouth”; for since Jeremiah's lips did not need cleansing, fittingly “the hand of the Lord, having touched his mouth,” filled him with prophetic grace. But now to Isaiah, who needed cleansing, not the Lord, but one of the seraphim, sent by the Lord, approaches bearing a coal and cleanses his lips with the coal. Hence, the seraphim, when interpreted into the Greek language, fittingly signify “burners” or “incendiaries.” And they seem to me to be certain cleansers of those in need of cleansing, wherefore one of the seraphim, having been commanded to do this, brought the cleansing coal to the prophet's lips. This coal was from the altar, perhaps of the philanthropic Lord filling his own altar with certain such saving and cleansing coals. Wherefore it has been said somewhere: “coals were kindled from him.” And God himself is called a “consuming fire” in Moses, and the Savior in the Gospels is testified to “baptize” the worthy “in the Holy Spirit and fire.” Through all these things the word teaches us that it is not possible for anyone to obtain cleansing from sins otherwise than through the divine fire; “for the fire itself will test what sort of work each one has done,” and: “for he who will be saved,” it says, “will be saved so as through fire.” Rightly, therefore, even so great a prophet has his lips cleansed by a coal of fire, wherefore it is said to him: Behold, this has touched your lips, and it will take away your iniquities and will cleanse your sins. But what iniquities and sins, other than those with which he confesses his lips to be filled? And after their cleansing, he is consequently deemed worthy of the voice of the

26

τῆς δόξης αὐτοῦ, γυμνοῦσθαι ἤμελλεν ὁ ἐν ἐκείνῳ τῷ τόπῳ νεὼς καὶ τοῦ ὑπερθύρου δὲ ἀρθέντος ἔρημος καταλειφθήσεσθαι καὶ καπνοῦ τε πλήρης ἔσεσθαι παραδοθεὶς πυρί· πυρὸς γὰρ σημεῖον ὁ καπνός. ᾐνίξατο τοίνυν διὰ τούτων ὁ λόγος ἐπὶ τέλει τὸν κατειληφότα τὸν τόπον ἐμπρησμόν, μεθ' ὃν ἐπληρώθη πᾶσα ἡ γῆ τῆς δόξης αὐτοῦ τοῦ κυρίου· οὐκέτι ἑνὸς οἴκου, μυρίων δὲ καθ' ὅλης τῆς οἰκουμένης πολὺ κρειττόνων ἐκείνου συστάντων. ἀκολούθως τῇ βοῇ τῶν σεραφεὶμ ταῦτα θεασάμενος ὁ προφήτης ἐν ἀγωνίᾳ κατέστη, μή πη ἄρα καὶ αὐτὸς τῷ πλήθει συναπόλοιτο τοῦ λαοῦ· συνιδὼν γὰρ ὡς ἀνωτέρω μὲν ἐλέγετο, «πλήρης εἶναι ὁ οἶκος τῆς δόξης τοῦ θεοῦ», ἐπὶ δὲ τῇ γενομένῃ βοῇ οὐκέτι δόξης ἀλλὰ καπνοῦ. Εἰκότως τὴν ἐπὶ τὸ χεῖρον μεταβολὴν τοῦ οἴκου τεκμηράμενος θορυβεῖται καὶ ἀγωνιᾷ μὴ ἄρα πη συμπαραληφθῇ τούτοις, δι' οὓς ταῦτ' ἔπασχεν ὁ τόπος, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ ὑπερέχον τῆς δόξης τοῦ θεωρουμένου κυρίου τῇ θνητῇ φύσει συμβαλὼν ἐξομολογεῖται, ταλανίζων δι' αὐτῆς ἑαυτόν φησιν· Ὦ τάλας ἐγώ, ὅτι κατανένυγμαι, ὅτι ἄνθρωπος ὢν καὶ ἀκάθαρτα χείλη ἔχων ἐν μέσῳ λαοῦ ἀκάθαρτα χείλη ἔχοντος ἐγὼ οἰκῶ καὶ τὸν βασιλέα κύριον σαβαὼθ εἶδον τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς μου. ὁμολογεῖ δὲ ἀκάθαρτος εἶναι οὐ τὴν ψυχὴν ἀλλ' οὐδὲ τὸ πᾶν σῶμα, ἐπεὶ μηδεμίαν ἑαυτῷ πρᾶξιν ἀκάθαρτον συνῄδει, μόνα δὲ τὰ χείλη ἀκάθαρτα ἐσχηκέναι φησίν, ὡς τοῦ λοιποῦ σώματος αὐτῷ καθαριεύοντος καὶ τῆς ψυχῆς, κατὰ τό· «μακάριοι οἱ καθαροὶ τῇ καρδίᾳ, ὅτι αὐτοὶ τὸν θεὸν ὄψονται». καὶ τὰ χείλη δὲ ἀκάθαρτα εἶχεν, οὐδ' ἄλλοθεν ἢ ἀπὸ τῆς πρὸς τοὺς ἀκαθάρτους ὁμιλίας· ἠναγκάζετο γὰρ ὡς εἰκὸς ἀκαθάρτοις ἀνδράσι προσομιλῶν ἄξια τῆς ἐκείνων φθέγγεσθαι μοχθηρίας, δι' ὧν ἐμόλυνε τὰ χείλη. οὕτω δὲ ἀκριβὴς ὁ βίος ἐτύγχανε τοῦ προφήτου ὡς καὶ ἐπὶ τῷ σμικροτάτῳ κατανύττεσθαι, διαβάλλει δὲ ὁμοῦ τὴν θνητὴν φύσιν ὡς ἂν φθορᾶς ἔμπλεω καὶ ἀτιμίας. διό φησι τό· ἄνθρωπος ὤν· ἀπήρκει γὰρ πρὸς διαβολὴν καὶ τὸ ἄνθρωπον εἶναι σάρκα φθαρτὴν περιβεβλημένον. 1.42 Τῷ μὲν προφήτῃ Ἰερεμίᾳ εἰρηκότι· «Ὁ Ὢν δέσποτα κύριε,ἰδοὺ οὐκ ἐπίσταμαι λαλεῖν, ὅτι νεώτερος ἐγώ εἰμι», «ἐξέτεινεν κύριος τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ καὶ ἥψατο τοῦ στόματος αὐτοῦ καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτόν· Ἰδοὺ δέδωκα τοὺς λόγους μου εἰς τὸ στόμα σου»· ἐπεὶ γὰρ μὴ καθάρσεως ἐδεῖτο τὰ τοῦ Ἰερεμίου χείλη, εἰκότως «ἡ τοῦ κυρίου χεὶρ ἁψαμένη τοῦ στόματος αὐτοῦ» τῆς προφητικῆς αὐτὸν ἐπλήρου χάριτος. νυνὶ δὲ τῷ Ἠσαΐᾳ καθάρσεως δεομένῳ οὐχ ὁ κύριος, ἀλλ' ἓν τῶν σεραφεὶμ ἀποσταλὲν ὑπὸ τοῦ κυρίου ἄνθρακα φέρον πρόσεισιν καὶ τὰ χείλη αὐτοῦ περικαθαίρει τῷ ἄνθρακι. ἔνθεν εἰκότως ἑρμηνευόμενα τὰ σεραφεὶμ εἰς τὴν Ἑλλάδα φωνὴν ἐμπινπρῶντες ἢ ἐμπρησταὶ σημαίνουσιν. καί μοι δοκοῦσιν καθαρτικοί τινες εἶναι τῶν καθάρσεως δεομένων, διὸ οἱ σεραφεὶμ τοῖς τοῦ προφήτου χείλεσιν τὸν καθαρτικὸν ἄνθρακα προσῆγεν εἷς τούτων κελευσθεὶς τοῦτο πρᾶξαι. οὗτος δὲ ἦν ὁ ἄνθραξ ἀπὸ τοῦ θυσιαστηρίου τάχα που τοῦ φιλανθρώπου κυρίου πληροῦντος τὸ ἑαυτοῦ θυσιαστήριον τοιούτων τινῶν σωτηρίων καὶ καθαρτικῶν ἀνθράκων. διὸ λέλεκταί που· «ἄνθρακες ἀνήφθησαν ἀπ' αὐτοῦ». καὶ ὁ θεὸς δὲ αὐτὸς παρὰ Μωϋσεῖ «πῦρ καταναλίσκον» εἴρηται, καὶ ὁ σωτὴρ ἐν Εὐαγγελίοις «βαπτίσειν» τοὺς ἀξίους «ἐν πνεύματι ἁγίῳ καὶ πυρὶ» μεμαρτύρηται. διὰ τούτων ἁπάντων παιδεύοντος ἡμᾶς τοῦ λόγου μὴ ἄλλως δύνασθαί τινα τυχεῖν καθάρσεως ἁμαρτημάτων ἢ διὰ τοῦ θείου πυρός· «ὁποῖον γάρ ἐστι τὸ ἑκάστου ἔργον τὸ πῦρ αὐτὸ δοκιμάσει», καί· «ὁ σωθησόμενος» γάρ φησιν «οὕτως σωθήσεται ὡς διὰ πυρός». Εἰκότως οὖν καὶ ὁ τοσοῦτος προφήτης δι' ἄνθρακος πυρὸς καθαίρεται τὰ χείλη, διὸ λέγεται πρὸς αὐτόν· Ἰδοὺ ἥψατο τοῦτο τῶν χειλέων σου καὶ ἀφελεῖ τὰς ἀνομίας σου καὶ τὰς ἁμαρτίας σου περικαθαριεῖ. ποίας δὲ ἀνομίας καὶ ἁμαρτίας ἢ ὧν τὰ χείλη αὐτοῦ πεπληρῶσθαι ὁμολογεῖ; Μετὰ δὲ τὴν τούτων κάθαρσιν ἀκολούθως φωνῆς καταξιοῦται τοῦ