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But what sort of signs, Luke has yielded to Matthew to declare. For it was necessary, when the great luminary, the Word of God himself, was about to make his second coming with power and great glory, for the sun and the moon and the stars to withdraw and retreat, so that in place of all, the Son of man himself, shining forth, might illuminate the new age, the former form of the world having passed away according to the apostolic testimony, which says: For the form of this world is passing away; therefore, when this form has passed away, the sun and the moon and the stars will pass away with it. But the sun will be darkened then, not so as to be deprived of its own light, but being dimmed by comparison with the greater one; at least as a reward for its labors it too will obtain this, becoming sevenfold; and the moon itself will also be as the sun; and the stars too will obtain a similar change for the better. But the sun and the moon will then be idle; but there will be no need for stars then, since there will be no night; and they themselves will also rest, having been set free with the heaven; and so the new age will be without sun and without moon, and without stars, as the day of our light illumines the holy souls. But what things are coming upon the world after the luminaries are darkened, and why, and from where the distress of nations will be, he sets forth next, saying: In perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, men fainting. And it seems to me that he teaches that the beginning of the then-coming change of all things will be from the failure of the liquid element. For when this is first dried up or frozen solid, so that the sound of the sea is no longer heard, nor the surge of its waves occurs due to an exceeding drought, the remaining parts of the world, no longer partaking of the accustomed vapor sent up from the liquid element, will suffer change and transformation; so that from this there will be signs in the sun and moon, and stars. For with the renewal of all things having taken place, and the consummation of the world, and the passing away of this visible form—for the first things will pass away so that the second things may come—it was fitting that there would also be some change of the heavenly luminaries. But these things will be at the end of the times, when the apostasy is at work. For when the appearance of the Savior is about to abolish the 24.601 portents of the battle against God, the preludes of wrath will begin from these things, that is, from droughts and the lack of the sound of the sea; when this has happened, there will follow distress of the nations on earth, men fainting from fear and the expectation of the things coming upon the world. And what the coming things are, he interprets by adding next and saying: For the powers of the heavens will be shaken; with the Son of God appearing with glory, and being about to abolish the boastful tyranny of the son of sin, and the super-celestial orders attending him as a bodyguard. And he told them a parable: Look at the fig tree, etc. So also you, when you see these things happening, etc. What are these things happening but the things foretold? Jerusalem being trampled by nations, the fulfillment of the times of the nations, the times of the apostasy, the signs in the luminaries and in the stars, the distress of the nations on earth, the failure and lack of the sound of the surge of the sea. When you see all these things happening, he says, know that the kingdom of God is at the gates, being other than the things foretold. For they were preludes and signs of good things to come, just as the tender branches and the leaves of the fig tree are signs of the coming summer and of the fruitfulness of the other plants and seeds; but the things foretold were preludes and signs of the future and of the kingdom of heaven to be established in it. But this kingdom and the things in it are no longer to be delivered by word, nor to be spoken to mortal ears. Therefore, these things must be passed over in silence. For eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love him. But

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Ποταπὰ δὲ σημεῖα, τῷ Ματθαίῳ ὁ Λουκᾶς παρεχώρησεν ἐξειπεῖν. Ἐχρῆν γὰρ, μέλλοντος τοῦ μεγάλου φωστῆρος, αὐτοῦ δὲ τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγου μετὰ δυνάμεως καὶ δόξης πολλῆς τὴν δευτέραν αὐτοῦ ποιεῖσθαι παρουσίαν ὑποστέλλεσθαι καὶ ὑπαναχωρεῖν τὸν ἥλιον καὶ τὴν σελήνην, καὶ τοὺς ἀστέρας, ἵνα ἀντὶ πάντων αὐτὸς ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου καταλάμψας φωτίσῃ τὸν νέον αἰῶνα, τοῦ προτέρου σχήματος τοῦ κόσμου παρελθόντος κατὰ τὴν ἀποστολικὴν μαρτυρίαν, ἥ φησι· Παράγει γὰρ τὸ σχῆμα τοῦ κόσμου τούτου· ἐπειδὰν οὖν τοῦτο παρέλθοι τὸ σχῆμα, συμπαρελεύσεται αὐτῷ καὶ ὁ ἥλιος καὶ ἡ σελήνη, καὶ οἱ ἀστέρες. Σκοτισθήσεται δὲ ὁ ἥλιος τότε, οὐχ ὥστε στερηθῆναι τοῦ οἰκείου φωτὸς, ἀλλὰ παραθέσει τοῦ κρείττονος ἀμαυρούμενος· ἀμοιβῆς γοῦν τῶν αὐτοῦ καμάτων καὶ αὐτὸς τεύξεται, ἑπταπλασίων γενησόμενος· ἥ τε σελήνη καὶ αὐτὴ ἔσται ὡς ὁ ἥλιος· καὶ οἱ ἀστέρες δὲ τῆς ὁμοίας τεύξονται ἐπὶ τὸ κρεῖττον μεταβολῆς. Ἀργήσει δὲ τότε ὁ ἥλιος καὶ ἡ σελήνη· ἀλλ' οὐδὲ ἄστρων τις ἔσται τότε χρεία, νυκτὸς μὴ οὔσης· ἀναπαύσονται δὲ καὶ αὐτοὶ ἐλευθερωθέντες σὺν τῷ οὐρανῷ· οὕτω τε ὁ νέος αἰὼν ἀνήλιος ἔσται καὶ ἀσέληνος, καὶ ἄναστρος, ἡμέρας τοῦ ἡμετέρου φωτὸς τὰς ἁγίας καταυγαζούσης ψυχάς. Τίνα γε μὴν τὰ ἐπερχόμενα τῇ οἰκουμένῃ μετὰ τὸ τοὺς φωστῆρας σκοτισθῆναι, καὶ διὰ τί, καὶ πόθεν ἡ συνοχὴ τῶν ἐθνῶν ἔσται, παρίστησιν ἑξῆς λέγων· Ἐν ἀπορίᾳ ἠχούσης θαλάσσης καὶ σάλου ἀποψυχόντων ἀνθρώπων. Καί μοι δοκεῖ τῆς τότε γενησομένης τοῦ παντὸς τροπῆς τὴν ἀρχὴν ἔσεσθαι διδάσκειν ἀπὸ ἐκλείψεως τῆς ὑγρᾶς οὐσίας. Ταύτης γὰρ πρώτης ἀναποθείσης ἢ ἀποπαγείσης, ὡς μηκέτ' ἦχον θαλάσσης ἀκούσεσθαι, μηδὲ τὸν τῶν κυμάτων αὐτῆς σάλον γίνεσθαι δι' αὐχμὸν ὑπερβάλλοντα, τὰ λοιπὰ μέρη τοῦ κόσμου μηκέτι τῆς συνήθους μεταλαμβάνοντα ἀναθυμιάσεως ἐκ τῆς ὑγρᾶς οὐσίας ἀναπεμπομένης, τροπὴν καὶ μεταβολὴν πείσεται· ὡς ἐκ τούτου γενήσεται σημεῖα ἐν ἡλίῳ καὶ σελήνῃ, καὶ ἄστροις. Ἀνακλήσεώς τε γὰρ τοῦ παντὸς γενομένης, καὶ συντελείας τοῦ κόσμου, καὶ παράγοντος τοῦ σχήματος τούτου τοῦ φαινομένου παρελεύσεται γὰρ τὰ πρῶτα ἵν' ἐπιστῇ τὰ δεύτερα, ἀκόλουθον ἦν καὶ τῶν κατ' οὐρανὸν φωστήρων τροπήν τινα ἔσεσθαι. Ταῦτα δὲ ἐπὶ τέλει τῶν χρόνων ἔσται, τῆς ἀποστασίας ἐνεργουμένης. Μελλούσης γὰρ τὰ τῆς θεομαχίας 24.601 τέρατα καταργεῖν τῆς ἐπιφανείας τοῦ Σωτῆρος, τὰ τῆς ὀργῆς προοίμια ἐκ τῶνδε ἄρξεται, ἐξ αὐχμῶν δηλαδὴ καὶ ἀπορίας ἤχου θαλάσσης· οὗ γενομένου ἐπακολουθήσει συνοχὴ τῶν ἐπὶ γῆς ἐθνῶν, ἀποψυχόντων ἀνθρώπων ἀπὸ φόβου καὶ προσδοκίας τῶν ἐπερχομένων τῇ οἰκουμένῃ. Τίνα δὲ τὰ ἐπερχόμενα, ἑρμηνεύει συνάπτων ἑξῆς καὶ λέγων· Αἱ γὰρ δυνάμεις τῶν οὐρανῶν σαλευθήσονται· τοῦ Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ μετὰ δόξης ἐπιστησομένου, καὶ τὴν μεγάλαυχον τυραννίδα τοῦ υἱοῦ τῆς ἁμαρτίας καταργεῖν μέλλοντος, τῶν τε ὑπερουρανίων ταγμάτων δορυφορούντων. Καὶ εἶπε παραβολὴν αὐτοῖς· Ἴδετε τὴν συκῆν, κ. τ. λ. Οὕτω καὶ ὑμεῖς ὅταν ἴδητε ταῦτα γινό μενα, κ. τ. λ. Ποῖα ταῦτα γινόμενα ἀλλ' ἢ τὰ προλεγόμενα; Ἱερουσαλὴμ πατουμένην ὑπὸ ἐθνῶν, τὴν συμπλήρωσιν τῶν καιρῶν τῶν ἐθνῶν, τοὺς τῆς ἀποστασίας χρόνους, τὰ ἐν τοῖς φωστῆρσι καὶ τοῖς ἄστροις σημεῖα, τὴν ἐπὶ γῆς συνοχὴν τῶν ἐθνῶν, τὴν ἔκλειψιν καὶ ἀπορίαν τοῦ ἤχου τοῦ σάλου τῆς θαλάσσης. Ταῦτα, φησὶν, ἅπαντα ὅταν ἴδητε γινόμενα, γινώσκετε ὅτι ἐπὶ θύραις ἐστὶν ἡ βασιλεία τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἑτέρα οὖσα παρὰ τὰ προλεχθέντα. Τὰ μὲν γὰρ προοίμια ἦν καὶ μελλόντων ἀγαθῶν σημεῖα, ὡς καὶ οἱ τῆς συκῆς ἁπαλοὶ κλάδοι καὶ τὰ φύλλα σημεῖα τοῦ μέλλοντος θέρους τῆς τε τῶν λοιπῶν φυτῶν καὶ σπερμάτων καρποφορίας· τὰ δὲ τοῦ μέλλοντος καὶ τῆς ἐν αὐτῷ συστησομένης βασιλείας οὐρανῶν προοίμια καὶ σημεῖα τὰ προλεχθέντα ἦν. Αὕτη δὲ ἡ βασιλεία καὶ τὰ ἐν αὐτῇ οὐκέτι λόγῳ παραδοτέα, οὐδὲ θνητῶν ἀκοαῖς λεκτέα. ∆ιόπερ ἀποσιωπητέον ταῦτα. Ὀφθαλμὸς γὰρ οὐκ εἶδε, καὶ οὖς οὐκ ἤκουσε, καὶ ἐπὶ καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου οὐκ ἀνέβη ὅσα ἡτοίμασεν ὁ Θεὸς τοῖς ἀγαπῶσιν αὐτόν. Πλὴν