the hidden things. And all these words will be to you like the words of the sealed book, which if they give it to a man who knows letters, saying, ‘Read this,’ he will say, ‘I cannot read, for it is sealed.’ And this book will be given into the hands of a man who does not know letters, and one will say to him, ‘Read this,’ and he will say, ‘I do not know letters.’ And the Lord said: This people draws near to me” and what follows until “woe to those who make a plan in secret and their works will be in darkness.” Therefore, taking the text set forth in the Gospel, I have set down some of the things before it and some of the things after it, so that we may show in what way the Word threatens to close “the eyes” of those from the people who have gone astray and have become drunk and have been given to drink a “spirit of stupor,” and threatens also to close [the eyes of] their prophets and their rulers who profess to see “the hidden things.” Which things, I think, happened to that people after the coming of the Savior; for all the words of all the scriptures, and of Isaiah as well, have become to them “as the words of a sealed book.” And “sealed” is said as if closed by obscurity and not opened by clarity; which is equally obscure to those who cannot read it at all because they do not know letters and to those who profess to know letters, for they do not know the meaning in what has been written. Therefore he rightly adds to these that, when the people, released from their sins and gone astray, rage against him, by which they will also be drunk against him with a “spirit of stupor,” which will be given them to drink by the Lord who closes their eyes as unworthy to see, and [the eyes] of their prophets and their rulers who profess to see the hidden things of the mysteries in the divine scriptures, and when their eyes are closed, then the prophetic words will be sealed and hidden to them; which is what the people who do not believe in Jesus as Christ have suffered. And when the prophetic words become to them “as the words of a sealed book,” not only to those who do not know, but also to those who profess to know letters, then the Lord said that the people of the Jews draw near to God with “the mouth” only; and he says they honor him “with their lips,” because “their heart” is far from the Lord on account of their unbelief in Jesus. And now especially, since they denied our Savior, the saying might be said by God concerning them: but in vain do they worship me; for they no longer teach the commandments of God, but of men, and their teachings are no longer from the wisdom of the Spirit, but are human. Whence, as these things were happening to them, God has removed the people of the Jews and has destroyed “the wisdom” of their wise men—for there is no longer wisdom among them, just as there is no prophecy—, but also “the understanding of the understanding ones” of the people God has buried somewhere and hidden, and it is no longer bright and manifest. Therefore, even if they seem to make a plan “deeply,” they are deemed wretched for not making it through the Lord; and if they profess any hidden things of divine counsel, they lie, since their works are not of the light <and of day>, but of darkness and of night. And it seemed good to us to set forth briefly the prophecy and its clarity to some extent, since Matthew mentioned it. It was mentioned <and> by Mark also, from whom we will usefully demonstrate concerning the transgression of the elders who thought it right to wash their hands when the Jews eat bread, the things concerning the passage being as follows: “For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands with a fist, holding the tradition of the elders, and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash, and there are some other things that they have received to hold, the washing of cups and pots and bronze vessels and couches.” 11.12 And having called the crowd to him, he said to them: Hear and understand and the following (15, 10-20). Clearly through these things we are taught by the Savior, when we read in Leviticus and in Deuteronomy the things concerning clean and unclean foods,
τὰ κρυπτά. Καὶ ἔσται ὑμῖν τὰ ῥήματα ταῦτα πάντα ὡς οἱ λόγοι τοῦ βιβλίου τοῦ ἐσφραγισμένου, ὃ ἐὰν δῶσιν αὐτὸ ἀνθρώπῳ ἐπισταμένῳ γράμματα λέγοντες· ἀνάγνωθι ταῦτα· καὶ ἐρεῖ· οὐ δύναμαι ἀναγνῶναι, ἐσφράγισται γάρ. Καὶ δοθήσεται τὸ βιβλίον τοῦτο εἰς χεῖρας ἀνθρώπου μὴ ἐπιστα μένου γράμματα, καὶ ἐρεῖ αὐτῷ· ἀνάγνωθι τοῦτο· καὶ ἐρεῖ· οὐκ ἐπίσταμαι γράμματα. Καὶ εἶπε κύριος· ἐγγίζει μοι ὁ λαὸς οὗτος» καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς ἕως τοῦ «οὐαὶ οἱ ἐν κρυφῇ βουλὴν ποιοῦντες καὶ ἔσται ἐν σκότει τὰ ἔργα αὐτῶν». Προσλαβὼν τοίνυν τὴν προκειμένην ἐν τῷ εὐαγγελίῳ λέξιν ἐθέμην τινὰ τῶν πρὸ αὐτῆς καί τινα τῶν ἑξῆς αὐτῆς, ἵνα παραστήσωμεν τίνα τρόπον ἀπειλεῖ καμμύσειν «τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς» τῶν ἀπὸ τοῦ λαοῦ ὁ λόγος ἐκστάντων καὶ κραιπαλησάντων καὶ πεποτισμένων «πνεύματι κατανύ ξεως», ἀπειλεῖ δὲ καμμύσαι καὶ τοὺς προφήτας αὐτῶν καὶ τοὺς ἐπαγγελλομένους ὁρᾶν «τὰ κρυπτὰ» ἄρχοντας αὐτῶν. Ἅπερ, οἶμαι, γεγένηται μετὰ τὴν τοῦ σωτῆρος ἐπιδημίαν ἐν τῷ λαῷ ἐκείνῳ· γέγονε γὰρ αὐτοῖς πάντα τὰ ῥήματα ὅλων μὲν τῶν γραφῶν, καὶ τοῦ Ἡσαΐου δέ, «ὡς λόγοι βιβλίου ἐσφραγισμένου». Τὸ δὲ «ἐσφραγισμένου» εἴρηται οἱονεὶ κεκλεισμένου τῇ ἀσαφείᾳ καὶ μὴ ἠνοιγμένου τῇ σαφηνείᾳ· ὅπερ ἐπίσης τοῖς μηδὲ τὴν ἀρχήν, διὰ τὸ μὴ εἰδέναι γράμματα, ἀναγνῶναι αὐτὸ δυναμένοις καὶ τοῖς ἐπαγγελλομένοις εἰδέναι γράμματά ἐστιν ἀσαφές, οὐ γινώσ κουσι τὸν ἐν τοῖς γεγραμμένοις νοῦν. Καλῶς οὖν ἐπιφέρει <τού>τοις ὅτι, ἐπὰν ἐκλυθεὶς ἀπὸ τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων ὁ λαὸς καὶ ἐκστὰς μανῇ κατ' αὐτοῦ, οἷς καὶ κραιπαλήσει κατ' αὐτοῦ «πνεύματι κατανύξεως», ὃ ποτισθήσεται ὑπὸ τοῦ κυρίου καμμύοντος αὐτῶν τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς ὡς ἀναξίους τοῦ βλέπειν, καὶ τῶν προφητῶν αὐτῶν καὶ τῶν ἀρχόντων αὐτῶν τῶν ἐπαγγελλομένων βλέπειν τὰ κρυπτὰ τῶν ἐν ταῖς θείαις γραφαῖς μυστηρίων, καὶ ἐπὰν καμμύσωσιν αὐτῶν οἱ ὀφθαλμοί, τότε αὐτοῖς ἔσται τὰ προφητικὰ ῥήματα ἐσφραγισμένα καὶ ἐπικεκρυμμένα· ὅπερ πεπόνθασιν ὁ λαὸς ὁ τῶν μὴ πιστευόντων εἰς τὸν Ἰησοῦν ὡς Χριστόν. Ἐπὰν δὲ γένηται τὰ προφητικὰ αὐτοῖς «ὡς λόγοι βιβλίου ἐσφραγισμένου», οὐ μόνον τοῖς μὴ εἰδόσιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῖς ἐπαγγελλομένοις εἰδέναι γράμματα, τότε εἶπεν ὁ κύριος μόνῳ «τῷ στόματι» ἐγγίζειν τὸν λαὸν τῶν Ἰουδαίων τῷ θεῷ· καὶ «τοῖς χείλεσι» τιμᾶν αὐτόν φησι, διότι «ἡ καρδία αὐτῶν» διὰ τὴν εἰς τὸν Ἰησοῦν ἀπιστίαν πόρρω ἐστὶν ἀπὸ κυρίου. Καὶ νῦν μάλιστα, ἐξ οὗ τὸν σωτῆρα ἡμῶν ἠρνήσαντο, λεχθείη ἂν ὑπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ περὶ αὐτῶν τὸ μάτην δὲ σέβονταί με· οὐκέτι γὰρ διδάσκουσιν ἐντάλματα θεοῦ, ἀλλὰ ἀνθρώπων καὶ διδασκαλίας οὐκέτι τὰς ἀπὸ τῆς τοῦ πνεύματος σοφίας, ἀλλὰ τὰς ἀνθρωπίνας. Ὅθεν τούτων αὐτοῖς συμβαινόντων, μετέθηκεν ὁ θεὸς τὸν τῶν Ἰουδαίων λαὸν καὶ ἀπώλεσε «τὴν σοφίαν» αὐτῶν τῶν παρ' αὐτοῖς σοφῶν-οὐκέτι γάρ ἐστι σοφία παρ' αὐτοῖς ὡς οὐδὲ προφητεία-, ἀλλὰ καὶ «τὴν σύνεσιν τῶν συνετῶν» τοῦ λαοῦ κατορώρυχέ που καὶ ἔκρυψεν ὁ θεός, καὶ οὐκέτι ἐστὶ λαμπρὰ καὶ ἐπιφανής. ∆ιὸ κἂν δοκῶσι βουλήν τινα «βαθέως» ποιεῖν, οὐ διὰ τοῦ κυρίου αὐτὴν ποιοῦντες ταλανίζονται· κἂν κρυπτά τινα ἐπαγγέλλωνται βουλῆς θείας, ψεύδονται, ἐπεὶ τὰ ἔργα αὐτῶν οὐ φωτός ἐστιν <καὶ ἡμέρας>, ἀλλὰ σκότους καὶ νυκτός. ∆ιὰ βραχέων δὲ ἔδοξεν ἡμῖν ἐκθέσθαι τὴν προφη τείαν καὶ τὴν ἐπὶ ποσὸν σαφήνειαν αὐτῆς, ἐπείπερ ἐμνήσθη αὐτῆς ὁ Ματθαῖος. Ἐμνήσθη <δὲ> καὶ ὁ Μᾶρκος, ἀφ' οὗ χρησίμως παραστησόμεθα περὶ τῆς παραβάσεως τῶν πρεσβυτέρων δοξάντων νίπτειν τὰς χεῖρας, ὅταν ἄρτον ἐσθίωσιν οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι, τὰ κατὰ τὸν τόπον οὕτως ἔχοντα· «Οἱ γὰρ Φαρισαῖοι καὶ πάντες οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι ἐὰν μὴ πυγμῇ νίψωνται τὰς χεῖρας οὐκ ἐσθίουσι, κρατοῦντες τὴν παράδοσιν τῶν πρεσβυτέρων, καὶ ἀπ' ἀγορᾶς ἐὰν μὴ βαπτίσωνται οὐκ ἐσθίουσι, καὶ ἄλλα τινά ἐστιν ἃ παρέλαβον κρατεῖν, βαπτισ μοὺς ποτηρίων καὶ ξεστῶν καὶ χαλκείων καὶ κλινῶν.» 11.12 Καὶ προσκαλεσάμενος τὸν ὄχλον, εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· ἀκούετε καὶ συνίετε καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς (15, 10-20). Σαφῶς διὰ τούτων ὑπὸ τοῦ σωτῆρος διδασκόμεθα, ἀναγινώσκοντες ἐν τῷ Λευϊτικῷ καὶ ἐν τῷ ∆ευτερονομίῳ τὰ περὶ καθαρῶν καὶ ἀκαθάρτων βρωμάτων,