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to approach with the mind the mountain of the knowledge of God and to receive the voice of the trumpets and to enter into the darkness where God is and to inscribe the divine characters on the tablets, and even if these are shattered through some transgression, again to place before God the tablets hewn by hand and to re-inscribe with the divine finger the letters that were effaced on the first ones. 2.153 But it would be better to fit the meaning to the spiritual interpretation in sequence, according to the order of the history. For whenever one looks to Moses and the cloud, through both of which guidance comes to those who advance in virtue (and in this part, Moses would be the precepts of the law, and the cloud the one that goes before the law), one who, with a purified mind in the crossing of the water, has put to death and separated from himself the alien race, tastes of Marah, that is, the life separated from pleasures, which, though appearing bitter and unpleasant at first to those who taste it, provides a sweet sensation to those who have accepted the wood, then, having delighted in the beauties of the evangelical palm trees and the springs, and having become full of the living water, which is the rock, and having received the heavenly bread within himself and having acted manfully against the aliens, for whom the cause of victory is the extension of the lawgiver's hands, which prefigures the mystery of the cross, then he is brought to the contemplation of the transcendent nature. 2.154 The way for him to such knowledge is purity, not only of the body cleansed by some sprinklings, but also of the garments washed clean of every stain with water. This means that he who is about to approach the contemplation of realities must be pure in all things, so as to be pure and spotless in both soul and body, having appropriately washed away the filth in each, so that we might appear pure even to Him who sees what is hidden, and our outward decency might correspond to the inner disposition of the soul. 2.155 For this reason, before the ascent to the mountain, the garments are washed by the divine command, the decent vesture of life being signified to us by the riddle of the garments. For one would not say that this perceptible filth of the garments becomes an impediment to the ascent for those going up to God, but I think the garment is rightly called the covering of the practices of this life. 2.156 When this has been set aright and the herd of irrational creatures has been driven as far as possible from the mountain, then he approaches the ascent of lofty thoughts. But to allow none of the irrational creatures to appear on the mountain signifies, in our opinion, to transcend the knowledge that comes from sense-perception in the contemplation of intelligible things. For it is characteristic of the nature of irrational creatures to be governed by sense-perception alone, without thought. Sight guides them, and hearing often has incited their impulse toward something. And all the other things through which sense is active have a large place in irrational creatures. 2.157 But the contemplation of God is effected neither by what is seen nor by what is heard, nor is it grasped by any of the customary thoughts; for eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor is it among the things that usually enter into the heart of man. But he who is about to approach the understanding of high things must first purify his way of life from every sensible and irrational motion, and, having washed out from his mind every opinion that has arisen from some preconception, and having been separated from the customary association with his own housemate, that is, sense-perception, which is in a way a spouse and housemate to our nature, and having become pure from this, thus to venture upon the mountain. 2.158 For theology is truly an upward and difficult-to-approach mountain, the base of which the great multitude hardly reaches. But if one were a Moses, he would also advance far up the ascent, receiving in his hearing the sounds of the trumpets, which the account of the history says become stronger as they advance. For truly the proclamation concerning the divine nature is a trumpet striking the hearing, great indeed even at first

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διανοίᾳ προσβῆναι τῷ τῆς θεογνωσίας ὄρει καὶ ὑποδέξασθαι τὴν τῶν σαλπίγγων φωνὴν καὶ εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὸν γνόφον οὗ ἔστιν ὁ Θεὸς καὶ ἐγγράψαι ταῖς πλαξὶ τὰ θεῖα χαράγματα, κἂν συντριβῶσιν αὗται διὰ πλημμελείας τινός, πάλιν τὰς χειροτμήτους ὑποθεῖναι τῷ Θεῷ πλάκας καὶ ἀναχαράξαι τῷ θείῳ δακτύλῳ τὰ ἐν ταῖς πρώταις ἀχρειωθέντα γράμματα. 2.153 Βέλτιον δ' ἂν εἴη δι' ἀκολούθου κατὰ τὴν τῆς ἱστορίας τάξιν τῇ ἀναγωγῇ προσαρμόσαι τὸ νόημα. Ἐπειδὰν γὰρ ὁ πρὸς τὸν Μωϋσέα καὶ τὴν νεφέλην βλέπων, δι' ὧν ἀμφοτέρων γίνεται τοῖς κατ' ἀρετὴν προϊοῦσιν ἡ ὁδηγία (εἴη δ' ἂν ἐν τῷ μέρει τούτῳ Μωϋσῆς μὲν τὰ νομικὰ παραγγέλματα, νεφέλη δὲ ἡ προκαθηγουμένη τοῦ νόμου), ὁ διανοίᾳ κεκαθαρ μένῃ ἐν τῇ διαβάσει τοῦ ὕδατος νεκρώσας τε καὶ ἀποκρίνας ἑαυτοῦ τὸ ἀλλόφυλον, γεύσηται τῆς μερρᾶς, τουτέστι τοῦ κεχωρισμένου τῶν ἡδονῶν βίου, ὃ πικρόν τε καὶ ἀηδὲς παρὰ τὴν πρώτην τοῖς γευσαμένοις φαινόμενον γλυκεῖαν παρέχει τοῖς τὸ ξύλον παραδεξαμένοις τὴν αἴσθησιν, εἶτα τοῖς κάλλεσι τῶν φοινίκων τῶν εὐαγγελικῶν καὶ τῶν πηγῶν ἐντρυφήσας καὶ τοῦ ζῶντος ὕδατος, ὅπερ ἐστὶν ἡ πέτρα, πλήρης γενόμενος, τόν τε οὐράνιον ἄρτον ἐν ἑαυτῷ λαβὼν καὶ κατὰ τῶν ἀλλοφύλων ἀνδρισάμενος, ᾧ τῆς νίκης αἰτία ἡ ἔκτασις τῶν χειρῶν τοῦ νομοθέτου γίνεται, ἡ τὸ μυστήριον τοῦ σταυροῦ προδεικνύουσα, τότε προσάγεται τῇ τῆς ὑπερκειμένης φύσεως θεωρίᾳ. 2.154 Ὁδὸς δὲ αὐτῷ πρὸς τὴν τοιαύτην γνῶσιν ἡ καθαρότης γίνεται, οὐ τοῦ σώματος μόνον περιρραντηρίοις τισὶν ἀφαγνισθέντος, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἐνδυμάτων πάσης κηλῖδος ἀποκλυσθέντων τῷ ὕδατι. Τοῦτο δέ ἐστι τὸ διὰ πάντων καθαρεῦσαι δεῖν τὸν μέλλοντα προσβαίνειν τῇ τῶν ὄντων θεωρίᾳ, ὡς καὶ ψυχῇ καὶ σώματι καθαρὸν εἶναι καὶ ἀκηλίδω τον τὸν ἐν ἑκατέρῳ ῥύπον καταλλήλως ἀποκλυσάμενον, ὡς ἂν καθαροὶ καὶ τῷ τὸ κρυπτὸν ὁρῶντι φανείημεν καὶ ἡ κατὰ τὸ φαινόμενον εὐσχημοσύνη τῇ ἔνδον τῆς ψυχῆς διαθέσει συμβαίνοι. 2.155 ∆ιὰ τοῦτο πρὸ τῆς ἐπὶ τὸ ὄρος ἀνόδου τῷ θείῳ προστάγματι τὰ ἱμάτια πλύνεται, τῆς εὐσχήμονος τοῦ βίου περιβολῆς παραδηλουμένης ἡμῖν τῷ τῶν ἱματίων αἰνίγματι. Οὐ γὰρ ἄν τις εἴποι τὸν αἰσθητὸν τοῦτον ῥύπον τῶν ἱματίων ἐμπόδιον τῆς ἀνόδου τοῖς πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν ἀνιοῦσι γίνεσθαι, ἀλλ' οἶμαι καλῶς τὸ ἱμάτιον τὴν τῶν κατὰ τὸν βίον τοῦτον ἐπιτηδευμάτων περιβολὴν ὀνομάζεσθαι. 2.156 Τούτου δὲ κατορθωθέντος καὶ τῆς τῶν ἀλόγων ἀγέλης ὡς πορρωτάτω τοῦ ὄρους ἀπελαθείσης, οὕτω προσβαίνει τῇ ἀναβάσει τῶν ὑψηλῶν νοημάτων. Τὸ δὲ μηδὲν τῶν ἀλόγων συγχωρῆσαι ἐπὶ τοῦ ὄρους φαίνεσθαι σημαίνει κατὰ τὴν ἡμετέραν ὑπόληψιν τὸ ὑπερβῆναι τὴν ἐξ αἰσθήσεως γινομένην γνῶσιν ἐν τῇ τῶν νοητῶν θεωρίᾳ. Ἴδιον γὰρ τῆς τῶν ἀλόγων φύσεως τὸ κατ' αἴσθησιν μόνην δίχα διανοίας οἰκονομεῖσθαι. Ἐκείνων καθηγεῖται ἡ ὅρασις καὶ ἡ ἀκοὴ πολλάκις πρός τι τὴν ὁρμὴν παρεκίνησε. Καὶ τὰ ἄλλα πάντα, δι' ὧν ἐνεργὸς ἡ αἴσθησις γίνεται, πολλὴν ἐν τοῖς ἀλόγοις ἔχει τὴν χώραν. 2.157 Ἡ δὲ τοῦ Θεοῦ θεωρία οὔτε κατὰ τὸ φαινόμενον οὔτε κατὰ τὸ ἀκουόμενον ἐνεργεῖται, οὔτε τινὶ τῶν συνήθων νοημάτων καταλαμβάνεται· οὔτε γὰρ ὀφθαλμὸς εἶδεν, οὔτε οὖς ἤκουσεν, οὔτε τῶν ἐπὶ καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου συνήθων ἀναβαινόντων ἐστίν. Ἀλλὰ χρὴ τὸν μέλλοντα προσβαίνειν τῇ τῶν ὑψηλῶν κατανοήσει πάσης αἰσθητικῆς τε καὶ ἀλόγου κινήσεως προκαθᾶραι τὸν τρόπον καὶ πᾶσαν δόξαν τὴν ἐκ προκαταλήψεώς τινος γεγενημένην τῆς διανοίας ἐκπλύναντα τῆς τε συνήθους ὁμιλίας χωρισθέντα τῆς πρὸς τὴν ἰδίαν σύνοικον, τουτέστι τὴν αἴσθησιν, ἣ σύζυγός πώς ἐστι τῇ ἡμετέρᾳ φύσει καὶ σύνοικος, καὶ ταύτης καθαρὸν γενόμενον, οὕτω κατατολμῆσαι τοῦ ὄρους. 2.158 Ὄρος γάρ ἐστιν ὡς ἀληθῶς ἄναντες καὶ δυσπρόσιτον ἡ θεολογία, ἧς μόλις ὁ πολὺς λεὼς τῆς ὑπωρείας φθάνει. Εἰ δέ τις Μωϋσῆς εἴη, γένοιτ' ἂν καὶ ἐπὶ πολὺ τῆς ἀνόδου, χωρῶν τῇ ἀκοῇ τὰς τῶν σαλπίγγων φωνάς, ἅς φησιν ὁ τῆς ἱστορίας λόγος ἰσχυροτέρας ἐν τῷ προβαίνειν γίνεσθαι. Ἀληθῶς γὰρ σάλπιγξ τὴν ἀκοὴν καταπλήττουσα τὸ περὶ τῆς θείας φύσεως κήρυγμα, μέγα μὲν καὶ παρὰ τὴν πρώτην