30

they had stood; and seven trumpets were given to them. Perhaps someone of the exceedingly cautious would mock what has been said, and say these things to me: What are you doing, you there? Have you quite forgotten what was said in the introductions of the present revelation? For it was said, "and the first voice which I heard, as of a trumpet speaking with me, saying, 'Come up here, and I will show you what must happen after these things;'" but you have become for us an interpreter not of future things, but of things that have already happened, recounting the birth of the Lord, the temptation, the teachings and the divine signs, the slaps and the bonds and the scourges before Pilate, the cross and the death, and the resurrection and the ascent or rather return to heaven? To whom I would say: Indeed, friend, you have heard some of the things that will be, when we explained the righteous from the gentiles with Israel being around the divine throne, and being with the Lord; and you will hear now also in the loosening of the seventh seal. For the divine oracle that said to the evangelist, "Come up here and I will show you what must happen after these things," did not take away his seeing some of the things that had previously 103 happened, but along with those things also pointed out the things to come. Listen, therefore. The loosening of the seventh seal has brought about for us the most perfect glory; for it is no longer as before a loosening of sins and a turning to God and of God to us, but unspeakable good things; to be called sons of God, heirs of God, and co-heirs with Christ, brothers and friends and children of Christ, and to reign with him and be glorified with him, and what eye has not seen and ear has not heard; and the good things which have not entered into the heart of man. And what is the loosening of the seventh seal? The second coming of the Lord and the recompense of good things. For even if some of the sinners are handed over to punishment, yet the purpose of Christ and the reason for the incarnation is for all to become heirs of his kingdom. Therefore, when the seventh seal was loosened, he says there was a silence as for half an hour, as the king of creation was about to arrive, and every angelic and super-cosmic power being struck with awe at the excess of glory of the one arriving, and for this reason fell silent. Then, he says, seven trumpets were given to the seven angels so that they might sound the trumpet as a king was approaching. And with these same trumpets they were also about to awaken the dead; for indeed the apostle, wise in divine things, writing to the Thessalonians, says in his first epistle that the Lord himself will descend with a command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God; and again: for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible. And an angel came, he says, and stood at the altar, 104 having a golden censer; and much incense was given to him, that he might offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, went up before God from the hand of the angel. And the angel took the censer, and filled it from the fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth; and there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings, and an earthquake. And the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound the trumpet. He calls the altar a censer, as receptive of incense. But when Christ appeared, the prayers of the saints are brought to him by our guardian angels, like some first-fruit and precious offering, which are by nature fragrant, but become more fragrant by the cooperation of the holy angels. For this reason it is said that much incense was given to him. And it was given by God, clearly, to the angels to watch over men, and to make their prayers acceptable. And having received it, they give fragrance to the prayers of the saints. And he says, the smoke of the incense went up with the prayers of the saints from the hand of the angel. Do you see that it was from the angel that the prayers of the saints became more fragrant before God? Then the di 105 vine angel, he says, has taken, and filled the censer with the divine fire and cast it into

30

εἱστήκεισαν· καὶ ἐδόθησαν αὐτοῖς ἑπτὰ σάλπιγγες. ἴσως τις τῶν λίαν περιεσκεμμένων ἐπισκώψειεν ἂν τοῖς εἰρημένοις, καὶ πρὸς ἐμὲ τάδε εἴποι· τί ποιεῖς, ὦ οὗτος; ἐπιλέλησαι μᾶλλον τῶν ἐν τοῖς προοιμίοις τῆς παρούσης ἀποκαλύψεως εἰρημένων; εἴρηται γὰρ καὶ ἡ φωνὴ ἡ πρώτη ἣν ἤκουσα ὡς σάλπιγγος λαλούσης μετ' ἐμοῦ, λέγων ἀνάβα ὧδε, καὶ δείξω σοὶ ἃ δεῖ γενέσθαι μετὰ ταῦτα· σὺ δὲ ἡμῖν οὐκ ἐσομένων, γεγενημένων δὲ πραγμάτων ἐξηγητὴς ἐγένου, τὸν τοκετὸν τοῦ Κυρίου διηγούμενος, τὸν πειρασμόν, τὰς διδασκαλίας καὶ τὰς θεοσημείας, τὰ ῥαπίσματα καὶ τὰ δεσμὰ καὶ τὰς παρὰ τῷ Πιλάτῳ πληγάς, τὸν σταυρὸν καὶ τὸν θάνατον, καὶ τὴν ἀνάστασιν καὶ τὴν εἰς οὐρανοὺς ἄνοδον ἤτοι ἐπάνοδον; πρὸς ὃν εἴποιμι ἄν· μάλιστα μὲν ἤκουσας, ὦ φίλος, καί τινα τῶν γενησομένων, ὅταν τοὺς ἐξ ἐθνῶν δικαίους σὺν τῷ Ἰσραὴλ ἀμφὶ τὸν θεῖον ὄντας ἐξηγούμεθα θρόνον, καὶ σὺν τῷ Κυρίῳ ὑπάρχοντας· ἀκούσῃ δὲ καὶ νῦν ἐν τῇ λύσει τῆς ἑβδόμης σφραγῖδος. ὁ γὰρ εἰπὼν τῷ εὐαγγελιστῇ χρηματισμὸς ἀνάβα ὧδε καὶ δείξω σοι ἃ δεῖ γενέσθαι μετὰ ταῦτα, οὐκ ἀνεῖλε τὸ ἰδεῖν τι αὐτὸν καὶ τῶν πρόσθεν 103 γεγονότων, ἀλλὰ μετ' ἐκείνων καὶ τὰ ἐσόμενα ὑπέδειξεν. ἄκουε τοίνυν. ἡ τῆς ἑβδόμης σφραγῖδος λύσις τελεωτάτην ἡμῖν τὴν δόξαν εἰργάσατο· οὐκ ἔτι γὰρ ὡς πρότερον ἁμαρτιῶν λύσις καὶ ἐπιστροφὴ πρὸς Θεὸν καὶ Θεοῦ πρὸς ἡμᾶς, ἀλλὰ τὰ ἀμύθητα ἀγαθά· τὸ υἱοὺς χρηματίσαι Θεοῦ, κληρονόμους Θεοῦ, συγκληρονόμους δὲ Χριστοῦ, ἀδελφοὺς καὶ φίλους καὶ τέκνα Χριστοῦ, καὶ συμβασιλεύειν αὐτῷ καὶ συνδοξάζεσθαι, καὶ ἃ ὀφθαλμὸς οὐκ εἶδε καὶ οὖς οὐκ ἤκουσε· καὶ ἐπὶ καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου οὐκ ἀνῆλθεν ἀγαθά. τίς δὲ ἡ τῆς ἑβδόμης σφραγῖδος λύσις; ἡ δευτέρα τοῦ Κυρίου παρουσία καὶ ἡ ἀντίδοσις τῶν ἀγαθῶν. εἰ γὰρ καί τινες κολάσει παραδίδονται τῶν ἡμαρτηκότων, ἀλλ' ὅ γε σκοπὸς τοῦ Χριστοῦ καὶ ἡ τῆς ἐνανθρωπήσεως ὑπόθεσις τὸ πάντας κληρονόμους τῆς αὐτοῦ γενέσθαι βασιλείας. λυθείσης τοιγαροῦν τῆς ἑβδόμης σφραγῖδος, ἐγένετό φησιν σιγὴ ὡς ἡμιώριον ὡς ἥξοντος δὴ τοῦ βασιλέως τῆς κτίσεως, καὶ πάσης ἀγγελικῆς καὶ ὑπερκοσμίου δυνάμεως καταπεπλημένης τῇ ὑπερβολῇ τῆς δόξης τοῦ παραγινομένου, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο σιωπησάσης. εἶτα καὶ ἐδόθησάν φησιν ἑπτὰ σάλπιγγες τοῖς ἑπτὰ ἀγγέλοις ἵνα σαλπίσωσιν ὡς βασιλέως ἐφισταμένου. ταῖς δὲ αὐταῖς σάλπιγξι καὶ διυπνίζειν ἔμελλον τοὺς νεκρούς· καὶ γὰρ ὁ σοφὸς τὰ θεῖα ἀπόστολος Θεσσαλονικεῦσι γράφων, φησὶν ἐν τῇ πρώτῃ ἐπιστολῇ ὅτι αὐτὸς Κύριος ἐν κελεύσματι, ἐν φωνῇ ἀρχαγγέλου καὶ ἐν σάλπιγγι Θεοῦ, καταβήσεται· καὶ πάλιν· σαλπίσει γάρ, καὶ οἱ νεκροὶ ἐγερθήσονται ἄφθαρτοι. καὶ ἄγγελος ἦλθέ φησι καὶ ἐστάθη ἐπὶ τὸ θυσιαστήριον 104 ἔχων λιβανωτὸν χρυσοῦν· καὶ ἐδόθη αὐτῷ θυμιάματα πολλὰ ἵνα δῷ ταῖς προσευχαῖς τῶν ἁγίων πάντων ἐπὶ τὸ θυσιασ τήριον τὸ χρυσοῦν τὸ ἐνώπιον τοῦ θρόνου. καὶ ἀνέβη ὁ καπνὸς τῶν θυμιαμάτων ἐν ταῖς προσευχαῖς τῶν ἁγίων ἐκ χειρὸς τοῦ ἀγγέλου ἐνώπιον τοῦ Θεοῦ. καὶ ἔλαβεν ὁ ἄγγελος τὸν λιβανωτόν, καὶ ἐγέμισεν αὐτὸν ἐκ τοῦ πυρὸς τοῦ θυσιαστηρίου, καὶ ἔβαλεν εἰς τὴν γῆν· καὶ ἐγένοντο φωναὶ καὶ βρονταὶ καὶ ἀστραπαὶ καὶ σεισμός. καὶ οἱ ἑπτὰ ἄγγελοι ἔχοντες ἑπτὰ σάλπιγγας ἡτοίμασαν ἑαυτοὺς ἵνα σαλπίσωσι. λιβανωτὸν μέν φησι τὸ θυσιαστήριον, ὡς δεκτικὸν λιβάνου. ἐπιφανέντος δέ γε Χριστοῦ, ὥσπερ τι πρωτόλειον καὶ ἀπαρχὴ τιμία προσάγονται αὐτῷ παρὰ τῶν προστατούντων ἡμῶν ἀγγέλων αἱ τῶν ἁγίων προσευχαί, αἳ φύσει μέν εἰσιν εὐώδεις, εὐωδέστεραι δὲ γίνονται τῇ συνεργίᾳ τῶν ἁγίων ἀγγέλων. διὸ εἴρηται ὅτι ἐδόθη αὐτῷ θυμιάματα πολλά. ἐδόθη δὲ ἀπὸ Θεοῦ δηλονότι τὸ προστατεῖν τῶν ἀνθρώπων τοῖς ἀγγέλοις, καὶ εὐπροσδέκτους αὐτῶν ποιεῖν τὰς εὐχάς. οἱ δὲ λάβοντες διδόασι ταῖς προσευχαῖς τῶν ἁγίων τὸ εὐῶδες. καὶ ἀνέβη φησὶν ὁ καπνὸς τῶν θυμιαμάτων ἐν ταῖς προσευχαῖς τῶν ἁγίων ἐκ χειρὸς τοῦ ἀγγέλου. ὁρᾶς ὅτι παρὰ τοῦ ἀγγέλου ὑπῆρξε τὸ εὐωδεστέρας τὰς εὐχὰς τῶν ἁγίων γενέσθαι ἐνώπιον τοῦ Θεοῦ; εἶτα εἴληφέ φησιν ὁ θεσ 105 πέσιος ἄγγελος, καὶ ἐγέμισε τὸ θυμιατήριον τοῦ θείου πυρὸς καὶ ἔβαλεν εἰς