32

those things, which a craftsman father according to the principle of his trade teaches his son; 7.3.7 but a part of a man, and the most beautiful part, the eye, which is most diligently crafted by nature, no other would have made, unless it were he who has authority over the first principle according to nature. 7.4.1 And if one should wish to apply his mind attentively to the human limbs, in this very part of the body especially he will behold the all-powerful and manifold wisdom of God, displaying such lavishness of art in the small compass of a member. For in the first place, a certain grace is poured over it and it is both most delicate and fleshless, as one might say, having solidity in its delicacy and tension in its softness, and is adorned with various colors. 7.4.2 Its middle, at least, has the outline of black, and this is not uniform throughout, but is bound together by certain various circles; its very center and middle having the deeper part, while the outer circumference shades off in part toward a yellower hue. Outside of this is clothed the white, gleaming and transparent, not having an unmixed whiteness, but made in a certain crystalline and translucent form. 7.4.3 The red lies around the pupil, so that it may mingle its grace with the white and the black. In addition to these things, it is so transparent and smooth in its density, that it even forms images of the shapes of those approaching and, like a precise mirror, the features of those conversing with it are impressed upon it, for which reason the very middle of its circle, the center, is called the pupil, always showing a human form to the one looking directly at it. 7.4.4 For just as it is not possible for one looking into a mirror not to immediately cast his own image upon the material, so is it not possible for the one standing opposite a person not to inscribe his own form upon the eye. At any rate, people looking at each other become mirrors of one another. 7.5.1 Therefore, the eye is worthy of wonder among created things. For this interprets God to me, precisely understanding all of creation and from its working indicating the craftsman; this interprets the invisible things to the soul from the visible things; through this I have knowledge of the sun and I learned the order of heaven and I have observed the beauty of the stars and the substance of the earth and the nature of the sea, the difference of seeds and the variety of plants and the varied hue of colors, the gloom of darkness and the brilliance of light and simply all the things that God created and praised. As if, indeed, the eye did not exist, creation would have grown old without a witness, with no one observing the wisdom and power of God preserved in it. 7.5.2 Therefore, because of this wonderful construction of the organs of sight, eyes were now also created from nothing, so that we might put away the petty notions arising in us from the flesh concerning the Only-Begotten, by the magnificence of the things being done, casting out from the soul every petty and base supposition; and let us recognize that the blessed light and beauty of the divinity accepted an earthen vessel to minister its radiance to us like lamps. 7.5.3 But the Lord effects the cure entirely Himself and does not use a word alone for the work, He who by a command established the entire order of the universe, He who with two brief words cured the paralytic; but now He cures the blindness with His mouth and hands and much other forethought, so that through these deeds He might instill a firm faith in the unbelieving. 7.5.4 He spits on the ground and with the spittle makes clay, using the earth for the cure for this reason, to show that from that same dust, from which in the beginning the whole living creature was formed, the missing part is now also created. And with spittle He takes this up and holds together what is scattered and unjoined, so that He might plainly show us, that by the power of His mouth the Word has accomplished all things. For by the word the heavens were established and by the spirit of his mouth all their power. 7.6.1 And perhaps also for this reason

32

ἐκεῖνα, ἃ χειροτέχνης πατὴρ κατὰ τὸν λόγον τοῦ ἐπιτηδεύματος διδάσκει τὸν παῖδα· 7.3.7 ἀνθρώπου δὲ μέρος, καὶ μέρος τὸ κάλλιστον τὸν ὀφθαλμόν, τὸ μάλιστα παρὰ τῆς φύσεως φιλοπόνως δημιουργούμενον, οὐκ ἂν ἐποίησεν ἄλλος, εἰ μήγε ὁ τῆς πρώτης ἀρχῆς τῆς κατὰ φύσεως ἔχων τὴν ἐξουσίαν. 7.4.1 Κἄν τις θελήσει προσεχῶς τοῖς ἀνθρωπικοῖς μέλεσιν ἐπιστῆσαι τὸν νοῦν, ἐν τούτῳ δὴ μάλιστα τῷ μορίῳ τοῦ σώματος τὴν παντοδύναμον καὶ ποικίλην τοῦ Θεοῦ σοφίαν κατόψεται ἐν μικρᾷ μέλους περιγραφῇ τοσαύτην ἐπιδειξαμένου τὴν φιλοτιμίαν τῆς τέχνης. Πρῶτον μὲν γὰρ αὐτῷ χάρις τις ἐπικέχυται καί ἐστιν ἁπαλώτατός τε καὶ ἄσαρκος, ὡς ἂν εἴποι τις, ἐν τῷ τρυφερῷ τὸ στερεὸν ἔχων καὶ ἐν τῷ μαλακῷ τὸ διατεταμένον καὶ ποικίλαις διήνθισται ταῖς χρόαις. 7.4.2 Τὸ γοῦν μέσον αὐτοῦ τὴν περιγραφὴν ἔχει τοῦ μέλανος, καὶ ταύτην οὐ δι' ὅλου μονοειδῆ, ἀλλὰ ποικίλοις τισὶ κύκλοις συνδεδεμένην· τοῦ κέντρου μὲν αὐτοῦ καὶ μέσου τὸ βαθύτερον ἔχοντος, τῆς δὲ ἐξωτέρω περιφερείας πρὸς τὴν ξανθοτέραν κατὰ μέρος ἀποληγούσης βαφήν. Ταύτης ἔξωθεν τὸ λευκὸν περιβέβληται, στιλπνὸν καὶ διαυγές, οὐκ ἄκρατον ἔχον τὴν λευκότητα, ἀλλ' ἐν κρυσταλλοειδεῖ τινι καὶ διαυγαζούσῃ πεποιημένον τῇ μορφῇ. 7.4.3 Τὸ ἐρυθρὸν κεῖται περὶ τὴν κόρην, ἵνα τῷ λευκῷ καὶ μέλανι κεράσῃ τὴν χάριν. Ἐπὶ τούτοις οὕτως ἐστὶ διαυγὴς καὶ λεῖος ἐν τῇ πυκνότητι, ὥστε καὶ τὰς τῶν ἐγγιζόντων εἰδωλοποιεῖν μορφὰς καὶ οἱονεὶ κάτοπτρον ἀκριβὲς τῶν προσδιαλεγομένων ἐντυποῦσθαι τοὺς χαρακτῆρας, διὸ δὴ καὶ τὸ μεσαίτατον αὐτοῦ τοῦ κύκλου, τὸ κέντρον, προσηγορεύεται κόρη, ἀεὶ τὴν μορφὴν τῷ καταντικρὺ βλέποντι δεικνύον ἀνθρωπικήν. 7.4.4 Ὡς γὰρ οὐκ ἔστι τὸν ὁρῶντα εἰς κάτοπτρον μὴ εὐθὺς ἐνσκιάσαι τῇ ὕλῃ τὸν ἴδιον χαρακτῆρα, οὕτω τὸν ἀντιπρόσωπον ἑστῶτα τοῦ ἀνθρώπου μὴ ἐγγράψαι τῷ ὀφθαλμῷ τὴν οἰκείαν μορφήν. Εἰς ἀλλήλους γοῦν ἄνθρωποι βλέποντες ἀλλήλων γίνονται κάτοπτρα. 7.5.1 Θαύματος τοίνυν ἄξιος ἐν τοῖς κτίσμασιν ὁ ὀφθαλμός. Οὗτος γάρ μοι καὶ Θεὸν ἑρμηνεύει πᾶσαν ἀκριβῶς καταμανθάνων τὴν κτίσιν κἀκ τῆς ἐνεργείας ὑποδεικνὺς τὸν τεχνίτην· οὗτος ἐκ τῶν ὁρατῶν ἑρμη νεύει τῇ ψυχῇ τὰ ἀόρατα· διὰ τούτου ἔχω γνῶσιν ἡλίου καὶ οὐρανοῦ κόσμον ἔμαθον καὶ κάλλος ἀστέρων ἱστόρησα καὶ γῆς ὑπόστασιν καὶ φύσιν θαλάσσης, σπερμάτων διαφορὰν καὶ φυτῶν ποικιλίαν καὶ χρω μάτων ποικίλην βαφήν, σκότους κατήφειαν καὶ φωτὸς λαμπήδονα καὶ πάντα ἁπλῶς ὅσα ὁ Θεὸς κτίσας ἐπῄνεσεν. Ὡς εἴ γε ὀφθαλμὸς μὴ ὑπῆρχεν, ἀμάρτυρος ἂν ἡ κτίσις ἐγήρασεν, οὐδενὸς καθορῶντος τὴν ἐν αὐτῇ σοφίαν καὶ δύναμιν τοῦ Θεοῦ σωζομένην. 7.5.2 ∆ιὰ ταύτην τοίνυν τὴν θαυμαστὴν τῶν ὄψεων κατασκευὴν ὀφθαλμοὶ 7.5.2 καὶ νῦν ἐκτίσθησαν αὐτοσχέδιοι, ἵνα τὰς μικροπρεπεῖς ἐννοίας τὰς ἐκ τῆς σαρκὸς ἐγγινομένας ἡμῖν περὶ τοῦ Μονογενοῦς ἀποθώμεθα τῇ μεγαλουργίᾳ τῶν γινομένων ἐκβάλλοντες τῆς ψυχῆς πᾶσαν ὑπόληψιν μικροπρεπῆ καὶ χαμαίζηλον· γνωρίσωμεν δέ, ὅτι τὸ μακάριον φῶς καὶ κάλλος τῆς θεότητος ὀστράκινον σκεῦος ἐδέξατο διακονοῦν ἡμῖν κατὰ τοὺς λύχνους τὴν λαμπηδόνα. 7.5.3 Αὐτουργεῖ δὲ διόλου τὴν θεραπείαν ὁ Κύριος καὶ οὐ λόγῳ μόνῳ χρῆται πρὸς τὴν ἐνέργειαν ὁ προστάγματι τὴν πᾶσαν ὑποστησάμενος διακόσμησιν, ὁ δύο λόγοις βραχέσι τὸν παραλυτικὸν θεραπεύσας· ἀλλὰ καὶ στόματι καὶ χερσὶ καὶ ἄλλῃ πολλῇ προνοίᾳ θεραπεύει νῦν τὴν τυφλότητα, ἵνα βεβαίαν διὰ τῶν πραγμάτων ἐμποιήσῃ τοῖς ἀπίστοις τὴν πίστιν. 7.5.4 Πτύει ἐπὶ τοῦ ἐδάφους καὶ τῷ σιάλῳ πῆλον ἐργάζεται, τῇ μὲν γῇ διὰ τοῦτο πρὸς τὴν θεραπείαν συγ χρώμενος, ἵνα δείξῃ ὡς ἐξ ἐκείνου τοῦ χοῦ, ὅθεν ἐν ἀρχῇ ὁλόκληρον ἐπλάσθη τὸ ζῷον, καὶ τὸ λεῖπον ἀρτίως μέρος δημιουργεῖται. Σιάλῳ δὲ τοῦτο ἀναλαμβάνει καὶ συνέχει τὸν ἐσκεδασμένον καὶ ἀκόλλητον, ἵνα φανερῶς ἡμῖν δείξῃ, ὅτι τῇ δυνάμει τοῦ στόματος αὐτοῦ ὁ Λόγος τὰ πάντα κατώρθωσε. Τῷ λόγῳ γὰρ οἱ οὐρανοὶ ἐστερεώθησαν καὶ τῷ πνεύματι τοῦ στόματος αὐτοῦ πᾶσα ἡ δύναμις αὐτῶν. 7.6.1 Τάχα δὲ καὶ διὰ τοῦτο