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The Lord said to the apostles: Labor not for the food which perishes, but for that which endures to eternal life. Man has detested every form of this. For he kept neither natural law nor written law, and for this reason, They drew near even to the gates of death. The gates of death are sins, which they approached, when they should have kept far from them. For as much as they approached these, they were necessarily far from the gates of life. But Christ, though they were far off, has made them near through his own blood. And they cried to the Lord in their affliction, and he saved them from their distresses. God reckons as a cry not that which is made by the voice, but the disposition of the mind; since even when Moses was silent, he said: Why do you cry to me? He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions. For God the Word, having become man and having been sent as a man (for as God, he is uncircumscribed, and is present everywhere, and contains all things), healed the manifold wounds of souls, and restored corrupted thoughts. Thus he healed that sinful woman, and exhorted her to be of good courage; thus he strengthened the paralytic, saying, Your sins are forgiven you; thus he opened paradise to the thief; thus he appointed tax collectors as teachers of the world; thus he renews and cleanses those who approach holy baptism, and delivers them from the wounds of sin. Let them confess to the Lord his mercies, and his wonderful works to the children of men. And let them sacrifice to him a sacrifice of praise, and declare his works with rejoicing. For all these things, he says, it is right to praise the philanthropic God, who has used such great mercy, and has gifted us with paradoxical salvation. But it is necessary not only to know the divine wonders, but also to teach those who are ignorant, and to stir up everyone to hymnody. It must be noted, however, that here also he commanded to offer a sacrifice of praise to God, and not the sacrifices of irrational animals. Therefore here also he casts out the worship according to the law. And the sacrifice of praise, Aquila has called a sacrifice of thanksgiving. They who go down to the sea in ships, doing business in many waters. The present prophecy has very consistently joined the memory of the apostles and those with them to the presence of God the Word among men. For they were the ones who went down to the sea in ships, explicitly and literally, just as the divine Scripture of the gospels testifies to them. And he commands them to perform the new mysteries of the New Covenant, saying: And let them sacrifice to him a sacrifice of praise. It is as follows: For as Jesus, he says, was walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. And he said to them: Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. And going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James and John, mending their nets, and he called them likewise. The discourse, therefore, is about the apostles. For as if someone were asking, 'And who might these be?' he added, 'They who go down to the sea in ships,' and what follows; and through them the power of the works was fulfilled. For when the disciples of our Savior were sailing with him, a great tempest arose, he says, in the sea, so that the ship was covered by the waves; but they, falling before him, said to him: Lord, save us. And he rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm; where one could see The works of the Lord, and his wonders in the deep. They saw the works of the Lord and his 55.670 wonders in the deep. The prophet has set these things forth parabolically. And he says this, that just as those who sail and cross the great seas especially

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ὁ Κύριος τοῖς ἀποστόλοις ἔλεγεν· Ἐργάζεσθε μὴ τὴν βρῶσιν τὴν ἀπολλυμέ νην, ἀλλὰ τὴν μένουσαν εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον. Ταύτης πᾶν εἶδος ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἐβδελύξατο. Οὔτε γὰρ φυσικὸν νόμον οὔτε γραπτὸν ἐφύλαξε, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο Ἤγγισαν ἕως τῶν πυλῶν τοῦ θανάτου. Πύλαι δὲ θανάτου τὰ ἁμαρτήματα, οἷς ἤγγισαν, δέον αὐτοὺς μακρύνεσθαι. Ὅσον γὰρ ταύτης ἤγγισαν, πόῤῥω τῶν πυλῶν τῆς ζωῆς ἀναγκαίως ἐγίνοντο. Ἀλλ' ὁ Χριστὸς αὐτοὺς, καὶ μακρὰν ὄντας, ἐγγὺς διὰ τοῦ αἵματος τοῦ οἰκείου πεποίηκε. Καὶ ἐκέκραξαν πρὸς Κύριον ἐν τῷ θλίβεσθαι αὐτοὺς, καὶ ἐκ τῶν ἀναγκῶν αὐτῶν ἔσωσεν αὐτούς. Κραυγὴν ὁ Θεὸς οὐ τὴν διὰ φωνῆς γινομένην, ἀλλὰ τὴν διάθεσιν τῆς διανοίας λογίζεται· ἐπεὶ καὶ Μωϋσέως σιωπῶντος ἔλεγε· Τί βοᾷς πρός με; Ἀπέστειλε τὸν λόγον αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἰάσατο αὐτοὺς, καὶ ἐῤῥύσατο αὐτοὺς ἐκ τῶν διαφθο ρῶν αὐτῶν. Ὁ γὰρ Θεὸς Λόγος ἐνανθρωπίσας καὶ ἀποσταλεὶς ὡς ἄνθρωπος (ὡς γὰρ Θεὸς, ἀπερίγραπτος, καὶ πανταχοῦ πάρεστι, καὶ περιέχει τὰ σύμπαντα), τὰ παντοδαπὰ τῶν ψυχῶν ἰάσατο τραύματα, καὶ τοὺς φθαρέντας ἀνέῤῥωσε λογισμούς. Οὕτω τὴν ἁμαρτωλὸν ἐκείνην ἰάσατο γυναῖκα, καὶ θαῤῥεῖν παρηγγύησεν· οὕτω τὸν παρειμένον συνέσφιγξεν εἰρηκὼς, Ἀφέωνταί σοι αἱ ἁμαρτίαι σου· οὕτως ἀνέῳξε τῷ λῃστῇ τὸν παρά δεισον· οὕτω τοὺς τελώνας διδασκάλους τῆς οἰκουμένης ἀπέφηνεν· οὕτω τοὺς τῷ παναγίῳ προσιόντας βαπτίσ ματι νεουργεῖ καὶ καθαίρει, καὶ τῶν τῆς ἁμαρτίας ἀπαλ λάττει τραυμάτων. Ἐξομολογησάσθωσαν τῷ Κυρίῳ τὰ ἐλέη αὐτοῦ, καὶ τὰ θαυμάσια αὐτοῦ τοῖς υἱοῖς τῶν ἀνθρώπων. Καὶ θυσάτωσαν αὐτῷ θυσίαν αἰνέσεως, καὶ ἐξαγγειλάτωσαν τὰ ἔργα αὐτοῦ ἐν ἀγαλ λιάσει. Ὑπὲρ δὴ τούτων ἁπάντων ὑμνεῖν, φησὶ, δίκαιον τὸν φιλάνθρωπον Θεὸν, ἐλέῳ τοσούτῳ χρησάμενον, καὶ τὴν παράδοξον ἡμῖν δωρησάμενον σωτηρίαν. Χρὴ δὲ μὴ μόνον εἰδέναι τὰς θείας θαυματουργίας, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς ἀγνοοῦντας διδάσκειν, καὶ πάντας διεγείρειν εἰς ὑμνῳδίαν. Ἐπισημαίνεσθαι μέντοι δεῖ, ὡς αἰνέσεως θυσίαν καὶ ἐνταῦθα προσενεγκεῖν τῷ Θεῷ παρηγγύησε, καὶ οὐ τῶν ἀλόγων τὰ θύματα. Τοιγαροῦν ἐκβάλλει καὶ ἐνταῦθα τὴν κατὰ νόμον λατρείαν. Τὴν δὲ τῆς Αἰνέσεως θυσίαν ὁ Ἀκύλας Θυσίαν εὐχαριστίας προσηγόρευσεν. Οἱ κα ταβαίνοντες εἰς θάλασσαν ἐν πλοίοις, ποιοῦντες ἐργασίαν ἐν ὕδασι πολλοῖς. Τῶν ἀποστόλων καὶ τῶν ἅμα αὐτοῖς ἡ παροῦσα προφητεία τὴν μνήμην σφόδρα ἀκολούθως συνῆψε τῇ τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγου εἰς ἀνθρώ πους παρουσίᾳ. Αὐτοὶ γὰρ ἦσαν οἱ καταβαίνοντες εἰς θάλασσαν ἐν πλοίοις ῥητῶς καὶ κατὰ λέξιν, ὥσπερ οὖν ἡ θεία Γραφὴ τῶν εὐαγγελίων μαρτυρεῖ αὐτοῖς. Καὶ τὰ νέα μυστήρια τῆς καινῆς ∆ιαθήκης πράττειν παρα κελεύεται λέγων· Καὶ θυσάτωσαν αὐτῷ θυσίαν αἰνέ σεως. Ἔχει δὲ οὕτως· Παράγων γὰρ, φησὶν, ὁ Ἰησοῦς παρὰ τὴν θάλασσαν τῆς Γαλιλαίας εἶδε δύο ἀδελφοὺς, Σίμωνα τὸν καλούμενον Πέτρον, καὶ Ἀνδρέαν τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ, βάλλοντας ἀμφίβληστρον εἰς τὴν θάλασσαν· ἦσαν γὰρ ἁλιεῖς. Καὶ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· ∆εῦτε, ἀκολουθεῖτέ μοι, καὶ ποιήσω ὑμᾶς ἁλιεῖς ἀν θρώπων. Καὶ προβὰς ἐκεῖθεν εἶδεν ἄλλους δύο ἀδελ φοὺς, Ἰάκωβον καὶ Ἰωάννην, καταρτίζοντας τὰ δίκτυα αὐτῶν, καὶ τούτους ὁμοίως ἐκάλεσε. Περὶ τῶν ἀποστόλων τοίνυν ὁ λόγος. Οἷα γάρ τινος ζητοῦντος, καὶ τίνες οὗτοι τυγχάνουσιν; ἐπήγαγεν, Οἱ καταβαίνοντες εἰς θάλασσαν ἐν πλοίοις, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς· καὶ δι' αὐτῶν ἐπληροῦτο τῶν ἔργων ἡ δύναμις. Τῶν γὰρ μαθητῶν τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν πλεόντων σὺν αὐτῷ, Σεισμὸς ἐγένετο, φησὶ, μέγας ἐν τῇ θαλάσσῃ, ὥστε τὸ πλοῖον καλύ πτεσθαι ὑπὸ τῶν κυμάτων· οἱ δὲ προσπεσόντες εἶπον αὐτῷ· Κύριε, σῶσον ἡμᾶς. Καὶ ἐπετίμησε τοῖς ἀνέμοις καὶ τῇ θαλάσσῃ, καὶ ἐγένετο γαλήνη μεγάλη· ὅπερ ἦν ἰδεῖν Τὰ ἔργα Κυρίου, καὶ τὰ θαυμάσια αὐ τοῦ ἐν τῷ βυθῷ. Αὐτοὶ εἶδον τὰ ἔργα Κυρίου καὶ τὰ 55.670 θαυμάσια αὐτοῦ ἐν τῷ βυθῷ. Παραβολικῶς ταῦτα τέθεικεν ὁ προφήτης. Λέγει δὲ τοῦτο, ὅτι καθάπερ οἱ ναυτιλλόμενοι καὶ τὰ μεγάλα διαπερῶντες πελάγη δια φερόντως