and the mere sight of the one envied casts no small spark into the envious.] 130 [For this reason he would have mingled with us .... and becoming for the demons.] 131 He was a beggar because of a lack of necessities and inability. † And such you would find among the Greeks and barbarians who beg for the benefit and provision of the truth of Christ and the knowledge of his rich doctrines. And not only did Jesus deliver him from blindness but also from begging. For he granted to him at the same time the ability to see and the things necessary for the salvation of the soul. And here blindness is the cause of the begging, but in Acts, lameness. 132 If he who does not keep the Sabbath is not from God, neither are your priests, who profane the Sabbath through circumcision, from God. 133 Having made him trustworthy, they thus presented themselves to be deceived. When Christ opened the eyes of the blind man, he did not open them of a small child but of one who had reached full age, so that he might both see and make a defense as a man. And such were the other blind men who regained their sight. 134 The "You have not heard" is instead of "You were not willing to accept what was said." And the "Why then do you want to hear again?" is equivalent to "If you do not accept the things that have been said." why do you want them to be reported to you again in vain? 135 If God does not hear sinners, how did Christ teach, telling sinners to pray: "Forgive us our trespasses, "as we also forgive our debtors." God hears these who are turning to repentance, even if they have not yet ceased from sinning. And if God did not hear sinners, he would not have eaten and drunk with tax collectors and prostitutes; or that he who prays about such works as were the works of Jesus, so that God might perform such things, He does not hear him. 136 If they picked up [stones] before, they also picked them up again. But I think that he who speaks evil of someone throws stones at him. And they were speaking evil of him and a division because of him was happening among the Jews. Therefore again these men, having lifted up the weight of their blasphemous words, threw them at him as stones. For this reason Wisdom says: "He who throws a stone on high throws it on his own head"; and the psalmist: "His injustice will come down upon his own head," and the unjust one speaking on high throws on high. 137 Just as the day is divided into twelve hours, in this way also the twelve patriarchs and the choir of the apostles are equal in number to the hours of the day, having as sun our Christ and God, who is also the intelligible day, from whom are the words and the illumination of their knowledge. 138 And again they sought to kill him, as has often been said. But now they confirmed the decision and † they have treated the matter as a deed. And again he saves himself in a human way, and he does this continuously. And he stated the reason, that his hour had not yet come, and now he is staying in the wilderness in a city called Ephraim. And he remained with his disciples, awaiting the opportune time and sparing them from their destruction. 139 The one who follows him serves him, and thus is his servant. and for this reason where the Word is, there he is also. And the promise must not be understood bodily nor locally. But if one were to suppose a place bodily, this one would not err. For [it is understood that] those who are pre-eminent in brightness, receiving according to their worth in the resurrection, are in places in the purest [realms] of the aether and in the more transparent by the subtlety of light, as most suitable for the leisure of contemplating the doctrines of the Word of God. 140 [That] "One" is said in many ways, both according to likeness and according to many other things; and according to agreement, when it says that "The multitude "of believers was of one heart and one soul," but according to likeness, as when it says: "For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one "body" according to a likeness of nature; and as, having Adam as origin and head according to our natural birth, we are all said to have one body, so also we take Christ as head through the divine rebirth, which has become a type for us of his death and resurrection, who is the firstborn from

καὶ ὄψις μόνη τοῦ διαφθονουμένου οὐ μικρὸν τοῖς βασκαίνουσιν ἐνιέναι σπινθῆρα.] 130 [∆ιὰ τοῦτο ἂν ἔμιξεν ἡμῖν .... καὶ τοῖς δαίμοσι γινόμενοι.] 131 Προσαίτης ἦν δι' ἀπορίαν τῶν ἀναγκαίων καὶ ἀδυναμίαν. † τοιού τους δ' ἂν εὕροις τοὺς ἀπὸ Ἑλλήνων καὶ βαρβάρων τῶν ὠφέλειαν καὶ τὸ πορισμὸν τῆς Χριστοῦ ἀληθείας καὶ τῶν πλουσίων θεωρημά των αὐτοῦ τὴν γνῶσιν προσαιτοῦντας. οὐ μόνον δὲ ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἀπήλ λαξεν αὐτὸν ἀπὸ τῆς τυφλότητος ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ προσαιτεῖν. ἐχαρίσατο γὰρ αὐτῷ ἅμα τοῦ βλέπειν καὶ τὰ πρὸς σωτηρίαν ψυχῆς ἀναγκαῖα. καὶ ἐνταῦθα μὲν ἡ τυφλότης τοῦ προσαιτεῖν αἰτία, ἐν δὲ ταῖς Πράξεσιν ἡ χωλότης. 132 Εἰ ὁ μὴ τηρῶν τὸ σάββατον οὔκ ἐστιν ἀπὸ θεοῦ, οὐδὲ ἱερεῖς ὑμῶν οἱ τὸ σάββατον διὰ τῆς περιτομῆς βεβηλοῦντες εἰσὶν ἀπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ. 133 Ἀξιόπιστον αὐτὸν ποιήσαντες οὕτω παρεστήσαντο πρὸς τὸ διεψεῦσθαι. ἀνοίγων ὁ χριστὸς τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς τοῦ τυφλοῦ· οὐ μικροῦ παιδίου ἠνέῳξεν ἀλλὰ τελείαν ἡλικίαν ἔχοντος, ἵνα καὶ βλέπῃ καὶ ὡς ἀνὴρ ἀπολογήσηται. τοιοῦτοι δὲ ἦσαν καὶ οἱ λοιποὶ ἀναβλέψαντες τυφλοί. 134 Τὸ «Οὐκ ἠκούσατε» ἀντὶ τοῦ Οὐκ ἠθελήσατε παραδέξασθαι τὸ λεγόμενον. τὸ δὲ «Τί οὖν πάλιν θέλετε ἀκούειν;» ἰσοδυναμεῖ τῷ Εἰ μὴ παραδέχεσθε τὰ εἰρημένα. τί πάλιν αὐτὰ ἀπαγγέλλεσθαι μάτην ὑμῖν θέλετε; 135 Εἰ ἁμαρτωλῶν ὁ θεὸς οὐκ ἀκούει, πῶς ἐδίδασκεν ὁ χριστὸς λέγων τοὺς ἁμαρτωλοὺς προσεύχεσθαι· «Ἄφες ἡμῖν τὰ παραπτώματα ἡμῶν, «ὡς καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀφίεμεν τοῖς ὠφειλέταις ἡμῶν». τούτων ἀκούει ὁ θεὸς τῶν ἐπὶ μετάνοιαν νευόντων, εἰ καὶ μήπω ἐπαύσαντο ἁμαρτάνοντες, καὶ εἰ μὴ ἤκουσεν ὁ θεὸς ἁμαρτωλῶν, οὐκ ἂν μετὰ τελωνῶν καὶ πορνῶν ἤσθιεν καὶ ἔπινεν· ἢ ὅτι ὁ περὶ τοιούτων ἔργων εὐχόμενος ὁποῖα ἦν τὰ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ ἔργα ἵν' ἐκτελέσῃ τοιαῦτα ὁ θεός, αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἀκούει. 136 Εἰ πρότερον ἐβάστασαν, καὶ πάλιν ἐβάστασαν. οἶμαι δὲ ὅτι καὶ ὁ κακολογῶν τινα λίθους ἐπ' αὐτὸν βάλλει. κακῶς δὲ αὐτὸν ἔλεγον καὶ σχίσμα δι' αὐτὸν ἐν τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις ἐγίνετο. πάλιν οὖν τὸ βάρος τῶν δυσφήμων λόγων οὗτοι βαστάσαντες ὡς λίθους ἐπ' αὐτὸν ἔβαλλον. διὰ τοῦτό φησιν ἡ Σοφία· «Ὁ βάλλων λίθον εἰς ὕψος ἐπὶ τὴν κεφαλὴν «αὐτοῦ βάλλει»· ὁ δὲ ψαλμῳδός· «Ἡ ἀδικία αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τὴν κεφαλὴν «αὐτοῦ καταβήσεται», ὁ δὲ ἄδικος εἰς ὕψος λαλῶν εἰς ὕψος βάλλει. 137 Ὥσπερ εἰς δώδεκα ὥρας διαιρεῖται ἡ ἡμέρα, κατὰ τοῦτο καὶ οἱ δώ- δεκα πατριάρχαι καὶ ὁ χορὸς τῶν ἀποστόλων ἰσάριθμοι τῶν ὡρῶν τῆς ἡμέρας, ἔχοντες ἥλιον τὸν χριστὸν καὶ θεὸν ἡμῶν, ὅστις καὶ νοητή ἐστιν ἡμέρα, ἐξ οὗ οἱ λόγοι καὶ ὁ τῆς γνώσεως τούτων φωτισμός. 138 Καὶ πάλιν ἐζήτουν αὐτὸν ἀποκτεῖναι, ὡς πολλάκις εἴρηται. νῦν δὲ ἐκύρωσαν τὴν γνώμην καὶ † ὡς ἔργον τῷ πράγματι κέχρηνται. πάλιν δὲ ἀνθρωπίνως ἑαυτὸν σώζει, καὶ συνεχῶς ταῦτα ποιεῖ. τὴν δὲ αἰτίαν εἶπεν, ὅτι οὔπω ἥκει ἡ ὥρα αὐτοῦ, καὶ νῦν ἐπὶ τῆς ἐρήμου διατρίβει ἐν πόλει λεγομένῃ Ἐφραίμ. καὶ ἔμεινε μετὰ τῶν μαθητῶν αὐτοῦ τὸν ἐπιτήδειον καιρὸν ἀναμένων καὶ τῆς ἐκείνων φειδόμενος ἀπωλείας. 139 Ὁ ἑπόμενος αὐτῷ διακονεῖ αὐτῷ, οὕτως δὲ διάκονος αὐτοῦ ἐστι. καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ὅπου ἐστὶν ὁ λόγος, κἀκεῖ καὶ αὐτός ἐστιν. οὐ σωματικῶς <δὲ> οὐδὲ τοπικῶς τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν νοητέον. εἰ δὲ καὶ τόπον σωματικῶς τις ὑπολάβοι, καὶ οὗτος οὐκ ἂν ἁμάρτοι. ἐν γὰρ τοῖς καθαρω- τάτοις τοῦ αἰθέρος καὶ λεπτότητι φωτὸς διαυγεστέροις τοὺς διαφέροντας τῇ λαμπρότητι ἀπολαμβάνοντας κατὰ τὴν ἀξίαν ἐν τῇ ἀναστάσει χωρίοις γίνεσθαι ὡς ἐπιτηδειοτάτοις πρὸς τὴν σχολὴν τῶν θεωρημάτων τοῦ θεοῦ λόγου. 140 [Ὅτι] Τὸ «Ἓν» πολλαχῶς λέγεται καὶ καθ' ὁμοιότητα καὶ καθ' ἕτερα πολλά· καὶ κατὰ μὲν συμφωνίαν, ὅταν εἴπῃ ὅτι «Τὸ πλῆθος «τῶν πιστευσάντων ἦν ἡ καρδία μία καὶ ἡ ψυχὴ μία», καθ' ὁμοιότητα δέ, ὡς ὅταν λέγῃ· «Καὶ γὰρ ἡμεῖς πάντες ἐν ἑνὶ πνεύματι εἰς ἓν «σῶμα ἐβαπτίσθημεν» καθ' ὁμοιότητα τῆς φύσεως· καὶ ὡς τὸν Ἀδὰμ ἀρχὴν καὶ κεφαλὴν ἔχοντες κατὰ φύσιν ἡμῶν γεννήσεως ἓν σῶμα λεγόμεθα οἱ πάντες ἔχειν, οὕτως καὶ τὸν χριστὸν κεφαλὴν ἐπιγραφόμεθα διὰ τῆς θείας ἀναγεννήσεως ἥτις γέγονε τύπος ἡμῖν τοῦ θανάτου καὶ τῆς ἀναστάσεως αὐτοῦ, ὃς πρωτότοκος ἐκ