39

spiritually and truly accomplishes, and it is different with her according to Jeremiah who says: Behold, days are coming, says the Lord, and I will make with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah a new covenant, not according to the covenant which I made with their fathers, in the day that I took them by their hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt. Therefore, he calls the new covenant the court of the temple. Then the vision, mystically signifying that the Lord, Christ who was revealed in the new, is also of the old, and the beginning, as it seems to Paul when he says concerning Israel, for they drank from a spiritual rock that followed them; and the rock was Christ. He called the new [covenant] the court of the old; for the court is the beginning and entrance to God, but not the temple. Therefore, the court, by which both it and those in it are signified, he did not measure; for both the new [covenant] and those who have succeeded in it are beyond comprehension, the former because of their countless multitude, the latter because of the subtlety and height of its doctrines. That he says it was given to the nations, the good things in the new [covenant] were indeed given also to Israel, but since those from the nations in it are greater in number than those from Israel who were well-pleasing, from the majority he has indicated the whole, saying the court was given to the nations. And he says they will trample the holy city for forty- 127 two months, the city, but not the temple, calling the church the city, about which it was said, glorious things have been spoken of you, O city of God, the heavenly Jerusalem, the mother of the firstborn, who are enrolled in heaven. But what does the measure mean, that of the forty-two months? It indicates that the time of the polity in the new [covenant] on earth will be short, and then the end will come. For the number forty, being composed of four tens, is not perfect, and likewise the number two. By which the word indicates that the state of the new [covenant] does not last long in the present life; hence scripture calls the time of the new [covenant] the last hour and again the eleventh, in which the only-begotten became man; but in the [age] to come it will last forever. But to say that those from the nations trample the holy city, that is, the church, means that they live in it. And I will give [power] to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for one thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth. These are the two lampstands, which stand before the God of the earth. And if anyone wants to harm them, fire proceeds from their mouth and consumes their enemies; and if anyone wants to harm them, so must he be killed. These have the power to shut heaven, so that no rain falls during the days of their prophecy, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood, and to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they wish. 128 Since everything in the vision was represented to the evangelist, the things concerning the Lord's economy in the flesh, the birth, the temptation, the teachings, the outrages against him, and also the cross, and the resurrection, and the second coming, and in addition to these the retributions for both the saints and the sinners—but the things concerning the forerunners of his second coming were omitted—now the things about them are taught as if returning to the subject, that Elijah the Tishbite will come, the divine scripture has foretold to us, is certainly clear; Malachi saying, "Behold, I will send you Elijah the Tishbite before the great and manifest day of the Lord comes," who will restore the heart of the father to the son, and the heart of a man to his neighbor, lest I come and strike the earth utterly; and the Lord addressing in Matthew concerning the baptist, "And if you are willing to accept it, this is Elijah who is to come." But concerning another forerunner we have nowhere heard anything clear, except that Genesis said concerning Enoch that having pleased God he was translated, and the wise apostle [said] concerning him, "By faith Enoch was translated so that he should not see death," "and was not found, because God had translated him." But an ancient account from tradition prevails in the church: that with Elijah the Tishbite, Enoch will also come, running before the second [coming] of Christ

39

πνευματικῶς καὶ ἀληθῶς ἐπιτελεῖ, καὶ ἑτεροῖά ἐστιν παρ' αὐτῇ κατὰ τὸν Ἱερεμίαν λέγοντα· ἰδοὺ ἡμέραι ἔρχονται, λέγει Κύριος, καὶ διαθήσομαι τῷ οἴκῳ Ἰσραὴλ καὶ τῷ οἴκῳ Ἰούδα διαθήκην καινήν, οὐ κατὰ τὴν διαθήκην ἣν διεθέμην τοῖς πατρᾶσιν αὐτῶν, ἐν ἡμέρᾳ ἐπιλαβομένου μου τῆς χειρὸς αὐτῶν ἐξαγαγεῖν αὐτοὺς ἐκ γῆς Αἰγύπτου. αὐλὴν οὖν τοῦ ναοῦ τὴν νέαν φησὶ διαθήκην. εἶτα ὑποσημαίνουσα μυστικῶς ἡ ὀπτασία, ὅτι καὶ τῆς παλαιᾶς Κύριος καθέστηκεν, ὁ ἐν τῇ νέᾳ χρηματίσας Χριστὸς καὶ ἀρχή, καθὼς τῷ Παύλῳ δοκεῖ λέγοντι περὶ τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ ἔπινον γὰρ ἐκ πνευματικῆς ἀκολουθούσης πέτρας· ἡ δὲ πέτρα ἣν ὁ Χριστός. αὐλὴν ἐκάλεσε τῆς παλαιᾶς τὴν νέαν· ἡ γὰρ αὐλὴ ἀρχὴ καὶ εἴσοδος ὑπάρχει τοῦ Θεοῦ, οὐ μὴν ναός. τὴν οὖν αὐλήν, δι' ἧς αὐτή τε καὶ οἱ ἐν αὐτῇ δηλοῦνται, οὐκ ἐμέτρησεν· ἔστι γὰρ ἥ τε νέα καὶ οἱ ἐν αὐτῇ κατορθώσαντες ἐπέκεινα καταλήψεως, οἱ μὲν διὰ τὸ ἀμύθητον πλῆθος, ἡ δὲ διὰ τὴν τῶν δογμάτων λεπτότητα καὶ τὸ ὕψος. ὅτι φησὶν ἐδόθη τοῖς ἔθνεσιν, ἐδόθη μὲν καὶ τῷ Ἰσραὴλ τὰ ἐν τῇ νέᾳ ἀγαθά, ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ καὶ ἀριθμοῦ κρείττονες οἱ ἐν αὐτῇ τῶν ἐθνῶν παρὰ τοὺς ἐξ Ἰσραὴλ εὐδοκιμήσαντας, ἐκ τοῦ πλείονος τὸ πᾶν δεδήλωκε, τοῖς ἔθνεσι λέγουσα δεδόσθαι τὴν αὐλήν. καὶ τὴν πόλιν φησὶ τὴν ἁγίαν πατήσουσι μῆνας τεσ 127 σαρακονταδύο, τὴν πόλιν, οὐ μὴν τὸν ναόν, πόλιν λέγων τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, περὶ ἧς εἴρηται δεδοξασμένα ἐλαλήθη περὶ σοῦ ἡ πόλις τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἡ ἐπουράνιος Ἱερουσαλήμ, ἡ τῶν πρωτοτόκων μητήρ, τῶν ἀπογεγραμμένων ἐν οὐρανῷ. τί δὲ τὸ μέτρον βούλεται, τὸ τῶν τεσσαρακονταδύο μηνῶν; παραδηλοῖ ὅτι ὀλίγος ἔσται ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς χρόνος τῆς ἐν τῇ νέᾳ πολιτείας, καὶ ἥξει λοιπὸν τὸ τέλος. ὁ γὰρ τεσσαρακοστὸς ἀριθμὸς ἐκ τεσσάρων δεκάδων συγκείμενος οὐκ ἔστι τέλειος, ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ ὁ δύο. δι' ὧν τὸ μὴ χρονίζειν ἐν τῷ νῦν βίῳ τὴν τῆς νέας κατάστασιν ὁ λόγος ἐνδείκνυται· ὅθεν ἐσχάτην ὥραν καὶ αὖθις ἑνδεκάτην ἡ γραφὴ καλεῖ τὸν τῆς νέας καιρόν, καθ' ὃν ἐνηνθρώπησεν ὁ μονογενής· ἐν δέ γε τῷ μέλλοντι διαιωνίσει. τὸ δὲ εἰπεῖν πατῆσαι τοὺς ἐξ ἐθνῶν τὴν ἁγίαν πόλιν, τουτέστι τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, τὸ ἐν αὐτῇ ἀναστραφῆναι δηλοῖ. καὶ δώσω τοῖς δυσὶ μάρτυσί μου, καὶ προφητεύσουσιν ἡμέρας δισχιλίας διακοσίας ἑξήκοντα, περιβεβλημένοι σάκκους. οὗτοί εἰσιν αἱ δύο λυχνίαι, αἱ ἐνώπιον τοῦ Θεοῦ τῆς γῆς ἑστῶ σαι. καὶ εἴ τις θέλει αὐτοὺς ἀδικῆσαι, πῦρ ἐκπορεύεται ἐκ τοῦ στόματος αὐτῶν καὶ κατεσθίει τοὺς ἐχθροὺς αὐτῶν· καὶ εἴ τις θέλει αὐτοὺς ἀδικῆσαι, οὕτω δεῖ αὐτὸν ἀποκταν θῆναι. οὗτοι ἔχουσι τὴν ἐξουσίαν κλεῖσαι τὸν οὐρανόν, ἵνα μὴ ὑετὸς βρέξῃ τὰς ἡμέρας τῆς προφητείας αὐτῶν, καὶ ἐξουσίαν ἔχουσιν ἐπὶ τῶν ὑδάτων στρέφειν αὐτὰ εἰς αἷμα, καὶ πατάξαι τὴν γῆν ἐν πάσῃ πληγῇ, ὁσάκις ἂν θελήσωσιν. 128 ἐπειδὴ πάντα ἐν τῇ ὀπτασίᾳ διεπλάσθη τῷ εὐαγγελιστῇ, τὰ κατὰ τὴν τοῦ Κυρίου ἔνσαρκον οἰκονομίαν, ἡ γέννησις, ὁ πειρασμός, αἱ διδασκαλίαι, αἱ κατ' αὐτοῦ παροινίαι, ἔτι τε ὁ σταυρός, καὶ ἡ ἀνάστασις, καὶ ἡ δευτέρα παρουσία, καὶ πρὸς τούτοις τῶν τε ἁγίων καὶ τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν αἱ ἀντιδόσειςπαρελείφθη δὲ τὰ κατὰ τοὺς προδρόμους τῆς δευτέρας αὐτοῦ παρουσίαςὥσπερ ἐξ ὑποστροφῆς νῦν τὰ περὶ αὐτῶν διδάσκεται, ὅτι μὲν οὖν ἥξειν Ἠλίαν τὸν Θεσβίτην προηγόρευσεν ἡμῖν ἡ θεία γραφὴ παντίπου δῆλον· τοῦ μὲν Μαλαχίου λέγοντος ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ ἀποστελῶ ὑμῖν Ἠλίαν τὸν Θεσβίτην πρὶν ἐλθεῖν τὴν ἡμέραν Κυρίου τὴν μεγάλην καὶ ἐπιφανῆ, ὃς ἀποκαταστήσει καρδίαν πατρὸς πρὸς υἱόν, καὶ καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου πρὸς τὸν πλησίον αὐτοῦ, μὴ ἐλθὼν πατάξω τὴν γῆν ἄρδην· τοῦ δὲ Κυρίου προσφωνοῦντος παρὰ τῷ Ματθαίῳ περὶ τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ καὶ εἰ θέλετε δέξασθαι, οὗτός ἐστιν Ἠλίας ὁ μέλλων ἔρχεσθαι. περὶ ἑτέρου δὲ προδρόμου οὐδαμοῦ σαφές τι ἀκηκόαμεν, πλὴν ὅτι περὶ τοῦ Ἐνὼχ εἶπεν ἡ Γένεσις ὅτι εὐαρεστήσας τῷ Θεῷ μετετέθη, καὶ ὁ σοφὸς ἀπόστολος περὶ αὐτοῦ πίστει Ἐνὼχ μετετέθη τοῦ μὴ ἰδεῖν θάνατον, καὶ οὐχ ηὑρίσκετο διότι μετέθηκεν αὐτὸν ὁ Θεός. λόγος δὲ παλαιὸς ἐκ παραδόσεως ἐν τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ κρατεῖ· μετὰ Ἠλίου τοῦ Θεσβίτου ἥξειν καὶ τὸν Ἐνὼχ προτρέχοντα τῆς δευτέρας Χριστοῦ