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and of murder. The account describes for me a man bursting with rage, still panting from the preceding blood-guiltiness after the hurling of the stones, with a bloodshot and savage look as is necessary for a murderer, preserving at the beginning the symbols of the patriarch's prophecy. For he, when he was about to die, having gathered his children around his bed from all sides, prophesied by the Spirit. 8..2 Thus, then, blessing Judah, he was speaking to him, but allegorically he praised the Christ from him. And next, having prophesied to all of them the things that were to come, he came last to Benjamin as also the younger in age; and seemingly he spoke to his son, but in reality he signified Paul, descending, as we have learned, from his tribe. Benjamin is a ravening wolf, in the morning he shall devour and in the evening he will distribute food. 8..3 Let us investigate what is being said; or surely this, that at first having devoured, that is, having persecuted, having murdered, having shed blood, having scattered the church like a flock, at last he became a good shepherd and pastor, putting off the persecutor and putting on the apostle, and distributing the Word to all as food and having established for us this holy table. 8..4 For such is the power of the Lord, disarming the rebellious of their rage and impious thoughts, and cleverly bringing them in and taming them, and making them gentle sheep instead of biting beasts. At this, what does Scripture say? that Going to the high priest, he asked from him for letters to Damascus to the synagogues, so that he might bring the Christians to Jerusalem. 8.21.1 O, the battle and difference of the letters sought then by Paul and those which he later wrote proclaiming Christ! The former bound Christians, but the latter placed chains for Christ's sake on the persecutor for him to bear, many and heavy and hard; and there was written: Saul the Hebrew, champion of the law, enemy of the cross, foe of the gospel; but in the later and sober letters: Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ. Of whom? Add: the crucified one. 8.21.2 O, the wonder! What was a little while ago a reproach has now become a boast, and what was despised is today remembered as a glory. For no vainglorious and proud king so paraded in the splendor of his rule as Paul did in the cross and the nails, writing himself to all a prisoner and being adorned more by the iron than maidens by adorning gold. 8.22.1 And suddenly a light from heaven shone around him. Why does he not appear to him in the form of a man as also to Stephen from heaven, but in the appearance of fire or light? Because to Stephen, as one who was perfect and knew the mystery of the incarnation and was not at all harmed by the lowliness of our nature, he rightly showed himself thus, just as he also ascended into heaven, 8.22.2 but to Paul, as one who for this reason did not accept to call Jesus God, because he came to us in the body, he does not appear as a man, so that he might not confirm the stumbling block for an unbeliever, but rather in the form of lightning and light, in order that he might draw him to himself from the law and Moses. For there also this same God, revealing himself to Moses in fire, was speaking; and giving the law on Sinai, illuminating the Hebrew with fire, he entrusted the tablets to him. 8.22.3 He shines around him, therefore, so that, applying his mind to the similarity of the things that happened then and now, and as if awakening himself from some forgetfulness, he might recognize that the theophanies are of one power; and he sends the light from heaven, so that Paul, no longer turning his thought to Bethlehem and Galilee, might no longer call Christ Son of David and man and all the other names of the economy, but might be taught clearly that, being God, he came to us from above, from where he also now appears. 8.23.1 Then he wisely adds: I am Jesus; he did not say, I am God or the Son of God, but Jesus; the name of condescension, so that he might confirm

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καὶ φόνου. Ὑπογράφει μοι ὁ λόγος ἄνδρα θυμῷ ῥηγνύμενον ἐκ τῆς προλαβούσης μιαιφονίας ἔτι πνευστιῶντα μετὰ τὰς τῶν λίθων βολάς, ὕφαιμον καὶ ἄγριον βλέποντα οἷον ἐπάναγκες τὸν φονέα, σώζοντα ἐν ἀρχῇ τῆς τοῦ πατριάρχου προφητείας τὰ σύμβολα. Ἐκεῖνος γάρ, ἐπειδὴ τελευτᾶν ἔμελλεν, πάντοθεν τοὺς αὑτοῦ παῖδας περιστήσας τῇ κλίνῃ Πνεύματι προηγόρευσεν. 8..2 Οὕτως οὖν τὸν Ἰούδαν εὐλογῶν ἐκείνῳ μὲν διελέγετο, ἀλληγορικῶς δὲ ὕμνησε τὸν ἀπ' ἐκείνου Χριστόν. Ἑξῆς δὲ τοῖς πᾶσι προμαντευσάμενος τὰ εἰς ὕστερον τελευταῖον ἦλθεν ἐπὶ τὸν Βενιαμὶν ὡς καὶ τῷ χρόνῳ νεώτερον· καὶ δῆθεν μὲν πρὸς τὸν υἱὸν ἐφθέγγετο, τῷ ὄντι δὲ τὸν Παῦλον ἐσήμαινεν ἐκ τῆς φυλῆς, ὡς ἔγνωμεν, τῆς ἐκείνου κατάγοντα. Βενιαμὶν λύκος ἅρπαξ τὸ πρωῒ ἔδεται καὶ εἰς ἑσπέραν διαδώσει τροφήν. 8..3 Τί ἐστι τὸ λεγόμενον ἐρευνήσωμεν· ἢ τοῦτο πάντως, ὅτι τὰ πρῶτα φαγών, τούτεστι διώξας, φονεύσας, ἐκχέας αἷμα, σκορπίσας ὡς ἀγέλην τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, τελευταῖον ἐγένετο νομεὺς καὶ ποιμὴν ἀγαθὸς ἀποθέμενος τὸν διώκτην καὶ ἐνδυσάμενος τὸν ἀπόστολον, πᾶσι δὲ ὡς τροφὴν διανέμων τὸν Λόγον καὶ τὴν ἁγίαν ἡμῖν ταύτην ἱδρυσάμενος τράπεζαν. 8..4 Ἡ γὰρ τοῦ Κυρίου δύναμις τοιαύτη ἀφοπλίζουσα τοῦ θυμοῦ καὶ τῶν δυσσεβῶν νοημάτων τοὺς στασιάζοντας, προσαγομένη δὲ εὐμηχάνως καὶ τιθασσεύουσα καὶ πρόβατα ἥμερα ἀντὶ θηρίων δακ νόντων ἐργαζομένη. Ἐπὶ τούτοις τί φησιν ἡ Γραφή; ὅτι Προσελθὼν τῷ ἀρχιερεῖ ᾐτήσατο παρ' αὐτοῦ ἐπιστολὰς εἰς ∆αμασκὸν πρὸς τὰς συναγωγάς, ὅπως τοὺς χριστιανοὺς ἀγάγῃ εἰς Ἰερουσαλήμ. 8.21.1 Ὢ μάχη καὶ διαφορὰ ἐπιστολῶν τῶν τότε παρὰ Παύλου ζητουμένων καὶ ἃς τὸν Χριστὸν καταγγέλλων ὕστερον ἔγραψεν! Αἱ μὲν ἐδεσμοῦν χριστιανούς, αἱ δὲ τὰς ἁλύσεις ὑπὲρ Χριστοῦ περιέθηκαν τῷ διώκτῃ πολλὰς καὶ βαρείας καὶ χαλεπὰς ἐνεγκεῖν· κἀκεῖ μὲν ἐγέγραπτο· Σαῦλος Ἑβραῖος, τοῦ νόμου προστάτης, ἐχθρὸς τοῦ σταυροῦ, τοῦ εὐαγγελίου πολέμιος· ἐν δὲ ταῖς μεταγενεστέραις ἐπιστολαῖς καὶ σωφρονούσαις· Παῦλος δοῦλος Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ. Ποίου; Πρόσθες· τοῦ ἐσταυ ρωμένου. 8.21.2 Ὢ τοῦ θαύματος! Ὃ πρὸ ὀλίγου ὄνειδος νῦν γέγονε καύχημα καὶ τὸ ἐξουθενούμενον ὡς δόξα σήμερον μνημονεύεται. Οὐδεὶς γὰρ δοξοκόπος καὶ γαυριῶν βασιλεὺς οὕτως ἐνεπόμπευσε τῇ περιφανείᾳ τῆς ἀρχῆς, ὡς Παῦλος τῷ σταυρῷ καὶ τοῖς ἥλοις γράφων ἑαυτὸν πᾶσι δεσμώτην καὶ πλέον τῷ σιδήρῳ καλλυνόμενος ἢ αἱ κόραι τῷ κοσμοῦντι χρυσῷ. 8.22.1 Ἐξαίφνης τε περιήστραψεν αὐτὸν φῶς ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ. ∆ιὰ τί οὐ φαίνεται αὐτῷ ἐν μορφῇ ἀνθρώπου ὥσπερ καὶ Στεφάνῳ ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, ἀλλ' ἐν εἴδει πυρὸς ἢ φωτός; Ὅτι Στεφάνῳ μὲν ὡς τελείῳ καὶ εἰδότι τὸ τῆς ἐνανθρωπήσεως μυστήριον καὶ μηδὲν βλαπτομένῳ ἐκ τῆς εὐτελείας τῆς καθ' ἡμᾶς καλῶς οὕτως ἑαυτὸν ἐπεδείκνυ ὥσπερ οὖν καὶ ἀνῆλθεν ἐπὶ τὸν οὐρανόν, 8.22.2 Παύλῳ δὲ ὡς διὰ τοῦτο μὴ καταδε χομένῳ Θεὸν ὀνομάζειν τὸν Ἰησοῦν, ἐπειδὴ ἐν σώματι παρεγένετο πρὸς ἡμᾶς, οὐ φαίνεται ἄνθρωπος, ἵνα μὴ βεβαιώσῃ ἀπίστῳ τὸ πρόσκομμα, ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον ἐν ἰδέᾳ ἀστραπῆς καὶ φωτός, ἵν' ἐκ τοῦ νόμου καὶ Μωϋσέως αὐτὸν ἐφελκύσηται. Κἀκεῖ γὰρ ὁ αὐτὸς οὗτος Θεὸς τῷ Μωϋσεῖ ἑαυτὸν ἐμφανίζων ἐν πυρὶ ἐλάλει· καὶ τὸν νόμον διδοὺς ἐπὶ τοῦ Σινᾶ, πυρὶ κατα λάμπων τὸν Ἑβραῖον ἐνεχείριζε τὰς πλάκας αὐτῷ. 8.22.3 Περιαυγάζει τοίνυν αὐτόν, ἵνα τὸν νοῦν ἐπιβαλὼν τῇ ὁμοιότητι τῶν τότε γενομένων καὶ νῦν καὶ ὥσπερ ἐκ λήθης τινὸς ἑαυτὸν ἀφυπνίσας γνωρίσῃ τῆς μιᾶς δυνάμεως ὄντα τὰ θεοφάνια· ἀποστέλλει δὲ ἐξ οὐρανοῦ τὴν αὐγήν, ἵνα μηκέτι περὶ τὴν Βηθλεὲμ καὶ τὴν Γαλιλαίαν στρεφόμενος τῇ διανοίᾳ ὁ Παῦλος υἱὸν τοῦ ∆αβὶδ ὀνομάζῃ τὸν Χριστὸν καὶ ἄνθρωπον καὶ πάντα τὰ ἄλλα, τὰ τῆς οἰκονομίας ὀνόματα, διδαχθῇ δὲ σαφῶς ὅτι Θεὸς ὢν ἄνωθεν ἀφίκετο πρὸς ἡμᾶς, ὅθεν καὶ νῦν ἐπιφαίνεται. 8.23.1 Εἶτα προστίθησι σοφῶς· Ἐγώ εἰμι Ἰησοῦς· οὐκ εἶπεν ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ Θεὸς ἢ ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἀλλ' Ἰησοῦς· τὸ τῆς συγκαταβάσεως ὄνομα, ἵνα βεβαιώσῃ