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the more firmly he is established in the good and immoveable according to the counsel of Paul, so much the faster he runs his course, using his stability as a kind of wing, and winging his heart for the upward journey through the steadfastness of the good. He therefore who showed Moses the place urges him to the race. And having promised a station upon the rock, he shows him the manner of that divine course. 2.245 And the space in the rock, which the word calls a hole, the divine Apostle has well interpreted in his own words, saying that a house not made with hands, an eternal one, is laid up through hope for those who have dissolved their earthly tent. 2.246 For truly he who has finished the race, as the Apostle says, in that broad and spacious stadium, which the divine voice calls a place, and has truly kept the faith, as the riddle says, having established his own feet upon the rock, he shall be adorned with the crown of righteousness from the hand of the judge. But such a prize is named in different ways by Scripture. 2.247 For the same thing is here called a space in the rock, but in other places the delight of paradise and an eternal tent and a dwelling with the Father and a patriarch's bosom and the land of the living and the water of rest and the Jerusalem above and the kingdom of heaven and the prize of the calling and a crown of graces and a crown of delight and a crown of beauty and a tower of strength and table-fellowship and a seat with God and a throne of judgment and a renowned place and a hidden tent. 2.248 Therefore we say that this is one of the things that leads to this meaning: the entrance of Moses into the rock. For since Christ is understood by Paul to be the rock, and every hope of good things is believed to be in Christ, in whom we have learned all the treasures of good things to be, he who is in any good is certainly in Christ who contains every good. 2.249 But he who has reached this point and is sheltered by the hand of God, as the word has promised (and the hand of God would be the creative power of existing things, the only-begotten God, through whom all things were made, who is also a place for those who run, becoming the way of the race, according to his own voice, and becomes a rock for the steadfast and a house for those who rest), will then hear the one calling and will be seen behind the one calling, that is: he will walk behind the Lord God, as the law commands.

2.250 Which the great David also understood when he heard, saying to him who dwells in the help of the Most High that: he will overshadow you with his shoulders, which is equivalent to his being behind God (for the shoulder is in the back parts), and about himself crying out this: my soul has clung to you from behind, and your right hand has upheld me. Do you see how the psalmody agrees with the history? For as he says that for the one who has clung to God from behind there is the help of the right hand, so also there the hand touches the one who in the rock awaits the divine voice and prays to follow behind. 2.251 But the Lord also, who then spoke to Moses, having become the fulfiller of his own law, similarly explains to his disciples, stripping bare the meaning of the things spoken in riddles into plain sight, saying: if anyone wishes to come after me, not: if anyone comes before. And to the one pleading about eternal life he proposes this same thing; for he says: come, follow me. And the one who follows looks behind. 2.252 Therefore Moses, who is eager to see God, is now taught how it is possible to see God: that following God, wherever he might lead, this is to see God. For his passing by signifies guidance for the one following. For it is not otherwise possible for one who does not know the way to travel safely, unless by following behind the one who leads. The one who guides, therefore, by going before, shows the way to the one following. And the one following will not then turn aside from the straight path, if he always looks behind the leader. 2.253 For the one who by motion to the side

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μᾶλλον ἑδραῖος ἐν τῷ ἀγαθῷ καὶ ἀμετακίνητος κατὰ τὴν συμβουλὴν τοῦ Παύλου γίνεται, τοσούτῳ θᾶττον διανύει τὸν δρόμον, οἷόν τινι πτερῷ τῇ στάσει χρώμενος καὶ πρὸς τὴν ἄνω πορείαν διὰ τῆς βεβαιότητος τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ τὴν καρδίαν πτερούμενος. Ὁ οὖν ὑποδείξας τῷ Μωϋσεῖ τὸν τόπον παρορμᾷ πρὸς τὸν δρόμον. Τὴν δὲ ἐπὶ τῆς πέτρας ἐπαγγειλάμενος στάσιν, τὸν τρόπον τῆς θείας ἐκείνης σταδιοδρομίας αὐτῷ ὑποδείκνυσι. 2.245 Τὸ δὲ ἐν τῇ πέτρᾳ χώρημα, ἣν ὀπὴν ὀνομάζει ὁ λόγος, καλῶς ὁ θεῖος Ἀπόστολος τοῖς ἰδίοις λόγοις διηρμήνευσεν, οἰκίαν ἀχειροποίητον οὐρανίαν ἀποκεῖσθαι δι' ἐλπίδος τοῖς τὴν γηΐνην σκηνὴν διαλύσασι λέγων. 2.246 Ἀληθῶς γὰρ ὁ τὸν δρόμον τελέσας, καθώς φησιν ὁ Ἀπόστολος, ἐν ἐκείνῳ τῷ πλατεῖ καὶ εὐρυχώρῳ σταδίῳ, ὃν τόπον ὀνομάζει ἡ θεία φωνή, καὶ τὴν πίστιν τηρήσας ὄντως, καθώς φησι τὸ αἴνιγμα, ἐπὶ τῆς πέτρας τοὺς ἰδίους πόδας ἐρείσας, οὗτος τῷ τῆς δικαιοσύνης στεφάνῳ παρὰ τῆς χειρὸς τοῦ ἀγωνοθέτου καλλωπισθήσεται. Τὸ δὲ τοιοῦτο γέρας διαφόρως παρὰ τῆς Γραφῆς ὀνομάζεται. 2.247 Τὸ γὰρ αὐτὸ ἐνταῦθα μὲν χώρημα πέτρας λέγεται, ἐν ἑτέροις δὲ παραδείσου τρυφὴ καὶ αἰωνία σκηνὴ καὶ μονὴ παρὰ τῷ Πατρὶ καὶ πατριάρχου κόλπος καὶ χώρα ζώντων καὶ ὕδωρ ἀναπαύσεως καὶ ἡ ἄνω Ἰερουσαλὴμ καὶ βασιλεία οὐρανῶν καὶ βραβεῖον κλήσεως καὶ στέφανος χαρίτων καὶ στέφανος τρυφῆς καὶ στέφανος κάλλους καὶ πύργος ἰσχύος καὶ ἐπιτραπέζιος εὐφροσύνη καὶ Θεοῦ συνεδρία καὶ θρόνος κρίσεως καὶ τόπος ὀνομαστὸς καὶ σκηνὴ ἀπόκρυφος. 2.248 Ἓν οὖν καὶ τοῦτό φαμεν εἶναι τῶν εἰς τοῦτο φερόντων τὸ νόημα τὴν εἰς τὴν πέτραν τοῦ Μωϋσέως εἴσοδον. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ Χριστὸς ἡ πέτρα παρὰ τοῦ Παύλου νενόηται, πᾶσα δὲ ἀγαθῶν ἐλπὶς ἐν τῷ Χριστῷ εἶναι πιστεύε, ἐν ᾧ πάντας εἶναι τοὺς θησαυροὺς τῶν ἀγαθῶν μεμαθή καμεν, ὁ ἐν ἀγαθῷ τινι γενόμενος ἐν τῷ Χριστῷ πάντως ἐστὶ τῷ περιεκτικῷ παντὸς ἀγαθοῦ. 2.249 Ὁ δὲ μέχρι τούτου φθάσας καὶ ὑπὸ τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ χειρὸς σκεπασθείς, καθὼς ὁ λόγος ἐπηγγείλατο (χεὶρ δ' ἂν εἴη τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡ δημιουργικὴ τῶν ὄντων δύναμις, ὁ μονογενὴς Θεός, δι' οὗ τὰ πάντα ἐγένετο, ὃς καὶ τοῖς τρέχουσι τόπος ἐστίν, ὁδὸς τοῦ δρόμου γινόμενος, κατὰ τὴν ἰδίαν φωνήν, καὶ πέτρα γίνεται τοῖς βεβαίοις καὶ οἶκος τοῖς ἀναπαυο μένοις), τότε ἀκούσεται τοῦ προσκαλουμένου καὶ κατόπιν τοῦ καλοῦντος ὀφθήσεται, τουτέστιν· ὀπίσω Κυρίου τοῦ Θεοῦ πορεύσεται, καθὼς ὁ νόμος παρεγγυᾷ.

2.250 Ὅπερ ἀκούσας ἐνόησε καὶ ὁ μέγας ∆αβίδ, τῷ μὲν κατοικοῦντι ἐν βοηθείᾳ τοῦ Ὑψίστου λέγων ὅτι· ἐν τοῖς μεταφρένοις αὐτοῦ ἐπισκιάσει σοι, ὅπερ ἴσον ἐστὶ τοῦ κατόπιν αὐτὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ εἶναι (ἐν γὰρ τοῖς ὀπισθίοις ἐστὶ τὸ μετάφρενον), περὶ ἑαυτοῦ δὲ τοῦτο βοῶν ὅτι· ἐκολλήθη ἡ ψυχή μου ὀπίσω σου, ἐμοῦ δὲ ἀντελάβετο ἡ δεξιά σου. Ὁρᾷς πῶς συμβαίνει τῇ ἱστορίᾳ ἡ ψαλμῳδία. Ὡς γὰρ οὗτός φησι τῷ ὀπίσω τοῦ Θεοῦ κεκολλημένῳ τὴν τῆς δεξιᾶς εἶναι ἀντίληψιν, οὕτω κἀκεῖ ἡ χεὶρ ἅπτεται τοῦ ἐν τῇ πέτρᾳ τὴν θείαν φωνὴν ἀναμένοντος καὶ κατόπιν ἀκολουθεῖν εὐχομένου. 2.251 Ἀλλὰ καὶ ὁ Κύριος, ὁ τότε τῷ Μωϋσεῖ χρηματίσας, ὁ πληρωτὴς τοῦ ἰδίου νόμου γενόμενος, ὁμοίως πρὸς τοὺς μαθητὰς διεξέρχεται, ἀπογυμνῶν τῶν ἐν αἰνίγματι ῥηθέντων εἰς τὸ ἐμφανὲς τὴν διάνοιαν· εἴ τις θέλει ὀπίσω μου ἐλθεῖν, λέγων, οὐκ· εἴ τις ἔμπροσθεν. Καὶ τῷ περὶ τῆς αἰωνίου ζωῆς ἱκετεύοντι τὸ αὐτὸ τοῦτο ὑποτίθεται· δεῦρο γάρ, φησίν, ἀκολούθει μοι. Ὁ δὲ ἀκολουθῶν τὸ ὄπισθεν βλέπει. 2.252 Οὐκοῦν διδάσκεται νῦν ὁ Μωϋσῆς, ὁ ἰδεῖν τὸν Θεὸν σπεύδων, πῶς ἔστιν ἰδεῖν τὸν Θεόν, ὅτι τὸ ἀκολουθεῖν τῷ Θεῷ, καθ' ὅπερ ἂν καθηγῆται, τοῦτο βλέπειν ἐστὶ τὸν Θεόν. Ἡ γὰρ πάροδος αὐτοῦ τὴν ὁδηγίαν τοῦ ἑπομένου διασημαίνει. Οὐ γὰρ ἔστιν ἄλλως τὸν ἀγνοοῦντα τὴν ὁδὸν ἀσφαλῶς διανύσαι, μὴ τῷ καθηγουμένῳ κατόπιν ἑπόμενον. Ὁ οὖν ὁδηγῶν τῷ προηγεῖσθαι τῷ ἑπομένῳ τὴν ὁδὸν ὑποδείκνυσιν. Ὁ δὲ ἑπόμενος τότε τῆς εὐθείας οὐκ ἐκτραπή σεται, εἰ τὸ ὀπίσω ἀεὶ τοῦ ἡγουμένου βλέποι. 2.253 Ὁ γὰρ ἐπὶ τὰ πλάγια τῇ κινήσει