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into light, calling the sun of righteousness our savior Christ, or at any rate the evangelical preaching. of which, he says, when it was exalted and increased, the moon, that is, the law of Moses, stood still and no longer received addition; for no longer after the epiphany of Christ did it receive proselytes from the nations as before, but it even underwent removal and decrease. You will therefore understand that here also the holy virgin is covered by the intelligible sun; for thus the prophet also calls the Lord, speaking concerning Israel: fire fell upon them and they did not see the sun. And the moon, that is, the liturgy according to the law and the 137 polity according to the law, having been placed under and become much less than itself, is under her feet, conquered by the evangelical splendor. And he rightly called the things in the law "moon," as they themselves were enlightened by the sun, that is Christ, just as the physical moon is by the physical sun. But as to what is signified, it would have been more consistent to say that the woman was not clothed with the sun, but that the woman clothed the sun contained in her womb; but in order that he might show also in the vision that the Lord, being carried in the womb, was the covering of His own mother and of all creation, he said that He clothed the woman. The divine angel said something similar also to the holy virgin: the Spirit of the Lord will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. For to overshadow, to cover, and to clothe are the same in meaning. And on her head, he says, a crown of twelve stars. For the virgin is crowned by the twelve apostles who preach Christ, being preached together with them. And being with child, he says, she cries out, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered. And yet Isaiah says concerning her: before she that travailed gave birth, and before the pain of her pangs came, she escaped and brought forth a male child. And Gregory in the thirteenth discourse of the Commentary on the Song [of Songs] says concerning the Lord, whose childbearing remains without union, and whose delivery is unstained. And the birth-pang is painless. If, therefore, according to so great a prophet and the teacher of the church, the virgin has escaped the pain of birth pangs, how does she here cry out, travailing and pained to be delivered? It is not a contradiction that has been said, may it not be so; 138 for there could be nothing contradictory from the one and the same who spoke through both, but you will understand the "cries out and is pained" here in this way. Until the divine angel said to Joseph concerning her that what was being carried in her womb is of the Holy Spirit, the virgin, as was likely, was in distress, blushing before the one betrothed to her, and considering lest he should somehow suspect that she was in labor from a secret union; which despondency and grief, according to the laws of trope, he called a cry and torment, and it is not surprising. For indeed, to the divine Moses, when he was meeting God in his mind and was despondent—for he saw Israel in the desert surrounded by both the sea and enemies—it was said by God: Why do you cry to me? So also now the vision calls the sorrowful disposition of the virgin in her mind and heart a cry. But you who loosed the despondency of your unblemished handmaiden and mother according to the flesh, and my lady, the holy Theotokos, by your ineffable birth, loose also my sins; for to you belongs glory forever, amen#556 Seventh Discourse. Having in part completed the contemplation concerning our common lady the holy ever-virgin and Theotokos Mary, he delivers to us another, saying: And another sign appeared in heaven. And behold a great, fiery red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and on the heads seven diadems, and his tail drags the third of the stars in heaven, and cast them to the earth. 139 And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child, he might devour it. And she brought forth a male child, who is to rule all nations with a rod of iron; and her child was caught up to God and to His throne. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has there a place prepared by God, that they might feed her there for one thousand two hundred and sixty days. just as at the beginning of the

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εἰς φῶς, ἥλιον λέγων τῆς δικαιοσύνης τὸν σωτῆρα ἡμῶν Χριστόν, ἢ γοῦν τὸ εὐαγγελικὸν κήρυγμα. οὗ φησιν ὑψωθέντος καὶ αὐξηθέντος, ἡ σελήνη, τουτέστιν ὁ Μωυσέως νόμος, ἔστη καὶ οὐκέτι προσθήκην ἐδέξατο· οὐ γὰρ ἔτι μετὰ τὴν Χριστοῦ ἐπιφάνειαν ἐκ τῶν ἐθνῶν ἔλαβε προσηλύτους ὡς τὸ πρίν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀφαίρεσιν καὶ μείωσιν ὑπέμεινε. τοῦτο οὖν μὴ νοήσεις καὶ ἐνταῦθα σκέπεσθαι τὴν ἁγίαν παρθένον τῷ ἡλίῳ τῷ νοητῷ· οὕτω γὰρ τὸν Κύριον καὶ ὁ προφήτης καλεῖ περὶ τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ λέγων ἔπεσεν πῦρ ἐπ' αὐτοὺς καὶ οὐκ εἶδον τὸν ἥλιον· ἡ δέ γε σελήνη, τουτέστιν ἡ κατὰ νόμον ἱερουργία καὶ ἡ κατὰ 137 νόμον πολιτεία, ἅτε ὑποβιβασθεῖσα καὶ παρὰ πολὺ μείων ἑαυτῆς γενομένη, ὑπὸ πόδας ἐστί, νικηθεῖσα τῇ εὐαγγελικῇ λαμπρότητι. καλῶς δὲ τὰ ἐν νόμῳ σελήνην ὠνόμασεν, ὡς καὶ αὐτὰ ὑπὸ τοῦ ἡλίου τουτέστι Χριστοῦ φωταγωγηθέντα, ὥσπερ καὶ ἡ αἰσθητὴ σελήνη ὑπὸ τοῦ ἡλίου τοῦ αἰσθητοῦ. ὡς δὲ πρὸς τὸ δηλούμενον, ἀκολουθότερον ἦν εἰπεῖν τῷ ἡλίῳ μὴ περιβεβλῆσθαι τὴν γυναῖκα, ἀλλὰ τὴν γυναῖκα περιβεβληκέναι τὸν ἐν γαστρὶ περιεχόμενον ἥλιον· ἀλλ' ἵνα δείξῃ καὶ ἐν τῇ ὀπτασίᾳ ὅτι κυοφορούμενος ὁ Κύριος τῆς οἰκείας μητρὸς καὶ πάσης κτίσεως ὑπῆρχε σκέπη, αὐτὸν ἔφη περιβεβληκέναι τὴν γυναῖκα. ὅμοιον ἔφη καὶ ὁ θεῖος ἄγγελος πρὸς τὴν ἁγίαν παρθένον· πνεῦμα Κυρίου ἐπελεύσεται ἐπὶ σὲ καὶ δύναμις ὑψίστου ἐπισκιάσει σοι. τὸ γὰρ ἐπισκιάζειν, τὸ σκέπειν, καὶ περιβεβληκέναι ταὐτόν ἐστιν κατὰ δύναμιν. καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτῆς φησι στέφανος ἀστέρων δώδεκα. στεφανοῦται γὰρ ἡ παρθένος τοῖς δώδεκα ἀποστόλοις κηρύσσουσι Χριστὸν συγκηρυσσομένη. καὶ ἐν γαστρὶ ἔχουσά φησι καὶ κράζει ὠδίνουσα καὶ βασανιζομένη τεκεῖν· καί τοί φησιν ὁ Ἡσαΐας περὶ αὐτῆς πρὶν τὴν ὠδίνουσαν τεκεῖν καὶ πρὶν ἐλθεῖν τὸν πόνον τῶν ὠδίνων, ἐξέφυγε καὶ ἔτεκεν ἄρσεν· καὶ ὁ Γρηγόριος ἐν λόγῳ δεκάτῳ τρίτῳ τῆς Ἑρμηνείας τοῦ Ἄσματος περὶ τοῦ Κυρίου φησὶν οὗ ἀσυνδύαστος μένει ἡ κυοφορία, ἀμόλυντος δὲ ἡ λοχεία. ἀνώδυνος δὲ ἡ ὠδίς. εἰ οὖν παρὰ τῷ τοσούτῳ προφήτῃ καὶ τῷ τῆς ἐκκλησίας διδασκάλῳ τὸν πόνον τῶν ὠδίνων ἐκπέφευγεν ἡ παρθένος, πῶς ἐνταῦθα κράζει ὠδίνουσα καὶ βασανιζομένη τεκεῖν; οὐκ ἐναντιότης τὸ εἰρημένον, μὴ γένοιτο· 138 οὐδὲν γὰρ ἂν εἴη ἐναντίον παρὰ τῷ ἕνι καὶ τῷ αὐτῷ τῷ δι' ἀμφοτέρων λαλήσαντι, ἀλλὰ τὸ ἐνταῦθα κράζει καὶ βασανίζεται οὕτω νοήσεις. ἄχρι οὗ ὁ θεῖος ἄγγελος τῷ Ἰωσὴφ εἶπε περὶ αὐτῆς ὅτι ἐκ Πνεύματος Ἁγίου ἐστὶ τὸ κυοφορούμενον, ἐν ἀθυμίαις ἦν ὡς εἰκὸς ἡ παρθένος ἐρυθριῶσα τὸν μνηστευσάμενον, καὶ λογιζομένη μὴ ἄρα πως ὑπονοήσοι ἐκ λαθραίων γάμων αὐτὴν ὠδίνειν· ἣν ἀθυμίαν καὶ λύπην κατὰ τοὺς τῆς τροπῆς νόμους κραυγὴν καὶ βάσανον ὠνόμασε, καὶ οὐ θαυμαστόν. καὶ γὰρ καὶ τῷ θεσπεσίῳ Μωυσῇ νοητῶς ἐντυγχάνοντι τῷ Θεῷ καὶ ἀθυμοῦντι ἑώρα γὰρ ἐν ἐρήμῳ τὸν Ἰσραὴλ καὶ θαλάσσῃ καὶ πολεμίοις κεκυκλωμένονεἴρηται παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ τί βοᾶς πρός με; οὕτω καὶ νῦν τὴν εἰς νοῦν καὶ καρδίαν λυπηρὰν διάθεσιν τῆς παρθένου, κραυγὴν ἡ ὀπτασία φησίν. ἀλλ' ὁ τῆς ἀχράντου δούλης σου καὶ κατὰ σάρκα μητρός, ἐμῆς δὲ δεσποίνης, τῆς ἁγίας θεοτόκου τὴν ἀθυμίαν λύσας τῷ ἀρρήτῳ σου τόκῳ, λῦσον καὶ τὰς ἐμὰς ἁμαρτίας· πρέπει γάρ σοι ἡ δόξα εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα, ἀμήν#556 Λόγος ἕβδομοσ πληρώσας ἐν μέρει τὴν θεωρίαν τῆς περὶ τῆς κοινῆς δεσποίνης τῆς ἁγίας ἀειπαρθένου καὶ θεοτόκου Μαρίας, ἄλλην ἡμῖν παραδίδωσι λέγων· καὶ ὤφθη ἄλλο σημεῖον ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ. καὶ ἰδοὺ δράκων πυρ ρὸς μέγας, ἔχων κεφαλὰς ἑπτὰ καὶ κέρατα δέκα, καὶ ἐπὶ τὰς κεφαλὰς ἑπτὰ διαδήματα, καὶ ἡ οὐρὰ αὐτοῦ σύρει τὸ τρίτον τῶν ἄστρων ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, καὶ ἔβαλεν αὐτοὺς εἰς τὴν γῆν. 139 καὶ ὁ δράκων ἔστηκεν ἐνώπιον τῆς γυναικὸς τῆς μελλούσης τεκεῖν, ἵνα ὅταν τέκῃ τὸ τέκνον αὐτῆς καταφάγῃ. καὶ ἔτεκεν υἱὸν ἄρσενα, ὃς μέλλει ποιμαίνειν πάντα τὰ ἔθνη ῥάβδῳ σιδηρᾷ· καὶ ἡρπάσθη τὸ τέκνον αὐτῆς πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν καὶ πρὸς τὸν θρόνον αὐτοῦ. καὶ ἡ γυνὴ ἔφυγεν εἰς τὴν ἔρημον, ὅπου ἔχει ἐκεῖ τόπον ἡτοιμασμένον ἀπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἵνα ἐκεῖ τρέφωσιν αὐτὴν ἡμέρας χιλίας διακοσίας ἑξήκοντα. ὥσπερ ἐν ἀρχῇ τῆς