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the Word; through faith having removed the covering of the denseness of the legalistic letter, through the four virtues he is let down from the vain height to the Logos who emptied himself, and by faith and by practice receives healing.

QUESTION 163 What does the Babylonian furnace signify? 14Α_230 RESPONSE It happens that temptations come upon us in two ways: voluntarily through the

pleasurable passions within us and involuntarily through external afflictions. And when voluntarily, at the command of Nebuchadnezzar, that is, the devil, we kindle for ourselves the furnace of the passions, fueling it with anger as brushwood, desire as pitch, pleasure as naphtha, and the perversion of reason as tow. For linen is understood as reason, whence also the priests, when ministering, wore linen garments. When, therefore, reason is perverted, it becomes tow, and through it the other passions are easily kindled. But if someone, like the blessed children, calls upon God through humility and fervent prayer, he is freed from the bonds of his hands and feet, that is, the practical life and the journey toward God, and is refreshed by the visitation of the Holy Spirit. But when we are tempted involuntarily and the intelligible Nebuchadnezzar kindles the furnace for us through external afflictions, of sicknesses and other unwanted circumstances, even so we are able, through patience and thanksgiving, to be refreshed by the hope of the good things stored up.

QUESTION 164 For what reason, when Elisha the prophet was mocked by the children, did he pray

and bears came out and tore apart 42 children? RESPONSE Some say that the children were not Israelites but from among foreigners, and

not children in age but in understanding. Since, therefore, they heard the prophet performing many signs and did not believe but mocked him, and some were present who did not share their vain opinion, so that these might not be harmed 14Α_232 and the blasphemy might not ascend to God, God came forth against them. But according to the spiritual interpretation, every mind, like Elisha, is bald, that is, pure of material thoughts, and in the ascent of knowledge is greatly mocked by the thoughts concerning perceptible things and matter and form, with forty signifying perceptible things; and matter and form, being added, make up the number forty-two. The mind, therefore, is mocked by such thoughts so that it might be cast into sloth with regard to virtue. These, therefore, it destroys through prayer by means of the two bears, that is, through pleasure and desire; for such passions, when used conversely for the better, will kill the mocking thoughts.

QUESTION 165 What does the parable of the Gospel signify which contains the engagement of the

kings of the twenty and the ten thousand? RESPONSE The king who goes to battle with ten thousand signifies the in us

king, the mind, warring with the ten commandments against the other king who has the twenty thousand, that is, against the ruler of this world who is arrayed for battle with perceptible things and the senses; for the five senses, being inclined to perceptible things which are from the four elements, make twenty; for through these the enemy is arrayed against us. And to sit down and take counsel signifies, if it is possible to undertake all hardship and toil for the sake of virtue; but if not, the things for

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τὸν λόγον· διὰ τῆς πίστεως ἀποστεγάσας τὸ κάλυμμα τῆς παχύτητος τοῦ νομικοῦ γράμματος, διὰ τῶν τεσσάρων ἀρετῶν χαλᾶται ἐκ τοῦ ματαίου ὕψους πρὸς τὸν ἑαυτὸν κενώσαντα λόγον καὶ τῇ πίστει καὶ τῇ πράξει λαμβάνει τὴν ἴασιν.

ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ 163 Τί σημαίνει ἡ Βαβυλωνία κάμινος; 14Α_230 ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ ∆ιττῶς τοὺς πειρασμοὺς προσγίνεσθαι ἡμῖν συμβαίνει· ἑκουσίως διὰ τῶν ἐν

ἡμῖν ἡδονικῶν παθῶν καὶ ἀκουσίως διὰ τῶν ἔξωθεν ἐπιφορῶν. Καὶ ὅτε μὲν ἑκουσίως, παρακελευομένου τοῦ Ναβουχοδονόσορ, τουτέστιν τοῦ διαβόλου, ἐξάπτομεν ἑαυτοῖς τὴν κάμινον τῶν παθῶν, ὑποκαίοντες θυμὸν μὲν ὡς κληματίδα, ἐπιθυμίαν δὲ ὡς πίσσαν, ἡδονὴν δὲ ὡς τὴν νάφθαν, τὴν τοῦ λόγου δὲ παρατροπὴν ὡς στυππίον τὸ γὰρ λίνον ἐπὶ τοῦ λόγου λαμβάνεται, ὅθεν καὶ οἱ ἱερεῖς ἱερατεύοντες λίνα ἐφόρουν ὅτ᾽ ἂν οὖν ὁ λόγος παρατραπῇ, γίνεται στυππίον καὶ δι᾽ αὐτοῦ εὐχερῶς τὰ λοιπὰ πάθη ἐξάπτονται. Ἐὰν δέ τις κατὰ τοὺς μακαρίους παῖδας ἐπικαλέσεται τὸν Θεὸν διὰ τῆς ταπεινώσεως καὶ τῆς ἐκτενοῦς προσευχῆς, ἐκλύεται τῶν δεσμῶν χειρῶν καὶ ποδῶν, τουτέστιν τὴν πρακτικὴν καὶ τὴν κατὰ Θεὸν πορείαν, καὶ δροσίζεται τῇ ἐπιφοιτήσει τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος. Ὅτ᾽ ἂν δὲ ἀκουσίως πειραζόμεθα καὶ ἀνάπτει ἡμῖν ὁ νοητὸς Ναβουχοδονόσορ τὴν κάμινον διὰ τῶν ἔξωθεν ἐπιφορῶν, νοσῶν καὶ λοιπῶν ἀβουλήτων περιστάσεων, καὶ οὕτως δυνάμεθα διὰ τῆς ὑπομονῆς καὶ εὐχαριστίας δροσίζεσθαι τῇ ἐλπίδι τῶν ἀποκειμένων ἀγαθῶν.

ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ 164 Τίνος χάριν καταγελωμένου Ἐλισσαίου τοῦ προφήτου ἐκ τῶν παίδων ηὔξατο

καὶ ἐξῆλθον ἄρκοι καὶ ἀνέρρηξαν μβ' (42) παῖδας; ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ Φασί τινες μὴ εἶναι Ἰσραηλίτας τοὺς παῖδας ἀλλ᾽ ἐκ τῶν ἀλλοφύλων, καὶ

οὐχὶ παῖδας τῇ ἡλικίᾳ ἀλλὰ τῇ φρονήσει. Ἐπεὶ οὖν ἤκουον τὸν προφήτην πολλὰ σημεῖα ποιοῦντα καὶ οὐκ ἐπίστευον ἀλλὰ κατεγέλων αὐτῷ, παρῆσαν δέ τινες μὴ κοινωνοῦντες τῆς ματαίας αὐτῶν γνώμης, ἵνα μὴ οὖν οὗτοι βλάπτωνται 14Α_232 καὶ τὸ βλάσφημον εἰς Θεὸν ἀνατρέχῃ, ἐπεξῆλθεν αὐτοῖς ὁ Θεός. Κατὰ δὲ τὴν θεωρίαν πᾶς νοῦς κατὰ τὸν Ἐλισσαῖον φαλακρός, τουτέστιν καθαρὸς ὑλικῶν νοημάτων, ἐν τῇ ἀναβάσει τῆς γνώσεως πολλὰ ὑπὸ τῶν λογισμῶν τῶν περὶ τὰ αἰσθητὰ καὶ τὴν ὕλην καὶ τὸ εἶδος καταγελᾶται, τοῦ τεσσαράκοντα δηλοῦντος τὰ αἰσθητά· ὕλη δὲ καὶ τὸ εἶδος προστιθέμενα ἀποτελεῖ τὸν τεσσαρακονταδύο ἀριθμόν. Σκώπτεται οὖν ἐκ τῶν τοιούτων λογισμῶν ὁ νοῦς πρὸς τὸ εἰς ὄκνον αὐτὸν ἐμβληθῆναι πρὸς τὴν ἀρετήν. Τούτους οὖν δι᾽ εὐχῆς ἀναιρεῖ διὰ τῶν δύο ἄρκων, τουτέστιν διὰ ἡδονῆς καὶ ἐπιθυμίας· κατ᾽ ἀντιστροφὴν γὰρ ἐπὶ τὸ κρεῖττον μεταχειριζόμενα τὰ τοιαῦτα πάθη, ἀποκτενοῦσιν τοὺς λογισμοὺς τοὺς ἐμπαίκτας.

ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ 165 Τί σημαίνει ἡ τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου παραβολὴ ἡ περιέχουσα τὴν συμβολὴν τῶν

βασιλέων τῶν κ' (20) καὶ τῶν δέκα χιλιάδων; ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ Ὁ μετὰ τῶν δέκα χιλιάδων παρατασσόμενος βασιλεὺς σημαίνει τὸν ἐν ἡμῖν

βασιλέα νοῦν μετὰ τῶν δέκα ἐντολῶν πολεμοῦντα τῷ ἑτέρῳ βασιλεῖ τῷ ἔχοντι τὰς εἴκοσι χιλιάδας, τουτέστιν τῷ κοσμοκράτορι τῷ μετὰ τῶν αἰσθητῶν καὶ τῶν αἰσθήσεων ἀντιπαρατασσομένῳ· αἱ γὰρ πέντε αἰσθήσεις προσκλινόμεναι τοῖς αἰσθητοῖς ἐκ τεσσάρων οὖσιν στοιχείοις, ποιοῦσιν τὸν εἴκοσι· διὰ τούτων γὰρ ἡμῖν ὁ ἐχθρὸς παρατάσσεται. Τὸ δὲ καθίσαι καὶ βουλεύσασθαι σημαίνει, εἰ δυνατόν ἐστιν πᾶσαν κακοπάθειαν καὶ πόνον ὑπὲρ ἀρετῆς ἀναδέξασθαι· εἰ δὲ μή γε, τὰ πρὸς