him. And the «Who then do you make yourself?» was the voice of those who had not perceived that Jesus did not make himself what 20.44.421 he is. Therefore, it also seems to me that he answers this, teaching who made him what he was, with the words «If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing; it is the Father who glorifies me.» 20.44.422 And these things, since the twentieth volume of the 20.44.422 commentaries on the Gospel according to John has reached a sufficient conclusion, let it take its conclusion here, so that, with God revealing to us the things that follow, we may contemplate them in the next part starting from «Jesus answered, 'If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing.'» 28.t.1 BOOK XXVIII OF THE COMMENTARIES ON THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO JOHN. 28.1.1 Those who have investigated the natures of numbers have first said that six is perfect, being equal to its own parts, both from the sum of the numbers doubled from the unit, one and two, which is three, a prime number, and of that to which the doubling reached, I mean two; 28.1.2 for two multiplied by three has made six. And secondly they say that twenty-eight is perfect, being composed both of the sum of the numbers doubled from the unit, until a prime number is produced, and of that to which the doubling reached. For four 28.1.3 is the number reached by doubling from the unit in the series one, two, four. The sum of these is seven, and it itself is a prime number, measured only by the unit; and four multiplied by seven has made twenty-eight, and it too is equal to its own parts. 28.1.4 For this reason, I think, † it is readily adopted by Moses, who was educated «in all the wisdom [and] of the Egyptians,» for the construction of the tabernacle of testimony; 28.1.5 for the curtains are twenty-eight cubits in length. And indeed it was fitting that the tabernacle of testimony, constructed for the glory of God, should have, along with other exceptional numbers, the number twenty-eight. 28.1.6 Having reached which number, holy brother Ambrose, in our commentaries on the Gospel according to John (for this, God willing, will be the twenty-eighth volume on the Gospel), let us, after invoking the perfect God and giver of perfection through our perfect high priest Jesus Christ, that he might grant our mind to find the truth and their structure concerning the things to be examined, [and] thus proceed also to what follows. 28.2.n Jesus says, "Take away the stone." 28.2.7 Since here indeed Jesus himself does not lift the stone lying on the cave but says, «Take away the stone,» but in Genesis, when «there was a great stone upon the mouth of the well, and there all the flocks were gathered, and they would roll away the stone from the mouth of the well, and they gathered and watered the sheep, and they would restore the stone to the mouth of the well in its place,» and since this had not yet happened because the herds were not gathered, Jacob, seeing «Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, came near himself and rolled away the stone from the mouth of the well and watered the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother,» we wish to examine both stones together, so that we may understand the reason why here Jesus himself did not lift the stone from the cave, but said, «Take away the stone,» while in Genesis Jacob himself rolled away the stone from the mouth 28.2.8 of the well. And consider if we can say that, as for the stone on the cave, since the cave was a tomb, it was not fitting for Jesus himself to touch it, but only to command those suited for the task to lift the stone, but as for the one lying on the mouth of the well and preventing the sheep from drinking, from which the marked ones and Jacob's portion were to come, Jacob himself had to take hold of it, and coming to the stone, roll it away from the mouth of the well, so that the sheep of Laban his mother's brother might be watered. 28.2.9 And indeed it was fitting that Jacob himself should approach the well, 28.2.10 but to stand outside the cave

αὐτόν. καὶ τὸ «Τίνα οὖν σεαυτὸν ποιεῖς;» μὴ τεθεωρηκότων ἦν φωνὴ ὅτι οὐχ ἑαυτὸν ὁ Ἰησοῦς πεποίηκεν ὅπερ 20.44.421 ἐστίν. διόπερ καὶ πρὸς τοῦτο δοκεῖ μοι ἀποκρίνεσθαι, διδάσκων τίς αὐτὸν ἐποίησεν ὅπερ ἦν, τὸ «Ἐὰν ἐγὼ δοξάσω ἐμαυτόν, ἡ δόξα μου «οὐδέν ἐστιν· ἔστιν ὁ πατὴρ ὁ δοξάζων με.» 20.44.422 Καὶ ταῦτα δέ, αὐτάρκη περιγραφὴν εἰληφότος τοῦ εἰκοστοῦ τῶν 20.44.422 εἰς τὸ κατὰ Ἰωάννην εὐαγγέλιον ἐξηγητικῶν τόμου, τὴν περιγραφὴν ἐνταῦθα εἰληφέτω, ἵνα θεοῦ ἀποκαλύπτοντος ἡμῖν τὰ ἑξῆς θεωρή σωμεν ἐν τῷ μετὰ ταῦτα ἀπὸ τοῦ «Ἀπεκρίθη Ἰησοῦς· Ἐὰν ἐγὼ»δοξάσω ἐμαυτόν, ἡ δόξα μου οὐδέν ἐστιν». 28.t.1 ΤΩΝ ΕΙΣ ΤΟ ΚΑΤΑ ΙΩΑΝΝΗΝ ΕΥΑΓΓΕΛΙΟΝ ΕΞΗΓΗΤΙΚΩΝ ΤΟΜΟΣ ΚΗʹ. 28.1.1 Οἱ φύσεις ἀριθμῶν ἐρευνήσαντες πρῶτον μὲν τέλειον τὸν ἓξ εἰρήκασιν, τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ μέρεσιν ἰσούμενον, ἔκ τε τῆς συνθέσεως τοῦ ἀπὸ μονάδος διπλασιαζομένου, ἑνὸς καὶ δύο, ὃ ἐστὶ τρία, ἀριθμὸς πρῶτος, καὶ τοῦ ἐφ' ὃν ἔφθασεν ὁ διπλασιασμός, λέγω δὲ τοῦ δύο· 28.1.2 γενόμενος γὰρ ὁ δύο ἐπὶ τὸν τρία πεποίηκεν τὸν ἕξ. δεύτερον δὲ τέλειόν φασιν εἶναι τὸν εἴκοσι καὶ ὀκτώ, συνιστάμενον ἔκ τε τοῦ συνθέτου τῶν ἀπὸ μονάδος διπλασιαζομένων, ἕως γένηται πρῶτος ἀριθμός, καὶ τοῦ ἐφ' ὃν ἔφθασεν ὁ διπλασιασμός. τέσσαρα μὲν γάρ 28.1.3 ἐστιν ὁ ἀπὸ μονάδος διπλασιαζόμενος ἐν τῷ ἕν δύο τέσσαρα. ἑπτὰ δὴ τούτων σύνθεσις, καὶ αὐτὸς πρῶτος ἀριθμὸς ὑπὸ μονάδος μόνης μετρούμενος· γινόμενος δὲ ὁ τέσσαρα ἐπὶ τὸν ἑπτὰ πεποίηκεν τὸν εἴκοσι καὶ ὀκτώ, καὶ αὐτὸν τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ μέρεσιν ἴσον. 28.1.4 ∆ιὰ τοῦτο δ' οἶμαι † ῥᾴδιον διαλαμβάνεται ἀπὸ τοῦ παιδευθέντος «πάσῃ σοφίᾳ [καὶ] Αἰγυπτίων» Μωσέως εἰς τὴν τῆς σκηνῆς τοῦ μαρ τυρίου κατασκευήν· αἱ γὰρ αὐλαῖαι εἴκοσι καὶ ὀκτὼ πηχῶν τὸ μῆκός 28.1.5 εἰσιν. καὶ ἐχρῆν γε τὴν εἰς δόξαν θεοῦ κατασκευαζομένην σκηνὴν τοῦ μαρτυρίου μετὰ τῶν ἐξαιρέτων ἀριθμῶν ἔχειν καὶ τὸν εἴκοσι καὶ 28.1.6 ὀκτώ. ἐφ' ὅν, ἱερὲ ἀδελφὲ Ἀμβρόσιε, φθάσαντες τῶν εἰς τὸ κατὰ Ἰωάννην ἐξηγητικῶν (οὗτος γὰρ ἔσται, θεοῦ χαριζομένου, εἰκοστὸς ὄγδοος εἰς τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τόμος), ἐπικαλεσάμενοι τὸν τέλειον καὶ τε λειότητος χορηγὸν θεὸν διὰ τοῦ τελείου ἀρχιερέως ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ἵν' ἡμῶν τὸν νοῦν δῷ εὑρεῖν τὴν περὶ τῶν ἐξετασθησο μένων ἀλήθειαν καὶ κατασκευὴν αὐτῶν, [καὶ] οὕτως ὁδεύσωμεν καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. 28.2.n Λέγει ὁ Ἰησοῦς· Ἄρατε τὸν λίθον. 28.2.7 Ἐπείπερ ἐνθάδε μὲν τὸν ἐπικείμενον τῷ σπηλαίῳ λίθον οὐκ αὐτὸς ὁ Ἰησοῦς αἴρει ἀλλὰ λέγει· «Ἄρατε τὸν λίθον», ἐν δὲ τῇ Γενέσει, ἡνίκα «λίθος ἦν μέγας ἐπὶ τῷ στόματι τοῦ φρέατος, καὶ συνήγοντο «ἐκεῖ πάντα τὰ ποίμνια, καὶ ἀπεκύλιον λίθον ἀπὸ τοῦ στόματος τοῦ «φρέατος, καὶ συνήγοντο καὶ ἐπότιζον τὰ πρόβατα, καὶ ἀπεκαθίστων «τὸν λίθον ἐπὶ τὸ στόμα τοῦ φρέατος εἰς τὸν τόπον αὐτοῦ» καὶ τῷ μηδέπω τοῦτο γεγονέναι διὰ τὸ μὴ συνῆχθαι τὰ κτήνη, ὁ Ἰακὼβ ἰδὼν «Ῥαχὴλ τὴν θυγατέρα Λάβαν τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ τῆς μητρὸς αὐτοῦ καὶ τὰ «πρόβατα Λάβαν τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ τῆς μητρὸς αὐτοῦ, προσελθὼν αὐτὸς «ἀπεκύλισε τὸν λίθον ἀπὸ τοῦ στόματος τοῦ φρέατος καὶ ἐπότισεν «τὰ πρόβατα Λάβαν τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ τῆς μητρὸς αὐτοῦ», βουλόμεθα ἀμφοτέρους τοὺς λίθους ἀλλήλοις συνεξετάσαι, ἵνα τὸ εὔλογον κατα νοήσωμεν τοῦ ἐνθάδε μὲν μὴ αὐτὸν τὸν Ἰησοῦν ἠρκέναι τὸν λίθον ἀπὸ τοῦ σπηλαίου, ἀλλ' εἰρηκέναι· «Ἄρατε τὸν λίθον», ἐν δὲ τῇ Γε νέσει αὐτὸν τὸν Ἰακὼβ ἀποκεκυλικέναι τὸν λίθον ἀπὸ τοῦ στόματος 28.2.8 τοῦ φρέατος. καὶ πρόσχες εἰ δυνάμεθα λέγειν ὅτι τοῦ μὲν ἐπὶ τῷ σπηλαίῳ λίθου, ἐπεὶ τὸ σπήλαιον μνημεῖον ἦν, οὐκ ἐχρῆν αὐτὸν ἅψασθαι τὸν Ἰησοῦν, ἀλλὰ προστάξαι μόνον τοῖς ἐπιτηδείοις πρὸς τὸ ἔργον ἆραι τὸν λίθον, τοῦ δὲ ἐπικειμένου τῷ στόματι τοῦ φρέατος καὶ ἐμποδίζοντος τοῦ πίνειν τὰ πρόβατα, ἀφ' ὧν ἔμελλεν γενέσθαι τὰ ἐπίσημα καὶ ἡ μερὶς τοῦ Ἰακώβ, αὐτὸν ἔδει λαβέσθαι τὸν Ἰακώβ, καὶ προσελθόντα τῷ λίθῳ ἀποκυλίσαι αὐτὸν ἀπὸ τοῦ στόματος τοῦ φρέατος, ἵνα ποτισθῇ τὰ πρόβατα Λάβαν τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ τῆς μητρὸς 28.2.9 αὐτοῦ. καὶ ἔδει γε ἐπὶ μὲν τοῦ φρέατος αὐτὸν προσελθεῖν τὸν Ιακώβ, 28.2.10 ἔξω δὲ τοῦ σπηλαίου στῆναι