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foretelling the salvation that would come to all. Then, saying who we are, he added: All we like sheep have gone astray, every man has gone astray in his own way. And speaking of the manner of the cross, he says something like this: He was led as a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before its shearer is dumb, so he opens not his mouth; in his humiliation his judgment was taken away. And where can one see these things having come to pass? In the lawless court of Pilate. For when they testified so many things against him, it says, Jesus answered them nothing; and the governor said to him: Do you not hear what these men testify against you? And he answered nothing, but stood silent. This, therefore, the prophet said from of old: He was led as a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before its shearer is dumb. Then, showing the lawlessness that occurred then in the court, he says: In his humiliation his judgment was taken away. No one voted for him then according to the principle of justice, but they accepted the false testimonies against him. And the reason was that he did not wish to retaliate; for if he had wished, he could have shaken and convulsed everything. For if, when he was then on the cross, he rent the rocks, darkened the world, turned back the rays of the sun, made night in the day throughout the whole earth, he was also able to do this in the court. But he was not willing, showing gentleness and forbearance. For this reason he says: In his humiliation his judgment was taken away. Then, showing that he was not a man, one of the many, he added: And who shall declare his generation? For who is it of whom he says that His life is taken from the earth? For this reason Paul also says: Our life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, our life, shall appear, then you also shall appear with him in glory. But what I proposed to say and to show, that it is for his sake they endure their present evils, it is time now to bring in Isaiah saying. Where then does he say this? After the court, after the slaughter, after the ascension, after saying that His life is taken 48.911 from the earth, he added, saying: And I will give the wicked for his burial, and the rich for his death. And he did not simply say, Jews, but, The wicked. For what could be more wicked than they, who after so many benefits slew their benefactor? If these things did not come to pass, and you are not now dishonored, and deprived of all your ancestral possessions, if your city did not fall, and the temple become a ruin, and your affairs surpass every tragedy, do not believe, O Jew; but if the facts cry out, and the prophecy has been fulfilled, why are you shameless in vain and to no purpose? For where are your sacred things now? where is the high priest? where is the robe, and the breastplate, and the declaration? Do not speak to me of these patriarchs, these hucksters, these merchants, full of all lawlessness. What kind of priest, tell me, is there when that ancient anointing does not exist, nor any of the other sanctification? what kind of priest, tell me, when there is no sacrifice, nor altar, nor worship? Do you wish me to speak to you the laws concerning the priesthood, how it was in the old days, so that you may learn that these who are now called patriarchs among you are not priests, but pretend to be priests, and play as if on a stage, or rather, they cannot even maintain the pretense; so far have they been cast out not only from the truth, but even from the pretense itself. Remember then how Aaron became a priest then, how many sacrifices Moses offered for him, how many victims he brought down, how he washed him, how he anointed the lobe of his ear, his right hand, his right foot; then he brought him into the holy of holies; then he commanded him to remain inside for a certain number of days. Rather, it is worthwhile to hear the words themselves. This, he says, is the anointing of Aaron, and the anointing of his sons. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Take Aaron and his sons, and their vestments, and the anointing oil, and the bullock for the sin offering, and a ram, and gather the congregation to the door of the tabernacle

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σωτηρίαν πᾶσι γενομένην προλέγων. Εἶτα λέγων ἡμεῖς τίνες, ἐπήγαγε· Πάντες ὡς πρόβατα ἐπλανήθημεν, ἄνθρωπος ἐν τῇ ὁδῷ αὐτοῦ ἐπλανήθη. Καὶ λέγων τοῦ σταυροῦ τὸν τρόπον, οὕτω πώς φησιν· Ὡς πρόβατον ἐπὶ σφαγὴν ἤχθη, καὶ ὡς ἀμνὸς ἐναντίον τοῦ κείροντος αὐτὸν ἄφωνος, οὕτως οὐκ ἀνοίγει τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ· ἐν τῇ ταπεινώσει αὐτοῦ ἡ κρίσις αὐτοῦ ἤρθη. Καὶ ποῦ ταῦτα ἔστιν ἰδεῖν ἐξελθόντα; Ἐν τῷ παρανόμῳ δικαστηρίῳ Πιλάτου. Τοσαῦτα γὰρ καταμαρτυρησάντων αὐτοῦ, φησὶν, οὐδὲν ἀπεκρίνατο αὐτοῖς ὁ Ἰησοῦς· καὶ εἶπε πρὸς αὐτὸν ὁ ἡγεμών· Ἀκούεις τί οὗτοί σου καταμαρτυροῦσι; Καὶ οὐδὲν ἀπεκρίνατο, ἀλλ' εἱστήκει σιγῶν. Τοῦτο τοίνυν ὁ προφήτης ἄνωθεν ἔλεγεν· Ὡς πρόβατον ἐπὶ σφαγὴν ἤχθη, καὶ ὡς ἀμνὸς ἐναντίον τοῦ κείροντος αὐτὸν ἄφωνος. Εἶτα δεικνὺς τὴν παρανομίαν τὴν ἐν τῷ δικαστηρίῳ γενομένην τότε, φησίν· Ἐν τῇ ταπεινώσει αὐτοῦ ἡ κρίσις αὐτοῦ ἤρθη. Οὐδεὶς αὐτὸν κατὰ τὸν τοῦ δικαίου λόγον ἐψηφίσατο τότε, ἀλλ' ἐδέξαντο τὰς ψευδεῖς μαρτυρίας τὰς κατ' αὐτοῦ. Τὸ δὲ αἴτιον διὰ τὸ μὴ βούλεσθαι αὐτὸν ἐπεξελθεῖν· εἰ γὰρ ἐβούλετο, πάντα ἂν ἐδόνησε καὶ ἔσεισεν. Εἰ γὰρ ἐπὶ τοῦ σταυροῦ τότε ὢν, τὰς πέτρας διέῤῥηξε, τὴν οἰκουμένην ἐσκότισε, τὰς ἀκτῖνας ἀπέστρεψε τὰς ἡλιακὰς, νύκτα ἐν ἡμέρᾳ πανταχοῦ τῆς γῆς ἐποίησε, καὶ ἐν τῷ δικαστηρίῳ δυνατὸς ἦν τοῦτο ποιῆσαι. Ἀλλ' οὐκ ἠθέλησε, πραότητα καὶ ἐπιείκειαν ἐπιδεικνύμενος. ∆ιὰ τοῦτό φησιν· Ἐν τῇ ταπεινώσει αὐτοῦ ἡ κρίσις αὐτοῦ ἤρθη. Εἶτα δεικνὺς ὡς οὐκ ἄνθρωπος ἦν εἷς τῶν πολλῶν, ἐπήγαγε· Τὴν δὲ γενεὰν αὐτοῦ τίς διηγήσεται; Τίς γάρ ἐστι περὶ οὗ φησιν ὅτι Αἴρεται ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς ἡ ζωὴ αὐτοῦ; ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ Παῦλός φησιν· Ἡ ζωὴ ἡμῶν κέκρυπται σὺν τῷ Χριστῷ ἐν τῷ Θεῷ. Ὅταν ὁ Χριστὸς φανερωθῇ, ἡ ζωὴ ἡμῶν, τότε καὶ ὑμεῖς φανερωθήσεσθε σὺν αὐτῷ ἐν δόξῃ. Ἀλλ' ὅπερ προεθέμην εἰπεῖν καὶ δεῖξαι, ὅτι δι' αὐτὸν τὰ παρόντα ὑπομένουσι κακὰ, ὥρα λοιπὸν εἰσαγαγεῖν τὸν Ἡσαΐαν λέγοντα. Ποῦ τοίνυν τοῦτό φησι; Μετὰ τὸ δικαστήριον, μετὰ τὴν σφαγὴν, μετὰ τὴν ἀνάληψιν, μετὰ τὸ εἰπεῖν ὅτι Αἴρεται 48.911 ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς ἡ ζωὴ αὐτοῦ, ἐπήγαγε λέγων· Καὶ δώσω τοὺς πονηροὺς ἀντὶ τῆς ταφῆς αὐτοῦ, καὶ τοὺς πλουσίους ἀντὶ τοῦ θανάτου αὐτοῦ. Καὶ οὐχ ἁπλῶς εἶπεν, Ἰουδαίους, ἀλλὰ, Τοὺς πονηρούς. Τί γὰρ ἐκείνων πονηρότερον γένοιτ' ἂν, οἳ μετὰ τὰς τοσαύτας εὐεργεσίας τὸν εὐεργέτην ἔσφαττον; Εἰ μὴ ἐξέβη ταῦτα, καὶ ἠτίμωσθε νῦν, καὶ πάντων ἀπεστέρησθε τῶν πατρῴων, εἰ μὴ ἔπεσεν ὑμῶν ἡ πόλις, καὶ ἐρείπιον ἐγένετο ὁ ναὸς, καὶ τραγῳδίαν ἅπασαν ὑπερέβη τὰ καθ' ὑμᾶς, μὴ πιστεύῃς, ὦ Ἰουδαῖε· εἰ δὲ τὰ πράγματα βοᾷ, καὶ τέλος ἔλαβεν ἡ προφητεία, τίνος ἕνεκεν ἀναισχυντεῖς εἰκῆ καὶ μάτην; Ποῦ γὰρ τὰ σεμνὰ τὰ παρ' ὑμῖν νῦν; ποῦ ὁ ἀρχιερεύς; ποῦ δὲ ἡ στολὴ, καὶ τὸ λογεῖον, καὶ ἡ δήλωσις; Μὴ γάρ μοι τοὺς πατριάρχας τούτους εἴπῃς, τοὺς καπήλους, τοὺς ἐμπόρους, τοὺς πάσης παρανομίας γέμοντας. Ποῖος ἱερεὺς, εἰπέ μοι, χρίσματος οὐκ ὄντος ἐκείνου τοῦ παλαιοῦ, οὐδὲ τῆς ἄλλης ἁγιαστίας ἁπάσης; ποῖος ἱερεὺς, εἰπέ μοι, θυσίας οὐκ οὔσης, οὐδὲ βωμοῦ, οὐδὲ λατρείας; βούλει σοι τοὺς περὶ τῆς ἱερωσύνης λαλήσω νόμους, πῶς τὸ παλαιὸν ἐγίνοντο, ἵνα μάθῃς ὅτι οὗτοι οἱ νῦν πατριάρχαι παρ' ὑμῖν λεγόμενοι οὐχ ἱερεῖς εἰσιν, ἀλλὰ ἱερεῖς ὑποκρίνονται, καὶ παίζουσι καθάπερ ἐν τῇ σκηνῇ, μᾶλλον δὲ οὐδὲ ὑπόκρισιν διατηρῆσαι δύνανται· τοσοῦτον οὐχὶ τῆς ἀληθείας μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς ὑποκρίσεως αὐτῆς ἐξηκοντίσθησαν. Ἀναμνήσθητι τοίνυν πῶς Ἀαρὼν ἐγένετο ἱερεὺς τότε, πόσας ἐπ' αὐτῷ θυσίας ἔθυσεν ὁ Μωϋσῆς, πόσα κατέβαλεν ἱερεῖα, πῶς αὐτὸν ἔλουσε, πῶς αὐτοῦ ἔχρισε τὸν λοβὸν τοῦ ὠτίου, τὴν χεῖρα τὴν δεξιὰν, τὸν πόδα τὸν δεξιόν· εἶτα εἰς τὰ ἅγια τῶν ἁγίων εἰσήγαγεν· εἶτα ἐκέλευσε ῥητόν τινα ἀριθμὸν ἡμερῶν ἔνδον μεῖναι. Μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ αὐτῶν ἄξιον ἀκοῦσαι τῶν ῥήσεων. Αὕτη, φησὶν, ἡ χρίσις Ἀαρὼν, καὶ ἡ χρίσις τῶν υἱῶν αὐτοῦ. Καὶ ἐλάλησε Κύριος πρὸς Μωϋσῆν λέγων· Λαβὲ Ἀαρὼν καὶ τοὺς υἱοὺς αὐτοῦ, καὶ τὰς στολὰς αὐτῶν, καὶ τὸ ἔλαιον τῆς χρίσεως, καὶ τὸν μόσχον τὸν περὶ τῆς ἁμαρτίας, καὶ κριὸν, καὶ ἐκκλησίασον τὴν συναγωγὴν ἐπὶ τὴν θύραν τῆς σκηνῆς