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not to deny the resurrection of our flesh, in which lies the entire treasure and foundation of every sound reasoning and the hope of every good work, according to what is said, “having this 89.3 treasure in earthen vessels” and what follows. For we who are weak exercise self-control, we who are humble are chaste, we who are powerless long to give alms on account of the reception of things hoped for, of the resurrection of the dead; 89.4 and thus the rule of faith and hope, of love of God and of witness for the name of God has been founded in persecutions, tortures and other inhuman punishments among those who do not deny the resurrection of our flesh, but believe that the very thing that is sown in the 89.5 earth will be raised. For the divine scriptures have given us two clear and true witnesses, through which we are able to know the hope of our resurrection and not be led astray by the myths of vainglorious men who have been deceived and have written deceit into life. So that I may not use many witnesses—for they are not few in the New and the Old Testaments concerning our hope and resurrection—I will say this briefly; 90.1 that if what is raised were something else, as some assert, the apostle would not have affirmed, saying, “For this corruptible must 90.2 put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.” But since it is necessary, concerning the glory of the saints—how they are to be made bright and changed in glory after the resurrection, just as he says, “it is raised in glory”—that we be established in hope, the holy scripture says, “Fool, what you sow is not made alive unless it dies; and you do not sow the body that will be, but perhaps a grain of wheat or of some other seed, and God gives it a body as he has willed.” 90.3 This he said concerning the glory of those who are raised in brightness; but that he might show that the grain itself receives the glory, he who also "spoke in Paul" concerning the resurrection said through himself in the gospel: “Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies,” he says, “it remains alone; 90.4 but if it dies, it bears many grains.” Therefore, the apostle spoke of a grain and the Savior demonstrated the same grain of the body through himself. What then shall we say? Did not his own body that was sown, that is, the grain, rise? Or was it another that rose from it from the tomb after three 90.5 days? As the angels say: “He is risen, he is not here,” and as he says to Mary, “Do not touch me; for I have not yet ascended to my Father,” and as he shows his hands and his 90.6 side to Thomas, saying, “Do not be unbelieving, but believing.” For it is of the unbelieving to say he did not rise at all, or it is of the malevolently-believing to say that the very thing that existed and slept did not rise, but it is of the faithful to say that the body itself rose and from the same body which he raised, our body was established into a hope of truth. 91.1 For this reason he also left the marks of the nails, not erasing them nor the mark of the spear, even though he entered when the doors were closed. For his fleshly body rose a spiritual one, but not other than what it was, but the very thing it was, united with divinity, adorned with the subtlety of spirit. 91.2 For if there were not a subtlety of spirit, what sort of opening would have received a bulky body? But that he might show that this corruptible of ours puts on incorruption in truth—for if it is also mortal, it puts on immortality—he entered while the doors were closed, in order to show the thick made thin, and the mortal immortal, and the 91.3 corruptible incorruptible; and in order to rebuke all those who disbelieve in our salvation, I mean the resurrection, he who changed the body into subtlety and blended the flesh into spirit after the resurrection did not erase the scars of the nails nor the mark of the 91.4 spear, but showed the very thing that suffered on the cross, that it was not another
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μὴ ἀρνεῖσθαι ἀνάστασιν τῆς ἡμετέρας σαρκός, ἐν ᾗπερ πᾶς ὁ θησαυρὸς καὶ κρηπὶς παντὸς σώφρονος λογισμοῦ καὶ πάσης ἀγαθοεργίας ἐλπὶς διάκειται κατὰ τὸ εἰρημένον «ἔχοντες τὸν θησαυρὸν 89.3 τοῦτον ἐν ὀστρακίνοις σκεύεσι» καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. ἐγκρατευόμεθα γὰρ οἱ ἀσθενεῖς, ἁγνεύομεν οἱ ταπεινοί, ἐλεημοσύνας ἐπιποθοῦμεν ποιεῖν οἱ ἀδύνατοι διὰ τὴν τῶν προσδοκωμένων ἀπόληψιν, τῆς τῶν νεκρῶν 89.4 ἀναστάσεως· καὶ οὕτως ὁ κανὼν τεθεμελίωται πίστεως καὶ ἐλπίδος θεοῦ ἀγάπης καὶ μαρτυρίου ὑπὲρ ὀνόματος θεοῦ ἐν διωγμοῖς βασάνων καὶ ἄλλων ἀπανθρώπων κολάσεων ἐν τοῖς μὴ ἀρνουμένοις ἀνάστασιν τῆς ἡμῶν σαρκός, ἀλλὰ πιστεύουσιν ὅτι αὐτὸ τὸ σπειρόμενον ἐν τῇ 89.5 γῇ ἐγερθήσεται. δύο γὰρ σαφεῖς καὶ ἀληθεῖς μαρτυρίας ἔδωκαν ἡμῖν αἱ θεῖαι γραφαί, δι' ὧν δυνάμεθα τὴν τῆς ἡμῶν ἀναστάσεως ἐλπίδα γνῶναι καὶ μὴ σφαλῆναι μύθοις κενοδόξων ἀνθρώπων ἀπατηθέντων καὶ τῷ βίῳ ἀπάτην γραψάντων. ἵνα οὖν μὴ πολλαῖς μαρτυρίαις χρήσωμαι οὐ γάρ εἰσιν ὀλίγαι ἐν καινῇ τε καὶ παλαιᾷ περὶ τῆς ἡμῶν ἐλπίδος καὶ ἀναστάσεως συντόμως ἐρῶ τοῦτο· 90.1 ὅτι εἰ ἄλλο ἦν τὸ ἐγειρόμενον, καθάπερ τινὲς φάσκουσιν, οὐκ ἂν ὁ ἀπόστολος διεβεβαιοῦτο λέγων «δεῖ γὰρ τὸ φθαρτὸν τοῦτο 90.2 ἐνδύσασθαι ἀφθαρσίαν καὶ τὸ θνητὸν ἐνδύσασθαι ἀθανασίαν». ἐπειδὴ δὲ δεῖ καὶ περὶ δόξης τῶν ἁγίων, ὡς μέλλουσι φαιδρύνεσθαί τε καὶ ἀλλοιοῦσθαι ἐν δόξῃ μετὰ τὴν ἀνάστασιν καθάπερ λέγει «ἐγείρεται ἐν δόξῃ», ἑδραιωθῆναι ἡμᾶς ἐν τῇ ἐλπίδι, φησὶν ἡ ἁγία γραφή «ἄφρων, σὺ ὃ σπείρεις οὐ ζωογονεῖται, ἐὰν μὴ ἀποθάνῃ· καὶ οὐκ αὐτὸ τὸ γενησόμενον σῶμα σπείρεις, ἀλλ' εἰ τύχοι κόκκον σίτου ἤ τινος τῶν ἄλλων σπερμάτων καὶ ὁ θεὸς δίδωσιν αὐτῷ σῶμα ὡς ἠθέλησε». 90.3 τοῦτο εἰς δόξαν τῶν ἐγειρομένων ἐν φαιδρότητι εἶπεν· ἵνα δὲ δείξῃ αὐτὸν τὸν κόκκον προσλαμβάνοντα τὴν δόξαν, δι' ἑαυτοῦ εἶπεν ἐν τῷ εὐαγγελίῳ ὁ καὶ «ἐν Παύλῳ λαλήσας» περὶ ἀναστάσεως· «ἐὰν μὴ πεσὼν ὁ κόκκος τοῦ σίτου εἰς τὴν γῆν ἀποθάνῃ», φησί, «μόνος μένει· 90.4 ἐὰν δὲ ἀποθάνῃ, πολλοὺς κόκκους φέρει». ἄρα γοῦν ὁ ἀπόστολος κόκκον ἔφησε καὶ ὁ σωτὴρ τὸν αὐτὸν κόκκον τοῦ σώματος δι' ἑαυτοῦ ἀπέδειξε. τί οὖν ἐροῦμεν; οὐκ αὐτὸ τὸ σπαρὲν ἴδιον αὐτοῦ σῶμα τουτέστιν ὁ κόκκος ἀνέστη; ἢ ἕτερον ἦν τὸ ἐξ αὐτοῦ μετὰ τὴν τριή90.5 μερον ἀναστὰν ἐκ τοῦ μνημείου; ὡς οἱ ἄγγελοι λέγουσιν· «ἀνέστη, οὐκ ἔστιν ὧδε» καὶ ὥς φησι τῇ Μαρίᾳ «μή μου ἅπτου· οὔπω γὰρ ἀναβέβηκα πρὸς τὸν πατέρα μου» καὶ ὡς δείκνυσι τὰς χεῖρας καὶ τὴν 90.6 πλευρὰν τῷ Θωμᾷ λέγων «μὴ γίνου ἄπιστος ἀλλὰ πιστός». ἀπίστων γάρ ἐστι τὸ εἰπεῖν ὅλως οὐκ ἀνέστη, ἢ καὶ κακοπίστων ἐστὶ τὸ εἰπεῖν, οὐκ αὐτὸ τὸ ὂν καὶ κοιμηθὲν ἀνέστη, πιστῶν δέ ἐστι τὸ εἰπεῖν ὅτι αὐτὸ τὸ σῶμα ἀνέστη καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ αὐτοῦ σώματος οὗ ἤγειρε τὸ ἡμῶν εἰς ἐλπίδα ἀληθείας κατέστη. 91.1 Εἰς τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ τοὺς τύπους εἴασε τῶν ἥλων, μὴ ἀπαλείψας αὐτοὺς μηδὲ τὸν τύπον τῆς λόγχης, καίτοι γε εἰσελθὼν θυρῶν κεκλεισμένων. τὸ γὰρ σαρκικὸν αὐτοῦ πνευματικὸν ἀνέστη, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἄλλο παρὰ τὸ ὄν, ἀλλ' αὐτὸ τὸ ὄν, εἰς θεότητα συνενωθέν, εἰς 91.2 λεπτότητα πνεύματος κοσμηθέν. εἰ μὴ γὰρ ἦν λεπτότης πνεύματος, ποία τις ὀπὴ ἐδέχετο σῶμα ὀγκηρόν; ἀλλ' ἵνα δείξῃ ὅτι αὐτὸ τὸ φθαρτὸν ἡμῶν ἐνδύεται ἀφθαρσίαν ἐν ἀληθείᾳ εἰ γὰρ καὶ θνητόν ἐστιν, ἀθανασίαν ἐνδύεται, εἰσῆλθε μὲν θυρῶν κεκλεισμένων, ἵνα δείξῃ τὸ παχυμερὲς λεπτομερὲς καὶ τὸ θνητὸν ἀθάνατον καὶ τὸ 91.3 φθαρτὸν ἄφθαρτον· ἵνα δὲ πάντας ἐλέγξῃ τοὺς ἀπιστοῦντας εἰς τὴν ἡμῶν σωτηρίαν, φημὶ δὲ τὴν ἀνάστασιν, ὁ εἰς λεπτότητα μεταβάλλων τὸ σῶμα καὶ εἰς πνεῦμα συγκεράσας τὴν σάρκα μετὰ τὴν ἀνάστασιν οὐκ ἀπήλειψε τὰς οὐλὰς τῶν ἥλων οὐδὲ τὸν τύπον τῆς 91.4 λόγχης, ἀλλ' ἔδειξεν αὐτὸ τὸ ἐπὶ τοῦ σταυροῦ πεπονθὸς ὅτι οὐκ ἄλλο ἦν