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2. Do you see that all things spoken are about the Son? For his name was made wonderful in all the earth. That your magnificence has been lifted up above the heavens. Another, Who has set your praise above the heavens. For since he mentioned the earth, he transfers the discourse also to heaven; which he is always accustomed to do, showing the whole world praising its own Master. Showing this very thing here also, he says, Wonderful below, wonderful above. For not only men, but also angels sing hymns for the things that have happened, and they give thanks for the benefits bestowed on men; which indeed they did from the beginning, forming a chorus upon the earth. Either, then, he says this, that angels also sing, or he wishes to show his greatness. For whenever Scripture wishes to say something great, it brings the distances of these elements into the midst; as when it says: According to the height of heaven from the earth. And again: As far as the east is from the west, he has removed our iniquities from us. Here, then, he is astonished at the things that have happened, how great, how immense; for he placed the substance that is lower than all things higher than all things. Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings you have perfected praise. Another, Out of the mouth of infants you have founded strength. Another; I will establish strength. But what he says is this, that You have shown your strength most of all from this, by moving the invincible power, and by making the lisping tongue clear for that doxology. For he now proclaims beforehand this hymnology of the children, which happened in the temple. And why indeed, passing over the other miracles, the resurrection of the dead, the cleansing of lepers, the casting out of demons, does he mention the miracle of the children? Because those things indeed happened even before this, and if not in this way, yet nevertheless they happened, and had some commonality, even if not in manner. For a dead man was raised in the time of Elisha, and a leper was cleansed, and a demon was driven out in the time of David, when Saul was possessed by a demon; but a chorus of suckling children then for the first time uttered a sound. So that the Jew, therefore, may not be shameless, saying that these things were spoken concerning those in the Old Testament, he selected a sign that happened then for the first and only time. And in another way, the things that happened were also a type of the apostles; for they, being very much infants, and more speechless than their own fish, caught the whole world in a net. But that this is most of all the power of God, see also in the Old Testament the prophet saying this concerning his Father. For speaking to Moses, he says: Who made the mute 55.109 and deaf, the seeing and the blind? And again: Giving clear tongues to the stammering. And again: The Lord gives me a tongue of instruction, to know when I must speak a word. And in the beginning he says: Come, let us go down and confuse their tongues. Great therefore and strong is the proof. For in the case of the others, even if irrationally, they shamelessly suspected something; but here they had nothing to say, with nature itself contending naked on its own. For this very reason he did not say simply, Of babes, so that no one might think he means the innocent and the simple; but he added, And sucklings, characterizing the age by the addition of their food source. For he does not simply say, Of babes, but, of those at the breast, of those who have never partaken of solid food. Therefore this is not the only wonderful thing, that they uttered a sound, and a distinct sound, but that it was also full of countless good things. For what the apostles did not yet know, these children were singing in hymns. From this he also alludes to something else, that it is necessary for those who approach the doctrines to become children in mind. For if one does not receive the kingdom of heaven as a child, he says, he cannot enter into it. Because of your enemies. He also states the reason for which this miracle happened; for the other things did not happen for the sake of enemies, but so that those who came might enjoy a benefit, and others might be taught. But this, not because of

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βʹ. Ὁρᾷς ὅτι περὶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ τὰ εἰρημένα πάντα ἐστίν; Αὐτοῦ γὰρ θαυμαστὸν τὸ ὄνομα ἐν πάσῃ τῇ γῇ ἐγένετο. Ὅτι ἐπήρθη ἡ μεγαλοπρέπειά σου ὑπεράνω τῶν οὐρανῶν. Ἄλλος, Ὃς ἔταξας τὸν ἔπαινόν σου ὑπεράνω τῶν οὐρανῶν. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ τῆς γῆς ἐμνημόνευσε, μετάγει τὸν λόγον καὶ ἐπὶ τὸν οὐρανόν· ὅπερ εἴωθεν ἀεὶ ποιεῖν, πᾶσαν τὴν οἰκουμένην δεικνὺς εὐφημοῦσαν τὸν ἑαυτῆς ∆εσπότην. Τοῦτο δὴ καὶ ἐνταῦθα δεικνὺς λέγει, Θαυμαστὸν κάτω, θαυμαστὸν ἄνω. Οὐ γὰρ ἄνθρωποι μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἄγγελοι ὑμνοῦσι τὰ γεγενημένα, καὶ ὑπὲρ τῶν εἰς ἀνθρώπους εὐεργεσιῶν χάριτας ὁμολογοῦσιν· ὃ δὴ καὶ ἐποίησαν ἐκ προοιμίων, χορὸν στήσαντες ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς. Ἢ τοίνυν τοῦτο λέγει, ὅτι καὶ ἄγγελοι ᾄδουσιν, ἢ τὸ μέγεθος αὐτοῦ παραστῆσαι βούλεται. Ὅταν γάρ τι μέγα λέγειν ἐθέλῃ ἡ Γραφὴ, τὰ διαστήματα τῶν στοιχείων τούτων εἰς μέσον ἄγει· ὡς ὅταν λέγῃ· Κατὰ τὸ ὕψος τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς. Καὶ πάλιν· Καθ' ὅσον ἀπέχουσιν ἀνατολαὶ ἀπὸ δυσμῶν, ἐμάκρυνεν ἀφ' ἡμῶν τὰς ἀνομίας ἡμῶν. Ἐνταῦθα τοίνυν ἐκπλήττεται τὰ γεγενημένα, πῶς μεγάλα. πῶς ὑπέρογκα· τὴν γὰρ οὐσίαν τὴν πάντων κατωτέραν ἀνωτέρω πάντων ἔταξεν. Ἐκ στόματος νηπίων καὶ θηλαζόντων κατηρτίσω αἶνον. Ἄλλος, Ἐκ στόματος βρεφῶν ἐθεμελίωσας κράτος. Ἄλλος· Συνεστήσω ἰσχύν. Ὃ δὲ λέγει τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν, ὅτι Τὴν ἰσχύν σου ἐντεῦθεν μάλιστα ἔδειξας, τὴν δύναμιν τὴν ἄμαχον κινήσας, καὶ τὴν ψελλίζουσαν γλῶτταν πρὸς τὴν δοξολογίαν ἐκείνην τρανώσας. Τῶν γὰρ παιδίων τὴν ὑμνολογίαν τὴν ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ γενομένην, ταύτην προαναφωνεῖ νῦν. Καὶ τί δήποτε τὰ ἄλλα παραδραμὼν θαύματα, νεκρῶν ἀνάστασιν, λεπρῶν κάθαρσιν, δαιμόνων δίωξιν, τοῦ τῶν παίδων μέμνηται θαύματος; Ὅτι ἐκεῖνα μὲν καὶ πρὸ τούτου γέγονε, κἂν μὴ οὕτως, ἀλλ' ὅμως γέγονε, καὶ εἶχέ τινα κοινωνίαν, εἰ καὶ μὴ τρόπον. Καὶ γὰρ νεκρὸς ἠγέρθη ἐπὶ τοῦ Ἐλισσαίου, καὶ λεπρὸς ἐκαθαρίσθη καὶ δαίμων ἠλάθη ἐπὶ τοῦ ∆αυῒδ, ὅτε ὁ Σαοὺλ ἐδαιμόνα· χορὸς δὲ παιδίων θηλαζόντων τότε πρῶτον ἐφθέγξατο. Ἵν' οὖν μὴ ἀναισχυντῇ ὁ Ἰουδαῖος, λέγων περὶ τῶν ἐν τῇ Παλαιᾷ ταῦτα εἰρῆσθαι, ἐπελέξατο σημεῖον τότε πρῶτον καὶ μόνον γινόμενον. Ἄλλως δὲ καὶ τύπος ἦν τῶν ἀποστόλων τὰ γινόμενα· καὶ γὰρ οὗτοι νήπιοι σφόδρα ὄντες, καὶ τῶν ἰχθύων αὐτῶν ἀφωνότεροι, τὴν οἰκουμένην ἅπασαν ἐσαγήνευσαν. Ὅτι δὲ τοῦτο δύναμις Θεοῦ μάλιστά ἐστιν, ὅρα καὶ ἐν τῇ Παλαιᾷ τοῦτο περὶ τοῦ Πατρὸς αὐτοῦ λέγοντα τὸν προφήτην. Τῷ γὰρ Μωϋσεῖ διαλεγόμενος, φησί· Τίς ἐποίησε δύσκωφον 55.109 καὶ κωφὸν, βλέποντα καὶ τυφλόν; Καὶ πάλιν· ∆ιδοὺς γλώσσας τρανὰς μογιλάλοις. Καὶ πάλιν· Κύριος δίδωσί μοι γλῶσσαν παιδείας, τοῦ γνῶναι ἡνίκα δεῖ εἰπεῖν λόγον. Καὶ ἐν ἀρχῇ δέ φησιν· ∆εῦτε, καταβάντες συγχέωμεν αὐτῶν τὰς γλώσσας. Μεγάλη τοίνυν καὶ ἰσχυρὰ ἡ ἀπόδειξις. Ἐπὶ μὲν γὰρ τῶν ἄλλων, εἰ καὶ παραλόγως, ὅμως ὑπώπτευόν τινα εἶναι ἀναισχυντοῦντες· ἐνταῦθα δὲ οὐδὲν εἶχον εἰπεῖν, αὐτῆς καθ' ἑαυτὴν τῆς φύσεως γυμνῆς ἀγωνιζομένης. ∆ιὰ δὴ τοῦτο οὐδὲ ἁπλῶς εἶπε, Νηπίων, ἵνα μή τις τοὺς ἀκάκους αὐτὸν καὶ τοὺς ἁπλουστέρους λέγειν νομίσῃ· ἀλλ' ἐπήγαγε, Καὶ θηλαζόντων, τῇ προσθήκῃ τῆς τραπέζης τὴν ἡλικίαν χαρακτηρίζων. Οὐχ ἁπλῶς γάρ φησι, Νηπίων, ἀλλὰ, τῶν ὑπομαζίων, τῶν μηδέποτε στερεᾶς τροφῆς μεταλαβόντων. Οὐ τοίνυν τοῦτο μόνον ἐστὶ τὸ θαυμαστὸν, ὅτι φωνὴν ἀφῆκαν, καὶ φωνὴν τετρανωμένην, ἀλλ' ὅτι καὶ μυρίων γέμουσαν ἀγαθῶν. Ἅπερ γὰρ οἱ ἀπόστολοι οὐδέπω ᾔδεσαν, ταῦτα τὰ παιδία ὕμνουν. Ἀπὸ τούτου καὶ ἕτερόν τι αἰνίττεται, τὸ δεῖν τοῖς δόγμασι προσιόντας παιδία γίνεσθαι τῇ διανοίᾳ. Ἂν γὰρ μή τις δέξηται τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν ὡς παιδίον, φησὶν, οὐ δύναται εἰσελθεῖν εἰς αὐτήν. Ἕνεκεν τῶν ἐχθρῶν σου. Λέγει καὶ τὴν αἰτίαν δι' ἢν τοῦτο γέγονε τὸ θαῦμα· τὰ μὲν γὰρ ἄλλα οὐ τῶν ἐχθρῶν ἕνεκεν ἐγίνετο, ἀλλ' ὥστε προσιόντας ἀπολαύειν εὐεργεσίας, καὶ ἑτέρους παιδεύεσθαι. Τοῦτο δὲ οὐ διὰ