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the divine Apostle said that those under the law served a copy and shadow of the heavenly things; I think I am not acting improperly in saying that those who offer themselves to God are like the different kinds of irrational sacrificial victims, for some, embracing a life without possessions and anxieties, dedicate their whole selves to the God of all, and show themselves to be a whole burnt offering and a whole fruit offering; leaving nothing to the present life, but transferring everything to the ageless life. But those less than these, assign some things to the altar, others to the priests, and the rest to the need of the body. And some offer the gentleness of sheep; others, similarly to the obedient calves, gladly bear the good yoke of the Lord; still others, imitating the goats, provide something like milk, the surplus of their need, to those in want according to the apostolic legislation that says: "your abundance for their lack." And others bring the modesty of the turtledoves, and likewise flee the yoke of a second marriage; and others adorn their mind with simplicity and innocence, imitating the young of doves. For he did not legislate for these to be sacrificed when mature; since this animal is very ardent in mating; but their young, which possess innocence and have not tasted union. However, neither did the patriarch divide the birds, nor does the lawgiver command them to be divided, for those who are winged in thought, loving God with their whole heart, do not divide it between earthly and heavenly things, but send it all upward. Understanding the things concerning sacrifices in this way, we will find the law concerning these things to be suitable for the weakness of the Jews; and for evangelical perfection 156 such legislation is not superfluous. And the divine Paul taught us to understand these things in this way; for having set down the law about oxen, which forbids muzzling the threshing oxen, he added: "Is it for oxen that God is concerned? Or does he say it entirely for our sake? For our sake it was written, because the one who plows ought to plow in hope and the one who threshes ought to thresh in hope of sharing in the crop." Therefore, the sensible and superficial part of the law is suitable for the Jews, but the spiritual part for those who embrace the evangelical way of life. And this must also be known, that the whole burnt offerings were male; for perfection belongs to men; but the sacrifices for sin were female; for when the ruling principle in us is weak, the passions prevail. And this must also be noted, that for sin not lambs, but goats were offered. And the Lord Christ makes this clear in the holy gospels, likening the righteous to lambs, and the sinners to kids. And whole burnt offerings were offered from the birds; for the perfect and philosophical life is also available to the poor. And just as of the four-footed animals neither the skin nor the dung was offered to God, so also of the birds the crop, and the feathers, were cast out far from the camp; and not even these were thrown out haphazardly, but in a certain clean place where they also put the ashes of the altar; Theodotion called the "crop" the "stomach"; but Aquila, "the feeder." For it receives the food and supplies it to the rest of the body; whence also the Seventy called it "crop", as it indeed receives the food in advance. It is fitting to note that he also calls the offered fine flour, and the oven-baked loaves and the gridled cakes and the flat cakes from the pan, a sacrifice, encouraging by the name those living in poverty, so that they might not be disheartened as being in want of animals. And this must also be noted, that he names the one offering 157 an animal a man; "a man," for he says, "from you, who if he offers a gift to the Lord, from the birds, from the cattle, or from the sheep shall he bring it." But the one bringing fine flour he calls a soul; "For if a soul," he says, "offers a gift as a sacrifice to the Lord, his gift shall be fine flour." For the rational offers the irrational; but the soul, the inanimate. And he forbids leavened bread to be offered, for the reason I stated; for it must have nothing of the

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θεῖον ἀπόστολον καὶ ὑποδείγματι καὶ σκιᾷ τῶν ἐπουρανίων λατρεύειν ἔφη τοὺς ἐν τῷ νόμῳ· οὐκ ἀπὸ τρόπου νομίζω τι δρᾶν, ταῖς τῶν ἀλόγων ἱερείων διαφοραῖς ἐοικέναι λέγων τοὺς ἑαυτοὺς τῷ Θεῷ προσφέροντας, οἱ μὲν γὰρ τὸν ἀκτήμονα καὶ ἀφρόντιδα ἀσπαζό μενοι βίον, ὅλους ἑαυτοὺς ἀφιεροῦσι τῷ τῶν ὅλων Θεῷ, καὶ σφᾶς αὐτοὺς ἀποφαίνουσιν ὁλοκαύτωμα τε καὶ ὁλοκάρπωμα· οὐδὲν τῷ παρόντι κατα λείποντες βίῳ, ἀλλ' εἰς τὴν ἀγήρω πάντα μετατιθέντες ζωήν. οἱ δὲ τούτων ἐλάττους, τὰ μὲν τῷ θυσιαστηρίῳ, τὰ δὲ τοῖς ἱερεῦσι, τὰ δὲ λοιπὰ τῇ τοῦ σώματος ἀπονέμουσι χρείᾳ. καὶ οἱ μὲν προσφέρουσι τῶν προβάτων τὴν ἐπιείκειαν· οἱ δὲ τοῖς εὐπειθέσι μόσχοις παραπλησίως, φέρουσιν ἀσ πασίως τὸν χρηστὸν τοῦ Κυρίου ζυγόν· ἄλλοι δέ τινες τὰς αἶγας μιμού μενοι, οἷόν τι γάλα, τοῖς δεομένοις παρέχουσι τῆς χρείας τὰ περιττὰ κατὰ τὴν ἀποστολικὴν νομοθεσίαν τὴν λέγουσαν· " τὸ ὑμῶν περίσ σευμα εἰς τὸ ἐκείνων ὑστέρημα ". οἱ δὲ προσκομί ζουσι τῶν τρυγόνων τὸ σῶφρον, καὶ φεύγουσιν ὡσαύτως τοῦ δευτέρου γάμου τὴν ζεύγλην· οἱ δὲ ἁπλότητι καὶ ἀκακίᾳ κοσμοῦσι τὴν γνώμην, μιμούμενοι τοὺς τῶν περιστερῶν νεοττούς. οὐδὲ γὰρ τελείας θύεσθαι ταύτας ἐνομοθέτησεν· ἐπειδὴ τόδε τὸ ζῷον περὶ τὰς μίξεις θερμότατον· ἀλλὰ τού των τοὺς νεοττοὺς ἀκακίᾳ μὲν χρωμένους, συμπλοκῆς δὲ οὐ γεγευμένους. τὰ μέντοι πτηνὰ οὔτε ὁ πατριάρχης διεῖλεν, οὔτε ὁ νομοθέτης διαιρεθῆναι κελεύει, οἱ γὰρ πτηνοὶ τὴν διάνοιαν ἐξ ὅλης καρδίας ἀγαπῶντες τὸν Θεόν, οὐ διαιροῦσιν αὐτὴν εἰς τὰ γήϊνα καὶ οὐράνια, ἀλλ' ὅλην ἀναπέμπουσιν ἄνω. οὕτω τὰ περὶ τῶν θυσιῶν νοοῦντες, εὑρήσομεν καὶ τῇ τῶν ἰουδαίων ἀσθενείᾳ τὸν περὶ τούτων νόμον ἁρμόδιον· καὶ τῇ εὐαγγελικῇ τελειότητι 156 τὴν τοιαύτην νομοθεσίαν οὐ περιττήν. οὕτω δὲ ταῦτα νοεῖν καὶ ὁ θεῖος ἡμᾶς ἐξεπαίδευσε Παῦλος· τεθεικὼς γὰρ τὸν περὶ τῶν βοῶν νόμον, ὃς ἀπαγορεύει τοὺς βοῦς ἀλοῶντας κημοῦν, ἐπήγαγε· " μὴ τῶν βοῶν μέλει τῷ Θεῷ; ἢ δι' ἡμᾶς πάντως λέγει· δι' ἡμᾶς γὰρ ἐγράφη, ὅτι ἐπ' ἐλπίδι ὀφείλει ὁ ἀρο τριῶν ἀροτριᾶν καὶ ὁ ἀλοῶν τῆς ἐλπίδος αὐτοῦ μετέχειν ἐπ' ἐλπίδι ". οὐκοῦν τοῦ νόμου τὸ μὲν αἰσθη τὸν καὶ ἐπιπόλαιον, ἰουδαίοις κατάλληλον, τὸ δὲ πνευματικὸν τοῖς τὴν εὐαγγελικὴν πολιτείαν ἀσπαζομένοις. ἰστέον δὲ καὶ τοῦτο, ὡς τὰ μὲν ὁλοκαυτούμενα ἄρσενα ἦν· ἀνδρῶν γὰρ ἡ τελειότης· τὰ δὲ περὶ ἁμαρτίας θυόμενα, θήλεα· ἀσθενοῦντος γὰρ τοῦ ἐν ἡμῖν ἡγεμονικοῦ, τὰ πάθη κρατεῖ. ἐπισημήνασθαι δὲ καὶ τοῦτο δεῖ, ὡς ὑπὲρ ἁμαρτίας οὐκ ἀμνοί, ἀλλὰ χίμα ροι προσεφέροντο. δηλοῖ δὲ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ δεσπότης Χριστὸς ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς εὐαγγελίοις, τοὺς μὲν δικαίους ἀμνοῖς, τοὺς δὲ ἁμαρτωλοὺς ἐρίφοις ἀπει κάσας. προσεφέρετο δὲ καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν πετεινῶν ὁλοκαυτώματα· πρόκειται γὰρ καὶ τοῖς πενομένοις ὁ τέλειος καὶ φιλόσοφος βίος. ὥσπερ δὲ τῶν τετρα πόδων οὔτε τὸ δέρμα οὔτε ἡ κόπρος τῷ Θεῷ προσεφέρετο, οὕτω καὶ τῶν πτηνῶν ὁ πρόλοβος, καὶ τὰ πτίλα, πόρρω τῆς παρεμβολῆς ἐξεβάλλετο· καὶ οὐδὲ ταῦτα ὡς ἔτυχεν ἐρρίπτετο, ἀλλ' ἐν καθαρῷ τινι χωρίῳ ᾧ καὶ τοῦ βω μοῦ τὴν κόνιν ἐνέβαλλον· " πρόλοβον " δὲ ὁ Θεοδοτίων τὴν " φύσαν " ἐκάλεσεν· Ἀκύλας δὲ " τὴν σιτίζουσαν ". ἐκείνη γὰρ τὴν τροφὴν δε χομένη τῷ λοιπῷ σώματι χορηγεῖ· ὅθεν καὶ οἱ ἑβδομήκοντα " πρόλοβον " αὐτὴν προσηγόρευσαν, ἅτε δὴ προσλαμβάνουσαν τὴν τροφήν. ἐπισημήνα σθαι δὲ προσήκει, ὡς καὶ τὴν προσφερομένην σεμίδαλιν, καὶ τοὺς κλιβανίτας ἄρτους καὶ τοὺς ἐσχαρίτας καὶ τὰ ἀπὸ τηγάνου λάγανα, θυσίαν καλεῖ, ψυχαγωγῶν τῷ ὀνόματι τοὺς πενίᾳ συζῶντας, ἵνα μὴ δυσχεραίνωσιν ὡς ζῴων σπανίζοντες. ἐπισημαντέον δὲ καὶ τοῦτο, ὡς τὸν προσφέροντα 157 ζῷον ἄνθρωπον ὀνομάζει· " ἄνθρωπος, γάρ φησιν, ἐξ ὑμῶν, ὃς ἐὰν προσφέρῃ δῶρον τῷ Κυρίῳ, ἀπὸ τῶν πτηνῶν, ἀπὸ τῶν βοῶν, ἢ ἀπὸ τῶν προβάτων προσοίσεται αὐτό ". τὸν δὲ σεμίδαλιν προσκομίζοντα ψυχὴν καλεῖ· " ἐὰν γὰρ ψυχή, φησί, προσφέρῃ δῶρον θυ σίαν τῷ Κυρίῳ, σεμίδαλις ἔσται τὸ δῶρον αὐ τοῦ ". ὁ λογικὸς γὰρ τὸ ἄλογον προσφέρει· ἡ δὲ ψυχὴ τὸ ἄψυχον. ἀπαγορεύει δὲ ζυμίτας ἄρτους προσφέρεσθαι, δι' ἣν ἔφην αἰτίαν· οὐδὲν γὰρ ἔχειν δεῖ τῆς