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to put him to death. For it was not said at that time, when these things happened, but the account brings it forward for the intensification of the wonder, that he who suffered those things said these things. But I think it is superfluous now to insert into the account, which is hastening toward other things, what is sought for in the history, how, when the account says that Saul struck David with the spear, the history adds that the spear went into the wall, but David was saved, and that on David's bed he himself is not found, but instead of him an empty tomb and a goat's liver, which for the people of that time was done out of a certain custom for the aversion of death, so that the one who was sick was taken out of the bed, and the garment put on the dead was placed on the cot and a goat's liver. For it would be clear to the more diligent that the history is a prophecy of the economy concerning the Lord. There were demons in Saul the tyrant; these the one anointed for kingship drove out with the instrument of the lyre, having worked terror against them; but he, possessed by the demons with him, strikes with the spear the one who through the lyre had demonstrated his power against the demons, but the wall receives the blow instead of David; and he is saved. After this, he who was plotted against by Saul is sought for on the bed, and he is not found, but the bed has an empty tomb instead of him and a goat's liver. But the sequence of the history through its riddles is entirely clear as to what it looks toward: that through David, the one from David is foretold, and the anointed one signifies the Christ; and that the lyre is the human instrument, and the song from it is the Word revealed to us through the incarnate one, whose work it is to destroy the frenzy from demons, so that the gods of the nations may no longer be demons. But that king who has the demons in himself, when the spirits retreat at the song of the one who tuned the instrument for this purpose, strikes him with the spear (and the spear is wood armed with iron), but the wall receives the spear instead of him. And by wall we understand the earthly building, through which we perceive the body, concerning which we see the wood of the cross and the iron; but that David, the Christ and king, is outside the passion. For the divinity is not in the cross and the nails. And when we hear of Michal, who came from Saul, with whom David had fellowship, we are not surprised when we look to what follows. For we know that God did not make death, but the father of death was the king of evil who deprived himself of life. For by the envy of the devil death entered; And death reigned from Adam until the law, which the apostle wishes to no longer reign in us in our mortal body. Therefore the one who tasted death for all is in the house of her who came from the one we understand as Saul, and her name is Michal. And the meaning of this name is of a kingdom, because until then sin reigned over nature. And being here, he himself goes out through a window. And the window signifies the return again to the light of the one who showed himself to those sitting in darkness and the shadow of death. But his empty tomb is seen on the bed. For the angel also says to those seeking the Lord in the tomb: Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, he has risen. See the place where he lay. Those seeking the Lord saw the tomb in which he was buried empty of the sought-for body. Only the burial cloths were in it. Therefore we understand that the empty tomb of David on the bed signifies the resurrection of the Lord at the tomb, through which the true aversion of our death occurs. But since the wounded wall, which we understood as the body, has no blood, lest the most opportune of the things understood for the mystery, through which we were redeemed—I mean the blood—be omitted, this is found in the empty tomb; for only in the entrails is the liver a source and workshop of blood, without which it is impossible for the nature of blood to exist. if therefore from the liver

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θανατῶσαι αὐτόν. οὐ γὰρ τότε ἐρρέθη, ὅτε ταῦτα ἐγένετο, 5.169 ἀλλὰ προφέρει ὁ λόγος εἰς τὴν τοῦ θαύματος ἐπίτασιν, ὅτι ταῦτα εἶπεν ὁ ἐκεῖνα παθών. Περιττὸν δὲ οἶμαι νῦν παρενθεῖναι τῷ λόγῳ πρὸς ἕτερα σπεύδοντι τί τὸ ἐν τῇ ἱστορίᾳ ζητούμενον, πῶς, εἰπόντος τοῦ λόγου ὅτι ἐπάταξε ὁ Σαοὺλ τὸν ∆αβὶδ τῇ λόγχῃ ἐπάγει ἡ ἱστορία ὅτι κατὰ τοῦ τοίχου ἦλθε τὸ δόρυ, ὁ δὲ ∆αβὶδ διεσώθη, καὶ ὅτι ἐπὶ τῆς κλίνης τοῦ ∆αβὶδ αὐτὸς μὲν οὐχ εὑρίσκεται, ἀλλ' ἀντ' ἐκείνου κενοτάφια καὶ ἧπαρ αἰγῶν, ὅπερ τοῖς τότε εἰς ἀποτροπιασμὸν θανάτου ἔκ τινος συνηθείας ἐγίνετο, ὥστε τὸν ἐν ἀρρωστίᾳ γενόμενον ὑπεξάγεσθαι μὲν τῆς κλίνης, τὴν δὲ τοῖς τεθνηκόσιν ἐπιβαλλομένην στολὴν ἐπιτιθέναι τῷ κραββάτῳ καὶ ἧπαρ αἰγῶν. δῆλον γὰρ ἂν εἴη τοῖς φιλοπονωτέροις, ὅτι προφητεία τῆς κατὰ τὸν κύριον οἰκονομίας ἐστὶν ἡ ἱστορία. δαίμονες ἦσαν ἐν Σαοὺλ τῷ τυράννῳ· τούτους ἀπελαύνει ὁ εἰς βασιλείαν χρισθεὶς τῷ τῆς κιθάρας ὀργάνῳ κατ' αὐτῶν ἐνεργήσας τὴν πτόησιν· ὁ δὲ καταληφθεὶς ὑπὸ τῶν συνόντων αὐτῷ δαιμόνων πατάσσει τῇ λόγχῃ τὸν διὰ τῆς κιθάρας τὴν κατὰ τῶν δαιμόνων ἰσχὺν ἐνδειξάμενον, ἀλλ' ὁ τοῖχος δέχεται ἀντὶ τοῦ ∆αβὶδ τὴν πληγήν· ὁ δὲ διασῴζεται. μετὰ ταῦτα ὁ ἐπιβουλευθεὶς παρὰ τοῦ Σαοὺλ ζητεῖται ἐπὶ τῆς κλίνης, καὶ ὁ μὲν οὐχ εὑρίσκεται, κενοτάφια δὲ ἀντ' ἐκείνου ἡ κλίνη ἔχει καὶ ἧπαρ αἰγῶν. φανερὰ δὲ πάντως ἐστὶν ἡ διὰ τῶν αἰνιγμάτων τῆς ἱστορίας ἀκολουθία πρὸς τί βλέπει· ὅτι διὰ μὲν τοῦ ∆αβὶδ ὁ ἐκ τοῦ ∆αβὶδ προμηνύεται, τὸν δὲ Χριστὸν ὁ χρισθεὶς διασημαίνει· καὶ ὅτι ἡ κιθάρα τὸ ἀνθρώπινόν ἐστιν ὄργανον, ἡ δὲ ἐκ ταύτης 5.170 ᾠδὴ ὁ διὰ τοῦ σαρκωθέντος φανερωθεὶς ἡμῖν λόγος, οὗ ἔργον ἐστὶν ἀφανίσαι τὴν ἐκ δαιμόνων παραφοράν, ἵνα μηκέτι ὦσιν οἱ θεοὶ τῶν ἐθνῶν τὰ δαιμόνια. ἀλλ' ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐκεῖνος ὁ ἐν ἑαυτῷ τοὺς δαίμονας ἔχων, ὅταν ὑποχωρήσῃ τὰ πνεύματα τῇ ᾠδῇ τοῦ τὸ ὄργανον ἐπὶ τούτῳ ἁρμοσαμένου πατάσσει αὐτὸν τῷ δόρατι (τὸ δὲ δόρυ ξύλον ἐστὶ σιδήρῳ καθωπλισμένον), ἀλλὰ δέχεται ἀντ' ἐκείνου ὁ τοῖχος τὸ δόρυ. τοῖχον δὲ νοοῦμεν τὴν γηΐνην οἰκοδομήν, δι' ἧς τὸ σῶμα καταμανθάνομεν, περὶ ὃ τὸ ξύλον βλέπομεν τοῦ σταυροῦ καὶ τὸν σίδηρον· ὁ δὲ ∆αβὶδ ἐκεῖνος ὁ χριστός τε καὶ βασιλεὺς ἔξω τοῦ πάθους ἐστίν. ἡ γὰρ θεότης ἐν τῷ σταυρῷ τε καὶ τοῖς ἥλοις οὐ γίνεται. Μελχὸλ δὲ ἀκούσαντες τὴν ἐκ τοῦ Σαοὺλ γενομένην, ᾗ ∆αβὶδ ἐκοινώνησεν, οὐ ξενιζόμεθα πρὸς τὸ ἀκόλουθον βλέποντες. οἴδαμεν γὰρ ὅτι ὁ θεὸς θάνατον οὐκ ἐποίησεν, ἀλλὰ πατὴρ ἐγένετο τοῦ θανάτου ὁ τῆς κακίας βασιλεὺς ὁ ἑαυτὸν τῆς ζωῆς στερήσας. φθόνῳ γὰρ διαβόλου ὁ θάνατος εἰσῆλθεν· Ἐβασίλευσε δὲ ὁ θάνατος ἀπὸ Ἀδὰμ καὶ ἕως τοῦ νόμου, ὃν βούλεται μηκέτι βασιλεύειν ἐν ἡμῖν ὁ ἀπόστολος ἐν τῷ θνητῷ ἡμῶν σώματι. ὁ οὖν ὑπὲρ πάντων τοῦ θανάτου γευσάμενος ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ τῆς ὑπὸ τοῦ νοηθέντος ἡμῖν Σαοὺλ γενομένης γίνεται, ὄνομα δὲ αὐτῇ Μελχόλ. τοῦ δὲ ὀνόματος τούτου τὸ σημαινόμενον βασιλείας ἐστὶν διὰ τὸ μέχρι τότε βασιλεύειν τὴν ἁμαρτίαν τῆς φύσεως. ἐνταῦθα δὲ γενόμενος αὐτὸς μὲν διὰ θυρίδος ἐξέρχεται. σημαί 5.171 νει δὲ ἡ θυρὶς τὴν ἐπὶ τὸ φῶς πάλιν ἐπάνοδον τοῦ ἑαυτὸν τοῖς ἐν σκότει καὶ σκιᾷ θανάτου καθημένοις δείξαντος. τὰ δὲ κενοτάφια αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τῆς κλίνης ὁρᾶται. φησὶ γὰρ καὶ ὁ ἄγγελος τοῖς ἐν τῷ μνήματι ζητοῦσι τὸν κύριον· Τί ζητεῖτε τὸν ζῶντα μετὰ τῶν νεκρῶν; οὐκ ἔστιν ὧδε, ἠγέρθη. ἴδε ὁ τόπος ἐν ᾧ ἔκειτο. τὸν τάφον, ἐν ᾧ ἐτάφη, εἶδον οἱ ζητοῦντες τὸν κύριον κενὸν τοῦ ζητουμένου σώματος. μόνα δὲ ἦν ἐν αὐτῷ τὰ ἐντάφια. οὐκοῦν νοοῦμεν ὅτι τὴν ἀνάστασιν τοῦ κυρίου σημαίνει τὴν ἐπὶ τοῦ τάφου τὰ ἐπὶ τῆς κλίνης τοῦ ∆αβὶδ κενοτάφια, δι' ὧν γίνεται ὁ ἀληθινὸς τοῦ θανάτου ἡμῶν ἀποτροπιασμός. Τοῦ δὲ τρωθέντος τοίχου, ὃν ἀντὶ τοῦ σώματος ἐνοήσαμεν, αἷμα μὴ ἔχοντος, ὡς ἂν μὴ παραλειφθείη τὸ καιριώτατον τῶν εἰς τὸ μυστήριον νοουμένων, δι' οὗ ἐλυτρώθημεν, τὸ αἷμα λέγω, τοῦτο ἐν τοῖς κενοταφίοις εὑρίσκεται· μόνον γὰρ ἐν τοῖς σπλάγχνοις τὸ ἧπαρ αἵματός ἐστι πηγή τε καὶ ἐργαστή ριον, οὗ χωρὶς ἀδύνατόν ἐστι συστῆναι τὴν φύσιν τοῦ αἵματος. εἰ οὖν ἐκ τοῦ ἥπατος