[Concerning the Watching All the Night of the Great Sabbath, and Concerning the Day of the Resurrection.]

XIX. Wherefore we exhort you to fast on those days, as we also fasted till the evening, when He was taken away from us; but on the rest of the days, before the day of the preparation, let every one eat at the ninth hour, or at the evening, or as every one is able. But from the even of the fifth day till cock-crowing break your fast when it is daybreak of the first day of the week, which is the Lord’s day. From the even till cock-crowing keep awake, and assemble together in the church, watch and pray, and entreat God; reading, when you sit up all night, the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms, until cock-crowing, and baptizing your catechumens, and reading the Gospel with fear and trembling, and speaking to the people such things as tend to their salvation: put an end to your sorrow, and beseech God that Israel may be converted, and that He will allow them place of repentance, and the remission of their impiety; for the judge, who was a stranger, “washed his hands, and said, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it. But Israel cried out, His blood be on us, and on our children.”  149  Matt. xxvii. 24, 25. Matt. xxvii. 24, 25. And when Pilate said, “Shall I crucify your king? they cried out, We have no king but Cæsar: crucify Him, crucify Him; for every, one that maketh himself a king speaketh against Cæsar.” And, “If thou let this man go, thou art not Cæsar’s friend.”  150  John xix. 15, 6, 12. John xix. 15, 6, 12. And Pilate the governor and Herod the king commanded Him to be crucified; and that oracle was fulfilled which says, “Why did the Gentiles rage, and the people imagine vain things? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against His Christ;”  151  Ps. ii. 1, 2. Ps. ii. 1, 2. and, “They cast away the Beloved, as a dead man, who is abominable.”  152  Isa. xiv. 19. Isa. xiv. 19. And since He was crucified on the day of the Preparation, and rose again at break of day on the Lord’s day, the scripture was fulfilled which saith, “Arise, O God; judge the earth: for Thou shalt have an inheritance in all the nations;”  153  Ps. lxxxii. 8. Ps. lxxxii. 8. and again, “I will arise, saith the Lord; I will put Him in safety, I will wax bold through Him;”  154  Ps. xii. 5. Ps. xii. 5. and, “But Thou, Lord, have mercy upon me, and raise me up again, and I shall requite them.”  155  Ps. xli. 10. Ps. xli. 10. For this reason do you also, now the Lord is risen, offer your sacrifice, concerning which He made a constitution by us, saying, “Do this for a remembrance of me;”  156  Luke xxii. 19. Luke xxii. 19. and thenceforward leave off your fasting, and rejoice, and keep a festival, because Jesus Christ, the pledge of our resurrection, is risen from the dead. And let this be an everlasting ordinance till the consummation of the world, until the Lord come. For to Jews the Lord is still dead, but to Christians He is risen: to the former, by their unbelief; to the latter, by their full assurance of faith. For the hope in Him is immortal and eternal life. After eight days let there be another feast observed with honour, the eighth day itself, on which He gave me Thomas, who was hard of belief, full assurance, by showing me the print of the nails, and the wound made in His side by the spear.  157  John xx. 25. John xx. 25. And again, from the first Lord’s day count forty days, from the Lord’s day till the fifth day of the week, and celebrate the feast of the ascension of the Lord, whereon He finished all His dispensation and constitution, and returned to that God and Father that sent Him, and sat down at the right hand of power, and remains there until His enemies are put under His feet; who also will come at the consummation of the world with power and great glory, to judge the quick and the dead, and to recompense to every one according to his works. And then shall they see the beloved Son of God whom they pierced;  158  Zech. xii. 10; John xix. 37. Zech. xii. 10; John xix. 37. and when they know Him, they shall mourn for themselves, tribe by tribe, and their wives apart.  159  The words “and their wives apart” are not in one V. ms. The words “and their wives apart” are not in one V. ms.

[19] Ἐν ταύταις οὖν ἤρθη ἀφ' ἡμῶν ὑπὸ τῶν ψευδωνύμων Ἰουδαίων καὶ σταυρῷ προσεπάγη καὶ μετὰ ἀνόμων ἐλογίσθη. Διὸ παραινοῦμεν καὶ ὑμῖν νηστεύειν ταύτας, ὡς καὶ ἡμεῖς ἐνηστεύσαμεν ἐν τῷ ληφθῆναι αὐτὸν ἀφ' ἡμῶν, ἄχρις ἑσπέρας. Ἐν δὲ ταῖς λοιπαῖς ταῖς πρὸ τῆς παρασκευῆς ἐνάτῃ ὥρᾳ ἢ ἑσπέρᾳ ἕκαστος ἐσθιέτω, ἢ ὅπως ἄν τις δύνηται, ἀπὸ δὲ ἑσπέρας πέμπτης μέχρις ἀλεκτοροφωνίας ἀπονηστιζόμενοι. Ἐπιφωσκούσης μιᾶς σαββάτων, ἥτις ἐστὶ κυριακή, ἀπὸ ἑσπέρας ἕως ἀλεκτοροφωνίας ἀγρυπνοῦντες καὶ ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ ἐν τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ συναθροιζόμενοι γρηγορεῖτε, προσευχόμενοι καὶ δεόμενοι τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐν τῇ διανυκτερεύσει ὑμῶν, ἀναγινώσκοντες τὸν Νόμον, τοὺς Προφήτας, τοὺς Ψαλμοὺς μέχρις ἀλεκτρυόνων κραυγῆς: καὶ βαπτίσαντες ὑμῶν τοὺς κατηχουμένους καὶ ἀναγνόντες τὸ Εὐαγγέλιον ἐν φόβῳ καὶ ἐν τρόμῳ καὶ προσλαλήσαντες τῷ λαῷ τὰ πρὸς σωτηρίαν, παύσασθε τοῦ πένθους ὑμῶν καὶ δεήθητε τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐπιστραφῆναι τὸν Ἰσραὴλ καὶ λαβεῖν αὐτὸν τόπον μετανοίας καὶ τῆς ἀσεβείας ἄφεσιν: Ὅτι ὁ μὲν ἀλλόφυλος κριτὴς νιψάμενος τὰς χεῖρας εἶπεν: «Ἀθῶός εἰμι ἀπὸ τοῦ αἵματος τοῦ δικαίου τούτου, ὑμεῖς ὄψεσθε», ὁ δὲ Ἰσραὴλ ἐπεβόησεν: «Τὸ αἷμα αὐτοῦ ἐφ' ἡμᾶς καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ τέκνα ἡμῶν.» Καὶ Πιλάτου εἰπόντος: «Τὸν βασιλέα ὑμῶν σταυρώσω;» αὐτοὶ ἐπεβόων: «Οὐκ ἔχομεν βασιλέα εἰ μὴ καίσαρα: σταύρωσον, σταύρωσον αὐτόν: πᾶς γὰρ ὁ ποιῶν ἑαυτὸν βασιλέα ἀντιλέγει τῷ καίσαρι, καὶ ἐὰν τοῦτον ἀπολύσῃς, οὐκ εἶ φίλος τοῦ καίσαρος.» Καὶ Πιλᾶτος ὁ ἡγεμὼν καὶ Ἡρώδης ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐκέλευσεν αὐτὸν σταυρωθῆναι, καὶ πληροῦται τὸ φάσκον λόγιον: «Ἱνατί ἐφρύαξαν ἔθνη καὶ λαοὶ ἐμελέτησαν κενά; παρέστησαν οἱ βασιλεῖς τῆς γῆς καὶ οἱ ἄρχοντες συνήχθησαν ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ κατὰ τοῦ Κυρίου καὶ κατὰ τοῦ Χριστοῦ αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἀπέρριψαν τὸν ἀγαπητὸν ὡσεὶ νεκρὸν ἐβδελυγμένον.» Καὶ αὐτοῦ σταυρωθέντος τῇ παρασκευῇ καὶ ἀναστάντος ἐπιφωσκούσης κυριακῆς, ἐπληρώθη ἡ γραφὴ ἡ λέγουσα: «Ἀνάστα, ὁ Θεός, κρῖνον τὴν γῆν, ὅτι σὺ κατακληρονομήσεις ἐν πᾶσιν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν.» Καὶ πάλιν: «Νῦν ἀναστήσομαι, λέγει Κύριος, θήσομαι ἐν σωτηρίῳ καὶ παρρησιάσομαι ἐν αὐτῷ.» Καί: «Σὺ δέ, Κύριε, ἐλέησόν με καὶ ἀνάστησόν με, καὶ ἀνταποδώσω αὐτοῖς.» Διὰ τοῦτο οὖν καὶ ὑμεῖς, ἀναστάντος τοῦ Κυρίου, προσενέγκατε τὴν θυσίαν ὑμῶν, περὶ ἧς ὑμῖν διετάξατο δι' ἡμῶν λέγων: «Τοῦτο ποιεῖτε εἰς τὴν ἐμὴν ἀνάμνησιν», καὶ λοιπὸν ἀπονηστεύετε, εὐφραινόμενοι καὶ ἑορτάζοντες, ὅτι ἀρραβὼν τῆς ἀναστάσεως ὑμῶν Ἰησοῦς ὁ Χριστὸς ἐγήγερται ἐκ νεκρῶν, καὶ τοῦτο ὑμῖν ἔστω νόμιμον αἰώνιον ἕως τῆς συντελείας τοῦ αἰῶνος, μέχρις ἂν ἔλθῃ ὁ Κύριος. Ἰουδαίοις γὰρ ὁ Κύριος ἔτι τέθνηκεν, Χριστιανοῖς δὲ ἐγήγερται, τοῖς μὲν δι' ἀπιστίαν, τοῖς δὲ διὰ πληροφορίαν, ὅτι ἡ εἰς αὐτὸν ἐλπὶς ἀθάνατος ζωὴ καὶ αἰώνιος.