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sameness of manner, and this is signified from "This is the generation of those who seek him"; for having said "Who shall ascend into the mountain of the Lord? Or who shall stand in his holy place? He that is innocent in hands and pure in heart" and what follows, he added: "This is the generation of those who seek him", calling those adorned with the same virtue one generation. Analogously opposite to this is the saying: "The sons of this age are wiser than the sons of light in their own generation"; for the generation of such people is a similar state and way of life. One must understand "perfect" in this way, as among men, which perfection Paul said he knows in part, saying about the perfect: "When the perfect comes, that which is in part 164 will be done away"; all perfection achieved among men, in relation to the perfection in the age to come, is in part. And let what is said be clear by an example: he who is perfect in the first letters is imperfect in relation to one who hears grammatical discourses. And the Apostle himself, saying "We know in part and we prophesy in part" says about himself and those like him: "As many of us as are perfect, let us be of this mind", and "But we speak wisdom among the perfect"; for in relation to the knowledge in the future, as we said, being "face to face", the way of life here is imperfect, even if it happens to have reached the highest point. And the "just" and the "perfect" and the "pleasing to God" said about Noah must be understood together, even if the words have an order: for being "just" and "perfect" he was pleasing to God; but the perfect and just is conceived of before the pleasing; for it is not because he pleased that he became just and perfect, but because he was shown to be just and perfect, he is demonstrated as pleasing to God. And if Noah, being of such a state, is called a man, one must not be surprised, as we have often observed that the name of man signifies several things; for it is not only of the blameworthy, as it is said: "For where there is strife and jealousy among you, are you not men and do you not walk according to man?" and concerning the devil who sows evil thoughts it is said: "An enemy man did this"; but here, in addition to indicating nature, it also signifies the man in the proper sense, the one who preserves the "in the image". And well also the "being perfect he pleased God"; 165 for having already taken hold of perfection he pleased God, not of every man who pleases God pleasing, but at times, and to just men and otherwise to men; for even if he who pleases a just man is praised, yet it is after pleasing God. ῃι, 10. And Noah begot three sons, Shem, Ham, Japheth. Noah indeed begot three sons and became the father of so many; for it is not said that he had any other child before this. And the literal meaning is clear; but if one looks to the allegorical sense, one might say that one who begets two would be producing symbols of a material state; for the number two is proper to matter; for this is divisible. but he who begets three is called per<fect>, being the first complete number, bearing an image of the creator, for it is active, and further, the subtraction of the number one from it makes a dyad, so that clearly the three have come into being by addition; but to human things, which are signified by the two, if reason were added, they no longer remain material or human, partaking of uprightness; for one must not simply act, but also with right reason, in order to have praise. And one can also, by way of moral interpretation, take these things for the perfection of the soul; for first some passion must be engendered in the soul, then thus a disposition come to be, and thus to rush to the action; and by passion we mean not that which is blameworthy, but the, as it were, impression of the soul toward a virtuous impulse; and these things also happen from the opposite. These three, therefore, are the offspring of the virtuous man; for let the pre-passion be dismissed for now as having an inclination toward things indifferent. But if one, applying oneself also to the interpretations, might find something useful, it must be considered. Shem, then, is interpreted

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ὁμοιοτροπία, καὶ τοῦτο σημαίνεται ἐκ τοῦ "6Αὕτη ἡ γενεὰ ζητούντων αὐτόν"6· εἰπὼν γὰρ "6Τίς ἀναβήσεται εἰς τὸ ὄρος τοῦ Κυρίου ἢ τίς στήσεται ἐν τόπῳ ἁγίῳ αὐτοῦ; ἀθῷος χερσὶν καὶ καθαρὸς τῇ καρδίᾳ"6 καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς, ἐπήγαγεν· "6Αὕτη ἡ γενεὰ ζητούντων αὐτόν"6, τοὺς τῇ αὐτῇ κεκοσμένους ἀρετῇ μίαν γενεὰν εἰπών. Τούτῳ κατὰ τὸ ἐναντίον ἀναλόγως ὅμοιόν ἐστιν τὸ λεγόμενον· "6Υἱοὶ τοῦ αἰῶνος το[ύ]του φρονιμώτεροί εἰσιν τῶν υἱῶν τοῦ φωτὸς ἐν τῇ γενεᾷ τῇ ἑαυτῶν"6· γενεὰ γὰρ τῶν τοιούτων ἡ ὁμοία κατάστασις καὶ πολιτεία. ∆εῖ δὲ οὕτως ἀκούειν τέλειον ὡς ἐν ἀνθρώποις, ὅπερ τέλειον ὁ Παῦλος ἐκ μέρους γιγνώσκειν ἔφη, λέγων περὶ τοῦ τελείου· "6Ὅταν ἔλθῃ τὸ τέλειον, τὸ ἐκ μέρους 164 καταργηθήσεται"6· πᾶσα ἡ ἐν ἀνθρώποις κατορθουμένη τελειότης ὡς πρὸς τὸ ἐν τῷ μέλλοντι αἰῶνι τέλειον ἐκ μέρους ἐστίν. Καὶ ἔστω ἐπὶ παραδείγματος σαφὲς τὸ λεγόμενον· ὁ ἐν τοῖς πρώτοις γράμμασιν τέλειος ὡς πρὸς τὸν γραμματικῶν λόγων ἀκούοντα ἀτελής ἐστιν. Καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ Ἀπόστολος λέγων "6Ἐκ μέρους γιγνώσκομεν καὶ ἐκ μέρους προφητεύομέν"6 φησιν περὶ ἑαυτοῦ καὶ τῶν ὁμοίων· "6Ὅσοι οὖν τέλειοι τοῦτο φρονῶμεν"6, καὶ "6Σοφίαν δὲ λαλοῦμεν ἐν τοῖς τελείοις"6· ὡς γὰρ πρὸς τὴν ἐντῷ μέλλοντι, ὡς ἔφαμεν, γνῶσιν "6πρόσωπον πρὸς πρόσωπον"6 οὔσαν ἀτέλης ἡ ἐνταῦθα ὑπάρχει πολιτεία, κἂν εἰς ἄκρον φθάσασα τυγχάνῃ. Τὸ δὲ δίκαιον καὶ τὸ τέλειον καὶ τὸ εὐαρεστεῖν τῷ Θεῷ περὶ τοῦ Νῶε λεγόμενον ἅμα ἐκλαμβάνειν δεῖ, κἂν τὰ ῥήματα τάξιν ἔχῃ· "6δίκαιος"6 γὰρ καὶ "6τέλειος ὢν"6 τὴν πρὸς Θεὸν εἶχεν εὐαρέστησιν· προεπινοεῖται δὲ τῆς εὐαρεστήσεως τὸ τέλειον καὶ δίκαιον· οὐ γὰρ ὅτι εὐηρέ- στησεν, γέγονεν δίκαιος καὶ τέλειος, ἀλλ' ὅτι δίκαιος καὶ τέλειος ἀνεφάνη, ἀποδέδεικται εὐαρεστῶν τῷ Θεῷ. Εἰ δὲ καὶ τηλικαύτης ὑπάρχων ὁ Νῶε καταστάσεως ἄνθρωπος εἴρηται, οὐ δεῖ ξενίζεσθαι, πολλάκις ἡμῶν παρατηρησαμένων ὅτι πλείονα σημαίνει τὸ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ὄνομα· οὐ γὰρ ἐπὶ ψεκτοῦ μόνου, ὡς εἴρηται· "6Ὅπου γὰρ ἔρις καὶ ζῆλος ἐν ὑμῖν, οὐχὶ ἄνθρωποί ἐστε καὶ κατὰ ἄνθρωπον περιπατεῖτε;"6 καὶ περὶ τοῦ ἐπ[ι]σπείροντος δὲ διαβόλου κακὰς ἐννοίας εἴρηται· "6Ἐχθρὸς ἄνθρωπος τοῦτο ἐποίησεν"6· ἐνταῦθα δὲ πρὸς τῷ τὴν φύσιν δηλοῦν ἔτι καὶ τὸν κυρίως ἄνθρωπον σημαίνει τὸν σῴζοντα τὸ "6κατ' εἰκόνα"6. Εὖ δὲ καὶ τὸ "6τέλειος ὢν τῷ Θεῷ εὐηρέστησεν"6· 165 ἤδη γὰρ τελειότητος ἐπειλημμένος εὐηρέστησεν τῷ Θεῷ, οὐ παντὸς εὐαρεστοῦντος τῷ Θεῷ εὐαρεστοῦντος, ἀλλ' ἐσθότε, καὶ δικαίοις ἀνδράσ[ι] καὶ ἄλλως ἀνθρώποις· καὶ γὰρ εἰ ἐπαινεῖται ὁ δικαίῳ ἀρέσκων, ἀλλ[ὰ] μετὰ τὸ τῷ Θεῷ ἀρέσκειν. ῃι, 10. Ἐγέννησεν δὲ Νῶε τρεῖς υἱοὺς τὸν Σὴμ τὸν Χὰμ τὸν Ἰάφετ. Τρεῖς μὲν υἱοὺς ἐγέννησεν καὶ τοσούτων γέγονεν πατὴρ ὁ Νῶε· οὐδὲ γὰρ πρὸ τούτου εἴρηται ἐσχηκέναι ἄλλο τέκνον. Καὶ τὸ μὲν ῥητὸν φανερόν· εἰ δὲ πρὸς ἀναγωγήν τις βλέποι, λέγοι ἂν ὅτι δύο τις γεννῶν ὑλικῆς ἕξεως ἂν εἴη σύμβολα τίκτων· τὰ γὰρ δύο τῇ ὕλῃ οἴκεια· διαιρετὴ γὰρ αὕτη· ὁ δὲ τριαγεννητικὸς τέ<λειος> λέγεται πρῶτος ὢν ἄρτιος εἰκόνα φέρων τοῦ δημιουργοῦ, δρα- στήριος γάρ, καὶ ἔτι ἡ ἀφαίρεσις ἀπ' αὐτοῦ ἑνὸς ἀριθμοῦ δυάδα ποιεῖ, ὡς δηλονότι κατὰ προσθήκην τὰ τρία γεγένηται· τοῖς δὲ ἀνθρωπίνοις, ἃ δηλοῦται διὰ τῶν δύο, εἰ προστεθείη λογισμός, οὐκέτι ὑλικὰ ἢ ἀνθρώπινα μένουσιν, ὀρθότητος μετέχοντα· οὐ γὰρ ἁπλῶς πράττειν δεῖ, ἀλλὰ καὶ λόγῳ ὀρθῷ, ἵν' ἔχῃ τὸν ἔπαινον. ∆ύναται δέ τις καὶ τροπολογῶν εἰς τὴν ψυχῆς τελείωσιν ταῦτα λαμβάνειν· δεῖ γὰρ πρότερον ἐγγενέσθαι τι τῇ ψυχῇ πάθος, εἶθ' οὕτω διάθεσιν γενέσθαι, καὶ οὕτως ἐπὶ τὴν πρᾶξιν ὁρμῆσαι· πάθος δέ φαμεν οὐ τὸ ψεγόμενον, ἀλλὰ τὴν ὡς ἂν ἐκτύπωσιν τῆς ψυχῆς ἐπὶ ἐνάρετον ὁρμήν· γίνεται δὲ καὶ ἐκ τοῦ ἐναντίου ταῦτα. Τρία οὖν ταῦτα γεννήματα τοῦ σπουδαίου· ἐάσθω γὰρ νῦν ἡ προπάθεια ὡς ῥοπὴν εἰς τὰ ἀδιάφορα ἔχουσα. Εἰ δὲ καὶ ταῖς ἑρμηνείαις τις ἐπιβάλλων εὐπορήσοι τινὸς ὠφελίμου, σκοπητέον. Ὁ μὲν οὖν Σὴμ ἑρμηνεύεται