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happens by the will of God; for because of his righteousness [God] ordered Noah to build an ark, saying that He would destroy all flesh, so that no one was saved outside the ark. And concerning [the water] being raised fifteen cubits above, if one were to pay attention to the number, he will see that it is taken up in many places of scripture; the steps of the temple were fifteen, and the word commands to give "a portion to the seven and also to the eight", this being understood that those who accept the old along with the new provide a portion to the seven and the eight. One might plausibly say that those who became despisers of the mystery signified through the number have come under the flood of wickedness. For it is signified again in the scriptures by the multitude of the water 193 as in "What do you devise against the Lord? An utter end ***"; for if one were to reckon that the fluid things of life are taken for a flood, when it abounds, with the love of the many growing cold, there will be an end, he might understand this closely in the word. ῃιι, 21-23. And all flesh that moved on the earth died, of the birds and of the cattle and of the beasts; and every creeping thing that moves on the earth and every man and all that has the breath of life and everyone who was on the dry land died. And every living substance was blotted out, which was upon the face of all the earth, from man to beast and creeping things and the birds of the sky; and they were blotted out from the earth. The literal meaning is clear; for it shows the destruction of all living things except those in the ark, {and with regard to the spiritual meaning, thinking of marriages}, that the irrational creatures also perished because they had come into being for a need. But as to the spiritual meaning, everyone who had lost the "in the image" and possessed the image of the earthly perished by the punishing water, so as to be divided into different characters of beasts and reptiles and the other irrational creatures, as some hear: "Brood of vipers", and others, snakes and scorpions, and others, dogs, according to what is said: "Beware of the dogs"; and in general, having taken on the manifold forms of wickedness, they were fittingly dissolved by the destruction from wickedness, with the water symbolically indicating this. These same ones are also earthly, as having lost the heavenly image; these same ones also perished "on the dry land", of wickedness which has nothing of life in it. ῃιι, 23-24. And only Noah was left, and those with him 194 in the ark, and the water was high upon the earth for one hundred and fifty days. Noah is fittingly saved, not partaking of wickedness, along with those with him, since they are being taught by him, having risen above the force of the allegorical water by fifteen cubits, having reached the temple through the steps, and having fulfilled the things previously mentioned, to be shown through the number; for "much water" "cannot quench love". ***

ῃιιι, 1-3. And God remembered Noah and all the beasts and all the cattle and all the birds, as many as were with him in the ark. And God brought a spirit upon the earth, and the water subsided; and the fountains of the deep and the floodgates of heaven were closed, and the rain from heaven was restrained. And the water abated, going from the earth, it abated and the water was diminished after fifty <and one hundred days>. And the "remembered" must be heard in a manner befitting God, not as from forgetfulness, but just as he says concerning the impious: "I do not know where you are from; depart, you workers of lawlessness; I never knew you", with knowledge here signifying "I never had you as my own", "he remembered" not having forgotten, -for the holy one is always before God, -but He spoke of his memory for the purpose of bringing him to become the beginning of a race, and likewise for the others. Some people ask where the water of the

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βουλήματος τοῦ Θεοῦ τυγχάνει· τῷ Νῶε γὰρ δικαιοσύνης ἕνεκα κιβωτὸν κατασκευάσαι προσέ- ταξεν ο῾̣ [Θεὸς] λέγων ὅτι πᾶσαν σάρκα καταφθερεῖ, ὥστ' οὐ διεσώ[θη] τις ἔξω τῆς κιβωτοῦ. Καὶ περὶ τοῦ ὑψῶσθαι δὲ τ[ὸ ὕδωρ] ἐπάνω πήχεις δεκάπεντε, εἴ τις ἐθέλοι τῷ ἀριθ[μῷ ἐ]πιστάνων, θεωρήσει ὅτι πολλαχοῦ τῆς γραφῆς [παρα]λαμβάνεται· οἱ τοῦ ναοῦ ἀναβαθμοὶ δεκάπεντε [ἦσα]ν̣, καὶ διδόναι προστάττει ὁ λόγος "6μερίδα τοῖς ἑπ[τὰ] καί γε τοῖς ὀκτώ"6, νοουμένου τούτου ὅτι οἱ μὲν πρ[ο]σ̣ι̣έμενοι τὴν παλαιὰν μετὰ καὶ τῆς νέας μέρος τοῖς ἑπτὰ καὶ τοῖς ὀκτὼ παρέ- χουσιν. Πιθανῶς ἂν εἴποι τις ὅτι οἱ καταφρονηταὶ γεγενη- μένοι τοῦ διὰ τοῦ ἀριθμοῦ σημαινομένου μυστηρίου ὑπὸ τὸν κατακλυσμὸν [γε]γένηνται τῆς κακίας. Σημαίνεται γὰρ πάλιν ἐνταῖς [γρα]φαῖς ὑπὸ τοῦ πλήθους τοῦ ὕδατος 193 ὡς ἐν τῷ "6Τί λογίζεσθε ἐπὶ τὸν Κύριον; Συντέλειαν ***"6· εἰ γάρ τις λογίσαιτο ὅτι τὰ ῥευστὰ τοῦ βίου πράγματα ἀντὶ κατακλυσμοῦ λαμβανόμενα, ὅτε πληθύν̣ε̣ι̣, ψυχομένης [τ]ῆς τῶν πολλῶν ἀγάπης, συντέλεια ἔσται, προσεχῶς ἐν τῷ [λ]όγῳ νοήσειεν. ῃιι, 21-23. Καὶ ἀπέθανεν πᾶσα σὰρξ κινουμένη ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς τῶν πετεινῶν καὶ τῶν κτηνῶν καὶ τῶν θηρίων· καὶ πᾶν ἑρπετὸν κινούμενον ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς καὶ πᾶς ἄνθρωπος καὶ πάντα ὅσα ἔχει πνοὴν ζωῆς καὶ πᾶς ὃς ἦν ἐπὶ τῆς ξηρᾶς ἀπέθανεν. Καὶ ἐξηλείφθη πᾶν τὸ ἀνάστημα, ὃ ἦν ἐπὶ προσώπου πάσης τῆς γῆς ἀπὸ ἀνθρώπου ἕως κτήνους καὶ ἑρπετῶν καὶ τῶν πετεινῶν τοῦ οὐρανοῦ· καὶ ἐξηλείφθησαν ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς. Τὸ μὲν ῥητὸν φανερόν· φθορὰν γὰρ πάντων τῶν ζώντων πλὴν τῶν ἐν τῇ κιβωτῷ δηλοῖ, {πρὸς δὲ διάνοιαν λογιζομένων γάμων}, ὅτι καὶ τὰ ἄλογα ἀπώλετο διὰ τὸ διὰ χρείαν γεγενῆσθαι. Πρὸς δὲ διάνοιαν πᾶς ἀπώλετο ὑπὸ τοῦ κολαστικοῦ ὕδατος ὁ τὸ "6κατ' εἰκόνα"6 ἀπολω- λεκὼς καὶ τοῦ χοϊκοῦ ἔχων τὴν εἰκόνα, ὡς εἰς διάφορα ἤθη σχισθῆναι θηρίων τε καὶ ἑρπετῶν καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἀλόγων, καθὰ ἀκούουσίν τινες· "6Γεννήματα ἐχιδνῶν"6, καὶ [ἄλ]λοι ὄφεις καὶ σκορπίοι, ἕτεροι δὲ κύνες κατὰ τὸ εἰρημέ[νον]· "6Βλέπετε τοὺς κύνας"6· καὶ ὅλως τὸ πολύτροπον τῆς [κα]κίας ἀναδεξάμενοι εἰκότως τῇ ὑπὸ τῆς κακίας φθορ̣ᾷ διελύθησαν, ταύτην τοῦ ὕδατος συμβο- λικῶς ὑποδείκνυντος. Οὗτοι δ' αὐτοὶ καὶ γήϊνοι, ὡς ἀπο- λωλεκότες τὴν ε᾿̣π̣ουράνιον εἰκόνα· οἱ δ' αὐτοὶ καὶ "6ἐπὶ τῆς ξηρᾶς"6 ἀπώλοντο, τῆς μηδὲν ζωτικὸν ἐχούσης κακίας. ῃιι, 23-24. Καὶ κατελείφθη μόνος Νῶε καὶ οἱ μετ' αὐτοῦ 194 ἐν τῇ κιβωτῷ, καὶ ὑψώθη τὸ ὕδωρ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς ἑκατὸν πεντήκοντα ἡμέρας. Εἰκότως Νῶε σῴζεται μὴ μετέχων κακίας μετὰ καὶ τῶν σὺν αὐτῷ, ἅτε παρ' αὐτοῦ παιδευομ̣ένων, ὑπεραναβὰς τὴν φορὰν τοῦ ἀλληγορουμένου ὕδατος πεντεκαίδεκα πήχεις, φθάσας εἰς τὸν ναὸν διὰ τῶν ἀναβαθμῶν, καὶ τὰ προειρημένα δι<ὰ> τοῦ ἀριθμοῦ δηλοῦσθαι πληρώσας· "6Ὕδωρ"6 γὰρ "6πολὺ οὐ δυνήσεται σβέσαι τὴν ἀγά- πην"6. ***

ῃιιι, 1-3. Καὶ ἐμνήσθη ὁ Θεὸς τοῦ Νῶε καὶ πάντων τῶν θηρίων καὶ πάντων τῶν κτηνῶν καὶ πάντων τῶν πετεινῶν, ὅσα ἦν μετ' αὐτοῦ ἐντῇ κιβωτῷ. Καὶ ἐπήγαγεν ὁ Θεὸς π[ν]εῦμα ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν, καὶ ἐκόπασεν τὸ ὕδωρ· καὶ ἐπεκαλύφ- θησαν αἱ πηγαὶ τῆς ἀβύσσου καὶ [οἱ] καταράκται τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, καὶ συνεσχέθη ὁ ὑετὸς ἀπὸ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ. Καὶ ἐνεδίδου τὸ ὕδωρ πορευόμενον ἀπ̣[ὸ τ]ῆς γῆς, ἐνεδίδου καὶ ἠλαττονοῦτο τὸ ὕδωρ μετὰ πεντήκοντα <καὶ ἑκατὸν ἡμέρας>. Καὶ τὸ "6ἐμνη´̣σθη"6 θεοπρ[ε]πῶς ἀκουστέον, οὐχ ὡς ἐκ λήθης, ἀλλ' ὥσπερ περὶ τῶν ἀσέβων λέγει· "6Οὐκ οἶδα ὑμᾶς πόθεν ἐστέ· ἀποχωρεῖτε ἐργάται ἀνομίας· οὐδέποτε ὑμᾶς ἔγνων"6, τῆς γνώσεως ἐνταῦθα δηλούσης τὸ "3οὐδέποτε ὡς ἡμετέρους ὑμᾶς ἔσχον"3, "6ἐμνήσθη"6 οὐκ ἐκλαθόμ[ε]νος, -ἐνώπιον γὰρ διὰ παντός ἐστιν τοῦ Θεοῦ ὁ ἅγιος, -ἀλλὰ τὴν ἐπ[ὶ] τὸ ἀγαγεῖν αὐτὸν εἰς τὸ ἀρχὴν γενέσθαι γένους μνήμην αὐτο̣υ῀̣ εἶπεν, ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων. Ζητοῦσί τινες ποῦ κεχώρηκεν τὸ ὕδωρ τοῦ