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the eleventh, jacinth; the twelfth, amethyst; and the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass (six). And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. 241 The reed, with which he measured the holy city, was for measuring land; but golden because of the preciousness both of the measuring angel and of the city being measured. And he says the city lies foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth, and its height is equal. The foursquare shape, as seems to those skilled in these matters, is and is called a cube; for there is also a plane square; but when it is with a square and equilateral in all its dimensions, they say the cube signifies stability; for the good things for the saints are permanent and unchangeable, with no change corrupting their blessedness. And the grandeur of the city reveals at once the magnificence of the saints and that, even if they are much inferior in number to the sinners, yet they are not few in number, but enough to fill so great a city. And he says he measured the wall thereof, one hundred and forty-four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel. In many places, according to the custom of the divine scripture, angels are called men. And this is clear from how the Archangel Gabriel is interpreted as 'man of God'. And the prophet said, You will save men and beasts, O Lord, calling angels men, and men beasts; for indeed compared to the mind of angels, we men are irrational and beasts. For he did not say men and beasts, as one might suppose, meaning actual men and real beasts; for it was said by the apostle concerning the beasts, Does God care for oxen? Therefore, the beasts in the prophet must be understood as men, and the men as angels. But 242 the Lord also in Luke called angels men, saying, Let your loins be girded about, and your lamps burning; And you yourselves like men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding. Since, therefore, in many places angels are called men from looking upward; and to have their eyes toward God. For this reason, he says here, the measure of a man, that is, of an angel. And what has been said hints that the divine is in every way incomprehensible, for we have understood the wall of the city to be Christ in the preceding discussion, but rather men become angels in their contemplation of the majesty of God. For this reason, the wall of the city has been measured with an angelic cubit and not a human one. And its having one hundred and forty-four cubits is some mystical number to the wisdom of angels, which also measures with discernment. And the structure of its wall, he says, is jasper. We have already taken jasper to mean the life-bearing and life-giving quality of Christ. And the city, he says, is pure gold, like pure glass. The gold, being set with brightness and transparency. represents the preciousness and purity of the saints in deeds and words. And the foundations of the wall of the city, he says, are adorned with every precious stone. And the foundation of the wall. And the wall is the Lord, as has often been said. We have said that the holy apostles are meant by what has been said. as Christ rests upon their teaching and has come upon them according to the given promise, in which He says, and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the 243 end of the age. These foundations, therefore, that is, the apostles, are adorned with every virtue, for the precious stones signify virtue; for they have become pure in deed and in their preaching and in their struggles for Christ and in their goodwill toward Him even unto blood. And if anyone should wish to speak in detail about the stones, it is possible to find such a contemplation, but one must begin a little from above. The high priests according to the Law of Moses were variously clothed, wearing a certain robe to the feet and an ephod and a miter and a headdress, and a girdle and other things, showing at once wonder and amazement, and also a mystical tropology through their appearance. And there was among them also the

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ἑνδέκατος ὑάκινθος, ὁ δωδέκατος ἀμεθύστινος· καὶ οἱ δώδεκα πυλῶνες οἱ δώδεκα μαργαρῖται ἀνὰ εἷς ἕκαστος καὶ ἕκαστος τῶν πυλώνων ἦν ἐξ ἑνὸς μαργαρίτου· καὶ ἡ πλατεία τῆς πόλεως χρυσίον καθαρὸν ὡς ὕαλος δι' αὐγής (σιξ). καὶ ναὸν οὐκ εἶδον ἐν αὐτῇ, ὁ γὰρ Θεός, ὁ παντοκράτωρ, ναός ἐστιν αὐτῆς καὶ τὸ ἀρνίον. 241 ὁ μὲν κάλαμος, ᾧ διεμέτρει τὴν ἁγίαν πόλιν, γεωμετρικὸς ὑπῆρχε· χρυσοὺς δὲ διὰ τὸ τίμιον τοῦ τε μετροῦντος ἀγγέλου καὶ τῆς μετρουμένης πόλεως. καὶ ἡ πόλις φησὶ τετράγωνος κεῖται, καὶ τὸ μῆκος αὐτῆς, ὅσον τὸ πλάτος, καὶ τὸ ὕψος αὐτῆς, ἶσα ἐστίν. τὸ τετράγωνον σχῆμα καθὼς τοῖς περὶ ταῦτα δεινοῖς δοκεῖ, κύβος ἐστί τε καὶ ὀνομάζεται· ἔστι γὰρ καὶ τετράγωνον ἐπίπεδον· ἀλλ' ὅταν εἴη συντετραγώνῳ καὶ ἰσόπλευρον ἐν πάσαις ταῖς διαστάσεσιν, τὸν δὲ κύβον ἑδραιότητα δηλοῦν λέγουσιν· μόνιμα γὰρ τοῖς ἁγίοις τὰ ἀγαθὰ καὶ ἀμετάθετα, οὐδεμίας μεταβολῆς διαφθειρούσης αὐτοῖς τὴν μακαριότητα. τὸ δέ γε μεγαλεῖον τῆς πόλεως ὁμοῦ τό τε μεγαλοπρεπὲς τῶν ἁγίων ἐμφανίζει καὶ ὅτι, εἰ καὶ τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν ἡττῶνται παραπολὺ τῷ πλήθει, πλὴν οὔτε αὐτοὶ τῷ ἀριθμῷ τυγχάνουσι βραχεῖς, ἀλλ' ὥστε πληρῶσαι πόλιν τοσαύτην. καὶ ἐμέτρησέν φησι τὸ τεῖχος αὐτῆς ˉρˉμˉδ πηχῶν μέτρον ἀνθρώπου ὅ ἐστιν ἀγγέλου. ἐν πολλοῖς παρὰ τῇ συνηθείᾳ τῆς θείας γραφῆς ἄνθρωποι οἱ ἄγγελοι λέγονται. καὶ τοῦτο δῆλον ἐξ ὧν ὁ Γαβριὴλ ὁ Ἀρχάγγελος, ἄνθρωπος Θεοῦ ἑρμηνεύεται. καὶ ὁ προφήτης ἔφη ἀνθρώπους καὶ κτήνη σώσεις, Κύριε, ἀνθρώπους μὲν καλῶν τοὺς ἀγγέλους, κτήνη δὲ τοὺς ἀνθρώπους· καὶ γὰρ παρὰ τὴν τῶν ἀγγέλων φρένα ἄλογα καὶ κτήνη τυγχάνομεν οἱ ἄνθρωποι. οὔτε γὰρ ἀνθρώπους εἶπε καὶ κτήνη ὡς ἂν οἰηθείη τις, τοὺς ἀληθεῖς ἀνθρώπους καὶ τὰ ὄντως κτήνη· εἴρηται γὰρ τῷ ἀποστόλῳ περὶ τῶν κτηνῶν μὴ τῶν βοῶν μέλει τῷ Θεῷ; ἄρα τὰ παρὰ τῷ προφήτῃ κτήνη τοὺς ἀνθρώπους νοητέον, ἀνθρώπους δὲ τοὺς ἀγγέλους. ἀλλὰ 242 καὶ ὁ Κύριος παρὰ τῷ Λουκᾷ ἀνθρώπους τοὺς ἀγγέλους ἐκάλεσε, λέγων ἔστωσαν αἱ ὀσφύες ὑμῶν περιεζωσμέναι καὶ οἱ λύχνοι καιόμενοι, καὶ ὑμεῖς ὅμοιοι ἀνθρώποις προσδεχομένοις τὸν Κύριον αὐτῶν, πότε ἀναλύσει ἐκ τῶν γάμων. ἐπεὶ οὖν ἐν πολλοῖς ἄνθρωποι οἱ ἄγγελοι κέκληνται παρὰ τὸ ἄνω· καὶ πρὸς Θεὸν ἔχειν τοὺς ὦπας. τούτου χάριν φησὶν ἐνταῦθα μέτρον ἀνθρώπου ὅ ἐστιν ἀγγέλου. αἰνίττεται δὲ τῷ εἰρημένῳ ὅτι πάντη μὲν ἀκατάληπτον τὸ θεῖον, τεῖχος γὰρ τῆς πόλεως τὸν Χριστὸν ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν νενοήκαμεν, μᾶλλον δὲ ἐν περινοίᾳ τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ μεγαλειότητος ἄγγελοι γίνονται οἱ ἄνθρωποι. διὰ τοῦτο ἀγγελικῷ πήχει καὶ οὐκ ἀνθρωπίνῳ τὸ τεῖχος μεμέτρηται τῆς πόλεως. τὸ δὲ ˉρˉμˉδ πήχεις ἔχειν μυστικός τίς ἐστιν ἀριθμὸς τῇ ἀγγέλων σοφίᾳ, τῇ καὶ μετρούσῃ διεγνωσμένως. καὶ ἡ ἐνδόμησίς φησι τοῦ τείχους αὐτῆς ἴασπις. ἤδη τὴν ἴασπιν εἰς τὸ φερέσβιον καὶ ζωοπόρον ἐδεξάμεθα τοῦ Χριστοῦ. καὶ ἡ πόλις φησὶ χρυσίον καθαρὸν ὅμοιον ὑάλῳ καθαρῷ. ὁ χρυσὸς μετὰ τοῦ λαμπροῦ καὶ διαυγοῦς τεταγμένος. τῶν ἁγίων τὸ τίμιον καὶ τὸ καθαρὸν ἐν ἔργοις καὶ λόγοις παρατίθεται. καὶ οἱ θεμέλιοί φησι τοῦ τείχους αὐτῆς τῆς πόλεως παντὶ τιμίῳ λίθῳ κεκόσμηνται. καὶ ὁ θεμέλιος τοῦ τείχους. τεῖχος δὲ ὁ Κύριος, ὡς πόλλακις εἴρηται. τοὺς ἁγίους ἀποστόλους ἐν τοῖς εἰρημένοις εἴπομεν. ὡς ἐπαναπαυομένου Χριστοῦ τῇ αὐτῶν διδασκαλίᾳ καὶ ἐπιβεβηκότος ἐπ' αὐτοῖς κατὰ τὴν δοθεῖσαν ὑπόσχεσιν, ἐν ᾗ φησι καὶ ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ μεθ' ὑμῶν εἰμι πάσας τὰς 243 ἡμέρας μέχρι τῆς συντελείας τοῦ αἰῶνος. οὗτοι τοιγαροῦν οἱ θεμέλιοι, τουτέστιν οἱ ἀπόστολοι, ἀρετῇ πάσῃ, τὴν γὰρ ἀρετὴν οἱ τίμιοι γράφουσιν λίθοι, κεκόσμηνται· ἔργῳ γὰρ γεγένηνται καὶ τῷ κηρύγματι καθαροὶ καὶ τοῖς ὑπὲρ Χριστοῦ ἀγωνίσμασιν καὶ τῷ μέχρις αἵματος πρὸς αὐτὸν εὐνοικῷ. εἰ δέ τις καὶ περὶ τῶν λίθων λεπτολογεῖν ἐθελήσειε, τοιαύτην ἔνεστι εὑρεῖν θεωρίαν, μικρὸν δὲ ἄνωθεν ἀρκτέον. οἱ κατὰ τὸν Μωϋσέως νόμον ἀρχιερεῖς ποικίλως ἦσαν ἠμφιεσμένοι ποδήρη τινὰ καὶ ἐπωμίδα καὶ μίτραν καὶ κίδαριν, ζώνην τε καὶ ἄλλα περικείμενοι, θάμβος ἅμα καὶ κατάπληξιν, ἔτι δὲ μυστικὴν τροπολογίαν ἐμφαίνοντες διὰ τοῦ σχήματος. ἦν δέ γε παρ' αὐτοῖς καὶ τὸ