86

desiring to see, the saints among men also say: “Make your face to shine, and we shall be saved.” When the one who was entreated had assented to this request, the Holy Spirit, speaking beforehand, says: “The God of gods shall be seen in Zion.” 3.51 Having sought and found his face, when the one who begot him revealed it, we rejoice, making propitiation, when he appeared to us after a sufficient search for him. 3.52 How those who propitiate the face of the Lord Almighty and seek it come together from cities into one city, the Jerusalem above, must be considered. 3.53 And see if those who have arrived at greater advancements in the virtues and knowledge of the truth are citizens of several cities, after which, having passed beyond, into the metropolis, as it were, the most perfect knowledge of God, they live as citizens in the heavenly Jerusalem. When grief, pain, and groaning have fled away, so as to receive everlasting joy, he said, one must celebrate with the myriads of angels and the firstborn of the Church, according to the apostolic scripture: “For you have come,” it says, “to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven.” 3.54Zach. VIII, 23: Thus says the Lord Almighty: In those days, if ten men from all the languages of the nations take hold, and they shall take hold of the fringe of a Jewish man, saying: We will go with you, because we have heard that God is with you. 3.55 The prophecy sketches the time in which many peoples and many nations will come to propitiate the face of the Lord Almighty and to seek it, being none other than the advent of the Savior to humanity, in which Emmanuel was born of the virgin, God having then been among us; in the days of him who appeared on the earth and associated with men, there will be a calling of all people everywhere, as the prophecy set forth declares, which runs thus: “In the days when ten men from all the languages of the nations shall take hold of the fringe of a Jewish man.” 3.56 But in order to understand the meaning of the prophetic saying set forth, first we must consider who is the one Jewish man so-named pre-eminently; and I think he happens to be none other than the one the Apostle signifies when writing to the Hebrews: “It is evident that our Lord has sprung from Judah,” to lead and to be king of the Jews in secret, in spirit but not in letter, who are circumcised not in the flesh but in the heart; for concerning him we take what is said in the hymns by every discerning person: “Judah is my king.” 3.57 The same understanding is suggested also in the blessing spoken by Jacob, which runs thus: “Judah, your brothers shall praise you”; and after other things: “A ruler shall not fail from Judah, nor a leader from his loins, until he comes for whom it is reserved, and he is the expectation of the nations.” For he happens to be the blessed expectation not of one nation, but of all together, fulfilling the prophecy concerning the calling of all men, which runs thus: “There shall be the root of Jesse, and he who arises to rule the nations, in him the nations will hope.” 3.58 Taking hold of the fringe of the garment of this one who arose from the root of Jesse and who sprang from Judah, being a true Jew, ten men from all the languages of the nations say to him as to a leader and a general, or rather as to a high priest and universal king: “Let us go with you, because we have heard that God is among you,” and it is clear that this means among the spiritual Jews, who worship God in spirit and in truth, not in Jerusalem or on the mountain of the Samaritans. For just as the angels do not worship the Son of God in a place, concerning whom the Holy Spirit says: “All the angels of God will worship him,” so also the worshipers of God from among men do not in any place

86

θεάσασθαι γλιχόμενοι καὶ οἱ ἐν ἀνθρώποις ἅγιοί φασιν· «Ἐπίφανον τὸ πρόσωπόν σου καὶ σωθησόμεθα.» Πρὸς ταύτην τὴν αἴτησιν ἐπινεύσαντος τοῦ παρακληθέντος προαναφωνοῦν τὸ ἅγιον Πνεῦμά φησιν· «Ὀφθήσεται ὁ Θεὸς τῶν θεῶν ἐν Σιών.» 3.51 Τούτου τὸ πρόσωπον ἐκζητήσαντες καὶ εὑρόντες, ἐμφανίσαντος αὐτὸ τοῦ γεννήσαντος, ἀγαλλιώμεθα ἐξιλασκόμενοι, φανέντος αὐτοῦ ἡμῖν μετὰ αὐταρκῆ ζήτησιν αὐτοῦ. 3.52 Πῶς ἐκ πόλεων εἰς μίαν πόλιν τὴν ἄνω Ἰερουσαλὴμ συνέρχονται οἱ ἐξιλασκόμενοι τὸ πρόσωπον Κυρίου παντοκράτορος καὶ ἐκζητοῦντες αὐτὸ ἐπιστατέον. 3.53 Καὶ ὅρα εἰ οἱ ἐν πλείοσιν προκοπαῖς τῶν ἀρετῶν καὶ γνώσεως τῆς ἀληθείας φθάσαντες πλειόνων πόλεών εἰσιν πολῖται, μεθ' ἃς ἔτι διαβάντες εἰς τὴν ὡσανεὶ μητρόπολιν, τὴν τελειοτάτην Θεοῦ γνῶσιν, ἐν τῇ ἐπουρανίῳ πολιτε̣ύονται Ἰερουσαλήμ. Ἀποδράσης λύπης, ὀδύνης, στεναγμοῦ ὡς αἰώνιον διαδέξασθαι εὐφροσύνην, ἔφη, μετὰ τ̣ῶν μυριάδων τῶν ἀγγέλων καὶ τῶν τῆς Ἐκκλησίας πρωτοτόκων ἑορταστέον, κατὰ τὴν ἀποστολικὴν γραφήν· «Προσεληλύθατ̣ε̣ γάρ, φησίν, Σιὼν ὄρει καὶ πόλει Θεοῦ ζῶντος, Ἰερουσαλὴμ ἐπουρανίῳ, καὶ μυριάσιν ἀγγέλων, πανηγύρει, καὶ ἐκκλησίᾳ πρωτοτόκων ἀπογεγραμμένων ἐν οὐρανῷ.» 3.54Zach. VIII, 23: Τάδε λέγει Κύριος παντοκράτωρ· Ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις, ἐὰν ἐπιλάβωνται δέκα ἄνδρες ἐκ πασῶν τῶν γλωσσῶν τῶν ἐθνῶν καὶ ἐπιλάβωνται τοῦ κρασπέδου ἀνδρὸς Ἰουδαίου λέγοντες· Πορευσόμεθα μετὰ σοῦ, διότι ἀκηκόαμεν ὅτι Θεὸς μεθ' ὑμῶν ἐστιν. 3.55 Ὑπογράφει τὸν καιρὸν ἡ προφητεία καθ' ὃν ἥξουσιν λαοὶ πολλοὶ καὶ ἔθνη πολλὰ ἐξιλάσασθαι τὸ πρόσωπον Κυρίου παντοκράτορος καὶ ἐκζητῆσαι αὐτό, οὐχ ἕτερον ὄντα τῆς τοῦ Σωτῆρος εἰς ἀνθρώπους ἐπιδημίας, καθ' ὃν ἐγεννήθη ἐκ τῆς παρθένου ὁ Ἐμμανουήλ, ἐν ἡμῖν τοῦ Θεοῦ λοιπὸν γεγενημένου· ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις τοῦ ὀφθέντος ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς καὶ συναναστραφέντος τοῖς ἀνθρώποις, τῶν ἁπανταχοῦ ἀνθρώπων κλῆσις ἔσται ὡς ἐκκειμένη δηλοῖ προφητεία ὧδε ἔχουσα· «Ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ὅταν δέκα ἄνδρες ἐκ πασῶν τῶν γλωσσῶν τῶν ἐθνῶν ἐπιλάβωνται τοῦ κρασπέδου ἀνδρὸς Ἰουδαίου.» 3.56 Ὑπὲρ δὲ τοῦ νοῆσαι τὸ βούλημα τοῦ ἐκτεθέντος προφητικοῦ ῥητοῦ, πρῶτον σκοπητέον τίς ὁ εἷς ἀνὴρ Ἰουδαῖος κατ' ἐξοχὴν ὀνομαζόμενος· οὐκ ἄλλος δ' οἶμαι τυγχάνει οὗ σημαίνει ὁ Ἀπόστολος Ἑβραίοις γράφων· «Πρόδηλον ὅτι ἐξ Ἰούδα ἀνατέταλκεν ὁ Κύριος ἡμῶν», ἐπὶ τὸ ἡγεῖσθαι καὶ βασιλεύειν τῶν ἐν κρυπτῷ Ἰουδαίων, πνεύματι ἀλλ' οὐ γράμματι, περιτεμνομένων οὐ τὴν σάρκα ἀλλὰ τὴν καρδίαν· περὶ γὰρ αὐτοῦ ἐκλαμβάνομεν τὸ ἐν ὕμνοις εἰρημένον ὑφ' ἑκάστου διορατικοῦ· «Βασιλεύς μου Ἰούδα.» 3.57 Ἡ αὐτὴ νόησις ὑποβάλλεται καὶ ἐν τῇ ὑπὸ τοῦ Ἰακὼβ εἰρημένῃ εὐλογίᾳ ὧδε ἐχούσῃ· «Ἰούδα, σὲ αἰνέσαισαν οἱ ἀδελφοί σου»· καὶ μεθ' ἕτερα· «Οὐκ ἐκλείψει ἄρχων ἐξ Ἰούδα, καὶ ἡγούμενος ἐκ τῶν μηρῶν αὐτοῦ, ἕως ἔλθῃ ᾧ ἀπόκειται, καὶ αὐτὸς προσδοκία ἐθνῶν.» Οὐ γὰρ ἑνὸς ἔθνους, ἀλλὰ πάντων ὁμοῦ μακαρία προσδοκία τυγχάνει, πληρουμένης προφητείας περὶ κλήσεως πάντων ἀνθρώπων ὧδε ἐχούσης· «Ἔσται ἡ ῥίζα τοῦ Ἰεσσαὶ καὶ ὁ ἀνιστάμενος ἄρχειν ἐθνῶν, ἐπ' αὐτῷ ἔθνη ἐλπιοῦσιν.» 3.58 Τούτου τοῦ ἀναστάντος ἐκ τῆς ῥίζης Ἰεσσαὶ καὶ ἀνατείλαντος ἐκ τοῦ Ἰούδα ἀληθινοῦ Ἰουδαίου ὄντος ἐπιλαβόμενοι τοῦ κρασπέδου τοῦ ἱματίου ἄνδρες δέκα ἐκ πασῶν τῶν γλωσσῶν τῶν ἐθνῶν φασιν αὐτῷ ὡς ἡγουμένῳ καὶ στρατηγῷ, μᾶλλον δὲ ἀρχιερεῖ καὶ παμβασιλεῖ· «Πορευθῶμεν δὲ μετὰ σοῦ, διότι ἀκηκόαμεν ὅτι ὁ Θεὸς ἐν ὑμῖν ἐστιν», φανερὸν δ' ὅτι τοῖς κατὰ τὸ νοητὸν Ἰουδαίοις, τοῖς ἐν πνεύματι καὶ ἀληθείᾳ προσκυνοῦσι τῷ Θεῷ, οὐκ ἐν Ἱεροσολύμοις ἢ τῷ Σαμαριτῶν ὄρει. Ὡς γὰροὐκ ἐν τόπῳ οἱ ἄγγελοι προσκυνοῦσιν τῷ Υἱῷ τοῦ Θεοῦ, περὶ οὗ τὸ ἅγιον Πνεῦμα λέγει· «Προσκυνήσουσιν αὐτῷ πάντες ἄγγελοι Θεοῦ», οὕτως οὐδὲ οἱ ἐξ ἀνθρώπων προσκυνηταὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐν τόπῳ τινὶ