91

Christ. 463 Ps 44,10bc The soul, that is the Church, which has truly become the spouse of Christ the true king, is called a queen because she is the bride of a king, standing at his right hand by holding the right position, and having her foundation in virtue and faith. and she has garments of gold, having put on Christ; and she is clothed and adorned, having received the manifold wisdom of God. And one must not be scandalized if he is both bridegroom and garment; for these things exist according to different relationships and concepts, just as he is also found to be shepherd and lamb and countless other things in the Gospels. 464 Ps 44,11 A change of person is shown to have occurred; for it is God who is addressing the Church from the gentiles, whom he also calls his daughter. So he says: Having received my words, O daughter, listen and see their meaning, paying attention to them; for you will be even more willing to incline your ear to hear them more fully and effectively and to desire them; and forgetfulness of your kinsmen will follow you, as you no longer wish to maintain their same customs and traditions; and you will forget the house of your father who begot you according to the wickedness of the devil. 465 Ps 44,12-14 For this I call you, daughter, says God to her, that you might do what has been commanded you; since my son, being a king, has desired the beauty inherent in you, who were made in my image and likeness, but this king himself who desires your beauty is not one of your peers. For he is your Lord; for he is not an angel or an archangel or any other created being; for all also worship him. Since, therefore, it is characteristic of God to be worshipped, know that the king who desires your beauty, who is also your Lord, is God. In addition to this, know that you have undergone a great change. For being a daughter of Tyre, on account of the superstition you held, you have been named my daughter, so that all the rich of the people bring supplications to your face. For of the people of the circumcision, all those who are rich in faith and the truth of the gospel come to you, supplicating your face because you have become the spouse of the king. For just as of old those from the gentiles who came to the worship of God became proselytes to Israel, entreating his face, so now those from the Jews who repent flee to the Church of the gentiles, asking to be received by her. All the glory of the daughter of kings of Heshbon. Heshbon is interpreted as thoughts. And the king of thoughts, which are righteous, is the Lord. Therefore, the glory of the celebrated daughter of Tyre is from nowhere else than from the king of thoughts. And it must be known that in many places of the scriptures gold is taken for intelligible substance, as will be shown in due course. Since, therefore, in her garments, which are virtues, the word concerning intelligible things is also interwoven, especially that concerning the Trinity, she is clothed in golden tassels, being variegated because of the manifold and multiform teaching of Christ. 466 Ps 44,15a Since the phrase has some obscurity, we will take its meaning from another place. In the Song of Songs, interpreting the differences of the souls that come to Christ, the word says: There are queens and concubines and maidens without number; my dove, my perfect one, is one; so that concerning her it has been said: Daughters saw her and will call her blessed, queens and concubines will praise her; from which it is shown that she is other than the daughters who are called maidens and concubines and queens. And it is made clear from these words that the souls that come to Christ, those not yet having the time for marriage are maidens, while those who have come together with him, already mingled with them, the noble ones who have transcended the world made in six days, are Sixty queens, and those who have received the eight-day circumcision, still having the spirit of bondage, are Eighty concubines; the

91

Χριστόν. 463 Ps 44,10bc ̔Η τῷ Χριστῷ τῷ ἀληθινῷ βασιλεῖ ἀληθῶς σύζυγος γενομένη ψυχή, ητοι ἐκκλησία, βασιλίσσα διὰ τὸ ειναι νύμφη βασιλέως ὀνομάζεται, παραστᾶσα ἐκ δεξιῶν αὐτοῦ τῷ δεξιὰν ἐπέχειν στάσιν, ἐν ἀρετῇ δὲ καὶ πίστει τὴν ιδρυσιν εχουσα. αυτη δὲ καὶ ἱμάτια διάχρυσα εχει, Χριστὸν ἐνδυσαμένη· περιβέβληται δὲ καὶ πεποικιλμένη, τὴν πολυποίκιλον σοφίαν τοῦ θεοῦ ἀναλαβοῦσα. οὐ προσκοπτέον δὲ εἰ αὐτὸς καὶ νύμφιος καὶ ενδυμά ἐστιν· κατὰ γὰρ αλλην καὶ αλλην σχέσιν καὶ ἐπίνοιαν ταῦτα ὑπάρχει, ωσπερ καὶ ποιμὴν καὶ ἀμνὸς καὶ αλλα μυρία εὑρίσκεται ἐν τοῖς Εὐαγγελίοις. 464 Ps 44,11 Μεταβολὴ προσώπου ἐμφαίνεται γενομένη· θεὸς γάρ ἐστιν ὁ προσφωνῶν τῇ ἀπὸ τῶν ἐθνῶν ἐκκλησίᾳ ην καὶ θυγατέρα αὐτοῦ ὀνομάζει. φησὶν γοῦν· ∆εξαμένη τοὺς ἐμοὺς λόγους, ω θύγατερ, ακουσον καὶ ἰδὲ αὐτῶν τὴν διάνοιαν ἐπιστήσασα αὐτοῖς· ετι γὰρ μᾶλλον πλεῖον θελήσεις τὸ ους σου κλῖναι ἐπὶ τὸ πλειόνως αὐτὰ καὶ ἐξεργαστικώτερον ἀκοῦσαι καὶ ποθῆσαι· ἀκολουθήσει δέ σοι λήθη τῶν ὁμοφύλων, μηκέτι θελησάσης σου τὰ αὐτὰ ἐκείνων περιστέλλειν εθη καὶ πάτρια· ἐπιλήσῃ δὲ καὶ τοῦ οικου τοῦ πατρός σου γεννήσαντός σε κατὰ κακίαν τοῦ διαβόλου. 465 Ps 44,12-14 ∆ιὰ τοῦτο σὲ καλῶ, θύγατερ, φησὶν πρὸς αὐτὴν ὁ θεός, ἐπὶ τῷ ποιῆσαι τὰ προστεταγμένα σοι· ἐπείπερ ὁ ἐμὸς υἱὸς βασιλεὺς ων ἐπεθύμησεν τοῦ ἐνυπάρχοντός σοι κάλλους κατ' εἰκόνα καὶ καθ' ὁμοίωσιν ἐμὴν γεγενημένης, αὐτὸς δ' ουν ουτος ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐπιθυμῶν τοῦ κάλλους σου οὐχ εις τῶν ὁμοτίμων σου τυγχάνει. Αὐτὸς γάρ ἐστιν ὁ κύριός σου· οὐ γὰρ αγγελος η ἀρχάγγελος η τις αλλος γενητὸς ων ὑπάρχει· αὐτῷ γὰρ καὶ προσκυνοῦσι πάντες. ἐπεὶ ουν θεοῦ τὸ προσκυνεῖσθαι, ισθι θεὸν οντα τὸν βασιλέα τὸν ἐπιθυμοῦντα τοῦ κάλλους σου, ος καὶ κύριός σού ἐστιν. Πρὸς τούτοις δ' ισθι οτι πολλὴν μεταβολὴν εσχες. θυγάτηρ γὰρ Τύρου ουσα δι' ην ειχες δεισιδαιμονίαν ἐμοῦ θυγάτηρ ἐχρημάτισας, ὡς λιτὰς τῷ προσώπῳ σου προσάγειν πάντας τοὺς πλουσίους τοῦ λαοῦ. τοῦ γὰρ ἐκ περιτομῆς λαοῦ πάντες οσοι πλουτοῦσιν κατὰ πίστιν καὶ τὴν τοῦ εὐαγγελίου ἀλήθειαν σοὶ προσέρχονται, τὸ πρόσωπόν σου λιτανεύοντες διὰ τὸ σύζυγον τῷ βασιλεῖ γεγονέναι. ὡς γὰρ πάλαι οἱ ἀπὸ τῶν ἐθνῶν τῇ κατὰ θεὸν θεραπείᾳ προσερχόμενοι τῷ ̓Ισραὴλ προσηλύτευον τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ παρακαλοῦντες, ουτω νῦν οἱ ἀπὸ τῶν ̓Ιουδαίων μετανοοῦντες προσφεύγουσιν τῇ τῶν ἐθνῶν ἐκκλησίᾳ ἀξιοῦντες ὑποδεχθῆναι παρ' αὐτῆς. Πᾶσα ἡ δόξα τῆς θυγατρὸς βασιλέων ̓Εσεβών. ̓Εσεβὼν ἑρμηνεύεται λογισμοί. ὁ βασιλεὺς δὲ τῶν λογισμῶν τῶν δικαίων οντων εστιν ὁ κύριος. τῆς ουν ὑμνουμένης θυγατρὸς Τύρου ἡ δόξα οὐκ αλλοθέν ἐστιν η ἀπὸ τοῦ βασιλέως τῶν λογισμῶν. ̓Ιστέον δὲ οτι πολλαχοῦ τῶν γραφῶν ἀντὶ τῆς νοητῆς οὐσίας λαμβάνεται ὁ χρυσός, ὡς εὐκαίρως δειχθήσεται. ἐπεὶ ουν ἐν τοῖς ἐνδύμασιν αὐτῆς τυγχανούσαις ἀρεταῖς συγκαθύφανται καὶ ὁ περὶ τῶν νοητῶν λόγος, μάλιστα ὁ περὶ τῆς τριάδος, κροσσωτὰ χρυσᾶ περιβέβληται οντα πεποικιλμένα διὰ τὸ πολύτροπον καὶ πολυειδὲς τῆς Χριστοῦ διδασκαλίας. 466 Ps 44,15a Τῆς λέξεως ἀσάφειαν ἐχούσης, ἐξ αλλης τὴν διάνοιαν αὐτῆς ληψόμεθα. ἐν τῷ Αισματι τῶν ᾀσμάτων τὰς διαφορὰς τῶν Χριστῷ προσερχομένων ψυχῶν ἑρμηνεύων ὁ λόγος φησίν· Εἰσὶ βασίλισσαι καὶ παλλακαὶ καὶ νεάνιδες ων οὐκ εστιν ἀριθμός· μία ἐστὶ περιστερά μου, τελεία μου· ὡς περὶ ταύτης εἰρῆσθαι Ειδοσαν αὐτὴν θυγατέρες καὶ μακαριοῦσιν αὐτήν, βασίλισσαι καὶ παλλακαὶ αἰνέσουσιν αὐτήν· ἐξ ων δείκνυται αλλη ουσα παρὰ τὰς θυγατέρας αι ειρηνται νεάνιδες καὶ παλλακαὶ καὶ βασιλίδες. δηλοῦται δὲ ἐκ τῶν λέξεων τούτων ὡς αρα αἱ Χριστῷ προσερχόμεναι ψυχαὶ αἱ μὲν ουπω καιρὸν εχουσαι γάμου νεάνιδές εἰσιν, αἱ δὲ συνελθοῦσαι αὐτῷ ηδη ἀνακραθέντι αὐταῖς αἱ μὲν εὐγένιδες καὶ ὑπεραναβεβηκυῖαι τὸν ἐν εξ ἡμέραις γενόμενον κόσμον ̔Εξηκοντά εἰσι βασίλισσαι, αἱ δὲ τὴν ὀκταήμερον περιτομὴν λαβοῦσαι ἀκμὴν τὸ τῆς δουλείας εχουσαι πνεῦμα ̓Ογδοήκοντα παλλακίδες εἰσίν· ἡ