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97

he showed, saying "of the wholes, and of the greater, and of the containing"), but the sun and moon (for these are the "contained") were not brought around with the container.

"In succession it is almost tripled": He added "almost" (15∆_428>, because that day was not fully triple (for it became of 32 hours); that from sunrise until the place where it was, when the sign was given, and ten from there to the east, and twelve until the final sunset. And he used the same figure of speech here too, that either the pole itself with the sun in the space of 24 hours made that supernatural counter-revolution, or the sun alone.

"Or the whole for so much time": Compose the saying thus, as it contains a hyperbaton; Or the whole turns back these contrary motions, reversing so great an interval of time with these rotations beyond reason. And these things are also shown in the 4th of "Kings", and especially in the edition according to Symmachus, and in the 2nd of "Chronicles".

"Or the sun in its own course": The annual motion of the sun makes five turns, a northern ascent, that is from the equinoctial in the spring to the summer tropic, and a northern descent from it to the equinoctial in the autumn, and a southern descent from the equinoctial to the winter tropic, and from it again a southern ascent to the equinoctial, and a fifth contrary to the whole. So when he mentioned its fivefold motion, by the addition of the article, and by adding "its", he signified the familiar and customary one. Let us understand what is said in these things by the Father thus: Let us suppose that the sun was on that day at the hour of sunrise in the first full degree of Aries, having no minutes; therefore it was not possible for it to return to the same degree, without having completed the aforementioned fivefold motion, or as through 365 and a quarter days. So in the 10 hours from the 12th where it was, until the place where it made its sunrise, that is, of the first degree of Aries, having reversed in it, it fulfilled the things of the fivefold motion, that is of the annual period; and in the other 10 (15∆_430> after the reversal, being in the place where it was at one and a half degrees of Aries, it similarly fulfilled the things of the same fivefold motion by analysis, which he called "analytically"; for it was not possible for it to be again at one and a half degrees, this of Aries, once it had departed from it, except through the days of the year, as has been said.

"Is borne on reports": Instead of "in histories." "They perform rites to Mithras": The Persians call the sun Mithras. The extension therefore of the

of that day he signified by the threefold. And in addition to this, note also concerning the darkness that occurred from the sixth hour to the ninth hour over all the earth at the time of the Lord's crucifixion, what the father says.

"At Heliopolis": He probably means Heliopolis in Egypt; for they were still reading there at the same time.

"Paradoxically": For they say that the eclipse does not happen otherwise, unless the moon coincides with the sun.

"And it again": Note from this the solution of the difficulty in the evangelist Luke. And no one has described the strangeness of the manner and of the miracle, except this one alone. For when the divine Luke said, "from the 6th hour there was darkness at the cross of the Lord, the sun being eclipsed," it was doubted by all, how he called this an eclipse, since the moon was on its fourteenth day, and it was not a conjunction of the sun and moon. For almost all the commentators, being much later than these times, supposed that the sun itself lost its rays for the three hours until the ninth. Here, however, the strange manner has also been told

97

ἐδήλωσεν, εἰπών «τῶν ὅλων, καί κρειττόνων, καί περιεχόντων»), ἥλιος δέ καί σελήνη (τά γάρ «περιεχόμενα» ταῦτα) οὐ συμπεριήγετο τῷ περιέχοντι.

«Κατά συνέχειαν σχεδόν τριπλασιάζηται»: Τό «σχεδόν» (15∆_428> προσέθηκεν, ἐπειδή τριπλῆ κατά τό πλῆρες οὐκ ἐγένετο ἡμέρα ἐκείνη (λβ' γάρ ὡρῶν γέγονε)· τό ἀπό ἀνατολῆς μέχρι τοῦ τόπου ἐν ᾧ ἦν, ὅτι τό σημεῖον ἐδόθη, καί δέκα ἐκεῖθεν ἐπί ἀνατολάς, καί δώδεκα μέχρι τῆς τελευταίας δύσεως. Τῷ αὐτῷ δέ σχήματι τοῦ λόγου καί ἐνταῦθα ἐχρήσατο, ὅτι ἤ ὁ πόλος αὐτός σύν τῷ ἡλίῳ ἐν τῷ τῶν κδ' ὡρῶν διαστήματι τήν ὑπερφυῆ ἐκείνην ἀντιπεριαγωγήν ἐποιήσατο, ἤ μόνος ὁ ἥλιος.

«Ἤ τό πᾶν τοσούτου χρόνου»: Τό ρητόν οὕτω σύνθες καθ' ὑπέρβασιν ὄν· Ἤ τό πᾶν ἐπαναστρέφει τάς ἐναντίας ταύτας φοράς, τοσοῦτον διάστημα χρόνου ἀναποδίζον ταῖς ὑπέρ λόγον ταύταις περιδινήσεσι. Ταῦτα δέ καί ἐν τῇ δ' τῶν «Βασιλειῶν» δηλοῦται, καί μάλιστα ἐν τῇ κατά Σύμμαχον ἐκδόσει, καί ἐν τῇ β' τῶν «Παραλειπομένων».

«Ἤ ὁ ἥλιος ἐν ἰδίῳ δρόμῳ»: Ἡ τόν ἡλίου ἐνιαύσιος κίνησις πέντε ποιεῖται τροπάς, ἀνάβασιν βορείαν, τουτέστιν ἀπό ἰσημερινῆς ἐν τῷ ἔαρι εἰς τόν θερινόν τροπικόν, καί κατάβασιν βορείαν ἀπ' αὐτοῦ ἐπί τόν ἰσημερινόν τῷ μετοπώρῳ, καί κατάβασιν νοτίαν ἀπό τοῦ ἰσημερινοῦ ἐπί τόν χειμερινόν τροπικόν, καί ἀπ' αὐτοῦ πάλιν ἀνάβασιν νοτίαν ἐπί τόν ἰσημερινόν, καί πέμπτην τήν ἐναντίαν τῷ παντί. Εἰπών οὖν αὐτοῦ τήν πεντάτροπον κίνησιν, διά τῆς προσθήκης τοῦ ἄρθρου, καί τοῦ προσθεῖναι αὐτοῦ, τήν γνώριμον καί συνήθη ὑπέφηνε. Τό δέ ἐν τούτοις λεγόμενον ὑπό τοῦ Πατρός νοήσωμεν οὕτως· Ὑποθώμεθα τόν ἥλιον εἶναι κατά τήν ἡμέραν ἐκείνην τῇ ὥρᾳ τῆς ἀνατολῆς ἐν πρώτῃ μοίρᾳ τοῦ Κριοῦ πλήρει, μή ἐχούσῃ λεπτά· εἰς τήν αὐτήν οὖν μοῖραν αὐτόν ἐπανελθεῖν οὐκ ἦν, μή τελέσαντα τήν προταγεῖσαν τήν πεντάτροπον κίνησιν, ἤ ὡς δι' ἡμερῶν τξε', καί τεταρτημορίου. Ἐν ταῖς ι' οὖν ὥραις ταῖς ἀπό ιβ' ἐν ᾗ ἦν, μέχρι τοῦ τόπου ἐν ᾧ τήν ἀνατολήν αὑτοῦ ἐποιήσατο, τουτέστι τῆς πρώτης μοίρας τοῦ Κριοῦ, ἀναποδίσας ἐν αὐτῇ, τά τῆς πεντατρόπου κινήσεως, ἤγουν τῆς ἐνιαυσιαίου περιόδου, ἐπλήρωσε· καί ἐν ταῖς ἄλλαις ι' (15∆_430> ταῖς μετά τόν ἀναποδισμόν κατά τόν τόπον γενόμενος ἐν ᾧ ἦν τῇ μιᾷ καί ἡμισείᾳ μοίρᾳ τοῦ Κριοῦ, ὁμοίως τά τῆς αὐτῆς πεντατρόπου κινήσεως ἐπλήρωσε κατά ἀνάλυσιν, ὅπερ ἀναλυτικῶς ἐκάλεσεν· οὐκ ἦν γάρ αὐτόν πάλιν ἐν τῇ μιᾷ καί ἡμισείᾳ μοίρᾳ, ταύτῃ τοῦ Κριοῦ γενέσθαι, ἅπαξ ἀποστάντα ἀπ' αὐτῆς, μή διά τῶν τοῦ ἐνιαυτοῦ ἡμερῶν, ὡς εἴρηται.

«Ἐμφέρεται φήμαις»: Ἀντί τοῦ ἱστορίαις. «Μίθρου τελοῦσι»: Μίθραν τόν ἥλιον Πέρσαι καλοῦσι. Τό παρέκταμα οὖν τῆς

ἡμέρας ἐκείνης διά τοῦ τριπλασίου ἐσήμανε. Σημείωσαι δέ πρός τούτῳ καί περί τοῦ ἀπό ὥρας ἕκτης ἕως ὥρας θ' γενομένου σκότους ἐπί πᾶσαν τήν γῆν τῷ καιρῷ τῆς τοῦ Κυρίου σταυρώσεως, τί λέγει ὁ πατήρ.

«Κατά τήν Ἡλιούπολιν»: Τήν ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ Ἡλιούπολιν ἴσως φησίν· ἔτι γάρ ἀνεγίνωσκον ἐκεῖ ἅμα.

«Παραδόξως»: Φασί γάρ, μή ἑτέρως γίνεσθαι τήν ἔκλειψιν, εἰ μή συνεμπέσοι ἡ σελήνη τῷ ἡλίῳ.

«Αὖθίς τε αὐτήν»: Σημείωσαι ἐντεῦθεν τήν λύσιν τοῦ παρά τῷ εὐαγγελιστῇ Λουκᾷ ἀπορήματος. Οὐδείς δέ τό ξένον τοῦ τρόπου καί τοῦ θαύματος διηγήσατο, εἰ μή μόνος οὗτος. Τοῦ γάρ θείου Λουκᾶ εἰπόντος, «ἀπό ς' ὥρας σκότος ἐν τῷ σταυρῷ τοῦ Κυρίου γενέσθαι, τοῦ ἡλίου ἐκλείποντος», παρά πᾶσιν ἀμφεβάλλετο, πῶς ἔκλειψιν ἐκάλεσε ταύτην, τῆς σελήνης τεσσαρεσκαιδεκαταίας οὔσης, οὐ μήν συνόδου οὔσης ἡλίου καί σελήνης. Οἱ γάρ ἐξηγηταί σχεδόν πάντες, μεταγενέστεροι πολλῷ τῶν χρόνων τούτων ὄντες, ὑπέλαβον τόν ἥλιον αὐτόν ἀποβαλεῖν τάς ἀκτῖνας τάς τρεῖς ὥρας ἕως τῆς ἐνάτης. Ἐνταῦθα μέντοι καί ὁ ξένος τρόπος εἴρηται