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you founded, and the works of your hands are the heavens. Again he runs back to the divinity of the only-begotten, showing him to be the maker even of the heavens. They will perish, but you remain, and all will grow old like a garment. And like a cloak you will roll them up, and they will be changed; but you are the same, and your years will not fail. It is as if he were saying: Let not the death according to the flesh trouble you, he says; for he has risen, and his years will not fail. And the heavens, since they are created, will grow old, so that they may also obtain renewal; but he himself will grant this to them, because indeed he remains what he was, that is, God. And this the phrase, "and your years will not fail," also shows. 95.936 But to which of the angels has he ever said: Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet? Again, the word "sit" is said on account of the mystery of the economy, so that we may learn that even having humbled himself and become man, he is again God, and in his own heights. Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out for service for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation? See how great is the distance of the angels from him, seeing that he sits above, while they minister to him below. And by saying at the same time that the angels are sent for service, he recovered those who had given up in their temptations, if indeed their angels are sent for salvation. That they were exceedingly burdened by temptations, he himself showed in the following parts of the epistle, saying: Thus you have resisted to the point of blood against sin and have already grown weary.

CHAPTER 2. For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest

we drift away. For this reason. What reason, if not that there is a great distance between the legal and the evangelical way of life? And this is clear from the argument that is introduced. For if the word spoken through angels proved to be steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense, how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? The whole is a comparison, and an argument that those who transgress the evangelical law are punished more. For if the lesser, he says, when transgressed, does not leave the transgressors unpunished, how much more if the greater should be transgressed, will it not make the transgressor liable to bitter punishment? The phrase "spoken through angels" means that angels served God when he gave the law. Which, having at the first been spoken through the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard, while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles, This is still part of the comparison. And he says that the Lord himself began the evangelical teaching; then those who had heard the Lord confirmed this to us, while God bore witness with them through those wonders which they performed while preaching. And by distributions of the Holy Spirit according to his own will. To another, he says, the Holy Spirit has given a gift, to one prophecy, to another tongues, to another gifts of healing, to another some other of the gifts. 95.937 For he did not subject to angels the world to come, of which we are speaking. For this reason he added, "of which we are speaking," so that he would not give the hearer cause to seek for some other world. How then does he call it "to come"? Because this is the custom of Holy Scripture, just as elsewhere it says, "Who is a type of the one to come," speaking of Adam and of Christ. Therefore, he did not subject this to angels, but to Christ. But someone has testified somewhere, saying: What is man that you are mindful of him, or the son of man that you care for him? You made him a little lower than the angels, you crowned him with glory and honor; you subjected all things under his feet. For in subjecting all things to him, he left nothing not subject to him. He introduces the testimony indefinitely, by saying, "someone," saying. For he is speaking as to those who know. But now we do not yet see all things subjected to him. Lest

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ἐθεμελίωσας, καὶ ἔργα τῶν χειρῶν σου εἰσὶν οἱ οὐρανοί. Πάλιν ἐπὶ τὴν θεότητα ἀνατρέχει τοῦ μονογενοῦς, δεικνὺς αὐτὸν καὶ τῶν οὐρανῶν ποιητήν. Αὐτοὶ ἀπολοῦνται, σὺ δὲ διαμένεις, καὶ πάντες ὡς ἱμάτιον παλαιωθήσονται. Καὶ ὡς περιβόλαιον ἑλίξεις αὐτοὺς, καὶ ἀλλαγήσονται· σὺ δὲ, ὁ αὐτὸς εἶ, καὶ τὰ ἔτη σου οὐκ ἐκλείψουσιν. Ὅμοιον ὡς εἰ λέγοι· Μὴ θορυβείτω σε, φησὶν, ὁ κατὰ σάρκα θάνατος· ἀνέστη γὰρ, καὶ τὰ ἔτη αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἐκλείψουσι. Καὶ οὐρανοὶ μὲν, ἅτε ὄντες κτιστοὶ, παλαιωθήσονται, ἵνα καὶ τοῦ καινισμοῦ τύχωσιν· αὐτὸς δὲ τοῦτο αὐτοῖς χαριεῖται, ὅτι δὴ καὶ μένει ὃ ἦν, τουτέστι Θεός. Καὶ τοῦτο δηλοῖ καὶ τὰ ἔτη σου οὐκ ἐκλείψουσι. 95.936 Πρὸς τίνα δὲ τῶν ἀγγέλων εἴρηκέ ποτε· Κάθου ἐκ δεξιῶν μου, ἕως ἂν θῶ τοὺς ἐχθρούς σου ὑποπόδιον τῶν ποδῶν σου; Πάλιν τὸ, κάθου, διὰ τὸ τῆς οἰκονομίας μυστήριον λέλεκται, ἵνα μάθωμεν, ὡς καὶ ταπεινώσας ἑαυτὸν, καὶ γενόμενος ἄνθρωπος, πάλιν ἐστὶ Θεὸς, καὶ ἐν τοῖς οἰκείοις ὑψώμασιν. Οὐχὶ πάντες εἰσὶ λειτουργικὰ πνεύματα, εἰς διακονίαν ἀποστελλόμενα, διὰ τοὺς μέλλοντας κληρονομεῖν σωτηρίαν; Ὅρα πόσον πρὸς αὐτὸν τῶν ἀγγέλων τὸ μέσον, ὅπου γε, ὁ μὲν κάθηται ἄνω, οἱ δὲ λειτουργοῦσιν αὐτῷ κάτω. Ἅμα δὲ εἰς διακονίαν ἀποστέλλεσθαι τοὺς ἀγγέλους εἰπὼν, ἀνεκτήσατο τοὺς ἀπειρηκότας ἐν τοῖς πειρασμοῖς, εἴ γε ἄγγελοι αὐτῶν ἐπὶ σωτηρίᾳ ἀποστέλλονται. Ὅτι δὲ βαρηθέντες ἦσαν σφόδρα τοῖς πειρασμοῖς, αὐτὸς ἐν τοῖς ἑξῆς τῆς ἐπιστολῆς ἐδήλωσεν, εἰπών· Οὕτω μέχρις αἵματος πρὸς τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ἀντικατέστητε καὶ ἤδη ἐκλέλυσθε.

ΚΕΦΑΛ. Βʹ. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο δεῖ περισσοτέρως ἡμᾶς προσέχειν τοῖς ἀκουσθεῖσι, μήποτε

παραῤῥυῶμεν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο. Ποῖον, ἢ τὸ πολὺ εἶναι τὸ μέσον τῆς τε νομικῆς καὶ εὐαγγελικῆς πολιτείας; Καὶ τοῦτο ἐκ τῆς κατασκευῆς δῆλον τῆς ἐπιφερομένης. Εἰ γὰρ ὁ δι' ἀγγέλων λαληθεὶς λόγος ἐγένετο βέβαιος, καὶ πᾶσα παράβασις καὶ παρακοὴ ἔλαβεν ἔνδικον μισθαποδοσίαν, πῶς ἡμεῖς ἐκφευξόμεθα τηλικαύτης ἀμελήσαντες σωτηρίας; Σύγκρισις μὲν τὸ ὅλον, κατασκευὴ δὲ τοῦ μᾶλλον τιμωρεῖσθαι τοὺς τὸν εὐαγγελικὸν παραβαίνοντας νόμον. Εἰ γὰρ τὸ ἧττον, φησὶ, παραβαινόμενον, οὐκ ἀτιμωρήτους ἐᾷ τοὺς παραβαίνοντας, πόσῳ μᾶλλον εἰ τὸ κρεῖσσον παραβαθείη, οὐχ ὑπεύθυνον κολάσει πικρᾷ ποιήσει τὸν παραβαίνοντα; Τὸ δὲ δι' ἀγγέλων λαληθεὶς, σημαίνει, ὡς ὑπηρέτουν Θεῷ ἄγγελοι διδόντι τὸν νόμον. Ἥτις ἀρχὴν λαβοῦσα λαλεῖσθαι διὰ τοῦ Κυρίου, ὑπὸ τῶν ἀκουσάντων εἰς ὑμᾶς ἐβεβαιώθη, συνεπιμαρτυροῦντος τοῦ Θεοῦ σημείοις, καὶ τέρασι, καὶ ποικίλαις δυνάμεσι, Ἔτι τῆς συγκρίσεως ὁ λόγος ἐστί. Λέγει δὲ, ὡς τῆς εὐαγγελικῆς διδασκαλίας ὁ Κύριος αὐτὸς ἤρξατο· εἶτα οἱ αὐτοὶ τοῦ Κυρίου ἀκούσαντες, ἡμᾶς εἰς ταύτην ἐβεβαίωσαν, συνεπιμαρτυροῦντος αὐτοῖς τοῦ Θεοῦ δι' ἐκείνων τῶν θαυμάτων, ὧν κηρύττοντες ἐπετέλουν. Καὶ Πνεύματος ἁγίου μερισμοῖς κατὰ τὴν αὐτοῦ θέλησιν. Ἄλλῳ, φησὶ, δέδωκε χάρισμα τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον, τῷ μὲν προφητείαν, τῷ δὲ γλῶσσαν, τῷ δ' χαρίσματα ἰαμάτων, ἄλλῳ ἄλλο τι τῶν χαρισμάτων. 95.937 Οὐ γὰρ ἀγγέλοις ὑπέταξε τὴν οἰκουμένην τὴν μέλλουσαν, περὶ ἧς λαλοῦμεν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο προσέθηκε, περὶ ἧς λαλοῦμεν, ἵνα μὴ ἑτέραν τινὰ οἰκουμένην ζητεῖν δῷ τῷ ἀκροατῇ. Πῶς οὖν αὐτὴν μέλλουσαν καλεῖ; ὅτι τοῦτο ἔθος τῇ θείᾳ Γραφῇ ὥσπερ καὶ ἑτέρωθί φησι, Ὅς ἐστι τύπος τοῦ μέλλοντος, περὶ τοῦ Ἀδὰμ, καὶ τοῦ Χριστοῦ λέγων. Ταύτην οὖν οὐκ ἀγγέλοις ὑπέταξεν, ἀλλὰ τῷ Χριστῷ. ∆ιεμαρτύρατο δέ πού τις λέγων· Τίς ἐστιν ἄνθρωπος, ὅτι μιμνήσκῃ αὐτοῦ, ἢ υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου, ὅτι ἐπισκέπτῃ αὐτόν; Ἠλάττωσας αὐτὸν βραχύ τι παρ' ἀγγέλους, δόξῃ καὶ τιμῇ ἐστεφάνωσας αὐτόν· πάντα ὑπέταξας ὑποκάτω τῶν ποδῶν αὐτοῦ. Ἐν γὰρ τῷ ὑποτάξαι αὐτῷ τὰ πάντα, οὐδὲν ἀφῆκεν αὐτῷ ἀνυπότακτον. Ἀόριστον τὴν μαρτυρίαν εἰσάγει, τῷ, τὶς, εἰπεῖν, λέγων. Ὡς πρὸς εἰδότας γὰρ διαλέγεται. Νῦν δὲ οὔπω ὁρῶμεν αὐτῷ τὰ πάντα ὑποτεταγμένα. Ἵνα μὴ