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of beings according to which the principles of knowledge exist through strength and counsel and understanding, He grants (14Γ_272> to those worthy of light, and He bestows perfection through all-radiant and simple and complete wisdom upon those worthy of deification, leading them immediately in every way to the cause of beings, as is possible for a human being, being made known from the divine properties of goodness alone; according to which, knowing themselves from God, and God from themselves, with nothing intermediate partitioning them—for there is nothing intermediate between wisdom and God—they will possess unalterable immutability, all intermediate things having been wholly traversed for them(18), in which there once existed the danger of erring concerning knowledge, and having been led up according to grace, wordlessly and incomprehensibly, through speechlessness, ineffable silence, and unknowing, to the very summit that is infinite, and for an infinite time, and infinitely many times infinitely beyond all things by nature.

“And seven oil-vessels for the seven lamps that are on top of it.” The account concerning the lamps has been given, so to speak, according to two approaches of contemplation, while the one concerning the oil-vessels will begin from here. They say that the oil-vessel(19) is a certain cup-shaped vessel, in which people are accustomed to put the oil that is poured into the lamps for the nourishment and preservation of the light. Therefore, according to the anagogical account, the oil-vessels of the seven lamps of the lampstand that was seen, which are receptive of what nourishes and preserves the seven lamps, that is, the energies of the Spirit, are the states and dispositions—of various principles, ways, and characters—of those who have received the distribution of the charisms in the Church. For just as it is impossible for a lamp to be kept unquenched without oil, so (14Γ_274> it is impossible for the light of the charisms to be kept unquenched without a state which nourishes good things with suitable principles, ways, characters, and also with fitting thoughts and reasonings. For every spiritual charism requires a suitable state, unceasingly pouring into it, like oil, the intelligible matter, so that it may remain, being maintained according to the state of the one who received it.

The oil-vessels, therefore, of the seven lamps of the lampstand are the suitable states for the divine charisms of the holy Church, from which, as from certain vessels, like the wise virgins in the Gospel, they who are wise and sleepless guardians of the good things that have been given pour the oil of gladness on the lamps of the charisms.

“And two olive trees over it, one on the right of its bowl and one on the left.” Well and very fittingly has the account arranged the whole vision, inclining smoothly toward itself. For having spoken of a lampstand and a bowl and lamps and oil-vessels, it added also two olive trees. For it was necessary, truly it was necessary, for the cause that generates the power that preserves the light to be naturally conceived along with the light, so that the light of the lampstand might not fail, being extinguished through lack of nourishment. The two olive trees(20), therefore, of the golden lampstand, that is, of the holy catholic Church, happen to be the two Testaments; from which, as if being pressed out from certain olive trees through pious inquiry and investigation, is produced, like oil, the power of thoughts that nourishes the light of the divine charisms; of which the state of each individual, being filled according to the proportion of its own power, preserves unquenched the light of the grace corresponding to it, being maintained, as if by oil, by the thoughts from the Scriptures. For just as without olive trees it is in no way possible to find by nature truly genuine oil, and without a vessel it is not possible for the oil to be contained, and not being nourished by oil, the light of the lamp is certainly extinguished (14Γ_276>, so without the holy Scriptures there is not, in truth, a God-befitting power of thoughts, and without a state, like a vessel receptive of thoughts, a divine thought could in no way be constituted, and not by divine thoughts

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ὄντων καθ᾽ οὓς ὑπάρχουσι λόγους γνώσεως δι᾽ ἰσχύος καὶ βουλῆς καὶ συνέσεως (14Γ_272> δωρεῖται τοῖς ἀξίοις φωτός, τὴν δὲ τελειότητα διὰ τῆς παμφαοῦς καὶ ἁπλῆς καὶ ὁλοσχεροῦς σοφίας χαρίζεται τοῖς ἀξίοις θεώσεως, πρὸς τὴν τῶν ὄντων αἰτίαν ἀμέσως αὐτοὺς ἀνάγων κατὰ πάντα τρόπον, ὡς ἔστιν ἀνθρώπῳ δυνατόν, ἐκ μόνων τῶν θείων τῆς ἀγαθότητος ἰδιωμάτων γνωριζομένους· καθ᾽ ἣν ἐκ Θεοῦ μὲν ἑαυτούς, ἐξ ἑαυτῶν δὲ γινώσκοντες τὸν Θεόν, οὐκ ὄντος τινὸς μέσου διατειχίζοντοςσοφίας γὰρ πρὸς Θεὸν μέσον οὐδέν, τὴν ἀναλλοίωτον ἕξουσιν ἀτρεψίαν, τῶν μέσον αὐτοῖς πάντων ὁλικῶς διαβαθέντων(18), ἐν οἷς ὑπῆρχεν ὁ περὶ τὴν γνῶσίν ποτε τοῦ σφάλλεσθαι κίνδυνος, καὶ πρὸς αὐτὴν τὴν ἄπειρον καὶ ἐπ᾽ ἄπειρον καὶ ἀπειράκις ἀπείρως κατὰ φύσιν ἐπέκεινα πάντων ἀκρότητα δι᾽ ἀφασίας ἀρρήτου τε σιγῆς καὶ ἀγνωσίας ἀφθέγκτως τε καὶ ἀπερινοήτως ἀναχθεῖσι κατὰ τὴν χάριν.

«Καὶ ἑπτὰ ἐπαρυστρίδες τοῖς ἑπτὰ λύχνοις τοῖς ἐπάνω αὐτῆς». Ὁ μὲν δὴ περὶ τῶν λύχνων ὡς κατ᾽ ἐμὲ φάναι κατὰ δύο ἐπιβολὰς ἀποδέδοται τῆς θεωρίας λόγος, ὁ δὲ περὶ τῶν ἐπαρυστρίδων ἐντεῦθεν ἀρχθήσεται. Φασὶν εἶναι τὴν ἐπαρυστρίδα(19) σκεῦός τι σκυφοειδές, ἐν ᾧ τὸ τοῖς λύχνοις ἐπιχεόμενον οἱ ἄνθρωποι βάλλειν εἰώθασιν ἔλαιον πρὸς ἀποτροφὴν τοῦ φωτὸς καὶ συντήρησιν. Οὐκοῦν κατὰ τὸν τῆς ἀναγωγῆς λόγον ἐπαρυστρίδες τῶν ἑπτὰ λύχνων τῆς ὁραθείσης λυχνίας αἱ δεκτικαὶ τῶν διατρεφόντων τε καὶ συντηρούντων τοὺς ἑπτὰ λύχνους, ἤγουν τὰς ἐνεργείας τοῦ Πνεύματος, διαφόρων λόγων τε καὶ τρόπων καὶ ἠθῶν ὑπάρχουσιν ἕξεις τε καὶ διαθέσεις τῶν εἰληφότων ἐν τῇ Ἐκκλησίᾳ τὴν τῶν χαρισμάτων διαίρεσιν. Ὡς γὰρ ἐλαίου χωρὶς ἄσβεστον διατηρηθῆναι λύχνον ἀμήχανον, οὕτως (14Γ_274> ἕξεως χωρίς, προσφόροις καὶ λόγοις καὶ τρόποις καὶ ἤθεσι νοήμασί τε αὖ καὶ λογισμοῖς τοῖς καθήκουσι τὰ καλὰ διατρεφούσης, ἄσβεστον φυλαχθῆναι τὸ φῶς τῶν χαρισμάτων ἀμήχανον. Πᾶν γὰρ χάρισμα πνευματικὸν προσφυοῦς χρῄζει τῆς ἕξεως, ἀπαύστως ἐπιχεούσης αὐτῷ, καθάπερ ἔλαιον, τὴν ὕλην τὴν νοεράν, ἵνα διαμείνῃ κατὰ τὴν ἕξιν τοῦ δεξαμένου κρατούμενον.

Ἐπαρυστρίδες οὖν τῶν ἑπτὰ λύχνων τῆς λυχνίας αἱ πρόσφοροι τῶν θείων χαρισμάτων τῆς ἁγίας Ἐκκλησίας ὑπάρχουσιν ἕξεις, ἀφ᾽ ὧν, ὡς ἔκ τινων ἀγγείων, κατὰ τὰς ἐν τῷ Εὐαγγελίῳ φρονίμους παρθένους, ταῖς λαμπάσι τῶν χαρισμάτων ἐπιχέουσι τὸ τῆς ἀγαλλιάσεως ἔλαιον οἱ σοφοὶ τῶν δεδομένων καλῶν καὶ ἄγρυπνοι φύλακες.

«Καὶ δύο ἐλαῖαι ἐπάνω αὐτῆς, μία ἐκ δεξιῶν τοῦ λαμπαδίου αὐτῆς καὶ μία ἐξ εὐωνύμων». Καλῶς καὶ πάνυ γε προσφυῶς ὅλην πρὸς ἑαυτὴν νεύουσαν ὁμαλῶς τὴν ὅρασιν διεσκεύασεν ὁ λόγος. Εἰπὼν γὰρ λυχνίαν καὶ λαμπάδιον καὶ λύχνους καὶ ἐπαρυστρίδας, ἐπήγαγε καὶ ἐλαίας δύο. Ἔδει γάρ, ὡς ἀληθῶς ἔδει τῷ φωτὶ συνεπινοηθῆναι φυσικῶς τὴν γεννητικὴν τῆς τὸ φῶς συντηρούσης δυνάμεως αἰτίαν, ἵνα μὴ τὸ φῶς ἀπογένηται τῆς λυχνίας, δι᾽ ἀτροφίαν σβεννύμενον. Αἱ δύο τοιγαροῦν ἐλαῖαι(20) τῆς χρυσῆς λυχνίας, τουτέστι τῆς ἁγίας καθολικῆς Ἐκκλησίας, αἱ δύο ∆ιαθῆκαι τυγχάνουσιν· ἀφ᾽ ὧν, ὡς ἐξ ἐλαιῶν τινων ἐκπιεζομένη δι᾽ εὐσεβοῦς ζητήσεως καὶ ἐρεύνης, ἐκδίδοται, καθάπερ ἔλαιον, ἡ τὸ φῶς τῶν θείων χαρισμάτων ἐκτρέφουσα δύναμις τῶν νοημάτων· ἧς κατ᾽ ἀναλογίαν τῆς οἰκείας δυνάμεως ἡ τοῦ καθ᾽ ἕκαστον ἕξις πληρουμένη τὸ φῶς ἄσβεστον τῆς ἀναλογούσης αὐτῷ διαφυλάττει χάριτος, καθάπερ ἐλαίῳ τοῖς ἐκ τῶν Γραφῶν νοήμασι συντηρούμενον. Ὡς γὰρ ἐλαίας χωρὶς οὐκ ἔστιν οὐδαμῶς εὑρεῖν φύσει κατ᾽ ἀλήθειαν γνήσιον ἔλαιον, ἄγγους δὲ δίχα κρατεῖσθαι τοῦ δεχομένου τὸ ἔλαιον οὐ δυνατόν, ἐλαίῳ δὲ μὴ τρεφόμενον σβέννυται πάντως (14Γ_276> τὸ λυχνιαῖον φῶς, οὕτως τῶν ἁγίων Γραφῶν χωρὶς οὐκ ἔστι κατ᾽ ἀλήθειαν δύναμις νοημάτων θεοπρεπής, ἕξεως δὲ δίχα, καθάπερ ἄγγους νοημάτων δεκτικῆς, οὐδαμῶς ἂν συσταίη νόημα θεῖον, θείοις δὲ νοήμασι μὴ