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of the Son, the cross. And in the case of the lamb in Egypt, again in like manner we trace the image of the passion. This indeed is what must be done here too. For the discourse is not simply about Arabs and their neighbors, but it calls all the nations. For the Lord is most high, terrible, a great king over all the earth. Therefore, from the very beginning he rouses the hearer to so great a mass of good tidings, and to the festival of the inhabited world, and to a certain divine and spiritual feast, and to the mystagogy brought down from the heavens. For this reason, he says, "Clap your hands;" that is, rejoice, leap for joy. For the word of the Gospel also exhorts this, saying, "Leap for joy;" not commanding to leap up and jump—for this is unseemly—but indicating the intensity of the joy. For what is happening is worthy of great pleasure. For as much of the earth as the sun looks upon, the word of the Gospel has traversed, and the whole inhabited world has been saved, and those who before this were held in the error of the Jewish worship have shown a greater philosophy. All nations, clap your hands. With those hands, he says, that were formerly defiled, accursed, stained with blood each day through impure sacrifices, with which you slaughtered children, and dared shameful things, and went against nature itself, with these clap now. Shout to God with a voice of exultation. With that tongue, with which you tasted accursed things, with which you uttered blasphemous words, with this shout the song of victory. For it is the custom of armies, when the enemy's camp is giving way, no longer to engage in close combat, but with a unanimous cry and shout to shatter their already vanquished souls; which is the greatest proof of a brilliant victory and trophy, when the war is not decided by hands, but the shout suffices in place of both hands and weapons. 2. The entire work, then, has become Christ's; for He Himself ended this difficult war, having bound the strong man and plundered his goods. But being a lover of mankind, He makes those who have toiled for nothing enjoy the victory and the trophies, and prepares them to raise a victory shout, just like those who have themselves succeeded and prevailed. Therefore we all cry out, not some obscure voice, but one exceedingly clear: "O death, where is your sting? O grave, where is your victory?" And again, "God has gone up with a shout." For this is said in this psalm. And again elsewhere: "You have ascended on high, you have led captivity captive, you have received gifts among men." 55.210 The Jews also once raised a victory shout, when the army of the Egyptians was drowned, saying, "Let us sing to the Lord, for He has triumphed gloriously." But ours is much greater, not with Egyptians but with demons being drowned; not with Pharaoh but with the devil being conquered; not with sensible weapons being taken, but with wickedness being destroyed; not in the Red Sea, but in the font of regeneration; not going out to the land of promise, but being transferred to heaven; not eating manna, but being fed the body of the Lord; not drinking water from a rock, but blood from a side. For this reason he says: Clap your hands, because being freed from stones and woods, you have passed beyond the heavens, and the heavens of heavens, and have stood before the royal throne itself. Shout therefore to God, that is, offer the thanksgiving to Him, the victory to Him, the trophy to Him. The war is not human nor is the battle perceptible, nor is the contest for any of the things of this life, but for the heavens themselves, and the things in the heavens. He Himself commanded this war, and has given us a share of the victory. For the Lord is most high, terrible, a great king over all the earth.

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τοῦ υἱοῦ, τὸν σταυρόν. Καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ προβάτου δὲ τοῦ ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ, πάλιν ὁμοίως τοῦ πάθους τὴν εἰκόνα χαρακτηρίζομεν. Τοῦτο δὴ καὶ ἐνταῦθα ποιεῖν χρή. Οὐδὲ γὰρ περὶ Ἀράβων ἁπλῶς ὁ λόγος, καὶ τῶν γειτόνων, ἀλλὰ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη καλεῖ. Ὅτι Κύριος ὕψιστος, φοβερὸς, βασιλεὺς μέγας ἐπὶ πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν. Ἀνίστησι τοίνυν ἐκ προοιμίων τὸν ἀκροατὴν, πρὸς τοσοῦτον ὄγκον Εὐαγγελίων καλῶν, καὶ πρὸς τὴν τῆς οἰκουμένης πανήγυριν, καὶ θείαν τινὰ καὶ πνευματικὴν ἑορτὴν, καὶ τὴν ἐκ τῶν οὐρανῶν κατενεχθεῖσαν μυσταγωγίαν. ∆ιὰ δὴ τοῦτο, Κροτήσατε, φησί· τουτέστι, χάρητε, σκιρτήσατε. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ ὁ εὐαγγελικὸς λόγος τοῦτο παρακελεύεται λέγων, Σκιρτήσατε· οὐ πάντως παρακελευόμενος ἐξάλλεσθαι, καὶ πηδᾷν τοῦτο γὰρ ἀνελεύθερον, ἀλλὰ τῆς χαρᾶς τὸ ἐπιτεταμένον δηλῶν. Καὶ γὰρ πολλῆς ἡδονῆς ἄξιον τὸ γινόμενον. Ὅσην γὰρ ὁ ἥλιος ἐφορᾷ γῆν, ὁ εὐαγγελικὸς λόγος ἐπέδραμε, καὶ πᾶσα ἐσώθη ἡ οἰκουμένη, καὶ τῆς λατρείας τῆς Ἰουδαϊκῆς οἱ πρὸ τούτου τῇ πλάνῃ κατεχόμενοι μείζονα ἐπεδείξαντο φιλοσοφίαν. Πάντα τὰ ἔθνη κροτήσατε χεῖρας. Τὰς μιαρὰς ἐκείνας πρὸ τούτου, φησὶν, τὰς ἐναγεῖς, τὰς αἵματι μολυνομένας καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν διὰ τῶν ἀκαθάρτων θυσιῶν, δι' ὧν παῖδας ἐσφάξατε, καὶ τὰ αἰσχρὰ ἐτολμήσατε, καὶ κατὰ τῆς φύσεως αὐτῆς ἐχωρήσατε, διὰ τούτων κροτήσατε νῦν. Ἀλαλάξατε τῷ Θεῷ ἐν φωνῇ ἀγαλλιάσεως. ∆ιὰ τῆς γλώττης ἐκείνης, δι' ἧς ἐγεύσασθε τῶν ἐναγῶν, δι' ἧς τὰ βλάσφημα ἐξηνέγκατε ῥήματα, διὰ ταύτης ἀλαλάξατε τὴν ἐπινίκιον ᾠδήν. Καὶ γὰρ ἔθος τοῖς στρατοπέδοις, ὅταν κλίνῃ τῶν ἐναντίων τὸ στρατόπεδον, μηκέτι τῇ συστάδην κεχρῆσθαι μάχῃ, ἀλλ' ὁμοφώνῳ βοῇ καὶ ἀλαλαγμῷ τὰς ἤδη καταβληθείσας αὐτῶν κατασείειν ψυχάς· ὅπερ ἐστὶ νίκης λαμπρᾶς καὶ τροπαίου μέγιστον τεκμήριον, ὅταν μὴ χερσὶν ὁ πόλεμος κρίνηται, ἀλλ' ἡ βοὴ καὶ ἀντὶ χειρῶν, καὶ ἀντὶ ὅπλων ἀρκῇ. βʹ. Τὸ μὲν οὖν ἔργον ἅπαν τοῦ Χριστοῦ γέγονε· τὸν γὰρ χαλεπὸν τοῦτον αὐτὸς κατέλυσε πόλεμον, δήσας τὸν ἰσχυρὸν καὶ τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ διαρπάσας. Φιλάνθρωπος δὲ ὢν, τοὺς οὐδὲν πονήσαντας, τούτους ποιεῖ τῆς νίκης καὶ τῶν τροπαίων ἀπολαύειν, καὶ τὴν ἐπινίκιον παρασκευάζει ἀναφέρειν φωνὴν, καθάπερ τοὺς κατωρθωκότας αὐτοὺς καὶ κρατήσαντας. ∆ιὸ καὶ βοῶμεν ἅπαντες, οὐκ ἄσημόν τινα φωνὴν, ἀλλὰ καὶ σφόδρα εὔσημον· Ποῦ σου, θάνατε, τὸ κέντρον; ποῦ σου, ᾅδη, τὸ νῖκος; Καὶ πάλιν, Ἀνέβη ὁ Θεὸς ἐν ἀλαλαγμῷ. Τοῦτο γὰρ ἐν τῷ ψαλμῷ τούτῳ εἴρηται. Καὶ πάλιν ἀλλαχοῦ· Ἀνέβης εἰς ὕψος, ᾐχμαλώτευσας αἰχμαλωσίαν, ἔλαβες δόματα ἐν ἀνθρώ 55.210 ποις. Ἀνήνεγκάν ποτε καὶ Ἰουδαῖοι ἐπινίκιον φωνὴν, ὅτε τῶν Αἰγυπτίων τὸ στρατόπεδον κατεποντίζετο, λέγοντες· Ἄσωμεν τῷ Κυρίῳ· ἐνδόξως γὰρ δεδόξασται. Ἀλλ' ἡ ἡμετέρα πολλῷ μείζων, οὐκ Αἰγυπτίων, ἀλλὰ τῶν δαιμόνων καταποντισθέντων· οὐ τοῦ Φαραὼ ἀλλὰ τοῦ διαβόλου νικηθέντος· οὐ τῶν ὅπλων ληφθέντων τῶν αἰσθητῶν, ἀλλὰ τῆς κακίας ἀναιρεθείσης· οὐκ ἐν Ἐρυθρᾷ θαλάσσῃ, ἀλλ' ἐν τῷ λουτρῷ τῆς παλιγγενεσίας· οὐκ εἰς τὴν γῆν τῆς ἐπαγγελίας ἐξιόντων, ἀλλ' εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν μεθορμιζομένων· οὐ μάννα ἐσθιόντων, ἀλλὰ σῶμα σιτουμένων δεσποτικόν· οὐχ ὕδωρ πινόντων ἀπὸ πέτρας, ἀλλ' αἷμα ἀπὸ πλευρᾶς. ∆ιὰ τοῦτό φησι· Κροτήσατε χεῖρας, ὅτι λίθων ἀπαλλαγέντες καὶ ξύλων, ὑπερέβητε τοὺς οὐρανοὺς, καὶ τοὺς οὐρανοὺς τῶν οὐρανῶν, καὶ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἔστητε τὸν θρόνον τὸν βασιλικόν. Ἀλαλάξατε τοίνυν τῷ Θεῷ, τουτέστιν, Ἐκείνῳ τὴν εὐχαριστίαν ἀνενέγκατε, ἐκείνῳ τὴν νίκην, ἐκείνῳ τὸ τρόπαιον. Οὐκ ἀνθρώπινος ὁ πόλεμος οὐδὲ αἰσθητὴ ἡ μάχη, οὐδὲ ὑπέρ τινος τῶν βιωτικῶν ὁ ἀγὼν, ἀλλ' ὑπὲρ τῶν οὐρανῶν αὐτῶν, καὶ τῶν ἐν οὐρανοῖς. Αὐτὸς τὸν πόλεμον ἐστρατήγησε τοῦτον, καὶ ἡμῖν τῆς νίκης μετέδωκεν. Ὅτι Κύριος ὕψιστος, φοβερὸς, βασιλεὺς μέγας ἐπὶ πᾶσαν τὴν