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was promised to them by himself saying: "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you." But according to Symmachus, "The Lord," he says, "gave sayings to a great army preaching the gospel." And the great army of our Savior was that of those who preached the gospel of the sayings given to them, first, the 12 apostles; then, the 70 disciples; and besides these, 500 others, to whom he appeared all at once after the resurrection, as the divine Apostle testified, saying: "Then he appeared to more than 500 brethren at one time; of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have also fallen asleep;" to whom he adds: "Then he appeared to all the apostles." For there were, indeed, besides the 12, and besides the 70, and besides the 500, many other preachers of the Gospel, both in the apostolic times, and after them others who throughout the whole world in his Churches preach his Gospel, to whom the king of the powers supplied the power of the Beloved. But besides these, other powers of the Beloved were the heavenly hosts, angels and archangels, and divine spirits. For these were the powers of the Beloved. 23.697 Therefore he has been proclaimed Lord of powers. And who was the Beloved of God but the Only-begotten Son of God? to whom the fatherly voice testified, saying: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased;" This one, therefore, the king of the powers of the Beloved, just as he supplied his own benefits to the heavenly powers, so also to those on earth preaching the gospel he gives the evangelical word with great power. And these very ones on earth were his armies and his powers. Therefore, according to Symmachus, it has been said: "Kings of the armies were beloved," or, became beloved. And to these same ones he also granted another gift; and this was to divide spoils for the beauty of the house. The beauty of the house would be the distinguished orders in the Church of God; of which someone confesses to have become a desirer, saying: "O Lord, I have loved the beauty of your house, and the place of the tabernacle of your glory." And again: "One thing I have asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to visit his temple." The Holy of Holies, therefore, would be the delight and beauty of the house of God. And these are the orders of the Church of God that shine forth in sobriety and purity, and righteousness, and the other virtues. And for this beauty, the king of powers granted to his soldiers to divide the spoils. For when the enemies had been overthrown and had turned to flight, I mean the unseen and invisible powers, about which it was said above: "Let God arise and let his enemies be scattered; let all who hate him flee from his presence," the soldiers of the victorious king divided their spoils among themselves. And we were the spoils, and the whole race of men, which long ago had been subject to the opposing powers; and when these were driven out, the disciples and apostles of our Savior, and evangelists, and the rest of his army, having made their own possession the souls that had long before been plundered, they distributed them among one another. Paul, therefore, from Jerusalem and round about as far as Illyricum inherited the spoils from the nations; and Peter, in turn, of other nations, and John likewise of others, and each of the other apostles similarly. From which spoils they set apart the choicest offerings for the beauty of the house of God. Therefore it has been said: "And for the beauty of the house to divide spoils. If you sleep among the lots, the wings of a dove covered with silver, and her pinions with pale gold." The word, having mentioned those who preach the gospel with great power, and of the house and its beauty, yet

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ἐπήγγελτο αὐτοῖς δι' ἑαυτοῦ φήσας· «Ὑμεῖς δὲ λήψεσθε δύναμιν ἐπελθόντος τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος ἐφ' ὑμᾶς.» Κατὰ δὲ τὸν Σύμμαχον, «Κύριος, φησὶν, ἔδωκε ῥήσεις εὐαγγελιζομένῃ στρατιᾷ πολλῇ.» Στρατιὰ δὲ ἦν πολλὴ τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἡ τῶν εὐαγγελιζομένων τὰς δοθείσας αὐτοῖς ῥήσεις, πρῶτον μὲν ἀποστόλων ιβʹ· ἔπειτα μαθητῶν οʹ· καὶ ἐπὶ τούτοις ἑτέρων φʹ, οἷς ἀθρόως ἐφάνη μετὰ τὴν ἀνάστασιν, ὡς ὁ θεῖος ἐμαρτύρησεν Ἀπόστολος εἰπών· «Ἔπειτα ὤφθη ἐπάνω φʹ ἀδελφοῖς ἐφάπαξ· ἐξ ὧν οἱ πλείονες μένουσι ἕως ἄρτι, τινὲς δὲ καὶ ἐκοιμήθησαν·» οἷς ἐπιλέγει· «Ἔπειτα ὤφθη τοῖς ἀποστόλοις πᾶσιν.» Ἦσαν γὰρ ἦσαν καὶ μετὰ τοὺς ιβʹ, καὶ μετὰ τοὺς οʹ, καὶ μετὰ τοὺς φʹ ἕτεροι πλείους κήρυκες τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου, κατά τε τοὺς χρόνους τοὺς ἀποστολικοὺς, καὶ μετ' ἐκείνους ἕτεροι οἱ κατὰ πᾶσαν τὴν οἰκουμένην ἐν ταῖς Ἐκκλησίαις αὐτοῦ τὸ Εὐαγγέλιον αὐτοῦ κηρύττοντες, οἷς ὁ βασιλεὺς τῶν δυνάμεων τὴν τοῦ Ἀγαπητοῦ δύναμιν ἐχορήγει. Ἕτεραι δὲ παρὰ ταύταις τοῦ Ἀγαπητοῦ δυνάμεις ἦσαν αἱ κατ' οὐρανὸν στρατιαὶ, ἄγγελοι καὶ ἀρχάγγελοι, καὶ πνεύματα θεῖα. Αὗται γὰρ ἦσαν αἱ δυνάμεις τοῦ Ἀγαπητοῦ. 23.697 ∆ιὸ Κύριος τῶν δυνάμεων ἀνηγόρευται. Ἀγαπητὸς δὲ τοῦ Θεοῦ τίς ἦν ἢ ὁ Μονογενὴς Υἱὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ; ᾧ ἡ πατρικὴ φωνὴ ἐμαρτύρει φήσασα· «Οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ Υἱός μου ὁ ἀγαπητὸς, εἰς ὃν ηὐδόκησα·» Οὗτος τοίνυν ὁ βασιλεὺς τῶν τοῦ Ἀγαπητοῦ δυνάμεων, ὥσπερ ταῖς κατ' οὐρανὸν δυνάμεσιν ἐχορήγει τὰς ἑαυτοῦ εὐεργεσίας, οὕτως καὶ τοῖς ἐπὶ γῆς εὐαγγελιζομένοις δίδωσι τὸ εὐαγγελικὸν ῥῆμα σὺν δυνάμει πολλῇ. Καὶ αὐτοὶ δὲ οὗτοι οἱ ἐπὶ γῆς στρατιαὶ ἦσαν αὐτοῦ καὶ δυνάμεις αὐτοῦ. ∆ιὸ κατὰ τὸν Σύμμαχον λέλεκται· «Βασιλεῖς τῶν στρατειῶν ἠγαπήθησαν,» ἢ, ἀγαπητοὶ ἐγένοντο. Τούτοις δὲ αὐτοῖς καὶ ἄλλο χάρισμα ἐδωρήσατο· τοῦτο δὲ ἦν τὸ διελέσθαι σκύλα εἰς ὡραιότητα τοῦ οἴκου. Ὡραιότης μὲν οἴκου τὰ διαπρέποντα ἐν τῇ Ἐκκλησίᾳ τοῦ Θεοῦ εἴη ἂν τάγματα· ὧν καὶ ἐπιθυμητὴς ὁμολογεῖ τις γεγονέναι, φήσας· «Κύριε, ἠγάπησα εὐπρέπειαν οἴκου σου, καὶ τόπον σκηνώματος δόξης σου.» Καὶ πάλιν· «Μίαν ᾐτησάμην παρὰ Κυρίου, ταύτην ζητήσω, τὸ κατοικεῖν με ἐν οἴκῳ Κυρίου πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας τῆς ζωῆς μου, τοῦ θεωρεῖν με τὴν τερπνότητα Κυρίου καὶ ἐπισκέπτεσθαι τὸν ναὸν αὐτοῦ.» Τὰ Ἅγια τοίνυν τῶν ἁγίων εἴη ἂν ἡ τερπνότης καὶ ὡραιότης τοῦ οἴκου τοῦ Θεοῦ. Ταῦτα δέ ἐστι τὰ ἐν σωφροσύνῃ καὶ ἁγνείᾳ, καὶ δικαιοσύνῃ, καὶ ταῖς λοιπαῖς ἀρεταῖς διαλάμποντα τῆς Ἐκκλησίας τοῦ Θεοῦ τάγματα. Εἰς δὲ τὴν ὡραιότητα ταύτην σκύλα διελέσθαι τοῖς αὐτοῦ στρατιώταις ἐδωρήσατο ὁ βασιλεὺς τῶν δυνάμεων. Τῶν γὰρ πολεμίων ἀνατραπέντων καὶ εἰς φυγὴν κεχωρηκότων, λέγω δὲ τῶν ἀφανῶν καὶ ἀοράτων δυνάμεων, περὶ ὧν ἀνωτέρω ἐλέγετο· «Ἀναστήτω ὁ Θεὸς καὶ διασκορπισθήτωσαν οἱ ἐχθροὶ αὐτοῦ, φυγέτωσαν πάντες οἱ μισοῦντες αὐτὸν ἀπὸ προσώπου αὐτοῦ,» οἱ τοῦ νικητοῦ βασιλέως στρατιῶται τὰ σκύλα τούτων εἰς ἑαυτοὺς διῃροῦντο. Σκύλα δὲ ἦμεν ἡμεῖς καὶ πᾶν τὸ τῶν ἀνθρώπων γένος, τὸ πάλαι πρότερον ὑποχείριον τῶν ἀντικειμένων δυνάμεων γεγενημένον· ὧν ἀπελασθεισῶν, οἱ τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν μαθηταὶ καὶ ἀπόστολοι, καὶ εὐαγγελισταὶ, ἥ τε λοιπὴ αὐτοῦ στρατεία, τὰς πάλαι πρότερον ἐσκυλευμένας ψυχὰς, κτῆμα ἴδιον ποιησάμενοι, διενείμαντο εἰς ἀλλήλους. Παῦλος μὲν οὖν ἀπὸ Ἱερουσαλὴμ καὶ κύκλῳ μέχρι τοῦ Ἰλλυρικοῦ τὰ ἐξ ἐθνῶν ἐκληροῦτο σκύλα· Πέτρος δὲ πάλιν ἑτέρων ἐθνῶν καὶ Ἰωάννης ὡσαύτως ἑτέρων, καὶ τῶν λοιπῶν ἀποστόλων ἕκαστος παραπλησίως. Ἀφ' ὧν σκύλων τὰ ἐξαίρετα ἀναθήματα, εἰς ὡραιότητα τοῦ οἴκου τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀφώριζον. ∆ιὸ λέλεκται· «Καὶ ὡραιότητι τοῦ οἴκου διελέσθαι σκύλα. Ἐὰν κοιμηθῆτε ἀνὰ μέσον τῶν κλήρων πτέρυγες περιστερᾶς περιηργυρωμέναι, καὶ τὰ μετάφρενα αὐτῆς ἐν χλωρότητι χρυσίου.» Μνημονεύσας ὁ λόγος τῶν εὐαγγελιζομένων δυνάμει πολλῇ τοῦ τε οἴκου καὶ τῆς ὡραιότητος αὐτοῦ, ἔτι