246

he says, "Benjamin the least, ruling over them." And Benjamin the younger and least or smallest was Paul, the divine Apostle, being from the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews, as he himself teaches, saying: "Circumcised on the eighth day, of the race of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews." And he is called younger, or least, or smallest, since he himself teaches this, saying: "And last of all he appeared to me also, as to one born out of due time." But instead of, "in ecstasy," Aquila translated, "ruling over them;" Theodotion, "their instructor;" and the fifth edition, "instructing," or, "teaching." We do not need more words for a proof that the holy Apostle, named Benjamin, ruled over the Churches and was their instructor. But not only Benjamin was there, that is, in the Churches of God, but also "the princes of Judah, their leaders, and the princes of Zebulun and the princes of Naphtali." And the word signifies through these the other apostles, of whom some were from the tribe of Judah, and others from the tribe of Zebulun and Naphtali. Wherefore the Holy Spirit mentions the land of these through Isaiah the prophet, saying: "Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles." And the Savior himself, passing by the sea of Galilee, called his disciples from there. Clearly, therefore, it taught that Paul, the smallest and least, and youngest of the apostles, ruled over the Churches, having once been in an ecstasy, when he persecuted the Church of God and laid it waste, or when in a revelation he saw the Savior; or when he was caught up into paradise, to the third heaven; and after Paul it ordains that the other apostles should be distinguished there in the same Church, being our princes from the tribe of Judah, and princes of Zebulun 23.713 and princes of Naphtali. And one, taking leisure and delighting in what is good, would find the tribe of each of the apostles; since to everyone who seeks, the promise of finding is given by the Savior. "Command, O God, your strength; strengthen, O God, this which you have wrought for us." These things also follow what was said before. For since the word prophetically commanded the apostles in the churches to bless the Lord, and to do this not moved by any other words, but from the fountains of Israel, accordingly the prophetic Spirit sends up a prayer for them, saying: "Command, O God, your strength;" as if it said more clearly: Let your strength hasten, and work with the men; but also let what has been prophesied at some time now come to pass by your power through deeds; and this which you have wrought for us, having preordained it by your will, strengthen it also; that by your power it may be accomplished in deeds. And what was this but what follows, "To your temple in Jerusalem kings shall bring you gifts"? for having promised us this very thing, strengthen it to come to pass. And for this reason the kingdoms of the earth are called kings, all the nations being signified in this way. And the temple in Jerusalem, to which the kings shall bring gifts, could be none other than the kingdom of heaven; if indeed we know of a heavenly Jerusalem, which he who said showed: "But the Jerusalem above is free, which is our mother;" and, "You have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem." Therefore, of this heavenly city of God, the most excellent and highest and best is the temple of God. To this your temple, then, he says, kings shall bring you gifts; namely, those who inhabit the rest of the heavenly city, being kings, because they have been deemed worthy of the kingdom of heaven, and for this reason they reign with their Lord. "For if we have died with him, we shall also live with him; and if we endure God, we shall also reign with him." These kings, therefore, as ministering under the great high priest, the Only-begotten of God, being both priests and

246

φησὶ, Βενιαμὶν ὁ βραχὺς, ἐπικρατῶν αὐτῶν.» Βενιαμὶν δὲ νεώτερος καὶ μικρότατος ἢ βραχύτατος Παῦλος ἦν ὁ θεῖος Ἀπόστολος, φυλῆς ὢν Βενιαμὶν, Ἑβραῖος ἐξ Ἑβραίων, καθὼς αὐτὸς διδάσκει λέγων· «Περιτομὴ ὀκταήμερος ἐκ γένους Ἰσραὴλ, φυλῆς Βενιαμὶν, Ἑβραῖος ἐξ Ἑβραίων.» Νεώτερος δὲ εἴρηται, ἢ μικρότατος, ἢ βραχὺς, ἐπεὶ καὶ αὐτὸς τοῦτο διδάσκει λέγων· «Ὕστερον δὲ πάντων ὥσπερ τῷ ἐκτρώματι ὤφθη καμοί.» Ἀντὶ δὲ τοῦ, «ἐν ἐκστάσει,» ὁ μὲν Ἀκύλας, «ἐπικρατῶν αὐτῶν·» ὁ δὲ Θεοδοτίων, «παιδευτὴς αὐτῶν·» ἡ δὲ πέμπτη ἔκδοσις, «παιδεύοντα,» ἢ, «διδάσκοντα» ἡρμήνευσαν. Οὐ δεῖ δὲ ἡμῖν πλειόνων λόγων εἰς ἀπόδειξιν τοῦ κρατεῖν τῶν Ἐκκλησιῶν, καὶ παιδευτὴν αὐτῶν εἶναι τὸν ἱερὸν Ἀπόστολον Βενιαμὶν ὠνομασμένον. Οὐ μόνος δὲ ἄρα ὁ Βενιαμὶν ἦν ἐκεῖ, δηλαδὴ ἐν ταῖς Ἐκκλησίαις τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἀλλὰ καὶ «οἱ ἄρχοντες Ἰούδα ἡγεμόνες αὐτῶν, οἵ τε ἄρχοντες Ζαβουλὼν καὶ οἱ ἄρχοντες Νεφθαλείμ. Σημαίνει δὲ ὁ λόγος διὰ τούτων τοὺς λοιποὺς ἀποστόλους, ὧν οἱ μὲν ἦσαν ἐκ φυλῆς Ἰούδα, οἱ δὲ ἐκ φυλῆς Ζαβουλὼν καὶ Νεφθαλείμ. ∆ιὸ τῆς τούτων μέμνηται χώρας τὸ ἅγιον Πνεῦμα διὰ Ἡσαΐου τοῦ προφήτου λέγον· «Γῆ Ζαβουλὼν καὶ γῆ Νεφθαλεὶμ, ὁδὸν θαλάσσης, πέραν τοῦ Ἰορδάνου, Γαλιλαία τῶν ἐθνῶν.» Καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ Σωτὴρ, παραγαγὼν παρὰ τὴν θάλασσαν τῆς Γαλιλαίας, τοὺς ἑαυτοῦ μαθητὰς ἐνθένδε ἀνεκαλεῖτο. Σαφῶς οὖν ἐπικρατεῖν τῶν Ἐκκλησιῶν πρῶτον μὲν Παῦλον τὸν βραχύτατον καὶ μικρότατον, καὶ νεώτατον τῶν ἀποστόλων ἐδίδαξεν, ἐν ἐκστάσει ποτὲ γενόμενον, ὅτε ἐδίωκε τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ ἐπόρθει αὐτὴν, ἢ ὅτε ἐν ἀποκαλύψει τὸν Σωτῆρα τεθέατο· ἢ ὅτε ἡρπάγη εἰς τὸν παράδεισον ἕως τρίτου οὐρανοῦ· μετὰ δὲ τὸν Παῦλον τοὺς λοιποὺς ἀποστόλους ἐκεῖ ἐν τῇ αὐτῇ Ἐκκλησίᾳ διαπρέπειν θεσπίζει, ἄρχοντας ὄντας ἡμετέρους ἐκ φυλῆς Ἰούδα, καὶ ἄρχοντας Ζαβουλὼν 23.713 καὶ ἄρχοντας Νεφθαλείμ. Ἐπὶ σχολῆς δ' ἄν τις φιλοκαλήσας, τὴν ἑκάστου τῶν ἀποστόλων εὑρήσει φυλήν· ἐπεὶ παντὶ τῷ ζητοῦντι ἡ τῆς εὑρέσεως δέδοται ὑπὸ τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἐπαγγελία. «Ἔντειλαι, ὁ Θεὸς, τὴν δύναμιν σου, δυνάμωσον, ὁ Θεὸς, τοῦτο ὃ κατειργάσω ἡμῖν.» Ἕπεται καὶ ταῦτα τοῖς προλεχθεῖσιν. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ προφητικῶς προσέταττεν ὁ λόγος τοῖς ἀποστόλοις ἐν ἐκκλησίαις εὐλογεῖν τὸν Κύριον, καὶ τοῦτο ποιεῖν μὴ ἑτέρων τινῶν ὁρμωμένους λόγων, ἀλλ' ἐκ τῶν πηγῶν Ἰσραὴλ, ἀκολούθως ὑπὲρ αὐτῶν εὐχὴν ἀναπέμπει τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ προφητικὸν, φάσκον· «Ἔντειλαι, ὁ Θεὸς, τὴν δύναμίν σου·» ὡσεὶ σαφέστερον ἔλεγεν· Ἐπισπευσάτω ἡ δύναμίς σου, καὶ συνεργείτω τοῖς ἀνδράσιν· ἀλλὰ καὶ ἤδη ποτὲ τῇ ἰσχύϊ σου δι' ἔργων χωρησάτω τὰ προφητευόμενα· καὶ τοῦτο δὲ ὃ κατειργάσω ἡμῖν τῇ σῇ βουλῇ προορίσας, καὶ αὐτὸ δυνάμωσον· ὅπως τῇ σῇ δυνάμει ἔργοις ἐπιτελεσθείη. Τί δὲ ἦν τοῦτο ἢ τὸ ἑξῆς ἐπιφερόμενον, «Ἐπὶ τὸν ναόν σου τὸν ἐν Ἱερουσαλὴμ σοὶ οἴσουσι βασιλεῖς δῶρα;» τοῦτο γὰρ αὐτὸ ἐπαγγειλάμενος ἡμῖν δυνάμωσον γενέσθαι. Βασιλεῖς δὲ διὰ τοῦτο αἱ βασιλεῖαι τῆς γῆς εἴρηνται, τῶν ἐθνῶν ἁπάντων τοῦτον σημαινομένων τὸν τρόπον. Νεὼς δὲ ἐν Ἱερουσαλὴμ, ἐφ' ὃν τὰ δῶρα οἴσουσιν οἱ βασιλεῖς, οὐδ' ἕτερος ἂν εἴη τῆς βασιλείας τῶν οὐρανῶν· εἴπερ ἴσμεν Ἱερουσαλὴμ ἐπουράνιον, ἣν ἔδειξεν ὁ εἰπών· «Ἡ δὲ ἄνω Ἱερουσαλὴμ ἐλευθέρα ἐστὶν, ἥτις ἐστὶ μήτηρ ἡμῶν·» καὶ, «Προσεληλύθατε Σιὼν ὄρει καὶ πόλει Θεοῦ ζῶντος, Ἱερουσαλὴμ ἐπουρανίῳ.» Ταύτης οὖν τῆς ἐπουρανίου πόλεως τοῦ Θεοῦ τὸ ἐξαίρετον καὶ ἀνώτατον καὶ κρεῖττον ὁ νεώς ἐστι τοῦ Θεοῦ. Ἐπὶ τοῦτον τοίνυν τὸν νεών σου, φησὶν, σοὶ οἴσουσι βασιλεῖς δῶρα· οἱ τὴν λοιπὴν δηλαδὴ πόλιν τὴν ἐπουράνιον οἰκοῦντες βασιλεῖς ὄντες, διὰ τὸ κατηξιῶσθαι τῆς βασιλείας τῶν οὐρανῶν, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο συμβασιλεύειν τῷ ἑαυτῶν Κυρίῳ. «Εἰ γὰρ συναπεθάνομεν, καὶ συζήσομεν, καὶ εἰ ὑπομένομεν Θεὸν, καὶ συμβασιλεύσομεν.» Οὗτοι οὖν οἱ βασιλεῖς, ὡς ἂν ὑπὸ μεγάλῳ ἀρχιερεῖ τῷ Μονογενεῖ τοῦ Θεοῦ λειτουργοῦντες, ἱερεῖς τε ὄντες, καὶ