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that is, the work, the wonderful and paradoxical, that of the corner. And it is wonderful in our eyes. What is wonderful? The corner, the coming together of the two peoples, into piety. For indeed from the Jews many myriads believed; and the apostles too were from the Jews. And he said well: In our eyes; for the wonder is not manifest to all. For who would not be astonished, who would not marvel, that where Christ was crucified, there Christ is worshipped; and those who crucified him are in dishonor, while those who worship him are in glory? For indeed the word has run through the whole world, joining all to the truth. It is then wonderful even to those who examine it in any way, but much more precisely and clearly to those who believe. For this reason he said: In our eyes. This is the day, which the Lord has made; let us rejoice, and be glad in it. Day here he does not mean the course of the sun, but the right actions that took place in it. For just as in speaking of an evil day, he does not mean the course of the sun, but the evil things in it; so also a good day, the right actions in it. What he says is of this sort: The right actions of God, which took place in it, God has made; for it was of that hand alone to accomplish the things that have happened. 55.337 6. What then could be equal to this day, in which the reconciliation of God to men took place, and a long-standing war was ended, and the earth was shown to be heaven, and men unworthy of the earth appeared worthy of the kingdom, and the first-fruit of our nature was brought up above the heavens, and paradise was opened, and we received back our ancient fatherland, and the curse vanished, and sin was loosed, and those punished through the law obtained salvation without the law, and all the earth and sea recognized its Master, and ten thousand other things have happened, which it is not now possible to recount in speech? For this reason, then, the Prophet, having considered all these things, ascribes the whole to God, declaring that the things that have happened are the works of God. Let us rejoice and be glad in it. Gladness here he means the spiritual, the intellectual, that of the mind. Let us rejoice and be glad in it, because we have obtained so many good things. For this too is no small achievement, to rejoice in good things, to leap, to be glad, to receive with pleasure the benefactions of God. O Lord, save now; O Lord, prosper now. Since he saw the prosperity of the world, and the change of affairs, and the transition to the better, rejoicing with those who benefit he said: O Lord, save now; O Lord, prosper now. That is, save now those who benefit, so that they may be filled, and may show forth fruits worthy of grace; make the way easy for them, so that after receiving they may not fall away from such good things. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. For our affairs do not indeed stop at the things that have happened, but proceed to other, greater things, the resurrection, the kingdom, the portion with Christ, wishing to present all of which, he added: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Christ also said this to the Jews: Truly, truly I say to you; you will not see me, until you say, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. For since this very thing was constantly alleged, that he is not from God, that he is an opponent of God, he says to them: You will bear witness to me, that I am not an opponent of God, when you see me coming upon the clouds, and you utter this voice, saying, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, depriving yourselves of a defense with words of praise. For the splendor of the things that will then happen will cause this voice to be uttered, at once praising, and at the same time making the accusation more bitter

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τουτέστι, τὸ ἔργον τὸ θαυμαστὸν καὶ παράδοξον, τὸ τῆς γωνίας. Καὶ ἔστι θαυμαστὴ ἐν ὀφθαλμοῖς ἡμῶν. Τίς δέ ἐστι θαυμαστή; Ἡ γωνία, ἡ σύνοδος τῶν δύο ἐθνῶν, ἡ εἰς τὴν εὐσέβειαν. Καὶ γὰρ ἐκ τῶν Ἰουδαίων πολλαὶ μυριάδες ἐπίστευσαν· καὶ οἱ ἀπόστολοι δὲ ἐξ Ἰουδαίων. Καλῶς δὲ εἶπεν· Ἐν ὀφθαλμοῖς ἡμῶν· οὐ γὰρ πᾶσίν ἐστι τὸ θαῦμα κατάδηλον. Τίς γὰρ οὐκ ἂν ἐκπλαγείη, τίς οὐκ ἂν θαυμάσειεν, ὅτι ἔνθα ἐσταυρώθη Χριστὸς, ἐκεῖ προσκυνεῖται Χριστός· καὶ οἱ μὲν σταυρώσαντες ἐν ἀτιμίᾳ, οἱ δὲ προσκυνοῦντες ἐν δόξῃ; Καὶ γὰρ πᾶσαν τὴν οἰκουμένην διέδραμεν ὁ λόγος, συνάπτων τῇ ἀληθείᾳ ἅπαντας. Ἔστι μὲν οὖν καὶ τοῖς ὁπωσοῦν ἐξετάζουσι θαυμαστὴ, πολλῷ δὲ ἀκριβέστερον καὶ σαφέστερον τοῖς πιστεύουσι. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο εἶπεν· Ἐν ὀφθαλμοῖς ἡμῶν. Αὕτη ἡ ἡμέρα, ἣν ἐποίησεν ὁ Κύριος· ἀγαλλιασώμεθα, καὶ εὐφρανθῶμεν ἐν αὐτῇ. Ἡμέραν ἐνταῦθα οὐχὶ τὸν δρόμον λέγει τὸν ἡλιακὸν, ἀλλὰ τὰ κατορθώματα τὰ ἐν αὐτῇ γενόμενα. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ἡμέραν πονηρὰν λέγων, οὐ τὸν δρόμον λέγει τοῦ ἡλίου, ἀλλὰ τὰ ἐν αὐτῇ κακά· οὕτω καὶ ἡμέραν ἀγαθὴν, τὰ ἐν αὐτῇ κατορθώματα. Ὃ δὲ λέγει τοιοῦτόν ἐστι· Τὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ κατορθώματα, τὰ ἐν αὐτῇ γενόμενα, ὁ Θεὸς ἐποίησε· τῆς γὰρ χειρὸς ἐκείνης μόνης ἦν τὸ τελέσαι τὰ γεγενημένα. 55.337 ςʹ. Τί τοίνυν τῆς ἡμέρας ταύτης ἴσον γένοιτ' ἂν, ἐν ᾗ καταλλαγῇ Θεοῦ πρὸς ἀνθρώπους ἐγένετο, καὶ χρόνιος κατελύθη πόλεμος, καὶ οὐρανὸς ἀπεδείχθη ἡ γῆ, καὶ οἱ τῆς γῆς ἀνάξιοι ἄνθρωποι τῆς βασιλείας ἐφάνησαν ἄξιοι, καὶ ἡ ἀπαρχὴ τῆς φύσεως τῆς ἡμετέρας ὑπεράνω τῶν οὐρανῶν ἀνηνέχθη, καὶ παράδεισος ἠνοίγη, καὶ τὴν ἀρχαίαν ἀπελάβομεν πατρίδα, καὶ κατάρα ἠφανίσθη, καὶ ἁμαρτία ἐλύθη, καὶ οἱ διὰ τοῦ νόμου κολασθέντες χωρὶς τοῦ νόμου σωτηρίας ἐπέτυχον, καὶ πᾶσα ἡ γῆ καὶ θάλασσα τὸν ∆εσπότην ἐπέγνω τὸν ἑαυτῆς, καὶ μυρία ἕτερα γέγονεν, ἅπερ οὐκ ἔστι νῦν ἐπελθεῖν τῷ λόγῳ; ∆ιὰ δὴ τοῦτο ὁ Προφήτης ἅπαντα ταῦτα ἐννοήσας, τῷ Θεῷ τὸ πᾶν ἀνατίθησι, δηλῶν, ὅτι τοῦ Θεοῦ ἔργα ἐστὶ τὰ γεγενημένα. Ἀγαλλιασώμεθα καὶ εὐφρανθῶμεν ἐν αὐτῇ. Εὐφροσύνην ἐνταῦθα λέγει τὴν πνευματικὴν, τὴν νοερὰν, τὴν τῆς διανοίας. Ἀγαλλιασώμεθα καὶ εὐφρανθῶμεν ἐν αὐτῇ, ὅτι τοσούτων ἐπετύχομεν ἀγαθῶν. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ τοῦτο οὐ μικρὸν κατόρθωμα, τὸ χαίρειν ἐπὶ τοῖς ἀγαθοῖς, τὸ σκιρτᾷν, τὸ εὐφραίνεσθαι, τὸ μετὰ ἡδονῆς δέχεσθαι τοῦ Θεοῦ τὰς εὐεργεσίας. Ὦ Κύριε, σῶσον δή· ὦ Κύριε, εὐόδωσον δή. Ἐπειδὴ εἶδε τῆς οἰκουμένης τὴν εὐημερίαν, καὶ τὴν τῶν πραγμάτων μεταβολὴν, καὶ τὴν πρὸς τὸ βέλτιον μετάστασιν, συγχαίρων τοῖς ἀπολαύουσιν εἶπεν· Ὦ Κύριε, σῶσον δή· ὦ Κύριε, εὐόδωσον δή. Τουτέστι, διάσωσον δὴ τοὺς ἀπολαύοντας, ὥστε καὶ ἐμπλησθῆναι, καὶ καρποὺς ἀξίους ἐπιδείξασθαι τῆς χάριτος· ῥᾳδίαν αὐτοῖς ποίησον τὴν ὁδὸν, ὥστε μετὰ τὸ τυχεῖν μὴ ἐκπεσεῖν τῶν τοιούτων καλῶν. Εὐλογημένος ὁ ἐρχόμενος ἐν ὀνόματι Κυρίου. Οὐ γὰρ δὴ μέχρι τῶν γεγενημένων ἵσταται τὰ ἡμέτερα, ἀλλ' ἐφ' ἕτερα πρόεισι μείζονα, τὴν ἀνάστασιν, τὴν βασιλείαν, τὴν μετὰ Χριστοῦ λῆξιν, ἅπερ ἅπαντα παραστῆσαι βουλόμενος, ἐπήγαγεν· Εὐλογημένος ὁ ἐρχόμενος ἐν ὀνόματι Κυρίου. Τοῦτο καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς Ἰουδαίοις ἔλεγεν· Ἀμὴν, ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν· οὐ μή με ἴδητε, ἕως ἂν εἴπητε, Εὐλογημένος ὁ ἐρχόμενος ἐν ὀνόματι Κυρίου. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἄνω καὶ κάτω τοῦτο αὐτὸ προεβάλλετο, ὅτι οὐκ ἔστιν ἀπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὅτι ἀντίθεός ἐστι, λέγει αὐτοῖς· Ὑμεῖς μοι μαρτυρήσετε, ὅτι οὐκ ἀντίθεος ἐγὼ, ὅταν ἴδητε ἐπὶ τῶν νεφελῶν ἐρχόμενον, καὶ ταύτην ἀφῆτε τὴν φωνὴν λέγοντες, Εὐλογημένος ὁ ἐρχόμενος ἐν ὀνόματι Κυρίου, ἐν εὐφημίας ῥήμασι τῆς ἀπολογίας ἑαυτοὺς ἐκβάλλοντες. Ἡ γὰρ ἐπιφάνεια τῶν γινομένων τότε ταύτην παρασκευάσει τὴν φωνὴν ἀφεῖναι, ὁμοῦ μὲν εὐφημοῦντας, ὁμοῦ δὲ τὴν κατηγορίαν πικροτέραν ποιοῦντας