274

for the salvation of men. Do not hesitate to call old age and seniority the perfection of his disciples and of his Church. For if the Church is his body, as the Apostle taught, saying: "And you are the body of Christ, and members in part;" perfection according to virtue in the present life might reasonably be called a part of the Church and its seniority, after which, as if having put off mortal life on earth, it will be renewed, being deemed worthy of the heavenly life, and joined to the Church of the firstborn 23.785 who are enrolled in heaven. Thus you will understand also what was said above in, "Do not cast me off in the time of old age, when my strength fails, do not forsake me." For according to another interpretation, he prays for his Church, that in the time of its longevity on earth it might not be cast off; and if its strength fails even then, it might not be forsaken then either. For it often happens to fail in times of persecution, when many of the body of the Church, through weakness of faith, renounce the faith. And perhaps these things are referred to the time of the apostasy, about which time the Apostle taught, saying: "Unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the Son of perdition." And the Savior indicated this time, saying: "When the Son of man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" And again: "And because lawlessness will be multiplied, the love of many will grow cold." For then the body of the Church will be old and weak. But so that his people might not even then be left desolate, he necessarily sends up the preceding words: "O God, who will be like you? How many and evil tribulations have you shown me?" and what follows. The precise reasons for which God did not spare his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, and made him who knew no sin to be sin for us, no one can relate except he himself. "For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he might instruct him?" Nor could one assail the judgment of God, nor discover the reasons, for which he showed the Only-begotten many and evil tribulations; yet he did not leave him in them; but turning, he made him alive and brought him up again from the abysses of the earth. And it is said very precisely, "You have shown me many and evil tribulations." For seeing the tribulations and the so-called evils, he was not captured by them, nor was he defeated; but having become stronger than all, he was a spectator of them; so that one might rather say, "We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; struck down, but not forsaken." For Paul and those like him, having been helped by the teacher, said these things. And here he called "abysses of the earth" the land of those under the earth; which indeed the Apostle clarifies, saying: "Do not say, 'Who will descend into the abyss?' that is, to bring Christ up from the dead." And in Job, the Lord who gave oracles to him said: "Have you come to the spring of the sea, and have you walked in the tracks of the abyss? Do the gates of death open to you in fear; and did the gatekeepers of Hades, seeing you, cower?" And he who said here, "And you have brought me up again from the abysses of the earth," clearly taught that he himself had descended into the abysses of the earth, and had come up again. But I do not know if anyone can take these things otherwise than by referring the prophecy to our Savior and Lord. 23.788 And he himself adds: "You have increased my greatness, and turning you have comforted me." And how did the Father increase the greatness of his Only-begotten, except by showing him many and evil tribulations? For just as a judge of contests, matching his own athlete against many, more greatly displays his courage, proclaiming him victor over all; in the same way also the Father, the greatness of the Son to all

274

ἀνθρώπων σωτηρίᾳ. Γῆρας δὲ καὶ πρεσβεία μὴ ὄκνει λέγειν τὴν τελειότητα τῶν αὐτοῦ μαθητῶν καὶ τῆς Ἐκκλησίας αὐτοῦ. Εἰ γὰρ σῶμα αὐτοῦ ἡ Ἐκκλησία τυγχάνει, ὡς ἐδίδαξεν ὁ Ἀπόστολος εἰπών· «Ὑμεῖς δέ ἐστε σῶμα Χριστοῦ καὶ μέλη ἐκ μέρους·» μέρος τῆς Ἐκκλησίας καὶ πρεσβεῖον αὐτῆς λέγοιτ' ἂν εἰκότως ἡ κατ' ἀρετὴν τὴν ἐν τῷ παρόντι βίῳ τελείωσις, μεθ' ἣν, ὥσπερ ἀποδυσαμένη τὸν ἐπὶ γῆς θνητὸν βίον, ἀνακαινισθήσεται τῆς οὐρανίου διατριβῆς καταξιωθησομένη, συναπτομένη τε τῇ Ἐκκλησίᾳ τῶν πρωτοτό 23.785 κων τῶν ἀπογεγραμμένων ἐν οὐρανοῖς. Οὕτω νοήσεις καὶ τὸ ἀνωτέρω λελεγμένον ἐν τῷ, «Μὴ ἀποῤῥίψῃς με εἰς καιρὸν γήρως, ἐν τῷ ἐκλείπειν τὴν ἰσχύν μου μὴ ἐγκαταλίπῃς με.» Κατὰ γὰρ ἑτέραν ἐκδοχὴν ὑπερεύχεται τῆς Ἐκκλησίας αὐτοῦ, ἵνα ἐν καιρῷ τῆς κατὰ γῆν μακρότητος μὴ ἀποῤῥιφθείη· εἰ δὲ καὶ τότε ἐκλείπει ἡ ἰσχὺς αὐτῆς, μηδὲ τότε ἐγκαταλειφθείη. Συμβαίνει γὰρ πολλάκις ἐκλείπειν κατὰ τοὺς καιροὺς τῶν διωγμῶν, ἐπειδὰν οἱ πολλοὶ τοῦ σώματος τῆς Ἐκκλησίας δι' ἀσθένειαν πίστεως ἐξομνύονται τὴν πίστιν. Καὶ μήποτε ταῦτα ἀναπέμπεται ἐπὶ τὸν καιρὸν τῆς ἀποστασίας, περὶ οὗ καιροῦ ὁ Ἀπόστολος ἐδίδασκε λέγων· «Ἐὰν μὴ ἔλθῃ ἡ ἀποστασία πρῶτον, καὶ ἀποκαλυφθῇ ἄνθρωπος τῆς ἁμαρτίας, ὁ Υἱὸς τῆς ἀπωλείας.» Τοῦτον δὲ τὸν καιρὸν ὁ Σωτὴρ ἐδήλου λέγων· «Ἆρα ἐλθὼν ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου εὑρήσει τὴν πίστιν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς;» Καὶ πάλιν· «∆ιὰ δὲ τὸ πληθυνθῆναι τὴν ἀνομίαν, ψυγήσεται ἡ ἀγάπη τῶν πολλῶν.» Τότε γὰρ ἔσται γηραλέον καὶ ἀσθενὲς τὸ σῶμα τῆς Ἐκκλησίας. Ἀλλ' ἵνα μηδὲ τότε ἔρημος καταλειφθείη ὁ λαὸς αὐτοῦ, ἀναγκαίως τὰς προκειμένας ἀναπέμπει φωνάς· «Ὁ Θεὸς, τίς ὁμοιωθήσεταί σοι; Ὅσας ἔδειξάς μοι θλίψεις πολλὰς καὶ κακά;» καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Τοὺς ἀκριβεῖς λόγους καθ' οὓς ὁ Θεὸς τοῦ ἰδίου Υἱοῦ οὐκ ἐφείσατο, ἀλλ' ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν πάντων παρέδωκεν αὐτὸν, μὴ γνόντα τε αὐτὸν ἁμαρτίαν ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν ἁμαρτίαν ἐποίησεν, οὐδεὶς δύναται διελθεῖν ἢ μόνος αὐτός. «Τίς γὰρ ἔγνω νοῦν Κυρίου, ὃς συμβιβάσει αὐτόν;» Οὐδ' ἂν ἐπιβάλοι τις τῇ τοῦ Θεοῦ κρίσει, οὐδ' ἂν ἐξεύροι τοὺς λογισμοὺς, δι' οὓς ἐνεδείξατο τῷ Μονογενεῖ θλίψεις πολλὰς καὶ κακά· οὐ μὲν εἴασεν αὐτὸν ἐν αὐταῖς· ἀλλ' ἐπιστρέψας ἐζωοποίησεν αὐτὸν καὶ ἐκ τῶν ἀβύσσων τῆς γῆς πάλιν ἀνήγαγεν αὐτόν. Σφόδρα δὲ ἀκριβῶς εἴρηται τὸ, «Ἔδειξάς μοι θλίψεις πολλὰς καὶ κακά.» Ἰδὼν γὰρ τὰς θλίψεις καὶ τὰ ὀνομαζόμενα κακὰ, οὐχ ἑάλω ὑπ' αὐτῶν, οὐδὲ ἡττήθη· κρείττων δὲ πάντων γενόμενος, θεωρὸς ἦν αὐτῶν· ὡς πάντων μᾶλλον εἰπεῖν ἂν τὸ, «Ἐν παντὶ θλιβόμενοι, ἀλλ' οὐ στενοχωρούμενοι· ἀπορούμενοι, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἐξαπορούμενοι· καταβαλλόμενοι, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἐγκαταλειπόμενοι.» Ταῦτα γὰρ Παῦλος καὶ οἱ παραπλήσιοι ὠφελημένοι τὸν διδάσκαλον ἔλεγον. Ἀβύσσους δὲ γῆς ἐνταῦθα τὴν τῶν καταχθονίων γῆν χώραν ὠνόμαζεν· ὃ δὴ σαφηνίζει ὁ Ἀπόστολος λέγων· «Μὴ εἴπῃς, Τίς καταβήσεται εἰς τὴν ἄβυσσον, τουτέστι Χριστὸν ἐκ νεκρῶν ἀναγαγεῖν;» Καὶ ἐν τῷ Ἰὼβ δὲ ὁ χρηματίζων αὐτῷ Κύριος ἔλεγε· «Ἦλθες δὲ ἐπὶ πηγὴν θαλάσσης, ἐν δὲ ἴχνεσιν ἀβύσσου περιεπάτησας. Ἀνοίγονται δέ σοι φόβῳ πύλαι θανάτου· πυλωροὶ δὲ ᾅδου ἰδόντες σε ἔπτηξαν.» Ὁ δὲ εἰπὼν ἐνταῦθα, «Καὶ ἐκ τῶν ἀβύσσων τῆς γῆς πάλιν ἀνήγαγές με,» σαφῶς ἐδίδαξεν ἑαυτὸν κατεληλυθέναι εἰς τὰς ἀβύσσους τῆς γῆς, καὶ πάλιν ἀνεληλυθέναι. Οὐκ οἶδα δὲ εἴ τις δύναται ἑτέρως ἐκλαβεῖν ταῦτα ἢ ἐπὶ τὸν Σωτῆρα καὶ Κύριον ἡμῶν ἀναφέρων τὴν προφητείαν. 23.788 Ὁ δ' αὐτὸς ἐπιλέγει· «Ἐπλεόνασας τὴν μεγαλοσύνην μου, καὶ ἐπιστρέψας παρεκάλεσάς με.» Πῶς δὲ ἐπλεόνασεν ὁ Πατὴρ τὴν μεγαλοσύνην τοῦ Μονογενοῦς αὐτοῦ, ἢ διὰ τοῦ δεῖξαι αὐτῷ θλίψεις πολλὰς καὶ κακά; Ὥσπερ γάρ τις ἀγωνοθέτης, πολλοῖς παραβάλλων τὸν ἑαυτοῦ ἀθλητὴν, μειζόνως αὐτοῦ τὴν ἀνδρείαν ἐπιδείκνυσι, νικητὴν αὐτὸν ἁπάντων ἀνακηρύττων· τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ, τὴν μεγαλοσύνην τοῦ Υἱοῦ τοῖς πᾶσι