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it is possible for those who encounter it to take it at face value, but the divine will is concealed, as if by some veil, by the body of the scripture, with some legislation or history of things contemplated by the mind being put forward. For this reason, the Apostle says that those who look at the body of the scripture have a veil over their heart and are unable to see through to the glory of the spiritual law, being hindered by the veil placed upon the face of the lawgiver. 3.5.10 Therefore he says, The letter kills, but the spirit gives life, showing that in many places of the scriptures the literal interpretation, if it is not understood according to the proper meaning, does the opposite of the life shown through the spirit, for the one legislates for men the perfection of virtue in all passionlessness, while the history of the written words in some places contains the exposition of even unseemly matters and is thought, as it were, to run along with the passions of nature, and if anyone attends to these in a literal way, the letter will produce a teaching of death. 3.5.11 He says, therefore, that for those who encounter the scriptures in a more bodily way, the veil is placed before the senses of the soul, but for those who turn their contemplation to the intelligible, the glory contained in the letter is uncovered, stripped as if of a mask. And he says that what is found through the higher understanding is Lord, which is the Spirit. For when one turns to the Lord, he says, the veil is removed; but the Lord is the Spirit. And he says this, contrasting the lordship of the Spirit with the slavery of the letter. 3.5.12 For just as he opposes the life-giving to the killing, so he contrasts the Lord with slavery. And so that we might not suffer any confusion when being taught about the Holy Spirit, being led by the word "Lord" to the thought of the Only-begotten, for this reason he secures the statement by repetition, both calling the Spirit Lord and addressing it as Spirit of the Lord, so that by the honor of "lordship" he might show the superiority of nature 3.5.13 and not confuse the particularity of the hypostasis in his statement. For he who called him both Lord and Spirit of the Lord teaches us to understand something distinct from the Only-begotten; just as elsewhere he says Spirit of Christ, well and mystically outlining this same pious teaching according to the sequence of the dogma according to the evangelical tradition. Thus we, 20the most pitiable of all20, being initiated by the apostle, pass from the killing letter to the life-giving Spirit, having learned from the one initiated into the ineffable things in paradise that whatever the divine scripture says, are utterances of the Holy Spirit. For the Holy Spirit prophesied well. 3.5.14 Having said this to the Jews in Rome, he adds the words of Isaiah; and to the Hebrews, having placed the Spirit first in what he says, that Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, he brings in the words of the psalm spoken in detail from the person of God; and from the Lord himself we have learned the same thing, that David was not in himself, that is, was not speaking according to human nature, when he went through the heavenly mysteries (for how could anyone, being a man, know the super-celestial dialogue of the Father to the Son?), but being in the Spirit, he also said the Lord spoke to the Lord what he has said. 3.5.15 For if David in the Spirit, he says, calls him Lord, how is he his son? Therefore, by the power of the Spirit the God-bearing saints are inspired, and for this reason all scripture is called God-breathed, because it is the teaching of the divine inspiration. if the bodily veil of the word is removed, what is left is Lord and life and Spirit, according to both the great Paul and the voice of the Gospel. For Paul said that for the one who has turned from the letter to the Spirit, no longer is the destructive slavery apprehended, but the Lord, 3.5.16 who is the life-giving Spirit. And the sublime Gospel says: The words that I speak are spirit and are life, as they are bare of the bodily veil. substance

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ἐκ τοῦ προχείρου λαβεῖν ἔστι τοῖς ἐντυγχάνουσιν, ἀλλ' οἷον παρα πετάσματί τινι τῷ σώματι τῆς γραφῆς τὸ θεῖον ὑπο κρύπτεται βούλημα, νομοθεσίας τινὸς ἢ ἱστορίας τῶν κατὰ τὸν νοῦν θεωρουμένων προβεβλημένης. διά τοι τοῦτο τοὺς πρὸς τὸ σῶμα βλέποντας τῆς γραφῆς ὁ ἀπόστολος κάλυμμα ἐπὶ τῆς καρδίας ἔχειν φησὶ καὶ μὴ δύνασθαι πρὸς τὴν δόξαν διαβλέψαι τοῦ πνευματικοῦ νόμου, κωλυομένους διὰ τοῦ ἐπιβεβλημένου τῷ προσωπείῳ τοῦ νομοθέτου καλύμ 3.5.10 ματος. διό φησι Τὸ γράμμα ἀποκτέννει, τὸ δὲ πνεῦμα ζωοποιεῖ, δεικνὺς ὅτι πολλαχῇ τῶν γεγραμμένων ἡ πρό χειρος ἑρμηνεία, εἰ μὴ κατὰ τὸν προσήκοντα νοῦν ἐκλη φθείη, τῇ διὰ τοῦ πνεύματος ὑποδεικνυμένῃ ζωῇ τὸ ἐναν τίον ποιεῖ, τοῦ μὲν τὸ τέλειον τῆς ἀρετῆς ἐν ἀπαθείᾳ πάσῃ τοῖς ἀνθρώποις νομοθετοῦντος, τῆς δὲ τῶν γεγραμ μένων ἱστορίας ἔστιν ὅπου καὶ ἀπεμφαινόντων πραγμάτων τινῶν περιεχούσης τὴν ἔκθεσιν καὶ οἱονεὶ συντρέχειν νομι ζομένης τοῖς τῆς φύσεως πάθεσιν, οἷς εἴ τις προσέχοι κατὰ τὸ πρόχειρον, θανάτου διδασκαλίαν τὸ γράμμα ποι 3.5.11 ήσεται. τῶν μὲν οὖν σωματικώτερον τοῖς γεγραμμένοις ἐντυγχανόντων προβεβλῆσθαί φησι τῶν τῆς ψυχῆς αἰσθη τηρίων τὸ κάλυμμα, τῶν δὲ εἰς τὸ νοητὸν τὴν θεωρίαν τρεπόντων οἷον προσωπείου τινὸς γυμνωθεῖσαν ἀνακαλύπτε σθαι τὴν ἐγκειμένην δόξαν τῷ γράμματι. τὸ δὲ διὰ τῆς ὑψηλοτέρας κατανοήσεως εὑρισκόμενον κύριον εἶναί φησιν, ὅπερ ἐστὶ τὸ πνεῦμα. ἡνίκα γὰρ ἂν ἐπιστρέψῃ πρὸς κύ ριον, περιαιρεῖσθαι λέγει τὸ κάλυμμα· ὁ δὲ κύριος τὸ πνεῦμά ἐστι. λέγει δὲ τοῦτο τῇ δουλείᾳ τοῦ γράμματος 3.5.12 τὴν τοῦ πνεύματος ἀντιδιαιρῶν κυριότητα. ὡς γὰρ τῷ ἀπο κτιννύντι τὸ ζωοποιοῦν ἀντιτίθεται, οὕτως ἀντιδιαστέλλει τῇ δουλείᾳ τὸν κύριον. καὶ ὡς ἂν μή τινα σύγχυσιν πάθοιμεν περὶ τοῦ ἁγίου διδασκόμενοι πνεύματος, διὰ τῆς τοῦ κυρίου φωνῆς πρὸς τὴν τοῦ μονογενοῦς ὑπόνοιαν ἐναγόμενοι, διὰ τοῦτο τῇ ἐπαναλήψει τὸν λόγον κατασφαλίζεται καὶ κύριον τὸ πνεῦμα εἰπὼν καὶ πνεῦμα κυρίου προσαγορεύσας, ἵνα τῷ τιμίῳ τῆς κυριότητος τὸ τῆς φύσεως ὑπερέχον ἐνδείξηται 3.5.13 καὶ τὸ τῆς ὑποστάσεως ἰδιάζον μὴ συγχέῃ τῷ λόγῳ. ὁ γὰρ καὶ κύριον αὐτὸν καὶ κυρίου πνεῦμα εἰπὼν ἴδιόν τι παρὰ τὸν μονογενῆ διδάσκει νοεῖν· ὥσπερ καὶ ἑτέρωθι Χρι στοῦ πνεῦμα λέγει, τὸ αὐτὸ τοῦτο καλῶς καὶ μυστικῶς τὸ κατὰ τὴν ἀκολουθίαν τοῦ δόγματος εὐσεβὲς κατὰ τὴν εὐ αγγελικὴν παράδοσιν ὑπογράφων. οὕτως ἡμεῖς οἱ 20πάν των ἐλεεινότατοι20 παρὰ τοῦ ἀποστόλου μυσταγωγούμενοι ἐκ τοῦ ἀποκτιννύντος γράμματος πρὸς τὸ ζωοποιοῦν μετα βαίνομεν πνεῦμα, μαθόντες παρὰ τοῦ μυηθέντος ἐν παρα δείσῳ τὰ ἄρρητα ὅτι ὅσα ἡ θεία γραφὴ λέγει, τοῦ πνεύ ματός εἰσι τοῦ ἁγίου φωναί. καλῶς γὰρ προεφήτευσε τὸ 3.5.14 πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον. τοῦτο πρὸς τοὺς κατὰ Ῥώμην Ἰουδαίους εἰπὼν τὰς Ἠσαΐου φωνὰς ἐπιφέρει· καὶ πρὸς Ἑβραίους τὸ πνεῦμα προτάξας ἐν οἷς φησιν ὅτι ∆ιὸ καθὼς λέγει τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον, ἐπάγει τὰ τῆς ψαλμῳδίας ῥήματα τὰ ἐκ προσώπου θεοῦ διεξοδικῶς εἰρημένα· καὶ παρ' αὐτοῦ δὲ τοῦ κυρίου τὸ ἴσον ἐμάθομεν, ὅτι ∆αβὶδ οὐκ ἐν ἑαυτῷ μὲν ὤν, τουτέστιν οὐ κατὰ τὴν ἀνθρωπίνην φύσιν φθεγγόμενος, τὰ οὐράνια διεξῄει μυστήρια (πῶς γὰρ ἄν τις ἄνθρωπος ὢν τὸν ὑπερουράνιον διάλογον τοῦ πατρὸς πρὸς τὸν υἱὸν γνοίη;) ἀλλ' ἐν πνεύματι ὢν καὶ κύριον εἶπε τῷ κυρίῳ 3.5.15 λαλεῖν ἃ εἴρηκεν. Εἰ γὰρ ∆αβὶδ ἐν πνεύματι, φησί, καλεῖ αὐτὸν κύριον, πῶς υἱὸς αὐτοῦ ἐστιν; οὐκοῦν τῇ δυνάμει τοῦ πνεύματος οἱ θεοφορούμενοι τῶν ἁγίων ἐμπνέονται καὶ διὰ τοῦτο πᾶσα γραφὴ θεόπνευστος λέγεται, διὰ τὸ τῆς θείας ἐμπνεύσεως εἶναι διδασκαλίαν. εἰ περιαιρεθείη τὸ σωματικὸν τοῦ λόγου προκάλυμμα, τὸ λειπόμενον κύριός ἐστι καὶ ζωὴ καὶ πνεῦμα κατά τε τὸν μέγαν Παῦλον καὶ κατὰ τὴν τοῦ εὐαγγελίου φωνήν. ὁ μὲν γὰρ Παῦλος τῷ ἐπιστρέψαντι ἐκ τοῦ γράμματος πρὸς τὸ πνεῦμα οὐκέτι τὴν ἀναιροῦσαν δουλείαν, ἀλλὰ κύριον εἶπε καταλαμβάνεσθαι, 3.5.16 ὃς τὸ ζωοποιὸν πνεῦμά ἐστι. τὸ δὲ ὑψηλὸν εὐαγγέλιόν φησι· Τὰ ῥήματα ἃ ἐγὼ λαλῶ πνεῦμά ἐστι καὶ ζωή ἐστιν, ὡς γυμνὰ ὄντα τοῦ σωματικοῦ προκαλύμματος. οὐσίαν