423
Reasonably, the 23.1169 law of Moses, handing down shadows and symbols of the things spoken of, set apart a certain day for the multitudes, so that at least on this day they might abstain from their usual works, and might have leisure for the study of the divine law. But indeed the present psalm expressly teaches that the leisure of the Sabbath ought to be used for this purpose, and that those coming together for the same purpose might from unprofitable idleness perform the things indicated by the psalm. First was to give thanks to the Lord; second, to sing psalms with musical instruments to his name; third, to proclaim his mercy in the morning hours; fourth, to declare his truth in the night seasons; and to do these things not only with lips and voice, but also through the playing of musical instruments; For, he says, "on a ten-stringed psaltery, and with a song on the lyre." Do you see then how many things the present word exhorts us to do on the day of the resurrection? For the psalm is inscribed, "For the Sabbath day." But the priests in the temple on the Sabbath also did many other things according to the law. Therefore, it does not command complete idleness. But the Sabbath day was not legislated for the priests; but only for those who are not able for the whole time of their life, and all their days, to be at leisure for the worship of God and for works dear to God; for to these it legislated to do these things at intervals. But to those who give themselves over to gluttony and drunkenness, and every disorder on the Sabbath day, God threatens through the prophet, saying: "Those who observe false Sabbaths;" and again: "Your new moons and Sabbaths and the great day I cannot bear." Wherefore, with those things being rejected, the Word through the New Covenant moved and transferred the festival of the Sabbath to the rising of the light, and has delivered to us an image of true rest, the saving and Lord's and first day of light, on which the Savior of the world, after all His deeds among men, having taken up the victory over death, passed beyond the heavenly gates, being above the six-day creation, receiving both the God-befitting Sabbath and the thrice-blessed rest, the Father having said to him: "Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet." On which, being the first day of light and of the true sun, we ourselves also, coming together after six days, we who from the nations have been redeemed through him throughout the whole world, celebrating holy and spiritual Sabbaths, perform according to the spiritual law the things legislated for the priests to do on the Sabbath. For we make spiritual sacrifices and offerings, those called sacrifices of praise, and sacrifices of shouting; and we send up fragrant incense, concerning which it is said: "Let my prayer be as incense before you." But we also offer the loaves of proposition, rekindling the saving memory, and the blood of sprinkling, of the Lamb of God, who took away the 23.1172 sin of the world, as a purification for our souls; and we kindle the lights of the knowledge of the face of God. But also the things in the psalm at hand we strive to perform zealously on the same day, with these works and words giving thanks to the Lord, and singing psalms to the name of the Most High; and at dawn, at the very rising of our light, proclaiming the mercy of God that has come upon us, and demonstrating his truth during the nights through a temperate and pure way of life, and indeed all other things that ought to be performed on the Sabbath, these we have transferred to the Lord's Day, as it is more authoritative, and pre-eminent, and first, and more honorable than the Jewish Sabbath. For on this day in the creation of the world, God having said, "Let there be light," and
423
εἰκότως καὶ ὁ 23.1169 Μωϋσέως νόμος, σκιὰς τῶν εἰρημένων καὶ σύμβολα παραδιδοὺς, ἡμέραν τινὰ τοῖς πλήθεσιν ἀφώρισε, ὅπως κἂν ταύτῃ ἀπέχωνται μὲν τῶν συνήθων ἔργων, σχολάζοιεν δὲ τῇ τοῦ θείου νόμου μελέτῃ. Ὅ γε μὴν παρὼν ψαλμὸς διαῤῥήδην διδάσκει ἐπὶ τοῦτο δεῖν τὴν τοῦ Σαββάτου σχολὴν ποιεῖσθαι καὶ τὴν τῶν ἀνωφελῶν ἀργιῶν ἐπὶ τὸ κατὰ ταὐτὸν συνερχομένους ἐργάζεσθαι τὰ διὰ τοῦ ψαλμοῦ δηλούμενα. Ἦν δὲ πρῶτον ἐξομολογεῖσθαι τῷ Κυρίῳ· δεύτερον ψάλλειν διὰ τῶν μουσικῶν ὀργάνων τῷ ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ· τρίτον ἀναγγέλλειν κατὰ τὰς ἑωθινὰς ὥρας τὸ ἔλεος αὐτοῦ· τέταρτον διηγεῖσθαι τὴν ἀλήθειαν αὐτοῦ κατὰ τοὺς νυκτερινοὺς καιρούς· καὶ ταῦτα πράττειν μὴ μόνον χείλεσι καὶ φωνῇ, ἀλλὰ καὶ διὰ τῆς τῶν μουσικῶν ὀργάνων ἀνακρούσεως· Ἐν δεκαχόρδῳ γὰρ, φησὶ, ψαλτηρίῳ καὶ μετ' ᾠδῆς ἐν κιθάρᾳ. Ὁρᾷς οὖν ὅσα πράττειν ὁ παρὼν λόγος παραινεῖ κατὰ τὴν τῆς ἀναστάσεως ἡμέραν; Ἐπιγέγραπται γοῦν ὁ ψαλμὸς, εἰς τὴν ἡμέραν τοῦ Σαββάτου. Ἀλλὰ καὶ οἱ ἱερεῖς ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ κατὰ τὸ Σάββατον ἕτερα πλεῖστα ἔπραττον κατὰ τὸν νόμον. Οὐκ ἄρα ὁλοσχερῶς ἀργεῖν προστάττει. Ἀλλ' οὐδὲ τοῖς ἱερεῦσιν ἡ τοῦ Σαββάτου ἡμέρα νενομοθέτητο· μόνοις δὲ τοῖς μὴ οἵοις τε οὖσι τὸν πάντα χρόνον τῆς αὐτῶν ζωῆς, καὶ πάσας αὐτῶν τὰς ἡμέρας τῇ τοῦ Θεοῦ λατρείᾳ καὶ τοῖς τῷ Θεῷ φίλοις ἔργοις σχολάζειν· τούτοις γὰρ ἐκ διαστημάτων ταῦτα πράττειν ἐνομοθέτει. Τοῖς γε μὴν πλησμονῇ γαστρὸς καὶ μέθῃ, καὶ πάσῃ ἀκοσμίᾳ κατὰ τὴν ἡμέραν τοῦ Σαββάτου ἑαυτοὺς παρέχουσιν, ὁ Θεὸς διὰ τοῦ προφήτου ἐπανατείνεται λέγων· Οἱ ἐφαπτόμενοι ψευδῶν Σαββάτων· καὶ πάλιν· Τὰς νεομηνίας ὑμῶν καὶ τὰ Σάββατα καὶ ἡμέραν μεγάλην οὐκ ἀνέχομαι. ∆ιὸ δὴ παρῃτημένων ἐκείνων, διὰ τῆς Καινῆς ∆ιαθήκης Λόγος μετήγαγε καὶ μετατέθεικε τὴν τοῦ Σαββάτου ἑορτὴν ἐπὶ τὴν τοῦ φωτὸς ἀνατολὴν, καὶ παρέδωκεν ἡμῖν ἀληθινῆς ἀναπαύσεως εἰκόνα, τὴν σωτηρίαν καὶ Κυριακὴν καὶ πρώτην τοῦ φωτὸς ἡμέραν, καθ' ἣν ὁ Σωτὴρ τοῦ κόσμου μετὰ πάσας αὐτοῦ τὰς ἐν ἀνθρώποις πράξεις, τὴν κατὰ τοῦ θανάτοι νίκην ἀράμενος, τὰς οὐρανίους πύλας ὑπερέβαινεν ὑπὲρ τὴν ἑξαήμερον κοσμοποιίαν γιγνόμενος, τό τε θεοπρεπὲς Σάββατον καὶ τὴν τρισμακαρίαν ἀνάπαυσιν ὑπολαμβάνων, τοῦ Πατρὸς εἰρηκότος αὐτῷ· Κάθου ἐκ δεξιῶν μου, ἕως ἂν θῶ τοὺς ἐχθρούς σου ὑποπόδιον τῶν ποδῶν σου. Ἐν ᾗ, φωτὸς οὔσῃ καὶ πρώτῃ καὶ τοῦ ἀληθοῦς ἡλίου ἡμέρᾳ, καὶ ἡμεῖς αὐτοὶ συνερχόμενοι διὰ μέσου ἓξ ἡμερῶν, ἅγιά τε Σάββατα καὶ πνευματικὰ ἑορτάζοντες οἱ ἐξ ἐθνῶν δι' αὐτοῦ λελυτρωμένοι καθ' ὅλης τῆς οἰκουμένης, τὰ τῷ Σαββάτῳ πράττειν τοῖς ἱερεῦσι νενομοθετημένα κατὰ τὸν πνευματικὸν νόμον ἐπιτελοῦμεν. Θυσίας τε γὰρ καὶ ἀναφορὰς ποιούμεθα πνευματικὰς, τὰς καλουμένας θυσίας αἰνέσεως, καὶ θυσίας ἀλαλαγμοῦ· τό τε θυμίαμα τὸ εὐῶδες ἀναπέμπομεν, περὶ οὗ εἴρηται· Γενηθήτω ἡ προσευχή μου ὡς θυμίαμα ἐνώπιόν σου. Ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς ἄρτους τῆς προθέσεως προσφέρομεν, τὴν σωτήριον μνήμην ἀναζωπυροῦντες, τό τε τοῦ ῥαντισμοῦ αἷμα, τοῦ Ἀμνοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ, τοῦ περιελόντος 23.1172 τὴν ἁμαρτίαν τοῦ κόσμου, καθάρσιον τῶν ἡμετέρων ψυχῶν· ποιούμεθά τε τὰ φῶτα τῆς γνώσεως προσώπου τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐξαπτόμενα. Ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ ἐν τῷ μετὰ χεῖρας ψαλμῷ φιλοτίμως ἐκτελεῖν κατὰ τὴν αὐτὴν ἡμέραν σπουδάζομεν, ἔργοις τούτοις καὶ λόγοις ἐξομολογούμενοι Κυρίῳ, καὶ ψάλλοντες τῷ ὀνόματι τοῦ Ὑψίστου· ὄρθρου τε πρὸς αὐταῖς ἀνατολαῖς τοῦ ἡμετέρου φωτὸς τὸ γενόμενον ἔλεος ἐφ' ἡμᾶς τοῦ Θεοῦ διαγγέλλοντες, καὶ τὴν ἀλήθειαν αὐτοῦ κατὰ τὰς νύκτας διὰ σώφρονος καὶ ἁγνῆς ἀναστροφῆς ἐν δεικνύμενοι, καὶ πάντα δὴ ὅσα ἄλλα ἐχρῆν ἐν Σαββάτῳ τελεῖν, ταῦτα ἡμεῖς ἐν τῇ Κυριακῇ μετατεθείκαμεν, ὡς ἂν κυριωτέρας οὔσης αὐτῆς, καὶ ἡγουμένης, καὶ πρώτης, καὶ τοῦ Ἰουδαϊκοῦ Σαββάτου τιμιωτέρας. Κατὰ ταύτην γὰρ ἐν τῇ κοσμοποιίᾳ εἰρηκότος τοῦ Θεοῦ, Γενηθήτω φῶς, καὶ