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of the groaning of the fettered, to release the sons of the slain, to declare in Zion the name of the Lord, and His praise in Jerusalem. When the peoples are gathered together, and the kings to serve the Lord. He answered him in the way of his strength: Declare to me the fewness of my days. Do not take me up in the midst of my days. But it seems to me that through these things the prophetic choir signifies on a higher level the calling of the nations through our Savior; but they lament that they themselves did not obtain it. For in the presence of the good things to come, when the nations and their kings will worship, no longer the ancestral demons, but the Lord; indeed at such a time, he says, the Lord afflicted my strength, to cut short the days, so that I too would not reach that time. The prophetic choir, therefore, is the one answering, or rather asking and saying to God what our life will be like. For he was praying to learn if his life would reach those days in which the Only-Begotten was to appear on earth, having become man. And he calls his presence on earth the way of his strength; for he came to bind the strong man. And half of his own days, that is, of his life, is for the time being to be in contemplation of the epiphany. He prayed, therefore, that his whole time might be fulfilled, and that it might be possible for his life to be extended, so that he might be deemed worthy of the outcome of events itself; for thus his whole life was to be fulfilled. For for the time being, he says, in the present, when I prophesy these things, and foresee things that are to come, I seem to be in a portion of God's day; but I am lacking the personal sight of the outcome of the things prophesied, which if I should obtain, I will receive my own life complete; but if I fail in my prayer, I will be like those who in the middle of their days lay aside their life incomplete and untimely. And it seems to me that it was on account of such prayers of the prophets that our Savior said: Many prophets and 23.1261 righteous men longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it. But according to the historical sense, Seeing myself, he says, growing weak and burdened, I suppose that a little time of life is left for me. May I not, then, depart from the body in the midst and incompletion of my days. Your years are for generations of generations. Having necessarily said before: Do not take me up in the midst of my days, and having prayed to extend his life until the outcome of the things prophesied, he perceives the impossibility on account of the weakness and short-lived nature of mortal existence; then he said: Your years alone, O Lord, extend to generation and generation; and you will come to that generation, and to that people, about whom it was said above: Let this be written for another generation, and so forth. In the beginning you, O Lord, founded the earth, and the heavens are the works of your hands. They will perish, but you remain. For if you were not present, he says, in the beginning, O Lord, and if the heavens were not the works of your hands, it would not be possible for them to be changed, nor to come to a transformation; for if they were uncreated, they would have remained also without end; but now, since you have become their maker, you are also able to destroy them if you wish; for they are of a corruptible and perishing nature; because, though not existing before, they came into being by your will and power. For there is one that remains always, and is never able not to be, namely you yourself, the only maker of all things. And all will grow old like a garment, and like a mantle you will roll them up, and they will be rolled up. And the heavens, even if they are a great and exceptional creation, nevertheless they too will be subjected to corruption; but this corruption will be for them a renewal, and you will roll them up as easily as one rolls up a mantle; for they will be rolled up, being changed into a better form, and they will be altered, and they will undergo a good transformation from oldness to renewal and incorruptibility. But you are the same, and your

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τοῦ στεναγμοῦ τῶν πεπεδημένων, τοῦ λῦσαι τοὺς υἱοὺς τῶν τεθανατωμένων, τοῦ ἀναγγεῖλαι ἐν Σιὼν τὸ ὄνομα Κυρίου, καὶ τὴν αἴνεσιν αὐτοῦ ἐν Ἱερουσαλήμ. Ἐν τῷ συναχθῆναι λαοὺς ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ, καὶ βασιλεῖς τοῦ δουλεύειν τῷ Κυρίῳ. Ἀπεκρίθη αὐτῷ ἐν ὁδῷ ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ· Τὴν ὀλιγότητα τῶν ἡμερῶν μου ἀνάγγειλόν μοι. Μὴ ἀναγάγῃς με ἐν ἡμίσει ἡμερῶν μου. Ὑψηλότερον δὲ δοκεῖ μοι διὰ τούτων ὁ προφητικὸς χορὸς σημαίνειν τὴν διὰ τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν κλῆσιν τῶν ἐθνῶν· ἀποκλαίεσθαι δὲ, ὅτι μὴ καὶ αὐτοὶ ἔτυχον ταύτης. Ἐν γὰρ τῇ τῶν μελλόντων ἀγαθῶν παρουσίᾳ, ὅτε τὰ ἔθνη καὶ οἱ τούτων βασιλεῖς λατρεύσουσιν, οὐκέτι τοῖς πατρῴοις δαίμοσι, ἀλλὰ τῷ Κυρίῳ· ἐν αὐτῷ δὴ τῷ τοιούτῳ καιρῷ, τὴν ἐμὴν, φησὶν, ἰσχὺν ἐκάκωσεν ὁ Κύριος, κολοβῶσαι τὰς ἡμέρας, ὡς μὴ φθάσαι κἀμὲ εἰς ἐκεῖνον τὸν καιρόν. Ὁ προφητικὸς μὲν οὖν ἐστι χορὸς ὁ ἀποκρινόμενος, ἤτοι ἐρωτῶν καὶ λέγων πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν ὁποῖος ἔσται ὁ ἡμέτερος βίος. Ηὔχετο γὰρ μαθεῖν εἰ φθάσειεν εἰς ἐκείνας τὰς ἡμέρας ἡ ζωὴ αὐτοῦ, καθ' ἃς ἔμελλεν ἐνανθρωπήσας ἐπὶ γῆς φαίνεσθαι ὁ Μονογενής. Ὁδὸν δὲ ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ τὴν ἐπὶ γῆς παρουσίαν καλεῖ· ἦλθε γὰρ ἵνα δήσῃ τὸν ἰσχυρόν. Ἥμισυ δὲ τῶν ἑαυτοῦ ἡμερῶν, ἤτοι τῆς ζωῆς, τὸ τέως ἐν θεωρίᾳ γενέσθαι τῆς ἐπιφανείας. Ηὔχετο οὖν πληρωθῆναι τὸν ὅλον αὐτοῦ χρόνον, καὶ οἷόν τε παρεκταθῆναι τὴν ζωὴν αὐτοῦ, ὅπως ἂν καὶ αὐτῆς τῆς τῶν πραγμάτων ἐκβάσεως καταξιωθῆναι· οὕτω γὰρ ἔμελλεν ἡ πᾶσα αὐτοῦ ζωὴ πληροῦσθαι. Τέως μὲν γὰρ, φησὶν, ἐπὶ τοῦ παρόντος, ὅτε ταῦτα προφητεύω, καὶ μέλλοντα ἔσεσθαι προορῶ, ἔοικα ἐν μέρει ἡμέρας εἶναι Θεοῦ· λείπει δέ μοι ἡ αὐτοψία τῆς τῶν προφητευομένων ἐκβάσεως, ἧς εἰ τύχοιμι, τελείαν λήψομαι τὴν ἐμαυτοῦ ζωήν· εἰ δὲ ἀστοχήσω τῆς εὐχῆς, ἔοικα τοῖς ἐν ἡμίσει ἡμερῶν τὴν ζωὴν ἀτελῆ καὶ ἄωρον ἀποτιθεμένοις. Καί μοι δοκεῖ διὰ τὰς τοιαύτας τῶν προφητῶν εὐχὰς ὁ Σωτὴρ ἡμῶν εἰρηκέναι· Πολλοὶ προφῆται καὶ 23.1261 δίκαιοι ἐπεθύμησαν ἰδεῖν ἃ ὑμεῖς βλέπετε, καὶ οὐκ εἶδον, καὶ ἀκοῦσαι ἃ ἀκούετε, καὶ οὐκ ἤκουσαν. Κατὰ δὲ τὴν ἱστορίαν, Βλέπων, φησὶν, ἐμαυτὸν ἀτονοῦντα καὶ βαρυνόμενον, ὀλίγον ὑπολαμβάνω καιρὸν ὑπολελεῖφθαί μοι ζωῆς. Μὴ οὖν ἐκδημήσαιμι τοῦ σώματος ἐν τῷ ἡμίσει καὶ ἀτελεῖ τῶν ἡμερῶν. Ἐν γενεᾷ γενεῶν τὰ ἔτη σου. Ἀναγκαίως προειπών· Μὴ ἀναγάγῃς με ἐν ἡμίσει ἡμερῶν μου, εὐξάμενός τε παραθεῖναι τὴν ζωὴν μέχρι τῆς ἐκβάσεως τῶν προφητευομένων, συνορᾷ τὸ ἀδύνατον διὰ τὸ ἀσθενὲς καὶ ὀλιγοχρόνιον τῆς θνητῆς φύσεως· εἶτα ἔφη· Σοῦ μόνου, Κύριε, τὰ ἔτη εἰς γενεὰν καὶ γενεὰν διατείνει· καὶ σὺ ἥξεις εἰς ἐκείνην τὴν γενεὰν, κἀκεῖνον τὸν λαὸν, περὶ ὧν ἀνωτέρω ἐλέγετο· Γραφήτω αὕτη εἰς τὴν γενεὰν ἑτέραν, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Κατ' ἀρχὰς τὴν γῆν σὺ, Κύριε, ἐθεμελίωσας, καὶ ἔργα τῶν χειρῶν σού εἰσιν οἱ οὐρανοί. Αὐτοὶ ἀπολοῦνται, σὺ δὲ διαμένεις. Εἰ μὲν γὰρ οὐ συνῆσθα, φησὶ, κατ' ἀρχὰς, ὦ Κύριε, καὶ εἰ μὴ ἔργα τῶν χειρῶν σου ὑπῆρχον οἱ οὐρανοὶ, οὐχ οἷόν τε ἦν αὐτὰ μετατεθῆναι, οὐδὲ εἰς μεταβολὴν ἐλθεῖν· εἰ γὰρ ἀγένητα ἦν, ἔμειναν ἂν καὶ ἀτελεύτητα· νῦν δὲ, ἐπεὶ ποιητὴς αὐτῶν γέγονας, δυνατὸς εἶ καὶ παραγαγεῖν αὐτὰ θελήσας· φύσεως γὰρ ὑπάρχουσι φθαρτῆς καὶ ἀπολλυμένης· ὅτι, καὶ μὴ πρότερον ὄντα, σῇ βουλῇ καὶ δυνάμει γέγονεν. Ἓν γάρ ἐστι μένον ἀεὶ, καὶ οὔποτε δυνάμενον μὴ εἶναι, δηλαδὴ σὺ αὐτὸς ὁ μόνος τῶν ὅλων ποιητής. Καὶ πάντες ὡς ἱμάτιον παλαιωθήσονται, καὶ ὡσεὶ περιβόλαιον ἑλίξεις αὐτοὺς, καὶ ἑλιχθήσονται. Καὶ οἱ οὐρανοὶ δὲ, εἰ καὶ μέγα καὶ ἐξαίρετόν τι τυγχάνουσι κτίσμα, ἀλλ' ὅμως καὶ αὐτοὶ ὑποβληθήσονται φθορᾷ· ἡ δὲ φθορὰ αὕτη γενήσεται αὐτοῖς εἰς ἀνακαινισμὸν, καὶ συστελεῖς αὐτοὺς εὐχερῶς οὕτως ὡς ἑλίσσει τις περιβόλαιον· ἑλιχθήσονται γὰρ εἰς βέλτιον σχῆμα μεταβαλλόμενοι, καὶ ἀλλαγήσονται, καὶ τροπὴν ἀγαθὴν ὑπομενοῦσι τὴν ἀπὸ τῆς παλαιότητος ἐπὶ τὴν ἀνακαίνισιν καὶ τὴν ἀφθαρσίαν. Σὺ δὲ ὁ αὐτὸς εἶ, καὶ τὰ