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she will die, acting in accordance with his 23.1265 mercy, having given the blood of the Only-begotten as a ransom for you to death, he redeemed you; fourth, using his own love for humanity and mercy and compassion, since no one is justified by works, he crowned you with the gift of adoption. And simply, he has gifted you the forgiveness of sins, he has gifted you the healing of the passions, the hope of the resurrection, the pledge of the Spirit, and he clothed you with the tunic of incorruptibility, and has saved you by grace. For the crown is of grace and love for humanity. And all these things are the bridegroom's bridal gifts and presents; for the bride has brought only faith. Not only that, but he has also filled you with spiritual goods, or even fulfilled your desire for good things, he who forbids a cold soul, but gives good things to those who ask him. But if you wish to see sufferings and sins being loosed at the same time, you have the paralytic who enjoyed this double grace; for he heard, Your sins are forgiven you, and, Take up your pallet; thus the sinful woman obtained forgiveness, the thief, the tax collectors, simply all who believed. Who satisfies your desire with good things, so that your youth is renewed like an eagle's; so that it is renewed, having put off the old man, and receiving the new man, who is being renewed into the knowledge of him who created him. Thus, he says, your youth will be renewed, so as no longer to grow old, nor to proceed again to corruption, but to always remain in being young in incorruptible life. And since the eagle is the most royal of birds, but also flies the highest, and alone of animals is able to face the flashes of the sun's light, and to look at it intently, he fittingly compared the renewal of the soul, and its flight from earth to heaven, and its life that will be in the highest light, to the nature of an eagle. The Lord performs merciful deeds, and judgment for all the oppressed, he made known his ways to Moses, his wills to the sons of Israel. And from the same Scripture of Moses you will learn what kind of judgments he provided for the oppressed; for with a just judgment he pursued the Egyptians, punishing them with divinely sent plagues on behalf of the same oppressed sons of Israel. The Lord is compassionate and merciful, long-suffering and full of mercy, he will not be angry to the end, nor will he be wrathful forever. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor repaid us according to our iniquities. For according to the height of heaven from the earth, the Lord has made his mercy mighty upon those who fear him. As far as the east is from the west, he has removed our iniquities from us. As a father has compassion on his sons, the Lord has had compassion on those who fear him, for he knows our frame. Remember that we are dust; man, his days are like grass; as a flower of the field, so he will blossom. 23.1268 For a spirit has passed through it, and it will be no more, and it will no longer know its place. Just as from the darkness of ignorance of sins he has transferred us to the light of his knowledge; and he did these things as a good father having compassion on maddened sons, and taking up greater pity on children who are in a bad state; in the same way he himself had compassion on us, making us pious and fearing him from being godless and without fear. But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon those who fear him; and his righteousness upon sons of sons, to those who keep his covenant, and are mindful of his commandments, to do them. Similar also is the saying, Showing mercy to those who love me. For the mercy of the Lord extends, and his spouse, righteousness, to every generation upon those who fear him and their sons, that is, those who are zealous for his works, those not simply mindful of

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αὐτὴ ἀποθανεῖται, ἀκόλουθα τῷ 23.1265 αὐτοῦ πράττων ἐλέῳ, λύτρα δοὺς ὑπὲρ σοῦ τῷ θανάτῳ τὸ τοῦ Μονογενοῦς αἷμα, ἐλυτρώσατο· τέταρτον, οἰκείᾳ φιλανθρωπίᾳ καὶ ἐλέει καὶ οἰκτιρμοῖς χρώμενος, ἐπεὶ ἐξ ἔργων οὐδεὶς δικαιοῦται, ἐστεφάνωσέ σε τῷ τῆς υἱοθεσίας χαρίσματι. Καὶ ἁπλῶς οὗτός σοι δεδώρηται τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων τὴν ἄφεσιν, οὗτός σοι δεδώρηται τῶν παθῶν τὴν ἴασιν, τῆς ἀναστάσεως τὴν ἐλπίδα, τὸν ἀῤῥαβῶνα τοῦ Πνεύματος, καὶ τὸν τῆς ἀφθαρσίας χιτῶνα ἐνέδυσε, καὶ χάριτι σέσωκε. Χάριτος γὰρ καὶ φιλανθρωπίας ὁ στέφανος. Καὶ ταῦτα πάντα ἕδνα τοῦ νυμφίου καὶ δῶρα· πίστιν γὰρ ἡ νύμφη προσενήνοχε μόνον. Οὐ μόνον δὲ, ἀλλὰ καὶ πνευματικῶν ἀγαθῶν σε ἐνέπλησεν, ἢ καὶ τὴν ἐν ἀγαθοῖς ἐπιθυμίαν σου ἐπλήρωσεν, ὃς τήν γε ψυκτὴν ψυχὴν ἀπαγορεύει, δίδωσι δὲ ἀγαθὰ τοῖς αἰτοῦσιν αὐτόν. Εἰ δὲ βούλει κατὰ ταὐτὸν ἰδεῖν παθήματα καὶ ἁμαρτήματα λυόμενα, ἔχεις τὸν παράλυτον τῆς διπλῆς ταύτης ἀπολαύσαντα χάριτος· ἤκουσε γὰρ, Ἀφέωνταί σοι αἱ ἁμαρτίαι σου, καὶ, Ἆρον τὸν κράββατόν σου· οὕτως ἡ ἁμαρτωλὸς γυνὴ τετύχηκε τῆς ἀφέσεως, ὁ λῃστὴς, οἱ τελῶναι, ἀπλῶς ἅπαντες οἱ πιστεύσαντες. Τὸν ἐμπιμπλῶντα ἐν ἀγαθοῖς τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν σου, ἀνακαινισθήσεται ὡς ἀετοῦ ἡ νεότης σου· ὥστε ἀνακαινίζεσθαι αὐτὴν τὸν παλαιὸν ἀποθεμένην ἄνθρωπον, τὸν δὲ νέον, τὸν ἀνακαινούμενον εἰς ἐπίγνωσιν τοῦ κτίσαντος αὐτὸν, λαμβάνουσαν. Οὕτω δὲ, φησὶν, ἡ νεότης σου ἀνακαινισθήσεται, ὡς μηκέτι παλαιοῦσθαι, μηδὲ εἰς φθορὰν αὖθις χωρεῖν, ἀεὶ δὲ παραμένειν ἐν τῷ νεάζειν ἐν τῇ ἀφθάρτῳ ζωῇ. Ἐπεὶ δὲ ὁ ἀετὸς τῶν ὀρνέων ἐστὶ βασιλικώτατον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὑψιπετέστατος, μόνος δὲ ζώων ἡλίου φωτὸς μαρμαρυγαῖς ἀντωπεῖν δυνατὸς, καὶ ἀτενὲς ἀφορᾷν αὐτῷ, εἰκότως τὴν ἀνανέωσιν τῆς ψυχῆς, καὶ τὴν ἀπὸ γῆς εἰς οὐρανὸν πτῆσιν, καὶ τὸν βίον αὐτῆς τὸν ἐν ἄκρῳ φωτὶ γενησόμενον, ἀετοῦ φύσει παρέβαλε. Ποιῶν ἐλεημοσύνας ὁ Κύριος, καὶ κρίμα πᾶσι τοῖς ἀδικουμένοις, ἐγνώρισε τὰς ὁδοὺς αὐτοῦ τῷ Μωσῇ, τοῖς υἱοῖς Ἰσραὴλ τὰ θελήματα αὐτοῦ. Ἐκ τῆς αὐτῆς δὲ Μωσέως Γραφῆς μαθήσῃ ὁποῖα κρίματα παρέσχε τοῖς ἀδικουμένοις· κρίσει γὰρ δικαίᾳ μετῆλθε τοὺς Αἰγυπτίους, πληγαῖς θεηλάτοις κολάσας αὐτοὺς ὑπὲρ τῶν αὐτῶν ἠδικημένων υἱῶν Ἰσραήλ. Οἰκτίρμων καὶ ἐλεήμων ὁ Κύριος, μακρόθυμος καὶ πολυέλεος, οὐκ εἰς τέλος ὀργισθήσεται, οὐδὲ εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα μηνιεῖ. Οὐ κατὰ τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἡμῶν ἐποίησεν ἡμῖν, οὐδὲ κατὰ τὰς ἀνομίας ἡμῶν ἀνταπέδωκεν ἡμῖν. Ὅτι κατὰ τὸ ὕψος τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς ἐκραταίωσε Κύριος τὸ ἔλεος αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τοὺς φοβουμένους αὐτόν. Καθόσον ἀπέχουσιν ἀνατολαὶ ἀπὸ δυσμῶν, ἐμάκρυνεν ἀφ' ἡμῶν τὰς ἀνομίας ἡμῶν. Καθὼς οἰκτείρει πατὴρ υἱοὺς, ᾠκτείρησε Κύριος τοὺς φοβουμένους αὐτὸν, ὅτι αὐτὸς ἔγνω τὸ πλάσμα ἡμῶν. Μνήσθητι ὅτι χοῦς ἐσμεν· ἄνθρωπος, ὡσεὶ χόρτος αἱ ἡμέραι αὐτοῦ· ὡσεὶ ἄνθος τοῦ ἀγροῦ, οὕτως ἐξανθήσει. 23.1268 Ὅτι πνεῦμα διῆλθεν ἐν αὐτῷ, καὶ οὐχ ὑπάρξει, καὶ οὐκ ἐπιγνώσεται ἔτι τὸν τόπον αὐτοῦ. Ὥσπερ ἀπὸ σκότους τῆς τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων ἀγνοίας ἐπὶ τὸ φῶς τῆς αὐτοῦ γνώσεως μετεστήσατο ἡμᾶς· καὶ ταῦτα ἔπραξεν ὡς ἀγαθὸς πατὴρ σπλαγχνιζόμενος ἐπὶ υἱοῖς μεμηνόσι, καὶ ἐπὶ κακῶς διακειμένοις τέκνοις μείζονα οἶκτον ἀναλαβών· τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον καὶ αὐτὸς ᾠκτείρησεν ἡμᾶς, ἐξ ἀθέων καὶ ἀφόβων εὐσεβεῖς καὶ φοβουμένους αὐτὸν ἀπεργασάμενος. Τὸ ἔλεος δὲ τοῦ Κυρίου ἀπὸ τοῦ αἰῶνος καὶ ἕως τοῦ αἰῶνος ἐπὶ τοὺς φοβουμένους αὐτόν· καὶ ἡ δικαιοσύνη αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τοὺς υἱοὺς τῶν υἱῶν, τοῖς φυλάσσουσι τὴν διαθήκην αὐτοῦ, καὶ μεμνημένοις τῶν ἐντολῶν αὐτοῦ, τοῦ ποιῆσαι αὐτάς. Ὅμοιον καὶ τὸ, Ποιῶν ἔλεος τοῖς ἀγαπῶσί με. Παρατείνει γὰρ τὸ ἔλεος Κυρίου, καὶ ἡ σύζυγος αὐτοῦ δικαιοσύνη, εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν γενεὰν ἐπὶ τοὺς φοβουμένους αὐτὸν καὶ τοὺς υἱοὺς αὐτῶν, τουτέστι τοὺς τῶν ἔργων αὐτοῦ ζηλωτὰς, τοὺς οὐχ ἁπλῶς μεμνημένους τῶν