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From the same discourse, on the text: "Even if you are Nicodemus, the nocturnal God-fearer, entomb him with myrrh."

Nicodemus is a nocturnal God-fearer and one who entombs the body of Christ with myrrh, who, while strong in thought regarding the full knowledge of Christ, renounces, like a coward, the zealous practice of the commandments out of fear of the Jews (I mean the assaults of the passions or of demons) through sparing of the flesh, for whom it is a great thing for his acceptance even to think rightly of Christ and not to utter blasphemous words.

From the same discourse, on the text: "Even if you are a certain Mary, or the other Mary, or Salome, or Joanna, weep at dawn. Be the first to see the stone taken away, and perhaps also the angels, and Jesus himself."

The first Mary, from whom the Word cast out seven demons, is every practical soul, cleansed through the word of the evangelical commandments from the consternation concerning this age. For this age is hebdomadal, being fulfilled by the revolution of time back upon itself (1380), from which the Word frees his own who are saved, setting them altogether above things under time. But the other Mary is every contemplative soul, which through true knowledge has acquired kinship with the Word by grace. And Salome, which is interpreted as Peace or Most Full, is every soul that is at peace through the casting off of the passions, and through the abundance of practical virtues has subjected the mind of the flesh to the law of the spirit, and through the fullness of the spiritual meanings according to contemplation has wisely comprehended, as far as possible, the knowledge of beings. And Joanna, which is interpreted as dove, the gentle, gall-less, and prolific animal, is every soul that through meekness has put away what is subject to passion, and possesses ardently the spiritual fruitfulness in knowledge. And these weep at dawn, that is, they pour forth tears of knowledge, seeking the most original Word of all virtue and knowledge. And first they see the stone taken away from the door of the monument, that is, the hardness of the obscurity of the Word that lies upon the heart; then the angels, that is, the natural principles of beings in the spirit, silently proclaiming the all-causative Word.

Another contemplation on the angels. Or the words of holy Scripture, concerning Christ as God and man,

that is, concerning theology and the economy, providing them a clearer understanding. For the account says that they saw one at the head, and one at the feet. For at the head is the word of theology on account of the divinity of Christ, and at the feet the word of the economy on account of the incarnation, and one will not err from what is likely in saying that the divinity of Christ is his head, and his humanity his feet.

Another contemplation on the same. Or perhaps the movements according to conscience concerning the word of piety are the

angels, on account of the complete casting off of both vice and ignorance; proclaiming to them intelligibly the resurrection of the Word who was once dead in them through vice. And the end

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Ἐκ τοῦ αὐτοῦ λόγου, εἰς τό· " Κἄν Νικόδημος ᾗς ὁ νυκτερινός θεοσεβής, μύροις αὐτόν ἐνταφίασον. "

Νικόδημός ἐστιν, νυκτερινός θεοσεβής καί μύροις τό σῶμα τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐνταφιάζων, ὁ κατά διάνοιαν μέν ἐῤῥώμενος εἰς τήν ἐπίγνωσιν τοῦ Χριστοῦ, τήν δέ τῆς πράξεως τῶν ἐντολῶν φιλοτιμίαν ὡς δειλός διά τόν φόβον τῶν Ἰουδαίων (λέγω δέ τῶν παθῶν ἤ τῶν δαιμόνων τάς προσβολάς) φειδοῖ τῆς σαρκός παραιτούμενος, ᾧ μέγα πρός ἀποδοχήν κἄν τό καλά φρονεῖν περί Χριστοῦ καί μή βλασφήμους προίεσθαι λόγους.

Ἐκ τοῦ αὐτοῦ λόγου, εἰς τό· " Κἄν Μαρία τις ᾗς, κἄν ἡ ἄλλη Μαρία, κἄν Σαλώμη, κἄν Ἰωάννα, δάκρυσον ὀρθρία. Ἴδε πρώτη τόν λίθον ἠρμένον, τυχόν δέ καί τούς ἀγγέλους, καί Ἰησοῦν αὐτόν. "

Μαρία ἡ πρώτη, ἐξ ἧς ἐκβέβληκεν ὁ λόγος ἑπτά δαιμόνια, ἐστί πᾶσα πρακτική ψυχή, διά τοῦ λόγου τῶν εὐαγγελικῶν ἐντολῶν τῆς περί τόν αἰῶνα τοῦτον καθαρθεῖσα πτοήσεως. Ἑβδοματικός γάρ οὗτος ὁ αἰών, τῇ εἰς ἑαυτόν τοῦ χρόνου περιελίξει (1380) πληρούμενος, οὗτινος ἐλευθεροῖ τούς ἑαυτοῦ διασώτας ὁ Λόγος, πάντως αὐτούς ὑπεράνω τιθείς τῶν ὑπό χρόνον. Ἡ δέ ἄλλη Μαρία ἐστί πᾶσα ψυχή θεωρητική, διά γνώσεως ἀληθοῦς τήν πρός τόν λόγον κατά χάριν κτησαμένη συγγένειαν. Σαλώμη δέ ἐστιν, ἥτις ἑρμηνεύεται Εἰρήνη ἤ Πληρεστάτη, πᾶσα ψυχή διά μέν τῆς ἀποβολῆς τῶν παθῶν εἰρηνεύουσα, καί τῇ περιουσίᾳ τῶν πρακτικῶν ἀρετῶν τό φρόνημα τῆς σαρκός καθυποτάξασα τῷ νόμῳ τοῦ πνεύματος, διά δέ τῆς πληρώσεως τῶν κατά θεωρίαν πνευματικῶν νοημάτων τήν τῶν ὄντων γῶσιν κατά τό δυνατόν σοφῶς περιλαβοῦσα. Ἰωάννα δέ ἐστιν, ἥτις ἑρμηνεύεται περιστερά, τό πρᾶον ζῶον καί ἄχολον καί πολύγονον, πᾶσα ψυχή διά πραότητος τό ἐμπαθές ἀποθεμένη, καί τήν ἐν γνώσει πολυγονίαν τοῦ πνεύματος διάπυρον ἔχουσα. Αὗται δέ δακρύουσιν ὄρθριαι, τουτέστι δάκρυα προχέουσι γνωστικά, ζητοῦσαι τόν πάσης ἀρετῆς τε καί γνώσεως ἀρχικώτατον Λόγον. Καί πρῶτον ὁρῶσι τόν λίθον ἐκ τῆς θύρας ἠρμένον τοῦ μνημείου, τουτέστι τήν ἐπικειμένην τῇ καρδίᾳ τῆς ἀσαφείας τοῦ Λόγου πώρωσιν· εἶτα τούς ἀγγέλους, τουτέστι τούς ἐν πνεύματι τῶν ὄντων φυσικούς λόγους, σιωπῇ κηρύττοντας τόν παναίτιον Λόγον.

Ἄλλο θεώρημα εἰς τούς ἀγγέλους. Ἤ τούς λόγους τῆς ἀγίας Γραφῆς, τήν περί τοῦ Χριστοῦ ὡς Θεοῦ καί ἀνθρώπου,

ἤγουν τήν περί θεολογίας καί οἰκονομίας, τρανοτέραν αὐταῖς παρεχομένους ἔννοιαν. Ἕνα γάρ φησίν ὁ λόγος αὐτάς ἑωρακέναι πρός τῇ κεφαλῇ, καί ἕνα πρός τοῖς ποσί. Πρός τῆ κεφαλῇ γάρ εἶναι τόν τῆς θεολογίας λόγον διά τήν θεότητα τοῦ Χριστοῦ, πρός δέ τοῖς ποσί τόν τῆς οἰκονομίας διά τήν σάρκωσιν, καί Χριστοῦ μέν κεφαλήν τήν θεότητα αὐτοῦ, πόδας δέ τήν ἀνθρωπότητα αὐτοῦ λέγων τις τοῦ εἰκότος οὐχ ἁμαρτήσεται.

Ἄλλο θεώρημα εἰς τούς αὐτούς. Ἤ τυχόν τάς κατά συνείδησιν περί τόν λόγον τῆς εὐσεβείας κινήσεις εἶναι τούς

ἀγγέλους, διά τήν παντελῆ τῆς κακίας τε καί ἀγνωσίας ἀποβολήν· κηρύττουσας αὐταῖς νοητῶς τοῦ ποτέ διά κακίαν ἐν αὐταῖς νεκρωθέντος Λόγου τήν ἀνάστασιν. Καί τέλος