Selecta in Exodum

ORIGEN’S SELECTIONS ON EXODUS. 12.281 "And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. And when you go, you shall not go empty." This promise was previously given to Abraham; "Afterward, says God, they will come out from here with possessions." "And Pharaoh's heart was strong, and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had commanded them. And the Lord said to Moses: Pharaoh's heart is heavy, so that he will not let the people go." The phrase, "Pharaoh's heart is heavy," spoken by the Lord after Aaron's staff turned into a serpent and swallowed the staffs of the magicians, is worth examining, to see if it is different from the phrase, "Pharaoh's heart was hardened," which is often said, and from, "was strong." For this too is said thus, "And Pharaoh's heart was strong, and he did not listen to them as the Lord had spoken." It seems to me that the heart which yields to divine things is softened and does not have the strength to resist the divinity, and is not weighed down, nor is it drawn 12.284 down to earth and matter; but the one that resists and opposes the divine will is hardened and resists like a stone, and rejects the word, and out of madness resists with a certain falsely named strength. It is necessary for such a heart, being dragged down by wickedness which has a downward tendency, to be weighed down. Nevertheless, these things do not happen to the heart in the same sense, even if it has happened to one and the same worthless heart to be strong and to be weighed down. For, as it has been said somewhere, the heart becomes stony and is hardened; but it does not yield to the divine nature as to something better; but standing up to fight against God it is said to be strong against it. "And Moses said to him, As soon as I have gone out of the city, I will spread out my hands to the Lord, and the thunders will cease, and the hail, and the rain will be no more." For the creator of all has nature yielding to his command. From the same. It should be noted that Moses does not work all his wonders with the staff, but also with his hands and with a word, so that the many may not think the staff is worked by magical deceptions. "Let each one take a lamb according to the houses of their fathers;" and so on. He says to take a lamb on the tenth and keep it until the 14th; and to name it, saying, This lamb is sacrificed for so-and-so and so-and-so; not exceeding 10 names; and on the 14th it is sacrificed between the two evenings, at the beginning of the 15th; so that there are 5 days from the taking until the sacrifice, when the light of the moon is full. "Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year." The lamb of the first year is Christ. For to be lacking in nothing nor to have any defect is shown by the "of the first year." "And the whole assembly of the congregation of the sons of Israel shall kill it in the evening." We are commanded to kill the lamb in the evening, because at the last hour the Savior, our true lamb, came into the world. "And they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses;" and so on. And we sacrifice, and we anoint our houses with the blood; I mean the body, if indeed the anointing is the faith in him, through which I believe the power of the destroyer is abolished. And after we are anointed, that is, after we believe in Christ, then we are commanded to come to the eating; neither raw, nor boiled in water, but roasted with fire. "Whoever eats anything leavened, that soul shall be cut off from Israel." A man will be cut off on account of leaven; and God of all, who delivers the laws, as he destroys an adulterer, as he destroys a fornicator, as he destroys a corrupter of children, so he destroys the one who has leaven in his house on the day of unleavened bread. Is this according to God? this according to law

Selecta in Exodum

ΩΡΙΓΕΝΟΥΣ ΕΚΛΟΓΑΙ ΕΙΣ ΤΗΝ ΕΞΟ∆ΟΝ. 12.281 «Καὶ δώσω χάριν τῷ λαῷ τούτῳ ἐνώπιον τῶν Αἰγυπτίων. Ὅταν δὲ ἀποτρέχοιτε, οὐκ ἀπελεύσεσθε κενοί.» Αὕτη ἡ ἐπαγγελία τῷ Ἀβραὰμ προεδέδοτο· «Μετὰ ταῦτα, λέγοντος τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἐξελεύσονται ὧδε μετὰ ἀποσκευῆς.» «Καὶ κατίσχυσεν ἡ καρδία Φαραὼ, καὶ οὐκ εἰσή κουσεν αὐτῶν, καθάπερ ἐνετείλατο αὐτοῖς Κύριος. Εἶπε δὲ Κύριος πρὸς Μωϋσῆν· Βεβάρυται ἡ καρδία Φαραὼ, τοῦ μὴ ἐξαποστεῖλαι τὸν λαόν.» Τὸ, «Βεβά ρυται ἡ καρδία Φαραὼ,» λεγόμενον ὑπὸ τοῦ Κυρίου, μετὰ τὴν μεταβαλοῦσαν εἰς δράκοντα ῥάβδον τοῦ Ἀα ρὼν, καὶ καταπιοῦσαν τὰς τῶν Μάγων ῥάβδους, ἄξιον ἰδεῖν, εἰ ἕτερόν ἐστι τοῦ, «ἐσκληρύνθαι τὴν καρδίαν Φαραώ,» λεγομένου πολλάκις, καὶ τοῦ, «κατισχυκέναι.» Καὶ γὰρ καὶ τοῦτο οὕτως εἴρηται, «Καὶ κατίσχυσεν ἡ καρδία Φαραὼ, καὶ οὐκ εἰσήκουσεν αὐτῶν καθὼς ἐλάλησε Κύριος.» ∆οκεῖ δέ μοι ἡ μὲν ἐνδιδοῦσα καρ δία πρὸς τὰ θεῖα, ἁπαλύνεσθαι καὶ μὴ ἰσχύειν ἀνθί στασθαι τῇ θειότητι, καὶ μὴ βαρύνεσθαι, μηδὲ ἕλκε 12.284 σθαι κάτω εἰς γῆν καὶ ὕλην· ἡ δὲ ἀντιτείνουσα καὶ ἐναντιουμένη τῷ θείῳ βουλήματι, σκληρύνεσθαι καὶ ἀντιτυπεῖν δίκην λίθου, καὶ ἀποκρούεσθαι τὸν λόγον, καὶ κατ' ἀπόνοιαν ἀνθίστασθαι μετά τινος ψευδωνύ μου ἰσχύος. Ἀνάγκη δὲ τὴν τοιαύτην καρδίαν καθελ κομένην ὑπὸ τῆς κακίας οὔσης κατωφεροῦς, βαρύ νεσθαι. Οὐ μὴν κατὰ τὴν αὐτὴν διάνοιαν ταῦτα τῇ καρδίᾳ συμβαίνει, εἰ καὶ μιᾷ καὶ τῇ αὐτῇ συμβέ βηκε φαύλῃ οὔσῃ τὸ κατισχύειν καὶ τὸ βαρύνεσθαι. Ἡ μὲν γὰρ, ὡς εἴρηταί που, λιθίνη γίνεται ἡ καρ δία καὶ σκληρύνεται· ἡ δὲ οὐ παραχωρεῖ ὡς κρείτ τονι τῇ θείᾳ φύσει· ἀλλὰ θεομαχεῖν ἱσταμένη κατ' αὐτῆς καὶ ἰσχύειν λέγεται. «Εἶπε δὲ αὐτῷ Μωϋσῆς, Ὡς ἂν ἐξέλθω τὴν πόλιν, ἐκπετάσω τὰς χεῖράς μου πρὸς Κύριον, καὶ αἱ φω ναὶ παύσονται, καὶ ἡ χάλαζα, καὶ ὁ ὑετὸς οὐκέτι ἔσται.» Ὁ γὰρ πάντων δημιουργὸς πρὸς τὴν κέλευ σιν τὴν φύσιν εἴκουσαν ἔχει. Τοῦ αὐτοῦ. Σημειωτέον ὅτι οὐ πάντα τῇ ῥά βδῳ τερατουργεῖ Μωϋσῆς, ἀλλὰ καὶ χερσὶ καὶ λόγῳ, ἵνα μὴ τὴν ῥάβδον μαγικαῖς ἀπάταις τελεῖσθαι οἱ πολλοὶ νομίσωσι. «Λαβέτωσαν ἕκαστος πρόβατον κατ' οἴκους πα τριῶν·» καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Ἀπὸ τῆς δεκάτης φησὶ λαμ βάνειν πρόβατον καὶ τρέφειν ἕως ιδʹ· καὶ ἐπονομά σαι λέγοντας, Τοῦτο τὸ πρόβατον θύεται ὑπὲρ τοῦδε καὶ τοῦδε· οὐχ ὑπερβαινόντων αὐτῶν ιʹ ὀνομάτων· καὶ τῇ ιδʹ θύεται ἀνάμεσον τῶν ἑσπερινῶν, ἀρχο μένης τῆς ιεʹ· ὡς γίνεσθαι ἀπὸ τῆς λήψεως μέχρι τῆς θύσεως ἡμέρας εʹ, ὅτε πλῆρές ἐστι τῆς σελήνης τὸ φῶς. «Πρόβατον τέλειον, ἄρσεν, ἐνιαύσιον ἔσται ὑμῖν.» Ἐνιαύσιον πρόβατον ὁ Χριστός ἐστι. Τὸ γὰρ ἐν μη δενὶ ὑστερεῖσθαι μηδὲ ἐλλιπές τι ἔχειν διὰ τοῦ ἐνιαυ τοῦ δηλοῦται. «Καὶ σφάξουσιν αὐτὸ πᾶν τὸ πλῆθος συναγωγῆς υἱῶν Ἰσραὴλ πρὸς ἑσπέραν.» Πρὸς ἑσπέραν δὲ κε λευόμεθα σφάξαι τὸ πρόβατον, ἐπειδὴ καὶ ἐσχάτῃ ὥρᾳ τὸ ἀληθινὸν ἡμῶν πρόβατον εἰς τὸν κόσμον ἦλθεν ὁ Σωτήρ. «Καὶ λήψονται ἀπὸ τοῦ αἵματος, καὶ θήσουσιν ἐπὶ τῶν δύο σταθμῶν, καὶ ἐπὶ τὴν φλιὰν, ἐν τοῖς οἴκοις·» καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Θύομεν δὲ, καὶ χρίομεν τοὺς οἴκους ἡ μῶν τῷ αἵματι· λέγω δὲ τὸ σῶμα, εἴπερ χρίσις πί στις ἐστὶν ἡ εἰς αὐτὸν, δι' ἧς πιστεύω τὴν τοῦ ὀλο θρευτοῦ δύναμιν καταργουμένην. Μετὰ δὲ τὸ χρισθῆ ναι ἡμᾶς, τουτέστι πιστεῦσαι εἰς τὸν Χριστὸν, τότε καὶ ἐπὶ τὴν βρῶσιν ἔρχεσθαι κελευόμεθα· μήτε δὲ ὠμὰ, μήτε ἑψημένα ἐν ὕδατι, ἀλλ' ὀπτὰ πυρί. «Πᾶς ὃς ἂν φάγῃ ζύμην, ἐξολοθρευθήσεται ἡ ψυ χὴ ἐκείνη ἐξ Ἰσραήλ.» Ἐξολοθρευθήσεται ἄνθρωπος ἕνεκεν ζύμης· καὶ ὁ τῶν ὅλων Θεὸς ὁ χρηματίζων τοὺς νόμους, ὡς ὀλοθρεύει μοιχὸν, ὡς ὀλοθρεύει πόρ νον, ὡς ὀλοθρεύει παιδοφθόρον, οὕτως ὀλοθρεύει τὸν ἔχοντα ζύμην ἐν τῇ οἰκίᾳ αὐτοῦ ἐν τῇ τῶν ἀζύμων ἡμέρᾳ. Τοῦτο κατὰ Θεόν ἐστι; τοῦτο κατὰ νόμον