The Eternal Priest and the Spiritual Priests
Nor is it endured to what extent he is left behind. And to say collectively, all those approaching the Savior turn about in the midst of those standing always and continuously in holiness to share in him. One of those turning about in this way sang to the King of all: 'Against angels I will sing to you.' (Zach. III, 8-9: 'Hear, then, O Jesus, the great priest, you and those near you and those sitting before your face, because they are men of wonders. For I am bringing my servant to the east, because upon the stone which I gave before the face of Jesus, upon the one stone, seven eyes are.')
The angel testifying to Jesus, the great priest, says these things: 'Hear, you, Jesus, being the great priest; and let those near you and those sitting before your face hear also, men of wonderscall my servant to the east, because upon the stone which I gave before the face of Jesus, seven eyes are upon it.'
The great priest Jesus, who was previously given according to the order of the priesthood of Melchizedek, concerning whom the Apostle writes to the Hebrews: 'Therefore, holy brothers, partakers of a heavenly calling, understand the apostle and high priest of our confession, Jesus, being faithful to him who made him' (Heb. 3:1).
And see that those able to understand how faithful he is to him who made him, the apostle and high priest of our confession, are found to be holy, partaking of a heavenly calling. For it is not for everyone to see how faithful he is to him who made him, the apostle and priest Jesus, but only for him who is able to speak in all things with wisdom to the perfect, he who is able to say: 'I have seen Jesus' with the eyes of my heart enlightened toward the true light.
Therefore, those not partaking of the heavenly calling are negligent, and from this word they themselves are deceived, having been misled, saying the Son of God is a creature and a worktlessly, taking 'him who made him' to mean creation and production into being, the writer of the epistle not intending this. For to become the faithful apostle and high priest is made manifest as certain and immovable to be apostle and priest; for one is not always apostle and priest.
He is Jesus, but from the time when those to whom he is sent and for whom he intercedes exist, through whom the descent here has happened of the one sent by the Father, when 'bending heaven he descended' (Ps 18:4) to those to whom he was sent and of whom he is priest.
Many scriptures signify the certain and unshakeable through the faithful. For that which is said about God: 'All his commandments are faithful, established for an age of ages' (Ps 89:35), and that: 'I will give you the faithful blessings of David' (2 Sam 7:12), and even that: 'I will raise for myself a faithful priest' (Ps 110:4), declare the certain and unchangeable, of the commandments of God existing faithful according to the spiritual law because of the unchangeable, and of the commandments according to the shadow of the law being transferred from the letter to the spirit and from the shadow to the truth.
By this theory also are those of the true David, in whom the Savior is according to man, whose faithful blessings are to remain forever, the words of him remaining even if heaven and earth pass away; therefore also a faithful priest exists, having an unshakeable priesthood for the age, becoming and having been shown according to the order of Melchizedek. To this great priest the angel of the Lord says: 'Hear then, O Jesus, the great priest, you and those near you' (Zech 6:5), the spiritual priests, those having been appointed under you being high priest, to whom also in Isaiah it is said they are righteous ones: 'But you shall be called priests, servants of God' (Isa 61:6). And they possess this promise especially, those who through all-pervading holiness in celibacy serve God.
Not only, however, do these hear of the angel with Jesus the great priest, but also those sitting before his face. These are those in the regeneration according to the resurrection of the dead sitting before the face of the Savior, being judge and king, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
These who hear the divine words of the angel with Jesus are not others than the apostles; being near him and sitting before his face, they are not found to be infants or children, but perfect men having encountered the perfect man of the fullness of the knowledge of the Son of God. Therefore also they are observers of wonders, wisely attending to the wondrous powers of...
Greek
οὐδὲ κατὰ ποσὸν αὐτοῦ ἀπολείπεσθαι ἀνεχομένη. Καὶ συλλήβδην εἰπεῖν πάντες οἱ τῷ Σωτῆρι πλησιάζοντες τῷ μετέχειν αὐτοῦ ἀναστρέφονται ἀνὰ μέσον τῶν ἀεὶ καὶ διηνεκῶς ἑστηκότων ἐν ἁγιότητι. Εἷς τῶν οὕτως ἀναστρεφομένων ὑμνῶν τὸν παμβασιλέα ἀνεφθέγξατο· «Ἐναντίον ἀγγέλων ψαλῶ σοι.» 1.237 Zach. III, 8®9: Ἄκουε δή, Ἰησοῦ ὁ ἱερεὺς ὁ μέγας, σὺ καὶ οἱ πλησίον σου καὶ οἱ καθήμενοι πρὸ προσώπου σου, διότι ἄνδρες τερατοσκόποι εἰσίν. ∆ιότι ἰδοὺ ἄγω τὸν δοῦλόν μου ἀνατολήν, διότι ὁ λίθος ὃν ἔδωκα πρὸ προσώπου Ἰησοῦ, ἐπὶ τὸν λίθον τὸν ἕνα ἑπτὰ ὀφθαλμοί εἰσιν. 1.238 Ὁ διαμαρτυρόμενος ἄγγελος Κυρίου τῷ Ἰησοῦ τῷ μεγάλῳ ἱερεῖ τάδε φησίν· Ἄκουε σύ, Ἰησοῦ, ὁ μέγας ἱερεὺς ὤν· ἀκουέτωσαν δὲ καὶ οἱ πλησίον σου καὶ οἱ καθήμενοι πρὸ προσώπου σου, τερατοσκόποι ἄνδρες ὄντες, ὅτι ἐγὼ καλῶ τὸν δοῦλόν μου ἀνατολήν, ὅτι ἐπὶ τὸν λίθον ὃν ἔδωκα πρὸ προσώπου Ἰησοῦ ἑπτὰ ὀφθαλμοί εἰσιν αὐτοῦ. 1.239 Ἱερεὺς μέγας Ἰησοῦς ἐν τοῖς πρότερον ἀποδέδοται ὁ κατὰ τὴν τάξιν Μελχισεδὲκ ἱερατεύων, περὶ οὗ Ἑβραίοις ἐπιστέλλων ὁ Ἀπόστολος γράφει· «Ὅθεν, ἀδελφοὶ ἅγιοι, κλήσεως ἐπουρανίου μέτοχοι, κατανοήσατε τὸν ἀπόστολον καὶ ἀρχιερέα τῆς ὁμολογίας ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦν, πιστὸν ὄντα τῷ ποιήσαντι αὐτόν.» 1.240 Καὶ ὅρα ὅτι οἱ δυνάμενοι κατανοεῖν ὡς πιστός ἐστιν τῷ ποιήσαντι αὐτὸν ὁ ἀπόστολος καὶ ἀρχιερεὺς τῆς ὁμολογίας ἡμῶν ἅγιοι τυγχάνουσιν, κλήσεως ἐπουρανίου μετέχοντες. Οὐ γὰρ παντός ἐστι θεωρεῖν πῶς πιστός ἐστιν τῷ ποιήσαντι αὐτὸν ἀπόστολος καὶ ἱερεὺς Ἰησοῦς, ἀλλὰ μόνου καὶ παντὸς τοῦ σοφίαν δυναμένου λαλεῖν ἐν τοῖς τελείοις, τοῦ δυναμένου φάναι· «Ἰησοῦν ἑώρακα» τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς τῆς καρδίας μου πεφωτισμένοις πρὸς τοῦ ἀληθινοῦ φωτός. 1.241 Ἀμέλει γοῦν οἱ κλήσεως ἐπουρανίου μὴ μετέχοντες, καὶ ἐκ τῆς λέξεως ταύτης ἀπατῶσιν καὶ αὐτοὶ προηπατημένοι, κτίσμα καὶ ποίημα λέγοντες εἶναι τὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ Υἱόν. Σφάλλονται δὲ ἀνοήτως οἱ ἠλίθιοι, τὸ «ποιήσαντα αὐτὸν» ἐπὶ δημιουργίας καὶ τῆς εἰς τὸ εἶναι παραγωγῆς λαμβάνοντες, τοῦ γράψαντος τὴν ἐπιστολὴν οὐ βουλομένου τοῦτο. 1.242 Τὸ γὰρ πιστὸν ἀπόστολον καὶ ἀρχιερέα γίνεσθαι φανεροῖ βέβαιον καὶ ἀμετακίνητον ἀπόστολον καὶ ἱερέα ἀποδείκνυσθαι· οὐ γὰρ ἀεὶ ἀπόστολος καὶ ἱερεὺς Ἰησοῦς ἐστιν, ἀλλ' ἀφ' οὗ ὑπάρχουσιν οἱ πρὸς οὓς ἀποστέλλεται καὶ ὑπὲρ ὧν ἱερᾶται, οἷς καὶ δι' οὓς ἡ δεῦρο κάθοδος γέγονεν τοῦ ἀποσταλέντος ὑπὸ τοῦ Πατρός, ὅτε «κλίνας οὐρανὸν κατέβη» πρὸς οὓς ἀπεστάλη καὶ ὧν ἱερεύς ἐστιν. 1.243 Πολλαὶ δέ εἰσιν γραφαὶ διὰ τοῦ πιστοῦ σημαίνουσαι τὸ βέβαιον καὶ ἀκράδαντον· τὸ γὰρ περὶ Θεοῦ λεγόμενον ὅτι· «Πισταὶ πᾶσαι αἱ ἐντολαὶ αὐτοῦ, ἐστεριγμέναι εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ 24 αἰῶνος», καὶ τό· «∆ώσω ὑμῖν τὰ ὅσια ∆αυὶδ τὰ πιστά», ἔτι μὴν καὶ τό· «Ἀναστήσω ἐμαυτῷ ἱερέα πιστόν», τὸ βέβαιον καὶ ἀμετάθετον δηλοῦσιν, τῶν κατὰ τὸν πνευματικὸν νόμον ἐντολῶν τοῦ Θεοῦ πιστῶν ὑπαρχουσῶν διὰ τὸ ἀμετάθετον, τῶν κατὰ τὴν σκιὰν τοῦ νόμου ἐντολῶν μετατιθεμένων ἐκ τοῦ γράμματος ἐπὶ τὸ πνεῦμα καὶ ἐκ τῆς σκιᾶς ἐπὶ τὴν ἀλήθειαν. 1.244 Ταύτῃ τῇ θεωρίᾳ καὶ τὰ τοῦ ἀληθινοῦ ∆αυίδ, τοῦ τῇ χειρὶ ἱκανοῦ, ὁ Σωτὴρ κατὰ τὸν ἄνθρωπόν ἐστιν, οὗ τὰ ὅσια πιστά ἐστιν τῷ ἀεὶ μένειν, μενόντων τῶν λόγων αὐτοῦ κἂν ὁ οὐρανὸς καὶ ἡ γῆ παρέλθωσιν· διὸ καὶ ἱερεὺς πιστὸς ὑπάρχει, ἀπαράβατον ἱερωσύνην ἔχων εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα, κατὰ τὴν τάξιν Μελχισεδὲκ τυγχάνων καὶ ἀποδειχθείς. 1.245 Τούτῳ τῷ μεγάλῳ ἱερεῖ ὁ ἄγγελος Κυρίου λέγει· «Ἄκουε δή, Ἰησοῦ ὁ ἱερεὺς ὁ μέγας, σὺ καὶ οἱ πλησίον σου» οἱ πνευματικῶς ἱερεῖς, οἱ τεταγμένοι ὑπὸ σὲ ἀρχιερέα ὄντα, πρὸς οὓς καὶ ἐν Ἠσαίᾳ λέγεται δικαίους ὄντας· «Ὑμεῖς δὲ κληθήσεσθε ἱερεῖς λειτουργοὶ Θεοῦ.» Ἔχουσιν δὲ ταύτην τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν μάλιστα οἱ διὰ παντελοῦς ἁγνείας τῆς ἐν ἀγαμίᾳ θεραπεύοντες Θεόν. 1.246 Οὐ μόνον δὲ οὗτοι ἀκούουσιν τοῦ ἀγγέλου σὺν τῷ Ἰησοῦ τῷ ἱερεῖ τῷ μεγάλῳ, ἀλλὰ καὶ οἱ καθήμενοι πρὸ προσώπου αὐτοῦ. Οὗτοι δ' εἰσὶν οἱ ἐν τῇ παλιγγενεσίᾳ τῇ κατὰ τὴν ἀνάστασιν τῶν νεκρῶν καθήμενοι πρὸ προσώπου τοῦ Σωτῆρος, κριτοῦ καὶ βασιλέως ὄντος, κρίνοντες τὰς δώδεκα φυλὰς τοῦ Ἰσραήλ. 1.247 Οὐχ ἕτεροι δὲ τῶν ἀποστόλων οὗτοι οἱ ἀκούοντες σὺν τῷ Ἰησοῦ τῶν θείων λόγων τοῦ ἀγγέλου· πλησίον ὄντες αὐτοῦ καὶ οἱ καθήμενοι πρὸ προσώπου αὐτοῦ, οὐ νήπιοι οὐ παῖδες τυγχάνουσιν, ἀλλ' ἄνδρες τέλειοι καταντήσαντες εἰς ἄνδρα τέλειον τοῦ πληρώματος τῆς γνώσεως τοῦ Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ. ∆ιὸ καὶ τερατοσκόποι εἰσίν, σοφῶς ἐφιστάνοντες ταῖς τεραστίοις δυνάμεσι τοῦ
About this text
Didymus the Blind on Zechariah.
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