The Rising of the Horn of Salvation
A spirit of God's wisdom and understanding, being a spirit that made judgment and righteousness upon the earth, or the 'Josedech in the prophets'? 'Josedech' is interpreted as righteousness existing in the prophets, announcing its arrival toward us, according to that which is proclaimed in the hymns, where it says: 'Righteousness descended from heaven' (Ps 89:12), and where: 'Righteousness rises in his days' (Ps 72:11).
Having clarified the received prophetic things for the demonstration of the prophetic word of Zechariah, it is time to contemplate it also. 'Behold,' he says, 'a dawn is his name.' In relation to the things said, the humanization is shown from: 'Behold, a dawn is his name'; confirm if the bridegroom who has the bride is called a man here. For this the Apostle makes manifest, writing to the Corinthians: 'I want to unite all of you to one man, a pure virgin' (1 Cor 7:37).
There is an expectation to reach this man, those having been filled with the knowledge of the Son of God, as Paul himself, speaking again in Christ, marks out: 'Until we all reach a perfect man, to the measure of the age of the fullness' (Eph 4:13) of the Son of God; for toward this perfect man, concerning whom John the Baptist says, 'No one has arisen among females greater' (Matt 11:11), he says: 'A man comes after me who has been before me' (Matt 3:11); this man he signifies, asserting: 'He who has the bride is a bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom rejoices in joy because of the bridegroom's voice' (John 3:29).
This man shown by the prophet is called a dawn, concerning which in the Gospel Zechariah, the father of the Baptist, having been filled with the Holy Spirit, spoke out: 'A dawn from on high has appeared to those sitting in darkness and the shadow of death' (Luke 1:78), in order that, the darkness being released and the shadow of death no longer existing, we might pass from death into life, and having shone forth, we might become light in the Lord, casting away the darkness of the ignorance of God and of the rest of evil, we might become light in the Lord according to the philosophy of those writing: 'For you were darkness, but now light in the Lord' (1 Pet 2:9). Concerning this dawn, having risen from David, the father of the Baptist, toward another...
Regarding God, he says this: 'A horn of salvation has arisen for us from the house of David' (Luke 1:69), which is to say, a king of salvation. For in many places of the Scripture, and not at all least in the wise Daniel, kings and queens are called horns.
Using this one who has risen in the house of David, the wise say to God: 'We horn our enemies in you.' 'From below' the one being shown, called a rising, 'rises'—that is, a light, or a plant bearing salutary fruits—for the word 'to rise' is arranged commonly according to light and plant—which rises from below the great teacher, lawgiver, and king.
But what are those below him? Or are they those things subjected to divine laws and naturally conforming to instruction? For how is not every man called praiseworthy below, since Christ is his head? And all the members of Christ, being fulfillers of the Church being the body of Christ, exist below Christ, who is the head of the Church.
Thus also, regarding a king and teacher, you say 'below' the subjects and the disciples, from whom there becomes a rising of the light of the knowledge of truth and a tree bearing good fruit, concerning which one discourses as a farmer, as God says: 'I planted you as a truly fruitful vine' (Jeremiah 2:21); but let it perish for each god-fearing one: 'How have you turned to bitterness, you foreign vine?' (Jeremiah 2:27).
And 'to rise' below the spiritual farmer, you say, also the virtues according to their kind and the works of these, being generations of righteousness, about which the Apostle writes: 'God sanctifying the generations of your righteousness' (Romans 6:22), and the prophet Hosea: 'Seek the Lord until he comes, the generations of righteousness to you' (Hosea 10:12). These 'those sowing them in tears shall reap in joy' (Psalm 126:5), that is, with toil and sweat for the sake of piety.
It is possible to understand this: 'From below him it rises,' and thus: the Word having become flesh, Jesus, 'born of a woman' (Matthew 1:25), rose from below 'the rising from on high' of the God Word, who is true light. From the possession and it must be said this: from the right hands of the Father, the Son having sat, below him 'the enemies were placed as a footstool' (Psalm 110:1), who, having been benefited from becoming under the feet,
Greek
Πνεύματος τοῦ Θεοῦ–σοφίας καὶ συνέσεως πνεῦμα τυγχάνον, – ποιήσαντι κρίμα καὶ δικαιοσύνην ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν, ἢ τὸ «Ἰωσεδὲκ ἐν τοῖς προφήταις»; Ἑρμηνεύεται τὸ «Ἰωσεδὲκ» δικαιοσύνη ἐν τοῖς προφήταις οὖσα, προθεσπίζουσιν αὐτῆς τὴν πρὸς ἡμᾶς ἐπιδημίαν, κατὰ τὸ ἐν ὕμνοις ἀπαγγελλόμενον ὅπου μέν· «∆ικαιοσύνη ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ διέκυψεν», ὅπου δέ· «Ἀνατελεῖ ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις αὐτοῦ δικαιοσύνην». 2.48 47 Σαφηνισθέντων τῶν παραληφθέντων προφητικ̣ω῀̣ν πρὸς ἀπόδειξιν τῆς τοῦ Ζαχαρίου προφητικῆς λέξεως, καιρὸς καὶ αὐτὴν θεωρῆσαι. 2.49 «Ἰδού, φησίν, ἀνατολὴ ὄνομα αὐτῷ.» Πρὸς τοῖς εἰρημένοις τὴν ἐνανθρώπησιν δηλοῦσθαι ἐκ τοῦ· «Ἰδοὺ ἀνατολὴ ὄνομα αὐτῷ», ἐπίστησον εἰ ἀνὴρ ἐνταῦθα καλεῖται ὁ νυμφίος ὁ τὴν νύμφην ἔχων. Τοῦτο γὰρ ὁ Ἀπόστολος φανεροῖ, γράφων Κορινθίοις· «Βούλομαι τοὺς πάντας ὑμᾶς ἑνὶ ἀνδρὶ ἁρμόσαι, παρθένον ἁγνήν.» 2.50 Εἰς τοῦτον τὸν ἄνδρα καταν̣τῆσαι προσδοκία ἐστὶν τοὺς πεπληρωμένους τῆς γνώσεως τοῦ Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὡς πάλιν ὁ αὐτὸς ἐν Χριστῷ λαλῶν Παῦλος χαράττει· «Μέχρι οὗ καταντήσωμεν οἱ πάντες εἰς ἄνδρα τέλειον, εἰς μέτρον ἡλικίας τοῦ πληρώματος» τοῦ Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ, εἰς τοῦτον γὰρ τὸν τέλειον ἄνδρα, τὸν περὶ οὗ ὁ βαπτιστὴς Ἰωάννης̣, οὗ «ἐν γεννητοῖς γυναικῶν οὐδεὶς μείζων ἐγήγερται», φησίν· «Ἔρχεται ὀπίσω μου ἀνὴρ ὃς ἔμπροσθέν μου γέγονεν»· τοῦτον τὸν ἄνδρα σημαίνει φάσκων· «Ὁ ἔχων τὴν νύμφην νύμφιός ἐστιν· ὁ δὲ φίλος τοῦ νυμφίου χαρᾷ χαίρει διὰ τὴν λαλιὰν τοῦ νυμφίου.» 2.51 Οὗτος ὁ δεικνύμενος ὑπὸ τοῦ προφήτου ἄνθρωπος ἀνατολὴ προσαγορεύεται, ἐκείνη περὶ ἧς ἐν Εὐαγγελίῳ ὁ τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ πατὴρ Ζαχαρίας, πλησθεὶς Πνεύματος ἁγίου, ἀνεφθέγξατο· «Ἀνατολὴ ἐξ ὕψους», φωτὸς ἀληθινοῦ καὶ τοῦ τῆς δικαιοσύνης ἡλίου, «ἐπέφανεν τοῖς ἐν σκότει καὶ σκιᾷ θανάτου καθημένοις», ἵνα, λυθέντος τοῦ σκότους καὶ μηκέθ' ὑπαρχούσης τῆς τοῦ θανάτου σκιᾶς, μεταβῶμεν ἐκ τοῦ θανάτου εἰς τὴν ζωήν, καὶ καταυγασθέντες φῶς ἐν Κυρίῳ γενώμεθα, ἀποβαλόντες τὸ ἐξ ἀγνωσίας Θεοῦ καὶ τῆς λοιπῆς κακίας σκότος, φῶς ἐν Κυρίῳ γενώμεθα κατὰ τὴν φιλοσοφίαν τοῦ γράφοντός τισιν· «Ἦτε γὰρ σκότος, νῦν δὲ φῶς ἐν Κυρίῳ.» 2.52 Περὶ τῆς ἀνατολῆς ταύτης ἀναστάσης ἐκ τοῦ ∆αυίδ, ὁ πατὴρ τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ πρὸς ἑτέροις περὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ τόδε φησίν· «Ἤγειρεν κέρας σωτηρίας ἡμῖν ἐξ οἴκου ∆αυίδ», τοῦτ' ἔστιν βασιλέα σωτηρίας. Ἐν πολλοῖς γὰρ τόποις τῆς γραφῆς, οὐχ ἥκιστα δὲ ἐν τῷ σοφῷ ∆ανιήλ, βασιλεῖς καὶ βασιλεῖαι κέρατα καλοῦνται. 2.53 Τούτῳ τῷ ἀναστάντι ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ τοῦ ∆αυὶδ χρώμενοι, οἱ σοφοί φασιν τῷ Θεῷ· «Ἐν σοὶ τοὺς ἐχθροὺς ἡμῶν κερατιοῦμεν.» 2.54 «Ὑποκάτωθεν» τοῦ δεικνυμένου ἀνδρὸς ἀνατολῆς καλουμένου, «ἀνατελεῖ» ἤτοι φῶς, ἢ φυτὸν σωτηρίους φέρον καρπούς–κοινῶς γὰρ κατὰ φωτὸς καὶ φυτοῦ τὸ ἀνατέλλειν ῥῆμα τέτακται, –ἅπερ ὑποκάτωθεν ἀνατελεῖ τοῦ μεγάλου διδασκάλου, νομοθέτου τε καὶ βασιλέως. 2.55 Τίνα δὲ τὰ ὑποκάτω αὐτοῦ, ἢ τὰ ὑποτεταγμένα νόμοις 2.55 θείοις καὶ συμφυεῖ παιδεύσει λογικά; Πῶς γὰρ οὐχ ὑποκάτω πᾶς ὁ ἐπαινετω῀̣ς καλούμενος ἀνήρ, τοῦ Χριστοῦ ὄντος αὐτοῦ κεφαλῆς; Καὶ πάντα δὲ τὰ μέλη Χριστοῦ συμπληρωτικὰ ὄντα τῆς Ἐκκλησίας οὔσ̣ης σῶμα Χριστοῦ, ὑποκάτω τοῦ Χριστοῦ τυγχάνει ὑπάρχοντος κεφαλῆς τῆς Ἐκκλησίας. 2.56 Οὕτω καὶ βασιλέως καὶ διδασκάλου ὑποκάτω ἐρεῖς τοὺς ὑπηκόους καὶ μαθητάς, ἐξ ὧν ἀνατολὴ γίνεται φωτὸς τῆς γνώσεως τῆς ἀληθείας καὶ δένδρου τοῦ καλὸν καρπὸν φέροντος, πρὸς ὃ διαλεγόμενος οἷα φυτουργὸς ὁ Θεός φησιν· «Ἐγὼ ἐφύτευσά σε ἄμπελον καρποφόρον πᾶσαν ἀληθινήν»· ἀπέστω δὲ ἑκάστου θεοσεβοῦς τό· «Πῶς ἐστράφης εἰς πικρίαν, ἡ ἄμπελος ἡ ἀλλοτρία;» 2.57 Ὑποκάτω δὲ τοῦ πνευματικοῦ γεωργοῦ ἀνατελεῖν ἐρεῖς καὶ τὰς κατ' εἶδος ἀρετὰς καὶ τὰ τούτων ἔργα, γενήματα δικαιοσύνης ὄντας, περὶ ὧν ὁ μὲν Ἀπόστολος γράφει· «Ὁ Θεὸς ἁγιάσαι τὰ γενήματα τῆς δικαιοσύνης ὑμῶν», ὁ δὲ προφήτης Ὠσῆε· «Ἐκζητήσατε τὸν Κύριον ἕως οὗ ἔλθῃ γενήματα δικαιοσύνης ὑμῖν.» Ταῦτα «ἐν ἀγαλλιάσει θερίζουσιν οἱ σπείροντες αὐτὰ ἐν δάκρυσιν», δηλαδὴ σὺν πόνῳ καὶ ἱδρῶτι τοῖς ὑπὲρ εὐσεβείας. 2.58 ∆υνατὸν νοῆσαι τό· «Ὑποκάτωθεν αὐτοῦ ἀνατελεῖ» καὶ οὕτω· ὁ γενάμενος σὰρξ Λόγος, ὁ «ἐκ γυναικὸς γεν̣άμενος» Ἰησοῦς, ὑποκάτωθεν ἀνέτειλεν «τῆς ἐξ ὕψους ἀνατολῆς» τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγου, ὑπάρχοντος ἀληθινοῦ φωτός. 2.59 Ἐκ περιουσίας καὶ 48 τόδε ῥητέον· ἐκ δεξιῶν τοῦ Πατρὸς τοῦ Υἱοῦ καθίσαντος, ὑποκάτω αὐτοῦ «οἱ ἐχθροὶ ἐτέθησαν δίκην ὑποποδίου», οἵτινες, ὠφεληθέντες ἐκ τοῦ ὑπὸ τοὺς πόδας γεγονέναι,
About this text
Didymus the Blind on Zechariah.
Catalogue & scope
Khazarzar scan
Witnesses
- Copy-text PG (Khazarzar) (Greek)
This is an AI-assisted study translation. Source fidelity and completeness have not been independently certified. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.