Numerical Symbolism and the Lambs
My flesh has sprouted in doing these things, aiding my heart. Perhaps also the hoping heart will be aided, the flesh having risen according to the time of the resurrection, enjoying it. Near to this, even our bones sprout like herbs. For our body now holds the word of a seed toward the resurrection; for this very thing, having been sown in corruption, sprouts in incorruption, being sown. Paul also used the example of that which is sown regarding the things of the resurrection.
And I will confess to him according to my will. Many, through fear of punishment or shame, or because they are being reproached by men, forbid sins by disposition, enjoying them. But the critical man, having seen the mystery and the harm of sins, voluntarily turns away from them, confessing them to God of his own will. And if 'I will confess to him' signifies thanksgiving, someone does it according to his will, being thankful for all things that happen, even if something seems unpleasant. For those thanking only in things that please, they do not do it of their own will, but are driven to this by pleasure.
The people of God have nothing else as a stronghold except the Lord himself being their refuge and fortress (Ps 27:8). He himself is the Lord and the defender of the salvations of Christ. And every partaker of Christ is called 'Christ' homonymously with him. He who is not saved of the salvations, his Christ is not a defender; but if he is a defender of the salvations of Christ, the Son of the one who is, then salvation is heard through him by which he saves.
Save this your people, for you are a stronghold, blessing your inheritance; not like any other people (Ps 27:9). Bless it with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly things, lifting them up and suspending them through virtue, but also shepherding them into all this age. For in the future, having surpassed the state of being fed, they will be a pupil and a teacher to you.
The preceding psalm, containing greatest mysteries, is rightly arranged according to the twenty-seventh number, the power of the seven (Ps 28,1a). If indeed you combine the six numbers from unity as a seven, the twenty-seventh is composed; and it is a triangle, each of its sides being composed of seven. It is also a perfect number, second after the ten. For they say a perfect number is one composed of its own parts, so as not to exceed or fall short. And the present one is a number having parts: half, fourth, seventh, fourteenth, twenty-seventh; all being combined, it completes itself.
Protect then those who have the spirit of adoption by the angels, to bring upon the tent those things for healing (Ps 28,1b–2); and they carry glory, and they are also sons of the lambs. Lambs ought to be considered those who return to a life of godliness according to piety, without logically contemplating the truth. Therefore they are also sufficient to rule, and sons of lambs are those born of the imitation of their way of life. Those having correctly and justly and piously received the Trinity carry glory, but those guarding the commandments of the Lord carry honor. For he who transgresses the law, by transgressing, dishonors God; honor he offers to Him, the one who is contained by the divine law. Bring glory to the Lord in His name; likewise to Him before Him. Worship the Lord in His holy court. He who worships God according to the ecclesiastical doctrines and the blameless canons of it, worships the Lord in His holy court.
Someone, imposing a more superficial interpretation, will say of John baptizing in the Jordan river, 'A voice of the Lord upon the waters' (Ps 28,3a). Yet John, having taken up a more pleasant and austere life, making the flame of the pleasures of life manageable, is a voice of the Lord cutting the flame of fire (Ps 28,7).
Greek
καρδίας μου βοηθείσης ̓Ανέθαλεν ἡ σάρξ μου ἐν τῷ πράττειν αὐτά. τάχα δὲ καὶ ἡ ἐλπίζουσα καρδία βοηθηθείη, ἀπολαμβάνουσα κατὰ τὸν τῆς ἀναστάσεως καιρὸν ἀνατείλασαν τὴν σάρκα. παραπλήσιον τούτῳ τὸ Καὶ τὰ ὀστᾶ ἡμῶν ὡς βοτάνη ἀνατελεῖ. σπέρματος γὰρ λόγον τὸ νῦν ἡμῶν σῶμα ε χει πρὸς τὸ ἐξ ἀναστάσεως· αὐτὸ γὰρ τοῦτο σπαρὲν ἐν φθορᾷ ἀναθάλλει ἐν ἀφθαρσίᾳ σπειρόμενον· ο θεν καὶ τῷ παραδείγματι τῷ σπειρομένῳ εἰς τὰ περὶ ἀναστάσεως ἐχρήσατο Παῦλος. Καὶ ἐκ θελήματός μου ἐξομολογήσομαι αὐτῷ. πολλοὶ φόβῳ κολάσεως η αἰσχύνης ε νεκα τῆς πρὸς ἀνθρώπους ἀπαγορεύουσι τὰ ἁμαρτήματα κατὰ διάθεσιν ἡδόμενοι ἐπ' αὐτοῖς. ὁ δὲ κριτικὸς ἀνὴρ ἐνιδὼν τῷ μύσει καὶ βλαβερῷ τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων ἑκουσίως ἀποστρέφεται αὐτά, ἐξ ἰδίου θελήματος περὶ αὐτῶν ἐξομολογούμενος θεῷ. ἐὰν δὲ εὐχαριστίαν σημαίνοι τὸ ̓Εξομολογήσομαι αὐτῷ, ἐκ θελήματός τις αὐτὸ ποιεῖ, ἐπὶ πᾶσιν τοῖς συμβαίνουσιν εὐχαριστῶν κα ν ἀηδῆ τινα ει ναι δοκῇ. οἱ γὰρ ἐπὶ τοῖς τέρπουσι μόνοις εὐχαριστοῦντες οὐκ ἐξ ἰδίου θελήματος ἀλλ' ὑφ' ἡδονῆς α γονται ἐπὶ τοῦτο. 251 Ps 27,8 ̔Ο τοῦ θεοῦ λαὸς οὐκ α λλο τι ε χει κραταίωμα η τὸν κύριον αὐτὸν ε ρυμα καὶ ε ρκος αὐτῶν γινόμενον. αὐτὸς δὲ ου τος ὁ κύριος καὶ ὑπερασπιστής ἐστιν τῶν σωτηριῶν τοῦ Χριστοῦ. πᾶς δὲ Χριστοῦ μετέχων ὁμωνύμως αὐτῷ χριστὸς καλεῖται. ω ν ου ν σῴζεται σωτηριῶν ὁ ου τω χριστὸς αὐτοῦ ὑπερασπιστής ἐστιν, α ν δὲ χριστοῦ τοῦ ο ντος υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ ὑπερασπιστὴς τῶν σωτηριῶν η σωτηρίας ἀκουστέον καθ' α ς σῴζει. 252 Ps 27,9 Σῶσον τὸν λαόν σου τοῦτον ου κραταίωμα τυγχάνεις, εὐλογῶν τὴν κληρονομίαν σου οὐκ α λλην τοῦ λαοῦ σου ου σαν· εὐλόγησον δὲ αὐτὴν πάσῃ εὐλογίᾳ πνευματικῇ ἐν τοῖς ἐπουρανίοις, ἐπάρας καὶ μετεωρίσας δι' ἀρετῆς αὐτοὺς ἀλλὰ καὶ ποιμαίνων αὐτοὺς εἰς πάντα τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦτον. ἐν γὰρ τῷ μέλλοντι ὑπερβάντες τὴν θρεμμάτων κατάστασιν παιδευτῇ καὶ διδασκάλῳ σοι χρήσονται. 253 Ps 28,1a ̔Ο προκείμενος ψαλμὸς μέγιστα περιέχων μυστήρια εἰκότως κατὰ τὸν εἰκοστὸν ο γδοον ἀριθμὸν τέτακται ο ντα δυνάμει ἑβδομάδα. ἐὰν γοῦν συνθῇς τοὺς ἑξῆς ἀριθμοὺς ἀπὸ μονάδος ε ως ἑβδομάδος, εἰκοστὸς ο γδοος ἀπαρτίζεται· ο θεν καὶ τρίγωνός ἐστιν ἑκάστης αὐτοῦ πλευρᾶς συγκειμένης ἐξ ἑβδομάδος. ε στιν δὲ καὶ τέλειος ἀριθμός, δεύτερος μετὰ τὸν ε κτον. τέλειον δὲ ἀριθμόν φασιν τὸν ἐκ τῶν μερῶν ἑαυτοῦ συντιθέμενον, ω στε μὴ ὑπερβάλλειν μηδὲ ἐλλείπειν. καὶ ὁ παρὼν ου ν ἀριθμὸς μέρη ε χει η μισυ, τέταρτον, ε βδομον, τεσσαρεσκαιδέκατον, εἰκοστὸν ο γδοον· α περ συντεθέντα ἀπαρτίζει ἑαυτόν. 254 Ps 28,1b–2 Προστάττει η τοι τοῖς ἀγγέλοις η τοῖς τὸ πνεῦμα τῆς υἱοθεσίας ε χουσιν ἀνθρώποις ἐνεγκεῖν ἐπὶ τὴν σκηνὴν τὰ πρὸς θεραπείαν· ε ν δὲ ω ν φέρουσιν καὶ υἱοὶ τῶν κριῶν εἰσιν. κριοὺς δὲ ἡγητέον ει ναι τοὺς εὐτόνους κατὰ θεοσεβείαν βίον ἐπανελομένους δίχα τοῦ λογικῶς θεωρεῖν τὴν ἀλήθειαν. διὸ καὶ α ρχειν εἰσὶν ἱκανοί, υἱοὶ δὲ κριῶν οἱ μιμήσει τῆς πολιτείας γεννηθέντες ὑπ' αὐτῶν. ∆όξαν φέρουσιν οἱ ὀρθῶς καὶ δικαίως καὶ εὐσεβῶς περὶ τῆς τριάδος διειληφότες, τιμὴν δὲ οἱ τὰς ἐντολὰς τοῦ κυρίου φυλάττοντες. εἰ γὰρ ὁ παραβαίνων τὸν νόμον διὰ τοῦ 62 παραβαίνειν τὸν θεὸν ἀτιμάζει, τιμὴν αὐτῷ προσάγει ὁ περιεχόμενος τοῦ θείου νόμου. ̓Ενέγκατε τῷ κυρίῳ δόξαν ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ· ὁμοίως τῷ πρὸ αὐτοῦ. Προσκυνήσατε τῷ κυρίῳ ἐν αὐλῇ ἁγίᾳ αὐτοῦ. ὁ κατὰ τὰ δόγματα τὰ ἐκκλησιαστικὰ καὶ τοὺς ἀμέμπτους αὐτῆς κανόνας τῷ θεῷ λατρεύων προσκυνεῖ τῷ κυρίῳ ἐν αὐλῇ ἁγίᾳ αὐτοῦ. 255 Ps 28,3a Προχειρότερόν τις ἐπιβάλλων ἐρεῖ τὸν ̓Ιωάννην βαπτίζοντα ἐν τῷ ̓Ιορδάνῃ ποταμῷ φωνὴν ει ναι κυρίου ἐπὶ τῶν ὑδάτων. 256 Ps 28,7 Ετι μὴν ευ τονον καὶ αὐστηρὸν βίον ἀναλαβὼν ὁ ̓Ιωάννης, διοδεύσιμον τὸν φλογμὸν τῶν ἡδονῶν τοῦ βίου ποιήσας, Φωνή ἐστιν κυρίου διακόπτοντος φλόγα πυρός. 257 Ps
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Discover how early Christians interpreted the Psalms as divine messages and prophecies about salvation and judgment.
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