The Thirst of the Soul and the Mercy of God
His glory. And if the Father is the one who does not thirst, the only-begotten is His power and glory. For Christ is the power of God, He himself being also the glory concerning whom it is said, 'The glory of the Lord shall be seen' (Isa 60:1). And if the Son is His glory and power, the theology concerning Him and the performing of wondrous works exists according to that which is written in the Gospel, 'Power went out from him and healed all' (Mark 16:18), and again, 'And the power of God for the healing of him' (Acts 10:38).
Correspondingly, with this power and also the things concerning His glory were taken from Him, as in 'We have seen His glory, a glory as of the only-begotten' (John 1:14), and 'Glorify me, Father, with the glory which I had with you before the world was' (John 17:5). Therefore, on both sides it was taken, as in 'Let it be revealed to you in the Holy One, because my soul thirsted for you' (Ps 42:2), and 'my flesh thirsted in a desert land, uninhabitable and waterless' (Ps 63:1).
And indeed the place concerning the earth is not made manifest through the word 'desert' by means of perfection, nor 'waterless' by the not having abundantly the gifts of the Spirit. As in 'Rivers of living water were said to flow out of the spring of the one having believed' (John 7:38); therefore also it is uninhabitable, of no one passing over it, of those imitating God as much as possible. For how could the interpreted place not be desert by reason of the lack of knowledge in it, and waterless by the becoming of the pledge of the Spirit in it? For it is not desert and waterless by a complete deprivation of those dwelling and treading, and water is said, but because these things happen in it sparsely and briefly.
And it must also be understood otherwise: the one outside of wickedness and ignorance is a desert of these things, and the one who is also outside the moisture of the passions is waterless, just as being uninhabitable means being manifest to the evil, because a place of the devil or of some other evil spirit is not found in him. Never will the unclean spirit permit itself to approach such waterless places; it passes through them without finding rest among them; it is...
For they are fulfilled of all good things, those who drive away and overcome every evil power.
Someone happens to see the vision in a desert, interpreted on both sides as an inaccessible and waterless land, while a soul thirsts in holy desire for God, with the flesh also following as much as is possible.
And another scripture is brought forward, 'And my flesh was weakened,' concerning which it must be said thus: not that my soul thirsts for God, but the flesh, enjoying thickness, being composed of shameful desires and other passions. To this, one should take the evangelical saying: 'The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak' (Matt 26:41). For if someone has readiness while thirsting with the soul for God, but the flesh is weak and yielding to passions.
The apostle has written that piety is useful for everything, possessing the promise of life, both of the present and of the one to come (1 Tim 4:8). Regarding the present, he does not speak of the common life of living creatures, but of that which exists in life, concerning which the Savior says, 'He who believes in me has eternal life, and this is eternal life, that he may know you, the only true God, and whom you have sent, Jesus Christ' (John 17:3).
Of this present life and of the one to come, whoever becomes according to perfection, those who approach the truth face to face, the mercy of God is greater, for through it and by it one becomes in these lives, being lifted up into them. For one does not come to live both lives according to the merit of works and contemplation, but by the goodness and mercy of God.
And it is said that mercy is better than them as the cause of the agent. See then, lest the mercy spoken of here be something other than the Word of God, concerning which it is written, 'God has sent His mercy and His truth' (Ps 145:6).
See if it is possible to fill the soul; wisdom has prepared sacrifices, and the true food is the flesh of the Word, a drink rejoicing the inner man, he who harvests.
Greek
δόξαν αὐτοῦ. Καὶ εἰ μὲν ει η ὁ πατὴρ πρὸς ο ν διψᾷ, δύναμις καὶ δόξα αὐτοῦ ὁ μονογενής. Χριστὸς γὰρ θεοῦ δύναμις, αὐτὸς ω ν καὶ ἡ δόξα περὶ η ς ει ρηται ̓Οφθήσεται ἡ δόξα κυρίου. εἰ δὲ ὁ υἱὸς δόξα αὐτοῦ καὶ δύναμις, ἡ περὶ αὐτοῦ θεολογία καὶ τεραστίων ἐπιτελεστικὴ ἐνέργεια ὑπάρχει κατὰ τὸ γεγραμμένον ἐν τῷ Εὐαγγελίῳ ∆ύναμις παρ' αὐτοῦ ἐξήρχετο καὶ ἰᾶτο πάντας, καὶ πάλιν Καὶ δύναμις η ν θεοῦ εἰς τὸ ἰᾶσθαι αὐτόν. καταλλήλως ταύτῃ τῇ δυνάμει καὶ τὰ περὶ τῆς δόξης αὐτοῦ ἐκλήψῃ ε κ τε τοῦ ̓Εθεασάμεθα τὴν δόξαν αὐτοῦ, δόξαν ὡς μονογενοῦς, καὶ τοῦ ∆όξασόν με, πάτερ, τῇ δόξῃ ῃ ει χον πρὸ τοῦ τὸν κόσμον ει ναι. ̔Επομένως ἑκατέρᾳ ἀποδώσει ἐκλήψῃ τὸ ̓Εν τῷ ἁγίῳ ω φθην σοι, ἐπειδὴ ἡ ψυχή μου ἐδίψησέν σοι, ἡ σάρξ μου ποσαπλῶς ἐν γῇ ἐρήμῳ καὶ ἀβάτῳ καὶ ἀνύδρῳ. Καὶ ο ρα μὴ ὁ περὶ γῆν τόπος δηλοῦται διὰ τῆς λέξεως, ε ρημος ω ν τῆς τελειότητος καὶ α νυδρος τῷ μὴ ε χειν δαψιλῶς τὰ χαρίσματα τοῦ πνεύματος Ποταμοὶ υ δατος ζῶντος εἰρημένα ἐξιόντες ἐκ νηδύος τοῦ πεπιστευκότος· διὸ καὶ α βατός ἐστιν, οὐδενὸς ἐπ' αὐτοῦ διατρίβοντος τῶν πάντῃ κατὰ τὸ δυνατὸν θεῷ ὁμοιωμένων. πῶς γὰρ οὐκ ε ρημος ὁ ἑρμηνευθεὶς χῶρος ἐκ μέρους ου σης ἐν αὐτῷ γνώσεως, καὶ α νυδρος ἀρραβῶνος πνεύματος ἐν αὐτῷ γινομένου; οὐ γὰρ ε ρημος καὶ α νυδρος κατὰ παντελῆ στέρησιν οἰκούντων καὶ πατούντων καὶ υ δατος ει ρηται, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸ σπανίως καὶ βραχέως ἐν αὐτῷ ταῦτα γίνεσθαι. ̓Εκδεκτέον δὲ καὶ ἑτέρως τὸ προκείμενον· ὁ ἐκτὸς κακίας καὶ ἀγνοίας ε ρημός ἐστι τούτων, ω ν δὲ καὶ τῆς τῶν παθῶν ὑγρότητος ἐκτὸς α νυδρος ὑπάρχει, ὡς α βατος ει ναι η δη τοῖς χείροσι διὰ τὸ μὴ εὑρίσκεσθαι ἐν αὐτῷ τόπον διαβόλου η τινος α λλου χείρονος πνεύματος. κα ν ποτε ου ν ἐπιτολμήσῃ τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἀκάθαρτον πλησιάσαι τοῖς ου τως ἀνύδροις τόποις, διέρχεται αὐτοὺς οὐχ εὑρίσκον παρ' αὐτοῖς ἀνάπαυσιν· πεπληρωμένοι γὰρ πάντων ἀγαθῶν εἰσι τῶν ἀπελαυνόντων καὶ καταπονούντων πᾶσαν πονηρὰν δύναμιν. ̓Εν τῇ ἑκατέρως ἑρμηνευθείσῃ ἐρήμῳ καὶ ἀβάτῳ καὶ ἀνύδρῳ γῇ τυγχάνων τις ὀφθῆναι, ἐν τῷ ἁγίῳ πόθῳ διψᾷ ψυχῇ πρὸς τὸν θεόν, ἐπακολουθούσης καὶ τῆς σαρκὸς κατὰ τὸ ἐφικτόν. Φέρεται δὲ καὶ ἑτέρα γραφὴ Καὶ ἐτάκη ἡ σάρξ μου, περὶ η ς λεκτέον τάδε· ο τε ἡ ψυχή μου πρὸς θεὸν διψᾷ, τήκεται ἡ σὰρξ ἀπολαβοῦσα παχύτητα τὴν ἐξ αἰσχρῶν ἐπιθυμιῶν τῶν τε α λλων παθῶν συνισταμένην. εἰς τοῦτο λήψῃ τὸ ω δε ε χον εὐαγγελικόν· Τὸ μὲν πνεῦμα πρόθυμον, ἡ δὲ σὰρξ ἀσθενής. ο ταν γὰρ προθυμίαν ε χῃ τις διψώσης τῆς ψυχῆς πρὸς τὸν θεόν, τὸ ἠγγίκεναι δὲ ἀσθενεῖ ἡ σὰρξ τηκομένη. 638a Ps 62,4a Γέγραφεν ὁ ἀπόστολος ὡς πρὸς πάντα ὠφέλιμος ου σα ἡ εὐσέβεια ἐπαγγελίαν ζωῆς ε χει τῆς τε νῦν καὶ τῆς μελλούσης. τῆς δὲ νῦν εἰπὼν οὐ τῆς κοινῆς λέγει τῶν ζῴων ἀλλὰ τῆς ἐν βίῳ δυνατῆς ὑπαρχθῆναι, περὶ η ς φησιν ὁ σωτὴρ ̔Ο πιστεύων εἰς ἐμὲ ε χει ζωὴν αἰώνιον, καὶ Αυ τη ἐστὶν ἡ αἰώνιος ζωή, ι να γινωσκῶσι σὲ τὸν μόνον ἀληθινὸν θεὸν καὶ ο ν ἀπέστειλας ̓Ιησοῦν Χριστόν. ταύτης τῆς νῦν 119 ζωῆς καὶ τῆς μελλούσης η τις κατὰ τὴν τελειότητα γίνεται τοῖς προσβάλλουσι τῇ ἀληθείᾳ πρόσωπον πρὸς πρόσωπον κρεῖσσόν ἐστι τὸ ε λεος τοῦ θεοῦ τῷ δι' αὐτὸ καὶ καθ' αὐτὸ γίνεσθαι ἐν ταῖς ζωαῖς τὸν εἰς αὐτὰς ἀναγόμενον. οὐ γὰρ κατ' ἀξίαν πράξεως καὶ θεωρίας ἀλλ' ἀγαθότητι καὶ ἐλέου θεοῦ ε ρχεταί τις ἐπὶ τὸ ζῆν κατ' ἀμφοτέρας τὰς ζωάς. κρεῖσσον δὲ αὐτῶν ει ρηται τὸ ε λεος ὡς αι τιον αἰτιατοῦ. Ορα γε μὴ τὸ λεγόμενον ἐνταῦθα ε λεος οὐχ ε τερόν ἐστι τοῦ θεοῦ λόγου, περὶ ου γέγραπται ̓Εξαπέστειλεν ὁ θεὸς τὸ ε λεος αὐτοῦ καὶ τὴν ἀλήθειαν αὐτοῦ. 639a Ps 62,6 Ορα εἰ στέαρ ἐστὶ πληροῦν τὴν ψυχὴν α ε σφαξε θύματα ἡ σοφία καὶ ἡ ἀληθινὴ βρῶσις σὰρξ τοῦ λόγου καὶ πιότης εὐφραίνουσα τὸν ε σω α νθρωπον ὁ τρυγώμενος
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Discover how early Christians interpreted the Psalms as divine messages and prophecies about salvation and judgment.
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- Copy-text PG (Khazarzar) (Greek)
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