On the Conception of the Venerable Forerunner
In conceptionem venerabilis praecursoris
Praise of John the Baptist§1
1The great and most glorious things of the God-bearing prophets have a dance, a beautiful expression of their faith and devotion. For with God, they move their feet and hands, working from the Spirit, and their movements are guided by a higher power. The Word, son and Christ and God, is offered in the tongue, a powerful expression of the divine. The Word who gathered the beauties of heaven and forged the lightning of the solar chariots is a mighty and awe-inspiring force. He ordered the monthly horns of the moon, governing the celestial bodies with precision and care.
He yoked the harmony of the stars and separated it, creating a beautiful and intricate universe. Having crafted a unique course for each, He demonstrated His infinite wisdom and creativity. And having commanded a common and single way for all, He established a sense of unity and purpose. He did not let the clouds fly unbridled, but instead guided them with a gentle and firm hand. But as the season calls and the fruit of the fields is sought and the farmer demands and longs and prays, God responds with abundance and generosity.
And all below intercede with the one above, seeking guidance and protection from a higher power. He said to the sea: 'Dance and roar; and let your waves be broken on the shore', demonstrating His authority over the natural world. Let the sailor fear, lest he forget the creation of the Creator, and fail to recognize the power and majesty of God. And let the merchant not be reckless, lest the element become harmful to the heir, and the consequences of his actions be severe. He divides the flowers, plants, fruits, and sprouts to the dry land, providing for the needs of all living things.
And has honored each place with exceptionally good things, bestowing blessings and abundance upon the world. And has shown the whole earth as one body with many members divided in many places, highlighting the interconnectedness of all things. He divides the flutes and separates the pipes and forges the trumpets for the prophets, providing them with the tools they need to fulfill their mission. He works the cymbals and articulates the drums, creating a beautiful and harmonious sound. He distributes the lots and allots the gifts, guiding the course of human events with wisdom and justice.
And the region was doubly and more glorious, filled with a sense of wonder and awe. For John the Baptist, being young, forced the times, and his presence was felt throughout the land. And the womb could not hold the child, for he was filled with a sense of purpose and destiny. And the mother could not contain the prophet, for he was bursting with a message that needed to be shared. He had no speech impediment, and his words were clear and powerful. And he filled the whole earth with glorious words, proclaiming the good news to all who would listen.
His tongue had no flute, but his message was sweet and melodious. And his song reached the whole world, a joyful and uplifting sound. The trumpet of his mouth was voiceless, but his words were loud and clear. And the sound of his teachings reached heaven, for they were inspired by a higher power. The time had not come, but John was preparing the way for something greater. Nor had the birth pangs arrived, but the anticipation was building. The months were not complete, but the expectation was growing.
And the child spoke to the other child without a tongue, communicating in a way that transcended words. And used kicks instead of some flutes, expressing himself in a unique and creative way. And struck the womb like a drum, making his presence known. And the belly like a cymbal, creating a sense of joy and celebration. And found a pure, broad, and strong lyre, discovering a powerful instrument for expressing himself. And told his mother to say to Mary: 'Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb', as recorded in Luke 1:42.
'Blessed are you among women', for you have been chosen for a great honor. Because you loosened the bonds, freed nature, and relieved Eve's birth pangs, bringing redemption and liberation. And placed Adam above necessities, elevating him to a new level of understanding and awareness. 'Blessed are you among women', for you have been given a great gift. For through you the sterile mother speaks, and the infant speaks clearly, as seen in Luke 1:42-45. And the infant speaks clearly, proclaiming the good news to all who will listen.
And the child speaks more than orators, for his words are inspired by a higher power. And the one who is not yet speaking is revealed as an evangelist, called to proclaim the message of salvation. And blessed the fruit of your womb, for it is a source of joy and wonder. I am voice and thunder, guide and lamp, mediator and herald, prophet and apostle, trumpeter of the gift of life, smoother of the way without stumbling block, baptizer seen in the flesh, forerunner of the king whose step is everywhere, whose throne is borne by all the elements.
All serve, but no one has seen the face or knows the character of the one being served, for He is a mystery beyond human comprehension. All tremble at his glory, their minds are confused, trying to understand his essence or imagine his power, as described in Psalm 104:1-9 and Job 38:8-11. Let John be praised, the citizen of the desert, the builder of the Jordan, the beholder of the divine dove, the observer of the paternal cloud, the listener to the voice that presented the worthiness of the Son, of the Word.
Greek · §1
In conceptionem venerabilis praecursoris (homilia 16) Ησυχίου, πρεσβυτέρου Ἱεροσολύμων, λόγος εἰς τὴν σύλληψιν τοῦ τιμίου Προδρόμου. 1 Πάντα μεγάλα καὶ πάντων ἐνδοξότατα τῶν θεοφόρων προ φητῶν ὑπάρχει τὰ σκιρτήματα· σὺν τῷ θεῷ γὰρ κινοῦσι τοὺς πόδας καὶ τὰς χεῖρας ἐνεργοῦντες ἐκ τοῦ πνεύματος· ἄϋλος αὐτοῖς ὁ Λόγος καὶ υἱός, Χριστός τε καὶ θεός, ἐν τῇ γλώσσῃ προσφέρεται, Λόγος ἐκεῖνος ὅστις τὰ κάλλη τοῦ οὐρανοῦ συνέ θηκεν, καὶ τῶν ἡλιακῶν ὀχημάτων τὴν ἀστραπὴν ἐχάλκευσεν, ἔταξε μηνιαῖα τῇ σελήνῃ τὰ κέρατα, ἔζευξε τὴν ἁρμονίαν τῶν ἄστρων καὶ διέζευξεν, δρόμον ἴδιον τεχνασάμενος ἑκάστῳ, κοινὴν πᾶσιν ὁδὸν καὶ μίαν ἐντειλάμενος αὐτοῖς, οὐκ ἀφῆκε τὰς νεφέλας ἀχαλινώτους πέτασθαι, ἀλλ' ὥσπερ καιρὸς καλεῖ, καὶ τῶν ἀγρῶν ὁ καρπὸς ἐπιζητεῖ, καὶ ὁ γεωργὸς ἀπαιτεῖ καὶ ποθεῖ καὶ προσ εύχεται, καὶ πάντες οἱ κάτω πρὸς τὸν ἄνω πρεσβεύονται. 2 Αὐτὸς εἶπεν τῇ θαλάσσῃ· «Σκίρτα καὶ μαίνου· καὶ κορυφού σθω μὲν ἀλλ' ἐν σοὶ συντριβέσθω τὰ κύματα.» Φοβείτω τοίνυν, ἵνα μὴ λήθην ὁ πελαγοδρόμος τοῦ δημιουργοῦ κτήσηται· μὴ βολιζέτω δὲ τὸν ἔμπορον, ἵνα μὴ τὸ στοιχεῖον ἐπιζήμιον τῷ κληρονόμῳ γένηται. Αὐτὸς τῇ ξηρᾷ μερίζει τὰ ἄνθη, τὰ φυτά, τοὺς καρπούς, τὰ βλαστήματα, καὶ χώραν ἑκάστην τοῖς ἀνατέλ λουσιν ἐξαιρέτως ἀγαθοῖς ἐτίμησεν, καὶ τὴν γῆν ὅλην ἓν σῶμα μέλεσι πολλοῖς πολλαχοῦ μεριζόμενον ἔδειξεν. Αὐτὸς τοῖς προ φήταις μερίζει τοὺς αὐλοὺς καὶ διαιρεῖ τὰς σύριγγας καὶ χαλκεύει τὰς σάλπιγγας, ἐνεργεῖ τὰ κύμβαλα καὶ ἀρθροῖ τὰ τύμπανα, δια νέμει τοὺς κλήρους καὶ κληροῖ τὰ χαρίσματα. 3 Καὶ διπλῆν καὶ ἐνδοξοτέραν ὁ βαπτιστὴς Ἰωάννης τὴν χώραν κεκλήρωται, ἐπειδὴ νέος ὢν τοὺς καιροὺς ἐβιάζετο, παρέ τρεχε τὰ τῆς φύσεως ὅρια, καὶ κατέχειν ἡ γαστὴρ τὸ παιδίον οὐκ ἴσχυεν, ἡ μήτρα συγκλείειν τὸν προφήτην οὐκ ἠδύνατο. Οὐκ ἦν αὐτῷ φθέγμα, καὶ λόγων ἐνδόξων ὅλην τὴν γῆν ἐπλή ρωσεν. Αὐλὸν οὐκ εἶχεν ἡ γλῶττα, καὶ τὸ μέλος τὴν οἰκουμένην ἔφθασεν. Ἄστομος ἡ σάλπιγξ ὑπῆρχεν ἡ τοῦ στόματος, καὶ τῶν δογμάτων ὁ ἦχος τὸν οὐρανὸν κατέλαβεν, καὶ τοσοῦτον τῷ κεραμεῖ τεθαρρηκὸς τὸ βρέφος τὸν πηλὸν ἐνεδυνάμωσεν. Ὁ καιρὸς οὐκ ἦλθεν, οὐδὲ ὁ τόκος ἔφθασεν, αἱ ὠδῖνες οὐ παρῆσαν, οἱ μῆνες οὐ πεπλήρωνται, καὶ τὸ βρέφος ἄνευ τῆς γλώττης τῷ παιδὶ ἐλάλει, καὶ τοῖς σκιρτήμασι <ἀν>τὶ αὐλῶν τινῶν ἐκέχρητο, καὶ ἐ λάκτιζεν τὴν μήτραν ὥσπερ τύμπανον, καὶ τὴν γαστέρα περι τρέχων οἷα κύμβαλον ἔκρουεν, καὶ λύραν εὗρεν αὑτῷ καθαράν, πλατεῖαν, εὔτονον, κοιλιόχορδον, καὶ λέγειν τὴν μητέρα πρὸς τὴν Μαριὰμ ἐπέταττεν· «Εὐλογημένη σὺ ἐν γυναιξί, καὶ εὐλο γημένος ὁ καρπὸς τῆς κοιλίας σου.» 4 «Εὐλογημένη σὺ ἐν γυναιξί», ὅτι τοὺς δεσμοὺς ἔλυσας, τὴν φύσιν ἠλευθέρωσας, τῆς Εὔας τὰς ὠδῖνας ἐχαύνωσας, τὸν Ἀδὰμ τῶν ἀναγκῶν ἀνώτερον κατέστησας. «Εὐλογημένη σὺ ἐν γυναιξί»· διὰ σὲ γὰρ ἡ στεῖρα μήτηρ, καὶ τρανὰ τὸ βρέφος λαλεῖ, καὶ τὸ παιδίον ὑπὲρ ῥήτορας φθέγγεται, καὶ ὁ μήπω ψελλιστὴς εὐαγγε λιστὴς ἀναδέδεικται. «Καὶ εὐλογημένος ὁ καρπὸς τῆς κοιλίας σου.» Ἐγὼ φωνὴ καὶ βροντή, νυμφαγωγὸς καὶ λύχνος, μεσίτης καὶ κῆρυξ, προφήτης καὶ ἀπόστολος, σαλπιστὴς τοῦ τῆς ζωῆς χαρίσματος, ὁμαλιστὴς ὁδοῦ μηδὲν ἐχούσης πρόσκομμα, βαπ τιστὴς πρὸς σαρκὸς θεωρούμενος, πρόδρομος βασιλέως οὗ τὸ βῆμα πανταχοῦ, ὁ θρόνος ὑπὸ πάντων τῶν στοιχείων βαστάζεται. ∆ορυφοροῦσι πάντες, 1 οὐδεὶς δὲ τοῦ δορυφορουμένου τὴν ὄψιν εἶδεν ἢ τὸν χαρακτῆρα ἐπίσταται. Τρέμουσι πάντες ἐπὶ δόξαν αὐτοῦ λογιζόμενοι, ἐμβρόντητοι τὴν διάνοιαν γίνονται, στοχά σασθαι τὴν οὐσίαν ἢ τὴν δύναμιν φαντασθῆναι πειρώμενοι.» 5 Ὑμνείσθω τοίνυν Ἰωάννης, ὁ τῆς ἐρήμου πολίτης, ὁ τοῦ Ἰορδάνου τειχιστής, ὁ τῆς θεοπτέρου περιστερᾶς θεωρός, ὁ τῆς νεφέλης τῆς πατρῴας κατάσκοπος, ὁ φωνῆς ἀκροατὴς ἥτις τὴν τοῦ υἱοῦ ἀξίαν παρέστησεν, τοῦ Λόγου τὴν
The Greatness of John the Baptist§2
2He manifested glory, he revealed the glory of the only-begotten.
Let John be hymned, the flute-player of whose song all run.
For who hearing does not repent?
Who does not hasten to wash?
Who does not desire to be cleansed?
Who does not bring a vessel to the spring to draw, to drink, and to cool the burner, wishing?
Who, having learned that the kingdom of heaven has drawn near, does not desire to reach his brother first, and does not hasten to take the neighbor before?
Let John be hymned, whose first wonders and last are great and exceedingly radiant.
The first wonders: Gabriel announced to him his birth, an angel interpreted the conception to Zachariah.
From heaven the gift stood between the temple and the altar, the priest received it, and the cowardly sons of the Jews obtained so much.
For there the priest of God received the announcement, there they sharpen the sword and arm the hands and practice murder and work the drama.
What then did Gabriel say to Zachariah?
'Do not fear, Zachariah, because your supplication has been heard, and behold, your wife Elizabeth will bear a son to you, and you shall call his name John.'
And there will be for you joy and exultation, and many will rejoice at his birth.
For he will be great before the Lord, and he will not drink wine or strong drink at all, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother's womb, and he will turn back many of the sons of Israel to the Lord their God.
He will go before the Lord in the spirit and power of Elijah, turning the hearts of fathers back to their children and leading the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, to prepare a people fit for the Lord. You should consider the great honor bestowed on John the Baptist even before his birth, for he becomes a source of blessing before his very conception.
Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for the Redeemer is coming and the people will cease from sin. Your prayer has been heard. Now is the time when heaven and earth must bow to receive their Creator. And behold, your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son.
rience. For the announcement is something new, and the mystery to be fulfilled through him is also new. And you will have joy and gladness: joy because you bear this one of whom it is said that among those born of women none is greater, and gladness because the end of the law and the prophets will come through him, the one born of you. And many will rejoice at his birth, those who accept his message of repentance and are cleansed in the bath of baptism. But the scribes do not rejoice, and the Pharisees mourn with them. To these he declares the winnowing fan and the axe, threatening and proclaiming the cutting down, for which reasons the forest has existed to them as thorny, wood-mad, beast-like, and inhumane. What then is the other by which Gabriel dignifies the Baptist, having announced?
He will be great in the sight of the Lord, for he points out the Lamb of God who bears the sin of the whole world; yet his greatness is defined not by heavenly stature as humans measure it, but by his divine orientation. Indeed, while Jews may find laughter in the mysteries of Christ, they mock the heralds of truth, treating the very proclaimers of grace as enemies and comic figures.
He shall drink neither wine nor strong drink, lest the spirit destined to dwell in him be constricted; for he is to be filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb—not merely receiving the gift in advance or anticipating the graces, but so that he may proclaim the light before addressing it, announce the Maker before beholding His own elements, denounce the sun before witnessing its daily course, and having watched the night’s extremities.
And many of the sons of Israel he will turn back to the Lord their God, for he was the great teacher of Andrew, and this one had served as instructor to John the theologian before they brought themselves to the net. From him the apostles learned: 'Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world,' and 'Rabbi, where do you dwell?' as they followed him, eager to enter the tent of the Uncontainable.
He will go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, not in soul and body. Away, away from absurdity. Yet the sons of Greeks idle talk and mythologize, claiming souls pre-exist and pass from body to body, just as the mentally disturbed utter their words against them.
Greek · §2
δόξαν ἐφανέρωσεν, τοῦ μονογενοῦς τὴν δόξαν ἀπεκάλυψεν. Ὑμνείσθω Ἰωάννης, ὁ τῆς ᾠδῆς αὐληστὴς ᾗ πάντες ἐπιτρέχουσιν. Τίς γὰρ ἀκούων <οὐ> μετανοεῖται, οὐ σπεύδει πλυθῆναι, οὐ ποθεῖ καθαρισθῆναι, οὐ προσφέρει τῇ πηγῇ κάδον ἀντλῆσαι καὶ πιεῖν καὶ τὸν καύσωνα καταψῦξαι βουλόμενος; Τίς, μαθὼν ὅτι ἤγγικεν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν, φθάσαι τὸν ἀδελφὸν οὐ ποθεῖ καὶ τὸν πλησίον προ λαβεῖν οὐκ ἐπείγεται; Ὑμνείσθω Ἰωάννης, οὗ τὰ πρῶτα θαύματα καὶ τὰ ἔσχατα μεγάλα καὶ ὑπέρλαμπρα. 6 Τὰ πρῶτα θαύματα· Γαβριὴλ αὐτῷ τὸν τόκον κατεμήνυσεν, ἄγγελος ἑρμηνεύει Ζαχαρίᾳ τὴν σύλληψιν. Ἐξ οὐρανοῦ τὸ δῶρον μεταξὺ τοῦ ναοῦ καὶ τοῦ θυσιαστηρίου ἑστηκὼς ὁ ἱερεὺς ἐλάμβανεν, καὶ δείλαιοι οἱ παῖδες τῶν Ἰουδαίων τοσοῦτον ἐτύγ χανον· ἔνθα γὰρ τὸν χρηματισμὸν ὁ ἱερεὺς τοῦ θεοῦ ἐδέξατο, ἐκεῖ τὸ ξίφος ἀκονοῦσι καὶ τὰς χεῖρας ὁπλίζουσι καὶ μελετῶσι τὸν φόνον καὶ τὸ δρᾶμα ἐργάζονται. Τί δὲ ὁ Γαβριὴλ πρὸς Ζα χαρίαν ἔλεγεν; «Μὴ φοβοῦ, Ζαχαρία, ὅτι εἰσηκούσθη ἡ δέησίς σου, καὶ ἰδοὺ ἡ γυνή σου Ἐλισάβετ γεννήσει υἱόν σοι, καὶ καλέ σεις τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἰωάννην. Καὶ ἔσται σοι χαρὰ καὶ ἀγαλλίασις, καὶ πολλοὶ ἐπὶ τῇ γεννήσει αὐτοῦ χαρήσονται. Ἔσται γὰρ μέγας ἐνώπιον κυρίου, καὶ οἶνον καὶ σίκερα οὐ μὴ πίῃ, καὶ Πνεύματος ἁγίου πλησθήσεται ἔτι ἐκ κοιλίας μητρὸς αὐτοῦ, καὶ πολλοὺς τῶν υἱῶν Ἰσραὴλ ἐπιστρέψει ἐπὶ κύριον τὸν θεὸν αὐτῶν. Καὶ αὐτὸς προελεύσεται ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ ἐν πνεύματι καὶ δυνάμει Ἠλίου, ἐπι στρέψαι καρδίας πατέρων ἐπὶ τέκνα καὶ ἀπειθεῖς ἐν φρονήσει δικαίων, ἑτοιμάσαι κυρίῳ λαὸν κατεσκευασμένον.» 7 Ἀκούεις πῶς πλοῦτον πηλίκον ὁ βαπτιστὴς Ἰωάννης πρὶν τεχθῆναι κομίζεται καὶ πρόξενος ἀγαθῶν ὅσων πρὶν συλληφθῆναι τοῖς ὀργάνοις τῆς γεννήσεως γίνεται. «Μὴ φοβοῦ, Ζαχαρία», φησίν, τουτέστιν ὁ λυτρωτὴς ἔρχεται καὶ ὁ λαὸς τοῦ ἁμαρτάνειν παύεται. «Εἰσηκούσθη ἡ δέησίς σου»· καιρὸς γὰρ κλιθῆναι τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν τὸν δημιουργὸν ὑποδέξασθαι. «Καὶ ἰδοὺ ἡ γυνή σου Ἐλισάβετ γεννήσει υἱόν σοι»· ἡ στεῖρα τίκτει, ἵνα τῇ παρθένῳ καιρὸς πρὸς τὸ θαῦμα καὶ θεοτόκῳ γένηται. «Καὶ καλέσεις τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἰωάννην»· ξένον εἰκότως τὸ ὄνομα, ἐπειδὴ καὶ τὸ πρᾶγμα ξένον ᾧ καὶ τὸ ὄνομα τίθεται· ἡ προσ ηγορία καινή· καινὸν γὰρ τὸ δι' αὐτοῦ μέλλον ὑπουργεῖσθαι μυστήριον. «Καὶ ἔσται σοι χαρὰ καὶ ἀγαλλίασις»· χαρὰ μὲν ὅτι γεννᾷς τοῦτον οὗ «μείζων ἐν γεννητοῖς γυναικῶν οὐκ ἐγή γερται», ἀγαλλίασις δὲ ὅτι τέλος ἔσται τοῦ νόμου καὶ προφη τῶν ὁ παρὰ σοῦ τικτόμενος. 8 «Καὶ πολλοὶ ἐπὶ τῇ γεννήσει αὐτοῦ χαρήσονται», οἵτινες αὐτοῦ τῆς μετανοίας δέχονται τὰ κηρύγματα καὶ καθαίρονται τῷ λουτρῷ τοῦ βαπτίσματος· γραμματεῖς δὲ οὐ χαίρουσι καὶ Φαρισαῖοι μετ' ἐκείνων πενθοῦσι· τούτοις δὲ προλέγει τὸ πτύον καὶ τὴν ἀξίνην ἀπειλεῖ καὶ τὴν ἐκτομὴν κηρύττει, ἀνθ' ὧν αὐτοῖς ὁ δρυμὼν ὑπῆρξεν ἀκανθώδης, ὑλομανής, θηριώδης, ἀνήμερος. Τί δὲ τὸν βαπτιστὴν ἕτερον σεμνύνων ὁ Γαβριὴλ ἀπ ήγγειλεν· «Ἔσται μέγας ἐνώπιον κυρίου»; «Ἔσται μέγας», ἐπειδὴ τὸν ἀμνὸν δείκνυσι τὸν ὅλου τοῦ κόσμου τὴν ἁμαρτίαν αἴροντα, ἀλλ' «ἐνώπιον κυρίου»· οὐ πολλὴ γὰρ τῶν οὐρανίων τοῖς ἀνθρώποις 2 αἴσθησις, Ἰουδαίοις δὲ καὶ γέλως ὑπάρχει τοῦ Χριστοῦ τὰ μυστήρια, καὶ τοὺς κήρυκας τῆς ἀληθείας κωμῳδοῦ σιν, ἐχθροὺς ἡγούμενοι τοὺς τῆς χάριτος ῥήτορας. 9 «Οἶνον καὶ σίκερα οὐ μὴ πίῃ», ἵνα μὴ στενοχωρηθῇ τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἐν αὐτῷ κατοικεῖν ἐκλεξάμενον. «Πνεύματος ἁγίου πλησθήσεται ἐκ κοιλίας μητρός», φησίν, οὐχ ἁπλῶς οὐδὲ μάτην προλαμβάνων τὴν δωρεὰν καὶ φθάνων τὰ χαρίσματα, ἀλλ' ἵνα κηρύξῃ τὸ φῶς πρὶν ὁμιλῆσαι τῷ φωτί, καταγγείλῃ τὸν ποιητὴν πρὶν αὐτὸν τὰ στοιχεῖα θεάσασθαι, καταμηνύσῃ τὸν ἥλιον πρὶν τῆς ἡμέρας τὸν δρόμον ἰδεῖν, τῆς νυκτὸς κατοπτεῦσαι τὰ τέρ ματα. «Καὶ πολλοὺς τῶν υἱῶν Ἰσραὴλ ἐπιστρέψει πρὸς κύριον τὸν θεὸν αὐτῶν.» Αὐτὸς γὰρ Ἀνδρέου τοῦ μεγάλου παιδευτής, οὗτος ὑπῆρχεν Ἰωάννου τοῦ θεολόγου διδάσκαλος, πρὶν ἑαυτοὺς τῇ σαγήνῃ προσενέγκωσιν. Παρ' αὐτοῦ μαθόντες οἱ ἀπόστολοι τό· «Ἴδε ὁ ἀμνὸς τοῦ θεοῦ, ὁ αἴρων τὴν ἁμαρτίαν τοῦ κόσμου», «Ῥαββί, ποῦ μένεις;» πρὸς αὐτὸν ἀκολουθοῦντες λέγουσιν, εἰσελθεῖν τοῦ ἀχωρήτου τὴν σκηνὴν ἐπειγόμενοι. 10 «Αὐτὸς προελεύσεται ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ ἐν πνεύματι καὶ δυνά μει Ἠλίου», οὐκ ἐν ψυχῇ καὶ σώματι. Ἄπαγε γάρ, ἄπαγε τῆς ἀτοπίας. Ταῦτα οἱ παῖδες Ἑλλήνων ληροῦσι καὶ μυθεύονται τὰς ψυχὰς προϋπάρχειν καὶ μεταβαίνειν ἐκ σωμάτων εἰς σώματα, καθάπερ ἐκεῖνοι φρενοβλαβοῦντες λέγουσιν, ὄχλον ἐπ' αὐτοῖς ῥημάτων
The Forerunner’s Solitary Witness§3
3They seek the redundant and the herded. Yet to each soul the Creator has given a distinct body, whence John, though called a second Elijah and spoken of due to zeal toward him, is nevertheless not in soul and body; but the One who has given spiritual energy to that one, this same One also grants to John the Baptist and forerunner a measure of gift, just as that one received. The One who supplied power to the ancient promises to supply it to the new.
He will turn back the hearts of fathers to the children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just. 'Fathers' refers to Israel, 'children' to the nations by the course of time; yet the fathers turn back to the children, for the children draw near the fountain of life, and they take hold of the banquet of joy as those who are wise and faithful, and having taken the table of light in advance, they encircle it. Thus those called 'fathers' are rightly named 'disobedient', for concerning them Isaiah the prophet has proclaimed: 'I know that you are stubborn, and your neck is an iron sinew, and your forehead is bronze,' that the inflexibility of the synagogue and the utter disobedience of its heirs may be explained. But 'the just' are those from the nations; for if they once barely knew justice, now they pursue it with diligence; if they did not know the door of godliness, now they run into the bridal chamber with joy, entering therein; if they were once far from the light, now they behold the whole sun with pure eyes.
Why does Gabriel, in fulfilling another promise, declare, 'To prepare for the Lord a people made ready'? Who made them ready, if not Christ? For the One who formed also raised up; the One who set the wheel in motion from the beginning, this One later unrolled it. The One who said, 'Let a living soul come into being,' this One spoke; 'I do not wish the sinner to perish.' And these things, Gabriel, descending from heaven, proclaimed. In those words, John leaped within Elizabeth's womb and came to be; taking the One in the womb, he greets from the womb, and the One in the womb still theologizes, bound by the womb's bonds, while being held fast. Then, born, he is sent into the wilderness, that he may be like the wild beasts, that he may converse with God, that he may become free from the smokes and tumults of labors, that he may practice courage, that he may be instructed by the sensible beasts what manner they need to box the hidden ones and to fight against those who lurk. With age advancing and time progressing, he becomes a dinner guest at a table lacking a cook, not even hiring one; for wild honey was his food, completely unseasoned, and locusts were his food, of which the sacrifice was impious, the slaughter of goats unprofitable, needing no coals; he had no need of an external oven, but he acquired the oven from himself; and camel's hairs clothed the Baptist, that the spirit might warm the shivering body, and the melting flesh might cause the worms of pleasures to die; but also a leather girdle he wore around his loins.
He dwelt apart, sustained not by the craft of kitchens nor the hire of cooks, but by what the wilderness freely gave: honey untouched by art, locusts untouched by altar or slaughter, needing neither fire nor fuel. His garment was of camel's hair, girt with leather, not for show but to warm the frame and chill the flesh, that the worms of delight might perish in the melting. Thus he lived, not as one who prepares meals, but as one whose life itself became the preparation.
The mortification of pleasures shone brighter than gold; the sanctification flashed like electrum; the purity of many-shining stones concealed their radiant beams.
Thus, having practiced philosophy, the true ascetic was made complete — a guileless runner, a blameless soldier, a just leader of brides, a pious herald, a mediator, a forerunner, one who keeps himself from every sort of evil deed.
How often did the devil, seeing him philosophize thus, envy him? Yet he had no power to slander.
And what, being exceedingly thirsty, longing, and in need? What then — to slander the athlete, to mock the soldier, to jeer at the one who holds nothing in his hands? What prosperity could one proclaim of him who has no kinship to the well-being of life?
He had no children to slander, for he did not sow them; no daughters, since he did not obtain a father; no fields, for he did not possess them; no houses, since he did not raise them; no donkeys, oxen, or camels, for he acquired none; no woman, whom he did not know, did not have, did not marry.
Let John therefore be hymned — again I say — since to all he imparted beneficially the proclamation of preservation.
Greek · §3
περιττῶν καὶ ἀγελαίων εἴροντες. Ἑκάστῃ δὲ ψυχῇ ἴδιον σῶμα ὁ δημιουργὸς ἔδωκεν, ὅθεν Ἰωάννης, εἰ καὶ δεύτε ρος Ἠλίας καὶ διὰ ζῆλον τὸν πρὸς ἐκεῖνον λέγεται, ὅμως οὐκ ἐν ψυχῇ καὶ σώματι· ἀλλ' ὁ ἐν πνεύματι δεδωκὼς ἐκείνῳ τὴν ἐνέργειαν, οὗτος καὶ Ἰωάννῃ τῷ βαπτιστῇ καὶ προδρόμῳ δίδωσι μέτρον δωρεᾶς, οἷον ἐκεῖνος ἐδέξατο. Ὁ τῷ ἀρχαίῳ χορηγήσας τὴν δύναμιν, οὗτος τῷ νέῳ χορηγεῖν ἐπαγγέλλεται. 11 Οὗτος «ἐπιστρέψει καρδίας πατέρων ἐπὶ τέκνα καὶ ἀπει 11 θεῖς ἐν φρονήσει δικαίων». «Πατέρες» ὁ Ἰσραήλ, «τέκνα» τὰ ἔθνη διὰ τὸν χρόνον λέγονται, ἀλλὰ πρὸς τοὺς παῖδας οἱ πατέρες ἐπιστρέφουσιν, ἐπειδὴ τὴν πηγὴν τῆς ζωῆς οἱ παῖδες προσλαμ βάνουσιν, καὶ τὸ δεῖπνον τῆς χαρᾶς ὡς εὐγνώμονες καὶ πιστοὶ σφετερίζονται, καὶ τὴν τράπεζαν προλαβόντες τοῦ φωτὸς περικά θηνται. Ὅθεν ἐκεῖνοι μὲν κληθέντες «πατέρες» «ἀπειθεῖς» εἰκότως χρηματίζουσι· περὶ γὰρ αὐτῶν Ἠσαΐᾳ τῷ προφήτῃ κεκήρυκται· «Γινώσκω ὅτι σκληρὸς εἶ, καὶ νεῦρον σιδηροῦν ὁ τράχηλός σου, καὶ τὸ μέτωπόν σου χαλκοῦν», ἵνα τὸ τῆς συνα γωγῆς ἀκαμπὲς καὶ τῶν ταύτης κληρονόμων τὸ λίαν ἀπειθὲς ἐξηγήσηται. «∆ίκαιοι» δὲ οἱ ἐξ ἐθνῶν· εἰ γὰρ καὶ τὴν δικαιο σύνην πρὸς ὀλίγον ἠγνόησαν, ἀλλὰ νῦν αὐτὴν μετὰ σπουδῆς παι δεύονται· εἰ καὶ τῆς θεοσεβείας τὴν θύραν οὐκ ἠπίσταντο, ἀλλ' ἑαυτοὺς <νῦν> εἰς τὸν νυμφῶνα τρέχοντες μετὰ χαρᾶς εἰσά γουσιν· εἰ καὶ μακρὰν ὑπῆρχον τοῦ φωτός, ἀλλὰ νῦν αὐτὸν ὅλον τὸν ἥλιον καθαροῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς κατοπτεύουσιν. 12 Τί δὲ τὸν Ἰωάννην ὁ Γαβριὴλ κατορθοῦν ἕτερον ἐπαγγέλ λεται, «ἑτοιμάσαι τῷ κυρίῳ λαὸν κατεσκευασμένον»; Ὃν τίς κατεσκεύασεν, ἀλλ' ἢ πάντως ὁ Χριστός; Ὁ γὰρ πλάσας ἀνέ πλασεν, ὁ τὸν τροχὸν ἐξ ἀρχῆς κυλίσας, οὗτος αὐτὸν ἀνεκύλισεν ὕστερον· ὁ εἰπών· «Ἔστω ἄνθρωπος εἰς ψυχὴν ζῶσαν», οὗτος εἶπεν· «Τὸν ἁμαρτωλὸν οὐ βούλομαι ἀποθανεῖν.» Καὶ ταῦτα μὲν ὁ Γαβριήλ, καταβὰς ἐξ οὐρανῶν, ἀπήγγειλεν· ἐν τούτοις δὲ τοῖς λόγοις ὁ Ἰωάννης σπαρεὶς ἔσω τῆς κοιλίας τῆς Ἐλισάβετ ἐγένετο, καὶ τὸν ἐν γαστρὶ προλαβὼν ἀπὸ γαστρὸς ἀσπάζεται, καὶ τὸν ἐν κοιλίᾳ θεολογεῖ ἔτι δεσμοῖς τῆς κοιλίας καὶ ταῦτα μὲν κατεχόμενος· τεχθεὶς δὲ εἰς τὴν ἔρημον πέμπεται, ἵνα τοῖς ἀγ γέλοις ὁμοιωθῇ, ἵνα τῷ θεῷ συλλαλῇ, ἵνα τῶν βιωτικῶν καπνῶν καὶ θορύβων γένηται ἐλεύθερος, ἵνα τὴν ἀνδρείαν ἀσκήσῃ, ἵνα τῶν αἰσθητῶν θηρίων μαθητευθῇ τίνα δεῖ τρόπον τοῖς κεκρυμμένοις πυκτεύειν καὶ πρὸς τοὺς λανθάνοντας μάχεσθαι. 3 13 Προστεθείσης δὲ τῆς ἡλικίας καὶ τοῦ χρόνου προκόπτοντος, δειπνητὴς μὲν γίνεται τραπέζης τῆς οὐκ ἐχούσης ὀψοποιόν, οὐδὲ μισθούμενος μάγειρον· μέλι γὰρ αὐτῷ ἦν ἄγριον καὶ παντελῶς ἀνάρτυτον· ἀκρίδες δὲ ὄψα ὧν ἡ θυσία ἀσίδηρος, ἀμάχαιρος ἡ σφαγὴ λεβήτων οὐκ ἔχρῃζεν, ἀνθράκων οὐκ ἐδέετο. Οὐκ ἦν αὐτῷ χρεία καρυκείας τῆς ἔξωθεν, ἀλλὰ τὴν καρυκείαν ἐξ ἑαυτοῦ ἐκέκτητο. Καὶ καμήλων τρίχες τῷ βαπτιστῇ τὴν στολὴν κατ εσκεύαζον, ἵνα τὸ πνεῦμα θερμαίνῃ τρυχουμένου τοῦ σώματος, καὶ τηκομένης τῆς σαρκὸς νεκρωθῶσι τῶν ἡδονῶν οἱ σκώληκες. Ἀλλὰ καὶ ζώνῃ δερματίνῃ τὴν ὀσφῦν περιέκειτο. Ἔλαμπε δὲ ὑπὲρ χρυσὸν ἡ τῶν ἡδονῶν νέκρωσις, ὁ ἁγιασμὸς ὑπὲρ ἤλεκτρον ἤστραπτεν, ἡ ἁγνεία τῶν πολυφεγγῶν λίθων τὰς ἀκτῖνας ἀπέ κρυπτεν. Οὕτω δὴ τὴν φιλοσοφίαν ἀσκηθεὶς ἀσκητὴς ἀληθινὸς ἀπήρτιστο καὶ δρομεὺς ἄκακος καὶ στρατιώτης ἄμεμπτος καὶ νυμφαγωγὸς δίκαιος καὶ κῆρυξ εὐσεβὴς καὶ μεσίτης καὶ πρό δρομος, «παντὸς οὑτινοσοῦν πονηροῦ πράγματος ἀπεχόμενος». 14 Ποσάκις αὐτὸν ὁ διάβολος φιλοσοφοῦντα τοιαῦτα θεω ρήσας ἐζήλωσεν; Ἀλλὰ γὰρ ὅμως διαβάλλειν οὐκ ἴσχυσεν. Καὶ τί σφόδρα διψῶν καὶ ποθῶν καὶ δεόμενος; Τί δὲ διαβάλλειν τοῦ ἀθλητοῦ, τί δὲ σκώπτειν τοῦ στρατιώτου, τί χλευάζειν ἔμελλεν τοῦ μηδὲν ἐν ταῖς χερσὶ κατέχοντος; Ποίαν εὐθηνίαν ἐξηγεῖσθαι τοῦ μηδεμίαν ἔχοντος πρὸς τὴν εὐπραγίαν τοῦ βίου συγγένειαν; Μὴ διαβάλλειν εἶχεν τοὺς παῖδας οὓς οὐκ ἔσπειρεν, μὴ θυγατέρας ὧν πατὴρ οὐκ ἐτύγχανεν, μὴ ἀγροὺς οὓς οὐκ ἔσχεν, οἴκους δὲ οὓς οὐκ ἤγειρεν, ὄνους ἢ βόας ἢ καμήλους ὧν οὐδὲν ἐκτήσατο, γυναῖκα ἣν οὐκ ἔγνω, οὐκ ἔσχεν, οὐκ ἔγημεν; Ὑμνείσθω τοίνυν Ἰωάννης, πάλιν ἐρῶ, ἐπειδὴ πᾶσιν ἐμέρισε προσφόρως τῆς σω τηρίας τὸ κήρυγμα. Τοὺς μὲν γὰρ στρατιώτας ἀρκεῖσθαι τοῖς ὀψωνίοις ἐκέλευσεν, τοὺς δὲ τελώνας μηδὲν πλέον τῶν φόρων τῶν τεταγμένων λαμβάνειν, τὸν λαὸν σύντομον ὁδὸν τῆς ζωῆς εἰς Χριστὸν ἐπιδείξασθαι, τὸν ἔχοντα διδόναι τῷ μὴ ἔχοντι, τὸν περιττεύοντα τῷ ὑστεροῦντι παρασχεῖν τὸ περιττεῦον, ἵνα τὸ σῶμα μὴ ὑστερῇ, τῶν μελῶν
Baptism of Jesus§4
4As they were bringing and supplying what was needed, the people hastened to the fountain of baptism, and the Redeemer himself wanted to follow them like a shepherd with sheep, to participate in the fountain which he had shown to the lambs.
The Baptist's fingers were striking, his hands were numb, each of his limbs was trembling from head to foot.
The Savior said to the Baptist, 'I need to be baptized by you, and you come to me.'
The Baptist asked, 'How can I cleanse the clean one? How can I grasp the uncontainable one? How can I whiten light? How can I anoint the sun?' He wondered what his hand needed, what word he needed to say while baptizing, what he would say to the Jordan, to the dove from heaven, to the cloud which proclaims the message of his Father, and what he would say to you, baptizing?
The Baptist asked if the Savior was unaware of what he was, or why he had come.
The Savior replied, 'Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness (Matthew 3:15).'
The Baptist asked if he had been conceived in iniquities, or if his mother had conceived him in sins, if his birth was corruption or if his conception was a mixture, if the womb was a bride or the belly a farmer, if milk came from a man, if someone had touched his mother's breast, or if the Virgin had fallen under the curse of Eve.
Let go now, what are you doing to those who are not yet ready, what are you revealing that should still be hidden??
You are disturbing the Jews and shooting at the devil's ears, driving away the demons from the earth before the cross, and making the servants of the cross sacrifice against their will.
Let go now, what are you doing to yourself, what are you depriving your nature of?
If I am not baptized, how will I hear the voice of God, and if I do not hear the voice, how will I learn the Father's plan and be confident in the Son's mysteries?
I was born of a woman and paid the debt of Eve, I took the form of a servant and freed Adam from debt, I sat on a manger and the one who became beastly is freed from curse and shame.
I wore swaddling clothes and healed the wound of nakedness, I was circumcised for the sake of Israel, and now I am baptized again for the nations, and thus all righteousness is sealed to my laws and works.
Emboldened by the ministry of the mystery and the vision of the dove, he became even more confident and acquired a more radiant boldness, speaking out against tyrants and rebuking the lawless Herod.
With the voice of the Father, he spoke to the king with a loud voice, saying, 'It is not lawful for you to have the wife of Philip your brother (Leviticus 18:16, 20:21).'
If you do not keep the law, you will not be able to hold the scepter.
If you transgress the commandment, you must take off the purple.
If you despise God, you must come down from the throne you took from him.
He warned the king not to be proud of his arms, for the laws protect the king.
He urged him not to neglect virtue, for it is more honorable than the golden throne.
Again, he said, 'It is not lawful for you to have the wife of Philip your brother.'
He pleaded with him to spare the succession of his family and not to corrupt the order of the royal seed.
He asked, 'Whose child will the one born from Herodias, who was corrupted by you, be called, the former husband's or the second adulterer's, the one who lawfully mounted the bed or the one who unlawfully seized it? Shall we call the son born from her Philip's?'
The one born from her is a stranger to him.
Greek · §4
εἰσφερόντων ἀλλήλοις καὶ χορη γούντων τὰ δέοντα. 15 Οὗτος ὁ λαὸς σωρηδὸν ἐπὶ τὴν πηγὴν τοῦ βαπτίσματος ἔσπευδεν καὶ μετ' αὐτοὺς ὁ λυτρωτὴς αὐτὸς ὡς προβάτοις ποιμὴν ἐπακολουθῆσαι βουλόμενος καὶ τῆς πηγῆς μετασχεῖν ἧς αὐτὸς τοῖς ἀμνοῖς ἐνεφάνισεν. Ἔπαλλον οἱ τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ δάκτυλοι, αἱ χεῖρες ἐνάρκων, ἕκαστον αὐτῷ τῶν μελῶν τῆς στολῆς ἀπὸ κεφαλῆς μέχρι ποδῶν ἔτρεμεν. Καὶ μήτε ἀντειπεῖν ὡς οἰκέτης δεσπότῃ δυνάμενος, μήτε διακονῆσαι χωρῶν τῷ τοσούτῳ προσ τάγματι, οὔτε παραιτεῖσθαι ἐτόλμα τῷ μεγάλα προστάττοντι. «Ἐγὼ χρείαν ἔχω ὑπὸ σοῦ βαπτισθῆναι καὶ σὺ ἔρχῃ πρός με.» Πῶς, φησίν, πλυνῶ τὸν καθαρόν; Τίνα δὲ τρόπον κρατήσω τὸν ἀχώρητον; Πῶς λευκανῶ τὸ φῶς; Πῶς ἀποσμύξω τὸν ἥλιον; Τί μου χρῄζει τῆς χειρός; Τί σοι δεῖ γλώττης ἣν αὐτὸς ἐκεράμω σας; Τί πρὸς σὲ βαπτίζων εἴπω; Τί πρὸς αὐτὸν τὸν Ἰορδάνην φθέγξομαι; Τί πρὸς τὴν περιστερὰν τὴν ἐξ οὐρανῶν αὐτομο λοῦσαν τοῦ πνεύματος; Τί πρὸς τὴν νεφέλην ᾗ τοῦ σοῦ πατρὸς ἐποχεῖται τὸ κήρυγμα; Ἆρα μὴ ἀγνοεῖς τί ὑπάρχω, δέσποτα; Ἆρα δὲ οὐκ οἶδας διὰ τί παραγέγονα;» 16 «Ἐγὼ χρείαν ἔχω ὑπὸ σοῦ βαπτισθῆναι, καὶ σὺ ἔρχῃ πρός με.» Μὴ γὰρ «ἐν ἀνομίαις συνελήφθης», ὥσπερ ἐγώ; Μὴ γὰρ «ἐν ἁμαρτίαις ἐκίσσησέ σε ἡ μήτηρ σου» ἢ σπόρον ἔσχεν ὁ τό κος; Μὴ φθορὰν ἡ κύησις ἢ συμπλοκὴν ἡ σύλληψις; Μὴ νυμ φίον ἡ μήτρα ἢ γεωργὸν ἡ γαστήρ; Μὴ τὸ γάλα ἐξ ἀνδρός; Μὴ τῆς σῆς μητρὸς τὸν μασθόν τις ἐψηλάφησεν; Μὴ τῇ κατάρᾳ τῆς Εὔας ἡ παρθένος ὑπέπεσεν;» Ἀλλὰ τί πρὸς αὐτὸν ὁ λυτρωτὴς ἐπήγαγεν; «Ἄφες ἄρτι· οὕτως γὰρ πρέπον ἡμῖν ἐστι πληρῶσαι πᾶσαν δικαιοσύνην. Ἄφες ἄρτι», τουτέστιν τί γυμνοῖς πρὸ καιροῦ τὰ λανθάνοντα; Τί ἐκκαλύπτεις τὰ δεόμενα τέως κρύπτεσθαι μέχρι καιροῦ; Τί 4 θορυβεῖς τῶν Ἰουδαίων τὴν ἀκοήν; Τί τοξεύεις τοῦ διαβόλου τὰ ὦτα; Τί φυγαδεύεις ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς πρὸ τοῦ σταυροῦ τοὺς δαίμονας; Τί δειλοὺς κατασκευάζεις τοὺς διακονεῖν τῇ θυσίᾳ τοῦ σταυροῦ καὶ παρὰ γνώμην μέλλοντας;» 17 «Ἄφες ἄρτι.» Τί σαυτὸν μεγάλα ζημιοῖς; Τί τὴν φύ σιν ὑπέρογκον ἀποστερεῖς; Ἐὰν μὴ βαπτισθῶ, πῶς φωνῆς ἀκούσει; Ἐὰν μὴ ἀκούσῃ φωνῆς, πῶς μαθήσει τοῦ Πατρὸς τὴν βουλήν, πῶς θαρρήσει τοῦ Υἱοῦ τὰ μυστήρια, πῶς τὴν ἄφι ξιν κατοπτεύσεις τοῦ Πνεύματος, πῶς τὸν οὐρανὸν θεωρήσεις ἀνοιγόμενον; Ἐὰν μὴ βαπτισθῶ, τίς ἁγιάσει τὸ ὕδωρ τοῦ βαπτίσματος, τίς συντρίψει τὰς κεφαλὰς τοῦ δράκοντος, πῶς λευκαίνεται τὰ στοιχεῖα, πῶς ἡ κτίσις καθαίρεται, πῶς τὰ ῥυ πωθέντα σκεύη τοῦ Ἀδὰμ ἀποπλύνεται; «Ἄφες ἄρτι· οὕτως γὰρ ἡμῖν πρέπον ἐστὶ πληρῶσαι πᾶσαν δικαιοσύνην», ἣν ὁ νό μος ἐντέλλεται καὶ οἱ προφῆται κηρύττουσι καὶ ἡ χάρις εἰσ ηγεῖται καὶ τὸ καινὸν τῆς βασιλείας ἐπιζητεῖται κήρυγμα. Ἐτέχθην ἐκ γυναικὸς καὶ τὸ χρέος τῆς Εὔας ἀποδέδοται· δούλου μορφὴν ἐφόρεσα καὶ τῆς ὀφειλῆς τὸν Ἀδὰμ ἠλευθέρωσα· ἐπὶ φάτνης ἐκάθισα καὶ ὁ γεγονὼς κτηνώδης τῆς ἀρᾶς ἐλύθη καὶ τῆς αἰσχύνης ἀπήλλακται· ἐνεδυσάμην σπάργανα καὶ τῆς γυμνώ σεως τὴν πληγὴν ἐθεράπευσα. Ἕνεκα τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ περιετμήθην· ἰδοὺ πάλιν διὰ τὰ ἔθνη βαπτίζομαι, καὶ οὕτως πᾶσα δικαιοσύνη τοῖς ἐμοῖς νόμοις ὁμοῦ καὶ τοῖς ἔργοις σφραγίζεται.» 18 Αὕτη μὲν οὖν ἦν καὶ τοιαύτη τῶν παρὰ τοῦ Λόγου καὶ θεοῦ ἐμφωνηθέντων ἡ δύναμις· αὐτὸς δὲ τῇ διακονίᾳ τοῦ μυστη ρίου θαρρήσας καὶ τῇ θεωρίᾳ τῆς περιστερᾶς γεγονὼς ὑψηλό τερος καὶ τῇ φωνῇ τοῦ πατρὸς ἔτι μᾶλλον λαμπροτέραν τὴν παρρησίαν κτησάμενος, καὶ κατὰ τυράννων τὴν γλῶσσαν ἐκίνει καὶ παρανομοῦντα τὸν Ἡρῴδην ἤλεγχεν, καὶ πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα φωνῇ μεγάλῃ φθέγγεται· «Οὐκ ἔξεστί σοι ἔχειν τὴν γυναῖκα Φιλίππου τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ σου.» Εἰ μὴ τὸν νόμον φυλάττεις, οὐ δυνήσει τὸ σκῆπτρον ἔχειν. Εἰ τὴν ἐντολὴν παραβαίνεις, τὴν πορφύραν ἀπόδυσαι. Εἰ τοῦ θεοῦ καταφρονεῖς, τοῦ θρόνου οὗ ἔλαβες παρ' αὐτοῦ κατάβηθι. Μὴ ἐπαίρου τοῖς ὅπλοις», φησίν· «οἱ γὰρ νόμοι τὸν βασιλέα φυλάττουσιν. Μὴ ἀμέλει τῆς ἀρετῆς· εὐπρεπεστέρα γὰρ ὑπάρχει τοῦ χρυσολίθου βήματος. «Οὐκ ἔξ εστί σοι ἔχειν τὴν γυναῖκα Φιλίππου τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ σου.» 19 «Φεῖσαι τῆς τοῦ γένους διαδοχῆς», φησίν. «Μὴ διαφθεί ρῃς τὴν τάξιν τοῦ βασιλικοῦ σπέρματος. Τίνος, εἰπέ, βούλει καλεῖσθαι τὸν ἐξ Ἡρῳδιάδος παρὰ σοῦ μοιχευομένης τικτό μενον, τοῦ προτέρου νυμφίου ἢ τοῦ δευτέρου μοιχοῦ, τοῦ νομίμως τὴν κοίτην ἀναβάντος ἢ μᾶλλον τοῦ ταύτην παρανόμως ἁρπά σαντος; Φιλίππου καλέσομεν υἱὸν τὸν ἐξ αὐτῆς τικτόμενον; Ἀλλότριος αὐτοῦ ὁ τεχθείς.
The Oath and the Dance§5
5…Do you wish to be called the child of Herod? But the field is not yours, and the plot sown unlawfully beside you belongs to another.
Nevertheless, the council’s tyrant does not put up with it; instead, he pays the bondsman’s wage to the teacher.
He sent John the Baptist to the guard and agonized over the murder.
He wanted to draw the sword and had practiced the chasm earth and the people ashamed he delayed.
Therefore, as seemed likely, he looked for a moment to carry out the unlawful deed and imagined an opportune day for the untimely killing.
When Herod’s birthdays came, having been born into the world, he owed nothing, nor did he dare to enter the common life, this of the human stadium, nor enjoy the elements, nor bless creation, nor indulge in licentiousness by using the moon, nor change the sun, nor insult the stars’ course, nor smear the measures of day and night.
He did not blush at lawlessly passing the day, nor did he hold back from nightly indulgence, nor did he turn back the solar path, nor transgress the Maker’s bounds.
Yet when birthdays proceeded despite the one who had harmed the nations and arrogantly begotten royal offspring, Herodias’ daughter danced in the midst and pleased Herod.
Thus, by oath, he swore to give her whatever she might ask.
Having been instructed by her mother, she said, ‘Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist.’
The king was grieved.
But because of the oaths and those present, he ordered it given, and having sent, he beheaded John in prison.
Then his head was lifted upon a platter and given to the maiden.
And he brought it to his mother.
The disciples came and took up the body and buried it, and having come they reported to Jesus.
Woe, how many evils women have filled the life of men, as many thorns they have sown for us and thistles they have cultivated.
Woman closed paradise to the first-formed man (Genesis 3:6), women brought the flood upon the race of giants (Genesis 6:2-4).
For seeing the sons of God the daughters of men that they are fair, they went in to them and the Lord was angered in wrath and he said: I repent that I made man and I will wipe away every dwelling from the face of the earth (Genesis 6:7).
Woman tested the great patriarch Joseph, and she caused the prophet to speak in bonds, and she prepared the God-bearer to sit in prison as an adulteress, as a corruptor to carry a heavy chain around the neck.
Woman gave Samson as captive to the Philistines.
Woman compelled Elijah to flee the whole land of Israel.
Woman now dances and blinds the feast and she courts the tyrannical spectacle to the tyrant.
For she had a braid of three locks ensnaring the young, an outline of eyes lowering those who see, causing them to stumble.
…Seaweed to the virtues.
Greek · §5
Ἡρῴδου τοίνυν ἔκγονον θέλεις ὀνομάζεσθαι; Ἀλλὰ γὰρ ὁ ἀγρὸς οὐκ ἔστι σός, ἀλλότριον τὸ παρὰ σοῦ παρανόμως σπειρόμενον γεώργιον.» Οὐ μὴν ὁ τύραννος τῆς συμβουλῆς ἀνέχεται, ἀλλὰ μισθὸν τὰ δεσμὰ τῷ διδασκάλῳ δίδωσιν. Καὶ τῇ φυλακῇ τὸν βαπτιστὴν παρέπεμψε καὶ τὸν φόνον ὤδινεν. Τὸ ξίφος ὠθῆσαι ἐβούλετο καὶ ἐμελέτα τὴν σφα γὴν καὶ τὸν λαὸν αἰσχυνόμενος ἀνεβάλλετο. Καιρὸν τοίνυν ὡς εἰκὸς ἐζήτει τοῦ παρανόμου δράματος καὶ τῆς ἀκαίρου τομῆς ἡμέραν εὔκαιρον ἐφαντάζετο. 20 Γενεσίοις δὲ γενομένοις Ἡρῴδου τοῦ τεχθῆναι εἰς τὸν κόσμον μηδαμῶς ὀφείλοντος μηδὲ προελθεῖν εἰς τὸ κοινὸν τῆς πολιτείας τοῦτο τῆς ἀνθρωπίνης στάδιον, μηδὲ τῶν στοιχείων ἀπολαῦσαι, μὴ τῆς κτίσεως εὐποιεῖσθαι, μὴ τῇ ἀσελγείᾳ κε χρῆσθαι τὴν σελήνην, μεταναλῶσαι τὸν ἥλιον, ὑβρίσαι τῶν ἄσ τρων τὸν δρόμον, διαβάλαι τὰ τῆς ἡμέρας μέτρα καὶ τῆς νυκτὸς τὰ τέρματα· οὐδὲ γὰρ τὴν ἡμέραν παρανομῶν ᾐσχύνετο, ἀσελ γαίνων τῆς νυκτὸς οὐκ ἐφείδετο, οὐκ ἐνετρέπετο τὸν ἡλιακὸν δρόμον, τὰ τοῦ ποιητοῦ παρερχόμενος ὅρια· γενεσίοις δὲ 5 ὅμως ἀγομένοις τοῦ βλάψαντος τὰ γένη καὶ τὴν βασιλικὴν ἐξυβρί σαντος γέννησιν, «ὠρχήσατο ἡ θυγάτηρ τῆς Ἡρῳδιάδος εἰς τὸ μέσον καὶ ἤρεσε τῷ Ἡρῴδῃ· ὅθεν μεθ' ὅρκου ὤμοσεν αὐτῇ δοῦναι ὃ ἐὰν αἰτήσηται. Ἡ δὲ προβιβασθεῖσα ὑπὸ τῆς μητρὸς αὐτῆς· «∆ός μοι», φησίν, «ὧδε ἐπὶ πίνακι τὴν κεφαλὴν Ἰωάννου τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ.» Καὶ ἐλυπήθη ὁ βασιλεύς· διὰ δὲ τοὺς ὅρκους καὶ τοὺς συνανακειμένους, ἐκέλευσε δοθῆναι καὶ πέμψας ἀπεκεφάλισε τὸν Ἰωάννην ἐν τῇ φυλακῇ. Καὶ ἠνέχθη ἡ κεφαλὴ αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ πίνακι καὶ ἐδόθη τῷ κορασίῳ· καὶ ἤνεγκε τῇ μητρὶ αὐτῆς. Καὶ προσελθόντες οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ ἦραν τὸ σῶμα καὶ ἔθαψαν, καὶ ἐλθόντες ἀπήγγειλαν τῷ Ἰησοῦ.» 21 Φεῦ, κακῶν ὅσων αἱ γυναῖκες τὸν βίον τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ἐπλήρωσαν, ὅσας ἀκάνθας ἡμῖν ἔσπειραν καὶ τριβόλους ἐγεώρ γησαν. Γυνὴ τῷ πρωτοπλάστῳ τὸν παράδεισον ἔκλεισεν, γυναῖκες τὸν κατακλυσμὸν τῷ γένει τῶν γιγάντων ἐπήγαγον· «Ἰδόντες γάρ», φησίν, «οἱ υἱοὶ τοῦ θεοῦ τὰς θυγατέρας τῶν ἀνθρώπων ὅτι καλαί εἰσιν», εἰσῆλθον πρὸς αὐτὰς καὶ ὠργίσθη θυμῷ ὁ κύ ριος καὶ εἶπεν· «Μεταμεμέλημαι ὅτι ἐποίησα τὸν ἄνθρωπον καὶ ἐξαλείψω πᾶν τὸ ἀνάστημα ἀπὸ προσώπου τῆς γῆς.» Γυνὴ τὸν μέγαν πατριάρχην τὸν Ἰωσὴφ ἐπείρασεν, καὶ δεσμοῖς ὁμιλῆσαι τὸν προφήτην πεποίηκεν, καὶ τὸν θεοφόρον παρεσκεύασεν ὡς μοιχὸν ἐν τῇ φυλακῇ καθέζεσθαι, ὡς φθορέα βαρὺν κλοιὸν ἐν τῷ τραχήλῳ περιφέρειν. Γυνὴ τὸν Σαμψὼν αἰχμάλωτον τοῖς ἀλλοφύλοις παρέδωκεν. Γυνὴ τὸν Ἠλίαν δραπέτην τῆς γῆς ὅλης τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ γενέσθαι ἠνάγκασεν. 22 Γυνὴ νῦν ὀρχεῖται καὶ τυφλοῖ τὸ συμπόσιον καὶ καροῖ τῇ παρανόμῳ θεωρίᾳ τὸν τύραννον. Ἦν γὰρ αὐτῇ πλοκὴ τρι χῶν τοὺς νέους σαγηνεύουσα, ὀφθαλμῶν ὑπογραφὴ τοὺς ὁρῶν τας ὑποσκελίζουσα. Φυκίαν ταῖς ἀρεταῖς
John the Baptist§6
6You saw my nakedness, so you will punish her triumph. Give me John’s head on a platter.
Herodias commanded it; the adulteress gave the order. If you refuse, you lose the one who commits adultery with you, and your bed will lie empty after the wine.
I withdrew from the couch — with whom should I now associate? The mother shames the corruption; John sounds the trumpet, and she respects the servants but fears the guard.
Through John’s boldness, the queen becomes a scandal to all. Everyone treats her fate as a tragedy, but John is its cause — he has moved every tongue to speak before acting.
He sounded the trumpet against us first, unafraid to raise a pillar of shame for the queen by speaking of her adultery.
Moses lies asleep, yet through him comes a voice: the Law sleeps, but John awakens it against us.
He calls the queen an adulteress, and has persuaded many to follow him, to become bold.
Greek · §6
ἐπέπαττεν, καὶ τοῖς συναντῶσι τὸ ἄγκιστρον φορητὸν οὐκ ἐτύγχανεν. Ἤνοιγε τὸ στόμα, καὶ θάνατον ἐκ τῆς γλώττης ἠρεύγετο. Ἀνέκλα τὸν τρά χηλον, καὶ φθορᾶς ἡ θεωρία ἦν πρόξενος. Ἐγύμνου τὰ στέρνα, καὶ ᾅδου προπύλαια παρεῖχεν ὁρᾶν τοῖς περιέργως βλέπουσιν. Ἐγύμνου τοὺς μηροὺς ἀναστέλλουσα τῶν ποδῶν τῆς ποικίλης θεωρίας τὸ χιτώνιον, καὶ δράκοντες ἐκ τῶν λαγόνων συρίζοντες εἰς φθορὰν τῷ θεάτρῳ προήρχοντο. Καὶ ἦν τὸ νεῦμα δολερόν, τὸ βλέμμα ῥυπαρόν, φθοροποιὸν τὸ φθέγμα, ψυχοβλαβὲς τὸ κίνημα, θανατηφόρον τὸ φίλημα. 23 Πλὴν ὁ Ἡρῴδης ἁλοὺς δώσειν ὅπερ ἂν αἰτήσῃ τὸ πονηρὸν ὀρχήστριον ὤμοσεν. «Ἡ δὲ προβιβασθεῖσα ὑπὸ τῆς μητρὸς αὐτῆς· ∆ός μοι, φησίν, ὧδε ἐπὶ πίνακι τὴν κεφαλὴν Ἰωάννου τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ.» Ὁρᾷς ἡλίκον ἡ θηλυμανὴς ἡδονή. Αἰσθάνει πόσον ἡ φθορὰ τὸν ἁλόντα δουλοῖ, πῶς ὁ χαυνωθεὶς τῇ μέθῃ οὐκέτι τὸ σκῆπτρον οἶδεν, τῆς ἐξουσίας οὐ μέμνηται, πᾶσι πρό κειται παίγνιον. Τί γὰρ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἡ ὀρχήστρια ἐφθέγξατο; «∆ός μοι ὧδε ἐξαυτῆς ἐπὶ πίνακι τὴν κεφαλὴν Ἰωάννου τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ.» Ταῦτα δὲ οὐ παρακαλούσης, ἀλλ' ἐπιταττούσης τὰ ῥήματα· οὐ γὰρ ὡς κόρη τῷ βασιλεῖ μετὰ φόβου ἢ αἰδοῦς ἤ τινος ὑποστολῆς προσέρχεται, ἀλλ' ὡς οἰκέτῃ δέσποινα, ὡς δεσμώτῃ ἡ δεσμῶν ἐξουσίαν ἔχουσα. «∆ός μοι, φησίν, ἐπὶ πί νακι τὴν κεφαλὴν Ἰωάννου τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ.» Μὴ ἀναβάλῃ τὴν αἴτησιν. Ὧδε χρῄζω τῆς τοῦ προφήτου σφαγῆς, ἐνταῦθα πρα χθῆναι τὸν φόνον τοῦ τὴν μοιχείαν ἐλέγχοντος. Ὅπου τὴν ἐμὴν ἐθεώρησας γύμνωσιν, ὧδε τὸν ταύτης θριαμβευτὴν τιμωρίαν εἰσπράττομαι.» 24 «∆ός μοι τὴν Ἰωάννου κεφαλὴν ἐπὶ πίνακι»· Ἡρῳδιὰς γὰρ ἐκέλευσεν, ἡ μοιχαλὶς προσέταξεν· «Εἰ μὴ δῷς, οὐκ ἔχεις τὴν ἅμα σοὶ μοιχεύουσαν· ἡ κοίτη μετὰ τὸν οἶνόν σοι χηρεύσει. Ἀναχωρῶν ἀπὸ τῆς στιβάδος, τίνι συνέρχεσθαι; Ἀισχύνεται τὴν φθορὰν ἡ μήτηρ, Ἰωάννου σαλπίζοντος, αἰδεῖται τοὺς οἰκέ τας, τοὺς δορυφόρους ἐντρέπεται. Πᾶσιν ἡ βασιλὶς θρύλημα διὰ τὴν Ἰωάννου παρρησίαν 6 γίνεται. Πάντες αὐτῆς τραγῳ δοῦσι τὸ δρᾶμα, ὁ βαπτιστὴς δὲ τῆς τραγῳδίας αἴτιος τὴν γλῶσ σαν πάντων προπηδήσας ἐκίνησεν. Οὗτος τὴν σάλπιγγα καθ' ἡμῶν προεβάλετο· πρῶτος τὴν μοιχείαν οὐκ εὐλαβηθεὶς στηλι τεύειν τὴν βασιλίδα ἤρξατο. Μωυσῆς κοιμᾶται, καὶ δι' αὐτοῦ φθέγγεται· ὁ νόμος καθεύδει, Ἰωάννης δὲ αὐτὸν καθ' ἡμῶν ἐξ υπνίζει· τὴν βασιλίδα μοιχαλίδα καλεῖ, ἀκολουθεῖν δὲ πολλοὺς καὶ γενέσθαι τολμηροὺς προετρέψατο.»
Herod's Compromise§7
7The king's vow to grant the girl's request was a reckless promise, for he was bound by his own oath and the presence of his guests.
Everyone knew that he was a slave to the adulteress and a captive of the dancer, as evidenced by the drinking party, the wine, the intoxication, the agreement of the oaths, and the king's unbridled promise.
He had sworn to grant whatever she asked of him, thinking that she would request something like bridal pearls, a field of ten thousand plants, or a city that he held as an exception in his kingdom.
However, she did not ask for anything that belonged to him, but instead sought the head of a prophet, which was something he was unable to provide.
The king wondered how he could possibly provide what she asked for, and noted that even if she had asked for heaven, he would not have been responsible for granting it, nor could he have given her the earth or the sea, for these things were beyond his authority and exceeded his power.
She said, 'Give me John the Baptist's head on a platter, for I thirst to drink his blood and gnaw on his limbs, and to see the head of the one who insults the kingdom with the royal dishes.'
She also stated that she must bring this dancing girl as a foreigner to her mother from the royal table, since Herodias awaits her share of the dinner from your own birthday.
If Herodias had demanded the tyrant's eyes, the king would not have become blind and sat on the throne, and similarly, if she had wanted to cut off his ear and nose, he would not have suddenly become a monster, and if she had ordered his hands to be cut off, the scepter would not have fallen from his fingers.
One might ask whether we should pity Herod's grief and ask the tyrant for forgiveness, for it was possible for him to dissuade the dancer and renounce the oath if he had wished to do so.
The natural law within him troubled him, and he was also afraid of the crowd and the multitude, for many people held the baptist in wonder.
Nevertheless, since he was eager for the murder and thirsty for the slaughter and considered the death of the prophet his own freedom, being persuaded by them…
Greek · §7
25 «∆ός μοι τοίνυν τὴν κεφαλὴν Ἰωάννου τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ.» «∆ός»· εἰ γὰρ σὺ μὴ δώσεις, ἡμεῖς λαβεῖν οὐ χρῄζομεν· αὐ τομολήσει δὲ πρὸς τὸν φόνον ὁ δήμιος παρ' ἡμῶν ἐπιτραπείς. ∆οῦλόν σε πάντες τῆς μοιχαλίδος, αἰχμάλωτον τῆς ὀρχηστρίδος ἴσασιν. Μαρτυρεῖ τούτοις ἡ στιβάς, μαρτυρεῖ τὸ συμπόσιον, ὁ οἶνος, ἡ μέθη, τῶν ὅρκων ἡ συνθήκη, ἡ ἀχαλίνωτος τοῦ βασιλέως ὑπόσχεσις. «∆ός μοι τοίνυν ὧδε ἐπὶ πίνακι τὴν κεφαλὴν Ἰωάν νου τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ»· διψῶ γὰρ αὐτοῦ τὸ αἷμα πιεῖν καὶ τὰ μέλη μασήσασθαι, ἰδεῖν μετὰ τῶν βασιλικῶν ὄψων τὴν κεφαλὴν τοῦ λοιδοροῦντος τὰ βασίλεια. Σπαίρουσαν ταύτην χρή με τῇ μητρὶ προσαγαγεῖν ἀπὸ τῆς τραπέζης τῆς βασιλικῆς ξένιον, ἐπειδὴ ταύτην τοῦ δείπνου μερίδα ἀπὸ τῶν σῶν γενεσίων Ἡρῳδιὰς ἐκδέχεται.» Καὶ ταῦτα μὲν ἡ κόρη. 26 «Λυπηθεὶς δὲ ὁ βασιλεὺς διὰ τοὺς ὅρκους καὶ τοὺς συνανακειμένους, ἐκέλευσε δοθῆναι.» Μὴ ἀποδέξει τοῦ Ἡρῴδου τὴν λύπην; Μηδὲ συγγνώμης ἀξιώσεις τὸν τύραννον; Ἐξῆν γὰρ εἴπερ ἐβούλετο τὴν ὀρχηστρίδα τροπώσασθαι. Ἐξῆν εἰ ἠθέλει τὸν ὅρκον παραιτήσασθαι. Τί γάρ; Εἰ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς ἔτυχεν Ἡρῳδιὰς ἀπαιτοῦσα τὸν τύραννον, ἆρα τυφλὸς ἔμελλεν ὁ βασιλεὺς εἰς τὸν θρόνον καθέζεσθαι; Τί δέ; Εἰ κολοβῶσαι τὸ οὖς καὶ τὰς ῥῖνας ἀποτεμεῖν ἐβούλετο, ἆρα ἐγένετο τέρας ἐξαπίνης ὁ τύραννος; Καὶ τί πάλιν; Εἰ τὰς χεῖρας ἀποτεμεῖν ἐπέταττεν, ἆρα τῶν δακτύλων καὶ τὸ σκῆπτρον ἐξέπιπτεν; Οὐδαμῶς. 27 Ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὴν κόρην ὥσπερ ἦν εἰκὸς λέγειν· «Ὤμοσα παρασχεῖν ὅπερ αἰτήσεις ἐμόν· ᾤμην γὰρ νυμφικοὺς μαργαρίτας ἐκδέχεσθαι, ἢ ὡς ὅτι ἀγρὸν αἰτήσεις μυριόφυτον, ἢ ποθήσεις πόλιν ἥνπερ ἔχω τῆς βασιλείας μου ἐξαίρετον. Νῦν δὲ ἐμὸν οὐδὲν αἰτεῖς, ἐπιζητεῖς δὲ ὃ παρασχεῖν οὐ δύναμαι, προφήτου κεφαλὴν ἐπιζητεῖς. Καὶ πῶς σοι παρασχεῖν ὁ βασιλεὺς τὰ τοῦ ποιητοῦ δύναται; Εἰ τὸν οὐρανὸν ᾔτησας, μὴ τοῖς ὅρκοις ὁ βασιλεὺς ὑπεύθυνος, ἢ τὴν γῆν ἢ τὴν θάλασσαν; Οὐδαμῶς· οὐ γὰρ ἐν ἐμοὶ δοῦναι τὰ ὑπὲρ ἐμέ, ἃ τῆς ἐμῆς ἐξουσίας οὐχ ὑπάρχει καὶ ταῖς ἐμαῖς χερσὶν ὑπέρκειται». Τούτων οὐδὲν ὁ Ἡρῴδης φθέγγεται, ἀλλὰ λυπεῖται μέν· τὸ συνειδὸς γὰρ αὐτὸν ἐκέντα. Ὁ νόμος δὲ ἔνδοθεν ὁ φυσικὸς ἐτάραττεν. Ἠγωνία πρὸς τούτοις τὸν ὄχλον καὶ τὸ πλῆθος πεφόβητο· πολλῶν γὰρ ἕνεκεν ἔχοντες ὑπῆρχον τὸν βαπτιστὴν ἐν θαύματι. Ἀλλ' ὅμως, ἐπειδὴ τὸν φόνον ὤδινε καὶ τὴν σφαγὴν ἐδίψη καὶ τὸν τοῦ προφήτου θάνατον οἰκείαν ἐλευθερίαν ἐνόμιζεν, δυσωπηθεὶς τοὺς
The Triumph of the Word and the Role of Women§8
8…He feigns oaths and, by the command of the girl, sends someone to serve the prisoner.
Thus, the head of the Baptist is brought upon a platter: the beauty of the prophets, the boldness of the word, the grace of repentance, the many-chambered pipe the God-sounding trumpet, the tongue that moves the clouds, eyes that behold the unsearchable things, ears that clearly hear the mysteries of God, a head that has touched the head of all.
And her, as it was given to the girl, a leopard bore the sacrifice of a lamb, while a wolf carried the head of a royal lion.
He brought the accuser to the mother, who did not cease his reproaches even after death, nor did he relinquish his boldness even after the slaughter.
But the prophet has fallen asleep, and the word is being handed down everywhere.
The trumpet has ceased, and the theaters of the inhabited world are filled with the sounds emanating from it.
The tongue has gone into the earth, and the sounds from it have filled the tribes.
He struck down the nations, thundering more strongly through every generation; for from that beginning, they spread through all the earth, proclaiming, 'Behold the Lamb of God, the one taking away the sin of the world' (John 1:29).
And you by no means from one woman of the whole world ran down nothing, because of a certain filthy vessel being now, but you cast down the whole ceramic of the maker.
For if even a woman closed the paradise, a woman again opened the royal step of the kingdom.
Women brought the flood by the race of the giants, but women opened the royal step by the dance of the apostles.
A woman tempted Joseph, but a woman nourished Elisha.
A woman bound Samson, but a woman commanded Barak; a woman sent Elijah into the wilderness in flight, but a woman hosted the same man while he was being tormented by famine.
A woman tripped Peter, and a woman became a protector of Paul, just as he himself is honored. Do you not seem to be weary of the word, wanting to sympathize with a woman?
But the one who is not weary will have the rewards brought to his feet briefly.
A woman labored with our redeemer. This one gave birth to and nursed the creator of the race, this one gave drink to the nourisher of the creation, the one who planned the springs for creation, in her arms she bore 'the one measuring the heavens with a span and the earth with a cubit,' the one who regulated and sealed the sea with his palm.
To him belong the glory and the power into the ages of the ages. Amen.
Greek · §8
ὅρκους ὑποκρίνεται καὶ τὸν δήμιον διακονῆσαι πέμπει τῷ τῆς κόρης προστάγματι. 28 Καὶ οὕτως ἡ τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ κεφαλὴ ἐπὶ πίνακι φέρεται, τῶν προφητῶν τὸ κάλλος, ἡ παρρησία τοῦ λόγου, τῆς μετανοίας ἡ χάρις, ὁ πολυμερὴς αὐλός, ἡ σάλπιγξ ἡ θεόφθογγος, γλῶττα ἡ τὰς νεφέλας κινοῦσα, ὀφθαλμοὶ οἱ τὰ ἀθεώρητα βλέποντες, ὦτα καθαρῶς ἀκροώμενα τὰ τοῦ θεοῦ μυστήρια, κεφαλὴ τὴν πάντων κεφαλὴν ψηλαφήσασα· καὶ ἥν, ὡς ἐδόθη τῷ κορασίῳ, ἀμνοῦ θυσίαν ἐβάστασε πάρδαλις, βασιλικοῦ λέοντος κεφαλὴν περιέφερε λύκαινα. Καὶ ἤνεγκε τῇ μητρὶ τὸν κατήγορον τὸν οὐδὲ μετὰ θάνατον τῶν ἐλέγχων παυσάμενον, οὐδὲ μετὰ τὴν σφαγὴν τῆς παρρησίας ἀφέμενον. Ἀλλ' ὁ προφήτης κεκοίμηται, καὶ ὁ λόγος πανταχοῦ διαδέδοται· ἡ σάλπιγξ ἐπαύσατο, καὶ γέμει τῶν ἐξ αὐτῆς ἤχων τῆς οἰκουμένης τὰ θέατρα· ἡ γλῶττα εἰς γῆν, οἱ δὲ ἐξ αὐτῆς φθόγγοι τὰς φυλὰς ἐπλήρωσαν· τὰ ἔθνη κατεκτύπησε, βροντῶν ἰσχυροτέρα καθ' ἑκάστην ἠχοῦσα γενεάν· ἀπ' ἐκείνης γὰρ 7 ἀρξάμενοι τὸ «Ἴδε ὁ ἀμνὸς τοῦ θεοῦ, ὁ αἴρων τὴν ἁμαρτίαν τοῦ κόσμου» εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν διεπόρθμευσαν. Σὺ δὲ μηδαμῶς ἐκ μιᾶς γυναικὸς ὅλου τοῦ κόσμου κατάτρεχε μηδέ, σκεύους ἑνὸς ῥυπαροῦ τινος ὄντος νῦν ἕνεκα, ὅλην τὴν τοῦ ποιητοῦ κεραμικὴν κατάβαλλε. 29 Εἰ γὰρ καὶ γυνὴ τὸν παράδεισον ἔκλεισεν, ἀλλὰ γυνὴ πάλιν τὸν νυμφῶνα τῆς βασιλείας ἀνέῳξεν. Γυναῖκες τὸν κατακλυσμὸν τῷ γένει τῶν γιγάντων ἐπήγαγον, ἀλλὰ γυναῖκες τὸ βασιλικὸν βῆμα τῷ χορῷ τῶν ἀποστόλων ἀνέῳξαν. Γυνὴ τὸν Ἰωσὴφ ἐπείρασεν, ἀλλὰ γυνὴ τὸν Ἐλισαῖον ἔθρεψεν. Γυνὴ τὸν Σαμψὼν ἔδησεν, ἀλλὰ γυνὴ τὸν Βαρὰκ ἐστρατήγησεν. Γυνὴ φυγάδα τὸν Ἠλίαν εἰς τὴν ἔρημον ἔπεμψεν, ἀλλὰ γυνὴ τὸν αὐτὸν ἐσίτησεν ὑπὸ λιμοῦ τρυχόμενον. Γυνὴ τὸν Πέτρον ἐσκέλισε, καὶ γυνὴ προστάτις τοῦ Παύλου ἐγένετο, καθὼς αὐτὸς σεμνύνεται. Ἆρα μὴ κάμνειν δοκεῖς τὸν λόγον γυναικὶ συνηγορεῖν ἐθέλοντα; Ὁ δὲ οὐ κάμνει, ποδὶ δὲ συντόμῳ τὰ βραβεῖα κομίζεται. Γυνὴ τὸν λυτρωτὴν τὸν ἡμέτερον ὤδινεν. Αὕτη τὸν τοῦ γένους δημιουργὸν ἔτεκε καὶ ἐθήλασεν, αὕτη τὸν τροφέα τῆς κτίσεως ἐπότισεν, τὸν πηγᾶς τῇ κτίσει σχεδιάσαντα, ἐν ἀγκάλαις ἐβάστασεν «τὸν σπιθαμῇ τὸν οὐρανὸν μετρήσαντα καὶ τὴν γῆν δρακί», τὸν κανονίσαντα καὶ σφραγίσαντα τῇ παλάμῃ τὴν θάλασσαν· αὐτῷ ἡ δόξα καὶ τὸ κράτος εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν. 8