Woe from the Savior’s soul, not from Godhead
Let these things be said by me as in a digression upon 'Woe is me, mother.' For it is not alien to the divinity of our Savior, when he beholds the sins of men, that the saying 'Woe is me' should now belong to the Savior—not as God but as man, not as Wisdom but as soul. I set beside it that prophetic word: 'Woe is me, soul, for the godly one has perished from the earth, and the one who acts uprightly among men does not exist.' (Micah 7:2) The blessed soul came upon human life; it took a body for the sake of men. If it sees the sins, it says to the Father: 'What profit is there in my blood, in my going down into corruption? Will dust confess to you?' (Luke 15:7,10)
But upon us let him not say 'Woe is me,' and upon us let the angels of the heavens not say it. When our Savior says 'Woe is me,' they too will say 'Woe is me'; for they are not better than our Savior, and they also see our stumbles. But blessed are those over whom the angels will not say 'Woe is me,' but rather bless them: for 'there is joy in heaven over one sinner who repents rather than over ninety-nine who have no need of repentance.' These things for comfort.
'Woe is me, mother, as what did you bear me?' Whom does he call mother? Among women can he not mean both the soul and Mary? But if someone accepts the word, 'My mother the Holy Spirit recently took me and brought me up to the great mountain Tabor,' and what follows, he can see his mother. 'Woe is me, mother, as what man did you bear me—a man judged and examined in all the earth?' He is judged in all the earth and examined, and he is about to say to each: I have done these things and these, and my economy has worked these things and these, and I endured for your salvation. When the Savior says these things, what shall we do? For he is about to be examined in all the earth.
Greek
Ταῦτα ὡς ἐν παρεκβάσει μοι εἰρήσθω εἰς τὸ «οἴμοι ἐγὼ μῆτερ. ὅτι οὐκ ἀλλότριόν ἐστι τῆς τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν θειότητος, καθορῶντος τὰ ἁμαρτήματα τῶν ἀνθρώπων, νῦν τὸ λέγειν τὸ «οἴμοι«, τοῦ σωτῆρος οὐχὶ ᾗ θεὸς ἀλλ᾿ ᾗ ἄνθρωπος, οὐχ ᾗ σοφία ἀλλ᾿ ᾗ ψυχή, ἐκεῖνο παρεθέμην τὸ προφητικόν· «οἴμοι ψυχή, ὅτι ἀπόλωλεν εὐλαβὴς ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς, καὶ ὁ κατορθῶν ἐν ἀνθρώποις οὐχ ὑπάρχει. ἦλθεν ἐπὶ τὸν βίον τὸν ἀνθρώπινον ἡ ψυχὴ ἡ μακαρία, ἀνέλαβε σῶμα ὑπὲρ τῶν ἀνθρώπων.
ἐὰν ἴδῃ τὰ ἁμαρτήματα, λέγει πρὸς τὸν πατέρα· «τίς ὠφέλεια ἐν τῷ αἵματί μου, ἐν τῷ καταβῆναί με εἰς διαφθοράν; μὴ ἐξομολογήσεταί σοι χοῦς;« ἀλλὰ ἐφ᾿ ἡμῖν μὴ λεγέτω τὸ «οἴμοι«, ἐφ᾿ ἡμῖν μὴ λεγέτωσαν οἱ ἄγγελοι τῶν οὐρανῶν. τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν λέγοντος τὸ «οἴμοι« καὶ αὐτοὶ ἐροῦσιν «οἴμοι«· οὐ γὰρ κρείττονές εἰσι τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν, καὶ αὐτοὶ ἡμῶν τὰ πταίσματα βλέπουσιν. ἀλλὰ μακάριοι ἐκεῖνοι ἐφ᾿ οἷς οἱ ἄγγελοι οὐκ ἐροῦσι τὸ «οἴμοι«, ἀλλὰ μακαρίζονται· «χαρὰ« γὰρ «ἐν οὐρανῷ γίνεται ἐπὶ ἑνὶ ἁμαρτωλῷ μετανοοῦντι ἢ ἐπὶ ἐνενήκοντα ἐννέα, οἳ οὐ χρείαν ἔχουσι μετανοίας. ταῦτα ἐν παραμυθίᾳ. «Οἴμοι ἐγώ, μῆτερ, ὡς τίνα με ἔτεκες;« τίνα λέγει μητέρα; οὐκ ἐν γυναιξὶ δύναται καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν λέγειν καὶ τὴν Μαρίαν; εἰ δέ τις παραδέχεται τὸ «ἄρτι ἔλαβέ με ἡ μήτηρ μου τὸ ἅγιον πνεῦμα, καὶ ἀνήνεγκέ με εἰς τὸ ὄρος τὸ μέγα τὸ Θαβὼρ« καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς, δύναται αὐτοῦ ἰδεῖν τὴν μητέρα. «οἴμοι ἐγώ, μῆτερ, ὡς τίνα με ἔτεκες ἄνδρα δικαζόμενον καὶ διακρινόμενον ἐν πάσῃ τῇ γῇ;« δικάζεται πάσῃ τῇ γῇ καὶ διακρίνεται καὶ μέλλει πρὸς ἕκαστον λέγειν· ἐγὼ πεποίηκα τάδε καὶ τάδε, καὶ ἡ οἰκονομία μου ἔπραξε τάδε καὶ τάδε, καὶ τῇ σωτηρίᾳ σου ὑπέμεινα. ταῦτα λέγοντος τοῦ σωτῆρος τί ποιήσωμεν; μέλλει γὰρ διακρίνεσθαι ἐν πάσῃ τῇ γῇ.