§1.1344τεκεῖν μ᾿ ἔθηκε παραδόξως σ’, ὦ Τέκνον, §1.1345εὔδοξον, ὡς ἔδοξε σῷ Γεννήτορι, §1.1346πρὶν ἢ γενέσθαι κἀμὲ καὶ πᾶσαν κτίσιν,
My Child, your Begetter made me bear you in a wondrous way, before both I and all creation came to be, so as to make you glorious, as it seemed good to your Begetter.
§1.1347κἀπείσ᾿ ἐτέχθην, Πατρός, οἶμαι, σοῦ κρίσει §1.1348τρέφειν με πατὴρ οὐ βροτείαν ἐσχάραν §1.1349μήτηρ τ’ ἔδωκεν ἱεροὺς ἀμφὶ δόμους, §1.1350ἔνθ’ ἐκτραφεῖσαν χειρὸς ἀγγέλου ξένως §1.1351εἰς καιρὸν ἀνδρὶ σώφρον’ ἐκδέδωκε με §1.1352γερουσία ξύμπασα τηρεῖν ἐννόμως, §1.1353οὐκ ἀθεεὶ καὶ τοῦτο, θείᾳ δὲ κρίσει, §1.1354ὡς εὐλόγως ἔλεγχον εἰς καιρὸν φέρω §1.1355καὶ παιδαγωγὸν Παιδὸς, οὗ γονῆς ξένος.
And after I was born, by the decree, I think, of your Father, my father and mother, to nourish me, gave me not to a mortal hearth but delivered me around the sacred temples, where, after I was nourished wondrously by an angel's hand, the entire council of elders delivered me in due season to a prudent husband to keep me lawfully, and this too not without God, but by divine decree, so that with good reason I might in due season bring proof, and make him a guardian of the Child, though stranger to his birth.
§1.1356Μένω γὰρ αὖθις παρθένος τεκοῦσά σε §1.1357αὐτή θ’ ἑαυτὴν οἶδ’, ὅπως ἁγνὴ μένω, §1.1358σύ τ’ αὐτὸς οἶδας, ὡς τὰ πάντ’ εἰδὼς σαφῶς.
For I remain a virgin again after bearing you, and I myself know how I remain pure, and you yourself know it, as one who knows all things clearly.
§1.1359Σοῦ δ’ ἐξ ἐμοῦ τεχθέντος, ἐκ Πατρός Θεοῦ, §1.1360οὐκ εὐπρεπεῖς ἔθεντο πολλοί μοι λόγους, §1.1361ψευδῶς τεκεῖν βάζοντες ἔκ τινος βροτῶν.
But when you were born from me, from God the Father, many directed unbecoming words at me, falsely declaring that I had given birth from some mortal.
§1.1362κοὐκ ἤρκεσαν μοι ταῦθ’ ὑβρισθῆναι μόνον, §1.1363ἀλλ’ ἔδραμον φεύγουσα κεἰς Αἰγυπτίαν §1.1364ἔτλην τε πολλὰ καὶ κατεξάνθην πόνοις.
And it was not enough for me only to be insulted thus, but I fled and ran even to Egypt, and I endured many things and was worn out with labors.
§1.1365Αλλ᾿ εἰδον ἐξαίσια σοὶ πεπραγμένα, §1.1366καὶ πάντα συμβάλλουσα καὶ θαμβουμένη §1.1367οὐ θνητὸν ᾤμην σ’ οὐδ’ ἐδείμαινον θανεῖν· §1.1368ἀλλά σε πατρὸς Ἁβραὰμ συνθήματι §1.1369πρέσβευμά θ᾿ αἵ τε μυρίαι γερουσίαι §1.1370ὅρκος θ’, ὃν ὤμοκας πρὶν εἰς σωτηρίαν, §1.1371θανεῖν ἔπεισαν κἀπικουρῆσαι γένει.
But I saw the extraordinary things done by you, and pondering all things and being amazed, I did not think you mortal, nor did I fear that you would die; but the covenant with father Abraham, and the embassy, and the countless councils of elders, and the oath which you swore before for salvation, persuaded you to die and to succor our race.
§1.1372Ἐντεῦθεν ἔτλης καὶ τόκον τε καὶ πότμον· §1.1373κἀγὼ δὲ μισθὸν τῶν ἀφερτάτων πόνων §1.1374ἐν ἀγκάλαις κρατοῦσα νεκρόν σ’, ὦ Τέκνον, §1.1375θρηνῶ γε πικρῶς καὶ στένω καὶ δακρύω, §1.1376θρηνῶ, σοφιστὴν δ’ ἄλλον οὐκ ἐπάξομαι.
Hence you endured both birth and destiny; and I, as the reward of my unbearable pains, holding you dead in my arms, O Child, lament bitterly, and groan and weep; I lament, and I will summon no other comforter.
§1.1377Πέπλοις δ’ Ἰωσήφ εὐπρεπῶς σ’ ἀμφιάσαι §1.1378ἕτοιμός ἐστι, πρὸς δὲ καὶ τεῦξαι τάφον §1.1379καὶ ξυγκενῶσαι μυρίων μύρων χλιδὴν, §1.1380ἣν Νικόδημος ἦλθεν εὐψύχως φέρων, §1.1381βαιὸν φιλοφρόνημα νεκροῖσιν φίλοις· §1.1382τί γὰρ τὸ κέρδος ἐκ μύρων τεθνηκόσι;
And Joseph is ready to clothe you decorously in robes, and besides to prepare a tomb and to pour out a luxury of countless myrrhs, which Nicodemus came bringing generously, a small token of friendship for dead friends; for what is the profit from myrrh for the dead?
§1.1383Τὰ δ’ ἐν νεκροῖσι φροντιεῖ Πατὴρ σέθεν, §1.1384οὓς πάντας αὐτὸς ὡς σκυλεύματ’ ἐξάγοις §1.1385οὓς οὓς καθεῖρξεν, οὓς συνήρπασε §1.1386κἄδδησεν ἐν δεσμοῖσι πανζόφου στέγης.
But your Father will care for the things among the dead, all of whom you yourself may lead out as spoils, those whom Hades shut up, whom he snatched away and bound in the chains of his pitch-black roof.
§1.1387Μυστηρίων δὲ τῶνδ’ ἀπορρήτων φανὰς §1.1388ἔδειξε πατὴρ παῖδ’ ἀποσφάξας μόνον, §1.1389ἔφη τε μύστης αὐτανέψιος σέθεν. §1.1390μείζων ἁπάντων, ὡς ἔφης, θεηγόρων, §1.1391ὃν δῆμος ἐκδέδωκεν Ἑβραίων σφαγῇ, §1.1392σεμνὸν πολίτην κἀπὶ πλείστων ἄνδρ’ ἕνα §1.1393φανέντα φοῖβον, γυμνὸν, ἄσιτον, μόνον, §1.1394τροφῇ δ’ ἀμεμφεῖ πᾶσιν ἦν κεχρημένος, §1.1395ἐσθῆτα προστρόπαιον ἐγχλαινούμενος, §1.1396μόνοις δ’ ἀποτρόπαιον, οἷς πέμφιξ χλιδὴ, §1.1397αὐχμῶν, πινώδης, λυπρὸν ἀμπρεύων βίον, §1.1398ᾗχι ξυνοικεῖ δαψιλὴς ἐρημία, §1.1399ῥείθροισιν ὠκὺς ἔνθ’ Ἰορδάνης ῥέει, §1.1400ὡς τῆς ταφῆς ἔδειξε φανὰς αἰσίας §1.1401τρισημερεύσας ἐν βυθῷ θεοπρόπος.
And the light of these unspeakable mysteries the father who slaughtered his only son showed, and the mystic, your cousin, said so too— he who was greater than all prophets, as you said, whom the people of the Hebrews delivered to slaughter, appearing as a reverend citizen and a single man above many, as a shining sun, naked, fasting, alone, and who made use of a blameless food for all, wrapping himself in a humble garment, but detestable only to those whose luxury is bubble-like, dirty, dusty, dragging a painful life, where the rich wilderness cohabits with him, where the swift Jordan flows with its streams, Just as the prophet showed the auspicious signs of your burial, spending three days in the deep.
And learning these things, I bring myself comfort, waiting eagerly to see the completion of your burial.
§1.1404Οὕτως ἄρ’ ἔτλης, Τέκνον, ἤδη τὸν μόρον, §1.1405κἀκεῖνα τῶν νῦν δραμάτων αἴτιά σοι, §1.1406σπεύσαντι θανεῖν κάπικουρῆσαι βροτοῖς.
Thus indeed, O Child, you have now endured death, and those things are the cause of your present passion, for you who hastened to die and to succor mortals.
§1.1407Ἀλλ᾿ οὐκ Ἰούδας οὐδ’ ὁ τάλας Πιλάτος §1.1408διπλῆν δίκην φύγωσιν, ἀλλὰ σφᾶς τίσει §1.1409ἔκδικον ὄμμα Πατρός ἀμυντήριον §1.1410πόλιν τε πᾶσαν καὶ στρατὸν μιαιφόνον.
But neither Judas nor wretched Pilate shall escape double justice; rather, they shall be punished by the avenging, defensive eye of the Father, along with the whole city and the murderous army.
§1.1411Ἔδρας ἔδρασας, μὴ δόκει λεληθέναι, §1.1412Πόντιε, δίκης ὄμμα πανδερκέστατον, §1.1413κἂν χεῖρας ἀπένιζες ὡς ἔξω φόνου, §1.1414ὡς χὠ προδοὺς ἔρριψε μισθὸν τοῦ φόνου,
You have done your deed; do not think it has escaped notice, Pontius, from the all-seeing eye of Justice, even if you washed your hands as if free of slaughter, just as the betrayer too threw away the price of blood.
§1.1415ᾧπερ δέον μὲν ἐν δέρῃ θεῖναι ξίφος, §1.1416δέον δὲ λυγρὸν αὐχέν’ ἐνθεῖναι βρόχοις §1.1417ἢ κύμασι γλαυκοῖς ἀφανίσαι δέμας §1.1418ῥίψαντι πρὸς θάλασσαν ἰχθύσιν βοράν·
For him, indeed, it was necessary to put a sword to his neck, and necessary to place his wretched neck in nooses, or to destroy his body in the blue waves, throwing himself towards the sea as food for fishes.
§1.1419εἰ μὲν γὰρ ἁπλῶς ἄνδρ’ ἐπώλησας, τάλαν, §1.1420στρέφω γὰρ εἰς σὲ τὸ πρόσωπον τοῦ λόγου,) §1.1421εἰ μέν τιν’ ἐξέδωκας ἄλλον εἰς φόνον, §1.1422νόμῳ πολιτῶν συμφορὰν ὑπέσχες ἄν·
For if you had simply sold a mere man, O wretched one, (for I turn the face of my speech to you,) if you had delivered some other man to slaughter, by the law of citizens you would have undergone a mere misfortune.
§1.1423νῦν δ’, ὅς σε πολλῶν ἠξίωσε χαρίτων §1.1424ῥύστης τε παντὸς ἧκε Πατρόθεν γένους, §1.1425πέπρακας, ἐκδέδωκας εἰς φόνον φθόνῳ·
But now, him who deemed you worthy of many favors and came from the Father as the savior of the whole race, you have sold, you have delivered to slaughter out of envy.
§1.1426καὶ τίσιν οἵαν σ’ οὐχ ὑποστῆναι θέμις;
And what kind of retribution is it not right for you to undergo?
Already he has been justly judged all-unjust, the most evil initiate who betrayed the Master.