§1.508ἔθνη τε συνάγοντος ἐνδίκῳ κρίσει, §1.509ὃν συγγενεῖς κτείνουσιν Ἑβραῖοι φθόνῳ, §1.510ναὶ συγγενεῖς μου τλήμονος μητρὸς λέγω, §1.511οὐ Πατρός αὐτοῦ τοῦ βροτωθέντος Λόγου, §1.512ὃν ἀσπόρως ἔτικτον, οἶδ’, ὑπὲρ λόγον §1.513στερρᾶς τ᾿ ἔφυγον ἐν τόκοις ἀλγηδόνας.
and of Him gathering the nations in righteous judgment, whom His kinsmen, the Hebrews, are killing out of envy— yes, the kinsmen of me, His wretched mother, I mean, not of His Father, of this Word made flesh, whom I bore without seed, as I know, beyond all reason, and escaped the harsh pangs of childbirth.
For I trust, I trust, even though I groan much, unable to bear seeing Him now suffering.
§1.516Ἔτικτον αὐτὸν, οἶδα δ’, ὡς ἐγεινάμην, §1.517ἀλλ’ εἴμ᾿ ἄκομψος ἐκφέρειν μυστήρια· §1.518ὅμως δ’ ἀνάγκη συμφορᾶς ἀφιγμένης §1.519γλῶσσάν μ’ ἀφεῖναι.
I gave birth to Him, and I know how I brought Him forth, but I am unskilled in declaring mysteries; yet necessity, now that misfortune has come, compels me to loose my tongue.
Πρῶτα δ’ ἄρξομαι λέγειν, §1.520ὅθεν μ’ ὑπῆλθε πρῶτον οἷα μητέρα, §1.521φέρουσαν ἁγνὸν ἐς τόδ’ ἡμέρας δέμας.
First I shall begin to speak of how it first came upon me as a mother, who have kept my body pure unto this day.
§1.522Οὐκ οἶδα τέρψιν ἢ λόγῳ κλύειν φέρω §1.523γραφῇ τε λεύσειν· οὐδὲ ταῦτα γὰρ σκοπεῖν §1.524ἐγὼ πρόθυμος, παρθένον ψυχὴν δ’ ἔχω.
I know no pleasure, nor can I bear to hear of it in speech or look upon it in picture; for to observe these things I have no desire, but keep a virgin soul.
§1.525Ὄμνυμι τὸν σύμπαντα σαφῶς εἰδότα §1.526μηδ’ ἂν θελῆσαι μηδ’ ἂν ἔννοιαν λαβεῖν· §1.527ἢ κατολοίμην ἀκλεὴς, ἀνώνυμος, §1.528καὶ μήτε πόντος μήτε γῆ μήτ᾿ αὖ πόλος §1.529τὸ σῶμά μου δέξαιτο καὶ ψυχὴν χέρες §1.530πάσχοντος Υἱοῦ γ’, ὡς κατ᾿ εὐχήν ἐστί μοι, §1.531ἐλπὶς τρέφει τε κοὐ καταισχυνεῖ δέ με.
I swear by Him who clearly knows all things, that I never wished nor even conceived such a thought; else may I perish inglorious, without a name, and may neither sea nor earth nor heaven receive my body, but may the hands of my suffering Son receive my soul, even as is my prayer, and hope sustains me and will not put me to shame.
§1.532Ταῦτ᾿ οἶδα· νῦν γὰρ οὐ θέμις πέρα λέγειν §1.533θρηνοῦσαν, ὡς δεῖ· δακρύων γὰρ ἄξια §1.534πέπονθα πόλλ’, οὐκ οἶδα δ’, εἰ τι προσπάθω.
These things I know; for now it is not lawful to speak further, lamenting as is meet; for things worthy of tears I have suffered much, and I know not if I am to suffer more.
Yet first I must sing of my blessings; for I shall bring greater pity upon my misfortunes.
§1.537Ἤμην ἄνανδρος καὶ μένουσα παρθένος· §1.538ἃ γὰρ γυναικὶ σώφρον’ ἔσθ᾿ εὑρημένα, §1.539ταῦτ᾿ ἐξεμόχθουν τοῦ Θεοῦ πολλὴν χάριν §1.540μετροῦντος ἀεὶ καὶ νέμοντος ἀφθόνως.
I was without a husband, remaining a virgin; for those things which are deemed virtuous for a woman, these I labored at, with the abundant grace of God always measuring and granting them generously.
§1.541Πρῶτον μὲν οὐν γε, κἂν προσῇ, κἂν μὴ προσῇ §1.542ψόγος γυναιξὶν, αὐτὸ τοῦτ᾿ ἐφέλκεται §1.543κακῶς ἀκούειν, εἴ τις οὐκ ἔνδον μένει, §1.544οὗπερ πόθον παρεῖσ’ ἔμιμνον ἐν δόμοις §1.545εἴσω μελάθρων, κομψὰ θηλειῶν δ’ ἔπη §1.546οὐκ εἰσεφρούμην· τὸν δὲ νοῦν διδάσκαλον §1.547αὐτῆς ἔχουσα χρηστὸν ἐξήρκουν ἐμοὶ, §1.548τὸ σωφρονεῖν ἐν πᾶσιν εἰδυῖ’, ὡς καλὸν §1.549καὶ δόξαν ἐσθλὴν πανταχοῦ κομίζεται, §1.550γλώσσης τε σιγὴν πᾶσιν ὄμμα θ’ ἥσυχον §1.551παρεῖχον, ᾔδειν δ’, οἷς μ᾿ ἐχρῆν νικᾶν κόρας, §1.552καὶ τίσι νίκην ὧν ἐχρῆν παριέναι.
First of all, then, whether blame attaches or does not attach to women, this very thing brings an evil reputation, if one does not remain within, putting aside desire for which, I remained in the house within the halls, and the clever speeches of women I did not admit; but having my own good mind as my teacher, I was content with myself, knowing how noble it is to be modest in all things, and how it wins a good reputation everywhere; and I offered a silent tongue and a quiet eye to all, and I knew in what things I ought to excel the maidens, and to whom I ought to yield the victory.
§1.553Ἀκήρατον δέ μ’ ἐκ Θεοῦ λαβὼν ἀνὴρ §1.554αὖθις τὸ παρθένειον ἅμμ’ ἀκήρατον §1.555τηροῦσαν ἀπέδωκεν· οὐδ’ ἔστιν λόγος, §1.556τὰ πράγματ᾿ αῦτὰ καὶ γὰρ ἀπήλεγξέ με.
And my husband, receiving me pure from God, returned me again, keeping the bond of virginity unviolated; nor is there any dispute, for the facts themselves have vindicated me.
§1.557Οὕτως δ’ ἔχουσα τῷ Θεῷ μνηστεύομαι, §1.558κἀντεῦθεν Υἱὸν, πῶς ἐρεῖς; ἐγεινάμην, §1.559ὅπως γυνὴ οὔ τις κομπάσει τεκεῖν ποτέ.
And being in this state, I was betrothed to God, and from Him I gave birth to a Son—how shall you say it?— so that no woman may ever boast of such a birth.
§1.560καλλίστα, πότνα, σεμνότατα παρθένε, §1.561ἄνανδρον ἠδ’ ἄνυμφον ἴδμεν μητέρα §1.562μόνην σε πασῶν τῶν κατὰ γῆν μητέρων.
O most beautiful, revered, and most holy virgin, we know you as a mother without husband and without bridegroom, you alone of all the mothers upon the earth.
§1.563Μαιευσάσης χεὶρ κλῆρον οὐ δεδεγμένη §1.564κατηγόρησε πιστὰ σοῦ θείου τόκου, §1.565Θεὸν τε, φὴς, ἔκλυες ἀγγέλου τεκεῖν, §1.566ἔργα θ’, ἅπερ δέδρακεν, οὐ θνητοῦ γένους, §1.567καὶ θάμβος ἐστὶν, εἰ πάθῃ θνητῶν πάθος.
The midwife's hand, not having received the common lot, attested faithfully to your divine birth, and you say that you heard from an angel that you would bear God, and the deeds which He has done are not of mortal race, and it is a wonder if He should suffer the passion of mortals.
You have spoken a wondrous thing, if the Father is well pleased in this, that through Him mortals should have good things.
For there is no other remedy for death among mortals, which shall stop the evils of wretched men from corruption.
§1.572Κἀγὼ διδάξω σ’, ὡς καλῶς ἔχει τόδε· §1.573ὁ γὰρ διδάσκων γνῶσιν ἄνθρωπον Λόγος §1.574ἐμοὶ κατεσκήσωσε καὶ χάριν νέμει.
And I shall teach you how well this is; for the Word who teaches knowledge to man dwelt in me and dispenses grace.
§1.575Ἐπεὶ βροτὸν πέπλακεν ἐκ γῆς ὁ Πλάσας, §1.576λείμακί τ᾿ ἐντέθεικε φυτῶν ἐργάτην §1.577ἐντεῦθεν εἰς ὄλυμπον ἀνάγειν θέλων, §1.578δράκων δέ νιν ἔσπευσε γυναικὸς πλάνῃ §1.579λειμῶνος ἐκβαλεῖν τε καὶ ῥέψαι πόλου, §1.580ὅδ’ ἀντεμηχανήσατ᾿, οἷα δὴ Θεὸς, §1.581γυναικὸς ἐκφῦναι τε καὶ Θεὸς μένων §1.582βροτὸς γενέσθαι καὶ βροτῶν ἀναιρέτην §1.583σφαγεὶς κατασκάψαι τε καὶ ῥίψαι ποσίν.
Since the Creator fashioned mortal man from the earth, and placed him in the meadow as a worker of plants, wishing thence to lead him up to Olympus, but the serpent hastened by the woman’s deception to cast him out of the meadow and throw him down from heaven, He in turn contrived, as indeed a God, to be born of a woman, and remaining God, to become mortal, and to destroy the destroyer of mortals by being slain, pulling him down and casting him under His feet.