§7Εἶτα καὶ ἄλλο τι θέλω εἰπεῖν ἀπ’ αὐτῆς τῆς γραφῆς.
Then I also want to say something else from the Scripture itself.
Σαμουὴλ ἀναβαίνει, καὶ τί τῷ Σαοὺλ λέγει ἑωρακέναι ἡ γυνή;
Samuel comes up, and what does the woman say to Saul that she has seen?
οὐ λέγει ἑωρακέναι ἄνθρωπον· ἔπτηξεν τοῦτον ὃν εἰδεν.
She does not say that she has seen a man; she cowered before him whom she saw.
τίνα ὁρᾷ; θεοὺς ἐγὠ« φησιν »εἶδον, θεοὺς ἀναβαίνοντας ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς«. καὶ τάχα Σαμουὴλ οὐ μόνος ἀναβέβηκεν καὶ τότε προφητεύσων τῷ Σαούλ· ἀλλ’ εἰκός, ὥσπερ ἐνταῦθα μετὰ ὁσίου ὁσιωθήσῃ, καὶ μετὰ ἀνδρὸς ἀθῴου ἀθῷος ἔσῃ, καὶ μετὰ ἐκλεκτοῦ ἐκλεκτὸς ἔσῃ«, καὶ εἰσὶν ἐνταῦθα διατριβαὶ ἁγίων μετὰ ἁγίων, οὐχὶ δὲ ἁγίων μετὰ ἁματρτωλῶν, καὶ εἰ ἄρα ποτέ, ἐστὶ τῶν ἁγίων ἡ διατριβὴ μετὰ τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν ὑπὲρ τοῦ καὶ τοὺς ἁμαρτωλοὺς σῶσαι, οὕτω τάχα καὶ ἀναβαίνοντι τῷ Σαμουὴλ συναναβεβήκασιν ἤτοι ἅγιαι ψυχαὶ ἄλλων προφητῶν ἢ ἄγγελοι ἦσαν μετὰ τῶν πνευμάτων συναναβεβηκότες.
Whom does she see? “I saw gods,” she says, “gods coming up out of the earth.” And perhaps Samuel did not come up alone even then to prophesy to Saul; but it is likely that, just as “here with the holy you will be holy, and with an innocent man you will be innocent, and with the chosen you will be chosen,” and there are here fellowships of the holy with the holy, and not of the holy with sinners, and if indeed ever, the fellowship of the holy is with sinners for the sake of saving also the sinners, so perhaps also, as Samuel was coming up, there came up with him either the holy souls of other prophets or there were angels who had come up together with the spirits.
τάχα ζητήσεις εἰ ἄγγελοι ἦσαν ἐπὶ τῶν πνευμάτων αὐτῶν;
Perhaps you will ask whether there were angels over their spirits?
ὁ προφήτης λέγει· »ὁ ἄγγελος ὁ λαλῶν ἐν ἐμοί«· καὶ πάντα πληροῦται τῶν δεομένων σωτηρίας καὶ »πάντες εἰσὶ λειτουργικὰ πνεύματα εἰς διακονίαν ἀποστελλόμενα διὰ τοὺς μέλλοντας κληρονομεῖν σωτηρίαν«. τί φοβῇ εἰπεῖν ὅτι πᾶς τόπος χρῄζει Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ;
The prophet says: “The angel who speaks in me”; and all things are filled with those who need salvation, and “all are ministering spirits sent out for service for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation.” Why do you fear to say that every place has need of Jesus Christ?
χρῄζει τῶν προφητῶν ὁ χρῄζων Χριστοῦ· οὐδὲ γὰρ Χριστοῦ μὲν χρῄζει, τῶν δὲ εὐτρεπιζόντων Χριστοῦ παρουσίαν καὶ ἐπιδημίαν οὐ χρῄζει.
He who needs Christ needs the prophets; for he does not need Christ on the one hand, while not needing those who prepare Christ’s presence and visit on the other.
καὶ Ἰωάννης, οὗ μείζων ἐν γεννητοῖς γυναικῶν οὐδεὶς ἠν κατὰ τὴν τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν μαρτυρίαν λέγοντος· »μείζων ἐν γεννητοῖς γυναικῶν Ἰωάννου τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ οὐδείς ἐστιν‘, μὴ φοβοῦ λέγειν ὅτι εἰς ᾅδου καταβέβηκε προκηρύσσων μου τὸν κύριον, ἴνα προείπῃ αὐτὸν κατελευσόμενον.
And as for John, than whom no one among those born of women was greater according to the testimony of our Savior who says: “Among those born of women no one is greater than John the Baptist,” do not fear to say that he descended into Hades proclaiming my Lord beforehand, so that he might foretell that He would descend.
διὰ τοῦτο, ὅτε ἦν ἐν τῇ φυλακῇ καὶ ᾔδει τὴν ἔξοδον τὴν ἐπικειμένην αὐτῷ, πέμψας δύο τῶν μαθητῶν ἐπυνθάνετο, οὐχί· »σὺ εἶ ὁ ἐρχόμενος; « ᾔδει γάρ), ἀλλά· »σὺ εἶ ὁ ἐρχόμενος, ἢ ἄλλον προσδοκῶμεν; « εἶδεν αὐτοῦ τὴν δόξαν, ἐλάλησεν πολλὰ περὶ τῆς θαυμασιότητος αὐτοῦ, ἐμαρτύρησεν αὐτῷ πρῶτος· »ὁ ὀπίσω μου ἐρχόμενος ἔμπροσθέν μου γέγονεν«, εἶδεν αὐτοῦ τὴν δόξαν, δόξαν ὡς μονογενοῦς παρὰ πατρὸς πλήρης χάριτος καὶ ἀληθείας«. τηλικαῦτα ἰδὼν περὶ Χριστοῦ ὀκνεῖ πιστεῦσαι, ἀμφιβάλλει καὶ οὐ λέγει·
For this reason, when he was in prison and knew the death that was hanging over him, sending two of his disciples, he inquired, not: “Are you the one who is to come?” (for he knew [He was]), but: “Are you the one who is to come, or do we look for another?” He had seen His glory, had spoken much about His wonderfulness, had testified of Him first: “He who comes after me has come to be before me”; he had seen His glory, “glory as of the only-begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Having seen such great things concerning Christ, does he hesitate to believe?
εἴπατε αὐτῷ· σὺ εἶ ὁ Χριστός; νῦν μὴ νοήσαντες γάρ τινες τὰ εἰρημένα λέγουσιν· Ἰωάννης ὁ τηλικοῦτος οὐκ ᾔδει Χριστόν, ἀλλ’ ἀπέστη ἀπ’ αὐτοῦ τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον. καὶ ᾔδει τοῦτον, ᾡ ἐμαρτύρησεν πρὸ γενέσεως καὶ ἐφ’ ᾡ ἐσκίρτησεν, ἡνίκα ἠλθεν καὶ ἡ Μαρία πρὸς αὐτόν, ὡς ἐμαρτύρησεν αὐτῶ | | ἡ μήτηρ αὐτοῦ λέγουσα· »ἰδοὺ γάρ, ὡς ἐγένετο ἡ φωνὴ τοῦ ἀσπασμοῦ σου εἰς τὰ ὦτά μου, ἐσκίρτησεν ἐν ἀγαλλιάσει τὸ βρέφος ἐν τῇ κοιλίᾳ μου«. οὑτος οὐν ὁ σκιρτήσας πρὸ γενέσεως Ἰωάννης, ὁ εἰπών· »οὗτός ἐστι περὶ οὑ ἐγὼ εἶπον· ὁ ὀπίσω μου ἐρχόμενος ἔμπροσθέν μου γέγονεν« καί· »ὁ πέμψας με εἶπέ μοι· ἐφ’ ὃν ἂν ἴδῃς τὸ πνεῦμα καταβαῖνον καὶ μένον, οὑτός ἐστιν ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ«, οὑτος, φασίν, οὐκέτι ᾔδει Ἰησοῦν Χριστόν;
Does he doubt, and not say: “Tell Him, are you the Christ?” For now, some who do not understand what was said say: “John, great as he was, did not know Christ, but the Holy Spirit departed from him.” Yet he knew Him, of whom he testified before birth and at whom he leaped, when Mary also came to him, as his mother testified to him saying: “For behold, as the voice of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.” This John, therefore, who leaped before birth, who said: “This is He of whom I said: He who comes after me has come to be before me” and: “He who sent me said to me: On whomever you see the Spirit descending and remaining, this is the Son of God”—this man, they say, no longer knew Jesus Christ?
ἐν κοιλίᾳ ᾔδει γὰρ αὐτόν.
For he knew Him in the womb.
ἀλλὰ δι’ ὑπερβολὴν δόξης ὅμοιόν τι τῷ Πέτρῳ πεποίηκεν.
But because of the excess of glory, he did something similar to Peter.
τί ὅμοιον;
What was similar?
οὑτος μέγα τι ᾔδει περὶ τοῦ Χριστοῦ. τίς εἰμι;
This man knew something great about Christ. “Who am I?
»τίνα με λέγουσιν οἱ ἄνθρωποι εἶναι«; ὁ δέ· τόδε καὶ τόδε. σὺ δὲ τί; »σὺ εἶ ὁ Χριστὸς ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ ζῶντος«· ἐφ’ ᾡ καὶ μακαρίζεται, ὅτι »σὰρξ καὶ αἷμα οὐκ ἀπεκάλυψεν« αὐτῷ, »ἀλλ’ ὁ πατὴρ ὁ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς«. ἐπεὶ οὖν μεγάλα ἤκουσεν περὶ Χριστοῦ καὶ μεγάλα ὑπελάμβανεν καὶ οὐ παρεδέξατο τὴν Ε; θείαν τὴν πρὸς αὐτόν· »ἰδοὺ ἀναβαίνομεν εἰς Ἱερουσαλήμ, καὶ τελειωθήσεται« καί· »δεῖ τὸν υὁὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου πολλὰ παθεῖν καὶ ἀποδοκιμασθῆναι ἀπὸ τῶν ἀρχιερέων καὶ πρεσβυτέρων, καὶ ἀποκτανθῆναι, καὶ τῇ τρίτῃ ἡμέρᾳ ἀναστῆναι«, φησίν· »ἵλεώς σοι, κύριε«. μεγάλα ᾔδει περὶ Χριστοῦ, οὐκ ἠθέλησεν παραδέξασθαι τὸ ταπεινότερον περὶ αὐτοῦ.
Who do people say that I am?” And he [replied]: such and such. “But you, what [do you say]?” “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” For which indeed he is blessed, because “flesh and blood did not reveal” [it] to him, “but my Father who is in heaven.” Since therefore he had heard great things about Christ and conceived great things, he did not accept the divine [dispensation] concerning Him: “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and [all things] will be accomplished,” and: “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the chief priests and elders, and be killed, and on the third day rise again,” but he said: “Far be it from you, Lord!” He knew great things about Christ, [but] did not want to accept the humbler thing about Him.
τοιοῦτόν τινά μοι νόει καὶ τὸν Ἰωάννην.
Understand John also as someone of this kind.
έν φυλακῇ ἦν μεγάλα εἰδὼς περὶ Χριστοῦ, εἶδεν οὐρανοὺς ἀνεῳγότας, εἶδεν πνεῦμα ἅγιον ἐξ οὐρανοῦ κατερχόμενον ἐπὶ τὸν σωτῆρα καὶ μένον ἐπ’ αὐτόν·
He was in prison knowing great things about Christ: he had seen the heavens opened, he had seen the Holy Spirit descending from heaven upon the Savior and remaining upon Him.
ἰδὼν τὴν τηλικαύτην δόξαν ἀμφέβαλλεν καὶ τάχα ἠπίστει, εἰ ὁ οὕτως ἔνδοξος καὶ μέχρις ᾅδου καὶ μέχρι τῆς ἀβύσσου κατελεύσεται· διὰ τοῦτο ἔλεγεν· »σὺ εἶ ὁ ἐρχόμενος, ἢ ἄλλον προσδοκῶμεν; «
Seeing such great glory, he doubted and perhaps disbelieved whether one so glorious would descend even to Hades and to the abyss; for this reason he said: “Are you the one who is to come, or do we look for another?”