76:4)

“I remembered God and rejoiced,” testified the hymnist David. He did not testify from himself, but from the Holy Spirit of God he glorified; not only remembered, but also prayed wisely; not only did he remember with his lips, but he also learned with his heart; I did not forget day or night, but when I asked, I remembered every hour. And so that you know that we are presenting the truth and not a lie, we will quote the hymns of the Holy Spirit in the words of Scripture itself. “I remembered God and rejoiced,” said David. And if you really want to know that David remembered God both day and night and, while remembering, rejoiced, then delve with curiosity into the words: “In the night I remembered Your name, O Lord” (“I remembered Your name in the night, O Lord”) (Ps. 119:55); and: “I will make Your name memorable to generation and generation” (“I will remember Your name in every generation and generation”) (Ps. 44:18); “At midnight I rose to praise You” (“at midnight I rose to confess to You, O Lord”) (Ps. 119:62); “I meditate on You in the night watches” (“in the morning I will learn from you”) (Ps. 62:7); ​​“Evening and morning and at noon I will pray and cry” (“evening and morning and noon I will speak and proclaim”) (Ps. 54:18); “God! You are my God, I have been seeking You from the early dawn” (“O God, my God, I come to you in the morning”) (Ps. 62:1); and again: “to proclaim your mercy in the morning and your truth in the night” (“to proclaim your mercy in the morning, and your truth in the night”) (Ps. 92:3). You see that there is no free time when he would forget - neither in the morning, nor at night. If you really want to know that David did not just remember God, but with the participation of his heart, then listen: “Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord” (“out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord”) (Ps. 129:1); “I would praise You in uprightness of heart” (“Lord, let us confess to You in uprightness of heart”) (Ps. 119:7). And to set the limit of all hours, David then says: “How I love Your law! I meditate on it all day long” (“If I love your law, O Lord, all day long is my teaching”) (Ps. 119:97). So, with all-day meditation on the words of the Lord and constant by remembering God what worthy grace he received. Was he rewarded on earth? I consider him both wonderful and a king on earth. Here he conquers enemies, and there he commands angels; here he is clothed in the purple of an earthly king, and there he glitters with the glory of the heavenly kingdom; here he is famous for the euphonious words of the Holy Spirit, and there he glitters with pearls of chosen wisdom. And we are only partially describing this. He got the best of it all. Since the Holy Spirit saw that God was constantly glorified by David on earth, He appeared in heaven with the words: Lord, David remembers You daily and, remembering, rejoices; and You yourself remember him, O Lord our God, - and says: “Remember, O Lord, David and all his contrition” (“Lord remember David, and all his meekness”) (Ps. 132:1). God, the lover of mankind, answers: “Since David always and wisely remembers Me, then I will proclaim to everyone My disposition and love for him; I will exalt him above the saints and angels and powers on earth.” What words? “I have found David my servant” (“I have found David my servant”) (Ps. 89:21), “a man after My own heart” (“a man after my own heart”) (1 Sam. 13:14); and: “And I will make him the firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth” (“I will make him the firstborn, high above the kings of the earth”) (Ps. 89:28); and: “his throne is like the days of heaven” (“his throne is like the days of heaven”) (Ps. 89:30). With these words David defined himself. Do you see that there is great benefit for a person from remembering God? “I remembered God and my heart rejoiced” (Ps. 77:4, 15:9) - said David. Other joys enter through the lips and go out through the aphedrone; and the joy of God, as a source, like honey-flowing words, gladdens the heart, so that one (who rejoices) says: “How sweet are your words to my throat! Better than honey to my lips” (“if your words are sweet to my throat, more than honey with my mouth" (Ps. 119:103). He who remembers God has in his heart all the blessings of joy; there is a fountain abounding in blessings, there is honey and a honeycomb and a lighted lamp, there in the hidden place the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit come and dwell with him; and he is no longer a declared man, but a God-bearing angel. Having tasted such joy, David rejoiced; we, too, enjoying the joy of God, will constantly remember God in order to enjoy His blessings. So, let us examine the virtues of the coming of the Savior, and glorify him as a pillar adorned with every virtue. His coming to earth - because I heard blasphemous evidence from the lips of lawbreaking Jews, and because they do not believe the Scripture, which they read unworthily, and do not know the secret. They, unfortunate and corrupted, are seduced by the fact that the Lord was born of a Virgin. Oh madness! Oh, unnatural lawbreakers! What scripture or what prophet does not proclaim this grace of the Lord? The first Solomon, the charioteer of great wisdom, blessed the Virgin with the words: “Blessed is the barren, undefiled, who has not known the wicked bed” (“blessed is the unfruitful, undefiled, who has not known the bed of sin”) (Wis. 3:13). Calls her barren before the influx of the Holy Spirit has taken place and the sun has risen. She did not know the bed of sin because she did not communicate with her husband. When the revered Isaiah heard about the blameless, barren one, he immediately accepted the word of the sage and sang: “You spoke about the blameless, barren one; and I say: “Rejoice, O barren, barren one” (“Rejoice, O barren, barren one”) (Is. 54:1). Now until you give birth; from now on you rejoice, for you have been deemed worthy to receive Him Whom the heavens do not comprehend.” When two witnesses proclaimed this, they tried to introduce a third to the secret, so that with three witnesses what was being investigated would become firmly established. While they were thinking about this, they found David, the creator of the songs, and reminded him of the future of the economy (salvation). He, having heard this secret, answered with a trumpet voice: “Behold, you both spoke about the barren; Why didn’t they speak about the glorious conception? Isaiah, having thought, immediately answers: “Behold, the Virgin will conceive and bear a Son” (Isaiah 7:14). And Solomon after him said: “she will receive fruit from the reward of holy souls” (“you will have fruit in visiting souls”) (Wis. 3:13). Hearing this, David said to them: “Behold, you have spoken that she will give birth; (but) in what place? In the city, or the desert, or in the field? They tell him: “Tell me about the place and the city, because you have been awarded special grace.” Then David, with the assistance of the Holy Spirit, loudly announced the secret. “You,” he says, “glorify in secret, but I will sing about the conception publicly: “Behold, we heard about him in Ephrath, we found him in the fields of Jaarim” (“behold, we heard him in Euphrath, we found him in the fields of the oak forest”) (Ps. 132:6). And, realizing that this teaching is a deep mystery, he stated it more clearly: “Behold, we heard about him in Euphratha, we found him in the fields of Jaarim,” that is, in Bethlehem, since it is called Euphratha. “They heard... in Euphrath” that she was not idle; From there a rumor came out that the Virgin was not idle. Then we found her in the oak fields, in a cave where the Light shone. Here we heard about her non-idleness, about her husband; there they found the mother of the Lord. Behold, from yours we have presented to you three witnesses proclaiming the glory of the Virgin; (this) does not mean that only these were found - all the prophets who saw it hoped in Him - but with three witnesses the truth stands. I'm not talking about three; but either give me one most faithful witness that the mystery is false, that the Virgin conceived from her husband, or admit it, and, turning, bow down like the Mother of God. Either you show that the Savior is in the den and the tomb, or I will show you that He sits at the right hand of the Father. I will bring a witness not from among the foreigners, but from your family, with the words: “The Lord said to my Lord: Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool” (“the Lord said to my Lord: sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool”) (Ps. 109:1). Of the Jews it is said: “There is no greater enemy than the denier of the cross.” But, leaving the God-defying synagogue, I will speak to the God-inspired church. If a Jew asks you: “Tell me, how did the Virgin give birth without a husband?” – then ask him: “How did Adam give birth to Eve without a wife? How did the Virgin give birth without seed? How did the soil blossom without seeds? How did Virgo give birth? How did the virgin rock produce water? How did Virgo give birth? Tell me, how did Aaron’s rod grow? How did Virgo give birth? Tell me, how did manna (fall) from the sky? How were the jugs filled? How did color grow from the root of Jesse? How was Elisha poured into jars of oil? How did Virgo give birth? What do you say, under Gideon the fleece was plagued by dew? Tell me, how did the bone exude water under Sampson? Tell me, how did you preserve the youths’ oven? Tell me, how did a stone without wood catch fire under Mano? Tell me how the bush burned and did not burn out? Tell me, how did Elijah not burn in the fiery chariot? Tell me how Moses entered darkness and came out again? How did Virgo give birth? And how did Isaac contemplate the Lord sitting on a high and exalted throne? Tell me how Daniel told Nebuchadnezzar the hidden dream? How did Ezekiel see the invisible man sitting on the cherub chariot? How did Virgo give birth? How was Jeremiah consecrated as a prophet from his mother’s womb? Tell me, how did the dead bones of the prophet resurrect the dead man? Tell me how Erifhra was turned to stone by a rod? Tell me, how did the Jordan return its flow? Tell me, how do trees bear fruit? Tell me, how does a grapevine produce a brush? Tell me, how does night give birth to day? How did Virgo give birth? Tell me, how does the sun warm the world? Tell me, how does the sky reveal the stars? And in this there are unspeakable mysteries, hidden in heaven and incomprehensible. If you, Jewish defender, explain this to me, then I know that you will also comprehend the non-idleness of the Virgin. But you are alien to both these secrets; We welcome this and believe it. Explain the prophets and look at the preachers of the advent." Let the sermon be crowned! What He accomplished and endured, they vividly depicted in advance for so many generations. First David pleads: “Lord! Bow down your heavens and come down” (“Lord, bow down the heavens and come down”) (Ps. 143:5). And, upon receiving what was asked, he preaches the gospel and says: “He bowed the heavens and came down” (“incline the heavens and came down”) (Ps. 17:10). And that He had to appear as a baby, says Isaiah: “a child was born to us” (“a child was born to us”) (Isaiah 9:6). That His mother had to flee with Him to Egypt: “Behold, the Lord will sit on a light cloud and come to Egypt. And the idols of Egypt will shake at His presence” (“Behold, the Lord sits on a light cloud, and will come to Egypt, and the things made with hands of Egypt will shake”) (Is. 19:1). He rightly called the Virgin a light cloud, since she did not accept the weight of human seed. That He intended to be baptized in the Jordan, says Jeremiah: “What will you do when the Jordan is flooded?” ("what did you do in the noise of Jordan to m") (Jeremiah 12:5). And why do we count (so)? Let's combine whole prophecies into one light. About pre-preparation through preaching, Gabriel says: “Behold, I send my angel, and he will prepare the way before me” (“behold... I send my angel... before your face, whoever will look at your way before you”) (Mal. 3:1). About the meeting of Christ and the Baptist, David says: “Mercy and truth will meet” (“mercy and truth have met”) (Ps. 84:11); and about Elizabeth’s greeting to the holy and immaculate Mother of God: “truth and peace will kiss” (“truth and peace will kiss”) (Ps. 84:11.) And again about John and the Lord: “truth will arise from the earth, and righteousness will come from heaven” (“truth has risen from the earth, and righteousness has come from heaven”) (Ps. 84:12 ). About the apostles: “I said: you are gods” (“az reh: you are gods”) (Ps. 82:6). About the testimony from above: “You are My Son; Today I have given birth to You” (“You are my son, today I have given birth to You”) (Ps. 2:7). About the sick: “He sent His word and healed them” (“I sent my word and for the purpose”) (Ps. 107:20); about sinners: “He took upon Himself our infirmities and bore our illnesses” (“This sin... ours bears”) (Isa. 53:4); about the resurrection of the dead: “Your dead will live” (“the dead will rise”) (Is. 26:19); about the souls held (in hell): and you who sat in darkness, light has dawned upon you (Is. 9:2). About Caiaphas and Herod: “The princes of the nations gathered with” Abraham (“the princes of the people gathered”) (Ps. 46:10); about Judas: “the man... who ate my bread lifted up his heel against me” (“my poisonous bread, magnify my stumbling”) (Ps. 40:10); about the synagogue of the Jews and bishops: “let us put a poisonous tree for his food” (“come and let us put the tree into... his bread”) (Jeremiah 11:19); about the thief on the right hand: “the right hand of the Lord creates power” (“the right hand of the Lord creates strength”) (Ps. 118:16); about the tomb: “he laid me in a ditch the grave" ("laying me in the pit of the grave") (Ps. 88:7); about the crown of thorns: "my vineyard brought forth clusters of thorns" (Is. 5:4); about the temptation of the devil: "the enemy reproaches the Lord" (Ps. 73:18); “over the son... whom you strengthened for yourself” (“and against the son... whom you strengthened for yourself”) (Ps. 79:18); about His burial: “They assigned him a grave with the evildoers” (“and I will give the wicked instead of his burial”) (Is. 53:9); about the resurrection: “Arise, that you are sleeping, Lord!” (“Arise, write down everything, Lord”) (Ps. 43:24); about the ascension: “God ascended with shouting” (“God went up with shouting”) (Ps. 46:6); about the seat on high: “sit at my right hand” (“sit at my right hand”) (Ps. 109:1) And why say a lot more? Even the heralds do not express entire prophecies glorifying the grace of Christ. Do you want to know the steadfastness of the beautiful story that the Old Testament depicts about the New Testament, and what is arranged here is outlined there in secret? Look: He dwells there near the tent of Abraham with two angels, and here with twelve disciples he enters the house of Zacchaeus. Look: there he called two brothers to the priesthood and here he chose two brothers to the apostleship; Moses and Aaron are among His priests, Peter and Andrew are among His apostles. Look: there he resurrects the widow’s son through Elijah, and here he himself resurrects the widow’s only begotten. There, through Elisha, Naaman was cleansed, and here the leper is cleansed by Him. There He introduces Mariam as a sister (among) the holy prophets, and here under the same name he calls the sister of the holy apostles. There he exalts four of the prophets, and here he honors four according to the number of evangelists. There He formed twelve other prophets, and here He called twelve apostles. There He assigned assistants to the great prophets, and here to the apostles - seventy. Thaddeus was also Abgar's doctor. There Joshua raised up the kings of Palestine, here Jesus, the true Beg, glorified the kings of the universe. There twelve springs flow in Eden, here twelve disciples flow baptism from the sun of righteousness. Seventy date trees were indicated there, and seventy disciples of the apostles grew here. There the tree sweetened the bitter water, and here the tree of the cross changed the special bitterness of sins into a sweet source of gifts. There the tabernacle of the meeting was consecrated, and here the tabernacle of the pastophorium 1 (Phil. 2:6). If this explanation is correct, then the original meaning of παστοφόριον is violated by it. was glorified. There David sang hymns, and here Paul proclaimed doctrines. There, of the prophets, Elijah was a virgin; here, of the apostles, John was a virgin. There Elijah sat on a fiery chariot, and here John reclined on the chest of the Lord: “Our God is a consuming fire” (“Our God [is] a consuming fire”) (Heb. 12:29). There stood out three great ones, bearing the name of the Savior, who revealed the distinctive properties of the glorious Trinity - three holy mighty ones. They were not just ordinary, or ignoble; Jesus the son of Josedek is great among the priests. These three reliable witnesses exalt the image of the Holy Trinity. My thought seeks to move on to something else - to saving faith. I do not move away from the words of the prophet: “I will remember God and rejoice.” The chosen wisdom in songs proclaims about Him: “Arise [the wind] from the north and come from the south, blow upon my garden, and its fragrances will flow!” ("Arise, O north, and come, O O south, blow in my garden, and let the fragrances flow") (Song. 4:16). What is north or south? Or what is a garden? Or what are garden plantings? Or what are the current flavors? I think about this, according to the explanation of Scripture: the north is the holy Virgin, the Savior of the world is the south, the holy martyrs and apostles are the plantings, the baptism of the Savior is the source that waters the garden, the seal of the cross is the guardian of the garden, the healings and gifts of the Savior are aromas. So, this means: “Rise up the wind from the north” (“rise in the north”), that is, the Virgin from Galilee; “and come from the south” (“and come to the south”) - “Go, Christ, from the midday sky and blow on the holy Virgin; blow on the world, and awaken the holy martyrs and apostles; and let the aromas flow to the weak and lost.” These aromas condense into various graces, and are - for the weak - a sign of health, for the lost - evidence of conversion, for sinners - protection of repentance, for the righteous - strong help. These aromas condense into various graces, and are for the weak a sign of health, for the lost - evidence of conversion, for sinners - protection of repentance, for the righteous - strong help. How can we worthily glorify the healing of healing, life-giving hope, earthly life, heavenly salvation? How fragrant was the earth when these aromas flowed? How did the earth produce its own incense? And, bringing them to the Lord with fear, she said: “You, Lord, deliver (to me) heavenly aromas, and I bring my earthly incense to Your deity; You, like myrrh, cover my back with Your holy and all-immaculate feet, and I joyfully bring myrrh to You.” Then, rejoicing in all this, the earth cried out to her fellow servant, to all creation: “Come, gather together, all my descendants, and see on earth Him who is glorified in heaven; come, see carried in the arms of the wife of Him who sits on cherubim; come, see Him nourished by the milk who gives milk to women; come, see the one who is contained in the womb of the Virgin, who is not encompassed by heaven; come, see those who receive nourishment from the mother of the One who always feeds (my) boundaries; come, see the devoted teachers of Him who trains teachers; come, see Him who is glorified by the angels when tempted by men; come, see those entering the house of Zacchaeus, the One who sits above the heavens; come, see him speaking with the Canaanite woman, the One who is glorified by the cherubic service; Come, see, dwelling with a sinful wife, the One who sits at the right hand of the Father; come, see Him, to the edges (of clothing) Whom the weak woman touches, - Whom the ethereal nature of the Powers worships; come, see, born as a man, the One who is the creator of the ages; come, see Him becoming a child, the One who existed before the creation of the world; come, see, tempted by the bishops, the One who is guarded by angels; come, all you creatures, to see your Creator; There is Life on earth - live everything; go, worship God, all of you; Go, gather together small with great, poor with rich, slaves with masters, sinners with the righteous, reptiles and four-legged creatures with birds - and look at the One who gave life. Winter and late autumn, change, and bear fruit beyond nature, and from your fruits bring fruit to him who begat you; do everything and bless the deity; Either bring your own incense, or take aromas from Him. Since the earth was despised by people, all this, as I said, came together, and the desert places grew and brought their fragrance; The prophecy sung by Isaiah was fulfilled: “The desert will rejoice... and blossom like a daffodil; It will bloom and rejoice magnificently” (“let the desert rejoice, and let the desert blossom like a tree, and the desert of Jordan prosper and rejoice”) (Is. 35:1-2). When it was in a wonderful state, (then) the sea itself desired to taste the fragrance, began to offer itself for service, and argued with the earth with the words: “And give me the Lord; The Lord is not yours only that you have accepted the grace of His entire divinity; ask Him to come to me, so that when I go to Him, your whole face will not be revealed. If I did not know Him and did not fear Him, who sealed me and bound me with indissoluble bonds, then long ago I would have come out and crushed your boundaries. Or don’t you know that in honor and birth I am ahead of you? Before you appeared, I formed choirs in the abysses. Give me my Master, as the prophet said: “His is the sea, and He made it” (“as he is the sea, he created him also”) (Ps. 94:5), and then added: “And His hands formed dry land” (“And His hands made dry land”). So, you are now created. You, dry, mother of dust, insatiable, grave of the dead, bloodshed, house of deceit and sins - why do you forcibly rule over your elder self, and alone rule the Lord? Give Him to me, so that the word may be fulfilled: “Your way is in the sea” (“in the sea are your ways”) (Ps. 77:20); give me my Creator, so that He may fill my womb with grace.” Obsessed, by His will, with the sea, the earth solemnly says with worldly pride: “I am no worse than you - fluid, vain, fickle, noisy, causing illness, the driver of sin, unprofitable for life, you - with salt springs, roadless, inaccessible to travel, akin to the whirlwind, agitated by storms. If you were higher in honor, then the Lord would first dwell in you; and now from this my dignity, my superiority over you, is already clear - that He first sent the rays of His deity to me. I am as much superior to you in honor as I am the mother of people, and you are of reptiles; I am the mother of the holy Virgin, who gave birth to the Lord, and you are the crafty dragon who amuses himself with your animals; I am the mother of prophets, apostles and holy men, and you are the mother of wild and crafty reptiles and the death of the unfortunate in swimming; I am a fruitful paradise with flowers and aromas, and you have winds, bad weather and disorder. If it were in my power to restrain the Lord, I would not allow Him to come to you.” When the elements argued in their desires, the all-fulfilling and all-arranging Lord comes to the sea, wanting to glorify with holy feet and honor the reservoir of waters. The sea, having expanded its bosom, joyfully received the Lord with the words: “Come here, all living things, small and great: those in the depths, gather together; float up to the One who from the beginning seated you (as it were) on a throne, and gave you life; be silent, all the nasty winds of the weather, and tremble before the deity who has come; all whirlwinds, storms, humble the greatness of your strength; humble yourself, all the winds and bad weather; all waves, calm down and be quiet; Receive the Lord of life and death with joy. Who will tell me that today the Lord is walking on the sea? I would be magnified from this day, which became the cherubim's seat, and became the seraphim's bed; that he who sits here walks around with me; He who flies on the wings of the winds comes to my islands; He who rises above such high aerial strongholds walks on my bright surface. Now I am no longer called the sea, but a heavenly pool; now it has become a heavenly lamp, greatly sparkling; now I have become a source pouring out healing; now I have become the sun with shining rays; Now I have become heaven, emitting radiance, not by nature, but by the abundance of sources of grace.” Then the whole creation was decorated; the earth and the heavenly realms were illuminated together by grace. The lost were converted, sinners repented, atheists became pious, the sick received health, the dead (called) to active life, the living (stand) before the face of the deity. Then the demons were persecuted, and disease was destroyed, and death was humiliated, and those held by the enemy in hell, hearing about Him, tried to see the glory, and begged to be freed from their shackles. Then the author of death and the chief of darkness saw that He (the Lord) had corrected (everything) here and was ready to destroy the kingdom of hell - he, the evil one, ran to the demons guarding there, with the words: “He who was prudent under heaven is going underground; coming to devastate the borders and capture our dark hiding places.” The tormentors say to him in response: “Who is stronger than you? Didn’t you say: “There is no one more powerful than me in the fight against the enemy”? Now (you are) frightened - (as if) you are tamed by Him. For now, try to fight; be bold, and it will turn out that He is defeated in everything.” He answered them: “I tried and recognized (Him) - He took possession of my dominance everywhere; I fought with Him in the desert, and He discovered my emptiness in everything. Even against His disciples I had no strength; I have lost my glory also in relation to them.” They answered him: “For now, go inside and close the copper gates; We will lock them up with iron bars and prepare our arrows.” When the evil ones shouted this and the like, the Lord comes with fiery armies. “Lift up the gates of the princes” of demons, “and the King of glory will enter!” ("Lift up your gates... and the king of glory will come in") (Ps. 23:7). They boldly asked from within: “Who is this King of glory?” (Who is this king of glory?) (These are the answer): “The Lord is mighty and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle” (“The Lord is mighty and mighty... in battle”) (Ps. 23:8). The leader of the demons spoke inside: “Didn’t I tell you that he is strong and mighty in war and strong in strength?” The angels urged: “Open the gates before we crush them and break the bolts; Open in peace, before we enter in anger. Lift up the gates, you princes of hell, and the King of glory will enter in!” ("Take up the gates, O princes of hell, and the king of glory will come in"). They, gathering in fear, asked: “Who is this King of glory?” (Who is this king of glory?”) They answered: “Lord of hosts” (Ps. 23:10), Lord of heaven and hell.” And when they argued, without opening (the gates) out of fear, (then) at the behest of God, immediately the gates were crushed and the bolts were broken, and the prophetic sermon proclaimed for so many generations was fulfilled: “For He has broken in pieces the gates of brass and broken the ropes of iron” (“break down the gates of brass, and break the ropes of iron”) (Ps. 106:16). Finding themselves helpless, the perpetrators of dishonor, the wicked, said: “Let us rush at Him with arrows and swords.” He, having broken the gates and crushed them, (thus) fulfilled two prophecies: “The Lord who crushes enemies, the Lord is his name. There He crushed the arrows of the bow, the shield and the sword and the battle" ("There you crush the fortresses of the bows, the weapon and the sword and the battle") (Ps. 76:4). When the prisoners saw the light of eternal life, they exclaimed: “You are glorious, more powerful than the predatory mountains” (“you enlighten marvelously from the eternal mountains”) (Ps. 76:5). They called the strongholds of hell mountains. “The strong in heart have become prey” (“All the foolish in heart are in confusion”) (Ps. 75:6), vol. e., the devil's leaders went mad; “they fell asleep in their sleep, and all the men did not find the strength of their hands” (“they fell asleep in their sleep, and gained nothing”) (Ps. 75:6), (i.e.) they were killed by the Lord, and what they had in their hands perished, and they gained nothing. “Because of Thy rebuke, O God of Jacob, both the chariot and the horse slumbered” (“Because of Thy rebuke, O God of Jacob, those on the horses slumbered”) (Ps. 75:7). He calls the souls of prisoners horses, and horsemen - crafty demons who mercilessly punished human souls. They fell asleep and were killed. When they saw the salvation of souls and their own destruction, their liberation and their enslavement, which (those) were allowed, and they were bound with indestructible shackles, they cried out loudly: “Thou art terrible, and who can stand before Thy face?” (“You are terrible, and who will oppose you before you”) (Ps. 75:8). You cast us, the scourgers of souls, from heaven with righteous judgment; we judged wrongly; For this we are judged, for this we receive no mercy: judgment is without mercy to him who has shown no mercy” (“judgment for without mercy to him who has shown no mercy”) (James 2:13). He imprisoned them in the recesses of hell to be tormented by the stench of dragons; bound them with unbreakable shackles. The Lord gathered all the souls, and (thus) fulfilled the prophecy of Jeremiah: “The partridge sits on eggs that it did not lay” (“a collection of pockmarks, which you shall not bear”) (Jeremiah 17:11). Those whom the enemy brought to hell, the Lord gathered; whom the devil gave birth there, or, better yet, scattered, these were gathered by Christ. “Get up,” the Lord said (to them), “and let us ascend to heaven.” All this happened in fulfillment of the mysterious prophecy: “Rise, and let us ascend the mountain, that is, to the heavenly Jerusalem.” The gates of the underworld were opened, or better yet, broken down; it was (was) necessary to open the gates of heaven; but the gatekeepers unknowingly interfered. When He descended, they did not know; therefore, when they returned, they did not recognize them, and began to ask (and the Lord had with Him the souls that He had redeemed, and the robber, or, better, the disciple): “Who is this going with such a detachment?” The leading angels declared divine dignity. But they were in no hurry (to open the gate), held back by ignorance: “If the Lord ascends, then why did we not notice Him descending? Did He not descend at other times? Under Noah He commanded (to build) the ark, under Abraham he came to the tabernacle, under Jacob (he was) on the ladder, under Job he talked through a storm and a cloud, under Moses (he went) to Mount Sinai, under Jesus to Jericho, under Elijah to the cave. There is no generation when He did not descend, and He was not hidden from us. And if now the Lord is ascending, then why didn’t we notice Him descending?” The leaders replied: “He is the one who came down then; He took on the form of a slave so that he would not be recognized when he ascended, so that you would not recognize the sovereign splendor. And (now) learn the secret of the Lord and the wise work of the Lord, and do not interfere with a humane decision. If you had noticed Him descending with great humility for the sake of His creation, you would have prevented the descent and would have deprived man of salvation, leaving him outside the heavenly kingdom. Now open it, fall on your knees!” They answer: “If we do not hear His divine voice, we cannot open the doors. No unclean person enters from there: “This is the gate of the Lord; the righteous will enter into them" ("this is the gate of the Lord: the righteous will enter into it") (Ps. 118:20). Then the Lord said in a precious voice: “I am whom you ask; “Open to me the gates of righteousness; I will enter into them, I will glorify the Lord” (“Open for me the gates of righteousness: when we enter, let us confess to the Lord”) (Ps. 117:19), i.e., what I have done and suffered, how much I have done that is beautiful and received what is bad. I will proclaim the signs of the righteous, the gifts of healing, the righteousness of works - “Open to me the gates of righteousness; I will enter into them and glorify the Lord." Then the gatekeepers, recognizing the immaculate voice of the Lord, came out with fear to worship: “We did not recognize You, Lord, as descending; We worship You, the One who rises.” Then He and those following him pass unquestioningly. But they hindered those who were coming in behind: “This is the gate of the Lord; the righteous will enter into them” (“this is the gate of the Lord: the righteous will enter into it”), but not the unrighteous; here are adulterers, and tax collectors, and extortioners. Why is this happening contrary to Your holy will? You yourself established these gates, You made us gatekeepers, You declared to us the law that “this is the gate of the Lord; the righteous will enter into them." Isn’t it said about You that “you gave a statute that will not pass away” (“set a commandment, and it does not pass by”) (Ps. 149:6)? You said: “Only the righteous will enter,” but not the unrighteous; This is where adulterers and publicans are brought in, this is where magicians and robbers and predators come in. Although bring in the righteous first, and then give your hand to the sinners. Let it be that You bring all these in: obviously, they repented. But why are you bringing this robber ahead of everyone into the mountainous kingdom? Where did he come to his senses, where did he repent? He never used a single day in his life to benefit himself or did anything good; He didn’t even devote an hour to repentance. Here we have a record of his sins, which he did not blot out through repentance, and You are introducing him into paradise ahead of all the righteous!” The Savior (answered): “Are you examining his sinfulness, which I blotted out first? The record of his sins means nothing, because his faith has destroyed it. Let the record of his wrongs be destroyed by a beautiful confession! He did not repent before the time, but became prudent in time; before death, without faith, he was naked - in death his faith defeated the floods of the sea; in the time of rest he did not know, but in the time of need he recognized righteousness. When My disciples ran away from Me, he ran to Me; when Peter said, “I don’t know a man,” he confessed him to be the King of heaven; when the priests executed me, he called me Lord of life. For Me, the work of repentance is completed when I see his will and readiness (i.e., the thief); for Me, justification through patience was achieved when he inclined his heart to goodness, Adam concluded paradise through his rib (i.e., his wife), this one with his confession opens the gates, sharpened by a fiery sword. Don't look for his sinfulness, which you won't find. As a result of this, David prophesied for so many generations: “so that his wickedness will be sought and not found” (“his sin will be sought, and will not be found”) (Ps. 9:36). Finally, the Savior ascended, having conquered all authority and power, and all the angelic armies met and, as the Lord, bowed down - the entire cherubic rank and seraphim ministry worshiped Him and the Father who gave birth to Him. And He was received by the Father, and sat down at the right hand, never leaving His Father’s bosom. Even if He came to earth out of love for mankind, He never left the throne; even if he became a perfect man for the purpose of dispensation (salvation), he (however) never betrayed His natural deity. It was not because of human progress that Christ became God - let it not be! - but, being God, he became man in order to save man. Therefore, it is not the deified man whom we preach, but God incarnate, as the divine Paul said: “Therefore every principle and power was subject to Him, as being before every creature; or rather (we confess) the Creator of creation, ruling and reigning with His immaculate Father and life-giving Spirit forever. Amen". He has to judge the world and all under heaven, and reward everyone according to his deeds. So, who will tell about the mercy of humanity, or about the greatness of His power? Who will express the wisdom of His goodness, or the greatness of His power? Whoever expounds the compassion of His compassion, or explores the dignity of His superiority, - how He, not leaving above things, came down to earth for us; how, unnoticed by the beginnings and authorities, he moved into the womb of the immaculate Virgin; unnoticed by the choirs of angels and archangels, he put on the image of a slave in order to save man (created) in (His) image from destruction and death; and died in the flesh to make us partakers of His immortal nature? And how will we repay Him for everything that He has given us? What thanksgivings or prayers? If all our members received a voice, and our hair began to speak, and every feeling we had were filled with song, we would not even then be able to worthily glorify the mercy and (its) greatness that was shown to us. But, as much as we can, let us glorify the One and Holy One, fulfilling the prophecy: “I will remember God and rejoice.” In this review I have outlined the great and amazing miracles of the Savior in order to rejoice in the daily remembrance of them; as long as we remember with dignity, as we should. However, whether secretly or openly, let God be proclaimed; Therefore, let us say to the prophet: “I will remember God and rejoice.” The God of powers, who showed love for mankind and much goodness, who accepted our weakness and prayers with grace and led us to a better good providence, may He Himself keep our soul unstained, body undefiled, spirit uncontaminated, may He keep our life painless, faith inviolable, brotherly love harmless, virginity blameless, friendship silent, love unfeigned, quiet virtue, unhindered justice, fruitful faith. May He open the gates of paradise and extinguish the fiery sword, open the door of His kingdom and prepare pure pleasure, place us at the right hand, and may He crown us with His right hand according to His goodness for mankind, since glory befits Him, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen. Παστοφόριον τότόν παστόν φέρον . This is a stand or pedestal for a small church. The word is of Alexandrian origin. There was a custom there to carry a small church during festive processions, into which an image of the glorified deity was inserted for the occasion (A. Pauly. Real-Encyclopädie d.class. Alterthumswissenschaft. Bd. V. Stuttgart 1848, SS. 1220, 1221). The preacher probably means by σκηνή the Mother of God, and by παστοφόριον Jesus Christ, “who is in the image of God”_ Creations attributed to St. John Chrysostom and in the Patrology of Min, classified as Spuria. The paragraphs in the text were arranged by us. – edition of the ABC of Faith.