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Why did our Lord take on flesh? So that the flesh itself tastes the joy of victory and so that it is fulfilled and knows the gifts of grace. If God were victorious without the flesh, what praise would be attributed to Him? Secondly, to make it clear that our Lord delayed the beginning of creation not at all out of envy that man would become God, for the fact that our Lord humbled Himself in man is greater than the fact that He dwelt in him while man was great and glorious 7 . Therefore it is written: “I said: you are gods” (Ps. 82:6). So, the Word comes and puts on flesh, so that through that which is subject to captivity, that which is not subject to captivity may be captured, and through that which is not subject to captivity, the flesh may turn away from the one who has taken it captive 8 . For our Lord had to be the haven of all good things, to which people would flock, the treasury of all sacraments, to which they would resort from everywhere, and the container of all hidden things, so that all people, as if on wings, would ascend to Him and find peace in Him alone. Reject the wisdom that in the fall of the one who fell, the One who has to restore him also fell. Since Adam’s body (created) was earlier than the disorders appeared in it, therefore Christ did not accept the disorders that Adam later received, since they were some kind of an appendage of weakness to a healthy nature. So, the healthy Lord accepted that nature, the health of which had perished, so that man, through the healthy nature of the Lord, would regain the health of his primitive nature. For when bloodthirsty animals terribly wounded a person, the Benefactor hastened to revive us with his healings. Undeservedly, a person is covered with bandages, since his wounds are undeserved, for the person did not sin in anything against Satan, who wounded him, and did not give anything to the Benefactor, who healed him. So, equipped with the same weapons with which the enemy defeated and plunged the world into condemnation, the Lord descended into battle, and in the flesh received from the Woman, conquered the world, overcame the enemy and condemned. While the Church was hidden, while she herself was silent, the sacraments 9 proclaimed her; when the Church was revealed, she herself began to explain these heralds, who, because of her appearance, fell silent from then on. “From the beginning was the Word” (cf. John 1:1). The Evangelist says this in order to show that just as the word exists with the one who pronounces it, so God the Word in every deed has communion with His Parent - is both in Him and outside of Him. And you will well judge that the word already exists before it is spoken, for Zechariah spoke without moving his lips. This is also why our Lord is called the Word, because through Him the hidden is revealed, just as through the word what is hidden in the heart is revealed, as the Apostle Paul testifies, saying: “The secret counsel of God is Christ, to whom all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge have been revealed” (cf. Col. 2:2-3). However, the word is not pronounced before it is formed 10, since the nature of the word is born. Father, and Son, for he said: “God... no one... could ever see, but the Only Begotten... who is in the bosom of the Father, Himself told us about Him” (cf. John 1:18). And he also says: “And I came... from the Father” (cf. John 5:43, 16:28). And if you say that what is cannot be generated, you make false the testimony of Scripture, which says: “it was” (John 1:1), and then: “born from the bosom of His Father” (cf. John 1:18). “From the beginning was the Word” (cf. John 1:1). Beware, lest in this place you think of a weak word and do not consider It so insignificant that you call It a voice. For the voice from the beginning does not exist, since the voice does not exist before it is uttered, and after it is uttered, it does not exist again. Therefore, the Word was not a voice, Who by His nature was in the likeness of His Father's being, and not by the voice of the Father, but by His image. For if the children you produce are like you, then how do you think that God gave birth to a voice, and not God? And if the son of Elizabeth, called the voice (Matthew 3:3, Mark 1:3, Luke 3:4), is a man, then how much more is God, who is called the Word, the (true) God. Word, then consider that John, who is also called a voice, exists, however, as a person; in the same way, God, who is called the Word, is even more so God the Word. If you think that the Son is the thought of the Father, then I ask: did the Father think once? And if the Son is His inward thought, how is He at His right hand? “From the beginning was the Word.” But this Word is not the word that was spoken at the beginning of the world, since It exists before the beginning and before time, for there is neither a day nor an hour when He does not exist. The True Word is not that which exists at one time and not at another, or that which once did not exist and was then created, but that which has always already existed, constantly, from the beginning, from eternity. Since He Who speaks the Word is eternal, and since this Word is like Him who speaks It, and is the Word of the Sayer, therefore He says: “From the beginning was the Word” (cf. John 1:1). And in order to show that His birth preceded every beginning and boundaries of time, He said: “It was” (John 1:1). Further, if this Word “was with God,” and not with God, 11 then with the words “with God,” the evangelist clearly tells us that just as there was a God with whom the Word was, so the Word itself existed with God as God. “From the beginning was the Word.” With these words he explains two things, namely: the nature of the Word and His birth. And in order not to leave the Word without interpretation, he added: “This Word was with God,” which announced two things: firstly, that the Word is not like any man, for “it was with God,” then - the image of the existence of the Word. “And God... was the Word” - which he taught threefold, namely, that the Word is God, Person and born. “It was with God from the beginning” (cf. John 1:2). It was prudent that he added these words so that it would not seem that he was proclaiming one Person. “It was with God from the beginning” (cf. John 1:2). So, (the evangelist) said, firstly, about His birth, secondly, that It was with God, thirdly, that It was God, fourthly, that It had already been with God before. “All things were created through Him” (cf. John 1:3), since works were accomplished through Him, according to the apostle: “All things were created through Him, for through Him works were made” (cf. Col. 1:16–17), and: “Through Him he created the whole earth” 12, “and without Him nothing was created” (cf. John 1:3), which is the same thing. “In that which was created, through Him was life, and life was the light of men” (cf. John 1:4), - since by His appearance the broken previous errors were hidden. “And this light shone in darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it” (cf. John 1:5), as he says: “He came to his own,... and his own... did not receive” (cf. John 1:11). “And this light shone in the darkness” (cf. John 1:5). Consider what kind of darkness fought against this light of men, and examine how it previously shone in it. When the light speaks, do not dare to think anything unimportant about the Word, but from the words: “in the darkness you shine,” understand that the Evangelist calls darkness the time preceding His Divine appearance, and shows that at that time the Word was shining. For we can hear about this darkness in another place in the Gospel, where the saying of the prophet is found: “the land of Zebulun and ... Naphtali, on the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan stream, Galilee of the Gentiles, the people sitting in darkness have seen a great light” (cf. Matt. 4:15-16). He assimilates this darkness to them because they were a very remote people, living and living on the seashore, a people who had deviated far from the decrees and teachings of the law; for this reason he calls them a people “sitting in darkness.” So, it was about them that the evangelist spoke, since he himself (?) said: “the light, that is, His teaching and knowledge, the darkness that preceded it, that is, error, did not comprehend.” Undertaking the announcement of the beginning of the feat that our Lord endured in His body, the evangelist begins to say: “the darkness... did not overcome him” (cf. John 1:5). “It happened in the days of Herod, king of Judea” (cf. Luke 1:5). Having finished the exposition about the Word, in another place he speaks about how, to what extent and why It diminished Itself: “This Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (cf. John 1:14). So, now, after finishing this word, whatever you heard in Scripture about the Word, do not understand about pure and only the word of God, but about the Word clothed with flesh; that is, (from here on) mixed narratives begin, both divine and human, excluding the first and most important of all. “In the days of Herod king of Judea there was a certain priest... named Zechariah, and his wife... Elizabeth” (Luke 1:5). He says (about them) this way: “They were blameless in all their behavior” (cf. Luke 1:6), so that they would not say that because of their sins they did not give birth (to children), when in fact they were dedicated to doing miraculous works. “And you will have joy and gladness” (Luke 1:14) - not because you gave birth to a son, but because you gave birth to one. “Of those born of women,” he says, “there will be no one greater than John” (cf. Luke 7:28). “He will not drink wine and wine” (cf. Luke 1:15). His angel proclaimed it, as the (other) children of the promise were proclaimed, in order to show that John would be one of them. “And you, little child, will be called a prophet of the Most High... you will go before... the Lord to prepare His ways” (cf. Luke 1:76). The Spirit was in both the child and the old man 13 . “And you... will go before Him” (cf. Luke 1:76) - not like the prophets, who were messengers only of His glory. “To give perfect knowledge of salvation” (cf. Luke 1:77), so that people can distinguish the transitory sacraments from the Truth itself, which never passes away. “Grace... and truth... through Jesus... came into being” (cf. John 1:17). John was proclaimed at the right hand of the altar, the messenger of the Lord at the right hand of Him who sits. It was announced at the hour when the Divine ministry was ending, in order to show that it was the limit of the former priesthood and ministry. Inside the sanctuary, Zechariah fell silent, so that it was clear that the sacraments of the sanctuary must fall silent with the appearance of the One who performs the sacraments. Since he did not believe that his wife would be freed from infertility, he was bound in his speech. Zechariah approached the Angel in order to teach (show us) that his son was less than the Angel. The Angel himself came to Mary to show that her Son is the Lord of the Angel. An angel came to the church so as not to give an excuse 14 to those who were falsely looking for an excuse. The Angel did not come to Elizabeth, since Zechariah was the parent of John, and the Angel did not come to Joseph, since Mary alone was the parent of the Only Begotten. Gabriel did not come to Elizabeth, who had a husband, but came to Mary in order to replace the secret of her husband with his own name 15. “Your prayer is heard... before God” (cf. Luke 1:13). If Zechariah had been convinced that what he prayed for would be given to him, then he would have prayed well; but since he did not believe that this was granted to him, he prayed poorly. What he asked God for was close to fulfillment, but he doubted whether it would be. Therefore, the word of his petition, while it was on the way to fulfillment, was rightly taken away from him. Previously, he incessantly prayed that he would be given a son, but when his prayers were heard, he turned away and said: “How will this be?” Since he doubted the word (of the Angel), he was struck in his mouth and in his prayers; his word, which had previously obeyed his wishes, was taken away from him. So, the matter happened this way. He strongly desired it while it was far away, but did not believe it when it became near in the proclamation. While he believed, he spoke until then, but when he stopped believing, he became speechless. He believed and spoke, as the Scripture says: “I believed, and therefore I spoke” (Ps. 116:1). Since he neglected the Word, he was struck down in the word, so that in depriving himself of his own voice he would honor the Word that he had neglected. Since his mouth said: “How will this be?”, he had to return dumb, so that he would learn that this was possible. The loose tongue is bound so that Zechariah may learn that a bound womb can be loosed, and that the bound tongue can loosen a womb. Let the test teach the one who did not want to learn faith. For when, trying to speak, (Zechariah) experienced that he could not speak, then he understood that he who had closed the open mouth could open the closed womb. Having become mute, I knew well how wrong I had spoken. For why did the law command: “an eye for an eye,” if not so that he who harms (another) by the loss of his own eye will learn what excellent thing he has harmed? So Zechariah, who sinned by word, was punished through the word in order to taste the fruit of righteous reward. He was deprived of words because he thought that the word that was proclaimed to him would not be fulfilled. When his lips were blocked, so that he could not express what was necessary, he learned that he himself was badly blocked from the word of proclamation. By the word of Zechariah the word of the Angel was condemned, but his word also carries punishment before the Angel. Even if all members suffered (punishment) in one member, it was necessary for Zechariah to be punished primarily in the member with which he sinned. Although the punishment affected all members, he experienced the execution itself with his own lips. Such was the guilt of Zechariah that it immediately brought punishment upon him, so that there would not be another like him. After Zechariah received the good news from the Angel, he should have gone out (from the sanctuary) and been the messenger of the Angel. However, since, due to unbelief, he did not want to be his messenger through words, he was given such a punishment that what he did not want to proclaim in word, he announced in silence. By the fact that this vision happened to him in the sanctuary, the people were given a sure sign that they were worthy of such a vision; when they saw him, bound by silence, they realized that his lips needed protection. The tongue was struck with disease, so that the mind, having been purified, learned to attach firm bonds to the lips. Since he did not guard his lips, the gates of his lips are blocked by silence. Since the Angel spoke to him near the Holy of Holies, the people realized that good news had been given to him, but from the fact that he could not speak, they knew that he was answering something inappropriate. Since the vision happened to him during the service, when petitions were being offered, they knew that a certain gift had been sent down to him, but since they did not receive the effects of grace in his mouth, they knew that he did not accept the gift. Although Zechariah himself doubted the words of the Angel, however, since he became mute, no one doubted them anymore. Whoever (himself) did not believe the joyful news brought by the Angel, through his silence all people believed that joyful news. For through silence Zechariah became a prophet and judge for others, so that through the prophet they would learn the desired message and through the judge they would be struck with fear, so as not to neglect such a message. And for Zechariah himself the Angel was a prophet and judge. As a prophet, he explained the secret to him, and as a judge, he subjected him to illness and punishment. The message of future blessings was sent to the human race at that hour, and when the first one who heard it doubted, she marked it with a sign so that others would not imitate it. And thus, this same joyful news, although proclaimed by the loud voice of an Angel, seemed incredible, but it reaches the point that what was announced by the nodding of Zechariah becomes probable. Seeing that everyone believed his nods, Zechariah realized that he had doubted the word of the Angel in vain. And so his silence makes it better for him to listen (to the message). Since he did not believe the Angel, who was the mouth of God, he made him dumb so that the tablet could speak for him. When he did not believe the most joyful news about John received from the Angel, he remained dumb, but when he saw John come out of the womb, he began to speak. The word that came from the Angel reached the lips and closed them, reached the belly and opened it. The same word, in a different order, closed the womb, which it opened, so that it would not give birth any more, and opened the mouth, which it closed, so that it would not be closed any more. The mouth of the one who did not believe in being born from a barren womb should have been closed, and the womb that gave birth to John should have been closed so that it would not bear any more, so that he might be the only begotten messenger of the Only Begotten. Zechariah, the only one who doubted, in his doubt raised the doubt of the human race. So, by his unbelief he taught all people faith. When John was born in a proclamation from the mouth of a living Angel, the father did not believe in his spiritual birth; when he was born from a dead womb, then he added faith to his carnal birth. But since he did not believe living lips, his lips became dead through the word. When they saw him, who had become dumb, they hastened to believe correctly, looking at him, who doubted him badly. His lips showed haste and were kept silent so that they would learn slowness, so that others would not show haste. Since Zechariah doubted his Lord and his petitions, it was necessary to impose silence on him, so that no one else would subsequently fall into doubt about God and prayer. Who, Lord, can exhaust in thought one of Your sayings? We leave more than we take, like thirsty people drinking from a fountain. For the word of the Lord, along with many edifying instructions, gives (us) much meditation. The Lord decorated His word with many colors, so that everyone could learn by considering what he liked. He hid various treasures in His word, so that each of us, where we labored, would be enriched there. The Word of God is the tree of life, with all its parts delivering blessed fruit to you, like that rock that was opened in the desert in order to bring spiritual nourishment to all people from all its parts 16 . “They ate,” he says, “...spiritual food and... drank... spiritual drink” (cf. 1 Cor. 10:3-4). So, whoever received a certain part of this treasure, let him not imagine that this word contains only one thing that he has acquired, but let him think that he could have acquired this one thing out of the many things that are contained in it. And due to the fact that only this part was revealed and received to him, let him not call the word itself lean and fruitless and not despise it, but since he is not able to master it, let him give thanks for its wealth. Rejoice that you are defeated, and do not be distressed that it has overcome you. A thirsty person rejoices when he drinks, and is not distressed by the fact that he cannot exhaust the source. Let the source conquer your thirst, and not thirst conquer the source, for if your thirst is quenched so that the source remains unexhausted, then the thirsty person can drink from it again. If, after quenching your thirst, the source dries up, then your victory will turn into evil for you. Give thanks for what you have received, and do not be distressed because of what is left in excess. What you received and what you gained is your part, and what remains is your inheritance. What you couldn’t get now due to your weakness, you can get at another time if you save it. Do not be carried away by the envious thought of taking with one draw what cannot be taken with one draw, and out of laziness do not move away from what you can take in parts. The fingers wrote “John” on the tablet, which name means that we need mercy. The fingers demanded mercy by grace, since the lips were closed with truth. “Your prayer is heard before God” (cf. Luke 1:13). So, when the Divine command fulfilled what the prayers asked for, then, in all justice, the tongue was taken away from the one who lacked wisdom. Although he begged God with humble prayer and by his very prayer testified that prayer can ask, and God can grant, however, when what was asked was close to being fulfilled, he said: “How can this be?” - So, something happened that I did not want, because I rejected what I wanted. Something happened to him that he had never experienced, since he was unskilled in what he had known for a long time. His ears did not hear what his lips prayed for, so the source from which the words came dried up, so that his ears would no longer provide drink for him. How then could one who did not bear fruit by his own hearing bear fruit through the hearing of others? Without a doubt, Zechariah strengthened husbands who did not have sons, by the example of their father Abraham, and consoled wives, deprived of children, by the example of their mother Sarah, since the Lord placed him and his wife in the same position as them. For Abraham and Sarah were instead of parents for those who found themselves in the same misfortune, and, as it were, they served as a mirror for everyone struck by the misfortune of this kind; the eyes of childless and barren husbands and wives looked to them to receive comfort, just as they (received it) through Isaac, conceived in the womb of Sarah after ninety-nine years. Zechariah, of course, considered Abraham his father by faith, but distinguished him from him by his old age 17. Therefore, since I doubted the One who can change nature, when I wanted to speak, I found myself unable to speak in order to know the One who has power over everything. He who does not believe needs a sign in order to believe. Therefore, due to the doubt of the soul, an Angel placed a sign on the lips of Zechariah, so that he would understand that He who turns the natural gift of speech into dumbness can also revive a dead womb. Because his lips could not give birth to a word, he believed that his old age could produce a son. “Your prayer is heard before God” (cf. Luke 1:13). The prayer asked, the Divine granted, the will rejected. So, this passage teaches that prayer can make all requests, the Divine can grant everything, and the will can either accept or reject everything. However, one should not attach vices (depravity) to those about whom it is said that they were blameless in everything in life, but it must be said that by the magnificent radiance of the shining Angel Zechariah was frightened and confused, and not in his heart, but only in his tongue, as Scripture says in another place: “they grieved his spirit, and he sinned with his lips” (Ps. 105:33). Therefore, the Angel punished him through his lips. For if he had doubted in his heart, he would have punished him in his heart. However, as soon as this punishment was imposed on him, the priest was cleansed (through it) of his guilt. “Turn the hearts of the fathers to the children” (cf. Luke 1:17). Since the children from Judaism went over to ancient paganism and fell away from the covenant of their God, therefore he said: turn their hearts, so that in truth they serve the Lord of all, like their fathers. “He will prepare ... for the Lord a perfect people” (cf. Luke 1:17). In the same way, obviously, as Elijah with the zeal of his many. returned his Lord to the Divine religion. If they say that this will happen at the end of the world, then we answer: even now fathers from children and children from fathers are no longer divided by different opinions, and they are no longer given over to the service of idols 18. So, he says: “Elizabeth... hid herself” (Luke 1:24), that is, due to sadness about what happened to Zechariah. She also hid herself because she was ashamed, because the elderly woman had already moved on to childbearing. Others say that it was not because of old age that Elizabeth hid herself. For it is not written about Sarah that she hid herself, even though she was ninety years old and had Isaac in her womb, nor about Rebekah when she was pregnant with twins. It is written about Elizabeth that she hid herself for five months, precisely until the members of her son were formed, so that he might leap joyfully before his Lord, for the Annunciation to Mary was near. “In the month... the sixth” (Luke 1:26), - for the evangelist counts the time from which Elizabeth conceived. “The Lord God will give him the throne of David” (Luke 1:32), as it was predicted: “The ruler and the prince will not fall until he comes” (cf. Gen. 49:10). And when the Angel taught Her that for God everything is possible, saying: “And Elizabeth your sister... conceived... in her old age” (cf. Luke 1:36), then Mary said: if this happened to her, then “behold, the servant of the Lord, let it be done to Me according to your word” (Luke 1:38). Although, due to the fact that the Angel said to Mary: “Elizabeth, your sister” (cf. Luke 1:36), one might think that Mary was from the house of Levi, it must be said that the prophecy (about the birth of the Messiah) was given to only one family of ancestors 19 . The line of David existed even before the Betrothed of Mary - Joseph, whose birth occurred naturally. For the sake of the family of David this glory was, therefore in Christ both his seed and his race achieved their destination (promised to them). Scripture is silent about the race of Mary, since it usually calculates and notes the race of the husband. If it were customary to explain and show the maternal race, then the question would rightly be asked about the race of Mary. Since, along with the kingdom, the Lord had to abolish the priesthood, then (Scripture) indicates both generations together: Judah - through Joseph, and Levi - through Mary 20. So David, as the father from whom Christ was to descend, said in prophecy: “You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek” (Ps. 109:4) 21. And if, based on the words of Scripture: “Elizabeth, Thy sister,” you think that this is said in order to show that Mary comes from the house of Levi, then in another place the same Scripture said that both of them, Joseph and Mary, come from the house of David 22. But the Angel did not say to Mary: “You are the sister of Elizabeth,” but (said): “Elizabeth, your sister” (cf. Luke 1:36) 23. If Mary were from a different race, then what is said (in Scripture): “from the house of David” (Luke 1:27), and what the Angel said: “The Lord God will give him the throne of His father David” (Luke 1:32) would be false. He is the son of Mary, not Joseph. So, not in any other way (not in another way) was he revealed in the flesh, as from the tribe of David, according to the words of Scripture: “a branch... from the root of Jesse... a flower will grow and flourish from its root” (cf. Is. 11:1). And the apostle testifies: “Our Lord Jesus Christ was born of Mary, of the seed of the house of David” (cf. Rom. 1:3) and so on. He also writes to Timothy: “Remember... Jesus Christ... risen from the dead, born... of the seed of David” (cf. 2 Tim. 2:8) and so on. In addition, we find that the families of Judah and Levi were mixed with each other through Aaron, who married the sister of Nahshon, the leader of the house of Judah, and through Jehoiada the priest, who had as his wife the daughter of Jehoram, prince of the house of David (2 Chronicles 22:11). However, the very word of the Angel, which mentions the close relationship of Mary and Elizabeth, testifies that these tribes were mixed among themselves through marriages. “And Mary got up... went... to Elizabeth” (cf. Luke 1:39), in order to find out whether this really happened to her, and so that, having received confidence in this, she would not doubt what applied to Her herself. Mary went to Elizabeth, who was smaller than Her, just as the Lord came to John. “Where is it from me that the Mother of my Lord came to me?” (Luke 1:43). Seeing that even others are glorified by the gifts given to Her, Mary, praising the Lord, said: “From now on... all generations will call Me blessed” (cf. Luke 1:48). So, John, when he was still in the loins of Zechariah, like Levi in the loins of Abraham, was already serving the Lord and waiting for Him, like the flower of the month of Arekk (March), silently announcing the grapes that were worn out in the midst of Jerusalem. And just as the flower precedes by five months the moment when the juice of the grape begins to form, so John was conceived first, in order by worship to announce the conception of the Worshiped One. “Blessed will she be who believed, for all the words spoken to her by the Lord will be fulfilled” (cf. Luke 1:45). When Mary conveyed to Elizabeth what was said to Her in secret and she greeted Her, because she believed in the fulfillment of what she had heard by the prophets and their disciples, then Mary joyfully pronounced, as the fruit of everything She had heard from the Angel and Elizabeth, and said: “My soul magnifies the Lord,” etc. (Luke 1:46). Mary contrasts the words of Elizabeth: “blessed... is she who believed” with her words: “all generations will call me blessed.” So, at this time and with these words, Mary began to proclaim the new Kingdom. After three months, “she returned to her house” (Luke 1:56) for the reason that the Lord would not appear as a servant before his servant. And she came to her husband so that the matter would be revealed as it was, for if she had carried a human fetus in her womb, she would have sooner run away from her husband. Elizabeth conceived in the month Sami 24 after Zechariah had completed the days of his ministry and duties. The annunciation to Mary took place on the tenth day of the month Arekk, just as the announcement to Zechariah took place on the tenth day of the month Gori 25. “This is the sixth month after that.” The law commanded that on the tenth day of the month Arekk (separate from the flock and) imprison (in a special place) the lamb (Passover). On the same day, the true Lamb was imprisoned in the womb of the Virgin, precisely at the time when the light (solar) was established in its power (spring equinox), and through this he taught that He came to cover the nakedness of Adam 26. He was born on the sixth day of the month Halots 27 (according to the Greek reckoning), when the sun begins to win, showing that the devil is defeated, and man has won in the One who conquers everything. John leapt for joy, signaling the duty of a messenger entrusted to him. Rejoicing, the child of the barren woman leaped in front of the child of the Virgin. John needed the language of his mother in order to speak a prophecy about the Lord. And for this reason, having conceived six months earlier, Elizabeth hid herself from Mary until the baby’s members were perfect, so that the baby, rejoicing, would leap before his Lord and through this become a witness for Mary. The leaping of the baby in the womb was not caused by the baby himself, and not because he was five months old, but so that grace would be revealed in the barren womb that conceived him, and the Virgin’s womb would know the great grace of its relative, and the world would believe that their children were conceived by the voice of the Annunciation of Gabriel, who was, as it were, a planter for both of them. So, since John, although he leaped, (but) could not cry out and testify about his Lord, his mother began to say: “Blessed are You among women, and blessed is the fruit of Your womb” (Luke 1:42). In the dead womb, our Lord prepared a messenger for Himself in order to show that He had come to seek the dead Adam. First he revived the womb of Elizabeth, then with his body he revived the tomb of Adam. Elizabeth, in her old age, gave birth to the last of the prophets, and Mary, in her youth, gave birth to the Lord of Angels. Aaron's daughter gave birth to "the voice crying in the wilderness" (Luke 3:4), the daughter of King David - the Word of the King of Heaven. The priest's wife gave birth to the Angel of His Face, and the daughter of David, the mighty God of the earth. The barren gave birth to the one who forgives sins, and the Virgin gave birth to the One who blots out sins. Elizabeth gave birth to the one who reunites people through repentance, and Mary gave birth to the One who cleanses the earth from uncleanness. The eldest in age lit a lamp, that is, John, in the house of Jacob, her father, and the youngest in age made the Sun of Truth shine upon all nations. An angel preached the gospel to Zechariah, so that the one who was beheaded would preach the One who was crucified, and the one who was hated would preach the One who was persecuted through envy, and the one who baptized with water would preach the One who baptized with fire and the Holy Spirit. The lamp is not dark 28 preached the Sun of righteousness, filled with the Spirit - the Giver of the Spirit, the priest's trumpet sang with a trumpet the One who will come with the voice of the trumpet on the last day; the voice preached the Word, and the one who saw the dove - Him over whom the dove rested, just as lightning precedes thunder. “By whom... (by mercy) the Sun will be revealed to us, rising from on high 29, to enlighten our darkness” (cf. Luke 1:78–79). With these words he indicates the star of the Magi, who “sat in darkness and in the shadow of death” (cf. Luke 1:79). This is said either about the Magi, since before the appearance of the star they were alien to true reverence for God, or about the Israelites who were in darkness, for the Magi enlightened them, which is why he says: “to direct our feet into the path of peace” (Luke 1:79). The words: “they sat in the shade” (cf. Luke 1:79) were also spoken about the astrology of the Chaldeans, or about the darkness of pagan idolatry. those. the second Adam is higher than the first Adam. so that people, through the union of the invisible God with visible man, would be freed from the power of sin and the devil. of course, the types of the Old Testament. It was not created by God and was not appointed for God, like other created things. It is unknown where these words were taken from. of course Zechariah, the father of John, who said this (cf. Luke 1:67-76), or Simeon. those. to deny the truth of his appearance. The name "Gabriel" means "man of God." Saint Ephraim follows the Jewish stories of how twelve springs flowed from a rock in the desert. The meaning, apparently, is this: he distinguished (felt the difference in age between himself and Abraham) due to old age, which seemed to him an obstacle to childbearing, while the old man Abraham believed the promise of offspring. Now the Jewish people, like their fathers, honor the One God, therefore the words of Scripture were already fulfilled in John, and there is no need to expect their fulfillment through Elijah at the end of the world. Those. It was promised to the descendants of David alone, and not to the descendants of Levi, that Christ would come from them. Saint Ephrem admits that Mary was related to the tribe of Levi, but in what follows he directly rejects the idea that Mary comes from this tribe. And in the interpretation of 2 Tim. 2 Saint Ephraim says that Mary and Joseph were both from the house of David. David, predicting that the priesthood of Christ would not be according to the order of Aaron, but according to the order of Melchizedek, thereby predicted that Christ would not be born from the tribe of Levi. St. Ephraim refers to the words Luke 1:27: “from the house of David” not only to Joseph, but also to Mary. those. the words: “You are the sister of Elizabeth” would show that Mary belongs to the family of Elizabeth, that is, the tribe of Levi, while the words “Elizabeth, your sister” show that Elizabeth belonged to the family of Mary, from which it does not necessarily follow that Mary came from the tribe of Levi. The month itself corresponds to October or November. September or October; arekk corresponds to the Hebrew nisan. those. was represented as the true Lamb, who gave the fleece to cover the nakedness of Adam. Halots coincides with December and January. according to another reading: “dark”, “barely noticeable” - in comparison with the Sun of Truth. From the Greek translation: “East from above.” You might be interested in: