Книга первая

That all the writings of Moses indicate the transformative sacrament of Christ “Try the scriptures,” Christ appealed to the Jewish people (John 5:39), very clearly saying that no one can achieve eternal life unless he, like some treasure, unearths the letters of the law and looks for the beads hidden in it, that is, Christ, “in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge,” according to the words of Blessed Paul ( Col. 2, 3). Solomon also said in one place about such venerable and admirable wisdom and intelligence: “If you seek it like silver and look for it like treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and you will find the knowledge of God” (Proverbs 2:4-5). And nothing can compare with this for those who praise the immaculate life, decide to do only the best and most excellent of all, and fill their minds with Divine light: because they must continually delight in what is said about God and, as if by a kind of lamp, set up the Holy Scripture for themselves, in accordance with the holy Psalmist, who calls and says: “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to the path.” mine" (Ps. 119,105). So, since it is clear and obvious that a diligent search for the sacrament of Christ brings eternal life and serves as a path for us to all complacency, then again, applying the work that is useful primarily to ourselves, we will try to collect those places in which the sacrament of Christ is clearly indicated to us, and set out what meaning each of them has. Perhaps our words, which contain subtle speculations, will one day serve for the prudent as a good reason for contemplating the truth and as some kind of steps leading to better and higher knowledge. So, first of all, we will usefully present what happened historically, giving it an appropriate explanation and, as if transforming the narrative from an image and a canopy, we will make it clear, and our word will tend to the mystery of Christ and have Him as the limit, if it is true that the “end of the law” and the prophets is “Christ” (Rom. 10:4; cf. Matt. 5:17). If, however, we happen to sin somewhere in such great subtlety and obscurity of speculation against what is most appropriate, then let the readers be lenient with us. It should also be known that, having compiled seventeen books “On Worship and Service in Spirit and Truth” and having collected in them a great variety of speculations, we deliberately omitted and left there without research the chapters contained in the present work, although perhaps sometimes it happened, out of necessity, to mention some of this. So, let's begin with what in the book of Genesis deserves a more skillful explanation, and then, having traced in order all five books of Moses, in addition to them, we will carefully examine what is useful for our proposed purpose from other Scriptures. 1. Truly versed in the law and the most sacred Paul, who understood the mystery of salvation through Christ, says that in Him will be headed “everything in heaven and on earth, according to His good pleasure” and the will of God the Father (Eph. 1:10,9). In the word: “headed,” it means the restoration of everything and the bringing of the damaged to its original state: for it recalls, as is natural, the words of God speaking through the mouth of the prophets: “You do not remember the former things and do not think about the ancient things. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it will appear” (Is. 43:18-19). Therefore, he, being brought up on the word of God, presents to us the prediction contained in these words as already fulfilled in Christ, saying: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; The old has passed away, now everything is new” (2 Cor. 5:17): for we are transformed in Christ and become a new creation. In Him, and only in Him alone, we received a new name: we are called Christ’s. That is why the divine Paul himself again speaks about us in one place: “But those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and lusts” (Gal. 5, 24); for those who are in Christ have a holy life and stand above carnal passions and earthly impurity. And that we will be given a new name, given to us in Christ, this can be clear from the words of God, who calls through the mouth of the saints: to those who serve Me will be given a “new name,” which will be blessed on earth (Apoc. 2:17; Rev. 3:12): for they will bless the true God. So, since no one who has decided to think rightly and properly can doubt that everything has been made new in Christ, let us now consider what decay is and regarding what it was said that its restoration for the better took place, whether from imperfect integrity and undamaged, or from damage and an accidental transition to the state in which it was not in the beginning. In this way, everyone will understand, and quite correctly, where the goal of the speech we propose is heading, and the true meaning of what is being narrated will in no way be hidden from us. 2. The highest Artist of all God, in everything that he had to do, using his omnipotent power, that is, the Son: for “All things came into being through Him, and without Him nothing began to be” (John 1:3), in the beginning and, above all else, He created heaven and earth and called into being, although they never existed. If, perhaps, someone asks how and from where, he will hear from us the following wise and truly excellent word: “For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who was His adviser?” (Rom. 11:34.) If anyone wants to know this, there will be no doubt that, in any case, his mind and understanding are far from having much in comparison with the mind of God. And that all of ours is insignificant and even completely insignificant in comparison with the Divine, God Himself declares this, saying: “My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, says the Lord. But as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts higher than your thoughts” (Is. 55:8-9). So, let this study be left as unnecessary and not achieving the goal: because God creates as He knows and as He can. After heaven and earth were created in the beginning, and then many waters gathered into one place, it was necessary to obey the Speaker: “let the waters that are under the heaven be gathered into one place” (Gen. 1:9), the earth began to be covered, became green everywhere with various herbs and in an unusual way gave birth to strong-trunked fruitful trees. The circles of the sun and moon appeared, and the law of God assigned to each of these luminaries the measure of its beginning: for this was assigned to day and light, and this to night and darkness. And our very sky appeared all strewn with stars. God even determined for what purpose they were made, saying: “let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens... to separate the day from the night, and for signs, and seasons, and days, and years; and let them be lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light on the earth” (Gen. 1:14–15). since the Creator of all things is life by nature, he made the very nature of the waters the mother of those floating in them and flying through the air. He again commanded the earth to produce a diverse nature of cattle and countless genera of wild animals. And undoubtedly He produced everything that pleased Him and beyond all understanding. In each of the created works, the Creator was the Word, and only one wave gave existence to everything. And after the beautification of everything that happened was approved by the Artist Himself, the time finally came for the creation of that for the sake of which all of it was brought into being, I mean man: for truly it was necessary that the Creator of all things, being good by nature, or, better, being goodness itself, such as it is, should be known by us. It was necessary that the earth should be full of those who knew how to glorify Him, and that from the beauty of creatures the glory of the Creator of all things should be seen, as it is written (cf. Rom. 1:20); for, as the prophet Isaiah says, You “did not create it, that is, the earth, in vain, but... for habitation” (Is. 45:18). So, it was necessary to form a rational animal on it, after everything that served to amuse him and seemed well created had appeared in advance. Therefore, having revealed in advance the earth and heaven and everything that is on them in appropriate decoration, God begins to create man, whose existence He had in mind before. And He created every other creature at once by His command and brought into being by His word as God. since man is a truly beautiful and god-like animal, then, so that it does not seem that he is the likeness of the highest glory, created equally with that which is not the same as him, God honors his creation with preliminary advice and personal participation. Having formed the figure of his body from the earth, He makes him a rational animal and, so that he stands out from everyone by the intelligence of his nature, he immediately marks him as an incorruptible and life-giving spirit, for it is written: “And he breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul” (Gen. 2:7). Then he honored him with the sweetness of paradise and gave him power over everything on earth, made him the ruler over those who swim and fly, subjugated herds of wild animals to him, even subjugated breeds of poisonous animals, along with others, to him. And in order for man to have fear, He commanded him to obey natural laws. So, man was a reflection of the highest glory and an image of divine power on earth. But since he who had achieved such glory and sweetness, in any case, should have known that he had God as his Primate, King and Lord: then, so that from an excess of prosperity he would not very easily fall into the thought of liberation from the power and predominance of the One who has the power, He immediately gave him a law and set a punishing threat as the immediate consequence of his crimes. As long as there was one and only one man, there was no way on earth to sin. And so that he would be under the law, a certain type of preservation of the commandment was also invented for him: “saying: You will eat from every tree of the garden, but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you must not eat from it, for on the day that you eat from it you will surely die” (Gen. 2:16-17). Then, from one rib taken from Adam, God creates a wife who would serve him to give birth to children, and cohabit with him as a being similar to him, and finally simply be with him. When she was drawn into crime by the flattery of the devil and ate from the forbidden tree, and with her the forefather Adam himself fell, then their nature was immediately condemned to death. And God cried out to his wife: “In sickness you will give birth to children” (Gen. 3:16); and to Adam: “Cursed is the ground because of you” (Gen. 3:17). And besides this, they were deprived of that much-desired abode that they enjoyed in the beginning, as well as the paradise of sweetness. And only then did they realize that they were naked and without clothes, and therefore needed clothes. By the mercy of God, they had leather undergarments for this purpose. And they recognized the earth as their mother, were caught in the net of corruption, and in general, as I think, they lacked nothing to end up in an extremely disastrous state. 3. But someone, I think, will say: if created man had to reach such a great misfortune, then isn’t it fair to think that it would have been much better for him not to have existed? God made him glorious and admirable, who after a little time had to be pitiful and worthy of compassion, guilty of curse and punishment. God, as the Creator by nature, could not, of course, not know the future. since, knowing this, He created it, then does He not expose Himself to more harm than benefit to those who brought man, if those who were unfortunate would truly have been better not to have been born at all, according to the word of the Savior Himself, spoken by Him about the traitorous disciple: “It would have been better for that man not to have been born” (Mark 14:21). To this I will say that it is very dangerous and close to extreme madness, or, better, it would be outright madness and even much more - to condemn the Divine intentions as wrong and the highest nature, or not to consider him caring about what is proper, or to consider him capable of sinning regarding what is useful and best for us. It would be better if we, considering the Divine nature to be infallible in its advice and deeds, refrained from “thinking not of yourself more than you ought to think” (Rom. 12:3) and leaving excessive preoccupation with this as not free from guilt. And besides, I think, we should have paid attention to the following: for those who received existence and, moreover, for good, would it have been better not to have been born or to have been born and become partakers of the goodness of the Creator? But this, I think, no one will doubt: for just as those who are unhappy, if they have already been brought into existence, in justice it would be better and more desirable not to receive this existence, so exactly, I think, on the contrary, for those who will not be so, it is a good and praiseworthy deed to come into the world and live. So what? I believe that our talk about this should be transferable to beings much higher than us: I mean the blessed Angels. Created by God and from non-existence, Angels and Archangels, Thrones and Powers, Powers and Principalities were brought into existence, and above them the Seraphim. Among those brought into being was the apostate serpent himself, and the evil forces that were with him. They were together with other holy and intelligent creatures, filling the highest abodes, distinguished by glory and in comparison with us, being in an incomparably better and more excellent state. That is why it is said from the Lord: with the Cherubim “I have given you orders” (Ezek. 28:14). But the holy Cherubim have an established glory and firmly maintain their original state. “Thousands of thousands...serve God,...and darkness stood before Him” (Dan. 7:10). Satan fell along with others and lost his glory. So, when he set out to leave his original state, then, arbitrarily inclined to insult God, he caused the Creator of all things to cease from creation, I mean the holy Angels, and rejected such a glorious and admirable creation. After all, how would it not seem offensive if the multitude that had hitherto stood and served Him were not brought into being, keeping themselves intact in relation to the God who created them and not allowing the thought of falling into oblivion of their original state? And what, tell me, is very harmful for this in the fact that some, as a result of arrogance, have lost their former well-being? Those who are better than these remain with God, and, richly filled with His goodness, honor Him with long and continuous praises. And about them, I think, blessed David says: “Blessed are all who live in Your house: they will continually praise You” (Ps. 83:5). Having finished talking about this, now let’s apply the same study to ourselves. 4. Man was created at the beginning endowed with power over his own desires and possessing a free desire for whatever he wanted: for the Divine in whose image he was created is free. So, I think, and in no other way, he would be worthy of praise if he were a free doer of virtue and had purity in his deeds as the fruit of disposition, and not as a consequence of natural necessity, which would not at all allow him to go beyond the limits of good, even if he wanted to do something other than that. So, man in the beginning received a free and spontaneous desire of the mind for everything that he had to do; but, being deceived by the serpent, he foolishly turned to what should not have been done, and considered committing a crime to be nothing. For this, he was condemned to death and decay, since God, I think, foresaw the great benefit that would come from what happened: for as soon as a person once deviated towards sin and his nature began to suffer from a desire for the wicked, almost like the nature of unclean spirits, he was constantly exposed to the evil he committed on earth. So, the death of the flesh was usefully invented, not leading the animal to complete destruction, but rather preserving it to renewal and, so to speak, to future remaking, like a broken vessel. And that a living being would have to suffer corruption, the Creator did not know this, but on the contrary, he knew that along with this would follow the destruction of obscene deeds, and the destruction of corruption, and the elevation to a better state, and the perception of original benefits. He knew that in time He would send His Son in human form, who would die for us and destroy the power of death, in order to possess both the living and the dead. But what? If not everyone believed, then the very countless number of saved ones, as it were, weakens the significance of their destruction and shows empty sadness about them, almost saying this: “eat of the fruits of their ways” (Proverbs 1:31): because, having the opportunity, if they wanted to be saved and avoid the evil into which they fell, they do not accept the Redeemer, that is, Christ. So, if a gardener filled his garden with the most excellent trees, but then not all the trees for various reasons happened to escape damage, then no one would think that the one who decided to take up gardening did not want to do this business correctly. And no one, I think, would blame him. On the contrary: he took all due care of the planted trees, but they suffered from his weakness. Do we really say that it would be better if he did not start gardening at all and would not plant the garden with the most excellent plants, but on the contrary would completely destroy the methods of gardening so that some of the plants planted would not suffer harm? Wouldn't it be completely unreasonable to think that this is correct? 5. So, if we judge sensibly, then we will not blame the Creator who brought us into existence, but rather ourselves, who suffer harm from our own will. That in bringing man into existence, God also meant that he would fall under corruption, but also knew the methods of healing, the divine Paul clearly convinces us of this, testifying that salvation through Christ had long been foreseen by the Spirit. This is exactly what he writes in his Epistle to his disciple Timothy: “Do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord Jesus Christ, nor of me, His prisoner; but suffer with the gospel of Christ, by the power of God, who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before the ages, which has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Tim. 1:8-10). And to others again: “All things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. And those whom He predestined, those He also called, and those He called, them He also justified; and those whom He justified, He also glorified" (Rom. 8:28-30). Do you hear how he says that grace in Christ was given "before the years of eternity" and that those who will be conformed to the "image of His Son" are foreknown and clearly predestined of God and the Father? For the image of the incarnation is foreshadowed, as I said. And at the proper time the remission of infirmities is also accomplished, to which Paul will again be a witness, so wrote: “Now to him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret from eternity, but has now been revealed, and through the writings of the prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God, was made known to all nations for the subjection of their faith, to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, be the glory forever” (Rom. 14, 24-26). The mystery was kept silent, but has now been revealed through the law and the prophets, according to the will of God and the Father. And in Christ we are restored to our original state, with the overthrow of what later came to us as a result of the flattery of the devil. For Paul again said this about the Savior of us all, Christ: “In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace, which He abundantly bestowed upon us in all wisdom and understanding, having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure, which He first purposed in Him, in the dispensation of the fulness of times, that all things in heaven and on earth might be united under the head Christ. In Him we became heirs, having been predestined to do so by the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, so that we who had previously trusted in Christ might be a source of praise for His glory” (Eph. 1:7-12). Here again we are predestined (previously named) according to the assumption (by insight) of the Father; and we were enriched with hope itself, as it were, earlier than with existence, since God had foreknowledge of this and in His councils predetermined what was to happen to us. For after the inventor of sin deceived Adam at the beginning and made him guilty of the sin of frivolity, he was brought to death, and then condemnation passed on to all people, since passion passed, as it were, from root to branch: because it “reigned from Adam to Moses and over those who did not sin, like the crime of Adam” (Rom. 5:14). The Creator provided for His creatures and arranged for us, as it were, a second root of the race, elevating us to the former incorruptibility, so that just as the image of the first and earthly things would mark us with the necessity of death and being caught in the net of corruption, so, on the contrary, the second principle after it, that is, Christ, and likeness to Him in spirit would signify for us freedom from destruction; and so that, just as in that (Adam) disobedience led us to punishment, so in this (Christ) compliance and obedience in everything showed us to be partakers of blessing from above and from the Father. So it is said: “The first man Adam became a living soul; and the last Adam is the life-giving spirit” (1 Cor. 15:45). And the Apostle explains this to us even differently, saying: “The first man is from the earth, earthy; the second person is the Lord from heaven. As is the earthy, so are the earthy; and as is the heavenly, so are the heavenly. And just as we have borne the image of earth, we will also bear the image of heaven” (1 Cor. 15:47-49). And again: “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us” (Gal. 3:13). “He humbled himself,” as it is written (Phil. 2:8), and voluntarily condescended to everything that is in us, the Only Begotten - the Word of God, not in order to be subject to the kingdom of death with us, since Adam transferred mortality to Him too (for He Himself is the one who gives life to everything), but in order to, having shown the form of those subject to corruption, transfer it to life. That is why He “became flesh” (John 1:14). So the wise Paul writes: “For as death came through man, so also came the resurrection of the dead through man. Just as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will live” (1 Cor. 15:21-22). For it would be unreasonable to think that the earthly and simple man Adam extended the power of the curse placed on him, as if some kind of inheritance, naturally passing on, to the entire race; and He who is from above and from heaven, Who is God by nature, Immanuel, who took upon Himself the likeness of us and became for us the second Adam, in turn, did not make those who would want to join in kinship with Him by faith in abundance to participate in His life. We became His co-partners through a mysterious blessing. We are united with Him in another way, since we have become partakers of His Divine nature through the Spirit: for He dwells in the souls of the saints, and as blessed John says: “We know that He dwells in us by the Spirit which He has given us” (1 John 3:24). So, He Himself is our life, Himself our justification. It is also written: “Therefore, just as through one crime there is condemnation for all men, so through one righteousness there is justification for life for all men” (Rom. 5:18). And again: “For just as through one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so through one man’s obedience many will be made righteous” (Rom. 5:19). So, it is clear that in the first Adam the mystery of Christ was then prefigured, not preserving similar features of the image in everything, but different and even opposite. It was he who was for the human race the beginning of death, damnation and condemnation; and this one - to everything opposite: to life, blessing and justification. He accepted a wife “and they will... be one flesh” (Gen. 2:24) and died through her; Christ, uniting the Church with Himself in spirit, delivers and saves, and makes it a conqueror of the devil’s flattery. Therefore, the Apostle urges us to cry out: “for we are not unaware of his plans” (2 Cor. 2:11). Forefather Adam received corruption as retribution for sin and as punishment for crime; But righteousness was imputed to Christ because of the madness of the Jews. Therefore, for mortal passion He is crowned with “honor and glory,” according to the word of blessed Paul (Heb. 2:9; cf.: Phil. 2:9). And only one thing that is on earth was barely subordinate to Adam: but everything is to Christ; for to Him “every knee bowed, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confessed that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:10-11). Amen. 1. Human nature in Adam, as the head of the race, as I said recently, was subject to death and sin: but it was redeemed no other way than through Christ alone. So His disciple writes: “There is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12): for it was truly necessary that He, through Whom all things were brought into being, should become the restorer of corruption and remove the damage caused by sin, abolish evil and again richly bestow goodness on those who were produced by it. I would recognize as a glorious act of divine power and authority both to bring from non-existence into being, and to almost call again to well-being those who have deviated from the state of goodness and integrity. So, in Adam the image of this was shown. But everyone can see that this image is no less clearly outlined in those who descended from him. In Christ, God and the Father heads everything that is in heaven and that is on earth, and what has fallen to an unsuitable state raises it to its original state, since through Him alone what has come in time is destroyed and what is on earth is restored to the renewal of creation: for in Him is a “new creation” (2 Cor. 5:17; Gal. 6:15); and this word is true. So, see in both Abel and Cain the mystery of Christ, through which we are saved. In the book of Genesis it is written like this: “Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived and gave birth to Cain, and said, “I have acquired a man from the Lord.” And she also gave birth to his brother, Abel. And Abel was a shepherd of sheep, and Cain was a farmer. After some time, Cain brought a gift to the Lord from the fruits of the ground, and Abel also brought from the firstlings of his flock and from their fat. And the Lord looked upon Abel and his gift, but did not look upon Cain and his gift. Cain became very upset and his face fell. And the Lord said... to Cain: why are you upset? and why did your face droop? If you do good, don’t you lift your face? and if you do not do good, then sin lies at the door; he attracts you to himself, but you rule over him” (Gen. 4: 1–7). And a little later: “And Cain said to Abel his brother.... And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him. And the Lord said... to Cain: Where is Abel, your brother? He said: I don’t know; Am I my brother's keeper? And he said...: what did you do? the voice of your brother's blood cries to Me from the earth; and now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened its mouth to receive the blood of thy brother at thy hand; when you cultivate the land, it will no longer give its strength to you; you will be an exile and a wanderer on earth. And Cain said to the Lord...: My punishment is more than can be endured; behold, You are now driving me from the face of the earth, and I will hide from Your presence, and I will be an exile and a wanderer on the earth; and whoever meets me will kill me. And the Lord said to him...: for this, whoever kills Cain will be avenged sevenfold. And the Lord made a sign for Cain, so that no one who met him would kill him. And Cain went away from the presence of the Lord” (Gen. 4:8-16). 2. So, Cain, as well as Abel, were both born from Adam and were, as it were, tender and flowering offspring, descended in the beginning from one and the first root; and on them human nature first exercised itself in fertility and only began to demonstrate the ability to grow and multiply and strengthen in strength. But Cain preceded the birth by some time. Abel followed him and was born after him; and while they were both tender and young, they were, as it were, little chicks raised by their parents. When they came from adolescence to a more mature age and were already at the age of manhood, they turned to various occupations. And Cain, delighted by the freshness of the earth’s greenery and especially seeing the earth adorned with beautiful trees and ripe fruits, thought that with effort it should appear to the eyes of those looking at it even more cultivated; and about what in itself and naturally aroused love for itself and by itself reaches such beauty, he thought - and rightly so - that if you apply agricultural labor to it, then it will appear incomparably more beautiful to the eye. So he led a life befitting farmers and wanted to achieve his goal, using all his bodily strength. Nature gave him knowledge of this, and the Divine and ineffable law inscribed in his mind the knowledge of what he wanted. Cain applied diligence and labor to this. The wise Abel, leaving work on the trees and the spade, without holding the sickle, turned to the flocks of sheep. He was led to this thought, perhaps, by the lambs, still bleating in a thin voice in imitation of their mothers, even barely bleating, with tender and newly strengthened legs easily jumping on the flowering grass, as well as bleating goats, easily jumping onto the highest steep rocks. And it is wonderful, I think, the decision that he, being very wise, preferred the pastoral life, considering it as some kind of preliminary exercise in managing people and considering this matter as such. It is common for the rulers of tribes, cities or nations to be called shepherds of nations by both the inspired Scripture itself (for example, in Ezek. 34:23; Ezek. 37, King David is named), and selected Hellenic writers (for example, Homer calls Agamemnon (Il. II, 243. 254. 772; IV, 413 and many others), Achilles (Ill. XVI, 2), Nestor (Ill. II, 85; XXIII, 411; Od. XV, 151, etc.) and many others). So, when both young men inclined, one to agriculture, and the other to the most excellent occupation, namely shepherding, then over time, Cain’s gardens were filled with dense trees and ripe fruits, while Abel’s had a great multitude of livestock. Then the law of our innate knowledge of God prompted these men to fulfill their duty to offer thanksgiving sacrifices of all to God, the Creator and Giver of all good to us. For, although the point of view of idolaters as to who is the creator of all things is damaged and perhaps not true, the innate and necessary law produces and spontaneous knowledge awakens in us the thought of a higher being and incomparably superior to us, that is, God. Thus, the sacred and wise Abel brings the choice and best of his flock. “He brought, it is said, from the firstlings of his flock and from their fat,” that is, the most excellent and chosen. Not ignorant of the very method of sacred rites, he offers tuks. Cain is not like that, but much more carelessly: he left the best of the fruits for his own pleasure, and with the second-rate ones he honored God, and thereby offended Him. Thus, the fire that came down from heaven on Abel’s gifts, having destroyed them, prepared the sacrifice. “I did not respect Cain or his gift,” it is said, for he did not descend upon the sacrificed fire in an unusual way. Therefore, Cain becomes very sad and terribly discouraged. Knowing the reason for Abel’s disgust and preference for sacrifice, he did not turn to correcting his guilt, but, having become immoderately angry, the first of people conceives an indomitable murder. But almost taking revenge on the God of all sorts for disgust, he cunningly approaches the venerable brother and tramples the law of love, having a mind filled with devilish malice and wicked intentions, and in words pretending to be kind: “Let’s go,” he says, “to the field.” Do you hear how he calls him to the fields, as if so that he could be a spectator of his diligence in agriculture and enjoy the varied spectacle of flowers? But he is ungodly and gives his half-blooded one as the first spoil and the firstfruits of death, and thus opens the way to human nature to commit filth. When God asked him and said: “Where is Abel your brother!” the unfortunate man resorts to lies and answers sternly, saying: “I don’t know.” And after he was convicted of murder and cursed, he began to think in turn that he himself would die, although God did not want this, and that this would resolve God’s wrath against him. He said: “Behold, You are now driving me off the face of the earth, and I will hide from Your presence, and I will be an exile and a wanderer on the earth; and whoever meets me will kill me.” But that in every possible way and in any case he would be subject to damnation and would suffer punishment for his wicked deeds, spending the most miserable life on earth, this was undoubtedly, since God clearly said: “for this, anyone who kills Cain will be avenged seven times.” And he puts seven instead of many, as if to say: for many and ungodly sins, the punishment for the fratricide Cain will be revealed by the one who deprives him of bodily life. If someone would like to say that vengeance concerns specifically the number seven, then there is no mistake in this either. In this case, Cain's first sin was that he incorrectly divided and did not devote to God that which was most excellent. The second is that, having learned sin, he did not turn to repentance and did not correct his sins by turning to the better, but was inflamed with anger and was irritated by the glorification of his neighbor, whereas it should have been better to compete with the latter, and not consider him an enemy and look at him with unrighteous eyes. The third and, as it were, attack to commit a savage murder is uncontrollable envy. The fourth is the same: “let’s go to the field” - proof of deceit and flattery. The fifth is the crime of unholy foul murder. The sixth sin may include lying before God. In the seventh, there is the idea that he can, contrary to the will of God, avoid punishment by being deprived of bodily life involuntarily. But it is said: “And the Lord made a sign for Cain, so that no one who met him would kill him. And Cain went away from the presence of the Lord." And immediately he was cursed, and a method of disgust followed: for how can an all-pure and most holy nature look at a person who has reached the extreme limit of all evil? 3. Let us say this for now in the literal and historical sense. But, as if bringing colors to the outline of the image, transforming the shadow contained in the letter into truth and subtly examining every detail, let us now say that everyone can see the sacrament of Christ pre-represented at the beginning, as if in the shadow - in what has happened. Since human nature fell into sin and was unexpectedly caught in the net of death, it was necessary, truly it was necessary, that the sacrament of restoration for the better should be foreshadowed and that it should not be unknown that for our sake and for us Christ would die in time. So, the forefather Adam was created, according to the testimony of the Holy Scriptures, in the image and likeness of God (Gen. 1:26). From him were born and descended the first Cain, and the second after him Abel. Let Cain represent Israel to us. And Christ Himself, pointing out the similarity of the morals of the Jewish people with the morals of Cain, foreshadowed it. It was He who said: “If you continue in My word, then you are truly My disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free” (John 8:31-32). They, not understanding the beauty of their father’s freedom, tried to shine with carnal glory, saying: “We are Abraham’s seed and have never been slaves to anyone; How then do You say: You will be made free?” (John 8:33). What did Christ answer to this? “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin. But the slave does not remain in the house forever; the son abides forever” (John 8:34–35). And as their father, he points to Satan, saying: “You are doing the works of your father.... He was a murderer from the beginning and did not stand in the truth, for there is no truth in him” (John 8:41,44). Understanding these words correctly, we cannot in any way think that Christ is mentioning here the evil one and the cause of evil, the demon. No! To the Jews who were possessed and plotting wicked filth murder against Him, He gives as their father the first murderer and the culprit of lies, I mean Cain and the latter’s father – Satan, the inventor of sin. Since some ask who we will give as fathers to the devil, or what we call the prototype of his wickedness, we will answer that, as if reflecting the prototype in Cain, He considers those who are ill in everything in the likeness of his inherent wickedness. And that the Savior Christ usually calls Satan the one who resembles him in character, we can easily see from His words to the holy disciples: “Have I not chosen twelve of you? but one of you is the devil” (John 6:70). Thus, Israel should be likened to Cain, about whom it is written: “My son is the firstborn Israel” (Exodus 4:22). After the firstborn Israel, as if the second in time and the youngest, Christ appeared, Who Himself was the son of Adam. That is why He wisely and carefully called Himself the Son of Man everywhere (See, for example: Matthew 8:20; Matthew 9:6; Matthew 10:23; Matthew 11:19; Matthew 12:8, 32, 40, etc. Mark 2:10, 28; Mark 8:38; Mark 9:9, 12, 31, etc. Luke 5, 24; Luke 7, 34; John 1, 51; John 6, 27, 53, 62; But Israel thought to honor God by offering things that were temporary and easily faded, and very unimportant, and, as it were, applied all their mind to earthly pursuits. For Cain turned to agriculture, while Abel was a shepherd of the sheep, since Immanuel rules the verbal flock, and Himself “is the good Shepherd” (John 10:11), who “in the fat place” and in good pasture, as it is written (Isa. 30:23), tends the flocks on high and on earth. The prophetic word also cried out to Him: “Feed Your people with the rod of Your guard, the sheep of Your inheritance” (Mic. 7:14). So, Israel honored God with earthly things, bearing fruit in works done according to the law, and devoting sacrifices that were not desired by Him. That is why I heard the words from the mouths of the saints: “Your burnt offerings of rams,” “I am satisfied with the burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fattened cattle, and I do not want the blood of bulls and lambs and goats. When you come to appear before Me, who demands that you trample My courts? Bear no more vain gifts: smoking is abominable to Me” (Isa. 1:11-13). And again: “Why do I need the incense that comes from Sheba, and the fragrant reeds from a distant country? Your burnt offerings are displeasing, and your sacrifices are distasteful to Me” (Jer. 6:20). This is clearly signified by the fact that God paid no attention to Cain's sacrifices. The righteous Abel, that is, Christ, gifted to God the firstborn from the verbal herds, that is, soft in heart, infancy with malice, chosen according to virtues and in likeness to Him bearing the glory of the firstborn. For the assembly of those called through faith to sanctification is called by the divine Paul the Church of the “firstborn who are written in heaven” (Heb. 12:23). And Christ became the priest of this holy assembly and the flock of the firstborn. “for through Him we both have access to the Father in one Spirit” (Eph. 2:18; Rom. 5:2). And we became a good and acceptable sacrifice “rather than an ox, rather than a calf with horns and hoofs” (Ps. 68:32): for a blood offering is base and earthly and has no aroma before God. Service in the Spirit and through Christ is much more pleasing to the Father. So to those of the children of Israel who offered earthly sacrifices, God cried: “I will not accept the bull out of your house, nor the goats from your folds, for all the wild animals of the forest, and the cattle on a thousand mountains, are Mine, I know all the birds on the mountains, and the animals of the fields are before Me. If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the universe and everything that fills it are Mine” (Ps. 49:9-12). To us, justified in Christ and sanctified in the Spirit, He called, saying: “Sacrifice praise to God and render your vows to the Most High, and call on Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will glorify Me” (Ps. 49:14–15). So spiritual offerings are better than earthly offerings, and the sacrifice offered through Christ is far superior to the sacrifice offered under the law. And God did not lean towards the sacrifices of Cain, but towards the sacrifices of Abel. For what reason? Israel offered correctly: for it was necessary to offer sacrifices to God; but he divided incorrectly, calming down on images and thinking that God delights in the vision. Therefore, he sinned, and received a command to remain silent, that is, to stop the ancient and legal customs and make Christ the leader. For Cain was told: “If you have sinned... be silent”; about Abel: “he attracts you to himself, but you rule over him” (Gen. 4:7). But if Israel, having rejected earthly offerings and useless service under the law, had wanted to make Christ the boss and guide on the path to the best, then they would have been free with us and written in the book of life, according to the Scriptures (Apoc. 3:5). since, like Cain, he made the glorification of our Savior a reason for envy and the beginning of foul murder, he fell under a curse and became guilty of sevenfold vengeance. And they truly became guilty of many vengeances, and were subjected to severe punishments, groaning and trembling, they spend their lives unhappy: everywhere they are strangers and strangers, everywhere they live full of fear and without the boldness that most befits the free. However, Cain received a sign so that no one would kill him: and Israel did not completely perish, but a “remnant” was saved from him, according to the word of the prophet (Is. 10:21), who, knowing this, foretold, saying: “If the Lord of hosts had not left us a small remnant, then we would have been the same as Sodom, we would have become like Gomorrah” (Is. 1:9). Moreover, the divine Psalmist also begged the God of all, so that Israel would not be completely destroyed: “Do not kill them, lest my people forget” (Ps. 58:12). In addition, Cain withdrew from the presence of God. And it is written like this: “And Cain went away from the presence of the Lord” (Gen. 4:16). The Israelites suffered something similar, to whom it was said through the mouth of the prophet: “And when you stretch out your hands, I close My eyes from you; and when you multiply your prayers, I do not hear: your hands are full of blood” (Is. 1:15). For they killed the Lord of all and dared to say out of excessive wickedness: “His blood be on us and on our children” (Matthew 27:25). However, Abel’s blood perhaps cried out only against one murderer; The honest Blood of Christ cried out against the cruelty and ingratitude of the Jews, but delivered the world from sin, as if shed for it. Therefore, the divine Paul says that we, justified by faith, have come to “and the blood of sprinkling, which speaks better than Abel” (Heb. 12:24). But it is appropriate, I think, to add the following to what has been said: after the murder of Abel, it is said, “And Adam again knew ... his wife, and she gave birth to a son, and called his name Seth, because [she said] God gave me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain killed” (Gen. 4:25). Then, after a little while, it is said, “Adam lived a hundred and thirty years and begat [a son] in his likeness in his image, and called his name Seth” (Gen. 5:3). So, look, after the death of Abel, the son Seth is born again, most similar to what was created in the image and likeness of God, that is, with Adam. For even after Immanuel died in the flesh, another seed of Adam immediately arose, abounding in the highest beauty of the Divine image, since we believers are transformed into Christ through the Spirit (Gal. 4:19). And that for them, as it were, the death of Christ became the root of the race and a pretext, He Himself confirms this, saying: “Truly, truly, I say to you: unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; and if he dies, he will bear much fruit” (John 12:24). So, when He fell to the ground, like some kind of grain, like an ear of grain, He arose in a numerous form, since in Him human nature was transformed according to the original image in which the first man was created. 4. It is worthy that we engage in research about the race that came from both, that is, from Cain and from Seth: because from here something can come out that will serve us for our benefit. It is written like this: “And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived and gave birth to Enoch. And he built a city; and he named the city after the name of his son: Enoch. Irad was born to Enoch; Irad gave birth to Mechiael; Mechiael gave birth to Methuselah; Methuselah gave birth to Lamech. And Lamech took for himself two wives: the name of one was Ada, and the name of the second was Zillah. And Lamech said to his wives: Ada and Zillah! listen to my voice; the wives of Lamech! listen to my words: I killed a man for my wound and a boy for my wound; If Cain is avenged seven times, then Lamech will be avenged seventy times seven” (Gen. 4:17–19, 23–24). In these words you have a clear narrative about the descendants of Cain. Let us now see what kind of offspring came from Seth. It is written again like this: “Seth lived a hundred and five years and gave birth to Enos” (Gen. 5:6), about whom the Holy Scripture says: “then they began to call on the name of the Lord” (Gen. 4:26). “And all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years; and he died. Enosh lived ninety years and begat Cainan. And all the days of Enosh were nine hundred and five years; and he died. Cainan lived seventy years and begat Maleleel. And all the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years; and he died. Malalelel lived sixty-five years and begat Jared. And all the days of Maleleel were eight hundred and ninety-five years; and he died. Jared lived one hundred and sixty-two years and gave birth to Enoch” (Gen. 5, 8–9, 11–12, 14–15, 17–18). Then it says: “And Enoch walked with God; and he was no more, because God took him” (Gen. 5:24). So, pay attention, first of all, to how those who descended from Cain are called, and how the story goes about the succession of his genera: it is not clearly indicated here how many years each person’s life span extended, as is done in relation to those descended from Seth. In relation to the latter, the time of each person's life is precisely indicated, how long he lived both before the birth of children and after that, which everyone can learn about in detail and accurately from the Holy Scriptures. So, this can also serve as a clear indication to those who decide to judge this matter correctly that God does not tolerate knowing the lives of those who love sin. They will hear Christ speaking from the Divine Judgment Seat: “Truly I say to you, I do not know you” (Matt. 25:12; Matt. 7:23), although nothing that is subject to knowledge passes by the God of all. But knowing, He does not know the lovers of sin due to excessive aversion to them. That is why the time of life of the descendants of Cain is kept silent: because they did not do anything worthy of memory; but, in all likelihood, they did something that could be harmful to those who would read information about them. Thus, it is very fair that they were not retained in the memory of God. And on the contrary, He considers it important to know exactly the lives of the saints, and nothing, I think, that relates to them can escape the pure mind of the Divine. And our Lord Jesus Christ will assure us of this, saying: “Are not two small birds sold for an assar? And not one of them will fall to the ground without the will of your Father; But even the hairs of your head are all numbered” (Matthew 10:29–30). If God also pays attention to the number of our hair, since He clearly knows everything that concerns us and cares about us, then how could the time of life itself be unknown to Him? For “the eyes,” it is said, “of the Lord are directed toward the righteous” (Ps. 33:16). And the second right after Cain, Enoch, had a city on earth named after himself, while the saints considered it as if it were praise to think and say: “For we do not have a permanent city here, but we are looking for the future, which is the artist and builder of God” (Heb. 13:14; Heb. 11:10). They considered and called life in this world So the divine David sings in one place: “Depart from me, for I am a stranger with You and a stranger, like all my fathers” (Ps. 38:13-14). “Then they began to call on the name of the Lord” (Gen. 4:26), for the race in Christ is holy and sacred and lives in the hope of glory, which is above man. Although we are from the earth, we are nevertheless called to be sons with the Lord of all and to be brothers of Christ, who for our sake became like us, so that for his sake we too would be in a better position and acquire glory that exceeds man, that is, we would be called gods, obviously by grace and love for mankind. “I said: you are gods, and you are all sons of the Most High” (Ps. 81:6; John 10:34). So Enos “hoped” to be called from others by the name of the Lord his God, that is, god. Since he deserved admiration, being distinguished by the glory of holiness, some of the most favored people called him god, wanting to crown him with the highest honor. So let our speech approach its goal. That the Jews, who represent the image of the descendants of Cain, exist, this is known to all God, and that they are not written in the book of the living, this can be clear from the silence about the life of the descendants of Cain. That, on the contrary, the race in Christ is written and is in the memory of God, this, I think, can be clearly proven by writing the lives of the righteous, I mean the descendants of Seth. And the second right after Cain, Enoch, had a city named after him: for the unfortunate Jews, who do not know the Church of the firstborn and do not strive for the highest city, think only about earthly things. On the contrary, the one who came from Seth, that is, Enos, gained very great glory: for he is even called god. We too have been enriched with the same glory, having resorted to Christ with faith and firmly holding on to our hope in Him. To what has been said I would add another necessary remark. If someone wanted to conduct the genealogy of the descendants of Cain and Seth, assuming Adam as some kind of root of both, he would find Lamech seventh among those descended from Cain, and Enoch seventh among those born from Seth. The number of those born from both is in the following order: Adam, Cain, Enoch, Gaidad, Maviael, Methuselah, Lamech. And on the other side: Adam, Seth, Enos, Cainan, Maleleel, Jared, Enoch. So we see what each of them is like. Lamech had fellowship with his wives, saying, “Listen to my voice; the wives of Lamech! listen to my words: I killed a man for my wound and a boy for my wound; If Cain is avenged seven times, then Lamech is avenged seventy times seven” (Gen. 4:23–24). The Righteous “By faith Enoch was translated so that he did not see death; and he was no more, because God had translated him. For before his migration he received a testimony that he pleased God” (Heb. 11:5). That is, in the last times, in which the Sabbath in Christ appeared, Israel turns out to be full of fear and fear of punishment, as someone who killed her husband and was judged for the holy blood; Moreover, even much more than Cain himself. For this one, who sinned against one of our kind, became guilty of sevenfold vengeance; and the one who disrespected Emmanuel himself is subject to much greater punishment. “Avenge himself from Cain in a week,” and from Israel “in seventy weeks”: because the punishment corresponds to wickedness. Those who have gained glory in Christ through faith at His coming will no longer be found when Satan seeks them. For they will be transformed from God to an incomparably better and more glorious life, from death and corruption to long life, from the mind of the flesh to the desire to do what is pleasing to God, from dishonor to glory, from weakness to strength, in Christ Jesus our Lord, through whom and with whom be glory to the Father with the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen. You might be interested in: