Огласительное поучение четырнадцатое

[To those preparing in Jerusalem for enlightenment, spoken without preparation, in the words: And he rose from the dead on the third day, and ascended into heaven, and sat on the right hand of the Father; and to the words of the apostles: I remind you, brethren, of the Gospel which I preached to you... and that Christ was buried, and that he rose again on the third day, according to the Scriptures, etc. (1 Cor. 15:1–4).] 1. Rejoice in Jerusalem and rejoice in her, all you who love her! Rejoice with him with joy, all who mourned over him (Isa. 66:10), hearing about the insolence and iniquity of the Jews. For the one whom they mocked has now risen. And just as hearing about the Cross caused some sorrow, so may the good news of the resurrection bring joy to those coming. May crying turn into joy and lamentation into joy, may our lips be filled with joy and gladness, because the Risen One said: Rejoice! (Matthew 28:9). In recent days, I have noticed sadness among those who love Christ. Because when in my teaching I stopped at death and burial, and did not announce the resurrection, your thoughts were directed towards hearing what you wanted. So, He was resurrected from the dead, Who was thrown along with the dead (Ps. 87:6), and He is the Liberator of the dead, on Whom in reproach, through His long-suffering, the crown of thorns was placed, having now risen, was crowned with the diadem of victory over death. 2. However, just as we have offered evidence about His Cross, so we will now present convincing evidence about His Resurrection; since the Apostle now read says: He was buried, and... rose again on the third day, according to the Scriptures (1 Cor. 15:4). So, after the apostle pointed out to us the testimony of Scripture, we need to know the hope of our salvation and, first of all, test whether Divine Scripture tells us about the time of His resurrection, will it be in the summer, or in the fall, or after the winter? Also, in what place did the Savior resurrect? And what name did the wonderful prophets give to the place of resurrection? Do the women who sought Him but did not find Him, and then found Him, rejoice? So that when reading the Gospel, the narratives of the Holy Gospel are not revered as fables or poetic stories. 3. So, that the Savior was buried, you clearly heard in the previous conversation the words of Isaiah: He departs to the world (cf. Is. 57:2). For He reconciled heaven with earth, bringing sinners to God. Also, that the righteous delights from evil (Is.57:1), and: His burial will be in peace (Is.57:2), and they have appointed a grave with the evildoers (Is.53:9). And the prophecy of Jacob, which is in the Scripture, says: He bowed down, and lay down like a lion and like a lioness: who can lift Him up? (Gen.49:9) And similar to it in the book of Numbers: He bowed down, lying down like a lion (Num.24:9). You have also heard the words of the psalm many times: and You brought me to the dust of death (Ps. 21:16). We have already indicated the place itself, citing these words: Look at the rock from which you were hewn (Is. 51:1). However, we should now show evidence of His resurrection itself. 4. So, firstly, He says in the eleventh psalm: For the sake of the suffering of the poor and the groaning of the needy, I will now arise, says the Lord (Ps. 11:6). But some of these words are considered mutual, since He repeatedly rebelled against anger, to take revenge on His enemies. So, turn to the fifteenth Psalm, which clearly says: Keep me, O God, for I trust in You (Ps. 15:1); and then: I will not pour out their bloody drink offerings, nor will I remember their names with my lips (Ps. 15:4). Because they rejected Me, their King, they chose him to be Caesar. And a little later: I have always seen the Lord before me, for He is at my right hand; I will not be shaken (Ps. 15:8); and right there: even at night my inner being teaches me (Ps. 15:7); and after this he says very clearly: for You will not leave my soul in hell, and You will not allow Your holy one to see corruption. He did not say: You will not allow Your saint to see (Ps. 15:10) death; in such a case, He would not have died, but He says: “I will not see corruption and I will not remain under the power of death.” You will show me the path of life (Ps. 15:11). See how clearly life after death is proclaimed. Turn now to the twenty-ninth psalm: I will exalt You, O Lord, because You raised me up and did not allow my enemies to triumph over me (Ps. 29:2). What does this mean? Have you gotten rid of your enemies, or have you freed yourself from the beating? To this He Himself says very clearly: Lord! You brought my soul out of hell (Ps. 29:4). There he says prophetically: do not forsake; and here, speaking, you have raised up, speaking as if it had already happened, what was about to happen, you revived me so that I would not go to the grave (Ps. 29:4). At what time should it have happened? Weeping may endure in the evening, but joy comes in the morning (Ps. 29:6). In the evening there was weeping for the disciples, and in the morning there was joy about the resurrection. 5. Do you want to know about the place too? Jesus says in the Song of Songs that He entered a walnut orchard (see Song 6:10). For there was a garden where He was crucified. Although now this place is very decorated with royal gifts, before it was a garden, and signs and remains of this are still found. A closed well, a sealed fountain (Song. 4:12) by the Jews who said (to Pilate): We remembered that that deceiver, while still alive, said: After three days I will rise again (Matt. 27:63). Order the tomb to be guarded (Matthew 27:64). After which they went and set a guard at the tomb, and put a seal on the stone (Matthew 27:66). Well someone said against them: every moment you test it (Job.7:18). What kind of source is this captured? And what does it mean: a well of living waters? ( Song 4:15 ). This is the Savior Himself, about whom it is written: for with You is the fountain of life (Ps. 35:10). 6. But what does Zephaniah say to the disciples on behalf of Christ? Get ready, morning, and all their leaves will rot away (Zeph.3:7), i.e. the Jews, who have no grape of salvation left, not even a small cluster, for their vineyard is cut off. Look what He says to the disciples: get ready, do morning, expect the resurrection in the morning; and then immediately, in order, as it is written, he says: Wait therefore for Me, says the Lord, until the day when I arise for desolation (Zeph. 3:8) (in Martyrion). Do you see that the prophet also foresaw the place of resurrection, called Martyrion? For for what reason is this place of Golgotha ​​and the resurrection called not a church, like other churches, but Martyrion? Probably based on the words of the prophet: on the day of My resurrection for testimony (in Martyrion). 7. Who is this? What is His sign of the Risen One? He clearly says immediately in the following words of the same prophecy: Then again I will give clean lips to the nations (Zeph.3:9). For after the resurrection, when the Holy Spirit was sent, the gift of tongues was communicated, so that everyone would call on the name of the Lord and serve Him with one accord (Zeph. 3:9). What other sign is there in the same prophecy that My worshipers, the children of My scattered ones, will work from the countries beyond the rivers of Ethiopia and bring Me gifts (Zeph. 3:10). Do you know what is written in Acts: an Ethiopian courtier came from the countries beyond the river of Ethiopia (Zeph.3:10). So, when Scripture speaks about the time, and about the attributes of the place, and about the signs of the resurrection, then finally be confident in the resurrection, and let no one shake you in the confession of Christ, risen from the dead. 8. Here is another testimony, found in the eighty-seventh psalm, which is offered by Christ speaking to the prophet (for the same one who spoke then appeared later): Lord God of my salvation! I cry day and night before You (Ps. 87:2); and a little later: I became like a man without strength, thrown among the dead (Ps. 87:5-6). He did not say: a man without help, but like a man without help. For He was crucified not because He was powerless, but voluntarily, and death was not a necessary consequence of weakness. I am equal with those who go down to the grave (Ps. 87:5). What sign? You have removed my acquaintances from me (Ps. 87:9). For the disciples fled. Will You perform a miracle on the dead? (Ps. 87:11). Then, after a few words: But I cry to You, O Lord, and early in the morning my prayer precedes You (Ps. 87:14). You see how the circumstances of time, and suffering, and resurrection are shown. 9 . Where did the Savior come from? In the Song of Songs He says: Arise, my beloved... come out (Song.2:10), and then: under the shelter of the rock (Song.2:14). He called the stone cover the cave that was then located in front of the door of the Savior’s tomb and carved into the same stone, as is usually done here at tombs. Now it is not visible: because then this cave was cut out in front of the coffin for the decoration that was needed at that time. For before the reverent royal love built the coffin, the cave was in front of the stone. But where is the stone next to the cave? Whether he lies among the city, or at the walls at the end of the city; Is it located in the old walls, or in the fence in front of the walls, after it was built? To this He speaks in Songs: in the ravine of the rock under the roof of the cliff (Song. 2:14). 10. At what time does the Savior rise from the dead? Is it during the summer or some other time? In the same above-mentioned Songs, He directly says: winter has already passed, the rain has passed, it has stopped (Song.2:11): flowers have appeared on the ground, the time for singing has come (Song.2:12). Is it not now that the earth is covered with flowers, and the vines are pruned? Do you see how clearly he said that winter has already passed? For with the onset of the month of March, spring begins. And this time is the first month among the Jews, in which Easter is celebrated, formerly symbolic, but now true. This time is the time of the creation of the world. For then God said: let the earth sprout greenery... a tree... bearing fruit according to its kind (Gen. 1:11). And now, as you see, every grass already produces seed. And just as God then, having created the sun and the moon, established the equinoctial course for them, so exactly a few days before this was the time of the equinox. Then God said: Let us make man in our image and likeness (Gen. 1:26). What pertains to the image, man has retained; and as for the likeness, he distorted it by his disobedience. So at the same time that he lost it, correction followed. When created man was expelled from paradise for disobedience, at the same time he who believed was brought into it for obedience. So, salvation was accomplished at the time at which the falling away occurred; those. when the flowers appeared and the time for singing had come ( Song 2:12 ). 11. The garden was a burial place in which vines were planted. And Jesus says: I am... the vine (John 15:1). So, He was planted on earth to eradicate the curse brought on by Adam. The earth was condemned to grow thorns and thistles; out of the earth came a vine, so that what was written might be fulfilled: truth will arise from the earth, and righteousness will come down from heaven (Ps. 85:12). What will the one buried in the garden say? I gathered my myrrh with my spices (Song.5:1), and then: myrrh and scarlet with all sorts of the best aromas (Song.4:14). These things are signs of burial; and the Gospel says: women came bringing prepared spices (Luke 24:1). Nicodemus also came... and brought a composition of myrrh and aloes (John 19:39). Then it is written: I ate My honeycomb with My honey (Song. 5:1): I ate bitter things during the suffering and sweet things after the resurrection. Having risen, He ascended when the doors were closed: the disciples did not believe, for they thought that they saw a spirit (Luke 24:39). To this He said: touch Me and look (Luke 24:39), put your fingers into the wounds from the nails, as Thomas tested. When they still did not believe for joy and were amazed, He said to them: Do you have any food here? (Luke 24:41). They gave Him... honey (Luke 24:42). You see how these words were fulfilled: He ate My honeycomb with My honey (Song.5:1). 12. But before He ascended, when the doors were closed, good and courageous women were looking for the Bridegroom and Physician of souls. The blessed women came to the tomb and looked for Him who had risen, and tears flowed from their eyes, when they should have rejoiced and rejoiced in the Risen One. Mary comes, searches, as the Gospel says, and does not find. Then he hears a message from the Angels and finally sees Christ. Isn’t it written about this too? The Song of Songs says: On my bed at night I sought him whom my soul loves (Song.3:1). What time? On my bed in the night I sought, which my soul loved (Mary, says the Gospel, came to the tomb early, when it was still dark. (John 20:1). On my bed at night I sought... I looked for him and did not find him (Song. 3:1). And in the Gospel Mary says: they took the Lord away from the tomb, and we do not know where they laid Him (John 20:2). But the Angels who were here lead us out of ignorance. They say: why are you looking for the living among the dead? (Luke 24:5); not only did He rise, but He rose again with the dead. Mary did not know, therefore from Her presence it was said to the Angels: Have you not seen Him whom my soul loved? from two Angels, as I found Him whom my soul loves; grabbed hold of Him and did not let Him go (Song.3:3-4). 13. For after the appearance of the Angels, Jesus Himself came to announce Himself, as the Gospel says: and behold, Jesus met them and said: Rejoice! And they came and grabbed His feet (Matthew 28:9). They took hold of Him, so that the words would be fulfilled that they did not let Him go (see Song 3:4). Although the wife's body is weak, her spirit is courageous: Great waters cannot extinguish love, and rivers will not flood it (Song. 8:7). The One Whom they were looking for was dead, but the hope of His resurrection did not go out. And the Angel says to the wives a second time: do not be afraid (Matthew 28:10); I say not to the soldiers: do not be afraid, but to you. Let them be afraid, so that, having learned by experience, they will testify and say: truly He was the Son of God (Matthew 27:54), but you do not need to be afraid. For perfect love casts out fear (1 John 4:18). Go quickly, tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead, and so on (Matthew 28:7). And they walked away in joyful fear. Isn’t it written about this too? The second psalm, announcing Christ's suffering, says: Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice [before Him] with trembling (Ps. 2:11). Rejoice, for the Lord has risen, but rejoice with trembling because of the earthquake and the appearance of the Angel in the form of lightning. 14. So, although the bishops and Pharisees, by the will of Pilate, sealed the tomb, the wives saw the Risen One. And Isaiah, who foresaw both the futile labor of the bishops and the firm faith of the women, says: the wives will come and burn them. Because they are a foolish people (Isa.27:11). The bishops do not understand, but the wives see with their own eyes. When the soldiers came to the city to the bishops and reported everything that had happened, they said to them: say that His disciples came at night and stole Him while we were sleeping (Matthew 28:13). It is truly good and about this Isaiah, as if on their behalf, said: do not prophesy to us the truth, tell us flattering things (Is. 30:10). The Risen One has risen, and with gifts of silver they deceive the soldiers, but they will not deceive those who reign now. For then the soldiers sold the truth for silver, but the present kings, being moved by piety, created this holy Church of the Resurrection of the Savior God, decorated with silver and gold, in which we are, and enriched it with utensils precious from silver and gold. And if word of this reaches the ruler, we will convince him (Matthew 28:14). True, you convinced the warriors, but you did not convince the universe. Why, when Peter left prison, were the guards condemned, but those who guarded Christ were not condemned? Those received punishment from Herod, because due to their ignorance they could not defend themselves; and these, having told the truth, but agreeing to hide it for silver, were spared punishment by the bishops. However, although not many of the Jews believed then, the world submitted. Those who hid the truth hid themselves, and those who accepted it were brought to light by the power of the Savior, who not only rose from the dead Himself, but also raised with Him the dead, on whose behalf the prophet Hosea clearly speaks: He will revive us in two days, on the third day He will raise us up, and we will live before Him (Hosea 6:2). 15. Since the rebellious Jews are not convinced by the Divine Scripture, but, forgetting everything that is written, contradict the resurrection of Jesus, it would be good to object to them: why do you, when you say that Elisha and Elijah raised the dead, contradict the resurrection of our Savior? Is it because we now have no living witnesses to these words? So you present witnesses about what happened then. But it is written about this (you will say), and about that it is written. So why do you accept one and reject the other? Jews wrote about this, but the apostles were all Jews. Why don't you believe the Jews? Matthew, who wrote the Gospel, wrote it in Hebrew, and the preacher Paul, a Jew of Hebrews (Phil. 3:5); and all twelve apostles were Jewish. Further, the fifteen bishops of Jerusalem were successively appointed from among the Jews. So, for what reason do you accept your own, and reject ours, while this was also written by your Jews? 16. But someone will say: it is an impossible thing to rise from the dead. However, Elisha resurrected him twice, both during his life and after his death. We believe that the dead man, having touched the dead Elisha, was resurrected: and could Christ really not rise from the dead? However, there, although the dead man who touched Elisha was resurrected, the one who raised him still remained dead: here, on the contrary, our dead Himself was resurrected, and many dead, without touching Him, were resurrected. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were resurrected and, coming out of their tombs after His resurrection, they entered the holy city (Matthew 27:52–53) (obviously, this city in which we are now located). Elisha raised a dead man, but did not conquer the universe: Elijah raised a dead man, but it is not in the name of Elijah that demons are cast out. So speaking, we do not disparage the prophets, but all the more we praise their Lord. We do not condemn what they have when we praise ours; for that is ours, and by what they have, we establish ours. 17. But the Jews say again that the dead (Jesus), as having recently died, was resurrected because life still remained in Him; show us that a three-day-old dead man can be resurrected; that it is possible for a person who has already been buried to be resurrected after three days. When we look for evidence of this, the Lord Jesus Himself gives it to us in the Gospel, saying: for as Jonah was in the belly of the whale for three days and three nights, so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights (Matthew 12:40). Analyzing the story of Jonah, we find very tangible similarities in it: Jesus was sent to preach repentance; and Jonah was sent for the same purpose. But he ran, not foreseeing the future, and Jesus voluntarily comes to preach saving repentance. Jonah slept in the ship and snored during a storm at sea; and when Jesus slept, according to the Divine vision, the sea was agitated so that later the power of the Sleeping One could be known. They said to him: Why are you sleeping? Arise, cry to your God: perhaps we will not perish (cf. Jonah 1:6); and here they say to the Lord: Lord! save us (Matthew 8:25). There they said: Pray to your God; and here: save. He says: take me and throw me into the sea, and the sea will become quiet for you (Jonah 1:12), but here Jesus Himself rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was great silence (Matthew 8:26). And he was thrown into the belly of the whale; and this One voluntarily descended to where the mental whale of death descended voluntarily, so that death would vomit those swallowed up by it, as it is written: I will redeem them from the power of hell, I will deliver them from death (Hos. 13:14). 18. Since we have touched upon this subject, let us consider which is more inconvenient: should a buried person rise from the earth, or should a person who is in the belly of a whale, in such intense heat of the animal, remain undecayed? Who among the people does not know that the belly has such a strong heat in itself that even the bones eaten in them rot? How did Jonah, being in the belly of the whale for three days, not rot? When the nature of all people is such that they cannot live without breathing air, how did he remain alive for three days without breathing air? The Jews, responding to this, say: the power of God descended on Jonah, who was shaken in hell; So is it really possible that the Lord, Who, having sent down power, gave life to His servant, cannot give it to Himself? If this is true, this is also true; if it is incredible, and it is incredible. But for me both are equally true. I believe that Jonah was also saved, for with God all things are possible (Matthew 19:26). I believe that Christ also rose from the dead. For I find much evidence of this both in Divine Scripture and in the power of the Risen One, hitherto revealed, Who descended into hell alone and came out of it with many. He descended to death, and many bodies of the saints who slept were raised (Matthew 27:52) through Him. 19. Death was afraid when he saw someone new come to hell, who was not bound by its bonds. Why were you, the gatekeepers of hell, horrified when you saw Him? What unusual fear has taken hold of you? Death ran, and this flight revealed his fear. The holy prophets flocked together, and Moses the lawgiver, and Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, David and Samuel, and Isaiah, and John the Baptist, who, testifying, said: Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect another? (Matthew 11:3). All the righteous who were swallowed up in death are redeemed. For the proclaimed King was to be the Redeemer of the good heralds. Then each of the righteous said: Death! where is your sting? hell! where is your victory? (1 Cor. 15:55). For the Victorious One has redeemed us. 20. The image of this our Savior was presented by the prophet Jonah, in the belly of a whale, praying and saying: I cried out in my sorrow, and so on. from the belly of Sheol (Jonah 2:3). Although he was in the whale, but, being in the whale, he says about himself that he is in hell. For he represented Christ, who was about to descend into hell. And a little later he speaks on behalf of Christ, prophesying very clearly: I have descended to the foundations of the mountains (Jonah 2:7). But he was in the belly of a whale: what mountains contain you, prophet? “I know,” he says, “that I am a type of Him who is to be laid in a tomb hewn out of stone”; Jonah, being at sea, says: the earth... has blocked me (Jon.2:7); for he represented Christ descending into the heart of the earth. And foreseeing that the Jews would persuade the soldiers to lie and said: say... they stole Him (Matthew 28:13), he said: Those who honor vain and false gods have forsaken their Merciful (Jonah 2:9). For he who had mercy on them came, but was crucified and resurrected, giving His venerable blood for Jews and pagans. But they say: say... they stole Him (Matthew 28:13), (they) honor the vain and false (Jonah 2:9). About His resurrection Isaiah also says: Who brought them up out of the sea with the shepherd of His sheep (Is. 63:11); he added: great, so that they would not consider Him to have equal dignity with the previous shepherds. 21. Therefore, since we have prophecies, let us continue in faith. Let those who fall from unbelief fall, as they will; and you stand on the rock of faith regarding the resurrection, so that some heretic does not persuade you to dishonor the resurrection. For the Manichaeans say to this day that the resurrection of the Savior was a ghost, and not true, not listening to Paul, who wrote: Who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh (Rom. 1:3); and who immediately says: from the resurrection of Jesus Christ our Lord from the dead (cf. Rom. 1:4). And in another place, turning to them, he says: do not speak in your heart, etc. who will go down into the abyss? that is, to raise Christ from the dead (Rom. 10:6–7). In a similar way, for affirmation, I wrote nowhere: Remember the Lord Jesus Christ... risen from the dead (2 Tim. 2:8). And again: if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is in vain, and your faith is in vain. Moreover, we would also turn out to be false witnesses about God, because we would testify about God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise (1 Cor. 15:14-15). But then he says: But Christ has risen from the dead, the firstborn of those who died (1 Cor. 15:20); and he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve (1 Cor. 15:5). If you do not believe this witness, you have twelve witnesses. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers (1 Cor. 15:6). If they do not believe the twelve, then let them accept the testimony of the five hundred. Then he appeared to Jacob (1 Cor. 15:7), his brother, the first bishop of this flock. So, if this bishop saw the risen Christ Jesus in His first image, then you, His disciple, should not be in unbelief. But you will say that Jacob, being a brother, testified out of affection: after all, he appeared to me (1 Cor. 15:8), - to Paul, His enemy. And what kind of testimony proclaimed by the enemy is doubtful? Having previously been a persecutor, now I preach the resurrection. 22. There are many witnesses to the resurrection of the Savior: night and the light of the full moon (for it was the sixteenth night); the grave stone that contained Him, and the stone will stand in the face of the Jews, for it has seen the Lord. And the stone rolled away, which still lies, will testify to the resurrection. The angels of God who were here testified to the resurrection of the Only Begotten. Peter and John, and Thomas, and all the other apostles, some of whom, flowing to the tomb, saw the burial shrouds with which He was previously wrapped, lying there after the resurrection, while others touched His hands and feet and saw the wounds from the nails; yet together they received the breath of salvation and were granted the power to forgive sins by the power of the Holy Spirit; the wives holding their feet and witnessing the strong earthquake and the light of the Angel who was there: those shrouds with which He was entwined and which, having risen, He left behind; the soldiers and the silver given to them, the place itself is now visible, and this holy church house, erected by the Christ-loving zeal of the blessed memory of Tsar Constantine and decorated as you see (all this testifies). 23. Testifies of the resurrection of Jesus and Tabitha, raised from the dead by His name. How can one not believe in the resurrection of Christ, when even His name raised the dead? The sea also testifies to the resurrection of Jesus, as you heard before; the fishing, the coal lying on it, and the fish laid on it testify. Peter also testifies, having first denied Him three times and then confessed Him three times and accepted the command to feed the spiritual sheep. To this day the Olivet stands, as if still showing to the eyes of the faithful the One who ascended on the cloud, and the heavenly gates into which He entered. For He descended from heaven to Bethlehem, and ascended into heaven from the Mount of Olives. There he began his exploits; and here he is crowned for his exploits. So you have many witnesses. You have as a witness this place of resurrection and the place of ascension, which lies east of us. You have as witnesses there the angels who testified, and the cloud on which He ascended, and the disciples who descended from there. 24. The order of the teachings of faith required that I also speak about the ascension, but the grace of God arranged that you, in the sight of this Divine grace, quite sufficiently, as much as our weakness allows, heard about that yesterday, the day of the Resurrection of the Lord, in the meeting during the reading proposed in order, which contains everything about the ascension of the Savior into heaven. What was proposed then, although it was said for everyone, and together for the multitude of believers gathered, however, it especially applies to you, who are preparing for enlightenment! But the question is, did you understand what was said? You know that the order of the Creed teaches you to believe in Him who rose again on the third day, and ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father. Although I think that you remember my explanation; however, even now I’ll remind you in passing of what was said. Remember what is clearly written in the psalms: God arose with shouts (Ps. 46:6); remember what the Divine Powers said to each other: Lift up your gates, and so on. (Ps. 23:7), remember the words of the psalm: he ascended on high and took captivity captive (cf. Eph.4:8); Remember also the words of the prophet: He has built high palaces in the heavens (Amos 9:6), and everything else that was said yesterday against the discordant Jews. 25. Since they will object to the ascension of the Savior as if it were something impossible, remember what was said about the transfer of Habakkuk. For if Habakkuk was carried by an Angel, being taken by the hair of his head, how much more the Lord of both the prophets and Angels, who ascended on a cloud from the Mount of Olives, could ascend to heaven with his own power. Remember miracles similar to these, but give preference to the Lord who works miracles. For they were worn, but He wears everything. Remember that Enoch passed away (Gen. 5:24), but Jesus ascended. Remember what was said yesterday about Elijah: Elijah was caught up in a chariot of fire; Christ's chariot is darkness, thousands of thousands (Ps. 67:18). Elijah was taken up to the eastern side of the Jordan, and Christ was taken up to the eastern side of the stream of Cedars; he is like into heaven (see 2 Kings 2:11), and Jesus is straight into heaven; he said: the disciple will be given special gifts by the Holy Spirit, and Christ gave the disciples the grace of the Holy Spirit in such abundance that they not only had it within themselves, but also communicated it to the believers through the laying on of their hands. 26. When we fight the Jews in this way, when we defeat them, giving similar examples, then turn to the superiority of the glory of the Savior, because they are slaves, and this is the Son of God. You will remember this superiority when you think that Paul, Christ’s servant, was caught up to the third heaven (2 Cor. 12:2). For if Elijah reached only to the first heaven, and Paul to the third, then, of course, this one is awarded greater honor. Don't be ashamed of your apostles. They are no worse than Moses and no lower than the prophets; they are good between good and even better than good. For although Elijah was taken into heaven, Peter has the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven, who heard these words: whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven (Matthew 16:19). Elijah was only taken to heaven, and Paul was taken both to heaven and to paradise (for the disciples of Jesus were to be entrusted with much greater grace): he heard unspeakable words, which a man cannot retell (2 Cor. 12:4). Paul descended back from on high, not because he was unworthy to remain in the third heaven, but so that, having enjoyed what exceeds the concept of man, and having descended in glory, after preaching Christ and accepting death for Him, he would receive the crown of martyrdom. I leave everything else related to this subject that was said yesterday in the Sunday reading. For for sensible listeners it is enough to remind only to bring them to their senses. 27. Remember also what I have said many times about the Son’s sitting at the right hand of the Father, about whom in order the Creed says: both ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of the Father. Let us not be much curious about the property of the throne, for it is incomprehensible; Let us also not listen to those who maliciously say that the Son began to sit at the right hand of the Father after the crucifixion and resurrection and after his ascension into heaven. For He did not receive the throne after time, but from the beginning, inasmuch as He existed. He always remains the begotten Son and sits with the Father. And before the coming of the Savior in the flesh, the prophet Isaiah, contemplating this throne, says: I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and exalted, and so on. (Isa.6:1). For no one has ever seen the Father. The one who appeared to the prophet then was the Son. And the psalmist says: Thy throne is established from time immemorial: Thou art from everlasting (Ps. 92:2). Since there is a lot of evidence about this, for the sake of shortness of time we will be satisfied with them. 28. And now we need to bring to your memory a few of what was expounded at length regarding the seating of the Son at the right hand of the Father. The one hundred and ninth psalm clearly says: The Lord said to my Lord: Sit at My right hand, until I make Your enemies Your footstool (Ps. 109:1). The Savior, confirming what was said in the Gospel, says that David did not say this on his own, but by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit: how then does David, by inspiration, call Him Lord when he says: The Lord said to my Lord: sit at My right hand, etc. (Matthew 22:43–44), and in the Acts of the Apostles (it is said): that on the day of Pentecost, Peter, standing with the eleven apostles and talking with the Israelites, mentioned in the same words about this testimony, which is in the hundred and ninth psalm. 29. We should remind you of some other similar testimonies regarding the seating of the Son at the right hand of the Father. In the Gospel of Matthew it is written: I say to you, from now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of power and coming on the clouds of heaven, etc. (Matthew 26:64). In accordance with this, the Apostle Peter says in his Epistle: (we are saved) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who, having ascended into heaven, is at the right hand of God (1 Pet. 3:21-22). And the Apostle Paul, writing to the Romans, says: Christ Jesus died, but also rose again: He... is at the right hand of God (Rom. 8:34). In the Epistle to the Ephesians he said: And so the greatness of His power is immeasurable in us who believe, according to the working of His sovereign power, which He worked in Christ, raising Him from the dead and seating Him at His right hand, and so on. (Eph.1:19–20); and the Colossians taught this: if you have been raised with Christ, then seek the things that are above, where Christ sits at the right hand of God (Col. 3:1). In the Epistle to the Hebrews he says: having purified our sins with Himself, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high (Heb. 1:3); and after: To which of the Angels did God say, Sit at My right hand, until I make Your enemies Your footstool? (Hebrews 1:13). Again: He, having offered one sacrifice for sins, sat down forever at the right hand of God, then waiting until His enemies were made His footstool (Heb. 10:12-13); further: looking to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God (Heb. 12:2). 30. There are other testimonies about the sitting of the Only Begotten at the right hand of the Father, but for the present we will be satisfied with these too, again reminding you that it was not after He came in the flesh that He received the honor of this sitting, but before all ages the Only Begotten Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, always has the throne at the right hand of the Father. May the God of all, the Father of Christ and our Lord Jesus Christ, who descended and ascended and sits with the Father, guard your souls and keep your hope in the Risen One unshakable and firm; may he resurrect you from your deadly sins and make you worthy of His heavenly gift; may he merit you to be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:17), at the favorable time; and until the time of His appointed and glorious Second Coming comes, let him write the names of you all in the book of the living, and having written them, let him never blot them out (for many who fall away have their names blotted out); May he make you all worthy to believe in the Risen One, and to accept the Ascended One, and again the One who is to come, but not from the earth to come (warn yourself, O man, from the seducers who are about to come), who sits on high and is here with us, Who sees the image and firmness of faith in everyone. That He is absent now in the flesh, do not therefore think that He was not present in the Spirit. He is here in the middle; He hears what we say about Him, sees your thoughts and tests your hearts and wombs. He is now ready to present all of you who are approaching Baptism to the Father in the Holy Spirit and say: here am I and the children whom God has given me (Heb. 2:13). God! To Him be glory forever. Amen. You might be interested in: