Christ's suffering, exaltation, and the one power of God
Apollinaris continues his verse-by-verse exposition of Psalm 87 (88) and begins Psalm 88 (89), interpreting the psalmist's words as spoken in the person of Christ and explaining the one divine power shared by Father and Son.
Continuing with the words of the comparison, he says, "I have become like those who have been slain and lie in a tomb" (Psalm 87:6 (88:5)). They suffer this because they were separated from your life-giving power. For it is clear that this was not true of him. The body of Christ was full of the power of God even after death. That is why blood and water flowed from him, something that never comes from dead bodies.
Another, explaining the words "You have made me an abomination to them" (Psalm 87:9 (88:8)), says: Just as the disciples were ashamed at his sufferings, no longer hoping for a Savior or redeemer—they even said, "The rulers handed him over to a sentence of death, but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel" (Luke 24:21). It is clear that he was also held fast in the hands of his enemies, handed over willingly, yet still held. There he came into affliction for our sake. For he bore everything that is heavy and afflicting to a body. For instead of "My eyes have grown weak from poverty" (Psalm 87:10 (88:9)), Symmachus rendered, "My eye has poured out from affliction."
Save, then, the race you have made, by your own knowledge, and lead back to life the human beings who have fallen into death in each way (Psalm 88:12). They must be spectators of your wonders and interpreters of your power. Let them not remain overlooked in forgetfulness, but let them be remembered again by you and led back to life. This is what the champion of human beings says, interceding for the common race of all and working out the life of the world by the will of the Father.
The ambassador and priest presents himself on our behalf with unceasing presentation, from dawn and through the night, and he appeases the wrath of God against us, which he himself took upon himself in his sufferings (Psalm 88:13).
He calls "exaltation" the exaltation in wonders and signs, about which the Father says to him, "I have glorified it" (John 12:28), while the Son says, "Glorify your Son" (John 17:1) (Psalm 88:15). He says this was changed into humiliation when he came to suffer, suffering for human beings and abandoned by them, the ones for whom he suffered.
Mount Tabor lies in the region of the Galileans, and Hermon in the desert near Sinai (Psalm 89:12). God must be hymned, he says, not only for his works around Tabor but also for the manifestation that took place around Hermon.
"Your power," he says, "prevails" (Psalm 89:13). Let your strength appear, let it become manifest and glorious among human beings. All these things he has included as spoken to one God. We know his power as one and only, and his arm and hand as perfect. Through it all things have come into being and are coming into being, so that it, being perfect in itself, is numbered with God according to the one number of divinity, and in no way falls into what is said about the many sons, none of whom the word has said beforehand is like the true one. For the one true power is not like that, but is uniquely the true image and mark of God, God accomplishing all things through it. Therefore the divine things were fitted to its sojourn among human beings, and the judgment of God is dispensed by Christ. This power exists as the power of God, but was given as to a human being, as Christ himself said, and God divided mercy and judgment by the times. He foretold the judgment from then on, when the king comes and sits on the throne of his glory. For that throne has righteousness as its foundation, as Aquila also said beforehand in the ninth psalm: "He set his throne in judgment" (Psalm 9:8 (9:7)). Before that manifestation, mercy was abundant on the earth, like a forerunner of the critical coming, as the fearful judge who is about to appear prepares human beings for salvation by mercy. And with mercy comes truth, because it is not possible for anything untrue or not upright to occur in God's good patience, even if it seems to those who do not know the future that the wicked are wrongly allowed to prosper, nor is it reasonable that the good are overlooked when they suffer loss.
He now explicitly recounts the promise made through Nathan the prophet, indicating prophets in the plural from one, whom he also calls sons of God, or as the other interpreters render it, holy ones of God (Psalm 89:19-24).
Greek
144 Ps 87,6 Ἐπιμένων τοῖς τῆς ὁμοιώσεως
ῥήμασι λέγει ὅτι Ὡς οἱ ἀνῃρημένοι καὶ ἐν τάφῳ κείμενοι γέγονα οἳ τοῦτο πάσχουσιν ὅτι τῆς σῆς ἐχωρίσθησαν δυνάμεως τῆς ζωοποιοῦ. δῆλον γὰρ ὅτι τοῦτο οὐκ ἦν ἐπ' αὐτοῦ. τῆς γὰρ τοῦ θεοῦ δυνάμεως πλῆρες ἦν τὸ Χριστοῦ σῶμα καὶ μετὰ θάνατον. ταύτῃ τοι καὶ αἷμα καὶ ὕδωρ ἐξ αὐτοῦ ἐχεῖτο ὅπερ ἀπὸ νεκρῶν σωμάτων οὐδὲν τῶν τοιούτων πρόεισιν. 145 Ps 87,9b®10a [Ἄλλος φησὶ τὸ Ἔθου με βδέλυγμα αὐτοῖς ἐξηγούμενος·] ὥσπερ ᾐσχύνθησαν οἱ μαθηταὶ ἐπὶ τοῖς παθήμασιν αὐτοῦ, οὐκέτι σωτῆρα οὐδὲ λυτρωτὴν ἐλπίσαντες οἵ γε δὴ καὶ ἔλεγον ὅτι Παρέδωκαν αὐτὸν οἱ ἄρχοντες εἰς κρῖμα θανάτου· ἡμεῖς δὲ ἠλπίζομεν ὅτι αὐτός ἐστιν ὁ μέλλων λυτροῦσθαι τὸν Ἰσραήλ. δῆλον δὲ ὅτι καὶ συνεσχέθη ταῖς χερσὶ τῶν ἐχθρῶν παραδοθεὶς ἑκὼν μέν, κατεχόμενος δὲ ὅμως. ἔνθα δὴ καὶ εἰς κάκωσιν ἦλθε τὴν ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν· πάντα γὰρ ὅσα σώματι βαρέα καὶ κακωτικὰ ταῦτα ἤνεγκεν. ἀντὶ γὰρ τοῦ Οἱ 20 ὀφθαλμοί μου ἠσθένησαν ἀπὸ πτωχείας ὁ Σύμμαχος Ὁ ὀφθαλμός μου ἐξέρρευσεν ἀπὸ τῆς κακώσεως ἐξέδωκεν. 146 Ps 87,13 Σῷζε οὖν γένος ὑπὸ σοῦ πεποιημένον ἐπιγνώσει τῇ σῇ καὶ πρὸς ζωὴν ἐπάναγε τοὺς εἰς θάνατον ἑκάτερον πεπτωκότας ἀνθρώπους, οὓς θεατὰς εἶναι δεῖ τῶν σῶν θαυμάτων καὶ τῆς σῆς δυνάμεως ἐξηγήτας· καὶ μὴ μενέτωσαν ἐν λήθῃ παρεωραμένοι ἀλλὰ μνημονευθέντες πάλιν ὑπὸ σοῦ εἰς τὸ ζῆν ἐπαναγέσθωσαν. ταῦτα ὁ προστάτης ἀνθρώπων ὑπὲρ τοῦ κοινοῦ πάντων ἐντυγχάνων γένους καὶ τὴν τοῦ κόσμου ζωὴν ἐξεργαζόμενος βουλήσει πατρός. 147 Ps 87,14 Αὐτὸν ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν παρίστησιν ὁ πρεσβευτής τε καὶ ἱερεὺς διηνεκεῖ τῇ παραστάσει ἐξ ἕω καὶ διὰ νυκτὸς μειλίσσεταί τε ὀργὴν θεοῦ τὴν καθ' ἡμῶν ἣν τοῖς πάθεσιν αὐτὸς ἀνεδέξατο. 148 Ps 87,16β Ὕψωσιν λέγει τὴν ἐν τεραστίοις καὶ σημείοις περὶ ἧς λέγει πρὸς αὐτὸν ὁ πατὴρ ὅτι Ἐδόξασα, λέγοντος τοῦ υἱοῦ ∆όξασόν σου τὸν υἱόν. ταύτην εἰς ταπείνωσιν μεταβεβλῆσθαί φησιν, ἡνίκα εἰς τὸ παθεῖν ἐλήλυθε πάσχων τὰ ὑπὲρ ἀνθρώπων καὶ ὑπ' αὐτῶν ὑπὲρ ὧν ἔπασχεν ἐγκαταλιπόμενος. 149 Ps 88,13β Κεῖται δὲ τὸ Θαβὼρ ὄρος ἐν τῇ Γαλιλαίων χώρᾳ, τὸ Ἑρμωνιεὶμ δὲ ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ τῇ πρὸς τὸ Σινᾶ. ὑμνεῖσθαι δεῖ τὸν θεόν, φησίν, οὐ μόνον ταῖς περὶ τὸ Θαβὼρ ἐνεργείαις αὐτοῦ ἀλλὰ καὶ τῇ περὶ τὸ Ἑρμωνιεὶμ ἐπιφανείᾳ γενομένῃ. 150 Ps 88,14.15 Ἡ σή, φησί, δύναμις ἐπικρατεῖ. φανείτω δή σου τὸ καρτερόν, ἐπιφανές τε καὶ ἔνδοξον ἐν ἀνθρώποις γενέσθω. ταῦτα δὲ πάντα ὡς πρὸς ἕνα λεγόμενα θεὸν ἐμπεριείληφε· τὴν δύναμιν αὐτοῦ τὴν μίαν καὶ μόνην καὶ βραχίονα καὶ χεῖρα τελείαν οὖσαν ἐπιστάμεθα· δι' αὐτῆς ἁπάντων καὶ γενομένων καὶ γινομένων, ὥστε αὐτὴν καὶ τελείαν οὖσαν ἐφ' ἑαυτῆς συναριθμεῖσθαι θεῷ κατὰ τὸν ἕνα τῆς θεότητος ἀριθμὸν καὶ μηδαμῶς περιπίπτειν τοῖς περὶ τῶν πολλῶν υἱῶν εἰρημένοις ὧν οὐδένα ὁμοιοῦσθαι πρὸς τὸν ὄντως ὁ λόγος προείρηκεν. οὐ γὰρ οὕτως ἡ μία καὶ ἀληθὴς δύναμις ἀλλ' εἰκὼν ἀληθινὴ καὶ γνώρισμα τοῦ θεοῦ μόνον, πάντα δι' αὐτῆς ἐπιτελοῦντος θεοῦ. διὸ καὶ τῇ εἰς ἀνθρώπους ἐπιδημίᾳ αὐτῆς ἥρμοσε τὰ θεικά, καὶ ἡ τοῦ θεοῦ κρίσις ὑπὸ Χριστοῦ κρίνεται. ὑπάρχουσα μὲν ὡς δυνάμει θεοῦ, δοθεῖσα δὲ ὡς ἀνθρώπῳ, καθάπερ αὐτὸς εἴρηκε, διεῖλε δὲ τοῖς χρόνοις τὸν ἔλεον καὶ τὴν κρίσιν. τὴν μὲν κρίσιν ἔκτοτε προλέγων, ἐπειδὰν ἐλθὼν ὁ βασιλεὺς καθεσθῇ ἐπὶ θρόνου δόξης αὐτοῦ. ἐκεῖνος γὰρ ὁ θρόνος ὡσπερεὶ βάσιν ἔχει τὴν δικαιοσύνην, καθὰ καὶ ἐν Θ προείρηκε ψαλμῷ Ἀκύλας Ἥδρασεν ἐν κρίσει τὸν θρόνον αὐτοῦ. πρὸ δὲ τῆς ἐπιφανείας ἐκείνης ἔλεος κατὰ γῆν πολὺς ὡσπερεὶ πρόδρομος τῆς κριτικῆς παρουσίας ἐλέῳ τοὺς ἀνθρώπους εἰς σωτηρίαν προευτρεπίζοντος τοῦ μέλλοντος ἐπιφανήσεσθαι φοβεροῦ κριτοῦ, μετὰ τοῦ ἐλέου τε ἡ ἀλήθεια ὅτι μὴ οἷόν τε γενέσθαι τι τῶν οὐκ ἀληθινῶν οὐδὲ ὀρθῶν ἐν τῇ τοῦ θεοῦ χρηστῇ μακροθυμίᾳ, κἂν φαίνηται τοῖς ἀγνοοῦσι τὸ μέλλον οὐκ ὀρθῶς ἐπιτρέπεσθαι τοῖς φαύλοις εὐπραγεῖν οὐδὲ εἰκότως περιορᾶσθαι τοὺς ἀγαθοὺς ἐλαττουμένους. 151 Ps 88,20®25 Ῥητῶς ἤδη τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν διέξεισι τὴν γεγενημένην διὰ Νάθαν τοῦ προφήτου, προφήτας πληθυντικῶς δηλῶν ἐξ ἑνὸς οὓς καὶ Υἱοὺς θεοῦ καλεῖ ἢ ὡς οἱ λοιποὶ ἑρμηνεύουσιν Ὁσίους θεοῦ.