Judgment on Egypt’s gods; blood sign shelters Israel
Palladius: You have spoken excellently.
Cyril: When these things have been carefully kept and carried through to the end according to the lawgiver’s intent, he says he will pass through and, as it were, go round all Egypt, destroy the firstborn, and execute vengeance on the gods of the Egyptians — that is, demand justice from everything high and lifted up among them and ranked among things worshipped for glory’s sake, for so hard and disorderly a mind and for extreme arrogance. (Ex 12:12; Isa 2:12)
Yet he promised to shelter the sons of Israel when the doorposts were anointed with the blood, which he named a sign of kinship with him. ‘For I will see the sign,’ he says, ‘and I will shelter you.’ (Ex 12:13) When God brings wrath and anger upon every high and lofty thing, according to the prophet’s voice, and condemns to death the wanton and guilty who have continuously neglected piety toward him, only those escape unharmed who are marked with the blood of the true Lamb.
Greek
{ΠΑΛΛ.} Ἄριστα ἔφης.
{ΚΥΡ.} Τούτων δὲ οὕτως εὖ μάλα τετηρημένων, καὶ μὴν καὶ εἰς πέρας ἐξενηνεγμένων κατά γε τῷ νομοθέτῃ δοκοῦν, διελεύσεσθαί φησι καὶ οἱονεὶ πᾶσαν περινοστήσειν τὴν Αἰγυπτίων, καὶ διολλύναι μὲν τὰ πρωτότοκα, ποιήσειν δὲ τὴν ἐκδίκησιν ἐν τοῖς θεοῖς τῶν Αἰγυπτίων, τουτέστι, πάντα τὸν παρ' αὐτοῖς ὑψηλόν τε καὶ ἐπηρμένον, καὶ ἐν τοῖς προσκυνουμένοις μονονουχὶ τεταγμένον διά γε τὴν δόξαν, ἐξαιτήσειν δίκας τῆς οὕτω σκληρᾶς καὶ ἀτάκτου γνώμης, καὶ τῆς ἄγαν ἀλαζονείας. Σκεπάσειν γε μὴν τοὺς υἱοὺς Ἰσραὴλ ἐπηγγέλλετο, κατακεχρισμένων τῷ αἵματι τῶν φλιῶν, ὃ δὴ καὶ σημεῖον ὠνόμαζε τῆς πρὸς αὐτὸν οἰκειώσεως. «Ὄψομαι γὰρ, φησὶ, σημεῖον, καὶ σκεπάσω ὑμᾶς.» Θεοῦ γὰρ ἐπάγοντος ὀργὴν καὶ θυμὸν ἐπὶ πάντα ὑψηλὸν καὶ μετέωρον, κατὰ τὴν τοῦ προφήτου φωνὴν, καὶ θανάτῳ καταδικάζοντος τὸν ἀσελγῆ τε καὶ ἀλιτήριον, καὶ τῆς εἰς αὐτὸν εὐσεβείας ἀνακαταλήκτως ὀλιγωρήσαντα, διαδιδράσκουσι μόνοι καὶ ἀμοιροῦσι ποινῆς, οἱ καλῷ σημάντρῳ κατεσφραγισμένοι, καὶ ἐῤῥαντισμένοι τῷ αἵματι τοῦ Χριστοῦ. Διεπύθου γὰρ λέγοντος, «Ἀμὴν ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν, ὁ τρώγων μου τὴν σάρκα καὶ πίνων μου τὸ αἷμα ἔχει ζωὴν αἰώνιον, καὶ εἰς κρίσιν οὐκ ἔρχεται, ἀλλὰ μεταβέβηκεν ἐκ τοῦ θανάτου εἰς τὴν ζωήν· ὁ δὲ μὴ πιστεύων, οὐκ ὄψεται τὴν ζωὴν, ἀλλ' ἡ ὀργὴ τοῦ Θεοῦ μενεῖ ἐπ' αὐτόν.» Οὐκοῦν καὶ ζωῆς τῆς αἰωνίου μέτοχοι, καὶ Θεῷ τε καὶ Πατρὶ φίλοι τε καὶ γνώριμοι, καὶ θανάτου κρείττους, οἱ ἡγιασμένοι, διά γε τοῦ μετασχεῖν τοῦ Χριστοῦ, κατὰ τρόπον δὲ δηλονότι τὸν μυστικὸν, καὶ αἵματι τῷ ἁγίῳ κατακεχρισμένοι. Χρῆναί γε μὴν ἀκαταλήκτως αὐτοὺς ἀποπεραίνειν ἐπείγεσθαι τὸν ἐπὶ τῷδε νόμον εὖ μάλα φησί. Καταλήξομεν γὰρ, οὔτι που τοῦ ἑορτάζειν ἐπὶ Χριστῷ, ζύμην ἀφανίζοντες ἐκ τῶν ἰδίων ὁρίων, τουτέστιν, ἀπὸ πάσης τῆς γῆς ἐν ᾗπερ ἂν ἔχοιμεν τὰς διατριβάς. Δεήσει γὰρ δὴ τοὺς διὰ πίστεως κεκλημένους εἰς δικαίωσιν τὴν διὰ Χριστοῦ, πνευματικῶς ἑορτάζοντας, μὴ ἐν ζύμῃ τοῦτο δρᾷν, κακίας τε καὶ πονηρίας, ἐκκαθαίροντας δὲ μᾶλλον τὴν παλαιὰν ζύμην, μεταπλάττεσθαι πρὸς τὸ ἄμεινον, καὶ νέον ἤδη πως ὁρᾶσθαι φύραμα, παγγενῆ τε καὶ πανοικὶ, καὶ τοὺς ἐν πάσῃ τῇ χώρᾳ, δι' οὗ σημαίνεται τῶν τὴν πίστιν παραδεδεγμένων πολλή τις οὖσα καὶ ἀναρίθμητος ἡ ὁσία πληθύς. Τὴν δέ γε πρώτην τῆς ἑβδομάδος ἡμέραν, ἁγίαν ἔφη διακεκλῆσθαι δεῖν, κλητὴν δὲ ἁγίαν καὶ τὴν ἑβδόμην, ἐκεῖνο, οἶμαί που, παραδεικνὺς ὁ νόμος, ὅτι τῆς ἀνθρώπου ζωῆς ἅγιος μὲν ἦν ὁ ἐν ἀρχῇ χρόνος, ὡς ἐν τῷ προπάτορι τοῦ γένους Ἀδὰμ, οὔπω παραλύσαντι τὰ ἐντεταλμένα, καὶ τῶν θείων ἀλογήσαντι προσταγμάτων· ἅγιος δὲ καὶ πολὺ μείζων, ὁ ἐν ἐσχάτοις, τουτέστιν, ὁ ἐν Χριστῷ, ὅς ἐστι δεύτερος Ἀδὰμ, ἀναστοιχειῶν τὸ γένος ἐκ τῶν διὰ μέσου συμβεβηκότων, εἰς καινότητα ζωῇς, ἐν πνεύματι. Παρεγγυᾷ δὲ ὅτι καὶ σαββατίζειν ἀνάγκη κατὰ τὴν ἑβδόμην, ἀποφοιτῶντας ἔργου παντός. Πρέποι γὰρ ἂν καὶ μάλα εἰκότως τοῖς διὰ πίστεως εἰσεληλα
About this text
Cyril continues the dialogue with Palladius. Book 17 of a seventeen-book dialogue — the final book of the series.
English follows Migne PG 68 (Aubert reprint). The PDF and a cleaned text of the same print were checked against each other. This page is Book 17 of seventeen. This is a reading translation for study, not a new critical edition of the Greek.
Witnesses
- Copy-text Migne PG 68 De adoratione Book 17 (Aubert reprint) (Greek · Book 17)
- Checked print PDF of PG 68 De adoratione (Greek · Book 17)
English is newly prepared for study from the stated edition. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.