The distinction between sounds and spiritual words
Those grasping life treasure in heaven, having their heart there; the heavens are narrating the previously spoken glory of God through the contemplation of intelligible things. But those who have accepted the practical aspect accomplish a firmament through works, that is, they become stable and immovable; they announce the making of the hands of God, working the works of God and through them crying out as works becoming the works of God.
But also the day, that is, the luminous intellect, being not in harmony with another luminous intellect, searches out a word, which is why the Old Scripture says the day is luminous: for God called the light Day (Gen 1:5). This, having been filled with the nourishments of the Spirit, being searched out from the fullness, a word is brought forth in the New Covenant; allegorically also this day is so named.
And the night, the deepest discourse of things, announces knowledge to another such night. For if anyone searches the Spirit who searches all things and has the depths of God, he searches some of the deeper mysteries of God; having known it from this, he proceeds to the similarly obscure, and will come to the knowledge of those.
And the pre-preparations and those making the way forward are mere babblings, but the words were those setting forth the spiritual narratives and fully bringing their faiths demonstratively. The sounds and words for the obedience of God are not, since their voices are not heard as Being. For this reason it has been said by the Lord, so that they might be heard: therefore no word of apology is left to those not doing nor thinking; the voices of the previously spoken babblings and words are being narrated. Their sound has gone out into all the earth (Ps 19:4), and the following.
You are a land suitable for seed (Matt 13:23), but you do not receive the sound of the babblings and words, that is, the word according to the sensible aspect of the Scripture; but those having surpassed the state of these will receive the words of the babblings and the words, being clearly instructed in all things. Even the precursor of the apostles is not hearing the sound of Jesus but words; 'Words,' he says, 'you have of eternal life'; and the Savior himself: 'The words I have spoken to you are spirit' (John 6:63). For those to whom he was saying these things, the apostles, were no longer earth but ends of the inhabited world.
But according to the law of anagogy, the church can be the tabernacle of God, set in the sun—that is, wherever and as far as the sun shines; for the sound that has gone out into all the earth runs together with the sun's rays, and his words have reached the ends of the inhabited world.
And each one of those who contain the glory of God, being called his tabernacle, can be set in the sun of righteousness, that is, in Christ; for of such tabernacles the foundation and base is the true light.
And perhaps also, since the Savior is called Light of the world and True Light and Sun of righteousness, it is not possible for the one who has applied himself to what transcends the sensible to have received an understanding of this light while ignorant of the sensible light.
But the sun, receiving from the understanding of this an image of the intelligible light, will find the true light as if dwelling in the sensible sun.
For no attention should be paid to certain heterodox who say that after the resurrection from the dead the Savior laid aside in the solar sphere the body he wore, to be kept until his second and glorious coming.
'In the sun he set his tabernacle' (Psalm 19:4), and the following.
Alongside the letter, the understandings according to anagogy: that the sun of righteousness, coming forth from the bridal chamber of the Father's bosom according to 'I came forth from God and have come' (John 8:42), comes forth as a bridegroom having the rational nature as spouse, that is, the glorious church;
to whom John says: 'He who has the bride is the bridegroom' (John 3:29).
For having emptied himself, he took the form of a servant (Phil 2:7);
rejoicing and exulting, he accomplishes the course of the economy which he willingly undertook, taking up the impetus of a most mighty giant.
And this one, having the beginning of his going forth from the end of heaven, descended to the end of heaven, ascending there whence he also began his course.
For he says: 'If you see the Son of man ascending where he was before' (John 6:62), and 'No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of man' (John 3:13).
But also from his heat no one is able to hide;
for of the fire which he came to cast upon the earth all partake, so that some become fervent in spirit (Luke 12:49).
Ps 18:8-10: [...].
Greek
ἀσπαζόμενοι βίον θησαυρίζουσιν ἐν οὐρανῷ, κἀκεῖ τὴν καρδίαν ε χοντες· οὐρανοί εἰσιν διηγούμενοι τὴν προειρημένην θεοῦ δόξαν διὰ θεωρίας τῆς περὶ τῶν νοητῶν πραγμάτων. οἱ δὲ τὸν πρακτικὸν ἀποδεξάμενοι δι' ω ν ἐπιτελοῦσιν ε ργων στερέωμα τυγχάνουσιν, τουτέστιν ἑδραῖοι καὶ ἀμετακίνητοι· ἀπαγγέλλουσιν τὴν ποίησιν τῶν τοῦ θεοῦ χειρῶν, ἐργαζόμενοι τὰ θεοῦ ε ργα καὶ δι' αὐτῶν βοῶντες ε ργα τε τυγχάνοντες θεοῦ. ̓Αλλὰ καὶ ἡ ἡμέρα, τουτέστιν ἡ φωτεινὴ νόησις, ἑτέρᾳ φωτεινῇ νοήσει σύμφωνος ου σα ἐρεύγεται ῥῆμα, οι ον ἡ παλαιὰ γραφὴ διὰ τὸ φωτεινὴν ει ναι ἡμέρα ἐστίν· ̓Εκάλεσεν γὰρ ὁ θεὸς τὸ φῶς ἡμέραν. αυ τη πληρωθεῖσα τῶν τοῦ πνεύματος τροφῶν, ἀπὸ τοῦ πληρώματος ἐρευγομένη, προφέρεται ῥῆμα τῇ καινῇ διαθήκῃ· ἀλληγορικῶς καὶ αυ τη ἡμέρα ὀνομαζομένη. ̔Η δὲ νύξ, ἡ βαθυτάτη τῶν πραγμάτων διάληψις, γνῶσιν ἀπαγγέλλει ἑτέρᾳ τοιαύτῃ νυκτί. ο τ' α ν γὰρ τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ πάντα ἐρευνῶν καὶ τὰ βάθη τοῦ θεοῦ ε χων τις ἐρευνᾷ τι τῶν βαθυτέρων τοῦ θεοῦ μυστηρίων, γνοὺς αὐτὸ ἐκ τούτου ἐπὶ τὰ ὁμοίως ἀσαφῆ μετέρχεται, κἀκείνων ἐπιστήμην ε ξει. Λαλιαὶ δέ εἰσιν αἱ προκατασκευάζουσαι καὶ προοδοποιοῦσαι τοῖς λόγοις, λόγοι δὲ ε στωσαν οἱ τιθέμενοι τὰ πνευματικὰ διηγήματα καὶ τελείως τὰς πίστεις αὐτῶν ἀποδεικτικῶς ἐπιφέροντες. οὐκ εἰσὶν ου ν λαλιαὶ οὐδὲ λόγοι πρὸς ὑπακοὴν θεοῦ, Ων οὐχὶ ἀκούονται αἱ φωναὶ αὐτῶν. διὰ τοῦτο γὰρ ει ρηνται ὑπὸ τοῦ κυρίου, ι να ἀκουσθῶσιν οι ς ει ρηνται· ο θεν οὐδεὶς καταλείπεται λόγος ἀπολογίας τοῖς μὴ ποιοῦσιν μηδὲ φρονοῦσιν α ὑφηγοῦνται αἱ φωναὶ τῶν προειρημένων λαλιῶν καὶ λόγων. Εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν ἐξῆλθεν ὁ φθόγγος αὐτῶν, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. ο σοι τυγχάνουσιν γῆ ἐπιτηδείως πρὸς σπόρον ε χοντες, ου τοι χωροῦσι τὸν φθόγγον τῶν λαλιῶν καὶ λόγων, τουτέστιν τὴν λέξιν τὴν κατὰ τὸ αἰσθητὸν τῆς γραφῆς· οἱ δὲ ὑπερβεβηκότες τὴν τούτων κατάστασιν ὡς χρηματίσαι πέρατα τῆς οἰκουμένης δέξονται τῶν λαλιῶν καὶ τῶν λόγων τὰ ῥήματα, σαφῶς περὶ πάντων παιδευόμενοι. ἀμέλει καὶ ὁ τῶν ἀποστόλων πρόκριτος οὐ φθόγγου ̓Ιησοῦ ἀλλὰ ῥημάτων ἀκούων ̔Ρήματα, ε φη, ζωῆς αἰωνίου ε χεις· καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ σωτήρ· Τὰ ῥήματα α λελάληκα ὑμῖν πνεῦμά ἐστιν. οι ς γὰρ ταῦτ' ε λεγεν ἀποστόλοις, οὐκέτι γῆ ἀλλὰ καὶ πέρατα οἰκουμένης η σαν. 155 Ps 18,5c–7 Κατὰ δὲ τὸν τῆς ἀναγωγῆς νόμον σκήνωμα θεοῦ ἡ ἐκκλησία ει ναι δύναται, τεθεῖσα ἐν τῷ ἡλίῳ τουτέστιν ο σον καὶ ο που η λιος φαίνει· συντρέχει γὰρ ταῖς ἡλιακαῖς αὐγαῖς ὁ εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν 41 ἐξεληλυθὼς φθόγγος καὶ τὰ ῥήματα αὐτοῦ εἰς τὰ πέρατα τῆς οἰκουμένης φθάσαντα. δύναται δὲ καὶ ε καστος τῶν χωρούντων θεοῦ δόξαν, σκήνωμα αὐτοῦ ὀνομαζόμενος, ἐν τῷ ἡλίῳ τῆς δικαιοσύνης τουτέστιν Χριστῷ τεθεῖσθαι· τῶν γὰρ τοιούτων σκηνωμάτων κρηπὶς καὶ θεμέλιος τὸ φῶς τὸ ἀληθινόν. τάχα δὲ καὶ ἐπεὶ Φῶς τοῦ κόσμου καὶ Φῶς ἀληθινὸν καὶ Ηλιος δικαιοσύνης ὁ σωτὴρ λέγεται, οὐχ οι όν τε τούτου τοῦ φωτὸς νόησιν εἰληφέναι ἀγνοοῦντα τὸ αἰσθητὸν φῶς ὁ προσβαλὼν τῷ ὑπερέχοντι τῶν αἰσθητῶν. ε στιν δὲ ὁ η λιος ἐκ τῆς τούτου νοήσεως φαντασίαν λαμβάνων τοῦ νοεροῦ φωτός, ω σπερ οἰκοῦν τὸ φῶς τὸ ἀληθινὸν ἐν τῷ αἰσθητῷ ἡλίῳ εὑρήσει. οὐ γὰρ προσεκτέον τισὶν ἑτεροδόξοις λέγουσιν ο τι μετὰ τὴν ἀνάστασιν τὴν ἐκ νεκρῶν ὁ σωτὴρ ἐν τῇ ἡλιακῇ σφαίρᾳ ἀπέθετο ο ἐφόρεσεν σῶμα φυλάττεσθαι μέχρι τῆς δευτέρας καὶ ἐνδόξου αὐτοῦ παρουσίας. ̓Εν τῷ ἡλίῳ ε θετο τὸ σκήνωμα αὐτοῦ, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. πρὸς τῇ λέξει νοήσεις κατὰ ἀναγωγήν, ο τι ὁ η λιος τῆς δικαιοσύνης ἐκ παστοῦ τῶν κόλπων τῶν πατρικῶν ἐκπορευόμενος κατὰ τὸ ̓Εγὼ ἐκ τοῦ θεοῦ ἐξῆλθον καὶ η κω, ἐκπορεύεται οι α νυμφίος σύζυγον ε χων τὴν λογικὴν φύσιν, τουτέστι τὴν ε νδοξον ἐκκλησίαν· ῃ φησιν ὁ ̓Ιωάννης· ̔Ο ε χων τὴν νύμφην νυμφίος ἐστίν. ἑαυτὸν γὰρ κενώσας μορφὴν δούλου ε λαβεν· γεγηθὼς καὶ ἀγαλλόμενος ἀνύει τὸν δρόμον τῆς οἰκονομίας η ς ἑκουσίως ἀνεδέξατο, ἰσχυροτάτου γίγαντος τὴν ὁρμὴν ἀναλαμβάνων. ου τος δὲ ἀπ' α κρου τοῦ οὐρανοῦ τὴν ἀρχὴν τῆς ἐξόδου ε χων κατήντησεν εἰς α κρον τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, ἀναβαίνων ἐκεῖ ο θεν καὶ τὴν ἀρχὴν ω ρμησεν. φησὶν γοῦν· ̓Εὰν ι δητε τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἀναβαίνοντα ο που η ν τὸ πρότερον, καὶ Οὐδεὶς ἀναβέβηκεν εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν εἰ μὴ ὁ ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καταβάς, ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου. ̓Αλλὰ καὶ τὴν θέρμην αὐτοῦ οὐδεὶς οι ός τέ ἐστιν ἀποκρυβῆναι· τοῦ γὰρ πυρὸς ου ἐλήλυθεν βαλεῖν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς πάντες μεταλαμβάνουσιν, ω ς τινας τῷ πνεύματι ζέοντας γενέσθαι. 156 Ps 18,8b–10 ̔Η τοῦ