Homilies on Jeremiah (selected; omitting 8) · §12.12

Bright mountains and dark; hear the law in a hidden way

'Give glory to the Lord our God before it grows dark, before your feet stumble on dark mountains.' There are dark mountains; there are bright mountains. Bright mountains are the holy angels of God, the prophets, Moses the servant, the apostles of Jesus Christ. All these are bright mountains, and about these I think it has been said in the Psalms: 'His foundations are in the holy mountains.' And what are dark mountains? Those who lift up heights against the knowledge of God.

The devil is a dark mountain; the rulers of this age who are being abolished are dark mountains; and the demon of epilepsy was a mountain, and it was a dark mountain, about which the Savior said: 'You will say to this mountain.' For when the account of epilepsy was being sought and the disciples said, 'Why could we not cast it out?' the Savior answers that 'If you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain'—about which you put forward the question, about which you sought—'You will say to this: Move from here to there, and it will move.' 'From here' from the human being, 'there' to its own place. So those who stumble do not stumble on bright mountains but on dark mountains, when they come to be with the devil and his angels, the dark mountains. 'And you will wait for light.' Yet it can also be joined to 'Give glory to the Lord our God'—the 'and you will wait for light.'

If you give glory to the Lord our God before it grows dark, before your feet stumble on dark mountains, clearly even if it grows dark you will wait for the light and the light will succeed you. But another might say (I do not know whether understanding soundly or not) that even those who stumble 'on dark mountains' will wait among the dark mountains waiting for the light of mercy; for this will seem to be the 'and you will wait for light.' And when someone comes upon the dark mountains, let us see what is there: 'shadow of death.'

Where the dark mountains are, there is a shadow of death generated from the dark mountains themselves. 'And they will be placed into darkness.' 'But if you do not hear in a hidden way, your soul will weep from before insult.' Of those who hear, some hear in a hidden way, and some, even if they hear, do not hear in a hidden way. What then is hearing in a hidden way but 'But we speak God's wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predetermined before the ages for our glory'? And again elsewhere it is said that 'most of God's works are in hidden things.' If I hear the law, I either hear in a hidden way or I do not hear in a hidden way.

The Jew does not hear the law in a hidden way; therefore he is circumcised openly, not knowing that it is not 'the one who is a Jew openly, nor the circumcision openly in flesh.' But the one who hears circumcision in a hidden way will be circumcised in secret; the one who hears the things legislated about the Passover in a hidden way eats from the sheep of Christ—for 'our Passover was sacrificed, Christ'—and knowing what the flesh of the Word is like, and knowing that 'it is true food,' he partakes of it; for he heard the Passover in a hidden way. But this common Jew for this reason killed the Lord Jesus and is still today liable for Jesus' murder, since he heard neither the law nor the prophets in a hidden way.

If you read about the unleavened breads, one can hear the command in a hidden way, and one can hear it openly. As many of you as (for the Passover is near) keep unleavened breads, the bodily unleavened breads, you do not hear the command that says: 'If you do not hear in a hidden way, your soul will weep.' And about the Sabbath women who have not heard the prophet do not hear in a hidden way but hear openly. They do not bathe on the Sabbath day; they return 'to the poor and weak elements,' as if Christ had not sojourned—the one who perfects us and carries us across from the legal elements to the Gospel perfection.

For this reason let us attend, reading the law and the prophets, lest we fall under the prophecy that says: 'But if you do not hear in a hidden way, your soul will weep from before insult.' As many as keep the Jewish fast as not understanding the day of atonement after Jesus Christ's sojourn—you did not hear the atonement in a hidden way, but only openly; for to hear the atonement in a hidden way is to hear how God set Jesus as atonement for our sins, and that 'he is atonement for our sins, not for ours only but also for the whole world.' And even if Gospel parables are read and the hearer is one of those outside, he will not hear them in a hidden way.

But if the hearer is an apostle or one of those entering 'into Jesus' house,' he comes to Jesus, inquires also about the unclearness of the parable, and Jesus interprets it, and that hearer of the Gospel becomes one hearing it in a hidden way, so that his soul may not weep; for the soul of those not hearing in a hidden way weeps.

How marvelously he did not say: you will weep, if you do not hear in a hidden way, but: 'your soul will weep.' There is a weeping of the soul alone weeping, and perhaps the Savior teaches us that weeping when he says: 'There will be the weeping.' And even if he says: 'Woe to those who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep,' he speaks about that weeping which the prophet also threatens here saying: 'But if you do not hear in a hidden way, your soul will weep from before insult.' For when you are insulted, then you will weep and your eyes will bring down tears, because the Lord's flock was crushed. If someone now sees the Jewish things and compares them with the ancient, he will see in what way the Lord's flock was crushed.

For this was once the Lord's flock, and since they judged themselves unworthy, the word turned to the nations. If then that flock of the Lord was crushed, we the wild olive, grafted contrary to its nature into the cultivated olive of the fathers—ought we not fear more, lest this 'flock of the Lord' also be crushed? For it is going to be crushed sometime according to what was said by the Savior, when 'because lawlessness is multiplied the love of many will grow cold.' About whom is the word? Is 'the love of many will grow cold' not said about those called Christians? About whom is the word, that 'When the Son of Man comes, will he find the faith on the earth?' Is it not about us? For this reason let us attend to ourselves, doing everything, that day by day this flock of God may be improved, healed, cured, and every crushing depart from our souls, that we may be perfected in Christ Jesus, to whom is the glory and the power forever.

Amen.

Greek

«Δότε δόξαν κυρίῳ τῷ θεῷ ἡμῶν πρὸ τοῦ συσκοτάσαι, πρὸ τοῦ προσκόψαι τοὺς πόδας ὑμῶν ἐπ’ ὄρη σκοτεινά. ἔστι τινὰ ὄρη σκοτεινά, <ἒστι τινὰ ὄρη φωεινά]<· πλὴν ἐπεὶ ἑκάτερα. φωτεινὰ ὄρη οἱ ἅγιοι ἄγγελοι τοῦ θεοῦ, οἱ προφῆται, Μωσῆς ὁ θεράπων, οἱ ἀπόστολοι Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ. ταῦτα πάντα ὄρη ἐστὶ φωτεινά, καὶ περὶ τούτων νομίζω λελέχθαι ἐν τοῖς Ψαλμοῖς· «οἱ θεμέλιοι αὐτοῦ ἐν τοῖς ὄρεσι τοῖς ἁγίοις. ποῖα δὲ ὄρη σκοτεινά; οἱ τὰ ὑψώματα ἐπαίροντες κατὰ τῆς γνώσεως τοῦ θεοῦ.

ὁ διάβολος ὄροσ σκοτεινόν ἐστιν, οἱ ἄρχοντες τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου οἱ καταργούμενοι μενοι ὂρη εἰδὶ σκοτεινά καὶ τὸ δαιμόνιον ὁ σεληνιασμὸς ὄρος ἦν, καὶ σκοτεινὸν ὄρος ἠν, περὶ οὑ ἔλεγεν ὁ σωτήρ· «ἐρεῖτε τῷ ὄρει τούτῳ. περὶ γὰρ σεληνιασμοῦ τοῦ λόγου ζητουμένου καὶ λεγόντων τῶν μαθητῶν· «διὰ τί οὐκ ἠδυνήθημεν ἐκβαλεῖν αὐτό«, ἀποκρίνεται ὁ σωτὴρ ὅτι «ἐὰν ἔχητε πίστιν ὡς κόκκον σινάπεως, ἐρεῖτε τῷ ὄρει τούτῳ«, περὶ οὑ προετείνατε, περὶ οὑ ἐζητήσατε, «ἐρεῖτε τῷ τούτῳ· μετάβα ἐκεῖ, ἐκεῖ, καὶ μεταβήσεται. «ἔνθεν« ἀπὸ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου, «ἐκεῖ« ἐπὶ τὸν τόπον τὸν οἰκεῖον αὐτοῦ. οἱ οὖν προσ- κόπτοντες οὐ προσκόπτουσιν ἐπὶ ὄρη φωτεινά, ἀλλ’ ἐπὶ ὄρη σκοτεινά, ὅταν γένωνται μετὰ τοῦ διαβόλου καὶ τῶν ἀγγέλων αὐτοῦ, τῶν σκοτεινῶν ὀρέων. «Καὶ ἀναμενεῖτε εἰς φῶς. δύναται μέντοι συνάπτεσθαι τῷ «δότε κυρίῳ τῷ θεῷ ἡμῶν δόξαν« τὸ «καὶ ἀναμενεῖτε εἰς φῶς.

ἐὰν κυρίῳ τῷ θεῷ ἡμῶν δόξαν πρὸ τοῦ συσκοτάσαι, πρὸ τοῦ προσκόψαι τοὺς πόδας ὑμῶν ἐπὶ ὄρη σκοτεινά«, δῆλον ὅτι, κἂν συσκοτάσῃ, «ἀναμενεῖτε τὸ φῶς« καὶ τὸ φῶς ὑμᾶς διαδέξεται. ἄλλος δὲ εἴποι ἄν (οὐκ οἶδα πότερον ὑγιῶς νοῶν ἢ μή), ὅτι καὶ οἱ προσκόπτοντες «ἐπ’ ὄρη σκοτεινὰς ἀναμενοῦσι παρὰ τοῖς ὄρεσι τοῖς σκοτεινοῖς ἀναμένοντες τὸ τοῦ ἐλέου φῶς· τοῦτο γὰρ εἶναι δόξει τὸ «καὶ ἀναμενεῖτε εἰς φῶς. ἐπὰν δὲ ἔλθῃ τις ἐπὶ τὰ ὄρη τὰ σκοτεινά, ἴδωμεν τί έστιν ἐκεῖ· «σκιὰ θανάτου.

ὅπου τὰ σκοτεινὰ ὄρη, ἐκεῖ σκιὰ θανάτου ἀπ’ αὐτῶν τῶν σκοτεινῶν ὀρέων γεννωμένη· 13. «καὶ τεθήσονται εἰς σκοτος. «Ἐὰν δὲ μὴ ἀκούσητε κεκρυμμένως, κλαύσεται ἡ ψυχὴ ὑμῶν ἀπὸ προσώπου ὕβρεως. τῶν ἀκουόντων οἱ μὲν κεκρυμμένως ἀκούουσιν, οἱ δέ, κἂν ἀκούσωσιν, οὐ κεκρυμμένως ἀκούουσι. τί οὐν ἐστι τὸ κεκρυμμένως ἀκούειν ἢ τὸ «ἀλλὰ λαλοῦμεν θεοῦ σοφίαν έν μυστηρίῳ τὴν ἀποκεκρυμμένην, ἣν προώρισεν ὁ θεὸς πρὸ τῶν αἰώνων εἰς δόξαν ἡμῶν«; καὶ πάλιν ἀλλαχοῦ λέγεται, ὅτι «τὰ πλείονα τῶν ἔργων τοῦ θεοῦ ἐστιν ἐν ἀποκρύοις. ἐὰν ἀκούω τοῦ νόμου, ἤτοι κεκρυμμένως ἀκούω ἢ οὐκ ἀκούω κεκρυμμένως.

ὁ Ἰουδαῖος οὐκ ἀκούει κεκρυμμένως τοῦ νόμου· διὰ τοῦτο φανερῶς περιτέμνεται, οὐκ εἰδὼς ὅτι οὐχ «ὁ ἐν τῷ φανερῷ Ἰουδαῖός ἐστιν, οὐδὲ ἡ ἐν τῷ φανερῷ ἐν σαρκὶ περιτομή. ὁ δὲ ἀκούων τῆς περιτομῆς κεκρυμμένως, ἐν κρυπτῷ περιτμηθήσεται· ὁ ἀκούων τῶν περὶ τοῦ πάσχα νενομοθετημένων κεκρυμμένως, ἐσθίει ἀπὸ τοῦ προβάτου Χριστοῦ «τὸ« γὰρ «πάσχα ἡμῶν ἐτύθη Χριστός«), καὶ εἰδὼς τὴν σάρκα τοῦ λόγου ὁποία ἐστί, καὶ εἰδὼς ὅτι «ἀληθής ἐστι βρῶσις«, μεταλαμβάνει ταύτης· κεκρυμμένως γὰρ ἤκουσε τοῦ πάσχα. ὁ δὲ πολὺς οὗτος Τουδαῖος διὰ τοῦτο τὸν κύριον Ἰησοῦν ἀπέκτεινε καὶ ἔνοχος καὶ σήμερόν ἐστι τῷ φόνῳ Ἰησοῦ, ἐπεὶ μὴ κεκρυμμένως μήτε τοῦ νόμου μήτε τῶν προφητῶν ἤκουσεν.

ἐὰν ἀναγινώσκῃς περὶ τῶν ἀζύμων, ἔστιν ἀκοῦσαι κεκρυμμένως, ἔστιν ἀκοῦσοι φανερῶς τῆς ἐντολῆς. ὅσοι έν ὑμῖν ἐγγὺς γάρ ἐστι τὸ πάσχα) ἄζυμα ἄγετε, τὰ ἄζυμα σωματικά, οὐκ ἀκούετε τῆς λεγούσης ἐντολῆς· «ἐὰν μὴ ἀκούσητε κεκρυμμένως, κλαύσεται ἡ ψυχὴ ὑπῶν. καὶ περὶ σαββάτου γυναῖκες μὴ ἀκούσασαι τοῦ προφήτου οὐκ ἀκούουσι κεκρυμμένως, ἀλλὰ ἀκούουσι φανερῶς. οὐ λούονται τὴν ἡμέραν τοῦ σαββάτου, ἐπανέρχονται «ἐπὶ τὰ πτωχὰ καὶ ἀσθενῆ στοιχεῖα«, ὡς Χριστοῦ μὴ ἐπιδεδημηκότος, τοῦ τελειοῦντος ἡμᾶς καὶ διαβιβάζοντος ἀπὸ τῶν νομικῶν στοιχείων ἐπὶ τὴν εὐαγγελικὴν τελειότητα.

Διὰ τοῦτο προσέχωμεν ἀναγινώσκοντες τὸν νόμον καὶ τοὺς προφήτας, μήποτε ὑποπέσωμεν τῇ λεγούσῃ προφητείᾳ· «ἐὰν δὲ μὴ ἀκούσητε κεκρυμμένως, κλαύσεται ἡ ψυχὴ ὑμῶν ἀπὸ προσώπου ὕβρεως. ὅσοι τὴν νηστείαν τὴν Ἰουδαϊκὴν ὡς μὴ νοοῦντες τὴν τοῦ ἱλασμοῦ ἡμέραν τηρεῖτε τὴν] μετὰ τὴν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐπιδημίαν. οὐκ ἠκούσατε τοῦ ἱλασμοῦ κεκρυμμένως , ἀλλὰ φανερῶς μόνον· τὸ γὰρ κεκρυμμένως ἀκοῦσαι τοῦ ἱλασμοῦ ἒστιν ἀκοῦσαι, πῶς ὁ θεὸς ἱλασμὸν περὶ τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ἡμῶν« Ἰησοῦν καὶ ὅτι «αὐτὸς ἱλασμός ἐστι περὶ τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ἡμῶν, οὐ περὶ τῶν ἡμετέρων δὲ μόνον. ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ ὅλου τοῦ κόσμου. κἂν παραβολαὶ εὐαγγελικαὶ ἀναγικώσκωνται καὶ ὁ ἀκροατὴς ᾖ τῶν ἔξω, οὐ κεκρυμμένως αὐτῶν ἀκούσεται.

ἐὰν δὲ ὁ ἀκροατὴς ἀπόστολος ᾖ ἢ τῶν εἰσερχομένων «εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν« Ἰησοῦ, προσέρχεται τῷ Ἰησοῦ, πυνθάνεται καὶ περὶ τῆς ἀσαφείας τῆς παραβολῆς, καὶ ἑρμηνεύει αὐτὴν Ἰησοῦς καὶ γίνεται ἐκεῖνος ὁ ἀκροατὴς τοῦ εὐαγγελίου ἀκούων αὐτοῦ κεκρυμμένωνς, ἵνα μὴ κλαύσῃ ἡ ψυχὴ αὐτοῦ· τῶν γὰρ μὴ ἀκουόντων κεκρυμμένως κλαίει ἡ ψυχή.

Τί θαυμασίως οὐκ εἶπεν· κλαύσεσθε, ἐὰν μὴ ἀκούσητε κεκρυμμένως, ἀλλά· «ἡ ψυχὴ ὑμῶν κλαύσεται«; ἔστι τις κλαυθμὸς μόνης ψυχῆς κλαιούσης, καὶ τάχα ἐκεῖνον τὸν κλαυθμὸν διδάσκει ἡμᾶς ὁ σωτὴρ λέγων· «ἐκεῖ ἔσται ὁ καλυθμός. κἂν λέγῃ· «οὐαὶ οἱ γελῶντες νῦν, ὅτι πενθήσετε καὶ κλαύσετε«, περὶ ἐκείνου τοῦ κλαυθμοῦ λέγει, οὗ ἀπειλεῖ καὶ ἐνταῦθα ὁ προφήτης λέγων· «ἐὰν δὲ μὴ ἀκούσητε κεκρυμμένως, κλαύσεται ἡ ψυχὴ ὑμῶν ἀπὸ προσώπου ὕβρεως. ὅταν γὰρ ὑβρίζησθε, τότε κλαύσεσθε καὶ κατάξουσιν οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ δάκρυα, ὅτι συνετρίβη τὸ ποίμνιον κυρίου. ἐὰν ἴδῃ νῦν τις τὰ Ἰουδαϊκὰ καὶ συγκρίνῃ αὐτὰ τοῖς ἀρχαίοις, ὄψεται τίνα τρόπον συνετρίβη τὸ ποίμνιον κυρίου.

ἦν γὰρ τοῦτό ποτε ποίμνιον κυρίου, καὶ ἐπεὶ ἀναξίους ἔκριναν ἑαυτούς, ἐστράφη ὁ λόγος εἰς τὰ ἔθνη. εἰ οὖν ἐκεῖνο τὸ ποίμνιον συνετρίβη τοῦ κυρίου, ἡμεῖς ἡ ἀγριέλαιος, ἡ παρὰ φύσιν ἑαυτῆς ἐγκεντριζομένη εἰς τὴν καλλιέλαιον τῶν πατέρων, οὐ πλέον ὀφείλομεν φοβεῖσθαι, μήποτε συντριβῇ καὶ τοῦτο «τὸ ποίμνιον τοῦ κυρίου«; μέλλει γὰρ συντρίβεσθαί ποτε κατὰ τὸ εἰρημένον ὑπὸ τοῦ σωτῆρος, ὅταν «διὰ τὸ πληθυνθῆναι τὴν ἀνομίαν ψυγήσεται ἡ ἀγάπη τῶν πολλῶν. περὶ τίνων γὰρ ὁ λόγος; οὐ περὶ Χριστιανῶν λεγομένων τὸ «ψυγήσεται ἡ ἀγάπη τῶν πολλῶν« εἴρηται; περὶ τίνων ὁ λόγος, ὅτι πλὴν ἐλθὼν ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἆρα εὑρήσει τὴν πίστιν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς«; οὐ περὶ ἡμῶν ἐστι; διὰ τοῦτο προσέχωμεν ἑαυτοῖς πάντα πράττοντες, ἳνα ὁσημέραι τοῦτο τὸ ποίμνιον τοῦ θεοῦ βελτιῶται, ὑγιάζηται, θεραπεύηται, καὶ πᾶσα συντριβὴ ἀποστῇ ἀπὸ τῶν ψυχῶν ἡμῶν, ἕνα έν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ τελειωθῶμεν, ᾧ ἐστιν ἡ δόξα καὶ τὸ κράτος εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας.

Ἀμήν.

About this text

Origen on Jeremiah. Twenty Greek homilies survive. This page publishes the Pass B English for Homilies 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20. Homily 8 remains a machine draft and is not shipped yet. The rest of the volume is still being translated.

English follows Erich Klostermann, Origenes Werke III (GCS, 1901). A second transcription of that same edition (First1KGreek TEI) was checked; where the TEI drops or garbles a line, the page image wins. This is a reading translation for study, not a new critical edition of the Greek. Homilies that survive only in Jerome’s Latin are not on this page yet. When they are, they will be marked at those homilies.

Witnesses

Copy-text Klostermann, Origenes Werke III (GCS, 1901) (Greek · Homilies 1–20 Greek (this page: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20))
Checked print Archive.org page image and DjVu of GCS III (Greek · Same print as the copy-text)
Checked print First1KGreek TEI of GCS III (Greek · Same print; encoding errors deferred to the page image)

Where the prints differ

Homily 1.1 — The TEI omits Ἑβραῖον. English follows the GCS page image: Jonah is “a Hebrew prophet.”
Homily 1.5 — The TEI dropped Ἰσαάκ. English follows the GCS page image: Isaac born of promise.
Homily 1.11 — The TEI/OCR of this line is garbled. English follows the GCS page image and the quoted verse: “I have sanctified you.”
Homily 3.2 — The TEI gaps Matthew 5:45 (sun on the evil and [gap]; rain on [gap] and the unjust). English follows the Gospel wording.

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.