A may you introduce all these, since they truly repent; but this brigand, why do you bring him into the kingdom above before all others, even though he has not repented? Does he not have even one good deed he performed in life, nor did he ever do any good thing; but through the hour of repentance he has triumphed? Behold, we hold his sins in writing, which he did not erase through repentance, and yet you bring him into paradise as a guide for all the righteous? But the Savior says: "Do you seek his sin, which I have erased before all things? The record of his sins shall be idle, because his faith has erased it. Let the document of his iniquities be dissolved by his good confession." He did not repent before the time, but he understood at the time: before his death he was naked without faith, in death his faith conquered the flood of seas; in a time of relief he did not know, but in a time of distress he recognized the Just One. When my disciples fled from me, he fled to me: when Peter was saying, "I do not know the man," then this one confessed Him King of heaven; when the priests were putting me to death, then this one called me Lord of life. For me the work of repentance is completed, because He sees the intent and the eagerness; for me the justification of patience is fulfilled, because He inclined the heart toward good. Through the side of Adam, He shut paradise; this one, through confession, opens the gate guarded by the flaming sword. Do not seek his sin, which you will not find. For this reason David prophesied so many generations before: "His sin shall be sought, and it shall not be found" (Ps. CVI, 34).
Eventually the Savior ascended, having conquered all power and authority, and all the hosts of the angels met Him, and worshipped as their Master: and every B Cherubic order and Seraphic ministry worshipped Him and the Father who begat Him. And all that He took up to the Father, He caused to sit at the right hand, He who never bared the Father’s bosom. For even though He descended to earth for the sake of philanthropy, He did not in any way leave the throne: even though He became a complete human being according to the economy, He in no way suffered an evacuation of His own natural divinity. For Christ did not become God through the progress of a human—far be it—but being God, He became human, that He might save the human. Therefore we do not preach a human deified, but we confess God made human; just as the divine Paul said: "Therefore all rule and authority were subjected to Him," as being before all creation, or rather the Creator of creation, and co-master and co-king with His immaculate Father and the life-giving Spirit unto the ages. Amen. For He is the one who is about to judge the inhabited world, and all that is under heaven, and to render to each according to what he has done. Who then shall speak of the mercy of His philanthropy, or the magnitude of His power? Who shall express the wisdom of His C goodness, or the majesty of His strength? Who shall tell of the compassions of His tender-heartedness, or trace the dignity of His preeminence? That, not leaving the heavens, He descended to earth for our sake; that, slipping past the rulers and authorities, He entered the womb of an immaculate Virgin; He took the choirs of angels and archangels, and put on the form of a servant, that He might save the human [made] according to the image from corruption and death; and He died in the flesh, that He might make us partakers of His immortal nature. And what shall we render to Him for all that He has rendered to us? What kind of thanks, or supplications? Not even if all our members were to take up voices, and our hairs were to utter speech, and our whole organ were filled with melodies, could we worthily hymn the mercy and majesty of His condescension toward us. But as far as we have room, we hymn the only all-holy One, fulfilling the prophecy: "I remembered God, and I felt delight" (Ps. LXXVI, 4). For through this cycle I have traversed the great and paradoxical wonders of the Savior, that by remembering each I may find delight, if indeed we have made room in our memory, as was fitting. But whether by pretext or in truth God might be proclaimed: therefore let us say with the prophet: "I remembered God, and I felt delight." But may the God D of hosts, having shown forth philanthropy and much goodness, accepting our weakness and our prayers by grace, and having led [us] toward a better, good providence, Himself keep our soul unspotted, our body undefiled, our spirit pure, our life preserved from harm; guarding our faith inviolable, our brotherly love unbroken, our virginity blameless, our friendship unblemished, our love unfeigned, our virtue undisturbed, our justice unimpeded, our faith fruitful. May He throw open to us the gates of paradise, and extinguish the flaming sword, and open the door of the kingdom, and prepare the pure enjoyment, and set us at His right hand, and crown us with the right hand of the philanthropy of His goodness: for to Him is due glory, to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and always and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
On Rachel and the Infants
Just as those who take the sweet fruits of the fruit-bearing trees give praises to the branches and the trees at the same time: in the same way we, too, beloved, having received the fruits of the words from the teacher who preceded us, give the honor at once to him and to the fathers. For just as the sweet richness is sent to the fruits from the richness of the trees: so also, to the aforementioned man, the sweetness of the word is sent up from the grace of the Spirit. Let us then enjoy the sweetest fruits of the words, like sweet-tasting dates having acquired the sweetness from the righteous root of the fathers; and let us send the sweetness of the word to our understanding, but let us attribute the pleasantness of the thanksgiving to our fathers. For the honor of the fathers consists in the seemliness of the sons; or rather, the crowns of the sons are adorned by the glory of the fathers. But since I am stung by the reading of the sighing of Rachel, as if by a goad, I turn toward her: Tell me, O Rachel, tell the pain hidden in your sigh; for thus the boat of your mind, being weighed down by grief, will be lightened; for when the words are uttered from your heart signifying the pain, the heaviness of the grief goes forth together with the utterances. Tell me then, Rachel, why do you weep? For I see your tears flowing like rivers down your cheeks, and the breath bitterly winding about your heart, and being carried irregularly through your nostrils. Why do you loosen your hair, and display it, which you ought to hide? Why do you display the dignified mystery of honorable women, being overcome by excessive madness? Woe is me, woe is me, Rachel! I will speak at last, held by bitterness of soul; and what shall I say? I wish to bring forth the word from my heart, and again I recoil, not finding the cause of the evils and the greatest calamity: King Herod, who teaches me not to murder, and by his deed annulling his own law! You whom I thought to be a king of good order, I see you now as a leader of disorder, working in an undisciplined and lawless manner. O greatest folly! One who commits a single murder becomes liable for death, and Herod, having committed so many, is called king. And the farmers indeed bring forth seed from their own barns to sprinkle clean wheat in the furrows of the earth; and when the ears of grain have sprouted and signify the brilliant time of the harvest, then, stretching out their hands, they cut the crop with a sharp sickle. But Herod has withered the bloom of my womb with a sharp sword, before the offspring had yet ripened into the flowers of age, before the spring graces of down had risen upon their cheeks. Woe to me, woe to me! My womb pains me, and the senses of my heart are convulsed; my soul is torn in my heart: I will not be silent. For it is for the sake of the wedded-less bride Mary that I endure these things, for the sake of the Word hidden in the manger. Not yet do I see my own clusters of senses, now bruising in ripeness, being already vanished. Woe to me, woe to me! Those whom nature bore, having made them ripe after nine months of carrying them with pain, these I see slaughtered by a single blow of a sword. Woe to me! O virgin Mary, at once mother! the [original-script column: see facsimile]
my heart is torn: I will not be silent. I suffer these things for the sake of the Virgin Mary who knew no man, and for the sake of the Word lying in the manger. I see the clusters, budding in the spirit and not yet ripening, snuffed out. Woe is me, woe is me! Those whom nature bore with labor after nine months, I see these prematurely slaughtered by the blow of the sword. Woe is me, O Virgin Mary, at once mother and one who did not know man, yet bore a son; you have not known the sorrow of mothers: for if you had known it, surely you would weep. You carried without pain; you gave birth without labor; you received the Word of heaven as a guest in your home without pain; you sent forth the celestial flower to the world without labor. But at last draw near, and weep no more, but make an end of mourning, Rachel. Herod slew your infants on earth, but God nourishes them in heaven: Herod deprived your children of temporal light, but He shall fill them in heaven with His own light. You do not see them leaping on earth; but then you shall see and rejoice, seeing them as lambs leaping in paradise. Now you grieve, not seeing them extending their hands at the table; but then you shall see and rejoice, seeing them eating the celestial bread with the angels: now you grieve, not seeing them singing; but then, rejoicing, you shall see this chorus of infants, like spring swallows, celebrating Christ in paradise. For since the prophet said, "Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise" (Ps. VIII, 3), the chorus of infants forestalled him, preparing triumphal hymns for Christ, fulfilling that word of the prophet: "Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise." But this, beloved, we have said for the delight of praise; let us now turn to the path of the Gospel. "Hearing," he says, "Herod was troubled" (Matt. II, 3). A Observe, beloved, the devil troubled in Herod, and that indeed vehemently. The wolf sees the shepherd born, and himself hidden in a manger, and holding the firm staff of the Spirit in his hands, and seeing this he is troubled vehemently. The dragon sees the bait of the body and the infant crawling like a worm; "For I am a worm, and no man" (Ps. XXI, 7); and he rushes with gaping mouth; and he sees within the celestial Word in the flesh, like a hook hidden, and having seen this he is troubled vehemently. He sees the grain of mustard coming into the earth, and sending forth branches of hope, which would shelter the race of men under the leaves of salvation; and the hater of good, the devil, seeing this, is greatly perturbed. He sees Wisdom having come to earth, and having taken a little leaven of the body, and having mixed it into the three parts of the flour, in soul, in body, and in spirit, so that through it the whole human race might be leavened in the one salvation of faith; and having observed this thing he is troubled vehemently. He sees the legion of the demon expelled from the human race and sent into the abyss, and seeing this he is troubled greatly. He sees the gates of hell broken, and Adam led back into paradise, and he is troubled vehemently. He sees again Eve saved through Mary, and the serpent in whom he most trusted killed; and seeing these things, he is a vehement troubler. He sees the tree of life planted, and seeing this he is troubled greatly. Time would fail me, beloved, to recount the perturbation of the devil. Finally, when the devil could do nothing against the Lord, he runs to the infants and tender children. And whom does he slay? From two years old and under; those however who had reached three years old he did not kill. For those are infants who confess the dyad, or two persons, and do not believe in the Trinity. Wherefore this Rachel, that is, the Church from the Gentiles, laments this, so that her voice is heard in Rama, that is, in the high place: for thus Rama is interpreted, high, the heavenly Jerusalem before the Most High God, to whom is due all glory, honor, and power with the most holy and life-giving Spirit, for ever and ever. Amen.
On Herod and the Infants
I would indeed always and everywhere have a spiritual discourse, obeying Paul who says: "Comparing spiritual things with spiritual" (I Cor. II, 13); especially since I am a debtor from the previous Lord's day which bears the name of the Lord. I know not how it always happens to me that my poverty never pays its debts, while you, insatiable in spiritual matters, always demand the debt with interest. Yet I do not grieve, O friends, but rather exult; for I am a servant hoping to become rich. Therefore I do not ask for pardon, but for a respite. For God is present who supplies speech and says: "Open thy mouth, and I will fill it" (Ps. LXXX, 14); not because of the dignity of the speaker, but because of the pious desire of the listeners. You heard therefore the evangelist Matthew saying: "And when Herod the king saw that he was mocked by the wise men, he was exceeding wroth; and sent forth and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men" (Matt. II, 16). These are the events at the birth of Christ according to the flesh. Hear, however, from how long before this had been predicted. "That it might be fulfilled," he says, "the word which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying: A voice was heard in Rama, Rachel weeping for her children" (Ibid. v. 17-18). Do you see how many generations before the madness of Herod in the last times was announced? "Sending forth," he says, "he slew all the children that were in Bethlehem and in all the coasts thereof." O the madness of Herod, or rather the wickedness of the devil! For this was his work; he himself armed Herod against the children. But he stirred up the sword against himself, with which he slew the children: for although Herod attempted many things, he did not slay Jesus, as he hoped. The vain effort of Herod was the ruin of the devil. "Seeing," he says, "that he was mocked by the wise men, he was exceeding wroth; and sent forth and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof." O Herod, why art thou rashly angry? Why dost thou take up arms against infants? B Thou wert mocked by the wise men, and thou slaughterest infants? Did the infants lead the wise men? The star indicated the Lord born to them. Since therefore thou canst not shoot against the star, dost thou slaughter infants? Didst thou receive the kingdom for this, that thou mightest show force against those who are doing nothing? Dost thou fight with infants, Herod? Dost thou make mothers bereaved, dost thou dry up breasts? Dost thou strip arms? Dost thou pierce bowels? Dost thou multiply laments for women bringing forth? Wilt thou slay infants from two years old and under? Thou hast where thou mayest fix the sword. This is not to kill, but to pierce prematurely. Show the sword to the infants: if they fear, kill, slaughter; if they approach the sword gladly, why dost thou apply the sword to those who laugh at the sword? Dost thou think, Herod, that thou art going to reach the Savior and slay him himself? But since thou hast decreed this entirely, send forth a decree, summon the wise men, stop the star, watch for Gabriel, judge the prophets, seek the Virgin mother: if thou attainest these things, then thou shalt be able to find Christ. Dost thou not bring glory, but seek him who was born without flux? Dost thou fight with God, O king? Thou who art ruling, dost thou inquire curiously? Dost thou wish to hold him who holds thee? Dost thou wish to destroy him who desires thy salvation? Dost thou wish to comprehend him deceitfully who is present to thee, and because of thy wickedness does not want to be seen by thee? This is he, O Herod, who for a long time now cries out: "The wicked shall seek me, and shall not find me." Dost thou despise him as an infant? He is far more ancient than Abraham according to his divinity; and not only more ancient than Abraham, but he is also the creator of Adam. He is not surrounded by fear, but he enters into the economy of salvation. Why therefore, Herod, art thou rashly angry? The profit of untimely anger is ruin. Why did he attempt similar things to Pharaoh? He ordered the males of the Hebrews to be cast into the river in Egypt, and thou commandest the male infants of the Jews to be slain in Bethlehem. O equal mind! Similar inhumanity! O equal wickedness! Nay rather, C