New life after Emmanuel; Pentecost weeks; two leavened firstfruit loaves
Cyril: ‘You shall not eat,’ he says, ‘until this very day, until you bring your gifts to your God.’ (Lev 23:14) For the fitting time to share in the new and unstained life would be only — and most reasonably — the time when Emmanuel shone forth. Before him no one at all was able to remake us into new life; he himself is like a firstfruit and first of those created into incorruption, inasmuch as he appeared as man and in flesh with us through likeness to us.
And at once he has brought in a clear sketch of our holy Pentecost, saying that seven weeks must be counted from the bringing-in of the sheaf. (Lev 23:15-16; Acts 2:1) For after the Savior’s resurrection day, stringing seven weeks together, we who have believed keep the feast.
Palladius: And the two loaves baked with leaven as firstfruits — what do they mean?
Cyril: They signal the calling of the two peoples into one new offering, leavened with the good leaven of the gospel. (Lev 23:17; Eph 2:15)
Greek
φάγεσθε, φησὶν, ἕως εἰς αὐτὴν τὴν ἡμέραν ταύτην, ἕως ἂν προσενέγκητε ὑμεῖς τὰ δῶρα τῷ Θεῷ ὑμῶν. Καιρὸς γὰρ ὁ πρέπων τοῦ χρῆναι μεταλαχεῖν τῆς νέας τε καὶ ἀκηράτου ζωῆς, μόνος ἂν γένοιτο, καὶ σφόδρα εἰκότως, καθ' ὃν ἐπέλαμψεν ὁ Ἐμμανουήλ. Ἱκανὸς δὲ πρὸ αὐτοῦ παντελῶς οὐδεὶς, εἰς νέαν ἡμᾶς ἀναστοιχειῶσαι ζωὴν, ἀπαρχὴ δὲ ὥσπερ καὶ πρῶτος αὐτὸς τῶν εἰς ἀφθαρσίαν ἐκτισμένων, καθὸ πέφηνεν ἄνθρωπος, καὶ ἐν σαρκὶ μεθ' ἡμῶν, διὰ τὴν πρὸς ἡμᾶς ὁμοίωσιν. Εἰσκεκόμικε δὲ παραχρῆμα τῆς ἁγίας ἡμῖν Πεντηκοστῆς προανατύπωσιν ἐναργῆ, ἑπτὰ χρῆναι λέγων ἐπαριθμεῖν ἑβδομάδας, τῇ τοῦ δράγματος εἰσκομιδῇ. Μετὰ γάρ τοι τὴν ἀναστάσιμον τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμέραν, ἑπτὰ συνείροντες ἑβδομάδας, ἑορτάζομεν οἱ πεπιστευκότες.
{ΠΑΛΛ.} Ὡς σαφὴς ὁ λόγος!
{ΚΥΡ.} Ὅτι δὲ τῆς τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἀναστάσεως ὁ καιρὸς μεθίστησι τοὺς ἡγιασμένους ἐν Πνεύματι, καὶ ἐν πίστει δεδικαιωμένους, εἰς τὸ δύνασθαι καρποφορεῖν τὴν νέαν τε καὶ ἀκίβδηλον ζωὴν, κατεδείκνυ σαφῶς οὕτω λέγων εὐθύς· «Καὶ προσοίσετε θυσίαν νέαν τῷ Κυρίῳ, ἀπὸ τῆς κατοικίας ὑμῶν προσοίσετε ἄρτους ἐπίθεμα, δύο ἄρτους, ἐκ δύο δεκάτων σεμιδάλεως ἔσται ὁ ἄρτος ὁ εἷς, ἐζυμωμένοι πεφθήσονται πρωτογεννημάτων τῷ Κυρίῳ, καὶ προσάξετε μετὰ τῶν ἄρτων ἑπτὰ ἀμνοὺς ἀμώμους ἐνιαυσίους, καὶ μόσχον ἕνα ἐκ βουκολίων, καὶ κριοὺς δύο ἀμώμους, καὶ ἔσονται εἰς ὁλοκαύτωμα τῷ Κυρίῳ, καὶ αἱ θυσίαι αὐτῶν καὶ αἱ σπονδαὶ αὐτῶν, θυσία ὀσμὴ εὐωδίας τῷ Κυρίῳ. Καὶ ποιήσουσι χίμαρον ἐξ αἰγῶν ἕνα περὶ ἁμαρτίας, καὶ δύο ἀμνοὺς ἐνιαυσίους εἰς θυσίαν σωτηρίου μετὰ τῶν ἄρτων τοῦ πρωτογεννήματος. Καὶ ἐπιθήσει αὐτὰ ὁ ἱερεὺς μετὰ τῶν ἄρτων τοῦ πρωτογεννήματος ἐπίθεμα ἐναντίον Κυρίου μετὰ τῶν δύο ἀμνῶν, ἅγια ἔσονται τῷ Κυρίῳ, τῷ ἱερεῖ τῷ προσφέροντι αὐτὰ αὐτῷ ἔσται. Καὶ καλέσετε ταύτην τὴν ἡμέραν κλητὴν, ἁγία ἔσται ὑμῖν, πᾶν ἔργον λατρευτὸν οὐ ποιήσετε ἐν αὐτῇ, νόμιμον αἰώνιον εἰς τὰς γενεὰς ὑμῶν ἐν πάσῃ τῇ κατοικίᾳ ὑμῶν.» Ἀπαρχὴ μὲν γὰρ καὶ οἱονεὶ πρωτόλειον τῆς εἰς καινότητα μεταπλαττομένης κτίσεως ὁ Ἐμμανουὴλ, νοεῖται δὲ πρῶτος ἐν ἡμῖν, ὡς ἄρτος καὶ νέον φύραμα, τρίβον δὲ ὥσπερ τὴν εἰς τὸ χρῆμα λοιπὸν ἑλόντες ἡμεῖς, καθ' ὁμοιότητα τὴν πρὸς αὐτὸν, νέον ὥσπερ τι καὶ ἡμεῖς κεκλήμεθα φύραμα. Τύπος δ' ἂν εἴη καὶ τοῦδε σαφὴς, ὁ ἐκ νέων καρπῶν προσκομιζόμενος ἄρτος, ἀλλ' οὐχ εἷς ὁ ἄρτος, δύο δὲ χρῆναι προσάγεσθαι λέγει· δύο γὰρ οἱ λαοὶ, κἂν εἰ πρὸς ἑνότητα φαίνοιντο συνενηνεγμένοι διὰ μεσίτου Χριστοῦ· πλὴν ἐζυμωμένοι πεφθήσονται, φησί. Καὶ τί τὸ αἴνιγμα, φέρε λέγωμεν, τὸ τοῦ νόμου βάθος, ὡς ἔνι, καλῶς περιαθρήσαντες. Ἆρα γὰρ ζύμην ἐν τούτοις ἐννοεῖν ἀκόλουθον, τὴν ὡς ἐν φαυλότητι καὶ κατεψευσμένην; Εἶτα πῶς οὐ μωρία τοῦτό γε; πῶς γὰρ ἂν ἔτι κακίας ἀπαλλάξαιμεν, τοὺς εἰς καινότητα πολιτείας εὐαγγελικῆς μετεσκευασμένους; ἢ πῶς ἂν
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.