One night no leftovers; no bone broken; morning = age to come
Cyril: Filling our own mind not only with what is human and outwardly apparent in Emmanuel, but also with the very inward parts — that is, his hidden mysteries — we shall have spiritual nourishment. He said the lamb must be consumed in that one night, with nothing at all left over remaining until morning. (Ex 12:10)
And he does not allow a bone to be broken — the first point signaling that in the age to come Christ will sanctify and bless those dedicated to him by faith and holiness in another manner, and will not again feed them with his own flesh and make them live by his blood exactly as now, but — death already abolished and corruption wholly dissolved — there will be some intelligible mode of sanctifying. (Ex 12:46; Jn 19:36; 1 Cor 15:26)
So morning would signify, I think, nothing other than the age to come. And the second point — that the bone must not be broken — leads us into thoughts about Christ and keeps us in step with what was written of him.
Greek
θρώπινα, καὶ ἐξωφανῆ τὸν Ἐμμανουὴλ, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτῶν τῶν ἐντοσθίων, τουτέστι, τῶν κεκρυμμένων αὐτοῦ μυστηρίων τὸν οἰκεῖον ἀναπιμπλάντες νοῦν, εὐτροφίαν ἕξομεν τὴν πνευματικήν. Δαπανᾶσθαί γε μὴν αὐτῇ δεῖν ἔφη τῇ μιᾷ νυκτὶ τὸν ἀμνὸν, οὐδενὸς τὸ σύμπαν περιλελειμμένου, καὶ εἰς τὸ πρωῒ μένοντος. Συντρίβεσθαι δὲ καὶ ὀστοῦν οὐκ ἐᾷ, τοῦ μὲν πρώτου κατασημαίνοντος, ὡς εἰς αἰῶνα τὸν μέλλοντα, καθ' ἕτερόν τινα τρόπον ἁγιάσει τε καὶ εὐλογήσει Χριστὸς τοὺς ἀνακειμένους αὐτῷ διὰ πίστεως καὶ ἁγιασμοῦ, καὶ οὐχὶ δὴ πάντως ἀποθρέψει πάλιν τῇ ἰδίᾳ σαρκὶ, καὶ ζωοποιήσει τῷ αἵματι, καθάπερ ἀμέλει καὶ νῦν, ἀλλ' ὡς ἤδη κατηργημένου θανάτου, καὶ λυθείσης εἰσάπαν τῆς φθορᾶς, νοητὸς ἔσται τις ὁ τοῦ ἁγιάζοντος τρόπος. Οὐκοῦν τὸ πρωῒ κατασημήνειεν ἂν οὐχ ἕτερον οἶμαί τι, παρὰ τὸν αἰῶνα τὸν μέλλοντα. Τοῦ δὲ δευτέρου, τοῦ μὴ χρῆναι, λέγω, συντρίβεσθαι τὸ ὀστοῦν, εἰς ἐννοίας ἡμᾶς ἀναφέροντος τὰς ἐπὶ Χριστῷ, καὶ ἀκολουθεῖν ἀναπείθοντος ταῖς τῶν θεηγόρων φωναῖς. Ὁ γάρτοι θεσπέσιος εὐαγγελιστὴς, σωματικώτερον ἐκλαβὼν ἐπὶ Χριστοῦ τὸ χρησμῴδημα, «Οὐ κατέαξαν αὐτοῦ,» φησὶν, «οἱ στρατιῶται τὰ σκέλη, ὅπως πληρωθῇ τὸ γεγραμμένον· Καὶ ὀστοῦν οὐ συντριβήσεται ἀπ' αὐτοῦ.» Ἐσθίουσι δὲ τὸν ἀμνὸν, διεζωσμένοι τὰς ὀσφύας, ὑποδησάμενοι τοὺς πόδας, καὶ βακτηρίας ἔχοντες ἐν ταῖς χερσὶ, καὶ ἁπαξαπλῶς εἰπεῖν, ἐν σχήματι γεγονότες τῶν ὁδοιπορεῖν εἰωθότων, καὶ μάλα ὀρθῶς. Εὐτρεπεῖς γὰρ ὥσπερ γεγονότες τοῦ μεθίστασθαι νοητῶς, καὶ οἱονεί πως ἐξοδοιπορεῖν ἐπειγόμενοι τῶν ἐν τῷδε τῷ κόσμῳ περισπασμῶν, καὶ εἰς πᾶν ὁτιοῦν τῶν ἀρίστων μεταφοιτᾷν προθυμούμενοι, μεταληψόμεθα τοῦ Χριστοῦ πανάγνως καὶ καθαρῶς. Οὐ γὰρ τοῖς προσκαίροις ἐμφιλοχωρεῖν εἰθίσμεθα, μετατρέχομεν δὲ γεννικῶς εἰς τὰ πεπηγότα καὶ μένοντα· καὶ τῶν σαρκικῶν ἀκαθαρσιῶν ἀπαίροντες, εἰς ἀστειότητα τὴν πνευματικὴν μεταθρώσκομεν μεμνημένοι λέγοντος τοῦ Χριστοῦ, «Ἐγείρεσθε, ἄγωμεν ἐντεῦθεν.» Ταύτῃ τοι περίκεινται σχῆμα τοῖς ὁδοιπορεῖν εἰωθόσι τὸ πρέπον, οἱ τὸν ἀμνὸν ἐσθίοντες εἰς τύπον Χριστοῦ. Πλὴν, ἐν σπουδῇ φάγεσθαι χρή. Πάσχα γάρ ἐστι Κυρίου, τουτέστι, διάβασις, ἤτοι διαβατήρια· καιροῦ γὰρ ἐνεστηκότος καθ' ὃν ἀναγκαῖον διαβαίνειν ἡμᾶς ἐκ φαυλότητος κοσμικῆς, ἐπὶ τὸ δρᾷν ἐπείγεσθαι τὰ ἁνδάνοντα τῷ Θεῷ, τὸ μὴ ἐν ὅλῃ ταυτὶ ποιεῖσθαι σπουδῇ, διαμέλλειν δὲ ὥσπερ καὶ ἀναδύεσθαι τοῖς ἀρχαίοις ἡμᾶς προστετηκότας ἔτι κακοῖς, πῶς οὐκ ἂν εἴη τῶν σφαλερωτάτων; Καὶ γοῦν ὁ θεσπέσιος Παῦλος, «Τρέχετε,» φησὶν, «ἵνα καταλάβητε.» Ἰτέον δὴ οὖν εἰς μετάληψιν τοῦ Χριστοῦ διὰ πίστεως, παντὸς μὲν ὄκνου πεπατημένου, μελλησμοῦ δὲ οὐδενὸς παρεισδεδυκότος, ἀλλ' ὡς ἐν ὅλῃ σπουδῇ. Διαβησόμεθα γὰρ οὕτως ἐξ ἁμαρτιῶν εἰς δικαίωσιν, ἐκ θανάτου πρὸς ζωὴν, καὶ τὸ τῆς δουλείας αἶσχος ἀποτριψάμενοι, τὴν εὐκλεᾶ τῆς υἱοθεσίας καταπλουτήσομεν χάριν.
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.