The Dual Throne of the Rising Sun
It rose up like light and offspring. He who, having risen up below according to a theological statementill build the house of the Lord'—the Church of the living God—especially he who, having risen up below the God-Word during the visitation, is a man. But also those who, having risen up below according to the other interpretations, being obedient to the All-King and good teacher, having changed the commandments of the one ruling and instructing them into practices, built their life like a house upon the rock which is Christ, setting the foundations and bases of the house upon the solid and indestructible faith into the Trinity, a rock so named toward the one confessing it toward the one having been confessed, according to it thus as it is said: 'You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church', and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it' (Matt 16:18).
But also those who, according to the third interpretation, having been placed under the feet of the All-King as enemies, becoming instead different friends, will build the house of the Lord, 'that he may dwell and walk in them' (Rev 2:7), having called and having improved them. He who, having risen up below according to the visitation, similarly to: 'Truth from the earth has risen up' (Ps 89:37), 'shall receive virtue,' is one of those bearing it, those being saved toward him and being led into great glory. For how does he not receive this from the one becoming in him the righteousness of God, he became sin on behalf of them, according to apostolic teaching he who did not know sin, he made sin on behalf of us, that in him we might become the righteousness of God' (2 Cor 5:21)? For how does he not receive virtue being the righteousness and abundance of peace in the days of his incarnation?
As he intends to receive the virtue being made in men, let each of the faithful bear fruit and offer it; the one preferring to be temperate, decency and temperance, also purity and virginity; the one self-controlled, self-control, 'always carrying the death of Jesus in his body' (Gal 6:14) to himself. And those 'using the honorable marriage and the undefiled bed' (Heb 13:4) also offer virtue. Such as Joseph was, and Susanna, and Anna the prophetess and Elizabeth the mother of the baptizer, and as many as...
Others and others have excelled in purity. They claimed a great and unshakeable faith, a virtue that was superlative, 'those who have fought the good fight for the truth even unto death' (Heb 12:4), having confessed in them the Son of God before men, so that He himself might also confess them before the heavenly Father and the holy angels.
2.65 The one called the Rising Sun 'is seated and shall reign upon his throne' (Ps 45:6). And his throne is double, the one as king, the other as priest, as it is possible to demonstrate from the written words.
2.66 The Pantocrator is made manifest from the recurring decree having it thus: 'When a righteous king sits upon a throne, nothing evil opposes him' (Ps 72:1); but also from: 'Your throne, O God, is unto an age of ages; a rod of uprightness is the rod of your kingship' (Ps 45:6); and from that which is said in the Psalms: 'The Lord King is seated for ever' (Ps 45:13).
2.67 Concerning the priestly aspect, in the Epistle to the Hebrews; for the one who inscribed the epistle wrote: 'Such a high priest became fitting for us, holy, blameless, undefiled' (Heb 5:8), and he says: 'Let us therefore approach with boldness to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help' (Heb 4:16), calling the throne of grace the throne of the holy, blameless, and undefiled high priest.
2.68 Since therefore the one about whom it is said 'is seated and shall reign upon his throne' (Ps 45:6) has received 'the throne of David his father, that he may reign for the ages, his kingship having no end' (2 Sam 7:13), but also 'an unshakeable priesthood' (Ps 110:4). For it has been said concerning him: 'You are a priest for ever' (Ps 110:4).
2.69 Upon the double throne he is seated and shall reign, he alone having the throne of kingship and priesthood. When having sat upon the throne he shall reign firmly, thus: 'there shall be a priest at his right hand, in the midst of a peaceful counsel between both' (Ps 110:3). Who then is this, or is it Melchizedek, whom the Apostle writes remains a priest perpetually, being made like unto the Son of God (Heb 7:3)?
2.70 And thus the apostolic voice has toward the Hebrews: 'Without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but having been made like unto the Son of God, he remains a priest perpetually' (Heb 7:3). Since...
Greek
ἀνέτειλαν ὡς φῶς καὶ γενήματα. 2.60 Ὁ ὑποκάτω ἀνατείλας τοῦ θεολογουμένου «οἰκοδομήσει τὸν τοῦ Κυρίου οἶκον», τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν τοῦ ζῶντος Θεοῦ, μάλιστα ὁ ὑποκάτω τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγου κατὰ τὴν ἐπιδημίαν ἀνατείλας ἄνθρωπος. Ἀλλὰ καὶ οἱ κατὰ τὰς ἑτέρας ἀποδόσεις ὑποκάτωθεν ἀνατείλαντες, ὑπήκοοι τοῦ παμβασιλέως καὶ ἀγαθοῦ διδασκάλου, εἰς πράξεις μεταβαλόντες τὰς ἐντολὰς τοῦ κρατοῦντος αὐτῶν καὶ παιδεύσαντος, ᾠκοδόμησαν τὸν βίον αὐτῶν οἷα οἶκον ἐπὶ τὴν πέτραν τὸν Χριστόν, ἐγκαταβαλόμενοι τὰς κρηπίδας καὶ θεμελίους τοῦ οἴκου ἐπὶ τὴν στερεὰν καὶ ἀκατάλυτον εἰς τὴν Τριάδα πίστιν, πέτραν ω᾿̣νομασμένην πρὸς τὸν ὁμολογήσαντα αὐτὴν πρὸς τοῦ ὁμολ̣ογηθέντος, κατὰ τὸ οὕτω λεχθέν· «Σὺ εἶ Πέτρος, καὶ ἐπὶ ταύτῃ τ̣ῃ῀̣ πέτρᾳ οἰκοδομήσω μου τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν, καὶ πύλαι ᾅδου οὐ μ̣ὴ κατισχύσουσιν αὐτῆς.» 2.61 Ἀλλὰ καὶ οἱ κατὰ τὴν τρίτην ἀπόδοσ̣ι̣ν ὑπὸ τοὺς πόδας τεθέντες τοῦ παμβασιλέως ἐχθροί, ἀντὶ διαφόρων φίλοι γενόμενοι, οἰκοδομήσουσιν τὸν οἶκον Κυρίου, «ἵν' ἐνοικήσῃ καὶ ἐμπεριπατήσῃ ἐν αὐτοῖς», καλέσας καὶ βελτιώσας αὐτούς. 2.62 Ὁ κατὰ τὴν ἐπιδημίαν ὑποκάτωθεν ἀνατείλας, παραπλησίως τῷ· «Ἀλήθεια ἐκ τῆς γῆς ἀνέτειλεν», «λήμψεται ἀρετήν», καρποφορούντων αὐτὴν τῶν πρὸς αὐτοῦ σῳζομένων καὶ εἰς μέγα δόξης ἀγομένων. Πῶς γὰρ οὐ λαμβάνει ταύτην ἀπὸ τῶν γινομένων Θεοῦ δικαιοσύνη ἐν αὐτῷ, γεναμένῳ ὑπὲρ αὐτῶν ἁμαρτία, κατὰ τὴν φιλοσοφίαν τὴν ἀποστολικήν· «Τὸν μὴ γνόντα γάρ, φησίν, ἁμαρτίαν, ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν ἁμαρτίαν ἐποίησεν, ἵν' ἐν αὐτῷ γενώμεθα Θεοῦ δικαιοσύνη»; Πῶς γὰρ οὐ λαμβάνει ἀρετὴν οὖσαν τὴν ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις τῆς ἐνανθρωπήσεως αὐτοῦ δικαιοσύνην καὶ πλῆθος εἰρήνης; 2.63 Ἐπινεύοντος δ' αὐτοῦ λαμβάνειν τὴν ἐν ἀνθρώποις γινομένην ἀρετήν, ἕκαστος τῶν πιστῶν καρποφορείτω καὶ προσφερέτω αὐτήν· ὁ σωφρονεῖν προτιθέμενος, κοσμιότητα καὶ σωφροσυ´̣νην, ἁγνείαν τε καὶ παρθενίαν· ὁ ἐγκρατής, τὴν ἐγκράτειαν, «τὴν νέκρωσιν τοῦ Ἰησοῦ πάντοτε περιφέρων ἐν σώματι» τῷ ἑαυτοῦ. Προσφέρουσι δὲ ἀρετὴν καὶ οἱ «τὸν τίμιον γάμον καὶ κοίτην τὴν ἀμίαντον» μεταχειριζόμενοι. 2.64 Οἷος ἦν ὁ Ἰωσήφ, καὶ Σωσάννα, Ἄννα τε ἡ προφῆτις καὶ ἡ τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ μήτηρ Ἐλισαβέτ, καὶ ὅσοι ἄλλοι καὶ ἄλλαι διέπρεψαν ἐν ἁγνείᾳ. Προσηγίοχαν δὲ πίστιν μεγάλην καὶ ἀκαθαίρετον, ὑπερφυῆ ἀρετὴν οὖσαν, «οἱ μέχρι θανάτου ὑπὲρ τῆς ἀληθείας ἀγωνισάμενοι», ὁμολογήσαντες ἐν αὐτοῖς τὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ Υἱὸν ἔμπροσθεν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ἵνα καὶ αὐτὸς ἐν αὐτοῖς ὁμολογήσῃ αὐτοὺς ἔμπροσθεν τοῦ οὐρανίου Πατρὸς καὶ τῶν ἁγίων ἀγγέλων. 2.65 Ὁ κληθεὶς ἀνατολὴ ἀνὴρ «καθιεῖται καὶ κατάρξει ἐπὶ τοῦ θρόνου αὐτοῦ». ∆ιττὸς δ' ἐστὶν ὁ θρόνος̣ αὐτοῦ, ὃ μὲν ὡς βασιλέως, ὃ δὲ ὡς ἱερέως, ὡς ἀπὸ λέξεων γρ̣αφικῶν ἔστιν ἀποδεῖξαι. 2.66 ∆ηλοῦται ὁ παντοκρατορικὸς ἐκ τοῦ π̣αρ̣ο̣ιμιώδους θεσπίσματος οὕτως ἔχοντος· «Ὅταν βασιλεὺς δίκαιος καθίσῃ ἐπὶ θρόνου, οὐκ ἀντιτάσσεται αὐτῷ οὐδὲν πονηρόν»· ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐκ τοῦ· «Ὁ θρόνος σου, ὁ Θεός, εἰς αἰῶνα αἰῶνος· ῥάβδος εὐθύτητος ἡ ῥάβδος τῆς βασιλείας σου»· καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ ἐν Ψαλμοῖς εἰρημένου· «Καθιεῖται Κύριος βασιλεὺς εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα.» 2.67 Περὶ δὲ τοῦ ἱερατικοῦ, ἐν τῇ πρὸς Ἑβραίους· γράψας γὰρ ὁ τὴν ἐπιστολὴν χαράξας· «Τοιοῦτος ἡμῖν ἔπρεπεν ἀρχιερεύς, ὅσιος, ἄκακος, ἀμίαντος», καὶ τοῦτό φησιν· «Προσερχώμεθα οὖν μετὰ παρρησίας τῷ θρόνῳ τῆς χάριτος, ἵνα λάβωμεν ἔλεος, καὶ χάριν εὕρωμεν εἰς βοήθειαν», θρόνον λέγων χάριτος τὸν τοῦ ὁσίου καὶ ἀκάκου καὶ ἀμιάντου ἀρχιερέως. 2.68 Ἐπεὶ τοίνυν ὁ περὶ οὗ λέγεται καθιεῖται καὶ κατάρξει ἐπὶ τοῦ θρόνου αὐτοῦ, ἔλαβεν «τὸν θρόνον ∆αυὶδ τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ· ἵν' εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας βασιλεύῃ, τῆς βασιλείας αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἐχούσης τέλος», ἀλλὰ καὶ «ἱερωσύνην ἀπαράβατον». 49 Εἴρηται γὰρ πρὸς αὐτόν· «Σὺ εἶ ὁ ἱερεὺς εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα.» 2.69 Ἐπὶ τοῦ διττοῦ θρόνου καθιεῖται καὶ κατάρξει, μόνου αὐτοῦ τὸν βασιλείας καὶ ἱερωσύνης θρόν̣ον ἔχοντος. Ὅταν καθίσας ἐπὶ τοῦ θρόνου κατάρξῃ βεβαίως βασιλεύων, τὸ τηνικάδε «ἔσται ὁ ἱερεὺς ἐκ δεξιῶν αὐτοῦ, βο̣υλῆς εἰρηνικῆς ἀνὰ μέσον ἀμφοτέρων οὔσης». Τίς δ' οὗτός ἐστιν ἢ ὁ Μελχισεδέκ, ὃν γράφει ὁ Ἀπόστολος μένειν ἱερέα εἰς τὸ διηνεκὲς τῷ ἀφωμοιῶσθαι τῷ Υἱῷ τοῦ Θεοῦ. 2.70 Ἔχει δ' οὕτως ἡ ἀποστολικὴ φωνὴ πρὸς Ἑβραίους· «Ἀπάτωρ, ἀμήτωρ, ἀγενεαλόγητος, μήτε ἀρχὴν ἡμερῶν μηδὲ τέλος ζωῆς ἔχων, ἀφωμοιωμένος δὲ τῷ Υἱῷ τοῦ Θεοῦ, μένει ἱερεὺς εἰς τὸ διηνεκές.» Ἐπειδὴ δὲ
About this text
Didymus the Blind on Zechariah.
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- Copy-text PG (Khazarzar) (Greek)
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