Demonstrations 14.27–14.37

Translated by Claude from Jean Parisot's Latin translation (1894) of the Syriac; neither is shown

But you will say to me: "I am comely and handsome, and God has chosen and anointed me to rule over the children of my people." But learn, O man! [and know] that God promised Phinehas the son of Eleazar with an oath that the covenant of the priesthood would be kept by him and his sons for ever; and Phinehas served in the priesthood all the days of the Judges, that is, three hundred and sixty-five years; then Eli arose after him; and when he and his sons transgressed the law, [God] said to him through the prophet: "I said indeed that you and your father's house would serve before me for ever. But now, far be it from me, says the Lord; but those who glorify me I will glorify; and those who despise me will become of no account." Isaac our father too had wished to bless Esau his firstborn; but Jacob, chosen from his mother's womb, received the blessing, as God said to Rebecca: "The elder will serve the younger." Saul too was chosen by the Holy One to become king; but when he did not carry out God's will, [God] chose David and rejected Saul. Yet, brothers, they bring us a specious, foolish, and silly answer, [saying]: "So God has set us over his people in adverse times, as he did Jehu, who received anointing in an inner room." But if someone asks you, O wise scribe, when the anointing of Jehu was promised and when he was given the anointing, what will you say to him? [God] commanded Elijah on Mount Horeb, saying: "Go and anoint Jehu to reign over Israel, to destroy the house of Ahab." Elijah received this command and ministered many years until he was taken up. After him [arose] Elisha. And when the time came [for] Jehu [to reign], and the measure of the iniquities of the house of Ahab overflowed, Elisha sent one of the sons of the prophets, who went and anointed Jehu, as he had been commanded. But if we were to compare [our affairs] with [those of] Jehu, would it then be prescribed in the same way that a priest should be over the people, so that, having gained office, he should destroy, bind, and lead astray all his brothers, as Jehu laid waste and destroyed the house of Ahab? An answer of this kind is like the one Jezebel gave, who, when she saw Jehu, now master of the kingdom, approaching, adorned herself and, looking at him through the window, said to him: "Come in peace, Zimri, murderer of his master." But her own answer condemned her; for Jehu killed her too, tore her apart, and threw her to the dogs.

Translated by Claude from Jean Parisot's Latin translation (1894) of the Syriac; neither is shown

"And what if [someone] was chosen from his mother's womb, like Jacob?" they will say to us; "or sanctified from the womb, like Jeremiah? or predestined to the kingdom, like Solomon, and called a son of God? or chosen before he was conceived, like Josiah? or is to build the temple, like Cyrus?" But know, O man, that Aaron did not glorify himself to become high priest. Moses too, when his Lord wished to make him a god to Pharaoh and a ruler over the children of his people, refused once and again, until [the Lord] sent him into Egypt out of great distress and worked signs and wonders through him.

Translated by Claude from Jean Parisot's Latin translation (1894) of the Syriac; neither is shown

Or shall we look at height of stature, like Saul's; or a splendid appearance, like Eliab's; or exceptional beauty, like Absalom's? But the Lord takes no delight in appearance, nor does he love the proud or the boastful. For Samuel says: "The Lord looks at the heart, but man sees with the eyes." And the Apostle says: "God chose the foolish of the world, to put the wise to shame by them; he chose the weak, to put the strong to shame by them; he chose the base, the least, the despised, and those who are nothing, to bring to nothing those who are something, so that no flesh may boast in the sight of God, from whom you are." Jeremiah too: "Let not the strong man boast in his strength, nor the rich in his riches, nor the mighty man in his might; but let him who boasts boast in the Lord." For all people are God's creatures, and before him there is neither slave nor free, nor rich nor poor, but all who serve him are equal before him. And if people boast of abundance of speech or loftiness of knowledge, in this too they do not prevail. For so it is written: "He will not listen to a multitude of words, nor will a wordy man be justified by his speeches." Again it is written: "He takes away speech from the trustworthy and removes the understanding of the elders." And many more things [of this kind] are written.

Translated by Claude from Jean Parisot's Latin translation (1894) of the Syriac; neither is shown

But, brothers, pursue peace, give your effort to quiet; quench malice, remove grudges, soothe those who are embittered; for iniquity will not overcome fairness, nor malice conquer righteousness, nor will peace be held back by sedition, nor will falsehood convict truth of lying; nor can the righteous agree with the perverse, nor the upright man with the malicious, nor the good with the wicked, nor sweet with bitter, darkness with light, brightness with gloom, salt with the tasteless, the old leaven with the new lump, fire with water, the sons of peace with the seditious, the faithful with mockers, those crowned with a diadem with those held in chains, the children of the right hand with those on the left, the children of the kingdom with the children of Gehenna, those who fear God with those who disturb his pasture with sedition, nor the church of the Holy One with the teachings of the evil one. Iniquity will not be hidden, nor falsehood concealed; and whoever is willing to run and to devote himself to peace and quiet will receive the blessing our Savior gave: "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God." Who would not wish to become a son of the Father who is in heaven and a brother of Christ the King?

Translated by Claude from Jean Parisot's Latin translation (1894) of the Syriac; neither is shown

See, brothers, how worthy of pleasant remembrance are those who labour for the quiet and peace of the people. What did the Savior owe to death? Or what had he borrowed from Sheol? He, though alive, died for rebels and reconciled them with his Father. He went down into Sheol and brought out its captives; he wrestled with the evil one, overcame and trampled him, confounded his tracks, plundered his possessions, tore off his gates, and broke his bars; and taking his thorns he put them on his own head; he sealed our souls with his own blood; he freed the prisoners from the closed pit; he [broke through] the hedge, broke off the point of the sword, took away the curse and fixed it to his cross. He gathered the scattered and made peace with the disobedient. He satisfied the hungry and gave drink to the thirsty; he opened the eyes of the blind, healed the sick, raised up the bent, and made the lame walk; he took up our diseases, cured our wounds, and healed our sickness; he brought back our departure, gathered our dispersion, and made us children of his dwelling. By his poverty he made us rich, by his own weakness he refreshed us, by his crucifixion he healed us, and by his torments he restored us. And because he suffered all these things for us, he received from the Father [the name above every name, that every tongue should confess] that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God his Father. And he was made judge and Lord of the dead and the living … because he calmed the land disturbed by rebellion. And those who have given their effort to fellowship will become his brothers and sons of God; they will inherit the kingdom and will serve and be served by the angels of heaven, who do not envy or begrudge, do not grow weary or sleep, and rejoice over sinners when they repent of their sins. … And so it seems to us: if someone is engaged in insults and strife, … his prayer is not accepted, nor his supplication heard, nor his offering taken up from the earth, and his alms profit nothing for the forgiveness of sins; for whenever tranquillity and peace are not found, tares are mixed in; thorns grow, troublers multiply, scoffers prevail, rebuke, correction, and prudence fail. The salt has lost its savour, the eye is darkened, the body covered with darkness. Commerce has been taken away; for the one who goes in and comes out there is no peace. Such fruits does strife bear. But now the renowned become known, the skilful are distinguished, and all the vigorous are proved; for [those] who pursue peace and give their effort to tranquillity there is a firm reward and ample recompense. These are the ones who stand in the breach and build up the hedge, who give themselves to labour for the people, and they are marked with a good memory together with the illustrious and diligent servants.

Translated by Claude from Jean Parisot's Latin translation (1894) of the Syriac; neither is shown

In all generations, dearest friends, and in each period, our good Creator, as it pleased him, has magnified the small and despised the lofty; he has exalted the humble and humbled the proud, reduced the rich to want and lifted up the poor, put down the powerful and strengthened the weak, cast down the strong and made the frail firm. He exalted Seth, the younger, in place of Cain the elder; likewise Noah in place of Adam, as the founder of the second world; Isaac in place of Ishmael, Jacob instead of Esau, Joseph instead of Reuben, Ephraim in place of Manasseh, Eleazar and Ithamar instead of Nadab and Abihu, Joshua and Caleb instead of the ten other spies their companions, Samuel in place of Eli, David instead of Saul, Solomon instead of Adonijah, Jeroboam instead of Rehoboam, Jehu in place of Ahab, Mordecai in place of Haman, Daniel and his brothers in place of the wise men of Babylon, and finally the nations in place of the people. Likewise he exalted women too: Sarah over Hagar, the mother of the firstborn; Rachel over Leah; Hannah over Peninnah; Esther in place of Vashti. To women also prophecy and judgment were sometimes given, as it pleased him who raises the humble. For there were Miriam the prophetess, Hannah the prophetess, Huldah the prophetess, Elizabeth the prophetess, and Mary the prophetess, the Mother of the great Prophet. Deborah the prophetess too judged Israel in the days of Barak son of Abinoam, the king. And no one will rebuke the will of our good God, for no one will ever search out his judgments; his ways cannot be traced, his judgments are without end, and his thought is immeasurable.

Translated by Claude from Jean Parisot's Latin translation (1894) of the Syriac; neither is shown

For great are the works of God, deep and hidden his thoughts. He hung the heaven without pillars and spread out the earth without props. He gathered the waters into reservoirs; he shut up the winds and storms in his treasuries at his nod. He spread out the firmament in the middle to divide the waters from the waters; he separated the dry land from the sea, fixed the lights in the firmament, raised mountains upon the earth, distinguished day from night, light from darkness, summer from winter. He packed the sand to be a boundary for the sea, and enclosed the seas with the ocean; and the waves do not cross the boundary. The sun moves without feet, the moon is driven on a changing course, the clouds fly over without feathers, the wind blows without wings, and the waves run without a soul. The earth is suspended on the waters, and the waters are gathered on their foundations. The spirit is not seen, nor is the air touched; the heavens show no shape, nor are the clouds known. Mighty are the beasts of the sea, and wonderful the whales it contains. And the mind spreads its feathers, thought spreads its wings, the senses of the soul search, the eyes of conscience strain, and the ears attend, so that by investigation they may discern and be taught; but they cannot reach the farthest bounds.

[35] Who has found the seat of knowledge? Who has reached the roots of wisdom or attained the place of prudence? It is hidden from all the living and from the thoughts of all flesh. Nor will people of dull mind compare it with gold; but its treasure is opened and wholly granted to those who seek it. Its light surpasses the sun, and its splendour shines more pleasantly and brightly than the moon. The inmost parts of the mind handle it, the senses of thought take hold of it, and the treasure of the soul possesses it. Whoever opens the door of the heart will find it; whoever spreads the wings of the mind will enjoy it. It dwells in the prudent man and is planted in the heart of the wise. The roots of this [man] are made firm by its springs, and he possesses the hidden treasure in it. His thought is borne to higher things, and his mind goes down into the deepest. In his inmost heart he forms wonders, and with the eye of the mind he sees the ends of the sea. He grasps all created things in thought, and his mind is enlarged to receive. He becomes a great temple of his Maker; the King of the heavenly ones enters and dwells in him, lifts his mind to the heights, raises his thought to the seat of his holiness, and opens to him treasures of every kind. His mind is drawn away in contemplation, his heart is captivated by all it perceives. Things he did not know are revealed to him. He looks into that place and contemplates it; his mind marvels at whatever … it sees: all the angels hastening to His service, the Seraphim proclaiming his holy glory, flying with swift wings, clothed in white and shining garments, veiling their faces before his splendour, and running swifter than the wind. There the throne of the kingdom is set, and the judge ready on the judgment seat; seats are placed for the righteous, who will judge the wicked on the day of judgment. So when the wise man contemplates in mind the place where the multitude of treasures [is laid up], then he lifts himself up in spirit and conceives and brings forth all good things in his heart. He meditates on all that has been commanded him. His form and appearance [are] on earth, but the senses of his mind [move] above and below. His thought is swifter than the sun, and its rays quicker than the wind, [borne] in every direction like the lightest feather. The wise man is steady in his thoughts, lowly and abject in his own eyes, and he is filled with the great treasure poured into him. The darkness of night is lit up; he turns his senses wherever he will; his mind explores all foundations and offers him the riches of knowledge. What he does not catch with his ears he sees, and what he does not see with his eyes he perceives. His thought crosses all the seas, counting the violent waves as nothing; without ship and without sailor his mind [is carried]. Great and most excellent is the treasure of his trade. When he gives from his own, nothing fails, and the poor are made rich by his treasure. The thought enclosed in him and dwelling in his bosom is held by no bounds. Who can value the riches of the place in which the king dwells and is served? That man's income and expenses are most ample, just like a king's who lacks nothing.

Translated by Claude from Jean Parisot's Latin translation (1894) of the Syriac; neither is shown

Listen, dearest friends, to what we recount to ourselves and to you alike: how all God's creatures follow his will and do not refuse his command. Each of them, as it has been ordered, swiftly carries out his will; but people sometimes do not obey and refuse to carry out God's will, not seeing, nor hearing, nor understanding. For the Most Holy rebuked the children of Israel through Jeremiah, saying: "Will you not fear me, says the Lord, and not tremble before my face, who set the sand as a boundary for the sea, an everlasting decree; and it does not pass beyond it; it struggles but cannot, and its waves swell, but they will not cross it. But this people has a rebellious and provoking heart, and they would not hear my commandments." See the astonishing wonders: the sea bound by sand, and its waves restrained by command; all the storms held in by a word, rising and mounting up to heaven, then pressed down and sinking to the depths, yet not passing the boundary set for them. If anyone says they are held in by their natural condition, let him understand from what happened in the days of Noah. When [God] sent his wrath through the waters of the flood, he released the abyss from its command and lifted the decree from the bound sand, and the waters burst out and crossed their boundary, and the windows of heaven were opened; the firmament, the boundary between waters and waters, was broken through, and judgment was done on the wicked. For the firmament had been set as a boundary between the waters above the firmament and the waters below, as it is written: "God made the firmament in the midst of the waters, to divide the waters from the waters, and he fixed the lights in it and called it Heaven. And he gathered the waters from the face of the dry land into one place, and called the gatherings of the waters Seas, and called the dry land Earth." So when judgment had been done on the wicked and the perverse and transgressing generation consumed, the lower waters returned to the abyss and the sand rose up to keep its command; the windows of heaven were closed, and the upper waters held themselves above the firmament according to the command; and the world settled between the waters above the firmament and the waters beneath the earth. And the many waters held in the clouds are all restrained and rest on the foundation of his will. But not only the waters fulfil his will; all creatures at all times carry out his pleasure: the waters in the days of Noah; the waters again, with fire, darkness, gnats, locusts, hail, and all the plagues [brought] on Egypt through Moses. The sun too, the moon, and the hailstones obeyed the command of Joshua the son of Nun, when he said: "Sun, stand still in Gibeon, and you, moon, in the valley of Aijalon." Why did the sun stand in Gibeon? Because, when the Gibeonites had taken refuge with God, the kings of the Amorites went up against them, until Joshua destroyed them, when the sun was held back and the moon stood still. The stars of heaven too followed his will and fought from their stations, and made war against Sisera and Midian in the days of Deborah and Barak son of Abinoam. Even the most ravenous beasts fulfilled his will: a bear tore the boys, the offspring of the wicked; the lions guarded Daniel according to command; the fish of the sea obeyed the order of him who commanded it to swallow Jonah, and again, as the Lord said, it put him back on dry land. The little worm in the gourd plant of Jonah's booth obeyed his will when it cut it down as it was ordered; and the scorching wind, according to command, dried it up. Winged creatures too obeyed his command: the ravens fed Elijah at the brook Cherith. Again many fish fulfilled his will when they were wonderfully caught by the Savior's apostles. And again another fish provided the tax money for the Savior and his disciple Simon. So heaven and earth and all creatures obey his will at all times, and none of them has ever resisted his command.

Translated by Claude from Jean Parisot's Latin translation (1894) of the Syriac; neither is shown

But in man violation of the commandment is found; from the first day until now he transgresses the law. Can anything be more bitter than this, dearest friends? To stir up tumult and strife there have come forth among our people insolent and perverse men, jealous and contemptuous, insulting and slanderous, envious and grudging, troublers, given to greed, who rejoice in ruin and love destruction; they hate fairness and drive out righteousness; rapacious, defrauders, liars, disdainful of their companions; they stand in deceit and hide in malice, scoff at the good, gather gain, mock the righteous, love quarrelling, trouble the peaceable, stir up lawsuits, conceive iniquity and bring forth falsehood; they twist words, repel correction, are full of fury and dull of sense; they harden themselves in their own wills and turn away from the poor; proud, lofty, plunderers, extortioners, offering flatteries, collecting gibes, covetous, defiled, enticing to ruin, drunkards, gluttons, deceivers, cunning, hiding envy, loving to repay evil, returning hatred and stirring up strife; full of deceit, empty of good; lending money and selling at interest; evil workmen, lazy hirelings. In the name of the Lord they eat, by his name they are honoured, his name they invoke, but they are empty of his words. These are the deceitful workmen who collect money but gain nothing more. These are the wicked servants who choke their fellow servants. These are the tares among the wheat, darkness in the light; lying prophets and false christs; these are the children of the left hand, heirs of darkness, begging water from the righteous. These are thorns in the vineyard; these build on sand a building that will fall. These withdraw from the battle; their god is their belly, and their glory is their shame. These are a whitewashed wall, the army of the evil one and the brood of Satan. These are savage serpents, mute dogs unable to bark. These justify themselves; they are wise for evil and have no understanding. These stir up quarrels, rejoice in division, and are cheered by sins. These are sluggish to good but wide awake to evil, and they breed brawls. These love themselves; these are the grossest foes and enemies of Christ. These are the old leaven, worn-out wineskins, and torn garments; these are the grain among thorns, the rock for the seed, the sand for the building. They are driven out of the kingdom; they are dust for the serpent, a lamp under a bushel, salt that has lost its savour, which is thrown out and is of no use. These are separated from the good, false silver, broken vessels. These are a vineyard bearing husks, grapes of gall, the planting of Gomorrah. These are rejected silver, which the Lord has cast off, whom he has also called unclean. These are love changed, the foolish virgins. … [lovers] of strife, they reject discipline, … utter words; they eat bread in idle talk. These … the word, murmur in secret, and strike from behind. These speak foolishly; they watch [to say], "Give me"; and they sow [discord] among brothers. These are more bitter than wormwood; they are arrows. These are defeated athletes, sailors … [running] to destruction. These are … These are deadly poison, the venom of the serpent and the fang of the asp. These are adversaries of the cross, a scandal to the cross, enemies of Christ, children [and] generation of strife. See the fruits of discord.