READINGS: LENT MONDAY VI

Invitatory Psalm & BACK

PSALMS and BACK

κἀγὼ ἐὰν ὑψωθῶ ἐκ τῆς γῆς, — πάντας ἑλκύσω πρὸς ἐμαυτόν.

Even Years: Jeremiah 11:18—12:13 18 וַיהוָה הוֹדִיעַנִי וָאֵדָעָה אָז הִרְאִיתַנִי מַעַלְלֵיהֶם׃ 19 וַאֲנִי כְּכֶבֶשׂ אַלּוּף יוּבַל לִטְבוֹחַ וְלֹא־יָדַעְתִּי כִּי־עָלַי חָשְׁבוּ מַחֲשָׁבוֹת נַשְׁחִיתָה עֵץ בְּלַחְמוֹ וְנִכְרְתֶנּוּ מֵאֶרֶץ חַיִּים וּשְׁמוֹ לֹא־יִזָּכֵר עוֹד׃ 20 וַיהוָה צְבָאוֹת שֹׁפֵט צֶדֶק בֹּחֵן כְּלָיוֹת וָלֵב אֶרְאֶה נִקְמָתְךָ מֵהֶם כִּי אֵלֶיךָ גִּלִּיתִי אֶת־רִיבִי׃ ס 21 לָכֵן כֹּה־אָמַר יְהוָה עַל־אַנְשֵׁי עֲנָתוֹת הַמְבַקְשִׁים אֶת־נַפְשְׁךָ לֵאמֹר לֹא תִנָּבֵא בְּשֵׁם יְהוָה וְלֹא תָמוּת בְּיָדֵנוּ׃ ס 22 לָכֵן כֹּה אָמַר יְהוָה צְבָאוֹת הִנְנִי פֹקֵד עֲלֵיהֶם הַבַּחוּרִים יָמֻתוּ בַחֶרֶב בְּנֵיהֶם וּבְנוֹתֵיהֶם יָמֻתוּ בָּרָעָב׃ 23 וּשְׁאֵרִית לֹא תִהְיֶה לָהֶם כִּי־אָבִיא רָעָה אֶל־אַנְשֵׁי עֲנָתוֹת שְׁנַת פְּקֻדָּתָם׃ 12: 1 ס צַדִּיק אַתָּה יְהוָה כִּי אָרִיב אֵלֶיךָ אַךְ מִשְׁפָּטִים אֲדַבֵּר אוֹתָךְ מַדּוּעַ דֶּרֶךְ רְשָׁעִים צָלֵחָה שָׁלוּ כָּל־בֹּגְדֵי בָגֶד׃ 2 נְטַעְתָּם גַּם־שֹׁרָשׁוּ יֵלְכוּ גַּם־עָשׂוּ פֶרִי קָרוֹב אַתָּה בְּפִיהֶם וְרָחוֹק מִכִּלְיוֹתֵיהֶם׃ 3 וְאַתָּה יְהוָה יְדַעְתָּנִי תִּרְאֵנִי וּבָחַנְתָּ לִבִּי אִתָּךְ הַתִּקֵם כְּצֹאן לְטִבְחָה וְהַקְדִּשֵׁם לְיוֹם הֲרֵגָה׃ ס 4 עַד־מָתַי תֶּאֱבַל הָאָרֶץ וְעֵשֶׂב כָּל־הַשָּׂדֶה יִיבָשׁ מֵרָעַת יֹשְׁבֵי־בָהּ סָפְתָה בְהֵמוֹת וָעוֹף כִּי אָמְרוּ לֹא יִרְאֶה אֶת־אַחֲרִיתֵנוּ׃ 5 כִּי אֶת־רַגְלִים רַצְתָּה וַיַּלְאוּךָ וְאֵיךְ תְּתַחֲרֶה אֶת־הַסּוּסִים וּבְאֶרֶץ שָׁלוֹם אַתָּה בוֹטֵחַ וְאֵיךְ תַּעֲשֶׂה בִּגְאוֹן הַיַּרְדֵּן׃ 6 כִּי גַם־אַחֶיךָ וּבֵית־אָבִיךָ גַּם־הֵמָּה בָּגְדוּ בָךְ גַּם־הֵמָּה קָרְאוּ אַחֲרֶיךָ מָלֵא אַל־תַּאֲמֵן בָּם כִּי־יְדַבְּרוּ אֵלֶיךָ טוֹבוֹת׃ ס 7 עָזַבְתִּי אֶת־בֵּיתִי נָטַשְׁתִּי אֶת־נַחֲלָתִי נָתַתִּי אֶת־יְדִדוּת נַפְשִׁי בְּכַף אֹיְבֶיהָ׃ 8 הָיְתָה־לִּי נַחֲלָתִי כְּאַרְיֵה בַיָּעַר נָתְנָה עָלַי בְּקוֹלָהּ עַל־כֵּן שְׂנֵאתִיהָ׃ 9 הַעַיִט צָבוּעַ נַחֲלָתִי לִי הַעַיִט סָבִיב עָלֶיהָ לְכוּ אִסְפוּ כָּל־חַיַּת הַשָּׂדֶה הֵתָיוּ לְאָכְלָה׃ 10 רֹעִים רַבִּים שִׁחֲתוּ כַרְמִי בֹּסְסוּ אֶת־חֶלְקָתִי נָתְנוּ אֶת־חֶלְקַת חֶמְדָּתִי לְמִדְבַּר שְׁמָמָה׃ 11 שָׂמָהּ לִשְׁמָמָה אָבְלָה עָלַי שְׁמֵמָה נָשַׁמָּה כָּל־הָאָרֶץ כִּי אֵין אִישׁ שָׂם עַל־לֵב׃ 12 עַל־כָּל־שְׁפָיִם בַּמִּדְבָּר בָּאוּ שֹׁדְדִים כִּי חֶרֶב לַיהוָה אֹכְלָה מִקְצֵה־אֶרֶץ וְעַד־קְצֵה הָאָרֶץ אֵין שָׁלוֹם לְכָל־בָּשָׂר׃ ס 13 זָרְעוּ חִטִּים וְקֹצִים קָצָרוּ נֶחְלוּ לֹא יוֹעִלוּ וּבֹשׁוּ מִתְּבוּאֹתֵיכֶם מֵחֲרוֹן אַף־יְהוָה׃

18 Yahweh informed me and I knew it; you then revealed their scheming to me. 19 I for my part was like a trustful lamb being led to the slaughterhouse, not knowing the schemes they were plotting against me, 'Let us destroy the tree in its strength, let us cut him off from the land of the living, so that his name may no longer be remembered!' 20 Yahweh Sabaoth, whose judgement is upright, tester of motives and thoughts, I shall see your vengeance on them, for I have revealed my cause to you. 21 Against the people of Anathoth who are determined to kill me and say to me, 'Do not prophesy in the name of Yahweh or you will die at our hands!' 22 Yahweh says this, 'I am about to punish them. Their young people will die by the sword, their sons and daughters by famine. 23 Not one will be left when I bring disaster on the people of Anathoth, when the year for punishing them comes.' 12:1 Your uprightness is too great, Yahweh, for me to dispute with you. But I should like to discuss some points of justice with you: Why is it that the way of the wicked prospers? Why do all treacherous people thrive? 2 You plant them, they take root, they flourish, yes, and bear fruit. You are on their lips, yet far from their heart. 3 You know me, Yahweh, you see me, you probe my heart, which is close to yours. Drag them off like sheep for the slaughterhouse, reserve them for the day of butchery. 4 (How long will the land be in mourning, and the grass wither all over the countryside? The animals and birds are dying as a result of the wickedness of the inhabitants.) For they say, 'God does not see our fate.' 5 'If you find it exhausting to race against me on foot, how will you compete against horses? In a country at peace you feel secure, but how will you fare in the thickets of the Jordan? 6 'For even your brothers and your own family will betray you. They will pursue you in full cry. Put no faith in them when they speak you fair!' 7 I have abandoned my house, left my heritage, I have delivered what I dearly loved into the clutches of its enemies. 8 To me, my heritage has behaved like a lion in the forest, it roared at me ferociously: so I now hate it. 9 I see my heritage as a brightly-coloured bird of prey attacked by birds of prey on every side! Go, assemble all the wild animals, make them come and dine! 10 Many shepherds have laid my vineyard waste, have trampled over my plot of land, the plot of land which was my joy, reducing my favourite estate to a deserted wilderness. 11 They have made it a waste; wasted, it mourns before me. The whole country has been devastated and no one takes it to heart. 12 The devastators have arrived on all the bare heights of the desert (for Yahweh wields a devouring sword); from one end of the country to the other, there is no peace for any living thing. 13 Wheat they have sown, thorns they reap: they have worn themselves out, to no profit. They are disappointed in their harvests, because of Yahweh's burning anger.

Odd Years: Isaiah 52:13—53:12 13 הִנֵּה יַשְׂכִּיל עַבְדִּי יָרוּם וְנִשָּׂא וְגָבַהּ מְאֹד׃ 14 כַּאֲשֶׁר שָׁמְמוּ עָלֶיךָ רַבִּים כֵּן־מִשְׁחַת מֵאִישׁ מַרְאֵהוּ וְתֹאֲרוֹ מִבְּנֵי אָדָם׃ 15 כֵּן יַזֶּה גּוֹיִם רַבִּים עָלָיו יִקְפְּצוּ מְלָכִים פִּיהֶם כִּי אֲשֶׁר לֹא־סֻפַּר לָהֶם רָאוּ וַאֲשֶׁר לֹא־שָׁמְעוּ הִתְבּוֹנָנוּ׃ 53: 1 מִי הֶאֱמִין לִשְׁמֻעָתֵנוּ וּזְרוֹעַ יְהוָה עַל־מִי נִגְלָתָה׃ 2 וַיַּעַל כַּיּוֹנֵק לְפָנָיו וְכַשֹּׁרֶשׁ מֵאֶרֶץ צִיָּה לֹא־תֹאַר לוֹ וְלֹא הָדָר וְנִרְאֵהוּ וְלֹא־מַרְאֶה וְנֶחְמְדֵהוּ׃ 3 נִבְזֶה וַחֲדַל אִישִׁים אִישׁ מַכְאֹבוֹת וִידוּעַ חֹלִי וּכְמַסְתֵּר פָּנִים מִמֶּנּוּ נִבְזֶה וְלֹא חֲשַׁבְנֻהוּ׃ 4 אָכֵן חֳלָיֵנוּ הוּא נָשָׂא וּמַכְאֹבֵינוּ סְבָלָם וַאֲנַחְנוּ חֲשַׁבְנֻהוּ נָגוּעַ מֻכֵּה אֱלֹהִים וּמְעֻנֶּה׃ 5 וְהוּא מְחֹלָל מִפְּשָׁעֵנוּ מְדֻכָּא מֵעֲוֹנֹתֵינוּ מוּסַר שְׁלוֹמֵנוּ עָלָיו וּבַחֲבֻרָתוֹ נִרְפָּא־לָנוּ׃ 6 כֻּלָּנוּ כַּצֹּאן תָּעִינוּ אִישׁ לְדַרְכּוֹ פָּנִינוּ וַיהוָה הִפְגִּיעַ בּוֹ אֵת עֲוֹן כֻּלָּנוּ׃ 7 נִגַּשׂ וְהוּא נַעֲנֶה וְלֹא יִפְתַּח־פִּיו כַּשֶּׂה לַטֶּבַח יוּבָל וּכְרָחֵל לִפְנֵי גֹזְזֶיהָ נֶאֱלָמָה וְלֹא יִפְתַּח פִּיו׃ 8 מֵעֹצֶר וּמִמִּשְׁפָּט לֻקָּח וְאֶת־דּוֹרוֹ מִי יְשׂוֹחֵחַ כִּי נִגְזַר מֵאֶרֶץ חַיִּים מִפֶּשַׁע עַמִּי נֶגַע לָמוֹ׃ 9 וַיִּתֵּן אֶת־רְשָׁעִים קִבְרוֹ וְאֶת־עָשִׁיר בְּמֹתָיו עַל לֹא־חָמָס עָשָׂה וְלֹא מִרְמָה בְּפִיו׃ 10 וַיהוָה חָפֵץ דַּכְּאוֹ הֶחֱלִי אִם־תָּשִׂים אָשָׁם נַפְשׁוֹ יִרְאֶה זֶרַע יַאֲרִיךְ יָמִים וְחֵפֶץ יְהוָה בְּיָדוֹ יִצְלָח׃ 11 מֵעֲמַל נַפְשׁוֹ יִרְאֶה יִשְׂבָּע בְּדַעְתּוֹ יַצְדִּיק צַדִּיק עַבְדִּי לָרַבִּים וַעֲוֹנֹתָם הוּא יִסְבֹּל׃ 12 לָכֵן אֲחַלֶּק־לוֹ בָרַבִּים וְאֶת־עֲצוּמִים יְחַלֵּק שָׁלָל תַּחַת אֲשֶׁר הֶעֱרָה לַמָּוֶת נַפְשׁוֹ וְאֶת־פֹּשְׁעִים נִמְנָה וְהוּא חֵטְא־רַבִּים נָשָׂא וְלַפֹּשְׁעִים יַפְגִּיעַ׃

13 Look, my servant will prosper, will grow great, will rise to great heights. 14 As many people were aghast at him —he was so inhumanly disfigured that he no longer looked like a man— 15 so many nations will be astonished and kings will stay tight-lipped before him, seeing what had never been told them, learning what they had not heard before. 53:1 Who has given credence to what we have heard? And who has seen in it a revelation of Yahweh's arm? 2 Like a sapling he grew up before him, like a root in arid ground. He had no form or charm to attract us, no beauty to win our hearts; 3 he was despised, the lowest of men, a man of sorrows, familiar with suffering, one from whom, as it were, we averted our gaze, despised, for whom we had no regard. 4 Yet ours were the sufferings he was bearing, ours the sorrows he was carrying, while we thought of him as someone being punished and struck with affliction by God; 5 whereas he was being wounded for our rebellions, crushed because of our guilt; the punishment reconciling us fell on him, and we have been healed by his bruises. 6 We had all gone astray like sheep, each taking his own way, and Yahweh brought the acts of rebellion of all of us to bear on him. 7 Ill-treated and afflicted, he never opened his mouth, like a lamb led to the slaughter-house, like a sheep dumb before its shearers he never opened his mouth. 8 Forcibly, after sentence, he was taken. Which of his contemporaries was concerned at his having been cut off from the land of the living, at his having been struck dead for his people's rebellion? 9 He was given a grave with the wicked, and his tomb is with the rich, although he had done no violence, had spoken no deceit. 10 It was Yahweh's good pleasure to crush him with pain; if he gives his life as a sin offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his life, and through him Yahweh's good pleasure will be done. 11 After the ordeal he has endured, he will see the light and be content. By his knowledge, the upright one, my servant will justify many by taking their guilt on himself. 12 Hence I shall give him a portion with the many, and he will share the booty with the mighty, for having exposed himself to death and for being counted as one of the rebellious, whereas he was bearing the sin of many and interceding for the rebellious.

Even Years: Leo the Great, Sermon 71, on the Resurrection, 1-2 (CCL 138A, 434-436) Sermone proximo, dilectissimi, non incongrue vobis, quantum arbitror, participationem crucis Christi insinuavimus, ut paschale sacramentum ipsa in se habeat vita credentium, et quod festo honoratur moribus celebretur. Quam autem hoc utile sit ipsi probastis, et ex vestra devotione didicistis quantum prosint animis atque corporibus prolixiora jejunia, frequentiores preces et eleemosynae largiores. Nemo enim fere est qui non hac exercitatione profecerit, et in abdito conscientiae suae aliquid quo recte possit gaudere condiderit. I think that the instructions I have given you about our share in Christ's Cross have sufficiently shown how the Paschal Mystery should enter into the very life of the faithful, and how our daily conduct should be a proclamation of what we honour at the Easter festival. You yourselves have experienced the value of this participation, and you have learned by your Lenten exercises how much both soul and body have to gain from extended fasting, prolonged prayers, and increased generosity in almsgiving. There is scarcely anyone who has not been enriched by these practices, and who has not preserved in the depths of his memory something in which he may justifiably rejoice. Sed haec lucra perseveranti sunt servanda custodia, ne in desidiam, resoluto labore, quod donavit Dei gratia, diaboli furetur invidia. Cum igitur quadraginta dierum observantia hoc voluerimus operari, ut aliquid sentiremus crucis in tempore Dominicae passionis, adnitendum nobis est ut etiam resurrectionis Christi inveniamur esse consortes, et de morte ad vitam, dum in isto sumus corpore, transeamus. Unicuique enim homini, qui ex alio in aliud aliqua conversione mutatur, finis est non esse quod fuit, et ortus, esse quod non fuit. Sed interest cui quis aut moriatur aut vivat: quia est mors quae causa est vivendi, et est vita quae causa est moriendi. Nec alibi quam in hoc transitorio saeculo utrumque conquiritur; et ex qualitate temporalium actionum differentiae retributionum pendent aeternarum. Moriendum ergo est diabolo et vivendum Deo; deficiendum iniquitati, ut justitiae resurgatur. Occumbant vetera, ut oriantur nova. Et quoniam, sicut ait Veritas, nemo potest duobus dominis servire, Dominus sit non ille qui stantes impulit in ruinam, sed ille qui dejectos erexit in gloriam. [But these gains must be carefully protected, for if we relax and give way to laziness, what God's grace has given will be stolen by the envy of the devil.] Since, then, the aim of our forty days' observance has been to know something about the Cross in this season of our Lord's Passion, we must also strive to be found companions of Christ's resurrection, and to pass from death to life while we are yet in this mortal body. The result of our undergoing a conversion from one state to another is that we cease to be what we were and begin to be something more. But the end of our dying or living is of the utmost importance, for there is a death that brings life, and a life that brings death. It is only in this fleeting world that both are sought together, so that the difference in our future rewards depends upon the quality of our present actions. We must therefore be dead to Satan and alive to God; we must abandon sin in order to rise to holiness. And since Truth himself says: No one can serve two masters, let our master be the Lord who has raised up the fallen to glory, not the one who has brought the upright to ruin. Dicente ergo Apostolo: Primus homo de terra terrenus, secundus homo de coelo coelestis. Qualis terrenus, tales et terreni; et qualis coelestis, tales et coelestes. Sicut portavimus imaginem terreni, portemus et imaginem ejus qui est de coelo; multum nobis de hac commutatione gaudendum est, qua de ignobilitate terrena ad coelestem transferimur dignitatem per illius ineffabilem misericordiam qui ut nos in sua proveheret, in nostra descendit; ut non solum substantiam, sed etiam conditionem naturae peccatricis assumeret, et ea sibi pateretur inferri divina impassibilitas, quae miserrime experitur humana mortalitas. The Apostle tells us: The first man came from the earth, a man of dust: the second man is from heaven. As the man of dust was, so are those who are of the dust; and as the man of heaven is, so are those who are of heaven. Just as we have been fashioned after the man of dust, so we shall also be fashioned after the man of heaven. There is therefore every reason for us to rejoice at this exchange, which translates us from earthly disrepute to heavenly honour through the untold mercy of him who descended to our level in order to lift us up to his, by assuming not only the reality of our human nature but also its sinful condition, and allowing his divine impassibility to be assailed by all the sufferings which are our mortal lot.

Odd Years: Origen, Homily 10 on Jeremiah, 1-3 (PG 13, 358-362) εἶτα ὁ σωτὴρ ἐν τῷ προφήτῃ ἴδωμεν τίνα λέγει· Ἐγὼ ὡς ἀρνίον ἄκακον ἀγόμενον τοῦ θύεσθαι οὐκ ἔγνων. Ἐπ' ἐμὲ ἐλογίσαντο λογισμόν, λέγοντες· δεῦτε καὶ ἐμβάλωμεν ξύλον εἰς τὸν ἄρτον αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐκτρίψωμεν αὐτὸν ἀπὸ γῆς ζώντων, καὶ τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ οὐ μὴ μνησθῇ ἔτι· ὡς φησὶν καὶ ὁ προφήτης Ἡσαΐας, Χριστὸς ὡς πρόβατον ἐπὶ σφαγὴν ἤχθη, καὶ ὡς ἀμνὸς ἐναντίον τοῦ κείραντος ἄφωνος, οὕτως οὐκ ἀνοίγει τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ. Ἐκεῖ μὲν οὖν περὶ αὐτοῦ Ἡσαΐας λέγει, ἐνταῦθα δὲ ὁ Χριστὸς περὶ αὑτοῦ· Ἐγὼ φησὶν ὡς ἀρνίον ἄκακον ἐπὶ σφαγὴν ἀγόμενον τοῦ θύεσθαι οὐκ ἔγνων. Οὐκ εἶπεν τί οὐκ ἔγνω. Οὐ γὰρ εἴρηκεν· οὐκ ἔγνων κακά, οὐκ εἴρηκεν· οὐκ ἔγνων ἀγαθά, οὔτε εἴρηκεν· οὐκ ἔγνων ἁμαρτίαν, ἀλλ' ἁπλῶς οὐκ ἔγνων. Σοὶ οὖν καταλέλοιπεν ἐξετάζειν τί οὐκ ἔγνω, καὶ μάνθανε τί οὐκ ἔγνω ἀπὸ τοῦ τὸν μὴ γνόντα ἁμαρτίαν ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν ἁμαρτίαν ἐποίησεν... Ἐπ' ἐμὲ ἐλογίσαντο λογισμόν, λέγοντες· δεῦτε καὶ ἐμβάλωμεν ξύλον εἰς τὸν ἄρτον αὐτοῦ... Ὁ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ ἄρτος ὁ λόγος ἐστὶν ἐν ᾧ τρεφόμεθα. Ἐπεὶ τοίνυν διδάσκοντος αὐτοῦ ἐν τῷ λαῷ ἠθέλησαν τὸ σκάνδαλον ἐν τῇ διδασκαλίᾳ αὐτοῦ προσθεῖναι διὰ τοῦ σταυρῶσαι αὐτόν, εἶπον· Βάλωμεν ξύλον εἰς τὸν ἄρτον αὐτοῦ· ὅταν γὰρ τῷ λόγῳ τῆς Ἰησοῦ διδασκαλίας προσάπτηται τὸ ἐσταυρῶσθαι τὸν διδάσκαλον, εἰς τὸν ἄρτον αὐτοῦ ξύλον ἐμβέβληται. Ἐκεῖνοι μὲν οὖν ἐξ ἐπιβουλῆς βουλευσάμενοι λεγέτωσαν· Δεῦτε καὶ ἐμβάλωμεν ξύλον εἰς τὸν ἄρτον αὐτοῦ· ἐγὼ δὲ παραδοξότερον ἐρῶ· τὸ ξύλον ἐμβληθὲν εἰς τὸν ἄρτον αὐτοῦ κρείττονα τὸν ἄρτον πεποίηκεν. Παράδειγμα λαμβάνω ἀπὸ τοῦ Μωσέως νόμου· τὸ ξύλον βληθὲν εἰς τὸ πικρὸν ὕδωρ ἐποίησεν αὐτὸ γλυκύ· οὕτως τὸ ξύλον τοῦ πάθους Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐλθὸν εἰς τὸν λόγον πεποίηκεν τὸν ἄρτον αὐτοῦ γλυκύτερον. Πρὶν ἔλθῃ γοῦν εἰς τὸν ἄρτον αὐτοῦ τὸ ξύλον, ὅτε ἄρτος μόνον ἦν καὶ ξύλον οὐκ ἦν ἐν τῇ διδασκαλίᾳ αὐτοῦ, εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν οὐκ ἐξῆλθεν ὁ φθόγγος αὐτοῦ· ἀλλ' ἐπεὶ προσέλαβεν δύναμιν ὁ ἄρτος διὰ τοῦ ξύλου τοῦ βληθέντος εἰς αὐτόν, διὰ τοῦτο ὁ λόγος τῆς διδασκαλίας αὐτοῦ νενέμηται ὅλην τὴν οἰκουμένην... ἐγὼ γὰρ λέγω ὅτι ὁ νόμος μὴ νοούμενος πικρὸν ὕδωρ ἐστίν, ἐὰν δὲ ἔλθῃ τὸ ξύλον Ἰησοῦ καὶ ἡ διδασκαλία τοῦ σωτῆρός μου ἐπιδημήσῃ, γλυκάζεται καὶ ἥδιστος γίνεται ὁ Μωσέως νόμος ἀναγινωσκόμενος καὶ γινωσκόμενος... Οὕτως αὐτὸν ἀπέκτειναν, ὡς ἐξαφανίζοντες αὐτοῦ τὸ ὄνομα. Ἀλλὰ ὁ Ἰησοῦς οἶδεν πῶς ἀποθνῄσκει καὶ διὰ τί· διό φησιν· Ἐὰν μὴ ὁ κόκκος τοῦ σίτου πεσὼν εἰς τὴν γῆν ἀποθάνῃ, αὐτὸς μόνος μένει· ἐὰν δὲ ἀποθάνῃ, πολὺν καρπὸν φέρει· ὥστε ὁ θάνατος τοῦ Ἰησοῦ στάχυς σίτου γίνεται ποιῶν πολλαπλασίονα καὶ πολύχουν τὸ ἐσπαρμένον, ὡς εἰ καθ' ὑπόθεσιν μὴ ἐσταύρωτο μηδὲ τεθνήκει, ἔμεινεν ἂν μόνος ὁ κόκκος τοῦ σίτου, καὶ πολλοὶ οὐκ ἐγένοντο ἐξ αὐτοῦ. Πρόσχες οὖν αὐτοῦ τῇ λέξει, εἰ μὴ τοῦτο βεβούληται λέγων· Ὁ κόκκος τοῦ σίτου ἐὰν μὴ πεσὼν εἰς τὴν γῆν ἀποθάνῃ, αὐτὸς μόνος μένει· ἐὰν δὲ ἀποθάνῃ, πολὺν καρπὸν φέρει· ὁ θάνατος τοῦ Ἰησοῦ τούτους πάντας ἐκαρποφόρησεν· εἰ δὲ ὁ θάνατος τοσούτους ἐκαρποφόρησε, πόσους καρποφορήσει ἡ ἀνάστασις;

Prayer