Achieving The Promise

Nam cum sumus in hoc corpore, id est, mortali, ingemiscimus gravati; eo quod nolumus exui, sed superindui; absorbeatur mortale hoc a vita. Idem sensus est, ideo enim dicit gravatos nos passionibus corporis, et ipsius mundi tempestatibus, postulationes ad Deum dirigere, ne immutemur victi, et indigni efficiamur: sed ut contigerit exitus, perseverantes in fide, induti inveniamur sancto Spiritu, qui in substantia Christus est. Tunc enim superindui promissa gloria poterimus, si exuti corpore, non despoliati a sancto Spiritu fuerimus. Sic mortale absorbetur a vita, id est, ut resurgentes superinduamur immortalitate cum gloria; ne ultra mori possit, aut passionibus implicari: et hoc est absorberi a vita; non enim dicendus est absorberi a vita, qui ad hoc surgit, ut poenis agatur. Qui autem perficit nos in hoc ipsum, Deus est: qui etiam dedit nobis pignus Spiritum. Hoc quod ingemiscentes poscimus, id est, non ut exui, sed ut superindui mereamur, juxta supradictum sensum, in die judicii Deum perficere dicit; quia promisit, et fidelis est, dans hujus rei implendae pignus Spiritum; ipse est enim signaculum adoptionis nostrae. Ambrosiaster, In Epistolam Beati Pauli Ad Corinthios Secundum, Caput V Source: Migne PL 17.293d-294a

'For while we are in this body,' that is, the mortal body, 'we groan deeply, not that we be stripped of it, but that we be superendowed, this mortality absorbed by life.' 1 The meaning is the same, therefore he says that with us weighed down by the passions of the body and the tempests of the world, we ask God to guide us, lest we be changed into those conquered and made unworthy, but rather that we reach the end preserved in faith, being found endowed with the Holy Spirit, who in substance is Christ. For then superendowed we shall achieve the glorious promise, if by the Holy Spirit we are stripped of the body, not despoiled. So what is mortal is absorbed by life, that is, that rising we are superendowed with immortality in glory, not able to die anymore, or be embroiled in the passions. This is to be absorbed by life, for it is not to be said that he is absorbed from life who rises to it, as if a punishment were enacted. He who perfects us in this is God, who gives us the seal of the Spirit. This is what we ask for in our groaning, that is, not that we be stripped, but that we merit to be superendowed, according to the aforementioned understanding, on the day of judgement when he says that God will perfect, because He has promised and He is faithful, giving the Spirit as the pledge of the things to be fulfilled, He who is the sign of our adoption. Ambrosiaster, Commentary On The Second Letter of Saint Paul To The Corinthians, Chapter 5 1 2 Cor 5.4

Different Types Of Wisdom

...ἡ γὰρ καύχησις ἡμῶν αὕτη ἐστίν, τὸ μαρτύριον τῆς συνειδήσεως ἡμῶν... Τὸ πρὸς θεὸν ἡμῶν καύχημα μαρτυρεῖται ἐκ τῆς συνειδήσεως· εἴρηται δὲ περὶ τῆς συνειδήσεως τῆς μὴ δεχομένης πρόσωπον. Aὕτη οὖν ἡ καύχησις ἥτις μαρτύριον τῆς συνειδήσεως ἡμῶν ὑπάρχει, παρεσκεύασεν ἐν ἁγιότητι καὶ εἰλικρινείᾳ ἀλλὰ μὴ ἐν ἀνθρωπίνῃ παιδεύσει ἀναστραφῆναι ἐν παντὶ τῷ κόσμῳ, μάλιστα δὲ πρὸς ὑμᾶς· ὁ γὰρ κατὰ τὸ εὐαγγέλιον παιδεύων οὐκ ἀνθρωπίνην ἐπαγγέλλεται διδασκαλίαν ἀλλὰ τὴν ἐκ τῶν ἁγίων γινομένην γραφῶν, ἥτις διὰ τὸ ἐκτὸς εἶναι κηλῖδός τινος εἰλικρινής ἐστιν. Σαρκίνην δὲ σοφίαν τὴν περὶ αἰσθητῶν ὠνόμασεν, ἣν ὁ ἔχων οὐ χωρεῖ τὴν τοῦ Πνεύματος σοφίαν, μωρίαν αὐτὴν λογιζόμενος. Ἔθος δὲ τῇ γραφῇ τὰ περὶ τῶν κοσμικῶν καὶ ὑλικῶν μαθήματα σάρκινα καλεῖν· οὕτω γοῦν καὶ φρόνημα λέγεται τῆς σαρκός, καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἔργοις τῆς σαρκὸς καταλέγονται αἱρέσεις, φαρμακεῖαι, εἰδωλολατρεῖαι. οὐ γὰρ ἔτι ταῦτα σάρκινα ῥητέον παρονομαζόμενα ἀπὸ τῆς αἰσθητῆς σαρκός· εἴρηται γὰρ ἀπὸ τῆς ὑλικῆς ἕξεως καθ' ἣν ὁ ἐνεργῶν κατὰ σάρκα περιπατεῖν λέγεται, καὶ γίνεται σάρκινος πραθεὶς ὑπὸ ἁμαρτίαν. Ὅμως δὲ εἰ καὶ ἐν πάσῃ τῇ οἰκουμένῃ ἀνεστράφημεν ἐν ἁγιότητι καὶ εἰλικρινείᾳ, ἀλλ' οὖν τοῦτο πρὸς ὑμᾶς μᾶλλον καὶ μᾶλλον πεποιήκαμεν. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Τὴν Δευτέραν Ἐπιστολήν Παύλου Πρὸς Κορινθίους Source: Migne PG 39.1686b

...for it is our boast, whose witness is our conscience... 1 The boast before God has its witness from conscience, which conscience is said to be no respecter of persons. This, then, is the boast whose witness is conscience, that he has conducted himself with holiness and purity, not according to a human way of teaching in any place of the world, especially among you, for he who is educated in the rule of the Gospel can hardly be said to proclaim human teaching, but that which Holy Scripture hands down. And he goes on to speak of a carnal wisdom of sensible things, which he who has, cannot have the wisdom of the Spirit, because it is thought to be foolish. It is the custom of Scripture to name worldly and material disciplines carnal. So there is mention of a carnal wisdom 2 and heresies are reckoned among the work of the flesh, and likewise witchery and idolatry, 3 but it is not that these things which are called carnal, by the giving of such a name, are actually flesh, but they are said rather to come from material affection, by which he who acts is said to walk according to the flesh, and to be handed over to sin. Even so, he then continues, even if in all the world we have conducted ourselves with holiness and purity, we have done so much more with you. Didymus the Blind, On The Second Letter of Saint Paul to The Corinthians, Fragment 1 2 Cor 1.12 2 Rom 8.6 3 Galat 5.20

Equality And Exchange

Oὐ γὰρ ἵνα ἄλλοις ἄνεσις, ὑμῖν θλῖψις, ἀλλ' ἐξ ἰσότητος Οὐκ ἀναγκάζει ὁ τῆς εὐσεβείας λόγος μεταδιδόναι ὃ μὴ ἔχει τις, ἀλλ' ὃ ἔχει παρέχεσθαι προθύμως. κατορθωθήσεται δὲ τοῦτο ῥᾷστα σκοπήσασι τίνες οἱ κοινωνούμενοι· ἅγιοι δέ εἰσι καὶ θεοῦ θεραπευταὶ οὗτοι. διὸ καὶ ἐλπίζομεν ἀντίδοσιν ἔσεσθαι· ἱκανοὶ γὰρ ἀνθ' ὧν δέχονται αἰσθητῶν νοητὰ παρασχεῖν. οὕτω γὰρ ἰσότης καὶ ἐν τῷ νῦν καιρῷ ἔσται, ὡς ἐπὶ τῆς δόσεως τοῦ μάννα γεγένηται, οὐδὲ τοῦ τὸ ὀλίγον ἔχοντος ἐλαττουμένου οὐδὲ πλεονάζοντος τοῦ πολὺ ἔχοντος· ἀνισότης γὰρ μένει, ὅταν τῶν ἁγίων ἐπουράνια ἐχόντων, ὑμῶν δὲ ἐπίγεια κεκτημένων, ἀντίδοσις μὴ γίνηται. ὅθεν σπείρατε σαρκικὰ ταῖς χρείαις τῶν ἁγίων κοινωνοῦντες, ἵνα θερίσητε ἐξ αὐτῶν τὰ πνευματικά· οὕτω γὰρ ἰσότης ἔσται προσλαμβανόντων ὑμῶν τῶν μεγάλων, κἀκείνων τῶν μικρῶν· ἕξετε γὰρ μετὰ τῶν μικρῶν τὰ μεγάλα, κἀκεῖνοι μετὰ τῶν μεγάλων τὰ μικρά. αὕτη δὲ ἰσότης ὑπαρχθήσεται κατὰ τὸ ἐπανορθωτικὸν δίκαιον. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Τὴν Δευτέραν Ἐπιστολήν Παύλου Πρὸς Κορινθίους Source: Migne PG 39.1716b

For others are not at leisure while you toil, but there is equality... 1 Pious teaching does not insist that a man give what he does not have, but that he give gladly what he does have. This may be easier to demonstrate correctly if one looks to those who are sharing in it, they who are holy and servants of God. Certainly we may hope for a reward there, because for the material things they receive they can return spiritual things. Thus equality shall be found in the present, as happened in the giving of manna, when there was not one who had too little, nor one who abounded with too much. But there may be inequality when with the holy possessing heavenly things, and you clinging to worldly things, there can be no exchange. Whence sow in the flesh, attending to the needs of the holy, that you reap from them in the spirit. 2 So there will be equality, when you receive great things and they little things, for then with little things you have great things, and they with great things have little things. This is equality according to correct justice. Didymus the Blind, On The Second Letter of Saint Paul to The Corinthians, Fragment 1 2 Cor 8.13 2 cf Gal 6.8

The Fragrance Of Knowledge

Τῷ δὲ θεῷ χάρις τῷ πάντοτε θριαμβεύοντι ἡμᾶς ἐν τῷ Χριστῷ καὶ τὴν ὀσμὴν τῆς γνώσεως αὐτοῦ φανεροῦντι δι' ἡμῶν ἐν παντὶ τόπῳ: ὅτι Χριστοῦ εὐωδία ἐσμὲν τῷ θεῷ ἐν τοῖς σῳζομένοις καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἀπολλυμένοις, οἷς μὲν ὀσμὴ ἐκ θανάτου εἰς θάνατον, οἷς δὲ ὀσμὴ ἐκ ζωῆς εἰς ζωήν. καὶ πρὸς ταῦτα τίς ἱκανός; Διὰ τοῦτο, φησί, φανεροῖ ὁ θεὸς δι' ἡμῶν τὴν ὀσμὴν τῆς γνώσεως τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐν παντὶ τόπῳ, ἐπείπερ Χριστοῦ εὐωδία ἐσμέν· ὡς γὰρ φωτὸς αὐτοῦ τυγχάνοντος οἱ μέτοχοι φῶς εἰσι τοῦ κόσμου, οὕτω καὶ μύρου ὄντος οἱ ἑνούμενοι αὐτῷ εὐωδία αὐτοῦ εἰσιν. αὕτη δὲ ἡ εὐώδης πνοή, τοῖς μὲν ὀσμὴ ἐκ θανάτου εἰς θάνατον, τοῖς δὲ ὀσμὴ ἐκ ζωῆς εἰς ζωὴν ὑπάρχει. ἀλλ' οὐκ αἰτιατέον εἰ γίνεται ἡ ὀσμὴ ἐκ θανάτου εἰς θάνατον· παρὰ γὰρ τὴν πρόφασιν τῶν οἷς συμβεβήκει τοῦτο γίνεται, ὥσπερ καὶ ἡ ὑγιεινὴ τροφὴ βλάπτειν δοκεῖ τοὺς νοσοῦντας ἀκαίρως προσφερομένη. ὅσοι γὰρ ὑπὸ θάνατον ὄντες τὸν ἐπιγινόμενον τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ δέχονται οὐκ ὀρθῇ γνώμῃ τὴν θείαν γνῶσιν, ἐκ θανάτου πρακτικῶν ἁμαρτημάτων ἐπὶ θάνατον τὸν ἀκολουθοῦντα τοῖς ἀσεβέσι φρονήμασιν ἔρχονται, ὥσπερ τοὺς παραδεχομένους αὐτὴν μετὰ πράξεων ζωοποιῶν ἐκ ζωῆς εἰς ζωὴν φέρει· ὡς γὰρ τὸ αἰσθητὸν μύρον πρὸς ὑγείαν καὶ εὐεξίαν συμβαλλόμενον βλάπτει τὰ ἔντομα ζῶα οὐ φέροντα αὐτοῦ τὴν ἀκροτάτην πνοήν, οὕτως ἡ θεία εὐωδία ὠφελεῖ καὶ εἰς ὑγείαν ἄγει, μᾶλλον δὲ ζωήν, τοὺς τηροῦντας τὸ κατ' εἰκόνα καὶ ὁμοίωσιν θεοῦ, οὗτοι γὰρ ἀληθῶς ἄνθρωποί εἰσιν, βλαπτομένων ἐξ αὐτῆς τῶν κατὰ τὸν ἔσω ἄνθρωπον μεταβαλλόντων, ὡς καλεῖσθαι ἀλληγορικῶς μυίας σαπριούσας σκευασίαν ἐλαίου ἡδύσματος κατὰ τὸν Ἐκκλησιαστικήν. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Τὴν Δευτέραν Ἐπιστολήν Παύλου Πρὸς Κορινθίους Source: Migne PG 39.1692a-b

But thanks be to God who in Christ is always exhibiting us in triumph, and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him. For we are Christ’s incense to God, among those being saved and those who are perishing, to one as a fragrance from death to death, to the other as a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things? 1 By this, he says, God has revealed through us the fragrance of the knowledge of Christ in every place, since we are the fragrance of Christ. For as the partakers of His light they are the light of the world, thus where His fragrance is those who cleave to Him breathe out His fragrance. And this breathing out of fragrance is to some the scent of death for death, and to others the scent of life for life. But let us not ask if there can be a fragrance of death for death, for indeed the cause of it is in him who is touched by it, just as wholesome food seems to do harm if it is administered to one ravaged by sickness. For as much as they have been seized by death, which happens by sin, so they cannot receive the Divine knowledge with a right mind, from the death of their sinful deeds, which follows on from their impious thoughts, passing away into death. So, on the other hand, they who receive the Divine knowledge in life-giving works pass from life to life, for as a material unguent is useful for the health and well being of the body, destroying insects which are not able to bear the sharpness of the scent, so the Divine fragrance is able to bring health, indeed life, to those who maintain the image and likeness of God the Creator, they who certainly are true men. But they are harmed by that same fragrance who have changed the man within, who allegorically are called flies rotting in the substance of the oil of sweetness, as Ecclesiastes says. 2 Didymus the Blind, On The Second Letter of Paul to The Corinthians, Fragment 1 2 Cor 2.14-16 2 Eccles 10.1

The Meanings Of Many

Οὐ γὰρ ἐσμεν, ὡς οἱ πολλοὶ, καπηλεύοντες τὸν λόγον τοῦ Θεοῦ. Οὐ προσεκτέον τοῖς ἀπὸ τῶν ἑτεροδόχων λεγουσι ὅτι οἱ ἀπόστολοι ἐν Χριστῷ διδάσκοντες κατεναντίον τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῦ ἑτέρου παρὰ τὸν Πατέρα τοῦ Σωτῆρας τουτέστιν, Ἐναντία αὐτῷ φθεγγόμεθα. Πολλοὺς δὲ λέγει τοὺς ἀπαντῶτας διὰ τὸ χυδαῖον· καὶ γὰρ αὐτῇ ἡ φωνὴ, λέγω δε οἱ πολλοὶ, ὀμώνυνος οὖσα, σημαίνει πλείονα· λέγεται γὰρ ποτε ἀντὶ τοῦ, τινές· ὡς ὅταν ὁ Κύριος λέγῃ· Πολλοὶ ἐρουσί μοι ἐν ἐκεὶνῇ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ. Ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀντὶ τῶν πρὸς ὀλίγους διαστελλομένων, ὡς ἐν τῷ· Πολλοὶ μὲν κλητοὶ, ὀλίγοι δὲ ἐκλεκτοί. Δηλοῖ ἡ λέξεις καὶ τοὺς πάντας, ὡς ἐν τῷ Ὥσπερ γὰρ διὰ τῆς παρακοῆς τοῦ ἐνὸς ἁμαρτωλου κατεστάθησαν οἱ πολλοί, Πάντες γὰρ ἄνθρωποι, παρακούσαντος τοῦ Ἀδὰμ, ὑπὸ ἁμαρτίαν εἰσίν. Δηλοῖ δὲ καὶ τοὺς χυδαίους, ὡς ἐν τῷ προκειμένῳ καὶ τῷ Μὴ πολλοὶ δισάσκαλοι γίνεσθε, ἀδελφοί. Σημαίνει δὲ καὶ τοὺς ὅπως ποτὲ πλείονας ὄντας, καὶ ἀπερ ἐν τῷ Πολλοὶ ἐπανίστανται ἐπ' ἐμέ· καὶ Πολλοὶ λέγουσι τῇ ψυχῇ μου. Ἐν τῇ ἐκκειμένῃ φωνῇ τῇ, Οὐκ ἐσμεν, ὥς τινες, καπηλεύοντες τὸν λόγον τοῦ Θεοῦ, τουτέετιν ἐξυδαροῦντες αὐτὸν διὰ ψυχρολογίας καὶ μωρᾶς ἐξηγήσεως· ἀλλ' ὡς ἐξ εἰλικρινείας ἀδόλως καὶ καθαρῶς αὐτὸν προσφερόμεθα. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Τὴν Δευτέραν Ἐπιστολήν Παύλου Πρὸς Κορινθίους Source: Migne PG 39.1692c-1693a

We are not like many who adulterate the word of God. 1 One must not give heed to those heterodox types who say they teach as Apostles in Christ, and speak of another God apart from the Father of the Saviour, that is, who speak in opposition to us. When he says 'many' he means deceivers, on account of the abundance of them among all. Now this word, that is, 'many' may be used for 'most', but here it is said in place of 'some'. As when the Lord said, 'Many shall say to me on that day...' 2 For, of course, it distinguishes from 'few', as in:' 'Many are called, few are chosen.' 3 But indeed this word may signify all, as when: 'So through the disobedience of one, many were made sinners.' 4 Since all men on account of the disobedience of one man became guilty of sin. And then it signifies an abundance in some passages, such as: 'Let not many of you be teachers, brothers.' 5 And it signifies a multitude as in: 'Many rise up against me,' and 'Many say to my soul.' 6 Now in the passage above he says, 'We are not as 'some' who adulterate the word of God, that is, mixing in the water of their rigid and senseless interpretation, but in honesty and without cunning, we speak it purely to you.' Didymus the Blind, On The Second Letter of Paul to The Corinthians, Fragment 1.2 Cor 2.17 2 Mt 7.22 3 Mt 20.6 4 Rom 5.19 5 Jam 3.1 6 Ps 3.2-3

Worthy Of Glory

Quare habentes hanc administrationem, prout misericordiam consecuti sumus, non deficiamus... Tantam spem dicit habere, administrationis hujus, ut non deficiat in pressuris, confortatus fide promissionum. Unde superius dixit: Multa fidcucia utamur, fidentes enim in his, quae promissa sunt, quidquid adversum acciderit, tolerant. Quod non humanis meritis deputat, sed misericordiae Dei, quae hominem primo abluit, deinde justificat, adoptans Filium Deo; ut donet eum gloria simili gloriae Filii proprii Dei. Sed renuntiamus occultis dedecoris... Ut illius gloria dignus sit homo, omnia turpia et polluta, quae fieri et cogitari possunt, amovenda docet; ut non solum de opere, sed et de cogitatione pellantur. Invitantis verba sunt; sub sua enim et suorum persona ad meliorem vitam hortatur, propter supradicta vitia, quae in his saepe reprehendit. Possunt et haec occulta dedecoris esse, quae pravo sensu ad praedicandum meditantur ut fallant; unde subjecit: Non ambulantes in astutia, neque adulterantes verbum Dei... Ad dedecus enim et deformationem ejus proficit, qui subdola mente confingit doctrinam, ad decipiendum corda simplicium; turpis enim invenietur in die judicii Dei. Nam astutia malae mentis, ut id quod sibi libitum est, expleat, verba Dei adulterat, ut sensum invertat. Adulterare est autem verum sensum per falsum velle excludere. Sed in manifestatione veritatis commendantes nosmetipsos ad omnem conscientiam hominum coram Deo. Hoc dicit, quia in praedicatone evangelica nulli se fecit suspectum, addens amplius, cum dicit coram Deo; ut hoc ipsum non solum hominibus manifestum probet; sed etiam Deo, cui nihil occultum est. Testimonium ergo Dei implorat, ut vel sibi credatur, quia ita praedicat, sicut datum est ab Auctore: et Deus hoc modo testis est, dum dat signa et prodigia fieri per manus ejus. Ambrosiaster, In Epistolam Beati Pauli Ad Corinthios Secundum, Caput IV Source: Migne PL 17.288d-289

Whence having this ministry by mercy, we do not lose heart.' 1 Such hope he says he has in his ministry that he does not wither under its burdens, but is fortified by trust in the promises. Whence above he said: 'We are very confident' 2 confident in those things which were promised, that whatever adversity befalls, he endures. Whence he reckons it not a matter of human merit, but of the mercy of God, that which first cleanses a man, then justifies, adopting him as a son of God, so that he might give him glory similar to the only Son of God. But let us renounce all shameful hidden things... That man be worthy of that glory, he teaches that all that is vile and unclean, which they can do and think, should be cast off, that such things be banished not only from the deed but from the mind. And with words of invitation he exhorts them in their person and ways to a better life, on account of the aforementioned vices, which he often reproves in them. And these shameful hidden things can be that which in a depraved mind mediates deception in preaching, whence it continues: Not walking in cleverness, nor adulterating the word of God... For to shame he advances with his deformity, who with a cunning mind fashions teaching in order to deceive the simple hearted. Indeed he will be found repulsive on the day of the judgement of God. For the cleverness of the wicked mind, which does what pleases itself, he explains, adulterates the words of God, so that the meaning is perverted. For to adulterate is to remove the true sense for the false. But in the manifestation of the truth we commend ourselves to the conscience of every man before God. He says this because in the preaching of the Gospel he has made himself suspect to none, further adding, when he says, 'before God' that this is not only proved openly before men, but even before God, to whom nothing is hidden. Therefore he implores the witness of God, that he be trusted, because he preaches that which was given to him by God, and God is in this way his witness, when he gives signs and makes wonders by his own hands. Ambrosiaster, Commentary On The Second Letter of Saint Paul To The Corinthians, Chapter 4 1 2 Cor 4.1 2 2 Cor 3.12

God And Blessings

Εὐλογητὸς ὁ θεὸς καὶ πατὴρ τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ὁ πατὴρ τῶν οἰκτιρμῶν καὶ θεὸς πάσης παρακλήσεως... Εὐλογητὸν τὸν θεόν φασιν οἱ θεῖοι λόγοι, οὐ τῷ εὐλογίαν δεδέχθαι ἀλλὰ τῷ παρέχειν αὐτήν· ὡς γὰρ ἅγιος καὶ ἀγαθὸς μόνος αὐτός, ἁγιάζων καὶ ἀγαθοὺς ποιῶν, καὶ οὐ γινόμενος ταῦτα ἅπερ ἑτέρους ποιεῖ, οὕτω μόνος εὐλογητός ἐστιν, εὐλογίαν παρέχων ἀλλ' οὐ δεχόμενος. οὗτος ὁ εὐλογητὸς θεὸς θεὸς καὶ πατὴρ τοῦ κυρίου Ἰησοῦ ὑπάρχει, θεὸς μὲν διὰ τὴν οἰκονομίαν, πατὴρ δὲ διὰ τὸ λόγον καὶ μονογενῆ υἱὸν ὑπάρχειν. Πατὴρ οἰκτιρμῶν ἐστι κατ' οὐσίαν, πηγὴ αὐτῶν τυγχάνων· οὐ γὰρ ἐξ ἀναλήψεως ἀρετῆς εὑρίσκεται τοιοῦτος οἷοί εἰσιν οἱ γινόμενοι οἰκτίρμονες. ὡς ὁ πατὴρ οὐράνιος, οἰκτίρμων ἐστίν· ὁ γὰρ τῶν οἰκτιρμῶν πατὴρ μεταδίδουσι τοῖς σπεύδουσι μιμεῖσθαι αὐτόν, οὐκ εἶναι ἀλλὰ γίνεσθαι οἰκτίρμοσιν. πρὸς τούτοις καὶ πάσης παρακλήσεως, ἐμπαθείας καὶ χάριτος ὢν θεός. αὕτη ἐστὶν ἐν ᾗ καὶ δι' ἧς παρακαλοῦνται πάντες οἱ ὑπὲρ ἀληθείας μᾶλλον δὲ εὐσεβείας θλιβόμενοι· οὕτω γὰρ καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους θλιβομένους ὄντας αὐτῶν ὑποδεεστέρους διδάξουσι παρακαλεῖσθαι ὑπὸ τῶν θλιβόντων. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Τὴν Δευτέραν Ἐπιστολήν Παύλου Πρὸς Κορινθίους Source: Migne PG 39.1681c-1683a

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the merciful Father, the God who gives all consolation. 1 Sacred Scripture names God blessed, not as if He receives a blessing, but because He gives it. As indeed He alone is holy and good, because He makes holy and He makes good, nor does He do such a thing as to make a thing unlike; thus alone He is blessed, giving blessings and not receiving. This blessed God is God and Father of Lord Jesus; certainly His God on account of His humanity and His Father in as much as He is the Word and only begotten Son. The essence of the Father is mercy, insofar as He is the fount of it, for they are near to election, who are so by mercies bestowed. As the Father is heavenly, so He is merciful, and the Father of mercies He is to those who strive to imitate him, and as He gives, so they are not essentially but are made merciful. For these every consolation and compassion and grace is of God, in which and through which He consoles everyone who for truth, that is, piety, is afflicted. For then others afflicted, weaker than themselves, they shall teach to have consolation in their tribulations. Didymus the Blind, On The Second Letter of Paul to The Corinthians, Fragment 1. 2 Cor 1.3

War Of Flesh And Spirit

Ἐν σαρκὶ γὰρ περιπατοῦντες, οὐ κατὰ σὰρκα στρατευόμεθα.... Τὸ προκείμενον νόησιν ἔχει τοῦ ἐν ἑτέρᾳ ἐπιστολῇ γραφομένου ἔχοντος οὕτως· ἐπὶ γῆς περιπατοῦντες ἐν οὐρανῷ ἔχομεν τὸ πολίτευμα· καὶ γὰρ ταὐτὸν εἴη τὸ κατὰ σάρκα καὶ ἐπὶ γῆς περιπατεῖν, καὶ τὸ μὴ κατὰ σάρκα στρατεύεσθαι τοῦ τὸ πολίτευμα ἔχειν ἐν οὐρανῷ. κατὰ σάρκα δὲ στρατεύεσθαι λέγει οὐ πάντως τοὺς εἰς πόλεμον παρεσκευασμένους, ἀλλὰ γὰρ καὶ τοὺς σαρκίνους καὶ διὰ τοῦτο πεπραμένους ὑπὸ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν, οἷοι ἦσαν περὶ ὧν εἴρηται· οὐ μὴ καταμείνῃ τὸ πνεῦμά μου ἐν τοῖς ἀνθρώποις τούτοις διὰ τὸ εἶναι αὐτοὺς σάρκας. οἱ τούτους ὑπεραναβεβηκότες ὡς τὸ φρόνημα καὶ τὰ ἔργα τῆς σαρκὸς πάλιν κατὰ πνεῦμα στρατεύονται τῷ βασιλεῖ τῶν ὅλων Χριστῷ. διὸ ἵνα ἀρέσωσι τῷ στρατεύσαντι, οὐκ ἐμπλέκονται ταῖς τοῦ βίου πραγματείαις, τοῦτ' ἔστι τοῖς ὑλικοῖς. ἀμέλει γοῦν ἃ φέρουσιν ὅπλα οὐκ αἰσθητὰ καὶ σωματικά ἀσθενῆ γὰρ ταῦτα ἀλλὰ δυνατὰ τῷ θεῷ εἰσιν. καθαιροῦσι γοῦν οἱ χρώμενοι τούτοις τὰς ὀχυρότητας τῶν ἀπατηλῶν λόγων πάνυ σοφιστικῶς κατεσκευασμένων πρὸς τῶν ἑτεροδόξων, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ ὄντα ἐν τοῖς λόγοις τούτοις ὑψώματα κατὰ τῆς γνώσεως τοῦ θεοῦ ἐπαιρόμενα· οἱ γὰρ ἀντιταττόμενοι τῇ γνώσει τῆς ἀληθείας, ἀσεβῆ καὶ ἄθεα δόγματα παρεισάγοντες, τῇ δεινότητι τῶν λόγων φρούρια ὀχυρὰ οἰκοδομοῦντες, ἔνδον αὐτῶν χωροῦντες ἡγοῦνται εἶναι ἀκατα μάχητοι. Πρὸς τούτοις ἃ διδασκαλικῶς δῆθεν σὺν φαινομένῃ ἀποδείξει προφέρουσι μάταιον ὕψος ἔχοντα, ψευδεῖ νοήσει ἐπαίρεται ὡς ἀνωτέρω χωροῦντα τῆς ἐκκλησιαστικῆς γνώμης ὀνομαζομένης γνώσεως θεοῦ. Αὐτὸς γὰρ αὐτοῖς τοῖς ἀξίοις παρέχει. Ἕνεκα γοῦν τοῦ καθαιρῆσαι τὰ προειρημένα ὑψώματα καὶ ὀχυρώματα, ἐνδυσάμενοι τὴν πανοπλίαν τοῦ θεοῦ κατὰ πνεῦμα, τῷ εἰρημένῳ τρόπῳ στρατευόμεθα. Διαλύομεν γοῦν τοὺς σοφιστικοὺς αὐτῶν λόγους, καὶ τὰ δόγματα διελέγχομεν. Ἀμέλει γοῦν πᾶν νόημα τῶν ἠπατημένων κεκρατημένων ὑπὸ τῶν ἀπατεώνων, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀνατραφὲν ἐν χώρᾳ τῇ ἐκείνων αἰχμαλωτίζοντες φέρομεν πρὸς τὸ ὑπακοῦσαι τῷ Χριστῷ.Δυνατὸν ἐκλαβεῖν καὶ οὕτως· πᾶν νόημα τὸ ὅπως ποτὲ ἔν τινι διδασκαλίᾳ φερόμενον ἀνάγκῃ καὶ βίᾳ μετοικίζοντες πρὸς τὸ πεῖσαι ὑπακοῦσαι τῷ Χριστῷ φέρομεν. Oὕτω γὰρ τὸ Ἀθήνησιν ἀνακείμενον βωμῷ ἐπίγραμμα, ἐμφαῖνον πολλῶν θεῶν νόημα, ἑλκύσας ὁ ταῦτα γράφων μετήνεγκεν εἰς τὸν μόνον ἀληθινὸν θεόν, φήσας· ὃν οὐκ ἀγνοοῦντες εὐσεβεῖτε, τοῦτον ἐγὼ καταγγέλλω ὑμῖν. Ἀγνοούμενον δὲ πλῆθος θεῶν ἐδήλου τὸ ἐπίγραμμα. Ὅταν οὖν πᾶν νόημα αἰχμαλωτισθῇ εἰς ὑπακοὴν τοῦ Χριστοῦ, τὸ τηνικάδε ἑτοίμως ἕξομεν κατὰ πάσης παρακοῆς ἐπαγαγεῖν ἐκδίκησιν, ὥσπερ οἱ αἰχμαλώτους λαβόντες ἐν τῷ νενικηκέναι ἔθνος τι θαρραλέοι γίνονται εἰς τὸ ὑποσκάψαι τὴν χώραν ἐκείνων. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Τὴν Δευτέραν Ἐπιστολήν Παύλου Πρὸς Κορινθίους Source: Migne PG 39.1717c-1720c

For walking in the flesh, we do not fight according to the flesh...1 These words bear the same meaning which is found in another letter: 'Walking on earth, we have our place in heaven.' 2 Certainly it is according to the flesh that one walks on the earth, and yet it not according to the flesh one fights when one has one's place in heaven. For to fight according to the flesh, he says, by no means refers to men who triumph in war here, for carnal men by this are conquered by sin, concerning which it was said, 'My spirit shall not remain in these men, for they are flesh.' 3 Those who are lifted up over these things, that is, over the desires and works of the flesh, they on the contrary are the ones who fight according to the Spirit, that they rule over all things with Christ. Therefore, so that they might please their general, they are not bound up in the affairs of the world, that is material things. 4 And the arms they bear are not material things or corporeal, for such things are weak, but their strength is from God. They, then, who make use of these kind of arms, they destroy the citadels of deceitful speech, which the heterodox raise up with great sophistical art, and even the heights of their orations against the wisdom of God, by which they accliam themselves, they blow apart; for they who set up impious and godless teaching against the true knowledge, with their eloquence build up fortresses with strong walls, within which they enclose themselves, and they seem to themselves be unconquerable. But with their teachings of mere apparent proofs they vainly claim the heights, and only in a deluded mind is their place is elevated as something superior to the understanding of the Church, which is called the knowledge of God. For He gives this only to those who are worthy. Therefore for the overthrow of the aforementioned high places and citadels, there is the endowment of the arms of God according to the spirit, and instruction in the way we war. Thus let us shatter the cleverness of their speeches and thus let us refute their teachings. Let us have no care for any thought set beneath the yoke of error by these deceivers, but even those raised captive in their places, let us transfer to the service of Christ. Thus it is possible to understand it: that it is most necessary that every thought expressed in whatever teaching we bring by power to be persuaded to obedience to Christ. So indeed that inscription on the Athenean altar, which proclaimed an understanding of many gods, the author of this letter brings to the one true God, saying: 'Him whom, therefore, you worship as unknown, I announce to you.' 5 And certainly by the name of 'unknown' he speaks of the inscription regarding many gods. When, therefore, all understanding shall have been made captive in obedience to Christ, then we shall be prepared to punish any contumacy, just as one who makes a people captive, may confidently walk about their ravaged country. Didymus the Blind, On The Second Letter of Paul to The Corinthians, Fragment 1 2 Cor 1.3 2 Philip 3.20 3 Gen 6.3 4 2 Tim 2.4 5 Acts 17.23

Weakness And Glory

Habentes autem thesaurum hunc in vasis fictilibus; ut excellentia sit virtutis Dei, et non ex nobis. Thesaurum sacramentum significavit Dei in Christo, quod credentibus manifestatur, incredulis vero quodam tectum est velamine; quia sicut thesaurus in occulto ponitur, ita et sacramenta Dei intra hominem, id est, in corde humano absconditur. Hunc ergo thesaurum in animo et corpore dicit esse a Deo datum, ut eminentia virtutis ejus appareat per homines praedicatores dumtaxat; ut reconcilietur omnis lingua Creatori suo, non ad honorificentiam hominum, sed Dei, qui se manifestat per homines: qui cum humiles et imperiti essent, acceperunt potestatem a Deo et loquendi magnalia, et agendi. Fictilia ergo vasa dicens, infirmitatem naturae humanae significat, quae nihil potest, nisi a Deo acciperet virtutem, et ad laudem suam Deus per haec se praedicet, quae infirma sunt; ut gloria illi detur, non homini, qui ex luto fictus est. Ambrosiaster, In Epistolam Beati Pauli Ad Corinthios Secundum, Caput IV Source: Migne PL 17.290b-d

Having even this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the virtue be God's and not from us.' 1 He means the treasure of the mystery of God in Christ, which is manifested by the faithful, though over unbelievers there is covering and a veil, because as a treasure is placed in a hidden place, so even the mystery of God in a man, that is, it is hidden in the human heart. Therefore he says that this treasure in the soul and body is given by God, that the glory of His virtue may appear through the preaching of men, that every tongue may be reconciled to its Creator, not for the honour of men, but of God, who manifests Himself through men, men who when they were humble and simple received the power of God and were able to speak and do wondrous things. So he speaks of an earthen vessel, signifying the infirmity of human nature, which can do nothing, unless it receives power from God, 2 and God to His own praise by this preaches Himself, through weakness, that glory might by given to Him, and not man, who is fashioned from mud. Ambrosiaster, Commentary On The Second Letter of Saint Paul To The Corinthians, Chapter 4 1 2 Cor 4.7 2 Jn 15.5

A State Of Exile

Fidentes igitur semper, et scienties quia inhabitantes in hoc corpore, peregrinamus a Domino; per fidem enim ambulamus, non per speciem. Manifestum est quia per fidem cum Domino sumus, non per praesentiam: ac per hoc peregrinamur non fide, sed specie. Et quare, cum idem dicat in Actibus Apostolorum: In ipso enim vivimus, et movemur, et sumus, hoc loco peregrinari nos a Domino dicit? Si ubique est, quomodo hic positi, peregrinamur a Domino? Sine dubio ubique, immo omnia in Deo sunt: sed quia sedes Dei in coelis est, et illic semper videtur; ideo hic positi, ideo hic positi, ubi non videtur, peregrinari ab eo dicimur. Quando enim non eum videmus, licet praesens sit, absentes ab eo. Ambrosiaster, In Epistolam Beati Pauli Ad Corinthios Secundum, Caput V Source: Migne PL 17.294b-c

Therefore being faithful always and knowing that dwelling in the body we are in exile from the Lord, indeed we walk by faith in Him not by sight.' 1 It is manifest that we are with the Lord by faith, but not by presence, and because of this we are exiled not as regards faith, but from sight. And why, when the same man says in the Acts of the Apostles, 'In Him we live and move and have our being' 2 does he say here that we are exiles from the Lord? If God is everywhere, how being placed here are we exiles from the Lord? Without doubt God is everywhere, and all things are in God, but since the throne of God is heaven and He is always seen there, therefore placed here, where He is not seen, we are said to be exiled from Him. For when we do not see Him, He is indeed present, but we are absent from Him. Ambrosiaster, Commentary On The Second Letter of Saint Paul To The Corinthians, Chapter 5 1 2 Cor 5.6-7 2 Acts 17.28

Perishing And Progress

Εἰ δὲ καὶ ἔστιν κεκαλυμμένον τὸ εὐαγγέλιον ἡμῶν, ἐν τοῖς ἀπολλυμένοις ἐστὶν κεκαλυμμένον, ἐν οἷς ὁ θεὸς τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου ἐτύφλωσεν τὰ νοήματα τῶν ἀπίστων.  Θεὸν τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου τὸν διάβολον εἶναί φησιν, ὡς καὶ τὰ δαιμόνια τῶν ἐθνῶν θεοί, καὶ ἡ κοιλία τῶν γαστριμάργων. στίζουσι δέ τινες εἰς τὸ ἐν οἷς ὁ θεός, ἑξῆς ἀναγινώσκοντες ἀπ' ἰδίας ἀρχῆς· τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου ἐτύφλωσε τὰ νοήματα τῶν ἀπίστων. ἀμέλει γοῦν καὶ εὐέλεγκτα λέγουσιν· εἰ γὰρ ἄπιστοί τινές εἰσι τούτου τοῦ αἰῶνος, εὑρεθεῖεν ἕτεροι ἄπιστοι οὐκ ὄντες αὐτοῦ. πᾶς γὰρ ἄπιστός ἐστι τούτου τοῦ αἰῶνος· οὐδεὶς γὰρ ὑπερβὰς αὐτὸν καὶ καταξιωθεὶς τοῦ μέλλοντος αἰῶνος, τετύφλωται ἐν νοήμασιν, ἀλλ' ἔχει πεφωτισμένους τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς. ἔγνων τινὰς σαφηνίζοντας τὴν προκειμένην λέξιν, φάσκοντας κεκαλυμμένον εἶναι τὸ εὐαγγέλιον οὐ τοῖς πάντη ἀπίστοις· οὐδὲ γὰρ κεκαλυμμένου αὐτοῦ ἢ γυμνοῦ πεῖραν ἔχουσιν. ἔλεγον δὲ οὗτοι ἀπολλυμένους εἶναι ἐν οἷς κεκάλυπται τὸ εὐαγγέλιον, τοὺς παραδεξαμένους μὲν αὐτό, μὴ μὴν ἄνευ καλύμματος προσβαλόντας αὐτῷ. οἷοι ἐτύγχανον οἱ ἐν παραβολαῖς ἀκούοντες τῶν Ἰησοῦ λόγων, τοῦ ἀπολλύμενοι ἐπ' αὐτῶν κειμένου ἐπὶ δηλώσει τοῦ κατ' ἀλλοίωσιν μεταβαλεῖν· οἱ γὰρ προκόπτοντές εἰσι τοιοῦτοι, ἀεὶ ἐξ ἑτέρων ἕτεροι γινόμενοι. ὅθεν οὐκ ἐπὶ ψόγου ἔλεγον κεῖσθαι τὸ ἀπολλύμενοι, ἀλλ' ὡσαύτως τῷ οἱ οὐρανοὶ ἀπολοῦνται, καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀπολλύμενοι τὸν αἰῶνα· αἱ γὰρ λέξεις αὗται ἀπόλλυσθαι τίθενται τοῦ ἐν προκοπῇ ἐκ ποιότητος εἰς ποιότητα μεταβαίνοντος. . Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Τὴν Δευτέραν Ἐπιστολήν Παύλου Πρὸς Κορινθίους Source:  Migne PG 39.1698b-d

And if our Gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whom the god of this world has blinded the minds of the faithless. 1  The God of this world they name the devil, as indeed the gods of the Gentiles are demons, 2 and the stomach, and gluttony. 3 But some make a punctuation after 'in whom the god,' and as if from a new beginning, so then have it read: 'He has blinded the minds of the faithless of this world.' But what they propose with this is easily refuted: for if some are the unfaithful of this world, thus are found other unfaithful ones who are not of this world. But whoever is unfaithful is of this world, for no one who has advanced beyond it and has been made worthy of the future is blinded in his mind, but rather he has had his eyes enlightened. I know that some have before explained this passage, saying that it is the veiling of the Gospel to all those unfaithful, those who have no experience of it unveiled. And they say they who are perishing are those to whom the Gospel is veiled, and yet the Gospel is never received without a veil for the sake of the advancement of man. As it happened with those who heard the parables of Jesus: for he who is unmoved by them is perishing, and those who are changed advance, for those who advance in such a way, always change from one thing to another. 4 Whence they do not speak in censure of the stable perishing, but just as the heavens pass away for God, 5 so we perish amid the world, 6 for these passages that speak of the fixed perishing concern progress, which is a transference for one state to another. Didymus the Blind, On The Second Letter of Paul to The Corinthians, Fragment 1 2 Cor 4.3-4 2 Ps 95.5 3 Phillip 3.19 4 2 Cor 3.18 5 Ps 101.27 6 Baruch 3.3

Enlightment And Glory

Quia Deus qui dixit de tenebris lumen fulgere, illuxit in cordibus nostris ad illuminationem cognitionis gloriae Dei in facie Christi Jesu. Hoc dicit, quia misericordia Dei factum est, ut nos, inquit, qui fuimus incredibiles in ignorantia, hoc est, in tenebris, per nos daret Deus lumen caeteris gentibus. Quantum se adhuc humiliat, ut Dei solius et Christi gloriam praeferat? Illuminatur enim, ut cognitionem habeant gloriae Dei per Christum. Ideo gloriae Dei ait cognitionem, id est, non Dei solius, sed et Christi, qui est gloria ejus; ut significaret non solum Deum cognosci, sed et opera ejus et misericordiam et providentiam, qua condidit et salvavit genus humanum, visus in Christo per gloriam virtutis suae. Ambrosiaster, In Epistolam Beati Pauli Ad Corinthios Secundum, Caput IV Source: Migne PL 17.290b

Because God, He who spoke into the darkness and made it light, enlightened our hearts with the illumination of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.' 1 He says this: because it is by the mercy of God that through us who were unbelievers in ignorance, that is, in darkness, that God has given light to the other peoples. And how much does he still humble himself, that he speaks of God alone and the glory of Christ? For he is illuminated, that they might have knowledge of the glory of God through Christ. Therefore he speaks of the knowledge of the glory of God, that is, not of God alone, but even of Christ, who is His glory, that he signify that not only God be known, but His work and His mercy and His providence, by which He established and saved the human race, seen in Christ by the glory of His virtue. Ambrosiaster, Commentary On The Second Letter of Saint Paul To The Corinthians, Chapter 4 1 2 Cor 4.6

Fathers And Types Of Sons

Χάρις ὑμῖν καὶ εἰρήνη ἀπὸ θεοῦ πατρὸς ἡμῶν καὶ Κυρίου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ  Καὶ τοῦτο δὲ λεκτέον, πατέρα ἑαυτῶν τὸν θεὸν εἰρηκότες οὐκέτι ἀδελφὸν ἀλλὰ κύριον ἑαυτῶν τὸν σωτῆρά φασιν, δεικνύντες ὅτι κἂν υἱοὶ θεοῦ γένωνται οἱ γενητοί, οὐδὲν ἧττον δοῦλοι μένουσι τοῦ Κυρίου Ἰησοῦ δημιουργοῦ αὐτῶν τυγχάνοντος· μόνος γὰρ αὐτὸς ἀληθείᾳ καὶ οὐ θέσει υἱὸς ὢν θεοῦ δεσπότης ἐστὶ τῶν υἱοποιουμένων. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Τὴν Δευτέραν Ἐπιστολήν Παύλου Πρὸς Κορινθίους Source:  Migne PG 39.1682b-c

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 1  And this also must be said, that they who call God their Father do not name the Saviour their brother but their Lord, so demonstrating themselves to be indeed created sons of God, and yet nevertheless  servants of Lord Jesus, who is their Creator. For He alone is not a son of God by adoption and so He is the Lord of those who are adopted. Didymus the Blind, On The Second Letter of Paul to The Corinthians, Fragment 1. 2 Cor 1.2

Trinity And Gifts

Χάρις ὑμῖν καὶ εἰρήνη. Ἐπεύχονται οἱ γράφοντες χάριν καὶ εἰρήνην ὑπαρχθῆναι Κορινθίοις ἀπὸ θεοῦ πατρὸς καὶ κυρίου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, τῆς αὐτῆς δηλονότι ἐκ πατρὸς καὶ υἱοῦ διδομένης δωρεᾶς· ὡς γὰρ τὰ ἔργα ἃ ποιεῖ ὁ πατήρ, ταῦτα ὁ υἱὸς ὁμοίως ὑφίστησιν, οὕτως ἃ δίδωσιν ὁ πατὴρ χαρίσματα, ὁ υἱὸς δωρεῖται· μία γὰρ χάρις καὶ εἰρήνη μία πρὸς τῆς τριάδος δίδοται.  Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Τὴν Δευτέραν Ἐπιστολήν Παύλου Πρὸς Κορινθίους Source: Migne PG 39.1682b

Grace And Peace to you. 1 Writing, he prays that grace and peace may be with the Corinthians from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, because clearly the same gift is given from the Father and the Son, for as the Father performs his work, similarly the Son does the same. 2 Thus what gifts the Father gives, so the Son gives the same; certainly one grace and one peace is given by the Trinity. Didymus the Blind, On The Second Letter of Paul to The Corinthians, Fragment 1 2 Cor 1.3 2 Jn 5.19

Scripture And Spirit

Οὗ δὲ τὸ Πνεῦμα Κυρίου, εκεῖ ἐλευθερία, κ.τ.λ. Ἐκ τούτων ἀνατρέπεται ὁ μῦθος τῶν διακοπτόντων τὴν Θεοῦ Γραφήν. Μία γάρ ἐστιν, ὁτὲ μὲν τύποις καὶ σκιᾷ κεκαλυμμένη, ὁτὲ δὲ ἄνευ καλυμμάτων προφαινομένη· ἐπείπερ ἀπὸ Πνεύματος κυριακοῦ τὴν ἀποκάλυψιν αὐτῆς δεχόμεθα, πεπεισμέμενοι ἐλευθερίαν εἴναι τὸ Κυρίου Πνεῦμα.  Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Τὴν Δευτέραν Ἐπιστολήν Παύλου Πρὸς Κορινθίους Source: Migne PG 39. 1697

And where is the spirit of the Lord, there is freedom... 1 With these words he overthrows the fable of the divisions of the Scriptures of God. For one is veiled with types and shadows, and one without veils is declared, since when we receive revelation concerning it from the spirit of the Lord, we are persuaded that the spirit of the Lord is freedom.  Didymus the Blind, On The Second Letter of St Paul to The Corinthians, Fragment  1 2 Cor 3.17

Ecstacies And Judgements

εἴτε γὰρ ἐξέστημεν, θεῷ: εἴτε σωφρονοῦμεν, ὑμῖν.  Ἐκεῖνοι μὲν ἐπὶ τούτοις ἐλεγχέσθωσαν παρ' ὑμῶν, λέγει δὲ περὶ τῶν ψευδαποστόλων, ἡμεῖς δὲ ὑμῶν χάριν καὶ δι' ὑμᾶς ταῦτα πράττομεν· κἄν τε γὰρ ἔξω τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων γενόμενοι τῷ θεῷ ἐκστῶμεν, ἀλλ' οὖν σωφρονοῦμεν ὑμῖν, τῆς θείας ἐκστάσεως οὐ μανίαν ἀλλὰ νηφαλιότητα ἐχούσης. Οὐ προσεκτέον γὰρ τοῖς ἀπὸ τῶν Φρυγῶν λέγουσι τοὺς ἀποστόλους καὶ προφήτας ἐξίστασθαι ὥστε παραπαίειν· παρηκολούθουν γὰρ οἷς ἔλεγον καὶ ἔπραττον, εἰ καί τινες ἄλλοι. Ἠπατήθησαν δὲ οἱ ἠλίθιοι ἐκ τῆς ὁμωνυμίας· οὐ γὰρ μόνον τὸ παραπαίειν καὶ παρακόπτειν σημαίνει ἡ ἐξέστη φωνή, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ ἐκπλαγῆναι ἐπὶ θαυμασμῷ. Οὕτω γὰρ ἐξέστη Ἰσαὰκ ἔκστασιν μεγάλην, καὶ ἐκστήσονταί τινες ἐπὶ τῷ κυρίῳ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῖς ἀγαθοῖς αὐτοῦ, κατὰ τὸν προφήτην. Εἰ δὲ καὶ ἄλλα τινα δηλοῦται ὑπὸ τῆς φωνῆς, ἐπιστήτω ὁ ἐντυγχάνων ταῖς γραφαῖς.  Δυδύμος του Ἀλεξανδρέως, Εἰς Την Δευτεραν Ἐπιστολήν Προς Κορινθίους, Ἐκλογή, Κεφ Ε' Migne PG 39.1702d-1703a

For if we are in an ecstasy, it is for God. If we are sober, it is for you. 1 So let them be proved by you concerning these things, and he speaks here of false apostles, but we for your sake do these things, and even if our mind leaps beyond human things to God, nevertheless we are sober when we turn to you, because Divine ecstasy is not madness but the possession of sobriety. Do not attend to those from Phrygia who call themselves apostles and prophets and when in ecstasy lose their minds, for even what they speak and do they know beforehand. And this sham for the simple he makes a homonym. For the word ecstasy not only signifies delirium or loss of control, but even an astonishment from admiration. For so Issac was shaken with a great ecstasy, 2 and not a few have experience of ecstasy in the Lord and His good things, 3 as the Prophet says. But even if there are other meanings to this word, let it be known what occurs in the Scriptures. Didymus the Blind, Fragment from a Commentary On The Second Letter of St Paul to the Corinthians, Chap 5 1 2 Cor 5.13 2 Gen 27.33 3 Hosea 3.5

Tribulations And Relief

Εν θλίψει ἐπλάτυνὰς με. Παυλος γ' οὖν ἤκουσεν· Ἀρκεῖ σοι ἡ χάρις μου· ἡ γὰρ δύναμις μου ἐν ἀσθενείᾳ τελειοῦται. Καὶ οἱ διελάσαντες δὲ τῆς ἁμαρτίας τοὺς βρόχους, καὶ οἱ ἐν πίστει τελειωθέντες καὶ θλίψεις ὑπὲρ Χριστου καὶ αἰκίας ἀναδεξάμενοι τοῖς ἄνωθεν ἐντρυφήσουσιν ἀγαθοῖς. Ἅγιος Κύριλλος Ἀλεξανδρείας, Εἰς Τους Ψαλμους, Ψαλμός Δ' Source: Migne PG 69.733,755

In tribulation you brought me relief. 1 And indeed then Paul heard, 'Let my grace be enough for you; for my power is perfected in weakness.' 2 And those who thrust through the snares of sin, and those who have a perfected faith, bear tribulations for Christ and grief in the enjoyment of heavenly goods. Saint Cyril of Alexandria, Commentary on the Psalms, from Psalm 4  1 Ps 4.2  2 2 Cor 12.9

Mourning And Rejoicing

Ὡς λυπούμενοι, ἀεὶ δὲ χαίροντες Ἔτι ὑπονοούμενοι λυπεῐσθαι, καὶ πτωχοὶ καὶ μηδὲν ἔχοντες, δι' ἥν κατορθοῦμεν ἀκρημοσύνην χαίρομεν, πλουτοῦντες ἔργοις ἀγαθοῖς, καὶ παντὶ λόγῳ, καὶ πάσῃ γνώσει· ὡς καὶ ἄλλους πλουτίζειν κατὰ τὸν πλοῦτον τὸν ὀξὺ βλέποντα. Ὁ γὰρ τοῦτον ἔχων, πάντων ἐγκρατής ἐστιν, κατέχων αὐτά. Δυδύμος του Ἀλεξανδρέως, Εἰς Την Δευτεραν Ἐπιστολήν Προς Κορινθίους, Ἐκλογή,  Κεφ Ϛ' Migne PG 39 1709

'As those mourning, but always rejoicing.' 1 That is, being suspected of grieving because of poverty and having nothing, yet on account of which we profit rejoicing in poverty, because with good works we are made rich, and with every word and thought, and thus others we enrich with this type of wealth, which acutely the Apostle perceives, for he who has this, having mastery over all things, abstains from everything else. Didymus the Blind, Fragment from a Commentary On The Second Epistle to the  Corinthians, Chap 6 1 2 Cor 6. 10

Teaching And Travail

Εἴτε δὲ θλιβόμενοι Θλίβεσθαί φασιν οἱ διδάσκαλοι ὑπὲρ προκοπῆς καὶ σωτηρίας τῶν πεπαιδευμένων, ἵν' ὑπομονὴν ἔχοντες τελείαν βεβαιωθῶσιν, ἐλπίζοντες τυχεῖν ἐπαξίων ἀμοιβῶν δοθησομένων τοῖς ὑπὲρ ἀληθείας ἀγωνιζομένοις ἀποστόλοις καὶ τοῖς τούτων ἀκροαταῖς. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Τὴν Δευτέραν Ἐπιστολήν Παύλου Πρὸς Κορινθίους Migne PG 39 1683

'But if we are troubled...' 1 Troubled he names the teachers on account of the advance and salvation of their pupils, that having endurance they be firmly established, hoping that they are worthy to be given the Apostolic reward for their striving for truth, and the same for their pupils. Didymus the Blind, On The Second Letter of Paul to The Corinthians, Fragment 1 2 Cor 1.6

Preaching, Rule And Glory

Οὐ γὰρ ἑαυτοὺς κηρύσσομεν  Ἀναφορὰν ἔχει ἡ προκειμένη λέξις πρὸς τὸ οὐχ ὅτι κυριεύομεν τῆς πίστεως ὑμῶν· ἀκολούθως γὰρ ἐκείνῳ ῥηθείη ἄν· οὐχ ἑαυτοὺς κηρύττομεν, διὸ οὐ κυριεύομεν ὑμῶν τῆς πίστεως· κηρύττομεν γὰρ Ἰησοῦν Χριστὸν θεὸν κύριον, ἑαυτοὺς δὲ δούλους ὑμῶν διὰ Χριστοῦ. ὥστε οὐχ ἡμεῖς ἀλλ' αὐτὸς κυριεύει τῆς πίστεως ἡμῶν, ἀποδεχόμενος ἢ κρίνων ὑμᾶς κατ' αὐτήν. πρὸς τούτοις καὶ τὸ ὅτι ὁ θεὸς ὁ εἰπὼν ἐκ σκότους φῶς λάμψαι, συναπτέον τῷ ἡμεῖς δὲ πάντες ἀνακεκαλυμμένῳ προσώπῳ τὴν δόξαν κυρίου κατοπτριζόμεθα. ἐκ σκότους δὲ λάμπεται φῶς τῷ ἐξ ἀγνοίας εἰς ἐπίγνωσιν ἀληθείας ἐρχομένῳ· λέγομεν γοῦν ἐξ ἀγνοοῦντος καὶ ἀληθοῦς ἐπιστήμονα καὶ πεπαιδευμένον γίνεσθαι. τῆς οὖν προκαταλαβούσης τοὺς ἀνθρώπους ἀγνοίας καὶ κακίας ὠνομασμένων σκότους, ἔλαμψεν ὁ θεὸς ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις φωτισμὸν πρακτικῆς καὶ διανοητικῆς ἀρετῆς, ἵν' ἔχωσι θεωρίας τῆς δόξης Χριστοῦ ἐν προσώπῳ αὐτοῦ. δόξαν δὲ ἤτοι καθ' ἣν φρονοῦσι περὶ αὐτοῦ, ἢ δόξαν καθ' ἣν δεδοξασμένον αὐτὸν ἴσμεν. Δυδύμος του Ἀλεξανδρέως, Εἰς Την Δευτεραν Ἐπιστολήν Προς Κορινθίους, Ἐκλογή  Migne PG 39 1697-1700

'For we do not preach ourselves.' 1 This bears a relation to the passage that says, 'For we do not wish to dominate your faith.' 2 for following that it may be said, 'We do not preach ourselves, on account of not wanting to dominate your faith.' 'For we preach the Lord God Jesus Christ, and we are your servants on account of Christ,' 1 and thus not we, but He rules your faith, testing and approving you according to it. Whence it is said: 'The God who told light to shine out from darkness.' 1 that we all be united, reflecting the revealed face of God's glory. The light illuminates the darkness, and from ignorance we come to knowledge of truth. So it is said that from ignorance and unlearnedness comes wisdom and learning. When therefore men are beset by ignorance and wickedness and are named darkness, God makes shine in their hearts the light of practical and intellectual virtue, by which men acquire awareness of Christ in His own person; glory, I say, by which they have knowledge of Him, glory by which we come to the same glorification. Didymus the Blind, Commentary on Second Letter to the Corinthians, Fragment 1 2 Cor 4.5 2 2 Cor 1.23 3 2 Cor 4.6