On the Holy Spirit (Pentecost) (complete)
Authorship disputed: Printed in Migne as Gregory's; its authorship is questioned (not yet checked against the modern edition).
Greek text: PG 46 (OCR by the Bavarian State Library / Google Books; lines extracted for this site).English: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), public domain (CC0).
Chapter 695
695PG 46:695–696
Πᾶσαν ἑορτῆς ὑπόθεσιν φαιδροτέραν ὁ Δαβίδ δι' ἑαυτοῦ ἀπεργάζεται, τὴν πολυαρμόνιον ἐκείνην κιθάραν προσφόρως ἀεὶ τῇ χρείᾳ μεθαρμοζόμενος. Οὐκοῦν καὶ τὴν μεγάλην τῆς Πεντηκοστῆς ἑορτὴν φαιδρυνέτω ἡμῖν ὁ αὐτὸς Προφήτης, τῷ πλήκτρῳ τοῦ Πνεύματος ἐν ταῖς χορδαῖς τῆς σοφίας τὸ μέλος ἀνακρουόμενος. Εἰπάτω τοίνυν ἐκ τῆς ἐνθέου μελῳδίας ἐκείνης, τὸ τῇ παρούσῃ χάριτι πρόσφορον ὅτι Δεῦτε, ἀγαλλιασώμεθα τῷ Κυρίῳ. Πρότερον χρὴ γνῶναι τὴν χάριν, ἥτις ἐστὶν, εἶθ' οὕτως τὴν κατάλληλον ἐκ τῆς προφητείας ἐφαρμόσαι τῇ ὑποθέσει φωνήν· καὶ μοι δότε, καθὼς ἂν ᾗ δυνατὸν, διά τινος ἀκολούθου τάξεως διασαφῆσαι τὸν περι τούτων λόγον· Πεπλάνητο κατ' ἀρχὰς τὸ ἀνθρώπινον, πρὸς τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ κατανόησιν, καὶ καταλιπόντες τὸν τῆς κτίσεως Κύριον, οἱ μὲν τοῖς τοῦ κόσμου στοιχείοις δι' ἀπάτην ὑπέκυπτον, ἄλλοι δὲ τὴν τῶν δαιμόνων φύσιν ἐποιοῦντο σεβάσμιον, πολλοῖς δὲ τὸ θεῖον ἐδόκει καὶ ἡ χειροποίητος τῶν εἰδώλων μορφὴ, οἷς βωμοί τε, καὶ ναοὶ, καὶ τελεταὶ, καὶ θυσίαι, καὶ τεμένη, καὶ ἀφιδρύματα, καὶ πάντα τὰ τοιαῦτα παρ' αὐτῶν ἀνετίθετο εἰς θεραπείαν τῶν ψευδωνύμων θεῶν. Εἶδε τοίνυν τῷ τῆς φιλανθρωπίας ὀφθαλμῷ τὴν τῆς φύσεως τῶν ἀνθρώπων διαφθορὰν ὁ Δεσπότης τῆς φύσεως, καὶ διά τινος ἀκολουθίας ἀπὸ τῆς πλάνης ἐπανάγει τὴν ἀνθρωπίνην ζωὴν πρὸς τὴν τῆς ἀληθείας ἐπίγνωσιν. Ὥσπερ γὰρ οἱ τοὺς ἐν λιμῷ χρονίῳ συντετηκότας, μετά τινος ἰατρικῆς ἐπιστήμης ἀναλαμβάνοντες, οὐκ ἀθρόως ἐπὶ τὸν κόρον προάγουσι φειδοῖ τῆς ἀσθενείας αὐτῶν· ἀλλὰ διὰ τῆς συμμέτρου τροφῆς ἀναληφθείσης αὐτοῖς τῆς ὡς δυνάμεως, τότε συγχωροῦσι κατ' ἐξουσίαν ἐμφορεῖσθαι
Pasan heortēs hypothesin phaidroteran ho Dabid di' heautou apergazetai, tēn polyarmonion ekeinēn kitharan prosphorōs aei tę̄ chreią metharmozomenos. Oukoun kai tēn megalēn tēs Pentēkostēs heortēn phaidrynetō hēmin ho autos Prophētēs, tǭ plēktrǭ tou Pneumatos en tais chordais tēs sophias to melos anakrouomenos. Eipatō toinyn ek tēs entheou melǭdias ekeinēs, to tę̄ parousę̄ chariti prosphoron hoti Deute, agalliasōmetha tǭ Kyriǭ. Proteron chrē gnōnai tēn charin, hētis estin, eith' houtōs tēn katallēlon ek tēs prophēteias epharmosai tę̄ hypothesei phōnēn; kai moi dote, kathōs an hę̄ dynaton, dia tinos akolouthou taxeōs diasaphēsai ton peri toutōn logon; Peplanēto kat' archas to anthrōpinon, pros tēn tou Theou katanoēsin, kai katalipontes ton tēs ktiseōs Kyrion, hoi men tois tou kosmou stoicheiois di' apatēn hypekypton, alloi de tēn tōn daimonōn physin epoiounto sebasmion, pollois de to theion edokei kai hē cheiropoiētos tōn eidōlōn morphē, hois bōmoi te, kai naoi, kai teletai, kai thysiai, kai temenē, kai aphidrymata, kai panta ta toiauta par' autōn anetitheto eis therapeian tōn pseudōnymōn theōn. Eide toinyn tǭ tēs philanthrōpias ophthalmǭ tēn tēs physeōs tōn anthrōpōn diaphthoran ho Despotēs tēs physeōs, kai dia tinos akolouthias apo tēs planēs epanagei tēn anthrōpinēn zōēn pros tēn tēs alētheias epignōsin. Hōsper gar hoi tous en limǭ chroniǭ syntetēkotas, meta tinos iatrikēs epistēmēs analambanontes, ouk athroōs epi ton koron proagousi pheidoi tēs astheneias autōn; alla dia tēs symmetrou trophēs analēphtheisēs autois tēs hōs dynameōs, tote synchōrousi kat' exousian emphoreisthai
David makes every subject of a feast brighter by himself, always retuning that many-stringed lyre fittingly to the need. Let the same prophet, then, brighten for us the great feast of Pentecost too, striking up his melody on the strings of wisdom with the plectrum of the Spirit. Let him say, then, from that inspired song, what suits the present grace: “Come, let us rejoice in the Lord.” But first we must know what the grace is, and then fit to the subject the corresponding word from the prophecy; and allow me, as far as possible, to set out the account of these things in an orderly sequence. In the beginning humankind had gone astray in its understanding of God; and abandoning the Lord of creation, some through deceit bowed down to the elements of the world, others made the nature of demons an object of worship, and to many even the handmade shape of idols seemed divine, for whom altars, temples, rites, sacrifices, sacred precincts, statues, and all such things were dedicated to the service of falsely named gods. The Master of nature, then, saw with the eye of his love for mankind the corruption of human nature, and by a certain sequence leads human life back from error to the knowledge of the truth. For as those who nurse back with medical skill people wasted by long famine do not bring them all at once to satiety, sparing their weakness, but when their strength has been restored by measured food, then allow them to take their fill at will,
Ps 95:1 (94:1 LXX) (quotation, high confidence) · Gal 4:3 (echo, low confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: Psalm 95 opens the feast of Pentecost; Gregory begins to show how God led humankind out of idolatry step by step, as a physician feeds the starving by degrees.
- “Come, let us rejoice in the Lord”: Ps 95:1 (LXX 94:1). “The elements of the world”: Gal 4:3, 9. In “their strength” the printed text has a stray ὡς (“as it were”) before δυνάμεως; the sentence’s last words continue on the next page.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (OCR misreading; OCR split word): Οὐκ οῦν → Οὐκοῦν; μο: δότε → μοι δότε; δαιμό νων → δαιμόνων.
Cite (SBL): Gregory of Nyssa, Pent. 695 (PG 46:695–696; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/gregory-nyssa-pentecoste/695). (abbreviation not yet checked)
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/gregory-nyssa-pentecoste/695
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Translation: Translated by Claude (Opus) from the Greek as printed in Migne PG 46 (Bavarian State Library OCR); compared afterwards with NPNF2 5 where it exists, otherwise re-read against the Greek.
Chapter 697
697PG 46:697–698
Η τοῦ κόρου· κατὰ τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον τῷ φοβερῷ λιμῷ τῆς ἀνθρωπίνης φύσεως δαπανηθείσης, τεταμιευμένη γίνεται αὐτοῖς παρὰ τῆς οἰκονομίας ἡ τῆς τῶν μυστηρίων τροφῆς μετουσία· ὥστε διά τινος ἀκολούθου τάξεως ἀεὶ τὸ τέλειον προσλαμβάνοντας, οὕτως ἐπὶ τὸ πέρας φθάσαι τῆς τελειότητος. Τὸ μὲν γὰρ σῶζον ἡμᾶς ἡ ζωοποιός ἐστι δύναμις, ἐν ὀνόματι Πατρὸς, καὶ Υἱοῦ, καὶ ἁγίου Πνεύματος πιστευομένη. Οἱ δὲ τοῦ παντὸς ἀχώρητοι διὰ τὴν γεγενημένην αὐτοῖς ἐκ τοῦ λιμοῦ τῶν ψυχῶν ἀσθένειαν, πρότερον ἐκ τῆς πολυθεῖας ὑπὸ τῶν προφητῶν τε, καὶ τοῦ νόμου μετατεθέντες, εἰς μίαν θεότητα βλέπειν ἐθίζονται, καὶ ἐν τῇ μιᾷ θεότητι μόνην τὴν τοῦ Πατρὸς δύναμιν κατανοοῦσιν, ἀχώρητοι, καθὼς εἶπον, ὄντες τῆς τελείας τροφῆς. Εἶτα διὰ τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου καὶ ὁ μονογενής Υἱὸς τοῖς διὰ τοῦ νόμου προτετελειωμένοις ἀποκαλύπτεται, μετὰ τοῦτο παραγίνεται ἡμῖν ἡ τελεία τῆς φύσεως ἡμῶν τροφή, τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον, ἐν ᾧ ἐστιν ἡ ζωή. Αὕτη τῆς ἑορτῆς ἡ ὑπόθεσις· διὰ ταῦτα καλῶς ἔχει, χορευτὰς ἡμᾶς γενομένους τοῦ Πνεύματος, πείθεσθαι τῷ κορυφαίῳ τῆς πνευματικῆς ταύτης χοροστασίας Δαβὶδ τῷ λέγοντι· Δεῦτε, ἀγαλλιασώμεθα τῷ Κυρίῳ· Ὁ δὲ Κύριος τὸ πνεῦμα ἐστι, καθώς φησιν ὁ ᾿Απόστολος. Σήμερον γὰρ κατὰ τὴν ἐτήσιον τοῦ ἔτους περίοδον τῆς πεντηκοστῆς συμπληρουμένης, κατὰ τὴν ὥραν ταύτην, εἴγε περὶ τὴν τρίτην ὥραν τῆς ἡμέρας ἐσμὲν, ἐγένετο ἡ ἀνεκδιήγητος χάρις. Κατεμίχθη γὰρ πάλιν τοῖς ἀνθρώποις τὸ Πνεῦμα, ὅπερ πρότερον διὰ τὸ γενέσθαι σάρκα τὸν ἄνθρωπον τῆς φύσεως ἡμῶν ἀπεφοίτησε· καὶ διὰ τῆς βιαίας ἐκείνης πνοῆς, τῶν πνευματικῶν τῆς πονηρίας δυνάμεων, καὶ πάντων τῶν ῥυπαρῶν δαιμονίων ἀποσκεδασθέντων ἀπὸ τοῦ ἀέρος, ἐν τῇ καθόδῳ τοῦ Πνεύματος, πλήρεις τῆς θείας δυνάμεως, ἐν εἴδει πυρὸς, οἱ ἐν τῷ ὑπερῴῳ καταλειφθέντες ἐγένοντο· οὐδὲ γάρ ἐστι δυνατὸν ἄλλως μέτοχον Πνεύματος ἁγίου γενέσθαι τινὰ, μὴ τῷ ὑπερὠῳ τῆς ζωῆς ταύτης ἐνδιαιτώμενον. Ὅσοι γὰρ τὰ ἄνω φρονοῦσι, μεταθέντες ἑαυτῶν ἀπὸ γῆς εἰς οὐρανὸν τὸ πολίτευμα, τοῦ ὑπερῴου τῆς ὑψηλῆς πολιτείας ὄντες οἰκήτορες, ἐν μετουσίᾳ τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος γίνονται. Οὕτω γάρ φησιν ἡ ἱστορία τῶν Πράξεων, ὅτι συνηγμένων αὐτῶν ἐν τῷ ὑπερώῳ, τὸ καθαρὸν ἐκεῖνο καὶ ἄῦλον πῦρ εἰς εἴδη γλωσσῶν, κατὰ τὸν ἀριθμὸν τῶν μαθητῶν, διασχίζεται. Ἐκεῖνοι μὲν οὖν Πάρθοις, καὶ Μήδοις, καὶ Ἐλαμίταις, καὶ τοῖς λοιποῖς ἔθνεσι διελέγοντο, κατ' ἐξουσίαν πρὸς πᾶσαν ἐθνικὴν γλῶσσαν τὰς ἑαυτῶν φωνὰς μεθαρμόζοντες. Ἐγὼ δὲ, καθώς φησιν ὁ ᾿Απόστολος, θέλω πέντε λόγους ἐν Ἐκκλησίᾳ τῷ νοὶ μου λαλῆσαι, ἵνα καὶ ἄλλους ὠφελήσω, ἢ μυρίους λόγους ἐν γλώσσῃ. Τότε μὲν χρήσιμον τὸ ὁμόφωνον γίνεσθαι τοῖς ἀλλογλώσσοις, ὡς ἂν μὴ ἀνενέργητον εἴη τὸ κήρυγμα τοῖς ἀγνοοῦσι, τῇ φωνῇ τῶν κηρυσσόντων ἐμποδιζόμενον· νῦν μέντοι τῆς κατὰ τὴν γλῶσσαν ὁμοφωνίας
Ē tou korou; kata ton auton tropon tǭ phoberǭ limǭ tēs anthrōpinēs physeōs dapanētheisēs, tetamieumenē ginetai autois para tēs oikonomias hē tēs tōn mystēriōn trophēs metousia; hōste dia tinos akolouthou taxeōs aei to teleion proslambanontas, houtōs epi to peras phthasai tēs teleiotētos. To men gar sōzon hēmas hē zōopoios esti dynamis, en onomati Patros, kai Huiou, kai hagiou Pneumatos pisteuomenē. Hoi de tou pantos achōrētoi dia tēn gegenēmenēn autois ek tou limou tōn psychōn astheneian, proteron ek tēs polytheias hypo tōn prophētōn te, kai tou nomou metatethentes, eis mian theotēta blepein ethizontai, kai en tę̄ mią theotēti monēn tēn tou Patros dynamin katanoousin, achōrētoi, kathōs eipon, ontes tēs teleias trophēs. Eita dia tou Euangeliou kai ho monogenēs Huios tois dia tou nomou proteteleiōmenois apokalyptetai, meta touto paraginetai hēmin hē teleia tēs physeōs hēmōn trophē, to Pneuma to hagion, en hǭ estin hē zōē. Hautē tēs heortēs hē hypothesis; dia tauta kalōs echei, choreutas hēmas genomenous tou Pneumatos, peithesthai tǭ koryphaiǭ tēs pneumatikēs tautēs chorostasias Dabid tǭ legonti; Deute, agalliasōmetha tǭ Kyriǭ; Ho de Kyrios to pneuma esti, kathōs phēsin ho ᾿Apostolos. Sēmeron gar kata tēn etēsion tou etous periodon tēs pentēkostēs symplēroumenēs, kata tēn hōran tautēn, eige peri tēn tritēn hōran tēs hēmeras esmen, egeneto hē anekdiēgētos charis. Katemichthē gar palin tois anthrōpois to Pneuma, hoper proteron dia to genesthai sarka ton anthrōpon tēs physeōs hēmōn apephoitēse; kai dia tēs biaias ekeinēs pnoēs, tōn pneumatikōn tēs ponērias dynameōn, kai pantōn tōn rhyparōn daimoniōn aposkedasthentōn apo tou aeros, en tę̄ kathodǭ tou Pneumatos, plēreis tēs theias dynameōs, en eidei pyros, hoi en tǭ hyperǭǭ kataleiphthentes egenonto; oude gar esti dynaton allōs metochon Pneumatos hagiou genesthai tina, mē tǭ hyperōǭ tēs zōēs tautēs endiaitōmenon. Hosoi gar ta anō phronousi, metathentes heautōn apo gēs eis ouranon to politeuma, tou hyperǭou tēs hypsēlēs politeias ontes oikētores, en metousią tou hagiou Pneumatos ginontai. Houtō gar phēsin hē historia tōn Praxeōn, hoti synēgmenōn autōn en tǭ hyperōǭ, to katharon ekeino kai aulon pyr eis eidē glōssōn, kata ton arithmon tōn mathētōn, diaschizetai. Ekeinoi men oun Parthois, kai Mēdois, kai Elamitais, kai tois loipois ethnesi dielegonto, kat' exousian pros pasan ethnikēn glōssan tas heautōn phōnas metharmozontes. Egō de, kathōs phēsin ho ᾿Apostolos, thelō pente logous en Ekklēsią tǭ noi mou lalēsai, hina kai allous ōphelēsō, ē myrious logous en glōssę̄. Tote men chrēsimon to homophōnon ginesthai tois alloglōssois, hōs an mē anenergēton eiē to kērygma tois agnoousi, tę̄ phōnę̄ tōn kēryssontōn empodizomenon; nyn mentoi tēs kata tēn glōssan homophōnias
so in the same way, when human nature had been consumed by the terrible famine, the economy dispensed to it in measure its share of the food of the mysteries, so that, always taking on more of what is perfect in an orderly sequence, they might so reach the goal of perfection. What saves us is the life-giving power believed in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. But those who could not take in the whole because of the weakness brought on them by the famine of their souls were first moved from polytheism by the prophets and the law and accustomed to look to one Godhead; and in the one Godhead they perceive only the power of the Father, unable, as I said, to take the perfect food. Then, through the Gospel, the only-begotten Son too is revealed to those already prepared by the law; after this comes to us the perfect food of our nature, the Holy Spirit, in whom is life. This is the subject of the feast. For this reason it is good that we, having become dancers of the Spirit, should obey David, the leader of this spiritual chorus, who says: “Come, let us rejoice in the Lord.” “And the Lord is the Spirit,” as the Apostle says. For today, as the fiftieth day is completed in the yearly course, at this hour (since we are about the third hour of the day) the indescribable grace came. For the Spirit mingled again with men, the Spirit which had before departed from our nature because man had become flesh; and through that violent wind, as the spiritual powers of wickedness and all the unclean demons were scattered from the air at the descent of the Spirit, those who had been left behind in the upper room were filled with divine power in the form of fire. For it is not possible for anyone to come to share in the Holy Spirit otherwise, unless he dwells in the upper room of this life. For all who set their mind on things above, having moved their citizenship from earth to heaven, dwellers in the upper room of the lofty life, come to share in the Holy Spirit. For so says the history of the Acts: when they were gathered in the upper room, that pure and immaterial fire is divided into forms of tongues, according to the number of the disciples. They, then, spoke to Parthians and Medes and Elamites and the other nations, at will adapting their voices to every nation’s tongue. But I, as the Apostle says, “would rather speak five words in the church with my mind, that I may help others too, than ten thousand words in a tongue.” Then it was useful for those of other tongues to come to share one speech, so that the preaching might not be ineffective for those who did not know the language, hindered by the speech of the preachers; but now, since we have one language in common,
Matt 28:19 (allusion, medium confidence) · Ps 95:1 (94:1 LXX) (quotation, high confidence) · 2 Cor 3:17 (quotation, high confidence) · Acts 2:15 (allusion, high confidence) · Gen 6:3 (allusion, medium confidence) · Eph 6:12 (echo, medium confidence) · Acts 2:2 (allusion, high confidence) · Acts 2:3 (allusion, high confidence) · Acts 1:13 (allusion, high confidence) · Col 3:2 (echo, medium confidence) · Phil 3:20 (echo, medium confidence) · Acts 2:9 (allusion, high confidence) · 1 Cor 14:19 (quotation, high confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: God revealed himself by degrees: the one Godhead through the law, the Son through the Gospel, and finally the Holy Spirit, who came at Pentecost on those in the upper room.
- The baptismal name: Matt 28:19. “Come, let us rejoice”: Ps 95:1 (LXX 94:1). “The Lord is the Spirit”: 2 Cor 3:17. The third hour: Acts 2:15; the wind and tongues of fire: Acts 2:2–3; the upper room: Acts 1:13; the nations: Acts 2:9. The Spirit’s departure because man became flesh: Gen 6:3. “Things above … citizenship”: Col 3:2; Phil 3:20. “Five words …”: 1 Cor 14:19. “Spiritual powers of wickedness”: Eph 6:12. Gregory’s account of the gradual revelation of the Trinity is translated as written.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (OCR split word; joined words separated): και τανοοῦσιν → κατανοοῦσιν; πῦρεἰς → πῦρ εἰς; ἐμποδιζό μενον → ἐμποδιζόμενον.
Topics: Trinity
Cite (SBL): Gregory of Nyssa, Pent. 697 (PG 46:697–698; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/gregory-nyssa-pentecoste/697). (abbreviation not yet checked)
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/gregory-nyssa-pentecoste/697
BibTeX · RIS · CSL-JSON (whole work; this passage's key: sophiascriptura-gregory-nyssa-pentecoste-697) · Report an error
Translation: Translated by Claude (Opus) from the Greek as printed in Migne PG 46 (Bavarian State Library OCR); compared afterwards with NPNF2 5 where it exists, otherwise re-read against the Greek.
Chapter 699
699PG 46:699–700
οὔσης, ἐπιζητῆσαι χρὴ τὴν πυρίνην γλῶσσαν τοῦ Πνεύματος εἰς φωτισμὸν τῶν δι' ἀπάτης ἐσκοτισμένων. Οὐκοῦν καὶ πρὸς τοῦτο ἡμᾶς ὁδηγησάτω Δαβίδ, συγχορεύοντα λαβὼν ἑαυτῷ τὸν Ἀπόστολον. Ἐν γὰρ τῇ ψαλμῳδίᾳ ταύτῃ, ἧς ἡ ἀρχὴ τὸ ἀγαλλίαμα ἡμῖν τὸ ἐπὶ τῷ Κυρίῳ χαρίζεται, λέγουσα· Δεῦτε, ἀγαλλιασώμεθα τῷ Κυρίῳ, οὐ διὰ τούτου πρὸς τὴν τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος ὁδηγούμεθα δοξολογίαν· ἀλλὰ πολὺ μᾶλλον ἐν τοῖς ὑπολοίποις τὰ περὶ τῆς θεότητος αὐτοῦ διδασκόμεθα. Λέξω δὲ ὑμῖν αὐτὰ τοῦ Προφήτου τὰ ῥήματα, οἷς συντίθεται καὶ ὁ μέγας ᾿Απόστολος· ἔχει δὲ ἡ ῥῆσις οὕτως· Σήμερον ἐὰν τῆς φωνῆς αὐτοῦ ἀκούσητε, μὴ σκληρύνητε τὰς καρδίας ὑμῶν, ὡς ἐν τῷ παραπικρασμῷ κατὰ τὴν ἡμέραν τοῦ πειρασμοῦ ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ, οὗ ἐπείρασάν με οἱ πατέρες ὑμῶν. Τούτων μεμνημένος ὁ θεῖος ᾿Απόστολος, οὕτω φησί Διὸ καθὼς λέγει τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον· καὶ τοῦτο εἰπὼν, ταύτας τοῦ Προφήτου τὰς ῥήσεις ἐπήγαγεν, ἐφαρμόζων αὐτὰς τῷ προσώπῳ τοῦ Πνεύματος. Τίς οὖν ἐστιν, ὃν ἐπείρασαν οἱ πατέρες αὐτῶν ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ; τίς, ὃν παρώργισαν; Μάθε παρ᾿ αὐτοῦ τοῦ Προφήτου, ὅς φησιν, ὅτι· Ἐπείρασαν τὸν Θεὸν τὸν Ὕψιστον. Ἀλλὰ μὴν ὁ Ἀπόστολος προτάξας τὸ πρόσωπον τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος, ἐκείνῳ ταύτας τὰς φωνὰς ἀνατίθησι, λέγων· Διὸ, καθώς λέγει τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον, ὅτι κατὰ τὴν ἡμέραν τοῦ πειρασμοῦ ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ, οὗ ἐπείρασάν με οἱ πατέρες ὑμῶν. Οὐκοῦν ὂν ὕψιστον Θεὸν ὁ Προφήτης κατωνόμασε, τοῦτον ὁ θεῖος ᾿Απόστολος τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον εἶναι λέγει. Εἰ δὲ ἀπιστεῖς, πάλιν τὸ εἰρημένον ἐπίσκεψαι· Διὸ, καθὼς λέγει τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον· Μὴ σκληρύνητε τὰς καρδίας ὑμῶν, ὡς ἐν τῷ παραπικρασμῷ κατὰ τὴν ἡμέραν τοῦ πειρασμοῦ ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ, οὗ ἐπείρασάν με οἱ πατέρες ὑμῶν. Εἰ οὖν τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον λέγει, ὅτι· Ἐπείρασάν με οἱ πατέρες ὑμῶν ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ· ὁ δὲ Προφήτης διαμαρτύρεται, ὅτι ὁ ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ πειρασθεὶς, ὕψιστός ἐστι Θεός ἐνεφράγη τὰ στόματα τῶν Πνευματομάχων, τὰ λαλοῦντα κατὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀδικίαν, σαφῶς τοῦ τε ᾿Αποστόλου καὶ τοῦ Προφήτου διὰ τῶν εἰρημένων τὴν θεότητα κηρυσσόντων τοῦ Πνεύματος τοῦ μὲν εἰπόντος, ὅτι, Ἐπείρασαν τὸν Θεὸν τὸν Ὕψιστον, καὶ ὡς παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῖς Ἰσραηλίταις προφέροντος τὴν ῥῆσιν ἐκείνην ὅτι, Ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ ἐπείρασάν με οἱ πατέρες ὑμῶν· τοῦ δὲ μεγάλου Παύλου τῷ ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι ταύτας τὰς φωνὰς ἐφαρμόσαντος, ὡς διὰ τούτων ἐναργῶς ἀποδειχθῆναι, ὅτι Θεὸς ὕψιστος τὸ Πνεῦμα ἐστι τὸ ἄγιον. Ἆρα βλέπουσιν οἱ ἐχθροὶ τῆς δόξης τοῦ Πνεύματος τὴν πυρίνην γλῶσσαν τῶν θείων λογίων τὴν τὰ κεκρυμμένα φωτίζουσαν,
ousēs, epizētēsai chrē tēn pyrinēn glōssan tou Pneumatos eis phōtismon tōn di' apatēs eskotismenōn. Oukoun kai pros touto hēmas hodēgēsatō Dabid, synchoreuonta labōn heautǭ ton Apostolon. En gar tę̄ psalmǭdią tautę̄, hēs hē archē to agalliama hēmin to epi tǭ Kyriǭ charizetai, legousa; Deute, agalliasōmetha tǭ Kyriǭ, ou dia toutou pros tēn tou hagiou Pneumatos hodēgoumetha doxologian; alla poly mallon en tois hypoloipois ta peri tēs theotētos autou didaskometha. Lexō de hymin auta tou Prophētou ta rhēmata, hois syntithetai kai ho megas ᾿Apostolos; echei de hē rhēsis houtōs; Sēmeron ean tēs phōnēs autou akousēte, mē sklērynēte tas kardias hymōn, hōs en tǭ parapikrasmǭ kata tēn hēmeran tou peirasmou en tę̄ erēmǭ, hou epeirasan me hoi pateres hymōn. Toutōn memnēmenos ho theios ᾿Apostolos, houtō phēsi Dio kathōs legei to Pneuma to hagion; kai touto eipōn, tautas tou Prophētou tas rhēseis epēgagen, epharmozōn autas tǭ prosōpǭ tou Pneumatos. Tis oun estin, hon epeirasan hoi pateres autōn en tę̄ erēmǭ? tis, hon parōrgisan? Mathe par᾿ autou tou Prophētou, hos phēsin, hoti; Epeirasan ton Theon ton Hypsiston. Alla mēn ho Apostolos protaxas to prosōpon tou hagiou Pneumatos, ekeinǭ tautas tas phōnas anatithēsi, legōn; Dio, kathōs legei to Pneuma to hagion, hoti kata tēn hēmeran tou peirasmou en tę̄ erēmǭ, hou epeirasan me hoi pateres hymōn. Oukoun on hypsiston Theon ho Prophētēs katōnomase, touton ho theios ᾿Apostolos to Pneuma to hagion einai legei. Ei de apisteis, palin to eirēmenon episkepsai; Dio, kathōs legei to Pneuma to hagion; Mē sklērynēte tas kardias hymōn, hōs en tǭ parapikrasmǭ kata tēn hēmeran tou peirasmou en tę̄ erēmǭ, hou epeirasan me hoi pateres hymōn. Ei oun to Pneuma to hagion legei, hoti; Epeirasan me hoi pateres hymōn en tę̄ erēmǭ; ho de Prophētēs diamartyretai, hoti ho en tę̄ erēmǭ peirastheis, hypsistos esti Theos enephragē ta stomata tōn Pneumatomachōn, ta lalounta kata tou Theou adikian, saphōs tou te ᾿Apostolou kai tou Prophētou dia tōn eirēmenōn tēn theotēta kēryssontōn tou Pneumatos tou men eipontos, hoti, Epeirasan ton Theon ton Hypsiston, kai hōs para tou Theou tois Israēlitais propherontos tēn rhēsin ekeinēn hoti, En tę̄ erēmǭ epeirasan me hoi pateres hymōn; tou de megalou Paulou tǭ hagiǭ Pneumati tautas tas phōnas epharmosantos, hōs dia toutōn enargōs apodeichthēnai, hoti Theos hypsistos to Pneuma esti to agion. Ara blepousin hoi echthroi tēs doxēs tou Pneumatos tēn pyrinēn glōssan tōn theiōn logiōn tēn ta kekrymmena phōtizousan,
we must seek the fiery tongue of the Spirit to enlighten those darkened by deceit. Let David, then, lead us to this too, taking the Apostle as his partner in the dance. For in this psalm, whose beginning grants us exultation in the Lord, saying, “Come, let us rejoice in the Lord,” we are not led by these words to the glorification of the Holy Spirit; but much more in what follows we are taught about his Godhead. I will tell you the very words of the prophet, with which the great Apostle too agrees; the saying runs thus: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts, as in the provocation, on the day of the testing in the wilderness, where your fathers tested me.” The divine Apostle, recalling these words, says: “Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says”; and having said this, he added these sayings of the prophet, applying them to the person of the Spirit. Who, then, is he whom their fathers tested in the wilderness? Whom did they provoke? Learn it from the prophet himself, who says: “They tested God the Most High.” But the Apostle, putting first the person of the Holy Spirit, attributes these words to him, saying: “Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, on the day of the testing in the wilderness, where your fathers tested me.” So the one whom the prophet named God Most High, the divine Apostle says is the Holy Spirit. If you do not believe it, look again at what is said: “Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says: Do not harden your hearts, as in the provocation, on the day of the testing in the wilderness, where your fathers tested me.” If, then, the Holy Spirit says, “Your fathers tested me in the wilderness,” and the prophet testifies that the one tested in the wilderness is God Most High, the mouths of the Pneumatomachi, which speak injustice against God, have been stopped, since both the Apostle and the prophet clearly proclaim by these words the Godhead of the Spirit: the one saying, “They tested God the Most High,” and putting forward, as spoken by God to the Israelites, that saying, “In the wilderness your fathers tested me”; and the great Paul applying these words to the Holy Spirit, so that it is plainly shown by them that the Holy Spirit is God Most High. Do the enemies of the glory of the Spirit see the fiery tongue of the divine oracles that brings hidden things to light,
Ps 95:1 (94:1 LXX) (quotation, high confidence) · Ps 95:7 (94:7 LXX) (quotation, high confidence) · Ps 95:8 (94:8 LXX) (quotation, high confidence) · Ps 95:9 (94:9 LXX) (quotation, high confidence) · Heb 3:7 (quotation, high confidence) · Heb 3:8 (quotation, high confidence) · Heb 3:9 (quotation, high confidence) · Ps 78:56 (77:56 LXX) (quotation, high confidence) · Ps 75:5 (74:6 LXX) (echo, low confidence) · Ps 63:11 (62:12 LXX) (echo, low confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: Comparing Psalm 95 with Hebrews 3, where the psalm’s speaker is the Holy Spirit, and Psalm 78, which names the one tested as God Most High, Gregory argues that the Spirit is God Most High.
- “Today, if you hear his voice …”: Ps 95:7–9 (LXX 94:7–9); “Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says”: Heb 3:7–9; “They tested God the Most High”: Ps 78:56 (LXX 77:56). “Speak injustice against God”: Ps 75:5 (LXX 74:6); stopped mouths: Ps 63:11 (LXX 62:12). The Pneumatomachi (“fighters against the Spirit”) denied the Spirit’s divinity; the polemic is translated as written. In the digitized text two lines of the argument are repeated out of place near the end of the page; the repetitions are removed by logged corrections.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (OCR split word; repeated line of the digitized text removed; repeated line removed; word split at the Migne page break joined (rest removed from the next page)): Πνεύ ματος → Πνεύματος; τοῦ δὲ μεγάλου οὗ ἐπείρασάν με οἱ πατέρες ὑμῶν· ὁ δὲ Προφήτης διαμαρτύρεται, ὅτι ὁ ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ πειρασθεὶς ὕψιστὸς ἐστι Θεός. Παύλου → τοῦ δὲ μεγάλου Παύλου; κεκρυμοὖν τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον λέγει, ὅτι ἐπείρασάν με οἱ πατέρες ὑμῶν ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ, ὁ πειρασθεὶς → κεκρυμμένα φωτίζουσαν,.
Topics: Trinity, Heresy, Scripture and canon
Cite (SBL): Gregory of Nyssa, Pent. 699 (PG 46:699–700; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/gregory-nyssa-pentecoste/699). (abbreviation not yet checked)
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/gregory-nyssa-pentecoste/699
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Translation: Translated by Claude (Opus) from the Greek as printed in Migne PG 46 (Bavarian State Library OCR); compared afterwards with NPNF2 5 where it exists, otherwise re-read against the Greek.
Chapter 701
701PG 46:701–702
ἢ ὡς πεπληρωμένων τοῦ γλεύκους καταγελάσουσιν; Ἐγὼ δὲ κᾶν ταῦτα λέγωσι καθ' ἡμῶν, συμβουλεύω ὑμῖν, ἀδελφοὶ, μὴ φοβηθῆναι τὸν ὀνειδισμὸν τῶν τοιούτων, μηδὲ τῷ φαυλισμῷ αὐτῶν ἡττηθῆναι. Εἴθε γὰρ γένοιτό ποτε καὶ ἐκείνοις τὸ γλεῦκος τοῦτο, ὁ νεοθλιβὴς οὗτος οἶνος, ὁ ἐκ τῆς ληνοῦ προχεθεὶς, ἣν ἐπάτησε διὰ τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου ὁ Κύριος, ἵνα σοι πότιμον τοῦ ἰδίου βότρυος τὸ αἷμα ποιήσῃ Εἴθε γὰρ ἐπληρώθησαν κἀκεῖνοι τοῦ νέου τούτου οἶνου, ὃν γλεῦκος ὠνόμασαν, ὃς τὴν διὰ τοῦ ἀἱρετικοῦ ὕδατος ἐπιμιξίαν παρὰ τῶν καπήλων οὐκ ἔπαθε· πάντως γὰρ καὶ τοῦ Πνεύματος πλήρεις ἐγένοντο, δι' οὗ τὸ παχύ τε καὶ ἰλυῶδες τῆς ἀπιστίας οἱ Πνεύματι ζέοντες ἀφ' ἑαυτῶν ἐξαφρίζουσιν ᾿Αλλ' οὐ δύνανται οἱ τοιοῦτοι ἐν ἑαυτοῖς τὸ γλεῦκος δέξασθαι, ἔτι τὸν παλαιὸν ἀσκὸν περιφέροντες, ὃς περικρατεῖν τὸν τοιοῦτον μὴ δυνάμενος οἷνον, αἱρετικῶς ἀποῤῥήγνυται. ᾿Αλλ᾿ ἡμεῖς ἀδελφοὶ, καθώς φησιν ὁ Προφήτης, Δεῦτε, ἀγαλλιασώμεθα τῷ Κυρίῳ, πίνοντες, καὶ τὰ τῆς εὐσεβείας γλυκάσματα, καθὼς ὁ Ἔσδρας διακελεύεται, καὶ ταῖς τῶν ἀποστόλων τε καὶ προφητῶν χοροστασίαις ἐμφαιδρυνόμενοι, κατὰ τὴν δωρεὰν τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος ἀγαλλιασώμεθα καὶ εὐφρανθῶμεν ἐπὶ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ταύτῃ, ἣν ἐποίησεν ὁ Κύριος, ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ τῷ Κυρίῳ ἡμῶν, ᾧ ἡ δόξα εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας. ᾿Αμήν.
ē hōs peplērōmenōn tou gleukous katagelasousin? Egō de kan tauta legōsi kath' hēmōn, symbouleuō hymin, adelphoi, mē phobēthēnai ton oneidismon tōn toioutōn, mēde tǭ phaulismǭ autōn hēttēthēnai. Eithe gar genoito pote kai ekeinois to gleukos touto, ho neothlibēs houtos oinos, ho ek tēs lēnou prochetheis, hēn epatēse dia tou Euangeliou ho Kyrios, hina soi potimon tou idiou botryos to haima poiēsę̄ Eithe gar eplērōthēsan kakeinoi tou neou toutou oinou, hon gleukos ōnomasan, hos tēn dia tou hairetikou hydatos epimixian para tōn kapēlōn ouk epathe; pantōs gar kai tou Pneumatos plēreis egenonto, di' hou to pachy te kai ilyōdes tēs apistias hoi Pneumati zeontes aph' heautōn exaphrizousin ᾿All' ou dynantai hoi toioutoi en heautois to gleukos dexasthai, eti ton palaion askon peripherontes, hos perikratein ton toiouton mē dynamenos hoinon, hairetikōs aporrhēgnytai. ᾿All᾿ hēmeis adelphoi, kathōs phēsin ho Prophētēs, Deute, agalliasōmetha tǭ Kyriǭ, pinontes, kai ta tēs eusebeias glykasmata, kathōs ho Esdras diakeleuetai, kai tais tōn apostolōn te kai prophētōn chorostasiais emphaidrynomenoi, kata tēn dōrean tou hagiou Pneumatos agalliasōmetha kai euphranthōmen epi tę̄ hēmerą tautę̄, hēn epoiēsen ho Kyrios, en Christǭ Iēsou tǭ Kyriǭ hēmōn, hǭ hē doxa eis tous aiōnas. ᾿Amēn.
or will they mock us as men full of new wine? But even if they say this against us, I advise you, brothers, not to fear the reproach of such men nor to be overcome by their contempt. Would that this new wine might one day come to them too, this freshly pressed wine poured from the winepress which the Lord trod through the Gospel, to make the blood of his own grape drinkable for you. Would that they too had been filled with this new wine, which they called “sweet wine”, which did not suffer adulteration by the tavern keepers with heretical water; for then they would surely have been filled with the Spirit as well, through whom those fervent in Spirit froth out from themselves the thick and muddy sediment of unbelief. But such men cannot receive the new wine within them, since they still carry about the old wineskin, which, unable to hold such wine, bursts in heresy. But let us, brothers, as the prophet says, “Come, let us rejoice in the Lord,” drinking also the sweet things of true religion, as Ezra bids, and, brightened by the choirs of apostles and prophets, let us exult and be glad, by the gift of the Holy Spirit, on this day which the Lord has made, in Christ Jesus our Lord, to whom be glory for ever. Amen.
Acts 2:13 (allusion, high confidence) · Isa 63:3 (allusion, high confidence) · Deut 32:14 (echo, low confidence) · Isa 1:22 (allusion, medium confidence) · Rom 12:11 (allusion, medium confidence) · Matt 9:17 (allusion, high confidence) · Ps 95:1 (94:1 LXX) (quotation, high confidence) · Neh 8:10 (allusion, high confidence) · Ps 118:24 (117:24 LXX) (quotation, high confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: Gregory wishes that the Spirit’s opponents might drink the new wine of the Spirit, and calls his hearers to rejoice on the day the Lord has made.
- “Full of new wine”: Acts 2:13. The winepress the Lord trod: Isa 63:3; “blood of the grape”: Gen 49:11; Deut 32:14. Wine mixed with water by tavern keepers: Isa 1:22 LXX. “Fervent in Spirit”: Rom 12:11; new wine and old wineskins: Matt 9:17. “Drink sweet things”: Neh 8:10 (2 Esdras 18:10 LXX; Gregory ascribes the command to Ezra). “This day which the Lord has made”: Ps 118:24 (LXX 117:24). The first words complete the last word of the previous page by a logged correction.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (end of a word split at the page break (with the next word), joined to the previous page): μένα φωτίζουσαν, ἢ → ἢ.
Topics: Heresy
Cite (SBL): Gregory of Nyssa, Pent. 701 (PG 46:701–702; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/gregory-nyssa-pentecoste/701). (abbreviation not yet checked)
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/gregory-nyssa-pentecoste/701
BibTeX · RIS · CSL-JSON (whole work; this passage's key: sophiascriptura-gregory-nyssa-pentecoste-701) · Report an error
Translation: Translated by Claude (Opus) from the Greek as printed in Migne PG 46 (Bavarian State Library OCR); compared afterwards with NPNF2 5 where it exists, otherwise re-read against the Greek.