3. And so, having communicated to the created (man)

Such are the blessings which have already been given to the first-created, and the others which are added to them afterwards show again the great and extraordinary love and condescension which (God) has shown him in His goodness. What does the Scripture say? And the commandment of the Lord God to Adam (Gen. II, 16).

Here again (the Scriptures) acted according to their custom, so that from the frequent repetition of words we should acquire an exact knowledge and not agree with those who dare to make a distinction between these names (Lord and God), and to attribute the one to the Father, and the other to the Son. Since both of them (the Father and the Son) have one being, the divine Scripture appropriates the same name indifferently - sometimes to the Father, sometimes to the Son. And the commandment, it is said. The Lord God to Adam, saying. Here we must be amazed at the extraordinary love of God, which is revealed to us in this brief saying: "And the commandments, it is said." See what honor God bestowed upon man in the beginning. It is not said: ordered, or commanded, but what? - commandments. As a friend converses with a friend, commanding about something necessary, so God deals with Adam, as if wishing to dispose him by such honor to fulfill what he commands. but from the tree, if you understand good and evil, do not take away from it; and in the next day you take away from it, you will die of death (Gen. 2:10). II, 16, 17). The commandment is very simple, but carelessness is a grievous evil, beloved! As it makes what is easy for us difficult, so diligence and attention make easy for us what is difficult. What, tell me, is easier than this commandment? What is higher than this honor? (God) allowed Adam to live in paradise, to enjoy the beauty of what is seen, to cheer his eyes with it, and to receive great pleasure from eating (fruits). Think what a delight it was to see trees weighed down with fruits, various flowers, herbs, leaves, and everything else that can only be in paradise, and moreover, in a paradise planted by God. That is why the divine Scripture says above: "God has yet vegetated from the earth every tree that is red for vision, and good for food" (Gen. 2:10). II, 9), so that we may know what abundance man, in his great intemperance and carelessness, reacted arrogantly to the commandment given to him. Imagine, beloved, what a high honor God has bestowed upon him: He has granted him a special meal in paradise intended for him. he did not think that his food was the same as that of the dumb, but living in paradise, like a king, he would enjoy its pleasures, and, like a ruler, he was different from those subject to him and led a special life. And the commandments, saith the Lord God, said unto Adam: From every tree in paradise thou shalt take away food: but from the tree, if thou knowest good and evil, thou shalt not take away from it: but in the next day thou shalt take away from it, ye shall surely die. It is as if God were saying to Adam: "I do not require of you anything difficult or difficult: I allow you to use all the trees, and I command you not to touch only this; but I also determine a great punishment, so that you, although taught by fear, will keep the commandment I have given you." As a generous owner entrusts his huge house to someone and, in order to retain the possession of this house completely for himself, assigns a small amount of money from that person, so our humane Lord, having allowed Adam to use everything in paradise, commanded him to abstain from only one thing, so that he would know that he was under the Lord, Whom he must obey and fulfill His commands.

4. Who can worthily marvel at the generosity of the Lord common to all? Man has not yet done anything, but He vouchsafes him what blessings! He did not allow him to enjoy half (of the trees of Paradise), nor did He command him to abstain from the greater part of them and use only the rest; Having allowed him to use all the trees that are in Paradise, he commanded him to abstain from one, showing by his very deed that he had done this for nothing else than that man might know the author of such great blessings. Along with everything else, see here the goodness of God in the honor He gave to the woman who was created from Adam. When it was not yet created, God gave a commandment to two, as it were: "Do not take it away from it, and in the next day you take it away, you will die a death; thus he shows beforehand and at first that husband and wife are one, just as Paul says, "The husband is the head of the woman" (Eph. V, 23). Therefore, he speaks, as it were, to two, in order to make a wife out of him, and to give him an incentive to communicate to her also the commandment given by Him. I know, however, that the question of the (forbidden) tree is of great interest to many; many of the foolish talkers dare to lay the blame on God, and say: Why did (God) give him such a commandment, when He knew that he would break it? Or: Why did He command this tree to be in Paradise? - and much more. But in order for us not to enter into an explanation of this now - before the time of the transgression (the commandment about the tree) - we must wait for the narration of the blessed Moses; having reached this place, we will speak of it in good time, what the grace of God will give, and we will explain to your love the true meaning of the Scriptures, so that you, having rightly understood what is written, will also render the Lord the proper praise, and, forsaking the sinner, will not lay the blame on the innocent God. Now, for the time being, let us consider, if you will, the further words of today's reading. And the Lord God said, It is not good for the man to be alone, v. 18. Here again Moses said, as before: The Lord God, that we, having rooted these words in our minds, should not place human considerations above the divine Scriptures. And saith, saith the Lord God, It is not good for a man to be alone. See how the good God does not stop, but applies good deeds to good deeds, and, being rich in goodness, wants to clothe this rational being with all honor, and along with honor to grant him the comfort of life. Speech, it is said. The Lord God: It is not good for the man alone to be, let us make him a helper for him. Here again is the word: let us create. As in the beginning, when God created man, He said, Let us make man in our image and likeness, so now, intending to create a woman, He uses the same word, and says, Let us make. To whom does he speak? Not to any created power, but to Him born of Him, the wondrous Counselor, the Ruler, the Ruler of the world. To His Only-begotten Son. In order for Adam to know that the being being being created will be equal to him in dignity, for this purpose, God, as He said of himself: Let us create, so now He says: Let us make him a helper after him. These two expressions: helper and according to him, are meaningful. I do not want, he says, that he should be alone, but that he should have some consolation from the community, and not only that, but it is necessary to create for him a helper corresponding to him, that is, a wife. Wherefore God, having said, Let us make him a helper, added, By him, that when thou seest now how all the beasts and fowls of the air are brought (to Adam), thou shalt not think that these words were spoken of them. Though many of the dumb help a man in his labors, yet not one of them is equal to a wise wife. Wherefore, after the words, "A helper after him," he added, "And God created from the earth all the beasts of the field, and all the fowls of the air, and bring me to Adam, to see what I shall call: and whosoever shall call Adam a living soul, this is his name" (v. 19). This is not done simply or in vain, but in view of the events that are soon to follow, foreseeing which God shows us how much wisdom He has bestowed upon Him what He created, so that when the transgression of the commandment given by God is committed, you will not think that man transgressed it through ignorance, but will know that the fall is (the consequence of) carelessness.

5. That he was gifted with great wisdom, you can be convinced from what happened now. And I will bring to Adam, it is said, to see what I shall call: God does this to show us the great wisdom of Adam. And again: if he called Adam, this is his name.

However, this is done not only so that we may see his wisdom, but also so that in the naming of names we may see a sign of dominion. And it is the custom of people to consider the sign of their power in the fact that, having bought slaves for themselves, they change their names. In the same way, God forces Adam, as a ruler, to give names to all the dumb. Do not, beloved, ignore these words, but consider what wisdom was needed to give names to so many breeds of birds, reptiles, beasts, cattle, and other dumb, tame, wild ones, living in the waters that came out of the earth, to give names to all of them, and moreover proper names corresponding to each breed. Whosoever, it is said, if he is called Adam, is his name. Do you see the fullness of power? Do you see the power of domination? Consider, among other things, that lions, leopards, vipers, scorpions, snakes, and all the other beasts, even more ferocious, came to Adam as to their master, with all obedience, in order to receive names from him, and Adam was not afraid of any of these beasts. Therefore, let no one blaspheme the things created by the Lord, do not sharpen his tongue against the Creator, or rather, on his own head, and do not say these foolish words: "For what purpose were the beasts created?" The names which Adam gave them remain to this day: God so confirmed them, so that we may constantly remember the honor which man received from the Lord of all, taking animals under his power, and ascribe the reason for the deprivation (of this honor) to man himself, who through sin lost his power. And Adam called all the cattle, and all the fowls of the air, and every beast of the earth, v. 20. From this, beloved, see the freedom of will and the superiority of his reason, and do not say that he did not know what was good and what was bad.

Therefore, when you think of such great wisdom of this animal, marvel at the power of the Creator. If a glance at the beauty of heaven arouses a well-meaning contemplator to praise the Creator, then how much more can this rational animal, man, reflecting on his own structure, on the high honor given to him, on great gifts and unspeakable blessings, constantly praise the Author and offer up all possible praise to the Lord.

I wanted to consider what follows, but in order not to burden your memory with so much of what has been said, it is necessary to stop saying here. Our goal is not only to say a lot; we speak so that you, constantly keeping this in your minds, may not only know what is contained in the divine Scriptures, but also be teachers to others, able to admonish them. Therefore, each of you, when you leave here, together with your neighbor, renew in memory what is said here, and communicating to another what is yours, receive from him also what he remembers. And in this way, gathering everything and keeping it in fresh memory, go home and there, each on his own, again think over these divine lessons, so that, devoting all your cares to them and occupying your mind with them, you can easily conquer the passions that disturb you, and avoid the wiles of the devil. For when that evil demon sees that the soul cares about divine things, and only constantly thinks about them, deals with them, then he does not dare to approach, but immediately withdraws, driven by the power of the Spirit, as if by some fire. Therefore, in order for us and ourselves to be of the greatest possible benefit, and to overcome this enemy, and to receive greater mercy from God, let us occupy our minds with these things. Then all your deeds will prosper - the difficult will become easy, the seemingly sorrowful will have a happy ending, and nothing here will be able to grieve us. If we take care of the divine, then God Himself will take care of ours, and we will cross the sea of the present life with perfect safety, and, guided by the great Helmsman, the God of all, we will enter the harbor of His love for mankind. To Him be glory and dominion, now and ever, and unto the endless ages of ages. Amen.

Discourse XV: Adam will not find a helper like him. And God put a transgression upon Adam, and succeeded: and he took one from his side, and filled him with flesh instead of him

1. I am very grateful to you that yesterday you accepted our admonition with great readiness, and not only were you not burdened by the length of the word, but were so attentive to the end that you retained a lively disposition to listen; In this way you give us good hopes that you will carry out our advice by deed. Whoever listens with such pleasure is obviously disposed to do (what he heard) in practice. On the other hand, your present confluence serves as proof of your spiritual health. Just as the urge to eat is a sign of bodily health, so love for the word of God serves as the best testimony to the well-being of the soul. Since the fruit of your diligence is manifested in the fulfillment of what you have heard, so we will give your love the reward that we promised yesterday. I call this spiritual teaching a reward, which can increase the wealth of me, the giver, and make you, who receive, rich. Such is everything spiritual; but this does not happen in sensible things. There the giver reduces his possessions, and makes the receiver richer; but here it is not so, on the contrary, and the giver, by this very thing, increases his own wealth even more, and the wealth of those who receive it increases. And so, since we are ready to report, and the bowels of your minds are prepared to receive this spiritual riches, then let us fulfill our promise and, having taken up a further explanation of what has been read from the blessed Moses, through this we will give you a reward. It is necessary to explain what has been read today, so that in this way you can accurately reveal the richness of thought contained in the utterances, and communicate it to your love. You have recently heard the words of the Divine Scriptures: "Adam shall not find a helper like him." What does this short saying mean: "To Adam"? Why is the conjunction (же) added? Was it not enough to say, "To Adam"? We wish to investigate this not simply out of excessive inquisitiveness, but in order to carefully interpret everything to you, and to teach you not to omit in the Divine Scriptures without attention and brief utterance, not even a single syllable. For these are not mere words, but the words of the Holy Spirit; therefore it is possible to find a great treasure in one syllable. Take heed, I beseech you, diligently: no one is lazy, no one is sleepy, all have a cheerful mind; let no one wander in his mind on the sidelines, and while standing here, let him not be distracted by worldly cares. On the contrary, considering the dignity of this spiritual assembly, and that we hear God speaking to us through the mouth of the prophets, let every one open his ears accordingly, and strain his mind, lest any of the seeds which we cast fall on a stone, or on the way, or on thorns, but that all the seed may fall on good ground, that is, to the breadth of a great mind, it could bring you abundant fruit, and what we sowed was multiplied. Let us see what the addition of the conjunction means. But Adam, he says, will not find a helper like him. Notice the accuracy of the Divine Scriptures. Having said, "Adam shall not find a helper," he did not stop there, but added, "Like unto him," explaining to us by this addition the reason why he used the conjunction. I think that those who are quicker in their considerations will already foresee what we will say. But since we, in offering instruction to all in general, must endeavour to make our words clear to all, we will show you why (the Scriptures) said so; Just be patient a little. Before, as you remember, it is said in the Divine Scriptures: Let us make a helper according to him, then it is reported to us about the creation of beasts, and creeping things, and all dumb ones: And God created, it is said, all the beasts and all the birds of the air from the earth, and bring me to Adam, to see what I shall call; and (Adam), as lord, he called names to all (Gen. 2:10). II, 18, 20), to each breed of beasts and birds, and to all the dumb ones, he assigned, according to the wisdom granted to him, a proper name. And so that we may see that all these creatures, although they perform a certain service and help man in his labors, nevertheless irrational creatures are very far from man, so that we may think that (God) said of them: Let us make him a helper. For even if they help a man and bring him much benefit by their service, they are still foolish. That they do not help (him)

And so, so that we do not apply to these animals what has been said above: let us make him a helper, for this purpose the blessed Moses, now beginning his discourse, says: "For Adam there shall not be found a helper like him." As if he were teaching us and saying: all these (animals) were created (by God for man) and received their names from Adam, yet not one of them was worthy to be his helper. For this reason (Moses) wants to impress upon us that a new animal is to be created, and that this animal ready to appear is the very one of whom it is said: let us make him a helper after him, like, that is, to him, of the same nature, worthy of him, in no way inferior to him. For this reason this blessed one said: "Adam will not find a helper like him, showing us that no matter how much dumb people may be useful to us by their services, the help given to Adam by a woman is of a different kind and much more excellent.

2. And so, when all the animals were already created and received names from the first-created, the loving Lord, arranging everything for His creation, sought a helper like Him; having created for him all this visible creature, he also creates a woman above all else. And see with what precision (the Scriptures) teach us about the creation of this creation. Since it has already informed us that (God) wants to create for Adam a helper like him, and it is said above, Let us make him a helper after him, and here it says, There is no helper like him, therefore the creation of a woman is made from the essence of Adam, as it is said, "And God put a frenzy on Adam, and succeeded: and taking one from his side, and filling him with flesh in his place." And the Lord God made a rib, which He took from Adam to be a wife, and brought her to Adam (Gen. 2:10). II, 21-22). Great is the power of these words; it surpasses all human reason: it is possible to understand their greatness only by examining them with the eyes of faith. And it is said, God put a frenzy on Adam, and he succeeded. Pay attention to the accuracy of the teaching. Both of these circumstances (ecstasy and sleep) were indicated by the blessed prophet, or better yet, by the Holy Spirit through his mouth, revealing to us the conformity of the event. Put a frenzy on Adam, it is said, and he will succeed. It was not a mere frenzy or an ordinary dream; but since the all-wise and skilful Creator of our nature wanted to take from Adam one of his ribs, so that he would not feel pain and then hostile disposition towards that which is being created from his rib, so that, remembering the pain, he would not hate the animal being created, for this (God), immersing (Adam) in a frenzy and as if commanding him to be seized with a kind of torpor, put him into such a sleep that he did not feel at all what was happening (to him). As the most perfect Artist, He took what He considered necessary, and made up for what was lacking, and arranged what He took according to His love for mankind. Put a frenzy on Adam, it is said, and succeeded: and take one from his side, and fill it with flesh in his stead, so that Adam, after the cessation of sleep, could not know about what had happened because of the lack (of the rib). For if he did not know about it at the time of the removal (of the rib), then he could have known afterwards. Therefore, so that the very removal of the rib would not cause him pain, and then its lack would not arouse (in him) sorrow, God arranged both in this way: and (the rib) took (the rib) painlessly, and then made up for the deficiency, and thereby did not allow Adam to know what had happened to him. So, taking the edge. The Lord God, it is said, created for a woman. A wondrous deed, immeasurably beyond our minds! Such are all the works of the Lord. In fact, (the creation of a woman from Adam's rib) is no less than the creation of a man from dust. At the same time, pay attention to the condescension of the Divine Scripture - what words it uses for the sake of our weakness. And he took, it is said, one of his side. Do not understand these words in a human way, but know that the use of coarse utterances is adapted to human weakness. For if (the Scriptures) did not use these words, how could we know the unutterable mysteries? Let us not dwell only on words, but let us begin to understand everything decently, as relating to God. This is the expression: "Taking it," and all those like it are used for the sake of our weakness. See again how here (the Scriptures) used the same expression as when speaking of Adam. As there it said once, and twice, and many times: "And the Lord God took the man whom he created," and again: "And the commandment of the Lord God to Adam," and again: "And the Lord God said, Let us make him a helper after him," so now he says: "And the Lord God made a rib, which he took from Adam for a wife, and above: and the Lord God put a frenzy on Adam; this is so that you may know that in the use of these words (God and Lord) the Scripture makes no distinction between the Father and the Son, but since they both have the same essence, it also uses names that are indifferent. into a wife. What will the heretics say here, who want to subject everything to investigation and think that they have comprehended the birth of the Creator of all things? What word can express this? What kind of mind is it to comprehend? One rib, it is said, was taken (by God): how then did (He) form a whole animal from this one rib? And what do I say: how did God form an animal from this one rib? Tell me, how was the taking away (of the ribs) accomplished? How did (Adam) not feel this withdrawal? But you can say nothing of the sort: only He who made the creation knows. If we do not understand what is at our fingertips, the formation of an animal homogeneous to us, how senseless and foolish is it to investigate what concerns the Creator, and to say that we understand that of which the higher, incorporeal powers do not have a precise concept, and that it is only constantly glorified with fear and trembling?

3. And it is said, the Lord God made a rib, which He took from Adam to be a wife. Pay attention to the accuracy of the Scriptures. It did not say, "Create," but, "Create." Inasmuch as God took a part of what was already created, and, so to speak, gave only what was lacking, therefore the Scripture says: "He did not produce another creature, but having already taken a small part from the finished creation, He built a whole animal out of this part." What is the power of the highest Artist of God, to produce from this small part (the rib) a composition of so many members, to arrange so many senses, and to form a whole, perfect and complete being, which could both converse and, according to the unity of nature, give the husband great consolation! After all, this creature was created for his consolation. For this reason Paul also said, "A man was not created for the woman's sake, but a woman for the man's sake" (1 Cor. XI, 9). Do you see how everything is created for him? All creation had already been created, the dumb ones had already appeared, fit for food and capable of serving man; but the primordial had no one to converse with, and who, by the unity of nature, could give him great consolation. Therefore, (God) creates this rational animal from his rib and, according to His great wisdom, makes him perfect, in all things like a man, i.e. intelligent, capable of helping him in the necessary needs and circumstances of life. Thus God arranged everything wisely and skillfully. If, through the weakness of reason, we are unable to understand how things are created, then we nevertheless believe that everything obeys the will of the Creator and that what He commands is done. And created, it is said. The Lord God took a rib from Adam to be a wife, and brought her to Adam, showing that He had made her for him: bring her, he says, to Adam. That is, since among all the dumb there was not found a helper like thee, this is what I promised (and I promised to create a helper like unto thee), that I have fulfilled, and I commend unto thee: bring me to Adam. And Adam said, "Behold, now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh" (v. 23). See here, beloved, how (Adam), together with the ineffable wisdom given to him by God, which he showed us in naming so many breeds of dumb animals, was also vouchsafed the gift of prophecy. For this reason the blessed prophet (Moses) showed us above that, together with his sleep, Adam was seized by a frenzy, so that he did not feel at all what was happening to him, so that, having now learned that Adam, when he looked at his wife, accurately explained what had happened, you would be completely convinced that he was saying this by the gift of prophecy, guided by the guidance of the Holy Spirit. For he knew nothing of what had happened, and yet when (God) brought his wife to him, he said, "Behold, now is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh." And the other translator instead of "now says: behold once," giving to understand that it was only now, and after that the birth of the woman will no longer be such. Now, he says, the woman is descended from the man, and afterwards not so, but from the woman (will come) the man, or, better, not from the woman, but from the participation of both of them, as Paul also says: "Man is not of the woman, but woman of the man: for the man was not created for the woman's sake, but the woman for the man's sake" (1 Cor. XI, 8, 9). So, you will say; but these words show that the wife is descended from her husband. Be patient, and from what follows you will see the true teaching. The Apostle says, "Neither is the man without the woman, nor the woman without the man" (v. 11), teaching us that after (the creation of the first wife) the birth of the husband and the woman is from the participation of both. Wherefore Adam also said, Behold, now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh.

4. Then, in order to assure you of the accuracy of Adam's prophecy, that what he said is still coming true, and (will come to pass) to the very end (of the world), listen to what follows even further. This, he says, shall be called a woman, for this was taken from her husband: for this reason a man shall leave his father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and the two shall be one flesh (v. 23, 24). You see how (Adam) revealed everything to us, explaining each (circumstance) with his prophetic spirit exactly. This, he says, shall be called the woman, as she was taken from her husband: here he alludes to the taking of the rib. Then, revealing the future, he says, "For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and the two shall be one flesh." Where, tell me, did it occur to him to say this? How did he know the future, and that the human role would multiply? How did he know that there would be copulation between husband and wife? After all, it happened after the fall; but before that men lived in paradise like angels, were not inflamed with lust, nor were they inflamed with other passions, nor were they burdened with bodily needs, but, being created completely incorruptible and immortal, did not even need to be covered with clothing: for they are both naked, and are not ashamed, v. 25. Until sin and disobedience came, they were clothed with the highest glory, and therefore they were not ashamed; but after the violation of the commandment, both shame and the consciousness of nakedness arose.