Coptic homilies in the dialect of Upper Egypt/Sermon 8

A HOMILY OF APA BASIL, BISHOP OF CAESAREA OF CAPPADOCIA, WHICH HE PRONOUNCED CONCERNING THE END OF THE WORLD, AND THE TEMPLE OF SOLOMON, AND THE GOING FORTH FROM THE BODY.

Let us understand now, O my brethren, that at the moment when God created all things, there was none who knew, neither was there any voice or disturbance, but there existed great quietness and silence when He fashioned the universe. And we hear in the Holy Scriptures concerning the day when the heavens and the earth will come to an end, and how great the confusion (or, trouble) will be is described therein. And another angel spoke saying, ' They will bring about the end of the world,' even as we have heard.

And our Saviour made known to us in the Gospels concerning the overthrowings and the tribulations, and the earthquakes which will take place, for He said, ' There will be great tribulations, the like of which has not been since the beginning, at the creation of the world, and the like of which there will never be again.' ^[1] And He said also in another place, ' Heaven and earth will be convulsed, and the powers which are in the heavens will be shaken in that day, [and there will be] great earthquakes, and blasts of the trumpet, and great and frequent flashes of lightning, with mighty thunderings.' ^[2]

For the angels will send forth from His mountain messengers into the world, and they will gather together all mankind, and will make them to stand before the

throne of the Son of God, and they will separate the wicked from among the righteous.

Behold now, at the time when He created all things no one knew except Himself and His beloved Son, Jesus Christ. Concerning that hour wherein He will destroy all created things, when everything will be overthrown, concerning that last hour, I say, and the destruction of the heavens and the earth, no one whatsoever will know, not even the angels in the heavens, except Himself and His beloved Son, even as we have said before. Now it is written that [as no sound was heard at the creation], so in the days in which Solomon was building the temple of God in Jerusalem, there was no sound heard therein, neither the sound of an axe, nor that of an iron hammer. ^[3] And during the twenty years in which the king was building this temple in this manner, there was not heard therein even the sound of the artificer who worked in gold.

And why was this? First of all, because the temple was being built for God, in Whose place of abode no disturbance of any kind must make itself manifest. [And secondly] because the wise king who was building the temple to the Lord God chose Solomon to continue the building of the temple to Him in this manner, that is to say, in quietness, according to the manner in which work on the first creation was performed, which He founded in quietness, and there was no sound, neither was there any disturbance. [And thirdly] because God works with His own thoughts, and with His intelligence. I and He has therefore no need of a crowd [of workmen] who would disturb the place wherein they perform their work. Nay, God is not one who works in this manner, but His thoughts and His command are wholly sufficient to make everything which is made. For this reason hearken unto that which is written in the Exodus of Moses, ^[4] for when Moses had made I the tabernacle, and the ark of the covenant, God said [unto him] ' Take heed that you make everything according to the pattern which has been shown to you on the mountain. Now, who was it that made them except the command of God? That is to say, God will build for Himself the temple which is necessary [for Him]. And this also is what the wise man Paul wrote concerning Him saying, ' You are the temple of God, and the Spirit of God abides in you.' ^[5] And again he wrote, ' Know not that you are the temple of the Holy Spirit which is in you? ' ^[6] And moreover, one of the wise men of old used to say, 'The great altar of God is the heart of the wise man. [ I cannot identify this quotation. ]

The hand and the power of God are the things which made all created things, and moreover, it is they which have made man. Again hear what Isaiah says in the character of God : ' Is it not My hand which has established whatsoever is in the earth? And is it not My right hand which has made firm the heavens? I call unto them all, and they all stand up at one time.' ^[7] And again, the blessed man David cried out saying, ' It is His hand which has fashioned the dry land.' ^[8] And again, in [the Book of] Hosea He says, ' It is My hand which has created the hosts of heaven.' And again in [the Book of] Isaiah [He says], 'Heaven is My throne, the earth is My footstool : What kind of a house will ye build for Me? says the Lord? ^[9] Was it not My hand which made all these things? It was My hand, moreover, which fashioned the first man Adam. Therefore, after the fashioning of the first man which is [related] in Genesis [ Some words appear to be wanting here. ]

And again the righteous man Job says, ' Remember that You have made me of clay, and I will return again to the earth.' ^[10] And again, 'Have You not poured me out like the milk, and turned me over and over like a cheese? You have clothed me with skin and flesh, You have knitted me together by means of bones and tendons (or, sinews). You have granted unto me a heart of life and favour, and it is your visitation which has protected my spirit. These things are in your heart, and I know, moreover, that You are able [to do] everything, and that there

exists nothing which You are not able to do.' ^[11]

Then again the Psalmist David says, ' your hands have made and fashioned me.' ^[12] And again, ' For You are He Who took me out of my mother's womb.' ^[13] And again, ' In secret my body was not hidden from You, for You didst fashion it in secret.' ^[14] And again God says in [the Book of] Jeremiah, ' Before I had fashioned you in the womb I knew you, and before you didst come out therefrom I sanctified you' ^[15]

Now, after all these things, if it was the hand of God which created all things which exist, the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and everything which is therein, for what reason will they be destroyed, and become dissolved with a mighty overthrow, both inanimate things and man, and the temple of Solomon? And again God says in the Gospel, ' I work, and My Father has worked hitherto.' ^[16] Now the [things of the] Six Days which God made, He made in great joy, and in gladness, and in silence. And again, during the six thousand years which He has made [since that time], He has supplied the world with His commandments, and with His laws, and with His holy Prophets. And of all these the principal things are, His holy desire which He has shown (or, made) towards us, and all the sufferings of His Apostles, and all the supplies which have been needed by men, and by the courses of the luminaries. And again, after all these [years], in a moment, suddenly everything which has been made will be overthrown and destroyed. And again, the [things of the] Six Days which God made when He created the world, [and] all these [later] things, will be destroyed, and will dissolve in the twinkling of an eye.

For He, the Lord of All, and the Fabricator, Jesus Christ, Himself said in the Gospel, ' Heaven and earth will pass

away.' ^[17]

And again, because of that day and that hour none knows except the Father, therefore the great overthrow which will take place will be unbearable. O how great will be the sorrow of heart, and all the sufferings, at that awful time, that is to say, when the administration and management of the service of the luminaries by the angels, and the sending down of the dew upon the earth, and the blowing of the winds, and the strength of the earth which He gives to the children of men, and the rivers and the streams - when I say, all these things will be blotted out in a single moment, and will be destroyed !

And what reason is there why a single moment should have the power to do all these evil things, except it be because of sin and disobedience? It was the first transgression, that is to say, disobedience, which cast man forth from Paradise. It has changed this world, and has made to exist the things which ought not to exist; and the things which ought indeed to exist it has set a restraint upon. It has made God Who is without anger to be wroth, and has turned the Father from gladness to grief.

Now, who is he who has committed all these sins? It is the Enemy of every man, this evil beast which slays the soul, this bird which snatchs greedily at its prey, this serpent which biteth, this fire which blazes fiercely, this thief who carries off all souls [into] sin, this murderous barbarian, this troubled pool, this desert road, this evil tare, this sin which invites death, this similitude of hunger (or, greed), this stirrer up of war, this destroyer of the city, this waster of the people, who makes the whole land to be without fruit. It is, moreover, he who makes the heavens to withhold the dew, and, besides, he makes parents to look upon the death of their children without mourning for their beloved.

He changes kings, he leads the nations into error, and he brings the nations to boundaries of countries which do not belong to them. The thorn and the bramble exist because of Sin, and because of Sin death has become king. Moreover, because of Sin a judgement took place in the Paradise, and punishments [were inflicted] in the place of gladness. Moreover, because of Sin there was to be weeping in the world which was to come, and sorrow of heart was to be in all created beings. Because of Sin there was a deluge upon the earth, and the cataracts of heaven poured down from heaven the waters of wrath upon the earth, and the fountains of the great deep were opened, and they belched forth the waters of vengeance. Because of Sin God meditated the blotting out of every created thing which was on the face of the whole earth. The transgression of the Watchers, that is to say, Giants, was like unto a flood, and it was sin, and impurity, and the concealment of uncleanness of every kind which burnt up Sodom and Gomorrah. The superfluous meddling of the men of Calneh (?) [ The [H3p3] of Gen. x. 10 probably. The allusion is to the builders of the Tower of Babel, who, according to one tradition, built their Tower at Borsippa, the modern Birs Nimrud. Calneh has not been satisfactorily identified in the cuneiform inscriptions. ] was what made diverse the languages of men, and at length they became scattered abroad over the whole earth. It was sin and cruel obstinacy which filled Pharaoh and destroyed the multitudes of Egypt. It was lawlessness and idolatry which destroyed the seven nations in the land of Canaan. It was sin and disobedience to God which consumed six hundred thousand Israelites in the desert, by sword, and fire, and by serpents, because they chose sin for themselves, and forsook the Lord their God.

Because of all these God cried out in [the Book of] Isaiah saying: ' For behold, in My anger I will make the sea to become a desert, and I will turn the rivers into dry land, and the fishes thereof will be dried up, and will be without water, and will die because of thirst. I will spread darkness over the heavens as a garment, and I will make the apparel thereof like unto sackcloth.' ^[18]

Now it was Sin which did all these things, and because thereof the evil of this single hour will overthrow and will destroy at this awful time all the things which have been set in order since the beginning of the creation of the world.

Now let us again hearken concerning the building of the temple which Solomon builded in such great silence ; and concerning Him Who was able to destroy it to its foundation. For it is written thus in the Third [Book of] the Kingdom ^[19] concerning the temple which Solomon built in the Name of the Lord: - Behold, O God of Israel, there has been heard the sound neither of hammer, nor axe, nor the sound of any tool of iron whatsoever ; even though, in his wisdom, which was great, he permitted a few men to work in a certain place which was at some distance from the temple. Now this he did in order that the sound of the workers in gold might not shut out from the ears of the king, and prevent him from hearing, the pleadings of those who came unto him to receive judgement. Now therefore God gave unto him peace, and there was no war made upon him while he was building, and no hostile attack was made upon him either on this side or on that ; and because of this peace he was not burdened with a any serious anxiety concerning the care of the kingdom. He used to rise very early each morning, and go into the place which he had prepared, and sit down there, and all the works continued to progress in due order; and there was no idleness or lax labour.

For these reasons he did not permit a handicraftsman to work in the place which he had established; that the place might not be disturbed continually, and that he might not be prevented from hearing the voices of those who were pleading before the king. Now according to what is reported, he [finished] building the house after twenty years, and [then] he dedicated the house to God. And he went into the temple, and all Israel was with him ; he bowed his knees before the altar of the Lord, and his hands were stretched out towards the heavens, and he prayed thus saying: 'O Lord God of Israel, if the heaven, and the heaven of heavens suffice You not, then verily God will not come and abide with men. And now, O God, hearken You unto the prayer which your servant makes unto You, in order that Your eyes and Your ears may be open towards this house.' ^[20] And, in short, after hearing these words God spoke unto him over the altar saying, 'I have heard your prayer which you have made to Me. I do not dwell in a house which has been fashioned by the hands of man, yet, because of your labours which you have performed (and if you will keep My commandments, and My judgements which I have given into your hands), Mine eyes and Mine ears will be open over this house which you have built. If, however, you transgress My commandments, I will cast away this great place from Me, and it will be destroyed and become such a wilderness that all those who will pass by it will marvel, and will smite together their hands, and will whistle, and will say, "Why have these things happened to this great place? " And it will be told them, " Because they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, and made themselves servants of strange gods." ' ^[21]

Observe now, moreover, that after Solomon had gone to his rest, the people committed sin, and they cleaved to this evil friend, who is Sin, who also made the first man to commit sin in the Paradise, and who has changed the world from the beginning. It was he also who destroyed the temple of the Hebrews by the hands of the Chaldeans, which name is interpreted 'those who are scattered', or ' those who are corrupt .

As concerning [the statements] that Solomon spent twenty [ According to 1 Kings vi. 38 the building of the Temple occupied seven years. ] years in building it with costly stones, and that the materials which he made ready for the work were very great in quantity, these words refer to the work of the eighty thousand men who bare burdens, and thirty thousand men who cut down trees in Lebanon, and thirty-six hundred scribes (i.e., overseers), and eighty thousand hewers of stone in the mountains. ^[22]

And after all these labours [to think] that this Enemy, that is to say, Sin, should cause it to be destroyed in a few days ! Further, might we not say that the Chaldeans worked against Jerusalem throughout a whole year? Therefore in this one year was scattered and wasted the labours of the preceding twenty years, and this because of Sin. That which the Hebrews built the Chaldeans destroyed because of the lawlessness of the people. [ The Temple of Solomon was burnt by Nebuchadnezzar ; see 2 Kings xxv. 9. ] That which had been builded in silence was destroyed amid great confusion and noise. That which Solomon built in wisdom Zedekiah destroyed in his lawlessness. Rightly therefore did God put the following proverb in the mouth of Solomon and make him say, ' The wise among women build up houses, but the worker of folly destroys it with her hands.' ^[23] And the blessed man Paul also says, ' Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.' ^[24]

All these things came into being through Solomon, but the overthrow and the destruction thereof took place through Zedekiah. The sound of the tools of the workmen was not heard during the building of the temple by Solomon the wise man, but the sound of the axes and the hammers shook Jerusalem when the Chaldeans destroyed it through the folly of Zedekiah.

Now, after these things, hearken unto the words which the holy man Stephen spoke saying, ' Solomon built a temple, but the Most High dwells not in that which is made by the hands. Then where will God dwell? ' ^[25] He says, ' In very deed God will dwell with men.' And this indeed took place, for our Lord Jesus Christ came I forth from the heavens, and took up His abode with us, and He put on a human body, like unto ours, but without sin. ^[26] This is the holy and honourable temple which our Saviour took upon Himself of His own free will. Moreover, David spoke of Him when he said, ' your temple is holy, and is a miracle in righteousness.' ^[27] Truly and surely the Holy Virgin Mary is the miracle, for no human being has been created on earth like unto her. Mary is the temple which is more exalted and more honourable than the temple of Solomon, for it is she who has become the temple of the True God, Jesus Christ, Jesus our Lord, through Whom is the glory, and with Him the Father and the Holy Spirit for all ages of ages. Amen.

1. Matt. xxiv. 21.
2. Matt. xxiv. 29, 31.
3. 1 Kings vi. 7.
4. Exod. xxv. 9.
5. 1 Cor. iii. 16, 17.
6. 1 Cor. vi. 19.
7. Isa. xlviii. 13.
8. Ps. xcv. 5.
9. Isa. lxvi. 1.
10. Job x. 9.
11. Job x. 10-13.
12. Ps. cxix. 73.
13. Ps. lxxi. 6.
14. Ps. cxxxix. 15.
15. Jer. i. 5.
16. John v. 17.
17. Matt. xxiv. 35.
18. Isa. l. 2, 3.
19. 1 Kings vi. 7.
20. 1 Kings viii. 22 ff.
21. 1 Kings ix. 1
22. See 1 Kings v. 13-18.
23. Prov. xiv. 1.
24. 1 Cor. viii. 1.
25. Acts vii. 47-49.
26. Heb. iv. 15.
27. Ps. lxv. 4.