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Hymns on Faith

St Ephrem the Syrian, tr. Morris, 1847; selections

58. Rhythm the Fifty-eighth

Who hath seen the waters in the womb of a tree, which there undergo a change in a vast multitude of ways¹, as the waters² alter themselves at His command, that they may turn to a body and become wood for buildings, and out of the very same there may be made bridges and ships, so that by means of themselves we prevail over the waters. Praises be to Thy wisdom! Who hath seen wood which has been consumed in a furnace, how that it is entirely dissolved and wandereth about in the air, so that even the sensible perception of it³ has departed by means of the fire, so as to yield no holding to its holder’s hand. It began in the sprout and ended in the flame, and wondrously hath it withdrawn itself! Who can search out in what place the smoke of incense is left, the fat of sacrifices, the smell and the fumes of burning woods⁴? Is it preserved in any thing that it may come to any thing again? or is it dissolved into nothing, that the Lord of every thing may be magnified in every thing?

When a servant has searched throughly, he findeth his fellow-servants; and if one hath searched the creatures, he findeth things proximate to himself; for his Lord is hidden from him, and how vile is the name of ‘dust’ compared with⁵ that of God! Yet still more vile is his disputing in His Maker’s eyes; in name and in truth is it vile, yea in both of them. Who will not admit this without controversy, that as at no time would it belong to a thing named⁶ ‘created’ or ‘made’ to rise into comparison with the Name of Creator⁷; so also would scrutinizing be light in the balance against that Glorious Being by whom all things were created?

Who can stretch himself to any thing which is greater than himself, since he hath no wings for his feeble soul? That they of low estate might attain to His great height, He⁸ humbled Himself unto Zacchæus⁹. The short man was dwelling in the height of the tree, and the High One in His goodness was walking beneath him. Speak advantageously, and explain instructively, and interpret profitably, and examine for edification¹⁰. Question the unbelievers, and reprove the crucifiers, and search their writings and solve their disputings. Make disciples of children, and be a master to the simple, and enlighten the innocent; speak of the grace that nourisheth thee for nought, that giveth thee the due reward of righteousness, and more than the reward¹¹. Bless His Divine Essence, who when thou wert not, made thee; magnify His Fatherhood, in that He even reckoned thee of His sons¹². Expect His Kingdom, for lo! He hath invited thee, even thee, and called thee to His Table!

Who will not accuse thee whose wrangling and babbling tongue is unsheathed against Him continually? There are Scriptures, and they are truthful: there are seas, and they are rich: there are savory things, and they are pleasant: there are fasts, and they are triumphant. Find thee questions, weak man, among these things that belong to thy comfort and weary not thyself to learn questioning that will prove a torment. For when the King’s Son¹³ had not opened the treasures of the Kingdom to His labourers; then was there framed there a mischievous device, whereby they that be audacious are not willing to confess even that He is the King’s Son. Him they surname fellow-servant, and the crown that He received [they say] exalted Him by grace¹⁴. Our King and the Son of our King¹⁵ opened His treasures, and scattered abroad the good things of His Kingdom. He gave unto us two worlds, that which passeth away, and that which is waiting to come, yet since His love out-passed His gift, the King took the King’s Son¹⁶ and gave Him unto us as a gift for His beloved, and killed Him and redeemed us by Him.

Who then hath cast among us strife and harasses and mischievous disputing, the device of harm and the plenitude of blasphemy and the utmost evils¹⁷, envy for love, jealousy for truth¹⁸? The wicked one saw the Good One, who freely shewed us mercy; he clothed himself with jealousy, that he also might force us to be ruined. Wherefore let us say unto Satan¹⁹, who worrieth us to pry into our Redeemer, ‘Get thee forth, go, pry into thy devils²⁰, that thou mayest find thy fellow-servants; and also pry into the spirits, that thou mayest be acquainted with thy neighbours; and pry into Gehenna the fire whereof is reserved for thee, and feel after²¹ the darkness, the whole whereof is prepared for thee!

Notes

S. are changed into a plurality of number.
Epiphan. i. p. 889, c. H. lxxiv. 3. “The rain being made of part of the substance of trees and plants issues in being a body and the fruit which belongs to each of them: and in the olive it becometh fat oil, taking up to itself the essentials of oil, and in the vine it gets the colour of the sweet wine, and in the fig is sweetened into a fig, &c.” Greg. Nyss. ii. p. 518, b. (who uses the simile for the same purpose as St. E.) “The moisture which is in the vine being drawn up through the bottom of the root by the pith, in virtue is indeed water, but by going in a certain order through the natural channels it changes into the nature of wine, &c.” In the last of these passages, as in St. E. water is contemplated as changing its substance, whereas the truth is that it is not a simple substance, but enters either as it is, into the juices of plants, or is decomposed to form them. The mystery of the process of course is as great now as ever; but attention ought to be drawn to such ancient theories of physiology, both as justifying questions afterwards entertained, (e. g. what became of the water mixed with the wine to be consecrated according to the hint in Prov. ix. 2.) and pointing out the real service science may be of in answering them less partially than before. Comp. R. lxiv. §. 3. c. Scrut. R. i. §. 7. §. 12. These passages are also evidence that St. E. had attended to natural philosophy.
S. the touch from it
ξύλα καύσιμα are mentioned several times by J. Pollux, vi. 91. vii. 109. x. 110; otherwise the context might lead one to suppose St. E. alluded to fragrant woods, which yield a smell in burning. It is worth observing, that of the two alternatives, at the end of the §. St. E. seems inclined to the former, as he speaks of the burnt wood, as wandering about in the air.
Gen. 3, 19.
S. name of created R. lxi. §. 2. R. lxii. §. 5. R. lxiii. §. 4. R. lxxi. §. 2.
The Eunomians spoke of the Son as an instrument made to create all things: to this inconsistency St. E. here alludes. See R. vi. §. 1. §. 5.
Is. 40, 15.
See Catena on Luke 19, 3.
R. ix. §. 1. c. Scrut. i. §. 16.
Vol. ii. p. 326. in n. k. p. 123.
R. lii. §. 1.
p. 71, n. y.
i. e. they make him Son in the same sense, that angels or men are by grace, not by Nature. See R. lii. §. 1. R. xxi. §. 2. R. xlvi. §. 6.
p. 71, n. y.
R. liv. §. 1.
S. end of evil things. R. lxviii. §. 3.
c. Scrut. i. 29.
This may mean either directly, or through the heretics, who were regarded as organs of Satan. See on Athanasius, p. 9, n. s. p. 386. and on R. lxvi. §. 2.
R. l. §. 5.
Is. 30, 33. Mat. 25, 41.