Ὁμιλία Βʹ

The Captivity of the Soul to Sin

The soul has been entirely clothed in the darkness of sin, necessitating a divine rescue from this slavery.

The kingdom of darkness—the evil ruler—having taken the human race captive from the beginning, wrapped the soul and clothed it like this in the power of darkness.^✦ Just as when a person is made king and they dress him in royal clothes so that from head to toenails he wears what is royal, so the evil ruler clothed the soul and its whole being with sin, defiled it entirely, and took it entirely captive into his kingdom.¹ He left not one part of it free—not thoughts, not mind, not body—but clothed it in a purple robe of darkness.² For just as the body doesn't suffer in only one part, but is entirely subject to suffering throughout, so the whole soul has suffered the passions of wickedness and sin. So the evil one clothed the whole soul—the human being's essential part—with his wickedness, that is, with sin, and in this way the body became subject to suffering and corruption.³ For when the Apostle says, "Put off the old self," he means the complete one—eyes matching eyes, head matching head, ears matching ears, hands matching hands, feet matching feet—for the evil one defiled and dragged down the whole person, soul and body, and clothed the human being with an old and defiled self, unclean and hostile to God, not subject to the law of God—sin itself—so that the person no longer sees as he wants, but looks wickedly and hears wickedly, has feet rushing toward wrongdoing, hands working lawlessness, and a heart thinking evil things.⁴ So let us also call on God to strip the old self from us, because he alone can take sin away from us—for those who took us captive and hold us in their kingdom are stronger than we are. And he has promised to rescue us from this evil slavery.

The Indwelling Wind of Sin and the Need for Grace

Sin dwells within the human person like an evil wind that only God can restrain, as the human will alone lacks the power to overcome it.

Just as when the sun is shining and a wind is blowing—the sun has its own body and nature, and the wind has its own nature and body, and no one can separate the wind from the sun except God alone, who stops it from blowing—so too is sin mixed with the soul, with each keeping its own nature. It’s impossible to separate the soul from sin unless God stops and holds back this evil wind that dwells within the soul and the body.⁵ Again, just as someone might watch a bird in flight and want to fly themselves, but lacks wings and cannot, so it is for a human being: the will is present—the desire to be pure, blameless, and spotless, to have no evil within, and to always be with God—yet the power to do it is missing.^✦ They want to fly up into the divine air and the freedom of the Holy Spirit, but if they don't receive wings, they can't. So let’s call on God to give us the dove’s wings of the Holy Spirit, so that we may fly to him and find rest, and so that he may separate and stop the evil wind—sin itself, which dwells in the members of our soul and body—from us, for he alone can do this.^✦^✦ For it says, "Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."^✦⁶ He alone has shown this mercy to human beings—to those who believe in him—in that he redeems them from sin; and for those who always wait, hope, and keep asking without ceasing, he works this salvation beyond all telling.^✦⁷ Just as on a gloomy, black night a fierce wind blows, searching and shaking all the plants and seeds, so also the human being who has fallen under the power of the night of darkness—the devil—and who remains in night and darkness, is tossed by the terrible wind of sin as it blows. They are shaken and stirred, their whole nature is searched through—their soul, their thoughts, and their mind—and every bodily member is shaken, so that no part of the soul or body is free or untouched by the sin that dwells in us.^✦^✦

The Garments of Light and the New Creation

The believer is invited to strip off the old self and put on Christ, receiving the garments of light that will eventually glorify both soul and body.

In the same way, there is a day of light and a divine wind of the Holy Spirit, blowing and refreshing the souls that live in the day of divine light, and passing through the whole substance of the soul and its thoughts, refreshing every member of the body and giving rest with a divine and unspeakable rest. This is what the apostle meant: "But we are not children of night or of darkness; for you are all children of light and children of day." And just as there, in the deception, the old self put on a complete human being and wears the clothing of the kingdom of darkness—clothing of blasphemy, unbelief, no fear of God, vainglory, pride, greed, lust, and likewise the other ragged, unclean, and foul garments of the kingdom of darkness—so again here, all who have stripped off the old and underworldly self, and all whom Jesus has stripped of the garments of the kingdom of darkness, have put on the new and heavenly self, Jesus Christ (again in the same way: eyes for eyes, ears for ears, head for head), so that the whole person may be pure and wear the heavenly image.⁸ And the Lord clothed them in garments of a kingdom of unspeakable light—garments of faith, hope, love, joy, peace, goodness, kindness, and everything that follows in the same way: garments of light, of life, divine, living, garments of unutterable rest—so that just as God is love and joy and peace and kindness and goodness, so also the new self may become by grace. And just as the kingdom of darkness and sin lies hidden in the soul until the day of the resurrection, when even the body of sinners will be covered with that darkness already hidden in the soul from now on—so also the kingdom of light and the heavenly image, Jesus Christ, now mystically illuminates the soul and reigns in the soul of the saints. But hidden from human eyes, Christ is truly seen only by the eyes of the soul until the day of the resurrection, when even the body itself will be clothed and glorified with the Lord's light that is already present from now on in the person, in the soul, so that the body too may reign with the soul that is already receiving the kingdom of Christ, resting and being lit by eternal light.⁹ Glory to his compassion and his tender mercy, because he shows mercy to his servants, enlightens them, rescues them from the kingdom of darkness, and freely gives them his own light and his kingdom—to whom be the glory and the power forever. Amen.

Read the original Latin

Ἡ βασιλεία τοῦ σκότους, ὁ πονηρὸς ἄρχων, αἰχμαλωτεύσας τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἀπ' ἀρχῆς, οὕτω περιέθηκε καὶ ἐνέδυσε τὴν ψυχὴν ἐν τῇ ἐξουσίᾳ τοῦ σκότους. ὡς ἂν ᾖ ἄνθρωπος καὶ ποιήσωσιν αὐτὸν βασιλέα καὶ ἐνδύσωσιν αὐτὸν ἐνδύματα βασιλικὰ καὶ ἀπὸ κεφαλῆς ἕως ὀνύχων βασιλικὰ φορῇ, οὕτως τὴν ψυχὴν καὶ ὅλην τὴν ὑπόστασιν αὐτῆς ἐνέδυσε τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ὁ ἄρχων ὁ πονηρὸς καὶ ὅλην ἐμίανε καὶ ὅλην ᾐχμαλώτευσεν εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν αὐτοῦ. οὐκ ἀφῆκεν οὔτε ἓν μέλος αὐτῆς ἐλεύθερον ἀπ' αὐτοῦ, οὐ λογισμούς, οὐ νοῦν, οὐ σῶμα, ἀλλ' ἐνέδυσεν αὐτὴν πορφυρίδα τοῦ σκότους. ὥσπερ γὰρ τὸ σῶμα οὐχὶ ἓν μέρος ἢ μέλος πάσχει, ἀλλ' ὅλον ἐξ ὅλου παθητόν ἐστιν, οὕτως καὶ ἡ ψυχὴ ὅλη ἔπαθε τὰ τῆς κακίας πάθη καὶ ἁμαρτίας. ἐνέδυσεν οὖν τὴν ψυχὴν ὅλην, τὸ ἀναγκαῖον τοῦ ἀνθρώπου μέλος καὶ μέρος, ὁ πονηρὸς τὴν κακίαν αὐτοῦ, τουτέστι τὴν ἁμαρτίαν, καὶ οὕτως τὸ σῶμα παθητὸν καὶ φθαρτὸν ἐγένετο. Ὅταν γὰρ λέγει ὁ ἀπόστολος· ἐκδύσασθε τὸν παλαιὸν ἄνθρωπον, τέλειον λέγει, ὀφθαλμοὺς ἔχοντα πρὸς ὀφθαλμούς, κεφαλὴν πρὸς κεφαλήν, ὦτα πρὸς ὦτα, χεῖρας πρὸς χεῖρας, πόδας πρὸς πόδας· ὅλον γὰρ τὸν ἄνθρωπον, ψυχὴν καὶ σῶμα, ἐμίανεν ὁ πονηρὸς καὶ κατέσπασε, καὶ ἐνέδυσε τὸν ἄνθρωπον, παλαιὸν καὶ μιαρὸν ἄνθρωπον, ἀκάθαρτον καὶ θεομάχον, μὴ ὑποτασσόμενον τῷ νόμῳ τοῦ θεοῦ, αὐτὴν τὴν ἁμαρτίαν, ἵνα μηκέτι βλέπῃ ὡς θέλει ὁ ἄνθρωπος, ἀλλ' ἵνα πονηρῶς ὁρᾷ καὶ πονηρῶς ἀκούῃ καὶ πόδας ἔχῃ σπεύδοντας ἐπὶ κακοποιΐαν καὶ χεῖρας ἐργαζομένας ἀνομίαν καὶ καρδίαν πονηρὰ διαλογιζομένην. παρακαλέσωμεν οὖν καὶ ἡμεῖς τὸν θεόν, ἵνα ἐκδύσῃ ἡμᾶς τὸν παλαιὸν ἄνθρωπον, ὅτι αὐτὸς μόνος ἆραι ἀφ' ἡμῶν τὴν ἁμαρτίαν δύναται· ὅτι ἰσχυρότεροι ἡμῶν εἰσιν οἱ αἰχμαλωτεύσαντες ἡμᾶς καὶ κατέχοντες ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ αὐτῶν. αὐτὸς δὲ ἐπηγγείλατο τοῦ ῥύσασθαι ἡμᾶς ἐκ τῆς κακῆς δουλείας ταύτης.

ὥσπερ γὰρ ὅταν ἥλιος ᾖ καὶ ἄνεμός τις πνέῃ· ὁ μὲν ἥλιος ἴδιον σῶμα ἔχει καὶ ἰδίαν φύσιν, ὁμοίως καὶ ὁ ἄνεμος ἰδίαν φύσιν ἔχει καὶ ἴδιον σῶμα, καὶ οὐδεὶς δύναται χωρίσαι τὸν ἄνεμον ἀπὸ τοῦ ἡλίου, εἰ μὴ μόνος ὁ θεὸς παύσει, ἵνα μηκέτι πνέῃ, οὕτως καὶ ἡ ἁμαρτία τῇ ψυχῇ μεμιγμένη ἐστίν, ἐχούσης ἑκάστης ἰδίαν φύσιν. ἀδύνατον οὖν ἐστι χωρίσαι τὴν ψυχὴν ἀπὸ τῆς ἁμαρτίας, ἐὰν μὴ ὁ θεὸς παύσῃ καὶ στείλῃ τὸν πονηρὸν τοῦτον ἄνεμον τὸν ἐνοικοῦντα τῇ ψυχῇ καὶ τῷ σώματι. καὶ πάλιν· ὥσπερ τις θεωρεῖ πετεινὸν πετόμενον καὶ βούλεται καὶ αὐτὸς πτῆναι, μὴ ἔχων δὲ πτερά, ἀδυνάτως ἔχει πέτασθαι, οὕτως καὶ τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ «τὸ μὲν θέλειν παράκειται» τοῦ εἶναι καθαρὸν καὶ ἄμωμον καὶ ἄσπιλον καὶ μὴ ἔχειν ἐν ἑαυτῷ τὴν κακίαν, ἀλλ' ἀεὶ μετὰ τοῦ θεοῦ εἶναι· τὸ δύνασθαι δὲ οὐκ ἔχει. πετασθῆναι μὲν εἰς τὸν ἀέρα τὸν θεϊκὸν καὶ τὴν ἐλευθερίαν τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος θέλει, ἀλλ' ἐὰν μὴ λάβῃ πτέρυγας, οὐ δύναται. παρακαλέσωμεν οὖν τὸν θεόν, ἵνα δῷ ἡμῖν πτέρυγας περιστερᾶς τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος, ἵνα πετασθῶμεν πρὸς αὐτὸν καὶ καταπαύσωμεν, καὶ ἵνα διαχωρίσῃ καὶ παύσῃ ἀπὸ τῆς ψυχῆς καὶ τοῦ σώματος ἡμῶν τὸν πονηρὸν ἄνεμον, αὐτὴν τὴν ἁμαρτίαν τὴν κατοικοῦσαν ἐν τοῖς μέλεσι τῆς ψυχῆς καὶ τοῦ σώματος ἡμῶν· αὐτῷ γὰρ μόνῳ δυνατὸν τοῦτο ποιῆσαι. ἴδε γάρ φησιν ὁ ἀμνὸς τοῦ θεοῦ ὁ αἴρων τὴν ἁμαρτίαν τοῦ κόσμου. αὐτὸς μόνος τὴν ἐλεημοσύνην ταύτην ἐποίησε τῶν ἀνθρώπων τοῖς πιστεύουσιν αὐτῷ, ὅτι λυτροῦται ἀπὸ τῆς ἁμαρτίας· καὶ τοῖς προσδοκῶσιν ἀεὶ καὶ ἐλπίζουσι καὶ αἰτοῦσιν ἀδιαλείπτως ποιεῖ τὴν σωτηρίαν ταύτην τὴν ἀνεκδιήγητον. Ὥσπερ ἐν νυκτὶ ζοφερᾷ καὶ μελανῇ πνέει ἄνεμός τις ἄγριος καὶ πάντα τὰ φυτὰ καὶ τὰ σπέρματα κινεῖ καὶ ἐρευνᾷ καὶ σείει, οὕτως καὶ ὁ ἄνθρωπος πεσὼν ὑπὸ τὴν ἐξουσίαν τῆς νυκτὸς τοῦ σκότους, τοῦ διαβόλου, καὶ ὢν ἐν νυκτὶ καὶ σκότει κλονεῖται τῷ δεινῷ ἀνέμῳ τῆς ἁμαρτίας πνέοντι, καὶ σείεται καὶ κινεῖται καὶ ἐρευνᾶται πᾶσαν τὴν φύσιν, τὴν ψυχήν, τοὺς λογισμοὺς αὐτοῦ καὶ τὸν νοῦν, καὶ πάντα σείεται τὰ σωματικὰ μέλη, καὶ οὐδὲν ἐλεύθερον οὐδὲ ἀπαθὲς μέλος ψυχῆς ἢ σώματός ἐστιν ἀπὸ τῆς ἐνοικούσης ἐν ἡμῖν ἁμαρτίας.

ὁμοίως ἐστὶν ἡμέρα φωτὸς καὶ ἄνεμος θεῖος τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος, πνέων καὶ ἀναψύχων τὰς ψυχὰς τὰς οὔσας ἐν ἡμέρᾳ φωτὸς θεϊκοῦ καὶ διϊκνούμενος πᾶσαν τὴν ὑπόστασιν τῆς ψυχῆς καὶ τοὺς λογισμούς, καὶ πάντα τὰ μέλη τοῦ σώματος ἀναψύχων καὶ ἀναπαύων ἀναπαύσει θεϊκῇ καὶ ἀλαλήτῳ. τοῦτο ἔλεγεν ὁ ἀπόστολος· «ἡμεῖς δὲ οὔκ ἐσμεν τέκνα νυκτὸς οὐδὲ σκότους· πάντες γὰρ ὑμεῖς υἱοὶ φωτός ἐστε καὶ υἱοὶ ἡμέρας». καὶ ὥσπερ ἐκεῖ ἐν τῇ πλάνῃ ἄνθρωπον τέλειον ἐνεδύσατο ὁ παλαιὸς ἄνθρωπος καὶ φορεῖ ἔνδυμα βασιλείας σκότους, ἔνδυμα βλασφημίας, ἀπιστίας, ἀφοβίας, κενοδοξίας, ὑπερηφανίας, φιλαργυρίας, ἐπιθυμίας, καὶ τὰ ἄλλα ὁμοίως τῆς βασιλείας τοῦ σκότους φορέματα ῥακώδη καὶ ἀκάθαρτα καὶ μιαρά, οὕτως πάλιν ἐνταῦθα ὅσοι ἀπεδύσαντο τὸν παλαιὸν καὶ καταχθόνιον ἄνθρωπον καὶ ὅσους ἂν ἐξέδυσεν Ἰησοῦς τὰ ἐνδύματα τῆς βασιλείας τοῦ σκότους, ἐνεδύσαντο τὸν νέον καὶ ἐπουράνιον ἄνθρωπον Ἰησοῦν Χριστόν (πάλιν ὁμοίως ὀφθαλμοὺς πρὸς ὀφθαλμούς, ὦτα πρὸς ὦτα, κεφαλὴν πρὸς κεφαλήν), ἵνα ὅλος καθαρὸς ᾖ καὶ φορῶν τὴν ἐπουράνιον εἰκόνα. καὶ ἐνέδυσεν αὐτοὺς ὁ κύριος ἐνδύματα βασιλείας φωτὸς ἀρρήτου, ἐνδύματα πίστεως, ἐλπίδος, ἀγάπης, χαρᾶς, εἰρήνης, ἀγαθωσύνης, χρηστότητος, καὶ πάντα ὁμοίως τὰ ἑξῆς, ἐνδύματα φωτός, ζωῆς, θεϊκά, ζῶντα, ἀναπαύσεως ἀνεκλαλήτου, ἵνα ὥσπερ ὁ θεὸς ἀγάπη ἐστὶ καὶ χαρὰ καὶ εἰρήνη καὶ χρηστότης καὶ ἀγαθωσύνη, οὕτω καὶ ὁ νέος ἄνθρωπος γένηται κατὰ χάριν. Καὶ ὥσπερ ἡ βασιλεία τοῦ σκότους καὶ ἡ ἁμαρτία κέκρυπται εἰς τὴν ψυχὴν ἕως ἡμέρας τῆς ἀναστάσεως, ὅτε καὶ αὐτὸ τὸ σῶμα τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν τῷ σκότει καλυφθῇ τῷ ἀπὸ τοῦ νῦν κεκρυμμένῳ εἰς τὴν ψυχήν, οὕτω καὶ ἡ βασιλεία τοῦ φωτὸς καὶ ἡ ἐπουράνιος εἰκών, Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, μυστικῶς νῦν τὴν ψυχὴν φωτίζει καὶ βασιλεύει εἰς τὴν ψυχὴν τῶν ἁγίων. κεκρυμμένος δὲ ἀπὸ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν τῶν ἀνθρώπων μόνοις ἐστὶ Χριστὸς τοῖς τῆς ψυχῆς ὀφθαλμοῖς θεωρούμενος ἐν ἀληθείᾳ ἕως ἡμέρας τῆς ἀναστάσεως, ὅτε καὶ αὐτὸ τὸ σῶμα καλυφθήσεται καὶ δοξασθήσεται τῷ τοῦ κυρίου φωτὶ τῷ ὄντι ἀπὸ τοῦ νῦν ἐν τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ εἰς τὴν ψυχήν, ἵνα καὶ αὐτὸ τὸ σῶμα συμβασιλεύσῃ τῇ ψυχῇ τῇ ἀπὸ τοῦ νῦν λαμβανούσῃ τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ Χριστοῦ, ἀναπαυομένῃ καὶ φωτιζομένῃ φωτὶ αἰωνίῳ. δόξα τοῖς οἰκτιρμοῖς καὶ τῇ εὐσπλαγχνίᾳ αὐτοῦ, ὅτι ἐλεεῖ τοὺς δούλους αὐτοῦ καὶ φωτίζει καὶ ῥύεται αὐτοὺς ἐκ τῆς βασιλείας τοῦ σκότους καὶ χαρίζεται αὐτοῖς τὸ ἑαυτοῦ φῶς καὶ τὴν αὐτοῦ βασιλείαν, ᾧ ἡ δόξα καὶ τὸ κράτος εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας. ἀμήν.

Scripture echoes

↩Col.1.13;Acts.26.18 — He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of the Son he loves. Acts.26.18 — to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.
↩Rom.7.18 — For I know that good does not dwell in me—that is, in my flesh. For the willing is present with me, but the working out of the good is not.
↩Ps.54.7 — He will turn evil back upon my enemies; in your faithfulness, put an end to them.
↩Rom.7.17-Rom.7.23 — So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. Rom.7.18 — For I know that good does not dwell in me—that is, in my flesh. For the willing is present with me, but the working out of the good is not. Rom.7.19 — For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Rom.7.20 — But if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but the sin that dwells in me. Rom.7.21 — So I find this law at work in me: though I desire to do what is good, evil is right there with me. Rom.7.22 — For I delight in the law of God, according to the inner person. Rom.7.23 — But I see another law in my members, waging war against the law of my mind, and making me captive to the law of sin which is in my members.
↩John.1.29 — The next day he sees Jesus coming toward him and says, "Look, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!"
↩1Thess.5.17 — Pray without ceasing.
↩Rom.7.17 — So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
↩1Thess.5.4-1Thess.5.5;Rom.13.12;Eph.5.8 — But you, brothers, are not in darkness, so that the day should overtake you like a thief. 1Thess.5.5 — For you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. Rom.13.12 — The night is far gone, and the day is at hand; let us then cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. Eph.5.8 — For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light.

Notes

1 ↩ὑπόστασιν rendered as 'being' (the soul's whole substantial self), not in a later technical Trinitarian sense.
2 ↩πορφυρίδα is the royal purple robe; the image continues the kingship metaphor of s2 while marking the 'royalty' as darkness.
3 ↩τὸ ἀναγκαῖον... μέλος καὶ μέρος treats the soul as the human being's indispensable member/part; kept as 'essential member and part' to preserve Macarius's anthropology.
4 ↩παλαιὸν ἄνθρωπον rendered 'old self' for modern readability while keeping the Pauline technical force; the bodily inventory keeps Macarius's claim that the 'old man' is a full person-shaped covering.
5 ↩στείλῃ (from στέλλω): rendered 'holds back'; also possible are 'checks,' 'restrains,' or 'calls back' the evil wind.
6 ↩ἴδε γάρ φησιν treated as introducing the Johannine formula: ἴδε is part of the quoted 'Behold,' and φησιν is the citation formula ('it/he says').
7 ↩ἐλεημοσύνην rendered as 'mercy' / act of mercy rather than modern 'almsgiving'; the sense is Christ's redeeming kindness toward believers.
8 ↩ἀφοβίας rendered as 'no fear of God' (reckless irreverence), not mere courage; κενοδοξίας as 'vainglory'.
9 ↩καλυφθήσεται here is the positive counterpart to s5's dark covering: the body will be clothed/covered with the Lord's light, not with darkness.

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