Nilus of Sinai

“Concerning virginity we have received no commandment, but we leave it to the power of those that are willing, as a vow. [We exhort] them so far in this matter that they do not promise anything rashly, since Solomon says, "It is better not to vow than to vow and not pay." Let such a virgin, therefore, be holy in body and soul, as the temple of God, as the house of Christ, as the habitation of the Holy Spirit. For she that vows ought to do such works as are suitable to her vow, and to show that her vow is real, and made on account of leisure for piety, not to cast a reproach on marriage. Let her not be one who wanders idly around, or one that rambles about unseasonably; not double-minded, but grave, continent, sober, pure, avoiding the conversation of many, and especially of those that are of ill reputation.”

“Wishing to inspire a spirit of humility in her actions, the Word says this: "Your neck is as if circled with jewels." For just as he describes "the stiff neck" of the proud as "a sinew of iron" because of its stiffness, so too he describes the neck of a modest person as a necklace [with strings of jewels]. He thus designates the form of the virtue by its shape. For modest persons (even if such people stand tall) are bent down in the manner of a necklace when they think humbly of themselves and restrain the vanity of pride that accompanies virtue, which is a fact of the weakness of human nature. For the memory of earth and the ancient parentage of clay is sufficient to destroy such vainglory even if the honor of the image and the excellence of the actions may cause an inflation of pride.And the Word does not call the neck of the humble simply a "necklace," for there are indeed those who by affectation take the appearance of humility while they pursue human glory. To them the Word says, "If you bend your neck like a ring." Wishing to show the difference between them and a perfect soul, he has compared their behavior to the ring of iron which those who are condemned wear in punishment, for virtue contrived for the sake of deception ends by assuming the aspect of punishment. But the virtue of the bride he has compared to a necklace of gold, letting her [inner] condition be intimated through her appearance while the substance [of that virtue] is thus proven. … If then the necklace indicates humility, such a neck, compared with a necklace that is praiseworthy, also reveals the abundance of virtues and the lowliness pertaining to each of them. For just as the necklace, forged at right angles, is eventually curved to its own given use, so too persons who are perfect in virtue are humbled by submission. Although being upright in their manner of life, they take on a curvature in the disposition of their minds.”

“She calls him "nard" because of his working of miracles and service of kindness extended to all, and "bag of myrrh" because of his suffering, death and the infamy represented by his cross, when he concentrated the inactive power of his divinity into his body as if in a little bag. For it is not the same to believe in one who works miracles and is glorified as to trust in one who is crucified, buried and taken for dead. The common response of humanity is to recognize his divinity [only] when they enjoy his benefits and are convinced by numerous signs, for the action of the miracle does not so much relieve the judgment as its plausibility. On the contrary, to see him suffer, exposed to banter and enduring the injuries of malefactors—without doubt or perplexity but rather keeping in every circumstance the same judgment: this is the deed of a very small number or perhaps of only one perfect soul.…That he dwells between the breasts of the bride is a sign that he has humbled himself from infancy and has assumed the human sufferings of hunger, thirst, slumber and physical fatigue.”

“The cluster of grapes in bloom, suspended from the branch, is not desired by everyone, because it fails to possess an immediate pleasure. Rare indeed are those who rejoice at postponing pleasures, for people attach themselves naturally to the preference of present enjoyment, just as those pleasures whose utility is not immediate but resides in future hope are reckoned not to have the same usefulness. Now it pertains to the science of agriculture to recognize future utility in the present condition of fruit that has not yet reached maturity, and in the unripe grape to discern whether there is any future and assured maturity.In the same way also, the Lord hanging upon the cross, as if to say in a public examination before the eyes of all, evoked a great despair in those who saw him. For who therefore would not be perplexed, understandably, seeing the liberator of the human race undergoing the ultimate punishment, seeing the one who accomplished so many miracles and delivered Lazarus from the bonds of death, nailed to the cross and his life passing over into death? Thus the condemnation inflicted at that time upon the good name which everyone attributed to him induced doubt among those who saw it when compared with the opinion regarding him that everyone entertained then. This was because every eye, filled in an untimely way with the evidence of the suffering by which he was tested and forgetting the miracles, took sides with the suffering it could see. For not only the Jews but also the disciples themselves fell into doubt such that even after learning that "he had been raised from the dead," they did not believe in his resurrection.”

“It is necessary to understand that the valleys where the bride is a lily, as she is called, are comparable to these ravines. For in distinguishing herself in the midst of that which is called "hollow" by reason of actions or thoughts that are base, she who is adorned magnificently stands resplendent among them as a lily. It is also because at the age to come she is going to pass judgment on such souls by comparison with the perfection of her own deeds even though by nature she holds no advantage over them, just as the inhabitants of Nineveh and the Queen of the South pass judgment upon a generation that is faithless. Besides the fact that she became as a lily in the valleys where nothing was possible before, these valleys may have begun to bear fruit out of envy for the beauty of her flower, receiving seeds from the sower who went out to sow, … like a land rich and good that causes the seed to multiply. …If the valleys, because they are low, fallow and many in number, designate the Gentiles who have come to knowledge after being in the depths of impiety, then the field may designate Israel made level by the teachings of the prophets and the law in order to be ready for cultivation.… For the plow of the cross has not yet opened up the earth: that plow to which the Savior has yoked the apostles like oxen in sending them out to cultivate two-by-two. Nor has the land yet been moistened by the blood of the Savior, being sterile and infertile.”

“Naturally the bride now demands entry into the house of wine. For she alone had believed beforehand in the grape cluster hanging upon the cross, the grape cluster that was counted for nothing by everyone because while still in flower it had not exhibited to everyone the properties of wine. At that time she alone had believed in advance in this grape cluster, although its identity would become clearly manifest only at a later time. She had established in advance an idea so high, even before the wine season itself, which permitted her to anticipate a mental notion of the wine even in the flowering vine. Besides this, it permitted her to bear witness to Deity from on high present within the one who hung upon the cross, and thus to conceive of impassibility within suffering, of resurrection within death. She alone had firmly grasped, as though it had already been spoken, the message of the vine upon the cross that would soon be pressed out. And thus she experienced before the outcome of events that which the majority experienced only after their outcome had been realized. Hence she requests, as an exceptional privilege of such discernment, entry into the house of wine.”

“"I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the powers and the forces of the field, that you arouse and waken love as far as it pleases." This verse is of great difficulty. However, it is often necessary to let the understanding run towards the point of the text, in imitation of those who in the practice of archery release many arrows at the target but can hardly reach it even one time. Indeed, there is a resemblance to archers on the part of those who apply their craft to the divine Scripture as if aiming an arrow directly at the point of a passage. It is not easy to say to which of the characters should be applied the expression "to awaken love." To express this in a better way, the act of wakening love is clearly assigned to the "daughters of Jerusalem," but in whom is love to be awakened? In themselves, in the bridegroom, or in the one who is speaking? This is uncertain. For this reason it is necessary to try to fit the meaning of the passage to each example and whatever one finds in the way of a target that has been hit, whether close to "love" or to "truth," that must be accepted as a successful explanation.”

“He pastures his flocks among the lilies, therefore, although he does so only until the coming day emerges and the shadows begin to move on. Since the majority of people think that the events which are passing and not stable are fixed and will remain, because their faculty of discernment is obscured by the darkness of ignorance, they have need of the daylight in order to see that the shadows of the things of this world dissipate and have no permanence. For all present realities are shadows, drawing their origin from the good things of the heavens yet subsisting like shadows, only resembling the truth of the things there above. But once the night has passed and the dawn has arisen, the nature of things from on high is clearly seen, as if in sunlight. Then people realize: "Our life on the earth is a shadow." Then they say, "My days, as the shadow, are in decline," indicating how feeble and quick to vanish is temporal success. The one who says, "If there are many gods and many lords, yet for us there is only one God the Father, from whom all things come and for whom we exist, and one Lord Jesus Christ through whom all things come and through whom we exist," can also say, "My beloved is mine, and I am his," for the meaning is identical in each text. For anyone who renounces both gods and lords lays claim to the one God and Lord, from whom he exists and to whom he returns. "For," it says, "for us there is one God from whom all things come and for whom we exist," thus declaring clearly that "he is mine, and I am his." …Regarding the expression "the shadows move on," it is necessary to consider … that it refers to the abrogation of the works of the law. That is the shadow frequently cited by Paul as "the law having the shadow of good things to come and not the very image of the realities," and again "These are only a shadow of the things to come, but the substance is of Christ," and again, "They provide a copy and a shadow of the heavenly realities," meaning the priests that functioned according to the law. Thus it is indicated for certain that, the shadow of the law having moved on, the truth of grace now governs, established upon the rock against which "the gates of hell shall never prevail." … It should also be remarked that it is everywhere necessary for the Word to rest upon the mountains, or at least upon the hills. And if the Word is ever found in the valleys or chasms, he is found there by reason of his great condescension and with the intention to restore those who are down there to the higher realities, on account of his love for humankind.”