Ezek 40:5

“(Verse 5 and following) And behold, there was a wall surrounding the house on all sides, and in the hand of the man was a measuring reed of six cubits and a handbreadth, and he measured the width of the building with the reed, one reed wide, and the height with the reed, one reed high. And he came to the gate that faced the eastern road, and he went up its steps, and he measured the threshold of the gate with the reed, one reed wide, that is, one reed wide, and the vestibule one reed long, and one reed wide, and between the vestibules five cubits, and the threshold of the gate next to the entrance of the gate inside, one reed wide. And the vestibule of the gate was eight cubits, and the front of it two cubits: but the gate itself was inward. And the chambers of the gate towards the east, three on this side, and three on that side; they measured one against another: and the fronts of the gate on both sides were of one measure. And he measured the length of the porch of the gate, ten cubits: and the breadth of the gate, thirteen cubits. And there was also a space before the chambers, one cubit on this side, and one cubit on that side: and the chambers six cubits on this side, and six cubits on that side. And he measured the gate from the roof of the chamber to its roof, a width of twenty-five cubits, door against door. Seventy: And behold, a wall on the outside of the house all around, and in the man's hand a measuring reed of six cubits and a handbreadth. So he measured the thickness of the wall, one reed; and the height, one reed. Then he went inside the gateway which faced toward the east, went up its stairs and measured the threshold of the gateway, which was one reed wide, and the other threshold was one reed wide. Each gate chamber was one reed long and one reed wide; between the gate chambers were five cubits. The threshold of the gateway by the vestibule of the inside gate was one reed. And three equal in width for the stem, and equal in length for the stem, and one gate next to the gate of eight cubits, and one of two cubits, and one gate on the inside, and three gates on each side, and one measurement: one measurement for the gate on both sides. The width of the entrance of the gate was ten cubits, and the width of the gate was thirteen cubits, and one cubit was equivalent to the sight of one finger, and the end of one cubit on both sides, and three cubits here, and three cubits there. And the gate was measured from wall to wall, a width of twenty-five cubits. This gate is opposite the gate." When I was a boy in Rome, and was being educated in the liberal arts, I used to go with others of the same age and purpose, on Sundays, to visit the tombs of the apostles and martyrs; and I would often enter the crypts, which are dug deep in the earth, and on both sides of those who enter, the bodies of the buried are held in the walls, and everything is so dark that almost the prophetic saying is fulfilled: 'Let the living descend into hell' (Psalm 55:16): and rarely is light admitted from above to temper the horror of the darkness, so that you would think it is not a window, but a hole of light descending: and again, one approaches slowly, and in the blind night that Virgilian phrase is set forth (Aeneid, Book II): Everywhere horror seizes the souls, and the very silence terrifies. Let this statement be for me, so that the wise reader may understand the sentiment I have concerning the explanation of the temple of God in Ezekiel, about which it is written: Clouds and darkness are under His feet (Ps. 96:2). And again: Darkness is His hiding place (Ps. 18:12): Hence Moses also entered into a cloud and darkness, so that he could contemplate the mysteries of the Lord, which the people, being far away and remaining below, could not see (Exod. 24 and 34). After forty days, the common people were unable to see the face of Moses because it was glorified, or as it is written in Hebrew, Moses had horns on his face. Similarly, while reading the description of the mystical temple (which the Jews believe should be built literally upon the coming of their own Christ, whom we believe to be the Antichrist, but we refer to the Church of Christ, which we see being built daily in his saints), whenever the eye of the heart opens, it happens to me that I think I see and possess the bridegroom and joyfully say: 'I have found him whom my soul loves; I will hold him, and not let him go.' (Song of Solomon 3:4). Then again, the divine word deserts me, the bridegroom flees from my hands, and my eyes are blinded by darkness, so that I am compelled to say: 'O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!' How inscrutable are His judgments, and His ways past finding out! (Rom. 11:33) And what is written elsewhere: The judgments of the Lord are a great abyss. (Ps. 36:7) And: Out of the depths I have cried to You, O Lord; Lord, hear my voice. (Ps. 129:1) And that of Elisha, who followed with his eyes his master being taken up, saying: My father, my father, the chariot of Israel and its horsemen! (2 Kings 2:12) Therefore, it must be simply confessed that the temple of the blessed Ezekiel, which all ages have been silent about, I do not wish to discuss rashly, but to demonstrate the conjecture of my mind to the readers with faith and fear of God; so that if I should offer in the tabernacle of God the skins of goats and hairs, by which the thorns and thistles of sins may be protected, and rains and storms may be kept out: let another, who is rich, according to the quality of his merits, offer iron, or bronze, or silver, and gold and precious stones, and not despise our offerings, because they are lesser, but rejoice in his own wealth. For if the lower parts are not present, the upper parts cannot exist. And in order for the greater things to be praised, they increase in comparison to the smaller things. Let us therefore see what Ezekiel, upon entering the building of the city facing south, first saw and then heard: 'And behold,' he says, 'there was a wall on the outside surrounding the house on all sides.' Regarding the wall, which Aquila and Theodotion interpreted as 'περίβολον', Symmachus and the Seventy translated it as 'περίβολος'. Therefore, the wall, or 'περίβολος', surrounded the house, that is, the temple of the Lord on all sides, and it had a man whose appearance was like the appearance of bronze, who not only held a geometric string and a mason's trowel, but also held a measuring rod in his hand, the measurement of which is not explicitly stated, but is now given as six cubits and a palm, which is more accurately called 'παλαιστή' in Greek and is the sixth part of a cubit. Moreover, the word 'spithamen' is used to mean 'palm,' as some use 'palm' to distinguish it. Furthermore, they are accustomed to call a wrestler a 'palm'. Therefore, with a measuring rod, he measured the width and height of the wall, and both, that is, the width and height, were six cubits and one palm. And since there were many gates, he did not want to enter through the other gates, but through the one that faced the eastern region. And because the place was not level, and the wall went around, and the house of God itself was built on higher ground, therefore he entered, or rather, ascended through steps. These are referred to as 'LXX seven' alone, when in Hebrew and in other translations we read only the word 'steps' without a number. Having entered the gate, he immediately measured the threshold of the gate, which the Greeks call LXX θεὸς: for which it is written in Hebrew Seph. And I think the diligent and studious reader should be reminded: if, however, he is led by the knowledge of the Scriptures and not by the empty declamations of orators, so that he knows nearly all the Hebrew words and names, which have been greatly corrupted by age in the Greek and Latin translations, distorted by the fault of the scribes, and while they are written about in their uncorrected form, made even more uncorrected, having turned into Sarmatian instead of Hebrew, nay of no nation at all, since they have ceased to be Hebrew and have not yet begun to be foreign. The LXX also translated the word aelam (αἰλὰμ) as itself, which Symmachus interpreted as anteliminare in the following passages. There were two bedchambers, or cubicles, and παραστάδαs which were five cubits long, and another threshold of the gate next to the vestibule on the inside with a single reed. The third vestibule of the gate also had eight cubits, and in front of it, or on its borders, two cubits. In order to prevent anyone from confusing this vestibule with the previous one, he added: This vestibule is the inner vestibule of the gate, for which the LXX translated first, second, and third vestibule. But the chambers, that is, the bedrooms, which were built after the Eastern gate in the vestibules, faced the Eastern road. And so that we may know how many chambers there were, it is joined, three on this side and three on that: namely, facing North and South, and facing the Eastern road: and the measurements of the fronts were the same on both sides. Also, the measurement of the width of the gate threshold was taken, and it was found to be ten cubits, and in length thirteen cubits, and the ends of the chambers were narrowed down to one cubit, or as Symmachus translated, "παραστάδων", and each front had one cubit. But the chambers, or παραστάδες, and as the LXX have rendered it θεηλὰθ, had on each side six cubits. And he measured the door of the chamber, or παραστάδος, from the roof of the one chamber to the roof of the other, and it was twenty-five cubits wide. So there was only space from the door to the door, or from the gate to the gate. This we have briefly spoken to suggest more the divine presence than to explain, desiring to outline the picture according to the obscure and almost unseen letter. Furthermore, we will set down a few things that we can suspect narrowly and with doubts. The Apostle Paul, desiring the Ephesians to understand more sacred things, prays that they may be filled with the wisdom and love of the Lord, so that rooted and founded, they may be able to know and comprehend the breadth, and length, and depth, and height, and the profound riches of Him. And he speaks to them: Therefore, you are by no means strangers but fellow citizens of the saints and domestics of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Jesus Christ Himself as the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure grows together to form a holy temple in the Lord. In Him, you also are built together to be a dwelling place of God in the Holy Spirit. Peter the Apostle also speaks in almost the same words, because of the same spirit, in his Epistle: For if you have believed that the Lord is good, approaching him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men but chosen, and honorable before God, and be yourselves built up as living stones into a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, offering up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ (1 Peter 2, 3-5). From this it is clear that the Lord and Savior, who is the true architect, tests the stones that can be placed in the foundations of the temple, both in the middle and in the higher places, and whether they are of a less solid strength in the wall and whether they can be placed outside the temple in the circuit of the enclosure. For it is not of little strength or of minimal firmness to support the stones placed on top. Hence the Apostle writes to the believers: Bear one another's burdens (Galatians 6:2). And in another place it is written: we should not take on a burden that we cannot bear. But the reed of measurement, which had six cubits and one palm, signifies our conversation with God, which is contained in the six days in which the world was made, and signifies the reason for each work, so that one thing belongs to the work, another to the mind. Hence, the width is equal to the height: the width refers to the works, as we said; the height refers to the soul, which hastens to lofty things. But let it suffice to have warned once: to know me by name, and to be called by a neutral gender, but for the sake of simplicity and ease of understanding, and the common usage, to use the masculine gender. For our concern is not to avoid grammatical errors, but to explain the obscurity of the Holy Scripture with whatever words. Therefore, a man enters, whose name is East, through the Eastern gate, to enlighten those whom he finds in the first part of the entrance hall, whether in the entrance itself: not through one, but through several steps, whose number is kept silent, so that the difficulty of ascent may be apparent, and for whatever number of steps you propose, you may know that it is less than the doubt that is left behind. I consider this to be the gate, of which it is sung in the Psalms: This is the gate of the Lord, the righteous shall enter through it (Ps. 118:20). And the threshold of the gate is measured, so that we may know that all the knowledge of God is open. This threshold is said to be one reed in width, and it is silent about height and length. For it is both the way and the entrance, and through it one must proceed to the inner parts (although in this place the Septuagint unnecessarily speaks of length, or, as is contained in most manuscripts, height); but the chambers, that is, the bedrooms and alcoves, have individual reeds in both length and width, but there are five cubits between each chamber, so that the inner chambers have the full measure of a reed, that is, six cubits and one palm, as the works and calculations agree. Those things which are external, that is, between chamber and chamber, are five cubits; for the secrets of Christ have not yet been penetrated, and they cannot say: The king has brought me into his chamber (Song of Songs 1:3). And elsewhere: All the glory of the king's daughter is within (Psalm 44:14). But while the disciples were staying at home with Christ, they could not hear his mysteries, and they desired to go outside to hear the word of God; and therefore a measurement of five cubits is placed in them, so that they may be taught to refer everything to the five senses. The threshold of the other gate, as it is contained in the Septuagint, of the second vestibule and third, is of the same size as one reed. After this vestibule, that is, the threshold of the gate, eight cubits are placed at the entrance, so that the inner parts of the vestibule do not hold a number of seven, but of eight, which pertain to the sacrament of the resurrection and the Lord's Day. And in front, he says, of the same vestibule, there were two cubits, which pertain either to both Testaments, or to the letter and the spirit, or to the mystery of the pair of tongs, which is included in Isaiah about the altar of coal, and is brought to cleanse the lips of the prophet. And so that we may know what this vestibule is, which is terminated by eight and two cubits, he explains it more clearly: The vestibule of the gate was inside, through which we came to the temple of God. There were also chambers and rooms which were on the way to the eastern gate, for which the Septuagint write 'Elau', there were three on one side and three on the other, each measuring one, that is, a reed which had six cubits and one palm, as mentioned above: And one reed for length, and one reed for width, and between the chambers five cubits. Therefore, we should not think that there are only two bedchambers, but rather six on each side, to indicate the number six, which is also shown in the water pots of the Gospel (John 2), in which water was turned into wine, and the Jewish water is daily turned into wine, which gladdens the heart of man, and becomes sweeter with the blood of Christ. He also measured the width of the threshold of the ten-cubit gate, which is a perfect number and is contained either in the Decalogue or in the sacraments of the four Gospels. Whoever begins with one, reaches four in such a way as to fill the number ten. Its length was thirteen cubits: for which the width is again placed at seventy, which seems to me to have been corrupted by the carelessness of scribes. For the Scripture would not have said the width in one place and again the width of ten or thirteen cubits. However, it can be understood as the gate of the threshold, in which the number of the Old and New Testament is consecrated, or the Lord himself, who says: I am the gate (John 10:9); or certainly all the saints through whom we enter into the knowledge of God, to whom the Apostle Paul spoke: My mouth is open to you, Corinthians; and: Enlarge yourselves also (2 Corinthians 6:11). But thirteen cubits after the number eighteen, they contain the sacrament of the books of Moses, which are also shown in the five loaves (Matthew 14), and in the Samaritan woman of the Gospel (John 4), who is accused of having had five husbands, and the sixth one she thought she had, she did not have: and yet the number eight, and the number five, is completed by one cubit, that is, the fourteenth ((or thirteenth)): because in Christ all things are recapitulated. It is said: 'And one cubit at each end: for the old and new Testaments together make up one measurement of Christ, and one cubit contains the height of the ark of Noah, which is thirty cubits. However, the rooms, as the Septuagint has it, either as 'thau' or 'thee', changing and altering the names in each place as they wished, were six cubits on either side, which is called 'here and there', and they did not have a span or additional measure placed on top, which would have signified the present life leading to future blessedness, but only six cubits.' And it is measured from the roof of the chamber to the roof or wall of it, and it is found to be twenty-five cubits in width; which number, though multiplied four times, still relates to sense. For if you arrange five cubits against it five times, you will produce the number twenty-five, which is between the roof of the chambers and the roof; and yet both, when placed opposite each other, have a doorway facing the doorway. Let these things not seem frivolous to the reader, although they may displease even myself who speak, feeling like I am knocking on a closed door; but they are to be read with permission: otherwise, I could simply confess my ignorance and remove every desire of the students. For just as we are far from perfect knowledge, we consider a minor fault at least somewhat lighter than saying absolutely nothing.”

“Generally in sacred Scripture the incarnate Lord Himself is accustomed to be called a wall from the protection of His defense, just as it is said of holy Church through the prophet: "A wall and a rampart shall be set in her." For He Himself is a wall to us, who surrounds us by guarding us on every side. But the rampart of our wall were all the prophets, who before the Lord appeared in the flesh were sent to build up faith by prophesying. In holy Church, therefore, the Lord is set as a wall to us and His prophets as a rampart, because to us whom He Himself perfectly protects, the words of the prophets also came for the building up of faith. Whence also the wall is rightly placed first, and the rampart afterward, because we who were called from the Gentiles would by no means have received the sayings of His prophets unless we had first come to know the Lord. And it should be noted that this wall of the spiritual building is said to be on the outside. For a wall that is built for the fortification of a building is customarily placed not on the inside but on the outside. What need was there, then, to say "on the outside," since a wall is never customarily placed on the inside? Because it is necessary that being placed on the outside it defend those things which are within. But in this word what is openly demonstrated except the Lord's incarnation itself? For God is a wall to us within, but God made man is a wall to us without. Whence it is said to Him through a certain prophet: "You went forth for the salvation of Your people, to save Your anointed ones." For this incarnate wall, namely the Lord, would not be a wall to us if He had not been on the outside, because He would not protect us within if He did not appear outwardly. But neither should this be carelessly passed over, that this same wall is said to be placed around the house on every side. For the house of God is not only the holy angels, of whom the Psalmist says: "Lord, I have loved the beauty of Your house, and the place of the tabernacle of Your glory," but we also are His house, whose minds He deigns to inhabit. And this wall is on every side around the house, because the Only-begotten of the Father, who is the strength of the angels above, He Himself became below the redemption of men. To them He is strength lest they fall, to us He is help that we may rise after the fall. But if by the house of God in this place only the multitude of redeemed men is signified, the Lord is our wall on every side and all around, because, in order to guard us perfectly, He demonstrated all things that He taught, as it is written: "What Jesus began to do and to teach." For since He came to call us to the heavenly fatherland, He surely taught us to despise transitory goods and not to fear temporal evils. Hence He did not disdain reproaches, He endured injuries, He did not fear death, He did not flee from the gibbet of the cross; and when they wished to seize Him and make Him king, He immediately fled; what else was He indicating to us by these examples, except that we ought not to fear the adversities of this world, and to avoid its prosperities? Because its goods usually occupy the mind more than its evils disturb it. Indeed, before His passion He heard insults, yet did not return insults; He silently endured His betrayer for a long time, and did not refuse to give a kiss to him who greeted Him deceitfully; He accepted death, so that we would not fear to die; He showed forth the resurrection, so that we might believe that we can rise again. After His passion also, He called to the grace of faith those who had crucified Him, He returned a gift for iniquity. Therefore He who instructed us by His own example concerning all things has become a wall for us all around and on every side. In the previous reading we already said that Sacred Scripture is signified by the reed. This reed is said to be for measuring, because in it we measure every action of our life, so that we may see either how much we are progressing, or how far distant we are from progress. For often when doing something, we believe ourselves to be of a certain merit; but when we return to the words of God, we hear the lofty precepts, and there we recognize how far short we fall of perfection. Therefore the reed is for measuring, because through the hands of those who write, the life of those who hear is measured. This reed is said to be in the hand of the man, either because sacred eloquence is in the power of the Mediator of God and men, the man Christ Jesus, or certainly because what He willed to be written He fulfilled by His working. Moreover this same reed is described as being six cubits and a handbreadth. For there are two lives in which almighty God instructs us through sacred eloquence, namely the active and the contemplative. And by the six cubits what else is expressed but the active life? Because on the sixth day God completed all His works. But the handbreadth, which is said to be beyond the six cubits, is already of the seventh, yet is not a cubit. Therefore the active life is signified by the six cubits, the contemplative by the handbreadth, because we complete the former by work, but of the latter even when we strive, we are scarcely able to attain some small part. The active life is to give bread to the hungry, to teach the word of wisdom to the ignorant, to correct the erring, to recall a proud neighbor to the path of humility, to care for the sick, to dispense what is expedient for each individual, and to provide for those entrusted to us how they may subsist. But the contemplative life is to retain the love of God and neighbor with the whole mind, yet to rest from outward action, to cling only to the desire of the Creator, so that nothing is now pleasing to do, but, with all cares trampled underfoot, the soul burns to see the face of its Creator; so that it now knows how to bear the weight of corruptible flesh with sorrow, and with all desires longs to be present among those hymn-singing choirs of angels, to be mingled with the heavenly citizens, to rejoice in eternal incorruption in the sight of God. In the palm, therefore, the hand and fingers are extended. But only a small part of the cubit's measure is touched by the palm, because however great the love with which the soul burns, however great the strength with which it stretches itself toward God in thought, it does not yet perfectly see what it loves, but still only begins to see what it loves, because as the most mighty preacher says: We see now through a mirror in an enigma, but then face to face. And, Now I know in part, but then I shall know even as I am known. From the seventh cubit, therefore, we touch only a palm, because while placed in this life we taste only the beginnings of intimate contemplation. For since the active life can be held perfectly, and man was created on the sixth day, who ought to do good works, the measuring rod has six cubits. These two women have aptly signified both lives, namely Martha and Mary: one of whom was busy about frequent service, while the other sat at the Lord's feet and listened to the words from his mouth. And when Martha complained against her sister that she neglected to help her, the Lord answered, saying: Martha, you are occupied and busy about many things; but one thing is necessary. Mary, however, has chosen the best part, which shall not be taken from her. Behold, Martha's part is not reproved, but Mary's is praised. For he does not say that Mary chose a good part, but the best, so that Martha's part also might be indicated as good. And why Mary's part is best is added when it is said: Which shall not be taken from her. For the active life fails with the body. For who in the eternal homeland will offer bread to the hungry, where no one hungers? Who will give drink to the thirsty, where no one thirsts? Who will bury the dead, where no one dies? Therefore, with the present age the active life is taken away, but the contemplative begins here to be perfected in the heavenly homeland, because the fire of love which begins to burn here, when it sees him whom it loves, will blaze more greatly in love of him. The contemplative life, therefore, is by no means taken away, because when the light of the present age is withdrawn, it is perfected. These two lives, as has also been said before us, the two wives of blessed Jacob signified, namely Leah and Rachel. For Leah is interpreted as "laborious," but Rachel as "sheep" or "the beginning of vision." The active life indeed is laborious, because it sweats in work; but the contemplative life, simple, yearns only to see the beginning, namely Him who says: "I am the beginning, wherefore I also speak to you." Now blessed Jacob had desired Rachel, but in the night he received Leah, because indeed everyone who is converted to the Lord desires the contemplative life, longs for the rest of the eternal homeland; but first it is necessary that in the night of the present life he work the good things he can, that he sweat in labor, that is, that he receive Leah, so that afterward he may rest in the embraces of Rachel to see the beginning. Now Rachel was seeing, but barren; but Leah was blear-eyed, yet fruitful; Rachel was beautiful and unfruitful, because the contemplative life is beautiful in the soul, but while it desires to rest in silence, it does not beget children through preaching. It sees and does not give birth, because while it loves the pursuit of its own quiet, it kindles itself less in the gathering of others; and however much it perceives inwardly, it does not suffice to open this to others by preaching. But Leah is blear-eyed and fruitful, because the active life, while it is occupied in work, sees less, but while it kindles neighbors to imitation of itself now through word, now through example, it begets many children in good work. And if it cannot stretch the mind in contemplation, yet from what it does outwardly, it is able to beget followers. Rightly therefore in the measure of the rod six cubits are said first, and afterward a handbreadth, because the active life is carried out first, so that one may come afterward to the contemplative. But it must be known that just as the good order of living is to advance from the active life to the contemplative, so very often the mind is usefully turned back from the contemplative to the active, so that through what the contemplative life has kindled in the mind, the active life may be held more perfectly. Therefore the active life ought to transfer us to the contemplative, and yet sometimes the contemplative life ought to call us back better to the active from what we have beheld inwardly with the mind. Hence the same Jacob, after the embraces of Rachel, returned to Leah, because even after seeing the Beginning, the laborious life of good work must not be utterly abandoned. There is, moreover, in the contemplative life a great straining of the mind, when it raises itself toward heavenly things, when it directs its attention to spiritual realities, when it strives to transcend everything that is seen corporally, when it narrows itself in order to be enlarged. And indeed sometimes it prevails, and overcomes the resisting darkness of its own blindness, so that it touches something of the uncircumscribed light, furtively and faintly; but nevertheless, immediately repelled, it returns to itself, and from that light to which it passed over by breathing in, it returns by sighing to the darkness of its blindness. Sacred history designates this well, which narrates that blessed Jacob wrestled with an angel. For when he was returning to his own parents, he found an angel on the way, with whom he had a great contest in wrestling. For he who contends in wrestling sometimes finds himself superior, but sometimes finds the one with whom he has contended inferior. The angel therefore designates the Lord, and Jacob who contended with the angel expresses the soul of any perfect man established in contemplation. Which soul indeed, when it strives to contemplate God, as if placed in a certain contest, now as it were prevails, because by understanding and perceiving it tastes something of the uncircumscribed light; but now it yields, because even in tasting it fails again. The angel is therefore as it were conquered when God is apprehended by the innermost understanding. But it should be noted that the same angel, being conquered, touched the sinew of Jacob's thigh and immediately made it wither, and from that time Jacob limped on one foot, because indeed when almighty God is now known through desire and understanding, He dries up all fleshly pleasure in us. And we who before seemed to seek God and hold onto the world, as if leaning on two feet, after the knowledge of God's sweetness one foot in us remains sound and the other limps, because it is necessary that, with love of the world weakened, the love of God alone may grow strong in us. If therefore we hold the angel, we limp on one foot, because while the strength of inward love grows in us, the strength of the flesh is without doubt weakened. For everyone who limps on one foot leans only on that foot which he has sound, because whoever has had earthly desire already dried up sustains himself with all his strength on the sole foot of the love of God. And he stands on that one, because the foot of worldly love which he was accustomed to place on the earth, he now carries suspended from the earth. And therefore if we return to our own parents, that is, to our spiritual fathers, let us hold the angel on the way, that we may apprehend God with inward sweetness. For the lovable sweetness of the contemplative life is very great, which snatches the soul above itself, opens heavenly things, shows that earthly things ought to be despised, and reveals spiritual things to the eyes of the mind while hiding corporeal things. Whence the Church well says in the Song of Songs: I sleep, and my heart watches. For she sleeps with a watching heart, because through that which she advances inwardly by contemplating, she rests from restless outward work. But amid these things it must be known that as long as one lives in this mortal flesh, no one advances so far in the power of contemplation that he may fix the eyes of his mind upon that very uncircumscribed ray of light. For Almighty God is not yet beheld in His brightness, but the soul gazes upon something beneath it, whereby being refreshed it may advance, and afterward attain to the glory of beholding Him. For thus Isaiah, when he confessed that he had seen the Lord, saying: "In the year that king Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne high and lifted up," immediately added: "And the things that were under Him filled the temple." When king Uzziah, proud and presumptuous, dies, the Lord is seen, because when the exaltation of this world is slain from the desire of the mind, then the mind itself contemplates the glory of God. And it should be noted that the Lord sits upon a throne high and lifted up. For what is His throne, except the angelic or human creature, over which He presides through the understanding He gave? Which throne indeed is called high and lifted up, because both human nature advances, being raised to heavenly glory, and the angelic creature, since when many spirits were falling it was already made firm in heaven lest it fall, was lifted up from the same source whence it was also confirmed. But His temple is the same as His throne, because the eternal King dwells where He sits. We therefore are His temple, in whose minds He deigns to dwell. But the things that were under Him filled the temple, because whatever is now beheld of Him is not yet Himself, but is beneath Him. Thus Jacob saw an angel, and confesses that he saw the Lord, because when we behold His ministers, it is already much that we are raised above ourselves. But it should be noted that it says: "They filled the temple," since even if an angel appears, he satisfies the desire of a weak mind, so that if it cannot yet see something greater, it may nevertheless already wonder at the lesser thing it sees. Therefore the things that are under Him fill the temple, because, as has been said, even when the mind has advanced in contemplation, it does not yet contemplate what He Himself is, but that which is beneath Him. In which contemplation indeed a taste of inner rest is touched. Because this is as it were a certain part, and cannot now be perfect, it is rightly written in the Apocalypse: "There was silence in heaven, as it were for half an hour." For heaven is the soul of the just, as the Lord says through the prophet: "Heaven is My throne." And, "The heavens declare the glory of God." Therefore when the rest of the contemplative life is carried on in the mind, there is silence in heaven, because the tumult of earthly activities is quieted from thought, so that the mind may apply its ear to the innermost secret. But because this rest of the mind cannot be perfect in this life, the silence made in heaven is by no means said to be a full hour, but as it were half an hour, so that not even that half hour itself is fully perceived, since "as it were" is put before it, because as soon as the mind has begun to raise itself up, and to be suffused with the light of innermost rest, when the tumult of thoughts returns more quickly, it is confounded from within itself, and being confounded is blinded. Therefore the contemplative life which is there called as it were half an hour, is called by the prophet Ezekiel not a cubit, but a handbreadth. Almighty God, who is neither stretched in great things nor confined in the smallest, speaks of the whole Church at once as if He speaks of one soul. And often what is said by Him of one soul presents no obstacle if it is understood of the whole Church at once. The breadth of the building, therefore, pertains to charity, of which the Psalmist says: "Your commandment is exceedingly broad." For nothing is broader than to receive all in the embrace of love and to endure no narrow straits of hatred. Indeed, charity is so broad that in the amplitude of its love it can embrace even enemies. Hence it is also commanded: "Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you." We must also consider that breadth extends in equality, while height extends in sublimity. Breadth, therefore, pertains to love of neighbor; height to the understanding of the Creator. But the breadth and height of the building are measured by one reed, because indeed each soul, however broad it may be in love of neighbor, will be equally high in knowledge of God. For while it expands itself alongside through love, it exalts itself above through knowledge; and it becomes as lofty above itself as it extends itself alongside itself in love of neighbor. And because the building that God inhabits is completed from both angelic and human nature together, through the fact that the angelic creature is above and the human still below, both of these creatures can be signified by the breadth and height of the building, because the latter still dwells in the depths while the former remains in the heights. But both are measured by one reed, because the humility of humans is at some point brought to equality with the angels. Hence it is written: "They shall neither marry nor be given in marriage, but shall be as the angels of God in heaven." And hence it is said through John: "The measure of a man, which is of an angel." Because man is brought to that height of glory in which the angels rejoice that they are established. The breadth of the building, therefore, is as great as its height, because all the elect who now labor in the depths will at some point not be unequal to those most blessed spirits. But let us amid these things return to our mind, and love God and neighbor with all the marrow of our heart. Let us be expanded in the affection of charity, that we may be exalted in the glory of loftiness. Let us suffer with our neighbor through love, that we may be joined to God through knowledge. Let us condescend to the least of our brothers on earth, that we may be made equal to the angels in heaven, because the man who signifies the Redeemer by his image measured the breadth of the building with one reed, and the height also with one reed.”

“Next, through the addition of one unit, there is a comparison in relation to the number six. In this sense is understood the measure of the one who carried a rod of six cubits and one palm for the measuring of the temple. Seven, for Gregory, is the number of universality, as found in the major and minor worlds, and in God. This present world accessible to the senses consists in four elements that are receptive to celestial influences, and three spheres that provide influence and power. The minor world is made of the four elements, the four humors, the four temperaments, the four qualities, and the three perfecting vital powers, the vegetative, the sensitive, and the rational. Hence those things that exist in the sensible world, come together with a certain purity in the minor world. Wherefore some people say, and not without reason, that the sphere of the stars has a favorable effect on the reception of the vegetative soul, the crystalline, on the reception of the sensitive soul, and the empyrean, on the reception of the rational soul. And according to Hugh of Saint-Victor, the four-fold series corresponds to the body, the three-fold series, to the spirit.”