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1 On Christ's descent into Hades compare iv. 11: xiv. 19; and Eusebius (Dem. Evang. x. 50), and Athanasius (c. Arian. Or. iii. 56): "The Lord, at Whom the keepers of hell's gates shuddered and set open hell. The Lord, Whom death as a dragon flees."
2 The Present Participle (kataciou/menoi) means that the Candidates for Baptism were already on the way to be admitted to Holy Communion. Compare Cat. i. 1, where the same Candidates are addressed as "partakers of the mysteries of Christ, as yet by calling only, but ere long by grace also."
3 Aubertin remarks on this passage that "this spiritual Lamb, consisting of head and feet, can be received only by the spiritual mouth." this explanation, however true in itself, cannot fairly be held to express fully the meaning of Cyril. See the section of the Introduction referred to in the Index, "Eucharist."
4 Ex. xii. 9: the head with the feet. The same figurative interpretation is given by Eusebius (Eccl. Hist. I. ii. § 1): "In Christ thee is a twofold nature; and the one - in so far as He is thought of as God - resembles the head of the body, while the other may be compared with the feet, - in so far as He, for the sake of our salvation, put on human nature with the same passions as our own."
5 0Iwa/nnh tw= Qeolo/gw. The title is given to Moses by Philo Judaeus (Vita Mos. III. § 11), to Prophets by Eusebius (Demostr. Evang.. ii. 9), to Apostles by Athanasius (de Incarn. § 10: tw=n au'tou= tou= Swth=roj qeolo/gwn a'ndrw=n ), and especially to St. John, because the chief purpose of his Gospel was to set forth the Deity of Christ. See note on Revel. i. 1, in Speaker's Commentary, and Suicer, Thesaurus, Qeolo/goj.
13 Carpocrates, Cerinthus, the Ebionites, &c. See Irenaeus (Haer I. xxv. §§ 1, 2).
14 Dr. Swainson (Creeds, Chap. vii. § 7), speaking of the Creed of Cyril of Jerusalem, says that "the words sarkwqe/nta kai\ e'nanqrwph/santa are found in it, but no reference whatever is made to the birth from the Virgin." The present passage, and that in Cat. iv. § 9, "begotten of the Holy Virgin and the Holy Ghost," seems to shew that such a clause formed part of the Creed which Cyril was expounding. The genuineness of both passages is attested by all the Mss. and Dr. Swainson was mistaken in charging the Editors of the Oxford Translation with having omitted to "mention that Touttée was himself doubtful as to the words within the brackets" [e'k Parqe/non kai\ Pneu/matoj 9agi/ou]. The brackets are added by Dr. Swainson himself, and Touttée had no doubt of the genuineness of the words: on the contrary he believed them to be part of the Creed itself. His note is as follows: "The words of the Virgin and Holy Ghost I have caused to be printed in larger letters as if taken from the Symbol: although they are wanting in the Title of this Lecture and in § 13, where the third Article of the Creed is referred to. But they are read in nearly all the Latin and Greek Symbols, and are referred to in Cat. iv. § 9."
15 e'nanqrwph/santa. The word occurs in the true Nicene formula, where, as Dr. Swainson thinks, it is "scarcely ambiguous," "it is defective." Both the Verb and the Substantive e'nanqrw/phoij are constantly used by Athanasius to denote the Incarnation in a perfectly general way, without any indication of ambiguity or defect. In the Creed proposed by Eusebius of Caesarea instead of e'nanqrwph/santa we find e'nqrw/poij politeusa/menon; and in the Expositio Fidei ascribed to Athanasius, but of somewhat doubtful authenticity, the Incarnation is described thus e'k th=j a'xra/ntou parqe/nou Mari/aj to\n h 9me/teron a'nei/lhqen a!nqrwponCristo\n 0Ihsou=n. In the Apollinarian controversy the attempt was made to interpret e'nhnqrw/phsen as meaning not that "He became Man," but that "He assumed a man," i.e. that "the man was first formed and then assumed" (Gregory, Epsit. ad Cledon, quoted by Swainson, p. 83), or else merely that "He dwelt among men." But the context of the passages in which Cyril uses the word (iv. 9; xii. 3) clearly shews that he employed it in the perfectly orthodox sense which it has in the Nicene Formula and in Athanasius.
16 See below, § 21 ff. Cyril means that the direct proof cannot be given at once, because there are many errors to be set aside first. Compare the end of § 4.
17 See Cat. iv. 9, notes 3, 4.
18 Athanasius (contra Arian. Or. I. § 9) quotes as from Arius, Thalia, "Christ is not Very God, but He, as others, was mad God (e'qeopoih/qh) by participation." The Eusebians in the Confession of Faith called Macrostichos (A.D. 344) condemned this view as being held by the disciples of Paul of Samosata, "who say that after the incarnation He was by advance made God, from being made by nature a mere man." The orthodox use of the word Qeopoiei=sqai is seen in Athan. de Incarnat § 54: au'to\j e'nhnqrw/phsen, i!na h 9mei!j qeopoihQw=men.
29 Amos ii. 8: they lay themselves down beside every altar upon clothes taken in pledge (R. V.).
40 Isa. lxvi. 19, a passage interpreted by the Fathers of the sign of the Cross. Eusebius (Demonstr. Evang. vi. 25): "Who, on seeing that all who have believed in Christ use as a seal the symbol of salvation, would not reasonably be astonished at hearing the Lord's saying of old time, And they shall come, and see My glory, and I will leave a sign upon them?" Cf. Cat. iv. 14; xiii. 36.
41 Ps. xviii. 9. The "feet," interpreted allegorically, mean the Humanity, and the "darkness" they mystery of the Incarnation. See Euseb. Demonstr. Evang. vi. 1, § 2.
42 1 Kings viii. 27; 2 Chron. vi 18.
43 Ps. lxxii. Title, and v. 6.
48 a'sagh=, a rare word, formed from sagh, "harness."
50 Zech. xiv. 4. "There is an excellent view from the city of the Mount of Olives which stands up over against it, especially form the height of Golgotha where Cyril was delivering his Lectures" (Cleopas).
53 Cf. Epist. Barnab. § 13: "For had He not come in flesh, how could we men have been safe in beholding Him? For in beholding the Sun, which being the work of His hands shall cease to be, men have no strength to fix their eyes upon him."
63 Justin M. (Tryph. § 100) : "Eve, when she was a virgin and undefiled, having conceived the word of the serpent, brought forth disobedience and death: but the Virgin Mary received faith and joy, when the Angel Gabriel announced the good tidings to her."