For the prophecy which says, "Lift up your gates, you rulers, and be lifted up, you everlasting doors, that the King of glory may come in," some of you likewise dare to interpret as spoken of Hezekiah, and others of Solomon. But it can be shown that it was spoken neither of this one nor of that, nor of any other simply so-called king of yours, but only of this our Christ, who appeared without form and without honor, as Isaiah said, and David, and all the Scriptures—who is the Lord of hosts by the will of the Father who gave it to Him, who also rose from the dead and ascended into heaven, as both the psalm and the other Scriptures declared, and proclaimed Him to be the Lord of hosts—as even now, from the things happening before your eyes, you may more readily be persuaded, if you are willing.
For when any demon is exorcised in the name of this very Son of God, the firstborn of all creation, who was born of a virgin and became a man subject to suffering, who was crucified under Pontius Pilate by your people and died, and rose from the dead and ascended into heaven—every demon so exorcised is overcome and made subject.
But if you exorcise in the name of any of those who arose among you—whether kings, or righteous men, or prophets, or patriarchs—not one of the demons will be made subject. Yet if any of you should exorcise in the name of the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, perhaps it will be made subject. Nevertheless, by now your own exorcists, like the Gentiles, use the art and employ fumigations and amulets when they exorcise—so I said.
That there are also angels and powers, to whom the word of prophecy spoken through David bids to lift up the gates, so that this One—who rose from the dead, the Lord of powers according to the will of the Father, Jesus Christ—may enter in: this too the word of David likewise demonstrated. I will recall it again for the sake of those who were not with us yesterday, on whose account I am also stating in summary many of the things spoken yesterday.
And now, if I say this to you—even though I have often repeated myself—I know it is not absurd to speak so. For it would be a ridiculous thing if, seeing the sun and the moon and the other stars always travel the same course and bring about the turnings of the seasons, and if an arithmetician, when asked how much twice two is, should refuse—because he has often said that it is four—to say again that it is four; and likewise with all other things that are firmly agreed upon to be always stated and acknowledged in the same way; and yet that the man who gives discourses from the prophetic Scriptures should leave them aside and not always cite the same Scriptures, but should think himself better able to compose something superior to the Scripture.
Now the word by which I showed that God declares there are angels in heaven and powers is this: 'Praise the Lord from the heavens; praise Him in the highest. Praise Him, all His angels; praise Him, all His powers.' And one of those who had come with them on the second day, Mnaseas by name, said: 'We too are glad that you are again endeavoring, for our sake, to say the same things.'
And I said: 'Listen, friends, by what Scripture I am persuaded to do this. Jesus commanded us to love even our enemies, which had also been proclaimed through Isaiah in many passages—among which is also the mystery of our regeneration, and indeed of all who look for the Christ to appear in Jerusalem and are eager to please Him by their works.'
These are the words spoken through Isaiah: 'Hear the word of the Lord, you who tremble at His word. Say: You are our brethren, to those who hate you and abhor you, that the name of the Lord may be glorified. He has appeared in their joy, but those others shall be put to shame. A voice of clamor from the city, a voice of the people, a voice of the Lord rendering recompense to the proud. Before she who was in labor gave birth, and before the pang of labor came, she brought forth a male child.'
'Who has heard such a thing, and who has seen the like? Did the earth travail in one day, or was a nation brought forth at once? For Zion travailed and brought forth her children. But I gave this expectation even to her who was not bearing, says the Lord. Behold, I have made her who bears and her who is barren, says the Lord. Rejoice, O Jerusalem, and hold festival, all you who love her; rejoice, all you who mourn over her, that you may nurse and be satisfied from the breast of her consolation, that having drunk your fill you may delight in the entrance of His glory.'