For as a mother who nurses her babe with due care for a time supplies milk by her breast to its mouth while still tender and soft; and when it begins to grow and to have teeth she gives it bread, not hard or such as it cannot chew, so that the tender and unpractised gums may not be chafed by rough food; but softening it with her own teeth, she makes it suitable and convenient for the powers of the eater; and then as its power increases by growth she gradually leads on the babe, accustomed to tender food, to more solid nourishment; so the Lord, nourishing and fostering with miracles the weakness of the human mind, like some babe not fully grown, makes first of all a prelude of the power of the resurrection in the case of a desperate disease, which prelude, though it was great in its achievement, yet was not such a thing that the statement of it would be disbelieved: for by "rebuking the fever." which was fiercely consuming Simon's wife's mother, He produced so great a removal of the evil as to enable her who was already expected to be near death, to "minister " to those present.

Next He makes a slight addition to the power, and when the nobleman's son lies in acknowledged danger of death (for so the history tells us, that he was about to die, as his father cried, "come down, ere my child die "), He again brings about the resurrection of one who was believed about to die; accomplishing the miracle with a greater act of power in that He did not even approach the place, but sent life from afar off by the force of His command.

Once more in what follows He ascends to higher wonders. For having set out on His way to the ruler of the synagogue's daughter, he voluntarily made a halt in His way, while making public the secret cure of the woman with an issue of blood, that in this time death might overcome the sick. When, then, the soul had just been parted from the body, and those who were wailing over the sorrow were making a tumult with their mournful cries, He raises the damsel to life again, as if from sleep, by His word of command, leading on human weakness, by a sort of path and sequence, to greater things.

Καθάπερ γάρ τις μήτηρ καταλλήλως τιθηνουμένη τὸ νήπιον͵ τέως μὲν ἁπαλῷ τε καὶ ὑγρῷ τῷ στόματι τὸ γάλα διὰ τῆς θηλῆς ἐντίθησιν, ὀδοντοφυοῦντι δὲ ἤδη καὶ αὐξανομένῳ προσάγει τὸν ἄρτον͵ οὐ τραχύν τε καὶ ἀκατέργαστον͵ ὡς ἂν μὴ περιξανθείη τῷ σκληρῷ τῆς τροφῆς τὸ τῶν οὔλων ἁπαλόν τε καὶ ἀγύμναστον͵ ἀλλὰ τοῖς ἰδίοις ὀδοῦσι καταλεάνασα͵ σύμμετρόν τε καὶ κατάλληλον τῇ δυνάμει τοῦ προσφερομένου ἐποίησεν, εἶτα κατὰ προσθήκην τῆς δυνάμεως ἐπιδιδούσης προσεθισθὲν τοῖς ἁπαλωτέροις ἠρέμα τὸ νήπιον προσάγει τῇ στερεωτέρᾳ τροφῇ, οὕτω τὴν ἀνθρωπίνην μικροψυχίαν ὁ Κύριος͵ οἷόν τι νήπιον ἀτελὲς διὰ τῶν θαυμάτων τρέφων καὶ τιθηνούμενος͵ πρῶτον μὲν ἐν ἀπεγνωσμένῃ νόσῳ τὴν τῆς ἀναστάσεως προοιμιάζεται δύναμιν͵ ὃ μέγα μὲν ἦν τῷ κατορθώματι͵ οὐ μὴν τοιοῦτον͵ οἷον ἀπιστεῖσθαι λεγόμενον. Ἐπιτιμήσας γὰρ τῷ πυρετῷ σφοδρῶς τὴν πενθερὰν τοῦ Σίμωνος καταφλέγοντι͵ τοσαύτην ἐποίησε τοῦ κακοῦ τὴν μετάστασιν͵ ὡς πρὸς τὸ διακονεῖν τοῖς παροῦσιν ἐνισχύσαι τὴν ἤδη προσδοκωμένην τεθνήξεσθαι.  

Εἴτα μικρόν τι τῇ δυνάμει προστίθησι καὶ τοῦ βασιλικοῦ τὸν υἱὸν ἐν ὁμολογουμένῳ κινδύνῳ κείμενον (οὕτω γάρ φησιν ἡ ἱστορία͵ ὅτι ἔμελλε τελευτᾷν͵ τοῦ πατρὸς βοῶντος, Κατάβηθι πρὶν ἀποθανεῖν τὸ παιδίον), ἐνεργεῖ πάλιν τοῦ τεθνήξεσθαι πεπιστευμένου τὴν ἀνάστασιν͵ ἐν μείζονι τῇ δυνάμει τὸ θαῦμα κατεργασάμενος͵ τῷ μηδὲ πλησιάσαι τῷ τόπῳ͵ ἀλλὰ πόῤῥωθεν τῇ τοῦ προστάγματος ἰσχύϊ τὴν ζωὴν ἀποστεῖλαι.

Πάλιν δι' ἀκολουθίας τοῖς ὑψηλοτέροις ἐπαναβαίνει θαύμασι. Πρὸς γὰρ τὴν παῖδα τοῦ ἀρχισυναγώγου ὁρμήσας͵ ἑκὼν ἔδωκε τῇ ὁδοιπορίᾳ σχολήν͵ τὴν ἴασιν τῆς αἱμοῤῥοΐας δημοσιεύων λαθοῦσαν͵ ὡς ἂν ἐν τῷ χρόνῳ τούτῳ κατακρατήσειε τῆς νοσούσης ὁ θάνατος. Ἄρτι τοίνυν τῆς ψυχῆς χωρισθείσης τοῦ σώματος καὶ θορυβουμένων ἐν τῇ γοερᾷ κραυγῇ τῶν ἐπικωκυόντων τῷ πάθει͵ καθάπερ ἐξ ὕπνου τῷ προστακτικῷ λόγῳ διανίστησι πάλιν πρὸς τὴν ζωὴν τὸ κοράσιον͵ ὀδῷ τινι καὶ ἀκολουθίᾳ πρὸς τὸ μεῖζον ἀναλαμβάνων τὴν ἀνθρωπίνην ἀσθένειαν.