The Pearl 4:3 - An Image of the Eternal Light

St. Ephrem's The Pearl 4:3


Not as the moon does, thy light fill or wane ;
The Sun whose light is greater than all,
Lo! of Him it is that a type is shadowed out in thy little compass.


O type of the Son,
One spark of Whom is greater than the sun!
The pearl itself is full,
      for its light is full ;
Neither is there any cunning worker who can steal from it ;
For its wall is its own beauty,
Yea, its guard also!
It lacks not,
since it is entirely perfect.

And if a man would break thee
To take a part from thee,
Thou art like the faith which with the heretics perishes,
Seeing they have broken it in pieces and spoiled it :
For is it any better than this
To have the faith scrutinized?
The faith is an entire nature
That may not be corrupted.
The spoiler gets himself mischief by it:
The heretic brings ruin on himself thereby.
He that chases the light from his pupils
Blinds himself.


Fire and air are divided when sundered.
Light alone, of all creatures,
As its Creator, is not divided;
It is not barren, for that it also begets
Without losing thereby.