Epiphanius of Cyprus, In divini corporis sepulturam

Summary

This homily on the burial of Christ, attributed to Epiphanius of Cyprus, blends exegetical reflection with hortatory address for Holy Saturday. The Georgian version survives in a single manuscript witness, likely translated from Greek, and was incorporated into Georgian liturgical manuscripts for Holy Week. The text's opening 'great silence' evokes the stillness after Christ's death, and its mention of hell trembling reflects the later Harrowing of Hell tradition. The attribution to Epiphanius (4th c.) is traditional but unverified, and the Georgian translation may date to the 10th–11th c., though no colophon or external evidence confirms this.

The homily is significant as a witness to the reception of Greek patristic literature in the medieval Georgian church and its adaptation for liturgical use. Its themes—the 'great silence' of Holy Saturday and the Harrowing of Hell—connect to broader Eastern Christian traditions. The text also illustrates the fluidity of attribution and translation in manuscript transmission.

Historical context

The homily is attributed to Epiphanius of Cyprus (4th c.), but this attribution is traditional and unverified. The Georgian translation likely dates to the 10th–11th c., based on manuscript evidence, though no colophon confirms this. The text survives in a single Georgian manuscript witness, indicating limited transmission. It was used as a patristic reading for the Paschal Triduum in the medieval Georgian church, reflecting the incorporation of Greek patristic texts into Georgian liturgy. The genre is liturgical, blending exegesis and exhortation for Holy Saturday. The edition provides no critical apparatus for the Greek Vorlage, nor does it collate variant Georgian witnesses, limiting assessment of textual fluidity.

Annotation and terms

5 commentary units 1 structure1 background1 scripture1 term1 reception 0 derived notes 2 open questions 1 narrative

What the kinds mean

structure — the passage's function in the work
background — historical or institutional context the text presupposes
scripture — a biblical quotation or allusion
term — a Coptic word and the rendering chosen for it
reception — later use — liturgy, canon law, daughter versions

Pipeline notes

limitThe English is a machine draft produced passage by passage from the transcribed Coptic; no human has verified it. The commentary is model-written and cites only keys the pipeline could resolve.
registerRegister: liturgy in Old Georgian; the English keeps the liturgical formulae and the vocatives rather than normalising them.
structurePassages: 1 narrative.
sourceSource edition: titus — This text is part of the TITUS edition of Epiphanius Cyprensis, Homilia in diuini corporis sepulturam. Copyright TITUS Project, Frankfurt a/M, 5.3.2021. No parts of this document may be republished in any form without prior permission by the copyright holder.

Term index

Coptic	Rendering	Count	First
no glossary terms recorded

epcyp:1 · narrativehigh

Source

Manuscripts: A = Jer. georg. 30 B = Ivir. georg. 39 C = A-162 D = A-129 E = A-140 F = A-5 საკითხავი, თქუმული წმიდისა და ნეტარისა მამისა ჩუენისა ეპიფანე კჳპრელ ეპისკოპოსისაჲ, საღმრთოთა მათ ჴორცთა უფლისა ჩუენისა იესუ ქრისტესთა დაფლვისათჳს და იოსებ არიმათიელისა და ნიკოდემოსისთჳს და ჯოჯოხეთს შთასლვისათჳს უფლისა შემდგომად განმაცხოველებელისა ვნებისა მისისა, რომელი-ესე იკითხვების დიდსა შაბათსა გუაკურთხენ, მამაო რაჲ არს ესე დღეს დუმილი მრავალი ქუეყანასა ზედა, დუმილი მრავალი ქუეყანასა ზედა, და მყუდროებაჲ მრავალი, დუმილი მრავალი, რამეთუ მეუფესა სძინავს; ქუეყანასა შეეშინა და დაყუდნა, რამეთუ ღმერთმან ჴორცითა დაიძინა, ღმერთმან დაიძინა და ჯოჯოხეთი შეძრწუნდა; ღმერთმან მცირედ დაიძინა და საუკუნითგან დაძინებულნი

English

A reading, the utterance of the holy and blessed father of ours, Epiphanius, Bishop of Cyprus, concerning the divine body of our Lord Jesus Christ, his burial, and concerning Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, and concerning the descent of the Lord into hell after his life-giving passion, which is read on Great Saturday. Bless us, father. What is this? Today there is a great silence upon the earth, a great silence upon the earth, and a great stillness, a great silence, for the King sleeps; the earth was afraid and grew still, for God slept in the flesh, God slept and hell trembled; God slept a little, and those who had slept from eternity

Commentary

structuretextსაკითხავი, თქუმული

The Georgian incipit labels the text as a 'reading' (საკითხავი) and 'utterance' (თქუმული), indicating its liturgical use as a lection for Great Saturday.

source edition: Epiphanius of Cyprus, In divini corporis sepulturam

backgroundbackgroundGreat Saturday

Great Saturday (Holy Saturday) is the day between the Crucifixion and Easter, a time of liturgical silence and waiting, which the text's opening 'great silence' reflects.

scripturetextდუმილი მრავალი

The repeated phrase 'great silence' echoes the liturgical tradition of Holy Saturday, but no single biblical verse is directly quoted; it evokes the stillness after Christ's death.

termglossaryჴორცითა

The Georgian word 'ჴორცითა' (in the flesh) emphasizes the incarnational theology: God slept in the flesh, a key theme in Epiphanius's homily.

source edition: Epiphanius of Cyprus, In divini corporis sepulturam

receptiontextჯოჯოხეთი

The mention of hell trembling and the descent into hell (ჯოჯოხეთს შთასლვის) reflects the later Harrowing of Hell tradition, popular in Eastern Christian liturgy.

source edition: Epiphanius of Cyprus, In divini corporis sepulturam

Open questions · 2

The Georgian text has a repetitive phrase 'დუმილი მრავალი' (great silence) which may be a scribal doubling or a deliberate liturgical emphasis; the English draft renders it as a single occurrence.
The phrase 'მამაო რაჲ არს ესე' (bless us, father) is ambiguous: it could be a liturgical rubric or part of the homily's address.

Citation. Tergwame, “Epiphanius of Cyprus, In divini corporis sepulturam”, epcyp:1, machine-draft, 2026. https://naxiai.com/christian/works/epcyp#s1

Colophon. Source: titus · licence: This text is part of the TITUS edition of Epiphanius Cyprensis, Homilia in diuini corporis sepulturam. Copyright TITUS Project, Frankfurt a/M, 5.3.2021. No parts of this document may be republished in any form without prior permission by the copyright holder. · model: deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash:floor · provider: Relace · cost: $0.0010 · generated 2026-11-15.