“For even in the beginning,
When arrogant giants were perishing,
The hope of the world
Took refuge on a raft.
Thus guided by your hand,
You left to the world
The seed of a new generation.
Blessed is the wood
By which righteousness comes.”
Here we have an allusion to Noah and his ark as in Genesis, chapters 6-9, in the beginning (ἀρχῆς). That was when arrogant giants were roaming the world (τοῦ κόσμου). The righteous men and women with Noah took refuge on a raft of blessed wood (εὐλόγηται γὰρ ξύλον). Guided by the hands (χειρί) of God, they left a new eternal seed (αἰῶνι σπέρμα γενέσεως) for a new generation of righteous people (γίνεται δικαιοσύνη). Although this is clearly a blessing for the wood of the ark of Noah, some Christians have interpreted this passage to mean the blessed wood of Christ’s cross.
