ἐκ τῆς ὑστερήσεως, from her state of want, cf. on Lk. ὑστέρησις, here and in Philippians 4:11. πάντα ὅσα : this not visible to the eye; divined by the mind, but firmly believed to be true, as appears from the repetition of the statement in another form. ὅλον τὸν βίον, her whole means of life. For the use of βίος in this sense vide Luke 8:43; Luke 15:12; Luke 15:30; similarly in classics.

Though it has nothing to do with strict exegesis, I am tempted to give here a prayer by that felicitous interpreter and devout monk, Euthymius Zigabenus, based on this beautiful Gospel story: “May my soul become a widow casting out the devil to which it is joined and subject, and casting into the treasury of God two lepta, the body and the mind; the one made light (λεπτυνθέντα) by temperance, the other by humility”.

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Old Testament