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then it completely cleanses, consuming from the nature of beings all that is both bloody and defiled and uncircumcised. and so we receive the law concerning the eighth day, that which both cleanses and circumcises, because when the weekly time has ceased, an eighth day will begin after the seventh, called eighth because it comes after the seventh, but no longer receiving in itself the succession of number. For it remains one forever, never divided by nocturnal darkness. For another sun makes it, the one shining forth the true light; who, whenever he once shines upon us, as the apostle says, is no longer hidden in settings, but having enveloped all things with his illuminating power, he creates for the worthy a light both continuous and without succession, and making those themselves who partake of that light into other suns, 5.190 as the word says in the gospel, that Then the righteous will shine like the sun.

Since therefore the discourse in the preceding psalm was made for her who inherits, and the inheritance is laid up for the worthy on the eighth, and on this the just judgment of God also takes place, apportioning to each what is according to worth, the prophet well introduced the discourse concerning repentance with the mention of the eighth. For who, remembering the fearsome judgment of Christ, does not immediately get torn apart in his own conscience and seized by fear and anguish? even if he should happen to have conducted his life for the better? But nevertheless, looking at the precision of the judgment, in which even the most subtle of oversights are brought to examination, he is utterly terrified by the expectation of fearsome things, not knowing to what end the judgment will come for him. For this reason, having as if before his eyes the fearsome punishments, that Gehenna and the dark fire and the unending worm of conscience that ever murmurs against the soul through shame and, by the memory of things badly lived, renews the pains, now he becomes a suppliant of God, begging not to be handed over to that wrath for reproof nor that through that anger the punishment for what he has transgressed be brought upon him. For to those condemned to the bitter punishment of that fearsome chastisement, the judgment is considered a work of wrath and anger. and for this reason, as if already being among the afflicted, he utters the voices of those in pain, to whom that which is brought for the punishment of the impious seems to be wrath and anger. He says therefore that I do not 5.191 wait for the reproof of hidden things to happen to me from that wrath through the fearsome scourges, but I anticipate by confession the necessity from that anger. For what pain does in those being scourged, making manifest against their will the secret things of lawlessness, this the will does of its own accord, both scourging and punishing itself through repentance, and making public the sin hidden in secret places. Having said therefore that Neither in your wrath rebuke me, nor in your anger discipline me, he consequently flees for refuge to mercy, tracing the cause of the evil not so much to choice as to the weakness of nature; Heal me with mercy, for I have been in evils; for from weakness I came to this suffering. And what is the weakness? My bones were dislocated and were dissolved from their harmony with one another. And by bones he means the sound reasonings that support the soul; Heal me, Lord, because my bones have been troubled. And he interprets the riddle of the saying, through what he added to the things said, that My soul has been greatly troubled.

Why then do you delay, he says, in the healing, you, Lord? Until when do you not bring your mercy? Do you not see the swift-fatedness of human life? Anticipate by the return of my soul the necessity of our life; lest ever, death having taken hold, every thought for healing be idle. for in death there will no longer be one who is able through the memory of God to heal the sickness that came to him from evil; because on earth indeed

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τότε εἰς τὸ παντελὲς ἐκκαθαίρει ἐξαναλίσκων ἐκ τῆς τῶν ὄντων φύσεως πᾶν ὅσον αἱματῶδές τε καὶ ῥυπαρὸν καὶ ἀκρόβυστον. καὶ οὕτω δεχόμεθα τὸν περὶ τῆς ὀγδόης νόμον τὸν καθαίροντά τε καὶ περιτέμνοντα, διότι τοῦ ἑβδομαδικοῦ παυσαμένου χρόνου ἐνστήσεται ἡμέρα ὀγδόη μετὰ τὴν ἑβδόμην, ὀγδόη μὲν λεγομένη ὅτι μετὰ τὴν ἑβδόμην γίνεται, οὐκέτι δὲ τὴν τοῦ ἀριθμοῦ διαδοχὴν ἐφ' ἑαυτῆς δεχομένη. μία γὰρ εἰς τὸ διηνεκὲς παραμένει οὐδέποτε νυκτερινῷ διαιρουμένη ζόφῳ. ἄλλος γὰρ αὐτὴν ποιεῖ ἥλιος ὁ τὸ ἀληθινὸν φῶς ἀπολάμπων· ὃς ἐπειδὰν ἅπαξ ἐπιφαύσῃ ἡμῖν, καθώς φησιν ὁ ἀπόστολος, οὐκέτι ἐν δυσμαῖς κρύπτεται, ἀλλὰ πάντα τῇ φωτιστικῇ ἑαυτοῦ δυνάμει περιπτυξάμενος διηνεκές τε καὶ ἀδιάδοχον τοῖς ἀξίοις τὸ φῶς ἐμποιεῖ καὶ αὐτοὺς τοὺς μετέχοντας τοῦ φωτὸς ἐκείνου ἄλλους ἡλίους ἀπερ 5.190 γαζόμενος, καθώς φησιν ἐν τῷ εὐαγγελίῳ ὁ λόγος, ὅτι Τότε οἱ δίκαιοι λάμψουσιν ὡς ὁ ἥλιος.

Ἐπεὶ οὖν ὑπὲρ τῆς κληρονομούσης ἐν τῷ προλαβόντι ψαλμῷ τὸν λόγον πεποίηται, ἡ δὲ κληρονομία ἐν τῇ ὀγδόῃ τοῖς ἀξίοις ἀπόκειται, ἐν ταύτῃ δὲ καὶ ἡ δικαία τοῦ θεοῦ γίνεται κρίσις ἑκάστῳ τὸ κατ' ἀξίαν νέμουσα, καλῶς ὁ προφήτης τῇ περὶ τῆς ὀγδόης μνήμῃ τὸν περὶ τῆς μετανοίας συνεισήγαγε λόγον. τίς γὰρ τῆς φοβερᾶς τοῦ Χριστοῦ κρίσεως μνήμην λαβὼν οὐκ εὐθὺς ἐν τῷ συνειδότι τῷ ἰδίῳ σπαράσσε ται καὶ φόβῳ καὶ ἀγωνίᾳ συνέχεται; κἂν πρὸς τὸ κρεῖττον ἑαυτῷ συνεγνωκὼς τύχῃ τὸν βίον; ἀλλ' οὖν πρὸς τὴν ἀκρίβειαν τῆς κρίσεως βλέπων, ἐν ᾗ καὶ τὰ λεπτότατα τῶν παρορα μάτων εἰς ἐξέτασιν ἄγεται, καταπτοεῖται πάντως τῇ τῶν φοβερῶν προσδοκίᾳ, οὐκ εἰδὼς εἰς ὅ τι αὐτῷ τὸ τῆς κρίσεως καταλήξει πέρας. τούτου χάριν ὡς ἐν ὀφθαλμοῖς λαβὼν τὰ φοβερὰ κολαστήρια, τὴν γέεναν ἐκείνην καὶ τὸ σκοτεινὸν πῦρ καὶ τὸν ἀτελεύτητον τῆς συνειδήσεως σκώληκα τὸν ἀεὶ μύζοντα τὴν ψυχὴν δι' αἰσχύνης καὶ τῇ μνήμῃ τῶν κακῶς βεβιωμένων τὰς ἀλγηδόνας ἀνακαινίζοντα, ἤδη τοῦ θεοῦ ἱκέτης γίνεται δεόμενος μὴ τῷ θυμῷ ἐκείνῳ παραδοθῆναι πρὸς ἔλεγχον μήτε διὰ τῆς ὀργῆς ἐκείνης ἐπαχθῆναι αὐτῷ τὴν ὑπὲρ ὧν ἐπλημμέλησε παίδευσιν. Τοῖς γὰρ καταδικασθεῖσι τῇ πικρᾷ παιδεύσει τῆς φοβερᾶς ἐκείνης κολάσεως θυμοῦ ἔργον νομίζεται καὶ ὀργῆς ἡ διάκρισις. καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ὡς ἐν τοῖς ἀλγεινοῖς ἤδη γενόμενος τὰς τῶν ὀδυνωμένων φωνὰς ὑποκρίνεται, οἷς θυμὸς εἶναι δοκεῖ καὶ ὀργὴ τὸ ἐπὶ τιμωρίᾳ τῶν ἀσεβῶν ἐπαγόμενον. λέγει τοίνυν ὅτι Οὐκ 5.191 ἀναμένω ἐκ τοῦ θυμοῦ ἐκείνου διὰ τῶν φοβερῶν μαστίγων γενέσθαι μοι τῶν κεκρυμμένων τὸν ἔλεγχον, ἀλλὰ προλαμβάνω τῇ ἐξαγορεύσει τὴν ἐκ τῆς ὀργῆς ἐκείνης ἀνάγκην. ὅπερ γὰρ ἡ ὀδύνη ἐπὶ τῶν μαστιγουμένων ποιεῖ ἀκόντων αὐτῶν τὰ κρυπτὰ τῆς ἀνομίας ἐμφανῆ ποιοῦσα, τοῦτο ποιεῖ ἀφ' ἑαυτῆς ἡ προαίρεσις, ἑαυτὴν διὰ τῆς μετανοίας μαστίζουσά τε καὶ κολάζουσα, καὶ δημοσιεύουσα τὴν κεκαλυμμένην ἐν τοῖς κεκρυμμένοις ἁμαρτίαν. εἰπὼν τοίνυν ὅτι Μήτε τῷ θυμῷ σου ἐλέγξῃς με, μήτε τῇ ὀργῇ σου παιδεύσῃς με, ἀκολούθως καταφεύγει ἐπὶ τὸν ἔλεον, οὐ τοσοῦτον εἰς προαίρεσιν ὅσον εἰς ἀσθένειαν φύσεως τοῦ κακοῦ τὴν αἰτίαν ἀνάγων· Ἐν κακοῖς με γεγονότα ἐλέῳ θεράπευσον· ἐξ ἀσθενείας γὰρ ἦλθον ἐπὶ τὸ πάθος. τίς δὲ ἡ ἀσθένεια; Ἐξηρθρώθη τὰ ὀστᾶ μου καὶ διελύθη ἀπὸ τῆς μετ' ἀλλήλων ἁρμονίας. ὀστᾶ δὲ λέγει τοὺς σώφρονας λογισμοὺς τοὺς τὴν ψυχὴν διερείδοντας· Ἴασαί με, κύριε, ὅτι ἐταράχθη τὰ ὀστᾶ μου. καὶ ἑρμηνεύει τοῦ λόγου τὸ αἴνιγμα, δι' ὧν ἐπήγαγε τοῖς εἰρημένοις ὅτι Ἡ ψυχή μου ἐταράχθη σφόδρα.

Τί οὖν ἀναβάλλῃ, φησίν, πρὸς τὴν ἴασιν, σὺ κύριε; ἕως πότε οὐκ ἐπάγεις τὸν ἔλεον; οὐχ ὁρᾷς τῆς ἀνθρωπίνης ζωῆς τὸ ὠκύμορον; πρόλαβε τῇ ἐπιστροφῇ τῆς ψυχῆς μου τὸ ἀναγκαῖον τῆς ζωῆς ἡμῶν· μή ποτε τοῦ θανάτου ἐπιλαβόντος ἀργῇ πᾶσα πρὸς θεραπείαν ἐπίνοια. οὐκέτι γὰρ ἔσται ἐν τῷ θανάτῳ ὁ διὰ τῆς μνήμης τοῦ θεοῦ θεραπεῦσαι δυνάμενος τὴν ἐκ κακίας αὐτῷ γενομένην νόσον· διότι ἐπὶ γῆς μὲν