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having its being in sensible wealth; for it is said that its heirs are brought into an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and unfading, reserved in heaven. Calling the worthy ones to this, the Savior said, Come, you who are blessed by my Father, from my right hand, inherit the kingdom prepared for you. Having conceived a love for this, he who says the present psalm sends up a prayer to God who prepared it, that he might be deemed worthy to be shown an heir of it according to the new covenant, so that the inscription *For her that inherits* might also refer to his soul. 24 Ps 5,2.3 And the word *Give ear*, not being common in ordinary use, is found continuously in scripture, signifying that the hearer receives into his ears the words announced by the one speaking them because he is near; and the righteous are near to God by relationship, whence it is said that God listens to the prayers of the righteous and has his ears for their supplication. And God is at once king and creator of those who have not stretched out their hands to a strange god nor are ruled by sin. 25 Ps 5,4 But according to contemplation: he for whom the sun of righteousness has risen, having come into being at the beginning of a spiritual day, offering praise in thanksgiving to the cause of the illumination, said, *In the morning you will hear my voice*; for to whom was it necessary to give thanks for so great a good, if not to you, O Master, who made light rise for me, being for me the cause of the greatest contemplation? Therefore a love always enters in for the contemplations that have already occurred and a desire to see still more the beauties of the truth. This is also present from the phrase *And I will watch*. For just as *I come upon* indicates an unceasing approach, so *I will watch* signifies a continuously added understanding; for how does he who has obtained the promise *The Lord will be to you an everlasting light*, and *Light for the righteous always* not always see? And there is another reading that has *I will stand by you and you will see me*, which is not for everyone to say but for those who, like the great Elijah, because of the boldness from their way of life, dare to say, *As the Lord lives, before whom I have stood today*. 26 Ps 5,5-7 This being true, evil is not from God, as those think who consider wickedness to have substance. For *from the mouth of the Most High, evil and good will not come forth*. For he wills only the good to be; and since this is so, it is impossible for evil to subsist in anything. But he destroys *those who speak falsehood* inasmuch as they are liars, so that they may recognize the truth which they also knew long ago. For to recognize signifies this; for no one who is beginning to know something is said to recognize it. And since all who speak falsehood are destroyed by God, he also will be destroyed concerning whom it is said, *When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources*. And if this is so, he is not evil in substance; for not at the same time as he came to be and came into existence, but after these things, having turned, he had the beginning of speaking falsehood, having once had his being in truth. And this is shown from the things so written about him: *He has not stood in the truth, because truth is not in him*; for he who is blameworthy for not having stood is manifest, having been tempted by these dispositions. But one must judge the liar from his intention and not from his speech alone, so that those who have ever done this for a good purpose, like Rahab, may not be under the threat; for she seemed to lie to those searching with the intent to kill the spies, who were good men; for having been sent by Joshua, son of Nun, they were praiseworthy. Since the woman's intention was of great earnestness, it is not, therefore, logical to place her among those who are destroyed or among those who speak falsehood. And just as not everyone who kills a person in any way is a murderer, so not absolutely is he who sheds blood a man of blood; for we do not call murderers or men of blood those who, according to divine law, kill those who are worthy to suffer this, since it would be time to say that Samuel and Elijah, the great men testified to for goodness and divine prophecy, are subject to these accusations, but none of these is a murderer or a man of blood, if

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αἰσθητῷ πλούτῳ τὸ ειναι εχουσα· ειρηται γὰρ εἰσάγεσθαι τοὺς ταύτης κληρονόμους Εἰς κληρονομίαν αφθαρτον καὶ ἀμίαντον καὶ ἀμάραντον τετηρημένην ἐν οὐρανοῖς. εἰς ταύτην τοὺς ἀξίους καλῶν ὁ σωτὴρ ∆εῦτε ἐκ δεξιῶν μου, ειπεν, οἱ εὐλογημένοι τοῦ πατρός μου, κληρονομήσατε τὴν ἡτοιμασμένην ὑμῖν βασιλείαν. ταύτης ερωτα λαβὼν ὁ τὸν ἐγκείμενον ψαλμὸν λέγων εὐχὴν ἀναπέμπει τῷ εὐτρεπίσαντι αὐτὴν θεῷ, ιν' ἀξιωθῇ κληρονόμος αὐτῆς κατὰ τὴν καινὴν διαθήκην ἀναδειχθῆναι, ὡς καὶ περὶ τῆς αὐτοῦ ψυχῆς σημαίνειν τὴν ἐπιγραφὴν τὴν ̔Υπὲρ τῆς κληρονομούσης. 24 Ps 5,2.3 Τὸ δὲ ̓Ενώτισαι μὴ φερόμενον ἐν τῇ συνηθείᾳ, ἐν τῇ γραφῇ κεῖται συνεχῶς δηλοῦν τὸ εἰς τὰ ωτα δέχεσθαι τὸν ἀκούοντα τοὺς ἀπαγγελλομένους λόγους τοῦ λέγοντος αὐτοὺς διὰ τὸ ἐγγὺς ειναι· σχέσει δ' ἐγγὺς οἱ δίκαιοι θεοῦ οθεν εὐχαῖς δικαίων ἐπακούειν ειρηται ὁ θεὸς καὶ τὰ ωτα εχειν εἰς δέησιν αὐτῶν. Βασιλεὺς δ' αμα καὶ δημιουργὸς ὁ θεὸς τυγχάνει τῶν μὴ διαπετασάντων χεῖρας αὐτῶν πρὸς θεὸν ἀλλότριον μηδὲ βασιλευομένων ὑπὸ τῆς ἁμαρτίας. 25 Ps 5,4 Κατὰ θεωρίαν δέ· ῳ ὁ τῆς δικαιοσύνης ηλιος ἀνέτειλεν ἐν ἀρχῇ νοητῆς ἡμέρας γεγονώς, χαριστήριον αινον προφέρων τῷ αἰτίῳ τοῦ φωτισμοῦ Τὸ πρωΐ, εφη, εἰσακούσῃ τῆς φωνῆς μου· τίνι γὰρ εδει χάριν ὁμολογῆσαι ὑπὲρ τηλικούτου ἀγαθοῦ η σοί, ω δέσποτα, τῷ ἀνατείλαντί μοι φῶς αιτιόν μοι μεγίστης θεωρίας ὑπάρχον; ἀεὶ γοῦν ερως εἰσέρχεται πρὸς ταῖς ὑπαρξάσαις θεωρίαις καὶ ετι θέλειν βλέπειν τὰ κάλλη τῆς ἀληθείας. παρίσταται τοῦτο καὶ ἐκ τοῦ Καὶ ἐπόψομαι. ὡς γὰρ τὸ ἐπέρχομαι ἀκατάπαυστον πρόσοδον δηλοῖ, ουτω τὸ ̓Επόψομαι συνεχῶς προστιθεμένην κατανόησιν ἐμφαίνει· πῶς γὰρ οὐκ ἀεὶ βλέπει ὁ ἐπαγγελίας τυχὼν τῆς Εσται σοι κύριος φῶς αἰώνιον, καὶ Φῶς δικαίοις διὰ παντός; Εστιν δὲ καὶ ἑτέρα γραφὴ εχουσα Παραστήσομαί σοι καὶ ἐπόψει με, οπερ οὐ παντὸς λέγειν ἀλλὰ τῶν κατὰ τὸν μέγαν ̓Ηλίαν διὰ τὴν ἀπὸ τῆς πολιτείας παρρησίαν λέγειν θαρρούντων Ζῇ κύριος ῳ παρέστην ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ σήμερον. 26 Ps 5,5-7 Τούτου ἀληθοῦς οντος, οὐκ εστιν ἐκ θεοῦ τὸ κακὸν ὡς οιονται οἱ ἐνυπόστατον τὴν κακίαν τιθέμενοι. ̓Εκ στόματος γὰρ ὑψίστου οὐκ ἐξελεύσεται τὸ κακὸν καὶ τὸ ἀγαθόν. μόνον γὰρ τὸ ἀγαθὸν ειναι βούλεται· ου οντος ἀδύνατον εν τινι συστῆναι τὸ κακόν. ̓Απόλλυσιν δὲ Τοὺς λαλοῦντας τὸ ψεῦδος ῃ ψεῦσταί εἰσιν, ιν' ἐπιγνῶσιν τὴν ἀλήθειαν ην καὶ πάλαι ῃδεισαν. τὸ γὰρ ἐπιγνῶναι τοῦτο δηλοῖ· οὐδεὶς γὰρ ἀρχὴν εχων τοῦ γινώσκειν τι ἐπιγινώσκειν αὐτὸ λέγεται. πάντων δὲ τῶν λαλούντων τὸ ψεῦδος ὑπὸ θεοῦ ἀπολλυμένων, ἀπολεῖται κἀκεῖνος περὶ ου ειρηται Οτ' αν λαλῇ τὸ ψεῦδος, ἐκ τῶν ἰδίων λαλεῖ. εἰ δὲ τοῦτο, οὐκ εστιν κατ' οὐσίαν κακός· οὐ γὰρ αμα τῷ γενέσθαι καὶ εἰς ὑπόστασιν ἐλθεῖν ἀλλὰ μετὰ ταῦτα τραπεὶς ἀρχὴν τοῦ λαλεῖν τὸ ψεῦδος εσχεν, ἐσχηκώς ποτε τὸ ἐν ἀληθείᾳ ειναι. δηλοῦται δὲ τοῦτο ἐκ τῶν ουτω περὶ αὐτοῦ γεγραμμένων· ̓Εν τῇ ἀληθείᾳ οὐχ εστηκεν, οτι ἀλήθεια οὐκ εστιν ἐν αὐτῷ· ὁ γὰρ ψεκτὸς ων διὰ τὸ μὴ ἑστάναι φανερός ἐστιν πειραθεὶς τούτων τῶν διαθέσεων. κριτέον δὲ ἐκ προθέσεως ἀλλ' οὐκ ἐκ μόνης φωνῆς τὸν ψευδόμενον, ινα μὴ ωσιν ὑπὸ τὴν ἀπειλὴν οἱ οἰκονομικῶς ποτε τοῦτο πεποιηκότες ὡς ̔Ραάβ· εδοξεν γὰρ ψεύδεσθαι πρὸς τοὺς ἀναζητοῦντας ἐπὶ τῷ ἀποκτεῖναι τοὺς κατασκόπους ἀγαθοὺς ανδρας οντας· ὑπὸ ̓Ιησοῦ γὰρ τοῦ Ναβῆ ἀποσταλέντες ἐπαινετοὶ ησαν. τῆς προθέσεως τῆς ἀνθρώπου πολὺ τὸ σπουδαῖον ἐσούσης, οὐκ ἀκόλουθον ουν ἐστιν τάξαι αὐτὴν ἐν τοῖς ἀπολλυμένοις η ἐν τοῖς τὸ ψεῦδος λαλοῦσιν. ωσπερ δὲ οὐχ ὁ οπως ποτὲ κτείνων ανθρωπον φονεύς ἐστιν, ουτως οὐ καθάπαξ ὁ ἐκχέων αιματα αἱμάτων ἀνήρ ἐστιν· οὐ γὰρ λέγομεν φονέας η αἱμάτων ανδρας τοὺς κατὰ νόμον θεῖον ἀποκτέννοντας τοὺς ἀξίους τὸ παθεῖν τοῦτο, ἐπεὶ ωρα λέγειν Σαμουὴλ καὶ ̓Ηλίαν τοὺς μεγάλους ανδρας μαρτυρηθέντας ἐπὶ ἀγαθότητι καὶ προφητείᾳ θείᾳ ὑποκεῖσθαι τοῖς ἐγκλήμασιν τούτοις, ἀλλ' οὐδεὶς τούτων φονεὺς η αἱμάτων ἀνήρ, εἰ