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will receive both kings and rulers, and Jews, and Gentiles. For in the second psalm he foretells the human sufferings and the kingdom of the Lord Christ; and indeed he also prophesies the calling of the Gentiles, and laments the unbelief of the Jews. For the phrase, "Why did the nations rage," belongs to one who is lamenting and blaming the folly. And we have no need of many words for interpretation, since the divine Peter, the chief of the apostles, has set forth the interpretation in the Acts, and named Herod, and Pontius Pilate, and the chief priests and Scribes, as kings and rulers. For the one was sent by the emperor of the Romans, administering his rule; and the other was the toparch of the Jews at that time; and the one had subjects from the Jews, and the other soldiers from the Gentiles. But nevertheless, coming together for the same purpose, and having contrived the murder of the Lord, they plotted vain and 80.876 futile things, being unable to consign to oblivion the one crucified by them; for having risen on the third day he took possession of the world. Very fittingly, and with great reason, he applied "they plotted vain things," to the person of the people. For the Jews made this wicked plot against the Savior. And the voice of the holy Gospels is a witness, teaching how "the Pharisees went out and took counsel how they might destroy him," and Caiaphas crying out: "It is expedient that one man should die, and that the whole nation should not perish." As for "Raged," Aquila translated it "were in an uproar," while Symmachus, "stirs up." And this, being applied to the person of the Gentiles, suggests the understanding that as the Jews brought Jesus to Pilate as some kind of tyrant, and had said many times that he must be put to death, he unwillingly pronounced the death sentence, fearing, as was likely, to release him, lest some accusation should be contrived against him from this. For as the blessed Luke said, they accused him, saying: "We found this man perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, saying that he himself is Christ a King. 1, 2. "Why did the nations rage, and the peoples plot vain things? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers were gathered together, against the Lord, and against his Christ." He does not say *the* nations with the article, so that you might think all are included; but "nations," directing the meaning to something partial. For since the Jews, having taken him, delivered him over to the Gentiles, for this reason he says these things: What is so great a cause, he says, or what has happened, that the peoples should be stirred up against him, and that he should be delivered into the hands of the Gentiles? And "raged" is instead of "they boasted arrogantly." 3. "Let us break their bonds asunder, and cast away their yoke from us." For he who does not honor the Son, he says, does not honor the Father either; and with reason they cast off the yoke of the Father along with the Son. But it seems to me that the all-holy Spirit exhorts those who have believed to say these things: "Let us break their bonds asunder," of the impious Gentiles, "and cast away their yoke from us," of the lawless Jews, and let us take upon ourselves the good yoke of the Lord. For his is the voice: "Take my yoke upon you, for my yoke is good, and my burden is light." And the law itself was called a yoke by the divine apostles. For the divine Peter says concerning this in the Acts: "Why do you test God by placing a yoke on the neck of the disciples 80.877 which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? but we believe that we shall be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will." And the prophetic words are like these: "Let us break their bonds asunder, and cast away their yoke from us;" that is, let us turn our heart away from wishing to be under them; let us shake off the yoke of the law; let us consider the things in types as nothing, unless they are understood spiritually; let the shadow be reckoned as useless for benefit, unless it depicts the mystery of Christ upon itself. 4. "He who dwells in the heavens will laugh at them, and the Lord

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βασιλέας τε καὶ ἄρχοντας, καὶ Ἰουδαίους, καὶ ἐθνικοὺς ὑποδέξεται. Ἐν γὰρ τῷ δευτέρῳ ψαλμῷ τοῦ ∆εσπότου Χριστοῦ, καὶ τὰ ἀνθρώπινα πάθη, καὶ τὴν βασιλείαν προαγορεύει· καὶ μέντοι καὶ τῶν ἐθνῶν προθεσπίζει τὴν κλῆσιν, καὶ τὴν Ἰουδαίων ἀπιστίαν θρηνεῖ. Τὸ γὰρ, "Ἵνα τί ἐφρύαξαν ἔθνη," ὀδυρομένου ἐστὶ καὶ μεμφομένου τὴν ἄνοιαν. Οὐ χρεία δὲ ἡμῖν λόγων εἰς ἑρμηνείαν πολλῶν, τοῦ θεσπεσίου Πέτρου, τοῦ κορυφαίου τῶν ἀποστόλων, ἐν ταῖς Πράξεσι τεθεικότος τὴν ἑρμηνείαν, καὶ Ἡρώδην, καὶ Πόντιον Πιλάτον, καὶ τοὺς ἀρχιερέας καὶ Γραμματέας, βασιλέας τε, καὶ ἄρχοντας ὀνομά σαντος. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ ὑπὸ τοῦ Ῥωμαίων ἀπέσταλτο βασιλέως, τὴν ἐκείνου διέπων ἀρχήν· ὁ δὲ τοπάρχης Ἰουδαίων κατ' ἐκεῖνον ἐτύγχανε τὸν καιρόν· καὶ ὁ μὲν εἶχεν ἐξ Ἰουδαίων ὑπηκόους, ὁ δὲ τοὺς ἐξ ἐθνῶν στρατιώτας. Ἀλλ' ὅμως κατὰ ταὐτὸν γενόμενοι, καὶ τὸν ∆εσποτικὸν τυρεύσαντες φόνον, κενὰ καὶ 80.876 μάταια ἐβουλεύσαντο, λήθῃ παραδοῦναι μὴ δυνη θέντες τὸν ὑπ' αὐτῶν σταυρωθέντα· τῇ τρίτῃ γὰρ ἀναστὰς ἡμέρᾳ τῆς οἰκουμένης ἐκράτησε. Προσφυῶς δὲ μάλα, καὶ λίαν εἰκότως, τὸ "ἐμελέτησαν κενὰ," τῷ τοῦ λαοῦ προσώπῳ συνήρμοσεν. Ἰουδαῖοι γὰρ τὴν πονηρὰν ταύτην ἐποιήσαντο κατὰ τοῦ Σωτῆρος μελέτην. Καὶ μάρτυς ἡ τῶν ἱερῶν Εὐαγγελίων φωνὴ, διδάσκουσα, ὡς "ἐξελθόντες οἱ Φαρισαῖοι συμβούλιον ἔλαβον ὅπως αὐτὸν ἀπολέσωσιν," καὶ ὁ Καϊάφας βοῶν· "Συμφέρει ἵνα εἷς ἄνθρωπος ἀπο θάνῃ, καὶ μὴ ὅλον τὸ ἔθνος ἀπόληται." Τὸ δὲ, Ἐφρύαξαν ὁ μὲν Ἀκύλας ἐθορυβήθησαν, ὁ δὲ Σύμμαχος κυκᾷ, ἡρμήνευσαν. Τοῦτο δὲ, τῷ τῶν ἐθνῶν προσώπῳ προσκείμενον ὑποβάλλει νοεῖν ὡς Ἰουδαίων τῷ Πιλάτῳ τὸν Ἰησοῦν οἷόν τινα τύραννον προσαγαγόντων, καὶ δεῖν αὐτὸν ἀναιρεθῆναι πολλά κις εἰρηκότων, ἄκων ἐκεῖνος τὴν θανατηφόρον ἐξ ενήνοχε ψῆφον, δείσας ὡς εἰκὸς ἀπολῦσαι, μή τις ἐντεῦθεν γραφὴ κατ' αὐτοῦ τυρευθῇ. Ὡς γὰρ ὁ μακάριος ἔφη Λουκᾶς, κατηγόρουν αὐτοῦ λέγοντες· "Τοῦτον εὕρομεν διαστρέφοντα τὸ ἔθνος, καὶ κω λύοντα Καίσαρι φόρον διδόναι, λέγοντα ἑαυτὸν Χριστὸν βασιλέα εἶναι. αʹ, βʹ. "Ἱνατί ἐφρύαξαν ἔθνη, καὶ λαοὶ ἐμελέ τησαν κενά; Παρέστησαν οἱ βασιλεῖς τῆς γῆς, καὶ οἱ ἄρχοντες συνήχθησαν ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ κατὰ τοῦ Κυ ρίου, καὶ κατὰ τοῦ Χριστοῦ αὐτοῦ." Οὐ λέγει τὰ ἔθνη μετὰ τοῦ ἄρθρου, ἵνα πάντας περιλαμβάνεσθαι νομίσῃς· ἀλλ' ἔθνη, ἐπὶ μερικόν τι ἄγων τὴν ἔννοιαν. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι, λαβόντες, τοῖς ἔθνεσιν αὐτὸν ἐξέδωκαν, διὰ τοῦτο ταῦτά φησι· Τίς ἡ τοσαύτη, φησὶν, αἰτία, ἢ τί τὸ γεγονὸς, ὡς καὶ τοὺς λαοὺς συγκινηθῆναι κατ' αὐτοῦ, καὶ εἰς χεῖρας αὐτὸν παραδοθῆναι τῶν ἐθνῶν; Τὸ δὲ, Ἐφρύαξαν, ἀντὶ τοῦ ἠλαζονεύσαντο. γʹ. "∆ιαῤῥήξωμεν τοὺς δεσμοὺς αὐτῶν, καὶ ἀποῤ ῥίψωμεν ἀφ' ἡμῶν τὸν ζυγὸν αὐτῶν." Ὁ γὰρ μὴ τιμῶν, φησὶ, τὸν Υἱὸν, οὐδὲ τὸν Πατέρα τιμᾷ· καὶ εἰκότως μετὰ τοῦ Υἱοῦ, καὶ τοῦ Πατρὸς τὸν ζυγὸν ἀποπέμπονται. Ἐμοὶ δὲ δοκεῖ τοῖς πεπιστευκόσι παρεγγυᾷν τὸ πανάγιον Πνεῦμα ταῦτα λέγειν· "∆ιαῤῥήξωμεν τοὺς δεσμοὺς αὐτῶν," τῶν δυσσεβῶν ἐθνῶν, "καὶ ἀποῤῥίψωμεν ἀφ' ἡμῶν τὸν ζυγὸν αὐτῶν," τῶν παρανόμων Ἰουδαίων, καὶ λάβωμεν ἐφ' ἡμᾶς τὸν χρηστὸν τοῦ Κυρίου ζυγόν. Αὐτοῦ γάρ ἐστιν ἡ φωνή· "Λάβετε τὸν ζυγόν μου ἐφ' ὑμᾶς, ὅτι ὁ ζυγός μου χρηστὸς, καὶ τὸ φορτίον μου ἐλαφρόν ἐστι." Καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ νόμος ζυγὸς ὑπὸ τῶν θείων ἀποστόλων προσηγορεύθη. Ὁ γὰρ θεσπέσιος Πέτρος περὶ τούτου φησὶν ἐν ταῖς Πράξεσι· "Τί πειράζετε τὸν Θεὸν ἐπιθεῖναι ζυγὸν ἐπὶ τὸν τράχηλον τῶν μαθη 80.877 τῶν, ὃν οὔτε οἱ πατέρες ἡμῶν, οὔτε ἡμεῖς ἰσχύ σαμεν βαστάσαι; ἀλλ' ἢ διὰ τῆς χάριτος τοῦ Κυρίου Ἰησοῦ πιστεύομεν σωθῆναι καθ' ὃν τρόπον κἀκεῖ νοι." Τούτοις ἔοικε καὶ τὰ προφητικὰ ῥήματα· "∆ιαῤῥήξωμεν τοὺς δεσμοὺς αὐτῶν, καὶ ἀποῤῥίψω μεν ἀφ' ἡμῶν τὸν ζυγὸν αὐτῶν·" τουτέστιν ἀποστή σωμεν τὴν ἑαυτῶν καρδίαν τοῦ ὑπ' αὐτοῖς εἶναι θέλειν· ἀποτιναξώμεθα τὸν τοῦ νόμον ζυγόν· μηδὲν ἡγώμεθα τὰ ἐν τύποις, εἰ μὴ νοοῖντο πνευματικῶς· ἀσυντελὴς καταλογιζέσθω πρὸς ὄνησιν ἡ σκιὰ, εἰ μὴ τοῦ Χριστοῦ μυστήριον ἐφ' ἑαυτῇ ζωγραφεῖ. δʹ. "Ὁ κατοικῶν ἐν οὐρανοῖς ἐκγελάσεται αὐ τοὺς, καὶ ὁ Κύριος