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For he bears our sins and suffers for us. And he has made redemption for his people, according to Zechariah; and according to the holy Virgin, He has helped Israel.

24.25 PSALM 130.

Consequently, the present song and the one before it of the one perfected in the Lord

containing voices of humility, and especially of the one who is able to say: For your name's sake I have waited for you, O Lord. And David, having naturally learned from the voices of the Holy Spirit, that there is a propitiation with God, and with him plentiful redemption if one would believe, necessarily offers himself to the Redeemer; wherefore it is also inscribed: Of David, for the renunciation of faults, who recounts his own virtuous deeds. For I was never, he says, lifted up as a ruler over his nation; nor indeed was I made conceited by looking outside of God, and letting down my guard with respect to his fear; nor again did I live my life richly in luxury; nor did I think anything greater, he says, about myself, than the things belonging to me; such as are those who are prudent in their own sight, and knowledgeable before themselves. Let Israel hope in the Lord. Just as I, says King David, being so great and such a man, made myself humble, and brought myself to the propitiation and to the Redeemer and Savior, so also I proclaim to the rest of Israel to approach the propitiation with confidence; knowing precisely that he himself will redeem Israel, if it runs to him, from all its iniquities.

PSALM 131.

The Lord swore truth to David. And to David who had sworn, swore in return the

God, to him who sought to learn the place, giving freely that it should also proceed from him; so that by two unchangeable things, as Paul says, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have strong encouragement concerning the things for which he prayed. Of the fruit of your womb I will set upon your throne. Since you, he says, having so believed, prayed to know such things, wishing to learn about the place of the Savior's arrival among men, receive then yourself the promise, and become a minister of the saving birth. For the one who will be born shall be your fruit, proceeding from your succession and from your seed; wherefore also a throne as promised will be given to him, because no other than the one proceeding from you is worthy of the throne promised to you. Therefore Gabriel also says to Mary: And God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever. If your sons will keep my covenant. They will sit upon it, that is, upon the throne of Christ, his disciples and successors; yet there is no envy also for your sons, O David, that is, those of the circumcision, if they should accept Christ, and if they should keep my covenant and my testimonies, not those given through the first law, but these which I will teach them, which are to be delivered to them sometime later through the new covenant; for if 24.28 they should keep these things, they too shall be seated upon your throne which has been prepared for Christ. Blessing I will bless her prey, I will satisfy her poor with bread. And according to the anagogical sense, the prey of Zion are those who like fish through

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οὗτος γὰρ τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἡμῶν φέρει καὶ περὶ ἡμῶν ὀδυνᾶται. Ἐποίησε δὲ καὶ λύτρωσιν τῷ λαῷ αὐτοῦ, κατὰ τὸν Ζαχαρίαν· καὶ κατὰ τὴν ἁγίαν Παρθένον, Ἀντελάβετο Ἰσραήλ.

24.25 ΨΑΛΜΟΣ ΡΛʹ.

Ἀκολούθως ἡ ᾠδὴ ἡ παροῦσα καὶ ἡ πρὸ αὐτῆς τοῦ ἐν Κυρίῳ τετελειωμένου

ταπεινοφροσύνης φωνὰς περιέχουσα, καὶ μάλιστα τοῦ δυναμένου λέγειν· Ἕνεκεν τοῦ ὀνόματός σου ὑπέμεινά σε, Κύριε. Ὁ δὲ ∆αυῒδ ὡς εἰκὸς μεμαθηκὼς ἀπὸ τῶν τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος φωνῶν, ὅτι τις ἱλασμὸς παρὰ τῷ Θεῷ, καὶ πολλὴ παρ' αὐτῷ λύτρωσις εἰ πιστεύσειεν, ἀναγκαίως ἑαυτὸν προσφέρει τῷ Λυτρωτῇ· διὸ καὶ ἐπιγέγραπται· Τοῦ ∆αυῒδ εἰς παραίτησιν πλημμελημάτων, τὰς ἰδίας ἐξαριθμοῦντος ἀνδραγαθίας. Οὐ πώποτε γὰρ, φησὶν, ἐπήρθην καθὼς ἄρχων ἐπ' ἔθνος αὐτοῦ· οὔτε μὴν ἐχαυνώθην βλέψας ἔξω Θεοῦ, καὶ τῆς πρὸς τὸν αὐτοῦ φόβον συστάσεως καθυφείς· οὔτε πάλιν ἐν τρυφῇ πλουσίως διεξῆγον τὸν βίον· οὐδέ τι μεῖζον ἐφρόνησα, φησὶ, περὶ ἐμαυτοῦ, τῶν προσόντων ἐμοί· ὁποῖοί τινές εἰσιν οἱ συνετοὶ παρ' ἑαυτοῖς, καὶ ἐνώπιον αὐτῶν ἐπιστήμονες. Ἐλπισάτω Ἰσραὴλ ἐπὶ τὸν Κύριον Ὥσπερ ἐγὼ, φησὶν ὁ βασιλεὺς ∆αυῒδ, τοσοῦτος ὢν καὶ τοιοῦτος ἀνὴρ, ταπεινὸν ἐμαυτὸν κατέστησα, καὶ προσήγαγον ἐμαυτὸν τῷ ἱλασμῷ καὶ τῷ Λυτρωτῇ καὶ Σωτῆρι, οὕτως καὶ τῷ λοιπῷ Ἰσραὴλ ἐπαγγέλλομαι θαρσούντως προσιέναι τῷ ἱλασμῷ· ἀκριβῶς εἰδὼς, ὅτι αὐτὸς λυτρώσεται τὸν Ἰσραὴλ, εἰ προσδράμοι αὐτῷ, ἐκ πασῶν τῶν ἀνομιῶν αὐτοῦ.

ΨΑΛΜΟΣ ΡΛΑʹ.

Ὤμοσε Κύριος τῷ ∆αυῒδ ἀλήθειαν. Ὀμωμοκότι δὲ τῷ ∆αυῒδ, ἀντώμοσεν ὁ

Θεὸς ζητήσαντι τὸν τόπον μαθεῖν, δωρεὰν δοὺς τὸ καὶ ἐξ αὐτοῦ προελθεῖν· Ἵνα διὰ δύο πραγμάτων ἀμεταθέτων, ὡς ὁ Παῦλός φησιν, ἐν οἷς ἀδύνατον ψεύσασθαι τὸν Θεὸν, ἰσχυρὰν παράκλησιν, περὶ ὧν ηὔξατο, λάβωμεν. Ἐκ καρποῦ τῆς κοιλίας σου θήσομαι ἐπὶ τοῦ θρόνου σου. Ἐπειδὴ σὺ, φησὶν, οὕτω πιστεύσας τοιαῦτα ηὔξω γνῶναι, βουλόμενος μαθεῖν περὶ τοῦ τόπου τῆς εἰς ἀνθρώπους ἀφίξεως τοῦ Σωτῆρος, δέχου δὴ καὶ αὐτὸς τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν, καὶ γίνου διάκονος τῆς σωτηρίου γενέσεως. Σὸς γὰρ ἔσται καρπὸς ὁ γενησόμενος, ἐκ σῆς διαδοχῆς καὶ ἐκ σοῦ σπέρματος προελευσόμενος· διὸ καὶ αὐτῷ δοθήσεται ὡσεὶ ἐπηγγελμένος θρόνος, διὰ τὸ μηδένα ἕτερον ἢ μόνον τὸν ἐκ σοῦ προελευσόμενον, ἄξιον εἶναι τοῦ σοὶ ἐπηγγελμένου θρόνου. Τοιγαροῦν καὶ ὁ Γαβριὴλ πρὸς τὴν Μαριάμ φησι· Καὶ δώσει αὐτῷ ὁ Θεὸς τὸν θρόνον ∆αυῒδ τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ, καὶ βασιλεύσει ἐπὶ τὸν οἶκον Ἰακὼβ εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα. Ἐὰν φυλάξωνται οἱ υἱοί σου τὴν διαθήκην μου. Καθεσθήσονται ἐπ' αὐτὸν δηλαδὴ τὸν τοῦ Χριστοῦ θρόνον οἱ αὐτοῦ μαθηταὶ καὶ διάδοχοι· πλὴν οὐδεὶς φθόνος καὶ τοῖς σοῖς υἱοῖς, ὦ ∆αυῒδ, τουτέστι τοῖς ἐκ περιτομῆς, καὶ εἰ παραδέξοιντο τὸν Χριστὸν, καὶ εἰ φυλάξοιντο τὴν διαθήκην μου καὶ τὰ μαρτύριά μου, οὐ τὰ διὰ τῆς πρώτης νομοθεσίας δεδομένα, ἀλλὰ ταῦτα ἃ διδάξω αὐτοὺς, μέλλοντα αὐτοῖς ὕστερόν ποτε παραδοθήσεσθαι διὰ τῆς καινῆς διαθήκης· εἰ γὰρ 24.28 φυλάξοιντο ταῦτα, καὶ αὐτοὶ καθευδοῦνται ἐπὶ τὸν θρόνον σου τὸν τῷ Χριστῷ ἡτοιμασμένον. Τὴν θήραν αὐτῆς εὐλογῶν εὐλογήσω, τοὺς πτωχοὺς αὐτῆς χορτάσω ἄρτων. Κατὰ δὲ ἀναγωγὴν, θήρα Σιὼν οἱ δίκην ἰχθύων διὰ