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to read through the writing and to observe the man's facility. From which facility one will hear him often calling Solomon a prophet and naming the Proverbs prophecies; 1.2.26 just as, then, in the passages where he says, "For this reason the most holy prophet Solomon said 'to receive the turnings of words'," and again "'the sayings of the wise and their riddles'," he calls the proverb a prophecy, and again, "therefore it seems to me that this wisest prophet has also spoken the first words of the prophecy in a proverbial manner." 1.2.27 And a second and a third and many times, as I said, he does this, being ignorant that "there are diversities of gifts" even if it is "the same Spirit," and "to one is given the word of wisdom" according to the Apostle, "to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another pro1.2.28 phecy." Therefore Solomon, having received the gift of wisdom, is attested to, "For the Lord gave Solomon wisdom," as the Scripture says, "and he was wiser than all men"; and he shows through his own words that he had neither a prophetic life nor the character of prophecy, which is recognized from "thus says the Lord" and similar 1.2.29 expressions. But he, having seen none of these things, as if doing the man a favor, calls him a prophet, not understanding that the prophets "wandered about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented." And he says that his Proverbs are a prophecy, although the divine Scripture teaches this nowhere, while the wisest man himself with the divine Spirit gave to this book the name PROVERBS, to the other ECCLESIASTES, and to the third SONG OF 1.2.30 SONGS, not applying these titles without God or by human reasoning. But he also tries to interpret his God-inspired scripture through Greek examples, not having heard Paul the apostle saying, "Now we have received not the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." And ignoring these things, the noble man tries to set before us the meaning of the divine Proverbs from Greek readings, writing in this manner in these very words: 1.3.1 For it is not at all strange, I think, at present to remind you of a few of the proverbs from outside. EITHER HE IS DEAD OR HE IS TEACHING LETTERS. One might suppose this proverb, from its literal appearance, to be spoken against those who teach letters; since another of them also said, "you were teaching letters, and I was attending." But those who wrote the commentaries said that it is not so; but since the Sicilians, they say, having conquered the Athenians in war, saved only those who professed education, taking them as teachers for their children, and killed all the others, they said that some of them who had fled and returned, when asked by the Athenians about some who were of importance to them, said: EITHER HE IS DEAD, OR HE IS TEACHING LETTERS. 1.3.2 And what of THE GOAT THE KNIFE? One might think it was said—so that I might first set down the things said about it—surely because the goat being sacrificed looks at the knife. But the ancients did not say this at all; for what was said would not be a proverb if this were so, for this was a natural thing to understand from appearances, but they say this was said of those who bring evils upon themselves. For they say that Medea, having killed her children in Corinth, hid the knife there; and the Corinthians, sacrificing a black goat according to an oracle given to them, were at a loss for a knife, and the goat, digging with its foot the

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συγγράμματος ἀναλέγεσθαι καὶ τὸ εὐχερὲς τοῦ ἀνδρὸς ἐποπτεύειν. ἐξ ἧς εὐχερείας ἀκούσει αὐτοῦ τὸν Σολομῶνα προφήτην ἀποκαλοῦντος πολλάκις καὶ τὰς Παροιμίας προφητείας 1.2.26 ὀνομάζοντος· ὥσπερ οὖν ἐν οἷς φησιν τούτου γὰρ χάριν ὁ ἁγιώτατος προφήτης Σολομὼν «δέξασθαί τε στροφὰς λόγων» ἔφη, καὶ πάλιν «ῥήσεις τε σοφῶν καὶ αἰνίγματα» τὴν παροιμίαν προφητείαν ὀνομάζει, καὶ αὖθις διό μοι δοκεῖ ὁ σοφώτατος οὗτος προφήτης καὶ τὰ πρῶτα ῥήματα τῆς προφητείας παροιμιωδῶς εἰρηκέναι. 1.2.27 καὶ δεύτερον δὲ καὶ τρίτον καὶ πολλάκις, ὡς ἔφην, τοῦτο ποιεῖ, ἀγνοῶν ὅτι «διαιρέσεις χαρισμάτων εἰσὶν» εἰ καὶ τὸ «αὐτὸ πνεῦμα», καὶ ἄλλῳ μὲν «δίδοται λόγος σοφίας» κατὰ τὸν ἀπόστολον, «ἄλλῳ λόγος γνώσεως κατὰ τὸ αὐτὸ πνεῦμα, ἑτέρῳ πίστις ἐν τῷ αὐτῷ πνεύματι, ἄλλῳ προ1.2.28 φητεία». διόπερ ὁ Σολομὼν σοφίας μὲν εἰληφὼς χάρισμα μεμαρτύρηται «καὶ ἔδωκεν γὰρ κύριος τῷ Σολομῶνι σοφίαν», ὡς ἡ γραφή φησιν, «καὶ ἐσοφίσθη ὑπὲρ πάντας ἀνθρώπους»· οὔτε δὲ τὸν βίον προφητικὸν ἐσχηκὼς οὔτε τὸν τῆς προφητείας χαρακτῆρα, τὸν ἀπὸ τοῦ «τάδε λέγει κύριος» τῶν τε ὁμοιοτρόπων γνωριζόμενον, διὰ τῶν 1.2.29 οἰκείων ἐμφαίνει λόγων. ὁ δὲ τούτων οὐδὲν ἰδών, ὥσπερ τι χαριζόμενος τῷ ἀνδρὶ προφήτην αὐτὸν καλεῖ, οὐ συνιεὶς ὅτι οἱ προφῆται «περιῆλθον ἐν μηλωταῖς, ἐν αἰγείοις δέρμασιν, ὑστερούμενοι, θλιβόμενοι, κακουχούμενοι». καὶ τὰς Παροιμίας δὲ αὐτοῦ προφητείαν εἶναι λέγει, εἰ μηδαμοῦ τῆς θείας γραφῆς διδασκούσης, αὐτοῦ δὲ τοῦ σοφωτάτου σὺν θείῳ πνεύματι ταύτῃ μὲν τῇ βίβλῳ ΠΑΡΟΙΜΙΑΙ ὄνομα θέντος, τῇ δὲ ἑτέρᾳ ΕΚΚΛΗΣΙΑΣΤΗΣ καὶ τῇ τρίτῃ ΑΙΣ1.2.30 ΜΑΤΑ ΑΙΣΜΑΤΩΝ, οὐκ ἀθεεὶ οὐδ' ἀνθρωπίνῳ λογισμῷ ταύταις ἐπιβάλλοντος ταῖς ἐπηγορίαις. ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὴν τὴν θεόπνευστον αὐτοῦ γραφὴν δι' Ἑλληνικῶν πειρᾶται παραδειγμάτων ἑρμηνεύειν, οὐκ ἐπακούσας Παύλου τοῦ ἀποστόλου λέγοντος «ἡμεῖς δὲ οὐ τὸ πνεῦμα τοῦ κόσμου ἐλάβομεν ἀλλὰ τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἐκ τοῦ θεοῦ, ἵνα ἴδωμεν τὰ ὑπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ χαρισθέντα ἡμῖν· ἃ καὶ λαλοῦμεν οὐκ ἐν διδακτοῖς ἀνθρωπίνης σοφίας λόγοις, ἀλλ' ἐν διδακτοῖς πνεύματος ἁγίου, πνευματικὰ πνευματικοῖς συγκρίνοντες. ψυχικὸς δὲ ἄνθρωπος οὐ δέχεται τὰ τοῦ πνεύματος τοῦ θεοῦ· μωρία γὰρ αὐτῷ ἐστιν, καὶ οὐ δύναται γνῶναι, ὅτι πνευματικῶς ἀνακρίνεται». καὶ ταῦτα δὲ ἀγνοήσας ὁ γενναῖος πειρᾶται ἡμῖν ἐξ Ἑλληνικῶν ἀναγνωσμάτων τὴν τῶν θείων Παροιμιῶν διάνοιαν παρατιθέναι, τοῦτον γράφων αὐτοῖς ῥήμασιν τὸν τρόπον 1.3.1 Οὐδὲν γὰρ ἄτοπον, οἶμαι, ἐν τῷ παρόντι ὀλίγον τῶν ἔξωθεν ὑπομνῆσαί σε παροιμιῶν. ΑΛΛ' Η ΤΕΘΝΗΚΕΝ Η ∆Ι∆ΑΣΚΕΙ ΓΡΑΜΜΑΤΑ. ταύτην τὴν παροιμίαν πρὸς μὲν τὸ φαινόμενον τοῦ γράμματος ὑπολάβοι ἄν τις κατὰ τῶν γράμματα διδασκόντων εἰρῆσθαι· ἐπεὶ καὶ ἕτερός τις τῶν παρ' αὐτοῖς «ἐδίδασκες γράμματα, ἐγὼ δ' ἐφοίτων» ἔφη. τὸ δ' οὐχ οὕτως ἔχειν οἱ τὰ ὑπομνήματα γράψαντες ἔφασαν· ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ Ἀθηναίους Σικελιῶται, φασίν, πολέμῳ νικήσαντες μόνους ἔσωζον τοὺς παιδείαν σκηπτομένους, διδασκάλους αὐτοὺς τοῖς παισὶν ἄγοντες, τοὺς δὲ ἄλλους πάντας ἐφόνευον, ἐξ αὐτῶν δή τινας φυγόντας καὶ ἐπανελθόντας ἐρωτωμένους τε ὑπὸ Ἀθηναίων περί τινων διαφερόντων αὐτοῖς ἔφασαν εἰρηκέναι ΑΛΛ' Η ΤΕ ΘΝΗΚΕΝ, Η ∆Ι∆ΑΣΚΕΙ ΓΡΑΜΜΑΤΑ. 1.3.2 τί δὲ καὶ τὸ ΑΙΞ ΤΗΝ ΜΑΧΑΙΡΑΝ; νομίσειεν ἄν τις εἰρῆσθαι, ἵνα θῶ πρότερον τὰ περὶ αὐτῆς λεγόμενα, πάντως που διὰ τὸ τὴν θυομένην αἶγα εἰς τὴν μάχαιραν ἀφορᾶν εἰρῆσθαι τὴν παροιμίαν. ἀλλ' οὔτι γε τοῦτ' ἔφασαν οἱ παλαιοί· οὐδὲ γὰρ παροιμία ἦν ἂν ἡ λεχθεῖσα, εἴγε τοῦθ' οὕτως εἶχεν τοῦτο γὰρ ἀκόλουθον ἦν ἐκ τῶν φαινομένων ἐννοεῖν, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ τῶν ἑαυτοῖς κακὰ προξενούντων εἰρῆσθαι τοῦτό φασιν. φασὶν γὰρ Μήδειαν ἐν Κορίνθῳ τὰ τέκνα ἀποκτείνασαν κατακρύψαι τὴν μάχαιραν αὐτόθι· τοὺς δὲ Κορινθίους κατὰ χρησμὸν αὐτοῖς δοθέντα αἶγα μέλαιναν ἐναγίζοντας ἀπορεῖν μαχαίρας, τὴν δὲ αἶγα σκάλλουσαν τῷ ποδὶ τὴν