their hearts; and may their bows be broken. Just as the peace of the righteous returns to him; so may the sword of the impious enter his heart, if the upright in heart guards himself. Verse 10. A little for the righteous is better than the great wealth of sinners. The saying, then, has something immediately beneficial for the more simple; but it also has something said in a hidden manner for those who know how to hear Scripture more deeply. The simpler meaning, then, is this: Righteous and unrighteous make a living. But the one seek what is needful only insofar as it is righteous; and either they do not provide for themselves, or they do so without injustice, tingeing what is provided with righteousness. But the others are wholly inclined toward provision, so that they might acquire much, not seeking if they will acquire it well. Two things, then, being set before us, a little 17.132 gain with righteousness, and much with injustice; A little for the righteous is better than the great wealth of sinners. But let us also see the hidden meaning. It is better to be a faithful layman, not even able to open his mouth, than to be rich in spoken word and learning while in malice or unbelief. Verse 17. For the arms of sinners shall be broken; but the Lord supports the righteous. If you see the strength and the power of the impious man shattered, so that he is not able to stretch out his hand for a good deed (for it is shattered), you will see that it has been fulfilled: The arms of sinners shall be broken. And the one who shatters is the devil. Every man, however, is weak, and as far as it is in his own power, he falls down, and needs him who supports those who are falling, and raises up those who have been cast down. Verse 21. The sinner borrows, and will not repay; but the righteous one has mercy and gives. But on a higher level: When Paul teaches, or some other of the sacred mystagogues, the hearers borrow the approved money from the mouth of Paul. And the righteous one repays the interest, and says: You gave me one mina, behold I have made ten minas. You gave me five talents, behold I have ten. But the sinner wastes it all. It is not permitted to lend what is one's own, that is, to teach as the heretics do; but the approved money of God, as the one who says: Or do you seek proof of Christ speaking in me? The principal must be repaid with interest from one's way of life and deeds. If not, it is better not to have borrowed in the first place, especially things from the Lord's treasury, than to lose the king's money. Verse 22. For those who bless him shall inherit the earth; but those who curse him shall be utterly destroyed. This is similar to what was said to Abraham: I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse those who curse you. Therefore, if God is the one who has mercy and gives, those who glorify him for this, that is, who bless him, will be heirs of the land promised to the saints, and they will receive the good and great land, the one which is not a matter of a mere point and spot. But there is a danger of ultimate destruction in our placing a curse on the righteous one. For the Lord says to the righteous one: I will be an enemy to your enemies, and I will oppose your adversaries. And just as he says: You fed this one, you fed me; so it is consistent to say: You reviled this one, you reviled me. Those curse God who do not know him, and these, at times, again hurl sounds against his glory, to the point of not enduring to offer him thanks even for the good things they have received. The nations, then, bless Christ, for which reason they inherit the kingdom; but the Jews, blaspheming him, are destroyed in the end. 17.133 Verse 23. The steps of a man are directed by the Lord; and he will greatly delight in his way. As if of his own child, he says, God takes him by the hand, and leads him to a straight path, not allowing him to walk crookedly, nor indeed to make the tracks of his life curved; but to go straight for every good thing, both teaching and directing them, according to this: You have held my right hand, and by your counsel you have guided me. When, however, a man's steps are directed by the Lord, then he will delight in his way. Ambiguous is the

δίας αὐτῶν· καὶ τὰ τόξα αὐτῶν συντριβείη. Ὥσπερ δὲ ἡ εἰρήνη τοῦ δικαίου εἰς αὐτὸν ἀνακάμ πτει· οὕτως ἡ ῥομφαία τοῦ ἀσεβοῦς εἰσέλθοι εἰς καρδίαν αὐτοῦ, ἐὰν τηρῇ ἑαυτὸν ὁ εὐθὺς τῇ καρ δίᾳ. Στίχ. ιʹ. Κρεῖσσον ὀλίγον τῷ δικαίῳ ὑπὲρ πλοῦ τον ἁμαρτωλῶν πολύν. Ἔχει μὲν οὖν ἡ λέξις αὐτόθεν ὠφέλιμόν τι τοῖς ἀκεραιοτέροις· ἔχει δέ τι καὶ κεκρυμμένως εἰρημέ νον τοῖς βαθύτερον ἀκούειν τῆς Γραφῆς ἐπισταμέ νοις. Τὸ οὖν ἁπλούστερον τοιοῦτόν ἐστι· Βιοπορι στοῦσι δίκαιοι καὶ ἄδικοι. Ἀλλ' οἱ μὲν τοσοῦτον ζη τοῦσι τὸ τῆς χρείας, ὅσον τὸ τῆς δικαιοσύνης· καὶ ἢ οὐ πορίζουσιν, ἢ ἄνευ ἀδικίας, χρωννύντες τὸ πορι ζόμενον τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ. Οἱ δὲ ὅλως νενεύκασιν ἐπὶ τὸν πορισμὸν, ὅπως πολλὰ κτήσωσιν, οὐ ζητοῦντες εἰ καλῶς κτήσονται. ∆ύο οὖν προκειμένων, τοῦ τε ὀλί 17.132 γου λήμματος μετὰ δικαιοσύνης, καὶ τοῦ πολλοῦ μετὰ ἀδικίας· Κρεῖσσον ὀλίγον τῷ δικαίῳ ὑπὲρ πλοῦτον ἁμαρτωλῶν πολύν. Ἴδωμεν δὲ καὶ τὸ ἀνακεχωρηκός. Κρεῖσσόν ἐστι πιστὸν ἰδιώτην εἶναι, οὐδὲ ἀνοῖξαι τὸ στόμα δυνάμενον, ἢ πλουτεῖν τῷ λόγῳ προφορικῷ καὶ τοῖς μαθήμασιν ἐν κακίᾳ ἢ ἀπιστίᾳ. Στίχ. ιζʹ. Ὅτι βραχίονες ἁμαρτωλῶν συντριβή σονται· ὑποστηρίζει δὲ τοὺς δικαίους ὁ Κύ ριος. Ἐὰν ἴδῃς τὸν τόνον καὶ τὴν δύναμιν συντετριμμέ νην τοῦ ἀσεβοῦς, ὥστε μὴ δύνασθαι αὐτὸν ἐκτεῖναι τὴν χεῖρα ἐπὶ πρᾶξιν ἀγαθὴν (συντετριμμένη γάρ ἐστιν), ὄψει, ὅτι πεπλήρωται τό· Βραχίονες ἁμαρ τωλῶν συντριβήσονται. Ὁ δὲ συντρίβων, ὁ διάβο λός ἐστι. Πᾶς μέντοι ἄνθρωπος ἀσθενὴς, καὶ τὸ ὅσον ἐφ' ἑαυτῷ καταπίπτει, καὶ δέεται τοῦ ὑποστη ρίζοντος τοὺς καταπίπτοντας, καὶ ἀνορθοῦντος τοὺς κατεῤῥαγμένους. Στίχ. καʹ. ∆ανείζεται ὁ ἁμαρτωλὸς, καὶ οὐκ ἀποτί σει· ὁ δὲ δίκαιος οἰκτείρει καὶ δίδωσιν. Ὑψηλότερον δέ· Ὅταν διδάσκῃ Παῦλος, ἤ τις ἕτε ρος τῶν ἱερῶν μυσταγωγῶν, οἱ ἀκροαταὶ δανείζον ται τὸ δόκιμον ἀργύριον τῷ στόματι Παύλου. Καὶ ὁ μὲν δίκαιος ἀποδίδωσι τοὺς τόκους, καὶ λέγει· Μνᾶν μοι ἔδωκας, ἰδοὺ δέκα μνᾶς ἐποίησα. Πέντε τά λαντα ἔδωκας, ἰδοὺ ἔχω δέκα. Ὁ δὲ ἁμαρτωλὸς ἀναλίσκει πάντα. Οὐκ ἔξεστι δανείζειν τὰ ἑαυτοῦ, ἤτοι διδάσκειν ὡς οἱ αἱρετικοί· ἀλλὰ τὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀρ γύριον τὸ δόκιμον, ὡς ὁ λέγων· Ἢ δοκιμὴν ζητεῖτε τοῦ ἐν ἐμοὶ λαλοῦντος Χριστοῦ; Ἀποδοτέον δὲ μετὰ τόκου ἐκ πολιτείας καὶ πράξεως τὸ κεφάλαιον. Εἰ δὲ μὴ, κρεῖττόν ἐστι τὴν ἀρχὴν μὴ δανείσασθαι, μάλιστα τὰ τοῦ ταμείου τοῦ Κυριακοῦ, ἢ ἀπολέσαι τὰ τοῦ βασιλέως χρήματα. Στίχ. κβʹ. Ὅτι οἱ εὐλογοῦντες αὐτὸν κληρονομή σουσι γῆν· οἱ δὲ καταρώμενοι αὐτὸν ἐξολο θρευθήσονται. Ὅμοιον τῷ εἰρημένῳ πρὸς Ἀβραάμ· Τοὺς εὐλογοῦντάς σε εὐλογήσω, καὶ τοὺς καταρωμέ νους σε καταράσομαι. Οὐκοῦν, εἰ ὁ Θεὸς εἴη ὁ κατ οικτείρων καὶ διδοὺς, οἱ δοξολογοῦντες αὐτὸν διὰ τοῦτο, ἤγουν εὐλογοῦντες, ἔσονται κληρονόμοι τῆς ἐπηγγελμένης τοῖς ἁγίοις γῆς, καὶ λήψονται τὴν γῆν ἀγαθὴν καὶ τὴν πολλὴν, τὴν οὐ κέντρου καὶ σημείου λόγον ἔχουσαν. Κίνδυνος δὲ ἐν τῷ κατάραν ἡμᾶς τιθέναι τῷ δικαίῳ ὀλέθρου τοῦ ἐσχάτου. Λέγει γὰρ πρὸς τὸν δίκαιον ὁ Κύριος· Ἐχθρεύσω τοῖς ἐχθροῖς σου, καὶ ἀντιβήσομαι τοῖς ἀντικειμένοις σοι. Καὶ ὥσπερ λέγει· Τοῦτον ἔθρεψας, ἐμὲ ἔθρεψας· οὕτως ἀκόλουθον εἰπεῖν· Τοῦτον ἐλοιδόρησας, ἐμὲ ἐλοιδό ρησας. Καταρῶνται δὲ Θεὸν οἱ μὴ εἰδότες αὐτὸν, καὶ ταῦτα τῆς αὐτοῦ δόξης πάλιν φήμους ἔσθ' ὅτε ῥιπτοῦντες φωνὰς, πρὸς τὸ μηδὲ ἐφ' οἷς εὖ πε πόνθασιν ἀνέχεσθαι προσάγειν αὐτῷ τὰς εὐχαρι στίας. Χριστὸν μὲν οὖν εὐλογοῦσι τὰ ἔθνη, διὸ κλη ρονομοῦσι τὴν βασιλείαν· Ἰουδαῖοι δὲ, βλασφημοῦν τες αὐτὸν, εἰς τέλος ὀλοθρεύονται. 17.133 Στίχ. κγʹ. Παρὰ Κυρίου τὰ διαβήματα ἀνθρώπου κατευθύνεται· καὶ τὴν ὁδὸν αὐτοῦ θελήσει σφόδρα. Ὥσπερ ἰδίου παιδὸς, φησὶ, λαμβάνεται τῆς χει ρὸς ὁ Θεὸς, καὶ ἀποφέρει πρὸς ὁδὸν εὐθεῖαν, οὐκ ἀφιεὶς αὐτὸν σκολιοδρομεῖν, οὔτε μὴν καμπύλας ποιεῖσθαι τοῦ βίου τὰς τροχιάς· ἀλλ' εὐθὺ παντὸς ἰέναι πράγματος ἀγαθοῦ, διδάσκων τε καὶ ἀπευθύ νων αὐτοὺς, κατά γε τό· Ἐκράτησας τῆς χειρὸς τῆς δεξιᾶς μου, καὶ ἐν τῇ βουλῇ σου ὡδήγησάς με. Ὅταν μέντοι τοῦ ἀνθρώπου τὰ διαβήματα ὑπὸ Κυ ρίου κατευθυνθῇ, τότε τὴν ὁδὸν αὐτοῦ θελήσει. Ἀμφίβολος ἡ