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that in him nations shall be blessed, and in him they shall praise God in Jerusalem; for when these were devout, many of their neighbors learned piety. From here he transfers the discourse from Israel to Judah, and says: 3. Break up your fallow ground, and do not sow among thorns. Cultivate, he says, your souls; uproot the memory of the idols. For he calls these things thorns. 4. Be circumcised to your God. Then he teaches what kind of circumcision is God's. "And circumcise 81.528 the foreskin of your heart, men of Judah, and inhabitants of Jerusalem." He taught clearly that the visible circumcision is a type of the hidden one, and that when the inner one exists, that of the body is superfluous. Starting from this, the divine Apostle wrote to the Romans: "For a Jew is not one who is so outwardly, nor is circumcision something outward in the flesh, but a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God." For he had heard God saying through the prophet: "Be circumcised to your God, and circumcise the foreskin of your heart, men of Judah, and inhabitants of Jerusalem; lest my wrath go forth like fire, and burn with none to quench it, because of the evil of your deeds." For you alone can quench it by repenting; but if you do not use repentance, no one is able to deliver from punishment. And terrifying them, he exhorts to tell Jerusalem and every tribe of Judah to blow the trumpet and signal to all the attack of the enemies, so that they may flee to the fortified cities, and especially to Sion, as it is more fortified; and he urges them on, saying: 6. Make haste, do not stand still, for I am bringing evil from the north, and great destruction. And he says these things more parabolically; and he calls Nebuchadnezzar a lion, and Babylon a sheepfold; and that this one, setting out from there, would burn the cities and ravage the lands. 8. For this reason, gird yourselves with sackcloth, and lament, and wail, for the fierce anger of the Lord has not turned back from you. He also foretells the cowardice of the king, both of Jehoiakim, and of Jeconiah after him, and lastly of Zedekiah. He also foretells the fear of the rulers and priests. And after this, the prophet says to the Master: 10. Surely you have utterly deceived this people of God and Jerusalem, saying, 'It shall be peace,' and behold, the sword has reached to their very souls? The prophet did not truly say these things, but since the false prophets were promising peace, saying that God promised this, refuting their falsehood, he used these words. 11. At that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, like a spirit of error in the desert, a way of the daughter of my people, not for cleansing, nor for holiness. 81.529 12. A spirit of fulfillment from these will come to me. Through experience itself, he says, they will learn at the time of the calamities that it was a spirit of error that was speaking through the false prophets, not clean, nor holy, nor a spirit of fulfillment, that is, not completing the Trinity; from which these present evils came to me. "But now I will speak my judgments to them." That is, the calamities which I will justly bring upon them. And he enumerates these, comparing the chariots to a cloud and a storm, and the swiftness of the horses to eagles. He also foretells the coming lamentation: "Woe to us, for we are ruined." And after this he advises to reap salvation through repentance. 14. For wash, he says, your heart from wickedness, Jerusalem, that you may be saved; how long will your evil thoughts lodge within you? For the wickedness of your thoughts has become the cause of these evils for you. 15. Because a voice of one announcing will come from Dan, and tribulation will be heard from Mount Ephraim. Dan, which is now

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ὡς εὐλογήσουσιν ἐν αὐτῷ ἔθνη, καὶ ἐν αὐτῷ αἰνέσουσι τῷ Θεῷ ἐν Ἱερουσαλήμ· τούτων γὰρ εὐσεβούντων, πολλοὶ τῶν πλησιοχώρων μετεμάνθανον τὴν εὐσέβειαν. Ἐντεῦθεν ἀπὸ τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ ἐπὶ τὸν Ἰούδα μεταφέρειτὸν λόγον, καί φησι· γʹ. Νεώσατε ἑαυτοῖς νεώματα, καὶ μὴ σπεί ρητε ἐπ' ἀκάνθαις. Γεωργήσατε, φησὶ, τὰς ὑμετέ ρας ψυχάς· πρόῤῥιζον ἀνασπάσατε τῶν εἰδώλων τὴν μνήμην. Ταῦτα γὰρ ἀκάνθας καλεῖ. δʹ. Περιτμήθητε τῷ Θεῷ ὑμῶν. Εἶτα διδάσκει ὁποία τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡ περιτομή. "Καὶ περιτέμνεσθε 81.528 τὴν ἀκροβυστίαν τῆς καρδίας ὑμῶν, ἄνδρες Ἰούδα, καὶ οἱ κατοικοῦντες Ἱερουσαλήμ." Σαφῶς ἐδίδαξεν ὡς ἡ φαινομένη περιτομὴ τύπος τῆς κεκρυμμένης, καὶ ὅτι τῆς ἔνδον οὔσης περιττὴ ἡ τοῦ σώματος. Ἐντεῦθεν ὁρμώμενος ὁ θεῖος Ἀπόστολος Ῥωμαίοιςγέγραφεν· "Οὐ γὰρ ὁ ἐν τῷ φανερῷ Ἰουδαῖός ἐστιν, οὐδὲ ἡ ἐν τῷ φανερῷ, ἐν σαρκὶ, περιτομὴ, ἀλλ' ἐν τῷ κρυπτῷ Ἰουδαῖος, καὶ περιτομὴ καρδίας ἐν πνεύ ματι, οὐ γράμματι, οὗ ὁ ἔπαινος οὐκ ἐξ ἀνθρώπων, ἀλλ' ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ." Ἤκουσε γὰρ τοῦ Θεοῦ διὰ τοῦ προφήτου λέγοντος· "Περιτμήθητε τῷ Θεῷ ὑμῶν, καὶ περιτέμνεσθε τὴν ἀκροβυστίαν τῆς καρδίας ὑμῶν, ἄνδρες Ἰούδα, καὶ οἱ κατοικοῦντες Ἱερουσαλήμ· μήποτε ἐξέλθῃ ὡς πῦρ ὁ θυμός μου, καὶ ἐκκαυθήσε ται, καὶ οὐκ ἔσται ὁ σβέσων ἀπὸ προσώπου πονηρίας ἐπιτηδευμάτων ὑμῶν." Ὑμεῖς γὰρ μόνοι δύνασθε σβέσαι μεταμελούμενοι· ὑμῶν δὲ μεταμελείᾳ μὴ κεχρημένων, οὐδεὶς ἱκανὸς ἀπαλλάξαι τῆς τιμωρίας. ∆εδιττόμενος δὲ αὐτοὺς παρακελεύεται εἰπεῖν τῇ Ἱερουσαλὴμ, καὶ πάσῃ τῇ Ἰουδαίᾳ φυλῇ, ὥστε σαλπίσαι, καὶ σημᾶναι πᾶσι τῶν πολεμίων τὴν προσ βολὴν, ἵνα εἰς τὰς τετειχισμένας καταφύγωσι πόλεις, διαφερόντως δὲ εἰς Σιὼν, ὡς ὀχυρωτέραν· καὶ κατ επείγει, λέγων· ϛʹ. Σπεύσατε, μὴ στῆτε, ὅτι κακὰ ἐγὼ ἐπάγω ἀπὸ βοῤῥᾶ, καὶ συντριβὴν μεγάλην. Λέγει δὲ ταῦτα παραβολικώτερον· καὶ καλεῖ λέοντα τὸν Να βουχοδονόσορ, μάνδραν δὲ τὴν Βαβυλῶνα· ἐκεῖθεν δὲ τοῦτον ὁρμῶντα, καὶ τὰς πόλεις ἐμπρῆσαι, καὶ τὰς χώρας δῃῶσαι. ηʹ. Τούτου δὴ χάριν, περιζώσασθε σάκκους, καὶ κόπτεσθε, καὶ ὀλολύξατε, ὅτι οὐκ ἀπεστράφη ὁ θυμὸς τῆς ὀργῆς Κυρίου ἀφ' ὑμῶν. Προλέγει δὲ καὶ τὴν τοῦ βασιλέως δειλίαν, τοῦ τε Ἰωακεὶμ, καὶ τοῦ Ἰεχωνίου μετ' ἐκεῖνον, καὶ τελευταίου τοῦ Σεδεκίου. Προλέγει καὶ τῶν ἀρχόντων καὶ ἱερέων τὸ δέος. Καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα πρὸς τὸν ∆εσπότην ὁ προφή της φησί· ιʹ. Ἆρά γε ἀπατῶν ἠπάτησας τὸν λαὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ τὴν Ἱερουσαλὴμ, λέγων, Εἰρήνη ἔσται, καὶ ἰδοὺ ἥψατο ἡ μάχαιρα ἕως τῶν ψυχῶν αὐ τῶν; Ταῦτα οὐκ ἀληθῶς ὁ προφήτης ἔφη, ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ οἱ ψευδοπροφῆται εἰρήνην ὑπισχνοῦντο, τὸν Θεὸν ταύτην ἐπαγγέλλεσθαι λέγοντες, τὴν ἐκείνων ἐλέγχων ψευδολογίαν, τούτοις τοῖς λόγοις ἐχρήσατο ιαʹ. Ἐν τῷ καιρῷ ἐκείνῳ ἐροῦσι τῷ λαῷ τούτῳ, καὶ τῇ Ἱερουσαλὴμ, ὡς πνεῦμα πλανήσεως ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ, ὁδὸς τῆς θυγατρὸς τοῦ λαοῦ μου οὐκ εἰς καθαρὸν, οὐδὲ εἰς ἅγιον. 81.529 ιβʹ. Πνεῦμα πληρώσεως ἀπὸ τούτων ἥξει μοι. ∆ι' αὐτῆς, φησὶ, μαθήσονται τῆς πείρας, κατὰ τὸν καιρὸν τῶν συμφορῶν, ὡς πνεῦμα πλανή σεως ἦν τὸ διὰ τῶν ψευδοπροφητῶν φθεγγόμενον, οὐ καθαρὸν, οὐδὲ ἅγιον, οὐδὲ πνεῦμα πληρώσεως, ἀντὶ τοῦ, οὐ συμπληρωτικὸν τῆς Τριάδος· ἀφ' ὧν ἦλθέ μοι τὰ παρόντα κακά. "Νῦν δὲ ἐγὼ λαλήσω κρίματά μου πρὸς αὐτούς." Τουτέστιν, Ἃς δικαίως αὐτοῖς ἐπάξω συμφοράς. Καὶ καταλέγει ταύτας, νεφέλῃ μὲν ἀπεικάζων καὶ καταιγίδι τὰ ἅρματα, ἀετοῖς δὲ τὴν τῶν ἵππων ὀξύτητα. Προλέγει καὶ τὸν ἐσόμενον θρῆνον· "Οὐαὶ ἡμῖν, ὅτι ταλαιπωροῦμεν." Καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα συμβουλεύει τῇ μεταμελείᾳ τὴν σω τηρίαν καρπώσασθαι. ιδʹ. Ἀπόπλυνε γὰρ, φησὶ, ἀπὸ κακίας τὴν καρ δίαν σου, Ἱερουσαλὴμ, ἵνα σωθῇς· ἕως πότε ὑπάρχουσιν ἐν σοὶ διαλογισμοὶ πονηροί σου; Ἡ γὰρ τῶν λογισμῶν πονηρία τούτων σοι τῶν κακῶν γεγένηται πρόξενος. ιεʹ. ∆ιότι φωνὴ ἀναγγέλλοντος ἐκ ∆ὰν ἥξει, καὶ ἀκουσθήσεται πόνος ἐξ ὄρους Ἐφραΐμ. ∆ὰν ἡ νῦν