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Having travailed with lawlessness, he conceived trouble in order to give birth to injustice. These offspring cause destruction for the one who conceived them, who will be punished for the lawlessness and injustice which he committed, for which he will fittingly conceive also trouble in punishment, or trouble in sinning. For the working of lawlessness is most heavy and burdensome, compared to a talent of lead; for nothing is more prone to sink than wickedness, which always carries down the one who is formed according to it. It has been said by some that, on account of the disorder of wickedness, travail is mentioned before conception. For in the case of pregnant women, travail comes after conception, after which is birth, but here travail is named before conception, because nothing in wickedness has sequence and order. And it is well that lawlessness is placed before injustice. For from this, one having become lawless is no longer under the law of righteousness, so that he then proceeds also against other men to do them injustice. This is found especially in the case of Cain; for having first become lawless by not rightly dividing what he ought to sacrifice to God, he later also brought forth injustice by murderously attacking his brother. But these words are most especially suited to the devil, being the originator of evil, because he acted lawlessly and unjustly before all others. And everyone who sins harms first himself, then another or others; for since evil is damaging and harmful, before all others it damages and harms the one who partakes of it; For a man's folly ruins his ways, whence it is fittingly said, 'Evils shall pursue sinners.' And what is the pit which the one being rebuked dug, but the wickedness which he did? For it is written concerning a sinning soul, 'As a pit cools water, so her wickedness cools.' And a pit in many places of scripture is taken for wickedness, as in, 'If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit;' for here too we must understand teachers and disciples who are blind from ignorance and other wickedness.

46 Ps 7,18 Having begun the psalm by hoping in the Lord his God, he concludes in thanksgiving, as is fitting, having obtained what was asked for or faithfully expecting it; for 'I will give thanks' here indicates thanksgiving; wherefore 'I will sing praise' is also joined to it. And he gives thanks not in any random way, but 'According to the righteousness of God'; and he sings praise not incidentally, but 'To the name of the Lord Most High', as one who has already had it invoked for himself. Therefore he is also high in holiness and virtue; for no one who is lowly, but only he who is lifted up for the sake of piety, has partaken of the name of the Most High.

47Ps 8,1 For the life of each person is called a vineyard according to the scriptures.

Concerning such a one, Naboth the just resisted the one who was demanding tyrannically, choosing to die rather than to give his vineyard to the one wanting to make it a garden of herbs. For the man was great-souled and the vineyard much-contended for, being the best life, at once practical and contemplative. The wicked wish to take this not in order to bear fruit according to it, but to drag it down to temporary and quickly-fading things, fittingly called herbs; for it says, 'Like herbs they will quickly fall away.' This has been said concerning those who have temporary pursuits. Similar to this vineyard are also those named in the Song of Songs in the passage, 'The sons of my mother fought against me, they made me a keeper in the vineyards; my own vineyard I have not kept.' But we have now taken this saying only for the sake of showing that the name of vineyard signifies a life. He who bears fruit according to such a vineyard bears clusters of truth and grapes. It is fitting to pick the produce of the vine that is thus ready to be harvested and to carry it to the winepresses, so that, having been pressed, they may make wine that gladdens the heart of man. And since life happens to be practical and contemplative, some, the theorems of truth,

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ὠδινήσας ἀνομίαν συνέλαβεν πόνον ἐπὶ τῷ τεκεῖν ἀδικίαν. ταῦτα τὰ γεννήματα ολεθρον τῷ κυήσαντι προξενεῖ, κολασθησομένῳ δι' ἀνομίαν καὶ ἀδικίαν α ἐποίησεν, οις καταλλήλως καὶ πόνον τὸν ἐν τῇ κολάσει συλλήψεται η πόνον τὸν ἐπὶ τῷ ἁμαρτάνειν. βαρυτάτη γὰρ καὶ ἐπαχθὴς ἡ τῆς ἀνομίας ἐργασία, παραβαλλομένη ταλάντῳ μολίβου· οὐδὲν γὰρ κατωφερέστερον τῆς κακίας ἀεὶ κάτω φερούσης τὸν κατ' αὐτὴν ποιωθέντα. Ειρηταί τισιν ὡς, διὰ τὸ ατακτον τῆς κακίας, πρὸ τῆς συλλήψεως τῆς ὠδινήσεως λεχθείσης. ἐπὶ γὰρ τῶν κυουσῶν μετὰ τὴν σύλληψιν ἡ ὠδὶν μεθ' ην τὸ τεκεῖν, ἐνταῦθα δὲ πρὸ τῆς συλλήψεως ἡ ὠδὶν ὠνόμασται τῷ μηδὲν τῶν ἐν κακίᾳ εἱρμὸν καὶ τάξιν εχειν. ευ δὲ καὶ τὸ προτετάχθαι τῆς ἀδικίας τὴν ἀνομίαν. ἐκ ταύτης γὰρ ανομος γεγονώς τις, οὐκ ετι ὑπὸ τὸν νόμον ἐστὶν τῆς δικαιοσύνης, ὡς λοιπὸν καὶ κατὰ τῶν αλλων ἀνθρώπων ἐπιτίθεσθαι ἐπὶ τῷ ἀδικεῖν αὐτούς. εὑρίσκεται τοῦτο μάλιστα περὶ τὸν Κάϊν· πρότερον γὰρ ανομος γεγονὼς τῷ μὴ ὀρθῶς διαιρεῖν α εδει θεῷ θύειν, υστερον καὶ ἀδικίαν ετεκεν φονικῶς ἐπιθέμενος τῷ ἀδελφῷ. μάλιστα δὲ τῷ διαβόλῳ προσοικειοῦνται αἱ φωναὶ αυται ἀρχεκάκῳ οντι διὰ τὸ πρὸ πάντων ἠνομηκέναι καὶ ἠδικηκέναι. καὶ πᾶς δὲ ἁμαρτάνων πρῶτον ἑαυτόν, ειτα αλλον η αλλους βλάπτει· ἐπιζήμιον γὰρ καὶ βλαπτικὸν ον τὸ κακόν, πρὸ πάντων τὸν μετέχοντα αὐτὸν ζημιοῖ καὶ βλάπτει· ̓Αφροσύνη γὰρ ἀνδρὸς λυμαίνεται τὰς ὁδοὺς αὐτοῦ, οθεν προσφυῶς ειρηται τὸ ̔Αμαρτάνοντας καταδιώξεται κακά. Τίς δὲ ὁ λάκκος ον ωρυξεν ὁ ψεγόμενος η ην ἐποίησεν κακίαν; γέγραπται γὰρ περὶ ἁμαρτανούσης ψυχῆς ̔Ως ψύχει λάκκος υδωρ, ουτως ψύχει κακία αὐτῆς. βόθρος δὲ πολλαχοῦ τῆς γραφῆς ἀντὶ κακίας λαμβάνεται ὡς τὸ Τυφλὸς τυφλὸν ἐὰν ὁδηγεῖ, ἀμφότεροι ἐμπεσοῦνται εἰς βόθρον· καὶ ἐνταῦθα γὰρ τοὺς ὑπ' ἀγνοίας καὶ αλλης κακίας τυφλοὺς διδασκάλους καὶ μαθητὰς ἐκληπτέον. 46 Ps 7,18 ̓Απὸ τοῦ ἐλπίζειν ἐπὶ κύριον τὸν θεὸν αὐτοῦ ἀρξάμενος τοῦ ψαλμοῦ, εἰς εὐχαριστίαν καταπαύει, ὡς εἰκός, τυχὼν τῶν αἰτηθέντων η πιστῶς προσδοκῶν αὐτά· εὐχαριστίαν γὰρ δηλοῖ ἐνταῦθα τὸ ̓Εξομολογήσομαι· διὸ καὶ συνέζευκται αὐτῷ τὸ Ψαλῶ. ἐξομολογεῖται δὲ οὐχ ὡς ετυχεν, ἀλλὰ Κατὰ τὴν δικαιοσύνην τοῦ θεοῦ· καὶ ψάλλει οὐ παρέργως, ἀλλὰ Τῷ ὀνόματι κυρίου τοῦ ὑψίστου, ὡς ηδη σχῶν ἐπικεκλημένον ἑαυτῷ αὐτό. διὸ καὶ ὑψηλὸς κατὰ ἁγιότητα καὶ ἀρετήν ἐστιν· οὐδεὶς γὰρ ταπεινὸς ἀλλὰ μόνος ὁ ὑπὲρ εὐσεβείας μετεωριζόμενος μετέσχει τῆς τοῦ ὑψίστου προσηγορίας.

47Ps 8,1 ̔Ο γὰρ ἑκάστου ἀνθρώπου βίος ἀμπελὼν κατὰ τὰς γραφὰς καλεῖται.

περὶ τοῦ τοιούτου Ναβουθαὶ ὁ δίκαιος ἀντέστη τῷ τυραννικῶς ἀπαιτοῦντι, αἱρούμενος τεθνᾶναι μᾶλλον η δοῦναι τὸν ἀμπελῶνα αὐτοῦ τῷ θέλοντι αὐτὸν ποιῆσαι κῆπον λαχάνων. μεγαλόψυχος γὰρ ὁ ἀνὴρ καὶ ὁ ἀμπελὼν περιμάχητος, βίος ων αριστος, πρακτικὸς αμα καὶ θεωρητικός. τοῦτον οἱ πονηροὶ λαμβάνειν ἐθέλουσιν οὐκ ἐπὶ τῷ καρποφορεῖν κατ' αὐτόν, ἀλλὰ κατασπᾶν εἰς πρόσκαιρα καὶ ταχὺ μαραινόμενα πράγματα, λάχανα εἰκότως ὀνομαζόμενα· ̔Ωσεὶ λάχανα γάρ φησι ταχὺ ἀποπεσοῦνται. περὶ τῶν προσκαίρους σπουδὰς ἐχόντων ειρηται τοῦτο. τούτῳ τῷ ἀμπελῶνι παραπλήσιοι καὶ οἱ ἐν τῷ Αισματι τῶν ᾀσμάτων εἰσὶν ὀνομαζόμενοι ἐν τῷ Υἱοὶ μητρός μου ἐμαχέσαντο ἐν ἐμοί, εθεντό με φυλάκισσαν ἐν ἀμπελῶσιν· ἀμπελῶνα ἐμὸν οὐκ ἐφύλαξα. Παρειλήφαμεν δὲ τὰ νῦν ταύτην τὴν λέξιν μόνον τοῦ δεῖξαι χάριν οτι τὸ ονομα τοῦ ἀμπελῶνος σημαίνει βίον. ὁ κατὰ τὸν τοιοῦτον ἀμπελῶνα καρποφορῶν βότρυας ἀληθείας καὶ σταφυλὴν φέρει. τὰ ουτω γενήματα τῆς ἀμπέλου καιρὸν εχοντα τοῦ τρυγηθῆναι δρέψασθαι προσήκει καὶ εἰς ληνοὺς ἀπαγαγεῖν, ιν' ἐκθλιβέντα οινον ποιήσωσι τὸν εὐφραίνοντα καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου. καὶ ἐπεὶ πρακτικὸς καὶ θεωρητικὸς ὁ βίος τυγχάνει, οἱ μὲν θεωρήματα τῆς ἀληθείας,