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nor in Jerusalem will they worship the Father. For God is Spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth. But the end, 'Bless the Lord, O my soul,' is in harmony with the beginning. For having called the intelligible beings into fellowship of hymnody, he also teaches us, as far as possible, to honor the Creator, and to offer the thanksgiving hymn in equal measure to our ability, because to him be glory forever. Amen.

PSALM 103.

1. The grace of the most holy Spirit not only moral and dogmatic

teaching it offers to men, but it also trains them precisely how one must hymn the Creator. For this reason, it composed this psalm, using the blessed David as a minister, so that all might learn with what hymns one must repay the benefactor. Indeed, it here recounts the common benefactions, and shows the God of all to be the maker and ruler of all things. Bless the Lord, O my soul. God indeed blesses man, establishing him in safety and making him more glorious, just as with Abraham; but man does not do so, but rather makes himself more glorious then. For whether God blesses, or man blesses God, from both sides the gain passes to man; for the Divine is in need of nothing. And it teaches each nursling of piety to hymn God the benefactor. O Lord my God, how you have been greatly magnified. Here too, 'How' is for intensification; but 'you have been greatly magnified' is not indicative of increase, but signifies immeasurable greatness; for Symmachus also translated it thus: O Lord my God, you are very great. For you were not magnified being small; but being great by nature, you were shown to be this to the pious. But how does he who is always great become great, he who needs no addition, but is always perfect? How is he magnified? Whenever those devoted to him display a most excellent life, whenever they praise him both through words and through deeds, then he is magnified, not he himself receiving any addition to his greatness, but being shown as great to those who are ignorant of him through those who serve him, through the great works of the variety and providence of his creations. But the soul, rejoicing in so great a one, says: 'O Lord my God'; for the voice is one of solemnity. And it adds in what way he was magnified: You have put on confession and majesty. But Symmachus has it thus: You have clothed yourself with hymn and glory. For no longer are you unknown to those who enjoy your good things, nor do they offer your worship to idols, but they hymn you, and pay you the debt of doxology. For although the creation of the angels, the expanse of the heavens, the foundation of the earth, and all the other things which the psalmist added to these are sufficient for the declaration of the greatness of God, yet more sufficient than these is that the Savior became man, and remained God, and suffered our things, and preserved his own impassibility. Therefore, although these are second in order, he nevertheless placed them before the others, as being first in power. He says confession is the flesh from us, since through it he offered to God the confession on our behalf, so as to cry to the Father: I confess to you, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding, and such like things; and majesty, because it was greatly and exceedingly fitting to save our human mixture. But he also says that he put on this confession and majesty, not as one about to put it off again, but so that it might be shown that, having been made flesh, he was not changed into a man, but both remains God and becomes man. He who clothes himself with

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οὔτε ἐν Ἱεροσολύμοις προσκυνήσουσι τῷ Πατρί. Πνεῦμα γὰρ ὁ Θεὸς, καὶ τοὺς προσκυνοῦντας αὐτῷ ἐν πνεύματι καὶ ἀληθείᾳ δεῖ προσκυνεῖν. Τὸ δὲ, Εὐ λόγει, ἡ ψυχή μου, τὸν Κύριον, σύμφωνον ὑπάρχει τῷ προοιμίῳ τὸ τέλος. Καλέσας γὰρ εἰς κοινωνίαν τῆς ὑμνῳδίας τὰς νοητὰς οὐσίας, διδάσκει καὶ ἡμᾶς, ὡς δυνατὸν, γεραίρειν τὸν Ποιητὴν, καὶ ἰσόμετρον τῇ δυνάμει προσφέρειν τὸν χαριστήριον ὕμνον, ὅτι αὐτῷ δόξα εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας. Ἀμήν.

ΨΑΛΜ. ΡΓʹ.

αʹ. Ἡ τοῦ παναγίου Πνεύματος χάρις οὐ μόνον ἠθικὴν καὶ δογματικὴν

διδασκαλίαν τοῖς ἀνθρώποις προσφέρει, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὅπως ὑμνεῖν χρὴ τὸν Ποιητὴν ἀκριβῶς ἐκπαι δεύει. ∆ιά τοι τοῦτο τοῦτον συνεγράψατο τὸν ψαλμὸν, τῷ μακαρίῳ ∆αυῒδ ὑπουργῷ χρησαμένη, ὡς ἂν μάθοιεν ἅπαντες τίσιν ὕμνοις χρὴ τὸν εὐεργέτην ἀμείβεσθαι. Τὰς μέντοι κοινὰς εὐεργεσίας ἐνταῦθα διέξεισι, καὶ δεί κνυσι ποιητὴν ἁπάντων ὁμοῦ καὶ πρύτανιν τὸν τῶν ὅλων Θεόν. Εὐλόγει, ἡ ψυχή μου, τὸν Κύριον. Ὁ μὲν Θεὸς ἄνθρωπον εὐλογεῖ, ἐν ἀσφαλείᾳ καθιστῶν καὶ λαμπρό τερον ποιῶν, καθάπερ τὸν Ἀβραάμ· ὁ δὲ ἄνθρωπος οὐχ οὕτως, ἀλλ' αὑτὸν τότε λαμπρότερον ποιῶν. Ἄν τε γὰρ ὁ Θεὸς εὐλογῇ, ἄν τε ἄνθρωπος τὸν Θεὸν, ἑκατέρω θεν τὸ κέρδος εἰς τὸν ἄνθρωπον διαβαίνει· τὸ γὰρ Θεῖον ἀπροσδεές. Ὑμνεῖν τε διδάσκει τὸν εὐεργέτην Θεὸν ἕκαστον τὸν τῆς εὐσεβείας τρόφιμον. Κύριος ὁ Θεός μου, ὡς ἐμεγαλύνθης σφόδρα. Ἐπιτάσεως καὶ ἐνταῦθα τὸ, Ὡς· τὸ δὲ, Ἐμεγαλύνθης σφόδρα, οὐκ αὐξήσεως δηλωτικὸν, ἀλλὰ τοῦ ἀμετρήτου μεγέθους ση μαντικόν· οὕτω γὰρ καὶ ὁ Σύμμαχος ἡρμήνευσε· Κύριε ὁ Θεός μου, μέγας εἶ σφόδρα. Οὐ γὰρ σμικρὸς ὢν ἐμεγαλύνθης· ἀλλὰ φύσει μέγας ὢν, τοῦτο τοῖς εὐσεβέ σιν ἐδείχθης. Πῶς δὲ γίνεται μέγας ὁ ἀεὶ ὢν μέγας, καὶ μὴ δεόμενος προσθήκης, ἀλλ' ἀεὶ τέλειος ὤν; πῶς με γαλύνεται; Ὅταν οἱ ἀνακείμενοι αὐτῷ βίον ἄριστον ἐπι δείξωνται, ὅταν καὶ διὰ ῥημάτων καὶ δι' ἔργων αὐτὸν ἀνυμνῶσι, μεγαλύνεται τότε, οὐκ αὐτός τι προσλαμβά νων εἰς μέγεθος, ἀλλὰ τοῖς ἀγνοοῦσιν αὐτὸν διὰ τῶν θε ραπευόντων μέγας δεικνύμενος διὰ μεγαλουργίας κτι σμάτων ποικιλίας τε καὶ προνοίας. Χαίρουσα δὲ ἡ ψυχὴ τῷ τοσούτῳ φησί· Κύριε ὁ Θεός μου· σεμνυνομένης γὰρ ἡ φωνή. Τίνα δὲ τρόπον ἐμεγαλύνθη ἐπάγει· Ἐξομολό γησιν καὶ μεγαλοπρέπειαν ἐνεδύσω. Ὁ δὲ Σύμμαχος οὕτως, Ὕμνον καὶ εὐδοξίαν ἠμφιάσω. Οὐκ ἔτι γάρ σε ἀγνοοῦσιν οἱ τῶν σῶν ἀπολαύοντες ἀγαθῶν, οὐδὲ τοῖς εἰδώλοις τὸ σὸν σέβας προσφέρουσιν, ἀλλά σε ὑμνοῦσι, καί σοι τὸ τῆς δοξολογίας ἐκτίνουσι χρέος. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ ἱκανὴ εἰς δήλωσιν τοῦ μεγέθους τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡ τῶν ἀγγέλων δημιουργία, ἡ τῶν οὐρανῶν ἔκτασις, ἡ τῆς γῆς θεμελίω σις, καὶ ἄλλα ὅσα τούτοις ὁ ψαλμῳδὸς ἐπήγαγεν, ἀλλὰ τούτων ἱκανώτερον τὸ γενέσθαι τὸν Σωτῆρα ἄνθρωπον, καὶ μεῖναι Θεὸν, παθεῖν τε τὰ ἡμέτερα, καὶ φυλάξαι τὴν οἰκείαν ἀπάθειαν. ∆ιόπερ δεύτερα ταῦτα τῇ τάξει ὄντα, πρότερα τῶν ἄλλων ὅμως ἔταξεν, ὡς τῇ δυνάμει τυγχάνοντα πρότερα. Ἐξομολόγησιν τὴν ἀφ' ἡμῶν σάρκα φησὶν, ἐπειδὴ δι' αὐτῆς τῷ Θεῷ τὴν ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν προσ ήγαγεν ἐξομολόγησιν, ὥστε βοᾷν τῷ Πατρί· Ἐξομολο γοῦμαί σοι, Κύριε τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καὶ τῆς γῆς, ὅτι ἀπ έκρυψας ταῦτα ἀπὸ σοφῶν καὶ συνετῶν, καὶ ὅσα τοιαῦτα· μεγαλοπρέπειαν δὲ, ἐπειδήπερ μεγάλως καὶ λίαν ὑπερβαλλόντως ἔπρεπε διασῶσαι τὸ ἡμέτερον φύ ραμα. Ἀλλὰ γὰρ καὶ ἐνδύσασθαι ταύτην αὐτὸν τὴν ἐξομολόγησιν καὶ τὴν μεγαλοπρέπειάν φησιν, οὐχ ὡς πάλιν ἀποδύεσθαι μέλλοντα, ἀλλ' ὥστε δειχθῆναι, ὅτι σαρκωθεὶς οὐ μετεβλήθη εἰς ἄνθρωπον, ἀλλὰ καὶ Θεὸς μένει καὶ ἄνθρωπος γίνεται. Ὁ ἀναβαλλόμενος