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he received. But the Lord God promised not only to keep the seed of David forever, but also to guard the kingdom as indissoluble. "For I will build," He said, "your throne for generation and generation." But we see both his lineage gone and his kingdom having received its end. And seeing these things, we know the truthfulness of the God of all. {ERAN.} It is clear that God is true. {ORTH.} If, therefore, God is true, as indeed He is, and He promised David to guard his lineage forever and to keep his kingdom without succession, and yet we see neither the lineage nor the kingdom (for both have ceased), how shall we persuade those who contradict that God is true? {ERAN.} The prophecy steadfastly proclaims Christ the Lord. {ORTH.} Since, then, you have agreed, come now and let us examine together the middle parts of the psalm; for we shall know more clearly the meaning of the prophecy. {ERAN.} Lead the investigation; for I too will follow, tracking the scent. 84 {ORTH.} God, having promised many things concerning this seed—that he will rule over sea and land, and will be higher than the kings on earth, and will be called the firstborn of God, and will call God Father with boldness—also added these things: "Forever will I keep my mercy for him, and my covenant will be faithful to him; and I will establish his seed for ever and ever, and his throne as the days of heaven." {ERAN.} The promise is beyond human nature. For both the life and the honor possess the imperishable and eternal, but men are temporary. For nature is short-lived, and a kingdom, even in one's lifetime, has many and contrary changes. Therefore, the magnitude of the promise befits the Savior Christ alone. {ORTH.} Come, therefore, to the rest as well. For your opinion on this will surely become more certain. For the God of all says again: "Once have I sworn by my holiness, that I will not lie to David. His seed shall endure forever, and his throne as the sun before me, and as the moon established forever." And showing the truth of the promise, he added: "And the witness in heaven is faithful." {ERAN.} It is necessary to believe without hesitation in the things promised by the faithful witness. For if we are accustomed to believe men who are supposed to be truthful, even if they do not confirm their words with an oath, who is so thunderstruck as to disbelieve the Maker of the universe when he adds an oath to his words? For He who forbids others to swear, to show the unchangeable character of his purpose, as the apostle also says, interposed with an oath, "That by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us." {ORTH.} If, then, the promise is indisputably true, but we see among the Jews neither the lineage nor the kingdom of the prophet David, let us believe most clearly that our Lord Jesus Christ is called the seed of David according to his humanity. For he possesses both life and the kingdom eternal. 85 {ERAN.} We do not doubt, but confess that these things are so. {ORTH.} These things are therefore sufficient to show clearly the humanity which our God and Savior took up from the seed of David. But in order that by the testimony of many we may drive out all discord, let us hear God, through the voice of the prophet Isaiah, recalling the promises to David. "I will make," He says, "an everlasting covenant with you." And indicating the lawgiver, He added: "The sure mercies of David." For since, when promising these things to David, He said, "And the witness in heaven is faithful," reminding them of this same voice, He said, "The sure mercies of David," teaching that He Himself both promised to David and spoke through Isaiah, and will fulfill the promise. And the things that follow in the prophecy are in harmony with these. For He says: "Behold, I have given him for a witness to the peoples,

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ἐδέξατο. Ὁ δὲ δεσπότης θεός, οὐ μόνον τὸ σπέρμα τοῦ ∆αβὶδ εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα τηρήσειν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν βασιλείαν ἀκατάλυ τον φυλάξειν ὑπέσχετο. "Οἰκοδομήσω, γὰρ ἔφη, εἰς γενεὰν καὶ γενεὰν τὸν θρόνον σου." Ὁρῶμεν δὲ αὐτοῦ καὶ τὸ γένος φροῦδον, καὶ τὴν βασιλείαν δεξαμένην τὸ πέρας. Καὶ ταῦτα δὲ ὁρῶντες ἴσμεν τοῦ θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων τὸ ἀψευδές. {ΕΡΑΝ.} ∆ῆλον ὡς ἀψευδὴς ὁ θεός. {ΟΡΘ.} Εἰ τοίνυν ἀληθὴς ὁ θεός, ὥσπερ οὖν ἀληθής, ὑπέσχετο δὲ τῷ ∆αβὶδ καὶ τὸ γένος εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα φυλάξειν καὶ τὴν βασιλείαν ἀδιά δοχον τηρήσειν, οὔτε δὲ τὸ γένος ὁρῶμεν οὔτε τὴν βασιλείαν (ἀμφό τερα γὰρ ἐπαύσατο), πῶς πείσομεν τοὺς ἀντιλέγοντας ὡς ἀψευδὴς ὁ θεός; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ἀραρότως ἡ προφητεία τὸν δεσπότην κηρύττει Χριστόν. {ΟΡΘ.} Ἐπεὶ τοίνυν συνωμολόγησας, δεῦρο δὴ καὶ τὰ μέσα τοῦ ψαλμοῦ κοινῇ διασκοπήσωμεν· εἰσόμεθα γὰρ σαφέστερον τῆς προφη τείας τὸν νοῦν. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ἡγοῦ τῆς ἐρεύνης· ἕψομαι γὰρ ἰχνηλατήσων κἀγώ. 84 {ΟΡΘ.} Πολλὰ περὶ τοῦδε τοῦ σπέρματος ὑποσχόμενος ὁ θεός, ὡς καὶ κατὰ θάλατταν καὶ κατὰ γῆν κρατήσει, καὶ τῶν ἐπὶ γῆς βασιλευόν των ὑπέρτερος ἔσται, καὶ πρωτότοκος τοῦ θεοῦ κληθήσεται, καὶ τὸν θεὸν σὺν παρρησίᾳ καλέσει πατέρα, καὶ ταῦτα προστέθεικεν· "Εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα φυλάξω αὐτῷ τὸ ἔλεός μου καὶ ἡ διαθήκη μου πιστὴ αὐτῷ· καὶ θήσομαι εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ αἰῶνος τὸ σπέρμα αὐτοῦ καὶ τὸν θρόνον αὐτοῦ ὡς τὰς ἡμέρας τοῦ οὐρανοῦ." {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ὑπὲρ φύσιν ἀνθρωπείαν ἡ ἐπαγγελία. Τὸ ἀνώλεθρον γὰρ καὶ αἰώνιον ἔχει καὶ ἡ ζωὴ καὶ ἡ τιμή, οἱ δὲ ἄνθρωποι πρόσκαιροι. Ἥ τε γὰρ φύσις ὀλιγόβιος, καὶ ἡ βασιλεία κἂν τῇ ζωῇ πολλὰς ἔχει καὶ ἀντιστρόφους μεταβολάς. Τοιγάρτοι μόνῳ προσήκει τῷ σωτῆρι Χριστῷ τῆς ἐπαγγελίας τὸ μέγεθος. {ΟΡΘ.} Ἴθι τοιγαροῦν καὶ πρὸς τὰ λοιπά. Βεβαιοτέρα γάρ σοι πάντως ἡ περὶ τούτου δόξα γενήσεται. Λέγει γὰρ πάλιν ὁ τῶν ὅλων θεός· "Ἅπαξ ὤμοσα ἐν τῷ ἁγίῳ μου, εἰ τῷ ∆αβὶδ ψεύσομαι. Τὸ σπέρμα αὐτοῦ εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα μενεῖ, καὶ ὁ θρόνος αὐτοῦ ὡς ὁ ἥλιος ἐναντίον μου, καὶ ὡς ἡ σελήνη κατηρτισμένη εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα." Καὶ τὸ ἀληθὲς τῆς ἐπαγγελίας δεικνὺς ἐπήγαγε· "Καὶ ὁ μάρτυς ἐν οὐρανῷ πιστός." {ΕΡΑΝ.} Χρὴ τοῖς παρὰ τοῦ πιστοῦ μάρτυρος ἐπηγγελμένοις ἀνεν δοιάστως πιστεύειν. Εἰ γὰρ ἀνθρώποις ἀληθεύειν ὑπειλημμένοις, κἂν μὴ βεβαιώσωσιν ὅρκῳ τοὺς λόγους, πιστεύειν εἰώθαμεν, τίς οὕτως ἐμβρόντητος ὡς ἀπιστῆσαι τῷ ποιητῇ τοῦ παντὸς ὅρκον ἐπιτιθέντι τοῖς λόγοις; Ὁ γὰρ τοῖς ἄλλοις ἀπαγορεύων ὀμνύναι, τὸ ἀμετάθετον τῆς βουλῆς αὑτοῦ, καθά φησι καὶ ὁ ἀπόστολος, ἐμεσίτευσεν ὅρκῳ, "Ινα διὰ δύο πραγμάτων ἀμεταθέτων, ἐν οἷς ἀδύνατον ψεύσασθαι θεόν, ἰσχυρὰν παράκλησιν ἔχωμεν οἱ καταφυγόντες κρατῆσαι τῆς προκειμένης ἐλπίδος." {ΟΡΘ.} Εἰ τοίνυν ἀναμφιλέκτως ἀληθὴς ἡ ὑπόσχεσις, οὐχ ὁρῶμεν δὲ παρὰ Ἰουδαίοις οὔτε τὸ γένος οὔτε τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ προφήτου ∆αβίδ, πιστεύσωμεν ἀριδήλως τὸν κύριον ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦν Χριστὸν σπέρμα τοῦ ∆αβὶδ κατὰ τὸ ἀνθρώπινον ὀνομάζεσθαι. Αὐτὸς γὰρ ἔχει καὶ τὴν ζωὴν καὶ τὴν βασιλείαν αἰώνιον. 85 {ΕΡΑΝ.} Οὐκ ἐνδοιάζομεν, ἀλλ' οὕτω ταῦτ' ἔχειν ὁμολογοῦμεν. {ΟΡΘ.} Ἀπόχρη μὲν οὖν καὶ ταῦτα δεῖξαι σαφῶς τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἣν ἀνείληφεν ἐκ σπέρματος ∆αβὶδ ἀνθρωπότητα. Ἵνα δὲ τῇ τῶν πλειόνων μαρτυρίᾳ πᾶσαν διχόνοιαν ἐξελάσωμεν, ἀκούσω μεν τοῦ θεοῦ διὰ τῆς τοῦ Ἡσαΐου τοῦ προφήτου φωνῆς τῶν πρὸς τὸν ∆αβὶδ ὑποσχέσεων μνημονεύοντος. "∆ιαθήσομαι, γάρ φησιν, ὑμῖν διαθήκην αἰώνιον." Καὶ δεικνὺς τὸν νομοθέτην ἐπήγαγε· "Τὰ ὅσια ∆αβὶδ τὰ πιστά." Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ταῦτα τῷ ∆αβὶδ ὑπισχνούμενος ἔφη, "Καὶ ὁ μάρτυς ἐν οὐρανῷ πιστός," ἀναμιμνήσκων αὐτοὺς ταυτησὶ τῆς φωνῆς εἴρηκε, "Τὰ ὅσια ∆αβὶδ τὰ πιστά," διδάσκων ὡς αὐτὸς καὶ τῷ ∆αβὶδ ὑπέσχετο, καὶ διὰ τοῦ Ἡσαΐου ἐφθέγξατο, καὶ περανεῖ τὴν ὑπόσχεσιν. Καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς δὲ τῆς προφητείας τούτοις ἐστὶ συνῳδά. Λέγει γάρ· "Ἰδοὺ μαρτύριον ἐν ἔθνεσι δέδωκα αὐτόν,