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is binding like a color, and indelible. But that which is on the surface is easily washed away, in proportion to the sins, the soul being purified more easily or with difficulty. Therefore, wool, although sometimes it is naturally white, becomes whiter from some care of itself. Just as a man, perfecting his natural inclinations through spiritual exercise, could advance far in virtue. And snow, being water in the clouds, is made white by being whipped up by the force of the wind, swelling into a foam, and then solidifying by the cold of the air, and being moved and inclined by its weight downwards. So also the soul, having increased its natural inclinations by its own spiritual exercise, and with the help of the 1856 Spirit, becomes worthy, in the just judgment of God, of the brightness given by the grace of God to the saints; of which the word, showing its free will, says: If you are willing, and obey me, you shall eat, he says, good things; either exhorting the Jews who were dull through carnal things; or the land, he says, the soul, according to the parable of the sower in the Gospels, which is said to receive the heavenly seed, whose good things, he says, are the advances in virtue; or the things promised in the kingdom of heaven called land, according to, "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth;" or the good things, "Which eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and have not entered into the heart of man." Where also Jerusalem, and Mount Sion, these heavenly things are for those who obey, but for the disobedient he threatens a sword. According to the perceptible sense, the Roman one, which met them at their feet; but according to the spiritual sense, the diabolical one, under which they have come, denying the grace of Christ, that is, simply some animate [and] intelligible one; concerning which it is said, that she was drunk with the blood of the wounded. But the mouth of the Lord, perhaps the Holy Spirit, which worked together for these things to be written. For so that we may not despise the threats, the unfailing mouth of the Lord, he says, has spoken these things. And he placed before not obeying again not being willing, and he supposes the cause of evils to be what is in our power. And these things agree with those spoken by God through Moses: "Behold, I have set before your face life and death." Therefore also, Take away your wickednesses, he said before. For no one else can benefit or harm, as each one can himself. But doing what is fitting, we shall run as to a physician who cleanses the consciences hardened by our sins over a long time. 21-23. 9How the faithful city Sion, full of judgment, has become a harlot! in whom righteousness lodged, but now murderers9, etc. It was also said before: "The daughter of Sion will be forsaken." And so he called the city on Mount Sion, as if a daughter of the mountain, that is, the temple in the city. But now he wonders, as it were, at the cause of so great a change for the worse. For having been nurtured by divine law, how did she commit fornication? First, towards idolatry; and after the coming of the Savior, to the teaching [and] commandments of men. And the cause of fornication, both of soul and body, is unbelief. For no one who believes that God is present everywhere, and sees even the hidden things in the 1857 thoughts, endures to think anything terrible, or to accomplish it in deeds. He calls the city faithful because of its faithful inhabitants, in whom virtue and righteousness, dwelling there, as it were, rested. For he represented this by "lodged". He seems to be describing the times of David. For having taken it from the hand of foreigners, he established in it the ark of [God] and the tabernacle, and he dwelt in it, which was called a [holy] place. For then it was faithful and just. For David arranged choirs singing hymns to God, and psalms and a more rational worship, of which he himself became the inventor, with other prophets being with him, Nathan, and Gad, and Asaph, and those around Jeduthun, and Heman and the sons of Korah, and as many as were assigned to their choirs. And it is likely also after David, under the pious kings who were pleasing to God, that it had faithful and just inhabitants out of piety. But she became a harlot because of those who committed fornication in her, whom he also calls

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ἐστι δεσοποιὸς ὡς ἐν χρώματι, καὶ ἀνέκπλυτος. Ἡ δὲ τὴν ἐπιπολῆς ἔχουσα τάξιν εὐχερῶς ἀποπλύνεται, κατὰ λόγον τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων, τῆς ψυχῆς ῥᾷον, ἢ δυσκόλως καθαιρομένης. Τὸ μὲν οὖν ἔριον καίπερ ἔσθ' ὅτε φυσικῶς ὑπάρχον λευκὸν, ἐξ ἐπιμελίας τινὸς ἑαυτοῦ λευκότερον γίνεται. Ὡς καὶ ἄνθρωπος τὰς φυσικὰς ἀφορμὰς ἐξ ἀσκήσεως τελειῶν, ἐπὶ πολὺ δύναιτο προελθεῖν ἀρετῆς. Ἡ δὲ χιὼν, ὕδωρ ἐν νεφέλαις οὖσα, τῇ τοῦ πνεύματος ἀνακοπτομένη βίᾳ λευκαίνεται, εἰς ἀφρὸν μὲν οἰδαίνουσα, πῆξιν δὲ λαβοῦσα τῷ τοῦ ἀέρος ψυχρῷ, καὶ πρὸς τὰ κάτω βάρη κινουμένη καὶ ῥέπουσα. Οὕτω καὶ ψυχὴ τὰς φυσικὰς ἀφορμὰς οἰκείᾳ τε ἀσκήσει, καὶ τῇ βοηθείᾳ τοῦ 1856 Πνεύματος συναυξήσασα, ἀξία γίνεται, ἐν τῇ δικαίᾳ τοῦ Θεοῦ κρίσει, τῆς χάριτι Θεοῦ διδομένης τοῖς ἁγίοις λαμπρότητος· ἧς τὸ αὐτεξούσιον ὁ λόγος ὑποφαίνων φησίν· Ἐὰν ἐθέλητε, καὶ εἰσακούσητέ μου, φάγεσθε, φησὶν, ἀγαθά· ἢ διὰ τῶν σωματικῶν παχεῖς ὄντας τοὺς Ἰουδαίους παρακαλῶν· ἢ γῆν, φησὶ, τὴν ψυχὴν, κατὰ τὴν ἐν Εὐαγγελίοις τοῦ σπόρου παραβολὴν, ἣ τὸν οὐράνιον σπόρον ὑποδέχεσθαι λέγεται, ἧς ἀγαθὰ, τὰς κατ' ἀρετήν φησι προκοπάς· ἢ τὰ ἐπηγγελμένα ἐν οὐρανῶν βασιλείᾳ γῆ λεγομένη, κατὰ τὸ, "Μακάριοι οἱ πραεῖς, ὅτι αὐτοὶ κληρονομήσουσι τὴν γῆν·" ἢ τὰ ἀγαθὰ, "Ἃ ὀφθαλμὸς οὐκ ἴδεν, καὶ οὖς οὐκ ἤκουσεν, καὶ ἐπὶ καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου οὐκ ἀνέβη." Ἔνθα καὶ Ἱερουσαλὴμ, καὶ τὸ Σιὼν ὄρος, τὰ ἐπουράνια ταῦτα τοῖς πειθομένοις, τοῖς δὲ ἀπειθοῦσιν μάχαιραν ἀπειλεῖ. Κατὰ μὲν τὸ αἰσθητὸν, τὴν Ῥωμαϊκὴν, ἥτις αὐτοῖς παρὰ πόδας ἀπήντησε· κατὰ δὲ τὴν ἀναγωγὴν, τὴν διαβολικὴν, ὑφ' ἣν γεγόνασιν, Χριστοῦ τὴν χάριν ἀρνούμενοι, ἤγουν ἁπλῶς ἔμψυχόν τινα [καὶ] νοητήν· περὶ ἧς εἴρηται, ὅτι ἐμεθύσθη ἀφ' αἵματος τραυματιῶν. Στόμα δὲ Κυρίου, τάχα τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον, τὸ συνεργῆσαν αὐτὰ γραφῆναι. Ὡς ἂν γὰρ μὴ καταφρονῶμεν τῶν ἀπειλῶν, στόμα τὸ ἀψευδὲς Κυρίου ταῦτα, φησὶν, εἴρηκεν. Καὶ προέταξε δὲ τοῦ μὴ εἰσακοῦσαι πάλιν τὸ μὴ θελῆσαι, καὶ τῶν κακῶν αἴτιον τὸ ἐφ' ἡμῖν ὑποτίθεται. Συμφωνεῖ δὲ ταῦτα τοῖς διὰ Μωσέως εἰρημένοις ὑπὸ Θεοῦ· "Ἰδοὺ δέδωκα πρὸ προσώπου σου τὴν ζωὴν καὶ τὸν θάνατον." ∆ιὸ καὶ, Ἀφέλετε τὰς πονηρίας, προεῖπεν. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἄλλον ὠφελεῖν ἢ βλάπτειν, ὡς αὐτὸς ἑαυτὸν ἕκαστος δύναται. Τὸ δὲ προσῆκον ποιοῦντες, ὡς πρὸς ἰατρὸν δραμούμεθα καθαίροντα τὰς ἐν χρόνῳ πολλῷ στυφείσας ὑπὸ τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ἡμῶν συνειδήσεις. καʹκγʹ. 9Πῶς ἐγένετο πόρνη πόλις πιστὴ Σιὼν πλήρης κρίσεως; ἐν ᾗ δικαιοσύνη ἐκοιμήθη ἐν αὐτῇ, νῦν δὲ φονευταὶ9, κ.τ.λ. Ἐλέγετο καὶ πρόσθεν· "Ἐγκαταλειφθήσεσθαι ἡ θυγάτηρ Σιὼν." Οὕτω δὲ τὴν πόλιν ἐκάλει τὴν ἐπὶ τοῦ Σιὼν ὄρους, οἱονεὶ θυγατέρα τοῦ ὄρους, ἤγουν τὸν ἐν τῇ πόλει νεών. Νῦν δὲ ὥσπερ ἀποθαυμάζει τῆς τοσαύτης ἐπὶ τὸ χεῖρον μεταβολῆς τὴν αἰτίαν. Νόμῳ γὰρ τραφεῖσα θείῳ, πῶς ἐξεπόρνευσεν; πρῶτον μὲν, πρὸς εἰδωλολατρείαν· μετὰ δὲ τὴν τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἐπιδημίαν, εἰς διδασκαλίαν [καὶ] ἐντάλματα ἀνθρώπων. Αἰτία δὲ τῆς κατὰ ψυχήν τε καὶ σῶμα πορνείας, ἀπιστία. Οὐδεὶς γὰρ Θεὸν πανταχοῦ παρεῖναι πιστεύων, βλέπειν δὲ καὶ τὰ ἐν διανοίαις λαν 1857 θάνοντα, ἀνέχεται [οὐδὲν] ηνη φρονεῖν τι δεινὸν, ἢ τοῖς ἔργοις ἐπιτελεῖν. Πίοτειν δὲ πόλιν τὴν τῶν πιστῶν οἰκητόρων καλεῖ, ἐν οἷς ἀρετὴ καὶ δικαιοσύνη ἐνοικοῦσα ὥσπερ ἐπανεπαύετο. Τοῦτο γὰρ διὰ τοῦ κεκοιμῆσθαι παρέστησεν. Τοὺς κατὰ ∆αβὶδ δὲ χρόνους ὑπογράφειν δοκεῖ. Ταύτην γὰρ ἐκ χειρὸς ἀλλοφύλων λαβὼν, τοῦ [Θεοῦ] τὴν κιβωτὸν ἐν αὐτῇ, καὶ τὴν σκηνὴν κατεστήσατο, ᾤκει τε ταύτην [ἅγιον τό]πον χρηματίζουσαν. Τότε γὰρ ἦν πιστὴ καὶ δικαία. Χορούς τε γὰρ ὑμνοῦντας τῷ Θεῷ διέταξεν ὁ ∆αβὶδ, ψαλμούς τε καὶ λογικωτέραν λατρείαν, ἧς αὐτὸς γέγονεν εὑρετὴς, συνόντων ἑτέρων αὐτῷ προφητῶν Ναθὰν, καὶ Γὰδ, καὶ Ἀσὰφ, τά τε περὶ τὸν Ἰδιθοὺμ, καὶ Αἰμᾶν υἱῶν τε Κορὲ, ὅσοι τε τοῖς τούτων χοροῖς συνετάττοντο. Εἰκὸς δὲ καὶ μετὰ ∆αβὶδ, ἐπὶ τῶν εὐσεβῶν βασιλέων εὐηρεστημέναι Θεῷ, πιστοὺς καὶ δικαίους ἔχουσαν ἐξ εὐσεβείας οἰκήτορας. Πόρνη δὲ γέγονεν διὰ τοὺς πορνεύσαντας ἐν αὐτῇ, οὓς καὶ καλεῖ