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breaking the yoke of the law. 6. For this reason a lion from the forest struck them, and a wolf destroyed them even to their houses, 81.537 and a leopard watched over their cities. He calls Nebuchadnezzar the lion, and the wolf, I think, Nebuzaradan the chief cook; who, being sent later, both burned the city and the divine temple, and enslaved those who were left; and I think Antiochus Epiphanes is called the leopard; for the divine Daniel also saw the Macedonian kingdom likened to a leopard; by all these, he says, you were hunted down because of the error concerning idols. Then, judicially: 7. For which of these things shall I be merciful to you? And he also states the kinds of transgression. For not only, he says, do you and your children swear by gods that do not exist, but you also make others swear; but I bestowed on you an abundance of good things. For this is what he says, "And I fed them to the full." And in addition to these things you also break into others' marriages, so that your lust is likened to sex-crazed horses. Then, syllogistically: 9. Shall I not punish for these things? says the Lord; or shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this? Is it possible, he says, for me to overlook these things? And how is it possible to corrupt the verdict of the just one? For which reason, he pronounces this, and commands to pull down the walls, and to tear down the battlements; but he mixes justice with goodness. 10. For, he says, do not make a full end; leave her underpinnings, for they are the Lord's. And through these things he hints at the recall and the second building. And he foretells the cause of the grievous things: that being transgressors and ungrateful toward their benefactor, they grew insolent, and supposed they would be superior to the grievous things. 12. For, they say, no evil shall come upon us, and we shall not see sword or famine. For the false prophets were the cause of these things; for he accuses them in the things that follow. 13. Your prophets were for the wind; and the word of the Lord was not in them. And "for the wind" indicates the vanity and falsehood of the things said; for they did not partake of the divine Spirit. For which reason he says to the prophet, that the word which I speak through your tongue will consume them like fire; and he also shows the manner of the punishment. 15. Behold, I bring a nation upon you from afar, O house of Israel, says the Lord, it is an ancient nation. He means the Assyrians; and he calls them an ancient nation, since their kingdom is the oldest of all; for Nimrod was the first to reign over them after the flood. Then he also speaks of the foreignness of their tongue. And he likens their quiver to an open tomb, because of the deadly 81.540 nature of their arrows, and the accuracy of their archery. And he speaks of the ravaging of the land, and the sacking of the houses, and the slaughter of the people. However, he also foretells the destruction of the enemies and the recall of these people. 18. For I will not, he says, make a full end of you. And since they suffered from insensibility, and did not see their own transgressions, but said: 19. Why has the Lord our God done all these things to us? he commands the prophet to say to them, "Because you have forsaken me and served other gods in your land, so you shall serve foreigners in a land that is not yours." And the verdict of the punishment is just. Since, he says, you denied my kingdom, I will hand you over to other masters. He commands them to hear these things earnestly, and calls them foolish and senseless, since they did not use the senses of the body as they ought. "For they have eyes," he says, "and do not see; they have ears, and do not hear." And he shows them to be more irrational than inanimate things. For the sea, he says, keeps its boundaries; and I set its boundaries, not a wall of adamant, but most humble sand; but nevertheless, though stirred up and agitated, it does not cross its boundaries, but approaching them, it goes back again;

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συντρίψαντας τὸν τοῦ νόμου ζυγόν. ϛʹ. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ἔπαισεν αὐτοὺς λέων ἐκ τοῦ δρυ μοῦ, καὶ λύκος ἕως τῶν οἰκιῶν ὠλόθρευσεν αὐ 81.537 τοὺς, καὶ πάρδαλις ἐγρηγόρησεν ἐπὶ τὰς πόλεις αὐτῶν. Λέοντα τὸν Ναβουχοδονόσορ καλεῖ, λύκον δὲ, ὡς οἶμαι, Ναβουζαρδᾶν τὸν ἀρχιμάγειρον· ὃς ὕστε ρον ἀποσταλεὶς, καὶ τὴν πόλιν ἐνέπρησε, καὶ τὸν θεῖον νεὼν καὶ τοὺς ὑπολειφθέντας ἐξηνδραπόδισε· πάρδαλιν δὲ ἡγοῦμαι Ἀντίοχον καλεῖσθαι τὸν Ἐπιφανῆ· καὶ γὰρ ὁ θεῖος ∆ανιὴλ τὴν Μακεδονικὴν βα σιλείαν παρδάλει εἶδεν ἀπεικασμένην· ὑπὸ τούτων, φησὶν, ἁπάντων ἐθηρεύθης διὰ τὴν περὶ τὰ εἴδωλα πλάνην. Εἶτα δικαστικῶς· ζʹ. Ποίᾳ τούτων ἵλεως γένωμαί σοι; Λέγει δὲ καὶ τῆς παρανομίας τὰ εἴδη. Οὐ γὰρ μόνον, φη σὶν, ὑμεῖς, καὶ οἱ ὑμέτεροι παῖδες ὄμνυνται κατὰ τῶν οὐκ ὄντων θεῶν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους ὁρκίζετε· ἐγὼ δὲ ὑμῖν ἀφθονίαν ἀγαθῶν ἐδωρούμην. Τοῦτο γὰρ λέγει, "Καὶ ἐχόρτασα αὐτούς." Πρὸς δὲ τούτοις καὶ ἀλλοτρίους διορύττετε γάμους, ὡς τὴν λαγνείαν ὑμῶν ἵπποις θηλυμανέσιν ἀπεικάζεσθαι. Εἶτα συλλογιστι κῶς· θʹ. Μὴ ἐπὶ τούτοις οὐκ ἐπισκέψομαι; λέγει Κύριος· ἢ ἐν ἔθνει τῷ τοιούτῳ οὐκ ἐκδικήσει ἡ ψυχή μου; Ταῦτά με, φησὶ, παριδεῖν δυνατόν; Καὶ πῶς οἷόν τε παραφθεῖραι τοῦ δικαίου τὴν ψῆφον; Οὗ δὴ χάριν, ταύτην ἐκφέρει, καὶ κελεύει καὶ τὰ τείχη καταλῦσαι, καὶ κατασκάψαι τοὺς προμαχῶνας· κεράννυσι δὲ τὸ δίκαιον ἀγαθότητι. ιʹ. Συντέλειαν γὰρ, φησὶ, μὴ ποιήσετε· ὑπο λείπεσθε τὰ ὑποστηρίγματα αὐτῆς, ὅτι τοῦ Κυρίου ἐστίν. Αἰνίττεται δὲ διὰ τούτων τὴν ἀνά κλησιν, καὶ τὴν δευτέραν οἰκοδομίαν. Προλέγει δὲ τῶν λυπηρῶν τὴν αἰτίαν ὅτι παρανομοῦντες καὶ ἀχάριστοι περὶ τὸν εὐεργέτην γιγνόμενοι ἐθρα σύνοντο, καὶ κρείττους ἔσεσθαι τῶν λυπηρῶν ὑπ ελάμβανον. ιβʹ. Οὐχ ἥξει γὰρ, φησὶν, ἐφ' ἡμᾶς κακὰ, καὶ μάχαιραν καὶ λιμὸν οὐκ ὀψόμεθα. Αἴτιοι γὰρ τούτων ἦσαν οἱ ψευδοπροφῆται· τούτων γὰρ ἐν τοῖς ἐπαγομένοις κατηγορεῖ. ιγʹ. Οἱ προφῆται ὑμῶν ἦσαν εἰς ἄνεμον· καὶ λόγος Κυρίου οὐχ ὑπῆρχεν αὐτοῖς. Τὸ δὲ "εἰς ἄνεμον" τὸ μάταιον καὶ ψευδὲς τῶν λεγομένων δη λοῖ· οὐ γὰρ τοῦ θείου μετέλαχον Πνεύματος. Οὗ δὴ χάριν πρὸς τὸν προφήτην φησὶν, ὅτι Ὁ λόγος, ὃν διὰ τῆς σῆς φθέγγομαι γλώττης, πυρὸς αὐτοὺς δίκην κατανα λώσει· ὑποδείκνυσι δὲ καὶ τῆς τιμωρίας τὸν τρόπον ιεʹ. Ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ ἐπάγω ἐφ' ὑμᾶς ἔθνος πόῤῥωθεν, οἶκος Ἰσραὴλ, λέγει Κύριος, ἔθνος ἀρχαῖόν ἐστι. Τοὺς Ἀσσυρίους λέγει· ἔθνος δὲ αὐτοὺς ἀρ χαῖον καλεῖ, ἐπειδήπερ ἡ τούτων βασιλεία πασῶν ἐστι πρεσβυτάτη· Νεμβρὼθ γὰρ μετὰ τὸν κατα κλυσμὸν πρῶτος αὐτῶν ἐβασίλευσεν. Εἶτα λέγει καὶ τῆς φωνῆς τὸ ἀλλόγλωττον. Καὶ τὴν φαρέτραν ἀπεικάζει τάφῳ ἀνεῳγμένῳ, διὰ τὸ θανατηφόρον 81.540 τῶν βελῶν, καὶ τῆς τοξείας τὸ εὔστοχον. Λέγει δὲ καὶ τῆς γῆς τὴν δῄωσιν, καὶ τῶν οἰκιῶν τὴν πόρθη σιν, καὶ τὴν τῶν ἀνθρώπων σφαγήν. Προλέγει μέν τοι καὶ τὴν τῶν πολεμίων κατάλυσιν, καὶ τὴν τού των ἀνάκλησιν. ιηʹ. Οὐ γὰρ μὴ ποιήσω, φησὶν, ὑμᾶς εἰς συν τέλειαν. Καὶ ἐπειδὴ ἀναλγησίαν ἐνόσουν, καὶ τὰς οἰκείας οὐχ ἑώρων παρανομίας, ἀλλ' ἔλεγον· ιθʹ. Ἕνεκα τίνος ἐποίησεν ἡμῖν Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς ἡμῶν πάντα ταῦτα; κελεύει τῷ προφήτῃ πρὸς αὐτοὺς εἰπεῖν, "Ἀνθ' ὧν ἐγκατελίπετέ με, καὶ ἐδουλεύσατε θεοῖς ἑτέροις ἐν τῇ γῇ ὑμῶν, οὕ τως δουλεύσετε ἀλλοτρίοις ἐν γῇ οὐχ ὑμῶν." ∆ικαία δὲ τῆς τιμωρίας ἡ ψῆφος. Ἐπειδὴ, φησὶ, τὴν ἐμὴν ἠρνήθητε βασιλείαν, ἑτέροις ὑμᾶς παραδώσω δε σπόταις. Ταῦτα αὐτοὺς σπουδαίως ἀκοῦσαι κελεύει, καὶ μωροὺς, καὶ ἀσυνέτους καλεῖ, ἐπειδὴ τοῖς τοῦ σώ ματος αἰσθητηρίοις οὐκ εἰς δέον ἐκέχρηντο. "Ὀφθαλ μοὶ γὰρ αὐτοῖς, φησὶ, καὶ οὐ βλέπουσιν· ὦτα αὐ τοῖς, καὶ οὐκ ἀκούουσι." ∆είκνυσι καὶ αὐτοὺς καὶ ἀψύχων ἀλογωτέρους. Ἡ μὲν γὰρ θάλαττα, φησὶ, φυλάττει τοὺς ὅρους· ἔθηκα δὲ αὐτῇ ὅρους, οὐκ ἀδαμάντινον τεῖχος, ἀλλὰ ψάμμον εὐτελεστάτην· ἀλλ' ὅμως κυκωμένη καὶ ταρασσομένη οὐχ ὑπερβαί νει τοὺς ὅρους, ἀλλὰ τούτοις πελάζουσα εἰς τοὐπίσω χωρεῖ·