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when he begins to doubt and repent. But "fire will consume them," so that they are no longer such. 11 You will destroy their fruit from the earth, and their seed from the sons of men. The word "seed" is a homonym. When it is distinguished from fruit, it denotes the seed of a plant; but when from children, the seed of a man; for we often have in scripture "seed" named along with children. The present task is to speak about the difference of the words. He says this: being on the earth and having drawn near to the earth, they were joined to it. Instead of the immaterial soul, they bore the works of the flesh as fruit. This "fruit you will destroy from the earth." The earth is the good and beautiful one, which, receiving the seed which Jesus casts, bears fruit. And this same earth is, in its substance, that which bears the thorns. And the one receptive of seeds is a rational being. But this earth receives the difference from what is in our power. "and their seed from the sons of men." They sowed into the sons of men, not into the sons of God; for they are not receptive of these things. "From the sons," therefore, "of men you will destroy their seed," so that also the 22 aptitude for evil fruit. If someone has virtue in actuality, the seed of wickedness is prevented, but the aptitude and the potential exist, so that it seems to be destroyed. 12 For they have intended evil against you. Against you who made them straight. Their will inclined toward evil. You know that in the case of perceptible creations and statues, a bad work brings blame upon the one who made it, but a correctly made one brings praise. It is said, at any rate, in Sirach: "In the hand of a craftsman, a work will be praised" . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . if someone turns away from the "according to the image." Therefore, as far as it depended on them, they intended evil against you. 12 They devised counsels which they shall not be able to establish. And so that, being led again from the story by what is like a story—though I do not know if it is a story—: those who wished to build a tower having its head up to the top devised a plan and were not able to establish it. At any rate, they were scattered. Then God perfects a counsel, when it is devised correctly and according to His will. He who pursues this "does all things with counsel." To this counsel God brings an end. 13 For you will make them turn their back. Often those around God are said to be his body: "You are the body of Christ," and in this body are found eyes, ears, hands. Therefore, "you will make them a back." You will place them behind this body of yours. But it is possible to understand it thus: the principal things of God are called his face, but these perceptible creations are his back; for they are after him. At any rate, for Moses, who for a time was not able to see the face of God, God passes by in his glory and shows him his back parts. At any rate, he immediately wrote Genesis. Therefore, he will make them a back; for toward the saints his face is set, according to the prayer which they send up: "Make your face shine, and we will be saved." 13 In your remnants you will prepare your face. The remnants, the others besides the "haters," are saints, those who have been left behind in the state. And "you will prepare" is good, and not "you will give." He has it ready, so that everyone who wishes to see it is able to look at it. 14 Be exalted, O Lord, in your strength; we will sing and praise your mighty acts. For you do all these things mightily. And with the beginning of the psalm the power of God is hymned: "O Lord, in your strength the king will rejoice." The power that makes the king rejoice and does all the things that have been said is exalted, not by being raised from a low place to a high one, but by men no longer thinking lowly things concerning it, but high things, as it is. And if we say, "I will exalt you, O Lord," we do not say this, that we are raising you up from a low place to a high one. To exalt is to confess his height. Henceforth he sings a victory song—for mighty acts are spoken of only in the case of a king, and of this one indeed the

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ὅταν ἄρξηται ἀμφιβάλλειν καὶ μετανοεῖν. τὸ δὲ "καταφάγεται αὐτοὺς πῦρ", ὥστε μηκέτι εἶναι τοιούτους. 11 τὸν καρπὸν αὐτῶν ἀπὸ γῆς ἀπολεῖς καὶ τὸ σπέρμα αὐτῶν ἀπὸ υἱῶν ἀνθρώπων. τὸ "σπέρμα" ὁμώνυμόν ἐστιν. ὅταν πρὸς καρπὸν διαστέλληται, φυτοῦ σπέρμα δηλοῖ, ὅταν δὲ πρὸς τέκνα, σπέρμα ἀνθρώπου· ἔχομεν γὰρ ἐν τῇ γραφῇ πολλάκις τὸ "σπέρμα" μετὰ τέκνων ὀνομαζόμενον. περὶ τῆς διαφορᾶς τῶν λέξεων πρόκειται νῦν εἰπεῖν. τοῦτο λέγει· ἐπὶ γῆς ὄντες καὶ πλησιάσαντες τῇ γῇ ἐκολλήθησαν. ἀντὶ τῆς ψυχῆς ἀΰλου ἐκαρποφόρησαν τὰ ἔργα τῆς σαρκός. τοῦτον "τὸν καρπὸν ἀπολεῖς ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς". γῆ ἐστιν ἡ ἀγαθὴ καὶ καλή, ἥτις δεχομένη τὸ σπέρμα τὸ Ἰησοῦ ὃ βάλλει, καρποφορεῖ. ἡ αὐτὴ δὲ γῆ κατ' ὑποκείμενόν ἐστιν αὕτη τῇ τὰς ἀκάνθας φερούσῃ. καὶ ἡ μὲν δεκτικὴ σπερμάτων ἐστὶν λογικὴ οὖσα οὐσία. ἐκ τοῦ ἐφ' ἡμῖν δὲ αὕτη ἡ γῆ τὴν διαφορὰν δέχεται. "καὶ τὸ σπέρμα αὐτῶν ἀπὸ υἱῶν ἀνθρώπων". ἔσπειραν εἰς τοὺς υἱοὺς τῶν ἀνθρώπων, οὐκ εἰς τοὺς υἱοὺς τοῦ θεοῦ· ἀνεπίδεκτοι γάρ εἰσιν τούτων. "ἀπὸ τῶν υἱῶν" οὖν "τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἀπολεῖς τὸ σπέρμα αὐτῶν", ἵνα καὶ ἡ 22 ἐπιτ̣ηδειότης ἡ πρὸς τὸν φαῦλον καρπόν. ἐάν τις κατ' ἐνέργειαν ἔχῃ ἀρετήν, κωλύεται τὸ σπέρμα τῆς κακίας ἡ ἐπιτηδειότης δὲ καὶ ἡ δύναμίς ἐστιν, ὥστε δοκεῖν αὐτὸ ἀπόλλυσθαι. 12 ὅτι ἔκλιναν εἰς σὲ κακά. εἰς σὲ τὸν εὐθεῖς αὐτοὺς πεποιηκότα. ἡ προαίρεσις αὐτῶν ἔκλινεν εἰς τὸ κακόν. οἶδας ὅτι ἐπὶ τῶν αἰσθητῶν δημιουργημάτων καὶ ἀγαλμάτων ψόγον φέρει τῷ ἐργασαμένῳ τὸ κακὸν ἔργον, ἔπαινον δὲ τὸ ὀρθῶς γεγενημένον. εἴρηται γοῦν ἐν τῇ Σιράχ· "ἐν χειρὶ τεχνίτου ἐπαινεθήσεται ἔργον" . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ἐὰν ἐκκλίνῃ τις ἀπὸ τοῦ "κατ' εἰκόνα". τὸ ὅσον οὖν ἧκεν εἰς αὐτούς, εἰς σὲ ἔκριναν κακά. 12 διελογίσαντο βουλάς, ἃς οὐ μὴ δύνωνται στῆναι. καὶ ἵνα ἀπὸ τῆς ἱστορίας πάλιν χειραγωγηθέντα τῇ ὡσανεὶ ἱστορίᾳ-οὐκ οἶδα δέ, εἰ ἱστορία ἐστίν-· οἱ θελήσαντες πύργον οἰκοδομῆσαι ἔχοντα τὴν κεφαλὴν ἕως τοῦ ἄκρου ἐβουλεύσαντο καὶ στῆναι οὐκ ἠδύναντο. ἀμέλει γοῦν διεσπάρησαν. τότε θεὸς τελειοῖ βουλήν, ὅταν ὀρθῶς καὶ κατὰ τὸ βούλημα αὐτοῦ βουλεύηται. ὁ ταύτην μεταδιώξας "με τὰ βουλῆς πάντα ποιεῖ". ταύτῃ τῇ βουλῇ θεὸς πέρας ἐπιφέρει. 13 ὅτι θήσεις αὐτοῖς νῶτον. λέγονται πολλάκις οἱ περὶ τὸν θεὸν σῶμα αὐτοῦ εἶναι· "ὑμεῖς ἐστε σῶμα χριστοῦ", καὶ ἐν τῷ σώματι τούτῳ εὑρίσκονται ὀφθαλμοί, ὦτα, χεῖρες. "θήσεις" οὖν "αὐτοὺς νῶτον". ο᾿̣πίσω τοῦ σώματός σου τούτου τάξεις τούτους. δυνατὸν δὲ οὕτως ἐκλαβεῖν· τὰ προηγούμενα τοῦ θεοῦ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ λέγεται, τὰ δὲ δημιουργήματα ταῦτα τὰ αἰσθητὰ ὀπίσω· μετ' αὐτὸν γάρ εἰσιν. ἀμέλει γοῦν Μωσεῖ τῷ τέως μὴ δυναμένῳ τὸ πρόσωπον τοῦ θεοῦ θεωρεῖν παρέρχεται τῇ δόξῃ αὐτοῦ ὁ θεὸς καὶ δείκνυσιν αὐτῷ τὰ ὀπίσω. ἀμέλει γοῦν γένεσιν εὐθὺς ἀνέγραψεν. εἰς αὐτοὺς οὖν θήσει νῶτον· εἰς γὰρ τοὺς ἁγίους τὸ πρόσωπον τίθεται κατὰ τὴν εὐχήν, ἣν ἀναπέμπουσιν· "ἐπίφανον τὸ πρόσωπόν σου καὶ σωθησόμεθα". 13 ἐν τοῖς περιλοίποις σου ἑτοιμάσεις τὸ πρόσωπόν σου. οἱ περίλοιποι οἱ ἄλλοι παρὰ τοὺς "μισοῦντας" ἅγιοί εἰσιν, οἱ περιλειφθέντες ἐν τῇ καταστάσει. εὖ δὲ καὶ τὸ "ἑτοιμάσεις" καὶ οὐ "δώσεις". ἕτοιμον αὐτὸ ἔχει, ἵνα πᾶς ὁ βουλόμενος αὐτὸ ὁρᾶν δύνηται αὐτὸ βλέπειν. 14 ὑψώθητι, κύριε, ἐν τῇ δυνάμει σου· ᾄσομεν καὶ ψαλοῦ μεν τὰς δυναστείας σου. πάντα γὰρ ταῦτα δυνατῶς ποιεῖς. καὶ μετὰ τῆς ἀρχῆς τοῦ ψάλλειν ἡ τοῦ θεοῦ δύναμις ὑμνεῖται· "κύριε, ἐν τῇ δυνάμει σου εὐφρανθήσεται ὁ βασιλεύς". ἡ δύναμις ἡ εὐφραίνουσα τὸν βασιλέα καὶ πάντα τὰ εἰρημένα ποιοῦσα ὑψοῦται οὐκ ἐκ ταπεινοῦ εἰς ὕψος μετεωριζομένη, ἀλλὰ μηκέτι τῶν ἀνθρώπων ταπεινὰ περὶ αὐτῆς διανοουμένων, ἀλλὰ ὑψηλὰ ὡς ἔστιν. καὶ ἐὰν λέγωμεν ὅτι· "ὑψώσω σε, κύριε", οὐ τοῦτο λέγομεν ὅτι ἐκ τοῦ ταπεινοῦ εἰς τὸ μετέωρόν σε ἀναβιβάζομεν. τὸ ὑψῶσαι τὸ ὁμολογῆσαι αὐτοῦ ἐστιν τὸ ὕψος. λοιπὸν ἐπινικίως ᾄδει-ἐπὶ βασιλέως γὰρ μόνου δυναστεία λέγεται, καὶ τούτου δὲ τοῦ