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speaking of his ascension into heaven, he added: "The Lord of hosts, he is the king of glory." Concerning whom Paul also says: "For if they had known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory." He assigns the causes for the destruction of Jerusalem to the rulers, who led the people into sin. These were they concerning whom the Savior says, in agreement with the present things: "Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites." And the impassible God calls his own wrath, 1861 his punitive power, saying that the Lord will bring it upon the rulers, frightening them in a human way. For the least is worthy of pardon through mercy; but the mighty will be mightily tested. For those who are powerful in wealth, or speech, or some other power, and do not extend the fitting assistance to the weaker in the Church, and everywhere, pay the penalty to God who demands the work according to what has been given; whom he also calls adversaries, as if they were burdened by his commands, from whom he does not cease his wrath insofar as they happen to be adversaries. And he calls these enemies, and says that he will make a judgment of them. For he himself said: "He who believes in me will not be judged. But he who does not believe has already been judged." The enemies, therefore, are the cause of the judgment. "For the wrath of God," he says, "is coming upon the sons of disobedience." And he says that he brings punishments upon them with discernment, according to their worth and the magnitude of their sins. But the Word, being a lover of mankind, and not wishing the death of a sinner so much as his repentance, promises to those not in need of his wrath to apply his healing hand, and through this to purify by fire, and to separate the better from the worse. For which reason Symmachus said, your dross into purity. And Aquila, your grape-skin dregs, just as those who fire bronze, or iron, cast off the dross, and the grape-skin dregs in the wine-presses. And he shows these to be, through what he adds, the lawless, and the proud; a...wn having been said more clearly by the Seventy, and having interpreted the allegory. The others have rendered it, tin. But some, understanding the same wrath and hand, and each concerning the same things, say, See the auspicious end of the judgment of God. For he is angry in such a way as to benefit sinners by correcting them, but not punishing them to destruction. And the Lord himself says this: He goes forth like a refiner's fire, and like the soap of fullers, and he will sit refining, and purifying like silver, and like gold." And what then is the use from this? "They shall be," he says, "offering sacrifice to God in righteousness." He seems to call fire the calamities from war and other circumstances, formerly on account of idolatry, but later on account of the outrage against Christ, when also bringing his hand upon these, like some craftsman, he distinguished in the fire the counterfeit and the genuine, keeping the one for himself, but delivering the other to destruction. For he baptizes with spirit and fire, and with his winnowing fork he will clear his threshing floor, and the rest; Therefore, having chosen the apostles, he delivered the lawless and arrogant to the Romans, who had disobeyed 1864 the law, and had raised a horn on high and spoken injustice against God. And it is a great benefit to a soul for the lawless and the causes of apostasy to be removed from it. For which reason also the leaders of the Church separate those who sin in forbidden ways, lest a little leaven spoil the whole lump, being a type of those separated from the terrible tribunal into the darkness, which they, not understanding, are often insensible to. And Paul shows the harm from not separating the lawless when he rebukes the Corinthians, because they did not mourn, so that the one who had done the evil thing might be removed from them. And when these, he says, have been driven away, I will set over you those who are left as Christ approved them, judges and counselors according to those former ones. For if they had not long ago had such men, he would not have said through the same prophet: "Behold now the Lord Sabaoth will take away from Jerusalem." Then after saying who, he adds: "Both judge, and prophet," among whom also

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λέγων αὐτοῦ τῆς εἰς οὐρανὸν, ἐπήνεγκε· "Κύριος τῶν δυνάμεων αὐτός ἐστιν ὁ βασιλεὺς τῆς δόξης." Περὶ οὗ καὶ Παῦλός φησιν· "Εἰ γὰρ ἔγνωσαν, οὐκ ἂν τὸν Κύριον τῆς δόξης ἐσταύρωσαν." Τοῦ δὲ κατεφθάρθαι τὴν Ἱερουσαλὴμ ἀνατίθησιν τὰς αἰτίας τοῖς ἄρχουσι, τοῖς εἰς τὸ πλημμελεῖν τὸν λαὸν ὁδηγήσασιν. Οὗτοι δὲ ἦσαν περὶ ὧν φησιν ὁ Σωτὴρ συμφώνως τοῖς νῦν· "Οὐαὶ ὑμῖν, Γραμματεῖς καὶ Φαρισαῖοι, ὑποκριταί." Ἑαυτοῦ δὲ θυμὸν 1861 ὁ ἀπαθὴς λέγει Θεὸς, τὴν κολαστικὴν αὐτοῦ δύναμιν, Κύριον τοῖς ἄρχουσιν ἐποίσειν φησὶν, ἀνθρωπίνως φοβῶν. Ὁ γὰρ ἐλάχιστος συγγνωστός ἐστιν ἐλέους· δυνατοὶ δὲ δυνατῶς ἐτασθήσονται. Οἱ γὰρ ἰσχύοντες ἐν πλούτῳ, ἢ λόγῳ, ἢ ἄλλῃ τινὶ δυνάμει, καὶ μὴ τὴν προσήκουσαν ἐπικουρίαν τοῖς ἀσθενεστέροις προτείνοντες ἐν Ἐκκλησίᾳ, καὶ πανταχοῦ δίκας τίνουσι τῷ Θεῷ τῷ πρὸς τὰ δεδομένα τὸ ἔργον εἰσπράττοντι· οὓς καὶ ὑπεναντίους φησὶν, ὡς ἂν εἰ βαρυνθέντας αὐτοῦ τοῖς προστάγμασιν, ἀφ' ὧν οὐ παύει τὸν θυμὸν ὅσον ὑπεναντίοι τυγχάνουσιν. Καλεῖ δὲ τούτους ἐχθροὺς, καὶ κρίσιν ἐξ αὐτῶν ποιήσειν φησίν. Ἔφη γὰρ αὐτός· "Ὁ πιστεύων εἰς ἐμὲ, οὐ μὴ κρίνεται. Ὁ δὲ ἀπιστῶν, ἤδη κέκριται." Οἱ ἐχθροὶ τοίνυν τῆς κρίσεως αἴτιοι. "Ἔρχεται γὰρ, φησὶν, ἡ ὀργὴ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐπὶ τοὺς υἱοὺς τῆς ἀπειθείας." Λέγει δὲ κεκριμένως τὰς κολάσεις ἐπάγειν αὐτοὺς, κατὰ τὴν ἀξίαν καὶ τῶν ἡμαρτημένων τὸ μέγεθος. Φιλάνθρωπος δὲ ὢν ὁ Λόγος, καὶ μὴ βουλόμενος τὸν θάνατον τοῦ ἁμαρτωλοῦ, ὡς τὴν μετάνοιαν, ἐπαγγέλλεται τοῖς μὴ τοῦ θυμοῦ δεομένοις, τὴν θεραπευτικὴν χεῖρα προσενεγκεῖν, καὶ διὰ ταύτης πυρώσειν ἐπὶ τὸ καθᾶραι, καὶ διακρῖναι τῶν χειρόνων τοὺς κρείττους. ∆ι' ὃ Σύμμαχος μὲν εἶπεν, εἰς καθαρὸν τὴν σκωρίαν σου. Ὁ δὲ Ἀκύλας, τὸ γιγαρτῶδές σου, ὥσπερ οἱ πυροῦντες χαλκὸν, ἢ σίδηρον, τὴν σκωρίαν ἀποβάλλουσι, καὶ τὸ γιγαρτῶδες ἐν τοῖς ληνοῖς. ∆ηλοῖ δὲ τούτους εἶναι, δι' ὧν ἐπιφέρει, τοὺς ἀνόμους, καὶ τοὺς ὑπερηφάνους· α...ων σαφέστερον εἰρημένων ὑπὸ τῶν Ἑβδομήκοντα, καὶ τὴν ἀλληγορίαν ἡρμηνευκότων. Οἱ λοιποὶ, κασσίτερον, ἐκδεδώκασι. Τινὲς δὲ τὸν αὐτὸν θυμὸν καὶ χεῖρα νοήσαντες, καὶ περὶ τῶν αὐτῶν ἑκάτερον, Ὅρα, φασὶ, τὸ αἴσιον τέλος τῆς κρίσεως τοῦ Θεοῦ. Θυμοῦται γὰρ οὕτως, ὡς ἂν εὐεργετῇ τοὺς ἁμαρτωλοὺς διορθούμενος, ἀλλ' οὐ κολάζων αὐτοὺς εἰς ἀφανισμόν. Καὶ τοῦτό φησιν αὐτὸς Κύριος· Πορεύεται ὡς πῦρ χωνευτηρίου, καὶ ὡς πόα πλυνόντων, καὶ καθιεῖται χωνεύων, καὶ καθαρίζων ὡς τὸ ἀργύριον, καὶ ὡς τὸ χρυσίον." Καὶ τί λοιπὸν ἐντεῦθεν τὸ χρήσιμον; "Ἔσονται, φησὶ, τῷ Θεῷ προσάγοντες θυσίαν ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ." Πῦρ δὲ καλεῖν ἔοικε, τὰς ἐκ τοῦ πολέμου καὶ τῶν ἄλλων περιστατικῶν συμφορὰς, πάλαι μὲν δι' εἰδωλολατρείαν, ὕστερον δὲ διὰ τὴν εἰς Χριστὸν παροινίαν, ὅτε καὶ τὴν χεῖρα τούτοις ἐπαγαγὼν, ὥσπερ τις τεχνίτης, διέκρινεν ἐν πυρὶ τὸ κίβδηλόν τε καὶ γνήσιον, τὸ μὲν τηρήσας ἑαυτῷ, τὸ δὲ εἰς ὄλεθρον παραδούς. Βαπτίζει γὰρ πνεύματι καὶ πυρὶ, καὶ τῷ πτύῳ διακαθαριεῖ τὴν ἅλωνα αὐτοῦ, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς· Οὐκοῦν, τοὺς ἀποστόλους ἐπιλεξάμενος, τοὺς ἀνόμους καὶ ἀλαζόνας Ῥωμαίοις παρέδωκεν, ἀπειθήσαντας μὲν 1864 τῷ νόμῳ, ἐπάραντας δὲ κέρας εἰς ὕψος καὶ λαλήσαντας κατὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀδικίαν. Μεγάλη δὲ εὐεργεσία ψυχῇ, τὸ τοὺς ἀνόμους καὶ τῆς ἀποστάσεως αἰτίους αὐτὴν χορηθῆναι. ∆ιὸ καὶ τῆς Ἐκκλησίας οἱ τύποι, τοὺς ἀπηγορευμένα πλημμελοῦντας χωρίζουσιν, ὡς ἂν μὴ μικρὰ ζύμη ὅλον τὸ φύραμα δολώσῃ, τύπον ὄντας τῶν ἐκ τοῦ φοβεροῦ κριτηρίου πρὸς τὸ σκότος χωριζομένων, ὃ μὴ νοοῦντες ἀνεσθητοῦσιν πολλάκις. Τὴν δὲ ἀπὸ τοῦ τοὺς ἀνόμους μὴ χωρίζεσθαι βλάβην παρίστησι Παῦλος ἐπιτιμῶν Κορινθίοις, ὅτι μὴ ἐπένθησαν, ἵνα ἐξαρθῇ ἀπ' αὐτῶν τὸ πονηρὸν ἐξειργασμένος. Τούτων δὲ, φησὶν, ἀπεληλαμένων, τοὺς περιλειφθέντας ὡς Χριστὸν δεδοκιμασμένον ἐπιστήσω σοι κριτὰς καὶ συμβούλους κατὰ τοὺς πρώην ἐκείνους. Εἰ μὴ γὰρ εἶχον πάλαι τοιούτους, οὐκ ἂν ἔλεγε διὰ τοῦ αὐτοῦ προφήτου· "Ἰδοὺ δὴ Κύριος Σαβαὼθ ἀφελεῖ ἀπὸ τοῦ Ἱερουσαλήμ." Εἶτα εἰπὼν τίνας, ἐπιφέρει· "Καὶ δικαστὴν, καὶ προφήτην," ἐν οἷς καὶ