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each came to him from his own country: Eliphaz the king of the Temanites, Bildad the tyrant of the Shuhites, Zophar the king of the Minaeans." Strange things are for the most part widely heard of, especially if these happen to distinguished persons. Since Job was, therefore, among the most renowned for both wealth and virtue, his friends, having naturally heard about the severity of the 52 things that had happened, came not from one place, but each from his own country, moved by sympathy, and this, although they were kings, and for this reason not despising the one who had experienced so great a change of fortune. He says "tyrant" either as a parallel for "king"—since at that time the name was not yet known as a reproach—or a difference of rule from a king. This also in Proverbs: "through me kings reign and tyrants rule the earth." These came to him, no other cause having brought them. The saying is useful for sympathy, so that we do not, on account of the changes that befall us, overlook the duties of love and mutual affection. "And they came to him with one accord to comfort and to visit him." They had come to do both, since he had happened to suffer both things; for he was deprived of property and children, and his whole body was afflicted with the wound. They came to him "with one accord," either with great eagerness or because, having separate dwellings, they came together by agreement, so that they might come to him for consolation; for they did not 53 perceive the evils after they had ceased but while they were already at work. "And when they saw him from afar, they did not recognize him, and crying out with a loud voice, they wept, each tearing his own robe and sprinkling earth. They sat beside him for seven days and seven nights." The things set forth teach two things in this: both the courage of the blessed one—others bearing it with difficulty because of the immoderation of the events—and the sympathy of his friends, who not only came, but also, upon seeing him, did not recognize him because of the disease, as it had also altered the features of his appearance, and crying out with a loud voice they wept, and each tore his robe and sprinkled ashes, all of which, as has been said, shows both the courage of the holy one and their sympathy. For he remained unbending, which one might well admire, and through these things Job was not provoked to despair by the fact that his suffering astounded the others, which is accustomed to happen to people. And it is also a mark of sympathy to remain with him for seven days and seven nights. Therefore one must not neglect endurance towards the weak and helpless, being led through these things to 54 sympathy. "And none of them spoke. For they saw that the affliction was terrible and very great." Those who had come for consolation fell silent at the magnitude of the events. And it was natural that they first employed sympathy; for this is most wont to be effective with those who are being consoled. For indeed there was nothing they could furnish for a cure, with the suffering surpassing any aid from medicine. And it is likely that, since they had the opinion of him as a wise man, they chose to be silent out of respect, not daring to utter a word before him. "After this Job opened his mouth and cursed his day, saying:" The wise man is not an idle talker, nor does he utter with his tongue things which cannot come to be. But he curses not the day, which is an interval of time, but the things that happened in it. For it is a custom in Scripture to call the things that happen "a day." The psalmist teaches this, saying: "in the evil day the Lord will deliver him," calling "evil day" not the temporal extension, but the evil things that happened in them; and also what is said by Paul: "for the days are evil," is of the same 55 thought. Thus one might say that the day is good for these people because of the things that happen, but for those people, it is bad. For to the peoples of Israel who unexpectedly crossed the

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παρεγένετο ἀπὸ τῆς ἰδίας χώρας ἕκαστος πρὸς αὐτόν· Ἐλιφὰς ὁ Θαιμάνων βασιλεύς, Βαλδὰδ ὁ Σαυχαίων τύραννος, Σωφὰρ ὁ Μιναίων βασιλεύς." τὰ ξενίζοντα ὡς ἐπὶ τὸ πλεῖστον ἐξάκουστα μάλιστα ἐὰν ταῦτα συμ βαίνῃ περὶ πρόσωπα ἐπίδοξα. τῶν οὖν ἐνδοξοτάτων ὑπάρχοντος τοῦ Ἰὼβ διά τε πλοῦτον καὶ ἀρετὴν εἰκότως οἱ φίλοι περὶ τῆς τῶν 52 συμβεβηκότων χαλεπότητος ἀκηκοότες παρεγένοντο οὐκ ἐξ ἑνὸς τόπου, ἀλλὰ ἀπὸ τῆς ἰδίας χώρας ἕκαστος, ἀπὸ συμπαθείας κινηθέντες, καὶ ταῦτα βασιλεῖς ὑπάρχοντες, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο μὴ ὑπεριδόντες τὸν ἐν τοσαύτηι γενόμενον μεταβολῇ. "τύραννον" δὲ λέγει ἢ ἐκ παραλλήλου τὸν βασιλέα-οὔπω τοῦ καιροῦ ψεκτὸν εἰδότος τὸ ὄνομα-ἢ διαφορὰν ἀρχῆς παρὰ τὸν βασιλέα. τοῦτο καὶ ἐν Παροιμίαις· "δι' ἐμοῦ βασιλεῖς βασιλεύουσιν καὶ τύραννοι δι' ἐμοῦ κρατοῦσι γῆς." πρὸς αὐτὸν δὲ οὗτοι παρεγένοντο, οὐχ ἑτέρας αἰτίας ἀγαγούσης αὐτούς. χρήσιμον τὸ ῥητὸν πρὸς συμπάθειαν, ἵνα μὴ διὰ τὰς μεταβολὰς τὰς ἐνπιπτούσας τὰ τῆς ἀγάπης καὶ φιλαλληλίας παρίδωμεν. "καὶ παρεγένοντο πρὸς αὐτὸν ὁμοθυμαδὸν τοῦ παρακαλέσαι καὶ ἐπισκέψασθαι αὐτόν." ἀμφότερα ποιῆσαι ἐληλύθασιν, ἐπεὶ καὶ ἀμφότερα πεπονθὼς ἐτύγχανεν· καὶ γὰρ οὐσίας καὶ παίδων ἐστέρητο καὶ ὅλον τὸ σῶμα τῶι τραύματι συνείχετο. "ὁμοθυμαδὸν" δὲ παρεγένοντο πρὸς αὐτόν, ἢ μετὰ πολλῆς προθυμίας ἢ ὅτι διῃρημένας τὰς οἰκήσεις ἔχοντες συνθέμενοι συνεληλύθασιν, ἵν' οὕτω πρὸς αὐτὸν παραγένωνται ἐπὶ παρακλήσει· οὐδὲ γὰρ 53 παυσάμενα συνῄσθοντο τὰ κακὰ ἀλλ' ἤδη ἐνεργοῦντα. "ἰδόντες δὲ αὐτὸν πόρρωθεν οὐκ ἐπέγνωσαν, καὶ βοήσαντες φωνῇ μεγάλῃ ἔκλαυσαν ῥήξαντες ἕκαστος τὴν ἑαυτοῦ στολὴν καὶ καταπασάμενοι γῆν. παρεκάθισαν αὐτῷ ἑπτὰ ἡμέρας καὶ ἑπτὰ νύκτας." δύο ἐν τούτῳ παιδεύει τὰ ἐκτεθέντα, τήν τ' ἀνδρείαν τοῦ μακαρίου -ἄλλων δυσφόρως ἐνεγκόντων διὰ τὴν ἀμετρίαν τῶν συμβεβηκότων-καὶ τὴν τῶν φίλων συμπάθειαν, οἳ οὐ μόνον παρεγένοντο, ἀλλὰ καὶ θεασάμενοι οὐκ ἐπέγνωσαν διὰ τὴν νόσον αὐτόν, ταύτης καὶ τοὺς χαρακτῆρας αὐτοῦ τῆς μορφῆς ἀλλοιωσάσης, καὶ βοήσαντες μετὰ μεγάλης φω νῆς ἔκλαυσαν διαρρήξαντές τε καὶ τὴν στολὴν ἕκαστος καὶ κατεπάσαντο σποδόν, ἅπερ ἅπαντα, ὡς εἴρηται, καὶ τὴν ἀνδρείαν τοῦ ἁγίου δείκνυσιν καὶ τὸ τούτων συμπαθές. ἀκαμπὴς γὰρ ἔμεινεν, ὃ καὶ θαυμάσειεν ἄν τις, καὶ διὰ τούτων ὁ Ἰὼβ μὴ ἐρεθιζόμενος εἰς ὀλιγωρίαν ἐκ τοῦ τὸ πάθος τοὺς ἄλλους καταπλήττεσθαι, ὅπερ εἴωθεν ἀνθρώποις συμβαίνειν. συμπαθὲς δὲ καὶ τὸ ἑπτὰ ἡμέρας καὶ ἑπτὰ νύκτας αὐτῶι προσμεῖναι. ὅθεν οὐκ ὀλιγωρητέον τῆς πρὸς τοὺς ἀσθενεῖς καὶ ἀβοηθήτους καρτερίας διὰ τούτων ἐπὶ 54 συμπαθὲς ἀγομένους. "καὶ οὐθεὶς αὐτῶν ἐλάλησεν. ἑώρων γὰρ τὴν πληγὴν δεινὴν οὖσαν καὶ μεγάλην σφόδρα." οἱ διὰ παράκλησιν ἐλθόντες τῷ μεγέθει τῶν συμβεβηκότων ἀπεσιώπησαν. εἰκότως δὲ πρότερον ἐχρῶντο τῆι συμπαθείᾳ· φιλεῖ γὰρ τοῦτο μάλιστα ἀνύειν ἐν τοῖς παρακαλουμένοις. οὐδὲ γὰρ οὐδὲ πρὸς θεραπείαν ἦν τι αὐτοῖς πόριμον, καὶ τὴν κατὰ ἰατρείαν ἐπικουρίαν ὑπερβαίνοντος τοῦ πάθους. εἰκὸς δὲ ὅτι ἅτε διάλημψιν ἔχοντες περὶ αὐτοῦ ὡς σοφοῦ καὶ αἰδοῖ σιωπᾶν ᾑροῦντο, πρὸ αὐτοῦ μὴ τολμῶντες προενέγκασθαι λόγον. "μετὰ τοῦτο ἤνοιξεν Ἰὼβ τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ καὶ κατηράσατο τὴν ἡμέραν αὐτοῦ λέγων·" ὁ σοφὸς οὐκ ἔστιν ματαιολόγος οὐδὲ προφέρει διὰ γλώττης ἃ μὴ οἷά τέ ἐστιν γενέσθαι. καταρᾶται δὲ οὐ τὴν ἡμέραν, ὅ ἐστι διάστημα χρονικόν, ἀλλὰ τὰ ἐν αὐτῆι συμβάντα. δι' ἔθους γὰρ τῇ γραφῇ τὰ συμβαίνοντα ἡμέραν καλεῖν. τοῦτο ὁ ψαλμῳδὸς παιδεύει λέγων· "ἐν ἡμέραι πονηρᾶι ῥύσεται αὐτὸν ὁ κύριος", πονηρὰν ἡμέραν οὐ τὴν χρονικὴν διάστασιν λέγων, ἀλλὰ τὰ ἐν αὐταῖς πονηρὰ συμβάντα· καὶ τὸ λεγόμενον δὲ παρὰ Παύλῳ· "ὅτι αἱ ἡμέραι πονηραί εἰσ̣ιν", τῆς αὐ55 τῆς διανοίας. οὕτω τις τοῖσδε μὲν ἀγαθὴν εἶναι λέγοι τὴν ἡμέραν διὰ τὰ συμβαίνοντα, τοῖσδε δὲ κακήν. τοῖς γὰρ λαοῖς Ἰσδραὴλ ἀπροσδοκήτως διαβᾶσιν τὴν