God. For this reason, because He was God, He was not tempted; but the others, relating the human 29.171 affairs of the Savior, introduce Him as also being tempted. 30.172 "He showed him all the kingdoms of the world." By kingdoms of the world he means those of worldly people, in what way some are ruled by fornication, others are ruled by love of money, and others by vainglory and other passions. But He was not showing Him the kingdoms of the world, for instance, say, the government of the Persians or of the Indians, but "he was showing him 30.173 the kingdoms of the world," in what way he has the power to rule them, so that he might persuade Him to do that which, he thought, would overcome Christ if he did it. If you wish, he says, to rule these and have come for this purpose, to struggle and to cause to revolt those who are ruled by me, do not struggle, I ask one thing: "fall down and worship me," and receive the entire kingdom that is under me. But the Savior does wish to rule and to subject all the nations, so that they may become servants of righteousness and truth and all virtue, but not to rule 30.174 with sin, nor does he wish to be crowned without a struggle, having subjected himself to that one, nor to receive "all the kingdoms of the world" and their glory under his hand without a struggle. Therefore He says to him: "It is written: 'You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only shall you serve.'" For this reason, He says, I want all these to be ruled by me, so that they may worship "the Lord God" and "Him only" may they serve; this is the will of my kingdom. But you want sin to begin from me, which I want to destroy. 31.177 But see, how wickedly he tempts through the use of the scriptures. He wants to diminish the glory of the Lord, as if He were in need of angelic help, as if He were about to stumble, if angels did not help Him. For the use of the psalm was not spoken concerning Christ, for the master of angels does not need angels. 31.178 But I say the opposite to you, O devil: if Jesus does not help the angels, they stumble. And you for this reason have fallen "from heaven," because you considered yourself to be self-sufficient and not in need of the help of Jesus. But so that you may know that what has been written was not said about Jesus, but that these things refer to a righteous man, listen. For it is written: "He who dwells in the help of the Most High will abide in the shelter of the God of heaven." And this is more fitting for a righteous man than for 31.179 the Son of God. And again: "A thousand will fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand"; which also refer to the righteous man. And these words in Psalm 90 <are spoken>; and it speaks not concerning Christ, but concerning the righteous. For Christ does not fear a noonday or a nocturnal demon, nor does He need the help of angels, since He Himself keeps them from stumbling before God; but even if it were said concerning Christ, he cunningly omitted what comes between; for it continues: "you will tread on the asp and the basilisk, and you will trample the lion and the dragon"; for he himself was these things. 32.181 Since He was about to contend in temptation against the devil, the "Spirit" is named twice without any addition; but when, after struggling, He conquered the three recorded temptations, pay attention to the precision of the scripture, what it says about the Spirit, that "Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit," and it added "in the power" on account of the athlete who had conquered. 32.183 And He says that He was sent "to preach the gospel to the poor," that is, to the unbelieving Gentiles; for they were poor, having nothing, not God in knowledge, not law, not prophets; and to all those not having spiritual wealth and naked of all things, of prophecy, of a temple and the like. To these, therefore, He preached the gospel of the kingdom of heaven; He Himself delivered those who were captives, having cast down the apostate tyrant, that is, Satan. 33.186 For the homeland of the prophets is the people of the circumcision, among whom they are not accepted; but we, who were strangers to the covenants and aliens to the promises, received the prophets who proclaimed Christ with our whole soul, more so than they did; 33.187 just as also she in Zarephath of Sidon

θεόν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο, ἐπειδὴ θεός, οὐκ ἐπει ράζετο· οἱ δὲ ἄλλοι, ὡς τὰ ἀνθρώ 29.171 πινα διηγούμενοι τοῦ σωτῆρος, εἰσ άγουσιν αὐτὸν καὶ πειραζόμενον. 30.172 «Ἔδειξεν αὐτῷ πάσας τὰς βασιλείας τῆς οἰκουμένης». Βασιλείας κόσμου φησὶ τῶν κοσμικῶν ἀνθρώπων, τίνα τρόπον οἱ μὲν βασιλεύονται ὑπὸ πορ νείας, οἱ δὲ βασιλεύονται ὑπὸ φιλ αργυρίας, οἱ δὲ ὑπὸ κενοδοξίας καὶ ἑτέρων παθῶν. Οὐκ ἐδείκνυε δὲ αὐ τῷ τὰς βασιλείας τοῦ κόσμου, οἷον φέρε εἰπεῖν τὴν Περσῶν οἰκονομίαν ἢ τὴν Ἰνδῶν, ἀλλ' «ἐδείκνυεν αὐτῷ 30.173 τὰς βασιλείας τοῦ κόσμου», τίνα τρό πον ἰσχύει αὐτῶν βασιλεύειν, ἵν' αὐτὸν προτρέψηται ποιῆσαι, ὃ ἐνόμιζε ποιή σαντος περιγενήσεσθαι τοῦ Χριστοῦ. Εἰ θέλεις, φησί, βασιλεῦσαι τού των καὶ ἐπὶ τούτῳ ἐλήλυθας τοῦ ἀγωνίσασθαι καὶ ἀποστῆσαι τοὺς βα σιλευομένους ὑπ' ἐμοῦ, μὴ ἀγωνίζου, ἓν ἀξιῶ· «πεσὼν προσκύνησόν μοι», καὶ παράλαβε πᾶσαν τὴν βασιλείαν τὴν ὑπ' ἐμέ. Ἀλλ' ὁ σωτὴρ βασιλεῦσαι μὲν θέλει καὶ ὑποτάξαι πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, ἵνα δοῦλα γένηται δικαιοσύνης καὶ ἀλη θείας καὶ πάσης ἀρετῆς, βασιλεῦσαι 30.174 δὲ οὐ μετὰ ἁμαρτίας, οὐδὲ βούλεται ἀκμητὶ ὑποτάξας ἑαυτὸν ἐκείνῳ στε φανώσασθαι, οὐδὲ ἀκμητὶ λαβεῖν πά σας «τὰς βασιλείας τοῦ κόσμου» καὶ τὴν δόξαν αὐτῶν ὑποχείριον. ∆ιό φησι πρὸς αὐτόν· «γέγραπται· κύριον τὸν θεόν σου προσκυνήσεις καὶ αὐτῷ μόνῳ λατρεύσεις». Τού τους, φησί, πάντας διὰ τοῦτο θέλω ἄρχεσθαι ὑπ' ἐμοῦ, ἵνα «κύριον τὸν θεὸν» προσκυνήσωσι «καὶ αὐτῷ μό νῳ» λατρεύσωσιν· τοῦτό ἐστι τὸ βού λημα τῆς ἐμῆς βασιλείας. Σὺ δὲ θέ λεις τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ἀπ' ἐμοῦ ἄρξασθαι, ἣν ἐγὼ καταργῆσαι θέλω. 31.177 Ὅρα δέ, πῶς κακούργως πειρᾶται διὰ τῆς χρήσεως τῶν γραφῶν. Θέλει καθελεῖν τὴν δόξαν τοῦ κυρίου, ὡς δεομένου ἀγγελικῆς βοηθείας, ὡς μέλλοντος προσκόπτειν, εἰ μὴ ἄγ γελοι αὐτῷ βοηθοῖεν. Οὐ γὰρ περὶ τοῦ Χριστοῦ εἴρηται ἡ χρῆσις τοῦ ψαλμοῦ, οὐδὲ γὰρ δεῖται ἀγγέλων ὁ τῶν ἀγγέλων δεσπότης. 31.178 Ἐγὼ δὲ τὸ ἀνάπαλίν φημι πρὸς σέ, ὦ διάβολε· εἰ μὴ Ἰησοῦς βοη θήσῃ τοῖς ἀγγέλοις, προσκόπτουσιν. Καὶ σὺ διὰ τοῦτο πέπτωκας «ἐξ οὐρανοῦ», ἐπειδήπερ αὐτάρκη ἑαυτὸν ἐνόμισας εἶναι καὶ μὴ δεῖσθαι τῆς τοῦ Ἰησοῦ βοηθείας. Ἵνα δὲ γνῷς μὴ περὶ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ λελέχθαι τὰ ἀναγεγραμμένα, ἀλλ' εἰς δίκαιον ἄνδρα ταῦτα ἀναφέρεσθαι, ἄκουε. Γέγραπται γάρ· «Ὁ κατοικῶν ἐν βοηθείᾳ τοῦ ὑψίστου ἐν σκέπῃ τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ αὐλισθήσεται». Τοῦτο δὲ δικαίῳ μᾶλλον ἁρμόζει ἢ 31.179 τῷ υἱῷ τοῦ θεοῦ. Καὶ αὖθις· «πεσεῖ ται ἐκ τοῦ κλίτους σου χιλιὰς καὶ μυριὰς ἐκ τῆς δεξιᾶς σου»· ἃ καὶ αὐτὰ ἐπὶ τὸν δίκαιον ἀνάγεται. Ταῦτα δὲ τὰ ῥήματα ἐν ψαλμῷ ʹ <εἴρηται>· λέγει δὲ οὐ περὶ Χριστοῦ, ἀλλὰ περὶ δικαίων. Οὐ γὰρ Χριστὸς φοβεῖται δαιμό νιον μεσημβρινὸν οὐδὲ νυκτερινόν, οὐδὲ δεῖται βοηθείας ἀγγέλων, αὐτὸς τηρῶν αὐτοὺς ἀπροσκόπους θεῷ· εἰ δὲ καὶ περὶ Χριστοῦ λέγοιτο, παν ούργως παρῆκε τὰ μεταξύ· ἐπάγει γάρ· «ἐπὶ ἀσπίδα καὶ βασιλίσκον ἐπιβήσῃ καὶ καταπατή σεις λέοντα καὶ δράκοντα»· ταῦτα γὰρ αὐτὸς ἦν. 32.181 Ἐπειδὴ ἤμελλεν ἀθλεῖν ἐν τῷ πει ρασμῷ πρὸς τὸν διάβολον, δὶς ὀνο μάζεται τὸ «πνεῦμα» χωρὶς πάσης προσθήκης· ὅτε δὲ ἀγωνισάμενος ἐνίκησε τοὺς τρεῖς ἀναγεγραμμένους πειρασμούς, πρόσχες τῇ ἀκριβείᾳ τῆς γραφῆς, τί περὶ τοῦ πνεύματός φησιν, ὅτι «Ἰησοῦς ὑπέστρεψεν ἐν τῇ δυνάμει τοῦ πνεύματος», καὶ προσέθηκεν «ἐν τῇ δυνάμει» διὰ τὸν ἀθλητὴν τὸν νενικηκότα. 32.183 Ἀπεστάλθαι δέ φησιν ἑαυτὸν «εὐαγγελίσασθαι τοῖς πτωχοῖς», τοῦτ' ἔστι τοῖς ἐθνικοῖς τοῖς ἀπίστοις· αὐτοὶ γὰρ ἦσαν πτωχοὶ μηδὲν ἔχον τες, μὴ θεὸν ἐν γνώσει, μὴ νόμον, μὴ προφήτας· καὶ ἅπασι τοῖς πλοῦ τον οὐκ ἔχουσι πνευματικὸν καὶ γυμ νοῖς πάντων, προφητείας, ναοῦ καὶ τῶν ὁμοίων. Τούτοις οὖν εὐηγγελί σατο τὴν τῶν οὐρανῶν βασιλείαν· αὐτὸς αἰχμαλώτους ὄντας ἐρρύσατο, τὸν ἀποστάτην τύραννον καθελὼν τοῦτ' ἔστι τὸν Σατανᾶν. 33.186 Πατρὶς μὲν γὰρ τῶν προφητῶν ὁ ἐκ περιτομῆς λαός, παρ' οἷς οὔκ εἰσι δεκτοί· ἡμεῖς δὲ οἱ ἀλλότριοι τῶν διαθη κῶν καὶ ξένοι τῶν ἐπαγγελιῶν ἐδεξά μεθα τοὺς προφήτας ὅλῃ ψυχῇ προ κηρύξαντας Χριστὸν ἤπερ ἐκεῖνοι· 33.187 ὥσπερ καὶ ἡ ἐν Σαρέφθοις τῆς Σιδω νίας