Expositio in Proverbia

 the things that have fallen, that is, from the pretext of Uriah. How then does Solomon say before: “He who rejoices 17.165 at another's destruction wi

 would have difficulty, just as the desire for money a pure mind draws near to wisdom since it knows well but the impure will be far from it. Adam i

 but here, that he names the mind a good gift, on account of the one who unjustly receives gifts in his bosom, and is not prospered for those unjust g

 of virtue And this persuades me, in a small way, that the rich man being judged in Hades for his wickedness was not completely given over to every ev

 to you, You shall not be angry. It must be noted here that he calls the natural harmonious movement of the ant, wisdom for indeed one wiser than a wi

 for he was the lamp that was burning and shining a light, the New Testament For I, he says, am the light of the world a refutation of evil things,

 of the kemphos fish in the sea, flying in schools here and there which the sailors, having baited a many-hooked line, catch and not only does it not

 come to the introductions but when they become wise, and are strengthened, reprove them. And Christ, when his disciples were still young, did not rep

 of the evil one. But the impious who sin will not only fall from the kingdom, but they will inhabit the fire and not the earth. Instead of, he is full

 be not silent to me, says David, and I will be like those who go down into the pit. A lawless man will be passed over in silence by God, that is, he w

 sinning. Here he calls the senses ways but he who guards them, keeps his own soul from death unto life for life is the Holy Trinity that gives life

 afflicted, distressed? And how will the unbeliever not have an obol, when many unbelievers are clothed with much wealth, I mean kings and rulers of th

 the love of God for humanity which also brings us to God the Father himself, as sons weaned, and desiring spiritual solid food so that just as his S

 your eyes, say: for many, even without having begun virtue, not only advise others to act rightly, but also compel and exhort them. Here he says man

 body is profitable to the foolish man for he will trample it underfoot, being a pleasure-loving pig and by sensible luxury his flesh will be moved t

 that is, to imitate the virtues of the righteous and prophets who shone in the six ages before the coming of Christ, who also feed the widow and orpha

 of the Lord, is the knowledge of the Lord, and the light of the Lord is the breath of men, therefore the knowledge of the Lord is the breath of men b

 He calls the mind a horse, which is warred against by the devil, and which wars in return For you will mount, he says, upon your horses and your rid

 he slanders us to God, taking from us the virtues which he has not given us, so also we slander him taking from him the vices which we have not given

 But do not enter into the land of those who have orphaned themselves from God, who possess wickedness as the property of demons, on account of which t

 but vice diminishes virtue, and virtue obviously corrupts vice and this will happen in the age to come, until vice ceases for shall be defiled, in

 earth-born nations, and having strengthened them with virtues in faith in him, Christ the God, and having stored up the heavenly water that which flo

 is, the law given to us by him in righteousness and those who gouge out the eyes of the impious, he called ravens but those who devour him whole, he

 of lands, he keeps his own justly. Cast a precious sardius into a golden earring, and the wisdom of the Lord into a dispassionate and obedient mind to

 defines servants or those under his hand for the rod is a symbol of punishment. From his own feet, etc. Here he calls servants 'feet' and from them

 to the devil who made it, to yield as to a brother, so as to be destroyed with him. -Better is he who is joined to me through true knowledge, than he

 lawless, are the doctrines of demons, which the instructed son does not obey and by son he means the mind but he who restrains his mind from being c

 of blood are the demons, who killed those living in Christ by the shedding of blood but the upright will seek out his soul these are they who wish t

 a soul of abundance for its bodily house. He says that the soul of the diligent man has the Church as a tree of knowledge and a tree of life of knowl

of the Lord, is the knowledge of the Lord, and the light of the Lord is the breath of men, therefore the knowledge of the Lord is the breath of men; but the devil in ignorance, who appears to give light, he called a lamp emptying the mind of good knowledge, and transforming himself into an angel of light; but since they did not choose to know the light of the Lord nor to walk in it, the impious regarded ignorance as light; and if they held ignorance as light, it is clear that they also did the works of the inventor of ignorance, the devil; those who walk with his ignorance will be with him for ever and ever; but those with the knowledge of the Lord, with the Lord. This saying casts out the sacrifice through irrational animals; for a sacrifice to God is a contrite spirit. If the works of the Lord are pure and right, and one of his works is also the mind, then the mind was created right and pure by God, and we ought to keep it right towards him from the evils that come upon us from the wicked one. He contrasted the plastered and common house with the open-air corner; and if the plastered and common house is wickedness, the open-air corner is virtue; therefore an open-air corner is action touching upon contemplation, and illumined by the sun of righteousness; and Paul also rightly called the high priest of the Jews a plastered wall that would be struck blind by God; and the Savior in the Gospels called the Pharisees plastered tombs; and he spoke well also 17.216 of being on a corner, where lies the stone rejected by the builders, which became the head of the corner, which is Christ; and that is common which is not of the one God. A secret gift is what the right hand does, and the left does not know; he who withholds gifts from the needy stirs up strong wrath against himself on the day of judgment. The assembly of the giants is wickedness and ignorance; and the giants are the demons; that is, he who wanders from the way of righteousness will rest in great sins. It is better to be without a wife than to be with such a one; and David says: In a desert and pathless and waterless land, so in the sanctuary I appeared to you; therefore a desert land is the soul that has virtue, and does not have the old men dwelling in it, who are corrupted according to the old desires of deceit; wherefore the devil also finds no rest in it; since with difficulty he seeks rest through waterless places, and does not find it; for he is king of all those in the waters, that is, of those in the repose and enjoyment of carnal pleasures. And again: The chambers of her houses are the water-tight places of wisdom; and if this is so, then the contentious and talkative and angry woman is wickedness, which makes the one who lives with her contentious and talkative and angry. The wisdom of the Lord will rest in the heart of a just wise man; but foolish men slander her to corrupt her. Wisdom is a strong city, in which the wise dwell, casting down reasonings, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God. -He calls fortified cities the souls fortified and held fast by impious demons and wicked men, who are exalted against the knowledge of God; whose fortress the wise man, having entered upon, and their seeming security, being fenced about with such wisdom, he cast down. He who guards his mouth and tongue and mind, anger and desire, preserves his soul from the affliction in judgment. He himself is conceived of in different ways; for the rash is he who accomplishes anything fearlessly; the arrogant, he who wishes to act freely without being judged; the boaster, he who glorifies himself with greater things than he has; a pest, he who in addition to harming himself, also imparts it to others; for he is so harmful as to impart wickedness to others also; but he who bears a grudge is lawless. For there is also a good desire; therefore of angels is it never to desire a desire of wickedness; but of demons, always to desire evil things; of men, sometimes to desire, and sometimes not; and "the whole day" instead of "throughout all of life"; such is also, "Be in the fear of the Lord all the day," instead of "throughout all of life." 17.217

τοῦ Κυρίου, ἡ γνῶσις τοῦ Κυρίου ἐστὶ, τὸ δὲ φῶς τοῦ Κυρίου ἡ πνοὴ τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ἄρα ἡ γνῶσις τοῦ Κυρίου πνοὴ τῶν ἀν θρώπων ἐστί· τὸν δὲ ἐν ἀγνοίᾳ διάβολον φαίνειν δο κοῦντα, λύχνον ὠνόμασεν ἐκκενοῦντα τὸν νοῦν τῶν ἀγαθῶν γνώσεων, καὶ μετασχηματιζόμενον εἰς ἄγγε λον φωτός· ἐπεὶ δὲ τὸ φῶς τοῦ Κυρίου, οὐχ εἵλαντο γνῶναι οὐδὲ πορεύεσθαι ἐν αὐτῷ, τὴν ἄγνοιαν ὡς φῶς ἐλογίζοντο οἱ ἀσεβεῖς· εἰ δὲ τὴν ἄγνοιαν ὡς φῶς εἶχον, δηλονότι καὶ τὰ ἔργα τοῦ τῆς ἀγνοίας ἐφευρε τοῦ διαβόλου ἔπραττον· οἱ δὲ τῇ ἀγνοίᾳ αὐτοῦ συμ πορευθέντες, σὺν αὐτῷ ἔσονται εἰς αἰῶνας αἰώνων· οἱ δὲ τῇ γνώσει τοῦ Κυρίου, σὺν τῷ Κυρίῳ. Ἐκβάλλει τὸ ῥητὸν τοῦτο τὴν διὰ τῶν ἀλόγων ζώων θυσίαν· θυσία γὰρ τῷ Θεῷ πνεῦμα συντετριμ μένον. Εἰ ἁγνὰ καὶ ὀρθὰ ἔργα Κυρίου, ἓν δὲ τῶν ἔργων αὐτοῦ ἐστι καὶ ὁ νοῦς, ὀρθὸς ἄρα ἐκτίσθη καὶ ἁγνὸς παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ ὁ νοῦς, καὶ ὀρθὸν ὀφείλομεν διαφυλάτ τειν αὐτὸν πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐκ τῶν ἐπερχομένων ἡμῖν παρὰ τοῦ πονηροῦ κακῶν. Τὸν οἶκον τὸν κεκονιαμένον καὶ κοινὸν, τῇ ὑπαί θρῳ γωνίᾳ ἀντέθεικεν· εἰ δὲ ὁ οἶκος ὁ κεκονιαμένος καὶ κοινὸς, ἡ κακία ἐστὶν, ἡ ὕπαιθρος γωνία ἡ ἀρετή ἐστιν γωνία τοίνυν ὕπαιθρός ἐστιν, πρᾶξις θεωρίας ἐφαπτομένη, καὶ φωτιζομένη ὑπὸ τοῦ τῆς δικαιοσύ νης ἡλίου· καλῶς δὲ καὶ ὁ Παῦλος τὸν ἀρχιερέα τῶν Ἰουδαίων, τοῖχον εἶπε κεκονιαμένον τυφθησόμενον ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ· καὶ ὁ Σωτὴρ ἐν Εὐαγγελίοις τοὺς Φα ρισαίους, τάφους εἶπε κεκονιαμένους· εὖ δὲ καὶ τὸ 17.216 ἐπὶ γωνίας εἶπεν, ἔνθα ὁ λίθος κεῖται ὁ ἀποδοκιμα σθεὶς ὑπὸ τῶν οἰκοδόμων, καὶ γενόμενος κεφαλὴ γω νίας, ὅς ἐστι Χριστός· κοινὸν δέ ἐστιν, ὃ μὴ τοῦ ἑνός ἐστι Θεοῦ. ∆όσις λάθριός ἐστιν, ὃ ποιεῖ ἡ δεξιὰ, μὴ γινώσκει δὲ ἡ ἀριστερά· θυμὸν ἐγείρει κατ' αὐτοῦ ἰσχυρὸν ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τῆς κρίσεως, ὁ τῶν πρὸς τοὺς ἐνδεεῖς δώ ρων φειδόμενος. Ἡ συναγωγὴ τῶν γιγάντων, ἡ κακία καὶ ἡ ἀγνω σία ἐστίν· γίγαντες δὲ οἱ δαίμονες· τουτέστιν ἐν μεγάλαις ἁμαρτίαις ἀναπαύσεται ὁ πλανώμενος ἐξ ὁδοῦ δικαιοσύνης. Ἀγύναιον εἶναι κρεῖττον, ἢ τοιαύτῃ συνεῖναι· καὶ ὁ ∆αυΐδ φησιν· Ἐν γῇ ἐρήμῳ καὶ ἀβάτῳ καὶ ἀν ύδρῳ, οὕτως ἐν τῷ ἁγίῳ ὤφθην σοι· ἔρημος τοί νυν γῆ ἐστιν ἡ ἀρετὴν ἔχουσα ψυχὴ, καὶ μὴ ἔχουσα τοὺς παλαιοὺς ἀνθρώπους ἐνοικοῦντας, τοὺς φθειρο μένους κατὰ τὰς παλαιὰς ἐπιθυμίας τῆς ἀπάτης· διὸ οὐδὲ εὑρίσκει ἐν αὐτῇ ἀνάπαυσιν ὁ διάβολος· εἴγε δυσχερῶς δι' ἀνύδρων τόπων ζητῶν ἀνάπαυσιν, καὶ οὐχ εὑρίσκει· αὐτὸς γὰρ βασιλεύς ἐστι πάντων τῶν ἐν τοῖς ὕδασι, τουτέστι τῶν ἐν ἀναπαύσει καὶ ἀπο λαύσει σαρκικῶν ἡδονῶν. Καὶ πάλιν· Τῆς σοφίας στεγναὶ αἱ διατριβαὶ οἴκων αὐτῆς· εἰ δὲ τοῦτο, οὐκ οῦν καὶ ἡ γυνὴ ἡ μάχιμος καὶ γλωσσώδης καὶ ὀργί λος, ἡ κακία ἐστὶν, ἥτις τὸν συζῶντα αὐτῇ ποιεῖ μάχιμον καὶ γλωσσώδη καὶ ὀργίλον. Σοφία Κυρίου ἀναπαύσεται ἐν καρδίᾳ δικαίου σοφοῦ· ἄφρονες δὲ ἄνδρες διαβάλλουσιν αὐτὴν τοῦ φθεῖραι. Ἡ σοφία ἐστὶ πόλις ὀχυρὰ, ἐν ᾗ οἱ σοφοὶ κατοι κοῦσι, λογισμοὺς καθαιροῦντες, καὶ πᾶν ὕψωμα ἐπαιρόμενον κατὰ τῆς γνώσεως τοῦ Θεοῦ. -Πόλεις ὀχυράς φησιν τὰς ὀχυρωθείσας καὶ κατακρατηθεί σας ψυχὰς ὑπὸ τῶν ἀσεβῶν δαιμόνων καὶ πονηρῶν ἀνθρώπων, τῶν ἐπαιρομένων κατὰ τῆς γνώσεως τοῦ Θεοῦ· ὧν τὸ ὀχύρωμα ἐπιβὰς ὁ σοφὸς, καὶ τὴν δο κοῦσαν ἀσφάλειαν αὐτῶν, τῇ οὕτως σοφίᾳ περιφρα χθεὶς καθεῖλεν. Στόμα καὶ γλῶσσαν καὶ νοῦν, θυμὸν καὶ ἐπιθυμίαν ὃς φυλάσσει, διατηρεῖ ἐκ τῆς ἐν κρίσει θλίψεως τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ. Αὐτός ἐστι διαφόρως ἐπινοούμενος· θρασὺς μὲν γὰρ, ὁ πᾶν ὁτιοῦν ἀφόβως ἐπιτελῶν· αὐθάδης, ὁ ἀνεπικρίτως ἐλευθεριάζειν βουλόμενος· ἀλαζὼν, ὁ μείζοσιν ἑαυτὸν ἤπερ ἔχει σεμνύνων· λοιμὸς, ὁ πρὸς τῷ ἑαυτὸν καταβλάπτειν, καὶ ἑτέροις μεταδιδούς· το σοῦτον γάρ ἐστι βλαπτικὸς, ὡς καὶ ἄλλοις μεταδι δόναι κακίας· ὃς δὲ μνησικακεῖ, παράνομος. Ἔστι γὰρ καὶ ἀγαθὴ ἐπιθυμία· ἀγγέλων μὲν οὖν τὸ μὴ ἐπιθυμεῖν ποτε ἐπιθυμίας κακίας· δαιμό νων δὲ τὸ ἀεὶ κακὰς ἐπιθυμεῖν· ἀνθρώπων, τὸ ποτὲ μὲν ἐπιθυμεῖν, ποτὲ δὲ μή· τὸ δὲ ὅλην τὴν ἡμέραν, ἀντὶ δι' ὅλου τοῦ βίου· τοιοῦτόν ἐστι καὶ τὸ, Ἐν φόβῳ Κυρίου ἴσθι ὅλην τὴν ἡμέραν, ἀντὶ τοῦ δι' ὅλου τοῦ βίου. 17.217