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prolific sheep multiplying, and fat oxen, like those of Egypt's abundance; for they were beautiful in appearance and choice in their flesh, the ones that Pharaoh saw; but the flock of the just one has included innocent souls, and good and rational sheep. 24.57 Of the just man, because he fears the Lord, blessed are the sons, they are like young olive shoots around his table; but the sons of strangers are like young plants set in their youth. And to that one there are no daughters; but to these there are adorned ones, decorated like the likeness of a temple; and to that one there are sons of sons, but to these there are not; furthermore to that one there is no longer a storehouse nor a barn; but of these the storehouses are full, overflowing from this to that; and according to the Gospel, for the birds of the air fed by the heavenly Father, there is no longer a storehouse nor a barn. The sons are heretical arguments, and the thoughts like young plants, because of their novelty; daughters are the words; and they are adorned because of the phrasing, being a temple of the mindset. There is no falling down of a fence, etc. And in Job it is said: Why do the impious live, and have grown old in wealth? and what follows; yet he adds: But indeed the lamp of the impious shall be put out. And in the seventy-second psalm it is said: I was envious of the lawless, seeing the peace of sinners, and what follows; of which also the solution is introduced in this: How have they come to desolation? suddenly they perished because of their folly, like a dream of one awakening.

PSALM 144.

Neither through an instrument called a psaltery have the preceding things been spoken, nor through an ode, but in another way, it is inscribed "A Praise." Every day I will bless you. The beginning of the present verse among the Hebrews is Beth. And it teaches that it is fitting, like a debt of each day, to render the hymn to God .. on no day to neglect and forsake the hymn to God. Therefore with the mind and with thoughts, and with the very power of the spirit in us we exalt and bless God himself; but with lips and mortal words we glorify the name of God; Always, he says, I will continue hymning you, and I will leave no day without a hymn. But instead of, forever and ever, Aquila translated it "still," and Symmachus "continually." - And all things are consequent to what was said before; for having said I will bless and I will exalt, he shows that our praise adds nothing to him; but we make ourselves bright, bringing praise to the praise. And in your righteousness they will rejoice. Through these things he teaches the virtues of God, as many as extend to us, from which we also know him; for those that are beyond us, being unobservable and incomprehensible to us, it is not possible for mortal nature to encompass. And always the virtues of God reaching us, from which we know him, are these utterances. 24.60 The Lord is compassionate and merciful, and what follows. For when we were not, nor even subsisted, he brought us forth into the light; then when we do many evil things and are contemptuous, he does not pursue them according to what is deserved; but he ... pities, but is also long-suffering, calling us to repentance, because he does not wish the death of the sinner, as much as his repentance; and this is not only concerning his own, but also concerning all people without exception, since he is also kind to all. And his compassions are upon all his works. Since his compassions are upon all his works. it has been said consequently: Let all your works confess to you; it is owed to him that even those things thought to be inanimate, emitting a voice, should as it were give thanks and confess to the one who made them.

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πρόβατα πολύτοκα πληθύνοντα, καὶ βόες παχεῖς, ὁποῖοι τῆς Αἰγύπτου εὐθηνίας· καλοὶ γὰρ τῷ εἴδει καὶ ἐκλεκτοὶ ταῖς σαρξὶν ἦσαν οὓς εἶδεν ὁ Φαραώ· τοῦ δὲ δικαίου ἡ ποίμνη ψυχὰς ἀκεραίους, καὶ ἀγαθὰ καὶ λογικὰ πρόβατα ἐμπεριείληφε. 24.57 Τοῦ δικαίου μὲν διὰ τὸ φοβεῖσθαι τὸν Κύριον, μακάριοι οἱ υἱοὶ ὡσεὶ νεόφυτά εἰσιν ἐλαιῶν κύκλῳ τῆς τραπέζης αὐτοῦ· τῶν δὲ ἀλλοτρίων οἱ υἱοὶ ὡς νεόφυτα ἱδρυμένα ἐν τῇ νεότητι αὐτῶν. Κἀκείνῳ μὲν οὐκ εἰσὶ θυγατέρες· τούτοις δέ εἰσι κεκαλλωπισμέναι, περικεκοσμημέναι ὡς ὁμοίωμα ναοῦ· κἀκείνῳ μὲν εἰσὶν υἱοὶ υἱῶν, τούτοις δὲ οὐχί· ἔτι ἐκείνῳ μὲν οὐκέτι ταμεῖον οὐδὲ ἀποθήκη· τούτων δὲ τὰ ταμεῖα πλήρη ἐξερευγόμενα ἐκ τούτου εἰς τοῦτο· καὶ κατὰ τὸ Εὐαγγέλιον δὲ τοῖς τρεφομένοις ὑπὸ τοῦ οὐρανίου Πατρὸς πετεινοῖς τοῦ οὐρανοῦ οὐκέτι ταμεῖον οὐδὲ ἀποθήκη. Υἱοὶ οἱ αἱρετικοὶ λόγοι, καὶ τὰ νοήματα ὡς νεόφυτα, διὰ τὴν καινοτομίαν· θυγατέρες αἱ λέξεις· κεκαλλωπισμέναι δὲ διὰ τὴν φράσιν, ναὸν οὖσαι τοῦ φρονήματος. Οὐκ ἔστι κατάπτωμα φραγμοῦ, κ.τ.λ. Καὶ ἐν τῷ Ἰὼβ εἴρηται· ∆ιὰ τί ἀσεβεῖς ζῶσι, πεπαλαίωνται δὲ καὶ ἐν πλούτῳ; καὶ τὰ ἐφεξῆς· πλὴν ἐπιφέρει· Οὐ μὴν καὶ ἀσεβῶν λύχνος σβεσθήσεται. Καὶ ἐν ἑβδομηκοστῷ δευτέρῳ ψαλμῷ λέγεται· Ἐζήλωσα ἐπὶ τοῖς ἀνόμοις, εἰρήνην ἁμαρτωλῶν θεωρῶν, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς· ὧν καὶ αὐτῶν ἡ λύσις ἐπάγεται ἐν τῷ, Πῶς ἐγένοντο εἰς ἐρήμωσιν; ἐξάπινα ἀπώλοντο διὰ τὴν ἀβουλίαν αὐτῶν, ὡς ἐνύπνιον ἐξεγειρομένων.

ΨΑΛΜΟΣ ΡΜ∆ʹ.

Οὔτε δι' ὀργάνου τοῦ καλουμένου ψαλτηρίου λέλεκται τὰ προκείμενα, οὔτε

δι' ᾠδῆς, καθ' ἕτερον δὲ τρόπον, Αἴνεσις ἐπιγέγραπται. Καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν εὐλογήσω σε. Ἀρχὴ παρ' Ἑβραίοις τοῦ παρόντος στίχου τὸ βήθ. ∆ιδάσκει δὲ ὅτι προσήκει ὥσπερ ὀφειλὴν ἑκάστης ἡμέρας τῷ Θεῷ τὸν ὕμνον ἀποδιδόναι .. μηδεμιᾶς ἡμέρας τῷ Θεῷ ὕμνον ὀλιγωρεῖν καὶ ἀπολιμπάνεσθαι. ∆ιανοίᾳ μὲν οὖν καὶ λογισμοῖς, καὶ αὐτῇ τοῦ ἐν ἡμῖν πνεύματος δυνάμει αὐτὸν τὸν Θεὸν ὑψοῦμεν καὶ εὐλογοῦμεν· χείλεσι δὲ καὶ θνητοῖς ῥήμασι τοῦ Θεοῦ τὸ ὄνομα δοξάζομεν· Ἀεὶ σὲ, φησὶν, ὑμνῶν διατελῶ, καὶ οὐδεμίαν ἄμοιρον ἐάσω τῆς ὑμνῳδίας. Ἀντὶ δὲ τοῦ, εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ αἰῶνος, ὁ μὲν Ἀκύλας εἰσέτι, ὁ δὲ Σύμμαχος διηνεκῶς ἡρμήνευσαν. - Ἀκόλουθα δὲ πάντα τοῖς προλαβοῦσι· εἰπὼν γὰρ εὐλογήσω καὶ ὑψώσω, δείκνυσιν ὡς οὐδὲν αὐτῷ προστίθησιν ἡ παρ' ἡμῶν εὐφημία· ἑαυτοὺς δὲ λαμπρύνομεν, αἶνον δὲ εἰς τὸν αἶνον προσάγοντες. Καὶ τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ σου ἀγαλλιάσονται. ∆ιὰ τούτων διδάσκει τοῦ Θεοῦ τὰς ἀρετὰς, ὅσαι εἰς ἡμᾶς διήκουσιν, ἀφ' ὧν αὐτὸν καὶ γνωρίζομεν· τὰς γὰρ ὑπὲρ ἡμᾶς ἀθεωρήτους ἡμῖν οὔσας καὶ ἀκαταλήπτους, οὐχ οἷόν τέ ἐστι θνητῇ φύσει περιλαβεῖν. Ἀεὶ δὲ εἰς ἡμᾶς φθάνουσαι τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀρεταὶ, ἀφ' ὧν αὐτὸν γινώσκομεν, αἱ φωναί εἰσιν αὗται. 24.60 Οἰκτίρμων καὶ ἐλεήμων ὁ Κύριος, καὶ τὰ ἀκόλουθα. Μὴ γὰρ ὄντας ἡμᾶς, μηδὲ ὑφεστῶτας, παρήγαγεν εἰς φῶς· εἶτα πολλὰ δρῶντας κακὰ καὶ καταφρονητικῶς ἔχοντας αὐτοὺς οὐ μετέρχεται κατ' ἀξίαν· ἐμ.. δὲ ἐλεεῖ, ἀλλὰ καὶ μακροθυμεῖ προσκαλούμενος ἡμᾶς εἰς μετάνοιαν, διὰ τὸ μὴ βούλεσθαι τὸν θάνατον τοῦ ἁμαρτωλοῦ, ὡς τὴν μετάνοιαν αὐτοῦ· οὐ μόνον δὲ περὶ τοὺς οἰκείους τοῦτό ἐστιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ πάντας ἁπαξαπλῶς, ἐπεὶ καὶ χρηστός ἐστι τοῖς σύμπασιν. Καὶ οἱ οἰκτιρμοὶ αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ πάντα τὰ ἔργα αὐτοῦ. Ἐπειδὴ οἱ οἰκτιρμοὶ αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ πάντα τὰ ἔργα αὐτοῦ. ἀκολούθως λέλεκται· Ἐξομολογησάσθωσάν σοι πάντα τὰ ἔργα σου· προσοφείλεται αὐτῷ ὡς καὶ αὐτὰ τὰ νομιζόμενα εἶναι ἄψυχα, φωνὴν ἀφιέντα μονονουχὶ εὐχαριστεῖν καὶ ἐξομολογεῖσθαι τῷ ποιήσαντι αὐτά.