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had overthrown it, so that from that time the throne of the kingdom of David was loosed, it seemed that the promises of the divine oracles were not consistent; therefore, the same psalm again foretells this very thing by the divine Spirit, saying in sequence to what was set forth before: "Where are your ancient mercies, O Lord, which you swore to David in your truth?" And indeed it clearly indicates again in sequence the deposition of his kingdom, and of his succession, and the destruction of the throne through these words: "But you have cast off and despised, O Lord; you have deferred your Christ, you have overthrown the covenant of your servant, you have profaned his sanctuary to the ground;" and it adds: "you have dashed his throne to the ground."

3. The Spirit brings all these things together, as if wishing to teach us that the promises to David were not about the perceptible kingdom, nor about the throne understood in a more bodily sense; for they prophesied about a certain eternal throne, likened to the sun and the heaven, and remaining forever; but the perceptible kingdom of David was dissolved in time, and not for long. Fittingly, therefore, having described the deposition of the throne of David's perceptible kingdom, and having said, you have dashed his throne to the ground, he next makes the prayer concerning the eternal and heavenly throne promised through the divine oracles, saying: "Where are your ancient mercies, O Lord, which you swore to David in your truth?" as if deeming it worthy that the outcomes of the things promised to him with the confirmation of an oath should attain their fulfillment.

4. This very throne, therefore, which God swore to give to David—the one like the days of heaven, and like the sun before God, and like the moon established forever, while the whole nation prayed for it to be established—the great angel Gabriel brings good news to the Virgin, prophesying that it would be given to the one born of her; wherefore he says to her: "And you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David." Then he adds next and says: "And he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of his kingdom there will be no end;" interpreting in harmony with the oracles; for the one foretold to David about a throne of an eternal and heavenly kingdom, and the other likewise says that the one born of the Virgin would receive the throne of David, that is, the one promised to David, but not yet given; and this was the heavenly one that remains forever. This therefore was also the conclusion of a very great prophecy given as an oracle to David, and expected by all the people, but fulfilled in our Savior Jesus Christ, according to the testimony of Gabriel who said: "And he will reign forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." For this reason also our Savior and Lord himself, to the one asking him if he were the king of the Jews, answered: "My kingdom is not of this world;" for the throne of the kingdom brought him nothing mortal or temporary; but it was truly over the whole inhabited world of men, shining like light, as the moon established forever, illuminating intelligent souls through his divine and heavenly teaching.

5. But if it should be said that he will reign over Jacob, do not suppose that the Jewish nation is indicated by Jacob. At any rate, Luke the evangelist, who records these things, having committed the voice of Gabriel to his own writing after the ascension of our Savior into heaven, clearly knew that Jesus the Savior had not reigned over the Jewish nation, nor ruled them forever, whose conspiracy against him and plot to put him to death he accurately records; and not only this, but also in the Acts of the apostles the rebellions against the disciples of Jesus

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καταστρεψάντων, ὡς ἐξ ἐκείνου λελύσθαι τὸν θρόνον τῆς βασιλείας ∆αβὶδ, ἐδόκει τὰ τῆς τῶν θείων χρησμῶν ἐπαγγελίας μὴ συνίστασθαι· τοῦτο οὖν αὐτὸ τῷ θείῳ Πνεύματι πάλιν ὁ αὐτὸς ψαλμὸς προαγορεύει ἑξῆς τοῖς προπαρατεθεῖσι λέγων· «Ποῦ εἰσι τὰ ἐλέη σου τὰ ἀρχαῖα, Κύριε, ἃ ὤμοσας τῷ ∆αβὶδ ἐν τῇ ἀληθείᾳ σου;» Καὶ τήν γε καθαίρεσιν τῆς βασιλείας αὐτοῦ, καὶ τῆς διαδοχῆς αὐτοῦ, τοῦ θρόνου τε τὴν καταστροφὴν διαῤῥήδην ὑποσημαίνει πάλιν ἑξῆς διὰ τούτων· «Σὺ δὲ ἀπώσω καὶ ἐξουδένωσας, Κύριε· ἀνεβάλου τὸν Χριστόν σου, κατέστρεψας τὴν διαθήκην τοῦ δούλου σου, ἐβεβήλωσας εἰς τὴν γῆν τὸ ἁγίασμα αὐτοῦ·» καὶ ἐπιφέρει· «τὸν θρόνον αὐτοῦ εἰς τὴν γῆν κατέῤῥηξας.»

γʹ. Ταῦτα πάντα κατὰ τὸ αὐτὸ συνάγει τὸ Πνεῦμα, μονονουχὶ βουλόμενον ἡμᾶς διδάξαι, ὅτι οὐ περὶ τῆς βασιλείας τῆς αἰσθητῆς, οὐδὲ περὶ τοῦ θρόνου τοῦ σωματικώτερον νοουμένου αἱ πρὸς ∆αβὶδ ἦσαν ἐπαγγελίαι· αἱ μὲν γὰρ περί τινος αἰωνίου θρόνου, ἀπεικαζομένου ἡλίῳ καὶ οὐρανῷ, διαμένοντός τε εἰς αἰῶνα, προεθέσπιζον· ἡ δέ γε τοῦ ∆αβὶδ βασιλεία ἡ αἰσθητὴ, χρόνῳ λέλυτο οὐκ εἰς μακρόν· εἰκότως τοιγαροῦν τοῦ θρόνου τῆς αἰσθητῆς βασιλείας ∆αβὶδ τὴν καθαίρεσιν ὑπογράψας, καὶ εἰπὼν, τὸν θρόνον αὐτοῦ εἰς τὴν γῆν κατέῤῥηξας, περὶ τοῦ διὰ τῶν θείων χρησμῶν ἐπηγγελμένου αἰωνίου καὶ οὐρανίου θρόνου ἑξῆς τὴν εὐχὴν ποιεῖται λέγων· «Ποῦ εἰσι τὰ ἐλέη σου τὰ ἀρχαῖα, Κύριε, ἂ ὤμοσας τῷ ∆αβὶδ ἐν τῇ ἀληθείᾳ σου;» μονονουχὶ τὰς ἐκβάσεις τῶν μεθ' ὅρκου διαβεβαιώσεως ἐπηγγελμένων αὐτῷ τέλους τυχεῖν ἀξιῶν.

δʹ. Τοῦτον οὖν αὐτὸν ἐκεῖνον ὃν ὤμοσεν ὁ Θεὸς δώσειν τῷ ∆αβὶδ θρόνον, τὸν ὡς τὰς ἡμέρας τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, καὶ τὸν ὡς ὁ ἥλιος ἐναντίον τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ τὸν ὡς σελήνην κατηρτισμένην εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα, παντὸς ἐπιστῆναι τοῦ ἔθνους εὐχομένου, ὁ μέγας ἄγγελος Γαβριὴλ τὴν Παρθένον εὐαγγελίζεται τῷ ἐξ αὐτῆς γεννησομένῳ δοθήσεσθαι θεσπίζων· διό φησι πρὸς αὐτήν· «Καὶ καλέσεις τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἰησοῦν· οὗτος ἔσται μέγας, καὶ Υἱὸς Ὑψίστου κληθήσεται· καὶ δώσει αὐτῷ Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς τὸν θρόνον ∆αβὶδ τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ.» Ἐπιφέρει δ' οὖν ἐφεξῆς καὶ λέγει· «Καὶ βασιλεύσει ἐπὶ τὸν οἶκον Ἰακὼβ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας· καὶ τῆς βασιλείας αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἔσται τέλος·» σύμφωνα τοῖς ἀπὸ τῶν χρησμῶν ἑρμηνεύων· ὁ μὲν γὰρ πρὸς τὸν ∆αβὶδ περὶ θρόνον βασιλείας αἰωνίου καὶ οὐρανίου προὔλεγεν, ὁ δὲ ὡσαύτως τὸν ἐκ τῆς Παρθένου γεννησόμενον λήψεσθαί φησι τὸν θρόνον ∆αβὶδ, τουτέστι τὸν τῷ ∆αβὶδ ἐπηγγελμένον μὲν, οὐ μὴν καὶ δεδομένον· οὗτος δ' ἦν ὁ οὐράνιος καὶ εἰς αἰῶνα διαμένων· ἦν οὖν καὶ τοῦτο συμπέρασμα μεγίστης προφητείας τῷ ∆αβὶδ κεχρησμένης, προσδοκωμένης τε τῷ παντὶ λαῷ, πεπληρωμένης δὲ ἐπὶ τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, κατὰ τὴν τοῦ Γαβριὴλ μαρτυρίαν φήσαντος· «Καὶ βασιλεύσει εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας, καὶ τῆς βασιλείας αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἔσται τέλος.» ∆ιόπερ καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ Σωτὴρ καὶ Κύριος ἡμῶν πρὸς τὸν ἐρόμενον αὐτὸν, εἰ αὐτὸς εἴη ὁ τῶν Ἰουδαίων βασιλεὺς, ἀπεκρίνατο· «Ἡ βασιλεία ἐμὴ οὐκ ἔστιν ἐκ τοῦ κόσμου τούτου·» οὐδὲν γὰρ θνητὸν οὐδὲ ἐπίκαιρον ἐπήγετο αὐτῷ ὁ τῆς βασιλείας θρόνος· ἀλλ' ἦν ἀληθῶς καθ' ὅλης τῆς ἀνθρώπων οἰκουμένης, φωτὸς δίκην, ἐκλάμπων ὡς ἡ σελήνη κατηρτισμένη εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα, ψυχὰς νοερὰς καταυγάζων διὰ τῆς ἐνθέου καὶ οὐρανίου διδασκαλίας αὐτοῦ.

εʹ. Εἰ δὲ λέγοιτο ἐπὶ τὸν Ἰακὼβ βασιλεύσειν, μὴ τὸ Ἰουδαίων ἔθνος νόμιζε διὰ τοῦ Ἰακὼβ δηλοῦσθαι. Ὁ γοῦν ταῦτα ἱστορῶν Λουκᾶς ὁ εὐαγγελιστὴς, μετὰ τὴν εἰς οὐρανοὺς ἀνάληψιν τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν τὴν τοῦ Γαβριὴλ φωνὴν οἰκείᾳ παραδοὺς γραφῇ, σαφῶς ἠπίστατο τὸν Ἰησοῦν οὐκ ἐπὶ τὸ Ἰουδαίων ἔθνος τὸν Σωτῆρα βεβασιλευκότα, οὐδὲ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας αὐτὸν ἄρξαντα, ὧν γε καὶ τὴν κατ' αὐτοῦ συσκευὴν, καὶ τὴν εἰς θάνατον ἐπιβουλὴν ἀκριβῶς ἱστορεῖ· καὶ οὐ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν ταῖς Πράξεσι τῶν ἀποστόλων τὰς κατὰ τῶν τοῦ Ἰησοῦ μαθητῶν ἐπαναστάσεις