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to those who obey he brings the threat, Lest my wrath go forth as fire. For you alone are able to quench it by repenting, but if you do not have repentance, no one is able to deliver from the punishment. Announce in Judah. What is this? above he said, Lest my wrath be kindled as fire; already he has kindled it, he brings the terrible things upon them, and having brought them to the very gates, he does not let loose the terrible things upon them. For he does not lead the cities into plunder, but he sets the enemies at the gates, like an excellent teacher, he brings down the strap, but does not strike. *And terrifying them he commands to tell Jerusalem, and the whole tribe of the Jews, so that 64.797 they sound the trumpet, and signal to all the attack of the enemies, so that they might flee to the walled cities, and they are carried to Zion as being more fortified. Taking up, flee to Zion. There is a certain contradiction; for these things are of one who cares, and provides, and acts so that nothing amiss might happen. But that is of one wishing to hand them over, and to make them delivered up, and to encompass them with the worst evils. If you bring the evils from the north, for what reason do you also hasten them? for these are the words of him commanding their army, but those are of one leading the enemies. Do you see that it is of one correcting and caring; and compelling them to bring to faith the things that will be? for since words do not benefit them at all, he almost impresses them into their deeds. Perhaps: he almost impresses the deeds upon them. *He threatens the attack of the Babylonian and indicates the first captivity, for he speaks of the destruction of those outside for the time being. For he says: Flee to Zion, make haste, do not stand still. As though the city were being saved. A lion has come up from his lair. He reminded also of the terrible things that had happened to the brothers. Why do I say one city, and a very small tribe? Whole peoples, and cities with all their men he destroyed. *He says these things rather parabolically. And he calls Nebuchadnezzar a lion, and Babylon a lair, and him rushing out from there, and setting fire to the cities, and ravaging the lands; for this reason, indeed, to gird oneself, and the rest. At these things gird yourselves with sackcloths, and lament. Because it has not been turned away. That is, God did not cease from his anger because of the things done by Josiah, but since, even after his death you turned again to impiety, showing that even the things already done, were not done by you with a genuine mind, God brought forth his vote against you. And wail. Not because of the terrible things, but because the wrath was not turned away; for truly, truly, one must not be grieved only because of Gehenna, but because God is angry. Not because he was angered, but because he was turned away. The heart of the king will perish. For such is the nature of terrible things, it deprives of natural senses. For when fear is immeasurable, it allows nothing to remain in its place. And the prophets will be astonished. That is, the false prophets. Why? not as though the events turned out contrary to expectation, but as though they were being shown and happening contrary to expectation. And I said: O Lord God. Surely deceiving. The prophets answer back many things to God, as if in some stage play, working out the correction of the people. This both fathers, and friends of fathers do with one another, correcting the children. Where 64.800 did he say to them, Peace shall be to you? Above, relating the good things, he said: And the house of Israel and Judah will come to the same place, if you remove the abominations. For what reason, then, does the prophet say these things? For he is not ignorant, of course. May it not be, he who knows all things exactly, but what I said at the beginning, this, that he answers back to God, what it was likely for them to say, in order that he might give again a beginning of an answer to God. A spirit of error in the wilderness. He calls the enemies a spirit of error, rightly. Just as the wind carries about the dust everywhere, fanning it, not depositing it in appointed places, so also it happened to these, as if a violent wind falling upon them, that barbaric war everywhere of the

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πειθομένοις ἐπάγει τὴν ἀπειλὴν, Μή ποτε ἐξέλθῃ ὡς πῦρ ὁ θυμός μου. Ὑμεῖς γὰρ μόνοι δύνασθε σβέσαι μεταμελόμενοι, ὑμῶν δὲ μεταμέλειαν μὴ κεκτημένων οὐδεὶς ἱκανὸς ἀπαλλάξαι τῆς τιμωρίας. Ἀναγγείλατε ἐν τῷ Ἰούδᾳ. Τί τοῦτο; ἄνω εἶπε, Μή ποτε ἐκκαυθήσεται ὡς πῦρ ὁ θυμός μου· ἤδη αὐτὸν ἐξέκαυσεν, ἐφίστησιν αὐτοῖς τὰ δεινὰ, καὶ ἐπὶ θύραις αὐταῖς ἀγαγὼν, οὐκ ἐπαφίησιν αὐτοῖς τὰ δεινά. Οὐ γὰρ εἰς ἁρπαγὰς εἰσάγει τὰς πόλεις, ἀλλ' ἐφίστησι τοὺς πολεμίους ταῖς πύλαις, καθάπερ διδάσκαλος ἄριστος, κατάγει μὲν τὸν ἱμάντα, οὐ πλήττει δέ. *∆εδιττόμενος δὲ αὐτοὺς παρακελεύεται εἰπεῖν τῇ Ἱερουσαλὴμ, καὶ πάσῃ τῇ Ἰουδαίων φυλῇ, ὥστε 64.797 σαλπίσαι, καὶ σημῆναι πᾶσι τῶν πολεμίων τὴν προσβολὴν, ἵνα εἰς τὰς τετειχισμένας καταφύγωσι πόλεις, διαφέρονται δὲ εἰς Σιὼν ὡς ὀχυρωτέραν. Ἀναλαβόντες φεύγετε εἰς Σιών. Ἐναντιολογία τίς ἐστιν· ταῦτα μὲν γὰρ κηδομένου, καὶ προνοοῦντος, καὶ ὅπως μηδὲν γένηται ἄτοπον, πράττοντος. Ἐκεῖνο δὲ βουλομένου παραδοῦναι, καὶ ποιῆσαι ἐκδότους, καὶ ἐσχάτοις περιβαλεῖν κακοῖς. Εἰ σὺ ἐπάγεις τὰ κακὰ ἀπὸ βοῤῥᾶ, τίνος ἕνεκεν καὶ ἐπισπεύδεις; ταῦτα μὲν γὰρ αὐτοῦ στρατηγοῦντος τὰ ῥήματα, ἐκεῖνα δὲ πολεμίων προϊσταμένου. Ὁρᾷς ὅτι διορθοῦντός ἐστι καὶ κηδομένου· καὶ εἰς πίστιν βιαζομένου τὰ ἐσόμενα ἀγαγεῖν; ἐπειδὴ γὰρ τὰ ῥήματα, οὐδὲν αὐτοὺς ὠφελεῖ, σχεδὸν εἰς τὰ πράγματα αὐτῶν ἀνατυποῖ Fort. σχεδὸν τὰ πράγματα αὐτοῖς ἀνατυποῖ. *Τοῦ Βαβυλωνίου τὴν ἔφοδον ἀπειλεῖ καὶ τὴν πρώτην αἰχμαλωσίαν μηνύει, τῶν γὰρ ἔξω τέως τὴν ἀπώλειαν λέγει. Φησὶ γάρ· Φεύγετε εἰς Σιὼν, σπεύσατε, μὴ στῆτε. Ὡς περισωζομένης τῆς πόλεως. Ἀνέβη λέων ἐκ τῆς μάνδρας αὐτοῦ. Ἀνέμνησε καὶ τῶν τοῖς ἀδελφοῖς συμβεβηκότων δεινῶν. Τί λέγω μίαν πόλιν, καὶ φυλὴν ἐλαχίστην; ὁλοκλήρους δήμους, καὶ πόλεις αὐτάνδρους ἀνεῖλεν. *Λέγει ταῦτα παραβολικώτερον. Καὶ καλεῖ λέοντα τὸν Ναβουχοδονόσορ, μάνδραν δὲ τὴν Βαβυλῶνα, ἐκεῖθεν δὲ τοῦτον ὁρμῶντα, καὶ τὰς πόλεις ἐμπρῆσαι, καὶ τὰς χώρας δῃῶσαι· τούτου δὴ χάριν, περιζώσασθαι, καὶ τὰ λοιπά. Ἐπὶ τούτοις περιζώσασθε σάκκους, καὶ κόπτεσθε. ∆ιότι οὐκ ἀπεστράφη. Τουτέστιν, οὐκ ἀπὸ τῶν Ἰωσίου γενομένων ἐπαύσατο τῆς ὀργῆς ὁ Θεὸς, ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ, καὶ μετὰ τὸν ἐκείνου θάνατον αὖθις εἰς ἀσέβειαν ἐξετράπητε, δεικνύντες ὡς καὶ τὰ ἤδη γενόμενα, ὡς οὐ μετὰ γνησίας τῆς γνώμης γεγένηται παρ' ὑμῶν, τὴν καθ' ὑμῶν ἐξήνεγκε ψῆφον ὁ Θεός. Καὶ ἀλαλάξατε. Οὐ διὰ τὰ δεινὰ, ἀλλ' ὅτι οὐκ ἀπεστράφη ὁ θυμός· ὄντως γὰρ ὄντως, οὐ διὰ τὴν γέενναν δεῖ μόνην χαλεπαίνειν, ἀλλ' ὅτι ὀργίζεται Θεός. Οὐχ ὅτι ὠργίσθη, ἀλλ' ὅτι ἀπεστράφη. Ἀπολεῖ ἡ καρδία τοῦ βασιλέως. Τοιαύτη γὰρ τῶν δεινῶν ἡ φύσις, ἀποστερεῖ τῶν κατὰ φύσιν φρενῶν. Ὅταν γὰρ ἄμετρος ὁ φόβος ᾖ, οὐδὲν ἀφίησι κατὰ χώραν μένειν. Καὶ οἱ προφῆται θαυμάσονται. Τουτέστιν οἱ ψευδοπροφῆται. ∆ιατί; οὐχ ὡς παρ' ἐλπίδας τῶν πραγμάτων ἐξελθόντων, ἀλλ' ὡς παρ' ἐλπίδας δεικνυμένων, καὶ γιγνομένων. Καὶ εἶπα· ὦ ∆έσποτα Κύριε. Ἆρά γε ἀπατῶν. Πολλὰ συναποκρίνονται τῷ Θεῷ οἱ προφῆται, καθάπερ ἔν τινι σκηνῇ, τὴν διόρθωσιν ἐργαζόμενοι τοῦ λαοῦ. Τοῦτο καὶ πατέρες, καὶ φίλοι πατέρων μετ' ἀλλήλων ποιοῦσιν, τοὺς παῖδας διορθοῦντες. Ποῦ 64.800 δὲ εἶπε τούτοις, Εἰρήνη ἔσται ὑμῖν; Ἀνωτέρω τὰ χρηστὰ διηγούμενος ἔλεγε· Καὶ ἥξουσιν ὁ οἶκος Ἰσραὴλ, καὶ Ἰούδα ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ, ἐὰν περιέλῃ τὰ βδελύγματα. Τίνος οὖν ἕνεκεν ταῦτά φησιν ὁ προφήτης; οὐ γὰρ δὴ ἀγνοεῖ. Μὴ γένοιτο, ὁ πάντα εἰδὼς ἀκριβῶς, ἀλλ' ὅπερ ἔφην ἀρχόμενος, τοῦτο, ὅτι συναποκρίνεται τῷ Θεῷ, ὅπερ εἰκὸς ἦν ἐκείνους εἰπεῖν, ἵνα δῷ πάλιν ἀρχὴν ἀποκρίσεως τῷ Θεῷ. Πνεῦμα πλανήσεως ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ. Τοὺς πολεμίους φησὶ πνεῦμα πλανήσεως, καλῶς. Καθάπερ τὸ πνεῦμα περιφέρει πανταχοῦ τὸν χοῦν ἀναῤῥιπίζον, οὐκ εἰς τεταγμένους ἀποτιθέμενον τόπους, οὕτω καὶ τούτοις ἐγένετο, ὥσπερ ἄνεμος σφοδρὸς ἐμπεσὼν ὁ πόλεμος ἐκεῖνος ὁ βαρβαρικὸς πανταχοῦ τῆς