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contrary and deficient. And see what happens: so that they might not seem to speak the things after this as enemies and blasphemers, having anticipated with what had happened, they removed the suspicion so that the one judging what was said would not be deceived by the suspicion of enemies. And none of them, it says, spoke a word to him. See the terribleness greater than the comfort from speech. And this they did wisely, comforting him by their actions, by sitting beside him, by tearing their garments.

3,1a And after this Job opened his mouth 1b and cursed his

day. 3,2 And Job answered, saying: 3,3a Let the day perish in which I was born, 3b and the night in which they said: Behold, a male child. That the things that had happened were terrible, they themselves testified by their silence. They would not have dared to console him, unless he himself first had given a beginning. What then is this: "Let the day perish," he says, "in which I was born"? This Ecclesiastes also says: "I praised the dead, who are already dead, more than the living." "Good above these two is he who has not yet been." But let us not examine these words simply, but let us see from what sort of mind they are said, a despondent and troubled one, since David also says: "But I said in my ecstasy," but he said it in his ecstasy. And elsewhere he says: "But I said in my prosperity: I shall not be moved forever." So also this one 51 said these things in his misfortune. Do you not see, beloved, those being cut shouting loudly? Do we then rebuke them? Not at all, but we forgive them. If he had not uttered these things, he would have seemed not even to share in our common nature. Do you not hear what Moses says? "Kill me, if you are going to act thus toward me." What is the difference, tell me, between saying "kill me" and saying "let the day perish in which I was born"? Jeremiah also said this: "Cursed be the day on which I was born." Do not look at the words simply, but examine the thought. For that he did not sin even with his lips, you have often heard; but that not even after these things did he sin, you will hear from God himself saying: "Do you think I have dealt with you otherwise than that you might be shown to be righteous?" He would not have received double the former things, if he had not shown double the virtue. Therefore, seeing the decision of God, let us pay attention to what is said. And if we find anything † to say since † let us give thanks to God. "Let that day perish," he says, "in which I was born, and the night in which they said: 'Behold, a male child.'" What is "let it perish," let us see, and we shall see that the words are of despondency, not of wickedness or of any blasphemy. For it did not perish; for it is not possible for it to return again and be from the beginning, as he is speaking about some non-existent thing. 3,4a "Let that day," he says, "be darkness, 4b and let not the Lord seek it from above, 4c nor let light come upon it; 3,5a but let darkness and the shadow of death take it, 5b and let gloom come upon it. 3,6a Let that day and that night be cursed, 6b let darkness carry it away. 6c Let it not be in the day of the year, 6d nor be numbered in the day of the months. 3,7a And let that night be sorrowful, 7b and let not gladness nor joy come in it, 3,8a but let him who curses that day curse it, 52 8b he who is about to subdue the great sea-monster. 3,9a Let the stars of that night be darkened, 9b let it wait and not come and not shine, 9c nor see the morning star rising, 3,10a because it did not shut the gates of my mother's womb; 10b for it would have removed trouble from my eyes. Do you see that the words are of despondency? Was it for the day to accomplish these things, tell me? 3,11a "For why," he says, "did I not die in the belly, 11b or come forth from the womb and not perish immediately? 3,12a And to what purpose did knees meet me? 12b and to what purpose did I suck my mother's breasts? 3,13a For now I would have lain down and been quiet, 13b having slept I would have been at rest 3,14a with kings and counselors of the earth, 14b who gloried in their swords, 3,15a and with princes, whose gold is plentiful, 15b who filled their houses with silver, 3,16a or as an untimely birth

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ἐναντία καὶ ἀποδέοντα. καὶ ὅρα, τί γίνεται· ἵνα μὴ δόξωσιν ὡς ἐχθροὶ καὶ βλάσφημοι λέγειν τὰ μετὰ ταῦτα, προλαβόντες τοῖς γεγενημένοις ἀνεῖλον τὴν ὑποψίαν ὥστε τὸν δικάζοντα τοῖς λεγομένοις μὴ παρακρουσθῆναι τῇ τῶν ἐχθρῶν ὑποψίᾳ. καὶ οὐδεὶς αὐτῶν, φησίν, ἐλάλησε πρὸς αὐτὸν λόγον. ὅρα μεῖζον τῆς ἀπὸ τοῦ λόγου παραμυθίας τὸ δεινόν. καὶ τοῦτο συνετῶς ἐποίησαν τοῖς πράγμασιν αὐτὸν παρακαλοῦντες, τῇ προσεδρείᾳ, τῷ διαρρῆξαι τὰ ἱμάτια.

3,1a καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα ἤνοιξεν ˉ̓Ιὼβ τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ 1b καὶ κατηράσατο τὴν

ἡμέραν αὐτοῦ. 3,2 καὶ ἀπεκρίθη Ἰὼβ λέγων· 3,3a ἀπόλοιτο ἡ ἡμέρα, ἐν ᾗ ἐγεννήθην ἐν αὐτῇ, 3b καὶ ἡ νύξ, ἐν ᾗ εἶπον· ἰδοὺ ἄρσεν. ὅτι δεινὰ τὰ συμβεβηκότα, διὰ τῆς σιγῆς ἐμαρτύρουν αὐτοί. οὐκ ἂν ἐτόλμησαν παραμυθήσασθαι, εἰ μὴ πρότερος αὐτὸς ἀρχὴν ἔδωκεν. τί δὴ τοῦτό ἐστιν· ἀπόλοιτο, φησίν, ἡ ἡμέρα, ἐν ᾗ ἐγεννήθην ἐν αὐτῇ; τοῦτο καὶ ὁ Ἐκκλησιαστής φησιν· ἐπῄνεσα τοὺς ἀποθανόντας, τοὺς ἤδη τεθνηκότας ὑπὲρ τοὺς ζῶντας. ἀγαθὸς ὑπὲρ τοὺς δύο τούτους, ὅστις οὔπω ἐγένετο. ταῦτα δὲ τὰ ῥήματα μὴ ἁπλῶς ἐξετάζωμεν, ἀλλ' ἐκ ποίας λέγεται διανοίας ἴδωμεν, ἀθυμούσης καὶ θορυβουμένης, ἐπεὶ καὶ ∆αυίδ φησιν· ἐγὼ δὲ εἶπον ἐν τῇ ἐκστάσει μου, ἀλλ' ἐν τῇ ἐκστάσει εἶπεν. καὶ ἑτέρωθί φησιν· ἐγὼ δὲ εἶπον ἐν τῇ εὐθηνίᾳ μου· οὐ μὴ σαλευθῶ εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα. οὕτω καὶ οὗτος 51 ἐν τῇ συμφορᾷ ταῦτα εἶπεν. οὐχ ὁρᾷς, ἀγαπητέ, τοὺς τεμνομένους βοῶντας μεγάλα; ἆρ' οὖν αὐτοῖς ἐπιπλήττομεν; οὐδαμῶς, ἀλλὰ συγγινώσκομεν. εἰ μὴ ταῦτα ἐφθέγξατο, ἔδοξεν ἂν μηδὲ τῆς κοινῆς μετέχειν φύσεως. οὐκ ἀκούεις τοῦ Μωυσέως οἷά φησιν; ἀπόκτεινόν με, εἰ οὕτω μοι μέλλεις ποιεῖν. τί διαφέρει, εἰπέ μοι, τὸ εἰπεῖν ἀπόκτεινόν με τοῦ εἰπεῖν ἀπόλοιτο ἡ ἡμέρα, ἐν ᾗ ἐγεννήθην ἐν αὐτῇ; τοῦτο καὶ Ἰερεμίας εἶπεν· ἐπικατάρατος ἡ ἡμέρα, ἐν ᾗ ἐγεννήθην. μὴ τὰ ῥήματα ἴδῃς ἁπλῶς, ἀλλὰ τὴν διάνοιαν ἐξέταζε. ὅτι μὲν γὰρ οὐχ ἥμαρτεν οὐδὲ ἐν τοῖς χείλεσιν αὐτοῦ, πολλάκις ἤκουσας· ὅτι δὲ οὐδὲ μετὰ ταῦτα ἥμαρτεν, αὐτοῦ πάλιν ἀκούσῃ τοῦ θεοῦ λέγοντος· οἴει με ἄλλως σοι κεχρηματικέναι ἢ ἵνα δίκαιος ἀναφανῇς; οὐκ ἂν διπλάσια τῶν προτέρων ἔλαβεν, εἰ μὴ διπλασίονα ἀρετὴν ἐπεδείξατο. τὴν οὖν ἀπόφασιν ἰδόντες τοῦ θεοῦ προσέχωμεν τοῖς λεγομένοις. κἂν μὲν εὕρωμέν τι † εἰπεῖν ἐπεὶ † εὐχαριστήσωμεν τῷ θεῷ. ἀπόλοιτο, φησίν, ἡ ἡμέρα ἐκείνη, ἐν ᾗ ἐγεννήθην ἐν αὐτῇ, καὶ ἡ νύξ, ἐν ᾗ εἶπον· ἰδοὺ ἄρσεν. τί ἐστιν ἀπόλοιτο, ἴδωμεν, καὶ ὀψόμεθα ἀθυμίας ὄντα τὰ ῥήματα, οὐχὶ πονηρίας οὐδὲ βλασφημίας τινός. οὐ γὰρ ἀπώλετο· μὴ γὰρ δυνατὸν αὐτὴν ἐπανελθεῖν πάλιν καὶ γενέσθαι ἄνωθεν, ὡς περί τινος ἀνυποστάτου διαλέγεται πράγματος. 3,4a ἡ ἡμέρα, φησίν, ἐκείνη εἴη σκότος, 4b καὶ μὴ ἀναζητήσαι αὐτὴν ὁ κύριος ἄνωθεν 4c μηδὲ ἔλθοι εἰς αὐτὴν φέγγος· 3,5a ἐκλάβοι δὲ αὐτὴν σκότος καὶ σκιὰ θανάτου, 5b καὶ ἐπέλθοι ἐπ' αὐτὴν γνόφος. 3,6a καταραθείη ἡ ἡμέρα ἐκείνη καὶ ἡ νὺξ ἐκείνη, 6b ἀπενέγκοιτο αὐτὴν σκότος. 6c μὴ εἴη εἰς ἡμέραν ἐνιαυτοῦ 6d μηδὲ ἀριθμηθείη εἰς ἡμέραν μηνῶν. 3,7a καὶ ἡ νὺξ ἐκείνη εἴη ὀδυνηρά, 7b καὶ μὴ ἔλθοι ἐν αὐτῇ εὐφροσύνη μηδὲ χαρμονή, 3,8a ἀλλὰ κατα52 ράσαιτο αὐτὴν ὁ καταρώμενος τὴν ἡμέραν ἐκείνην, 8b ὁ μέλλων τὸ μέγα κῆτος χειροῦσθαι. 3,9a σκοτωθείη τὰ ἄστρα τῆς νυκτὸς ἐκείνης, 9b ὑπομείναι καὶ μὴ ἔλθοι καὶ μὴ φωτίσαι 9c μηδὲ ἴδοι ἑωσφόρον ἀνατέλλοντα, 3,10a ὅτι οὐ συνέκλεισε πύλας γαστρὸς μητρός μου· 10b ἀπήλλαξε γὰρ ἂν κόπον ἀπὸ ὀφθαλμῶν μου. ὁρᾷς ἀθυμίας ὄντα τὰ ῥήματα; τῆς ἡμέρας ἦν τὸ ταῦτα ἐργάσασθαι, εἰπέ μοι; 3,11a διὰ τί γάρ, φησίν, ἐν κοιλίᾳ οὐκ ἐτελεύτησα, 11b ἐκ γαστρὸς δὲ ἐξῆλθον καὶ οὐκ εὐθέως ἀπωλόμην; 3,12a καὶ ἵνα τί συνήντησάν μοι γόνατα; 12b ἵνα τί δὲ ἐθήλασα μαστοὺς μητρός μου; 3,13a νῦν ἂν κοιμηθεὶς ἡσύχασα, 13b ὑπνώσας δὲ ἀνεπαυσάμην 3,14a μετὰ βασιλέων καὶ βουλευτῶν γῆς, 14b οἳ ἐγαυριῶντο ἐπὶ ξίφεσιν, 3,15a καὶ μετὰ ἀρχόντων, ὧν πολὺς ὁ χρυσός, 15b οἳ ἔπλησαν τοὺς οἴκους αὐτῶν ἀργυρίου, 3,16a ἢ ὥσπερ ἔκτρωμα