21

it is written: “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that they should not see and ears that they should not hear, to this very day.” But the word “gave” should not be understood actively; for if he himself gave and forced them not to see, how does he exact penalties? How does he punish the disobedient? Therefore, he has put “gave” instead of “allowed;” for he allowed those who were contentiously and quarrelsomely disposed to follow their own reasonings; for he has made human nature with free will. 12And after these things God will remove the people far away. Symmachus has rendered “will remove far away” as “will make distant,” that is: he will send them into captivity. And those left in the land will be multiplied; 13And yet in it there will be a tenth part, and it will again be for plundering like a terebinth and like an acorn when it falls from its husk. Through these things he indicates both their first and second siege. For Vespasian first, as general, marched against them; then after Nero’s death, leaving his son Titus, he himself returned for the sake of the empire. Titus, therefore, having besieged the city and burned the temple and taken many captives, returned to the Roman metropolis. But those who escaped their hands returned again and inhabited the city; but these were much fewer than the former inhabitants; for which reason he calls them a tenth of the former, that is, a tenth part. But again Hadrian brought complete destruction upon them when they revolted, and he also changed the name of the city, commanding it to be called by his own name; for from that time it was named Aelia; for he was called by the surname Aelius. Declaring these things to the prophet, God said that it would again be for plundering. And indicating its desolation and the unfruitful and hard nature of the heart, he compared it not to a fruitful tree but to a terebinth and an acorn, and these stripped of leaves. Or according to Symmachus: “It shall be for grazing like an oak and like an acorn, which, having shed its leaves, stands alone.” For through these things he has clearly shown that it was grazed upon by foreign people just as acorns by swine, and it has remained bereft of good things like an oak and an acorn stripped of fruits and leaves. The prophet, having seen and learned these things in the reign of Jotham—for he reigned after Uzziah—then writes down the things that happened and were prophesied in the time of Ahaz—he was the son of Jotham. But Jotham was a foster-child of piety, while Ahaz was diametrically lawless and at the same time impious. For this reason he did not obtain divine care, but when war was joined and the king of the ten tribes arrayed for battle—his name was Pekah son of Remaliah—he lost one hundred and twenty thousand in the war, and the victors enslaved another two hundred thousand women and children. But the prophet Oded caused the captives to be released—the history of |107 b| Chronicles teaches these things—saying to the victors: “Behold, the wrath of the God of your fathers is upon Judah, and he has delivered them into your hands, and you have slain them in a rage that has reached up to heaven. And now you say you will subject the sons of Judah and Jerusalem as male and female slaves; Behold, I am not with you, witnesses the Lord your God; there is trespass with you against the Lord your God. And now hear me and send back the captives whom you have taken from your brothers, for the wrath of the Lord is upon you.” This wonderful prophet, having shown the cause of the defeat—for God in his anger delivered them up because of their impiety—and having reminded them of their kinship, persuaded them to release those who had become captives of the spear. And the impious king suffered many other such things; for indeed the Idumeans enslaved those nearby and the Allophyli those neighboring. But the lawless king, when he should have asked for an alliance from God, fled to the king of the Assyrians. But the philanthropic master

21

γέγραπται· Ἔδωκεν αὐτοῖς ὁ θεὸς πνεῦμα κατανύξεως, ὀφθαλμοὺς τοῦ μὴ βλέπειν καὶ ὦτα τοῦ μὴ ἀκούειν, ἕως τῆς σήμερον ἡμέρας.» Τὸ δὲ ἔδωκεν οὐκ ἐνεργητικῶς δεῖ νοεῖν· εἰ γὰρ αὐτὸς ἔδωκε καὶ μὴ βλέπειν ἠνάγκασε, πῶς εὐθύνας εἰσπράττεται; Πῶς ἀπει θοῦντας κολάζει; Οὐκοῦν τὸ ἔδωκεν ἀντὶ τοῦ συνεχώρησε τέθεικεν· ἐριστικῶς γὰρ καὶ φιλονείκως διακειμένους τοῖς οἰκείοις εἴασεν ἀκολουθεῖν λογισμοῖς· αὐτεξούσιον γὰρ πεποίηκε τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὴν φύσιν. 12Καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα μακρυνεῖ ὁ θεὸς τοὺς ἀνθρώπους. Τὸ μακρυνεῖ «μακρὰν ποιήσει» ὁ Σύμμαχος εἴρηκε, τουτέστιν· εἰς αἰχμαλωσίαν ἐκπέμψει αὐτούς. Καὶ πληθυν θήσονται οἱ καταλειφθέντες ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς· 13Καὶ ἔτι ἐπ' αὐτῆς ἐστι τὸ ἐπιδέκατον, καὶ πάλιν ἔσται εἰς προνομὴν ὡς τερέβιν θος καὶ ὡς βάλανος ὅταν ἐκπέσῃ ἐκ τῆς θήκης αὐτῆς. ∆ιὰ τούτων σημαίνει καὶ τὴν προτέραν αὐτῶν καὶ τὴν δευτέραν πολιορκίαν. Οὐεσπαςιανὸς μὲν γὰρ πρῶτος στρατηγῶν αὐτοῖς ἐπεστράτευσεν· εἶτα μετὰ τὴν Νέρωνος τελευτὴν τὸν υἱὸν Τίτον καταλιπὼν αὐτὸς διὰ τὴν βασιλείαν ἀνέ στρεψεν. Ὁ Τίτος τοίνυν τὴν πόλιν πολιορκήσας καὶ τὸν ναὸν ἐμπρήσας καὶ πολλοὺς δορυαλώτους λαβὼν εἰς τὴν Ῥωμαίων ἐπανῆλθε μητρόπολιν. Ἀλλ' οἱ τὰς ἐκείνων διαφυγόντες χεῖρας πάλιν ἐπανῆλθον καὶ τὴν πόλιν ᾤκησαν· πολλῷ δὲ οὗτοι τῶν προτέρων οἰκητόρων ἦσαν ἐλάττους· οὗ δὴ χάριν αὐτοὺς τὸ ἐπιδέκατον ἐκείνων καλεῖ, τουτέστι δεκατημόριον. Ἀλλὰ πάλιν Ἀδριανὸς αὐτοῖς στασιάσασι παντελῆ ἐπήγαγεν ὄλεθρον καὶ αὐτὴν δὲ τῆς πόλεως τὴν προσηγορίαν ἐνήλλαξεν ἐκ τῆς οἰκείας ἐπωνυμίας ταύτην καλεῖσθαι κελεύσας· Αἰλία γὰρ ἐκεῖθεν προσηγορεύθη· Αἴλιος γὰρ ἐπίκλην ὠνομάζετο. Ταῦτα τῷ προφήτῃ δια γορεύων εἶπεν ὁ θεὸς ὅτι πάλιν ἔσται εἰς προνομήν. Καὶ τὴν ἐρημίαν αὐτῆς σημαίνων καὶ τῆς καρδίας τὸ ἄκαρπον καὶ ἀντίτυπον, οὐκ ἀπῄκασε δένδρῳ καρπίμῳ ἀλλὰ τερεβίνθῳ καὶ βαλάνῳ καὶ τούτοις φύλλων ἐστερημένοις. Ἢ κατὰ τὸν Σύμμαχον· «Ἔσται εἰς καταβόσκησιν ὡς δρῦς καὶ ὡς βάλανος, ἥτις ἀποβαλοῦσα τὰ φύλλα ἵσταται μόνη.» Σαφῶς γὰρ διὰ τούτων δεδήλωκεν ὅτι κατεβοσκήθη ὑπὸ ἀλλογενῶν ἀνθρώπων καθάπερ ὑπὸ χοίρων αἱ βάλανοι καὶ μεμένηκεν ἔρημος τῶν ἀγαθῶν ὡς δρῦς καὶ βάλανος καρπῶν καὶ φύλλων γεγυμνωμέναι. Ταῦτα ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ Ἰωάθαμ καὶ ἰδὼν καὶ μαθὼν ὁ προφήτης-μετὰ γὰρ τὸν Ὀζίαν αὐτὸς ἐβασίλευσεν- τὰ ἐπὶ Ἄχαζ λοιπὸν-υἱὸς δὲ αὐτὸς τοῦ Ἰωάθαμ- γεγενημένα τε καὶ τεθεσπισμένα συγγράφει. Ἀλλ' ὁ μὲν Ἰωάθαμ εὐσεβείας τρόφιμος ἦν, ὁ δὲ Ἄχαζ ἐκ διαμέτρου παράνομός τε ἅμα καὶ δυσσεβής. Οὗ δὴ χάριν τῆς θείας κηδεμονίας οὐκ ἔτυχεν, ἀλλὰ πολέμου συγκροτηθέντος καὶ τοῦ βασιλέως τῶν δέκα φυλῶν παραταξαμένου-Φακεὲ δὲ ἦν ὄνομα τούτῳ Ῥομελίου υἱός-ἀποβάλλει μὲν ἑκατὸν εἴκοσι χιλιάδας ἐν τῷ πολέμῳ, ἐξανδραποδίζουσι δὲ οἱ νενικηκότες γυναικῶν καὶ παιδίων ἑτέρας χιλιάδας διακοσίας. Ἀλλὰ τοὺς μὲν αἰχμαλώτους Ὠδὴδ ὁ προφήτης ἀφεθῆναι πεποίηκεν- ἡ δὲ τῶν |107 b| Παραλειπομένων ἱστορία διδάσκει ταῦτα-πρὸς τοὺς νενικηκότας εἰπών· «Ἰδοὺ ὀργὴ τοῦ θεοῦ τῶν πατέρων ὑμῶν ἐπὶ τὸν Ἰούδαν, καὶ παρέδωκεν αὐτοὺς εἰς τὰς χεῖρας ὑμῶν, καὶ ἀπε κτείνατε ἐν αὐτοῖς ἐν ὀργῇ, καὶ ἕως τῶν οὐρανῶν ἔφθασεν. Καὶ νῦν υἱοὺς Ἰούδα καὶ Ἱερουσαλὴμ ὑμεῖς λέγετε κατακτήσασθαι εἰς δούλους καὶ δούλας· Οὐκ ἰδοὺ οὔκ εἰμι μεθ' ὑμῶν, μαρτύρεται κύριος ὁ θεὸς ὑμῶν· πλημμέλεια μεθ' ὑμῶν κυρίῳ τῷ θεῷ ὑμῶν. Καὶ νῦν ἀκούσατέ μου καὶ ἀποστρέψατε τὴν αἰχμαλωσίαν ἣν ᾐχμαλωτεύσατε ἀπὸ τῶν ἀδελφῶν ὑμῶν, ὅτι ὀργὴ κυρίου ἐφ' ὑμᾶς.» Οὗτος ὁ θαυμάσιος προφήτης καὶ τὴν αἰτίαν ὑποδείξας τῆς ἥττης -διὰ γὰρ τὴν ἀσέβειαν παρέδωκεν αὐτοὺς ὀργισθεὶς ὁ θεός-καὶ τῆς συγγενείας ἀναμνήσας ἔπεισεν ἀφεῖναι τοὺς δοριαλώτους γεγενημένους. Καὶ ἄλλα δὲ πολλὰ τοιαῦτα πέπονθεν ὁ δυσσεβὴς βασιλεύς· καὶ γὰρ Ἰδουμαῖοι τοὺς πελάζοντας καὶ Ἀλλόφυλοι τοὺς γειτονεύοντας ἐξηνδραπό δισαν. Ὁ δὲ παράνομος βασιλεύς, δέον παρὰ τοῦ θεοῦ τὴν συμμαχίαν αἰτῆσαι, πρὸς τὸν τῶν Ἀσσυρίων κατέφυγε βασιλέα. Ὁ δὲ φιλάνθρωπος δεσπότης