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to lead up? and in Job, "But," it says, "have you walked in the tracks of the abyss?" Perhaps this also signifies the multitude of waters over which the Lord walked? so that the phrase, "Do the gates of death open to you in fear?" is from another beginning? Sing to the Lord a new song, etc. The new song ... being sung in the Church of the saints, that is, of the New Testament of our Savior.. Israel attending to the old one through Moses; but this new example .. let him rejoice; for He Himself was the Word of God who spoke to Moses, and led Israel out of Egypt, and made them His own people. Therefore, He first exhorts the sons of Zion to rejoice and be glad in their king; and He Himself was .. again the Word of God, formerly being their king, but later rejected by them; wherefore He says to the prophet Samuel: "They have not despised you, but Me .. from reigning over them." Since they did not heed the call, they rightly deprived themselves of the grace of gladness; but the nations, recognizing the king 24.72 who was first proclaimed to them, received him; therefore gladness and rejoicing according to God passed over to them; whence the nations throughout the whole world in their own Churches praise the name of their king, in the chorus of the Word of God glorifying the name of Jesus Christ with dancing but also each one in himself .. of good works, and through the actions of the body performs those things that contribute to the hymn and doxology of God. Rightly anticipating this very thing, the word commands, saying: "Let them sing psalms to Him with tambourine and psaltery;" calling the body a tambourine, and the spirit a psaltery .. having put to death the members that are on the earth, and carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus; those who rejoice in their king together with him who rejoices .. who made him, sing psalms with tambourine and psaltery.

PSALM 149.

They will rejoice upon their beds. Otherwise, the death of the saints

he alluded to through "beds." For Scripture is accustomed to call it "sleep," as Paul also says: "But concerning them which are asleep, I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren;" and the Old Testament also says: "David slept with his fathers." The high praises of God in their throat, and two-edged swords in their hands. But Aquila strangely rendered the intended meaning, being slavish to the Hebrew expression, saying: "A sword of mouths in their hand." But also concerning such adversaries it is said somewhere: "Sons of men, whose teeth are weapons and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword," slaying those captured by them. Appropriately the word represented the sword of the mouths as working in their deeds, but the high praises of God in their mouth, for they used their voice for the teaching of the word, raising the hymn among those able to hear; but in their deeds they had the power to overthrow every opposing power. By "their hands" he means their deeds, or the work they handled. And this was the evangelical word, which was also called a sword, driving out the herds of wicked and unclean spirits; and to execute vengeance on the wronged nations, and to reprove the idolatry of the people. To bind their kings with fetters, etc. Since it was not otherwise possible to lead out and free those long enslaved to demons than by first subjugating and binding their rulers, these things are rightly added. And you will understand this from the voice of salvation, through which it is said:

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ἀναγαγεῖν; καὶ ἐν Ἰὼβ, Ἐν δὲ, φησὶν, ἴχνεσιν ἀβύσσου περιεπάτησας; Μήποτε δὲ καὶ τοῦτο πλῆθος ὑδάτων δηλοῖ καθ' οὗ περιεπάτησε Κύριος; ὡς ἀφ' ἑτέρας ἀρχῆς εἶναι τὸ, Ἀνοίγονται δέ σοι φόβῳ πύλαι θανάτου; Ἄσατε τῷ Κυρίῳ ᾆσμα καινὸν, κ.τ.λ. Τοῦ καινοῦ ᾄσματος ... τῇ τῶν ὁσίων Ἐκκλησίᾳ ᾀδομένου, δηλαδὴ τῆς τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν Καινῆς ∆ιαθήκης .. παλαιῷ προσέχων Ἰσραὴλ τῷ διὰ Μωϋσέως· τὸ καινὸν δὲ τοῦτο παράδειγμα .. εὐφραινέσθω· αὐτὸς γὰρ ἦν ὁ τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγος ὁ χρηματίσας τῷ Μωϋσεῖ, καὶ τὸν Ἰσραὴλ ἐξαγαγὼν ἐκ τῆς Αἰγύπτου, ποιήσας τε αὐτὸν ἑαυτοῦ λαόν. Τοῖς μὲν οὖν υἱοῖς Σιὼν χαίρειν καὶ ἀγαλλιᾷν πρώτοις παρακελεύεται ἐπὶ τῷ βασιλεῖ αὐτῶν· αὐτὸς δὲ ἦν ..τὸς πάλιν ὁ τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγος, πάλαι μὲν αὐτῶν βασιλεὺς ὢν, ὕστερον δὲ παραιτηθεὶς ὑπ' αὐτῶν· διὸ πρὸς τὸν προφήτην Σαμουήλ φησιν· Οὐ σὲ ἐξουθενήκασιν, ἀλλ' ἐμὲ .. μὴ βασιλεύειν ἐπ' αὐτῶν. Ἐπεὶ δὲ μὴ ὑπήκουσαν τῇ κλήσει, εἰκότως τῆς χάριτος τῆς εὐφροσύνης ἑαυτοὺς ἐστέρησαν· τά γε μὴν ἔθνη τὸν ἐκείνοις πρώτοις κατηγγελμένον βασι 24.72 λέα ἐπιγνόντα κατεδέξαντο· διόπερ ἡ κατὰ Θεὸν εὐφροσύνη καὶ ἀγαλλίασις μετῆλθεν ἐπ' αὐτά· ὅθεν τὰ μὲν καθ' ὅλης τῆς οἰκουμένης ἔθνη ταῖς ἑαυτῶν Ἐκκλησίαις αἰνοῦσι τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ τοῦ βασιλέως ἑαυτῶν, ἐν χορῷ τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγου τὸ ὄνομα Ἰησοῦν Χριστὸν μετὰ χορείας δοξάζοντες ἀλλὰ καὶ ὁ καθεὶς παρ' ἑαυτῷ ..νων δ' ἔργων ἀγαθῶν, καὶ διὰ τῶν τοῦ σώματος πράξεων τὰ συντελοῦντα εἰς ὕμνον καὶ δοξολογίαν τοῦ Θεοῦ διαπράττεται. Εἰκότως τοῦτο αὐτὸ προλαβὼν ὁ λόγος προστάττει φάσκων· Ἐν τυμπάνῳ καὶ ψαλτηρίῳ ψαλάτωσαν αὐτῷ· τύμπανον μὲν τὸ σῶμα προσαγορεύων, ψαλτήριον δὲ τὸ πνεῦμα .. νεκρώσαντες τὰ μέλη τὰ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, καὶ τὴν Ἰησοῦ νέκρωσιν ἐν τῷ σώματι περιφέροντες· οἱ ἀγαλλιώμενοι ἐπὶ τῷ βασιλεῖ αὐτῶν ἅμα τῷ εὐφραινομένῳ .. ποιήσαντι αὐτὸν, ἐν τυμπάνῳ καὶ ψαλτηρίῳ ψάλλουσιν.

ΨΑΛΜΟΣ ΡΜΘʹ.

Ἀγαλλιάσονται ἐπὶ τῶν κοιτῶν αὐτῶν. Ἄλλως δὲ τὸν θάνατον τῶν ὁσίων

ᾐνίξατο διὰ τῶν κοιτῶν. Κοίμησιν γὰρ εἴωθε καλεῖν αὐτὸν ἡ Γραφὴ, λέγοντος καὶ Παύλου· Περὶ δὲ τῶν κοιμωμένων οὐ θέλω ὑμᾶς ἀγνοεῖν, ἀδελφοί· καὶ ἡ Παλαιὰ δέ φησιν· Ἐκοιμήθη ∆αυῒδ μετὰ τῶν πατέρων αὐτοῦ. Αἱ ὑψώσεις τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐν λάρυγγι αὐτῶν, καὶ ῥομφαῖαι δίστομοι ἐν ταῖς χερσὶν αὐτῶν. Παραδόξως δὲ Ἀκύλας τὴν ἀποδοθεῖσαν διάνοιαν παρέστησε, δουλεύσας τῇ τῶν Ἑβραίων φωνῇ εἰπών· Μάχαιρα στομάτων ἐν χειρὶ αὐτῶν. Ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ τῶν τοιούτοις ἐναντίων εἴρηταί που· Υἱοὶ ἀνθρώπων, οἱ ὀδόντες αὐτῶν ὅπλα καὶ βέλη, καὶ ἡ γλῶσσα αὐτῶν μάχαιρα ὀξεῖα, φονευόντων τοὺς ὑπ' αὐτῶν ἡλωκότας. Οἰκείως δὲ τὴν μὲν μάχαιραν τῶν στομάτων ἐν ταῖς πράξεσιν ἐνεργεῖν ὁ λόγος παρέστησε, τὰς δὲ ὑψώσεις τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐν τῷ στόματι αὐτῶν, φωνῇ γὰρ ἐχρῶντο ἐπὶ διδασκαλίᾳ τοῦ λόγου, παρὰ τοῖς ἀκούειν δυναμένοις ἀνυψοῦντες τὸν ὕμνον· ταῖς δὲ πράξεσιν ἰσχὺν εἶχον καθαιρετικὴν πάσης ἀντικειμένης δυνάμεως. Χεῖρας μὲν αὐτῶν τὰς πράξεις φησὶν, ἤτοι ἢν μετεχειρίζοντο πραγματείαν. Αὕτη δὲ ἦν ὁ εὐαγγελικὸς λόγος, ὃς καὶ ῥομφαία ὠνομάσθη, ἐκδιώκουσα τὰς τῶν πονηρῶν καὶ ἀκαθάρτων πνευμάτων ἀγέλας· ποιεῖν τε τὴν ἐκδίκησιν τῶν ἠδικημένων ἐθνῶν, καὶ ἐλέγχειν τοῦ λαοῦ τὴν εἰδωλολατρείαν. Τοῦ δεῖσθαι τοὺς βασιλεῖς αὐτῶν ἐν πέδαις, κ.τ.λ. Ἐπειδὴ οὐκ ἄλλως ἦν ὑπεξαγαγεῖν καὶ ἐλευθερῶσαι τοὺς πάλαι τοῖς δαίμοσι δεδουλωμένους ἢ καθυποτάξαντας πρότερον καὶ καταδήσαντας τοὺς ἄρχοντας αὐτῶν, εἰκότως ἐπιλέλεκται ταῦτα. Νοήσεις δὲ καὶ τοῦτο ἀπὸ τῆς σωτηρίου φωνῆς, δι' ἧς εἴρηται·