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knowing your name, that you did not forsake those who seek you, Lord. To what poor man has the judge become a refuge, but to the one who 23.133 in the first life has walked the narrow and afflicted way, and to the blessed poor, that is, in spirit? And learning this, let those who know your name, and that in the time of just judgment you will not now forsake those who seek you, from this point hope in you, enduring all things for the rewards. We will rejoice in your salvation, nations were ensnared in the corruption which they made. In this snare which they hid their foot was caught. The Lord is known executing judgments. In the works of his own hands the sinner was caught. A song of diapsalma. But also having plotted against the pious, they have pierced themselves through with destruction. Then God will also be known using just judgment. A song of diapsalma; as if a change has occurred either of the tune according to the Hebrew voice, or of the melody, or also of the thought itself of what was said, the discourse changing to another meaning. Let the sinners be turned back to Hades, all the nations that forget God. For even if they are now insensitive, yet the time of judgment will come. But a man of God, even if he seems to be despised by God, by suffering incurable things from sinners; yet he is not handed over to oblivion. For the poor in spirit will not be forgotten forever; but he will have fruit and a good end because of his patience in present things. Arise, Lord, let not man prevail, let the nations be judged before you. Appoint, Lord, a lawgiver over them; let the nations know that they are men. He stirs up God as if his forbearance and the riches of his goodness and long-suffering, while causing a delay for him, cause tribulation for impious men. And having prayed before God that the nations be judged, he now consequently, before the coming judgment, asks that a lawgiver be given to the nations, so that they may learn that they are men, and not irrational animals; for a law is not given to irrational beings. But he would not mean Moses who was long ago born of men, nor the law given only to the Jews; but not to expect it to be another, for the law of the New Testament to come through all the inhabited world. For Christ is the lawgiver, and the preaching of the Gospel has taken hold of the nations. Concerning whom the Father says through the prophet: Behold my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved in whom my soul is well pleased. He will bring forth justice to the nations. He will not quarrel, nor cry out, nor will his voice be heard. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoking flax he will not quench; but he will bring forth justice in truth. He will shine forth, and will not be broken, until he establishes justice on the earth, and in his name the nations will hope. But the Hebrew and all the other interpreters have published, And in his law the nations will hope. 23.136 Why, Lord, have you stood far off, do you overlook in opportune times, in affliction? When the wicked one acts proudly the poor man is set on fire; they are caught in the counsels which they devise. Or because God is the one who catches the wise in their craftiness, according to the Apostle, does he now exhort this very thing to happen? For many, seeing themselves prospering in many impieties and falling into no painful thing, consider themselves blessed and worthy of praise. And they are greatly harmed and those who become zealous of wickedness. Because the sinner is praised in the desires of his soul, and the one who does wrong is blessed. The sinner has provoked the Lord; according to the multitude of his anger he will not seek. God is not before him, his ways are defiled at all times. Your judgments are taken away from his face, he will lord it over all his enemies. He goes through the present state of the wicked, wishing to show the necessity of the future judgment. And the

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γινώσκοντες τὸ ὄνομά σου, ὅτι οὐκ ἐγκατέλιπες τοὺς ἐκζητοῦντάς σε, Κύριε. Ποίῳ δὲ πένητι καταφυγὴ γέγονεν ὁ κριτὴς, ἀλλ' ἢ τῷ 23.133 κατὰ τὸν πρῶτον βίον τὴν στενὴν ὡδευκότι καὶ τεθλιμμένην, καὶ τῷ μακαριζομένῳ πτωχῷ, δηλονότι τῷ πνεύματι; Τοῦτο δὲ μαθόντες οἱ γινώσκοντες τὸ ὄνομά σου, καὶ ὅτι ἐν τῷ τῆς δικαιοκρισίας καιρῷ τοὺς ἐκζητοῦντάς σε νῦν οὐκ ἐγκαταλείψεις, ἐντεῦθεν ἐλπιζέτωσαν ἐπὶ σὲ πάντα διὰ τὰς ἀμοιβὰς ὑπομένοντες. Ἀγαλλιασόμεθα ἐπὶ τῷ σωτηρίῳ σου, ἐνεπάγησαν ἔθνη ἐν διαφθορᾷ ᾗ ἐποίησαν. Ἐν παγίδι ταύτῃ ᾗ ἔκρυψαν συνελήφθη ὁ ποῦς αὐτῶν. Γινώσκεται Κύριος κρίματα ποιῶν. Ἐν τοῖς ἔργοις τῶν χειρῶν αὐτοῦ συνελήφθη ὁ ἁμαρτωλός. Ὠδὴ διαψάλματος. Ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῖς εὐσεβέσιν ἐπιβουλεύσαντες, ἑαυτοὺς περιέπειραν ἀπωλείᾳ. Τότε καὶ γνωσθήσεται δικαίᾳ κρίσει χρώμενος ὁ Θεός. Ὠδὴ δὲ διαψάλματος· ὡς ἂν μεταβολῆς γεγενημένης ἤτοι μέλους κατὰ τὴν Ἑβραΐδα φωνὴν, ἢ μελῳδίας, ἢ καὶ τῆς διανοίας αὐτῆς τῶν λελεγμένων ἐφ' ἕτερον νοῦν μεταβαλλόντων τὸν λόγον. Ἀποστραφήτωσαν οἱ ἁμαρτωλοὶ εἰς τὸν ᾅδην, πάντα τὰ ἔθνη τὰ ἐπιλανθανόμενα τοῦ Θεοῦ. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ νῦν ἀναισθητοῦσι, ἀλλ' ἥξει τῆς κρίσεως ὁ καιρός. Θεοῦ δὲ ἄνθρωπος, κἂν δοκῇ καταπεφρονῆσθαι παρὰ Θεοῦ, τῷ παρὰ τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν ἀνήκεστα πάσχειν· ἀλλ' οὐ παραδέδοται λήθῃ. Οὐ γὰρ εἰς τὸ τέλος ἐπιλησθήσεται ὁ πτωχὸς τῷ πνεύματι· ἕξει δὲ καρπὸν καὶ τέλος ἀγαθὸν διὰ τὴν ἐν τοῖς παροῦσιν ὑπομονήν. Ἀνάστηθι, Κύριε, μὴ κραταιούσθω ἄνθρωπος, κριθήτωσαν ἔθνη ἐνώπιόν σου. Κατάστησον, Κύριε, νομοθέτην ἐπ' αὐτούς· γνώτωσαν ἔθνη, ὅτι ἄνθρωποί εἰσι. ∆ιεγείρει τὸν Θεὸν ὡς τῆς ἀνοχῆς αὐτοῦ καὶ τοῦ πλούτου τῆς χρηστότητος καὶ τῆς μακροθυμίας, ἀναβολὴν μὲν ἐμποιούσης αὐτῷ, ἐπιτριβὴν δὲ τοῖς ἀσεβέσιν ἀνθρώποις. Εὐξάμενος δὲ ἐνώπιον τοῦ Θεοῦ κριθῆναι τὰ ἔθνη, νῦν ἀκολούθως πρὸ τῆς μελλούσης κρίσεως ἀξιοῖ δοθῆναι τοῖς ἔθνεσι νομοθέτην, ἵνα μάθωσιν, ὡς εἰσὶν ἄνθρωποι, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἄλογα ζῶα· οὐ γὰρ ἀλόγοις δίδοται νόμος. Οὐκ ἂν δὲ λέγοι Μωϋσῆν τὸν ἐξ ἀνθρώπων πάλαι γεγενημένον, οὐδὲ νόμον τὸν μόνοις τεθέντα τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις· ἀλλ' οὐδὲ προσδοκᾷν ἕτερον εἶναι, τὸ διὰ πάσης ἐλθεῖν τῆς οἰκουμένης τῆς Καινῆς ∆ιαθήκης τὸν νόμον. Χριστὸς γὰρ ὁ νομοθέτης, καὶ τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου τὸ κήρυγμα κεκράτηκε τῶν ἐθνῶν. Περὶ οὗ διὰ τοῦ προφήτου φησὶν ὁ Πατήρ· Ἰδοὺ ὁ παῖς μου ὃν ᾑρέτισα, ὁ ἐκλεκτός μου εἰς ὃν εὐδόκησεν ἡ ψυχή μου. Κρίσιν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν ἐξοίσει. Οὐκ ἐρίσει, οὐδὲ κραυγάσει, οὐδὲ ἀκουσθήσεται ἡ φωνὴ αὐτοῦ. Κάλαμον συντεθλασμένον οὐ συντρίψει, καὶ λίνον τυφόμενον οὐ σβέσει· ἀλλ' εἰς ἀλήθειαν ἐξοίσει κρίσιν. Ἀναλάμψει, καὶ οὐ θραυσθήσεται, ἕως ἂν θῇ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς κρίσιν, καὶ τῷ ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ ἔθνη ἐλπιοῦσιν. Τὸ δὲ Ἑβραϊκὸν καὶ οἱ λοιποὶ πάντες ἑρμηνευταὶ, Καὶ τῷ νόμῳ αὐτοῦ ἔθνη ἐλπιοῦσιν, ἐξέδωκαν. 23.136 Ἱνατί, Κύριε, ἀφέστηκας μακρόθεν, ὑπερορᾷς ἐν εὐκαιρίαις, ἐν θλίψει; Ἐν τῷ ὑπερηφανεύεσθαι τὸν ἀσεβῆ ἐμπυρίζεται ὁ πτωχός· συλλαμβάνονται ἐν διαβουλίοις οἷς διαλογίζονται. Ἢ ἐπειδὴ ὁ Θεὸς ὁ δρασσόμενός ἐστι τοὺς σοφοὺς ἐν τῇ πανουργίᾳ αὐτῶν, κατὰ τὸν Ἀπόστολον, τοῦτο αὐτὸ ἤδη γενέσθαι παρακαλεῖ; Ἐπὶ πολλαῖς γὰρ ἀσεβείαις ὁρῶντες αὑτοὺς οἱ πολλοὶ εὐθυνουμένους τε καὶ μηδενὶ λυπηρῷ περιπίπτοντας, μακαρίους αὑτοὺς ἡγοῦνται καὶ ἐπαίνων ἀξίους. Κἀκεῖνοί τε μεγάλα βλάπτονται καὶ οἱ ζηλωταὶ τῆς κακίας γενόμενοι. Ὅτι ἐπαινεῖται ὁ ἁμαρτωλὸς ἐν ταῖς ἐπιθυμίαις τῆς ψυχῆς αὐτοῦ, καὶ ὁ ἀδικῶν ἐνευλογεῖται. Παρώξυνε τὸν Κύριον ὁ ἁμαρτωλός· κατὰ τὸ πλῆθος τῆς ὀργῆς αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἐκζητήσει. Οὐκ ἔστιν ὁ Θεὸς ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ, βεβηλοῦνται αἱ ὁδοὶ αὐτοῦ ἐν παντὶ καιρῷ. Ἀνταναιρεῖται τὰ κρίματά σου ἀπὸ προσώπου αὐτοῦ, πάντων τῶν ἐχθρῶν αὐτοῦ κατακυριεύσει. Τῇ παρούσῃ τῶν ἀσεβῶν ἐπεξέρχεται καταστάσει, τὴν μέλλουσαν κρίσιν ἀναγκαίαν δεῖξαι βουλόμενος. Τὸ δὲ