27

and "Lord, who shall sojourn in your tabernacle?". It is the mark of a great "man" to follow the "counsel," to walk "behind" it. For the one who "turns away" from it and "casts the words of God behind him, having hated d-iscipl-ine" does not walk "behind the counsel." Concerning such a one it is said, and those like him: "they devised a counsel, which they could not establish"; "they are not able" to complete it. And you take such things from history: Pharaoh and those who agreed with him "devised" to diminish and destroy the race of the Hebrews, when he ordered the "ma-les" to be "cast into the river," and the "counsel" "was not able to stand." The opposing demons and "h-umans" "devised" death against the Savior and "it was not able to stand." For they thought to destroy his teaching and exhortation by encompassing him with death, and they thought this would "stand." Therefore, here then according to the rare? ...in... thus the... "h-uman" who walks "beh-ind ...s stirring up "ir-rational" things, "horses become mad for mares," "not" "doing anything" with reason. The "irr-ational" is not a deliberative "creature." For this reason there is no "ch-o-ice" in "irrational beings." For "choice" is a kind of "counsel." The "turning," therefore, is the tra-nsition from "wis-dom" to "foolishness," and from that to this. For I said that it indicates "ch-oice." Therefore: "I looked upon"? Suitably we take "foolishness" with "wisdom." He speaks here being zealous for "wisdom." "Knowing" both, we abstain from the one, but we choose the other. But it is impossible for a perfect "h-uman" ... ... so as to be without both "foolishness" and "wisdom" and moderation. 2,12d.13a with it he made all things; and I saw that there is an exce-llence in wisdom over foolishness. Here do not take comparatively that which has more, neither what belongs to "wisdom" and to "foolishness" nor to "foolishness" and to "wisdom"; for comparatives are not always spoken in the same way. For instance, in the Gospel John says: "H-umans loved the darkness more than the light," evidently say 48 ing according to the ready rendering that "loving" both, they "loved the darkness more than the light." But the inference of the saying does not permit this to be understood; for he added that "everyone who practices evil hates the light." If, then, one "hates the light," how did he "love" the "darkness" "more" than it? The word here, therefore, is not comparative, but with both set forth, he "love-d" the one, but turned away from the other. Thus should also be taken "lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God"; not that they love both pleasure and God, but rather pleasure, but this they loved, and by no means God. Such also is "they loved evil more than goodness"; he is wicked about whom these things are said; and this is the one who slandered David to Saul, Doeg the Syrian 2,13b as the excellence of light over darkness. For "darkness" is not at all compared to "light"; it has something more than "darkness," it is destructive of "darkness," where, if the "light" comes upon it, the "darkness" vanishes. It has, therefore, a comp-arison nevertheless, since it is shown through examples and homonyms are clarified from what is assumed along with them. Since this "over" that is also taken comparatively, when both have one and the same thing, but the other more so, and when the one has it and the other does not have it, for this reason the example shows that just as "light" has more abun-dan-ce, i-f it is taken comparatively, so "wisdom" has something more than "foolishness." For "wi-sdom" is "l-ight," but "foolishness" is "darkn-ess."

27

καὶ "κύριε, τίς παροικήσει ἐν σκηνώματί σου;". μεγάλου "ἀνθρώπου" ἐστὶν τὸ ἀκολυθεῖν τῇ "βουλῇ", τὸ "ὀπίσω" αὐτῆς βαδίζειν. ὁ γὰρ "ἀποστρεφόμενος" αὐτὴν καὶ "ῥίπτων τοὺς λόγους τοῦ θεοῦ εἰς τὰ ὀπίσω μισήσας π̣αι-δ̣εία̣ν" οὐ πορεύεται "ὀπίσω τῆς βουλῆς". περὶ τοῦ τοιού-του λέγεται καὶ τῶν ὁμοίων αὐτῷ· "διελογίσαντο βουλήν, ην οὐ μὴ δύνωνται στῆσαι"· "οὐ δύνανται" τελε̣ιῶσαι αὐ- τήν. καὶ λαμβάνεις ἐπὶ ἱστορίας τοιαῦτα· "διελογίσατο" ὁ Φαραὼ καὶ οἱ̣ συνφρονοῦντες αὐτῷ ἐλαττῶσαι καὶ ἀναιρῆσαι τὸ γένος τῶν ̔Εβραίων, οτε τὰ "αυ̣ρρενα" προσέταττεν "εἰς τὸν ποταμὸν ῥιπτεῖσθαι", καὶ "οὐκ ἠδυνήθη σταθῆναι" ἡ "βουλή". "διελογίσαντο" θάνατον κατὰ τοῦ ςωτῆρος οἱ ἐναντιούμενοι δαίμονές τε καὶ "αυ̣̣νθρωποι" καὶ "οὐκ ἠδυνήθη στῆναι". ευ̣δοξαν γὰρ καταλύειν αὐτοῦ τὴν διδαςκα-λίαν καὶ τὴν προτροπὴν θανάτῳ αὐτὸν περιβαλόντες καὶ ἐ-νόμιζον τοῦτο "σταθῆναι". ἐπερ· ἐνταῦθα ουν κατὰ τὸ σπάνιον; ·······ι̣ν··· ουτως ο·ι ········ "αυ̣ν̣θρωπος" ὁ πορευόμενος "ὀ̣πίσ̣ω ···········ς̣ "αυ̣λογα" κινῶ̣ν "ιπ-ποι θηλυμανεῖς γίνονται" "οὐ" σὺν λόγῳ "τι πράτ̣τ̣ο̣ντες". τὸ "αυ̣λογον" δὲ̣ ο̣ὐ̣ "ζῷον" βουλευτικόν ἐστιν. διὰ τοῦτο οὐδὲ "π̣ρ̣ο̣αίρεσίς" ἐστιν ἐν τοῖς "ἀλόγοις". "βουλὴ" γ̣ά̣ρ τίς ἐστιν ἡ "προαίρεσις". ἡ "περιφορὰ" ουν ἡ με̣τ̣άβασ̣ις ἐκ τῆς "σοφ̣ίας" εἰς τὴν "ἀφροσύνην" καὶ ἐξ ἐκείνης εἰς ταύτην. ειπον γὰρ οτι "προα̣ί̣ρεσιν" δηλοῖ. ἐπερ· "ἐπέβλεψα"; καταλλήλως λαμβάνο̣μεν τῇ "σοφίᾳ" τὴν "ἀφροσύνην". σπου-δάζων τὴν "σοφίαν" ἐνταῦθα λέγει. ἀμφότερα "γιγνώσκοντες" τοῦ̣ μὲν ἀπεχόμεθα, τὸ δὲ αἱρούμεθα. ἀδύνατον δέ ἐστιν "αυ̣νθρωπον" τέλειον καθ······· ····· ωστε ἐκτὸς ειναι καὶ "ἀφροσύνης̣" καὶ "σοφίας" καὶ σωφροσύνη̣ς. 2,12d.13a σὺν τ̣ὰ πάντα ἐποίησεν αὐ-τή· καὶ ειδον ἐγὼ οτι ευ̣στιν περισ-σεία τῇ σοφίᾳ ὑπὲρ τὴν ἀφροσύνην. ωδε μ̣ὴ̣ συνκριτικῶς λάβῃς τὸ πλέον̣ ευ̣χειν οὐδὲ τὸ ὑπάρχον τῇ "σοφίᾳ" καὶ τῇ "ἀφροσύνῃ" οὐδὲ τὸ τῇ "ἀφροσύνῃ" καὶ τ̣ῇ "σοφίᾳ"· τὰ γὰρ συνκριτικὰ οὐκ ἀεὶ ὁμοίω̣ς λέγεται. ἐν γοῦν τῷ εὐαγγελίῳ ὁ ̓Ιωάννης λέγει· "ἠγάπησαν οἱ αυ̣νθρωποι μᾶλλον τὸ σκότος η τὸ φῶς", δηλονότι λέ 48 γων κατὰ τὴν πρόχειρον ἀπόδοσιν οτι ἀμφότερα "ἀγαπῶν-τες μᾶλλον τὸ σκότος η τὸ φῶς ἠγάπησαν". ἀλλ' ἡ ἐπιφορὰ τοῦ ῥητοῦ οὐκ ἐᾷ τοῦτο νοεῖν· ἐπήγαγεν γὰρ οτι "πᾶς ὁ πο-νηρευόμενος μισεῖ τὸ φῶς". εἰ ουν "μισεῖ τὸ φῶς", πῶς "μᾶλλον" αὐτοῦ τὸ "σκότος" τις "ἠγάπησεν"; τὸ ωδε ουν οὐ συνκριτικόν ἐστιν, ἀλλὰ προκειμένων ἑκατέρων τὸ εν "ἠγά-πησεν", τὸ ετερον δὲ ἀπεστράφη. ουτω λημπτέον καὶ τὸ "φιλ ήδονοι μᾶλλον η φιλόθεοι"· οὐχ οτι καὶ τὴν ἡδονὴν φιλοῦσιν καὶ τὸν θεόν, μᾶλλον δὲ τὴν ἡδονήν, ἀλλὰ ταύτην ἐφίλ̣ησαν, ο̣ὐδαμῶς δὲ τὸν θεόν. τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν καὶ τὸ "ἠγάπησαν κακίαν ὑπὲρ ἀγαθοσύνην"· φαῦλός ἐστιν περὶ ου ταῦτα λέγεται· ουτος δέ ἐστιν ὁ διαβαλὼν τὸν ∆αυὶδ τῷ Σαοὺ̣λ ∆ωὴχ ὁ Σύρος 2,13b ὡς περισσεία τοῦ φωτὸς ὑπὲρ τὸ σκότος. μὴ γὰρ ολως συνκρίνεται τὸ "σκότος" τῷ "φωτί"· πλέον τι τοῦ "σκότους" ευ̣χει, φθαρτικόν ἐστιν τοῦ "σκότους", ευ̣νθα, ἐὰν ἐπιβῇ τὸ "φῶς", ἀφανίζεται τὸ "σκότος". ευ̣χει ουν σύν- κρισιν ομως, ἐπειδὴ διὰ παραδειγμάτων δείκνυται καὶ τὰ ὁμώνυμα ἐκ τῶν προσπαραλαμβανομένων σαφηνίζεται. ἐπεὶ τὸ τόδε "ὑπὲρ" τόδε καὶ συνκριτικῶς λαμβάνεται, οταν ἀμφότερα ευ̣χωσιν εν καὶ τὸ αὐτὸ, ἀλλὰ τὸ ετερον πλειόνως, καὶ οταν τὸ μὲν ευ̣χῃ τὸ δὲ μὴ ευ̣χῃ, διὰ τοῦτο τὸ παράδειγ μα δείκνυσιν οτι ὡς τὸ "φῶς" περισσό̣τε̣ρ̣ον ευ̣χε̣ι, ε̣ἰ̣ λαμβάνεται συ̣νκριτικῶς, ουτως ἡ "σοφία" τῆς "ἀφροσύνης" πλέον τι ευ̣χει. ευ̣σ̣τι γ̣ὰρ̣ "φ̣ῶ̣ς̣" μ̣ὲν ἡ "σοφί̣α", "σκότ̣ο̣ς̣" δ̣ὲ̣ ἡ "ἀφροσύνη".