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of him upon those who hope in him, whenever the mercies that come through benefaction have something more wondrous, so that God, inclining towards us, hears the words of our voice, being nothing other than his power condescending through goodness to receive our words. To this you will take the saying, "The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer." 105 Ps 16,7c-9a The right hand of God being none other than his only-begotten Son, as was said a little earlier, when the text "Pleasures are in your right hand for evermore" was set forth, opposing this are the devil and his angels and, in addition to these, sorcerers and wicked men, from whom the saint, desiring to remain unharmed, says to God: "Keep me from those who oppose your right hand, as the apple of my eye, so that my mind may remain unharmed; but also, in the shelter of your wings, shelter me from the face of the wicked who desire to surround me with affliction." But it is possible to speak of the wicked and those who have opposed the right hand of God as different in concept, while being the same in substance. But the voice, "Keep me as the apple of an eye," is not of everyone, but only of the one who is enlightened in soul, having the eyes of his heart enlightened. And "In the shelter of your wings you will shelter me" must be understood spiritually; for the sheltering powers of God are called his wings, by which he shelters and brings to good cheer the one who beseeches to be delivered from the wicked who intend affliction against him. But these are certain invisible enemies who make miserable those who are captured by them by subjecting them to sin. 106 Ps 16,9b-11 He signifies the savage and cruel nature of those who oppose by saying that his soul is encompassed by his enemies who have enclosed their own fat on account of their passion for matter. For they are through and through material and carnal, being sold under sin, and from much good cheer and luxury they were filled with fat and lard. Therefore Symmachus has, "They are shut up in their own fat"; therefore also their mouth speaks pride, uttering nothing friendly or fitting with constancy. These enemies, from great arrogance, as it were casting out the one who says these things, surround him to harm and destroy him who has come within their nets. For they practice nothing useful or good, since they have become transgressors of divine laws by having set their eyes on the earth, turning aside and becoming lawless; for this is shown by their having set their eyes on the earth, wishing to look upon temporary things and to mind earthly things, turning away from wishing to walk the straight way, but the crooked ones, for which the one who has them is wretched. For, it says, "those who forsake the straight paths to walk in the ways of darkness, whose ways are crooked and their tracks are curved." These indeed set their eyes on the earth in order to turn aside, but those bearing the image of the heavenly one set their eyes on heaven in order to make straight a path leading up to the heavens. 107 Ps 16,13.14a Since you are long-suffering, they thought you were sleeping, not being punished immediately for the murderous dispositions they held. "Arise then, O Lord, that you may anticipate them, to trip them up." For it will be advantageous for them to suffer this, so that, not always running to evil, they do not increase their own destruction; for, having surrounded my soul and doing other things, if they were not prevented, they would harm it most greatly; whence, "Trip them up, so that they may no longer have power against me, you having delivered my soul from each one who is of such a kind and for this reason is called wicked"; for "Deliver my soul from the wicked one." He will take his own sword from their hand; for they had it, having been given it with good reason. But it is taken from them as they do not use it as they ought. Therefore also they are made few in the land, that is

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αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τοὺς ἐλπίζοντας ἐπ' αὐτόν, οτ' αν παραδοξότερόν τι εχωσιν τὰ δι' εὐεργεσίαν ἐλέη γενόμενα, ὡς τοῦ θεοῦ κλίνοντος πρὸς ἡμᾶς εἰσακούει τῶν ῥημάτων τῆς φωνῆς ἡμῶν, οὐκ αλλο τι τυγχάνον η ἡ συγκαταβαίνουσα δι' ἀγαθότητα δύναμις αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τῷ δέχεσθαι τοὺς ἡμετέρους λόγους. εἰς τοῦτο λήψῃ τὸ ̓Οφθαλμοὶ κυρίου ἐπὶ δικαίους καὶ ωτα αὐτοῦ εἰς δέησιν αὐτῶν. 105 Ps 16,7c-9a Τῆς δεξιᾶς τοῦ θεοῦ οὐχ ἑτέρας ουσης τοῦ μονογενοῦς υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ, ὡς καὶ μικρῷ πρότερον ειρηται, οτε προέκειτο τὸ Τερπνότης ἐν τῇ δεξιᾷ σου εἰς τέλος, ἀνθιστάμενοι ταύτῃ διάβολος καὶ οἱ τούτου αγγελοι καὶ πρὸς τούτοις ανθρωποι γόητες καὶ πονηροὶ ἀφ' ων ἀβλαβὴς διαμεῖναι ποθῶν ὁ αγιος λέγει τῷ θεῷ· Φύλαξόν με ἀπὸ τῶν ἀνθισταμένων τῇ σῇ δεξιᾷ κατὰ τὴν τοῦ ὀφθαλμοῦ μου κόρην, ιν' ἀβλαβὴς ὁ νοῦς μου διαμείνῃ· ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν σκέπῃ τῶν πτερύγων σου σκέπασόν με ἀπὸ προσώπου ἀσεβῶν τῶν περιβαλεῖν με ταλαιπωρίᾳ ποθούντων. δυνατὸν δὲ ἀσεβεῖς καὶ ἀνθεστηκότας τῇ δεξιᾷ τοῦ θεοῦ κατ' ἐπίνοιαν διαφόρους εἰπεῖν, καθ' ὑποκείμενον τοὺς αὐτοὺς τυγχάνοντας. οὐ παντὸς δὲ ἡ φωνὴ ἡ Φύλαξόν με ὡς κόρην ὀφθαλμοῦ ἀλλὰ μόνου τοῦ πεφωτισμένου κατὰ τὴν ψυχὴν εχοντος τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς τῆς καρδίας πεφωτισμένους. Τὸ δὲ ̓Εν σκέπῃ τῶν πτερύγων σου σκεπάσεις με πνευματικῶς ἐκληπτέον· αἱ γὰρ σκεπαστικαὶ τοῦ θεοῦ δυνάμεις πτέρυγες αὐτοῦ καλοῦνται, δι' ων σκέπει καὶ εἰς εὐθυμίαν αγει τὸν παρακαλοῦντα ἐξαιρεθῆναι ἀπὸ ἀσεβῶν τῶν ταλαιπωρίαν κατ' αὐτοῦ διανοουμένων. ουτοι δὲ ἀόρατοί τινές εἰσιν ἐχθροὶ ταλαιπώρους ποιοῦντες τοὺς ἁλισκομένους πρὸς αὐτῶν τῷ ὑποβαλεῖν αὐτοὺς ἁμαρτίᾳ. 106 Ps 16,9b-11 Τὸ αγριον καὶ ὠμὸν τῶν ἀνθισταμένων σημαίνει διὰ τοῦ εἰπεῖν περιέχεσθαι τὴν ψυχὴν ἑαυτοῦ ὑπὸ τῶν ἐχθρῶν αὐτοῦ συγκλεισάντων τὸ στέαρ αὐτῶν διὰ τὴν πρὸς υλην προσπάθειαν. ολοι γὰρ δι' ολων ὑλικοὶ καὶ σάρκινοι, πεπραμένοι ὑπὸ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν, τυγχάνουσιν καὶ ἀπὸ πολλῆς εὐθυμίας καὶ τρυφῆς στέατος ωσπερ καὶ πιμελῆς ἐπληροῦντο. διὸ ὁ Σύμμαχος Τῷ στέατι αὐτῶν ἀπεφράγησαν· διὸ καὶ λαλεῖ τὸ στόμα αὐτῶν ὑπερηφανίαν, οὐδὲν φιλικὸν η καθῆκον εὐσταθῶς προφερόντων. ουτοι οἱ ἐχθροὶ ἀπὸ πολλῆς ἀλαζονείας ἐκβάλλοντες οἱονεὶ τὸν ταῦτα λέγοντα περικυκλοῦσιν ἐπὶ τῷ βλάψαι καὶ ἀπολέσαι τὸν ἐντὸς ἀρκύων γεγενημένον. οὐ γὰρ χρηστόν τι η ἀγαθὸν ἐπιτηδεύουσιν, ἐπεὶ παραβάται θείων νόμων γεγενημένοι διὰ τοῦ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτῶν ἐν τῇ γῇ τεθεῖσθαι ἐκκλινόντων καὶ παρανόμων γινομένων· τοῦτο γὰρ παρίσταται ἐκ τοῦ ἐν τῇ γῇ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτῶν τεθεικέναι, σκοπεῖν θέλοντας τὰ πρόσκαιρα καὶ φρονεῖν τὰ ἐπίγεια ἐκκλίνοντας ἐκ τοῦ τὴν εὐθείαν ὁδὸν μὴ βούλεσθαι βαδίζειν ἀλλὰ τὰς σκολιὰς ας ὁ εχων ταλανίζεται· Ω γάρ, φησίν, οἱ ἐγκαταλείποντες ὁδοὺς εὐθείας τοῦ πορεύεσθαι ἐν ὁδοῖς σκότους, ων αἱ ὁδοὶ σκολιαὶ καὶ καμπύλαι αἱ τροχιαὶ αὐτῶν. ουτοι μὲν ἐπὶ τῷ ἐκκλίναι εθεντο τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτῶν ἐν τῇ γῇ, τῶν δὲ φορούντων τὴν εἰκόνα τοῦ ἐπουρανίου τιθέντων τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτῶν ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ ἐπὶ τῷ κατορθῶσαι εὐθείαν ὁδὸν τὴν εἰς οὐρανοὺς ἀναφέρουσαν. 107 Ps 16,13.14a ̓Επεὶ μακροθυμοῦντος σοῦ κοιμᾶσθαί σε εδοξαν μὴ παρ' αὐτὰ δίκην εἰσπραττόμενοι ἐφ' οις φονικῶς διέκειντο, ̓Ανάστηθι λοιπόν, ω κύριε, ινα προφθάσῃς αὐτοὺς ἐπὶ τῷ ὑποσκελισθῆναι. συνοίσει γὰρ αὐτοῖς παθεῖν τοῦτο, ινα μὴ ἀεὶ ἐπὶ τὸ κακὸν τρέχοντες αὐξάνωσι τὴν ἀπώλειαν αὐτῶν· περισχόντες γὰρ τὴν ψυχήν μου καὶ τὰ αλλα ποιοῦντες εἰ μὴ κωλυθεῖεν, τὰ μέγιστα αὐτὴν βλάπτουσιν· οθεν ̔Υποσκέλισον αὐτούς, ινα μηκέτι κατ' ἐμοῦ δύνωνται, σοῦ ῥυσαμένου τὴν ψυχήν μου ἀφ' ἑκάστου οντος τοιούτου καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἀσεβοῦς ὀνομαζομένου· ̔Ρῦσαι γὰρ τὴν ψυχήν μου ἀπὸ ἀσεβοῦς. Τὴν ῥομφαίαν ἑαυτοῦ ἐκ τῆς χειρὸς αὐτῶν λήψεται· ειχον γὰρ αὐτὴν εὐλόγως δοθεῖσαν. αιρεται δὲ ἀπ' αὐτῶν οὐ χρωμένων ὡς δεῖ. διὸ καὶ ἐν τῇ γῇ ὀλιγοῦνται, τουτέστιν