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for those who are ruled; but of a counselor, to persuade those who are deliberating concerning what is expedient. For each person is not self-sufficient to find what is necessary on their own. For this reason, God, as a benefactor, gives counselors, but not authoritarians. So let each of us consider himself not as a ruler, but as a counselor given by the Lord to the people. Therefore, all the Prophets, who advised on what was expedient, are counselors; and above all, Moses. Therefore, the Lord promises, as a benefactor to the people, to raise up counselors similar to the first ones, the Apostles and Evangelists, such a counselor was Paul, the minister of the New Covenant, saying: But I give my opinion, as one who has received mercy from the Lord. And the presence of a prudent and well-disposed counselor is a great benefit, supplying what is lacking in the understanding of those who are deliberating. And how much benefit comes from counsel, Moses especially shows, who was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, who spoke with God, as a friend would speak to a friend. He received advice from his father-in-law Jethro, to appoint rulers of thousands and rulers of hundreds and rulers of tens to judge the people. And David also used Hushai as a counselor, through whom he scattered the strategic advice of Ahithophel. And in general, counsel is a sacred thing, a union of opinion, a fruit of love, a proof of humility. For it is a terrible arrogance to think one needs no one, but to attend to oneself, as if being the only one able to deliberate on what is best. But we hesitate to give ourselves over to those who suggest what is needed, and we are ashamed to acknowledge those who are wiser than us in life. Then he who awaits a counselor also gives time to his own reasonings, to search out what is necessary over a longer time with examination and attention. 1.58 And after this you shall be called the city of righteousness, the metropolis, faithful Zion. He showed to what end the individual benefits lead. For instead of being a city of murderers, a city of righteousness; and instead of a harlot city, a metropolis, that is, also leading others to temperance. And again faithful, which it was before being defiled by fornication. Therefore, the Church in Christ, adorned with the ornaments befitting herself, with counselors and judges, might be called a metropolis, as if sending out from herself certain colonies of the life according to God. For her captivity shall be saved with judgment, and with mercy. Having said nothing above about perceptible enemies, nor about captives, in calling her restoration a release from captivity, he suggests to our understanding that each of us comes under sin, when we are overpowered by the enemy, becoming as it were prisoners of sin, and led away by the evil one to present our members as slaves to lawlessness for lawlessness. For this reason there are saving judges, like Barak and Samson and Gideon and Jephthah, fighting for the people, delivering them from their enemies. For this reason there are counselors suggesting things for salvation, so that her captivity may become worthy to be saved. For this is what it means to be saved with judgment, that is, discerningly and with scrutiny. Then, since if you should mark iniquities, no one will stand, he joined mercy to judgment, so that the strictness of the judgment might be softened by the prevalence of mercy. Therefore, through judgment she was delivered to captivity, but through mercy she was recalled. 1.59 And the lawless and the sinners shall be broken together. After those worthy of restoration have been saved unto their original state with judgment and with mercy, the completely lawless and those who persist in sin, shall be broken together; the ones, because they became futile in their thinking; the others, because through the transgression of the law they dishonor God. The lawless are those who are completely disobedient to the divine laws, either having apostatized from them, or not even having approached them in the first place; but sinners are those who sin willingly after receiving the knowledge of the truth. But perhaps also those whom God benefits, wishing

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ἀρχομένοις· συμβούλου δὲ, πείθειν ὑπὲρ τῶν συμφερόντων τοὺς βουλευο μένους. Οὐ γὰρ αὐτάρκης ἕκαστος ἀφ' ἑαυτοῦ εὑρίσκειν τὸ δέον. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο εὐεργετῶν ὁ Θεὸς συμβούλους, ἀλλ' οὐχὶ ἐξουσιαστὰς δίδωσιν. Ὥστε καὶ ἡμῶν ἕκαστος μὴ ὡς ἄρ χοντα ἑαυτὸν, ἀλλ' ὡς σύμβουλον παρὰ Κυρίου δεδομένον τῷ λαῷ λογιζέσθω. Πάντες οὖν οἱ Προφῆται, οἱ τὰ συμφέ ροντα παραινέσαντες, σύμβουλοι· καὶ πρὸ πάντων Μωϋσῆς. Παραπλησίους οὖν τοῖς ἀπαρχῆς συμβούλοις ἀναστήσειν, εὐεργετῶν τὸν λαὸν, ὁ Κύριος ἐπαγγέλλεται, τοὺς Ἀποστό λους καὶ Εὐαγγελιστὰς, οἷος ἦν ὁ Παῦλος σύμβουλος, ὁ διάκονος τῆς Καινῆς ∆ιαθήκης, λέγων· Γνώμην δὲ δίδωμι, ὡς ἠλεημένος ὑπὸ Κυρίου. Μεγάλη δὲ εὐεργεσία συμβούλου φρονίμου καὶ εὐνοϊκῶς ἔχοντος παρουσία, ἀναπληροῦντος τὸ τῆς συνέσεως ἐλλεῖ πον τῶν βουλευομένων. Ὅσον δὲ ἀπὸ τῆς συμβουλῆς ὄφε λος, δείκνυσι μάλιστα Μωϋσῆς, ὁ πάσῃ Αἰγυπτίων σοφίᾳ παιδευθεὶς, ὁ τῷ Θεῷ διαλεγόμενος, ὡς ἂν εἴ τις λα λήσῃ φίλος φίλῳ. Οὗτος ἔλαβε γνώμην παρὰ τοῦ πενθεροῦ αὐτοῦ Ἰοθὼρ, ὥστε καταστῆσαι χιλιάρχους καὶ ἑκατον τάρχους καὶ δεκάρχους ἐπὶ τῷ κρίνειν τὸν λαόν. Καὶ ∆α βὶδ δὲ συμβούλῳ ἐχρήσατο τῷ Χουσὶ, δι' οὗ διεσκέδασε στρατηγικὴν γνώμην τοῦ Ἀχιτόφελ. Καὶ ὅλως ἱερόν τι πρᾶγμα ἡ συμβουλὴ, γνώμης ἕνωσις, ἀγάπης καρπὸς, τα πεινοφροσύνης ἀπόδειξις. Ἀλαζονεία γὰρ δεινὴ, τὸ μη δενὸς οἴεσθαι χρῄζειν, ἀλλ' ἑαυτῷ προσέχειν, ὡς μόνῳ τὰ κράτιστα βουλεύσασθαι δυναμένῳ. Ἡμεῖς δὲ ὀκνοῦμεν ἑαυ τοὺς ἐπιδοῦναι τοῖς τὰ δέοντα εἰσηγουμένοις, καὶ αἰσχυ νόμεθα τοὺς συνετωτέρους ἡμῶν κατὰ τὸν βίον ὁμολογεῖν. Ἔπειτα ὁ τὸν σύμβουλον ἀναμένων, καὶ τοῖς ἰδίοις λογι σμοῖς καιρὸν δίδωσιν, ἐν χρόνῳ πλείονι μετὰ βασάνου καὶ προσοχῆς ἀνιχνεῦσαι τὸ δέον. 1.58 Καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα κληθήσῃ πόλις δικαιοσύνης, μητρό πολις, πιστὴ Σιών. Ἔδειξεν εἰς ποῖον καταλήγουσι τέλος αἱ κατὰ μέρος εὐερ γεσίαι. Ἀντὶ γὰρ τοῦ τῶν φονευτῶν εἶναι πόλιν, πόλις δι καιοσύνης· καὶ ἀντὶ τοῦ πόρνη πόλις, μητρόπολις, τουτέστι καὶ ἄλλαις καθηγουμένη πρὸς σωφροσύνην. Καὶ πάλιν πι στὴ, ὅπερ ἦν πρὸ τοῦ βεβηλῶσθαι ἐκ τῆς πορνείας. Ἡ οὖν τοῖς πρέπουσιν ἑαυτῇ κόσμοις κεκοσμημένη, συμβού λοις τε καὶ κριταῖς, ἡ ἐν Χριστῷ Ἐκκλησία, μητρόπολις ἂν χρηματίζοι, οἷον ἀποικίας τινὰς τοῦ κατὰ Θεὸν βίου παρ' ἑαυτῆς ἀποστέλλουσα. Μετὰ γὰρ κρίματος σωθήσεται ἡ αἰχμαλωσία αὐτῆς, καὶ μετὰ ἐλεημοσύνης. Οὐδὲν ἐν τοῖς ἄνω περὶ πολεμίων αἰσθη τῶν, οὐδὲ περὶ αἰχμαλώτων εἰπών, τὴν ἀποκατάστασιν αὐτῆς αἰχμαλωσίας ἄφεσιν λέγων, ὑποβάλλει ἡμῖν νοεῖν, ὡς ἑκάστου ἡμῶν ὑπὸ ἁμαρτίαν γινομένου, ὅταν κατακυριευθῶμεν ὑπὸ τοῦ ἐχθροῦ, οἱονεὶ δέσμιοι τῆς ἁμαρτίας γινόμενοι, καὶ ἀπα γόμενοι ὑπὸ τοῦ πονηροῦ εἰς τὸ παραστῆσαι τὰ μέλη ἡμῶν δοῦλα τῇ ἀνομίᾳ εἰς τὴν ἀνομίαν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο κριταὶ σώ ζοντες, ὡς Βαρὰκ καὶ Σαμψὼν καὶ Γεδεὼν καὶ Ἰεφθάε, ὑπερμαχοῦντες τοῦ λαοῦ, ἐξαιρούμενοι ἀπὸ τῶν πολεμίων. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο σύμβουλοι τὰ πρὸς σωτηρίαν ὑφηγούμενοι, ἵνα ἀξία γένηται ἡ αἰχμαλωσία αὐτῆς σωθῆναι. Τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι τὸ μετὰ κρίματος σωθῆναι, τουτέστι κεκριμένως καὶ ἐξ ητασμένως. Εἶτα ἐπειδὴ ἐὰν ἀνομίας παρατηρήσῃ, οὐδεὶς ὑποστήσεται, συνῆψε τὴν ἐλεημοσύνην τῷ κρίματι, ἵνα τὸ τῆς κρίσεως ἀκριβὲς πραϋνθῇ τῇ ἐπικράσει τῇ τοῦ ἐλέους. ∆ιὰ μὲν οὖν τὸ κρίμα παρεδόθη τῇ αἰχμαλωσίᾳ, διὰ δὲ τὸν ἔλεον ἀνεκλήθη. 1.59 Καὶ συντριβήσονται οἱ ἄνομοι καὶ οἱ ἁμαρτωλοὶ ἅμα. Μετὰ τὸ τοὺς ἀξίους τῆς ἀποκαταστάσεως ἐπὶ τὰ ἐξ ἀρχῆς μετὰ κρίματος σωθῆναι καὶ μετὰ ἐλέους, οἱ πάντη ἄνομοι καὶ οἱ ἐπιμένοντες τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ, Συντριβήσονται ἅμα· οἱ μὲν, ὅτι Ἐματαιώθησαν ἐν τοῖς διαλογισμοῖς αὐτῶν· οἱ δὲ, ὅτι διὰ τῆς παραβάσεως τοῦ νόμου τὸν Θεὸν ἀτιμάζουσιν. Εἰσὶ δὲ ἄνομοι μὲν, οἱ παντελῶς ἀνήκοοι τῶν θείων νόμων, ἢ ἀποστατήσαντες αὐτῶν, ἢ μηδὲ τὴν ἀρχὴν προσελθόντες· ἁμαρτωλοὶ δὲ, οἱ ἑκουσίως ἁμαρτάνοντες μετὰ τὸ λαβεῖν τὴν ἐπίγνωσιν τῆς ἀληθείας. Τάχα δὲ καὶ οὓς εὐεργετεῖ ὁ Θεὸς, βουλόμενος