33

by the words of God's foreknowledge, from of old he was known to be a sinner. 93.581 "For I also know that it will be well with them that fear God, who fear before him. But it shall not be well with the wicked, and he shall not prolong his days in shadow, who is not afraid before God." After refuting the vanity in the world, he delivers to the members of the church the sanctifying fear of God. Which, to the pious who live as in the presence of God, and guard every deed and thought of theirs as if God sees, becomes the cause of all good things; but for the impious there is no good thing. And the phrase, "he shall not prolong his day in shadow," means that, since he thought that the time in this life, even if long, was not a shadow, but the sinner held onto things that are not permanent and are temporary as if they were ever-abiding. Or thus: Even if in this life, through the forbearance of God, the sinner is sheltered, and not punished, yet a little later he will be given over to eternal punishment. "There is a vanity which is done upon the earth; that there are just men, to whom it happens according to the work of the wicked; I said that this also is vanity." Now Ecclesiastes, introducing the person of one who is mistaken, says, that "I have seen in this life things due to the wicked befalling the just, such as sickness, or poverty, or some other painful affliction; and conversely, what was owed to the pious happening to the impious." Therefore such a person, being fainthearted, says, "this also is vanity." But the wise man, considering the outcomes of things, and the recompense for each, knows that God does not allow these things to happen without reason. But that the just might receive greater crowns; and the impious might have their punishments intensified. Again he spoke of vanity upon the earth; for nothing in heaven is vain. "And I commended mirth, because there is no good for man under the sun, except to eat, and to drink, and to be merry, and this shall attend him in his labor, the days of his life, which God has given him under the sun. When I applied my heart to know wisdom, and to see the distraction that is done upon the earth: for he sees no sleep with his eyes day or night." If the person of the lover of the world is still speaking, he defines all joy in the pleasure of the senses; but if someone has such ears as to hear the wise Ecclesiastes speak, he knows what is true food and drink; and that we have received the pledge of the Spirit while still under the sun in this life. And from the phrase, "When I gave my heart to know wisdom," the Wise one, having observed with the sharpest eye of the mind, knows that no one is without distraction, and that he does not see sleep; but the 93.584 one is laudably distracted, being occupied with divine things; and the other blameworthily, toiling over human affairs. And the just man gives no sleep to his eyes, nor slumber to his eyelids, but is watchful as it is day, and does not fall into the darkness of ignorance; neither in the day, that is, in time of prosperity; nor in the night, that is, in time of temptations. But the unjust man, joining nights to days, does not sleep sweet sleep, being anxious either how to acquire the things he desires, or fearing the loss of things already acquired. "And I beheld all the works of God, that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun: because however much a man may labor to seek it out, yet he shall not find it; and even if a wise man should say that he knows it, he shall not be able to find it." The knowledge of God, according to which all things came to be, happens to be comprehensible to him alone. But we, even if we write and know something, we know in part, being made wise by his grace. Therefore no wise man, neither among those outside, nor among those who have begun to advance in true wisdom, nor among those [attainments] possible for humans, is able to have perfect knowledge of every work; for neither the substances, nor the measures, of heaven perhaps, or earth, or sea, or how they are fixed, or upon what they stand, to find

33

προγνώσεως Θεοῦ λόγοις ἐκ παλαιοῦ ἐγνωρίζετο εἶναι ἁμαρτωλός. 93.581 "Ὅτι καί γε γινώσκω ἐγὼ ὅτι ἔσται ἀγαθὸν τοῖς φοβουμένοις τὸν Θεὸν, ὅπως φοβῶνται ἀπὸ προσώπου αὐτοῦ. Καὶ ἀγαθὸν οὐκ ἔσται τῷ ἀσεβεῖ, καὶ οὐ μακρυνεῖ ἐν σκιᾷ, ὃς οὐκ ἔστι φοβούμενος ἀπὸ προσώπου τοῦ Θεοῦ." Μετὰ τὸ διελέγξαι τὴν ἐν κόσμῳ ματαιότητα, τὸν ἁγνοποιὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῖς ἐκκλησιαζομένοις παραδίδωσι φόβον. Ὃς τοῖς εὐσεβέσιν ὡς ἐν προσώπῳ τοῦ Θεοῦ διάγουσι, καὶ πᾶσαν ἑαυτῶν πρᾶξιν καὶ διανόημα φυλάττουσιν ὡς ὁρῶντος Θεοῦ, πάντων τῶν ἀγαθῶν αἴτιος γίνεται· τῷ δὲ ἀσεβεῖ οὐκ ἔστι ἀγαθόν. Τὸ δὲ, οὐ μακρυνεῖ ἡμέραν ἐν σκιᾷ, ἀντὶ τοῦ, ἐπειδὴ ἐνόμισε τὸν ἐν τῷδε τῷ βίῳ χρόνον, κἂν πολὺς ᾖ, μὴ σκιὰν εἶναι, ἀλλὰ τῶν μὴ ἑστώτων καὶ προσκαίρων ὡς ἀεὶ μενόντων ἀντέσχετο ὁ ἁμαρτωλός. Ἢ οὕτως· Κἂν ἐν τῷ βίῳ τῷδε διὰ τὴν ἀνοχὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ σκεπασθῇ ὁ ἁμαρτωλὸς, καὶ μὴ τιμωρηθῇ, ἀλλὰ μικρὸν ὕστερον τῇ αἰωνίῳ κολάσει παραδοθήσεται. "Ἔστι ματαιότης ἣ πεποίηται ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, ὅτι εἰσὶ δίκαιοι, ὅτι φθάνει πρὸς αὐτοὺς ὡς ποίημα τῶν ἀδίκων· εἶπον ὅτι καί γε τοῦτο ματαιότης." Νῦν τὸ τοῦ σφαλλομένου πρόσωπον εἰσάγων ὁ Ἐκκλησιαστής φησιν, ὅτι Εἶδον ἐν τῷ βίῳ τὰ τοῖς ἀσεβέσιν ἐποφειλόμενα τοὺς δικαίους κατειληφότα, οἷον νόσον, ἢ πενίαν, ἤ τινα ἑτέραν ὀδυνηρὰν ἐπαγωγήν· καὶ τὸ ἔμπαλιν, ἃ τοῖς εὐσεβέσιν ὠφείλετο, τοῖς ἀσεβοῦσι συμβεβηκότα. ∆ιὸ ὡς ὀλίγωρος ὁ τοιοῦτός φησι, καί γε τοῦτο ματαιότης. Ὁ δὲ σοφὸς τὰς τῶν πραγμάτων ἐκβάσεις θεωρῶν, καὶ τὰς ἑκάστου ἀνταποδόσεις, οἶδε ὡς οὐκ εἰκῆ ταῦτα συγχωρεῖ γενέσθαι Θεός. Ἀλλ' ἵνα οἱ μὲν δίκαιοι μειζόνων στεφάνων τύχωσιν· οἱ δὲ ἀσεβεῖς ἐπιτεταμένως σχῶσι τὰς τιμωρίας. Πάλιν δὲ τὴν ματαιότητα ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς εἶπε· οὐδὲν γὰρ ἐν οὐρανῷ μάταιον. "Καὶ ἐπῄνεσα ἐγὼ σὺν τῇ εὐφροσύνῃ, ὅτι οὐκ ἔστιν ἀγαθὸν τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ ὑπὸ τὸν ἥλιον, ὅτι εἰ μὴ τοῦ φαγεῖν, καὶ τοῦ πιεῖν, καὶ τοῦ εὐφρανθῆναι, καὶ αὐτὸ συμπροσέσεται αὐτῷ ἐν μόχθῳ αὐτοῦ, ἡμέρας ζωῆς αὐτοῦ, ἃς ἔδωκε αὐτῷ ὁ Θεὸς ὑπὸ τὸν ἥλιον· ἐν οἷς ἔδωκα τὴν καρδίαν μου τοῦ γνῶναι σοφίαν, καὶ τοῦ ἰδεῖν περισπασμὸν τὸν πεποιημένον ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς· ὅτι καὶ ἐν ἡμέρᾳ, καὶ νυκτὶ ὕπνον ἐν ὀφθαλμοῖς αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἔστι βλέπων." Εἰ μὲν ἔτι τὸ τοῦ φιλοκόσμου πρόσωπον φθέγγεται, ἐν τῇ τῶν αἰσθητῶν ἡδονῇ τὴν πᾶσαν εὐφροσύνην ὁρίζεται· εἰ δὲ τηλικαῦτά τις ὦτα κέκτηται, ὡς ἀκούειν λαλοῦντος τοῦ σοφοῦ Ἐκκλησιαστοῦ, οἶδε τίς ἡ ἀληθινὴ βρῶσις καὶ πόσις· καὶ ὅτι τὸν ἀῤῥαβῶνα τοῦ πνεύματος ἔτι ὄντες ὑπὸ τὸν ἥλιον ἐν τῷ βίῳ τούτῳ εἰλήφαμεν. Ἀπὸ δὲ τοῦ," Ἐν ὅσῳ δέδωκα τὴν καρδίαν μου τοῦ γνῶναι τὴν σοφίαν," οἶδε ὁ Σοφὸς ὀξυωπεστάτῳ τῆς διανοίας θεωρήσας τῷ ὄμματι, ὅτι οὐδείς ἐστι ἀπερίσπαστος, καὶ ὅτι οὐκ ἔστι ὁ βλέπων ὕπνον· ἀλλ' ὁ 93.584 μὲν ἐπαινετῶς περισπᾶται περὶ τὰ θεῖα ἐνασχολούμενος· ὁ δὲ ψεκτῶς, περὶ τὰ ἀνθρώπινα μοχθῶν. Καὶ ὁ μὲν δίκαιος οὐ δίδωσι τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς ὕπνον, οὐδὲ τοῖς βλεφάροις νυσταγμὸν, ἀλλὰ γρηγορεῖ ὡς ἡμέρα ἐστὶ, καὶ οὐκ ἐκπίπτει εἰς τὸ τῆς ἀγνοίας σκότος· οὕτε ἐν ἡμέρᾳ, τουτέστι ἐν καιρῷ εὐθηνίας· οὔτε ἐν νυκτὶ, τουτέστι ἐν καιρῷ πειρασμῶν. Ὁ δὲ ἄδικος τὰς νύκτας ταῖς ἡμέραις συνάπτων, ἡδὺν ὕπνον οὐ κοιμᾶται, φροντίζων ἢ ὅπως κτήσηται τὰ ὧν ἐπιθυμεῖ, ἢ δεδοικὼς τῶν ἤδη κτηθέντων τὴν ἀφαίρεσιν. "Καὶ εἶδον σύμπαντα τὰ ποιήματα τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὅτι οὐ δυνήσεται ἄνθρωπος τοῦ εὑρεῖν σὺν τὸ ποίημα τὸ πεποιημένον ὑπὸ τὸν ἥλιον· ὅσα ἐὰν μοχθήσῃ ἄνθρωπος τοῦ ζητῆσαι, καὶ οὐχ εὑρήσει· καί γε ὅσα ἂν εἴπῃ ὁ σοφὸς τοῦ γνῶναι, οὐ δυνήσεται τοῦ εὑρεῖν." Ἡ τοῦ Θεοῦ γνῶσις, καθ' ἣν τὰ πάντα γέγονε, αὐτῷ μόνῳ τυγχάνει περιληπτή. Ἡμεῖς δὲ κἄν τι γράφωμεν καὶ γνῶμεν, ἐκ μέρους γινώσκομεν, ὑπὸ τῆς αὐτοῦ χάριτος σοφιζόμενοι. Οὐδεὶς οὖν σοφὸς οὔτε τῶν ἔξωθεν, οὔτε τῶν ἐν τῇ ἀληθινῇ σοφίᾳ ἀρξαμένων προκόπτειν, οὔτε τῶν κατὰ ἀνθρώπους ἐφικτῶν, τελείως δύναται παντὸς τοῦ ποιήματος τὴν γνῶσιν ἔχειν· οὔτε γὰρ τὰς οὐσίας, οὔτε τὰ μέτρα, οὐρανοῦ τυχὸν, ἢ γῆς, ἢ θαλάττης, ἢ πῶς πεπήγασιν, ἢ ἐπὶ τίνων ἵστανται, εὑρεῖν