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The phrase "who alters the counsels of the crafty," means that even if crafty men take counsel and think their counsel is irrefutable and firm, God alters these things, making it for the benefit of each. Indeed, often men hoping for not a few things have failed and have received unexpected things, with God directing it, not managing it in a human way. Nor again do such men have anything true even in their own deeds, as many as relying on themselves 123 have supposed themselves to be self-sufficient for all things through their own counsels. But it is necessary to know that in the divine scripture the name of craftiness is used not only for the blameworthy but also for the praiseworthy. For when it is said concerning wisdom: "to give craftiness to the simple," it is clear that it means prudence and a matter worthy of praise; for such a thing is given by wisdom. And again: "a crafty man, seeing evils coming, hid himself" indicates the action of a prudent person, which is accomplished by him in the manner of repentance, when an onslaught of evils is expected, which the Ninevites did and escaped the threat; for he hides from the wrath by repentance, escaping it. That craftiness is also used in a blameworthy sense is shown in this: "I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your thoughts will be corrupted." We have "hands" signifying deeds in scripture, as this one also seems to have understood. For when it says: "thorns grow in the hand of a drunkard," we do not take it to be the part of the body 124 —for thorns do not grow on this— but the deeds, according to which he sins. Therefore, "their hands will not accomplish anything true," with God not allowing the outcomes of their counsels to be fulfilled. "He who catches the wise in their prudence, and has frustrated the counsel of the intricate." Either he says that He catches the devices of the wise by His own prudence, or by the prudence of those who have partaken of it from Him, by which Elisha [caught] the sophistry of Gehazi, whom he caught scheming to deceive him, saying: "Your servant did not go to the right or to the left." To whom, having perceived his movement, he said: "Was not my heart with you?" ῃαξατ But He also frustrates the counsel of those who weave craftiness, as of Ahithophel, when the blessed David prayed and said: "Frustrate for me the counsel of Ahithophel." Not only that, but also He frustrated the counsel "of the lawless elders" and of the Egyptian woman, who plotted against chastity in such a way, that Susanna, because of their intricacy, said: "I am hemmed in 125 on every side," and Joseph, with youthful spirit and movement, escaped the schemes of the lawless Egyptian woman. "By day darkness will meet them, and at noon they shall grope as in the night, and they shall perish in war." He says that as many as attempt things beyond their own power so as to think that they comprehend anything without the inspiration of God, find nothing, being held by the darkness of obscurity, groping at things as if in the night, being able to perceive nothing at all with accuracy. For just as a cataract lying on the eyes hinders the power of sight, so such an affliction concerning the mind causes one to be blind even in things that are bright and manifest. And it signifies that their ignorance is intense by their being blind even at noontime. And you might say this also of one who has believed in the evangelical preaching, but is still able to be accused in his sins of not seeing when a great light is present; for in that he believes, light appears to him, but in that he does not use the light as is needful, he is blind. And these things happened symbolically 126 to the Egyptians; for they spent three whole days and three whole nights consecutively in darkness. And because they suffered this through their own fault, the day was not simply without light for all, but for them alone, with the Israelites suffering nothing of the sort. But also the men of Sodom, struck with a sensible blindness, were shown symbolically to be blind in their mind. and those in the Books of Kings also

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τὸ "διαλάσσοντα βουλὰς πανούργων", ὅτι κἂν βουλεύσωνται καὶ νομίσωσιν ἑαυτῶν ἄνθρωποι πανοῦργον ἀναντίρρητον καὶ βέβαιον, ἐξαλάττει ταῦτα θεὸς πρὸς τὸ συμφέρον ἑκάστῳ ποιῶν. ἦ πολλάκις ἄνθρωποι ἐλπίσαντες οὐκ ὀλίγα ἀπέτυχον καὶ μὴ προσδοκηθέντα ἔσχον θεοῦ διοικοῦντος, οὐκ ἀνθρωπίνως οἰκονομοῦντος. οὐδ' αὖ τοιοῦτοι οὐδ' ἐν ταῖς πράξεσιν ἑαυτῶν ἀληθές τι ἔχουσιν, ὅσοι ἐφ' ἑαυτοῖς βαλλόμενοι 123 αὐτάρκεις πρὸς πάντα διὰ τῶν ἰδίων βουλῶν ἐτόπασαν εἶναι. δεῖ δὲ εἰδέναι, ὅτι ἐν τῆι θείᾳ γραφῇ οὐ μόνον ἐπὶ ψεκτοῦ ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐπαινετοῦ τὸ τῆς πανουργίας ὄνομα κεῖται. ὅταν γὰρ λέγηται περὶ τῆς σοφίας· "ἵνα δῷ ἀκάκοις πανουργίαν", δῆλον, ὡς φρόνησιν λέγει καὶ πρᾶγμα ἐπαίνου ἄξιον· τοιοῦτον γα`̣ρ̣ ὑπὸ σοφίας δίδοται. καὶ πάλιν· "πανοῦργος κακῶν ἐπερχομένων ἀπεκρύβη" δηλοῖ συνετοῦ πρᾶξιν, ἥτις πρὸς αὐτοῦ ἐπιτελεῖται μετανοίας τρόπῳ, ὅταν ἐπιφορὰ κακῶν προσδόκιμος ᾖ, ὅπερ οἱ Νινευῖται ποιήσαντες διέφυγον τὴν ἀπειλήν· κρύπτεται γὰρ τὴν ὀργὴν μετανοίᾳ ταύτην διαδιδράσκων. ὅτι καὶ ψεκτῶς ἡ πανουργία κεῖται, δηλοῦται ἐν τῷ· "φοβοῦμαι, μή πως ὡς ὁ ὄφις ἐξηπάτησεν Εὕαν ἐν τῇ πανουργίᾳ αὐτοῦ, φθα ρῇ τὰ νοήματα ὑμῶν." "χεῖρας" δὲ τὰς πράξεις ἔχομεν σημαινομένας ἐν τῇ γραφῇ, ὡς καὶ οὗτος φαίνεται νενοηκώς. ὅταν γὰρ λέγῃ· "ἄκανθαι φύονται ἐν χειρὶ τοῦ μεθύσου", οὐ τὸ μέρος τοῦ σώματος ἐκλαμβάνομεν ὄν 124 -οὐ γὰρ ἐπὶ τούτῳ ἄκανθαι φύονται-, ἀλλὰ τὰς πράξεις, καθ' ἃς ἁμαρτάνει. "οὐ ποιήσουσιν" οὖν "αἱ χεῖρες αὐτῶν ἀληθές", τοῦ θεοῦ μὴ ἐῶντος τὰς ἐκβάσεις τῶν βουλευμάτων αὐτῶν πληροῦσθαι. "ὁ καταλαμβάνων σοφοὺς ἐν τῆι φρονήσει, βουλὴν δὲ πολυπλόκων ἐξέστησεν." ἤτοι τῆι φρονήσει τῇ ἰδίᾳ τὰς τῶν σοφῶν μηχανάς φησιν αὐτὸν καταλαμβάνειν ἢ τῇ τῶν ἀπ' αὐτοῦ μετεσχηκότων τῆς φρονήσεως, ᾗ Ἐλισαῖε τὴν σοφιστείαν τοῦ Γιεζί, ὃν κατείληφεν μηχανώμενον λαθεῖν αὑτὸν λέγων· "οὐκ ἀπῆλθεν ὁ δοῦλός σου δεξιὰν ἢ ἀριστεράν." πρὸς ὃν καταλαβὼν αὐτοῦ τὸ κίνημα εἶπεν· "οὐχὶ ἡ καρδία μου μετὰ σοῦ ἦν;" ῃαξατ ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν βουλὴν τῶν πλεκόντων πανουργίας ἐξίστησιν ὡς τοῦ Ἀχιτοφέλ, εὐξαμένου τοῦ μακαρίου ∆αυὶδ καὶ λέγοντος· "διασκέδασόν μοι τὴν βουλὴν τοῦ Ἀχιτοφέλ." οὐ μὴν δέ, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν "τῶν παρανόμων πρεσβυτέρων" καὶ τῆς Αἰγυπτίας ἐξέστησε βουλὴν κατὰ σωφροσύνης βουλευσαμένων οὕτως, ὡς τὴν μὲν Σωσάνναν διὰ τὸ πολύπλοκον αὐτῶν εἰπεῖν· "στενά 125 μοι πάντοθεν", τὸν δὲ Ἰωσὴφ νεανικῷ καὶ φρονήματι καὶ κινήματι διαδρᾶναι τὰς τῆς Αἰγυπτίας παρανόμου γυναικὸς μηχανάς. "ἡμέρας συναντήσεται αὐτοῖς σκότος, τὸ δὲ μεσημβρινὸν ψηλαφήσαισαν ἴσα νυκτί, ἀπόλοιντο δὲ ἐν πολέμῳ." λέγει, ὅτι ὅσοι ὑπὲρ τὴν ἑαυτῶν δύναμιν ἐπιχειροῦσιν ὡς οἴεσθαι, ὅτι χωρὶς ἐπιπνοίας θεοῦ τι καταλαμβάνουσιν, οὐδὲν εὑρίσκουσιν, σκότῳ συνεχόμενοι ἀσαφίας ψηλαφῶντες καθάπερ ἐν νυκτὶ τὰ πράγματα, οὐδὲν ὅλως ἀκριβείας συνιδεῖν δυνάμενοι. ὥσ περ γὰρ ὑπόχυμα ὀφθαλμοῖς ἐπικείμενον κωλύει τὴν ὁρατικὴν δύναμιν, οὕτω τοιοῦτον περὶ τὸν νοῦν πάθος ποιεῖ καὶ ἐν τοῖς φωτεινοῖς καὶ φανεροῖς ἀβλεπτεῖν. ἐπιτεταμένως δὲ αὐτῶν σημαίνει τὴν ἄγνοιαν γίνεσθαι τῷ καὶ ἐν μεσημβρινῷ καιρῷ ἀβλεπτεῖν. λέγοις δὲ ἂν καὶ αὐτὸν τῷ πεπιστευκότι μὲν τῶι κηρύγματι τῷ εὐαγγελικῷ, ἐν ἁμαρτίαις δὲ ἔτι ἐνκαλεῖν δυναμένῳ φωτὸς μεγάλου παρόντος μὴ ὁρᾶν· ᾗ μὲν γὰρ πιστεύει, φῶς αὐτῷ φαίνεται, ᾗ δὲ οὐ χρῆται πρὸς τὸ δέον τῶι φωτί, τυφλώττει. γέγονε δὲ ταῦτα συμβολικῶς 126 τοῖς Αἰγυπτίοις· τρεῖς γὰρ ἡμέρας καὶ τρεῖς νύκτας ὅλας ἐφεξῆς ἐν σκότει διέτριψαν. καὶ ὅτι παρὰ τὴν αὑτῶν αἰτίαν τοῦτ' ἔπασχον, οὐ πᾶσιν α῾̣πλῶς ἀφεγγὴς ἦν ἡ ἡμέρα ἀλλὰ αὐτοῖς μόνοις, τῶν Ἰσδραηλιτῶν οὐδὲν τοιοῦτο πασχόντων. ἀλλὰ καὶ οἱ κατὰ Σοδομὰ ἄνδρες ἀορασίᾳ πληγέντες αἰσθητῇ συμβολικῶς ἐδείκνυντο τυφλώττειν κατὰ τὴν διάνοι αν. καὶ οι῾̣ ἐν ταῖς Βασιλείαις δὲ