the clear refutation that such images are not gods. For the image of God is divine; wherefore also the divine man is an icon, not he who has been deprived of divinity.
271 Ps 135,16-22 No less than the subjugation of those who warred against them, the fact that he nourished them through the wilderness and guided them without want and the slayings of the kings of the Amorites he sets as a sign of God's mercy, providing their land for a good dwelling for the Hebrews. And this was the "wealth of the ungodly being stored up for the just." For they would not have perished otherwise, had they not come to the fullness of their sins, just as God had said to Abraham; and Moses says that Israel had not taken possession of their land because of his own righteousness, but because of their lawlessness and because of God's love for the fathers, so that for them the judgment of destruction was just, but for these the beneficent gift was benevolent, and the piety of the fathers became a preparation for participation in this benevolence. For thus justly and well and fittingly are the things from God revealed to the world. 272 Ps 136,1.2 It shows that they will be in a desolate place, such as the things of captives after their forced migration from their own cities. For this is the meaning of "We hung our instruments upon the willows." 273 Ps 136,4 And according to the spiritual worship, they considered foreign souls to be foreign land, and to be wary of bringing forth divine things in these, as if they were moved from their own place to a foreign one, as the divine mouth of Christ says, "Do not give what is holy to the dogs, nor cast your pearls before swine." Such was also Herod, who wanted to see the signs of Christ, not seeking this for reverence but for a pleasant spectacle, for which reason he did not obtain it. 274 Ps 136,5 I will not use, he says, another land as I use you, O Jerusalem, nor will I put the unclean on equal footing with the clean, nor will I consider the profane to be like the sacred, but even while I am outside your domain, my longing for you will be near; and whenever I might stand aside from this, may all my strength stand aside from me. For this reason, they also made their prayers looking toward Jerusalem, and the power of the prayers was brought there according to the requests of Solomon and the divine promises, just as it is necessary for us to look toward the heavenly Jerusalem. 275 Ps 136,6a For it is not right for the instrument of words to be strong, whenever it is not employed for what is necessary. For this reason also the blessed men dedicated their whole life to the care of hymns, saying, "I will sing to the Lord in my life, I will sing psalms to my God as long as I exist." And the city is precious to them because of the established worship of God in it, as was also said before, "For the sake of the house of my God I have sought good things for you." 276 Ps 136,6b For the height and purity of joy is placed in remembering the holy city. For thus it will happen that the subsequent joys are also good, just as the Lord introduces to us the sacred foods before the common and bodily ones. 277 Ps 136,8.9 They pray that the Babylonians may receive the just penalty for what they have done. For this is the holy judgment according to, "The Lord is known when he executes judgments; in the works of his own hands the sinner is caught." He declares blessed also the one who will be able to do this, through whom God reveals the just judgment and will turn against those who plundered, being plundered, and against those who slew, being slain. For the service is of God, and blessed is he who serves God. And it is necessary to add that it be with knowledge and one's own choice, so that he does not bless Cyrus the king of the Persians who conquered the Babylonians, because he did not know for whose sake he received power against them, nor the God who had given it ("For you did not know me," he says), nor did he understand
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τὸν κατὰ τὸ ἐμφανὲς ἔλεγχον ὅτι μὴ θεοὶ ὧν τὰ τοιαῦτα ὁμοιώματα. θεῖον γὰρ τὸ ὁμοίωμα τοῦ θεοῦ· διὸ καὶ ἄνθρωπος εἰκὼν ὁ θεῖος, οὐχ ὁ τῆς θεότητος ἐστηρημένος.
271 Ps 135,16-22 Οὐχ ἧττον τοῦ ὑποτάξαι τοὺς πολεμοῦντας αὐτοῖς τὸ δι'
ἐρήμης θρέψαι καὶ ἀνενδεεῖς ὁδηγῆσαι καὶ τὰς τῶν Ἀμορραίων δὲ βασιλέων ἀναιρέσεις ἐλέου θεοῦ δεῖγμα τίθεται χώραν εἰς ἐνοίκησιν ἀγαθὴν παρέχοντος Ἑβραίοις τὴν ἐκείνων. καὶ τοῦτο ἦν τὸ θησαυρίζεσθαι δικαίοις πλοῦτον ἀσεβῶν. οὐδὲ γὰρ αὖ ἑτέρως ἀπώλοντο ἂν μὴ οὐκ εἰς πλήρωσιν ἥκοντες τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν, ὥσπερ θεὸς εἴρηκε πρὸς Ἀβραάμ· καὶ Μωυσῆς γέ φησιν οὐ διὰ τὰς αὐτοῦ δικαιοσύνας τὸν Ἰσραὴλ κεκρατηκέναι τῆς γῆς αὐτῶν ἀλλὰ διὰ τὰς ἐκείνων ἀνομίας καὶ δι' ἀγάπην θεοῦ τὴν πρὸς τοὺς πατέρας, ὥστε κατ' ἐκείνους μὲν δικαίαν εἶναι τὴν ὀλοθρευτικὴν κρίσιν, πρὸς δὲ τούτους φιλανθρώπινον τὴν εὐεργετικὴν δόσιν εἰς δὲ τὴν μετοχὴν τῆς φιλανθρωπίας παρασκευὴν γεγενῆσθαι τὴν τῶν πατέρων εὐσέβειαν. οὕτω γὰρ δικαίως καὶ ἀγαθῶς καὶ ἁρμοζόντως εἰς κόσμον ἐκφαίνεται τὰ παρὰ θεοῦ. 272 Ps 136,1.2 Ἐν ἐρημίᾳ αὐτοὺς ἐσομένους δηλοῖ οἷα δὴ τὰ τῶν αἰχμαλώτων μετὰ τὴν ἐκ τῶν ἰδίων πόλεων μετανάστασιν. τοῦτο γὰρ τὸ Ἐπὶ ταῖς ἰτέαις ἐκρεμάσαμεν τὰ ὄργανα ἡμῶν. 273 Ps 136,4 Καὶ κατὰ τὴν πνευματικὴν δὲ λατρείαν ἀλλοτρίαν γῆν ἡγοῦντο τὰς ἀλλοτρίας ψυχὰς καὶ φυλάττεσθαι δὲ ἐν τούτοις ἐκφέρειν τὰ θεῖα καθάπερ εἰς ἀλλότριον ἐξ ἰδίου τόπου μετοικιζόμενα, ὥς φησι τὸ θεῖον στόμα Χριστοῦ Μὴ δότε τὰ ἅγια τοῖς κυσὶ μηδὲ βάλλετε τοὺς μαργαρίτας ἔμπροσθε τῶν χοίρων. τοιοῦτος ἦν καὶ ὁ τὰ σημεῖα τοῦ Χριστοῦ θεάσασθαι βουλόμενος Ἡρῴδης, οὐκ ἐπὶ σεβασμῷ τοῦτο ζητῶν ἀλλ' ἐπὶ θέᾳ τερπνῇ, διόπερ οὐδ' ἐτύγχανεν. 274 Ps 136,5 Οὐ χρήσομαι, φησίν, ἑτέρᾳ γῇ καθάπερ σοί, ὦ Ἱερουσαλήμ, οὐδ' ἐν ἴσῳ θήσω τὴν ἀκάθαρτον τῇ καθαρᾷ οὐδὲ τὸ βέβηλον τῷ ἱερῷ παραπλήσιον λογιοῦμαι, ἀλλά μοι καὶ ἐκτὸς ὄντι τῆς σῆς διατριβῆς ὁ σὸς ἐγγίσεται πόθος· καὶ ὁπότε τούτου μετασταίην, μετασταίη μου δύναμις ἅπασα. διά τοι τοῦτο καὶ τὰς εὐχὰς πρὸς τὴν Ἱερουσαλὴμ ἀφορῶντες ἐποιοῦντο καὶ τὸ δυνατὸν τῶν εὐχῶν ἔνθα ἐκομίζοντο κατὰ τὰς Σολόμωνος αἰτήσεις καὶ τὰς θείας ἐπαγγελίας, ὥσπερ ἡμῖν τὴν πρὸς τὴν οὐράνιον Ἱερουσαλὴμ ἀφορᾶν ἀναγκαῖον. 275 Ps 136,6a Οὐδὲ γὰρ τὸ τῶν λόγων ὄργανον ἐρρῶσθαι δίκαιον, ὁπότε μὴ εἰς ἃ δεῖ παραλαμβάνοιτο. διὸ καὶ τὴν ζωὴν ἅπασαν οἱ μακάριοι ἄνδρες τῇ περὶ τοὺς ὕμνους ἀνετίθεσαν φροντίδι λέγοντες Ἄισω τῷ κυρίῳ ἐν τῇ ζωῇ μου, ψαλῶ τῷ θεῷ μου ἕως ὑπάρχω. τίμιος δὲ καὶ ἡ πόλις αὐτοῖς διὰ τὴν ἐν αὐτῇ καθεστηκυῖαν λατρείαν θεοῦ, ὥσπερ καὶ προείρηται τὸ Ἕνεκα τοῦ οἴκου τοῦ θεοῦ μου ἐξεζήτησα ἀγαθά σοι. 276 Ps 136,6b Τὸ γὰρ ἄκρον καὶ καθαρὸν τῆς εὐφροσύνης ἐν τῷ μεμνῆσθαι τῆς ἱερᾶς πόλεως τίθεται. οὕτω γὰρ καὶ τὰς ἑπομένας εὐφροσύνας ἀγαθὰς εἶναι συμβήσεται, καθὰ ἡμῖν ὁ κύριος τὰς ἱερὰς τροφὰς πρὸ τῶν κοινῶν καὶ σωματικῶν εἰσηγεῖται. 277 Ps 136,8.9 Τὸ δίκαιον εὔχονται κομίσασθαι Βαβυλωνίους ἅπερ δεδράκασι. τοῦτο γὰρ τὸ ὅσιον κρίμα κατὰ τὸ Γινώσκεται κύριος κρίματα ποιῶν, ἐν τοῖς ἔργοις τῶν χειρῶν αὐτοῦ συνελήφθη ὁ ἁμαρτωλός. μακάριον δὴ καὶ τὸν τοῦτο δυνησόμενον ἀποφαίνεται δι' οὗ τὴν δικαίαν κρίσιν ὁ θεὸς ἐκφαίνει καὶ στρέψει κατὰ τῶν διαρπασάντων τὸ διαρπάζεσθαι καὶ κατὰ τῶν ἀνῃρηκότων τὸ ἀναιρεῖσθαι. θεοῦ γὰρ ἡ λειτουργία, μακάριος δὲ ὁ θεῷ λειτουργῶν. προσκεῖσθαι δὲ δεῖ καὶ τὸ μετὰ γνώσεως καὶ τῆς οἰκείας προαιρέσεως, ὥστε οὐ Κῦρον μακαρίζει τὸν Περσῶν βασιλέα Βαβυλωνίων κρατήσαντα ὅτι μηδ' ἔγνω τοῦ χάριν τὴν κατ' ἐκείνων ἰσχὺν ἐλάμβανε μηδὲ τὸν δεδωκότα ταύτην θεὸν (Σὺ γὰρ οὐκ ἔγνως με, φησί) μηδὲ συνῆκε
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