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he called the angel "earth" for the earth itself; for just as "the man-made thing is accursed, both it and he who made it," not that the lifeless thing itself is accursed, but "man-made" is said of that which sits by the lifeless idol and is called by that name, so indeed I will say that the angel appointed over the earth is called "earth," and that the angel appointed over the water is called "water," according to what has been said: "The waters saw you, O God, the waters saw you and were afraid, the deeps were troubled at the abundance of the sound of waters, the clouds gave forth a voice, for your arrows pass through." 10.7 "I have forsaken my house, I have left my inheritance, I have given my beloved soul into the hands of her enemies." Behold for me him who exists "in the form of God," being in the heavens, behold his house above the heavens. If you wish to see even higher—that "I am in the Father"—behold his house being God. He leaves "father and mother"—the "Jerusalem above"—and comes to the earthly place and says: "I have forsaken my house, I have left my inheritance" —for that was his inheritance, the regions with the angels, the rank with the holy powers— "I have given my beloved soul into the hands of her enemies"; he delivered his soul into the hands of the enemies of the soul, into the hands of the Jews who killed him, into the hands of the rulers who gathered against him, into the hands of kings, when "the kings of the earth stood by and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord and against his Christ." 10.8 "My inheritance has become to me like a lion in the forest." This <the> earthly inheritance of his which he inherited has become savage toward him, and the inheritance has become Jews enraged against him "like a lion in the forest." It is not surprising if at that time his inheritance became "like a lion in the forest"; even now there are lions in the forest, wanting to anathematize Jesus and blaspheming him and plotting against those who believe in him. Therefore "my inheritance has become to me like a lion in the forest, it has raised its voice against me, for this reason I have hated it. Is my inheritance a hyena's cave <to me>?" He prophesies concerning this inheritance: has my inheritance become a hyena's cave, a cave of a hyena, the most savage, the corpse-eating, the one found near tombs, the one that eats dead bodies? "Is my inheritance a hyena's cave to me? Or a cave round about it? Go"; since they have become such, I command you, the angels, to go and gather the beasts and deliver them to the beasts; "go and gather all the beasts of the field, and let them come to devour it." "The beasts of the field" have come, it devours that people; see their hearts being devoured by the opposing powers. If Jesus did not spare them but said, "Go, gather the beasts," how much more will he not spare us? If we do not do the law of God, the word of the gospel, he will say again: Go, gather the beasts and deliver it, but we have boldness, that we may say in our prayers: "Do not deliver to the beasts a soul that confesses you." Let us confess our transgressions with repentance, and we will not be delivered to the beasts, but to holy angels who will be nurses, carrying us in their bosoms, transferring us from this age to the one to come in Christ Jesus, to whom is the power and the glory forever. Amen. 11.t On "because of me all the land was made utterly desolate" and on the "loincloth." Homily 11. 11.1 Who is it that says, "Because of me all the land was made utterly desolate"? Christ says these things, before whose coming many sins indeed were committed by the people, but not such that they were completely forsaken and delivered into a long-lasting captivity; but when they "filled up the measure of their fathers" and added to their having killed the prophets and persecuted the righteous the killing of "the

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εἶπεν τὸν ἄγγελον γῆν αὐτῇ τῇ γῇ· ὥσπερ γὰρ «τὸ χειροποίητον ἐπικατάρατον αὐτὸ καὶ ὁ ποιήσας αὐτό», οὐχ ὅτι ἐπικατάρατον αὐτὸ τὸ ἄψυχον, ἀλλ' εἴρηται χειροποίητον τὸ προσκαθεζόμενον τῷ ἀψύχῳ ἀγάλματι καὶ χρηματίζον ἐκείνῳ τῷ ὀνόματι, οὕτως δὴ ἐρῶ καὶ γῆν λέγεσθαι τὸν ἐπὶ γῆς τεταγμένον ἄγγελον, καὶ ὕδωρ λέγεσθαι τὸν ἐπὶ ὕδατος τεταγμένον ἄγγελον, καθ' ὃ λέλεκται· «Ἴδοσάν σε ὕδατα, ὁ θεός, ἴδο σάν σε ὕδατα καὶ ἐφοβήθησαν, ἐταράχθησαν ἄβυσσοι πλή θους ἤχους ὑδάτων, φωνὴν ἔδωκαν αἱ νεφέλαι, καὶ γὰρ τὰ βέλη σου διαπορεύονται.» 10.7 «Ἐγκαταλέλοιπα τὸν οἶκόν μου, ἀφῆκα τὴν κληρονο μίαν μου, ἔδωκα τὴν ἠγαπημένην ψυχήν μου εἰς χεῖρας ἐχθρῶν αὐτῆς.» Ἴδε μοι τὸν «ἐν μορφῇ θεοῦ» ὑπάρ χοντα ὄντα ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς, ἴδε αὐτοῦ τὸν οἶκον ὑπερου ράνιον. Εἰ βούλει καὶ ὑψηλότερον ἰδεῖν-ὅτι «ἐγὼ ἐν τῷ πατρί»-ἴδε αὐτοῦ οἶκον ὄντα τὸν θεόν. Καταλείπει «τὸν πατέρα καὶ τὴν μητέρα»-τὴν «ἄνω Ἱερουσα λήμ»-καὶ ἔρχεται εἰς τὸν περίγειον τόπον καί φησιν· «Ἐγκαταλέλοιπα τὸν οἶκόν μου, ἀφῆκα τὴν κληρονομίαν μου» - ἐκείνη γὰρ ἦν ἡ κληρονομία αὐτοῦ, τὰ χωρία τὰ μετὰ τῶν ἀγγέλων, ἡ τάξις ἡ μετὰ τῶν ἁγίων δυνάμεων- «ἔδωκα τὴν ἠγαπημένην ψυχήν μου εἰς χεῖρας ἐχθρῶν αὐτῆς»· παρέδωκεν αὐτοῦ τὴν ψυχὴν εἰς τὰς χεῖρας τῶν ἐχθρῶν τῆς ψυχῆς, εἰς χεῖρας Ἰουδαίων τῶν ἀποκτεινάν των αὐτόν, εἰς χεῖρας ἀρχόντων συναχθέντων κατ' αὐτοῦ, εἰς χεῖρας βασιλέων, ὅτε «παρέστησαν οἱ βασιλεῖς τῆς γῆς καὶ οἱ ἄρχοντες συνήχθησαν ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ κατὰ τοῦ κυ ρίου καὶ κατὰ τοῦ Χριστοῦ αὐτοῦ». 10.8 «Ἐγενήθη ἡ κληρονομία μου ἐμοὶ ὡς λέων ἐν δρυμῷ.» Αὕτη <ἡ> ἐπὶ γῆς κληρονομία αὐτοῦ ἣν κεκληρονόμηκεν ἀπεθηριώθη πρὸς αὐτόν, καὶ γέγονεν ἡ κληρονομία Ἰου δαῖοι ἐξαγριωθέντες κατ' αὐτοῦ «ὡς λέων ἐν δρυμῷ». Οὐ θαυμαστὸν εἰ τότε ἐγένετο ἡ κληρονομία αὐτοῦ «ὡς λέων ἐν δρυμῷ»· νῦν ἔτι ἐν δρυμῷ λέοντές εἰσιν κατα θεματίζειν θέλοντες τὸν Ἰησοῦν καὶ δυσφημοῦντες αὐτὸν καὶ ἐπιβουλεύοντες τοῖς πιστεύουσιν εἰς αὐτόν. «Ἐγενήθη» οὖν «ἡ κληρονομία μου ἐμοὶ ὡς λέων ἐν δρυμῷ, ἔδωκεν ἐπ' ἐμὲ τὴν φωνὴν αὐτῆς, διὰ τοῦτο ἐμί σησα αὐτήν. Μὴ σπήλαιον ὑαίνης ἡ κληρονομία μου <ἐμοί>;» Προφητεύει περὶ τῆς κληρονομίας ταύτης· ἡ κληρονομία μου μήτι σπήλαιον ὑαίνης γέγονεν, σπήλαιον ὑαίνης, τῆς ἀγριωτάτης, τῆς νεκροβόρου, τῆς περὶ τὰ μνημεῖα, τῆς ἐσθιούσης τὰ θνησιμαῖα σώματα; «Μὴ σπήλαιον ὑαίνης ἡ κληρονομία μου ἐμοί; Ἢ σπή λαιον ἐπ' αὐτὴν κύκλῳ αὐτῆς; Βαδίζετε»· ἐπεὶ τοιοῦτοι γεγόνασιν, κελεύω ὑμῖν τοῖς ἀγγέλοις, ἵνα βαδίσητε καὶ συναγάγητε τὰ θηρία καὶ παραδῶτε αὐτοὺς τοῖς θηρίοις· «βαδίζετε καὶ συναγάγετε πάντα τὰ θηρία τοῦ ἀγροῦ, καὶ ἐλθέτωσαν τοῦ φαγεῖν αὐτήν». Ἐλήλυθεν «τὰ θηρία τοῦ ἀγροῦ», διεσθίει τὸν λαὸν ἐκεῖνον· βλέπετε αὐτῶν τὰς καρδίας διεσθιομένας ὑπὸ τῶν δυνάμεων τῶν ἀντικειμένων. Εἰ ἐκείνων ὁ Ἰησοῦς οὐκ ἐφείσατο ἀλλὰ εἶπεν· «Βαδίζετε, συναγάγετε τὰ θηρία», πόσῳ πλέον ἡμῶν οὐ φείσε ται; Ἐὰν μὴ ποιῶμεν τὸν νόμον τοῦ θεοῦ, τὸν λόγον τοῦ εὐαγγελίου, ἐρεῖ πάλιν· βαδίσατε, συναγάγετε τὰ θηρία καὶ παράδοτε αὐτήν, ἀλλ' ἡμεῖς παρρησίαν ἔχομεν, ἵνα εἴπωμεν ἐν ταῖς εὐχαῖς· «Μὴ παραδῷς τοῖς θηρίοις ψυχὴν ἐξομολογουμένην σοι.» Ἐξομολογησώμεθα περὶ τῶν παραπτωμάτων μετανοοῦντες, καὶ τοῖς θηρίοις οὐ παρα δοθησόμεθα, ἀλλ' ἀγγέλοις ἁγίοις τιθηνοῖς ἐσομένοις, ἐπὶ κόλπων βαστάζουσιν, μεταβιβάζουσιν ἡμᾶς ἀπὸ τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου ἐπὶ τὸν μέλλοντα ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ, ᾧ ἐστιν τὸ κρά τος καὶ ἡ δόξα εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας. Ἀμήν. 11.t Εἰς τὸ «δι' ἐμὲ ἀφανισμῷ ἠφανίσθη πᾶσα ἡ γῆ» καὶ εἰς τὸ «περίζωμα». Ὁμιλία ιαʹ. 11.1 Τίς ἔστιν ὁ λέγων· «∆ι' ἐμὲ ἠφανίσθη ἀφανισμῷ πᾶσα ἡ γῆ»; Ὁ Χριστὸς ταῦτά φησιν, οὗ πρὸ τῆς ἐπιδημίας πολλὰ μὲν γεγένηται ἁμαρτήματα τῷ λαῷ, ἀλλ' οὐ τοιαῦτα ὥστε αὐτοὺς πάντῃ ἐγκαταλειφθῆναι καὶ εἰς αἰχμαλωσίαν πολυχρόνιον παραδοθῆναι· ὅτε δὲ «ἐπλήρωσαν τὸ μέτρον τῶν πατέρων» αὐτῶν καὶ προσέθηκαν τῷ ἀνῃρηκέναι τοὺς προφήτας καὶ δεδιωχέναι τοὺς δικαίους τὸ ἀποκτεῖναι «τὸν