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and wise above an old and foolish king, we have taken the foolish king to be the devil, and the poor and wise one to be the Word of God who for our sakes emptied himself and became poor; for this reason indeed we have also noted the preceding things, thinking that the warlike king described here is none other than the foolish king spoken of there; and likewise, the one here who saves the besieged city by his wisdom is the poor and wise one there, whom we said is Christ; who the small city, 105 that is, the earthly place, being very small in comparison with the whole universe, and those in it, being few in comparison with the entire multitude of rational beings in all the nations, as a drop is from a bucket, He redeemed, being besieged by the kingdom of the devil, who from every side encircled the earthly region and those in it, and building against it great ramparts, the principalities, and the authorities, and the world-rulers of this darkness, and the spiritual forces of wickedness. This one, therefore, no one else but only the poor and wise man cast down, our Savior and Lord, emptying himself and becoming poor for us in the riches of his mercy, and having cast him down, saved in his wisdom the small city, which is likely the church according to another interpretation, and the few who are in it; since the way that leads to life is narrow and afflicted, and there are few who go through it. And those who see so great an economy say, "Wisdom is better than strength;" and "strength" clearly means that of the enemies; but also, "man," it says, "did not remember that poor man;" for it was God who remembered him through the prophets, and proclaiming the things concerning his coming to mankind; but of the things wrought by the wisdom of the rulers of this age, not even one ever remembered, since they were not even able to know the mystery hidden before the ages of the economy of the Word of God in the incarnation. In addition to these things it is said that also the wisdom of the 106 poor man is despised; for God was pleased through the foolishness of the preaching to save those who believe; but also his words, it says, are not heard; for it is not for all to hear the words of the Savior, except only for those who have ears to hear; for the gospel of Christ is veiled, yet not to his disciples, for to those who are perishing it is veiled. Ps. Of the Song of Songs. 2. The whole book has for its subject the love of a bride for a bridegroom, she confessing to be wounded with love for him, and he in turn confessing that she alone among many is for him a perfect dove, beyond the so-called queens and concubines and young women. Those of the circumcision, therefore, being persuaded that this scripture too is one of the twenty-two God-inspired scriptures entrusted to them, I do not know if they could present anything said in it worthy of divine inspiration, imagining nothing more than the literal interpretation according to the passages; but he who is able to remove the veil that lies also upon this scripture, and to turn to the Lord, who is the Spirit, and with unveiled face to behold as in a mirror the glory of the Lord in these things also, will contemplate in it the mysteries concerning the spiritual bride, that is, clearly, the church of Christ, and the things said about the perfect bridegroom of such a bride, and of the difference between his queens and concu 107 bines and young women, and whatever other more ineffable teachings are hidden in the book, which have already received the fullest clarification, in the works in which the most industrious exegete of the divine scriptures has commented. Ps. From Job. 7. It is Job who says about the Lord, along with other things, "Who commands the sun, and it does not rise; and he seals up the stars; who alone stretched out the heavens, and

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καὶ σοφὸς ὑπὲρ βασιλέα πρεσβύτερον καὶ ἄφρονα, τὸν μὲν ἄφρονα βασιλέα τὸν διάβολον ἐξειλήφαμεν, τὸν δὲ πένητα καὶ σοφὸν τὸν δι' ἡμᾶς ἑαυτὸν κενώσαντα καὶ πτωχεύσαντα τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγον· τούτου δὴ χάριν καὶ τὰ προκείμενα ἐσημειωσάμεθα, οὐκ ἄλλον εἶναι νομίζοντες τὸν ἐνθάδε διαγραφόμενον πολεμικὸν βασιλέα τοῦ ἐκεῖ λεγομένου βασιλέως ἄφρονος· ὡσαύτως δὲ τὸν ἐνταῦθα διασώζοντα τῇ ἑαυτοῦ σοφίᾳ τὴν πολιορκουμένην πόλιν τοῦ ἐκεῖ πένητος καὶ σοφοῦ, ὃν ἐλέγομεν εἶναι τὸν Χριστόν· ὃς τὴν μικρὰν πόλιν, 105 τουτέστι τὸν περίγειον τόπον συγκρίσει τοῦ παντὸς κόσμου βραχύτατον ὄντα, καὶ τοὺς ἐν αὐτῇ, ὡς ἐν παραθέσει τῆς τῶν λογικῶν ἁπάντων πληθύος ὀλίγους ὄντας ἐπὶ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, ὡς σταγών ἐστιν ἀπὸ κάδου, ἐλυτρώσατο πολιορκουμένους ἀπὸ τῆς τοῦ διαβόλου βασιλείας, πάντοθεν τὸν περίγειον χῶρον καὶ τοὺς ἐν αὐτῷ κυκλοῦντος, οἰκοδομοῦντός τε ἐπ' αὐτὸν χάρακας μεγάλους, τὰς ἀρχὰς, καὶ τὰς ἐξουσίας, καὶ τοὺς κοσμοκράτορας τοῦ σκότους τούτου, καὶ τὰ πνευματικὰ τῆς πονηρίας. Τοῦτον οὖν οὐκ ἄλλος τίς ἢ μόνος καθεῖλεν ὁ πένης καὶ σοφὸς ἀνὴρ, ὁ Σωτὴρ καὶ Κύριος ἡμῶν, κενώσας ἑαυτὸν καὶ δι' ἡμᾶς πτωχεύσας ἐν τῷ πλούτῳ τοῦ ἑαυτοῦ ἐλέους, καὶ καθελὼν διέσωσεν ἐν τῇ σοφίᾳ αὐτοῦ τὴν μικρὰν πόλιν, ὡς εἰκὸς τὴν ἐκκλησίαν καθ' ἑτέραν ἐκδοχὴν, καὶ τοὺς ἐν αὐτῇ ὀλίγους ὄντας· ἐπειδὴ στενὴ καὶ τεθλιμμένη ἡ ὁδὸς ἡ ἀπάγουσα εἰς τὴν ζωὴν, καὶ ὀλίγοι εἰσιν οἱ διιόντες αὐτήν. Φασὶ δ' οἱ τὴν τηλικαύτην ὁρῶντες οἰκονομίαν τὸ, ἀγαθὴ σοφία ὑπὲρ δύναμιν· δύναμιν δὲ δῆλον ὅτι τὴν τῶν πολεμίων· ἀλλὰ καὶ, ἄνθρωπος, φησὶν, οὐκ ἐμνήσθη τοῦ ἀνδρὸς τοῦ πένητος ἐκείνου· Θεὸς μὲν γὰρ ἦν ὁ διὰ τῶν προφητῶν μνημονεύων αὐτοῦ, καὶ προκηρύττων τὰ περὶ τῆς εἰς ἀνθρώπους ἐπιδημίας αὐτοῦ· τῶν δ' ὑπὸ τῆς σοφίας τῶν ἀρχόντων τούτου τοῦ αἰῶνος ἐνεργηθέντων οὐδὲ εἷς πώποτε ἐμνήσθη, ἐπεὶ μὴ δ' οἷοί τε ἦσαν εἰδέναι τὸ μυστήριον τὸ ἀποκεκρυμμένον πρὸ τῶν αἰώνων τῆς κατὰ τὴν ἐνανθρώπησιν οἰκονομίας τοῦ Λόγου τοῦ Θεοῦ. Πρὸς τούτοις λέγεται ὅτι καὶ σοφία τοῦ 106 πένητος ἐξουδενωμένη· καὶ γὰρ εὐδόκησεν ὁ Θεὸς διὰ τῆς μωρίας τοῦ κηρύγματος σῶσαι τοὺς πιστεύοντας· ἀλλὰ καὶ οἱ λόγοι αὐτοῦ, φησὶν, οὐκ εἰσὶν ἀκουόμενοι· οὐ πάντων γάρ ἐστιν ἀκοῦσαι τῶν τοῦ Σωτῆρος λόγων, εἰ μὴ μόνον τῶν ἐχόντων ὦτα εἰς τὸ ἀκούειν· καὶ γὰρ τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τοῦ Χριστοῦ κεκαλυμμένον ἐστὶν, πλὴν οὐ τοῖς αὐτοῦ μαθηταῖς, τοῖς γὰρ ἀπολλυμένοις ἐστὶν κεκαλυμμένον. Ψ. Τοῦ ἄσματος τῶν ἀσμάτων. ʹ. Ὅλον τὸ βιβλίον ὑπόθεσιν ἔχει νύμφης ἔρωτα πρὸς νυμφίον, ὁμολογούσης τετρῶσθαι τῇ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἀγάπῃ, καὶ αὐτοῦ πάλιν ὁμολογοῦντος αὐτὴν μόνην ἀπὸ πλειόνων ὑπάρχειν αὐτῷ τελείαν περιστερὰν παρὰ τὰς λεγομένας βασιλίδας καὶ παλλακίδας καὶ νεάνιδας. Οἱ μὲν οὖν ἐκ περιτομῆς μίαν εἶναι τῶν πεπιστευμένων παρ' αὐτοῖς δύο καὶ εἴκοσι θεοπνεύστων γραφῶν πεπεισμένοι καὶ ταύτην τὴν γραφὴν, οὐκ οἶδ' εἰ ἔχοιεν ἄξιόν τι θείας ἐπιπνοίας λεγόμενον ἐν αὐτῇ παραστῆσαι, μὴ πλέον τί τῆς προχείρου ἐκδοχῆς κατὰ τοὺς τόπους φανταζόμενοι· ὁ δὲ δυνατὸς τὸ μὲν ἐπικείμενον καὶ ταύτῃ τῇ γραφῇ κάλυμμα περιελεῖν, ἐπιστρέψαι δὲ πρὸς Κύριον ὅπερ ἐστὶ τὸ πνεῦμα, καὶ ἀνακεκαλυμμένῳ προσώπῳ τὴν καὶ ἐν τούτοις δόξαν τοῦ Κυρίου κατοπτρίζεσθαι, θεωρήσει ἐν αὐτῇ τὰ κατὰ τὴν πνευματικὴν νύμφην, δῆλον δ' ὅτι τὴν ἐκκλησίαν τοῦ Χριστοῦ, μυστήρια, καὶ τὰ λεγόμενα περὶ τοῦ τελείου τῆς τοιασδὶ νύμφης νυμφίου καὶ τῆς τῶν βασιλίδων αὐτοῦ καὶ παλλα 107 κίδων καὶ νεανίδων διαφορᾶς, καὶ ὅσα ἄλλα ἐναποκέκρυπται τῇ βίβλῳ ἀπορρητότερα μαθήματα, ἃ καὶ πληρεστάτης ἤδη σαφηνείας ἔτυχεν, ἐν οἷς ὁ φιλοπονώτατος τῶν θείων γραφῶν ἐξηγητὴς ὑπεμνηματίσατο. Ψ. Ἀπὸ τοῦ Ἰώβ. Ζʹ. Ὁ Ἰώβ ἐστιν ὁ φάσκων περὶ τοῦ Κυρίου μετὰ καὶ ἑτέρων, Ὁ λέγων τῷ ἡλίῳ καὶ οὐκ ἀνατέλλει, κατὰ δὲ ἄστρων κατασφραγίζει· ὁ τανύσας τὸν οὐρανὸν μόνος, καὶ