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a lamentation. Having said above: Call for the mourning women, and let them come; he added these things, speaking thus, that, In vain, he says, do you call others to speak the lamentation, it is better for you to learn these things yourselves, since those women are not sufficient for the multitude of the slain. For death has come up through your windows. Not from the battle-lines, nor from the fight and the war. And the dead of men shall be for a spectacle on the face of the field. The dead will be unburied; and again this seemed to be the greatest pollution; for this did not truly happen to the one burying. Let not the wise man boast. See where he turns the discourse. Since it is likely, he says, that there are some among you who are strong, rich, wise, this will not profit you at all, he says. See the great and marvelous teachings of philosophy, that it is not a worthy matter for boasting. For in the absence of the fear of God, one thing is shown to be poverty, another punishment, another weakness. For if someone, he says, is perfect among the sons of men, but the wisdom from you is absent, al. with wisdom from you being absent he will be counted as nothing. To understand and to know. What is it to know God, but to care for a wondrous life? *Behold, days are coming, says the Lord, and I will visit upon all who are circumcised in their foreskin, upon Egypt, and upon Judah, and upon the sons of Ammon. Up to this point, then, he spoke to those who, on the pretext of the temple, were not expecting captivity. But since they put forward circumcision as a sign of their kinship with God, God says that, I will also bring punishment upon the other nations that are circumcised. For circumcision does not signify kinship with me, but I seek one's way of life; then, showing the Jews to be worse than them, he adds: Upon Egypt, and upon Idumea. For even if they have circumcision, they are uncircumcised in the flesh; for they do not do this according to the law; for it is said that the Idumeans and the others are also circumcised. And the better the heart, the worse is this uncircumcision. But some say that the Egyptians were circumcised, and Herodotus relates this. It seems to me, the Saracens. What do you say? They are uncircumcised. Are you not therefore much more so in the heart 64.860? But are they circumcised? Just as, therefore, the deed did not profit them at all, so neither does it you; you are worse than they. And the phrase, "and upon everyone who has the hair of his temples cut," he says concerning the Saracens, who, leaving the hair at the back, only cut the part over the forehead, styling the hair, who are those now called gentili. And having said that they are uncircumcised in heart above all the nations, showing that what was said is not mere slander, he adds:

CHAPTER 10.

*Thus says the Lord: Learn not the ways of the nations, and be not afraid of the signs of heaven. That is, Do not occupy yourselves with the movement of the stars, devising for them a calculation, and knowledge of things to come. And the phrase, From the signs of heaven, is as if to say: Do not suppose that such and such a thing will happen from the movement of the stars. For the customs of the nations are vain. For not because the nations worship them, or they are worshipped, do I say, Do not worship? but because they are vain. Here by customs he means religion. Adorned with silver and gold. But again it is earth that is covered with gold on the outside, again it is human art. They fastened them with hammers and nails. But it stands; but this is a defect; for it does not have its stability from itself, whence it cannot even move. What is the purpose of the nails? Who fashions a God for himself? When you see it standing, consider the nails holding it, which if you remove, it will fall on its face; when you see it shining with the

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θρῆνον. Ἀνωτέρω φήσας· Καλέσατε τὰς θρηνούσας, καὶ ἐλθέτωσαν· ἐπήγαγε ταῦτα, οὕτω λέγων, ὅτι Μάτην, φησὶν, ἑτέρας καλεῖτε εἰς τὸ τὸν θρῆνον λέγειν, ἄμεινον ὑμᾶς αὐτοὺς ταῦτα μαθεῖν, ὡς οὐκ ἀρκούντων ἐκείνων ἐπὶ τῷ πλήθει τῶν ἀναιρουμένων. Ὅτι ἀνέβη θάνατος διὰ τῶν θυρίδων ὑμῶν. Οὐκ ἐκ τῶν παρατάξεων, οὐδὲ ἐκ τῆς μάχης καὶ τοῦ πολέμου. Καὶ ἔσονται οἱ νεκροὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων εἰς παράδειγμα ἐπὶ προσώπου τοῦ πεδίου. Οἱ νεκροὶ ἔσονται ἄταφοι· καὶ πάλιν καὶ τοῦτο μέγιστον ἐδόκει εἶναι μῦσος· οὐ γὰρ ὄντως τοῦ θάπτοντος τοῦτο συνέβαινεν. Μὴ καυχάσθω ὁ σοφός. Ὅρα ποῦ τρέπει τὸν λόγον. Ἐπειδὴ εἰκὸς ἐξ ὑμῶν εἶναί τινας, φησὶν, ἰσχυροὺς, πλουσίους, σοφοὺς, οὐδὲν ὑμᾶς ὠφελήσει τοῦτο, φησίν. Ὅρα φιλοσοφίας διδάγματα μεγάλα καὶ θαυμαστὰ, ὅτι Οὐκ ἔστιν ἄξιον καυχήματος. Ἀπόντος γὰρ τοῦ φόβου τοῦ Θεοῦ, τὸ μὲν πενία, τὸ δὲ τιμωρία, τὸ δὲ ἀσθένεια δείκνυται. Ἐὰν γάρ τις, φησὶ, τέλειος ἐν υἱοῖς ἀνθρώπων, ἡ δὲ παρὰ σοῦ σοφία ἀπῇ ἄλλ. τῆς δὲ π. σ. σοφίας ἀπούσης εἰς οὐδὲν λογισθήσεται. Συνιεῖν καὶ γινώσκειν. Τί ἐστι τὸ εἰδέναι τὸν Θεὸν, ἢ βίου ἐπιμελεῖσθαι θαυμαστοῦ; *Ἰδοὺ ἡμέραι ἔρχονται, λέγει Κύριος, καὶ ἐπισκέψομαι ἐπὶ πάντας περιτετμημένους ἀκροβυστίαν αὐτῶν ἐπ' Αἴγυπτον, καὶ ἐπὶ Ἰούδαν, καὶ ἐπὶ υἱοὺς Ἀμμών. Μέχρι μὲν οὖν τούτων πρὸς τοὺς ἐπὶ τῇ προφάσει τοῦ ναοῦ μὴ προσδοκῶντας αἰχμαλωσίαν ἔφη. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ τὴν περιτομὴν προεβάλλοντο σημεῖον τῆς πρὸς Θεὸν οἰκειώσεως, λέγει ὁ Θεὸς, ὅτι Καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ λοιπὰ ἔθνη τὰ περιτετμημένα ἐπάξω τὴν τιμωρίαν. Οὐ γὰρ ἡ περιτομὴ τὴν πρὸς ἐμὲ οἰκείωσιν σημαίνει, ἀλλὰ τὸν τρόπον ζητῶ· εἶτα κἀκείνων χείρους ἀποφαίνων Ἰουδαίους, ἐπάγει· Ἐπ' Αἴγυπτον, καὶ ἐπὶ τὴν Ἰδουμαίαν. Ὅτι κἂν περιτομὴν ἔχωσιν, ἀπερίτμητοί εἰσι τῇ σαρκί· οὐ γὰρ δὴ κατὰ νόμον τοῦτο ποιοῦσιν· καὶ γὰρ λέγονται περιτέμνεσθαι καὶ Ἰδουμαῖοι, καὶ οἱ λοιποί. Ὅσῳ δὲ καρδία βελτίων, τοσούτῳ χεῖρον τὸ ἀπερίτμητον τοῦτο. Τινὲς δέ φασιν, ὅτι οἱ Αἰγύπτιοι περιετέμνοντο, καὶ τοῦτο Ἡρόδοτος ἱστορεῖ. Ἐμοὶ δοκεῖ τοὺς Σαῤῥακηνούς. Τί λέγεις; Ἀπερίτμητοί εἰσιν. Οὐκοῦν πολλῷ μᾶλλον ὑμεῖς τῇ καρ 64.860 δίᾳ. Ἀλλὰ περιτέμνονται; Ὥσπερ οὖν ἐκείνους οὐδὲν ὠφέλησε τὸ πρᾶγμα, οὕτως οὐδὲ ὑμᾶς· ὑμεῖς ἐκείνων χείρους ἐστέ. Τὸ δὲ, καὶ ἐπὶ πάντα περικειρόμενον τὸ κατὰ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ, περὶ τῶν Σαρακηνῶν λέγει, οἳ τὴν κόμην κατὰ τὸ ὄπισθεν μέρος ἐῶντες, μόνον ἀποκείρονται τὸ μέρος τὸ ἐπὶ τὸ μέτωπον, κοσμοῦντες τὴν τρίχαν, οἵ εἰσιν οἱ νῦν λεγόμενοι γεντίλιοι. Φήσας δὲ ἀπεριτμήτους αὐτοὺς εἶναι τὴν καρδίαν ὑπὲρ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, δεικνὺς, ὡς οὐ λοιδορία ψιλὴ τὸ λεχθὲν, ἐπάγει·

ΚΕΦΑΛ. Ιʹ.

*Τάδε λέγει Κύριος· Κατὰ τὰς ὁδοὺς τῶν ἐθνῶν μὴ μανθάνετε, καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν σημείων τοῦ οὐρανοῦ μὴ φοβεῖσθε. Τουτέστι, Μὴ περὶ τὴν τῶν ἀστέρων κίνησιν ἀσχολεῖσθε, ψῆφον αὐτοὺς ἐπινοοῦντες, καὶ γνῶσιν τῶν μελλόντων. Τὸ δὲ, Ἀπὸ τῶν σημείων τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, οἱονεί· Μὴ ἀπὸ τῆς κινήσεως τῶν ἄστρων τόδε τι ὑπολάβητε ἔσεσθαι. Ὅτι τὰ νόμιμα τῶν ἐθνῶν μάταια. Μὴ γὰρ ἐπειδὴ τὰ ἔθνη σέβεσθε ἴσ. σέβεται, λέγω, Μὴ σέβεσθε; ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ μάταιά. ἐστι. Νόμιμα ἐνταῦθα τὴν θρησκείαν φησίν. Ἀργυρίῳ καὶ χρυσίῳ κεκαλλωπισμένα. Ἀλλὰ χρυσὸν ἔξωθεν περίκειται πάλιν ἡ γῇ, πάλιν ἀνθρωπίνη τέχνη. Ἐν σφύραις καὶ ἥλοις ἐστερέωσαν αὐτά. Ἀλλ' ἕστηκεν· ἀλλὰ τοῦτο ἐλάττωμα· οὐ γὰρ οἴκοθεν ἔχει τὴν στάσιν, ὅθεν οὐδὲ μεταβῆναι δύναται. Τί βούλονται οἱ ἧλοι; Τίς ἑαυτῷ κατασκευάζει Θεόν; Ὅταν ἴδῃς ἑστὼς, ἐννόησον τοὺς κατέχοντας ἥλους, οὓς ἂν ἀφέλῃς, ἐπὶ πρόσωπον πεσεῖται· ὅταν ἴδῃς λαμπρὸν τῷ