Collectio dictorum veteris testamenti

 is forced to descend into a foreign state and if the demons should see any good understanding accompanying him, they hasten to subject it to the sowi

 escaping. The heifer, taken first, signified the first generation. For just as the heifer struggles against the yoke, so also the first generation of

 the river, but to keep alive every female. For the devil, the spiritual Pharaoh, also conceived a threefold manner of plotting against the spiritual I

 He interprets what that one speaks spiritually and obscurely, and transforms his weak voice to be more melodious. For I have not come, he says, to abo

 the Gospel according to Christ, had as a son the multitude of those being reborn to it through the Holy Spirit whom she also circumcised with a stone

 and easy to comprehend is the mystery concerning Christ. But God did not lead the Jews to this immediately, but through the long law and the many ridd

 Moses commanded Joshua son of Nun to choose mighty men and go out and fight 77.1196 Amalek, signified that Jesus Christ would be subject to the comman

 of the people of the Jews, and servant of God, he ascends to the highest knowledge of God but the people are prevented from approaching, lest they di

 coming after it, demands this final penalty, as one who, after being freed from the burden of sin, is again voluntarily subjected to it. And He comman

 But the eighth ineffably suggests the mystery of the eternal well-being of the 77.1204 beings. The sixth day is called Preparation, because on it the

 and poverty of intellect, they make their neighbors, that is, those of the same faith, partners, so that through one another they may be raised to hig

 unmixed with wickedness, those partaking of the true Lamb nourish their own soul, throughout the whole weekly age, which is measured by the week. And

 the body bears uncircumcision. Circumcision is mystical, a voluntary removal of the passions. The circumcision of circumcision is the putting away of

 of rational discernment, as Israel did in the time of Moses, commits idolatry. For having cast into the fire of the passions the words concerning theo

 to do good things, and to walk toward good things. Humpbacked is the one bent downwards, and not able to look up from earthly things. Sun-spotted is o

 God, ostracizing stupidity, and wishing his subjects to belong to necessity alone, through the not weaving together of linen and wool, banished variet

 but in heaven God Himself whom alone they both worship and attend. And on the day that the tabernacle was set up, the cloud covered the tabernacle, an

 they were catechized by the evangelists. Or otherwise, the four types of meanings were a symbol of the four types of moral discourse. Of which the one

 Aaron's rod, as a symbol of watchfulness. For to Jeremiah, seeing a staff of a nut tree, God says: Behold, I am watchful over my words. And it budded

 bracelets, and rings, and armlets, and braided chains. For the leaders of the people in Christ and the eminent often surpass the evangelical commands

 with bodily ways of the ministry of the virtues, they return to the contemplation of kindred intelligible things. A foreign boy and a servant-girl are

 undertaking. For she will pay the penalty for the offense to God, the Father of spirits, and she will be his wife, as having already been joined to hi

 of the other man wherefore he is required to pay the penalty for the murder, but he alone suffers loss in his soul. For this, I think, is what this m

 war for one year he shall cheer his wife, whom he has taken. For it is not right that one who has just taken a spouse for himself should be led out t

 Virtue is the mother of the good deeds from it. And its nest is the soul in which it dwells. It is necessary for those who encounter them to be benefi

 its fruit for three years will be unpurified for you. It shall not be eaten, and in the fourth year all its fruit shall be holy to the Lord. But in th

 dragging down to earth, those things that draw up to heaven. Saul, is the natural 77.1249 law, which from the beginning received from the Lord the lot

 David is the law according to the spirit, who reigns over the Christians who worship God spiritually. But Saul is the law according to the letter, who

 the face of the Lord, according to David, and learns the cause of such a famine, that this injustice was against Saul, and against his house, with whi

 taking from the spiritual David, that is, the law according to the spirit, may kill the aforementioned sons and grandsons of 77.1257 Saul then in eve

 of knowledge, if it should receive the divine and discerning word, which brings to memory former sins, and will prefer even to nature itself the heali

 The Lord in the desert I mean in the world, and in the nature of men, digging out and cleansing the hearts of the worthy from material weight and min

 of the city. Since Hezekiah is interpreted as 'strength of God,' every mind 77.1265 that through practical philosophy has acquired divine strength, wh

 through themselves they again turn him away, as he flees into his land which is the fixed habit of evil, whom his sons kill as he is fleeing, and the

 the king of the Assyrians, flees to God, and silently cries out to Him, through progress in virtue and knowledge, and receives an angel as an ally th

 at once a philosopher and a lover of God has both Judah and Jerusalem the one taken as the habit of confession and repentance for Judah is interpret

 becomes a lofty and exalted mind, and in the good things given to it by God, boasts as if in its own accomplishments. There comes by providence upon t

 the spear and the flask of water that is, the power of practical virtue, and the grace of gnostic contemplation, even if he again gives these things

 of king Darius, I mean of the natural law, having conquered by him, lifts up his face to heaven, that is, the disposition of the soul, in which are th

 not being guarded. For lead is a symbol of punishment, but silver of brightness. And the seven eyes of this practical faith are the seven gifts of the

 constituted. For since matter is indeed a tetrad, because of the tetraktys of its elements, and form is a pentad, because of the fivefold nature of se

 they rise up for mischief. And approaching Zerubbabel, and Joshua and the leaders of the families, they say to them: We will build with you for like

constituted. For since matter is indeed a tetrad, because of the tetraktys of its elements, and form is a pentad, because of the fivefold nature of sensation, which gives shape to material things, composing the 50 four times, you will make 6, which you join again to the 100 through virtue for well-being. But the sixty show the creative power of the divine commandments; for in six days God made this world. And ten are the God-given commandments; and six times ten is sixty, with all of which together comes forth Shuthelah, who was interpreted above. And since there came out with them also male servants, and female servants, and male singers, and female singers, and camels, and horses, and mules, and beasts of burden, these would be types of the different ranks of the Church, through which were pre 77.1288 figured the dispositions of the believers. For male servants and female servants are those who, out of fear of eternal punishments, undergo the burden of practical philosophy and the harsh discipline in it; of whom the male servants are the stronger, and the female servants the weaker. Male singers are those whose action cries out and proclaims the will of God, delighting the pious. Female singers are those who have not only accomplished these things, but also lead others to the practice of them through teaching and directing. Camels are those who are stretching toward higher contemplations. Horses are those who run the race of the life according to God; mules are those of mixed character, displaying the uncommon in the common, or those who are barren of evil; beasts of burden are those who support the weak and bear their burdens; and the different numbers of the male servants and female servants, and of the male singers and female singers and the others, are indicative that the multitudes of the orders of the Church are also different. For the orders are different, and different also are the multitudes under the orders, and some are more or less than others. And when the enemies of the tribe of Judah and Benjamin heard, they came to find out what the sound of the trumpets was; and they learned that those from the captivity were building a temple to the Lord, the God of Israel. Judah is interpreted as confession. This is twofold, the one signifying thanksgiving for goods that have been given, the other the telling of evils that have been done. Therefore everyone who confesses according to one of these is of the tribe of Judah. And since Benjamin is also interpreted as grief, or a mother's groan, or the building up of a people; everyone who mourns for his own sins, or groans for those of others in the manner of a compassionate mother, or builds up some by the art of teaching, is of the tribe of Benjamin. Such persons, having been freed from the captivity of the passions, and having come into the state of dispassion, build a temple to the Lord, which is built from different modes of virtue and words of knowledge. And their enemies are the four nations that were resettled in the land of Israel by Asbakaphath king of Asshur, I mean the Babylonians and the Echuthites, and the Aimathites, and the Eusebites. The Babylonians, then, are pride, which confuses the mind. The Echuthites are vainglory, which drives the intellect out of its senses. For Echuth is interpreted as ecstasy. The Aimathites are the pleasing of men. For Aimath is interpreted as the sight of things that appear; and the one who pleases men is concerned with visible and apparent characters. The Eubaians are hypocrisy. For Eubaians are interpreted as snake-like. And the serpent through hypocrisy deceived the first-formed man. And Asbakaphath is the devil, Asbakaphath is interpreted as taking captive from behind, that is, 77.1289 seizing in a hidden or secret way. This one resettled these four passions into the state of virtue and of knowledge, interweaving them with the virtuous and the gnostics, so that through these he might lead away those who labor in good things from their goal according to God to another. The ruling demons of these four goods, then, having heard the sound of the trumpets, have come to find out what it is. The trumpets, then, are the divine commandments, and their sound is their practices, which the demons, perceiving,

συνεστηκυῖαν. Ἐπεὶ γὰρ τετραδικὴ μὴν ἡ ὕλη, διὰ τὴν τετρακτὺν τῶν στοιχείων αὐτῆς, πενταδικὸν δὲ τὸ εἶδος διὰ τὸ πενταπλοῦν τῆς αἰσθήσεως, τῆς τὰ ὑλικὰ σχηματιζούσης, τετράκις τὸν νʹ συνθεὶς, ποιήσεις ςʹ ὃν τῷ ρʹ πάλιν συνάψας διὰ τῆς ἀρετῆς τὸ εὖ εἶναι. Οἱ δὲ ἑξήκοντα τὴν ποιητικὴν τῶν θείων ἐντολῶν ὑποφαίνουσι δύναμιν· ἐν ἓξ μὲν γὰρ ἡμέραις ἐποίησεν ὁ Θεὸς τὸν κόσμον τοῦτον. ∆έκα δὲ αἱ θεοδώρητοι ἐντολαί· ἑξάκις δὲ τὰ δέκα ἑξήκοντα, μεθ' ὧν ὁμοῦ πάντων ἐξέρχεται ὁ ἀνωτέρω διερμηνευθεὶς Σῦτ. Ἐπεὶ δὲ συνεξῆλθον αὐτοῖς καὶ παῖδες, καὶ παιδίσκαι, καὶ ψάλται, καὶ ψαλτῳδοὶ, καὶ κάμηλοι, καὶ ἵπποι, καὶ ἡμίονοι, καὶ ὑποζύγια, εἶεν ταῦτα τύποι τῶν διαφόρων βαθμῶν τῆς Ἐκκλησίας, δι' ὧν προ 77.1288 ετυποῦντο αἱ διαθέσεις τῶν πιστευόντων. Παῖδες μὲν γὰρ καὶ παιδίσκαι, οἱ φόβῳ τῶν αἰωνίων κολάσεων ὑπερχόμενοι τὸ βάρος τῆς πρακτικῆς φιλοσοφίας, καὶ τὴν ἐν αὐτῇ σκληραγωγίαν· ὧν παῖδες μὲν οἱ ἰσχυρότεροι, παιδίσκαι δὲ οἱ ἀσθενέστεροι. Ψάλται δὲ ὧν ἡ πρᾶξις βοᾷ καὶ κηρύττει τοῦ Θεοῦ τὰ θελήματα τέρποντα τοὺς εὐσεβεῖς. Ψαλτῳδοὶ δὲ, οἱ μὴ μόνον ταῦτα κατωρθωκότες, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἑτέρους εἰς τὴν τούτων πρᾶξιν διὰ τοῦ διδάσκειν καὶ ῥυθμίζειν ἐνάγοντες. Κάμηλοι δὲ οἱ πρὸς ὑψηλοτέρας θεωρίας ἀνατεινόμενοι. Ἵπποι δὲ οἱ τὸ στάδιον τοῦ κατὰ Θεὸν βίου τρέχοντες· ἡμίονοι δὲ οἱ μιγάδες τὸ ἦθος, καὶ ἐν τῷ κοινῷ τὸ ἄκοινον ἐπιδεικνύμενοι, ἢ οἱ ἄγονοι κακίας· ὑποζύγια δὲ οἱ τοὺς ἀσθενεῖς βαστάζοντες καὶ τὰ βάρη τούτων φέροντες· οἱ δὲ διάφοροι ἀριθμοὶ τῶν τε παίδων καὶ παιδισκῶν, καὶ τῶν ψαλτῶν καὶ ψαλτῳδῶν καὶ τῶν ἄλλων, ἐμφαντικοί τινές εἰσι τοῦ διάφορα εἶναι καὶ τὰ πλήθη τῶν ταγμάτων τῆς Ἐκκλησίας. ∆ιάφορα μὲν γὰρ τάγματα, διάφορα δὲ καὶ τὰ ὑπὸ τὰ τάγματα πλήθη, καὶ ἄλλα ἄλλων πλείονα ἢ ἐλάττονα. Καὶ ἀκούσαντες οἱ ἐχθροὶ τῆς φυλῆς Ἰούδα καὶ Βε νιαμὶν, ἐληλύθασιν ἐπιγνῶναι τίς ἡ φωνὴ τῶν σαλπίγγων· καὶ ἐπέγνωσαν ὅτι ἐκ τῆς αἰχμαλω σίας οἰκοδομοῦσι ναὸν Κυρίῳ τῷ Θεῷ Ἰσραήλ. Ἰούδας μὲν ἐξομολόγησις ἐρμηνεύεται. ∆ιττὴ δὲ αὕτη, ἡ μὲν εὐχαριστίαν δεδωρημένων ἀγαθῶν σημαίνουσα, ἡ δὲ ἐξαγορείαν πεπραγμένων κακῶν. Πᾶς τοίνυν ἐξομολογούμενος κατὰ μίαν τούτων, τῆς φυλῆς ἐστι τοῦ Ἰούδα. Ἐπεὶ δὲ καὶ Βενιαμὶν πένθος ἑρμηνεύεται, ἢ στεναγμὸς μητρὸς, ἢ οἰκοδομὴ λαοῦ· πᾶς πενθῶν ἐπὶ τοῖς οἰκείοις ἁμαρτήμασιν, ἢ στενάζων ἐπὶ τοῖς ἀλλοτρίοις, τρόπον μητρὸς συμπαθοῦς, ἢ οἰκοδομῶν τινας τέχνῃ διδασκαλίας, τῆς φυλῆς ἐστι τοῦ Βενιαμίν. Οἱ τοιοῦτοι δὲ τῆς τῶν παθῶν αἰχμαλωσίας ἐλευθερωθέντες, καὶ κατὰ τὴν ἕξιν τῆς ἀπαθείας γενόμενοι, οἰκοδομοῦσι ναὸν Κυρίῳ. τὸν ἐκ διαφόρων τρόπων ἀρετῆς καὶ λόγων γνώσεως οἰκοδομούμενον. Ἐχθροὶ δὲ τούτων εἰσὶ, τὰ τέσσαρα ἔθνη τὰ μετοικισθέντα εἰς γῆν Ἰσραὴλ ὑπὸ Ἀσβακαφὰθ βασιλέως Ἀσσοὺρ, λέγω δὴ Βαβυλωνίους καὶ Ἐχουθαίους, καὶ Αἰμαθαίους, καὶ Εὐσεβαίους. Βαβυλώνιοι μὲν οὖν ἡ ὑπερηφανία συγχέουσα τὸν νοῦν. Ἐχουθαῖοι δὲ ἡ κενοδοξία ἐξιστῶσα τὴν διάνοιαν. Ἐχοὺθ γὰρ ἔκστασις ἑρμηνεύεται. Αἰμαθαῖοι δὲ ἡ ἀνθρωπαρεσκία. Αἰμὰθ μὲν γὰρ ὅρασις φαινομένων· ἑρμηνεύεται· τῶν ὁρωμένων δὲ καὶ φαινομένων ἠθῶν ἐπιμελεῖται ὁ ἀνθρωπάρεσκος. Εὐβαῖοι δὲ ἡ ὑπόκρισις. Εὐβαῖοι γὰρ ὀφιώδεις ἑρμηνεύονται. Ὁ δὲ ὄφις δι' ὑποκρίσεως ἠπάτησε τὸν πρωτόπλαστον. Ἀσβακαφὰθ δὲ ὁ διάβολος, Ἀσβακαφὰθ ἑρμηνεύεται αἰχμαλωτίζων· ὅπισθεν, τοῦτ' ἔστι. κατὰ τὸ ἀφανὲς, ἢ 77.1289 κατὰ τὸ λεληθὸς συναρπάζων. Οὗτος δὲ μετῴκισε τὰ δʹ ταυτὶ πάθη, εἰς τὴν ἕξιν τῆς ἀρετῆς, καὶ τῆς γνώσεως, παρενείρας αὐτὰ τοῖς ἐναρέτοις καὶ γνωστικοῖς, ἵνα διὰ τούτων ἀπὸ τοῦ κατὰ Θεὸν σκοποῦ πρὸς ἕτερον ἀπαγάγῃ τοὺς ἐν ἀγαθοῖς πονοῦντας. Τούτων δὴ τῶν δ' ἀγαθῶν οἱ προεστῶτες δαίμονες ἀκούσαντες τῆς φωνῆς τῶν σαλπίγγων ἐληλύθασιν ἐπιγνῶναι, τίς ἐστιν αὕτη. Σάλπιγγες μὲν οὖν, αἱ θεῖαι ἐντολαὶ, φωνὴ δὲ αὐτῶν αἱ πράξεις αὐτῶν, ἧς αἰσθόμενοι οἱ δαίμονες