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A ready reference is the deed of our Savior in the Gospel, in which at one time from "five loaves" he fed a multitude of about "five thousand" men in the designated place, and at another time from "seven," "four thousand men, besides children and women." Wherefore it is said according to Symmachus: they will rejoice with joy before you as with the joy in the harvest; for so those being fed in the harvest are accustomed to feast gathered together and at the same time. And in a spiritual sense, the apostles of our Savior and their successors, and those who up to now have presided over his churches, partook of the divine joy before their Savior, working like those who harvest; since they were "laborers" of the harvest of the nations, as he himself showed when he said: "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest." For truly "few" were the disciples and apostles of our Savior, and those of his churches, who in this way were leaders, in comparison with the great and plentiful harvest of the nations. But these same men divided among themselves the spoils of the polytheistic and demonic error, which the Savior himself had given them as plunder. Wherefore also in the preceding passages he named it: "Spoil quickly, plunder swiftly." For having overthrown the error of idolatry at that time, and having set free the souls of men formerly "spoiled" by it, he distributed them to his disciples and apostles, and to their successors, to care for them and to heal them. And they who received them, like those who rejoice in the harvest, and in the way that those dividing the spoils rejoice, rejoiced, being filled with gladness at the multitude of the booty in each church. And because the yoke that was formerly laid upon the spoils has been taken away, and the rod that was on the neck of these same spoils; for it was a heavy yoke laid upon the souls enslaved to the devil, and a deadly rod bending their neck and making it bow down, and since these were taken away, those who were dividing these spoils rightly rejoiced. But how the yoke was lifted from them and the rod lying on their neck, he clarifies, saying next: For he has scattered the rod of the exactors. But instead of: of the exactors, Aquila translated thus, saying: the yoke of his burden and the rod of his shoulder, the scepter of the oppressor, and Symmachus says: the yoke of his burden and the rod of his shoulder, the rod of the exactor is defeated, and Theodotion likewise translated of the exactor, signifying in the singular the exactor and the oppressor, namely, the devil, who continually oppressed the souls of men and demanded as tribute the sins furnished to him. But he who stripped him scattered this rod of the exactor and the heavy yoke, but since it was likely that many others also cooperated with the devil, and of these very ones exacting for him; for many were the ones oppressing the human race. He took away the yoke and the rod and did these things against them as on the day of Midian. The story is found in Judges, containing how in the time of Gideon the enemies were conquered not by weapons, but by an invisible and divine power. So just as in Midian the enemies were conquered by a hidden hand, so now he says that the rod of the exacting devil and of those with him who oppress the souls of men has been scattered. And they, having been defeated, will repay every robe gathered by deceit and garment with an exchange; for since the devil, having plundered the adornment of the soul and its robe, and the tunic of virtue which it used to wear, when he held it subject to himself, having made it naked and shameful, and the opposing powers with him exacted payment from it, using deceit against it.

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πρόχειρον λέξιν τὴν ἐν τῷ εὐαγγελίῳ τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν πρᾶξιν, ἐν ᾗ ποτὲ μὲν ἀπὸ «πέντε ἄρτων» πλῆθος ἀνδρῶν ὡς «πεντακισχιλίων» ἐθρέψατο ἐν τῇ δηλουμένῃ χώρᾳ, ποτὲ δὲ ἐξ «ἑπτὰ τετρακισχιλίους ἄνδρας χωρὶς παιδίων καὶ γυναικῶν». διὸ λέλεκται κατὰ τὸν Σύμμαχον· εὐφροσύνην εὐφρανθήσονται ἐνώπιόν σου ὡς εὐφροσύνην ἐν θερισμῷ· οὕτω γοῦν οἱ ἐν θερισμῷ τρεφόμενοι ἠθροισμένως καὶ κατὰ τὸ αὐτὸ συμποσιάζειν εἰώθασιν. καὶ κατὰ διάνοιαν δὲ οἱ ἀπόστολοι τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν καὶ οἱ τούτων διάδοχοι, οἵ τε εἰς δεῦρο τῶν ἐκκλησιῶν αὐτοῦ προεστῶτες τῆς ἐνθέου εὐφροσύνης μετελάμβανον ἐνώπιον τοῦ σωτῆρος αὐτῶν δίκην ἀμώντων ἐργαζόμενοι· ἐπείπερ «ἐργάται» ἦσαν τοῦ θερισμοῦ τῶν ἐθνῶν, ὡς ἐδήλου λέγων αὐτός· «ὁ μὲν θερισμὸς πολύς, οἱ δὲ ἐργάται ὀλίγοι· δεήθητε οὖν τοῦ κυρίου τοῦ θερισμοῦ ὅπως ἐκβάλλῃ ἐργάτας εἰς τὸν θερισμὸν αὐτοῦ». «ὀλίγοι» γὰρ ὡς ἀληθῶς οἱ τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν μαθηταὶ καὶ ἀπόστολοι καὶ οἱ τῶν ἐκκλησιῶν αὐτοῦ, ὃν δὴ τρόπον καθηγούμενοι ὡς πρὸς μέγαν καὶ πολὺν τῶν ἐθνῶν θερισμόν. οἱ δὲ αὐτοὶ οὗτοι τῆς πολυθέου καὶ δαιμονικῆς πλάνης τὰ σκῦλα εἰς ἑαυτοὺς διῃροῦντο, ἅπερ αὐτοῖς εἰς προνομὴν δέδωκεν αὐτὸς ὁ σωτήρ. διὸ καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν ὠνόμαζεν τό· «Ταχέως σκύλευσον, ὀξέως προνόμευσον»· τὴν γὰρ πλάνην τῆς εἰδωλολατρίας καθελὼν τὸ τηνικαῦτα τὰς πάλαι «σκυλευθείσας» ὑπ' αὐτοῦ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ψυχὰς ἐλευθέρας καταστησάμενος τοῖς αὐτοῦ μαθηταῖς καὶ ἀποστόλοις, τοῖς τε τούτων διαδόχοις διένειμεν εἰς τὸ προνοεῖν αὐτῶν καὶ θεραπεύειν. οἱ δὲ ὑποδεξάμενοι δίκην τῶν εὐφραινομένων ἐν ἀμήτῳ καὶ ὃν τρόπον διαιρούμενοι δίκην τῶν εὐφραινομένων ἐν σκύλοις ἔχαιρον ἐμπιπλάμενοι εὐφροσύνης ἐπὶ τῷ πλήθει τῶν καθ' ἑκάστην ἐκκλησίαν ληΐων. Καὶ διότι ἀφῄρηται ὁ ζυγὸς ὁ πάλαι τοῖς σκύλοις ἐπικείμενος καὶ ἡ ῥάβδος ἡ ἐπὶ τοῦ τραχήλου τῶν αὐτῶν σκύλων· ζυγὸς γὰρ ἦν βαρὺς ταῖς τῷ διαβόλῳ δεδουλωμέναις ψυχαῖς ἐπικείμενος καὶ ἡ ῥάβδος θανατικὴ τὸν τράχηλον αὐτῶν κάμπτουσα καὶ κάτω νεύειν ποιοῦσα, ὧν ἀφῃρημένων εἰκότως ἔχαιρον οἱ διαιρούμενοι τὰ σκῦλα ταῦτα. πῶς δὲ ὁ ζυγὸς ἤρθη ἐξ αὐτῶν καὶ ἡ ῥάβδος ἡ ἐπὶ τοῦ τραχήλου αὐτῶν κειμένη, διασαφεῖ λέγων ἑξῆς· τὴν γὰρ ῥάβδον τῶν ἀπαιτούντων διεσκέδασεν. ἀντὶ δὲ τοῦ· τῶν ἀπαιτούντων, ὁ μὲν Ἀκύλας οὕτως ἡρμήνευσεν εἰπών· τὸν ζυγὸν βαστάγματος αὐτοῦ καὶ τὴν ῥάβδον ὤμου αὐτοῦ, σκῆπτρον τοῦ πράσσοντος, ὁ δὲ Σύμμαχος· ζυγός φησι τοῦ βαστάγματος αὐτοῦ καὶ ἡ ῥάβδος τοῦ ὤμου αὐτοῦ, ῥάβδος τοῦ ἀπαιτοῦντος ἡττήθη, καὶ ὁ Θεοδοτίων ὁμοίως τοῦ ἀπαιτοῦντος ἡρμήνευσεν, ἑνικῶς τὸν ἀπαιτοῦντα καὶ τὸν ἐκπράσσοντα σημάνας, δηλονότι τὸν διάβολον, ὃς ἐκπράσσων διετέλει τὰς τῶν ἀνθρώπων ψυχὰς καὶ φόρους ὥσπερ ἀπαιτῶν τὰς χορηγουμένας αὐτῷ ἁμαρτίας. ἀλλὰ ταύτην καὶ τὴν ῥάβδον τοῦ ἀπαιτοῦντος καὶ τὸν ζυγὸν τὸν βαρὺν διεσκόρπισεν ὁ γυμνώσας αὐτόν, ἐπεὶ δὲ εἰκὸς ἦν καὶ ἑτέρους πολλοὺς συνεργεῖν τῷ διαβόλῳ καὶ τούτων αὐτῶν τῶν αὐτῷ ἀπαιτούντων· πολλοὶ γὰρ ἦσαν οἱ ἐκπράσσοντες τὸ γένος τῶν ἀνθρώπων. τὸν ζυγὸν καὶ τὴν ῥάβδον ἀφεῖλεν καὶ ταῦτα κατ' αὐτῶν ἔπραξεν ὡς τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τῇ ἐπὶ Μαδιάμ. κεῖται δὲ ἡ ἱστορία ἐν τοῖς Κριταῖς περιέχουσα ὡς ἐπὶ τοῦ Γεδεὼν οὐχ ὅπλοις νενίκηντο οἱ πολέμιοι, ἀλλὰ ἀοράτῳ καὶ θεϊκῇ δυνάμει. οὕτως οὖν ὡς ἐπὶ τῆς Μαδιὰμ ἐνικήθησαν οἱ πολέμιοι χειρὶ κρυφαίᾳ, καὶ νῦν φησι διεσκεδάσθαι τὴν ῥάβδον τοῦ ἀπαιτοῦντος διαβόλου καὶ τῶν σὺν αὐτῷ τὰς ψυχὰς τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐκπρασσόντων. Οἱ καὶ ἡττηθέντες πᾶσαν στολὴν ἐπισυνηγμένην δόλῳ καὶ ἱμάτιον μετὰ καταλλαγῆς ἀποτίσουσιν· ἐπειδὴ γὰρ τὸν κόσμον τῆς ψυχῆς καὶ τὴν στολὴν αὐτῆς, τόν τε τῆς ἀρετῆς χιτῶνα, ὃν περιεβάλλετο συλήσας ὁ διάβολος, ὅτε αὐτὴν ἐπεῖχεν ὑποχείριον γυμνὴν αὐτὴν καὶ αἰσχρὰν καταστήσας, αἵ τε σὺν αὐτῷ δυνάμεις ἀντικείμεναι εἰσέπραττον αὐτὴν δόλῳ κατ' αὐτῆς χρώμεναι.