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the natural law, which is not completely corrupted, or perhaps the commensurate knowledge about intelligible things that comes through visible things by the grace of God, through which man here is sustained by the hope of things to come. And the phrase, "seven times shall pass over you," signifies the sevenfold extension of time in this age, under which the natural law has come to be, having abandoned the guardianship of its proper state and activity, and after this is completed at the expected resurrection, through the casting off of irrational properties, it will return again to itself, recovering the original good inheritance of the kingdom, having recognized through the providential economy of this age the power of the true kingdom. For to say, "leave the stump of the tree's roots in the earth," signifies that the seed and the powers of goodness of nature were not completely destroyed by the transgression; by which, receiving growth again, it is restored through the resurrection to its former natural greatness and beauty.

But it is better for us, following the law of the commandments, to train ourselves with voluntary labors for the annihilation of the mind of the flesh, and not only better, but also very (14Β_182> philosophical and fitting for those who have established the innate logos as the ruler of the passions. But if not this, then at least the second best thing: being disciplined involuntarily, let us embrace the counsel of the one disciplining us with fitting thanksgiving, just as we accept the punishment for the things in which we have sinned as the yoke of the king of Babylon. And from our land, that is, from faith and hope and the disposition according to virtue, the intelligible king of Babylon does not carry away our mind.

In this way, therefore, that has been previously explained, the devil is also called a servant of God, and the kings of the nations and the king of Judah and the beasts of the field are handed over to him.

SCHOLIA 1. In what way, he says, the devil is an enemy of God and an avenger. 2. A soul separated by the devil, ignoring or despising the divine threat through temptations, that is, punishment, makes a cause for impiety toward the commandment. For it abandons God and flees to the devil, considering the enemy a redeemer.

3. That a soul defiled by the filth of pleasure, he says, is cleansed by toil, and it completely removes its relation to material things, having learned the damage of the friendship toward them; for which reason God permits the devil, by a just judgment, to oppress men with torments.

4. Present things, he says, only flatter the senses, bringing no profit, but the punishment through the devil, by God's permission, makes us hate and despise them.

5. The one who suffers, he says, on account of the grace of God that was transgressed, if he recognizes the reason of the divine providence healing him, both accepts the misfortune with thanksgiving, rejoicing, and corrects the transgression for which he is being disciplined; but the one who is insensitive to this (14Β_184> given healing is justly deprived of grace and is handed over to the confusion of the passions; being abandoned to come to the practice of those things for which he had an inward desire.

6. Solomon had peace according to the designation of his name; but wisdom he had as a divine gift, as a fruit of prayer.

7. Here he takes Nebuchadnezzar to mean the natural law, and his son Belshazzar to mean the state of this natural law.

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κατὰ φύσιν νόμος, παντελῶς μὴ διαφθειρόμενος, ἢ τυχὸν ἡ διὰ τῶν φαινομένων γινομένη κατὰ χάριν Θεοῦ περὶ τῶν νοουμένων σύμμετρος γνῶσις, δι᾽ ἥν ἐστιν ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἐνταῦθα τῇ ἐλπίδι τῶν μελλόντων κρατούμενος. Τὸ δὲ ἑπτὰ καιροὶ ἀλλαγήσονται ἐπὶ σὲ τὴν κατὰ τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦτον ἑβδοματικὴν τοῦ χρόνου παράτασιν δηλοῖ, ὑφ᾽ ἣν γέγονε, τὴν φυλακὴν τῆς οἰκείας ἕξεως καὶ ἐνεργείας ἐάσας, ὁ κατὰ φύσιν νόμος, καὶ μεθ᾽ ἣν συντελουμένην κατὰ τὴν προσδοκωμένην ἀνάστασιν διὰ τῆς ἀποβολῆς τῶν ἀλόγων ἰδιωμάτων πρὸς ἑαυτὸν ἐπανελεύσεται πάλιν, τὴν ἐξ ἀρχῆς εὐκληρίαν τῆς βασιλείας. ἀπολαμβάνων, ἐπιγνοὺς διὰ τῆς κατὰ τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦτον προνοητικῆς οἰκονομίας τὸ κράτος τῆς ἀληθινῆς βασιλείας. Τὸ γὰρ ἐάσατε τὴν φυὴν τῶν ῥιζῶν τοῦ δένδρου ἐν τῇ γῇ φάναι τὸ μὴ τῆς φύσεως ἀναιρεθῆναι τελείως διὰ τὴν παράβασιν τὸ σπέρμα καὶ τὰς δυνάμεις τῆς ἀγαθότητος δηλοῖ· καθ᾽ ἃς πάλιν λαμβάνουσα τὴν αὔξησιν εἰς τὸ πρώην φυσικὸν διὰ τῆς ἀναστάσεως ἐπανάγεται μέγεθός τε καὶ κάλλος.

Ἀλλ᾽ ἡμῖν γε κρεῖττον, στοιχοῦντας τῷ νόμῳ τῶν ἐντολῶν, ἑαυτοὺς πρὸς ἀναίρεσιν τοῦ φρονήματος τῆς σαρκὸς ἑκουσίοις ἐκπαιδεύειν πόνοις, καὶ οὐ μόνον κρεῖττον, ἀλλὰ καὶ πάνυ (14Β_182> φιλόσοφον καὶ πρέπον τοῖς τὸν ἔμφυτον λόγον ἡγεμόνα τῶν παθῶν καταστήσασιν. Εἰ δὲ μὴ τοῦτο, τό γε τούτου δεύτερον· ἀκουσίως παιδευόμενοι, στέρξωμεν τοῦ παιδεύοντος ἡμᾶς τὴν βουλὴν μετὰ τῆς πρεπούσης εὐχαριστίας, καθάπερ ζυγὸν βασιλέως Βαβυλῶνος καταδεχόμενοι τὴν ἐφ᾽ οἷς ἡμάρτομεν κόλασιν. Καὶ τῆς ἡμετέρας γῆς, τουτέστι τῆς πίστεως καὶ τῆς ἐλπίδος καὶ τῆς κατ᾽ ἀρετὴν ἕξεως, οὐ μεταφέρει τὸν ἡμέτερον νοῦν ὁ νοητὸς βασιλεὺς Βαβυλῶνος.

Κατὰ τοῦτον οὖν τὸν προαποδοθέντα τρόπον καὶ Θεοῦ δοῦλος ὁ διάβολος λέγεται, καὶ παραδίδονται αὐτῷ οἱ βασιλεῖς τῶν ἐθνῶν καὶ ὁ βασιλεὺς Ἰούδα καὶ τὰ θηρία τοῦ ἀγροῦ.

ΣΧΟΛΙΑ 1. Κατά ποῖον τρόπον, φησίν, ἐχθρός ἐστι τοῦ Θεοῦ καί ἐκδικητής ὁ διάβολος. 2. Ψυχὴ χωρισθεῖσα ὑπὸ τοῦ διαβόλου, ἁγνοοῦσα ἢ περιφρονοῦσα τὴν θείαν

ἀπειλὴν διὰ τῶν πειρασμῶν, τουτέστι τὴν κόλασιν, ποιεῖ αἰτίαν ἀσεβείας πρὸς τὴν ἐντολήν. Ἐγκαταλείπει γὰρ τὸν Θεὸν καὶ πρὸς τὸν διάβολον φεύγει, θεωροῦσα λυτρωτὴν τὸν ἐχθρόν.

3. Ὅτι κατιωθεῖσαν ψυχήν τῷ ῥύπῳ τῆς ἡδονῆς φησίν, ἀποκαθαίρει πόνος, καί ἀφηλοῖ παντελῶς αὐτῆς τήν σχέσιν τῶν ὑλικῶν, τῆς πρός αὐτά φιλίας τήν ζημίαν μεταμαθοῦσαν· δι᾿ ἥν αἰτίαν ὁ Θεός συγχωρεῖ τῷ διαβόλῳ κατά κρίσιν δικαίαν τούς ἀνθρώπους βασάνοις καταπιέζειν.

4. Τὰ παρόντα, φησί, μόνον τὴν αἴσθησιν κολακεύουσι, μὴ ἀποφέροντα οὐδὲν κέρδος, ἢ δὲ διὰ τοῦ διαβόλου, κατὰ παραχώρησιν τοῦ Θεοῦ, τιμωρία ποιεῖ ἡμᾶς μισῆσαι καὶ περιφρονῆσαι αὐτά.

5. Ὁ πάσχων φησίν, ὑπέρ χάριτος Θεοῦ παραβαθείσης, ἐάν ἐπιγνῷ τῆς ἰωμένης αὐτόν θείας προνοίας τόν λόγον, τήν τε συμφοράν εὐχαρίστως δέχεται χαίρων, καί τήν ὑπέρ ἧς παιδεύεται διορθοῦται πλημμέλειαν· ὁ δέ ταύτης (14Β_184> ἀναισθητῶν τῆς ἰατρείας τῆς δοθείσης, ἐνδίκως ἀπάγεται χάριτος, καί τῇ συγχύσει τῶν παθῶν παραδίδοται· πρός τήν πρᾶξιν ἐλθεῖν καταλιμπανόμενος, ὧν ἐνδιαθέτως εἶχε τήν ἔφεσιν.

6. Τήν μέν εἰρήνην κατά προσηγορίαν εἶχεν τοῦ ὀνόματος· τήν δέ σοφίαν κατά θείαν δωρεάν ὡς προσευχῆς καρπόν εἶχεν ὁ Σαλομῶν.

7. Εἰς τόν φυσικόν νόμον ἐνταῦθα μεταλαμβάνει τόν Ναβουχοδονόσορ, καί εἰς τήν ἕξιν αὐτοῦ τοῦ φυσικοῦ νόμου τόν υἱόν αὐτοῦ Βαλτάσαρ.