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141And the Lord will have mercy on Jacob and will yet choose Israel, and they will rest upon their land, and the stranger shall be added to them and shall be added to Jacob. In the Greek language, *gioras* is interpreted as proselyte; and the Jews called those coming from the nations |120 b| who embraced the legal way of life proselytes. 2And nations shall take them and bring them into their place, and they shall inherit and be multiplied. For Cyrus sent with them those who would lead them back with honor and care to the land that bore them. And the sons of Israel will divide them upon the land of God for male and female slaves. For having overcome the neighboring peoples, they enslaved them and having taken them captive, forced them to serve. And those who took them captive will be captives, and those who ruled them will be ruled, the Babylonians and all the Assyrians. 3And it shall be in that day, when the Lord gives you rest from your pain and from your anger and from your harsh bondage in which you served them, 4and you will take up this lament against the king of Babylon. The change of circumstances also works a change of words. Therefore, the divine prophet here foretells what words they will use to one another after their freedom and return, singing of the destruction of the Babylonians. And you shall say in that day: How the exactor has ceased and the taskmaster has ceased! The Babylonian demanded a very heavy tribute from all his subjects; but with the kingdom overthrown, the ruled were freed from the tax. 5The Lord has broken the yoke of the sinners and the yoke of the rulers, 6striking a nation in wrath with an incurable blow, smiting a nation in anger with a blow which he did not spare. The Assyrians, having ruled the world for a very long time, when they raged against the God of all and burned the divine temple, they fell from their kingdom; for he called the overthrow of the kingdom and the desolation of the royal city an incurable blow. 7The whole earth has rested confidently and cries out with gladness. All rejoiced at the destruction of the Babylonians; for they had used the utmost savagery against everyone. 8And the trees of Lebanon rejoiced over you, and the cedars of Lebanon will say: Since you have been laid to rest, no one has come up to cut us down. Some have thought Lebanon is here named for Jerusalem; but I think that the kings according to the nations are called cedars of Lebanon, with the height of the kingdom thus tropically understood. 9Hades below was embittered at meeting you at your coming. The divine scripture is accustomed to use personification so as to show matters more clearly. And so here it introduces death not as some substance but as a contingent thing, as if it were a hypostasis, animate and rational, indignant against the king of the Babylonians. He stirred up against you all the giants who ruled the earth who rose up from their thrones. All the kings of the nations 10all will answer and say to you. He says that he gathered all the renowned and admired ones .............................. of you and mocking you and saying: You also have been captured just as we, and you have been counted among us. 11Your glory and your great gladness have gone down to Hades. Through these things the prophetic word rebukes his unnatural and excessive pride; for he did not expect to be handed over to death, but considered himself to be a god on account of his great power. For this reason he has added the rest: They shall spread decay under you, and your covering will be the worm. He says that having expected to ascend to heaven, you have taken possession of the bottom of the earth and instead of the costly purple robe you have the covering of worms, |121 a| and instead of the soft mattress, putrefaction and foul-smelling ichor. 12How the morning star, that rises early, has fallen from heaven! He who sends to all the nations has been crushed to the earth. Since, following his boastful thoughts, he hoped to ascend into heaven, he calls him morning star not as

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141Καὶ ἐλεήσει κύριος τὸν Ἰακὼβ καὶ ἐκλέξεται ἔτι τὸν Ἰσραήλ, καὶ ἀναπαύσονται ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς αὐτῶν, καὶ ὁ γιώρας προστεθήσεται πρὸς αὐτοὺς καὶ προστεθήσεται πρὸς τὸν Ἰακώβ. Γιώρας τῇ Ἑλλάδι φωνῇ ὁ προσήλυτος ἑρμηνεύεται· προσηλύτους δὲ ἐκάλουν Ἰουδαῖοι τοὺς ἐκ τῶν ἐθνῶν προσιόντας |120 b| καὶ τὴν νομικὴν πολιτείαν ἀσπαζομένους. 2Καὶ λήψονται αὐτοὺς ἔθνη καὶ εἰσάξουσιν εἰς τὸν τόπον αὐτῶν, καὶ κατακληρονομήσουσι καὶ πληθυνθήσονται. Συναπέστειλε γὰρ αὐτοῖς ὁ Κῦρος τοὺς μετὰ τιμῆς αὐτοὺς καὶ θεραπείας εἰς τὴν ἐνεγκοῦσαν ἀπάξοντας. Καὶ καταδι ελοῦνται αὐτοὺς οἱ υἱοὶ Ἰσραὴλ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς τοῦ θεοῦ εἰς δούλους καὶ δούλας. Περιγενόμενοι γὰρ τῶν πλησιοχώρων κατεδουλώσαντο αὐτοὺς καὶ ἐξανδραποδίσαντες δουλεύειν ἠνάγκασαν. Καὶ ἔσονται αἰχμάλωτοι οἱ αἰχμαλωτεύσαντες αὐτοὺς καὶ κυριευθήσονται ὡς κυριεύσαντες αὐτῶν, Βαβυ λώνιοι καὶ πάντες Ἀσσύριοι. 3Καὶ ἔσται ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ, ᾗ ἂν ἀναπαύσῃ σε κύριος ἀπὸ τῆς ὀδύνης σου καὶ τοῦ θυμοῦ καὶ τῆς δουλείας σου τῆς σκληρᾶς ἧς ἐδούλευσας αὐτοῖς, 4καὶ λήψῃ τὸν θρῆνον τοῦτον ἐπὶ τὸν βασιλέα Βαβυλῶνος. Ἡ τῶν πραγμάτων μεταβολὴ καὶ λόγων ἐργάζεται μεταβολήν. Προλέγει τοίνυν κἀνταῦθα ὁ θεῖος προφήτης ποίοις μετὰ τὴν ἐλευθε ρίαν καὶ τὴν ἐπάνοδον πρὸς ἀλλήλους χρήσονται λόγοις τῶν Βαβυλωνίων τραγῳδοῦντες τὸν ὄλεθρον. Καὶ ἐρεῖς ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ· Πῶς ἀναπέπαυται ὁ ἀπαιτῶν καὶ ἀναπέ παυται ὁ ἐπισπουδαστής; Φόρον ἀπῄτει βαρύτατον πάντας τοὺς ὑπηκόους ὁ Βαβυλώνιος· τῆς δὲ βασιλείας καταλυ θείσης ἀπηλλάγησαν οἱ ἀρχόμενοι τοῦ δασμοῦ. 5Συνέτριψε κύριος τὸν ζυγὸν τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν καὶ τὸν ζυγὸν τῶν ἀρχόντων, 6πατάξας ἔθνος θυμοῦ πληγῇ ἀνιάτῳ, παίων ἔθνος θυμοῦ πληγῇ ἣ οὐκ ἐφείσατο. Ἐπὶ πλεῖον Ἀσσύριοι τῆς οἰκουμένης κρατήσαντες, ἡνίκα κατὰ τοῦ θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων ἐλύττησαν καὶ τὸν θεῖον νεὼν ἐνέπρησαν, τῆς βασιλείας ἐξέπεσον· ἀνίατον γὰρ πληγὴν τὴν κατάλυσιν τῆς βασιλείας ἐκάλεσε καὶ τὴν τῆς βασιλικῆς πόλεως ἐρημίαν. 7Ἀνεπαύσατο πεποιθότως πᾶσα ἡ γῆ καὶ βοᾷ μετ' εὐφρο σύνης. Εὐφράνθησαν ἅπαντες τῷ τῶν Βαβυλωνίων ὀλέθρῳ· θηριωδίᾳ γὰρ ὅτι πλείστῃ κατὰ πάντων ἐχρήσαντο. 8Καὶ τὰ ξύλα τοῦ Λιβάνου εὐφράνθησαν ἐπὶ σοί, καὶ αἱ κέδροι τοῦ Λιβάνου ἐροῦσιν· Ἀφ' οὗ σὺ κεκοίμησαι, οὐκ ἀνέβη ὁ κόπτων ἡμᾶς. Λίβανόν τινες ἐνταῦθα τὴν Ἱερουσαλὴμ ᾠήθησαν ὀνομάζεσθαι· ἐγὼ δὲ οἶμαι τοὺς κατὰ ἔθνος βασιλέας κέδρους κληθῆναι Λιβάνου, τοῦ τῆς βασιλείας ὕψους οὕτω τροπικῶς νοουμένου. 9Ὁ ᾅδης κάτωθεν ἐπικράνθη συναντήσας σοι ἐρχομένου σου. Εἴωθεν ἡ θεία γραφὴ καὶ προσωποποιίᾳ κεχρῆσθαι ὥστε σαφέστερον δεῖξαι τὰ πράγματα. Κἀνταῦθα τοίνυν τὸν θάνατον οὐκ οὐσίαν ὄντα τινὰ ἀλλὰ πρᾶγμα συμβαῖνον ὡς ἐνυπόστατον εἰσάγει, ἔμψυχόν τε καὶ λογικόν, κατὰ τοῦ Βαβυλωνίων βασιλέως ἀγανακτοῦντα. ∆ιήγειρε κατὰ σοῦ γίγαντας πάντας τοὺς ἄρξαντας τῆς γῆς οἳ ἀνέστησαν ἀπὸ τῶν θρόνων αὐτῶν. Πάντες οἱ βασιλεῖς τῶν ἐθνῶν 10πάντες ἀποκριθήσονται καὶ ἐροῦσίν σοι. Ἅ παν τας συνήγαγέ φησι τοὺς περιφανεῖς καὶ περιβλέπτους .............................. τάς σου καὶ ἐπιτωθάζοντάς σου καὶ λέγοντας· Καὶ σὺ ἑάλως ὥσπερ καὶ ἡμεῖς, ἐν ἡμῖν δὲ κατελογίσθης. 11Κατέβη εἰς ᾅδου ἡ δόξα σου καὶ ἡ πολλὴ εὐφροσύνη σου. Ἐλέγχει δὲ διὰ τούτων ὁ προφητικὸς λόγος τὸ ὑπερφυὲς αὐτοῦ καὶ ὑπέρογκον φρό νημα· οὔτε γὰρ ἤλπισε τῷ θανάτῳ παραδοθήσεσθαι, ἀλλ' ἐνόμισεν εἶναι διὰ τὴν πολλὴν δυναστείαν θεός. ∆ιὸ καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ προστέθεικεν· Ὑποκάτω σου στρώσουσι σῆψιν καὶ τὸ κατακάλυμμά σου σκώληξ. Εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν φησιν ἀνελθεῖν προσδοκήσας τῆς γῆς τὸν πυθμένα κατέλαβες καὶ ἀντὶ τῆς πολυτελοῦς ἁλουργίδος ἔχεις τῶν σκωλή κων τὸ κάλυμμα, |121 a| ἀντὶ δὲ τῆς μαλακῆς στρώμνης τὴν σηπεδόνα καὶ τὸν δυσώδη ἰχῶρα. 12Πῶς ἐξέπεσεν ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ὁ ἑωσφόρος ὁ πρωὶ ἀνατέλλων; Συνετρίβη εἰς τὴν γῆν ὁ ἀποστέλλων πρὸς πάντα τὰ ἔθνη. Ἐπειδὴ τοῖς ἀλαζονικοῖς ἑπόμενος λογισμοῖς εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν ἤλπισεν ἀναβήσεσθαι, ἑωσφόρον αὐτὸν καλεῖ οὐχ ὡς