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with the waters also being done away with and carried about at random, a pit of mud was necessarily formed. Thus says the Lord Sabaoth, 24saying: In what manner I have spoken, so it shall be, and in what manner I have planned, so it shall be. And .................... |121 b| nothing will persuade me not to bring to fulfillment what has been spoken. 25To destroy the Assyrians on my land and on my mountains, and they will be for trampling. And from this it is clear that he calls the same people both Assyrians and Babylonians. For again, leaving behind Nebuchadnezzar and those born from him and fallen from the kingdom, he brought the discourse back to Sennacherib; for his army, while besieging Jerusalem, endured that much-celebrated destruction. And their yoke shall be taken away from them, and their glory shall be taken away from their shoulders. He calls servitude a yoke; for it is placed upon subjects like a yoke. 26This is the plan which the Lord has planned for the whole world, and this is the high hand over all the nations. For the destruction of the Assyrians and Babylonians was a comfort for all the nations, since they held power over all who dwelt in Asia and Egypt. And those dwelling in Europe, learning of this sudden change of theirs, also received benefit from it. 27For what the holy God has planned, who shall frustrate it? And his high hand, who shall turn it back? This he also said through the blessed Moses: “I will kill and I will make alive, I will strike and I will heal, and there is no one who shall deliver from my hands.” Here, having concluded the prophecy against Babylon, he turns the discourse to the Allophyles. The Hebrew tongue calls the Allophyles 'Philistim,' and the name, when Hellenized, denotes Palestine. The Seventy call these 'Allophyles' as being neighbors to the Judeans, but being of another race and not sharing in kinship with the Judeans. Therefore the prophetic word says: 28In the year that king Ahaz died, this word came to be. By these words he indicated the time of the prophecy. 29Do not rejoice, all you Allophyles, that the yoke of him who struck you has been broken. Ahaz, having become impious, did not receive divine assistance. For this reason he became an easy victim for all his neighbors, and not only did the ten tribes with the Syrians war against him, but the Allophyles also, in addition to the others, plundered many of his cities and villages. Nevertheless they were glad, having learned of his death, hoping to take all the cities of the Judeans. The prophetic word exhorts them not to be glad, as if the kingdom that fought against them had been completely destroyed because of the impiety of Ahaz. For from the seed of serpents will come forth the offspring of asps, and their offspring will come forth as flying serpents. The wonderful Hezekiah, having become pious and for this reason enjoying divine favor, put a stop to the audacity of the Allophyles. He calls him the offspring of asps, not as one imitating their wickedness, but as one who inflicted such a plague upon the Allophyles. 30And the poor shall be fed by the Lord, and poor men shall rest in peace. The Judeans, he says, who are now despised by you as worthless, will be shepherded by God and will be delivered from the attacking wolves and will continue in peace. And through these things he signifies the deliverance from the Assyrians. But he will destroy your seed with famine and he will destroy your remnant. He will waste you away with want and famine and deliver you to a most miserable death. And through these things he signifies the siege that was carried out by the Babylonians. And what follows also makes clear: 31Wail, gates of cities, let the troubled cities cry out, all the Allophyles, because smoke comes from the north and it is not possible to remain in his ranks. The gates are neither rational nor animate; through the gates, therefore, he alludes to those standing at the gates and lamenting the approaching evils. And by the smoke coming from the north he means the Assyrian, at whose approach no one stands against

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ἀναιρεθέντων καὶ τῶν ὑδάτων ὡς ἔτυχε φερομένων, πηλοῦ βάραθρον ἀναγκαίως ἐγένετο. Τάδε λέγει κύριος Σαβαὼθ 24λέγων· Ὃν τρόπον εἴρηκα οὕτως ἔσται, καὶ ὃν τρόπον βεβούλευμαι οὕτως ἔσται. Καὶ .................... |121 b| οὐδέν με πείσει μὴ ἐπιθεῖναι τοῖς εἰρημένοις τὸ πέρας. 25Τοῦ ἀπολέσαι τοὺς Ἀσσυρίους ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς τῆς ἐμῆς καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ὀρέων μου, καὶ ἔσονται εἰς καταπάτημα. Καὶ ἐντεῦθεν δῆλον ὡς τοὺς αὐτοὺς καὶ Ἀσσυρίους καὶ Βαβυλωνίους καλεῖ. Πάλιν γὰρ τὸν Ναβουχοδονόσορ καταλιπὼν καὶ τοὺς ἐξ ἐκείνου φύντας καὶ τῆς βασιλείας ἐκπεπτωκότας ἐπὶ τὸν Σεναχηρὶμ ἐπανή γαγε τὸν λόγον· ἡ γὰρ ἐκείνου στρατιὰ πολιορκοῦσα τὴν Ἱερουσαλὴμ τὸν πολυθρύλητον ἐκεῖνον ὑπέμεινεν ὄλεθρον. Καὶ ἀφαιρεθήσεται ἀπ' αὐτῶν ὁ ζυγὸς αὐτῶν, καὶ τὸ κῦδος αὐτῶν ἀπὸ τῶν ὤμων αὐτῶν ἀφαιρεθήσεται. Ζυγὸν τὴν δου λείαν καλεῖ· αὕτη γὰρ τοῖς ὑπηκόοις ζυγοῦ δίκην ἐπίκειται. 26Αὕτη ἡ βουλὴ ἣν βεβούλευται κύριος ἐπὶ ὅλην τὴν οἰκουμένην, καὶ αὕτη ἡ χεὶρ <ἡ> ὑψηλὴ ἐπὶ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη. Ἡ γὰρ Ἀσσυρίων καὶ Βαβυλωνίων κατάλυσις τῶν ἐθνῶν ἦν ἁπάντων παραψυχή, ἐπειδὴ κατὰ πάντων τῶν τὴν Ἀσίαν καὶ τὴν Αἴγυπτον οἰκούντων εἶχον τὸ κράτος. Καὶ οἱ τὴν Εὐρώπην δὲ οἰκοῦντες τὴν ἀθρόαν τούτων μανθάνοντες μεταβολὴν ὄνησιν ἐντεῦθεν ἐδέχοντο. 27Ἃ γὰρ ὁ θεὸς ὁ ἅγιος βεβούλευται, τίς διασκεδάσει; Καὶ τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ τὴν ὑψηλὴν τίς ἀποστρέψει; Τοῦτο καὶ διὰ τοῦ μακαρίου Μωυσέως ἔφη· «Ἐγὼ ἀποκτενῶ καὶ ζῆν ποιήσω, πατάξω κἀγὼ ἰάσομαι, καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ὃς ἐξελεῖται ἐκ τῶν χειρῶν μου.» Ἐνταῦθα συμπεράνας τὴν κατὰ Βαβυλῶνος πρόρρησιν πρὸς τοὺς Ἀλλοφύλους τρέπει τὸν λόγον. Τοὺς δὲ Ἀλλοφύλους Φυλιστιὶμ ἡ Ἑβραία φωνὴ καλεῖ, ἐξελληνιζόμενον δὲ τὸ ὄνομα τὴν Παλαιστίνην δηλοῖ. Τούτους οἱ Ἑβδομήκοντα Ἀλλοφύλους καλοῦσιν ὡς γειτονεύοντας μὲν τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις, ἀλλογενεῖς δὲ ὄντας καὶ κατὰ τὴν συγγένειαν Ἰουδαίοις οὐ κοινωνοῦντας. Φησὶ τοίνυν ὁ προφητικὸς λόγος· 28Τοῦ ἔτους οὗ ἀπέθανεν ὁ Ἄχαζ ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐγενήθη τὸ ῥῆμα τοῦτο. ∆ιὰ τούτων ἐσήμανε τὸν τῆς προφητείας καιρόν. 29Μὴ εὐφρανθείητε πάντες Ἀλλόφυλοι, ὅτι συνετρίβη ὁ ζυγὸς τοῦ παίοντος ὑμᾶς. ∆υσσεβὴς ὁ Ἄχαζ γενόμενος τῆς θείας ἐπικουρίας οὐκ ἔτυχεν. Τούτου χάριν εὐχείρωτος πᾶσι τοῖς πλησιοχώροις ἐγένετο, καὶ οὐ μόνον αὐτὸν αἱ δέκα φυλαὶ μετὰ τῶν Σύρων κατεπολέμησαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ Ἀλλόφυλοι πρὸς τοῖς ἄλλοις πολλὰς αὐτοῦ πόλεις καὶ κώμας διήρπασαν. Ἥσθησαν δὲ ὅμως τούτου μεμαθηκότες τὴν τελευτήν, πάσας ἐλπίσαντες λήψεσθαι τῶν Ἰουδαίων τὰς πόλεις. Τούτοις ὁ προφητικὸς παρακελεύεται λόγος μὴ ἡσθῆναι, ὡς τῆς καταγωνιζομένης αὐτοὺς βασιλείας παντελῶς καταλυθείσης διὰ τὴν τοῦ Ἄχαζ ἀσέβειαν. Ἐκ γὰρ σπέρματος ὄφεων ἐξελεύσεται ἔκγονα ἀσπίδων, καὶ τὰ ἔκγονα αὐτῶν ἐξελεύσονται ὄφεις πετόμενοι. Ὁ θαυ μάσιος Ἐζεκίας εὐσεβὴς γενόμενος καὶ τῆς θείας διὰ τοῦτο ῥοπῆς ἀπολαύσας ἔπαυσε τὴν τῶν Ἀλλοφύλων θρασύτητα. Τοῦτον ἔκγονα ἀσπίδων καλεῖ οὐχ ὡς τὴν ἐκείνων πονηρίαν μιμούμενον ἀλλ' ὡς τοῖς Ἀλλοφύλοις τοιαύτην ἐπενεγκόντα πληγήν. 30Καὶ βοσκηθήσονται πτωχοὶ διὰ κυρίου, πένητες δὲ ἄνθρωποι ἐπ' εἰρήνης ἀναπαύσονται. Οἱ νῦν φησι παρ' ὑμῶν ὡς εὐτελεῖς καταφρονούμενοι Ἰουδαῖοι ὑπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ ποιμανθήσονται καὶ τῶν ἐπιόντων ἀπαλλαγήσονται λύκων καὶ ἐν εἰρήνῃ διατελέσουσιν. Σημαίνει δὲ διὰ τούτων τὴν τῶν Ἀσσυρίων ἀπαλλαγήν. Ἀνελεῖ δὲ λιμῷ τὸ σπέρμα σου καὶ τὸ κατάλειμμά σου ἀνελεῖ. Ἐνδείᾳ σε καὶ λιμῷ κατατήξει καὶ τῷ οἰκτίστῳ παραδώσει θανάτῳ. ∆ιὰ δὲ τούτων τὴν πολιορκίαν σημαίνει τὴν ὑπὸ Βαβυλωνίων γεγενημένην. ∆ηλοῖ δὲ καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς· 31Ὀλολύζετε πύλαι πόλεων, κεκραγέτωσαν πόλεις τετα ραγμέναι, οἱ Ἀλλόφυλοι πάντες, ὅτι καπνὸς ἀπὸ βορρᾶ ἔρχεται καὶ οὐκ ἔ<σ>τι τοῦ μεῖναι ἐν τοῖς συντεταγμένοις αὐτοῦ. Αἱ πύλαι οὔτε λογικαί εἰσιν οὔτε ἔμψυχοι· διὰ τῶν πυλῶν τοίνυν τοὺς ἐπὶ τῶν πυλῶν ἑστῶτας καὶ τὰ ἐπιόντα κακὰ θρηνοῦντας αἰνίττεται. Καπνὸν δὲ ἀπὸ βορρᾶ ἐρχό μενον τὸν Ἀσσύριον λέγει, οὗ ἐπιόντος οὐδεὶς ἀντιπαρα