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have eaten, so for those nourished on wickedness and evil doctrines, a suitable fire will follow from these foods, which will consume them, not destroying the substance of their soul (for it is indestructible) but the quality, according to which they have become wood, grass, stubble, chaff, and tares, so that when the things that have been added are consumed, the substance that received them may be seen pure. 171 Ps 20,11 And here it is shown not that their substance is destroyed but what they have wickedly brought forth as fruit; these are wicked habits and evil works. Just as plants bearing perfect fruit put forth seed from the ripened fruit itself in order that other plants like them may be produced, so those who have borne fruit in wickedness and impiety sow the seed of teaching in order to make others evil and impious like themselves. God makes this seed disappear from the sons of men. 172 Ps 20,12.13 They have inclined evils toward him, that is, godless doctrines concerning him or attributing the cause of evil to him; and the traitors and proven enemies of the savior have inclined evils toward him. It should be noted that evil things are accomplished by deviation and not by straightness like good things. But through all things the wicked, being perverse, also attempt impossible things; for they devise plots against one who suffers no harm. And perhaps also every evil person, through the things in which he sins, devises a counsel that cannot stand, because wickedness is uncertain and not abiding. For you will make them turn their back; in your remnants you will prepare their face. Those whom God turns away, these he makes a back, though they are able to be a face. Or also thus: those who are not able to see the face of God because they do not have a pure heart, he sets to understand the things behind him, the created things that are after him, so that by contemplating his creation they might receive a conception of him, so that also having cast off the things on account of which they were unable to have a pure face, approaching God they might see the very face of God. Therefore he says: And in your remnants you will prepare their face. And the remnants of God are the things above his sensible creations. 173 Ps 20,14a Since, condescending to our weakness, you have taken on something weak which is stronger than men, having been crucified out of weakness, Be exalted in your strength. 174 Ps 20,14b To sing is to be taken with respect to contemplation, but to psalm with respect to acting according to virtue. Therefore, contemplating the intelligible meaning of your mighty acts and acting according to them, We will sing and psalm your mighty acts, which you performed like a trophy-bearing king against the devil and the opposing powers. It can also mean: we will raise praises of thanksgiving to you who have prevailed against death. 175 Ps 21,1 The morning help is accomplished, when the sun of righteousness rises and makes the beginning of the day; for the rising of the true light, having put an end to the night of ignorance and error, has shone forth a spiritual dawn. And this, beginning, will arrive at the goal of perfect enlightenment, through which enlightenment all other spiritual things were spiritually perfected, since it is the end, for the sake of which are all other things, but it is for the sake of nothing, which they also call the final object of desire, since there is nothing higher than this for which one might long, because this is the most final good. The inscription therefore of the present psalm is sung 'to the end of the morning help' for David, that is, for the one born of his seed according to the flesh. And this too should be observed, that the psalm preserves one speaking person from beginning to end, with not one change being found regarding the speaking person. And since the New Testament took words from the psalm as having been spoken by Christ, it is necessary to interpret all of it from the person of Christ. And we will point out the words which the New Testament used, when we get to them.

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βεβρωκόσιν, ουτω τοῖς τραφεῖσιν τὴν κακίαν καὶ τὰ φαῦλα δόγματα ἀκολουθήσει ἐκ τούτων τῶν τροφῶν κατάλληλον πῦρ, ο καταφάγεται αὐτοὺς οὐκ ἀναλίσκον αὐτῶν τὴν τῆς ψυχῆς οὐσίαν (ἀνώλεθρος γὰρ αυτη) ἀλλὰ τὴν ποιότητα, καθ' ην ξύλα χόρτον καλάμην αχυρα καὶ ζιζάνια γεγένηνται, ινα τῶν ἐπισυμβάντων ἀναλωθέντων καθαρὰ ἡ δεδεγμένη αὐτὰ οὐσία ὀφθῇ. 171 Ps 20,11 Καὶ ἐνταῦθα δείκνυται οὐχ ἡ οὐσία αὐτῶν ἀπολλυμένη ἀλλ' α κακῶς ἐκαρποφόρησαν· εξεις δὲ μοχθηραὶ καὶ φαῦλα εργα ἐστίν. Ωσπερ τὰ καρπὸν τέλειον φέροντα φυτὰ ἐξ αὐτοῦ τοῦ πληρωθέντος καρποῦ προβάλλονται σπέρμα ἐπὶ τῷ ομοια αὐτοῖς ετερα φυτὰ γενέσθαι, ουτως οἱ ἐν κακίᾳ καὶ δυσσεβείᾳ καρποφορήσαντες διδασκαλίας σπέρμα καταβάλλονται ἐπὶ τῷ ὁμοίους αὐτῶν φαύλους καὶ δυσσεβεῖς ποιῆσαι. τούτου τὸ σπέρμα ἀφανίζει θεὸς ἀπὸ τῶν υἱῶν τῶν ἀνθρώπων. 172 Ps 20,12.13 Εκλιναν εἰς αὐτὸν κακὰ ητοι αθεα περὶ αὐτοῦ δόγματα η τὴν αἰτίαν τῆς κακίας προσάπτοντες αὐτῷ· ἐξέκλιναν δὲ κακὰ εἰς τὸν σωτῆρα οἱ προδόται καὶ ἐχθροὶ αὐτοῦ ἀποδεδειγμένοι. σημειωτέον οτι κατ' εκκλισιν ἐπιτελεῖται τὰ κακὰ καὶ οὐ κατ' εὐθύτητα ωσπερ τὰ ἀγαθά. διὰ πάντων δὲ οἱ φαῦλοι διαστραφέντες καὶ ἀδυνάτοις ἐγχειροῦσιν· διαλογίζονται γὰρ ἐπιβουλευτικῶς κατὰ τοῦ βλάβην μὴ ὑπομένοντος. τάχα δὲ καὶ πᾶς κακός, δι' ων ἁμαρτάνει, διαλογίζεται βουλὴν τὴν μὴ δυναμένην στῆναι τῷ ἀβέβαιον καὶ μὴ μένουσαν ειναι τὴν κακίαν. Οτι θήσεις αὐτοὺς νῶτον· ἐν τοῖς περιλοίποις σου ἑτοιμάσεις τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτῶν. ους ἀποστρέφεται ὁ θεός, τούτους νῶτον τίθεται δυναμένους ειναι πρόσωπον. Η καὶ ουτως· τοὺς μὴ οιους τε ὁρᾶν τὸ πρόσωπον τοῦ θεοῦ τῷ μὴ εχειν καρδίαν καθαρὰν τίθεται κατανοεῖν τὰ ὀπίσω αὐτοῦ τὰ μετ' αὐτὸν οντα δημιουργήματα, ινα τὴν κτίσιν αὐτοῦ θεωροῦντες εννοιαν αὐτοῦ λάβωσιν, ινα καὶ ἀποβαλόντες δι' α ἀδυνάτως εσχον καθαρὸν εχειν πρόσωπον, προσβαλόντες τῷ θεῷ αὐτὸ τὸ τοῦ θεοῦ πρόσωπον ιδωσιν. διό φησιν· Καὶ ἐν τοῖς περιλοίποις σου ἑτοιμάσεις τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτῶν. περίλοιπα δὲ τοῦ θεοῦ τὰ ἀνωτέρω τῶν αἰσθητῶν κτισμάτων αὐτοῦ ἐστιν. 173 Ps 20,14a ̓Επεὶ συγκαταβαίνων τῇ ἀσθενείᾳ ἡμῶν ἀσθενές τι ἀνείληφας οπερ ἰσχυρότερον τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐστίν, σταυρωθεὶς ἐξ ἀσθενείας, ̔Υψώθητι ἐν τῇ δυνάμει σου. 174 Ps 20,14b Τὸ ᾳδειν ἐπὶ θεωρίας ληπτέον, τὸ δὲ ψάλλειν ἐπὶ τῷ κατὰ ἀρετὴν ἐνεργεῖν. θεωροῦντες ουν τὸ νοητὸν τῶν δυναστείων καὶ πράττοντες κατ' αὐτάς, Αισομεν καὶ ψαλοῦμεν τὰς δυναστείας σου, ας ἐδυναστεύσας οια τροπαιοῦχος βασιλεὺς κατὰ διαβόλου καὶ τῶν ἀντικειμένων δυνάμεων. δύναται δηλοῦν καὶ τὸ Χαριστηρίους αινους ἀνακρουσόμεθά σοι δυναστεύσαντι κατὰ τοῦ θανάτου. 175 Ps 21,1 ̓Αντίληψις ἑωθινὴ κατορθοῦται, τοῦ ἡλίου τῆς δικαιοσύνης ἀνίσχοντος καὶ ἀρχὴν ἡμέρας κατασκευάζοντος· ἡ γὰρ ἀνατολὴ τοῦ ἀληθινοῦ φωτὸς τῇ νυκτὶ τῆς ἀγνοίας καὶ πλάνης τέλος ἐπιθεῖσα εω πνευματικὴν ἀνέλαμψεν. αυτη δὲ ἀρχομένη ἐπὶ τέλος φωτισμοῦ τελείου καταντήσει, δι' ον φωτισμὸν πάντα τὰ αλλα πνευματικὰ πνευματικῶς ἐτελέσθη τῷ τέλος ειναι, ου χάριν τὰ αλλα πάντα, αὐτὸ δὲ οὐδενὸς ενεκα, ο καὶ εσχατον ὀρεκτὸν καλοῦσιν τῷ μὴ ειναι ἀνωτέρω τούτου ου τις ὀρεχθείη τῷ τοῦτο ειναι τὸ τελικώτατον ἀγαθόν. ̔Η προγραφὴ ουν τοῦ προκειμένου ψαλμοῦ εἰς τέλος ᾳδεται τῆς ἑωθινῆς ἀντιλήψεως τῷ ∆αυίδ, τουτέστιν τῷ ἐκ σπέρματος αὐτοῦ τὸ κατὰ σάρκα γεγενημένῳ. καὶ τοῦτο δὲ τηρητέον οτι φυλάττει πρόσωπον εν λέγον ἀπ' ἀρχῆς μέχρι τέλους ὁ ψαλμὸς οὐδὲ μιᾶς μεταβολῆς εὑρισκομένης περὶ τὸ λέγον πρόσωπον. καὶ ἐπεὶ ἡ καινὴ διαθήκη λέξεις ἀπὸ τοῦ ψαλμοῦ ελαβεν ὡς ὑπὸ τοῦ Χριστοῦ ῥηθείσας, ἀνάγκη πάντα αὐτὸν ἐκ προσώπου τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἑρμηνεῦσαι. δηλώσομεν δὲ τὰς λέξεις, αις ἡ καινὴ διαθήκη ἐχρήσατο, ἐπ' αὐτὰς φθάσαντες.