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all the earth has been made desolate, because there is no man who lays it to heart. It seems to be the voice of our Lord and Savior that also says, concerning the temple in Jerusalem, "I have forsaken my house;" 136 and concerning the former synagogue, which was once His portion and the lot of His inheritance, "I have abandoned my inheritance," according to, "how often I would have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing. Behold, your house is left to you desolate." But He himself who said, "No one takes my life from me; I have authority to lay it down," says; and, "I have given my beloved soul into the hands of her enemies." And to Him the former inheritance became like a lion in the thicket; and it raised its voice against Him, when, having handed Him over to Pilate, they stood accusing Him and all but shouting, "Away with him, away with him, crucify him!" For this reason He says, "I have hated her," because of her works worthy of hatred, and because she showed nothing toward Him worthy of love; but what follows, and especially, "because of me all the earth has been utterly laid waste," seems to signify the complete capture and captivity of the former people on account of the Savior after His passion, and the final desolation of Jerusalem. Ps. Of the same. 35. O Lord, my strength, and my help, and my refuge in the day of evils; to you nations will come from the end of the earth, and will say, How our fathers acquired false idols, and there is no benefit in them! Shall a man make gods for himself, and they are not gods? Therefore, behold, I will show them at this time my hand, and I will make known to them my power, and 137 they will know that I am the Lord. The sin of Judah is written with an iron pen, with a diamond point engraved upon the breast of their heart. Having prophesied concerning those who through Christ have come to know the God of all, the word proceeds to speak about the sin of the people of the Jews against the Savior, signifying that it will be indelible, according to the words set forth with asterisks; which one can also apply to Judas the traitor, as one foreknown and fore-announced by name by the divine Spirit. Ps. Of the same. 30. Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, and I will raise up for David a righteous branch, and a king shall reign, and shall understand, and shall execute judgment and righteousness on the earth. In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely, and this is the name that the Lord will call them, Josedek among the prophets. In that day, said the Lord, I will break the yoke from their neck, and I will burst their bonds, and they shall no longer serve strangers, but they shall serve the Lord their God, and David their king I will raise up for them. Similar things to these are also said in another place of the same prophet, in these words: Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, and I will raise up for you my good word, which I spoke concerning the house of Jerusalem and concerning the house of Judah; in those days and at that time I will cause to spring up for David a righteous 138 branch. To which he adds in succession, that thus says the Lord: There shall not be cut off from David a man sitting on the throne of the house of Israel; and to the Levitical priests, there shall not be cut off a man from my presence offering whole burnt offerings and sacrificing a sacrifice, and making an offering all the days. And again: Thus says the Lord: if you can break my covenant with the day, and my covenant with the night, so that there should not be day and night in their season; then indeed my covenant may be broken with David my servant, so that he should not have a son reigning on his throne, and with the Levites, the priests who minister to me; as the host of heaven cannot be numbered, nor the sand of the sea be measured, so will I multiply the seed of David my servant and the Levites who minister to me. And again after a little

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ἠφανίσθη πᾶσα ἡ γῆ, ὅτι οὐκ ἔστιν ἀνὴρ τιθέμενος ἐν καρδίᾳ. Ἔοικε τοῦ Κυρίου καὶ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν εἶναι φωνὴ καὶ ἡ φάσκουσα περὶ μὲν τοῦ ἐν Ἱερουσαλὴμ νέω τὸ, ἐγκαταλέλοιπα τὸν οἶκόν μου· περὶ 136 δὲ τῆς προτέρας συναγωγῆς, ἣ καὶ μερὶς ποτὲ καὶ σχοίνισμα κληρονομίας αὐτοῦ γέγονεν, τὸ, ἀφῆκα τὴν κληρονομίαν μου, κατὰ τὸ, ποσάκις ἠθέλησα ἐπισυναγαγεῖν τὰ τέκνα σου, ὃν τρόπον ὄρνις ἐπισυνάξει τὰ νοσσία αὐτῆς ὑπὸ τὰς πτέρυγας, καὶ οὐκ ἠθελήσατε, Ἰδοὺ ἀφίεται ὑμῖν ὁ οἶκος ὑμῶν ἔρημος. Αὐτὸς δ' ὁ εἰπὼν, οὐδεὶς αἴρει τὴν ψυχήν μου ἀπ' ἐμοῦ· ἐξουσίαν ἔχω θεῖναι αὐτὴν, φησίν· καὶ τὸ, ἔδωκα τὴν ἠγαπημένην ψυχήν μου εἰς χεῖρας ἐχθρῶν αὐτῆς. Τούτῳ δὲ καὶ ἐγενήθη ἡ προτέρα κληρονομία ὡς λέων ἐν δρυμῷ· ἔδωκέν τε ἐπ' αὐτὸν τὴν φωνὴν αὐτῆς, ὁπηνίκα παραδόντες αὐτὸν τῷ Πιλάτῳ ἑστήκεισαν κατηγοροῦντες αὐτοῦ καὶ μονονουχὶ βοῶντες, αἶρε, αἶρε, σταύρου αὐτόν· διὰ τοῦτο δέ φησιν, ἐμίσησα αὐτὴν, διὰ τὰ μίσους ἄξια αὐτῆς ἔργα, καὶ διὰ τὸ μηδὲν εἰς αὐτὸν ἀγάπης ἄξιον ἐπιδείξασθαι· τὸ δ' ἑξῆς, καὶ μάλιστα τὸ, δι' ἐμὲ ἀφανισμῷ ἠφανίσθη πᾶσα ἡ γῆ, ἔοικεν δηλοῦν τὴν διὰ τὸν Σωτῆρα μετὰ τὸ πάθος αὐτοῦ τελείαν γενομένην ἅλωσιν καὶ αἰχμαλωσίαν τοῦ προτέρου λαοῦ, καὶ τὴν εἰς ἔσχατον τῆς Ἱερουσαλὴμ ἐρήμωσιν. Ψ. Τοῦ αὐτοῦ. ΛΕʹ. Κύριε ἰσχύς μου, καὶ βοηθεία μου, καὶ καταφυγή μου ἐν ἡμέρᾳ κακῶν· πρὸς σὲ ἔθνη ἥξουσιν ἀπ' ἐσχάτου τῆς γῆς, καὶ ἑροῦσιν, Ὡς ψευδῆ ἐκτήσαντο οἱ πατέρες ἡμῶν εἴδωλα, καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ἐν αὐτοῖς ὠφέλημα; Εἰ ποιήσει ἑαυτῷ ἄνθρωπος θεοὺς, καὶ αὐτοὶ οὐκ εἰσὶ θεοί. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο, ἰδοὺ, ἐγὼ δηλώσω αὐτοῖς ἐν τῷ καιρῷ τούτῳ τὴν χεῖρά μου, καὶ γνωριῶ αὐτοῖς τὴν δύναμίν μου, καὶ 137 γνώσονται ὅτι ἐγὼ Κύριος. Ἁμαρτία Ἰούδα γέγραπται ἐν γραφείῳ σιδηρῷ, ἐν ὄνυχι ἀδαμαντίνῳ ἐκκεκολαμμένη ἐπὶ τοῦ στήθους τῆς καρδίας αὐτῶν. Περὶ τῶν διὰ Χριστοῦ τὸν τῶν ὅλων ἐπεγνωκότων Θεὸν προφητεύσας ὁ λόγος, ἑξῆς ἐπάγει περὶ τῆς κατὰ τοῦ Σωτῆρος τοῦ Ἰουδαίων λαοῦ ἁμαρτίας, ἀνεξάλειπτον αὐτὴν ἔσεσθαι σημαίνων κατὰ τὰς παρατεθείσας μετὰ ἀστερίσκων λέξεις· ἃς δύναταί τις καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ προδότου Ἰούδα ἐφαρμόζειν, ὡς καὶ ὀνομαστὶ τῷ θείῳ Πνεύματι προεγνωσμένου τε καὶ προαναπεφωνημένου. Ψ. Τοῦ αὐτοῦ. Λʹ. Ἰδοὺ, ἡμέραι ἔρχονται, λέγει Κύριος, καὶ ἀναστήσω τῷ ∆αυὶδ ἀνατολὴν δικαίαν, καὶ βασιλεύσει βασιλεὺς, καὶ συνήσει, καὶ ποιήσει κρίμα καὶ δικαιοσύνην ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς. Ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις αὐτοῦ σωθήσεται καὶ Ἰούδας, καὶ Ἰσραὴλ κατασκηνώσει πεποιθὼς, καὶ τοῦτο τὸ ὄνομα, ὃ καλέσει αὐτοὺς Κύριος, Ἰωσεδὲκ ἐν τοῖς προφήταις. Ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ, εἶπεν Κύριος, συντρίψω ζυγὸν ἀπὸ τραχήλου αὐτῶν, καὶ τοὺς δεσμοὺς αὐτῶν διαρρήξω, καὶ οὐκ ἐργῶνται αὐτοὶ ἔτι ἀλλοτρίοις, καὶ ἐργῶνται τῷ Κυρίῳ Θεῷ αὐτῶν, καὶ τὸν ∆αυὶδ βασιλέα αὐτῶν ἀναστήσω αὐτοῖς. Τούτοις τὰ παραπλήσια καὶ ἐν ἑτέρῳ τοῦ αὐτοῦ προφήτου τόπῳ εἴρηται ἐν τούτοις· ἰδοὺ ἡμέραι ἔρχονται, λέγει Κύριος, καὶ ἐξαναστήσω σοι τὸν λόγον μου τὸν ἀγαθὸν, ὃν ἐλάλησα ἐπὶ τὸν οἶκον Ἱερουσαλὴμ καὶ ἐπὶ τὸν οἶκον Ἰούδα· ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις καὶ ἐν τῷ καιρῷ ἐκείνῳ ἀνατελῶ τῷ ∆αυὶδ ἀνατολὴν 138 δικαίαν. Οἷς ἑξῆς ἐπιφέρει, ὅτι τάδε λέγει Κύριος· Οὐκ ἐξολοθρευθήσεται τῷ ∆αυὶδ ἀνὴρ καθήμενος ἐπὶ θρόνου οἴκου Ἰσραήλ· καὶ τοῖς ἱερεῦσι τοῖς Λευίταις· οὐκ ἐξολοθρευθήσεται ἀνὴρ ἐκ προσώπου μου ἀναφέρων ὁλοκαυτώματα καὶ θύων θυσίαν, καὶ ποιῶν θῦμα πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας. Καὶ πάλιν· Τάδε λέγει Κύριος· εἰ διασκεδάσετε τὴν διαθήκην μου τὴν ἡμέραν, καὶ τὴν διαθήκην μου τὴν νύκτα, τοῦ μὴ εἶναι ἡμέραν καὶ νύκτα ἐν τῷ καιρῷ αὐτῶν· καί γε ἡ διαθήκη μου διασκεδασθήσεται μετὰ ∆αυὶδ τοῦ δούλου μου, τοῦ μὴ εἶναι αὐτῷ υἱὸν βασιλεύοντα ἐπὶ τοῦ θρόνου αὐτοῦ, καὶ τοὺς Λευίτας τοὺς ἱερεῖς τοὺς λειτουργοῦντάς μοι· ὡς οὐκ ἐξαριθμηθήσεται ἡ δύναμις τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, οὐδὲ ἐκμετρηθήσεται ἡ ἄμμος τῆς θαλάσσης, οὕτως πληθυνῶ τὸ σπέρμα ∆αυὶδ τοῦ δούλου μου καὶ τοὺς Λευίτας τοὺς λειτουργοῦντάς μοι. Καὶ αὖθις μετὰ βραχέα