52

that I may learn thy statutes." But the striking of the thigh is characteristic of those who are in pain and repentant. "And I was ashamed, and I submitted to thee, because I have received the reproach of my youth." For from the beginning and from of old I have continually transgressed your commandments. But the Master also shows his love for mankind, and says: 20. Is Ephraim a beloved son to me, is he a child of delight? Instead of, tender, and charming; if you persist, he says, in using this disposition, and mindful of my care, you will enjoy good things; for he has placed the promise in what follows. "Because forasmuch as my words are in him, I will surely remember him yet." Since he has repented, and remembers my commandments, he will obtain providence from me. "For this reason, he says, I will visit him, I will have mercy on him with compassion." Then he exhorts them to use the medicines of repentance. 21. Set up for yourself Sionim. The Syrian translated Sionim as signs; instead of, it was necessary to mark, what fruits you reaped from transgression, and of what good things repentance has been the cause for you. For this reason also he recommends using self-chosen discipline. "Appoint a punishment for yourself, put your heart upon your shoulders." Instead of, Place upon yourself the burden of repentance. Persevere in what you have chosen well; for he added this, "The way by which you have traveled." Then he exhorts her to return, and to come back to her own cities, and not to abandon her mourning. "For turn back, he says, 81.665 to your cities, mourning." Such mourning is not contrary to gladness. For we must, even while enjoying good things, remember our own transgressions, and lament them. 22. How long will you turn away, O dishonored daughter? For the Lord has created you for salvation, for a new planting, in salvation men shall go about. Here he clearly showed also the reason for the recall; for he prophesies that the new planting will be through her; and the apostles who sprang from her brought this to the inhabited world; and the prophetic word clearly said this. "In salvation men shall go about." For these, having traveled around the nations, brought them salvation through the knowledge of God. Then again he foretells the good things after the return, and the gladness that springs from it. But the phrase, "I will sow upon the house of Israel, and upon the house of Judah, the seed of men, and the seed of cattle," signifies multitude. 29, 30. In those days, he says, they shall not say, the fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth were set on edge. But each one shall die in his own sin, and the teeth of the one who eats the sour grapes shall be set on edge. The Master stated this more clearly also through the divine Ezekiel, and we too have made the interpretation through many words. What he says is of this sort: Just as it is not possible for one to eat sour grapes, and for the teeth of the one eating not to be set on edge; so it is not possible for the children to be punished for the sins of the fathers. And for confirmation of what has been said, he adds what follows. 31, 32. Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. Not according to the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; because they did not continue in my covenant, and I disregarded them, says the Lord. Thus, he says, it is impossible for the children to be punished for the sins of their fathers, because even though the fathers have sinned, I promise the greatest good things to the children. However, it has taught us many prophecies concerning this: first, that there is one lawgiver of the two Covenants; then, the incompleteness of the first Covenant; for we would not have needed the second, if the first were sufficient; in addition to these things, that the only-begotten 81.668 Word of God of the evangelical good things for us

52

ὅπως ἂν μάθω τὰ δικαιώματά σου." Τὸ δὲ πατάσσειν τὸν μηρὸν, τῶν ὀδυνομένων καὶ μεταμελουμένων ἴδιον. "Καί γε ἐνετράπην, καὶ ὑπεῖξά σοι, ὅτι ἔλαβον ὀνειδισμὸν ἐκ νεότητός μου." Ἄνωθεν γὰρ καὶ ἐξ ἀρχῆς παρα βαίνων σου τὰς ἐντολὰς διετέλεσα. ∆είκνυσι δὲ καὶ τὴν φιλανθρωπίαν ὁ ∆εσπότης, καί φησιν· κʹ. Εἰ υἱὸς ἀγαπητὸς ἐμοὶ Ἐφραῒμ, εἰ παιδίον ἐντρυφῶν. Ἀντὶ τοῦ, τρυφερὸν, καὶ ἐπίχαρι· εἰ ἐπιμένεις, φησὶ, ταύτῃ χρώμενος τῇ διαθέσει, καὶ τῆς ἐμῆς μεμνημένος κηδεμονίας, τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἀπο λαύσεις· τὴν γὰρ ὑπόσχεσιν ἐντέθεικε τοῖς ἑξῆς. "Ὅτι ἀνθ' ὧν οἱ λόγοι μου ἐν αὐτῷ εἰσι, μνείᾳ μνησθήσομαι αὐτοῦ ἔτι." Ἐπειδὴ μεταμελείᾳ κέ χρηται, καὶ τῶν ἐμῶν ἐντολῶν μνημονεύει, τῆς παρ' ἐμοῦ τεύξεται προμηθείας. "∆ιὰ τοῦτο γὰρ, φησὶν, ἐπισκέψομαι αὐτὸν, ἐλεῶν ἐλεήσω αὐτόν." Εἶτα παρακελεύεται τοῖς τῆς μετανοίας κεχρῆσθαι φαρ μάκοις. καʹ. Στῆσον σεαυτὴν σιονείμ. Τὸ σιονεὶμ ὁ Σύρος σημεῖα ἡρμήνευσεν· ἀντὶ τοῦ, ἐπισημήνασθαι ἔδει, τίνας μὲν ἐκ τῆς παρανομίας ἐδρέψω καρποὺς, ποίων δέ σοι ἀγαθῶν μεταμέλεια γεγένηται πρόξενος. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ τῇ αὐθαιρέτῳ παιδείᾳ κεχρῆσθαι παρ εγγυᾷ. "Ποίησον σεαυτῇ τιμωρίαν, δὸς τὴν καρ δίαν σου εἰς τοὺς ὤμους σου." Ἀντὶ τοῦ, Ἐπίθες σεαυτῇ τὸ φορτίον τῆς μετανοίας. Ἐπίμεινον οἷς προείλου καλῶς· τοῦτο γὰρ ἐπήγαγεν, "Ὁδὸν ἣν πεπόρευσαι." Εἶτα παρακελεύεται αὐτῇ ἀναστρέψαι, καὶ εἰς τὰς οἰκείας πόλεις ἐπανελθεῖν, καὶ μὴ καταλιπεῖν τὸ πένθος. "Ἀπόστρεψον γὰρ, φησὶν, 81.665 εἰς τὰς πόλεις σου πενθοῦσα." Οὐκ ἐναντίον δὲ τῇ εὐφροσύνῃ τὸ τοιοῦτον πένθος. Χρὴ γὰρ ἡμᾶς, καὶ τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἀπολαύοντας, τῶν οἰκείων μεμνῆσθαι παραπτωμάτων, καὶ ταῦτα θρηνεῖν. κβʹ. Ἕως πότε ἀποστρέψεις θυγάτηρ ἠτιμω μένη· ὅτι ἔκτισέ σε Κύριος εἰς σωτηρίαν, εἰς καταφύτευσιν καινὴν, ἐν τῇ σωτηρίᾳ περι ελεύσονται ἄνθρωποι. Ἔδειξεν ἐνταῦθα σαφῶς καὶ τῆς ἀνακλήσεως τὴν αἰτίαν· τὴν γὰρ καινὴν κατα φύτευσιν δι' αὐτῆς ἔσεσθαι προθεσπίζει· ταύτην δὲ οἱ ἐξ αὐτῆς βλαστήσαντες ἀπόστολοι τῇ οἰκουμένῃ προσήνεγκαν· καὶ τοῦτο σαφῶς ὁ προφητικὸς ἔφη λόγος. "Ἐν τῇ σωτηρίᾳ περιελεύσονται ἄνθρωποι." Οὗτοι γὰρ τὰ ἔθνη περινοστήσαντες, τὴν σωτηρίαν αὐτοῖς διὰ τῆς θεογνωσίας προσήνεγκαν. Εἶτα πάλιν τὰ μετὰ τὴν ἐπάνοδον ἀγαθὰ προαγορεύει, καὶ τὴν ἐντεῦθεν φυομένην εὐφροσύνην. Τὸ δὲ, "Σπερῶ ἐπὶ τὸν οἶκον Ἰσραὴλ, καὶ ἐπὶ τὸν οἶκον Ἰούδα, σπέρμα ἀνθρώπων, καὶ σπέρμα κτηνῶν," τὸ πλῆθος σημαίνει. κθʹ, λʹ. Ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις, φησὶν, οὐ μὴ εἴπωσιν, οἱ πατέρες ἔφαγον ὄμφακα, καὶ οἱ ὀδόντες τῶν τέκνων ᾑμωδίασαν. Ἀλλ' ἕκα στος ἐν τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ αὐτοῦ ἀποθανεῖται, καὶ τοῦ φαγόντος τὸν ὄμφακα αἱμωδιάσουσιν οἱ ὀδόντες αὐτοῦ. Τοῦτο σαφέστερον καὶ διὰ τοῦ θεσπεσίου Ἐζεκιὴλ ὁ ∆εσπότης, καὶ ἡμεῖς δὲ διὰ πλειόνων τὴν ἑρμηνείαν ἐποιησάμεθα. Ὃ δὲ λέ γει, τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν· Ὥσπερ οὐχ οἷόν τε τὸν ὄμφακα ἐσθίειν, τοῦ δὲ ἐσθίοντος τοὺς ὀδόντας μὴ αἱμωδιά σαι· οὕτως οὐχ οἷόν τε τῶν πατέρων ἡμαρτηκότων, δίκας εἰσπραχθῆναι τοὺς παῖδας. Καὶ εἰς βεβαίωσιν τοῦ εἰρημένου τὰ ἐπαγόμενα τίθησιν. λαʹ, λβʹ. Ἰδοὺ ἡμέραι ἔρχονται, λέγει Κύριος, καὶ διαθήσομαι τῷ οἴκῳ Ἰσραὴλ καὶ τῷ οἴκῳ Ἰούδα ∆ιαθήκην καινήν. Οὐ κατὰ τὴν ∆ιαθήκην ἣν διεθέμην τοῖς πατράσιν αὐτῶν ἐν ἡμέρᾳ ἐπιλαβομένου μου τῆς χειρὸς αὐτῶν, ὥστε ἐξαγαγεῖν αὐτοὺς ἐκ γῆς Αἰγύπτου· ὅτι αὐτοὶ οὐκ ἐνέμειναν ἐν τῇ ∆ιαθήκῃ μου, καὶ ἐγὼ ἠμέλησα αὐτῶν, λέγει Κύριος. Οὕτω, φησὶν, ἀδύνατόν ἐστι τοὺς παῖδας εἰσπραχθῆναι δίκας ὑπὲρ πατρῴων ἁμαρτημάτων, ὅτι καὶ τῶν πατέρων ἡμαρ τηκότων τὰ μέγιστα ἀγαθὰ τοῖς παισὶν ἐπαγγέλλο μαι. Πολλὰς μέντοι κατ' αὐτὸ προῤῥήσεις ἡμᾶς ἐδίδαξε· πρῶτον μὲν, ὅτι εἷς ἐστι νομοθέτης τῶν δύο ∆ιαθηκῶν· εἶτα τῆς προτέρας ∆ιαθήκης τὸ ἀτε λές· οὐ γὰρ ἂν ἐδεήθημεν τῆς δευτέρας, τῆς προ τέρας ἀρκούσης· πρὸς τούτοις, ὅτι ὁ μονογενὴς τοῦ 81.668 Θεοῦ Λόγος τῶν εὐαγγελικῶν ἡμῖν ἀγαθῶν