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knowledge," the confession of truth conquers. If, therefore, he "swallows it down" and begins to conquer, "the place" which he holds through "the gathering of stones" "will deceive him," being without substance according to what has been said: "and iniquity deceived «it»self" because it does not have a secure anchor. And when "the two legs and the lobe of the ear" were swallowed by its own ruling lion, he who came for salvation snatched them away, 226 correcting our powers of passage and our disobedience. But "place" is often said also for rank and order: "from which Judas by transgression fell." And so it is also for a blameworthy thing, which deceives the one who uses it, furnishing him with nothing firm. Have you not seen such things, that such is the destruction of an ungodly person? And he brings him as a witness to all the things said before about the ungodly person, which he also named the destruction of an ungodly person, because he does not remain in those things in which he boasts, since these things change for him. This is shown from the following: "Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, when the glory of his house is increased; for when he dies he shall carry nothing away: his glory shall not descend with him." And whether want or abundance, being interchangeable, do nothing; for they are among the indifferent things. But he who remains in wickedness until the end will have a great destruction. But he will make another sprout from the earth; for the Lord will not reject the blameless. It shows that if the ungodly person endures destruction, not all are lost; for there will be a good person flourishing again. For God will not turn away from the blameless, that is, righteousness will not completely fail. Here he calls blameless the one not having 227 malice, not the simpleton; for the name signifies both. For when he speaks of heretics, that "by good words and fair speeches they deceive the hearts of the innocent," he calls innocent the simple, those slow in understanding. And again: "The blameless and the simple clung to me," which signifies the righteous, while "the blameless believes every word" denotes one who is uncritical and unable to detect the falsehood in words, believing every plausible thing. And the one who says: "But you have upheld me because of my blamelessness" signifies virtue. But he will not accept any gift of an ungodly person. It is fitting for the Lord who does not reject the blameless to accept none of the gifts of the ungodly person. "For vows are not good from the hire of a harlot," and "the sinner who sacrifices a calf to me is as one who kills a dog." It must be noted, however, that "any gift" is said instead of "no gift" according to scriptural custom, as when God says in the prophet: "If a righteous man commits one sin, all his righteousnesses will not be remembered," instead of "not one." But he will fill the mouth of the true with laughter. Throughout the whole book, he mentions the "true" for the "righteous." Thus indeed Job himself is testified to in the beginning, that he was "true" 228 "abstaining from every evil thing." And in reality, he is true who does not feign nor put on the appearance of virtue, who does not feign self-control, but is self-controlled, who "follows that which is altogether just." Therefore, "God will fill the mouth of the true with laughter." And from this it is possible to consider whether he too, according to "For inquire of the former generation," had learned about the age to come, according to what is said in the Gospel: "Blessed are they that mourn now, for they shall laugh." For laughter is twofold: one, with pleasure, being base, which weeping also succeeds, and the other, a gift of the Spirit, being joy, which in the future life will be given to those who weep now. "For blessed are they that mourn now, for they shall laugh," henceforth having the pledge of this through virtue; having experience of this from here, as I said, the saint spoke: "You have turned for me my mourning into joy, you have torn off my sackcloth and girded me with gladness." An example of this is Lazarus here

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γνώσεις" ἡ τῆς ἀληθέιας ὁμολογία νικᾷ. ἐὰν οὖν "καταπίῃ" καὶ ἄρξῃ νικᾶν, "ὁ τόπος", ὃν ἐπέχει διὰ "τῆς συναγωγῆς τῶν λίθων", "ψεύσεται αὐτόν", ἀνυπόστατος ὢν κατὰ τὸ εἰρημένον· "καὶ ἡ ἀδικία ἐψεύσατο «ἑ»αυτὴν" διὰ τὸ μὴ ἔχειν ἀσφαλὲς πεῖσμα. ὑπὸ τοῦ τε αὐτῆς ἐξάρχοντος λέον τος καταποθέντων "τῶν δύο σκελῶν καὶ τοῦ λοβοῦ τοῦ ὠτίου" ὁ διὰ τὴν σωτηρίαν ἐλθὼν αὐτὰ ἐξέσπασεν 226 διορθωσάμενος τα`̣»ς» διαβατικὰς ἡμῶν δυνάμεις καὶ τὴν παρακοήν. λέγεται δὲ πολλάκις ὁ τόπος καὶ ἀντὶ βαθμοῦς καὶ τάξεως· "ἀφ' οὗ Ἰούδας παρέβη". οὕτω δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ ψεκτοῦ, ὃς καὶ ψεύδεται τὸν χρώμενον οὐδὲν αὐτῷ βέβαιον προξενῶν. οὐχ ἑόρακας τοιαῦτα, ὅτι καταστροφὴ ἀσεβοῦς τοιαύτη; καὶ αὐτὸν ἐπάγεται μάρτυρα τῶν προειρημένων ἁπάντων περὶ τοῦ ἀσεβοῦς, ἃ καὶ καταστροφὴν ἀσεβοῦς ὠνόμασεν, διότι οὐ μένει, ἐφ' οἷς κομπάζει, μεταπιπτόντων αὐτῷ τούτων. τοῦτο δηλοῦται ἐκ τοῦ· "μὴ φοβοῦ, ὅταν πλουτήσῃ ὁ ἄνθρωπος καὶ ὅταν πληθυνθῇ ἡ δόξα τοῦ οἴκου αὐτοῦ, ὅτι οὐκ ἐν τῷ ἀποθνῄσκειν αὐτὸν λήμψεται τὰ πάντα, οὐδὲ συνκαταβήσεται αὐτῷ ἡ δόξα τοῦ οἴκου αὐτοῦ." καὶ ἢ μὲν ἔνδειαι ἢ εὐετηρίαι ἀντιμεταβάλλουσαι οὐδὲν μὲν ποιοῦσιν· τῶν γὰρ ἀδιαφόρων εἰσίν. ὁ δὲ ἄχρι τέλους ἐν κακίᾳ διαμένων μεγάλην ἑ´̣ξει τὴν καταστροφήν. ἐκ δὲ γῆς ἄλλον ἀναβλαστήσει· οὐ γὰρ ὁ κύριος οὐ μὴ ἀποποιήσεται τὸν ἄκακον. ἐμφαίνει, ὅτι οὐκ, ἐὰν ὁ ἀσεβὴς καταστροφὴν ὑπομείνῃ, οὐχ οἱ πάντες ἀπώλοντο· ἔσται γὰρ σπουδαῖος ἀναθάλλων. οὐ γὰρ ἀποστραφήσεται ὁ θεὸς τὸν ἄκακον, τουτέστιν οὐκ ἐκλείψει παντελῶς δικαιοσύνη. ἄκακον ἐνταῦθα λέγει τὸν μὴ ἔχοντα κα227 κίαν, οὐ τὸν εὐήθη· ἀμφότερα γὰρ σημαίνει τὸ ὄνομα. ὅταν γὰρ λέγῃ περὶ τῶν αἱρετικῶν, ὅτι "διὰ τῆς χρηστολογίας καὶ εὐλογίας ἐξαπατῶσιν τὰς καρδίας τῶν ἀκάκων", ἀκάκους λέγει τοὺς εὐήθεις, τοὺς βραδεῖς τὴν νόησιν. καὶ πάλιν· "ἄκακοι καὶ εὐηθεῖς ἐκολλῶντό μοι", ὅπερ τοὺς δικαίους σημαίνει, τοῦ "ἄκακος πιστεύει παντὶ λόγῳ" δηλοῦντος τὸν ἀνεξέλεγκτον καὶ μὴ δυνάμενον φωρᾶσαι τὸ ἐν τοῖς λόγοις ψεῦδος παντὶ πιθανῷ πιστεύοντα. καὶ ὁ λέγων δέ· "ἐμοῦ δὲ διὰ τὴν ἀκακίαν ἀντελάβου" τὴν ἀρετὴν σημαίνει. πᾶν δὲ δῶρον ἀσεβοῦς οὐ δέξεται. κατάλληλον τῷ κυρίῳ τῷ μὴ ἀποποιουμένῳ τὸν ἄκακον τὸ μηδὲν τῶν δώρων τοῦ ἀσεβοῦς προσδέ χεσθαι. "οὐκ ἀγαθαὶ γὰρ εὐχαὶ ἀπὸ μισθώματος ἑταίρας", καὶ "ὁ ἁμαρτωλὸς θύων μοι μόσχον ὡς ὁ ἀποκτέννων κύνα." παρατη_6_ρ_η_τ_έ_ο_ν6 δέ, ὅτι τὸ "πᾶν δὲ δῶρον" ἀντὶ τοῦ οὐδὲν δῶρον εἴρηται κατὰ γραφικὴν συνήθειαν, ὡς ὅταν λέγῃ ἐν τῷ προφήτῃ θεός· "ἐὰν μίαν ἁμαρτίαν ποιήσῃ ὁ δίκαιος, πᾶσαι αἱ δικαιοσύναι αὐτοῦ οὐ μὴ μνησθήσονται", ἀντὶ τοῦ οὐδεμία. ἀληθινῶν δὲ στόμα ἐμπλήσει γέλωτος. δι' ὅλου τοῦ βιβλίου μνημονεύει τοῦ ἀληθινοῦ ἐπὶ τοῦ δικαίου. οὕτω γοῦν καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ Ἰὼβ ἐν ἀρχῇ μεμαρτύρηται, ὅτι "ἀληθινὸς" ἦν 228 "ἀπεχόμενος ἀπὸ πονηροῦ πράγματος". καὶ τῷ ὄντι ἀληθινός ἐστιν ἐκεῖνος ὁ μὴ ὑποκρινόμενος μηδ' ἐπιμορφαζόμενος τὴν ἀρετήν, ὁ μὴ ὑποκρινόμενος σωφροσύνην, ἀλλ' ὁ σώφρων, ὁ τὸ "δίκαιον δικαίως διώκων." τούτων οὖν "τῶν ἀληθινῶν ἐμπλήσει γέλωτος τὸ στόμα θεός". καὶ ἔστιν ἐκ τούτου ἐπιβαλεῖν, μήποτε κ̣αὶ οὗτος κατὰ τὸ "ἐπερώτησον γὰρ γενεὰν πρώτην" μαθὼν ἦν περὶ μέλλοντος αἰῶνος κατὰ τὸ εἰρημένον ἐν εὐαγγελίῳ· "μακάριοι οἱ κλαίοντες νῦν, ὅτι γελάσονται." διττὸς γὰρ ὁ γέλως, ὁ μὲν σὺν ἡδονῇ φαῦλος τυγχάνων, ὃν καὶ διαδέχεται κλαυθμός, ὁ δὲ δῶρον τοῦ πνεύματος χαρὰ ὑπάρχων, ὅστις ἐν τῷ μέλλοντι βίῳ τοῖς κλαύσασιν νῦν ἀποδοθήσεται. "μακάριοι" γὰρ "οἱ κλαίοντες νῦν, ὅτι γελάσονται", ἀπεντεῦθεν τούτου τὸν ἀραβῶνα ἔχοντες διὰ τὴν ἀρετήν· τούτου πεῖραν, ὡς ἔφην, ἀπεντεῦθεν λαβὼν ὁ ἅγιος ἔλεγεν· "ἔστρεψας τὸν κοπετόν μου εἰς χαρὰν ἐμοῦ, διέρρηξας τὸν σάκκον μου καὶ περιέζωσάς με εὐφροσύνην." τούτου παράδειγμα Λάζαρος ἐνταῦθα