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199 as though he seems to speak about another, but the speech is to Job. For because of this, he says, these things will be for the one who repents, because he humbled himself. And he will say that: my heart was arrogant and I justly suffered what I have suffered. 22, 2930 he will save the one with downcast eyes, and will deliver the innocent. For this reason also the tax collector in the gospels, looking down and not daring to look up to heaven, was justified more than the boastful Pharisee. 22, 30 And be saved by your clean hands. Eliphaz ended his speech with this exhortation. And to the just man, who is always inclined toward God, the exhortation is unsuitable, but for us it is very suitable, who ought to repent and are admonished to be humbled before God. 0 CHAPTER SEVENTEEN Beginning of the text: And Job answered and said: And indeed I know that my refutation is from my own hand, and his hand has become heavy upon my groaning. Introduction to the chapter Eliphaz assailed the just man with incurable insults, attributing to him shameful deeds, even those of the outrageously impious. But the blessed and truly genuine Job says, I know precisely that it is not by your words, but by my own deeds that my case will be judged; for even if God punishes, I would gladly have submitted my just claims to him, and I would have awaited the decision from him, being very confident in his truth. See from this also, how he does not choose a legal process against God by contradicting him, but by believing securely in the divine just judgment and refuting his friends and declining to be judged by them as judges in his own case. Then, having spoken of God's invisibility and incomprehensibility and how much zeal he has for keeping what is pleasing to God, he is again perplexed with his friends and says to them: since you judge me for impiety and make my misfortunes a proof of my sins, answer me, why, when the impious do many incurable things, does God so forbear as not even to watch over what is being done. 1 Then, having listed the deeds of the unjust, the noble and justice-loving Job does not, on account of God's forbearance, join the side of the impious, but even curses such men and says that: they too will pay the penalty, even if they have lasted for a long time on account of God's forbearance. And being confident in the truth of his own words: And if these things are not, he says, true, let him who wishes refute what has been said. The words 23, 2 And indeed I know that my refutation is from my own hand. I take no account, he says, of your accusations; for my case is judged not by your falsehoods, but by what I have done. For by "hand" he means "deed." 23, 2 and his hand has become heavy upon my groaning. But other copies have: _b_u_t_ _I_ _w_i_l_l_ _g_r_o_a_n_ _u_p_o_n_ _m_y_s_e_l_f_. And what he says is this: I also know this, that he has brought severe and heavy punishments upon me. Therefore I also groan aloud, since you make the divine punishments the pretext for your slander against me. 23, 3 But who might know that I might find him and come to the end. But would that, he says, I stood before the royal throne of God and received the decision from there. For "come to the end" means this, instead of: so that the outcome of my case might be made known from there. 2 23, 47 I would state my own judgment, and I would fill my mouth with arguments. And I would know the words he would say to me, and I would perceive what he would report to me. And would he come upon me with great strength, then would he not use a threat against me. But truth and refutation are from him, and may he bring my judgment to an end. So that, he says, having come before that divine tribunal, I might bewail all my circumstances. For this is what "I would state my own judgment" means, instead of: what I was judged, what I have suffered. And I would also state what I have lived—for this is what "I would fill my mouth with arguments" means—both what I have done and what I have suffered, so that I might learn by experience what judgment he renders and what he says to these things and whether he proceeds against me forcefully, punishing me more severely, or desists from the threat. For this reason, he says, I want to be judged before God, being very confident that God is true and impartially renders his refutations, that is, his judgments,

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199 ὡς μὲν περὶ ἑτέρου δοκεῖ λέγειν, πρὸς τὸν Ἰὼβ δὲ ὁ λόγος. διὰ τοῦτο γάρ, φησίν, ἔσται ταῦτα τῷ μετανοοῦντι, ὅτι ἐταπείνωσεν ἑαυτόν. καὶ ἐρεῖ ὅτι· ὑπερηφανεύσατο ἡ καρδία μου καὶ ἐνδίκως ὑπέστην ἃ πέπονθα. 22, 2930 κεκυφότα ὀφθαλμοῖς σώσει, καὶ ῥύσεται ἀθῶον. διὰ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ ἐν εὐαγγελίοις τελώνης κάτω βλέπων καὶ οὐ τολμῶν ἀναβλέπειν εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν ἐδικαιώθη ὑπὲρ τὸν μεγάλαυχον Φαρισαῖον. 22, 30 καὶ διασώθητι ἐν καθαραῖς χερσί σου. ὁ μὲν Ἐλιφὰζ εἰς τὴν παραίνεσιν τὸν λόγον κατέπαυσεν. καὶ πρὸς μὲν τὸν δίκαιον, τὸν πρὸς θεὸν ἀεὶ νενευκότα, ἀκατάλληλος ἡ παραίνεσις, ἡμῖν δὲ καὶ σφόδρα κατάλληλος τοῖς μετανοεῖν ὀφείλουσι καὶ θεῷ ταπεινοῦσθαι νουθετουμένοις. 0 ΚΕΦΑΛΑΙΟΝ ΕΠΤΑΚΑΙ∆ΕΚΑΤΟΝ Ἀρχὴ τοῦ ῥητοῦ· ὑπολαβὼν δὲ Ἰὼβ λέγει· καὶ δὴ οἶδα, ὅτι ἐκ χειρός μου ἡ ἔλεγξίς μού ἐστι καὶ ἡ χεὶρ αὐτοῦ βαρεῖα γέγονεν ἐπ' ἐμῷ στεναγμῷ. Προθεωρία τοῦ κεφαλαίου ὁ μὲν Ἐλιφὰζ ἀνηκέστοις ὕβρεσι περιέβαλε τὸν δίκαιον αἰσχρὰς αὐτῷ περιθεὶς πράξεις καὶ τῶν ἐκτόπως ἠσεβηκότων. ὁ δὲ μακάριος καὶ ὄντως ἀληθινὸς Ἰὼβ οἶδα, φησίν, ἀκριβῶς, ὅτι οὐκ ἐκ τῶν ὑμετέρων λόγων, ἀλλ' ἐκ τῶν ἐμῶν πράξεων κριθήσεται τὰ κατ' ἐμέ· εἰ γὰρ καὶ τιμωρεῖται θεός, ἡδέως ἐπ' αὐτοῦ τὰ ἐμὰ παρετιθέμην δίκαια, καὶ τὴν ἐξ αὐτοῦ περιέμενον ἀπόφασιν σφόδρα πεποιθὼς αὐτοῦ τῇ ἀληθείᾳ. ὅρα δὲ κἀντεῦθεν, ὡς οὐκ ἀντιλέγων θεῷ τὴν πρὸς αὐτὸν αἱρεῖται διαδικασίαν, ἀλλὰ πιστεύων ἀσφαλῶς τῇ θείᾳ δικαιοκρισίᾳ καὶ διελέγχων τοὺς φίλους καὶ παραιτούμενος τὸ παρ' αὐτοῖς δικασταῖς κρίνεσθαι τὰ καθ' ἑαυτόν. εἶτα τοῦ θεοῦ τὸ ἀόρατον εἰρηκὼς καὶ ἀκατάληπτον καὶ ὅσην ἔχει προθυμίαν εἰς τὸ φυλάττειν τὰ θεῷ δοκοῦντα, πάλιν ἀπορεῖ πρὸς τοὺς φίλους καί φησι πρὸς αὐτούς· ἐπειδήπερ ἐπ' ἀσεβείᾳ με κρίνετε καὶ δεῖγμα ποιεῖσθε τῶν ἡμαρτημένων τὰς ἐμὰς συμφοράς, ἀποκρίνεσθέ μοι, διὰ τί πολλὰ καὶ ἀνήκεστα πραττόντων τῶν ἀσεβῶν οὕτω θεὸς ἀνεξικακεῖ ὡς μηδὲ ἐπισκοπῶν τὰ πραττόμενα. 1 εἶτα τῶν ἀδίκων καταλέξας τὰς πράξεις ὁ γενναῖος Ἰὼβ καὶ φιλοδίκαιος οὐ διὰ τὴν ἀνοχὴν τοῦ θεοῦ προσχωρεῖ τῇ μερίδι τῶν ἀσεβῶν, ἀλλὰ καὶ καταρᾶται τοὺς τοιούτους καί φησιν ὅτι· δώσουσι καὶ αὐτοὶ δίκην, εἰ καὶ ἐπὶ πολὺ διήρκεσαν διὰ τὴν ἀνοχὴν τοῦ θεοῦ. θαρρῶν δὲ τῇ τῶν οἰκείων λόγων ἀληθείᾳ· εἰ δὲ μὴ ταῦτα, φησίν, ἀληθῆ, ὁ βουλόμενος διελέγξαι τὰ εἰρημένα. Αἱ λέξεις 23, 2 καὶ δὴ οἶδα ὅτι ἐκ χειρός μου ἡ ἔλεγξίς μού ἐστιν. οὐδένα, φησίν, τῶν ὑμετέρων κατηγοριῶν ποιοῦμαι λόγον· οὐ γὰρ ἐκ τῶν ὑμετέρων ψευδηγοριῶν, ἀλλ' ἐκ τῶν ἐμοὶ πεπραγμένων κρίνεται τὰ κατ' ἐμέ. χεῖρα γὰρ τὴν πρᾶξίν φησιν. 23, 2 καὶ ἡ χεὶρ αὐτοῦ βαρεῖα γέγονεν ἐπ' ἐμῷ στεναγμῷ. ἄλλα δὲ ἀντίγραφα· _σ_τ_ε_ν_ά_ξ_ω_ _δ_ὲ_ _ἐ_π_'_ _ἐ_μ_α_υ_τ_ό_ν, ἔχουσιν. ὃ δὲ λέγει τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν· οἶδα δὲ καὶ τοῦτο, ὅτι σφοδράς μοι καὶ βαρείας τιμωρίας ἐπήγαγεν. διὸ καὶ ἀναστένω, ἐπειδὴ πρόφασιν τῆς κατ' ἐμοῦ συκοφαντίας τὰς θείας ποιεῖσθε τιμωρίας. 23, 3 τίς δὲ ἄρα γνοίη, ὅτι εὕροιμι αὐτὸν καὶ ἔλθοιμι εἰς τέλος. ἀλλ' εἴθε, φησίν, τῷ βασιλικῷ τοῦ θεοῦ θρόνῳ παρέστην καὶ τὴν ἐκεῖθεν ἐδεξάμην ἀπόφασιν. τὸ γὰρ ἔλθοιμι εἰς τέλος τοῦτο σημαίνει, ἀντὶ τοῦ· ἵνα τὸ πέρας τῶν κατ' ἐμὲ γνώριμον ἐκεῖθεν γένηται. 2 23, 47 εἴποιμι δὲ ἐμαυτοῦ κρίμα, τὸ δὲ στόμα μου ἐμπλήσω ἐλέγχων. γνοίην δὲ ῥήματα ἅ μοι ἐρεῖ, αἰσθοίμην δέ, τίνα μοι ἀπαγγελεῖ. καὶ ἐν πολλῇ ἰσχύι ἐπελεύσεταί μοι, εἶτα ἐν ἀπειλῇ μοι οὐ χρήσεται. ἀλήθεια δὲ καὶ ἔλεγχος παρ' αὐτοῦ, ἐξαγάγοι δὲ εἰς τέλος μου τὸ κρίμα. ἵνα, φησίν, γεγονὼς παρὰ τὸ θεῖον ἐκεῖνο βῆμα ἀπολοφύρωμαι πάντα τὰ κατ' ἐμέ. τοῦτο γὰρ σημαίνει τὸ εἴποιμι δὲ ἐμαυτοῦ κρίμα, ἀντὶ τοῦ· ἃ ἐκρίθην, ἃ πέπονθα. εἴποιμι δὲ καὶ τὰ ἐμοὶ βεβιωμένατοῦτο γάρ ἐστι τὸ τὸ στόμα μου ἐμπλήσω ἐλέγχων , ἅ τε ἔπραξα καὶ ἂ πέπονθα, ἵνα τῇ πείρᾳ μάθω, ποίαν ἐκφέρει τὴν κρίσιν καὶ τί πρὸς ταῦτα λέγει καὶ πότερον ἰσχυρῶς ἐπεξέρχεταί μοι σφοδρότερόν με τιμωρούμενος ἢ ἀνίησι τῆς ἀπειλῆς. διὰ τοῦτο δέ, φησίν, ἐπὶ θεοῦ κρίνεσθαι βούλομαι σφόδρα πεποιθώς, ὡς ἀληθής ἐστιν ὁ θεὸς καὶ ἀπροσωπολήπτως τοὺς ἐλέγχους, τουτέστι τὰς κρίσεις,