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and I became troubled." These things likewise fit both Hezekiah and all of human nature. For he too, through virtue, enjoyed divine providence and prevailed over the Assyrians; and again, being stripped of divine grace, he fell into sickness and received the fear of death. And Adam in paradise was adorned with the beauty of virtue and was superior to corruption; but being stripped of divine providence through the transgression, he endured the storm of life. Symmachus has put this very clearly: Lord, in your good pleasure you established strength for my forefather; so that it is clear that the person of human nature utters these things to the Lord Christ, who has granted it the great gift of life. 80.1076 9, 10. "To you, Lord, I will cry, and to my God I will make supplication. What profit is there in my blood, when I go down to corruption? Shall the dust confess to you, or will it declare your truth?" The blessed Hezekiah also used these words, as the history of the fourth book of Kings teaches, and the prophecy of the most divine Isaiah; and indeed human nature, even if not all of it has cried out, has yet cried out to God through the saints, using these words, that it is just to praise you the maker, and with grateful words to repay your graces. This is proper to the living; for those who are dissolved into dust and ashes, and have lost their bodily function, how could they be able to sing of your benefactions? 11-13. "The Lord heard, and had mercy on me, the Lord became my helper. You have turned my mourning into joy for me. You have torn my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness. That my glory may sing praise to you, and I may not be pierced with sorrow." And Hezekiah, girded with sackcloth, offered to God the prayer against the Assyrians; and human nature was clothed in the form of mourning. And now some of the foolish, lamenting the dead, wrongly sitting on sackcloth, are unwilling to listen to the prophetic words, crying out explicitly: "You have torn my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness, and have turned my mourning into joy for me." For just as Hezekiah, having received the promise of fifteen years, was filled with great gladness, so it is just for us, having received the hope of the resurrection, not to mourn the departed, but to await it with cheerfulness. And the phrase, "That my glory may sing praise to you, and I may not be pierced with sorrow," Symmachus interpreted thus: So that glory may sing to you, and not be silent; instead of, It is fitting on account of this benefaction to continually sing and praise you, for those who have obtained such glory, being silent at no time. And compunction produces silence. The Seventy, therefore, have put compunction instead of silence; and Hezekiah obtained glory, since so many myriads on his account received a divinely sent plague, and indeed also since the sun turned back; but we have an occasion for much good repute, since the God of all has shown so much tender affection for us. For thus, it says, God loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life. "O Lord my God, I will confess to you forever." For not only in the present life, but 80.1077 also after the resurrection, I will offer hymns to you, continually recounting your transcendent and ineffable gifts.

INTERPRETATION OF THE 30TH PSALM. 1. "For the end, a Psalm of David, of ecstasy." This I found neither in the Hebrew, nor with the other interpreters, but in some of the copies. It seems to me to allude to the matter of Uriah. For he says in the psalm itself: "But I said in my ecstasy, I am cast away from the presence of your eyes;" that is, I thought, having sinned, that I was stripped of your providence. This psalm seems to have been said by the blessed David, at the time when by Absalom

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καὶ ἐγενήθην τεταραγμένος." Ὁμοίως ἁρμότ τει καὶ ταῦτα καὶ τῷ Ἐζεκίᾳ, καὶ πάσῃ τῶν ἀν θρώπων τῇ φύσει· καὶ γὰρ ἐκεῖνος δι' ἀρετὴν τῆς θείας προνοίας ἀπήλαυσε, καὶ τῶν Ἀσσυρίων ἐκρά τησε· καὶ πάλιν τῆς θείας χάριτος γυμνωθεὶς, νόσῳ περιέπεσε, καὶ τὸ τῆς τελευτῆς ἐδέξατο δέος· καὶ ὁ Ἀδὰμ δὲ ἐν τῷ παραδείσῳ καὶ τῷ τῆς ἀρε τῆς ἐκεκόσμητο κάλλει, καὶ κρείττων ἦν τῆς φθο ρᾶς· τῆς δὲ θείας προνοίας διὰ τὴν παράβασιν γυ μνωθεὶς, τὴν ἀπὸ τῆς βιοτῆς ὑπέμεινε ζάλην. Τοῦτο δὲ σαφῶς λίαν ὁ Σύμμαχος τέθεικε· Κύριε, ἐν τῇ εὐδοκίᾳ σου ἔστησας τῷ προπάτορί μου κράτος· ὡς εἶναι δῆλον, ὅτι ταῦτα τῆς ἀν θρωπείας φύσεως τὸ πρόσωπον φθέγγεται πρὸς τὸν ∆εσπότην Χριστὸν, τῆς ζωῆς αὐτῇ τὸ μέγα δω ρησάμενον δῶρον. 80.1076 θʹ, ιʹ. "Πρὸς σὲ, Κύριε, κεκράξομαι, καὶ πρὸς τὸν Θεόν μου δεηθήσομαι. Τίς ὠφέλεια ἐν τῷ αἵματί μου, ἐν τῷ καταβῆναί με εἰς διαφθοράν; μὴ ἐξ ομολογήσεταί σοι χοῦς, ἢ ἀναγγελεῖ τὴν ἀλήθειάν σου;" Τούτοις καὶ ὁ μακάριος Ἐζεκίας ἐχρήσατο τοῖς λόγοις, ὡς καὶ ἡ τετάρτη τῶν Βασιλειῶν ἱστο ρία διδάσκει, καὶ τοῦ θειοτάτου Ἡσαΐου ἡ προ φητεία· καὶ μέντοι καὶ ἡ ἀνθρωπεία φύσις, εἰ καὶ μὴ πᾶσα βεβόηκεν, ἀλλὰ διὰ τῶν ἁγίων βεβόηκε πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν, τούτοις κεχρημένη τοῖς λόγοις, ὅτι ∆ίκαιον ὑμνεῖν σε τὸν ποιητὴν, καὶ λόγοις εὐγνώμο σιν ἀμείβεσθαί σου τὰς χάριτας. Τοῦτο ζώντων ἴδιον· οἱ γὰρ εἰς χοῦν καὶ κόνιν διαλυόμενοι, καὶ τὸ σω ματικὸν ἔργον ἀπολέσαντες, πῶς ἂν δυνηθεῖεν τὰς σὰς ἄδειν εὐεργεσίας; ιαʹ-ιγʹ. "Ἤκουσε Κύριος, καὶ ἠλέησέ με, Κύ ριος ἐγενήθη βοηθός μου. Ἔστρεψας τὸν κοπετόν μου εἰς χαρὰν ἐμοί. ∆ιέῤῥηξας τὸν σάκκον μου, καὶ πε ριέζωσάς με εὐφροσύνην. Ὅπως ἂν ψάλῃ σοι ἡ δόξα μου, καὶ οὐ μὴ κατανυγῶ." Καὶ Ἐζεκίας σάκ κον περιζωσάμενος προσήνεγκε τῷ Θεῷ τὴν κατὰ τῶν Ἀσσυρίων εὐχήν· καὶ ἡ ἀνθρωπεία φύσις τὸ πένθιμον περιεβέβλητο σχῆμα. Καὶ νῦν δέ τινες τῶν ἀνοήτων, τοὺς τεθνηκότας ὀλοφυρόμενοι, ἐπὶ σάκκου καθήμενοι κακῶς, τῶν προφητικῶν ῥημά των ἐπαΐειν οὐκ ἐθέλουσι, διαῤῥήδην βοώντων· "∆ιέῤῥηξας τὸν σάκκον μου, καὶ περιέζωσάς με εὐφροσύνην, καὶ ἔστρεψας τὸν κοπετόν μου εἰς χα ρὰν ἐμοί." Καθάπερ γὰρ ὁ Ἐζεκίας τῶν πεντεκαί δεκα ἐνιαυτῶν τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν δεξάμενος εὐφρο σύνης ἐνεπλήσθη πολλῆς, οὕτω δίκαιον ἡμᾶς τὴν ἐλπίδα δεξαμένους τῆς ἀναστάσεως, μὴ θρηνεῖν τοὺς τελευτῶντας, ἀλλ' ἐκείνην μετ' εὐθυμίας προσ μένειν. Τὸ δὲ, "Ὅπως ἂν ψάλῃ σοι ἡ δόξα μου, καὶ οὐ μὴ κατανυγῶ," ὁ Σύμμαχος οὕτως ἡρμήνευσεν· Ἵνα ᾄδῃ σε δόξα, καὶ οὐ μὴ ἀποσιωπήσῃ· ἀντὶ τοῦ, Προσήκει ταύτης ἕνεκα τῆς εὐεργεσίας διηνεκῶς ᾄδειν σε καὶ ὑμνεῖν τοὺς τοσαύτης δόξης τετυχηκότας, ἐν μηδενὶ καιρῷ σιωπῶντας. Καὶ ἡ κατάνυξις δὲ σιγὴν ἐμποιεῖ. Οἱ Ἑβδομήκοντα τοίνυν ἀντὶ σιγῆς τεθείκασι τὴν κατάνυξιν· δόξης δὲ ὁ μὲν Ἐζεκίας τετύχηκε, τοσούτων δι' αὐτὸν μυριά δων θεήλατον δεξαμένων πληγὴν, καὶ μέντοι καὶ τοῦ ἡλίου ἀναστρέψαντος· ἡμεῖς δὲ πολλῆς εὐ κλείας ἔχομεν ἀφορμὴν, τοσαύτην περὶ ἡμᾶς τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων ἐπιδεξαμένου φιλοστοργίαν. Οὕτω γὰρ, φησὶν, ὁ Θεὸς ἠγάπησε τὸν κόσμον, ὅτι τὸν Υἱὸν αὑτοῦ τὸν μονογενῆ δέδωκεν, ἵνα πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων εἰς αὐτὸν μὴ ἀπόληται, ἀλλ' ἔχῃ ζωὴν αἰώνιον. "Κύριε ὁ Θεός μου, εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα ἐξομολογήσομαί σοι." Οὐ γὰρ μόνον κατὰ τὸν παρόντα βίον, ἀλλὰ 80.1077 καὶ μετὰ τὴν ἀνάστασιν, ὕμνους σοι προσοίσω, δι ηνεκῶς τὰς ὑπερφυεῖς σου καὶ ἀῤῥήτους διηγούμενος δωρεάς.

ΕΡΜΗΝ. ΤΟΥ Λʹ ΨΑΛΜΟΥ. αʹ. "Εἰς τὸ τέλος, Ψαλμὸς τῷ ∆αβὶδ, ἐκστάσεως." Τοῦτο δὲ οὔτε παρὰ τῷ

Ἑβραίῳ, οὔτε παρὰ τοῖς λοιποῖς εὗρον ἑρμηνευταῖς, ἐν ἐνίοις δὲ τῶν ἀντι γράφων. Αἰνίττεσθαι δέ μοι τὰ κατὰ τὸν Οὐρίαν δο κεῖ. Λέγει γὰρ ἐν αὐτῷ τῷ ψαλμῷ· "Ἐγὼ δὲ εἶ πον ἐν τῇ ἐκστάσει μου, Ἀπέῤῥιμμαι ἀπὸ προσώπου τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν σου·" τουτέστιν, Ὠήθην ἡμαρτηκὼς τῆς σῆς γεγυμνῶσθαι προνοίας. Εἰρῆσθαι δὲ ἔοικεν ὁ ψαλμὸς οὗτος ὑπὸ τοῦ μακαρίου ∆αβὶδ, καθ' ὃν καιρὸν ὑπὸ τοῦ Ἀβεσσαλὼμ