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for sins are the afflictions, why did He leave these unvisited, although He oversees all things done upon the earth? And the phrase *and they did not know*, that is: the impious did not know that they are unvisited. For he who is deemed worthy of divine visitation is also disciplined; for whom the Lord loves He disciplines, and scourges every son whom He receives. 24, 13 *The way of {your} righteousness they did not know, nor did they walk in its paths.* a reference to the aforementioned impious, obviously. 24, 1416 *But knowing their works, He delivered them into darkness, and by night he will be as a thief.* *And the eye of an adulterer has kept watch for darkness, saying: No eye will perceive me, and he has put a covering on his face. He has dug through houses in darkness.* 210 *He delivered them into darkness*, God not doing this by compulsion, far from it, but permitting them on account of their free will to go as they wish. And similar to this the divine apostle also says: *God delivered them over to a debased mind to do things that are not proper*, not with God having done this, but having permitted them to act as they wish. He says, therefore, that the thief and the adulterer and the tomb-robber have the night as their accomplice, as if no one were watching them, since they also do things worthy of darkness. 24, 16 *By day they sealed themselves up, they did not know the light.* But these aforementioned ones, when the day shines through, hide themselves, having shut the doors behind them—for this is what *they sealed themselves up* means—fearing to go forth into the light, lest they be caught, since they do not undertake any work of light. 24, 17 *Because together the morning is to them a shadow of death, for he will know the terrors of the shadow of death.* For this reason, he says, they fear the light, because they have the dawn and death together before their eyes. For just as the shadow runs before the body and signifies that it is near, so also these, when the day dawns, being struck by their conscience, expect death to be near. And such an expectation fills their souls with turmoil and makes them gloomy. For this is what is shown by *for he will know the terrors of the shadow of death*. 24, 18 *He is swift upon the face of the water.* 211 The eye of the adulterer, drawn by temptations, or indeed every impious person, like something light and nimble being swept away by a torrent of waters, is thus easily destroyed by punishment. For impiety will not save its own. Then Job, the lover of virtue and justice, does not, because of God's forbearance, tolerate evil having more than virtue, but he curses the portion of the impious and speaks of the things that will happen to them. 24, 1819 *Cursed be their portion upon the earth, and may their plants appear dry upon the earth.* Instead of: may they remain fruitless, gaining nothing from their own evil, nor passing on to their children the wealth from injustice. 24, 19 *For they have seized the sheaf of the orphans.* Orphans often follow the reapers and, collecting the fallen stalks and gleaning, bind them into sheaves. He says, therefore, that some have proceeded to such impiety as to snatch even the modest portion of the orphans who glean out of poverty. 24, 2 *Then his sin was remembered.* Instead of: it was written for a memorial and the punishment will be inescapable for them, even if for the time being God, through his goodness, postpones the punishments. 212 24, *And he became unseen like a mist of dew.* When a ray of the sun shines upon it and warms the air, the dew becomes unseen, as the heat draws up the moisture. Thus, he says, when divine justice comes, the impious are destroyed. 24, *And let there be rendered to him what he has done.* The just man does not curse, but says what will certainly be; for each will receive according to what he has done, whether good or bad. And above he did not curse them, but the portion of the impious, that is, wickedness itself. 24, *And let every unjust man be {not} broken like incurable wood.* He speaks of the one who persists in evil; for broken wood does not admit of a cure so as to be made whole again. 24, 21 *For they did not treat the barren woman well.* the one who is helpless on account of childlessness. And note again that not doing good is reckoned as impiety. *Depart*, says the divine psalmist, *from evil and do good*.

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δι' ἁμαρτήματα αἱ κακώσεις, διὰ τί τούτους ἀνεπισκοπήτους εἴασε καίτοιγε πάντα τὰ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς πραττόμενα ἐφορῶν; τὸ δὲ καὶ οὐκ ἐπέγνωσαν, τουτέστιν· οἱ ἀσεβεῖς οὐκ ἐπέγνωσαν, ὅτι ἀνεπισκόπητοί εἰσιν. ὁ γὰρ θείας ἐπισκοπῆς ἀξιούμενος καὶ παιδεύεται· ὃν γὰρ ἀγαπᾷ κύριος παιδεύει, μαστιγοῖ δὲ πάντα υἱὸν ὃν παραδέχεται. 24, 13 ὁδὸν δικαιοσύνης {σου} οὐκ ᾔδεισαν οὐδὲ ἀτραποὺς αὐτῆς ἐπορεύθησαν. οἱ προειρημένοι ἀσεβεῖς δηλονότι. 24, 1416 γνοὺς δὲ αὐτῶν τὰ ἔργα παρέδωκεν αὐτοὺς εἰς σκότος, καὶ νυκτὸς ἔσται ὡς κλέπτης. καὶ ὀφθαλμὸς μοιχοῦ ἐφύλαξε σκότος λέγων· οὐ προσνοήσει με ὀφθαλμός, καὶ ἀποκρυβὴν προσώπου ἔθετο. διώρυξεν ἐν σκότει οἰκίας. 210 παρέδωκεν αὐτοὺς εἰς σκότος οὐκ ἀναγκαστικῶς τοῦτο ποιῶν ὁ θεός, μὴ γένοιτο, ἀλλὰ συγχωρῶν αὐτοῖς διὰ τὸ αὐτεξούσιον ὡς βούλονται πορεύεσθαι. ὅμοιον δὲ τούτῳ καὶ ὁ θεῖος ἀπόστολός φησιν· παρέδωκεν αὐτοὺς ὁ θεὸς εἰς ἀδόκιμον νοῦν ποιεῖν τὰ μὴ καθήκοντα οὐ τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦτο πράξαντος, ἀλλὰ συγχωρήσαντος πράττειν ὡς βούλονται. φησὶν οὖν, ὅτι καὶ ὁ κλέπτης καὶ ὁ μοιχὸς καὶ ὁ τυμβωρύχος τὴν νύκτα συνεργὸν ἔχουσιν ὡς μηδενὸς αὐτοὺς ἐφορῶντος, ἐπειδὴ καὶ σκότους ἄξια πράττουσιν. 24, 16 ἡμέρας ἐσφράγισαν ἑαυτούς, οὐκ ἐπέγνωσαν φῶς. οὗτοι δὲ οἱ προειρημένοι διαλαμψάσης ἡμέρας κατακρύπτουσιν ἑαυτοὺς τὰς θύρας ἐναποκλείσαντεςτοῦτο γὰρ σημαίνει τὸ ἐσφράγισαν ἑαυτούςεἰς φῶς προιέναι δεδοικότες, ἵνα μὴ ἁλῶσιν, ἐπεὶ μηδὲ φωτὸς ἔργον ἐπάγονται. 24, 17 ὅτι ὁμοθυμαδὸν τὸ πρωὶ αὐτοῖς σκιὰ θανάτου, ὅτι ἐπιγνώσεται ταραχὰς σκιὰ θανάτου. διὰ τοῦτο δέ, φησίν, δεδοίκασι τὸ φῶς, ὅτι ὁμοῦ τὴν ἕω πρὸ ὀφθαλμῶν ἔχουσι καὶ τὸν θάνατον. ὥσπερ γὰρ ἡ σκιὰ προτρέχει τοῦ σώματος καὶ πλησίον εἶναι τοῦτο σημαίνει, οὕτω καὶ οὗτοι διαυγασάσης τῆς ἡμέρας τῇ συνειδήσει βαλλόμενοι πλησίον εἶναι προσδοκῶσι τὸν θάνατον. ἡ δὲ τοιαύτη προσδοκία ταραχῆς αὐτῶν ἐμπίπλησι τὰς ψυχὰς καὶ ζοφώδεις ἐργάζεται. τοῦτο γὰρ δηλοῖ τὸ ὅτι ἐπιγνώσεται ταραχὰς σκιὰ θανάτου. 24, 18 ἐλαφρός ἐστιν προσώπου ὕδατος. 211 ὁ τοῦ μοιχοῦ ὀφθαλμὸς ἑλκόμενος ὑπὸ τῶν πειρασμῶν ἢ καὶ πᾶς ἀσεβὴς ὡς ὑπὸ φορᾶς ὑδάτων ἐλαφρόν τι καὶ κοῦφον κατασυρόμενον οὕτως ὑπὸ τῆς τιμωρίας ῥᾳδίως ἐξαφανίζεται. οὐ γὰρ διασώσει ἀσέβεια τὸν παρ' αὐτῆς. εἶτα ὁ φιλάρετος καὶ φιλοδίκαιος Ἰὼβ οὐ διὰ τὴν ἀνοχὴν τοῦ θεοῦ ἀνέχεται τὸ πλέον ἔχειν ἀρετῆς κακίαν, ἀλλὰ καταρᾶται τὴν μερίδα τῶν ἀσεβῶν καί φησι τὰ αὐτοῖς συμβησόμενα. 24, 1819 καταραθείη ἡ μερὶς αὐτῶν ἐπὶ γῆς, ἀναφανείη δὲ τὰ φυτὰ αὐτῶν ἐπὶ γῆς ξηρά. ἀντὶ τοῦ· ἄκαρποι διαμένοιεν μηδὲν ἐκ τῆς οἰκείας ὠφελούμενοι κακίας μηδὲ εἰς παῖδας τὸν ἐξ ἀδικίας παραπέμποντες πλοῦτον. 24, 19 ἀγκαλίδα γὰρ ὀρφανῶν ἥρπασαν. τοῖς θερίζουσιν ὀρφανοὶ πολλάκις ἑπόμενοι καὶ τὰ ἐκπίπτοντα συλλέγοντες καὶ καλαμώμενοι εἰς ἀγκαλίδας δεσμεύουσιν. φησὶν οὖν, ὅτι εἰς τοσοῦτόν τινες ἀσεβείας ἐληλάκασιν, ὡς καὶ τὴν τῶν καλαμωμένων δι' ἀπορίαν ὀρφανῶν μερίδα μετρίαν ἁρπάζειν. 24, 2 εἶτα ἀνεμνήσθη αὐτοῦ ἡ ἁμαρτία. ἀντὶ τοῦ· εἰς μνήμην ἐγράφη καὶ ἀναπόδραστος ἔσται αὐτοῖς ἡ τιμωρία, εἰ καὶ ἐν τῷ τέως ὁ θεὸς διὰ χρηστότητα τὰς κολάσεις ὑπερτίθεται. 212 24, ὥσπερ δὲ ὀμίχλη δρόσου ἀφανὴς ἐγένετο. ἡλιακῆς ἀκτῖνος ἐπιλαμψάσης καὶ τὸν ἀέρα διαθερμανάσης ἡ δρόσος ἀφανὴς γίνεται ἀνιμωμένου τοῦ θερμοῦ τὸ ὑγρόν. οὕτως, φησίν, καὶ τῆς θείας δίκης ἐπελθούσης οἱ ἀσεβεῖς ἐξαφανίζονται. 24, ἀποδοθείη δὲ αὐτῷ ἃ ἔπραξεν. οὐκ ἐπαρᾶται ὁ δίκαιος, ἀλλὰ τὸ πάντως ἐσόμενον λέγει· ἕκαστος γὰρ πρὸς ἃ ἔπραξεν κομιεῖται, εἴτε ἀγαθὸν εἴτε φαῦλον. καὶ ἀνωτέρω δὲ οὐκ αὐτούς, ἀλλὰ τὴν μερίδα τῶν ἀσεβῶν, τουτέστιν αὐτὴν τὴν κακίαν, κατηράσατο. 24, {οὐ} συντριβείη δὲ πᾶς ἄδικος ἴσα ξύλῳ ἀνιάτῳ. τὸν ἐπιμένοντα τῇ κακίᾳ λέγει· συντριβὲν γὰρ ξύλον θεραπείαν οὐκ ἐπιδέχεται πρὸς τὸ ἀφυγιασθῆναι. 24, 21 στεῖραν γὰρ οὐκ εὖ ἐποίησαν. τὴν δι' ἀπαιδίαν ἀβοήθητον. καὶ σημειοῦ δὲ πάλιν, ὅτι τὸ μὴ εὖ ποιεῖν εἰς ἀσέβειαν λογίζεται. ἔκκλινον, φησὶν ὁ θεῖος ᾠδός, ἀπὸ κακοῦ καὶ ποίησον ἀγαθόν.