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who have no understanding. With bit and bridle you must bind their jaws, of those who do not draw near to you." I, he says, advise you not to emulate their irrationality; but if you are not persuaded, you will receive a bridle and a bit just like them. And through these things he indicates chastisements; for which reason he added: 10. "Many are the scourges of the sinner." Having thus introduced this suggestion to them, he moves on to the other choir. "But mercy will surround him who hopes in the Lord." For all men, even if they are adorned with the accomplishments of virtue, are in need of divine grace; for which reason also 80.1093 the divine Apostle cries out: "By grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not from you; it is the gift of God." 11. "Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, you righteous, and boast, all you who are upright in heart." Let no one, therefore, rejoice in his own accomplishments, but let him be greatly proud in God, and reap from thence his gladness. And this is like the apostolic sayings, "Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord." And "Let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall." For this reason also he enjoins to instruct with a spirit of gentleness: "Considering yourself," he says, "lest you also be tempted."

INTERPRETATION OF THE 32ND PSALM. Without an inscription among the Hebrews. The Seventy have put this, having interpreted the psalm: 'Do not seek,' he says, 'an interpretation of the inscription; for we did not find an inscription.' And this psalm was spoken by the blessed David, for the case concerning the wonderful Hezekiah; and it is fashioned as if from Hezekiah himself, urging the people to hymnody, after the unexpected victory and the destruction of the Assyrians. 1. "Rejoice, you righteous, in the Lord." In many places for 'rejoice,' Aquila has 'praise'; and Symmachus has interpreted it similarly, "Praise is fitting for the upright." For those who have come to know God, and have been delivered from error, it is fitting to hymn God continually. Then he also teaches how it is proper for them to make their hymnody. 2, 3. "Give thanks to the Lord with a lyre, on a ten-stringed psaltery sing to him. Sing to him a new song, sing well to him with a shout." And all these things were performed according to the Levitical worship; for they used lyres, and cymbals, and drums, and other musical instruments. A shout of triumph is a cry of victory, made by the victors against those who are fleeing. But the things that have been said are also fitting for us, when understood spiritually; and it is possible for us to show ourselves to be a well-sounding and all-harmonious instrument, and through all our senses, both sensible and intelligible, to hymn God. 4. "For the word of the Lord is upright, and all his works are in faithfulness." Justly, he says, does the Lord of all things govern all things 80.1096; and he has set before us the contemplation of his works, urging us to believe, but not to be overly curious about how they came to be. 5. "The Lord loves mercy and judgment." For he commands all to accept the things done by him without curiosity and without any discord; but to take care of one's life, and to adorn it with mercy and judgment. "The earth is full of the mercy of the Lord." It is fitting, he says, to imitate the Maker; for just as he himself administers with mercy and pities the wronged, so too ought we to assign judgment to the unjust, but mercy to the wronged. For our philanthropic Master used judgment against the Assyrians; but he deemed us worthy of his forbearance and philanthropy. Having thus discussed the things concerning divine providence, he transfers his discourse to creation, and teaches how, having created all things, he governs all things, and provides for them as his own creations, not as belonging to another. [6], "By the word of the Lord the heavens were made firm, and by the spirit of his mouth all their host." He had no need of labor, he says, or of time in creating, but a word was sufficient for him for creation; for he said, 'Let there be a firmament,' and it was so; 'Let there be lights in the firmament

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οἷς οὐκ ἔστι σύνεσις. Ἐν κημῷ καὶ χαλινῷ τὰς σιαγόνας αὐτῶν ἄγξαις, τῶν μὴ ἐγγιζόντων πρὸς σέ." Ἐγὼ μὲν ὑμῖν, φησὶ, παραινῶ τὴν τούτων μὴ ζηλοῦν ἀλογίαν· εἰ δὲ μὴ πείθεσθε, δέξεσθε χαλινὸν καὶ κημὸν τούτοις παραπλησίως. ∆ιὰ δὲ τούτων τὰς παιδείας δηλοῖ· οὗ χάριν ἐπήγαγεν· ιʹ. "Πολλαὶ αἱ μάστιγες τοῦ ἁμαρτωλοῦ." Οὕτω ταύτην τούτοις εἰσενεγκὼν τὴν εἰσήγησιν, ἐπὶ τὸν ἕτερον μεταβαίνει χορόν. "Τὸν δὲ ἐλπίζοντα ἐπὶ Κύριον ἔλεος κυκλώσει." Ἅπαντες γὰρ ἄνθρωποι, εἰ καὶ τοῖς τῆς ἀρετῆς καλλωπίζονται κατορθώ μασι, τῆς θείας προσδέονται χάριτος· διὸ δὴ καὶ 80.1093 ὁ θεῖος Ἀπόστολος βοᾷ· "Χάριτί ἐστε σεσωσμέ νοι διὰ τῆς πίστεως· καὶ τοῦτο οὐκ ἐξ ὑμῶν· Θεοῦ τὸ δῶρον." ιαʹ. "Εὐφράνθητε ἐπὶ Κύριον, καὶ ἀγαλλιᾶσθε, δίκαιοι, καὶ καυχᾶσθε, πάντες οἱ εὐθεῖς τῇ καρ δίᾳ." Μηδεὶς τοίνυν ἐπὶ τοῖς οἰκείοις κατορθώ μασιν ἀγαλλέσθω, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ τῷ Θεῷ μέγα φρο νείτω, καὶ τὴν ἐντεῦθεν θυμηδίαν καρπούσθω. Καὶ τοῦτο τοῖς ἀποστολικοῖς ἔοικε ῥητοῖς, "Ὁ καυχώμενος ἐν Κυρίῳ καυχάσθω." Καὶ "Ὁ δοκῶν ἑστάναι, βλεπέτω μὴ πέσῃ." ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ πνεύματι πραότητος παιδεύειν παρεγγυᾷ· "Σκοπῶν, φησὶ, σεαυτὸν, μὴ καὶ σὺ πειρασθῇς."

ΕΡΜΗΝ. ΤΟΥ ΛΒʹ ΨΑΛΜΟΥ. Ἀνεπίγραφος παρ' Ἑβραίοις. Τοῦτο οἱ Ἑβδομήκοντα τεθείκασι, τὸν ψαλμὸν

ἑρμηνεύσαντες· Μὴ ζητήσῃς, φησὶν, ἑρμηνείαν ἐπιγραφῆς· ἐπιγρα φὴν γὰρ οὐχ εὕρομεν. Εἴρηται δὲ ὁ ψαλμὸς οὗτος ὑπὸ τοῦ μακαρίου ∆αβὶδ, εἰς τὴν κατὰ τὸν θαυμάσιον Ἐζεκίαν ὑπόθεσιν· ἐσχημάτισται δὲ ὡς ἐξ αὐτοῦ τοῦ Ἐζεκίου, εἰς ὑμνῳδίαν τὸν λαὸν παροτρύνοντος, μετὰ τὴν παράδοξον νίκην καὶ τῶν Ἀσσυρίων τὸν ὄλεθρον. αʹ. "Ἀγαλλιᾶσθε, δίκαιοι ἐν Κυρίῳ." Πολλαχοῦ τὸ ἀγαλλιᾶσθε, ὁ μὲν Ἀκύλας, αἰνεῖτε; καὶ ὁ Σύμ μαχος ὁμοίως ἡρμήνευσεν, "Τοῖς εὐθέσι πρέπει αἴνεσις." Τοῖς τὸν Θεὸν ἐπεγνωκόσι, καὶ πλάνης ἀπηλλαγμένοις, ἁρμόττει τὸν Θεὸν διηνεκῶς ἀν υμνεῖν. Εἶτα διδάσκει καὶ πῶς αὐτοὺς προσήκει τὴν ὑμνῳδίαν ποιεῖσθαι. βʹ, γʹ. "Ἐξομολογεῖσθε τῷ Κυρίῳ ἐν κιθάρᾳ, ἐν ψαλτηρίῳ δεκαχόρδῳ ψάλατε αὐτῷ. Ἄσατε αὐτῷ ᾆσμα καινὸν, καλῶς ψάλατε αὐτῷ ἐν ἀλαλαγμῷ." Ταῦτα δὲ πάντα κατὰ τὴν νομικὴν ἐπετελεῖτο λατρείαν· καὶ γὰρ κιθάραις, καὶ κυμβάλοις, καὶ τυμπάνοις, καὶ ἑτέροις μουσικοῖς ὀργάνοις ἐκέχρην το. Ἀλαλαγμὸς δέ ἐστιν ἐπινίκιος βοὴ, κατὰ τῶν φευγόντων ὑπὸ τῶν νικώντων γινομένη. Ἁρμόττει δὲ καὶ ἡμῖν τὰ εἰρημένα πνευ ματικῶς νοούμενα· καὶ δυνατὸν ἡμᾶς εὔηχον καὶ παναρμόνιον ὄργανον ἡμᾶς αὐτοὺς ἀποφῆναι, καὶ διὰ τῶν αἰσθητηρίων ἁπάντων τῶν αἰσθητῶν τε καὶ νοητῶν τὸν Θεὸν ἀνυμνῆσαι. δʹ. "Ὅτι εὐθὺς ὁ λόγος τοῦ Κυρίου, καὶ πάντα τὰ ἔργα αὐτοῦ ἐν πίστει." ∆ικαίως, φησὶν, ἅπαντα 80.1096 πρυτανεύει ὁ τῶν ὅλων Κύριος· καὶ προὔθηκεν ἡμῖν τῶν ἔργων αὑτοῦ τὴν θεωρίαν, πιστεύειν παρακαλῶν, ἀλλ' οὐ πολυπραγμονεῖν, πῶς γεγένη ται. εʹ. "Ἀγαπᾷ ἐλεημοσύνην καὶ κρίσιν ὁ Κύριος." Τὰ μὲν γὰρ ὑπ' αὐτοῦ γινόμενα, ἀπεριέργως ἅπαντας ἄνευ τινὸς διχονοίας, παρακελεύεται δέχε σθαι· βίου μέντοι ἐπιμελεῖσθαι, καὶ τοῦτον ἐλέῳ καὶ κρίσει κατακοσμεῖν. "Τοῦ ἐλέους Κυρίου πλή ρης ἡ γῆ." Μιμεῖσθαι, φησὶ, προσήκει τὸν Ποιητήν· ὥσπερ γὰρ αὐτὸς ἐλέῳ κεχρημένος οἰκονομεῖ. καὶ τοὺς ἠδικημένους οἰκτείρει· οὕτω δεῖ καὶ ἡμᾶς τοῖς μὲν ἀδίκοις ἀπονέμειν τὴν κρίσιν, τοῖς δὲ ἠδι κημένοις τὸν ἔλεον. Καὶ γὰρ ὁ φιλάνθρωπος ἡμῶν ∆εσπότης τῇ μὲν κρίσει κατὰ τῶν Ἀσσυρίων ἐχρήσατο· ἡμᾶς δὲ φειδοῦς καὶ φιλανθρωπίας ἠξίω σεν. Οὕτω τὰ περὶ τῆς θείας προνοίας διεξελθὼν, ἐπὶ τὴν δημιουργίαν μεταφέρει τὸν λόγον, καὶ δι δάσκει ὡς δημιουργήσας τὰ σύμπαντα, πρυτανεύει τὰ σύμπαντα, καὶ προμηθεῖται ὡς ποιημάτων οἰκείων, οὐκ ἀλλοτρίων. ʹ, "Τῷ λόγῳ Κυρίου οἱ οὐρανοὶ ἐστερεώθη σαν, καὶ τῷ πνεύματι τοῦ στόματος αὐτοῦ πᾶσα ἡ δύναμις αὐτῶν." Οὐ πόνου, φησὶν, ἐδεήθη, καὶ χρόνου δημιουργῶν, ἀλλ' ἤρκεσεν αὐτῷ λόγος εἰς ποίησιν· εἶπε γὰρ, Γενηθήτω στερέωμα, καὶ ἐγένετο οὕτως· Γενηθήτωσαν φωστῆρες ἐν τῷ στερεώματι