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72

are the enemies who attack—he says upon each victory: "and now he has lifted up my head above my enemies." Some have risen up urging to licentiousness, such as the elders against Susanna, against Joseph his brothers and she who later thought she had become his mistress. At the same time, speaking with thanksgiving, he shows that he did not have these achievements by his own power, but with God helping. 6 I have gone around and have sacrificed in his tabernacle a sacrifice of shouting. The shouting signifies victory; for it is an indistinct cry against fallen enemies. For instance, when they encircled Jericho and blew the horns and shouted, at their shout the walls of Jericho fell. But Jericho, according to allegory, is the place around the earth, being interpreted as "moon," the place around the earth not in its waxing, but in its waning, like the foolish man; for "a fool is changed like the moon." When, therefore, one encircles his own tabernacle in all its renderings—the tabernacle was called progress. He who progresses and genuinely achieves progress goes around it. And again, the body was called a tabernacle. When the inner man intensely sets upon the body, he goes around it and conquers. When one encircles the tabernacle, the body of Jesus, through faith, he is proven a conqueror. 6 I will sing and I will make music to the Lord. It was said to us in the preceding psalms, that "to sing" signifies contemplation, to send up praises and odes without an instrument. It was said that "to make music" is to sound forth the victory song in practice. Therefore, he says, both have been mine, and I will make music and I will sing. I will sing, contemplating the truth. He who considers the dogmas of piety and has a scientific and wise contemplation of them, sings. But he who considers the body as an instrument, both a lyre and a psaltery, and striking all its impulses and senses, which are its strings, able to bring forth a psalm melodiously, that one makes music. This holy one, therefore, professes to do the two things, to sing and to make music. He who disciplines his body and brings it into subjection106 and practices the moral virtues, such as the one who performs almsgiving, the one who achieves meekness, the one who is led forward in courage, this one makes music. But he who contemplates each mystery of the truth and is able to go through every dogma of piety with knowledge, this one sings. Since: in the fiftieth do we take it as a kind of confession for sin? -obviously it is stated there: "when Nathan came" and rebuked him concerning Uriah's wife. It was the time for confession and he sends up the psalm of confession there. After he became king and went in to the wife of Uriah that psalm came to be. but here it is sung "before he was anointed," so that this one differs from that one both in time and in action. Since: how then is he making music? -for virtue is unchangeable. Judas did not sing and make music to the Lord. Those who were handed over "to Satan, that they might learn not to blaspheme," had not possessed any tabernacle and progress of faith and virtue. But nevertheless, consider that the different psalms are not always spoken about one and the same person; for we have said this, that they are of a certain quality, qualified according to virtue or vice. It is not the same thing to say that man is sinless and to say that the just man is sinless. He who has righteousness cannot be brought under sin; for how can he, if opposites cannot coexist? He who has evil cannot have good, unless he first turns away from evil. Look to the quality, not to this man or that man; for when I say, that the faithful one can do all things, I do not mean this one or that one, but everyone who has faith. And if ever, then, someone being faithful has the ability to do all things and succeeds, but the things of faith fall away from him, I do not say that the faithful one does not succeed, but that this particular one does not succeed. Since: is not the psalm after this one earlier in time? -the psalms do not require such an order as you are seeking. That psalm is the one rebuking Doeg the Syrian. Saul was still king and indeed powerful

72

εἰσιν οἱ ἐπιτιθέμενοι ἐχθροί-λέγει ἐφ' ἑκάστης νίκης· "καὶ νῦν ὕψωσεν τὴν κεφαλήν μου ἐπ' ἐχθρούς μου". ἀνέστησάν τινες εἰς ἀκολασίαν προτρεπόμενοι, οἷον οἱ κατὰ Σωσάννης πρεσβύτεροι, κατὰ τοῦ Ἰωσὴφ ἀδελφοὶ καὶ αὐτὴ ἡ δόξασα ὕστερον δέσποινα αὐτοῦ γεγονέναι. χαριστηρίως ἅμα λέγων δείκνυσιν ὅτι οὐχ ἱδίᾳ δυνάμει ταῦτα τὰ κατορθώματα ἔσχεν, ἀλλὰ θεοῦ βοηθοῦντος. 6 ἐκύκλωσα καὶ ἔθυσα ἐν τῇ σκηνῇ αὐτοῦ θυσίαν ἀλαλαγμοῦ. ὁ ἀλαλαγμὸς νίκην αἰνίττεται· βοὴ γάρ ἐστιν ἄσημος κατὰ πεπτωκότων πολεμίων. αὐτίκα γοῦν ὅτε τὴν Ἰεριχὼ περιεκύκλωσαν καὶ ταῖς κερατίναις ἐσάλπισαν καὶ ἠλάλαξαν, ἐπὶ τῷ ἀλαλαγμῷ αὐτῶν ἔπεσαν τὰ τείχη τῆς Ἰεριχώ. Ἰεριχὼ δὲ κατὰ ἀλληγορίαν ὁ περὶ γῆν ἐστιν τόπος, ἑρμηνευομένη σελήνη ὁ περὶ γῆς τόπος οὐ κατὰ τὴν αὔξησιν, ἀλλὰ κατὰ τὴν μείωσιν, ὡς ὁ ἄφρων· "ἄφρων" γὰρ "ὡς σελήνη ἀλλοιοῦται". ὅταν οὖν κυκλώσῃ τὴν σκηνὴν ἑαυτοῦ κατὰ πάσας τὰς ἀποδόσεις- ἐλέγετο σκηνὴ ἡ προκοπή. ὁ προκόπτων καὶ κατορθῶν γνησίως τὴν προκοπὴν κύκλῳ αὐτῆς γίνεται. καὶ πάλιν τὸ σῶμα σκηνὴ ἐλέγετο. ὅταν ὁ ἔσω ἄνθρωπος συντόνως ἐπιθῆται κατὰ τοῦ σώματος, κύκλῳ αὐτοῦ γίνεται καὶ νικᾷ. ὅταν τις τὴν σκηνήν, τὸ σῶμα τοῦ Ἰησοῦ, διὰ πίστεως κυκλώσῃ, νικητὴς ἀποδείκνυται. 6 ᾄσω καὶ ψαλῶ τῷ κυρίῳ. ἐλέγετο ἡμῖν ἐν τοῖς προτέροις ψαλμοῖς, ὅτι τὸ ᾆσαι τὴν θεωρίαν σημαίνει, τὸ ἄνευ ὀργάνου ἀναπέμπειν τοὺς αἴνους καὶ τὰς ᾠδάς. ἐλέγετο τὸ ψάλλειν τὸ πρακτικῶς ἐξηχεῖν τὸ ἐπινίκιον μέλος. ἀμφότερα οὖν, φησίν, ὑπῆρκταί μοι, καὶ ψαλῶ καὶ ᾄσω. ᾄσω θεωρῶν τὴν ἀλήθειαν. ὁ περὶ τῶν δογμάτων τῆς εὐσεβείας διαλαμβάνων καὶ ἐπιστημονικὴν καὶ σοφὴν αὐτῶν ἔχων θεωρίαν, ᾄδει. ὁ δὲ καὶ τὸ σῶμα ὡς ὄργανον, καὶ κίθαραν καὶ ψαλτήριον, διαλαμβάνων καὶ κρούων αὐτοῦ πάσας τὰς ὁρμὰς καὶ τὰς αἰσθήσεις οὔσας χορδάς, ἐνμελῶς δυνάμενος ψαλμὸν προενέγκασθαι, ἐκεῖνος ψάλλει. οὗτος οὖν ὁ ἅγιος ἐπαγγέλλεται τὰ δύο ποιῆσαι, τὸ ᾆσαι καὶ τὸ ψάλαι. ὁ ὑπωπιάζων τὸ σῶμα αὐτοῦ καὶ δουλαγω106 γῶν καὶ πράττων τὰς ἠθικὰς ἀρετάς, οἷον ὁ ἐλεημοσύνην ποιῶν, ὁ πραότητα κατορθῶν, ὁ ἐν ἀνδρείᾳ προαγόμενος, οὗτος ψάλλει. ὁ δὲ θεωρῶν ἕκαστον τῆς ἀληθείας μυστήριον καὶ διεξιέναι δυνάμενος σὺν ἐπιστήμῃ πᾶν δόγμα τῆς εὐσεβείας, οὗτος ᾄδει. ἐπερ · ἐν τῷ πεντήκοντα ὥσπερ ἐξομολόγησίν τινα ἐπὶ ἁμαρτίᾳ λαμβάνομεν; -προφανῶς ἐκεῖ κεῖται· "ὅτε ἦλθεν Νάθαν" καὶ ἤλεγξεν αὐτὸν περὶ τῆς τοῦ Οὐρίου. ἐξομολογήσεως ἦν ὁ καιρὸς καὶ ἐξομολογήσεως ἀναπέμπει τὸν ψαλμὸν ἐκεῖ. μετὰ τὸ βασιλεῦσαι καὶ εἰςελθεῖν πρὸς τὴν τοῦ Οὐρίου γέγονεν ὁ ψαλμὸς ἐκεῖνος. ὧδε δὲ "πρὸ τοῦ χρισθῆναι" ᾄδεται, ὥστε καὶ τῷ χρόνῳ καὶ τῇ πράξει διαφέρει οὗτος ἐκείνου. ἐπερ · πῶς οὖν ψάλλων; -ἀμετάπτωτος γάρ ἐστιν ἡ ἀρετή. οὐκ ᾖδεν καὶ ἔψαλλεν τῷ κυρίῳ ὁ Ἰούδας. οἱ παραδοθέντες "τῷ σατανᾷ, ἵνα παιδευθῶσιν μὴ βλασφημεῖν", οὐκ ᾖσαν σκηνήν τινα καὶ προκοπὴν τῆς πίστεως καὶ ἀρετῆς ἐσχηκότες. ὅμως δὲ σκόπει ὅτι οἱ διάφοροι ψαλμοὶ οὐ πάντως περὶ ἑνὸς καὶ τοῦ αὐτοῦ προσώπου λέγονται· τοῦτο γὰρ εἰρήκαμεν, ὅτι ποιοῦ εἰσιν πεποιωμένου κατὰ ἀρετὴν ἢ κακίαν. οὐ ταὐτόν ἐστιν εἰπεῖν ὅτι ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἀναμάρτητός ἐστιν καὶ εἰπεῖν ὅτι ὁ δίκαιος ἄνθρωπος ἀναμάρτητός ἐστιν. ὁ δικαιοσύνην ἔχων οὐ δύναται ὑπαχθῆναι ἁμαρτίᾳ· πῶς γάρ, εἰ ἀσυνύπαρκτά εἰσιν τὰ ἐναντία; ὁ ἔχων κακὸν οὐ δύναται ἀγαθὸν ἔχειν, εἰ μὴ πρότερον ἐκκλίνῃ ἀπὸ τοῦ κακοῦ. εἰς ποιὸν βλέπε, μὴ εἰς τόνδε ἢ τόνδε· ὅταν γὰρ λέγω, ὅτι ὁ πιστὸς πάντα δύναται, οὐ τόνδε ἢ τόνδε λέγω, ἀλλὰ πάντα τὸν ἔχοντα πίστιν. κἄν ποτε γοῦν πιστὸς ὤν τις ἔχῃ τὸ πάντα δύνασθαι καὶ κατορθοῖν, μεταπέσῃ δὲ αὐτῷ τὰ τῆς πίστεως, οὐ λέγω ὅτι ὁ πιστὸς οὐ κατορθοῖ, ἀλλὰ ὅσδε οὐ κατορθοῖ. ἐπερ · ὁ μετὰ τοῦτον ψαλμὸς οὐ χρόνῳ πρότερον; -οἱ ψαλμοὶ οὐ τοιαύτην τάξιν ἀπαιτοῦνται οἵαν ζητεῖς σύ. ὁ ψαλμὸς ἐκεῖνος ὁ ἐλέγχων τὸν Σύρον τὸν ∆ωήλ. Σαοὺλ βασιλεὺς ἦν ἀκμὴν καὶ ἰσχύων γε