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teaching those who fear him to carry about in the body the dying of Jesus, by which the complete inactivity of sin is established; for a true sign, the power that through the cross puts to death the mindset of the flesh, has been established.

"So that they might flee from the face of the bow." That is, from the deceptive appearance that manifests itself to beings; for the face

of the bow, and I mean of each demonic passion, is the appearance of bodies which stimulates the senses, like the point of an arrow wounding the senses and improperly exciting the soul toward the passions. Therefore the Word says that those who fear the Lord will flee from the face of the bow, but not from the bow; for the bow of sin, being without a face, could do nothing against those who fear the Lord.

"That your beloved may be delivered." The beloved of God are the thoughts that, according to contemplation, are comprehensive of divine knowledge,

which are delivered by the ways of the virtues established according to the practical life from all deceit and from all the memories of sin in the mind that disturb the soul.

"Save with your right hand, and hear me. God has spoken in his holy one; I will rejoice and I will divide (14Α_374> Shechem and I will measure out the valley of the tents."

God saves with his right hand, giving his only-begotten Son; for the Son is the right hand of the Father, a ransom for the salvation of the world; and he hearkens, giving to the righteous man, in addition to the remission of sins, spiritual gifts as well. For God hears him who supplicates him, first giving remission of sins through repentance; and he hearkens, in addition to the remission of sins, also giving the energies that are through spiritual grace. And he speaks in his holy one, that is, in his incarnate Word, his divine purpose, which was hidden from the ages and from generations, according to the incarnate economy of Christ himself, as if crying out distinctly through his humanly fitting way of life among us and giving to life, for a model of eternal life, an image louder than any voice: the demonstration of good works; and he 'speaks' also 'in' each 'holy one' who keeps his commandments, as if showing the words to be living through their works and louder than any voice.

And the righteous man rejoices, when, having been perfected by the grace of the Only-begotten, he becomes able to 'divide' 'Shechem,' that is, to suggest to others, according to their capacity, from knowledgeable experience, the manly ways of the virtues according to the practical life; for Shechem is interpreted as "shoulder-act," which is the disposition that abstains from all passions but is active in all virtues; for they say the shoulder is a symbol of action.

And he measures out the valley of the Tents, assigning the appropriate principles to each of the beings according to natural contemplation; for the 'valley of the Tents' is the present world, in which for all, according to the different judgment and disposition of each, this present life is unstable and temporary, like tents.

Or again, the Tents of the present valley happen to be the (14Α_376> ways of the virtues, which he divides with knowledge for those being taught, giving a training suitable to the disposition of each, and protection of what is precious, he who knows how to distribute to each through good teaching the way fitting for salvation.

Or, the Tents of the valley are the Churches of the nations that have believed, established throughout the whole world through Christ our Savior God, which is also, as I think, more manifest than the others.

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Ἰησοῦ ἐν τῷ σώματι περιφέρειν διδάσκων τοὺς φοβουμένους αὐτόν, καθ᾽ ἣν ἡ παντελὴς τῆς ἁμαρτίας ἀπραξία συνέστηκε· σημείωσις γὰρ ἀληθὴς ἡ διὰ σταυροῦ νεκροῦσα τὸ φρόνημα τῆς σαρκὸς καθέστηκε δύναμις.

«Πρὸς τὸ φυγεῖν ἀπὸ προσώπου τόξου». Τουτέστιν ἀπὸ τῆς ἐμφαινομένης τοῖς οὖσιν ἀπατηλῆς ἐπιφανείας· πρόσωπον

γὰρ τόξου, φημὶ δὲ ἑκάστου δαιμονιώδους πάθους, ἡ τὴν αἴσθησιν ἐρεθίζουσα τῶν σωμάτων ἐστὶν ἐπιφάνεια, καθάπερ ἀκὶς βέλους τὴν αἴσθησιν τιτρώσκουσα καὶ πρὸς τὰ πάθη τὴν ψυχὴν ἀπρεπῶς διερεθίζουσα. ∆ιόπερ ἀπὸ προσώπου τόξου φησὶν ὁ λόγος φεύξεσθαι τοὺς φοβουμένους τὸν Κύριον, ἀλλ᾽ οὐκ ἀπὸ τόξου· τὸ γὰρ τόξον τῆς ἁμαρτίας ἄνευ προσώπου τυχὸν οὐδέ τι δράσειε κατὰ τῶν φοβουμένων τὸν Κύριον.

«Ἐφ᾽ ᾧ ῥυσθῆναι τοὺς ἀγαπητοὺς τοῦ θεοῦ». Ἀγαπητοὶ δὲ Θεοῦ εἰσὶν οἱ κατὰ θεωρίαν συνεκτικοὶ τῆς θείας γνώσεως

λογισμοί, οὓς ῥύονται οἱ κατὰ τὴν πρακτικὴν συνιστάμενοι τρόποι τῶν ἀρετῶν ἀπὸ πάσης πλάνης καὶ πασῶν τῶν διοχλουσῶν τῇ ψυχῇ κατὰ πρόληψιν τῆς ἁμαρτίας μνημῶν.

«Σῶσον τῇ δεξιᾷ σου καὶ ἐπάκουσόν μου. Ὁ Θεὸς ἐλάλησεν ἐν τῷ ἁγίῳ αὐτοῦ· Ἀγαλλιάσομαι καὶ διαμεριῶ (14Α_374> Σίκημα καὶ τὴν κοιλάδα τῶν σκηνῶν διαμετρήσω».

Σώζει ὁ Θεὸς τῇ δεξιᾷ αὐτοῦ, διδοὺς τὸν μονογενῆ αὐτοῦ Υἱόν δεξιὰ γὰρ τοῦ Πατρὸς ὁ Υιός λύτρον ὑπὲρ τῆς τοῦ κόσμου σωτηρίας· ἐπακούει δέ, διδοὺς τῷ δικαίῳ πρὸς τῇ ἀφέσει τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων καὶ πνευματικὰ χαρίσματα ἀκούει μὲν γὰρ τοῦ ἱκετεύοντος αὐτὸν ὁ Θεός, πρῶτον διὰ τῆς μετανοίας ἄφεσιν διδοὺς ἁμαρτημάτων, ἐπακούει δέ, πρὸς τῇ ἀφέσει τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων καὶ τὰ διὰ χάριτος πνευματικῆς διδοὺς ἐνεργήματα · λαλεῖ δὲ ἐν τῷ ἁγίῳ αὐτοῦ, τουτέστιν ἐν τῷ σαρκωθέντι αὐτοῦ Λόγῳ, τὸν θεῖον αὐτοῦ σκοπόν, τὸν ἀποκεκρυμμένον ἀπὸ τῶν αἰώνων καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν γενεῶν κατὰ τὴν ἔνσαρκον αὐτοῦ τοῦ Χριστοῦ οἰκονομίαν, διὰ τῆς καθ᾽ ἡμᾶς ἀνθρωποπρεποῦς αὐτοῦ ἀναστροφῆς οἱονεὶ διαρρήδην βοῶν καὶ τῷ βίῳ διδοὺς εἰς ὑποτύπωσιν αἰωνίου ζωῆς εἰκόνα, πάσης γεγωνοτέραν φωνῆς, τὴν τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἔργων ἐπίδειξιν· 'λαλεῖ' δὲ καὶ 'ἐν' ἑκάστῳ 'ἁγίῳ' φυλάττοντι αὐτοῦ τὰς ἐντολάς, οἷον ζῶντας δεικνὺς διὰ τῶν ἔργων τοὺς λόγους καὶ πάσης φωνῆς γεγωνοτέρους.

Ἀγαλλιᾶται δὲ ὁ δίκαιος, ἡνίκα, τελειωθεὶς τῇ χάριτι τοῦ Μονογενοῦς, ἱκανὸς γένηται 'διαμερίσαι' τὴν 'Σίκημα,' τουτέστιν ἄλλοις ἀναλόγως ἐκ πείρας ἐπιστήμονος ὑποθέσθαι τοὺς κατὰ τὴν πρακτικὴν ἀνδρικοὺς τῶν ἀρετῶν τρόπους· ὠμίασις γὰρ ἡ Σίκημα ἑρμηνεύεται, ὅπέρ ἐστιν ἡ πάντων μὲν ἐφεκτικὴ τῶν παθῶν, πασῶν δὲ ἐνεργητικὴ τῶν ἀρετῶν ἕξις πράξεως γὰρ σύμβολον τὸν ὦμον εἶναι φασίν.

Καὶ τὴν κοιλάδα τῶν Σκηνῶν διαμετρεῖ, τοὺς προσφόρους ἑκάστῳ τῶν ὄντων κατὰ τὴν φυσικὴν θεωρίαν λόγους ἀπονέμων· ἡ γὰρ 'κοιλὰς τῶν Σκηνῶν' ὁ παρών ἐστι κόσμος, ἐν ᾧ πάντων κατὰ τὴν ἑκάστου διάφορον γνώμην τὲ καὶ διάθεσιν ἀπαγὴς ὑπάρχει καὶ πρόσκαιρος, σκηνῶν δίκην, ἡ παροῦσα ζωή.

Ἢ πάλιν Σκηναὶ τυγχάνουσι τῆς παρούσης κοιλάδος οἱ (14Α_376> τῶν ἀρετῶν τρόποι, οὓς διαιρεῖ γνωστικῶς τοῖς διδασκομένοις, πρὸς τὴν ἑκάστου ἕξιν κατάλληλον διδοὺς ἀγωγὴν καὶ προσφυλακὴν τῶν τιμίων, ὁ διανέμειν εἰδὼς ἑκάστῳ διὰ τῆς καλῆς διδασκαλίας τὴν ἁρμόζουσαν πρὸς σωτηρίαν ὁδόν.

Ἢ Σκηναὶ κοιλάδος ὑπάρχουσιν αἱ διὰ Χριστοῦ τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν Θεοῦ παγεῖσαι κατὰ πᾶσαν τὴν οἰκουμένην τῶν πιστευσάντων ἐθνῶν Ἐκκλησίαι, ὃ καὶ μᾶλλον, ὡς οἶμαι, τῶν ἄλλων ἐστὶν ἐπιφανέστερον.