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Or again 'he measures out the valley of Succoth' is he who by knowledge encompasses the world of bodies as a valley of tents; for in many places in Scripture the body was called a "tent."

"Gilead is mine and Manasseh is mine, and Ephraim is the strength of my head."

According to one of the interpretations for this name, Gilead is revelation, and Manasseh is interpreted as forgetfulness; revelation and forgetfulness rightly come to the just man, who receives initiation into the mysteries through contemplation, and forgetfulness of the labors of virtue through the joy of spiritual contemplation which succeeds the labors of the virtues. Ephraim is interpreted as broadening, which is the unfailing hope according to faith in the good things to come, which is the support 'of the head' of the just man, that is, of faith; for faith is the head of every just man and of every good work, and its 'strengthening' has become the secure, unfailing hope of the good things to come; through which, contemplating future things as present, we are broadened in tribulations, remaining steadfast in temptations.

"Judah is my king, Moab is the basin of my hope." Judah is interpreted as confession; for confession through prayers rules in

the saints over every good thing. But Judah can also be understood as the Lord, who is the true king of the spiritual Israel and of the one seeing God, who on our behalf, when he became man, confessed to the Father and said: "I confess to you, holy Father." Moab is interpreted as 'bowel of the father,' and it is understood as our body, through which according to practical philosophy, like a bath—which the basin clearly signifies—the purification from sins naturally occurs; for the 'basin of hope' is purification, that is, the readiness through life, according to purification, for the inheritance of the good things laid up for us according to hope.

Again, 'Moab' can be understood as the incarnation of the Lord; for the Son of man for our sake became and was called the true 'basin of our hope,' that is, the one who cleanses and purifies our stains and pollutions from sin.

"Upon Idumea I will stretch out my shoe; to me the foreigners were subjected." Idumea is interpreted as bloody clay. And it can be taken also for the

flesh of the Lord, through which, as through a 'shoe,' he walked upon human things, since creation was otherwise unable to contain the Maker, who is by nature infinite and uncontainable.

Again, it can also be understood as the flesh of each one of us, upon which 'we stretch out the shoe,' that is, the asceticism and self-control that guard the soul from the evil thistles and (14A_380> thorns of the devil—for this is what the shoe must be understood to be; for without asceticism and strict self-control it is impossible for the ascetic of piety to wrestle down the passions of the flesh.

Again, the shoe of the soul can be understood as the sense-perception that has been put to death through reason and contemplation, through which the soul, treading upon sensible things, journeys through this age unharmed, perceiving its principles through the medium of sense-perception as a shoe, collecting the differences of visible things according to kind and form for the understanding and full knowledge of the one, sole, and originating Word.

"To me the foreigners were subjected." For when the Lord, through the flesh, came to our places, there were subjected

to the might of his strength not only the spirits of wickedness, being abolished, but also all the nations, having received through the calling the saving proclamation of the Gospel, submitted; and the 'foreigners' are also 'subjected' to every just man, when

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Ἢ πάλιν 'κοιλάδα Σκηνῶν διαμετρεῖ' ὁ τὸν κόσμον τῶν σωμάτων καθάπερ κοιλάδα σκηνῶν γνώσει περιλαμβάνων· «σκῆνος» γὰρ πολλαχοῦ τῆς Γραφῆς τὸ σῶμα προσηγορεύθη.

«Ἐμός ἐστι Γαλαὰδ καὶ ἐμός ἐστι Μανασσῆς καὶ Ἐφραΐμ κραταίωσις τῆς κεφαλῆς μου».

Γαλαὰδ κατὰ μίαν τῶν ἐπὶ τῷ ὀνόματι τούτῳ ἑρμηνειῶν ἐστὶν ἀποκάλυψις, Μανασσῆς δὲ ἑρμηνεύεται λήθη· ἀποκάλυψις δὲ καὶ λήθη εἰκότως προσγίνονται τῷ δικαίῳ, λαμβάνοντι μὲν διὰ θεωρίας τῶν ἀπορρήτων τὴν μύησιν, τῶν δὲ κατ᾽ ἀρετὴν πόνων τὴν λήθην διὰ τὴν διαδεχομένην τοὺς πόνους τῶν ἀρετῶν εὐφροσύνην τῆς πνευματικῆς θεωρίας. Ἐφραΐμ δὲ ἑρμηνεύεται πλατυσμός, ὅπέρ ἐστιν ἡ κατὰ πίστιν ἐπὶ τοῖς μέλλουσιν ἀγαθοῖς ἄπτωτος ἐλπίς, ἥτις ἐστὶν ἀντίληψις 'τῆς κεφαλῆς' τοῦ δικαίου, τουτέστι τῆς πίστεως· παντὸς γὰρ δικαίου κεφαλὴ ἡ πίστις ἐστὶ καὶ παντὸς ἔργου ἀγαθοῦ, 'κραταίωσις' δὲ ταύτης καθέστηκεν ἀσφαλὴς ἡ τῶν μελλόντων ἀγαθῶν ἀδιάπτωτος ἐλπίς· καθ᾽ ἣν ὡς παρόντα τὰ μέλλοντα θεωροῦντες, ἐμπλατυνόμεθα ταῖς θλίψεσιν, ἀκατάπτωτοι ἐν τοῖς πειρασμοῖς διαμένοντες.

«Ἰούδας βασιλεύς μου, Μωὰβ λέβης τῆς ἐλπίδος μου». Ἰούδας ἐξομολόγησις ἑρμηνεύεται· ἄρχει γὰρ ἡ δι᾽ εὐχῶν ἐξομολόγησις ἐν

τοῖς ἁγίοις παντὸς ἀγαθοῦ. ∆ύναται δὲ νοηθῆναι καὶ εἰς τὸν Κύριον ὁ Ἰούδας, ὅς ἐστιν ἀληθινὸς βασιλεὺς τοῦ πνευματικοῦ Ἰσραὴλ καὶ ὁρῶντος Θεόν, ὁ ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν, ἡνίκα γέγονεν ἄνθρωπος, ἐξομολογούμενος πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα καὶ λέγων· «ἐξομολογοῦμαί σοι, Πάτερ ἅγιε». Μωὰβ δὲ 'ἔντερον πατρὸς' ἑρμηνεύεται, νοεῖται δὲ τὸ ἡμέτερον σῶμα, δι᾽ οὗ κατὰ τὴν πρακτικὴν φιλοσοφίαν, λουτροῦ δίκην ὅπερ δηλοῖ σαφῶς ὁ λέβης , ἡ κάθαρσις πέφυκε γίνεσθαι τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων· κάθαρσις γάρ ἐστιν ὁ 'λέβης τῆς ἐλπίδος,' τουτέστιν ἡ διὰ βίου κατὰ τὴν κάθαρσιν πρὸς κληρονομίαν τῶν κατ᾽ ἐλπίδας ἀποκειμένων ἡμῖν ἀγαθῶν ἑτοιμότης.

∆ύναται δὲ πάλιν νοηθῆναι ὁ 'Μωὰβ' καὶ εἰς τὴν σάρκωσιν τοῦ Κυρίου· Υἱὸς γὰρ ἀνθρώπου δι᾽ ἡμᾶς γέγονέ τε καὶ ἐχρημάτισεν ὁ ἀληθινὸς 'λέβης τῆς ἐλπίδος' ἡμῶν, τουτέστιν ὁ ῥυπτικὸς καὶ καθαρτικὸς τῶν ἐκ τῆς ἁμαρτίας ἡμετέρων κηλίδων τὲ καὶ μολυσμῶν.

«Ἐπὶ τὴν Ἰδουμαίαν ἐκτενῶ τὸ ὑπόδημά μου, ἐμοὶ ἀλλόφυλοι ὑπετάγησαν». Ἰδουμαία αἱματώδης πηλὸς ἑρμηνεύεται. ∆ύναται δὲ ληφθῆναι καὶ εἰς τὴν

σάρκα τοῦ Κυρίου, δι᾽ ἧς ἐπέβη, ὡς δι᾽ 'ὑποδήματος,' τοῖς ἀνθρωπίνοις, ἄλλως χωρῆσαι τὸν Ποιητὴν μὴ δυναμένης τῆς κτίσεως, ἄπειρόν τε καὶ ἀχώρητον κατὰ φύσιν τυγχάνοντα.

∆ύναται δὲ πάλιν νοηθῆναι καὶ εἰς τὴν ἑκάστου ἡμῶν σάρκα, ἐφ᾽ ἧς 'ἐκτείνομεν τὸ ὑπόδημα,' τουτέστι τὴν φρουροῦσαν τὴν ψυχὴν ἀπὸ τῶν πονηρῶν τοῦ διαβόλου τριβόλων τὲ καὶ (14Α_380> ἀκανθῶν ἄσκησίν τε καὶ ἐγκράτειαν τοῦτο γὰρ χρὴ νοεῖσθαι τὸ ὑπόδημα · ἄνευ γὰρ ἀσκήσεως καὶ ἀκριβοῦς ἐγκρατείας τὰ τῆς σαρκὸς πάθη καταπαλαῖσαι τὸν ἀσκητὴν τῆς εὐσεβείας ἀμήχανον.

∆ύναται δὲ πάλιν ὑπόδημα νοηθῆναι ψυχῆς καὶ ἡ διὰ λόγου καὶ θεωρίας νεκρωθεῖσα αἴσθησις, δι᾽ ἧς ἐπιβαίνουσα ἡ ψυχὴ τοῖς αἰσθητοῖς, τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦτον ἀβλαβῶς διαπορεύεται, τοὺς αὐτοῦ λόγους διὰ μέσης τῆς αἰσθήσεως ὡς ὑποδήματος φαντασιουμένης, τὰς τῶν ὁρατῶν κατ᾽ εἶδος καὶ σχῆμα διαφορὰς ἀναλεγομένη πρὸς τὴν τοῦ ἑνὸς μόνου τε καὶ ἀρχικοῦ Λόγου σύνεσιν καὶ ἐπίγνωσιν.

«Ἐμοὶ ἀλλόφυλοι ὑπετάγησαν». Ἡνίκα γὰρ διὰ σαρκὸς τοῖς καθ᾽ ἡμᾶς ἐπεχωρίασε τόποις ὁ Κύριος, ὑπετάγη

τῷ κράτει τῆς ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ οὐ μόνον καταργηθέντα τὰ πνεύματα τῆς πονηρίας, ἀλλὰ καὶ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, δεξάμενα διὰ τῆς κλήσεως τὸ σωτήριον τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου κήρυγμα, ὑπέκυψεν· 'ὑποτάσσονται' δὲ καὶ παντὶ δικαίῳ οἱ 'ἀλλόφυλοι,' ἡνίκα