B f. 134 b) He says, therefore, that the arrows of God have been fixed in him, and that the hand has been laid heavily upon him, clearly the piercing hand, and this continuously and without interval; for one thing after another often happens 69.956 of those things that are accustomed to grieve those being chastised by God or those being tempted; according to which it also happened to Job, for various things were frequently reported one after another, even if he was unshaken. But if someone should choose to understand 'You have laid your chastising hand heavily upon me' instead of 'I am exceedingly burdened and have considered the blow most grievous,' he would not miss what is fitting. For he who lays his hand heavily upon someone, places a burden difficult to bear upon him. Therefore, 'Do not chastise me in your wrath,' he says, 'nor in your anger.' Why? "Because your arrows have been fixed in me;" for the arrows coming from you, that is, the punishing powers, having taken on wrath and anger, punish me sufficiently; therefore I beseech that I may not be tried by another wrath. There is no healing in my flesh because of your anger, there is no peace in my bones. (A f. 206) But he more simply extends the explanation of the blow inflicted upon him by the divine arrows, and of the hand being laid heavily upon him; and he says that no manner of healing could be devised that is at all able to suffice for the affliction of the flesh, that is, for the weariness of the bones that are all but dislocated. For their not having peace with one another indicates that they are dislocated and, as it were, departing from their natural harmony. And indeed in the more severe afflictions we are somehow accustomed to say this too, that My bones are dislocated. Therefore he says the sickness of his flesh has become nearly incurable, either being worn out by cares and wasted by bitter anxieties, or also in another way wasting away through fasting and long periods without food and sleeplessness. But it is not at all strange to call one's own people 'bones'. For if we are members of one another, and we all have been accounted as one body, what prevents us from calling the individuals, and especially the most essential ones, 'bones'? so that the revolts of one's own people, whom we also say are tropologically named 'bones', are more unbearable than war from enemies. Because my iniquities have gone over my head. (A f. 206 b, B f. 135) But the word teaches us not to hide our own evils, nor to hold our sins like some bruise and decay deep within the soul, searing our conscience. For just as in the case of those with a fever, if the fever proceeds deep inside, it produces a greater illness, but having come forth to the surface, it shows a hope of abatement, so also might it be with the soul. And this, I say, is what was said by the Wise One: "Be not ashamed to confess your sins," and "Declare your iniquities first, that you may be justified." For it is among the most absurd things not to be ashamed before the eyes of physicians, but to lay bare to them even the hidden ailments, for the sake of not suffering 69.957 more grievously, but to have some cutting off of the advance of the ailments, and yet not to endure showing the Physician of spirits the ailments that have occurred in souls, even though He knows all things, even if one should not choose to do this. He says, therefore, that his sins have gone over his head; the 'gone over' signifying that they have been laid upon him like a most grievous burden. For the neighboring verse immediately interprets this for us, saying that they have been made heavy like a heavy burden; for a burden difficult for the mind and heart to bear is the conviction for sins. Nevertheless, the Lord delivers the sick from evil, saying: "Come to me, all you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest." And David teaches something else that happened to him, saying: "Like a heavy burden they were made heavy upon me." For the things he had dared to do weighed upon his conscience, so that he was not able to bear them, because of the nobility and good judgment of his soul. For the unyielding and hard-hearted man, according to his own hardness, treasures up wrath for himself, increasing his own evils; "For when a sinner comes into the depths of evils, he despises them;" but the man of good judgment, even if just once

B f. 134 b) Ἐμπεπῆχθαι δὲ οὖν φησιν αὐτῷ τὰ βέλη τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ τὴν χεῖρα ἐπεστη ρίχθαι αὐτῷ δηλονότι τὴν νύττουσαν, καὶ τοῦτο ἐν δελεχῶς καὶ ἀδιαστάτως· ἄλλο γὰρ ἐπ' ἄλλῳ συμ 69.956 βαίνει πολλάκις τῶν καταλυπεῖν εἰωθότων τοῖς παι δευομένοις παρὰ Θεοῦ ἢ τοῖς πειραζομένοις· καθ' ἃ καὶ τῷ Ἰὼβ συμβέβηκεν, ἄλλα γὰρ ἐπ' ἄλλοις συ χνῶς ἀπηγγέλλετο, εἰ καὶ ἀκλόνητος ἦν. Εἰ δὲ δή τις ἕλοιτο νοεῖν τὸ Ἐπεστήριξας ἐπ' ἐμὲ τὴν χεῖρά σου τὴν παιδευτικὴν, ἀντὶ τοῦ Βεβάρημαι σφόδρα καὶ δυσαχθεστάτην ἥγημαι τὴν πληγὴν, οὐκ ἂν ἁμάρτοι τοῦ πρέποντος. Ὁ γὰρ ἐπιστηρίζων τὴν ἑαυτοῦ χεῖρά τινι, δυσδιακόμιστον ἄχθος ἐπιτίθησιν αὐτῷ. Μὴ οὖν τῷ θυμῷ σου, φησὶ, μηδὲ τῇ ὀργῇ σου παι δεύσῃς με. ∆ιὰ τί; "Ὅτι τὰ βέλη σου ἐνεπάγησάν μοι·" παραλαβόντα γὰρ τὸν θυμὸν καὶ τὴν ὀργὴν τὰ παρὰ σοῦ καθικνούμενα βέλη, ἤγουν αἱ τιμωρητικαὶ δυνάμεις, ἱκανῶς με τιμωρεῖται· διὸ ἱκετεύω μὴ ὀργῆς ἑτέρας πειραθῶ. Οὐκ ἔστιν ἴασις ἐν τῇ σαρκί μου ἀπὸ προσ ώπου τῆς ὀργῆς σου, οὐκ ἔστιν εἰρήνη τοῖς ὀστέοις μου. (A f. 206) Ἁπλούστερον δὲ ἐπιτείνει τὴν ἐξήγη σιν τῆς ἐπενεχθείσης αὐτῷ πληγῆς ἀπὸ τῶν θείων βελῶν, καὶ τοῦ ἐπεστηρίχθαι αὐτῷ τὴν χεῖρα· καί φησιν ὅτι οὐδεὶς ἂν ἐπινοηθείη τρόπος ἰάσεως παντε λῶς ἀρκέσαι δυνάμενος τῇ κακώσει τῆς σαρκὸς, ἤγουν τῇ κοπώσει τῶν μονονουχὶ καὶ ἐξαρμοσθέντων ὀστῶν. Τὸ γὰρ μὴ ἔχειν αὐτὰ πρὸς ἄλληλα τὴν εἰ ρήνην, δηλοῖ τὸ ἐξηρμόσθαι καὶ οἷον ἀποφοιτᾷν τῆς κατὰ φύσιν ἁρμονίας αὐτά. Ἐν δέ γε ταῖς σφοδρο τέραις τῶν κακώσεων κατειθίσμεθά πως καὶ τοῦτο λέγειν, ὅτι Ἐξηρμόσθη τὰ ὀστᾶ μου. Οὐκοῦν ἐγγὺς ἀνιάτων αὐτῷ φησι γενέσθαι τὸ ἀῤῥώστημα τῆς σαρ κὸς, ἢ φροντίσιν ἐκτρυχωμένης καὶ πικραῖς μερί μναις ἐκτηκομένης, ἢ καὶ καθ' ἕτερον τρόπον μαραι νομένης διά τε νηστείας καὶ μακρῶν ἀσιτιῶν καὶ ἀϋπνίας. Ἄτοπον δὲ οὐδὲν ὀστᾶ τοὺς οἰκείους ἀπο καλεῖν. Εἰ γάρ ἐσμεν ἀλλήλων μέλη, καὶ ὡς ἓν οἱ πάντες κατελογίσθημεν σῶμα, τί τὸ ἀπεῖργον ὀστᾶ τοὺς κατὰ μέρος καὶ χρειωδεστάτους μάλιστα λέ γειν; ὥστε δυσφοροτέρας εἶναι τοῦ παρ' ἐχθρῶν πολέμου, τὰς τῶν οἰκείων ἐπαναστάσεις, οὓς καὶ ὀστᾶ φαμεν ὠνομάσθαι τροπικῶς. Ὅτι αἱ ἀνομίαι μου ὑπερῇραν τὴν κεφαλήν μου. (A f. 206 b, B f. 135) ∆ιδάσκει δὲ ἡμᾶς ὁ λόγος μὴ κρύπτειν τὰ ἑαυτῶν κακὰ, μήδε ὥσπερ τινὰ με λανίαν καὶ σῆψιν κατὰ βάθους τῆς ψυχῆς συνέχειν τὰ ἁμαρτήματα, τὴν συνείδησιν καυτηριαζομένους. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ἐπὶ τῶν πυρεττόντων, εἴσω μὲν κατὰ βάθους χωρῶν ὁ πυρετὸς, μείζονα τὴν νόσον ἐργά ζεται, προκόψας δὲ εἰς τὸ ἐμφανὲς, ἐλπίδα παρακμῆς ὑποφαίνει, οὕτω καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς ψυχῆς ἂν γένοιτο. Καὶ τοῦτο εἶναί φημι τὸ ὑπὸ τοῦ Σοφοῦ εἰρημένον· "Μὴ αἰσχυνθῇς ὁμολογῆσαι ἐφ' ἁμαρτίαις σου," καὶ "Λέγε σὺ τὰς ἀνομίας σου πρῶτος, ἵνα δικαιωθῇς." Καὶ γάρ ἐστιν τῶν ἀτοπωτάτων τοὺς μὲν τῶν ἰατρῶν ὀφθαλμοὺς μὴ αἰσχύνεσθαι, γυμνοῦν δὲ αὐτοῖς καὶ τὰ κεκρυμμένα τῶν παθῶν ὑπέρ γε τοῦ ἀλγῆσαι 69.957 μειζόνως, ἀλλ' ἐκκοπήν τινα σχεῖν τὴν εἰς τὸ πρόσω πάροδον τῶν παθῶν, μὴ ἀνέχεσθαι δὲ τῷ τῶν πνευ μάτων ἰατρῷ τὰ ἐν ψυχαῖς γεγονότα δεικνύναι πάθη, καί τοι πάντα εἰδότι, κἂν μή τις ἕλοιτο τοῦτο δρᾷν. Ὑπερῆρθαι τοίνυν φησὶ τῆς ἑαυτοῦ κεφαλῆς τὰς ἁμαρτίας· τοῦ ὑπερῆρθαι σημαίνοντος τὸ οἷον φορ τίου δίκην ἐπενηνέχθαι δυσαχθεστάτου. Τουτὶ γὰρ ἡμῖν καὶ ὁ γείτων εὐθὺς διερμηνεύει στίχος, βεβα ρύνθαι λέγων αὐτὰς ὡς φορτίον βαρύ· δυσδιακόμι στον γὰρ φορτίον νοῦ καὶ φρενὸς, ἔλεγχος ὁ ἐφ' ἁμαρτίαις. Πλὴν ἀπαλλάττει τοῦ κακοῦ τοὺς ἠῤῥω στηκότας ὁ Κύριος, λέγων· "∆εῦτε πρός με, πάντες οἱ κοπιῶντες καὶ πεφορτισμένοι, κἀγὼ ἀναπαύσω ὑμᾶς." Καὶ ἄλλο δέ τι διδάσκει περὶ ἑαυτὸν γεγονὸς ὁ ∆αβὶδ λέγων· "Ὡσεὶ φορτίον βαρὺ ἐβαρύνθησαν ἐπ' ἐμέ." Ἐβάρει γὰρ αὐτοῦ τὴν συνείδησιν τὰ τετολμημένα αὐτῷ, ὡς μὴ δύνασθαι βαστάζειν αὐτὰ, δι' εὐγένειαν καὶ εὐγνωμοσύνην ψυχῆς. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ ἀτεράμων καὶ ἀπόσκληρος, κατὰ τὴν σκληρότητα ἑαυτοῦ θησαυρίζει ἑαυτῷ ὀργὴν, αὔξων τὰ ἑαυτοῦ κακά· "Ὅταν γὰρ ἔλθῃ ἁμαρτωλὸς εἰς βάθη κακῶν, καταφρονεῖ·" ὁ δὲ εὐγνώμων, εἰ καὶ ἅπαξ ποτὲ