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and having children, and a brother, and a nephew, he appointed none of these as leader, but he asked God, and he ordained the one chosen by him. After this, having reminded them of the feasts and the sacrifices, he legislates concerning those who vow what to offer to the Lord God. And first he decreed that everyone who makes a vow must confirm the vow by deed; but for a daughter under her father's authority who makes a vow, the father confirms the vow. And if he should refuse when she makes the vow, the one who vowed is not subject to blame, but if, when she makes her promise, the father either consents or is silent, the things promised are to be fulfilled. This he also legislated concerning a woman joined to a man, and he commanded that the husband's consent confirm the vow. 225 XLVIII Why did the lawgiver command that the Midianite women who were joined to a man be killed? As ones who had been taught the doctrines of impiety, and were able to corrupt those who had enslaved them. XLIX Why did the lawgiver have the stages of the journey recorded? So that those who would come later might know the providence of God; for having led them through impassable and waterless places, he abundantly supplied them with their necessary needs. L Why does he set the return for one who has killed unintentionally after the death of the high priest? Because the death of the high priest according to the order of Melchizedek became the release from the sin of men. This one led back into paradise the one who had been exiled from there. And at that time, the flight of the one who had killed softened the anger of the next of kin, and it restrained their murderous impulse. And the release from punishment for the fugitives after the death of the high priest was sufficient to persuade the next of kin to finally quench their anger, as the high priest, under whom the offense occurred, had died; and the lawgiver set this as the release both for the offense and for the punishment. LI For what reason did he command the tribes to be kept separate? 226 So that the seed of Judah might be preserved intact, through whom God promised the blessing to the nations. Nevertheless, the royal and the priestly tribe had fellowship with each other, since the Lord Christ is both high priest according to his humanity, and king.
227 QUESTIONS ON DEUTERONOMY
I Why was the fifth book of the lawgiver called Deuteronomy? Having led the people out of Egypt, the Lord God gave the law on Mount Sinai, according to which they were to conduct their lives. Then in the second year he commanded them to take possession of the land which he had promised to give to their forefathers. But when they refused and were unwilling to do this, he swore that he would not give that land to any of those numbered by the lawgiver, but that all of them would be consumed in the wilderness. Therefore, when forty years had passed, and they had perished according to the divine decree, he commanded their children to be numbered, being of the same age as they were at the time they were numbered. As God was about to lead these people into the land which he had promised, he teaches through the prophet the law which he had given to their lawless fathers. Deuteronomy, therefore, contains a recapitulation of the things that were legislated and done in Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers, and it states both the time and the place at which and in which he brought the teaching to this new generation. "For it says, beyond the Jordan, in the wilderness, toward the west, in the fortieth year, in the tenth month, on the first of the month, after he had struck Sihon king of the Amorites, and Og king of Bashan." and that 228 he did not give a second law, but of the former
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καὶ παῖδας ἔχων, καὶ ἀδελφόν, καὶ ἀδελφι δοῦν, οὐδένα τούτων ἡγεμόνα προὐβάλλετο, ἀλλὰ τὸν Θεὸν ἤρετο, καὶ τὸν ὑπ' αὐτοῦ ψηφισθέντα κεχειροτόνηκε. μετὰ ταῦτα τῶν ἑορτῶν καὶ τῶν θυσιῶν ἀναμνήσας, νομοθετεῖ περὶ τῶν ὑπισχνουμένων τί προσφέ ρειν τῷ δεσπότῃ Θεῷ. καὶ πρῶτον μὲν διηγόρευσε πάντα ὑπισχνούμενον ἔργῳ τὴν ὑπόσχεσιν ἐμπεδοῦν· τῆς δὲ ὑπὸ τὴν τοῦ πατρὸς τελούσης ἐξουσίαν ὑπισχνουμένης τὸν πατέρα βεβαιοῦν τὴν ὑπόσχεσιν. καὶ ἐὰν ἐκεῖνος ταύτης ὑπισχνουμένης ἀνανεύσῃ, μὴ ὑποκεῖσθαι τὴν ὑποσχομένην ἐγκλήματι, ἐὰν δὲ ταύτης ἐπαγγελλομένης ἢ συγκατάθηται ὁ πατήρ, ἢ σιγήσῃ, τὰ ἐπηγγελμένα πληροῦσθαι. τοῦτο δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς ἀνδρὶ συν ημμένης νενομοθέτηκε, καὶ τὴν τοῦ ἀνδρὸς συγκατάθεσιν βεβαιοῦν ἐκέ λευσε τὴν ὑπόσχεσιν. 225 XLVIII ∆ιὰ τί τῶν μαδιανιτῶν τὰς ἀνδρὶ συνημμένας ὁ νομοθέτης ἀναιρεθῆναι προσέταξεν; Ὡς πεπαιδευμένας τῆς ἀσεβείας τὰ δόγματα, καὶ διαφθείρειν τοὺς ἐξαν δραποδίσαντας δυναμένας. XLIX ∆ιὰ τί τοὺς σταθμοὺς ἀναγράπτους ὁ νομοθέτης πεποίηκεν; Ὥστε τοὺς εἰς ὕστερον ἐσομένους γνῶναι τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ κηδεμονίαν· δι' ἀβάτων γὰρ αὐτοὺς καὶ ἀνύδρων ὁδηγήσας χωρίων, ἀφθόνως αὐτοῖς τὴν τῶν ἀναγκαίων ἐχορήγησε χρείαν. L Τί δήποτε τῷ ἀκουσίως πεφονευκότι μετὰ τὴν τοῦ ἀρχιερέως τελευτὴν ὁρίζει τὴν κάθοδον; Ὅτι τοῦ κατὰ τὴν τάξιν τοῦ Μελχισεδὲκ ἀρχιερέως ὁ θάνατος λύσις τῆς τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἁμαρτίας ἐγένετο. οὗτος εἰς τὸν παράδεισον ἐπανήγαγε τὸν ἐκεῖθεν ἐξορισθέντα. καὶ κατ' ἐκεῖνον δὲ τὸν καιρὸν ἐμάλαττεν ἡ φυγὴ τοῦ πεφονευκότος τὸν τῶν ἀγχιστευόντων θυμόν, καὶ τὴν φονικὴν αὐτῶν ὁρμὴν ἐχαλίνου. τὸ δὲ μετὰ τὴν τελευτὴν τοῦ ἀρχιερέως λυθῆναι τοῖς φεύγουσι τὴν τιμωρίαν, ἱκανὸν ἦν πεῖσαι τοὺς ἀγχιστεύοντας σβέσαι λοιπὸν τὴν ὀργήν, ὡς τοῦ ἀρχιερέως τετελευτηκότος, ἐφ' οὗ τὸ πλημ μέλημα γέγονε· καὶ τοῦ νομοθέτου ταύτην ὁρίσαντος, καὶ τῇ πλημμελείᾳ, καὶ τῇ τιμωρίᾳ τὴν λύσιν. LI Τίνος χάριν τὰς φυλὰς διακεκρῖσθαι προσέταξεν; 226 Ἵνα ἀκέραιον διαφυλαχθῇ τοῦ Ἰούδα τὸ σπέρμα, δι' οὗ τὴν εὐλογίαν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν ὁ Θεὸς ἐπηγγείλατο. ἐκοινώνησαν μέντοι ἀλλήλαις ἡ βασι λικὴ καὶ ἡ ἱερατικὴ φυλή· ἐπειδὴ καὶ ἀρχιερεὺς κατὰ τὸ ἀνθρώπινον, καὶ βασιλεὺς ὁ δεσπότης Χριστός.
227 QUAESTIONES IN DEUTERONOMIUM
I ∆ιὰ τί τὸ πέμπτον βιβλίον τοῦ νομοθέτου ∆ευτερονόμιον ἐκλήθη; Ἐξαγαγὼν ἐξ Αἰγύπτου τὸν λαὸν ὁ δεσπότης Θεὸς ἔδωκεν ἐν τῷ Σινᾷ ὄρει τὸν νόμον, καθ' ὃν ἐχρῆν αὐτοὺς πολιτεύεσθαι. εἶτα τῷ δευτέρῳ ἔτει προσέταξε παραλαβεῖν τὴν γῆν, ἣν τοῖς προγόνοις αὐτῶν ἐπηγ γείλατο δώσειν. ἐκείνων δὲ ἀντειρηκότων καὶ τοῦτο δράσαι μὴ βουλη θέντων, ὤμοσε μηδενὶ τῶν ἀριθμηθέντων ὑπὸ τοῦ νομοθέτου δώσειν ἐκεί νην τὴν γῆν, ἀλλὰ τούτους ἅπαντας ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ καταναλώσειν. τεσ σαράκοντα τοίνυν διεληλυθότων ἐτῶν, κἀκείνων κατὰ τὴν θείαν ψῆφον διολωλότων, ἐκέλευσε τοὺς ἐκείνων ἀριθμηθῆναι παῖδας, τὴν αὐτὴν ἄγον τας ἡλικίαν, ἥνπερ ἦγον ἐκεῖνοι καθ' ὃν ἠριθμήθησαν χρόνον. τούτους μέλλων εἰσαγαγεῖν ὁ Θεὸς εἰς ἣν ἐπηγγείλατο γῆν, διδάσκει διὰ τοῦ προ φήτου τὸν νόμον, ὃν τοῖς παρανόμοις αὐτῶν ἐδεδώκει πατράσι. τὸ τοίνυν ∆ευτερονόμιον ἀνακεφαλαίωσιν ἔχει τῶν ἐν τῇ Ἐξόδῳ καὶ τῷ Λευϊτικῷ καὶ τοῖς Ἀριθμοῖς νενομοθετημένων τε καὶ πεπραγμένων, λέγει δὲ καὶ τὸν χρόνον, καὶ τὸν τόπον καθ' ὃν καὶ ἐν ᾧ τῇ νεολαίᾳ ταύτῃ τὴν διδασ καλίαν προσήνεγκε. " πέραν, γάρ φησι, τοῦ Ἰορδάνου, ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ, πρὸς δυσμαῖς, ἐν τῷ τεσσαρακοστῷ ἔτει, ἐν τῷ δεκάτῳ μηνὶ μιᾷ τοῦ μηνός, μετὰ τὸ πατάξαι αὐτὸν τὸν Σηὼν βασιλέα τῶν ἀμορ ραίων, καὶ τὸν Ὢγ βασιλέα τῆς Βασάν ". καὶ ὅτι 228 οὐ δεύτερον νόμον ἔδωκεν, ἀλλὰ τῆς προτέρας