John of Damascus, Sacred parallels

And David said to Abigail: Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, who sent you today to meet me, and blessed is your manner, and blessed are you, for preventing me today from entering into bloodshed. Who gave women the wisdom of weaving, and the skill of embroidery? A virtuous woman is a crown to her husband. He who finds a good wife finds graces; and he has received cheerfulness from the Lord. He who casts out a good wife, casts out good things from his house. Wise women have built houses; but the foolish one has torn it down with her hands. Who will find a virtuous woman? She is more precious than costly stones. Do not fail to get a wise and good woman. For her grace is above gold. Is a woman yours according to your soul? Do not cast her out. A good wife is a good portion, and in the portion of those who fear the Lord she will be given. Blessed is the husband of a good wife; a virtuous woman makes her husband glad, and he will fulfill his years in peace. The grace of a wom 95.1317 an will delight her husband, and her skill will fatten his bones. The beauty of a woman gladdens her face, and it surpasses every desire of man. If there is mercy and meekness on her tongue, her husband is not like the sons of men. Consider the decency of the mind to be beauty, Not that which hands paint, and time dissolves. The female race is somehow always tearful, and has a mind easily broken into pity. It shows a woman to be above suspicion of slander, not to beautify herself, nor indeed to adorn herself beyond what is fitting, devoting herself earnestly to prayers and supplications; guarding against many departures from the house, shutting herself off as much as possible from the sight of those who are not her own, as one who places keeping at home as more important than untimely chatter. TITLE 12. - Concerning wicked and adulterous women, and those who fornicate, and are filled with all wickedness. It came to pass on the seventh day that Samson told Delilah the riddle, because she had troubled him. And she told it to the sons of her people. And the men of the city said to him on the seventh day before the sun went down: What is sweeter than honey, and what is stronger than a lion? And Samson said to them: If you had not plowed with my heifer, you would not have known my riddle. And Samson said to Delilah: How do you say, "I have loved you," and your heart is not with me? this is the third time you have deceived me, and you have not told me in what your great strength lies. And it came to pass when she pressed him daily with her words, and urged him, that he was vexed to death, he told her all his heart, and said to her: Iron has not come upon my head, because I am a Nazirite of God from my mother's womb. If, therefore, I am shaven, my strength will depart from me, and I will become weak, and I will be like all other men. And Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, and she sent and called all the lords of the Philistines, saying: Come up this once, for he has told me all his heart. And the rulers of the Philistines came up to her, and brought the silver in their hand. And Delilah made Samson sleep on her knees, and she called the barber, and he shaved the seven locks of his head, and his strength departed from him. And Delilah said: The Philistines are upon you, Samson, and he awoke from his sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times, and shake myself off; and he did not know that the Lord had departed from him. And 95.1320 the Philistines seized him, and gouged out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza And they bound him with bronze fetters, and he was grinding in the prison house It came to pass in the time of Solomon's old age that his heart was not completely with the Lord, as was the heart of David his father. And the foreign women turned his heart away after their gods. Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the idol of Moab, and for the king of the sons of Ammon, and for Astarte the abomination of the Sidonians; and so he did

Καὶ εἶπε ∆αβὶδ τῇ Ἀβιγαίᾳ· Εὐλογητὸς Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς Ἰσραὴλ, ὃς ἀπέστειλέ σε σήμερον εἰς ἀπάντησιν, καὶ εὐλογητὸς ὁ τρόπος σου, καὶ εὐλογημένη σὺ εἶ, ἀποκωλύουσά με σήμερον μὴ εἰσελθεῖν εἰς αἵματα. Τίς ἔδωκε γυναιξὶν ὑφάσματος σοφίαν, καὶ ποικιλτικὴν ἐπιστήμην; Γυνὴ ἀνδρεία στέφανος τῷ ἀνδρὶ αὐτῆς. Ὃς εὗρε γυναῖκα ἀγαθὴν, εὗρε χάριτας· ἔλαβε δὲ παρὰ Κυρίου ἱλαρότητα. Ὃς ἐκβάλλει γυναῖκα ἀγαθὴν, ἐκβάλλει τὰ ἀγαθὰ ἐκ τοῦ οἴκου αὐτοῦ. Σοφαὶ γυναῖκες ᾠκοδόμησαν οἴκους· ἡ δὲ ἄφρων κατέστρεψε ταῖς χερσὶν αὐτῆς. Γυναῖκα ἀνδρείαν τίς εὑρήσει; τιμιωτέρα ἐστὶ λίθων πολυτελῶν. Μὴ ἀστόχει ἀπὸ γυναικὸς σοφῆς καὶ ἀγαθῆς. Ἡ γὰρ χάρις αὐτῆς ὑπὲρ χρυσίον. Γυνή σοί ἐστι κατὰ τὴν ψυχήν; μὴ ἐκβάλῃς αὐτήν. Γυνὴ ἀγαθὴ, μερὶς ἀγαθὴ, καὶ ἐν μερίδι φοβουμένων Κύριον δοθήσεται. Γυναικὸς ἀγαθῆς μακάριος ὁ ἀνήρ· γυνὴ ἀνδρεία εὐφραίνει τὸν ἄνδρα αὐτῆς, καὶ τὰ ἔτη αὐτοῦ πληρώσει ἐν εἰρήνῃ. Χάρις γυναι 95.1317 κὸς τέρψει τὸν ἄνδρα αὐτῆς, καὶ τὰ ὀστᾶ αὐτοῦ πιαίνει ἐπιστήμη αὐτῆς. Κάλλος γυναικὸς ἱλαρύνει πρόσωπον αὐτῆς, καὶ ὑπὲρ πᾶσαν ἐπιθυμίαν ἀνθρώπου ὑπεράγει. Εἰ ἔστιν ἐπὶ στόματος ἔλεος καὶ πραότης, οὐκ ἔστιν ἀνὴρ αὐτῆς καθ' υἱοὺς ἀνθρώπων. Κάλλος νόμιζε τὴν φρενῶν εὐκοσμίαν, Οὐχ ἣν γράφουσι χεῖρες, καὶ λύει χρόνος. Φιλόδακρύ πως ἀεὶ τὸ θῆλυ γένος, καὶ τὸν νοῦν εἰς ἔλεον εὐδιάθρυπτον ἔχει. Ἀνύποπτον εἰς διαβολὴν δείκνυσι γυναῖκα, τὸ μὴ καλλωπίζεσθαι, μηδὲ μὴν κοσμεῖσθαι πέρα τοῦ πρέποντος, εὐχαῖς καὶ δεήσεσι προσανέχουσαν ἐκτενῶς· τὰς μὲν ἐξόδους τῆς οἰκίας φυλαττομένην τὰς πολλὰς, ἀποκλείουσαν ὡς οἷόν τε ἑαυτὴν τῆς πρὸς τοὺς οὐ προσήκοντας προσόψεως, ὡς ἂν προὐργιαίτερον τιθεμένην τῆς ἀκαίρου φλυαρίας τὴν οἰκουρίαν. ΤΙΤΛ. ΙΒʹ. - Περὶ γυναικῶν πονηρῶν καὶ μοιχαλίδων, καὶ πορνευουσῶν, καὶ πάσης κακίας πεπληρωμένων. Ἐγένετο ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τῇ ἑβδόμῃ ἀπήγγειλε Σαμψὼν τῇ ∆αλιδᾷ τὸ πρόβλημα, ὅτι ἐνώχλησεν αὐτόν. Καὶ ἀνήγγειλε τοῖς υἱοῖς τοῦ λαοῦ αὐτῆς. Καὶ εἶπαν αὐτῷ οἱ ἄνδρες τῆς πόλεως ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τῇ ἑβδόμῃ πρὸ τοῦ δῦναι τὸν ἥλιον· Τί γλυκύτερον μέλιτος, καὶ τί ἰσχυρότερον λέοντος; Καὶ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς Σαμψών· Εἰ μὴ κατεδαμάσατέ μου τὴν δάμαλιν, οὐκ ἂν ἔγνωτε τὸ πρόβλημά μου. Εἶπε δὲ Σαμψὼν ∆αλιδᾷ· Πῶς λέγεις, ὅτι Ἠγάπηκά σε, καὶ ἡ καρδία σου οὐκ ἔστι μετ' ἐμοῦ; τοῦτο τρίτον ἐπλάνησάς με, καὶ οὐκ ἀπήγγειλάς μοι ἐν τίνι ἡ ἰσχύς σου ἡ μεγάλη. Καὶ ἐγένετο ὅτε κατειργάσατο αὐτὸν ἐν τοῖς λόγοις αὐτῆς πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας, καὶ ἐστενοχώρησεν αὐτὸν, καὶ ὠλιγοψύχησεν ἕως τοῦ ἀποθανεῖν, ἀπήγγειλεν αὐτῇ πᾶσαν τὴν καρδίαν αὐτοῦ, καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῇ· Σίδηρος οὐκ ἀνέβη ἐπὶ τὴν κεφαλήν μου, ὅτι Ναζιραῖος Θεοῦ εἰμι ἀπὸ κοιλίας μητρός μου. Ἐὰν οὖν ξυρήσωμαι, ἀποστήσεται ἀπ' ἐμοῦ ἡ ἰσχύς μου, καὶ ἀσθενήσω, καὶ ἔσομαι ὡς πάντες ἄνθρωποι. Καὶ εἶδε ∆αλιδὰ ὅτι ἀπήγγειλεν αὐτῇ πᾶσαν τὴν καρδίαν αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἀπέστειλε, καὶ ἐκάλεσε τοὺς σατράπας πάντας τῶν ἀλλοφύλων λέγουσα· Ἀνάβητε τὸ ἅπαξ τοῦτο, ὅτι ἀπήγγειλέ μοι πᾶσαν τὴν καρδίαν αὐτοῦ. Καὶ ἀνέβησαν πρὸς αὐτὴν οἱ ἄρχοντες τῶν ἀλλοφύλων, καὶ ἤνεγκαν τὸ ἀργύριον ἐν χειρὶ αὐτῶν. Καὶ ἐκοίμισε ∆αλιδὰ τὸν Σαμψὼν ἐπὶ τὰ γόνατα αὐτῆς, καὶ ἐκάλεσε τὸν κουρέα, καὶ ἐξύρησε τὰς ἑπτὰ σειρὰς τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἀπέστη ἡ ἰσχὺς αὐτοῦ ἀπ' αὐτοῦ. Καὶ εἶπε ∆αλιδά· Ἀλλόφυλοι ἐπὶ σὲ, Σαμψὼν, καὶ ἐξυπνίσθη ἐκ τοῦ ὕπνου αὐτοῦ, καὶ εἶπεν, Ἐξελεύσομαι ὡς ἅπαξ καὶ ἅπαξ, καὶ ἐκτιναχθήσομαι· καὶ αὐτὸς οὐκ ἔγνω ὅτι Κύριος ἀπέστη ἀπ' αὐτοῦ. Καὶ 95.1320 ἐκράτησαν αὐτὸν οἱ ἀλλόφυλοι, καὶ ἐξώρυξαν τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτοῦ, καὶ κατήνεγκαν αὐτὸν εἰς Γάζαν Καὶ ἔδησαν αὐτὸν ἐν πέδαις χαλκαῖς, καὶ ἦν ἀλήθων ἐν οἴκῳ τῆς φυλακῆς Ἐγενήθη ἐν τῷ καιρῷ γήρους Σολομὼν, καὶ οὐκ ἦν ἡ καρδία αὐτοῦ τελείως μετὰ Κυρίου, καθὼς ἡ καρδία ∆αβὶδ τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ. Καὶ ἐξέκλιναν αἱ γυναῖκες αἱ ἀλλότριαι τὴν καρδίαν αὐτοῦ ὀπίσω θεῶν αὐτῶν. Τότε ᾠκοδόμησε Σολομὼν ὑψηλὸν τῷ Χαμῶς εἰδώλῳ Μωὰβ, καὶ τῷ βασιλεῖ τῶν υἱῶν Ἄμμων, καὶ τῇ Ἀστάρτῃ βδελύγματι Σιδωνίων· καὶ οὕτως ἐποίησε