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the ruler of the Greeks, or of the Babylonians, whom he says will perish. Since he trampled upon their souls, so that they could not look up; and long ago they placed their hopes for alliance in wars in him. After he has perished, he says, the throne will also be established with mercy. For with idolatry destroyed, it was necessary for the good news of hope to be proclaimed, that the tent of David and the throne of God will be established among them, not by the diligence of men, but by the philanthropy of God alone. But Aquila and Theodotion rendered it: And a throne will be prepared in mercy, that is, with mercy. For whom will it be prepared, if not certainly for Christ who will be born from the seed of David? And prophecy is accustomed to call the Church the tent of David. Since it is also its custom to call Christ David, as being the son of David. And he called the president in the Church its throne, who holds the corporal throne, the 2108 of cups as it were for Christ. That the tent signifies the Church from the gentiles, James, who became the first bishop of Jerusalem, presented in the Acts of the Apostles, saying, "Men, brethren, hear me. Symeon has declared how God at the first visited to take out of the Gentiles a people for his name, and to this agree the words of the prophets, as it is written: After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up: That the residue of men might seek after the Lord. And all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called, saith the Lord." These things therefore, he says, will not be through types and symbols, but with truth. For when a Church is established among the Moabites, its president will sit judging justly. That is, he says throne, showing that all will be ruled by Christ, according to, "For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet." And the throne is set aright, by the things being ruled obtaining correction; which happens not according to the worthiness of those who are about to be ruled, but according to the mercy and goodness of God. Therefore, he says, David will sit, Christ who is sufficient in hand and in power, with truth, and he will reign in a tent, until he, judging, shall make the judgment over all. And the seat with truth shows the disappearance of falsehood. And he will reign until he makes judgment. He establishes his just judgment over all, according to which he does not declare as it happens, but seeking what is fitting for each, so as to bring the judgment to a good end for each, hastening justice, not acting laxly, but with the greatest zeal. But some have explained these things historically, as signifying the release of the people that happened under Cyrus, God having pitied them, and setting aright the kingdom among the Jews, and leading it into its proper order. For this signifies the throne, upon which one sits with truth in the tent of David judging the tent, calling the palaces David's, in which, making their abodes, they judged lawfully, managing the throne justly, even if not all have become such. And the king of Judah and Israel was no longer divided after the return, but all were under one rule in Jerusalem. And some prophet signified this, saying? "And they will come up out of the land, and they will labor a little to anoint a king and a ruler." These things, however, were said to Moab, who called Mount Sion a desolate rock, signifying the recall of the Jews, and its own eternal destruction. 2109 14. 9We have heard the pride of Moab. He is very proud, I have lifted up his arrogance. Not so your divination, not so. Moab will wail; for in the land of Moab all will wail. To the inhabitants of Seth there is meditation. And you will not be ashamed of the fields of Heshbon9, etc. We have already shown the arrogance of the Moabites from the prophecy of Jeremiah, and now the prophet has declared it. And having said good things about the promise of the throne of David, and having paused in the middle, as is customary in Scripture, he returns the a... to the more gloomy things, for the sake of conversion. So that not of the wealth

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ὁ Ἑλλήνων, ἢ Βαβυλωνίων ἄρχων, ὃν ἀπολεῖσθαί φησιν. Ἐπείπερ τὰς ψυχὰς αὐτῶν κατεπάτει, ὡς ἄνω βλέπειν μὴ δύνασθαι· ἐπ' αὐτῷ δὲ πάλαι τὰς τῆς συμμαχίας τῆς ἐν πολέμοις ἐλπίδας ἐτίθεντο. Μεθ' ὃν ἀπολωλότα φησὶ, καὶ κατορθωθήσεται μετ' ἐλέους ὁ θρόνος. Ἔδει γὰρ ἀπολομένης εἰδωλολατρείας, ἀγαθῶν ἐλπίδας εὐαγγελίζεσθαι, ὡς σκηνὴ ∆αβὶδ καὶ θρόνος Θεοῦ συστήσεται παρ' αὐτοῖς, οὐκ ἀνθρώπων σπουδῇ, φιλανθρωπίᾳ δὲ μόνῃ Θεοῦ. Ἀκύλας δὲ καὶ Θεοδοτίων ἐξέδωκαν· Καὶ ἑτοιμασθήσεται ἐν ἐλέῳ, ἤγουν μετ' ἐλέους, θρόνος. Τίνι δὲ ἑτοιμασθήσεται, ἢ πάντως Χριστῷ τῷ ἐκ σπέρματος τεχθησομένῳ ∆αβίδ; σκηνὴν δὲ ∆αβὶδ εἴωθεν ἡ προφητεία τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν καλεῖν. Ἐπεὶ καὶ ∆αβὶδ καλεῖν ἔθος αὐτῇ τὸν Χριστὸν, ὡς υἱὸν ὄντα ∆αβίδ. Θρόνον δὲ τὸν ἐν Ἐκκλησίᾳ τὸν ταύτης ἐκάλεσε πρόεδρον, ὃς τὸν σωματικὸν ἐπέχει θρόνον, τὸ 2108 ποτηρῶν ὥσπερ Χριστῷ. Ὅτι δὲ σκηνὴν τὴν ἐξ ἐθνῶν Ἐκκλησίαν δηλοῖ, παρέστησεν ἐν Πράξεσιν τῶν ἀποστόλων Ἰάκωβος ὁ πρῶτος Ἱεροσολύμων ἐπίσκοπος γεγονὼς, "Ἄνδρες ἀδελφοὶ, λέγων, ἀκούσατέ μου. Συμεὼν ἐξηγήσατο καθὼς πρῶτον ὁ Θεὸς ἐπεσκέψατο λαβεῖν ἐξ ἐθνῶν λαὸν τῷ ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ, καὶ τούτῳ συμφωνοῦσιν οἱ λόγοι τῶν προφητῶν, καθὼς γέγραπται· Μετὰ ταῦτα ἀναστρέψω καὶ ἀνοικοδομήσω τὴν σκηνὴν ∆αβὶδ τὴν πεπτωκυῖαν, καὶ τὰ κατεστραμμένα αὐτῆς ἀνοικοδομήσω, καὶ ἀνορθώσω αὐτὴν, ὅπως ἂν ἐκζητήσωσιν οἱ κατάλοιποι τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὸν Κύριον. Καὶ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, ἐφ' οὓς ἐπικέκληται τὸ ὄνομά μου, λέγει Κύριος." Ταῦτ' οὖν ἔσεσθαι, φησὶν, οὐ διὰ τύπων καὶ συμβόλων, ἀλλὰ μετὰ ἀληθείας. Ἐκκλησίας γὰρ παρὰ τοῖς Μωαβίταις συστησομένης, ὁ ταύτης προεστὼς καθιεῖται κρίνων δικαίως. Ἤγουν θρόνον φησὶ, δηλῶν ὅτι πάντες βασιλευθήσονται ὑπὸ τοῦ Χριστοῦ, κατὰ τὸ, "∆εῖ γὰρ αὐτὸν βασιλεύειν ἕως ἂν θῇ τοὺς ἐχθροὺς ὑπὸ τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ." ∆ιορθοῦται δὲ ὁ θρόνος, τῷ διορθώσεως τυχεῖν τὰ βασιλευόμενα· ὅπερ γίνεται οὐ κατὰ τὴν ἀξίαν τῶν μελλόντων βασιλευθήσεσθαι, κατὰ δὲ τὸν ἔλεον καὶ τὴν χρηστότητα τοῦ Θεοῦ. Καθεδεῖται οὗν, φησὶν, ὁ ∆αβὶδ, ὁ ἱκανὸς χειρὶ καὶ δυνάμει Χριστὸς μετὰ ἀληθείας, καὶ βασιλεύσει ἐν σκηνῇ, ἕως ποιήσῃ κρίνων τὴν ἐπὶ πᾶσι κρίσιν. Ἡ δὲ μετὰ ἀληθείας καθέδρα δείκνυσι τὸν τοῦ ψεύδους ἀφανισμόν. Βασιλεύσει δὲ ἕως ποιήσῃ κρίσιν. Τὴν ἐπὶ πᾶσιν αὐτοῦ δικαιοκρισίαν καθίστησι, καθ' ἣν οὐχ ὡς ἔτυχεν ἀποφαίνεται, τὸ δὲ πρέπον ἑκάστῳ ζητῶν, ὡς πρὸς τέλος ἀγαθὸν φέρειν ἑκάστῳ τὸ κρῖμα, κατεπείγων τὴν δικαιοσύνην, οὐκ ἀνειμένως ποιῶν, σπουδῇ δὲ πλείστῃ. Καθ' ἱστορίαν δὲ ταῦτά τινες ἐξηγήσαντο, ὡς δηλοῦντα τὴν ὑπὸ Κύρου γενομένην ἄφεσιν τοῦ λαοῦ, Θεοῦ τοῦτον οἰκτείραντος, καὶ τὴν παρ' Ἰουδαίοις βασιλείαν διορθουμένου, εἴς τε τὴν οἰκείαν ἄγοντος τάξιν. Τοῦτο γὰρ τὸν θρόνον δηλοῦν, ἐφ' οὗ καθιεῖται μετ' ἀληθείας ἐν σκηνῇ ∆αβὶδ κρίνων σκηνὴν, λέγοντες ∆αβὶδ τὰ βασίλεια, ἐν οἷς ποιούμενοι τὰς διατριβὰς, ἐδίκαζον ἐννόμως, τὸν θρόνον διέποντες δικαίως, εἰ καὶ μὴ πάντες τοιοῦτοι γεγόνασιν. Οὐκ ἔτι δὲ διῄρητο βασιλεὺς Ἰούδα καὶ Ἰσραὴλ μετὰ τὴν ἐπάνοδον, ἐτέλουν δὲ πάντες ὑπὸ μίαν ἐν Ἰεροσολύμοις ἀρχήν. Τοῦτο δέ τις προφήτης ἐμήνυσε λέγων; "Καὶ ἀναβήσονται ἐκ τῆς γῆς, καὶ κοπιάσουσι μικρὸν τοῦ χρίειν βασιλέα καὶ ἄρχοντα." Ταῦτα μέντοι πρὸς τὴν Μωὰβ εἴρηται τὴν ἔρημον πέτραν τὸ Σιὼν ὄρος καλέσασαν, δηλοῦντα τὴν Ἰουδαίων ἀνάκλησιν, καὶ τὴν ἀΐδιον ἐκείνης ἀπώλειαν. 2109 ιδʹ. 9Ἠκούσαμεν τὴν ὕβριν Μωάβ. Ὑβριστὴς σφόδρα, τὴν ὑπερηφανίαν ἐξῆρα. Οὐχ οὕτως ἡ μαντεία σου, οὐχ οὕτως. Ὀλολύξει Μωάβ· ἐν γὰρ τῇ Μωαβίτιδι πάντες ὀλολύξουσι. Τοῖς κατοικοῦσι δὲ Σὴθ μελέτησις. Καὶ οὐκ ἐντραπήσῃ τὰ πεδία Ἐσεβῶν9, κ.τ.λ. Τὴν Μωαβιτῶν ἀλαζονείαν προλαβόντες καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς Ἱερεμίου προφητείας ἐδείκνυμεν, καὶ νῦν δὲ ταύτην ὁ προφήτης ἐδήλωσεν. Χρηστὰ δὲ περὶ τῆς ἐπαγγελίας εἰπὼν τοῦ θρόνου ∆αβὶδ, καὶ διὰ μέσου, κατὰ τὸ σύνηθες τῇ Γραφῇ, διαναπαύσας, τὴν α...ην πρὸς τὰ σκυθρωπότερα, χάριν ἐπιστροφῆς ἐπανέρχεται. Ὡς ἂν μὴ τοῦ πλούτου