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and has become renowned for its good order, but it will not remain to the end, but will pay the penalty when God pronounces judgment. And I will send against him those who pour out, and they shall pour him out. The Hebrew has, *Iontas*; for he persisted in the metaphor; but the meaning is clear, also from the Greek interpretation 64.1028 *Come down from glory. That is, from the height to the ground. And sit in a damp place. Thus there will be comfort from nowhere. For when God brings on evils, neither strength of body, nor wisdom of soul, nor anything else is of any help. Announce in Ammon, that Moab has perished, and judgment is coming upon the land of Misor, upon Chelon, and upon Asa, and the rest. Misor, that is, of the plain. And he mentions Chelon and the other cities, as lying in the plain. The horn of Moab is broken, and his arm is shattered, says the Lord. That is, the weapons in his hands. *Not according to his sufficiency, so also are his arms. That is, they did not act worthily of their fame. For he was considered strong; but was seen to be weak in the wars against Moab. Shout from all sides against the men of the wall, the shearers of the drought. And, "Against the men of the wall," that is, the strong ones; and, "the shearers of the drought," that is, the melody of a lyre. So that he might say, "Tear her down, having made her worthy of lamentations." He adds, then: "And it will speak a melody." For he interpreted "the shearers of the drought," that is, as on a lyre, so she, mourning melodiously, will weep. Then, proceeding, he says again: *Therefore the heart of Moab will hum like pipes; my heart will hum like pipes for the men of the wall, the shearers of the drought. That is, for the strong men, the mourning will become like a melody of a lyre or the sound of pipes. But the Hebrew has it thus: And it will sound again upon the wall that has strong buttresses. And he calls the king a wall; and the people buttresses. But in both the same meaning is preserved. For a fire came out of Heshbon, a flame from the city of Sihon, and it devoured the rulers of Moab. Moses used these words, signifying the sudden destruction of Moab at that time by the inhabitants of Heshbon. So that he might say, therefore, that it will now suffer the same punishment which it underwent long ago. And he has searched out the sons of Saon. The Hebrew, "and he wiped out the lords of the altars"; for instead of "the altars," he said "Saon"; for it should have been put as Bamoth, which means "altar." And so it is also in the Hebrew.

CHAPTER 49.

Are there no sons in Israel, or is there no one to be heir among them? That is, Are they not inhabited for God? Or are they destitute of all help, that they have been so exalted against the Israelites? to show the Jews that the nations are punished because of the evils that have happened to them. Why do you rejoice in the plains, in Iakim? 64.1029 Iakim was a very great city lying in the plain, which they possessed as a base of operations against the enemy. He says therefore, "Do not be confident in it, for it is being destroyed." Your plains have flowed away. That is, not only has it perished, but also the other cities lying in the plains with the plains themselves, as the enemy ravaged everything they came upon. *For a curse on Bosor in the midst of her part. He means Bostra; for what is now Arabia, was then Idumea. And "in the midst of her part" means "connected," because it was a metropolis. Behold, as a lion he shall come up from the midst of the Jordan to the place of Etham, for I will quickly drive them out from it. It should have Etham according to the Hebrew; and it means "the strong"; and he means to say that the barbarian, coming up like a lion, will ravage the land; and he mentioned the Jordan, as it is there especially that these beasts appear, and are fearsome. *To Kedar, the queen of the court, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king struck

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καὶ περίφημος ἐπὶ τῇ εὐκοσμίᾳ γεγένηται, ἀλλ' οὔτιγε εἰς τέλος διαμενεῖ, δίκην δὲ δώσει τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀποφηναμένου. Καὶ ἐξαποστελῶ αὐτῷ κλίνοντας, καὶ κλινοῦσιν αὐτόν. Ὁ Ἑβραῖος, Ἰῶντας, ἔχει· τῇ γὰρ μεταφορᾷ ἐπέμεινε· δήλη δὲ ἡ ἔννοια, καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς τοῦ Ἑλληνικοῦ ἑρμηνείας 64.1028 *Κατάβηθι ἀπὸ δόξης. Τουτέστιν, ἀπὸ τοῦ ὕψους εἰς ἔδαφος. Καὶ κάθισον ἐν ὑγρασίᾳ καθημένη. Οὕτως οὐδαμόθεν ἔσται παραμυθία. Ὅταν γὰρ ὁ Θεὸς ἐπάγῃ κακὰ, οὐ σώματος ἰσχὺς, οὐ σοφία ψυχῆς, οὐκ ἄλλο οὐδὲν ὠφελεῖ. Ἀνάγγειλον ἐν Ἀμὼν, ὅτι ὤλετο Μωὰβ, καὶ κρίσις ἔρχεται ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν τοῦ Μησὼρ, ἐπὶ Χηλὼν, καὶ ἐπὶ Ἀσὰ, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Μισὼρ, τουτέστι, τῆς πεδιάδος. Χηλὼν δὲ καὶ τὰς λοιπὰς πόλεις λέγει, ὡς ἐν τῇ πεδιάδι κειμένας. Κατεάχθη κέρας Μωὰβ, καὶ τὸ ἐπίχειρον αὐτοῦ συνετρίβη, φησὶ Κύριος. Τουτέστι, τὰ ἐν ταῖς χερσὶν αὐτοῦ ὅπλα. *Οὐχὶ κατὰ τὸ ἱκανὸν αὐτοῦ, οὕτως καὶ οἱ βραχίονες αὐτοῦ. Τουτέστιν, οὐκ ἀξίως τῆς φήμης ἔπραξαν. Ἰσχυρὰ μὲν γὰρ νενόμισται· ὤφθη δὲ ἀσθενὴς ἐν πολέμοις ἐπὶ Μωάβ. Πάντοθεν βοήσατε ἐπὶ ἄνδρας τοίχου κειράδας αὐχμοῦ. Τὸ δὲ, Ἐπὶ ἄνδρας τοίχου, τουτέστι, τοὺς ἰσχυρούς· τὸ δὲ, κειράδας αὐχμοῦ, τουτέστι, κιθάρα μέλους. Ἵνα εἴπῃ, Καθέλετε αὐτὴν ἀξίαν θρήνων πεποιηκότες. Ἐπάγει γοῦν· Καὶ μέλος ἐρεῖ. Ἡρμήνευσε γὰρ τὸ, κειράδας αὐχμοῦ, τουτέστιν, ὥσπερ ἐν κιθάρᾳ, οὕτως πενθοῦσα ἐμμελῶς, ἀνακλαύσεται. Εἶτα προϊὼν πάλιν φησί· *∆ιὰ τοῦτο καρδία τοῦ Μωὰβ, ὥσπερ αὐλοὶ βομβήσει καρδία μου ἐπ' ἀνθρώπους τοίχου κειράδας αὐχμοῦ, ὥσπερ αὐλοὶ βομβήσει. Τουτέστι, περὶ τοὺς ἰσχυροὺς ἄνδρας, ὥσπερ μέλος κιθάρας ἢ αὐλῶν ἦχος γενήσεται τὸ πένθος. Ὁ δὲ Ἑβραῖος οὕτως ἔχει· Καὶ ἠχήσει πάλιν ἐπὶ τοῦ τοίχου τοῦ ἔχοντος ἀντιβάσεις ἰσχυρούς. Τοῖχον δὲ καλεῖ τὸν βασιλέα· ἀντιβάσεις δὲ τὸν λαόν. Ἐν ἑκατέρῳ δὲ σώζεται ἡ αὐτὴ ἔννοια. Ὅτι πῦρ ἐξῆλθεν ἐξ Ἐσεβὼν, φλὸξ ἐκ πόλεως Σιὼν, καὶ κατέφαγε ἀρχηγοὺς Μωάβ. Τούτοις τοῖς ῥητοῖς ἐχρήσατο Μωϋσῆς ἀθρόαν τότε τὴν ἀπώλειαν τῆς Μωὰβ μηνύσας ἀπὸ τῶν τῆς Ἐσεβὼν οἰκούντων. Ἵνα τοίνυν εἴπῃ, ὅτι τὴν ὁμοίαν τιμωρίαν πείσεται καὶ νῦν, ἣν πάλαι ὑπέστη. Καὶ ἐξηρεύνησεν υἱοὺς Σαών. Ὁ Ἑβραῖος, καὶ ἐξήλειψε τοὺς κυρίους τῶν βωμῶν· ἀντὶ γὰρ τῶν βωμῶν, τὸ Σαὼν ἔφη· δέον γὰρ θεῖναι Βαμὼθ, βωμὸν σημαίνει. Οὕτω δὲ κεῖται καὶ παρὰ τῷ Ἑβραίῳ.

ΚΕΦΑΛ. ΜΘʹ.

Μὴ υἱοὶ οὐκ εἰσὶν ἐν Ἰσραὴλ, ἢ παραλειψόμενος οὐκ ἔστιν ἐν αὐτοῖς; Τουτέστι, Μὴ οὐκ οἰκοῦνται τῷ Θεῷ; ἢ ἔρημοί εἰσι πάσης βοηθείας, ὅτι κατὰ τῶν Ἰσραηλιτῶν οὕτως ἐπήρθησαν; ἵνα δείξῃ Ἰουδαίοις, ὅτι διὰ τὰ κατ' αὐτὸν γενόμενα κακὰ τιμωρεῖται τὰ ἔθνη. Τί ἀγαλλιάσῃ ἐν τοῖς πεδίοις, ἐν Ἰακίμ; 64.1029 Ἰακὶμ πόλις ἦν μεγίστη ἐν τῇ πεδιάδι κειμένη, ἢν ὁρμητήριον κατὰ τῶν πολεμίων ἐκέκτηντο. Λέγει οὖν, ὅτι Μὴ θαρσεῖτε ἐπ' αὐτῇ, καταστρέφεται γάρ. ∆ιέῤῥευσε τὰ πεδία σου. Τουτέστιν, Οὐκ αὐτὴ μόνον ἀπώλετο, ἀλλὰ καὶ αἱ λοιπαὶ ἐν ταῖς πεδιάσι κείμεναι μετ' αὐτῶν τῶν πεδίων, τῶν πολεμίων πάντα τὰ προσπεσόντα δῃουμένων. *Ἐπὶ κατάρασιν τῆς Βοσὼρ ἐν μέσῳ μέρους αὐτῆς. Τὴν Βόστραν λέγει· ἡ γὰρ νῦν Ἀραβία, τότε Ἰδουμαία ἦν. Τὸ δὲ, Ἐν μέσῳ μέρους αὐτῆς, συνημμένας, ἔχει διὰ τὸ εἶναι αὐτὴν μητρόπολιν. Ἰδοὺ ὡς λέων ἀναβήσεται ἐκ μέσου τοῦ Ἰορδάνου εἰς τόπον Ἐθὰμ, ὅτι ταχὺ ἐκδιώξω αὐτοὺς ἀπ' αὐτῆς. Τὸ Ἐθὰμ ὀφείλει ἔχειν κατὰ τὸ Ἑβραϊκόν· σημαίνει δὲ τὸ ἰσχυρόν· βούλεται δὲ εἰπεῖν, ὅτι ὁ βάρβαρος καθάπερ λέων ἀναβὰς, πορθήσει τὴν χώραν· τοῦ δὲ Ἰορδάνου ἐμνημόνευσεν, ὡς αὐτόθι μάλιστα τούτων τῶν θηρίων δεικνυμένων, καὶ ὄντων φοβερῶν. *Τῇ Κηδὰρ βασιλίσσῃ τῆς αὐλῆς ἢν ἐπάταξε Ναβουχοδονόσορ ὁ βασιλεὺς