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he has spoken of the weakness of the body, as if comparing it to divine things. But, teaching its greatness, he says again: "You have made him a little lower than the angels, you have crowned him with glory and honor." And again another saying, he says, "man is a great thing," and "a merciful man is honorable," which he has not by being born, but by being a substance in the composite capable of receiving righteousness. if he does not trust his holy ones. Similar to this is the "if he does not trust his children, against his angels he devised some crooked thing." Therefore here he calls the angels holy, showing that "if even angels are changeable, how is it possible for a man to be blameless?" It should be noted that 'to trust' often means 'to be firm', as it is said 392: "All his commandments are sure." And he explains their sureness, saying: "They are established forever and ever." And again: "This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptance." And further: "God is faithful, and there is no unrighteousness." For God is not faithful from partaking in faith, but from having firmness. And the heavens are not pure in his sight. As not even the stars, in comparison with God who is light and has no darkness at all, and heaven itself is not pure, not absolutely, but before God. But it is possible here to call heaven those very ones "who left their heavenly dwelling," whom he called "his children, in whom he does not trust." For in Isaiah God himself says from his own person: "My sword has drunk its fill in heaven." The sword signifies punishment, as it is said: "My sword will devour the blood of the wounded, and I will make my arrows drunk with blood." Therefore, he says that the sword is made drunk among the transgressing angels who are called heavens, inflicting punishment. Therefore this heaven is not pure in his sight. But let alone a man who is abominable and impure, 393 drinking iniquity like water. And if one who is a heaven becomes earthly by transgression, he is likened to a man, no longer deemed worthy to be an angel, because he considers iniquity a drink; for the unjust man is immoderately filled with iniquity. This is an indication that evil is not according to nature; for evil is adventitious. For he says that heaven is not pure in comparison to God. If this is so, man would be ranked among those who drink iniquity. Here by iniquity he means general wickedness; for there is also specific injustice concerning transactions, just as righteousness is both specific and also often called all virtue. But I will tell you, and you listen to me. He seems to say these things to Job somewhat boastfully, or perhaps not with a boastful intention, but because he thinks him to be in sin and for this reason to need his advice. What I have seen, I will tell you, what wise men will say and their fathers did not hide. He wishes to use the speech as if of famous persons, so that from these he might seem to speak persuasively. For he says: "what wise men will say, who heard from their fathers who did not hide 394 the teaching from them." And through these things he shows that he is well-disposed towards Job. Similar to this is "For ask the former generation, and search out the generation of the fathers." To them alone was the earth given, and no stranger passed among them. This man seems, if not by divine knowledge, yet by admiring those who excel in understanding, to say something similar to the saying that states: "For the faithful, the whole world of wealth, but for the unfaithful, not even an obol." For even if the unfaithful man is a great possessor, he is not their master, but their slave. For he serves mammon. But the just man has an unenslaved mind. Therefore "no stranger passes among them," instead of "they are not taken captive either by an invisible power or by a human." For "love never fails," instead of "the one who loves." For even if the just man is ever held in captivity, yet as was said before, his reasoning is unenslaved. It is characteristic of strangers, both invisible and visible, to come upon someone. All the life of an ungodly man is in care. He wants to say, that the just man in all

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τὴν ἀσθένειαν τοῦ σώματος εἴρηκεν ὡς πρὸς τὰ θεῖα συνκρίνων. παιδεύων δὲ τὸ μέγεθος λέγει πάλιν· "ἠλάττωσας αὐτὸν βραχύ τι παρ' ἀγγέλους, δόξῃ καὶ τιμῇ ἐστεφάνωσας αὐτόν." καὶ πάλιν ἕτερον λόγιον "μέγα ἄνθρωπος" φησὶν "καὶ τίμιον ἀνὴρ ἐλεήμων", ὅπερ οὐ κατὰ τὸ γεννᾶσθαι ἔχει, ἀλλὰ κατὰ τὸ οὐσίαν εἶναι ἐν τῷ συνθέτῳ δικαιοσύνης δεκτικήν. εἰ κατὰ ἁγίων οὐ πιστεύει. ὅμοιον τούτῳ η τὸ "εἰ κατὰ παίδων αὐτοῦ οὐ πιστεύει, κατὰ ἀγγέλων αὐτοῦ σκολιόν τι ἐπενόησεν". ἁγίους οὖν ἐνταῦθα τοὺς ἀγγέλους λέγει παριστῶν ὅτι «εἰ καὶ ἄγγελοι τρεπτοί εἰσιν, πῶς οἷόν τε ἄνθρωπον εἶναι ἄμεμπτον.» σημειωτέον, ὅτι τὸ πιστεύειν πολλάκις τὸ βέβαιον δηλοῖ, καθὸ εἴ 392 ρηται· "πισταὶ πᾶσαι αἱ ἐντολαὶ αὐτοῦ." καὶ ἑρμηνεύει τὸ πιστὸν αὐτῶν λέγων· "ἐστερεωμέναι εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ αἰῶνος." καὶ πάλιν· "πιστὸς ὁ λόγος καὶ πάσης ἀποδοχῆς ἄξιος." καὶ ἔτι· "ὁ θεὸς πιστὸς καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ἀδικία." οὐδὲ γὰρ ὁ θεὸς ἐκ τοῦ μετέχειν πίστεως πιστός, ἀλλ' ἐκ τοῦ βεβαιότητα ἔχειν. οὐρανὸς δὲ οὐ καθαρὸς ἐναντίον αὐτοῦ. ὡς οὐδὲ τὰ ἄστρα συνκρίσει θεοῦ φωτὸς ὄντος καὶ σκοτίαν οὐκ ἔχοντος οὐδεμίαν καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ οὐρανὸς οὐ καθαρός ἐστιν, οὐ καθάπαξ, ἀλλ' ἐπίπροσθεν θεοῦ. δυνατὸν δὲ οὐρανὸν ἐνταῦθα λέγειν αὐτοὺς τούτους τοὺς "ἀπολιπόντας τὸ οὐράνιον οἴκημα", οὓς εἶπεν "παῖδας αὐτοῦ, καθ' ὧν οὐ πιστεύει". λέγει γοῦν ἐν τῷ Ἠσαίᾳ αὐτὸς ὁ θεὸς ἀπὸ ἰδίου προσώπου· "ἐμεθύσθη ἡ μάχαιρά μου ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ." ἡ μάχαιρα δὲ κόλασιν σημαίνει, καθὸ εἴρηται· "ἡ μάχαιρά μου φάγεται αἷμα τραυματιῶν καὶ μεθύσω τὰ βέλη μου ἀφ' αἵματος." ἐν τοῖς οὖν παραβεβηκόσιν ἀγγέλοις φησὶν μεθύσκεσθαι τὴν μάχαιραν οὐρανοῖς καλουμένοις τὴν κόλασιν ἐπιφέρων. οὗτος οὖν ὁ οὐρανὸς οὐ καθαρὸς ἐναντίον αὐτοῦ. ἔα δὲ ἐβδελυγμένος καὶ ἀκάθαρ393 τος ἀνὴρ πίνων ἀδικίας ἴσα ποτῷ. κἄν τις οὐρανὸς τυγχάνων ἐκ παραβάσεως γήϊνος γένηται, ὁμοιοῦται ἀνδρὶ οὐκέτι ἄγγελος εἶναι ἀξιούμενος διὰ τὸ ποτὸν ἡγεῖσθαι τὴν ἀδικίαν· ἀμέτρως γὰρ ἐμφορεῖται τὴν ἀδικίαν ὁ ἄδικος. δεικτικὸν δὲ τοῦτο μὴ κατὰ φύ σιν εἶναι τὸ κακόν· ἐπεισόδιον γάρ ἐστιν τὸ κακόν. φησὶν γοῦν, ὅτι ὁ οὐρανὸς οὐ καθαρὸς ὡς πρὸς τὸν θεόν. εἰ δὲ τοῦτο, ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἐν πίνουσιν ἀδικίαν ταχθείη. ἀδικίαν ἐνταῦθα λέγει τὴν γενικὴν κακίαν· ἔστιν γὰρ καὶ ἰδικὴ ἀδικία ἡ περὶ τὰ συναλλάγματα, ὥσπερ δικαιοσύνη ἡ ἰδικὴ καὶ ἡ πᾶσα ἀρετὴ πολλάκις καλεῖται. ἀναγγέλλω δέ σοι, σὺ δὲ ἄκουέ μου. δοκεῖ πως ἀλαζονικῶς ταῦτα τῷ Ἰὼβ λέγειν ἢ τάχα οὐ προθέσει ἀλαζονικῇ, ἀλλὰ τῷ νομίζειν αὐτὸν ἐν ἁμαρτίᾳ εἶναι καὶ διὰ τοῦτο δεῖσθαι τῆς πρὸς αὐτοῦ παραινέσεως. ἃ δὴ ἑώρακα ἀναγγέλλω σοι, ἃ σοφοὶ ἐροῦσιν καὶ οὐκ ἔκρυψαν πατέρες αὐτῶν. ὡς ἐνδόξων δῆθεν προσώπων χρῆσθαι βούλεται τῷ λόγῳ, ἵν' ἐκ τούτων πειστικῶς δοκοίη λέγειν. φησὶν γάρ· «ἃ σοφοὶ ἐροῦσιν, οἳ παρὰ πατέρων ἀκηκόασιν οὐ κρυψάντων ἀπ' αὐτῶν 394 τὴν διδασκαλι´̣αν.» δηλοῖ δὲ δια`̣ τούτων ὡς εὐδιαθέτως ει᾿̣ς τὸν Ἰὼβ αὐτὸν κινου´̣μενον. ὅμοιον τούτῳ τὸ "ἐπερώτ̣ησον γὰρ γενεὰν πρώτην, ἐξιχνίασον δὲ κατὰ γένος πατέρων." αὐτοῖς μόνοις ἐδόθη ἡ γῆ καὶ οὐκ ἐπῆλθεν ἀλλογενὴς ἐπ' αὐτούς. ἔοικεν οὗτος, εἰ καὶ μὴ κατ' ἐπίγνωσιν θείαν, ἀλλὰ τῷ θαυμάζειν τοὺς συνέσει ὑπερβάλλοντας, ὅμοιον λέγειν τῷ ῥητῷ τῷ φάσκοντι· "τοῦ πιστοῦ ὅλος ὁ κόσμος τῶν χρημάτων, τοῦ δὲ ἀπίστου οὐδὲ ὀβολός." κἂν γὰρ πολυκτήμων ὑπάρχῃ ὁ ἄπιστος, οὐ δεσπότης αὐτῶν, ἀλλὰ δοῦλός ἐστιν. τῷ γὰρ μαμωνᾷ δουλεύει. ὁ δὲ δίκαιος ἀδούλωτον ἔχει τὸ φρονεῖν. διὸ "οὐδὲ ἐπέρχεται ἀλλογενὴς ἐπ' αὐτούς", ἀντὶ τοῦ «οὐκ αἰχμαλωτεύονται οὔτε ἀπὸ ἀοράτου δυνάμεως οὔτε ἀπὸ ἀνθρώπου». "ἡ ἀγάπη γὰρ οὐδέποτε πίπτει", ἀντὶ τοῦ «ὁ ἀγαπῶν». κἂν γάρ ποτε ἐν αἰχμαλωσίᾳ κρατηθῇ ὁ δίκαιος, ἀλλ' ὡς προείρηται ἀδούλωτός ἐστιν τὸν λογισμόν. οἰκ̣εῖον δὲ τῶν ἀλλογενῶν καὶ ἀοράτων καὶ ὁρατῶν τὸ ἐπέρχεσθαι. πᾶς ὁ βίος ἀσεβοῦς ἐν φροντίδι. θέλει λέγειν, ὅτι ὁ δίκαιος ἐν πάσῃ