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I am God, the first, and I am for the things to come. He does not say that one gave the old covenant and another legislates the new; the divine nature is one, always having itself in the same way and according to the same things. 5The nations saw and were afraid, the ends of the earth were astounded. And experience of the events bears witness; for having abandoned error, men learned the truth. They drew near and came together, 6each man judging to help his neighbor and his brother. For those who formerly were in error, having enjoyed the light of the knowledge of God, do not endure to hide its radiance but call everyone to fellowship. And he will say, that is, the one delivered from the darkness of ignorance; 7A carpenter grew strong, and a smith striking with a hammer, forging at the same time, will sometimes say: It is a good jointing; they strengthened them |150 a| with nails, they will set it up, and it will not be moved. These things, he says, those who have come to the truth will say to those still held by the error of idols, showing their weakness; for they can neither walk nor stand unless they are bound with nails. But the phrase, "it is a good jointing," the Three have rendered thus: "It is good for soldering," that is: it is well joined together, skillfully fitted. 8But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham whom I have loved, 9you whom I took hold of from the end of the earth and called from its high places and said to you: You are my servant, I have chosen you and not forsaken you; 10fear not, for I am with you; do not wander, for I am your God who strengthened you and helped you and secured you with my righteous right hand. To Israel he at times weaves praises, at other times attaches accusations, not doing contradictory things but acting appropriately; for from Israel are those who have believed and from Israel are those who crucified; fittingly, therefore, he praises the one and accuses the other. Here, however, he also reminded them of the ancient <promises> and good deeds, and how he led the patriarch out of the land of the Chaldeans, and freed the entire race from the dominion of the Egyptians and deemed them worthy of every kind of providence. 11Behold, all who oppose you will be ashamed and disgraced, for they will be as if they were not, and all your adversaries will perish, 12you will seek them and you will not find the men who act insolently toward you; for they will be as if they were not, and those who war against you will not exist. Then he teaches the cause of the victory: 13For I am your God, who holds your right hand, who says to you: Fear not, I have helped you. These things happened typically also in the case of the Babylonians. For the God of all, having overthrown their rule and having freed these from bitter slavery, brought them back to their fatherland; properly, however, and truly it is fitting for the holy apostles and the victorious martyrs; for those who warred against them have been put to shame, and now the persecutors are gone and unseen, but the champions of the truth are renowned and illustrious. Fear not, worm 14Jacob, few in number Israel, I have helped you, says God, your redeemer, the Holy One of Israel. And these things especially declare that the prophetic word is fitting for those who have believed in the Lord. A small part of Israel believed, but the greatest part disbelieved. For this reason the divine Paul also said: "So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace," and again: "The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened," and again the prophet: "Though the number of the sons of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant of them will be saved." The name of the worm is also very fitting; first, on account of their visible insignificance—for the divine apostle, wishing to show this, said: "God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and the weak things of the world and the despised and the things that are not, to bring to nothing the things that are." For wishing to signify the excess, and finding nothing like it, he called them "things that are not," instead of: "in the sight of others these are nothing"—, but he also calls them "worm" for another reason: for in the more rotten parts of the wood the worm, hiding as their little

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Ἐγὼ θεὸς πρῶτος καὶ εἰς τὰ ἐπερχόμενα ἐγώ εἰμι. Οὐκ ἄλλος φησὶ τὴν παλαιὰν ἔδωκε διαθήκην καὶ ἄλλος νομοθετεῖ τὴν καινήν· μία ἐστὶν ἡ θεία φύσις, ἀεὶ ὡσαύτως καὶ κατὰ ταὐτὰ ἔχουσα. 5Εἶδον ἔθνη καὶ ἐφοβήθησαν, τὰ ἄκρα τῆς γῆς ἐξέστησαν. Καὶ μαρτυρεῖ τῶν πραγμάτων ἡ πεῖρα· καταλιπόντες γὰρ τὴν πλάνην οἱ ἄνθρωποι μετέμαθον τὴν ἀλήθειαν. Ἤγγισαν καὶ ἦλθον ἅμα, 6κρίνων ἕκαστος τῷ πλησίον βοηθῆσαι καὶ τῷ ἀδελφῷ. Οἱ γὰρ πάλαι πλανώμενοι τοῦ τῆς θεογνωσίας φωτὸς ἀπολαύσαντες οὐκ ἀνέχονται κρύπτειν τὴν αἴγλην ἀλλὰ πάντας εἰς κοινωνίαν καλοῦσιν. Καὶ ἐρεῖ, τουτέστιν ὁ τοῦ γνόφου τῆς ἀγνοίας ἀπαλλα γείς· 7Ἴσχυσεν ἀνὴρ τέκτων, καὶ χαλκεὺς τύπτων ςφῦραν ἅμα ἐλαύνων ποτὲ μὲν ἐρεῖ· Σύμβλημα καλόν ἐστιν, ἰσχύρωσαν αὐτὰ |150 a| ἐν ἥλοις, θήσουσιν αὐτό, καὶ οὐ κινηθήσεται. Ταῦτά φησιν ἐροῦσιν οἱ τῇ ἀληθείᾳ προσεληλυθότες τοῖς ἔτι κατεχομένοις τῇ πλάνῃ τῇ τῶν εἰδώλων τὴν τούτων δεικνύντες ἀσθένειαν· οὔτε γὰρ βαδίσαι δύνανται οὔτε στῆναι μὴ τοῖς ἥλοις δεσμούμενα. Τὸ δέ· σύμβλημα καλόν ἐστιν, οἱ Τρεῖς οὕτω τεθείκασιν· «Εἰς κόλλησιν καλόν ἐστιν», τουτέστι· καλῶς συμβέβληται, τεχνικῶς συνήρμο σται. 8Σὺ δὲ Ἰσραὴλ παῖς μου, Ἰακὼβ ὃν ἐξελεξάμην, σπέρμα Ἀβραὰμ ὃν ἠγάπησα, 9οὗ ἀντελαβόμην ἀπ' ἄκρου τῆς γῆς καὶ ἐκ τῶν σκοπιῶν αὐτῆς ἐκάλεσά σε καὶ εἶπόν σοι· Παῖς μου εἶ, ἐξελεξάμην σε καὶ οὐκ ἐγκατέλιπόν σε· 10μὴ φοβοῦ, μετὰ σοῦ γάρ εἰμι· μὴ πλανῶ, ἐγὼ γάρ εἰμι ὁ θεός σου ὁ ἐνισχύσας σε καὶ ἐβοήθησά σοι καὶ ἠσφαλισάμην σε τῇ δεξιᾷ μου τῇ δικαίᾳ. Τῷ Ἰσραὴλ ποτὲ μὲν εὐφημίας ὑφαίνει ποτὲ δὲ κατηγορίας προσάπτει οὐκ ἐναντία ποιῶν ἀλλὰ κατάλληλα δρῶν· ἐκ γὰρ τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ οἱ πεπιστευκότες καὶ ἐκ τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ οἱ ἐσταυρωκότες· εἰκότως τοίνυν τοὺς μὲν ἐπαινεῖ τῶν δὲ κατηγορεῖ. Ἐνταῦθα μέντοι καὶ τῶν παλαιῶν ἀνέμνησεν αὐτοὺς <ἐπαγγελιῶν> καὶ εὐεργεσιῶν καὶ ὡς ἐξήγαγε μὲν ἐκ γῆς Χαλδαίων τὸν πατριάρχην, ἅπαν δὲ τὸ γένος τῆς Αἰγυπτίων ἠλευθέρωσε δυναστείας καὶ παντοδαπῆς προνοίας ἠξίωσεν. 11Ἰδοὺ αἰσχυνθήσονται καὶ ἐντραπήσονται πάντες οἱ ἀντικείμενοί σοι, ἔσονται γὰρ ὡς οὐκ ὄντες, καὶ ἀπολοῦνται πάντες οἱ ἀντίδικοί σου, 12ζητήσεις αὐτοὺς καὶ οὐ μὴ εὕρῃς τοὺς ἀνθρώπους οἳ παροινήσουσιν εἰς σέ· ἔσονται γὰρ ὡς οὐκ ὄντες, καὶ οὐκ ἔσονται οἱ ἀντιπολεμοῦντές σε. Εἶτα τῆς νίκης τὴν αἰτίαν διδάσκει· 13Ὅτι ἐγὼ ὁ θεός σου, ὁ κρατῶν τῆς δεξιᾶς σου, ὁ λέγων σοι· Μὴ φοβοῦ, ἐγὼ ἐβοήθησά σοι. Ταῦτα τυπικῶς μὲ ν καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν Βαβυλωνίων ἐγένετο. Καταλύσας γὰρ τὴν ἐκείνων ἀρχὴν ὁ τῶν ὅλων θεὸς καὶ τούτους τῆς πικρᾶς δουλείας ἐλευθερώσας εἰς τὴν πατρῴαν ἐπανήγαγε γῆν· κυρίως μέντοι καὶ ἀληθῶς ἁρμόττει τοῖς ἁγίοις ἀποστόλοις καὶ τοῖς νικηφόροις μάρτυ σιν· οἱ γὰρ τούτους πολεμήσαντες ἐν αἰσχύνῃ γεγένηνται, καὶ φροῦδοι νῦν καὶ ἀφανεῖς οἱ διώξαντες, περίβλεπτοι δὲ καὶ περιφανεῖς τῆς ἀληθείας οἱ πρόμαχοι. Μὴ φοβοῦ σκώληξ 14Ἰακώβ, ὀλιγοστὸς Ἰσραήλ, ἐγὼ ἐβοήθησά σοι, λέγει ὁ θεὸς ὁ λυτρούμενός σε, ὁ ἅγιος τοῦ Ἰσραήλ. Καὶ ταῦτα μάλιστα δηλοῖ, ὡς τοῖς εἰς τὸν κύριον πεπιστευκόσιν ὁ προφητικὸς ἁρμόττει λόγος. Ὀλίγον τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ ἐπίστευσε μέρος, τὸ δέ γε πλεῖστον ἠπίστησεν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ θεῖος ἔλεγε Παῦλος· «Οὕτω καὶ ἐν τῷ νῦν καιρῷ λεῖμμα κατ' ἐκλογὴν χάριτος γέγονεν», καὶ πάλιν· «Ἡ ἐκλογὴ ἐπέτυχεν, οἱ δὲ λοιποὶ ἐπωρώθησαν», καὶ πάλιν ὁ προφήτης· «Ἐὰν ᾖ ὁ ἀριθμὸς τῶν υἱῶν Ἰσραὴλ ὡσεὶ ἄμμος τῆς θαλάσσης, τὸ κατάλειμμα σωθή σεται.» Μάλα δὲ ἁρμόττει καὶ τὸ τοῦ σκώληκος ὄνομα· πρ ῶτον μὲν διὰ τὴν ὁρωμένην εὐτέλειαν-καὶ γὰρ ὁ θεῖος ἀπόστολος ταύτην βουληθεὶς ἐπι δεῖξαι ἔφη· «Ἐξε λέξατο ὁ θεὸς τὰ μωρὰ τοῦ κόσμου, ἵνα καταισχύνῃ τοὺς σοφούς, καὶ τὰ ἀσθενῆ τοῦ κόσμου καὶ τὰ ἐξουθενημένα καὶ τὰ μὴ ὄντα, ἵνα τὰ ὄντα καταργήσῃ.» Τὴν γὰρ ὑπερβολὴν παραδηλῶσαι θελήσας καὶ μηδὲν εὑρὼν ἐοικός, μὴ ὄντα ἐκάλεσεν, ἀντὶ τοῦ· ἐν αντίον τῶν ἄλλων οὐδέν εἰσιν οὗτοι-, καλεῖ δὲ αὐτοὺς καὶ δι' ἕτερον σκώληκα· ἐν γὰρ τοῖς σαθροτέ ροις τῶν ξύλων ὁ σκώληξ κρυπτόμενος ὡς τὴν ὀλίγην αὐτῶν