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of the sinner, as his repentance. Therefore, having hoped in You, I beseech to receive healing from You; Lest my enemies rejoice over me, for they have not yet rejoiced completely. But they will rejoice, if I do not obtain Your mercy. But that my enemies might not rejoice over me, who already before boasted loudly when my feet were shaken, I have fled to You, and I say: Let me not be put to shame forever. For I was not completely overturned, nor did I fall such a fall as those who became Your apostates. TO THE END, FOR IDITHUM, A SONG OF DAVID, 38. And the things said in the present song have much similarity to those in the psalm before this one. But that one, David, while singing, composed for himself as a remembrance; but this one he now also hands down to others who have suffered similar things to him, teaching them through the same confession to emulate and imitate him; unless perhaps the Holy Spirit through Idithum taught David to say these things. For Idithum himself was also deemed worthy of a prophetic spirit. And we learn through the present words that it is fitting for each person to converse with himself, and not to wait for teachers from without, but for him to converse with his reason and thought by himself. I said: I will guard my ways. At that very time of temptation, he says, when the one who works sin rose up against me, I would say: I will guard my ways that I may not sin with my tongue. And then I set a guard on my mouth; and I became deaf and was humbled, and I kept silent from good things. But Symmachus interpreted it thus: I said: I will guard my ways, not to sin through my tongue. I will guard my mouth with a muzzle, while the ungodly is still before me. I became mute in silence, I was silenced not being in good. Do you see in what manner he taught the reason for not daring to open the mouth, by saying: And I was silent from good things, or, I was silenced not being in good, according to 23.348 Symmachus? For not being in good things, nor having boldness, I remembered the one who says: You have sinned, be still; therefore I was silent not being in good. And not only did I become deaf and keep silent from good things, but my pain was also renewed. For the pain of my soul and the wound engendered in me from sin, lying deep within, and fixed in my very conscience, was renewed, as the one who had wrought the sin rose up against me and reproached me. My heart grew hot within me. Remembering, he says, the sin, I was set on fire with the fire of despondency, being burned by conscience itself, I spoke with my tongue: Make known to me, Lord, my end, And after the confession, I ask to learn what kind of end I will attain. But being burdened he said these things, considering this temporary and mortal life to be very long on account of its oppressiveness. Therefore he longed for the time of his release to be made known to him; so that he might become cheerful, having received the good news of freedom from things here and release from temptations. And going on in what follows he would say: I am a sojourner with You and a stranger, as all my fathers were. Behold, You have made my days as handbreadths, and my substance is as nothing before You. Instead of which Symmachus published, Behold, You have given my days as spans. But another might say the days of men are called handbreadths, because they are filled with contest and wrestling and temptations. Next to these things he says: And my substance is as nothing before you; instead of which Aquila interpreted: And my setting is as if it is not before you; and Symmachus: And my life is as nothing opposite you. For the entire time of a man's life, when compared to the life of God, and to the infinite ages, is as nothing before God. Therefore it is said elsewhere: The heavens will perish; but You remain,

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τοῦ ἁμαρτωλοῦ, ὡς τὴν μετάνοιαν αὐτοῦ. ∆ιὸ, ἐλπίσας ἐπὶ σὲ, ἱκετεύω τῆς παρὰ σοῦ θεραπείας τυχεῖν· Μήποτε ἐπιχαρῶσί μοι οἱ ἐχθροί μου, οὔπω μὲν γὰρ παντελῶς ἐχάρησαν. Ἐπιχαροῦνται δὲ, εἰ μὴ τύχοιμι τοῦ σοῦ ἐλέους. Ἀλλ' ἵνα μὴ ἐπιχαρεῖέν μοι οἱ ἐχθροί μου, οἱ ἤδη καὶ πρότερον ἐν τῷ σαλευθῆναι πόδας μου μεγαλοῤῥημονήσαντες, ἐπὶ σὲ κατέφυγον, καί φημι· Μὴ καταισχυνθείην εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα. Οὐ γὰρ πάντη περιετράπην, οὐδὲ πτῶμα ἔπεσον τοιοῦτον, οἷον οἱ ἀποστάται σου γενόμενοι. ΕΙΣ ΤΟ ΤΕΛΟΣ ΤΩ Ι∆ΙΘΟΥΜ, Ω∆Η ΤΩ ∆ΑΥΙ∆ ΛΗʹ. Πολλὴν δὲ ἐμφέρειαν ἔχει τὰ ἐν τῇ προκειμένῃ ᾠδῇ λεγόμενα τοῖς ἐν τῷ πρὸ τούτου ψαλμῷ. Ἀλλ' ἐκεῖνον μὲν ὁ ∆αυῒδ ψάλλων, εἰς ἀνάμνησιν ἑαυτῷ συνέταττεν· οὗτος δὲ ἤδη καὶ ἑτέρους παραδίδωσι τοὺς τὰ ὅμοια πεπονθότας αὐτῷ, διὰ τῆς ἴσης ἐξομολογήσεως ζηλοῦν αὐτὸν καὶ μιμεῖσθαι παιδεύων· εἰ μὴ ἄρα τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον διὰ τοῦ Ἰδιθοὺμ ταῦτα τὸν ∆αυῒδ ἐδίδασκε λέγειν. Ἠξίωτο γὰρ καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ Ἰδιθοὺμ πνεύματος προφητικοῦ. Μανθάνομεν δὲ διὰ τῶν προκειμένων, ὡς ἄρα προσήκει ἕκαστον ἑαυτῷ διαλέγεσθαι, μηδὲ περιμένειν τοὺς ἔξωθεν διδασκάλους, αὐτὸν δι' ἑαυτοῦ προσομιλοῦντα τῷ λογισμῷ καὶ τῇ διανοίᾳ. Εἶπα· Φυλάξω τὰς ὁδούς μου. Κατ' αὐτὸν, φησὶ, τὸν καιρὸν τοῦ πειρασμοῦ, ἐπαναβαίνοντός μοι τοῦ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ἐνεργοῦντος, ἐγὼ ἔλεγον· Φυλάξω τὰς ὁδούς μου τοῦ μὴ ἁμαρτάνειν ἐν γλώσσῃ μου. Τότε δὲ καὶ ἐθέμην τῷ στόματί μου φυλακήν· καὶ ἐκωφώθην καὶ ἐταπεινώθην, καὶ ἐσίγησα ἐξ ἀγαθῶν. Ὁ δὲ Σύμμαχος οὕτως ἡρμήνευσεν· Εἶπον· Φυλάξω τὰς ὁδούς μου, μὴ ἁμαρτεῖν διὰ τῆς γλώσσης μου. Φυλάξω τὸ στόμα μου φιμῷ, ἔτι ὄντος ἀσεβοῦς ἐξ ἐναντίας μου. Ἄλαλος ἐγενόμην σιγῇ, ἐσιωπήθην μὴ ὢν ἐν ἀγαθῷ. Ὁρᾷς τίνα τρόπον τὴν αἰτίαν τοῦ μὴ τολμᾷν διαίρειν τὸ στόμα ἐδίδαξεν εἰπών· Καὶ ἐσιώπησα ἐξ ἀγαθῶν, ἢ, ἐσιωπήθην μὴ ὢν ἐν ἀγαθῷ, κατὰ τὸν 23.348 Σύμμαχον; Μὴ γὰρ ὢν ἐν ἀγαθοῖς, μηδὲ παῤῥησίαν ἄγων, ἐμεμνήμην τοῦ λέγοντος· Ἥμαρτες, ἡσύχασον· διὸ ἐσιώπησα μὴ ὢν ἐν ἀγαθῷ. Οὐ μόνον δὲ ἐκωφώθην καὶ ἐσίγησα ἐξ ἀγαθῶν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἄλγημά μου ἀνεκαινίσθη. Τὸ γὰρ τῆς ψυχῆς μου ἄλγος καὶ τὸ ἐκ τῆς ἁμαρτίας ἐγγενόμενόν μοι ἕλκος, κατὰ βάθους ἐγκείμενον, καὶ κατ' αὐτῆς τῆς συνειδήσεως ἐμπεπηγμένον, ἀνενεοῦτο, ἐπαναβαίνοντός μοι καὶ ἐπονειδίζοντος τοῦ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ἐνηργηκότος. Ἐθερμάνθη ἡ καρδία μου ἐντός μου. Ἀναμιμνησκόμενος, φησὶ, τῆς ἁμαρτίας, τῆς ἀθυμίας ἐνεπιμπράμην πυρὶ, ὑπ' αὐτῆς πυρούμενος τῆς συνειδήσεως, Ἐλάλησα ἐν γλώσσῃ μου· Γνώρισόν μοι, Κύριε, τὸ πέρας μου, Καὶ μετὰ τὴν ἐξομολόγησιν ὁποίου τέλους τεύξομαι μαθεῖν ἀξιῶ. Βαρούμενος δὲ ταῦτα ἔλεγε, τὴν πρόσκαιρον καὶ θνητὴν ζωὴν διὰ τὸ ἐπαχθὲς αὐτῆς μακροτάτην ἡγούμενος. ∆ιὸ γνωρισθῆναι αὐτῷ τὸν τῆς ἀπαλλαγῆς χρόνον ἐπόθει· ἵν' εὔθυμος γένοιτο, τὴν ἀπὸ τῶν τῇδε ἐλευθερίαν καὶ τῶν πειρατηρίων τὴν ἀπαλλαγὴν εὐαγγελισθείς. Καὶ ἐν τοῖς δ' ἑξῆς προϊὼν ἔλεγεν· Πάροικος ἐγώ εἰμι παρὰ σοὶ καὶ παρεπίδημος, καθὼς πάντες οἱ πατέρες μου. Ἰδοὺ παλαιστὰς ἔθου τὰς ἡμέρας μου, καὶ ἡ ὑπόστασίς μου ὡσεὶ οὐθὲν ἐνώπιόν σου. Ἀνθ' οὗ ὁ Σύμμαχος, Ἰδοὺ ὡς σπιθαμὰς ἔδωκας τὰς ἡμέρας μου, ἐξέδωκεν. Ἄλλος δ' ἂν εἴποι παλαιστὰς εἰρῆσθαι τὰς τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἡμέρας, διὰ τὸ πεπληρῶσθαι αὐτὰς ἀγῶνος καὶ πάλης καὶ πειρατηρίων. Ἑξῆς τούτοις φησί· Καὶ ἡ ὑπόστασίς μου ὡσεὶ οὐθὲν ἐνώπιόν σου· ἀνθ' οὗ ὁ Ἀκύλας ἡρμήνευσε· Καὶ ἡ κατάδυσίς μου ὡς οὐκ ἔστιν ἐναντίον σου· ὁ δὲ Σύμμαχος· Καὶ ἡ βίωσίς μου ὡς οὐδὲν ἀντικρύ σου. Ὁ γὰρ πᾶς τῆς ζωῆς ἀνθρώπου χρόνος, παραβαλλόμενος τῇ τοῦ Θεοῦ ζωῇ, καὶ τοῖς αἰῶσι τοῖς ἀπείροις, ὥσπερ οὐθέν ἐστι ἐνώπιον τοῦ Θεοῦ. ∆ιὸ ἀλλαχοῦ εἴρηται· Οἱ οὐρανοὶ ἀπολοῦνται· σὺ δὲ διαμένεις,