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and he will not see the glory of the Lord. Having said these things to us in an admonitory way, he looks up again, and having seen the divinity of the Savior raised on high, he cries out: Lord, your arm is high, and they did not know; for the impious, being lowly and standing far from the knowledge of his divinity, were wallowing in the darkness of their own ignorance, but when the universal judgment comes, having seen the high arm, those who formerly blasphemed him as non-existent will cease from their folly, covered with shame. Seeing the blessed enjoying life in heaven, they will be jealous, and jealousy will especially seize the people who in the present life were unwilling to accept the discipline of God. Therefore jealousy will seize an undisciplined people, and he alludes to those of the circumcision who did not accept the grace of God through Christ. Then he adds the following: and now fire will devour the adversaries, as they will be subjected to the sentence that says: “Depart into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” And having said these things about them, turning again to God, he sends up a supplication, saying: Lord our God, give us peace, for you have given all things to us; for all other things from you are also good; but the greatest gift happens to be peace from you and towards you, so that we may be without strife towards you and our soul may be kept at peace with you always. And this would happen, if you would deign to make us your own possession; since we know no one else but you and have trusted in your name alone. Therefore, since we possess no one else in life but you, we rightly entreat to be deemed worthy to become part of your portion and your inheritance. We, therefore, they say, are yours, Lord, and you are our possession, but those who gave themselves over to “sins unto death” and for this reason became dead in their souls; for “the soul that sins, it shall die,” will not see the eternal life promised to the saints, nor will any physicians, appearing at the time of judgment, be able to help them toward salvation, nor raise them from their fall. For whom you, the great and fearful and just judge, have delivered to destruction, what physician will be able to save? And instead of: and you took away all their males, Symmachus interpreted it as "all their memory," and Aquila and Theodotion as "all their memorial;" for all their memory of evil had to be taken away at the indicated time of judgment. But if it should be said: all their males, the word introduces great philanthropy; as the sinners themselves are not to be destroyed nor to perish completely, but their offspring, thus indicated, which their soul has begotten of wicked thoughts; for he says that the destruction of these will happen. Again, instead of: add evils to the glorious ones of the earth, we found the word "evils" neither among the Other interpreters nor in the Hebrew reading; but according to all the interpreters, it is said, "you added to the nation in which you were glorified." And since all interpreted it in this way in agreement, it follows for us to understand what he added to the nation; which we will understand from the Savior's word that said: "to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance." So to those who possess good things he added what was stored up with him; "what eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has entered into the heart of man," but to those who have treasured up evil for themselves he will again add things appropriate to their works. After these things he adds: you have removed afar all the ends of the earth; for those who have placed themselves far from God, he himself likewise removes them far away, for which reason, so that the household of God might not suffer the same as the impious, they necessarily said through prayer: Lord our God, possess us. 1.88 Since the prophet beholds the passage concerning the universal judgment as if he were present at the judgment and "at the judgment seat of God
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καὶ οὐκ ὄψεται τὴν δόξαν κυρίου. Ταῦτα παραινετικῶς πρὸς ἡμᾶς εἰπὼν πάλιν ἄνω βλέπει καὶ τὴν θεότητα τοῦ σωτῆρος εἰς ὕψος ἠρμένην θεασάμενος ἀναβοᾷ· κύριε, ὑψηλός σου ὁ βραχίων, καὶ οὐκ ᾔδεισαν· ταπεινοὶ γὰρ ὄντες οἱ ἀσεβεῖς καὶ μακρὰν ἀφεστηκότες τῆς γνώσεως τῆς θεότητος αὐτοῦ ἐν σκότῳ τῆς αὐτῶν ἀγνοίας ἐκαλινδοῦντο, ἀλλὰ τῆς καθόλου κρίσεως ἐπιστάσης θεασάμενοι τὸν ὑψηλὸν βραχίονα οἱ πάλαι αὐτὸν ὡς μὴ ὄντα βλασφημοῦντες παύσονται τῆς ἀπονοίας αἰσχύνην καταχεάμενοι. ὁρῶντες δὲ τοὺς μακαρίους τοὺς ἐν οὐρανοῖς ζωῆς ἀπολαύοντας ζηλώσουσι, μάλιστα δὲ καθάψεται ὁ ζῆλος τοῦ λαοῦ τοῦ κατὰ τὸν ἐνεστῶτα βίον μὴ βουληθέντος παραδέξασθαι τὴν τοῦ θεοῦ παιδείαν. διὸ ζῆλος λήψεται λαὸν ἀπαίδευτον, αἰνίττεται δὲ τοὺς ἐκ περιτομῆς μὴ παραδεδεγμένους τὴν τοῦ θεοῦ διὰ Χριστοῦ χάριν. εἶθ' ἑξῆς ἐπιλέγει· καὶ νῦν πῦρ τοὺς ὑπεναντίους ἔδεται, ὡς ἂν ἀποφάσει ὑποβληθησομένους τῇ λεγούσῃ· «πορεύεσθε εἰς τὸ πῦρ τὸ αἰώνιον τὸ ἡτοιμασμένον τῷ διαβόλῳ καὶ τοῖς ἀγγέλοις αὐτοῦ». Καὶ ταῦτα δὲ περὶ τούτων εἰπὼν πάλιν πρὸς τὸν θεὸν ἐπιστραφεὶς ἱκετηρίαν ἀναπέμπει λέγων· κύριε ὁ θεὸς ἡμῶν, εἰρήνην δὸς ἡμῖν, πάντα γὰρ ἀπέδωκας ἡμῖν· καλὰ μὲν γὰρ καὶ τὰ ἄλλα παρὰ σοῦ πάντα· τὸ δὲ μέγιστον δῶρον ἡ παρὰ σοῦ καὶ ἡ πρὸς σεαυτὸν εἰρήνη τυγχάνει, ἵν' ἀστασίαστοι ὦμεν πρὸς σὲ καὶ εἰρηνεύουσα πρὸς σὲ διὰ παντὸς φυλάττοιτο ἡμῶν ἡ ψυχή. τοῦτο δ' ἂν γένοιτο, εἰ καταξιώσειας κτῆμα σαυτοῦ ἴδιον ποιήσασθαι ἡμᾶς· ἐπεὶ δὲ ἡμεῖς οὐκ ἄλλον τινὰ οἴδαμεν ἢ σὲ καὶ μόνῳ τῷ ὀνόματί σου τεθαρσήκαμεν. ὅτε τοίνυν οὐδένα ἕτερον κεκτήμεθα ἐν τῷ βίῳ ἢ σέ, εἰκότως ἀντιβολοῦμεν καταξιωθῆναι τῆς σῆς γενέσθαι μερίδος καὶ τοῦ σοῦ κλήρου. Ἡμεῖς μὲν οὖν φασιν σοῦ ἐσμεν, κύριε, καὶ σὺ τὸ ἡμέτερον ὑπάρχεις κτῆμα, οἱ δὲ «ταῖς πρὸς θάνατον ἁμαρτίαις» ἑαυτοὺς ἐκδόντες καὶ διὰ τοῦτο νεκροὶ τὰς ψυχὰς γενόμενοι· «ψυχὴ γὰρ ἡ ἁμαρτάνουσα αὕτη ἀποθανεῖται», τὴν ἐπηγγελμένην τοῖς ἁγίοις αἰώνιον ζωὴν οὐκ ὄψονται, οὐδ' ἰατροί ποθεν ἐπιστάντες κατὰ τὸν τῆς κρίσεως καιρὸν δυνήσονται αὐτοῖς ἐπικουρῆσαι τὰ πρὸς σωτηρίαν, οὐδ' ἀναστῆσαι αὐτῶν τὴν πτῶσιν. οὓς γὰρ σὺ ὁ μέγας καὶ φοβερὸς καὶ δίκαιος κριτὴς παρέδωκας ἀπωλείᾳ, τίς ἰατρῶν διασώσασθαι δυνήσεται; ἀντὶ δὲ τοῦ· καὶ ἦρας πᾶν ἄρσεν αὐτῶν, ὁ μὲν Σύμμαχος πᾶσαν τὴν μνήμην αὐτῶν, ὁ δὲ Ἀκύλας καὶ ὁ Θεοδοτίων πᾶν τὸ μνημόσυνον αὐτῶν ἡρμήνευσαν· ἔδει γὰρ αὐτῶν πᾶσαν μνήμην κακίας ἀρθῆναι κατὰ τὸν δηλούμενον τῆς κρίσεως καιρόν. εἰ δὲ λέγοιτο· πᾶν ἄρσεν αὐτῶν, πολλὴν εἰσάγει φιλανθρωπίαν ὁ λόγος· ὡς αὐτῶν μὲν τῶν ἡμαρτηκότων μὴ μελλόντων ἀφανίζεσθαι μηδ' εἰς τὸ παντελὲς ἀπόλλυσθαι, τῶν δὲ γεννημάτων αὐτῶν οὕτω δηλουμένων, ὧν ἡ ψυχὴ αὐτῶν γεγέννηκεν λογισμῶν πονηρῶν· τούτων γὰρ ἀφανισμὸν γενήσεσθαί φησι. Πάλιν δ' ἀντὶ τοῦ· πρόσθες κακὰ τοῖς ἐνδόξοις τῆς γῆς, τὰ μὲν κακὰ οὔτε παρὰ τοῖς Λοιποῖς ἑρμηνευταῖς οὔτ' ἐν τῇ Ἑβραϊκῇ ἀναγνώσει εὕρομεν· κατὰ δὲ πάντας τοὺς ἑρμηνευτὰς προσέθηκας τῷ ἔθνει ἐν ᾧ ἐδοξάσθης εἴρηται. συμφώνως δὲ πάντων τοῦτον ἑρμηνευσάντων τὸν τρόπον ἕπεται νοεῖν ἡμᾶς, ὅ τι προσέθηκε τῷ ἔθνει· ὅπερ νοήσομεν ἀπὸ τοῦ σωτηρίου λόγου τοῦ φήσαντος· «παντὶ τῷ ἔχοντι δοθήσεται καὶ περισσευθήσεται». τοῖς μὲν οὖν ἀγαθὰ κεκτημένοις προσέθηκε τὰ παρ' ἑαυτῷ τεταμιευμένα· «ἃ ὀφθαλμὸς οὐκ εἶδεν οὐδὲ οὖς ἤκουσεν οὐδὲ ἐπὶ καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου ἀνέβη», τοῖς δὲ κακὰ θησαυρίσασιν ἑαυτοῖς πάλιν προσθήσει τὰ κατάλληλα τοῖς ἔργοις αὐτῶν. τούτοις ἑξῆς ἐπιφέρει· ἐμάκρυνας πάντα τὰ πέρατα τῆς γῆς· τοὺς γὰρ ἑαυτοὺς μακρὰν τοῦ θεοῦ καταστήσαντας καὶ αὐτὸς ὁμοίως μακρύνει αὐτούς, διόπερ ἵνα μὴ ταὐτὸν τοῖς ἀσεβέσι πάθωσιν οἱ τοῦ θεοῦ οἰκεῖοι, ἀναγκαίως διὰ τῆς εὐχῆς ἔλεγον· κύριε ὁ θεὸς ἡμῶν, κτῆσαι ἡμᾶς. 1.88 Ἐπειδὴ τὸν περὶ τῆς καθόλου κρίσεως τόπον θεωρεῖ ὁ προφήτης ὡσανεὶ παρὼν τῇ κρίσει καὶ «τῷ βήματι τοῦ θεοῦ