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often by experience that you are both God and my helper. For even if I am not worthy to receive the kingdom by our power, yet your mercy, anticipating me, will show me among my enemies, that they indeed will be disciplined, having fallen under punishment, but I will receive the kingdom from you. And concerning the spiritual meaning, he who has the kingship from God according to Abraham. For it is written that some said to the patriarch, who was not ruling in a perceptible way, You are a king from God among us. He who reigns pleasingly to God will say, O my God, my strength, I will keep it for you; for you will bring into the kingdom those Corinthians who said, And I would that you did reign, that we also might reign with you. 615 Ps 58,12.13ab In the historical sense: he asks that the threatening enemies be rebuked by God, but not that they die. For he knows that, if they die while remaining wicked, they will have a cessation of the divine law, but if scattered by the power of God and delivered into captivity, they will groan to God, having experienced affliction. And he wishes them also to be brought down from the height of the pride they possess, the defending Lord who offers the supplication doing this. For complete punishment prepares and urges toward despair. But that David, sparing them, interceded for this, that being disciplined by a more moderate punishment they might become sober, he adds what follows; for if they are scattered, they are both punished and will be able to be gathered again, having repented. Likewise he wishes them to be brought down, that is, to be humbled, for the sin of their mouth, the word of their lips, being advantageous both for those who are humbled and for the many, so that they not be provoked to emulate those who speak and utter unjust things in pride. For those who have spoken with pride are those who have lied against the righteous man; when, being caught in the pride of their own words, they receive an outcome contrary to their deeds, they are convicted as transgressors.

616a Ps 59,3b One must also from the present saying refute those who think the creator is vindictive

heretics. God is angry not in order to destroy, but in order to have mercy. With this agrees, I will bless you, Lord, because you were angry with me for salvation. For if he is angry for salvation and in order to show mercy, his anger is not a passion but something usefully employed. 617a Ps 59,4 Those who are attached to material things and mind earthly things† think they have stability and tranquility in them because they are subject to passions, but such a state brings them harm; whence it is useful by God's mercy for it to be shaken and disturbed in the manner of repentance. For having known how harmful it is to be entangled in material things and to think, it would have disturbance and shaking, changing from the former evil life to a virtuous one, and indeed having been crushed, receiving a sense of the existing shatterings from the demons, it will call upon the Lord who is able to heal these things. 618a Ps 59,5 Hard things are shown to someone, when he falls into laborious circumstances; which if one accepts for the repentance of former sins, he drinks the wine of compunction, receiving the cause for being pricked to repentance from the drink. In many places of scripture† unmixed wine is a homonym for harsh circumstances, as in A cup in the hand of the Lord of unmixed wine. And harsh things are a homonym for the so-called hard ways; in the 16th psalm it says thus: Because of the words of your lips I have kept hard ways. For there, hard ways are said to be those according to virtue because they are achieved with much sweat and labor, but here the people saw hard things, being tried by afflictions. 619 Ps 59,6 What is the sign that God gives, or the illumination according to which it is possible to have discernment of spirits, both good and evil? For when this knowledge exists, we flee from the worse things, far from evil

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πεῖρᾳ πολλάκις οτι καὶ θεὸς καὶ ἀντιλήπτωρ μου τυγχάνεις. καν γὰρ μὴ ἐξ ἡμετέρας δυνάμεως αξιος λαβεῖν τὸ βασιλεύειν, ἀλλά γε τὸ σὸν ελεος προφθάσαν με δείξει μοι ἐν τοῖς ἐχθροῖς μου, ὡς αὐτοὶ μὲν παιδευθήσονται κολάσει ὑποπεσόντες, ἐγὼ δὲ τὴν βασιλείαν λήψομαι παρὰ σοῦ. Καὶ πρὸς διάνοιαν δὲ ὁ κατὰ τὸν ̓Αβραὰμ ἐκ θεοῦ τὸ βασιλεύειν εχων. γέγραπται γὰρ ὡς ειπόν τινες τῷ πατριάρχῃ οὐκ αἰσθητῶς κρατοῦντι Βασιλεὺς παρὰ θεοῦ σὺ ει ἐν ἡμῖν. βασιλεύων ἀρεσκόντως θεῷ ἐρεῖ ̔Ο θεός μου τὸ κράτος μου, πρὸς σὲ φυλάξω· σὺ γὰρ εἰσάξεις εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τοὺς εἰρηκότας Κορινθίους Καὶ ὀφελόν γε ἐβασιλεύσατε ινα καὶ ἡμεῖς ὑμῖν συμβασιλεύσωμεν. 615 Ps 58,12.13ab ̔Ως πρὸς ἱστορίαν· τοὺς ἐπικειμένους ἐχθροὺς ἐπιτιμηθῆναι πρὸς θεοῦ ἀλλ' οὐκ ἀποθανεῖν ἀξιοῖ. οιδεν γὰρ οτι, εἰ μένοντες φαῦλοι ἀποθάνοιεν, λῆξιν εξουσι τοῦ θεϊκοῦ νόμου, διασκορπισθέντες δὲ τῇ τοῦ θεοῦ δυνάμει καὶ εἰς αἰχμαλωσίαν παραδοθέντες στενάξουσι πρὸς θεὸν πεῖραν κακώσεως ἐσχηκότες. Βούλεται δὲ αὐτοὺς καὶ καταχθῆναι ἀπὸ υψους ης εχουσι ὑπερηφανίας, ποιοῦντος αὐτὸ τοῦ ὑπερασπίζοντος κυρίου τοῦ τὴν δέησιν ἀναφέροντος. ἡ γὰρ παντελὴς τιμωρία εἰς ἀπόγνωσιν παρασκευάζει καὶ προτρέπεται. οτι δὲ φειδόμενος αὐτῶν τοῦτο ὁ ∆αυὶδ ἐπρεσβεύετο, ινα τῇ μετριωτέρᾳ τιμωρίᾳ σωφρονισθέντες νήφωσιν, ἐπάγει τὰ ἑξῆς· ἐὰν γὰρ διασκορπισθῶσιν, ὁμοῦ καὶ τιμωροῦνται καὶ συναχθῆναι πάλιν δυνήσονται μετανοήσαντες. ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ καταχθῆναι τουτέστι ταπεινωθῆναι βούλεται ̔Αμαρτίαν στόματος αὐτῶν, λόγον χειλέων αὐτῶν, συμφέρων αὐτοῖς τε τοῖς ταπεινουμένοις καὶ τοῖς πλείοσι ωστε μὴ παροξυνθῆναι πρὸς ζῆλον τῶν ἐν ὑπερηφανίᾳ λαλούντων καὶ φθεγγομένων αδικα. οἱ γὰρ μεθ' ὑπερηφανίας λελαληκότες οἱ κατὰ τοῦ δικαίου ψευσάμενοι· οταν ἐναντίαν τοῖς εργοις τὴν εκβασιν ἐν τῇ ὑπερηφανίᾳ τῶν οἰκείων λόγων συλλαμβανόμενοι δέχωνται, ὡς παράνομοι καταληφθέντες ἐλέγχονται.

616a Ps 59,3b ̓Ελεγκτέον καὶ ἐκ τῆς προκειμένης λέξεως τοὺς ἀμυντικὸν

φρονοῦντας ειναι τὸν δημιουργὸν αἱρετικούς. ὀργίζεται ὁ θεὸς οὐχ ινα ἀπολέσῃ, ἀλλ' ινα οἰκτειρήσῃ. τούτῳ συνᾴδει Εὐλογήσω σε, κύριε, οτι ὠργίσθης μοι εἰς σωτηρίαν. εἰ γὰρ εἰς σωτηρίαν ὀργίζεται καὶ ἐπὶ τῷ οἰκτεῖραι, οὐ πάθος ἡ ὀργὴ αὐτοῦ ἀλλὰ χρησίμως παραλαμβανομένη. 617a Ps 59,4 Οἱ προσπαθοῦντες τοῖς ὑλικοῖς καὶ τὰ ἐπίγεια φρονοῦντες† ἐπ' αὐτοῖς τῷ ἐμπαθεῖς ειναι οιονται εὐστάθειαν καὶ ἀταραξίαν εχειν, βλάβην δὲ αὐτοῖς ἡ τοιαύτη κατάστασις φέρει· οθεν χρήσιμον ἐλέῳ θεοῦ συσσεισθῆναι αὐτὴν καὶ ταραχθῆναι μεταμελείας τρόπῳ. γνοῦσα γὰρ ὡς ἐπιβλαβὲς τοῖς ὑλικοῖς ἐνέχεσθαι καὶ φρονεῖν τάραχον καὶ συσσεισμὸν σχοίη, μετατιθεμένη ἐκ τοῦ προτέρου φαύλου βίου ἐπὶ σπουδαῖον, ἀμέλει καὶ συντριβεῖσα, αισθησιν λαβοῦσα τῶν ὑπαρξάντων συντριμμάτων ἐκ τῶν δαιμόνων παρακαλέσει τὸν δυνάμενον κύριον ἰᾶσαι ταῦτα. 618a Ps 59,5 ∆είκνυταί τινι σκληρά, οταν ἐπιπόνοις περιπέσῃ· απερ ἐάν τις δέξηται ἐπὶ μετάγνωσιν προτέρων ἁμαρτημάτων, οινον κατανύξεως πίνει, αἰτίαν τοῦ κατανύττεσθαι ἐπὶ μετάνοιαν λαμβάνων ἐκ τοῦ ποτισμοῦ. πολλαχοῦ δὲ τῆς γραφῆς† ἀκράτου ὁμωνυμεῖ τὰ σκληρὰ τὰ περιστατικά, ὡς ἐν τῷ Ποτήριον ἐν χειρὶ κυρίου οινου ἀκράτου. ὁμωνυμεῖ δὲ τὰ σκληρὰ καὶ ταῖς εἰρημέναις σκληραῖς ὁδοῖς· ἐν ις ψαλμῷ ουτως λέγει· ∆ιὰ τοὺς λόγους τῶν χειλέων σου ἐγὼ ἐφύλαξα ὁδοὺς σκληράς. ἐκεῖ μὲν γὰρ ὁδοὶ σκληραὶ αἱ κατ' ἀρετὴν ειρηνται διὰ τὸ σὺν ἱδρῶτι πολλῷ καὶ πόνῳ κατορθοῦσθαι αὐτάς, ἐνταῦθα δὲ ειδεν ὁ λαὸς σκληρὰ πειραθεὶς κακωτικῶν. 619 Ps 59,6 Τίς ἡ σημείωσις ην δίδωσιν ὁ θεὸς η ὁ φωτισμὸς καθ' ον δυνατὸν διάκρισιν εχειν πνευμάτων καὶ ἀγαθοῦ καὶ κακοῦ; ταύτης γὰρ τῆς γνώσεως ὑπαρξάσης φεύγομεν ἀπὸ τῶν χειρόνων, μακρὰν κακοῦ