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having used wrath against those who had transgressed in Gibeah, they armed four hundred thousand; but God, wishing to chastise them, as doing similar things, and seeing the evil in others, while not being willing to do so in themselves, both once and twice allowed them to be defeated, and many thousands of them to be slain. But when he saw that they had accepted the chastisement and had used righteous wrath and were lamenting and supplicating, and pouring forth many tears, he assisted their zeal and utterly destroyed the lawless tribe, except for a very few, easily counted. For those who took risks for them were worse than the licentious. For when their kinsmen demanded those who had dared to commit the lawless act, not only did they not hand them over, but they also zealously defended them. For which reason they endured a common destruction. But I think this war occurred before the other wars, not long after the death of Joshua. "For Phinehas," it says, "the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, stood before the ark in those days." And Eleazar received the end of his life immediately after Joshua. And Phinehas succeeded to the priesthood. And the end of the writing of Joshua, son of Nun, taught us this. I think, therefore, that the one who wrote this history did not place what happened first last by chance. For he wished first to show us the successions of the judges, and who led first, who second, who third; then so to place these two narratives: the one concerning Micah and Laish, and the one concerning the woman whom the manic lust of the licentious destroyed. 311 XXVIII Why did the sons of Israel command the two hundred from Benjamin to seize and marry from the maidens dancing in Shiloh? All the women of their tribe had been slain. And they themselves had sworn not to betroth their own daughters to them. Therefore, so that they might not be compelled by necessity to take foreign women, they found a way in their difficulties and devised the seizure.

312 QUAESTIONES IN RUTH I Why was the narrative concerning Ruth written? First, because of the Lord Christ; for from her he sprang according to the flesh. For this reason, also, the most divine Matthew, when writing the genealogy, left out the women much famed for virtue, Sarah and Rebecca and the others; but he mentioned Tamar and Rahab and Ruth; and indeed also the wife of Uriah, teaching that the only-begotten of God became human for the sake of all people, both Jews and the other nations, and sinners and the righteous. For Ruth was a Moabitess, and Bathsheba was unlawfully joined to the king. And Rahab was a prostitute, but through faith she obtained salvation; and Tamar is also made glorious by this. For she did not have relations with her father-in-law for the sake of licentiousness; but seeing that he was not willing to join his son to her, she stole the cultivation, so that she might sprout forth the blessing. At once, therefore, after this seed, she did not receive another seed, but loved the unmarried state. And one might also see Ruth, on account of her piety, leaving her parents, and following her mother-in-law. "For Ruth said," it says, "may it not 313 be for me to leave you, or to turn back from following you, for where you go, I will go; and where you lodge, I will lodge; for your people shall be my people, and your God my God; and where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord do so to me, and more also, if anything but death parts me from you." And she said these things, having often been urged by her mother-in-law to return to her parents; "Turn back," she said, "my daughters; and for what reason do you go with me? Do I still have

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χρησάμενοι κατὰ τῶν ἐν τῇ Γαβαὼν παρανενο μηκότων θυμῷ, τὰς τετρακοσίας ἐξώπλισαν χιλιάδας· παιδεῦσαι δὲ αὐ τοὺς βουληθεὶς ὁ Θεός, ὡς τὰ ὅμοια δρῶντας, καὶ ἐν ἄλλοις μὲν τὸ κακὸν θεωροῦντας, ἐν ἑαυτοῖς δὲ τοῦτο ποιεῖν οὐκ ἐθέλοντας, καὶ ἅπαξ καὶ δὶς συνεχώρησεν ἡττηθῆναι, καὶ πολλὰς αὐτῶν χιλιάδας ἀναιρεθῆναι. ἐπειδὴ δὲ εἶδε καὶ τὴν παιδείαν δεξαμένους καὶ τῷ δικαίῳ θυμῷ κεχρημένους καὶ ὀλοφυρομένους καὶ ποτνιωμένους, καὶ πολλὰ προχέοντας δάκρυα, συνήρ γησε τῇ προθυμίᾳ καὶ τὴν παράνομον φυλὴν ἄρδην ἀπώλεσε, πλὴν ὀλί γων ἄγαν εὐαριθμήτων. καὶ γὰρ τῶν ἀκολάστων χείρους οἱ ἐκείνων προ κινδυνεύσαντες. ἐξαιτούντων γὰρ τῶν ὁμοφύλων τοὺς τὴν παρανομίαν τετολμηκότας, οὐ μόνον οὐκ ἐξέδοσαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ προθύμως αὐτῶν ὑπε ρήσπισαν. οὗ δὲ χάριν κοινὸν ὑπέμειναν ὄλεθρον. οἶμαι δὲ τοῦτον τὸν πόλεμον πρὸ τῶν ἄλλων γεγενῆσθαι πολέμων, οὐ μετὰ πολὺν χρόνον τῆς Ἰησοῦ τελευτῆς. " Φινεές, γάρ φησιν, υἱὸς Ἐλεαζὰρ υἱοῦ Ἀαρὼν τοῦ ἱερέως, παρειστήκει ἐνώπιον τῆς κιβωτοῦ ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις ". ὁ δὲ Ἐλεαζὰρ εὐθὺς μετὰ τὸν Ἰησοῦν τοῦ βίου τὸ τέλος ἐδέξατο. διεδέξατο δὲ τὴν ἱερω σύνην ὁ Φινεές. καὶ τοῦτο ἡμᾶς ἐδίδαξε τὸ τέλος τῆς Ἰησοῦ τοῦ Ναυῆ συγγραφῆς. οἶμαι τοίνυν τὸν τήνδε τὴν ἱστορίαν συγγεγραφηκότα οὐχ ὡς ἔτυχε τάξαι τελευταῖα τὰ πρῶτα γεγενημένα. ἠβουλήθη γὰρ τὰς τῶν κριτῶν ἡμῖν πρότερον ἐπιδεῖξαι διαδοχάς, καὶ τίς πρῶτος, τίς δεύ τερος, τίς τρίτος ἡγήσατο· εἶθ' οὕτω τὰ δύο ταῦτα διηγήματα θεῖναι· τό τε κατὰ τὸν Μιχὰν καὶ τὴν Λαϊσὰν καὶ τὸ κατὰ τὸ γύναιον ὅπερ ἡ μανικὴ τῶν ἀκολάστων ἀνεῖλε λαγνεία. 311 XXVIII Τί δήποτε προσέταξαν οἱ υἱοὶ Ἰσραὴλ τοῖς διακοσίοις τοῖς ἐκ τοῦ Βενιαμὶν ἐκ τῶν ἐν Σιλὼμ χορευουσῶν παρθένων ἁρπάσαι τε καὶ γῆμαι; Αἱ τῆς φυλῆς αὐτῶν γυναῖκες ἅπασαι κατεσφάγησαν. αὐτοὶ δὲ ὀμωμό κεισαν μὴ κατεγγυῆσαι αὐτοῖς τὰς ἑαυτῶν θυγατέρας. ἵνα τοίνυν μὴ βιασθέντες ὑπὸ τῆς ἀνάγκης ἀλλοφύλους γυναῖκας ἀγάγωνται, πόρον εὗρον ἐν ἀπόροις καὶ τὴν ἁρπαγὴν ἐπενόησαν.

312 QUAESTIONES IN RUTH I Τί δήποτε τὸ κατὰ τὴν Ῥοὺθ συνεγράφη διήγημα; Πρῶτον διὰ τὸν δεσπότην Χριστόν· ἐξ αὐτῆς γὰρ κατὰ σάρκα βεβλάστη κε. διὸ δὴ καὶ ὁ θειότατος Ματθαῖος τὴν γενεαλογίαν συγγράψων, τὰς μὲν ἐπ' ἀρετῇ πολυθρυλλήτους γυναῖκας κατέλιπε, τὴν Σάρραν καὶ τὴν Ῥεβέκκαν καὶ τὰς ἄλλας· τῆς δέ γε Θάμαρ ἐμνημόνευσε καὶ τῆς Ῥαὰβ καὶ τῆς Ῥούθ· καὶ μέντοι καὶ τῆς τοῦ Οὐρίου, διδάσκων ὡς πάντων ἀν θρώπων χάριν ὁ τοῦ Θεοῦ μονογενὴς ἐνηνθρώπησε καὶ ἰουδαίων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἐθνῶν καὶ ἁμαρτωλῶν καὶ δικαίων. ἡ μὲν γὰρ Ῥοὺθ μωαβῖτις, ἡ δέ γε Βερσαβεὲ παρανόμως συνήφθη τῷ βασιλεῖ. πόρνη δὲ καὶ ἡ Ῥαάβ, ἀλλὰ διὰ πίστεως τῆς σωτηρίας τετύχηκε· καὶ ἡ Θάμαρ δὲ ταύτῃ λαμ πρύνεται. οὐ γὰρ ἀκολασίας ἕνεκα τῷ κηδεστῇ κεκοινώνηκεν· ἀλλ' ὁρῶσα μὴ βουλόμενον αὐτῇ συνάψαι τὸν παῖδα, ἔκλεψε τὴν γεωργίαν, ἵνα βλασ τήσῃ τὴν εὐλογίαν. αὐτίκα γοῦν μετὰ τοῦτον τὸν σπόρον ἄλλον οὐκ ἐδέξατο σπόρον, ἀλλὰ τὴν ἀγαμίαν ἠγάπησεν. ἴδοι δ' ἄν τις καὶ τὴν Ῥοὺθ διὰ τὴν εὐσέβειαν, τοὺς μὲν γεγεννηκότας καταλιποῦσαν, ἀκολου θήσασαν δὲ τῇ πενθερᾷ. " εἶπε, γάρ φησιν, ἡ Ῥούθ· μή μοι 313 γένοιτο τοῦ καταλιπεῖν σε, ἢ τοῦ ἀποστρέψαι ὄπισθέν σου, ὅτι οὗ ἐὰν πορευθῇς σὺ πορεύσομαι· καὶ οὗ ἐὰν αὐλισθῇς αὐλισθήσομαι ἐκεῖ ὅτι ὁ λαός σου λαός μου· καὶ ὁ Θεός σου Θεός μου· καὶ οὗ ἂν ἀποθάνῃς, ἀποθανοῦμαι καὶ ἐκεῖ ταφήσομαι. τάδε ποιήσαι μοι Κύριος, καὶ τάδε προσθείη, ὅτι θάνατος διαστελεῖ ἀνὰ μέσον ἐμοῦ καὶ σοῦ ". καὶ ταῦτα εἴρηκε πολλάκις ὑπὸ τῆς κηδεστρίας παρακληθεῖσα πρὸς τοὺς γεγεννηκότας ἐπανελθεῖν· " ἀποστράφητε, γὰρ ἔφη, θυγατέ ρες μου· καὶ ἵνα τί πορεύεσθε μετ' ἐμοῦ; μὴ ἔτι μοι