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to him," according to the Hebrew tongue it is named Leviathan. And likewise also in Job: "Wilt thou draw out the dragon with a hook?" again it is called Leviathan; in this way the many-headed and many-named dragon and serpent and devil and satan and "great sea-monster" and Leviathan is named, and in other places also "lion" and "basilisk." In that day, that is, at that time of the consummation, God the judge of all things will slay him with his sword, but on that day he will inflict blows upon him; but at his first coming among men, the Christ of God did not use it as a sword, wherefore he did not slay him, but he only stepped upon him and trampled his powers underfoot. Wherefore it has been said to his person: "Thou shalt tread on the asp and the basilisk, and thou shalt trample on the lion and the dragon." And now he has "trampled" him down and even still now "tramples" him down by giving his disciples "authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy," but at the indicated time of the consummation, after all the ungodly, the sword of God will overtake him as he flees and will slay and destroy him from among beings so that he is no more. Here also the discourse concerning the universal judgment of God is outlined, beginning from: "Behold, the Lord lays waste the inhabited world and will make it desolate." When this has reached its end, the prophecy takes up another beginning of a distinct subject. 1.90 A fair vineyard, a desirable thing. The prophecy having been outlined, through which the things concerning the universal judgment of God were discussed, the prophet makes a beginning of another subject, and it contains threats against Jerusalem and against its inhabitants on account of their unbelief in the Lord. Then next, the apostolic preaching that was spread throughout the whole inhabited world, then he mentions the women with the Magdalene who had beheld the saving resurrection and he indicates the conversion of the formerly idolatrous nations to God, then he prophesies concerning the Sanhedrin of the Sadducees and the Pharisees and chief priests who had gathered together against the Savior, concerning whom he next extends a long discourse. But he makes the beginning from Jerusalem, saying: a fair vineyard, a desirable thing. And this was that very one, concerning which he also said in the preceding passages: "A vineyard came to be for the beloved on a horn in a fruitful place." And clarifying what it might be, he next added this: "For the vineyard of the Lord of Sabaoth is the house of Israel." It was, therefore, once fair and was a desirable thing, when "the Lord's portion was his people Jacob, and Israel was the line of his inheritance." If, then, one should run back in thought to the times in which it was active when †say David was reigning, or some other of those who have been attested for righteousness, he will see how fair it was, so as even to be called a desirable thing. It was adorned, then, with prophets and spiritual men, with priestly dignity and high-priestly honor, and in addition to these, with epiphanies of angels, and with the oversight of the Lord himself. But now the discourse teaches that this one also begins, the city in the vineyard, speaking about herself: I am a strong city, a city besieged; for it was truly once a strong city, when it was surrounded by a "fence" and was "fortified with a trench," so that it was secured on all sides, and it was so strong, as to be in no way harmed when besieged, but once it was such, but now having become fruitless it has been abandoned, so that it was said concerning it: "I will take away its fence, and it shall be for a spoil, and I will take down its wall, and it shall be for a trampling, and I will let my vineyard go, and it shall not be dug nor pruned." And he will teach the reason, saying: "Because I waited for it to produce grapes, but it produced thorns." And in the passages at hand it is said for the same reason: In vain will I water it; for so great a provision was in vain for the aforementioned city, wherefore it will be captured by night by those besieging it; for having been taken in darkness because of
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αὐτῷ», κατὰ τὴν Ἑβραϊκὴν φωνὴν λευιαθὰν ὠνόμασται. ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ ἐν τῷ Ἰώβ· «ἄξεις δράκοντα ἐν ἀγκίστρῳ», πάλιν λευιαθὰν χρηματίζει· τοῦτον τὸν τρόπον πολυκέφαλον καὶ πολυώνυμον δράκοντα καὶ ὄφιν καὶ διάβολον καὶ σατανᾶν καὶ «μέγα κῆτος» καὶ λευιαθὰν ὠνομασμένον, ἐν ἑτέροις δὲ καὶ «λέοντα» καὶ «βασιλίσκον». τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ, τοῦτ' ἔστιν ἐν ἐκείνῳ τῷ τῆς συντελείας καιρῷ, ὁ τῶν ὅλων κριτὴς θεὸς ἀνελεῖ τῇ αὐτοῦ μαχαίρᾳ, ἀλλ' ἐκείνῃ μὲν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τούτῳ αὐτῷ πληγὰς ἐπιθήσει· ἐπὶ δὲ τῆς πρώτης εἰς ἀνθρώπους αὐτοῦ παρουσίας ὁ Χριστὸς τοῦ θεοῦ οὐ κέχρηται αὐτῷ ὡς μαχαίρᾳ, διὸ οὐδὲ ἀνεῖλεν αὐτόν, ἐπέβη δὲ αὐτῷ μόνον καὶ τὰς δυνάμεις αὐτοῦ κατεπάτησεν. διὸ λέλεκται εἰς αὐτοῦ πρόσωπον· «ἐπ' ἀσπίδα καὶ βασιλίσκον ἐπιβήσῃ καὶ καταπατήσεις λέοντα καὶ δράκοντα». καὶ νῦν μὲν αὐτὸν «καταπεπάτηκεν» καὶ εἰσέτι καὶ νῦν «καταπατεῖ» διδοὺς τοῖς αὐτοῦ μαθηταῖς «ἐξουσίαν πατεῖν ἐπάνω ὄφεων καὶ σκορπίων καὶ ἐπὶ πᾶσαν τὴν δύναμιν τοῦ ἐχθροῦ», κατὰ δὲ τὸν δηλούμενον τῆς συντελείας καιρὸν μετὰ πάντας τοὺς ἀσεβεῖς ἡ μάχαιρα τοῦ θεοῦ φεύγοντα αὐτὸν καταλαβοῦσα διαχειρίσεται καὶ ἀνελεῖ ἐξ ὄντων εἰς τὸ μηκέτ' εἶναι. ἐνταῦθα καὶ ὁ περὶ τῆς καθολικῆς κρίσεως τοῦ θεοῦ λόγος περιγράφεται ἀρξάμενος ἀπὸ τοῦ· «Ἰδοὺ κύριος καταφθείρει τὴν οἰκουμένην καὶ ἐρημώσει αὐτήν». οὗ τέλος εἰληφότος ἡ προφητεία ἐξ ἑτέρας ἀρχῆς ὑποθέσεως ἰδιαζούσης ἅπτεται. 1.90 Ἀμπελὼν καλὸς ἐπιθύμημα περιγραφείσης τῆς προφητείας, δι' ἧς τὰ περὶ τῆς καθολικῆς κρίσεως τοῦ θεοῦ διελαλεῖτο, ἑτέρας ὑποθέσεως ὁ προφήτης ἀρχὴν ποιεῖται, περιέχει δὲ ἀπειλὰς κατὰ τῆς Ἰερουσαλὴμ καὶ κατὰ τῶν οἰκητόρων αὐτῆς διὰ τὴν εἰς τὸν κύριον ἀπιστίαν αὐτῶν. εἶθ' ἑξῆς τὸ ἀποστολικὸν κήρυγμα τὸ πάσῃ διαδοθὲν τῇ οἰκουμένῃ, εἶτα τῶν ἀμφὶ τὴν Μαγδαληνὴν γυναικῶν τῶν τὴν σωτήριον ἀνάστασιν τεθεαμένων μνημονεύει καὶ τῶν πάλαι εἰδωλολατρῶν ἐθνῶν τὴν ἐπὶ τὸν θεὸν ἐπιστροφὴν δηλοῖ, εἶτα θεσπίζει περὶ τοῦ συνεδρίου τῶν Σαδδουκαίων καὶ τῶν Φαρισαίων καὶ ἀρχιερέων τῶν κατὰ τοῦ σωτῆρος συνεληλυθότων, περὶ ὧν ἑξῆς μακρὸν ἀποτείνει λόγον. τὴν δὲ καταρχὴν ἀπὸ τῆς Ἰερουσαλὴμ ποιεῖται λέγων· ἀμπελὼν καλὸς ἐπιθύμημα. οὗτος δὲ ἦν αὐτὸς ἐκεῖνος, περὶ οὗ καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν ἔλεγεν· «ἀμπελὼν ἐγενήθη τῷ ἠγαπημένῳ ἐν κέρατι ἐν τόπῳ πίονι». ὃν καὶ διασαφῶν τίς ποτε εἴη, ἑξῆς ἐπῆγε τό· «ὁ γὰρ ἀμπελὼν κυρίου σαβαὼθ οἶκος τοῦ Ἰσραήλ ἐστιν». ἦν οὖν ποτε καλὸς οὗτος καὶ ἐπιθύμημα ἦν, ὅτε ἦν «μερὶς κυρίου λαὸς αὐτοῦ Ἰακώβ, καὶ σχοίνισμα κληρονομίας αὐτοῦ Ἰσραήλ». εἰ γοῦν ἀναδράμοι τις τῇ διανοίᾳ ἐπὶ τοὺς χρόνους, καθ' οὓς ἔπραττε βασιλεύοντος †φέρε ∆αυὶδ ἢ ἄλλου τινὸς τῶν μεμαρτυρημένων ἐπὶ δικαιοσύνῃ ὄψεται, ὅπως καλὸς ἦν ὡς καὶ ἐπιθύμημα αὐτὸν λέγεσθαι. κεκόσμητο γοῦν προφήταις καὶ πνευματικοῖς ἀνδράσιν, ἱερατικῷ τε ἀξιώματι καὶ ἀρχιερατικῇ τιμῇ καὶ ἔτι πρὸς τούτοις ἀγγέλων ἐπιφανείαις, αὐτῇ τε τοῦ κυρίου ἐπισκοπῇ. Νυνὶ δὲ ὁ λόγος καὶ ταύτης ἐξάρχειν διδάσκει λέγουσαν αὐτὴν περὶ ἑαυτῆς τὴν ἐν τῷ ἀμπελῶνι πόλιν· ἐγὼ πόλις ὀχυρά, πόλις πολιορκουμένη· καὶ γὰρ ἦν ὡς ἀληθῶς ὀχυρά ποτε πόλις, ὅτε «φραγμὸν» περιεβέβλητο καὶ «κεχαράκωτο» ὡς πανταχόθεν αὐτὴν ἠσφαλίσθαι, οὕτω τε ἦν ὀχυρά, ὡς μηδὲν καταβλάπτεσθαι πολιορκουμένην, ἀλλὰ ποτὲ μὲν ἦν τοιαύτη, νυνὶ δὲ ἄκαρπος γενομένη καταλέλειπται, ὥστ' εἰρῆσθαι περὶ αὐτῆς· «καθελῶ τὸν φραγμὸν αὐτοῦ καὶ ἔσται εἰς διαρπαγήν, καὶ καθελῶ τὸν τοῖχον αὐτοῦ καὶ ἔσται εἰς καταπάτημα, καὶ ἀνήσω τὸν ἀμπελῶνά μου καὶ οὐ μὴ σκαφῇ οὐδὲ μὴ τμηθῇ». τὸ δ' αἴτιον διδάξει λέγων· «ὅτι ἔμεινα, ἵνα ποιήσῃ σταφυλήν, ἐποίησε δὲ ἀκάνθας». καὶ ἐν τοῖς μετὰ χεῖρας δὲ τῆς αὐτῆς ἕνεκεν αἰτίας λέγεται· μάτην ποτιῶ αὐτήν· εἰς μάταιον γὰρ ἡ τοσαύτη ὑπῆρξε χορηγία τῇ προειρημένῃ πόλει, διὸ ἁλώσεται νυκτὸς ὑπὸ τῶν πολιορκούντων αὐτήν· καταληφθεῖσα γὰρ ἐν σκότῳ διὰ