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of salvation, according to the one who said: Through fear of you, Lord, we have conceived in the womb, and have been in travail, and have brought forth the spirit of salvation. So many entreaties did the ancient prophets of God, and those who were upright among the people, offer up in prayer, and they supplicate to obtain redemption; which indeed also came to pass; for while they were still speaking, God heard them and changes their laments to something more cheerful. Therefore, next, those who so lamented prophesy concerning those who will be changed, and they sing a song for the Beloved, through whom the good God, having hearkened to those who prayed, granted freedom from evils and the redemption of souls to the whole race of men. 23.392 TO THE END, FOR THOSE WHO WILL BE CHANGED, FOR THE SONS OF KORAH, FOR UNDERSTANDING,

A SONG FOR THE BELOVED. 44. My heart has uttered a good word; I speak of my works to the king. My tongue is the pen of a swiftly writing scribe. Those who so lamented in the preceding passages, from this point sing odes and songs instead of their former laments, indicating that the cause of their change from sad things was the Beloved of God; whom also they praise throughout the whole song. But since these things were to happen long ages later, they fittingly inscribe the prophecy "To the end," or "a song of victory," or "to the victory-giver," because of the victories against the spiritual enemies. And they added to the inscription, "for those who will be changed," since they who say these things have themselves made a change from sorrowful words to a more cheerful song. But indeed, the contents throughout the whole song are also filled with a very great change. For the Beloved of God, having emptied himself and taken the form of a servant, being found in fashion as a man, seemed to undergo no ordinary change, being unchangeable and immutable as God; and those who through him were delivered from captivity under the devil, and were transferred into freedom under God, have themselves truly undergone the most beautiful change. Therefore also the queen mentioned in these words is commanded to forget her own people and her father's house; and the daughter of Tyre, a foreigner, is called to this good change; and virgins, and certain sons becoming instead of fathers, and peoples confessing to God, were deemed worthy of the same change. For the sake of all these things, the song is inscribed "for those who will be changed." But according to Aquila, "upon the lilies"; and according to Symmachus, "for the flowers." For those who were changed, breathing forth a sweet fragrance and becoming the new flowers of the Church, were named in this way. Therefore, so that these things might be understood, "for understanding" is necessarily added to the inscription; and that we may understand that the whole passage contains a song for the Beloved, or according to Symmachus: A song for the Beloved. And being there, you will gather all things concerning the Beloved; as for example in Isaiah: Let me sing for my beloved a song of the Beloved for my vineyard. A vineyard came to be for the beloved; by which is signified that the vineyard is the house of Israel; for the passage declares this next; and the beloved and the Beloved is the Only-Begotten Son of God, whose portion and former inheritance the aforesaid vineyard became. And since every beloved and Beloved one has one who loves, the passage through these things clearly presents the vineyard as having become the possession of the Beloved of God, concerning whom the present song is 23.393 spoken, for the Beloved. And in the Psalms it has been said: The Lord will give a word to those who preach the gospel with great power. The King of the powers of the Beloved. And here also the Lord, the God of all, is clearly mentioned distinctly; and again, distinctly, the Beloved, and in the third rank, of those who preach the gospel of the

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σωτηρίας, κατὰ τὸν φήσαντα· Ἐκ τοῦ φόβου σου, Κύριε, ἐν γαστρὶ ἐλάβομεν καὶ ὠδινήσαμεν, καὶ ἐτέκομεν πνεῦμα σωτηρίας. Τοσαῦτα δυσωπητικὰ οἱ πάλαι τοῦ Θεοῦ προφῆται, καὶ οἱ κατορθοῦντες ἐν τῷ λαῷ δεηθέντες, ἱκετεύουσι καὶ λυτρώσεως τυχεῖν· ὃ δὴ καὶ γεγένηται· ἔτι γὰρ λαλούντων αὐτῶν εἰσακούσας ὁ Θεὸς, μεταβάλλει τοὺς ὀδυρμοὺς αὐτῶν ἐπὶ τὸ φαιδρότερον. ∆ιόπερ ἑξῆς οἱ τοσαῦτα ἀποκλαυσάμενοι ὑπὲρ τῶν ἀλλοιωθησομένων προφητεύουσι, καὶ ᾠδὴν ᾄδουσι τὴν ὑπὲρ τοῦ Ἀγαπητοῦ, δι' οὗ τὴν κακῶν ἐλευθερίαν καὶ τῶν ψυχῶν τὴν ἀπολύτρωσιν ὁ ἀγαθὸς Θεὸς, ἐπακούσας τῶν εὐξαμένων, τῷ παντὶ γένει τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐδωρήσατο. 23.392 ΕΙΣ ΤΟ ΤΕΛΟΣ, ΥΠΕΡ ΤΩΝ ΑΛΛΟΙΩΘΗΣΟΜΕΝΩΝ, ΤΟΙΣ ΥΙΟΙΣ ΚΟΡΕ, ΕΙΣ ΣΥΝΕΣΙΝ,

Ω∆Η ΥΠΕΡ ΤΟΥ ΑΓΑΠΗΤΟΥ Μ∆ʹ. Ἐξηρεύξατο ἡ καρδία μου λόγον ἀγαθὸν, λέγω ἐγὼ τὰ ἔργα μου τῷ βασιλεῖ. Ἡ γλῶσσά μου κάλαμος γραμματέως ὀξυγράφου. Οἱ τὰ τοσαῦτα διὰ τῶν ἔμπροσθεν ἀποκλαυσάμενοι ἐντεῦθεν ᾠδὰς καὶ ᾄσματα ἀντὶ τῶν προτέρων ὀδυρμῶν ᾄδουσι, τῆς ἀπὸ τῶν σκυθρωπῶν μεταβολῆς αἴτιον αὐτοῖς γεγονέναι τὸν Ἀγαπητὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ δηλοῦντες· ὃν καὶ δι' ὅλης τῆς ᾠδῆς ἀνυμνοῦσιν. Ἀλλ' ἐπείπερ ταῦτα μακροῖς ὕστερον χρόνοις γίγνεσθαι ἤμελλεν, εἰκότως Εἰς τὸ τέλος ἐπιγράφουσι τὴν προφητείαν, ἢ ἐπινίκιον, ἢ τῷ νικοποιῷ, διὰ τὰ κατὰ τῶν νοητῶν πολεμίων νικητήρια. Προσέθηκαν δὲ τῇ ἐπιγραφῇ τὸ, ὑπὲρ τῶν ἀλλοιωθησομένων· ἐπειδὴ καὶ αὐτοὶ οἱ ταῦτα φάσκοντες ἀλλοίωσιν τὴν ἀπὸ τῶν σκυθρωπῶν λόγων ἐπὶ τὴν φαιδροτέραν ᾠδὴν πεποίηνται. Οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ ἐμφερόμενα δι' ὅλης τῆς ᾠδῆς πλείστης πεπλήρωται ἀλλοιώσεως. Ὅ τε γὰρ Ἀγαπητὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἑαυτὸν κενώσας, καὶ μορφὴν δούλου λαβὼν, σχήματι εὑρεθεὶς ὡς ἄνθρωπος, ἀλλοίωσιν οὐ τὴν τυχοῦσαν ἔδοξεν ὑπομένειν, ἀναλλοίωτος ὢν καὶ ἄτρεπτος ὡς Θεός· οἵ τε δι' αὐτοῦ τῆς ὑπὸ τὸν διάβολον αἰχμαλωσίας λυτρωθέντες, εἰς ἐλευθερίαν τε τὴν ὑπὸ τῷ Θεῷ μετενηνεγμένοι, τὴν καλλίστην ἀληθῶς αὐτοὶ ἀλλοίωσιν ὑπομεμενήκασι. ∆ιὸ καὶ ἡ ἐμφερομένη τοῖς λόγοις βασίλισσα κελεύεται λήθην ποιήσασθαι τοῦ λαοῦ ἑαυτῆς καὶ τοῦ οἴκου τοῦ πατρὸς ἑαυτῆς· καὶ θυγάτηρ δὲ Τύρου ἀλλόφυλος ἐπὶ τὴν καλὴν μεταβολὴν ταύτην καλεῖται· παρθένοι τε καὶ υἱοί τινες ἀντὶ πατέρων γενόμενοι, λαοί τε ἐξομολογούμενοι τῷ Θεῷ, τῆς αὐτῆς ἠξιώθησαν ἀλλοιώσεως. Ὧν δὲ ἕνεκα πάντων ὑπὲρ τῶν ἀλλοιωθησομένων προγέγραπται ἡ ᾠδή· κατὰ δὲ τὸν Ἀκύλαν, ἐπὶ τοῖς κρίνοις· κατὰ δὲ τὸν Σύμμαχον, ὑπὲρ τῶν ἀνθῶν. Οἱ γὰρ ἀλλοιωθέντες, οὗτοι εὐωδίας πνεύσαντες, καὶ ἄνθη νεαρὰ τῆς Ἐκκλησίας γενόμενοι, τοῦτον ὠνομάσθησαν τὸν τρόπον. ∆ιὸ, ἵνα ταῦτα νοηθῇ, ἀναγκαίως πρόσκειται τῇ προγραφῇ τὸ, εἰς σύνεσιν· καὶ ἵνα συνῶμεν, ὡς ὁ πᾶς λόγος ᾠδὴν περιέχει ὑπὲρ τοῦ Ἀγαπητοῦ, ἢ κατὰ τὸν Σύμμαχον· Ἄσμα εἰς τὸν Ἀγαπητόν. Ἔνθα δὲ γενόμενος, πάντα ὅσα περὶ Ἀγαπητοῦ συνάξεις· οἷον ἐν Ἡσαΐᾳ· Ἄσω δὴ τῷ ἠγαπημένῳ ᾆσμα τοῦ Ἀγαπητοῦ τῷ ἀμπελῶνί μου. Ἀμπελὼν ἐγενήθη τῷ ἠγαπημένῳ· δι' ὧν σημαίνεται ἀμπελὼν μὲν ὁ οἶκος τοῦ Ἰσραήλ· τοῦτο γὰρ ἑξῆς ὁ λόγος δηλοῖ· ἠγαπημένος δὲ καὶ Ἀγαπητὸς ὁ Μονογενὴς τοῦ Θεοῦ Υἱὸς, οὗ μερὶς γέγονε καὶ κλῆρος πρότερος ὁ δηλωθεὶς ἀμπελών. Ἐπεὶ δὲ πᾶς ἠγαπημένος καὶ ἀγαπητὸς ἔχει τὸν ἀγαπῶντα, σαφῶς διὰ τούτων ὁ λόγος παρίστησι τὸν ἀμπελῶνα κτῆμα γεγονέναι τοῦ Ἀγαπητοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ, περὶ οὗ ἡ προκειμένη ᾠδὴ εἴ 23.393 ρηται, ὑπὲρ τοῦ Ἀγαπητοῦ. Καὶ ἐν Ψαλμοῖς δὲ λέλεκται· Κύριος δώσει ῥῆμα τοῖς εὐαγγελιζομένοις δυνάμει πολλῇ. Ὁ βασιλεὺς τῶν δυνάμεων τοῦ Ἀγαπητοῦ. Σαφῶς δὲ κἀνταῦθα ἰδίως μνημονευομένου Κυρίου τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων· καὶ πάλιν ἰδίως τοῦ Ἀγαπητοῦ, καὶ ἐν τῇ τρίτῃ τάξει τῶν εὐαγγελιζομένων τὸν