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for what reason is the Evangelist so precise about the place? So that when you hear the woman say, Our father Jacob gave us this 59.178 well, you might not be surprised. For that was the place where Levi and Simeon, being indignant on account of Dinah, perpetrated that dreadful slaughter. But it is worthwhile to say also whence the Samaritans originated. For this whole place is called Samaria. From where, then, did they get their name? The mountain was called Somor, from its possessor, just as Isaiah also says: And the head of Somoron, Ephraim; but the inhabitants were not called Samaritans, but Israelites. But as time went on, they offended God; and during the reign of Pekah, Tiglath-Pileser came up, took many cities, and attacked Elah, and having slain him, gave the kingdom to Hoshea. Against him Shalmaneser came, took other cities, and made them tributary and subject. But he at first yielded; later, however, he revolted from his rule, and fled to an alliance with the Ethiopians. The Assyrian learned of this, and marching against them and destroying them, he no longer allowed that nation to remain there, because of such suspicions of revolt; but he led these into Babylon and Media, and bringing nations from there from different places, he settled them in Samaria, so that his rule might henceforth be secure, with his own people possessing the place. But when these things had happened, God, wishing to show his power, and that it was not through weakness he had given up the Jews, but because of the sins of those given up, he sends lions upon the barbarians; which ravaged the whole nation. These things were reported to the king, and he sends a certain priest to deliver to them the laws of God. But nevertheless, not even so did they depart entirely from impiety, but only halfway. But as time went on, they again abandoned idols, and worshiped God. So with matters being in this state, the Jews who returned henceforth were jealous of them as foreigners and enemies, and they called them Samaritans from the mountain. And from this, the Jews' contentiousness towards them was not small. For they did not use all the Scriptures, but accepting only the books of Moses, they made little account of the prophets. However, they were ambitious to thrust themselves into the Jewish nobility, and prided themselves on Abraham, and claimed him as their ancestor, since he was from Chaldea; and they also called Jacob their father, as being his descendant; but the Jews abominated these along with all others. Whence also they reproached Christ with these things, saying: You are a Samaritan, and have a demon; and in the case of the one who went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, for this reason Christ introduces a Samaritan, as the one who showed mercy to him, the humble, the despised, the abominated one among them; and in the case of the ten lepers, He calls the one a foreigner for this reason (for he was a Samaritan); and He Himself commanded His disciples, saying: Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not. 3. But it was not for the sake of the history of the place alone that the Evangelist reminded us of Jacob, but also to show the rejection of the Jews that had happened long ago. For indeed in the time of their ancestors, those others held the places instead of them. For what their ancestors held, which was not theirs, these people, through their own indolence and lawlessness, lost, though it was theirs. Thus there is no profit in having 59.179 good ancestors, when those who come from them do not happen to be such. For the barbarians, just to have an experience of lions, immediately returned to Jewish piety; but those others, though enduring so many punishments, were not even so brought to their senses. Here, therefore, Christ arrived, ever casting out the mechanical and indulgent life, and introducing the laborious and restrained one. For He does not use beasts of burden, but walks so intently as to even become weary from the journey. And this he teaches everywhere, to be self-sufficient and simple, and the

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ἕνεκεν ἀκριβολογεῖται ὁ Εὐαγγελιστὴς περὶ τοῦ τόπου; Ἵνα ὅταν ἀκούσῃς τῆς γυναικὸς λαλούσης, Ἰακὼβ ὁ πατὴρ ἡμῶν ἔδωκεν ἡμῖν τὴν πηγὴν 59.178 ταύτην, μὴ ξενισθῇς. Ὁ γὰρ τόπος ἐκεῖνος ἦν ἔνθα ὑπὲρ τῆς ∆είνας οἱ περὶ τὸν Λευῒ καὶ Συμεὼν ἀγανακτοῦντες, τὸν χαλεπὸν ἐκεῖνον εἰργάσαντο φόνον. Ἄξιον δὲ εἰπεῖν καὶ πόθεν οἱ Σαμαρεῖται συνέστησαν. Καὶ γὰρ ὁ τόπος οὗτος ἅπας Σαμάρεια καλεῖται. Πόθεν οὖν τὴν προσηγορίαν ἔλαβον; Σομὸρ τὸ ὄρος ἐλέγετο ἀπὸ τοῦ κτησαμένου, καθάπερ καὶ Ἡσαΐας φησί· Καὶ ἡ κεφαλὴ Σομόρων, Ἐφραΐμ· ἀλλ' οἱ κατοικοῦντες οὐ Σαμαρεῖται, ἀλλ' Ἰσραηλῖται ἐλέγοντο. Χρόνου δὲ προϊόντος, προσέκρουσαν τῷ Θεῷ· καὶ βασιλεύσαντος Φακεὲ, ἀνελθὼν Θεγλὰθ Φαλασὰρ, πόλεις τε εἷλε πολλὰς, καὶ ἐπέθετο τῷ Ἠλᾷ, καὶ ἀνελὼν αὐτὸν, Ὠσηὲ τὴν βασιλείαν ἔδωκεν. Ἐπὶ τοῦτον ἐλθὼν ὁ Σαλμανασὰρ, εἷλε πόλεις ἑτέρας, καὶ ὑποφόρους ἐποίησε καὶ ὑποτελεῖς. Ἀλλ' οὗτος τὸ μὲν πρῶτον εἶξεν· ὕστερον δὲ ἀπέστη τῆς ἀρχῆς, καὶ πρὸς τὴν τῶν Αἰθιόπων κατέφυγε συμμαχίαν. Ἔγνω τοῦτο ὁ Ἀσσύριος, καὶ ἐπιστρατεύσας, καὶ ἀνελὼν αὐτοὺς, οὐκ ἔτι τὸ ἔθνος ἐκεῖ μένειν ἀφίησι, διὰ τὰς τοιαύτας τῆς ἀποστάσεως ὑποψίας· ἀλλὰ τούτους μὲν εἰς Βαβυλῶνα ἤγαγε καὶ Μήδους, ἐκεῖθεν δὲ ἔθνη ἐκ διαφόρων τόπων ἀγαγὼν, κατῴκισεν ἐν τῇ Σαμαρείᾳ, ὥστε λοιπὸν ἀσφαλῆ αὐτῷ τὴν ἀρχὴν εἶναι, τῶν οἰκείων ἐχόντων τὸν τόπον. Τούτων δὲ γενομένων, βουλόμενος ὁ Θεὸς δεῖξαι τὴν αὐτοῦ δύναμιν, καὶ ὡς οὐ δι' ἀσθένειαν ἐξέδωκεν Ἰουδαίους, ἀλλὰ δι' ἁμαρτίας τῶν ἐκδοθέντων, ἐπαφίησι λέοντας τοῖς βαρβάροις· οἵτινες ἐλυμαίνοντο τὸ ἔθνος ἅπαν. Ἀπηγγέλη ταῦτα τῷ βασιλεῖ, καὶ πέμπει ἱερέα τινὰ τὸν παραδώσοντα αὐτοῖς τοὺς τοῦ Θεοῦ νόμους. Ἀλλ' ὅμως οὐδὲ οὕτως ἐξ ὁλοκλήρου τῆς ἀσεβείας ἀπέστησαν, ἀλλ' ἐξ ἡμισείας. Χρόνου δὲ προϊόντος, πάλιν τῶν μὲν εἰδώλων ἀπεπήδησαν, ἔσεβον δὲ τὸν Θεόν. Τῶν οὖν πραγμάτων ἐν τούτοις ὄντων, ἐπανελθόντες Ἰουδαῖοι λοιπὸν, ζηλοτύπως πρὸς αὐτοὺς εἶχον ἅτε πρὸς ἀλλοφύλους καὶ πολεμίους, οἳ καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ ὄρους Σαμαρείτας αὐτοὺς ἐκάλουν. Ἰουδαίοις δὲ οὐ μικρὰ καὶ ἐντεῦθεν ἦν πρὸς αὐτοὺς ἡ φιλονεικία. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ταῖς Γραφαῖς πάσαις ἐκέχρηντο, ἀλλὰ τὰ Μωϋσέως μόνα δεχόμενοι, τῶν προφητῶν οὐ πολὺν ἐποιοῦντο λόγον. Ἐφιλονείκουν μέντοι εἰς τὴν εὐγένειαν εἰσωθεῖν ἑαυτοὺς τὴν Ἰουδαϊκὴν, καὶ ἐφιλοτιμοῦντο ἐπὶ τῷ Ἀβραὰμ, καὶ πρόγονον αὐτὸν ἐπεγράφοντο, ἅτε ἀπὸ τῆς Χαλδαίας ὄντα· καὶ τὸν Ἰακὼβ δὲ πατέρα ἐκάλουν, ἅτε ἐκείνου ὄντα ἀπόγονον· οἱ δὲ Ἰουδαῖοι μετὰ πάντων καὶ τούτους ἐβδελύσσοντο. Ὅθεν καὶ τῷ Χριστῷ ταῦτα ὠνείδιζον λέγοντες· Σαμαρείτης εἶ σὺ, καὶ δαιμόνιον ἔχεις· καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ καταβάντος ἀπὸ Ἱερουσαλὴμ εἰς Ἱεριχὼ, ταύτης ἕνεκεν τῆς ὑποθέσεως ὁ Χριστὸς Σαμαρείτην εἰσάγει, τὸν ἔλεον εἰς αὐτὸν πεποιηκότα, τὸν εὐτελῆ, τὸν εὐκαταφρόνητον, τὸν βδελυκτὸν παρ' αὐτοῖς· καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν δέκα λεπρῶν, ἀλλογενῆ τὸν ἕνα φησὶ διὰ τοῦτο (Σαμαρείτης γὰρ ἦν)· καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ τοῖς μαθηταῖς οὕτω λέγων ἐκέλευσεν· Εἰς ὁδὸν ἐθνῶν μὴ ἀπέλθητε, καὶ εἰς πόλιν Σαμαρειτῶν μὴ εἰσέλθητε. γʹ. Οὐ τῆς ἱστορίας δὲ ἕνεκεν μόνης τοῦ τόπου μόνον ἀνέμνησεν ἡμᾶς τοῦ Ἰακὼβ ὁ Εὐαγγελιστὴς, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὑπὲρ τοῦ δεῖξαι τὴν ἀποβολὴν τὴν Ἰουδαϊκὴν πάλαι γεγενημένην. Καὶ γὰρ ἐπὶ τῶν προγόνων αὐτῶν τοὺς τόπους ἀντ' αὐτῶν κατέσχον ἐκεῖνοι. Ἃ γὰρ οἱ πρόγονοι αὐτῶν εἶχον, οὐκ ὄντα αὐτῶν, ταῦτα διὰ τὴν ῥᾳθυμίαν αὐτῶν καὶ παρανομίαν, ὄντα αὐτῶν, ἀπώλεσαν οὗτοι. Οὕτως οὐδὲν κέρδος, προγόνων εἶναι 59.179 χρηστῶν, ὅταν μὴ τοιοῦτοι τύχωσιν οἱ ἐξ ἐκείνων ὄντες. Οἱ μὲν γὰρ βάρβαροι, ἵνα λεόντων πεῖραν λάβωσι μόνον, πρὸς τὴν Ἰουδαϊκὴν εὐσέβειαν ἐπανῆλθον εὐθέως· ἐκεῖνοι δὲ τοσαύτας ὑπομένοντες τιμωρίας, οὐδὲ οὕτως ἐσωφρονίσθησαν. Ἐνταῦθα τοίνυν ὁ Χριστὸς παρεγένετο, τὸν μὲν βάναυσον καὶ ὑγρὸν ἐκβάλλων βίον ἀεὶ, τὸν δὲ ἐπίπονον εἰσάγων καὶ συνεσταλμένον. Οὐ γὰρ ὑποζυγίοις κέχρηται, ἀλλ' οὕτω βαδίζει συντόνως, ὡς καὶ κοπιᾶσαι ἐκ τῆς ὁδοιπορίας. Καὶ τοῦτο πανταχοῦ παιδεύει, τὸ αὐτουργὸν εἶναι καὶ ἀπέριττον, καὶ τὸ