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they themselves became the agents of these things for themselves, and the cause of the dishonor was the injustice. But these reasonings, he says, they will use when they have returned to their own land, and have been delivered from these harsh enemies; for then, "And I will be sanctified in them before the nations." That is to say: When my power has been made manifest, I will receive the worship of all, through the providence that was shown by me concerning them. 28. And they will know that I am the Lord their God, when I am revealed to them among the nations. For through my providence they will both be delivered from the dominion of the Babylonians, and they will see the destruction of the Scythian nations. "And I will gather them to their own land, and I will no longer leave any of them there." And this, as far as it pertains to divine care, has happened; but those who were accustomed to oppose the divine laws did not wish to return, but the majority chose the foreign land over their ancestral land. 29. And I will no longer turn my face away from them, because I have poured out my wrath upon the house of Israel, says the Lord Adonai. And this also follows upon the will of men. For it is up to us to put the fulfillment to the good promises; so also the Master promised us the kingdom of heaven, but we will not obtain it if we live unworthily; but by striving, and with all eagerness keeping the divine laws, we will certainly enjoy the promised goods. So also he promised the Jews not to turn his face away from them, that is, if they obeyed him and believed, and kept the divine laws. And that these things are so, history is a witness; for having led the people out of Egypt, he promised to lead them into the promised land; but since they continued to oppose the divine decrees, living in impiety, he delivered them all to death in the wilderness, fulfilling the promises for only two out of all who had received the promises. And here, therefore, those who have believed, and have received the saving proclamation, have a sure promise; for he has not turned 81.1217 his face away from them; but those who do things contrary to the divine will, are somewhere far from the divine oversight, enjoying no providence, but, "walking, according to the prophet Isaiah, in the light of their own fire, and in the flame which they have kindled." and they will walk, according to the divine David, "in their own pursuits." We have been taught by the divine Scripture to understand these things thus. But I marvel not only at the folly of the Jews, but also of some, who bear the Christian name, but pay attention to Jewish myths; and who say that the rebellion of Gog and Magog has not happened, but expect it to happen. Who ought to have understood, first, that his prophecy is joined with the recall from Babylon; then, that through these things he said the nations would learn the power of God. For what teaching, let them say, do the nations now need for the recognition of the divine power, who have been taught to believe in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and have learned to glorify and worship the divine nature, and have been delivered from the error of idols? And what sort of teaching could the destruction of Gog have brought, such as the proclamation of the holy apostles contains? For this teaches all men about the Trinity and the unity, and that in the one nature we behold the three properties; and in addition to these, the resurrection of the dead, and judgment, and the recompense of good and of the opposite, the kingdom of heaven, the punishment in Gehenna, the lessons of virtue, the teachings of philosophy, and the other things, as many as both the divine Gospel and the sacred writings of the apostles contain. But the destruction of Gog only taught the nations that the God of the Jews has the greatest power, and that it was not because of his weakness that they came under the Babylonians, but because of their own transgression. If, therefore, the things concerning Gog have not yet happened, but will happen in the last days,

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αὐτοὶ τούτων ἑαυτοῖς ἐγένοντο πρόξενοι, καὶ τῆς ἀτιμίας αἰτία ἡ ἀδικία. Τούτοις δὲ, φησὶ, χρή σονται τοῖς λογισμοῖς εἰς τὴν οἰκείαν ἐπανελθόντες γῆν, καὶ τῶν χαλεπῶν τούτων τῶν πολεμίων ἀπαλ λαγέντες· τότε γὰρ, "Καὶ ἁγιασθήσομαι ἐν αὐτοῖς ἐνώπιον τῶν ἐθνῶν." Ἀντὶ τοῦ· ∆ήλης μου τῆς δυ νάμεως γενομένης, τὴν παρὰ πάντων δέξομαι προσ κύνησιν, διὰ τῆς περὶ τούτους ὑπ' ἐμοῦ γενομένης προνοίας. κηʹ. Καὶ γνώσονται, ὅτι ἐγώ εἰμι Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς αὐτῶν, ἐν τῷ ἐπιφανῆναί με αὐτοῖς ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσι. ∆ιὰ γὰρ τῆς ἐμῆς προμηθείας καὶ τῆς τῶν Βαβυλωνίων ἀπαλλαγήσονται δεσποτείας, καὶ τῶν Σκυθικῶν ἐθνῶν τὸν ὄλεθρον ὄψονται. "Καὶ συνάξω αὐτοὺς ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν αὐτῶν, καὶ οὐ καταλείψω οὐκέτι ἀπ' αὐτῶν ἐκεῖ." Καὶ τοῦτο, ὅσον ἧκεν εἰς τὴν θείαν κηδεμονίαν, γεγένηται· οἱ δὲ τοῖς θείοις νό μοις ἀντιτείνειν εἰωθότες, ἐπανελθεῖν οὐκ ἠθέλησαν, ἀλλ' οἱ πλείους τῆς πατρῴας γῆς τὴν ξένην προείλοντο. κθʹ. Καὶ οὐκ ἀποστρέψω οὐκέτι τὸ πρόσωπόν μου ἀπ' αὐτῶν, ἀνθ' ὧν ἐξέχεα τὸν θυμόν μου ἐπὶ τὸν οἶκον Ἰσραὴλ, λέγει Ἀδωναῒ Κύριος. Καὶ τοῦτο δὲ ἕπεται τῶν ἀνθρώπων τῇ γνώμῃ. Ἐφ' ἡμῖν γάρ ἐστι τὸ ταῖς ἀγαθαῖς ὑποσχέσεσιν ἐπι θεῖναι τὸ πέρας· οὕτω καὶ ἡμῖν ὑπέσχετο τῶν οὐρα νῶν τὴν βασιλείαν ὁ ∆εσπότης, ἀλλ' οὐ τευξόμεθα ταύτης ἀναξίως πολιτευόμενοι· σπουδάζοντες δὲ, καὶ σὺν προθυμίᾳ πάσῃ τοὺς θείους νόμους φυλάττον τες, ἀπολαυσόμεθα πάντως τῶν ἐπηγγελμένων ἀγα θῶν. Οὕτω καὶ τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις ὑπέσχετο μὴ ἀποστρέ ψειν ἀπ' αὐτῶν τὸ πρόσωπον, δηλονότι πειθομένων αὐτῷ καὶ πιστευόντων, καὶ τοὺς θείους φυλασσόντων νόμους. Καὶ ὅτι ταῦθ' οὕτως ἔχει, μάρτυς ἡ ἱστορία· ἐξαγαγὼν γὰρ ἐξ Αἰγύπτου τὸν λαὸν, εἰς τὴν ἐπηγγελ μένην αὐτοὺς ἄξειν ὑπέσχετο γῆν· ἐπειδὴ δὲ τοῖς θείοις δόγμασιν ἀντιτείνοντες, ἀσεβείᾳ συζῶντες διετέλεσαν, πάντας αὐτοὺς ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ θανάτῳ παρέδωκε, δύο μόνοις ἐξ ἁπάντων τῶν δεξαμένων τὰς ὑποσχέσεις, πληρώσας τὰς ὑποσχέσεις. Καὶ ἐνταῦθα τοίνυν οἱ μὲν πεπιστευκότες, καὶ τὸ σωτήριον δεξάμενοι κήρυγμα, βεβαίαν ἔχουσι τὴν ὑπόσχεσιν· οὐ γὰρ ἀπέστρεψε 81.1217 τὸ πρόσωπον αὑτοῦ ἀπ' αὐτῶν· οἱ δὲ τἀναντία δρῶν τες τῷ θείῳ βουλήματι, πόῤῥω που τῆς θείας ἐπ οψίας τυγχάνουσιν, οὐδεμιᾶς ἀπολαύοντες προμηθείας, ἀλλὰ, "πορευόμενοι, κατὰ τὸν προφήτην Ἡσαΐαν, τῷ φωτὶ τοῦ πυρὸς αὑτῶν, καὶ τῇ φλογὶ ᾗ ἐξέκαυσαν." καὶ πορεύσονται, κατὰ τὸν θεῖον ∆αβὶδ, "ἐν τοῖς ἐπιτηδεύμασιν αὑτῶν." Ταῦτα μὲν οὕτω νοεῖν ὑπὸ τῆς θείας Γραφῆς ἐδιδάχθημεν. Ἐγὼ δὲ θαυμάζω οὐ μόνον Ἰουδαίων τὴν ἄνοιαν, ἀλλὰ καί τινων, τὸ μὲν Χριστιανικὸν ὄνομα περικειμένων, τοῖς Ἰουδαϊ κοῖς δὲ μύθοις προσεχόντων· καὶ τοῦ Γὼγ καὶ Μαγὼγ τὴν ἐπανάστασιν οὐ γεγενῆσθαι λεγόντων, ἀλλ' ἔσε σθαι προσδοκώντων. Οὓς ἔδει συνιδεῖν, πρῶτον μὲν, ὅτι τῇ ἐκ Βαβυλῶνος ἀνακλήσει ἡ τούτου προφητεία συνέζευκται· ἔπειτα, ὅτι διὰ τούτων ἔφη μαθήσε σθαι τὰ ἔθνη τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν δύναμιν. Ποίας γὰρ, εἰπά τωσαν, δεῖται νῦν τὰ ἔθνη διδασκαλίας εἰς διάγνωσιν τῆς θείας δυνάμεως, οἳ πιστεύειν μὲν εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ Πατρὸς, καὶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ, καὶ τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος ἐδιδάχθησαν, δοξολογεῖν δὲ καὶ προσκυνεῖν τὴν θείαν ἔμαθον φύσιν, τῆς δὲ τῶν εἰδώλων ἀπηλλάγησαν πλά νης; Ποίαν δὲ τοιαύτην διδασκαλίαν ἡ τοῦ Γὼγ ἀναίρεσις προσενεγκεῖν ἠδύνατο, οἵαν τῶν ἱερῶν ἀποστόλων περιέχει τὸ κήρυγμα; Τοῦτο μὲν γὰρ τὰ περὶ Τριάδος καὶ μονάδος ἅπαντας ἀνθρώπους δι δάσκει, καὶ ὅτι ἐν τῇ μιᾷ φύσει τὰς τρεῖς ἰδιότητας θεωροῦμεν· καὶ πρὸς τούτοις νεκρῶν ἀνάστασιν, καὶ κρίσιν, καὶ ἀντίδοσιν ἀγαθῶν καὶ τῶν ἐναντίων, οὐρανῶν βασιλείαν, τὴν ἐν γεέννῃ τιμωρίαν, τῆς ἀρετῆς τὰ μαθήματα, τὰ τῆς φιλοσοφίας διδάγματα, καὶ τὰ ἄλλα, ὅσα τό τε θεῖον Εὐαγγέλιον περιέχει, καὶ τὰ ἱερὰ τῶν ἀποστόλων συγγράμματα. Ἡ δὲ τοῦ Γὼγ ἀναίρεσις μόνον ἐδίδαξε τὰ ἔθνη, ὅτι μεγί στην ἔχει δύναμιν ὁ Ἰουδαίων Θεὸς, καὶ ὅτι οὐ διὰ τὴν αὐτοῦ ἀσθένειαν ὑπὸ Βαβυλωνίοις ἐγένοντο, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὴν οἰκείαν παρανομίαν. Εἰ τοίνυν μηδέπω τὰ κατὰ τὸν Γὼγ ἐγένετο, ἀλλ' ἐπ' ἐσχάτων τῶν ἡμερῶν γενή σεται,