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he gives to the aforementioned. For just as it was said in the preceding passages: God is in the midst of her, and she shall not be moved; God will help her early in the morning. The nations were troubled, the kingdoms were moved, he gave his voice, the earth was shaken; in the same way now also he presents the evidence of the presence of God in his city, saying: God is known in her citadels, when he takes hold of her. Instead of, "In her citadels," Symmachus: "He will be known in her palaces," he has said. For though God is unmanifest and invisible, his presence is especially known then, when, enemies having attacked his city, he provides help to it. But what would you say are the citadels of the city, if not the churches set apart in each country and in each place? For the whole pious polity established throughout the entire inhabited world is understood as the great city of the king; and the churches in each place happen to be the citadels, in the midst of which is always the God who said: "Where two or three are gathered, there I am in the midst of them;" and, "Behold, I am with you all the days until the end of the age;" then he is known, whenever, enemies having attacked, he takes hold of his own city and of its citadels. Following these things, the attack of the enemies against the Church of God is connected; it is said: "For behold, the kings were gathered together, they passed by together." But according to Symmachus: "For behold," he says, "the kings were arrayed, they came together." But what kings, if not the enemies of the pious polity, arrayed themselves against 23.424 each other and established written laws to wage war against the Church of God? But the great wonder of the God who is known in her citadels is shown then, whenever the kings, having gathered together, take up war against his Church, both stirring up persecutions and devising countless plots against it, and are not strong enough. Therefore he adds: "They, seeing it, thus marveled;" for having received his power in deed, they thus marveled, not having marveled before this. Then they were troubled, as having become enemies of God; "And they were shaken and trembling seized them." "There were pains as of a woman in labor." For from then on the word concerning the judgment of God, against whom they warred, fell upon their eyes. Therefore according to Symmachus it is said: "They, seeing it, thus marveled, they were troubled, they were astonished, horror seized them, pains as of a woman in labor." For they were in travail according to what was said: "Behold, he has travailed with injustice, he has conceived trouble and brought forth lawlessness." "He dug a pit and hollowed it out, and he will fall into the ditch which he made." "His trouble will return upon his own head, and his injustice will come down upon his own crown." These things, being fulfilled in deeds, we have received with our own eyes; which it is likely that for the unbelievers after us, are not to be believed even when spoken by hearsay. At any rate, all those in our time who became enemies of the Church of God, rulers of this age and tyrants, being tormented by divinely-sent scourges: some endured putrefaction of the body, so that worms gushed forth from them while they were still living with an unbearable stench; others were blinded in their sight while still living, so as to come to a realization of the divinely-sent scourge that had seized them, and to sing a recantation and confess that the God of the Church is great and true and the only Lord; and to command with great haste that the city of God, long warred against by them, be renewed and built up. And the next thing said: "With a violent wind you will break the ships of Tarshish;" or according to Aquila: "With a scorching wind you break the ships of Tarshish;" or according to Symmachus: "Through a violent wind you will shatter the ships of Tarshish;" you will understand, having noted that the ships of Tarshish were said to bring great wealth to Solomon at one time according to the history found in the books of Kings. Thus, therefore, the wealth and the power of the aforementioned kings will be shattered, the entire fleet

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προλεχθείσῃ δίδωσιν. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ἐν τοῖς ἀνωτέρω εἴρητο· Ὁ Θεὸς ἐν μέσῳ αὐτῆς, καὶ οὐ σαλευθήσεται· βοηθήσει αὐτῇ ὁ Θεὸς τὸ πρὸς πρωῒ πρωΐ. Ἐταράχθησαν ἔθνη, ἔκλιναν βασιλεῖαι, ἔδωκε φωνὴν αὐτοῦ, ἐσαλεύθη ἡ γῆ· τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον καὶ νῦν τὸ ἐναργὲς τῆς παρουσίας τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐν τῇ πόλει αὐτοῦ παρίστησι λέγων· Ὁ Θεὸς ἐν βάρεσιν αὐτῆς γινώσκεται, ὅταν ἀντιλαμβάνηται αὐτῆς. Ἀντὶ δὲ τοῦ, Ἐν ταῖς βάρεσιν αὐτῆς, ὁ Σύμμαχος· Ἐν τοῖς βασιλείοις αὐτῆς γνωσθήσεται, εἴρηκεν. Ἀφανοῦς γὰρ ὄντος τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ ἀοράτου, τότε μάλιστα ἡ παρουσία αὐτοῦ γινώσκεται, ὅταν, πολεμίων ἐπιθεμένων τῇ αὐτοῦ πόλει, τὴν ἀντίληψιν αὐτῇ παρέχει. Βάρεις δὲ τῆς πόλεως τίνας ἂν εἴποις ἢ τὰς ἀφωρισμένας κατὰ χώρας καὶ κατὰ τόπους ἐκκλησίας; Τὸ μὲν γὰρ πᾶν θεοσεβὲς πολίτευμα τὸ καθ' ὅλης τῆς οἰκουμένης συνεστὼς ἡ μεγάλη νοεῖται πόλις τοῦ βασιλέως· αἱ δὲ κατὰ τόπον ἐκκλησίαι τυγχάνουσιν αἱ βάρεις, ὧν μέσος ἀεὶ ὢν ὁ εἰρηκὼς Θεός· Ὅπου δύο ἢ τρεῖς συνηγμένοι, ἐκεῖ εἰμι ἐν μέσῳ αὐτῶν· καὶ, Ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ μεθ' ὑμῶν εἰμι πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας ἕως τῆς συντελείας τοῦ αἰῶνος· τότε γινώσκεται, ἐπειδὰν, πολεμίων ἐπιθεμένων, ἀντιλαμβάνηται τῆς ἑαυτοῦ πόλεως καὶ τῶν βάρεων αὐτῆς. Ἑξῆς τούτοις συνῆπται ἡ τῶν πολεμίων κατὰ τῆς Ἐκκλησίας τοῦ Θεοῦ ἔφοδος· εἴρηται· Ὅτι ἰδοὺ οἱ βασιλεῖς συνήχθησαν, διήλθοσαν ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτό. Κατὰ δὲ τὸν Σύμμαχον· Ἰδοὺ γὰρ, φησὶν, οἱ βασιλεῖς συνετάξαντο, ἦλθον ὁμοῦ. Ποῖοι δὲ βασιλεῖς ἢ οἱ ἐχθροὶ τοῦ θεοσεβοῦς πολιτεύματος συνετάξαντο 23.424 ἀλλήλοις καὶ νόμους ἐγγράφους ἔθεντο τοῦ πολεμεῖν τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν τοῦ Θεοῦ; Πλὴν τὸ μέγα θαῦμα τοῦ ἐν ταῖς βάρεσιν αὐτῆς γινωσκομένου Θεοῦ τότε δείκνυται, ἐπειδὰν οἱ βασιλεῖς, συναχθέντες, πόλεμον ἄρωνται κατὰ τῆς Ἐκκλησίας αὐτοῦ, διωγμούς τε κινοῦντες, καὶ μυρίας ἐπιβουλὰς κατ' αὐτῆς βουλευόμενοι, μηδὲν ἰσχύωσι. ∆ιὸ ἐπιλέγει· Αὐτοὶ ἰδόντες οὕτως ἐθαύμασαν· ἔργῳ γὰρ τὴν δύναμιν αὐτοῦ παραλαβόντες, οὕτως ἐθαύμασαν, πρὸ τούτου μὴ θαυμάσαντες. Εἶτα ἐταράχθησαν, ὡς ἂν Θεοῦ πολέμιοι καταστάντες· Ἐσαλεύθησάν τε καὶ τρόμος ἐπελάβετο αὐτῶν. Ἐκεῖ ὠδῖνες ὡς τικτούσης. Λοιπὸν γὰρ ὑπέπιπτεν αὐτῶν τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς ὁ περὶ τῆς κρίσεως τοῦ Θεοῦ λόγος, τοῦ ὑπ' αὐτῶν πολεμουμένου. ∆ιὸ κατὰ τὸν Σύμμαχον εἴρηται· Αὐτοὶ ἰδόντες οὕτως ἐθαύμασαν, ἐταράχθησαν, ἐξεπλάγησαν, φρίκη κατέσχεν αὐτοὺς, ὠδῖνες ὡς τικτούσης. Ὤδινον γὰρ κατὰ τὸ λελεγμένον· Ἰδοὺ ὠδίνησεν ἀδικίαν, συνέλαβε πόνον καὶ ἔτεκεν ἀνομίαν. Λάκκον ὤρυξε καὶ ἀνέσκαψεν αὐτὸν, καὶ ἐμπεσεῖται εἰς βόθρον ὃν εἰργάσατο. Ἐπιστρέψει ὁ πόνος αὐτοῦ εἰς κεφαλὴν αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐπὶ κορυφὴν αὐτοῦ ἡ ἀδικία αὐτοῦ καταβήσεται. Ταῦτα δι' ἔργων πληρούμενα ὀφθαλμοῖς αὐτοῖς ἡμεῖς παρειλήφαμεν· ἃ καὶ εἰκὸς τοῖς μεθ' ἡμᾶς ἀπίστοις μηδὲ ἀκοῇ πιστεύεσθαι λεγόμενα. Πάντες γοῦν οἱ καθ' ἡμᾶς τῆς Ἐκκλησίας τοῦ Θεοῦ πολέμιοι καταστάντες, ἄρχοντες τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου καὶ τύραννοι, θεηλάτοις μάστιξιν αἰκισθέντες· οἱ μὲν σήψεις τοῦ σώματος ὑπέμειναν, ὡς καὶ σκώληκας ἐξ αὐτῶν ἔτι ζώντων μετ' ἀφορήτου δυσωδίας βρύειν· οἱ δὲ τὰς ὄψεις ἔτι ζῶντες ἐπηρώθησαν, ὡς καὶ εἰς συναίσθησιν ἐλθεῖν τῆς καταλαβούσης αὐτοὺς θεηλάτου μάστιγος, παλινωδίαν τε ᾆσαι καὶ τὸν τῆς Ἐκκλησίας Θεὸν μέγαν εἶναι καὶ ἀληθῆ καὶ μόνον Κύριον ὁμολογῆσαι· προστάξαι δὲ σὺν πολλῇ σπουδῆ ἀνανεοῦσθαι καὶ οἰκοδομεῖν τὴν πάλαι πρὸς αὐτῶν πολεμηθεῖσαν τοῦ Θεοῦ πόλιν. Τὸ δ' ἑξῆς εἰρημένον· Ἐν πνεύματι βιαίῳ συντρίψεις πλοῖα Θαρσεῖς· ἢ κατὰ τὸν Ἀκύλαν· Ἐν πνεύματι καύσωνος συντρίβεις νῆας Θαρσεῖς· ἢ κατὰ τὸν Σύμμαχον· ∆ι' ἀνέμου βιαίου κατάξεις ναῦς Θαρσεῖς· νοήσεις ἐπιστήσας ὡς νῆες Θαρσεῖς ἐλέγοντο πλοῦτον μέγαν φέρειν τῷ Σολομῶντι ποτὲ κατὰ τὴν ἱστορίαν τὴν ἐν ταῖς Βασιλείαις κειμένην. Οὕτως οὖν καὶ τῶν προλεχθέντων βασιλέων τὸν πλοῦτον καὶ τὴν δυναστείαν συντριβήσεσθαι, ὁλόστολόν