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But the Assyrians, having violently enslaved him, led him away. 5 And now why are you here? By this question he shapes the account of what has happened, showing the paradox; Did you not go away into Egypt? he says. How then have you returned? Thus says the Lord: Because my people was taken for nothing, you marvel and wail. You are astonished, he says, lamenting the captivity, because being called my people you endured these things. But do not marvel, but consider how on account of you my name is blasphemed continually among the nations. It is not as grievous that you justly suffered these things as that I am blasphemed on account of you and that the nations think that you have endured these things because of my weakness. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name in that day, for I myself that speak am present. He calls the day that of the recall. You will obtain this, he says, not because of your worthiness but because of the blasphemy of the nations. For wishing to show them my power, I will free you from bondage. And I will do this immediately and I will put an end to the word. 7 How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that brings good tidings of a report of peace, of him that brings good tidings of good things. This indeed received a typical fulfillment, when the release of the captives was announced to those inhabiting Jerusalem; but truly and properly the prophecy is suited to the holy apostles; for their feet are beautiful, which the Lord's hands both washed and strengthened so as to run through the whole inhabited world and to convey the gospels of divine peace and to announce the enjoyment of the promised good things. Because I will make thy salvation to be heard, saying to Zion: Thy God shall reign. And these things likewise are more suited to the holy apostles; for through them the kingdom of our God and Savior was proclaimed. For before them not even the perceptible Zion was willing to be ruled by God. 8 The voice of thy watchmen is lifted up, and with the voice they shall rejoice together, for they shall see eye to eye, when the Lord shall have mercy on Zion. The same ones both proclaim and watch and bring about the gladness; for they became eyewitnesses of the Savior, when having become man he appeared to Zion. And so also the blessed David says: 'Out of Zion, the perfection of his beauty,' and again: 'The Lord shall send thee a rod of power out of Zion.' 9 Let the desolate places of Jerusalem break forth together into gladness, because the Lord has had mercy on his people |167 a| and has redeemed Jerusalem. Again to the desolate places of Jerusalem he promises gladness, which in the previous things he said were disposed towards the west, which also he said are compared to the paradise of God. And how these things will be, he teaches: 10 The Lord will reveal his holy arm in the sight of all the nations, and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation that is from our God. He will show, he says, his own power, the God of all, to all the nations—for he calls power an arm—and all will know the giver of salvation. 11 Depart, depart, go out from there and touch no unclean thing; go out from the midst of her. The prophetic word commands those who have believed to be separated from the unbelievers. Be ye separate, that bear the vessels of the Lord. He calls vessels those who have been deemed worthy of the election. Thus also he named the blessed Paul; for to Ananias he says: 'Go, for this man is a chosen vessel to me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel.' And the divine apostle himself also says thus: 'If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work'. And here therefore: those who have made themselves vessels of the Lord, he says, go out bearing these things. 12 For you shall not go out with haste, nor go by flight: for the Lord will go before you; and the God of Israel will be your rereward. When the Romans were about to march against Jerusalem, all who had received the preaching migrated to other cities; for they had learned of the things that were to befall her

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Ἀσσυρίους δὲ βίᾳ ἀνδραποδίσαντες αὐτὸν ἀπήγαγον. 5Καὶ νῦν τί ὧδέ ἐστε; Τῇ ἐρωτήσει σχηματίζει τὸν λόγον τοῦ γεγενημένου δεικνὺς τὸ παράδοξον· Οὐκ εἰς Αἴγυπτόν φησιν ἀπεληλύθειτε; Πῶς οὖν ἐπανήκατε; Τάδε λέγει κύριος· Ὅτι ἐλήφθη ὁ λαός μου δωρεάν, θαυμάζετε καὶ ὀλολύζετε. Ἐκπλήττεσθέ φησιν ὀλοφυρό μενοι τὴν αἰχμαλωσίαν, ὅτι ἐμὸς λαὸς χρηματίζοντες ὑπεμείνατε ταῦτα. Ἀλλὰ μὴ θαυμάζετε, σκοπήσατε δὲ ὡς δι' ὑμᾶς διὰ παντὸς τὸ ὄνομά μου βλασφημεῖται ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν. Οὐχ οὕτως ἀνιαρὸν τὸ ὑμᾶς ἐνδίκως ταῦτα παθεῖν ὡς τὸ ἐμὲ δι' ὑμᾶς βλασφημεῖσθαι καὶ νομίζειν τὰ ἔθνη διὰ τὴν ἐμὴν ἀσθένειαν ὑμᾶς ταῦτα ὑπομεμενηκέναι. 6∆ιὰ τοῦτο γνώσεται ὁ λαός μου τὸ ὄνομά μου ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ ὅτι ἐγώ εἰμι, αὐτὸς ὁ λαλῶν πάρειμι. Ἡμέραν καλεῖ τὴν τῆς ἀνακλήσεως. Τεύξεσθέ φησι ταύτης οὐ διὰ τὴν ὑμετέραν ἀξίαν ἀλλὰ διὰ τὴν τῶν ἐθνῶν βλασφημίαν. Ἐκείνοις γὰρ δεῖξαι βουλόμενος τὴν ἐμὴν δύναμιν τῆς δουλείας ὑμᾶς ἐλευθερώσω. Αὐτίκα δὲ τοῦτο ποιήσω καὶ ἐπιθήσω τῷ λόγῳ τὸ πέρας. 7Ὡς ὡραῖοι ἐπὶ τῶν ὀρέων πόδες εὐαγγελιζομένου ἀκοὴν εἰρήνης, εὐαγγελιζομένου ἀγαθά. Τοῦτο τυπικῶς μὲν ἐδέξατο πέρας, ἡνίκα τοῖς τὴν Ἱερουσαλὴμ κατοικοῦσιν ἀπηγγέλθη τῶν αἰχμαλώτων ἡ ἄφεσις· ἀληθῶς δὲ καὶ κυρίως ἁρμόττει τοῖς ἱεροῖς ἀποστόλοις ἡ προφητεία· τούτων γὰρ ὡραῖοι οἱ πόδες, οὓς αἱ δεσποτικαὶ χεῖρες ἀπένιψάν τε καὶ ἔρρωσαν ὥστε πᾶσαν τὴν οἰκουμένην διαδραμεῖν καὶ τῆς θείας εἰρήνης διαπορθμεῦσαι τὰ εὐαγγέλια καὶ μηνῦσαι τῶν ἐπηγγελμένων ἀγαθῶν τὴν ἀπόλαυσιν. Ὅτι ἀκουστὴν ποιήσω τὴν σωτηρίαν σου λέγων τῇ Σιών· Βασι λεύσει σου ὁ θεός. Καὶ ταῦτα ὡσαύτως τοῖς ἱεροῖς μᾶλλον ἀποστόλοις ἁρμόττει· δι' ἐκείνων γὰρ ἡ τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἀνεκηρύχθη βασιλεία. Πρὸ γὰρ ἐκείνων οὐδὲ ἡ αἰσθητὴ Σιὼν ἠθέλησεν ὑπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ βασιλεύεσθαι. 8Φωνὴ τῶν φυλασσόντων σε ὑψώθη, καὶ τῇ φωνῇ ἅμα εὐφρανθήσονται, ὅτι ὀφθαλμοῖς πρὸς ὀφθαλμοὺς ὄψονται, ἡνίκα ἂν ἐλεήσῃ κύριος τὴν Σιών. Οἱ αὐτοὶ καὶ κηρύττουσι καὶ φυλάττουσι καὶ προξενοῦσι τὴν εὐφροσύνην· αὐτόπται γὰρ ἐγένοντο τοῦ σωτῆρος, ἡνίκα ἐνανθρωπήσας τῇ Σιὼν ἐπεφάνη. Οὕτω δὲ καὶ ὁ μ ακάριος λέγει ∆αυίδ· «Ἐκ Σιὼν ἡ εὐπρέπεια τῆς ὡραιότητος αὐτοῦ», καὶ πάλιν· «Ῥάβδον δυνάμεως ἐξαποστελεῖ σοι κύριος ἐκ Σιών.» 9Ῥηξάτω εὐφροσύνην ἅμα τὰ ἔρημα Ἱερουσαλήμ, ὅτι ἠλέησε κύριος τὸν λαὸν |167 a| αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐλυτρώσατο τὴν Ἱερουσαλήμ. Πάλιν τοῖς ἐρήμοις τῆς Ἱερουσαλὴμ τόπ οις ὑ πισχνεῖται εὐ φρο σύ νην, ἅπερ ἐν τοῖς πρόσθεν πρὸς ταῖς δυσμαῖς εἴρηκε διακεῖσθαι, ἃ καὶ τῷ παραδ είσῳ τοῦ θεοῦ παραβάλλεσθαι ἔφη. Πῶς δὲ ἔσται ταῦτα, διδάσκει· 10Ἀποκαλύψει κύριος τὸν βραχίονα αὐτοῦ τὸν ἅγιον ἐνώπιον πάντων τῶν ἐθνῶν, καὶ ὄψεται πάντα τὰ ἄκρα τῆς γῆς τὴν σωτηρίαν τὴν παρὰ τοῦ θεοῦ ἡμῶν. ∆είξει φησὶ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ δύναμιν ὁ τῶν ὅλων θεὸς πᾶσι τοῖς ἔθν εσιν-βρ αχίονα γὰρ τὴν δύναμιν ὀνομάζει-, καὶ γνώσονται ἅπαντες τῆς σωτηρίας τὸν χορηγόν. 11Ἀπόστητε ἀπόστητε ἐξέλθετε ἐκεῖθεν καὶ ἀκαθάρτου μὴ ἅπτεσθε, ἐξέλθετε ἐκ μέσου αὐτῆς. Τοῖς πεπιστευκόσιν ὁ προφητικὸς διακελεύεται λόγος χωρισθῆναι τῶν ἀπίστων. Ἀφορίσθητε οἱ φέροντες τὰ σκεύη κυρίου. Σκεύη καλεῖ τοὺς τῆς ἐκλογῆς ἠξιωμένους. Οὕτω καὶ τὸν μακάριον ὠνόμασε Παῦλον· τῷ γὰρ Ἀνανίᾳ φησίν· «Πορεύου, ὅτι σκεῦος ἐκλογῆς μοί ἐστιν οὗτος τοῦ βαστάσαι τὸ ὄνομά μου ἐνώπιον ἐθνῶν καὶ βασιλέων υἱῶν τε Ἰσραήλ.» Καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ θεῖος ἀπόστολος οὕτω φησίν· «Ἐὰν οὖν τις ἐκκαθάρῃ ἑαυτὸν ἀπὸ τῶν τοιούτων, ἔσται σκεῦος εἰς τιμήν, ἡγιασμένον καὶ εὔχρηστον τῷ δεσπότῃ, εἰς πᾶν ἔργον ἀγαθὸν ἡτοιμασμένον». Κἀνταῦθα τοίνυν· Οἱ σκεύη ἑαυτούς φησι τοῦ κυρίου κατασκευάσαν τες ἐξέλθετε ταῦτα φέροντες. 12Ὅτι οὐ μετὰ ταραχῆς ἐξελεύσεσθε οὐδὲ φυγῇ πορεύ σεσθε· πορεύσεται γὰρ πρότερον ὑμῶν κύριος καὶ ὁ ἐπισυνάγων ὑμᾶς θεὸς Ἰσραήλ. Ἡνίκα ἔμελλον ἐπιστρατεύειν Ῥωμαῖοι τῇ Ἱερουσαλήμ, ἅπαντες οἱ τὸ κήρυγμα δεξάμενοι εἰς ἑτέρας ἐξεδήμησαν πόλεις· ἐμεμαθήκε σαν γὰρ τὰς καταληψομένας αὐτὴν