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you will tread on the basilisk, and you will trample the lion, and the dragon." And now he tramples him, giving to his disciples to tread upon snakes and scorpions. But at the consummation he will destroy him completely. And here the discourse concerning the universal judgment of God is described. But others say that with his children who killed the saints, he will also destroy Satan, whom he calls the fleeing one, on account of cowardice, and the crooked one, on account of cunning. Nevertheless, he will be slain. For 2236 he will be inactive from then on. Rather, he will pay the penalty for his unholiness, having undergone the final punishment, and having been held by the gates of Hades, enduring the unending torment of the eternal flame. But others say that here he calls the operation of justice a sword, which he says is holy, at once mitigating the terror of the threat, and at the same time showing that those who are punished will not be destroyed unto perdition, but it will be a cause of holiness for them when they have repented. For God, in chastising, does not wish to destroy, but to purify and sanctify those who turn back. And he calls the Assyrian, or the Chaldean, a dragon. But he makes the reference to the very progenitor of evil, the devil, who, when the complete consummation has been brought on, and the parts of the world have passed away, which the error for him and the desire .... my power. But some are enemies of God. But let us, having been brought to our senses by what they have suffered, make peace with him. For the prophet says these things to those of his own portion: "For it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." But who the coming ones are, he has added. The children of Jacob will sprout, and so on; clearly alluding to the apostolic choir, about which he said before: "And if the Lord of Sabaoth had not left us a seed." For being Jews, they were children of Jacob. But they blossomed not as wood, grass, stubble, but as a good shoot, and a fragrant flower, having filled the whole earth with fragrance. Therefore, to them and to their disciples, the prophet says, exhorting, "let us make peace with him." And these things were fulfilled when they preached to the whole world: "Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." For this reason they also had beautiful feet, by which they proclaimed the good news of peace. But some say that the prophet exhorts these things to the peoples everywhere. But since the firstborn acted impiously against the redeemer of Israel and kicked back, let us who are about to come in due time from darkness to light, from error to knowledge, from sins to justification, make peace, having dissolved the ancient enmity. For with sin having been destroyed and Satan cast down, there is nothing to hinder making a truce with the Lord and obeying his commands. Paul also says such things to those from the gentiles: "Therefore, being justified by faith, let us have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." And having exhorted those who are to come (about whom David also says, "The generation to come shall be told of him"), he joyfully transferred the discourse to the apostles, because they acquired the world for Christ. And in harmony with, "the world will be filled with his fruit," is, "Their sound has gone out into all the earth." For the believers are the fruits of apostolic labors, whom the blessed Paul called a joy and a crown. 2237 But some say that the prophet advised these things to those of his own time, not wanting them to come to the experience of the things threatened beforehand. "For change your minds," he says, "you who have taken up war against your own creator, having recognized that his nature is invincible." For in this way both the affairs of the race will receive increase, and the whole world will be inhabited by you. But instead of, "let us who are coming make peace with him," some have set down, according to the other interpreters, "he will make peace for me with those who are coming," and, "I said;" for the turning back is for the last. Then the prophet says: Did he himself so strike, and will he himself be so struck? But the meaning is: Did those who preached peace to the nations render evil for evil, and this while suffering the most terrible things from them? therefore

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βασιλίσκον ἐπιβήσῃ, καὶ καταπατήσεις λέοντα, καὶ δράκοντα." Καὶ νῦν δὲ αὐτὸν πατεῖ, διδοὺς τοῖς μαθηταῖς πατεῖν ἐπάνω ὄφεων καὶ σκορπίων. Τῇ δὲ συντελείᾳ παντελῶς αὐτὸν ἀνελεῖ. Κἀνταῦθα ὁ περὶ τῆς καθολικῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ κρίσεως περιγράφεται λόγος. Ἕτεροι δέ φασιν, ὡς τοῖς αὐτοῦ τέκνοις τοῖς ἀποκτείνασι τοὺς ἁγίους συνανελεῖ καὶ τὸν Σατανὰν, ὃν καὶ φεύγοντα διὰ δειλίαν καλεῖ, καὶ σκολιὸν, διὰ πανουργίαν. Πλὴν ἀναιρεθήσεται. Καὶ γὰρ 2236 ἀπρακτήσει λοιπόν. Μᾶλλον δὲ τοὺς τῆς ἀνοσιότητος ἀποτίσει λόγους, ποινὴν ὑποστὰς τὴν ἐσχάτην, καὶ ταῖς ᾅδου πύλαις κάτοχος γεγονὼς, τῆς εἰς αἰῶνα φλογὸς ἀτελεύτητον ὑπομένων τὴν κόλασιν. Ἄλλοι δὲ λέγουσιν, ὡς μάχαιραν ἐνταῦθα τὴν ἐνέργειαν τῆς δίκης καλεῖ, ἣν ἁγίαν φησὶν, ὁμοῦ μὲν παραμυθούμενος τὸ φοβερὸν τῆς ἀπειλῆς, ὁμοῦ δὲ δεικνὺς, ὡς οὐκ εἰς ἀπώλειαν οἱ τιμωρούμενοι καταστρέψουσιν, ἁγιωσύνης δὲ αἴτιον αὐτοῖς ἔσται μετανοήσασιν. Καὶ γὰρ οὐκ ἀπολέσαι βούλεται Θεὸς παιδεύων, ἀλλὰ καθᾶραι καὶ ἁγιάσαι ἐπιστρέψοντας. ∆ράκοντα δὲ τὸν Ἀσσύριον, ἢ τὸν Χαλδαῖον καλεῖ. Τὴν δὲ ἀναφορὰν ἐπ' αὐτὸν ποιεῖται τὸν τῆς κακίας γεννήτορα τὸν διάβολον, ὃς τῆς παντελοῦς συντελείας ἐπενεχθείσης, καὶ τῶν τοῦ κόσμου μερῶν παρελθόντων, ἃ τὴν πλάνην αὐτῷ καὶ τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν .... τὴν ἐμὴν δύναμιν. Ἀλλ' οἱ μὲν τοῦ Θεοῦ πολέμιοι. Ἡμεῖς δὲ, ὡς ἂν σωφρονισθέντες ἀφ' ὧν ἐκεῖνοι πεπόνθασιν, εἰρήνην ποιήσωμεν αὐτῷ. Ταῦτα γὰρ ὁ προφήτης τοῖς τῆς ἰδίας μερίδος φησί· "Χαλεπὸν γὰρ τὸ ἐμπεσεῖν εἰς χεῖρας Θεοῦ ζῶντος." Οἱ δὲ ἐρχόμενοι τίνες εἰσιν ἐπενήνοχεν. Τέκνα Ἰακὼβ βλαστήσει, καὶ ἑξῆς· σαφῶς τὸν χορὸν τὸν ἀποστολικὸν αἰνιττόμενος, περὶ οὗ πρότερον ἔλεγε· "Καὶ εἰ μὴ Κύριος Σαβαὼθ ἐγκατέλιπεν ἡμῖν σπέρμα." Ἰουδαῖοι γὰρ ὄντες, τέκνα ἦσαν τοῦ Ἰακώβ. Ἐξήσθησαν δὲ οὐ ξύλα, χόρτον, καλάμην, βλαστὸν δὲ ἀγαθὸν, καὶ ἄνθος εὐῶδες πᾶσαν γῆν τῆς εὐωδίας πληρώσαντες. Αὐτοῖς οὖν, καὶ τοῖς αὐτῶν φοιτηταῖς, τὸ ποιήσωμεν εἰρήνην αὐτῷ, παραινῶν φησὶν ὁ προφήτης. Ἐπληροῦντο δὲ ταῦτα ὅτε εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν οἰκουμένην ἐκήρυττον· "Χάρις ὑμῖν καὶ εἰρήνη ἀπὸ Θεοῦ Πατέρος ἡμῶν καὶ Κυρίου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ." ∆ιὸ καὶ πόδας εἶχον ὡραίους, δι' ὧν τ' ἀγαθὰ τῆς εἰρήνης εὐηγγελίζοντο. Τινὲς δέ φασι τοῖς ἁπανταχόθι λαοῖς ταῦτα παραινεῖν τὸν προφήτην. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ δεδυσσέβηκεν εἰς τὸν λυτρωπὴν Ἰσραὴλ, καὶ ἀπελάκτισεν ὁ πρωτότοκος, ἡμεῖς οἱ μέλλοντες ἥξειν κατὰ καιροὺς ἀπὸ σκότους εἰς φῶς, ἀπὸ πλάνης εἰς γνῶσιν, ἐξ ἁμαρτιῶν εἰς δικαίωσιν, ποιήσωμεν εἰρήνην, τὴν ἀρχαίαν καταλύσαντες ἔχθραν. Ἀνῃρημένης γὰρ τῆς ἁμαρτίας, καὶ καθῃρημένου τοῦ Σατανᾶ, οὐδὲν ἐμποδὼν σπείσασθαι τῷ Κυρίῳ, καὶ τοῖς ἐκείνου πειθαρχῆσαι προστάγμασιν. Τοιαῦτα καὶ Παῦλος τοῖς ἐξ ἐθνῶν· "∆ικαιωθέντες οὖν ἐκ πίστεως εἰρήνην ἔχωμεν πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν, διὰ τοῦ Κυρίου ἠμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ." Παρακαλέσας δὲ τοὺς ἐρχομένους (περὶ ὦν φησὶ καὶ ∆αβὶδ, "Ἀναγγελήσεται αὐτῷ γενεὰ ἡ ἐρχομένη"), τὸν λόγον ἐπὶ τοὺς ἀποστόλους μετήνεγκε χαίρων, ὅτι Χριστῷ τὴν οἰκουμένην ἐκτήσαντο. Σύμφωνον δὲ τῷ, ἐμπλησθήσεται ἡ οἰκουμένη τοῦ καρποῦ αὐτοῦ, τὸ, "Εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν ἐξῆλθεν ὁ φθόγγος αὐτῶν." Καρποὶ γὰρ ἱδρώτων ἀποστολικῶν οἱ πιστεύσαντες, οὓς χάριν καὶ στέφανον ὁ μακάριος ὠνόμασε Παῦλος. 2237 Τινὲς δέ φασι τοῖς ἐφ' αὑτοῦ ταῦτα συμβουλεῦσαι τὸν προφήτην μὴ βουλόμενον αὐτοὺς τῶν προηπειλημένων εἰς πεῖραν ἐλθεῖν. Μεταθέσθε γὰρ, φησὶν, οἱ πρὸς τὸν ἑαυτῶν δημιουργὸν ἀράμενοι πόλεμον, ἄμαχον αὐτὸν ἔχειν τὴν φύσιν ἐπεγνωκότες. Οὕτω γὰρ καὶ τὰ τοῦ γένους ἐπίδοσιν λήψεται, καὶ ἡ οἰκουμένη πᾶσα παρ' ὑμῶν οἰκηθήσεται. Ἀντὶ δὲ τοῦ, εἰρήνην ποιήσωμεν αὐτῷ οἱ ἐρχόμενοι, παρέθεντό τινες κατὰ τοὺς ἄλλους ἑρμηνευτὰς, εἰρηνοποιήσει μοι τοὺς ἐρχομένους, καὶ Εἶπον· εἰς γὰρ τοὺς τελευταίους ἡ ἐπιστροφή. Εἶτα φησὶν ὁ προφήτης· Μὴ ὡς αὐτὸς οὕτως ἐπάταξε, καὶ αὐτὸς οὕτως πληγήσεται; ὁ δὲ νοῦς· Μήτι κακὸν ἀντὶ κακοῦ τοῖς ἔθνεσιν ἀπεδίδοσαν οἱ κηρύττοντες αὐτοῖς εἰρήνην, καὶ ταῦτα παρ' αὐτῶν πάσχοντες τὰ δεινότατα; διὸ