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to lean upon him by choice? What is signified, then, is this: From when I began to think and to act, I have dedicated to you the beginning of thinking and acting, leaning on you and being protected by you, for one who repents after having begun in wickedness, since on account of piety which he has received, he is unable to say the preceding verses about leaning upon God and being protected by him, but only he who has given himself to God without mediation. This is also shown from the words of Job, who said, If I have eaten my morsel alone, and have not shared it with the orphans, if I did not from my mother's womb guide them and raise them as a father. For no one with understanding will think it possible for what has been said to be achieved from the very hour of birth, it having its beginning then when the reason is fulfilled by which rational beings are such, just as those who say, If we have forgotten your name, if we have stretched out our hands to a foreign god. If it is also possible to understand the verses about a spiritual birth, pay attention, to him who is born of divine teaching and of water and spirit, with womb and belly being understood as appropriate to this birth, from which the one who is born has come forth intellectually. 738a Ps 70,6c Everything good and pious is accomplished with God. Therefore, he who confesses Jesus before men does this in him, so that consequently he himself may be confessed by the savior who is in the one confessing him. For since the Savior is righteousness and wisdom and sanctification and life and truth, he who truly confesses him, which is followed also by confession through voice, happens to be in the one confessed, being righteous and wise in righteousness and wisdom, but also having been shown holy and living and true in sanctification and life and truth. As, therefore, he is in that which is partaken of, so also is the one partaken of in the one partaking, as we say that virtue is in the virtuous man and the virtuous man in it. According to this meaning, the apostle was a man in Christ and had Christ in himself, as he says, If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation, and, Christ lives in me. This being a universal theory, he who hymns God happens to be in him, while the one who is hymned is also in the one who hymns. While others hymn rulers, teachers of human disciplines, and the disciplines themselves, and still others honor opinions and wealth, our hymn is in you and not in any other. A scripture is cited which runs thus: In you is my remembrance continually. According to both scriptures, therefore, 'continually' must be understood as having the hymn and the remembrance in God continuously and without interruption. 739 Ps 70,7 Sinners who despise virtue and consider piety an abomination, loathing the virtuous and humble man, call him a prodigy. For they say to themselves, Let us bind the just man, for he is useless to us. And since those who think and say such things are wicked to us, he rightly did not say a prodigy simply, but that he had become so to the many, that is, to the vulgar who flee from virtue. But if they treat me in the said manner, yet you, being a mighty helper, keep me unharmed by them. In this sense also the apostle says that he has become as the refuse of the world and the offscouring of all men. In agreement with these things is also, We are fools for Christ's sake, but you are wise. From the same disposition is written also, For I think that God has exhibited us apostles as last of all, as men doomed to death, and, For we have been made a spectacle to the world. Such also is what was said by God to the sinners, And Ezekiel shall be for a prodigy, as the prophet himself says, on account of the things done by him especially in a symbolic way, such as his lying for so many days on his right side and again for so many on his left, and the shaving of the hair of his body. And if these things also are referred to the savior, who seemed to the many to have become as it were a prodigy on account of the cross,

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ἐπιστηρίζεσθαι ἐπ' αὐτῷ προαιρετικῶς; ο σημαίνεται τοίνυν ἐστὶ τοιοῦτον· ἀφ' ου ἠρξάμην νοεῖν καὶ ἐνεργεῖν, τὴν ἀρχὴν τοῦ νοεῖν καὶ ἐνεργεῖν ἀνέθηκά σοι, ἐπιστηριζόμενός σοι καὶ σκεπόμενος ὑπὸ σοῦ, τοῦ μετὰ κακίαν ἀρξαμένην μετανοοῦντος ὡς δι' εὐσέβειαν ην ἀνείληφεν ἐπιστηρίζεσθαι ἐπὶ θεὸν καὶ σκέπεσθαι ὑπ' αὐτοῦ οὐ δυναμένου εἰπεῖν τοὺς προκειμένους στίχους ἀλλ' η μόνου τοῦ ἀμεσολαβήτως ἐπὶ θεὸν ἑαυτὸν ἐπιδεδωκότος. δείκνυται τουτὶ καὶ ἐκ τῶν λόγων τοῦ ̓Ιὼβ εἰρηκότος Εἰ δὲ καὶ τὸν ψωμόν μου εφαγον μόνος καὶ ὀρφανοῖς οὐ μετέδωκα, εἰ μὴ ἐκ κοιλίας μητρός μου ὡδήγουν αὐτοὺς καὶ ἐξέστρεφον ὡς πατήρ. νοῦν γὰρ εχων οὐδεὶς ἡγήσεται ὡς ἀπ' αὐτῆς τῆς ωρας τῆς ἀποτέξεως δυνατὸν κατορθοῦσθαι τὸ εἰρημένον, ἀρχὴν τοῦ γενέσθαι τότε λαμβάνοντα οταν συμπληρωθῇ ὁ λόγος καθ' ον οἱ λογικοί εἰσι τοιοῦτοι ωσπερ οἱ λέγοντες Εἰ ἐπελαθόμεθα τοῦ ὀνόματός σου, εἰ διεπετάσαμεν χεῖρας ἡμῶν πρὸς θεὸν ἀλλότριον. Εἰ δυνατὸν καὶ περὶ πνευματικῆς γεννήσεως ἐκλαβεῖν τοὺς στίχους, ἐπίστησον, τοῦ ἐκ διδασκαλίας θείας καὶ ἐξ υδατος καὶ πνεύματος γεννωμένου καταλλήλως τῇ γεννήσει ταύτῃ γαστρὸς καὶ κοιλίας νοουμένων ἀφ' ων ὁ γεννηθεὶς νοητῶς προελήλυθεν. 738a Ps 70,6c Πᾶν τὸ καλὸν καὶ εὐσεβὲς ἀνύεται σὺν θεῷ. οθεν ὁ ὁμολογῶν τὸν ̓Ιησοῦν εμπροσθεν τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐν αὐτῷ αὐτὸ ποιεῖ, ιν' ἀκολούθως καὶ αὐτὸς ὁμολογηθῇ ὑπὸ τοῦ σωτῆρος οντος ἐν τῷ ὁμολογοῦντι αὐτόν. ἐπεὶ γὰρ δικαιοσύνη καὶ σοφία ἁγιασμός τε καὶ ζωὴ καὶ ἀλήθεια ὁ σωτὴρ ὁ πραγματικῶς ὁμολογῶν αὐτὸν ῳ επεται καὶ διὰ φωνῆς ὁμολογία, ἐν τῷ ὁμολογουμένῳ τυγχάνει ων, ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ καὶ σοφίᾳ δίκαιος καὶ σοφὸς ὑπάρχων ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν ἁγιασμῷ καὶ ζωῇ καὶ ἀληθείᾳ αγιος καὶ ζῶν καὶ ἀληθὴς ἀποδειχθείς. ὡς ουν αὐτὸς ἐν τῷ μετεχομένῳ, ουτω καὶ ὁ μεθεκτὸς ἐν τῷ μετέχοντι, καθὸ λέγομεν ἐν τῷ σπουδαίῳ τὴν ἀρετὴν καὶ ἐν αὐτῇ τὸν σπουδαῖον ειναι. κατὰ τοῦτο τὸ σημαινόμενον ὁ ἀπόστολος ανθρωπος ην ἐν Χριστῷ καὶ ειχεν Χριστὸν ἐν ἑαυτῷ, ῃ φησιν Ει τις ἐν Χριστῷ, καινὴ κτίσις, καὶ Ζῇ δὲ ἐν ἐμοὶ Χριστός. ταύτης τῆς θεωρίας καθόλου ουσης, καὶ ὁ ὑμνῶν θεὸν ἐν αὐτῷ τυγχάνει, οντος καὶ τοῦ ὑμνουμένου ἐν τῷ ὑμνοῦντι. Αλλων ὑμνούντων αρχοντας διδασκάλους ἀνθρωπίνων μαθημάτων καὶ αὐτὰ τὰ μαθήματα ετι μὴν δοξάρια καὶ πλοῦτον γεραιρόντων, ἡ υμνησις ἡ ἡμετέρα ἐν σοὶ καὶ οὐκ ἐν αλλῳ τινὶ γίνεται. φέρεται γραφὴ ωδε εχουσα· ̓Εν σοὶ ἡ ὑπόμνησίς μου διαπαντός. κατ' ἀμφοτέρας τοιγαροῦν τὰς γραφὰς ἐκληπτέον τὸ διαπαντὸς ὑπὲρ τοῦ συνεχῶς καῖ ἀδιαστάτως ἐν θεῷ τὴν υμνησιν καὶ τὴν ὑπόμνησιν εχειν. 739 Ps 70,7 Οἱ ἀρετὴν εὐτελίζοντες καὶ βδέλυγμα τὴν θεοσέβειαν ἡγούμενοι ἁμαρτωλοὶ τὸν σπουδαῖον καὶ εὐτελῆ βδελυττόμενοι τέρας ἀποκαλοῦσιν. φάσκουσι γὰρ ἐν ἑαυτοῖς ∆ήσωμεν τὸν δίκαιον, οτι δύσχρηστος ἡμῖν ἐστιν. καὶ ἐπεὶ φαῦλοί εἰσιν ἡμῖν οἱ τὰ τοιαῦτα διανοούμενοι καὶ λέγοντες, εἰκότως οὐ καθάπαξ ειπεν τέρας ἀλλὰ τοῖς πολλοῖς γεγονέναι τουτέστι τοῖς χυδαιοτέροις καὶ φεύγουσι τὴν ἀρετήν. ̓Αλλ' εἰ κἀκεῖνοι προφέρονταί μοι τῷ εἰρημένῳ τρόπῳ, ἀλλ' ουν σὺ κραταιὸς ων βοηθὸς φυλάττεις με ἀζημίωτον ὑπ' αὐτῶν. ταύτῃ τῇ διανοίᾳ καὶ ὁ ἀπόστολός φησιν ὡς περικαθάρματα τοῦ κόσμου καὶ περίψημα πάντων ἀνθρώπων γεγενῆσθαι. συμφώνως τούτοις εχει καὶ τὸ ̔Ημεῖς μωροὶ διὰ Χριστόν, ὑμεῖς δὲ φρόνιμοι. ἀπὸ τῆς αὐτῆς διαθέσεως γράφεται καὶ τὸ ∆οκῶ γὰρ οτι ὁ θεὸς ἡμᾶς τοὺς ἀποστόλους ἐσχάτους ἀπέδειξεν ὡς ἐπιθανατίους, καὶ τὸ Οτι θέατρον ἐγενήθημεν τῷ κόσμῳ. τοιοῦτον καὶ τὸ τοῖς ἁμαρτωλοῖς εἰρημένον ὑπὸ θεοῦ Καὶ εσται ̔Ιεζεκιὴλ εἰς τέρας, ὡς αὐτός φησιν ὁ προφήτης διὰ τὰ συμβολικῶς μάλιστα γινόμενα παρ' αὐτοῦ οιον τὸ ἐπὶ τοσάσδε καταθεῖναι τοῦτον ἡμέρας ἐπὶ πλευροῦ δεξιοῦ καὶ τόσας πάλιν ἐπὶ εὐωνύμου καὶ τῶν τριχῶν τοῦ σώματος ξύρησιν. Εἰ δὲ καὶ ταῦτα ἐπὶ τὸν σωτῆρα ἀναφέρεται δόξαντα τοῖς πολλοῖς ὡσεὶ τέρας γεγονέναι διὰ τὸν σταυρόν,