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He struck Nob, the city of the priests, with the edge of the sword, from man to woman, from infant to suckling, and calf and donkey and sheep. When David learned, therefore, that these things had been done in this way, he offers the present words, containing neither an ode, nor a hymn, nor anything else of the kind. For how was it possible, in the face of the misfortune of so many priests, to sing their odes and psalms? Therefore, nothing of the sort is inscribed; but only "to the end" is said, and "of understanding"; since the last parts of the words announce good things, in which he says: "But I am like a fruitful olive tree," and so forth. And the meaning of the words contained herein requires the understanding that comes from God. Therefore, when he came to Abimelech and tasted the priestly food, having changed his taste or his manner, according to the interpretation of the others; he sent up blessings and thanksgivings to God, saying: "I will bless the Lord at all times, his praise shall be continually in my mouth," and so forth. But now, when he knew of the deed of the slanderer Doeg, and how he had killed so many priests, having employed a diabolical deed, he composes the present words as if to him, saying: "Why do you boast in evil, O mighty one? Your tongue devised lawlessness all the day, and injustice." And the matters at hand were spoken much earlier in time than the history of the 50th psalm. For while Saul was still living, and before David became king, it was both done and said. But a long time later, after the death of Saul, and toward the end of his own reign, David makes the confession in the 50th, which he placed before due to the sequence with the 49th psalm, as has indeed also been demonstrated. But the twenty from the 51st, inscribed to David, up to the 70th, have taken their subject from another beginning; at any rate, they seem to have been spoken while Saul was still alive, before David became king. For the one at hand was spoken while Saul was still living, "When Doeg the Edomite came and told Saul that David had come to the house of Abimelech." But also the 53rd: "When the Ziphites came and said to Saul: 'Is not David hidden among us?'" was spoken. And the 55th: "When the Philistines seized him in Gath," is inscribed; and this was also the time before the reign of David, while Saul was still alive, and the 56th is inscribed: "For David, when he fled from the face of Saul into the cave." Likewise also the 58th: "When," it says, "Saul sent, and guarded his house, to kill him." Moreover, the 59th, even if it was spoken after the death of Saul, 23.445 when David was already reigning, yet it too was before the affair concerning Uriah; which is indeed indicated by the inscription, which reveals the time, saying: "When he burned Mesopotamia of Syria, and Syria of Soba, and Joab returned and struck the valley of Salt, twelve thousand." But these things in time precede the confession in the 50th psalm. Furthermore, the 62nd psalm was also spoken by David when he was in the wilderness of Idumea, while Saul was still alive. And see how almost the majority of the second part of the book of the psalms of David, except for the 50th, have included those spoken by him long ago before the time of the affair concerning Uriah. Moreover, the first part of the same book from the first and up to the 40th had the opposite order; for that part contained those after the confession of the 50th. For instance, the third psalm was spoken by David, when he fled from the face of Absalom his son. And he fled from his son after the story of Uriah. But also in the 6th he lamented on account of the same affair, saying: "I am weary with my groaning; every night I will wash my bed; I will water my couch with my tears." And the 7th also: "Spoken concerning the words of Cush, a Benjamite," would be of the same times. For Cush, having become a chief companion of David, to the

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Νοβὰν πόλιν τῶν ἱερέων ἐπάταξεν ἐν στόματι ῥομφαίας ἀπὸ ἀνδρὸς ἕως γυναικὸς, ἀπὸ νηπίου ἕως θηλάζοντος, καὶ μόσχου καὶ ὄνου καὶ προβάτου. Ταῦτ' οὖν μαθὼν ∆αυῒδ τοῦτον πεπραγμένα τὸν τρόπον, τοὺς προκειμένους προσφέρεται λόγους, οὔτε ᾠδὴν περιέχοντας, οὔτε ὕμνον, οὔτε ἄλλο τοιοῦτον. Πῶς γὰρ καὶ οἷόν τε ἦν ἐπὶ συμφορᾷ τοσούτων ἱερέων, ᾠδὰς αὐτῶν καὶ ψαλμοὺς ᾄδειν; διὸ οὐδὲν τοιοῦτον ἐπιγέγραπται· μόνον δὲ εἰς τὸ τέλος εἴρηται καὶ συνέσεως· ἐπειδὴ τὰ τελευταῖα τῶν λόγων ἀγαθῶν ἐστιν ἀπαγγελτικὰ ἐν οἷς φησιν· Ἐγὼ δὲ ὡσεὶ ἐλαία κατάκαρπος, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Καὶ συνέσεως δὲ τῆς ἐκ Θεοῦ δεῖται ἡ τῶν ἐμφερομένων λόγων διάνοια. Ὅτε μὲν οὖν παρὰ τῷ Ἀβιμέλεχ γενόμενος, τῆς ἱερατικῆς ἀπεγεύσατο τροφῆς, ἀλλοιώσας τὴν γεῦσιν αὐτοῦ ἢ τὸν τρόπον αὐτοῦ κατὰ τὴν τῶν λοιπῶν ἑρμηνείαν· εὐλογίας καὶ εὐχαριστίας ἀνέπεμπεν τῷ Θεῷ λέγων· Εὐλογήσω τὸν Κύριον ἐν παντὶ καιρῷ, διαπαντὸς ἡ αἴνεσις αὐτοῦ ἐν τῷ στόματί μου, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Νυνὶ δὲ, ὅτε τοῦ διαβόλου ∆ωὴκ τὴν πρᾶξιν ἔγνω, καὶ ὡς τοσούτους ἀνεῖλεν ἱερεῖς, ἔργῳ διαβολικῷ χρησάμενος, ὡς πρὸς αὐτὸν συντάττει τοὺς προκειμένους λόγους φάσκων· Τί ἐγκαυχᾷ ἐν κακίᾳ, ὁ δυνατός; ἀνομίαν ὅλην τὴν ἡμέραν, καὶ ἀδικίαν ἐλογίσατο ἡ γλῶσσά σου. Καὶ λέλεκται μὲν τὰ μετὰ χεῖρας πολὺ πρότερον τοῖς χρόνοις τῆς ἱστορίας τοῦ νʹ ψαλμοῦ. Ἔτι γὰρ ζῶντος τοῦ Σαοὺλ, καὶ πρὸ τοῦ βασιλεῦσαι τὸν ∆αυῒδ, καὶ πέπρακτο καὶ εἴρητο. Μακροῖς δὲ ὕστερον χρόνοις, μετὰ τὸν θάνατον Σαοὺλ, καὶ πρὸς τοῖς τελευταίοις τῆς αὐτοῦ βασιλείας, ὁ ∆αυῒδ τὴν ἐν τῷ νʹ ποιεῖται ἐξομολόγησιν, ἣν προὔταξε διὰ τὴν πρὸς τὸν μθʹ ψαλμὸν ἀκολουθίαν, ὥσπερ οὖν καὶ ἀποδέδεικται. Οἱ δ' ἀπὸ τοῦ αʹ καὶ νʹ τὸν ἀριθμὸν εἴκοσι, τοῦ ∆αυῒδ ἐπιγεγραμμένοι, μέχρι τοῦ οʹ ἐξ ἑτέρας ἀρχῆς τὴν ὑπόθεσιν εἰλήφασιν· ἐοίκασι γοῦν ἔτι ζῶντος Σαοὺλ εἰρῆσθαι, πρὶν ἢ βασιλεῦσαι τὸν ∆αυΐδ. Ὅ τε γὰρ μετὰ χεῖρας ἔτι ζῶντος Σαοὺλ ἐλέχθη, Ἐν τῷ ἐλθεῖν ∆ωὴκ τὸν Ἰδουμαῖον καὶ ἀναγγεῖλαι τῷ Σαοὺλ, ὅτι ἦλθε ∆αυῒδ εἰς τὸν οἶκον Ἀβιμέλεχ. Ἀλλὰ καὶ ὁ νγʹ·Ἐν τῷ ἐλθεῖν τοὺς Ζιφαίους, καὶ εἰπεῖν τῷ Σαούλ· Οὐχὶ ἰδοὺ ∆αυῒδ κέκρυπται παρ' ἡμῖν; εἴρητο. Καὶ ὁ εʹ δὲ καὶ νʹ· Ὅτε ἐκράτησαν αὐτὸν οἱ Ἀλλόφυλοι ἐν Γὲθ, ἐπιγέγραπται· ἦν δὲ καὶ οὗτος ὁ χρόνος ὁ πρὸ τῆς βασιλείας τοῦ ∆αυῒδ, ἔτι τοῦ Σαοὺλ περιόντος τῷ βίῳ, καὶ ὁ νʹ ἐπιγράφει· Τῷ ∆αυῒδ, ἐν τῷ αὐτὸν ἀποδιδράσκειν ἀπὸ προσώπου Σαοὺλ εἰς τὸ σπήλαιον. Ὡσαύτως καὶ ὁ νηʹ· Ὁπότε, φησὶν, ἀπέστειλε Σαοὺλ, καὶ ἐφύλαξε τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ, τοῦ θανατῶσαι αὐτόν. Ὅ γε μὴν νθʹ, εἰ καὶ μετὰ τὸν θάνατον Σαοὺλ εἴρητο, 23.445 ἤδη βασιλεύοντος τοῦ ∆αυῒδ, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὸς πρὸ τῆς κατὰ τὸν Οὐρίαν πράξεως· ὃ δὴ σημαίνεται ἀπὸ τῆς προγραφῆς, ἥτις δηλοῖ τὸν χρόνον φάσκουσα· Ὁπότε ἐνεπύρισε τὴν Μεσοποταμίαν Συρίας, καὶ τὴν Συρίαν Σωβᾶ, καὶ ἀπέστρεψεν Ἰωὰβ καὶ ἐπάταξε τὴν φάραγγα τῶν Ἁλῶν, δώδεκα χιλιάδας. Ταῦτα δὲ τοῖς χρόνοις προάγει τὴν ἐν τῷ νʹ ψαλμῷ ἐξομολόγησιν. Ἔτι μὴν καὶ ὁ ξβʹ ψαλμὸς ἐλέχθη τῷ ∆αυῒδ ἐν τῷ εἶναι αὐτὸν ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ τῆς Ἰδουμαίας, ζῶντος ἔτι τοῦ Σαούλ. Καὶ θέα ὅπως σχεδὸν οἱ πλεῖστοι τοῦ δευτέρου μέρους τῆς βίβλου τῶν ψαλμῶν τοῦ ∆αυῒδ, παρεκτὸς τοῦ νʹ, τοὺς πρόπαλαι εἰρημένους αὐτῷ πρὸ τῶν χρόνων τῆς κατὰ τὸν Οὐρίαν πράξεως περιειλήφασι. Τό γε μὴν πρῶτον μέρος τῆς αὐτῆς βίβλου τὸ ἀπὸ πρώτου καὶ μέχρι μʹ τὴν ἐναντίαν εἶχε τάξιν· τοὺς γὰρ μετὰ τὴν ἐξομολόγησιν τοῦ νʹ ἐκεῖνο περιεῖχε τὸ μέρος. Ὁ γοῦν τρίτος ψαλμὸς λέλεκτο τῷ ∆αυῒδ, ὁπότε ἀπεδίδρασκεν ἀπὸ προσώπου Ἀβεσσαλὼμ τοῦ υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ. Ἔφευγε δὲ τὸν υἱὸν μετὰ τὴν ἱστορίαν τοῦ Οὐρίου. Ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν τῷ ʹ τῆς αὐτῆς ἕνεκα πράξεως ἀπεκλάετο λέγων· Ἐκοπίασα ἐν τῷ στεναγμῷ μου, λούσω καθ' ἑκάστην νύκτα τὴν κλίνην μου, ἐν δάκρυσί μου τὴν στρωμνήν μου βρέξω. Καὶ ὁ ζʹ δέ· Ὑπὲρ τῶν λόγων Χουσὶ υἱοῦ Ἰεμινεὶ λελεγμένος, τῶν αὐτῶν εἴη ἂν χρόνων. Χουσὶ γὰρ ἀρχιεταῖρος γεγονὼς τοῦ ∆αυῒδ, τῷ