148

happen to be impassable; but we shall understand the rivers that surround the aforesaid city from the first and great perfect river, of which “the streams make glad the city of God,” to be the Word, proportionally. And “his angels who always see the face of the Father who is in heaven” would be the rivers who guard his church, but after saying so much about the city of God, the Word changes and addresses the old one. And it says: Your ropes were broken, because it was not strong; your mast has leaned to slacken the sails; it will not raise a sign, until I hand it over for plunder. And through these things it signifies the fall of the physical Jerusalem, whose ropes were broken and whose mast, as of a ship breaking up in storms and waves, leaned and fell when the ropes holding it were rent apart, but according to Symmachus: he says, Your ropes were cast off so as not to hold; so was their mast that it might not spread a sail. Then we distributed spoils of many; for just as when a ship has broken up and suffered shipwreck in a naval battle against enemies, the victors plunder for themselves the spoils of the lost and take everything as booty. So, he says, when Jerusalem was broken up and handed over to the enemies, all the precious and revered and priestly vessels in it were given for plunder, since God had handed it over; for the enemies were not so strong in their own power as to conquer it. Indeed, some lame men were the ones who had taken the plunder, limping and halting on the foundations of the soul so as not to walk the path of piety; for these were idolaters who without toil and without labor took the city that had suffered shipwreck. Wherefore it is said: Now many lame men will take plunder, and the people dwelling among them will not say, I am weary; for their sin was forgiven them; for sin was not counted against them for besieging the city, because they had done this by the judgment of God. 2.7 And if anywhere in the preceding parts the Word prophesied the siege of Jerusalem, it next brought on the judgment against all the nations, for as it is said in other places: “Begin from my holy ones.” Thus also in the present case, having foretold the plunder of Jerusalem and its fall, it joins to it the judgment against all the nations; for surely the Word did not threaten these things to Jerusalem alone, and not also to the other nations that remained in their own lawless and impious deeds. Therefore, the Word calls upon the nations with their rulers and peoples, and all the earth and all those in it, and again in particular the inhabited world, with 'earth' being understood, as one might say, of the whole dry element and those in it who dwell in the deserts and in places unknown to most, certain uncivilized and savage people, and 'inhabited world' referring to our nations who make their dwellings in cities and buildings; which is why it also names 'a people' in the case of the inhabited world. Then a proclamation is brought to all together, testifying to the universal judgment of God that awaits everyone, which it presents, saying: because the indignation of the Lord is upon all the nations, and his wrath is upon their number, or according to Symmachus: upon all their power, and according to Aquila: upon all their host, to destroy them and to deliver them to the slaughter. But to whom to deliver them, if not to the chastising or avenging powers? And of these who are being punished, some will be wounded, others dead, clearly those who have “sinned unto death,” whose deeds accomplished during their mortal life give off a stench at the time of judgment. Wherefore according to Symmachus it is said: and their stench will arise, and instead of: the mountains will be drenched with their blood, according to Theodotion it is said, the mountains will be melted with their blood. And what these are, Aquila next adds: and all will be melted

148

ἀδιάβατοι τυγχάνουσι· νοήσομεν δὲ τοὺς ποταμοὺς τοὺς περιφράττοντας τὴν εἰρημένην πόλιν ἀπὸ τοῦ πρώτου καὶ μεγάλου τελείου ποταμοῦ, οὗ «τὰ ὁρμήματα εὐφραίνουσι τὴν πόλιν τοῦ θεοῦ», λόγος τυγχάνει ἀναλόγως. καὶ «οἱ ἄγγελοι αὐτοῦ οἱ διὰ παντὸς βλέποντες τὸ πρόσωπον τοῦ πατρὸς τοῦ ἐν οὐρανοῖς» εἶεν ἂν οἱ ποταμοὶ οἱ τὴν ἐκκλησίαν αὐτοῦ φρουροῦντες, ἀλλὰ γὰρ τοσαῦτα εἰπὼν ὁ λόγος περὶ τῆς τοῦ θεοῦ πόλεως μεταβαλὼν ὡς πρὸς τὴν παλαιὰν ἀποτείνεται. Καί φησιν· ἐρράγησαν τὰ σχοινία σου, ὅτι οὐκ ἐνίσχυσεν· ὁ ἱστός σου ἔκλινε τοῦ χαλάσαι τὰ ἱστία· οὐκ ἀρεῖ σημεῖον, ἕως οὗ παραδῶ εἰς προνομήν. σημαίνει δὲ διὰ τούτων τὴν πτῶσιν τῆς σωματικῆς Ἰερουσαλήμ, ἧς ἐρράγη τὰ σχοινία καὶ ὁ ἱστὸς δὲ αὐτῆς ὡσπερεί τινος νηὸς ἐν χειμῶσι καὶ κλύδωσι διαπεσούσης ἐκλίθη πίπτων διασπασθέντων τῶν διακρατούντων αὐτὸν σχοινίων, κατὰ δὲ τὸν Σύμμαχον· ἐξερρίφη τὰ σχοινία σοῦ φησιν ὥστε μὴ κρατεῖν· οὕτως ὁ ἱστὸς αὐτῶν ὥστε μὴ ἁπλῶσαι ἱστίον. τότε διένειμεν ἕως σκύλων πολλῶν· ὡς γὰρ διαπεσόντος πλοίου καὶ ναυάγιον πεπονθότος ἐν ναυμαχίᾳ πολεμίων οἱ κεκρατηκότες διαρπάζουσιν ἑαυτοῖς τὰ τῶν ἀπολωλότων σκῦλα καὶ προνομὴν ποιοῦνται πάντων. οὕτω φησὶ διαπεσούσης τῆς Ἰερουσαλὴμ καὶ παραδοθείσης τοῖς πολεμίοις τὰ ἐν αὐτῇ πάντα τίμια καὶ σεμνὰ καὶ ἱερατικὰ σκεύη εἰς προνομὴν διεδόθη τοῦ θεοῦ παραδεδωκότος αὐτήν· οὐ γὰρ ἰδίᾳ δυνάμει τοσοῦτον ἴσχυον οἱ πολέμιοι ὡς κρατῆσαι αὐτῆς. αὐτίκα γοῦν χωλοί τινες ἦσαν οἱ τὴν προνομὴν πεποιημένοι, σκάζοντες καὶ χωλεύοντες τὰς τῆς ψυχῆς βάσεις ὡς μὴ βαδίζειν τὴν ὁδὸν τῆς θεοσεβείας· εἰδωλολάτραι γοῦν ἦσαν οὗτοι οἱ ἀκοπιάστως καὶ ἀπονητὶ ἑλόντες τὴν ναυάγιον πεπονθυῖαν πόλιν. διὸ εἴρηται· νῦν πολλοὶ χωλοὶ προνομὴν ποιήσουσι καὶ οὐ μὴ εἴπωσι Κοπιῶ ὁ λαὸς ὁ οἰκῶν ἐν αὐτοῖς· ἀφείθη γὰρ αὐτοῖς ἡ ἁμαρτία· οὐ γὰρ λελόγισται αὐτοῖς ἁμαρτία πολιορκήσασι πόλιν διὰ τὸ θεοῦ κρίσει τοῦτο πεποιηκέναι. 2.7 Καὶ διὰ τῶν ἔμπροσθεν εἴ που τῆς Ἰερουσαλὴμ πολιορκίαν ὁ λόγος ἐθέσπιζεν, ἑξῆς ἐπῆγε τὴν κατὰ πάντων τῶν ἐθνῶν κρίσιν, ὡς γὰρ εἴρηται ἐν ἑτέροις· «ἀπὸ τῶν ἁγίων μου ἄρξασθε». οὕτω καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ παρόντος τὴν προνομὴν τῆς Ἰερουσαλὴμ καὶ τὴν πτῶσιν αὐτῆς προειπὼν τὴν κατὰ πάντων τῶν ἐθνῶν συνάπτει κρίσιν· οὐ γὰρ δήπου ταῦτα μὲν τῇ Ἰερουσαλὴμ ὁ λόγος ἠπείλει, οὐχὶ δὲ καὶ τοῖς λοιποῖς ἔθνεσι τοῖς ἐναπομείνασι ταῖς ἑαυτῶν ἀθεμίτοις καὶ ἀσεβέσι πράξεσι. διὸ δὴ ἀνακαλεῖται ὁ λόγος τὰ ἔθνη αὐτοῖς ἄρχουσι καὶ τοῖς λαοῖς, σύμπασάν τε τὴν γῆν καὶ τοὺς ἐν αὐτῇ πάντας καὶ αὖ πάλιν ἰδίως τὴν οἰκουμένην γῆς νοουμένης, ὡς ἂν εἴποι τις τοῦ παντὸς τῆς ξηρᾶς στοιχείου καὶ τῶν ἐν αὐτῷ κατὰ τὰς ἐρήμους καὶ τοὺς ἀγνώστους τοῖς πολλοῖς τόπους οἰκούντων ἀνημέρων τινῶν καὶ ἀπηγριωμένων ἀνθρώπων, τῆς δὲ οἰκουμένης τῆς τῶν ἡμετέρων ἐθνῶν ἐν πόλεσι καὶ οἰκοδομήμασι τὰς οἰκήσεις ποιουμένων· διὸ καὶ λαὸν ἐπὶ τῆς οἰκουμένης ὀνομάζει. Εἶτα τοῖς πᾶσιν ὁμοῦ κήρυγμα ἐμφέρεται μαρτυρόμενον τὴν περιμένουσαν ἅπαντας καθολικὴν τοῦ θεοῦ κρίσιν, ἣν παριστάς φησι· διότι θυμὸς κυρίου ἐπὶ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη καὶ ὀργὴ ἐπὶ τὸν ἀριθμὸν αὐτῶν, ἢ κατὰ τὸν Σύμμαχον· ἐπὶ πᾶσαν τὴν δύναμιν αὐτῶν, κατὰ δὲ τὸν Ἀκύλαν· ἐπὶ πᾶσαν τὴν στρατιὰν αὐτῶν, τοῦ ἀπολέσαι αὐτοὺς καὶ παραδοῦναι αὐτοὺς εἰς σφαγήν. τίσι δὲ παραδοῦναι αὐτοὺς ἢ ταῖς κολαστικαῖς ἢ τιμωρητικαῖς δυνάμεσι; Τούτων δὲ τῶν κολαζομένων οἱ μὲν τραυματίαι ἔσονται, οἱ δὲ νεκροί, δηλαδὴ οἱ τὰ «πρὸς θάνατον ἡμαρτηκότες», ὧν αἱ πράξεις αἱ κατὰ τὸν θνητὸν βίον συντελεσθεῖσαι κατὰ τὸν τῆς κρίσεως καιρὸν δυσωδίας ἀποπνέουσι. διὸ κατὰ τὸν Σύμμαχον εἴρηται· καὶ ἀναβήσεται αὐτῶν ἡ δυσωδία, ἀντὶ δὲ τοῦ· βραχήσεται τὰ ὄρη ἀπὸ τοῦ αἵματος αὐτῶν, κατὰ τὸν Θεοδοτίωνα ἐκτακήσονται τὰ ὄρη ἀπὸ τοῦ αἵματος αὐτῶν εἴρηται. τίνα δὲ ταῦτα, ἐπιλέγει ἑξῆς ὁ μὲν Ἀκύλας· καὶ τακήσονται πᾶσα