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of the Lord; and indeed he made his son pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the nations, and he sacrificed and burned incense in the high places. This man also sent gold and silver from the treasures of the house of the Lord to the king of the Assyrians, in which things his impiety concerning the sacred money is not a little accused. Therefore, when the wicked dynasty had fallen, the word against the foreigners comes to be. The Philistines are specifically called foreigners, whom the Greeks name Palestinians. 14.288 But it must be known that also in the life of each of us, whenever the sin reigning in our mortal body dies, then the word of the Lord comes to be in us. For perhaps each sin has some analogy to each of the kings accused and generally censured in the Scriptures, whose names are revealed in many places throughout all of Scripture; as even now Ahaz is interpreted as "possession," being a symbol of a wicked dogma that has preoccupied and possesses our soul; upon whose death, our soul, having been freed from what possesses it, is made capable to contemplate the word against the foreigners. Therefore, the plain sense is this: Do not rejoice, all you foreigners, for the yoke of him who struck you has been broken. Do not think, O Philistines, that, upon the death of Ahaz, you will become free from the fear that hangs over you from Israel; so do not rejoice at the fall of the king. For even if the yoke was broken, that is, the servitude imposed on you by those who trample you and scourge you through their dynasty, nevertheless from the seed of serpents will come forth the offspring of asps. (He signifies the succession of Ahaz); that if this one had the bitterness of a serpent and for this reason you rejoice at his death, against you from the seed of this serpent will arise the offspring of asps; and again their offspring will come forth. From this the word sets forth the bitterness of the succession of the subsequent kings. For there will be (he says) flying asps, having both the venom of reptiles and the speed of birds. Then (since the sequence of the genealogy leads to the Lord) the word, interrupting the continuous narrative, passes to a good promise. For (he says) the poor will be fed through him. Who is it who feeds the poor, if not the shepherd of the sheep? But by poor he does not mean those lacking in money, but those who are humbled in mind. And these poor, who are called blessed by him (the Lord, for "Blessed," he says, "are the poor in spirit"), shall rest in peace, but he will destroy your seed with famine. The seed of the foreigners will be destroyed by famine and their remnant will be done away with. 14.289 Those who are nourished by wicked words (for the benefit of their souls) are given over to famine. For the lack of a teacher who supplies them for evil becomes an occasion for the well-being and salvation of their souls. It is possible to understand the meaning of the saying thus: Let no one rejoice who breaks the yoke laid upon him, that was placed there by the one who strikes him; for often the blow from the word, and the rebuke from it, which scourges and punishes the conscience of the one who has sinned for his transgressions, becomes for someone (already called to the salvation that is in Christ) a pretext for breaking the yoke of Christ. For if someone cannot bear the pain from the rebuke and the reproof, becoming rebellious like a horse and a mule, and freeing himself from God but enslaving himself to sin, he is unworthy of the joy that is in God. It is much better, therefore, to endure a disciplinary word, than to become indignant and break the yoke of the one striking him. However, those who did not break it, but endured the disciplinary visitation, those who are called poor because of the humility of their heart, will be fed through him. For the end of good discipline is a promised pasture, concerning which the Savior says, that "He will go in and go out and find pasture." And the Prophet also says, that "In a rich pasture"

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Κυρίου· καί γε υἱὸν αὐτοῦ διῆγεν ἐν πυρὶ, κατὰ τὰ βδελύγματα τῶν ἐθνῶν, καὶ ἐθυσίαζε καὶ ἐθυμία ἐν τοῖς ὑψηλοῖς. Οὗτος δὲ καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν θησαυρῶν τοῦ οἴκου Κυρίου χρυσίον καὶ ἀργύριον ἀπέσ τειλε τῷ βασιλεῖ τῶν Ἀσσυρίων, ἐν οἷς οὐ μικρὰ αὐτοῦ κατηγορεῖται ἡ ἀσέβεια περὶ τὰ ἱερὰ χρήματα. Πεσούσης οὖν τῆς πονηρᾶς δυναστείας, γίνεται τὸ κατὰ τῶν ἀλλοφύλων ῥῆμα. Ἀλλόφυλοι δὲ ἰδίως οἱ Φυλιστιαῖοι λέγονται, οὓς Παλαιστινοὺς Ἕλληνες ὀνομάζουσιν. 14.288 Ἰστέον δὲ, ὅτι καὶ ἐν τῇ ἑκάστου ἡμῶν ζωῇ, ἐπει δὰν ἡ βασιλεύουσα ἐν τῷ θνητῷ ἡμῶν σώματι ἁμαρτία ἀποθάνῃ, τότε γίνεται ὁ λόγος τοῦ Κυρίου ἐν ἡμῖν. Τάχα γὰρ ἑκάστη ἁμαρτία πρὸς ἕκαστον τῶν ἐν ταῖς Γραφαῖς κατηγορουμένων καὶ ὅλως ψεκτῶν βασιλέων ἀναλογίαν τινὰ ἔχει, ὧν πολλαχοῦ τὰ ὀνόματα δι' ὅλης τῆς Γραφῆς δηλοῦται· ὡς καὶ νῦν ἑρμηνεύεται ὁ Ἀχὰζ κατάσχεσις, σύμβολον ὢν προκαταλαβόντος καὶ κατέχοντος τὴν ψυχὴν ἡμῶν δόγματος πονηροῦ· οὗ ἀποθανόντος, ἡ ψυχὴ ἡμῶν, ἐλευθερωθεῖσα ἀπὸ τοῦ κατέχοντος, ἱκανοῦται πρὸς τὸ θεωρῆσαι τὸ κατὰ τῶν ἀλλοφύλων ῥῆμα. Ὁ μὲν οὖν πρόχειρος νοῦς οὗτός ἐστι· Μὴ εὐφραίνεσθε, πάντες ἀλλόφυλοι, συνετρίβη γὰρ ὁ ζυγὸς τοῦ παίοντος ὑμᾶς. Μὴ νομίσητε, ὦ Φυλιστιαῖοι, ὅτι, ἀποθανόντος τοῦ Ἀχὰζ, ἐλεύθεροι γενήσεσθε τοῦ ἐπικειμένου ὑμῖν φόβου ἀπὸ τοῦ Ἰσραήλ· ὥστε μὴ εὐφραίνεσθε ἐπὶ τῷ πτώματι τοῦ βασι λέως. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ συνετρίβη ὁ ζυγὸς, τουτέστιν ἡ δουλεία, ἡ ἐπικειμένη ὑμῖν παρὰ τῶν καταπατούντων ὑμᾶς καὶ μαστι γούντων διὰ τῆς δυναστείας, ἀλλ' ὅμως ἐκ σπέρματος ὄφεων ἐξελεύσεται ἔκγονα ἀσπίδων. (Τὴν διαδοχὴν τοῦ Ἀχὰζ ση μαίνει)· ὅτι Εἰ ὄφεως οὗτος εἶχε πικρίαν καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἐπιχαίρετε αὐτοῦ τῷ θανάτῳ, ἀναστήσεται ἐφ' ὑμᾶς ἐκ τοῦ σπέρματος τοῦ ὄφεως τούτου ἔκγονα ἀσπίδων· καὶ πάλιν τὰ ἐκείνων ἔκγονα ἐξελεύσεται. Τὸ πικρὸν τῆς διαδοχῆς τῶν ἐφεξῆς βασιλευόντων ὁ λόγος ἐκ τούτου παρίστησιν. Ἀσπίδες γὰρ ἔσονται (φησὶ) πετόμεναι, καὶ τὸ ἰοβόλον τῶν ἑρπετῶν ἔχουσαι καὶ τὸ ταχὺ τῶν πτηνῶν. Εἶτα (ἐπειδὴ ἡ ἀκολουθία τῆς γενεα λογίας ἐπὶ τὸν Κύριον φέρει) διακόψας ὁ λόγος τὸ συνεχὲς, μεταβαίνει ἐπ' ἀγαθὴν ἐπαγγελίαν. Βοσκηθήσονται γὰρ (φησὶ) πτωχοὶ δι' αὐτοῦ. Τίς ἐστιν ὁ βόσκων πτωχοὺς, ἢ ὁ ποι μὴν τῶν προβάτων; Πτωχοὺς δὲ οὐ τοὺς κατὰ χρήματα ἐνδεεῖς λέγει, ἀλλὰ τοὺς τῇ διανοίᾳ ἠλαττωμένους. Οὗτοι δὲ οἱ πτωχοὶ, οἱ παρ' αὐτοῦ μακαριζόμενοι (τοῦ Κυρίου Μακάριοι γὰρ, φησὶν, οἱ πτωχοὶ τῷ πνεύματι) Ἐπ' εἰρήνης ἀναπαύσονται, ἀνελεῖ δὲ λιμῷ τὸ σπέρμα σου. Τῶν ἀλλοφύλων τὸ σπέρμα λιμῷ διαφθαρήσεται καὶ τὸ κατά λειμμα αὐτῶν ἀναιρεθήσεται. 14.289 Οἱ ὑπὸ πονηρῶν τρεφόμενοι λόγων (ἐπ' ὠφελείᾳ τῶν ψυχῶν) λιμῷ παραδίδονται. Ἡ γὰρ ἔνδεια τοῦ πρὸς τὸ κακὸν ἐφοδιάζοντος αὐτοὺς διδασκάλου ἀφορμὴ πρὸς εὐεξίαν τῶν ψυχῶν καὶ σωτηρίαν γίνεται. Οὕτω δὲ ἐκλαβεῖν τὴν ἔν νοιαν τοῦ ῥητοῦ δυνατόν· Μὴ εὐφραίνοιτο μηδεὶς ὁ συντρί βων τὸν ἐπικείμενον αὐτῷ ζυγὸν, τὸν ἐπιτεθέντα παρὰ τοῦ παίοντος αὐτόν· πολλάκις γὰρ πρόφασις γίνεταί τινι πρὸς τὸ συντρίβειν τὸν τοῦ Χριστοῦ ζυγὸν (ἤδη κληθέντι ἐπὶ τὴν σωτηρίαν τὴν ἐν Χριστῷ) ἡ ἀπὸ τοῦ λόγου πληγὴ, καὶ ὁ ἀπ' αὐτοῦ ἔλεγχος, μαστίζων καὶ κολάζων ἐπὶ τοῖς ἡμαρ τημένοις τὴν τοῦ ἐπταικότος συνείδησιν. Μὴ φέρων γάρ τις τὸν ἀπὸ τοῦ ἐλέγχου καὶ τῆς ἐπιπλήξεως πόνον, ἀφηνιαστὴς, τρόπον ἵππου καὶ ἡμιόνου, γενόμενος, καὶ ἐλευθερῶν μὲν ἑαυτὸν ἀπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ, δουλῶν δὲ τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ, ἀνάξιός ἐστι τῆς ἐν Θεῷ εὐφροσύνης. Πολλῷ οὖν βέλτιον, ἀνέχεσθαι λόγου παιδευτικοῦ, ἢ δυσ ανασχετοῦντα συντρίβειν τὸν ζυγὸν τοῦ παίοντος αὐτόν. Οἱ μέντοι μὴ συντρίψαντες, ἀλλ' ὑπομείναντες τὴν παιδευτικὴν ἐπίσκεψιν, οἱ διὰ τὴν ταπείνωσιν τῆς καρδίας καὶ πτωχοὶ χρηματίζοντες, βοσκηθήσονται δι' αὐτοῦ. Τέλος γὰρ ἀγαθῆς παιδεύσεως νομή ἐστιν ἐπηγγελμένη, περὶ ἧς φησιν ὁ Σωτὴρ, ὅτι Εἰσελεύσεται καὶ ἐξελεύσεται καὶ νομὴν εὑρήσει. Καὶ ὁ Προφήτης δέ φησιν, ὅτι Ἐν νομῇ πίονι