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he commanded separations and purifications and washings and tithings and purities and various days of rest, for disobedience of which he set a penalty, so that being pressed 1.420 and choked by the yoke they might be removed from the error of polytheism. Therefore, on account of their hardness of heart he bound them, so that by sacrificing and resting and purifying themselves and observing such things, they might come to the thought of the God who had commanded these things to them and legislated, they who, by the wickedness of their way and their ungrateful mind, did not cease from above and from the beginning until the end to forget God, and being turned aside, they worshiped creation instead of the creator, and at one time, as has been said, making a calf, at another time worshiping Baal-peor, at other times Baal and Chemosh and the Sidonian Astarte and Moloch, and at times the sun and the moon and the stars, which God made for light for men and not for worship; and at other times they also honored irrational animals, as among the Egyptians the Apis bull and the Mendesian goat, and gods of silver and gold, as in Judaea. Therefore God, openly threatening them, said through the prophet: ‘Is this a small thing for the house of Judah, to do these abominations which they have done? For they have filled the land with iniquity to provoke me to anger.’ Therefore, they were rightly destroyed for provoking God to anger and defiling that holy land from the beginning until this final and last capture under Vespasian and Titus. For though various ones took and destroyed it, says Theodoret, they restored it again to its former dignity and form; but now no longer. For first Tiglath-pileser took the greater part of the ten tribes captive by the spear, and second Sha- 1.421 -lmaneser enslaved Samaria and the cities around it, and third Sennacherib besieged the other cities of Judaea and relocated many captives, but having marched against Jerusalem boastfully and impiously, he justly received the wages of his blasphemy; having lost his army by a divinely-sent plague, and having withdrawn with shame, he is slain by his own children. And after him Nebuchadnezzar, in the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, having arrived in Judaea with a force, and having taken many talents of gold and silver and many captives from the royal family and a part of the holy vessels, returned, imposing a tribute. And after a short time, Jehoiakim set aside the tribute, and Nebuchadnezzar in the eleventh year of his reign, and the eighth of his own rule, again marches against Jerusalem, and having killed Jehoiakim and ordered him to be thrown from the wall, he left him unburied for some time, concerning whom Jeremiah also says: ‘Thus says the Lord concerning Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah: Woe upon this man. They shall not lament for him, saying, ‘Alas, my brother!’ nor shall they weep for him, saying, ‘Alas, Lord!’ and ‘Alas, brother!’ But he shall be buried with the burial of a donkey, and being dragged along he shall be cast beyond the gate of Jerusalem,’ and taking all those in authority captive, and having appointed Jeconiah son of Eliakim as king for those left behind, he departed for Babylon. Then, having learned that this one also had rebelled 1.422 after three months, he comes again, and fettering him, he leads him away as a captive of the spear with many younger men, having established in his place to reign over the remainder Zedekiah his paternal uncle, binding him with oaths in the name of God that he would not revolt. But when this one also broke the oaths and was unwilling to pay the tribute, nor indeed kept good faith but fled to the Egyptians, he came again, and having captured Zedekiah and blinded him, and having taken the city with all its inhabitants, and having burned the palace and the divine temple and every house, he led away as captives those who had been saved from the famine and the war and the precious vessels of the temple of the Lord. Joel, therefore, narrating the multitude of their misfortunes, first then

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ἀφορισμοὺς προσέταξε καὶ καθα ρισμοὺς καὶ βαπτισμοὺς καὶ δεκατισμοὺς καὶ ἁγνείας καὶ ἀργίας διαφόρους, ὧν παρακούοντι τιμωρίαν ὡρίσατο, ἵνα πιεζόμενοι 1.420 καὶ ὑπὸ τοῦ κλοιοῦ ἀγχόμενοι τῆς πολυθέου πλάνης ἐκστήσονται. οὐκοῦν διὰ τὴν σκληροκαρδίαν αὐτῶν ἐπέδησεν αὐτούς, ὅπως διὰ τοῦ θύειν καὶ ἀργεῖν καὶ ἁγνίζεσθαι καὶ τὰ τοιάδε παρατηρεῖσθαι εἰς ἔννοιαν ἔρχωνται θεοῦ τοῦ ταῦτα διαταξαμένου αὐτοῖς καὶ νομοθετήσαντος, οἵγε μοχθηρίᾳ τρόπου καὶ γνώμης ἀγνώμονος οὐ διελίμπανον ἄνωθεν καὶ ἐξ ἀρχῆς μέχρι τέλους ἐπιλανθανόμε νοι τοῦ θεοῦ, καὶ παρατρεπόμενοι προσεκύνουν ἀντὶ τοῦ κτίστου τὴν κτίσιν, καὶ ποτὲ μέν, ὡς εἴρηται, μοσχοποιήσαντες, ποτὲ δὲ τῷ Βεελφεγὼρ προσκυνήσαντες, ἄλλοτε δὲ τῷ Βάαλ καὶ τῷ Χαμὼς καὶ τῇ Σιδωνίᾳ Ἀστάρτῃ καὶ τῷ Μολχώμ, καὶ ποτὲ τῷ ἡλίῳ καὶ τῇ σελήνῃ καὶ τοῖς ἄστροις, ἃ ὁ θεὸς εἰς φαῦσιν ἀν θρώποις ἐποίησε καὶ οὐκ εἰς προσκύνησιν· ποτὲ δὲ καὶ ἄλογα ζῷα ἐτίμων, ὡς παρ' Αἰγυπτίοις τὸν Ἆπιν βοῦν καὶ τὸν Μενδήσιον τράγον, καὶ θεοὺς ἀργυροῦς καὶ χρυσοῦς, ὡς ἐν τῇ Ἰουδαίᾳ. ταύτῃ τοι προδήλως ἀπειλῶν αὐτοῖς ὁ θεὸς ἔλεγε διὰ τοῦ προφή του· "μὴ μικρὸν τοῦτο τῷ οἴκῳ Ἰούδα, ποιεῖν τὰ βδελύγματα ταῦτα ἃ ἐποίησαν; ὅτι ἔπλησαν τὴν γῆν ἀνομίας τοῦ παροργίσαι με." διὸ τοίνυν εἰκότως ἐξωλοθρεύθησαν ὡς τὸν θεὸν παροργί ζοντες καὶ τὴν ἁγίαν γῆν ἐκείνην καταμιαίνοντες ἀπ' ἀρχῆς ἕως τῆς ἐσχάτης καὶ τελευταίας ταύτης ἁλώσεως ἐπὶ Οὐεσπασιανοῦ καὶ Τίτου. καὶ γὰρ διαφόρων ταύτην ἑλόντων καὶ καθελόντων, φησὶ Θεοδώρητος, πάλιν εἰς τὸ ἀρχαῖον ἀποκατέστησαν ἀξίωμά τε καὶ σχῆμα· ἀλλὰ νῦν οὐκέτι. πρῶτος μὲν γὰρ Θελαφάλασαρ δορυάλωτον ἔλαβε τῶν δέκα φυλῶν τὸ πλεῖστον, δεύτερος δὲ Σα 1.421 λαμανασὰρ τὴν Σαμάρειαν καὶ τὰς περὶ αὐτὴν ἐξηνδραπόδισε πό λεις, τρίτος δὲ ὁ Σεναχηρεὶμ τὰς μὲν ἄλλας τῆς Ἰουδαίας ἐπολιόρ κησε πόλεις καὶ πολλοὺς μετῴκισεν αἰχμαλώτους, ἐπιστρατεύσας δὲ τοῖς Ἱεροσολύμοις ἀλαζονικῶς τε καὶ δυσσεβῶς ἐκομίσατο δι καίως τῆς βλασφημίας τὰ ἐπίχειρα· θεηλάτῳ πληγῇ τὴν στρατιὰν ἀπολέσας, καὶ μετ' αἰσχύνης ἀναζεύξας, ὑπὸ τῶν ἰδίων τέκνων ἀναιρεῖται. μετὰ δὲ τοῦτον Ναβουχοδονόσορ ἐν τῷ τρίτῳ ἔτει τῆς βασιλείας Ἰωακεὶμ τοῦ υἱοῦ Ἰωσίου μετὰ δυνάμεως εἰς τὴν Ἰουδαίαν ἀφικόμενος, καὶ πολλὰ τάλαντα χρυσίου καὶ ἀργύρου λαβὼν καὶ ἐκ τοῦ βασιλικοῦ γένους αἰχμαλώτους πολλοὺς καὶ μέ ρος ἐκ τῶν ἱερῶν σκευῶν, ὑπέστρεψε δασμὸν ἐπιθείς. καὶ μετ' ὀλίγον χρόνον ὁ μὲν Ἰωακεὶμ τὸν φόρον ἠθέτησεν, ὁ δὲ Ναβου χοδονόσορ τῷ ἑνδεκάτῳ ἔτει τῆς τούτου βασιλείας, ὀγδόῳ δὲ τῆς οἰκείας ἡγεμονίας πάλιν ἐκστρατεύει τοῖς Ἱεροσολύμοις, καὶ τὸν μὲν Ἰωακεὶμ ἀνελὼν καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ τείχους ῥιφῆναι κελεύσας ἄτα φον ἐπί τινα χρόνον κατέλιπε, περὶ οὗ καὶ Ἱερεμίας φησί "τάδε λέγει κύριος ἐπὶ Ἰωακεὶμ υἱὸν Ἰωσίου βασιλέως Ἰούδα. οὐαὶἐπὶ τὸν ἄνδρα τοῦτον. οὐ μὴ κόψονται αὐτόν, ὦ ἀδελφέ, οὐδ' οὐ μὴ κλαύσονται αὐτόν, οἴμοι κύριε καὶ οἴμοι ἀδελφέ· ἀλλὰ ταφὴν ὄνου ταφήσεται, καὶ συμψηφισθεὶς ῥιφήσεται ἐπέκεινα τῆς πύλης Ἱερουσαλήμ," τοὺς δὲ ἐν τέλει πάντας αἰχμαλώτους λα βών, καὶ τοῖς ὑπολειφθεῖσι χειροτονήσας βασιλέα Ἰεχονίαν υἱὸν Ἐλιακείμ, ἀπῆρεν εἰς Βαβυλῶνα. εἶτα καὶ τοῦτον μαθὼν στα 1.422 σιάσαντα μετὰ μῆνας τρεῖς πάλιν ἔρχεται, καὶ τοῦτον πεδήσας μετὰ πολλῶν νεωτέρων δοριάλωτον ἄγει, καταστήσας ἀντ' αὐτοῦ βασιλεύειν τῶν ὑπολοίπων Σεδεκίαν πατράδελφον αὐτοῦ, ὅρκοις κατὰ τοῦ θεοῦ περὶ τοῦ μὴ ἀποστῆναι καταδεσμήσας. ἀλλὰ καὶ τούτου παραβάντος τοὺς ὅρκους καὶ μήτε τὸν δασμὸν ἀποδοῦ ναι θελήσαντος μήτε μὴν εὔνοιαν φυλάξαντος ἀλλ' Αἰγυπτίοις προσφυγόντος, αὖθις παρεγένετο, καὶ τὸν μὲν Σεδεκίαν χειρω σάμενος καὶ ἐκτυφλώσας, καὶ τὴν πόλιν αὔτανδρον εἰληφώς, τά τε βασίλεια καὶ τὸν θεῖον ναὸν καὶ πᾶσαν ἐμπρήσας οἰκίαν, αἰχμαλώτους ἀπήγαγε τοὺς διασωθέντας ἐκ τοῦ λιμοῦ καὶ τοῦ πολέμου καὶ τὰ διαφέροντα σκεύη τοῦ ναοῦ κυρίου. τὸ πλῆθος τοίνυν τῶν συμφορῶν αὐτῶν καὶ Ἰωὴλ διηγούμενος πρῶτον μὲν