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For I think |178 a| an acceptable year is named his former coming, but a day of recompense, the day of judgment. To comfort all who mourn. For with the hope of the resurrection he tempered the despair of death. 3To give to those who mourn in Zion glory to them instead of ashes, an oil of gladness to those who mourn, a garment of glory instead of a spirit of faintheartedness. The phrase, ‘an oil of gladness,’ Theodotion and Symmachus interpreted as ‘an oil of exultation.’ And it alludes to the mystical anointing, by which, being deemed worthy, we receive gladness and the mantle of glory; for the garment must be understood as a robe. For so also Theodotion: ‘a mantle of boasting,’ and Symmachus: ‘a mantle of praise.’ And the phrase: ‘instead of a spirit of faintheartedness,’ the Three have rendered ‘instead of a faint spirit.’ For having driven out from us the faint and sullen spirit of faintheartedness, he has given us the mantle of glory. And the saints dwelling in Zion especially lamented, seeing the impiety of its inhabitants. From these was that great Simeon who was also divinely warned ‘not to see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ,’ from these were the prophetess Anna and many others, who lamented the lawlessness of the Jews and awaited the salvation of God; for these he ended their mourning by appearing. And they shall be called generations of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for glory. That is, these who are chosen from Zion, the twelve, the seventy, the one hundred and twenty, the five hundred, the three thousand, the many myriads. So also the blessed David says: ‘This is the generation of those who seek the Lord.’ But the Three, instead of ‘generations of righteousness,’ have rendered ‘the strong of righteousness, a plant of the Lord to be glorified.’ For as certain best generals of piety, traveling about the inhabited world, they overthrew impiety and, becoming the first plants of the Lord, they planted the desert. 4And they shall build the ancient wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations from generation to generation. Let the Jews show these things to have happened. But we show the cities corrupted by impiety to have been piously rebuilt and renewed by the holy apostles and by those who succeeded their preaching. 5And strangers shall come, shepherding your flocks, and foreigners shall be your plowmen and vinedressers. For from foreign nations are the teachers of the church, whom he has also named shepherds and plowmen and vinedressers. 6But you shall be called priests of the Lord, you shall be spoken of as ministers of our God. But those thrice-blessed ones held the apostolic name as exceptional; for even if these succeeded to their work, yet no one dares to usurp their title. You shall eat the wealth of the nations, and in their riches you shall be admired. For having overthrown the prevailing impiety, you supplied them with spiritual wealth, being admired by all for the strange transformation. 7Instead of their double shame, and instead of dishonor, their portion shall rejoice. To the holy apostles he says these things: Do not be vexed when you are persecuted and tortured and receive reproaches from all and endure countless forms of death; for through your sufferings the nations will obtain salvation and will become of the portion of those who rejoice. Therefore they shall inherit their land a second time. And showing the manner of the inheritance, he added: And everlasting joy shall be upon their heads. For the earth shall be released from its former curse and shall be new, putting off the corruption |178 b| with which it is now clothed. For so also the divine apostle said: ‘And creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.’ Therefore, he called the future life a second inheritance. 8For I am the Lord, who loves righteousness and hates plunder from injustice, and I will give their labor to the just <and I will make an everlasting covenant with them>. <...> <And the phrase: and I will give the labor

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Ἐνιαυτὸν γὰρ |178 a| δεκτὸν τὴν προτέραν αὐτοῦ παρουσίαν οἶμαι χρηματίζεσθαι, ἡμέραν δὲ ἀνταποδόσεως τῆς κρίσεως τὴν ἡμέραν. Παρακαλέσαι πάντας τοὺς πενθοῦν τας. Τῇ γὰρ ἐλπίδι τῆς ἀναστάσεως ἐκέρασε τοῦ θανάτου τὴν ἀθυμίαν. 3∆οθῆναι τοῖς πενθοῦσι Σιὼν δόξαν αὐτοῖς ἀντὶ σποδοῦ, ἄλειμμα εὐφροσύνης τοῖς πενθοῦσι, καταστολὴν δόξης ἀντὶ πνεύματος ἀκηδίας. Τό· ἄλειμμα εὐφροσύνης, ὁ Θεοδοτίων καὶ ὁ Σύμμαχος «ἔλεον ἀγαλλιάσεως» ἡρμήνευσαν. Αἰνίττεται δὲ τὸ μυστικὸν χρῖσμα, οὗ ἀξιούμενοι τὴν εὐφροσύνην δεχόμεθα καὶ τῆς δόξης τὴν ἀμπεχόνην· τὴν γὰρ καταστολὴν στολὴν νοητέον. Οὕτω γὰρ καὶ ὁ Θεοδοτίων· «περιβόλαιον καυχήματος», καὶ ὁ Σύμμαχος· «περιβόλαιον ὑμνήσεως». Τὸ δέ· ἀντὶ πνεύματος ἀκη δίας, οἱ Τρεῖς «ἀντὶ πνεύματος ἀμαυροῦ» τεθείκασ ιν . Ἐξελάσας γὰρ ἀφ' ἡμῶν τὸ ἀμαυρὸν καὶ σκυθρωπὸν τῆς ἀκηδίας πνεῦμα, τῆς δόξης ἡ μῖν τὴν περιβολὴν τέθεικεν. Ἐθρηνῴδουν δὲ διαφερόντως οἱ τὴν Σιὼν οἰκοῦντες ἅγιοι τὴν τῶν οἰκητόρων αὐτῆς ὁρῶντες ἀσέβειαν. Ἐκ τούτων ὁ μέγας ἐκεῖνος Συμεὼν ὁ καὶ χρηματισθεὶς τοῦ «μὴ ἰδεῖν θάνατον, ἕως ἂν ἴδῃ τὸν χριστὸν κυρίου», ἐκ τούτων ἡ προφῆτις Ἄννα καὶ ἕτερ οι ἦσαν πολλοὶ τὴν μὲν Ἰουδαίων παρανομίαν θρηνοῦντες τὴν δὲ τοῦ θεοῦ σωτηρίαν προσ μένοντες· τού τοις ἔλυσε τὸ πένθος ἐπιφανείς. Καὶ κληθήσονται γενεαὶ δικαιοσύνης, φύτευμα κυρίου εἰς δόξαν. Τουτέστιν οὗτοι οἱ ἐκ τῆς Σιὼν ἐκλεγόμενοι, οἱ δυοκαίδεκα, οἱ ἑβδομήκοντα, οἱ ἑκατὸν εἴκοσι, οἱ πεντα κόσιοι, οἱ τρισχίλιοι, αἱ πολλαὶ μυριάδες. Οὕτω καὶ ὁ μακάριος λέγει ∆αυίδ· «Αὕτη ἡ γενεὰ ζητούντων τὸν κύριον.» Οἱ δὲ Τρεῖς ἀντὶ τοῦ· γενεαὶ δικαιοσύνης, «ἰσχυροὶ τῆς δικαιοσύνης, φυτὸν κυρίου εἰς τὸ δοξασθῆ ναι» τεθείκασιν. Οἷον γάρ τινες ἄριστοι τῆς εὐσεβείας στρατηγοὶ τὴν οἰκουμένην περινο στήσαντες κατέλυσαν τὴν ἀσέβειαν καὶ πρῶτοι γενόμενοι τοῦ κυρίου φυτὰ τὴν ἔρημον κα τε φύτευσαν. 4Καὶ οἰκοδομήσουσιν ἐρήμους αἰωνίας, ἐξερημωμένας πρότερον ἐξαναστήσουσι καὶ ἀνακαινιοῦσι πόλεις ἐρήμους, ἐξερημωμένας ἀπὸ γενεᾶς καὶ γενεᾶς. ∆ειξάτωσαν ταῦτα Ἰουδαῖοι γεγενημένα. Ἡμεῖς δὲ δείκνυμεν τὰς ὑπὸ τῆς δυσσεβείας διαφθαρείσας πόλεις ὑπὸ τῶν ἱερῶν ἀποστόλων καὶ τῶν τὸ ἐκείνων κήρυγμα διαδεξαμένων εὐσεβῶς ἀνοικοδομηθείσας τε καὶ νεουργηθείσας. 5Καὶ ἥξουσιν ἀλλογενεῖς ποιμαίνοντες τὰ πρόβατά σου καὶ ἀλλόφυλοι ἀροτῆρες καὶ ἀμπελουργοὶ ὑμῶν. Ἐξ ἀλλοφύλων γὰρ ἐθνῶν οἱ τῆς ἐκκλησίας διδάσκαλοι, οὓς καὶ ποιμένας καὶ ἀροτῆρας καὶ ἀμπελουργοὺς ὠνόμασεν. 6Ὑμεῖς δὲ ἱερεῖς κυρίου κληθήσεσθε, λειτουργοὶ θεοῦ ἡμῶν ῥηθήσεται ὑμῖν. Τὸ δὲ ἀποστολικὸν ὄνομα ἐξαίρετον οἱ τρισμακάριοι ἔσχον ἐκεῖνοι· εἰ γὰρ καὶ τὸ ἐκείνων οὗτοι διεδέξαντο ἔργον, ἀλλ' οὖν τὴν ἐκείνων προσηγορίαν οὐδεὶς ἁρπάσαι τολμᾷ. Ἰσχὺν ἐθνῶν κατέδεσθε καὶ ἐν τῷ πλούτῳ αὐτῶν θαυμασθήσεσθε. Τὴν γὰρ κρατοῦσαν ἀσέβειαν καταλύσαντες τὸν πνευματικὸν αὐτοῖς χορη γήσατε πλοῦτον θαυμαζόμενοι παρὰ πάντων ἐπὶ τῇ ξένῃ μεταβολῇ. 7Ἀντὶ τῆς αἰσχύνης αὐτῶν τῆς διπλῆς καὶ ἀντὶ τῆς ἐντροπῆς ἀγαλλιάσεται ἡ μερὶς αὐτῶν. Πρὸς τοὺς ἱεροὺς ἀποστόλους ταῦτα λέγει · Μὴ δυσχεράνητε διωκόμενοι καὶ στρεβλούμενοι καὶ ὀνείδη παρὰ πάντων δεχόμενοι καὶ μυρία θανάτου ὑπομένοντες εἴδη· διὰ γὰρ τῶν ὑμετέρων παθημάτων τεύξεται τῆς σωτηρίας τὰ ἔ θνη καὶ τῆς τῶν εὐφραινομένων μερίδος γενήσεται. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο τὴν γῆν αὐτῶν ἐκ δευτέρου κληρονομήσουσιν. Καὶ δεικνὺς τῆς κληρονομίας τὸν τρόπον ἐπήγαγεν· Καὶ εὐφροσύνη αἰώνιος ὑπὲρ κεφαλῆς αὐτῶν. Ἀπαλλαγήσε ται γὰρ ἡ γῆ τῆς προτέρας ἀρᾶς καὶ ἔσται καινή, ἣν περίκειται νῦν ἀποδυομένη |178 b| φθοράν. Οὕτω γὰρ καὶ ὁ θεῖος ἀπόστολος ἔφη· «Καὶ αὐτὴ ἡ κτίσις ἐλευθερωθή σεται ἀπὸ τῆς δουλείας τῆς φθορᾶς εἰς τὴν ἐλευθερίαν τῆς δόξης τῶν τέκνων τοῦ θεοῦ.» ∆ευτέραν τοίνυν κληρο νομίαν τὸν μέλλοντα βίον ἐκάλεσεν. 8Ἐγὼ γάρ εἰμι κύριος ὁ ἀγαπῶν δικαιοσύνην καὶ μισῶν ἁρπάγματα ἐξ ἀδικίας καὶ δώσω τὸν μόχθον αὐτῶν δικαίοις <καὶ διαθήκην αἰώνιον διαθήσομαι αὐτοῖς>. <...> <Τὸ δέ· καὶ δώσω τὸν μόχθον