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will quickly cease, but my words concerning grace for all will be confirmed. Paul also, understanding this, said: "O the depth of the riches and wisdom!" Therefore, having resolved the doubt for him, he exhorts him to proclaim in order from a height of thought. θκʹ. 9Go up on a high mountain, you who bring good tidings to Zion. Lift up your voice with strength, you who bring good tidings to Jerusalem. Lift it up; be not afraid. Say to the cities of Judah: Behold your God, behold the Lord. The Lord comes with strength, and his arm with dominion. Behold his reward is with him9, etc. Consequently, after the voice crying in the wilderness, he introduced the things concerning the evangelists and the advent of Christ. But Aquila says: Go up on a high mountain, O Zion, bringing good tidings to yourself. And lifting up your voice mightily, O Jerusalem, having received good tidings. And the rest also in agreement, address Jerusalem and Zion as if they were animate. To what mountain, then, does Zion ascend, which was itself also called a mountain? according to the text, "This Mount Zion, wherein you have dwelt." It seems, therefore, to indicate the choir of the apostles, whom Jerusalem also called "heart on high," as being from the people chosen from the circumcision, who also received the salvation of God, being ones who were lifted up, and likened to the only-begotten mountain and he himself delivering oracles; to which they are commanded to ascend, to proclaim the advent of Christ, and if any rise up against them, to fear nothing; that is, he commands not to teach in secret, but to make the proclamation public, and to make it heard by all. according to the text, "What you hear in the ear, proclaim on the housetops." Which also they said praying: "And now, Lord, look upon their threats, and grant to your servants to speak your word with boldness." And by saying "behold," they say, it indicates that he will not come after a long time, showing him to be, as it were, near. That is, he commands to cry to the cities of Judah, that is, to their synagogues, that this is he who was long ago 2341 expected, foretold by the voices of holy prophets. And at the same time he also indicated his advent, saying that he would come with great strength and lordly authority, when he will provide to each according to their works and the reward. Just as he said: "For the Son of Man is about to come in the glory of his Father, and he will repay each according to his works." But some have received these things as referring to the first advent, showing that he would not come as one of the prophets, who, even when working wonders, prayed. But Christ by his own authority drove out passions and demons. And that he did not endure the cross for us without fruit, he indicates, saying: Behold his reward is with him. For he said: "Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone. But if it dies, it bears much fruit." And again: "If I be lifted up from the earth, I will draw all to myself." And Paul also says: "He endured the cross, despising the shame. Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave him the name which is above every name, so that in his name," and so on. And David also foretold: "All the nations which you have made shall come, and shall worship before you." But the text, He will shepherd his flock like a shepherd, is confessedly of the first advent. For as God he will judge, but as one having taken the form of a servant it is said that he shepherds the flock, the one who says, I am the good shepherd. And his arm, they say, he calls the divinity, by which he will gather the lambs, and it is said that he will comfort those with young. Lambs, the word indicating the newly born in Christ. For which reason Aquila says "little lambs." It would be the new people. For he did not say rams, or goats, or full-grown sheep, concerning which another prophet teaches such things, saying: "Thus says the Lord: Behold I will judge between sheep and sheep, and between rams and goats." And: "Is it not enough for you, that you feed on the good pasture, and you trample down the residue with your feet? and you drink the settled water? and you muddy the rest with your feet?" And again: "Behold I judge between a strong sheep. You push aside with your sides and with your feet, and with your horns

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ταχέως παυθήσεται, οἱ ἐμοὶ δὲ περὶ τῆς εἰς πάντας χάριτος κυρωθήσονται λόγοι. Τοῦτο καὶ Παῦλος νοήσας ἔλεγεν· "Ὢ βάθος πλούτου καὶ σοφίας!" Τοιγαροῦν ἐπιλύσας αὐτῷ τὴν ἀμφιβολίαν, ἀφ' ὕψους τῆς διανοίας ἐφεξῆς κηρῦξαι παρακελεύεται. θκʹ. 9Ἐπ' ὄρος ὑψηλὸν ἀνάβηθι, ὁ εὐαγγελιζόμενος Σιών. Ὕψωσον ἐν ἰσχύϊ τὴν φωνήν σου, ὁ εὐαγγελιζόμενος Ἱερουσαλήμ. Ὑψώσατε· μὴ φοβεῖσθε. Εἶπον ταῖς πόλεσιν Ἰούδα· Ἰδοὺ Θεὸς ὁ ὑμῶν, ἰδοὺ Κύριος. Κύριος μετὰ ἰσχύος ἔρχεται, καὶ ὁ βραχίων μετὰ κυρίας. Ἰδοὺ ὁ μισθὸς αὐτοῦ μετὰ αὐτοῦ9, κ.τ.λ. Ἀκολούθως μετὰ τὴν ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ βοῶσαν φωνὴν, τὰ περὶ τῶν εὐαγγελιστῶν καὶ τῆς Χριστοῦ παρουσίας ἐπήγαγεν. Ὁ δὲ Ἀκύλας φησίν· Ἐπ' ὄροςὑψηλὸν ἀνάβηθι, ἑαυτῇ εὐαγγελιζομένη Σιών. Καὶ ἐπάρων ἱσχυρῶς τὴν, φωνὴν εὐαγγελισαμένη Ἱερουσαλήμ. Καὶ οἱ λοιποὶ δὲ συμφώνως, ὡς πρὸς ἔμψυχον τὴν Ἱερουσαλὴμ καὶ τὴν Σιὼν ἀποτείνονται. Ἐπὶ ποῖον οὖν ἄνεισιν ὄρος ἡ Σιὼν, ἡ καὶ αὐτὴ ὄρος λεχθεῖσα; κατὰ τὸ, "Ὄρος Σιὼν τοῦτο ὃ κατεσκήνωσας ἐν αὐτῷ." Ἔοικε τοίνυν δηλοῦν τὸν τῶν ἀποστόλων χορὸν, οὓς καὶ ἄνω καρδίαν ἔφησεν Ἱερουσαλὴμ, ὡς ἂν ἐκ τοῦ ἐκ περιτομῆς ἐξειλεγμένου λαοῦ, οἳ καὶ τὸ σωτήριον τοῦ Θεοῦ παρεδέξαντο ἐπηρμένοι τινὲς ὄντες, καὶ τῷ μονογενεῖ παρεικασθέντες ὄρει καὶ αὐτῷ χρηματίζοντι· ἐφ' ὃν ἀνιέναι κελεύονται, τοῦ Χριστοῦ τὴν παρουσίαν κηρύξοντες, κἄν τινες ἐπαναστῶσι, δεδιέναι μηδέν· ἤγουν μὴ λάθρα διδάσκειν κελεύει, δημοσιεύειν δὲ τὸ κήρυγμα, καὶ ποιῆσαι πᾶσιν ἐξάκουστον. κατὰ τὸ, "Ὃ ἀκούετε εἰς τὸ οὖς, ἐπὶ τῶν δωμάτων κηρύξατε." Ὃ καὶ ἕλεγον προσευχόμενοι· "Καὶ νῦν, Κύριε, ἔπιδε ἐπὶ τὰς ἀπειλὰς αὐτῶν, καὶ δὸς τοῖς δούλοις σου μετὰ παῤῥησίας λαλεῖν τὸν λόγον σου." Καὶ τὸ ἰδοὺ δὲ λέγων, φασὶ, τὸ μὴ μετὰ μακρὰν ἥξειν δηλοῖ, μονονουχὶ πλησίον ὄντα δεικνύς. Ἤγουν ταῖς πόλεσιν Ἰούδα κελεύει βοᾷν, ταῖς τούτων δηλονότι συναγωγαῖς, ὡς οὗτος ἐκεῖνος ὁ πρόπαλαι 2341 προσδοκώμενος, φωναῖς ἁγίων προκαταγγελθεὶς προφητῶν. Ἐν ταυτῷ δὲ καὶ τὴν αὐτοῦ παρουσίαν ἐδήλωσεν, μετὰ μεγάλης ἰσχύος ἥξειν εἰπὼν καὶ κυριακῆς αὐθεντίας, ὅτε πρὸς τὰ ἔργα καὶ τὸν μισθὸν ἑκάστῳ παρέξεται. Καθάπερ ἔλεγε· "Μέλλει γὰρ ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἔρχεσθαι ἐν τῇ δόξῃ τοῦ Πατέρος αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἀποδώσει ἑκάστῳ κατὰ τὰ ἔργα αὐτοῦ." Τινὲς δὲ καὶ ταῦτα ἐπὶ τῆς προτέρας ἐδέξαντο παρουσίας, δεικνύντα μὴ καθ' ἕνα τῶν προφητῶν ἥξειν αὐτὸν, οἳ καὶ θαυματουργοῦντες ηὔχοντο. Χριστὸς δὲ κατ' αὐθεντίαν ἤλαυνε πάθη καὶ δαίμονας. Ὅτι δὲ οὐκ ἄκαρπον ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν ὑπέμεινε τὸν σταυρὸν δηλοῖ, λέγων· Ἰδοὺ ὁ μισθὸς αὐτοῦ μετ' αὐτοῦ. Ἔλεγεν γάρ· "Ἐὰν μὴ ὁ κόκκος τοῦ σίτου πεσὼν εἰς τὴν γῆν ἀποθάνῃ, αὐτὸς μόνος μένει. Ἐὰν δὲ ἀποθάνῃ, καρπὸν πολὺν φέρει." Καὶ πάλιν· "Ἐὰν ὑψωθῶ ἐκ γῆς, πάντας ἑλκύσω πρὸς ἐμαυτόν." Καὶ Παῦλος δέ φησιν· "Ὑπέμεινε σταυρὸν αἰσχύνης καταφρονήσας. ∆ιὸ καὶ ὁ Θεὸς αὐτὸν ὑπερύψωσε, καὶ ἐχαρίσατο αὐτῷ τὸ ὄνομα τὸ ὑπὲρ πᾶν ὄνομα, ἵνα ἐν τῷ ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ," καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Καὶ ὁ ∆αβὶδ δὲ προὔλεγεν· "Πάντα τὰ ἔθνη ὅσα ἐποίησας ἥξουσι, καὶ προσκυνήσουσιν ἐνώπιόν σου." Τὸ δὲ, Ὡς ποιμὴν ποιμανεῖ τὸ ποίμνιον αὐτοῦ, ὁμολογουμένως τῆς προτέρας ἐστὶ παρουσίας. Ὡς Θεὸς μὲν γὰρ κρινεῖ, ὡς δὲ μορφὴν δούλου λαβὼν ποιμαίνειν τὸ ποίμνιον εἴρηται ὁ λέγων, Ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ ποιμὴν ὁ καλός. Βραχίονα δὲ αὐτοῦ καλεῖ, φασὶ, τὴν θεότητα, δι' οὗ συνάξειν ἄρνας, καὶ ἐν γαστρὶ ἐχούσας παρακαλέσειν εἴρηται. Ἄρνας τοῦ λόγου δηλοῦντος τοὺς ἀρτιγενεῖς ἐν Χριστῷ. ∆ιόπερ Ἀκύλας ἀρνία φησίν. Εἴη δ' ἂν ὁ νέος λαός. Οὐ γὰρ ἔφη κριοὺς, ἢ τράγους, ἢ πρόβατα ἐντελῆ, περὶ ὧν ἕτερος τοιαῦτα διδάσκει προφήτης λέγων· "Τὰ δὲ λέγει Κύριος· Ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ κρινῶ ἀναμέσον προβάτου καὶ προβάτου, καὶ κριῶν καὶ τράγων." Καί· "Οὐχ ἱκανὸν ὑμῖν, ὅτι τὴν καλὴν νομὴν νέμεσθε, καὶ τὰ κατάλοιπα τοῖς ποσὶν ὑμῶν κατεπατεῖτε; καὶ τὸ καθεστηκὸς ὕδωρ ἐπίνετε; καὶ τὸ λοιπὸν τοῖς ποσὶν ὑμῶν ἐταράσσετε;" Καὶ πάλιν· "Ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ κρίνω ἀνὰ μέσον προβάτου ἰσχυροῦ. Ἐπὶ ταῖς πλευραῖς καὶ τοῖς ποσὶν ὑμῶν διωθεῖσθε, καὶ τοῖς κέρασιν ὑμῶν