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whenever he renders to each according to their worth. But it presents God's forbearance towards us, by making the natures of the subjects His own, as if travailing for our salvation, like one travailing with offspring, and this with no one doing good, according to David; Therefore, I will not be silent, being long-suffering for love's sake, as she who suffers in hope of children, commanding the passions to be still, and drying up the springing pleasures, bringing to them through repentance such an ecstasy from their absurdities. For how could anyone repent without condemning himself and ceasing from his former ways? according to the text: "When you turn and groan, then you shall be saved." And this Christ, when he came, accomplished for all, as much as was in his power; even if some, being blind, hastened to remain so in the presence of the light, being willfully deaf to the divine words, and remained with idols, according to the text: "May those who make them become like them." But as for, "I will make them astonished," some say it means, "I will put them outside of the land ruled by them," and of the dominion limited to them over all, according to the text: "Now the ruler of this world will be cast out," or rather, "I will make those who see the accomplishments marvel." At which Habakkuk also, being astonished, said: "O Lord, I have heard your report, and was afraid. O Lord, I considered your works, and was amazed." But it indicates a dry place, saying: "For I will turn rivers into islands, and I will dry up marshes," thus naming the wise among the Greeks, and all the things they fabricated concerning gods. By which they gave those who were persuaded to drink of a turbid overthrow, according to the Scripture, whom it also calls marshes, having both a fair bloom and barrenness, whom Christ, having appeared, as if drying them up, rendered ineffective, as Paul also says: "Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?" from which churches have become islands, so-called, receiving those who sail in Christ, having fled a winter 2376 storm, from which those who go down to the sea in ships are storm-tossed by the circumstances of life, carried here and there. But when the aforementioned things were dried up, those who were formerly blind were saved, having been led to the evangelical paths, which they did not know before; to whom Paul also addressed: "For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord." To whom, as John the Baptist also said, "The crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways smooth." For he prophesied: "For every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low." And elsewhere Isaiah says: "The way of the righteous has become straight," indicating the evangelical way, which is smooth for those who tread it, in accordance with: "For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." With whom he promises to be always, according to the text: "Behold, I am with you all the days, until the end of the age." But from the words, "But they were turned backwards," all the commentators say it was spoken to the Jews, with some even saying that it was spoken to them from above, from the text, "The Lord God of hosts will go forth." These say that the Word, having promised these things to the wilderness, and to the islands, and to Kedar (which were foreign to the people of the Jews of the prophecy), declared the rejection of Israel through the subsequent words, saying: "The Lord God of hosts will go forth and will crush war." But according to Symmachus: "The Lord will go forth as a mighty one, as a man of war." But he describes the war as being against the Hebrews as enemies, and he speaks of the zeal against them, concerning which Moses said: "And I will provoke them to jealousy by that which is not a nation." Will he stir up this zeal? he says, making His own the wilderness, and Kedar, and the islands, but casting off the people of the Jews. And he will do this with reason, offering the defense for what he did, which is as follows: "And he will cry out against his enemies with strength." And what is the defense? "I have been silent. Shall I also be silent forever?" "For I was long-suffering, bearing sufficiently with them as they sinned." "And at the time of the passion, I was silent when falsely accused, when I also endured, as a woman giving birth." But now is the time

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ἡνίκαπερ ἀποδίδωσι τὰ πρὸς ἀξίαν ἑκάστῳ. Τὴν περὶ ἡμᾶς δὲ φειδὼ παρίστησι τοῦ Θεοῦ, τὸ τὴν ἡμετέραν οἱονεὶ σωτηρίαν ὠδίνειν τὰς τῶν ὑποκειμένων οἰκειούμενον φύσεις, ὡς τὰ ἔκγονα ὠδίνουσα, καὶ ταῦτα μηδενὸς ποιοῦντος χρηστότητα κατὰ τὸν ∆αβίδ· Οὐ κατοιήσω τοίνυν δι' ἀγάπην μακροθυμῶν, ὡς ἐκείνη πάσχουσα τέκνων ἐλπίδι, ἠρεμεῖν μὲν παραγγέλλων τοῖς πάθεσιν, πηγαζούσας δὲ ξηραίνων τὰς ἡδονὰς, τοιαύτην αὐτοῖς προσάγων διὰ μετανοίας ἀπὸ τῶν ἀτόπων τὴν ἔκστασιν. Πῶς γὰρ ἄν τις μετανοήσειε μὴ καταγνοὺς ἑαυτοῦ, καὶ τῶν προτέρων παυσάμενος; κατὰ τό· "Ὅτ' ἂν ἀποστραφεὶς στενάξεις, τότε σωθήσῃ." Τοῦτο δὲ πᾶσιν, ὅσον ἐφ' ἑαυτῷ, Χριστὸς ἐπιδημήσας εἰργάσατο· εἰ καὶ τυφλοί τινες, τοῦ φωτὸς παρόντος, διαμένειν ἐσπούδασαν πρὸς τοὺς θείους ἐθελοκωφήσαντες λόγους, καὶ τοῖς εἰδώλοις ἐνέμειναν, κατὰ τό· "Ὅμοιοι αὐτοῖς γένοιντο οἱ ποιοῦντες αὐτά." Τὸ δὲ, ἐκστήσω, τινὲς ἢ, ἐπὶ τοῦ τῆς ὑπ' αὐτῶν κρατουμένης γῆς ἔξω ποιήσω, φασὶ, καὶ τῆς περιωρισμένης αὐτοῖς κατὰ πάντων ἀρχῆς, κατὰ τό· "Νῦν ὁ ἄρχων τοῦ κόσμου τούτου ἐκβληθήσεται ἔξω," ἤγουν ἐπὶ τοῦ θαυμάσαι ποιήσω τοὺς ὁρῶντας τὰ κατωρθωμένα. Ἐφ' οἷς καὶ Ἀμβακοὺμ καταπληττόμενος, ἔλεγε· "Κύριε, εἰσακήκοα τὴν ἀκοήν σου, καὶ ἐφοβήθην. Κύριε, κατενόησα τὰ ἔργα σου, καὶ ἐξέστην." Τὸ δὲ ξηρὰν σφηνίζει λέγων· Θήσω γὰρ ποταμοὺς εἰς νήσους, καὶ ἕλη ξηρανῶ, οὕτω καλῶν τοὺς παρ' Ἕλλησι σοφοὺς, καὶ ὅσα δὴ περὶ θεῶν ἀνεπλάσαντο. ∆ι' ὧν τοὺς πειθομένους ἐπότιζον ἀνατροπῇ θολερᾷ, κατὰ τὴν Γραφὴν, οὓς καὶ ἔλη καλεῖ, τὸ εὐανθὲς ὁμοῦ καὶ τὸ ἄκαρπον ἔχοντας, οὓς φανεὶς ὁ Χριστὸς ὥσπερ ξηράνας, ἀπράκτους ἀπέδειξεν, καθὰ καὶ Παῦλός φησι· "Ποῦ σοφός; ποῦ γραμματεύς; ποῦ συζητητὴς τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου; οὐχὶ ἐμώρανεν ὁ Θεὸς τὴν σοφίαν τοῦ κόσμου;" ἐξ ὧν καὶ χρηματίζουσαι νῆσοι γεγόνασιν Ἐκκλησίαι τοὺς ἐν Χριστῷ ναυτιλλομένους δεχόμεναι, κατ 2376 αιγίδα φυγόντες χειμέριον, ἐξ ἧς οἱ καταβαίνοντες εἰς τὴν θάλασσαν ἐν πλοίοις χειμάζονται ταῖς τοῦ βίου περιστάσεσι τῇδε κακεῖσε φερόμενοι. Ξηρανθέντων δὲ τῶν εἰρημένων, οἱ πρὶν τυφλοὶ διεσώθησαν, πρὸς ὁδοὺς ἀχθέντες τὰς εὐαγγελικὰς, ἃς οὐκ ᾔδεσαν πρότερον· οἷς προσεφώνει καὶ Παῦλος· "Ἦτε γάρ ποτε σκότος, νῦν δὲ φῶς ἐν Κυρίῳ." Οἷς, καθὰ καὶ Ἰωάννης ὁ Βαπτιστὴς ἔφη, "Ἔσται τὰ σκολιὰ εἰς εὐθείας, καὶ ἡ τραχεία εἰς ὁδοὺς λείας." Προέφη γάρ· "Ὅτι πᾶσα φάραγξ πληρωθήσεται, καὶ πᾶν ὄρος καὶ βουνὸς ταπεινωθήσεται." Καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ δέ φησιν Ἡσαΐας· "Ὁδὸς εὐσεβῶν εὐθεῖα ἐγένετο," τὴν εὐαγγελικὴν δηλῶν, λείαν τοῖς αὐτὴν πατοῦσιν ὑπάρχουσαν, συμφώνως τῷ· "Ὁ γὰρ ζυγός μου χρηστὸς, καὶ τὸ φορτίον μου ἐλαφρόν." Οἷς ἐπαγγέλλεται συνεῖναι διαπαντὸς, κατὰ τό· "Ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ μεθ' ὑμῶν εἰμι πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας ἕως τῆς συντελείας τοῦ αἰῶνος." Ἀπὸ δὲ τοῦ, Αὐτοὶ δὲ ἀπεστράφησαν εἰς τὰ ὀπίσω, οἱ ἐξηγηταὶ πάντες πρὸς Ἰουδαίους εἰρῆσθαί φασι, τινῶν καὶ ἄνωθεν πρὸς αὐτοὺς εἰρῆσθαι λεγόντων ἀπὸ τοῦ, Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς τῶν δυνάμεων ἐξελεύσεται. Οἵ φασιν, ὡς ταῦτα τῇ ἐρήμῳ, καὶ ταῖς νήσοις, καὶ τῇ Κηδὰρ (ἅπερ ἦν ἀλλότρια τοῦ Ἰουδαίων λαοῦ τῆς προφητείας) ὁ λόγος ἐπαγγειλάμενος τὴν ἀποβολὴν τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ, διὰ τῶν ἐπαγομένων ἐδήλωσε λέγων· Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς τῶν δυνάμεων ἐξελεύσεται, καὶ συντρίψει πόλεμον. Κατὰ δὲ Σύμμαχον· Κύριος ὡς δυνατὸς ἐξελεύσεται ὡς ἀνὴρ πολεμιστής. Ὡς πρὸς ἐχθροὺς δὲ τοὺς Ἑβραίους ὑπογράφει τὸν πόλεμον, καὶ τὸν ζῆλον λέγει τὸν πρὸς αὐτοὺς, περὶ οὗ Μωσῆς ἔλεγε· Κἀγὼ παραζηλώσω αὐτοὺς ἐπ' οὐκ ἔθνει. Τοῦτον ἐπεγερεῖ τὸν ζῆλον; φησὶν, οἰκειούμενος μὲν τὴν ἔρημον, καὶ τὴν Κήδαρ, καὶ τὰς νήσους, ἀποβάλλων δὲ τὸν Ἰουδαίων λαόν. Λογισμῷ δὲ τοῦτο πράξει, τὴν ἀνθ' ὧν ἐποίησε προσάγων ἀπολογίαν, ὁποῖόν ἐστι· Καὶ βοήσεται πρὸς τοὺς ἐχθροὺς αὐτοῦ μετὰ ἰσχύος. Τίς δὲ ἡ ἀπολογία; Ἐσιώπησα. Μὴ καὶ ἀεὶ σιωπήσομαι; Ἐμακροθύμησα γὰρ, ἱκανῶς φέρων αὐτοὺς ἁμαρτάνοντας. Καὶ κατὰ τὸν καιρὸν δὲ τοῦ πάθους, ἐσιώπησα συκοφαντούμενος, ὅτε καὶ ἐκαρτέρησα, ὡς ἡ τίκτουσα. Νυνὶ δὲ καιρὸς