188
he has made one psalm, the 107th. For the first parts, in which it was said: "My heart is ready, O God," and so on, he took from the 50th inscription of David, in which it was also said: "My heart is ready, O God, my heart is ready; I will sing and give praise," and what is said next, in agreement with what is in the 107th, up to: "Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens, and thy glory over all the earth;" and the second parts, from "That thy beloved may be delivered, save with thy right hand, and hear me," along with what is brought in up to the end from the inscription at hand, the divine Spirit teaching us that one and the same thought is conveyed in both. For in the 50th he proclaimed the good news to confess to the Lord among the peoples and to sing praise to him among the nations; but in the one at hand it signifies the rejection of Israel, 23.564 just as the things said before taught. And indeed after the first things, through which the rejection of the former people was shown, and the sign that will be given to those who fear him, a diapsalm having been inserted in the middle, the Holy Spirit sends up a prayer to God, saying: "That thy beloved may be delivered, save with thy right hand, and hear me." It supplicates these things, praying that God, using his own right hand, might deliver and save his beloved; and it does not simply supplicate, "Save," but "with his own right hand" first to deliver, then to save. And it knew no others to be beloved of God than the human beings made according to his own image. For even if they have fallen greatly into sin, nevertheless because of the substance of the soul, being intellectual and rational, they are called beloved of God. The word therefore entreats God through the memory of his beloved, and exhorts him to deliver them from intelligible enemies and foes; and having delivered them, to save them by his own right hand. And what would one say is the right hand of God, if not his Christ, so named tropologically? For as elsewhere he has been called power and wisdom, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so also now he might be called right hand; since he was to bring about favorable and saving things for all human beings. "God has spoken in his holy one," and so on. When the Holy Spirit prayed that the beloved of God might be delivered, God, putting nothing off, answers, saying: "I will be exalted and will divide Shechem." And when God spoke these things through his Word as through an interpreter, the Holy Spirit, having heard, also teaches us to know them; wherefore it says: "God has spoken in his holy one." And the demons never failed to recognize the holy one of God who took the form of a servant; wherefore they cried out, saying: "We know who you are, the Holy One of God." But also in the 88th psalm it is said: "Once have I sworn by my holy one, that I will not lie to David." For as a father swears by a beloved son, so the God of all swears by the Son. And so here also "God has spoken in his holy one;" or, according to Aquila, "God has spoken in his hallowed place." And when was this fulfilled, if not when in the last of the days he spoke to us in the Son? And what did he speak, if not what follows, saying: "I will rejoice and divide Shechem?" In the 107th, then, it says: "I will be exalted, and I will divide Shechem," very fittingly; since in that one it was said before: "Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens, and thy glory over all the earth." For to the "be thou exalted," is added the "I will be exalted;" but here, in response to "save with thy right hand," and to "that thy beloved may be delivered," rejoicing in the salvation of his beloved, he makes his reply, saying, "I will rejoice;" or, according to Aquila, "I will exult;" or, according to Symmachus, "I will exult and I will portion out Shechem;" And this was the portion specially set apart long ago for Joseph, in which first the children of the Jews, 23.565 and now the tribe of the Samaritans, took great pride. The same
188
ἕνα ψαλμὸν πεποίηκε, τὸν ρζʹ. Τὰ μὲν γὰρ πρῶτα, ἐν οἷς ἐλέγετο· «Ἑτοίμη ἡ καρδία μου, ὁ Θεὸς, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς, ἀπὸ τῆς τοῦ νʹ στηλογραφίας τοῦ ∆αυῒδ ἐξελὼν, ἐν ᾗ καὶ αὐτῇ λέλεκτο· ἑτοίμη ἡ καρδία μου, ὁ Θεὸς, ἑτοίμη ἡ καρδία μου· ᾄσομαι καὶ ψαλῶ,» καὶ τὰ ἐπιλεγόμενα δ' ἑξῆς συμφώνως τοῖς ἐν τῷ ρζʹ μέχρι τοῦ· «Ὑψώθητι ἐπὶ τοὺς οὐρανοὺς, ὁ Θεὸς, καὶ ἐπὶ πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν ἡ δόξα σου·» τὰ δὲ δεύτερα τὰ ἀπὸ τοῦ, «Ὅπως ἂν ῥυσθῶσιν οἱ ἀγαπητοί σου, σῶσον τῇ δεξιᾷ σου καὶ ἐπάκουσόν μου,» σὺν τοῖς μέχρι τέλους ἐπενηνεγμένοις ἀπὸ τῆς μετὰ χεῖρας στηλογραφίας, διδάσκοντος ἡμᾶς θείου Πνεύματος μίαν καὶ τὴν αὐτὴν διάνοιαν ἐμφέρεσθαι ἐν ἀμφοτέροις. Ἐν μὲν γὰρ τῷ νʹ ἐξομολογήσασθαι τῷ Κυρίῳ ἐν λαοῖς καὶ ψάλλειν αὐτῷ ἐν ἔθνεσιν εὐηγγελίζετο· ἐν δὲ τῷ μετὰ χεῖρας ἀποβολὴν σημαίνει τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ, 23.564 ὥσπερ οὖν ἐδίδασκε τὰ προλεχθέντα. Καὶ δὴ μετὰ τὰ πρῶτα, δι' ὧν ἐδηλοῦτο ἡ ἀποβολὴ τοῦ προτέρου λαοῦ, τό τε σημεῖον τὸ τοῖς φοβουμένοις αὐτὸν δοθησόμενον, ἑξῆς μέσου διαψάλματος παρεντεθέντος, τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον εὐχὴν ἀναπέμπει τῷ Θεῷ φάσκον· «Ὅπως ἂν ῥυσθῶσιν οἱ ἀγαπητοί σου, σῶσον τῇ δεξιᾷ σου, καὶ ἐπάκουσόν μου.» Ἱκετεύει δὲ ταῦτα δεόμενον, ὅπως, τῇ αὑτοῦ χρησάμενος δεξιᾷ ὁ Θεὸς, ῥύσηται καὶ σώσῃ τοὺς ἀγαπητοὺς αὐτοῦ· καὶ οὐχ ἁπλῶς ἱκετεύει, «Σῶσον,» ἀλλὰ «τῇ δεξιᾷ ἑαυτοῦ» πρῶτον μὲν ῥύσασθαι, ἔπειτα σῶσαι. Ἀγαπητοὺς δὲ τοῦ Θεοῦ οὐδ' ἄλλους ἠπίστατο ἢ τοὺς κατ' εἰκόνα τὴν αὐτοῦ πεποιημένους ἀνθρώπους. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ τὰ μάλιστα ὑποπεπτώκασι τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ, ἀλλ' ὅμως διὰ τὴν ψυχῆς οὐσίαν νοερὰν οὖσαν καὶ λογικὴν, ἀγαπητοὶ εἴρηνται τοῦ Θεοῦ. ∆υσωπεῖ τοίνυν ὁ λόγος τὸν Θεὸν διὰ τῆς μνήμης τῶν ἀγαπητῶν αὐτοῦ, παρακαλεῖ τε ῥύσασθαι αὐτοὺς ἀπὸ νοητῶν τε ἐχθρῶν καὶ πολεμίων· ῥυσάμενόν τε σῶσαι αὐτοὺς διὰ τῆς ἑαυτοῦ δεξιᾶς. ∆εξιὰν δὲ τοῦ Θεοῦ τίνα ἄν τις εἴποι ἢ τὸν Χριστὸν αὐτοῦ τροπικῶς οὕτως ὠνομασμένον, Ὡς γὰρ ἀλλαχοῦ δύναμις καὶ σοφία λέλεκται, δικαιοσύνη τε καὶ ἁγιασμὸς, καὶ ἀπολύτρωσις, οὕτω καὶ νῦν δεξιὰ χρηματίσειεν ἄν· ἐπειδὴ τὰ δεξιὰ καὶ σωτήρια πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις προξενήσειν ἔμελλεν. «Ὁ Θεὸς ἐλάλησεν ἐν τῷ ἁγίῳ αὐτοῦ,» καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Εὐξαμένου τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος ὅπως ῥυσθῶσιν οἱ ἀγαπητοὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ, μηδὲν ὑπερθέμενος ὁ Θεὸς ἀποκρίνεται λέγων· «Ὑψωθήσομαι καὶ διαμεριῶ Σίκιμα.» Ταῦτα δὲ τοῦ Θεοῦ διὰ τοῦ Λόγου αὐτοῦ ὡς δι' ἑρμηνέως λαλήσαντος, τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον ἐπακοῦσαν, διδάσκει καὶ ἡμᾶς εἰδέναι αὐτά· διό φησιν· «Ὁ Θεὸς ἐλάλησεν ἐν τῷ ἁγίῳ αὐτοῦ.» Τὸν δὲ ἅγιον τοῦ Θεοῦ μορφὴν δούλου λαβόντα οὐκ ἠγνόησάν ποτε οἱ δαίμονες· διὸ ἐβόων λέγοντες· «Οἴδαμέν σε τίς εἶ, ὁ ἅγιος τοῦ Θεοῦ.» Ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν πηʹ ψαλμῷ λέλεκται· «Ἅπαξ ὤμοσα ἐν τῷ ἁγίῳ μου, εἰ τῷ ∆αυῒδ ψεύσομαι.» Ὡς γὰρ πατὴρ ἐφ' υἱῷ ἀγαπητῷ, οὕτως ὁ τῶν ὅλων Θεὸς ἐπὶ τῷ Υἱῷ ὤμνυσι. Καὶ ἐνταῦθα τοίνυν «ὁ Θεὸς ἐλάλησεν ἐν τῷ ἁγίῳ αὐτοῦ·» ἢ, κατὰ τὸν Ἀκύλαν, «Ὁ Θεὸς ἐλάλησεν ἐν ἡγιασμένῳ αὐτοῦ.» Πότε δὲ καὶ τοῦτ' ἐπληροῦτο, ἢ ὅτε ἐπ' ἐσχάτου τῶν ἡμερῶν ἐλάλησεν ἡμῖν ἐν Υἱῷ; Τί δὲ ἐλάλησεν ἢ τὰ ἐπιφερόμενα λέγων· «Ἀγαλλιάσομαι καὶ διαμεριῶ Σίκιμα;» Ἐν μὲν οὖν τῷ ρζʹ εἴρηται· «Ὑψωθήσομαι, καὶ διαμεριῶ Σίκιμα,» σφόδρα καταλλήλως· ἐπειδὴ ἐν ἐκείνῳ ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν ἐλέγετο· «Ὑψώθητι ἐπὶ τοὺς οὐρανοὺς, ὁ Θεὸς, καὶ ἐπὶ πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν ἡ δόξα σου.» Πρὸς γὰρ τὸ, «ὑψώθητι,» ἐπενήνεκται τὸ, «ὑψωθήσομαι·» ἐνταῦθα δὲ πρὸς τὸ, «σῶσον τῇ δεξιᾷ σου,» καὶ πρὸς τὸ, «ὅπως ἂν ῥυσθῶσιν οἱ ἀγαπητοί σου,» χαίρων ἐπὶ τῇ τῶν ἀγαπητῶν αὐτοῦ σωτηρίᾳ, τὴν ἀπόκρισιν ποιεῖται λέγων, «Ἀγαλλιάσομαι·» ἢ, κατὰ τὸν Ἀκύλαν, «Γαυριάσομαι·» ἢ, κατὰ τὸν Σύμμαχον, «Γαυριάσω καὶ διανεμήσω Σίκιμα·» Αὕτη δὲ ἦν ἡ πάλαι ἀφωρισμένη τῷ Ἰωσὴφ μερὶς κατ' ἐξαίρετον, ἐφ' ᾗ καὶ μέγα ἐφρόνουν πρότερον μὲν Ἰουδαίων 23.565 παῖδες, νῦν δὲ τὸ Σαμαρειτῶν φῦλον. Ἡ αὐτὴ