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the soul of a righteous one, but taking on the appearance of being judges and magistrates, they condemn innocent blood. And he called the tyrannical rule of the devil the throne of iniquity. For the devil has driven to such a point of wickedness as to be equivalent to the wicked state itself. For scripture calls him lawlessness instead of the lawless one and destruction instead of the one who is destroyed; where it says to him, "You have become Destruction" (in this way also Judas was named Son of destruction, having become a son of Satan), and where calling him lawlessness; for it calls those who have become his children sons of lawlessness, as it says concerning Christ, "And a son of lawlessness shall not proceed to harm him." His shield-bearers are the wicked doers about whom it says, "Who will rise up for me against the wicked doers, or who will stand with me against the workers of iniquity?" And these are demons and wicked men, doing the aforementioned things through villainy against the innocent and righteous one.

922 Ps 94,1b-2 They call to confession, that is, for the evil they have done or for the good things they have received from God, giving thanks to the one who appeared and shone upon them, who is the character of his substance, his face; For he is the image of the invisible God. It is possible to assign the third verse to the first, and the fourth to the second, understanding it thus concerning coming to rejoice in the Lord; Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, but let us also shout for joy to God our savior in psalms. and the psalms in which they shout for joy to the Lord are the actions by which they work, pleasing him. For the voice of the psalm suggests such things. 923 Ps 94,3b It says "gods," which scripture calls angels. and he reigns over them also who have become gods, to whom the word of God has come. 924 Ps 94,4 The Word, encompassing all the earth according to the principle of providence, has in his hand the so-called ends of the earth; for his possession is the ends of the earth, as he holds the ends of the earth. Since the mountains are also parts of the earth of the Lord himself (and these are high among them), it should be noted that throughout all of scripture the dogma of those who limit providence to the bounds of the moon is refuted. For not only here is he said to hold the ends of the earth, but also in many places; indeed, just as of heaven, so also he is Lord of earth; "For I give you praise, Father, Lord of heaven and earth." But allegorically, only those who are beyond the earth in understanding and way of life are in the protecting and all-powerful hand of God; whence no one is able to snatch them, being in the hand of the Father and in the hand of the Son. These ends, according to another concept, would be Christ's sheep, about whom the Lord says, "My sheep hear my voice, and I give them eternal life; and no one will snatch them out of my hand," and so on: "no one is able to snatch them out of my Father's hand." Since, therefore, the interpreted ends of the earth are in the hand of God, reasonably also the heights of the mountains are his, the mountains being the God-fearing men distinguished in life and thought. And pre-eminently his are the excelling ones whom he called the heights of the mountains; or perhaps the ends of the earth are the men who walk on the earth, but have their citizenship and heart in heaven because they have stored up treasure there, the angels being named the high mountains. 925 Ps 94,5b It should be noted that the dry land is said to have been formed not by a hand but by hands, just as "The heavens are the works of your hands," and "Your hands have made me and formed me." but who these creative hands are is a difficult question; for one, admittedly, is the active hand of God, the God Word, but with this hand another is also arranged through many scriptures, this one also being creative.

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ψυχὴν δικαίου, ἐπιμορφαζόμενοι δὲ καὶ τὸ κριταὶ καὶ δικασταὶ τυγχάνειν καταδικάζουσιν ἀθῷον αιμα. Θρόνον δὲ ἀδικίας τὴν τυραννικὴν ἀρχὴν τοῦ διαβόλου εφη. εἰς τοσοῦτον γὰρ ηλασε πονηρίας ὁ διάβολος ὡς ἰσοδυναμεῖν τῇ μοχθηρᾷ εξει. ἀνομίαν γὰρ ἀντὶ ἀνόμου καὶ ἀπώλειαν ἀντὶ ἀπολωλότος καλεῖ αὐτὸν ἡ γραφή· οπου μὲν λέγουσα πρὸς αὐτὸν ̓Απώλεια ἐγένου (ταύτῃ καὶ ὁ ̓Ιούδας Υἱὸς ἀπωλείας ἐχρημάτισεν υἱὸς Σατανᾶ γεγονώς), οπου δὲ ἀνομίαν ὀνομάζουσα αὐτόν· τοὺς γὰρ τέκνα αὐτοῦ γεγενημένους υἱοὺς ἀνομίας λέγει, ῃ φησι περὶ Χριστοῦ Καὶ υἱὸς ἀνομίας οὐ προσθήσει τοῦ κακῶσαι αὐτόν. τούτου ὑπασπισταὶ τυγχάνουσιν οἱ πονηρευόμενοι περὶ ων φησι Τίς ἀναστήσεταί μοι ἐπὶ πονηρευομένους η τίς συμπαραστήσεταί μοι ἐπὶ τοὺς ἐργαζομένους τὴν ἀνομίαν; δαίμονες δὲ ουτοι καὶ ανθρωποι πονηροί, διὰ πανουργίας τὰ προειρημένα κατὰ τοῦ ἀθῴου καὶ δικαίου δρῶντες.

922 Ps 94,1b-2 ̓Επὶ ἐξομολόγησιν παρακαλοῦσιν ητοι ἐφ' οις εδρασαν

κακῶς η ἐφ' οις ευ πεπόνθασι θεόθεν εὐχαριστοῦντες τῷ ἐπιφανέντι καὶ ἐπιλάμψαντι αὐτοῖς τὴν χαρακτῆρα τῆς ὑποστάσεως αὐτοῦ τυγχάνοντα αὐτοῦ πρόσωπον· Αὐτὸς γάρ ἐστιν ἡ εἰκὼν τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ ἀοράτου. δυνατὸν τὸν τρίτον στίχον τῷ πρώτῳ ἀποδοῦναι καὶ τὸν τέταρτον τῷ δευτέρῳ ουτω νοοῦντα ἐπὶ τῷ ηκειν ἀγαλλιᾶσθαι τῷ κυρίῳ· Προεφθάσαμεν τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ ἐν ἐξομολογήσει, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀλαλάττομεν τῷ σωτῆρι θεῷ ἡμῶν ἐν ψαλμοῖς. ψαλμοὶ δὲ καθ' ους ἀλαλάζουσι τῷ κυρίῳ πράξεις καθ' ας ἐνεργοῦσιν εὐαρεστοῦντες αὐτῷ τοιαῦτα γάρ τινα ὑποβάλλει ἡ ψαλμὸς φωνή. 923 Ps 94,3b Θεοὺς λέγει ους ἀγγέλους ἡ γραφὴ καλεῖ. βασιλεύει δὲ κἀκείνων γενομένων θεῶν πρὸς ους ὁ λόγος τοῦ θεοῦ γεγένηται. 924 Ps 94,4 Πάσης τῆς γῆς περιδραττόμενος ὁ λόγος κατὰ τὸν τῆς προνοίας λόγον ἐν τῇ χειρὶ ἑαυτοῦ εχει τὰ λεγόμενα τῆς γῆς πέρατα· ἡ κατάσχεσις γὰρ αὐτοῦ τὰ πέρατα τῆς γῆς ἐστι, κρατοῦντος δὲ αὐτοῦ τῶν τῆς γῆς περάτων. ἐπεὶ μέρη τῆς γῆς καὶ τὰ ορη αὐτοῦ τοῦ κυρίου (καὶ ταῦτά ἐστιν ὑψηλὰ ἐν τούτοις) τυγχάνει, σημειωτέον οτι διὰ πάσης τῆς γραφῆς ἀναιρεῖται τὸ δόγμα τῶν περιγραφόντων μέχρι τῶν τῆς σελήνης ορων τὴν πρόνοιαν. οὐκ ἐνταῦθα γὰρ μόνον κρατεῖν τῶν περάτων τῆς γῆς λέγεται ἀλλὰ καὶ πολλαχοῦ, ἀμέλει γοῦν ὡς οὐρανοῦ ουτω καὶ γῆς κύριός ἐστιν· ̓Εξομολογοῦμαί σοι γάρ, πάτερ, κύριε τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καὶ τῆς γῆς. Πρὸς διάνοιαν δὲ ἐν τῇ χειρὶ γίνονται τοῦ θεοῦ τῇ σκεπαστικῇ καὶ παντοδυνάμῳ μόνοι οἱ περαιτέρω τῆς γῆς φρονήσει καὶ πολιτείᾳ γινόμενοι· οθεν οὐδεὶς αὐτοὺς ἁρπάσαι δύναται οντας ἐν τῇ χειρὶ τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ ἐν τῇ χειρὶ τοῦ υἱοῦ. ταῦτα τὰ πέρατα κατ' ἐπίνοιαν αλλην Χριστοῦ ειεν πρόβατα, περὶ ων ὁ κύριός φησι Τὰ πρόβατα τὰ ἐμὰ τῆς φωνῆς μου ἀκούει, κἀγὼ δίδωμι αὐτοῖς ζωὴν αἰώνιον· καὶ οὐδεὶς ἁρπάσει αὐτὰ ἐκ τῆς χειρός μου, καὶ ἑξῆς· οὐδεὶς δύναται ἁρπάσαι ἐκ τῆς χειρὸς τοῦ πατρός μου. ̓Επεὶ ουν τὰ ἑρμηνευθέντα τῆς γῆς πέρατά εἰσιν ἐν χειρὶ θεοῦ, εἰκότως καὶ τὰ ὑψηλὰ τῶν ὀρέων αὐτοῦ τυγχάνει, ὀρῶν οντων τῶν διῃρημένων βίῳ καὶ φρονήματι θεοσεβῶν ἀνδρῶν. κατ' ἐξαίρετον δὲ αὐτοῦ εἰσιν ὑπερέχοντες ους ὑψηλὰ τῶν ὀρέων προσηγόρευσεν· η τάχα πέρατα μὲν γῆς, οἱ ἐπὶ γῆς περιπατοῦντες ανθρωποι, ἐν οὐρανῷ δ' εχοντες τὸ πολίτευμα καὶ τὴν καρδίαν διὰ τὸ ἐκεῖ τεθησαυρικέναι, τῶν ἀγγέλων ὑψηλῶν ὀρῶν χρηματιζόντων. 925 Ps 94,5b Σημειωτέον οτι οὐχ ὑπὸ χειρὸς ἀλλ' ὑπὸ χειρῶν πεπλᾶσθαι ἡ ξηρὰ λέγεται, ωσπερ τὸ Εργα τῶν χειρῶν σού εἰσιν οἱ οὐρανοί, καὶ τὸ Αἱ χεῖρές σου ἐποίησάν με καὶ επλασάν με. τίνες δὲ αυται αἱ δημιουργικαὶ χεῖρες ἀπορητέον· μία μὲν γὰρ ὁμολογουμένως δραστήριος τοῦ θεοῦ χεὶρ ὁ θεὸς λόγος ἐστίν, ἀλλὰ ταύτῃ τῇ χειρὶ καὶ ἑτέρα τις συντέτακται διὰ πλειόνων γραφῶν καὶ αυτη δημιουργικὴ ὑπάρχουσα.