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he will confess to you, buying from you the doing of things pleasing to him, and buying this for a great price, then he will thank you, he says. For, "He will confess to you," this is when you do good to him. He did not say, "When you do something useful," "when you do a good deed," but, "When things are pleasing to him, and are according to his opinion, and you serve him according to his mind;" showing that the harm is from both sides, from feigned flattery and from injurious service. He shall go to the generation of his fathers; he shall never see light. And a man, being in honor, did not understand; he is compared to the senseless cattle, and is made like them. "He shall go," that is, he will imitate the zeal of his fathers, and being from wicked men, he will inherit wickedness; or instead of, "If he has not done any good thing, he will be found to have been benefited in nothing from his wealth;" but he will be left with those lying in the dust before him until the judgment, unable even to see light according to the law of nature. Then again he repeats what was said before, saying: And a man, being in honor, did not understand; he is compared to the senseless cattle, and is made like them. Such a one, he says, who has died in this way, who did not manage his wealth properly, will differ in nothing from a beast, as not having acknowledged the honor he received from God, having been made like the cattle, for whom the end of life is death alone; from which may we be delivered, both those learning these things and those teaching them, in Christ Jesus our Lord, to whom be the glory and the power, for ever and ever. Amen.

ON THE 49TH PSALM.

The God of gods, the Lord, has spoken, and called the earth, from the rising of the sun to its setting.

1. And elsewhere the same one says: God stood in the 55.241 assembly of gods. And again: I said: You are gods. And Paul: For even if there are so-called gods, and many lords. And Moses: You shall not revile the gods. And elsewhere: The sons of God saw the daughters of men. And again the same one: He who curses God will bear his sin; but he who names the name of the Lord will be stoned. And again: Gods, who did not make heaven and earth, let them perish from under heaven. Whom then does he indicate by this name in those testimonies, and whom does he call gods here? The rulers. Therefore he adds: You shall not revile the gods, and you shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people. He also calls those born from a certain virtuous ancestor. For since Enos, having shown great virtue, was called by the name of God; and all those from him, and the descendants of his brother intermingled with each other, he calls those of the virtuous one "sons of God." For they began, he says, to call upon the name of God. He also means the people of the Jews, honored by this address in saying: I said: You are gods, and sons of Israel. For so he called their people out of his own loving-kindness. Thus also that is resolved, "He who curses God will bear his sin;" that is, "He who speaks evil of a ruler, sins." "But he who names the name of the Lord will be stoned;" that is, he who applies to non-beings the name of the true God. For since the sin is unforgivable, and the punishment for it most severe; the gods of the Greeks are also called so, not according to honor, nor by the grace of the address, but because of the deceit of those who were led astray, and called them so. For this reason Paul also says: "For even if there are so-called gods," indicating that they are not beings, not even up to the point of an address of honor. Here then, about whom does he speak, "God of gods?" It seems to me, of the Greek gods, not as if they are beings,

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ὁμολογήσῃ, ὠνούμενος παρὰ σοῦ τὸ τὰ ἀρέσκοντα αὐτῷ ποιεῖν, καὶ πολλοῦ τοῦτο ὠνούμενος, τότε εὐχαριστήσει σοι, φησί. Τὸ γὰρ, Ἐξομολογήσεται, τοῦτό ἐστιν, ὅταν ἀγαθύνῃς αὐτῷ. Οὐκ εἶπεν, Ὅταν τι χρήσιμον ἐργάσῃ, ὅταν εὐεργετήσῃς, ἀλλ', Ὅταν τὰ ἀρεστὰ αὐτῷ, καὶ κατὰ γνώμην ᾖ, καὶ κατὰ νοῦν ὑπηρετήσῃς· δεικνὺς, ὅτι ἑκατέρωθεν ἡ βλάβη, ἀπό τε τῆς πεπλασμένης κολακείας, καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς ἐπιβλαβοῦς διακονίας. Εἰσελεύσεται ἕως γενεᾶς πατέρων αὐτοῦ, ἕως αἰῶνος οὐκ ὄψεται φῶς. Καὶ ἄνθρωπος ἐν τιμῇ ὢν οὐ συνῆκε· παρασυνεβλήθη τοῖς κτήνεσι τοῖς ἀνοήτοις, καὶ ὡμοιώθη αὐτοῖς. Εἰσελεύσεται, ἤγουν μιμήσεται τὸν τῶν πατέρων ζῆλον, καὶ ἐκ πονηρῶν ὢν, πονηρίαν διαδέξεται· ἢ ἀντὶ τοῦ, Εἰ μὴ πράξας τι ἀγαθὸν, εὑρεθήσεται ἐκ τοῦ πλούτου οὐδὲν ὠφελούμενος· καταλείψεται δὲ τοὺς πρὸ αὐτοῦ κειμένους ἐν κόνει ἄχρι τῆς κρίσεως, οὐδὲ φῶς ἰδεῖν δυνάμενος κατὰ τὸν τῆς φύσεως νόμον. Εἶτα πάλιν ἐπαναλαμβάνει τὰ προειρημένα λέγων· Καὶ ἄνθρωπος ἐν τιμῇ ὢν οὐ συνῆκε· παρασυνεβλήθη τοῖς κτήνεσι τοῖς ἀνοήτοις, καὶ ὡμοιώθη αὐτοῖς. Ὁ τοιοῦτος, φησὶν, ὁ οὕτως ἀποθανὼν, ὁ μὴ διοικήσας δεόντως τὰ χρήματα, οὐδὲν διοίσει ἀλόγου, ὡς μὴ ἐπιγνοὺς ἣν ἐδέξατο τιμὴν ἐκ Θεοῦ, ἀφομοιωθεὶς τοῖς κτήνεσιν, οἷς τὸ πέρας ἐστὶ τῆς ζωῆς θάνατος μόνον· ὧν ῥυσθείημεν οἵ τε μανθάνοντες ταῦτα καὶ οἱ διδάσκοντες, ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ τῷ Κυρίῳ ἡμῶν, ᾧ ἡ δόξα καὶ τὸ κράτος, εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.

ΕΙΣ ΤΟΝ ΜΘʹ ΨΑΛΜΟΝ.

Θεὸς θεῶν Κύριος ἐλάλησε, καὶ ἐκάλεσε τὴν γῆν, ἀπὸ ἀνατολῶν ἡλίου μέχρι δυσμῶν.

αʹ. Καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ φησιν ὁ αὐτός· Ὁ Θεὸς ἔστη ἐν 55.241 συναγωγῇ θεῶν. Καὶ πάλιν· Ἐγὼ εἶπα· Θεοί ἐστε. Καὶ ὁ Παῦλος· Καὶ γὰρ εἴπερ εἰσὶ λεγόμενοι θεοὶ, καὶ κύριοι πολλοί. Καὶ ὁ Μωϋσῆς· Θεοὺς οὐ κακολογήσεις. Καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ· Ἰδόντες οἱ υἱοὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ τὰς θυγατέρας τῶν ἀνθρώπων. Καὶ πάλιν ὁ αὐτός· Ὁ καταρώμενος Θεὸν, ἁμαρτίαν λήψεται· ὁ δὲ ὀνομάζων τὸ ὄνομα Κυρίου, λιθοβοληθήσεται. Καὶ πάλιν· Θεοὶ, οἳ τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν οὐκ ἐποίησαν, ἀπολέσθωσαν ὑποκάτω τοῦ οὐρανοῦ. Τίνας οὖν δηλοῖ διὰ τοῦ ὀνόματος τούτου ἐν ἐκείναις ταῖς μαρτυρίαις, καὶ τίνας ἐνταῦθα λέγει θεούς; Τοὺς ἄρχοντας. ∆ιὸ καὶ ἐπάγει· Θεοὺς οὐ κακολογήσεις, καὶ ἄρχοντα τοῦ λαοῦ σου οὐκ ἐρεῖς κακῶς. Λέγει καὶ τοὺς ἐκ προγόνου τινὸς ἐναρέτου γεγεννημένους. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ὁ Ἐνὼς πολλὴν ἀρετὴν ἐπιδειξάμενος, ἐκλήθη τῷ ὀνόματι τοῦ Θεοῦ· οἱ δὲ ἐξ ἐκείνου πάντες, καὶ οἱ ἔκγονοι τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ ἐκείνου ἀλλήλοις ἐμίγνυντο, υἱοὺς τοῦ Θεοῦ καλεῖ τοὺς τοῦ ἐναρέτου. Ἤρξαντο γὰρ, φησὶν, ἐπικαλεῖσθαι τῷ ὀνόματι τοῦ Θεοῦ. Λέγει καὶ τὸν τῶν Ἰουδαίων λαὸν, ταύτῃ τιμηθέντα τῇ προσηγορίᾳ ἐν τῷ λέγειν· Ἐγὼ εἶπα· Θεοί ἐστε, καὶ υἱοὶ Ἰσραήλ. Καὶ γὰρ οὕτως ἐκάλει αὐτῶν τὸν δῆμον δι' οἰκείαν φιλανθρωπίαν. Οὕτω καὶ ἐκεῖνο λύεται τὸ, Ὁ καταρώμενος Θεὸν, ἁμαρτίαν λήψεται· τουτέστιν, Ὁ τὸν ἄρχοντα κακῶς λέγων, ἁμαρτάνει. Ὁ δὲ ὀνομάζων τὸ ὄνομα Κυρίου λιθοβοληθήσεται· τουτέστιν, ὁ τοῖς μὴ οὖσι προσάπτων τὸ τοῦ ὄντος Θεοῦ ὄνομα. Ἐπεὶ γὰρ ἀσύγγνωστον τὸ ἁμάρτημα, καὶ ἡ ἐπ' αὐτῷ τιμωρία χαλεπωτάτη· λέγονται καὶ οἱ τῶν Ἑλλήνων θεοὶ, οὐ κατὰ τιμὴν, οὔτε χάριτι προσηγορίας, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὴν ἀπάτην τῶν πλανηθέντων, καὶ οὕτως αὐτοὺς καλεσάντων. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ Παῦλός φησι· Καὶ γὰρ εἴπερ εἰσὶ λεγόμενοι θεοὶ, δηλῶν ὅτι οὐκ ὄντες οὐδὲ μέχρι προσηγορίας τῆς κατὰ τιμήν. Ἐνταῦθα οὖν περὶ τίνων λέγει, Θεὸς θεῶν; Ἐμοὶ δοκεῖ τῶν Ἑλληνικῶν, οὐχ ὡς ὄντων,