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existing provider. For since the gods of the Babylonians, and indeed also those of our ancestors, were both lifeless and completely without sensation, very fittingly those who have been freed from them name the true God as living. [For His is the voice: "I am the life and the resurrection; and he who eats me will live in me."] 4. "For even the sparrow has found a house for itself, and the turtledove a nest for herself, where she will place her young." But Aquila [translates it] thus: And indeed a bird found a home for itself, and a sparrow a nest for itself, where it placed its young. For just as sparrows and turtledoves, and indeed also the other birds, wander when they do not have a nest, but having built it, are accustomed to dwell in it, and feed their own young; so we once wandered, but now, having been called by your grace, and having found your tabernacles, we train our own young beside your altars, attending to you with our children, and receiving spiritual food from you. "Your altars, O Lord of hosts, my King, and my God." For our nest, and our brood, and our enjoyment of good things, are your holy altars. For beside them, like gaping young birds, we receive from you the divine and saving food. 5. "Blessed are all who dwell in your house; for ever and ever they will praise you." But each of these things happens typologically to those in Babylon; but to us it pertains according to the truth itself. For they, being far from the divine temple, call blessed those who enjoy the providence from there; and we, having tasted the divine sweetness, call enviable those who constantly attend to God, and delight in the divine good things. 80.1541 ʹ. "Blessed is the man whose help is from you, ascents are in his heart." The word calls blessed him who always obtains divine care, and whose mind is enlightened by divine grace, and who always revolves pious thoughts within himself. For the prophetic word named the pious thoughts concerning God ascents of God happening in the heart. 7. He has appointed [it] in the valley of weeping, in the place which he appointed. For the lawgiver will also give blessings." For he who receives the ascents of God in his heart, and has learned the blessings of the lawgiver, does not give himself over to laughter and luxury, but to weeping and tears, longing for release from here. For he heard God saying: "Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted" and, "Blessed are those who weep, for they will laugh." Therefore, having made these covenants, he awaits the blessing of the lawgiver. The valley of weeping is, typologically, the place, in which an angel appeared, rebuked the transgression of the people, and moved the multitude to weeping. For thus that place was named from that [event]. But properly and truly the valley of weeping is the present life, in which Adam eats bread by the sweat of his face, and Eve bears children in sorrow; and not only sinners, but also the saints groan, and one, it says, is sorrowful even to death, and another cries out, "Take my soul, for it is better for me to die than to live." And the great herald of truth says, "We ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly." Thus it is possible to see even the struggling saints continually using tears, and receiving gladness from this. Therefore in this valley of weeping those who have received the ascents, both pour out tears, and embrace the toilsome life, and await the blessing of the lawgiver. 8. "They will go from strength to strength." For they increase their strength daily, and by the addition of virtue they acquire much might. Thus those who embrace the ascetic life proceed from prayer to hymnody; from hymnody to 80.1544 supplication; from that to the reading of the divine oracles; from there to the exhortation and counsel of the less perfect, and from strength to strength

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ὑπάρχοντα χορηγόν. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ καὶ οἱ Βαβυλω νίων θεοὶ, καὶ μὲν δὴ καὶ οἱ τῶν ἡμετέρων προγό νων, καὶ ἄψυχοι ἦσαν καὶ ἀναίσθητοι παντελῶς, μάλα εἰκότως οἱ ἐκείνων ἀπαλλαγέντες ζῶντα τὸν ἀληθῆ Θεὸν ὀνομάζουσιν. [Αὐτοῦ γάρ ἐστι φωνή· "Ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ζωὴ καὶ ἡ ἀνάστασις· καὶ ὁ τρώγων με ζήσεται ἐν ἐμοί."] δʹ. "Καὶ γὰρ στρουθίον εὗρεν ἑαυτῷ οἰκίαν, καὶ τρυγὼν νοσσιὰν ἑαυτῇ, οὗ θήσει τὰ νοσσία ἑαυτῆς." Ὁ δὲ Ἀκύλας οὕτω· Καί γε ὄρνεον εὗρεν ἑαυτῷ οἶκον, καὶ στρουθίον νοσσιὰν αὐτῷ, οὗ ἔθετο νεοσσοὺς αὐτοῦ. Καθάπερ γὰρ στρουθία καὶ τρυγόνες, καὶ μὲν δὴ καὶ οἱ ἄλλοι ὄρνιθες, πλανῶνται μὲν οὐκ ἔχοντες καλιὰν, πηξάμενοι δὲ ταύτην ἐν αὐτῇ διατρίβειν εἰώθασι, καὶ τοὺς οἰ κείους ἑαυτῶν τρέφουσι νεοττούς· οὕτως ἡμεῖς πάλαι μὲν ἐπλανώμεθα, νῦν δὲ ὑπὸ τῆς σῆς χάριτος προκληθέντες, καὶ τὰς σὰς εὑρόντες σκηνὰς, παρὰ τὰ θυσιαστήριά σου τοὺς οἰκείους ἐκπαιδεύομεν νεοττοὺς, μετὰ τῶν ἡμετέρων σοι προσεδρεύοντες παίδων, καὶ τὴν πνευματικὴν τροφὴν παρὰ σοῦ κομιζόμενοι. "Τὰ θυσιαστήριά σου, Κύριε τῶν δυνάμεων, ὁ Βασιλεύς μου, καὶ ὁ Θεός μου." Ἡμῶν γὰρ καλιὰ, καὶ νοττιὰ, καὶ ἀπόλαυσις ἀγαθῶν, τὰ ἅγιά σου θυσιαστήρια. Παρ' ἐκεῖνα γὰρ, καθάπερ νεοττοὶ κεχηνότες, παρὰ σοῦ κομιζόμεθα τὴν θείαν τροφὴν καὶ σωτήριον. εʹ. "Μακάριοι πάντες οἱ κατοικοῦντες ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ σου εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων αἰνέσουσί σε." Τούτων δὲ ἕκαστον τυπικῶς μὲν τοῖς ἐν Βαβυλῶνι συμβαίνει· ἡμῖν δὲ προσήκει κατ' αὐτὴν τὴν ἀλήθειαν. Καὶ γὰρ ἐκεῖνοι πόῤῥω ὄντες τοῦ θείου νεὼ, μακαρίζουσι τοὺς τῆς ἐκεῖθεν ἀπολαύοντας προμηθείας· καὶ ἡμεῖς γευσάμενοι τῆς θείας γλυ κύτητος, ζηλωτοὺς ἀποκαλοῦμεν τοὺς διηνεκῶς τῷ Θεῷ προσεδρεύοντας, καὶ τοῖς θείοις ἀγαθοῖς ἐντρυφῶντας. 80.1541 ʹ. "Μακάριος ἀνὴρ οὗ ἐστὶν ἀντίληψις αὐτῷ παρά σου, ἀναβάσεις ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ αὐτοῦ." Μα καρίζει ὁ λόγος τὸν τῆς θείας ἀεὶ κηδεμονίας τυγ χάνοντα, καὶ τῇ θείᾳ χάριτι τὸν νοῦν φωτιζόμενον, καὶ ἀεὶ τοὺς εὐσεβεῖς ἐν αὐτῷ στρέφοντα λογι σμούς. Θεοῦ γὰρ ἀναβάσεις εἰς καρδίαν γινομένας, τοὺς εὐσεβεῖς περὶ Θεοῦ λογισμοὺς ὁ προφητικὸς ὠνόμασε λόγος. ζʹ. ∆ιέθετο εἰς τὴν κοιλάδα τοῦ κλαυθμῶνος, εἰς τόπον ὃν ἔθετο. Καὶ γὰρ εὐλογίας δώσει ὁ νομοθε τῶν." Ὁ γὰρ τοῦ Θεοῦ τὰς ἀναβάσεις ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ δεχόμενος, καὶ τοῦ νομοθέτου τὰς εὐλο γίας μεμαθηκὼς, οὐκ εἰς γέλωτα ἑαυτὸν ἐκδίδωσι καὶ τρυφὴν, ἀλλὰ εἰς κλαυθμὸν καὶ δάκρυα, τῆς ἐντεῦθεν ἀπαλλαγῆς ἐφιέμενος. Ἤκουσε γὰρ τοῦ Θεοῦ λέγοντος· "Μακάριοι οἱ πενθοῦντες, ὅτι αὐτοὶ παρακληθήσονται" καὶ, "Μακάριοι οἱ κλαίον τες, ὅτι αὐτοὶ γελάσονται." Ταύτας τοίνυν τὰς συνθήκας ποιησάμενος, προσμένει τοῦ νομοθέτου τὴν εὐλογίαν. Κοιλὰς δὲ κλαυθμῶνος τυπικῶς μὲν ὁ τόπος, ἐν ᾧ φανεὶς ἄγγελος, τὴν τοῦ λαοῦ παρανομίαν διήλεγξε, καὶ εἰς κλαυθμὸν τὸ πλῆθος ἐκίνησεν. Οὕτω γὰρ ἐκεῖνο τὸ χωρίον ἐξ ἐκείνου προσηγορεύθη. Κυρίως δὲ καὶ ἀληθῶς κλαυθμῶνος κοιλὰς ὁ παρὼν βίος, ἐν ᾧ καὶ ὁ ἀδὰμ ἐν ἱδρῶτι τοῦ προσώπου ἐσθίει τὸν ἄρτον, καὶ ἡ Εὖα ἐν λύπαις τίκτει τέκνα· καὶ οὐ μόνον οἱ ἁμαρτά νοντες, ἀλλὰ καὶ οἱ ἅγιοι στένουσι, καὶ ὁ μὲν, φησὶν, ἕως θανάτου λυπεῖται, ὁ δὲ βοᾷ, "Λάβε τὴν ψυχήν μου, καὶ ὅτι καλόν μοι τὸ ἀποθανεῖν, ἢ ζῇν με." Καὶ ὁ μέγας δὲ κῆρυξ τῆς ἀληθείας φησὶ, "Καὶ ἡμεῖς τὴν ἀπαρχὴν τοῦ Πνεύματος ἔχοντες ἐν αὐτοῖς στενάζομεν." Οὕτως ἔστιν ἰδεῖν καὶ τοὺς ἀγωνιζομένους ἁγίους δάκρυσιν ἐνδελεχῶς κεχρημένους, καὶ τὴν ἐντεῦθεν εὐφροσύνην κομι ζομένους. Ἐν ταύτῃ τοίνυν τῇ κοιλάδι τοῦ κλαυ θμῶνος οἱ τὰς ἀναβάσεις δεξάμενοι, καὶ τὰ δάκρυα προχέουσι, καὶ τὸν ἐπίπονον ἀσπάζονται βίον, καὶ τοῦ νομοθέτου τὴν εὐλογίαν προσμένουσιν. ηʹ. "Πορεύσονται ἐκ δυνάμεως εἰς δύναμιν." Αὔξουσι γὰρ ὁσημέραι τὴν ἰσχὺν, καὶ τῇ προσθήκῃ τῆς ἀρετῆς πολλὴν ἐπικτῶνται ῥώμην. Οὕτως οἱ τὸν ἀσκητικὸν ἀσπαζόμενοι βίον, ἀπὸ προσευχῆς εἰς ὑμνῳδίαν βαδίζουσιν· ἀπὸ τῆς ὑμνῳδίας ἐπὶ τὴν 80.1544 ἱκετείαν· ἐξ ἐκείνης ἐπὶ τὴν τῶν θείων λογίων ἀνάγνωσιν· ἐντεῦθεν ἐπὶ τῶν ἀτελεστέρων παρ αίνεσίν τε καὶ συμβουλὴν, καὶ ἀπὸ δυνάμεως εἰς δύναμιν