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And again: "As you have done, so shall your recompense be." And in general the Scripture says: "Woe to the lawless one. Evil things according to the works of his hands will happen to him." The phrase, I will no longer give you over to men, according to the Seventy, indicates that he will no longer be given over to such inhuman men. 2445 Perhaps he also says it to those who conquered long ago; but this, having been said to Israel, has been inserted. Then again he says to Chaldea, Sit down pierced, or according to Symmachus, in silence; for you who are so boastful, and who use the nations as servants, repent now for what you have done, being given over to so great a darkness of chastisement. And the phrase strength of a kingdom, Symmachus rendered mistress of kingdoms, and he added the reason, teaching that one must not trample on those who are humbled by God, whom it is possible to be pitied after being chastised. And in accord with these things Zechariah also says: "‘I am zealous for Jerusalem with great zeal, and with great anger I am angry against the nations that have joined in the attack; because while I was but a little angry, they joined in for evil.’" But you, he says, have supposed that you would rule forever, teaching not to trust in present prosperities, but to foresee the last things, and the changes that will come later. These things belonged to the arrogance of those who had reigned in her. And at one time he threatens her with the loss of a husband, the one reigning at the time she was captured, and of children who are ruled by her, or also of her inhabitants who fell in the battle. But these things will happen to you not only because of the things foretold; but because you also placed your hopes in incantations and sorceries. For when those who practice these things foretold victory for you, being lifted up to a swelling of pride, trusting both in your power, and not supposing that the Persian rule would prove superior, you would say: ‘I am, and there is no other,’ having trusted in divinations from demons, and from the stars. And he calls hope in demons fornication. For it is apostasy from God. For to all men intimacy with God is according to nature, but intimacy with demons is alien, their communion with men being brought on through sorcery. Therefore Paul also connects idolatry with sorcery, saying: "Idolatry, sorcery." Therefore, practicing idolatry is not pardonable either for Chaldeans or for others, but destructive. Therefore, he says, your fornication will be for a shame, when your hope in demons fails, whose strength is weakness, they having neither the ability to foretell these things to you, as I have, nor the power to help. Instead of, Know that this will be their understanding, and your fornication a shame for you, Symmachus says: And this your knowledge has deceived you. And he calls the wisdom of the seers understanding. Therefore he says, And you shall not know by divination the destruction that is coming, which he also calls a pit, indicating the inescapability of those who have fallen into it. And Daniel shows how certain magi, and Gazarenes, and sorcerers, and those wise in such things (for so they called them) distinguished themselves among the Chaldeans, who were also esteemed by the king, 2448 as though the kingdom were made successful through them, whom he says the punishment by fire will overtake, when the city too will be burned with fire, they being unable even to help themselves. But some took the word to Chaldea ironically. you have coals of fire, that is, hot and zealous men, those about whom the word is, when you sit upon them, that is, rest upon them. For they themselves shall be a help to you. That is, coals, he calls the converting and beneficial punishments. For to you, having turned back, he says, the things of the punishment will be for good as you obtain help from me, even if you spent the time before in vain labor. And these things, he says, will also be for each of mankind. For those who have gone astray because of themselves will have a punishment, which you will not escape unless you repent. And you have grown weary, instead of you have grown weak. For having changed your worship from God to demons you have become easily captured. Instead of: You have grown weary in your change, and what follows; the others say, Your merchants from your youth. Each has gone astray to his own end, from whom no savior has been found for you. Therefore there is no one who saves you,

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καὶ πάλιν· "Καθὼς ἐποίησας, οὕτως ἔσται τὸ ἀνταπόδομά σου." Καὶ καθόλου δέ φησιν ἡ Γραφή· "Οὐαὶ τῷ ἀνόμῳ. Πονηρὰ κατὰ τὰ ἔργα τῶν χειρῶν αὐτοῦ συμβήσεται αὐτῷ." Τὸ δὲ, Οὐκέτι μὴ παραδῶ σε ἀνθρώποις, κατὰ τοὺς Ἑβδομήκοντα, δηλοῖ τὸ μηκέτι τοιούτοις ἀπανθρώποις παραδοθήσεσθαι. 2445 Ἵσως δὲ καὶ αὐτοῖς λέγει τοῖς πάλαι νικήσασι· τοῦτο δὲ πρὸς τὸν Ἰσραὴλ ῥηθὲν παρεμβέβληται. Εἶτα πάλιν πρὸς τὴν Χαλδαίαν φησὶ, Κάθισον κατανενυγμένη, ἢ κατὰ Σύμμαχον, σιωπῶσα· ἡ γὰρ οὕτω μεγάλαυχος, καὶ ὡς οἰκέται χρωμένη τοῖς ἔθνεσιν, μετάγνωθι λοιπὸν ἐφ' οἷς ἔπραξας, τοσούτῳ σκότῳ παιδείας ἐκδιδομένη. Τὸ δὲ ἰσχὺς βασιλείας, δέσποινα βασιλειῶν ἐξέδωκε Σύμμαχος, καὶ τὴν αἰτίαν ἐπήγαγεν, διδάσκων ὡς οὐ δεῖ τοῖς ὑπὸ Θεοῦ ταπεινουμένοις ἐπεμβαίνειν, οὓς ἐγχωρεῖ παιδευθέντας ἐλεηθῆναι. Συνωδὰ δὲ τούτοις καὶ Ζαχαρίας φησίν· "Ἐζήλωκα τὴν Ἱερουσαλὴμ ζῆλον μέγαν, καὶ θυμῷ μεγάλῳ ὀργίζομαι ἐγὼ ἐπὶ τὰ ἔθνη τὸ συνεπιτιθέμενα· ἀνθ' ὧν ἐγὼ μὲν ὠργίσθη ὀλίγα, αὐτοὶ δὲ συνεπέθεντο εἰς κακά." Σὺ δὲ, φησὶ, καὶ διηνεκῶς βασιλεύειν ὑπείληφας, παιδεύων ταῖς παρούσαις εὐπραγίαις μὴ πεποιθέναι, προορᾷν δὲ τὰ ἔσχατα, καὶ τὰς ὕστερον ἐσομένας μεταβολάς. Ταῦτα δὲ τῆς ὑπερηφανίας τῶν ἐν αὐτῇ βασιλευσάντων ὑπῆρχεν. Ὑφ' ἕνα δὲ αὐτῇ καιρὸν ἀπειλεῖ ἀνδρὸς στέρησιν τοῦ καθ' ὃν ἤλω βασιλεύοντος χρόνον, καὶ τέκνων τῶν ὑπ' αὐτῆς βασιλευομένων, ἢ καὶ τῶν αὐτῆς οἰκητόρων ἐν τῇ μάχῃ πεσόντων. Οὐ διὰ τὰ προλεχθέντα δέ σοι ταῦτα συμβήσεται μόνον· ἀλλ' ὅτι καὶ τὰς ἐλπίδας ἐν ἐπῳδαῖς ἔθου καὶ φαρμακείαις. Προλεγόντων γάρ σοι νίκην τῶν αὐτὰ μετιόντων, πρὸς ὄγκον ἀρθεῖσα φρονήματος, ὁμοῦ καὶ τῇ δυνάμει θαῤῥοῦσα, καὶ τὴν ἀρχὴν οὐκ οἰομένη κρείττω φανεῖσθαι τὴν Περσικὴν, ἔφασκες· Ἐγώ εἰμι, καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ἑτέρα, ταῖς ἐκ δαιμόνων μαντείαις, καὶ ταῖς ἐξ ἄστρων θαῤῥήσασα. Καὶ τὴν ἐπὶ δαίμοσιν ἐλπίδα πορνείαν καλεῖ. Ἀποστατικὴ γάρ ἐστι Θεοῦ. Πᾶσι γὰρ ἀνθρώποις ἡ πρὸς Θεὸν οἰκείωσις κτὰ φύσιν, ἡ δὲ πρὸς δαίμονας ἀλλοτρία, τὴν τούτων πρὸς ἀνθρώπους συνουσίαν διὰ γοητείας ἐπαγομένη. ∆ιὸ καὶ Παῦλος τῇ φαρμακείᾳ συνάπτει τὴν εἰδωλολατρείαν λέγων· "Εἰδωλολατρεία, φαρμακεία." Οὐ τοίνυν οὔτε Χαλδαίοις οὔθ' ἑτέροις τὸ εἰδωλολατρεῖν συγγνωστὸν, ἀλλ' ὀλέθριον. Ἔσται οὖν, φησὶν, ἡ πορνεία σου εἰς αἰσχύνην, ὅτ' ἂν ἡ ἐπὶ δαίμοσιν ἐλπὶς διαπέσῃ, ὧν ἡ ἰσχὺς, ἀσθένεια, μήτε προλέγειν ἐχόντων, ὡς ἐγώ σοι ταῦτα, μήτε βοηθεῖν δυναμένων. Ἀντὶ δὲ̀ τοῦ, Γνῶθι ὅτι ἡ σύνεσις τούτων ἔσται, καὶ ἡ πορνεία σοι αἰσχύνη, Σύμμαχός φησι· Καὶ ἡ γνῶσίς σου αὕτη ἐξηπάτησέν σε. Σύνεσιν δὲ καλεῖ τὴν σοφίαν τῶν μάντεων. ∆ιό φησι, Καὶ οὐ μὴ γνῷς ἐκ μαντείας τὸν ἐπερχόμενον ὄλεθρον, ὃν καὶ βόθυνον καλεῖ, τὸ ἄφυκτον τῶν ἐμπεπτωκότων δηλῶν. Παρίστησι δὲ ∆ανιὴλ ὅπως παρὰ Χαλδαίοις διέπρεπον μάγοι τινὲς, καὶ Γαζαρηνοὶ, καὶ φαρμακοὶ, καὶ οἱ τὰ τοιαῦτα σοφοὶ (οὕτω γὰρ αὐτοὺς ἐκάλουν), οἳ καὶ εὐδοκίμουν 2448 παρὰ τῷ βασιλεῖ, ὡς δι' αὐτῶν κατορθουμένης τῆς βασιλείας, οὕς φησι καταλήψεσθαι τὴν διὰ πυρὸς τιμωρίαν, ἡνίκα πυρίκαυστος καὶ ἡ πόλις γενήσεται, μηδὲ αὐτοῖς βοηθεῖν δυναμένους. Τινὲς δὲ κατ' εἰρωνείαν τὸν λόγον πρὸς τὴν Χαλδαίαν ἐδέξαντο. ἔχεις ἄνθρακας πυρὸς, ὅ ἐστι Θερμοὺς ἄνδρας καὶ ζέοντας, τοὺς περὶ ὧν ὁ λόγος, ὅτ' ἂν ἐπ' αὐτοῖς καθίσῃς, ὅ ἐστιν ἐπαναπαύσῃ. Αὐτοὶ γὰρ ἔσονταί σοι βοήθεια. Ἤγουν ἄνθρακας, τὰς ἐπιστρεπτικὰς καὶ ὠφελίμους τιμωρίας καλεῖ. Ἐπιστραφείσῃ γάρ σοι, φησὶν, ἔσται τὰ τῆς τιμωρίας πρὸς ἀγαθοῦ τῆς παρ' ἐμοῦ τυγχανούσης Βοηθείας, εἰ καὶ τὸν πρὸ τοῦ χρόνον εἰς ματαιοπονίαν ἀνάλωσας. Ταῦτα δὲ φησὶν, ἔσται καὶ καθ' ἕκαστον τῶν ἀνθρώπων. ∆ι' ἑαυτοὺς τὰρ πλανηθέντες ἕξουσι τιμωρίαν, ἣν οὐ φεύξῃ μὴ μετανοήσασα. Τὸ δὲ ἐκοπίασας, ἀντὶ τοῦ ἠσθένησας. Μεταβαλοῦσα γὰρ εἰς δαίμονας ἀπὸ Θεοῦ τὴν λατρείαν εὐάλωτος γέγονας. Ἀντὶ δὲ τοῦ· Ἐκοπίασας ἐν τῇ μεταβολῇ σου, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς· οἱ λοιποί φασιν, Οἱ ἔμποροί σου ἀπὸ νεότητός σου. Ἕκαστος εἰς τὸ πέραν ἑαυτοῦ ἐπλανήθησαν, ἐξ ὧν οὐδεὶς εὕρηταί σοι σωτήρ. ∆ιὸ οὐκ ἔστιν ὁ σώζων σε,