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having examined how much and what kind of temporary life there is, he turns away from these things as small and worthy of no account; and having become entirely of the hope above, he prays to attain it, granted by the mercy of God. For no one will obtain the heavenly things by debt, nor according to the worth of his own righteousness. Wherefore it is said somewhere else: "For what have I in heaven?" But everything is given by the mercy and loving-kindness of God, who bestows great things on those who have accomplished small things. This is what the present saying signifies, stating: "Because your mercy is better than lives." For even if someone becomes long-lived and long-lasting in the present 23.608, as if having acquired many lives in many 23.608 periods of years; but these are nothing when compared to the mercy of God, which is the cause of eternal life and heavenly goods. Wherefore, emboldened by your mercy, I will dedicate my entire present life to you, having set apart my members and my senses for your service, like some precious votive offerings and costly treasures. Therefore my lips will speak nothing else, but will be purified and kept clean, so as to be at leisure for your hymns and words; and this life of mine will be occupied in blessing you always, night and day; and the hands of my body, and the actions accomplished through them, in your name I will lift, raising them on high, and show them to you clean from every lawless deed, according to him who said: "I will therefore that men pray, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting." Thus my lips and my hands will be set apart for you, so that my lips will be in no way different from fragrant incense, and my hands will not fall short of an effective and true sacrifice; so that I might say fittingly concerning my lips, "Let my prayer be set forth before you as incense;" and concerning my deeds, "the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice." And so the flesh and the body will be dedicated to your service; but my soul will partake of greater power; wherefore I also say concerning it: "My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness." For the soul no longer, like the body, with lips or hands, nor with any other part or member, but this whole soul in itself, above every whole burnt offering, and above every well-fed animal full of fatness and marrow, will be offered to you, God, being considered by you more precious than a calf and a bull, and every irrational animal. Therefore I will dedicate this most rich and pleasing sacrifice to you, I mean my own soul. And for these things, confessing thanks with my whole mouth and with lips filled with joy, I will praise you; wherefore I say: "And my mouth shall praise you with joyful lips;" or according to Symmachus: "And my mouth shall sing praises with joyful lips." "If I remembered you upon my bed, I meditated on you in the morning watches, because you have been my help. And in the shadow of your wings I will rejoice, my soul has followed close behind you, your right hand has upheld me." While tarrying in the desert of Judea, the wondrous David promises not to sacrifice animals, nor the sacrifices of irrational beasts, but those aforementioned through words and deeds, and of the soul itself. Then, upon these things, he shows to God how he was dedicated in sobriety and complete purity; wherefore he says: "If I remembered you upon my bed, I meditated on you in the morning watches;" or according to Symmachus: "Remembering you upon my bed, in each watch I meditated on you." For in no other way, he says, was I able to rise early to you, nor to say in prayer: "O God, my God, to you I rise early," unless I had kept my bed pure. And my purity was known 23.609 not from anywhere else than from meditating on your oracles in the morning. For it was clear from this that I did nothing else at night than have you, God, before my eyes. But according to Symmachus who says, "in each

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πρόσκαιρον ζωὴν ὅση τίς ἐστι καὶ ὁποία ἐξητακὼς, ἀποστρέφεται μὲν ταῦτα ὡς μικρὰ καὶ οὐδενὸς λόγου ἄξια· ὅλος δὲ τῆς ἄνω ἐλπίδος γενόμενος, ἐκείνης τυχεῖν εὔχεται, ἐλέῳ Θεοῦ χορηγουμένης. Οὐ γὰρ δὴ κατὰ ὀφειλὴν, οὐδὲ κατ' ἀξίαν τῆς ἑαυτοῦ δικαιοσύνης τεύξεταί τις τῶν ἐπουρανίων. ∆ιόπερ ἀλλαχοῦ που εἴρηται· «Τί γάρ μοι ὑπάρχει ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ;» τὸ δὲ πᾶν ἐλέῳ Θεοῦ καὶ φιλανθρωπίᾳ δωρεῖται, τοῖς σμικρὰ κατωρθωκόσι τὰ μεγάλα χαριζομένου. Ὃ δὴ σημαίνει ὁ παρὼν λόγος φάσκων· «Ὅτι κρεῖσσον τὸ ἔλεός σου ὑπὲρ ζωάς.» Κἂν γὰρ μακρόβιος καὶ μακροχρόνιος ἐπὶ τοῦ πα 23.608 ρόντος γένηταί τις, ὥσπερ πολλὰς ζωὰς ἐν πολλαῖς 23.608 ἐτῶν περιόδοις κτησάμενος· ἀλλ' οὐδέν ἐστι ταῦτα συγκρινόμενα πρὸς τὸ ἔλεος τοῦ Θεοῦ, τὸ τῆς αἰωνίου ζωῆς καὶ τῶν ἐπουρανίων ἀγαθῶν αἴτιον. ∆ιόπερ καὶ τῷ σῷ ἐλέῳ ἐπιθαρσήσας, πᾶσάν μου τὴν παροῦσαν ζωήν σοι ἀναθήσω, ὥσπερ τινὰ τίμια ἀναθήματα, καὶ πολυτελῆ κειμήλια τὰ μέλη μου καὶ τὰ αἰσθητήρια τῇ σῇ ἀφορίσας λειτουργίᾳ. ∆ιὸ τὰ μὲν χείλη μου οὐδὲν ἕτερον λαλήσει, ἁγνεύσει δὲ καὶ καθαρὰ φυλαχθήσεται, εἰς τὸ σχολάζειν τοῖς σοῖς ὕμνοις καὶ λόγοις· ἡ δὲ ζωή μου αὕτη περὶ τὸ εὐλογεῖν σε πάντοτε νύκτωρ καὶ μεθ' ἡμέραν ἀσχοληθήσεται· καὶ τὰς χεῖρας δὲ τοῦ σώματός μου, τάς τε διὰ τούτων ἐπιτελουμένας πράξεις, ἐν τῷ ὀνόματί σου ἀρῶ μετεωρίζων εἰς ὕψος, καὶ σοὶ καθαρὰς πάσης παρανόμου πράξεως ἐπιδεικνὺς αὐτὰς κατὰ τὸν φήσαντα· «Βούλομαι τοὺς ἄνδρας προσεύχεσθαι ἐπαίροντας ὁσίους χεῖρας χωρὶς ὀργῆς καὶ διαλογισμῶν.» Οὕτως δὲ τὰ χείλη μου καὶ αἱ χεῖρες ἀφορισθήσονταί σοι, ὡς τὰ μὲν χείλη θυμιάματος εὐώδους τὸ μηθὲν διαφέρειν, τὰς δὲ χεῖρας θυσίας ἐνεργοῦς καὶ ἀληθινῆς μὴ λείπεσθαι· ὡς εἰπεῖν με εὐκαίρως περὶ μὲν τῶν χειλέων μου τὸ, «Γενηθήτω ἡ προσευχή μου ὡς θυμίαμα ἐνώπιόν σου·» περὶ δὲ τῶν πράξεών μου τὸ, «Ἔπαρσις τῶν χειρῶν μου θυσία ἑσπερινή.» Καὶ ἡ μὲν σὰρξ καὶ τὸ σῶμα οὕτως ἀνατεθήσεται τῇ σῇ λειτουργίᾳ· ἡ δὲ ψυχή μου πλείονος μεθέξει δυνάμεως· διὸ καὶ περὶ αὐτῆς φημι· «Ὡσεὶ στέατος καὶ πιότητος ἐμπλησθείη ἡ ψυχή μου.» Οὐκέτι γὰρ ὁμοίως τῷ σώματι καὶ ἡ ψυχὴ χείλεσιν οὐδὲ χερσὶν, οὐδὲ κατά τι μέρος ἢ μέλος ἕτερον, ὅλη δὲ αὕτη καθ' ἑαυτὴν ὑπὲρ πᾶσαν ὁλόκαυτον θυσίαν, καὶ ὑπὲρ πᾶν ζῶον εὐτραφὲς πιότητος καὶ στέατος γέμον, σοὶ τῷ Θεῷ προσενεχθήσεται, μόσχου καὶ ταύρου, καὶ παντὸς ἀλόγου ζώου τιμιωτέρα παρὰ σοὶ λελογισμένη. ∆ιὸ καὶ ταύτην σοι πιοτάτην καί σοι προσφιλῆ θυσίαν, λέγω δὲ τὴν ἐμαυτοῦ ψυχὴν, ἀναθήσω. Ἐπὶ τούτοις τε χάριτας ὁμολογῶν ὅλῳ τῷ στόματι καὶ αὐτοῖς χείλεσι χαρᾶς πεπληρωμένοις ἀνυμνήσω σε· διό φημι· «Καὶ χείλη ἀγαλλιάσεως αἰνέσει τὸ στόμα μου·» ἢ κατὰ τὸν Σύμμαχον· «Καὶ διὰ χειλέων εὐφήμων ὑμνήσει τὸ στόμα μου.» «Εἰ ἐμνημόνευόν σου ἐπὶ τῆς στρωμνῆς μου, ἐν τοῖς ὄρθροις ἐμελέτων εἰς σὲ, ὅτι ἐγενήθης βοηθός μου. Καὶ ἐν τῇ σκέπῃ τῶν πτερύγων σου ἀγαλλιάσομαι, ἐκολλήθη ἡ ψυχή μου ὀπίσω σου, ἐμοῦ δὲ ἀντελάβετο ἡ δεξιά σου. Ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ τῆς Ἰουδαίας διατρίβων ὁ θαυμάσιος ∆αυῒδ, οὐ ζῶα θύειν ἐπαγγέλλεται, οὐδὲ τὰς ἐξ ἀλόγων θρεμμάτων θυσίας, τὰς δὲ προλεχθείσας διὰ λόγων καὶ πράξεων, καὶ ψυχῆς αὐτῆς. Εἶτ' ἐπὶ τούτοις τῷ Θεῷ δείκνυσιν ὅπως ἀνέκειτο σωφροσύνῃ καὶ παντελεῖ ἁγνείᾳ· διό φησιν· «Εἰ ἐμνημόνευόν σου ἐπὶ τῆς στρωμνῆς μου, ἐν τοῖς ὄρθροις ἐμελέτων εἰς σέ·» ἢ κατὰ τὸν Σύμμαχον· «Ἀναμιμνησκόμενός σου ἐπὶ τῆς στρωμνῆς μου, καθ' ἑκάστην φυλακὴν ἐμελέτων σε.» Οὐ γὰρ ἄλλως, φησὶν, οἷός τε ἤμην πρὸς σὲ ὀρθρίζειν, οὐδὲ λέγειν εὐχόμενος· «Ὁ Θεὸς ὁ Θεός μου, πρὸς σὲ ὀρθρίζω,» εἰ μὴ καθαρὰν ἐκεκτήμην τὴν στρωμνήν. Ἐγινώ 23.609 σκετο δέ μου ἡ καθαρότης οὐκ ἄλλοθεν ἢ ἀπὸ τοῦ κατὰ τὸν ὄρθρον τὰ σὰ μελετᾷν λόγια. ∆ῆλον γὰρ ἦν ἐκ τούτου μηδ' ἄλλο τι πράττειν με τὰς νύκτας, ἢ σὲ τὸν Θεὸν πρὸ ὀφθαλμῶν ἔχειν. Κατὰ δὲ τὸν Σύμμαχον λέγοντα, «καθ'