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my. But someone might say that to the Jews, even though they did not listen and did not keep the commandments, but even were idolaters and "killed the prophets," the matters of childbearing according to the flesh abounded. How then does the word promise as a special promise with reserve, saying: if you had done these things, your peace would have been like a river, and your righteousness like the waves of the sea, and your seed and your offspring. so many in number If, then, "the abundance of peace" was present for them as they acted righteously, and with this, the gift of many children, there was nothing else to say. But if, acting wickedly, they are "far from" peace, so that they are still enslaved to their enemies even now, and their once revered and holy place is "desolate" and "inaccessible" to them, and their laws and kingdom have been dissolved, and so, acting wickedly, they multiply in the begetting of bodies alone, like worms. It is time to accept the meaning of the prophecy in no other way than according to the interpretation given to us, but even now he says, when you did not keep the commandments, yet because of my love for mankind you will not be destroyed, nor will your name be blotted out from before me, or according to Symmachus: from my presence. Therefore, from this point, now promising not to destroy you nor to blot out your name, I told you to go out from Babylon, released and freed from the fear of enemies. And having received the authority for the return to your own land, do not make the journey idly or sluggishly, but with all haste; for a voice of joy will meet you, being heard from here already, but also all who hear these words of mine will rejoice with you in your salvation. And they will shout aloud so that the news is made known to all who dwell at the ends of the earth, saying: The Lord has delivered his servant Jacob. And if they thirst, he will lead them through the desert, he will bring forth water for them from a rock; a rock will be split, and water will flow, and my people will drink. There is no rejoicing for the wicked, says the Lord. And these things, as history, were not fulfilled at the time of the return from Babylon of those freed by Cyrus and Darius, who reigned in Persia; but as to the meaning, since it is not possible to find literally in history a rock that flowed with waters at the return of the people, we will say that the promise is fulfilled for those freed from the spiritual captivity, concerning whom Christ said of God: "he has sent me to preach good news to the poor, to proclaim release to the captives." For to these themselves the spiritual drink pours forth from the true rock; "and the rock was Christ," according to the Apostle; which our savior himself also presents, saying: "whoever drinks of the water that I will give him, rivers of living water will flow from his belly, springing up to eternal life." Such, then, are the promises of God; but since the word foresaw that many of those who hear the prophecy would become unworthy of the promises, so that the children of the Jews would not assume that what was said was spoken of them indiscriminately, it necessarily adds to the promises this: There is no rejoicing for the wicked, says the Lord. For to the pious will be present all the delight from God and joy and gladness and whatever else has been promised, but for the impious there is no part in what has been promised. 2.35 The word, having sufficiently spoken what is suitable to the people of the Jews, from another beginning through the preceding passages, moves on again to the calling of the Gentiles, prophesying at the same time also about the epiphany of our Savior to men. Therefore, beginning, he calls upon the churches of God established everywhere on earth among the unbelieving nations and, as it were, washed on all sides by the sea, by the salty waves of wickedness. Therefore he calls them islands and says: Hear me, O islands. But lest someone should slander our interpretation as not being correctly rendered, he clarifies the

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μου. εἴποι δ' ἄν τις ὡς πρὸς Ἰουδαίους καὶ μὴ παρακούσασιν αὐτοῖς καὶ μὴ φυλάξασι τὰς ἐντολάς, ἀλλὰ καὶ εἰδωλολατροῦσι καὶ «τοὺς προφήτας ἀναιροῦσι» πολυπλήθει τὰ τῆς κατὰ σάρκα παιδοποιΐας. πῶς οὖν ὡς ἐξαίρετον ἐπαγγελίαν μεθ' ὑποστολῆς ὑπισχνεῖται ὁ λόγος φάσκων· εἰ τάδε πεποιήκεις, ἐγένετο ἂν ὡσεὶ ποταμὸς ἡ εἰρήνη σου καὶ ἡ δικαιοσύνη σου ὡς κύματα θαλάσσης, καὶ τὸ σπέρμα σου καὶ τὰ ἔκγονά σου. τοσάδε τῷ πλήθει εἰ μὲν οὖν δικαιοπραγοῦσιν αὐτοῖς «τὸ τῆς εἰρήνης πλῆθος» παρῆν καὶ σὺν τούτῳ τὰ τῆς πολυπαιδίας, οὐκ ἦν ἄλλο τι φάναι. εἰ δὲ κακῶς πράττοντες εἰρήνης μὲν «μακρὰν ἀφεστήκασι» ὡς τοῖς ἐχθροῖς αὐτοὺς εἰσέτι καὶ νῦν δεδουλῶσθαι, «ἔρημον» δὲ «καὶ ἄβατον» αὐτοῖς εἶναι τὸν πάλαι σεπτὸν καὶ ἅγιον τόπον, λελῦσθαι δὲ αὐτῶν τὰ νόμιμα καὶ τὴν βασιλείαν, οὕτω δὲ πράττοντες κακῶς ἐν μόνῃ τῇ τῶν σωμάτων γονῇ σκωλήκων δίκην πληθύνουσιν. ὥρα μὴ ἑτέρως ἢ κατὰ τὴν ἀποδοθεῖσαν ἡμῖν ἑρμηνείαν τὴν τῆς προφητείας διάνοιαν παραδέχεσθαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ νῦν φησιν, ὅτε μὴ τὰς ἐντολὰς ἐφυλάξατε, ἀλλ' ὅμως διὰ τὴν ἐμὴν φιλανθρωπίαν οὐ μὴ ἐξολοθρευθῆτε οὐδὲ μὴ ἐξαλειφθήσεται τὸ ὄνομά σου ἐνώπιόν μου, ἢ κατὰ τὸν Σύμμαχον· ἐξ ἔμπροσθέν μου. ∆ιόπερ ἐντεῦθεν ἤδη ἐπαγγελλόμενος μὴ ἐξολοθρεῦσαί σε μηδὲ ἐξαλείψειν τὸ ὄνομά σου, εἶπά σοι ἐξιέναι ἀπὸ Βαβυλῶνος ἄφετον καὶ ἐλεύθερον τοῦ τῶν πολεμίων φόβου γενόμενον. λαβὼν δὲ τὴν ἐξουσίαν τῆς εἰς τὰ οἰκεῖα ἐπανόδου μὴ ὑπτίως μηδὲ νωχελῶς ποιοῦ τὴν πορείαν σὺν πάσῃ δὲ σπουδῇ· ἀπαντήσει γάρ σοι φωνὴ εὐφροσύνης ἐντεῦθεν ἤδη ἀκουομένης, ἀλλὰ καὶ πάντες οἱ τούτων τῶν ἐμῶν λόγων ἀκούοντες συγχαρήσονταί σου τῇ σωτηρίᾳ. βοήσονταί τε εἰς ἐξάκουστον ὡς πᾶσι τοῖς εἰς τὰ ἔσχατα τῆς γῆς οἰκοῦσι τὴν ἀκοὴν γνωσθῆναι λεγόντων· Ἐρρύσατο κύριος τὸν δοῦλον αὐτοῦ Ἰακώβ. καὶ ἐὰν διψήσωσι, δι' ἐρήμου ἄξει αὐτούς, ὕδωρ ἐκ πέτρας ἐξάξει αὐτοῖς· σχισθήσεται πέτρα, καὶ ῥυήσεται ὕδωρ, καὶ πίεται ὁ λαός μου. οὐκ ἔστι χαίρειν τοῖς ἀσεβέσι, λέγει κύριος. καὶ ταῦτα δὲ πρὸς μὲν ἱστορίαν οὐκ ἐπληροῦτο κατὰ τὸν χρόνον τῆς ἀπὸ Βαβυλῶνος ἐπανόδου τῶν ἠλευθερωμένων ὑπὸ Κύρου καὶ ∆αρείου τῶν βασιλευσάντων ἐν Πέρσαις· πρὸς δὲ διάνοιαν, ἐπεὶ μὴ ἔστι πρὸς λέξιν εὑρεῖν ἐν τῇ ἱστορίᾳ πέτραν ὑδάτων ῥεύσασαν κατὰ τὴν ἐπάνοδον τοῦ λαοῦ, φήσομεν τοῖς τῆς νοητῆς αἰχμαλωσίας ἠλευθερωμένοις, περὶ ὧν ὁ Χριστὸς ἔλεγε τοῦ θεοῦ· «εὐαγγελίσασθαι πτωχοῖς ἀπέσταλκέ με, κηρύξαι αἰχμαλώτοις ἄφεσιν» ἐπαληθεύειν τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν. τούτοις γὰρ αὐτοῖς τὸ λογικὸν πόμα ἐκ τῆς ἀληθινῆς πέτρας ἐξομβρεῖ· «ἡ πέτρα δὲ ἦν ὁ Χριστὸς» κατὰ τὸν Ἀπόστολον· ὃ δὴ καὶ παρίστησιν αὐτὸς ὁ σωτὴρ ἡμῶν λέγων· «ὃς ἂν πίῃ ἐκ τοῦ ὕδατος οὗ ἐγὼ δώσω αὐτῷ, ποταμοὶ ἐκ τῆς κοιλίας αὐτοῦ ῥεύσουσιν ὕδατος ζῶντος ἁλλομένου εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον». τὰ μὲν οὖν τῆς ἐπαγγελίας τοῦ θεοῦ τοιαῦτα ἐπεὶ δὲ συνεώρα ὁ λόγος πολλοὺς τῶν ἀκροωμένων τῆς προφητείας ἀναξίους γενομένους τῶν ἐπαγγελιῶν, ὅπως μὴ ἀδιακρίτως Ἰουδαίων παῖδες ὑπολάβωσι περὶ αὐτῶν εἰρῆσθαι τὰ λεγόμενα, ἀναγκαίως ἐπιφέρει ταῖς ἐπαγγελίαις τό· οὐκ ἔστι χαίρειν τοῖς ἀσεβέσι, λέγει κύριος· εὐσεβοῦσι γὰρ πᾶσα παρέσται ἡ παρὰ θεοῦ τρυφὴ καὶ χαρὰ καὶ εὐφροσύνη καὶ ὅσα ἐπήγγελται ἄλλα, τοῖς δὲ ἀσεβοῦσιν οὐδεὶς λόγος πρὸς τὰ ἐπηγγελμένα. 2.35 Αὐτάρκως ὁ λόγος διαλαλήσας τὰ κατάλληλα τῷ Ἰουδαίων λαῷ ἐξ ἑτέρας ἀρχῆς διὰ τῶν προκειμένων αὖθις ἐπὶ τὴν τῶν ἐθνῶν μεταβαίνει κλῆσιν ὁμοῦ καὶ τὰ περὶ τῆς τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν εἰς ἀνθρώπους ἐπιφανείας θεσπίζων. διὸ ἀνακαλεῖται ἀρχόμενος τὰς ἐκκλησίας τοῦ θεοῦ τὰς ἁπανταχοῦ γῆς μεταξὺ τῶν ἀπίστων ἐθνῶν ἱδρυμένας καὶ ὥσπερ ὑπὸ θαλάσσης πανταχόθεν περικλυζομένας ὑπὸ τῶν τῆς κακίας ἁλμυρῶν κυμάτων. διὸ νήσους αὐτὰς ὀνομάζει καί φησιν· Ἀκούσατέ μου, νῆσοι. ἀλλ' ἵνα μή τις συκοφαντῇ τὴν ἡμετέραν ἑρμηνείαν ὡς οὐκ ὀρθῶς ἀποδεδομένην, διασαφεῖ τοῦ