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of a prophetic soul over the good things decreed through him, for which he also exhorts all the nations that will receive saving grace to do certain things, which it is necessary for us to accomplish, to whom these things were proclaimed beforehand. He commands, therefore, all the earth, that is, all who inhabit the element of the earth, not to subject themselves to the commands of Moses and to the heavy yoke of the law; but only to do the things commanded in what follows; and first, to shout aloud to God, second, to sing psalms to his name, third, to give glory to his praise; fourth, to say to God: "How awesome are your works;" and: "In the greatness of your power your enemies will lie to you." Let us, then, accomplish the first thing through true science and knowledge, shouting aloud to God, in the manner of soldiers in wars who cry out and shout aloud, who by the power of their voice show themselves startling and terrible to the enemy. Since, therefore, our Savior, driving out and making war upon our enemies, who long ago had taken our soul captive into polytheistic error, also arms all of us his soldiers against them, we are rightly commanded to shout aloud through prayers to God; and with unutterable groanings to cooperate in the victory of our King. Now the shout comes through prayers, it comes also through theology, it comes also through sound and clear knowledge, and it comes through the spiritual ministry, which we perform in the eucharists according to the mysteries of the New Covenant throughout the whole world, when, making the memorial of the sacrifice of the Lamb of God, we fulfill the prophecy that says: "I have gone round and have sacrificed in his tabernacle a sacrifice of praise and shouting." Wherefore also another oracle blesses the people who know these things, saying: "Blessed is the people that knows the joyful shout." This, then, first of all, the prophetic Spirit necessarily commands all men to do, saying: "Shout aloud to God, all the earth." Then, second, he commands to sing psalms to his name; which is also something we are accustomed to perform in every place. For in every church of God established among the nations, it has been handed down that these very things be sung and psalmed, not only by Greeks, but also by barbarians. And otherwise, by the laws 23.649 of allegory, the human body, as an instrument given to the soul, is customarily called a psaltery; through which the inner man, by striking it, may be rightly said to sing psalms with knowledge, with his members and senses, to the law of God. The things of knowledge, then, and through the shout, the soul itself has achieved on its own; wherefore it shouted to God himself; but the acts of psalm-singing it performs through the ethical and practical movement of the body; wherefore it is said: "To his name." For the right action seen by the many through deeds would bring good repute to the name of God. And third, a command has been given to all of us from the nations who have known God, which bids us to give glory not to God, for it was sufficient to shout to him; nor to his name, for we are commanded to sing psalms to this; but to his praise. For it is fitting for those who praise him not to praise him humbly, nor ingloriously, but with much honor and glory. For in addition to the robust knowledge concerning God, accomplished in the mind through an instrument, it is also fitting to fulfill the first command through divine words containing praises and hymns to God with reverence and venerable honor. Wherefore it is said: "Give glory to his praise;" or according to Aquila, "Give glory to his hymn;" or according to Symmachus, "Appoint his hymn for honor." Moreover, in addition to these things the prophetic Spirit exhorts all of us to gaze contemplatively upon the works of God, and to apply our mind, so that the great works of his wisdom may be full of fear and astonishment. "For from the greatness and
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προφητικῆς ψυχῆς ἐπὶ τοῖς δι' αὐτοῦ θεσπιζομένοις ἀγαθοῖς, ἐφ' οἷς καὶ πᾶσι τοῖς ἔθνεσι τοῖς τὴν σωτήριον χάριν ὑποδεξομένοις παρακελεύεται πράττειν τινὰ, ἅπερ ἀναγκαῖον ἐπιτελεῖν ἡμᾶς, οἷς ταῦτα προανεφωνεῖτο. Προστάττει τοίνυν πάσῃ τῇ γῇ, τουτέστι τοῖς τὸ τῆς γῆς στοιχεῖον οἰκοῦσιν ἅπασι, μὴ τοῖς Μωϋσέως παραγγέλμασι καὶ τῷ βαρεῖ ζυγῷ τοῦ νόμου ἑαυτοὺς ὑποτάττειν· μόνα δὲ τὰ διὰ τῶν μετὰ χεῖρας κελευόμενα ποιεῖν· καὶ πρῶτον μὲν ἀλαλάζειν τῷ Θεῷ, δεύτερον ψάλλειν τῷ ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ, τρίτον δόξαν διδόναι τῇ αἰνέσει αὐτοῦ· τέταρτον λέγειν τῷ Θεῷ· «Ὡς φοβερὰ τὰ ἔργα σου·» καί· «Ἐν τῷ πλήθει τῆς δυνάμεώς σου ψεύσονταί σε οἱ ἐχθροί σου.» Τὸ μὲν οὖν πρῶτον δι' ἐπιστήμης καὶ γνώσεως ἀληθοῦς ἐπιτελέσωμεν ἀλαλάζοντες τῷ Θεῷ, δίκην τῶν ἐν πολέμοις ἀναφωνούντων καὶ ἀλαλαζόντων στρατιωτῶν, οἳ τῇ δυνάμει τῆς φωνῆς καταπληκτικοὺς καὶ φοβεροὺς ἑαυτοὺς τοῖς πολεμίοις ἐμφαίνουσιν. Ἐπεὶ τοίνυν τοὺς ἡμετέρους ἐχθροὺς, τοὺς πάλαι τὴν ψυχὴν ἡμῶν εἰς τὴν πολύθεον πλάνην ᾐχμαλωτικότας, ἐλαύνων καὶ πολεμῶν ὁ Σωτὴρ ἡμῶν, καὶ πάντας ἡμᾶς τοὺς αὐτοῦ στρατιώτας κατ' αὐτῶν ὁπλίζει, εἰκότως διὰ τῶν πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν εὐχῶν ἀλαλάζειν κελευόμεθα· στεναγμοῖς τε ἀλαλήτοις συμπράττειν τῇ νίκῃ τοῦ Βασιλέως ἡμῶν. Γίνεται δὲ ὁ ἀλαλαγμὸς δι' εὐχῶν, γίνεται καὶ διὰ θεολογίας, γίνεται δὲ καὶ δι' ὑγιοῦς καὶ τετρανωμένης γνώσεως, γίνεται καὶ διὰ τῆς πνευματικῆς ἱερουργίας, ἣν ἐν ταῖς εὐχαριστίαις κατὰ τὰ μυστήρια τῆς Καινῆς ∆ιαθήκης καθ' ὅλης τῆς οἰκουμένης ἐπιτελοῦμεν, ὁπηνίκα, τῆς θυσίας τοῦ Ἀμνοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν ἀνάμνησιν ποιούμενοι, τὴν προφητείαν πληροῦμεν τὴν φάσκουσαν· «Ἐκύκλωσα καὶ ἔθυσα ἐν τῇ σκηνῇ αὐτοῦ θυσίαν αἰνέσεως καὶ ἀλαλαγμοῦ.» ∆ιὸ καὶ ἕτερον λόγιον τὸν τούτων ἐπιστήμονα λαὸν μακαρίζει φάσκον· «Μακάριος ὁ λαὸς ὁ γινώσκων ἀλαλαγμόν.» Τοῦτο δὴ οὖν πρῶτον ἀναγκαίως τὸ προφητικὸν Πνεῦμα πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις πράττειν διακελεύεται φάσκον· «Ἀλαλάξατε τῷ Θεῷ, πᾶσα ἡ γῆ.» Εἶτα δεύτερον ψάλλειν τῷ ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ προστάττει· ὃ καὶ αὐτὸ κατὰ πάντα τόπον εἴωθεν ὑφ' ἡμῶν ἐπιτελεῖσθαι. Ἐπεὶ κατὰ πᾶσαν ἐκκλησίαν τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν ἱδρυμένην, αὐτὰ δὴ ταῦτα μελῳδεῖσθαι καὶ ψάλλεσθαι, οὐχ Ἕλλησι μόνοις, ἀλλὰ καὶ βαρβάροις παραδέδοται. Καὶ ἄλλως δὲ, νόμοις 23.649 ἀλληγορίας, τὸ σῶμα τὸ ἀνθρώπειον, ὥσπερ ὄργανον τῇ ψυχῇ δεδομένον, ψαλτήριον εἴωθεν ὀνομάζεσθαι· δι' οὗ ὁ εἴσω ἄνθρωπος, ἀνακρουόμενος, ἐπιστημόνως τὰ μέλη καὶ τὰ αἰσθητήρια τῷ νόμῳ τοῦ Θεοῦ λέγοιτ' ἂν εἰκότως ψάλλειν. Τὰ μὲν οὖν τῆς γνώσεως καὶ διὰ τοῦ ἀλαλαγμοῦ αὐτὴ καθ' ἑαυτὴν ἡ ψυχὴ κατώρθου· διὸ αὐτῷ τῷ Θεῷ ἠλάλαξε· τὰ δὲ τοῦ ψάλλειν διὰ τῆς τοῦ σώματος ἠθικῆς καὶ πρακτικῆς κινήσεως ἐνεργεῖ· διὸ λέλεκται· «Τῷ ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ.» Εὐφημίαν γὰρ τῷ τοῦ Θεοῦ ὀνόματι φέροι ἂν ἡ διὰ τῶν πράξεων τοῖς πολλοῖς θεωρουμένη κατόρθωσις. Καὶ τρίτον δὲ, πρόσταγμα πᾶσιν ἡμῖν τοῖς ἐξ ἐθνῶν τὸν Θεὸν ἐπεγνωκόσι παρήγγελται, τὸ κελεῦον διδόναι δόξαν οὐ τῷ Θεῷ, ἀπήρκει γὰρ ἀλαλάζειν αὐτῷ· ἀλλ' οὐδὲ τῷ ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ, τούτῳ γὰρ ψάλλειν ἐκελευόμεθα· τῇ δὲ αἰνέσει αὐτοῦ. Αἰνοῦντας γὰρ αὐτὸν προσήκει μὴ ταπεινῶς, μηδὲ ἀδόξως αἰνεῖν, σὺν πολλῇ δὲ τιμῇ καὶ δόξῃ. Πρὸς γὰρ τῇ κατὰ διάνοιαν ἐῤῥωμένῃ περὶ Θεοῦ γνώσει δι' ὀργάνου κατορθουμένῃ προσήκει καὶ διὰ λόγων θείων αἴνους καὶ ὕμνους τοὺς εἰς τὸν Θεὸν περιεχόντων σὺν εὐλαβείᾳ καὶ σεβασμίῳ τιμῇ τὸ πρῶτον ἀποπληροῦν πρόσταγμα. ∆ιὸ λέλεκται· «∆ότε δόξαν αἰνέσει αὐτοῦ·» ἢ κατὰ τὸν Ἀκύλαν, «∆ότε δόξαν ὑμνήσει αὐτοῦ·» ἢ κατὰ τὸν Σύμμαχον, «Τάξατε εἰς τιμὴν τὸν ὕμνον αὐτοῦ.» Ἔτι πρὸς τούτοις τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ προφητικὸν παρακελεύεται πᾶσιν ἡμῖν τεθεωρημένως ἐνατενίζειν τοῖς ἔργοις τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ τὸν νοῦν ἐφιστᾷν, ὅπως φόβου καὶ ἐκπλήξεως γέμῃ τὸ τῆς σοφίας αὐτοῦ μεγαλουργήματα. «Ἐκ μεγέθους γὰρ καὶ