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authority to be able, being ruled by him, to attain blessedness by seeing God with a pure heart. 1061 Ps 113,10.11 When you, Master, do good to us, the nations will have no room to say "Where is their god?" For since they themselves have local gods and established somewhere, they also conjecture this about you, saying "Where is their god?" Or perhaps they say this mockingly, thinking we do not have a god. But even if they, being in error, say this, yet we at least know with precise understanding that our God is in heaven above, not understanding this locally but in the preeminence of his majesty. For if above were a place, he would be prevented from being elsewhere. But he is also the cause for all things in the heavens and on the earth, since whatever he willed, he did, being other than all things. Therefore he is not contained by all things, but exists both outside all things and within them according to the principle of creation and providence. For thus he fills heaven and earth. But if all the heavens and the things in them, and the earth and all things in it, came into being by the will of God, some, thinking very impiously, make the existence of the Son depend on the Father's will, making him one of the things in the heavens that were brought into being by the Father's will. But let the impious hear that he made creation alone dependent on the will of God. For it is fitting for the creator to create what he wills (whence also James agrees, writing "Of his own will he brought us forth," he said, "by the word of God, by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures and works") the will of God is productive. But the Son is not a creature nor a work, he is an offspring of substance, not of will. For if he were the Son of will, he would also be the image and character of God's will; but the divine words say he is the character of his hypostasis and the image of the invisible God. If then the Son is the character of the hypostasis and the image of the invisible God, reasonably the only-begotten would be an offspring of the substance of the invisible God and of his hypostasis. And see that those begotten by will attain this by the word of truth, but he himself is the Word and the Truth, the only-begotten of God. Since he is not conceived by a word of truth, he himself is the will of the Father; for in the way that he is wisdom and truth, so also is he the will of God. It is therefore the same thing to make all things in wisdom and in will. 1062 Ps 113,17-19 The entire discerning race, because it has a mind that sees God (the house of Israel is so called because it happens to be the church of the living God), has hoped in the Lord, having its expectation toward nothing else that other men hope for. And the house of those who serve the divine, by virtue of being priests, has hoped in the Lord with a greater and more contemplative hope than Israel; for of those who have ascended higher in contemplation and practice, the hope is greater, asking more greatly to have him as a helper and defender. But also all who fear the Lord (these are the proselytes and those added to the Law from the nations), having also themselves hoped in the Lord, call upon him to be their helper and defender. 1063 Ps 113,20.21 For God remembers all who remember him. Therefore he says, "You have forgotten the law of your God, and I will forget your children." For the one who forgets the divine law immediately also forgets the one who gave it, but when God has remembered someone, he immediately declares him blessed, giving spiritual and heavenly blessings according to the proportion of the greatness of faith one has; just as the other gifts, so also giving the blessings. But consider whether "the small with the great" should be taken to apply only to those who fear the Lord or also to all the orders mentioned, since there is also a difference among these according to which some are great and some are small. 1064 Ps 113,23 But we are blessed by the Lord who made heaven and earth. For he it is whose laws we keep. For lest anyone should think the oracles which Moses administered are from someone else, consequently the hierophant, before the

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ἐξουσίαν ἐπὶ τῷ δυνηθῆναι, βασιλευόμενος ὑπ' αὐτοῦ, μακαρισμοῦ τυχεῖν ὀψόμενος τὸν θεὸν καρδίᾳ καθαρᾷ. 1061 Ps 113,10.11 Σοῦ, δέσποτα, ἡμᾶς εὐεργετοῦντος, οὐχ εξει χώραν τὰ εθνη λέγειν Ποῦ ἐστιν ὁ θεὸς αὐτῶν. ἐπεὶ γὰρ αὐτοὶ τοπικοὺς θεοὺς εχουσι καὶ ἱδρυμένους που, καὶ περὶ σοῦ τοῦτο τοπάζουσι λέγοντες Ποῦ ἐστιν ὁ θεὸς αὐτῶν. η τάχα χλευαστικῶς τοῦτό φασιν οἰόμενοι μὴ εχειν ἡμᾶς θεόν. ἀλλ' εἰ κἀκεῖνοι πλανώμενοι τοῦτο λέγουσιν, ἀλλ' ουν γε ἡμεῖς ἠκριβωμένῃ ὑπολήψει ισμεν οτι ὁ θεὸς ἡμῶν ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ ανω ἐστίν, οὐ τοπικῶς ἀλλ' ὑπεροχῇ μεγαλειότητος φρονοῦντες. εἰ γὰρ ην ανω τόπος, ἀλλαχόσε ειναι ἐκωλύετο. Εστι δὲ καὶ αἰτία πᾶσι τοῖς οὐρανοῖς καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, ἐπείπερ οσα ἠθέλησεν ἐποίησεν, αλλος ων παρὰ πάντα. διὸ οὐ περιέχεται ὑπὸ πάντων, ἀλλὰ καὶ εξω πάντων καὶ ἐν αὐτοῖς ὑπάρχει κατὰ τὸν τῆς δημιουργίας καὶ προνοίας λόγον. ουτω γὰρ πληροῖ τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν. Εἰ δὲ πάντες οἱ οὐρανοὶ καὶ τὰ ἐν αὐτοῖς η τε γῆ καὶ πάντα τὰ ἐν αὐτῇ θελήσει θεοῦ εἰς οὐσίαν ηλθεν, ἀσεβῶς σφόδρα διανοούμενοί τινες ἐξάπτουσι τὴν υπαρξιν τοῦ υἱοῦ τῆς τοῦ πατρὸς θελήσεως, ενα ποιοῦντες αὐτὸν τῶν ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς θελήσει πατρὸς οὐσιωμένων. ἀλλὰ ἀκουέτωσαν οἱ δυσσεβεῖς ὡς τὴν κτίσιν μόνην ἐξήρτησε τῆς βουλήσεως τοῦ θεοῦ. καταλλήλως γὰρ εχει τὸν ποιητὴν α βούλεται δημιουργεῖν (οθεν καὶ ὁ ̓Ιάκωβος συνῳδᾷ γράφων Βουληθεὶς ἀπεκύησεν ἡμᾶς, εφη λόγῳ θεοῦ, λόγῳ ἀληθείας εἰς τὸ ειναι ἡμᾶς ἀπαρχήν τινα τῶν αὐτοῦ κτισμάτων καὶ ποιημάτων) ἡ θέλησις τοῦ θεοῦ εἰσακτική. οὐ κτίσμα δὲ οὐδὲ ποίημα ὁ υἱός, οὐσίας ἀλλ' οὐ βουλήσεώς ἐστι γέννημα. εἰ γὰρ βουλήσεως υἱός, ην αν καὶ εἰκὼν καὶ χαρακτὴρ τῆς θεοῦ βουλήσεως· ἀλλὰ χαρακτῆρα τῆς ὑποστάσεως αὐτοῦ καὶ εἰκόνα τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ ἀοράτου οἱ θεῖοι λόγοι φασίν. εἰ ουν χαρακτὴρ τῆς ὑποστάσεως καὶ εἰκὼν τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ ἀοράτου ὁ υἱός, εἰκότως γέννημα τῆς οὐσίας τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ ἀοράτου καὶ τῆς ὑποστάσεως αὐτοῦ ὁ μονογενὴς ειη. καὶ ορα γε τοὺς βουλήσει γεννωμένους λόγῳ ἀληθείας τούτου τυγχάνοντας, αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ λόγος καὶ ἡ ἀλήθεια, ὁ μονογενὴς τοῦ θεοῦ. ἐπεὶ μὴ λόγῳ ἀληθείας κυΐσκεται, αὐτός ἐστιν ἡ βούλησις τοῦ πατρός· ῳ γὰρ τρόπῳ σοφία καὶ ἀλήθεια, ουτω καὶ θέλησίς ἐστι τοῦ θεοῦ. ταὐτὸν γοῦν ἐστιν ἐν σοφίᾳ καὶ θελήσει πάντα ποιῆσαι. 1062 Ps 113,17-19 Τὸ πᾶν διορατικὸν γένος διὰ τὸ νοῦν εχειν ὁρῶντα θεὸν (οικος ̓Ισραὴλ χρηματίζει διὰ τοῦ τυγχάνειν ἐκκλησία θεοῦ ζῶντος) ηλπισεν ἐπὶ κύριον, πρὸς οὐδὲν ετερον ων οἱ αλλοι ανθρωποι ἐλπίζουσιν εχον τὴν προσδοκίαν. καὶ ὁ οικος δὲ τῶν θεραπευόντων τὸ θεῖον τῷ τυγχάνειν ἱερεῖς ηλπισεν ἐπὶ κύριον μείζονι καὶ τεθεωρημένῃ παρὰ τὸν ̓Ισραὴλ ἐλπίδι· τῶν γὰρ ὑπεραναβεβηκότων θεωρίᾳ καὶ πράξει μείζων ἡ ἐλπὶς μειζόνως αἰτούντων βοηθὸν καὶ ὑπερασπιστὴν αὐτὸν εχειν. ἀλλὰ καὶ πάντες οἱ φοβούμενοι τὸν κύριον (ουτοι δέ εἰσιν οἱ προσήλυτοι καὶ προστεθέντες τῷ νόμῳ ἀπὸ τῶν ἐθνῶν) ἐλπίσαντες καὶ αὐτοὶ ἐπὶ κύριον βοηθὸν καὶ ὑπερασπιστὴν αὐτὸν εχειν ἐπικαλοῦνται. 1063 Ps 113,20.21 Πάντων γὰρ μνημονεύει θεὸς τῶν αὐτῷ μεμνημένων. διό φησιν ̓Επελάθου νόμου θεοῦ σου, κἀγὼ ἐπιλήσομαι τέκνων σου. ὁ γὰρ ἐπιλανθανόμενος τοῦ θείου νόμου εὐθέως καὶ τοῦ δεδωκότος αὐτὸν ἐπιλανθάνεται, μνημονεύσας δέ τινος θεὸς εὐθὺς εὐλογημένον αὐτὸν ἀποφαίνει διδοὺς πνευματικὰς καὶ ἐπουρανίους εὐλογίας κατὰ ἀναλογίαν ου εχει τις μεγέθους πίστεως· ωσπερ τὰ αλλα τῶν χαρισμάτων, ουτως καὶ τὰς εὐλογίας διδούς. ̓Επίστησον δὲ εἰ Τοὺς μικροὺς μετὰ τῶν μεγάλων ἐπὶ μόνων τῶν φοβουμένων τὸν κύριον δεῖ λαβεῖν η καὶ ἐπὶ πάντων τῶν εἰρημένων ταγμάτων, ουσης καὶ ἐν τούτοις διαφορᾶς καθ' ην οἱ μὲν μεγάλοι οἱ δὲ μικροί. 1064 Ps 113,23 Εὐλογημένοι δὲ τῷ κυρίῳ ἐσμὲν τῷ τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν πεποιηκότι. αὐτὸς γάρ ἐστιν ου τοὺς νόμους φυλάττομεν. ινα γὰρ μὴ νομίσῃ τις αλλου τινὸς τοὺς χρησμοὺς ειναι ους Μωυσῆς διηκονήσατο, ἀκολούθως ὁ ἱεροφάντης πρὸ τῆς τῶν