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waging war against the rulers through the man he had assumed, and having come into the midst of the devil himself and the entire demonic horde, and stepping upon the asp and basilisk, and treading down “lion and dragon,” and long before having cast down thousands and myriads of the ruling enemies, those warring from the right and those from the left, “principalities” and “powers,” and indeed also those called “world-rulers of this darkness,” and the “spiritual hosts of wickedness,” having therefore convicted all these of having no strength, and finally having driven far away the devil himself, the leader of evils, “by the word of his mouth,” and having passed through and walked about the entire opposing power, and while he offered himself to those who wished to approach and tempt him, but with no one being able to stand against him, thus he went forth for the salvation of men. Wherefore also the demons, seeing him, recognized him from his aforementioned sojourn in the desert, saying to him: “What have we to do with you, Jesus, Son of God?” 9.7.8 So much then for these things. But the following parts of the psalm have been uttered to Christ himself, starting from “He will overshadow you with his shoulders”—obviously, the Most High—“and under his wings you will hope; his truth will surround you as a shield.” And since he was tempted for forty days and as many nights, concerning those that came upon him during the nights it has been said, “You will not be afraid of the terror by night,” and concerning those who warred against him during the days, “of the arrow that flies by day,” 9.7.9 and again concerning those in the night, “of the thing that walks in darkness,” and concerning those in the day, “of the mishap and the noonday demon.” 9.7.10 Then, since during the temptation wicked powers surrounded him, and some held his right side, but many more his left, as the right parts are stronger, it is fittingly said to him: “A thousand will fall at your side, and a myriad at your right hand, but it will not come near you,” “side” being named instead of the left, and the name “of the left” being fittingly passed over in silence, because nothing sinister or left is found in him. And since a whole myriad as well as a thousand are said to fall from his side and from his right, it is fittingly said next concerning these things: “Only with your eyes will you behold and see the reward of the wicked.” 9.7.11 And these things, he says, will be concerning you, the Christ of God, because you yourself, O “Lord,” who happen to be my “hope,” “have made the Most High your refuge.” 9.7.12 Here you will also note how the prophet says to the Lord himself: “Because you, Lord, are my hope; you have made the Most High your refuge,” distinguishing precisely another who is properly Lord and his Father, the Most High God. 9.7.13 Therefore, since Christ has made him his refuge as Father and Most High God, it has been said to him, “No evil will come near you, nor will a plague approach your dwelling; because he will command his angels concerning you, to guard you in all your ways; on their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.” 9.7.14 And observe carefully how in “Because you, Lord, are my hope; you have made the Most High your refuge,” the “Lord” is rendered in the Hebrew by the tetragrammaton name, which the children of the Hebrews, saying it is ineffable, are accustomed to apply to God alone, but we have already shown it to be used in many scriptures for the divinity of the Word as well, just as also in the psalm at hand, which says in the person of the Lord himself, “Because you, Lord, are my hope; you have made the Most High your refuge,” as if to say, you yourself, O Lord, who happen to be the hope of me who am prophesying these things, knowing the Most High God to be greater than yourself, “made” him your “refuge.” 9.7.15 Whence also it was said at the beginning of the psalm concerning the same, “He who dwells in the help of the Most High will abide in the shelter of the God of heaven. He will say to the Lord,

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ἄρχουσιν δι' οὗ ἀνείληφεν ἀνθρώπου ἐπιστρατεύσας, καὶ εἰς μέσον αὐτοῦ τοῦ διαβόλου καὶ παντὸς τοῦ δαιμονικοῦ στίφους παρελθών, ἐπιβάς τε ἀσπίδι καὶ βασιλίσκῳ, καὶ καταπατήσας «λέοντα καὶ δράκοντα», καὶ πολὺ πρότερον καθελὼν τῶν ἀρχοντικῶν ἐχθρῶν χιλιάδας καὶ μυριάδας, τὰς μὲν ἐκ τῶν δεξιῶν τὰς δὲ ἐκ τῶν εὐωνύμων πολεμούσας, «ἀρχάς» τε καὶ «ἐξουσίας», καὶ δὴ καὶ τοὺς λεγομένους «κοσμοκράτορας τοῦ σκότους τούτου», τά τε «πνευματικὰ τῆς πονηρίας», πάντα δὴ οὖν ταῦτα τὸ μηθὲν ἰσχύειν ἀπελέγξας, καὶ τέλος αὐτὸν τὸν τῶν κακῶν ἔξαρχον διάβολον «τῷ λόγῳ τοῦ στόματος αὐτοῦ» μακρὰν ἀποσοβήσας, διελθών τε καὶ ἐμπεριπατήσας τὴν ἀντικειμένην ἅπασαν δύναμιν, καὶ ἑαυτὸν μὲν παρασχὼν τοῖς θέλουσιν προσιέναι καὶ πειράζειν, μηδενὸς δὲ στῆναι πρὸς αὐτὸν δεδυνημένου, οὕτως ἐπὶ τὴν τῶν ἀνθρώπων σωτηρίαν παρῄει. διὸ καὶ ὁρῶντες αὐτὸν οἱ δαίμονες ἐπεγίνωσκον ἀπὸ τῆς προδηλωθείσης κατὰ τὴν ἔρημον διατριβῆς, φάσκοντες αὐτῷ· «τί ἡμῖν καὶ σοί, Ἰησοῦ, υἱὲ τοῦ θεοῦ;» 9.7.8 Ταῦτα μὲν οὖν περὶ τῶνδε. τὰ δ' ἑξῆς τοῦ ψαλμοῦ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἀναπεφώνηται τὸν Χριστὸν ἀπὸ τοῦ «ἐν τοῖς μεταφρένοις αὐτοῦ ἐπισκιάσει σοι» δηλονότι ὁ ὕψιστος, «καὶ ὑπὸ τὰς πτέρυγας αὐτοῦ ἐλπιεῖς· ὅπλῳ κυκλώσει σε ἡ ἀλήθεια αὐτοῦ». καὶ ἐπειδήπερ ἡμέραις τεσσαράκοντα καὶ ταῖς τοσαύταις νυξὶν ἐπειράζετο, περὶ μὲν τῶν ἀμφὶ τὰς νύκτας ἐπιόντων αὐτῷ λέλεκται «οὐ φοβηθήσῃ ἀπὸ φόβου νυκτερινοῦ», περὶ δὲ τῶν ἀμφὶ τὰς ἡμέρας αὐτὸν πολεμούντων τὸ «ἀπὸ βέλους πετομένου ἡμέρας», 9.7.9 καὶ αὖθις περὶ μὲν τῶν ἐν νυκτὶ «ἀπὸ πράγματος ἐν σκότει διαπορευομένου», περὶ δὲ τῶν ἐν ἡμέρᾳ «ἀπὸ συμπτώματος καὶ δαιμονίου μεσημβρινοῦ». 9.7.10 εἶτ' ἐπείπερ ἐν τῷ πειράζειν δυνάμεις πονηραὶ ἐκύκλουν αὐτόν, καὶ αἱ μὲν τὰ δεξιὰ πλευρὰ συνεῖχον αὐτοῦ, πολὺ δὲ πλείους τῶν ἀριστερῶν, ὡς ἂν κραταιότερα μέρη τὰ δεξιά, εἰκότως αὐτῷ ἐπιλέγεται· «πεσεῖται ἐκ τοῦ κλίτους σου χιλιάς, καὶ μυριὰς ἐκ δεξιῶν σου, πρὸς σὲ δὲ οὐκ ἐγγιεῖ», «κλίτους» ἀντὶ τοῦ ἀριστεροῦ ὠνομασμένου, παρασεσιωπημένου δὲ εἰκότως τοῦ ὀνόματος «τοῦ ἀριστεροῦ», τῷ μηδὲν σκαιὸν μηδὲ ἀριστερὸν εὑρίσκεσθαι ἐν αὐτῷ. καὶ ἐπειδὴ ὅλη μυριὰς ὁμοῦ δὲ καὶ χιλιὰς ἔκ τε τοῦ κλίτους αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν δεξιῶν πεσεῖσθαι λέγονται, εἰκότως ἐπὶ τούτοις ἑξῆς εἴρηται· «πλὴν τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς σου κατανοήσεις καὶ ἀνταπόδοσιν ἁμαρτωλῶν ὄψει». 9.7.11 Καὶ ἔσται ταῦτα, φησίν, περὶ σὲ τὸν Χριστὸν τοῦ θεοῦ, ἐπειδήπερ σὺ αὐτός, ὦ «κύριε», ὃς τυγχάνεις ὢν ἡ ἐμὴ «ἐλπίς», «τὸν ὕψιστον ἔθου καταφυγήν σου». 9.7.12 ἔνθα καὶ ἐπιστήσεις, τίνα τρόπον ὁ προφήτης πρὸς αὐτὸν τὸν κύριόν φησιν· «ὅτι σύ, κύριε, ἐλπίς μου, τὸν ὕψιστον ἔθου καταφυγήν σου», διαιρῶν ἀκριβῶς ἕτερον ἰδίως κύριον καὶ τὸν τούτου πατέρα, θεὸν ὕψιστον. 9.7.13 διὸ ἐπειδήπερ αὐτὸν ὡς πατέρα καὶ θεὸν ὕψιστον καταφυγὴν ἑαυτοῦ ὁ Χριστὸς τέθειται, λέλεκται αὐτῷ τὸ «οὐ προσελεύσεται πρὸς σὲ κακά, καὶ μάστιξ οὐκ ἐγγιεῖ τῷ σκηνώματί σου· ὅτι τοῖς ἀγγέλοις αὐτοῦ ἐντελεῖται περὶ σοῦ τοῦ διαφυλάξει σε ἐν πάσαις ταῖς ὁδοῖς σου· ἐπὶ χειρῶν ἀροῦσί σε, μήποτε προσκόψῃς πρὸς λίθον τὸν πόδα σου». 9.7.14 καὶ ἐπιμελῶς γε τήρει, τίνα τρόπον ἐν τῷ «ὅτι σύ, κύριε, ἐλπίς μου, τὸν ὕψιστον ἔθου καταφυγήν σου» τὸ κύριε διὰ τοῦ τετραγράμμου ὀνόματος ἐν τῷ Ἑβραϊκῷ φέρεται, ὅπερ ἀνεκφώνητον εἶναι λέγοντες Ἑβραίων παῖδες ἐπὶ μόνου τοῦ θεοῦ παραλαμβάνειν εἰώθασιν, ἡμεῖς δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς τοῦ λόγου θεότητος ἐν πλείσταις κείμενον γραφαῖς προαπεδείξαμεν, ὥσπερ καὶ ἐν τῷ μετὰ χεῖρας ψαλμῷ, ὅς φησιν εἰς πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ τοῦ κυρίου «ὅτι σύ, κύριε, ἐλπίς μου, τὸν ὕψιστον ἔθου καταφυγήν σου», μονονουχὶ λέγων ὅτι σὺ αὐτός, ὦ κύριε, ὃς ἐμοῦ τοῦ ταῦτα προφητεύοντος ἐλπὶς ὢν τυγχάνεις, μείζονα σαυτοῦ τὸν θεὸν τὸν ὕψιστον εἰδώς, ἐκεῖνον αὐτὸν «ἔθου καταφυγήν σου». 9.7.15 ὅθεν καὶ ἐν ἀρχῇ ἐλέγετο τοῦ ψαλμοῦ περὶ τοῦ αὐτοῦ «ὁ κατοικῶν ἐν βοηθείᾳ τοῦ ὑψίστου ἐν σκέπῃ τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ αὐλισθήσεται. ἐρεῖ τῷ κυρίῳ,