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he decreed these things. For when men are freed from their former deceit, and have received the knowledge of God, God will rejoice, not by being worshipped, but by seeing them being saved. 32. "He who looks upon the earth, and makes it tremble; who touches the mountains, and they smoke." He has fittingly added these things, teaching the self-sufficiency of the divine nature. For he is not delighted by being worshipped as one in need; but as one wishing to save, he shows the truth; and being able to punish, he does not inflict punishment; and yet by his appearance alone he shakes the earth, and fills the mountains with fire and smoke. This he also did on Mount Sinai; for having made his own appearance, he showed the whole mountain smoking. 33. "I will sing to the Lord in my life, I will sing praises to my God while I have my being." And he has fittingly added these things. "For there is no one who remembers him in death, and in Hades who will confess 80.1708 to him?" Thus the door of the bridechamber was shut to the foolish virgins, who had spent the time for carrying lamps on buying oil. 34. "Let my meditation be sweet to him." Symmachus has said 'discourse' for meditation; and Aquila, 'converse.' I pray, he says, that this hymn of mine may appear most sweet and delightful. "But I will rejoice in the Lord." For when this happens, he says, I will reap cheerfulness from it. 35. "Let sinners cease from the earth, and the lawless, so that they may be no more." Having described the divine beauty and the ineffable riches as far as was possible for human nature, he longs for all men to partake of the same knowledge, and he entreats that the company of sinners may completely cease; not calling for them to be destroyed, but asking that they be changed, and imploring that their band may cease, having been rearranged and having learned divine things. But if anyone wishes to understand these sayings otherwise, as the prophet subjecting those living in impiety to curses, even so he will find the prophecy in agreement with the apostolic teaching. For indeed the blessed Paul, writing to the Corinthians, has placed such a conclusion: "If any man love not the Lord Jesus, let him be Anathema." For it is characteristic of those who love fervently. "Bless the Lord, O my soul." Therefore, let those who are unwilling to praise the provider of so many good things suffer what I have said; but you, O soul, praise your Creator and Savior continually.

COMMENTARY ON THE 104TH PSALM. Alleluia. This psalm also exhorts us to praise the God of all things;

and the inscription indicates this. For Alleluia is interpreted, Praise the Lord. And it recalls the promises made by God to the patriarchs, and the good things provided by him for their descendants on account of them. For the memory of these and those things is sufficient to rouse and incite those who have enjoyed so many benefits to a zeal for the virtue of their forefathers. And at the same time, it also teaches the new people, that he did not unjustly strip that ungrateful people of his own care. For since they were called the people of God, and manifestly enjoyed the divine providence, but later became completely destitute of it; through the preceding psalms it teaches all men how many and how great were the benefits he bestowed, and how ungrateful they became concerning the benefits; 80.1709 so that all might together learn the justice of the sentence passed against them, and seeing the wages of ingratitude, they might not walk the same path as them, but would travel the straight way. 1. "Give thanks to the Lord, and call upon his name." But for 'call upon,' Symmachus has said 'proclaim.' The Word exhorts us to offer the eucharistic hymn, and to recount the divine benefits. "Declare his works among the nations." It is clear and plain that benefit not only to the Jews, but also to all the nations

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τούτων ἐθέσπισε. Τῆς γὰρ προτέρας ἀπάτης τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἀπαλλαγέντων, καὶ δεξαμένων τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν ἐπί γνωσιν, εὐφρανθήσεται Θεὸς, οὐ προσκυνούμενος, ἀλλὰ σωζομένους ὁρῶν. λβʹ. "Ὁ ἐπιβλέπων ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν, καὶ ποιῶν αὐτὴν τρέμειν· ὁ ἁπτόμενος τῶν ὀρέων, καὶ καπνί ζονται." Εἰκότως ταῦτα προστέθεικε, τὸ ἀνενδεὲς διδάσκων τῆς θείας φύσεως. Οὐ γὰρ ὡς δεόμενος τέρπεται προσκυνούμενος· ἀλλ' ὡς σώζειν βουλό μενος, τὴν ἀλήθειαν δείκνυσι· καὶ κολάζειν δυνά μενος, οὐκ ἐπιφέρει τὴν κόλασιν· καί τοι μόνῃ τῇ ἐπιφανείᾳ σείων τὴν γῆν, καὶ πυρὸς καὶ καπνοῦ τὰ ὄρη πληρῶν. Τοῦτο δὲ καὶ ἐν τῷ Σινᾷ ὄρει πεποίηκε· τὴν οἰκείαν γὰρ ποιησάμενος ἐπιφάνειαν, τὸ ὄρος ἅπαν ἔδειξε καπνιζόμενον. λγʹ. "Ἄσω τῷ Κυρίῳ ἐν τῇ ζωῇ μου, ψαλῶ τῷ Θεῷ μου ἕως ὑπάρχω." Καὶ ταῦτα εἰκότως προσ τέθεικεν. "Οὐ γάρ ἐστιν ἐν τῷ θανάτῳ ὁ μνημο νεύων αὐτοῦ, ἐν δὲ τῷ ᾅδῃ τίς ἐξομολογήσεται 80.1708 αὐτῷ;" Οὕτως ἀπεκλείσθη ταῖς μωραῖς παρθένοις τοῦ νυμφῶνος ἡ θύρα, τὸν τῆς λαμπαδοφο ρίας καιρὸν εἰς ἀγορασίαν ἐλαίου δαπανησά σαις. λδʹ. "Ἡδυνθείη αὐτῷ ἡ διαλογή μου." Τὴν διαλογὴν, διάλεξιν ὁ Σύμμαχος εἴρηκεν· ὁ δὲ Ἀκύλας, ὁμιλίαν. Εὔχομαι δὲ, φησὶ, ταύτην μου τὴν ὑμνῳδίαν ἡδίστην καὶ τερπνοτάτην ὀφθῆναι. "Ἐγὼ δὲ εὐφρανθήσομαι ἐπὶ τῷ Κυρίῳ." Τούτου γὰρ, φησὶν, γινομένου, ἐγὼ τὴν ἐντεῦθεν εὐθυμίαν καρπώσομαι. λεʹ. "Ἐκλείποιεν ἁμαρτωλοὶ ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς· καὶ ἄνομοι, ὥστε μὴ ὑπάρχειν αὐτούς." Τὸ θεῖον κάλλος, καὶ τὸν ἄῤῥητον πλοῦτον ὡς ἐνῆν ἀνθρω πείᾳ φύσει διεξελθὼν, πάντας ἀνθρώπους τῆς αὐ τῆς μεταλαχεῖν ἱμείρεται γνώσεως, καὶ τὴν τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν πάμπαν ἐκλεῖψαι συμμορίαν ἱκετεύει· οὐκ αὐτοὺς ἀπολέσθαι παρακαλῶν, ἀλλὰ μεταβλη θῆναι δεόμενος, καὶ παύσασθαι αὐτῶν τὸ στῖφος ἀντιβολῶν μεταταξαμένων καὶ μεταμαθόντων τὰ θεῖα. Εἰ δέ τις ἑτέρως ταῦτα βούλεται νοεῖν τὰ ῥητὰ, ὡς τοῦ προφήτου τοὺς δυσσεβείᾳ συζῶντας ὑπο βάλλοντος ἀραῖς, καὶ οὕτως εὑρήσει τῇ ἀποστολικῇ διδασκαλίᾳ τὴν προφητείαν συμβαίνουσαν. Καὶ γὰρ ὁ μακάριος Παῦλος Κορινθίοις ἐπιστέλλων, τοιοῦτον ἀκροτελεύτιον τέθεικεν· "Εἴ τις οὐ φιλεῖ τὸν Κύ ριον Ἰησοῦν, ἤτω ἀνάθεμα." Ἴδιον γὰρ τῶν θερμῶς ἀγαπώντων. "Εὐλόγει, ἡ ψυχή μου, τὸν Κύριον." Οἱ μὲν οὖν ὑμνεῖν τὸν τοσούτων ἀγα θῶν χορηγὸν οὐ βουλόμενοι, ἐκεῖνα πασχέτωσαν ἅπερ εἴρηκα· σὺ δὲ, ὦ ψυχὴ, ἐνδελεχῶς τὸν σὸν ὕμνει ∆ημιουργὸν καὶ Σωτῆρα.

ΕΡΜΗΝ. ΤΟΥ Ρ∆ʹ. ΨΑΛΜΟΥ. Ἀλληλούϊα. Ὑμνεῖν καὶ οὗτος ὁ ψαλμὸς παρακελεύεται τὸν τῶν ὅλων Θεόν·

δηλοῖ δὲ καὶ ἡ ἐπιγραφή. Τὸ γὰρ ἀλληλούϊα, Αἰνεῖτε τὸν Κύ ριον ἑρμηνεύεται. Ἀναμιμνήσκει δὲ τῶν πρὸς τοὺς πατριάρχας ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ γεγενημένων ὑποσχέ σεων, καὶ τῶν δι' ἐκείνους ὑπ' αὐτοῦ παρασχεθέν των ἀγαθῶν τοῖς ἐκείνων ἐκγόνοις. Ἱκανὴ γὰρ καὶ τούτων κἀκείνων ἡ μνήμη, τοὺς τοσούτων εὐερ γεσιῶν ἀπολαύσαντας εἰς ζῆλον τῆς τῶν προγόνων ἀρετῆς ἐρεθίσαι καὶ παραθῆξαι. ∆ιδάσκει δὲ καὶ κατὰ ταυτὸν, καὶ τὸν νέον λαὸν, ὡς οὐκ ἀδίκως τὸν ἀχάριστον ἐκεῖνον λαὸν τῆς οἰκείας κηδεμονίας ἐγύμνωσεν. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ Θεοῦ λαὸς ἐχρημάτιζον, καὶ προφανῶς τῆς θείας προμηθείας ἀπήλαυον, ἔρημοι δὲ ταύτης ὕστερον ἐγένοντο παντελῶς· διὰ τῶν προκειμένων ψαλμῶν διδάσκει πάντας ἀνθρώ πους, ὅσα μὲν αὐτὸν εὐεργέτησε καὶ ἡλίκα, ὅπως δὲ ἀχάριστοι περὶ τὰς εὐεργεσίας ἐκεῖνοι γεγένην 80.1709 ται· ὡς ἂν ὁμοῦ καὶ τῆς κατ' ἐκείνων ἐξενεχθείσης ψήφου τὸ δίκαιον καταμάθοιεν ἅπαντες, καὶ τῆς ἀχαριστίας ὁρῶντες τὰ ἐπίχειρα, μὴ τὴν αὐτὴν ἐκείνοις βαδίζοιεν, ἀλλὰ τὴν εὐθεῖαν ὁδεύσοιεν. αʹ. "Ἐξομολογεῖσθε τῷ Κυρίῳ, καὶ ἐπικαλεῖσθε τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ." Τὸ δὲ ἐπικαλεῖσθε, κηρύσσητε ὁ Σύμμαχος εἴρηκε. Παρακελεύεται δὲ ὁ λόγος τὴν εὐχαριστήριον ὑμνῳδίαν προσφέρειν, καὶ δι ηγεῖσθαι τὰς θείας εὐεργεσίας. "Ἀπαγγείλατε ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσι τὰ ἔργα αὐτοῦ." ∆ῆλόν ἐστι καὶ σαφὲς, ὡς ὄνησιν οὐκ Ἰουδαίοις μόνον, ἀλλὰ, καὶ τοῖς ἔθνεσιν ἅπασιν