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For, it says, people mistakenly glorify evil demons, but every day and every hour they bless the aforementioned Lord. But this same Lord “will prosper us,” being himself “the God of our salvations.” The Holy Spirit says these things from the person of the choir of the apostles, as indeed we also presented at the beginning of the discourse. Since, therefore, they needed prosperity from God, to make a way for him, according to what was said before, they necessarily say: “Blessed be the Lord day by day, the God of our salvations will prosper us.” But instead of, “of our salvations,” Symmachus translated, “of our Savior;” for which the Hebrew again mentions the name of our Savior Jesus. “Our God, the God of saving, and to the Lord Lord belong the ways out from death.” Again, these things have also been spoken prophetically from the person of the apostles. For since they theologized through what came before, they consistently also say through the things at hand: “Our God, the God of saving, and to the Lord Lord belong the ways out from death;” or according to Symmachus: “God is to us a God for salvation, and to the Lord the master belong the exits to death.” For he alone, being God of saving, found exits from death. Since every man has reached the entrance of death, but has no longer been able to pass through it. But the Lord who is revealed through the present things, and now written with the common letters in the Hebrew book, having made ways out from death, has become God eponymous of salvation. 23.705 Wherefore it has been said: “Our God, the God of saving.” 23.705 Wherefore this same one also speaking to Job said: “Have you come to the spring of the sea, and in the tracks of the abyss have you walked about? The gates of death are opened to you in fear. And the gatekeepers of Hades, seeing you, were terrified.” Clearly also in those things representing his descent into death and the way out from there, as indeed also in the preceding texts, to which he consistently teaches the crushing of his enemies, saying: “But God will crush the heads of his enemies.” And you will understand this too by comparing the voice saying in another place: “You strengthened the sea with your power, you crushed the heads of the dragons upon the water. You shattered the head of the dragon.” For through these things the enemies of God were also revealed, about whom it has been said here: “But God will crush the heads of his enemies.” And these were dragons, swimming in the sea and on the liquid substance, that is, opposing powers hostile to God, wallowing in the salty and fluid waves of life. Whence it was also said in Job: “Have you come to the spring of the sea, and in the tracks of the abyss have you walked about? The gates of death are opened to you in fear. And the gatekeepers of Hades, seeing you, were terrified.” For when the heads of the dragons were crushed, the gatekeepers of Hades were terrified; wherefore also in fear they opened the gates of death to him who crushes the heads of his enemies. But these enemies of the Lord were trampling down the whole race of men. Wherefore it is said next: “The crown of hair of those who go on in their trespasses.” For God will crush the heads of these, it says, who go through the heads of men. For instead of “crown of hair, hairy crown,” Symmachus translated. And by hairy crown the head of men is signified. Therefore, of these same enemies of his, who formerly went through the heads of men and trampled them under their own feet, the God who has made the ways out from death will crush their heads. But instead of, “in their trespasses,” Symmachus translated, “in her trespasses,” saying: “A hairy crown behaving in her trespasses.” For it was not otherwise possible for the enemies of God to trample the crown

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γὰρ, φησὶν, ἄνθρωποι δαίμονας πονηροὺς πεπλανημένως δοξάζουσιν, ἀλλ' ἐφ' ἑκάστης ἡμέρας καὶ καθ' ἑκάστην ὥραν τὸν προδηλωθέντα Κύριον εὐλογοῦσιν. Ὁ δὲ αὐτὸς Κύριος «κατευοδώσει ἡμῖν,» αὐτὸς ὢν «ὁ Θεὸς τῶν σωτηριῶν ἡμῶν.» Λέγει δὲ ταῦτα τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον ἐκ προσώπου τοῦ χοροῦ τῶν ἀποστόλων, ὥσπερ οὖν καὶ ἀρχόμενοι τοῦ λόγου παρεστήσαμεν. Ἐπεὶ τοίνυν τῆς ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ κατευοδώσεως ἐδέοντο οὗτοι, εἰς τὸ ὁδοποιῆσαι αὐτῷ, κατὰ τὰ ἔμπροσθεν εἰρημένα, ἀναγκαίως φασίν· «Εὐλογητὸς Κύριος ἡμέραν καθ' ἡμέραν, κατευοδώσει ἡμῖν ὁ Θεὸς τῶν σωτηριῶν ἡμῶν.» Ἀντὶ δὲ τοῦ, «τῶν σωτηριῶν ἡμῶν,» ὁ Σύμμαχος, «τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν,» ἡρμήνευσεν· ἀνθ' οὗ τὸ Ἑβραϊκὸν πάλιν τοῦ ὀνόματος τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ μέμνηται. «Ὁ Θεὸς ἡμῶν, ὁ Θεὸς τοῦ σώζειν, καὶ τοῦ Κυρίου Κυρίου αἱ διέξοδοι τοῦ θανάτου.» Πάλιν ἐκ προσώπου τῶν ἀποστόλων προφητικῶς καὶ ταῦτα λέλεκται. Ἐπεὶ γὰρ ἐθεολόγησαν διὰ τῶν ἔμπροσθεν, ἀκολούθως καὶ διὰ τῶν μετὰ χεῖράς φασιν· «Ὁ Θεὸς ἡμῶν, ὁ Θεὸς τοῦ σώζειν, καὶ τοῦ Κυρίου Κυρίου αἱ διέξοδοι τοῦ θανάτου·» ἢ κατὰ τὸν Σύμμαχον· «Ὁ Θεὸς ἡμῖν Θεὸς εἰς σωτηρίαν, καὶ τοῦ Κυρίου τοῦ δεσπότου αἱ εἰς θάνατον ἔξοδοι.» Μόνος γὰρ οὗτος Θεὸς ὢν τοῦ σώζειν ἐξόδους εὕρετο τοῦ θανάτου. Ἐπειδὴ πᾶς ἄνθρωπος εἰς μὲν τὴν εἴσοδον τοῦ θανάτου ἔφθασεν, οὐκέτι δὲ καὶ διεξελθεῖν αὐτὸν δεδύνηται. Ὁ δὲ διὰ τῶν παρόντων δηλούμενος Κύριος, καὶ νῦν διὰ τῶν κοινῶν στοιχείων ἐν τῇ. Ἑβραϊκῇ βίβλῳ γραφόμενος, διεξόδους ποιησάμενος τοῦ θανάτου, γέγονε Θεὸς ἐπώνυμος σωτηρίας. 23.705 ∆ιὸ λέλεκται· «Ὁ Θεὸς ἡμῶν, ὁ Θεὸς τοῦ σώζειν.» 23.705 ∆ιὸ καὶ τῷ Ἰὼβ ὁ αὐτὸς οὗτος χρηματίζων ἔλεγεν· «Ἦλθες δὲ ἐπὶ πηγὴν θαλάσσης· ἐν δὲ ἴχνεσιν ἀβύσσου περιεπάτησας. Ἀνοίγονται δέ σοι φόβῳ πύλαι θανάτου. Πυλωροὶ δὲ ᾅδου ἰδόντες σε ἔπτηξαν.» ∆ιαῤῥήδην καὶ ἐν ἐκείνοις τὴν εἰς τὸν θάνατον αὐτοῦ κάθοδον καὶ τὴν ἐκεῖθεν διέξοδον παριστὰς, ὥσπερ οὖν καὶ ἐν τοῖς προκειμένοις, οἷς ἀκολούθως τὴν τῶν ἐχθρῶν αὐτοῦ συντριβὴν διδάσκει λέγων· «Πλὴν ὁ Θεὸς συνθλάσει κεφαλὰς ἐχθρῶν αὐτοῦ.» Καὶ τοῦτο δὲ νοήσεις παραθεὶς τὴν ἐν ἑτέρῳ λέγουσαν φωνήν· «Σὺ ἐκραταίωσας τῇ δυνάμει σου τὴν θάλασσαν, σὺ συνέτριψας τὰς κεφαλὰς τῶν δρακόντων ἐπὶ τοῦ ὕδατος. Σὺ συνέθλασας τὴν κεφαλὴν τοῦ δράκοντος.» ∆ιὰ γὰρ τούτων καὶ οἱ ἐχθροὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐδηλώθησαν, περὶ ὧν ἐνταῦθα λέλεκται· «Πλὴν ὁ Θεὸς συνθλάσει κεφαλὰς ἐχθρῶν αὐτοῦ.» Ἦσαν δὲ οὗτοι δράκοντες οἱ ἐν θαλάσσῃ καὶ ἐπὶ ὑγρᾶς οὐσίας νηχόμενοι, δυνάμεις δηλαδὴ ἀντικείμεναι ἐχθραὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ, τοῖς ἁλμυροῖς καὶ ῥευστοῖς τοῦ βίου κύμασιν ἐγκαλινδούμεναι. Ὅθεν καὶ ἐν τῷ Ἰὼβ ἐλέγετο· «Ἦλθες δὲ ἐπὶ πηγὴνθαλάσσης, ἐν δὲ ἴχνεσιν ἀβύσσου περιεπάτησας. Ἀνοίγονται δέ σοι φόβῳ πύλαι θανάτου. Πυλωροὶ δὲ ᾅδου, ἰδόντες σε, ἔπτηξαν.» Συντριβομένων γὰρ τῶν κεφαλῶν τῶν δρακόντων, ἔπτησσον οἱ πυλωροὶ τοῦ ᾅδου· διὸ καὶ φόβῳ τὰς πύλας ἤνοιγον τοῦ θανάτου τῷ τὰς κεφαλὰς τῶν ἐχθρῶν αὐτοῦ συνθλῶντι. Οὗτοι δὲ οἱ ἐχθροὶ τοῦ Κυρίου τὸ πάντων ἀνθρώπων κατεπάτουν γένος. ∆ιὸ λέλεκται ἑξῆς· «Κορυφὴν τριχὸς διαπορευομένων ἐν πλημμελείαις αὐτῶν.» Τούτων γὰρ ὁ Θεὸς συνθλάσει τὰς κεφαλὰς, φησὶ, τῶν διαπορευομένων τὰς τῶν ἀνθρώπων κεφαλάς. Ἀντὶ γὰρ τοῦ, «κορυφὴν τριχὸς, κορυφὴν ἔντριχον,» ἡρμήνευσεν ὁ Σύμμαχος. Κορυφὴ δὲ ἔντριχος ἡ κεφαλὴ τῶν ἀνθρώπων σημαίνεται. Τούτων οὖν αὐτῶν τῶν ἐχθρῶν ἑαυτοῦ, τῶν πρότερον τὰς τῶν ἀνθρώπων κεφαλὰς διαπορευομένων καὶ ὑπὸ τοῖς ἑαυτῶν ποσὶ καταπατούντων, ὁ τὰς διεξόδους τοῦ θανάτου πεποιημένος Θεὸς τὰς κεφαλὰς συνθλάσει. Ἀντὶ δὲ τοῦ, «ἐν πλημμελείαις αὐτῶν,» ὁ Σύμμαχος, «ἐν ταῖς πλημμελείαις αὐτῆς,» ἡρμήνευσεν εἰπών· «Κορυφὴν ἔντριχον ἀναστρεφομένην ἐν ταῖς πλημμελείαις αὐτῆς.» Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἄλλως δυνατὸν ἦν τοῖς ἐχθροῖς τοῦ Θεοῦ καταπατεῖν κορυφὴν