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you are my son, today I have begotten you; ask of me, and I will give you the nations for your inheritance and for your possession the ends of the earth». Therefore the leaders of his church have inherited this inheritance of the savior, but also everlasting joy has come upon their head. And he has received all these things in part in the present life, but the fulfillment of the promise was referred to the hope of the age to come. And these things will be, he says, since I am the Lord who loves righteousness and hates robberies out of injustice; for the opposing powers, the evil demons, used to enslave the souls of men, doing this violently and unjustly. Therefore, hating these robberies, and myself loving righteousness, not only to the Jews, but also to all the nations I have poured out my grace. And I will give, he says, their labor to the just; whose labor but theirs, or of those who inherit the earth a second time? But instead of 'to the just,' all the other interpreters have said 'in truth,' so that their labor will not be deceived, but will also be kept for them in truth. And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, no longer handing over to them the temporary precepts of Moses, but the mystery of the new covenant, which indeed will be lasting and eternal. Moreover, in addition to these things it has been said: And their seed will be known among the nations and their offspring in the midst of the peoples; everyone who sees them will recognize them, that these are a seed blessed by the Lord. And who would not confess that precisely from the blessing of God the ecclesiastical seed is multiplied, so that it is known throughout the whole world? And by 'their seed' it is fitting to understand either the word and the evangelical teaching or those genuinely discipled by them in word and life, so that they are manifest to sight, that they are indeed a seed blessed by God. 2.52 Very consequently, after the aforementioned promises, which the Son of God himself has made at his first coming, the Word then personifies the church of God as having obtained so many good things and giving thanks for what she has received. Having received, therefore, as her own members the fullness of those being saved, and like a bride composed of one comely and beautiful body, and putting on the adornment from her own bridegroom, she says: Let my soul rejoice in the Lord. And she adds the reason, saying: For he has clothed me with a garment of salvation. And the body of the resurrection, which is called the garment of salvation, will be a pillar flashing with divine light; for no longer a 'body of death,' as Paul indicated, saying: «Who will deliver me from this body of death?» that too will be of salvation, and a garment of salvation will be placed upon the soul and a tunic of gladness; for each one by his own deeds which have been done by him according to righteousness will put on his own adornment. And having 'attained to a perfect man and to the measure of the stature,' and having been made like her own bridegroom, on account of the 'perfect' in her who are formed in the image of the bridegroom, she will say: he has placed on me a mitre as on a bridegroom, but on account of those not yet such, but standing in the second order of the good, she will say: and as a bride he has adorned me with an adornment. And this same one, being a bride of the bridegroom Word, and having received the seeds from him, produces beautiful and flourishing fruits. Therefore she says: And as the earth brings forth its flower and as a garden makes its seeds to spring up. Then next to these things, so that the children of the Jews might not claim these things for themselves, the word distinguishes, saying: So the Lord, the Lord, will cause righteousness and exultation to spring up before all the nations. Having prophesied these things, the prophet, and then being moved by what was said, cries out, saying: For Zion's sake I will not be silent and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, or according to the other interpreters: and for Jerusalem's sake I will not

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μου εἶ σύ, ἐγὼ σήμερον γεγέννηκά σε· αἴτησαι παρ' ἐμοί, καὶ δώσω σοι ἔθνη τὴν κληρονομίαν σου καὶ τὴν κατάσχεσίν σου τὰ πέρατα τῆς γῆς». ταύτην οὖν τὴν τοῦ σωτῆρος κληρονομίαν οἱ τῆς ἐκκλησίας αὐτοῦ προεστῶτες ἐκληρονόμησαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ εὐφροσύνη αἰώνιος ὑπὲρ κεφαλῆς αὐτῶν γέγονε. καὶ πάντα ταῦτα ἐκ μέρους εἴληφε κατὰ τὸν παρόντα βίον, τῆς δὲ ἐπαγγελίας τὸ πλήρωμα εἰς τὴν ἐλπίδα τοῦ μέλλοντος αἰῶνος ἀνεπέμπετο. Ἔσται δὲ ταῦτά φησιν, ἐπειδήπερ ἐγώ εἰμι κύριος ἀγαπῶν δικαιοσύνην καὶ μισῶν ἁρπάγματα ἐξ ἀδικίας· αἱ μὲν γὰρ ἀντικείμεναι δυνάμεις δαίμονες πονηροὶ τὰς ψυχὰς τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐξηνδραποδίζοντο βιαίως καὶ ἀδίκως τοῦτο πράττοντες. διὸ ταῦτα μισῶν ἁρπάγματα, δικαιοσύνην δὲ αὐτὸς ἀγαπῶν, οὐκ Ἰουδαίοις μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ πᾶσι τοῖς ἔθνεσιν ἐξέχεα τὴν ἐμαυτοῦ χάριν. καὶ δώσω δέ φησι τὸν μόχθον αὐτῶν δικαίοις· τίνων δὲ αὐτῶν ἢ τῶν ἐκ δευτέρου τὴν γῆν κληρονομούντων; ἀντὶ δὲ τοῦ· δικαίοις, ἐν ἀληθείᾳ οἱ λοιποὶ πάντες ἑρμηνευταὶ εἰρήκασιν, ὥστε οὐ διαψευσθήσεται αὐτῶν ὁ μόχθος, ἀλλ' ἐν ἀληθείᾳ καὶ αὐτοῖς φυλαχθήσεται. καὶ διαθήκην δὲ αἰώνιον διαθήσομαι αὐτοῖς, οὐκέτι τὰ Μωσέως πρόσκαιρα παραγγέλματα παραδοὺς αὐτοῖς, τὸ δὲ μυστήριον τῆς καινῆς διαθήκης, ὃ δὴ διαρκὲς ἔσται καὶ αἰώνιον. Ἔτι πρὸς τούτοις εἴρηται· καὶ γνωσθήσεται ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσι τὸ σπέρμα αὐτῶν καὶ τὰ ἔκγονα αὐτῶν ἐν μέσῳ λαῶν· πᾶς ὁ ὁρῶν αὐτοὺς ἐπιγνώσεται αὐτούς, ὅτι οὗτοί εἰσι σπέρμα εὐλογημένον ὑπὸ κυρίου. καὶ τίς οὐκ ἂν ὁμολογήσειεν ἀκριβῶς ἐξ εὐλογίας τοῦ θεοῦ τὸ ἐκκλησιαστικὸν πληθύνεσθαι σπέρμα, ὡς εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν οἰκουμένην αὐτὸ γνωρίζεσθαι; σπέρμα δὲ αὐτῶν ἢ τὸν λόγον καὶ τὴν διδασκαλίαν τὴν εὐαγγελικὴν προσήκει νοεῖν ἢ τοὺς γνησίως λόγῳ καὶ βίῳ μαθητευομένους αὐτοῖς ὡς ὄψει δήλους εἶναι, ὡς ἄρα εἶεν σπέρμα εὐλογημένον ὑπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ. 2.52 Σφόδρα ἀκολούθως μετὰ τὰς προκαταλεχθείσας ἐπαγγελίας, ἃς αὐτὸς ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ πεποίηται κατὰ τὴν πρώτην αὐτοῦ παρουσίαν, προσωποποιεῖ λοιπὸν ὁ λόγος τὴν ἐκκλησίαν τοῦ θεοῦ ὡς ἂν τοσούτων ἀγαθῶν τετυχηκυῖαν καὶ εὐχαριστοῦσαν, ἐφ' οἷς πέπονθεν. ἀπολαβοῦσα τοίνυν ὥσπερ τινὰ οἰκεῖα μέλη τὸ πλήρωμα τῶν σῳζομένων καὶ ὥσπερ τις νύμφη ἐξ ἑνὸς εὐπρεποῦς καὶ ὡραίου συγκειμένη σώματος καὶ τὸν παρὰ τοῦ ἑαυτῆς νυμφίου κόσμον περιβαλλομένη φησίν· ἀγαλλιάσθω ἡ ψυχή μου ἐπὶ τῷ κυρίῳ. καὶ τὸ αἴτιον ἐπάγει λέγουσα· ἐνέδυσε γάρ με ἱμάτιον σωτηρίου. στήλη δέ τις ἔσται φωτὸς ἀπαστράπτουσα θείου τὸ σῶμα τῆς ἀναστάσεως τὸ λεγόμενον ἱμάτιον σωτηρίου· οὐκέτι γὰρ «θανάτου σῶμα», οἷον ὁ Παῦλος ἐδήλου λέγων· «τίς με ῥύσεται ἐκ τοῦ σώματος τοῦ θανάτου τούτου»; ἔσται κἀκεῖνο σωτήριον, σωτηρίου δὲ ἱμάτιον τῇ ψυχῇ περιθήσεται καὶ χιτὼν εὐφροσύνης· ἕκαστος γὰρ ταῖς ἑαυτοῦ πράξεσι ταῖς κατὰ δικαιοσύνην αὐτῷ πεπραγμέναις τὸν ἑαυτοῦ κόσμον ἐνδύσεται. «καταντήσασα» δὲ «εἰς ἄνδρα τέλειον καὶ εἰς μέτρον ἡλικίας» τῷ τε ἑαυτῆς νυμφίῳ ἐξομοιωθεῖσα διὰ μὲν τοὺς ἐν αὐτῇ «τελείους» κατ' εἰκόνα τοῦ νυμφίου μεμορφωμένους ἐρεῖ· περιέθηκέ μοι ὡς νυμφίῳ μίτραν, διὰ δὲ τοὺς μηδέπω τοιούτους ἐν δευτέρῳ δὲ τάγματι τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἑστῶτας ἐρεῖ· καὶ ὡς νύμφην κατεκόσμησέ με κόσμῳ. ἡ δὲ αὐτὴ νύμφη τις οὖσα τοῦ νυμφίου λόγου καὶ τὰ παρ' αὐτοῦ σπέρματα ὑποδεξαμένη καρποὺς ὡραίους καὶ εὐανθεῖς ἀποδίδωσι. διό φησι· καὶ ὡς γῆν αὔξουσαν τὸ ἄνθος αὐτῆς καὶ ὡς κῆπος τὰ σπέρματα αὐτοῦ ἀνατελεῖ. εἶθ' ἑξῆς τούτοις ὡς ἂν μὴ συναρπάζοντες εἰς ἑαυτοὺς ταῦτα Ἰουδαίων παῖδες διαστέλλεται ὁ λόγος φάσκων· οὕτως κύριος κύριος ἀνατελεῖ δικαιοσύνην καὶ ἀγαλλίαμα ἐναντίον πάντων τῶν ἐθνῶν. Ταῦτα θεσπίσας ὁ προφήτης κἄπειτα διατεθεὶς ἐπὶ τοῖς εἰρημένοις ἀναφωνεῖ λέγων· ∆ιὰ Σιὼν οὐ σιωπήσομαι καὶ διὰ Ἰερουσαλὴμ οὐκ ἀνήσω, ἢ κατὰ τοὺς λοιποὺς ἑρμηνευτάς· καὶ διὰ Ἰερουσαλὴμ οὐκ