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he first commands that there be a preliminary instruction, and then thus to receive the instruction from the proverb. For they are words of wisdom, he says, 3.1.25 revealing their purpose through a turn of phrase. For that which is not understood straightforwardly requires a certain turning for the comprehension of what is hidden, and just as Paul promised to change his voice, when he was about to transpose the history into a figurative interpretation, so here the manifestation of the hidden things is named by Solomon a 'turning of a word,' as the beauty of the thoughts cannot be understood, unless one turns the apparent meaning of the word inside out and sees the hidden ray of meaning; as happens with the feather, with which 3.1.26 the peacock adorns its tail. For in this case, one who sees the back of the feather, which is unadorned and shapeless, certainly despises the sight as worthless; but if one turns it over and shows its other side, he sees the varied painting of nature and the incomplete circle in purple dye shining out in the middle, and the golden air around the circle girded and illuminated at the edge with multicolored rainbows. Since, therefore, no beauty is in the plainness of the language (For all the glory, he says, of the king's daughter is within, shining in golden thoughts with a hidden adornment), Solomon necessarily suggests to those who encounter this book the 'turning of the word,' so that through this they may understand a parable and a dark saying, and the sayings of the wise and their riddles. 3.1.27 Since, therefore, this proverbial teaching contains these things, no one of sound mind would accept anything brought forth from this book unexamined and uninterpreted, even if it happens to be most clear and familiar on the surface. For there is certainly some anagogical interpretation even in those things that seem to be manifest. But if the surface meanings of this scripture necessarily require a more detailed examination, how much more so those things in which there is much that is unclear and 3.1.28 difficult to interpret from a superficial understanding? Let us examine, therefore, from the context of the sayings around that passage, if the reading of the adjacent text has any clarity. The text portrays wisdom as delivering certain sayings from her own person. And the lover of learning certainly knows the things said in that passage, where wisdom dwells with counsel, and calls upon knowledge and thought, and says she possesses strength and prudence, and is herself named understanding, and walks in the ways of righteousness and moves in the midst of the paths of justice, and says that through her kings reign and rulers decree justice 3.1.29 and tyrants rule their own land. For it is clear to everyone that the rational person does not accept any of the things said unexamined from the ready sense. For if kings are brought to power through her and tyranny has its strength from her, it is altogether necessary for wisdom to appear to us as a tyrant-maker and to transfer to herself the blame for those who rule wickedly in a kingdom. 3.1.30 But we know as kings those who by wisdom truly advance to the unending rule, the poor in spirit, whose possession is the kingdom of heaven, as the Lord, who is wisdom, promises through the gospel; such also we recognize as rulers those who rule over the passions, those not enslaved to the dominion of sin, who, as on a tablet, inscribe righteousness in their own life. 3.1.31 Thus also the praiseworthy tyranny, with the alliance of wisdom, having transformed the democracy of the passions into the monarchy of the mind, enslaves those things that wickedly run wild toward freedom, I mean all carnal and earthly thoughts. For the flesh lusts against the spirit, and rises up against the rule of the soul. Such a tyrant, therefore, masters this earth, over which he was appointed ruler in the first creation by the Word. 3.1.32

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προπαιδεύσεως γενέ σθαι πρῶτον διακελεύεται, εἶθ' οὕτως τὴν ἐκ τῆς παροι μίας παιδείαν χωρῆσαι. φρονήσεως γὰρ εἶναι λόγους, φησί, 3.1.25 διὰ στροφῆς τὸν σκοπὸν ἐκκαλύπτοντας. τὸ γὰρ μὴ ἐπ' εὐθείας νοούμενον στροφῆς τινος χρῄζει πρὸς τὴν τοῦ κεκρυμμένου κατάληψιν, καὶ ὥσπερ ὁ Παῦλος ἀλλάξειν ἑαυτοῦ τὴν φωνὴν ἐπηγγείλατο, μέλλων μετατιθέναι τὴν ἱστορίαν εἰς τροπικὴν θεωρίαν, οὕτως ἐνταῦθα ἡ τῶν κε κρυμμένων φανέρωσις στροφὴ λόγου παρὰ τοῦ Σολομῶντος κατονομάζεται, ὡς οὐ δυναμένου κατανοηθῆναι τοῦ κάλ λους τῶν νοημάτων, εἰ μή τις τοῦ λόγου τὸ προφαινό μενον εἰς τὸ ἔμπαλιν ἀναστρέψας ἴδοι τὴν ἀποκεκρυμμένην αὐγὴν τοῦ νοήματος· οἷον ἐπὶ τοῦ πτεροῦ συμβαίνει, ᾧ 3.1.26 κατὰ τὸ οὐραῖον ὁ ταὼς καλλωπίζεται. ἐπὶ τούτου γὰρ ὁ μὲν τὰ νῶτα τοῦ πτεροῦ θεασάμενος κατὰ τὸ ἀκαλλές τε καὶ ἄμορφον καταφρονεῖ πάντως ὡς εὐτελοῦς τοῦ θεά ματος· εἰ δέ τις ἀναστρέψας αὐτοῦ τὴν ἑτέραν ὄψιν προ δείξειεν, ὁρᾷ τὴν ποικίλην ζωγραφίαν τῆς φύσεως καὶ τὸν ἡμιτελῆ κύκλον ἐν πορφυρᾷ τῇ βαφῇ κατὰ τὸ μέσον ἐκ λάμποντα καὶ τὸν χρυσοειδῆ περὶ τὸν κύκλον ἀέρα ταῖς πολυχρόοις ἴρισι κατὰ τὸ ἄκρον διεζωσμένον τε καὶ λαμ πόμενον. ἐπεὶ οὖν οὐδὲν τῷ προχείρῳ τῆς λέξεως ἔπεστι κάλλος (Πᾶσα γάρ, φησίν, ἡ δόξα τῆς θυγατρὸς τοῦ βασι λέως ἔσωθεν, ἐν τοῖς χρυσοῖς νοήμασι τῷ κρυπτῷ δια λάμπουσα κόσμῳ), ἀναγκαίως ὁ Σολομὼν τοῖς ἐντυγχάνουσι τούτῳ τῷ βιβλίῳ τὴν τοῦ λόγου στροφὴν ὑποτίθεται, ἵνα διὰ τούτου νοήσωσι παραβολὴν καὶ σκοτεινὸν λόγον, ῥήσεις τε σοφῶν καὶ αἰνίγματα. 3.1.27 Ταῦτα τοίνυν περιεχούσης τῆς παροιμιακῆς ταύτης διδασκαλίας, οὐδὲν ἄν τις τῶν εὖ φρονούντων ἀνεξετάστως τε καὶ ἀθεωρήτως τῶν ἐκ τῆς βίβλου ταύτης προφερομένων δέξεται, κἂν ὅτι μάλιστα σαφὲς ἐκ τοῦ προχείρου καὶ γνώ ριμον τυγχάνῃ. πάντως γὰρ ὕπεστί τις καὶ τοῖς προδήλοις εἶναι δοκοῦσιν ἡ κατὰ ἀναγωγὴν θεωρία. εἰ δὲ τὰ πρόχειρα τῆς γραφῆς ταύτης ἀναγκαίως ἐπιζητεῖ τὴν λεπτομερεστέραν ἐξέτασιν, πόσῳ μᾶλλον ἐκεῖνα οἷς πολὺ τὸ ἀσαφές τε καὶ 3.1.28 δυσθεώρητον ἐκ τῆς αὐτόθεν ἐστὶ κατανοήσεως; ἐξετάσω μεν τοίνυν ἐκ τῆς περὶ τὸν τόπον ἐκεῖνον συμφράσεως τῶν ῥημάτων, εἴ τι σαφὲς ἡ τῶν παρακειμένων ἀνάγνωσις ἔχει. προδιαγράφει τὴν σοφίαν ὁ λόγος ῥήσεις τινὰς ἐξ οἰκείου διεξιοῦσαν προσώπου. ἐπίσταται δὲ πάντως ὁ φιλομαθὴς τὰ ἐν τῷ τόπῳ λεγόμενα, ὅπου κατασκηνοῖ μὲν βουλὴν ἡ σοφία, ἐπικαλεῖται δὲ γνῶσιν καὶ ἔννοιαν, κτῆμα δὲ ἔχειν φησὶν ἰσχύν τε καὶ φρόνησιν, αὐτὴ δὲ ὀνομάζεσθαι σύνεσις, ἐν ὁδοῖς δὲ περιπατεῖν δικαιοσύνης καὶ ἀνὰ μέσον ὁδῶν δικαιώματος ἀναστρέφεσθαι, φησὶ δὲ δι' ἑαυτῆς βασιλεύειν τοὺς βασιλεύοντας καὶ δικαιοσύνην γράφειν τοὺς δυναστεύ 3.1.29 οντας καὶ τῆς ἑαυτῶν κατακρατεῖν γῆς τοὺς τυράννους. ὅτι γὰρ οὐδὲν τῶν εἰρημένων ὁ λελογισμένος ἀνεξετάστως ἐκ τῆς ἑτοίμου διανοίας προσδέχεται, παντὶ δῆλόν ἐστιν. εἰ γὰρ οἱ βασιλεῖς δι' ἐκείνης ἐπὶ τὴν δυναστείαν προάγονται καὶ παρ' αὐτῆς ἡ τυραννὶς τὴν ἰσχὺν ἔχει, ἀνάγκη πᾶσα τυραννοποιὸν ἡμῖν τὴν σοφίαν ἀναφανῆναι καὶ τῶν πονηρῶς ἐν βασιλείᾳ δυναστευόντων εἰς ἑαυτὴν μετατιθέναι τὰς 3.1.30 μέμψεις. ἀλλ' οἴδαμεν βασιλέας τοὺς ὑπὸ τῆς σοφίας ὄν τως εἰς τὴν ἀτελεύτητον προϊόντας ἀρχήν, τοὺς πτωχοὺς τῷ πνεύματι, ὧν κτῆμα ἡ τῶν οὐρανῶν ἐστι βασιλεία, καθ ὼς ὁ κύριος, ὅς ἐστιν ἡ σοφία, διὰ τοῦ εὐαγγελίου κατ επαγγέλλεται· τοιούτους καὶ τοὺς δυνάστας ἐπιγινώσκομεν τοὺς κατὰ τῶν παθῶν δυναστεύοντας, τοὺς μὴ δουλουμένους τῇ δυναστείᾳ τῆς ἁμαρτίας, οἳ καθάπερ δέλτῳ τινὶ τῷ 3.1.31 ἰδίῳ βίῳ τὴν δικαιοσύνην ἐγγράφουσιν. οὕτως καὶ ἡ ἐπαι νετὴ τυραννὶς τῇ συμμαχίᾳ τῆς σοφίας τὴν τῶν παθῶν δημοκρατίαν εἰς τὴν τοῦ νοῦ μοναρχίαν μετασκευάσασα δουλαγωγεῖ τὰ κακῶς εἰς ἐλευθερίαν ἀφηνιάζοντα, πάντα τὰ σωματικά τε καὶ γήϊνα λέγω φρονήματα. Ἡ γὰρ σὰρξ ἐπιθυ μεῖ κατὰ τοῦ πνεύματος, καὶ τῇ ἀρχῇ τῆς ψυχῆς ἐπανίσταται. ταύτης οὖν κρατεῖ τῆς γῆς ὁ τοιοῦτος τύραννος, ἧς ἄρχων ἐτάχθη κατὰ τὴν πρώτην κτίσιν ὑπὸ τοῦ λόγου. 3.1.32