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and poor, O God, help me.” So that also for this reason it is necessary to inscribe "to the end." If, then, it were spoken from the person of David, you might say that ruling a great nation, being exceedingly wealthy, he was not ignorant of the saying that proclaims: "The greater you are, the more you should humble yourself, and you will find grace before the Lord." Therefore, being of a moderate and humble mind and truly making himself small, and looking to the greatness of the wealth of God's goodness, he called himself poor and needy through the preceding words; and beginning his discourse, as though nothing contributed to him, neither wealth, nor kingdom, nor the help of the whole nation, nor the righteousness he had acquired from discipline, he asked for help from God alone, saying: "O God, attend to my help. O Lord, make haste to help me." But seeing many who were envious of his progress according to God and who bewitched the salvation of his soul, he added this: "Let them be ashamed and confounded who seek my soul. Let them be turned back and put to shame who wish me evil. Let them be turned back immediately in shame who say to me, 'Aha, aha.'" For through these words he confesses that he is not able to suffice for himself, but needs help from the greater one; as if, should he not obtain it, he would be desolate and proven weak and nothing more than a mortal man; and that his enemies, being malicious, would rise up against him when he fell. But if he should obtain God as his helper, he himself will be superior; but shame will be poured upon those who plot against his soul; who, following at his heels in every action and trying to lay hold of him, are accustomed to say, "Aha, aha," as if they were succeeding and acting according to their wishes in those things wherein they thought him to be stumbling. But if someone should refer these things to the Savior for the reason given, he will say that, seeing those who plot against His word and teaching rising up against the great body of His Church, and those continually carrying out persecutions against it, averting their wickedness, He prophetically sent up this prayer, teaching His Church that it must pray thus. "Let all those who seek you rejoice and be glad in you." The first things were for the overthrow of the adversaries; consequently, the second things intercede on behalf of His own. And if David made a prayer befitting a righteous man, it was so that all who seek God, of whom he himself was one, might partake of exultation and gladness while their enemies were put to shame; and those who love the salvation of God would say, "Let God be magnified;" and they would say this not once, nor at any one time, but always, as the whole enemy race of God is conquered in them and through them. But if the Savior, in accordance with what has been said before, were [praying] on behalf of those from all the nations who have 23.772 believed in him, he would say: "Let all those who seek you rejoice and be glad in you." For not only Jews, nor those who boast in Abraham, but universally and indefinitely all whosoever and of whatever race they may be who seek you, "let them rejoice and be glad in you, and let them say, 'Let God be magnified;'" and let those who love your salvation say this always; that is, the Savior Himself, who is called salvation in many places of the Scriptures, whom those love who by their deeds embrace His teaching in pure love. "But I am poor and needy; O God, help me." David also, being rich, was humble-minded, since he had knowledge of the greatness of God and saw himself as nothing. Therefore he asked for help from the mighty one alone, saying: "O God, help me; you are my helper and my deliverer, O Lord, do not delay." And Christ, though He was rich, for our sakes became poor, as the divine

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καὶ πένης, ὁ Θεὸς, βοήθησόν μοι.» Ὥστε καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἀναγκαίως ἐπιγράφειν «εἰς τὸ τέλος.» Ἐὰν μὲν οὖν ἐκ προσώπου τοῦ ∆αυῒδ λέγοιτο, εἴποις ἂν ὅτι μεγάλου βασιλεύων ἔθνους, σφόδρα πλουσιώτατος ὢν, οὐκ ἠγνόει τὸ φάσκον λόγιον· «Ὅσῳ μέγας εἶ, τοσούτῳ ταπεινοῦ σεαυτὸν, καὶ ἐνώπιον Κυρίου εὑρήσεις χάριν.» ∆ιὸ μετριοφρονῶν καὶ ταπεινοφρονῶν καὶ ἀληθῶς σμικρύνων ἑαυτὸν, καὶ πρὸς τὸ μέγεθος ἀφορῶν τοῦ πλούτου τῆς χρηστότητος τοῦ Θεοῦ, πτωχὸν καὶ πένητα ἑαυτὸν διὰ τῶν προκειμένων ὠνόμασε· καὶ ἀρχόμενος δὲ τοῦ λόγου, ὡς μηδὲν αὐτῷ συμβαλλομένου, μήτε πλούτου, μήτε βασιλείας, μήτε τῆς τοῦ παντὸς ἔθνους βοηθείας, μήτε τῆς ἐξ ἀσκήσεως πορισθείσης αὐτῷ δικαιοσύνης, τὴν παρὰ μόνου τοῦ Θεοῦ βοήθειαν ἐξῄτει λέγων· «Ὁ Θεὸς, εἰς τὴν βοήθειάν μου πρόσχες. Κύριε, εἰς τὸ βοηθῆσαί μοι σπεῦσον.» Ὁρῶν δὲ πολλοὺς διαφθονουμένους τῇ κατὰ Θεὸν αὐτοῦ προκοπῇ καὶ βασκαίνοντας αὐτοῦ τῇ σωτηρίᾳ τῆς ψυχῆς, προσετίθει τὸ, «Αἰσχυνθήτωσαν καὶ ἐντραπήτωσαν οἱ ζητοῦντες τὴν ψυχήν μου. Ἀποστραφήτωσαν εἰς τὰ ὀπίσω καὶ καταισχυνθήτωσαν οἱ βουλόμενοί μοι κακά. Ἀποστραφήτωσαν παραυτίκα αἰσχυνόμενοι οἱ λέγοντές μοι, Εὖγε, εὖγε.» ∆ιὰ τούτων γὰρ ὁμολογεῖ αὐτὸς μὲν ἑαυτῷ μὴ δύνασθαι ἐπαρκεῖν, δεῖσθαι δὲ τῆς παρὰ τοῦ κρείττονος βοηθείας· ὡς, εἰ μὴ τύχοι ταύτης, ἔρημος ἐσόμενος καὶ ἐλεγχθησόμενος ἀσθενὴς καὶ πλέον οὐδὲν ἢ θνητὸς ἄνθρωπος· καὶ ὡς οἱ ἐχθροὶ αὐτοῦ ἐπιχαιρεσίκακοί τινες ὄντες πεσόντι αὐτῷ ἐπαναβήσονται. Εἰ δὲ βοηθοῦ τύχοι τοῦ Θεοῦ, αὐτὸς μὲν ἔσται ἀνώτερος· αἰσχύνην δὲ καταχεοῦνται οἱ τῆς αὐτοῦ ψυχῆς ἐπίβουλοι· οἵτινες ἐφ' ἑκάστῃ πράξει κατὰ πόδας αὐτοῦ βαίνοντες καὶ πειρώμενοι ἐπιλαμβάνεσθαι αὐτοῦ λέγειν εἰώθασιν, «Εὖγε, εὖγε,» ὡς ἂν ἐπιτυγχάνοντες καὶ κατ' εὐχὰς πράττοντες ἐν οἷς αὐτὸν σφάλλεσθαι ἐνόμιζον. Εἰ δὲ ἐπὶ τὸν Σωτῆρά τις ἀναφέροι ταῦτα διὰ τὴν ἀποδοθεῖσαν αἰτίαν, ἐρεῖ, ὅτι τοὺς ἐπιβουλεύοντας αὐτοῦ τῷ λόγῳ καὶ τῇ διδασκαλίᾳ, τῷ τε μεγάλῳ σώματι τῆς Ἐκκλησίας αὐτοῦ θεωρῶν ἐπανισταμένους, καὶ τοὺς διωγμοὺς συνεχῶς κατ' αὐτῆς ἐνεργοῦντας, ἀποτροπιαζόμενος αὐτῶν τὴν κακίαν, ταύτην προφητικῶς ἀνέπεμπε τὴν εὐχὴν, οὕτω δεῖν εὔχεσθαι διδάσκων τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν αὐτοῦ. «Ἀγαλλιάσθωσαν καὶ εὐφρανθήτωσαν ἐπὶ σὲ πάντες οἱ ζητοῦντές σε.» Τὰ μὲν πρῶτα ἀνατρεπτικὰ ἦν τῶν ἐναντίων· ἀκολούθως δὲ τὰ δεύτερα ὑπὲρ τῶν οἰκείων πρεσβεύει. Καὶ εἰ μὲν ὁ ∆αυῒδ δικαίῳ πρέπουσαν εὐχὴν ἐποιεῖτο, ὡς ἂν πάντες οἱ τὸν Θεὸν ζητοῦντες, ὧν εἷς καὶ αὐτὸς ἦν, ἀγαλλιάσεως καὶ εὐφροσύνης μετέχοιεν τῶν ἐχθρῶν καταισχυνομένων· οἱ δὲ ἀγαπῶντες τὸ σωτήριον τοῦ Θεοῦ λέγοιεν ἂν, «Μεγαλυνθήτω ὁ Θεός·» καὶ τοῦτο μὴ εἰσάπαξ, μηδὲ ἑνί ποτε καιρῷ, ἀλλὰ διαπαντὸς λέγοιεν, νικῶντος ἐν αὐτοῖς καὶ δι' αὐτῶν πᾶν τὸν πολέμιον γένος τοῦ Θεοῦ. Εἰ δὲ ὁ Σωτὴρ τοῖς προλεχθεῖσιν ἀκολούθως εἴη ὑπὲρ τῶν ἐξ ἁπάντων τῶν ἐθνῶν εἰς 23.772 αὐτὸν πεπιστευκότων, λέγοι ἂν τὸ, «Ἀγαλλιάσθωσαν καὶ εὐφρανθήτωσαν ἐπὶ σοὶ πάντες οἱ ζητοῦντές σε.» Μὴ γὰρ μόνοι Ἰουδαῖοι, μηδὲ οἱ τὸν Ἀβραὰμ αὐχοῦντες, ἀλλὰ καθόλου καὶ ἀορίστως πάντες ὅσοι δήποτε καὶ ἐξ οἵου γένους εἶεν οἱ ἐκζητοῦντές σε, «ἀγαλλιάσθωσαν καὶ εὐφρανθήτωσαν ἐπὶ σοὶ, καὶ λεγέτωσαν, Μεγαλυνθήτω ὁ Θεός·» καὶ τοῦτο λεγέτωσαν διαπαντὸς οἱ ἀγαπῶντες τὸ σωτήριόν σου· αὐτὸν δηλαδὴ τὸν Σωτῆρα σωτήριον πολλαχοῦ τῶν Γραφῶν ὠνομασμένον, ὃν ἀγαπῶσιν οἱ δι' ἔργων τὴν διδασκαλίαν αὐτοῦ ἐν ἀγάπῃ καθαρᾷ περιέποντες. «Ἐγὼ δὲ πτωχὸς καὶ πένης· ὁ Θεὸς, βοήθησόν μοι.» Καὶ ∆αυῒδ πλούσιος ὢν ἐταπεινοφρόνει, ἅτε γνῶσιν ἔχων τοῦ μεγέθους τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ τὸ μηδὲν ἑαυτὸν ὁρῶν. ∆ιὸ τὴν παρὰ μόνου τοῦ ἰσχυροῦ βοήθειαν ἐξῃτεῖτο λέγων· «Ὁ Θεὸς, βοήθησόν μοι· βοηθός μου καὶ ῥύστης μου εἶ σὺ, Κύριε, μὴ χρονίσῃς.» Καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς δὲ πλούσιος ὢν δι' ἡμᾶς ἐπτώχευσεν, ὡς ἐδίδαξεν ὁ θεῖος