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not deigning to approach ordinary people nor to touch their neighbors, but to say to those who approach: Do not come near me, for I am pure. Therefore, on account of these things, will not the so-called wrath of God be most justly stirred up against them, that is, his punitive power, and the fire that will be kindled against them? For it is written, this is before me, nor can these things pass by, until they pay the penalty for them, and not only for their own, but also for those impieties their fathers committed, now burning incense on the mountains and they themselves practicing idolatry on the hills, now mocking my laws, which things will in due time be repaid into their own bosom. But what has been said is against the impious among the people, so that if anyone might be found in the multitude having a hope of salvation he will be free from the things spoken of; for even if "the vineyard of the Lord of Sabaoth is the house of Israel," "instead of grapes" it "produced thorns" and "instead of judgment," "lawlessness, and not righteousness but a cry." and if on account of these things desolation and complete destruction has been decreed against it, yet if anyone somewhere should be found in the perdition of so many, like a healthy and strong grape-berry in a dry cluster, this one will not be cast aside by me, the judge, nor will he perish with the perishing, because he partakes of a blessing. And so this grape-berry will be as precious in my sight as it is rare. According to this example, then, I will also do for the entire nation, if anyone should be found among them worthy of salvation. Therefore I will not destroy all, but him who serves me among them I will bring out, having separated him from the perishing, and this one will be a seed from Jacob, a living and useful seed, able to be useful for the fruit-bearing of others as well. as was also what was said before: "And unless the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a seed." And this good and rare seed, namely the apostolic band, having been separated from the multitude of the perishing, will inherit my holy mountain, which indeed they confessed they knew, saying: "We have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem," and that heavenly inheritance, he says, my chosen ones and my servants will receive and they will dwell there, again here indicating his chosen ones and servants to be the apostles, who have been found to be grape-berries, whom having chosen he named as a protection for others and a "holy seed" and a chosen one. Through whom also the following things were fulfilled, and these were: and there will be, he says, in the forest folds for flocks; and the scripture is accustomed to name the forest the multitude of foreign and alien nations, in which he proclaims there will be folds for flocks, alluding to the churches of the sheep of God. But also just as once the valley of Achor became accursed, where, as the history of Jesus the successor of Moses contains, Achor with his whole family, on account of the transgression he committed, perished in the valley, having been stoned with stones and having become an anathema. Of such a kind was also their accursed land, the land of the godless, that is, of the foreign nations. but even this will be a resting place for herds for my people who have sought me; and the people who sought him were the grape-berry and the aforementioned seed, his chosen servants, through whom herds of cattle and flocks will be established not in Israel nor in the land of the Jews, but in the forest and in the said valley of Achor, he prophesies. So much then concerning these things, but again the discourse is directed to the Jewish multitude, saying: But you who forsake me and forget my holy mountain, which has often been pointed out by us. you who join in the idolatry of the nations, so as to prepare a table for what is called Fortune among them, and to set up a drink offering to the demon who lurks in the statue of so-called Fortune, hear what awaits you: you all will be given over to the sword of war. And if any of you should ask, Why? I say, for this reason, to pass over the rest, since I myself of the

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πλησιάζειν τοῖς τυχοῦσι μηδὲ τῶν πέλας ἐφάπτεσθαι καταξιοῦν, λέγειν δὲ τοῖς προσιοῦσι· μὴ ἐγγίσῃς μοι, ὅτι καθαρός εἰμι. ἄρ' οὖν ἐπὶ τούτοις οὐ δικαιότατα κινηθήσεται κατ' αὐτῶν ὁ λεγόμενος θυμὸς τοῦ θεοῦ, ἡ τιμωρητικὴ δηλαδὴ δύναμις, καὶ τὸ κατ' αὐτῶν ἐξάψον πῦρ; Ἀναγέγραπται γὰρ τοῦτ' ἔστιν ἐνώπιόν μου οὐδὲ παρελθεῖν ἐστὶν αὐτά, ἔστ' ἂν τὴν ὑπὲρ αὐτῶν ἀποτίσωσι τιμωρίαν, καὶ οὐ τὴν ὑπὲρ αὐτῶν μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὑπὲρ ὧν οἱ πατέρες αὐτῶν ἠσέβουν ἄρτι μὲν θυμιῶντες ἐπὶ τῶν ὀρέων καὶ αὐτοὶ καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν βουνῶν εἰδωλολατροῦντες, ἄρτι δὲ χλευάζοντες τοὺς ἐμοὺς νόμους, ἃ δὴ κατὰ καιρὸν εἰς τὸν αὐτῶν ἀποδοθήσεται κόλπον. Εἴρηται δὲ τὰ λελεγμένα κατὰ τῶν ἀσεβούντων ἐν τῷ λαῷ, ὡσεί τις εὑρεθείη ἐν τῷ πλήθει σωτηρίας ἔχων ἐλπίδα ἐλεύθερος ἔσται τῶν εἰρημένων, εἰ γὰρ καὶ «ὁ ἀμπελὼν κυρίου σαβαὼθ οἶκος τοῦ Ἰσραήλ», «ἀντὶ σταφυλῆς» «ἐποίησεν ἀκάνθας» καὶ «ἀντὶ κρίσεως» «ἀνομίαν καὶ οὐ δικαιοσύνην ἀλλὰ κραυγήν». καὶ εἰ τούτων ἕνεκα ἐρημία καὶ ἀφανισμὸς παντελὴς κατ' αὐτοῦ ὥρισται, ἀλλ' εἴ πού τις ἐν τῇ τοσούτων ἀπωλείᾳ εὑρεθείη ὡς ἐν βότρυι ξηρῷ ὑγιὴς καὶ ἐρρωμένος ῥώξ, οὐ διαπεσεῖται παρ' ἐμοὶ κριτῇ οὗτος οὐδὲ συναπολεῖται τοῖς ἀπολλυμένοις διὰ τὸ μετέχειν αὐτὸν εὐλογίας. οὕτω δ' ἔσται ὁ ῥὼξ οὗτος τίμιος παρ' ἐμοὶ ὅσῳ καὶ σπάνιος. κατὰ τοῦτο δὴ τὸ παράδειγμα καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ παντὸς ἔθνους ποιήσω, εἴ πού τις εὑρεθείη ἐν αὐτοῖς σωτηρίας ἄξιος. διὸ οὐ μὴ ἀπολέσω πάντας, ἀλλὰ τὸν ἐν αὐτοῖς δουλεύοντά μοι ἐξάξω ἀφορίσας τῶν ἀπολλυμένων, καὶ ἔσται οὗτος σπέρμα ἐξ Ἰακὼβ σπέρμα ζώπυρον καὶ χρήσιμον, δυνάμενον καὶ εἰς ἑτέρων χρησιμεῦσαι καρποφορίαν. οἷον ἦν καὶ τὸ διὰ τῶν ἔμπροσθεν εἰρημένον τό· «καὶ εἰ μὴ κύριος σαβαὼθ ἐγκατέλιπεν ἡμῖν σπέρμα». τοῦτο δὲ τὸ ἀγαθὸν καὶ σπάνιον σπέρμα, δηλαδὴ ὁ ἀποστολικὸς χορὸς τοῦ πλήθους τῶν ἀπολλυμένων ἀφορισθείς, κληρονομήσει τὸ ὄρος τὸ ἅγιόν μου, ὃ δὴ καὶ γνωρίζειν ὡμολόγουν φάσκοντες· «προσεληλύθαμεν Σιὼν ὄρει καὶ πόλει θεοῦ ζῶντος, Ἰερουσαλὴμ ἐπουρανίῳ», κἀκείνην φησὶ τὴν ἐπουράνιον κληρονομίαν ἀπολήψονται οἱ ἐκλεκτοί μου καὶ δοῦλοί μου καὶ κατοικήσουσιν ἐκεῖ, πάλιν κἀνταῦθα ἐκλεκτοὺς καὶ δούλους αὐτοῦ τοὺς ἀποστόλους σημάνας οἵτινες ῥῶγες εὕρηνται, οὓς ἐκλεξάμενος ὡσπερεὶ φυλακὴν ἑτέρων καὶ «σπέρμα ἅγιον» καὶ ἐκλεκτὸν ὠνόμασεν. ∆ι' ὧν καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς ἐπληροῦτό τινα δὲ ταῦτα· καὶ ἔσονταί φησιν ἐν τῷ δρυμῷ ἐπαύλεις ποιμνίων· δρυμὸν δὲ εἴωθεν ἡ γραφὴ τὸ πλῆθος τῶν ἀλλοφύλων καὶ ἀλλογενῶν ἐθνῶν ὀνομάζειν, ἐν οἷς ἐπαύλεις ποιμνίων ἔσεσθαι θεσπίζει τὰς ἐκκλησίας τῶν τοῦ θεοῦ προβάτων αἰνιττόμενος. ἀλλὰ καὶ ὥσπερ ποτὲ ἡ φάραγξ Ἀχὼρ γέγονεν ἀνατεθεματισμένη, ἔνθα ὡς ἡ ἱστορία Ἰησοῦ τοῦ Μωϋσέως διαδόχου περιέχει. ὁ Ἀχὼρ σὺν ὅλῳ τῷ γένει, δι' ἣν ἔπραξε παρανομίαν, ἀπώλετο ἐν τῇ φάραγγι λίθοις βληθεὶς καὶ ἀνάθεμα γενόμενος. τοιαύτη τις ἦν καὶ αὐτῶν ἀνατεθεματισμένων ἡ χώρα τῶν ἀθέων, δηλαδὴ καὶ ἀλλοφύλων ἐθνῶν. ἀλλὰ καὶ αὕτη εἰς ἀνάπαυσιν ἔσται βουκολίων τῷ λαῷ μου τῷ ἐκζητήσαντί με· λαὸς δὲ ὁ ἐκζητήσας αὐτὸν ὁ ῥὼξ ἦν καὶ τὸ ἀνωτέρω εἰρημένον σπέρμα οἱ ἐκλεκτοὶ δοῦλοι αὐτοῦ, δι' ὧν βουκόλια βοῶν καὶ ποίμνια συστήσεσθαι οὐκ ἐν τῷ Ἰσραὴλ οὐδὲ ἐν τῇ Ἰουδαίων χώρᾳ, ἀλλ' ἐν τῷ δρυμῷ καὶ ἐν τῇ λεχθείσῃ φάραγγι Ἀχὼρ προφητεύει. Ταῦτα μὲν οὖν περὶ τούτων, πάλιν δὲ πρὸς τὸ πλῆθος τὸ Ἰουδαϊκὸν ὁ λόγος ἀποτείνεται φάσκων· ὑμεῖς δὲ οἱ ἐγκαταλείποντές με καὶ ἐπιλανθανόμενοι τὸ ὄρος τὸ ἅγιόν μου, τὸ πολλάκις ἡμῖν δεδηλωμένον. οἱ τῇ τῶν ἐθνῶν συναπτόμενοι εἰδωλολατρίᾳ ὡς καὶ τῇ τύχῃ παρ' αὐτοῖς ὀνομαζομένῃ παρασκευάζειν τράπεζαν καὶ τῷ δαιμονίῳ τῷ ἐμφωλεύοντι τῷ τῆς λεγομένης τύχης ἀγάλματι ἱστάναι κέρασμα ἐπακούσατε τὰ περιμένοντα ὑμᾶς, παραδοθήσεσθε μαχαίρᾳ πολεμικῇ πάντες. καὶ εἰ ἔροιτό τις ὑμῶν ∆ιὰ τί; διὰ τόδε φημί, ἵνα τὰ λοιπὰ παρέλθω, ἐπειδὴ αὐτὸς ἐγὼ τῆς