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having journeyed through prosperity, having touched upon the natural philosophy of human affairs, he has set this as a prelude: "Vanity of vanities, all is vanity." 3. "What shall I render to the Lord for all that he has rendered to me?" Being overwhelmed by many and various benefactions, I do not know with what I shall repay the benefactor. He did not simply connect this to the preceding; but he teaches that even in the various changes of life the God of all extends his own help to men, and offers every kind of comfort to the despondent. The blessed Paul also said this: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God; for as the 80.1804 sufferings of Christ abound in us, so also our comfort abounds through Christ." The blessed David also said this: "According to the multitude of my sorrows, your comforts have gladdened my soul." 4. "I will take the cup of salvation, and I will call upon the name of the Lord." It is fitting, therefore, to accept death for his sake with courage, and to give this as a return for his manifold benefaction. For he called the death for the sake of godliness the cup of salvation. For thus the Lord names it. "For Father," he says, "if it is possible, let this cup pass from me." And to the pair of apostles who asked for a share in the kingdom, he spoke thus: "Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?" This, therefore, also here, he says, the noble and best champions of godliness exhort themselves to do; and they fulfill this promise while their countrymen are watching, so that they might also stir them up to a similar zeal. Then they show the fruit of this death. 5, 6. "I will pay my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people. Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints." But if it is precious to God, to which of the saints is it not venerable? 7. "O Lord, I am your servant; I am your servant and the son of your handmaid." If, then, we endure that admirable death, we will enjoy honor and glory from God, and we will leave behind an everlasting fame. But if, becoming stronger than our enemies, we scatter their phalanx, we will offer a hymn of thanksgiving to the Master, confessing our servitude, and boasting to have it from our forefathers. For those who are forced to serve men sometimes take pride in having had free forefathers; but those who are well-disposed servants of God confess that they have their servitude from their forefathers, believing with good reason that such servitude is the greatest glory. "You have broken my bonds." You have set me free from my many and various misfortunes. 8-10. "To you I will offer a sacrifice of praise, and I will call upon the name of the Lord. I will pay my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people, in the courts of the Lord’s house, in your midst, O Jerusalem." And having been delivered from misfortunes, I will not be ungrateful for the benefactions, but I will render to you the sacrifice of praise, and I will pay the hymn of thanksgiving, while all my countrymen are watching, and reaping the benefit 80.1805 therefrom. And I will offer this spiritual sacrifice in the temple consecrated to your name. It is possible, therefore, to learn from this as well, that even when the law was in force, those who approached the law more spiritually preferred the spiritual sacrifices to the irrational victims, foreshadowing the new covenant. Indeed, one must know that each psalm is also fitting for all the victorious martyrs; for the purpose of these and those is the same; for they, for the sake of the law and the lawgiver, endured an admirable death, and these, over the present life, preferred death for the sake of the one who saved them and abolished death.

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εὐημερίας ὁδεύσας, τῆς τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων πραγμάτων φυσιολογίας ἁψά μενος, τοῦτο προοίμιον τέθεικε· "Ματαιότης ματαιο τήτων, τὰ πάντα ματαιότης." γʹ. "Τί ἀνταποδώσω τῷ Κυρίῳ περὶ πάντων ὧν ἀνταπέδωκέ μοι;" Πολλαῖς καὶ διαφόροις εὐερ γεσίαις περικλυζόμενος, οὐκ οἶδα τίσι τὸν εὐεργέ την ἀμείψομαι. Οὐχ ἁπλῶς δὲ τοῦτο τῷ προτέρῳ συν ῆψεν· ἀλλὰ διδάσκει, ὅτι καὶ ἐν ταῖς ποικίλαις τοῦ βίου μεταβολαῖς τὴν οἰκείαν τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ὁ τῶν ὄλων Θεὸς ἐπικουρίαν ὀρέγει, καὶ παντοδαπὴν τοῖς ἀθυμοῦσι προσφέρει παραψυχήν. Τοῦτο καὶ ὁ μακά ριος ἔφη Παῦλος· "Εὐλογητὸς ὁ Θεὸς, καὶ Πατὴρ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ὁ παρακαλῶν ἡμᾶς ἐπὶ πάσῃ τῇ θλίψει ἡμῶν, εἰς τὸ δύνασθαι παρακα λεῖν τοὺς ἐν πάσῃ θλίψει διὰ τῆς παρακλήσεως, ἧς παρακαλούμεθα αὐτοὶ ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ· ὅτι καθὼς πε 80.1804 ρισσεύει τὰ παθήματα τοῦ Χριστοῦ εἰς ἡμᾶς, οὕτω διὰ Χριστοῦ περισσεύει καὶ ἡ παράκλησις ἡμῶν." Τοῦτο καὶ ὁ μακάριος ἔφη ∆αβίδ· "Κατὰ τὸ πλῆ θος τῶν ὀδυνῶν μου αἱ παρακλήσεις σου εὔφρα ναν τὴν ψυχήν μου." δʹ. "Ποτήριον σωτηρίου λήψομαι, καὶ τὸ ὄνομα Κυρίου ἐπικαλέσομαι." Προσήκει τοίνυν θαῤῥα λέως τὸν ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ καταδέξασθαι θάνατον, καὶ ταύτην δοῦναι τῆς παντοδαπῆς εὐεργεσίας ἀντίδο σιν. Ποτήριον γὰρ σωτηρίου τὸν ὑπὲρ τῆς εὐσε βείας προσηγόρευσε θάνατον. Οὕτω γὰρ αὐτὸν Κύ ριος ὀνομάζει. "Πάτερ γὰρ, φησὶν, εἰ δυνατὸν παρ ελθέτω τὸ ποτήριον τοῦτο ἀπ' ἐμοῦ." Καὶ τῇ ξυν ωρίδι τῶν ἀποστόλων τὴν κοινωνίαν αἰτησάσῃ τῆς βασιλείας, οὕτως ἔφη· "∆ύνασθε πιεῖν τὸ ποτή ριον, ὃ ἐγὼ μέλλω πιεῖν;" Τοῦτο τοίνυν καὶ ἐνταῦ θα οἱ γενναῖοι καὶ ἄριστοι τῆς εὐσεβείας ἀγωνισταὶ, φησὶν, αὐτοῖς δρᾶσαι παρακελεύονται· ταύτην δὲ πληροῦσι τὴν ὑπόσχεσιν τῶν ὁμοφύλων ὁρώντων, ὅπως ἂν καὶ αὐτοὺς εἰς τὸν ὅμοιον παραθήξωσι ζῆ λον. Εἶτα δεικνύουσι τὸν τούτου θανάτου καρ πόν. εʹ, ʹ. "Τὰς εὐχάς μου τῷ Κυρίῳ ἀποδώσω ἐναν τίον παντὸς τοῦ λαοῦ αὐτοῦ. Τίμιος ἐναντίον Κυρίου ὁ θάνατος τῶν ὁσίων αὐτοῦ." Εἰ δὲ Θεῷ τίμιος, τίνι τῶν ὁσίων οὐ σεβάσμιος; ζʹ. "Ὦ Κύριε, ἐγὼ δοῦλος σός· ἐγὼ δοῦλος σὸς καὶ υἱὸς τῆς παιδίσκης σου." Ἐὰν μὲν οὖν ἀξι άγαστον ἐκεῖνον ὑπομείνωμεν θάνατον, τῆς παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ τιμῆς καὶ δόξης ἀπολαυσόμεθα, καὶ ἀείμνηστον καταλείψομεν κλέος. Εἰ δὲ κρείττους τῶν πολεμίων γινόμενοι, τὴν ἐκείνων σκεδάσωμεν φάλαγγα, τὸν χαριστήριον ὕμνον τῷ ∆εσπότῃ προσοίσομεν, τὴν δουλείαν ὁμολογοῦντες, καὶ ταύτην ἔχειν ἐκ προγό νων αὐχοῦντες. Οἱ μὲν γὰρ ἀνθρώποις δουλεύειν ἠναγκασμένοι ἐλευθέρους ἐσχηκέναι προγόνους ἔστιν ὅτε σεμνύνονται· οἱ δὲ εὖνοι θεραπεύσαντες τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν ἐκ προγόνων ἔχειν ὁμολογοῦσι δουλείαν, μεγί στην τὴν τοιαύτην δουλείαν εὔκλειαν εἰκότως εἶ ναι πιστεύοντες. "∆ιέῤῥηξας τοὺς δεσμούς μου." Τῶν πολλῶν μου καὶ διαφόρων συμφορῶν ἠλευθέ ρωσας. ηʹ-ιʹ. "Σοὶ θύσω θυσίαν αἰνέσεως, καὶ ἐν ὀνόματι Κυρίου ἐπικαλέσομαι. Τὰς εὐχάς μου τῷ Κυρίῳ ἀποδώσω ἐναντίον παντὸς τοῦ λαοῦ αὐτοῦ. Ἐν αὐλαῖς οἴκου Κυρίου, ἐν μέσῳ σου, Ἱερουσαλήμ." Ἀπαλλαγεὶς δὲ τῶν συμφορῶν, οὐκ ἔσομαι περὶ τὰς εὐερ γεσίας ἀγνώμων, ἀλλὰ τὴν τῆς αἰνέσεως ἀποδώσω σοι θυσίαν, καὶ τὸν χαριστήριον ὕμνον ἐκτίσω, πάντων ὁρώντων τῶν ὁμοφύλων, καὶ τὴν ἐντεῦθεν 80.1805 ὄνησιν καρπουμένων. Προσοίσω δὲ τὴν λογικὴν ταύ την ἱερουγίαν ἐν τῷ καθιερωμένῳ τῷ ὀνόματί σου νεῷ. Ἔστι τοίνυν καὶ ἐντεῦθεν καταμαθεῖν, ὡς καὶ τοῦ νόμου κρατοῦντος, οἱ πνευματικώτερον τῷ νό μῳ προσεσχηκότες τὰς λογικὰς θυσίας τῶν ἀλόγων προετίμων θυμάτων, τὴν καινὴν διαθήκην σκιογρα φοῦντες. Εἰδέναι δὴ προσήκει, ὡς καὶ πᾶσι τοῖς καλλινίκοις μάρτυσιν ἑκάτερος ἁρμόττει ὁ ψαλμός· ὁ γὰρ αὐτὸς καὶ τούτων κἀκείνων σκοπός· κἀκεῖνοι γὰρ ὑπὲρ τοῦ νόμου, καὶ τοῦ νομοθέτου, τὸν ἀξι άγαστον ὑπέμειναν θάνατον, καὶ οὗτοι τῆς παρούσης ζωῆς τὴν ὑπὲρ τοῦ σεσωκότος καὶ τὸν θάνατον κα ταλύσαντος προείλοντο τελευτήν.