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already fainting and all but despairing of himself on account of the transgressions of the people and the things that would happen to the whole nation because of them. For which reason, in the beginning, he puts forth as from his own person, 'With my voice I cried to God, with my voice to God, and he gave heed to me;' then next he indicates the despondency that came upon him, saying: 'My soul refused to be comforted, my spirit complained and was faint-hearted. I was troubled and I did not speak.' And he adds: 'In the night I meditated with my heart and I searched my spirit. Will the Lord cast off for ever, and will he be favorable no more? or will he hide his mercy for ever from generation to generation? or will God forget to be merciful, or will he in his anger shut up his compassions?' These were the things that grieved the soul of Idithun. For which reason he rightly confessed 23.828 to have been faint-hearted. But the divine Spirit, through the prophet Asaph, next heals the grievous things in which he says: 'Who is a great God like our God? You are the God who does wonders. You have made known your strength among the peoples, you have redeemed with your arm your people, the sons of Jacob and Joseph;' and again: 'The waters saw you, O God, the waters saw you and were afraid, the depths were troubled; the abundance of the sound of water;' and he concludes, saying: 'You led your people like sheep by the hand of Moses and Aaron.' And Asaph necessarily reminded Idithun of these things, so that he might no longer say: 'My spirit complained and was faint-hearted;' but believing in the wonderful works of God of old in the time of Moses, through which he redeemed the people, he might hope for similar things to happen also in the time to come. 6. The sixth is no longer a psalm nor a song nor a hymn, nor does it refer to the end. Wherefore none of these things is inscribed; but it stirs us up to understanding of the things contained therein. Why does the inscription contain none of the aforementioned things, but because the whole discourse accuses the nation of the Jews, enumerating their impieties of old? And the prophet does this as a defense of the righteous judgment of God; for intending to prophesy the things that would happen to the nation before the coming of the Savior, he necessarily teaches that they will not suffer these things for small impieties. Therefore it is enumerated how many times they sinned and how many times the long-suffering of God bore them, and how later, when they had filled up the measure of their impieties, the wrath from God most righteously came upon them. So that we might know these things, he necessarily inscribes it, 'Of understanding for Asaph,' and proceeding next he recapitulates all their transgressions. 7. Epitomizing the multitude of impieties of the Jewish nation, and as if impressing on a pillar the accusations against them, he accordingly prophesies through the present text the uprising that happened against them in the times of Antiochus, the king of Syria. He who attacked Jerusalem does not destroy, but defiles the temple, compelling the nation to practice idolatry. And the book inscribed Maccabees contains the history of these things; in which also the multitudes of those who were slain, and the manners of those who had borne witness for piety among them, were recorded. Therefore the prophetic Spirit sends up an intercession on behalf of the whole people, saying: 'O God, the nations have come into your inheritance, they have defiled your holy temple, they have made Jerusalem a fruit-watcher's hut. They have given the dead bodies of your servants as food to the birds of the sky, the flesh of your holy ones to the beasts of the earth.' For these were the solemn declarations of the nation; wherefore it was spoken with much boldness. But such were not the things in the 3rd and 70th, through which it was said: 'Why, O God, have you cast us off forever, has your anger been kindled against the sheep of your pasture?' For in 23.829 those things he was indicating the final rejection of the nation, and the ultimate fall of Jerusalem. And in that one, indeed, no good end is brought forth, nor any promise healing the things that have been said; but in the present one after the

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λειποθυμοῦντός τε ἤδη καὶ μικροῦ δεῖν καὶ ἑαυτὸν ἀπογινώσκοντος διὰ τὰς τοῦ λαοῦ παρανομίας καὶ τὰ συμβησόμενα δι' αὐτὰς τῷ παντὶ ἔθνει. ∆ι' ὃ ἐν ἀρχῇ μὲν ὡς ἐκ προσώπου αὐτοῦ τίθησι τὸ, Φωνῇ μου πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν ἐκέκραξα, φωνῇ μου πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν, καὶ προσέσχε μοι· εἶθ' ἑξῆς τὴν γενομένην αὐτῷ ἀθυμίαν ὑποφαίνει λέγων· Ἀπηνήνατο παρακληθῆναι ἡ ψυχή μου, ἠδολέσχησε καὶ ὠλιγοψύχησε τὸ πνεῦμά μου. Ἐταράχθην καὶ οὐκ ἐλάλησα. Καὶ ἐπιλέγει· Νύκτωρ μετὰ τῆς καρδίας μου ἠδολέσχουν καὶ ἔσκαλλον τὸ πνεῦμά μου. Μὴ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας ἀπώσεται Κύριος, καὶ οὐ προσθήσει τοῦ εὐδοκῆσαι ἔτι; ἢ εἰς τέλος τὸ ἔλεος αὐτοῦ ἀποκρύψει ἀπὸ γενεᾶς εἰς γενεάν; ἢ ἐπιλήσεται τοῦ οἰκτειρῆσαι ὁ Θεὸς, ἢ συνέξει ἐν τῇ ὀργῇ αὐτοῦ τοὺς οἰκτιρμοὺς αὐτοῦ; Ταῦτ' ἦν τὰ λυπήσαντα τὴν τοῦ Ἰδιθοὺμ ψυχήν. ∆ι' ὃ καλῶς ὠλιγοψυχηκέναι 23.828 ὡμολόγει. Ἀλλὰ τὸ θεῖον Πνεῦμα διὰ τοῦ προφήτου Ἀσὰφ ἑξῆς τὰ λυπηρὰ θεραπεύει ἐν οἷς φησι· Τίς Θεὸς μέγας ὡς ὁ Θεὸς ἡμῶν; Σὺ εἶ ὁ Θεὸς ὁ ποιῶν θαυμάσια. Ἐγνώρισας ἐν τοῖς λαοῖς τὴν δύναμίν σου, ἐλυτρώσω ἐν τῷ βραχίονί σου τὸν λαόν σου, τοὺς υἱοὺς Ἰακὼβ καὶ Ἰωσήφ· καὶ αὖθις· Εἴδοσάν σε ὕδατα, ὁ Θεὸς, εἴδοσάν σε ὕδατα, καὶ ἐφοβήθησαν, ἐταράχθησαν αἱ ἄβυσσοι· πλῆθος ἤχους ὕδατος· καὶ ἐπισφραγίζεται λέγων· Ὡδήγησας ὡς πρόβατα τὸν λαόν σου ἐν χειρὶ Μωϋσῆ καὶ Ἀαρών. Ἀναγκαίως δὲ τούτων ὁ Ἀσὰφ ὑπέμνησετὸν Ἰδιθοὺμ, ὡς ἂν μηκέτι λέγοι· Ἠδολέσχησε καὶ ὠλιγοψύχησε τὸ πνεῦμά μου· πιστεύων δὲ τοῖς πάλαι ἐπὶ Μωϋσέως τοῦ Θεοῦ παραδόξοις ἔργοις, δι' ὧν ἐλυτρώσατο τὸν λαὸν, τὰ ὅμοια καὶ εἰς τὸν ἐπιόντα χρόνον ἐλπίζοι γενήσεσθαι. ςʹ. Ὁ ἕκτος οὐκέτι ψαλμὸς οὐδὲ ᾠδὴ οὐδὲ ὕμνος, οὐδὲ ἀναπέμπει εἰς τὸ τέλος. Ὅθεν οὐδὲν τούτων ἐπιγέγραπται· διεγείρει δὲ ἡμᾶς εἰς σύνεσιν τῶν ἐμφερομένων. ∆ιὰ τί δὲ μηδὲν τῶν προειρημένων ἡ προγραφὴ περιέχει, ἀλλ' ἐπειδήπερ ὁ πᾶς λόγος τοῦ Ἰουδαίων ἔθνους κατηγορεῖ, καταριθμούμενος αὐτῶν τὰ πάλαι ἀσεβήματα; Τοῦτο δὲ πράττει ὁ προφήτης εἰς ἀπολογίαν τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ δικαιοκρισίας· μέλλων γὰρ θεσπίζειν τὰ συμβησόμενα τῷ ἔθνει πρὸ τῆς τοῦ Σωτῆρος παρουσίας, ἀναγκαίως διδάσκει, ὅτι μὴ ἐπὶ μικροῖς ἀσεβήμασι ταῦτα πείσονται. ∆ιόπερ καταριθμεῖται ὁσάκις ἥμαρτε καὶ ὁσάκις ἤνεγκεν αὐτοὺς ἡ τοῦ Θεοῦ μακροθυμία, καὶ ὡς ὕστερον πληρώσαντας αὐτοὺς τὸ μέτρον τῶν ἀσεβημάτων δικαιότατα μετῆλθεν ἡ ἐκ Θεοῦ ὀργή. Ἵν' οὖν ταῦτα γνῶμεν, ἀναγκαίως ἐπιγράφει, Συνέσεως τῷ Ἀσὰφ, καὶ προϊὼν ἑξῆς ἀνακεφαλαιοῦται αὐτῶν πάσας τὰς παρανομίας. Ζʹ. Ἐπιτεμόμενος τὸ πλῆθος τῶν ἀσεβημάτων τοῦ Ἰουδαίων ἔθνους, καὶ ὥσπερ ἐν στήλῃ τὰς κατ' αὐτῶν κατηγορίας ἐντυπώσας, ἀκολούθως διὰ τῶν προκειμένων τὴν γενομένην κατ' αὐτῶν ἐπανάστασιν κατὰ τοὺς χρόνους Ἀντιόχου τοῦ τῆς Συρίας βασιλέως θεσπίζει. Ὁ ἐπελθὼν τοῖς Ἱεροσολύμοις, οὐ καθαιρεῖ μὲν, βεβηλοῖ δὲ τὸ ἱερὸν, εἰδωλολατρεῖν ἐπαναγκάσας τὸ ἔθνος. Τούτων δὲ τὴν ἱστορίαν ἡ τῶν ἐπιγεγραμμένων Μακκαβαίων βίβλος περιέχει· ἐν ᾗ καὶ τὰ πλήθη τῶν ἀνῃρημένων, οἵ τε τρόποι τῶν ὑπὸ εὐσεβείας μεμαρτυρηκότων παρ' αὐτοῖς ἀνεγράφησαν. ∆ιὸ τὸ προφητικὸν Πνεῦμα ἔντευξιν ὑπὲρ τοῦ παντὸς ἀναπέμπει λαοῦ φάσκον· Ὁ Θεὸς, ἤλθοσαν ἔθνη εἰς τὴν κληρονομίαν σου, ἐμίαναν τὸν ναὸν τὸν ἅγιόν σου, ἔθεντο Ἱερουσαλὴμ εἰς ὀπωροφυλάκιον. Ἔθεντο τὰ θνησιμαῖα τῶν δούλων σου βρώματα τοῖς πετεινοῖς τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, τὰς σάρκας τῶν ὁσίων σου τοῖς θηρίοις τῆς γῆς. Ταῦτα γὰρ ἦν σεμνολογήματα τοῦ ἔθνους· διὸ σὺν παῤῥησίᾳ πολλῇ λέλεκτο. Ἀλλ' οὐ τοιαῦτα ἦν τὰ ἐν τῷ γʹ καὶ οʹ, δι' οὗ ἐλέγετο· Ἵνα τί, ὁ Θεὸς, ἀπώσω εἰς τέλος, ὠργίσθη ὁ θυμός σου ἐπὶ πρόβατα νομῆς σου; Ἐν 23.829 ἐκείνοις γὰρ τὴν εἰς τέλος ἀποβολὴν τοῦ ἔθνους ἐδήλου, καὶ τὴν ἐσχάτην τῆς Ἱερουσαλὴμ ἀπόπτωσιν. Καὶ ἐν ἐκείνῳ μὲν οὐκ ἐμφέρεται χρηστὸν τέλος οὐδὲ ἐπαγγελία τις θεραπεύουσα τὰ λελεγμένα· ἐν δὲ τῷ παρόντι μετὰ τὰ