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The horns of the just will be exalted; and this is the conclusion of the present prophecy. For this reason it is named both a psalm and a song in the same way; and it makes its beginning from the person of the just, saying: We will confess to you, O God, we will confess to you, and we will call upon your name. For to them alone is fitting the eucharistic confession, according to which the Savior also confessed in the Gospels to the Father, saying: I confess to you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth. And first they confess, then they call upon his name, through such an invocation to obtain salvation from God, according to the saying of the oracle: And everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved. And the word can be instructive of confession for those who before this lamented the fall of Jerusalem and its final siege. For those who said in the preceding, "Why, O God, have you cast us off forever, has your anger been kindled against the sheep of your pasture?" and what follows, are now taught to confess to God and to call upon his name. Since the manner of confession is twofold, it is necessary that "We will confess to you" is said a second time in the present case; the first, as is likely, indicating the confession for sin, and the subsequent one the thanksgiving for the good things suffered by those who first confessed. I will declare your wonders, when I take the opportunity, I will judge uprightly. The sense of what is said presents the preceding as the voice of God. For "I will judge uprightly," and again, "I have established its pillars"—meaning, of course, the earth's—and what follows, "And I will break all the horns of the sinners," to whom would it be fitting to say this but to God? If, therefore, these things are said from the person of God, how does another, knowing God, cry out 23.869 to him, saying: I will declare your wonders when I take the opportunity, and he adds: For God is the judge; and again, For a cup is in the hand of the Lord of unmixed wine? And how, in addition to all this, does he say: But I will declare it forever, I will sing praises to the God of Jacob, and I will break all the horns of the sinners? See, therefore, if through these things the only-begotten Word of God does not teach his own activities, explaining the theology of the Father. For he says: I will declare your wonders when I take the opportunity. Aquila has, "When I receive commands"; but Symmachus, "When I receive the assembly." And it seems to me that he has opportunely said, "When I receive commands," or, "the assembly." For he promises, having taken the opportunity, to declare all the wonders of the Father to the Church from the nations, which the Father himself promised to him, saying: Ask of me, and I will give you the nations for your inheritance, and the ends of the earth for your possession. When, therefore, he says, I receive this command, and when I obtain this opportunity, then among those who are turning from the nations I will declare all your wonders. To which he adds: I will judge uprightly. For it is a work of justice and uprightness not to receive Jews alone, nor the race of Abraham according to the call of Moses, but to make the election of those who are saved from all the nations. Therefore Peter is recorded in the Acts as having said: Truly I know that God is not a respecter of persons; but in every nation he that fears him is acceptable to him. And Paul also says that the Gospel is preached to the Jew first and also to the Greek, saying: For I am not ashamed of the Gospel; for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For the righteousness of God is revealed in it. To which he consistently says here: I will judge uprightly. Then he adds: The earth was melted, and all who dwell in it; I have established its pillars. But according to Symmachus, he says, The earth will be established with those who dwell in it; I have made firm the
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Ὑψωθήσεται τὰ κέρατα τοῦ δικαίου· καὶ τοῦτ' ἔστι τὸ τῆς παρούσης προφητείας συμπέρασμα. ∆ιὸ καὶ ψαλμὸς καὶ ᾠδὴ κατὰ τὸ αὐτὸ ὠνόμασται· ἐκ προσώπου δὲ τῶν δικαίων τὴν καταρχὴν ποιεῖται εἰπών· Ἐξομολογησόμεθά σοι, ὁ Θεὸς, ἐξομολογησόμεθά σοι, καὶ ἐπικαλεσόμεθα τὸ ὄνομά σου. Μόνοις γὰρ αὐτοῖς πρέπει ἡ εὐχαριστήριος ἐξομολόγησις, καθ' ἣν καὶ ὁ Σωτὴρ ἐξωμολογεῖτο ἐν Εὐαγγελίοις πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα φάσκων· Ἐξομολογοῦμαί σοι, Πάτερ, Κύριε τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καὶ τῆς γῆς. Πρῶτον δὲ ἐξομολογοῦνται, εἶτα ἐπικαλοῦνται τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ, διὰ τῆς τοιᾶσδε ἐπικλήσεως παρὰ τῷ Θεῷ τευξόμενοι σωτηρίας, κατὰ τὸ φάσκον λόγιον· Καὶ πᾶς ὃς ἂν ἐπικαλέσηται τὸ ὄνομα Κυρίου, σωθήσεται. ∆ύναται δὲ ὁ λόγος διδασκαλικὸς εἶναι ἐξομολογήσεως τῶν ἐν τῷ πρὸ τούτου ἀποκλαυσαμένων τὴν πτῶσιν τῆς Ἱερουσαλὴμ καὶ τὴν ἐσχάτην αὐτῆς πολιορκίαν. Οἱ γὰρ εἰρηκότες ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν, Ἱνατί, ὁ Θεὸς, ἀπώσω εἰς τέλος, ὠργίσθη ὁ θυμός σου ἐπὶ πρόβατα νομῆς σου; καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς, διδάσκονται νῦν ἐξομολογεῖσθαι τῷ Θεῷ καὶ ἐπικαλεῖσθαι τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ. Ἐπειδὴ διττός ἐστιν ὁ τῆς ἐξομολογήσεως τρόπος, ἀναγκαίως δεύτερον εἴρηται ἐπὶ τοῦ παρόντος τὸ, Ἐξομολογησόμεθά σοι· τοῦ μὲν πρώτου, ὡς εἰκὸς, ἐφ' ἁμαρτίας τὴν ἐξομολόγησιν δηλοῦντος, τοῦ δ' ἑξῆς τὴν ἐφ' οἷς εὖ πεπόνθασιν οἱ τὸ πρῶτον ἐξομολογησάμενοι εὐχαριστίαν. ∆ιηγήσομαι τὰ θαυμάσιά σου, ὅταν ἐκλάβω καιρὸν, ἐγὼ εὐθύτητας κρινῶ. Θεοῦ φωνὰς εἶναι τὰς προκειμένας ὁ νοῦς τῶν λεγομένων παρίστησι. Τὸ γὰρ, Ἐγὼ εὐθύτητας κρινῶ, καὶ πάλιν τὸ, Ἐγὼἐστερέωσα τοὺς στύλους αὐτῆς, δῆλον δ' ὅτι τῆς γῆς, καὶ ἑξῆς τὸ, Καὶ πάντα τὰ κέρατα τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν συγκλάσω, τίνι ἂν ἁρμόζοι λέγειν ἢ Θεῷ; Εἰ τοίνυν ἐκ προσώπου τοῦ Θεοῦ ταῦτα λέγεται, πῶς ἕτερος εἰδὼς Θεὸν, ὡς πρὸς αὐτὸν ἀναφωνεῖ 23.869 λέγων· ∆ιηγήσομαι τὰ θαυμάσιά σου ὅταν λάβω καιρὸν, καὶ ἐπιφέρει· Ὅτι ὁ Θεὸς κριτής ἐστι· καὶ πάλιν, Ὅτι ποτήριον ἐν χειρὶ Κυρίου οἴνου ἀκράτου; Πῶς δὲ πρὸς τούτοις ἅπασιν ἐπιλέγει· Ἐγὼ δὲ ἀναγγελῶ εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα, ψαλῶ τῷ Θεῷ Ἰακώβ, καὶ πάντα τὰ κέρατα τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν συγκλάσω; Ὅρα τοίνυν εἰ μὴ διὰ τούτων ὁ μονογενὴς τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγος τὰς οἰκείας ἐνεργείας διδάσκει τὴν τοῦ Πατρὸς διεξιὼν θεολογίαν. Φησὶ γοῦν· ∆ιηγήσομαι τὰ θαυμάσιά σου ὅταν λάβω καιρόν. Ὁ μὲν Ἀκύλας, Ὅταν λάβω συνταγάς· ὁ δὲ Σύμμαχος, Ὅταν λάβω τὴν συναγωγήν. Καί μοι δοκεῖ εὐκαίρως εἰρηκέναι τὸ, Ὅταν λάβω συνταγὰς, ἢ, τὴν συναγωγήν. Ἐπαγγέλλεται γὰρ καιροῦ λαβόμενος πάντα τὰ θαυμάσια τοῦ Πατρὸς διηγήσασθαι ἐπὶ τῆς ἐξ ἐθνῶν Ἐκκλησίας, ἣν αὐτὸς ὁ Πατὴρ ἐπηγγέλλετο αὐτῷ εἰπών· Αἴτησαι παρ' ἐμοῦ, καὶ δώσω σοι ἔθνη τὴν κληρονομίαν σου, καὶ τὴν κατάσχεσίν σου τὰ πέρατα τῆς γῆς. Ὅταν οὖν λάβω, φησὶ, ταύτην τὴν συνταγὴν, καὶ ἐπειδὰν τύχω τούτου τοῦ καιροῦ, τηνικαῦτα παρ' αὐτοῖς τοῖς ἐξ ἐθνῶν ἐπιστρέφουσι διηγήσομαι πάντα τὰ θαυμάσιά σου. Οἷς ἐπιλέγει· Ἐγὼ εὐθύτητας κρινῶ. ∆ικαιοσύνης γὰρ καὶ εὐθύτητος ἔργον τὸ μὴ Ἰουδαίους μόνους προσίεσθαι, μηδὲ τὸ ἐξ Ἀβραὰμ γένος κατὰ τὴν Μωσέως κλῆσιν, ἀλλ' ἐξ ἁπάντων τῶν ἐθνῶν τὴν ἐκλογὴν ποιεῖσθαι τῶν σωζομένων. ∆ιόπερ ὁ Πέτρος ἐν ταῖς Πράξεσιν ἀναγέγραπται εἰρηκώς· Ἐπ' ἀληθείας οἶδα, ὅτι οὐκ ἔστι προσωπολήπτης ὁ Θεός· ἀλλ' ἐν παντὶ ἔθνει ὁ φοβούμενος αὐτὸν δεκτός ἐστιν αὐτῷ. Καὶ ὁ Παῦλος δὲ Ἰουδαίῳ τε πρῶτον καὶ Ἕλληνι τὸ Εὐαγγέλιον κηρύττεσθαί φησι λέγων· Οὐ γὰρ ἐπαισχύνομαι τὸ Εὐαγγέλιον· δύναμις γὰρ Θεοῦ ἐστιν εἰς σωτηρίαν παντὶ τῷ πιστεύοντι, Ἰουδαίῳ τε πρῶτον καὶ Ἕλληνι. ∆ικαιοσύνη γὰρ Θεοῦ ἐν αὐτῷ ἀποκαλύπτεται. Οἷς ἀκολούθως ἐνταῦθα φάσκει τό· Ἐγὼ εὐθύτητας κρινῶ. Εἶτ' ἐπιλέγει· Ἐτάκη ἡ γῆ καὶ πάντες οἱ κατοικοῦντες αὐτήν· ἐγὼ ἐστερέωσα τοὺς στύλους αὐτῆς. Κατὰ δὲ τὸν Σύμμαχον, Συσταθήσεται, φησὶν, ἡ γῆ σὺν τοῖς κατοικοῦσιν αὐτήν· ἐγὼ ἥδρασα τοὺς