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he says: Generation and generation will praise your works, showing from his works his greatness. That is, it did not happen in one time only and pass away, nor in two or three years, but it extends through the whole present age, so that each generation may behold his creations. For this is, Generation and generation; both the present one, he says, and the coming one, and the one after that, and again the one after this one, and each of the coming ones; and creation again extends likewise through all this time, such as heaven, earth, sea, air, lakes, springs, rivers, seeds, plants, herbs, and the beneficence from these, the course of nature never interrupted, rains, seasons perpetually dancing, night, day, sun, moon, the stars, all other things, and still besides these things, which also happen in each generation, both individually and commonly, for the correction, for the beneficence of the common race of all men, such as the wonders, the signs that continually happened among the Jews, the providence in prosperity, in the victories of wars, in all other things, such as at the coming of Christ, at the time of the apostles, at the time of the persecutions, more numerous and far different from the old ones in greatness, such as also in our own generation. For there is no time, even apart from these common things, that does not bear a sign of his providence. And they will declare your power. Both through benefits, he says, and through punishments. For God does not cease in every way administering the things on behalf of our nature through all time. 55.467 They will speak of the magnificence of the glory of your holiness, and they will recount your wondrous works. Another, The beauty of your praise, and they will recount the words of your wonders. Since he said "power", he shows that it is a power with excess. For he did not work simply, nor ordinary things, but thus he continued working wonders and performing paradoxes in all things, working beyond human nature, so that the things that happened were full of wonder and glory. Consider then the things in Egypt, the things in Palestine, the things at the time of Abraham, at the time of Isaac, at the time of Joseph; again the things in Egypt, at the time of Moses, the things in the desert, the things after the entry; again the things in the captivity, at the time of Nebuchadnezzar, at the time of the furnace, at the time of the lions, at the time of the return, at the time of the prophets. For all these proclaimed the strength, the glory, the greatness of the one who did them, providing both great astonishment and much wonder. And they will speak of the power of your terrible deeds, and they will recount your greatness. Through this he shows that his strength is perfect for both, both for beneficence and for punishment, and that all the things enumerated had both of these. However, this is not to be seen only in the things that happened then, but also in creation, and that there are many instruments of each kind of beneficence, for instance, of the terrible things, lightnings, thunders, thunderbolts, whirlwinds, plagues, snows, hail, blight, frost, conflagrations, floods; and among the creeping things, serpents, scorpions, snakes, and among the flying things, the locust, and among the insignificant, the dog-fly, the caterpillar; which things are themselves especially of providence, turning men back, delivering them from indolence, awakening them from deep sleep, leading them from stupor to sobriety. But not only in these, but also in the opposite things is his power made perfect. Wherefore also, wishing to teach us about these things, having said, They will speak of the power of your terrible deeds, and they will recount your greatness, he added: They will pour forth the memory of the abundance of your goodness. Another, Of your goodness, and in your righteousness they will rejoice. Which another interpreter said, And they will praise your mercies. But just as we enumerated those terrible things, so it is necessary to speak also of the opposite of these things; for instance, in the case of visible things and

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λέγει· Γενεὰ καὶ γενεὰ ἐπαινέσει τὰ ἔργα σου, δεικνὺς ἀπὸ τῶν ἔργων αὐτοῦ τὴν μεγαλωσύνην. Τουτέστιν, οὐκ ἐν ἑνὶ χρόνῳ γέγονε μόνον καὶ παρῆλθεν, οὐδὲ ἐν δύο καὶ τρισὶν ἔτεσιν, ἀλλὰ παντὶ παρεκτείνεται τῷ παρόντι αἰῶνι, ὥστε ἑκάστην γενεὰν θεωρεῖν αὐτοῦ τὰ δημιουργήματα. Τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι, Γενεὰ καὶ γενεά· ἥ τε οὖσα, φησὶν, ἥ τε ἐπιοῦσα, ἥ τε μετ' ἐκείνην, καὶ ἡ μετὰ ταύτην πάλιν, καὶ ἑκάστη τῶν ἐπιουσῶν· ἥ τε κτίσις πάλιν παντὶ ὁμοίως τῷ χρόνῳ παρεκτείνεται τούτῳ, οἷον οὐρανὸς, γῆ, θάλασσα, ἀὴρ, λίμναι, πηγαὶ, ποταμοὶ, σπέρματα, φυτὰ, βοτάναι, καὶ ἡ ἐκ τούτων εὐεργεσία, φύσεως δρόμος μηδέποτε διακοπτόμενος, ὑετοὶ, τροπαὶ διηνεκῶς χορεύουσαι, νὺξ, ἡμέρα, ἥλιος, σελήνη, τὰ ἄστρα, τὰ ἄλλα πάντα, ἔτι τε τὰ τούτων χωρὶς, ἃ καὶ καθ' ἑκάστην γίνεται γενεὰν, καὶ ἰδίᾳ καὶ κοινῇ, πρὸς διόρθωσιν, πρὸς εὐεργεσίαν τοῦ κοινοῦ τῶν ἁπάντων ἀνθρώπων γένους, οἷα ἐπὶ τῶν Ἰουδαίων γέγονε συνεχῶς θαύματα, σημεῖα, πρόνοια ἡ ἐν εὐετηρίᾳ, ἡ ἐν ταῖς νίκαις τῶν πολέμων, ἡ ἐν τοῖς ἄλλοις ἅπασιν, οἷα ἐπὶ τῆς παρουσίας τοῦ Χριστοῦ, ἐπὶ τῶν ἀποστόλων, ἐπὶ τοῦ καιροῦ τῶν διωγμῶν, πλείονα καὶ πολὺ τῶν παλαιῶν διαφέροντα κατὰ μέγεθος, οἷα καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γενεᾶς τῆς ἡμετέρας. Καὶ γὰρ οὐκ ἔστι χρόνος οὐδεὶς, καὶ τούτων ἐκτὸς τῶν κοινῶν, ὁ μὴ φέρων τῆς αὐτοῦ προνοίας σημεῖον. Καὶ τὴν δύναμίν σου ἀπαγγελοῦσι. Καὶ διὰ τῶν εὐεργεσιῶν, φησὶ, καὶ διὰ τῶν κολάσεων. Οὐ γὰρ διαλιμπάνει παντὶ τρόπῳ τὰ ὑπὲρ τῆς φύσεως τῆς ἡμετέρας οἰκονομῶν ὁ Θεὸς διὰ παντὸς τοῦ χρόνου. 55.467 Τὴν μεγαλοπρέπειαν τῆς δόξης τῆς ἁγιωσύνης σου λαλήσουσι, καὶ τὰ θαυμάσιά σου διηγήσονται. Ἕτερος, Ὡραιότητα τοῦ ἐπαίνου σου, καὶ τοὺς λόγους τῶν παραδόξων σου διηγήσονται. Ἐπειδὴ εἶπε δύναμιν, δείκνυσι καὶ αὐτὴν μεθ' ὑπερβολῆς οὖσαν δύναμιν. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἁπλῶς, οὐδὲ τὰ τυχόντα εἰργάζετο, ἀλλ' οὕτω πάντα θαυματουργοῦσα, καὶ παραδοξοποιοῦσα διετέλει, ὑπὲρ τὴν φύσιν ἐργαζομένη τὴν ἀνθρωπίνην, ὡς καὶ θαύματος καὶ δόξης πλήρη τὰ γινόμενα εἶναι. Ἐννόησον γοῦν τὰ ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ, τὰ ἐν Παλαιστίνῃ, τὰ ἐπὶ τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ, τὰ ἐπὶ τοῦ Ἰσαὰκ, τὰ ἐπὶ τοῦ Ἰωσήφ· πάλιν τὰ ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ, τὰ ἐπὶ τοῦ Μωϋσέως, τὰ ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ, τὰ μετὰ τὴν εἴσοδον· πάλιν τὰ ἐν τῇ αἰχμαλωσίᾳ, τὰ ἐπὶ τοῦ Ναβουχοδονόσορ, τὰ ἐπὶ τῆς καμίνου, τὰ ἐπὶ τῶν λεόντων, τὰ ἐπὶ τῆς ἐπανόδου, τὰ ἐπὶ τῶν προφητῶν. Ταῦτα γὰρ πάντα ἀνεκήρυττε τοῦ ποιοῦντος τὴν ἰσχὺν, τὴν δόξαν, τὴν μεγαλωσύνην, πολλήν τε τὴν ἔκπληξιν καὶ πολὺ τὸ θαῦμα παρεχόμενα. Καὶ τὴν δύναμιν τῶν φοβερῶν σου ἐροῦσι, καὶ τὴν μεγαλωσύνην σου διηγήσονται. ∆είκνυσι διὰ τούτου, ὅτι πρὸς ἑκάτερα ἀπηρτισμένη ἡ ἰσχὺς αὐτοῦ, καὶ πρὸς εὐεργεσίαν, καὶ πρὸς τιμωρίαν, καὶ ὅτι τὰ ἀπαριθμηθέντα ἅπαντα ἑκάτερα τούτων εἶχε. Πλὴν τοῦτο οὐκ ἐπὶ τῶν τότε συμβάντων, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς κτίσεως ἔστιν ἰδεῖν, καὶ ἑκατέρας τῆς εὐεργεσίας πολλὰ ὄντα τὰ ὄργανα, οἷον τῶν μὲν φοβερῶν, ἀστραπὰς, βροντὰς, σκηπτοὺς, πρηστῆρας, λοιμοὺς, χιόνας, χάλαζαν, ἐρυσίβην, πάγον, πυρώσεις, ἐπικλύσεις· ἐν τοῖς ἑρπετοῖς δὲ δράκοντας, σκορπίους, ὄφεις, καὶ ἐν τοῖς πετεινοῖς ἀκρίδα, καὶ ἐν τοῖς εὐτελέσι κυνόμυιαν, κάμπην· ἅπερ δὴ μάλιστα καὶ αὐτὰ προνοίας ἐστὶν, ἐπιστρέφοντα τοὺς ἀνθρώπους, ἀπαλλάττοντα ῥᾳθυμίας, ἀφυπνίζοντα τοῦ βαθέος ὕπνου, ἀπὸ τοῦ κάρου πρὸς νῆψιν ἄγοντα. Οὐκ ἐν τούτοις δὲ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἐναντίοις ἡ δύναμις αὐτοῦ ἀπηρτισμένη. ∆ιὸ καὶ περὶ τούτων ἡμᾶς διδάξαι βουλόμενος, εἰπὼν, Τὴν δύναμιν τῶν φοβερῶν σου ἐροῦσιν, καὶ τὴν μεγαλωσύνην σου διηγήσονται, ἐπήγαγε· Μνήμην τοῦ πλήθους τῆς χρηστότητός σου ἐξερεύξονται. Ἄλλος, Ἀγαθωσύνης σου, καὶ τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ σου ἀγαλλιάσονται. Ὅπερ ἕτερος ἑρμηνευτὴς εἶπε, Καὶ τὰς ἐλεημοσύνας σου εὐφημήσουσιν. Ἡμεῖς δὲ ὥσπερ ἀπηριθμησάμεθα ἐκεῖνα τὰ φοβερὰ, οὕτω καὶ τὰ ἐναντία τούτων ἀναγκαῖον εἰπεῖν· οἷον ἐπὶ τῶν ὁρωμένων καὶ