378

by the love for mankind of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory and the power, for ever and ever. Amen.

ON THE 145th PSALM. Praise, my soul, the Lord. I will praise the Lord in my life. I will sing praise to my

God as long as I exist. 1. Where he left off, there he begins again, with praise and good speech. For such a thing cleanses the soul not a little. But he speaks of praise, which I continually say, through works; which Christ also says: Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father 55.473 who is in heaven. And again Paul: Therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit. And just as in the one before this he said, Every day I will bless you; so also here, I will sing praise to my God, he says, as long as I exist. Then, wishing again to take men as partners in his praise, he falls into the narratives of His love for mankind, burning, inflamed with desire, running around the whole world, gathering all into his own choir. For this indeed is especially praise, this is especially glory to God, when he seeks out many who are to enjoy His salvation. Do not trust in princes, in sons of men, in whom there is no salvation. Another, In him who has not the power to save. Let them hear this exhortation and counsel, they who are gaping for human patronage, which is mortal and corrupt. But what is, In whom there is no salvation? They are not even masters, he says, of their own salvation, nor can they protect themselves. For if death should come, they will lie more speechless than stones. For this is what he adds, saying: His spirit will go out, and he will return to his earth. On that day all his thoughts will perish. Another, His intentions. What he says is this: He who is not able to protect himself, how will he snatch others away? For nothing is so precarious and unsound, as such a hope. And the nature of things shows it. Wherefore Paul also, discoursing about hope in God, said: But hope does not put to shame. But human things are not such, but are weaker than a shadow. For do not tell me that he is a ruler. For even the ruler has nothing more than an ordinary man; he is subject to the same uncertainty. And if one must say something astonishing, since he is a ruler, for this very reason one ought not to be confident. For such powers are precarious. And even if he does not fall from power, he is quick to anger, and he has misused his authority for ingratitude, as not being about to be accountable to the one who received the promise; and even if he appears grateful, he will have easier changes of mind than private citizens, inasmuch as he is subject to greater and more numerous plots; and this man is more easily subdued, inasmuch as he has more who plot against him. For what do the bodyguards mean? And what the many advance guards? How then can he who in a well-ordered city is not even confident about his own body, but goes about as if in the midst of enemies, being in such anguish, be able to save others? He who, when there is peace, fears more terribly than those in wars, how will he establish others in safety and snatch them from dangers? But for many who are able to live by themselves in security, this very thing has become a plot, to trust in such men; and when those men fell, these too were brought down with them; and for others, the guards have become traitors. But nevertheless the prophet, passing over all these things, since many escaped, sets down the indisputable thing, that of death. For even if all

378

φιλανθρωπίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ᾧ ἡ δόξα καὶ τὸ κράτος, εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.

ΕΙΣ ΤΟΝ ΡΜΕʹ ΨΑΛΜΟΝ. Αἴνει, ἡ ψυχή μου, τὸν Κύριον. Αἰνέσω Κύριον ἐν τῇ ζωῇ μου. Ψαλῶ τῷ

Θεῷ μου ἕως ὑπάρχω. αʹ. Ἔνθα κατέλυσεν, ἐντεῦθεν ἄρχεται πάλιν, ἀπὸ αἴνου καὶ εὐφημίας. Οὐ γὰρ μικρῶς ἐκκαθαίρει ψυχὴν τὸ τοιοῦτον. Αἶνον δὲ λέγει, ὃ συνεχῶς λέγω, διὰ τῶν ἔργων· ὅπερ καὶ ὁ Χριστός φησι· Λαμψάτω τὸ φῶς ὑμῶν ἔμπροσθεν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ὅπως ἴδωσι τὰ καλὰ ὑμῶν ἔργα, καὶ δοξάσωσι τὸν Πατέρα 55.473 ὑμῶν τὸν ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς. Καὶ πάλιν ὁ Παῦλος· ∆οξάσατε δὴ τὸν Θεὸν ἐν τῷ σώματι ὑμῶν, καὶ ἐν τῷ πνεύματι ὑμῶν. Καὶ ὥσπερ ἐν τῷ πρὸ τούτου ἔλεγε, Καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν εὐλογήσω σε· οὕτω καὶ ἐνταῦθα, Ψαλῶ τῷ Θεῷ μου, φησὶν, ἕως ὑπάρχω. Εἶτα βουλόμενος πάλιν λαβεῖν κοινωνοὺς τῆς εὐφημίας ἀνθρώπους, εἰς τὰ διηγήματα αὐτοῦ τῆς φιλανθρωπίας ἐμπίπτει, καιόμενος, θερμαινόμενος τῷ πόθῳ, περιτρέχων τὴν οἰκουμένην ἅπασαν, ἅπαντας συνάγων εἰς τὸν οἰκεῖον χορόν. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ τοῦτο μάλιστα αἶνος, τοῦτο μάλιστα δόξα εἰς Θεὸν, ὅταν πολλοὺς ἐπιζητῇ τοὺς μέλλοντας τῆς αὐτοῦ ἀπολαύειν σωτηρίας. Μὴ πεποίθατε ἐπ' ἄρχοντας, ἐπὶ υἱοὺς ἀνθρώπων, οἷς οὐκ ἔστι σωτηρία. Ἕτερος, Τῷ οὐκ ἔχοντι σῶσαι. Ἀκουέτωσαν τῆς παραινέσεως ταύτης καὶ συμβουλῆς οἱ πρὸς τὰς ἀνθρωπίνας κεχηνότες προστασίας τὰς ἐπικήρους καὶ διεφθαρμένας. Τί δέ ἐστιν, Οἷς οὐκ ἔστι σωτηρία; Οὐδὲ τῆς ἰδίας, φησὶ, σωτηρίας εἰσὶ κύριοι, οὐδὲ ἑαυτῶν προστῆναι δύνανται. Εἰ γὰρ ἐπέλθοι ἡ τελευτὴ, κείσονται λίθων ἀφωνότεροι. Τοῦτο γάρ ἐστιν ὃ ἐπιφέρει λέγων· Ἐξελεύσεται τὸ πνεῦμα αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐπιστρέψει εἰς τὴν γῆν αὐτοῦ. Ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἀπολοῦνται πάντες οἱ διαλογισμοὶ αὐτοῦ. Ἕτερος, Αἱ προθέσεις αὐτοῦ. Ὃ δὲ λέγει, τοῦτό ἐστιν· Ὁ ἑαυτοῦ προστῆναι μὴ δυνάμενος, πῶς ἑτέρους ἐξαρπάσεται; Οὐδὲν γὰρ οὕτως ἐπισφαλὲς καὶ σαθρὸν, ὡς ἡ τοιαύτη ἐλπίς. Καὶ δείκνυσι τῶν πραγμάτων ἡ φύσις. ∆ιὸ καὶ Παῦλος περὶ τῆς εἰς Θεὸν ἐλπίδος διαλεγόμενος ἔλεγεν· Ἡ δὲ ἐλπὶς οὐ καταισχύνει. Ἀλλ' οὐ τὰ ἀνθρώπινα τοιαῦτα, ἀλλὰ σκιᾶς ἀσθενέστερα. Μὴ γάρ μοι εἴπῃς, ὅτι ἄρχων ἐστί. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ ὁ ἄρχων οὐδὲν ἔχει πλέον τοῦ τυχόντος ἀνθρώπου· τῇ αὐτῇ ἀδηλίᾳ ὑπόκειται. Εἰ δέ τι χρὴ καὶ θαυμαστὸν εἰπεῖν, ἐπειδὴ ἄρχων ἐστὶ, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο μάλιστα οὐ χρὴ θαῤῥεῖν. Ἀκροσφαλεῖς γὰρ αἱ τοιαῦται δυναστεῖαι. Κἂν μὴ μεταπέσῃ, πρὸς ὀργήν ἐστιν ὀξυῤῥεπὴς, καὶ τῇ ἐξουσίᾳ πρὸς ἀγνωμοσύνην ἀποκέχρηται, ὡς οὐ μέλλων ὑπεύθυνος εἶναι τῷ τὴν ὑπόσχεσιν δεξαμένῳ· κἂν εὐγνώμων φανῇ, εὐκολωτέρας ἕξει τὰς μεταπτώσεις τῶν ἰδιωτευόντων, ὅσῳ καὶ μείζοσι καὶ πλείοσιν ἐπιβουλαῖς ὑπόκειται· καὶ μᾶλλόν ἐστιν εὐχείρωτος οὗτος, ὅσῳ καὶ πλείους ἔχει τοὺς ἐπιβουλεύοντας. Τί γὰρ βούλονται οἱ σωματοφύλακες; τί δὲ αἱ πολλαὶ προφυλακαί; Πῶς οὖν ὁ ἐν πόλει εὐνομουμένῃ μηδὲ περὶ τοῦ σώματος αὐτοῦ θαῤῥῶν, ἀλλ' ὡς ἐν μέσοις ἀναστρεφόμενος πολεμίοις, οὕτως ὢν ἐναγώνιος, ἑτέρους σῶσαι δυνήσεται; Ὁ εἰρήνης οὔσης τῶν ἐν πολέμοις χαλεπώτερον δεδοικὼς, πῶς ἑτέρους ἐν ἀσφαλείᾳ καταστήσει καὶ ἐξαρπάσεται τῶν κινδύνων; Πολλοῖς δὲ δυναμένοις καθ' ἑαυτοὺς ζῇν μετὰ ἀδείας τοῦτο αὐτὸ γέγονεν ἐπιβουλὴ, τὸ τοιούτοις θαῤῥῆσαι· καὶ καταπεσόντων ἐκείνων καὶ οὗτοι συγκατηνέχθησαν· ἑτέροις δὲ οἱ φύλακες προδόται γεγόνασιν. Ἀλλ' ὅμως ὁ προφήτης ταῦτα ἅπαντα παραδραμὼν, ἐπειδὴ πολλοὶ διέφυγον, τὸ ἀναμφισβήτητον τίθησι, τὸ τῆς τελευτῆς. Κἂν γὰρ ἅπαντά