427

you his Father, I know well that I myself will be exalted in like manner to him. For since we are called to be heirs of God, and co-heirs with Christ, I am persuaded, he says, that I will enjoy the same kingdom as your Christ, when my old age, that is, the end of my life, shall be exalted in rich oil, For although the things of youth and the prime of my soul are humbled, being exercised as in a contest in the present life, yet the last things and the old age of the soul itself, that is, its perfection, will attain the change for the better, in abundant and rich and fertile oil, being sought from you, the merciful God. Then indeed, then my eye, which now wastes away over sinners and weeps for mortal life, will look upon my enemies, seeing those who are now glorified among the many receiving their due punishment, whose end will be given over to scattering. And then not only my eye, but also the very ear of my soul will hear the end of those who today rise up against me and do evil. For all these reasons, therefore, greatly marveling at the words of your providence, and the just judgment laid up for all by you, I rejoice exceedingly and am glad in the works of your hands; but every foolish and senseless man does not understand these things. Therefore I say: How great are your works, O Lord! and your thoughts are not simply deep, but exceedingly deep; according to which thoughts you ineffably and profoundly govern all things, permitting and allowing the impious to be lifted up and exalted in the present time, but the pious to be humbled, whose ends bear witness to your wonderful and all-wise governance; which things the divine Apostle, having understood, exclaimed: O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are your judgments and how inscrutable his ways. The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree, he shall be multiplied like the cedar in Lebanon. The sinners were said to spring up like grass, and, fittingly to the example of grass, not to perish after a long time; for as soon as the grass sprang up it also withered, and the flower fell, just as the life and glory of sinners; but the righteous one will not flourish like the grass, but in the manner of a palm tree, bearing its roots somewhere above, and its foliage, not lying on the ground, but extending to heaven. For these reasons, then, the righteous one might be compared to a palm tree, but not also to the single trunk of the palm tree; for he is numerous in the branches of those who are saved with him and through him. For which reasons he must be compared to the cedar itself, not simply, but to the one in Lebanon; for this one is great and multiplies magnificently; since it grows on a most fertile mountain, which bears 23.1181 and nourishes plants that reach the sky. Thus, therefore, the righteous man, having countless ones who are saved through him and with him, would in this respect be similar to the cedar, but to the palm tree according to what has been otherwise declared. But the impious were not such, who spring up like grass and immediately vanish. Planted in the house of God, they shall flourish in the courts of our God. Rare indeed is the supremely perfect one, who is also called righteous, compared to a palm tree and a cedar; but since not all are such, it must be known that even for the less perfect, provided they are deemed worthy of planting in the house of God, there is some good end; at least they will flourish in the courts of our God. And you will understand this also: hearing of the great house of the Lord, his Church, the one on earth, according to the Apostle who said: That you may see how one ought to conduct oneself in the house of God, which is the Church of the living God; and planted in it are those who have received from here the beginnings of progress in godliness, such as they were, whom Paul planted, concerning whom he also said, I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. These, therefore, who are planted in the earthly Church of God, a flower

427

σε τὸν αὐτοῦ Πατέρα, εὖ οἶδα καὶ αὐτὸς ὁμοίως ἐκείνῳ ὑψωθησόμενος. Ἐπεὶ γὰρ κεκλήμεθα κληρονόμοι εἶναι Θεοῦ, συγκληρονόμοι δὲ Χριστοῦ, πέπεισμαι, φησὶ, τῆς αὐτῆς τῷ Χριστῷ σου βασιλείας ἀπολαύσειν, ὁπηνίκα τὸ γῆράς μου, τουτέστι τὰ ἔσχατα τῆς ἐμῆς ζωῆς ὑψωθήσεται ἐν ἐλαίῳ πίονι, Εἰ γὰρ καὶ τὰ μάλιστα τὰ τῆς νεότητος καὶ τὰ τῆς ἀκμῆς τῆς ἐμῆς ψυχῆς ὡς ἐν ἀγῶνι τῷ παρόντι βίῳ ταπεινοῦται γυμναζόμενα, ἀλλὰ τά γε ἔσχατα καὶ τῆς ψυχῆς αὐτῆς τὸ γῆρας, τουτέστιν ἡ τελείωσις τεύξεται τῆς ἐπὶ τὸ κρεῖττον μεταβολῆς, ἐν ἐλαίῳ περιττεύοντι καὶ πλουσίῳ καὶ πίονι, τῷ παρὰ σοὶ, τῷ ἐλεήμονι Θεῷ ζησομένης. Τότε δὴ τότε καὶ ὁ νῦν ἐπὶ τοῖς ἁμαρτωλοῖς ἐκτηκόμενός μου ὀφθαλμὸς, καὶ τὸν θνητὸν βίον ἀποκλαόμενος, ἐπόψεται τοῖς ἐχθροῖς μου, ὁρῶν δίκην τὴν πρέπουσαν διδόντας τοὺς νῦν παρὰ τοῖς πολλοῖς δοξαζομένους, ὧν τὸ τέλος διασκορπισμῷ παραδοθήσεται. Τότε δὲ οὐ μόνον ὁ ὀφθαλμός μου, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὸ τὸ οὖς τῆς ἐμῆς ψυχῆς τὸ τέλος ἀκούσεται τῶν σήμερον ἐπανισταμένων ἐπ' ἐμὲ καὶ πονηρευομένων. Τούτων δ' οὖν ἕνεκα πάντων ὑπερθαυμάζων τοὺς τῆς σῆς προνοίας λόγους, καὶ τὴν ἀποκειμένην τοῖς πᾶσι παρὰ σοῦ δικαιοκρισίαν, ἐγὼ μὲν ὑπερευφραίνομαι καὶ ἀγαλλιῶ ἐπὶ τοῖς ἔργοις τῶν χειρῶν σου· πᾶς δὲ ἄφρων ἀνὴρ καὶ ἀσύνετος οὐ συνίησι ταῦτα. ∆ιὸ δή φημι· Ὡς ἐμεγαλύνθη τὰ ἔργα σου, Κύριε! καὶ οὐχ ἁπλῶς ἐβαθύνθησαν, ἀλλὰ σφόδρα ἐβαθύνθησαν οἱ διαλογισμοί σου· καθ' οὓς διαλογισμοὺς ἀποῤῥήτως καὶ βαθέως διοικεῖς τὸ πᾶν, ἐπιτρέπων καὶ συγχωρῶν ἀσεβέσι μὲν κατὰ τὸν παρόντα καιρὸν ἐπαίρεσθαι καὶ ὑψοῦσθαι, τοὺς δὲ εὐσεβεῖς ταπεινοῦσθαι, ὧν τὰ τέλη μαρτυρεῖ σου τῇ θαυμαστῇ καὶ πανσόφῳ διοικήσει· ἃ δὴ συνιδὼν καὶ ὁ θεῖος Ἀπόστολος ἐξεφώνησε τὸ, Ὢ βάθος πλούτου καὶ σοφίας καὶ γνώσεως Θεοῦ, ὡς ἀνεξερεύνητα τὰ κρίματά σου, καὶ ἀνεξιχνίαστοι αἱ ὁδοὶ αὐτοῦ. ∆ίκαιος ὡς φοίνιξ ἀνθήσει, ὡς ἡ κέδρος ἡ ἐν τῷ Λιβάνῳ πληθυνθήσεται. Οἱ μὲν ἁμαρτωλοὶ ὡσεὶ χόρτος ἐλέγοντο ἀνατέλλειν, καὶ καταλλήλως τῷ παραδείγματι τοῦ χόρτου, οὐκ εἰς μακρὸν διαφθείρεσθαι· ἅμα τε γὰρ ἀνέτειλεν ὁ χόρτος καὶ ἐξηράνθη, καὶ τὸ ἄνθος ἐξέπεσεν, ὥσπερ οὖν καὶ ἡ τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν ζωή τε καὶ δόξα· ὁ δὲ δίκαιος οὐ κατὰ τὸν χόρτον, ἀλλὰ φοίνικος δίκην ἀνθήσει, ἄνω που φέρων τὰς ῥίζας, καὶ τὰς κομὰς, οὐ χαμαὶ κειμένας, ἀλλ' εἰς οὐρανὸν ἐκτεινομένας. Τούτων μὲν οὖν ἕνεκα φοίνικι παραβληθείη ἂν ὁ δίκαιος, οὐκ ἔτι δὲ καὶ τῷ μονοφυεῖ στελέχει τοῦ φοίνικος· πολυπληθεῖ γὰρ ἐν τοῖς κλάδοις τοῖς ἅμα αὐτῷ καὶ δι' αὐτοῦ σωζομένοις. Ὧν ἕνεκα παραβλητέον αὐτῇ τῇ κέδρῳ, οὐχ ἁπλῶς, ἀλλὰ τῇ ἐν τῷ Λιβάνῳ· πολλὴ δὲ αὕτη καὶ μεγαλοφυῶς πληθύουσα· ἅτε ἐν ὄρει φύουσα λιπαρωτάτῳ, φέροντι 23.1181 καὶ τρέφοντι οὐρανομήκη φυτά. Οὕτω δ' οὖν καὶ ὁ δίκαιος, μυρίους ἔχων τοὺς δι' αὐτοῦ καὶ σὺν αὐτῷ σωζομένους, κατὰ τοῦτο μὲν ἂν ἐμφερὴς τῇ κέδρῳ, τῷ δὲ φοίνικι κατὰ τὰ ἄλλως δεδηλωμένα. Ἀλλ' οὐ τοιοῦτοι ἦσαν οἱ ἀσεβεῖς, οἱ ὡσεὶ χόρτος ἀνατέλλοντες καὶ παραχρῆμα ἀφανιζόμενοι. Πεφυτευμένοι ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἐν ταῖς αὐλαῖς τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡμῶν ἐξανθήσουσι. Σπάνιος μὲν ὁ ἄκρως τέλειος, ὁ καὶ δίκαιος ὠνομασμένος, φοίνικι καὶ κέδρῳ παραβεβλημένος· ἐπεὶ δὲ μὴ πάντες τοιοῦτοι, ἰστέον, ὅτι καὶ τῶν ἀτελεστέρων, πλὴν ἀλλὰ τῆς ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ τοῦ Θεοῦ φυτείας ἠξιωμένων, ἔστι τι ἀγαθὸν τέλος· ἐν γοῦν ταῖς αὐλαῖς τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡμῶν ἐξανθήσουσι. Νοήσεις δὲ καὶ τοῦτο οἶκον μέγαν Κυρίου ἀκούων τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν αὐτοῦ, τὴν ἐπὶ γῆς, κατὰ τὸν φήσαντα Ἀπόστολον· Ἵνα ἴδῃς πῶς δεῖ ἐν οἴκῳ Θεοῦ ἀναστρέφεσθαι, ἥτις ἐστὶν Ἐκκλησία Θεοῦ ζῶντος· πεφυτευμένους δὲ ἐν ταύτῃ τοὺς τὰς ἀρχὰς τῆς ἐν θεοσεβείᾳ προκοπῆς ἐντεῦθεν εἰληφότας, οἷοι ἦσαν, οὓς ἐφύτευσεν ὁ Παῦλος, δι' οὓς καὶ ἔλεγεν, Ἐγὼ ἐφύτευσα, Ἀπολλὼς ἐπότισεν, ἀλλ' ὁ Θεὸς ηὔξανεν. Οὗτοι οὖν οἱ ἐν τῇ περιγείῳ Ἐκκλησίᾳ τοῦ Θεοῦ πεφυτευμένοι ἄνθος