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burning. He who establishes the earth on its security; it shall not be moved for ever and ever. The deep as a garment is its covering; upon the mountains the waters shall stand. At your rebuke 23.1273 they will flee; at the voice of your thunder they will be afraid. Mountains rise up, and plains sink down to the place you have established for them. You have set a boundary which they shall not pass, nor shall they return to cover the earth. He who sends forth springs in the valleys; between the mountains the waters will pass through. They will give drink to all the beasts of the field; the wild asses will wait for their thirst. Upon them the birds of the air will dwell; from the midst of the rocks they will give their voice. Watering the mountains from his upper chambers. Since also at the beginning he said: He who covers his upper chambers with water; now he says: Watering the mountains from your upper chambers; unless someone prefers to understand the upper chambers of God, as made by him, to be the air, which is encompassed by clouds. Therefore God waters the mountains and the plains in them and all the rest of the land, not from the springs in the valleys, nor from the rivers that flow upon the earth, but from his upper chambers, from above, from on high, supplying sufficient and measured rains. And he calls the air the upper chambers of God, as in the single house of the whole cosmos. Now the mountains are the spirit-bearing men; and they are watered from the upper chambers of God himself, being filled with the gifts of the Spirit, the word of wisdom and the things enumerated next. And the upper chambers of God, from which he waters the mountains, are pure and transcendent contemplations of the truth, called upper chambers, because nothing has ascended above them. From the fruit of your works the earth shall be satisfied. For he himself said: Let the earth bring forth grass for fodder, and fruit trees bearing fruit, and the rest. From the works of Jesus according to the economy, having much fruit, all the earth is satisfied, partaking of the things so wondrously brought about by Jesus; for this is the fruit of his works. And the word concerning the works of his creation and providence, when understood, being as it were the fruit of the works of God, will satisfy the earth; I mean, the men who live upon the earth. He who causes grass to grow for the cattle, and green herbs for the service of men, to bring forth bread from the earth; and wine gladdens the heart of man, and the rest. He said that from the rain the earth obtains its fill, God working the drawing up of the waters from the sea. Then he indicates the benefit from this, that the earth, being made fertile from the supply of waters, brings forth for all that come from it their suitable foods; for man, a noble animal and honored by God, choice and appointed food, bread, and wine and oil; bread for the heart to be strengthened and made strong, wine for the soul to be made very glad, and oil for the body to be made cheerful and to be softened, being healed from painful hardship. Thus God, like a father, has gifted to him a rich and abundant table for enjoyment. Yet he has not neglected the care of the other animals; but taking thought for their preservation as well, he has allotted to them their suitable 23.1276 food; having made grass to grow for the cattle, and green herbs for the service of men. And the prophet has made the distinction of the animals very precisely; "cattle" generally means every grass-eating animal, but "service of men" means the tame and, as it were, civic animals set apart for the service of men, of which some plow the earth, working with man, like the ox; and others carry burdens, like the donkey; and others provide some other use for the mortal race; which he properly and fittingly called "the service of men," to which he says the green herb is given, that is, that which is sown and cultivated by men; but to the other cattle, the grass that grows on its own. But it is possible for both the green herb and the grass, together

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φλέγον. Ὁ θεμελιῶν τὴν γῆν ἐπὶ τὴν ἀσφάλειαν αὐτῆς οὐ κλιθήσεται εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ αἰῶνος. Ἄβυσσος ὡς ἱμάτιον τὸ περιβόλαιον αὐτοῦ, ἐπὶ τῶν ὀρέων στήσονται ὕδατα. Ἀπὸ ἐπιτιμήσεώς σου 23.1273 φεύξονται, ἀπὸ φωνῆς βροντῆς σου δειλιάσουσιν. Ἀναβαίνουσιν ὄρη, καὶ καταβαίνουσι πεδία εἰς τόπον ὃν ἐθεμελίωσας αὐτοῖς. Ὅριον ἔθου, ὃ οὐ παρελεύσονται, οὐδὲ ἐπιστρέψουσι καλῦψαι τὴν γῆν. Ὁ ἐξαποστέλλων πηγὰς ἐν φάραγξιν, ἀνὰ μέσον τῶν ὀρέων διελεύσονται ὕδατα. Ποτιοῦσι πάντα τὰ θηρία τοῦ ἀγροῦ, προσδέξονται ἔναγροι εἰς δίψαν αὐτῶν. Ἐπ' αὐτὰ τὰ πετεινὰ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ κατασκηνώσει, ἐκ μέσου τῶν πετρῶν δώσουσι φωνήν. Ποτίζων ὄρη ἐκ τῶν ὑπερῴων αὐτοῦ. Ἐπεὶ καὶ ἀρχόμενος ἔλεγεν· Ὁ στεγάζων ἐν ὕδατι τὰ ὑπερῷα αὐτοῦ· νῦν φησι· Ποτίζων ὄρη ἐκ τῶν ὑπερῴων σου· εἰ μή τῳ φίλον ὑπερῷα τοῦ Θεοῦ ὡς παρ' αὐτοῦ πεποιημένα τὸν ἀέρα νοεῖν, τοῖς νέφεσι περιβαλλόμενον. Ποτίζει τοιγαροῦν ὁ Θεὸς τὰ ὄρη καὶ τὰ ἐν τούτοις πεδία τήν τε λοιπὴν σύμπασαν γῆν οὐκ ἀπὸ τῶν ἐν ταῖς φάραγξι πηγῶν, οὐδ' ἀπὸ τῶν φερομένων κατὰ γῆς ποταμῶν, ἀλλ' ἀπὸ τῶν ὑπερῴων αὐτοῦ ἄνωθεν ἀφ' ὕψους τοὺς αὐτάρκεις καὶ μεμετρημένους ἐπιχορηγῶν ὑετούς. Ὑπερῷα δὲ Θεοῦ τὸν ἀέρα καλεῖ, καθάπερ ἐπὶ μιᾶς οἰκίας τοῦ παντὸς κόσμου. Ὄρη μέν εἰσιν οἱ πνευματοφόροι ἄνδρες· ποτίζονται δὲ ἐκ τῶν ὑπερῴων αὐτοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ, πληρούμενοι τῶν τοῦ Πνεύματος χαρισμάτων, λόγου σοφίας καὶ τῶν ἑξῆς ἀπηριθμημένων. Ὑπερῷα δὲ Θεοῦ, ἀφ' ὧν τὰ ὄρη ποτίζει, ἀκραιφνεῖς καὶ ὑπερβάλλουσαι θεωρίαι τῆς ἀληθείας τυγχάνουσι, ὑπερῷα καλούμεναι, τῷ μηδὲν αὐτὰς ὑπεραναβεβηκέναι. Ἀπὸ καρποῦ τῶν ἔργων σου χορτασθήσεται ἡ γῆ. Αὐτὸς γὰρ εἶπε· Βλαστησάτω ἡ γῆ βοτάνην χόρτου, καὶ ξύλον κάρπιμον ποιοῦν καρπὸν, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Ἐκ τῶν Ἰησοῦ κατὰ τὴν οἰκονομίαν ἔργων, πολὺν καρπὸν ἐχόντων, ἅπασα ἡ γῆ χορτάζεται, μεταλαμβάνουσα τῶν οὕτω παραδόξως ὑπὸ Ἰησοῦ γεγενημένων· οὗτος γὰρ καρπὸς τῶν ἔργων αὐτοῦ τυγχάνει. Καὶ ὁ λόγος δὲ ὁ περὶ τῶν ἔργων τῆς δημιουργίας καὶ προνοίας αὐτοῦ νοηθεὶς, οἷα καρπὸς ἔργων Θεοῦ τυγχάνων, χορτάσει τὴν γῆν· φημὶ δὴ τοὺς ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς διατρίβοντας ἀνθρώπους. Ὁ ἐξανατέλλων χόρτον τοῖς κτήνεσι, καὶ χλόην τῇ δουλείᾳ τῶν ἀνθρώπων, τοῦ ἐξαγαγεῖν ἄρτον ἐκ τῆς γῆς· καὶ οἶνος εὐφραίνει καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Εἶπεν, ὅτι ἀπὸ τοῦ ὑετοῦ κτᾶται πλησμονὴν ἡ γῆ, τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐργαζομένου τὴν ἐκ θαλάσσης τῶν ὑδάτων ἀναγωγήν. Εἶτα τὴν ἐντεῦθεν ὑποδείκνυσιν ὠφέλειαν, ὅτι πιανθεῖσα ἐκ τῆς τῶν ὑδάτων χορηγίας ἡ γῆ, ἐξανατέλλει τοῖς ἀπ' αὐτῆς ἅπασι τὰς προσφόρους τροφάς· ἀνθρώπῳ μὲν εὐγενεῖ ζώῳ, καὶ ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ τετιμημένῳ, ἐξαίρετον καὶ ἀφωρισμένην τροφὴν, ἄρτον, καὶ οἶνον καὶ ἔλαιον· ἄρτον μὲν ἐπὶ τῷ στηρίζεσθαι καὶ δυναμοῦσθαι τὴν καρδίαν, οἶνον δὲ ἐπὶ τῷ κατευφραίνεσθαι τὴν ψυχὴν, ἔλαιον δὲ ἐπὶ τῷ φαιδρύνεσθαι τὸ σῶμα, καὶ ἁπαλύνεσθαι θεραπευόμενον ἐκ τῆς ἐπιπόνου σκληραγωγίας. Οὕτως αὐτῷ πλουσίαν καὶ ἐκ πλειόνων τράπεζαν εἰς ἀπόλαυσιν οἷα πατὴρ ὁ Θεὸς ἐδωρήσατο. Οὐ μὴν καὶ τῆς τῶν λοιπῶν ζώων κατωλιγώρησεν ἐπιμελείας· φροντίζων δὲ καὶ τῆς τούτων διαμονῆς τὴν ἁρμόζουσαν 23.1276 καὶ τούτοις ἀπένειμε τροφήν· χόρτον μὲν τοῖς κτήνεσι, τῇ δὲ δουλείᾳ τῶν ἀνθρώπων χλόην ἐξανατείλας. Σφόδρα δὲ ἀκριβῶς ὁ προφήτης τὴν τῶν ζώων πεποίηται διαίρεσιν· κτήνη μὲν γενικῶς πᾶν τὸ ποηφάγον ζῶον, δουλείαν δὲ ἀνθρώπων τὰ ἥμερα καὶ ὥσπερ πολιτικὰ ζῶα τὰ εἰς ὑπηρεσίαν ἀνθρώπων ἀφωρισμένα, ὧν τὰ μὲν ἀροῖ τὴν γῆν συνεργοῦντα ἀνθρώπῳ, ὡς βοῦς· τὰ δὲ ἀχθοφορεῖ, ὡς ὄνος· τὰ δὲ ἄλλην τινὰ χρῆσιν τῷ θνητῷ γένει παρέχεται· ἃ οἰκείως καὶ προσφυῶς δουλείαν ἀνθρώπων ὠνόμασεν, οἷς τὴν χλόην δεδόσθαι φησὶ, τουτέστι τὴν ὑπ' ἀνθρώπων σπαρεῖσαν καὶ γεωργηθεῖσαν· τοῖς δὲ ἄλλοις κτήνεσι, τὸν αὐτομάτως βλαστῶντα χόρτον. ∆ύναται δὲ καὶ ἀμφότερα ἥ τε χλόη καὶ ὁ χόρτος, ὁμοῦ