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And it is possible to receive this word, which leads up by a certain analogy to the intelligible things; and this word is bread brought forth from the earth, for the nourishing of the inner and hidden man, and from the bodily narratives of scripture, called earth because of the historical element. The mystical word is bread brought forth. To make his face cheerful with oil, and bread strengthens man’s heart. And the face of the inner man is made cheerful and brightened by the oil which nourishes the divine light, and which looses the diseases and pains of the soul, differing only in conception from the wine that was given. For the Word of God is a vine, and so also an olive tree; I, he says, am like a fruitful olive tree in the house of God. For his teaching, in its different relations, is both wine and oil and bread. The trees of the plain shall be satisfied, the cedars of Lebanon which you have planted; there the sparrows will make their nests. The house of the heron leads them; the high mountains are for the deer, the rock is a refuge for the rock badgers. The Hebrew and the others have rendered it, trees of the Lord. Having gone through the fruit-bearing trees, he necessarily also mentions the non-fruit-bearing ones, as they too provide a necessary use for men. For this reason he also called them of the Lord, as they 23.1280 grow of themselves and are not man-made, but sprouted by the divine word. The cedars of Lebanon which you planted. He rightly ascribed the planting of the cedars to God; because they grew to such an extent without human care. For no grove-keeper was their planter; but the divine Word made the mountain tops abundant. But if he himself planted them, they are certainly useful; for all things that God made are very good. Having mentioned Lebanon as a prominent example, and the cedars in it, through these he also indicated the other mountains and trees. There the sparrows will make their nests. The house of the heron leads them. Aquila has it thus: There birds will nest. For the heron the fir trees are its house. For the same trees provide one use for men, and another for the birds. He made the moon for seasons; the sun knows its setting. Having gone through all things on earth, and shown the creation of the invisible natures, and having pointed out the making of the heavens, he now makes mention also of the luminaries, which came to be on the fourth day. Not without purpose, I think, does the discourse now take up again those things that seemed to have been omitted above, when it spoke of the things in heaven and concerning clouds and winds, mentioning them after so many other things, but in order to teach that these too came into being for the sake of a need. For perhaps, if he had mentioned them first, some pretext would have been left for those who think it necessary to worship them as divine, and as causes of the constitution of animals and fruits on earth. At any rate, those who are strangers to piety, thinking this, were moved to worship the sun and moon as gods, as if they were the causes of our generation and nourishment and growth. But the divine word no longer presents this, but that even without these the universal providence of God established not only the things in heaven, but also the animals and plants on earth. Moses, wishing to teach this, first introduced the generation of plants from the earth, and then the constitution of the luminaries. And now David runs back again to the providence in the heavens, saying that the moon has come to be for no other reason than for the numbering and distinguishing of months and days; for the phrase, for seasons, declares this; that is, for distinguishing through its phases the changes of the seasons, for numbering months and years. For the changes of the moon prepare for time to be measured; for it makes the measure of the month in so many days, waxing and waning; so that the creation of the moon came to be for the teaching of the seasons; Not just any need is accomplished from this, from knowing the seasons and

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τοῦτον δὲ λαβεῖν ἐστι λόγον ἀναβιβάζοντα διά τινος ἀναλογίας ἐπὶ τὰ νοητά· καὶ οὗτος ὁ λόγος ἄρτος ἐστὶν ἐκ τῆς γῆς ἐξαγόμενος, ἐπὶ τὸ τρέφειν τὸν ἔνδον καὶ ἐν κρυπτῷ ἄνθρωπον, καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν σωματικῶν δὲ τῆς γραφῆς διηγημάτων διὰ τὸ ἱστορικὸν γῆ εἰρημένον. Ἄρτος ἐξαγόμενος ὁ μυστικός ἐστι λόγος. Τοῦ ἐξιλαρῦναι πρόσωπον ἐν ἐλαίῳ, καὶ ἄρτος καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου στηρίζει. Ἱλαρύνεται δὲ καὶ φαιδρύνεται τὸ πρόσωπον τοῦ ἔσω ἀνθρώπου ἐλαίῳ τῷ θρεπτικῷ τοῦ θείου φωτὸς, καὶ λύοντι τὰς νόσους καὶ τοὺς πόνους τῆς ψυχῆς, ἐπινοίᾳ μόνῃ διαφέρον τοῦ ἀποδοθέντος οἴνου. Ὁ γὰρ τοῦ Θεοῦ λόγος ὥσπερ ἄμπελος, οὕτω καὶ ἐλαία ἐστίν· Ἐγὼ, φησὶν, ὡσεὶ ἐλαία κατάκαρπος ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ τοῦ Θεοῦ. Ἡ γὰρ αὐτοῦ διδασκαλία κατὰ διάφορον σχέσιν οἶνός τε καὶ ἔλαιόν ἐστι καὶ ἄρτος. Χορτασθήσεται τὰ ξύλα τοῦ πεδίου, αἱ κέδροι τοῦ Λιβάνου ἃς ἐφύτευσας· ἐκεῖ στρουθία ἐννοσσεύσουσι. Τοῦ ἐρωδιοῦ ἡ οἰκία ἡγεῖται αὐτῶν· ὄρη τὰ ὑψηλὰ ταῖς ἐλάφοις, πέτρα καταφυγὴ τοῖς χοιρογρυλλίοις. Ὁ Ἑβραῖος καὶ οἱ λοιποὶ, ξύλα τοῦ Κυρίου, τεθείκασι. ∆ιεξελθὼν τὰ κάρπιμα, ἀναγκαίως μνημονεύει καὶ τῶν ἀκάρπων, ὡς ἀναγκαίαν ἀνθρώποις καὶ αὐτῶν παρεχόντων χρείαν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ Κυρίου αὐτὰ προσηγόρευσεν, ὡς αὐτο 23.1280 φυᾶ καὶ οὐ χειρόκμητα, ἀλλὰ τῷ θείῳ λόγῳ βλαστήσαντα. Αἱ κέδροι τοῦ Λιβάνου ἃς ἐφύτευσας. Καλῶς τῷ Θεῷ προσέγραψε τῶν κέδρων τὴν φυτείαν· ὅτι ἐκτὸς ἀνθρωπίνης ἐπιμελείας ἐπὶ τοσοῦτον ηὐξήθησαν. Οὐ γὰρ ἀλσοκόμος τις τούτων γέγονε φυτουργός· ἀλλ' ὁ θεῖος Λόγος, ἀμφιλαφεῖς τὰς τῶν ὀρῶν εἰργάσατο κορυφάς. Εἰ δὲ αὐτὸς ἐφύτευσε, πάντως ὅτι χρήσιμα· πάντα γὰρ ὅσα ἐποίησεν ὁ Θεὸς, καλὰ λίαν. Τοῦ μὲν Λιβάνου ὡς ἐπισήμου μνημονεύσας, καὶ τῶν ἐν αὐτῷ κέδρων, καὶ τὰ ἄλλα ὄρη καὶ δένδρα διὰ τούτων ἐδήλωσεν. Ἐκεῖ στρουθία ἐννοσσεύσουσι. Τοῦ ἐρωδιοῦ ἡ οἰκία ἡγεῖται αὐτῶν. Ὁ Ἀκύλας οὕτως ἔχει· Ἐκεῖ ὄρνεα νοσσεύσουσιν. Ἐρωδιῷ ἐλάται οἶκος αὐτῷ. Τὰ γὰρ αὐτὰ δένδρα ἄλλην μὲν ἀνθρώποις χρείαν, ἄλλην δὲ τοῖς ὀρνέοις παρέχει. Ἐποίησε σελήνην εἰς καιρούς· ὁ ἥλιος ἔγνω τὴν δύσιν αὐτοῦ. Τὰ κατὰ γῆν ἅπαντα διεξελθὼν, καὶ τῶν ἀοράτων φύσεων τὴν δημιουργίαν δείξας, καὶ τῶν οὐρανῶν ὑποδείξας τὴν ποίησιν, νῦν καὶ τῶν φωστήρων ποιεῖται τὴν μνήμην, οἳ κατὰ τὴν τετάρτην ἡμέραν ἐγένοντο. Οὐκ ἀσκόπως δὲ, οἶμαι τὰ δόξαντα ἐν τοῖς ἄνω παραλελεῖφθαι, ὅτε τὰ κατ' οὐρανὸν καὶ τὰ περὶ νεφῶν καὶ ἀνέμων ἐλέγετο, νῦν ὁ λόγος ἐπαναλαμβάνει, μετὰ τοσαῦτα μνημονεύσας αὐτῶν, ἀλλ' ὑπὲρ τοῦ διδάξαι, ὅτι καὶ ταῦτα χρείας ἕνεκεν ὑπέστη. Τάχα γὰρ, εἰ πρῶτον αὐτῶν ἐμνημόνευσεν, ἀφορμή τις κατελείπετο τοῖς ὡς θεῖα δεῖν αὐτὰ σέβειν ἡγουμένοις, καὶ ὡς αἴτια τῆς τῶν ἐπὶ γῆς ζώων τε καὶ καρπῶν συστάσεως. Τοῦτο γοῦν οἱ τῆς εὐσεβείας ἀλλότριοι νομίσαντες ὡρμήθησαν σέβειν ὡς θεοὺς ἥλιον καὶ σελήνην, ὡς ἂν τῆς ἡμετέρας γενέσεώς τε καὶ τροφῆς καὶ αὐξήσεως αἰτίους. Ἀλλ' οὐκέτι ὁ θεῖος λόγος τοῦτο παρίστησιν, ἀλλ' ὅτι καὶ τούτων ἐκτὸς ἡ καθόλου πρόνοια τοῦ Θεοῦ οὐ μόνον τὰ κατ' οὐρανὸν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ ἐπὶ γῆς συνεστήσατο ζῶά τε καὶ φυτά. Τοῦτο καὶ Μωσῆς διδάξαι βουληθεὶς, πρῶτον εἰσήγαγε τὴν τῶν ἀπὸ γῆς φυτῶν γένεσιν, εἶθ' οὕτως τὴν τῶν φωστήρων σύστασιν. Καὶ νῦν δὲ ὁ ∆αυῒδ ἀνατρέχει πάλιν ἐπὶ τὴν ἐν οὐρανοῖς πρόνοιαν, δι' οὐδὲν ἕτερον τὴν σελήνην γεγενῆσθαι λέγων, ἢ πρὸς ἀριθμὸν καὶ διάγνωσιν μηνῶν τε καὶ ἡμερῶν· τὸ γὰρ, εἰς καιροὺς, τοῦτο δηλοῖ· τουτέστιν, εἰς τὸ διαγινώσκειν διὰ τῶν ἐν αὐτῇ τροπῶν τὰς τῶν καιρῶν μεταβολὰς, εἰς τὸ μῆνας ἀριθμεῖν καὶ ἐνιαυτούς. Αἱ γὰρ τῆς σελήνης ἀλλοιώσεις μετρεῖσθαι τὸν χρόνον παρασκευάζουσι· τοῦ γὰρ μηνὸς τὸ μέτρον αὕτη ποιεῖ ἐν τοσαύταις ἡμέραις αὐξάνουσά τε καὶ φθίνουσα· ὥστε ἡ τῆς σελήνης δημιουργία διὰ τὴν τῶν καιρῶν διδασκαλίαν γέγονεν· Οὐχ ἡ τυχοῦσα δὲ χρεία ἐντεῦθεν ἀνύεται ἐκ τοῦ καιροὺς εἰδέναι καὶ