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therefore, if this word is written before the psalmody, it should be understood that it is necessary in every way to lead the subject matter to the doxology of God. Thus also in the last parts especially of the book of Psalms are found the many inscriptions of this kind, through which it is possible to understand that for those who have already reached the perfection of the life according to virtue, and have been cleansed through the preceding sections of your psalmody according to the contemplation perceived in them, it is fitting to praise God, and to be in those things in which the nature of the angels is also believed to be. For we have learned of no other occupation for them besides praising God, nor is anything else striven for by those perfect in virtue than to prepare one's own life to be a praise of God. Since, therefore, those having the inscription of Alleluia are almost all found in the last section of the psalmody, it is possible to understand clearly both that the last section of the psalmody, in which for the most part is the praise of God, or rather an exhortation 23.1297 to praise God, surpasses all the high ascent through the psalms. However, in the psalm at hand the Holy Spirit commands the holy apostles to make manifest to the people from the nations all the wonders which the Lord has performed at his coming; yes, indeed, also as many things as he did for the benefit of the people of old, and what kind of people he made them instead of what they were. Furthermore, in this there is also a remembrance of the promises made by God to the patriarchs, and of the good things provided by him on account of them to their descendants. For the remembrance of these things is sufficient to stir to zeal for the virtue of their ancestors those who enjoyed so many benefits. And at the same time it also teaches the new people, that is, those from the nations, that he did not unjustly strip that ungrateful people of his own care, so that together they might learn justice from the sentence pronounced against them, and seeing the wages of ingratitude, they might not walk the same path as the Jews, but might travel the straight road. Give thanks to the Lord, and call upon his name. Since the meaning of confession in scriptural custom is twofold, indicating now confession of sins, and again thanksgiving, here we are led by both meanings to the life of virtue; for confession works a certain separation and alienation from evils, and zeal for thanksgiving increases, as does the grace concerning the benefactor for those who sensitively receive his good deeds. Therefore the word exhorts to offer the hymnody of thanksgiving, and to recount the divine benefits. For Symmachus interpreted 'call upon' as 'proclaim'; and another interpreter says, And call upon in his name; hinting at something great. For if you confess, he says, and put away your sins, you will be able, by calling upon his name with confidence, to work great good things. And not in vain does he wish us first to confess and second to call upon; but that, having become clean through confession, we might offer the hymn from a clean instrument. Proclaim among the nations his works. The praise at hand summarizes the history from Abraham and to the exodus of the sons of Israel from Egypt; which the divine Spirit also exhorts to proclaim to the nations, so that through these things he is making clear that he is working benefit not only for the Jews, but also for those from the nations, with the Spirit stirring up the preachers of the nations to seek the Lord and to proclaim the narratives about him. And these things with hymns; for he says: Sing to him and chant to him; recount all his wondrous deeds. He wishes it to be announced to the nations, as being ignorant and not yet having learned, what sort of benefits God formerly provided to the former people; and how, having received countless good things from God, they transgressed by acting impiously; and how on account of their transgressions

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τοίνυν τοῦτο τὸ ῥῆμα προγεγραμμένον ᾖ τῆς ψαλμῳδίας, νοητέον ἂν εἴη τὸ δεῖν πάντως τὸ ὑποκείμενον εἰς δοξολογίαν ἄγειν Θεοῦ. Οὕτω καὶ τοῖς τελευταίοις μάλιστα τῆς βίβλου τῶν ψαλμῶν αἱ πολλαὶ τῶν τοιούτων ἐπιγραφαὶ ἐφευρίσκονται, δι' ὧν ἔστιν ἐννοεῖν, ὅτι τοῖς ἤδη πρὸς τὸ τέλειον φθάσασι τῆς κατ' ἀρετὴν πολιτείας, καὶ διὰ τῶν προλαβόντων σῆς ψαλμῳδίας τμημάτων κατὰ τὴν νοηθεῖσαν ἐπ' αὐτῶν θεωρίαν ἐκκαθαρθεῖσιν, ἁρμόζει τὸ αἰνεῖν τὸν Θεὸν, καὶ ἐν τούτοις εἶναι, ἐν οἷς καὶ ἡ τῶν ἀγγέλων φύσις εἶναι πεπίστευται. Οὔτε γὰρ ἐκείνων μεμαθήκαμεν ἀσχολίαν ἄλλην τινὰ πλὴν τοῦ αἰνεῖν τὸν Θεὸν, οὔτε τοῖς κατ' ἀρετὴν τελείοις ἕτερόν τι σπουδάζεται ἢ τὸ τὴν ζωὴν ἑαυτοῦ αἶνον εἶναι Θεοῦ παρασκευάσαι. Ἐπεὶ τοίνυν οἱ τὴν ἐπιγραφὴν ἔχοντες τοῦ Ἀλληλούϊα, πάντες σχεδὸν τῷ τελευταίῳ τμήματι τῆς ψαλμῳδίας εὑρίσκονται, σαφῶς ἔστι κατανοῆσαι, καὶ ὅτι πάσης ὑπέρκειται τῆς ὑψηλῆς διὰ τῶν ψαλμῶν ἀναβάσεως τὸ τελευταῖον τμῆμα τῆς ψαλμῳδίας, ἐν ᾧ τὸ πλεῖστον Θεοῦ αἶνός ἐστιν, ἤτοι εἰς τὸ αἰνεῖν τὸν Θεὸν παρα 23.1297 κέλευσις. Προστάττει μέντοι ἐν τῷ μετὰ χεῖρας ψαλμῷ τοῖς ἁγίοις ἀποστόλοις τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον τῷ ἐξ ἐθνῶν λαῷ φανερὰς ποιῆσαι πάσας τὰς θαυματουργίας, ἃς πεποίηται ἐπὶ τῆς αὐτοῦ παρουσίας ὁ Κύριος· ναὶ μὴν καὶ ὅσα εὐηργέτησε τὸν πάλαι λαὸν, καὶ οἷον ἀνθ' οἵου ἐποίησεν. Ἔτι δὲ ἐν τούτῳ καὶ μνήμη τῶν πρὸς τοὺς πατριάρχας ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ γεγενημένων ὑποσχέσεων, καὶ τῶν δι' ἐκείνους ὑπ' αὐτοῦ παρασχεθέντων ἀγαθῶν τοῖς ἐκείνων ἐκγόνοις. Ἱκανὴ γὰρ τούτων ἡ μνήμη τοὺς τοσούτων εὐεργεσιῶν ἀπολαύσαντας εἰς ζῆλον τῆς τῶν προγόνων ἀρετῆς ἐρεθίσαι. ∆ιδάσκει δὲ κατὰ ταὐτὸ καὶ τὸν νέον λαὸν, ἤγουν τοὺς ἐξ ἐθνῶν ὡς οὐκ ἀδίκως τὸν ἀχάριστον ἐκεῖνον λαὸν τῆς οἰκείας κηδεμονίας ἐγύμνωσεν, ὡς ὁμοῦ ἐκ τῆς κατ' ἐκείνων ἐξενεχθείσης ψήφου τὸ δίκαιον καταμάθοιεν, καὶ τῆς ἀχαριστίας ὁρῶντες τὰ ἐπίχειρα, μὴ τὴν αὐτὴν Ἰουδαίοις βαδίζοιεν, ἀλλὰ τὴν εὐθεῖαν ὁδὸν ὁδεύοιεν. Ἐξομολογεῖσθε τῷ Κυρίῳ, καὶ ἐπικαλεῖσθε τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ. ∆ιπλῆς οὔσης ἐν τῇ γραφικῇ συνηθείᾳ τῆς κατ' ἐξομολόγησιν σημασίας, καὶ νῦν μὲν τὴν ἐξαγόρευσιν, αὖθις δὲ τὴν εὐχαριστίαν ἐνδεικνυμένης, ἐνταῦθα κατ' ἀμφοτέρας τὰς ἐννοίας πρὸς τὸν κατ' ἀρετὴν βίον χειραγωγούμεθα· ἥ τε γὰρ ἐξαγόρευσις χωρισμόν τινα καὶ ἀλλοτρίωσιν τῶν κακῶν ἀπεργάζεται, τό τε πρὸς τὴν εὐχαριστίαν πρόθυμον πλεονάζει, καὶ τὴν περὶ τοῦ εὐεργέτου χάριν ἐπὶ τῶν εὐαισθήτως δεχομένων τὰς εὐποιίας. Παρακελεύεται τοίνυν ὁ λόγος τὴν εὐχαριστήριον ὑμνῳδίαν προσφέρειν, καὶ διηγεῖσθαι τὰς θείας εὐεργεσίας. Τὸ γὰρ ἐπικαλεῖσθε, κηρύσσετε ὁ Σύμμαχος ἡρμήνευσεν· ἕτερος δὲ ἑρμηνευτής φησι, Καὶ ἐπικαλεῖσθε ἐν ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ· μέγα τι αἰνιττόμενος. Ἂν γὰρ ἐξομολογήσῃ, φησὶ, καὶ ἀποθῇς τὰ ἁμαρτήματα, δυνήσῃ, μετὰ παῤῥησίας τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ καλέσας, μεγάλα ἐργάσασθαι ἀγαθά. Οὐ μάτην δὲ ἐξομολογεῖσθαι πρότερον, καὶ δεύτερον ἐπικαλεῖσθαι βούλεται· ἀλλ' ἵνα, καθαροὶ διὰ τῆς ἐξαγορεύσεως γενόμενοι, ἐκ καθαροῦ ὀργάνου τὸν ὕμνον προσενέγκωμεν. Ἐπαγγείλατε ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσι τὰ ἔργα αὐτοῦ. Ὁ μετὰ χεῖρας αἶνος τὴν ἱστορίαν ἐπιτέμνεται τὴν ἀπὸ Ἀβραὰμ καὶ ἐπὶ ἔξοδον τῶν υἱῶν Ἰσραὴλ τὴν ἀπὸ Αἰγύπτου· ἣν καὶ ἐπαγγέλλειν τοῖς ἔθνεσι τὸ θεῖον Πνεῦμα παρακελεύεται, ὥστε διὰ τούτων δηλῶν ἐστιν, ὡς ὄνησιν οὐκ Ἰουδαίοις μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῖς ἐξ ἐθνῶν πραγματεύεται, τοῦ Πνεύματος τοὺς τῶν ἐθνῶν διεγείροντος κήρυκας εἰς τὸ ζητεῖν τὸν Κύριον καὶ κηρύσσειν τὰ περὶ αὐτοῦ διηγήματα. Καὶ ταῦτα μεθ' ὕμνων· φησὶ γοῦν· Ἄσατε αὐτῷ καὶ ψάλατε αὐτῷ· διηγήσασθε πάντα τὰ θαυμάσια αὐτοῦ. Βούλεται ἀπαγγελθῆναι τοῖς ἔθνεσιν, ὡς ἀγνοοῦσι καὶ μηδέπω μεμαθηκόσιν, ὁποίας πάλαι πρότερον εὐεργεσίας ὁ Θεὸς τῷ προτέρῳ λαῷ παρέσχετο· καὶ ὅπως, μυρίων ἀγαθῶν παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ τετυχηκότες, παρέβησαν ἀσεβήσαντες· καὶ ὡς διὰ τὰς παρανομίας αὐτῶν