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eleven stars bowing down to him. Until his word came to pass. The oracle of the Lord tested him. The phrase, The oracle of the Lord tested him, is similar to, Is not 23.1308 their interpretation through God? For he would not have interpreted the dreams for Pharaoh, unless God had granted him the ability to understand them. A king sent and released him, a ruler of a people, and set him free. He made him lord of his house, and ruler of all his possession, to instruct his princes as himself, and to make his elders wise. When Joseph was sufficiently tested by temptations, then at God's suggestion to Pharaoh, whom the text now calls both king and ruler, he is released from his bonds, and is made ruler of the king's house and of all his possession. For he brought him forth, as the common person might say, in order to gather the produce of the abundance, and to guard it for the time of famine. But the present text teaches that he was not so much advanced to rule for the sake of guarding the fruits, as for the spiritual benefit of those who were to be made wise and instructed by him. And these were Pharaoh's princes and elders; and when they were benefited, it was likely that all their subjects would also share in the improvement from them. And Israel went into Egypt, and Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham. And he increased his people greatly, and made him stronger than his enemies. And who went in, but Israel? And who sojourned in the land of Ham, but Jacob? Through these are indicated both the father himself and his children. For since Jacob did not enter alone, but also seventy souls with him, according to the text: "With seventy souls Israel went down into Egypt"; for this reason both the children and the father were indicated through the preceding words. And he increased his people greatly, and made him stronger than his enemies. They would not have been increased nor made strong, if they had not had Joseph as a protector, and the honor among the Egyptians provided to them through Joseph. He turned their heart to hate his people, to deal craftily with his servants. He sent Moses his servant, Aaron whom he had chosen for himself. He set among them the words of his signs, and of his wonders in the land of Ham. He sent darkness and made it dark, because they rebelled against his words. He turned their waters into blood, and killed their fish. Their land brought forth frogs in the chambers of their kings. He spoke, and the dog-fly came, and gnats in all their borders. He made their rains hail, a fire flaming in their land. And he struck their vines and their fig trees, and broke every tree of their borders. He spoke, and the locust came, and the caterpillar, of which there was no number, and ate all the grass in their land, and ate all the fruit of their land. And he struck every firstborn in their land, the firstfruits of all their labor. Just as 23.1309 he first allows Joseph to be a slave, and to be humbled with fetters and iron; then after this, having given proof of his own virtue, he advances him to a kingdom; so also now, wishing to deem the people worthy of his oversight, he first gives them over to trials, so that later it might be said: "And the children of Israel groaned, and cried out to the Lord their God, and their cry went up to God from their labors." And God heard their groaning; and God remembered his covenant with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob. And God looked upon the children of Israel, and was made known to them. But since it is said that he turned their heart, that is, of the Egyptians, to hate his people, you will say that God acted justly. For since, being in great ease and freedom and honor among the Egyptians, they came to forget the God of their fathers, and gave themselves over to the

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ἕνδεκα ἀστέρας προσκυνεῖν αὐτῷ. Μέχρι τοῦ ἐλθεῖν τὸν λόγον αὐτοῦ. Τὸ λόγιον Κυρίου ἐπύρωσεν αὐτόν. Τὸ, Λόγιον Κυρίου ἐπύρωσεν αὐτὸν, ὅμοιον τῷ, Οὐχὶ 23.1308 διὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡ διασάφησις αὐτῶν ἐστιν; Οὐκ ἂν γὰρ ἔλυσε τοὺς ὀνείρους τῷ Φαραὼ, μὴ τοῦ Θεοῦ παρασχόντος τὸ δύνασθαι συνιέναι αὐτούς. Ἀπέστειλε βασιλεὺς καὶ ἔλυσεν αὐτὸν, ἄρχων λαοῦ καὶ ἀφῆκεν αὐτόν. Κατέστησεν αὐτὸν κύριον τοῦ οἴκου αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἄρχοντα πάσης τῆς κτήσεως αὐτοῦ, τοῦ παιδεῦσαι τοὺς ἄρχοντας αὐτοῦ, ὡς ἑαυτὸν, καὶ τοὺς πρεσβυτέρους αὐτοῦ σοφίσαι. Ὅτε αὐτάρκως ἐπυρώθη ὑπὸ τῶν πειρασμῶν ὁ Ἰωσὴφ, τότε Θεοῦ ὑποβαλόντος τῷ Φαραὼ, ὃν καὶ βασιλέα καὶ ἄρχοντα νῦν ὁ λόγος καλεῖ, λύεται τῶν δεσμῶν, καὶ ἄρχων τοῦ οἴκου τοῦ βασιλέως καὶ πάσης τῆς κτήσεως αὐτοῦ καθίσταται. Ἐξήνεγκε γὰρ αὐτὸν, ὡς μὲν εἴποι ἂν ὁ πολὺς ἄνθρωπος, διὰ τὸ συναγαγεῖν τὰ γεννήματα τῆς εὐθηνίας, καὶ φυλάξαι αὐτὰ εἰς καιρὸν τοῦ λιμοῦ. Ὁ δὲ παρὼν λόγος διδάσκει οὐ τοσοῦτον τῆς τῶν καρπῶν φυλακῆς ἕνεκα εἰς τὴν ἀρχὴν προῆχθαι, ὅσον τῆς κατὰ ψυχὴν ὠφελείας τῶν μελλόντων ὑπ' αὐτοῦ σοφίζεσθαι καὶ παιδεύεσθαι. Ἦσαν δὲ οὗτοι ἄρχοντες Φαραὼ καὶ πρεσβύτεροι· ὧν ὠφελουμένων, εἰκὸς ἦν καὶ τοὺς ὑπηκόους ἅπαντας τῆς παρ' αὐτῶν μετασχεῖν βελτιώσεως. Καὶ εἰσῆλθεν Ἰσραὴλ εἰς Αἴγυπτον, καὶ Ἰακὼβ παρῴκησεν ἐν γῇ Χάμ. Καὶ ηὔξησε τὸν λαὸν αὐτοῦ σφόδρα, καὶ ἐκραταίωσεν αὐτὸν ὑπὲρ τοὺς ἐχθροὺς αὐτοῦ. Τίς δὲ εἰσῆλθεν, ἀλλ' ἢ Ἰσραήλ, Καὶ τίς παρῴκησεν ἐν γῇ Χὰμ, ἀλλ' ἢ Ἰακώβ; ∆ηλοῦται δὲ διὰ τούτων αὐτός τε ὁ πατὴρ καὶ οἱ τούτου παῖδες. Ἐπεὶ γὰρ οὐ μόνος εἰσῆλθε Ἰακὼβ, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἑβδομήκοντα ψυχαὶ σὺν αὐτῷ, κατὰ τό· Ἐν ἑβδομήκοντα ψυχαῖς κατέβη Ἰσραὴλ εἰς Αἴγυπτον· διὰ τοῦτο καὶ οἱ παῖδες καὶ ὁ πατὴρ ἐδηλώθησαν διὰ τῶν προκειμένων. Καὶ ηὔξησε τὸν λαὸν αὐτοῦ σφόδρα, καὶ ἐκραταίωσεν αὐτὸν ὑπὲρ τοὺς ἐχθροὺς αὐτοῦ. Οὐκ ἂν ηὐξήθησαν οὐδὲ ἐκραταιώθησαν, εἰ μὴ ἔτυχον προστάτου Ἰωσὴφ, καὶ τῆς παρὰ τοῖς Αἰγυπτίοις τιμῆς διὰ τοῦ Ἰωσὴφ αὐτοῖς παρασχεθείσης. Μετέστρεψε τὴν καρδίαν αὐτῶν τοῦ μισῆσαι τὸν λαὸν αὐτοῦ, τοῦ δολιοῦσθαι ἐν τοῖς δούλοις αὐτοῦ. Ἐξαπέστειλε Μωϋσῆν τὸν δοῦλον αὐτοῦ, Ἀαρὼν ὃν ἐξελέξατο ἑαυτῷ. Ἔθετο ἐν αὐτοῖς τοὺς λόγους τῶν σημείων αὐτοῦ, καὶ τῶν τεράτων αὐτοῦ ἐν γῇ Χάμ. Ἐξαπέστειλε σκότος καὶ ἐσκότασε, ὅτι παρεπίκραναν τοὺς λόγους αὐτοῦ. Μετέστρεψε τὰ ὕδατα αὐτῶν εἰς αἷμα, καὶ ἀπέκτεινε τοὺς ἰχθύας αὐτῶν. Ἐξεῖρψεν ἡ γῆ αὐτῶν βατράχους ἐν τοῖς ταμείοις τῶν βασιλέων αὐτῶν. Εἶπε, καὶ ἦλθε κυνόμυια καὶ σκνῖπες ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς ὁρίοις αὐτῶν. Ἔθετο τὰς βροχὰς αὐτῶν χάλαζαν, πῦρ καταφλέγον ἐν τῇ γῇ αὐτῶν. Καὶ ἐπάταξε τὰς ἀμπέλους αὐτῶν καὶ τὰς συκᾶς αὐτῶν, καὶ συνέτριψε πᾶν ξύλον ὁρίων αὐτῶν. Εἶπε, καὶ ἦλθεν ἀκρὶς καὶ βροῦχος, οὗ οὐκ ἦν ἀριθμὸς, καὶ κατέφαγε πάντα χόρτον ἐν τῇ γῇ αὐτῶν, καὶ κατέφαγε πάντα τὸν καρπὸν τῆς γῆς αὐτῶν. Καὶ ἐπάταξε πᾶν πρωτότοκον ἐν τῇ γῇ αὐτῶν, ἀπαρχὴν παντὸς πόνου αὐτῶν. Ὥσπερ 23.1309 τὸν Ἰωσὴφ πρῶτον συγχωρεῖ δουλεῦσαι, καὶ πέδαις καὶ σιδήρῳ ταπεινωθῆναι· εἶτα μετὰ ταῦτα δοκιμὴν δεδωκότα τῆς οἰκείας ἀρετῆς, προάγει ἐπὶ βασιλείαν· οὕτω καὶ νῦν, βουλόμενος τῆς αὐτοῦ ἐπισκοπῆς καταξιῶσαι τὸν λαὸν, πρῶτον αὐτὸν πειρατηρίοις ἐκδίδωσιν, ἵν' ὕστερον λεχθῇ τό· Καὶ ἐστέναξαν οἱ υἱοὶ Ἰσραὴλ, καὶ ἐκέκραξαν πρὸς Κύριον τὸν Θεὸν αὐτῶν, καὶ ἀνέβη ἡ βοὴ αὐτῶν πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν ἀπὸ τῶν ἔργων. Καὶ εἰσήκουσεν ὁ Θεὸς τὸν στεναγμὸν αὐτῶν· καὶ ἐμνήσθη ὁ Θεὸς τῆς διαθήκης αὑτοῦ τῆς πρὸς Ἀβραὰμ καὶ Ἰσαὰκ καὶ Ἰακώβ. Καὶ ἐπεῖδεν ὁ Θεὸς τοὺς υἱοὺς Ἰσραὴλ, καὶ ἐγνώσθη αὐτοῖς. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ εἴρηται, ὅτι μετέστρεψε τὴν καρδίαν αὐτῶν, δηλονότι τῶν Αἰγυπτίων, τοῦ μισῆσαι τὸν λαὸν αὐτοῦ, ἐρεῖς, ὅτι δικαίως ἔπραξεν ὁ Θεός. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ, ἐν πολλῇ γεγονότες ἀνέσει καὶ ἐλευθερίᾳ καὶ τιμῇ παρὰ τοῖς Αἰγυπτίοις, εἰς λήθην ἦλθον τοῦ πατρῴου Θεοῦ, ἐξέδωκαν δὲ ἑαυτοὺς ταῖς