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man, or His Only-Begotten and the Holy Spirit, whom He now also calls hands? And in Job it is also written: Your hands have made me and fashioned me; after this, changing, you terribly destroy me, renewing your examination against me. Therefore, the hands of God both made and fashioned. And Origen and certain others say that "made" was said concerning the soul, but "fashioned" concerning the body. But others say that "made" was said concerning the first creation, but "fashioned" concerning the regeneration and re-fashioning of the baptismal font. Those who fear you will see me and be glad, because I have hoped in your words. I have known, O Lord, that your judgments are righteousness, and in truth you have humbled me. Let your mercy indeed come to comfort me, according to your word to your servant. Let your compassions come to me, and I shall live, for your law is my meditation. If your mercy should come upon me, and your compassions should reach me, I will not be swallowed up by humiliation, but having persevered through endurance, I know well that I shall live. And I ask to receive your mercy and your compassions; since I myself do not cease to fulfill all that is in my power, and in this very humiliation I will meditate on your law. Let the proud be ashamed, for they have transgressed unjustly against me, but I will meditate on your commandments. Let those who fear you turn to me, and those who know your testimonies. Let my heart be blameless in your statutes, so that I may not be put to shame. For all sins are worthy of shame. For as long as a heart happens to be imperfect, there is much care and anxiety lest it might somehow weaken and become worse than itself; but when it reaches the peak of perfection, having become established in a state of virtue, it will be beyond all fear, no longer doubting lest it should ever be put to shame. My soul faints for your salvation; I have hoped in your words. Very consistently explaining what salvation is, he adds next: "I have hoped in your word," signifying that salvation is the Son of God. My eyes have failed for your word, saying: "When will you comfort me?" for I have become like a wineskin in the frost; I have not forgotten your statutes. How many are the days of your servant? When will you execute judgment for me on those who persecute me? The lawless have told me idle tales, but not as your law, O Lord. All your commandments are truth; they have unjustly persecuted me; help me. They almost finished me on the earth; but I did not forsake your commandments. According to your mercy, give me life, and I will keep the testimonies of your mouth. To live according to the word of God is to live with piety, not simply this sensible life. For having obtained this, he will be in a state of good life, so as to keep the testimonies of the mouth of God, testified to and demonstrated by the Word of God, whom I said to be his mouth. Forever, O Lord, your word abides in heaven. Your truth is to generation and generation; you established the earth, and it abides. By your ordinance the day abides, for all things are your servants. And he calls this promise truth, which he knows will certainly come to pass for generation and generation. For in each generation you send certain parts of the truth to men, and all the parts of the world, both visible, have been established by your ordinance, not being moved from their boundaries, nor transgressing the law appointed for them. And the reason for the permanence of all these things is that you alone are Lord of all; and all the rest are your servants, and as servants they are subject. If your law had not been my meditation, then I would have perished in my humiliation. It has been said that the time of temptations and of circumstances is called humiliation. It is characteristic of a blessed man, therefore, to be in humiliation and not to perish; as if, I have come into the trial of martyrdom; if indeed the law of God was always my meditation before falling into it, and I was practicing

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ἄνθρωπον, ἢ τῷ Μονογενεῖ αὐτοῦ καὶ τῷ Πνεύματι ἁγίῳ, οὓς καὶ χεῖρας νῦν ἀποκαλεῖ; Καὶ ἐν τῷ Ἰὼβ δὲ γέγραπται· Αἱ χεῖρές σου ἐποίησάν με, καὶ ἔπλασάν με· μετὰ ταῦτα μεταβαλών με δεινῶς ὀλέκεις, ἐπανακαινίζων ἐπ' ἐμὲ τὴν ἔτασίν μου. Οὐκοῦν αἱ χεῖρες τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ ἐποίησαν καὶ ἔπλασαν. Καὶ Ὠριγένης μὲν καὶ ἕτεροί τινες τὸ, ἐποίησαν, ἐπὶ τῆς ψυχῆς εἰρῆσθαί φασιν, τὸ δὲ, ἔπλασαν, ἐπὶ τοῦ σώματος. Ἄλλοι δὲ τὸ μὲν, ἐποίησαν, ἐπὶ τῆς πρώτης δημιουργίας φασὶν εἰρῆσθαι, τὸ δὲ, ἔπλασαν, ἐπὶ τῆς τοῦ λουτροῦ παλιγγενεσίας καὶ ἀναπλάσεως. Οἱ φοβούμενοί σε ὄψονταί με, καὶ εὐφρανθήσονται, ὅτι εἰς τοὺς λόγους σου ἐπήλπισα. Ἔγνων, Κύριε, ὅτι δικαιοσύνη τὰ κρίματά σου, καὶ ἀληθείᾳ ἐταπείνωσάς με. Γενηθήτω δὴ τὸ ἔλεός σου τοῦ παρακαλέσαι με, κατὰ τὸ λόγιόν σου τῷ δούλῳ σου. Ἐλθέτωσάν μοι οἱ οἰκτιρμοί σου, καὶ ζήσομαι, ὅτι ὁ νόμος σου μελέτη μου ἐστίν. Εἰ ἔλθοι ἐπ' ἐμὲ τὸ ἔλεός σου, καὶ φθήσαιεν ἐμοὶ οἱ οἰκτιρμοί σου, οὐ καταποθήσομαι ὑπὸ τῆς ταπεινώσεως, ἀλλ' ἐγκαρτερήσας διὰ τῆς ὑπομονῆς, εὖ οἶδα ὅτι ζήσομαι. Τυχεῖν δὲ τοῦ ἐλέους σου καὶ τῶν οἰκτιρμῶν σου ἀξιῶ· ἐπεὶ καὶ αὐτὸς τὰ παρ' ἐμαυτοῦ πάντα πληρῶν οὐ διαλιμπάνω, καὶ ἐν αὐτῇ τῇ ταπεινώσει τὸν νόμον σου μελετήσω. Αἰσχυνθήτωσαν ὑπερήφανοι, ὅτι ἀδίκως ἠνόμησαν εἰς ἐμὲ, ἐγὼ δὲ ἀδολεσχήσω ἐν ταῖς ἐντολαῖς σου. Ἐπιστρεψάτωσάν με οἱ φοβούμενοί σε, καὶ οἱ γινώσκοντες τὰ μαρτύριά σου. Γενηθήτω ἡ καρδία μου ἄμωμος ἐν τοῖς δικαιώμασί σου, ὅπως ἂν μὴ αἰσχυνθῶ. Πάντα γὰρ τὰ ἁμαρτήματα αἰσχύνης ἐστὶν ἄξια. Ἕως μὲν γὰρ καρδία ἀτελὴς τυγχάνει, πολλὴ φροντὶς καὶ ἀγωνία μή πη ἄρα καὶ ἀσθενήσῃ καὶ χείρων ἑαυτῆς γένηται· ὅτε δὲ εἰς ἄκρον φθάσῃ τῆς τελειότητος, ἐν ἕξει ἀρετῆς καταστᾶσα, ἔξω γενήσεται παντὸς φόβου, οὐκέτι ἀμφιβάλλουσα μή ποτε ἄρα καταισχυνθῇ. Ἐκλείπει εἰς τὸ σωτήριόν σου ἡ ψυχή μου, εἰς τοὺς λόγους σου ἐπήλπισα. Σφόδρα ἀκολούθως ἑρμηνεύων τί ποτέ ἐστι τὸ σωτήριον ἐπιλέγει ἑξῆς· Εἰς τὸν λόγον σου ἐπήλπισα, σημαίνων, ὅτι τὸ σωτήριον ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐστι. Ἐξέλιπον οἱ ὀφθαλμοί μου εἰς τὸ λόγιόν σου, λέγοντος· Πότε παρακαλέσεις με; ὅτι ἐγενήθην ὡς ἀσκὸς ἐν πάχνῃ, τὰ δικαιώματά σου οὐκ ἐπελαθόμην. Πόσαι εἰσὶν αἱ ἡμέραι τοῦ δούλου σου; πότε ποιήσεις μοι ἐκ τῶν καταδιωκόντων με κρίσιν; ∆ιηγήσαντο μοι παράνομοι ἀδολεσχίας, ἀλλ' οὐχ ὡς ὁ νόμος σου, Κύριε. Πᾶσαι αἱ ἐντολαί σου ἀλήθεια, ἀδίκως κατεδίωξάν με, βοήθησόν μοι. Παρὰ βραχὺ ἐτέλεσάν με ἐν τῇ γῇ· ἐγὼ δὲ οὐκ ἐγκατέλιπον τὰς ἐντολάς σου. Κατὰ τὸ ἔλεός σου ζῆσόν με, καὶ φυλάξω τὰ μαρτύρια τοῦ στόματός σου. Τὸ κατὰ τὸ λόγιον τοῦ Θεοῦ ζῇν τὸ σὺν εὐσεβείᾳ ζῇν ἐστιν, οὐχ ἁπλῶς τὴν αἰσθητὴν ταύτην ζωήν. Τούτου γὰρ τυχὼν, ἐν εὐζωΐᾳ ἔσται, ὡς φυλάσσειν τὰ μαρτύρια τοῦ στόματος τοῦ Θεοῦ, μαρτυρηθέντα καὶ ἀποδειχθέντα ὑπὸ Λόγου τοῦ Θεοῦ, οὗ εἶπον αὐτοῦ στόμα εἶναι. Εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα, Κύριε, ὁ λόγος σου διαμένει ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ. Εἰς γενεὰν καὶ γενεὰν ἡ ἀλήθειά σου, ἐθεμελίωσας τὴν γῆν, καὶ διαμένει. Τῇ διατάξει σου διαμένει ἡμέρα, ὅτι τὰ σύμπαντα δοῦλα σά. Ἀλήθειαν δὲ λέγει τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν ταύτην, ἣν οἶδε πάντως γενησομένην εἰς γενεὰν καὶ γενεάν. Καθ' ἑκάστην γὰρ γενεὰν μέρη τινὰ τῆς ἀληθείας ἀνθρώποις ἀποστέλλεις, καὶ τὰ σύμπαντα τοῦ κόσμου μέρη τά τε ὁρατὰ τῇ σῇ διατάξει συνέστηκεν, μὴ κινούμενα τῶν ὁρῶν, μηδὲ τὸν νόμον τὸν ὁρισθέντα αὐτοῖς παραβαίνοντα. Αἴτιον δὲ τῆς τούτων ἁπάντων διαμονῆς τὸ σὲ μόνον Κύριον εἶναι τῶν ὅλων· τὰ δὲ λοιπὰ πάντα σὰ δοῦλα, καὶ ὡς δοῦλα ὑποτέτακται. Εἰ μὴ ὅτι ὁ νόμος σου μελέτη μου ἐστὶ, τότε ἂν ἀπωλόμην ἐν τῇ ταπεινώσει μου. Εἴρηται ὡς ὁ καιρὸς τῶν πειρασμῶν καὶ τῶν περιστάσεων ταπείνωσις ὀνομάζεται. Μακαρίου τοίνυν ἐστὶν ἀνδρὸς τὸ γενέσθαι ἐν τῇ ταπεινώσει, καὶ μὴ ἀπολέσθαι· οἱονεὶ ἐλήλυθα εἰς πειρασμὸν μαρτυρίου· εἰ μὲν ὁ νόμος τοῦ Θεοῦ μελέτη μου ἦν ἀεὶ πρὸ τοῦ ἐμπεσεῖν, καὶ ἤσκουν