Commentary on Isaiah, Discourses 1–19

Commentary on Isaiah, Discourses 1–19

continued

Discourse 8

1 The vision which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw against Babylon. The vision against Babylon, and indeed also those that follow it, namely against the Idumeans and Moabites, and moreover the Egyptians, and in addition the others were made for the consolation of Israel; but they have a somewhat more historical rendering of the things signified, except that it is permitted to the more intelligent, as from a dense image even now to skillfully transform the clearest things that happened to the ancients into a spiritual contemplation; which the discourse, as it proceeds, will make the narrative for those who will encounter it, interpreting each of the written things as is possible. But I think it is necessary now also to go back to the beginning of the matter, and to first narrate the causes of the vision. For Israel, having been called through the all-wise Moses to the knowledge and worship of the God who truly is, and having a law that directs toward every single one of the wondrous things, neglected the commandment given to it, and turned to doctrines, the commandments of men, or rather, giving itself over to even worse things, it slipped into the pits of idolatry. At any rate, the God of all accused them through every prophet for choosing to do such things, and made a great outcry against its impiety. For He said: "This people draws near to me, with their lips they honor me; but their heart is far from me.

2 But in vain they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men. And again: "What has the beloved done in my house? An abomination. And He calls the idol an abomination. Therefore, having terribly strayed into outrageous wantonness, and turning their neck from slavery under God, and raising up their own arrogant disposition against Him, as it were, He delivered them up at times, sometimes to those inhabiting the neighboring country, I mean the Idumeans, and moreover the Moab- ites, the Egyptians and those from Philistia, and at other times bringing a more grievous blow upon them, He sent against them the most savage of those on earth, I mean, of course, the Babylonians, who, after ravaging the whole land of the Jews without toil, carried off a multitude greater than number as captives to their own land. But that these things would happen when they provoked the God of all, the blessed prophets foretold from time to time. But they, although what had already been announced to them had come to pass, were no less hard and disobedient, practicing an abominable and most lawless life. Therefore, most providentially, the God of all, after the blow and scourges and the things that had happened to them from their enemies from time to time, also makes the prediction of the most pleasant things and those that know how to bring joy;

3 and He promises that even those who had already become captives would return home He will prepare, and will release from the bonds of misery, and will also deliver those who formerly conquered into the hands of enemies. For it was surely very likely, even if they remained unadmonished by those things, that they would at least choose to rejoice in the second things, and being lifted up to the hope of the things they longed for, to honor the worship most dear to God, and to keep their mindset unshaken for Him. Since, therefore, although there were many who from time to time had sacked the country of the Jews, but the Chaldeans especially were harsher and more savage than the others, and those who had ruled Babylon from time to time, the word of prophecy as it were leaps upon them first and says: Raise a standard on a level mountain. But I think it is necessary, having chosen to make the rendering of the interpretation of the foregoing accurate, to first narrate some of the most necessary things. Therefore Cyrus, who was the son of Cambyses and his mother Mandane, having reigned over the Persians and Medes, campaigned against Babylon, and against the whole country of the Chaldeans, which was both wide and very large; and indeed he conquered it.

4 He took it not by his own powers, nor indeed being able to use a stronger hand (for the nation of the Chaldeans was something unconquerable and irresistible, both because of its multitude and because it was very well trained in tactics), but rather with God subjecting to him those who resisted, and shaking the impious powers of the Babylonians; because of the very great amount of sorcery among them; and the swarm of idols was beyond number; and indeed it has been named a land of graven images, either because of the multitude of idols, or because each of the inhabitants there was found to differ in no way from an idol, I mean, in respect to having uncontrollably and intemperately inclined towards error. Then, in addition to this, because after ravaging the holy land that had been allotted to God, that is, Judea, and burning Jerusalem and the divine temple itself, they carried off the sacred vessels to their own land, and using unrestrained wrath they killed Israel, although it was named a holy people, and a portion and inheritance of God. For that God delivered Israel, who had practiced idolatry, into the hands of enemies is not unclear to those knowledgeable in the sacred writings, but those called for this purpose punished immoderately. And indeed the God of all is found somewhere saying through the voice of Zechariah:

5 "I have been jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy, and with great wrath I am angry with the nations that are attacking, because while I was a little angry, they joined in for evil. And to Babylon he says: "I gave them into your hands, but you showed them no mercy. So then God delivered to Cyrus the arrogant and insolent one, the mother and nurse of all wickedness, I mean Babylon. And this would be made clear by what he says through Isaiah thus: "Thus says the Lord to my anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have held, that nations might hearken before him, and cities will not be shut; I will go before you and make mountains level. I will break in pieces the gates of bronze, and cut in sunder the bars of iron. And Cyrus, having conquered, released Israel from captivity, and commanded them to go home rejoicing, and indeed also to rebuild the divine temple. And so the prophet Jeremiah, "The word," he says, "that the Lord spoke against Babylon: Announce among the nations, and make it heard, and do not hide it. Say: Babylon is taken, Bel is put to shame, the undaunted, the delicate one. Merodach was delivered up, because a nation from the north has come up against it, he will lay her land waste, there shall be no one dwelling in it, from man to beast.

6 In those days, and in that time, the sons of Israel and the sons of Judah shall come together, walking and weeping they will go seeking their God; they will ask the way to Zion. For hither they will set their faces, and they will come, and will flee to the Lord. For the everlasting covenant will not be forgotten. And again: "Therefore thus says the Lord: Behold, I am taking vengeance upon the king of Babylon, and upon his land, as I took vengeance upon the king of Assur; and I will restore Israel to his pasture; and he shall feed on Carmel, and on Mount Ephraim, and in Gilead, and his soul shall be satisfied. Upon a level mountain lift up a standard, raise your voice to them, do not fear, beckon with the hand, open, you rulers. I give the command, and I lead them. They are consecrated, and I lead them. Giants are coming to fulfill my wrath, rejoicing and at the same time insolent. The blessed prophet, having his mind filled with the Holy Spirit, and being in visions of things, as if being written, he all but leaps up, crying out to the Persians and Medes, as to those who have already conquered the land of the Babylonians, to raise high the symbol of victory; for this, I think, is the standard;

7 and to shout against the army of the Chaldeans, as having already fallen and surrendered to them the arrogant and famous city, which the prophet Jeremiah also called the hammer of the earth, saying concerning the Babylonians: How is the hammer of the earth captured and broken? for every city and country was broken, struck in a way as if by some hammer, by their greed. And a level mountain, I think, he calls that which is, as it were, low to the ground, and on the order of a hill. For they do not ascend to the high parts of the mountains to set up the standards, that is, the trophies, or rather the sign, but on hills not very high, so that at the same time it might avoid being placed too high, and might be very well known to the whole army. Lift up, therefore, he says, a standard, as having already conquered with God as your champion. Raise your voice, that is, shout against the phalanx of the enemies, do not fear. For the hand of the Babylonians is admittedly terrible and irresistible to all everywhere, and no one would blame those who fear it. But now, do not fear, he says, since God is bringing forth his own wrath against their arrogance. Beckon with the hand. And what is this?

8 Perhaps it is a custom for the leaders of the troops to encourage with the hand, and to urge on the most warlike with nods, and to rouse them to attacks against certain ones, since the voice is unable to do this, being in a great tumult. Therefore he commands those in charge of affairs to make exhortations by means of hands and nods to the armies under their command, and to incite them to a certain invincible zeal. And again he cries out, "Open, you rulers. For either he commands the Babylonians themselves, as having already been conquered, to open the gates, and to surrender the city that was once arrogant and insolent; or perhaps also to the holy powers who, by God's command, fight alongside the Medes, and make smooth for them the chariot roads, though they are very difficult. And so that he might show the invincible hand of those fighting, he adds and says: I give the command and I lead them. For he all but says something like this: It was not a multitude of the Median army that came to you of its own accord, nor did the people of the Persians come solely of their own will; or perhaps rather I have also sanctified them for this purpose. And he says "I have sanctified" in this context, instead of "I have set apart" and, as it were, "I have chosen out" for the accomplishment of what I have planned against you.

9 Therefore, he says, those whom I lead are coming, like certain giants, to fulfill my wrath, rejoicing and at the same time being insolent; rejoicing, on the one hand, because they are confident that they will conquer; and being insolent, on the other hand, instead of "scorning" them as greatly afflicted with cowardice, and as being worthy of nothing. For such is always the barbarian mindset, prone to the hope of being able to conquer, and always belittling those who resist. For wrath especially commands them to this, and begets the desire for courage, to despise all danger and fears. A voice of many nations on the mountains like that of many nations, a voice of kings and of nations gathered together. The Lord of Sabaoth has commanded a nation of warriors to come from a land from afar from the edge of the foundation of heaven the Lord, and his warriors to destroy the whole inhabited world. As the Medes were already shouting, and raising a voice fitting for wars, like a horse neighing and some pursuing, while others were already turning to flight, and a great and motley echo was being scattered, "A voice," he says, "of many nations upon the mountains, like many nations. Not such a voice, he says, that one might guess the shouters to be few in number, but rather to think that the multitude of those crying out is beyond number. The account shows that along with their subjects, those destined to lead were struck with terror.

10 For he asserts that the voice is of nations and of kings. Therefore, the shouters would be the immense populace of the Babylonians, and with them the most distinguished, seeing their city already captured by the spear, or indeed, the Persians and Medes shouting over the captured. And them, I think, he also calls warriors, and a nation coming from a land far away; from the edge of the foundation of heaven, that is, from the very borders of Media, and from the innermost parts of the northernmost land. But since they were preparing the attack according to the will of God, he calls them the Lord's warriors, and says that they have been brought to destroy the whole inhabited world, and not indeed all of our world. For we shall not find this to have happened by Cyrus and those with him. But he calls the land of the Chaldeans the "inhabited world," because it was very great and immeasurably wide, and as it were, vied with the inhabited world, on account of the multitude of its inhabitants. Wail; for the day of the Lord is near, and destruction will come from God. For this reason every hand will be paralyzed, and every soul of man will be faint-hearted. And the ambassadors will be troubled, and pangs will seize them, as of a woman in labor; and they will cry in sorrow to one another, and they will be astonished, and their face they will change as a flame.

11 As all hope has been taken away, as nothing is any longer left for the Babylonians, except only the need to lament, he says, "wail. And he commands them, as it were, to despair of their salvation, and not to attempt unprofitable things, not preparing for resistance, as divine wrath has been armed against them, and destruction brought upon them by a decree from above. And the matter is completely irresistible; "For who shall turn back the high hand? as it is written. And again; "If he should shut a man up, who will open? For what strength, or of whom at all, will war against God? For this reason he says, that every hand will be paralyzed, and every soul of man will be faint-hearted; for when the all-powerful God shakes the souls of men into cowardice, who will instill courage, or, show him to be of good courage, and sufficiently disposed for resistance? And he says the ambassadors will be troubled, and will fall into pangs like a woman in labor, and that one will cry in sorrow to another, and indeed will be astonished, and that their face will change as a flame.

12 And ambassadors, I think, he says, are the priests of the idols, those most distinguished in the magical art among the Babylonians, the ministers of the demons, who, as was likely, when the attack of the Medes was being prepared and the arrival of Cyrus with the Persians was expected, were divining favorable things, and were calling for aid from the demons, offering up prayers and bringing the customary gifts, rites that is and the profane sacrifices, and promising to intercede on behalf of the whole country. These then, he says, the ministers and suppliants of the demons, who perform the sacrifices on behalf of all, when they see their affairs turned contrary to their expectations, will both be troubled and will be in bitter pangs, and they will cry in sorrow to one another, that is, they will cry out to each other things as from unmitigated disaster, "woe," clearly, and similar things. And they will change their face as if by a flame. For somehow the face of the disheartened a face to be blackened, so as to seem to be nothing other than soot and the remains of withered ashes. For behold, the day of the Lord, incurable, comes with fury and wrath, to make the whole world desolate, and to destroy the sinners from it. For the stars of heaven, and Orion and all the host of heaven will not give their light; and it will be darkened at the sun’s rising, and the moon will not give its light.

13 And I will command evils for the whole world, and their sins for the ungodly; and I will destroy the insolence of the lawless, and I will humble the insolence of the proud. In these words he openly tries to teach what the reason is for the rulers to meet each other in misfortune, and for their face to change as if from a flame. For since, as I said, they were divining things according to their own wishes, for themselves and for all the Babylonians, but they have missed their hope; for this reason, he says, they will also be full of dejection. For an incurable day is upon them, which the Lord of all brings upon them; and again he names as "day" the time in which the divine and unadmonished wrath occurred, so that the land of the Chaldeans was made desolate, and the sinners were destroyed from it. And it is not at all as if there were some there who are placed outside the wrath because they are good, that he says the sinners will be destroyed; rather, the name would reasonably fit all those who inhabit the land of the Chaldeans, because all are wicked and idolaters.

14 But since the greatness of calamities at times all but fills the human mind with darkness and mist, so that even when it is day the light of the sun seems to be absent, and to be somehow ineffective, I mean in its ability to shine, and all the host of heaven, and the orb of the moon itself; for this reason he says: For the stars of heaven, and Orion, and all the host of heaven will not give their light; and the Babylonians will be darkened, that is, the mind of the Babylonians; and while the sun is rising, and the moon is shining, although the elements have not withdrawn their light, but as if from great terror and being subjected to the divine wrath, they have night and darkness in their mind. And I will command, he says, evils for the whole world. The phrase, I will command, he says, is instead of, I will threaten, or rather I will command to be brought, so as both to take down the insolence of the lawless, and to humble the proud, that is, the arrogant. For the nation of the Assyrians has always been somehow arrogant and most insolent, and in addition to this, hateful to God. For among them nothing of what is best was honored, but rather everything that is by nature grievous to the God of all.

15 But it must be known that those who interpreted the divine Scripture have made mention of Orion, signifying by it one of the most prominent stars, and they do not say such things by completely following the trifles of the Greeks, but rather they used the name according to custom, just as, of course, it is also written in Job: "Who makes Pleiades and Hesperus and Arcturus and the chambers of the South. And those who are left will be more precious than unrefined gold; and a man will be more precious than the stone from Souphir. In these words "precious" is what is sought. He says, therefore, that the land of the Babylonians, and indeed the whole land of the Assyrians, will be so depopulated, that those living in it will become hard to find, and the scarcity of those who are left will be as great as that of Indian stones and of the most tested gold. For such things seem to some to be precious, because they are exceedingly hard to procure, and indeed because they are few, and scarce. Therefore, just as, he says, the things admired by men are hard to procure, both precious stones and unrefined gold, that is, the most tested, so will the survivors from the war be few and scarce, who have escaped the throng of those who fought.

16 For the heaven will be angered, and the earth will be shaken from its foundations, because of the fury of the wrath of the Lord Sabaoth in the day when his wrath comes upon them. The blessed prophets speak hyperbolically, and receiving in their mind the divine and ineffable power and glory, they raise their voices on high, and invent extraordinary magnitudes for their narratives. But always, when God is angry, the servant creation is also sharpened to anger, since the one who commands all things certainly arouses it to this. And so He was angry with the Egyptians, and creation did not tolerate being inactive. For the water was changed into blood, and the earth brought forth frogs, as it is written, and the heaven sent down hail; and indeed a deep and three-day darkness was scattered over all their land. Therefore, he says, the heaven itself will be angered, and the earth will be shaken as if from its foundations, because of the fury of the Lord's wrath. For creation wars alongside against the foolish, and when the Master is grieved, it itself is, as it were, marshalled for this purpose. For all things concur with the supreme will, and there is nothing among beings that does not yield, even unwillingly, to the divine nods. And they that are left shall be as a fleeing gazelle, and as a wandering sheep, and there will be none to gather them, so that a man may turn to his people, and a man pursue his own country.

17 For whoever is caught will be overcome, and those who are gathered together shall fall by the sword, and their children they shall dash in pieces before their eyes, and they shall plunder their houses and take their wives. He says that those who are left will be very few in number, but even they will be unmanly and most unwarlike, and broken by cowardice to such an extent that they choose to do nothing else but only to flee, like a gazelle, and to be saved without honor, he says, and to renounce completely even just rising up against the calamities from the enemies. And that they will remain without a leader and without a ruler, although they are few in number, he implies by saying, that they will be as a wandering sheep, deprived of the shepherd's gentleness, and going somewhere outside the pasture, so as to be far from their accustomed folds. For there will be none, he says, to gather them, so that a man may turn to his own people, and a man pursue his own country. But "pursue," he says, is instead of "hasten," although their country is dear to all, and nothing is better than their ancestral dwellings. But even the deprivation of things so very dear to them is pleasant, he says, because everyone who is captured is immediately destroyed ... ... but the prophetic word affirms that something else will also happen, of the things most apt to cause pain.

18 For their children, he says, they will dash in pieces before their eyes, and they will plunder their houses, and they will take their wives. What could be more grievous for parents than the slaughter of their children? or how is it not more unbearable than any torment, to see one's houses plundered, and the modesty of one's wives violated, and subjected to the licentiousness of the conquerors? The blessed psalmist also mentions something of this kind somewhere. For when speaking about the Babylonians, "Blessed," he says, "is he who shall take and dash your infants against the rock. But these things indeed happened historically to the land of the Assyrians, and to the cities and regions in it, because they were all idolaters and unbearably arrogant, and terrible fighters against God, and skilled in the art of magic. They also sacked the holy city, and having ravaged the inheritance of God, that is, Israel, and placing them in the lot of the spear-won, they placed on them the unaccustomed yoke of slavery. And the discourse concerning these things will stand, not only in the things according to history alone and in what has clearly happened;

19 but it is rather possible for those who wish to understand it also spiritually, if they would skillfully transfer the force of what has happened to the very inventor of all wickedness, the God-hated and most cruel one, I mean, Satan, especially since the word of the prophecy, having brought forward the mystery of Christ and having made the address concerning him very well, has introduced as a neighbor the vision against Babylon, as it were, of the sharpening the mind of the listeners to what is needful to understand, and spiritually the things that happened historically, concerning both Babylon itself, and indeed also concerning the whole land of the Assyrians. The apostate dragon, therefore, has never yet ceased plotting in many ways against those who serve God, but he presses on very vigorously, always overthrowing for what seems good to him, and he very often carries them off, as if taking them captive, and casts them into the pits of passions, and imposing on them as it were a terrible and inescapable yoke of slavery, he exults over those he has taken, and boasts, just as, of course, the successive kings of the Assyrians rejoiced over those from Israel, because having been outside their own land and the holy city, they were enslaved to foreigners. But the tyranny of the devil did not prevail forever over those who had been seized. For the sign of the Savior has been raised, that is, we have dedicated songs of victory to the one who conquered for us and on our behalf;

20 and we have made the confession of the right faith. For this, I think, is, *Lift up your voice*. And the Lord is commanded to come to a warring nation, clearly that of the saints, for whom the battle and the war is not against flesh and blood, but rather against principalities and powers, and the world-rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Who both fought back and have conquered, and they prevail even now, and they besiege the host of the opposing powers, and they have sacked idolatry like a city, which was formerly terrible and invincible. And they have triumphed over their adversaries as if Christ were their general, and the holy angels were fighting alongside them, so that those who still revere their dominions are completely few in number, and they are pitiful and unmanly and terrified, and have completely given up resistance, I mean, against those who serve Christ. And running through the vision and what follows of the things set forth, let everyone who is intelligent, and able to understand a parable and a dark saying, and the sayings of the wise and their riddles, gather knowledge of some such spiritual contemplation. Behold, I am stirring up against you the Medes, who do not reckon silver, nor have they need of gold. They will shatter the bows of the young men, and they will not have mercy on your children, nor will their eyes spare your children.

21 And Babylon, which is called Glorious by the kings of the Chaldeans, will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. It will not be inhabited for all time; nor will they enter it for many generations, nor will Arabs pass through it, nor will shepherds rest in it. In these things, then, he makes the prediction of the war most clear, and having removed the obscurity which had been cast like a shadow over the words, he sets the impending disaster naked and openly and as if in sight. For the Medes will come, he says, they will come, not overcome by money nor having thought of bribery from you, but rather being superior in due season, and to the things most earnestly set before them, so that they will shatter the bows of the young men. For if one were to consider the raids of the Barbarians, which might happen against regions or cities, he will find them done for no other reason than for the sake of plundering, and of making a collection of incidental wealth. But the Medes, he says, will be superior to gains, and they will be unsparing of profits, in order to bring down the pride of the Babylonians. For they always had great pride in their archery, and they held their success in these things in high regard. But they will be inferior to their enemies.

22 And the conquerors will be so harsh and pitiless, as to show no mercy for a tender age, nor indeed, for infants perishing piteously, to shed a tear from gentleness. And Babylon, which is called Glorious by the king of the Chaldeans, will for this reason, he says, depart into desolation, so as in no way to be to endure the lot of the burned Sodom and Gomorrah; and it will also be uninhabited; and so to be fled from also by its neighbors, as a nation from afar roams around it, so that not even shepherds from Arabia pasture any of their own flocks in it; because of its being utterly desolated. But it must be known that he calls the nations of the Saracens, who extend as far as the Assyrians and inhabit the innermost desert, "Arabs. For they have the land of the Arabs as a neighbor. And it is likely indeed that the Saracens from Arabia themselves also wander mixed through the deserts of the Assyrians. And wild beasts shall rest there, and the houses shall be filled with sound. And sirens shall rest there, and demons shall dance there. And onocentaurs shall dwell there, and hedgehogs shall make their nests in their houses. It comes quickly, and it will not delay.

23 It is somehow always the custom for the untamed of animals to make their dwelling in deserted places, and a ruined city provides them with very many, and indeed broad, lairs, both naturally roofed and hastily made, and, as it were, found automatically from what has happened; and in deserts and in the silent places, a certain faint echo, as if from the excessive silence, I know not how, arises and enters the ears of those who are at rest. Therefore, wild beasts will rest, he says, and the houses will be filled with sound; that is, having no inhabitant at all, they will possess the echo that is fitting for desolate places. And demons will dance there, he says. For they say that these also somehow have a particular love for quiet places, and make them a leisurely encampment, as it were. And by "sirens," I think, he means the birds that know how to sing well, or, according to the Hebrew version, the owl. And he has named the wild asses "onocentaurs"; and indeed hedgehogs, which are the mice that bristle as it were with sharp spines. And all these things would be fittingly in cities or houses that are utterly desolate. And to these things he adds that "it comes quickly, and will not delay. Either injecting a more bitter care into the Assyrians, that is, making the matter no small consolation for those of the blood of Israel.

24 For since they were in captivity, and indeed were expecting to be released when Cyrus campaigned against the Babylonians together with the Persians and Medes, he promises them a swift release from their sorrows, and that the things in their prayers would not be for a long postponement, but would, as it were, run at the heels of his word. And the Lord will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and they shall rest upon their land, and the proselyte shall be added to them. And he shall be added to the house of Jacob; and nations shall take them, and bring them into their place. And they shall inherit them, and be multiplied upon the land of God, for male slaves and for female slaves; and they that took them captive shall be captives, and they that had rule over them shall be ruled over; and it shall be in that day, that God will give you rest from your pain and your anger, and from the harsh slavery in which you served them. He brings back to a good hope those of the blood of Israel who have suffered, and with good promises he restores them to good cheer, who were unbearably burdened by the greed of their captors. For that they will come up from captivity, and will cast off the yoke of unaccustomed slavery, once Babylon has been sacked, and indeed the entire land of the Assyrians, he has clearly foretold. For Israel shall not be utterly cast off, he says;

25 nor will he undergo endless punishments for his trespasses; but the chosen one will be shown mercy and will catch his breath in due season; and since, you see, he has been set as the firstborn among children, he will obtain visitation and good will from God. And that they will return to the land that bore them, he says, and that the proselyte will also go up with them. And by "proselyte" he means the native and aboriginal, that is, the Babylonian; for very many of the Babylonians followed those from Israel, some having kinship with them, and others having inclined to the worship according to the law. For since for a long time they have completed their time in captivity, it is likely of course that no small multitude of the natives has been added to them. The proselyte, it says, will be added to them, that is, the native also will follow and accompany them. And nations shall take them, and bring them into their own place. For when Cyrus released Israel, he commanded the rulers of the regions to escort them unharmed and unmolested. And he who succeeded him to the scepter of the Assyrians also did this; this was Xerxes. It is possible for those who wish to investigate such things to come upon the books of Ezra, and to obtain the most unerring knowledge on all that has been said.

26 For they went up from the land of the Assyrians to Judea, while Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, who was of the tribe of Judah, was administering the kingdom, and Jesus the son of Jozadak the great priest was leading the sacred order. Nations, then, will escort them, he says, and bring them into their own land, and they will possess the inheritance allotted to them from above. And what is even more paradoxical, those who were once worshippers of idols, who invoke many and countless gods, will be multiplied on the land of God, as male and female slaves, and they shall be captives, who had taken them captive. For those who took Israel captive, being brought back together with him, and having arrived, he says, in Judea, will place their neck under the yokes of the law, and as if having endured a noble and saving captivity, they will acknowledge as Lord and God the Creator of all. For either this, he says, or it wishes perhaps to make that clear, that those who formerly conquered and carried Israel away from Judea, and placed them under their own yokes, will be ruled over and taken captive, by Cyrus, of course, since the Persians and Medes have taken them. For in that day, that is, at that time, you will be relieved from your pain and your anger; that is, from the wrath hanging over you, the divine wrath, of course; for you will escape the bitter slavery, and you will be relieved from your labors.

27 But come now again, transforming as far as possible the thickness of the history, let us observe such an event in spiritual contemplation. For they were captives, devoted to the worship of idols, and revering the powers of the one who had taken advantage of them. But the Creator of all had mercy on them as ones who had been wronged, and sent to us from heaven a redeemer, his own Son, in the name of the Lord, that is, not as one of the holy prophets, but in the glory of lordship; who also sacked, as it were, a boastful and insolent city, with his armed champions fighting alongside him, that is, the holy apostles; who, having laid waste to the whole region of the devil, as it were, brought back with them, as to a holy city, the spiritual Jerusalem, I mean the Church, those who had been deceived and held in the yoke of slavery, who also were multiplied in the land of God, and became male and female slaves. But those who before held them under their hand and as captives, that is, the worshipers of demons, and those teaching their customs, and snaring them for destruction, have become captives, that is, they have been conquered by the preaching of the holy apostles, and have been made subject to Christ; for he gained dominion over them when they, of course, accepted the faith. For they also rested from the harsh slavery, in which they had previously served, before coming under the Lord, and his armed champions.

28 And you will take up this lament over the king of Babylon, and you will say in that day: How the exactor has ceased, and the oppressor has ceased! God has broken the yoke of the sinners, the yoke of the rulers; striking a nation in anger, with an incurable blow, striking a nation with a blow of wrath, and he did not spare, he rested, confident. To such a point of harshness, he says, did the misfortunes of the war drive the Babylonians, and Nebuchadnezzar himself, that he was pitied by his enemies, and those who, having suffered unbearable things, would have been likely almost to dance upon him as he lay prostrate, these out of of a reversal of fortune, and finally to feel pain, and to come to pity at the multitude of things that have happened to them, that is, also to lament in another way those who have fallen, and not at all pitying them, but rather rejoicing, and mocking those seized beyond expectation. And He weaves for them a lamentation and gives them a song befitting what has happened. For you will say, he says, How has the exacter ceased? He says "he has ceased" euphemistically, instead of, "he has perished and has an end. And he calls the Babylonian an exacter and an oppressor, who from excessive arrogance, did not impose the yoke of his own greed only on his neighbors, but indeed in the very distant cities and lands, sending out tax-collectors, he demanded tributes and taxes.

29 Therefore they marvel how such a one has ceased, and the hand that grasped everything has stopped. And that they have not been ignorant of the reasons for his fall, they show by saying: God has broken the yoke of the sinners, the yoke of the rulers. Do you hear how he calls them rulers, attributing to them an arrogant mindset? For they were attacking, as I said, all, so to speak, those throughout the whole earth, bringing them under their own yokes. And to rule was sometimes at the same time also their aim. But God, he says, struck the arrogant race, that is, having struck the nation with an incurable plague. But he who trusted in himself greatly and was proud, and did not cease willingly, that is, has gone to the end most fitting for him, having endured an incurable plague of wrath, with all mercy removed. But it would be fitting for us ourselves to say these things, and as it were to shout in triumph over Satan, who exacts and oppresses, and very bitterly. For he assails the mind of each, turning it away from the best and good pursuits, those in piety and righteousness I mean, and as if with force carrying it off to what seems good to him; and like a bitter tribute collector, seeking from each a diligence for sin. But the Savior broke the yoke of sinners, having cast that one off, and rather bringing us under His own yokes, and having struck a nation with an incurable plague.

30 And what nation? Or surely that of the demons, whom he also commanded to go into the abyss? And indeed he also inflicted very grievous torments; and so they cried out, saying: "Ah, what have we to do with you, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come here before the time to destroy us. The whole earth cries out with gladness, and the trees of Lebanon rejoiced over you, and the cedar of Lebanon: Since you were laid to rest, no one has come up to cut us down. This is also part of the lament. And as far as the historical account is concerned, there was gladness in all the earth, since the land of the Assyrians was sacked, and the oppressor had ceased, who demanded from all that they must be subject to him, whom the prophetic word also calls trees of Lebanon: those who were surely in authority and in power among the nations, likening them to cedars. However, like a woodcutter, Nebuchadnezzar, shaking them down, subjected them to his own yokes. The cedars therefore, he says, rejoicing over you, say: Since you were laid to rest, no one has come up to cut us down. But if someone should wish to apply such a saying only to those of Israel, he will understand it thus. Lebanon is a very great mountain in the land of the Phoenicians, full of cedars and frankincense trees, both thick and well-wooded;

31 therefore the divinely inspired Scripture very often compares it to the land of the Jews, because of the many most distinguished men in it in both power and glory, and indeed there are others who are raised on high by the boasts of the priesthood and are, as it were, most fragrant. And so the prophet Zechariah, comparing Judaea to Lebanon; and those in it to cedars, oaks, and pines. and the Roman army to an all-consuming fire, which after the cross of the Savior burned up their whole country. Thus he says: "Open your doors, O Lebanon, And let fire devour your cedars. Wail, pine, because the cedar has fallen. Wail, oaks of Bashan, because the native forest was torn down. Therefore let the word be of the Jews as from the trees of Lebanon rejoicing and saying to the Babylonian and those around him: Since you have fallen asleep, the one who cuts us down has not come up. And he has very wittily remained in the trope of the speech. For since the voice came as if from the trees of Lebanon, for this reason they say, "The one who cuts us down has not come up. For after the return from Babylon of those of Israel, the war from the Assyrians was no longer waged against them. And we too shall rightly say to Satan, we who were once ravaged by him, but have now obtained a steadfast mind in Christ, and a mind secure and rooted in piety, and a most flourishing heart:

32 Since you have fallen asleep, the one who cuts us down has not come up. Hades below was embittered on meeting you; all the giants who ruled the earth were roused against you, those who raised up from their thrones all the kings of the nations. All will answer and say to you: You too have been captured just as we were; you have been counted among us; your glory has descended into Hades, your great gladness. Beneath you they will spread decay, and your covering will be the worm. It is a custom for the divinely inspired Scripture at times to personify, and, as it were, to apply voices to the things themselves, as is the case with, "Be ashamed, Sidon, the sea has said; and the strength of the sea has said: I have not travailed, nor given birth, nor nourished young men, nor raised up virgins. For he applies this speech to the city of the Tyrians, which was at times ravaged by the Babylonians; and we say that the speech is fitting to the nature of the things. Thus also the prophet Micah somewhere introduced Jerusalem saying to Babylon: "Do not rejoice over me, my enemy, for I have fallen and I shall rise again. Because if I sit in darkness, the Lord will give me light; I will bear the wrath of the Lord, because I have sinned against him, until he pleads my cause; and he will execute my judgment, and will bring me out to the light.

33 I shall see his righteousness, and my enemy shall see it, and shame will cover her who says to me: Where is the Lord your God? My eyes shall look upon her; now she shall be for trampling like mud in the streets on a day of plastering brick; your destruction is that day. On which, clearly, Cyrus and the Medes mixed with Persians captured the city of the Babylonians. Therefore, the blessed prophet no less personifies now; and he says that Hades was provoked, that is, embittered, meeting him as he descended. And observe for me the economy of the speech. For through this he shows that he was murderous and full of blood, so that almost all of Hades, that is, those who are in Hades, became the work of his inherent cruelty. For the boaster did not cease utterly mowing down nations and kings, and filling Hades with wretched souls. All the giants, therefore, he says, that is, those who became distinguished in strength, and ruled many nations, but were slain by you, will answer and say, "You too have been captured just as we were. For you were a man, they say, but you did not deign to know and consider this;

34 nor would you have thought that there would be someone stronger than your arrogance and your irresistible hand, and you have perhaps not placed it outside of hope that some are even stronger than death, but the Median sword has with difficulty and unwillingly persuaded you to learn by its experience that you too were like us. And so you have been captured, just as we were. Your glory has descended into Hades, instead of, it was extinguished by death; and the unsmiling power of corruption has been brought upon you. He will see your gladness, having with difficulty put it out of the way. Decay will be spread beneath you, and the worm will become your garment. And this is a common thing. For once human bodies have suffered death, decay and the worm will certainly follow. Yet it is well said of him, as in the order of bitter reproaches. For those who have fallen into forgetfulness of their own weakness, and from excessive arrogance, not even expecting that they will suffer human things, would be reproached Reasonably; as having barely learned by suffering them the things which, had they known, they should have chosen to think more moderately. Therefore, he says, the one who has reveled in fading and royal luxuries, will lie together with the others without a shroud, and deemed worthy of none of the customary rites for the dead. How has the Morning Star, that rises early, fallen from heaven? He that sends to all the nations has been crushed to the earth?

35 The Morning Star is one of the most illustrious of stars; it rises a little before dawn, and is, as it were, a forerunner of the sun's gleam. That it shines with a rich light, this very fact of its appearing shortly before dawn would show. For as long as the ethereal body is still dark, with the night all but shivering, and the darkness being at its height, the stars in the heaven have a more conspicuous radiance; but when day is near, and the solar disk is, as it were, on the first extremities of the horizon, the light of each somehow contracts, yielding to the superior one, and is overcome by the greater brightness. So abundant is the light of the Morning Star, that it appears even at dawn, and makes its appearance somehow neighboring the rays of the sun. He therefore compares the Babylonian to the Morning Star, because of his prominence over others, and because no one among those in power and in kingdoms was seen to be like him; and because he was so illustrious and conspicuous, as the Morning Star might be thought of among all the other stars. But he who was suffused with such glory, he says, and lifted on high, and made brilliant with unconquerable renown, how did he fall as from heaven? and was he crushed to the earth as one who sends to all the nations? But the phrase "sending," instead of "commanding," he says, or in another manner.

36 For it always seemed somehow to the tyrants of the Babylonians to bring every nation of men under their own hand, and for all lands to come under the yoke of slavery. Sending therefore to all the nations, they would demand a clod of earth, and water in a vessel, as though seeking the whole from a part, I mean both land and sea, as if they were lords of all. But you said in your mind: I will ascend into heaven, I will set my throne above the stars of heaven, I will sit on a high mountain, upon the high mountains toward the north, I will ascend above the clouds, I will be like the Most High. Now you shall go down to Hades, and to the foundations of the earth. Those who see you will marvel at you, and will say: Is this the man that provokes the whole earth, that shakes kings, that made the whole world a wilderness, and destroyed its cities? He did not release those who were in captivity. He says that he was caught in unexpected calamities, and had associated with things paradoxical beyond hope, and through these events themselves he barely learned that he was a man, and similar to those who died before him. For as far as it came to words of arrogance, and to a God-hated mindset, and full of extreme presumption;

37 It seemed to you, he says, to concede little to the heights of divine pre-eminence, you somehow expected, perhaps, that heaven itself would be accessible to you, and that your seat would rival the highest thrones; you thought ignorantly, that you were some equal to God and above creation; you seemed to be above the clouds, and to sit upon the very stars. But you were caught having thought such things in vain. The outcome of events exposed your foolish counsel; for you will go down into Hades, and into the foundations of the earth. And he says these things, so that he might perhaps indicate the lowest place, that is, the outer darkness. And you will be a marvel to those who see, he says, and quite reasonably. For sudden reversals, especially those beyond hope, astound those who behold them. And what is the marvel, and how would the speech about him come to be; For they will say, Is this the man? Having suffered, they barely call him a man; perhaps formerly having been afraid to say this; But is this the man, who provokes the whole earth, shakes kings, who made the whole world a wilderness, and destroyed its cities? they have marveled reasonably, if one man stirred up the whole world under heaven, shook kings, rendered the inhabited world desolate of its inhabitants, and also overthrew the cities. And what else besides these, He did not release those under affliction? But since some of the copies have:

38 Those led away, if someone should wish to understand it thus, we shall say that the name of "leading away" would signify the captivity and the removal of those from Israel. For they were carried away from Judea to the land of the Assyrians. But if indeed the holy scripture says those under affliction, you will understand no less, that it means those who are under the infliction of the Lord's wrath. For wrath was brought upon them because of great sin. Nebuchadnezzar did not release, that is, he did not remit their misery. For it was necessary, it was necessary for the sinner to be seen not only as a braggart, but also as a fighter against God, and as one who has sacked the land, and as harsh, and unmerciful, and in no way knowing how to pity those who are in extreme calamities and have fared wretchedly. And one might also very fittingly apply to the head of the one who shattered all things, I mean of the arch-evil dragon, the things that were spoken historically. For he was an exactor and a zealous pursuer, in the ways we have already mentioned; but he has ceased, and has been removed from the midst, as God struck him down with a plague of incurable wrath, and he stopped cutting, like some strong woodcutter, the spiritual cedars, of which the blessed David also makes mention, saying to the God of all: "The cedars of Lebanon which you have planted.

39 And since the wretch has gone down to Hades, surely condemned, there being consumed by the all-devouring flame, the evil powers under him have marveled, as is likely, that he suffered this, and perhaps have also lamented, saying: You too have been captured just as we, and you have been counted among us, and the things that follow this. For indeed, as far as glory is concerned, he was distinguished among angels, and conspicuous among the powers above, just as Lucifer is among the stars. But he fell and was shattered, having thought arrogant things, and having dared to seize the honor and glory that befit only the supreme nature, as far as the power of his undertakings and the mind within him were concerned. But as the prophet says: He has gone down to Hades, and to the foundations of the earth, he who once shook all the earth, who made the world like a desert; for he rendered the world under heaven desolate of the true knowledge of God, and having absolutely no worker of virtue. And he did not release those under affliction. But the Lord has granted this to those who trust in him, having said "to those in bonds: Go forth, and to those in darkness: Be revealed. And indeed also to those who have come under divine wrath for having transgressed the divine laws, forgetting their offenses he has forgiven their charges, and has released from punishment those who through human weakness have been subject to many stumblings.

40 All the kings of the nations have slept in honor, each man in his own house, but you will be cast out on the mountains like a loathsome corpse with many dead who have been pierced with swords, going down to Hades. From what has happened, he says, he at times shows his calamity to be more grievous; and what I said is true; unless indeed it happened that the others met with the same fate, one so conspicuous and proud and raised up by incomparable excellences as to seem to be placed on high. For they have fallen asleep, he says, not without honor, nor indeed somewhere outside of the dwellings most dear to them. But you, completely deprived of these things, will lie on the mountains, loathsome and cast out, that is, stinking and unpleasant to see. For what could be more loathsome than a dead body that has no shroud? Therefore you will lie together with the others who have become the work of the Median sword, with no one having lamented over you, nor shed the tear that follows the dead, nor honored you with burial rites; but so pitiful and cast out as to differ in no way from the others, who came under your hand and were utterly insignificant. And it is necessary to know that the lament will stop at this point. In the same way that a garment stained with blood is no longer clean, so you also will not be clean;

41 because my land you have destroyed, and you have killed my people, you shall not remain for all time. The most grievous of impieties are both hard to wash away, and one might behold them ingrained like some dye in those who have committed them. Indeed, it shows that they have done things worthy of the indignation that has reached its end, and worthy of a punishment commensurate with their offenses. Therefore you will not be freed, he says, from your trespasses, nor will you become clean, and worthy of pity. But you will be so defiled, and have the indelible crime of blood-guilt, just as, indeed, a garment stained with blood. For you have destroyed the holy land, and you have killed the people apportioned to me; "For when the Most High divided," he says, "the nations, when he scattered the sons of Adam, he set the boundaries of the nations, according to the number of the angels of God; and Jacob his people became the Lord's portion, Israel the measure of his inheritance. It is a terrible thing, then, to rise up against the land of the Lord, that is, the Church, and to carry out the audacities of blood-guilt, against the people apportioned to Christ. For he will in no way be clean, who is caught in such outrageous crimes. But one might say, I think, having considered the disasters upon Judea, and upon Jerusalem itself;

42 Did the tyrant of the Babylonians come of his own accord, and campaign against the land of the Jews, and capture the holy city, without God allowing him to do this, or rather, without God having given it to him? And yet, does not the prophet Isaiah himself say to us? that "The Lord will whistle for the flies, that rule a part of the river of Egypt, and for the bee, which is in the land of the Assyrians, and they will all come, and will rest in the valleys of the land, and in the clefts of the rocks, and in the caves, and in every ravine, and on every tree. How then did the Babylonian, having served the divine commands, have an indelible crime, and has been so terribly punished, that nothing is seen beyond the wrath brought upon him? Yes, and very reasonably so. For the God of all willed to convict Israel for having inclined to apostasy, and with measured tortures to persuade them to return to their accustomed worship, I mean that of the Law. But he, although brought for this purpose, was relentless like a wild beast, and gave his passions unbridled rein, and indeed is accused by God who says clearly: "I was jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy, and with great anger I am angry against the nations that joined in the attack; because I was angry a little, but they joined in for evil.

43 And just as He raised up Pharaoh, being a vessel of wrath and anger and already subject to punishment for his own failings, as He Himself says, that He might show in him both His own power and the precision of His just judgment; so you will understand it also in the case of the Babylonians. For being vessels of wrath, and rightly deserving to be punished, they were brought against Jerusalem; so that, having chastised Israel, they themselves afterwards might be required to pay the penalty most fitting and suitable for them. Evil seed, prepare your children to be slaughtered for the sins of your father, that they may not rise up and fill the earth with wars. And I will rise up against them, says the Lord of Sabaoth, and I will destroy their name, and remnant, and seed. Nebuchadnezzar indeed committed terrible deeds against every nation, and those after him and descended from him, up to Belshazzar, following the perversities of their father, surpassed his deeds, and they became cruel and harsh against every nation, and they lorded it over Israel, even though they were held in captivity and under the yoke of slavery. And they had such great pride, even against the very glory of God, that the wicked Belshazzar, while making a feast for his nobles, brought forth the holy vessels, and drank from them with his concubines and his wives, at which time a knuckle of a hand came forth, as Daniel says, and made a writing on the wall: Mene, Tekel, Peres;

44 which indeed also was interpreted- the divine Daniel, indicating, said that his kingdom had been divided, and given to the Medes and Persians. They say, therefore, that the race of Nebuchadnezzar, and indeed that of Belshazzar, was destroyed root and branch at that time, so that absolutely no one of their blood might ascend after them to the thrones of the kingdom among them. This, I think, the prophetic word shows through the things set before us. For see how the divine wrath has proceeded against all the evil seed. For "Prepare," he says, "your children to be slaughtered for the sins of your father. For since the fathers have become impious, the whole race that was to be from them has ceased. For what reason? "That they may not rise up," he says, "and inherit the earth, and fill the earth with wars; that is, so that they might not, following the arrogance of their fathers, and becoming zealous for ancestral impiety, fill the earth with war, just as they indeed did, and become its lords. "And I will rise up against them," says the Lord of Sabaoth, "and I will destroy their name and remnant, and seed. For just as to those of the kings of Israel who pleased him; God promised that sons to the fourth generation would sit on their thrones, extending the blessing also to the race that would be from them; so also of those who have become excessively impious he cuts off the increase of their race.

45 For the impious, he says, will be destroyed root and branch from the earth. Let him hear, then, even the enemy of all, the inventor of sin, and the one who has become for us the cause of all evils; "Just as a garment stained in blood will not be clean, so also you will not be clean, because you have destroyed my land, and you have slain my people. For he was not content with having moved the origin of our race to transgression, but indeed also to lead astray from God all that is under heaven, and having removed man on earth from love for him, he declared him his own worshipper, and cast him into the pits of destruction. Therefore he will not be clean, nor has he remained for all time; for he has not held power over the wronged forever, with God restraining his greed, and checking the impulses of his wickedness against us. For he has perished together with his own children, that is, with the unclean demons; for they were an evil seed. They have perished, cast down to Tartarus in chains of darkness, as the disciple of the Savior says, so that they might not rise up and inherit the earth, and fill the earth with wars. For they have been cast out from their tyranny over us, and Christ has become our peace. For as the blessed Paul writes: "The peace of Christ, which surpasses all understanding, will guard our hearts and our thoughts.

46 In what way it happened that they suffered this, the God of all himself will make clear to us, saying: "And I will rise up against them," says the Lord of Sabaoth, "and I will destroy their name, and remnant, and seed. Thus says the Lord: "And I will make Babylonia a desert, so that hedgehogs may dwell there, and it will be for nothing; and I will make it a pit of mire for destruction. This saying set before us seems to be a very brief summary of the things spoken at length. For it shows nothing else, except surely this, that the land of the Babylonians will be utterly desolate of men, but full of animals, for whom the wilderness is a beloved dwelling-place. And since it has, as is likely, a great rush of waters, and they say a river also cuts it in two, it has happened that with no one diverting the flow of the streams to the places where it was fitting for them to go, the water is scattered over the whole area, and forms a multitude of marshes, so that what was once brilliant and renowned, both queen of the others, and named most glorious, has become a pit of mire and, for those who fall in, for destruction. Thus says the Lord of Sabaoth: "In the way that I have spoken, so it shall be; and in the way that I have planned, so it shall remain, to destroy the Assyrians upon my land, and upon my mountains;

47 and they shall be for trampling, and there shall be taken away from them the their yoke; and their glory will be taken away from their shoulders. The blessed Isaiah indeed prophesies in the reign of Uzziah, and Jotham, and Ahaz, and Hezekiah; and he seems to make these speeches, which are against Babylon, I say, or even the whole land of the Assyrians; while Uzziah, who is also Azariah, was still alive and holding the royal honor in his hands. But since Sennacherib the Assyrian marched against Judea during the reign of Hezekiah, and although he took many cities of Samaria, he was convicted by the hand of God, even as he assailed Jerusalem itself; for in one night one hundred and eighty-five thousand of the foreigners died, consumed by the hand of an angel; for this reason, so that none of the things spoken by God for the consolation of Israel might seem to fail, he proclaims this also beforehand and says, that In the way I have spoken, so shall it be; for, he says, that of the Babylonians will go down into a pit of mire; and it shall be desolate, and that will remain; and in every way and altogether, he says, it will come to a favorable end, what I have planned and have ratified by my own decrees, to destroy the Assyrians upon my land, and upon my mountains; and they shall be for a trampling; and their yoke shall be taken away, and their glory from their shoulders.

48 For the Rabshakeh was sent by Sennacherib from Lachish to Jerusalem. Then, having surrounded the whole city with the armies of the Babylonians, he talked nonsense not moderately against the glory of God; and he uttered a voice befitting a barbarian mindset: "For let not Hezekiah deceive you, he says, saying, The Lord will deliver you from the hand of the Assyrians; but seeking to cast a yoke of slavery upon those free from above, attributing great renown, that is, glory, to himself and to his own master, he was brought down to an unexpected calamity. "For rising up, he says, in the morning, they found all the bodies dead. And he knew by experience that the one who presides over the saints is all-powerful, and that nothing can withstand his divine commands. This is the counsel that the Lord has counseled upon the whole world; and this is the high hand upon all the nations of the whole world. For what the holy God has counseled, who will scatter? And the high hand, who will turn it back? It must be known again, that the power of the prophecy in these things does not come against the whole world, that is, the one under heaven, but rather the word of foretelling was against the whole land of the Assyrians, which he also calls the world, because it was great and broad, and richly filled with myriad nations and more than can be numbered.

49 Therefore, the things spoken, he says, will come against the whole land of the Assyrians, and that in every way and altogether the things foretold will come to an end, with no one annulling the infliction, that is, having the strength to defend those under divine wrath, he further declares, saying: For what the holy God has counseled, who will scatter? And the high hand, who will turn it back? For he utterly cuts off the hope of the Babylonians; and he usefully strengthens those of Israel, so that they may be firmly disposed and understand, that in every way and altogether the divine and supreme hand, being all-powerful and prevailing over all things, will accomplish the things promised. For since they thought the strength of the Assyrians was terrible and hard to encounter, yielding to no one, and refusing to be defeated, it was likely for this reason that they would disbelieve the words of the prophecy; for this reason and very fittingly he does not allow them to suffer this; and he not only entreats them, but also cuts off beforehand the disease of disbelief, saying: The high hand, who will turn it back? In the year that Ahaz died, this word came: Do not rejoice, all you foreigners; for the yoke of him who smote you is broken. For from the seed of serpents will come forth the offspring of asps, and their offspring will come forth as flying serpents.

50 Various revelations at different times came to the holy prophets, and corresponding to the nature of events for the benefit of those at that time. And yet The God of all things wished to remold the hardened Israel, who had been neglectful of the divine laws, into the necessity of thinking better things, showing kindness in many ways, and rousing his wrath against those who had resisted him, but bringing back those inhabiting the holy city, I mean Jerusalem, to good hopes, so that they might know that the Lord of all things is one and only, and there is no other besides him. But they, attributing reverence to the creature rather than the Creator, and offering devotion to falsely named gods, have offended not moderately. The force of the prophetic readings before us suggests such a certain dispensation now also. But it is necessary, I think, to first narrate the historical events, and to explain each thing clearly; for thus what is being shown will be as clear as possible for the readers. Now Uzziah, who is also Azariah, reigned over Israel in Jerusalem. This man became a caretaker of piety. For he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, as it is written about him. And he was most powerful and entirely irresistible to his opponents, that is, to the foreigners, bringing forth his strength in wars.

51 Indeed, having besieged them, he both took and sacked many cities of the Philistines, that is, of the foreigners, that is, of the Palestinians, and from those of what is called Coele-Syria. And it is written thus about him, in the second book of Chronicles; "And he went forth and warred against the foreigners and broke down the walls of Gath, and the walls of Azotus, and he built cities in Azotus, and among the foreigners. And the Lord strengthened him, against the foreigners and the Arabs, who dwell upon the Rock, and against the Minaei. And the Minaei gave gifts to Uzziah, and his name was known as far as the entrance of Egypt, for he became exceedingly strong. And when he died, Jotham, who was born from him, succeeded to his kingdom. Then after him, Ahaz, a wicked and apostate man, and one who had stepped into the swamps of deceit. For he served wood and stones, and all the host of heaven; and he also made his son pass through fire, for he sacrificed him to demons. And it is written thus also about him in the fourth book of Kings; "And he did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord his God, faithfully as David his father did; but he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, and even made his son pass through fire, according to the abominations of the nations whom the Lord cast out from before the children of Israel.

52 And he burned incense in the high places, and upon the hills, and under every shady tree. Then Rezin king of Syria went up; and Pekah son of Remaliah and king of Israel, against Jerusalem to war; and they besieged Ahaz, but were not able to make war; and after other things; "And Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser king of the Assyrians, saying: I am your servant, and your son. Come up, save me from the hand of the king of Syria, and from the hand of the king of Israel who are rising up against me. And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the treasures of the house of the Lord, and of the house of the king, and sent gifts to the king. And the king of the Assyrians hearkened to him, and came to Damascus, and took it and carried it away captive, and put Rezin to death. Therefore, first Uzziah, who is also Azariah, sacked the foreigners, and having laid waste all their land, collected tribute and taxes. And second after him, Ahaz hired the Assyrian, and set him upon them; who also, having made the whole country of the Palestinians rise up (for he says they are the foreigners), carried away as captives into his own land those who had been left from the war.

53 But when Ahaz had died, at this the cities of the foreigners leaped for joy, as if he who was striking them down and placing upon them, as it were, an unbearable yoke of oppression, was out of the way. For having been weakened once, and sacked by the hand of the Assyrians, they were indeed embittered against Ahaz, but they were not able to take revenge. sufficient. Therefore, O foreigners, he says, since just as you say and think, when Ahaz died, the yoke of him that struck you was broken, that is, of him that crushed you, do not rejoice over this. And yet one might say that Ahaz was an idolater, profane and hateful to God; then how does God stop the laughter against him from the adversaries? Therefore the laughter was not entirely against him; but if something of those things that were accustomed to grieve Judea happened, the adversaries attempted to mock not so much the sufferers, but the hand of God, which protected Israel. For they thought that the all-powerful right hand had grown weak, and that the gods they had were better than the one guarding Israel. Therefore, even if Ahaz was profane, yet since the foreigners were mocking, as I just said, those of Israel, He restrains their joy, and as it were checks their praise, saying that they have not been delivered from the afflicting yoke, but rather they will suffer things over which it was likely they would, even unwillingly, be not moderately distressed. For what does he say?

54 Do not rejoice, saying that the yoke of him that struck you has been broken. But know rather, that from the seed of a serpent will come forth the offspring of asps. You will understand this in two ways; for Uzziah, also called Azariah, was, as I said, harsh and very warlike; and he so subdued them, that he also taxed their cities and villages in an unaccustomed manner. Then after him Ahaz, though perhaps not with his own hand and with local forces, yet through the Assyrians did the same things to them. For Tiglath-pileser took Damascus, and the cities of the foreigners; and he also killed Rezin himself. And when Ahaz died, the righteous and pious Hezekiah succeeded to the kingdom. And it is also written about him in the fourth book of Kings: "And he rebelled against the king of the Assyrians, and did not serve him. He smote the foreigners as far as Gaza, and as far as its border, from the tower of the watchmen, to the fortified city. Therefore, as from the seed of a serpent, Uzziah, has come forth the offspring of an asp, Ahaz; then after him a flying serpent, that is, the swift Hezekiah. For in a way they devoured the foreigners, and have consumed their cities. And if Uzziah and Hezekiah were called serpents, although they were pious, yet it is necessary to consider this very wisely, that the scope of the discourse is turned and looks especially toward impressing the Philistines, that is, the foreigners.

55 Therefore, it was necessary to say not that they would be tame and gentle, but terrible and swift, as accustomed to leap upon their adversaries in the manner of serpents. Therefore you will either understand "From the seed of a serpent will come forth the offspring of asps" in this way, or also in another way, if you wish. For Ahaz hired Tiglath-pileser the Assyrian, and sent him against the land of the foreigners, who, having laid it all waste, also killed, as I said, King Rezin himself. But in the time of King Hezekiah, Shalmaneser, who was also king of the Assyrians, marched against Samaria. And coming first to the land of the Palestinians, that is, of the foreigners, he committed acts of barbaric cruelty against all. Therefore, as from the seed of a serpent, Tiglath-pileser, came forth the offspring of an asp, Shalmaneser, like a serpent himself, not slow to attack, not sluggish in movement for the need to besiege, but rather swift, and standing over cities in the manner of a winged creature. And the poor shall be fed through him; and poor men shall rest in peace; and he will destroy your seed with famine, and he will destroy your remnant. I said before, that when Ahaz died, the foreigners were filled with joy; yet they were not smiling so much at him, but at the all-powerful right hand of the one who saves Israel, I mean, of God.

56 But that those who fight will not cease even after Uzziah, he has declared very clearly, from the seed of the serpent, saying that the offspring of asps will come forth. But since they danced upon the divine glory, the prophet necessarily shows us in these things that He who defends Israel will both save him, and that He will bring destruction upon his adversaries in every way and altogether. For Shalmaneser besieged Jerusalem after taking all of Samaria. And he besieged it by sending Rabshakeh from Lachish, as it is written, but the God of all unexpectedly saved those of Israel. For the Assyrians fell, an angel of the Lord consuming them; but the seed of the foreigners, and every remnant from the first siege that happened in the time of Tiglath-pileser, was completely destroyed and utterly perished, perhaps being afflicted by famine. For other harms always somehow follow the besieging of cities. Therefore the poor, and men of modest mind, will be fed by God, that is, they will pasture their own lands, and will rest in peace. But your seed, and the remnant, he will destroy by famine. It is a fearful thing, therefore, to mock those under the hand of God, and to be lifted up against those who have become the object of his care.

57 For he will in no way overlook it, but will certainly defend his own acquaintances, so that their adversaries may not laugh broadly and reproach God, as not having sufficient power to be able to save those who have trusted in him. Wail, you gates of cities; let the troubled cities cry aloud, all you foreigners, because smoke comes from the north, and there is no one who will survive. The phrase, "From the seed of the serpent will come forth the offspring of asps," might be properly understood in this way, as we said when interpreting, that Tiglath-pileser sacked the cities of the foreigners, and also took Damascus, then after him, Shalmaneser brought still more grievous calamities upon them in the time of the reign of Hezekiah, having conquered the cities of the Samaritans. Therefore, as the attack was already organized, and the army of the Assyrians was present, as the siege engines were already brought to the gates in each city, and the walls were about to be thrown down by their unbearable assaults; he commands the gates to wail, and the cities to cry out, no longer exulting over those of the blood of Israel, not mocking the glory of the all-powerful God, not dancing upon the dead Ahaz, but rather practicing lamentation and dirges, and being not moderately downcast at the calamities that were just about to arrive. For why have I commanded the cities to lament, he says? Because smoke comes from the north, and there is no one who will survive.

58 In these words, he names as smoke from the north that which comes from the land of the Assyrians, either Shalmaneser himself, or the army with him. For the country of the Jews is most southern, but that of the Assyrians is somewhat more northern. And he compares the warlike army to smoke, as being productive of tears for the captured. For smoke always somehow draws forth the tear from the eyes. But it is not unlikely that wars are compared to smoke in another way as well. For just as smoke, falling upon the eyes of the body, certainly takes away from them the accuracy of their sight, so too the fear of death all but intoxicates the mind, and troubles the heart, all but blackening it with terrible and unbearable terrors. Therefore, smoke will come from the north. Then what is the end of the attack? "there is no one who will survive," he says, that is, utter destruction will destroy both cities and houses, and those in them. And what shall the kings of the nations answer? That the Lord has founded Zion, and in him the humble of the people will be saved. When the attack of the Assyrians occurred, the cities of the foreigners were captured. And those of the Samaritans were no less sacked; but Jerusalem alone, contrary to expectation, was saved out of all of them, as He who has the power to accomplish all things easily brought His hand against the armies of the Assyrians.

59 For in one night one hundred and eighty of the foreigners died five thousand. When, therefore, those from the north burn the cities of the foreigners, and lay waste the neighbor of Judea, that of the Samaritans, then having surrounded even Jerusalem itself, with no one to oppose them, they fall in one night; then indeed, then even unwillingly, he says, the kings of the nations will confess that the Lord has founded Zion; and that through him the humble of the people will be saved. He calls the humble of the people those who have placed their hope of salvation in him alone, just as was king Hezekiah himself, and those around him who fell before God, saying: "Hear, O Lord, look, O Lord, and see the words of Rabshakeh, which the king of the Assyrians sent to reproach the living God. But he also heard God saying clearly: "Thus says the Lord: I will defend this city for my own sake, and for my servant David’s sake. "It is a good thing, therefore, to trust in God. And knowing this, the blessed prophets say, Jeremiah indeed, that, "Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and the Lord will be his hope. And the most wise David: "O Lord God of hosts, blessed is the man who hopes in you. For no one will destroy the one who is assisted by his divine commands, and very well fortified by the benevolences from above.

60 For he deems worthy of care those who love him, and to those who have been most zealous to think and do what is pleasing to him, he readily grants that their blessings rest in security.