Commentary on Isaiah, Discourses 20–30

Commentary on Isaiah, Discourses 20–30

continued

Discourse 23

1 Thus says the Lord God who made you, and formed you from the womb, He will still help you. Having accused those of Israel of apostasy, and of departing from love for him, and of attaching themselves to gods that are not; for he said, that your fathers, and your rulers transgressed against me, and the rulers defiled my holy things; he very providentially adds these things as well; for he does not allow them to be carried off to apostasy, or despair, nor indeed to slip away entirely from the hope in him. But he again promises them gentleness, and wins them back through his accustomed philanthropy, and leads them back to repentance. And he gives them to understand that he has not turned away completely from the sinners, nor indeed will Israel be destroyed root and branch, as he has compassion, and smoothes the way of salvation very well for those who believe in him; and by calling himself Lord and God, who made and formed from the womb, he seems to indicate that Israel has gone astray, having placed the name of divinity upon others, and having foolishly ascribed the glory of lordship to gods that are not. And that he did not know the Maker, and the one who brought into existence the man upon the earth who once was not, he again indicates, by affirming himself to be the former and maker, and, as it were, indicting for ingratitude those of the having leaped away from love for him.

2 For it is among absurdities that the highest honors should be offered by us to our parents according to the flesh, with the divine law also decreeing this, but that the creator of all things should not be all the more honored and revered by us with praises befitting him through complete submission. He says something like this also through one of the holy prophets: "A son honors his father, and a servant his master. And if I am a father, where is my honor? And if I am a master, where is my fear? says the Lord Almighty. For he is at once both Lord, as having the whole creation under a yoke and servitude. For the divine Psalmist said somewhere to him, that "All things are yours. And again, Father, as a molder, and maker, and one who has brought things into being. Therefore, we must pay to God, as if in the order of a debt, both the submission befitting sons and the fear suitable for servants. Therefore, when God says that he is the molder and maker, he refers to the thoughts of the need to honor him, as one who has become the provider of being itself, and the cause of existence for those who once were not. And by saying to the sinners, 'He will yet help,' he gives courage that although they are entangled in many and inescapable charges, a remnant of gentleness and love for mankind has been preserved.

3 And nothing would prevent them from also being saved, if they should choose to turn to better and more fitting things, and to what is in accordance with his laws. Fear not, my servant Jacob, and beloved Israel, whom I have chosen. For I will give water in thirst to those who walk in a waterless place. I will put my Spirit upon your seed, and my blessings upon your children. And they shall spring up as grass among the waters, and as a willow on the flowing water. This one will say, 'I am God's,' and this one will cry out in the name of Jacob. And another will write, 'I am God's,' in the name of Israel. In these things, he seems to name Israel and Jacob the choir of the holy apostles, understood as one person. For all are one in Christ. For observe how he says he is beloved and chosen, although how is it not clear to all that he would never have named beloved and chosen those who have rejected faith in him. But since being of the blood of Jacob, who is also Israel, they have become honored and chosen vessels, and have been called to the sacred ministry of the evangelical proclamations, he thought it necessary to crown them with such brilliant words, as indeed they would be as luminaries in the world, holding forth the word of life, and initiators of those under the sun.

4 Fear not, therefore, he says, that is, be courageous, and be strong, have a patient and youthful mind, and mocking the uprisings of persecutors, have firm faith in God. For very many are those who contend with the sacred proclamations, and an unholy multitude will rise up, opposing your words. But be superior to cowardice, he says, and to hesitation and unmanliness. For I will give water to those who walk in a waterless place. For it is sweet and saving for those walking in a thirsty land to happen upon springs of water. And we say it is most desirable, and even more so, for those who labor for piety to be irrigated by the divine and intelligible streams, that is, by the consolations through the Spirit, through which the human mind, having grown somewhat weak, might be restored to courage. And the water in these things, which God promises to supply to those walking in a waterless place, we say is the Holy Spirit. For the Savior himself said, as the Scripture said: "Rivers of living water will flow from his belly. And making clear the power of what was said, the all-wise evangelist added immediately: "But this he said concerning the Spirit which those who believed in him were about to receive.

5 For water is life-giving, and brings up plants and grasses to growth, and it imitates in some way the energy of the Holy Spirit, through whom all things hold together and are maintained in well-being and the intelligible creation is enriched with an increase in every good thing whatsoever, and as it were leaps up, going toward spiritual growth. And that the promise of water to those who walk through a waterless place signifies the life-giving power and energy of the Holy Spirit, the intelligible consolation through him, the following will make clear. For I will put, he says, my Spirit upon your seed, and my blessings upon your children. And we say that the seed and children of the holy apostles are those who through them have been called to the knowledge of the truth, and to the spiritual rebirth, by which they beget them not from corruptible seed, but through the living and abiding word of God, and through the energy of the Holy Spirit himself. For the divine Paul writes to those called through him, and says: "For though you have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you have not many fathers. For in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the Gospel. And we will find them everywhere calling those who believed in him through them, children. Therefore I will put, he says, my Spirit upon your seed, and my blessings upon your children. And we say that blessings are those things supplied by God to the saints, the manifold variety of spiritual gifts.

6 For to one is given the word of wisdom, to another the word of knowledge, and the things that follow these. And the all-wise Paul writes somewhere that "Every one of you has his proper gift from God. Then what the benefit of the blessings would be, he clarified by adding that They shall spring up as grass among the water, and as the willow by the running water. For grasses and plants, which are in waterless places, sprout very slowly, and having sprouted, immediately wither. But those things are very flourishing beside which lies a flow of streams and a current of water sustaining them to live, and the willow plant is an evergreen thing, always growing beside springs and rivers. Therefore, being intoxicated, he says, with the intelligible streams, those who have been enriched by these things will confess that they know me only, and they will inscribe God as the one who called them. And by saying that this one will say, I am of God, and this one will cry out, and another will write, he indicates the multitude of those running to him through faith in Christ. For not one people will be called, but rather the whole multitude of the nations, at least throughout the world, and all will confess that they have become God's, and they will inscribe him as Savior and Redeemer, and they are henceforth named by the name of Jacob, that is, that they are the portion and inheritance of God.

7 For the people of the Lord, he says, became his portion, Israel his inherited possession. And we who have believed boast in having become the inheritance of God, and the portion of the Savior of us all, Jesus Christ. Thus says the Lord God the king of Israel, the God of Sabaoth who delivered him: I am the first, and I am after these things; besides me there is no God. Who is like me? Let him stand, and call, and prepare for me, since I made man for eternity. And let them announce to you the things that are coming before they come. Do not be hidden, and I have declared to you. Having made mention of the knowledge in Christ through the readings just now before us, he transfers the discourse to another of the necessary topics. For since at that time, when the divine prophet Isaiah was composing these words for us, a God-hated man was ruling among them, and he had fallen into intolerable errors. For to each one whatever seemed good was a god and an object of worship; God makes a necessary exhortation for them, interwoven with most skillful refutations; turning them away from polytheism and the sicknesses therein; calling them through repentance to the knowledge of the truth, and bringing them to the remembrance of his glory and incomparable power. For this reason he says: Thus says the Lord the king of Israel, the God of Sabaoth who delivered him.

8 For he wishes them to know that he is God and Lord of hosts, and, having recovered as from a drunken stupor, to see that also of the Egyptians they have been delivered from oppression, as he worked wonders, and manifested the greatness of the power and pre-eminence inherent in him. For what of the wondrous things has not been done? And what plague was not brought upon those who oppressed them? Or how would it not be a clear proof of his ineffable power, for the sea to be parted, and the waters to congeal like a wall, and for those fleeing to go through the midst? And what indeed were the wonders in the wilderness after this? Did he not give them the bread from heaven? Did he not break a rock in the wilderness, and give them drink as from a great deep? and bring down waters like rivers? did he not, putting a kind of bridle on the streams of the Jordan, prepare them to cross on foot? Necessarily, therefore, he does not simply call himself Lord and God in these things; but he added, "And having delivered him," bringing to remembrance, as I said, the things wondrously accomplished for his sake. Know therefore, he says, that "I am God, the first, and I am after these things, and besides me there was no God. For God is the beginning of all things, being himself without beginning, and from him all things were brought into being;

9 he himself therefore has come into being from no one, but he is the one who is and who will be. For this is his name, and an eternal memorial for generations of generations. Therefore, neither was there another God before him, nor will there be any after him. For there is one God by nature, and no other besides him. And the exhortation is exceedingly useful for those who denied him, and from too much foolishness have slipped into thinking that there are many gods. That no one is like him or another to be reckoned with him, he demonstrates by saying: "Who is like me? Which then of the gods supposed by you, that is, foolishly so named, will be according to my glory and power? From what great work then have you believed them to be gods? Let someone stand, if indeed he is like me. Let someone prepare one having a nature of equal weight, either in strength or glory. Let them call whomever they may choose of the falsely named gods, from when I made man for eternity. For I created, he says, the heavens, and the things in them, having innumerable flocks of holy spirits worshipping and serving me, but from when I have made man upon the earth, and in the things that follow, that is, for eternity, let someone show me one like me. And saying again, "From when I made man," he shows himself to be the creator, but the falsely named gods to be nothing at all.

10 For which of those who worship them did they bring into being? but I am known as the existing creator, and founder of all things, and possessing the knowledge of all things. Inquire this from the gods spoken of by you; let them announce to you the things to come before they arrive. For it would be fitting for God by nature to have all knowledge both of things that have already passed and of things to come. But if no one among the falsely named gods is found to have obtained this, it is clear that those who do not have the knowledge of God would not be gods. "Do not be veiled over," instead of, "Do not be silent, nor pretend otherwise. "Did you not give ear from the beginning, and I announced to you? For as existing God by nature, and knowing all things that will be, and that have already come to pass, I announced beforehand to you through holy prophets, through the all-wise Moses. For I revealed the mystery of Christ, and there is nothing of which it was fitting for the knowledge to become manifest even to us, which has not been announced beforehand by me. Therefore, those are not gods, having obtained nothing of the things befitting God. But I am by nature what I am believed to be, God, clearly of all things, and possessing a God-befitting being.

11 Therefore, the word initiates those carried away from the true vision of God, and who have assented to lifeless idols, and say to the wood, "You are my father," and to the stone, "You gave me birth. You are witnesses, if there is a God besides me. He brings them back again to the memory of the power and authority shown to them, which would befit the one who is truly God by nature and Lord of all, when they were delivered from the land of the Egyptians. For at that time creation itself was armed with the Master, and of the He rose up against the wickedness of those who were oppressing them, for things were accomplished by changes of the elements [perhaps: changes]. For the water was changed into blood, and a deep darkness stretched out for three days. And the sky cast down hail upon them, and gnats and frogs, and dog-flies, and the death of the firstborn was brought upon them, and they passed through the midst of the sea. And when they entered the land of promise, they conquered many nations, stronger than their own strength, and they became terrible and hard to encounter for the neighboring nations, and for those yet far off they were looked upon and renowned.

12 Therefore, others would not know better, but you yourselves, your own affairs, who it was who achieved these things, and who it was who has creation as an ally in your affairs, who it was who crushed the powers of enemies, and crowns you with courage against all; you are the witnesses of my excellence, if you choose to think rightly, and you will not need other instructors. For the gods among the Egyptians were very many, and their shrines were full of statues. And likewise very many were those among the Amorites, Hivites and Perizzites, and the other nations; but none of them is seen to have been sufficient for the salvation of their own people; rather, you have even crushed the worshipped ones together with their worshippers. For it was divinely decreed through Moses that you shall tear down their altars, and you shall break their pillars, and you shall burn the carved images of the gods with fire. Therefore, if you choose to speak the truth, you bear witness to me, whether there is a God besides me. For if anyone has risen up against my powers, and has conquered, let him be considered a god among you. But if, being nothing, they have been exposed, and have become the work of fire through you, you have known by experience itself, he says, that there is no God besides me, the true God. And at that time those who formed and carved did not hear;

13 all who make their desired things are vain, which will not profit them; but they who form a god, and carve useless things, shall be ashamed, and all who came to be were withered, and deaf from among men. Through these things he shows that the crimes of the apostates are terrible and very difficult, if, having such full assurance that there is no other besides him who is God by nature and in truth; and being convinced, as it were, by the very things accomplished that he alone is God, they slipped into this folly, so that even when the law itself clearly proclaimed to them and said: "You shall worship the Lord your God, and you shall serve him only, and you shall not make for yourself an idol, nor any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters under the earth; you made obeying him of no account; but rather you turned godlessly to the need to form and shape the gods from wood and stones. Such people are indeed vain, and very rightly so, going to this for none of the necessary things, but rather making their own desired things, for they have become lovers of vanity. For what profit is there from stone and wood? Therefore, the making of an idol would clearly be considered the fruit of a foolish counsel and the work of cold thoughts. Yet he declares beforehand that the matter is not without penalty, saying:

14 All who form a god, and carve useless things, shall be ashamed, and all who came to be were withered, and deaf from among men. Therefore, if what has been said is taken to refer to the man-made things themselves, we say that "They were withered" must be understood to mean "they perished. But if it refers to those who are accustomed to doing such things, it would be well to understand it in this way also; for it is said as of plants that are accustomed to being fruitless, if they should somehow wither and then be cut down for flame and burning. And "Deaf from among men," instead of, "No longer existing among men, but rather deaf and completely senseless, so that in no way do they resemble the things that came to be among them. For somewhere the blessed Psalmist also sings and says: "The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the works of men's hands. They have a mouth, and will not speak; eyes, and will not see; ears, and do not hear. And to these he adds: "May those who make them become like them, and all who trust in them. For such evils might be understood as the fruits of the utmost insensibility.

15 And yet, having known by experience the God who is by nature and truly, then to send up to stones and wood the glory most fitting for Him and Him alone, how could they not be considered foolish, and heartless, and having a heart filled with stupor to the point of madness, and indeed to differ little from the things fashioned by their own hands? Let them all be gathered, and let them stand together, and let them be confounded, and let them be ashamed together, because the carpenter sharpened the iron, with an adze he worked it, and with a drill he bored it. He worked it with the arm of his strength, and he will hunger, and grow weak, and will not drink water. Not one by one, rather, but, if they should choose, he says that the worshippers of idols, gathered in a multitude, will be confounded by their own evil counsels, and to solve what is proposed, and what then this is, he immediately adds, saying: He sharpened, he says, the carpenter, the iron. And he mentions also the instruments by which the making is done, so that he may show them worshipping the art of the stonemason, and not the wood itself. For if it were a god, it would not have needed art, and some kind of skill; but it would have been a God even so.

16 But if you consider wood that is not worked, nor indeed given form, to be worthless matter, but you worship it when it has been crafted and say that it is a god, then art has become a god to you, and this, the art of a man who is weak and subject to corruption. For the need of food and drink is proof of corruption. For the phrase, He will not drink water, we say is not spoken declaratively. But it should rather be read as in a question and with a pause. For the understanding will follow, that surely somewhere he also drinks. Then how will the corruptible be a creator of incorruptible gods, or how will the mortal make the immortal? For it is absolutely necessary for the God who truly is to possess incorruptibility and indestructibility, and rather also to be living, and to be able to give life to those into whom he might wish to send life. The worship of those who are deceived is therefore a demonstration of the adze and the drill, and of the carpenter's strength and art; if it is true, as I said, that they would not choose to worship shapeless wood or stone; but when a form has been carved, all things seen are gods among them.

17 Having chosen a piece of wood, a carpenter set it up with a measure, and with glue he shaped it, and made it into the form of a man, and as the beauty of a man, to set it up in a house. He cut wood from the forest, which the Lord planted, a pine tree, and the rain made it grow long, that it might be for men for burning, and taking some of it he was warmed, and having burned it they baked bread on it, but the rest they worked into gods, and they worship them; of which one half he burned in the fire, and having burned it he baked bread on it, and upon it having roasted meat he ate, and was filled, and being warmed he said: It is pleasant for me that I have been warmed, and I have seen the fire. The rest he made into a graven god, and he worships it and prays, saying: Deliver me, because you are my god. They did not know how to understand, because they were darkened from seeing with their eyes, and from understanding with their heart. And he did not consider in his heart, nor did he reflect in his soul, nor did he know in his understanding, that he burned half of it in the fire, and baked bread on its coals, and having roasted meat he ate, and the rest of it he made into an abomination, and they worship it.

18 Know that their heart is ashes, and they are deceived, and no one is able to deliver his soul. See, will you not say that there is a lie in my right hand? The meaning of what is set forth is very clear and there is nothing difficult in it. For the worshipper of idols, and moreover the craftsman, is described as heartless, and having gone outside of all sense, and completely deprived of proper reasoning. And he dwells greatly on the narratives concerning him; at the same time shaming them as having been led astray, and opening the eye for those entangled in evil, and persuading them to look at the truth itself, which if they should take into their mind, they will be outside the snare, and will deliver their own heads from the wounds of foolishness. Nevertheless, we say this: for the word seems to us in these things to fashion something bitter and wise, and not being unable to persuade many to depart from the polytheistic error, but rather to choose to be under the God who is so by nature and in truth. For a carpenter, he says, having chosen wood, set it up with a measure, and with glue he shaped it; he made it as the form of a man, and as the beauty of a man, to set it in a house.

19 The art, he says, of those accustomed to make gods, would then indeed especially be deemed worthy of all wonder, whenever it works on the wood the form and beauty of a man. But that which is crafted by someone in imitation of something is surely in every way inferior to the real, or rather, it comes after. Therefore, those who worship pieces of wood or stone fashioned into human form would be caught worshipping their own form, and being much better than the imitations of themselves, they insult their own nature, by ascribing the better glory to those things. Therefore, then, the writing is of the utmost insensibility, and the accusations are of extreme foolishness. For he sets in a house, that is, in a temple, the wood which he cut from the forest. In these things he shows those who are accustomed to deify things, not ignorant of the material from which they have come, so that they may not say, according to the custom of the Greeks, that the things dedicated in shrines are fallen from Zeus and self-begotten, that is, self-delivered. And that they misrepresent the purpose of God's creation, he refutes them, saying that the wood was planted in a forest, and nurtured by the provisions of rain, so that it might be for burning by men; but by deifying the things that were made for burning, they themselves will be food for fire along with them.

20 He is almost struck with amazement, saying, that he burned half of it in the fire, and has spent it on his own needs. This, on the one hand, preparing food, and accepting the parts of the gods for the baking of bread. Then he has fallen into such senselessness as to worship the remnant of what was needed, and to pray and say: "Deliver me, for you are my god. Therefore, then, their heart is ashes and nothing else, and they have been deceived, and no one could deliver the souls of those who have fallen into this, except that God alone, if He should choose, who makes all things, and transforms, and enlightens what is darkened, and turns back what has strayed. But there is indeed what is useless and vain in the gods carved by hand, for they are deaf and senseless matter. But see, that is, understand, and you will not say that a lie is in my right hand. For all things concerning them, he says, are falsehoods, both names and glory. But in my right hand, that is, in the Son; for the Son is named the right hand of the Father everywhere in the divinely-inspired Scripture; nothing false would be found, but also if He should be called God, He is true God; and if Lord, He does not have the title as something adopted, but is rather by nature master of all;

21 and if king, and if light, and if life and power, and if creator, all these things He is not falsely; for He is not created, but would be understood as naturally beyond everything that has been brought into being, being God from God, and true light from true light. Remember these things, Jacob and Israel, for you are my servant; I formed you as my servant; and you, Israel, do not forget me. For behold, I have blotted out your transgressions like a cloud, and your sins like a mist. Return to me, and I will redeem you. Christ said somewhere: He who knew the will of his lord and did not do it will be beaten with many stripes; but he who did not know, and did not do it, will be beaten with few. And the judgment in each case is altogether holy. For to those who do not know the master's will, and then transgress, and are caught in the charges of transgression, one might pardon their not having known, accepting it as a pretext for mercy. But to those indeed with knowledge of the laws who have chosen to be negligent, there would justly be added the punish- must be. For the accusations are of a clear carelessness. So that Israel might become better than himself, though convicted of very many accusations, but honored with amnesty from God, he is commanded to remember his own laziness, and the gentleness of the one who has pity. For remember these things, he says, Jacob.

22 And what are these things? Both what has already been said before, and that you are my servant. And I formed you as my servant. And he shows very clearly in these things, that Israel has [not] remained uninstructed, but was under law and yokes, and had very many who knew how to admonish; a servant, therefore, for this reason and formed for this. In what way, we shall say as we are able. For a man is formed simply, just as, of course, our forefather Adam was from the earth. For, he says, God took dust from the earth, and formed the man. And our own affairs proceed according to the way of creation, even to this day. For each is formed in the womb of his own mother, and this is the path that brings those on earth into being. But one is also formed into a servant of God, being shaped intellectually by the knowledge of the divine laws toward an exceptional form, that which comes upon the souls of men from the good order of the virtues. This might be understood as spiritual beauty. And they are also formed, as it were, in Christ through participation in the Holy Spirit into the form that is toward him. For indeed the divine Paul also writes to the Galatians: "My little children, for whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in you. Indeed, Christ is formed in us, as the Holy Spirit imparts to us a certain divine formation, through sanctification and righteousness.

23 For thus, thus does the character of the substance of God the Father become manifest in our souls, as the Holy Spirit, as I said, transforms us toward him through sanctification. For indeed the most holy Paul said again: "Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may test what is the will of God, what is good. and acceptable and perfect. And he says that a veil is placed on the hearts of the Jews, but that all of us, with unveiled face, reflecting the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, as from the Lord, the Spirit. We are therefore formed into a servant of God. But since the name of 'servant' is somehow common—for it is used for both household servants and sons—we say that it would be more fitting for those formed under the law to be formed into household servants. For there was a spirit of bondage upon Israel, and for them to be lazy was not without penalty; for the law punished them as household servants. But if one is formed in Christ, he is formed into a son of God, according to the ways just mentioned. Therefore it is necessary to remember both the loving-kindness of the one who justifies, and that we have been formed for sonship and glory, and, as it were, repaying to God the Father the returns for the things that have come to us from him.

24 And how this might happen, he instructs well, saying: And you, Israel, do not forget me. For one might forget God by neglecting piety toward him, or by departing from it altogether. Those from Israel have done this by worshipping gods that are not; and to this day some do it, going backwards after the faith, whose judgment is just, according to what is written. But that forgetting God in many places signifies fleeing from piety toward him, we shall know, when he says to those of the blood of Israel: "You who forget me, and prepare a table for the demon, and fill a mixed drink for Fortune, and forsake my holy mountain. I will deliver you to the sword, you shall all fall by slaughter. And concerning this very thing he cried out against those from Israel through the voice of Jeremiah, saying: "Shall a bride forget her adornment, or a virgin her breast-band? But my people have forgotten me for many days, of which there is no number. Therefore, forgetting would often indicate apostasy. But remembrance, on the other hand, indicates steadfastness in faith, and immovability in love, and strength for anything whatsoever that seems good to it. Therefore do not forget me, he says, but remember rather. For behold, I have blotted out your iniquities like a cloud. And in these words he says "I have blotted out" instead of "I will blot out," and as if dispersing some darkness and cloud, I will make it disappear.

25 For that he says "I have blotted out" instead of "I will blot out," the following very well shows. For, he says, "Return to me, and I will redeem you. For how has he blotted out, who calls to repentance? As though they have not yet returned, but will come to this in due time, when Christ shines upon the world, through whom is all remission of sins, and the return and calling to God, both through faith in him, and an evangelical life, and most excellent deeds. Rejoice, O heavens, because God has had mercy on Israel. Sound the trumpet, O foundations of the earth, cry out, O mountains, with gladness, O hills and all the trees in them, because God has redeemed Jacob, and Israel will be glorified. From this one might easily discern that the remission of sins, and indeed the return and redemption of all, as something that will be through Christ, is proclaimed beforehand in due season by the holy prophets. For since God, being Lord, has appeared to us, and conversed with those on earth as a man, the true lamb, who takes away the sin of the world, the all-holy victim; then indeed, the event became an occasion of festival for the rational powers above and in heaven, that is, for the orders of the holy angels. For they sang, they sang at his birth, I mean his birth according to the flesh, and they said: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

26 And if it is true, and it is certainly true, that according to the voice of the Savior there is joy in heaven in the presence of the holy angels over one sinner who repents, how could one doubt that when Christ was bringing the whole world to the knowledge of the truth, and calling to repentance, and justifying by faith, and making illustrious through sanctification, there was joy and celebration among the spirits above? Therefore, the heavens rejoiced because God had mercy on Israel, and not at all only on the one according to the flesh, but also on the one understood according to the spirit; the foundations of the earth sounded the trumpet, that is, the ministers of the evangelical ordinances; their piercing sound was carried everywhere, and like some sacred trumpets they cried out, proclaiming the glory of the Savior to all everywhere, and calling to the knowledge of Christ both those of the circumcision and those who formerly served the creation rather than the Creator. But for what reason do we say they are called foundations of the earth? For Christ is the foundation and unshakable support of all, upholding all things, and holding fast for their well-being the things that have been established; for upon him we are all built up, a spiritual house, being joined together through the Spirit into a holy temple, for his dwelling place.

27 For he dwells in our hearts through faith, but the apostles and evangelists might be understood as nearer foundations, and closer than in our case, having been both eyewitnesses and ministers of the word, and having become a foundation of faith. For, having recognized that we must follow their traditions, we will keep our faith in Christ straight and unperverted. For it was said somewhere by him to the divine Peter (when wisely and blamelessly confessing his faith in him he said: You are the Christ, the Son of the living God): "You are Peter, and upon this rock I will found my Church," saying, I think, "rock" for the unshakeable faith of the disciple. And it has been said somewhere also through the voice of the Psalmist: "His foundations are in the holy mountains. And the holy apostles and evangelists are very well likened to holy mountains, whose knowledge is established like a foundation for those after them, not allowing those who have been netted by them to fall away into what is unapproved in faith. Therefore the foundations of the earth sound the trumpet; but observe the care. For Moses was of a feeble voice and slow of speech. For the law was not widely heard, except by those only in Judea. Sound the trumpet, however, those who are ambassadors for Christ. "For their sound went forth into all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world. And he commanded the mountains to shout for joy;

28 calling the foundations of the earth 'mountains' again in these things; for the divine disciples are conspicuous and manifest, distinguished in both deed and word, and most well-known everywhere, to whom the prophetic word also cried out: "Go up on a high mountain, you who bring good news to Zion; lift up your voice with strength, you who bring good news to Jerusalem. So then, he commanded these intelligible mountains to shout for joy. And from this it is possible to see both the power of the law, and the superior difference of the evangelical proclamations. For the law, threatening punishments to transgressors and subjecting the convicted to inescapable penalties, did not shout joy, but rather dejection; but the ministers of the evangelical oracles and the deacons of the gifts from Christ proclaim joy to the world. For where there is remission of sins, and indeed justification by faith, and participation in the Holy Spirit, and the splendor of adoption, and the kingdom of heaven, and a hope for good things beyond understanding that is not disappointed, there surely is joy and gladness. And we say that the hills and the trees in them are again those inferior to the mountains, and seated somewhat lower, according to the measure of the good life in them, while the holy apostles and evangelists clearly stand higher.

29 Therefore, the hills would be those who are seated somewhat below their good repute and are inferior in the magnitude of virtue, yet they themselves also endure, and are beyond earthly affairs, and think on things above, and have been allotted to be conceived of as high in virtue. And the trees in them, those nourished by them, might be understood as those who believed through them, and as it were have grown into a perfect man, and have reached the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. And these might also be teachers of peoples, and leaders of flocks, winning over those who approach them by their own intelligible good fruits. Therefore the hills and the trees in them have cried out together with the foundations of the earth the joy understood in Christ, and they rejoice because God has redeemed Jacob, and Israel will be glorified. For he was not only redeemed by wiping away the pollutions of sin and being rescued from fire and judgment, but he was also glorified, having become one of God's own, and being called His son, and having obtained brotherhood with the one and by nature and truly Son, that is, Christ. Thus says the Lord who redeems you, and who formed you from the womb: I am the Lord who accomplishes all things. I stretched out the heaven alone, and established the earth. Who else will frustrate the signs of ventriloquists, and divinations from the heart?

30 turning the wise backward, and making their counsel foolish, and establishing the words of his servant, and making the counsel of his messengers true. Most providentially indeed does the God of all speak with us in these things, and he tries to fully convince those who have behaved insolently toward his glory, transferring it to others, clearly to those who are not gods, that he himself is the author of all things, and steward, and creator and maker even of those who are being instructed. And since he made promises concerning very many and wonderful matters, which it was likely would be disbelieved by some, he usefully, as I said, reveals beforehand to them his own power and pre-eminence, so that they might know that in every way and entirely, whatever he might choose to accomplish, this will run to its conclusion. For at what would he be powerless, or how would he not be able to redeem some, he who formed them from the womb, that is, he who even called them into being, and brought into existence those who once were not, he who accomplishes all things, that is, the steward of all, governing and directing each thing according to what seems good to him? And this is entirely right. For God would not fail in what is most fitting for His own glory. Or how would he not be all-powerful, and beyond all, and mind, and reason, who stretched out this immense heaven, and made firm the earth? As the Psalmist says:

31 "He established the earth upon its own security. And He who has ascended to this power, or rather He who is all power, will surely bring to completion whatever He wishes to do, with no one preventing him. But He says that He alone stretches out the heaven, not setting aside the only-begotten God the Word from His own substance, through whom are all things, and in whom are all things; but that absolutely none of the falsely-named gods worked together with the God over all. For those who do not exist at all, how could they be accepted as workers, or rather, to say, as co-workers with God the creator? Therefore we do not say that the contrast in these things is made with respect to the Son who is by nature and begotten of Him, but that the stretching out of the heaven, or the earth having unshakable foundations, was not the result of another god. Having shown, therefore, through these things His own glory, and His incomparable preeminence, and the greatness of His power, He clearly shows and relates in what follows what things He will be the accomplisher of at the proper times. For who else, he says, will scatter the signs of ventriloquists, and divinations from the heart? For before Christ, the Savior of us all, shone upon us from heaven, the rapacity of the devil's tyranny was extended over all, and a deep darkness consumed all upon the earth.

32 For there were, there were in both country and city, altars and sacred precincts, and a swarm of statues, and an unnumbered multitude of falsely-named gods, and sorceries and false divinations everywhere, and deceptions of demons, pretending to know and to be able to foretell future events, though saying or knowing absolutely nothing. But since the true light, that is, the only-begotten Word of God, has illuminated all that is under heaven with the evangelical decrees, the mist of sin has been driven away, and that deep darkness has ceased, and those who were wandering have been called to the knowledge of truth; then indeed the signs of the ventriloquists were scattered. And he calls ventriloquists the false prophets, that is, the pythians, those who belch out what seems good from their own heart, and know nothing of the truth. Concerning such people the prophet Ezekiel also says: "Woe to those who prophesy from their own heart, and who see nothing at all. Therefore the signs given by some from false divination, that is, the predictions of such people, were scattered. For the Greek oracles everywhere have become inactive, and the gods among the Greeks, accustomed to speaking falsehoods, have fallen silent; and the wise have been turned back, and their counsels have been made foolish. And it seems that by 'the wise' in these things, he means either the magi among the Greeks; for they were called wise among them;

33 or perhaps also those who were held in repute as wise among them, and were keen in understanding, and possessed a powerful style of speech, and were excellent in eloquence, and were not incapable of being able, by their eloquence, to embellish falsehood. We say that such men have been turned back; since their wisdom has finally been shown to be useless and unprofitable, which is both psychical and earthly, demonic. And the all-wise Paul also says that the wisdom of the world has been made foolish, clearly by God. But when the wise have been turned away, he says, and all their counsel has been shown to be completely unintelligent and foolish, God the Father established the words of His own Son, that is, the evangelical and saving decree, which Christ Himself spoke to us. And He proved the counsel of His angels to be true. For angels could be understood as those who are ambassadors for Christ, and who proclaim to the world. And their counsel was good, and an exhortation to all everywhere to depart from ancient accusations, to be strengthened for good works, and to hold fast to better things, and to know the God who is by nature and in truth, and to the to submit one's neck to his laws, and so to run towards salvation and life. Therefore, the words from them are full of all truth; but the things of the Greeks have been made foolish, not having the beauty of the truth;

34 for all things among them are false, both prophecy, and understanding, and the multitude of supposed gods, which is unknown even to those who are deceived. Who says of Jerusalem, ‘You shall be inhabited; and to the cities of Judah, ‘You shall be built,’ and her desolate places shall spring up. And so follows the, "I am," that is, Jerusalem, the one who redeems you, who accomplishes all things, and who stretched out the heaven. I am, therefore, he says, the one who says of Jerusalem, "You shall be inhabited. For the Babylonians indeed captured it by force, having ravaged the entire land of the Jews. But they were redeemed by God, and they threw off the yoke of captivity, when the one who burned down Babylon permitted this to be done, I mean Cyrus the son of Cambyses; and indeed having returned to Judea, they rebuilt both the cities and the temple, and have dwelt in peace. Most skillfully, therefore, the prophetic word, by saying that Jerusalem will be built, gives the hearers to understand that it will be captured in due time, and destroyed. And he makes the prediction of the things that will happen to them not from the painful things, but rather from those things at which it was likely to rejoice greatly; along with coming to thoughts, as I said, of the more somber things. Therefore, when God commands Jerusalem to be built, the word of prophecy indicates that it had certainly been captured before.

35 But if someone should wish to engage in even deeper contemplations, we say that the truer Judea, that is clearly the Church, whose inhabitants and citizens might be understood as those who bear the circumcision in spirit. Though once desolate, He who commanded this to happen made it populous, that is, clearly, God in Christ, and her desolate places have sprung up. For she was found full of spiritual trees, and as it were most abounding in good trees, and having the lofty heads of saints. For it is a custom for the divinely inspired Scripture at times to liken the choir of saints to plants and trees. For the God of all things said through the voice of saints, that "I will put in the waterless land the cedar, and boxwood, and myrtle, and cypress, and white poplar. And it has also been said through the voice of the Psalmist concerning the saints to God, at one time, that "The trees of the plain shall be satisfied, the cedars of Lebanon which you have planted; and at another time again: "Then all the trees of the forest shall rejoice, before the face of the Lord, because he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness, and the peoples in his truth. And we do not say at all that rejoicing belongs to insensible trees, but the matter would be more fitting for saints, whom he says rejoice when Christ shines upon the world.

36 For so he judged the world in righteousness, justifying in faith those who were once deceived, and condemning the destruction of Satan and his angels. Who says to the deep, ‘Be desolate, and I will dry up your rivers. Who says of Cyrus to be wise, and he will do all my will. Who says of Jerusalem, ‘You shall be built; and of my holy house, ‘I will lay the foundation. Israel was carried away captive, as I said, in due time; for the Babylonians captured the land of the Jews. But when the seventieth year had now been completed for the captives, and the time for clemency towards them had arrived, that is, clearly, the clemency from God, he raised up against the Chaldeans Cyrus the son of Cambyses, who was ruling the empire of the Persians and Medes, who captured them, and released the Jews, having learned that the God whom they served had foretold concerning him, that being strengthened by His aid, he would be superior to his enemies, and completely unassailable to those wishing to resist, and that he himself would raise up the divine temple. That therefore the land of the Babylonians, although very populous, was about to be utterly desolated, he indicates, saying: I am he who says to the to the abyss: You will be made desolate. For in these things he called the multitude of the Babylonians, greater than number, an abyss;

37 and its rivers, the nations flowing into it, which were both its neighbors, and possessing the bordering lands, were called by them for aid. And it is again a custom for the divine Scripture to compare the multitudes of the nations to rivers and seas and waters. For indeed the divine Psalmist said concerning both our Savior of all, Christ, and the multitude of the nations, which has been caught by his words: "The voice of the Lord is upon the waters, the God of glory has thundered, the Lord. For indeed the voice of the Lord, that is, the evangelical and saving proclamation, was brought against all the nations, when it, so to speak, thundered down upon them. For the sacred and saving proclamation resounded, as it were, throughout the whole world under heaven. And again it is written: "The rivers have lifted up their voices. For we say that in these verses the holy apostles are called rivers, whose voices, that is, their teachings, have become known to all everywhere. And it is said somewhere also concerning Babylon itself, and Nineveh, that its waters are a pool of water. Therefore it was God who said to the abyss: You will be made desolate, and I will dry up your rivers. And he was likewise the one who told Cyrus to be wise, that is, to do everything with understanding, and to fulfill all things that seemed good to him.

38 These things were to make the Babylonians pay the penalty for what they had done by cruelly ravaging Judea, and burning the sacred and divine temple, and in addition to this, for Israel to be released, and the house to be rebuilt, that is, to be founded. For it is more true to say this. For Cyrus commanded, and adding resources of money, for the temple to be raised, and he laid the foundations. But since in the meantime he departed from human life, the progress of the works was hindered by the envy of some, under the one who came after him. Nevertheless, it was brought to completion after this again, with God's assent. And we have the accurate account of the history in the divinely-inspired Scripture; and to choose to spend long words on these things, I think is somewhere superfluous. And let no one say that the divine word was proven false, because Cyrus, being an idolater, did not do all the things that seemed good to God. For the phrase, "He will do all my will," is ordered entirely concerning those things that it is likely God means to will, I mean the capture of Babylon, the release of Israel from bonds and slavery, and the raising of the temple, and the building of the cities of Judea.

39 Thus says the Lord God to my anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have held, that nations might hearken before him, and I will break the strength of kings, I will open doors before him, and cities will not be shut. I will go before him, and I will level mountains, I will break bronze doors, and I will shatter iron bars. And I will give you dark, hidden, unseen treasures; I will open them to you, so that you may know that I am the Lord God who calls you by your name, the God of Israel. For the sake of Jacob my servant, and Israel my chosen one, I will call you by my name [ῃυλγ. your], and I will receive you. But you have not known me, that I am the Lord God, and there is no God besides me. But you did not know me. So that those from the rising of the sun, and those from the west, may know that there is none besides me. I am the Lord God, and there is no other. I am the one who prepared light and made darkness, the one who makes peace and creates evils. I am the Lord God who does all these things.

40 We say that the most valiant Cyrus encountered this prophecy, and was greatly pleased at the things foretold about him by God, and came to this opinion, so as to make the proclamation of the glory of God in the cities and lands under his hand, confessing clearly that He alone is God, and Lord of all, who is worshiped by the Jews. And the power of the prophecy, that is, of the prophetic predictions, is very clear, as I think. But running through each of the things said, as it is possible for what seems to be, he says [unclear] sometimes also the arduous things, let us make clear. For he names Cyrus "anointed," and not as one of the saints, to whom the name would apply, but improperly, as taken from the anointing, but because it was the custom to anoint with oil those called to kingdoms by God, even if they were not holy and revered. For we will find that the holy prophets have said to some of those brought to this, that "The Lord has anointed you as king over Israel. Cyrus, therefore, is anointed as a king; yet that he has prevailed through God, and was raised to an extraordinary glory, he gives us to understand by calling him anointed, that is, called to the kingdom by His anointing and decree. For this reason he says, that he has grasped his right hand.

41 And this would be a clear sign of help, according to what was said by the saints in the book of Psalms: "You have held my hand, my right hand; in your counsel you have guided me. And he says that he has held his right hand, so that nations might hearken before him, that is, be subjected and yield to him, and that the strength of kings might be shattered. For they say there were seven kings under the one pre-eminent king among the Babylonians. And that the cities were about to be opened automatically, and that nothing of the enemy's strength could at all hinder Cyrus as he ran through, he shows by saying: Cities will not be shut. I will go before you, and I will level mountains, that is, I will make all things bare for you, and easy to traverse, so that there will be nothing to oppose you. But even if someone should attack, and like a mountain meet your forces, this too I will level, that is, I will render it pitiable, and thrown to the ground, and weak. I will shatter bronze doors, and I will break iron bars, and I will give you hidden treasures, I will open unseen ones to you. They say that the Babylonians, after the city was taken, buried themselves in dark caves, especially the most illustrious among them, who, fearing death, hid themselves by sinking into every cave and cleft of the rocks like snakes, but were not strong enough to escape notice.

42 For some people informed this [perhaps this] Cyrus about them; and he ordered torches to be lit and the terrified to be dug out from the dark recesses, and thus to be subjected to bitter punishments. But others say that he emptied the treasures of the Babylonians that were under the earth and hidden. You will therefore be so illustrious and renowned, that you may know that I am the Lord God, who calls you by your name, the God of Israel, for the sake of Jacob my servant, and Israel my chosen one. For I, the only God, have called you for this, he says, and I have honored you with such brilliant glories, so that Israel, being my servant, might be well-treated by you. I have called you, he says, and have crowned you with glories. But you have not known me that I am the Lord, and there is no God besides me, and you did not know me; it is as if he were to say clearly: You did not receive such glory from me in return for brilliant deeds of valor that look toward piety; but I have honored you, although you did not know my divinity and pre-eminence, nor were you numbered among those who worship me, but so that those from the rising of the sun and those from the west may know that there is no one besides me.

43 For if I should choose, he says, to deliver my own, I will accomplish the matter even through those who do not know my glory, for the sake of those throughout all the earth knowing clearly that there is no God besides me. For I am the Lord of hosts, and Master of every nation and race; and wherever I may wish, I direct the hearts of those on earth, so that even those who are not mine appear as ministers of my will. I, therefore, am the Lord God, who prepared the light and made the darkness, that is, both day and night, or rather, light for the redeemed, but darkness for the ravaged. For the one group rejoiced, as being freed from their bonds, while the other was in inescapable calamities. I am he who makes peace, and creates evils. You will take this also in the same sense, as I just said: Peace for the redeemed, But evils, that is, things that cause suffering, or productive of all suffering, to the cruel and savage ones who had been brought against Israel. For that the matter grieved God would become clear, when He says through the voice of an angel to the prophet Zechariah: "I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy, and with great wrath I am angry against the nations that joined in the attack, for whereas I was but a little angry, they helped for evil. And indeed also to the Babylonians themselves:

44 "I gave them into your hands, but you did not show them mercy. But that Cyrus, bold and all-powerful, and employing the cruelty befitting those who were suffering, attacked the arrogance of the Babylonians according to the will of God, we shall know when He says, through the voice of Jeremiah, as to Cyrus: "Go up against her bitterly, and against those who dwell in her, and avenge with the sword, and destroy, says the Lord, and do according to all that I command you. And in addition to these things: "The Lord has opened his treasury, and has brought forth the vessels of his wrath, for the Lord has a work in the land of the Chaldeans, for her times have come. Open her storehouses, search her as a cave, and utterly destroy her. Let there be no remnant of her, dry up all her fruits, let them go down to slaughter. Woe to them, for their day has come, and the time of their vengeance. And the prophet Isaiah himself also said somewhere, as from the person of God to the Babylonians: "Behold, I am stirring up against you the Medes, who do not reckon silver, nor have 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," that is, of the Medes. Let the heaven rejoice from above, and let the clouds rain down righteousness;

45 let the earth bring forth, and let mercy spring forth, and let righteousness spring up together. It is a frequent custom and practice for the divinely-inspired Scripture to conduct its discourse from things that have happened to some in particular and in part to the universal and to all, and, as from a living image of things historically done, to elevate elegantly the mind of those being instructed to more mystical contemplations. This is indeed what one can see in the verses at hand. For a long discourse has been spent in the preceding concerning Cyrus, the ruler of the Persians and Medes, how he ravaged the land of the Babylonians and took it by force, and released Israel from the servitude there and from the bonds of captivity; and founded the temple in Jerusalem; and it has been recounted also that he was stirred up against the Chaldeans, with God also urging him on, opening for him bronze gates and shattering iron bars. But this was a partial narrative. For it was only for those of the blood of Israel to be cheered and to be released from the labors of captivity.

46 But he now transfers the force of his thoughts to Emmanuel himself, who was revealed by God the Father to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, that he might deliver from evil those who were inextricably bound by the chains of their own sins, and having declared them free from the tyranny of the devil, might prepare those on earth to return to him, and thus through himself bring them to God the Father. For he became the mediator between God and men, and through him we have received reconciliation in one spirit to the Father, and he is our peace, according to the Scriptures; he himself built the divine, that is, his own temple, that is, the Church. For he himself presented her to himself as a pure virgin, not having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing, but rather holy and blameless. Therefore, as in an image, in Cyrus and in the things done by him, one might well perceive the divinely fitting achievements granted by God to those throughout all the earth. This then is the aim of the things set before us. But we will interpret each of the things written in detail, as is possible. Let it rejoice therefore, he says, heaven from above, that is, those who inhabit the city above, and who have the brilliant and admirable dwelling place, both angels and archangels, and those beyond them, both thrones and authorities, and rational powers, and the attendants of the highest seats.

47 And we say that a cause of gladness has arisen even for the fathers in heaven, the return to God of those who had gone astray on the earth, I mean, through Christ the Savior of us all, the recovery of sight for the blind, and simply the salvation of the lost. For if they rejoice over one sinner who repents, how is it right to doubt that they are pleased and gladdened seeing the whole world under heaven saved? Therefore, let heaven rejoice from above, he says, and let the clouds rain down righteousness. And we say that the intelligible clouds are the powers above, through whom the exhortations of the spirit descend like rain, and drip into the hearts of the believers, according to what is clearly said elsewhere concerning the vine, about those of Israel: And I will command the clouds not to rain upon them; that is, the holy mystagogues themselves, and those who are on the earth, of whom the divine disciples were the first and first-fruits, who indeed, travelling over the whole earth, scattered the divine and sacred word, and gladdening those everywhere, like a thirsty and barren land, and, as it were, watering them spiritually, they became for them the cause of spiritual fruitfulness.

48 Therefore, to the Jews, inasmuch as they had become deicides, and had acted insolently toward Christ himself, the giver of spiritual streams, God commanded the clouds not to give rain, but to those who believe in him, they are commanded to let it down, and to water abundantly the hearts of those who approach him. "When the rains are sent down, let the earth spring forth, he says, and let mercy sprout, and let righteousness spring up together. For it was necessary that from the intelligible clouds, as I said, watering the world under heaven with the lessons of righteousness, as from good seeds, good fruits should appear and sprout forth. For just as when the inventor of sin ruled upon the earth, and through the wise of the world was casting down abominable and profane seeds everywhere, there was no one who did good, not even one, but all had turned aside, together they had become corrupt, and the whole earth was devoid of the fruits of goodness, since the lessons of righteousness had not yet been sent down like rain to all everywhere; so then, it was consistent for there to be fruits of piety toward God; and we say that mercy is love, which is the fulfillment of the law, with righteousness accompanying it, and certainly the evangelical kind; of which Christ himself has become for us both the arbiter and teacher. But one might say that the mercy and righteousness rising up or sprouting from the earth is our Lord Jesus Christ himself.

49 For he has become for us mercy and righteousness from God the Father; since it is true that in him we have received mercy, and have been justified, having received the remission of our old accusations, that is, that from him we have received the righteousness that is able to bring us to the attainment of every good, through which we have also been saved. But if the earth is commanded to bring forth righteousness, let no one be troubled, considering that the Psalmist also says somewhere about God the Father, and about Emmanuel himself: "He has wrought righteousness in the midst of the earth. For Christ did not bring down his flesh to us from above and out of heaven, but rather was born according to the flesh from a woman, who was one of those on earth. Therefore, when it is said that he became the fruit and sprout of the earth, you will understand, as I said, that he was born according to the flesh from a woman taken for this ministry, although she was one of those from the earth. I am the Lord God who created you; what better thing have I fashioned as the clay of a potter? He gives the reason, as it were, in these words, why the Son, being God by nature, emptied himself, and chose also to suffer for of us, and to deem those on earth worthy of so great a sparing love, as to give His own soul as a ransom;

50 or rather, even to endure to take the form of a servant, and to exchange the highest glory for the lowliness of human nature. For this reason he says, that I am, must now be taken to mean, I exist and live, being true God, and Lord of hosts, and having brought all things into being, and not having made death, but rather having created all things for incorruption. Then, honoring human nature, and that of all the living creatures on earth, nothing at all could be of equal weight to it, "What better thing," he says, "have I fashioned as the potter's clay? For we were formed by Him, who took dust from the earth, and like a potter shaped it very well. But the dignity of human nature does not stop at these things, but there is also in us a greater thing, a gift of hospitality and a gift of God's artistry. For we have been made in His image and likeness, and we have been enriched with the character of His glory, intellectually flashing in our souls, even if according to the flesh we are earth and from the earth. Therefore, man is not a contemptible creature on earth, but rather one worthy of admiration; and thus God glories in him. And indeed He said to the much-suffering Job, making His own great works manifest: "Did you, taking clay of the earth, form a living creature, and place it with the power of speech upon the earth? And the divine David somewhere also sings:

51 "Lord, what is man, that you are mindful of him? or the son of man, that you visit him? Then he explains the distinction of human nature, saying: "You have made him a little lower than the angels; you have crowned him with glory and honor, and set him over the works of your hands. You have put all things in subjection under his feet. For the all-wise Paul applied some of the preceding verses to Christ. But it might not unreasonably be said also of every man like us; for there is nothing false in them. Does the one plowing plow the earth all day long? Shall the clay say to the potter: What are you doing, since you are not working, nor do you have hands? He who says to his father: What will you beget? and to his mother: What will you bring forth in labor? The saying is deep, and overshadowed with much obscurity, but you will nevertheless go straight to what is useful, and true; but I think it is necessary to unfold briefly the purpose of the thoughts. For thus it will be both easy to grasp and easy to accept for those who listen. Therefore the God of all redeemed Israel from Egypt, and delivered them from polytheistic error and the deceit of demons, leading him by the law through Moses into the light of the true knowledge of God. For He taught them to worship one God, and to adore one Lord;

52 then through types and shadows He wished to lead them up to things yet greater, and more perfect, that is, the things in Christ. For the law was a pedagogue, and it was established until the time of reformation; and this was the time of the coming of our Savior Jesus Christ, when, having put away the shadow of the legal ordinances, and the types in the letter, He introduced to those on earth the beauty of worship in spirit and in truth, nakedly and unveiled. But at this very thing the Jews were displeased, and still advocating for the types they opposed Christ, and they accused Him of annulling the Mosaic ordinances, at one time saying: "If this man were from God, He would not break the Sabbath; and at another time assailing Him with even worse words. Therefore, since they made unacceptable the benefit of the evangelical proclamations, which was leading them up to spiritual fruitfulness out of the unprofitable shadow, for this reason He says: Does the one plowing plow the earth all day long? O foolish ones, He says; for the farmer cuts up the field with plows, but he does not do this forever, nor will he spend all the time of his farming with plows. For he cuts up the field, not so that it might appear to have suffered this alone, but so that it might be receptive to what is cast into it with seeds, and be seen as fruitful.

53 Therefore, having once been wild and, as it were, uncultivated, the hearts of all of us, using the law of Moses as a plow, I have prepared, and cutting them like a farmer, I make them beautiful for the casting of good seeds. But the sower of every good thing is my Son. Receive, therefore, what is from him, and do not wish to continually cherish and love the plowing law. For it plowed, as I said, not so that you might have this; for what benefit is there from this? but so that you might bring forth the fruits of truth. And since we have been intellectually re-formed in Christ, that is, we have been transformed, some from Hellenic error to the knowledge of the truth, and to a holy life, through Christ the Savior of us all; and others from circumcision to the acceptance of evangelical teachings, and to a newness of worship, no longer having the harshness of the types, but rather the spiritual having the most beautiful splendor shining forth; and it was granted to us and to them, having been enriched with the regeneration through water and spirit in Christ; likewise, to the Jewish peoples the grace upon these very things was both rejected and unacceptable; for they acted against, as I said, the ordinances from Christ; For this reason he says: Shall the clay say to the potter: What are you doing, because you are not working, nor do you have hands? The one who says to the father: What will you beget?

54 And to the mother: What will you bring forth in labor? For I, he says, wish to re-form you towards better things, and as it were, to re-fashion you towards what is superior through an intellectual birth, that is, of course, the one through water and spirit. But you act foolishly against my plans. Did the clay, he says, ever rebuke the potter, as not having a craftsman's hand, or as not knowing in what way it is necessary to shape what is in his hands? But did the one about to be born, he says, bring a question to his own father, whether he will beget? Then how do you, being as clay in the hands of a potter, and not knowing at all in what way the intellectual regeneration concerning you will be, not fear to be contentious? and have you not rather known to yield how these things might happen to the craftsman and father? For that the Jews were contentious with the words of the Savior, which were spoken to him concerning these things, is not at all difficult to perceive. For he said to Nicodemus: "Verily, verily, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot see the kingdom of God. But he, foolishly leaping at things beyond understanding, stood up against him, saying: "Can a man when he is old enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born? And he added to these another mystic teaching, How can these things be?

55 What then did Christ say to these things? "If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? It is necessary, therefore, to yield to what God might say. He himself knows the way of his own works, and the things crafted by him are not to be meddled with, and it is fitting for us to honor with undoubting faith the things that are beyond our understanding. But it must be known that the prophet Jeremiah was also sent to the house of the potter, to see him at work; and when the clay had fallen apart, and was re-fashioned into another vessel, God said to him: "Shall I not be able, like this potter, to do with you, O house of Israel? Behold, as the clay of the potter, so are you in my hands. And that we are intellectually re-fashioned into a holy and all-beautiful life, Paul will make clear, saying: "But we all, with unveiled face, reflecting as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit; through whom we are also born again, having a seed no longer corruptible, but through the living and abiding word of God. For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, who made the things to come: Ask me concerning my daughters, and concerning my sons, and command me concerning the works of my hands.

56 I made the earth, and man upon it. I by my hand established the heaven. I commanded all the stars. Of the In these words, a rendering of a higher meaning is seen to have been made. And the sense of the verses is as follows: For if the clay, he says, ever rebuked the potter, and accused the hand of the one who formed it as somehow unskilled or rather slow; if anyone of those not yet being or having been born, but expected to be born, meddled with what sort of children his own father would be the begetter of; ask me, you also, who will be my sons and daughters in due time; how it might happen, and in what manner you will be sons and daughters to me. Command me also concerning the works of my hands. And 'command,' he says, instead of 'give orders,' and as to one who does not know the way of things to be done, do not hesitate to give your opinion to God. Therefore, worthy of admiration and very rightly so is the all-wise Paul for having written thus: "O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor? For the wisdom that is the artisan of all things needs absolutely nothing in what pertains to herself. Nor would anything concerning us be difficult or impossible for her.

57 For she can do all things, possessing the all-powerful; or rather, she is all power. For the God of all is the Lord of hosts, and He alone knows the way of His own works. Therefore, His ways are not to be meddled with, and the things beyond mind and reason are unattainable for human thoughts, but are known to Him. And so we believe that the spiritual regeneration through water and spirit is given to those who have recognized the appearance of Christ. When Christ wished to make the grace clear to Nicodemus, He explained the way of the matter; but he, understanding nothing of what was said, declared the words of the Savior impossible. And He, having this mind, urged him to receive the wonder by faith, saying: "That which we know we speak, and that which we have seen we testify. Therefore, if we do not understand the way of the divine works, freeing our mind from all doubt, let us say to God: I know that you can do all things, and nothing is impossible for you; let us not ask Him concerning His daughters and His sons. Nor indeed let us command, that is, give orders to Him concerning the works of His hands; but as clay to the potter let us yield ourselves to be worked as seems good to Him. For He effortlessly changes our affairs to whatever He wishes, and refashions the mind from baser things to the better, and places in us a new heart, having uprooted the first one.

58 And indeed He said something of this sort through the voice of Ezekiel, that "I will take away their heart of stone out of their flesh, and will give them a heart of flesh, that is, tender and pliant, that they may know me, that I am the Lord. For departing from all wickedness and defilements, then re-tuning their own mind to be willing to fulfill the good; and having received in addition to this the spiritual regeneration from water and the Spirit, we shall be sons and daughters of God. For that the all-powerful is in Him, He shows by saying: I made the earth and man upon it. And He who is the author of man's generation, who brought into being him who was not, how will He be powerless for the spiritual re-formation? And is it not clear that by His own nods, the nature of His creations would change to whatever is according to His will? What is so strange if He who established the heaven with His own hand reforges the mind of man to what seems good to Him? Indeed, we say that the all-working hand of the Father is the Son, through whom are all things and in whom are all things. For by the word of the Lord, he says, the heavens were made firm. He Himself commanded all the stars, that is, He ordained, how each of them should be. For the sun is set to rule the day, and the moon the night. But as the Psalmist says:

59 "The sun knew its setting. The God of all made darkness, and it was night. And so again the divine David sings, and says: "Yours is the day, and yours is the night. You have prepared the sun and the moon. Therefore each of these traverses its appointed course with an orderly motion and in measured intervals of hours. Likewise also the rest of the stars according to the law given to them by God, rise in their seasons and set. To them He gave command, being God by nature and Lord, the creator of all things. I have raised him up a king with righteousness. All his ways are straight. He shall build my city, and he shall bring back the captivity of my people, not with a ransom, nor with gifts, said the Lord of Sabaoth. Some might perhaps say that these things were said about Cyrus son of Cambyses, because he both released Israel and freed them from the bonds of captivity, and founded the temple in Jerusalem; but the contemplation of what follows will establish rather the power of the thoughts, not on him rather, but on the Savior of us all, Christ, who was raised up with righteousness. For God being Lord shone upon us, as God the Father was pleased to sum up all things in him, things in the heavens and things on the earth. Therefore He was raised with a righteousness that is not adopted or learned, but being himself the very essence of righteousness.

60 And it is written somewhere else about him: "Behold, a righteous king shall reign, and rulers shall rule with judgment. For the only-begotten Word of God was always king of all things together with God the Father, and having all creation, visible and invisible, under his feet, but the man on the earth who had leaped away from the kingdom under him, and had scorned his scepters, because he had come under the hand of the devil and was entangled in the snares of sin, He, the arbiter and giver of all righteousness, brought again under His own yokes. For all his ways are straight. And we say the ways of Christ are the divine and evangelical ordinances, through which, by going to every virtue, and adorning our heads with the boasts of piety, we come to the prize of the high calling. And indeed the ways are straight; for there is nothing crooked or perverse in them, but as it were upright and easy to drive. For it is written that, "The way of the pious has become straight, and the way of the pious has been prepared. For the path of the law was somehow rough, going through many types, and of no portable difficulty, but that through the evangelical ordinances is bare, having nothing at all that is steep or rough. Therefore the ways of Christ are straight, and he himself built the holy city, that is, the Church, in which he himself also dwells;

61 for he dwells in the saints, and we have become temples of the living God, having Christ in ourselves through participation in the Holy Spirit. Therefore He has founded the Church, being himself the foundation, upon which we also are built, as costly and precious stones for a holy temple, for a dwelling place of God in the spirit. And the Church is altogether unshaken, having Christ as the foundation, and an unshakable base; "For behold, I lay, he says, the foundations of Zion, a chosen stone, a cornerstone, precious, and he who believes in him will not be put to shame. He therefore who founded the Church, also brought back the captivity of his people. For us on the earth, being tyrannized over by both Satan and sin, he has saved and delivered, and has brought under his own yokes; yet not with a ransom, nor with gifts; for as his disciple says, "We were not redeemed with corruptible things, silver or gold, from our futile way of life handed down from our fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. For He gave His own blood for us, and we are not our own, but belong to Him who bought and saved us. Therefore, and very rightly, those who transgress the noble rule of the orthodox faith are accused by the voice of the saints, as denying the Master who bought them. Thus says the Lord of Sabaoth:

62 The labor of Egypt, and the merchandise of the Ethiopians, and the Sabeans men of high stature shall cross over to you, and shall be your slaves, and they shall follow behind you bound in manacles, and they shall worship you, and in you they shall pray. Because God is in you, and there was no God but you. For you are God, and we did not know, the God of Israel, the savior. All who oppose him shall be ashamed and confounded, and shall go away in shame. Having introduced the word concerning Christ the Savior of us all, and having announced beforehand that he will restore his people not with ransom, nor with gifts, he immediately points out those who will be called to redemption, clearly those from the nations, upon whom Christ is seen to have shone especially. and yet he says clearly; "I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. But to them first the divine and evangelical light flashed. But since, as it is written, the beloved Israel grew fat, and grew thick, and kicked (for they killed the author of life); for this very reason and very fittingly Christ shone upon the flocks of the nations, and this very thing we shall find present in the considerations of the preceding texts. And he names the most superstitious of the nations, so that the power of the one calling to repentance might be marveled at.

63 For just as the skill of those who know how to heal is praised most of all, when they are able to free from their afflictions some who are suffering from desperate illnesses, using their own experiences at the opportune time; so also God makes His own transcendent glory more manifest, when he persuades some of those who have strayed too far, and have been brought down to the very lowest depth of depravity and impiety, to swim up and return to the desire for virtue, and to the rejection of evil, and as it were to the clothing of what is praiseworthy. The Egyptians, therefore, and the marketplaces of the Ethiopians, that is, the cities of the Thebans, whose neighbors and borderers are the so-called Sabeans, that is, the nations of the Ethiopians, or rather of the Indians (having perhaps received the name from Saba who at times ruled their country and land), have grown weary, he says; but the phrase, They have grown weary, must be understood in two ways: for either it means to show that they have grown intolerably weary, during the time of their wandering, yoked to the cruel tyrant Satan, and serving the flocks of demons who demand sacrifices, and even their own offspring, I mean both sons and daughters; or that formerly they were terrible and unbreakable, and as it were champions of the ancient deceit, and using all their strength to cling vigorously to the Hellenic impiety set before them.

64 But when Christ shone forth, and sent the true light into the hearts of all, and rose like a spiritual morning star, they grew weary, that is, they have not remained resistant, as before, but have relaxed, as it were, their former intensity, yielding the victory to the proclamations about him, and the word concerning these things was in no way proved false. For as the all-wise Paul writes: "Where sin abounded, grace abounded all the more. For the land of the Egyptians is seen to be full of venerable and holy churches. Altars everywhere and flocks of monks, and swarms of virgins, and the labors of asceticism with much gladness and a race toward virtue, and much zeal, both vigorous and not tolerating being cut off, and the worship of [or, the] Christ extends even to the Sabeans themselves, that is, the Indian nations. For it is possible, it is possible to see among them also as many things as in Egypt, and in the marketplaces of Ethiopia, that is, in the land of the Thebans. These Egyptians, therefore, he says, and the Sabeans, being men of high stature, that is, conspicuous, and most well-known to those everywhere, and unknown to no one that they are outstandingly worshipers of demons, and champions of diabolical inventions, will cross over to you, that is, having abandoned their former deceit, and having leaped away from the foundations of perdition, they will come to you, and will be your slaves, and of your evidently ministers of His wills.

65 For this is what the name of servitude signifies when applied to God. They will follow behind you bound in handcuffs. For they will walk, he says, in your footsteps, guided by the evangelical laws in each of their actions, and they will travel the path of the exceptional life bound in handcuffs, that is, by the bonds of love, and the chains of ineffable love for God, so as to be able to say: "Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? These will worship you, he says, and in you they will pray, for God is in you, and there is no God except you. For you are God, and we did not know, the God of Israel, a savior. For to Christ, the Savior of all, every knee bows, and every tongue confesses, and to him comes every end of prayer. For in Christ we ask for our requests from God the Father, and in him we pray, confessing that God is also in him, and there is no God except him. For so he taught us to think, saying to the divine disciple (this was Philip): "Have I been with you for so long, and you have not known me, Philip? Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in me? He who has seen me has seen the Father. I and the Father are one.

66 Therefore, 'God is in you,' and 'There is no God except you,' has the same force as, "And the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. But if someone should wish to skillfully apply the force of what has been said to the person of Christ alone, we say that according to the voice of the divine Paul, in Christ all the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily. And He Himself was God, not divided into two sons, but as the Word possessing His own flesh, in which He is also said to have dwelt. Therefore, even in this He is understood as God, just as a soul in a human body; but nevertheless, God is one Son. Indeed, it must be known that we say the flesh of the Lord was ensouled with a rational soul. They confess, therefore, that 'And God is in you, and there is no God except you.' For you are God, and we did not know, the God of Israel, a savior. This is the voice of those repenting, and of those now turning to the light from deceit and darkness, and who have come to the knowledge of the truth, and have recognized the one who is by nature and truly God, and the creator and Lord of all. Indeed, they name as the Savior of Israel the one who became human and was incarnate, believing him to be that very one who was long ago a helper to those of Israel.

67 That is, you will understand Israel not at all as only according to the flesh, but also as anyone else who is able to see God. For Israel is interpreted as 'a mind seeing God.' And he sees God with the eyes of the mind, the one who sees the character of God the Father, that is, the Son, at whom, he says, those who oppose him will be put to shame, and will also go away in shame. For those who did not accept faith in him, but fought against God, as indeed the Jews also did, will all be put to shame, defeated by the invincible hand, yet in no way harming his glory, but drawing down destruction on their own heads, they will be for shame and reproach. For they will be a spectacle for all flesh, according to the voice of the prophet. Be ye renewed unto me, O islands. Israel is saved by the Lord with an everlasting salvation. They shall not be ashamed, nor shall they be confounded unto the age, says the Lord Almighty. He again broadens the prophecy of the calling and conversion of the nations; and he does not stop only at the Egyptians, the merchants of Ethiopia, and the Sabaeans themselves; but indeed, that those who are throughout all the earth will be called, and there will be a showing forth of holy Churches everywhere, he has declared in these things.

68 For the all-powerful word of God addressed the Churches, as it were, to be renewed to him, which indeed he deigns to call islands. For just as the islands in this sea are always struck by the assaults of the waves, yet remain unshaken, and also receive ships when they are in danger, and save them from the waves, offering them a waveless bay; so the Churches of Christ, lie as it were in the very midst of life's turmoil and confusion, and they endure innumerable temptations, yet they have in Christ that which is unshakable. They house those fleeing the useless and empty confusion of the affairs of this world, and those who are, as it were, storm-tossed by both Satan and sin. They must therefore be compared to islands. For this is what the divine word intends in these things. Be renewed therefore to me, he says, O islands. Indeed, the name of the Church signifies the multitude of those who have believed in Christ, both priests and laity, shepherds and teachers, and those yoked under their authority, but all these were renewed in Christ, clearly at the times when God, being Lord, shone upon us. For then, then we were renewed to newness of life, of morals and of ways, and also of worship. For we have cast off the oldness that comes from sin, and we have become a new creation in Christ, being instructed by his laws, towards a glorious and desirable way of life.

69 And indeed the all-wise Paul writes to those called through faith and says, at one time, that "Put off the old man, with his passions and desires, and put on the new, who is being renewed in the image of his creator; and at another time, "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is the good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God. And he says that our old man has been crucified with him, so that we may put on the new through the way of life and life in Christ. We are renewed in the manner of worship, those who are of the Jewish orders, leaving behind shadows and types. For they will no longer use sacrifices of oxen and incense, but spiritual, and immaterial, and as it were in the order of the most well-ordered incenses; while those drawn from the multitude of the nations will be transferred to better things, and incomparably superior. For they will no longer have the ancient darkness in their mind, but having welcomed the divine and intelligible light, they will be holy and true worshippers. For they will cease from worshipping creation with deaf and senseless materials;

70 and they will abstain from divination and sorcery, and will cleanse the harshness of Greek buffoonery and the deceit of demons, and in short, having abandoned the more shameful things, and having turned away from abominable pursuits, they will be in the beauty of all virtue, and knowledgeable in the doctrines of truth. Renewal, therefore, are the things concerning us. For the things in Christ are a new creation. Indeed, the God of all promises all according to the flesh, I mean, and him who is numbered among the children of Abraham by promise ("For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel, but the children of the promise, these are counted as children"), to save with an eternal salvation, to be far from shame and disgrace, and these things perpetually. For having stripped off in Christ profane sin and having been freed from the yoke of the devil's greed, and along with these casting off corruption, and having put on incorruptibility, in these things we will be forever. For sin will no longer dance over us; nor will Satan subject us again to his former greeds; and the power of death will also depart completely in the age to come, being trodden down in Christ, through whom and with whom to the Father be glory and power with the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen.