Exposition on Psalm 9

great? For what do you wish to say? God is great? But this is a small thing to be said of God; for the great, whatever it may be that is great, is limited; but God is infinite. And this is small, to be said of God. For that He has no limit, I know; but what He is, or where He is, I do not understand. And if you should call Him wise, if you should call Him good, even if these are infinite, you have said nothing worthy of that Essence, unless a thought befitting God accompanies the word. If then such great things do not present His worth, who would be worthy of excuse who attempt to mutilate even these? Let us flee, then, from their gatherings, and having learned of the Only-Begotten the pre-eternal existence, the creative power, the authoritative dominion, His unchangeableness with the Father, the condescension of the economy, the multiform providence of His care for us (for the treasure lying in the Psalm teaches all these things and more than these to those who attend with accuracy), let us preserve the accuracy of the doctrines, and let us show forth a conduct worthy of them, that we may attain also to the good things to come; to which may it be granted that we all be made worthy, by the grace and loving-kindness of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom to the Father, together with the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory unto the ages of ages. Amen.

EXPOSITION ON PSALM IX

1. Unto the end concerning the hidden things of the Son, a Psalm of David. Another: Triumphal for the death of the Son, a canticle of David. Another: Of the Youth of the Son. 2. I will confess to Thee, O Lord, with my whole heart; I will recount all Thy wonders.

1. Long is this Psalm. And this too is of the wisdom of the Spirit. For He did not make all [the Psalms] short, nor did He draw them all out to length, but He varied the book also in its measure, rousing the slothful by the length, and relieving the weary by the brevity. ^B I will confess to Thee, O Lord, with my whole heart; I will recount all Thy wonders. Double is the kind of confession. For it is either a conviction of one's own sins, or it is thanksgiving to God. Here, however, it signifies thanksgiving. But what is, With my whole heart? With all promptness, he says, with zeal. Not only for prosperity, but also for things contrary. For this is most characteristic of a thankful and philosophic soul, to give thanks even in grievous things, to glorify God for all things, not only for benefits, but also for punishments. For this is the cause of greater reward. For when you give thanks for good things, you have paid a debt; but when you do so for evils, you have made God your debtor. For the one who has received good, and is grateful, has paid a debt. But he who has suffered ^C evil, and gives glory, has constructed a credit. For in return for this thanksgiving, God repays many other good things both then and now; so that we shall not even perceive the suffering of evils. For no one grieves over those things for which he knows how to thank God; so that we shall also reap another profit, that of dispelling despondency. For when you have been deprived of money and you give thanks, the loss cannot sting you as much as the thanksgiving gladdens you. This is a fatal wound to the devil; this makes the mind philosophic; this establishes the true judgment concerning present things. For many men do not hold the correct opinion concerning things here; and therefore they are despondent. Just so, even the insane fear things that are not to be feared, and often dread things that do not exist, and flee from shadows. To these are like those who fear the loss of money. For the fear is not of nature, ^D but of the will. For if the thing were grievous, it would behoove all who have been deprived to grieve; but if we do not all grieve when we fail, it is no longer of the nature of the thing, but of an imperfect mind. For as in darkness one often fears even a cord, thinking it a snake, and suspects everything, and deems friends to be enemies; so also those who are possessed by irrationality, having fallen into what is like a deep darkness, do not recognize the nature of things, but wallow in the mire, and do not think the grass to be grass; and being filled with the love of money, they do not perceive the stench; but if they should depart from it, then they will know. And just as those who are in love with an ugly woman, when they put an end to the disease, then they understand her ugliness; so also the lovers of the love of money. And how, he says, shall I be able to end the love? I will use the same example again. Just as he who loves an ugly woman, if he be continuously in her company, he kindles the furnace, but if he withdraws himself a little, the passion flows away little by little; so do you also withdraw a little, give way a little, and the little will be a great interval. Only begin the correction. Do you have a superfluous house? Sell it, and give to those who are in need, not considering that you are alienating it from yourself, but that you are rather making it more your own. Look not at the expenditure, but at the profit; not that you are deprived of it here, but that you become master of it there. So also you will be able to recount the wonders of God continually. For this is what the Psalm says from the beginning. For the lover of money is not able to dwell long upon this; for he is always concerned with interest, transactions, contracts, wares, testaments, prices of fields, prices of houses, gains, traffic, and he does not cease recounting and caring for these. Where the treasure of a man is, there is his heart also (Matt. 6:21). These things he utters, these he worries about; and as servants are concerned with the affairs of their masters, so he is concerned with the affairs of the Master; what has He commanded? what has been accomplished? what has not yet been accomplished, but is about to be? Therefore I exhort [you], having been set free from that siege, to dwell upon these narratives.

^A Telling of the miracles of God which happen every day, which occur privately and commonly, to all and to each one. For life is full of these narratives; and from wherever you begin, you will see a brilliant prologue emanate, whether from the sky, from the earth, from the air, from the brute beasts, from seeds, or from plants and trees; whether you wish to recount ancient gifts, those which preceded the Law, those which were under the Law, those which are in grace, those which occur after the departure from this life, or even in death itself, you will find an immense sea of narratives. How great, then, is the folly, when such things can be narrated through which pleasure, profit, and benefit can accrue to the soul, to pollute the reason with mire, speaking of avarice and rapine!

^B But if you wish, leaving those higher things, let us discourse about the earth, about its magnitude, position, use, nature, its constant birthing, and the various and diverse things which are generated from it: seeds, herbs, plants, flowers, meadows, gardens. From these, let us again divide by reason the figure of every single tree, its position, height, fragrance, fruit, season, and service, considering all other things, and the earth itself, both the fertile and the barren; for nothing of it is useless. For indeed, one part brings forth iron, another copper, another gold, another silver; one bears spices, another indeed various medicines of every kind. What is the point of speaking of the utility of waters, of drinkable and salty ones, of the use of mountains, of the mines of various marbles, of the springs that are within them, of the trees that are suitable for roofs and buildings? All these are fruits of the wilderness; it feeds both animals and all wild beasts. For what is the point of speaking of lakes, springs, and rivers? For just as women who have given birth, pouring forth a fountain of milk, provide nourishment to the offspring, so also the earth, by offering rivers and springs to gardens and orchards like breasts, irrigates them abundantly. But in women, the infant must come to the breast; here, however, it itself extends its breasts, letting them down everywhere from on high.

– *The Eulogy of Solitude.* There is also another use of solitude. It is also more suitable for the health of the body, as it provides a purer air to breathe, and the whole globe of the earth to be contemplated from on high, and the exercise of philosophy in solitude, and a slight breathing-space from the cares of life. What is the need to commemorate the birds that sing and the life of animals that are caught by hunting? Solitude has also another utility. For often it has provided the place of walls for estates, having mountains raised on high, ravines, and precipices. For what will you say of the herbs which grow in them, which bring great help to laboring bodies? If, therefore, the use of deserts and mountains is so great, and such is the abundance of goods from them, if you come to arable land and level plains, consider how many springs of narratives you will see. For just as in our body: ^C these are bones, those indeed are sinews, others are flesh: so also on earth, some are mountains, others ravines, others fertile fields: and all these things are useful. But why do I speak of the earth, which is so great an element? If you wish to tell the figure, use, fruit, leaves, season, and all other things of one tree, you will see great material for narrating; likewise if of the position of the mountains, and of all other things: but if you pursue this man himself with a discourse, and the formation of the body itself, from this you will again find an immense sea of narratives. In these, therefore, let us dwell; from this will be our greatest pleasure, from this profit, from this ineffable philosophy. For this reason, signifying this, he added:

3. *I will rejoice and exult in thee.* Another: *And I will exult.*

*I will sing to thy name, O Most High.*

4. *When my enemy is turned backward, they shall be weakened, and perish from thy face.* Another: *My enemies having been turned back, and broken/crushed, and perished.*

^B This too is the custom of a lover: to speak of benefits constantly and to take pride in them. For this springs from love, and in turn reignites love. Nor would anyone err in saying that he calls intellectual enemies by this name here; for these too are turned back when they find a noble soul. For just as a spear falling upon a shield, if it is soft, pierces it, but if it is hard and resistant, it does nothing, but the point, having been bent, falls off—so too it happens with the soul. For if it finds it soft and lax, the darts sent by the devil pass through into the depths; but if it finds it hard and stronger, he himself departs ineffective, and has wrought nothing terrible against it; and two gains are achieved, or rather even three: for it harmed it in no way, but actually made it stronger, and he himself became weaker from it.

Consider, then, how he proclaims the power of God. *They shall be weakened,* he says, *and perish from thy face.* Again, hearing "face," do not suspect anything bodily. For here he signifies his activity, his manifestation, the ease of his power, as he says elsewhere: *He who looks upon the earth, and makes it tremble.* So too he says the same thing here. For the mere looking is enough to destroy the wicked. For if the presence of saints makes the power of demons weak, how much more does God’s? If his lightning, when it appears, strikes everyone with terror, consider that deathless power—how it strikes, how it destroys the wicked.

Did you see the type of hymn? Did you see the manner of glorification, and how he tells of his power? He teaches no small dogma of philosophy from this, by saying: *I will sing to thy name, O Most High, when my enemy is turned backward.* What is this? That he was sober not only in afflictions, but also in respites. For many, while humbled by evils, become more diligent; but by blessings, they become more slothful and lax—which he says of the Jews later: *When he slew them, then they sought him.* But he is not such a one; rather, he is sober even in prosperity, and kept awake. This is no small thing for philosophy. *For thou hast executed my judgment and my cause.* Another: *Thou hast defended my case.* ^C *Thou hast sat upon the throne, O thou that judgest righteousness. Thou hast rebuked the nations, and the ungodly man has perished.* Another: *Thou hast destroyed.* *Thou hast blotted out his name for ever and ever.*

See again the philosophy of the man, how he does not avenge himself on his enemies, but yields the judgment to God, keeping the apostolic command: *Not revenging yourselves.* But this is not the only thing to observe, but that he also suffered these things unjustly. For if he had not suffered unjustly, God would not have proceeded to act. *Thou hast sat upon the throne, O thou that judgest righteousness.* He speaks in a more human way, naming a throne and a seat. But saying, *O thou that judgest righteousness,* he speaks of what is customary for God, and the singular attribute of his being. For in the case of men, one cannot say this. For they do not always judge righteousness, even if they are righteous a thousand times over, sometimes through ignorance, sometimes through sloth, failing to see what is just; but God, exempt from all these, knows and wills to bring forth a just verdict.

Therefore, *Thou hast sat upon the throne* means: you have judged, you have intervened, you have vindicated. *Thou hast rebuked the nations, and the ungodly man has perished.* Do you see how he has no need of weapons, of swords, of bows and arrows—but those terms were spoken in a more human way; for it is enough for God to rebuke, and for those who are to be punished to perish. But that you may learn of his power, hear also what follows: *Thou hast blotted out their name for ever, and for ever and ever.* You have destroyed them root and branch, you have uprooted them, you have so vanished them that their memory also has perished. ^D *The swords of the enemy have failed forever.* Another: *The ruins.* The Hebrew: *Arboth.* *And thou hast destroyed cities.* What is this? That having consumed his engines and his counsels, he says, you have made him destitute of his own weapons. For such is the wrath of God: it destroys and ruins everything. Or, as another interpreter teaches, saying *Deserts*—that you have not only destroyed their cities, but also their deserts, and you have pulled down the cities. For thus the righteous man fights, thus he cast down his opponents, not using weapons and spears, but having the power from God. Therefore his war is brilliant and manifest, and the victory is decisive. *His memorial has perished with a sound/noise.* Another: *Together with them.* The Hebrew: *Em.* What is *with a sound*? He speaks either of utter destruction, or the long-drawn-out wailing of evils. And this too is of God’s providence, not to do these things hiddenly, so that by the calamities of others, others too may become better. Therefore it signifies the manifestation of the destruction.

4. *And the Lord abides forever.* Another: *He shall sit.* For "sitting" is used in many places for the permanence of one’s being, as Jeremiah also shows, saying: *Thou art sitting forever.* And the Hebrew here says *Jeseb.* The prophet speaks this constantly regarding the destruction of men, showing the endlessness of his being, and that while the race of men is perishable, his being and greatness are endless. This produces fear, so that they may tremble before him on both counts: on account of the magnitude of his glory, and on account of the incompleteness of their own being, and as one who always abides, and as one who always punishes with excess.

If one must also say something according to anagoge, it is not to be declined. For some things can be contemplated; others must be understood as they are spoken, like *In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth*; and others differently from the words—for example: *Let the hind of love, and the foal of thy graces, converse with thee.* And again: *Let them be thy own only, and let no stranger partake with thee. Let thy fountain of water be for thyself alone.* For if you understand the text—and do not flee from the word, but pursue the meaning—it is also a matter of great inhumanity to share one’s water with no one; but the discourse here is about a wife, that one should enjoy her with temperance, calling her a fountain and a hind, because of the purity of the marital union. And here it is thus; but elsewhere...

^A it is written: *But I am a beggar and poor*. He knew—knew it clearly—that all human things were weaker than a shadow, and that nothing is more proper to us than virtue, while all other things are like leaves attached from the outside. For it is clear from this that virtue is proper to us: wherever we go, we carry it with us; the others do not remain. This, therefore, is more proper to us, while the others are more distant. As, then, we call that person more of a relative who is nearer to us, so we call this [virtue] more proper than money, because it is always nearer to us.

5. Observe also his gratitude and his philosophic soul. For while he possessed horses, and camps, and countless other things, he disregarded all those and attributed his salvation to Him. For he did not say, "The camps were my refuge," nor "My money," nor "My walls," but, *The Lord has become a refuge for the poor*. He Himself, he says, placed me in safety; for nothing can be compared to this refuge in terms of ease and security. Other refuges are subject to plots, nor can they be found readily, but are hindered by time, and place, and countless circumstances; but this one, because it is nearby, you will find if you seek it with diligence. For it says: *While you are yet speaking, I will say, Lo, I am here* (Isa. LVIII, 9). And, *I am a God approaching, and not a God afar off* (Jer. XXIII, 23). We do not need, therefore, to run or to travel, but even sitting at home we can call forth this refuge. And sometimes He delivers us from dangers; at other times He makes the same persons more illustrious and more powerful than their enemies, and both in the proper season. For when those who receive these things act with moderation, He grants both. But if they do not conduct themselves rightly, it stops at one, lest by the addition of the second they come to arrogance. And that you may know that this is often the cause of people becoming puffed up—Hezekiah was lifted up on account of this, but not even so did He despise him, but because the success of the victory had lifted up his mind, He brought upon him an infirmity to correct him (Isa. XXXIX, 2). *A helper in due seasons, in tribulation*. What is *in due seasons*? In the opportune time, he says. He calls the opportunity twofold: that He brings help, and that it is in due time. For he calls affliction "the opportunity" here. Why? For it is the mother of philosophy, and it will deliver man from death, and it especially attracts divine aid. Then listlessness and sloth are removed; then we devote ourselves more diligently to supplications. And just as winter is the opportune time for the cultivation of the land, so also is affliction for the care of the soul. For we always have need of His help, even if we have success, but then especially do we perceive it when we are in afflictions. *A helper*. Here he also signaled something else: that we must also be active.

It is not fitting, therefore, for us to be idle and to grow soft in spirit, but rather to bring prayers, and alms, and everything that can be offered by us ourselves. For even allies in war bring help to those who are fighting, not to those who shrink back and give themselves to idleness. If, then, you wish to enjoy the alliance of God, never betray what comes from you. Thus also was Job helped, while he stood firm and fought with all his might. Thus also the apostles, being active. 11. *And let them hope in you who know your name.* Another, *And they shall place their confidence.* The Prophet does this continuously, turning the discourse from prayer to exhortation, as a common teacher of the world, and placing in the midst the treasure of philosophy. He well said: *Let them hope who know your name.* For those who know you—and your taking up, he says, and your alliance—have a sufficient anchor in the hope they place in you, a sufficient alliance, and an immovable tower, one who not only promises release from evils, but also does not permit them to be disturbed by present evils. For he who has been set free from human affairs, and hangs his own hope from above, not only brings about the swiftest release from evils, but also is not disturbed or troubled in the very midst of the evils, being helped by the hope of that anchor. Thus, in any case, the three youths were not only released from the furnace, but while they were even spending time within the furnace, they were not troubled. For they knew the alliance from God. For this reason also another says: *And they shall place their confidence*, instead of saying, *they shall be bold.* For the security that comes from hope in God is far greater than the command—if one may so call it—that comes from troubles. For the former is a human thing, but the latter is divine and invincible. ^C Since he said that he became a helper, that he became a refuge, he shows also how he becomes so. How, then, does he become so? When we remain continuously hoping in him. But if he does not immediately resolve the evils, this also happens for your testing. Just as, though able not to allow them to approach, he nonetheless allows them, so that he may work you to be more steadfast; so too, although able to resolve them from the beginning, he lingers and delays again, increasing your intensity, and exercising your hope, and making your disposition toward him more earnest; and he neither permits you to be always afflicted, lest we grow weary, nor to be always relieved, lest we fall into laxity. *That you have not forsaken those who seek you, O Lord.* Another, *For you have not forsaken.* Thus also another says: *Look at the ancient generations and see: who has hoped in the Lord and was put to shame? Or who called upon him and he forsook him?* And how is God sought, he says, he who is everywhere? With eagerness and readiness, and with the casting away of all life’s concerns. For we have many things before our eyes and in our hands which we do not know, but we go around seeking—often that which we hold, whenever the mind is turned toward something else. ^D 6. How, then, is it possible to seek God? When we stretch our mind toward that, when we are released from life’s concerns. For he who seeks, having cast everything out of the soul, comes to that which is sought. And one must not simply *seek*, but also *diligently seek* [ἐκζητεῖν]. He who diligently seeks does not only seek himself, but also takes others as helpers, so as to find what is sought. But in the case of the affairs of life, we often sought and did not find; but in the case of spiritual things, this is not the case, but it is entirely necessary for him who seeks to find. For if we only go forth to seek, God does not allow us to labor much; for this reason he says: *Every one who seeks finds.* *Sing to the Lord who dwells in Sion.* Another, *Who sits.* *Declare among the nations his deeds.* Another says: *Among the peoples his machines.* What are you saying? He whose throne is heaven and footstool the earth, he whose hands hold the ends of the earth, does he dwell in Sion? Yes; for he does not mean a dwelling here in the sense of being enclosed (for his greatness is boundless), but the intimacy with the location, and the having a relationship with it, for the sake of drawing the Jews to himself through this condescension; since even a "house" is called such among us, because we have a relationship with it. And he is even said to dwell in us, not as being contained by us, but as having a relationship with us. Sion, according to anagogical interpretation, is called the Church. *For you have approached Mount Sion, and the Church of the firstborn.* And the Church is well called a mountain, because of its steadfastness, and stability, and because it cannot be moved. For just as it is not possible to shake a mountain, so neither the Church of God. *Declare among the nations his deeds.* He wants them to be heralds of the benefits of God, and never to conceal his benefits. And he seeks this everywhere, both for the sake of those who speak and those who hear. For there is profit for both these and those, if they pay attention. *That he who diligently seeks remembered their blood.* Have you seen what he calls "deeds"? The benefits. Here he also hints at a great doctrine: that murder is not committed with impunity, but is always avenged; which Moses also shows in Genesis, saying: *Your blood I will seek.* This is a proof of his infinite providence, of his extended care. But if he does not seek it on the heels of the crime, do not be surprised; for he gives to those who sin an occasion for repentance. *He did not forget the cry of the poor.* See again that the poor are approved. He does not simply say "the poor," but those who are *poor in spirit*, as Christ says. For these are most heard as they pray, those who are humble in heart, and contrite. He places two things here: both prayer and humility. *For upon whom shall I look*, he says, *but upon the humble, and quiet, and trembling at my words?* And humility is found everywhere to be the vehicle of prayer. *For the Lord is near to those who are contrite in heart.* So that he who prays must avoid inflammation, which also Paul seeks, saying: *Without anger and disputing.* He well said, *the cry of the poor*, calling "cry" the disposition of the mind, not the volume of the voice; by saying *he did not forget*, he revealed that he is continuously...

invoking [God], yet not attaining [his request] from the beginning. ^A What, then, is it that he says? Do not think that God has forgotten, and that for this reason He has not taken vengeance; for it is habitual to Him to seek out such things, even if no one asks; but when they do ask, and those who ask are humble, much more so. 14. *Have mercy on me, O Lord; see my humiliation from my enemies.* 15. *You who exalt me from the gates of death, that I may declare all thy praises in the gates of the daughter of Zion.* Another: *Thy hymns.* Another: *Thy praises.* See him perpetually affixed to prayer. For having been delivered from evils and set in safety, he does not cease to pray again, saying, *Have mercy on me*, and asking Him for things to come. For we always have need of God’s providence; especially, however, while we are being delivered from evils. For one war succeeds another that is more difficult—that of sloth and arrogance; for then the devil breathes more vehemently. Wherefore, especially after we have been delivered from evils, we have need of that help, so that we may easily bear prosperous circumstances. For the Jews also, having been delivered from the Egyptians, were vexed by a more grievous war—arrogance and sloth. Thus, then, they perished most of all, as those who could not lead an army correctly. For because they stood not bravely in the line of battle neither against gluttony nor against the vice of a faint heart, but emulated the vices of the Egyptians, these things destroyed them. David also, when he had been delivered both from the difficulties of Saul and from all other enemies, after he obtained rest and relaxation, suffered a more difficult war of incontinent desire, which afflicted him also with a greater punishment. Wherefore, it is most to be feared when we have been delivered from miseries. For just as a beast bound is not feared in the same way as when it is let loose, so also vice is not so much to be feared in affliction; for then it is bound by the sickness of the soul and other chains; but after rest and remission, it is most to be feared. And therefore you will often see prosperous success in affairs bringing forth greater evils than adverse circumstances. Thus also Hezekiah, after his trophy, was about to perish. Wherefore he himself also says elsewhere: *It is good for me that thou hast humbled me* (Ps. CXVIII, 71). He seeks mercy, moreover, even after deliverance, and brings the cause of his petition for mercy, [which is] that he has been badly affected: *See my humiliation from my enemies*, and another again: *You who exalt me from the gates of death.* For I take refuge with Him who aids me, and takes care of me, and always holds out His hand to me. Do you see him, in the petitioning for things to come, giving thanks also for things past, and speaking of a double benefit? For he did not say, *Who deliverest me from the gates of death*, but, *Who exaltest me*. For God’s benefit did not stop at merely solving their evils, but He made them also admirable, notable, and more glorious. He did not say, *From the gate*, but, *From the gates*, ^B signifying many dangers. *That I may declare all thy praises in the gates of the daughter of Zion.* What he persuaded others to do, he does himself: *For declare*, he says, *His deeds among the nations.* This I too will now do, and I will not do it only with one present, or two, or three, but in the midst of the theater. 16. *I will exult in thy salvation.* This is for me a crown, this a diadem, to raise a trophy for thy sake, for thy sake to attain salvation. Thus we too should seek not merely to be saved, not merely to be delivered from evils, but according to God. I say this, however, because of those who in sickness use incantations, and seek out other sorceries to alleviate their sickness. For this is not to be saved, but to perish. For the greatest salvation is to be saved through God. *The nations are fixed in the destruction which they made.* Another: *They are immersed.* He calls vice destruction or corruption; for nothing corrupts as much as vice. For there is nothing weaker than the wicked man; he is captured and conquered by his own weapons, just as iron by rust, and wool by the moth; so also the wicked man by vice. Whence, even before the punishment which is brought by God, vice itself demands penalties from the one who commits it. Because he discoursed much concerning the justice above, and concerning God’s aid, and [since] it itself does not come immediately, but hesitates and delays, and this makes many more cowardly, he shows that the punishment is at the doors, and that the wicked suffer it, as Paul also says: *And receiving in themselves the recompense which it behooved of their error* (Rom. I, 27). See, moreover, how properly he uses the terms. *Are fixed*; this is, they are held fast by force, the snares are prepared for them, unavoidable. And again, *In this snare which they hid, their foot has been caught.* By chains, he says, which cannot be loosed, the wicked are bound. These things came to pass for the apostles and the Jews. When they were waging war with the apostles, they were harming them not at all, but were implicating themselves in innumerable evils, ruined in city, and freedom, and all other things, and indeed the preaching was growing, but those who were preparing snares were being destroyed. And those who cast the three children into the Babylonian furnace were caught by it again; which is what happened also in [the case of] Daniel. But in Daniel, indeed, this happened deservedly, for they themselves had cast him in; but in the case of the three children, what is the cause, that when the king had sinned, those who were standing before the furnace are punished? Because those also who were burned had served the tyrant’s command, and had worshiped the golden statue. *In the snare which they hid.* See how he showed their shame to be unspeakable. For because what was happening was full of ignominy, for that reason they hide, and attempt to remain unseen. *The Lord is known making judgment.* That is, punishing, avenging, pursuing. Have you seen another kind of benefit from castigation...

he says, that it makes those who are chastised more diligent, but also prepares the word of His knowledge to shine forth? And one might see Him from this point of view turning men back. When, therefore, He allowed the herd of swine to rush down the cliffs and be drowned in the sea, then they were particularly astonished. And in the Old Testament, the Jews, *when he slew them, then they sought him out,* as the Prophet says. And why on earth does He not do this more frequently? Because He does not wish for the affairs of virtue to be accomplished more by force, but rather by choice, and through being treated with benevolence rather than through being punished. And by how much, he says, is it better to be good by necessity than evil by choice? It is not possible to be good by necessity. For he who becomes good through a bond will not be good at all times, but once released from necessity, he will return to evil. But he who is instructed so as to become good by choice, once he has becomes so, remains steady. *In the works of his hands the sinner was caught.* He did not say, of the hands of God, but of the hands of the sinner.

8. Have you seen how he varies the discourse, bringing in the punishment from above, and inflicting the penalty from the vice? How the punishment from above? *The Lord is known,* he says, *making judgments.* How the penalty from the vice? *The nations were stuck fast in the corruption that they wrought.* And again, that from wickedness: *In the works of his hands the sinner was caught.* For he declares neither the punishment from God alone, since it is often delayed and slow; nor only that from vice, since many even dwell in it; but he secures the discourse from both sides. Wherefore he says, *In the works of his hands he was caught.* ^A Another copies, *His snares*. Do not, therefore, think that you are preparing the engines for another when you plot; for you are weaving the nets for yourself. *Song, diapsalma.* Another says, *Voice always*. Another, *Melodic song always*. But the Hebrew, *Higaion selah*. *Let the sinners be turned back into Hades, all the nations that forget God.* Another, *They shall return*. Again he persists in the same points, showing that vice has punishment allotted to it, and impiety gives birth to death, and sin to dangers. *For the poor shall not be forgotten to the end; the patience of the needy shall not perish to the end.* Another interpreter says: *For the expectation of the meek shall not be forgotten to the end.* He did well to say, *to the end*, showing that one does not always seek relief. For where would the fruits of patience be shown, if there were always to be relief? But what he says is this: The wicked shall pay the penalty, and they shall suffer the ultimate things. For God will not endure forever that those who are wronged should be in plots. Hence he also comforts these, and strikes fear into those, and shows the philanthropy of God, that delay both makes the more tested and draws others to repentance. See again the needy prospering—not merely needy, but those who are contrite in heart. These ^B are indeed most suitable for patience—or rather, these things construct one another: humility [constructs] patience, and patience [constructs] humility. And if someone were to say, “And how is poverty humility?” we shall say this, that it is more suitable for virtue. For he who is wealthy is anxious and troubled, while he who is poor bears everything easily, being often exercised in poverty as in a wrestling school. For this reason also Christ was saying that it is difficult for a rich man to enter into the kingdom. What is *The patience of the needy shall not perish to the end*? Never, he says, but it shall by all means receive its proper fruit. This is not the case with worldly things, but often it falls short of its end, with the labors having perished. For both the husbandman waits and the merchant; but often, because of the intemperance of the air, both fall short of the fruit of their labors. But with God this is not so, but it is necessary to enjoy the end by all means. This is not a small matter for the sake of comfort, to be confident always about the end. *Arise, O Lord, let not man prevail.* Another, *Let him not be bold*. *Let the nations be judged in your sight.* Another, *And against your face*. Having spoken of the wickedness that possesses the majority of men, and having narrated the malice, the rapine, the greed, the murders, he entreats God on behalf of the aid of the wronged. For such are the bowels of the saints, not to care for their own things only, but as if for one house—the inhabited world—or for one body—the multitude of men—thus to entreat God. *Arise, O Lord, let not man prevail.* And what is, *Arise, ^C O Lord?* Come forth, he says, help, punish those who do injury. And he made good use of the naked names, having said, *Arise*, and, *Let not man prevail*—so as to declare that he is worthless, from the earth, ashes and dust. *Let the nations be judged in your sight.* What is this? Let them pay the penalty, he says, for their sins. They have not become better by the long-suffering; exact the penalties for what has been dared. *Appoint, O Lord, a lawgiver over them. Let the nations know that they are men. Diapsalma.* Another, *Always*. What is, *Appoint a lawgiver over them?* Since, he says, they perform everything as if in lawlessness, not wishing to pay the penalty, come forth, and let the punishment become their instruction. This also another, declaring it, said: *Appoint, O Lord, a fearful thing over them.* See how he does not seek their punishment, but instruction and correction, and the not living lawlessly. For the punishment will be for them, he says, instead of instruction; and not for them only, but also for others. And that you may learn how great the gain is, and how it suppresses the disease, hear the following. *Let the nations know,* he says, ^D *that they are men.* But what he says is this: Many have even lost this; they have forgotten their nature, they have slipped into madness, they have been ignorant of themselves. And he rightly added *Always*, in order to declare that not only in adversities, but also...

in prosperity, they should maintain their fear, and the memory of the evils that have befallen them, even if they should come into prosperity, let them know their own nature.

^B Why does he offer prayer on their behalf, and why does he desire their madness to be corrected? For to be ignorant of oneself is the height of madness, and more grievous than phrenitis. For this is a disease of necessity, but that is of a corrupted will. *Why, O Lord, have you stood afar off, do you overlook in times of need, in tribulations?* The Prophet says these things, praying and suppliant from the person of those who are afflicted, not blaming—far be it. For many of those who are afflicted, because of their pain, desire the judgment to happen before the appropriate time; just as those who are being operated on, before the surgery is finished, ask the physician to withdraw his hand, requesting a harmful favor, doing this because they cannot bear the pain. And often they shout at the physicians: "You have tortured me, you have destroyed me, you have taken me away!" Yet these words do not proceed from the mind, but from the pain. So, certainly, many of those who are small-minded and abject say such things in their afflictions, not bearing the labor. Sophonias also handles such a matter. But these examples are in the Old Testament, when the contests were moderate; but they are far removed from the philosophy of the New.

^C Let them be caught in the counsels that they devise. Another: *Let them be caught.* 3. *For the sinner is praised in the desires of his soul, and the unjust man is blessed. 4. The sinner has provoked the Lord.* The Prophet, having put upon himself the person of the suppliant, and praying for those who are suffering injury, mentions also the affections that have come, which are of human weakness; namely, that the one to whom the injury is done is vexed and tormented before the punishment, not bearing the prosperity of the wicked one. This is not a small punishment either. Then he asks that they pay the penalty, and that their snares be turned back against themselves; he also speaks of an intolerable kind of wickedness. What is this? *Because the sinner is praised in the desires of his soul.* For those for whom he ought to hide himself, for whom he ought to be ashamed, for these he is held in admiration, for these he is praised. How then will a remedy be able to be applied to this person hereafter, when vice is praised? But this happens now as well. This man is held in admiration, as one who is powerful; another, as one who takes vengeance on his enemies; another as prudent, because he has gathered up the goods of all; and when he has ruined himself, they say he has "found himself," and others say other things—but about spiritual things, not even a word. He who is detached from business is not quickly praised, nor the lover of poverty; but he who is wealthy, a shopkeeper, a flatterer, who for the sake of nothing useful performs servile ministries. The Prophet laments these things, that vice has so prevailed that it flatters and pleases itself, and what is more grievous, that it is not at all ashamed, and that it not only praises itself for what it does, but also has others as its praisers. What could be worse than this madness? *The sinner has provoked the Lord.* Another: *Because when the iniquitous man praised according to the desire ^D of his soul, and the covetous man blessed, he irritated the Lord; when his wrath has been exalted, he does not seek.* Another: *Because he praised in the desire of his soul, and the covetous man who blessed, he drew aside from the Lord. The impious man according to the exaltation of his wrath will not seek.* But the Seventy: *The sinner has provoked the Lord; according to the multitude of his wrath he will not seek.* Do you see where vice has proceeded? What do I say, he asks, that he molests the poor? He irritates God Himself. And *according to the multitude of his wrath he will not seek,* he says, God. But another shows this to be said about the impious man saying, *Of his exaltation,* that is, of his arrogance, of his insolence. Do you see the remarkable madness and corruption? He is an enemy and a foe to those who are of the same race and kin, an alien to virtue, a lover of vice and a praiser of it. And another said beautifully, *God is not in all his thoughts,* signifying that he does not seek God, that he is full of darkness, that he does not have the fear of Him before his eyes. But just as a cataract darkens the pupil, so also does wickedness darken the mind, and carries his thoughts toward the precipice. His ways are defiled in every time. Your judgments are taken away from his face. Another: *Your judgment has been removed.* Do you see the fruit of vice? His light is extinguished, his reasonings are dulled, he is delivered captive to wickedness. For just as he who is deprived of sight frequently falls into pits, so also this man, because he does not have the fear of God before his eyes, dwells perpetually in vice; not now indeed in virtue, and now in vice, but always in vice, nor does he remember hell, nor the future judgment, nor the rendering of an account; but, these supports being shaken off like a bridle, like a ship with no ballast, he is delivered to evil spirits and savage waves, with no one to guide and instruct his soul. Do you see the evil man paying the penalty even in vice itself? For what is heavier than an unbridled horse, what than a ship that lacks ballast, what than a man who is blind?

...one ought not to flatter the sinner. But more miserable than all these is he who lives in vice, as one who, with the light that proceeds from the fear of God extinguished, is delivered up as a captive. *He will rule over all his enemies. 6. For he said in his heart: I shall not be moved from generation to generation without evil.* Another: *He tosses all his enemies, saying in his heart: I shall not turn from generation to generation. For I shall not be in affliction.* Do you see the arrogance? Do you see the unspeakable destruction? Do you see how destruction is gradually increased? Do you see how the things that are considered blessed among fools are truly full of much misery, and how they are overwhelmed? *He is praised in his sins, he is blessed in his misdeeds.* This is the first pit, which is enough even to precipitate one who does not notice. And therefore those who accuse and correct are more to be welcomed than those who praise and flatter toward destruction. For these corrupt the dull-witted, and propel them to greater vice: just as those who have puffed up this sinner have schooled him for madness. And therefore Paul also says this very thing to the Corinthians, about the one who was

^A a fornicator: And you are puffed up, and have not rather mourned (1 Cor. 5:2)? It is proper to mourn for one who sins, not to praise him. Do you see a perverse wickedness, how it is not only not accused, but even praised? From this, out of his own folly and the praises he receives, he increased his wickedness, he forgot the fear of God and His judgments; from this he also forgot his own nature. For he who forgets the judgments of God, henceforth in time forgets even himself. See, then, what he reasons: I shall not be moved from generation to generation, without evil. What is more foolish than this thought—that a man, being mortal, subject to temporal things, and exposed to myriad mutations, should imagine such things? Whence does this arise? From folly. For when a foolish man enjoys much prosperity, and overcomes his enemies, and is praised and admired, he becomes the most wretched of all. For by not expecting a change, he neither bears prosperity soberly, and having fallen into adversity, being untrained and unpracticed, he is troubled and ^B confounded. But not so Job; but even in prosperity he expected adversity every day; wherefore he also said: For the fear which I feared has come upon me, and that which I was afraid of has met me. I had no peace, neither had I quiet, neither had I rest; yet trouble came (Job 3:25-26). And therefore another said: Remember the time of famine in the time of plenty, of poverty and need in the day of riches (Eccli. 18:25). But this man, having become corrupted once for all, does not look upon human affairs, but thinks that because of his own success they have become immutable; which is a cause of the utmost folly and corruption, and a source of destruction. Do not, therefore, call those blessed who are wealthy, who overcome their enemies, who are praised for these things. For these are great pits and precipices for those who are not ^C watchful, casting them down into the very bottom of impiety. Of cursing his mouth is full, and of bitterness, and of deceit. Under his tongue is toil and pain. Another [version]: Useless. He sits in ambush with the rich in secret places, to kill the innocent. Another: Lying in wait by the enclosures. His eyes look upon the poor. He waits in secret as a lion in his den. Another: As in his covert. He lies in wait to snatch the poor, to snatch the poor when he draws him. Another: In his drawing. In his trap he will humble him. Another: In his net. He will stoop and fall in his mastering of the poor. Another: And he being crushed shall be bowed, when he has fallen with his strong ones upon the weak.

Do you see that he has even become a beast? For just as the Prophet, describing a beast, speaks of him ^D thus, bringing to light his deceits, his ambushes, his plots. What could be more wretched than this, or what more impoverished, when he stands in need of the poor man's money? Shall we, tell me, call this man rich? Then we should also call the thief and the house-breaker rich. Far from it, he says. For what if he does not break into courts? What if he does not come by night, but by deceit extinguishes the light of the judge? What if he does not come when men are sleeping, but when all are wide awake? For this man is all the more shameless. Since even the laws punish those who steal by day more severely than others. Do you see the poverty? Do you see the cruelty? The poverty, in that he desires the things of the poor; the cruelty, in that he is not moved even by their misfortune, but the very poverty which he ought to pity and rectify, he grinds down. But yet he does not perform these things with impunity; but when he prevails, when he seems to overcome, when he thinks himself invincible, then he shall perish; that both the resourcefulness of God may be manifest, and the patience of the poor, and the incorrigibility of this man, and the long-suffering of God's forbearance. Therefore, justice does not follow at his heels, as God through His long-suffering calls him to repentance; but when he gains nothing from this long-suffering, then He admonishes him through punishment. For these men, though they have been injured, were not harmed; but they became even better and more luminous from the affliction; but God displayed His own long-suffering, bearing with him and being forbearing, and along with His long-suffering, He displayed His power and His abundance; for when he is more powerful than himself, then He overcomes him; and this man, having remained incorrigible, pays the final penalty. And this is no small tempering for those who prosper.

to the aid of his victim, and demanding that he be both helper and vindicator of those who are wronged, so that the former might recover his breath and the latter might be corrected. Let no man, therefore, pursue an abundance of riches and resources. Many evils arise from this for those who do not pay attention: arrogance, sloth, envy, vainglory, and other far greater things than these. But that you may be freed from all these evils, tear out the root; for if it does not remain, the evil sprouts do not bud forth. And for this reason, these things have been said not only that we might hear them, but that we might be corrected and demonstrate great virtue in Christ Jesus, to whom be glory and power for ever and ever. Amen.

EXPOSITION ON PSALM X

1. In the Lord I put my trust: how will you say to my soul, “Be a migrant to the mountains like a bird?” Another: “Cross over to the mountains like a bird.” Another: “Move.” 2. For behold, the sinners have bent their bow; they have prepared their arrows in the quiver, to shoot down the upright in heart in the darkness. Another: “As if in the darkness.” 3. Because what you have perfected, they have destroyed. Another: “Because the laws have been dissolved.” Another: “Because their teachings shall be crushed.”

Great is the power of hope in the Lord, a fortification that cannot be overcome, a tranquil harbor, a tower that cannot be besieged, invincible weapons, unconquered powers, and that which finds a way out even in the most difficult and impossible circumstances. Through this, the unarmed have prevailed over the armed, and women have overcome men, and children have easily become superior to those who were exercised in the arts of war. But what is surprising if they defeated enemies, when they even surpassed the world itself? For the elements ignored their own nature and were changed to what was useful to them; the wild beasts were no longer wild, nor was the furnace a furnace (Dan. 3). For hope in God changes all things. The teeth were sharp, and the prison was narrow, and the cruelty of nature, and famine were goading nature (Dan. 6:22); nowhere was there anything to restrain them, and the mouths were close to the prophet's body. But hope in God, which is more powerful than any bridle, rushing into their mouths, dragged them backward. The same man also philosophized, saying to those who were bidding him to flee and to provide for his own safety from the protection of places: “In the Lord I put my trust: how will you say to my soul?” What are you saying? I have the Lord of the world as my helper; I have Him who easily accomplishes all things everywhere as my leader, and as one standing at my side; and you send me to uninhabited land, and you procure security for me from the wilderness? Would the help from the wilderness be greater than that from Him who can do all things with the greatest of ease (Job 42:2)? Why do you urge one who is well-armed to take flight as if he were naked and unarmed, and why do you command him to migrate? Therefore, if you would not command one who has an army and is fortified with walls and weapons to flee into the desert, but would appear ridiculous if you were to advise such a thing, then you are acting ridiculously and behaving foolishly when you drive away one who has the Lord of the world with him, and you exile him and command him to migrate because of the war, which...