Fragments on Jeremiah (in catenae)

^A of the prophecies in general, one is of the Holy Spirit, another is of the devil; the third, which is between these, is natural or artificial; the last is common and popular. Now, of the spiritual one, the holy men are the chief partakers, but by divine dispensation also those who are not such, as Nebuchadnezzar, and Pharaoh, and Balaam, and Caiaphas. But the diabolical one belongs only to the worshippers of the devil; for they themselves are the flour-diviners, and the Pythia who prophesies through her parts, and the Dodonaean priestess through the oak, and those who divine by entrails, and flight of birds, and croaking, and signs, and sneezings, and omens, and thunder, and hands, and mice, and weasels, ^B and squeakings and ringing of ears, and palpitations of the body, and pebbles, and rods, and barks, and by the dead, and the ventriloquists, and names, and stars, and vessels, and ten thousand other such things. For even with us, the divination through dreams comes by a certain possession. But the foreknowledge in their case is not through virtue, as with us, but through some evil art; and they divine concerning money, and diseases, and wars, with no virtue or vice being sought on their part; while with us it is for the sake of the correction of morals and a change for the better. And those things must needs happen, but these do not; for what is the profit of a prediction spoken for the benefit of souls, when the things foretold will happen in any case, admitting no change from our side? For God, while foretelling, also suggests the solution of the evils, in case we wish to repent. For this is also the gain of prophecy, whereas if they do not change, it happens in any case. But they, having hit the truth by chance in some things, have failed in most. And they require instruments, and places, and times, and speak for money; but God is exempt ^C from all these. Such, therefore, is both the divine and the diabolical prophecy.

Natural prophecy is that of the irrational animals; for swallows perceive swallows, and cranes cranes, and ants the coming of winter, and hedgehogs and halcyons have by nature acquired this. But artificial prophecy is found among physicians, and counsellors, and pilots; for some foretell diseases and their solutions, others the shifts of winds, and others conjecture what is to come by intelligence. There is also a common and popular knowledge of the future, as that winter will come after three months; for all have the predictions from the cycles. It is therefore no great thing to have also prophecy and knowledge and demons, where even ants have predictions from cycles, and men are clever ^D conjecturers of the future; but not so as to know all things in every respect. For even the devil foretold that they would know good and evil, and it came to pass. And again Balaam foretold that, "Set traps for them, and Israel will be betrayed through them," and it has come to pass.

ld that they would know good and evil, and it came to pass. And again Balaam foretold that, "Set traps for them, and Israel will be betrayed through them," and it has come to pass. These, however, are conjectures, or rather predictions, which contain nothing marvelous; just as in the case of Christ, that the Gospel will be preached, and that, "there shall not be left one stone upon another." ^A And after a few words: They say that the blessed Jeremiah, as being clearer than the others, ought to be read before the others. And it is no wonder if, of the prophets, some are more obscure, others clearer; since even in one and the same book of holy Scripture some things are found to be obscure, others open; and the writings of any one man are sometimes in this way, sometimes in that, as in the Psalms, the Apostles' Epistles, and the Lord’s discourses. For, in general, obscurity arises either because of the nature of the things which are the subject of the writing, while new and strange things strike the ears, as in the fabrication of the tabernacle and the structure of the temple in Ezekiel; or because of the hearers, if they are not endowed with the right understanding. Wherefore Christ delivered the parables to the disciples while speaking deliberately in an obscure manner.

And a little below: Again, obscurity arises from the proper manner of the speaker, who is carried headlong into such a mode of discourse. In the prophets, also, the Holy Spirit only suggested the thoughts, not the words as well: they themselves then announced them in a common manner. For He did not use them as if they were motionless, as demons are wont to inspire their own, but He wished what they said to be understood by them, and that all things be brought forth with the sense of those who spoke: "The Lord will do nothing, without revealing the secret to his servants the prophets."

CHAPTER FIRST.

VERS. 1. Jeremiah the son of Chelcias from the priests.

From the interpretation on the prophet Jeremiah. It is possible in the very proemium of the prophet to state clearly the time at which the blessed prophet Jeremiah vaticinated, with which king he took his beginning, and in which he had the end of his prophecy. He sets forth his whole prophecy against the two tribes, when the ten had already been led away into captivity by the Assyrians. Moreover, it is possible to observe a certain varied prophecy: for sometimes he reproves them using examples, as when he says, "See your ways in the sepulchre of the multitude"; sometimes by certain deeds of the prophet himself, as when he takes a loincloth, and does the other ^C things that follow; and the flask which he shatters before the people, a sign of the destruction of the multitude; and the chains with which he surrounded himself. His times were indeed full of many calamities, since all had already lapsed into impiety, and priests were rising up, such as was Sophonias, against whom also his words seem to be directed; and against certain ones who held office; and again the discourse is directed to Paschor; and he also reproves the kings, who

ualis erat Sophonias, contra quem etiam videntur sermones dirigi; et contra quosdam qui magistratum gerebant; et rursum ad Paschor sermo dirigitur; et reges quoque reprehendit, qui ^A adhortations rejected, and he reproved them not only by deeds openly brought into their midst, which they did wickedly, but also by proposing certain men obedient to him, the sons of Jonadab son of Rechab, by comparison with whom he declared the contempt of the law that existed among the Jews. For this reason, it is established that he suffered very grievous things; being called suspect of treason, being shut up in prison, and being thrown into a pit full of mire. For this cause God promised to provide him strength immediately from the beginning: indeed predicting evils to him, but promising him aid. He also reproves the nations, so that he might be of benefit not only to the Hebrews, but also to those very ones whom he censures, that, seeing the outcome, they might believe that the Lord is the God of all. ^B Furthermore, he prophesies the restoration of the people, and determines the number of years of the captivity. Finally, he also composes the Lamentations and adds an exhortation by letter to those who were in exile: in which he also accuses the vanity of idols and demonstrates that God is the Lord of all.

The word of God which came to Jeremiah.

Of the priests.

Observe: even though God foresaw that they would profit nothing, yet He sent the prophets; for we reap no common fruit from this. For lest anyone should say: "And what is the utility in this?" It is as if someone should blame a physician who foresees the death of a man, because he stood by him even unto the last breath of life, for the physician omitted nothing in exhorting and giving counsel. But for what reason did they suffer these things under a just and pious king? Namely, they were paying the penalty for the deeds committed by Manasseh for forty years.

The word of God.

What does this word mean for itself? What does it prepare? The people were prone to slaughter: Isaiah was sawn asunder; Amos was cast out; Zechariah was buried in the earth; they exercised themselves in prophetic blood, like dogs tasting blood; thus they thirsted for such food, and, transforming themselves into rage, they had not yet ceased. Toward such a people

humo defossus: in prophetico sanguine se exercebant, ut canes degustantes sanguinem; talem ergo cibum sitiebant, et in iram se transformantes, nondum cessaverant. In talem populum ^A a prophet of great and lofty spirit was needed to leap upon such a people.

*Vers. 2. As the word of the Lord came to pass.* This also pertains to the subscription. He indicates under what king he began his prophecy and at what time. For since Josiah was righteous and held an upright mind regarding piety, but could not of himself recognize the good—as all his ancestors had declined into impiety, and he had especially received the scepters of the kingdom while quite young—it was by divine counsel that Jeremiah prophesied in the thirteenth year of his reign, so that by the prophet’s reproofs the king himself might show his own zeal for what is good. Thus, not even five years having passed, he took extraordinary care of the temple.

*Vers. 3. And it came to pass in the days of Joachim the son of Josiah.* This also pertains to the subscription. He indicates the kings under whose reign he prophesied. But the phrase, *And it came to pass in the days of Joachim the son of Josiah*, indicates that he was shown to be a prophet and was deemed worthy of the grace of the Holy Spirit under Josiah. Yet he delivered all these discourses starting from Joachim. For then they were most in need of exhortation. If he had only wished to signify the time when he began to prophesy, the memory of Josiah would have sufficed; but if he had decided to mention the rest under whom he prophesied, those who were passed over ought also to have been included. Thus it is evident that this signifies that, while he began under Josiah, there was no need at that time for many or harsh words, since the one who reigned was pious and the multitude followed the king.

*Vers. 4. And the word of the Lord came to me, saying.* This is indeed the beginning of the book, but not the beginning of the prophecy itself. For since all had lapsed into impiety, and prophets were entirely lacking, God wished to send a righteous man who, by means of fitting words, might change the pursuits of the people that were veering into impiety.

*Vers. 5. Before you went out, etc.* Thus also Paul: *Who separated me from my mother’s womb, that I might preach him among the Gentiles* 18. *I who formed you from the womb.* This work is not of nature; this is not the delivery of pangs: I am the maker of all. Therefore you ought rightly to obey me, who also granted you to be. Not first, I sanctified you, but first, I knew you, and then I sanctified you. Here he shows foreknowledge, and after foreknowledge, then destination. *After I knew you, I sanctified you.* Therefore the Apostle also says: *Whom he foreknew, he also predestined*; he did not say first he predestined, but he foreknew, and then he predestined 19. *I have set you a prophet to the nations.* For even if he did not go out of Jerusalem, yet many

^A nations he prophesied regarding. He does not send him simply; for He knew that the difficulty of the time would make him more sluggish regarding the task. He speaks, therefore, words from which he could be spurred on: "Before I formed you, I knew you." For this is what "I know" signifies. "And I set you apart while you were being fashioned." Then, since it is possible to be set apart both for the priesthood and for certain other ministries, showing the kind of setting apart, "For this," He says, "I set you apart, so that you might prophesy to the people." For by "nations" He means the tribes. Therefore, although he declines, as not being trustworthy to converse with so many, and especially with kings, God emboldens him.

*Junior I am.*

See the unpretentiousness of the just, how they make their own faults matter of record. Who would not blush to commit this to writing? But they were free of every sensation of glory and ambition; and whether they themselves said something, or whether they heard something said by others, they recorded the whole of this most truthfully in writing. And again: "Behold, I do not know how to speak," the prophet says; so that when you see him speaking like an orator, and directing words to these people, you may not think the words to be of his own faculty. For, anticipating, he confessed that he did not know how to speak.

*Who are you?*

He recognizes the One who is conversing with him. For this reason he addresses Him by his former name. For when Moses once inquired and wished to learn the divine name, the Master said: "I am who I am." He also imitates the reverence of Moses, saying that his youth was not worthy for prophecy. But the Master admonishes him not to put forward his youth for the sake of declining, but to do what has been commanded, and He drives out his fear as well.

*Do not say that I am junior.*

For when God, who is the Master of nature, commands, both age, and lack of eloquence, and all things give way to the passions. "I command, and do you put forward your youth? Do not hesitate," He says, "and do not make excuses." *Do not be afraid.* "I am giving the command, and are you afraid?" See the things of the Church prefigured: "Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves." And did they say: "Where are You sending us?" You have seen the difference between the prophets and the apostles.

*Because I am with you, to deliver you.*

This, therefore, does not demonstrate that God is with us, merely that He is (with us); for if this were so, He would not have added "to deliver you." So that even if He does not deliver, He is still with us. Since He is also with the martyrs, not delivering them; and He is with the just, allowing them to contend; and He was with Job, when the devil was warring against him. But it is not from that: "I will be with you," but from that: "I will deliver you," that you have an invincible weapon and a matchless alliance. *Do not fear.* For who, standing upon the rock,

^A fears the spray of the waters? Who, having the King standing with him, fears and trembles?

*VERS. 9. And He stretched out His hand.* The prophet needed this sensible image, since Christ also did this; He breathed upon them, although He had no need of the breath. But for the sake of greater assurance, bodily images are employed.

*VERS. 18. Behold, I have set you this day.* And yet He said above, *Before you came forth from the womb, I sanctified you.* By what reason, therefore, is *this day* said here? That refers to foreknowledge, this to the effect.

*That you may root out.* This is the best kind of agriculture, to pull up thorns. What he is about to prophesy, he sets forth in a certain summary. "To root out"—that is, to go out from the city; "to pull down"—that is, the destruction of the temple; "to release"—the slaughter of the multitude; "to destroy"—the killing of those at home; "to rebuild"—to be recalled; "to transplant"—to dwell safely upon the land after the return.

*VERS. 11. And the word of the Lord came.* By Chrysostom and Olympiodorus. These things are spoken with an interruption when he says: *And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:* For he does not continue the narration, since he wishes for those things which are said to be contemplated. ^B

*A nut-branch.* For this wood is hard, heavy, and suitable for blows. Why were these things seen? Because the things and the visions were signs, and they affected the hearer more: for a rod is a symbol of blows.

Having exhorted him to prophecy, he urges him even more through a vision. Some have interpreted "nut-branch" as "almond-branch," but the Hebrew text is thus: "I see a watching rod." For *watching* and *almond* are indicated by the same words among the Hebrews. Therefore he continues: *And the Lord said to me: You have seen well, etc.* This is: I no longer endure them, but I bring the verdict. The metaphor is taken from those who watch for the sinful and find them in the very act. Some also have asserted that the nut-branch was seen because of the gravity of the punishment. That punishment, moreover, hangs over them, he testified by these things; but he adds the manner of it:

*VERS. 12. Because behold, I have watched.* Since even sleep, when we speak of God, is a certain long-suffering—*How long do you sleep, O Lord?*—this means: I am now moved to punishments. I am not persuading with words; be persuaded by the vision of the rod. I do not speak, but I act. ^C

*VERS. 13. And His face.* "Face," that is to say, there is a kindling of the cauldron. He calls Jerusalem the cauldron, and the destruction the kindling; and "from the north," so that he might indicate the onset of the Babylonians. ^D

That is to say, there he looked, there he gazed, there he turned himself. He signifies the tumult, the ebullition, the pains, and the agitation by the cauldron. This is the greatest medical treatment: to preserve the sick man, to strike him with fear, to instill a sound mind, and through the vision itself to lead him onto the right path, to turn him away from wickedness, and to give him an opportunity for repentance. ^A For he did not bring it on immediately, so as not to destroy the fruit of repentance; nor did he depart, so as not to dissolve the fear. You see, therefore, that each point is measured, and that the medicine is composed of opposites, just as is the case with physicians. For what if he had not brought it on? They would have become more slothful. But if he had brought it on? Nothing would have been gained. Therefore, he both stands back and contrives to make these things credible through the vision, shaking their minds and showing the living power of the word.

*For behold, I call together.* Here he declares the war of the kings, that of the Babylonians. Not one king or a second, but all. See how he brings forward the kings themselves, as if there were no war or fighting ^B, but as if they were coming to a plundered prize already lying exposed, as if to ready slaves, as if to those already captured and mastered. Two things are managed here: so that these people might not think that those others are strong and persuasive, but instead believe that God leads and governs all things; and also so that those others, not supposing that the war and the siege were spontaneous, might set their thrones [not as if making war, but as if resting].

*And I will speak to them with judgment.* Because of my judgment I shall converse with them, and having convicted them of their transgression, thus I will punish them.

*To the works of their hands.* I do not say anything else, but that it is something alien; and not only this, but that they worshipped the works of their hands. Nothing is so unworthy of God as to be created; indeed, for anything to be created is one thing, but that it should be created by human hands is far worse.

*And you, gird up your loins.* ^C Help me, work with me. What is "gird up your loins"? Just as a physician instructs a disciple for a great work; for there was no use for mere words, nor did it suffice to say it once, nor in a short space of time; that is to say: "Be a man; a battle is laid out for you, a struggle and a war of no ordinary kind."

*And arise.* Not that he was sitting—for how could he be, seeing such things and hearing such things?—but, "Excite yourself, pay attention to what is being said. You have need of a double attention: both to the things being said by me, and to conveying them to those people." Here, with a sober mind; there, with courage. ^D

*And they will make war against you.* So that from the things you suffer, you may harm even more those who

tibi malefaciunt, quam tu ipse indigne aliquid ^B sustineas.

CAP. II.

^B VERS. 2. *Recordatus sum misericordiæ adolescentiæ tuæ*, etc. He recounts the benefits bestowed upon them, not their praises. For after he made mention of punishment, to show that he inflicts it with just judgment, he says once, and twice, and often: *Recordatus sum misericordiæ adolescentiæ tuæ*, that is, the mercy which I used when you were young. Just as we behave toward children when they are small, before they provoke our anger, so also God, in the beginning and at the start, when He kept us safe by the help of His grace alone, and required nothing from their side. But yet, after these things, you made Him forget you.

*Quando secutus es Sanctum Israel.* This is: In this I demonstrated mercy, in that I caused you to follow me, in that I provided myself as a guide for you; in that I took the journey, and prepared for you lodgings in a land that did not admit sowing, not simply in a desert, not one abandoned by men, but one which never bore fruit; there you followed me. *Sanctus Israel Domino.* This is: In that place I was the guide of your way, and not this only, but also in that I made you holy, and holy to me. For it is indeed a great thing to be holy, but consider carefully for me what it is if you are holy to God.

^C From here is the beginning of the prophet's words to the people; for as if contending with them in judgment, he recalls His own beneficence, persuading the prophet that judgment is not unjustly brought against them by Him. Therefore He says: In former times you experienced great care from me. By "youth," he refers to the people's sojourn in Egypt, as they had been chosen by God at that time. That phrase also, *charitatis perfectionis tuæ*, is the same as: "I have loved you with a perfect love," providing you with every providence, the certain proof of which is in that which follows: *Quando*, he says, *comitatus es Sanctum Israel.* As if he were to say: When you were suffering truly grave things in Egypt and implored my help, I led you out and went before you, showing the way in the desert; and I provided you with an abundance of necessities in a solitude trodden by no footprints. *Sanctus Israel Domino.* This is: Set apart for God; for so also says Moses: "When the Most High divided the nations, when He dispersed the sons of Adam, He set the bounds of the nations according to the number of the angels of God; and His people Jacob became the portion of the Lord."

VERS. 3. *Principium geniminum ejus.* This is: Of all the men of the whole earth; although the others also are His. But he is called first-born, not because he was created first, not by nature; for in the case of others, birthright begets love, but here, love caused him to be first-born.

^A That is, the first-fruits are properly suitable to God, and it cannot be otherwise. So also was Israel, having come from all the nations. *All who eat him shall be delinquent, I will bring evils upon them.* This is also no small gift, that which causes his enemies to be destroyed. For as he who tastes the first-fruits does wrong, so also does everyone who does wickedly against you. For this reason I formerly punished Pharaoh, and all those who rose up; for these are ancient things being recounted. The phrase "eating" is used for "having eaten," and "they shall be delinquent" for "they were delinquent."

*Hear the word of the Lord, O house of Jacob.* ^B He who trusts in his own righteousness does not refuse to have many listeners. Rather, he strives everywhere to have an illustrious theater, which God himself also does, not merely calling men, but even inanimate things, and desiring to contend in judgment even before secular tribunals. Let him who wishes hear, because of the conspicuous nature of justice; for he who harbors suspicion always avoids the judges.

*What iniquity did your fathers find in me?* What are you saying? After so many threats, after so much fear, do you offer a defense? Yes, he says. For such is the one who loves; he does not endure for long to have harsh words for the beloved, but rather words that are not grievous, but which cause him to blush, grieving more over the other’s evils. *What iniquity did your fathers find in me?* Why this? Do you bring the fathers into the middle of the discussion when you were addressing them? It is so he might show that he did not benefit these through the fathers, but for their own sake, which renders them all the more liable to punishment.

*For they departed far from me, and walked after vain things.* ^C You see the accusation? They did not simply depart, but "far"; for it is truly very far to go from that divine nature to stones. So far is the distance between these two things.

*And they became vain.* That is: they found nothing, and not even so did they arise, nor did they repent. It is a great defect to turn away from the benefactor and to choose those who do harm.

*And they did not say, Where is the Lord?* ^D Not only did they not say it upon finding no help, even though they were constrained by the necessity of events; for goods, when present, are accustomed to be despised; but when they are absent, then they are sought above all. But here it is not so, even though they had sufficient reminders of his benefit.

*Who brought us up from the land of Egypt.* This is the second benefit, to have been led. And for what reason did he lead them up from there? Lest, seeing war, they should again seek Egypt. For if he led them away a long distance, and persuaded them to remember that place, much more would he have provoked them to the memory of it at that time, while the evils were still fresh.

^A For God was acting just as if someone, having restored health to another with great labor, should also need art to persuade him to choose what is beneficial. Having commemorated the benefits conferred by Him, He produces that very place as a witness to what is being said, and consistently says everything in relation to what was mentioned above.

*Ver. 7. And I brought you into Carmel.*

And this is to be numbered as a very great benefit: He brought the poor and the naked into foreign goods, without any labors, without having used the help of agriculture. But I led them to a prepared table. I did not only lead the way, but I also provided a harbor and rest. What could be equal to this kindness and benevolence? By the "goods of Carmel," He means vast wealth. ^B By this place, He signifies the land of promise. And Carmel had rich soil and produced generous fruits.

*And you entered and defiled my land, etc.*

With these you repaid the Benefactor; from those things for which it was right to return good, you brought insults. Through those things by which you yourselves received good, through them you acted iniquitously, and overturned the very grace itself. See how He vindicates the place for Himself, in order to show the iniquity to be more enormous. I, indeed, having led you here, made you rest, but you did the opposite.

*Ver. 8. The priests did not say.*

Those whom it most behooved to be teachers of others. See the evils beginning from the head. ^C That is, the Scribes, the teachers, "knew me not." Here He speaks of an impure life; for if nothing pertained to them, if I had not led them out of the land of Egypt, they were priests, they ought to have been devoted to the study of the law; yet they were not taught the principle by Me. *And the prophets.* He speaks here of the false prophets. *The priests did not speak.* He speaks of those who fulfill the sacred ministries. *And they that handle the law.* He speaks of the high priest who leads the people.

*Ver. 9. Therefore I will yet contend in judgment with you.*

And yet there was no need of a judgment, but of a sentence and condemnation. Or this is what He wants to say: "I have not said all things, but some other things remain to be said; I still wish to be convened in judgment." Or that you forced Me to enter into this judgment with you. ^D

*And with your children’s children will I contend.*

Do you then not take punishment from them? I will take it, He says. He speaks of a stay of proceedings, that I am still judged, and since the proofs are so manifest, I do not refuse to stand in judgment with you and with your children, and to render an account to you and to them. For do not think that I will condemn them for the former crimes; rather, I submit to judgment both with them and with all others. Since they were about to say: "It is nothing to us if our fathers sinned, nor is it just to pay the penalty for the misdeeds of others," He wishes to show that

^A they were no better than their ancestors. "I will not," he says, "contend in judgment with them alone, but also with you; and not with you alone, but also with your descendants," so that He might demonstrate the magnitude of His own philanthropy, since He endured those who were sinning for so long and could not persuade them to change their mind.

VERS. 10. *Therefore come to the isles of Chetiim.*

Set out yourselves, and learn from others; I do not forbid it. I have conferred no benefit, I have given nothing. I am God to you as a father. Emulate the nations, which do not abandon their own gods, and while sometimes they worship an ass or an ox, at other times they even worship an asp as God. ^B Then the reproof toward them is taken from an example: *Therefore come to the isles of Chetiim.* He refers here to a story of this sort. Some have said that Chetiim are the Cypriots, others the Chians; and Cedar is the name of a city of the Saracens. They say that in Chios there is an abundance of rain, but that the Saracens are in need of it. Therefore, since the land is made fertile by the rain, those who inhabited Cedar, thinking that the rain falls by the protection of the god worshipped there, carried their own god—constructed, according to some, of gold, and according to others, of pearls—to the Chians, who worshipped a wooden or earthen god, as some say, wishing to exchange them. But they, looking not at the preciousness of the material, but altogether venerating their own god, refused the exchange. He says this, therefore: that the rest of the nations have such reverence for their own god that they would not exchange even a lesser material for one that is precious. But My people, having been received by Me with such care and diligence, and having attained such glory that the miracles wrought for them are celebrated among all, ^C holding in no account the accomplishment of these great works, cast themselves into the worship of idols, and that, too, gaining no profit from it.

VERS. 11. *If the nations will change their gods.*

Because they do not abandon them, they are so single-minded in their sin. Do you see how examples are drawn even from sins? For this is a nefarious thing, yet because they have been allotted these, they hold to them. He does not say this to exhort them, but wishing to make them blush, exhorting them. Not approving or praising them. Far be it. They remain with their own gods even while suffering harm; ^D you, however, for the sake of harm, leap away from your own Master. They, even if it is necessary to endure something bitter, would not choose to abandon their own; you, however, having been benefited, would not choose to remain.

VERS. 12. *The heaven stood amazed and the earth shuddered.*

For in matters that are absurd, we say hyperbolically that even inanimate things stand amazed; such is the violence of wickedness, that it strikes with amazement not only humans but also those things which are without sense. The sin exceeds all reason and every capacity of thought.

*Says the Lord.*

He mentions this everywhere, so that no one might think the accusation belongs to the prophet.

^A *Vers. 13. For my people have done two evils.* Again, He calls them His own people, moved still by affection and love. These are the words of One who pities, not of one who accuses; of One who laments, not of one who insults. *They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living water.* I do not say this out of friendship, but for the sake of their own life. For I provided them with every good thing: the clarity of doctrine, its purity, its cleanliness, its eternity. For, in truth, God is this fountain of life; all good things welled up from this source. They did not make this fountain themselves; rather, it flowed of its own accord. Having abandoned this, what have they chosen? *And they have digged them cisterns, broken cisterns.* Being unable to give even what they receive from others—destitute of everything, naked, and void of good—they preferred to labor in perpetual thirst, and they exhausted themselves in vain. It is fitting that they possess no good from within, nor have they received any from another; nor, even if they wish, can they take it; nor, if someone should pour it in, could they hold any good.

^B *Vers. 14. Is Israel a servant, or a homeborn slave?* He said that the cisterns cannot hold, and so He provides the proof. For whence else did they become slaves, if not because of these things? It is not possible to say that these are merely words; He is, as it were, justifying Himself, by casting the blame upon them. For indeed, he was not like this from the beginning, but he drew slavery upon himself. Did I despise him as a slave? Did I not care for him as a son? *Or is Jacob a homeborn slave?* Did I not also hold his forefather in honor, so as to honor him even after death by that memory? That is to say: I, from the beginning, had him in the place of a son, but he made himself contemptible; for this reason, he has even become subject to his enemies.

^C *Vers. 16. And the children of Memphis and Taphnas have known thee, and have mocked thee.* It is almost as if He were lamenting: "Whence have these things come upon you?" He is calling them back: *And have mocked thee.* This is what most stings men among all their calamities: "they have known thee," just as if some noble virgin had been cast out, and they, insulting her, had mocked thee. He speaks of the Egyptians. However, some have said that "have known" refers to "they shall feed," employing a metaphor; and He added, "and have mocked thee," so that He might signify the wickedness of those who inflict evils.

^D *Vers. 17. Has he not done these things to thee, in that thou hast forsaken Me?* You see that I do not bring these things forward for My sake, but for your own? Whence, then, have these things come? Why are the cities desolate? Why have the lions invaded? Why have those others mocked you? If only you had not forsaken Me, who led you through the desert and prepared you to pass through unharmed.

*Vers. 18. And now what is it to thee in the way of Egypt, to drink the water of Geon?* This is the charge that everyone brings and accuses you of: that having forsaken God to call out for help, you have enrolled enemies and conspirators as your friends. God burns with jealousy,

^A and is most indignant when we have no need of Him, and He forces us into a situation of need, so that we may have need of Him at all times; so intensely does He love us and desire to provide for us. And if another grants a favor, He is vexed, and overturns what has been given, and does not permit it to come to its effect.

You do not endure the words; will you endure the deeds?

He reproves them because, while possessing the better things, they seek out the lesser. For the Hebrew reads *Sior* for *Geon*, which is interpreted as "gorge." For since the blessed Moses in the Law had praised the land of Palestine by comparison with the Egyptians, because it did not wait for the gathering of water—so that the land might be watered by much labor as if by a garden—but rather water is brought down from above from heaven, not by the hand of man, God showing forth His providence concerning the land, He makes mention of them, reproaching them. He says these things because they had often called upon the assistance of the Egyptians and Assyrians, and now, too, as Jehoiakim felt great confidence in the Egyptian, and as if he would suffer no evil from the Babylonian, supported by his alliance. When they were waging war against the Syrians, they called upon the Assyrians for assistance; but when the Assyrians took up arms against them, they fled to the Egyptians. For he calls the Nile *Geon*.

*Your apostasy shall instruct you.* For being outside of God is sufficient for instruction.

*Says the Lord.* These are not my words; this is no human decree—He still calls Himself their God.

*And I was not pleased in you.* Never; that is to say, I have had no rest.

*Because from the beginning you have broken your yoke.* They did not unloose it, but they broke it.

*You said: I will not serve you; but I will go up upon every hill; there I will scatter myself in my fornication.*

Look at the one dissipating [or: restive] and leaping. Look at the hills and the groves preferred to God. Do you see that she did not flee the burden of authority, but was acting wantonly? If she had been humbled and worn out by labors, she would by no means have sought to commit adultery, but only relaxation. And not simply "I shall commit fornication," but "I shall scatter myself." So that even if it were a yoke and chains, they justly tightened, restraining the unruly leaps, and not in certain places, but everywhere, in every region the pretext for impiety.

*I planted you a fruitful vine, all true.*

Do not think, then, that these things arise from natural depravity. For since it was likely that some would be at a loss and ask, "Why did she jump away from the beginning?" He says: [It was] not through the fault of the farmer, but [the fault was] in the vine, which was fruitful, true, and genuine. Here He points out a certain natural virtue.

There is no reason for you to complain against the farmer. You yourself turned, ^{B C D}

and it required no great effort for you to be changed ^A. Such is wickedness, fleeting and easy.

*A vine that is alien.* How alien? You shall henceforth be alien; for you are mine, and yet not mine. You see how it is not by creation, but by their deeds, that men become dear to God. Thus also, when He says: *Strange children have lied unto me*, and, *I do not know you*, He does not introduce another creator. For if He Himself planted it, how is it alien? It is alien only after it has turned.

*Yet I planted you.* That is, I exercised the utmost care for you, when I brought you out of Egypt, gave you an alien land, and cast out the nations so that you might settle there and bring forth the fruit of piety and true worship. The words "entirely true" (instead of "securely did I settle you") are what Isaiah also says: *A vineyard was made for the beloved in a corner, in a fertile place*. He did not add "entirely" without reason; but because there were pious men among them, the prophets and those who followed them, He says in effect: "I wished that you would all be such—I took equal care of all." *And I planted a vine Sorech*; that is, "choice." For what he calls "choice" there, he calls "true" here, referring to the election of the fathers. *How are you turned into bitterness, O alien vine?* The Hebrew says: *You are turned into the seed of an alien vine*. As if to say: "You have adulterated My laws and embraced the customs of the nations." This is what Moses also confesses: *For their vine is of the vine of Sodom, and their shoot is from Gomorrah. Their grape is a grape of gall, their cluster is a cluster of bitterness*. Whence they also brought gall to the Lord. But because they treated the planting of God with contempt and were turned into bitterness, and instead of grapes brought forth thorns, Christ, who was born of them according to the flesh, calls Himself the true vine, saying: *I am the true vine*; and those who have believed in Him, He calls branches ^B.

*Vers. 22. If you wash yourself with nitre, etc.* Then, lest you think the stain is natural, He adds: *You are stained in your iniquities*. And yet, if it is acquired and supervened, and comes from injustices, it is possible for it to be washed away; indeed, it is possible. For if it were not possible, He would not have said: *What do you have to do with the way of Egypt?* How then, he says, if you multiply herbs for yourself, are you stained? It is just as He says: *If the Ethiopian changes his skin, or the leopard its spots*. Neither there does He mean that the thing is impossible—such examples are meant to express indignation, not impossibility—but these are words of anger. He does not mean, "If you repent, I will not receive you," but that the purification performed by water is useless, because they thought they were being cleansed in that way. He uses a metaphor taken from wool that cannot be easily washed, or from... ^{C D}

^A bodies colored by bile or something similar. For the nitron, and what he calls the herb, knows how to wash away the filth that is on the surface of the body, but it brings no cure to a body that has absorbed the color, and is, as it were, dyed. He wishes, therefore, to say that you cannot receive the remission of sins through these cleansing agents. For there is need of a genuine disposition for the good, and a complete turning away from evil. So, in order to say: It is not because you are in the land, nor because you perform sacrifices, or enter the temple, or keep the Sabbath, or anything of the sort, that you receive remission, but by pursuing virtue and demonstrating the accomplishment of good works. He calls it "herb," which in the Syriac tongue they call *alaa*, in the Hebrew *borith*, and in the Greek tongue it is called *dorycnion*. "You are stained"—as if he were saying: You are dyed with malice and the pursuit of impiety.

VERS. 23. *How can you say: I am not polluted?* What more do you want? Were you not angry? Did you not reject [them]? Did you not say that you are stained? Why do you refute it again? Do you see the words of a lover who has been wronged? How can you say: I am not polluted? You deny with this speech the greatest sin that you have wickedly committed. ^B This was the Polyandrium [the place of many men], where the bodies of the children were buried under Manasseh; for he calls "ways" those present actions, for the place stands and cries out. And you do not deny a proof of the matter that is manifest. For is it necessary to go far away?

And that he might show that they had not changed their mind, he adds: *How can you say: I am not polluted?* That is: in sinning, you deny it as if you had done nothing. *Look at your ways in the Polyandrium and know what you have done.* That is, look at the place where you sinned. The Hebrew does not have "Polyandrium," but "look at the place of Gai," in which, indeed, they were seduced by the daughters of the Midianites and fell into the worship of idols. Consider, therefore, he says, your ancient iniquities; perhaps, however, they translated it "Polyandrium" because of the multitude of those slaughtered there.

*At evening her voice cried out.* Just as to a woman who is drunk and does not know what she has done, so he directs his discourse. ^C Everywhere he is eager to have her recognize her sins; for truly we have need of great wisdom, and truly of great eyes, in order to recognize our sins. What is more wise than David? And yet he was not able to discern the sin; he was not able to perceive it. But he had need of a prophet to reveal it to him. For the devil is not so vehement toward the act of sinning as he is toward our not perceiving the sin, so that we may persist in sinning.

*She has stretched out her ways upon the waters of the wilderness.* Not as one sinning, nor as one committing theft, but with boldness, with great glutting. By "waters of the wilderness," what does he mean? Impiety, the worship of idols.

^A In the desires of her soul she was carried along by the spirit. But according to others, "they drew in the wind," for having drawn in the impure spirit, they became vain. That is, the things she wanted to hear, the false prophets pretended to speak; or because, like a mad woman, she went from one desire to another. By the name of waters he always understands his own teaching everywhere, but those "waters of idols" he calls the teaching of idols, where there was empty clamor. Mark that nowhere is it from necessity, but everywhere from petulance, in the desires of her soul, when she even performs evils with desire. *Who shall turn her?* ^B You see this again stated in one way, but done in another. She was not converted, and yet you converted her; and she had not given herself over, yet [the text] said what had not been done, so that thus at least she might be converted. *In her humiliation they shall find her.* That is, when she is overcome, bound, handed over. *At evening her voice wailed.* The Hebrew text reads thus: *As a firstborn calf she frisks. She has widened her ways upon the waters of the wilderness.* As if to say: She poured out her works in the wilderness, offering worship to idols, having disregarded the temple. The Hebrews read thus: *As a heifer instructed, she leaps in the wilderness. In the desires of her soul.* Consistently the Hebrew has: *In the will of her soul to wander toward any climate.* Who shall turn her? ^C In the text according to the series, the Hebrew reads: That is, with me decreeing captivity against her, who will bring her aid? *All who seek her.* The Hebrew: *In plowing they shall find her*, that is, in her ruin. Thus, then, it stands according to the sense of the Hebrews; but the Greek words convey this meaning: *She shall be easy to catch, being destined by my providence.*

VERS. 25. *Turn thy foot from a rough way.* Why do you exhort again? Why do you give counsel again, if she is already stained? By "rough ways" he means the idols; and by "thirst" he shows that those things have no pleasure in them. For what pleasure is there in slaughtering sons and daughters? And what is more rough than these commands? What pleasure is there in their wives being harlots and adulteresses? ^D What pleasure is there in hearing future things in vain and for nothing, when no benefit follows from the prophecy? What pleasure is there in being cut up, and making one’s hands bloody? Or what pleasure is there in having relations with brute beasts? Nothing is rougher than this way. Who would not flee a rough way? Who would not avoid thirst? But she, not even after the exhortation made by words. "I will act manfully." What is, "I will act manfully"? I will persist in the contention. You see the preceding text: *If thou wash thyself with nitre, and multiply for thyself the herb*, not as if it overturned the position of penitence, but as if it demanded a genuine conversion from sins. Since, therefore, [he said] above...

^A *“She hath spread her ways unto the waters of the desert,”* he now exhorts her not to labor regarding the worship of idols, reaching out to the mountains, nor to desire those vain things. For this is what [the phrase] signifies: *“Thy throat from thirst.”* According to the Hebrew, however, it stands thus: *“Turn away thy foot from walking barefoot, and thy voice from weeping.”* That is: Change thy mind, so that thou mayest not become a captive and mourn over the evils that have befallen thee, yet in both the sense is the same. For the one [passage] spoke of the things resulting from impiety; the other, the Greek, [mentioned] the cause of the evils. But she said: “I will act the man.” [That is,] “I do not want to; I have enough strength for myself.”

*“As the shame of a thief when he is caught, so shall they be ashamed.”* That is, just as a thief taken in the very act cannot deny it, so neither could these men, when calamities had overtaken them, deny the weakness of their idols, being ashamed of the worship they had rendered to them. Thus shall the sons of Israel themselves be ashamed, and their kings, and their princes, and their priests, and their prophets. ^B Since this often troubles us more than the punishments do, he also sets this down, which happened after the burning. For because the false prophets were deceiving them in vain and puffing them up, the opposite clearly came to pass, and it happened, and there was a great shame; and the kings were ashamed as being unable to stand, the priests as not having obeyed those sent by God, and the prophets because of the soothsayers.

*“They said to wood: Thou art my father.”* What is worse than this senselessness? For if they had not abandoned God, what could be more grievous than this blindness? But, he says, they did not say it to the wood, but to the demon that moves the wood. ^C *“And they have turned their backs unto me.”* This sin is worse. Whom have they forsaken? How have they been turned away? He constantly recounts their sins. Dost thou see how great a good evils are, when they cause one to acknowledge God? Dost thou see that waywardness comes from sloth? Dost thou see that it comes from lack of understanding? Dost thou see that it comes from other human sins?

*“That according to the number of thy cities were thy gods, O Judah.”* Again another reproach, that they are the makers of their gods. For he cannot even say that they are very few, nor that they are far away. For according to the number of thy cities were thy gods, O Judah. ^D *“Wherefore speak ye unto me? All ye have acted impiously.”* It is not possible to say that some did, and some did not, so that those who escaped the error could be a consolation to the others. Therefore, we are not even worthy to call upon God while we act impiously; nor to pray to Him in times of calamity, when in times of safety we knew Him not, saith the Lord. Or do I [not] speak? [I], who have been insulted, who know all things.

^A Ver. 30. *The sword hath devoured your prophets.* The prophets. But it was not meet that the children should be [devoured], but the impostors; and He affirms that He has done this, and not simply, nor by a common death, so that no one might attribute this to nature, but that they might learn that the wrath had come from God. Neither when receiving benefits did you recognize the benefactor, nor when being chastised did you abstain from impiety. But I have even delivered the authors of the error to slaughter. For the sword, He says, hath devoured. For some the prophet Elijah, some king Jehu, and some Josiah the pious king, delivered to slaughter.

Ver. 31. *Was I a wilderness to Israel?* Was I a wilderness, that is, was I unfruitful? For if I were unfruitful to them, it would have been necessary for them to depart. But not even thus, for it does not behoove us to serve God in the manner of a hireling.

Ver. 32. *Will the bride forget the ornament of her [adornment]?* But My people, etc. Consider again the humbled discourse. Because men anxiously sought for glory. It is not for them to say: We were indeed enjoying good things, but we were in dishonor. Just as the ornament to the bride; so [was] I to the people, so that it would be difficult to forget. That is, men desire what makes for ornament. And the bride indeed rejoices in adornment; for thence she appears beautiful; but a virgin loves a breastband as being comely. But the people, when they had obtained from Me both ornament, and comeliness, and no ordinary glory: He calls "ornament and comeliness" the legal precepts, through which they seemed legitimately more abundant than the rest in precepts, alien from all injury and wickedness; having been taught also moderation and humility; but "glory," because through the help of God all would yield, and would marvel at God's providence toward them. Having been affected by such great benefits from Me, they became forgetful. ^C

Ver. 33. *What good thing wilt thou yet devise in thy ways to seek love?* That is, what canst thou do, and thou shalt be able to erase thy sins, and show thyself pure, so that thou mayest be made worthy of My love? *Not so.* This is, not even if thou performest many things, shalt thou be able to wash away the multitude of iniquities.

Ver. 34. *But thou also hast acted wickedly in polluting thy ways.* That is, this was thy study as if thou wert striving and taking pains to become unclean. With this intent didst thou do all things. This, therefore, was her study. What such thing didst thou [devise] about her? Although having left all other things, see what He sets forth: *In thy hands were found the blood of innocent souls.*

*Not in holes have I found them.* This also Ezekiel says: This surpasses all thy wickedness, that they sacrificed their sons, and [violated] the nature that was [given] to thee.

^A And thou hast said: I am innocent. There is in the perpetrating of sins an impudence, which can most of all provoke the wrath of God, namely, not to acknowledge the committed crimes. ^B *But let his fury be turned away from me.* What sayest thou? Do I wax angry in vain or grieve without cause? Therefore, I render an account, because thou hast greatly despised. *Behold, I will enter into judgment with thee, in thy saying: I have not sinned.* If thou hadst not added this, I would not have entered into judgment. Dost thou see that this is what causes me to condemn thee and to despise thee? Thou hast brought me into this necessity; thou hast become the cause of the trial; thou art putting to judgment this accusation. That I might apologize for myself, thou art extending these long speeches; and he did not say, "I accuse thee," but, "I contend with thee in judgment, I plead my own cause; I defend myself." So I would not even contend in judgment, much less accuse, if thou hadst not said this: since thou wishest to make me guilty of a crime. ^C *Because thou hast despised, in repeating thy ways.* I do not now accuse thee of former faults, [but that] thou hast begun to commit the same things again. Nor would I attribute this to a crime, if thou didst not repeatedly give thyself to the same things, not that thou wert overcome by the passions of the soul, but from sloth. Dost thou see that it is not this which provokes God—that one sins—but that one falls into the same things, and, while despising, does not repent? For indeed this is wont to provoke us also. ^D *And thou shalt be ashamed of Egypt, as thou wast ashamed of Assur.* Either [because] those were acting iniquitously, or because they proved to be *inferior in strength*, and the Persian prevailed. The whole has come about not from the iniquity of the Egyptians or Assyrians, but from God’s abandoning [thee]; that is, He has cast thee down from thy good expectations. The Egyptians were the hope thereof; God cast it down, and the end was not prosperous. Why? Because the hope was not placed in safety: *Cursed is the man who trusteth in man.* (Jerem. XVII, 5). Thou seest how He does all things to force them to trust in Him; but they did not attend, nor were they persuaded. *And thy hands [shall be] upon thy head.* For this is the manner of those who are mourning, when they lament over things that are desperate. As he says, *as formerly, having called upon the Assyrian*—for this is what Achaz is said to have done—*eventually you suffered all evils from the Assyrian himself*; for he not only took the ten tribes, but many cities of Judea. He says thou shalt suffer similar things from the Egyptians. As if he were to say: The hope which thou [didst place] upon the Egyptians...

the ten tribes, but many cities of Judea. He says thou shalt suffer similar things from the Egyptians. As if he were to say: The hope which thou didst place upon the Egyptians will be senseless, for shamelessness is appropriate to lawlessness. ^A

Chapter III

VERS. 1. *If a man shall put away his wife.* What is the meaning of this example? It is this one, and the greatest: what a husband does not tolerate, this have I endured; when you crossed over to other men, I called you back again, I admitted you back into marriage. Although in that case the divorce comes from the husband, because he hates her, but here [it comes] not from the husband, but from the wife; so that the example does not fit equally, for he himself had not sent her away, but she had abandoned him. *Yet thou hast played the harlot with many shepherds... saith the Lord.* He says: This is not to be referred to things above, but to things below, that is, the Lord says it to you. He proposed the law given by Moses. A wife who does not please her husband, if she be dismissed, and then marries another, and again proves hateful to him also and departs, it is not in the power of the first husband to take her back. Therefore this law, he says, was enacted for those who have married; but thou, he says, though frequently put away by me on account of thine iniquities, and calling upon outsiders—that is, the Assyrians and the Egyptians, for he always calls kings "shepherds"—when thou wert vexed with calamities, thou didst flee back to me again, and I rendered thee my help. Others have expounded it also in this way: That thou, while impudently ^B sinning, dost approach my house, and dost not emulate women who are ashamed to return to those who had put them away. Certainly every woman who is cast out by her husband, and coupled to another, cannot return to her first husband, the law prohibiting this; but thou, having abandoned me, who was legitimately joined to thee, hast coupled thyself to many impure demons, the harms of which thou having felt, thou didst return to me, and I did not cast thee out; and if thou thinkest that I do not say these things from my heart, lift up thine eyes in a straight path, and see where thou hast not been mingled. ^C

VERS. 2. *Lift up thine eyes in a straight path and see.* See, he brings her—she who is the witness of her own misdeeds—and makes her her own accuser; again he cried out, he says, every path accuses thee. See where thou hast not defiled thyself; dost thou perceive how he convicts the guilty one more manifestly, and then inflicts the punishment? *Thou hast sat in the ways.* Here he wishes to indicate a vehement desire for sinning, that she performed these things with the greatest impetuosity of the will. *And thou hast polluted the land with thy fornications.* And yet the land is never polluted by sins, but he says this in order to add weight to the matter. ^D *Where thou hast not been mingled; thou didst sit in the ways, etc.* For thou art polluted. But even then thou wast impious, yet when coming to the temple thou didst disguise thy honor toward me with the honor into the

^A temple; but now thou hast advanced into an infinite abyss of evils, having filled every place with thy lawlessness. Thou didst sit in their ways, like a solitary crow; that is, thou hast become like a desolate crow, deprived of every good, having become a captive to many enemies, and being plundered by various deaths, yet thou didst still persist in wickedness.

And thou hast had many shepherds. The face of a harlot has been thine. Thou hast not injured me, but thou hast injured thyself; thou hast suffered the evils, for it is the role of shepherds to shepherd, not to hinder.

The terrible thing is this, that she did not even perceive her own sins, nor did she sin with moderation.

Didst thou not call me as a home, and a father, and a leader? ^B From thy own, from thy own disposition toward me, I say these things, which are names of disposition: father, husband, home, leader of virginity.

*That is, thou didst not heed how I assumed thee into my own, having become to thee in the order of a father, and as a husband leading a virgin; thou didst not attribute to me these titles of relationship.

Will he remain for eternity, etc.? That is, thy fornication, and doing these things with impunity. That is, if thou dost not remain in evils, thou shalt be unpunished, and thou shalt overcome enemies while being in piety.

Behold, thou hast spoken. Thou seest her doing these things by design and with consideration. ^C

And the Lord said to me in the days of Josiah the king. So praiseworthy was he, so pious. The time is not merely added, but it is a greater accusation against the Jews: that, not even when they had a ruler caring for them, did they become better. God addresses the prophet, just as we also address servants when we are neglected by those we love.

Hast thou seen what the house of Israel has done to me? Yet truly, the Divine is incapable of passion, but nevertheless He speaks as one insulted and wronged. The house of Israel is not one, nor a second, but the whole multitude; and surely he had not seen this, for those things had preceded him, but this is set down as if he were saying: Thou hast learned.

*Josiah ^D became righteous, and he exerted great zeal for the worship of God, so that the people also served him. But since some were not legitimately pursuing piety, the prophet rebukes them with these words, and by the comparison of the ten tribes he shows them to be guilty of iniquity, since those were absent, for they were serving in Babylon.

And I said, after she had committed all these things: Return to me. And she did not return. God teaches the prophet the justice of the punishment,

edocet: *Abiit super omnem montem excelsum.* ^A Then he explains his own goodness and kindness: *And I said, when she had played the harlot.* She wittingly and willingly brought destruction upon herself, having neither embraced the life according to the Law from the beginning, nor being willing to turn back after her impiety; hence, the accusation against the tribe of Judah is sharper and more intense. *And she saw her prevarication.* Having seen, he says, both the wickedness of her sister and the punishment brought upon her on account of it, she did not flee the imitation of wickedness, but cleaved to her footsteps.

VERS. 9. *And her fornication became as nothing,* etc. She thought, he says, that she was doing nothing against the law; but he calls idolatry "fornication." For having abandoned God, who was named their spouse, they worshipped idols and filled the land with murders by sacrificing their children to demons. *And she committed adultery with wood and stone.* He made the accusation of fornication clear.

VERS. 10. *And in all these things she has not returned, but in falsehood.* For since they seemed better at that time, he says on this account that they did return in falsehood; for this was a lie.

VERS. 11. *And the Lord said to me: Israel has justified her soul from the prevaricating Judah.* He does not praise the sons of Israel as if they were justified, but as having sinned less and as having sinned first; but he rebukes these, because they did not become better through this correction. ^B Then he demonstrates through many words that she did not loathe the impiety of her sister, even when she had seen her utter destruction, and that the ten tribes seemed to deserve a certain indulgence rather than the tribe of Judah, since, having seen the calamities of the former, she kept on doing the very things that were the causes of the calamities. On which account the prophet is commanded to prophesy to them.

VERS. 12. *Go, and read these words toward the north.* What is this? Is it toward the northern parts of the city? And what does this mean? Why does he address his speech to the absent Israelites? Or does he perform this toward the northern parts of the city as if to incite and goad them? For everything is for their sake. We even ^C bestow beatitude upon the deceased, and urge the living toward a course of healthier life, and we honor them by goading them, and we praise those who are absent. Thus, he says, God also commands the words to be sent, so that both these and those might become better, just as Paul says: *If by any means I might provoke to emulation my flesh, and save some of them.* So too does God stir these up by celebrating their praises. For because these are now worse than you, I address myself to you. For it is not recorded that this prophet went off to Persia, nor does [God] command [him] to send [them].

*Go, inquit, et lege sermones istos.* The kindness of the Lord is truly immense; for after the immense ini- ^D

iniquity [He] demands only repentance, and teaches the manner of it.

*Revertere ad me, domus Israel, etc.* ^A This is the only thing God asks: that we might at least acknowledge our sins. What great thing does He require? It is for your own sake that we should know that He forgives, that He is a lover of mankind.

*VERS. 13. Verumtamen scito injustitiam tuam, quoniam ad Dominum, etc.* See [her] unbridled lust, you have poured yourself out; nor was it simply [that you sinned]; for the village incited [you] to impiety. Nor can this be said, that it was necessary to discern what should be used. Every tree was set forth for impiety; but by "alien" [gods], he means the demons. And it cannot be said that I did not exhort, nor give counsel, but that you did these things while I was exhorting, and you did not hear My voice, but cleaved to those devoid of speech.

Cognition of infirmity is the beginning of health, and you have poured out your ways. Having abandoned God, the Lord, the Creator, and Benefactor, you have joined yourself to aliens. And who are these? *Under every leafy tree*; he shows the fruitlessness of the error, for the trees worshipped as gods were unfruitful. *And you did not hear My voice*; for He had established in the law: *There shall be no other gods for you besides Me* 19.

*VERS. 14. Convertimini, filii, qui recessistis, dicit Dominus: quia ego dominabor vestri, etc.* ^B See after the accusation, again an exhortation and counsel. If, therefore, they have departed, why do you call? *Because I will be lord over you*, he says; as it were, it is the necessity of conversion. Just as if one were to say to a servant: "You ought to serve me; why did you run away?" He calls the dwelling/condition [habitationem] lordship.

*Et assumam vos et unum de civitate, et duos de cognatione, etc.* A minor part is saved; this will also be the case in the future judgment: very few are they who are saved. *Et ego dominabor vestri.* That is, being Lord of all, I shall be able to bring back even those already taken by the enemies, leaving no one behind.

*VERS. 15. Et dabo vobis pastores juxta cor meum.* ^C This is truly a benefit, to obtain good pastors, just as the opposite is the greatest punishment; for a pastor needs great knowledge. For if the bodily shepherd endures all things, much more so does the spiritual, since for this one there is a much greater necessity of fortitude than for the former, that he should lay down his soul for the sheep.

*VERS. 16. Et erit, si multiplicati eritis.* ^D For because it troubled them [to hear], *one from a city and two from a family*, He added, *If you shall be multiplied*. There is greater joy in being multiplied at home after having returned, than in returning multiplied from the beginning.

^A *In those days they shall say no more.* This seems obscure to me. For some assert that there will be nothing to be feared; others say that they shall not have need of the Law, just as when he says: *I will give you a new heart, and I will take away the heart of stone* [cf. Ezech. xxxvi, 26], that is, the Spirit will be with you; in place of all else, this shall teach you, and it shall guide us, *nor shall it be named.* *It shall not ascend*; namely, the Ark. *Nor shall it be named in it*; that is, the Law. *Nor shall it be visited anymore*; that is, nor shall it be carried. *Nor shall it be made anymore*; that is, as before, when the priests, lifting it, carried it everywhere. As if to say: To you penitents, I shall provide a return from Babylon more glorious than the exodus from Egypt. ^B *Ver. 17. And all nations shall be gathered together to it, and they shall walk no more*, etc. Not by the law of war, but by piety calling them, or to mourn the citizens as impious, while the foreigners remain pious. Or he says this, that His name is powerful to gather them; or that which is towards piety, and it will not simply be a life with virtue. *And they shall walk no more after the thoughts of their own wicked heart.* Truly, if life is most excellent, we must also place good trust in things to come, and not fear. For the cause of the disease is removed. If any man be gathered in the name of God, he does not walk after the desires of his own wicked heart. ^C *That is, they will have genuine piety in their soul, so that even by the mere sight of the city itself, they see God.* We can also interpret this concerning the times of Christ, for then we shall not have need of legal worship. *Ver. 18. In those days the house of Juda shall go to the house of Israel, and they shall come together*, etc. The capital of good things is concord, is charity, since the origin of evils also flowed from this. And consider how he has not placed it in another order. For he did not say: the house of Juda to the house of Israel, but—what is more worthy of admiration—he who first shook off the bridle, he who first took up enmities, the contumacious, the harsh one, he himself will be the author of concord; and not after the return, ^D but together they shall return before the return. You see, dearly beloved, how many good things the captivity brought: it dissolved immortal enmities; it gathered together peoples who had been divided; it reconciled kinsmen and fellow-citizens who were warring among themselves; nature seemed to be mad against itself, the nation was torn from itself, the laws of the republic were violated: all these things injustice brought about; all these things the captivity dissolved and utterly abolished. *From the north.* See how trustworthy the matter is. From the north, much more than from other regions; then he also recalls to their memory ancient histories. *Which I gave as an inheritance*

[to] their fathers. For that was less credible. Whenever a miracle is about to be recounted, he reminds [them] of an ancient narrative or miracle. Do you not believe, then, how your fathers gathered together? How I gave them an inheritance? For it is a wonderful thing, that those scattered everywhere on earth should gather into one place.

*And I said: Let it be, Lord; because I will set you for sons.*

See the prophet's care, even though he was not about to exist in those times nor to see the good things; yet, as one who was to be a partaker of them, he prays thus. This is [inserted] in the middle, as if from the prophet, and immediately it is added from the person of God, that "I will set you for children," ^B for it is joined to the continuity of the preceding statements.

The first dignity is the paternal inheritance, even though they cast themselves out of this kinship. They called a stone "Father," but nevertheless, "I will set you for children." See even in the Old [Covenant] as well as in the New, that this kinship consists both of God and of us: "I will set you for children"—this is of God; and Paul says: *Whose is the adoption* (Rom. IX, 4). For nothing is equal to this honor. And again: *He gave them power to become the children of God* (Joan. I, 12), so that they might preserve the order. For when He indeed sets [it], but we abandon it, we are ostracized. For He did not say, "I will make you a child," but, "I will set you," in that proper place, as it were, of dignity; but to remain in it is our duty.

Do you see what good things he has passed through? What recompense does He ask of them? No labor, no sweat; what toil has this exercise, which is in name only? For this is characteristic of a child, to follow the Father, even ^C when He is striking. Do you not see little children weeping, being scolded, and yet clinging to the fringe of their mother, and following her? They seek only one thing from us: that they be loved.

* This is joined to: *And they shall come together from the land of the north, and from all the lands to the land which I gave as an inheritance to their fathers.* For that which is lying in the middle, *And I said, Let it be, Lord,* belongs to the prophet, who is rejoicing at the promises of God. He says, then, that "I will bring you into the land of promise as having the status of sons, just as also of old, when I led you out of Egypt. And I said: Call me Father; that is, only be ye sincerely disposed towards me."

*But as a wife disregards her partner, so did the house disregard me.*

* *Acknowledge your own evils, and I will grant oblivion for the things you have already committed in your transgression.*

*Verse 21. A voice heard from the lips of weeping.*

Hence we are instructed not only to lament and wail in adversities, but before this to pray to God; ^D for he says there is need of weeping and prayer: for not even weeping by itself

would be able to accomplish anything, nor prayer if not kindled by laments; this is the gain from calamities. ^A *A voice from the lips.* He narrates what happened in the days of Josiah. VERS. 22. *Return, O returning children, and I will heal your bruises: Behold, we shall be thy servants,* etc. For it is not sufficient to weep, nor to pray, since this occurs from the nature of the evils; but he demands security and correction regarding the future, so that, once delivered from the evils, they may not again return to their former state. Let us learn to offer confessions accurately; for these things were not written simply, but so that we might follow them. *This is: Be converted as is fitting: do not feign piety for the sake of the king’s fear.* ^B VERS. 23. *Truly the hills were into a lie, and the strength of the mountains; only through the Lord our God,* etc. They worshipped iniquity, they sacrificed to the wickedness of the desires; perhaps this word is spoken to us also, *Return, O returning children.* And after a few words: *Truly the hills were a lie.* When we have seen the light, then we recognize the darkness. They knew God, then they recognized the demons too; so also we shall then truly know sin, not saying it with words, but convinced by the facts themselves. And God left them, so that they might learn through the things themselves. It is necessary also to condemn the former things. ^C Behold again, "through" is said concerning God; you ought indeed to have learned from other things—from heaven, and earth, and sea—but now from the things that were done to them. The ancients, however, did not only erect stone things, but they also pursued hills and mountains, because they thought that demons dwelt in high places; for there is no part of creation which the devil, inciting men, has not caused to be worshipped. And after a few words: — *But through the Lord our God is the salvation of Israel.* For what else does God seek than that you should know that it is He who confers benefits upon you? This—or nothing else—He demands of you, and this He vehemently desires. ^D VERS. 24. *But confusion consumed the labors of our fathers from our youth.* Even if they had suffered no evil, disgrace followed the thing itself: they labored in vain, and were distressed, and it was plainly nothing else than a naked sacrifice. The victims indeed were for the demons, but salvation is from God. *Sheep.* Nor did they spare their children, and they were ignorant of their own nature, raging with extreme madness. For he who is insane does not know what he is doing; but he who commits base things, and things worthy of confusion, feels what he is doing, and has many who rebuke him; nor can it be said that they did these things secretly, but in the sight of all, when there were many who could cover them with confusion. VERS. 25. *For we have sinned before our God, we.*

He who confesses must confess in such a way that he magnifies the sin on every side and denies himself a place for pardon, in order that he may obtain pardon. *Usque in diem hanc.* He did not say it simply, not twice, nor thrice, but ten thousand times; and it cannot be said that they were always like themselves. *Et non obedivimus voci Domini.* But they were so ardent and mad towards demons, as to refrain not even from their own bowels, raging even to the blood of their children; yet towards the Lord they were so dull-witted, insolent, and unbridled, that they would not even hear His voice, but rather disobeyed it.

CAP. IV.

*Vers. 2. Et juraverit: Vivit Dominus, cum veritate.* Let no one take an occasion for swearing from this, but let him listen to the Gospel. You have heard that it was said to them of old: Thou shalt not forswear thyself. But I say unto you, Swear not at all (Matth. v, 33). Before this, these things were said to the foolish, to those being led out from idols, not to those practicing philosophy, not to those reaching for the heavens, not to those who have attained manhood.

*Vers. 3. Hæc enim dicit Dominus viris Juda et habitatoribus Jerusalem.* For the safety of a city is not in the harmony of its buildings, nor in the size of its stones, but in the virtue of its inhabitants. Just as, therefore, the betrayal of a city is not due to the decay of its buildings, but to the vileness of its citizens.

*Novate vobis novalia, et nolite serere super spinas.* From what we experience in agriculture, the prophet exhorts us to act regarding our souls, which, by reason of much idleness in time past, have brought forth much wickedness and fruitless works; he exhorts them to share in the plow of the Word. For it is not permitted to receive the divine seed simply without first rooting out the thorns; wherefore he says: Declina a malo, et fac bonum (Ps. xxxvi, 27).

Cultivate, he says, your souls; root out entirely the memory of idols, for these he calls thorns; that is to say, uproot the idols, and so approach God when you arrive at the temple. He took this also from the metaphor of farmers. For that saying, *Nolite seminare super spinas*, means: Do not enter the temple while addicted to idols.

*Vers. 4. Circumcidimini Deo vestro: et circumcidite duritiam cordis vestri, viri Juda, et habitatores Jerusalem.* Does he speak of this circumcision? By no means, but of that which happens in the soul. That circumcision, therefore, is not "in God," for he would not have said, "Be circumcised in God." And yet someone might say that we are circumcised, and we are circumcised in God; for by what reason

^A can circumcision be performed by another, but rather it is performed by ourselves, of whom each is Lord? That former one is done by another, and it is performed in the body; this is not so. Do you see that the old was an act of condescension? For He would not have said, "to your God," if He did not indicate that that one was not for God; for what profit to virtue was that one? What does the Jew say here? "Do you see that the Law implies something else, and is not in itself sufficient for salvation, if such is circumcision?" Thus, as the New ^B is quietly opening its doors, you see the old vanishing by itself. Paul did not say this concerning this matter, Peter did not legislate it; Jeremiah said it, whom you still cultivate and venerate, O Jew. I do not oppose you with these things from our books, but rather from yours—or rather, more from yours than mine, for the things of the New are no less yours than ours, and the things of the Old are no less foreign to you. Just as you deny faith in the latter, so you do in the former. And so, the Jew has lost both, while we embrace both, for in both is the Spirit.

Then He teaches what the circumcision of God is: "And circumcise the hardness of your heart." He explained quite clearly ^C that the visible circumcision is a type and figure of the hidden one, and that if that is present, that which is of the body is superfluous. Moved by this, the divine Apostle wrote to the Romans: "For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is that circumcision which is outward in the flesh; but he is a Jew who is one inwardly, and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter, whose praise is not from men, but from God." For he heard God saying through the prophet: "Be circumcised to your God, O men of Judah, and you who inhabit Jerusalem, lest My indignation go forth like fire, and be kindled, and there be none to quench it because of the ^D malice of your inventions."

He speaks after the manner of men, wishing to instruct them; for this reason, he often strikes fear into them, and "there shall be none to quench" this evil. For because they had often placed their hope in His loving-kindness, he destroys this comfort for them.

* But to those who resist, He brings the threat: "Lest My wrath go forth like fire." For you alone are able to quench it by repenting; but if you do not possess repentance, no one is able to deliver you from punishment.

VERS. 5. Announce in Judah. What is this? Above He had said: "Lest My indignation be kindled like fire"—now it is already kindled; He brings the imminent dangers upon them, and though he brings them even to the doors, He does not permit them to break in. For He does not deliver the cities to be plundered, but brings the enemies to the gates, like an excellent schoolmaster, who brandishes the lash for striking, but yet spares.

* Moreover, terrifying them, He commands that it be announced to Jerusalem, and to the entire tribe of the Jews, so that a signal might be given by trumpet, and to signify to all the approach of the enemies, so that to those within the walls…

they might flee for refuge to the cities, and more especially to Zion as being more strongly fortified.

^B **Vers 6. Flee into Zion.** There seems to be an inconsistency here; for these words are those of one who is caring and providing, and acting so that nothing absurd may occur. But that other action is that of one who is betraying, and surrendering, and subjecting them to the ultimate evils. If you are bringing evils from the north, why do you urge them on? For these are the words of one performing the role of a leader, but those are the words of one taking the part of an adversary. Do you see that these words are those of one who is correcting, and caring for them, and striving to force them to believe in the things that are to come? Since they were profiting nothing from his words, he portrays the events themselves to them.

He threatens the assault of the Babylonian and foretells the first captivity; for he speaks of the ruin of those who were outside for the time being. For he says: "Flee into Zion, hasten, do not stand." This is said on the assumption of the city remaining safe.

**Vers 7. A lion has ascended from his lair.** He reminded them also of the terrible things which had happened to their brethren. Why do I mention one city, or the smallest tribe? He obliterated entire peoples and cities with their inhabitants in a lethal slaughter. These things are spoken parabolically. He calls Nebuchadnezzar a lion, and Babylon his lair, and says that he, having set out from there, both burned the cities and devastated the lands; on account of this, "Gird yourselves," and the rest.

**Vers 8. Concerning this, gird yourselves with sackcloth, and wail. For he has not turned away, etc.** That is to say, God did not cease from His indignation on account of the things done by Josiah, but since, even after his death, you turned back again to impiety, showing that even the things you had already done were not performed with a genuine disposition, God passed judgment against you.

"And wail." Not on account of the calamities, but because His wrath has not turned away. For truly, one ought not to be distressed and pained solely on account of gehenna, but because God is angry. Not that He was angered, but that He turned away.

**Vers 9. The heart of the king will perish.** For such is the nature of calamities, that it deprives men of their natural senses. For when fear is excessive, it allows nothing to remain in its proper place.

"And the prophets shall wonder." That is, the false prophets. For what reason? Not because events turned out contrary to expectation, but because they were proven and came to pass contrary to expectation.

**Vers 10. And I said, O Lord Master. Alas, hast thou then deceived, etc.** The prophets respond frequently to God along with others, as if in a certain drama, procuring the amendment of the people. This is also what fathers, and the friends of fathers, do among themselves, correcting their children. Where indeed He said to them: "There shall be peace…"

to you? Earlier, recounting prosperous things, he said: "And the house of Israel and Judah shall come together, if he shall have removed the abominations." ^A For what purpose, then, does the prophet say these things? For he is surely not ignorant. Far from it! He, who knows all things perfectly, but [rather] what I said at the beginning: this is, that what was to be said by them to God, He Himself returns as an answer; so that he may again provide an opportunity for an answer to God.

*Spirit of error in the desert.*

He rightly calls the enemies a spirit of error. Just as the wind, by blowing, carries the dust hither and thither and does not deposit it in fixed places, so it happened also to these people; just as a violent wind rushing in, that barbarian war scattered [it] over the whole land; and to be scattered is grievous indeed, but to suffer this in no order ^B is unspeakable.

This response is to that which was said: "Deceiving, you have deceived the people"; I did not deceive, but they have become the authors of their own evils. Since the prophet said, "Have you then deceivingly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying: 'There shall be peace to you,' and behold the sword has touched even unto their souls?" God says that through the evils inflicted they will recognize the truth of the things spoken by the prophet, and that it was by the operation of demons that the soothsayers deceived them. This is similar to that which was said by Micaiah in the time of Ahab, ^C that a lying spirit went out and became in all the false prophets for the deception of the king. But "of error in the desert," since they were worshipping idols on the mountains. "The way of the daughter of my people," that is, their actions; "not to the pure nor to the holy"—she, he says, will learn by experience in the time of tribulations that it was a spirit of error that was speaking through the false prophets.

*Verse 12. A spirit of repletion shall come to me.*

That is, I have ceased to bring dire things upon them. Enough punishment has been given to them. This is, not one divine person, from whom my present evils have come.

*From these a spirit of plenitude shall arrive.*

He says they support this error because they are unclean, being subject to idolatry and filled with defilements, ^D and devoid of my spirit; but that [phrase], "from these shall come to me," indicates this: not because they were entering the temple with such great uncleanness, are they made participants of my grace.

*But now I will speak my judgments against them.*

That is, I will punish them; for since He had said, "it shall come" again, lest the delay of the future time should make them more sluggish, He restrains the license which arises because of the intermediate time, saying: "And now I will speak judgments."

*Verse 13. Behold, they shall ascend as a cloud, and as a tempest.*

^A You see how he seeks out various and more terrifying images. In order to astound their minds, in order to strike them with fear, he describes the encampment. And what is the benefit? He speaks of the swiftness of the arrival; but nothing of all this touched them, such is the power of wickedness. Yet God nevertheless foretold it, had they not yielded.

*Lava a malitia.* "Wash from wickedness. How long shall the thoughts of your labors exist within you?"

Truly there is nothing equal to this misery. We are accustomed to use this expression when we see someone handed over to a long illness, and never able to recover from that corruption. For just as a body weakened by fevers becomes difficult to cleanse, so too is a wretched soul oppressed by sins.

It is not enough to have words, nor only to lament oneself in the Church of the Lord. Do not weep with tears: but it is necessary that deeds also be added. And after a little while: "Wash wickedness from your heart." Why this, if he has ascended like a lion? If he is present like a cloud? If then troubles are at the doors? What deadline for change remains? What time for change is left? But behold the philanthropy. He spoke about those things as if they were present, ^B so that he might drive away their sloth; but he spoke again as if they were future, so that he might not cast them into despair. The former words belong to one who has brought forth a sentence; these, however, belong to one who is giving time for correction. For no one brings on punishment and introduces exhortation at the same time. For these two things are opposites; if you are giving advice, suspend the punishment; if you are punishing, how do you exhort those being punished? But yet, nevertheless, he speaks of punishing, so that they might not be slothful; and he speaks of relaxing, so that they might be corrected.

Do you see? This is what Christ also says; it lies here. "For out of the heart come evil thoughts." How long shall they exist? You see the long-suffering of God. How long? When there was a need to flee both by nature and by time, what pardon? What defense? Be it so: you did not turn away from iniquity by your own nature; why did you not do so when it was time?

*Call to remembrance, O nations, behold, they are come.* He shows that although they had heard many times, they were forgetful ^D.

He speaks of the license and great boldness, that they would not arrive according to the law of enemies, but as if upon regions already captured.

*As keepers of a field, they have been round about her.* So that it would be impossible for those desiring it to escape. He also stated the cause of the evils.

*Because thou hast neglected me, saith the Lord.* Exhortatively: "You have neglected the Master, and one who is entirely trustworthy." Is this not enough for punishment? Is it not more grievous than any punishment? For if there were no war, if

there were no destruction of the city, could hearing this word alone comprehend how much punishment it contains? ^A

This is as those who are in charge of guarding the crops, when they discover a thief, raise a shout and strike fear into the thief, and themselves run up with all alacrity, wishing to catch the one who dared such things; so also these merely shout, and turn you to flight, as if caught on property not your own: "Because you have neglected Me," says the Lord. "You shall endure things worthy of what you have dared, and you shall reap what you have sown." VERSE 18. *Your ways and your inventions have done this to you.* What hope of a remedy is there then, when that which is the head and holds the principal place has been corrupted? For there is malice that is not [so] bitter; there is error arising from simplicity, to which one might easily grant pardon. This, he says, is wickedness that is not to be tolerated, because it is both fixed and has reached the heart itself. ^B

VERSE 19. *I am pained in my bowels.* Having predicted these things, the prophet is tortured on account of them, and laments, and says: "My bowels, my bowels I am in pain, and the interior parts of my heart." He drew this metaphor from a woman in labor. *My soul is agitated*, that is, it is troubled, being in the midst of a struggle. *My heart is torn*: this is, it leaps for fear, wishing, as it were, to depart; it imitates a mother whose own inward parts are torn at the destruction of her children. *Because my soul has heard the sound of the trumpet.* The prophet has become inspired. Not now, but a little before, he said these things, seeing events happening with prophetic eyes: wars, and battle arrays, and fights, the sound of trumpets, the neighing of horses, the onset of enemy men, all the calamities of the Jews. See the long-suffering of God: He threatened through words, and the message did not strike them; He makes the prophecy more credible by making the one who deprecated them a spectator of the things spoken. ^C

VERSE 20. *He calls for destruction, because all the earth is laid waste: suddenly the tabernacle is laid waste. My skins are torn asunder.* He shows the ease of the conquest by the name of the tabernacle. And no one would err if he called any city whatsoever, and any house, by this name; for the present life is a a scene. There will be no need for the attackers to have sweat or any time, but as if breaking up a tent, so they get possession of the walls. See also the singular love of the prophet: he claims the whole city as his own, and says that Jerusalem is his own house. ^D

*My skins are torn asunder.* He speaks these things concerning the remaining cities; but the metaphor is taken from kings and others who set up tents in encampments. Some have interpreted the tent as the palace, and the skins as the remaining houses of the city. VERSE 21. *How long shall I see those fleeing, hearing the voice of the trumpets?* etc. Why then, with the trumpets sounding, and the war, and the battle,

do they not reach us? But he added: *The whole earth is vexed*. Well does he say, "vexed": for he is eager everywhere to show that this war is stirred up from God against his own people. For this is what "to be vexed" means. For they did not overcome them through war and battle alone; rather, they arrived suddenly, beyond expectation, and unexpectedly.

He makes him a spectator and a hearer, so that he might strike them with terror from both sides. The prophet saw, so that the Jews might not see. Jeremiah grieved in spirit to keep them safe; he often exposes those who perform the service ^B of God.

*Because the leaders of my people have not known me.* This is the greatest accusation: when those who ought to teach others are themselves the first to be ignorant.

Then, when the prophet had spoken in sequence to these things: *How long shall I see those fleeing, hearing the voice of the trumpet?* God answers: *Because the leaders of my people have not known me*; that is, they are suffering these things on account of their impiety, since even before, one used to pursue a thousand, and you know the things that happened in Egypt. He explains also the multitude of those fleeing, and speaks in the person of God: *Because the leaders of my people have not known me, they are foolish children, and not understanding.* And so that they might not be thought worthy of pardon as being foolish, he immediately added, *they are wise to do evil.* This indeed is that which is most terrible: that they used their faculties for nothing—foolishly, like drunkards with wine, or like murderers with the sword. ^C

*I looked upon the earth, and behold, / nothing; and upon the heaven.*

How "nothing"? He says, no flocks, no oxen, no buildings, and no walls. For war knows how to make all such things vanish.

*And upon the heaven, and its lights were not.*

He refers to the mind of the spectator, not the nature of the thing. For he does not speak absolutely, but, "I saw, and its lights were not." For the darkness of night is accustomed to cover the light, yet it reveals the moon along with the stars; but the night of sorrow, which is much more grievous than this, puts all the stars to flight—not according to their essence, but according to the vision of the observer. So that its lights did not appear, because of which they did not even seem to exist to the spectators. But it became as if naked and deprived of light. ^D

A soul darkened by sorrow suffers something of this kind; for many of those disembarking from the sea onto the land have thought they saw the earth rising and whirling about them. But these things are all wont to happen by nature. For just as fear falling upon the senses into water that is pure and still disturbs the earth that was at the bottom, and confounds it, making what is above turn bottom-side up, and throwing all order into confusion; so too does it happen here: one hears one thing and sees another, and nothing stands in its proper place.

^A “As in darkness I have become, because of the fear for the desolation of the city.”

VER. 24. “I saw the mountains, and behold they were trembling, etc.” That is to say, not even if they take refuge in the mountains is there any way to be saved.

VER. 25. “I looked, and behold there was no man, and all the birds of the heaven were scared away.” For we do not seem to see even those standing near us; how then does he say of the birds that they were scared away? This also comes from the disposition of the prophet.

Since, because of the desolation, even the birds abandoned the place. For most animals are accustomed to dwell in secluded places.

“The whole earth shall be desolate.” What are you saying? Are you releasing the Jews from fear? Why did you not stand by the former threat? It sufficed to say, “The whole earth shall be desolate.” But immediately he linked the favorable with that which was terrible, changing it. For what reason? So that by this means he might also make them better. For whenever we speak by joining terrible things to terrible things, the soul quite often falls into despair; but if it harbors good hopes, even if they be small, it will be able to rise again quickly.

“On these things let the earth mourn.” Well does he call the earth to the perception of future events, since men have become unperceptive.

“Because I have spoken, and I will not repent.” Let no one think the matter is a threat; in every way the deed will follow. Since, for having spoken often, because of his love for mankind he did not bring about the end, it will not be so now; but as I have spoken, so I will do.

“If you put on scarlet, etc.” What is the meaning of what is said? The speech is metaphorical; the prophet speaks continuously as if to a dishonored woman, the city, and one who acts as a harlot.

Since he said above, “Behold your ways in the polyandrium,” that is, the place where, having been caught in [the company of] women, you committed impiety, he says: if you wish to deceive the foes in the same manner, you will not be able. And the [phrase] “If you smear [your eyes] with stibium,” refers to the black [paint] with which women are accustomed to color their eyes.

^D As to a harlot expecting to captivate lovers by the beauty of her countenance, like Jezebel, like the daughters of the Jews. But now, consider every kind of misfortune regarding the city: when they are lovers, yet they spit upon the beloved even while she is adorning herself; and not only do they spit upon her, but they also desire to destroy her.

VER. 31. “For I have heard a voice as of one in labor. And she shall drop her hands.” She will be able to do nothing in the war itself from now on.

Again the prophet saw the things to come. He cannot bear the multitude of the slain; he is dazed and faints in spirit. If the spectacle is unbearable, how much more the very experience? First, he saw them fleeing; second, those lamenting;

[Fragmenta in Jeremiam, page 809] them, and then [slain]. Going forward he says, ^A that He will not even permit you to lament.

CAP. V.

Vers. 1. *Heu mihi, quia deficit anima mea super interfectis. Circumcurrite in viis Jerusalem, etc.* Do you see that He does not drive them to despair? And consider God, who takes upon Himself the task of defense, and who does not entrust this investigation to others. You yourselves, you who have suffered the ills, "seek," He says. I entrust the matter to no other—not to an enemy or foe, not to one who scorns and disregards your affairs—but to you yourselves, who have been pained and afflicted. And lest they grow weak again, "Circumcurrite," He says, as if the evils were near, and He commands them to make a thorough search.

The discourse concerns those who are placed under the decree, since there were righteous persons among them, such as Jeremiah, and the sons of Jonadab, who were priests, and Abimelech the Ethiopian. He speaks, therefore, of the priests, and the kings, and the false prophets, and the multitude.

*Vivit Dominus, dicunt: nihilominus in mendaciis jurant.* It is not enough, He says, to swear, but to swear the truth. Do you see that everywhere God seeks not only His own, but the interest of his neighbors? Ponder in your mind how great a thing it is to swear falsely, so that an entire city perishes on account of it. For he who swears not by God, but perhaps by demons, to him the injury is greater, and even more so if we have harmed others by our oath. ^B That is: they perjure themselves, esteemed nothing of swearing by my name, and they have abused the authority of my name to perform perverse deeds.

Vers. 3. *Domine, oculi tui ad fidem.* That is: Thy eyes see nothing adverse. Thy judgment is pure. A great accusation, and a sign of the utmost insensibility; that is: Thou knowest all things exactly, and all that Thou bringest forth is most true. *Flagellasti eos, nec doluerunt*; a sign of men who have already lost the sense of pain, such as was Pharaoh, that it might be shown that there was no excuse. This was what he meant by "circumcurrite," from the former things he reveals His providence.

What is meant by "Confecisti"? You have destroyed all, you have laid low the greater part of them, and not even so were they instructed. For nothing that could contribute to their salvation was omitted. ^C Everywhere it is of the will, and not of nature, [that it is said]: "Thou wouldst not return." See how wickedness has been changed into nature.

Vers. 4. *Et ego dixi: Fortasse inopes sunt, quia non potuerunt.* And what impediment could poverty be? He does not say this, but he takes away the pretext of the many, showing that even these were not hindered by poverty. Toward those who might object to us that they fled not of their own will, He foretells [the excuse of] poverty. ^D Many do these things because of poverty, and while...

they seek their sustenance, they are deceived and drawn into impiety. For that [expression], "because they could not," is the same as saying, "because they could not be wise in the face of poverty," and being deceived, they did not know the way of God. ^A

VERS. 5. *I will go unto the great men*, etc. But perhaps [you will say] the rich [are exempt]? Yet neither wealth nor the straitness of one's household affairs is an impediment to this. See how He excludes excuses from every side. This is what [He means by], "I turned towards the great men and the kings," thinking that they perhaps performed things consistent with the law. But I found them all suddenly inclined toward the worse, having cast off the dominion of God and the keeping of the law. For He called the dominion a "yoke," and the precepts of the law "bonds," by which those who are under the law must be guided as by a certain rule. ^B If poverty has become an opportunity for the former, then wealth ought to have made the latter better. But no one, neither of these nor of those, became any better.

VERS. 6. *Therefore a lion out of the forest hath slain them.* He includes all wild beasts, not only lions. Thus He does everything to increase fear; and He does not speak as though of things future, but as of things past. The "Babylonian." And he calls the wolf and the leopard those around Theglath-Phasar. He hints at insatiability and desolation, when it is permitted to such a one to penetrate even to the houses, wishing not only to terrify, but also to devastate. The wolf, perhaps, would be Sennacherib, who only snatched and did nothing more. Some also have called Antiochus the leopard. ^C

VERS. 7. *How shall I be propitious to thee for this? Thy children have forsaken me*, etc. Here He calls them to account, not because they acted impiously and turned away, but because they fell into impiety with a multitude, and turned away foolishly. For it is a grievous thing to sin even once, but to persevere and to add to it is worse: *Thou hast sinned, add not again, and pray to God about your former [sins].* See in every case, against each punishment, the defenses that are everywhere placed, and the continuity of the discourse interrupted, just as if someone were beating a person, then pausing to defend himself for why he did so, and, to say it in one word: the Prophet clearly delights in threats and in defense. ^D

*I satisfied them, and they committed adultery.* Do you see the lewdness and impurity that sprang from luxury? For what, you will ask, could they complain of? A lack of necessities? Yet there was such abundance that they even committed adultery and lived with harlots.

VERS. 8. *Horses that neigh.* See how He has expressed their pleasure. See how they were given over to lewdness, and insulted nature itself. See how immodest Venus is peculiar to brute beasts. They assert that in the Hebrew, "those who are drawn" is not held; [Fort. Jer. v, 8.]

^A but it is possible to understand it as meaning that they were driven by lust.

"Ascend. And do not make a full end."

Leave remnants of the city, so that for the captives there might be a cause for them to return again; wherefore He predicts this, so that when they see that they are not destroying down to the foundations, they might think it is not because of their kindness, but because of God’s restraint.

"For acting perfidiously, they have acted perfidiously against me."

If they are the Lord’s, for what reason have they suffered these things? Because of those who dwell therein, because they acted perfidiously.

That is, they violated the covenants which they had with me, and slipped entirely into impiety.

"They have lied to the Lord. And they said, These things are not."

Consider how great a evil this is. They did not believe Him who threatened, they did not believe Him who punished and corrected; many even now are those around the topic of hell who say the same things, disbelieving in God. "The house of Israel, and the house of Judah have lied to the Lord."

"Our prophets were into wind."

For those who addressed the crowds for the sake of pleasure did not allow them to ever become better.

That is, they look for no evil, but many ^B say that even the prophets spoke in vain, and died, and said nothing according to the mind of God concerning us. And the words, "So shall it be to them," mean: In a similar way, you too shall speak, you who seem to be prophets. For just as when those spoke, the city suffered no evil, so too shall it not suffer now.

"Therefore. Behold, I have given my words into your mouth as fire."

He shows the quickness, for all things yield to fire.

"And behold, I bring upon you a nation from afar."

So that they might not even gain mercy through supplication. And the phrase, "And an ancient one," indicates that it is both ancient and terrible, and shows that it does not come from nearby; for otherwise they would have remained quiet for such a long time, and only later arrived.

"And they shall consume your harvest."

He speaks of the time of the incursion, ^D that when you are about to enjoy the fruits, then they will come upon you and lay waste the land. And "your bread," instead of: they will consume also what you have stored up.

"And it shall be when you say, Wherefore?"

For this is indeed a sign of great insensibility, after having suffered, to say: "For what reason has He done this?" But yet, the word will then have an opportunity. That is why He says: "That you might serve in a land not your own, strange gods." This He threatens again.

"Declare these things to the house of Jacob."

Again He reminds them of their ancestors, so that perhaps even so they might be shamed. Again He brings into the midst that patriarch, both an admirable man and a great one—saying "the house of Jacob" and "the house of Judah"—so that you may learn

^A how great the power of God is; how through one leader of a tribe He established entire cities, and peoples, and nations.

*Hear ye these things, O people.* Why does He use insulting language? Because He wishes to raise up those who have fallen through arrogance; for there is no punishment worse than this: to be ignorant of God.

*Eyes have they, and see not; ears have they, and hear not.* He enumerates only these senses, which more than others lead to the knowledge of God, and of which we have the greatest need.

*Will ye not fear me, saith the Lord, who have placed the sand as a bound for the sea?* He did not say, "I made the sea," but, "I have bridled it." For He wishes to be known not only from the creation ^B itself, but also from the way it is set in order. He says, it is not possible to say that it remains at rest and submits because it suffers no force; but even when a great necessity urges it to go outward, and it undergoes the ultimate force, so that it is exhausted, it remains bearing the force, so as not to cross the commandment of God.

But perhaps someone might say to this, "These things are ordered by nature and law; but I have the inclination toward both sides, so that if I wish, I may choose the better." Indeed, what will you say? That spirit and wicked desires drive the soul? But set against them the commandment of God. Is nature weak? And indeed the sand is also weak, but it becomes most robust through the divine law. ^C So also you, through the fear of God. Nothing is so weak, nothing so powerless, that it does not overcome its own nature through the fear of God.

And after other things: Why did He not bring another element as an example, but rather the sea? Because his discourse was about war and fighting, and the onset of soldiers, like a cloud and a sea about to cover the whole city. Wishing, therefore, to show that the war happens not from innate strength or power, but from His own permission, He brings the sea into the midst; showing that since such an element, great and vast, and unbearable in its violence, raging and savage, is able by weak sand to hold back your enemies, it serves as a constant bridle, and leads ^D to the conclusion that He is much more able to prevent them from coming or causing any detriment to your affairs.

*And they said not, Who giveth us rain.* Be it so. You did not wish to know me for my own sake; but for the sake of those things that come from me, should you not have felt it, not only because I give rain, but because I give it in season? For that former thing was a sign only of the fact that I am able to give; but this latter thing is a sign of great providence and affection.

*According to the time of the fulfillment of the commandment of the harvest.* This is spoken obscurely; but what it says is this: "Recently," he says, "having gathered the fruits of the earth from the threshing floor, and having barns full, we enjoy

fruit, and the rains do not wait for the fruit to be consumed; but as soon as the harvest is ended, and we have not even begun to consume what we have stored—and while the former is not yet consumed—rain comes down, bidding us to commit other seeds to the earth. Because human nature is small-minded and anxious, and trembles and fears the future not only in penury but also in abundance, God, healing this malady, sends down to us abundant rain, so that the hopes of new things may cast out the fear concerning the future consumption of what has been stored. This, then, he hinted at, at the time of the fulfillment of the command of the harvest; for at harvest time the fruits are stored, and even before they are gathered, he commands it to bring forth the same again. What is ^A *He kept for us*? Just as a very loving father always reserves a portion for his children, so he also keeps the rain for us, and the first winter does not consume the showers, nor the second, but they remain and are left behind for us forever.

*Your iniquities have turned these things away.* Since he had spoken concerning great prosperity. But when he was saying these things, there were famines and pestilences, lest they should object: "And indeed, we do not see these things." "It is not," he says, "that God has changed, but that through your sins you have repelled the benefit; these things that I speak of have departed from you because of your sins." For it is a greater care not to provide anything hereafter than to provide; just as for one who is suffering from a fever, he who gives to him is an enemy, but he who refuses, takes up the care of his health.

*Because they were found in my people.* He shows that they used those of their own race like cattle. Do you see how he punishes not only the sins against himself, but also those against a neighbor? They waged war against one another; they took a stand against one another because of their prosperity. Do you see how he defends himself to them? He speaks of those who worship idols. *And like fowlers, they laid snares.* He blames those who, under some pretext, take what belongs to others; he therefore continues:

*They stood to destroy a man, and caught him; like a snare set full of birds, so their houses are full of deceit.* That is, thus did they acquire what belongs to others with wickedness; he therefore continues: *They did not judge the judgment. The judgment of the orphan and the judgment of the widow they did not judge, ^C the beautiful and delicate one.*

*They did not judge the judgment of the orphan.* For most of all, one must pursue justice in many things; but when the person who is wronged also has something that invokes pity—I mean orphaned state, or widowhood—who is so cruel and foolish as not to award justice to such a person? For when one who ought to be pitied is not allowed to partake even of his rights, where is this tolerable?

*Trembling and horrors have come to pass.* See how sin spreads through everything; for some...

they worked wickedness, but those who approved of what was done. Therefore, Paul punishes not only those who are bold and do wicked things, but also those who consent to them. ^A

VERS. 31. *And my people loved it so.* Observe the wickedness diffused throughout everything. And what was it necessary for the subjects to do? Was it not to follow the rulers? Was it not to be persuaded by their teachers? By no means, but to oppose them. But now, not even by necessity did these things happen to them, but they loved it so; they were not led astray. They did not obey these people fearing the rulers. But they themselves loved these things.

*And what will you do after these things?* When the time for repentance is no more, when all correction is taken away, when all change for the better will have vanished.

CAP. VI.

VERS. 1. *Blow the trumpet, for evils have looked out.* Observe how He gives them a period of time for repentance; the phrase "it has looked out from somewhere" shows it only in part, and it is neither present such as to cast them into despair nor absent such as to make them more sluggish ^B. But it stands in the midst of presence and absence. Evils have looked out in order that they might be seen in their fullness. But you yourselves, in the end, have the power to cause everything to go backward again.

VERS. 2. *And your height shall be taken away.* Why? Because they used these things for wickedness; beauty for fornication, height for arrogance. That is to say, beautiful and delicate. He calls it beautiful on account of the law, and the priesthood, and the rest. And delicate, because it was always shown to be superior to the enemies by the alliance of God.

VERS. 3. *Shepherds shall come upon her.* This is indeed a symbol of desolation; but it occurred also at the time of the apostles. One might fittingly call the Churches in a circuit, like tents fixed everywhere in the inhabited world, sheepfolds.

VERS. 4. *Prepare yourselves against her for war; arise, and let us go up against her at midday.* Observe how much God prepares in order to put fear into them, since He even fashions words from the enemies as if they were present, and exhorting one another. And yet, war would not take place at midday, but this indicates that they will attack not stealthily or secretly, but with boldness, which is a proof that they are fully confident in themselves. ^C

*Woe to us, for the day has declined.* For to those who are besieged, every time is indeed fearful and suspicious, but the time of the night is much more so; for by day it is possible to stand, and to deliberate, and to walk around, and to see30 things as they are. But when night has come upon them, the war becomes double. It was necessary to say the opposite: "Woe to us, for we have provoked God to anger"; yet they lament for the time of punishment.

VERS. 5. *Arise, and let us go up against her by night.* Of Chrysostom. (Alt. Of Olympiodorus.) Night and midday, he calls the indifferent time of the arrival of the enemies. Arise... ^D

and let us go up against her at midday. The voice of those who have confidence. Woe to us, for the day has declined. They say these things as ones who, having been plundered by the enemies all day long, and with night following, no longer able to flee, speak thus. Arise and let us go up by night, and destroy her foundations. He produces these as if they were the words of the enemies. Whence those who dwell there are terrified at the arrival of the night. ^B *Cut down her wood.* As if it were for some timber, he says, make her a desert; as if from some thicket, root it out, he says, cut down the wood—the men who are fruitless and hard at the same time—and he shows the might of the enemies. *O city of lies, all is oppression within her.* Do you see the cause, whence she is called a city of lies? Because oppression is in her, and she is all lies. Not one part of her is sound, and another corrupt; she is all lies. If you wish to look at her religion, in place of the true God, they have established for themselves stone idols. If you must examine the whole of their life, you will see much falsehood there too; and wickedness in their dealings with one another, and in those with the truth; it was corrupted, she is all lies. It is not possible to say that they had despised the Lord, but were just and humane in their dealings with one another; no, she is altogether lies. That is: Build a rampart ^C against her, and move the army around her. *Impiety and misery shall be heard in her.* He speaks of excessive wickedness. With great precision they held to the evils as if they were some good and great thing; they nourished them thus, as if fearing lest they might perish if the species of their iniquity failed them. *Before my face always.* See how he depicts the shamelessness. "Before my face," the boldness, the impudence, and "always"—not a time, not a portion of time. See how he makes the accusation harsh, as if almost rendering an account for the punishment. As if he meant: As a cistern holds water, so the city holds malice, and it receives no change. *You shall be instructed by pain and the scourge.* The wound is incurable, having no release, nor change, like the sufferings of the Sodomites, like those of the Gomorrahites. Therefore the punishment is inflicted not for things past, but for things to be committed, and it seems indeed to be for the past. It seems so, however, that they might not persist in the same things. *Glean, glean.* Again he intensifies the punishment, again the fear. I will not spare even the remnants, he says; and yet he had said above: Leave behind the supports of Israel, for they are the Lord's; ^D but truly...

here again: ^A Glean, glean. He contradicts himself frequently, for the sake of the benefit of the one [the people], stirring up their sloth and dispelling their despair.

Return as a grape-gatherer to his basket. That is: Lay down the remnants at home.

Ver. 10. To whom shall I speak, and bear witness? The prophet is at a loss as to whom he should speak. For some are of the poor, but others have broken the yoke.

Behold, the word of the Lord has become a reproach to them. That is, when I do not quickly bring evils upon them, they accuse me of lying.

Behold, their ears are uncircumcised.

And what would be the circumcision of the ears? We, for our part, know of the foreskin. Now let the Jew be brought into the middle, he who wishes to understand nothing beyond the spoken word, he who does not depart from the bounds of malice, and who does not bring his own mind ^B to examine the truth itself. Let him hear, along with the first, this also: Circumcise the foreskin of your hearts. Do you hear that here they are accused because their ears are uncircumcised? When you hear Stephen bringing a charge against them: Uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit; learn that Jeremiah said these things beforehand. And after a little: What then is this circumcision? To attend with an attentive mind to what is said. For since it stands in the way of our hearing, He says: Cast out the filth, cleanse it from everywhere, and there is no need to remove [the flesh]. Do you see how circumcision is useful? It does not allow one to remain in the flesh; thus also the sacrifices, thus also the temple, thus the solemnities, thus the cessation from works, are types of other things, and symbols.

The word of the Lord has become a reproach to them. Like swine treading underfoot ^C pearls; for piety is an abomination to sinners.

Ver. 11. And I have filled my fury, and I have endured. That they might learn that they are not yet being punished because they have not sinned, but because God is long-suffering, hear what He says: I have filled my fury, and I have endured. He uses human words, that He may strike fear.

I will pour out upon the children from without, and upon the assembly.

See how vehemently He expresses the matter; He says, I will pour out, so that He may not pour out, and He touches upon the first age, which is able to soften even wild beasts. Are you not burdened by the pain of your own evils? Take a perception from the evils of others. Since even in the cutting of the body, the members which possess no sense ^D provide us with a greater sense.

For man and woman shall be taken, the elder with the full of days.

Not gray hairs, not marriage, not anything else will be able to bring them any help.

^A *And their houses shall be turned over to others.* Because He sees that our affection for our own affairs is excessive, so that we even go away groaning when we see houses, and fields, and even wives passing to others.

*For I will stretch out my hand.* Do you see the war being stirred up from above? From there is the battle being fanned into flames; the heaven is warring against them? Did you hear "from the north," and did you disregard it as if they were fellow-servants? Hear now that He is about to stretch out His hand.

*For from the least of them even unto the greatest, all have committed iniquities.* He spoke of great wickedness. But fathers, even if they themselves happen to be in wickedness, yet they would wish their children to be virtuous. Here, however, everything is the opposite; they were ignorant of nature itself, and they did not show the affection of fathers. Be it so: you yourself have a desire—if I may say so—for pleasure, and for anger, and for wickedness. But why do you push the little child over the same precipice along with you?

*And they were healing the destruction.* Again, the rulers themselves are the cause of the evils. For I do not think this word is directed toward the ruled, but that it pertains to us, the rulers. For it is directed toward such people, toward those who are indulgent and who speak with a view to pleasure, and who seem to be healing the wound, but are actually aggravating the ulcer.

^B *And where is peace?* He did not say, "There is no peace," but, "Where is it?" Behold the kindness: "I can still use these rebukes now; show by your works what you promised." I fear lest even now it might be said: *And where is peace?* For it is not peace just because, by the grace of God, the affairs of the unbelievers have been abolished, and we have obtained pious rulers, and we have houses of prayer, and we think we are enjoying peace. This is not peace worthy of the Church; since the apostles, while having none of these things, yet truly had the peace which God had left to them. "Peace," He says, "I leave with you, My peace I give unto you."

*They were ashamed, because.* How were they ashamed? That is, the testimony of deeds did not accompany the words. They were being convicted by their own works. For even if the war was not present, yet the preludes to the war were rising up; and not even then did they draw back at all. Do you see that signs are of no use to a soul that is badly disposed? For this reason He says, *They shall fall in their own fall.*

^C *Stand upon the ways.* Behold the freedom and the lack of compulsion; and how He wishes us to serve Him, not for His sake, but for our own. He permits the choice of the way. "See which is the good way: explore all of them, and..."

^A choose not mine, but the good one; and you will certainly find that mine is this." For if I were considering my own interest, I would say, "Certainly choose mine"; but now I do not say, simply "mine," but "that which is profitable to you."

"See and ask for the eternal paths of the Lord, and see which is the good way, and walk in it."

What this means is as follows: Become better, and put to the test who is truly the Lord from eternity; and let this examination be made from works. For "the eternal paths of the Lord" points out to us the works of God that have been done from eternity, and the law set in creation itself. And having examined this, turn away from the idols and serve God; yet they did not accept the exhortation. I do not say that you have had experience for such a long time. But why do I permit the examination and the choice now, after such a long time?

"And you will find rest for your souls."

Two great goods, to which nothing could ever be equal: rest—not simply for the bodies, but for the souls; for if the soul is at rest, there is nothing that harms the body, just as, if it is distressed, there is nothing that can offer rest to the body.

^B VERSE 17. "I have set watchmen over you: [that is to say, prophets.] Hear the sound of the trumpet; and they said, We will not hear."

The prophets were indeed proclaiming the adverse things, and they did not wish to be persuaded. As if He were to say: "They accept exhortation neither because of the calamities, nor have they become more sober because of the invasion of the enemies."

He calls the prophets "watchmen" and "trumpets." For what reason? Because they foresee the future, and with a loud voice they announce what is about to happen.

VERSE 18. "Therefore the nations have heard."

This is a certain prophecy; the Jews did not hear while they were living, and we hear them now that they are dead, separated ^C not only by place, but also divided by a long span of time. The prophets were sent to others, and they drew in others to whom they had not been sent. They were so useful, so beneficial, that those who did not pertain to them at all heard them. To you they were given; you did not obey, and others heard them.

VERSE 19. "Hear, O earth."

You see how, after they do not hear with deaf ears, He turns His address toward the elements. For since they had said, "We will not hear," He says, "Hear, O earth." He does not afflict them first, but they prepare the evil for themselves. "Behold, I," etc., "because they did not attend to my words."

See everywhere that not only is the failing to fulfill the things of the law worthy of punishment, but also the failing even to hear them. For what expenditure of money, what labor of the body, does it take to lend one’s ears

^A to listen, and to have a good disposition toward that which is excellent?

“Vers. 20. Why do you bring me frankincense from Saba, and cinnamon from a land far away?” The meaning of this passage is: I do not require offerings, nor do I have any need of laborious tasks; I only ask for your good disposition of soul. Saba is a region of the Indians.

Since He said that they rejected My law, in order that they might not object, “And how have we rejected the law, while we offer sacrifice and burn incense every day?” He adds: “You might perhaps say that you bring frankincense; I do not seek gifts, but the fragrance of a soul; that is a sweet aroma to Me.” For God does not delight in the scent of bodies, nor in sensible fragrance, but in intellectual fragrance, that which is in accordance with the soul—which is sweeter than any incense—that which is the soul of the one offering. ^B

“Vers. 21. Behold, I will bring infirmity upon this people.” Lest the infirmities appearing among them might be thought to be a result of natural course, He demonstrates that what is worthy of wonder is a disease inflicted by God, that is, a pestilential condition, and He terrified them with the words of heaven-sent threats. They did not yield. He sent the prophet in grief, and they did not perceive it; therefore, He instills fear in another way, and brings a disease, that He might take away a greater evil: namely, war.

“Vers. 22. Behold, a people comes from the north.” Then He discourses ^C regarding those who come from the north, that they show no mercy, nor will they yield to anyone else. For when God wages war, men do not even understand human passions. For just as it is impossible, He says, to tame wild beasts, so also does He incite against them those who are able to be humbled by their own nature. But perhaps someone might say, “And why did He not destroy them Himself, but brought others in their place?” Because we also do this when we wish to strike those against whom we hold a grievance, so that they may have shame in their trials; for it is not less painful to suffer these things at the hands of others, just as if we handed over a slave to be punished by a free child. ^D

“Vers. 23. He is impetuous, and will not show mercy.” Do you see how He shows them armed and merciless? “Vers. 24. We have heard the report of them, we were paralyzed.” These things are as if from the person of the prophet, and those against them; for indeed, He caused voices to be brought forth prophetically.

“Vers. 25. Do not go out into the field.” He speaks here of the siege. See how little by little, and quietly, He brings on the terrors. “Vers. 26. Daughter of my people, gird yourself with sackcloth.” For what reason? Because of the evils coming upon them. Then He again brings forward the causes of their wickedness—which He always does—at once making a defense, and at the same time making His word credible. “Vers. 27. I have given you as a tester among tested people.” He speaks of the excess of their wickedness, that not even the siege made them better. Behold, He says, I permit you to test them in a time in which, even if they were exceedingly desensitized, they would certainly have become better. For no one...

[There is] no one who, even if he be exceedingly hard, is not softened by fear. ^A God directs his word to the prophet, rebuking their wickedness, so that He might not seem to pass judgment upon them unjustly.

VERS. 28. *All of them are stubborn, walking perversely, they are bronze and iron.*

He compared them to bronze and iron, indicating their stubbornness and persistence in sin; moreover, their paths are crooked, forsaking the rule of righteousness. For the Lord is upright, and just are His ways.

What is this, *like bronze and iron*? It signifies their persistence and fixed will in sinning, and likewise in another place: *Your forehead is bronze* (Isa. xlviii, 4); not implying wickedness in the nature of the bronze itself, but because it has crooked ways—being melted like that [metal], and even in the furnace, it behaves crookedly. So too, these men, when placed in punishments, do not forget their own perversity. ^B

*As bronze and iron, all are corrupted.*

For he says, just as those things are consumed in time by rust, so too these men have completely lost their perception of piety through the passage of time.

VERS. 29. *The bellows have failed by reason of the fire. The lead has failed; the refiner of silver refines in vain.*

The Hebrew text has "purifies" for "refiner of silver." But by an example he signaled their wickedness. For he says that lead is a purifying agent for silver, and when it is cast upon the silver—having consumed all that was mixed with it—it renders it free from any other material. He says, therefore, that every plan for them has been consumed [in vain]. ^C Neither have they listened to the prophets, nor have they been brought to their senses by the plagues, nor have they become better by any other means. Their wickedness has not been consumed. He persists in the metaphor. For just as he says that silver possessing much bronze, even if one should pour lead upon it a thousand times, remains impure—not being freed from the mixture of that bronze—so too these men have not turned away from their wickedness.

VERS. 30. *Reprobate silver.*

That is, not admitting correction. A coin that is not minted legally is not brought into the royal treasury, and therefore it is of no use, even if it bears upon itself the emblems and letters of the king, because the material in it is corrupted. Even so, these men have a form of piety, but deny the reality itself. ^D

CHAPTER VIIh

VERS. 2. *Hear the word of the Lord, all Judah.*

But if they fall without hope of correction, and labor under an incurable disease, and there is no solace for their evils, why then do you send the physician again, who does nothing but make their faults more grave for them, and exclude from them all hope of pardon? For he who has heard many times, and does not…

remain corrected, has a firm adversary in the constancy of counsel and exhortation. “Direct your ways and your studies.” ^B That is, your actions and what you have committed because of the worship of idols; for this is what is signified by “studies.” He adds these words concerning the prophets who were announcing the captivity. However, some of the false prophets gave orders for them to be of good courage, saying that they would suffer no evil. For even if God is angry because of you, He would never choose to hand over the temple to enemies for this reason; and for this cause He ordered the prophet to stand at the gate and say these things. Going forth, therefore, he says: “Do not trust in yourselves in lying words,” because they will not profit you at all, “saying: The temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord is this.” He strikes terror with these words: for when he had said that they fornicate while worshipping idols, and having listed their evils entirely, and that after this they entered the temple, he says: “Is it a den,” etc.? ^C For this seemed to them to be the greatest thing. For even if they were its inhabitants, yet by the sentence of God they were already cast out. This opinion harmed them greatly. For just as Christ says to them, or rather John: “Do not think to say, We have Abraham for our father,” so too here, do not say: “It is the temple of the Lord.” For if He needed a house, you would reasonably think these things, that I would not have overthrown the house. But if there is no place for Me, but I am uncontainable by all things; and if “Heaven is my throne, and the earth the footstool of my feet”—nay, even these things are not so; for with My hand I established the heaven—what house will you build for Me? “Do not trust in lying words. For if you do not correct yourselves by correcting your ways.” ^D To whom the silversmith beats the silver in vain, do you say again: “If you correct yourselves?” But it is the custom for those who are angry to say this: "This boy has no hope; it is impossible for him to become fit for virtue." Nevertheless, we persuade him to become fit, and we contend with all our might, and we exhort him; for the former is of wrath and bile, but the latter is of the care we bear and of exhortation; so that, having received no harm from those words, you may not think that evil is natural. For so that you may not say this, He adds: “If you correct your ways. And if acting you shall act in judgment between a man and his neighbor.” That is, do not judge unjustly. What do you say? For are those disputing between themselves strangers? Are they of a different race? They are neighbors. You are unjust to yourself; do you take the side of another in order to wrong your brother, and to destroy a member? And if nothing else moves you, let this persuade you: that a brother is calling a brother into judgment. “And the sojourner, and the orphan, and the widow do not oppress.”

^A Was there any need for commandments for these things? Does not nature itself suffice to teach this? Do you not see that pity arises even from the very names? Who is of such a fierce mind as to be cruel toward a stranger? Who is so stony as not to pity a woman bereft of a husband? Who is so inhuman as not to commiserate with one deprived of a father? For I do not say, "Have mercy," he says, "but do not oppress." For it is not that I could not prevent it, but I have set it before you as an exercise of your humanity.

"And do not walk after other gods to your own harm."

Yet we always love what is habitual; so even if you do not worship as God, honor Him as one you are used to. Do you see here too how great the ease is? And this is not only enough to turn them away—to abandon the one they are used to and to surrender oneself to strangers and aliens—but also that the punishment follows immediately. For why has He set here, "to your own harm"? That no one might think that He who checks one’s own [errant path] is leading them away from error for His own sake; I do not wish you to do these things.

"And I will cause you to dwell in this place."

It is therefore not a matter of walls, or arms, or soldiers, that people inhabit the land, but of the help of God.

"In the land that I gave to your fathers."

Why did He bring the fathers into the middle? All men are accustomed to clinging most of all to their hereditary possessions, so that this too made the land very dear; but this is the greatest accusation against the Jews, if they loved the land as being their fatherland, but fled from God, who was their ancestral God.

"But if you trust in false words, whence you will not be profited." ^B

See the cause of all evils: trusting in oneself. "Cursed is the man who trusts in man." For nothing so leads one away from God as not attributing everything to Him. For this reason [He wishes] man, though he could be made self-sufficient in many things, to be continually suspended towards heaven, as if by a necessity, imposing the constant need to be reminded of the Master. The farmer, the sailor, have constant reminders through their craft; each one, even against his will, is trained to look up to heaven ^C when he is oppressed by evils.

"And you came, and stood before me."

Truly it is extreme impudence, after crimes have been committed, to stand before the Judge who knows all these things, to enter His temple in a sacred place.

"You have made agreements with me." For everywhere He is accustomed to judge them by their own promises.

"Is it a cave of robbers?"

Why does He say these things? Is it not prepared for prayer, not for rapine, not for adulteries, not for uncleannesses? For just as Christ ^D

^A said, "My house shall be called a house of prayer, but you have made it a cave of robbers," so it is here too, because they were swearing falsely and making compacts for the sake of plunder.

"Do not think that I share in your evils or collaborate with you in your injustices by not refuting the evils"; that is to say, "Do not consider me as a ringleader of robbers."

"And behold, I have even seen it, says the Lord." ^B That is to say, "Your devotion to idols does not escape me." And He called them robbers on account of their wicked greed for the things of others.

"For go to the place Silo, where I caused my name to dwell there before." For just as I did not spare that place, so too neither [shall I spare] the temple. And yet it was more ancient, but the place benefited them nothing, since they appeared unworthy of God.

"And now, because you have done all these works." He speaks of great iniquity. ^C He says that neither the example of the place at Silo, nor the instruction so frequently inculcated, will afford them any benefit. For see with how much diligence He sought to recall them from their wickedness.

"And you, do not pray for this people." He says this, not so that he might cease from praying, but so that He might terrify them. For just as when He says to Moses, "Leave me [alone]," so that he would not let Him be, so too [He says] to him, "Do not pray," so that when they heard it, ^D they might be struck with dread, and not place their hopes in anything else. For if He had not wanted this, He would not also have set out the reasons, as if undertaking a defense of His own action.

"Nor ask that I have mercy on them." The prophet was moved when he heard of the destruction of the temple. Then, persuading them, God adds:

"Do you not see what they themselves are doing in the cities of Judah?"

"For what reason do you not listen? speak!" It was the mark of one who is angry not to state the causes, but [the mark] of one who desires to care for and heal them is to explain the cause, so that they might strive to remove it. "Do you not see what they themselves are doing?" Because they were doing their impiety nearby, not far away.

"Their children gather wood, to make 'chavonas'." Do you see the diligence? Do you see the impiety being performed with such zeal? What is "chavonas"? Cakes, he says, breads.

He showed that all were prone to evil. But the [phrase], "They mash the fat, they knead it," the Hebrew has this: "To make chavonas," that is, large loaves. For the word "chavonas" is a Hebrew term; and it signifies [that which is made] from the measure of one that is called a modius.

^A By "militia of heaven," he understands the zodiac. "And they poured out drink offerings to strange gods." Neither does poverty hinder the sacrifice. "And their women knead the dough." They do not have sheep; and yet they act impiously with what they have.

"Militia of heaven." He understands the stars here; but in what sense does he call them the militia of heaven? By showing that there is no dignity of lordship in them, but another is king. What then, when he says "to the queen of heaven"? He brings this forth from the mind of those whose common parlance that was. ^B

Vers. 19. *Do they provoke me to anger? saith the Lord: do they not provoke themselves?* Do I suffer anything evil? They do, he says, so as to heap disgrace upon themselves; for whoever inflicts insults, he creates harm for himself, and when he upon whom the insult is inflicted suffers nothing ill, he [the offender] himself will desist from the injury, as gaining nothing therefrom.

Vers. 20. *Therefore thus saith the Lord.* Everywhere, [he uses] "Saith the Lord," that he may make the words reliable, so that his gentleness and clemency might not again infect them with sloth. "Behold, my fury and my anger is poured out." To what purpose, I ask, is this? First, indeed, because these things were destined to cease. Secondly, that he might show the intense impetus of anger. For if even man is destroyed and the temple is overthrown, much less was there [any reason] to spare non-rational creatures. ^C

Vers. 22. *Because I have not spoken, and have not commanded them.* Whatever does not result from the purpose of his own mind, he says is not his own counsel; just as when he says: "Do I desire the death of the sinner, rather than that he should turn back and live?" And yet he is punished against his own will.

Vers. 24. *And they heard me not.* This is a notable reward: "And they heard me not." And thou shalt speak to them this word, and they will not hear. That is, they will not be converted.

Vers. 29. *Shave thy head, and take up.* This is said to the prophet, which was a sign of mourning. Because they were dull and stupid toward their own evils, he commands him to weep and mourn; these things we also do for the insane, by sympathizing with them alone.

"And take up a lamentation upon thy lips." He says well, "not in thy mind"—for he already had this, and he was groaning. "But make it public," he says. ^D "And rejected the generation doing these things, because, etc." Not all together, but this [generation] which does the evil. For truly, truly this is worthy of tears and lamentation: when someone...

is shown to be rejected by God, for where will he be found approved thereafter? "Because they have done evil before me." Not in secret, nor unnoticed; and how could they hide from the eye that never sleeps? What then is indicated by the words, "before me"? "In my temple." ^B They set their abominations in the house where my name was called upon, to defile it. Do you see the madness? Do you see the senselessness? They did not do these things secretly, but openly and boldly, rushing with drunken fury against God's glory, just as if someone were to bring a tyrant into a royal palace and drive out the king. How then do you say, "It is the temple of the Lord, it is the temple of the Lord"? How will the One who has been harmed stand for you? How will the One who has been insulted save you? He will be a bitter accuser against you.

"And you shall call them, and they will not answer you." You shall call; that is, you will exhort them to repentance, and they will receive no profit from your words.

"And they have built the altar of Topheth." That is, the altar of Pluto; as if forever yielding to death, so that they might live all the longer. He calls the altar of Topheth in a certain idol-shrine, in the valley of the son of Hinnom, an olive grove. Observe the places: they were not frequenting deserts, but the very pleasant places near the city.

"To burn their sons; which I did not command them, nor..." ^C lest anyone should say, "I offered these sacrifices to You, as I gave the others." And because "I did not command them concerning innocent blood, nor did I give even an obscure sign; nor did I wish them to sacrifice at all; but they themselves consumed them with fire." If the fear of God did not restrain you, did not the law of nature deter you? They were so wildly driven that, in order to honor demons, they ignored even nature itself, whereas in the worship of God, they spared their own sheep. To whom would this spectacle not bring sorrow? Behold, it seems horrific even to us as we hear it; do we still wonder, I ask you, for what reason was the destruction? For what reason was the captivity? Was it good for those who lived in such a way to continue living?

^D "Therefore, behold, days are coming, says the Lord, and they shall no longer say, 'the altar of Topheth'." Do you wish, He says, to slaughter? I will do this by the law of war; it is better that they be destroyed, than that sons be killed by the hands of their fathers.

"And they shall bury in Topheth, because there is no room." For where previously, he says, they did not even allow a dead body to approach, as they held the place to be sacred, there the multitude of the dead shall be heaped up. He says these things as though the Barbarian had committed1 great slaughter there. He therefore adds: "And the dead bodies of this people shall be for food for the birds of the sky."

(this is the first page of the chain)

for they shall not be deemed worthy of burial: which shows that the calamity will be even more grievous.

CHAPTER VIII

^A VERS. 2. And they shall spread them out before the sun, and the moon, and all the stars.

This means before the eyes of these. For not only will the enemies offer no honor to those who have died, but they will even dig up the bones of those who already died and were deemed worthy of burial, so that they might know that there is no benefit in the worship of these idols.

They shall spread them out before the sun, and the moon, and the stars, which you have loved, he says. Just as if trampling upon them, so he speaks. For they will not spare, they will not pity those who enjoyed much worship, nor will they be able to prohibit the worship of those who loved them; but they will overlook the bones of those who worshipped in such a way, as they are treated with contempt, and they will not defend them.

^B And they shall not be buried.

For the consideration of burial among the ancients was not a small matter.

[VERS. 4. Because thus saith the Lord: Shall he who falls not rise again?]

See a lover turning away from his beloved, who does not wish to speak, does not wish to return a word, yet is moved to turn back again. It is something of this kind; he introduces exhortation and counsel. And yet many of those who are insulted say: "Go, say this, but as if from yourself; do not say that it is from me," so that they may not appear to be insulted. But God does not do even this, but said: "I have spoken." Observe the desire: "Shall he who falls not rise again?" Do you see that nowhere are evils or goods natural? For the things of nature are unchangeable. For did you not fall from a standing position? Were you not walking? I do not accuse you, he says, for falling, but that you persist in your fall, this is what provokes me.

^C [Or does he who turns away not return...?]

He blames them for their lack of repentance for their evil deeds.

[VERS. 5. Why then... with an impudent turning away?]

Because it is from God, because it is for such reasons, because it is constant, because it has nothing reasonable to allege; for such an apostasy from God is indeed impudent.

^D And they held fast to their own resolution.

See again the will being engaged; nowhere are the constraints of necessity or of fate. For were they such from the beginning?

[VERS. 6. Give ear, now, and hear. Do they not speak thus?]

This passage is to be read as if it were stated ironically. And such is the meaning, that is, they are speaking about these evils. He therefore adds:

There is no man who repents of his wickedness.

He does not say: They have not repented, but that there is no man

^A a man. Here is another exaggeration. It is grave not to rise, but not so grave; but that all should lie prostrate, this is much graver. He not only does not change, but he does not even accuse himself of his sins, saying: What have I done? Or it must be understood thus: They will not speak thus, that is, so as to repent; the meaning holds well in either exposition.

*Defecit currens a cursu suo, quasi equus defessus in hinnitu suo.*[1] He compares them to a horse destined for mating. For he, he says, becomes exhausted by the mating, and puts an end to the work; but these have not intermitted their iniquity. Or take it this way: just as a horse, having recently been released for mating, excitedly mounts the females, not in vain straining himself for such a task, so these too display such great zeal for evil; and just as that one does not cease running at that time, so these too; so that he means: They did not cut off their enthusiasm for evil.

But for all things there is a limit, he says, but for these alone sin is without limit; nor are they satisfied by any satiety of sinning, although nature is satisfied and the appetite, when nature is failing and is unwilling to labor any longer, wishes to enjoy rest. But you, not so. For horses, it is not always pleasant to run, but they sometimes seek rest. All things know change, but you never do, doing evil.

^C VERS. 7. *Et asida in coelo cognovit tempus suum; turtur et cicada, et hirundo agri, passeres custodierunt tempora in viam suam.*[2] By comparison with things that lack reason, he reproves them. He calls the stork *asida*. The Hebrew text does not have "cicada," but in its place puts "crane." He therefore took some that appear in summer and some that appear in winter: for the swallow and the stork are accustomed to show themselves to us in the summer; the turtledove and the crane, in the winter. What he therefore wishes to say is this: that things that lack reason pursue their own advantage, and change to appropriate places at different times. Some interpret it as a bird, some as a star.

*Populus autem meus non cognovit judicia Domini.* That which was profitable to itself, the people did not pursue—my worship, that is. Then, after a little:

VERS. 8. *Quomodo dicetis, quia sapientes sumus nos, et lex Domini nobiscum est.* ^D You affirm that you surpass not only animals that are devoid of reason, but also all the nations, because of the instruction of the Law, you who cannot even be compared with irrational creatures. Where it was a matter of being inflated with empty glory and pride, they confessed that they were both wise and possessed the law of God. Do you see that confession does not suffice, but that there is need for the exhibition of works? And [they were] wise of themselves, and possessing the wisdom that is born of the law.

*Frustra factus est juncus, mendax scribis.*

^A

He says, "In vain they received an inheritance," and they were honored simply by their rank; they neither made themselves wise nor others; their teaching is a name only among them. "Therefore the measuring line became false to the Scribes." In many places he calls the measuring of the land a "line," so that he might indicate the land which they inherited, as when he says, "The lines have fallen to me in my fairest places." He wishes to say that the inheritance of the land has become for you, and for us who teach, a vain thing—that is, you have not become better even after receiving the good things from me. The Hebrew, however, says this: "In vain the teaching has become for you, O Scribes." That is, you have not benefitted anything by teaching others.

^B "Therefore I will give their wives to others," which is the most precious possession of all, "and their fields to heirs." He calls the enemies "heirs." Just as those who have inherited possess [it] safely and securely, so do these also. Why, then, do you provide [it] for them? Because of piety? By no means; but so that those [others] might be subjected to greater punishments and torments; since we often do this even in the case of our children, dishonoring them and showing others in their places, so that they may be stung and pained not only by the deprivation of their own goods, but also by the care [granted] to others.

"And they healed the contrition of the daughter of my people for ignominy, saying, Peace, peace, yet where was there peace?" "For ignominy," this is, for vanity; as if to say, for no benefit, but rather for ruin; and surely it is a great ignominy to lead away those who are persuaded.

"There is no grape on the vines, and there are no figs on the fig-tree, and the leaves have fallen off, and I gave to them, and they passed away from them." He shows an arrayed battle-line. ^C For he said above: "His quiver is like an open sepulchre. All are strong, and they shall eat up your harvest and your bread," signaling the time of visitation. He wishes to say, therefore, that so much time has passed that the winter season has arrived, and we have not improved at all. For that which says, "And he gave to them," means that God delivered our good things to the enemies; but that which says, "And they passed away from them," means that they enjoyed some, and destroyed others.

What is this? Either that they were plundered by the enemies, or perhaps [there was] also a barrenness divinely inflicted. For because they were continually waging war and despoiling the land, these things came to pass; ^D it happened intended that they might be disciplined in their fruits.

"And he gave us water of gall to drink." Do you see how great a good tribulation is? But what could "water of gall" be? The prophet, anticipating what they were about to say, declares the outcome—which is confirmed by faith—"Why do we sit?"

That is, "We expect no fruit of the earth." ^A *Gather yourselves, and let us enter into the fortified cities, and let us be cast away there.* That is, "The only remaining salvation for us is to enter a city, now that everything outside has been taken by the enemy." *We gathered for peace, and there were no good things.* That is, "We fled into a city, as if it were possible to live in peace there, and yet scarcity overtook us there." *For a time of healing.* That is, "In order to be delivered from the enemy." *And behold, trouble.* Instead of saying, "The confusion from this source is worse than that of those outside; for those outside could still find some help, but these were surrounded by a siege from which they were unable to extricate themselves." ^B

*From Dan we shall hear the voice of the swiftness of horses.* In inflicting punishments, God always wills that the punishment itself appear greater. By his introductory remarks, he makes it fearful, so that this may become a source of correction. He heightens it in words, he heightens it in actions, and he presents a grievous preamble, so that, having been terrified and brought to their senses, they might henceforth flee from the experience of evils. *From the voice of the neighing of the equitation of his horses, all the earth was shaken.* That is, it was turned to flight.

*For behold, I am sending upon you serpents.* He reminds them of what happened to them in the wilderness; for he was not about to send snakes, but he calls the Persians and the barbarians by that name. ^C Although he indicates the invasion of wild beasts, such as there was in the desert, or he has revealed the bitterness of the enemies through this example; that he indicated the arrangement of calamities through the things just spoken, he clearly shows, for, proceeding further, he says: *Against which there is no incantation, and they will bite.* Hence there is no consolation to be found for the disease; for a wild beast is more easily tamed than barbarian fury.

*Behold the voice of the cry of the daughter of my people.* The prophet hears them again lamenting from the captivity. *Is there no king there?* Was there no authority among them? Why were they handed over? They had both God and the king, the leader of the city. What is, *Is there no king there?* ^D He teaches this frequently, that God is above kings. "Behold," he says, "every excuse has been taken away from you; I even gave you a king. What has happened that you imitated the nations and said, 'And we shall be as the rest of the nations, having a king'? You received a king; why did you not persist in your own laws, but lapsed into impiety?"

VER. 21. *Super contritione filiae populi mei obtenebratus sum.* ^A Not only on account of the punishments did the prophet lament, but because they were incorrigible. And rightly did he call himself at a loss for counsel. For when one laboring under a disease rejects medicines, what hope is there any longer? The physician did not cease from healing, but he accomplished nothing.

VER. 22. *Is there no resin in Galaad, or is there no physician there?* ^B Galaad was and is a city of the priests, which is manifest from the Paralipomena; for it says thus: To the remaining sons of Merari, of the tribe of Zabulon, they gave Rhomon and its suburbs; to which it adds: And across the river Jericho, and after explaining certain cities of the tribe of Ruben, it infers: And from the tribe of Gad, Rhamoth Galaad. This, therefore, is what it means: Were there not priests who could instruct, or who could bring profitable words to the people? For by "resin" he understands the medicine which is provided for the sake of health. By "physician," he means the priest himself, who is able to heal sins both by admonition and by prayers to God; as if he were to say: As for what was yours, nothing was wanting to them; yet they themselves did not profit in any way from the exhortation.

CAPUT IX

VER. 1. *Quis dabit capiti meo aquam?* ^C I have not, he says, from nature a supply of tears that corresponds to the magnitude of the calamity. For because it was the custom for those wishing to mourn to soothe the greater part of their grief through laments, I wished, he says, that I myself might possess more from nature, so that water might be present to me and flow without impediment: for, he says, there would be no profit henceforth from tears.

*Vulneratos filiae populi mei.* What do you say? Is it appropriate to weep for those who are guilty of wickedness? Yes, he says, I weep for them. Why? Because the cause is such; not because they are punished, but because all hope of correction has vanished. From enemies, or from sin. ^D

VER. 2. *Quis det mihi in solitudine mansionem novissimam, et relinquam populum meum, et recedam ab eis?* The prophet says: Would that it were permitted to dwell in the wilderness.

*Quia omnes moechantur. Coetus praevaricatorum.* That is, they were in agreement in evil, so that they could in no way entreat God for the sins committed. Do you abandon these, and depart? Yes, he says; for if there were anyone, even if one single person were such, who would accommodate his ears to my words, I would not draw back: but now it is a congregation of a group of transgressors. *Et relinquam populum meum.*

^A For as one who is of the people calls his own people those who are related by blood and kin. *All commit adultery.* What adultery does he speak of here? Or is it clearly that which is against God? For this adultery is grave and lawless, and more grievous than that other, in proportion as He who is insulted is greater, and the covenants and pledges given are with more people.

*A gathering of transgressors.* Always conspiring for evil, even as they also did against Christ.

*And they have bent their tongue like a bow.* He speaks of their bellicose and immutable nature.

*Falsehood, and not faith, has prevailed upon the earth.* That is, they are filled with hypocrisy.

*Each one from his neighbor keep yourselves.* ^B Do you see perfected wickedness, when they do not even trust their neighbors, when they happen to be separated from one another? This is the goal of the devil's malice, to divide the members, so that neither brother, nor friend, nor anyone else is to be trusted.

*And do not have confidence in their brothers.* That is: Have confidence in no one, which is what Christ says: *As iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall grow cold* (Matt. xxiv, 12). Here there is not a destruction of friendship, but a hypocrisy of friendship.

*Every brother will supplant, and each one against his friend, and they will not speak the truth.* When iniquity is everywhere, when not even a small part of it ^C possesses a sound portion of truth.

*They have dealt unjustly, and they did not stop.* Do you see? Evils are not natural. See how, in different ways, he sometimes accuses those against their neighbor: "They have dealt unjustly, and they did not stop turning." But other times he accuses them everywhere because their evils are immutable.

*Their tongue has learned to speak lies.* For there is no form of wickedness so hateful as this, when the face is one thing, and the tongue is another.

*For this reason... Behold, I will test them with fire, and I will examine them.* The examination is not for want of knowledge; for He knows them to be wicked: but "I will test them," He says, I wish to make them tried/approved. Let us not therefore flee from punishment, but let us flee from sin; for the one makes men reprobate, but the other makes them approved.

*A wounding arrow is their tongue.* The Hebrew has "slaying." How can a tongue ever wound? ^D The tongue wounds more harshly than any arrow; it does not inflict a wound upon the body, but reaches even into the very soul.

*Their words are deceitful.* Everyone complains of this: the deceit, the hypocrisy.

*Shall I not visit for these things?*

^A He brings the discourse forward by way of questioning, almost as if he were establishing them as judges of the events that have taken place. "To overlook these things," he says, "is it just? In the face of such manifest facts, should one not seek redress? And who could say otherwise?"

*Verse 10. Take up a lamentation for the mountains. For they have failed.* It is no longer over the men, but over the mountains—the ground of their impiety—and over the pathways that he says one must weep. See how, from every side, he makes the discourse elicit compassion, since it is not only men who are to perish, but the earth also on their account, whether it be desert or inhabited, and all the rest besides. It is as if those who had fled were to be captured there; for they had gone out from the city because of the fear of their enemies.

*Verse 13. And the Lord said: Because they have forsaken my law, which I set before their face.* He does not say this simply—"in their presence"—but rather as they were present, as they were bearing witness, as they were approving of what was said. He brings to their remembrance the miracles that were wrought on Mount Sinai.

*Verse 15. Therefore thus saith the Lord.* *Thus saith the Lord:* He did not say, "Thus he acts," but "Thus he speaks." For the time being, these are words, and if you yourselves so will it, they will always be words. For if he speaks on account of some cause, remove the cause. Indeed, if the affection were anger, you would rightly fear; but if he speaks because of this [sin], remove this, and he will speak no more. The God of Israel is not a stranger; he is not cruel; he is not inhuman. Call to mind the time when Israel was so called.

*Behold, I will feed them with calamities, and give them water of gall to drink.* I will make their life bitter; for the food of a mourning soul changes its nature. Just as for the eyes, light grows dark, so too the tongue tastes even the sweetest things as most bitter when the head is ailing. ^B Therefore, he does not mean by this that it transforms the nature of the water, but rather: "I shall cast such a gloom upon them," he says, "that even the elements, which have suffered no change in their nature, will seem to them to be something else." For just as, to those who are ill, even sweet things seem bitter, so too is it for those who are in sorrow, and for these even far more than for those.

*Verse 16. And I will scatter them among the nations, which, etc.* He does not say that they will perish utterly, but that he will scatter them—some here, some there; for he said that those led into captivity should become more cautious not only by the captivity itself, but also by the destruction of those who were being put to death.

*Verse 17. Thus saith the Lord: Call the lamenting women.* What are you saying? He orders lamenting women to be summoned from every side, and calls them wise? Why is this? According to the common opinion, he calls them wise in their own art. For one who is skilled in any matter whatsoever, he is accustomed to call wise, just as when he says: *The sorcerer is bewitched by the wise man*, and, *Where*

^A are the wise men of Taneus? Why then does He command this to be done? In order to lead them to faith in Him and to the amendment of life, not that this should happen; for the fruit itself is not approved by this. In the churches, he says, of the Lord do not weep with tears; but for the sake of credibility, and that they might be assured concerning the things to come.

* VERS. 20. And teach your daughters lamentation, and [a woman] her neighbor a dirge. ^B Since he had previously said: *Call the mourning women, and let them come*, he adds these things, speaking thus: It is in vain, he says, that you call others to utter the lament; it is better for you yourselves to learn these things, as if those others were insufficient on account of the multitude of those who were being slain.

VERS. 21. For death has ascended through your windows. Not by arrays of troops, not by battle and war.

VERS. 22. And the corpses of men shall be for an example upon the face of the field. The dead shall lie unburied: this also seemed a great abomination; for indeed it occurred because there was no one to bury them.

VERS. 23. Let not the wise man boast. See to what he turns the speech. Since it is probable ^C that there are among you some powerful, rich, and wise men, he says that this will be of no benefit to you. See, then, the philosophic teachings, great and admirable, that *there is nothing in which to boast*. For if the fear of God is absent, then poverty, penalty, and infirmity are revealed. For if anyone, he says, be perfect among the sons of men, yet your wisdom be absent, he shall be reckoned as nothing.

VERS. 24. To understand and to know. To lead a life that produces admiration is to know God Himself.

* VERS. 25, 26. Behold, days are coming, says the Lord, and I will visit all who have their foreskins circumcised, upon Egypt, and upon Judah, and upon the sons of Ammon. ^D He has spoken up to this point to those who, trusting in the fate of the temple, did not expect captivity. But since they put forward circumcision as a sign of their relationship with God, God says: And upon the other circumcised nations I will bring punishment. For circumcision does not signify relationship with me, but I demand probity of morals. Then, demonstrating the Jews to be worse than even those peoples, he adds: *Upon Egypt, and upon Idumea*. Because although they have circumcision, they are uncircumcised in the flesh; for they do not do this according to the Law: for both the Idumeans and the others are said to circumcise themselves. But the more noble the heart, the worse that uncircumcision is. Some assert—and Herodotus reports this—that the Egyptians were accustomed to be circumcised. It seems to me [he refers to] the Saracens. What do you say? They are not circumcised; therefore, all the more are you [uncircumcised] in heart. But circumci-

are they circumcised? Just as, therefore, this matter profited them nothing, so neither does it you; you are worse than they.

But that which is said, "and upon all those who have their faces shaven around," ^A he understands as referring to the Saracens, who, while nourishing their hair on the back part of their heads, shave only the part around the forehead, thus adorning their hair; and these are they who are now called Gentiles. But having asserted that they are uncircumcised in heart above all the nations, showing that what was said was not a mere rebuke, he adds:

CAP. X.

^B *VERS. 2. "Thus saith the Lord: Learn not the ways of the nations, and be not afraid of the signs of heaven."

This means: Do not spend your time concerning the movements of the stars, thinking them to be a sure decree and a knowledge of future events. And that which is said, "from the signs of heaven," is the same as if he were to say: Do not think that any future thing comes from the motion of the stars.

VERS. 3. "For the laws of the nations are vain."

Is it because the nations worship them, that I therefore say, "Do not worship them"? No, but because they are vain. By "law" he here understands religion.

VERS. 4. "Adorned with silver and gold."

But again, the earth is covered with gold from the outside, again it is a work of human industry.

"They have made them firm with hammers and nails."

But you will say, "It stands"; and this itself is a weakness: for it does not have the ability to stand of itself; wherefore it is not even able to walk. What do those nails mean for it? Who constructs a god for himself? When you see it standing, consider the nails that hold it up, which, if you were to remove, it would fall upon its face; when you see it shining with gold, let those who cast it come to your mind; when you see it clothed in garments, consider the bare wood which has nothing of itself, nor any beauty imparted by nature; when you see it being carried, consider that it is a mark of weakness.

VERS. 6. "Silver brought from Tharsis."

That is, from the sea. "Gold from Mophaz," from a place.

"Fear them not, for they will do no evil."

What then? Do they not bring evil and destruction? Certainly, but by the permission of God. For neither can a lictor do anything unless the judge permits it; but this is not a sign of power.

VERS. 11. "Let the gods that have not made heaven and earth perish from the earth."

This, therefore, is a most certain proof: if anyone has been the creator of heaven, he is the true God, and such as the prophet describes. Let the heretics be ashamed. For "all things were made through Him"; and, "In the beginning, O Lord, Thou didst found the earth, and the works of Thy hands are the heavens." This is not a proof, but a voluntary condescension. For this is not the signal work of God, but whether it be angels, whether…

^A archangels, whether principalities, whether dominions, but the greatest of all is the cross.

VERS. 12. "The Lord who made the earth in His strength."

He sets down two things: the creation and the excellent arrangement. For consider how it would be for heaven and earth to be produced and to lie without order; how much more beautiful and better it is to raise up the heaven, which had been cast down to the ground, and to encircle the earth with that canopy.

"And by His wisdom He stretched out the heaven."

Like one building a hut, so He erected it; not assembling it bit by bit, but bringing forth all things at once, as if creating the mechanism of the world from four cubes.

VERS. 13. "And the multitude of water in the heaven, He made lightnings into rain, and brought forth light."

He speaks here of the thunders, and the rain that comes from them; and what is marvellous, he says, is that the water produces a noise. The clouds produce the thunders. For what purpose are the thunders? To strike fear and to bring one to a sober mind. How is water held, tell me, in the air? How does that which is of a downward nature, and flowing, ascend on high, as if by some machine? How are the clouds not broken when ^B they strike against each other? How does the body of the clouds, being so thin, bear such a great weight, tell me? Have you seen the wonder-worker? Have you seen the master craftsman? From above, He waters the earth for you, having first produced many claps of thunder, so that you might suspect that nothing comes about by chance.

"And He brought forth clouds from the end of the earth."

That is to say, He brings these from one place to another; and they are permitted to travel only so far as He has prescribed.

"He made lightnings into rain."

And yet, rain can occur even without lightning, and lightning can occur in fair weather. But when we see lightning in fair weather, we conjecture that there will be a long winter, and it flashes across the entire earth and runs throughout the whole world; but how this happens, I do not know. See: he does not recount private benefits, but common ones; since his discourse was addressed to those who believe in gods.

VERS. 14. "Every man is made foolish from knowledge; he is confounded because he has forged a false thing."

For even if one is very wise, yet he has demonstrated his foolishness ^C in the matter of carved images.

VERS. 15. "Vain are the works... in the time of their visitation they shall perish."

When the city is captured, these also will share in the punishment.

VERS. 16. "There is no such portion as Jacob."

That is, he does not have a God made by hands; for He who fashioned all things, He is his inheritance. Here the word "inheritance" is placed superfluously. Moreover, it is expounded obscurely by the Greek interpreter; but this is what he wishes to say: "The portion of Jacob is not like that of the nations." As if to say: "He does not have a God chosen by votes." But whom? The fashioner of all things, that is to say, the Creator ^D

Creator, etc. And Israel is the rod of his inheritance. ^A He himself, he says, has Israel for an inheritance, that is, he chose him. And who is this? The Lord of hosts is his name; that is, the Lord of all.

VER. 17. He gathered from abroad his substance that was—etc. For he gathered them together when they were loosed and dispersed, and he dispersed them again, and again he gathered them, showing that he himself is the same one who gathered them before, who heals the contrite in heart and binds up their wounds. He gathered from abroad thy substance. This means he caused thee to possess the wealth of others, for he spoiled the Egyptians. Dwelling in chosen ones, that is, he also caused thee to inhabit the best land.

^B VER. 18. Behold, I will supplant... that thy plague may be found. For because they did not attend to Him as they did to men, nor did they think that good things came from God, but said, "In our own strength we have horns; but God will give neither good nor evil," for this reason he says, "That thy plague may be found." Behold, I will dry up those who inhabit the land. This means I will render them weak.

VER. 19. Woe upon thy contrition... Full of pain is thy plague. Rightly so, when it is from malice, when it is from God, when it is according to wrath, when it is according to the treachery of men. He speaks these words in the person of the city. But I said: "Truly this is a wound, for the other things were not bearable wounds, but grievous ones." And I said: "Truly this is my wound." It is the prophet who speaks, lamenting because of the evils of the Jews.

VER. 20. Thy tabernacle is laid waste, and has perished, and all my curtains. This means it has fallen; it is a discourse, however, about Jerusalem. This means, the walls were not able to surround me. This means, evils have broken in with vehemence. For they were not expecting such an irruption.

^D VER. 23. I know, O Lord, that the way of man is not his own. He speaks of the Babylonian.

CAP. XI

^A God will not punish those who sin, while He cares for the temple, and that there will be no benefit for them from circumcision if they sin against God. Therefore, He threatens them, saying that they will undergo the ultimate punishment if they do not listen to the prophet's exhortation.

VERS. 3, 4. Cursed is the man who does not listen to the words of this covenant, which I commanded your fathers in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, from the iron furnace.

The Hebrew reads "from the iron furnace." As if to say: Your fathers were afflicted in various ways, just as iron is softened and beaten in a furnace.

^B How were they heard while being afflicted and destroyed by the Egyptians? To show that it is possible to listen when they want to. There was mud and brick, and no one spoke against it; yet they had freedom from labor and manna, and they murmured.

But this seemed like nothing significant to the duller ones.

VERS. 5. That I may establish my oath, which I swore to your fathers to give.

He acts in the same way in the New Testament: He delivered us from harsh slavery and from a terrifying and unbearable tyranny—and even though we did not call upon Him, nor ask Him, He gave the law. And again, He promises to give the kingdom of heaven.

VERS. 6. Read these words, etc., and they did not.

^C Observe the human sympathy, wishing only to have mercy on them, not considering what is just, but family relationship. A father spares differently, a stranger differently. A father often punishes and is not moved; but a stranger, seeing it, is moved. Will he, therefore, be more loving towards the children than that one?

From now on, I will pass over all those things. Let the ancestral evils be a great example to them.

VERS. 9. A conspiracy has been found among the men of Judah.

He speaks of the web of evils brought about by sins.

VERS. 10. They have turned back to the iniquities of their ancestors who were before them.

What forgiveness? What is difficult? What is harsh? It is harsh to sin. Did they not see the ancestors as an example? ^D

VERS. 14. And you, do not pray for this people. For I will not hear.

Do you see the sentence? And yet you said above that "I will not hear you." And again you say, "Read these words." And again you give an opportunity for salvation, saying: "If by amending, you amend your ways and your deeds."

VERS. 15. What is the beloved in my house that has done an abomination?

What reason does this matter have? What time would there be here to speak of this? Is not man's way his own? What labors did He not endure? What sweat, what contests did [He] not undergo? What stumbling? He wishes to provoke me.

^A Why has the beloved behaved insolently toward me? For if I did not love her, why would she have behaved injuriously? That is to say: Why has she who was so greatly loved by me worshipped idols in the temple of my adoration? Do not prayers and holy meats take away your iniquity from you? That is to say: Will sacrificing to me cleanse you of your idolatry, while you are worshipping idols? Or will you escape these? That is, by the performance of mere words. Shall prayers and holy meats take them away? Indeed, they were given for this purpose, that they might take away bodily [sins] committed involuntarily, but not such as these. ^B VERSE 16. A fair, shady [tree], with a goodly shape, the Lord called your name, to the sound of her circumcision. For I made you ever-flourishing, just as an olive tree. But the phrase, "to the sound of her circumcision," means "not having uncircumcised fruit"—as if He were saying, "unclean." But I adorned you on every side, with laws, and with worship, and with the administration of priests, and with my own providence. A fire has been kindled upon it. But you have violently drawn upon yourself, He says, the punishment. And her branches have become useless. That is to say, it remained without fruit. Hearing these things, the prophet, oppressed with greater pain of soul, was pouring out prayers to God for the people. But since God had said earlier, "And do you not pray for this people," and had brought forward the arguments for these things—"What has the beloved done in my house [to cause] abomination?" and the rest—since the prophet was still insisting on behalf of the people, God, desiring to manifest the malice of the people, and [to show] that they do not repent of the things they have done amiss, made clear to the prophet himself what they were contriving against Him, and to one who was disbelieving He manifested their iniquity clearly. ^C By the reality itself He set [their] wealth before [his] eyes. By its abundance He expressed [their] wealth, [and] the beauty by the tree which flourishes and grows leafy perennially. To the sound of her circumcision a fire has been kindled upon it, a great tribulation upon you. This means: You will not pay the penalty for a short time, but [will suffer] a huge punishment because of your iniquities. ^D VERSE 17. And the Lord who planted you has spoken evils against you, for the malice of the house of Israel. This is the greatest wickedness, when one who punishes is such a one as exhibits so much providence, [when] He Himself inflicts the punishment; for He would not have so suddenly cast away her whom He cherished so much, unless He knew that there was the greatest wickedness in her: for He who loved her so much for no merit of her own, and embraced her with such great care, would not have departed from her so immediately. This is, therefore, a proof of huge depravity. VERS. 18. Lord, make known to me, and I shall know. Then I saw their pursuits. That is to say: They were hidden before You made them known to me. But what were these? "When they were sinning against me, You did not see; when they were acting so insolently, You did not look; but You were saying: Is not man's way...

^A in himself?" Or why do you not say even now: "It is not of man his way," but you call them his pursuits?

"But I, as an innocent lamb led to the slaughter, did not know; they devised an evil scheme against me."

Some explain these things as referring to Christ, but let us for the time being keep to the historical narrative, blaming no one for that interpretation. For the Church is ^B built up from every side. The prophet had already said for the second time: "Do not pray for them," and he did not say it simply, but also added the reasons. And yet, even if he had spoken simply, he ought to have been heard; but now he also states the reasons. Do you not see what they themselves are doing? Since, therefore, he could not persuade them by words, he persuaded them by deeds, and showed the outrage perpetrated against him. "You are philosophizing," he says, "amidst the insults by which I am attacked." Consider his humility and equanimity. For since it was likely that those men would become worse, relying on his prayers, and yet he could not bear not to pray for them—wishing to show him that he was not more humane than God, ^C nor even approaching His piety by a small degree—see what He does. He makes their guile and their plans manifest, exposing these things, and what they were doing, and what they were saying, so he might learn that it was not from a lack of capacity to hear them that He did not do so, but because they did not deserve to experience mercy.

"But I, as an innocent lamb."

Wonderful is the simplicity of the prophet. Nothing is so pleasing to God. Therefore, he also endured the ^D previous things through the test of simplicity.

"Come, and let us put wood into his bread."

What is this "wood"? Let us crucify him as accursed, so that he may not die a common death; and with concord does the malice proceed.

"Against me they devised a scheme, saying: Come, and let us put wood into his bread, and let us root him out from the land of the living."

That is, a deadly root; for he calls this "wood."

"O Lord, judging righteous things."

"May I see the vengeance from You upon them, for to You I have revealed my cause."

That is, exact a just penalty from them. For having known their wickedness, he ceased to pray.

See the plainness of speech, and "I suffer these things in vain; I desire vengeance from You, if You will," he says. But nothing could happen from You that would not be consistent with justice, as when the request is before the judge. He did not say "judging righteous things" simply, "who tries the hearts and reins." If anything has been daresay secretly against them, if anything has been thought in the mind, You know it, You who know the secrets of all.

"To You I have revealed my cause."

That is, I have told You the things that speak for me. You, Lord, are

has been thought in the mind, You know it, You who know the secrets of all. "To You I have revealed my cause." That is, I have told You the things that speak for me. You, Lord, are ^A to take vengeance. Do you see that he does not entrust it to himself, but to God? "You have heard my justifications; do as it has pleased You, I acquiesce."

VERS. 21. *Therefore thus saith the Lord concerning the men of Anathoth, who seek my life, saying: Thou shalt not prophesy in the name of the Lord, or thou shalt die.*

You see that this matter tended toward God. They did not allow those things to be said which were from God: this is what Isaiah also says: "Do not tell us the way of the Lord, but tell us other things." Certainly their malice was huge, since they could not even bear to hear a voice that could cure them; and consider their wickedness. The citizens themselves, who ought to have boasted on account of the prophet, were the ones who attempted to slay him. Where good has sprouted, there evil grows more abundantly. Perhaps also much envy was rampant.

VERS. 22. *Behold I will visit upon them; their sons, and their daughters.*

But see, did they pay more severe penalties than the cause warranted, and the children too? Why, I ask? Perhaps they too were wicked, and did not reform by the example of the men. You see how I bear it with a sick heart that you are affected with reproaches; so you too should act when I am affected with insults.

VERS. 23. *For I will bring evil upon the inhabitants of Anathoth in the year of their visitation.*

Again, that which was spoken, He deferred to another time, when he here urges the punishment; persuading him, and showing him how good He is. "I will not bring it now," He says, "but in the year," so as to extend to them a day for repentance.

CAP. XII.

VERS. 1. *Thou art just, O Lord.*

In a general sense, he himself also doubts concerning these things. He is not amazed concerning the nature of the thing, but he is stunned, having been seized by a dizziness regarding the world, and says: "For we know that You are just, but I do not find the reason for [Your] justice." As if someone were to watch a builder tearing down a house and were to say: "We know that you are a builder, but I do not see the method of the building." For this reason, he says, I speak to You. And after a few words intervening: "No one will make You guilty of injustice; no one will condemn me because I seek it without a reason."

*Because I will answer Thee.*

This is enough, that You are just, and that from Your judgments, which You have taught me. I answer, concerning that for which I have thus pleaded with You.

*Yet I will speak judgments to Thee.*

I will argue the opposite, he says, now before You, O Lord, that You may hasten the vengeance of the wicked. *Why does the way of the wicked prosper?*

He says all these things about those who are still wallowing in iniquities. But then he was grieving over these things, but now he is not. David says this; Job says the same thing. But see when. When their mind was disturbed. Therefore, those things which proceed from a disturbed mind, are not

tur. Sed tunc super his maerebat, nunc autem nequaquam. Hoc et David; hoc idem Job dicit. Sed vide quando. Cum eorum mens turbata esset. Quae igitur ex turbata mente proveniunt, in ^A a dogmatic position are not to be held. For he too, when he was insulted by his friends, and this man when he was oppressed by those who lived delicately, and David when he was in great sadness, would say: "I said in my ecstasy, I am cast out from before thine eyes" (Ps. XXX, 23). "But I said in my ecstasy, Every man is a liar" (Ps. CXV, 11). And again: "I said in my prosperity, I shall never be moved" (Ps. XIV, 5). Thus, the minds of those who suffer are such that they do not even then endure the punishment of their enemies, but they even hasten it. And again: "Wherefore does the way of the wicked prosper?" (Jer. XII, 1), and yet this was promised to the righteous—as when he speaks elsewhere of the righteous: "And all things whatsoever he shall do shall prosper" (Ps. I, 3). "Wherefore the way of the wicked?" Here he desires to learn the cause. It was well for all who transgress; and that which provides grounds for greater doubt, that all this, the Jews themselves also suffer. But not in the same way, but maliciously, as when they say: "Whoever works iniquity is good in the sight of the Lord, and it is in them that he has taken pleasure" (Mal. II, 17). Do you see how the righteous man, even if he suffers no evil, upon seeing another who suffers, is so saddened as if he himself were suffering? This was what caused me doubt.

"Wherefore does the way of the wicked prosper?" He is speaking about the transgressors of the people; for having discovered the snares laid against him, he pours forth prayers against them, that they might be punished.

VERS. 2. "Thou hast planted them, and they have taken root." You hear them all immediately, and their prayers, but you do not apply the scourge. "For they are not in the toil of men," says David, "neither shall they be scourged with other men" (Ps. LXXII, 5). ^B But Job speaks otherwise: "Wherefore do the wicked live? They have grown old in riches" (Job XXI, 7). But it will not be beside the point here to inquire why this happened at that time; for now it is clear, since the resurrection is believed to be future. But then, what was the consolation when things were well with wicked men? And they all say the same. Wherefore he says here: "I saw the impious man lifted up, and rising like the cedars of Lebanon: and I passed by, and behold, he was not" (Ps. XXXVI, 35). Yet he says the opposite here: "Thou hast planted them, and they have taken root." Job says: "Their cow has not cast its calf" (Job XXI, 10). How did you pass by, and behold, he was not? These things also happened; he is speaking of his sudden removal, because God destroyed them most easily, but not little by little, as was the case with the Assyrian. I returned quickly, and I did not find him.

VERS. 3. "And thou, O Lord, knowest me, thou hast tested my heart before thee." When anyone brings forward God as a witness of his own virtue, what can be thought more confident? And so the problem is twofold, and from each side: why those succeed, and these struggle in misfortune; even though, if the righteous man had suffered calamities from only one side, there would still be reason to doubt. But now, on the contrary, what shall we say? Nay, indeed, there is no room for doubt. For ^{C D}

hi aerumnis colluctentur, quanquam si una tamen parte probus calamitates tulisset, dubitandum adhuc esset: nunc vero e contrario quid dicemus? Imo vero dubitandum non est. Non enim happens by chance, otherwise it would not be so. But let us offer the reason why it was once well with the impious: in my opinion, it is so that no one might say that virtue exists by necessity; or that even those who sin might acknowledge the power of God, because He makes His sun rise on the wicked and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust 80*. ^A *Purify them for the day of slaughter.* Do you see that he desired that all of them be destroyed at once? A bloodthirsty desire, he says? Far be it. For when he heard God, when prayers on their behalf were forbidden him, then, he says, he sees these things, and he awaits the time.

VERS. 4. *How long shall the land mourn, and all the grass of the field wither?* There is much wickedness, and it has touched the very land. Do you see whence famines arise? From the malice of those who inhabit it. Why does it always curse those things? They were created on account of these people; therefore, on account of them they shall be destroyed.

VERS. 5. *Your feet run, and they weary you in some way.* A very obscure passage. Aquila, another interpreter, says: *It shall run together, you ran, and it exhausted you.* What this reveals to us is this: He saw him anxious and troubled, not even waiting for the appointed time. See, therefore, how He rebukes him. ^B Nothing have you yet suffered, and you speak such things? Are you so disturbed? What will you do in difficult matters? If you were not able to run with a footman, how, he says, will you do so with horsemen? How will you endure stronger ones? Or again: If you did not sustain your own kin, how will you sustain the attack of your enemies? Here you are oppressed by straits; what, therefore, will you do when you see the worst things? Or otherwise again: Are you dizzy at this providence of mine? What then if you were to learn more hidden matters?

VERS. 6. *For even your brothers, even these themselves have dealt treacherously with you.* How then did your brothers call out after you? Without your knowledge, he says, they will speak great things against you; and what is grievous, they will speak evil to you. Do you see how the prophet is being shaped, how he learns to philosophize, as he is driven toward courage by works and by words?

*How shall you be prepared in the horses and in the land of peace?* ^C Some have understood these things as spoken to the people, that is: if, fighting in war with your neighbors, you were not able to resist them while on foot, what will you do when put to flight by horsemen? But I do not think this is the meaning of this passage. Rather, because the prophet, having recognized the plots fashioned against him, had brought down curses upon them, imploring their swift punishment, he says: Having recognized their schemes against you, you are anxious for their slaughter, and this while in peace, not being harassed by enemies. ^D What will these people do when enemies break in, when

there will neither be a place nor time for flight, as the horses outstrip them ^A so quickly *You have trusted, how will you do in the swelling of the Jordan?* That is to say, you know that you will suffer nothing from him. What will these people do, gazing upon an enemy rushing against them like a river? How then do you curse them with evils, as if you had suffered the most grievous things from them? This means: and these evils you pray for them, once you have perceived what they were devising against you. For he calls "brothers and kinsmen of the father" those of the same race, namely the Israelites. *They have gathered against you; do not trust them, because they speak good things to you.* He says this: I am not looking out for your safety—for I wish you to trust them not at all—but I am desiring, by way of long-suffering, to change them for the better. *From behind you they have gathered; do not trust them.* Many, as is likely, from the twelve tribes that had already been taken captive, were joining the ranks of the enemies. Do not therefore trust them when they speak good things to you; like what Rabshakeh did, who used the Hebrew tongue, and poured forth blasphemies against God, and offered advice as if he were concerned for them.

*I have forsaken my house, I have left my inheritance.* Know, however, that I have decreed their total destruction on account of the wickedness of their ways. ^B *I have given my beloved soul into the hands of those who hate it.* What do you say? Is love nothing? Is friendship nothing? And yet, he had not given it, but says he has "given" it—so that he may not give, if someone has a sound mind, if someone pays attention. The fear of punishment was not so sufficient to bring them back as the symbolic words of divine Wisdom. In the very time of punishments, he brings to their memory "my house, my inheritance, my beloved soul," desiring to turn them. He recounts "the former things" so that he may prick them more sharply; great was the violence of those who cast him out. ^C And he did not say, "Why are you expelling me?" But what was worse and more enormous: they do such things that they have abandoned me myself. *I have forsaken my inheritance.* Just as a man who is about to come into an inheritance that has many difficulties attached to it prefers to let it go, so too does God. Perhaps he signifies desire here.

*My inheritance has become to me as a lion in the forest.* Thus it has roared against me, he says: Who would wish to inherit such things? As in a forest, he speaks of great wildness. ^D *It has uttered its voice against me, therefore I have hated it.*

^A Do you see that the beginnings of malice and hatred are from us? *Is my heritage to me as a hyena's cave?* Some have interpreted it in this way: Since, they say, the hyena is an unclean animal, He wished to say this: "You have filled my house with uncleanness." But the Hebrew has it thus: *My heritage has become to me as a speckled bird*, that is, one who enters the temple showing a manifold and various impiety. He calls "uncleanness" the bestial nature, and "to me the heir." Let it be so toward men, but why to me? Is anyone made an heir of such things? And he runs through exterior evils, because in the circle they had many hiding-places, and certainly not a cave of men, but of unclean beasts, and more noxious beasts, walking in darkness. ^B *Go, congregate all the beasts.* Why do you not destroy them yourself, but entrust it to others, that is, why do you summon the beasts? It is so that you might learn that He also summons other nations when it pleases Him; for all are set under His power. Furthermore, that the punishment might become more severe, and many miracles might be wrought, and they themselves might be witnesses of the things that befell them.

*Many shepherds have broken my vineyard.* See how He imitates a man both wishing to punish, and yet grieving at the punishment, and seeking from some quarter even a slight pretext of defense for those about to be punished. *Many shepherds.* Why, when you knew these things, did you not destroy them? Why did you appoint such shepherds? But I had said: One must attend to my law, not to them. But why, then, did you not appoint excellent teachers over them, through whom the fold would not have perished? So that they might learn, even when the wicked lead, not to attend to them. For what defense is there for them? Was there not a law? Were there not prophets? Do you think I left them destitute? I did not wish them to be good by necessity. And after a few words: *They have defiled my portion.* He blames the shepherds and rulers everywhere, yet He does not free the rest from blame. For why? Are they animals void of reason? Could they not bring themselves back to a good harvest? Was not Jeremiah flourishing at that time?

*Because of me, the whole earth is wasted with destruction.* What is this, "because of me"? Because of me, the prophet. *For if I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin.* ^D *Upon every diverticulum*, or, into every outlet in the desert. This is because of the impiety against me, for when they heard of the calamities, they made no good change.

^A He declares here the captivity and the war. See whom such great threats might not have made better.

VERSE 13. Sow wheat, and reap thorns.

*Their clergy shall not profit them.* Some say this is spoken regarding these clergy of the Church; and I am persuaded of this. For what, pray tell me, do they profit us who walk unworthily? Will there not be even greater judgment? But let us understand what the clergy is altogether, and whence it took its name. Perhaps we shall reap some benefit even from the name; otherwise, it is also a matter of great shame to be ignorant of what we are called; for we were not allotted ^B by just any lot. For a lot is an irrational thing. Whence then is the "clergy" [kleros] named, and not among us [Christians] alone? For perhaps someone among the younger ones might have thought the name belongs to them; but it seems to me that it was also from the beginning, when the lot of this ministry and apostleship was cast, and that it is called thus from that first receiving of the lot. Or, just as in the Olympic games, one is chosen by lot—this one to take this antagonist, that one another—so too is it here. But according to this logic, the canonical or ecclesiastical clergy ought to be called so. For, he says, *as God has distributed to each one, as the Lord has called each, so let him walk*. For indeed, in this way he was allotted.

And after a few words: Whence then was the name imposed? For he did not say simply, "the lot of the ministry." Since, then, the things which are allotted do not happen by one's own choice, but depend upon some other authority, it behooves him who has been allotted to hold the place he was allotted, and neither to procure it for himself—for that would not be a lot—nor to flee what is given; for if the things of a lot are authoritative, much more so are those of God, when God casts the lot. But that lot is irrational, whereas this one is not. And the one who appoints must also do so without partiality; for this is what a lot is. Not whom he himself wishes, but whom the grace of God gives. So long as the apostles were without the Spirit, they entrusted matters to the lot; but afterwards, [they did so] also to the multitude, and to their own grace. The clergy is an untroublesome thing; it does not allow even those who are not chosen to grieve as though they were treated unjustly. The clergy knows no kinship, recognizes no favor, nor ill-will. Since, because there are many, it is not possible for all to be inscribed in the clergy, we rightly choose a few from the many.

Be ashamed because of your boasting.

Who were you once, and who are you now? From reproach in the sight of the Lord, from those who reproach you: not that it proceeds from God, for to know how to be ashamed is a great remedy, and to blush is no small occasion of salvation. If you take away shame, you have taken away all hope of salvation. I know that it has often availed as much as punishment. It is not without reason that God implanted it in our nature; but that he might diligently rouse us, he implanted it, that we might be ashamed not only before men, but also before our own conscience. ^A Often, even when there is no punishment for a sin, shame alone and self-condemnation have held us back.

*Verse 14. For thus saith the Lord against all my evil neighbors.*

He here hints at the Arabs, because they taught them not a few evils, on account of which they once spent forty years in the desert. For this reason He did not permit them to be mixed with the nations; for this reason He also placed laws, as it were, stronger than a wall, through which it was not permitted to use the custom of their neighbors. *Behold, I will pluck them out from their land.*

He threatens them with a great threat, so that they themselves might also become better; he threatens even the captives. See how they too were being corrected by the things which were happening to them; at the same time, he also gives them an opportunity to respond for themselves, as if they did not know. Just as you were the authors of their destruction, so they will be for your salvation. It is a great disgrace for the Jews that they should learn from their neighbors. See how He recognizes them as His own. Did His salvation extend only to one nation? You wish, in short, to be friends and to think as one? Let it be, then, for the sake of good, not against the salvation of those who agree; thus it was possible to become better even before this.

CHAPTER XIII.

*Verse 1. Go, and get thee a linen girdle.*

What the image that he uses means is this: The girdle is affinity, and the linen girdle is priestly, indestructible, the beauty of the people, which is corrupted by none of these customary things, either by time, or by moths, or other similar things. In the rock, indeed, lest anyone should say that it was corrupted by the neglect of nature; so also were the Israelites; for such, he says, are human affairs. Now indeed there are wars, now conflicts, now peace, now an abundance of all things; from the beginning He bestowed upon them such mutability. ^C *You shall not bring it into water*, that is, it is new. For if water penetrates it, they will think it is old; lest they think it was corrupted due to age, which we call untinted, not moistened. For to moisten is what the common people call not made wet; such would the people always be, had they only wished; for encircled by God, they would have experienced neither sorrow nor old age; for there consumption comes from use. Certainly we use things in such a way that we wear out what is new; but God uses them in such a way that He makes even what is old new. This also happened in the New Testament; He set them by Himself and rendered them young.

He speaks of a linen girdle, and adds: *And put it about...*

^A thy loin.* He takes the prophet as a type of God, and the girdle as a type of the people. “Put it, therefore, about thy loin, just as I joined my people to myself through the commandments.” *And it shall not pass through water.* Do not cast it away because of the filth, just as I did not cast away [my people] when they were stained with the blood of idolatry.

*Take the girdle, and go to the Euphrates.* Why to the Euphrates, and why did He allow him to travel such a distance? Was not the river Jordan ^B near? But [it was] that He might show whence evils come, and for what reason, and many days pass by.

*And I went, and hid it. And it came to pass after many days.* That you might learn of His long-suffering; for lest you think that the length of the days brought the corruption, it is new, and lies upon a rock, where no worm from the wood comes forth. He hid them; that is to say, He rendered them safe, as if in a rock. When ^C He cast them off from Himself, He terrified, He threatened, and nothing more happened; eventually they are corrupted. He shows that the corruption is due to the wrath of God. They did not perish as soon as they were taken from the loin; for God does not destroy us as soon as He casts us off, nor are we punished as soon as we are thought unworthy of Him; but He bears with us for a long time, and then inflicts the punishment. *And possess for thyself.* He received nothing from anyone, nor [was it] for his own need; for the prophet had no need of it; not that he might be clothed, ^D but that He might make him his own. Therefore, just as the prophet was no more honorable when wearing it, nor less honorable when he put it aside, nor did he have need of it, so neither did God. Observe, moreover, how he does not learn everything at once, but little by little, so that you might learn of his obedience. He said: “Possess, and put it about thy loins.” He did not say: “Why?” but he obeyed. Again He said: “Go to the Euphrates.” He did not say: “Why shall I go?” but it was enough for him, and he obeyed. Let us also do this. He did not say: “It is shameful, it is ridiculous”; but he was prepared for everything. For this reason He commands him little by little, so that he might learn obedience.

*The people who refuse to obey My words, and who walked after other gods.* Do you see how the addition of evils brought forth the punishment? Do you see the healing that destroys the evils, not the men themselves? Then He explains the wickedness: “Those who do not wish to obey My word, and have walked after other gods”; and that they do not wish to—behold, neither do others wish to. But these have enjoyed benefits. I did not attach the nations to Myself, but these [I did], and not for My own sake, but for theirs.

*Just as the girdle is stuck to the loin of a man, so I have stuck it to Myself.* The girdle is an image of the people, and the prophet is of God; and just as the first [girdle] was uncorrupted while stuck to the prophet’s loin, but when separated from it was corrupted, so also the people, when they were allied to

^A God, remained unharmed, but having departed from him, they became altogether useless.

*To be unto me for a people, and for a name, and for a glory.*

He says these things not as if he himself were in need of glory, but for the sake of the people. So be it: if you do not wish to glorify me, why have you dishonored yourselves?

*Verse 12. And thou shalt say unto this people: Every bottle shall be filled with wine.*

Again, a metaphor: just as the bottle was made for this purpose, to be filled, so also is it necessary for you hereafter, as if born for this, to be filled with punishments. For by these two likenesses he shows not that he punishes, but that he punishes excessively and incurably.

*Verse 13. And thou shalt say... Behold, I will fill... and their kings.*

Do not think that you will have an excuse from your ancestors; this accuses you all the more. *And the priests.* Do not think that you have comfort from your dignity; this rather tends to your destruction.

*Verse 14. And I will scatter them... and their fathers... I will not have pity, and I will not spare.*

For since we are often accustomed to pity those who have suffered penalties, “I,” he says, “will not even do this.” And although it is a great penalty for elders to be destroyed, yet this will not move me, who am merciful.

*Verse 15. Hear ye, and give ear... for the Lord hath spoken.*

Observe everywhere in the prophet how, even when he speaks of punishment, he always adds the cause. And not only this, but when he says that he will not pity, he will not spare, and has spoken as if of those in despair, he again brings in an exhortation. For he who had said such things, and had pronounced them as a sentence, look at what he says: *Hear ye, and give ear.* Do not hear simply, and do not be carried away; for nothing so much shakes the mind as not attending to the words of God. For are these the threats of men, which it is often possible to evade? It is God who is the powerful one, who always brings things to their end.

*Verse 16. Give glory to the Lord your God before he cause darkness.*

Believe those things which are spoken; for will you not give it to him? And after this: *But before the experience of evils, before it grows dark,* he hints at the captivity. *And before your feet stumble.* For such is the nature of adversities: they are accustomed always to cast darkness over the eyes of all. *And ye shall wait for light, and there shall be the shadow of death, and they shall be placed in darkness.*

The day, he says, does not follow. For it does not happen according to the order of nature, but by the connection of calamities; for consider what it was for them to be led away captive, and to be deprived of their fatherland.

Do you not wish to give glory to God? At least do so that you may escape the calamities.

“But if you will not hear, my soul shall weep in secret.” ^A Consider the magnitude of the calamity, when it is not permitted even to weep for one's own sufferings, but they are deprived of that power as well. See how he extols the magnitude of the evils from every side, so that he might perhaps move them even in this way. What is more bitter than this sorrow, not to be able even to weep for one's own sufferings? But nothing softened their hardness and roughness in those things.

“My soul shall weep in secret because of the face of pride.” That is to say, even in captivity it is not permitted for you to mourn with freedom.

“Say to the king and to those in power: Humble yourselves.” For he was not speaking to them, but to the multitude. Consider how great is the freedom of speech of the prophet, when through the subjects he signifies such things to the rulers: Do willingly what a little later will be by necessity. ^B For will you not be humbled? Let this be done now by you, so that it may not be done by the enemies. Let this be the case also with us; let us be judges to ourselves, so that God may not judge us.

“Lift up your eyes, O Jerusalem.” He is addressing the city itself now. He speaks of future things as present; and this discourse is continuous.

“And you taught them against yourself lessons to be your leaders.” That is, calling upon their aid and given over to the worship of idols, you established them as your leaders.

“And you taught them.” How, tell me, and in what manner? By always fleeing to them, showing that you are some weak thing and destitute of the aid from God. You revealed all your secrets; these were the main causes of your sinning, that you were constantly making it your business to call upon them.

“And if you should say in your heart: Why have these things ^C come upon me?” See, at one moment he elevates the nature of the evils, and at another he bites them with disgrace and infamy; for it is habitual that even in evils, matters of disgrace cause us no less sorrow. And just as in the case of an unashamed woman, he has set it forth. For the prophet omits nothing that is able to prick them; and again: Why do you repeat this, after so many admonitions and prophecies? Do they still ignore the cause of what is happening? Yes. For it is the custom of those who are being punished to wish for this, to ignore the causes, and especially when the multitude of evils is overwhelming. “If you should say in your heart” — for you will not have the power to break out even into words any longer.

“If the Ethiopian shall change his skin.” ^D Why then do you rebuke? Why do you send prophets? Why do you say, "You were not willing to"

to hear me? If wickedness is of nature, why do you complain? ^A Do you see the absurdity? But this absurdity arises from our own folly. For what he wishes to say is this: that you have turned the wickedness which is of the will into a habit. For learning does not arise from nature. He who has learned was previously held in ignorance, and he learns. He is therefore not wicked by nature; for that which is by nature does not require learning. We do not learn that it is necessary to sleep, nor that it is fitting to look at the light; for these things are natural, and we do not look for teachers, but whether we wish it or not, they come to pass. But where there is a place for discipline, there is also a place for ignorance, and after ignorance comes discipline. What, therefore, does he say? He speaks hyperbolically, just as we also say: "This boy can never be brought to a sound mind." A depraved nature, so that at least in this way, having been suffused with shame, they might be changed.

VER. 24. *And I have scattered them as stubble.* See how at the same time he shows the ease, and the power, and that he wishes to satisfy his anger.

VER. 25. *This is thy lot, and the portion of your disobedience against me.* Such are the fruits of your incredulity, since the false prophets were saying the opposite.

*As thou hast forgotten me. And I [have forgotten thee.]* See what the cause is; I also will do the same.

VER. 26. *And I will uncover thy shameful parts.* You are the first author of these things. I wish to be loved, and you refuse. For this reason I will do these things, like some jealous man who neither wishes to punish her who is insulting him, nor is able to bear with a steady mind the things that have happened; he spares no word in his speech towards her, ^B but speaks as if satisfying his anger, and while he indeed indulges his love by not punishing, he rests himself by reviling her with words; and so also does God.

VER. 27. *Thy adultery, and thy neighing, and the alienation of thy fornication.* What is neighing? It expresses your madness and its agitation. *Upon the hills, and in the fields, I have seen thy abominations.* Not at home, nor in secret, but public and manifest to all is the fornication: your confusion will be open to all. Your ignominy proclaims you. *Woe to thee, Jerusalem.* Because he wants to punish, and yet he grieves over those who are to be punished, and he mourns, and he laments, and he has compassion.

CAP. XIV.

VER. 1. *The word of the Lord which came to Jeremiah concerning ^C the drought.* He said a thousand things, he threatened with similitudes, they did not believe, such as the girdle, the rod of an almond tree, and the rest. Therefore, he comes to the punishments.

VER. 2. *Judea has mourned.* He did not say the market, but the gates, since there was no one going out: which is the greatest proof of desolation. ^D

^A And the cry of Jerusalem has ascended. They invoked God; when He was delivering them to slaughter, then they sought Him. And her nobles sent their juniors to the water. Observe the punishment reaching all; for it was not famine alone, but also drought. For since it was likely that, with grain stored up, there was an expectation but not an experience of famine, by the lack of water He forestalled their thoughts. They came to the wells and found no water. For since they did not attend to the flowing water of spiritual doctrines, by these things He seeks to restore them to their senses, so that they might not come to the experience of evils. To these He adds also the distress of the irrational animals.

VERS. 4. *The farmers are confounded.* Deservedly. Tell me, I pray, why were they confounded? Was it perhaps without any cause of their own? Was it without any sluggishness of their own? The matter has come about by the inclination from above. Why then were they confounded? Because they were the cause themselves, through their sins; for to those who sin, there is no shame less than punishment, and their being punished is on account of it.

VERS. 5. *And the hinds calved in the field.* Why are the irrational animals also punished? For the sake of humans, for their correction, seeing that they were made on their account.

VERS. 6. *Wild asses stood upon the crags.* It should be known that these graze in the more desert places. What does it mean, *they inhaled the wind*? They were moderating the scorching heat caused by thirst. Do you see the anger of the Master? Do you see human kindness joined with anger? He spares the children and pours out His anger upon the servants, so that, even so, they might come to their senses. For since these animals are unprovided for, they are the first to perceive the famine. And He does not speak of the tame animals, oxen and sheep, but of the wild ones, showing the intensity; for it is on their account that even these exist, if not for use, then for the knowledge of God.

*Wild asses stood upon the crags, they inhaled the wind as a dragon.* ^D The wild ass is a wild animal, and it leaps onto the plains and destroys fruits. He says, therefore, that through the lack of rain this animal also came to weakness. But the phrase, *they inhaled the wind as a dragon*, the Hebrew has this meaning: *they inhaled the wind as an animal conceiving from the wind*. They assert that the sphinx is such a creature. For just as that creature delights in the assault of the wind as if it were in intercourse, so, he says, the wild asses stood toward the wind, having found relief from their need in the direction of the wind. Or one might understand it better in this way: *They inhaled the wind as a dragon*, that is, they were distended by their need; for when food fails, it is the custom for irrational animals, such as asses, horses, and the like, to lift up their voice. This, too, the wild ass is accustomed to do. The phrase, therefore, *they inhaled as a dragon*, means, just as this one,

^A hissing at length sends forth its voice, so also the wild asses shall cry out from scarcity, so that it may be heard. The Syrians, however, say that *as a dragon* has no such meaning. But some say that the dragon is by nature nourished by the wind; he therefore compared the wild asses to this animal, that he might show the calamity resulting from the drought.

*Our sins have resisted us.*

Behold the supplication made by the prophet, and that they themselves were brought to their senses by those very things, as if by a calamity. For sin is truly a great wall, and just as soldiers keep poor and weak men away from princes, and drive them off with rods when they desire to have an audience, so also do sins. For when we have nothing from ourselves, this mercy, ^B the philanthropy of God, alone is left.

*Because our sins are many against thee.*

Not against men. For when God examines, many sins appear. Not because he examines more bitterly than men do; God forbid. How, then, do they appear more? Because men are ignorant, but He Himself knows. We are able, therefore, each of us, to attain salvation in this way, if we should all flee to His name.

*Because we have sinned against thee.*

What is meant by *against thee*? Against Thee, who art not provoked as men are. Against Thee, O Lord, who art able to spare, who dost not weigh sins.

*Expectation.*

This means: Thou, who art the only God, makest us to endure these things; but men exact punishments according to their power and their character. But here he says: No one can remove these ^C blows. Since, therefore, Thou alone art able, release them. This is a law for Thee, and we often say to men: Imitate Thyself for Thy own sake.

*Wilt thou be as a man sleeping?*

Thus, he says, He has left us, just as one who is passing through cares for nothing; but God does not sleep. Do you see how secretly he shows you that there are no such passions in God? The power is present to Thee; but although Thou art able, our sins stand in the way; yet at least for Thy own sake, [have mercy].

*And thou art in us, O Lord. And thy name is called upon us.*

He no longer flees to the Fathers, but to the name of God; this also those around Moses did, ^D that it might not be insulted.

*Thus saith the Lord: They have loved to move their feet.*

That is, there is nothing firm or stable among them; they are ever leaping hither and thither. This is what Elias also says: *How long will you halt between your two sides?* They have loved to move their feet, and have not spared [themselves]. That is, they loved to run to idols, and they did not repent.

say, profusely. See how He always accuses them, that they have reached the accumulation of iniquity.

*VERS. 12. For if they fast, I will not hear.* And yet, to fast is no small part of virtue. But hear what sort of fasts theirs were. What says Isaias? *In fasts and contentions you fast, for what purpose do you fast unto me?* For fasting is not merely the abstinence from foods, but a philosophy of the soul. Just as virginity is not simply the abstinence from marriage, but that which principally characterizes its virtue—that which is becoming and leads to being present with the Lord without distraction—so too with fasting. The Ninevites also fasted, but it was not by this that they moved God; rather, it was by what? By the change of their wickedness. For what use is it, tell me, to abstain from the flesh of irrational animals, yet feast upon human flesh? To abstain from wine, yet be drunk with the greed of money? This drunkenness is worse than that one; it knows not how to yield to sleep, but even as the day appears, it receives greater increase.

*I will not hear their prayer.* For their sins are stronger than their prayer.

*For I will consume them by the sword, and by famine, and by death.* Famine is one thing, the sword another, death another. For it happens that someone is destroyed not by famine or by slaughter, but by a certain death sent by God.

*VERS. 13. And I said: O On, (that is, He who is) Lord: Behold their prophets prophesy, and say: You shall not see.* Why then, he says, do the prophets ^B declare these things: There shall be no famine, nor sword? The prophet was enduring great violence, not that he was compelled to announce evils, but that he had adversaries, and deceivers, and those who prophesied the opposite. Therefore he addressed God: *O On, Sovereign Lord*, by way of distinction from those who do not exist.

*And the Lord said to me: The prophets prophesy lies in my name.* Why did God not remove the false prophets? So that you might not disbelieve His words. This is similar to saying: Why did He not remove those who deceive and corrupt entirely? Or rather, the demons who lead into every wickedness? But the divine Apostle indicates the solution to these, saying: *For there must also be heresies among you, that those who are approved may become manifest.* For exercise always increases ^C virtues, and no one is crowned unless he has wrestled lawfully. But he who wrestles is always fighting against opponents, and it is necessary that these be according to the laws of spiritual wrestling. And thus, love toward God becomes greater, as many struggles do not overcome it; and the preeminence of the incorporeal and divine power is demonstrated. Just as in Egypt, the great God was manifested to those who had set themselves against His servant, ^D by depriving them of the power to act. For nothing is shown by itself as much as it is shown by the opposition of others.

^A For the facts themselves refuted the false prophets, in that they turned out contrary to their intentions; and from their fruits also they were recognized, if what was done did not persuade them—for every man is persuaded by what he himself desires.

*Visiones enim mendaces... Prophetant vobis.* For they too were proclaiming visions, just as Zedekiah says in the third book of Kings.

*VERS. 15, 16. In morte morbosa morientur. Et non erit qui sepeliat.* Do you see how, from those deceived to those who deceive, the length of the punishment extends? With the disease and the famine coming on, both they and those who believe them shall lie without burial, with no one to consign them to the grave.

*VERS. 18. Si egressus fuero in campum, ecce occisi gladio. Quia sacerdos.* And yet they were not being instructed by these things. For this reason, having shut them in, He was slaying some outside and others within, and not even so did they surrender. ^B What could be more wretched than those in such a state, that the prophet and the priest, who are the principal causes of the evils, are led away into captivity, both learning and teaching [the others] the power of God?

*VERS. 19. Nunquid reprobans reprobasti Judam, et a Sion recessit anima mea?* Consider again the prophet making an appeal on their behalf. For the stroke of punishments was responding to the scale [of their crimes]. Why, he says, have you utterly rejected the people? And he mentions Judah, and the name of the place; he is grieved not just for the men, because they were struck.

*Nunquid reprobans.* These things seem to be spoken concerning the final abandonment on account of Christ; for the magnitude of the evils and the length of the time seem in a way to be a rejection and casting off; but Paul says: ^C "God has not rejected his people which he foreknew." For after the fullness of the Gentiles, all Israel shall be saved. The purpose of God, therefore, points to the hope that comes after these things.

*Sustinuimus pacem, et non erunt bona.* We expected other things, because we have paid a sufficient penalty.

*VERS. 20. Cognovimus, Domine, peccata nostra.* He takes refuge in that remedy which remained, namely, the acknowledgment of sins.

*Iniquitates patrum nostrorum quia peccavimus tibi.* Why does he recall the memory of the fathers? We are so slothful in our own affairs that even those of our fathers come back upon us. That is to say, not even from there is there any hope of salvation for us; we have no one among our ancestors to whom to flee; we are betrayed on every side. ^D

*VERS. 21. Cessa propter nomen tuum, ne perdas.*

Now therefore, says the prophet, even if we are unworthy of such punishment, yet for the sake of your own glory, withhold your anger, lest the nations say: Where is their God? ^A

Do not destroy the throne of your glory. Do not break your covenant.

He understands the royal throne; he introduces the commandments. Do not break your covenant.

And indeed, the covenant contained this: If they do not break my covenant, I will not break my mercy from them. He does not ask that they might not experience miseries, but that they might not be completely cast away.

Is there any among the idols of the nations that can cause rain? ^B

For even if you cast us out, is there another to whom we might flee? he says. And let this entreat you, that you alone are the Lord of this.

And we will wait for you, O Lord, for you have made all these things.

For we have the greatest need of this in our tribulations, so that we may not be without expectation.

And if the heaven gives its fullness, are you not the one?

We know that no element has any power in itself. For can we look elsewhere? Are you not the same Lord? Do you not change while forgiving sins?

CAPUT XV.

^CVERS. 1. And the Lord said to me: If Moses and Samuel stood before me.

Since the prophet was considering within himself that Moses and Samuel were able, when they had fallen into the worship of idols, to deliver them, and moreover that those men had accomplished the whole matter by a single intercession, whereas he, having approached so often, accomplishes nothing but is often left at a loss for counsel, listen to how He comforts him. If, He says, Moses and Samuel should stand, not even they will be able to deliver these people.

Cast this people out, and let them go forth.

Nothing in all this bent them, nothing in all this drew them, nothing made them better; but they remained uncorrected.

And I will deliver them into straits to all the kingdoms of the earth. ^D

So that no place would be ignorant of their affairs.

On account of Manasses.

Do you see the power of repentance? This Manasses, on account of whom the Jews are scattered into every part of the world—those whom neither Moses nor Samuel could deliver from punishments—he, through repentance, delivered himself and rendered God propitious to him.

* He says that He did not bring evils upon them because of his sins, but because they persisted in his idolatries.

Chapter XV

^A VERB. 5. *Who will spare you, Jerusalem? or who shall grieve for you?* Great is the wickedness, when one, even when being punished, does not move the spectators to compassion; although, in any case, even those who have suffered wrong are accustomed to relent toward those who have wronged them, when they see them undergoing punishment. But your condition is worthy of neither pardon nor compassion.

VERS. 6. *You have turned away from me, you shall go backwards.* Do you see how I am not the cause?

VERS. 8. *Their widows have been multiplied more than the sand of the sea.* They have made widows more than the sand of the sea, they have introduced childlessness, and, so that they would not attribute this calamity to nature or to bodily mutilation, they have made the mother of many children childless.

^B *Distress at noonday.* See how He has inflicted punishments, in order that no one might think these were the usual ones, but truly those brought on by God.

*I have cast sudden trembling and haste upon it.* This is spoken about the woman who had many children. "Trembling," that is, fear; "haste," as if he were to say, perturbation.

VERS. 9. *She who bore seven has grown empty.* That is, the one who had many children has become childless.

*Her soul is afflicted,* that is, wailing.

*The sun has set for her while it was yet noon.* For calamity did not even allow the light to be seen clearly.

VERS. 10. *Woe is me, my mother, why did you bear me a man for judgment and for contention ^C with all the earth?* As long as the prophet had hope of persuading God, he uttered no such lament. But after he saw that matters were desperate, being reduced to straits, he says these things. What he says is of this kind: "I am a man mean, humble, and cast down, having no strength; why then did you bear me to be one who would stand against the whole world?" For since the false prophets were saying the opposite, and he was being commanded to say the opposite, daily controversies and fights arose.

*I have not profited, nor has anyone profited me.* The prophet is wearied, enduring the most atrocious evils from the Jews. ^D "Why," he says, "was I born, I who daily contend against the lawless, and am judged by them, and reprove their iniquities, although I am a man who wishes to live in peace, and who has never owed anything to anyone, nor has anyone owed me?"

*My strength has failed in those who curse me.* That is, I have grown weary, being reproached by them and attacked by countless insults.

*And yet, what excites all these fights is far from me: I am free from debt.*

^A To accusors, he says, to those insulting, to those mocking, to those uttering curses. For it is not for an ordinary soul to bear these things, just as even Job was not moved before these things happened.

VERS. 11. *Let it be, O Lord, as they direct.* What is this? he says. For that which most distressed him was this: that he was aware of being guilty of nothing of what was being done to him. That is, "If they justly heap curses upon me, confirm their words." *If I have not stood by you in the time of their evils.* I do not say, he says, "If I have spoken ill of them," but, "If I have not stood up for them when they were about to be punished." And let them not be heard for this alone—that I might be punished—but also that they themselves might attain good things. May the things of their cursing become true, and may the good things become true for them!

* That is, "If you do not bear witness that when you were telling me to announce to them the approach of the enemies, I stood by praying for them, and asking good things for them."

*If iron shall be known, and a bronze garment for your strength?* That is, even if it has walls of iron, and even if it has a bronze garment, it shall not even be known ^B that this very thing is iron. Such things shall they undergo.

* That is, "I will fence you about with my own help, like a garment of iron or bronze." He calls "iron garment" the chain-mail shirt, and "bronze" he calls the breastplate. Just as, therefore, those who are clothed in these are outside any injury of a missile that is unable to penetrate, so to you, nothing will be suffered from them. But some take this regarding the people, that not even with such armor was it fated for them to be saved.

VERS. 13. *Your strength and your treasures I will give for plunder.* This he addresses to the people, as if to say: "Because of their iniquities I shall make them captives." But it was spoken by the prophet from the person of God to the people.

VERS. 15. *O Lord, remember me, and visit me, and vindicate me from those who pursue me, not in long-suffering.* * Sufficient are the things that have passed; but if you add these as well, who will pay attention? Finally, bring the end. For there is no correction. *Vindicate me from those who pursue me. Know how.* ^C

The prophet continues in the same prayer and prophecy. But this pronouncement again seems to be removed from the study of philosophy. But let us see whether this is the weakness of the prophet or of someone else. First, he does not wish for them to be destroyed for the time being, but [he wills] that he himself suffer nothing terrible. Let us see whether it is for his own sake or for the sake of the Word of God. For the time being he says, "Deliver me from those who pursue me."

^A

Verse 16. "Who reject your words, deliver them."

You see how he did not say, "I shall be." But he fears for the word; he trembles for the prophecy, lest it be thought a fable by them, and be disbelieved. "The word shall always be for joy to me." No one will henceforth consider me a deceiver, nor an impostor. For that he looks to his own affairs is clear from his previous supplications and from the consolation from God, which He would not have bestowed upon him if He had not known him to be striving vehemently. But if he also makes the petition on his own behalf, even this is not amazing; for he withdraws when God also withdraws. ^B

"Deliver them, and my word shall be for me unto gladness and the joy of my heart, because your name has been invoked upon me."

That is to say, that I might be found not to have lied about the punishment; so that I might appear to be truthful and a righteous prophet, since, your name having been invoked upon me, it is not even possible [for me] to be a liar.

Do you see him again fearing for the name? "I am called a prophet." ^C Lest your glory suffer anything, I have suffered ten thousand things. I have conferred no benefit, but the contrary; manage them differently.

Verse 17. "I sat not in the assembly of them that make merry, but..."

You see that he says even this: that all things which ought to have been done by me have been done. I did not associate with them when being insulted, I did not stand by them. What then remains to be done? Because of your fear I have endured all things, and nothing has come of it. ^D

"I sat alone."

I had no companion in what was said. All were disbelieving; but yet none of these things turned me aside; nothing of what was to be done by me was left undone.

"Why do those who grieve me prevail against me?"

For what reason, he says, do you permit them? What is the gain? For is any profit becoming theirs? What then remains? "My wound."

Of the soul, clearly.

"My wound is stubborn; whence shall I be healed?"

That is to say, these men act with malice, and do the deeds of enemies. I do not yet see the outcome of my words: I have nowhere any consolation. ^D

"It has become to me as deceitful water, not having faithfulness."

That is, the prophecy. As if to say, "It was seen to lie." And just as water has no stability, so they do not think that truth belongs to my words.

Just as water flows by and does not stand, nor does it remain, so also my words now appear here, now there. And it leaps away, and has no faithfulness. Or if not this, "The terrible things were so consecutive," says he, "as water rises and has not ceased."

Verse 19. "Therefore thus says the Lord: If you return, then I will restore you, and you shall stand before my face."

That is to say, it is fitting for you to look toward me, and not to the opinion of men.

"If you return, then I will restore you, and you shall stand before my face." Since he had already turned away from the prophecy, and since he thought the matter had finally reached an end, he says, "Change this inclination, and take care that if you do return, you do not first look for what the prophet has said. Still there is hope that some may be gained. Do not pay attention to my words that carry despair. These things I speak for the sake of threat and fear; there are some who are precious." If you return, he says, and I restore you, "you shall stand before my face." This is not a small dignity, but an angelic one; my face promises either honor or security.

"And if you extract the precious from the vile, you shall be as my mouth." What virtues, therefore, can be compared with this? Compare with it whatever you wish; for do not look at the one who is extracting, but know that even if he did not extract, he did what was in his power.

* That is, if by waiting and using frequent words you bring it about that someone changes himself, you will be an emulator of me, who strive to lead the human race to better things through long-suffering.

"And they shall turn to you, and you shall not turn to them." ^B For the promises of honor were superfluous, had he not also promised security here; that is to say, they themselves will come to you, but you will not give way to them; they will entreat you and will beseech you.

* That is to say, remain firm in piety, so that you may be able to lead them to a sounder mind, and that you may not, through negligence, switch to their way of thinking.

* "And I will make you to this people a strong brazen wall," and the rest. That is to say, if they treat you badly, I myself will be present to aid you, making you superior to your calamities.

CAPUT XVI.

"And you shall not take." It is truly worthy of wonder, why he commands him not to take. So that he might not beget children for calamity. See how the prophet was still young, and this was so that he might assure them concerning future evils. For there was no one who, seeing the prophet not marrying, and learning the reason, would not believe. For in the coming afflictions ^C of the people, he says, one must be unencumbered, and not be worn down by a wife and children.

"For thus says the Lord." For it is not spoken concerning sons and daughters, but concerning fathers and mothers, and those who have begotten them. Wherefore he also dissuades him from marriage. ^D

^A VERS. 4. *In death, etc.* He inculcates the same things more often, and it is not heard even once; nor does pain truly touch them if they lack burial, which grieved them most, nor does famine, the death of disease, or slaughter move them: that they should lie unburied is a matter of great disgrace, so that not even pity is bestowed upon them, and in addition to this, that they should become fodder for wild beasts: whom would these things not bend?

VERS. 5. *Thus saith the Lord: Thou shalt not enter into their Thiasus, and thou shalt not go to lament, nor shalt thou mourn them, because I have taken away my peace from this people, saith the Lord,* and the rest.

They used to lacerate their bodies in ancient times; for from the beginning the devil has striven to reduce the work of God to the ultimate deformity. For since he has puffed up the mind with pride, he also stains the beauty of the body itself. You see how many arts he devises. First, those of wantonness: pigments and paints and whatever things are like these. Then, those of mourning, so that they cut themselves; ^B and each passion has a sympathizing element—the former, indeed, from fornication, but the latter from sorrow. Thirdly, the cult of Cybele, in which he makes both effeminates and eunuchs. Seeking no longer merely to make the body misshapen, but to overturn the very foundation of propagation; for never did he have any goal more ancient than to destroy the human race entirely, and to accuse God as having made certain things superfluous; finally, he devised adulteries, so that the fetus might be aborted.

* That is, do not go into their assembly. For he calls an amicable gathering a *Thiasus*, which they hold both in feasts and in mourning, for the consolation of the one who is grieving.

VERS. 12. *And you have done worse than your fathers.* Since it was fitting for you, terrified by fear, not to fall into the same things, ^C you did the opposite: for you have surpassed the wickedness of your fathers. And by what reasoning will it not be alien to reason that they, while sinning, suffer nothing, but we are punished? By no means. For they too shall pay the penalty, but not in the present; you, however, even at this time: for you are even worse than they, having abused the long-suffering of God. For just as with one man, when someone has sinned, and has not been punished by God, it is not proper on that account for him to be more slothful, so it is in other transgressions. He has sinned, the penalty has not followed the crime—do not thou give thyself over to sloth, as if you were to escape punishment: for if God did not show himself as such toward all, we would all perish most quickly; ^D He endured that man, both leading him to repentance and inviting you to become better.

VERS. 13. *And I will cast you out.* He speaks of the cruelty of the strange gods, who will not have pity on those who serve them: you were heaping insults upon me, and I was having pity; so that by comparing [them], you might learn who I am, and who they are. For if anyone weighs the punishments, long-suffering is no less of a benefit to the prudent.

VERS. 14. *The Lord liveth.*

Why does he put the good things first? Not that he might make them softer, but that they might believe also regarding the more saddened things. Or rather, after the descent, that they might have some faith in the return. ^A *“But, as the Lord liveth, who brought up.”*

Why is this added? For the sake of credibility. For if, after four hundred years, he was able to restore those who had made it so, much more [can he] to you; for it might well have cast them into despair.

*“Behold, I will send many fishers, saith the Lord, and they shall fish them, and after these I will send many hunters, and they shall hunt them.”*

He speaks indeed of the Babylonians—that is to say, Nebuchadnezzar and his commanders. He compared them ^B to fishers and hunters so that he might signify that he will lead those who are hidden in their retreats to judgment, having searched them out. He says, therefore: *“And I will hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and from the holes of the rocks.”*

For he who knows things that happen in secret is able to deliver those who are hiding, and especially when there are many who are hunting. Some say this refers to the apostles, and I do not forbid it; but for the meantime let us hold to the history; for when God delivers, no one will any longer act as a protector.

*“And I will recompense.”*

Perhaps this statement disturbs many; if we indeed do not expect, nor even simply believe that we shall receive, punishment, trusting in the benevolence of God. But this one says, *“double.”* And Isaiah also, that *“she hath received from the Lord’s hand double her sins.”* For lest you think that what is said is a threat, he bears witness that it happened. What then? Do men punish according to the worthiness of sins, but God even beyond the worthiness? Not at all; but what is it? They sinned double, and they shall receive double. Or he says *“double”* because they were not only deprived of good things but also endured ten thousand terrible things. For our punishment also becomes double: the loss of the kingdom, and the experience of Gehenna; for each of these, in itself, is a great and unspeakable evil. ^C

*“To thee the nations.”*

The Jews, having pious fathers, fell into impiety; but these [nations] the opposite. The prophet says this, accusing the former and showing how much profit will come to others from their punishment, while at the same time stinging the Jews: *“Those who are near dishonor thee, but those who are far away will come unto thee.”*

*“If he will do.”*

For how is what has been done, God?

*“Cursed.”*

CHAPTER XVII

*“The sin of Judah is written in a scripture, with an iron pen, with an adamant claw. It is graven upon the breast of their heart.”*

As if he were to say: They display their impiety in such a way, that ^D

^A they show their zeal for idols.

This is what hope in men brings about: it drives one away from God. Or is he not saying this, but rather that one who hopes in man in such a way as to depart from God—for God desires nothing so much as that we should always hang upon Him? And for this reason He does everything, not that He might gain anything from us, but that He might benefit us; for this reason He has also made us needy in all things. Tell me, what is the end?

VERS. 6. And it shall be like the wild tamarisk in the desert. He hints here at Zedekiah, ^B who fled to Pharaoh against the Babylonian. This is an unfruitful tree, and one that always dwells in deserts and uncultivated places, useful for no work, nor swelling with fruits. — * This is a fragile wood.

And he shall dwell in salty places and in the desert, in a land of salt, which is not inhabited. That is, he shall enjoy no good thing, but shall be as one barren, and as land that is salty and uninhabited, towards the bearing of fruit.

VERS. 7. And blessed is the man. In this way David also says: He shall be like the tree planted by the streams of waters. He shall not be afraid; he is outside of every instability. This Christ has made evident ^C through the prophecy. “Who has hoped in the Lord and was put to shame?” If hope has such power, and that too without labor, why do we not always cast our salvation upon Him by whose hope we have been saved?

* VERS. 9. The heart is deep above all things, and it is a man, and who shall know him? I am the Lord God. The discourse is to those who act impiously in secret and believe that they escape notice. He speaks concerning their very thoughts, that God knows even those who hide. Nothing is so opaque as the heart of man. For this reason, another says: A deep, hidden heart is man, and who shall know him? Perhaps you think that you escape notice, he says. It is not so: ^D I know all that concerns you.

* VERS. 11. The partridge has chirped, it gathered what it did not bring forth, making its wealth not with judgment. The discourse is to the covetous. Some have interpreted it thus: It is the habit, he says, of partridges, after the eggs have been hatched, to call the chicks with their voice and strip them from the one who bore them. So, he says, these also gather the labor of others, for which they have not labored.

* In the midst of his days they shall leave him. That is, he shall not enjoy the property of others.

* And in his last things he shall be a fool.

^A

Some have interpreted this from the Hebrew as follows: The partridge hatches and does not beget, since it is the habit of the female to steal the eggs, and then, having warmed them and brought them to fulfillment, she leads them to water and kills them after giving them a drink. He says this, then, to mean that the covetous man gathers riches in vain. *In the midst of his days they shall leave him.* The Hebrew, he says, is as follows: *In the midst of his days he shall leave them*, that is, his riches.

* And in his last things he shall be a fool. The Hebrew says: *And his end shall be mournful.* But I consider the former interpretation better and clearer.

He is speaking of the Egyptian, while at the same time mentioning his lack of conscience; and the phrase *they shall leave* means they shall be led away as captives. God was giving birth to them; that one was heard only by his voice. *In his last days he shall be a fool*; this means he shall be exposed as gathering not his own things, but the things of others. For what could be more foolish than a man who prides himself on what is not his own?

*

Solium gloria (The Throne of Glory)

*

Sanctification

*

Confundantur (Let them be put to shame)

*

Quoniam dereliquerunt fontem vitæ (Because they have forsaken the fountain of life)

*

Sana me, Domine, et sanabor (Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed)

*

Salva me et salvabor (Save me and I shall be saved)

*

Origen (or, in another, Chrysostom)

*

Verse 16. Thou knowest what proceeds from my lips before thy face.

*

Vers. 17. Non fias mihi in alienationem, parcens mihi tu in die malo (Be not a stranger to me, sparing me in the day of evil)

* VERS. 18. Let them be confounded that persecute me, and let not me be confounded.

He does not say these things here seeking his own; but because the prophecy shared in his confusion, he speaks thus; for if they, persisting in their evils, were not to suffer punishment, the prophet would have been confounded.

* That is to say, let these suffer punishment, and let me not be seen to be a liar.

With double destruction.

What on earth is this? Since he nowhere said, "I will double her sins as a recompense," this speech acts to make them more cautious.

* VERS. 21. Thus saith the Lord: Take heed to your souls, and carry no burdens on the Sabbath day, and the rest.

A commandment was given to them to rest on the Sabbath, to the end that they might appease [God] for their sins. But they made the day a pretext for commerce, and carried out their transactions. He therefore calls them away from such actions.

CHAPTER XVIII.

VERS. 2. Arise.

Why does He bring him down to the potter's house? Because they were saying, "Where is the word of the Lord? Let it come," and they thought that He was not able, so He brings him down there. Why then was there need of the vision? For it was not possible to say as the potter, "Shall I not be ^C able?" But the sight made the word more credible and vivid.

VERS. 3. And I went down.

What does this second formation signify to us? That I shall be able to restore even you who have fallen to your former state. So easy is it for Me to do all things.

VERS. 6. Behold, as the clay of the potter.

You too have fallen; I shall be able to restore you.

VERS. 7. I will speak at the sum (or end).

Do you think that because I spoke once, it must come to pass? There is for you a hope of salvation if you give heed to yourselves and change. Do not, therefore, rely on the blessings of your fathers, nor despair because of the evils spoken about you.

For what reason do I still fashion? Do I still deliberate? Giving you yourselves a time of repentance.

VERS. 12. And they said, etc.

What could be worse than this?

VERS. 13. Which the virgin of Israel hath done things.

Just as those must needs be, so too [must it be with] you; indeed, this was more necessary than natural things, and it is impossible that it should be otherwise.

VERS. 14. Shall the breasts fail from the rock, or the snow from Libanus? Shall the water that is carried violently by the wind turn away?

A certain mountain peak was called the Breasts. He says, therefore, that just as it is not possible for water to be wanting from there, or snow from Libanus, and water carried violently one could never turn aside, unless...

^A that he be carried in a straight course, so the people sinned without intermission and clung vehemently to iniquity.

“Because they have forgotten me.” These things are not so much to be wondered at if they happen otherwise, as these current events. For when no profit arises from rebellion, who would not marvel?

* “And they shall be weakened in their ways, with everlasting ropes, to ascend paths not having a way.” By “ropes,” that is, ^B the inheritance of the land. Having been weakened, therefore, from that, he says, they will depart, so as to journey along a strange path; as if he were to say, the path of captivity.

For this reason, it also happened to them bodily: they walked such a path, inaccessible and rough, that all shook their heads. For when evils are grievous, we do not express them in speech, but by hissing and the shaking of the head.

* “As a burning wind I will scatter them before the face of their enemies.” ^C This means: just as in summertime a hot wind knows how to burn up the soft and delicate things vehemently, so will I consume the Jews.

* “And they said: Come, and let us devise a device against Jeremias, for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, and let us strike him with the tongue, and we will not hear all his words.”

What he is saying is this: They said among themselves, he says, that it is not possible for a prophet’s word to fail, just as it is not possible for a priest’s oracle—for by “law” he calls the word spoken through the ephod. In order, therefore, he says, that he may not take a stand to our conviction, convicting our iniquities and speaking of our calamities, let us plot and kill him. But that which he says, “Let us strike him with the tongue,” means: let us find a sin in him, either against God or against the king, so that we may thus plausibly bring our sentence against him.

See how they believed in the things spoken! O the madness! ^D You who have given such strength to the prophet, and to the priest—will he not much more protect him? You cut down the physician, the teacher, the guide; you extinguish the light so that you may not see—how are you being deluded? “And we will hear the words from his mouth.”

He says this: Let us cut off his voice, and take away his tongue; let us put a stop to the conviction, let us silence the accuser. For what does Jeremias cry out with his tongue? Do you not wish to hear the things themselves? Cease from doing such things, for which the prophet accuses you. But now they do these things, just as if someone afflicted with an illness were not to be angry at himself because he burns with a feverish heat through his own sloth, but were to reject and turn away those who rebuke him and teach him how the fever might cease.

* “If evil is rendered for good.” This is the height of iniquity, and ferocity that is excessive, and the final limit of malice. For if the commandments to us

[Beginning of page] est, ne mala pro malis retribuamus, sed et bona ^A pro malis: if anyone who has received nothing good commits an injury, he is unjust; but he who is such after having received a benefit, in what category shall he be placed? The malice of these men, he says, has no limit; their wickedness exceeds all power of expression. *Because they have spoken words against my soul, and have hidden their punishment from me. This means they hid their punishment by presenting themselves as if they were friends. Some, however, have said that they cast a woman upon him—but this is stale; for the prophet would not have kept silent about it. Remember, O Lord. Yet what greater benefit could there be than to wish to reconcile God, who had been made their enemy? But they did not wish it.

VERS. 21. Therefore give their sons. Then he invokes some dire curses upon them; for although such men as these ought to have been destroyed, he, having been frequently plotted against, did not desist, and nothing more came of it. Let them be wives, let there be a cry. He invokes the complete destruction of some, so that by remaining they might not harm the others, and he asks for a cry to be raised so that the calamity might be evident.

CHAPTER XIX

* VERS. 1. Then the Lord said to me: Go, and acquire a clay earthen vessel. That is, a sextarius. VERS. 2. And you shall go out into the polyandrium [mass grave] of their dead children, which is beside the entrances of the Gate of Charsith. He calls the place where the Assyrian was slain, and where very many of the Jews were destroyed by the Chaldean, the polyandrium of the dead. As if to remind them of the place, and of the former benefit, and of the subsequent turning away from God, He commanded him to speak at that very place what he was about to say. He rightly sends him to the place of their sins, where, he says, they offered incense to Baal and burned their sons with fire. VERS. 4, 5. And the kings of Judah have filled this place ^D with the blood of innocents. And they built high places to Baal. "High places," according to the custom of Holy Scripture, refers to altars. But "Baal" here refers to the idol itself. * To burn their sons in the fire as burnt offerings to Baal. He implies another kind of impiety, which was lamented last of all. For after having rebuked them for making an idol and having busied themselves with the cult of Pluto after the death of Sennacherib, he says: To this idol of Pluto, then, you were offering burnt offerings, as if you would be superior to death. And that he is speaking about this, what follows reveals. For he says: VERS. 6. Therefore, behold, days are coming, says the Lord,

and it shall not be called in this place a ruin, ^A and a polyandrion of the son of Ennom. The Hebrew reads thus: Ruin of Tophet, which is, Altar of the maiden. ^B And they translated "of the son of Ennom," from the place being that of Ennom; but the sense is clearer in the Hebrew, reproving their impiety. But "polyandrion of the slaughter," that is, "valley of the slaughter"—for thus the Hebrew reads. It is to be noted here, also, that the translators gave the name polyandrion [common burial place] from the multitude of those slain. That the discourse is now about the Tophet, which they interpreted as "of the son of Ennom," he makes clear as he proceeds. For having said that he had broken the flask according to the command of God, he adds:

VERS. 11. Thus says the Lord. That the wound for them may be incurable, I have given you hope of salvation. I said: I will turn back the nation, and the captivity, and the kingdom; you did not attend; I take away this consolation, and I cut off these hopes.

* VERS. 13. And the houses of Jerusalem, and the houses of the kings of Judah, shall be as the place that is falling. That is, where the Barbarians once fell when they broke into the city.

All the houses of the kings of Judah [shall be] as the place of Tophet, ^C because of the impurities they have committed in all their houses. They burned incense on their roofs to all the host of heaven. That is, so also now shall all Judah, and the houses of the kings, fall down because of the place of Tophet—that is, the altar of Pluto—just as they fell who made an assault on the city; and proceeding, he says: * And in Tophet they shall bury, because there is no place to bury. Since, therefore, they esteemed the place highly, and as if worshipping a god, they brought nothing unclean into it, He threatens that He will fill that place with corpses.

CAPUT XX.

And Paschur heard. See how great the crime: he was a priest, and [he struck] both a priest and a prophet, and one saying such things. He whom it behooved to mourn, because he learned of their iniquity through both words and deeds, that he might not wonder at the captivity.

VERS. 2. And Paschur struck Jeremiah the ^D prophet, and cast him into the cataract, that is to say, into the prison. Which was in the gate of Benjamin of the assigned house, the upper one, which was in the house of the Lord. "Of the assigned house," that is, of the prison; and he called it "cataract" from its shape; "upper," because it was in the courtyard—as if to say, under the open sky; and [regarding] "which was in the house of the Lord," he says this about Paschur, as if to say: The priest who was ministering in the house, he it was who cast him into the prison.

VERS. 3. And Jeremiah said to him. How did he not fear to say these things? How did

he cast him out? For even if they hated the man, yet they could not exercise their malice any further, because their conscience reproved them. Thus also Herod [felt towards] John: for he loved him, only so much as not to hear what was being said.

* "The Lord has not called thy name Paschor, but a migrator on every side." The Hebrew has a parable in place of "migrator," and in place of "on every side," [it means] "to all the nations." But the prophecy against him was fulfilled in the times of Joachim and Jechonias. ^A

VERS. 7. "Thou hast deceived me, O Lord, and I was deceived." Perhaps to many the prophet will seem to speak too boldly, for he says here that he deludes God and mocks us; but let us see that he says these things because these are words of pain; for even if he were a prophet, he was a man. "Wherefore," he had said, "hast thou deceived me?"—concerning what had been said: "I will make thee as a strong brazen wall, and they shall wage war against thee, and shall not prevail against thee." Since therefore they had thus hemmed him in, he says these things: "And yet they did not prevail;" for if they had killed him, they would have taken away his freedom of speech. Consider for me how apostolic manners are prefigured through these [events]. But none of them ever said this, nor complained; nay, he says the contrary: "Now I rejoice in my infirmities." ^B Did God indeed promise this, that you should suffer nothing evil, but that by suffering you should not succumb?

* VERS. 7. "Thou hast deceived me, O Lord, and I was deceived" — thou hast prevailed, and thou hast been able.

The prophet is distressed because of the altercations with which he was torn by the people. For they accused him of lying, because God had not immediately brought upon them the punishment. He adds, therefore: "I became a laughingstock all the day. I continued being mocked." Afterwards he adds: "Thou hast prevailed." Thou didst prevail as one powerful, and [didst move] me against my will. Not only dangers, snares, and deaths, but also taunts, and insults, and laughter; and these things torment no less than those. ^C

VERS. 8. "Because I shall be laughed at by my bitter word." This is, I am laughed at because of the calamities which I announce, as if I were a liar. And he had taken the cause of his grief especially from those things which he had suffered from Paschor; for it is manifest that he cast Jeremiah into prison as an ill-omened man and a liar, demanding satisfaction for the insult.

"I will call out transgression and misery." Great is the boldness of a just man before God. For he intends to say this: I call upon thee as if suffering violence from thee; for thou didst command me to preach captivity, and thou hast set me at nought by not bringing the punishment and the calamities which I predicted to the city. But some have also explained it thus: Thou didst urge me, having promised to make me as a brazen wall and as an iron column against all the kings of the earth; and trusting in these words I preached to them, and in a certain manner being deceived, I did not refuse to prophesy ^D

^A and I continue to endure terrible things.

That is to say, I shall be mocked. "It was not enough for me," he says, "the bitterness, but laughter also came; the anguish of my soul was not enough, but mockery as well."

*Because it came to pass.* Why did they mock and laugh, when the things that had been foretold did not come to pass?

*And I said: I will not name it.* ^B Observe the zeal of his mind: how he did not hide so great a failing, how he did not cover up his own weakness, but published the infirmity of his thoughts as if inscribed upon a pillar.

*And it became as fire.* He says this regarding the Spirit. "You have prevailed, and forced me even against my will." But someone might say: "And what profit, tell me, is there in being compelled to prophesy? And what virtue is there in it?" And after a few words: "Yes, when it is necessary for some useful thing to happen, God also imposes necessity. For it is not proper, because of his sloth, to hide from those who are to be saved."

*Burning, and shut up in my bones, and I am dissolved ^C on every side, and I cannot endure it. For I have heard the reviling of many gathering together against me,* and what follows.

The phrase, "For I have heard the reviling of many gathering together against me," and what follows, corresponds to, "And I said: I will not name the name of the Lord, and I will not name it in his name." For he has set forth the cause of his silence. But the part, "My heart became as fire burning," and what follows, is placed in between; the meaning, however, is this: I for my part had resolved only to keep silent, but immediately, like fire, it rushed through my mind, and I became as one paralyzed, that is, like one half-dried, in a certain manner condemned to silence, and unable to move my limbs. But the cause of the silence for me has not been that I despised God, but that I beheld the great wickedness of my fellow-tribesmen.

* *Slander, and let us slander him, all you men, his friends.* ^D That is to say, they made a council against me, not just anyone, but those who seemed to be friends.

* *Observe his design, if he shall be deceived, and we shall be able to prevail against him.* That is to say, let us act hypocritically towards him, so that we may find some charge in his actions.

*Because I have heard.* What could be equal to this fortitude? From this point they were mocked, from that they were suffering terribly.

*But the Lord is with me.* How then did you say, "You deceived me," when you were suffering these things? They persecuted, and could not understand. Did not God predict these things as well? Did He not manifest the things to come? The prophet was inexperienced in the beginning; they did not understand their own honors; for indeed it is a sin

^A full of disgrace, not to be converted, but to kill the reprover, so that evils might become greater in the midst of darkness.

*As a mighty warrior. Therefore they persecuted, and could not understand. This is to say: They did not grasp the providence of God toward me, and they changed their opinion, but remained in their malice.

*They were affected with great shame, because they did not understand their own ignominies, which shall not be consigned to oblivion for an age. This is to say: They missed the mark. And not even so did they consider, that by the things they do they bring themselves further under judgment; since God forgets nothing of their malice, but demands the penalty for such audacity.

VERS. 12. Lord, proving just things. I say these things so that when you hear God commanding, "Do not pray," and you see the prophet praying, you may not think man to be more humane than God; do not even believe it by the slightest degree. You see him certainly disturbed by a small ^B contumely and suffering scandal, even though he knew he would be in safety and peace, while God is daily affected by injuries and burdened with grievous and intolerable contumelies.

VERS. 14. Cursed be the day in which I was born. A little above he was lamenting his mother; now the day, not looking toward God, but toward his own evils; just as another prophet was saying: "Why hast thou shown me sorrows and labors?" Similarly also Job: "Why did my knees meet me?" This is also from him, this also from other prophets. The prophet is disgusted, having been compelled to have speeches against the people, and he comes to God, and seeing them persistent, and undergoing atrocious things from the hearers, he is indeed forced to bring forth similar things again.

VERS. 15. Cursed be the man who. What are you saying? Why do you also curse the man? Did you not yourself say a little above: "If you return evil for good"? And you have said these things in return for good and favorable news, and do you accuse Him because He did not kill? By what reasoning, therefore, do you accuse the Jews, because they wanted to kill you? For if it was good to die then, it is much more to be desired after the experience ^D of evils. Why, therefore, do you not want to? Do you see that the laments rely upon no reason? For grief is the cause, and it proceeds only from a disturbed mind, not premeditated, but only seeking that one thing: to put down the burden.

After a few words. He does not simply curse him, but [he prays] that just as the cities which God had overthrown, and "it did not repent Him," so this one man might suffer as much punishment as all those cities. Explain what you are saying. Since he said: "Is it because he said that, that you were born?" Because he was born, was that the cause that you were said to be born? But if that is to be admitted, much more...

this, much more the mother who bore [him], or the father who begat [him]; nay, rather, not even the latter, nor the former. What man, being drunk, would have said such things, or what unjust enemy? What Barbarian? What cruel man kills in the womb? But these are the words of a soul that finds things loathsome. "Why did this come forth?" He no longer prays for good things, but curses his shame and his sin; for there is shame in glory, and grace, and there is shame in sin; for this passion works great and evil things. Do you see that wickedness is not a matter of nature? For no one would have ever possessed anything good. But this is inherent in shame from the beginning.

Chapter XXI

^C2. Enquire. For they were crushed by calamities, and they fled to God only then. And not even then as they ought. For why do you enquire, as if you know [the one who knows] that what is said is entirely true? Why then are you not persuaded? But if what is said is according to your own desire, you praise it, but if you learn the truth, you are distressed and indignant? Where, then, are the false prophets who said, "There is no war, there is no battle, nor famine, nor sword"? And after a few words: Enquire of the Lord for us. [With] much folly, having shown no change, they nevertheless expected a change of evils. Whence? "Yes," he says, "according to all his wonders." They thought God was eager for glory. Now you recall his wonders? Now you know that God can do all things? ^D Being oppressed by affliction, do you play the philosopher? This was not the time for these words, but when you were scorning them, when you were violating the oaths which you had sworn against him. See how much dread there is in oaths: he swore to obey; he did not obey, and he is caught. Therefore, it is not so that the Barbarian might be avenged, but so that God may not be insulted, so that no one else might act lawlessly. And after a few words: I do not think Nabuchodonosor trusts so much in his arms as in the favor that comes from God. This, at any rate, his eunuch reproaches. A teacher, Nabuchodonosor arrives to the Jews, that one may never swear falsely.

4. Thus saith the Lord: Behold, I will turn [...]. Even if they themselves, he says, wish to withdraw, I will make war upon you.

Joachim, having surrendered voluntarily to the Babylonian and having thus accepted the condition of servitude, became tributary to him after taking an oath. But Zedekiah broke the oaths and committed perjury; consequently, the Babylonian advanced upon him, having a just cause due to the oath. But not even then did God deliver them to their enemies, but said: “If you are willing to go out, you shall be saved.” What more was required to be done? They chose to be partakers of his perjury. Moreover, there was no need at all to consult the prophet about the end of the oath, once the oaths and covenants had been trampled underfoot. But, so that they might not have even the excuse of ignorance, and that those who were subjects might not plead the compulsion of their ruler, he exempts them also. "Punishment is at the doors," he says, "and it is in your power to avoid it." Of what penalty, then, are they worthy, who, when they could have escaped the death imminent upon them, and could have avoided both perjury and attained salvation, chose instead along with death itself to remain guilty of perjury? And after a little: We ought to know that even if the one who suffers injustice is a Gentile, God avenges it; for he also is His, and apart from this, He desires his advantage, and he who inflicts the injury is the one who is harmed.

VERS. 9. *And he that goeth out to draw near to the Chaldeans who have besieged you, shall live, and his soul shall be his for a spoil [or: for utility], and he shall live.*

The Hebrew rendered that word, "for utility," more clearly as "for spoil." The meaning is this: He who does not flee, he says, shall die; but he who flees shall live, having become the spoil of the enemy. Therefore, "for utility" means precisely this: he shall gain this very thing—to live.

VERS. 11, 12. *House of the king of Judah, hear the word of the Lord. House of David, thus saith the Lord: Judge judgment in the morning, and the rest.*

After threats, he exhorts them to change their mind, showing that he brings punishments because they do not repent of the things that have happened. He adds, therefore: *And he that goeth out to draw near*, etc. Who would not have chosen to approach the enemy when he saw so divinely-inflicted a plague? For if, even for those who remained, such evils awaited them, and they were doomed in any case to perish, why did they not depart voluntarily? Or is it evident that it was because they did not believe?

VERS. 12. *House of David.*

Not without cause does he recall them to the memory of David, but so that they might be shamed by the virtue of their ancestor. If nothing else, let them at least cease from being wicked.

*Hear the word.*

Not because they have great strength, or because no one is stronger than they—not for this reason, but because of your practices. For your iniquities shall be food for this fire.

VERS. 13. *Behold, I am against thee, O inhabitant of the valley of Sor, the plain, saith the Lord, who sayest: Who shall terrify us, or who shall enter into our habitation? and the rest.*

"Sor" is not correctly interpreted among the Greeks.

For that which is in Hebrew *Sur*, signifies a rock. It indicates Jerusalem, which is situated upon the rock of the valley. He called it the rock of the valley on account of the position of the place; for the places around Jerusalem are encompassed by rocks, and yet there is also a plain in its circuit. ^A Behold I. He prophesies terrible things against Tyre, and indeed Ezekiel and Isaiah say many things concerning Tyre, that it was proud, and that though it had the Jews as neighbors for the receiving of instruction, it profited nothing. Therefore, for this reason, he first attacks these nations, because Jerusalem was near to them; and you shall hear further on how he also attacks Babylon and all the others, and you see his universal providence.

CAP. XXII

* VERS. 6. For thus saith the Lord concerning the house of the king of Juda: Galaad, thou art to me the head of Libanus; if I shall not make thee a wilderness, cities not to be inhabited.

He now calls Jerusalem Galaad, so that he might indicate to us the sign of its nobility, since Galaad also is known for the celebrity of its fame. The meaning is obscure, but he wished to assert what is being said by an example. And this is that point: just as Galaad is the head of Libanus—for it surpasses in the glory of its fame all the cities that are around Libanus—so also you are the prince of the remaining cities. But nevertheless, he says, since you have been ungrateful toward me, I pass sentence against you. ^B

* VERS. 10. Weep not for the dead, nor lament him: but weep with weeping for him that goeth out, for he shall not return any more, nor see the land of his fatherland.

Joachim, the father of Jechonias, underwent a harsh death; for having been captured by the Babylonian, he was first bound in bronze chains, then slaughtered and cast forth before the walls, not even deemed worthy of burial by the Barbarian. And after these things, when the Babylonian had departed from the city, having gathered up his remains, they placed them in a monument. God, therefore, through the prophet predicts that the living man will suffer more bitter things on account of impiety. That, therefore, "Weep not for the dead, nor lament him," is to be understood concerning Joachim; and that, "Weep with weeping for him that goeth out, for he shall not return any more," [is to be understood] concerning Jechonias: for when he had reigned for three months, he was led away into Babylon by Nebuchodonosor. ^C

Perhaps he refers to Josias: for he suffered nothing evil; for he both lived well, and was snatched away before they became captives who were destined to serve in a foreign land and to meet their death.

VERS. 11. For thus saith the Lord to Sellem the son of Josias the king of Juda, who reigneth instead of Josias his father.

He names Jechonias *Sellem*: for they used to call him by this very name. And it is interpreted as *Pacificus*. For since ^D

^A the Babylonian captured Joachim, his father, who had been appointed king by the Egyptian, and Jechonias reigned, he calls him *Pacificus*, as if the land were no longer to be ravaged by the Babylonian, but was under a treaty and not being taken, so as to treat him as his own captive.

Concerning the one who went into Egypt, he says: It is a supreme misery that he should not be able, even when dead, to attain his homeland, but be thrown out unburied; nothing could be more calamitous than this.

*Verse 12. He shall not return to it any more: but in the place whither he hath led him captive, there shall he die: and he shall not see this land any more.*

For they supposed that he would return again, having promised to pay tribute, just as Manasses had returned. He exhorts them, therefore, not to hope for these things. So it is manifest that Jeremias said these things after he had been taken captive in the city; and it was the beginning of the reign of Sedecias, whom Nabuchodonosor had appointed to rule the region. He therefore joined what was said at the beginning of the reign of Sedecias with the response made to the messengers sent by him to the prophet.

*Verse 13. Woe to him that buildeth up his house by injustice, and the things which follow.*

He speaks concerning Sedecias, rebuking him for being excessive in the decoration of houses, and accusing him of treating his ministers and laborers ill and unjustly. ^B He reproves Joachim, inasmuch as he built in splendor from rapine, and did not pay the wages of the hired laborers. "Why do you build the house, and demolish the salvation of your own soul? Let your neighbor work; for if he were a stranger, he should still not be denied his wages."

*Verse 15. Shalt thou reign, because thou comparest thyself with the cedar?*

That is, will you remain in the kingdom, and raise your buildings to a great height?

*Did not thy father eat, and drink, and do judgment and justice, and it was well with him?*

Your father, that is, that David, who did not attain his splendor through injustice and an excessive concern for ornamenting houses, but from the fact that he applied himself diligently to the worship of God. Or he refers to Josias, or to Achaz: ^C the one by nature, the other by character.

*Behold, they are not.*

Do you see in what beauty consists? Not in the form of the limbs, but in the good use of them.

*Verse 18. Therefore thus saith the Lord to Joachim, the son of Josias, king of Juda: They shall not lament for him: Alas, Lord, and alas, my brother, and the things that follow.*

Some have said that this is separated from what preceded; but I think that it follows in sequence, and I consider the meaning to be this. He recounted the things which happened at the time.

of Joachim, just as he himself had foretold, so as to persuade them that the things said by him were true. ^A

VERS. 19. *Comprehended/Gathered.* What is meant by "comprehended"? Symmachus says: "As dung gathered." For when the Babylonian had killed him, he cast him out thus, and he was not buried. Or he was buried like an ass, defiled with ash and earth and dust. For because of the tumult, there was neither mourning for him, nor was his body washed—which appears the most bitter thing of all. Do you see the boldness of the prophet, in the kinds of things he predicts, and he is not held back by fear?

"Go up to Lebanon, and cry out, and give your voice in Bashan, and cry across the sea." That is to say: Saying these things, I was not heard. Did he go up? I do not think so, but it was so that the voice might be heard.

"Because they are broken." He speaks of her allies, in whom she trusted.

"I spoke in your ruin, and you said, I will not listen." That is: With evils standing over you, I proclaimed, and they rejected the exhortation of my words. And you said, "I will not listen." And regarding what previously held the word of virtue, even that was lost; when he killed them, then they sought him out. Yet who would not listen when placed in calamities? But not only now, but you have always been such.

"The wind shall feed all your shepherds." Regarding those in whom you were expecting to be in security. For when we trust in any thing, God removes it, so that we may no longer place our hope in it, nor expect help from it.

"Because then you will be ashamed." Not of things appearing, he says, but of those being removed from the midst. ^B

VERS. 24. "As I live, says the Lord." If someone were to clench a sling while carrying it in his hand, and I were to hold him so, not even thus will I stand by him; but if God will not stand by him, who will deliver him? ^C

VERS. 25. "And I will deliver you into the hands of those who seek your soul." And I think these things were said in like manner. For they were speaking also of Jechonias, and since they were thinking they were in safety—the former, as having been established by the Babylonian, the latter, as being in the temple and Jerusalem, and happening to think he would suffer nothing—He foretold them not to trust in these things, and the event turned out accordingly. Therefore, "Upon my right hand," as if saying, in the temple, where I have been accustomed to grant help to those who are there. "An abject and shaken mouth," that is, the man himself, namely Jechonias. An "abject" mouth because of the blasphemy, and "shaken," as one cast away. ^D

"And I will cast you out." The books of Kings say that he was later even with honor...

and his throne exalted, perhaps because he became better; so that when it says, "He shall not sit upon the throne of his seed," it is clear that this is understood as applying if he were to persist in such a state; for I will speak at the end, concerning kingdoms and nations, to tear down, and if they turn, I will do nothing. ^A

VERS. 28. Jechonias is dishonored, as a vessel of which there is no use. For having been taken captive, he became held in dishonor, having lost the kingdom. For he was unclean: or also thus: seeking a foreign land, he became unclean.

VERS. 29. Earth, earth, hear. Since no one among men listened, therefore he speaks to the inanimate. But what does "Abdicatum" signify? "Dishonored," he says. Aquila translates it as "not growing." But Symmachus: "Empty, alienated." ^B Thus saith the Lord: Write this man abdicated: a man who shall not prosper in his days. That is, I testify to those present that God has cast this man off from Himself; and note this word, for it signifies "write this": for He exhorted him to write it for the multitude; likewise, the phrase "who shall not prosper," He clearly explained, adding: "For there shall not grow from his seed a man who shall sit upon the throne of David"; for in place of him, not his son reigned, but his uncle, the brother of Jehoiakim.

CHAPTER XXIII

VERS. 1. Pastores who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture. In like manner, he says, you too, O Zedekiah, continue in iniquity, and you are the cause of the multitude perishing. ^C And Ezekiel speaks many things against them, and Jeremiah himself; and behold the more severe punishment upon them; for these perish in a foreign land, but to those who have been deceived he promises afterward a return, and a deliverance from evils, and good rulers. Behold righteousness everywhere.

VERS. 5. Behold days come, saith the Lord, and I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and a righteous King shall reign. He speaks concerning Zerubbabel. Symmachus, instead of "righteous Branch," rendered it "righteous Germination": this is said concerning Christ, as some affirm, cryptically. Historically, however, it is about Josedech. And opportunely He grants upright rulers, after He has made them more prudent through punishments, when usefulness could be attained, with sloth and arrogance removed. ^D

VERS. 6. And this is his name, which the Lord shall call him: Josedech. Among the prophets, Josedech is interpreted "prince of our righteousness": as if to say, just as the prophets speak according to the mind of God, so also he, having become righteous, shall lead the people into righteousness.

FRAGMENTS ON JEREMIAH

^A VERS. 9. *My heart within me is broken.* He says this because I indeed, having seen the glory of God, was struck with awe, but these do not even fear the punishment.

VERS. 10. *And the course became*... That is, their zeal was for nothing good. Thus they were zealous, but not in virtuous matters.

*For the priest and the prophet are defiled.* It seems to me that he is speaking of the adulteries in the very temple itself—priest, by virtue of his office; in the house, by virtue of the place; defiled by the deed of the wickedness of adultery. What is more grievous than this? If they were disbelieved by others, this is enough to prove their wickedness: they were breaking up other men’s marriages and were mad with lust for the women.

*Therefore let their way be...* Observe how again he does not bring the evil down instantly, but grants them a respite; then, so that postponement might not lead them into disbelief and wickedness, he reminds them of those who committed the same offenses and suffered more grievous things.

*And among the prophets of Samaria.* Those men, if nothing else, were proposing Baal; but these, me.

*And in the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen horrible things.* The Hebrew has "confused," as if to say they spoke no truth, but made their words their aim for the sake of honor. ^C He says this by way of comparison with the false prophets who were in Samaria: that those men, at any rate, seemed to state what they said with a certain order—since they possessed an altar, and worshiped calves, and seemed to keep for the rest a good order, even if illegally—but these surpassed that wickedness of theirs in lawlessness.

For they would not permit the fear of God to take root in the minds of the hearers; they destroyed the whole premise of becoming better, and they held all men fast in their wickedness.

*And taking part.* Not only, he says, did they not instruct people (for by a part he signaled the whole—to turn them away from wicked things—) but they also acted as advocates for them, so that on account of this they might progress all the more into wickedness.

^D *They became to me.* What would not those things be enough to instruct? Such is the joyless and fearful aspect of the land, just like a body burnt through and through on every side.

*Therefore these things...* Not by nature, but by the attitude of the one casting them away. For when by their nature things are bitter, it is possible to find many consolations—both do we change places and, having taken from those who possess, we bring in something else. But when the very sensory faculty is corrupted, then at last there is no healing. It is better, therefore, for the senses to be healthy than to carry bitter elements along with oneself.

*Because from the prophets of Jerusalem.* Again he proposes the cause; it did not suffice for them...

to stay the evils up to the city, but they themselves have also become the cause of what happened to others. ^A VERS. 16. *Thus says the Lord.* These are the pronouncements; whence, I ask, is it clear? Because they speak falsehoods; because they favor malice; because they increase sloth. VERS. 18. *For who is in the counsel of the Lord, and has seen, and has heard his word?* That is to say, which of these who set themselves against the prophets has awaited divine energy, and, having been deemed worthy of the Spirit, has spoken these things? As if to say: By the very facts they are shown to be fighting against the divine will, because they contend against the true prophets, cooperating with the service of idols. That is to say, who can see God? Symmachus says: For who was present in the council, and who has heard? How then do you say that you have heard? ^B VERS. 22. *And if they had stood in my counsel, and had heard my words, they would have taught my people, and turned them from their evil way.* That is, if they had continued in my laws, and had awaited the grace from me, in every way they would have taught the people piety. No small token; not any chance rule establishes a prophet and a false prophet. *VERS. 23. I am a God drawing near, says the Lord, and not a God afar off. Shall a man be hidden in secret places, and I shall not see him, says the Lord?* That is to say, speaking what is pleasing to the multitude, you think to deceive them; and you bring those who do not know into suspicion, as if sent by me. ^C Why do you not consider my dignity, how I am present to each man, so as to know even his designs? And not, like men who are far away from your thoughts, am I ignorant of what you do. For who is there among you who meditates something according to his counsel, and escapes me? For this is what [the verse] signifies: *If a man shall be hidden in secret places, and I shall not see him?* That is to say, if someone wishes to hide anything in the secret place of his own mind, and it escapes my knowledge? That I know they have pushed them into wickedness. Whence do I know? I am present; I am everywhere. For if he often gives those who are not present prophets to know things that happen everywhere, much more does he himself know. But he does not say this, but, *I am a God drawing near;* ^D I am everywhere present; which was an indubitable token of knowing everything. *And not a God afar off.* For just as light is present everywhere, so also is God. VERS. 24. *Do I not fill heaven and earth?* I know, he says, how they compose prophecies: it is a token of suspicion for the wicked to prophesy wicked things; then, if he shall have told them, it will be manifest. VERS. 28. *What is the chaff to the wheat? says the Lord.* Ideally, he added this for the comparison of the prophets with the false prophets; as if to say: No

a comparison of chaff with wheat. For the latter is suitable for nutrition and most profitable for human substance; but chaff contributes nothing to human use, being either rejected or destined as food for irrational animals. Just so, he says, the words of the prophets nourish souls, whereas the speech of false prophets is able to contribute nothing toward the benefit of men, unless perhaps it provides some solace—though not profit or utility—to those who are persuaded by irrationality; and he adds, "Not so": that is, there is no comparison. ^B

VERS. 29. *Verba mea sicut ignis, dicit Dominus, et sicut securis cædens petram.* As if to say: The words of the prophets are truthful and possess efficacy. VERS. 30. *Ecce ego propterea ad prophetas.* How some who hear the prophets seem to me to emulate them, or others who hear those relating these things, like a serpent. On this account also Ezekiel says: "If a prophet comes," he says, "I, the Lord, have deceived him"; for he does not allow him to speak further, and therefore he also says he will take it away. VERS. 31. *Ecce ego ad prophetas.* He calls the false ones "prophecies of the tongue"; for true prophecies are not of the tongue. *Et dormitant dormitationem suam.* For many were accustomed to devise prophecies through dreams, through oracles. But at this time they shall be consoled. VERS. 34. *Et assumptionem Domini.* And what is the harm from this? Since they pretended they would receive it, he removes the ambiguity. For demons were also able to receive, and they were thought to receive from God. But this is not so.

Chapter XXIV.

as, because they are in no way useful, so will I consume all of them, for they are useless and have turned aside to impiety, and in no way do they keep a memory of their own Master. ^A He called them a basket of bad figs, because there was no righteous man found among them.

What is intended by the image of the basket of figs, which is so very humble? But the cause of its humbleness is the lowly state of affairs at that time. For even elsewhere, wishing to declare his love for them, he does not take anything great or truly desirable, but figs and grapes: *I found Israel as a grape in the desert, and as a first-ripe fruit on the fig tree*. Therefore, here he manifests through this image the love he was about to show toward them and the hatred toward these others. *And before the face of the temple of the Lord*, that he might show that the judgment was brought forth from there.

*Vers. 3. And the Lord said to me.* What is the reason he asks him? That he might make the word credible, and the people might hear the judgment from the very response.

*Vers. 4. And it came to pass.* What other way could be more apt for correcting? He shows the difference. For what if you are still in your homeland, but are full of vices? And what if those others are in captivity, but are lovers of me? He does this to change them, and that they might not think that their remaining was due to their own virtue.

*Vers. 6. And I will build them up.* Do you see that the "not," it is not forever? For he did destroy them. ^C

*Vers. 7. I will give them a heart.* If, therefore, you are the one who gives the heart, why did you not provide it before? For they were not then acceptable, before the punishments and the correction. See in this the head of all good things; and he adds the cause, namely, that *they will return*; but the simile does not allow it. For things that have once been corrupted cannot return, and become good. But he says that the good things indeed remain, but the bad things, by no means. But these things do not relate to nature, but to the will. For the difference is of quality, not of essence. But if you say: Why does he not also promise good things to these? It is because for this reason he increases the fear for these, that they might not even make the experiment.

*And those who dwell.* Do not, he says, be confident as if relying on allies; for so far from them being about to bring you any help, they themselves shall also be taken; and it will not be captivity alone, but the evils will proceed further.

*And they shall be for a reproach.* The memory of your punishment will be immortal, and known to all men.

CAP. XXV

*Vers. 1. The word which came to pass.*

He is now about to set the time for their punishment, and to pronounce the sentence. *And I spoke to you, rising up early.* By one prophet, these things [were spoken] constantly; for I also spoke through the others, and I did not cease speaking ever, and I spoke nothing burdensome. This is what Christ also does when He is about to deliver the city to the enemies; He all but makes a defense to them: *How often would I have gathered your children, and you would not?* and what follows. *Therefore thus saith the Lord.* Did I give it for this reason, that I might take it away again? Did I demand a wage from you? For it was a work of grace; no one is deprived of gifts unless the receiver has rendered himself most unworthy. *Behold, I send and will take a family.* I will bring, He says, the Babylonians, because you did not believe. Do you see whence their slothfulness originated? From disbelieving. This also happens now regarding hell; for could I not inflict punishment if I wished? But the false prophets are the cause of this. You did not believe the words; believe the deeds. *Upon all nations.* For what reason? That you may learn that the providence of the whole [world] belongs to God Himself. *And they shall serve.* Being a lover of mankind, He does not define the seventy years only from the destruction of the temple until the return, but even until the construction of the temple. And what I am saying is this: He brought them back before the seventy years were completed, and He reckoned the time of the return into the captivity; for when there was no temple, nor priest, nor altar, nor sacrifice, what differed between this and living in captivity? And this also was of His philanthropy. Therefore, in the time of Darius, he says, after the return, when so many times had passed, he asks: *How long, O Lord, dost thou not have mercy on Jerusalem?* This was the seventieth year, then the seventy were being fulfilled. He does the same even in punishment, saying: *A hundred and twenty years shall be the life of man,* and they live a hundred years. He did the same, too, in the resurrection; for having said that *three days and three nights* [He would be in the heart of the earth], He arises on the third day. But that [former instance] was naturally of philanthropy, but this [latter] was of what kind of philanthropy? Why, then, did He make it a triduum? In order that it might be believed that He had died; for many things are done for this reason. Why, then, did He not fulfill it, having said that He would be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights, if not so that the body might not see corruption? For what? Could He not have preserved it? He could, indeed; but He wished it to be believed that His nature had nothing foreign [to humanity]. Some say this was done for the sake of the disciples, that He might look to their weakness; for this reason, indeed, He did not even wait to appear to them Himself, but He exhilarates them with good news and eases their mind: *Go,* He says, *tell my brethren,* even though He could have appeared immediately and inspired greater faith in His word; but so that their hearing might be prepared; for they did not know...

that he would rise from the dead. Or this can be said, that Jonah also existed in the belly of the sea-monster; for corruption affects the body on the very first day: so that this is sufficient testimony that he had ceased to live. And indeed, when he threatens evils, he shortens the time and uses craft; but when he promises good things, he protracts it; for the good things which he gives, he does not give in a measured way, nay, nor even manifest ones. Nowhere does he prescribe an end for good things, but rather to the purpose of each individual, whereas for evils he does so everywhere: I have given you the land, he says, from age to age. Do you see that there are no such limits? When he sends into captivity, he defines it, and see ^A how: the first, 400; the second, 30; the third, up to 73 years; but this one after Christ is perpetual. Daniel makes mention of these years.

VERS. 12. And when they are accomplished. He foretells punishment to the Babylonians, so that you may learn that not even now did they perform these things by their own power.

* VERS. 12. And when seventy years are accomplished, and I will take vengeance upon the king of Babylon, and the things that follow. The seventy years of the captivity are counted from the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim, who reigned after Jehoahaz, who was established as king by the Egyptian.

* VERS. 15. Take the cup of wine of this fury from my hand, and you shall make all the nations drink from it, to whom I send you to them. ^B For "pure wine" (vini meri), the Hebrew has "of bitterness" (amaritudinis), and he looks to this vision for the consolation of the people. For since they fell into thoughts, seeing the Babylonian as the stronger, as though no benefit were perhaps provided for them from the service of God, the prophet—or rather God through the prophet—showing that they are enduring these things on account of sin, makes the prophecy against the nations, and all the kings, seventy-seven. He speaks of Idumea, now called Batanaea, which those of the tribe of Reuben, and half of the tribe of Manasseh, formerly possessed; and proceeding, he says:

VERS. 30. And these, as if treading, will answer against all those sitting upon the earth. "And these" (Ὧδε), that is, "they however" (οἵδε), is not well placed in the Greek; for it should have been "Dad" (Δάδ). Now "Dad" is the adverb of those treading [the winepress], while they answer to those gathering. Just as, therefore, he says, by saying this adverb they tread the grape with a spirited mind, so also will the Babylonian tread upon you, inasmuch as he treads upon all nations.

CHAPTER XXVI.

VERS. 2. Thus said the Lord: Stand in the court of the house of the Lord. So that they might understand that the prophet had feared nothing, and was speaking openly, as if anyone, about to pass sentence upon a man ^D of great and wonderful

^A stature, were to bring that man into the midst. What are you saying? Did you not say beforehand that, "Just like these evil figs, so will I give them up"? How, then, do you offer hope of change?

"Do not diminish." Why do you command this? Was it because the prophet would not do it? God forbid; but that he might render the word trustworthy and persuade them all the more to pay attention, and because it was in any case necessary for the prophecy to be announced.

"Perhaps they will listen." It often happens in cases of desperate and hopeless matters: this the prophet employs. "Perhaps they will listen," he says—the One who knows all things, and leads them toward hope. It happens by chance; "perhaps" is used in the Scriptures for affirmation. For example: "Perhaps they will revere my son," instead of "they ought to revere [him]."

"And will be turned back." This the prophet especially wanted to hear. "You wish to run the risk on such a hope; say, then, 'Thus says the Lord.'"

"And I will give this house." What grieved them the most; for they were very proud of the temple.

* "Nevertheless, the hand of Ahikam the son of Shaphan was with Jeremiah, so that he was not delivered into the hands of the people to be put to death."

That is, he warned him of the plots, so that he might retreat. These things are situated sequentially in the prophecy, where the reign of Jehoiakim begins, as we noted above; where he prophesied the capture of the city and of the temple, just as had happened previously at Shiloh. It is clear, therefore, ^C that what he said earlier against Jehoiakim, that "he will not be buried with a burial," and suchlike things that he said in this manner when they, having seized him, wished to kill him, as having spoken evil against the city. But he who compiled the prophet's words and set them above, for the reason we mentioned, acted so that it might be clear that those things have not been severed from the previous sequence, but are placed in the way we have explained.

"And now, make your ways better." See how instead of being a defendant, he has assumed the role of a teacher. He does not seek how he might escape danger, but how he might snatch them from evils.

"And listen." For if punishment were not set forth, if no terrible things were threatened, ought we not to listen to our God?

"And he will cease." What is more profitable than this word? But do you disbelieve? Is it I who deliver this judgment? It is God. Is it not God? You [bring it] upon yourselves.

"And behold, I am in your hands." What then? If I should die, will these things not come to pass? Of Stephen they said: "That he speaks blasphemous words against this holy place." ^D

"And behold, I am in your hands." What then? If I should die, will these things not come to pass? Of Stephen they said: "That he speaks blasphemous words against this holy place." They did not state what these blasphemies were. By silence we often amplify a matter, as when we say: "I do not wish to repeat what he said." After adding a few things: How, indeed, were they not to be credible accusers? For the priestly reverence was sufficient to establish them as worthy of belief; and those who ought to have restrained others, these very men instigate the populace, these stir up the anger of the crowd, and do not even await the judgment of the magistrates.

^A Ver. 17. *And they said to all the assembly of the people.* He spoke somewhat harshly, not only of desolation, but one also bitter; yet was he killed? No, but they feared the Lord. This one thing resolves everything. This was what needed to be done even now: not to dig up or kill one who foretells evils, but to consider how they might liberate themselves from those evils.

Ver. 19. *And we have committed great evils against our souls.* Therefore, there is a need for conversion; thus, he did not accuse rashly. For no one can say that the prophet spoke appropriately at that time, but not now. For we too are guilty of great evils. They were changed, therefore, and God changed His sentence. But we have returned to our vices.

CHAPTER XXVII.

Ver. 2, 3. *Thus says the Lord to me: Make thee bonds, and yokes, and put them about thy neck. And thou shalt send them to the king of Edom, and to the king of Moab, and to the king of the son of Ammon, and to the king of Tyre, and to the king of Sidon, by the hands of their messengers coming to meet them in Jerusalem to Zedekiah, king of Judah,* and what follows.

Someone might ask how, with the Jews oppressed by such immense calamities, their neighbors should send messengers to Zedekiah. The reason for this is as follows: From the times of Hezekiah, since that man was both pious and famous and celebrated in reputation, all his neighbors, because of the sign that had been granted to him, were most greatly moved by his glory and that of all the Israelites, and thus became allies. Therefore, since the Lord wished to instruct all that He is the God of all, so that they might not suppose it happened through any weakness of His own—He who possesses providence over all—that both the people were led away into captivity and the temple was destroyed, He commands the prophet to go to meet them, to manifest the strength of Nebuchadnezzar, and to exhort them not to trust in various and false pro-

prophets, ^A so that from the very reality of events they might recognize the power of God, and that the people became captive because of their sins, not through the weakness of Him who exercises providence. Furthermore, He calls the "bond" the yoke, and the "crossbar" the wood which is bound around the yoke, by which the neck of the oxen is constrained.

See when he heard it, and when he performed it. Hence it is clear that they were not accustomed to hear all the things which they prophesied at the time they occurred. For what reason? So that there would not even be a need for the sign, so that when men learned that this sign was commanded to be performed, they might be brought to their senses. You see how God exercises providence for all things.

Thus He said: *And now I am, I have not changed, I am of the same power.* See how He renders the reason for His counsel. If I did it, I certainly also have the right of bestowing it. But you do not believe that I did it; you will believe through the things that happen hereafter. It seemed good to me to give it to Nebuchadnezzar. See how He also suppresses their pride. For did he come by his own strength, and does he overcome the cities? He himself establishes these things from above. Consider how He teaches them the knowledge of God, so that from these things they might also learn the former things.

*And the wild animals.* Do not become more senseless than these, nor ungrateful; the irrational creatures obeyed, but do you resist? For do I deliver only you? And my city as well? You see that His providence is universal? For He himself made all men; therefore He takes care of all equally; for there is no partiality with Him.

*And the nation.* ^B Observe how much freedom of speech there is, how miserably he indicated their servitude, because he was very confident in what was being said, and clearly, without any obscuration: *Whoever shall not bow his neck*; he speaks as if about some wild beasts.

*And do not you listen to the false prophets.* Do you see a tribunal sitting, and an examination taking place of divination and prophecy? Those men say these things, but I say the contrary; let us see to whom the end bears witness.

*And the nation which shall cast.* Does this also contain something? Is this also a conjecture? That some shall be slaughtered, but others shall be left? Therefore a famine shall also oppress them.

*To Sedecias.* Do not think that I speak these things as an enemy and an adversary; I prophesy these same things to those among us as well. Then observe what happens: the false prophet contradicts. This the devil suggested, in order to hinder the prediction. ^C *If they are prophets, and the word of the Lord is in them, let them now meet the Lord of hosts, so that the vessels which had been left in the house of the Lord, and in the house of the king of Juda, and in Jerusalem, may not be carried to Babylon.*

Since the false prophets were asserting that those who were present would suffer nothing, but rather the contrary, and those

that those who had been carried away might return, the prophet says: If these are true prophets, and God has sent them, let them meet the Lord—that is, let them pray to God, so that those things which still remain may not be carried away, which is surely easier than that those who have already been carried away return; that from these things we may know that the other shall also come to pass.

What is meant by the words: "Let them meet me, God, so that the vessels may not come"? It is to hinder God, to persuade Him, showing that even those coming to meet Him do not know at all whether it is for war, or to hinder the Jews. I do not say, he says, that they should persuade Him to bring back the vessels that have been taken, but that they might be able to hinder the remaining vessels. ^B

CHAPTER XXVIII

VER. 5. *And Jeremiah said.* When Ananias the false prophet had said that after two years the holy vessels would be brought back from Babylon, Jeremiah said that the outcome would prove the truth of the words.

VER. 6. *Truly, etc.* Do not think that I am an enemy to you; I desire and pray that this may be so, and that I myself may be lying.

VER. 7. *Nevertheless, hear.* Then, that he might not make them more slothful, observe how he terrifies them, saying almost that nothing of the kind will happen; and showing that all the prophets who announce grievous things are the most truthful. ^C

VER. 9. *And Ananias the false prophet took in the sight of all the people the yokes from the neck of Jeremiah the prophet, and broke them. And what follows.* Jeremiah, carrying the yoke upon his neck as God had commanded him, having prophesied against the nations, prophesied also against Jerusalem. Now it was the fourth year of Zedekiah, as the prophet himself asserts. Therefore, in the fifth month of this year, Ananias the false prophet, rushing into the midst of the captives, was prophesying their return and the destruction of Nebuchadnezzar, and, as if he were doing these things at God's command, he broke the yoke. Then a revelation of Jeremiah against him is set down, and a revelation confirming the truth of those things which had previously been said; for he says to him: ^D Consider the sins; the rebukes are upon us. What then did Jeremiah do? He did nothing at all, having set forth a sufficient rebuke.

VER. 15. *This year you shall die (that is, vengeance having been brought upon him), because you have spoken against the Lord.* That is, contrary to the will of God, and he adds:

VER. 16. *And Ananias the false prophet died in that year, two months after the words of the prophet.*

These things truly having been done, Jeremiah writes to those who were in the transmigration, just as God commanded him, not

not to allow themselves to be deceived by those who predict a return; but rather to know that those who were still in their fatherland would also be deported. ^A

CHAPTER XXIX.

Vers. 1. And these are the words of the book.

Why, pray, does he write also to those who were in Babylon? Did they not have Ezekiel there? What is the purpose of this letter? It is done out of superabundance. For, because it was likely that they would hold in greater reverence him who spoke from the temple and the sanctuary, he indicates this. But consider their perverse malice: the false prophets had corrupted them there as well.

Vers. 21. Behold, I will deliver you into the hands of Nabuchodonosor the king of Babylon, and the things that follow.

These were false prophets; and when Jeremiah, after the death of Ananias, had sent an epistle containing the things which he himself had predicted to those who were in the migration, they were prophesying the contrary. God, therefore, speaks against them through the prophet ^B and says: "Upon Achiab and upon Sedecias." For whoever heard—who this Achiab was, and who this miserable fellow who was roasted—learned also the prophecy, and their secret sins.

Vers. 23. For that they have committed iniquity in Israel, and have committed adultery with the wives of their fellow citizens.

For when the Babylonian heard them saying these things, he had them brought to Babylon, and he roasted and killed them. The phrase, "and have committed adultery with the wives of their fellow citizens," the Hebrew reads as "of their friends." "And I am the knower, and the witness, saith the Lord." This means: those things which you do in secret, unknown to the many, these I see, and I demand the penalty from you.

Vers. 24. And to Sameas.

He also says what would happen to their wives.

Vers. 26. The Lord hath given thee priest.

Why, then, does he send a prophet to this Sameas as well? Behold three prophecies: one, that the seventy years are being fulfilled; another, that they will return; ^C a third, that those around Achiab will die, and will be a curse.

Vers. 28. Because he hath sent to you in Babylon, saying: It is far, build ye houses, and the things that follow.

This Sameas was an exile along with those who had been carried away. Since, therefore, he was rejoicing in the return, he delighted in those who said these things. When that epistle was sent by the prophet, exhorting the people to be content with their dwelling in Babylon, Sameas, taking it ill, writes first to Sophonias, who was the priest at that time—these things which I have now set forth from the text—reproaching Sophonias because he had not exacted a penalty from Jeremiah who had sent these commands. The phrase "into the prison Sinoch," that is to say, into the confinement of the guard. For Sinoch is called confinement, while the Hebrew

he does not explain it well; for this reason, instead of "prison," he uses the term "enclosure."

VERS. 32. *Behold, I will visit.* What can be more marvelous than this? Shemaiah was the one who was not to see the good things of Jerusalem, yet he causes them to have faith that what had preceded did not happen by chance; for since Jeconiah had surrendered himself of his own accord—lest they think they had gained less because they obeyed God—he says, "You shall see what good things these will have."

CAP. XXX

VERS. 2. *Thus said the Lord.* I am so certain, he says, of the prediction, that I wish it to be written down as well, which the end will especially demonstrate.

*You shall hear a voice of fear.* Fear dissolves all strength. Great is the humanity of God, not only that He brings evils, but that He causes fear even before the evils.

*They shall pass into the weakness of women.* *They are turned.* For this is what fear does: it makes a man wise, not through his own virtue, but by the things that impend.

VERS. 7. *For that day has become great.* Great, according to the terrible intensity of the evils, and there is none like it. It is said hyperbolically, and the time is narrow; the thing is not a prophecy, but an experience.

VERS. 8. *I will break the yoke.* Yet nevertheless, they shall be refreshed from the inevitable evils.

*And they shall not serve.* How do they serve God? Because they were offering the first fruits. So indeed it happens with us: when we do not serve God, nor offer to Him the fruit of the flesh, but offer it to the passions of the soul—just as they did to idols—another punishment awaits.

VERS. 9. *And David.* What can be holier than this, that those who are illustrious in virtue and have had authority before God, such as Zerubbabel, should receive this great honor from God, to be distinguished by the appellation of David?

VERS. 12. *I have raised up a contrition.* Just as if any master were to hand over someone of his own household who had sinned to an executioner, and the latter, having beaten the one delivered to him beyond measure and more than the master intended, the one who handed him over should arrive and almost apologize to the one who was beaten, showing that this happened beyond his commands, and rightly recognizing how he was wounded, and promising him the greatest vengeance. So too does God. *The contrition is violent.* Do you see Him excusing Himself because the wound was severe? For this is what "violent" means: not as much as was necessary, but by much greater.

FRAGMENTS ON JEREMIAH

^A *Vers. 13. There is no one to judge.* That is, there was no avenger, no one to offer help. It is unendurable to suffer some evil, but when one has suffered, it is even more unendurable not to have someone to offer consolation. *You have been groomed for sorrow.* For since He applied captivity to them as a kind of medicine, He says: The medicine caused much pain, as is wont to happen with an unskilled physician who does not know how to perform surgery well.

*Vers. 16. Therefore all who consume you.* One will inflict disgrace upon another; each will nourish his neighbor with his own flesh: they will suffer the very things they did.

*Vers. 17. Because I will lead away.* Even if the wound is incurable, it is not so to me. *Because you have been called dispersed.* The others say, "surrounded," because you have paid the penalty. It is a great good that not only the wicked and desperate are saved by God through punishments and castigations, but through virtue and repentance.

*Vers. 19. And they shall go out from them singing.* What, then, is this to those who are about to be destroyed? For these things not only did not gladden them, but even saddened them more. For consider a man worn out by old age, hearing that good things will come after seventy years. For it is precisely for this reason that He lingers on these things, that it might sting their souls more sharply; but as for those of youthful age, by offering them hope, He makes them more cautious.

*Vers. 20. And they shall enter.* See how He describes their prosperity, their worship, and their freedom, and that they will be many and will possess their laws. For these things were dear to them. *For wrath.* These things, He says, will be; do not seek them now; for now is the time of our punishment.

CHAPTER XXXI

*Vers. 1. In time.* When others perish, He speaks of the things concerning the Babylonians.

*Vers. 2. Thus says the Lord: I found a warm one in the desert who, with those who had perished by the sword, were walking to the feasts of Israel. Go, and do not destroy Israel.*

^B The text in the Greek is quite obscure; but this meaning is preserved in the Hebrew: "He found favor in my sight, having been left behind by the sword, as Israel in the wilderness." For what the Greek interpreted as *warm* (calidum), the Hebrew has as *favor* (gratiam); the error in the interpretation arose from the similarity of the name. For *kham* (warm) in the Hebrew tongue, properly aspirated, is "warm," but *khen* (favor) is "charming beauty." And *those who perished by the sword* means those who were left behind by the sword. That is to say, "Those who were saved after death, these I also save." And *walking to the feasts of Israel*, that is, ^D "When I was walking toward his rest in the wilderness," which He states more explicitly through what follows: *Go, and do not destroy Israel.*

^A Do you see? Everywhere his objective is to show that everything comes from Him. He said, "While the Babylonians perish, you shall be saved." Then He shows that which was beyond hope, and which human reasoning could not conceive, namely, that they were not to perish. Just as if one were to find, among many corpses, one who was still warm, still breathing, and showing signs of life, and were then to labor greatly, driving back the enemies from him, and almost calling him back to life; surely, that person would be doing a marvelous thing. "So it has happened to you," He says. "From their midst I raised you up; finding you breathing on the path of the enemy, I held back those who wanted to strike you, when you had no hope of salvation."

*VERS. 3. From afar the Lord appeared to him: I have loved you with an everlasting love.* These are the words of the prophet: that is, God showed me through a vision things that were spoken of long ago, and from of old: how He led the people through the wilderness out of pure love; and He said to me now: "With that same love I have loved him eternally," that is, unto the end. "And for this reason I do not permit him to be destroyed, but I save the people who are in migration."

^B *Therefore I have drawn you in mercy.* That is, because of that love He made them worthy of this present grace, redeeming them from the Babylonians. The word "drawn," here, is to show that He plucked them out when they were being held fast. "In mercy," that is, I have clothed him in grace. Not just for a time, as you do; even if you do everything, I love you. Granting mercy, not rewarding merit.

*VERS. 4. For I will build you up, and you shall be built.* That is, I am restoring to you your ancient form again, since no one can stand against it. He sets forth signs of the highest peace and the deepest tranquility; and the very words themselves are sweet.

^C *VERS. 5, 6. Plant plantations, and praise, for it is the day of consolation, as if answering on the mountains of Ephraim. Arise, and let us ascend into Sion to the Lord our God.* The sense of the Greek text here is this: When you have returned, you will obtain the fertility of the land, having become possessors of that same land. For this is what is hinted at by the phrase, "On the mountains of Ephraim," designating the whole land by a specific part; as if He were saying, "You will return with great effort to the temple, celebrating God." But the Hebrew has it thus: *And they shall plant and eat the fruit.* For there will be a day on which the keepers of the vineyards shall call out, [Arise...].

and let us ascend to Sion.] The meaning is preserved; for by the benefit of each, he shows an overflowing piety.

*Quia plantastis* (For you have planted). See how, everywhere, he joins their conversion with the blessings.

*VERS. 7. Exsultate in laetitia, et laetamini, et hinnite super caput gentium* (Exult in joy, and be glad, and neigh upon the head of the nations). That is, cry out before the nations, fearing them not at all because of my alliance.

*VERS. 8. Ecce ego adduco eos de terra Aquilonis, et congregabo eos ab extremo terrae in solemnitate Phasec* (Behold, I lead them from the land of the North, and I will gather them from the end of the earth at the feast of the Passover). That is, just as in the feast of the Passover, so will I make all return with eagerness.

Then he mentions both the feast and the time. You see ^B that at the feast of the Passover—at that time, that is, when even then they were able to go forth from Egypt—they were grieved. This is not just the time of either entry. But you who have been initiated know of what this was a figure. A second time they are returning.

*Et generabit* (And he shall beget). So also, those who were then crippled, their bodies being healed, shall be as fathers.

*In ploratu* (In weeping). Since it was to be expected that they, knowing both the length and the hardship of the journey, would be dizzy, he deservedly dispels this fear as well, saying: "You shall not come fleeing, nor troubled, but with honor and comfort and appropriate relief." Yet what logic could discover this: that with the city taken and the masters having been conquered, the slaves were to be sent home with honor by the masters who had captured them?

*Quia factus sum* (Because I became). See the necessary cause of their salvation, which does not allow them to be puffed up. For I save them not because of their accomplishments, but because of a natural disposition. This shows that he will also save everyone. For no father will neglect a firstborn child, and one saved by a father would have nothing to boast of.

*VERS. 10. Audite verba* (Hear the words). He who has sinned the most, he who is most corrupted, ^D and who has no hope of salvation. Make the whole world a witness to what is said; so great is our confidence regarding them.

*Dicite qui ventilavit* (Tell who has winnowed). See how great the glory is, when they suffer no evil at the hands of men. If anyone does not believe that the war was sent by God, seeing clearly what is more difficult—the return, which happened through Him—let him also believe [in this].

*Quasi pastor* (As a shepherd). Do you see that it is the work of God when the battle does not proceed with equal force?

*Liberavit eum* (He delivered him).

Consider the good things succeeding one another and coming in crowds, and the abundance of prophecies, so that they may be cheered not only by the experience of present things but also by the hopes of future ones. ^A *VERS. 12. And their soul shall be as a fruitful tree.* That is to say, they shall be filled with every good. But the Hebrew reads thus: *As a garden drunk with waters.* *VERS. 13. Then they shall rejoice.* This signifies that there will be no widowhood then; for now there were no marriages, nor procreation, but punishments, and the young provided an occasion for miseries. *And I will do.* Every age will perceive this joy. He says, not with untimely drunkenness, but I will gladden [them]; for he uses this very word concerning them. For since He promised them things from the earth, and they did not possess land, yet to them also shall good things flow, He says. *Thus said the Lord.* This happened under Herod, and has happened even now. ^B *VERS. 18. Hearing I heard Ephraim lamenting: Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised.* Since He indicates the return of the two tribes, He shows that the ten tribes will also return, having derived no small profit from the captivity. *As a calf I have not learned.* I became obstinate like a calf that abhors the yoke. There is no small hope of salvation, and this looks to the end that faith may be applied to these words; for if it is to be that they repent, it is clear that they are to be saved. *I as a calf have not learned.* Its leaping shows an age devoid of reason, and the injustice of those persisting in evil, the folly that is in youth. For a young man deprived of the yoke and of the rule of his thoughts differs nothing from heifers leaping rashly and wandering here and there as chance carries them, not seeing with their eyes the things set before them, but casting themselves headlong into sheer places. *Convert me.* Great is the virtue when, as God converts, we are converted. ^C *VERS. 19. And before I knew, I cried a little.* That is, after the captivity I repented; for I cried, as was said concerning those who perform penance. ^D *I am confounded, and I heard thee, because I have received reproach from my youth.* I remembered, indeed, the sins of my youth. Furthermore, he calls "youth" that which happened in the times of Jeroboam, who, having devised novelties, introduced the worship of idols. When you do not chastise every one who sins, it is necessary to grieve. For chastisement provides more sense for confusion and for avoiding many other sins. But now the opposite happens: while we are sinning, we are shameless; when we are punished, we are cast down in spirit.

^A Yet the righteous are not so; but when they were punished, they would lift up their minds, just as the apostles did. In the midst of their sins, however, they were so suffused with shame that not only during the time of the transgressions, but even after it has passed, and the punishment had been remitted, they would sigh and lament.

And after a few lines: *I have groaned in the days of my confusion.*

This is the medicine for sins, a groaning that, on the one hand, does not allow one to fall into the same sins, and on the other, wipes away what has been committed.

And I have shown it to thee.

Dost thou see how great a good it is to recognize one’s sins? It makes us even more subject to God. I do not say to sin, but after the sin, to recognize it.

*VER. 20. Ephraim is a beloved son to me.*

That is, thou art an honorable son. A delicate little child, that is, a little child in whom I delighted; he uses a metaphor from parents who play with their infant children. *Remembering I will remember him.* The Hebrew: *Therefore my heart is stirred for him, and I will have mercy on him, says the Lord.* Therefore I visited him; that is, on account of the affection with which I pursue him, I could not bear to see him in calamities. ^B

Dost thou see how great a change he has wrought? To have transformed the wicked one, the enemy, the foe, into a beloved son, so that it is not merely a matter of nature, but that he is also a noble and generous son.

*VER. 21. Set thee up, Sionim, as watchtowers.*

Sionim is interpreted as "signs." He says, therefore: Mark the way, as if placing watchtowers for thyself, for through this thou shalt return.

*And do thou make for her a punishment.*

It is placed obscurely in the Greek. For the Hebrew reads thus: *Set up for thyself signs*, instead of "punishment." Perhaps according to the Greek, this may be the sense: Constitute a watchtower, that is, a sign, from whence thou didst pass by having been punished, so that returning thou mightest recognize the magnitude of the power. But it must be known that the word "punishment" does not exist in the Hebrew. ^C

*Set thy heart on thy shoulders, the way by which thou didst pass.*

That is, consider in thy heart this way in which thou walkest, afflicted by adverse circumstances.

*Return to thy cities, O mourning one.*

The Hebrew: *Return to these thy cities.* For instead of "mourning," it has "these," and here the similarity of the names caused the diversity of the interpretation. For *ala* signifies mourning, and *ele*, these. Thus, therefore, the Greek text is to be understood: Return to thy cities, thou who art mourning; as if he were to say, "Thou who now departest with tears, shalt return with joy."

*VER. 22. How long wilt thou turn away, O shamed daughter?* ^D The Hebrew reads thus: *How long wilt thou be distracted, daughter...*

that is to say, if thou repentest, God shall most speedily bring thee back from captivity. ^A *In new plantation, in salvation shall men go about.* This is, that the Lord shall cultivate you as a new plantation; for He has set "new" to mean "fresh." When, therefore, shall He do this? At the return, when He shall provide salvation for you. Not as formerly, so that rest might follow again; all those things have been wrapped in silence; there is no longer any account of them. *And those who dwell.* Every good thing is everywhere, and even up to the neighbors; and it is a just and holy mountain; not as though the stones take hold of virtue, but the inhabitants. For the reputation of those who dwell in places is wont to be shared with the places themselves. See the change.

*VER. 24. And it shall be lifted up in a flock.* That is, it shall be gathered as a flock. ^B It is a great good, not when we enjoy goods, but when we do so according to the will of God, when this also brings joy to Him.

*VER. 26. Therefore I was awakened, and I saw, and my sleep was made pleasant to me.* These things, he says, were revealed to me while I was sleeping and having a pleasant sleep.

*VER. 28. And it shall be as.* With as much zeal as I did those things, so, he says, shall I do these things, which are more familiar to me; let no one, therefore, disbelieve. For if I am so vehement in punishment, a matter foreign to me, I am much more aroused toward that which is my own. ^C

*VER. 29. In those days.* Ezekiel also holds this same view. But I ask, was it really so entirely happening before, and did a matter so full of such injustice occur; and with parents sinning, was another punished? And how, I ask, were these things bearable? And after a few words: Let us be attentive in mind to what is said. *They shall not say,* he says; *they shall not,* he says, *by no means shall it come to pass,* showing that it had not happened even before this; for if he had said, "In those days this shall no longer happen," you would rightly say that this had happened before. But because he says: *They shall no longer say,* it is a judgment of their corrupted thinking. ^D

*VER. 30. But every man shall die in his own iniquity.* This is a certain and clear prophecy, of which Paul also made mention at one time, writing to the Hebrews: "Where there is a forgiveness of sins, there is no longer any offering for sin; there shall be days." But he does not say which, and when, and after how much time. For He wished these things to be overshadowed.

*VER. 32. Not according to the testament.* I ask, why didst Thou not give such a testament? He disapproved of it; it was not perfect. Therefore, neither should it have been given at the beginning at all: men enact laws, and they wish them to be firm forever, but Thou dost not.

^A *For they did not remain in my covenant, and I neglected them.* And after a few words: Do you wish me to bring forward the words of the Apostle, which harmonize perfectly with these things spoken? "Why do you tempt God to put a yoke upon the neck..., which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?" 13 You see that grace was given for this reason, that by grace the promise might be made firm. *For they did not remain.* For not to remain, and to transgress, are the same thing. Therefore, one is He who gave the New and the Old.

*VERS. 33. I will establish with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah, after those days, saith the Lord, giving my laws in their mind, and I will write them upon the breast of their heart.* For Moses commanded that the law be read to all, and even only after seven years. He says, therefore, that I will grant them such and so great a knowledge of my own, that they will have no need of reading, since they will have an understanding of those things which are for the pursuit of good. He makes no mention of the nations, lest he afford them an excuse, just as Christ also says: "I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." 14

*Giving I will give.* Tell me, where has this happened? For the law was indeed written. For us, indeed, there are countless testimonies for demonstrating the Spirit. Jesus handed down nothing in writing; "He will teach you all things." 15 Not stony tablets, nor engraved letters, but their mind will become a pillar for the law given by Him.

*And upon the heart.* For, see: from the tablet, it was not possible for all to know [it], but from the apostles, all became living pillars, going about the world, carrying within themselves the letters of God which they had, which not a reed, nor ink, but God Himself engraved. Behold the equality of honor of the Father and of the Spirit; those tablets were engraved by the finger of God, these by the grace of the Spirit. And those were shattered, signifying their end from the very beginning; and it was a type of what was to come, and that the law would one day cease, and that they would shatter their own yoke. ^D But here it is nothing of the kind; rather, those tablets remained, having become indestructible by any injury of time.

*And they shall not teach.* What need, then, is there for instruction, tell me? To what region do you wish to go, to what sea, or to what land? Whether to the barbarian or the Greek, to cities or to wastes, there you will find the cross, and you will hear countless narratives; and the desert, and the inhabited land, and the mountains, and the level plains resound with Christ. And a little later: For just as this sun does not shine for the great only, but also for the small, so also the Sun of righteousness [shines for] small, great, slave, free,

^A rulers, the ruled, kings, private citizens, infants, and old men, he has illuminated the souls of all with the light of knowledge.

*Quia omnes intelligent me* (For all shall know me). Only the laver of regeneration bestows this. Do you see the precise symbol of the law? But the law is not so. For they are not called to labors and sweats, but to the forgiveness of their transgressions and the forgetting of their sins.

For not all who are of Israel are Israelites; nor because they are the seed of Abraham are they all children. Hear, then, of which Israelites he speaks: If the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, he says, the remnant shall be saved. But the blessed Paul, interpreting this more accurately, says: God has not cast away his people; for I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. You have seen the remnant: the apostles, those who received the word from them, the Israelites, the three thousand, and the five thousand, the multitude mentioned in the Acts.

VERS. 35. *Hæc dicit Dominus* (Thus says the Lord). He recounts his works so that he may produce belief in what is said.

*VERS. 36. Si cessaverint leges hæ a facie mea, dicit Dominus, et genus Israel cessabit esse gens ante faciem meam cunctis diebus.* (If these laws cease from before me, says the Lord, and the race of Israel ceases to be a nation before me for all days.) He speaks of the laws of creation, for it is about this that he is discoursing. Just as it is impossible, he says, for the boundaries set for creation to be changed, so neither is the promise made concerning the Jews on account of Abraham. ^B

*VERS. 37. Si elevari potuerit cælum sursum, et si humiliabitur fundamentum terræ infra, et ego reprobabo omne genus Israel, ait Dominus, propter omnia quæ fecerunt.* (If it is possible for the heaven to be elevated on high, and the foundation of the earth to be lowered below, I will also reject the whole race of Israel, says the Lord, for all that they have done.) That is to say, if the height of the sky can be measured and the depths of the earth grasped, it is possible for me also to cast off the race of Israel. He intends to say: "Just as these things remain as I have ordained from above, and having come into being have continued following the established bounds, so too will the promise made to Abraham be immutable." For not even now, though I permitted them to be led away as captives, have I violated the covenant made with him. ^C

*VERS. 38. Ecce dies veniunt, dicit Dominus, et ædificabitur civitas Domino a turri Ananiel usque ad portam anguli.* (Behold, days are coming, says the Lord, and the city will be built for the Lord from the tower of Ananiel unto the corner gate.) And what follows. That is, from the tower of Ananiel. He intends to set forth the size of the city, and that it will be greater than it formerly was. Ananiel, however, was a certain leader. ^D

*VERS. 39. Et exibit ultra spes funiculorum dimensionis ejus.* (And it shall extend beyond the reach of its measuring lines.) He narrates the measurements of the city; that is, it will be stretched straight from the corner, while there was good hope, that [it] to...

stood, as the matter proposed shall be fulfilled, God assisting. ^A

"Usque ad colles Garib (nomen loci): et circumdabitur Goatha (iterum nomen loci)."

"VERS. 40. Et omnem vallem Phaagarim, et cinerem Phaagarim."

This is, where the dead are cast. And "cinerem," instead of, and the burial-places [LXX reading for *dead-places*]. The following also signifies the same thing: "Et omnem Anasarimoth," instead of, a place of dung. "Usque ad torrentem Cedron, usque ad angulum portæ equorum Orientis, sanctum Domino."

This means that what was formerly outside the city, where the dung was cast, these shall be enclosed and adorned, and the whole place shall be as a sanctuary to the Lord, that is, set apart ^B for God. And "equorum Orientis," signifies the horse gate which was situated towards the East.

CHAPTER XXXII

"VERS. 1. Verbum quod factum est."

Do you see the forbearance of God? For so long a time He endured them after their defection and violated covenants; and yet he did not become better, but even while threats were being cast at him, he was the same; and this did not suffice, but he even threw the prophet into prison.

"VERS. 2. Et Jeremias custodiebatur."

Why, I ask, tell me? "Since you say: Thus says the Lord: Behold, I give this city." Could it be that these are my own words? If they were mine, there would be no need to fear them; but if they are not mine, one must believe that they are not mine, and that they shall be true. But this is a custom of those who are corrected to say: "Let us bind the just man, because he is unprofitable to us." ^C

"VERS. 6. Et verbum Domini."

Then, so that he might not despair, he buys, having been bidden by God. Who would have done this? When the city was about to be taken, this man buys fields. And a little later: "He wished to be believed also concerning the good things." For since the grievous things came to pass, and God gave proof of His power by the very events, He consoles them in their adversity with the hope of good things; and no longer with words, but with deeds.

"Cum populi regressum significasset," for the full confirmation of what was said, He commands the prophet, while locked in the king's prison, to buy his uncle’s field, Ananiel to wit; and when this was done, and the documents were completed, and the possession received, He ordered Baruch to place the book in an earthenware vessel, as a sign, ^D namely, that the people would again possess that land. But when Baruch went about the city—for it was the tenth year of the reign of Zedekiah, in which the Babylonian, having come up, was besieging Jerusalem—he prays to God, being astonished at the thing that had occurred, or [wondering] in what manner He should have commanded him to take the field if He were about to surrender the city; and as if in some doubt he stands upon what was said. He therefore continued his prayer, as if God were answering him.

VERS. 17. *Thou who art, O Lord.* He does not use this expression rashly, "Thou who art, O Lord." It cannot be said, "He will pass away"; Thou art always able, for Thou are always Lord. Therefore, Thou art powerful over things. *And who renderest.* He does not say, "to the third and fourth generation," but passes over this in silence; for He wishes mercy to be extended to them again. This is a work of power: to be able to save even now, and to punish those who are later. As if to say: Thou who canst chastise the children, but save others from among the progenitors. Wherefore He says: "No word will be impossible for Thee," whether it pleases Thee to show mercy, or to punish, or for a long time. ^A

VERS. 19. *O great God.* Which among men is divided, between wisdom and power. *Thine eyes.* And he rightly said, "They are open at all times," Thou never closest them; a watchful eye, an unsleeping gaze. No one can say that Thou indeed seest, but dost not render. This is also found in men, but not so in Thee; but Thy eyes are upon all ways, even the hidden ones. ^B

VERS. 20. *Who hast made.* And this is a work of virtue, and justice, and piety, and knowledge.

VERS. 23. *And they did not hear Thy voice.* *And Thou hast caused all these evils to come upon them.*

VERS. 24. *Behold the crowd.* He does not dare to ask for the rest, but he brings up the memory of those things which were once done for the people. I have not wherewith to speak; I have done what Thou didst command, although the city is being surrendered to captivity. ^C

VERS. 24. *And the word of the Lord came to me, saying: Behold, I am the Lord the God of all flesh, shall anything be hidden from me?* He afterward foretells the ruin of the city, and adds the recall, insinuating this to the prophet, that he had fallen into sorrow in vain for having bought the field. For since I knew most exactly what things were to be hereafter, I promised the recall, and the present things shall be a sure sign to thee of future events. For I said that the city was to be pillaged, and it has been pillaged. Thus I also announce the recall, and what I promise, I will perform in very deed. ^D

VERS. 27. *I am the Lord.* Thou seest that this is what he was asking for, that the city should not be surrendered? But He, as if excusing Himself, recounts the iniquities of the places about to be consigned to the fire, and the cause.

VERS. 30. *For they were.* Those things, He says, which pertained to Me, I did; I taught, I instructed. But they lapsed into malice. They showed that they did these things as if by a kind of rivalry; they erected altars in My temple; and they dared all other things, and burned their sons, and were ignorant of nature itself.

VERS. 36. *And now thus saith the Lord.*

I will deliver them, and I will bring them back. And He shows them a marvelous way of life and a heart that loves God, which He always inculcates, and an everlasting testament. These things have attained their end. But if they have not attained it, when will they be, I ask?

^A • VERS. 44. And fields will be bought for money, and it will be written in a book, and it will be sealed, and witnesses will be testified in Benjamin, and in the cities of Judah, and in the cities of the mountain, and in the cities of the Shephelah, and in the cities of the Negeb, for I will return their captivity, says the Lord.

For by the same reasoning that you have now obtained security of possession, establishing it by legal transfer, so it will be even after the return. But the phrase "in the cities of the Negeb" indicated the place of imprisonment, that is, the cities that incline towards the south, as if He were saying, "everywhere in the land of promise."

Chapter XXXIII

VERS. 3. And call unto me.

See how He wishes to win over the prophet through prayer? For Moses also underwent this same thing regarding the promises, saying: "Shall the food of the sea be provided for them, and shall cattle and sheep be slaughtered for them?" For even if they were great, they were nevertheless ignorant.

VERS. 4. For thus said the Lord God of Israel concerning the houses of the city, and the things that follow.

Since Jeremiah was bound as infamous, and as one who had threatened the king with ruin, yet he had announced the restoration by the command of God, and had confirmed the word by the legal transfer of the field; but since no one any longer paid heed to what was said, imagining that the prophet was saying these things out of flattery rather than from an exact knowledge of future events, he continued in a state of great distress and ambiguity. God therefore says to him: "Consider My power, and how I brought forth creation, and set order upon it, caring for men, and now I have heard you calling upon Me, and I foretell the things to come, and the abundance of all things—things by which it would have been fitting for you to be persuaded, and to trust in your soul that there would be no falsehood in your words." Thus, He renders him persuaded that the captivity was not brought about in vain, but so that, having been chastened, they might come to their senses. Then He brings the message of restoration.

^D • VERS. 23-24. And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying, Has this people not felt shame? He spoke, saying: The two families which the Lord chose in them, and behold, He has cast them off, and I have provoked my people so that they are no longer a nation before me?

Do not, He says, conceive this in your mind, that I am bringing total destruction upon the city; but consider how, from particular calamities, the Jews have not in the least become wiser. For the false prophets, He says, going about, accuse Me, as if I had done things contrary to my own promises.

had I sent, but since I had chosen two kindred groups, that is to say two kingdoms, namely that of Judah and that of Ephraim, having taken little account of my promise, I expelled the multitude: through which they led the people astray, and completely changed the worship of piety. It is just, therefore, that I should exact penalties from them for this impiety, so that, having become saner in mind, they might inhabit the land, as is fitting, which I promised to their fathers. ^A

VERS. 25. *Thus saith the Lord: If my covenant of day and night be not, I have not set the bounds of heaven and earth. Indeed, I would have cast away the seed of Jacob, and of David my servant, so as not to take princes from his seed.*

The sense is this: Just as, having promised to men to preserve the order established in creation, and that winter and summer, spring and autumn should succeed one another in turn, I have kept my promise inviolate to this day; so, having promised to David that his seed would always reign, I will not lie. But some, [*regarding* "if I had not set the bounds of heaven and earth of day and night"], have interpreted it thus: I would surely not have created heaven and earth, had I not wished for there to be day and night; but just as, with the succession of day and night proposed to me from the beginning, I brought forth the nature of heaven and earth, and have never dissolved what I proposed for myself in creation, so also I will never make void the promise made to David. When God had persuaded the prophet with these things, He commands him to announce the destruction of the city to King Zedekiah, and to add the cause: that they do not repent of their actions, and that they violate the pacts made with God: and He convicts them from the fact that they again recalled those whom, for the sake of obtaining freedom, they had sworn *should be free* according to the law, He adds. ^B

Chapter XXXIV.

VERS. 4. *Thou shalt not die.* In order that he might at least breathe in this way; for this came to pass when he was led away to Babylon; and he attained great peace there, so that he might acknowledge the piety of God, and so that he might bear the tidings of sorrow with a more composed mind, *they shall lament thee.*

VERS. 8. *The word which came.* The law was ancient, that a Hebrew should serve for six years. For He wished the Jews to be pious toward all men. But since they were unwilling, He wished in the meantime to draw them to this, that they should spare their fellow tribesmen. What, then, is done? ^C Coming together, they all bound themselves by an oath, and entered into a pact before the priests, the nobles, and all the others, with Zedekiah himself also being present, that this should be done, and that each one should release his manservant and maidservant. Then they repented of their action, and wished them to be menservants and maidservants again.

VERS. 12. *And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah.* Having first appointed creditors, I then gave them the law; I freed them from servitude, and *it was that they also might do* ^D

^A a deed of grace. Was it then for nothing that I did this? When I had well received the experience of slavery, then I encouraged them toward the remission. What then might someone say? The Jews are wiser than we. And a few lines later: For there He permitted seven years, but here He utterly abolished the servitude. There is no slave, there is no free man. And a few lines later: Lest this make the slaves more sluggish, do not despise them, He says, for they are brothers who receive the benefit.

*And you returned.*

I do not avenge only the injustice that happened to them, but also the transgression of the Law.

*You have not heard me.*

The whole matter for us is at stake regarding piety. What then, he says, is the punishment grievous? Death instead of slavery? And for what reason is it repaid in such a way? Oaths were violated, treaties were trampled underfoot, the very great Name of God was insulted, ^B so that when you see them scattered, do not think only of the injustice committed against the slaves, but add also that God was insulted through them, and you will not see that they are enduring punishment beyond their deserts.

*Behold, I call to you a remission*, says the Lord. Then after a short while: *And I will give the men who have transgressed my covenant, who have not established the words of my covenant which they made before my face, the calf which they made into two, and passed through the midst of its dissections, the princes of Judah, and the princes of Jerusalem*, and the rest.

The prophet has set forth the form of the covenant, bringing in a clearer rebuke; for when they had sacrificed a calf to God and divided it in two, they passed through the midst, and having brought the dissections, they agreed to release according to the Law the servants as free to God, promising to do this, as if propitiating the Divinity concerning the impending wrath. Then, on account of the false prophets, as if God were not angry, they repented and recalled the freed men into servitude. ^C Therefore, God, being angry and having brought the rebuke, threatens them with destruction. But someone might justly ask: since those words of recall were spoken at a time when they seemed to have become better, and God had promised [remission], therefore the prophet, as he saw them changed, fell into perplexity while the city was besieged. For this reason, God, persuading him, both predicted the destruction and exposed the mind of those who were feigning piety.

Nothing else was the cause of the besieging of the city than the violation of the covenants, and those which had been made by Zedekiah with the Barbarians. What could be more senseless than these things? Perjury took the city, and the same disease happens again; they were doing these things as if fighting against God. ^D You who make use of oaths and yet violate them, consider the punishments.

FRAGMENTA IN JEREMIAM. 993 θεν αὐτοὺς ἀφαιρεῖται συγγνώμης, λέγων· Ὁ δὲ A reclud…

CHAPTER XXXV

* VERS. 4. *Quam introduxi in domum Domini, in pastophorium filiorum Annam.* This is the exedra assigned to Annam. But he was near the house of the princes, above the pastophorium of Maaseiah son of Shallum, who guarded the court. The Hebrew [says], "guarding the garment of the ministry."

VERS. 5. *And I set before them.* It is worthy of wonder how, living among such a people, they maintained an excellent rule of life. They were certain Levites; they had seen many examples, the Nazirites, those around Elijah and Elisha, and they emulated them. Do you see that if they had wished to pay attention, they had examples? But even these have been led away captive; for if Jeremiah, and Ezekiel, and Daniel [suffered this], then much more they. For none of this harmed the virtuous and noble men; nay, it even rendered them more splendid, and in their straits it was a great solace. And after a few words: *And he brought them into the house of the Lord*, so that both by the authority of the place and of the man they might be moved; but nothing enticed them, so that there is absolutely no place left for the Jews to make an excuse. And after a few words: Consider the apostolic things prefigured.

VERS. 6. *And they said: We will not drink wine, because Jonadab son of Rechab our father commanded us. You shall not drink wine, you and your sons forever, and what follows.* These were descendants of that Jonadab, who, burning with zeal for God, came to meet the king. He, therefore, having long ago perceived the iniquity of King Ahab, and knowing the words of the prophets to be true, and strongly expecting the capture of the country and the ruin of the cities, commanded these things to his sons, not only that they might keep them, but that they might also warn their own descendants to keep the same commandment. Wherefore these appear to this day to be keeping the progenitor's precept.

VERS. 8. *We, and our wives.* Then, lest anyone should say, "How then have you entered the city, and dwell in houses?" they bring forward the cause of the incursion of war; for it would be of the greatest madness to hand oneself over to enemies voluntarily.

VERS. 13. *You shall not receive instruction.* The sons of Jonadab observed the command of a dead man, but you have despised me, who commanded you. Do you wish to know how much easier things I commanded? I surely commanded very easy and necessary things, that is, that you should abstain from wickedness and idols; but he, most difficult things. And he indeed spoke and departed; but I whisper to you every day, and I accomplish nothing.

VERS. 16. *And the sons of Jonadab have established.* He does not say what, but not wishing to rebuke them vehemently, see how he accommodates himself to the sense of the people, he does nothing tyrannically, [see] how [he gives] them every pardon.

FRAGMENTA IN JEREMIAM. 997 θεν αὐτοὺς ἀφαιρεῖται συγγνώμης, λέγων· Ὁ δὲ ^A λαὸς οὗτος οὐκ ἤκουσέ μου. Διὰ τοῦτο, οὕτως εἶπε Κύριος. Τοὺς δὲ υἱοὺς Ἰωναδάβ ἱερωσύνῃ διηνεκεῖ τιμᾷ, λέγων· Οὐ μὴ ἐκλείπῃ ἀνὴρ τῶν υἱῶν Ἰωναδάβ παρεστηκὼς πρόσωπόν μου πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας. Μὴ γὰρ νομίσητε διαπίπτειν τὴν εὐλογίαν τοῦ πατρός.

ΚΕΦΑΛ. ΑϚ'

Καὶ ἐνετείλατο Ἱερεμίας. Ὅρα Θεοῦ πρόνοιαν. Ἐκεῖνοι μὲν τὸν ἰατρὸν ἔδησαν, ὁ δὲ Θεὸς καὶ οὕτως δεικνὺς αὑτοῦ τὴν φιλανθρωπίαν, οὐκ ἐξέβαλεν αὐτόν, ἀλλ᾽ εἴασεν ἐν τῷ δεσμωτηρίῳ, ἵνα τὸν τούτων θυμὸν παραμυθήσηται, καὶ μὴ φιλονεικοτέρους ἐργάσηται, οὐ μὴν τῆς θεραπείας αὐτοὺς ἀπεστέρησεν, ἀλλὰ ποιεῖ διὰ γραμμάτων αὐτοὺς ἀναμνησθῆναι τὸ πᾶν, καὶ ἐν καιρῷ νηστείας. Καὶ ἐγενήθη ἐν τῷ ἔτει τῷ ὀγδόῳ. Τίνος δὲ ἕνεκεν ἐν καιρῷ νηστείας; ἵνα καὶ τὸν καιρὸν ἔχῃ συμπράττοντα, καὶ πάντες παρῶσιν ἀκούοντες. Λυπεῖ τὰς ὄψεις τὰς ὑμετέρας ἡ ὄψις τοῦ προφήτου φαινομένη. Ἰδοὺ δι᾿ ἑτέρου σκεύους ὑμῖν τὸ φάρμακον παραδίδωμι.

Καὶ ἐγενήθη ἀναγινώσκοντος Ἰουδίν. Ταῦτα ἀκούσας ὁ βασιλεὺς, καὶ ἀκούσας τὰ δυνάμενα καὶ λίθον μαλάξαι, συνέκοψε τὸ βιβλίον· ὥσπερ ἂν εἴ τις τὸν ἰατρὸν οὐχ εὑρὼν, τὸ φάρμακον λαβὼν, εἰς τὸ πῦρ ἔῤῥιψεν. Εἶδες μανίαν καὶ ἀγριότητα; Οὐχ ἁπλῶς ἔκοψεν, ἀλλ᾽ εἰς τὸ πῦρ ῥίπτει· πολλὴ τῶν παρεστηκότων νωθεία. Ἡναντιώθησαν δέ τινες, φησί. Καὶ μετ' ὀλίγα· Ὅρα δαιμονικὴν μανίαν· οὐχὶ πρὸς τὸν προφήτην, ἀλλὰ καὶ πρὸς τὰ ῥήματα ταῦτα, καὶ πρὸς τὰ πράγματα [γράμματα] ἀπεχθῶς εἶχεν. Καὶ ἐνετείλατο ὁ βασιλεὺς τῷ Ἰερεμιὴλ υἱῷ τοῦ βασιλέως συλλαβεῖν τὸν Βαρούχ τὸν γραμματέα, (τουτέστι, τὸν ὀξυγράφον) καὶ τὸν Ἱερεμίαν τὸν προφήτην, καὶ κατεκρύβησαν ὑπὸ Κυρίου. Καὶ τὸν ἀνωτέρω λέγει, ὅτι τοῦ Θεοῦ προστάξαντος γράψαι ἅπαντας τοὺς λόγους, οὓς πρὸς τὸν λαὸν ἔφη ἀπὸ τῶν τοῦ Ἰωσίου καιρῶν μέχρι τετάρτου ἔτους τῆς βασιλείας Ἰωακεὶμ, ἐν ᾧ ταῦτα ἔγραψεν, ὅτι μεταπεμψάμενος τὸν Βαρούχ ἔφη· «Ἐγὼ φυλάσσομαι, καὶ οὐ δύναμαι εἰσελθεῖν εἰς οἶκον Κυρίου, καὶ εἰσελεύσῃ σύ, καὶ ἀναγνώσῃ ἐν τῇ κεφαλίδι ταύτῃ, ἐν ᾗ ἔγραψας ἐκ στόματός μου τοὺς λόγους Κυρίου εἰς τὰ ὦτα τοῦ λαοῦ ἐν ἡμέρᾳ νηστείας.» Εἰ τοίνυν ἐφυλάττετο, πῶς ἐκρύβη; Εὔδηλον τοίνυν, ὡς ἐπὶ τοῦ Ἐλισσαίου ἀορασίᾳ ἐπλήγησαν οἱ ἐλθόντες αὐτὸν κατασχεῖν τῶν Σύρων. Τοῦτο γέγονε καὶ νῦν τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀφανεῖς αὐτοὺς κατά τινα ἀόρατον δύναμιν πεποιηκότος, ὡς ἑστᾶναι μὲν αὐτοὺς πρὸ πάντων, μὴ φαίνεσθαι δέ. ^D

999 SUPPLEMENTUM AD S. J. CHRYSOSTOMI OPERA. 1000

VERS. 28. Rursus sume. "Take again." Behold the divine benevolence, ^A that after such great contumacy, He counsels them again. We, however, often suspecting that we will not be obeyed, do not even offer the advice in the first place, or if we do not succeed once, we deem the matter an insult, and cannot endure to speak again; yet God endured such great insult regarding the burning of the scroll and the plotting against the prophets. All wish to know the future, yet they cannot endure to hear that which does not soothe their ears. But the prophet's word is always one, and free from all flattery towards those who honor [or dishonor] him. He shows that he commits no injustice by telling the truth, nor is he worthy of imprisonment; and that which is called *Elenioth*, Aquila translated as "workshops."

VERS. 32. And further many words were added. These were trustworthy.

CHAPTER XXXVII

VERS. 4. And the Chaldeans heard their report. Why do the Chaldeans withdraw? So that it might be plain to the Jews from every side that they did not come upon them and make war by their own power, but by His permission.

VERS. 8. Because he so said. For when God wishes to accomplish something through some, He first shows them to be weak, so that the whole may be attributed to Him. Which has happened also here.

VERS. 10, 11. And it came to pass when the army of the Chaldeans ^C went up from Jerusalem from the face of the army of Pharaoh, that Jeremiah went forth from Jerusalem, and the things that follow. Some assert that the Babylonians did not retreat in the war against the Egyptians due to a lack of strength, but due to the king's absence; but I consider this argument to be superfluous; for he was not present even at the final capture. At any rate, Sedecias was brought to Deblatha after the final capture of the city. I believe, therefore, that they did not have sufficient strength against the multitude of enemies, and that God helped them as if they were just, but made the people weak through their sins. One may therefore say from this that God foretold the things that were to happen, not being Himself the one bringing the calamities, but threatening what was to come, and threatening not to provide help. This argument, moreover, is useful in general: that events do not happen because God foretells them, but because they are to happen, God, having foreknown them, announces them beforehand; thus, therefore, one should also understand the things foretold by the prophets regarding Christ, and the prediction made by Christ regarding Judah.

VERS. 12. And he himself was in the city of Benjamin, and there was a man there with whom he was lodging, Ananias, and he seized Jeremiah the prophet, saying: "You are fleeing to the Chaldeans?" The phrase "with whom he was lodging" is the same as if one were to say: "with whom, while on a journey, he was accustomed to stay."

VERS. 14. And they delivered him into the house of the prison.

into the prison, into the house of Jonathan the scribe, for they had made his house ^A a prison; for a multitude came into the house of the pit, and into Chereth.

That is to say, they made the house of Jonathan a prison, and a multitude was shut up there; and as for "into Chereth," that is, into the house of "impediment." For so the Hebrew reads *Phetlo*, which signifies "house of impediment"; for it is their custom to use the word "impediment" in place of "prison."

*And they were embittered.* As if they were deadly wild beasts, so also did they now assail the prophets with insults. For if he were fleeing, what of it? Were you not the ones muzzling him? Were you not the ones preventing him from speaking? What if he had fled? For if he had fled, it would have been to your advantage; you would have been free from rebukes, far removed from accusation. But observe everywhere how accusation and wicked perversity are combined in one. Why then did they strike him? They were taking vengeance for his boldness of speech.

*And Sedecias sent.* Why did he call him? He thought that his boldness of speech, if he were afflicted, would be constrained, and that he would hear other sorts of words. Then, so that he might avoid suspicion, he does not ask him simply, but says: "Is there a word from the Lord?" giving him also an honorable opportunity to withdraw. But the silence was far more terrible than the prison itself.

*And he said: There is.* Do you see the apostolic accomplishments ^B being prefigured? The same thing happened to those men as well, and everywhere they were the same; nothing could take away their boldness of speech.

*And where are your prophets?* It was fitting for them to suffer these things, not me, who foretold the truth. For did I bring the evils upon you? For if the events had not confirmed my words, they would have rightly said that it vexed us exceedingly; but since they have come to pass, is it not also fitting that I be adorned with a crown? And I do not say that I have conferred benefits, but what have I done wrong, that he should ask to be released from the prison? For who, while suffering evils, would not wish to be delivered from them? So that you may know that he was of the same nature.

*And he commanded.* ^C Not [to return] to the former one, and he commands that bread be given to him. For what need was there, then, to be angry, since the events had already come to pass? But he had not yet relaxed his boldness of speech.

CHAPTER XXXVIII

*And in the pit there was no water, but mire; and Jeremias was in the mire.* Since the pit was open to the sky, it was filled with mud. They threw him in, therefore, and he sank down and was fixed in the mud; he was not, however, totally submerged, for he could not have lived like that.

*You have done evil in what you have done.* This man did nothing wrong; the whole [blame] belongs to their wickedness. Since they had nothing to allege against him, they contrived these things against the man of God.

^A

Ver. 11. *And Abdemelech took the men with him, and entered into the king’s house, unto the place underneath.* That is, into the stable. [He says] "underneath," so that one might grasp that it was the place that was open [to the public]. For so the Hebrew also says.

*And he took from there old rags, and old ropes, and cast them to Jeremiah the prophet, and the things that follow.* He took the coverings of the horses, and the felted cloths—that which it is customary to spread under the saddles. For what was said before, "old rags and *maleim*," signifies this: that is, [cloths] made of wool prepared for sleeping. Whence he also set down "old ropes," to mean the old substructures [girths/coverings] for the horses. Having thrown these to the prophet, he says:

Ver. 12. *Put these under the elbows of thy hands, under the ropes.* Meaning, under the armpits, so that he might be drawn up safely while bound.

Ver. 15. *And Jeremiah said.* Why dost thou wish to hear? That thou mightest put me to death? This is how he greatly stirs up His anger; yet it is the greatest virtue of a prophet when he not only predicts burdens, but also finds a way out of the evils. For this is *truly* [the mark] of a prophecy. Since what profit, tell me, is there in merely reaping sorrow and discouragement, like those among the outsiders [pagans]? But it is not so.

Ver. 16. *The Lord liveth, who made us this soul, if I will put thee to death.* That is, [by] the Lord of life Himself, who is Witness, that I shall do thee no harm. When he is anxious and fearful on account of her [the soul], then he takes Him as a witness for an oath. ^B

Ver. 17. *And Jeremiah said to him.* What then [does] Jeremiah [say]? He speaks the good things first, then the burdensome ones.

Ver. 19. *And King Sedecias said: I have a reason concerning the Jews who have fled to the Chaldeans, lest they deliver me into their hands, and they mock me.* It is stated obscurely in the Greek; for what he wishes to say is this: "I am a king, and cannot leave alone; if, therefore, I should wish to leave and give myself over to the Chaldeans, those who are in the city will be beforehand in killing me." This was a pretext and an excuse for unbelief. ^C Dost thou not believe the prophet? For does he speak from his own reasonings?

Ver. 20. *And Jeremiah said: They shall not deliver thee.* Some have interpreted it in this way. But I think this meaning is better preserved: "All the Jews prophesy peace to me, and that I shall not be delivered into the hands of the Chaldeans, nor suffer any harm from them." Therefore, what is said immediately by Jeremiah, "They shall not deliver thee," is spoken by way of irony; that is, "Do not trust them." ^D

"Hear the word of the Lord, which I speak to you, and it shall be better for you, and your soul shall live." ^A This is: It is better for you to believe me, and not be deceived by those men's words. That this meaning is more consonant with the text, one may easily perceive from what follows. For he adds immediately:

VERS. 21, 22. "But if you will not go out: this is the word which the Lord showed me: Behold, all the women who have been left in the house of the king of Judah shall be led out to the princes of Babylon, and they shall say: Your peaceful men have seduced you and prevailed over you; they shall not prevail in the slipperiness of your foot, and they shall turn away from you."

This is, when ruin is now imminent, then they will acknowledge the truth of my words, and they will say to you that those who announced peace to you deceived you in vain, since you considered their words more valid than these words of mine addressed to you. "In the slipperiness of your foot," that is, they have perverted your faith in what is truly said. "And they shall turn away from you," that is, having been taken captive, they shall be led away, and you shall enjoy none of the things which you now enjoy.

And he said to him: And yet you swore without any condition.

Chapter XXXIX

* VERS. 5. "And they apprehended Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho." ^B That is, in the field of Jericho.

* VERS. 14. "And they gave him to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and they brought him out to Sophis, and he sat in the midst of the people." Sophis is the name of a place.

"And they sent." And the enemies indeed loose the bound prophet from his own [people], and leave it to his own will to go wherever he might wish. But they who for forty years had enjoyed his voice, having feared neither kinship, nor country, nor anything else, have become more savage than wild beasts. And after a few words: That when you see this also occurring in the case of Christ, being crucified by the Jews but worshiped by the Gentiles, you may not think it strange, nor be troubled, nor say: How could it be reasonable that he who came for salvation and protection should be subjected to such evils? ^C

"And I will not give you." For the just man does not perish together with the impious.

CAP. XL

"And he took him." The whole army perceives at last the power of the prophecy. But Zedekiah fled; for he thought he would render the prophecy void. But he was caught, and he sees a terrible calamity; he became a witness of the slaughter of his children. He allowed his eyes to be opened only so far as to learn his own disasters. And after a few words: "And he gave Jeremiah to Gedaliah." And observe ^D

all, and bound by all constraints, he is here released; a splendid spectacle is presented to him; the event of the matter itself bears witness; and he who bestowed the benefit also bears witness. Did you not hear Jeremiah, O Jew? Hear the Barbarian saying: "The Lord your God has spoken all these evils against this place; and the Lord has done it, because you sinned against him, and did not listen to his voice." You did not believe the words of God, but you shall see those who do; take them, therefore, as your teachers. ^A *Behold, I have set you free.* See whom he waited to set free, the prophet. *If it is good in your sight to come with me.* He gives him more than if he had surrendered his homeland to him. He opens to him the whole world, which he did not have when he lived in his homeland. But they bound him because he wanted to leave for the sake of bread. See how great the honor is from a Barbarian, and whence does this come? It is manifest from the grace of Christ. *And before I go away, turn back, and return to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam,* and what follows. ^B While the army was still gathered, he who had been sent by the king released the prophet, lest, if they found him alone, they might kill him as a stranger. Why this? So that nothing might be able to violate my benefit after my departure. Or so that this might happen while all are watching. *And he came to Gedaliah.* Observe, I pray, the providence of God, who, even after inflicting punishments, takes much care of them; he did not permit Jeremiah to go to Babylon. For because the affairs of the people were divided into two parts, and while some were led away to Babylon, others were soon to be led captive into Egypt, for these he kept him. Those others had Daniel and Ezekiel. ^C He does not wish, therefore, to gather the physicians for the whole infirm body into one place, lest one part receive more than was fitting, and the other none at all, but rather each according to its due proportion; but [the plan] which was maintained in the case of the apostles, as they were scattered in every direction, so that the stars might not come together into one place, this was also clearly done in the case of the prophets.

CHAPTER XLI.

*And Ishmael arose.* Why did God permit the man to be killed, who was upright and modest, and who was providing so great a defense for the Jews, and the rest of what is written above? ^D *And the pit into which Ishmael cast all the bodies of the men whom he had struck down with Gedaliah,* is a great pit, which king Asa made because of the king of Israel, when Baasha wanted to build Ramah. For by the alliance of the Syrian he hindered him from the work; and Asa, building a city there, since there was a need

of water, he dug a very large cistern, so that the collection of water might be a consolation to those dwelling there. Of that, then, he now speaks.

^A All the evils which Israel did, and they went out to make war with Ismael the son of Athanaias, and they found him at the water current in Gabaon.

That is, he had passed the inundation of the waters, so that he could not be captured; for as they wore themselves out around the crossing of the waters, they gave him space for a complete escape; thinking it, therefore, superfluous still to pursue one who would not be captured, he returned to Judaea.

Chapter XLII.

^A And all came near.

They know that they are unworthy of obtaining an answer, since they had often disbelieved what was said. For this reason he says, "Have mercy on us," even if we are unworthy.

As thy eyes see. We have thee, he says, as a witness of our calamities. Let God tell us, he says, what we ought to do. They who thought such a matter was to be held in such great esteem, once they had obtained it, how sluggish they become!

And they themselves said to Jeremiah. We sent thee, and we besought thee, and we have a necessity, whatever He may command, to hear all, whether good or evil; ready with promises, but nowhere to be found in deeds.

If ye sat and sat. And what is the benefit, if we suffer the same?

And I will plant you. You have paid penalties that were not light.

Do not fear. What is more worthy of trust than this word?

And if you said? Dost thou see how he reveals their own thoughts to them? Which was the greatest proof that the matter was a prophecy, not that they merely wanted to enter [there], but also what they were expecting when they said it.

CHAPTER XLIII.

^A And Azarias the son of Osaias said, and Joannan the son of Caree, and all the proud men, who said to Jeremiah, Pray for us to the Lord. They said, speaking to Jeremiah: Thou speakest falsehoods. The Lord our God has not sent thee to us saying, Go not into Egypt to dwell there. But Baruch the son of Nerias incites thee against us, so that thou mightest give us into the hands of the Chaldeans, to put us to death and to carry us away into Babylon.

That is: These things thou hast not spoken to us according to the mind of God, but Baruch suggested to thee to say these things to us, courting favor with the Chaldeans, since they happen to be in power now.

For what reason, tell me? Through the whole time have you not made a trial of his purpose? And if there were nothing else — would not

it have been within his power to go wherever he wished, yet he preferred to remain with you?

VERS. 6. *And Jeremy the prophet.* Why did these ^A follow him? So that no worse evil might occur. Look at the old disease: again to Egypt. How they always dragged evils upon themselves, yet God did not abandon those who had reached that place, nor did He say: "What is the gain?" since they had now gone down into Egypt. But look at the things which Jeremiah, being the mouth of God, prophesies to them. And nowhere does He consider whether they have grieved Him; but like a most affectionate father, He follows his insane child everywhere; nor were the things regarding Baruch placed there without reason. VERS. 9. *Take to thee great stones.* He puts the stones in the brickwork; He always does something physical, so that he might persuade them, so as to strike them with greater fear: but he was not able to capture them or persuade them. VERS. 10. *To them, thus saith the Lord of hosts, and the things that follow.* God commanded him [to place them] in the place of the bricks; for this is what it means to lay stones in the brickwork, so that it might be the shape of a throne, and to plaster it with clay. And thus ^B he foretold the return of Nebuchadnezzar, and that, the city having been captured, he would place his seat in that very spot. And He commanded him to do this, so that there might not be any who would spread empty rumors among the people. For when they all saw these things being done by Him in Egypt, where the King of Egypt was exercising dominion over everyone, and moreover before those same kings, they could no longer say that he was foretelling the return of the Babylonian in order to curry favor. For ^C he would rather have spoken in favor of the one who was present, than to have flattered one who was absent and hearing nothing.

VERS. 10, 11. *And he shall set his arms upon it, and he shall take his arms upon them, and he shall enter and strike the land of Egypt.* It is unclearly stated in the Greek; but the meaning is this: that he will pitch his tent, which it was the custom for kings to set up in camps, here. Therefore, the Hebrew said, "He shall set his arms," and, "He shall stretch out his tent"; and the same meaning is preserved in both. For it is manifest that the royal arms were placed upon the king's tent. *And I will place his throne.* Then, so that you might not think this to be a guess, he also designates the place where he shall place the stones. VERS. 12. *And he shall kindle a fire.* And he speaks regarding their gods, so that they might not incline toward impiety; but nothing more came of it. *And he shall move them, and shall shake out the land of Egypt as a shepherd shaketh out his garment.* This means the old [garment]; so easily will Nebuchadnezzar possess Egypt. VERS. 13. *And he shall break the columns of Heliopolis which are in On, and the houses of their gods he shall burn with fire.* On is the name of a city ^D near Taphnas, and perhaps

...which is called in Greek Heliopolis, and in the language of the Egyptians was called Enon. ^A

CAP. XLIV

VERS. 2. *Thus says the Lord.* See, what could be clearer? They had the examples before their eyes. These were not mere words, but events that cried out. They knew well the cause of the things that had happened.

VERS. 14. *And there shall be none that shall escape, nor shall there be any remnant of the survivors of Juda who came to dwell in the land of Egypt, to return to the land of Juda, to which they hope in their souls to return; they shall not return, except those who have escaped.*

He threatens death to all who have entered Egypt, as those who have opposed the will of God, and says that those who remained in Jerusalem will suffer worse things, and that only those who, while the evils were prevailing, sought out Judea, were to be saved; so that they might perceive that the power of God is inexpugnable; since He hands over ^B to enemies those who seemed to be secure, and makes the desert land to be inhabited, saving all who take refuge in it. And that this is so, he makes manifest in what follows, saying:

VERS. 16. *The word which he spoke.* Is this, I ask, the queen of heaven? You hear constantly, *God who made heaven and earth*, and you call this, the moon, a queen? And it was well with you indeed! Whence then the famine? Whence the death? O the shamelessness! For this reason he brings it to their memory.

VERS. 21. *Was it not the incense which you burned?* Is it not because of this, he says, that there is captivity? Is it not because of this that all evils are present? How was it well with you? Is it not because of this that God could not endure you? What could be more wicked than wickedness itself? Who but those who are mad would have spoken these words? ^C

VERS. 26. *If my name shall any longer be in your mouth.* He threatens again famine and bonds to those who are surviving, that they might learn that these things are true. And after a few words: For this reason he left them thus, that he might prove to you that he is displeased, and that you might know that their city was justly consumed by fire. For when those who have escaped are such as these, what is to be said of the others?

VERS. 27. *And every man of Juda who dwells in the land of Egypt shall fail by the sword and by famine, until they fail. And those who have escaped from the sword shall return from the land of Egypt to the land of Juda, few in number. Because doing we will do every word that shall come out of our mouth, to burn incense to the queen.*

That is, to the host of heaven. And here also the similarity ^D of names is the cause of the diversity of the interpretation. For *Melched* is "host," and *Melched* is "queen." Thus, having again threatened total captivity to those who impudently persist in impiety, he brings forward present events as proof of his words; for he says...

the Word whose [message] abides.

That whose utterance shall be fulfilled signifies that you will seek me in misfortunes and will not find me, but the remnant will be improved through your calamities.

VERS. 29. *And this shall be the sign unto you.* The sign of your evils shall be the capture of Pharaoh. For not by his own strength, but by my counsel did the Babylonian take Zedekiah; and he too shall undergo these evils, both because he is impious and so that you may perceive through him that it is good to hope in the Lord rather than to hope in princes. ^B Having thus concluded this prophecy, which is interwoven with history, he makes mention of an older prophecy, which he had been commanded to dictate to Baruch in the days of Jehoiakim.

VERS. 30. *Thus saith the Lord: Behold, I give Pharaoh Hophra, king of Egypt, into the hand of his enemies, and into the hand of those who seek his life; even as I gave Zedekiah king of Judah into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.* For when Jerusalem was taken, the Egyptian, fearing for the whole situation, joined battle with the Babylonian king at the Euphrates, at which time he was also captured. Since this was not yet manifest, and the war was still hanging in the balance, by threatening the destruction of Egypt and ruin to the Jews, he offered the defeat of Pharaoh as proof of his words.

CHAPTER XLV

*VERS. 1. The word that Jeremiah the prophet spoke unto Baruch the son of Neriah, when he wrote these words from the mouth of Jeremiah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah.* Someone might indeed think that these things are not arranged in the prophet according to the proper order, whence he says that it must be noted that this is often the custom of Scripture, of those who have composed histories not to have cared for the sequence of time, but only for how they might compose things for the benefit of the readers in whatever way they could. ^C But one might better assert that these things are connected with the preceding matters. For when he had said that of those who were in Egypt only those who fled to Judea would be saved, and that all the rest would perish, and they did not believe, he confirmed his words by older events. For as of old, he says, Baruch, in foretelling grievous things in the time of Jehoiakim, was not endangered, but as God had promised him, he alone of all was kept unharmed: so also now He saves those who believe.

*VERS. 2. Thus saith the Lord.* He does not mention this word now rashly or unseasonably, but so that you may learn, and [know] what kind of spirit Baruch had regarding them, how he laments and weeps, interceding with God for them. ^D But He says to him: "Seek not great things."

*VERS. 3. Since you, Baruch, said: Woe is me! for the Lord has added trouble to my sorrow: I have slept in groanings, and I have found no rest.*

^A Baruch, being sent by Jeremiah to utter the things concerning the city, fearing the king's wrath and the cruelty of the rest, was unwilling to go. Yet, considering again that it is no ordinary danger to disobey the prophet's words (for this is to gainsay God who sends him), he was held in distress. For as he went, he expected death, and he knew that if he did not obey, he would not escape the punishment that awaited one who resisted divine commands. Therefore, the phrase "The Lord added labor to my sorrow": he calls the grief he had for the people "sorrow"; and "labor," the affliction of the soul and the anxiety regarding future things. As for "I slept in groanings, and found no rest," it means he was meditating upon the matter with such anxiety that it was not granted him to obtain rest even in sleep.

^B Thus said the Lord: "Behold, what I have built I will destroy, and what I have planted I will pluck up, and all this land; and do you seek great things for yourself? Seek not."

That is to say, you have formed thoughts not consistent with righteous reasoning. For since I have declared against all people because of their impiety, and I wish to deliver them from dangers through this threat, you do not even wish to be in good spirits or to have any care for the matter. For the words "Do you seek great things for yourself?" signify this: that is, do not even grieve. That he does not say this regarding the calamity, the following text indicates; for it says:

^C "Behold, I bring evils upon all flesh, says the Lord, and I will give your life as a spoil in every place, wherever you may walk."

That is: Do not fear. Go and tell to the people the things spoken by the prophet, knowing well that you will not share in their calamity, nor will they bring any evil upon you; and the manner of salvation the Prophet has set forth above, saying: "And the Lord hid them, and they were not found."

"And you seek." You seek out a whole city to snatch from the dangers that have offended me. "And I will give your life." Wherever you may be, you shall suffer no harm. And yet he continued to press. So that you may learn that he was not considering his own interests, but those of the many. But we, when our own affairs are in safety, then we take thought for the rest.

*VERS. 2. Upon the power of Pharaoh Necho, king of Egypt, who was at the river Euphrates, in Carchemish, which Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, smote in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, son of Josiah, king of Judah.*

That these things were then spoken; for this is not the beginning of the vision concerning Egypt, but, as I said before, it brings to mind things that had then happened. For this Necho, having killed Josiah, appointed Jehoahaz. But when Nebuchadnezzar came, he destroyed Jehoahaz and appointed Jehoiakim; as therefore his kingdom…

had been torn asunder, the Egyptian, betaking himself to the Euphrates, joined battle with Nebuchadnezzar. ^A Since the Jews therefore had great expectations concerning the power of the Egyptians and were gaping for their alliance, He threatens both the defeat and the ruin of Necho, and having proclaimed war, He characterizes this alliance as vain, as though addressing the Jews.

There was another Pharaoh, this Hophra, [besides] this Necho. Behold how God, even beforehand, was recalling them to a sound mind by examples. This one was severely defeated, at the time when Jehoiakim also was slain; yet they have not become any better. And see where he met [his defeat], at the Euphrates.

*Verse 3. Assumite (Take up/Prepare for battle).*

Why therefore does the prophecy begin with this, saying to arm themselves? And with much precision it goes through all their armament, almost mimicking the generals who instruct and encourage soldiers for battle? Or rather, he says this ironically.

*Verse 5. Quia fortes (Because they are strong).*

See, he also describes the manner of the battle as if present, in what way they will be captured.

*Verse 6. Non fugiat (Let not the swift flee).*

Neither fleetness of foot, nor strength of body, nor anything else is of any use—all being cast away—unless the help of God is present.

*Verse 7. Quis est iste qui quasi flumen (Who is this who [rises] like a river).*

^B He compares them to the Nile not only because of their multitude, but also because they knew the river and its sudden rising; and He shows that the battle is prepared by God, for that river also increases by the will of God.

*Verse 10. Victima enim (For it is a victim).*

To show how grateful this thing was to God, nothing happens by human means. Otherwise, gird yourselves: I do not forbid it, so that you may know it is vain to declare war against God.

*Verse 11. Ascende Galaad, et sume resinam virgini filiæ Ægypti. In vanum multiplicasti medicamina tua. Utilitas non est in te (Go up, Gilead, and take resin for the virgin daughter of Egypt. In vain have you multiplied your medicines. There is no help for you).*

^C This means: Do you also, together with the rest, bring aid to her. For by Gilead he names the Israelites, naming the inhabitants from the place. It was also a city of priests, whence he says: Take resin, that is, a plaster. As if to say: Just as formerly, when you served God, you brought aid to the people through the priesthood, so now, when you act wickedly, see if you can heal those wounded in battle. For they reproached them because they had often obtained salvation in battles held against enemies through the merits of the prophets who dwelt there. As if to say: Now that you act wickedly, use the help of idols in these present matters, and help the Egyptian whom you follow as a leader. He says this also ironically; for whatever you may attempt, and whomever you may call as allies, these will be in vain.

*Verse 12. Quia pugnator adversus pugnatorem (For the fighter [has stumbled] against the fighter).*

That is, both the ally and the leader, upon the ^D

^A fall of both. As if saying: “None of those who were with Necho has remained.” Up to this point were the ancient accounts, and from here he leads the start of the vision against the Egyptians. The clear sign of the calamity is that they grew weak in the battle array. *Verse 14. Stand, and prepare for thyself, because the sword has devoured thy smilax.* That is, thy power or thy safety; he used a metaphor. For *smilax* (bindweed) is a thorn that extends itself to a great distance, which those who make hedges in the fields use especially, because it employs many entanglements and makes a secure fence. *Because the sword has devoured thy smilax*, as being a plant consuming everything. *Verse 15. Why has thy chosen calf fled?* He speaks as to the Jews. He calls the Egyptian “calf” as one being strong, since they had such an opinion about him. Then the reason: *He did not stand, because the Lord dissolved him.* For he could not resist the determination of God. *Thy king*, or more truthfully, the god of the Egyptians, Apis; for thus they called the calf, being a straw-eater and considered a god. *Verse 16. Each man spoke to his neighbor, and said: Let us arise, and let us return to our own people from the face of the Greek sword.* The “each man,” that is, of the allies. As if saying: “They knew then that they had in vain been helping the Egyptian.” But the *from the face of the Greek sword* is not correctly interpreted. For the Hebrew has it thus: *From a sharp and violent sword.* And here there is a change in the interpretation because of the naming. For *Ioannan* signifies Greeks, since the Ionians descended from him. But *iona* signifies sharp and having a cutting force. Therefore, from the similarity, they interpreted it as “Greek sword” instead of “sharp sword.” See how he exactly describes everything, and dwells upon it because these things are very certain to him. *Verse 17. Call the name of Pharaoh king of Egypt, Sanoe, Ebire, Elmoeth, time passed.* These words are indeed Hebrew. The interpretation of the words seems to be in some way: *Time passed.* For *Saon* signifies sound, as if to say, the well-heard and renowned. *Eber* means “thou hast passed by.” *Elmoeth* means “passed away.” So that he might say that Pharaoh, who is renowned and celebrated everywhere for his glory, this one has fallen from the prestige he possessed, and the time of the sentence against him has arrived. But the *Call his name*, according to the idiom of Divine Scripture, took the name for the thing itself. *Time passed*, with the tumult of noise, having been averted, that is, he says he became ungrateful regarding the covenants. Just as is Tabor among the mountains, and as [end of page]

...it will come, so great, he says, and unconquered. ^A

VERS. 18. *Vivo ego, dicit Dominus, rex virtutum nomen illi, quia sicut est Thabor in montibus, et sicut Carmelus in mari, sic veniet.*

He demonstrated the abundance of the calamity by an example. ^B This is what he means: Just as Thabor is in the midst of the mountains, and Carmel is surrounded by the sea, so you too shall be surrounded by evils.

VERS. 19. *Vasa transmigrationis fac tibi, habitatio filiæ Ægypti.*

That is: Put an end to warring, and having taken the vessels of transmigration, follow the victors; as if to say, you will be taken into exile. No one is able to allege bodily weakness or insignificance. You were like fatted calves, you armed yourselves, the war was not in your city. You were the first to attack, you were like locusts.

*VERS. 20. Vitula elegans adornata, formosissima Ægyptus, succisio ab aquilone venit super eam.*

According to the Greek text, it is manifest what he says: That the strong and adorned [land] will be led away captive by the Babylonians. But the Hebrew sense is clearer. For in place of, "Succisio ab aquilone veniet super eam" [A cutting off from the north shall come upon her], it has: "Stimulus veniet super te" [A goad shall come upon you]. And this is a type of animal that strikes oxen and drives them into a frenzy. Since, therefore, he likened Egypt to a very noble and delightful heifer, he compared the Babylonian to a goad, in order to show the weakness of Egypt, so as to say: You who appear to be strong with great power, shall be despoiled of your power by those who are deemed weak. ^C

VERS. 21. *Nam et ipsi.*

For he says this: Why, then, were you defeated? Surely by the author, God? Because, though you were such a multitude like locusts, you were defeated.

VERS. 22. *Vox eorum quasi serpentis.*

That is, lamenting and weeping.

*Quia in arena.*

That is, not with a stable foot.

VERS. 23. *Excident silvam ejus.*

So that they might believe that good things come from Him. But why does he say: "Ne timeas quia reducam te?" [Do not fear, for I shall restore you]? He secretly predicts to them, and well: "Do not fear," since it was near. ^D

*VERS. 25. Ecce ergo ulciscor Ammon illius, et super Pharaonem, et super Ægyptum, et super deos illius, et quæ sequuntur.*

The Ammonites used to pay tribute to the Egyptians; they trusted greatly in their alliance, and were held in higher esteem by the Egyptian than all other nations: for this reason, therefore, he made mention of Ammon.

CHAPTER XLVII

VERS. 4. *Et delebo Tyrum.*

Though the events have occurred, do you not spare? He declared these things, so that he might make certain both the desolation and the destruction of the idols.

^A For the Lord will destroy the Philistines, the remnant of the isles and of Cappadocia. He calls [by this name] the maritime islands, and [notes] that, being warred upon, they dwelt there, having conquered those who had inhabited [the region] previously, and remained in the place. And he also speaks of Cappadocia, as if these had conquered it and chosen to dwell there. For thus he says by another prophet: "The Philistines I brought up from Cappadocia."

Baldness has come upon Gaza; Ascalon is abandoned, and the remainder of those in Acco. As if to say, all the mighty ones. How shall he be at peace? The prophet predicts the plundering of Idumea; he also calls the same region Teman, which is the land of Esau.

CHAPTER XLVIII

^A Moab has been at rest from his youth, and he was confident in his glory.

Because he enjoyed abundance and tranquility at all times, and on account of this he suffered these things, having used his prosperity for no good end. He wished to indicate an unexpected evil. For he wishes to say that from the beginning until now he has suffered nothing; not that he was not already captured by Sennacherib, for he was not defeated in wars. For the prophecies of Isaiah against the land of Moab were fulfilled in the time of Sennacherib; but he wishes to say that, by comparison with the present, it has suffered nothing; for it was not possible for it to have passed through [those times] entirely without sorrow. Or he wishes to signify the length of time of the relief; for it is not a small number of years from [the time of] Hezekiah, under whom the matters concerning Sennacherib had their end, until the final captivity of Jerusalem and the movement of Nebuchadnezzar against the remaining nations. That these things are so, the things that follow indicate.

And they did not pour from vessel to vessel, and he did not go into exile; therefore his taste remained in him, and his scent did not depart.

He used an example, so that he might signify the time of his relief; for as wine, he says, when poured into a vessel and kept for a very long time, and not changed, deposits its dregs at the bottom of the vessel, but becomes fragrant and sweet for drinking: so, he says, it has been with Moab; he was at rest for a long time and has his own substance, and became famous for his prosperity, but he shall not remain [so] to the end, but shall give justice, God having declared it.

And I will send him those who spread out, and they shall spread him out.

The Hebrew has "those who pour out"; for he persisted in the metaphor. But the meaning is also manifest from the Greek interpretation.

• VER. 18. Descend from glory. ^A That is, from the height to the ground. And sit in humility, sitting. So there will be solace from nowhere; for when God brings evils, neither strength of body, nor wisdom of mind, nor anything else is of any avail.

VERS. 20, 21. Announce in Amon that Moab has perished. And judgment has come upon the land of Misor, upon Chalom, and upon Asa, and the rest. Misor, that is, of the plain. By Chalom and the remaining cities he speaks as of those situated in the plains.

VERS. 25. The horn of Moab is broken, and his arm is crushed, says the Lord. Namely, the weapons he held in his hands.

• VERS. 30. Not according to what was enough for him, so also his arms. This is: deeds have not corresponded to such great fame. For he was thought to be strong; yet in battles waged over Moab, he showed himself unwarlike.

VERS. 31. From all sides cry out over the men of the wall, shorn with squalor. "Over the men of the wall," that is, the strong. "Shorn with squalor," that is, a melodic cithara. As if to say: Cast it down, making it worthy to be followed by tears. Therefore he adds: And he shall speak a chant. For he interpreted "shorn with squalor," that is, just as on a cithara, thus mourning melodiously, he will cry out. Then proceeding again, he says:

• VERS. 36. Therefore the heart of Moab shall sound like pipes; my heart [shall sound] over the men of the wall, shorn with squalor, as a pipe shall sound. ^B This is, regarding the strong men, the mourning will be like the song of a cithara or the noise of pipes. The Hebrew has it thus: And it shall sound again upon the wall having strong buttresses. He calls the king the wall; the people, the buttresses. And in either case, the same meaning is preserved.

VERS. 45. For fire has gone out from Heshbon, and a flame from the midst of Sihon, and it has devoured the princes of Moab. Moses used these sayings to indicate the sudden ruin of the Moabite land by those who inhabited Heshbon. As if he were to say: It will now undergo a similar punishment to that which it once suffered.

VERS. 46. And he searched out the sons of Saon. The Hebrew: And he wiped out the lords of the altars; for instead of "altars," he said "Saon," since it was necessary to place *bamoth*, which signifies an altar. But so it stands in the Hebrew.

CAP. XLIX

VERS. 1. Are there no sons in Israel? Or is there no one to receive them among them? This is: Are they not dwelt in for the worship of God, or are they devoid of all aid, that they have thus puffed up their spirit against the Israelites? That he might show to the Jews ^C that he punishes the nations on account of the evils which they have inflicted upon them.

VERS. 4. Why do you boast in the fields of Jacim? ^D

Iacim was a very great city situated in the plains, which they possessed as a defensive bulwark against their enemies. He says, therefore, "Do not trust in her, for she is being destroyed."

"Your fields have flowed away." That is, not only is she herself destroyed, but the other cities also that were situated in the plains along with the fields themselves, since the enemies are plundering everything they encountered.

^A • "Against the curse of Bosor in the midst of its part." He speaks of Bostra; for what is now Arabia was then Idumaea. And the phrase "In the midst of its part" denotes that they were joined together, because it was a metropolis.

"Behold, as a lion shall come up from the middle of the Jordan into the place Etham, because I will quickly drive them away ^B from it." "Etham" must be understood according to the Hebrew, where it signifies "the strong." He means that the barbarian, coming up like a lion, will devastate the land. He makes mention of the Jordan, since it is there that these beasts are seen most especially and are most frightful.

• "Against Cedar, the queen of the court, whom Nabuchodonosor, king of Babylon, struck." He speaks against the Saracens; for thus it is the custom of divine Scripture to call that nation by the name of Cedar. As for "queen of the court," it is the name of a city, which in the Hebrew tongue was called *Melcheth Asor*, which, translated, made "queen." ^C *Asor* signifies "court"; perhaps, therefore, they called the city this as a metropolis, as often happens, and it obtained this appellation. After this, he prophesies against Aila; they assert, however, that these are the Elamites, who are now called Persians.

CAPUT L

"Announce among the nations." As if concerning a thing unheard of, and one that has already turned out this way, so he makes his introduction. For by saying "Do not hide it," it is as if she suffered undeservedly, or that no one will be ignorant of her calamities; just as God did in the case of Pharaoh, so that he might show his wrath and make his power known, so also with this city of Babylon. Do you see him ^D utilizing their universal wickedness for the benefit of the rest because of his own excellent skill in administration?

"Bel is confused." He shows that the matter did not happen in the human manner; for it was the strongest of all, and living in prosperity. Neither its luxuries nor anything else swayed God. And it was rightly confused, contrary to expectation, by those who were unworthy.

"Merodach has been handed over." Those inferior to them will consume them utterly.

"In those days."

Consider them not as fleeing, but as walking in order; but why are they weeping? At the time of benefits they are especially sensible of their sins, in that they offered insults to so mild and humane a God, who does not suffer them to perish entirely, who in taking vengeance upon their enemies has brought them back. ^A For an eternal covenant. Consider again how he represses their arrogance; for lest they ascribe to their own merits the fact that they have returned, he says that this has come about from the old covenant.

VERS. 6. My people have been lost sheep. For lest anyone should say, "Why did you lose them, and why do you save them?" on account of their own sloth they perished, and their leaders too. Therefore it was fitting that those should pay the penalty, but these as well, so that they might not obey them. They have forgotten their lair. To have forgotten their fatherland was their crime.

VERS. 7. All who found them were consuming them. See how he himself is benign, accustomed from the beginning to confer benefits upon them; but they, on the contrary, are wicked. This means: do not let the dwelling of Babylon be pleasing to you, since they remained there, or if not this, [be] like dragons, that is, horrible and harmful.

VERS. 12. Into good things, the last ones. He calls it the last [place] by reason of location, because it overcame everyone, destroying them. Or because it sinned against God, and this is manifest especially from the prediction, and then from the Jewish return. For he who persuaded those who had captured the city to release these with such great honor, he it is who truly wrought the victory, ^C [as he] everywhere affirms that it [the city] is handed over by God.

VERS. 16. From the face of the Greek sword. For if it had not been erring, it would not have been captured, inasmuch as the power of the shepherd was surrounding the weakness of its nature. It was a sheep, but under God the shepherd; if the sheep had remained submissive and obedient, it would not have suffered what it suffered; for not because of weakness, but because it withdrew itself from the providence of the Shepherd, did it endure what it endured.

VERS. 17. Lions have driven him out. See how he everywhere reproaches [them] with the punishment.

VERS. 18. Therefore he says these things. Did you not have a suitable example? Did you not hear? "I will grasp the world like a nest, and like abandoned eggs I will gather them." This has come to be, and has reached its end. You have seen that I delivered him; be much more certain concerning yourself.

VERS. 20. They shall seek. He did not say, "Because he recalled himself to a better life"; but, "Because I have cast away anger." ^D Nor did he say, "There will indeed be anger, but it will not take vengeance," but, "It shall not even appear." Therefore their sins delivered it [the city] up, not their weakness.

[FRAGMENTA IN JEREMIAM]

^A VERS. 23. How is it shattered and broken? Do you see how he expressed its strength? How he expressed the unbearable plague? Then he speaks throughout, "Because it withstood the Lord, it sinned"; and he expresses the manner of the sin: "As it did, it shall be done to it."

VERS. 29. Repay it. And the long-suffering, since its time has come. So he awaited the time, and nothing better was gained.

VERS. 33. Thus says the Lord. They did not wish to release them. Or he says this, that they would not have released those whom they were holding of their own free will, but were resisting God, just as the Egyptian Pharaoh.

VERS. 40. As it overturns. ^B What then, is it not inhabited? As therefore this statement is hyperbolic, so also when he says, "As I swore regarding the water in the time of Noah," it is hyperbolic. Then he lingers repeatedly on the same words. For what reason? Because the thing spoken was incredible and paradoxical, that Babylon would be captured, he uses a swifter manner, having extended its capture.

VERS. 41. Behold, a people comes from the North, and a great nation, and kings will be stirred up from the extremity of the earth, having a bow and a small sword.

That is, a shield; for this is what "small sword" signifies, from the fact that it is carried in the hand.

VERS. 44. Behold, as a lion he will ascend from the swelling of Jordan into the place of Etham.

He compared the Mede to a lion. And "from the swelling of Jordan into the place of Etham," as if lions were accustomed to appear there. For Etham is a city bordering the Jordan. ^C

CAP. LI

VERS. 7. A golden cup is Babylon.

If it is a golden cup in the hand of the Lord, why is it punished? Because it punished and afflicted more severely; therefore, by me and it was powerful.

VERS. 25. And I will give you as a burnt-up mountain.

That is, as dust, so that he may say: "I will reduce you, though you are strong, to nothing." He adopted the metaphor from stones which are burnt, in order to be turned into lime.

VERS. 27. Announce against it to the kingdoms of Ararat from me. ^D

They say these are the Carduinians, and by the Achanazaeans, he refers to those from Pontus.

VERS. 31. The pursuer shall pursue into the meeting of the pursuer.

That is, fleeing, he will meet his enemy, and that man will pursue, so that it is necessary for him to be captured.

* VERS. 37. And Babylon will be for a devastation, and for a habitation of dragons, and for heaps.

According to the Greek text, it signifies that it will be in a thorny wilderness; for by "heaps" he means the bushes. But the Hebrew interprets it as concavities. For "thoon" is a cavity, which the Greek translated as "heaps."

VERS. 38. *Simul ut leones rugient juvenes eorum.* ^A Some interpret this as referring to the stricken Babylonians, shouting out from their wounds in a way that can be understood like a roaring lion. But it is better to understand this as referring to the Medes, since they are fearsome, and Holy Scripture is accustomed to use the lion as an example when it speaks of them.

VERS. 41. *Quomodo captus est Sisoch?* They assert that Sisoch is the name of a king, and that it signifies the Ethiopians, being derived from Chus, from whom the Ethiopians trace their origin; they assert also that their prophet mentioned them because they lent aid to the Babylonian in the war he waged against the Medes, and that they were defeated.

VERS. 44. *Et ulciscar super Bel in Babylone, et extraham quæ absorbuit ex ore ejus, et non congregabuntur ultra ad eum gentes.* ^B If these things are to be construed with the preceding, we can understand it as referring to the Babylonians, meaning that I will destroy their idols and all their might. If we consider the literal sense, it is as though these things were said of the idols. Some, however, have interpreted "I will extract what it has swallowed" as follows: I will take away the oracle of Bel, so that it may be of no estimation among all men.

VERS. 46. *Parabola super parabolam.* That is, a narrative upon a narrative, to say: The calamities of Babylon shall be numerous and successive.

VERS. 59. *Verbum quod mandavit Dominus Jeremiæ prophetæ ut diceret Sarææ filio Neriæ, quando ibat a Sedecia rege Juda in Babylonem, in anno quarto regni, et Saræas princeps donorum.* That is, Saræas was the first among those who brought the gifts; he speaks of the gifts being sent by Sedecia to Nabuchodonosor, ^C where he commands him to take the book, and bind a stone to it, and throw it into the midst of the Euphrates, as a sign of the destruction of Babylon. For, lest he should be thought to be saying everything in favor of the Barbarian while Nabuchodonosor was still flourishing, he composed this prophecy against Babylon, testifying by all these things to Israel that he does not speak these things to flatter the enemy, but for the reformation of those who exist. He who compiled the words of the prophet noted that this was the end of the prophetic book; those things which follow are said to be transcribed ^D from the books of Kings, although they seem in no way to pertain to this prophecy.

CAP. LII

VERS. 7. *Et iverunt viam quæ ad Araba.* That is, they fled into the plains: for this is what Araba signifies.

VERS. 9. *Et locutus est ei.* Behold a barbarian man, having a pure conscience, since he came with the confidence of an oath. And those who hold the power of judgment do not refuse to give an account even to their inferiors; so deeply is the pursuit of what is honorable implanted in men. He wished to show himself

^A He wished to show that he acts not unjustly. He then leads him away, that he might be an example to those who should come after.

Vers. 18. *Coronam, et lebetes.* He calls the lattice-work, which was about the columns, the crown.

Vers. 19. *Et thymiateria, et libatoria.* He calls the golden bowls, through which they poured wine and cast incense upon the fire, libatoria; and he calls the Aphoth the water-receptacles, which are the vessels in which the cups are washed; and the Masmaroth, the instruments with which the blood was sprinkled; and the cyathi, he calls the small sextarii, in which they held the wine drawn from the large vessels.

Vers. 20. *Et columnarum duarum, et maris, quae fecerat rex Salomon in domo Domini.* ^B It is evident that these things were set forth; for it appears that this had already been lifted up by the descendants of Solomon, so that the laver, which the Scripture called the sea, stood upon a stone base.

SUPPLEMENT TO THE HOMILIES ON THE EPISTLE TO THE ROMANS

^C *Sancti Joannis Chrysostomi ex interpretatione Epistolae ad Romanos.*

*Ei autem qui potens est vos confirmare juxta evangelium meum et prædicationem Jesu Christi, secundum revelationem mysterii temporibus æternis taciti; nunc autem manifestati per Scripturas propheticas secundum præceptum æterni Dei, ad obeditionem fidei per gentes omnes.*

By saying "the preaching of Jesus Christ," that is, what He Himself preached, the discourse demonstrates that the matter is worthy of faith; for the preaching is His, he says; the evangelical dogmas are not our invention. And, he says, to no one among those before us was this mystery made known. For it was indeed ordained of old, but has now been manifested through prophetic Scriptures. Do not fear, therefore, to depart from the law; for the law itself desires this, this it foretold from of old. Do not, therefore, curiously inquire why it was manifested now; for this has happened according to the command of God, and one must not be over-curious about this mystery, ^D but obey. For faith requires obedience, not curiosity, especially when God commands.