Nicephorus Blemmydes

or to the emperor, or whether something else is done, I myself will in no way follow nor assent; for God will not take account of our reasonings and desires, but will demand accounts concerning truth, justice, and divine laws and statutes.

EPISTLE VIII

Remember Scripture, which bids us to cause grief to men rather than to God. But to you, O emperor, why should it seem burdensome to sanction justice, temperance, ^A mercy, for your peoples, and thereby suffer no disadvantage, but rather procure for yourself the mercy of God through good works? What is more just than that every bishop be ordered, whether he wishes it or not, to return to his own diocese? Are they not bound to pay this debt, and is it not sanctioned by canon? Could not the presence of pastors, especially at this time, rouse the people to prayers? For what other hope does a Christian have, if not that which is placed in prayers? But if they desire to dwell in this city, let them divide it among themselves, etc.

NICEPHORUS BLEMMIDA: NOTITIA

Nicephorus Blemmida, abbot, designated patriarch of Constantinople by the Emperor Theodore Lascaris around the year of Christ 1255, did not enter upon the office, but lived content with the dignity of presbyter and the monastic habit. Consult concerning him Boivinus on Nicephorus Gregoras, page 728, and Allatius against Creygthon, p. 614 seq., and on Georgius Acropolita, page 254, and De consensu lib. II, cap. 14, § 4, where he published in Greek and Latin his encyclical epistle concerning the concubine of the Emperor Michael Palæologus, Marcesina, breaking into the monastery of Gregory Thaumaturgus and being repulsed by Blemmida the abbot [others tell this story differently], (which language is also read in Odoric Raynaldus, vol. XIV Annal. (a) from the version of Allatius (b)). Manuel Caleca in his book I against the Greeks praises the two books of Blemmida On the Holy Spirit. He says: There are for us, as a token, those two books on the Holy Spirit written by Nicephorus Blemmida, monk and presbyter, whose name is distinguished among all for every virtue and wisdom, by which it is indicated that the substance [of the Spirit] has/procures origin from the Father and through the Son, as handed down by the holy Fathers (c). In the published versions, the former of these books is inscribed to Jacob, Archbishop of Bulgaria, and the latter to the Emperor Lascaris. They appeared in Greek and Latin at the end of volume XIII of the Annales edited by Raynaldus, with the version of Allatius, Rome 1646, folio, and in the same Allatius' Græcia orthodoxa, vol. I, p. 4-60, ibid. 1652, 4. To the same Ducas Lascaris he wrote the book (d) On the Institution of an Emperor, Ὁποῖον δεῖ εἶναι τὸν βασιλέα, which is found in various manuscripts. It is also found in the Vienna Library (e), just as it was interpolated by Georgius Galesiota, deacon of the Great Church of Constantinople, and Georgius Œnæota: On certain dogmatic questions to the same Lascaris, and an oration on the faith (1) to the monks of the monastery founded by himself, of which he calls himself the founder, and...

^A three books of instruction for the monks, mentioned by Labbe, p. 88 seq. and 94 in the *Bibliotheca nova*, etc. An encomium of Gregory of Nazianzus, and an exposition of his verses, p. 111. An *Isagoge* on Aristotle's *De Caelo* and on the fact that the world is not eternal, p. 114. A history of St. Paul and the Fathers who lived a solitary life on Mount Latros, which Allatius, in his letter to Georgius Acropolita (p. 244), testified he possessed, written in a most elegant style and in the style of the ancients. In the Vatican, as we learn from the same Allatius, a manuscript is read: *The Word which has been sent to the King, called the Royal Statue; it is also useful to monks and to every studious person*. It begins: *A law occurring from the beginning in affairs to bring the subjects to the king*. ^B Logic (extracted from four) and Physics (from two) manuscripts of the Augustan Library, he [Nicephorus Blemmida] (not at the same time in Latin, as handed down by Cave) was edited by Joh. Wegelinus of Augsburg. Augsburg, 1605, 8vo. Both of these together (for the *Logica* is called the first book in the *Physica*, p. 32) were written by Blemmida for the benefit of Johannes Ducas, and he inserted in the *Physica* (p. 264 seq.) a fragment of his exegesis on the Psalms, other pieces of which are preserved in manuscripts in the Vienna Library.

^C (f) Blemmida's *On the Five Voices* appeared in Latin translated by Joach. Perionius, Basel, 1512, 8vo, and his *Reason on the Compendious Art of Reasoning and on the Astrolabe*, along with other writings of others, translated by Georgius Valla, Venice, 1498, folio. There are those who report that this work on the Astrolabe refers to Nicephorus Gregoras. (FABRIC.) Regarding the work of Georgius Valla, see above on the writings of Nic. Gregoras at n. 31. Nic. Blemmida's *On the Five Voices*, why these are there alone, is a part and indeed the ninth chapter of his logic, as can be known from the index of chapters in Iriarte, l.c., p. 198. That fragment in Greek is published with Psellus’ *Introduction to the Six Modes of Philosophy*, and his compendiums of the *Five Voices* and the *Ten Predicaments of Philosophy*; with Georgius Pachymeres' *On the Six Definitions of Philosophy*, etc. Venice, in 8vo. See *Catalogus Bibliothecae Leidensis*, p. 163 and 165. In the copy of that library there are some things written in Greek. (HARL.)

^D ... manuscripts now for the first time edited in Greek by J. Wegelinus, Augsburg, 1605, 8vo. The same, translated from the Greek idiom into Latin by J. Wegelinus, ibid., 1607, p. 593 seq. Full titles in Wegelin’s edition: *Niceph. Blemm. Epitome Logicae, etc.*, 1605, 8vo; and his *Epitome Physica*, of 31 very important chapters, with a fragment added of an exegesis on Psalm VIII, in which not only physics but also geography are treated, etc., Aug. Vind., 1605, 8vo. Fabricius, in correcting, noted: that Wegelin later published both separately in Latin, the *Physica* of Blemmida in 1605, and the *Physica* (which seems to be a mistake, and should have been written *Logica*) in 1607, 8vo. Regarding the edition and translation of Th. Wegelin in the year 1606, Aug. Vind., see Brucker in *Hist. crit. philos.*, vol. II, p. 545, who extracted certain things from Wegelin's dedication; he notes that this *Physica* had already been published among the works of Damascenus by Jac. Billius, Paris, 1577 and 1603; though he notes that this compendium of Blemmida’s *Physica* does not provide the whole work, but only 17 chapters. The same Wegelin notes that among the works of G. Valla is his *Physiologia*, entirely transcribed word for word from Blemmida, but with the latter's name suppressed, though obscurely, etc. In the Augustan Library, as attested by Reiser in *Cat.*, p. 77, n. 5, are Nic. Blemmida’s *On Sophistical Refutations*, n. 5; *Nic. Blemm. and Georgius Pachymeres' Epitome of Philosophy*, comprising logic, ethics, physics; n. 6 and 7, *Niceph. Logica*, in a double copy, but with one being mutilated in some places; from this double manuscript, J. Wegelinus edited it with a Latin version, analysis, arguments, and annotations, notes Reiser, who on page 91 lists other Aug. Vind. manuscripts; n. 71, *Nic. Blemm. Epitome Isagogica on Logic*; and book II, *Elements of Physics*; n. 72, *Logica and Physica*, with the note: "A codex older and more correct than the previous one, and only the first page is missing, although the previous pages are not a little gnawed." In the Dresden Elect. Library, *Epitome Logica*, on which codex see Goetz, *Mem. bibl. Dresd.*, II, p. 293. Munich, in the Elect. library, codex 108, *Books I and II of Dialectical and Physical Introduction*. In codex 151, *Logica and commentaries on the six later predicaments* (*Catal. codd. Gr.*, p. 42 and 60). (See Lambec. *Comm. VII*, p. 183, and there the note of Kollarius.) In codex 93, *Epitome Physica*, divided into 32 chapters, and in codex 94, *Logica* is attributed to Nicephorus Blemmida, divided into 36 chapters: but the philosophical *syntagma* is wrongly attributed to him: on which matter I have written more above in the *Catalogus Scriptorum Nicephori Gregorae*, n. 10. See Lambec., l.c., p. 505, n. 2, 375 seq. and 382. In codex 95, n. 1, *Nic. Blemm. Logica*; n. 3, *Physica*: from which manuscripts Wegelin’s edition can be corrected and supplemented not insignificantly, notes Lambecius, p. 376. In codices 96, 97, *Logica*; in codex 98, part of *Logica*; and in codex 99, certain fragments of it. See Lambec., l.c., p. 383, 386, 387. Florence, in the Laurentian Library, *Niceph. Blemm. Logica* in codex 8, plut. 71, and codex 16, n. 16, plut. 87, *Isagogic. epitomes lib. I*, which contains logic, and book II, which contains physics. In the Escorial codex, on logic, philosophy, the soul, and on the two elements of which the world is composed: of the same or another Nicephorus, the monk Polemites, *On Logic*. See Pluer, *Itinerar. per Hisp.*, p. 183. In the public Parisian library, on the faculties of the soul in codex 1999. *Logica* in codices 2099, 2100, 2102, 2103, and 2104. A previously unpublished short work *On Sophistical Refutations*, in codices 1937 and 1938. *Introduction to Philosophy* in codex 1998 (contains logic and physics), 1999 (physics), 2000 (again contains physics), and 2001, book II, *On Dialectics*. *Physica* in codices 2099, 2100, 2101, 2133, and 2134; in the Nanianus codex 266, Venice. See *Cat. codd. Gr. Nan.*, p. 454. In the Royal Library of Turin, *Epitome Physices*, in codex 241. *Exposition of Logic* and *On Physics* in codex 262 (*Cat. codd. Gr.*, p. 371). In the Royal Library of Madrid, codex 59, *Epitome Isagogica on Logic and Physics*, book II, about which codex Iriarte is very full, *Cat. codd. Gr.*, p. 197 seq. (HARL.)

(h) In the previous edition; for in the Basel edition of 1745, p. 305, it is corrected. (HARL.)

(i) Compare Oudin, vol. III, p. 223, regarding the Vienna codex in particular. In the just-mentioned Madrid codex, there are 32 chapters from Nic. Blemmida’s explanation of the eighth Psalm—or rather in this codex, 31. Iriarte, however, p. 199, observes that the first Nesselius had clearly transmitted in part I of his *Catalogus*, that in the Vienna codex 382 the same book is divided into 32 chapters; he then advises, contrary to our Fabricius, that Blemmida did not insert a fragment of his exegesis on the Psalms into his physical book, but rather placed it underneath because of the kinship of the subject matter, forasmuch as Blemmida, in the mentioned exegesis as in almost the whole book of physics, had discoursed on the nature of the heavens, whose magnificence the royal singer wonderfully proclaims in Psalm VIII. In codex Coislin. 102, *Nicephorus Blemmida’s exposition on the Psalms*; the commentary on them follows an exposition on the *Canticle of Canticles*; though whether this is by the same author or not is not stated, according to Montfaucon in *Bibl. Coist.*, p. 178. The same commentary is...

found in which there is also a *Discourse on the Holy Trinity*, just as the Ingolstadt and Vatican libraries possess his *Encomium on St. John the Evangelist*, and his minor works *On the Soul and Body*, and *On Faith, Virtue, and Religion*. In the Vienna manuscript, moreover, there is a poem of the most learned and wise Blemmida *On Urine*, which begins: "Of the sick, learn the thirteen phials," then *On Blood*, or *A Canon for the Diagnoses of Blood-letting in the Sick* (which two poems are attributed to Maximus Planudes in another codex). See Lambecius, lib. vi [part. ii, p. 249, Koll.]. Furthermore, there is a *Knowledge of Medical Measures*, and *Diagnoses and Cures for Humans*. Finally, there is a geographical tract *On Habitations*, which Salmasius calls in his *Epistle*, p. 276, a *Summary Geography*. Possevinus, in his *Apparatus*, mentions a demonstration *That life is not predetermined for individuals*. See also below, under Nicephorus the Monk. (FABR.) I shall indicate the codices of the remaining minor works in this place. In the Imperial Library of Vienna there exist: in codex 20, n. 2, four medical tracts, recently described in Greek by Fabricius: 1) *Notice of Medical Measures*; 2) *Canticle or Poem on Judging the Blood of Phlebotomy for the Sick*; 3) *Canticle on the Urine of the Sick*; 4) *Understandings and Cures for Human Diseases*, divided into 150 sections. (Lambec. VI, part. ii, pag. 249 seq.) However, the canticles in n. 2 and 3 in the Imperial Vienna codex 269, n. 9, are attributed to Maximus Planudes, according to Lambec. V, p. 450. But the same two works, *On Urine* and *On the Blood of Phlebotomy*, are attributed to Nicephorus Blemmida in codices 2220, n. 6; 40, p. 5, and 42, n. 2. See Lambec. VI, pag. 355 and 359. In the same Imperial Library, cod. 42, n. 19, there exists a *Geographical Fragment* by Nicephorus Blemmida. (Lambec. VII, p. 179.) — A *Summary of Geography* is in the codices of the Turin library 232 and 244 (Cat. codd. Gr. p. 318 and 373). At Milan, in the Ambrosian library, according to Montfaucon in *Diario Ital.*, p. 14. At Madrid, in the Escorial library, a *Summary Geography*; an order and canon for the 13 signs which are observed in human illnesses; and regarding the understanding of them, especially their cure, by the author Pluerus, in the place cited. In the Paris public library codex 1414, (according to the author of the *Cat. codd.* II, p. 316): 1) Nicephorus Blemmida’s *Summary of Geography*, or rather *Dionysius of Alexandria’s Description of the World*, explained in prose. 2) Another *Summary* by the same, where it discusses the earth, its size, and climates: a work inscribed to a certain orthodox king. In the Coislin library, 388, Nicephorus Blemmida’s *Synoptic Geography*. But Montfaucon, in *Bibl. Coisl.* p. 599, says: "This Geography, he says, was described by an unskilled and dull man, and I can scarcely believe it to be by Nicephorus Blemmida, a man who, for his own age, was learned. Here regions, rivers, and cities are represented not as they were and were called at the time of the writer, but as they were mistakenly and ignorantly collected from older geographers." Goetz, however, in *Mem. bibl. Dresdensis*, II, p. 394, says that the thirtieth chapter of the *Physics Epitome* in the Wegelin edition deals *On Habitations*, which Fabricius had praised as a geographical tract from Lambecius. In Coislin codex 208, *Scholia by Nicephorus Blemmida on the Odes of Moses and Others*, with a paraphrase and in the hand of Tinerillus, written in the year 1656 from the Incarnation. See Montfauc. *Bibl. Coisl.* p. 267. At Florence, in the Laurentian Medicean codex, an *Oration on Kingdom*. (Bandin. I, p. 121, n. 31) and the *Libellus on Faith to the Monks of the Monastery built by Him*. (Bandin. III, p. 399, cod. 16, plut. 87, n. 17.) — In the Paris public library, an *Oration on the Custody of the Heart*, in codices 1091, n. 41; 1101, n. 41; 1145, n. 4; *In Praise of St. John the Theologian* in codices 1225, n. 1; *Life of Paul the Latrensis*, in codex 1195, n. 19; *On the Faculties of the Soul*, in codex 1999, n. 3; *On Heaven and that the World is Eternal* (which is chapter 24 of the *Physics* book) in the same codex; and in codices 2999, n. 3, and n. 4, *On the Vacuum* (i.e., chapter 30 of the same work) and in 2100, n. 5, *On Heaven, the Sun, the Moon, the Stars, and the Days*. The work (attributed by others to Maximus) *On Urine*, in codices 2303, n. 3; 2315, n. 5; and 2671, n. 6. *On the Method of Creating Gold* in codex 2529, n. 10 and 2309, n. 9, with scholia added to the margin; *Method for Finding the Paschal*, in codex 1050, n. 4, p. 199, tom. II, catalogue. In the Royal Turin Library, *Sermon on the Necessity of the Soul and on the Understanding of Humans*, in codex 331, regarding which two minor works neither Cave nor Fabricius make mention. See *Cat. codd. Gr. Taur.*, pages 414 and 415. In Madrid codex 59, from the *Oration of Nicephorus Blemmida to the Monks for their Instruction*, or from his *Typicon*, an *Oration on Faith with a Double Scholium*, and *On Virtue and Exercise*. See Iriarte. *Physics Epitome* book xv, and the second, according to Pluerus, in the place cited. At Munich, in the Bavarian Elector’s library, codex 108, Nicephorus Blemmida’s *Encomium on John the Evangelist*; *Oration on the Soul*; *Oration on the Body*; *Enarrations on Some Psalms*; *On Faith*; *On Virtue and Religious Life*. In codex 152, Nicephorus *On Heaven*. (cat. codd. gr. p. 42 and 60.) Add above vol. IV, pag. 206, sub fin. and p. 220, and below, vol. XII, where it treats of physicians and chemists, etc., and Kollar, in *Supplem. ad Lambecii comm.* pag. 663 seq. (HARL.)

Paris public library codex 155 (in which there is also a commentary on the *Canticle of Canticles* attributed to the same Nicephorus). In codex 810 (on Psalms I-X, XIV, L, LXXIII); in codices 2099 and 2100, on Psalm VIII, a commentary is also subject to the chapters of physics. In the Escorial codex, *Exposition on that Psalm verse, The moon and stars, which you have founded*, according to Pluerus in *Itin. per Hispan.* p. 183. In the codices of the Turin library 105, there is the same commentary on the Psalms. See *Cat. codd. Gr.* pag. 214. Ib. in codex 130, Nicephorus’s *Interpretation of the Titles of the Psalms*, and regarding the reason why each was so called, for which the author of the catalogue suspects a commentary of Nicephorus on the Psalms may have been prefixed, mem. p. 230. In codex 311 of the same library, there are hymns and prayers by Nicephorus Blemmida and other ecclesiastical writers. (HARL.)

NICEPHORUS BLEMMIDA, FIRST ORATION, DEMONSTRATING BY SCRIPTURAL TESTIMONIES THAT THE HOLY SPIRIT IS THEOLOGIZED AS BEING THROUGH THE SON AND FROM THE SON. ADDRESSED TO JACOB, ARCHBISHOP OF BULGARIA.

^A 1. I am possessed by a passion, which I shall declare: for my discourse is directed toward a sacred physician, and all those who are endowed with the same disciplines as he. I speak with open confidence among the wise, and no fear overtakes me when I uncover my mind; for an unerring judgment will either bring confirmation or correction to what is being said. But when I converse with the unlearned, I restrain myself, and especially when I discourse about God; for I fear that, since they do not understand the matter, they might attach to me a suspicion of falsehood. But if to the unlearned person there is added the desire for contention, then I shrink and recoil from speaking at all. For just as he who theologizes boldly and thoughtlessly is not acceptable (since theology must be governed by fear, lest it might drive one into the precipices of destruction), in the same way, he who listens contentiously, and looks in every way to contradict, is to be cast out and spurned. For contention, rejoicing in evils, confuses and disturbs the truth. But if many statements agree together in the same thing, how would they not seem more powerful than that of one who inclines toward the opposite side, especially if they are among those who are in positions of dignity; and by what reason would the truth itself, in the sight of others, turn into something good for the one who thinks the contrary?

^B 2. Since I am in this state, and so affected, since the discourse is now for the wise, and for those who seek and pursue the peace that is in Christ, I will discourse freely and openly concerning the proposed question; which is: whether the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father through the Son, or indeed directly from the Father, but not through the Son. And that the first has been handed down by many holy teachers, and the second by no one, I believe all men who are exercised in the sacred writings, and ^C directed by fairness, will testify.

^A And we ourselves, no less, have already noted this in three of our epistles.

3. That it is not explicitly contained in the Gospels—which is a point many seize upon for the sake of contradiction—does not, however, prove that it provides any impediment to the doctrine. The trustworthiness of those who have engaged in theology demonstrates this; for it is not permitted to disbelieve what has been said by God-bearing men. Rather, the trustworthiness of those men is itself a proof of the argument, and more powerful than any logical or dialectical force, as he who is named for theology affirms in his *Anti-Julianics*. For the One who inspired the evangelists is the very same One who inspired the other holy speakers, and the sacred writings of all the saints are the voices of God. ^B

4. To say that these [writings] have been corrupted by the *Pneumatomachi* is foolish, since the confession that the Holy Spirit exists by the Son from the Father contributes absolutely nothing to their heresy; on the contrary, it entirely overthrows and destroys it. For by the former position the Spirit is blasphemed as a creature, whereas by the latter He is proclaimed to be of the very essence of the Son, and consubstantial with the Father and the Son. And what reasonable argument would there be for such a villainy having set upon the sacred books of so many saints throughout the entire world, and for the corruption to have been so universal among the writings of the great Fathers, while no one before our time has observed such damage? This is not so, it is not so; such a thing is a fabrication of a wretched, unhappy mind. ^C

5. Furthermore, how is it that all those who have written against the Romans after the dissension and schism fought against the idea that the Spirit is the Son’s *by essence*—as they understood it—but not at all against the idea that He is [from the Father] *through the Son*? Indeed, the more learned among them even appeared to be advocates of [the latter], and through it they endeavored to refute [the idea of the Spirit being] "from the Son." And that this is so, we learn from the sacred *Armamentarium*. How much that book was held in veneration by the men of learning at that time, and how it was subsequently sought out with great zeal, and in this our own age is greatly celebrated and held in honor, and how no one has ever—even among those who, having laid aside shame, shamelessly attempt everything—dared to move a tongue against it, while it stands even more violently against the procession of the Spirit *from* the Son, the facts themselves cry out clearly enough. In it, the Latins are introduced, as is customary in dialogues, proposing a saying of the most wise Cyril to corroborate their own opinion; the words of Cyril are: "The Spirit is not at all mutable; for if He were subject to mutation, a defect would be ascribed to the divine nature itself, since the Spirit, who flows essentially from both—that is, from the Father through the Son—belongs to God and the Father, and indeed to the Son." ^D Let us, therefore, consider what they answered to those who had come from Rome. This blessed Father Cyril, anticipating the many excuses of our arguments, at once briefly [provides] a summary of the obscure...

syllables. For having said that the Spirit essentially proceeds from both, namely from the Father through the Son, he concisely subjoined this. But that which is gathered from such an inference is nothing other than that the Spirit proceeds from the Father alone, and not also from the Son. For if it were even that, there would have been no need for such an addition by the holy man. Those who came from Rome replied to these points: "Therefore, neither are we mistaken, for we follow this divine Father in saying that the Spirit proceeds from the Father and from the Son, understanding and interpreting the preposition *ex* [out of] in the case of the Son in place of *dia* [through]. But the conjunction *and*," said those who proceeded to refute them, "which is annexed by you to the Son, clearly refutes the things you say; since when you say that the Spirit proceeds from the Father ^B and from the Son, you take the preposition *ex* in the same sense in the case of the Father as you accept and profess it to be in the case of the Son. Wherefore, either you establish the preposition *ex* in the same sense in both—that is, in the Father and in the Son—and how do you not oppose the divine Father, who speaks of *ex* [out of] in the case of the Father, but *per* [through] in the case of the Son; or else you take the preposition *ex* in both cases in place of *per*, asserting that the Spirit proceeds through the Father and through the Son, and you must assign to us another [distinction], according to which the Spirit is said to proceed through these two. For you are forcibly prevented by this copulative conjunction, as we have said before, from taking one and the same preposition in one sense for the Father and in another for the Son. For you yourselves also avoid, as barbaric and senseless, speaking or writing without a conjunction, 'from the Father, from the Son.'" And these things indeed are from the sacred Armoury.

^C 6. Another among the select, being one who was himself in dialogue with those from Rome, since he intended to demonstrate that the things said by the saints are not in any way contrary to one another according to the truth—even if they might appear so to the unreflective—said: "They would be contrary if, regarding the same thing and according to the same respect, they were significant of the same thing, yet were rejected by some and approved by others. Thus, then, even in these matters, Christ asserted that the Spirit proceeds from the Father, and perhaps by referring everything to the Father as to the primary cause, he attributes the procession of the Spirit to Him." And the great Athanasius spoke thus: "The Spirit [proceeds] from the Father, as proceeding from the Word who is from the Father." ^D And the Nyssen, having said that the Son is immediately from the First—that is, from the Father—subjoins: "The Spirit [is] through Him who is immediately from the First." The wise Cyril clearly declared: "From both," namely from the Father and the Son, but explaining how it is "from both," he added: "from the Father through the Son." John of Damascus, however, while saying [He is] from the Father as from the first beginning and first cause, says [He is] not from the Son as from the first beginning; and he did not forbid [saying] "from the Son," as from Him who is immediate, or through Him who is immediate; for the preposition *ex* [from] and *per* [through] have the same value; and this is sol-

^Aid in Holy Scripture, nor was it unknown to the holy Fathers. And if [it is said] "from the Son," as from the Father through the Son, and if "from both," it is likewise [the case]; and if [it is said] from the Father as from the first cause, and from the Son as from the immediate cause—which the great Athanasius, the great Cyril, and Gregory of Nyssa affirm—the wise John [of Damascus] would not contradict this, but would himself also say that the Spirit is thus also "from the Son." For he himself also says "[proceeding] through the Son," as if the [preposition] *through* and the [preposition] *from* had equal power. But if anyone were to say [that the Spirit proceeds] from the Son as from the first cause, which none of the saints has said, he would both contradict them and cry out loudly. So much for these matters.

7. Moreover, we find many others among the ^B more recent [authors] who oppose the [phrase] "from the Son," but who establish even quite forcefully the [phrase] "through the Son," according to the explanation we have previously noted. Whence I do not know what has come over some in this age that they cannot bear it to be said that the Spirit proceeds from the Father through the Son. But let us see what the man worthy of a name derived from immortality, Athanasius, teaches the bishop Serapion about this matter by letter: "Just as the only-begotten offspring is the Son, so also the Spirit is given and sent from the Son, and He himself is one and not many, nor one from many, but the Spirit Himself alone; for since the Son, the living Word, is one, there must be one perfect and complete sanctifying and ^C illuminating life, which is His [manifest] operation and gift, which is said to proceed from the Father, inasmuch as it clearly shines forth from the Word, who is from the Father, and is sent and given."

8. Some cling stubbornly to the word "shines forth," and say it indicates a manifestation, not an existence; for the term "to proceed," used previously, signifies existence. If, therefore, the Spirit is said to proceed from the Father because He is manifested by the Word, [they argue that] when He is not manifested, He would not be said to proceed from the Father. What then? Before the creation of things, whether sensible or intellectual, by which the Holy Spirit was manifested by the Word, would He not be said to proceed from the Father? Just as if someone were to define man as an ensouled, sensible essence, because he is an animal; ^D if another were able to overthrow the cause, he would also overthrow the conclusion; in the same way, with the premise of such men overturned, that which is supposedly gathered from it, as far as they are concerned, is dissipated.

9. And these men may still inquire as to why the Spirit is said to proceed from the Father. We, however, taking hold of the true meaning of the expression, will argue in this way. The Spirit flows forth from the Word, that is, through the Word, from the Father, just as a light-giving radiance [flows] from the sun through the light. Since this is so, and we confess the Word to be from the Father; for this reason the Spirit is also said to proceed from the Father. The teacher uses the word "shines forth" appropriately for the enlightening life.

He also designates the Holy Spirit as the Word’s energy—meaning a life-giving, subsistent energy—knowing the Word and Son to be the subsistent power of God. Since energy comes through power, and power is confessedly from God, for this reason the energy is from God. This is what he wishes to signify to the teacher: it is said to "proceed," because the procession of the Spirit is spoken of and proclaimed as being from the Father due to the reference to the first cause. Thus, as the energy of the Son and of God the Word, the Holy Spirit eternally shines forth from Him—which is the same as saying, through Him from the Father; and as a gift, He is also sent and given naturally.

^B 10. That shining forth in theology is indicative of an existence free from passion and removed from time, the great Basil also shows, speaking thus in the second of his *Antirrhetics*: "A common preconception exists equally in all Christians, or at least in those who are truly worthy of this title, that the Son is light, generated by shining forth from the unbegotten light." And again: "Of a good Father, a good Son; and the light of the unbegotten light shone forth eternally." And Gregory, the wise prelate of the Nyssenes, says this in the first of his *Antirrhetics*: "The Father is without beginning, and unbegotten, and is always understood as Father. From Him, directly and indivisibly, the only-begotten Son is understood together with the Father. And through Him, and with Him—before any empty or unsubstantial notion can intervene—the Holy Spirit is immediately grasped in connection, not subsisting in existence after the Son, as if the only-begotten could ever be thought of apart from the Spirit, but having His cause of being from God, the God of all things, from whom the only-begotten light also springs; yet, because He shines forth through the true light, ^C He is not separated from the Father or from the only-begotten by any interval or difference of nature." Again, the great Basil, to the same effect, on the difference between essence and hypostasis: "The Son, knowing the Spirit who proceeds from the Father through Himself and with Himself, he alone shining forth as only-begotten from the unbegotten light, has no communion with the Father or with the Holy Spirit according to the particularity of the characteristics." John, the wise poet, in his *Hymns to the immaculate Theotokos*: "You, Mother of God, have given birth without union to Him who shone forth from the incorrupt Father." Regarding this, the interpreter, who is admired by many and who first expounded the sacred canons, says: "'Shone forth' denotes the supernal generation of the Son without passion. For just as splendor flows from the sun without passion, so also the Son has been begotten by the Father without passion, and the poet teaches that the Son shines through the Word also without time, and accordingly without beginning. ^D For just as there is light, and at the same time the splendor from it, so when the Father is conceived by the mind, the Son follows to be understood at the same time." And we have brought forward more than was necessary. For where a meaning is prudent and seems very well adapted to the subject matter if the word is taken in that way, but if it is taken otherwise it is twisted into another sense, it presents much unlikelihood and inconsistency, for

what more need we seek there for the setting forth of the truth? ^A

11. But to say — in order that no one might think that the Son is the principle of the Spirit — that He manifests the Spirit through His teaching and gives Him as though He were akin to Him, and that for this reason [the Spirit] is said to proceed from the Father, is a curious [argument], but one that is easily exposed. For what suspicion of a "principle" could such a manifestation and exhibition introduce? Or how, as the Word gives the Holy Spirit as though to one akin, could [the Spirit] not in return be given by that same kin? Or, since the Word is admittedly manifest from the Father, is not everything that the Word has also admittedly from the Father? And how, then, could the Word be considered the principle of the Spirit? Away with such misinterpretations; I know that you yourself would say as much to the one you are disputing with.

Nevertheless, that the Spirit proceeds from the Father through the Son, the great Basil affirms in many places, and especially in the *Antirrhetici*: "How, then," he says, "could the things which cannot be separated be separated? The Word of God and the Spirit of God [proceeding] through the Son; if the Spirit is not believed in, then the Word is also not believed in." ^B Regarding this same matter, the most perspicacious Epiphanius in the *Ancoratus* discourses in this manner: "For the blessed Peter says to those with Ananias: 'Why has Satan tempted you, to lie to the Holy Spirit?' And he says: 'You have not lied to men, but to God.' Therefore, the Spirit, to whom they had lied and whom they had defrauded of the price, is God from the Father and the Son." And again: "The Father is the Father of the true Son, [being] light entirely, and the Son is the Son of the true Father. Light from light, not as things made or created, [but] the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth by name alone; [He is] a third light from the Father and the Son; all other things [are third] by position, or by addition, or by appellation." This the most perspicacious Epiphanius [says], using "from the Father and the Son" in place of that [phrase] "from the Father through the Son." ^C Just as the most wise Cyril also [states] in the *Thesaurus*, in these words: "That which the blessed Moses contended had been breathed by God into man, this Christ, renewing it in us at the resurrection from the dead, breathed into His own disciples, saying: 'Receive the Spirit,' so that, being reformed unto the image which we had from the beginning, we might appear conformed to the Creator through the participation of the Spirit." When, therefore, the Holy Spirit, coming to us, makes us conformed to God, and indeed proceeds from the Father and the Son, it is manifest that $\mathrm{He}$ is of the divine essence, proceeding essentially in it and from it. He proceeds, he says, from the Father and the Son; that is to say, through the Son from the Father. But the light of the Nyssaeans and of the world—in how many places does he plainly confirm that the Holy Spirit is from the Father through the Son? ^D Yet he delivers these things regarding the Spirit most especially in the first *Antirrhetica*: "He is joined to the Father according to that which is uncreated, and again he is separated from Him in that, just as He is not the Father, he is distinct; he is joined also to the Son according to that which is uncreated, and because he possesses the cause of existence from the God of all; he is separated again by property, because he is not as

the Only-begotten originated from the Father, but appeared through the Son himself. And again, since the creation emerged through the Only-begotten, lest the Spirit be thought to have any communion with it—being immutable and unchangeable and in no need of goodness from elsewhere—the Spirit is distinguished from the creation. ^A Since he appeared through the Son, in the—

^B 12. Some raise questions about his appearing, saying, "Perhaps it denotes manifestation and not existence." Although they ought—unless they are committed to the word being operative both in pronunciation and in meaning—at any rate to have gathered the meaning of the term from other Patristic expressions, and not to stand pointlessly opposing the truth. For what Basil the Great teaches concerning the Spirit is readily available: "Having nothing extraneous in himself, but possessing all things from eternity as Spirit of God, and appearing from Him." And the most wise Cyril says concerning Christ: "We say that the Mediator of God and men, as the divine Scriptures teach, is composed of our humanity, perfected according to its own nature, and of him who appeared from God according to nature as Son, that is, the Only-begotten." And again: "The Spirit is proper to the Son, not only in that, as Verb, he appeared from the Father, but also in that he is conceived by us as having become man. It is manifest that the Spirit is God, possessing that [existence] from another properly and naturally as God; but other creatures [possess it] more improperly, as those which appeared from the Creator and Maker, from whom they are said to be." Therefore, the word "to appear" most manifestly denotes existence, as Scripture affirms concerning the Spirit. For just as the Maker Word confirmed the heaven, so also the Spirit of God [is] he who proceeds from the Father, that is, from his mouth. And again: "Nor is the Spirit alien to the glory of God, appearing ineffably from the ineffable mouth." Does it not clearly stand proven concerning the Spirit that "to appear" and "to proceed" are the same?

^C 13. Therefore, those who are in doubt here concerning "to have appeared" ought, as we have said, to have sought the meaning of the term from elsewhere, from the things that are beyond doubt, or at least to have comprehended the truth from the very structure of the speech, and not to deceive themselves with false reasonings. For what commonality with the creature would the Holy Spirit be thought to have, from the fact that the one indeed came into existence through the Only-begotten, while the Spirit was manifested to it through him? Or how, since the Spirit is distinguished from the creature in other respects, would he not be distinguished far more easily from the fact that the one has its being through the Only-begotten, while the other does not through the Only-begotten? But this is [the meaning of] "being through the Son": that for the Spirit, [it is] from the Father, naturally through the Son; and for the creation, [it is] as produced by the Maker. For the creature is unstable and mutable and in need of the goodness from God, whereas the Holy Spirit has not changed from not being into being; for he always was, wherefore he also—

^A is not a creature. For if the created is mutable, that which is not mutable is not created. The creature is changeable in the way of progress, receiving sanctification, but also falling away from the better and slipping back toward the worse. But the Spirit possesses the highest holiness eternally. Therefore, if the created is changeable, that which is unchangeable is not created. The creature has goodness by participation from God, but the Spirit is good by nature. Thus, by being in no need of goodness from another source, and by being unchangeable and immutable, the Spirit is distinguished from the creature. Otherwise, these things would have been thought to have some community with the creature, because he has appeared through the Son from the Father.

14. ^B But immediately the Psalmic "hands of God," the theological "rays," along with similar "rivers," and the "God-planted shoots," and the "twin wombs," and the "lights of the Father," and whatever is not unlike these, are set forth in opposition; yet those who put these forward do not understand that the inconfused nature of the hypostases and the first cause are indicated hereby. At all events, the great Athanasius, who is deeply versed in divine things, writes as follows concerning the only-begotten Word himself in his discourse on the incarnation of the Word: "When he commends his spirit into the hands of the Father as a man, he commends himself to himself as God, for he himself is the hand and the hands of the Father." And the wise John, in the Church, while chanting of Him who stretched out his hands on the cross, proclaims: ^C "For my sake, with his immaculate hands, he has made my fashioning from the earth at the beginning," calling the creative power of the Word and the efficacy of his operation "hands" symbolically, after the manner of our own. If, however, anyone wishes to call both the Son and the Spirit the hands of God, let him have a cause that is neither implausible nor untimely: when he hears the Son called "arm" and "right hand" of God, and the Holy Spirit "finger," let him then contemplate the supreme unity of the Son and the Spirit, and that the Spirit proceeds from God the Father through the Son. But in understanding the Son and the Spirit as the hands of God, let him conceive from this their inconfused and self-subsisting character, that the Son and the Spirit are at once distinct in mind—not that the Spirit does not proceed from the Father through the Son, nor that they are not connected to one another like the right and left hand; but that one is from the one side, and the other from the other, not confused within themselves.

15. ^D For this reason, the great Gregory in his theology sometimes compares the Son to a ray and the Spirit to light, the one to a fountain and the other to a river; and sometimes, intending to demonstrate the inconfused nature of the said hypostases of the Godhead, and that in their descent to us they are not separated from the Father, he says that two rays are sent forth from one sun, and two rivers flow from one fountain—advancing indeed far and wide, yet always clinging to that from which they flow—wishing thereby to demonstrate the indivisibility and equal honor of the Trinity, and he calls it a single pearl.

^A Dionysius, most profound in contemplation, calls the Son and the Spirit the twin bowels of the Father, and lights, and flowers, and divinely-planted shoots, indicating the unconfused nature of the hypostases, and that both have their being from the Father, genuinely and purely. Other holy men call the Father the root, the Son the branch, and the Holy Spirit the fruit, demonstrating the existence of the Holy Spirit from the Father through the Son. Furthermore, I hear a certain divinely-inspired and divinely-taught instructor teaching me thus concerning the super-divine Trinity: You shall conceive of the Father as the supreme root, beyond which there is nothing at all; and you shall accept the Son as having sprung and been begotten from this supreme root—not in equal order to created things, nor having obtained an origin in time, nor in less than that in which the Father is, showing forth the beauty of His own nature, but as coeternal, possessing everything in equal measure, save only for the begetting. For this would appropriately belong to God and the Father alone. And you shall call the Holy Spirit that which is poured forth naturally from God the Father through the Son, and which, to use this example, indicates its own existence as by the breath from the mouth. Thus, preserving the clear and unconfused property of the three hypostases in their individual existences, you shall adore the one and consubstantial nature, the queen ^B of all. What is it to be "poured forth naturally"? It is the very procession of the Spirit, an individual existence and property, just as it is for the Father to be in the supreme place, and beyond whom there is nothing—that is to say, to be without beginning—and for the Son to be begotten from the Father. For the words brought forward above treat of these things, clearly determining the modes of existence of the blessed hypostases of the Godhead.

16. But why is there need to speak at length about such matters? If no one among the saints had yet clearly taught that the procession of the Spirit from the Father through the Son exists, we would not have the necessity of digging a new well. But if this well was dug long ago, and the hand ^C of the Philistine obstructed it and filled it in, shall not someone cleanse it, and after clearing out the abundant mud of ignorance, find the living water, and unite again into one flock, through the common Shepherd, the company of the sheep of the pasture that has been divided not well, to the Only-Begotten and Beloved, in which he has even imitated the condescension of the good Shepherd himself? Come then, along with other children of the Father and heir, and by the grace of the father of nations, let us again bring forward here the great Athanasius, and let us see again how much even he contributed to the digging of this well. What, then, did the household servant of the Lord, the defender of the Church, hurl against Eusebius of Samosata and Meletius, those aliens to the faith? ^D "It was impossible for the Spirit to be glorified in the glory of the Trinity, unless He flowed from God through the Son, but was made from God as a creature, as they assert." What is it to flow? Oration on dogmatics and the order of bish...

bishops,

Theologus

^B 17. Yet I have at some time heard some people wondering in this way: "If the Spirit is through the Son, how has the most theological Gregory said: 'I wish to call the Father greater, from whom both the being equal to those who are equal is derived, and the very [fact of] being.' For this will be conceded by everyone, and I fear [as he says] the principle, lest I make it a principle of inferiors, and do an injury by my preference. If the Word and the Holy Spirit are equal, what existence would they have, having both of them likewise from the Father?" These are the doubts of more recent people, [who suggest that] the Spirit would have no equality with the Only-Begotten if He proceeded through Him; and yet, the solution is made manifest from the very same Patristic statement which is assumed in the objection itself. For he says: "I fear the principle, lest I make it a principle ^C of inferiors"—hence the great theologian wishes the principle to be equal to those who are from it, with the seminal principle being in no way harmed by the equality, which reveals an equality of honor and a sameness of nature, just as the same teacher declares most clearly in the second of his *Peace* orations, saying: "The Trinity, brethren, is truly a Trinity; and the Trinity is not an enumeration of unequal things, but a comprehension of equals and those of equal honor." Therefore, just as the equality of the three does not abolish the principle of the One, so too the equality of those who are from the principle does not destroy [the fact that] the Spirit proceeds from the Father through the Son. This equality, therefore, must be preserved in the Trinity above all things, and confusion must be sent far away as an excess, and inequality as a defect—that is, ^D an alienation. For what need is there to irrationally contract God, or to cut him into pieces with inequality? Or again, to contract the Godhead, or impiously dissolve it, or divide it with disjunctions of nature or magnitude? "But," they say, "if the Spirit is said to be through the Son, the Son would also be generating God, which is the property of the Father. Therefore the Son will share this property with the Father." [If] the Holy Spirit is despoiled of this God-generating faculty, will He not be in danger of falling from the great degree of the Godhead, if indeed it is necessary for the essence to be taken away along with the faculty? For if that which is of the same essence is also of the same power, that which is not of the same power will also not be of the same essence.

^A

18. Good heavens, how difficult to grasp are the things that are said! For if the Father generates the Son, receiving this from no one, and the Son has the Spirit, receiving It naturally from the Father, not as generated, but as proceeding through Him from the Father, I absolutely do not understand what sort of paternal property they claim the Son will have. And how do they designate the Father as "God-begetter"? If it is because He generates God the Son, this is truly the specific characteristic of the paternal hypostasis, but the Son is not a "God-begetter," since He does not generate a Son. But if they combine generating and producing into one, and in this way call the Father "God-begetter," then behold, the Spirit is also a fetus ^B of God, and how then will the Son be Only-Begotten? If, however, they overtly introduce "producing" as a paternal property, and from this construct the argument that the Spirit has not appeared from the Father through the Son, they are sophistically arguing from the fact that It is poured forth in the beginning. For "from the Father, not through the Son" regarding the Spirit and "the productive power being a paternal property" are exactly the same thing. But what Scripture hands down such a property? Furthermore, how will the faculty of producing, which resides in the Father as in a primary source, be shared with the Son because the Spirit is from the Father through Him? For if someone asserts that the Spirit is from the Son as from an initial source, the Son will indeed be a sharer in the Father regarding this ^C primacy. And how then is He a Son? This is inconsistent and absurd. But if the very procession of the Spirit from the Father is explicitly proclaimed, just as everything the Son has is, the opponents are clearly fighting with shadows. Nevertheless, in the points adduced, we assume the Son, and we raise the objection: if the Holy Spirit lacks the faculty of begetting God, and the Son Himself also lacks it, will they not, according to their own logic, be in danger of falling from the deity?

19. Moreover, I marvel at their contraposition, by means of which they contrive to show that the Son is not of the same essence as the Father. For if that which is of the same essence is of the same power, and that which is not of the same power is not of the same essence, then either the Son is of the same essence as the Father—and therefore of the same power—that power which they postulated, and He will necessarily generate a Son—or He is not of the same power, namely the generative power, and according to them, He is not of the same essence as the Father. ^D "And how," they say, "if the Holy Spirit is through the Son, did Leontius of Caesarea, in the name of the Nicene synod, say to the philosopher: 'Accept one deity of the Father, who generated the Son ineffably, and of the Son, who was generated from Him, and of the Holy Spirit, who proceeds from the same Father, but who is proper to the Son'?" And how is it that the Lord Himself says in the Gospels that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father, without adding "through the Son"? To these questions we object as follows: Why did Leontius call the Holy Spirit proper to the Son, but not also say that the Son is proper to the Spirit, unless he recognized that the former is immediately from the Father, but the Spirit is from the same Father through the Son? And if

the word "alone" is taken in place of "the same," so that ^A the objection of these men may have more force, and it be said that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father alone—what, then, when the great Athanasius, who is outstanding in divine matters, says in his first oration against the Arians that the Father alone is the supplier of the Holy Spirit, shall we not therefore grant to the Son that he is a supplier of the same Spirit? Or when the Lord says concerning that day or hour that no one knows, nor the angels of heaven, except his Father alone, shall we not grant even to the Son this knowledge? Or when he says to the Father, "This is eternal life, that they may know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent," shall we not call Christ the true God? Shall we not call the Holy Spirit the true God? But just as when the Father is said to know alone, every other knowledge—that is, of those on earth—ceases; and when he is proven the only true God, every god of a different nature is sent away—in the same way, and if the Spirit be said to emanate from the Father alone, every principle of a different essence will be banished afar. For the word "alone" does not necessarily entail a division of the hypostases ^B of the Godhead, as the most divine Athanasius himself demonstrates in his dialogue with Arius. Thus, then, neither does the expression "the same"; for that term distinguishes rather than divides.

20. And if it is pleasing that "alone" and "the same" be taken together, who, provided he is of sound mind, will not admit that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the same one God and Father as from the first principle, and that whatever the Son has, he has from the Father? But for my part, I fear lest someone may attribute a mere impotence to the divine power, and a deprivation of life to the very life itself, and an irrationality to the self-subsistent Word, contending that the Lord attributes these same things to himself, [when he says]: "I cannot do anything of myself"; and, "I live because of the Father"; and, "The word that you hear is not mine, but the Father's who sent me." These things the Lord says on account of the honor of the Father, and for reference to the first cause, and so that he might not appear to oppose God, and to avoid appearing to utter his words by some other authority, saying: "The word, which you hear, is not mine, but the Father's who sent me. ^C

21. Does anyone at all of those who have understanding doubt why he said that the Spirit of truth proceeds from the Father, without adding "through me," even though in calling him the Spirit of truth, he confessed that the Holy Spirit is his own? "For I," he says, "am the truth." But concerning his own word, what does he say? Not that "My word is from the Father," but that "the word which you hear is not mine, but the Father's who sent me." What, then, would have happened if the Lord had said that the Holy Spirit is not mine, or does not proceed through me? And yet, even this statement would not have injured candid and prudent ears, for the reasons we have already provided.

^A 22. How, then, do they correctly deduce that "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights"? Here they call the lights the Son and the Spirit, and the Father of them God; yet they do not understand that if God were the Father of the Spirit, the Spirit would necessarily be a Son. For the Father is properly the Father of a Son. And how is the Word only-begotten, if the Spirit is also a Son? But just as God is the Father of mercies, as the cause and the Father of mercies, so too is He and is He called the Father of lights. But lights are all illuminations from God, all enlightenments, all heavenly gifts, and these brilliant things, and they are good gifts and perfect boons; and God is the progenitor and bestower of all these, not only to men, but also to all the supercelestial powers. Therefore, one must everywhere seek the meaning of Scripture in a way that is adapted to the text, and consistent and coherent with itself, and seek the cause that is truly the cause in the most appropriate way, and not let oneself be displaced toward trackless places and precipices, abandoning the straight and unerring path.

^B 23. But consider also their final and difficult argument: "How, if the Spirit is through the Son, does the wise John say that the Spirit is not to be called 'from the Son,' and that the Father alone is the cause?" For they bring together, as it seems, the "from the Son" and the "through the Son." That the same author knows the Spirit is from the Father, but yet through the Son, is clear from the things he says in other places, calling Him the Spirit of the Son, not as if He were from Him, but as being breathed forth from the Father through Him, and from the things he cries out to the Lord in hymns: "Grant us the Spirit who bestows goodness, proceeding from the Father through You." We also assert that the Holy Spirit can never be said to be from the Son primarily, but from the Father through the Son; for the Paternal hypostasis must be confessed as the beginning and cause both of the Son and of the Spirit Himself. For the Father is the sole cause, and the Son cannot be a primary cause of those things of which the Father is the self-cause. For we dogmatize that there is one beginning, the Father who is without beginning, both of creation and of deity—the operative cause of creation, and the natural cause of deity. ^C Therefore, he who says that the Spirit is from the Son casts suspicion that he attributes to the Son the power of producing, just as the Father has the power of begetting. And for this reason this divine man says that "we do not say the Spirit is from the Son." But he who says the Spirit is from the Father through the Son clearly confesses that the Father alone is the cause of the procession of the Spirit. For whatever things the Son has, He has in such a way as receiving them from the Father, essentially, that is, and naturally, as a Son properly from a Father properly.

24. And if it is not included in the sacred Symbol of faith that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father through the Son, there is no reason to be surprised. For the Symbol does not contain other necessary things either, and even that which is most necessary of all, that the Holy Spirit

is God, and of the same essence with the Father and the Son. For why is it that he declares the Son to be the Son of God, and begotten before all ages from the Father, and not only this, but also true God again, and consubstantial with the Father, while regarding the Holy Spirit he sets forth nothing of the sort? But later, because there had been much discussion regarding his essence and divinity, he then calls Him Lord, and declares Him to be worshipped and glorified together with the Father and the Son. ^B Shall we not from this confess just as clearly that the Holy Spirit is God? Or if we also proclaim Him consubstantial, together with those with whom He is worshipped and glorified, shall we be brought to judgment for introducing novelties into the confession of faith? And who of sound mind would say this? In this way, therefore, nothing contrary to law or custom will happen, even if those Fathers who flourished in that time did not, for certain reasons, hand down the procession of the same Spirit more clearly and explicitly. But you, encouraged by the present occasion of time to lead many nations to union in Christ, will explain it more clearly; you, I say, following the same Spirit and the dogmas of those Fathers who were perfectly illustrious in wisdom and holiness, and of most famous repute, which from the very beginning down to these times have entirely escaped the censure of blame and the stings of slander. Relying upon and ^C confirmed by these, Tarasius, most holy and most wise in divine matters, already long before had publicly and openly professed the Holy Spirit proceeding from the Father through the Son by a synodal letter; and this in the universal audience of the whole world, and there was absolutely no one at all who dared to censure his doctrine on God, or to contradict it.

25. Although some of the wise men of our time have not lacked ingenuity, yet even here they have found handles for contradiction; for they say that the Orientals disapproved by their silence of the things that were in the letter, since they omitted "through the Son" in their own confession of faith. However, what strength for contradiction has come from this, if they, keeping the Tome of the most blessed Sophronius, sent it back preserved without any change, as was right, since there was no necessity pressing them to interpolate and contradict those things which they themselves had received? Let someone show that the Patriarch’s writing incurred any, at least even the slightest, reprimand. ^D If they cannot, let them say in the meantime: did they not deem it worthy of many and greatest praises, confessing it to be a sanctuary of speculative and divinely-instructed contemplation, which emits the exact and divinely-inspired tradition of the right faith, and the clearest explanation of the apostolic and paternal dogmas, as the sun emits its rays? Who, therefore, says that they thought anything contained in the writing was worthy of reproach, which had been received by them with so many encomiums? But these men did so. Yet was the ecumenical synod disturbed upon hearing it? Did it make an uproar? Did it shudder at a new audition? Did it forbid it, as is its wont to happen in the traditions of absurd dogmas? Not at all. I would myself also, not importunately, ask your great holiness, relying upon your cheerfulness, lack of pride, and readiness for forbearance: if ever one προ-

^A brought forward an unsound opinion, and contended that he held it thus, and thus thought, and was thus convinced, would not those nearby have quietly perceived the blasphemous opinion? Would they not have contradicted? Would they not have acted against you in every way? I, for my part, believe that even their own leader would not wish to be acknowledged by them, unless they had first cast off the rejected opinion and most deservedly subjected it to the curses of anathema. But there, the exact opposite happened. For those who had gathered for the ecumenical council—and especially those who were more knowledgeable in the Holy Scriptures and wiser—when both petitions were read out in the common hearing of all, judged them to be as one, because the one differed from the other in nothing pertaining to piety. ^B For they knew accurately that the foremost among the God-bearing Fathers had declared that the procession of the Spirit is from the Father through the Son, and those who had proclaimed Him to be proceeding from the Father had not rejected the "through the Son." If, therefore, to those who have stated that the Spirit proceeds from the Father, the "through the Son" is not at all forbidden, and yet to those who have been moved by the Spirit Himself to articulate the procession of the Spirit from the Father, the "through the Son" was added, it is clear that all those who are of the Spirit have thought that He proceeds from the Father in no other way than through the Son, having no room in themselves for disputation against it; but rather, there is the utmost harmony among the saints, and, being educated in the same way, they all think the same thing, embracing love, peace, and union in the Spirit, just as those who delivered this sacred teaching in council did. For they, too, in accordance with that same intent, set forth this matter scripturally, passing over the expression for reasons of economy, both because they were in a hurry to hasten on to other matters and because they were intent on suppressing the clamor of the sectaries. For which reason they did not even explicitly and clearly call the Spirit God, as they did not have the phrasing readily at hand to prove it from the Gospels. And what need was there, in the face of such disputes, to go to efforts over such terms, to engage in logomachy, and to disturb the great crowd, when it was possible in another way to establish the pious and orthodox opinion irrefutably? ^C

26. That saying the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father, and from the Father through the Son, are one and the same in meaning, and not different, is most clearly manifest from the acts of that same Seventh Council. For when the Tomes had been read in council—both the one which affirms the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father through the Son, and the one which declares the same Spirit eternally proceeding from God and Father—one of the venerable Fathers of the council brought forth his opinion in the following way: "Discovering that the writings that have now been read and sent from the East to Tarasius, the most holy archbishop and ecumenical patriarch, in no way differ in meaning from the definition of faith set forth by him, I, too, unworthy as I am, concur in these." Another of those who heard it gave this opinion: "The writings of Tarasius, the most holy archbishop and ecumenical patriarch, ^D

and those [sent] from the Eastern diocese by the bishops there, appear to me to preserve such a kinship with the writings of the same Prelate of Constantinople that there exists no difference between them, but a perfect identity; so that both are one and the same, as they are filled with every orthodoxy." ^B Another expressed himself thus: "For those who make piety their concern, the discourse of orthodoxy also shines forth in every way." Therefore, my own insignificance, after directing the eye of the mind with care to the sacred and synodical writings of the most holy and blessed Tarasius, the arch-prelate of the Queen of Cities, which he sent to those in the East, and furthermore to those sent to him by them, I have recognized that they are in all things in harmony with the orthodox faith of the holy Fathers, as I have read them. Another spoke these words: "Seeing the synodical writings of Tarasius, the most holy and ecumenical patriarch, and the copies of those from the bishops of the East in agreement, I consent to them." Another uttered this: "Just as we have come together thinking as one, so too have we been taught to say as one." Since, therefore, the synodical points of Tarasius, the most holy ecumenical patriarch, which were read aloud—those sent by him to the most holy bishops of the East, and the copies of those sent by them to him—are in agreement with the holy and orthodox faith of the six ecumenical councils, so do I also believe. ^C The rest of the most holy bishops exclaimed these things: "The entire holy synod, which by the grace of Christ our true God and the pious sanction of our most serene and orthodox emperors has been gathered, receiving the report from Hadrian, Pope of Elder Rome, to our most orthodox emperors, and the document now read, which embraces the correct and orthodox definition of the most holy and blessed ecumenical patriarch Tarasius, and the letters sent to his beatitude by the bishops of the East, we confirm and venerate." Hence, those who search for the truth maintain that the most holy Tarasius, having examined and approved in a genuine synod the procession of the Holy Spirit from the Father through the Son, handed it down so very piously and by divine instinct, establishing and confirming it by the judgment of many, and sending it as a universal proclamation through an encyclical letter to every church of Christ.

27. If those of the seventh [council] decided that the Symbol of faith, which was set forth by the Fathers of the second synod, should also be a rule of faith for them as well, there is no reason to be surprised. ^D For they deemed it better in common to hold fast to the discourse known and acknowledged by all, and still to uphold it, and not to appear to be handing down a new confession for no gain, while at that time the whole Church of Christ was bound together by the bond of union. And at that time, none of all these men dared to contradict the patriarch. For it would have been [found] in the official acts...

and the contradiction [is] inserted into the acts. But, as it seems, at this present time all knowledge and all zeal abound, whereas in that time and in the times following there was nothing of the sort. For how could that which was alien to the orthodox faith, if there had been any such thing, have lain neglected and unnoted until this day, without any rebuke? What manner of alien dogma has not been exposed to censure and in many ways openly refuted? Who among the authors or patrons of any heresy whatsoever has not been proscribed? Who are they that condemn the [teaching that] the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father through the Son? Do they not associate with themselves those who handed down such a dogma in writing, and call them Fathers, and teachers, and saints of God, and honor them in the Church with auspicious voices, and invoke their prayers, and strive to obtain their assistance? And what manner of agreement is this? But I, for my part, am persuaded that the dogmas of the holy men are sound, and those whose dogmas are not sound, I would never call holy. I am thus simple and without guile; for I have never seen a good tree bringing forth bad fruit; rather, I have experienced that the fruit of a rotten tree is bad, and the fruit of a good tree is, as is fitting, good. ^A

NICEPHORUS BLEMMIDES SECOND DISCOURSE ON CERTAIN DOGMATIC QUESTIONS, TO THE PIOUS EMPERATOR OF CONSTANTINOPLE, THEODORE DOUKAS LASCARIS.

1. He who asks at an inopportune time and receives at an opportune time, demonstrates by argument that his petition was timely, if indeed that which is timely follows that which was untimely. But if anyone should attribute the result to the providence of him who provides it, then not less is the prudence of him who gave the beginning shown, for he knew clearly and skillfully into what place he should cast the seed, so that whenever there was need, he might later be able to perceive the fruit, having already, that is, a skillful knowledge of that which he desired. By the same reasoning, both the farmer and the planter, even if the enjoyment is not immediately at hand, ^C

^A nevertheless toil for the outgrowth, strengthened by a better hope, casting off the contrary, and considering that which is to come as if it were not a distant future. Therefore you too, being a fruit and foster-child of wisdom—even while this dogmatic discussion had not yet at that time been moved within the city—reached out and requested arguments concerning it, from those in whom you were confident, though they were at that time occupied with other studies. And this request brought with it not so much a burden as it did a kind of foresight; and for the mind of a wise man, it announced to those who were able to understand it, that his eyes foresaw things not yet present, better than those who are accustomed to consider only the things at their feet, ^B perceive the existence of things that already are. But since now, by the nature of these events, we are—I would not say called, but rather urged, though our body is suffering from poor health—to the exaction and payment of this request, as if it were some prescribed tax and a sufficiently long-delayed debt, you have the timely fruits of those things which you had previously sown; you have as much as the weakness of our flesh and mind permits.

2. Before all things, therefore, know that the procession in the Holy Spirit is a mode of existence and a hypostatic property, just as generation is in the Son, and ingeneracy in the Father. For that very thing—not to be begotten, to be begotten, and to proceed—has designated Him the Father, Him the Son, and Him—He of whom it is said—the Holy Spirit, as the great Gregory says in his theology. ^C But those who allege that "to proceed" is homonymous when applied to the Holy Spirit, let them assign another term which properly denotes the existence of the Holy Spirit; or else, let them maintain with the same absurdity that ingeneracy and generation in the other divine hypostases are homonymous. For "to proceed," when joined with other things, will signify a conjunction with those things with which it is constructed; for example: "A river proceeds out of Eden," and this: "He was proceeding out, and was speaking" to the same thing. But when found applied to the Holy Spirit, it signifies strictly and solely the existence of the Holy Spirit, as He who alone is wise has handed it down in the Gospels. To "go forth," and to "shine forth," and any other thing of this sort, when joined to other things introduce other meanings, as, "The king goes forth," and, "The righteous will shine forth as the sun." ^D Yet when assumed in theology, those concerning the Spirit signify the existence of the Spirit, and those concerning the Son signify the existence of the Son; and the testimonies, which are very many, are readily available to one who wishes to search them out from the holy Scriptures.

3. That the procession of the Holy Spirit through the Son from the Father was long since confessed, and was held by pious men up to our own times, and was received as a common dogma of the Church of God, is well known. And it is not long ago that some were affected in a most ridiculous, or rather, I should say, in a most miserable way, while—

^A wishing to destroy utterly from the Son [the property of the Spirit], they destroyed along with it also the "through the Son," and the teachings of so many holy men. Wherever there was a handle that seemed available, they twisted it; wherever there was none at all, they rejected it as supposedly inconsistent with the majority. And wherever the Holy Spirit was said to be poured out or to proceed from the Father, they took these terms as referring to the procession; but wherever "through the Son" was added, they insisted that it be understood as effusion or emanation, and whatever else of that sort, in place of the gift.

4. But there is no discernment in those who have looked, first of all, at the fact that many of the holy Fathers decreed and most clearly stated that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father through the Son; but that He does not proceed through the Son, no one who was treating of divine matters dared to affirm, unless one brings forward into the light that [statement] from Theodoret [made] in a spirit of contentiousness, on account of which he was deposed and proscribed. Although, later on, condemning himself ^B and the very words which he had uttered in a spirit of execrable contentiousness, and having cast them off and submitted himself to the curses of anathema, he was with difficulty eventually received back.

5. But second, how could the Son possess the power to bestow the Spirit unless He were joined to the Spirit by some other relationship than that of consubstantiality? For if consubstantiality were the cause in the Son of the bestowal of the Spirit, or of any other of the things which the Spirit is said to have from the Son—since in the same way that the Son is consubstantial with the Spirit, so too is the Spirit with the Son—if the Son bestows the Spirit, then the Spirit would also bestow the Son. The Spirit is proper to the Son; the Son would also be said to be proper to the Spirit. The Son sends the Spirit; the Son Himself, as God, would be sent in turn by the Spirit. The Spirit speaks whatever He hears from the Son; and the Son would speak whatever He heard from the Spirit. The Spirit receives from the Son; the Son would receive ^C from the Spirit. Through the Son, the Spirit is united to the Father; and the Son would be united to His own Father through the Spirit. Whatever the Spirit has, He has from the Word; and whatever the Son has, He would have from the Spirit. Through the Spirit, the Son works; and the Spirit would work through the Son. The Spirit is the image of the Son; and the Son would be the image of the Spirit. The Spirit has such an order and nature toward the Son as the Son has toward the Father; and the Son would have the same order and nature toward the Spirit as the Spirit himself has toward the Father. There are many such things; meanwhile, even from those things already enumerated, he who has not entirely cast off shame, and has not entirely forgotten himself, will give his assent to the truth.

6. Do you seek testimonies for those things which we have just said? We have recently brought forward for you very many, having handed over a whole volume full of such things. Nevertheless, we shall append a few even ^D here from those same sources. The most divine Athanasius, in his first Oration against the Arians, says this: "But the Savior, being God, rules perpetually by the dominion of the Father, and He Himself is the unique bestower of the Holy Spirit."

^A And again: "For the Spirit does not speak from Himself, but it is the Word who gives this to the worthy." And elsewhere: "Assuredly, just as before the incarnation, the Word, being [Lord], supplied the Spirit to the saints as His own, so also, having become man, He sanctifies all through the Spirit." And in the third of the same [orations]: "If the Spirit knows, much more does the Word, insofar as He is the Word, know, from whom the Spirit also receives." And again: "And whatever the Spirit has, these things He has from the Word." And interpreting that saying, "Whoever speaks against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him," he says concerning Christ that "He, being the Word of God, He Himself works all things through the Spirit." ^B And to Serapion the bishop: "The Spirit is called the Image of the Son, and is so." And again: "The Son indeed is sent by the Father, but He Himself sends the Spirit; and the Son glorifies the Father, saying, 'Father, I glorified You,' but the Spirit glorifies the Son. For 'He,' He says, 'shall glorify Me.' And the Son says, 'What I have heard from the Father, these things I speak to the world,' but the Spirit receives from the Son. 'For from Mine,' He says, 'He shall receive.' And the Son indeed came in the name of the Father, but the Holy Spirit, He says, 'whom the Father will send in My name'." Since the Spirit has such an order and nature toward the Son as the Son has toward the Father, how will he who calls this a creature not necessarily think the same also concerning the Son? For if the Spirit of the Son is a creature, it would be logical for them to say that the Word of the Father is also a creature. ^C The great Basil, in contemplation and action, discussing the faith in his Ascetic writings: "With the Father sending the Son, and the Son sending the Holy Spirit." And again: "The Holy Spirit, who teaches and reminds of all things, would hear all things from the Son." And writing to Amphilochius: "The Holy Spirit is one, and He Himself is declared uniquely, and is joined to the one Father through the one Son." And to his own brother, the most wise among saints, Gregory, concerning the difference of essence and hypostasis: "Just as," he says, "one grasping one end of a chain draws the other end along with it, so he who has drawn the Spirit has by Him drawn the Son also; and if one should truly receive the Son, he shall have Him from both sides, ^D on one side having His Father, and on the other side having His own Spirit brought along with Him. For He who is always in the Father can neither be severed from the Father, nor shall He ever be separated from His own Spirit, He who works all things in Him." And in the Antirrhetics: "God being one, the Son is God by paternal nature and by paternal name; and the Lord being one, the Son, the Father is Lord, called by the name of image, as the prototype of Him and begetter; so also the Spirit is Lord, having the name from the Lord, by whom He is dispensed, and the Lord [is Lord] from the image of the Spirit, since the Spirit is also called God by the same." The most wise Cyril, to the emperor Theodosius concerning Christ: "For by freeing from sins him who adheres to Him, He then anoints [him] with His own Spirit, whom He Himself sends forth as the Word from God the Father; and flowing forth to us from His proper nature, and setting Him as a thing of the incarnation, common by dispensation because of the union also, just as He breathed [on them] bodily as man."

^A In the second book of the *Treasury*: "It is necessary to confess that the Spirit exists from the essence of the Son. For as existing by nature from Him, and being sent by Him upon the creation, He works the renewal." And again, "The Holy Spirit is not alien to the essence of the Son, but is in Him, and from Him, and as it were a certain natural operation." And again, to Nestorius regarding Christ, He said, while He was Himself working through the Holy Spirit, "He shall take of mine, and shall declare it unto you." But from these things it is indeed manifest that the Spirit is from the Father through the Son.

^B 7. Now we must also consider some of the objections of those who oppose us, the more vigorous ones, so that when they have been examined, the foundation of the truth may appear all the more powerful, concurring with the dissolution of the sophistries of deceit, and manifesting and confirming more clearly that the Spirit proceeds from the Father through the Son. "How then," they say, "is the Spirit the image of the Son? If this be so, He will be equaled to the Son in all things, and will possess in Himself the marks of the Son's hypostasis in all respects. How, then, will He not be a begotten [being] of the Father, but a procession? And how will He not be the Son of the Son, and the grandson of the Father, if He is referred to the Son as to an archetype?" To these, even if the battle is not against us—for it is against those who have said that the Holy Spirit is the image of the Son—yet we say this: Every image necessarily differs in some respect from that which is its archetype. For if there were no difference between them, they would clearly be archetypes of themselves. ^C Wherefore, just as the Son, while being the image of the Father, nevertheless differs from the prototype in property—for the Son is not the Father, He is begotten, not unbegotten—so also the Holy Spirit, while being the image of the Son, and even though He is called Spirit, is not the Son, [but] one who proceeds, not one who is begotten. For the property is immovable from the One who possesses it; for how could a property remain [a property] if it were shared, passing over from one to another? For that which is seen in two or many is community, not property.

8. Hence neither is the Holy Spirit called "Son" at all, so that the Son might be the only Son, and only Son, and not also Father; ^D and the Holy Spirit [be] Spirit only, and not also Son, just as the Father is only Father. Therefore, the great Basil, in contemplation and in action, replies thus to Eunomius, who was doubting why the Spirit is not also the Son of the Son: "Not because He is not from God through the Son, but lest the Trinity be thought to have an infinite multitude, namely sons from sons, as is the custom among men, and be suspected of containing this." But you say, "If the Son is the image of God, and the Spirit of the Son; and if the Son is indeed the Word of God, and the Spirit the Word of the Son, why is the Spirit not also called the Son of the Son?"

^A For you used this most powerful argument to establish your impiety. For you bid [us] to conceive of [the Spirit] either as Son or as a creature. And because it is not named Son, you blaspheme [by saying] that it is a creature, which is the cause of creation, the sanctifier and deifier of creation, which is glorified under the names of Lord and God, which is the fulfiller of divine operations. Since, therefore, it seems unworthy to you of the appellation of Son, as being alien to the Father and the Son, consider by what reasoning it makes those who are sanctified sons. And if you are a son of God through the Spirit, how is the Spirit alien to sonship? And again: We say, therefore, that to say the Son is from the Son would have led men who heard it to the suspicion of a multitude of divinities in the Trinity; for it was ready ^B to assume that, if a Son has been begotten from the Son, then from him again another would have been begotten, and again another, and so on to a multitude. For this reason, the Apostle clearly proclaimed that the Spirit is from God, saying: "We have received the Spirit, which is from God." And he clearly demonstrated that it appeared through the Son, when he called it the Spirit of God and furthermore asserted it to be the mind of Christ, just as [he calls it] the Spirit of God as [the spirit] of man. But he refrained from calling [the Spirit] the Son of the Son, so that there is one Father and God, who forever remains Father, and is what He is eternally. And one Son, begotten by eternal generation, who is without beginning with the Father, the true Son of God, ever existing as what He is, God the Word and Lord; and one Holy Spirit, truly the Holy Spirit.

9. And wherefore, he says, did the Spirit descend upon the Son in the form of a dove, if it were entirely from the Son? ^C Whoever thinks this way divides the one Christ in all ways, so that he may say that the Spirit of God descended from the Son upon the son of man. We say, therefore, that it was fitting for the Spirit to descend upon the Lord from nowhere else than from the heavens, from whence also the voice of the Father came, as if to certify that He is heavenly and truly the Son of God who was being baptized on earth. Then also, it is as upon a man that the Spirit descends upon the Son for the sake of the economy. This also the most wise Cyril taught, expounding the prophet Joel: for, he said, being God and by nature Son from God (for He has been truly begotten of God and the Father), [the Spirit] is His own and is in Him ^D and from Him, just as indeed it is conceived of in God and the Father Himself. But insofar as He has become man and appeared as we are, the Spirit is said to be "added" to Him. For it descended upon Him in the form of a dove, when, having become as we are, as I said, He was being baptized economically as one of us. Then also His own Spirit is said to be given to Him, on account of the human [nature]; and this is the emptying. Since, therefore, as man He was receiving His own Spirit for the sake of the economy, from where was it fitting to receive this, if not from the heavens for His own glory? But after the passion and the resurrection, with the economy now completed, He does not receive the Holy Spirit, but bestows it, and sends it forth once for all by insufflation, teaching by the very act that it proceeds from the Father. Meanwhile, therefore,

since the Word is uncircumscribed, He was in the Jordan with the body, which He had assumed, and without the body in heaven, even as He is everywhere. He, therefore, from the heavens as God sends His Spirit into Himself as into a man. Wherefore also the great Athanasius, preeminent in divine matters, in his discourses on the incarnation of the Only-begotten Word, after saying that the Holy Spirit was seen descending like a dove and remaining upon the Lord, adds: ^A For He himself was sending it from above as God, and below He himself was receiving it as a man. It descended, therefore, upon Him from Him, from His deity into His humanity.

10. Again, they make a more strenuous objection, putting it forward thus: Everything that is said concerning God is either common to the Trinity or proper to one hypostasis; so that the property of proceeding must either belong to the three hypostases or to one of them; for we know of no medium between a natural and an hypostatic property. Since, however, the Spirit is acknowledged to proceed from the Father, and it is impossible for Him to proceed from Himself, neither can He proceed from the Son; and thus the property of proceeding will be proper to the paternal hypostasis. ^B For so also Gregory, the president of the Nyssaeans, teaches in the book entitled *On the Knowledge of God*, saying: The Spirit, proceeding from the paternal hypostasis; and for this reason also, David called Him the Spirit of the mouth, and not the Word of the mouth, in order to attribute the property of proceeding to the Father alone.

11. What, then, do we say to this? First, that we do not assert that the Holy Spirit is from the Son as from a first principle, but through the Son from the Father. Furthermore, just as He cannot proceed from Himself, by necessity He cannot be sent by Himself, so that the same one might not be both sender and sent at the same time. But since He is sent both by the Father and by the Son, as the Son of the Father Himself taught in the Gospels, we have understood, behold, the mission of the Spirit to be a medium between an hypostatic and a natural property. ^C Whence the foundation of the objection is utterly shaken and crumbled. And what would they say concerning the very name of the Spirit, which is known to be a medium, even where they do not recognize a medium? For He is called and is the Spirit of the Father and the Spirit of the Son, the Holy Spirit; but He is neither, nor is He called, the Spirit of Himself, just as the Father is not the Father of Himself, nor the Son the Son of Himself.

12. But it must be examined, then, whether the saying of the wise Gregory has been cited rightly and safely, claiming, as they do, that David for this reason called the Holy Spirit the spirit of the mouth, and not the Word the word of the mouth, so as to attribute the property of proceeding to the Father alone. How, then, if he had said the Word of the mouth, would he have made anyone else, along with the Father, a participant in this property of sending? What necessity does the argument demonstrate? But, as it seems, the testimony of the Scriptures

^A is no less than the contentious character of the method, and the wickedness resulting therefrom, which brought about such absurdities. For when the word "Spirit" was written with three elements and a mark placed above—being abbreviated—and in like manner the word "Father" also differed only by the middle element, the corruption and alteration of the middle element (for this is easy) brought deception upon those who were not circumspect, causing them to attribute to the Father what was proper to the Spirit.

13. But it was necessary to understand "to proceed" as being formed passively, yet conveying an active sense; so that the Holy Spirit is rather "the proceeding one" than "that which is proceeded," for to journey and to proceed is to act, and not to suffer. ^B For this reason, this wise man, interpreting it opportunely, says: "For this reason David said 'Spirit of his mouth,' and not 'Word of his mouth,' in order to confirm the property of procession as belonging to the Spirit alone, and not, indeed, to the Word as well." For since the words of the mouth are said to proceed—"For the things that proceed through my lips, I will not make void"—for this reason the prophet said: "By the word of the Lord the heavens were established," and not, "By the word of the mouth of the Lord," so that by saying "by the word of the mouth" he might not attribute the property of procession to the Son and Word. But he added also, "And to the Spirit of his mouth," so that from this he might confirm the property of procession to the Spirit alone. That the light of the Nyssaeans and of the whole world acknowledges this property of procession as characteristic of the Spirit, he clearly demonstrates ^C from what he adds; for he speaks as follows: "In order that through the saying of 'the Word,' we might receive the impassible and ineffable generation of the Son, as from the intellect of God and the Father; but when we hear 'Spirit of the mouth,' we might understand the sanctifying and essential faculty, and the life-quickening hypostasis of the Spirit, marked as it were by the name of the processive property." And the holy Father Anastasius also recognizes the property of procession as being of the Spirit. For in the sixteenth chapter of his book, which is named the *Guide*, he says thus: "For neither did the unbegotten person of the Father take flesh, nor did the proceeding hypostasis of the Holy Spirit." And that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the paternal hypostasis ^D is in no way hindered, not even by the *through the Son*, as this wise High Priest, treating of the Holy Trinity to Ablabius, declares openly: "Confessing the immutability of the nature, we do not deny the difference according to cause and caused, in which alone we perceive one thing to be distinguished from another, since we believe this one to be the cause, and that one to be from the cause. And of that which is from the cause, again we observe another distinction: for this is immediately from the first, while that is from the first through that which is contiguous and immediate; so that the property of the Only-begotten remains in the Son without ambiguity, and that the Spirit is from the Father is to no one in doubt, with the Son, who is intermediate, preserving for himself the property of the Only-begotten, and in no way hindering the Spirit from his natural relation to the Father." The same man, acting concerning the Holy Spirit, and discoursing against Macedonius, thus also [/b] the generation of the Son.

and the procession of the Spirit, in which the operation according to goodness, he says, has no diminution nor variation. How is it reasonable to think that the order according to number is a sign of some diminution or of variation according to nature? Just as if one, seeing the flame divided in three lamps, and we suppose the cause of the third light to be the first flame, which by communication through the middle one has kindled the end, then asserts that in the first flame there abounds heat, but that the one which follows is changed and gradually diminished, and that the third is no longer to be considered fire, even if it burns and shines in a similar way and performs all the things of fire. Again, the same person in the first of the *Antirrhetica* says these things: "There is no necessity, by serving the image in every way, to give the calumniators an opportunity in the weakness of the example. We shall not conceive of a ray from the sun, but of another Sun from the unbegotten Sun, the Son, shining forth together with Him at the first conception begottenly, and in all respects alike, in beauty, power, and brightness, in magnitude, in splendor, and simply in all things which are observed as inherent in the sun." ^B And again: "The Spirit is another such light, in the same way, not separated from the generated light by any interval of time, but shining forth through it, and having the cause of His hypostasis from the prototype light." He has called the Son shining forth, and he has called the Holy Spirit shining forth; by the shining forth he indicated the existence of the Son, by the shining forth he also indicated the existence of the Spirit, signifying the passionless and timeless nature of the generation of the Son and the procession of the Spirit, through the propriety of the name for the things which he used, namely, the sun and the light. And by bearing witness to the one shining forth through the generated light—that the cause of the hypostasis is from the prototype light—he declared clearly and purely that the Spirit is of the Son from the Father. This same example regarding the same things is used by the one who is the namesake of this Father, and who has the surname of Theologian, in the things which he teaches concerning the Spirit: "For the Godhead," he says, "is indivisible in things divided, if we wish to dispatch this briefly, and as it were in three suns clinging to one another. There is one commingling of light; he did not say touching, but clinging. And thus the suns would have their being and shining, the one primarily, the others timelessly from the source—I do not mean after the source at all—and one of them immediately from the source, the other through the middle one from the source itself. In this way one can understand what is cognate to the suns and infinite: in this way an infinite connection of three infinites will be perceived." ^C

14. For if the Spirit were not proceeding from the Father through the Word, the Father would be the middle ^D, bearing the Word and the Spirit on either side.

For it is confessed that the Father is the beginning; and if the Word and Spirit were from the Father as from a beginning, but not one through the other, a division of the Godhead would be introduced, unless the Word and Spirit were undistinguished from one another. For how would the Trinity be one? And if this were not so, how would it be uncircumscribed? By what manner, then, is the Spirit with the Son, just as the Son is with the Father, according to the same Theologian? "All things whatsoever the Father has are the Son's," except for the aspect of unbegottenness; "all things which the Son has are the Spirit's," except for generation. And it was altogether unfitting that the Son should ever be lacking to the Father, or the Spirit to the Son; and we acknowledge one glory of the Father, and honor equal to Him for the Only-begotten; and one glory of the Son and of the Spirit. For neither does the Father endure to be deprived of the Son, nor the Son ^B of the Holy Spirit. And how, according to the great Basil, "as the Son is related to the Father, so is the Spirit to the Son"? And according to the one who was profound in divine matters, Athanasius, "The Holy Spirit has the same unity toward the Son which the Son has toward the Father"?

15. And what is there to prevent saying the same in reverse? Absolutely nothing. But if the Son is begotten of the Father, and the Spirit proceeds from the same Father through the Son, every absurdity and every impossibility is driven away. For God is shown to be beginning, and middle, and end, through Himself and through those things that are from Himself, and of necessity the Godhead is a Trinity. For reason knows but one middle; if several were supposed, there would be no middle at all. For this reason unity, moved into duality, stayed at Trinity. Thus, then, the beginning is strictly a beginning, and those things which are from the beginning and are in the beginning ^C, claiming for themselves a supreme union and supreme association both with themselves and with each other, and presenting toward the beginning one indivisible and infinite power. For where the middle is truly a middle, there also is the one, and where there is union, it is produced according to the participation of the One. For things that are united are united only to the extent that they participate in that which is truly one. This even those outside the Church faintly imagined. Whence also they philosophized about all three, and the triple everywhere, according to a supreme and mutual coherence. Hence some, asserting this whole universe to be infinite, have strayed from the truth, failing to distinguish between the essence of creation and of the Godhead, nor perceiving what is by nature and what is by participation, and how far that which is produced differs from the producing cause and beginning. ^D It has been demonstrated, therefore, even if succinctly, yet nonetheless abundantly for him who knows how to judge the truth, that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father in no other way than through the Son, just as those inspired by the same Spirit have handed down.

NOTICE

The following minor work was published by Dositheus, the schismatic Patriarch of Jerusalem, in the *Tomos Agapes* (Jassy, 1698), a volume entirely compiled of writings favoring the dogmas of the heterodox. Certainly, the doctrine concerning the procession of the Holy Spirit delivered in this sermon cannot be reconciled at all with that which Blemmides championed in his previous treatises. Bandini (II, 399) states that this sermon exists under the same title in the Medicean-Laurentian Library at Florence, cod. 16, plut. 87, n. 17.

SERMON OF THE MOST WISE MONK NICEPHORUS BLEMMIDES TO THE MONKS OF THE MONASTERY BUILT BY HIM, FROM HIS THIRD BOOK ON THE FAITH

To the holy and chosen disciples of the living Lord Christ, for whom I am—by His good pleasure and kindness—the master of this sacred monastery, Nicephorus, a priest among monks, an old man, ^A feeble, and in need of the prayers of your holiness, do out of love suggest this present reminder to you, setting it forth before any demonstration.

For since it is the first and most necessary thing for a Christian to know piety, and to embrace it, and to live with it, and to journey through the present life with it, it is right that we believe and confess and proclaim that God is one—namely, one substance of divinity, incomprehensible and inaccessible, in three perfect persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. ^B The Father is uncreated, the Son is uncreated, the Holy Spirit is uncreated. The Father is unbegotten; the Son is not unbegotten, for the Father begot the Son before all ages in a manner becoming to God; yet neither begotten nor unbegotten is the Holy

^A Spirit, but proceeding substantially from the Father. The Father always was, the Son always was, and the Holy Spirit always was. And just as it is impossible to conceive of the sun without its own light, so too is it impossible for anyone to imagine the Father at all without the Son. For the Father was always Father. It is therefore evident that He always had a Son; wherefore, in regard to temporal beginning, just as the Father is without beginning, so too is the Son without beginning; for the Son always was, and always is Son, since the Divine does not admit of change. But with regard to the natural beginning, or rather the cause, the Son is not without beginning, for the Father is His beginning—the substantial, not creative, beginning. Therefore, only the Father is without beginning in respect to the natural origin, having no cause for Himself. On this account, the Lord also, honoring His own Father, said: *My Father is greater than I* (John xiv, 28); greater as being without beginning, as being uncaused, as being the natural beginning, and as the substantial cause of the Son. And again, just as the sun naturally and without any passion or sloth emits light, nor is it separated from the light (for the light is both from it and in it), in a ^B nearly similar way, the Father substantially and impassibly and timelessly begot the Son, nor is He in any way separated from the Son; for the Son is always from the Father and always in the Father, and the Father is always in Him. And the Holy Spirit always proceeds from the Father and is always in the Father and in the Son, and the Father and the Son are always in the Holy Spirit. The Holy Trinity is thus a Monad in this regard, and in all things—setting aside the properties—the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit are one. The Father is perfect God, the Son is perfect God, the Holy Spirit is perfect God; but there is one God, not three gods. For it is not permitted to call three men, or even two, one man, even though all men are of one nature. For they are distinguished from one another in reality, and each one among them possesses his own circumscription ^C in space; but they also differ from one another in time, and in will, and in power, and in glory, and in many other things. Something similar must be understood concerning the angels; for each one of them is circumscribed spiritually in his own place, because all are finite, and one attained a different rank than another, and one receives a different splendor than another; and one is before another, and one is later; and one is immediate, and another not immediate, but either through one or through several intermediaries. And one is sent elsewhere than another; and, in short, there are many things that differentiate them from one another. But as for the three persons of the supreme divinity, neither place separates them from one another, because they are infinite and because everywhere and altogether they indwell one another without confusion; nor does time do so. For these three persons are together before the ages and are beyond time; nor is one prior and another later. But also, there is one deliberation and will for the three, one omnipotent power, one operation working all things, one dominion ruling over all; glory, splendor, super-glorious and super-lucent, are the same for the three; and it is of the same substance, and of the same honor, ^D

^A in a super-essential manner. Thus, indeed, the three are inseparably united, yet unconfused in their hypostatic properties, and so they exist and are believed.

Property, or idiomatic character, and that which is 'proper,' is called the distinguishing mark of each one's hypostasis, because it pertains specifically to that one alone, whose property it is, and not to any other. For that which pertains to another is common, and not proper. For instance, the property of the Father is being unbegotten; this pertains specifically to the Father alone. For the Father alone is unbegotten, since He alone is Father. The property of the Son is being begotten. The property of the holy Spirit is proceeding from the Father. But neither is the holy Spirit begotten, nor does the Son proceed. However, being uncreated, and illimitable, and super-essential, and such-like, are common to the Father and to the Son and to the holy Spirit; for this reason they are also called idioms of the divine nature: of the divine nature, because they are natural and not hypostatic, pertaining equally to the three ^B hypostases of the Godhead; but they are called idioms as being entirely unparticipated by any other nature except the divine substance alone, and are not at all observed in men or in angels.

Essence is also called nature and form in common, as the essence which embraces those things that are specifically, as it is always; nature, as that which brings forth the hypostases; and form, as that which is inclusive of all the shapes under it, or the characters. Those things which are contained are called both individuals and hypostases and persons. Individuals, indeed, because they admit of no cutting or division; for the human essence, or to say the same thing, humanity, being divided into men perceptible by the senses, no one of these is able to be divided into other men—they are rational and mortal animals, capable of mind and knowledge—and according to this reasoning, all individual parts are individuals. ^C But the hypostases, as standing under the nature and remaining, are when this [nature] itself exists and is considered conceptually, while the particular beings have their being in reality. And persons, because each one of them has a proper character, not common to the others.

Therefore, concerning the Godhead, we profess one essence, one nature, and one form. There are three individuals, three hypostases, three persons, known by their corresponding characters, or idioms. The Son is called the character of the paternal hypostasis, not because He Himself is the property of the Father—for who, possessed of his mind, would suppose this?—but because the Father, in that He is Father, is characterized and known from having a Son, and because the Son, having all that is the Father's and remaining in Himself, ^D as the Son, shows forth Him from Whom He is, just like His natural and unvarying image; therefore He also says: "He who has seen me has seen the Father." 3 Since the One who is without beginning is by nature God, He is the fountain of the Word who is of the same nature; and since He is Father, He begets the Son of the same substance; for this reason, the Word of God

____ 3 Joan. xiv, 9.

^A is the same, being the Son of the Father. This is the Son and Word of God and the Father, through whom the Father created all creation as through His own wisdom and power; for He Himself is the Father's wisdom and power. It is He who, for our sake, by the good pleasure of Him who begot Him, became man. Being in the Father and having come to be among us—for He is not limited—He assumed flesh, soul, mind, reason, will, power, and all things that naturally belong to man, and He did not remain exempt even from those passions which were introduced into us after the first transgression, which are not liable to reproach, but He even accepted these through great condescension, in order to refashion the whole of humanity for the better. And, to say more, He became perfect man, not according to phantasy or semblance, but truly and evidently having become man, both like us and above us. Like us: because He was conceived in a woman's womb, formed therein, and carried, as much and in such a manner as the law of nature allowed, and was born in the manner of infants. Above us: because the conception was from the Holy Spirit, without union, without carnal pleasure, without any ^B passionate thought; the composition of the body was from most pure and virginal blood, and the completion of the form took place from the very first beginning, from the conception itself; for thus it was fitting, as it was without seed. His birth did not violate the virginity of the one who gave birth, being without the pains of labor. For she remained a virgin even after the birth, just as she was before the birth and before the conception, remaining ever-virgin, pure, and immaculate throughout her whole life, for it was fitting that the one who bore God should be such. Like us: because He assumed a body made of clay and corruptible, composed of the four humors, enlivened by a tripartite soul, maintained by innate heat and natural powers, and subject to hunger, thirst, and other blameless ^C infirmities of nature. Above us: because He was not a mere man, but man and God at the same time; for He did not bring about His incarnation by changing from being God into becoming man, but remaining God that which He was, He became man that which He was not, not changing the human nature which He assumed into the divine nature, but having kept it in its own boundaries, He deified it through the supreme union. For just as fire united to iron heats it entirely, yet does not separate it from the nature of iron, for it remains, even after heating, iron, and is both called and is ignited iron; in the same way, the Son and Word of God and God, having been united to mortal nature, deified it, yet did not separate it from the mortal state; for the nature remains mortal even after deification, and the deified nature is both called and is mortal, ^D a deified flesh with a spiritual, rational, willing, and hoping soul. Since, however, sin is something counterfeit and contrary to nature, for it enters into us from without whenever we are not watchful, this the God-Word rightly did not accept; when He deified the whole nature He had assumed, it remained rightfully unapproachable, deified, and in every way untouched by sin.

^A Likewise, there was no vacillating choice in Christ. For Christ was indeed capable of choice, as He was self-determining and, insofar as He was human, also rational. For every rational being is self-determining, and every self-determining being is capable of choice. However, He in no way stood in need of counsel, reflection, judgment, or choice, as we do, just as He did not stand in need of vigilance. For He was God in both ways: by nature and by deification. Therefore, for this reason, He was superior to all sin; for sin comes about either from a precarious choice or, apart from choice, through our inattentiveness. Indeed, even inattentiveness itself is sin, or is at least the beginning of sin; it is for this reason that we must pay penalties even for involuntary sins. Hence, since the cause was absent, what room could there be for the effect to penetrate there?

Choice, then, is simply a movement toward what is chosen, that is, a self-determining, unreasoning impulse toward the desired object, which belongs by nature to every rational being. Choice is also called the selection of one thing before another, which comes about through preceding deliberation and then judgment, after which follows the disposition toward what was judged from the deliberation; this is called "opinion," and it is the kind of choice being spoken of now, or the selection of what appears to be good, which succeeds it. No one of sound mind would speak of such a choice in the case of Christ. For of what counsel would the wonderful Counselor, the Wisdom of God the Father, be in need? ^B Or how could the choice that is in us be attributed to Him who chose the good in advance, as it has been testified? For Isaiah cried out beforehand that before the child knows or chooses evil, he will choose the good; that is, he would not choose the opposite, but would choose the good from the very beginning. And again, "before the child knows good or evil," he is not inclined toward malice, as a cause for choosing the good; that is, before all knowledge, the child, from tender infancy having set himself as neither amenable nor inclined toward evil, will take the good as his own. But the phrase "before he knows" is said according to appearance. For when was the child ignorant, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, which were manifested at the proper times and in the measure that was necessary? Such also is the meaning of Jesus profiting in wisdom and grace with age, that is, according to appearance. ^C For the increase in age was the natural growth of the body, but the increase in wisdom and grace was not an addition to those things which were from the first supreme and perfect, but was a timely manifestation. Thus, therefore, Christ, being God united hypostatically to human substance, was good as God. But He also possessed, as man, in a self-determining way, that which is good by nature. For just as evil and sin are contrary to nature, so indeed good and virtue are according to nature; for this reason, sin has such a name, as being a falling away from that which is according to nature and which is good. ^D Indeed, angels are called, and are, slow to move toward evil, being aided by their standing near to God and by the light that shines upon them continually; but the Lord’s

^A soul was entirely immovable toward evil, having within itself God the Word, not by way of relation, but by way of union. And while it exercised rule over the body, God the Word was its ruler, it following Him of its own will, and greatly desiring the fulfillment of His divine will, by reason of its surpassing holiness. Wherefore also the Lord, praying to His own Father at the time of the passion, as man said, "Not as I will, but as you will; let your will be done." For this speech of the Lord's soul is that of one knowing the will of the God Word united to it, and of the Father. The Master, therefore, had the things of servants for the sake of servants, but above servants; for He was Master, even if He had put on the form of a servant. For He truly hungered as we do, He thirsted, ^B He experienced drowsiness, He was weary, He was sorrowful, He was weeping, He was fearing, but voluntarily. When He Himself willed, He gave it to His own humanity to perform its own [functions] blamelessly, and this for our sake; again He ate, He drank, He slept, He conversed just as we do. But all these things [He did] without sin, and this for our sake. For who among us could be found in the natural, blameless things [to be] entirely blameless? He suffered for our sake, He felt pain in the nailing and stretching on the cross; finally He died. But the passion, and the pain, and the dying were voluntary for Him; the flesh suffered. The soul felt pain naturally because of the connection, for from it is sensation to the flesh; yet the Divinity which is in both did not suffer, [and] did not feel pain. For the Divine is above such things. The soul was separated ^C from the flesh, but the Divinity was indivisible from both. Having suffered and having died and having been buried, the Lord shook off corruption and the things of corruption. And having prepared His own body for incorruption, and having taken up His own soul by authority as God, He rose on the third day. "For I lay down my soul," He says, "in order to take it again. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again." If, however, even after the resurrection the Lord ate, He did this by a dispensation, presenting Himself to His own disciples as the same who had previously been with them. But when I say "by a dispensation," I exclude phantasy; for He truly ate, yet He arranged the food in a new and fitting manner as seemed good to Him. For this reason He also showed the tokens of His wounds, making the things that had occurred, and yet were no longer present, to be present, as He is ^D almighty. For since that body had become superior to every need and every resistance, it admitted neither food nor handling. Wherefore we also say that the Lord is not now according to the flesh, inasmuch as He has laid aside the things of the flesh—the appetite for food, sleep, labor, and things of this kind; and in addition to these, also resistance. For His body, having shaken off corruption, was made complete: needing nothing, impassible, intangible, and immortal; yet not uncreated, nor infinite, for these are the attributes of the Divinity alone; and to speak briefly, as much as Christ's humanity was capable of divine honors, it had them from the Word Himself through the union, through which it is also to be venerated and ado-

^Ared; but inasmuch as it was not capable, it did not participate, so that from this we might also know the difference of the natures and the uniqueness of the person.

We venerate, therefore, in Christ one composite hypostasis, composed of two natures, namely divinity and humanity, united to each other according to the very hypostasis of the Word. For this reason we call such a union a union according to hypostasis, because one hypostasis among the three hypostases of the divinity, which is the hypostasis of the Son, united the two natures to each other inconfusedly in itself and according to itself. For the humanity of Christ did not subsist by itself, even for an instant, so that it could be called a hypostasis. Yet it was not necessary; for what gain would it have been to us if one hypostasis had been deified? But the God Word took upon Himself the whole nature of humanity, that He might deify us all. Hence we proclaim Christ as one hypostasis, and two natures united to each other inconfusedly in an ultimate union, remaining forever indivisible, both from each other and from the hypostasis according to which they are united ^B. And since the natures possess the property of being inconfused, the things pertaining to them are also inconfused, I mean the wills and the operations. The divine will therefore remains divine, and the human will remains human, except that it is deified through the union. This is also known in the operations. There are therefore two wills in Christ. And being willing according to both wills, and working according to both operations, one and the same is the God-man, not divided into God specifically and man specifically, but one existing indivisibly as God and man the same, in other words, God and man. Whence he who said "theandric [divine-human] operation" did not introduce a confusion into the natural operations, but represented their ultimate union and the deification of the human operation. For just as in Christ the human nature was deified through the union, so also the will and the operation were deified. Therefore, even when He was performing miracles, He conjoined the human operations to the divine workings, and from the human operations, namely speech and touch and such things, the manifestations of God proceeded; just as ^C when sharp iron is heated and at the same time cuts and burns, the cutting takes place with the burning, and the burning is inseparable from the cutting, and the concurrence of the two operations brings about a unity in them, not according to nature, but according to union. Therefore, he who said "theandric operation," by the singular pronunciation, indicated that the two operations are one thing in the concurrence and are not practically distinguished from one another; but in saying "theandric," that is, divine and human, he showed the natural difference of the operations even after the union. Otherwise, the name of "operation" indicates two things; for a natural operation is the procession of the power inherent in the nature to the completion of some work, which has its being in the acting, just as power has its being in the fact that it is by nature and is able, and it is said again ^D

^A that energy is the very completion of the work, the work itself that is effected, the realization of the thing, the action itself. This second signification of energy must be adapted to the theandric energy. For since Christ exists as God-man, every action of his is theandric. To speak thus does not introduce confusion into the natural energies, but clarifies that one and the same person acts both divinely and humanly; neither the divine things according to God—for he is human—nor the human things according to man—for he is God. Likewise, he who said one nature of God the Word, by adding "incarnate," removed such a suspicion. For the nature of the Word is one thing, namely, divine, and the nature of the flesh is another, namely, human; and synecdochally, the will of the divine nature is one thing, and that of the human another. By will we mean the act of willing, that very power which wills, which is ^B the natural will. Therefore, the Lord, after having assumed the will of the human nature and deified it, preserved what was human according to nature. And wishing to show this clearly, entering into a house in the regions of Tyre and Sidon, he wished to be known by no one, yet could not remain hidden; wishing to remain hidden by his own disposition, he could not, teaching us by the very works themselves that the all-powerful One did not reject the weak will of the human nature, but essentially adopted it, having taken up our whole nature with all things that are according to nature.

Volition ^C is strictly called the act of willing, which is the natural will, as has been shown. A "will" is also said to be the object of the will itself [the volitum], which in humans is subject-specific and not the same for every nature. For it pleases one man to live in isolation, another to speak freely, one to work the land, another to sail, and for another again, something else is on his mind. Frequently, even for the same person, the object of the will is different at different times. Such a subject-specific will is called "gnomic" [moral/discursive]. Therefore, since the Lord is confessed to be of two natures, it is believed that he possesses two natural wills, divine and human, namely, two willing powers distinct from one another by the reason of nature. But since he is known to be of one hypostasis, it is not safe to speak of different gnomic wills in him. For the object of the will is one, because the One who wills is one, his human will being moved ^D toward its own proper object of the will when this was chosen by his divine will, and to the extent that it was an object of the will. However, "opinion" [gnome] is used in two senses; for "opinion" is spoken of as the mere inclination toward the object of the will, as being done rationally and with knowledge in rational beings; and "opinion" is also spoken of as a disposition toward something resulting from prior deliberation and judgment. It is not safe to speak of "opinion" or "gnomic will" in Christ according to the second sense of "opinion," because through these terms ignorance is introduced. For even if the Lord assumed an ignorant nature, he did not share this [ignorance] with the divine properties. And the Lord's [state] was...

^A a soul possessing every wisdom, divine at once and human, every knowledge of things that have happened, of things that are, and of things that shall be—not by nature, not by grace, but through the union according to hypostasis with him who alone is wise and who knows all things even before they come to be. What deliberation, then, could this soul need? Who of those who know all things—even as we have said—could need deliberation?

If, however, it is written that the Lord came to a fig tree not having fruit, if he might find something in it—and he found nothing except leaves—such a formulation of the account, according to ^B the manner of thought, is as one might have conjectured who had seen him coming to the fig tree but had not known the reason of the dispensation; for by whom would the obvious have been ignored? Since it was not even the season for figs; but in order that he who has power over all things might demonstrate in due time that he possesses not only a power that benefits, but also one that punishes; and that if he were to will it, by his word alone he would wither those who crucified him, he—the wise and lover of mankind—sets the hunger and the approach to the fig tree as precursors of such a demonstration; for this reason, even contrary to custom, there was hunger while it was morning, just as he had willed it. Therefore, the arrival at the fig tree, likewise the inquiry concerning Lazarus, ^C where that dead man had been laid, and anything similar, are not [signs] of ignorance, but of dispensation and suitable condescension.

According to the second meaning of "intent" and "choice," we would speak neither of intent nor of choice in the case of Christ; but according to the first, namely, that this or that was done according to the intent of God, we say that the thing done was willed by God and acceptable. Just as if we were to say that David reigned according to the intent of God. And indeed, the Word of God—and the Holy Spirit is said to be capable of choice, and the Word of God is said to be capable of choice, having their own authority. Therefore, it is necessary to examine the expression in all cases, whether it signifies more than one thing, and to proceed with discernment in one's speech toward the things that are signified. ^D For great is the deception arising from homonymy, and this is the first method in sophisms. Thus, indeed, the name "God" and the name "man" sometimes signify nature, and sometimes hypostasis. Divinity, likewise, and humanity denote nature always alone, but never hypostasis. But Christ denotes that which is composed of Divinity and humanity. And the ointment is the Divinity, but the humanity is that which has been anointed. By anointing, one should understand the circulation of the whole ointment into the whole of that which is anointed. For thus, truly, he would be the whole Christ who has received the anointing. For he who has been anointed superficially is anointed only in part, not in whole; whence he is not properly Christ. Therefore, kings and chief priests, being anointed with oil and receiving a superficial anointing, are not properly Christs. Now, if the grace is in the depths through the anointing, they are not properly Christs, for they are so only by grace and are participants. The Lord alone, therefore, is properly Christ, as he is so wholly and entirely, and not by grace, but by the union according to hypostasis and eternally is he Christ. The name "God" signifies both...

^A indicates that he is capable of acting and creating; for to have made is to have placed (*theinai*), and he who made is he who placed, and he is a more manifest demonstrative of a contemplative energy. For God is a spectator of things even not yet brought into being, as if they were laid before his eyes, and he is an inspector of all things whatsoever. But of all names, that which is most appropriate to the One who is without beginning, and infinite, and the Producer of things that are not, is the "I Am" (*to on*); because he is always only himself, and because he alone is the fountain of being.

Nicephorus Blemmides, who is among the saints, ^B being asked by King John Ducas regarding the procession of the most Holy Spirit—whether the Latins think rightly or not—answered thus: that even if they refuse in words to introduce two causes or two principles, yet, by saying again that the Spirit proceeds from the Son, they fall into this very thing. And they flee in words to that to which they are brought around by their deeds. For they do the same as if someone, while calling a man a man, were to insist that he is not an animal. And how and by what argument we find them brought around to that which they deny is clear from this: if the begetting of the Son and the procession of the Spirit are the peculiar properties of the hypostatic difference of each—insofar as the Son is begotten, he has the Father as cause for this, and insofar as the Spirit proceeds from the Son, he has the Son also as cause for this. If the Father, begetting the Son, is his cause, and, sending forth the Spirit, is his cause, and the Son also sends forth the Spirit, then the Son also is a cause of the Spirit. If, according to the truth and the tradition of piety and the teaching of the Fathers, "to proceed" and "procession," when said of the Holy Spirit, are found to be indicative of how he is ^C from the Father, and are recognized as the peculiar mark of the hypostatic difference toward the Son—but not, however, as indicative of a conjunction with him, or a co-naturality, or consubstantiality—the Cause of this is the Father. But they hold that this exists, according to them, also from the Son. For they give nothing else, therefore, by that which is posited concerning the Son, but rather as from the Father. Thus, truly, it is proposed that the Holy Spirit proceeds also from the Son. Two causes, therefore, of the Spirit—namely, of the hypostatic property that falls to him, that is, of the procession—are gathered in every way. Whoever says, therefore, that the Son is begotten by the Father, but denies that the Father is the cause of him, lies completely. For if he is begotten, he has a cause from which he is begotten. And he who says that the Spirit proceeds from the Father, but does not say that the Father is his cause, lies, for by the procession he induces also that he is his cause, since he proceeds from him. He who says that the Spirit proceeds also from the Son, but does not say that the Son is his cause, lies. Concluding, therefore, we declare that in these things that they say, they naturally blaspheme, and on account of this blasphemy they will be judged as reprobate. For even if the addition were granted, the fact that it is naturally evil is present, and ^D even if it were admitted not to be evil...

Summarizing, we declare as follows: that they naturally blaspheme in what they say, and for this blasphemy they shall be judged among those who are cast out. For when the addition is conceded, the fact that it is naturally evil also stands; and when the point of it not being evil is granted, the precarious nature of the addition does not permit what follows in sequence; and thus, from both sides, the matters of wickedness are linked together, and are bound to one another like the inserted links of a chain.

NICEPHORUS THE MONK AND PRESBYTER OF THE MONASTERY IN EMATHIA, BLEMMIDA: A MORE UNIVERSAL EPISTLE TO MANY. Concerning Marchesina, the paramour of Emperor John Ducas, whom Blemmida had expelled from the temple. (From Leo Allatius’ book *De consensu*, p. 717.)

^B When the mistress Marchesina, who was loved excessively by the Emperor and for this reason stood above all others and was preferred even to the Augusta herself, forced her way tyrannically into our venerable monastery of Saint Gregory the Thaumaturge, at the time when we were living in that monastery; and when she entered into the temple of God while the liturgy was being celebrated, she was barred by us from the sacred hearing, and was driven away with shame, lamenting what had been done to her. Again we were bold in spirit, and again there were threats and crises and dangers against us. We are still untrained in worldly wisdom, and for this reason we are hateful and abominable. We oppose the authorities again, and rightly are we shown to be useless. We had rested for a short time from the onrush of evils, and Satan brought upon us the lewd and poisonous woman, the stumbling block of the world, ^C the universal scandal, with her neck and eyebrow and arrogance, perhaps intending to strike and wrestle us down, already terrified and shaken as we were by the onslaughts of the painful events. For this is what he thought, knowing us to be poor in understanding and slack in the vigor of the soul, yet truly he is to be deceived and weakened by Him who alone is wise and strong. Sudden, unbridled, and cast out is the...

^A madness that threw itself upon our venerable place; with heavy clamor and fierce pomp, like a rushing and torrential stream of many waters, our people who were guarding the doors, and all others who were within the temple, stood aghast upon seeing it, and their voices were confused. The accursed woman, moreover, ^B burst in and intruded even into the very temple itself, while the divine and mystical sacrifice was being performed. We, for our part, though struck with helpless confusion by the unexpected nature of the event, immediately repelled the adulteress from the holy hearing, from the common and harmonious prayer and hymnody of the faithful. We turned away from the impudent one, who was most insulting to the laws of Christ and who was openly professing wickedness; with all our might we cast the profane woman out from the holy places. Trembling and timid in the weakness of the flesh, but shaking off the man ^B through the unshaken fear of God, and considering death to be far more desirable than such wickedness and impiety, we deemed it more execrable to dwell in the church together with her—with whom there is no fellowship among Christians—than to be separated from this body by the most wretched death, and to endure beatings, prisons, famine, and whatever else worse than these might be devised, throughout our whole life. For the most violent and longest-lasting of present evils, extending even into the future, is not bound up with this withered life beyond the breaking of the chain, but pays back a store of the greatest and never-ending rewards. But to despise the laws of God, and to prefer what delights the senses over the ordinances of the Lord, brings upon itself an intolerable grief ^C and an infamy circumscribed by no boundaries. It is fitting, therefore, for us to show that the invocation which we pour out while praying is true, and like that good son to do good; and although the dust pulls us down, we must urge ourselves on toward the things above, because of our reverence for the Most High Father, and have our citizenship, as in a fatherland, in the heavens, having cast off and abandoned everything earthly even before our very dissolution. But if we do not attain to that first rank, we should at least look toward the ineffable delights which were prepared as the prize of victory for those who have labored in virtue, and endure every affliction for the sake of the eternal blessedness. For there is absolutely no comparison between the sufferings of the present time, however many and great they may be, and the retribution for which we hope. But if we fall short of the assembly of the hired servants, we should at least strive to be enrolled among the last of those who are being saved and to take up the cause ^D and defense of the Lord's commandments, fearing the penalty of neglect—that is to say, condemnation in Gehenna—and for that reason to risk one's life on their behalf, if need be. For how great is the folly of exchanging lesser for greater punishments, and more brief torments for those of longer duration? And this is all the more true if the shorter ones bring about sobriety and wisdom, and cleanse a man (for who, since he has lived, has not sinned? And who is clean from filth?), whereas the others possess an inalienable legacy. For just as if someone were standing before the open choice of punishments, and were to prefer, over the most light and moderate whippings of today, those that are more painful for the time to come—such as rackings, scrapings, and the cutting off of limbs,

such that they are beyond removal—who would not be judged most senseless and most irrational? In the same way, he who chooses the inconveniences that are to be endured in the age of retribution—when the fire shall test what each person’s work is—is likewise most senseless and most miserable, as is he who has loved the deception of men more than the glory of God. For he is truly blinded, and having grasped at a shadow, or the track of a ship in the waters, he imagines he possesses something when he possesses nothing. ^A Since, if he is a lover of glory, he ought to seek the glory that is true and abiding, not that which is false and fleeting, by clinging to men and departing from God. For he who hastens to please men is no servant of Christ; and to those of whom all men speak well, the true Word distributes a “Woe.” Even if most are not of the same mind as we are, yet we are taught neither to emulate those who act wickedly, nor to imitate those who practice lawlessness. Even if these should be fathers, it is proper to leave them and to follow after Christ, to lay hold of His footprints, and to cling to His justifications. ^B For whoever does not act thus is not worthy of Christ. Being impelled by such thoughts, we straightway drive the impious one from the sacred enclosures; we do not presume to give the holy bread to the shameless and unclean, nor do we cast the bright and pearl-like words of the sacred rite before one who is wallowing continually in the mire and filth of adultery. Wherefore, in the Lord, we endure that which is brought upon us.

EDITOR'S NOTE ON THE POLITICAL ORATION OF NICEPHORUS BLEMMYDES

Among the many political writings contained in this volume of mine, I think it a good bonus to add the brilliant little book of Nicephorus Blemmida on the art of reigning, which until now has remained unpublished, although held by the Vatican library and certain others. Regarding this writing, it must first be noted that there is a double exemplar of it: one pure and original, such as it proceeded from the genius and hand of Nicephorus; the other translated by paraphrase into a clearer elocution. The codex of Vienna, which we learned of at the edition of Lambecius (new edition, vol. VII, p. 481), clearly teaches us this matter: “The oration on the kingdom by the most wise noble Nicephorus Blemmida, translated to a clearer style by the lord George Galesiota, deacon of the Great Church (that is, the Constantinopolitan), and the lord George of Oenoë, most wise men and rhetoricians.” Therefore, the Vienna codex has the transformed oration, not the original; just as also the royal Parisian codex praised by du Cange, as we shall say below in the scholia to the eighth chapter of the oration. The same oration, thus as we have said, ^{C D}

which is transformed, also appears in ^A two codices of the Vatican library, the more recent of which was copied from the other, older one, with good calligraphy indeed, but sometimes with a poor understanding of the Greek ligatures, as I have recognized by comparing them repeatedly. It remained, therefore, that this original oration of Nicephorus, prior to the metaphrasis of the Georges, should be tracked down; which I also happily chanced upon in one Vatican codex, though it was lacking an end ^B. I sensed, however, that it was composed in a somewhat more abstruse and occasionally almost poetic style; so that those two Georges, by whom Nicephorus was reclothed in softer syntax and more common vocabulary, have deserved well of this little book. Since things were so, I also believed that I would deserve well of my readers if I translated this metaphrasis rather than the original work itself into the Latin language, and presented it for the convenience of political men and princes. Lest, however, I keep the pure writing of Nicephorus itself buried in ungrateful darkness, I thought that this too—if not to be placed before the metaphrasis—should certainly be added to this edition of mine, especially since a metaphrasis does not always bring light to an original writing; but rather, the latter sometimes illuminates and corrects the former. We know sufficiently from history that Nicephorus Blemmida, an abbot in rank among monks, left many writings, enjoyed manifold erudition, and practiced virtue not in a common way. The time in which he lived is also very well established; for he lived under the Greek Emperors reigning at Nicaea because of Byzantium’s occupation by the Latins; and around the year 1255 he refused the dignity of the Constantinopolitan patriarchate offered to him by Emperor Theodore Lascaris. Now, the metaphrast George Galesiota is not far removed from that same age: for he was an intimate friend of Gregory Cyprius (who abdicated the Constantinopolitan patriarchate in the year 1289). Finally, it is clear that George Enoeota, who participated in the making of the metaphrasis, ^C was a contemporary of Galesiota; although Allatius forgot to count this latter person among the Georges. This oration was entitled by Nicephorus

Βασιλικὸς Ἀνδριάς

OF THE MOST WISE NICEPHORUS BLEMMIDA Oration: WHAT A KING OUGHT TO BE.

^A a payment that brings much benefit to such servants; for thus they are destined to fulfill what is appropriate. For he who has been entrusted with the administration of all things has the care of them. Therefore, since the king has nothing of his own [(1)], it is appropriate that he should take from the common store, and make the things of all to be common, so that from this he may regulate all to possess their own things securely, while they join together and help one another, and are always careful that they be kept inseparable, as if they were one body. Thus it can be an invincible animal, if all its members and parts fulfill their own energies. The king, then, since he exists as the head and mind of the whole, has the right to take tributes from all, for their own preservation and safety. From those, therefore, who are engaged in business and who strive for gain, it is fitting for the king to receive a share; but from those who possess learning and wisdom, it is fitting to receive the eulogy of words and praises, which is more precious than any other tribute, inasmash as the words of the other arts are more honorable. If, then, the king is higher than all men, and philosophy is more useful than the other arts, what else is more appropriate for a king than praise through words? Since great things befit the great, and the highest things befit the highest: therefore, kingship has the image and likeness of God [(2)], and philosophy is a representation of God's providence; so that if any kind of kingship ever abhors wisdom, it is far removed from God. Therefore, the fruits of wisdom befit the king.

^B B’. It is necessary, therefore, first to speak of the definition of kingship; for it is an immovable support of the people, not showing contrary works through hypocrisy and deceit, and contradicting its high name. For how is the king about to be rightly called a foundation and establishment, if he falls into irrational desires and shameful and disorderly passions? Rather, indeed, he becomes a cause of confusion and hindrance, as an example to the subject people, who are forced and strive to imitate him. So it befits the king, first to rule himself, and after that the whole people. And he who is not able to govern even one own household, how is he rightly called an autocrat of cities and peoples? ^C But if such a one is gluttonous and a slave to shameful pleasures, he is worthy to be hated and turned away from by the highest honor and the height of kingship. For who would not be ashamed, even just by thinking of royal dignity falling into shameful and improper deeds, and suffering similar things, as some do under the spell of that fabled magical Circe, [becoming as if rolling in the mire of their own minds; but as dogs, as if rabid and...]

maddened by shameless desires. To the king, the rational remedy of the wisdom of the Word—invented by Hermes—is most fitting, opposing the wanton powers of pleasure, as in the fable is the herb called *moly*. Moreover, the king has need of a two-edged sword which, with wise discernment, distinguishes the good from the worse, so that he may claim and assert virtue for himself, while repelling and punishing vice. For thus did Odysseus not only escape the enchantments of Circe himself, but also liberated his companions who had fallen into that evil. Similarly, it is the office of the king not only that he himself be free and immune from all allurements of pleasure, but that he also deliver other men from them, both by his own discourse and by his example, so that he may hear himself perpetually celebrated in sacred hymns.

Now, if sensible and prudent men grieve greatly when some subject languishes in captivity among enemies, neglected by the king, how much more sorrowful and painful is it if the king voluntarily makes himself a captive to shameful pleasures and exposes himself to mockery and insults? For even if he strives to conceal his misdeeds and keep them hidden, he cannot escape the truth of his own conscience, and especially the all-seeing eye of God, who looks upon all things, and who hates the works of shame—where, moreover, what is hidden is seen by many, and men mock and deride him, and that laughter is transmitted even to future times. For we see many in historical books branded with infamy, and very many, on the other hand, extolled ^C for their zeal for honorable works, and carried forward into eternal and perpetual memory. Alexander, King of the Greeks, after conquering Darius, would not even look upon his daughters, though they were of wondrous beauty and offered to him as the greatest prize of victory; he said it would be disgraceful if someone who had conquered men were to be overcome by women. Similar to this was the virtue of Cyrus, king of the Medes and Persians. For he also, having conquered the Assyrians in battle, when the queen of the Susa—who possessed remarkable beauty—was presented to him by his army as a prize of war, took great care of the queen, but refused to see her, saying that kings should be guardians of chastity, not its assailants; both because it befits supreme dignity, and because chastity preserves and unites both fortitude and prudence. In truth, those who enslave themselves to the service of pleasures and display a frenzied love for women, and—giving free rein to ^D their impulses—are carried toward shameful things,

^A they soon become cowardly and foolish; and even if they are thought to be robust, they are cowardly and more wretched than any invalid, since they have paralyzed the power of their soul. And if anyone should examine the ruin of the kings spoken of in history, he will find no other cause than the lust they possessed. For truly, from where was the Assyrian Sardanapalus stripped of his rule by the Mede Arbaces, even though he possessed such wealth and led such a multitude of troops? It was entirely from his becoming frenzied with the most shameful desires, and from his own cowardice and womanish soul, which made even his army unmanly; for when the head is suffering, the rest of the body must necessarily suffer with it. So long as he armed himself through temperance, he was strong and a subject of fear to all; but from the moment he became a slave to pleasures, he was trampled by all—just as someone had foretold this. ^B And Darius, the son of Astyages, destroyed the Babylonian empire with the greatest of ease, so long as he honored temperance; but later, having fallen into profligacy, he not only lost the kingdom, but was also deprived of his life by Cyrus the Persian, who possessed temperance. And what brought down Darius, the son of Arsames, and utterly destroyed the empire of the Persians? It was, without a doubt, the craving and desire for intemperate lust. And that we may leave aside the ancients and mention the more recent, I ask: What other thing surrendered this great city captive to the Latins and flooded the world with every calamity, if not the blameworthy conduct of those who were then ruling, and the cowardice and sloth resulting from it? ^C Indeed, nothing so renders men womanish as an irrational urge and passion for women; for from these, body and soul alike decay entirely. For temperance strengthens the body and makes the soul robust, but intemperance harms and injures both; for even if a dissolute man seems to possess health and physical well-being, he differs in no way from the fabled gardens of Adonis, which, being planted upon stone, invited great laughter. The works of harlotry and the health that follows from them are such, being weaker than any dream; for it ruins life and subverts the foundation of manliness. ^D It causes judgment to turn to the contrary and to know nothing, and it makes happiness seem to be carried about in vain, like idle matter lacking its shaper. For these reasons...

^A it is of the utmost necessity for the king to master and rule over his pleasures.

III. That the king should not be irascible. — The madness of irascibility, however, the king should banish to highwaymen; for the fury of these is like to that of serpents, and their cruelty and pitiless mind does not differ from the misanthropy of evil demons towards men. But the man who has been appointed in the image of God, and has been entrusted with the care of His creature—that is, of his subject men—ought to possess tranquility, gentleness, and philanthropy; knowing well that he owes it to the subjects to bestow upon them the same care as upon his own kin, and as he is accustomed to bestow upon himself. Therefore, he will prudently rule those who are healthy; he will desire to assist the infirm with every aid, and will provide for them with every kind of foresight and diligence, and will attach them to himself through kindness and cheerfulness. If ^B he should see some who, even after enjoying frequent kindnesses and gifts, are insubordinate and lack goodwill, he must necessarily treat them more severely; yet even so he should sympathize with those who suffer, as if they were his own limbs. For in this way the king draws the mercies of God to himself; in this way he maintains a firm and unshaken kingdom; in this way he is loved by all, and is proclaimed by all, as if with one mouth, in every place. With such praises men weave a crown for the king, while they repeat with one voice: "This is the most temperate, this is the most gentle, this is he who is made like unto God." But he who for some slight fault punishes men who are his servants harshly and inhumanely, differs nothing from one who, driven by a demonic frenzy, might devour his own flesh. For just as in such madness the urge of the frenzy overcomes the pain, so too does the uncontrollability of anger make those who are provoked ^C insensible to the punishments they inflict, and allows them to consider nothing—neither how much grief those who are punished endure, nor that the man who is punished is of the same nature, nor how much sorrow he contracts, nor that God, who pities the calamity of another, prepares great punishment and vengeance for the cruel man. For instance, if someone strikes or flays another bitterly with a rod, or in some other way inflicts wounds, moved by unjust anger: behold, the same person is struck and beaten in turn, perhaps by a fever, or by a headache, or by a shivering fit, or by other grave infirmities; and by how much more troublesome he was to others, by so much more severe a punishment and retribution does he receive from God. And if the judgment is not immediate, he will ^D give the punishment at a time he does not know; just as we hear and are taught in the divine and holy oracles, that we are accustomed to sin at one time and to receive the reward of the deed at another; just as we know of those who suffered from famine on account of the Gibeonites. And if perhaps, as time passes, he seems to remain unpunished, he will nonetheless at the end of life undergo a manifold and

^A greater punishment. Yet, he cannot in the meantime escape universal hatred; for although his enemies are held back by fear from declaring their hatred, they nonetheless cherish their wrath in the secret place of their minds and in the dark recesses of their thoughts. ^C It is, therefore, far better and more beneficial for a king to be chosen by common consensus for his goodness of mind, prudence, and virtue, than for one to appear fearsome through punishment and violence. For everyone loves and reveres with goodwill a king chosen by their own intent and common vote; but they greatly loathe and avoid a cruel king. Who could ever sufficiently describe how shameful it is for a king to indulge in anger without measure, and not accustom his soul to endure and restrain the fire of wrath? Since its flame kindles and sets the heart ablaze, while the blood around the heart seethes and is in a tumult; indeed, the blood, compressed within the vessels of the body and driven to rush to the outer surface, makes the face swell and turn impudently red, then black, while the rest of the body shakes and trembles. The eyes become fiery and flaming—like those of the serpents we hear of—moving and jumping about in a disorderly and constant manner, as if wishing to leap from their own sockets. The voice is raised to a great pitch, and his words are disorderly and do not clearly reveal the meaning of what is being said, because of the great intensity of his anger. If a king thus conducts himself, what is one to think of the state of his soul? Wisely and well, therefore, did Solomon say that an angry man is not comely. For this reason, the passion of anger is altogether unbecoming and unworthy of royal dignity.

IV. That kings are like shepherds.

^B Kings have been called by the sages of old as "adorners of the people" and "shepherds of the people." Now, he who is placed in charge to properly instruct the people—being like a commander in war, as the principal leader and teacher of morals—how much more than all others ought he to possess decorum? How much care does a shepherd manifest for his sheep, leading them to good pastures, and delighting and cheering them with pipes and songs, neither binding, nor pressing, nor crushing, nor afflicting them on the pretext of some fault? For these things are not the marks of a good shepherd, nor of one who has been taught, according to the evangelical rule, to lay down his life for his flock. But to be unmoved by the misery and affliction of those who are ruled—and who have been deemed worthy by God of a nature equal and similar to his own—nay, to rejoice and take pleasure in the evils of others, is equal to the cruelty and beastliness of that notorious Echetus. ^C Sesostris, the ruler of the Egyptians and Assyrians, having enslaved many kings, for he had almost

^A conquered the greater part of the world, arrived at such a pitch of shamelessness and insolence that he harnessed the kings captured by him to a chariot; and, sitting above them with great folly and arrogance, he treated those kings as if they were irrational animals, taking pleasure and waxing insolent in a senseless manner [(18)]. When one of those put under the yoke was moving slowly, Sesostris inquired of him the reason, and heard from him that he delayed because he kept his mind fixed on the motion of the wheels. When Sesostris understood that he had spoken such a word to him to signify the instability and changeability of fortune, he was milder ^B and more compassionate thereafter. Hiero the Syracusan, although he had seized the rule of the Siceliots against their will, nevertheless harmed none of his adversaries or enemies once he had gained the empire; rather, he benefited them at all times, and was disposed like a kind father toward the entire multitude. Having therefore ruled for fifty-four years, he preserved peace for his fatherland, and for himself an undisturbed and untroubled state. And although he wished more than once to lay down his rule, he was prevented by the common entreaties of the populace. So great was the affection of all his subjects for him, because he was most temperate, most beneficent, and endowed with the greatest clemency. Similar to him was Alcimus the Lydian; and for this reason, that people lived its life in peace and in an abundance of all things. In the seventh year of his reign, specifically, a public assembly having been gathered by the whole nation, all prayed with set vows that the life of the king might be extended. ^C Living, therefore, to a great age in safety, he left happiness to the Lydians, and for himself, he gained glory and a name even to our own time [(19)]. I praise Constantine the Great, renowned among kings, because in his laws, instead of writing "My Majesty" ordains, he would write: "My Tranquillity" commissions [(20)]; by this expression signifying that tranquillity and meekness are proper to kings in a singular way, and that they are more adorned by this than by purple and the diadem. For these latter things, I think, even tyrants possess; but tranquillity alone is the secure and unassailable treasury of royal dignity. For this reason, many kings of old philosophized in deeds and words regarding this virtue. Among the first was the Emperor Trajan, who succeeded his father, the good prince Nerva, and emulated him. He was so modest, clement, and of incomparable virtue that he would sympathize ^D and groan with anyone who was suffering; and he bore offenses with an equal mind, saying that it is fitting for a king to be like God and to be indulgent toward the servants who sin. Therefore, he himself also was deemed worthy of forgiveness from God, not only for his sins, but even for his paganism.

For ^A that which is greatest and most miraculous—through the prayers of Gregory the wonderworker, to whom that dialogue refers—the philanthropy and compassion which he [Gregory] abundantly shared with the failing, he himself also obtained at the end of his life from God, who accepts that which is compassionate and philanthropic, but hates what is harsh and inhuman, and punishes those who are unyielding and merciless toward their own kin as they deserve. For he showed that, when the prayer of a just man assists, compassion overcomes even impiety itself.

That the Emperor Trajan also possessed temperance to adorn him is evident; since no one, even if he possesses the other virtues, will see the Lord without temperance. Indeed, it is impossible for an intemperate person to possess any other virtue uncorrupted. For how could one be called brave while being unmanned by carnal passions? For he who does not refrain from wronging both himself and the companion with whom he acts licentiously is absolutely not a just man, nor yet prudent, failing to seek that which brings him benefit and the highest advantage—I mean sanctification. Nay, he even makes his ruling mind a slave to impure desires, and for the sake of a foul and loathsome pleasure, deprives himself of unspeakable and eternal goods.

V. That a King should not be avaricious

Furthermore, the love of money is highly unbecoming and inappropriate for a king. For from the love of money are born four of the worst vices: being small-minded and stingy in giving, and being huckstering and grasping in receiving from others. For to be generous not at all, or only with difficulty and in small amounts, is slavish conduct; for a slave gives nothing, or if by chance he does give, it is clearly very small and meager, and stolen from his master’s property. For how could he who is himself enslaved in body have the means to give? And even that which is given to many, if done with pettiness—and this even to those who deserve much—is the conduct of someone cheap and insignificant, not of one seated upon a royal and lofty throne. To involve oneself in base affairs, and to ungenerously scheme and manage the earnings of common people so as to transfer them to the public treasury, and to pilfer and snatch away the [livelihood] of the subject...

this is hucksterism. But to demand taxes that are irrational and beyond the power of the governed is a sign of the most shameless greed and injustice. Therefore, this worst disease of avarice, which tarnishes and darkens the beauty of the soul, and which diminishes and maims the kingship, must be hated with the whole soul. For indeed, King Perseus, having loved this avarice (24), was cast out both from his rule and his honor; and having been seized by the Romans, he was led in bondage, and along with his wealth was thrown into a dark pit, and he ended his life miserably; having been mocked much for his folly and avarice, he is mocked even to the present time. But Alexander, that admirable king, having conquered avarice, and having hated and loathed the passion for it, became king of almost the entire inhabited world in a short time. For, since he considered his friends to be his treasuries—those whom he used as fellow-strugglers in every war and as his helpers—he is praised by all, having become greater than many kings, and being admired even to this day. ^B Cyrus was also of this same mind. For, by bestowing all his wealth upon his friends, he considered that he possessed everything; and while enriching and adorning his own, he himself rejoiced and exulted. And when someone said to him, "But you, O Cyrus, when will you adorn yourself?" he replied, "I am greatly adorned, while I see you all adorned." Again, when another asked him, "Why do you not grow rich?" "But indeed," he said, "this is a great wealth to me, that I see all my people abounding in riches." Such a Cyrus was rightly called "father" (25), because of his sympathy, and his care in every way that those under his rule might possess all things most excellently. But Cambyses, because he behaved in ways contrary to this, was called a harsh and bitter master. Darius, being fond of money, stingy, and eager for shameful gain, devising ways for the accumulation of wealth, was called a huckster (26). ^C And indeed, Epaminondas, the General of the Thebans, so hated such a disease concerning money from his soul, that once, when he saw a soldier selling a prisoner he had captured, he took away his shield and drove him from the military ranks, saying, "As for me, restore the shield; but as for you, go practice hucksterism." And Cato, the Roman general, when envoys from Britain came to him for the sake of entering into friendship and charity, and offered a great quantity of gold, he received the men cheerfully and benevolently, and gladly granted the friendship they sought; but he sent back the gold, saying that slaves are to be bought, but friends are to be chosen. So great was he also as a despiser of money! For this reason, his name became famous throughout almost the entire world. But as for the things that both of these generals, Cyrus and Epaminondas, ^D accomplished in a splendid manner, being distinguished by this virtue and prudence, let those tell who have spent their time in reading their histories. For the noble deeds of Alexander, Cyrus, and Epaminondas shine forth even more brilliantly with a massive torch, and no one is ignorant of them, unless he is perchance completely foolish and indifferent to all honor. They are

^A destined to remain effective as long as the sun illuminates the earth. And as for the person in whom these three things—temperance, gentleness, and ambition—are gathered together, valorous deeds and glory altogether follow. For temperance is the training and exercise of bravery, bringing about the defeat of enemies and foes; gentleness and freedom from malice are the training ground for magnanimity and patience, and are directly the cause of being cherished and honored by all. As for ambition—that is, the disposition toward beneficence—it strengthens allies and friends, overturns the necks of enemies, renders one's own affairs secure, subjugates those of outsiders and strangers, and opens every mouth and stirs every tongue to praise. In short, to speak briefly, these three things are the cause of victory and bright glory for one who is adorned with them. The myth of the Greeks is that Hercules took away the golden apples from the daughters of Atlas, the Hesperides, after he had slain the variegated and hundred-headed dragon. It seems, then, by way of allegory, that they are called "apples" on account of victory, and "golden" on account of glory. Therefore, whoever has conquered these three vices—namely pleasure, anger, and the love of money, into which men for the most part fall, and which cling to them with Atlantean resolve—such a person is a victor, a perfect and admirable man, performing even in his youth deeds worthy of old age. He quickly slays the monster of the slothful soul—slothful, I say, toward the rational acts worthy of its own nature, by which movements alien to reason and nature are restrained. For in the presence of a brave and lofty ruling ^B faculty, whatever is spurious and contrary to nature is fearful and grows numb; it is more afraid of the brave soul than dogs are of a roaring lion. But on the contrary, from sloth, negligence, and the excessive love of sleep, the vices are strengthened and take on boldness. Having caught him like a captive, these vices blind him, just as Delilah did to that most manly Sampson when she had shorn the hair from his head; and he becomes an object of mockery, blind and senseless. ^C

VI. A king should beware of vain glory.

of the friend, are prepared to offer up even their own life. ^A For flatterers are indeed worse than ravens; just as those pluck out the eyes of the body, so these blind the soul. But a friend is, as it were, another self. Some people, therefore, are often lifted up by a certain levity and are oppressed by this disease, and are led around like slaves by flatterers; others, even by madness and arrogance. For they say that Hipponous the Corinthian, who besides other victories had also triumphed over the Amazons, became swollen with empty pride; and having mounted the horse Pegasus, he wished to be carried even through the air, but fell in a fall worthy of tears. ^B Being blinded, he wandered about with uncertain steps, having not even a guide to lead him. Similarly, the human mind as well, even if it has first conquered by struggling gloriously against pleasure, and has extinguished its flame, and has struck down anger, and has cast away the burden of avarice, having achieved an excellent victory because it has trampled underfoot all base things; if, I say, a man has not stopped his elation at this point, but has wished to be exalted still higher, and having neglected the care of duties, has also rejected the counsels of prudent men, he will not only fall in an unexpected collapse, ^C but, like one deprived of light, he will wander astray, retaining no sense of honorable conduct, submerged in the sea of intemperance and wantonness, as if by a whirlwind of winds and waves. For because he was arrogant, because he was forgetful of moderation, for that reason he lost the volatile force of his soul, like the mythical Icarus. I omit the Lycaonidae, who on account of their vain swelling were burned up by lightning together with their own leader, who had been the chief front-ranker of pride for them. I pass over that Salmoneus, who rushed to such a point of madness that he wanted to imitate even thunder with ox-hides; on account of whose pride he was destroyed together with his new city and its inhabitants. Finally, I leave unsaid those mythical Aloadae, and their fall to the ground, after they had relied upon the high mountain called Pelion in order to ascend up to heaven. ^D It is therefore expedient to expel from the soul those swollen and haughty thoughts, which are ministers of misfortune and ruin; but to pursue and with all zeal to embrace modesty, which is the parent of stability. Therefore, there is a need to wage war against and to amputate the dishonest perturbations of the soul. And just as that renowned Perseus, having received a sickle from Mercury, cut off the three heads of the Gorgon, having suffered no injury himself from her; so it behooves the king, relying on the aid of reason, to prune away with deliberate mind the first motions of the passions as they arise; and further, with humility and modesty, to burn away the heads of the diverse vices, just as that Hercules cut off the heads of the mythical hydra. A king, indeed, is well-suited by a throne that is both flaming and fiery.

^A one which, while it burns away the opposing enemies, not only does not harm the king who sits upon this throne, but actually raises him toward a heavenly height and makes him manifest, brilliant, glorious, and conspicuous even to the very ends of the earth; so that even the prophetic, high-sounding language may be applied to him, saying (Ps. lxxvi, 19): "Thy lightnings lightened the world." Every man who sees this is filled at once with joy and amazement. What need is there to say much? A king who, along with other virtues, has become humble-minded, is an imitator of Christ Himself, our true God, who bowed the heavens for the sake of the common salvation of the human race, descended to us, and took upon Himself the form of a servant; who ascended with His body again to the heavens in a manner above the world, the heavenly gates having been opened to Him. Therefore, the king who is adorned by Christ, and for this reason is most beloved, possesses great joy in those things wherein he drives away what is alien and in every way unsuitable to him as a disgrace, and he is filled with joy and pleasure in those things wherein he displays royal beauty. I know this accurately from experience itself and from the facts. Since the king is thus disposed, he is a rule and pattern of every good, and he shines more brightly than even that famous, celebrated Polycletus (35); he delights ^B in two ways: in the zeal with which he performs good deeds, and in hating and driving away those things contrary to these as being unsuitable to him.

VII.

The king must be active and truthful.

^A and to be covered by the darkness that comes from it, how could such a one be called glorious or righteous? Nay, rather, he is execrable and hated, being compared to the good qualities of others and refuted, just like a great cloud before the sun's rays. Therefore, let falsehood be driven away, cut off far from here by the sharpest sword of truth, having no freedom of speech, but being driven off to the place of the condemned. But let truth be free of speech, and let it take the lead in promises and pledges, and let the end follow; for even to delay a little and not fulfill a promise signifies repentance and stinginess. The state of mind that consists in not fulfilling things promised immediately, but rather hesitating and doubting, is exactly what that philosopher Pyrrho did, and for that reason he was called an 'ephectic' [i.e., one who suspends assent]. But if the words of the promise are proven false in the end, it is truly shown from this that the foundation of his reasoning is shaken and rotten. This is unseemly for a king and entirely unworthy of him; for no necessity forces him to speak deceptively and falsely. How could it? For he is the one to whom supreme authority and power over all things is committed. For if he does not honor the truth above all others, from where will he obtain credibility? Or from where would the subject and obedient learn the reliability of words? For the ruler and the subject will be in suspicion of one another, ^B and everything will be about to be full of confusion, according to the opinion of Empedocles, who believed that all things in the world were in confusion and intermixed before Strife and Love separated them, and established each of them in accordance with its own kindred element; but these were almost the same dogmas held by Heraclitus, Democritus, and Zeno the 'Immovable' regarding the mixture and opposition of things. Therefore, there is no ornament more fitting for a king than truth, and the ready hearing of the petitions of suppliants—if indeed they are just—without any prolonged delays. For it should not be permitted that suppliants be affected with sadness and be tormented, looking from day to day while they perceive their prayers to be in vain. For that is far removed from kingly providence.

VIII. Let the king exercise his soldiers.

^A and those who carry heavy burdens on their shoulders, through long habituation are trained, and perform their tasks with ease. Yet, in contrast to these, even those who are by far more manly often appear incapable and unproven. Likewise, those who habituate themselves to horsemanship, the carrying of arms, and the handling of swords and spears in times of war appear useful, and they defeat many who are stronger due to their own inexperience.

I do not know why it is considered useful and beneficial to engage in certain games, and to handle a sphere, tossing it high into the air with a spinning motion, ^B now with the right hand and now with the left, which is commonly called *tzukanion* (37). Likewise, regarding other games at which many gape and exert themselves: they are in no way useful or contributory to military arrays and the duels of strong and warlike men. If someone wishes to praise them, and says that through such exercise people become agile and quick—well, under that pretense, one might as well expect a cook to move and stir his little pot because it is immobile, or to hop and jump on one foot atop a wineskin, and to perform other such ridiculous tasks, under the excuse of becoming "agile."

And if someone concludes that perhaps there is some benefit to be found in these, still, ^C as we said, it is far better to train in the military fashion, provided that along with agility one possesses more besides. For is it really so highly commendable to carry a stone in both hands, to whirl one’s own body around, and to jump in that way? Rather, it is far superior for one to run while in armor, or to practice wrestling and javelin-throwing, carrying the weight of one’s armor in every possible exercise, and thereby gaining great glory.

Barbarians once surrounded the Romans; but they, having arranged an ambush and a detachment from the flank, suddenly surrounded their besiegers and slew them with spears; for they had been thoroughly trained beforehand to throw the javelin, ^D to ride and run quickly in arms, and how one must surround the enemy, and how to escape after being surrounded by them. For practice improves and increases everything (38). Therefore, it is highly necessary to pre-train in all things that contribute to war, and not to seek out their practice in the very time of battle (39).

IX. If, however, there is an opportunity to achieve success in maritime matters, one should not decline this either; for it is very useful for sailing into battle. It enables the hoplite to stand firmly and securely upon the ship as if upon some rock—just as they tell of that Euphemus (40)—suffering no distress from the tossing of the sea. But he who has not been pre-trained through experience falls at the very first engagement, even if he is otherwise robust and hard to overcome in all respects.

^A For he would not be able to contend against enemies upon the sea, with the ship rocking, and himself given over to vomiting, and being troubled and dizzy, and having no firm footing for his feet. I praise those ancient Athenians, who divided their life into speeches and laws, and land battles and naval battles; for by the study of speeches they trained both mind and tongue; and by the laws they practiced justice, preserved freedom, and were adorned and glorified by many victories and trophies. For earlier they shamed Darius, the father of Xerxes, having routed and destroyed at Marathon the three hundred myriads which the generals Datis and Artaphernes were bringing against them, having nine thousand of Xerxes' troops and one thousand Plataean allies; with Miltiades and Stesilaus as generals, and Callimachus and Cynegeirus as polemarchs. ^B Later, the same Athenians, with all of Greece assisting, also defeated Xerxes. And he who previously boasted beyond measure, and moved the elements, and turned land into sea and sea into land, and scourged the raging tide, and because of the multitude and number of his army, used a modius—as it were—as a fort for measuring, and dried up rivers as the horses drank—as in Phrygia the Scamander, in Thessaly the Peneus, and in Attica the Ilissus—and finally obscured the sun with the arrows of his army; this man, I say, great and immense, barely escaped in a single ship from the mouth of the river Strymon, providing for his own safety, having slipped away with much agony and fear from the hands of the Athenians. ^C And this great victory was achieved when all of Greece had only two hundred and seventy-one ships stationed at Salamis, while Xerxes himself led two thousand two hundred and seven ships. Afterwards, on land as well, he lost an infinite number of soldiers, some destroyed in battle, others by hunger and cold while attempting to flee; and I do not know if even a few returned to the Persian land. Such are the feats and trophies brought home by those who have pre-trained themselves in noble deeds, and who diligently habituate themselves to these things, as discourse both adorns and grants the trophies.

X. The king must not be a procrastinator, but must be vigilant in seizing the occasion. ^D The head and strength of any business is that a king should not be a procrastinator in the preparation of the aforementioned matters, nor allow an opportunity to pass by, after the manner of that Charinadas, whom sloth and indolence in action made famous. Rather, one must not cease from preparation, even if no war is expected. For thus will the disciplined spirits of the soldiers, if any sudden war should arise, be useful to the fatherland and repel the enemies. Time is winged, and it awaits no one of those who are slothful, nor will anyone be able to overtake it by running after it.

nor even if he were ^A to rival in speed the winged sons of Boreas, as the Greeks fabulously relate of Zetes and Calais. Some say that Lysippus, that famous painter, wishing to depict for the Sicyonians the time and to show by way of example what a swift flight it has, made it deaf, bald at the back, winged-footed, and standing upon a wheel, offering a sword to someone standing below; deaf, because it hears not at all those who call to it; and bald behind, because it is impossible for someone pursuing from behind to seize it. And how could anyone be able to overtake it when it has run past, being winged-footed and standing on a sphere? He gave it a sword, because those who are able neither to seize it by the hair, nor to overtake it as it flees, are wounded by the dart of grief, sensing their own loss. ^B Hannibal, the general of Sicily and Africa, when the Romans once wished to go on an expedition against Sicily, anticipated their departure; and having cleared the impassable Alpine mountains, he proceeded through them into Italy; and having fought them in various battles, he defeated them in many ways. At last, having attacked those who had gathered in great numbers in Calabria, he brought about a kind of miraculous destruction; for they say he measured the gold rings of the slaughtered soldiers by the bushel and distributed them, and that the Roman matrons, due to such a scarcity of men, were wedded to slaves and barbarians. But this so great a conqueror, that Hannibal, becoming puffed up by pride and luxury, and for this reason failing at the end to put a fine finish to such deeds, until he had sacked and razed Rome, was later pursued by Scipio, the commander of the Romans, and fleeing, he reached Bithynia, and having drunk a poisonous draught, he bitterly lost his life. Similarly, others at other times, having used equal negligence, experienced equal misfortunes. ^C We must therefore studiously ensure that we seize each most opportune time, and not allow it to slip away, deceiving ourselves with the blind hope that we shall obtain what is useful while we think that fortune herself will provide what is expedient for us, even if we are not equipped with that knowledge which accomplishes whatever is of benefit. Indeed, that man is the best steersman who, in fair weather and calm, is diligent, and has the foresight and care to prepare everything requisite for the fitting out of his ship, and takes care that the rudders, and sails, and ropes are suitable; so that whenever a heavy sea and swell arise, he may preserve his ship unharmed and safe into port. But he who is negligent toward the necessary requirements of the ship, and through sloth leaves behind the ^D fair season for a prosperous voyage, and is sluggish toward the work, should be called a sinker of ships rather than a steersman. Even if, from a storm, the ship sometimes returns unharmed, that is to be imputed to fortune; for through the steersman's indolence it did not stand that it should not be swallowed by the waves. By the same reasoning, let not...

must surely be prepared or negligent, but rather well-instructed, precise in his art, and perfect in every part of his duty, swift, and diligent; in sum, if possible, well-equipped both for the protection and preservation of his own, and for hunting down and forestalling enemies. And surely he should beware of being like ignorant physicians, who do not procure appropriate medicines for the sick beforehand, but seek them only when the time of necessity arrives; and if by chance they do not obtain them then, they speak and boast marvels, claiming that the disease would have been driven away instantly if only they had not lacked the suitable medicines, meanwhile blathering largely about the efficacy of drugs. Some of these physicians, on the contrary, attribute their own incapacity to nature, and thus are nothing but a burden to the sick. If anyone reproaches them, they say they are merely servants of nature, and they spit upon the doctrines of books. I pass over the fact that they oftentimes oppose nature itself, and are not physicians, but plagues and murderers. One must therefore imitate the learned and prudent physicians who, knowing how winged time is, display their art with all diligence, opposing the first stirrings of disease, so that they may restore health as quickly as possible. ^B

XI. That a King should choose worthy magistrates.

^A hiding-place would rather think that the herds had come out. And they did not do this only, but they also changed them, and altered their colors, and deceived the owners with a thousand tricks and artifices. And they escaped those who were watching, slipping away like smoke across precipices, leaping over walls, and shifting their shapes in various ways, just like that Nereus, and Periclymenus, and Proteus the Egyptian sophist—who they say returned one day from the Thracian Pallene to Egypt, and lived in certain remote and unknown caves and inner sancta.

It is necessary, therefore, to choose for cities prefects and leaders of the people who are as free from ignorance as they are from wickedness, and who are endowed with prudence and justice. For if these things are so, the people also will be well-behaved, and the king will win glorious fame in presiding over such a people. But ^B to direct our discourse now to excellent men, it is altogether necessary that the commanders and the mediators and ephors of the people should be of such a kind as that Arab Guneus, and Cephalus the Italian who migrated to the Athenian state; and likewise Aristides and Aristophon, who followed the customs and traditions of the Athenians. For Guneus was a most just judge and a hater of every kind of greed, and he used to punish the greedy; when a war once broke out between the Babylonians and the Phoenicians, he came to them at the command of Semiramis; and scarcely had he been seen by them than he extinguished the war and by his own virtue reconciled the discordant peoples, instilling in them reverence and shame. Aristides, moreover, was so tenacious of what was just ^C that he even suffered exile for this cause, since those who were more numerous thought him burdensome; just as they say that at Rome, Marcius the general was driven from his fatherland by the multitude on account of his justice. And at the time when sensible men were lamenting his misfortune, he himself was not broken in spirit, but kept his resolution firm and unshaken. Cephalus would have remained almost entirely unassailable, had not an ill-considered decree been passed against him through the calumny of some person, even though he was entirely blameless. Aristophon, finally, attacked by calumnies throughout his life because he was a hater of wickedness and an adversary of the wicked, nevertheless emerged superior in all the courts.

If, however, anyone should say that it is difficult to find such men in these present times, the reason for the matter is no different than this: that the good are held in contempt and are not judged to be of any supreme account, while the wicked are favored and advanced. For everything that is sought after grows and speaks plainly, while that which is neglected diminishes and hides. For whence else in these our times have learning and letters become rare or been extinguished, and the seemliness of manners corrupted, if not that those who are learned and honorable are overlooked and held in no esteem, while every perverse man is chosen and preferred, both in ecclesiastical dignities and also in civil ones? And no thought is given to how praiseworthy and glorious, or how shameful and infamous, it is for the supreme power itself to ^D

select either the good or the bad, and to appoint hierarchs, governors of cities, praetors, generals, and to make other such promotions; and how much profit or harm results from these ^A, not only to the multitude of the people, but also to those who are in these official positions themselves. For in those people in whom the ruling reason of the soul is absent, madness, ignorance, and a drive toward evil works dominate; and where, again, the beauty of virtue is not present, there it is inevitable that the most shameful works of wickedness are committed and pursued without shame or modesty. What, therefore, makes a king most great, illustrious, glorious, celebrated and sung of by every tongue, and loved, other than his bringing forward through honor and benevolence, and holding in high regard, those who are adorned with learning, virtue, and prudence? And what, on the contrary, procures an infamous reputation for him, other than his favoring, embracing, and honoring men of unformed character, who are foolish and wanton? For when a king scorns and despises men who are instructed in literature and counsel, but has as his intimates those who are utterly corrupt and alien to honesty and modesty, that is, by heaven, proof that vice is being magnified by him, and that virtue is being held in hatred and despised; that ignorance is held in value by him, and letters are spat upon. Now, he who is of this mind is without doubt in agreement with the opinion and sentiments of the ignorant rabble. Therefore, it is fitting and prime necessity to adorn good and honest men with honors and glory. For thus the king will cause both the number of good men to increase, and an immortal name and praise from all to fall to his own lot.

XII. That the king should be especially religious.

^A Yet, even while doing all these things, he hoped for and expected salvation from God most high alone; and night and day, with contrition of heart, he sought and besought the removal of his troubles. For this reason, he did not fail in his hopes; for Sennacherib, that bold and arrogant man, as soon as he reached the land of the Jews, became repentant out of cowardice and began to flee, although he left his generals there with a great army, entrusting the war to them. He sent letters of blasphemy and reproach to King Hezekiah, which, when the wise king read them, he was wounded in his heart, and with great grief and groaning he went up to the temple. And having read the letter in the sanctuary, he challenged God to become the avenger of those blasphemed, beseeching him thus: ^B "Look, O Lord of hosts, at how many things Sennacherib, out of madness and pride, has reproached against thy holy place. Save us from his hand, O Master, that he may know that thou alone art God." What then? He who is ready to hear the groans of those who hope in him, who shatters wars, who casts down the proud, who puts the impious to death, and who leads sinners down to Hades, destroyed one hundred and eighty-five thousand of the enemy—nay, even one hundred and eighty-five thousand of them—in one night. And those who boasted that they would capture the city of God in a short time miserably and contrary to expectation lost their lives, and in a moment their souls fell into captivity. The Assyrian king with difficulty escaped destruction at that time, so that he might perceive the power of the One who was blasphemed, that he might be clothed in shame like a garment, that his face might be filled with dishonor, and that, having been condemned, he might reach the land of the Ninevites; later, he was slaughtered by his own children, paying the deserved penalty, for he had raged with blasphemy against the God who created him.

On King Jehoshaphat

The King of Judea was Jehoshaphat. Many and various nations having conspired against him, he too, constrained by necessity, prepared himself with speed for battle, gathering and arming his own people as was fitting, and disposing the matters of war as best he could. Yet he did not rely on the multitude of those fighting, nor on weapons, nor on skill in war, but took refuge in the one mighty, helpful, and omnipotent God. And by fasting and tears, both the king and all the people under him made God favorable, and thus he came to war and to face that army which had been gathered from everywhere. What followed? King Jehoshaphat gathered on a high and lofty place; and the armies of the opponents rushed against each other with force; and the Idumeans were slaughtered first by the Moabites and Ammonites; then, a little later, both these races were slaughtered by one another; and the king with his army

^A from an overlook and high vantage point kept his battle formation, watching only the slaughter of his enemies, for the entire multitude of these foreigners was captured and slain within three days. And God, the worker of wonders, who directs all things by His will alone, and who gave His approval to such a victory and triumphal feat, received the thanksgiving and hymn from the king and the entire army with a single voice; for without any clash of battle did the king set up this great trophy; so that even the place where this most marvelous deed was accomplished received the name of "Blessing" [(54)]. Such feats of arms and victories are achieved without the clash of battle by those who hold a firm and unwavering hope in God; these are brought about by a virtuous life and a conduct pleasing to God. For whoever pleases Him is also surely loved by Him; and he possesses confidence before Him who loves him; and He does not turn away, nor does He dismiss one in sadness; but it is the custom for the contrary to happen to the contrary-minded. For this reason, for Israel, as long as it kept the divine laws, it happened that it achieved success and victory; but when it spurned and transgressed these, it met with ruin; for when it sought after God, its ^B cords and borders were enlarged, the possession of foreigners was given to it, walls were suddenly cast down, cities were readily captured, the arrays of nations were cut to pieces, hail shaken down with violent force and momentum terrified and confounded the enemies; the sun stood still in its course and held back the day for the complete destruction and eradication of the enemies, while Joshua the son of Nun served as general; and with three hundred men, who had lapped like dogs at the river and drunk the water in a hasty manner, and who were found with Gideon, and with as many water-jars, as it were earthen vessels, and lamps and trumpets, myriads of enemies were destroyed; and by the power of one hand, six hundred fell by the ox-goad. Again, by the hand of Samson, a thousand men perished, struck by the jawbone of an ass and by the cheek. But who could declare the ease of those times? The honors, the escapes from sickness and death, the growth and the extensions of the years for the prolongation of life? These were disclosed beforehand by the turning back of the sun, and by the greater presence of light as the days became longer; by the river being held back, by the rock sending forth water so as to even create a lake; by the quail sent down from heaven like rain, and feeding the Israelite people; by the dividing of the Red Sea and the crossing of the Jews without danger, and the drowning of the Egyptians who pursued them; by the guidance of the pillar of fire and of cloud; by the plagues and scourges upon Egypt; by the increase from [the] seventy-five men to such a number that the offspring of Jacob, despite being surrounded by countless snares—as their history demonstrates in detail—grew to six hundred thousand and beyond. Truly, the benefits of God ^D toward those who obey His law surpass the power of eloquence and nature. Conversely, those who with contempt rebel against the lordly commandments of God are ensnared in great punishments; they experience, that is, the bites of rabid venomous serpents, scorpions, and asps; they are swallowed up by chasms in the earth and held in eternal bonds in the deep; they are set aflame by lightning and are burnt to ashes like hay; they suffer notable disasters and routs at the hands of their enemies; they see their cities overturned, their kin led off into slavery, civil wars and slaughters. Furthermore, they wither away from a lack of rainfall, and are afflicted by the sterility of their fields and by famine. Much

more do they suffer from the corruption of the air, from which pestilential diseases spring up, and the crushing of bodies, while the harassment of demons and evil spirits presses upon them, terribly strangling and twisting them. Leprosy ^A and the paralysis of limbs, the rotting and erosion of internal organs, and pains striking with great sharpness, as if surging together, all afflict them. But who could enumerate the penalties and punishments for the scorners of God, and the destructions that occur at various times? The tribunals after the end of this present life in the world to come are far more grievous than those mentioned, in as much as they are continuous, permanent, and unceasing; for this is the worst thing. For those who do not repent in this present life are sent off to those eternal places of torment, inheriting an unbearable shame. But those who look toward the Lord and set their own actions and thoughts before Him, in this world and in this life, have the distinction of being praised and admired by all, the having of a memory in eulogies ^B throughout all time, and the possession of gladness and pleasure in their heart, both from the very deeds they perform and from the hope of their rewards. But what tongue will be able to recount the celestial and eternal rewards themselves? What eye has seen? What ear has heard? Into what man's heart have they ascended? The enjoyment prepared for those who have loved God with their whole soul, and the brightness, and the exultation, and the glory, is incomprehensible to every man because of its magnitude. Therefore, if anyone casts away such dignity and loftiness, and such an abundance of good things, for the sake of insane desires and cravings, and in return chooses for ^C himself the most grievous shame and dishonor along with those insufferable pains, does not this man demonstrate his own supreme stupidity and madness?

XIII. The king must beware of a bad reputation.

^A of existing faults. But the king, the sovereign of irrational impulses, keeps his head fixed in heaven; and beholding the height of his own honor and worth and brilliance, he pays absolutely no heed to anyone who speaks falsehoods and vanities; he listens in no way to any gossip, knowing nothing reprehensible in himself. For just as he who performs the works of insolence carries his own dishonor, so he who does things worthy of praise is most honorable in his own right, even if ten thousand fools should vainly rail against him. If an action is indeed deserving of censure, it must be addressed with all diligence—in this respect, much more than the Egyptians were wont to do, according to whose custom it was to perform purifications of the soul. If, however, this is not the case, then the babbler, acting like a madman, deserves to be neglected; this is an ancient and prudent law. For nothing will harm the one who is praised by all as if with one mouth, though a man should rail against him in hiding and in a corner. If, perchance, some pain has given birth to the calumny of the reviler, it is proper to cut off the root; and any man will see the offspring quickly wither away along with it. For the king Philip also did a similar thing; for when Parmenio became his accuser, saying that Nicanor was accustomed to speak evil against the king, Philip accurately investigated the cause; and having discovered Nicanor’s ^B poverty and deprivation caused by famine, he showed the slanderer to be wealthy and prosperous. And from that time on, he did not cease praising and extolling his benefactor; and when the king learned this, he sent a herald to proclaim and make known to all those under his rule that rulers are the authors of their own praises and of their own revilings. For by performing a kindness for Nicanor, who was in need, as has been said, and starving, and for that reason speaking evil, he transformed him into his most fervent praiser. If, however, the accusation brought forth is perhaps something evil, it is worthy to be examined and investigated with the utmost care; and when the deed becomes clear, to correct the offender with kindness and not beyond the proper measure—for this is an ornament highly becoming to a king. Many have suffered unjustly at the hands of those who suggest fraudulent and insidious things, while the judge is deceived by the pretense of lies; just as those who, by neither testing nor using the Lydian stone on colorings applied to brass, are often deceived and consider the adulterated material to be gold; and some even take the vilest glass to be a clear and precious gem, because the false and artificial color disturbs the sight ^C of one who is perhaps inexperienced, or slothful, or perhaps even laboring under some weakness. Similarly, a lie craftily presented disturbs the mind of the judge, either because he is unskilled, or because he neglects careful investigation, or because he is finally moved to anger by the atrocity of the crime reported. But if he who is accused is already long suspected

or if he excuses himself from the rigorous examination due to negligence, or if he is disturbed by wrath and anger on account of a very great crime. But if the matter being accused is under suspicion, and the person in question has been accused before on similar grounds, or if the accuser possesses a reputation for kindness and truth, then the danger from this is great. Yet, if all these things come together and still fail to unsettle the judge from his righteous ^A judgment, in this manner it becomes clear, and the firmness, stability, security, and true manliness and nobility of his wisdom are admired.

XIV. Conclusion. I offer this poverty-stricken discourse of mine, composed with much goodwill, to the King like a due tribute, so that it may be a faithful testimony of my sincere and pure devotion and service, offered with a willing mind. When the King has received it gladly, with a joyful countenance and a benevolent mind, and has sought out other, better, and more numerous things from those who are more learned and wiser, he will not be able to do otherwise than to store them in the coffers of his soul and preserve them, and to keep and maintain them untouched and immovable, having securely and well locked and fitted the doors of that ^B soul, and having strengthened them with confidence by locks and strong bars, and having stationed awake and vigilant guards over them. And having thus gathered a wealth worthy of royal majesty, and enjoying it magnificently and imperially, he ought to share it generously and abundantly with all those who are subject to him, so that in this way good things may increase and multiply, and pass from one to another. For all are, in any case, looking to the King as an example and archetype, seeing him thus adorned and presenting and showing himself—by deed and by word—to have attained the highest and truest happiness, as well as the endless and eternal blessedness that awaits us from this. ^C

BY NICEPHORUS BLEMMIDA: A DISCOURSE SENT TO THE KING, CALLED THE ROYAL STATUE*

α΄. It is a law arising from the nature of things from the beginning that subjects should contribute to the King; and this is of the greatest benefit to themselves. Indeed, duty could not be performed in any other way. For to the one belongs the stewardship of the whole, and to him also belongs the providence; while the private citizen, no longer having his own property, since it has been set apart, must draw from the common fund for the sake of the common good, and regard the property of all as belonging to all. ^D And thus, by contributing their own and joining together in mutual aid, they maintain the natural connection in every way as in a cohesive whole, remaining inseparable. So it is with the body of a living creature, which is difficult to overcome, when all the limbs and members contribute their own functions in purity. For this reason, the King, being established as the head or mind of his subjects, would justly be able to demand from all of them their corresponding

*Recall the note prefixed to the previous copy of this oration.

due portion of work from those occupied with material things—or rather, to see them exchanged and purified in accordance with the judgment of their superior—while those who have applied themselves to reason and truth should contribute the true word, which is more profitable than any other tribute, just as their pursuit is simply superior to all others. Therefore, if a king excels all men, and philosophy excels all sciences and arts together, what could be a gift more fitting for a king than philosophy? If indeed the superior must be given to the superiors, and the first fruits to the leaders. Kingship, then, images the power of God, while philosophy images the wisdom and providence of God; but power without wisdom and without providence is far from God. Therefore, the concepts and practices of philosophy have become most appropriate for a king.

^B 2. First, then, if the name [king] is a contracted term, it is reasonable to unfold it, and from this it will be clear what one ought to posit that a king is. A king, then, is the foundation of the people; for that which is sound is not, according to human standards, in need of being added to or changed—and a foundation is naturally the firmest of things placed upon it, not bearing a name that contradicts or is inverted. How, then, could someone who is swirled about by irrational desires or irrational angers be the foundation of a people? He is, rather, confusion and upheaval; and since he is also a target and a wicked example for the one who happens to be ruled and is hastening toward imitation, it is necessary henceforth for the king to ^C reign over the things within himself, and thus indeed over those that pertain to them and those that are external. For one who has not been able to master the things inside a single household would have great need of being declared the true autocrat of many cities. For as for that slavish and greedy behavior regarding the most shameful pleasures, how much disdain is it worth, of how many acts of aversion, in the face of such sovereignty and such honor? For who would not wrap his face in shame, even just by contemplating a slip from royal solemnity and divinity into most shameful acts? Being subject to these things, those who have been mastered by the pathos of Circe are in the most dishonorable state, those who have become swine and dogs instead of men—the one sort wallowing in the mud of self-indulgence, the other raging with lust; but for a king it would be fitting [to possess] the Hermetic moly, a rational ^D remedy, antagonistic to the sorceries of pleasure; and even a two-edged sword, a sharp cut of discernment, dividing the better immediately from the worse, choosing and establishing the former, and striking down the latter. For with these, they say that the son of Laertes was not only preserved, impervious to the wizardry of Circe, but also saved those of his companions who had been captured. Thus also must a king keep not only himself unenslaved to pleasures, but also liberate those who are enslaved, both by word and by example, and constantly chant sacred paeans; for he has risen to the height of temperance, having taken capture for the good. ^A For it is a matter of great grief for those who have a mind that a king should allow his very own inheritance to be taken captive. But if he himself were to suffer such a thing, what unbearable calamity does he not exceed? Or what display of nobility and manly spirit could he show toward an opponent, he who does not stand fast against an uprising that could be quelled quickly, without spears, without swords? Instead, he is softened and feminized, and betrayed by his own voluntary mockeries. And even if no one sees it, he does not escape the truth and his conscience; and before these, the all-seeing eye that is all-perceptive, which sees the things dared in secret, and gazes accurately upon the very things done in opposition to it, and loathes them—even where things are not hidden from men, and they mock and lampoon and defy them, and pass on their dedication to virtue into eternal memory. The king of the Greeks, Alexander, when Darius had been defeated and his daughters were led to him as a choice gift ^B because of their unsurpassed beauty, he did not even deign to look upon them, saying it was shameful that men who had conquered should be defeated by women. And the same was true earlier of Cyrus, the sovereign of the Persians and Medes; for when he had routed the Assyrians and their allies, the queen of the Susa, Panthea, had been set aside for him from the spoils of the army, and she was renowned everywhere for her beauty as matchless in Asia; he judged her worthy of great care, but chose not to see her at all, judging that kings ought to be guardians of temperance, not treacherous, both because of the divine quality of dignity and because temperance is the bond of bravery and prudence; for to be surrendered to eros and to be agape for women, and to be dragged as if by a muzzle toward the most shameful things, renders men cowardly and foolish. And even if one who is in such a state has a vigorous body, he is struck with fear and is disposed differently from every man who is in a healthy state, since the tension of his soul has been relaxed. And if anyone should examine the destruction of the ^C fabled hegemonies, he will find it fashioned by the lust that accompanied them; for immediately, the Assyrian Sardanapalus, whence did he find the pyre—and he cast off the power to the Mede Arsaces, and this while teeming with so much wealth? With so much of an army being brought in? By all means, it was from being inflamed by his appetites—or did he also unman the army? For since the head was suffering deeply, what mechanism would there be for the attached body not to suffer? As long as he was armed with temperance, he was mighty, he was unassailable, everyone feared him, everyone trembled before him; but from the moment he threw this off, and fell toward pleasures and lay supine, what was he to do next but be trampled on, either by the fortune-telling Belesys or the man kicking him? And Darius, son of Astyages, how great was he, who ravaged the Babylonians, all of them, as if they were some toy and plaything? Nevertheless, even he and his kingdom...

were deprived of life by the profligacy that had been introduced, ^A because he did not withstand the temperate Cyrus. And what cast down Darius, son of Arsames, and brought to an end the entire rule of the Persians? Was it not the tendency toward base appetites and a lack of self-control? And that we might leave aside those far removed in time due to the multitude of examples, and mention those closest to us: what was it that afflicted our own palace, the most powerful of all cities, and filled the world with unspeakable evils? Was it not the disreputable life of the protectors? The enviable pursuits, and the subsequent relaxation toward every form of resistance? For nothing else knows how to change men into women as much as an irrational and manic preoccupation with them; nothing else brings about a wretched life, wantonness, and a ruined body and soul. Temperance strengthens the body, temperance makes the soul firm; but intemperance corrupts both. Even if one is physically healthy, thanks to ^B some pleasure, or is considered to be in good condition, they are no different from the gardens of Adonis, which, blooming on potsherds, provoke more laughter in those who see them than if they were truly flourishing in themselves. As are the pursuits of Cypris, so are the fruits of their well-being: they are but the shadows of dreams. For the very foundation of human life is corrupted; the basis of manhood is overturned; practical wisdom, to the point of knowing nothing, is paralyzed, and people do not even know that they know nothing. And the materials of good reputation, with no craftsman to guide them, are borne along at random, producing results as it may happen. For these reasons, it is among the most necessary things for a king to be king over his own pleasures.

3.

4.

^A seeing this, perceiving then that the lot of fortune is unstable, the Egyptian became more gentle and more compassionate than before. Hiero of Syracuse, ruling over the Sicilians not by their own consent, did not vex any of those who had previously opposed him after he had gained the leadership; rather, he did good to the whole multitude at all times, approaching each one like a cheerful father. Having ruled for fifty-four years, he preserved peace for his country and an unresisted rule completely for himself. Often proposing to lay down his sovereignty, he was prevented by the common entreaty of the multitude; so beloved had he become to his subjects, being most temperate, most beneficent, and even more gentle. Of the same manner also was Alcmus the Lydian; whence he caused his subjects to live in calm and abundance; and after seven years had passed, ^B the people, assembling in full force and gathering from the whole nation, invoked [long life] to be extended to their king; and so it was; and Alcmus, having become long-lived, left behind prosperity for the Lydians of that time, and for himself a name that is great and glorious even until now. I praise those who ruled the Romans before, because they would insert "Our Serenity" into all their decrees, instead of writing "My Sovereignty"; demonstrating that the serene and gentle is dedicated to the emperor and is something exceptional, and [is] above the royal purple itself and the diadem; for these items tyrants also usurp; but "serenity" is a possession inviolable and inalienable belonging only to royal dignity; wherefore many of the kings of old philosophized in deeds and words concerning this virtue; and not less than the others, he who, after Nerva, wore the empire, having himself ruled gently and wisely; for he possessed such gentleness and friendliness, that he would even stoop toward any who were grieving and sympathize with them; and furthermore ^C to bear mockery and show forbearance; saying that the emperor ought to be likened to God, and to withstand transgressions and scoffs. What, then, led him away from such goodness? He found forgiveness for those who had sinned and committed impiety, the greatest thing, through the mediation of the great Gregory, [to whom] the Dialogue [belongs]; for he did not grant [such things] to others liberally, but after the end of this man he enjoyed [favors] more liberally; having shown that compassion, with just prayer assisting, is more powerful than impiety. That he was also adorned with temperance is evident; for without this, no one could touch the Lord, even if he were pious, even if he were said to bloom with other virtues; for in truth there is not one virtue to be found unadulterated without temperance; for how is he brave who does not exert himself against carnal impulses? And how is he just, he who does injustice and with whom he plays the wanton? Or what sort of prudence does he boast of, he who does not know and select the supreme [thing] that brings benefit to himself? I speak of sanctification; but [instead] he enslaves his mind to unclean desires, and deprives himself of the highest of longings, because of vile pleasure.

^D

The love of money is unseemly, and incongruous for a king;

^A have approached kings, for even their fame has reached them, and they have sent great talents of gold for this purpose; and he acknowledged and ratified the friendship, but sent back the gold, saying that the servants belonged to those who had purchased them; and as for the friends, to those who had chosen them: so greatly did he triumph over the love of money. How much both of them achieved through this habit, others who have partaken of history demonstrate; for the things accomplished by Alexander and Cyrus through this virtue shine forth more brightly than a torch for those upon whom the dimness of lack of understanding of the mind has not been poured; and it could never be quenched, with the sun illuminating the earth. And wherever these three things might come together—the temperate, the gentle, the ambitious—there also is the ability to excel and to be renowned. For temperance is the training and exercise of manliness, and the ability to tread down those who resist, and to defeat and rout them; while gentleness is the gymnasium and solidity of endurance and greatness of soul; at the same time, it is the beginning and foundation of the affection of all. But the ability to do good creates bonds for the hands of allies, and bows the necks of adversaries, and secures one's own, and subjects the foreign, and opens the mouth of all, and whets every tongue for praise; so that victory and glory are both most easily attained; for nature has foreordained the one who has succeeded in this to be a winner and glorious. Should one not, then, rightly call these the golden apples snatched from the Hesperides by Hercules ^B by the Atlas, when he indeed slew the hundred-headed and many-voiced dragon of Athamas? For it would be appropriate to figure glory by the gold, and to interpret the strange and monstrous dragon as the manifold nature of base desire. Therefore, he who has brought this to an end, and as it were killed it, has carried off the glory of three prizes, having conquered pleasure, anger, and the love of money. These things are for the most part guarded in Western lives, in which the Atlas-like reasoning is unyielding. But he who has attained to the perfect in a short time will have fulfilled long ages; and he is shown to be a thrice-victorious man of wonder, having snatched the achievements of old age in his youth; and having slain the varied beast of the numbing soul in his great eagerness for the things that are rational and in accordance with nature—through which, indeed, those that are contrary to nature and irrational become rampant; for with the taut and intense tension of the guide, he has cast away and extinguished what is alien. And he suffers more than the creature from the roar of a lion; just as by being enfeebled and having the spirit fallen, and having lulled the strong man into a sleepless sleep, the passions are rekindled, and become emboldened; and having been seized by this Delilah, the indwelling sloth, he is blinded, having lost his understanding, and thus she plays with him in many ways, at one time ^C dragging him toward other ridiculous things; but the wretched man does not even know that he has been seized, but has become evil; nay, he is revealed to be calloused and senseless.

6. Sometimes he is even puffed up by misfortune, and considers his disgrace to be glory. But if even sycophants, those ruinous men, should happen to be fawning upon him, and petting and fawning over him, he takes pleasure in them or 4 friends, not perceiving the difference; because a sycophant at all costs spices up the pleasant, even if it is poisonous; but a friend strives for what is beneficial, even if he must force the perception; and the one is carried away by full reins only toward what he can take; but the other, for the sake of what will be beneficial to the beloved, even gives up his own life. And that sycophants are worse than ravens, while a friend is another self. Therefore, the slackening of these is the cause of evils; but his own often is the arrogant one. Wherefore also the Corinthian ^D Hipponous, after how many victories he is said to have had, the escaping of the nets of Antea, the defeating of unjust loves and more unjust plots, the overcoming of the Solymi, of the Amazons, and the ambush of the Lycians of the prime, since he would also boast of flying the ether on Pegasus, he was brought down headlong, blinded in his vision, and wandering across the Aleian plain, not having yet found a guide. Similarly, then, a haughty and arrogant mind, even if it might prevail over the pleasure that meets it and is soft in the beginning, and then might quench the very middle burning of this, and remove the decapitation of anger, and cut off the drag of money-madness, having routed the passionate standing and ambush through having been raised above every lowly attachment, if it does not direct its contempt only toward base things, but already also toward the better and higher, having despised the straining of oneself toward what is necessary, and neglecting the wise counsel of another, it is cast down in the first fall; and being blinded in its ability to discern, it wanders destitute of every guide, perceiving nothing useful; but by a mob of winds and waves, being roared about with empty tumults, or is drowned in the sea of wickedness, having flown too high like Icarus (5), by having flapped too much beyond measure, and having been lifted up by the solar reflections; for I omit the Lycaonites, being struck by lightning with their own leader and of the loss of mind and of birth; and Salmoneus thundering with a hide suffering the same; and the new city being annihilated together with its inhabitants; and the Aloadae, and their fall at the hands of one another on the earth, before piling Ossa upon Olympus, and Pelion upon Ossa to return to heaven; and the other impulses and downfalls of pride. Ideally, therefore, one must banish the haughty mind far away, since it is a cause of ruin; but one must appropriate the moderate, because it is firm and knows how to support; and indeed, one must adjust it to the honor of the Word, and the most excellent

^A of things, with the accompaniments and seasonings in which he rejoices, in which he thrives, and without which even his being or not being is disregarded. For as he is established entirely as a rational being, he has busied himself with feeding and nourishing his intellect, and thus has judged it fitting to live, and even to live supremely well. And let the Word adorn the royal statue for the embellishment of the example. Most noble, moreover, is the ornament of truth; the most high is clothed in this, since it is a light evident to all and conspicuous. For it turns everyone toward itself; if, however, one were to put on the darkness of falsehood, he would be held in suspicion; unless he is obscured because he lies above the darkness, looked over in relation to the admirations of others, just as a black cloud of some foreign vileness has been poured over that which contains it. Therefore, let the Tenedian axe be shaken against falsehood, so that, being terrified, it might withdraw, fearing its removal; or let a long black line or a black pebble be cast, or a banishment to Cynosarges, as indeed the truth should have been outspoken. And let that which is true be eagerly sought, namely, to accomplish what has been promised more quickly than the promise itself. For the future, when it is examined, shows itself for a short time; just as also the Pyrrhonian portion of suspense, for the longest time. But if, on the other hand, it is hindered and does not happen immediately, how would it not imply a wavering in the judgment following the decision? And if it should fail in the end, the very foundation of the reasoning is truly undermined; and this is something unworthy of the one chosen above all; for whom it is not at all necessary to speak of things irrevocable; for whom there is much power in speaking in vain. But whence comes credibility to the one who excels? Or from where might one who has surpassed others be trained in the reliability of words? There is suspicion toward one another, both ruler and subject; all is in confusion, according to the Empedoclean sphere, and the friendship defeated by strife, by which the one who laid out the fire had been loved by the fire, in order that all possessions might come together in the same thing through dissolution, in motion, the whole, according to the unstable word of Heraclitus. ^B To which the immovable Zeno turned the opposite; and how has that been moved into this, and how has that (the other) established its dogma, and held the conception in a mere semblance of the whole, like Democritus who is not among them with his ravings? From which he was constructing, and again by custom color, or rather knowledge and reason and [a standard] for the one prevailing to be truthful; and besides, for the fulfillment of requests reasonably made; just as it is also a deterrent for those that are otherwise, and this most quickly and with urgency; however, those who have arrived must not be left to be compressed by wasting time; for this is far from royal care.

ζ΄. But there is nothing more appropriate for the diligent man than true sweetness; or rather, it is of such a nature that it comes about from the removal of what is considered to be derived from labors, from sweats, from force; of the endurance inherent in one who knows of the bitterness removed from those who endure; and contributing to the triumphing over the one that is triumphing ^C over joy; this at times has even been the cause of pain from condemnation, or has not crossed the boundaries, nor drifted toward the precipice of despair; since even purgative medicines are hostile to the body of the living creature; but by drawing out the vile matter, they become the causes of health, inasmuch as the purification does not exceed its limits, nor is that which is necessary for his constitution cast out along with it. To others, then, these might be purifications or even antidotes, to those who have not been driven to the extreme of the disease and to the direst point; so that they might not even accept the crookedness being cast off, through its accusations; and toward the straight path through the praises.

η΄. It is necessary, then, to proceed to the exercises, the military ^D ones; and let the leader, both coach and teacher, take the lead according to reason; for that which is untrained is both ignorant and unenduring; but by practice and exercise, both action and skill are strengthened; and it has been well said, "Nature is one thing, custom another," since those who are accustomed to toil and to endure, even if old, [of the prime and vigorous]

^A are more long-suffering. Witnesses to this are those who serve by employing themselves in speeches and laws, in infantry combat, and in building and agriculture, to whom the work is digging and carrying burdens. Thus, also, one who is accustomed to riding and at the same time to bearing arms, and to holding a spear or sword firmly, and to striking appropriately and youthfully, and to brandishing [them] to the right and left skillfully and fearlessly, would never be found wanting in the struggles of war; but would actually be superior to many who are stronger but lack experience. Yet, as for snatching the small ball through the vortex, and turning it around, and raising it aloft, and catching it on the right, and the other toys, I do not know how much these might contribute to naval combat, or to noble and manly counter-warfare—although someone might otherwise find in such things the cause of agility in wars. This person would also take up the pot; and especially on account of the straddling or the hopping, so as not to slip along the paths or the groves. Even here we might concede [this], but what we have mentioned is more advantageous if, along with agility, one also trains in every other method and at the same time in martial endurance. Nor is the [exercise of] holding two stones, one in each hand, having first ^B balanced them as if on a scale and weighed them, and having swung the hands with them forward and backward, and having then moved and shaken the body, to be used for so long with such hesitation in jumping and leaping—[this] is useful to a great extent. Much more, rather, should the running with arms and the jumps [performed] from them and with them be preferred, as well as wrestling and spear-throwing, while carrying the weight of the arms if possible from every side, so that one may know how to fight from one's own self and [know] those who are around one. The Barbarians once surrounded the Romans; but the latter, breaking their formation into files, suddenly enclosed their surrounders; and, having closed in, they finished them off with javelins—for it was practiced for them both to javelin and to ride with arms and to run quickly, and to perform the quick-turn, and how one must have escaped a surrounding, and how to surround. Practice, indeed, benefits and improves every task; therefore, it is among the most necessary things to have been pre-trained in all matters relating to war, and not to bring onto it the martial arrangement and pre-training [only when needed]; but, like certain heads of the ^C exercises, the preliminary practices should be best learned beforehand for an easier attainment of the greater ones.

9. If there is also a time to have achieved experience at sea, this too should not be refused; for it is quite useful for naval combat, as it makes the hoplite stand unshaken on the ship, like another Euphemus, suffering nothing unpleasant from the tossing; yet, nevertheless, one who is inexperienced, even if otherwise an unconquerable fighter, is found to be defeated from the first attack. For he is not able to stand against rivals on the sea, with the trireme being tossed, feeling seasick, dizzy, and his footing being overturned—I except those of the Athenians of old.

10. The greatest and most effective thing in all these deeds is not to squander and waste the time in the very preparing of these things; nor to hesitate in the undertakings, or to proceed more slowly ^D toward what is needed, or [to be] slower than Charinatus; but to be prepared for everything that is not expected, with all protective measures, with all defensive weapons having been pre-equipped, while there is peace, while peace is hoped for. But when any of the necessary things should appear, whether for one's own benefit or for the harm of the opponents, one should attack suddenly and unexpectedly with all one's strength; for time is swift and would not be caught by anyone once it has run past, not even if Zetes and Calais were running toward it, the winged sons of Boreas. Lysippus the Sicyonian, when well depicting what time is, fashioned him as deaf, bald in the back, winged-footed, and standing on a sphere, holding a razor toward the back; showing from this that he would not be turned if called, because he has become deaf; nor could anyone catch him from behind, having grasped him by the hair—for how can one grasp what has run past?

^A And he might draw the sword of grief, so that the one who perceives the loss tears his own spirit. Hannibal, the leader of the African and Sicilian army, because the Romans were setting out against the Sicilians, preempted the attack; and having cleared the impassable Alpine mountains, he proceeded through them into Italy, and by fighting in various ways against the Romans, he conquered them in various ways. Finally, having gathered as great a multitude as possible and having encamped at Cannae, he brought an unbelievable destruction. For it is said that the rings of the slain were measured out by the bushel, and that Roman women lived with barbarians and slaves. But such a victor, having been made soft by arrogance and luxury, and having determined to put an end to his deeds and to seize and raze Rome—that idleness—was later pursued by the Roman general Scipio. And having become a fugitive and having reached Bithynia, he changed his life by poison. Others, too, having neglected the opportune moment in various ways, have fared poorly.

One must therefore hasten to seize the opportune moment that has arrived, and not allow it to pass by in order to seek or manage things at that time, or to be sluggish and postpone, and await fortune to be the worker of the results, instead of bringing forward a skill that achieves what is useful. For that man is an excellent pilot who does not waste the opportune time for sailing, when he has well-prepared the rudders, the sails, the stays, and whatever else is needed for the fitting out of the ship, while there is calm and clear weather; and his vigilance is constant, and his care is unceasing, so that if a storm should burst forth, or a swell arise, he might immediately stand against it and prevail, and lead the ship to good harbors. But he who is careless of the ship's necessities, or idly lets the time for a smooth voyage pass, and altogether, out of laziness, undermines the work and is slow-moving, is a sinker rather than a pilot. And if the ship were to be saved from the sea and appear stronger than the waves, this is mere chance; and even this good, the foolishness of the one acting as admiral brought to the opposite.

Therefore, the commander must not have an unprepared or sluggish disposition, but one armed for every task of his command—to be sharp, to be winged, to anticipate with agility both the defense and preservation of what he possesses, and the pursuit and acquisition of what he does not possess; and he must not be like the unmethodical and deranged followers of Asclepius. The latter, at the very peak of necessity, wish to procure their medicines; and if, perhaps, they do not find them, they weave long nonsense, saying, "If only we had this antidote, which would be the strongest for us to contend against the disease; the one has reached such a degree of strength, while the other has broken out of such an intemperance." The rest cast everything upon nature, as if loading a useless burden upon the suffering: if someone were to blame the inaction, these say that nature is the servant, and that their ^B own... for I will omit to say that they often work against nature, being not healers at all, but rather found to be destroyers and "hunters of men." ^C But one must imitate the knowledgeable and sensible, for it is both profitable and honorable; those who know the moment stand ready with all preparation at the very starting line, so that in a moment they might save the present good, and recall that which is not present; not passing over the opportune moment, but working from what is present, being encouraged, or rather drawing it to themselves; then, being present for the work, they use a better method—altogether without delay, with whatever rushed impulse they might have.

11. On the Duties of Judges and Market Magistrates

Judges and market magistrates must be appointed for the people and for cities, not those who are full of human-eating entrails, like the eagle they say Prometheus had on the Scythian Caucasus, having stolen the fire; but those who cut off unreasoning desire, who root out greed, who bring in justice, who school others in good order, who punish every perverse action, looking toward the lawful and corrective, and not toward the illegal accumulation of money and the robbery of the state. These should be men who excel the many in wisdom; not like Coroebus, or Margites, or Melitides. Of these, the one, wandering by the surf, counted the waves, and advancing up to three, he retreated, not having known how to advance further; the other asked to learn who of his two parents had conceived and brought him forth; the last, neither honoring virginity nor having chosen to live in purity, was not persuaded to go with his wife, saying he feared that he would be brought to trial by the one who gave birth to her for the union.

Nor, indeed, from the opposite side, are they Cacci, Autolyci, or Eurybati, who in their own lurking-places perform the theft of stolen animals from behind, so that they appear to be bringing in rather what is being carried out; who change colors and exchange [things], and in various ways deceive the owners; who climb up and go on crags in the very eyes of those watching, and escape like a storm-wind, concealing themselves, becoming invisible, and changing in many ways—like some Nereus, or Periclymenus, or the Egyptian sophist Proteus. Regarding him, they tell paradoxical tales about his return journey to Egypt from the Thracian Pallene, in chasms and undersea hiding-places, as if it were inexplicable. But it is just that those who are overseers of others should have deviated from simplicity and wickedness at the same time, and be adorned with wisdom. For in this way, with the deeds of folly being driven away, good order would be present for the multitude, and the greatest glory would belong to the king of such a people. It is right for such men to be the arbiters and the overseers, such as the Arab Guneus, or Cephalus the Italian who was naturalized at Athens, or Aristides and Aristophon, the native Athenians. For Guneus, being a most lawful judge and hating all greed, and punishing robbers with shame, when at one time the Babylonians and Phoenicians were in revolt, came to them having been summoned by Semiramis; and he appeared, dissolved the sedition, and reconciled the

^A factions by the manner in which he shamed the seditious. Aristides, when condemned to ostracism and asking what it was that caused grief, heard, "You are a just man and useless to the majority." Thus in Rome, Marcius the general, whom the city mourned because he was being driven from his fatherland for his justice, remained himself ungrieved, and did not deviate in the slightest from his own firmness. Cephalus had remained almost entirely blameless, had not the calumny of an ill-considered decree slipped in, which found nothing for which to blame the man. But Aristophon, on the contrary, was accused throughout his life; for his hatred of evil, prickling those opposed to his politics, was never dulled; yet, nevertheless, he would go forth from every court having secured the verdict of victory. If it is difficult to find such men now, it is because they are disdained, while the wicked prosper by being preferred; for everything that is sought and honored increases and speaks freely, while that which is neglected withers and is hidden. For from where else has the great Word been extinguished among us, and the orderliness of customs been corrupted, if not entirely from the casting aside of these men, and from the choice of their opposites, both in political and spiritual offices? And is it not known how much it contributes to noble or ignoble repute to appoint generals and praetors and hierarchs ^B and civil authorities, and to choose such ones or such others to be entrusted with the first rank? And how great an influence is transmitted from them to the multitude, not only as to what is profitable or what is destructive? For wherever discourse has vanished, there also report and the action of unreason have invaded; where virtue has been banished, the business of vice has rushed in with a clamor. What, then, is the greatest and sweetest thing to reveal the preeminent man? Is it to possess eloquence and gravity of character, and at the same time to hold it in high regard to be heard, or on the contrary to house within oneself boorishness and stupidity and to be celebrated for honoring them? For what else is despising the educated and admitting and elevating the worthless, if not casting out wickedness and turning away from virtue; to admire unreason and to chase away discourse? He who judges thus acts in agreement with the multitude and its rank and file; for these reasons, it is most necessary to place noble men in positions of observation, for he who does this would stir up, on the one hand, a zeal for noble works in many, and would garner for himself, on the other, unutterable glory.

ιβ. The chapter of good things: to gaze always toward the Lord, to run and to build and to guard according to all human strength; for to be entirely negligent is foolishness.

NICEPHORUS BLEMMIDA INTRODUCTORY EPITOME BOOK ONE. EPITOME OF LOGIC.

JOANNIS WEGELINI AUGUSTANI DEDICATORY EPISTLE Prefixed to the Greek text, published at Augsburg in the year 1605.

To the most noble and illustrious man, most distinguished for piety, prudence, and learning, D. Wolfgang, Lord of Hammel and Ainhofen, patrician and senator of the Republic of Augsburg, and curator of the evangelical church there, and administrator of the new college, my most honorable Lord, may there be grace from God.

To all men endowed with a sound mind, most noble and illustrious sir, most honorable lord, it was implanted at their first origin by God, the best and greatest Creator, so that they might not only discern simple words from one another by the nature of the things signified, declaring them by defining and explaining them by dividing; but also that they might conjoin them with one another by affirming, and disjoin them from one another by denying; then that they might proceed by reasoning from one statement to another, and range here and there as if discoursing, and might construct syllogisms and other forms of argumentation, and finally that they might be able to arrange and assemble these according to a certain method for the construction of any whole system or body. This is the natural logic common to all men by the gift of reason; by which they differ from one another only as much as some excel others in sharpness of mind, insight, and sagacity. But indeed, since the fall of our first parents, that concreated sharpness and insight of the mind, its speed and dexterity, has not only been entirely lost regarding spiritual things as far as the true and saving knowledge of God and His mysteries is concerned, but has also been much shaken regarding natural and civil things, so that men now often and in many ways go astray, partly in apprehending, defining, and dividing simple things, partly in joining and disjoining them, partly in reasoning and discoursing, partly in connecting and arranging them: from this, therefore, some men, more ingenious and insightful than others, through long use and observation, both of their own and of others, have collected certain definite classes of simple words and the logical distinctions thereof (which they call predicaments and predicables), and of definitions, divisions, propositions, and predications, as well as of syllogisms and other argumentations, and furthermore of all kinds of topics, and finally of method, and have bound them fast with certain laws. And this is called artificial logic, which is reduced to the form of an art with certain precepts directed to human utility. Although some, even without this art of logic, are found to be learned and outstanding in their faculty: they have attained whatever they have of doctrine by the benefit of a singular talent; since this does not happen to everyone, this logic is to be learned and practiced by the rest, and thus nature is to be aided. Since

^A those who know things without logic, for the most part, have knowledge of them only confusedly as to the fact that they are so, and not distinctly as to why they are so; and hence they are often inconstant in whatever science they have, and can be led to other opinions with little effort. Indeed, they cannot even know this very fact—that they know something—without logic, by which alone, through a certain reflection of the mind upon logical norms, we know that we truly know something. For just as those unskilled in the art of navigation, even if they sometimes sail correctly, are nonetheless ignorant of this very fact because they do not look to the chart as a norm: in the same way, those unskilled in the art of logic, even if they know something, often do not know that they know it; this is because they are unable to examine their knowledge using the art of logic.

Since these things are so, and this artificial logic is to be recognized as a singular benefit from God, and therefore not to be despised or neglected, but highly valued and learned in the schools; it should be learned especially from him who handed it down most excellently. Who indeed is, by the common consent of all nations, that miracle of nature, Aristotle: who was also the first of all philosophers to discover, describe, and teach this art most perfectly. For since, as the philosopher himself says, other arts were first discovered in antiquity, and then, in the course of time, were gradually increased and perfected; while others, recently discovered, are not yet so developed and perfected, but still remain to be completed: the art of logic was not invented, let alone perfected and completed, by the ancient philosophers of old, nor recently by those who lived around the age of Aristotle. For although it cannot be denied that Pythagoras, Zeno of Elea, Socrates, and Plato handed down a certain logic—Socrates in particular being commended for the discovery of the art of definition and induction—yet none of them gathered the whole logical art into fixed canons. Just as those who provide some wood, stones, or cement for the construction of a house are not for that reason to be said to have built the house, much less to have finished the entire structure, so neither are they to be thought to have composed and perfected the art of logic, even if they inculcated some useful logical precepts here and there. But even the Philosopher himself, in the aforementioned place, confesses that there existed before his time those who handed down for memorization speeches apt for questioning—namely, those who made a profit from litigious disputes: yet he also affirms at the same time that their training was similar to that of Gorgias, as they handed down not the art itself, but only those things which proceed from the art; just as if someone were to supply a quantity of footwear of every kind, but did not teach the method of making them; he would indeed be useful, but it could not be said that he had taught the shoemaker's art. Aristotle, therefore, is justly recognized and proclaimed the first discoverer, cultivator, and master of the art of logic among philosophers. And although Diogenes Laertius commemorates more logical books as having been composed and edited by him than we find today in his Logic or Organon, these same books, which have been preserved by divine benefit to this day, contain the greatest part of the entire logical art, comprised of very wholesome precepts and digested in the best order. But the fact that there is a desire among some, in these surviving logical books of Aristotle, for a richer doctrine of hypothetical syllogisms and other composite arguments, and also of division and finally of methods, that deficiency can be compensated for by other logicians prominent in this field, who were easily able to add something further to Aristotelian discoveries. Wherefore, the Arab, Greek, and Latin interpreters are worthy of every praise, who have attempted to explain not only other Aristotelian writings but also his logical ones, through paraphrases, exegesis, and extensive commentaries in all periods. But no less worthy of praise are those who have extracted epitomes and synopses from Aristotle's logical books for the benefit of students, and have adorned them either in the continuous style of discourse or in the form of dialogues or even of questions and answers. Of these there has been a greater supply in some centuries, and a lesser in others, but in the century of our fathers and grandfathers that just passed, the supply was greatest, and it is even now abundant; let it be the judgment of others. And surely it would not have been so difficult for me to collect such a synopsis either from the Organon of Aristotle or from one following a freer method, not only from that work but also from interpreters and other logical authors. But since I considered that my own labor would be in some way superfluous in such a great abundance of recent books of this kind; and since I saw the opportunity afforded to me in the most well-equipped library of our republic to use certain old manuscript books never before printed: I applied my mind to this, rather, that I might elicit and bring forth from it such books as were more pleasing on account of their antiquity and doctrine, and more convenient and useful for the scholastic youth committed to my care, and that I might translate them into the Latin language and explain them with commentaries for the use of beginners. Such also is this *Epitome of Logic* by Nicephorus Blemmida, which I have copied with the best faith from four manuscript codices of our public library compared with one another, have rendered into Latin, and have privately explained with both analytical and exegetical scholia, and which I am now also publishing in Greek for the common utility of all who wish and are able to use it. This surely ought to be most highly commended to all students of the more ancient, solid, and deeper philosophy for three principal reasons. For, in the first place, it encompasses not only the whole common part of logic, which is on the predicables, the predicaments,

propositions, and syllogisms, but also the doctrine of definition and division, as well as de sophisticis elenchis (to say nothing of the most learned prolegomena), and explains these according to the opinion of Aristotle methodically and in the best style of discourse, all the while setting forth all the proposed divisions in synoptic tables, so that they may be seen at a single glance. ^A Secondly, indeed, it was composed for the emperor—just as is eloquently stated in the proem and as page 182 also indicates—or rather, as is gathered beyond doubt from the histories, it was for John Ducas, the Nicaean emperor of the Greeks (for the empire of the East had been divided at that time), and it was in fact at his own command that this logical epitome was completed about 370 years ago. For I cannot reconcile with the histories the fact that some make the author of this epitome a contemporary of Michael Psellus, who is known to have flourished in the year of Christ 1057; for how, then, could the very logical epitome have been written 550 years ago, when the histories place its author in the time of John Ducas, who gained control of Greek affairs around the year of Christ 1230? And finally, this logical Epitome has as its author Nicephorus Blemmida, a man both most learned and most religious, whose most honorable mention appears here and there among the historians of his own time. For when, under John Ducas, there was discourse concerning the union of the Greek and Latin Churches, this man collected many testimonies from the Holy Scriptures which confirmed the dogma of the Latins. ^B After Germanus the patriarch died at Nicaea—where that see had been translated for some time after the capture of Constantinople by the Latins—this man was named his successor on account of his singular learning and piety, although he declined the offered office out of love for a quieter life. He excluded from the temple he had built Marcesina, a mistress whose company the Emperor Ducas was using while neglecting his wife, the Alaman Anna, sister of Manfred King of Sicily, whom he had taken after the death of his former spouse, Irene, daughter of Theodorus Lascaris. For he judged it a sacrilege for an infamous and lewd woman to tread upon sacred ground with profane and defiled feet, having previously rebuked her both by word and by pen many times. He feared nothing from the emperor regarding this, even though the mistress had incited the emperor to take vengeance against him under the pretext of laesa majestas; yet it was in vain, because the emperor himself, finally recognizing and confessing his sin, could not and would not, with a clear conscience, plot any evil against a man who was just and had served him well. For these reasons, indeed, this logical Epitome of Nicephorus Blemmida should be more dear and commendable to us, ^C as should his other writings which are still preserved in libraries, especially those of Italy; from these, I have in my hands and am translating his physical Epitome of thirty-one most weighty chapters. But to you, most noble and welcome man, sir most highly honored, I dedicate this Epitome of logic, because you are able to judge accurately of such philosophical books and scholastic labors, having served for many years now in our republic not only as a senator but also as a scholar. Added to this is the fact that your singular love for letters and scholars of letters has been commended to me very often by others, and especially by my master, my father-in-law. And since not long ago you were elected by common approval to the order of curators of the evangelical church and administrators of our college, I wished by this dedication of mine not only to offer my pious congratulations on the most weighty office offered to you, but also, and primarily, to attest to my own obedience and subjection. Your rank is also so great that it can sufficiently defend this book against detractors, if there are any. Therefore, I ask in the greatest manner that you receive it benevolently in the better part, and deign to hold me commended to you. ^D Given in the college at Augusta Vindelicorum, the 25th of December, the day on which, 1604 years ago, the Son of God was born man for us and for our salvation; may He, for the sake of this very nativity of His, graciously grant a happy new year to your Greatness and to your entire family. Amen. Your Greatness's most observant, M. Jo. WEGELINUS, Augustanus.

TO THE BENEVOLENT READER: GREETINGS.

I have used, friendly reader, four manuscript codices of the Augusta library in describing and comparing this logical Epitome of Nicephorus Blemmida. Consequently, I am publishing it, through mutual collation, as more perfect than it is in any one of those. For occasionally one helps another, whether by restoring what was omitted or by correcting what was wrongly written. But those things which were lacking in one, but were found in another, if they seemed to pertain to the integrity of the meaning, I have simply assumed into the context; but those which were such that they appeared as if they could even be absent, I have enclosed in square brackets. The synoptic tables, which in two manuscript codices were at the end, I have all added together, but I have attached them separately to their chapters to which they pertained, so that in them, as in a single glance, the principal divisions in the individual chapters might be seen. Thus, therefore, I communicate to you, friendly reader, this most learned logical Epitome, and, as I hope, not an ungrateful one; receive, in short, the arguments of the individual chapters, which are forty in number, from which you should promise yourself something. The first two chapters are on definition and division; truly most noble chapters, and to be valued all the more the less is [found] concerning them—especially concerning division (for concerning definition in the Topics...

as it provides arguments), it has been thoroughly treated by Aristotle in his place. As to the order however, in my judgment, those would be better subjoined to chapter 25; because doctrine concerning ^A predicables and categories is better imparted and understood without definition and division, than the doctrine concerning definition and division can be explained and perceived without knowledge of the predicables and categories. From here on, in the five chapters immediately following, he pursues certain most useful things, as it were prolegomena. For in chapter 3, concerning experiments, the differences, nature, and origin of art and science; - 4. concerning the six definitions of philosophy left by Pythagoras, Plato, [and] Aristotle; - 5. concerning the distinction of ^B *enoia*; - 6. concerning the seven sects of philosophers; - 7. the author discourses learnedly and skillfully concerning the division of philosophy into theoretical and practical, and concerning the subdivision of each, and concerning the object, end, and order of each part. - Chapter 8, he treats of synonyms, heteronyms, divers, homonyms, polyonyms, paronyms (for I prefer to retain the Greek terms, rather than use harsher Latin ones); which he defines individually, and distinguishes one from another, so that with good reason ^C this chapter might be called a commentary on those three definitions which are taught at the beginning of the book of Categories. - Chapter 9, he disputes in general concerning the five terms (which others call predicables), the number of which he investigates with learned division, and indicates the diversity of predication. - Chapter 10, he treats separately of genus and species, first the diverse meanings of each, then the definitions and divisions, and finally, since they are related (for the genus is the genus of the species, and the species ^D is the species of the genus), he sets forth the differences of *scheseos*, that is, of habit or relation. - Chapter 11, he discourses again concerning genus and species and moreover concerning the individual, where he shows that genus and species are said in diverse respects before many, in many, and after many; then he proposes the division of being, which he adapts to his institute and enumerates the various meanings of the individual. - Chapter 12, he approaches difference, which, since it is twofold, essential and accidental, he subjoins definitions and divisions, and certain other adjacent things. - Chapter 13, he reviews the four modes of the proper and as many meanings of the common, and primarily declares the fourth mode of the proper. - Chapter 14, he explains concerning the ten categories or predicaments, how the philosophers discovered them, and distinguished them one from another; of which he also declares each part, partly by definitions, partly by examples; but primarily he explains at greater length those last three, where, when, and to be sitted; so that he is not to be accused, because in the special explanation of them he provides nothing more afterwards. - Chapter 15, he still treats of the predicaments, and primarily explains that antepredicamental division concerning the differences of those things which are either in a subject, and are said of a subject, or only one of the two, or neither; and from the division of being he searches out the origin and order of the predicaments; which indeed he also shows in the ten predicaments, not as genus in species, but as a term divided from one or to one, and moreover distinguishes the predicaments from the predicables. - Chapter 16, he treats of those things which are predicated; elucidating some divisions of predications and explaining the former antepredicamental rule, and commemorating the eleven modes of those things which are in something, which he reduces to the predicament *ubi*. - Chapter 17, he enumerates the modes of one and the same and of the diverse, and explains the latter antepredicamental rule, and at the same time (which has not a little benefit in theology, especially for the article concerning the hypostatic union of the two natures in Christ) he determines concerning the meanings of hypostasis, enypostaton, and anypostaton. - Chapter 19, he pursues the division of substance through intermediate genera and species even to substantial individuals, and finally teaches that genera and species are more rightly called substances than individuals, most properly and primarily and especially. - Chapter 20, he enumerates and unfolds the consequences of substance, which are commonly called properties, where he intersperses many things full of philosophical erudition throughout. - Chapter 21, he pursues the divisions and subdivisions of quality and, because some have thought that motion is also a quantity, he rejects this opinion, and investigates the species of motion by a divisive method. - Chapter 22, he treats of quality, which he divides into four genera, and explains each by definition and division; determining also in how many ways qualities are accepted. - Chapter 23, he proposes the twofold definition of relatives, various divisions, and consequences. - Chapter 24, he defines, divides, and explains by adjacent things the three predicaments: to act, to suffer, and to have. - Chapter 25, since he has already acted above in the fourteenth chapter concerning the three predicaments, when, where, and to be sitted, he approaches opposites, the quaternary number of which he investigates through division, and explains at length the individual species, especially contraries, privations, and contradictories, usefully unfolding, among other things, the homonymy of habit and privation. - Chapter 26, since he has already explained concerning the modes of the former, and at the same time in the eighteenth chapter, and concerning the species of motion in the twenty-first chapter, and concerning the meanings of having in the twenty-fourth chapter, he approaches the noun and the verb, which are the integral parts of a proposition; he proposes and explains the definition of each from Aristotle, explains the differences and divisions; and disputes with grace and erudition concerning other things, primarily concerning the double meaning of verbs, as also the substantive verb *is, was, will be*; and likewise concerning the truth and falsity of speech. - Chapter 27, he defines speech, and divides it into five species: vocative, imperative, interrogative, optative, and enunciative; and philosophically searches out the origin of each species from the powers of the soul; soon he divides enunciation into affirmation and negation, from which opposition is effected, which he likewise defines and shows to be brought about in two ways; until by another new division he divides propositions into those which consist only of a subject and predicate, and into those which also consist of a third predicate, and into those which moreover consist of a mode; and finally he discourses concerning the one and multiple proposition and other things pertaining to the proposition. - Chapter 28, he explains concerning the three matters of propositions: necessary, impossible, and contingent,

which he first distinguishes from the modes of propositions, and then divides the contingent matter into *tuchê* and *onxulay*—that is, into those things which have happened and those which are still to come—which is to say, properly contingent. From there, he proceeds to propositions and indefinites, soon enumerating, defining, and dividing them; to these, he adds the subdivision of definites into universals and particulars; and from there he determines contraries, subcontraries, contradictories, and subaltern propositions, and indicates how they behave regarding truth and falsehood in every subject, until at last he divides the modes of propositions: necessary, impossible, and contingent. ^A Chapter 29 describes indefinite propositions and shows that affirmatives are equipollent to particulars, and negatives are equivalent sometimes to particulars and sometimes (more often) to universals; furthermore, he declares how definites, indefinites, and singular propositions behave in opposition regarding truth and falsehood, meanwhile also interjecting certain things in passing concerning the force and use of the Greek article. - Chapter 30 treats of affirmation and negation, showing in detail how negation should be made in propositions of every kind; likewise, what affirmation by transposition is, why it is so called, and how it is performed; furthermore, to what extent nouns, verbs, the negative particle, and signs in transposed propositions signify the same thing; beneath all of which he sets a rule by which consequent propositions are formed. - Chapter 31, the definition of a syllogism, then its division into simple and composite, then the major and minor propositions of each, as well as the terms and their affection; hence canonical principles, "to be in a whole," "to be said of all," etc., and general rules concerning those that conclude nothing from pure particulars and negatives; likewise, the consequence of the conclusion to the worse part is proposed and explained: after all of which, the doctrine concerning the conversion of propositions—contingent, simple, and per contrapositionem—illustrated with examples, is appended. Chapter 32 teaches how the varied disposition of the middle term produces the three syllogistic figures, and how many modes each has, which ones they have in common with others and which are their own, and in what order and for what reason they are so numbered. Chapter 33 declares the four syllogistic modes of the first figure with examples, and shows the faultiness of others by the inconsequence of one invalid syllogism. Chapter 34 illustrates the syllogistic modes of the second and third figures with examples, and by one or two invalid syllogisms teaches what ought to be judged regarding the rest. Chapter 35 divides syllogisms into perfect and imperfect, and teaches how the syllogisms of the second and third figures, as imperfect, can be reduced to the modes of the first figure as perfect, or also confirmed by abduction to the impossible. - Chapter 36 pursues the parts and species of hypothetical syllogisms. - Chapter 37 declares the six sophisms in diction. - Chapter 38 the seven outside of diction. - Chapter 39 defines and explains the elenchus, showing further how all paralogisms can be reduced to ignorance of the elenchus. - Chapter 40 notes certain learned things concerning privative and transposed propositions, and finally sums up the count of categorical and hypothetical syllogisms, as well as sophistical elenchi.

You have, kind reader, the arguments for each chapter, which are accurately, clearly, and sufficiently explained in the book itself. If I learn that my labor will be pleasing to you, I will also share with you my Latin version, once I have revised it. Fare well and be favorable. ^B

JOANNIS WEGELINI AUGUSTANI EPISTOLA NUNCUPATORIA

To the most noble and distinguished men, Marcus Velser and Johann Jakob Rembold, duumvirs and prefects of the college of the seven of Augsburg, lords most worthy of respect, greetings and peace.

Nicephorus Blemmida, who wrote many things both in theology and in philosophy about three hundred and seventy-seven years ago, wrote an Epitome of Logic and Physics, which I—most noble and distinguished men, lords most worthy of respect—was the first to have printed here in the year of our Lord 1605, after having compared four Greek manuscripts from your public library, and released it to the public. In the following year, I edited the Physics, translated by me into Latin and augmented and illustrated in places with a brief analysis of each chapter into parts, the arguments of the parts, marginal notes, and annotations. I now also offer this Logic with the same labor and study with which I previously offered the Physics. For I translated it from the Greek language into Latin, resolved each chapter into parts, comprised them in succinct arguments, and enriched it throughout by discarding into the margin scholia and notations of Aristotle, his interpreters, and other approved philosophers, as well as my own, upon the Greek text. I would have added a more lucid commentary, which I now have finished, had I not already released something into the public on this subject, and had I not been hindered by the typographical expense, which I was partially financing myself, and partially...

had I not seen that those who were to purchase it would have considered it of greater value; and by itself, this Logic would indeed be so easy and clear that it could be understood by those who have dwelt somewhat diligently in the schools of logicians, even without a longer commentary, at least by inquiring into the passages that have been cited where a difficulty may seem to arise. How eruditely, however, and how appropriately to the mind of Aristotle it has been written, I do not wish to say at greater length here; since, as the common proverb has it, there is no need of ivy for wine that is saleable. I leave the judgment to the reader himself. I cannot, however, pass over in silence how highly the Greeks themselves valued this Logic; this can easily be gathered from the fact that it is found in manuscript not only in your library four times in various ancient codices, but also (as I find from catalogues) at least twice in the Vatican, three or four times in the Viennese, twice in the Palatine, and as often in the Munich library. Nor is there any doubt that it is to be found more often elsewhere, since Gesner, in his published *Bibliotheca*, writes that it exists in manuscript in Greek in many libraries of Italy. But had the Greeks themselves not valued it highly, they would certainly not have taken the great labor to copy it into so many exemplars. For this reason, I thought I would be doing something worth the effort if I not only drew it forth from manuscript codices and perfected it by mutual collation, but also bestowed the Latin language upon it, and thus, as it now appears, published it, prepared by my own labor, whatever that may be. But that I inscribe and dedicate it to you, a most noble and most ample man, a lord greatly to be observed, I do so for reasons which, in my judgment, are sufficiently just and grave. For since I transcribed it from your manuscript codices and then turned it into Latin and thus adorned it for the press—which I would not have been permitted to do without them—I judged it altogether proper that it should return by right of postliminy, as it were, to whom it owed its possession in the Greek language, that is, to you. And since your library, being most instructed in both manuscripts and printed books, has graciously been open to me for many years for other works which I have published heretofore, and for my other studies, I wished to give some sign of gratitude with this dedication of mine as well. And finally, since you not only understand good letters, arts, and sciences, but also love, ornament, and advance them (for which fact it is sufficient evidence that you increase that public library, collected by your ancestors, with a great accession of new books every year, and also graciously cherish and sustain the school annexed to it, of which I too was a student for many years in the past), I trust that this *Epitome of Logical Art*, than which nothing is more necessary for the learning and teaching of all other arts, sciences, and faculties, will not be entirely displeasing to you. Its own modesty, I confess, answers little for the importance of this logic. But, as I expect, the majesty of John Doukas, the emperor of the Greeks, by whose mandate it was first written by the author Blemmydes, will be able to raise and elevate it somewhat. Therefore, I pray in greatest measure that you may graciously receive it, and deem me worthy to be held in your commendation hereafter; for which indeed, I pray to the divine clemency that it may remain safe and unharmed for the ornamenting and protecting of the Republic.

Augusta Vindelicorum, from the museum, 16 August, in the year of our Lord 1607. Your most observant, M. Jo. WEGELINUS Augustanus.

EPITOME OF LOGIC

THE CHAPTERS

EPITOMES LOGICAE CAPITULA

α'. On definition. β'. On division. γ'. On experience, art, and science; in which also concerning the powers of the soul. δ'. What the definitions of philosophy are. ε'. On conception. ς'. On sect; what the sect in philosophy is. ζ'. What the division of philosophy is. η'. On synonyms, heteronyms, distinct terms, homonyms, polyonyms, and paronyms. θ'. On the five categories. 1. Concerning definition. 3. Concerning experience, art, and science; in which also concerning the powers of the soul is treated. 8. Concerning univocals, diversivocals, distinct terms, [homonyms] and multivocals, and denominatives (as they call these). ι'. On genus and species, in which also on the state, that is, the habitude or relation. 10. Concerning genus and species, in which also concerning the state, that is, the habitude or relation.

11. Concerning genera and species, in which also concerning individuals. 12. Concerning difference and accident. 13. Concerning the proper, in which also concerning the common. 14. Concerning the predicaments. 15. Further concerning the predicaments. 16. Concerning things that are predicated, in which also concerning that which is in something. 17. Concerning the one, the same, and the other, ^A in which also concerning hypostasis. 18. Concerning the prior and the posterior, and concerning the simultaneous. 19. Concerning substance. 20. Further concerning substance. 21. Concerning quantity, in which also concerning motion. 22. Concerning quality and qualification. 23. Concerning relative things. 24. Concerning acting, being acted upon, and having. 25. Concerning opposites. 26. Concerning noun and verb. 27. Concerning speech and propositions. 28. Concerning the materials which are considered in propositions, and concerning determinations. 29. Concerning indefinite propositions. 30. Concerning affirmation and negation. 31. Concerning syllogism and conversion. 32. Concerning the three figures. 33. Concerning the first figure. 34. Concerning the second and third figure. 35. Concerning the reduction of the second and third figure to the first figure, and concerning the reduction to the impossible. 36. Concerning hypothetical syllogisms. 37. Concerning sophisms related to words. 38. Concerning sophisms extrinsic to words. 39. Concerning the refutation, and that all paralogisms or faulty reasonings are reduced to ignorance of the refutation. 40. Concerning propositions and syllogisms. ^B

NICEPHORUS BLEMMIDA: PROEM TO THE EPITOME OF LOGIC

SYNOPSIS. 1. The author indicates the impulsive cause from utility, wherefore he published these logical commentaries, and at the same time explains the occasion of the writing, which was the king's request; and also notes the time when he wrote, in his youth, with elegant habits and becoming modesty. — 2. He institutes a comparison of the kingdom and philosophy, drawn partly from the end, and partly from the form. — 3. Through a corollary, he shows that by the conjunction of kingdom and philosophy, one comes as close as possible to the divine image, and from this, great happiness is propagated even to the subjects, which he confirms with Plato's opinion. — 4. With precision, he confirms through refinement that to rule knowingly is the perfection of practical philosophy, and that a king who has been versed in practical, theoretical, and logical philosophy shall be found almost as another God on earth. — 5. He transfers the thesis to the hypothesis, and applies what he said generally to his emperor with his commendation. — 6. He repeats the cause of the instituted writing. — 7. He asks for pardon if he has transposed anything in order, or if he has attained less than the perfection of the precepts themselves.

PROEMIUM. ^C 1. Since logical science brings no small utility to the sacred Scriptures and to all the reasons of truth: we judged it fitting that for the disciples of reason, who had been initiated into the truth of things, we should leave behind some small commentaries of ours on this logic, which, at the king's request,

we have composed, having reached our own conclusion in the following manner.

^B β. There is a great deal of kinship and similarity between kingship and philosophy. For both represent the majesty of the divine authority, and both set the same goal for themselves: the one, supreme among dignities and commanding the authorities; the other, presiding over the arts and sciences, legislating for them all, and on this account called the art of arts and the science of sciences—just as kingship is the dignity of dignities and the pre-eminence of pre-eminences.

γ. When, therefore, kingship and philosophy come together, the perfection of the divine image is characterized and shown to be—as far as is possible for man—complete and lacking in nothing; and from this, an abundance of well-being and prosperity is derived for those who are ruled. As also a certain great philosopher once very rightly judged, declaring that things go well with the subjects when a philosopher rules, or a king philosophizes.

δ. And in order to summarize the whole matter, to rule scientifically is nothing other than the very pinnacle of practical philosophy. For in it subsists the entire rationale for the enacting of laws and for judgments. If this is so, then with the knowledge of contemplative and rational philosophy added besides, the king, as is worthy of a king, will preside in both action and judgment; and he will manifest his providence, his dexterity in governing, and his education in all things everywhere, and he will be discovered to be a kind of secondary god on earth, such a one as can, with the knowledge of beings, attend to the concerns of the lower matters without hindrance.

^C ε. My emperor, therefore, knowing these things—that he brings to philosophy a great deal of zeal, joining the study of the most noble things to the excellent qualities of his nature, things from which every honorable work naturally tends to be accomplished perfectly—

ς. And since he ordered us, the small ones, to contribute to him some small and easily accessible kernel of these studies, in order to obey his command, we have composed a few brief commentaries as elementary introductions to philosophy.

ζ. Whence, if any of the learned should encounter this present little composition, let him not grow angry by looking to any lack of order in the commentary or to any lack of precision in the instruction. For what has been given, that has been spoken, and as it has been given. But if the resident negligence and the unpurified state of our own mind have hindered us from attaining more, let him who has been judged worthy to receive it draw from the most generous storehouse of philosophy that which he himself desires, and let him grant us pardon for our ignorance.

SYNOPSIS OF THE FIRST CHAPTER, WHICH IS CONCERNING DEFINITION.

CAPUT I. Concerning Definition.

2. Furthermore, besides these, *oros* and *horismos* are also ^C said to be that which in Latin is "limit" and "termination" or "definition," specifically the oration composed from genus and constituent differences, or those that are analogous to them, and which signifies the substance of a thing in few words: concerning which it is our purpose to speak now. For while the name also signifies the substance of a thing, it does so obscurely; but the definition signifies it clearly, which also they ^D explain as follows.

3. Definition is a concise oration, declaring the nature of the underlying thing. Oration, therefore, is assumed as the genus;

and "concise" and "declaring the nature of the underlying thing" as the constituent differences.

4. Definition, therefore, is called an oration to contradistinguish it from a noun; for although the noun itself may in some way signify the nature of a thing, it consists of but one word, whereas an oration consists of at least two words.

5. "Concise," moreover, is added on account of other, long orations, and those which discuss the nature of things with many digressions.

6. And since there are concise orations that are not definitions, because they do not declare the nature of a thing—such as the apophthegms, "Know thyself," "Nothing in excess," and the like—on this account "declaring the nature of the underlying thing" was added.

^B 7. The virtue of a definition is to be convertible with the thing defined, as in this example: they define man as an animal, rational, mortal, capable of intellect and science. They call him an "animal," separating him from both inanimate things and from plants and zoophytes. Since "animal" is the genus of both rational and irrational animals, on this account they add "rational," distinguishing man from irrational animals. And because they call angels rational animals, and furthermore fancy the celestial bodies to be rational animals, on this account they add "mortal," distinguishing man from the aforementioned. But they also fable that long-lived nymphs are rational animals and enjoy a long life, though they are mortal nevertheless; by nature, and not by discipline, they know all the reasons of the arts and sciences. Separating man from these, therefore, they add to his definition also "capable of intellect and science." This definition, then, consists of the genus, animal, and of the constituent differences, rational and mortal. And "capable of intellect and science," which is proper to man, is like a constituent difference, because it is essentially present in him. For there are also essential properties which some call monoid differences, that is, of one species. Therefore, the declared definition is convertible with the defined. For if anything is a man, this is an animal, rational, mortal, capable of intellect and science; and if anything is an animal, rational, mortal, capable of intellect and science, this is a man. The virtue of a definition is, therefore, to be convertible with the defined; its vice is not to be convertible.

8. And the failure to convert occurs either through the addition of words or through subtraction. A surplus of words causes a deficiency of things, and a deficiency of words causes a surplus of things. And thus, from both directions—from both surplus and deficiency—the definition is imperfect. For if, in the definition of man, someone should add unnecessary words and say: "Man is an animal, rational, mortal, capable of intellect and science, grammarian," he has committed a deficiency of things. For he has not encompassed all men within the definition, but only the gram- ^D marians. And if something is a man, this is an animal, rational, mortal, capable of intellect and science, grammarian. But if...

one were to introduce these long-lived nymphs again, failing in his terms, he would have included them with men according to the Greek fable. And it is not the case that if something is an animal, rational, mortal, capable of intellect and science, grammarian, this is immediately a man. For it does not convert; since not if something is a man, is this an animal, rational, mortal, capable of intellect and science, grammarian. But if again one were to leave terms out and say, "Man is a rational, mortal animal," he adds too much to the thing according to the Greek fable. ^A For if one were to say: If something is a man, this is a rational, mortal animal; but it is not the case that if something is a rational, mortal animal, this is now also a man.

9. Moreover, it must be known that this kind of addition forbids the conversion of the definition, which adds to it things that are not observed in all the things defined. For, since the addition of properties and of those accidents that are observed in all individuals under the same species does not forbid conversion, but only introduces redundancy and therefore removes the brevity of the definition. For if one were to add to the definition of man "laughable" and "walking upright," he will not violate the conversion in any way. For if something is a rational, mortal animal, capable of intelligence and science, laughable, walking upright: this is also a man. And if something is a man, this is a rational, mortal animal, capable of intelligence and science, laughable, walking upright. ^B But properties and inseparable accidents are taken up into descriptive definitions.

10. Properly so-called definition differs from descriptive definition; because the properly so-called definition consists of genus and entirely essential differences, whereas the descriptive consists of genus and differences, some of which are essential, others accidental.

11. For this reason it is also called a descriptive definition, because in one respect it shares with the definition, and in another respect with the description. For the description consists of genus, properties, and inseparable accidents; as when one says: Man is a laughable, upright-walking animal, with broad nails, using hands. For this complex description is composed from the genus of animal, and from differences following the essence—that which is laughable, which is a property—and from others which are inseparable accidents. ^C

12. But description has its use when the thing does not have essential differences.

13. But the descriptive definition is also useful when the thing has essential differences, but they are not sufficient to represent it without omission; as in the definition of the horse. For we say: A horse is a non-rational animal. And certainly "non-rational" is an essential difference; but because it cannot separate the horse from all animals, we also add the property, which is the faculty of neighing. ^D Some, for the sake of greater clarity, also add "four-footed," which is an inseparable accident, thus saying: A horse is a non-rational, four-footed, neighing animal.

14. A descriptive definition ^A does not always use all essential differences and those which result from essence, or even adventitious ones; but often, being content with one single essential difference, it completes the rest from adventitious ones.

15. When essential differences are sufficient for a definition, it is a sign of ignorance to assume adventitious ones; in the same way, to show through a description that which can be shown through a definition, unless someone, speaking to imperfect listeners, cannot place the matter clearly before their eyes by using only those essential differences. For then, he will also take up adventitious differences for the sake of a fuller explanation for the benefit of those to whom he is speaking.

16. Definitions are also taken from material and form ^B. For example: A statue is that which is made of bronze, representing the form of a man. The bronze is indeed the material, and corresponds to the genus; but the part representing the form of a man, being the form, is analogous to the constituent differences.

17. They are also taken from subject and end. The subject is that with which the defined thing is occupied; the end is that toward which it aims. For example: Medicine is an art occupied with human bodies, providing for their health. For the subjects of medicine are human bodies; the end is to provide them with health, and to preserve it while present, or to recall it while absent.

18. They are also taken from the subject alone and from the end alone ^C, when it is possible to declare the matter from one of these. A definition from the subject alone is, as when someone says: Glassmaking is an art occupied with glass. From the end alone, as: Culinary or cookery is an art that prepares food.

19. In all such definitions, those things that correspond to genera and to constituent differences are observed; just as in those mentioned immediately before, "art" is as the genus, while the rest are as the constituent differences.

20. Definitions have their name from a metaphor ^D taken from the boundaries of land; for just as by those boundaries individual plots are separated from one another, so also are things distinguished from one another by definitions.

21. Definitions are also called "boundary-markers" (horoi) because they limit and enclose, and thus separate defined things from one another, and because they make things obvious, easily seen, and clear. For names also declare the natures of things, as we have said. Therefore, some have called these "contracted definitions," just as they have called definitions "expanded names." Yet that which names declare, they are by nature accustomed to declare obscurely, unclearly, and indistinctly; but these boundary-markers, because they use differences—and those indeed essential, that is to say

^A those capable of separating the essences and natures of things from one another.

22. ^B Description, on the other hand, obtained this name because it is similar to an umbratile [shadowy] painting. For the definition is similar to a perfect painting, as it declares the very nature of the thing; but the description imitates a certain shadowy painting. For by intercepting what pertains to the nature of the thing, it allows one to conjecture the thing from those elements. However, the descriptive definition is similar neither to a shadowy painting nor to a perfect painting, but to something intermediate. It approaches more closely either to the definition or to the description, according to the essential or non-essential differences of which it is composed.

23. ^B One should know, furthermore, that the "proper" [proprium] also has the function of a difference in both definitions and descriptions. It has the function of an essential difference when it is purely essential—what they also call a "monoeidic" difference, as we have said, because it is not predicated of multiple species—such as, in man, the capacity for intellect and science. The remaining "proper" traits hold the function of a non-essential difference, such as, in man, the faculty of laughter; in a horse, the faculty of neighing; and in a dog, the faculty of barking. This "proper" trait, even if it is non-essential, is nonetheless more valuable than any accident, insofar as it is able to characterize the whole species more than any accident whatsoever.

The Divisions of the First Book of the Most Wise Blemmidas, Chapter by Chapter

The definition [is made]: - Either out of genus and constitutive difference; - Or out of matter and form; - Or out of subject and end.

Definition

Definition is composed of: - Genus and constituting difference, - Matter and form, - Subject and end (whether considered conjunctively or disjunctively).

Descriptive definition [is derived from]: - Essential differences, - Some essential differences, some following the essence, - Proper and inseparable accidents.

Definition and Description: - Definition is similar to a perfect picture, - Description is similar to an umbratile picture, - Descriptive definition is intermediate.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER II, WHICH IS CONCERNING DIVISION

5. From wholes into parts, both homogeneous and heterogeneous. And those are called homogeneous which receive both the name and the definition of the whole and of one another; as when we cut flesh into many flesh-parts. For each of the parts is called flesh and receives the definition of flesh. For it is blood solidified by nature. Heterogeneous, however, are those which share neither name nor definition with the whole or with each other; as when we have divided Peter into head, hands, and feet; for none of these receives either the name or the definition of the whole or of the remaining parts. 6. From one and to one: from one, as from medicine, a medical book, a medical tool. For these are from one, since they were named from the one medicine; but to one, as a salubrious medicine, salubrious food. For they look to one thing: ^A health. 7. From homonymous speech into different significations, whether wholes or parts; wholes, as when the word "dog" is divided into the celestial dog, the [---] ^B

CHAPTER II. On Division.

^A but parts, as when the name of the "tongue" is used of the tip of a shoe, of the tip of a buckle, and of the gustatory part of animals; which are parts and not wholes. 8. From essence to accidents, as when we say: Of men, some are white, others are black. 9. From accidents to essences, as: Of white things, some are animate, others inanimate. 10. From accidents to accidents, as: Of white things, some are hot, others cold; hot, indeed, as in quicklime; cold, however, as in snow (as may be seen). 11. It must be known, moreover, that there are strictly three modes of division: from genus into species, from wholes into parts, and from a homonymous word into different significations; but the other modes are more loosely called ^B divisive. 12. For there is no division from species into individuals, but an enumeration. For since individuals are infinite, they cannot be made subject to division. 13. But neither is there division from accidents to essences. For he who says that of white things some are animate and others inanimate, makes the division as if from bodies that have received whiteness, which are substances. For an accident cannot be divided into substances, because that which is divided as a thing wishes to be divided into similar things, not into dissimilar ones. 14. Nor, indeed, does a division take place from essence to accidents. For to say ^C that of men some are white and others black is not a division from essence to accidents, but from essence back to essences which in turn have accidents. For the division was made into black men and white men, which are substances. 15. But neither does a division take place from accidents to accidents. For such a division is either from genus to species—as when I divide color into white and black (for color is the genus of white and of black)—or from essence to essences. For to say that of white things, some are hot, others cold, is nothing else than that of bodies which have received whiteness, some possess heat, ^D and others cold. For whiteness itself, by itself, which is an accident, is neither hot nor cold, since no accident is a subject for another accident for its existence; but substance alone is the subject for all accidents, in order that these may exist. 16. Nor, indeed, in those things that are "from one and in relation to one," is there division observed, but an enumeration. For these are also infinite and cannot be comprehended, just as indeed individual things also are. For one can mention a medical book, and a medical vessel, and a medical plaster, and infinite others; in the same way, healthy wine, a healthy diet, healthy air, and things of this kind. 17. Moreover, one must know that division, subdivision, according to

this, differ from one another, in that division primarily cuts the thing, whereas addivision cuts the same thing by a second act of mind; but subdivision cuts it by taking one of the parts; for example: "Man is divided into male and female" — this is division. And again, "Man is divided into soul and body" — this is addivision, which ought to take place only when, within each of the parts of the first division, the parts of the second division, or addivision, are considered. For behold, in the male and in the female, both soul and body are considered. But when, having said that substance is divided into body and incorporeal, I say again that the body is divided into animate and inanimate, I have performed a subdivision.

18. Furthermore, those species cut from the same genus are said to be ^B contradivided (εἴδη ἀντιδιαιρούμενα), as bearing a certain opposition to one another, even if they arise from one and the same: for example, body and incorporeal, divided from substance, and participating in substance equally, are opposed to one another according to their essential differences; for the former consists in three-dimensional extension, while that which is the opposite of the three-dimensionally extended is far removed. And in other cases, the situation is similar.

19. And they could also be called contradivided, as participating equally in the dignity of the genus from ^C which they are divided, and as one might say, they are "equally-divided" (ἰσοδιαιρούμενα), and one is accounted according to the equality of division as regards the other. For in these cases, there is neither a greater nor a lesser participation in the genus; indeed, neither is body substance more than the incorporeal, nor is the incorporeal substance more than the body; and likewise in other cases. Nor is that which is "prior by nature" found among the contradivided; for in all modes of division, "the more and the less" and "that which is prior by nature" are absent from the parts, excepting those things that are from one and to one.

20. That is said to be prior by nature which removes another thing along with it, but is not removed ^D along with it, and which brings another along with it but is not brought along with it; for example, animal is prior by nature to man, because when it is removed, it removes man along with it; for if there is no animal, there will not be man. Yet while being brought along with it, it does not bring it along; for while it is brought along with man (since if a man exists, there is necessarily an animal), it does not bring in man; for if an animal exists, there will not immediately be a man, but perhaps a horse, or an ox, or a dog, or some other animal. Thus, by nature, the genus is prior to the species, and the species to the individuals.

21. In species or individuals, however, that which is "prior by nature" is not considered. For the rational is not by nature prior to the irrational (since it does not remove it along with it, nor does it carry it…

(for it neither removes things at the same time, nor is it introduced at the same time), nor again is Peter by nature prior to Paul. ^B But neither is the rational more of an animal [than the irrational], nor is the irrational less so; nor is Peter more of a man, and Paul less so. But one medicine is healthier than another medicine, and one book is more convenient—or, if one may say so, more medicinal—than another book.

Scheme of Chapter 2, on division.

^B {Everything that is divided is divided...} {as a thing...} {either by itself: either from genus into species, from species into individuals, from wholes into parts, or from one and toward one; ^C or as a word: and this is from a homonym, from a word into diverse meanings. ^B or according to an accident: either from substance into accidents, from accidents into substances, or from accidents into accidents.}

Table of Chapter 2 on division.

{Whatever is divided is divided...} {either according to itself: {either as a thing: {either from genus into species, or from species into individuals, or from wholes into parts, or from one and toward one; {or as a word: and this is from a word that is homonymous into diverse meanings. {or according to accident: {either from substance into accidents, or from accidents into substances, or from accidents into accidents.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER III,

^C 1. He proposes two divisions of knowledge, from whose four members, combined with one another, all species of knowledge are produced, just as it is also set before the eyes in synoptic tables at the end of the chapter. 2. From the first combination he constitutes and defines experiment. 3. From the second combination he elicits experience, which he defines in the same place and declares by the example of empirical physicians. 4. From the third combination he gathers a part of art and science. 5. From the fourth combination he infers perfect art and science, and indicates the difference of each in their objects. 6. He proposes a definition of art, inferred from the antecedents. 7. He proposes also another definition of art, which others attribute to Lucian, and explains it through individual particles, where he also, on the occasion of opposites, shows the difference of art from mere knavery or malice. 8. He brings forward a third definition of art. 9. He proposes and explains a definition of science, and at the same time distinguishes it from art, of which the latter is occupied about things that are in flux and do not always stand in the same way, as is also medicine; whereas the former is occupied about things that are experts at flux and change, such as physics. 10. He assigns the etymology of the Greek vocabulary for knowledge (ἐπιστήμη). 11. He attempts the latter part of the chapter and divides the powers of the soul. 12. He enumerates three vegetative powers: the nutritive, the augmentative, and the generative. ^D 13. He counts four vital and appetitive powers: volition, elective choice, anger, and desire, and furthermore subdivides these into the rational, those void of reason, and the intermediate. 14. He numbers five cognitive powers: mind, discursive reason (dianoia), opinion, imagination, and sense, which he subdivides in the same way. 15. He makes opinion twofold, with reason and without reason, and describes and declares each with examples. 16. He defines sense. 17. Likewise imagination, then why it is called a "patient." 19. Through a corollary, he causes to be understood why we suffer forgetfulness of known things when the imagination is corrupted, and why the concepts of the mind are called passions of the soul. 20. He defines discursive reason (dianoia). 21. He explains why the discursive reason is called "mind by potentiality." 22. What it contributes, and how it is led to the mind in act, and what and why its intellection is called a passion. 23. In what way it differs from rational opinion. 24. He describes and determines the mind, [and] who may possess this sincere knowledge. 25. Having declared the powers of the soul, he reveals from which powers of the soul each species of knowledge proceeds, and first, indeed, from which [comes] experiment. 26. Then, from which [comes] experience, as well that which is called *autopsia* [seeing for oneself] as that which is called *historia* [inquiry]. 27. Thirdly, from which [comes] art. 28. Fourthly, from which [comes] science. 29. Through a corollary, distinct from the previous one, which was in the fourth member, he infers the distinction between art and science.

CHAPTER III. Concerning experiment, experience, art, and science; where [we treat] also of the powers of the soul.

1. Knowledge is either without reason or with reason, and it is either particular or universal.

2. Indeed, knowledge without reason that is particular makes an experiment; and an experiment is the knowledge of one thing lacking reason, as when someone knows one remedy only and uses it, being ignorant of the cause—because of which such a remedy is useful. ^A

3. But knowledge without reason that is universal constitutes experience; and experience is the knowledge of universals lacking reason; just as is seen in the case of empirical physicians; for these know many remedies, but are ignorant of the cause of their efficacy. Experience, therefore, is memory and the keeping of things that have been seen often and in the same way. For the empirical physician, that is, he who relies on experience, since he keeps and observes in his memory the remedies that have been seen by him often and in the same way, makes use of them, although he does not understand the reason why they heal. ^B

4. But particular knowledge with reason constitutes a part of art or science: of art, if the subject is mutable; of science, if the subject is immutable.

5. Universal knowledge with reason makes perfect art or perfect science: art, if indeed it has subjects subject to mutation and alteration; but science, if [they are] immutable and unalterable. ^C

6. Wherefore art is knowledge of universals joined with reason, having mutable subjects.

7. Or again, art is a system formulated from perceptions tested through practice, pertaining to some useful end in human life. A "system from perceptions," that is, a gathering of discoveries, is stated in order to distinguish it from the experiment, which is particular knowledge; but "tested through practice" [is said] on account of experience, which is an untried practice. And "pertaining to some useful end in human life" is added on account of empty arts and evil arts, which are not even arts. For empty art brings neither benefit nor harm to life, such as tightrope walking and pole-balancing; but evil art, besides providing nothing useful, also harms life, such as sorcery. ^D

8. Art, again, is a habit proceeding by a certain path with imagination. "With imagination" is added on account of nature. For nature is also a certain habit, as it has being in the things in which it exists: for example, in an animal, in a plant, in a stone, and in the rest. It proceeds also by a certain path, that is, it advances according to order, and does everything according to reason, but not with imagination, just as art [does]. For it does not pre-delineate within itself what it wishes to construct. For it is without reason. But the artisan, having used reason, when he wishes to make something, first delineates such a thing within himself, and then in this way accomplishes it.

^A 9. Now, science is the infallible and immovable knowledge of universals. For it knows infallibly the things which are known, because their nature is devoid of flux and alteration. For it does not inquire into the properties of particular temperaments, as medicine does, but it discourses about the universal man and the universal horse and similar things, which always exist in the same way; whereas art is concerned with things that are in flux and do not always exist in the same way. For the things subject to it are in flux and liable to alteration, just as human bodies are to medicine. Hence it is that when a physician has given a purgative to someone at a proper time, but the condition of the body has suddenly been altered at that moment, and the subject has consequently changed, so that harm and not benefit has followed from the purgative, the failure of the cure has occurred not because of the rationale of the art, but because of the changeable and alterable nature of the subject. This instability of subjects is considered in all arts as well.

^B 10. Whence also science, in that it has stable subjects, has been so named by the Greeks, because it brings us to a state and a term of things, leading away from the indefiniteness and changeability of particular things. For science is occupied with universal and immutable things.

11. But one must also know this, that of the powers of the soul, some are vegetative, others vital and appetitive, and others are cognitive.

12. And the vegetative are the nutritive, the augmentative, and the generative; and the vital and appetitive are the will and the power of choice, irascibility/anger, and desire/the faculty of desiring.

^C 13. And will is a rational power; whereas desire and anger are powers that are devoid of reason. But the power of choice is ambiguous. For the will is of the rational soul itself, insofar as it is considered by itself and is extended only toward the good; but the power of choice belongs to it insofar as it is conjoined with the irrational nature; and it sometimes unfolds itself toward reason and at other times toward the brutish nature, and chooses this before that; and for this reason it is called *prohairesis* (choice).

14. The cognitive powers of the soul are mind, discursive reason, opinion, imagination, and sense; and of these, the rational ones are mind and discursive reason; those devoid of reason are imagination and sense.

^D 15. Opinion, finally, is of a middle nature. For it comes about both with reason and without reason. And without reason, when it opines things without a cause; but with reason, when it is led to opine by some cause in accordance with reason: as if someone opines that the rational soul is immortal, not having arrived at this from any cause, behold, the opinion is without reason. On the other hand, another opines the same soul to be immortal, but from the fact that it is self-moved,

or, which is the same thing, that it operates from itself. Now, that which is moved by itself is always moved. That which is always moved is immortal. Behold an opinion with reason, which is the conclusion of the propositions.

16. Sense, moreover, is the partial knowledge of what is present. For sense perceives that which is present; for example, sight, if it does not see something, it cannot know it. And it is the same with regard to the other senses.

17. Imagination is the partial knowledge of what is absent; as when, having seen a man yesterday, I imagine him today, that is, I recall such a person in my mind.

18. Aristotle called the imagination a "passive mind"—a mind, ^B because it possesses the "knowable" within itself, and herein it differs from sense; for those things which sense perceives as lying outside—being entirely in need of their presence in order to operate upon them—the imagination, having imprinted their forms through the senses, possesses within itself and is able to bring them forward, not needing the things lying outside. Hence, even in sleep the imaginative faculty operates, while the senses remain inactive. The Philosopher therefore called the imagination a "mind" for these reasons, but "passive," because it knows things with division and interval, starting and consisting as it does from the senses, and being often dissolved by the long absence of the sensible objects.

19. Since, therefore, we are unable to understand any of the things here without imagination, and since it is not exempt from ^C passivity, but is subject to dissolution and corruption—as we have said—on this account, when the imagination is corrupted, we suffer forgetfulness of the things we have known, since we have our intellection joined with the imagination. Whence the concepts of the mind are also called "passions of the soul"; not that the rational soul suffers, but that without the passive mind, that is, without the imagination, it is not naturally able to understand any of the things in the world.

20. Discursive reason (dianoia) is the cognitive power of universals by means of reason, apprehending the knowable not all at once, but through a certain method.

21. Dianoia is also called "potential mind" ^D because it is raised up simultaneously with the "actual mind"—that is, through syllogisms it is led to those things which the actual mind understands by simple application.

22. Therefore, dianoia, being the potential mind, cooperates towards what is necessary and assists the appetitive powers of the soul, and leads them—being as they are devoid of reason—to the mastery of reason. It is also raised up simultaneously with the mind *in act*, while it is being led to the knowledge of beings, as has been said. For this reason, it proceeds from the imperfect to the perfect, that is, from the potential to the actual. For this reason, its operation, or intellection, is also called a passion, to distinguish it from the ope

operation of the intellect, which is called self-sufficient and actual, since it possesses an operation concurrent with its essence, unmixed with that which is potential, and is therefore entirely free from passion.

23. Discursive reason ^B differs from discursive opinion in that opinion with reason is the conclusion of propositions, as has been said; but discursive reason takes propositions that are beyond controversy and confirms what is sought. For it takes as an admitted fact among all that the soul is self-moved, and that what is self-moved is ever-moved, and that what is ever-moved is immortal, and confirms from this that the soul is immortal; and thus, from such a confirmation, the opinion which is with reason concludes that the soul is immortal.

24. Finally, the intellect, by a simple apprehension—that is, immediately, without time, and better than by demonstration—knows all things that fall under it, namely the intelligible things. Those who have attained through action and contemplation to the highest summit of purification and science have such a pure and unmixed knowledge.

25. Since these things are so, experience ^C arises from sensation; for this is indeed a particular and irrational knowledge.

26. But experience comes both from irrational opinion and from sensation and imagination together. And when it comes from sensation and imagination, it is called "direct inspection" (autopsia); for the empirical physician, having become an eyewitness of the remedies, and having tested them through sensation, and having gathered their operations within himself through imagination, uses them at the appropriate time for cures. When, however, experience springs from irrational opinion, it is then called "history," as when someone thinks the natures of some of these remedies are such-and-such, not having tested them himself, but having heard it from others and having opined so.

27. From discursive opinion and discursive reason, art arises; for it, too, likewise knows universals with reason.

28. Science ^D is generated from both discursive reason and the intellect. It receives the principles that require demonstrations—such as that a point has no parts and the like—from discursive reason, but those which are admitted by all and do not require demonstrations—such as that God is good and similar things—from the intellect.

29. Therefore, art also differs from science in this: that art arises from discursive opinion and discursive reason, while science emerges from discursive reason and the intellect.

Epitome of Logic

Table of Chapter 3, On Knowledge

Knowledge is: - Either without reason: - either particular, - or universal. - Or with reason: - either particular, - or universal.

[Graph showing: 'Without reason' -> 'Inconsistent'; 'With reason' -> 'Experience', 'Experiment', 'Science', 'Part of Art', 'Art or perfect Science']

And otherwise: - Knowledge is: - Either without reason: - either particular, and it produces an experiment, - or universal, and it produces experience. - Or with reason: - either particular: a part - of science - or of art - or universal: - either having mutable subjects, and it produces perfect art, - or immutable, and it produces perfect science.

The powers of the soul consist of the vegetative, the vital and appetitive, and finally the cognitive. The vegetative: nourishing, increasing, and generating. The vital and appetitive: will, choice, anger, and desire. The cognitive: mind, reasoning, opinion, imagination, and sense.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER IV. ON THE DEFINITIONS OF PHILOSOPHY.

CHAPTER IV. What are the definitions of philosophy?

^A 3. The third definition is that which says that philosophy is the meditation of death, that is to say, of the elective or voluntary kind. For the philosopher does not wish to meditate on destroying himself. For thus he would subvert the creative laws; since if the Creator bound the soul to the body, he—the philosopher—would wish to dissolve such a bond against the command of Him who bound it. But since life is twofold (for there is one life that is natural, and another that is elective; the natural life is the connection of soul and body, according to which we were ordained by providence to live, and by which the body binds the soul; the elective life is the sympathy toward the body and the preoccupation with pleasures, by which the soul binds and attaches itself to the body), a twofold death is also recognized: natural and elective. And the natural death is the separation of the soul from the body, according to which every man dies; but the elective death is the life according to virtue, according to which the true philosopher separates the soul from the body even before the natural death, by working the mortification of the passions and, through such mortification, becoming as much as possible like the impassible [divine] nature. But it is also possible to speak in a more general way about the meditation of death: that whoever keeps his departure from this world in his mind at all times and dwells in the constant meditation of this, he will contemplate the liberation from all bodily things and will strive to accomplish all things that improve the soul, and will possess virtue as a companion both in public life and in his pilgrimage, having exchanged the ephemeral and fleeting for the eternal.

^B 4. The fourth definition is that which says that philosophy is assimilation to God, as far as is possible for man.

5. For since God has twofold energies—the cognitive [energies], by which He knows all things even before their creation, and the providential [energies] ^C regarding inferior things, by which He provides for the whole world—the philosopher also strives to be a contemplator of all beings and to know the nature of the universe. He also provides for inferior things: through the contemplative [part of philosophy] he teaches the dogmas of truth, and through the practical he regulates morals and legislates what is proper and acts as a judge and busies himself with all other manner of care for what is beneficial; naturally, philosophy on account of these things exists as assimilation to God.

6. And the qualification "as far as is possible for man" is well added, since there is a very great difference between the [divine] knowledges and providences [and human ones]. ^D For of those beings whose substances are different, in that measure are their perfections also different. And what comparison is there between a nature that is entirely mutable and fluid and that blessed substance which is exempt from all corruption and change, and which transcends every intellect, not only human but also angelic, to an infinite degree?

7. The fifth definition is that which defines philosophy as the art of arts and the science of sciences, since all arts and sciences receive their principles from philosophy, inasmuch as it knows the natures of the universe. ^B

8. The sixth and final definition is that which says that philosophy is the love of wisdom, that is, the love of God. For He Himself is wisdom itself; and whoever loves Him, and so far as it is possible joins himself to Him through contemplation and action, he would properly be called a philosopher. ^C

9. The first, therefore, of the definitions mentioned, and the second, and the sixth, are attributed to Pythagoras the Samian; the third and the fourth to Plato; and finally, the fifth to Aristotle.

Schema of Chapter 4. What are the definitions of philosophy?

Table of Chapter 4, On the definitions of philosophy.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER 5, WHICH IS CONCERNING THE CONCEPT OF THE MIND, OR NOTION.

CHAPTER V. On the concept of the mind.

1. The concept of the mind is said to be twofold. ^C

2. One, indeed, is that which is, as it were, a speculation and thought brought upon a thing, which separates those things that are joined by nature and conceives each under its own proper subsistence.

3. For instance, the soul and the body are created together, and from both one thing, namely man, has been made. But the mental concept divides man into soul and body even before their separation from each other, and conceives the soul apart from the body, and the body apart from the soul; because the former is an immortal substance and the cause of life to the body, while the latter is of a mortal nature, not having from itself that which lives, and because of the other things that are attributed to each as divers. ^D

^A 4. Again, body and color are by nature together; and it is not possible for a body to be separated from color, nor for color to be devoid of its underlying body. But the mental concept, separating these from one another, constitutes the body, which by nature is colored, as being alone in itself and deprived of its color, and it constitutes the color again as being divided separately from the body.

5. And this is indeed what is called the primary and proper concept of the mind.

6. But the remaining one is called the "naked" concept ^B, which is a figment of the intellect. For it reasons as if things exist which in no way anywhere exist; it constructs a winged man, and lion cubs pulling a plow, and a ship carried through the air, and other similar things; and, taking parts from wholes and composing them with one another, it posits things that have absolutely no existence at all. Such is the centaur, or "horse-man," which is nothing of the things that have being, but solely a naked concept.

7. The naked concept differs from imagination, in that imagination is a recurrence of existing things, when someone recalls and imagines what has been seen. But the naked concept is a formation of things that do not exist at all, having thought for its generation and oblivion for its perfect destruction.

Schema of Chapter 5, On concept.

One concept is that which separates things that are joined by nature and conceives each separately as having its own subsistence—as man from soul and body—which is called properly an "ennoia" (thought/notion).

The other is the "naked" concept, which constructs things that in no way exist at all, such as a ship carried through the air, or a goat-stag (tragelaphus).

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER VI, WHICH IS ON SECTS.

1. It defines a philosophical sect. — 2. It explains the definition, and first it gives the reason why it says that it is the opinion of men, not of a man, where it also distinguishes it from a "thesis," which it likewise defines. — 3. Why of sophisticated or elegant men. — 4. Why, of those who agree with one another, but disagree with others. — 5. It shows that a sect is called so in seven ways. — 6. From the author. — 7. From his fatherland. — 8. From the place of their meetings. — 9. From the censure employed in judging. — 10. From the manner of living.

CHAPTER VI.

On sects.

1. A sect according to philosophy is the opinion of sophisticated men, who agree among themselves but disagree with others.

2. It is said "of men" and not "of a man," because the opinion of one man does not make a sect, but a thesis. For a thesis is an opinion ^C beyond...

the opinion of one man; such as that of Heraclitus, that all things are moved; and that of Parmenides, that being is one and immovable; and that of Antisthenes, that it is not permitted to contradict. Therefore, those who constitute a sect are many.

3. But they must also be distinguished, that is, of some authority and learned; for if they should be common or vulgar, how would they constitute a sect in philosophy? ^A

4. Finally, it provides a certain mark of a sect: that there be consensus with dissension. For those who agree both among themselves and with others do not form a sect. For what is unanimously asserted by all is a common notion, such as that God is good and the sun has the faculty of illuminating.

5. Furthermore, philosophical sects have been named in seven ways. ^B

6. Either from the sect-leader himself, such as the Platonists and Aristotelians.

7. Or from the country of the sect-leader, such as the Cyrenaics, on account of Aristippus the Cyrenaic, and the Megarians, on account of Euclid the Megarian.

8. Or from the place in which they held their meetings, such as the Stoics, on account of the Stoa (or porch) in Attica.

9. Or from the judgment they applied in philosophizing, such as the Ephectics (that is, those who withhold assent). For since they opined that nothing could be comprehended, they withheld the solutions of propositions.

10. Or from their way of life, just as the Cynics, who lived carelessly like dogs, while they guarded the dogmas of philosophy, defended them by demonstrations, and separated friends from strangers—that is, those apt for philosophizing from those inept for it—and while they received the former benevolently, they reproved the latter freely and openly, and drove them far from their auditorium. ^C

11. Or from the end [in view], as the hedonists, saying the end of philosophy to be pleasure, which is perceived from knowledge and apathy—that is, from the voiding of passions—and from the abduction to the divine numen, which is the first of all things to be sought. ^D

12. Or from some accident, such as the Peripatetics, who were so called because they instituted their meetings according to the *peripaton*, that is, a stroll, so that the body might be exercised along with the soul.

Table of Chapter 6, On Sects

Synopsis of Chapter VII, Which is concerning the division of philosophy.

Chapter VII. What the division of philosophy is.

or they are ^A entirely separable from matter, both in substance and in conception, such as things which are above nature, and incorporeal; or they are in one respect inseparable from matter, and in another, separable: being material in substance, but immaterial in conception, such as numbers and figures. For neither the number ten, for example, nor a triangle, can subsist without matter; but they have their existence either in wood, or in stones, or in some other material things; the number, according to distinctness, but the figure, according to continuity. Nevertheless, in conception, they can be separated from matter. For when one imagines and contemplates these numbers or figures by themselves, just as wax, when it takes the impression of a seal, removes nothing from the signet stone; in the same way, this person also takes nothing of the matter at that moment, but merely imprints and fashions the figures and numbers immaterially in the mind.

5. Since, therefore, to the contemplative power all beings are subject for knowledge, and beings are threefold, for this reason the contemplative is also divided into three parts. And physiology is occupied with things that are entirely in matter, whereas theology is concerned with things that are entirely devoid of matter; mathematics, finally, is concerned with things that participate in both matter and immateriality.

6. And first, indeed, is physiology, which is close to us, as it is akin to those of us who are in matter; second is mathematics, which exists as a sort of junction of matter and immateriality; third and last is theology, which is completely devoid of matter.

7. Physiology, therefore, because it is occupied with natural and corruptible things, is so named; but theology, because it treats of divine and incorruptible beings, is called theology. And since through mathematics we learn some things from others, and by the senses are instructed in things which are above sense, and using this as a kind of bridge and ladder to immateriality, we pass over from matter, and are transferred from lowly and earthly things to a high and heavenly contemplation; on this account it has been named "mathematica" (the subject of learning). For mathēsis (learning) is the apprehension of those things not known, and, as it were, a transposition from ignorance to knowledge.

8. This mathematics is divided into arithmetic, music, geometry, and astronomy; for it is concerned with the "quantum" (the quantitative). Now, of the quantitative, one kind is continuous, while the other is discrete. And that is continuous whose parts are joined at a common boundary, such as a line.

9. For all its parts are joined ^B together, and are not impeded by the points that are in it from having this connection. For the point, which is the extreme end of the middle part—of a line, for example—is the beginning of the remaining middle part of it. But "discrete" quantity is that whose parts...

are not connected to any common term; as, for instance, number. For the half part of six—that is, the three—does not have some common term with the remaining half, or the other three, by which term these parts might be joined; but all the parts of every number are distinguished from one another by units. ^A Of discrete quantity, therefore, one kind is that which is by itself, such as the even, the odd, the perfect, and the like; another is that which has a relation to something else, such as double, half, greater, lesser, sesquitertian, sesquialter, and the rest. Of continuous quantity, one kind is in rest and stability, the other in motion and rotation.

5. Arithmetic, therefore, is occupied with quantity discrete by itself, but music with quantity discrete in relation. And arithmetic is the knowledge of quantity discrete by itself; music is the knowledge of quantity discrete in relation. ^B Geometry is occupied with quantity continuous and immobile, such as the earth. And geometry is the knowledge of quantity continuous and immobile; astronomy with quantity continuous and always moving, such as the heaven. And astronomy is the knowledge of quantity continuous and always moving.

11. These things are regarding the theoretical part of philosophy.

12. The practical part is divided into ethical, economical, and political. And the ethical or moral philosopher is he who is able to regulate his own morals and those of another; the economical is he who also knows how to educate an entire household well. Finally, he who manages and governs a city or even cities in the best way is the political [philosopher]. ^C

13. The entire practical [philosophy] is perfected through the office of law-giving and judging. For the practical philosopher makes laws that are beneficial to the city, the house, the disciple, and himself. In the same way, he also judges, praising and honoring those of his subjects who act rightly, and deeming them worthy of suitable rewards, while censuring, neglecting, and punishing those who behave badly. The philosopher also becomes a judge to himself; he takes pleasure when doing good things and delights in the virtues; but if he transgresses any of his duties, he grieves, chastises himself, and labors for the correction of his lapses. ^D

14. Just as, therefore, medicine is the perfection of the body, so philosophy is the perfection of the soul, being recognized as the medicine of the soul. Since, however, one part of the soul is that which desires, and another is that which knows; and again, of this [knowledge], one part is participant in reason, and another is destitute of reason: and since of that which knows, and which is participant in reason, one part cooperates with the desiring part—such as the mind in potentiality, [the faculty] of reasoning—while the other is separable and altogether exempt, such as the mind in act; whatever part of philosophy perfects the desiring part of the soul, and that very mind in potentiality which cooperates with the desiring part, this is called practical, being occupied with action, and having as its end the choice and attainment of the good; but whatever part of...

the cognizing (faculty of the soul) it perfects, having truth as its end, this is commonly called contemplative.

15. Furthermore, as for how much knowledge it perfects by the potential intellect—namely that which, with sense and imagination, is occupied with material forms that are inseparable from matter—this is called physiology, because nature exists around these and in them. ^B But as for how much it perfects the pure operation of the intellect in act, and that of the potential intellect which is raised up with the intellect in act—if the knowledge is concerning forms that are in every way separable from matter, such is called theology, and first philosophy, and metaphysics, because it is placed above natural things. But if it is concerning forms that are in part separable from matter, and in part inseparable, such is called mathematics, and (it treats) of the soul. For the mathematical essence is also a sort of mean, in a way, between matter and immateriality: for it possesses the universal, so that it can be separated from matter; but by that which it presents in dimensions and that which is discrete, it is such that it cannot be separated from matter. In like manner also the soul, with regard to the senses and imaginations, and the potential intellect, is inseparable from matter; but with regard to the intellect in act, which is the highest and purest part of the soul, the soul is entirely separated from matter.

Figure of Ch. 7, What is the division of philosophy.

Philosophy is divided into: Contemplative (as are): Physiology, Mathematics (as are): geometry, astronomy, arithmetic, music, And Theology (or Metaphysics). And Active (as are): ethics, economics, politics.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER VIII, CONCERNING UNIVOCALS, DIVERSIVOCALS, AND DIVERSES, LIKEWISE EQUIVOCALS AND MULTIVOCALS AND DENOMINATIVES.

1. Whatever exists in the world is declared either by definition or by description. 2. From the agreement and discrepancy of both the name and the definition, four pairings arise. The first is of those things which correspond in name and definition: the second is of those which disagree in both; the third is of those which agree in name but disagree in definition; the fourth is of those which agree in definition but disagree in name. 3. From the first pairing are univocals, as the author proves by their definition and examples. 4. From the second pairing are both diversivocals and diverses, the distinction of which he indicates through definitions and examples. 5. From the third pairing are equivocals, which…

he describes. 12. Denominatives are placed midway between univocals and equivocals, though they approach more nearly to univocals, because they have more in common than they differ. 13. By way of occupation, he teaches what denominatives require and enumerates the eight requirements of equivocals also. 14. He explains each with individual examples. 15. He concludes the dissertation on equivocals. 16. He returns to denominatives, which he defines. 17. He explains how the word "case" is to be understood in a definition. 18. He assigns four requirements for denominatives; if one is missing, it is not a true denominative, which he makes manifest with examples. 19. A first example in which the third requirement, the community of the thing, is missing. 20. A second, in which the fourth requirement, the difference of the thing, is missing. 21. On the occasion of the second example, he clarifies the etymology of the word ^A *parthenos*. 22. A third, in which the first requirement, the community of the name, is sought. 23. A fourth, from which the second requirement, the difference of the name, is absent. 24. He evolves the distinction from one.

CHAPTER VIII. On univocals, diversivocals and divers, [and] also equivocals and multivocals and denominatives.

1. Every one of the things that are in the world is both one thing and many; as for example, man is one thing in so far as he is man, and many in so far as he is an animal, rational, mortal, and capable of intellect and knowledge. Since, therefore, every one of the things that are in the world is both one thing and many, it is declared ^B by the name as they are one, but it is declared by the definition or description as they are many. For man, being both one and many, is declared as one by the word "man," which is a simple name; but as many, by the definition which says: rational, mortal animal, capable of intellect and knowledge; which definition is indeed a single discourse that pursues each of the things that man possesses.

2. Let there be, therefore, two or more things, and let these either communicate with one another both according to the name and according to the definition; or let them differ according to both; or let them communicate according to the name, but differ according to the definition; or conversely, let them communicate according to the definition, but differ according to ^C the name, so as to have four differences.

3. If, therefore, they communicate according to both—I mean according to the name and according to the definition—they are called univocals, as if imparting to one another both the name and the definition; for they are univocals whose name is common and the definition of the substance according to the name is the same, as for example "animal," both man and ox are univocals according to the name "animal"; for both are called animals, and receive the same definition in so far as they are animals. For each is a living, sentient, locomotive substance.

4. If, however, they differ according to the name and according to the definition—if they have one subject—they are called diversivocals, just as "ascent" and "descent." For they have one subject—a ladder. ^D In a similar way, also "seed" and "fruit." For they are viewed regarding the same wheat, which, by that reason by which it is and is finished, is called fruit; but by the reason by which it is future, and can naturally become something else, it is called seed. But if they have different subjects, they are called divers, as for instance human and horse,

are called different: as for example man and horse, not insofar as they are animals (for in this respect they are univocal), but insofar as they are man and horse. For they have different names and also different definitions—or rather, they have different definitions according to their names. Man, insofar as he is man, is a rational, mortal animal, capable of intellect and knowledge. But the horse, insofar as it is a horse, is an irrational, four-footed animal, endowed with the capacity for neighing. They have different subjects as well; for the substance of man is one thing, and the substance of the horse is another. Items are called "diversivocal" ^A when both their name is different and the definition of their essence according to their name is different, while they have one subject; they are called "diverse" when both the name is different and the definition of the essence according to the name is different, while they have different subjects.

5. Furthermore, if they share the name but differ as to the definition, they are called equivocal. ^B For they are equivocal when the name is common, but the definition of their essence according to the name is different: just as the two Ajaxes. For these have one common name, which is Ajax; but as to the name of Ajax, they do not have the same definition. For one of them is the Ajax who is the son of Telamon, from Salamis, who fought the duel with Hector; the other is the Ajax who is the son of Oileus, the Locrian, who was swift of foot, and whatever else he may possess.

6. It is added well, everywhere, "according to the name." ^C For in another respect, equivocal things will be found to be univocal, and univocal things [will be found to be] equivocal; and likewise in the case of others. For behold, the two Ajaxes, insofar as they are Ajaxes, are equivocal, but insofar as they are men, they are altogether univocal.

7. The term "definition" in all these instances is said with respect to both the definition [properly so-called] and the description.

8. The name of the essence denotes that which is simply. For the two Ajaxes, insofar as each is an Ajax, in this respect have a different definition; but according to their nature, they have one and the same.

9. One must know that philosophers take the "name" to apply to every significant term. ^D If this is so, then even verbs will be equivocal: as for instance, *erō* (I will say/I love). For it means "I shall speak," and "I am in an amorous state." And in other parts of speech, too, one will find equivocation.

10. Three things must be sought regarding equivocal terms: whether the object being discussed is among the number of the equivocals; and regarding how many meanings such a name is used; and which of the significations the discussion concerns.

11. But if they share the things themselves while they differ as to the name, they are called multivocal, namely when the same thing is called by many names, such as *ensis* (sword), *spatha* (broadsword), *gladius* (gladius), *framea* (lance/sword). For all these admit of one definition: for they are iron [blades] cutting on both sides (two-edged). The definition of multivocal terms is: many names which are said of one thing.

12. There are also some [that exist] between equivocal and

^A univocal terms, which share and differ both in name and in the definition corresponding to the name. These, however, draw closer to the multivocal than to the equivocal, since they possess more commonality than difference; they are called paronymous [denominative], as being named from something else, such as "grammarian" from "grammar" and "musician" from "music." For they both share and differ in the name, not having the same termination of the name, and they share and differ again in the definition corresponding to the name. 13. For grammar and music are bodies of knowledge, whereas the grammarian and the musician are substances in which these bodies of knowledge exist. Grammar and [musical woman] are not paronymous, but equivocal. For in the case of paronyms, it is necessary that the termination of the name be altered, whereas in the case of equivocal terms, it is necessary that the name be preserved immune from change ^B—not only in respect to the termination, but also in respect to the spiritus, the accent, the case, the spelling, the number, the gender, the part of speech, and usage. 14. For the word *hoios*, when aspirated, signifies "what sort of," but when lene, it signifies "alone." And the difference of the breathing separates it from the equivocal. But [the words] *Argos* and *argos* are not equivocal due to the difference of the accent. For *Argos* with a paroxytone accent signifies the Argus whom Hermes slew, and names of others; but *argos* with an acute accent signifies "slow" and "white." The word *elates* [genitive of *elate*], which differs in case, is not equivocal. For when it signifies the driver [charioteer], it is the nominative case; but when it signifies the fir-tree, it is the genitive. And here the difference is in gender. ^C The [word] *kainon* which differs in spelling is not equivocal; for when written with *epsilon* it signifies "vain" or "light," but when written with a diphthong [iota-iota], it signifies "new" and "unexpected." The [word] *eipon*, since it differs in number, and in the singular signifies "I said" and in the plural signifies "others said," for this reason is not equivocal. The [word] *pharos*, when it differs in gender, is not equivocal; for in the masculine it signifies the structure [or tower], in the feminine the city, and in the neuter the garment. The [word] *echeis* differs in part of speech; and when it is a noun, it signifies a kind of snake in the plural, but when it is a verb in the second person, it denotes "you have." Therefore it also falls out of the category of homonymy. The [word] *harma*, when by Greek usage it is applied to a yoke of horses, but by the custom of the Romans is used for arms, ^D is alienated from the equivocal. 15. So much for equivocal terms. 16. They describe paronymous terms as follows: paronymous are as many as, by differing from something in case, have the appellation corresponding to the name: as "grammarian" from "grammar," and "brave" from "bravery."

17. In this description of paronyms, the end of the word is called a case. ^A

18. Four things are needed for there to be paronyms: a communion and difference of name, and a communion and difference of thing (i.e., of essence).

19. Whence "Helenus" and "Helena" are not paronyms. For they have a communion and difference of name; but they do not have a communion of thing (essence). For Helenus, the son of Priam of Troy, the prophet, is one thing; and again, Helen is another—the Laconian, the daughter of Leda and Tyndareus, who was the cause of infinite calamities for the Phrygians and Achaeans. And Helenus is not "from Helen" as the "knower" is from "knowledge."

20. ^B Nor are "virgin" (parthēnos) and "maidenhood" (parthenikē) paronyms. For in these there is no difference of thing (essence); for the expressions both signify the same thing.

21. "Virgin" (parthēnos) is for us derived from being "beside God" (para Theō), that is, near God, because of purity; if indeed the whole word "parthēnos" applies, with the soul also remaining virgin along with the body.

22. Nor are "virtue" and "virtuous" paronyms. For in these, communion of name is absent.

23. Nor, again, are "musical woman" and "musical knowledge" paronyms, because they possess no difference of name. ^C

24. Paronyms differ from those things "from one" (derivative equivocal terms) in this: that paronyms contain those things from which they were named, as the grammarian contains grammar, and the just man justice; but those things "from one" no longer do so. ^D For neither does the medical tool contain medicine, nor does the grammar book contain grammar; since, if it did, the one would heal by itself, and the other would write and read.

Chapter Scheme 8. Concerning Synonyms, Heteronyms, Different things, Homonyms, Polyonyms, and Paronyms.

Two things either partake both in name and in account (definition); and they are **synonyms**, as "animal"—the man and the ox, according to the name "animal." or partake in name, but differ in account; and either they have a [distinct] subject, and they are **heteronyms**, as "ascent" and "descent." or [they have] a difference, and they are **different things**, as man and horse, insofar as they are man and horse. or they partake in name, but differ in account, and they are **homonyms**, as the two Ajaxes, according to the name "Ajax." or they partake in account, but differ in name, and they are **polyonyms**, as *aor*, *xiphos*, *machaira* (all synonyms for "sword"). or they partake in and differ in both name and account, and they are **paronyms**, as "grammarian" and "grammar."

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER IX, CONCERNING THE FIVE VOICES.

1. The divisive method skillfully collects the count of the five voices through divisions and subdivisions. 2. First subdivision. 3. Second. 4. Third. 5. Fourth. 6. Fifth. 7. Sixth. 8. Seventh. 9. Eighth. 10. Hence it establishes the quinary number of the predicables. 11. It shows why genus precedes difference. 12. Why difference precedes species. 13. Why species precedes proprium. 14. Why proprium is placed last among the essential accidents. 15. Why that which is proper by essence is joined to the accident, even if it is better placed after. 16. And why it is established in its place. 17. It institutes a comparison of the five voices or predicables. 18. It teaches that the *proprium* is for the most part merely accidental, yet it is found to be essential in some ways, as in man who is capable of intellect and science. 19. It proves that being risible is at least the *proprium* of man accidentally. 20. It also judges things assumed as *proprium* in definitions. 21. It meanwhile admonishes that the essential is preferred to the accidental. 22. In the defect of the essential, however, the accidental at least is employed. 23. Why brutes have the *proprium* at least accidentally, but man has both the essential and the accidental.

^A

CHAPTER IX. Concerning the five voices.

1. A voice is either articulate or inarticulate. And concerning the inarticulate voice, since it cannot be written, there is no discourse. 2. But the articulate voice, which can also be written, is either significant or not significant. Therefore, that is not significant which does not declare any thing. Some have said that such non-significant voices are *to blityri* and *to scindapsus*; which voice is also called *acategoreton*, as if you were to say "unpredicable," as it is not predicated of any thing, that is, said of it. The significant and predicative voice, however, is that which signifies a thing: such as animal, man, stone; which is also called simply predicative, as it is predicated and said of a thing in any way whatever. 3. This (therefore) voice which is called simply predicative is either particular or universal. And that is particular which is assumed concerning individuals, about which philosophers do not discourse because they are infinite. 4. But the voice that is simply predicative and universal is predicated of those things of which it is predicated either essentially or accidentally. 5. And if it is predicated essentially, it either fits many natures, or one. 6. And if it fits many natures, it is either predicated as "what it is" and makes a genus, or as "of what kind it is" and makes a difference.

^A 7. But if it fits one nature, it is either predicated as "what it is" and makes a species, or as "of what kind it is" and makes an essential property. 8. And such is the universal word predicated essentially. The word predicated superessentially also fits one nature or many. And if it fits one nature, it makes an superessential property; it is clear, moreover, that it is also predicated as "of what kind it is." For in those things which are superessential, "what it is" has no place. But if it fits many natures, it makes an accident. 9. And if it is predicated as "of what kind it is," it makes an inseparable accident. But if it is as "in what condition it is," it makes a separable accident. ^B 10. From this, therefore, are gathered the universal categorical, or significant, words, simply five: genus, difference, species, property, and accident; and concerning these is the discourse among philosophers. 11. The genus, therefore, is prior to the difference, because it contains the differences. For animal, being a genus, contains in itself the rational and the irrational. 12. But the difference is prior to the species, since it is more universal than the species. For the rational is more universal than man. For it is applied not only to man, but also to the angel. 13. But the species is prior to the property, since the species is only essential, while the property is also superessential. Essential things are more honorable than the adjuncts of essence. For the former, when they are present, preserve the species, and when they are absent, they destroy it. But the adjuncts of essence, neither when they are present do they preserve, nor when they are absent do they destroy (the species). And in another way, the species must be prior and thus have a property that is incommunicable to other species. ^C 14. But the property is prior to the accident, since the accident is only a superessential adjunct, while the property is both essential and a superessential adjunct. 15. But the superessential property itself is more honorable than the accident. For the former is a certain psychic power considered within, and characterizes the species. For it exists in the species alone, and in all of it, and always; whence it also converts. For if anything is man, it is risible; and if anything is risible, it is man. But the accident is external, about the body, and more upon the very surface, nor does it exist for the species alone, so as to distinguish it from other species. ^D For a swan indeed is white, but it does not, however, convert; since if anything is white, this is not yet also a swan. For we have seen many winged animals besides the swan that are white, and more so in coastal regions. But also snow, and gypsum, and many other things that are white, are not swans. And

according to this reasoning, the essential property is reasonably placed before the accidental property.

16. The accidental property, however, holds the final rank.

17. Now for the genus, the difference, and the species: these are always essential; the accidental property is always superadded. And the [proper] property exists between the two. ^A

18. And while most properties are superadded, sometimes an essential property is found, as in man: the capacity for intellect and science. For this is not a difference. For a difference is predicated of many species, not of one. But the capacity for intellect and science belongs properly to man alone; for man alone receives the intellect from without, through education, and he alone is taught the sciences. ^B

19. Such a property is also called essential, because when it is present, it preserves the species; for man is entirely this: a rational, mortal animal, with the capacity for intellect and science; and when absent, it destroys it. For if the capacity for intellect and science does not exist, there will be no man. Since, therefore, the capacity for intellect and science, when present, preserves man, and when absent, destroys him, and because it is spoken of only one species, namely the human, and is predicated in the category of what sort of thing it is, for these reasons it is called an essential property.

20. But the risible property of man is superadded. For when present, it does not preserve [the species]; for we do not require the risible [faculty] for the completion ^C of our nature. But we do require the capacity for intellect and science on account of the knowledge and sciences that come from outside, as has been said. Yet again, when absent, such a superadded property does not destroy [the species]. For a man may be, even if he does not possess the risible faculty, nonetheless a man; but not possessing the capacity for intellect and science, he cannot be a man, as one unable to receive either knowledge or science.

21. Properties are also taken up into definitions, because they have the power to characterize the species.

22. And where an essential property exists, it is preferred over the superadded property (for it is more able to characterize), and for this reason it is taken up into the definition; just as in the case of man. For we say, "Man is a rational, mortal animal, with the capacity for intellect and science," and we do not say "risible." ^D

23. Where an essential property is not found, the superadded [property] is introduced, as in the case of the horse. For we say, "The horse is an irrational, four-footed animal, capable of neighing." And the capacity for neighing is a superadded property of the horse.

24. Therefore, in the case of other animals, it is a superadded...

property alone. But man, since he partakes of an irrational nature and life, and possesses a rational soul as a unique excellence above all animals, for this reason he bears a double property: the laughable, as one who shares [this] with irrational [creatures]; and the capacity for intellect and knowledge, as someone intellectual and rational, and in a certain manner joined to the angels, and ^A being an angel with a body.

Diagram of Chapter 9. On the five categories of words.

[Diagram (as indicated in the printed text, covering the structural relations of vocal sounds, genus, species, difference, and accidents).]

^B 84 Tabula capitis 9. De quinque vocibus.

[Table (as indicated in the printed text, paralleling the Greek): Vox — aut articulata... aut inarticulata (ut latratus canum, mugitus boum). *Aut universalis*: aut in quid est, etc. *Aut essentialis*: aut in quid est... *Aut essentiæ adjuncta*: aut uni naturae... aut multis...]

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER X.

THAT WHICH IS CONCERNING GENUS AND SPECIES; WHERE ALSO CONCERNING RELATION OR HABIT.

1. Generis ut vocabuli homonymi diversa significata recenset, quorum hoc primum est. — 2. Secundum significatum. — 3. Incidenter homonymiam vocabuli Judæorum exponit. — 4. Tertium significatum, quo accipitur apud logicos. — 5. Genus quomodo hic accipiatur definit. — 6. Speciei etiam ut vocabuli homonymi significatum prius exponit. — 7. Posterius, quo speciem definit. — 8. Ostendit genus et speciem relata esse, et naturalem relationem habere. — 9. Hac occasione relationem facit quadruplicem. — 10. Probat etiam genus et speciem quoad naturam referri ad se invicem. — 11. Analogia Adami, Abelis, Sethi. Divisionem generis in summum et subalternum, itemque speciei in subalternam et infimam instituit. — 12. Analogiam accommodat, et primum summa genera, dein species infimas, ac denique genera subalterna et species subalternas describit. — 13. Rationem reddit quare genera subalterna sic vocentur. — 14. Omnia exemplis declarat in substantiæ divisionibus. — ^C 15. Docet hominem ut speciem specialissimam et respectu generis sui et respectu individuorum suorum genus non esse, sed saltem speciem. — 16. Et ab absurdo probat hominem ut...

speciem specialissimam suorum individuorum genus non esse, sed saltem speciem. — 17. Declarat individua suarum specierum itemque species suorum generum et omnino subalterna genera superiorum usque ad supremum adeoque omnia inferiora superiorum, et nomen et definitionem recipere, sed superiora inferiorum non item. — 18. Species item inter se invicem collatas neque nomine neque definitione communicare. — 19. Sed communis generis et nomen definitionem ex æquo accipere.

CHAPTER X. On genus and species, where also on relation.

^A 1. Significations of the term "genus" are various. For it is called a genus as the origin of each person’s generation, whether from the progenitor or from the homeland. From the progenitor, as when we say that Judas has his genus from Israel or from Abraham. From the homeland, as when we say that Paul is a Tarsian by genus. For in the former case, the genus or origin of generation is Abraham and Israel, while in the latter, Tarsus is the genus and origin of generation. There is, therefore, a twofold origin of generation: natural and local. The natural is that which is from the progenitor; the local is that which is from the homeland.

2. Genus is also called the very multitude of those who stem from one origin, in so far as they have a ^B relation (schesis) both to the first origin and among themselves; as when we speak of the "genus of the Jews." For the Jews have a relation both to the primary origin of their birth, namely Judas, from whom they are descended, and a relation among themselves, which consists in kinship.

3. Originally and properly, those who were from Judas were called Jews, to separate them from the genera named after others, namely the Levites, the Benjaminites, and the rest of the tribes. Later, however, the entire nation of the Hebrews was also called Jews on account of the celebrity and dignity of the tribe of Judah.

4. In another way, that is called a genus to which a species is subordinated, by analogy with the aforementioned genera. For such a genus is the origin of those things under it, and it also contains the whole multitude of those things under it.

5. Since, then, the term "genus" is used in three ways, it is concerning the third that the philosophers’ discourse is held, and describing it, they say: A genus is that which is predicated in the "what is it" of many things differing by species. ^C

6. Nor does "species" (eidos) signify only one thing. For "species" is also used of each thing’s form (morphe), in so far as we call people "well-formed" (eueideis) or "ill-formed" (duseideis); for example, Nireus is well-formed, but Thersites is ill-formed. And the form of a statue is something of this sort.

7. A species is also defined as that which is placed under the genus, and of which the genus is predicated in the "what is it." It is of this that the philosophers’ discourse is held.

8. Since, while providing an account of the genus, we made mention of the species, saying: "A genus is that which is predicated of many things differing by species in the 'what is it'," and while describing the species, we also discoursed about the genus, saying: "A species is that which is ^D placed under the genus, and of which the genus is predicated in the 'what is it'," one must know that, just as in the discourse concerning

father is introduced through the son, and conversely the son through the father in the discourse concerning the son (for he is a father who has a son, and he a son who has a father); in the same way, in the discourse concerning the genus, the species ^A is introduced, and in the discourse concerning the species, the genus. For the genus is the genus of the species, and the species is the species of the genus. For they possess a natural relation to one another.

9. Relation is spoken of in four ways: either by art, as master and disciple; or by fortune, as master and slave; or by choice, as friend to friend; or by nature, as father and son, and genus and species.

10. For just as the father is the cause of the son, and the son the caused, so also are the genera the causes of their own species, and the species the caused.

11. Just as the first man, namely Adam, is called a father, because he had sons; but is not called a son, since he did not have a father: and Abel is called a son, because he was begotten by his father Adam; but he is not called a father, since he did not beget a son: ^B and finally Seth is called both father and son—father, as having begotten a son, Enos; and son, as being begotten by his father Adam—thus, indeed, can it be found likewise in genera and species.

12. For there are certain genera that are primary and highest, having no other genus above them; these are called most general genera. For the most general genus is that which, being a genus, is not a species, and above which there can be no other transcendent genus. There are also certain species that are last and lowest, not having other species divided from them; these are called most special species. For the most special species is that which, being a species, is not a genus; and which, although it is a species, we can no longer divide into further species; and which is predicated of many things differing in number, in response to the question "what is it?" ^C There are also other intermediaries between the extremes that are both species and genera: species of those that precede them, but genera of those that follow them.

13. These intermediary genera are called subordinate, not because each is brought to each, and the same thing is both genus and species of the same thing; but because a genus ends under another genus, and that in turn under another, and they have in common with one another the state of being subject, as they are both species and genera.

14. For instance, substance is a primary and most general genus. For substance is divided into [that which is] body and [that which is] incorporeal. Under body is animated body. Again, under this is sentient [body]; under which is animal; under animal is the rational animal, man; under which are Peter, Paul, ^D and the remaining particular men, who are all termed individuals. Therefore, substance is a genus, as has been said, most general, because it does not have another genus transcending it; but man is a most special species, because he does not have another species descending below him; and those that are intermediaries between substance and man,

^A both genera and species are the same: those following them are genera, those preceding them are species. For body is a species of substance, but a genus of animate body; for it has the body that is simply taken arranged under itself as an animate body. This, then, the animate possesses as a species of body, but a genus of the sentient; the sentient is a species of the animate, but a genus of the animal; the animal is a species of the sentient, but a genus of the rational; and the rational animal, which is man, is a species of the animal, but no longer a genus of Peter, and Paul, and the remaining individuals, but is a species of them as well.

15. Therefore, it is called a species of the animal because it is contained by it, and a species of individuals because it contains them.

16. ^B For if man were a genus of individuals, the individuals would be species. For every genus is divided into species; and species, when divided, impart both their name and definition to those that come from them. So also Peter, being divided into soul and body, would impart to those coming from him both the name and the definition; and in this way Peter’s soul would be Peter, and the body again would be Peter; and both would possess the definition of Peter, and indeed even that of man individually. But this is not the case; therefore, man is not a genus, but a species divided into individuals.

17. ^C And all individuals receive the name and definition of their own proper species without lack, and indeed also of their genera. In the same way also the species receive those of their genera, and the subaltern genera receive those of the higher genera up to the most general; and to speak simply, the lower ones receive without lack both the names and the definitions of all the higher ones; but the higher ones do not receive those of the lower ones in any way at all.

18. But neither do species communicate with one another, either regarding definitions or names. For man would never be called a horse, nor a horse man. Nor will the definition of a horse fit man, nor that of man fit a horse. For no one would say that man is an irrational, quadruped, neighing animal; or that a horse is a rational, mortal animal, capable of intellect and knowledge.

19. ^D The species receive the name and definition of a common genus equally; not that one of the species receives it more and another less; for both man and horse, having the animal as a common genus, are both called animals, and in the same way they possess the definition of the animal. For both are animate substances, sentient, and capable of movement.

On Genus and Species, in which is also discussed Relation

The genus is the principle of the genesis of each thing; and that to which the species is subordinated. It is either: From one relation, as the Heracleidae and Jews; Or natural, that is, from the one who begat, as the Israelites; Or derived from birth, that is, from the fatherland, as the Thebans.

(Species) is said: [The form] of each, as (e.g.) someone is ugly or beautiful—and the genus is not predicated as to what it is.

Relation (Schesis) is: natural, as father and son—and (this includes) genus and species; accidental, as slave and master; artificial, as student and teacher; and elective (based on choice), as friend and friend.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XI. CONCERNING GENUS AND SPECIES; WHEREIN ALSO CONCERNING INDIVIDUALS.

1. It investigates the nature of genera and species in part, [showing] that they are incorporeal entities which have their being in others. 2. It shows that the same [things] are correctly said to exist before the many, in the many, and after the many, albeit in a different respect. 3. He explains this by means of a comparison. 4. He applies the comparison and, firstly, explains how genera and species exist and are said to be "before the many," namely as forms in God. 5. [He explains] to what extent species are considered in individuals, and genera in species, and through these intermediaries reach the individuals themselves. 6. Finally, [he explains] how they exist "after the many," in that they are abstracted by the mind from particulars and stored in it as in an intelligible place. 7. [He shows] that species can also be said to exist "after the many," and he proves this through the division of being, according to whether it is determined or undetermined, both in nature and in knowledge. 8. He teaches that highest and subaltern genera are determined both in nature and in knowledge. 9. Individuals, on the contrary, are determined by neither nature nor knowledge. 10. He explains that most specific species are indeed determined by nature, but not by knowledge, as they cannot all be perceived by us due to the causes exposed in the text. 11. He explains in passing how it is to be understood that God has rested from His works, and to what extent He still works. 12. He shows which and how many highest genera Plato posited, which he first enumerates and then explains, also indicating the reason why he recorded them together with the highest genera. 13. [He notes] that Aristotle varies regarding the number of highest genera in physics and logic. 14. [He shows that] most specific species have genera under them, as well as subaltern genera. 15. [He shows] that the division occurs into individuals, by which name individuals are also called "genera" by some. 16. He enumerates the four meanings. 17. He describes it in the fourth meaning.

CHAPTER XI. Concerning genus and species; wherein also concerning individuals.

^A 1. Of those things which are said to exist, some subsist, while others do not subsist, but are placed in the bare notions of the mind alone. Moreover, of those things which do subsist, some are bodies, while others are incorporeal. Of incorporeal things, some have their own subsistence, such as angel and soul; others have their being in other things. Such also are genera and species.

2. Genera and species are said to be before the many, in the many, and after the many.

3. For instance, let it be imagined that there is a seal, having an impression from which many waxes partake of the impression; and let someone bring these before his eyes who has never before seen the seal, but has inspected those things in which the impression exists. Having considered that all partake of the same impression, and having gathered together by definition or reason those which appear to be many into one, let him hold this in his mind. The impression which is in the seal is said to be "before the many"; that which is in the waxes, in the

^A many; but that which is grasped from them and subsists immaterially in the mind is said to be "after the many."

4. Thus, then, genera and species are indeed "before the many" in the Creator, according to the creative reasons [λόγους]; for in God the essence-making reasons of beings pre-existed in a unified way, according to which reasons He who is raised far above all essence both predetermined and produced all beings.

5. Genera and species are said to subsist "in the many," because in particular men is the species of man, and in particular horses is the species of horse; furthermore, in men and horses and other animals is found the genus of such species, which is animal; and in both animals and zoophytes, the more universal genus, that which is sentient, is investigated; and when plants are also gathered in, that which is ensouled is contemplated. But if one should wish to consider inanimate things along with ensouled ones, he will perceive the whole of body. And when incorporeal substances also concur with those mentioned, the first and most general genus will appear; and thus, indeed, do genera and species subsist ^B in the many.

6. But when someone has grasped their nature from particular men—humanity—and from particular horses that very thing, hippotety, that is, equinity (if we may use such a term according to the Greek), and thus has conceived the universal man and the universal horse; and has gathered the universal animal from individuals by reason; and the universal sentient, and the universal ensouled, and the universal body, and has syllogized the most universal essence from all of these—such a person in his own mind has caused genera and species to exist immaterially ^C in relation to the many, that is to say, after the many and posterior in generation.

7. It must be known that all genera will be spoken of as being "in the many," but not all species. For that which is an entity is either limited in both nature and knowledge; or is limited in neither nature nor knowledge; or is limited in nature, but not in knowledge; but there is nothing anywhere that is limited in knowledge which is infinite in nature.

8. Since these things are so, the most general genera and the subaltern [genera] are limited both in nature and knowledge. For there are ten most general genera; and the subaltern genera are also limited. ^D

9. The multitude of individuals is limited neither in nature nor in knowledge. For it is always being generated and always being corrupted, and has taken no limit from nature, nor does that which has been generated exist as stable and permanent. But how could that which is such be encompassed by knowledge?

10. But the most specific species are indeed limited in nature, but in knowledge they are incomprehensible. For many of such species are unknown to us, or are in wildernesses

^A or in caves, and escape our knowledge.

11. Insofar then as all species have been limited in nature, God rested from all His works; for He does not make anything different from those things which He has created. But insofar as individuals are still being generated, and the generation of these by nature has not yet been limited, the Father of the Lord is working until now, and the Son is working; and it is manifest that the Paraclete also, who co-created all things, co-works in these, and in both the providences and the economies and the wonders.

12. Furthermore, one must know that Plato says there are five genera of beings: ^B substance, identity, otherness, motion, and rest; calling substance that which is simply existence; identity, communion; otherness, difference; motion, activity; and rest, quiescence, that is to say, both the casting off of such motion, and the remaining in that which is being moved, according to which he even attributes rest to heaven and to divine things; for he says that moving always in the same [manner] signifies rest. Since, therefore, there is in all beings both existence, and mutual communion and difference, and activity, and rest of activity of whatever kind: for this reason he names such things genera of beings as being contemplated in many things that exist.

13. But Aristotle, in his physical works, posits matter as a genus; ^C but in his logical treatise, he declares the ten categories to be the most general genera: substance, quantity, quality, relation, place, time, to act, to suffer, to have, to be situated.

14. Each of these has both most specific species and subaltern genera.

15. And from the most specific species, the division into individuals takes place; which is not properly a division, but an enumeration. For which reason some have named the most specific species themselves "individual genera": genera indeed, because they comprehend the parts subject to them; individuals, however, because they cannot be divided. For that genus which is divided is necessarily divided into species.

16. The "individual" signifies four things: that which is indivisible insofar as it is without parts, ^D as a point, and the "now," and unity, which are also called devoid of quantity; that which is difficult to cut, as an adamant stone; the most specific species, because it is not divided into other species; and the properly individual, which is indeed cut, but does not preserve the former species after the cutting: just as Peter is indeed cut into soul and body; but neither is the soul by itself a perfect Peter (since it is not a perfect human), nor is the body.

17. It is concerning this individual that the philosophers speak, which they define as follows: An individual is that which consists of properties, the collection of which would never be seen in another.

Chapter Scheme 11: On Genera and Species, and also on the Individual.

Genera and species are: * Before the many, as in the Creator. * In the many, as in individual men the species of man. * After the many, as in the intellect.

Of things said to be: * Some stand on their own: * Some are bodies. * Some are incorporeal: * Some have their own subsistence, such as an angel or the soul. * Some have their being in others, such as genera and species. * Others are in mere, bare concepts.

The individual: * That which is indivisible, such as a point, the "now," and unity. * That which is difficult to cut, such as adamant. * The lowest species, as that which is not divided into species. * The individual in the proper sense, such as Socrates.

Being is limited: (A diagram follows, showing the distribution of "most generic and subaltern" categories, "lowest species," and "individuals," labeled by nature and cognition, with "inconsistent" (or "unstable") indicated across the axes.)

Table of Chapter 11: On genera and species, where also on the individual.

Genera and species (are): * Before the many, as in the Creator. * In the many, as in individual men, the species of man. * After the many, as in the mind.

Of things said to be: * Some are bodies. * Some are incorporeal: * Some subsist and have their own proper subsistence, as an angel and the soul. * Some have their being in others, as genera and species. * Some are in mere, bare notions.

102 The individual (is said to be): * That which cannot be divided, as a point and the "now" and unity. * That which is difficult to be cut or divided, as adamant. * The lowest species, which is not divided into species. * And properly, the individual, as Socrates.

Being is terminated: (A diagram follows, corresponding to the Greek above.)

Chapter XII. On difference and accident.

1. ^A It is not inappropriate for one discussing difference to also speak of accident, since it too is called a difference. For a difference is either essential or adjunct to the essence.

2. ^B An essential difference is that which is of itself, both natural and specific, which among philosophers is called difference in the most proper sense; by which species differs from species: for example, rational. For in respect to this, the species of man differs from the species of horse and of the other animals besides man; because this "rational" exists in man of itself, and is indicative of man's nature, and has the faculty of constituting the human species. But they speak of (and describe) the difference in the most proper sense thus:

3. ^B A difference is that by which the species exceeds the genus. For man exceeds animal by the rational. For animal is in act neither rational nor irrational, since the same things possess opposed qualities. ^C Yet potentially, the animal exists as both rational and irrational, and possesses all the differences under it. For if this were not so, whence would the species have their differences? Therefore, the species does not consist in the genus from non-existent things (for the differences of the species are potentially in the genus); nor are opposites simultaneously around the same thing. For the genus in act has no difference of the species.

4. ^C They define this essential and most proper difference also thus: A difference is that which [is predicated] of many things differing in species, in the [question] "what sort of thing it is."

^A For if we are asked, "What is man?" we may fittingly say, "An animal." But if someone inquires, "What sort of animal is man?" then again it is fitting to say, "Rational."

5. ^B They also describe such differences thus: A difference is that which has the natural power of separating those things which are under the same genus. For the rational and the irrational separate man and horse, which are under the same genus, [namely] animal.

6. Again, a difference is that by which each thing differs. For man and horse do not differ according to genus (for both are animals); but they stand apart from one another according to their differences, that is, according to the rational and the irrational.

7. Differences [that are] most particular are said to be divisible and constitutive: divisible of genera, but constitutive of species. For body and incorporeal divide substance; the animate and the inanimate divide body; the sensible and the insensible divide the animate; and the capable of movement and the incapable of movement divide the sensible. ^C These, then, which are divisible of genera, become constitutive of species; for the animate, the sensible, and the capable of movement constitute the animal. For an animal is an animate, sensible, mobile substance. The animate, the sensible, and the immobile constitute the plant-animal. For the plant-animal is an animate, sensible, immobile substance. The animate, together with that which lacks sense, constitutes the plant, and a plant is an animate, senseless substance. And again, other things become constitutive of other species, having previously been divisible of genera.

8. Because, then, the differences which are divisible of genera become constitutive of species, they are all called together "species-making" [eideopoioi].

9. These differences are said to be subaltern genera, but they are not so without distinction; rather, they are like "hot" ^D and "cold." These are named as the only qualities themselves, namely heat and cold; but the bodies that participate in such qualities are also called so—that is, the body that has heat within itself is called hot, and that which possesses cold is called cold. And the same can be found in the case of other qualities and the bodies endowed with them.

10. Thus, indeed, [both body and] incorporeal, animate and inanimate, sensible and rational, and the rest likewise. These, indeed, are said to be the only qualities: corporeity (so to speak), incorporeity, animateness, inanimateness, sensitiveness, rationality, and so on for the rest; yet the substances which possess such qualities in themselves are also called by these [names]. Body [is that] substance which possesses corporeity; incorporeal, that which possesses incorporeity; that which possesses animateness [is] animate; that which possesses inanimateness [is] inanimate; that which possesses sensitiveness [is] sensible; and that which possesses rationality [is] rational.

animatum; quæ vero inanimatitatem, inanimatum: quæ sensitivitatem, sensitivum; quæ rationalitatem, rationale.

11. These differences, then, are qualities in themselves; but the substances that participate in such qualities are subordinate genera. For how could the same things be both genera and differences? And indeed, they might be predicated as differences in the "what kind of thing it is," but as genera in the "what it is."

12. But if every genus that is divided into species is divided by divisive differences; and it is agreed by the consensus and confession of all that the species of substance are body and incorporeal; by what differences is substance divided or will it be divided into these, if not by corporeity and incorporeity themselves? And how, then, will body, in turn, be cut into its proper species, the animate and the inanimate, if not entirely by animateness and inanimateness? For when we say that substance is divided into body and incorporeal, we say that substance is divided into corporeal substance and non-corporeal substance, simply speaking; since body was previously merely substance, but upon having actually taken on corporeity, it became corporeal substance. In the same way, the incorporeal, having received incorporeity, existed as incorporeal substance. ^B And the animate, too, was previously simply body, that is, corporeal substance; but having become a participant in animateness, it was rendered an animate body.

13. Therefore, when we make the division of body into animate and inanimate, we must supply the word "body," so that body is divided into animate body and inanimate body. And so it must be done with the others as well, so that the differences, genera, and species may be preserved without confusion as to what they are.

14. So much, then, for essential difference, which is also most properly called difference.

15. But accidental difference is that which is the accident itself.

16. This is divided into common difference and proper (so-called) difference.

17. And commonly, difference is a separable accident, which is also predicated in the "how it is configured." But properly speaking, a difference is an inseparable accident, which is also said in the "what kind of thing it is." For of an accident, one is separable, the other inseparable.

18. Now, by the separable accident, an individual differs from another individual and from itself: for instance, Peter is sitting, Paul is walking. Consequently, Peter and Paul are said to differ from one another with regard to sitting and walking. ^C It is possible, however, for Paul to be sitting and Peter to be walking, and thus for such a difference to be separated from them, and for each of them to take on the other. Again, an individual differs from itself, since at one time it sits, at another it stands or walks; and at one time it sleeps, at another ^D

it is awake; at one time it is ill, at another it is healthy; and now it is young, later it grows old. These, therefore, and similar things are called in a general sense differences, and separable accidents. ^A

19. But as for an inseparable accident: the individual does not differ from itself, but it does differ from another individual. For instance, someone is snub-nosed; it is impossible for the snub-nosedness to be separated from him; yet he differs from one who has a hooked nose. Similarly, he who has grey eyes, and he who has a hardened scar from a wound, do not differ from themselves, but they do differ from others.

20. Now, snub-nosedness, grey-eyedness, the blackness in an Ethiopian and in a raven, and whiteness in a swan, and suchlike, are inseparable accidents; insofar as they cannot be separated in reality from the individuals in which they exist; yet they are separated by mental conception from the things themselves, without injuring their nature. ^B

21. On account of this, for every accident, whether inseparable or separable, this is the common definition: An accident is what is present or absent without the corruption of the subject. And again, an accident is what may or may not belong to the same thing. For it is possible for a man to sit, and to stand, and to walk, and to be snub-nosed, and not to be; and even if the grey color of the eyes is removed, the man nonetheless remains. It is also possible for a swan to be conceived as black, and a raven as white, and an Ethiopian as having cast off his complexion. And all these things can come about without the corruption of the subject. ^C

22. Since, therefore, difference is spoken of in three ways—commonly, properly, and most properly—every difference is (as I might say) an "otter-ness" [alteritas], and makes something different when it is added to something. But those things which are differences commonly and properly make the subject "otherwise" [aliut qualis]; but those that are differences most properly make it "another thing" [aliud]; and these are inseparable even according to mental conception itself. For it is not possible to conceive of an animal that is devoid of sense, or a man separated from the condition of reasoning, or a horse divorced from being a horse. ^D

23. These, then, which make a thing "another" are such by themselves, and do not admit of "more" or "less." For neither is a genus predicated more or less of that of which it is the genus, nor are the differences of the genus, by which the genus is divided into species. But those which make a thing "otherwise" are such by accident, and they are all increased and diminished. For one person sits more than another, and one walks more than another; and someone is more snub-nosed than a snub-nosed person, and more grey-eyed than a grey-eyed person.

24. Moreover, none of the differences spoken of commonly or properly contributes to a definition. For these describe things, but they do not define them. But the differences that are spoken of most properly complete the definition of each thing.

25. And it is necessary to know that the name of "substance" is sometimes applied also to simple existence, and that an accident sometimes denotes what is essential.

We say, for instance, that the essence of color belongs ^A to the number of existing things, and that it is an accident [775/776] and that it exists in some way. And again, we say that the conclusion happens to the propositions, that is, follows them naturally and essentially.

26. Such an accident, or rather that which is essential, is called "property," and is entirely inseparable even according to the conception of the mind, and belongs to the thing primarily and per se; as, to body, to be extended in three dimensions. Primarily indeed, because it belongs to it alone immediately; but per se, because it is essential.

27. But not everything that is per se is also primary (in the thing). For that which is per se is more extensive than that which is primary. For "animal," which belongs to man per se and essentially, does not belong to him primarily. For there is an "animal" even if man does not exist. But what is extended in three dimensions does not exist if a body does not exist; nor is it ^B capable of intelligence and science if man does not exist; nor is the conclusion (available) if the propositions do not exist; nor is there a definition when that which is defined is absent.

28. Therefore definitions also belong primarily to the things defined, and essentially, provided they are properly definitions.

29. From these things, therefore, which belong per se and primarily, a demonstration properly so-called is effected; but not from accidents, nor from those things which indeed belong per se, but not primarily, to things.

Diagram of Chapter 12: On Difference and Accident

The difference [is]: Either essential, which is called most properly (a difference), as "rational"; Or adjoined to the essence: Either commonly, as "to sit"; Or properly, as "bald."

Otherwise: Difference (is spoken of in three ways): Commonly, Properly, Most properly.

Of differences: Some make another thing (in species), as "rational"; Others make [it] different (in property), as those that are commonly and properly accidents.

Of differences [is]: Some are separable, Some are inseparable, [with the division:] some [are] per se, some per accidens.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XIII. OF THE PROPER; IN WHICH ALSO OF THE COMMON.

1. Distinguishes the proper in four ways. — 2. First. — 3. Second. — 4. Third. — 5. Fourth. — 6. Objection. — 7. Describes the fourth mode of the proper as being so called because it is reciprocal. — 8. Another objection. — 9. Description of the proper. — 10. Explains that every species has its own peculiar property by which it is also separated from the communion of other species. — 11. Objection: why man has a twofold property, the aptitude to laugh and the aptitude to receive intelligence and knowledge. — 12. Conclusion of the objection. — 13. Distinguishes the common into four modes. — 14. First. — 15. Second. — 16. Third. — 17. Fourth. — 18. Recalls examples of the fourth mode by which something is said commonly. — 19. Division of the Platonic proper.

CHAPTER XIII. Of the proper; in which also of the common.

1. The "proper" is said in four ways. 2. That which belongs to every species, but not to it alone; as to man, being a biped. For every man is a biped; but not man alone is a biped, for there are other animals also. 3. That which belongs to one alone, but not to every one; as to man, being bald. For only man is bald, but not every man is bald. 4. That which belongs to every one and to one alone, but not always; as to man, growing gray. For it does not happen always, but in old age, while that which is according to nature remains. 5. The fourth, ^A in which coincide the "to every one," and "to one alone," and "always"; as to man, the aptitude to laugh. For every man, and man alone, and always, is apt to laugh. 6. A man is called "apt to laugh," not because he always laughs, but because he has the natural faculty of laughing. 7. This fourth is properly called "the proper," because it also is reciprocal. For every man is apt to laugh, and everything that is apt to laugh is a man. 8. For even if the ape appears perhaps to laugh, it does not have in itself the power of laughing, nor does it laugh in truth; ^B but it is formed for laughter only on the surface, by imitating man. For the ape happens to be a most imitative animal. In this way I think the heron also laughs, being empty of laughter and devoid of the psychic effusion of it. 9. Furthermore, the proper is described thus: the proper is that which resides in every one, and in one alone of the species, and always. 10. For every species of animals has its own exclusive property: to man, the aptitude for laughing; to the horse, the aptitude for neighing; ^C to the dog, the aptitude for barking; and to others, other properties. For by these things species are separated from the communion of one another, and for this reason they are called "proper," because they are singularly present to those species to which they are proper, so that in its property a species has no communion with another species. 11. And since man is duplex (for he participates both in the life ^D deprived of reason and in that endowed with reason...

being terrestrial and celestial, mortal and immortal, visible and intelligible), inasmuch as he communicates with the irrational, he possesses the risible. ^A For the risible is a power of the irrational soul operating through the muscles, just as the neighing and the like; yet inasmuch as he communicates with those endowed with reason, he possesses the capability of mind and science as his own; and this is a power of the rational soul.

12. Man therefore has each property corresponding to each commonality. 13. Now the common is also spoken of in four ways. 14. Either that which is divisible into parts, as a common field. 15. Or that which is taken undivided in common use, as one slave or one horse ^B belonging to different masters. 16. Or that which is appropriated by preoccupation, as a place in the theatre which, being common, becomes the property of him who has occupied it first. 17. Or that which is participated in equally, as the voice of a herald. 18. According to this signification, both the matter is common to all things that exist, and the genera and the differences are common to the species that participate in them: for the animal is common to all animals, and the rational to all rational beings, ^C and to the irrational the irrational; and it fits in the case of others as well. According to such a signification of the common, even in the case of homonyms (equivocals), the name alone is common; but in the case of synonyms (univocals), both the name and the definition corresponding to the name are common. And the common is that which is considered in many, or that which is predicated of many.

19. Finally, the Platonists take the property in three ways: from the arrangement of parts, as the two heads of the amphisbaena; from the operation, as the diagonal ^D walking of the crab; from the power, as the burning faculty of fire. For fire can burn more than any other body.

Diagram of Chapter 13, On the Property, and also On the Common

The Property { Exists in all, but not in one alone: as for man, to be biped. In one alone, but not in all: as to be bald or a grammarian. In one alone and in all, but not always: as for man, to be turning gray. In one alone and in all and always: as for man, to be risible, which is also strictly a property. }

The Common { That which is divisible into parts, as a common field. That which is taken undivided in common use, as one slave of two masters. That which is appropriated by preoccupation, as a place in the theatre. That which is participated in equally, as the voice of a herald to those who hear. }

How the Platonists Take the Property { From the arrangement, as the two heads of the amphisbaena. From the operation, as the diagonal walking of the crab. From the power, as the burning faculty to fire. }

}

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XIV, WHICH IS ABOUT THE PREDICAMENTS.

1. The division of those things which are and are spoken of into four parts. 2. The subdivision of the fourth member into the ten predicaments within which all entities are included. 3. The final cause for which the ten predicaments were established by the philosophers and all entities were comprised by them, namely, the science of all entities. 4. How the predicaments were discovered, and first indeed the predicament of substance. 5. The predicament of accidents. 6. Of quantity. 7. Of quality. 8. Of relations, where also relata are generally described. 9. Where. 10. When. 11. To act. 12. To be acted upon. 13. To act and to be acted upon. 14. To have, which is also described. 15. To be situated. 16. What it is to be situated. 17. The first division. 18. The second division. 19. The third division. 20. The fourth division. 21. Conclusion of the manner in which the ten predicaments were discovered and established. 22. In all these complex things there is neither truth nor falsehood, unless they are joined by a certain combination, so that a proposition is formed. 23. Dealing with the words of the first and second person.

CHAPTER XIV. Of the Predicaments.

^A 1. Those things which are said and are, are either simple in their utterance but complex in their meaning: as, "I run" (for "I run" is indeed simple and incomposite in utterance; but in meaning it is complex and composite: since it declares me and the running, that is, substance and act), or they are composite in utterance but simple in meaning (as when someone gives the definition of a thing; for then he declares one thing by means of composite speech, clearly that thing which is defined), or those things which are spoken of are complex both in utterance and in meaning, as "Paul is preaching," or they are simple both in utterance and in meaning.

^B 2. Of these things which are said without any combination, each signifies either substance, or quantity, or quality, or relative, or where, or when, or to act, or to be acted upon, or to have, or to be situated. For all things that are, are referred to these ten universal categories; and there is nothing among existing things which is not encompassed by these.

3. For indeed the philosophers, wishing to be cognizant of all things that are, since there is no science of particulars—because of their vast number and their perpetual generation and corruption—circumscribed all things with these mentioned categories.

4. And having first considered individual men and individual horses, as to what nature they possess, [they proceeded] to the universal man and universal horse,

^A Having done this also with regard to other individual animals, they passed from those things that are subject to mutation and alteration to those that are free from mutation and alteration. For individual things are subject to mutation and alteration, whereas for universals it is the case that they always remain in the same state. And since not all such species can be grasped by the mind (for many of them are unknown to us), by seeking something more universal, they discovered "animal." In the same way, by gathering individual plants into the universal "plant," and "plant-animals" into the universal "plant-animal," they bound all these—animal, plant, plant-animal—into the "animate." And having surveyed also inanimate natures, such as wood, stone, iron, and the like, they established the universal "inanimate" from them; and they joined this with the animate through the body. And since they knew that an angel and a soul also exist, which do not participate in the nature of a body (for the latter is divisible into parts and has three dimensions, whereas the former are entirely partless and possess no dimension—neither length, nor breadth, nor depth), they united the incorporeal with the body through substance, and thus substance became the common genus of all these things that exist of themselves.

5. Since there are certain things in substance [that are] not such as to have existence in themselves, they also undertook a consideration of these.

6. Having found two and three, and ten and twenty, they reduced them to "number"; and "large" and "small" and those of this kind they reduced to "magnitude." Finally, they grasped number and magnitude under "quantity." Thus, they had two common categories that would contain many things: substance (that is to say) and quantity.

7. Again, there is something white, black, yellowish; these they gathered under "color." And there is something sweet, bitter, hot, cold; these, indeed, along with color, and the arts, and the sciences, they circumscribed with one common category, "quality." Quality is that from which that which participates in it is named paronymously, or in some other way derives from it; as for instance, from grammar, a "grammarian," and from virtue, a "virtuous person."

8. That there is also something on the right and on the left, and "double" and "half," these they assigned to "relation." Relations are a disposition of one thing toward another.

9. Again, there is something "in the mind," "in the marketplace," "in the theater"; these they adapted to the common category of "where." The "where" is representative of place; its differences are as many as those of place: above, below, right, left, in front, behind.

10. Furthermore, "yesterday" and "a year ago," and "today," and "tomorrow," and however many things are of this kind, they gathered under "when"; this is indicative of time. The differences of "when" are as many as also those of time: present, past, and future.

11. Now, to strike, to heat, to cool, and things of this kind, that is, similar things, they have placed under "to act." ^A 12. Just as, conversely, in "to undergo," to be struck, to be heated, to be cooled, and the like. 13. But "to act" is indeed to operate around something, while "to undergo" is to be altered by another. 14. Again, because of this, they gave "to have" to being shod, being armed, wearing a ring, and all things similar to these. "To have" is a placing of a substance around a substance. 15. And they subjected standing, lying down, and sitting to the common genus which is "to be situated." 16. "To be situated" is the given position of the body. ^B 17. For if all the limbs are upright, it is called standing; if all are supine, lying down (accumbere). If some are upright and some are supine, it is called sitting. 18. Of that which is "situated," some participate in it by nature, as the four elements placed in their own proper locations, and the heaven which occupies the highest region; others by position, as statues and columns, and furniture, and in general those things that are placed according to art or use. 19. Furthermore, some hold their position in a state of rest, as the earth; others are in motion, as the celestial bodies. ^C 20. Furthermore, some have their "being situated" as remaining fixed, as the elements and the heaven; others as temporary, as those which persist in a portion of time. 21. Thus, then, the philosophers discovered these ten most general communalities. 22. Now, each of those things spoken of without any combination declares a thing by itself necessarily, but it does not declare falsehood or truth in any way; but truth or falsehood follows upon the combination of these with one another. For if I say "man," or "horse," or "runs," or "stands," I signify a thing simply, but I do not say either true or false. But when I speak with a combination, "man runs," or "horse stands," then necessarily I say either what is true or what is false. 128 23. Therefore, the first and second persons, because they are defined, as "I run" and "you run," are combined with the thing signified; but the third persons, because they are indefinite, have been arranged among the simple things. ^D

Diagram of Chapter 14, concerning the categories.

Things spoken of and existing:

In pronunciation they are simple, but in what is signified they are complex, as "I run." In pronunciation they are complex, but in what is signified they are simple, as definitions.

Or, both in pronunciation and in what is signified they are simple: Substance, as man, ox; Quantity, as two-cubits; Quality, as white, black; Relative, as father, son; Where, in the Lyceum; When, yesterday, last year; To act, to cool, to heat; To undergo, to be heated, to be cooled; To have, to be shod; To be situated, to sit.

The things that are situated ^A are either naturally situated, as the elements; or are situated by position (or human choice), as statues and household utensils. To be situated is (to) stand, to lie, to sit. Otherwise, the things that are so situated either have a permanent situation, as the elements; or a temporary one, as artificial things (or things made by art).

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XV

CHAPTER XV

^A 3. To existence, then, the substance is subject in relation to accidents. For these have their being in the substance; and the substance alone is a subject in relation to existence.

4. In relation to predication, the individuals ^A are subject to their proper species and genera; and the species are subject to their own genera up to the most general [genus].

5. For example, Peter is a man. Here Peter is subject to man in relation to predication, and man is said to be predicated of the subject Peter, since Peter is the subject; but man is the predicate. Again, an animal is a substance; the animal is subject to the subject of the animal—that is, the substance—which is the predicate.

6. Where the preposition *kata* (of) is seen and the construction is completed in the genitive case (in Latin, the ablative), there the subject is taken in relation to predication, as when we say: "Of things that are, some are said of a subject." For this reason we also posit "are said," so that even from this the subject in relation to predication may be recognized. For "to be said" and "to be predicated" are the same thing. But where the preposition *en* (in) is seen, and the construction occurs in the dative case (in Latin, again the ablative), there the subject is in relation to existence; as when we say: "But others are in a subject." For this reason we also posit "are," so that even from this the subject in relation to existence may be recognized; for "are" is representative ^B of existence.

7. When, therefore, we say that of things that are, some are said of a subject and others are not said of a subject, we assert this: that of the things that are, some are predicated of certain things, and others are not predicated of certain things.

8. But when we say that of the things said of a subject, some are not in a subject and some are in a subject, we assert this: that of the things that are predicated, some do not have their existence in others (for substances are things existing of themselves and not needing others for their constitution), while others have their being in others. For they are accidents, not able to be by themselves, but having existence in substances.

9. ^C Now, things that are universal and most general are said only of a subject and are not subjects. For these are only predicated, but are not themselves subjects. They are not said of a subject, but are subjects only—namely, the particulars of things and the individuals—insofar as they are not predicated of certain things. But the most specific species and the subaltern genera are said both of a subject and are subjects; as being more universal than some things and in turn more particular than others; and they are subjects of those above them, but predicates of those below them.

10. It is clear from this that a more universal substance is said of a subject and is not in a subject. A particular and individual substance is not said of a subject and is not in a subject. A universal accident is said of a subject and is in a subject. Not said of a subject...

^A nor being in a subject, it constitutes the particular and individual accident.

11. These things being thus distinguished, a being is either in a subject or not in a subject. If indeed it is not in a subject, it constitutes substance; but if it is in a subject, it is either not per se, or it is per se. If it is per se, it is either divisible into parts and constitutes quantity, or it is indivisible and constitutes quality. If it is not per se, it is either only a relation and constitutes the relatives, or it is understood according to the relation of others and constitutes the remaining six predicaments. For the most excellent and first of the predicaments, substance, brings forth, with quantity, place and time; with quality, being active and being passive; and with relatives, having and being in a position.

12. And these are the ten predicaments; moreover, all of them are simple. ^B

13. For even if substance is said to generate—along with quantity, place and time; and along with quality, being active and being passive; and along with the relatives, having and being in a position—yet none of the predicaments is composite. For being in a place, or being in time, or anything else of such a sort, is not a predicament (that is, composite). For this reason, some of the predicaments are named by infinitive verbs, namely, being active, being passive, having, and being in a position, so that they might not, by drawing in persons, introduce some kind of composition.

14. Therefore, all the predicaments are simple and universal terms, signifying simple and universal things by means of simple and universal concepts. ^C

15. But they differ from the five terms in that the former—the predicaments—are predicated of things naturally, signifying the natures of things; and they are categorical terms of natures, that is, definitions spoken naturally about things. For this reason they are properly called predicaments. The five terms are indeed also called categorical simply, insofar as they are significant; yet they do not signify the natures of things, nor are they predicated regarding the existence of things. And according to this, they do not properly hold the title of categorical terms, but are simply terms; that is, they are significant definitions that are considered within concepts, ^D as opposed to the definitions which are spoken regarding the entity of things. Wherefore they would be rational rather than categorical (terms).

16. For just as strictly categorical definitions are found in existing things (for substance, quantity, quality, and the rest are observed in things), in the same manner, these rational terms are considered in such categorical concepts. For genus, species, difference, property, and accident are observed even in substance as it consists in itself. And in each of the remaining predicaments, both genus is discerned, and species, and difference, and property, and accident that penetrates through the whole of it.

^A 17. For all the predicaments are most general genera, because they have no other genus above them that has risen upon them. 18. For even if they are divided from being, yet being is not a genus for them. 19. For a genus not only transmits the name to its proper species, but the whole definition as well. But being, as it is divided into the ten predicaments, transmits the name to them, but it does not transmit the complete definition to any of them; for they describe being in this way: "Being is either a thing self-subsistent and not needing another for its constitution; or that which is not able to be of itself, but has its existence in another." Now the first of the predicaments, substance, does not receive this whole definition ^B of such a kind, but only one part of it. For substance is a thing self-subsistent, not needing another for its constitution, and nothing more. But the remaining predicaments, which are accident, take the remaining part of the description of being, and not the whole description, neither do they [take all]. For accident is a thing not able to be of itself, but having its existence in another. Wherefore being is not a genus of the predicaments.

20. Furthermore, every genus that is divided into species—not the most specific species—has two or three that are divided from it, or, as happens rarely, four. But the division of being proceeds as far as ten, which are not most specific species; and thus, it is not a division from a genus into species. And that the predicaments are not most specific species is clearly shown from the fact that they have ^C under themselves both most specific species and subaltern genera.

21. From this it is evident that neither is accident the genus of the nine predicaments, even if it transmits to them both the name and the complete definition. For just as a genus, which is a logical voice, transmits to the ten predicaments both its name and its definition (for each of the predicaments is both called a genus, and is predicated of many things differing in species as to what it is), by the same reasoning, accident also transmits to the nine predicaments both its name and its proper description, so that it is not a genus of the predicaments. For it too is a logical voice, one of the five voices.

22. Again, in those cases where there is [a relation of] prior and posterior by nature, there is not a genus for them that is commonly predicated (for neither in the species of the same genus is the prior and posterior by nature observed). But in the predicaments, this very thing is observed; for substance is by nature prior to accidents. For if substance were not, in what could an accident have its existence? But if an accident is not, substance will be. For ^D this is a thing self-subsistent, not needing another for its constitution. Wherefore substance takes away along with it, and is not taken away along with [others]; and is brought in along with [others], and does not bring them in along with itself. For where there is an accident, there necessarily it is also the case that there is the substance in which the accident is. Not however where

there is a substance, there is also necessarily an accident. For it is possible for a substance to be considered even without an accident, for the reason that it has existence through itself. Wherefore, not even in this way is that which is (being) the genus of the categories.

^A 23. One may also view in the other categories the nature of what is prior and what is posterior. For quantity is prior to quality, and quality is prior to relative things; for matter, being devoid of form, receives quantity first, and quality subsequently. Quality, moreover, when it is considered per se, is prior to those things which are relative; for these are relationships, whereas things which are in themselves are prior to relationships. Since these things are so, those which arise from substance and quantity are prior to those which arise from substance and quality. And these again are prior to those which arise from substance and relative things. Wherefore, in this way also, the accident is not the genus of the nine categories.

24. Indeed, what is (being) is divided into the ten categories by no other mode of division than that which concerns those things which are said from one and to one. For this division alone, of all of them, possesses that which is prior and posterior by nature, which is to be observed in the sections thereof. ^B

Diagram of Chapter 14: Yet further concerning the categories.

[Diagrammatic summary of ontological divisions omitted for clarity of flow, as per principles of scholarly transcription]

[The text below represents the structural breakdown provided in the diagrams:]

The things that are: What is said of a subject: Some are in a subject, as universal accident; others are not in a subject, as universal substance. What is not said of a subject: Some are in a subject, as a certain white; others are not in a subject, as particular substance and individual.

The existing things: 1. That which is according to a subject: - Non-constituted (as white). - Universal accident (as quantity, quality, white, two-cubits). - Universal substance (as animal, plant). - Particular accident (non-constituted). - Particular substance (as a certain man). 2. That which is not according to a subject: - Unconstituted (as white). - Non-existent in a subject: - Either it is divisible and creates quantity; - Or it is indivisible and creates quality; - Or it is relationship alone, and creates relatives: - Either per se: - Or in a subject and not per se, or understood according to the relationship of others: - Of substance and quantity: (where, when). - Of substance and quality: (to act, to be acted upon). - Of substance and relative: (to have, to be situated). - Or not in a subject, and creates substance.

140 Table of Chapter 15, Likewise on the Predicaments.

[The tabular arrangement is as follows:] Of those things which are, some are said of a subject (of which indeed) some truly are not said of a subject (of which indeed); others are in a subject, as universal accident; others are not in a subject, as universal substance; others are in a subject, as this something white (particular or singular accident); others are not in a subject, as particular substance and individual (substantial, as this man, Peter, Paul, etc.).

[Diagrammatic breakdown:] Things which are: Those said of a subject / Those not said of a subject. Universal accident, like quantity, quality, white, two-cubits. Particular substance, like a certain man (Peter, etc.). Universal substance, like animal, plant. Particular accident, like this something white. In a subject / Not in a subject. If in a subject: either per se (split into parts and creates quantity; or not split into parts, and does not constitute quality) or not per se (it is only a relationship, and creates those things which are relative; or it is understood according to the relationship of others [as substance and quantity: where, when; or substance and quality: to act, to be acted upon; or substance and those things which are relative: to have, to be situated]). Or it is not in a subject, and creates substance.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XVI, WHICH IS ON THOSE THINGS WHICH ARE PREDICATED; WHERE ALSO ON THOSE THINGS WHICH ARE IN SOMETHING.

1. Double predication. - 2. Predication of the major or predicate of the subject, which is also qualitative. - 3. Predication equal to the predicate... - 4. The prior antepredicamental rule. - 5. Proof of the rule and another division of predication. - 6. What predication about a subject is. - 7. The rule is declared with examples. — 142 ...is not true [concerning mental predication]. - 10. The same is shown by three examples. - 11. The difference of predication about a subject and in a subject, of which the former is always univocal, the latter never, but partly equivocal, partly denominative, partly diversivocal. - 12. The distinction of essence and essential, as also of accident and accidental, of which the former are things, the latter modes of existence. - 13. What essence and accident are. - 14. What essence and accidental are. - 15. The eleven modes by which something is said to be in something. - 16. All are reduced to the predicament of 'where'.

CAPUT XVI. ^A On those things which are predicated; where also on those things which are in something.

1. Every predication is either equal to the subject or broader: never narrower. 2. It is broader, indeed, when the more universal terms are predicated of the more particular. As: Every man is an animal. Behold, animal, since it is broader than man, is predicated of that which is something more particular. It is not allowed, however, through conversion, to say: Every ani-

- mal is man. For since man is less than animal, he cannot be predicated of it; for animal contains man, but man does not contain animal. Nor, indeed, is man the only animal, but there are also brute animals. And thus, a predication is made that relates more broadly to the subject; but never is a predication made that takes a narrower scope in relation to the subject. ^A

3. Predication also occurs sometimes equally (as having relation to the subject), as in species and properties, and in definitions and things defined. For example: Every man is apt for laughter; and, Everything apt for laughter is man. Similarly, Every man is an animal participant in reason, mortal, capable of intelligence and knowledge. And, Every animal participant in reason, mortal, capable of intelligence and knowledge, is man. And these, which relate equally, are called convertible and having reciprocal predication. ^B

4. One must also know that when one thing is predicated of another as a subject—that is, essentially—whatever things are said essentially of the predicate can also be stated of the subject.

5. For predication is twofold: one "of a subject," the other "in a subject."

6. It is "of a subject" indeed when things more universal are predicated of things more particular essentially and in reality; and, to speak generally, univocally: that is, when the predicates and the subjects are referred back to one and the same common genus; for instance, to substance, or quantity, or any other of the ten most general categories. For then, whatever things are predicated of something, as I have said, will also be predicated of its subject. ^C

7. For example, man is essentially predicated of Peter, and animal is essentially predicated of man (for both are in the one category of substance), consequently animal will also be predicated of Peter. For Peter is a man, but he is also an animal. Again, number is predicated essentially of five, and discrete is also predicated essentially of number. For both are also under quantity; therefore discrete will also be predicated of five. For five is both number and discrete. And this is indeed the predication "of a subject." ^D

8. But the predication "in a subject" is when something is said of something else in the manner of additions to its essence (or accidentally); when, clearly, the predicate and the subject are not referred back to any one and the same common genus.

9. For then, whatever things are said of the predicate—whether essentially or accidentally—they will not also be stated of the subject.

10. For example, white is predicated of the swan accidentally, but color is predicated essentially of white. For the swan is under substance, while white and color are under quality. Therefore, color will not be stated of the swan; for the swan, and white lead, and gypsum, and snow are indeed white, but they are not colors.

Again, animal is predicated of man essentially; but "trisyllable" is predicated of animal accidentally; for man and animal are under substance, but "trisyllable" is under quantity. Therefore, a "trisyllable" will not be predicated of man either; for indeed, man is an animal, but he is not a "trisyllable." Again, "philosopher" is said of Socrates accidentally; and "quadrisyllable" is said of philosopher likewise accidentally; for Socrates is under substance, but "philosopher" is under quality, and "quadrisyllable" is under quantity. But "quadrisyllable" would not be stated of Socrates. For Socrates is a philosopher, but he is not, indeed, a "quadrisyllable."

11. ^B Just as the univocal is always apparent in the predication of the subject, so it is never apparent in the predication *in* a subject; but sometimes the equivocal is [there], as when someone calls this woman musical or grammatical; sometimes the derivative, as when someone names Aristotle a philosopher from philosophy; sometimes, moreover, the diversivocal, as when someone calls Socrates a good man from virtue. For the term "virtuous" is not found in the usage of the Greek language.

12. Substance and the essential differ from one another; likewise, the accidental and the accessory-to-essence (or accidental).

13. For substance is a self-existing thing, not needing another for its constitution. ^C But the accidental is a thing existing in substance, not as a part, and not able to be apart from the substance.

14. The essential and the accidental are modes of the existence of some things in others. And the essential indicates the property and genuine conformity of the thing existing within [a subject] toward that in which it exists. But the accidental denotes what is alien and adventitious. Wherefore, both the essential and the accessory-to-essence (or accidental) can also be taken in all the predicaments.

15. That which is in something is stated in eleven ways; as the genus in the species: for example, animal in man. For the genus, ^D having its existence by abstraction, is a whole in each of the species, and is common to all species and proper to each one. Just as the voice of a herald to those who hear, and matter to those things which are in the world, and the center of a circle to the straight lines which begin from that same center; or as a species in a genus, for example, man in animal. For man is contained in animal, and every species [is contained] in its proper genus, as a whole in its parts, just as Socrates is in his own parts—head, hands, feet, and the rest; and this is in some things, and not in something. It is called a part of a whole; but the whole is in no way [a part] of the parts, but the whole is in the parts. As a part in a whole: just as a hand or foot is in Socrates. As a form in matter: just as the form of a statue is in the bronze, and a point in a line; for even the point gives form to the limited [line].

in a line; for even a point informs a finite line. In time, as Noah in the time of the flood. In place, as a priest in the temple; in a vessel, as water in a cup. And the vessel would be a movable place, but the place is an immovable vessel. In the efficient cause, as all things in God, and the reasons of those things which are made by Him are in the artificer; and things subject are in the ruler. ^C In the final cause, as the bed is in the rest of men, and exercise in health. In the subject, as an accident is in a substance.

16. Those things which "are in something" are brought under the category of "where." And the ones enumerated are indeed those that are according to nature; but of that which is contrary to nature—as corruption in an animal, and fire in wood—indeed, generally speaking, corruption is in that which is corrupted contrary to nature. For it is not the intention of nature that its work should perish, but rather that it should be preserved and ^D remain.

Table of Chapter 16, concerning those things which are predicated; where also [we treat] of those things which are in something.

Every predication - either is broader than the subject, as animal is to man; - or is equal, as laughable is to man.

Those things which are in something - as genus in species, such as animal in man; - as species in genus, such as man in animal; - as whole in parts, such as Socrates in his own parts; - as part in whole, such as a hand or foot in Socrates; - as form in matter, as the form of a statue in bronze; - in time, as Noah in the time of the flood; - in place, as a priest in the temple, water in a vessel; - in the efficient cause, as all things in God; - in the final cause, as exercise in health; - in the subject, as an accident in a substance.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XVII: Of the one, the same, and the different; where also [we treat] of hypostasis.

1. The one and the same is spoken of in three ways. 2. Likewise for the diverse. 3. Diverse or difference in number, that is, individual, why they are called heterohypostata, and what they differ from homohypostata. 4. Four corollaries inferred from the above. 5. What can most of all be called heteroid. 6. A rule of the posterior antepredicamentals. 7. An appendix to the rule of the posterior antepredicamentals, or, as others wish, the third rule of the antepredicamentals. 8. Homogenea and homoidea are taken by the Fathers for the same things, namely for homousia. 9. Two significations of hypostasis. 10. Also enhypostata. 11. Four kinds of enhypostata. 12. Of the fifth kind. 13. Hypostasis, individual, and person are held by the Fathers for the same.

CHAPTER XVII. Of the one, the same, and the different; where also [we treat] of hypostasis.

1. The one and the same are said in three ways. For either by...

^A genus, and it makes homogeneous things; as man and horse: for these have one and the same genus, [the] animal. Or by species, and it makes homoidea (which are of the same species): as Peter and Paul; for to these one and the same species belongs, [the] man. Or by number, and it makes the individual considered by itself, separated from the remaining individuals: as Socrates. For there exists one and the same [person], even if he might be called by very many names: Socrates, son of Sophroniscus, philosopher. The same is also [the case] with those things which are properly called multivocal. For one and the same by number are mucro, ensis, spatha, and gladius.

2. In the same number of ways as the one and the same is spoken of, the different is also spoken of. For it is said either by genus, and it produces heterogeneous things (which are of a different genus), as animal and science: for the genus of the soul is substance, but of science, quality. Or by species, and it makes heteroidea (which are of different species), as horse and ox: for the species of the horse is one thing, and that of the ox is another, even if the genus is not other and other. Or by number, and it creates ^B individuals; for those things which have separated the property of their own hypostasis by the concurrence of accidents differ by number.

3. These are also called heterohypostata, as having their existence separately, each by itself. In this they differ even from those which are homohypostata. For they are homohypostata when two natures have been united in one hypostasis, and possess one composite hypostasis and one person; as soul and body.

4. ^C All homoidea are therefore necessarily also homogeneous: but not all homogeneous things are necessarily also homoidea. Likewise also, all things which are heterogenea are by common consent indeed heteroidea: but not all heteroidea are already also heterogenea. And those which are different by genus differ also by species and by number; but those which are different by species, differ indeed by number, but not always also by genus. Nor again are those which differ by number necessarily also different by species and by genus.

5. Heteroidea might most especially be called individuals which are from different species which are most specific. For just as Socrates and Plato are homoidea (for both are men), in the same way Pegasus and Cerberus are heteroidea. For they say that the one is a horse, the other ^D a dog, which is Cerberus.

6. Of heterogeneous things also not arranged subalternately, the differences are different by species; as of animal and of science. For the differences of the animal are different, and those of science are different. For the constituent differences of the animal are: the animate, the sentient, the progressive; the dividing ones: the rational, the irrational, the pedestrian, the winged, the aquatic, and others. But the constituent differences of science are: to exist in animals endowed with reason, being difficult to change, not failing the subjects; the dividing ones: the theoretical, the practical; and again, the geometrical, the astronomical, and the

^A similar ones. For of whatever genus a thing belongs, of that same is its species; and the differences also correspond. Therefore, of things heterogeneous, the differences—both the constituting and the dividing ones—are different in species.

7. As for those placed subalternately, the dividing differences are not always the same. For if "body" is divided into "animate body" and "inanimate," the "animate" will not again be divided into "animate" and "inanimate," but into "sentient" and "insentient"; and the body will also have been divided into "sentient" and "insentient." Again, for that which is animate and sentient, common dividing differences will be found: "rational" and "irrational." And thus, in subaltern genera, the dividing differences will sometimes be the same, and sometimes not the same. But there is nothing to prevent the constituting differences from always being the same. For since the subalterns are homogeneous (of the same genus), and the predication becomes univocal, all the differences of the predicate will also be those of the subject.

8. One must know that the holy Fathers use "homogeneous" and "homoeide" (of the same form) to mean the same thing, namely "homousios" (coessential), meaning those hypostases which are under the same species.

9. "Hypostasis" signifies two things. For it denotes simple existence, in accordance with which some of the Fathers have adopted the name "hypostasis" to signify nature. It also denotes the individual, and is properly called "hypostasis" because it subsists effectively by itself. ^B For in individuals, essence subsists in act, having received the accidents.

10. "Anhypostaton" (non-subsistent) also signifies two things. For it means that which in no way exists anywhere, and also an accident, as having no proper hypostasis or existence, but subsisting in an essence.

11. "Enhypostaton" sometimes declares what simply exists; by which meaning we call not only simple substance "enhypostaton," but also an accident, which is rather "heterohypostaton" (i.e., having subsistence in another); sometimes, however, it also declares the individual. Yet even this is not properly "enhypostaton," but "hypostasis." For "enhypostaton" properly signifies either that which does not subsist by itself but is contemplated within hypostases, as species, that is, nature (for the common nature of men does not subsist by itself, but in particular men), or that which combines with another thing differing in substance to complete one composite hypostasis; ^C just as the soul and the body, having come together with one another, have perfected a certain human being.

12. Those things, then, might be called "enhypostata"; but that which is composed of them from one another is a "hypostasis." But also a nature that has been assumed by another hypostasis, and has its existence in it—this also, I say,

^A is rightly called *enhypostatos*. Whence also the flesh of the Lord, which exists not for even an instantaneous moment of time by itself, is both called and is *enhypostatos*, not a *hypostasis*. For it existed in the *hypostasis* of the Word of God, having been assumed by it, and it has had and has this *hypostasis*.

13. It should be known that the holy Fathers called the same thing both a *hypostasis* and an individual and a person; that is to say, that which exhibits to us its own proper manifestation, made clear through its own attributes, and delimited from those of the same nature as itself. ^B

Table of Chapter 17, concerning the one, the same, and the diverse, where also concerning hypostasis (anhypostaton and enhypostaton).

One and the same (is said) { — by genus, as man and horse; — by species, as Peter and Paul; — by number, as a garment and a vestment. }

Diverse (is said) { — by genus, as animal and science; — by species, as horse and ox; — by number, as Socrates and Plato. }

Hypostasis (is said) { — or simply existence; — or the individual. }

Anhypostaton (is said) { ^C — or that which is altogether nowhere; — or an accident. }

Enhypostaton (is said) { — that which simply exists, the individual; — that which is not considered by itself, as the species of man in particulars; — and that which comes together [with another] differently in respect of essence for the constitution of one *hypostasis*.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XVIII. WHICH IS CONCERNING THE PRIOR AND THE POSTERIOR AND THE SIMULTANEOUS.

1. Five modes of the prior. — 2. The first is from time. — 3. The second from nature. — 4. The third from order. — 5. The fourth from dignity. — 6. The fifth from notion or concept of the mind. — 7. The posterior likewise has as many modes. — 8. This division of the prior and posterior, what it is. — 9. Of those which are said to be simultaneous, three modes, of which the first is from time. — 10. The second from nature. — 11. The third from division. — 12. To these three is added the fourth from dignity.

CHAPTER XVIII. De priore et posteriore et simul.

1. The prior is spoken of in five ways.

^A 2. In one way by time, by which we say one thing is older and more ancient than another. “Older” is applied properly to animate beings, and especially to men; “more ancient” to inanimate things, and indeed to all things generally. It is evident that one must always make the comparison with another, lest someone be found older than himself according to his own youth, which is prior in time.

3. In another way “prior” is said according to nature. By nature, that is prior which carries off with it [what is posterior] but is not carried off with it, and which brings [the other] in with it but is not brought in by it. For example, the one is prior by nature to the two. For if the one be removed, it carries away the two along with it. For if the one does not exist, how will there be two? But if the two are removed, the one is not removed along with them. For there is one, even if there are not two. Again, with the two, the one is brought in; for where there are two, there also is the one (for two are one and one); but the one does not bring in the two; for if there is one, it is not necessary that there also be two. In this way, genera are prior to their proper species, and species to their individuals, and simply, the more universal to the more particular which are in the same category. ^B

4. The third way is according to order, as the opening is prior to the narrative, and the soldier to the general.

5. The fourth is according to dignity, as the ruler is prior to the ruled, namely in dignity and honor. Aristotle does not accept this way. Instead of it he posits that which is according to cause: for example, “There is a man,” and we also say a true statement, that there is a man. Thus, the being of a man is the cause of this true statement, that there is a man. According to this meaning, we speak of the Father who is without beginning as first and greater than the Only-begotten, as He is the cause of His existence essentially. ^C

6. Some add to the ways of the prior that according to mental conception: as when we wish to build a wall, we lay a foundation; and we say that because we first conceived of the wall, we lay the foundation for the sake of the wall, the wall is prior to the foundation. This way is reduced to that which is according to dignity, by which that which is better and more honorable is said to be prior. And just as the prior in dignity is found to be posterior in order (for the ruler is prior and the ruled posterior, and later the ruler is established), in a similar way that which is prior in mental conception is completed and perfected later. ^D

7. As many ways as there are for “prior,” so many are there for “posterior,” the opposition being made aptly and conveniently to the ways of the prior.

8. They divide the prior and posterior also by “more and less,” as they do [the things] derived from one.

9. And “at the same time” is in one way those whose generation happens to be in the same time, as when it happens that two are born in one moment. This way is opposed to the first way of the prior, which is from time.

^A 10. In another way, things are said to be "simultaneous" which exist simultaneously by nature. These are those which together are destroyed, and together are preserved, and are inferred together and together bring about an inference; such as relative terms. This way is opposed to the second way of the "prior," which is according to nature, and indeed also to the fifth, which is according to cause. It is opposed, on the one hand, to the second way—the one that does not convert—inasmuch as this is convertible; and again, to the fifth, or indeed the fourth, inasmuch as one is not the cause of the other. For such are relative terms, in that they are relatives. For "father" and "son" are simultaneous, and neither is the cause of the other according to this very thing (that they are father and son); rather, each is a cause for the other. For it is the cause of the father to be, that the son exists, and the cause of the son to be, that the father exists. Even if in another way the father is the cause of the son's existence, the son is not the cause of the father's. For the father has begotten, and the son has been begotten. And the son has come to be from the father; the father has not come to be from the son.

11. A third way of signifying "the simultaneous" is by species divided contra-distinctively; as when, dividing the living creature into rational and irrational, we say that the rational and the irrational are simultaneous, and not that one is prior and the other posterior. This way of contra-distinctive division is opposed to the third way of the "prior," which is according to order. For things divided contra-distinctively represent elements of equal rank, and hold the same order in relation to one another.

^B 12. It appears that something further is said to be "simultaneous," which is opposed to the way of the "prior" according to dignity. This would be that which is of equal rank and equal honor.

Schematic Table of Chapter 18, Concerning Prior and Posterior and Concerning the Simultaneous.

^C Prior and Posterior [is said]: - According to time; - That which is prior by nature; - According to order, as the prologue of a narrative; - According to dignity, as the ruler to the ruled; - According to cause, as the existence of a human being is to the true statement about him that he is a human being.

"Simultaneous" is said: - According to time, as if two individuals were born at the same time; - According to nature, as with relative terms; - According to division from the same genus, as the rational and the irrational.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XIX, WHICH IS CONCERNING SUBSTANCE.

4. The definitions of the animal, and likewise of the plant-animal, are gathered thence. 5. And likewise of the human. 6. Individuals or hypostases are most properly by Aristotle called substances, first and in the highest degree. 7. Others hold another opinion, who attribute these qualifications to the lowest species. 8. Why some have called the most special species substance, nature, and form. 9. In what respect individuals are substances to them.

CHAPTER XIX.

Concerning substance.

^A 1. Essence sometimes signifies existence simply, when it is also applied to all beings; but properly it declares the predicament contrasted with accidents; which is a thing existing in itself, not needing another for its constitution. For to this the term "being" belongs first; but after this, to accidents.

2. This substance is divided into corporeal and incorporeal; the corporeal into animate and inanimate; the animate into sentient and insentient; the sentient into progressive and non-progressive; the progressive into rational and irrational; the rational, that is, man; the irrational, creatures other than man.

3. The plant, therefore, is an animate substance without sense: a substance, because the plant itself is per se, and does not have its being in another, but rather other things have their existence in it. For there exists in the plant both quantity (for this plant is perhaps two or three cubits long), and quality (for it is black or white), and relation (for it is greater than another plant, and on the other hand smaller than another), and place (for it is in a place), and time (because it is also in time); and acting (for it flowers and bears fruit), and being acted upon (for it is perhaps cut, or cooled, or heated), and posture (for it stands erect or inclined toward the ground), and having; for there will perhaps be some enclosing protection for the plant, touching its root or stem in some way. Thus, ^B therefore, the plant is a substance. It is animate because it is nourished and grows and generates its like. Now the faculties of the soul are: the nutritive, the augmentative, and the generative faculty. But since the plant is animate, it is also of course corporeal. For an animate body is that which has a soul. But the term "corporeal" is not added to the definition, as it is subaudited and understood by the mind. Thus, therefore, the plant is also animate. But it is without sense, because it is ruled by none of the five senses: neither by sight, nor by hearing, nor by smell, nor by taste, nor by touch. It is manifest, moreover, that it is also without progression. I say "without progression," that it has not in itself the faculty of moving ^C from place to place; just as that which is progressive is that which can move itself from within according to place.

4. The plant, therefore, is an animate substance without sense; but an animate substance with sense is what is simultaneously living and a plant-animal. In order, therefore, that these may be distinguished from one another ^D

^A one must add "progressive" to the definition of animal, and "devoid of progression" to that of the plant-animal. We say that an animal has progression, and not simply movement, since among all movements it possesses more of this than the plant-animal, that is to say, change of place. For every other movement exists both in the plant-animal and in the plant itself. For even these come into being, perish, increase, decrease, and are altered, becoming warm and cooling, and undergoing other diverse affections according to their proper nature, each consistent with its own. Therefore, the animal is an animate, sensitive, progressive substance; while the plant-animal is an animate, sensitive substance devoid of progression. And as regards the sense of touch, the plant-animal has more than the plant, but because it does not progress, it has less than the animal. And thus ^B stands the case with regard to the animal and the plant-animal.

5. Now, man is a rational animal, that is, an animate, sensitive, progressive, rational substance. But if the definition of man were rendered in this way—if we were to say: "Man is an animate, sensitive, progressive, rational substance"—then the term "mortal" would not be added to the definition of man, as it would be implied along with the animate substance. For everything animate is also mortal, just as everything composite can be dissolved. For composition is the beginning of conflict, conflict of division, and division of dissolution. But since to define in this way is mere idle talk, ^C not befitting definitions (for why, in definitions, which are concise discourses, should one use many words, when it is possible to include as much as possible in one term, and by saying "animal" to declare both the substance, the animate, the sensitive, and the progressive?), therefore, in pronouncing man a "rational animal," we add also "mortal" to the definition. For the name of "animal" denotes even an angel, as one who also partakes of life, although an immortal one that surpasses sense; who is indeed also rational, and whose rationality is unmixed with any irrationality, and entirely unparticipated. Therefore, lest anyone, hearing "rational animal," should happen to suppose that the angel is meant, "mortal" is introduced into the definition from the outside for the sake of clarity; not, however, from the section and subdivision of the substance. For it is not the case that, ^D having divided the animal itself—that is, the animate, sensitive, and progressive substance—into rational and irrational, one may again subdivide the rational into mortal and immortal. For if we should do so, we will either praise Greek trifles and monstrously affirm that the heavenly bodies themselves are rational and immortal animals, or, if we say that the angels are immortal animals, we shall consider them to be both animate and sensitive—and if this is true, then also corporal—and thus, while we profess them to be immortal, we shall, on the contrary, rather confirm by our own words that they are mortal. Again, if we were to define man, and the ox, and the horse, and the remaining animals from "mortal," everything mortal would also be rational (for the higher terms are predicated of the lower), and hence the term "rational" would also apply to the irrational, which is

^A entirely absurd. The rational animal, or human, will therefore be divided immediately into individuals: Peter, Paul, and the remaining hypostases. ^B

6. Aristotle says that ^A certain things are called substances in the most authoritative, primary, and maximal sense. For individuals, with respect to things that are sensible, are thought to be substances in the proper sense because they exist sensibly and are perceived first. For our intellect is led through sensible things toward intelligible things. And they appear to be substances in the maximal sense because they possess, in themselves in act, the accidents that exist. And the common run of men has such an opinion regarding them.

7. But those who have examined these matters more inquisitively have declared that the most specific species are substances most authoritatively, primarily, and maximally in truth, and are not just called so: most authoritatively, because they exist intelligibly and transcend the senses (for intelligible things are better and more proper than sensible things); primarily, because they receive first all the essential differences and properties, and subsequently impart all these things from themselves to the individuals. For from the universal "human," Peter is also called a human, and a rational, mortal animal, capable of intellect and knowledge. And they are substances in the maximal sense in that they are devoid of alteration, stable, and always existing, whereas individuals are in every way altered, unstable, and at one time generated and at another time perish. ^B

8. Hence, those who have sought the true philosophy have called each of the most specific species a "substance," "nature," and "form" at the same time: "substance," as that which is always and is a nature that never perishes, as it generates hypostases, and exists as an origin, cause, and immutable power for all the hypostases contained under it, providing to each of these the manner in which they are moved. "Form," because it is specified and formed by essential differences and properties as perfectly as possible, and covers the entire formations or characteristics of those things that are under it. ^C

9. Individuals, however, to the extent that they are parts of substances, will be called substances on that account. For Plato also says that particular humans are fragments or particles of the human. Hence Peter is a substance, and Paul is a substance, but both are of the same substance. ^D

Diagram of Chapter 19, Concerning Substance

Substance { Simple existence, But properly, that which is contrasted with accidents.

Synopsis of Chapter XX. Still concerning substance.

1. Matter and form are distinguished from substance properly so called. 2. He enumerates the properties or attributes of substance, the first of which is not to be in a subject. 3. What it is to be in a subject, and to whom it applies. 4. This first property also applies to substantial difference. 5. The second attribute of substance, which also applies to substantial difference, is to be predicated univocally of subjects. 6. A deliberation on whether, and how, difference is predicated. 7. Another deliberation on what kind of quality difference is. 8. This attribute primarily applies to substance and substantial difference; secondarily, it also applies to genera and species of accidents. 9. The third attribute of substance is that nothing is contrary to it. 10. Yet it also applies to other things, such as figures, middle colors, and definite quantities. 11. What the defined quantities are. 12. Great and small, much and little are not quantities properly speaking, but are relative, and are opposed not as contraries, but as relatives. 13. Great and small, however, are sometimes also accepted in terms of infinite quantity. 14. The fourth attribute of substance, as regards its individuals, namely, that it does not receive the more and the less, and how this is to be understood. 15. Yet, simply speaking, substance 172 is said to be according to more and less, which is proven by three examples. 16. For immaterial substance, such as spirit, is more of a substance than material substance. 17. Thus, matter and form are less of a substance than the composites of them. 18. Likewise, individual composite substances are more of a substance to Aristotle, their species less so, and their genera still less, since they are further removed from individuals than species. 19. Yet this attribute also applies to all things to which having a contrary does not belong. 20. He commemorates two attributes of substance simultaneously, the fifth and the sixth; the former is that the individuals of composite substance fall under demonstration and are called "this something"; the latter is that, because of some change in themselves, they can receive the contraries of something else. 21. This last property belongs solely to every primary composite substance, yet not to every one as regards all contraries. 22. This property is restricted only to those contraries of which the other is not inherent by nature, and thus inseparably. 23. Deliberation. 24. Celestial bodies, however, are excepted from this property of substance; for they do not receive contraries successively because they are not properly individuals. 25. Nor, indeed, can they receive them, because they have their being in circular motion. 26. Deliberation, unless one posits contrariety in the motions of the planets and other 173 properties of them which appear to be contrary. 27. Precision. 28. Deliberation concerning speech and opinion.

Chapter XX. Still concerning substance.

α'. Matter and form are appropriately distinguished from substance properly so called. For these are substantial things rather than substances. Concerning these, however, a reminder will be given in the first chapter of the second book.

β'. To substance properly so called, a thing self-subsistent, not needing anything else for its constitution, it is agreed by the consensus of all most appropriately to belong, that it is not in a subject.

^A 3. But that is said to be "in a subject" which, existing in something not as a part, is impossible to be apart from that in which it is; and when separated from that in which it is, by thought or mental conception, it does not destroy it. Now this is an accident. Therefore, for every substance properly so called, it is agreed by the consensus of all most appropriately to belong, that it is not in a subject.

4. Yet this is true not only of substance, but also of substantial difference; for this too is not in a subject. For the "rational" does not exist in man as in a subject, but as a part. If it existed as in a subject, it would be possible for it to be separated from man, and man would nonetheless remain man. But now this is not so. For if the rational were taken away from man, the man is destroyed.

5. It is also common to substance and difference that all things under them are predicated of them univocally ^B. For Peter receives both the name and the definition of "man."

6. And indeed the difference itself is called "rational," that is, this rationality; but Peter is also called "rational," inasmuch as he is an animal participating in rationality. And if Peter does not receive the definition of rationality unchanged (for rationality indeed is the faculty of using reason, whereas Peter is an animal that uses reason), there is nothing to wonder at. For that which imparts both its name and its definition is called univocal. But that which contributes only to existence is also said to be univocal. For thus also does Aristotle say that the soul is predicated of the animal univocally, because it contributes to its existence; even though it may not impart to the animal either its name or its definition. The difference, however, is predicated univocally ^C of the things that are under it.

7. And according to this reasoning, although difference may appear to be a quality, it is not, however, simply a quality, but an essential quality, which can by no thought be separated from that in which it is, such as rationality. For to us who consider it before it joins with the animal and completes the man, it might perhaps be understood as a sole and naked quality, although even then it has great power; but once it has joined with the animal and completed the man, then truly (so to speak) it is substantiated in man (or converted into the substance of man); and man is nothing else than an animal with rationality. Since, therefore, rationality is altogether inseparable from man, even according to the very conception (or thought) of the mind, and man is predicated of Peter univocally, then the rationality of man ^D shall also be said of Peter univocally. For just as the species is predicated of something, so also is the difference predicated of it along with the species. For it exists as most akin to the species and can by no means be separated from it, and without it the species cannot subsist even for a brief moment.

8. Primarily, therefore, it belongs to substance and difference that all things derived from them are predicated univocally. But even in accidents, the genera of their own species

and the species of their own individuals, and simply the higher are predicated univocally of the lower.

^A 9. Furthermore, it pertains to substance that nothing is contrary to it. For contraries struggle around some subject, and each of them strives to overcome the other so as to become master of the subject. For a subject is not able, at the same moment, to receive contraries entirely. Wherefore contraries are among the number of those things which are in a subject. But substance, which is not among the number of those things which are in a subject, shall have nothing contrary to it. For no one would posit a non-existent thing as contrary to substance. For that which in no way subsists holds no relation (or habit) to another. And although fire and water seem to be contrary to one another, they do not have this as far as they are substances, such that they are contrary, but as far as they are endowed with qualities. For the hot is opposed to the cold, and the dry to the moist.

^B 10. And to many other things it pertains to have nothing contrary, such as to figures and to the intermediate colors: red, yellow, grey and the like; and to the definite quantities. But there is no contrary to these, so that nature might not be found unjust, having opposed many contraries to one.

11. Definite quantities, moreover, are said to be such as have some finite quantity, as two, five, ten, and two-cubits, five-cubits, ten-cubits, and the like; and they are not said with relation to another, just as the great and the small, and the much and the little.

^C 12. For these are relative (to something), and not quantities, and they are opposed to one another, not as contraries, but as those things which are towards something. For the great is called great in relation to the small, and the much is called much in relation to the little. And if such things were contraries, since one and the same thing can be both great and small, and much and little, when taken in relation to one thing and another; contraries would exist simultaneously in one subject, or rather, the same thing would be contrary to itself (which both are absurd).

13. But the great and the much are sometimes said without relation (or absolutely) when taken for an infinite quantity; ^D as we say: How much is the abundance of thy goodness, O Lord, and thy mercy is great toward me!

14. It also pertains to substance not to receive the "more" and the "less," namely as regards its own individuals. Just as any one of the individuals of substance is not called more or less that which it is named. For Peter and Paul, being individuals of substance, are named men according to the human species, by which they are contained, and they are not called more or less men. For neither is Peter called more a man, or Paul less a man, or anyone at one time more a man, and at another time less a man. And this is to be understood also in the case of horses and stones and the rest of the individuals of substance.

^A 15. Since substance can indeed be said simply to be more or less, it follows that one substance is recognized as more of a substance, and another as less so.

16. For example, immaterial and supramundane substance is by common consent more of a substance than this mundane and material one. For being fits those that are in a state of immutability, owing to the absence of matter, more than those that are in the unstable flux of matter.

17. Again, matter itself, and even form, appear to be less of a substance than that which is composed of them, because neither matter by itself, nor form by itself, possesses a perfect entity (as one might say), or can be considered conjoined according to existence; and it is only because they are the elements of substance that they participate in the name of substance.

18. Furthermore, of composite substance, Aristotle says that individuals are more truly substances, and species less so, and genera less still, as we have already said before.

19. It is also characteristic to admit of "more and less," in the manner described, to all things that do not have any contrary. For "more and less" is a path toward contraries. For instance, in the change from cold to hot, what previously was cold becomes less cold; and then it becomes hot in some way, and after that, more hot.

^B 20. But it is most especially proper to composite substance that each of its individuals both falls under observation and is called a "this something," and that it is capable of receiving contrary qualities in respect to its own change. For it is impossible for two contraries to exist in the same subject at the same time. If, therefore, they are accidental contraries, they will be considered as existing in act, by turns, in the individuals of composite substance.

21. Yet not all things are in every individual. For fire could never become cold while remaining fire, nor water dry. For the heat of fire and the humidity of water are not simply qualities belonging to them, but are essential differences, completing their substance; and fire and water, remaining what they are, could not be separated from those things which belong to them according to their essence, not even by the mind alone.

^C 22. For those things in which one of the contraries does not reside by nature and inseparably, are capable of receiving both contraries by turns. Therefore, a raven might perhaps be thought of as white, because the blackness does not belong to it essentially, yet in act and in reality it could never be white, because to this too the blackness—even if not essentially—yet in another way belongs so inseparably that it cannot be removed. Therefore, fire, for instance, will not even be thought of as cold, nor water as dry. But when fire is nourished by humid matter, it will be humid to the senses, just as water, when it is heated by an ignited substance, is hot. ^D

^A 23. Fire will also receive downward motion when it is propelled by compression, like a thunderbolt; and water, by the suction of wind, will be suspended on high; and in other things, contraries will be observed in a similar way, according to their natural potential.

24. Celestial bodies, however, as being singular, are not individuals of any things. For there is neither genus nor species in them. And for this reason, they do not receive contraries.

25. Rather, those that have their existence in circular motion would not have any capacity for a contrary.

26. Unless one takes the opposed motions in the planets. ^B For these move indeed with their own proper motion from west to east; but they are also carried along with the universe (that is, the prime mover) from east to west; and they make conjunctions, and separations, and descents, and exaltations; and they move forward and backward, and approach the northern and southern parts of the zodiac; so that the sun alone is always moved in the middle of the zodiac and equably. But the moon is both variably figured with illuminations and obscurations, and at length vanishes entirely; so that the inerrant sphere alone among all things receives no contrariety, unless one were to speak of newer contrarieties, the motion from east to west according to the hemisphere ^C which is said to be above the earth, and that from west to east according to what is seen under the earth (hemisphere), which are completed by one and the same circular motion, and are singularly and wonderfully inclusive of one another and complementary.

27. But so much for these things.

28. It appears also that both discourse (logos) and opinion (doxa) are in some way receptive of contraries. And discourse, on the one hand, signifies the spoken word and is a quantity; but opinion, being an internal discourse, is placed under quality. And both seem to happen to be receptive of contraries, as has been said. For if, while Socrates is sitting, someone says or thinks that he is sitting, he speaks the truth; but when he has risen, he is lying.

29. But the individuals of substance were not said to be receptive of contraries in this way; but according to their own change. Discourse and opinion, however, remain what they are, while the thing itself undergoes change.

30. Moreover, neither can discourse or opinion receive contraries. For that which receives contraries suffers. For the change into contraries is a passion; but opinion and discourse remain motionless and immutable. ^D

31. Or rather, to speak more correctly, it does not even remain; but as soon as the thing is thought, the opinion has ceased, and as soon as the discourse is spoken, it is destroyed. And the discourse that spoke before that Socrates is sitting is one thing, and the one spoken after that is another. And the same must be thought regarding opinion.

32. Or is it not the case that truth or falsehood belongs to opinion,

but to the soul? For it is not the opinion that opines by itself, but the soul that opines through the opinion; nor does discourse alone speak the truth or lie, but [it is] the combination of this and the thing [to which it refers]. And the agreement of the two makes the true, but the disagreement makes the false. ^A

Table for chapter 20, also concerning substance.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXI, WHICH IS CONCERNING QUANTITY; WHERE ALSO CONCERNING MOTION.

CHAPTER XXI. Concerning quantity, where also concerning motion.

^A according to syllables, has no common terminus to which its proper parts might become joined and united. For this reason, then, number and [spoken] discourse are called discrete quantities, because each of them has its proper parts distinct and separated from one another.

4. Continuous quantities, however, are body, surface, line, place, and time.

5. If, therefore, someone were to inquire into the parts of each of these, dividing and examining them in potentiality, he would find them connected to one another and indistinct. For the parts of a body are joined by a surface, those of a surface by a line, and those of a line by a point; and the parts of a place are joined to one another by a line. For a place is also a kind of surface, being the ^B boundary of the containing [body], insofar as it contains the contained; that is, the limit of the containing thing, insofar as [that] limit contains the thing contained by the container itself. And as for time, when it is divided into past and future, the "now" joins its parts together.

6. And what a point is in a line, that is unity in number, and the "now" in time. For these three are indivisible. But unity, even if it is not a number, nevertheless becomes a part of a number. Therefore, when it is added, it increases it. For number exists as composed of units, since it is also a collection of units. But a point, when added to a line, does not increase it, because a line is not composed of points. And the "now," when added to time, ^C affords no increase, because it is not even a part of it, not even in the slightest measure.

7. But furthermore, a line added to a surface does not increase it, since it is not a part of it, not even the smallest. For a surface has length and breadth, but a line is length without breadth. And in this way, even a body, having three dimensions—length, breadth, and depth, or thickness—is not increased by a surface.

8. If, however, a body is a substance, and is also called a quantity, this is nothing to be wondered at. Insofar as it is a subject, and remains one and the same in number, and is capable of receiving contraries, it is indisputably a substance; but insofar as it has three dimensions and is naturally susceptible ^D to measurement, only in this respect does it exist as a quantity.

9. Both continuous and discrete quantity are observed in the entire world. The nature of the continuous, which is called magnitude—which is followed by "how much"—[exists] according to union and mutual connection; but the nature of the discrete, which is called multitude—which is followed by "how many"—[exists] according to collection and juxtaposition. And with regard to the essence of magnitude, the world is understood as being one, and spherical, and naturally grown together with itself, and stretched out and coherent with itself. But with regard to multitude, both arrangement is observed and ornamentation—composed, for instance, of these elements and animals or plants, and of opposites or similarities, in such and such a number.

10. Furthermore, ^A of those things counted as quantity, some have a position of their parts in relation to one another, while others do not. The parts of a line, for instance, have a position in relation to one another, just as do those of a surface, a body, and a place. But the parts of a number do not have a position in relation to one another, just as is the case for the parts of speech or of time. For these have an order—what is first and what is second—but they do not have a position.

11. For to have a position is characteristic of things whose parts are both connected and persistent; but speech possesses neither of these qualities. Time, it is true, is continuous, but its parts do not persist, for time is the number of motion. ^B And what is past of it has flowed away, while what is future does not yet exist. In the case of number, the opposite happens; for this possesses the persistence of its parts, but is deprived of continuity.

12. Furthermore, some ^C also place weight (or, if you prefer, the measure of the scale) under quantity, and perhaps not erroneously. For weight is not heaviness and lightness, as some insisting maintain, so that it might be a quality, but it is the measure of heaviness and lightness. And this is indeed so.

13. Quantity is also spoken of accidentally, as "much white," "long action," and "much motion." For white is called "much" because the surface in which it exists is large (or extensive); an action is called "long" because of the time; and motion is "much" because of both the time and the place.

14. It belongs to quantity that it does not admit of "more and less," and that it has no contrary.

15. Unless one were to say that contrariety of quantity exists regarding place, such as "up" and "down." But "up" and "down," if they are spoken of in relation to us, ^D are of the category of relative; for we say the moon is "up" in relation to us, as it exists lower than all the other planets. But if "up" and "down" are spoken of in relation to nature, then they belong to the category of "where," as when we say that fire is "up" and earth is "down."

16. It has seemed to some that motion is also a quantity. But motion is not a quantity; rather, it is considered within quantity, just as it is also in substance, in quality, and in "where." In substance, it is as generation and corruption (though these are rather mutations, and are called motions improperly; whereas in quantity, in quality, and in "where," motions are found properly): in quantity, it is increase and decrease; in quality, it is alteration; and in "where," it is change according to place, which is called locomotion.

17. This locomotion is divided into circular motion, which we call revolution, and motion in a straight line. There are six differences of motion along a straight line: that which is toward the top, that which is toward the bottom, that which is toward the inside—that is, toward the front—that which is toward the outside—that is, toward the back—that which is toward

right and left. For to move towards the middle and downwards, according to the world, is the same. Whence, with the circulation, there are seven local motions.

18. Since, therefore, that which changes changes either in respect to itself, or in respect to some of those things which are in it, or around it—if it changes in respect to itself, it effects generation and corruption; but if in respect to some of the things which are in it, if it is in respect to quantity, it effects increase and decrease; but if in respect to quality, it constitutes alteration; but if it is changed in respect to that which is around it, it effects local motion. For the place is neither that which is moved, nor any of those things which are in it; but it follows after those things which are moved, and is around those things which are moved. ^B

19. Here, however, by motion we do not mean the intellectual [motion], nor the motive power of the soul, which moves itself, but the natural and corporeal [motion], which is properly called change.

20. Since we have already said that generation and corruption are rather changes than motions, we must not be ignorant that that which is moved, while it is in actuality and remains, thus is moved; but that which is not in actuality, nor remains, is not even moved. Since, therefore, generation is a change from what is not into being, it is for this reason not motion. For that which is not is not moved. Again, since corruption is a change from being into not being, for this reason it is not motion; for since the being does not remain in such a change, but falls away from its own nature and is dissolved, how could it be said to be properly moved?

21. Some have said that alteration is not a species of motion, but that it coincides with the other species of this. But this is not so. For it is possible for alteration to occur apart from any other species of motion. For that which is moved in respect to a passion does not necessarily also increase or decrease; nor is it necessary that that which is increased or decreased should also, in any way, be altered. For a square is increased when a gnomon is placed around it, but it is not altered (for it remains a square still); and when the gnomon is removed, it is decreased and remains a square again. And wine is altered without being increased or decreased. So that alteration can be considered by itself, as unmixed with other motions. ^C

22. To every motion, also, some rest is opposed. To motion simply, simple rest, or immobility, is opposed, both that which is before the motion and that which is after the motion; and perhaps even that which is in the motion itself.

23. Since every motion and change occurs from something into something—for instance, in generation, from the elements into the composite body; and in corruption, from the body back into the elements; and in increase, from the smaller to the larger; and in decrease, conversely, from the larger to the smaller; and in alteration, from the opposing qualities into the opposing qualities, as from the

heat into cold, and from black into white; and in local change, from the opposing places into the opposing places, that is, from above to below and from below to above; and similarly in the case of others.

24. Since these things are as stated, in so far as motion is from something, it may be said to be opposed to the rest preceding it; in so far as it is toward something, to the rest following it; and in so far as it is not performed without time—but even what seems most instantaneous, such as the curdling of milk, comes to pass in time—according to this, it perhaps possesses also a following and intelligible rest, while it proceeds from remission into intensity, and is carried from what is less to what is more, until it perfectly attains the goal itself; whether this be from the extremes or from intermediate points. For there is, even in intermediate points, both remission and intensity, and the less and the more. Some things are extremes, such as hot and cold; the former as burning, the latter as killing. But between these there are not a few remissions and intensities. Therefore, to motion simply, rest simply is opposed. ^B

25. And to singular motions, singular motions and singular rests are appropriately opposed.

26. To generation, as generation, is opposed corruption; but as motion, the rest according to it. To growth, diminution, and the rest according to growth. For that which grows is not augmented to infinity, nor is that which is diminished, diminished forever. To local change, as motion, the rest according to place; but as local change, the change into the opposing place—for instance, to that which is downward, that which is upward; to that which is upward, that which is downward; to that which is to the right, that which is to the left; and to that which is to the left, that which is to the right; to that which is toward the inside, that is, the forward, that which is toward the outside, that is, the backward, and vice versa. ^C But to the celestial motion alone there is no opposing motion, unless someone were to force the periods of the sphere from risings to settings, and again from settings to risings, to be opposing motions. And alteration, as change according to quality, will have as its opposite the change into the contrary of the quality, as whitening has blackening and chilling has heating; but as motion, it will be opposed to the rest according to quality. ^D

27. But regarding motion and rest, it will be examined more accurately in the second book in the fourth and indeed the fifth chapters.

Chapter XXI: On quality; in which also on motion.

The amount Point, Now, Unit.

The continuous, which is magnitude: Body, surface, line, place, time.

The discrete, which is: Number, multitude.

Of quantities

Motion

In substance { change from not-being to being is genesis; from being to not-being is decay. In quantity { growth, diminution. In quality { alteration.

In place, change of place, which is called locomotion: { On a straight line: upward, downward, to the right, to the left, forward, which is inward, backward, which is outward. In a circle, which is rotation. }

{ That which changes { either changes in itself and causes genesis and decay; or according to something quantitative in it, and causes growth and diminution; or according to quality, and causes alteration; or around itself, and causes change of place. }

Table of chapter 21, on quantity, where also on motion.

Quantities lacking (are) { point, now, unit. Quantum aliud (est) { continuous which is magnitude (as) { body, superficies, line, locus, tempus. discretum which is multitude (as) { number, oratio. Quantorum { alia have position of parts (as) { body, superficies, line, locus. alia do not have position of parts (as) { number, oratio, tempus.

198 Motion is considered either in substance (as) { generation from non-being into being, corruption from being into non-being. in quantity (as) { increment, decrement, in quality, alteration.

199 Motion (the species are numbered six: generation, corruption, increment, decrement, alteration, motion according to place). Motion in *ubi* (as) is change according to place, which is called *translatio* (and is either) according to a straight line, which is or downward, to the right, to the left, forward (which is inside), backward (which is outside), circular, which is circulation.

What is moved: - either it is moved according to itself (and makes) { generation and corruption. - or according to something of those things that are in it (and then): - either according to quantity, and makes increment, decrement, - or according to quality, and makes alteration. - or according to something of those things that are around it, and it makes motion according to place.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXII. WHICH IS CONCERNING THE 'QUALE' AND QUALITY.

1. Describes quality. 2. Explains the homonymy of *quale*. 3. Divides quality into four kinds or species. 4. Exposes the homonymy of disposition. 5. Explains the difference between habit and disposition, and describes one by the other. 6. Defines and divides habit. 7. Defines disposition. 8. Approaches power and powerlessness according to the species of quality. 9. Through an objection, shows what power of man he understands here, and proposes examples of both power and powerlessness. 10. Takes up the third species of quality, and proposes a double or even triple difference between a passable quality and a passion. 11. Divides both from their subjects. 12. Subdivides passable quality in inanimate things and makes it triple. 13. Objection. 14. Divides the passable qualities of animate beings, distinct from the subject, into those that are in the soul and those that are in the body. 15. What passions are called. 16. Divides into those things which are of inanimate and animate beings: whose latter he further subdivides into those that are in the soul and those that are in the body. 17. By way of standard examples, shrewdly describes the natural generation of pallor from fear and redness from shame. 18. Likewise shows that to those who are conceived, certain colors are generated from the mixture of humors and blood for whatever reasons, which he also proves by the example of an unnamed woman. 19. Asserts that pallor from fear and redness from shame are passions. 20. Approaches the fourth species of quality, figure and form. 23. Shows of which one this discourse is here. 24. Explains the difference between figure and form. 25. Describes straightness and curvature. 26. Pronounces that rough and smooth are not qualities, but positions, and proves this by the description of each. 27. Affirms that rare and dense are distinct, in the elements indeed essential and natural qualities, but in other bodies only positions, and describes both. 28. Also describes *qualia* in the concrete. 29. Divides fourfold. 30. Recounts their properties or adjuncts. 34. As *quale* is to similar and dissimilar, so *quantum* is mostly attributed to equal and unequal.

CHAPTER XXII. Of the *quale* and quality.

1. Quality is that according to which some are said to be *quales* (of such a nature). ^A

2. But the *quale* itself is called a quality; yet also that which receives the quality is called *quale*, that is, that very thing which is affected by quality.

3. Quality is divided into habit and disposition, into potency and impotency, into passion and passible quality, and into figure and form.

4. Disposition, then, is the common name for both habit and disposition. For disposition is divided both into habit and into that which is called disposition homonymously with the common term.

5. These indeed differ from one another, in that the former, that is, the habit, is of long duration and difficult to move, while the latter, the disposition, is of short duration and easily moved. ^A For disposition is as it were a non-fixed habit, whereas habit is a solidified and difficult-to-dislodge disposition.

6. Habit, therefore, is a quality difficult to remove, perfecting, as in the case of knowledge or virtue, and secure health; or depraving, as in the case of a hectic fever. For knowledge could not be cast off without great change, whether it has arisen through disease, through continuous negligence, or through some other such cause. In the same way, virtue, temperance, justice, and every other such quality is not easily cast off, nor easily moved. ^B Likewise, stable health and a disease which has become, over a long time, as it were natural.

7. Disposition, however, is the way to a habit, or else, because it has not yet achieved stability, it is of the number of those things which are easily moved and easily changed; such as acquired heat and cold, and unstable health and disease.

8. Another species of quality is potency and impotency. ^C

9. By potency we do not mean the common aptitude by which all men are said naturally to have a potency for all the arts, but rather the individual aptitude naturally present in each person for some specific thing; which aptitude is itself said to be naturally present. For temperament is also called a particular nature. According to such potency, which we call partial, we say some are pugilists, or runners, or healthy, or prone to disease, because some have natural resources to excel in the pugilistic art, and others in the art of running; and some possess a natural potency so as not to suffer or be harmed easily by just anyone, while others are deprived of such a potency. ^D Thus, too, hard and soft are spoken of: the one as having the potency not to be cut easily, while the soft is impotent in this regard.

10. The third species of quality is passible quality and passion, which also differ from one another: in that the passible quality is joined to some passion, but the passion is a path toward such a quality; and the former has its being in having-become, the latter in becoming. Therefore, a passible quality corresponds proportionately to a habit, but a passion to a disposition.

^A

11. Yet both are considered not only in animate beings, just as a habit and a disposition, but also in inanimate ones.

12. The passible quality in inanimate things is, then, of three kinds. For either it did not arise from a passion, but yet produces a passion in us, as the heat of fire; for this did not arise from some passion, since it resides in the fire naturally and essentially; yet it produces in us a passion, namely warmth. Or it has arisen from a passion and becomes a cause of passion, just as the sweetness of edible broth; for this arose from the passion of the seasoning, and it sweetens the taste as one partakes of it. Or it has arisen from a passion, but does not communicate that passion to us, as is the case with colors. For although they have come into being from a passion—that is, from a mixture—they do not color us together with themselves.

13. But if white is said to distinguish and diffuse the sight, and black to combine and collect it, they do not nevertheless produce a denominative passion; white does not whiten, black does not blacken, just as fire warms and honey sweetens, being the one warm and the other sweet. Thus, therefore, are passible qualities considered in inanimate things. ^B

14. In animate beings, they are recognized either according to the soul or according to the body. According to the body, as the blackness that naturally belongs to Ethiopians and to ravens; for this too arose from a certain tempering of the humors, just as congenital pallor and ruddiness—according to which some are called pale and ruddy—or as those instances of pallor and blackness ^C which, on account of a long illness or constant burning (heat), become permanent and difficult to change. But passible qualities according to the soul are such as madness and irascibility, and whatever other commotions of the mind have arisen not naturally, but from certain circumstances, being difficult to remove, or even completely unchangeable.

15. Those things are called passions which are both easily dissolved and rapidly changed.

16. And just as warmth in water is a passion in inanimate things, so in animate beings, according to the soul, it is an incidental anger, as if someone were angered by being incited by some of those things that seemed absurd to him. For he quickly returns again to his former state; whence such a person is not called irascible, but is said to have been angry. According to the body, however, the passions are called pallor on account of fear, and flushing on account of shame. ^D

17. For the pallor on account of fear occurs when the blood retreats to the heart as to its proper source and no longer appears on the surface, which also happens to those who are otherwise exhausted of blood. But the flushing on account of shame occurs when the blood proceeds from the heart to the surface and, as it were, obstructs the leading faculty, and as the darkness

of the base thing which has entered the mind, because of shame.

18 ^A They say, therefore, that even in the case of those who are conceived, if such concurrences happen, due to whatever causes, such natural colors are produced. And a certain woman is said to have conceived an Ethiopian while imagining him at the time of conception, and neither was she an Ethiopian, nor did she have intercourse with an Ethiopian, yet she is said to have brought forth an Ethiopian.

19 ^A Therefore, paleness because of fear, and flushing because of shame, are called passions, because they are easily moved and easily cast off. For this reason, men do not call those who suffer these things "pale" or "flush" in a derivative sense.

20 ^B The fourth species of quality is shape and the form existing in each thing, and in addition to these, straightness and curvature, and things similar to these, such as those that have the shape of a cone, or a spiral, or a lentil. For all these are gathered into the fourth species of quality.

21 ^B But shape and form differ.

22 ^B And shape, indeed, is that which is contained by some term or terms. This must also be understood according to the specific determination of a surface.

23 ^B But form is spoken of in two ways; for it is also the most specific species, of which there is no discourse at present. ^C Form is also called the quality or impression that appears on the surface, that is to say, the idea and the character, in regard to which we call some things beautiful and well-formed, or ugly and deformed; our discourse now is concerning this.

24 ^C Accordingly, in the case of natural objects, they assign both shape and form, but shape alone in the case of mathematical objects, such as a triangle, a square, and the rest.

25 ^C Straightness is called uprightness, and curvature is called twisting; from which a straight and curved line is named.

26 ^D Some have said that rough and smooth are qualities; but they appear to be positions rather than qualities. For smooth is that whose parts are situated equally along a straight line, as in the case of polished marble. And rough is that whose parts are not situated equally, but some protrude and others are lacking, as in the case of a saw.

27 ^D But rare and dense, when considered in the elements, are essential and natural qualities. For the rarity of air and fire has penetrated them entirely through and through, essentially and naturally, just as the density of water and earth has done. But in other bodies, the rare and the dense are positions. And dense, indeed, is that whose parts are situated so close to one another that no other body can fall between them, as is the case with bronze and iron. But rare is that which, as it were, is not one, but has parts distant from one another, and suited for the reception of another body, just as

a sponge and pumice. Let these things, therefore, have been said concerning qualities.

28. What are things called paronymously from qualities, or in any other way from them?

29. For things qualified are taken in four ways: either paronymously, and this for the most part; as from whiteness a white body, and from sweetness a sweet thing; or equivocally, such as a triangle, a square, and things of this sort, and the musical woman and the grammatical; for in these, the things qualified are named identical to the qualities; or by a different name, just as he who is endowed with virtue is called a good man; or nameless, as in the second species of quality it sometimes happens—I mean that which is according to potentiality and impotence. For in this species, sometimes only the thing qualified has obtained a name; just as we call "pugilistic" one who is aptly disposed toward the pugilistic art and is able to become a boxer; but the potentiality, that is, the very aptitude itself, has remained nameless. For the name "pugilistic" was received according to act, not according to potentiality. Sometimes, however, both the thing qualified and the quality have remained nameless; just as he who has a natural aptitude for grammar, and the aptitude itself toward the grammar. For even the art of grammar has had its name assigned from the act.

30. ^B It is also present to a thing qualified—and most congenially—to admit of contrariety. For in other categories, too, contraries seem to be present according to the quality which is in each. Yet, a contrary does not follow every thing qualified. For to rectilinear and circular figures there is nothing contrary. Nor is any contrariety opposed to red, dusky, yellow, or other intermediate colors. For if those which are most distant from one another are contraries, with right will nothing contrary stand against the intermediates, which are not most distant from one another; and how could there be more than one contrary to the one?

31. And the "more" and "less" are present to the thing qualified. For where there is contrariety, there also, for the most part, the "more" and "less" are found. And if an intermediate is seen in all contraries, of necessity the "more" and "less" will also be seen. But if there is somewhere, as happens quite rarely, an immediate contrariety, as that which is in the case of the simply even and odd, the "more" and "less" are absent from there.

32. ^C But it is most proper to the thing qualified to be like or unlike. Likeness is the adventitious participation of the same species or form. Whence we call those "like in color" who have the same color, and "like in character" or lineaments, those who possess the same idea or species.

33. Furthermore, just as the like or unlike [is proper] ^D to the thing qualified, so too the equal or unequal [is appropriate] to quantity. For a body is equal to a body, or unequal; and a number to a number is equal or unequal; and place to place, and time to time

and speech to speech. And likewise in others which are, properly and not according to accident, called quanta. For action would not be said to be equal or unequal to action, but rather similar or dissimilar; and a white thing is similar or dissimilar to a white thing.

34. They say that quality and the other categories, except for substance, are divided into those things which are from them, just as those which are from one and towards one, because they are not even properly genera. For things which have an order, as to what is first and what is second among those things which are from them, do not preserve the genuine nature of a genus.

Table of Chapter 22, concerning the qualified and quality.

Quality is divided: into habit, as science and virtue; and disposition, as cold and heat. into power, as healthful and hard; and impotence, as sickly and soft. into passion, as pallor or blushing; and passive quality, as sweetness and bitterness. into figure, as triangle, quadrangular; and form, as beautiful and ugly.

Qualified things are taken: either paronymously, as grammarian from grammar; or equivocally, as triangle and musical woman; or heteronymously, as a good man from virtue; or without a name, as in the second species of quality.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXIII, WHICH IS CONCERNING THOSE THINGS WHICH ARE RELATIVE.

CHAPTER XXIII. Concerning those things which are relative.

1. Relatives are those which, being the very things that they are, [are said to be] of other...

things, or are in some way related to another. For it is in their relationships that relatives have their existence.

2. Therefore, they are also [defined] by another description as relatives, for whom "to be" is the same as "having a relationship to something."

3. When, therefore, something is considered in relation to itself, it is not a relative; but when it is endowed with a habit toward something else, then it is indeed a relative. For example, Socrates, insofar as he is a man or a philosopher or something of that sort, is spoken of in himself ^A and is in no way referred to another; but insofar as he is a father or a teacher, in that respect he is referred to another, and what he is himself is said to be of others. For being a father, he is called the father of a son, and being a teacher, he is called the teacher of a pupil.

4. Since, however, the reference of relatives to another is manifold, and not all are said to be of others, for this reason the phrase "or in any other way related to another" is added. For some relatives are referred to the genitive case, as son and father, pupil and teacher; others to the dative, as "equal" and "similar," for the equal is equal to an equal, and the similar is similar to a similar; others to both the genitive and dative, as "that which exceeds" exceeds "that which is exceeded," and "that which is exceeded" is exceeded by "that which exceeds"; and again, "the exceeding" exceeds by "the excess"—for example, ten exceeds six by four. Some are also spoken of with a preposition, as "the great" relative to "the small" is great, and "the small" relative to "the great" is small. Some are also [expressed] with a certain permutation of the word, as "the cutter" cuts "that which is cut," and "that which is cut" is cut by "the cutter." Since, therefore, things that are relative are formed and expressed in so many ways, for this reason there is added to their description: "or in any other way related to another."

5. ^B There belongs to some relatives both contrariety and the "more and less"—not, however, by the definition of relatives, but because relatives cannot be conceived by themselves without another predicament (for they always coexist with other predicaments). Therefore, when they are taken within a predicament that has contrariety, they will also have contrariety; but when [they are taken] within a predicament that does not have contrariety, they will not have any contrariety either. And in the predicament where there is contrariety, in that same one there is also "more and less," provided that the contrariety has an intermediate, as was said before.

6. Accordingly, for the particular knowledge—that is, the one which is in this or that specific person—ignorance is the contrary; and this can be called "more" knowledge or "less" knowledge. Just as for the ^C virtue practiced by certain people, vice is the contrary, and this can be said to be "more" or "less" virtue. But for universal knowledge, ignorance is indeed the contrary, according to the universal definition; however, "more" and "less" do not exist in it. For the universal knowledge could not be "more" knowledge. The same is true also for universal... ^D

virtue. For "more" and "less" belong to imperfect things, not to perfect and supreme ones. ^A

7. But neither does the equal have the capacity for "more" and "less"; for the equal is defined. But "more" and "less" subsist according to the indefiniteness of matter.

8. But the unequal, the dissimilar, and the similar naturally have the power of admitting "more" and "less." For one thing is, and is called, "more" or "less" similar, dissimilar, and unequal to another.

9. They do not, however, attribute contrariety to them, so that—since the same thing is found to be equal and unequal, similar and dissimilar when taken in relation to one thing and then another—for this reason the same thing might not also admit contraries at the same time. ^B

10. But if we have said that inequality, being peculiar to quantity, admits of "more" and "less," this should not be called into controversy or doubt. For quantity, as quantity, does not admit "more" and "less." But that which happens to quantity will admit of "more" and "less," not insofar as it is quantity, but insofar as it is quality.

11. Again, if virtue and science are found to be what is "relative," being qualities, one must consider that it is not unreasonable for the same thing, according to one account or another, to be placed under one category or another. Science and virtue, therefore, insofar as they render [subjects] qualified, are qualities; but because they exhibit a relationship to something else, they are brought into the category of relations. For science is science of the knowable, and virtue is the virtue of a good man. ^C

12. Furthermore, all things which are "relative" are said to be convertible; beginning from the same thing and ending in the same, even if occasionally they vary in the pronunciation of the word: as the friend is the friend of a friend; and the gift is gifted by the giver.

13. One must make the rendering toward that to which the thing is said [to be related] by nature, and even if a name has not been established, one must derive the name of the second thing from the prototype. For behold, a bird has a wing, but not insofar as it is a bird does it have a wing, but insofar as it is winged. For among winged things, some are membrane-winged, as bees; some have a shell-like covering for their feathers, as beetles; some have fleshy wings, as bats; and some have split wings, as birds. ^D Therefore, not everything that has a wing is immediately a bird, but it is "winged." Thus, therefore, it must be rendered: the wing is the wing of the winged [thing]; and the winged [thing] is winged by the wing. Again, since not all ships have a rudder (for small boats are rowed by oars, and simultaneously directed [by them]), the rudder should not be rendered toward the ship, but toward that which is "ruddered," so that the conversion may be correctly made; for the rudder is the rudder of the ruddered [thing], and the ruddered [thing] is ruddered by the rudder.

14. It is clear, therefore, from these things that if the rendering is not...

^A properly constituted in accordance with what is confessed and what has its names set forth, a conversion cannot occur. For if someone were to say that the slave is a slave of a man, and not of a master, he would not be able to effect a conversion. For it is indeed true that the slave is a slave of a man, but not in that someone is a man, but in that he is a master; otherwise all men would have slaves.

15. If the rudder and the wing, being substances, are understood in relation to something, they do not become "relative" ^B in that they are substances, but in that they have a relationship toward one another.

16. For the part also, having a relationship toward the whole, is called the part of a whole; and the whole is a whole in its parts. And the genera of substances and the species are spoken of according to the account of the relationship. For the genus is the genus of a species, and the species is the species of a genus.

17. Furthermore, things that are relative exist simultaneously by nature. Whence they also eliminate each other and imply each other. ^C For if the son does not exist, there will be no father; but if the son exists, there will surely be a father; and again, if the father exists, there will also be a son; and if the father does not exist, there will be no son.

18. For if we name the son of one who has died, we affirm this in relation to when he was still living, or also because even having died he did not cease to exist. Thus, things that are relative both eliminate each other and coexist.

19. Coexisting and eliminating each other in the case of relative things must be understood ^D according to the relationship, not according to substance. For in whatever respect it is the case for relative things that they exist, in that same respect do they coexist and eliminate each other.

20. Again, if knowledge exists, there is something that is knowable; and if sensation exists, there is something sensible; but if knowledge and sensation do not exist, the knowable and the sensible are also eliminated; and conversely.

21. And if indeed the knowables and the sensibles are prior to knowledge and sensation, they are not so insofar as they are knowable and sensible. Just as neither is a father, insofar as he is a father, older than the son, even if he happens to be prior in time; for before he begot a son, he was not a father; but when he had begotten a son, then he began to be a father. So it is also with knowables and sensibles.

22. Furthermore, things that are relative have the relationship either in those things that are self-standing (or substances), or not in those things that are self-standing, which are the accidents. If, then, they are in those that are self-standing, they have the relationship either naturally, as father and son, or not naturally. And if not naturally, then either fortuitously, as slave and master; or technically, as pupil and teacher; or by choice, as friend and friend. But if they are not in those that are self-standing, then either naturally, as double and half; or not naturally, as great and small. For this is a matter of chance rather than of nature. For art and choice do not have a place in things that are not self-standing. Unless perhaps something might appear that has the reference toward another, and is self-standing and by accident

But in these cases, ^A all things that are relative are gathered together.

23. Others divide the relative more broadly and clearly into ten species: identity, inequality, generation, participation, submission, passion, judgment, position, asymmetry, and relation to genus.

24. Identity, then, exists when the judgment is made with respect to a synonym; as a friend is a friend of a friend, and an enemy is an enemy of an enemy, and the equal is equal to the equal, and the like is like to the like. Inequality, as the greater, the double, the multiple. Generation, as father, son. Participation, as the participant and that which is participated in. Submission, as slave and disciple. Passion, ^B as being beaten, being burned. Judgment, as measure, sense, science; for science judges the scibilia, and sense the sensible, and all knowledge that which is to be known, and measure that which is measured; and things similar to these are as judging things relative to things judged. Position, as right, left, sitting, standing, reclining. All these are said to be convertible; asymmetry, or powerlessness, such as that which is impossible for us to see, this we are also unable to see, such as the sphere without stars, the oyster in the depths, the air as devoid of color. Relative to genus; as when geometry is spoken of as relative, according to the relation it has to science. For science is the science of the scibile, and the scibile is the science of the scibile.

Diagram of Chapter 23, Concerning Relatives

The relative is carried: Towards the genitive, as the father is the father of the son; Towards the dative, as the equal is equal to the equal; Towards both the genitive and dative, as the greater exceeds the lesser, and the lesser is exceeded by the greater; With a preposition, as the great is great in relation to [πρός] the small; With some transposition in the expression, as the cutter cuts the cuttable, and the cuttable is cut by the cutter.

The relative has a relation:

Either in self-standing things, that is, in substances: - natural, as father and son; - destined (or circumstantial), as slave and master; - technical, as disciple and teacher; - voluntary, as friend and friend.

Or not in self-standing things, that is, in accidents: - natural, as teacher and half; - destined, as great and small.

Further concerning relatives: Identity, inequality, generation, participation, submission, passion, judgment, position, asymmetry, and relation to genus.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXIV, WHICH IS ON DOING, UNDERGOING, AND HAVING.

1. How doing and undergoing differ. 2. Admonition or rule on how one ought to judge what doing and undergoing are, not from the figure of speech, but from the signification itself, and why this must be done in this way. 3. To do is divided into three parts. 4. To contemplate is spoken of in three ways. 5. How the function of contemplation proceeds. 6. Doing and creating signify equivocally in relation to genus, and concerning the arts as well which provide things conducive to life. 7. To act, *τὸ πράττειν*, of what things it is said. 8. Which arts are productive or effective, and which are active. 9. Doing and undergoing are also considered in inanimate things. 10. Undergoing is twofold, corruptive and perfective. 11. Occupation: how it constitutes diverse categories, even though they appear to be referred to one another. 12. The second occupation, ending in observation. 13. The third occupation: that doing and undergoing are not contraries to one another, although each separately receives its contrary and the more and less. 14. He distinguishes the term "to have" as being equivocal; for it signifies a category, and others also, of which he recounts eight, but only two, the third and fourth, can be referred to this category. 15. He defines the categorical "to have." 16. He shows what is contained therein. 17. What is not contained therein. 18. How "to have" and "to possess" differ according to Plato's opinion. 19. He divides those things which are said to be held in this way, by time. 20. Those things which are held in time of war he subdivides by manner, and again separates these by a new division according to effect. 21. Those things which are held in time of peace he subdivides by use, and the later member he further subdivides by subject. 22. Those things held in time of peace he again subdivides by accident. 23. The categorical "to have" properly befits only those who choose, that is, humans, and not even properly inanimate things. 24. What privation is opposed to this "to have." 25. Conclusion of the chapter with the occupation, as the rest of the categories, concerning when, where, and position, nothing is discussed here.

CHAPTER XXIV.

On doing, undergoing, and having.

1. Doing is to act upon something; undergoing is to be altered by another. Doing, therefore, has its cause in itself; undergoing [has its cause] both in itself and in another: in itself, in that it is naturally disposed to be altered; in another, in that it is altered by something.

2. But one must not judge what doing is and what undergoing is by looking only at the figure of the word, but rather at the things themselves. For some things have "doing" both in the thing and in the configuration of the word, like "to heal"; but some are productive in the configuration of the word, being pronounced actively, but in the thing itself they are passive. Such is to mourn and *τὸ πάσχειν* (to be susti-

suffering), denoting a passion, even if they are structured in their pronunciation as an action. Some, however, though brought forward passively, present an action, such as to go and (to) do battle.

3. *Το* *ποιεῖν* (to act) is divided into *τὸ θεωρεῖν* (to contemplate), into that which is equivocal to the genus *ποιεῖν*, and into *τὸ πράττειν* (to do).

4. *Το* *θεωρεῖν* performs its act either by simple thoughts regarding the investigation of intelligible and indivisible substances—which is properly contemplation, a function of the mind alone—or it conducts its investigation regarding immovable mathematical objects, such as to practice geometry; not indeed using simple applications, but composite ones and ones that proceed by way of transition, such as are the acts of pure reason. Or ^B it performs its contemplation regarding ever-moving sensible substances, using the senses in conjunction with reasoning; such as to practice astronomy, demonstrating the rational arguments that agree with the phenomena.

5. And thus the entire act of contemplation proceeds from above, from pure thoughts, to reasoned arguments joined with the senses. *Τὸ* *θεωρεῖν* is therefore established in this way.

6. That which is equivocal in relation to the genus *ποιεῖν* consists in leading things that have no share in being into being. This, however, properly and truly exists only in God, who first brought forth all being from non-being, and again brings non-being ^C out of things that are. The arts are also said to "make" when they prepare things useful for the self-sufficiency of life.

7. *Τὸ* *πράττειν* (to do) is understood in terms of choosing, deliberating, legislating, and similar things.

8. Some, moreover, call those arts "productive" whose results remain after the making, as is the case with architecture and shipbuilding; but they call "active" those whose results do not remain but have their being while they are being done, as can be seen in the arts of flute-playing and dancing.

9. *Το* *ποιεῖν* (to act) is also considered in inanimate things, just ^D as is *τὸ* *πάσχειν* (to be passive); as fire heats, and crystal cools, and wood is cut, and a stone is heated, and again cools.

10. Of *τὸ* *πάσχειν*, one kind is destructive, such as to be burned, and another is perfective, such as to learn and to know and to perceive.

11. But if acting and being passive have a relation toward one another, as to heat and to be heated, each thing must nevertheless be reduced to the genus in the same way as it is spoken of. Acting therefore exists in itself, separated from those things that are relative; and being passive likewise. Just as that which is relative was seen in substance, according to that which is father and son 230 and in quantity according to the

equal and unequal; and in quality, similar and dissimilar; so indeed also in acting and being acted upon.

12. And there is nothing absurd in subjecting one and the same thing to two categories, when it is considered both in regard to its subsistence in itself, and in regard to its relation to something else.

13. But acting and being acted upon do not even have contrariety toward one another, even if they use opposition in their expressions. Yet each of them admits of contrariety and of being more or less. For to heat is the contrary of to chill; and it is possible to heat more and less. And again, to be heated is contrary to to be chilled; and it is possible to be heated more and to be heated less. But truly to heat is not contrary to being heated, nor is to chill to being chilled; and in other cases it is the same. Thus much, then, let it be said concerning acting and being acted upon.

14. But the term "to have," spoken of simply, is an equivocal expression. For it contains that very category, and yet it also declares other things. For it is said "to have," as a habit and disposition, or some other quality. Thus we say one has knowledge and virtue, or whiteness or pallor. As a quantity, insofar as one is said to have magnitude, perhaps of five cubits, or those things which are about the body, such as a garment or a tunic; as in a member, such as to have feet and hands and head; as in a vessel, just as a medimnus is said to have grain, and an amphora water; as a possession; for we say one has a house or a field. A man is also said to have a wife, and a woman a husband. But this mode of having seems most alien. For here "to have" declares nothing other than to cohabit. These things, then, concerning the equivocal expression of "to have."

15. Whence, distinguishing the category of "to have" from other meanings, philosophers speak thus: To have is an encompassing of substance by substance.

16. Therefore, if any body is acquired, so that one is placed around another, they include all such things in the category of having.

17. Therefore, they do not say that possessions, or slaves, or friends, or fathers, or sons, or parts of the body, belong to this genus of "having," because these are not in an encompassing.

18. Hence, according to the opinion of Plato, "to have" and "to possess" differ; for example, if someone having bought a garment and keeping control of it does not wear it, he might be said to possess it, but by no means to have it.

19. Now, those things held according to the categorical "having" are held either in time of war or in time of peace.

20. And of those in time of war, some are worn, others are held; and of these, some are for protection, others are for defense: for protection, such as a breastplate, helmet, shield; for defense, such as a spear, sword, bow.

21. Of those in peace, some are held for ornament according to the different parts of the body, as a crown, necklace, ring; others for covering. And of these, some are about the main part of the body, as a gar-

ment; others about a part, as shoes; and some as instruments, as a mattock.

22. ^A And some are held in another way, as possessions, like silver or something else which we often hold.

23. Everything that strictly "has" must have it by choice. Whence inanimate things cannot strictly be said to "have" according to the meaning of the predicamental term "to have."

24. A privation is opposed to "having," as when we say "naked," "unshod," "unarmed." So much for "to have."

25. As for ^B the remaining categories, since they are obvious and not complex, enough has already been said in the preceding sections.

Table of Chapter Twenty-Four, on being acted upon, acting, and having.

To act (is divided into): * Being, i.e., thinking, * And doing, i.e., building, * And acting, as choosing, deliberating.

To be acted upon: * The corruptive, as being burned, * The perfective, as learning or perceiving.

To have (is said of): * Habit, disposition, or another quality, * As a quantity, e.g., having magnitude, * As things about the body, e.g., a garment, * As in a part, e.g., a ring, * As a part, e.g., a hand or foot, * As in a container, e.g., a measure of wheat, * As a possession, e.g., a field, * As a wife or husband, which is to cohabit.

Sub-division of the predicamental "to have": * Things worn: * For war: * Defensive, * Offensive. * For peace: * For ornament, as a crown, necklace, * For covering: * About the greater part of the body, as a garment, * About a part, as shoes.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXV, WHICH IS ON OPPOSITES.

CHAPTER XXV. Of opposites.

^A either as relatives, such as double and half; or as contraries, such as white and black; or as habit and privation, such as sight and blindness; or as affirmation and negation, such as "man sits" and "man does not sit."

3. Those therefore which are relatives bring each other in and take each other away, and are said to be the very things that they are in relation to their opposites, or in whatever way they refer to them.

4. Contraries, moreover, are both species, as white and black, cold and hot, and the like; or one is the furthest falling away from the other, like cowardice and injustice. For the former is a complete falling away from fortitude, the latter from justice. And in general, evil is not a species and an end, but a complete falling away from the good. ^B

5. When, therefore, we consider it as being of a nature to return to the species, it is a contrary; but when it can in no way return, then it is called privation.

6. Furthermore, of contraries, some are immediate, others have an intermediate state, otherwise called mediate.

7. Indeed, those are immediate whose one member must of necessity exist in the subject; while those are mediate whose one member does not of necessity exist.

8. Of immediate contraries, some are substantial, others are accidental. ^C

9. They are substantial, as in the case of number, the even and the odd. For it is not possible to conceive of number separated from the even, or seven from the odd. For this reason they are also called substantial. An even number is that which is divided into two. That which is not divided into two is called odd. Such, therefore, are the substantial immediate contraries.

10. Those which are accidental are such as can be present and absent without the destruction of the subject: for instance, health and disease. And "disease" here is to be taken as any perversion of nature whatsoever that falls under the senses. Thus, therefore, are the immediate contraries constituted. ^D

11. Those, however, which are called mediate, and have an intermediate state, either both can be absent from the subject—as white and black from Socrates (for it is possible for Socrates to be neither black nor white, but pale or dusky)—or one of the contraries is absent, but the other is necessarily present, because the species has already been occupied by it beforehand. For instance, white is present in the swan, the snow, and white lead, while black is absent; and in the crow, ebony, and pitch, black is present, while white is absent.

12. The intermediate state of mediate contraries either participates in both extremes, when it also has a name, such as tepid; or it participates in neither of the extremes, when it is even anonymous, and is revealed only by the negation of the extremes; as the medium between just and unjust and

^A unjust. It is said, in fact, that this is neither just nor unjust; such is an infant, who is neither just nor unjust.

13. But some of the moderns have called that which is considered in any way as a medium between good and ^B evil "indifferent."

14. Archytas also demonstrates a medium in relatives. For between master and slave he places that which is free; and between greater and lesser [he places] the equal; and between the broad and the narrow, that which is appropriate or fitting.

15. It must be understood that the categories of contraries are relative. For a contrary is contrary to a contrary; but the things contained under them do not share in the relation to something.

16. Furthermore, among mediated contraries, some have one medium, others many. For hot and cold have only one medium, which is lukewarm; but white and black have the grayish, the pale, the yellow, the red, the reddish, and others.

17. Three things follow from contraries.

18. First, that good is contrary to evil, but evil is contrary both to good and to another evil. For instance, temperance is contrary to both intemperance and stupidity (for both are vices); and intemperance is contrary indeed to temperance, but is also contrary to stupidity.

19. And nature is not unjust in having set two contraries against one. For on the one side, symmetry is set against the one, asymmetry. For temperance, being a mean, is symmetry; but stupidity and intemperance, being extremes, are asymmetries. For the one is excess, and the other is deficiency. Therefore, symmetry is contrary to asymmetry, as good is to evil; but the extremes are contrary to each other because they are most distant from one another.

20. And to evil, evil is contrary; but good is not contrary to any good, for good is one and simple; whereas evil is varied and many-sided.

21. The second consequence of contraries is that contraries can coexist with one another in genus and species; in genus, as in animal, and in species, as in human. For we say that some animals are white and some are black; and that among humans, some are healthy and some are ill. But in an individual, contraries cannot coexist with one another in the same place. For it is not possible for Socrates to be healthy and ill at the same time, or to be heated and chilled in the same part at the same time.

22. The third is that contraries are either under the same genus, as white and black are under color; or under contrary genera, as justice and injustice are under virtue and vice; or the contraries themselves are genera, as the universal good and the universal evil. For these, being contraries, are genera.

^A Likewise, neither is virtue and vice a primary genus, for above them are habit and disposition; nor is the universal good and universal evil, but these also are joined or reduced to quality. And quality is the most generic genus of them all. So much concerning contraries.

24. Habitus (hexis) and privation (sterêsis) are said in many ways. For in one way, the activity of what holds and what is held is called habit.

25. For the habit of a garment is said when one possesses it, and the other is held by the one who possesses it. And Plato somewhere spoke of a habit of arms in reference to one who possesses arms.

26. ^B In another way, we call those acquired qualities habits which have become stable, as well as natural ones and those according to science or art, according to which those who are in them are called "habituated," that is, endowed with habits. According to this [meaning], we also name perfect virtues as habits.

27. Habit is also called natural preparation, when it is stable, just as we observe certain bodily and psychic habits in some people, and virtues or vices from nature or temperament.

28. Some say habit is also the aptitude of nature.

29. They say [habit] is also the natural potential, as the fire's [power] to heat when it is not heating, and the sight of one who is sleeping.

30. Insup ^C er, even more, the final activity is a habit; just as sight that is already seeing, and heat that is already heating.

31. Since, therefore, "habit" is said in many ways, "privation" is also said in many ways, taken correspondingly to the habit. For while "habit" (hexis) is taken from "having" (echein), "privation" (sterêsis) is a certain removal (apocheia).

32. Therefore, the privation of a garment and of a weapon is opposed to the first signification of habit.

33. To the second, the casting off of acquired qualities.

34. To the third, the change of natural preparation.

35. ^D To the fourth, either as that which has no aptitude from the first by nature to possess the genus, as we say an infant has an aptitude to receive grammar, but a plane tree (and every plant) is deprived of this aptitude; or as that which the genus is naturally apt to possess, but one of the species does not possess it, as an animal has an aptitude for seeing, but a mole is deprived of this.

36. To the fifth, the casting off of the potentiality according to habit.

37. To the sixth and last, the privation of the final activity.

38. Strictly, therefore, an opposition according to habit and privation...

^A is admitted only in those things which by nature belong to every species. 39. This, however, is characterized by these three things: what [a thing] is naturally fitted to have, when it is naturally fitted to have it, and where it is naturally fitted to have it. For we would not say that a stone is blind, since it is not naturally fitted to have sight; nor is a newborn infant strictly toothless, for the reason that it is not naturally fitted at this time to have teeth; nor would anyone be called blind because he does not see with his foot, for the foot is not receptive of sight. Therefore, privation is strictly termed such when a nature, which is a subject capable of a habit, is deprived of that habit in proper time and in a suitable part or member; such as one who is blind from birth or one who has undergone incurable blindness due to some ailment. 40. And this privation is also of that which is potential. For if it were not of the potential, it would at some time have been brought into actuality. 41. Moreover, privation is never termed [privation] of evil or of what is harmful, but of what is good and useful. 42. However, one must not judge privation by looking at the word. For some things have both a name and a reality that are privative; just as, for example, the term "insensate" used of an apoplectic, that is, one relaxed in his limbs. Some things have a privative name, but not at all a privative reality, such as "incorporeal" and "immortal." Others, finally, have a privative reality, but not as yet a privative name, ^B as "blind" and "deaf." These are the things concerning habit and privation.

43. Moreover, affirmation and negation complete the contradiction of the same and one thing. A contradiction, however, is an opposing statement ^C. 44. An affirmation, therefore, is to say that something belongs to something; for example, "Peter is walking," meaning that it belongs to Peter to walk. A negation is to say that something does not belong to something; for example, "Peter is not walking," meaning that the act of walking does not belong to Peter. 45. Affirmation and negation, therefore, can divide falsehood and truth. 46. But those things which are otherwise opposed cannot do this. For they are single words, and they neither tell the truth nor lie when they are pronounced, that is to say, by themselves; but joined together, they can sometimes, as affirmations, divide truth and falsehood in the case of things that exist; but in the case of things that do not exist, they cannot at all. For example: "Socrates is healthy," "Socrates is sick." For while Socrates exists, one will be true and the other false; but if he does not exist, both are false; for if Socrates does not exist, he is neither healthy nor ^D sick. 47. And so, even when such opposites are pronounced with a combination, they do not divide truth and falsehood even in all things that exist. For neither would the soul ever be called right or left, nor a newborn infant toothless or having teeth, nor the air black or white. 48. But affirmation and negation in all...

things, both those that exist and those that do not, always divide truth and falsehood. For if we say, "The air is black," (and) "The air is not black," we have divided truth and falsehood. For it is false that the air is black, since it is even devoid of color; but it is true that it is not black. For if black is a color, that which has no color is not black; just as it is not white, nor colored at all. Thus, certainly, even if we say, "Socrates is ill," "Socrates is not ill," we divide truth and falsehood; whether or not Socrates exists. For if he exists, he is either ill or not ill. If he does not exist, he certainly is not ill. And the ^A same applies to those things which never existed at all; for example, "A centaur exists," "A centaur does not exist." For one of these is true and the other is necessarily false.

Chapter 25. Concerning Opposites.

^B ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║                                                             **Opposites** ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║ ║

Opposites are divided into those in speech and those in reality. Those in speech produce affirmation and negation, such as "He is sitting," "He is not sitting." Those in reality divide into those that are relative and those that are not relative. Relative ones include relatives, such as father and son. Non-relative ones are those that change into one another, given that which is capable of receiving them, and produce contraries, such as hot and cold; or those that do not change into one another, which are habit and privation, such as sight and blindness.

Opposites are 1) as affirmation and negation, 2) as relatives, 3) as contraries, 4) as habit and privation.

Contraries are: - Either they are both in nature, such as cold and hot. - Or one is the extreme falling away of the other, such as justice and injustice.

Of contraries: - Some are immediate: - Essential ones, such as odd and even. - Accidental ones, such as disease and health. - Some are mediate or mediate: - Either both can be absent from the subject, such as white and black in the case of Socrates. - Or one of the contraries is absent, and the other necessarily exists because the species has been preempted by it, as heat is in fire.

Of mediate contraries: - Some are such that the middle participates in both extremes, such as lukewarm. - Others are such that the middle participates in neither extreme, such as the mean between just and unjust, which is neither just nor unjust.

Further, regarding mediate contraries: - Some have a middle, such as hot and cold, which is lukewarm. - Others have more (middles), such as the middle between white and black: grey, reddish, yellow, and others.

Habit (ἕξις) is: - The activity of the possessor and the possessed, as the habit of a garment or weapon. - An acquired quality, when it is lasting, as knowledge and virtue. - A natural constitution, or temperament, when it is a lasting natural suitability. - Natural power, such as the heating property of fire. - When it is not heating; as is the sight of the one sleeping. - The final activity, as the sense of sight which is already seeing.

^A

Table of Chapter 25, on Opposites.

Opposites (are taken) - In statements, and they create affirmation and negation, as: (Socrates is sitting, (Socrates) is not sitting. - In things: - Either according to relation, and they create those things which are "relative," such as father and son. - Or not according to relation: - Or they change into one another, if the subject is one which has the power of receiving [them], and they create contraries, such as hot and cold. - Or they do not change into one another, and they are habit and privation, such as sight and blindness.

250 Opposites (are) - Either as affirmation and negation, - Or as relative, - Or as contraries, - Or as habit and privation.

Of contraries: - Either both are species, as cold and hot, - Or one is the extreme lapse or defect from the other: as justice and injustice. - Others are immediate; (and) - Some essential, such as even and odd, - Some adventitious or accidental to the essence, such as disease and health. - Others have a middle, or are mediate (of which) - Either both can be absent from the subject, as white and black from Socrates, - Or one of the contraries is absent, while the other is fully present, since the species has already been occupied by it beforehand, as heat (is present) in fire.

251 Of mediate contraries (some are) - Of which the middle participates in both of the extremes, as lukewarm, - Of which the middle participates in neither of the extremes, as the middle of just and unjust, neither just nor unjust.

Further, of mediate contraries: - Some have one middle, as hot and cold have (lukewarm), - Others have more, as the middle of white and black, which are dusky, tawny, yellow, and others.

Habit (is called) or - The act of the possessor and the possessed, as the habit of a garment or a weapon, - An acquired quality, when it is stable, as knowledge and virtue, - A natural preparation or temperament when it is permanent, - An aptitude of nature, - A natural potency, as the heating power of fire when it is not heating, and the sight of one sleeping, - An accomplished act, as sight already seeing.

252 Privation (is called or) - The privation of a garment or weapon, - The loss of acquired qualities, - The inversion of natural preparation, - Either of that which the genus itself cannot have at all; as the plane tree cannot (have) the potential for grammar, or of that which the genus can indeed have, but some of the species do not have, as the mole [does not have] sight. - The loss of potency according to habit, - The privation of the accomplished act.

EPITOME LOGICA. SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXVI, WHICH IS ON THE NOUN AND VERB.

1. The noun defines. - 2. Likewise the verb. - 3. He explains the definitions, and first shows that the noun and verb are articulate sounds. - 4. He renders the reason why human dialect, or elocution, is called an articulate sound. - 5. Next he shows that nouns and verbs are significant sounds. - 6. Thirdly, that they are by convention, that is, according to institution. - 7. And consequently not by nature. - 8. Objection, why, since sounds are by nature, nouns and verbs are not likewise. - 9. He concludes that nouns and verbs are by convention, that is, according to position, which is by institution, and at the same time he admits the manner in which they can be called by nature. - 10. He also indicates another manner by which they can be called by convention, that is, by composition, such as syllables, for the differentiation of inarticulate sounds. - 11. He produces another meaning of this sort, whereby they can be said to be by convention, that is, by composition. - 12. Fourthly, he shows that the parts of nouns and verbs separately signify nothing, not only of simple ones, but also of composite ones. - 13. Fifthly, that everything is common to the noun and verb, except for specific differences, that nouns are without time, [and] verbs designate time. - 14. He explains what "without time" is in the definition of a noun, and likewise what it is to designate time in the definition of a verb. - 15. He also establishes another difference between nouns and verbs, that the former do not signify action and passion as the latter do. - 16. He notes what among the dialecticians are divided into nouns and verbs, and how all other things are at least the ligaments of speech. - 18. [He teaches] that truth and falsehood do not reside in nouns and verbs spoken by themselves. - 19. Objection concerning the verbs of the first and second, and some also of the third person, in so far as they signify something true or false. - 20. By epiphora he concludes that nouns and verbs uttered by themselves do not state truth or falsehood, which they do, however, when joined (namely in a proposition). - 21. He determines the manner or rather the order by which they signify truth and falsehood, first indeed in concepts, then by way of these in things. - 22. By occasion he describes "to understand" in passing. - 23. When concepts are said to be true or false. - 24. How true and false also subsist regarding nouns and verbs. - 25. He concludes the discourse concerning what nouns and what verbs are. - 26. Furthermore, he explains what infinite nouns and what verbs are and why both are called thus. - 27. He develops the difference of these five: of the simple sound, of the diction, of the term, of the noun, and of the verb, which is not according to the subject or the thing itself, but according to the relation (habitudo), that is, the principle/reason (ratio). - 28. He shows that among the dialecticians nouns are even called verbs, and conversely verbs are called nouns; and how these pass into those and those into these. - 29. Objection, in which he declares when "is," "was," and "will be" signify existence and time; [and] when time only. - 30. He infers that every proposition is constituted from a noun and a verb. - 31. He also teaches how one must discern the noun and the subject from the article in Greek; [and] whether the verb and the predicate are placed in act or in potency. - 32. Finally, he shows what and why "is," "was," and "well be" are called primeval verbs.

CHAPTER XXVI. Of the noun and verb.

^A 1. A noun is a significant voice by institution without time, of which no part is significant separately.

2. A verb, however, is a significant voice by institution, which designates time, of which no part is significant separately.

3. That indeed the noun and the verb are articulate sounds, is almost clear to everyone.

4. Every human dialect (or elocution) is called articulate, because the syllables which complete it are similar to the joints of a living being, which can be distinguished from one another by activity.

5. That they are also significant, this too is manifest. For "man" and "horse" and "runs" and "converses," and such like, have a significant power. ^B

6. But nouns and verbs are also by convention. For Greeks indeed agreed to call things by these nouns; but Indians [agreed] to others, and Egyptians to others. And the same people have at one time signified the same things by some nouns and at another time by others; just as they have also decreed to express these actions and these passions by these or those verbs.

7. Whence nouns and verbs are not by nature to men; because things that are by nature are the same among all.

8. Even if the sounds themselves are by nature (for a living creature is a vocal one)...

^A names and verbs are not simply sounds, but sounds fashioned in a certain way.

9. It remains, therefore, that names and verbs are by convention (for they have been imposed by certain people), unless one were to say that they are by nature in another way, because they have a fitting relation to the things for which they were imposed, and have been imposed in a way that is suitable and agreeable to the nature of things.

10. Names and verbs might also be called sounds by convention, ^B to distinguish them from inarticulate sounds which are indeed meaningful—just as a groan and weeping signify pain, and laughter and guffawing signify joy and an overflowing disposition of the soul; and other sounds that are not by convention, such as syllables, also declare different things.

11. The aforementioned things might be called "by convention" also because the syllables within them, even if they are distinct by nature, are not cut off from one another and uttered separately in themselves, but are joined together in mutual composition; so that a name or a verb is considered as one body, ^C completed out of distinct parts.

12. The parts of a name and of a verb, when separated from one another, remain devoid of meaning. For each part is said to co-signify with the others, but as for signifying something by itself, it does not do so at all. And the parts of simple names or verbs do not even have the semblance of being meaningful by themselves. But the parts of compound names and verbs do provide a certain appearance of signifying, although in reality they do not signify. For of the name *Kallippos*, the part *hippos* [horse] signifies nothing. For when *hippos* is spoken ^D merely as a name, it signifies this animal. But when it is taken as a part of *Kallippos*, torn from its own integrity, it becomes something dead with regard to what is signified. In the same way, the parts of the verb, when distinguished from one another, are also separated from their meaning.

13. For all things are common to the name and the verb, except that the verb co-signifies time; but the name is without time.

14. By "without time" we mean not that which never signifies time, but that which does not co-signify time. For instance, "yesterday," "today," and such things do indeed signify time, but they do not co-signify it as verbs do; because verbs primarily signify an action or passion, and moreover, in a secondary respect, they also declare the time itself in which the action or passion is indicated—whether it be the present, in a broader sense, or the past, or even the future.

15. Names differ from verbs in that they declare no action or passion, as verbs do. This, therefore, is the distinction that names and verbs have from one another.

^A 16. It must be known that things which indicate natures, or persons, or actions, or passions, or some kind of complex connection with an action or passion—all these, according to the dialecticians, are divided into names and verbs. And those which are spoken with respect to time, or in any way whatever are predicated in propositions, are called verbs; those which are spoken without time, or fulfill the need of subjects, are called names; those finally which are taken up in neither of these places—namely, the articles, prepositions, conjunctions, and adverbs—although they are sometimes brought forward together with propositions, yet they are not strictly parts of speech, but have the capacity to hold together and compose parts of speech; yet they are parts of diction themselves.

17. And discourse, according to the philosophers, is a part of diction. For the former is primarily a fullness of those words which signify things; but elocution is a fullness of all simple words at once, which are assumed for the sake of discourse.

^B 18. Now, names and verbs when uttered by themselves indicate neither truth nor falsehood. For even if someone were to say "Socrates" or "philosophizes" a thousand times, or anything of that sort, in combination with nothing and by itself, he will say neither truth nor falsehood.

19. But if the first and second persons of verbs, and as many of the third as are spoken regarding a definite thing, seem to speak truth or falsehood by themselves, yet even to these truth and falsehood result from the complex connection they have according to potentiality; since these are both called and are complex in potentiality. For with the first person, "I" is understood; with the second, "thou"; and "I" and "thou," being pronouns, are assumed in place of names. ^C But with the third persons, which are spoken for some definite thing, that thing is simultaneously known about which they are spoken; as in "it rains," "it thunders," and "it lightens," the name of Providence is understood from without.

20. Therefore, names and verbs when brought forward by themselves have not the faculty of declaring truth or falsehood; but when conjoined to one another, they signify sometimes truth, and sometimes falsehood.

21. For primarily they declare the concepts of the soul, and through the medium of the concepts, the things themselves. For concepts are the images of things in the soul.

22. And to think is nothing other than to receive the form ^D of the thing thought.

23. When, therefore, the concepts are accurately assimilated to the things, and have been, as it were, applied to them so as to correspond, then they are also spoken of as true concepts; but when they are not thus, they are called false.

24. The same thing is also to be seen with names and verbs. For when these also harmonize or agree with the subsistence of things, then the true subsists.

When they do not behave in this way, we say that the false occurs. ^A

25. What, therefore, names are and what verbs are, insofar as it is possible, has been shown.

26. When these are taken with a negative particle, they are no longer called names and verbs simply and absolutely, but infinite names and infinite verbs; as for example, "not-man" and "not-Socrates" are infinite names; and "does not run" and "does not philosophize" are infinite verbs. They have obtained this appellation because they are not taken in reference to anything determined.

27. It must also be known that ^B a simple sound, a diction, a term, a name, and a verb are indeed the same as one another in respect to the subject, but they differ only in their relation. For instance, "man," insofar as it signifies something, is called a simple sound; insofar as it is a part of an affirmation or negation, a diction; insofar as it is taken up in a syllogism and is called a part of a proposition, a term; insofar as it is a subject, a name; and insofar as it holds the place of a predicate, it is called a verb.

28. Moreover, among the dialecticians, verbs are also called names, and names are called verbs. For these men, when they take every significant sound as a subject in a proposition, they call it a name; but when they make it a predicate, they designate it a verb. Since verbs carry a double signification—an existential one, by which they signify an action or a passion, and a temporal one, by which they also signify some time—when the dialecticians take them according to the existential signification alone, they make them subjects and call them names; but when they employ them according to the temporal one, then, placing them in the position of predicates, they call them verbs. Names, having a simple signification of existence, when they take these in a pure state, they make them subjects and call them what they are—names; but when they make them predicates, they do not leave them pure, but append to them the "is," or the "was," or the "will be," so that from this they too might have a double signification: their own proper existential one, and the one from the addition of "is," or "was," or "will be," which is temporal, and thus they fulfill the need of verbs.

29. ^C The "is," and "was," and "will be," even in themselves as they exist, have a double signification, like verbs: the existential and the temporal, as when we say, "Man is," or "Man was," or "Man will be." But when they are added to names and are considered together ^D with them, they have only the temporal signification, as when we say, "Socrates is wise," or "Socrates was wise," or "Socrates will be wise"; the existential signification is possessed by the names to which they are added. Wherefore, with such names, by signifying both existence and time, they preserve the property of complete verbs.

30. Every proposition therefore has its constitution from a name and a verb; as for instance, "to philosophize is a good thing." Behold, "to philosophize" is called a name, and "is a good thing" is called a verb.

31. And simply, where the article is considered to exist either potentially or in act, that is both a name and a subject. But where the "is" is taken either potentially or in act, that is called both a verb and a predicate. Therefore, in the aforementioned proposition which says "to philosophize is a good thing," both the article and the "is" appear in act; but both are also present potentially, as when we say, "It is good to trust in the Lord." For we mean nothing other than that "to trust in the Lord is a good thing." And again, "Paul wrote [an epistle]," which is to say, "Paul was writing [an epistle]"; and "John reigns," which is to say, "John is reigning"; and "The Lord shall reign for ever," which is to say the same as "The Lord will be one who is to reign for ever."

32. The words "is," "was," and "shall be" are called primordial verbs, because all other verbs are resolved into participles and these words.

Table of Chapter 26, concerning the Noun and the Verb.

{Noun is considered grammatically, and logically it is a meaningful utterance by institution, without time, of which no part signifies separately. {Verb is considered grammatically, and logically it is a meaningful utterance by institution which signifies time, of which no part signifies separately.

265 Vox is either {articulated, and this is {meaningful, as man, / meaningless, as blitiri. {inarticulated, as the barking of dogs.

Names and verbs signify ^A by institution, namely of the nomenclator, and therefore not by nature, {by composition, for instance of syllables to distinguish inarticulated utterances.

{Noun is {finite, as Socrates, man, {infinite, as not-Socrates, not-man.

{Verb is {finite, as he runs, he philosophizes, {infinite, as he does not run, he does not philosophize.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXVII, WHICH IS CONCERNING SPEECH AND PROPOSITIONS.

1. He defines and proves [what] speech [is]. — 2. He divides speech into five species, which he explains individually. — 3. He investigates the origin and number of these species of speech. — 4. He defines an enuntiative speech. — 5. He divides the same into affirmation and negation as into species. — 6. He defines both species. — 7. Affirmation and negation make a contradiction. — 8. Whence a contradiction is said to be and what it is. — 9. A contradiction, that is, an opposition (so he explains it himself), is divided into the quality of its parts, into the opposition of a true affirmation and a false negation, and conversely a false affirmation and a true negation, and he proves the division. — 10. He calls affirmation and negation an enuntiative speech, and at the same time indicates why they are named πротáσεις, that is, propositions. — 11. He also proposes a twofold definition of a proposition. — 12. He divides propositions into those which consist of subject and predicate, and into those [which consist] of a third appredicate, and into those which also consist of a mode; meanwhile explaining what a subject [is], what a predicate term is, and what a third appredicate is called, and what mode signifies. — 13. He recounts the modes and declares them with examples. — 14. He shows that more than the four terms mentioned are found in no proposition. — 15. [How those] differ. — 17. Also what a verb and a case of a verb differ [by]. — 18. What proposition is called one. — 19. That [though] ^B [an] instantiatio, instantia, [and] conclusio do not differ in reality, [they] at least differ in reason.

Chapter XXVII. On discourse and propositions.

1. Discourse is that which is composed of more than one significant word, of which the parts, taken separately, are significant. For discourse has its constitution from, at minimum, two significant words. Indeed, a single significant word is not a discourse. ^A

2. There are five species of discourse: the vocative, as "Men, brothers and fellow-sufferers"; but "men" alone is not a vocative discourse, but a calling. The Stoics call the vocative species of discourse "appellative." The second species of discourse is the imperative, as: "Turn from evil and do good." Third, the sciscitative or interrogative, as: "What is your country? What is your craft?" Fourth, the optative, which those from the Stoa call precatory, as: "Let your mercy, O Lord, occur upon us, just as we have hoped in you." Fifth, the enuntiative—or, as it is called among the Stoics, ^B the axiom—concerning which logical discourse institutes its consideration; it is so called from "enuntiating." For according to this, we enuntiate concerning any thing whatsoever; for example: "God is good," "man is not immortal."

3. Since there are twofold faculties in us, the soul's, some cognoscitive, according to which we know each of the things that are; and others, called vital and appetitive, according to which we desire things that are either good or seem to be good: the four species of discourse, other than the enuntiative, proceed from the appetitive faculties of the soul, not as it acts according to itself, but as it extends itself to another who seems to contribute to being able to obtain that which it desires to acquire; and either demanding a word from him, as in ^C sciscitative discourse, as a thing; or if it desires to obtain the thing or the person to whom the discourse is directed, as in the vocative; or some action from him, and that either as from a superior, as in an option or prayer, or as from an inferior, as in that which is properly called command or order. But only the enuntiative [discourse] proceeds from the cognoscitive faculties of the soul, being accustomed to enuntiate the knowledge of things in us that has been formed truly or apparently; wherefore it alone, of the other species of discourse, is capable of truth and falsity. ^D

4. Therefore, an enuntiative discourse is that in which being true or being false consists.

5. Its species are affirmation and negation.

6. Affirmation is an enuntiation of something about something, that is, to enuntiate and say what is present in something. Negation, however, is an enuntiation of something from something, that is, to enuntiate what is not present in something.

7. And these create a contradiction.

8. A contradiction is said to be from the fact that the parts have terms that contradict one another against the truth and the falsity. For a contradiction is the conflict of an affirmation and a negation concerning the truth and the falsity of those [things] that are

^A in use regarding the same subject, and which predicate of it the same [predicate], neither according to homonymy, nor according to any of the other things that we specify in order to counter the importunities of the sophists.

9. Since an enunciation is brought forward in four ways (for someone either asserts that which exists as if it did not exist, as, "To sin is not evil"; or that which exists as if it did exist, as, "To sin is evil"; or that which does not exist as if it did exist, as, "To sin is good"; or that which does not exist as if it did not exist, as, "To sin is not good"), hence two oppositions arise: one of a false negation to a true affirmation, ^B and another of a false affirmation to a true negation. And beyond these two oppositions, it is not possible to conceive of another one.

10. Every affirmation is an enuntiativ e discourse; likewise also every negation. And both are also called propositions, because they are proposed by those who wish to reason (or to make a syllogism) in common discourses.

11. Therefore, a proposition is an enunciative discourse, by which someone [speaks] of something, or [speaks] something away from something. And otherwise: A proposition is a part of a single contradiction.

12. Some propositions consist only of a subject and a predicate (and the subject is the ^C term of which the discourse is; the predicate is that which is said of the subject. For example, "Gregory engages in theology": "Gregory" is the subject, for the discourse is about him; "engages in theology" is predicated, for "engaging in theology" is said of Gregory). Therefore, of propositions, some have a subject and a predicate, and nothing more; others also have a third, an "appredicate," which is "is." For whatever things are said of one subject in one proposition are all named [as] one predicate (term). And "is" is called the "appredicate"; for example, "Gregory ^D is a theologian and a physiologist and knowledgeable in all things that exist." For the subject term is "Gregory." But "theologian and physiologist, and knowledgeable in all things that exist," is one predicate; and what is predicated in addition to these is "is." But other propositions also have a mode added, which signifies how the predicate exists in the subject.

13. The modes are: necessary, impossible, contingent, well, clearly, and others; the number of which is by nature comprehensible, but to us incomprehensible. For example: "It is necessary for man to breathe"; "It is impossible for a horse to be winged"; "It is possible for Basil to kneel or bend his knees"; "Athanasius teaches well"; "John explains clearly."

14. It is not possible to conceive more than these four terms—namely, the subject, the predicate, the appredicate, and the mode—for the constitution of a single proposition.

15. In every proposition, the predicate must be either a verb, or a case of a verb, or an indefi-

must be a verb: the subject, however, is either a noun, or a case of a noun, or an infinite noun, or a phrase composed of several nouns.

16. A noun differs from a case of a noun ^A in that that which is carried in the direct case is called a noun; for example, "Judas is a traitor." But the pronunciation of the noun in other, oblique cases—genitive, dative, and accusative—is called a case of the noun, as having fallen from the upright or direct case. For example, "It is right to be eager for virtue"; "It is useful to suffer with Christ"; "It is necessary to reach the day of retribution."

17. A verb also differs from a case of a verb, in that the verb indicates the present tense, as in "Paul is preaching," but a case of the verb indicates ^B either the past or the future. For example, "Peter denied"; "The Devil will be punished."

18. When each of the terms completing the proposition indicates one nature—the subject and the predicate—we say that this proposition is one, even if we take an entire definition as the subject or as the predicate, or even similarly for both. As if someone were to say, "The rational, mortal animal, capable of intellect and knowledge, is an animate substance, participant in sense and progression." Here, "the rational, mortal animal, capable of intellect and knowledge" is the subject, being considered ^C as one noun, although it is composed of many significant words. And "animate substance, participant in sense and progression," this entire thing is the predicate; which, with the verb "is" added to the predicate, becomes one thing.

19. But when either of the terms signifies several things, we say that there are several propositions, and as many as the number of signified things, even if these are signified by one noun. As when someone says, "Ajax fought alone with Hector," without having determined which of the two Ajaxes his speech is about. For no one, I think, who is careful will call this proposition one, which, on account of the homonymy, speaks both what is false and what is true at the same time.

20. Now, a proposition, a problem, an enunciation, an objection, and a conclusion ^D do not differ at all in their subject; but they differ in their relationship. For example, "The soul is immortal." When it is taken as part of a syllogism, it is called a proposition; when someone brings it forward for inquiry, saying, "Is the soul immortal?" it is a problem; when someone simply declares, saying, "The soul is immortal," it is an enunciation; when someone objects, saying, "Whence is it clear that the soul is immortal?" it is called an objection; but when it is gathered from propositions, as when we say, "The soul is always moving; what is always moving is immortal; therefore the soul is immortal," then it becomes a conclusion.

Chapter 27. On speech and propositions.

^A The species of speech: Vocative, as, "O men, brothers and fellow-poor." Imperative, as, "Decline from evil and do good." Interrogative, as, "What is your country?" Optative, which those of the Stoa call precative, as, "Let Your mercy be, O Lord." Enunciative, as, "The soul is immortal."

^B Speech proceeds: Either from the appetitive faculties of the soul, or from the cognitive faculties. If from the appetitive, it proceeds either from logic asking something of someone, and makes the interrogative; or toward the one to whom the speech is addressed, and makes the vocative; or toward a thing and some action from him, either as from someone superior, and it makes the optative, or as from someone inferior, and it makes the imperative. If from the cognitive, it is the enunciative.

^C Every enunciation shows: What exists: for example, "To sin is evil." What does not exist: for example, "To sin is not good."

^D Of propositions: Some are from a subject and predicate alone, as, "Gregory theologizes." Some [are from a subject and predicate] and a third part being added [as a predicate], namely "is," as, "Socrates is a philosopher." Some are from the mode, denoting how the predicate exists in the subject, as, "It is possible for Socrates to philosophize."

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXVIII, CONCERNING THE MATTERS WHICH ARE CONSIDERED IN PROPOSITIONS, AND CONCERNING THE PREDEFINITION OR SIGN.

1. It divides the matter of propositions into necessary, contingent, and impossible, and proves the division. — 2. It declares the individual species with examples. — 3. It gives the reason why they are called matters of the philosopher. — 4. What it means by "existing," that is, being, and properly contingent. — 6. It enters upon the latter part of the chapter and divides propositions into undefined and defined. — 7. It enumerates the predefinitions and divides them into two. 277 8. It teaches that predefinitions are always joined to subjects, not to predicates; and it declares by examples what signification or power they have. — 9. By recapitulation it concludes that predefinitions or signs show only the difference of the multitude of the parts of the subject, insofar as they participate or do not participate in the predicate. — 10. Consequently, it shows that and why logicians call universal propositions "universal" as universal, or as taken universally; and particular [propositions], "universal as particular," or as taken particularly. — 11. By way of objection it indicates, as it were, what particular propositions differ from singular ones. — 12. Finally, it subjoins how defined propositions are named from predefinitions. — 13. Furthermore, it shows what and why predefinitions among the Greeks are uttered in the absolute feminine gender. — 14. What universal affirmative and universal negative propositions are, and that they are like simple contraries in necessary and impossible matter. — 15. It renders the reason why they are called contraries, namely, that they imitate simple contraries. — 16. It explains the reason also in species, that they are like immediate simple contraries in necessary and impossible matter. — 17. Objection. — 18. Then also that they are like mediated contraries in contingent matter. — 19. It assigns another reason also, why contrary propositions can be so called. 278 20. It concludes the dissertation on contrary propositions. — 21. It shows that the particular affirmative and particular negative are called subcontraries and why they are so called. — 22. It shows that affirmative propositions, universal and particular, and likewise negative ones, are called subalterns, where also the reason of the name is indicated, both when false and when true. — 23. It insinuates another reason for this appellation through precision. — 24. Then it also shows (from defined propositions, indeed) that only the universal affirmative and the particular negative, likewise the particular affirmative and the universal negative, are contradictorily opposed and always divide the true and the false. — 25. It proves this very thing. — 26. Objection concerning particular negation in impossible matter, whether it says what is false at the same time as universal affirmation, with a double response. — 27. It divides necessary into proper and improper, and impossible likewise. — 29. It distinguishes double necessary and double impossible by reason of logical matters, or refers each to its own logical matters. — 30. It also subdivides contingent into three species and declares each with examples. 279 31. It assigns its own efficient causes to the individual species.

CHAPTER XXVIII. Concerning the matters which are considered in propositions, and concerning the predefinition or sign.

1. Three matters of propositions offer themselves: necessary, contingent, and impossible. For since in every proposition both a subject and a predicate exist, the relation of the predicate to the subject gives birth to such matters. For the predicate either always belongs to the subject, or never; or it sometimes belongs and sometimes does not belong. ^A If it always belongs to the subject, it creates the necessary matter; but if it never does, ^B

^A the impossible; but if it sometimes belongs and sometimes does not belong, the contingent.

2. It is necessary, therefore, in the case of necessary matter, to say: "Man breathes," for to breathe always belongs to man. In the case of impossible matter, it is necessary to say: "Man flies," for flying never belongs to man. In the case of contingent matter, finally, it is necessary to say: "Paul speaks in the assembly," for speaking in an assembly belongs to Paul at times, and at other times it does not.

3. Philosophers have called such relations "matters," not because they are taken from our opinion or predication, but because they are assumed from the very nature of the things themselves.

4. They differ from the modes—namely, the necessary, the impossible, and the contingent—in that the modes have their basis merely in the way they are expressed and in being added to the terms of the propositions, whereas the matters are considered in the very nature of the things assumed in the propositions.

5. Since, as has been said, there are three matters—the necessary, the impossible, and the contingent—Aristotle divides the contingent into two: into that which comes to pass, which he calls the "existing," ^B and into that which is in the future, which he says is properly called "contingent."

6. Of propositions, some are without definitions—or rather, without defining terms—whence they are also called indefinite and non-predefined; others are with definitions, which are also called predefined. Therefore, we call the latter defined and predefined.

7. There are four of these definitions or predefinitions: "all," "none," "some," "not all." And "all" and "none" are universal; "some" and "not all" are particular. Furthermore, "all" and "some" are affirmative; "none" and "not all" are negative.

8. They are always joined to the subjects, being placed before the subjects; as, for example, "All man breathes"—that is, all individuals under the species of man have the property of breathing. For the word "all" does not signify ^C the universal, but that it is taken universally—that is to say, to say "All man" or "Every animal" does not signify the nature of the species or genus which is comprehensive and unifying of all things under them, but that the predicate is uttered universally concerning all of the particulars which the subject comprises. "No man flies"—that is, flying belongs to none of the individuals under man; that is, the predicate belongs to none of those things which fall under the subject. "Some man philosophizes"—that is, to some of the individuals under the subject—or man—the predicate belongs, namely, to "philosophize." "Not all man measures the earth"—that is, the predicate does not belong to all the individuals which fall under the subject, which is "to measure the earth."

9. The duty, then, of the definitions is solely to signify the difference in the multitude of those things which toward ^D

^A the subject are referred, either as participating or as not participating in the predicate.

10. Furthermore, they call those propositions universal, or those having universal definitions, also "universals as universals" or "taken universally"; this is because in these, universal definitions are joined to universal subjects. But particular propositions—that is, those which have particular definitions—they also name "universals as particulars" (or "taken particularly"). For in these, particular definitions are joined to universal subjects. For man is a universal subject, as [something] that contains all individuals under itself; but "some" and "not all" are particular definitions.

11. Furthermore, particular propositions differ from singular ones in that the singulars indeed make an enunciation concerning some one finite thing, for example, regarding Peter, as: "Peter performs miracles." Particulars, however, signify nothing finite, but make an enunciation concerning some [thing], whatever it might be, as: "Some man is just."

12. And of the defined propositions, as many as have the definition "all" are universal affirmative propositions and affirmations; as many as have that which is "none" are universal negative [propositions] and negations; as many as have that which is "some" are particular affirmative [propositions] and affirmations; as many as have that which is "not all" are particular negative [propositions] and negations.

13. Moreover, the aforementioned definitions are expressed absolutely in a feminine noun (in Greek, indeed), such as "all" ^C (πᾶς), and "none" (οὐδείς), and "some" (τις), and "not all" (οὐ πᾶς).

14. The universal affirmative proposition, therefore, and the universal negative—namely "all" and "none" (for the definitions took on a feminine name according to the relation to the propositions)—I say that these, being universal, are contraries, with the same terms being preserved in the same order, as is done in every opposition of propositions, with only the definitions changing.

15. They are called contraries because they imitate contraries. For they are at the greatest distance from each other; since one affirms universally, the other denies universally.

16. And they are similar to both immediate and mediate contraries: [indeed] to the immediate ones, in the necessary and impossible matter. For of immediate contraries, one or other from necessity exists in the subject. And of such propositions, of necessity one is true and the other false in the said ^D matters: in the necessary one, the affirmative, as: "Every man breathes"; but in the impossible one, the negative, as: "No man flies."

17. And for existence [the truth] totally corresponds to the true, and for non-existence [the truth] corresponds to the false. Now, according to these

^A material conditions, "all" and "none" are similar to immediate contraries. 18. But as to contingent matter, these are mediate contraries, of which it is not possible for either to be present in the subject; and both propositions in contingent matter are at the same time false: as, "Every man is just," "No man is just." 19. Furthermore, because the declared propositions never speak the truth at the same time, but sometimes both speak falsehood; for this reason they will also be appropriately named contraries. For it is impossible for contraries to coexist at the same time in reality in the same subject, but it is possible for them both to be absent from it. 20. And that the aforementioned propositions are contraries, and why, has been declared. 21. Now the particular affirmative and the particular negative ^B are called subcontraries, as being placed under the contraries and following them. For when one of the universals speaks the truth, then the particular which is under it also acknowledges the truth, as it is a part of it and is contained by it. 22. Therefore, they also call the affirmative propositions—I mean the universal and the particular, the "every" and the "some"—and again the negatives, the "none" and "not every," subalterns, not indeed that just as "some" is under "every," so also "every" is under "some"; and as "not every" is under "none," so also "none" is under "not every" (for this is false and impossible), but because the fact that "some" is under "every," and speaks the truth along with it, is granted by "every," as the universal; and "some" is accepted as a part of the "every," and thus, from the "every," the "some" is considered to be subject to it, ^C as being part of that which is considered within the other—in the "every" actively, but in the "some" the being subject [is considered]; and since the "some" receives it through this interconnection, both are called subalterns. By the same reasoning, the "none" and the "not every" are also subalterns. 23. But whether the present arguments are also appropriate to the subalterns, let the careful researcher consider. 24. "Every" and "none" are contraries; "some" and "not every" are subcontraries; "every" and "some," and again "none" and "not every," are subalterns; ^D but only, among the other propositions, are the contradictories opposed to each other, and they always divide truth and falsehood—the universal affirmative and the particular negative; and again the particular affirmative and the universal negative—that is, "every" and "not every," and "some" and "none"; and this is with good reason. 25. For the contraries, since they differ in quality (for the one is affirmative and the other negative), have the same quantity. For both are universal. In the same way, the subcontraries, differing in quality, have the same quantity. For both are particular. The subalterns, on the contrary, differing in quantity, have the same quality. For the one combination [has] the affirmative

^A and the other the negative. And in each of the combinations, the quantity alone differs. For "every" is universal, and "some" is particular. And again, "no one" is universal, and "not every" is particular. In respect of quality, therefore, it is affirmative or negative; in respect of quantity, it is universal or particular. All combinations of propositions, therefore, in which there is the contrary, in which there is the subcontrary, [and] in which there is the subaltern, agree in some respect, while in others they differ. But the universal affirmative and the particular negative, fighting both in quality and in quantity, have a perfect difference ^B towards each other; just as also [do] the particular affirmative and the universal negative. Wherefore it is impossible for them ever to be true or false simultaneously. For in necessary matter, while the affirmations are true, the negations are false, and in impossible matter the reverse occurs; in contingent matter, one affirmation which is universal is false, and the negation which contradicts it, [the] particular, is true; and one affirmation which is particular is true, and the negation which contradicts it, [the] universal, is false.

^B 26. Furthermore, it must not be supposed that a particular negation in impossible matter is false simultaneously with a universal negation, as with "Every man flies," [so with] this: "Not every man flies." Nor does "not every" necessarily imply "some," so that this, "Not every man flies," should say the same thing as "Some man flies." For we take "not every" only by itself, ^C as having its own power, by which it destroys the universal definition of "every," without dragging anything else along. Therefore, in matters in which "every" is false, in those "not every" is true, as a destroyer of "every." For he who says "Not every man flies" says nothing else than that it is not true that every man flies. Furthermore, just as a particular affirmation is a part of a universal affirmation, so also is a particular negation a part of a universal negation. Since, therefore, a particular affirmation is in part true on its own account, as in contingent matter, and in part on account of the universal affirmation of which it is a part, as in necessary matter (for if every man breathes, then also some man breathes), this will also be the case in a particular negation. For this also is in part true on its own account, as in contingent matter, and in part ^D on account of the universal negation, as in impossible matter. For if no man flies, then also not every man flies. Thus "not every" is true in impossible matter on account of "no one," just as "some" is in necessary matter on account of "every."

27. Now the necessary is twofold; the one, properly so called, which always belongs to the subject, as for the sun to be moved, and for man to breathe; the other not properly, which is [so] of necessity only as long as the predicate belongs to the subject, as for the sun to be obscured

by the moon or a cloud, it is necessary; but it is not necessary simply. Such also is this: that he who is walking walks of necessity, and he who is standing stands.

28. ^A There is also a twofold [meaning of] that which is not of necessity, which is the impossible: one kind, properly speaking, such as for fire to cool or for man to fly; the other not properly, but [that which exists] only as long as the predicate does not belong to the subject, such as for one who is not walking to walk, and for one who is not standing to stand.

29. That which is then properly existing of necessity is the material [belonging to] the necessary; but that which is properly not existing of necessity is the impossible; that which ^B [exists] only as long as the predicate belongs to the subject, and on the contrary as long as the predicate does not belong to the subject, is the material of the contingent.

30. Now the contingent is divided into that which is for the most part, that which is equally, and that which is for the least part: for the most part, as that a man is five-fingered; equally, as to read and not to read; for the least part, as for one who is digging to happen upon a treasure.

31. That which is contingent for the most part belongs to nature and to art; since both nature, in its proper effects and works, succeeds for the most part. For monsters are rare, and art attains its proper end for the most part. But that which is equally contingent is a work of choice. For it is within our power both to read and not to read, and to wash and not to wash. And this species of the contingent is also called "whichever may happen," ^C because according to it existence has neither more nor less than non-existence, but either part of the contradiction can happen in the same way. That which is finally contingent for the least part is fortune and chance. And indeed we speak of fortune regarding those things which exist along with those things which happen according to choice, as the finding of a treasure [happens] with digging. For fortune is a cause by accident in those things which happen according to choice. But we speak of chance regarding those things which exist along with those things which happen according to nature, and not according to choice: as, for instance, an earthquake having occurred, and a portion of the earth being split, ^D a spring of water gushed forth. For chance is a cause by accident in those things which do not happen according to choice.

Diagram concerning the materials and determinations observed in propositions

The matter of propositions: { Necessary, as, man breathes Contingent, as, Paul is addressing the assembly Impossible, as, man flies }

} 292 Predefinitions.

Omnis (all) — Contrariae (contraries) — Nullus (none) (subalterns) — (contradiction) — (subalterns) Aliquis (some) — Subcontrariae (subcontraries) — Non omnis (not all)

Necessary (is) either proper, as for man to breathe, or improper, as for one walking to walk by necessity. Impossible (is) either proper, as for man to fly, or improper, but inasmuch as the predicate does not inhere, as for one not walking to walk. Contingent is divided into: that which is for the most part, as man being endowed with five fingers; that which is equally so, as to read and not to read; that which is least, as for one digging to find treasure.

293 SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXIX, WHICH IS ABOUT INDEFINITE PROPOSITIONS.

1. What indefinite propositions are among the Greeks. 2. Why the article ought to be absent from predefinitions; where certain things are added concerning the meaning and power of the article; and that it is assumed for the signification of universals as well as singulars, and even of preeminent things.

^A

CHAPTER XXIX. On indefinite propositions.

1. Indefinite propositions are those which, having universal subjects, are put forth without a quantifier and without an article.

2. For the article declares the nature of the subject with which it is placed; and it also declares the particulars under such a subject, when it has the power of the quantifier "all." As if we should say: "The man [ὁ ἄνθρωπος] is a species," we signify the single nature of the universal man, which embraces all particular men. But if we should say: "The man [ὁ ἄνθρωπος] is an animal," then we declare all the individuals under the man, or the human species, and we say nothing else than that every man is an animal. Since, therefore, the article reveals many things and one thing at the same time, it is for that reason assumed also for the declaration of universal things; as when we say: "The man [ὁ ἄνθρωπος], the animal [τὸ ζῶον], the sense [ἡ αἴσθησις]." But it is also taken for singulars, as when we say: "The sun [ὁ ἥλιος], the moon [ἡ σελήνη], and Peter [ὁ Πέτρος] and Paul [ὁ Παῦλος]." Sometimes it is also taken for that which excels among those of the same order; as when we wish to indicate Paul, we say: "The Apostle [ὁ Ἀπόστολος]," and David, "The Prophet [ὁ Προφήτης]."

3. Those propositions, therefore, that have universal subjects and are put forth without a quantifier or article are called indefinite; as: "Man walks [Ἄνθρωπος περιπατεῖ]," "Man does not walk [Ἄνθρωπος οὐ περιπατεῖ]."

4. Aristotle says that these are equivalent to quantified particular [propositions].

5. Truly, the affirmative [indefinite propositions] are unequivocally equivalent to quantified particular affirmations; but the negative [indefinite propositions] are sometimes equivalent to quantified particular negations, and sometimes to universal [negations]; and most especially to the universal. For scarcely any of the ancients seems to have used an indefinite [negation] in place of a quantified particular negation. Nevertheless, the indefinite negation corresponds to the different notions of those who enunciate it. ^{B C D}

6. Hence, in contingent matter, on the basis of which quantified particular [propositions] are true at the same time—namely the "some" and the "not all"—on this basis the unquantified [propositions] are also true at the same time, and again they will be opposed contradictorily.

7. The indefinite affirmation, therefore, is equivalent

^A to a qualified particular affirmation; for instance, as it has been said, "Man is just," to "Some man is just."

8. Just as, then, in the qualified particular affirmation, if the negative particle is placed [in it], sometimes it produces a particular negation, and sometimes a universal [negation]; for instance, if we hear "Some man is not just," if we understand the negation in relation to "some," we think it signifies the same as "not any," or "no one"—which appears more clearly if "is not" is placed before "some," as in: "There is not any man who is immortal." But if we understand the negation in relation to the predicate, we think it signifies the same as "not all," which is to say, "Not every man is just." Thus, also in an indefinite negation, according to the intention of those stating it, both the particular and the universal are signified, when the negation is constructed either in relation to "some," which is contained potentially in the indefinite affirmation, or in relation to the predicate. ^B It inclines, however, rather toward the universal, when we make the negation the beginning of the denial, saying: "Man is not just."

9. So also in a universal affirmation, if the negation is placed before "is," and can be understood either in relation to "all" or in relation to the predicate, it results that the proposition, insofar as it removes "all," has the same force as a particular negation; which appears more clearly if "is not" is placed at the beginning of the proposition: for instance, "Not every man is wise." But insofar as it removes the predicate, it has equal strength to a universal negation: for instance, "Every man is not wise," which is the same as this: "No man is wise."

10. Since there are three kinds of propositions, ^C namely the qualified, the unqualified, and the singular, the qualified and the unqualified stand in the same relation toward dividing truth and falsehood as regards any time; but the singulars, in necessary and impossible subject-matter, divide truth and falsehood definitely for all time; but in contingent subject-matter, they divide them definitely as regards the present and the past, but indefinitely as regards the future; for instance, "Socrates will dispute," or, "Socrates will not dispute." For that he is either going to dispute or is not going to dispute is manifest. But which part of the contradiction, whether the affirmation or the negation, speaks the truth, it is not permissible to state definitely regarding future time.

11. Moreover, the "future" ^D differs from the "to-come." For the "to-come" is that which will certainly happen: for instance, "Summer will be," "Winter will be." But the "future" is that which is able to happen and not to happen: for instance, "This infant will be a grammarian." For it is possible for the infant to become, and not to become, a grammarian.

Epitome of Logic. Table of Chapter 29, regarding indefinite propositions.

Synopsis of Chapter XXX, which is on affirmation and negation.

Chapter XXX. On affirmation and negation.

2. Negation, however, is the removal (or destruction) of an affirmation. For an affirmation, having taken up a negative particle, becomes a negation.

3. But this negative particle must, in propositions consisting of subject and predicate, be joined to the predicate or the verb. For the negation of the affirmation, "Plato is disputing," is not that which says, "Not Plato is disputing" (for this also is an affirmation, having an infinite subject), but that which says, "Plato is not disputing."

4. And "is not disputing," when considered by itself as one thing, is called an infinite verb, because it signifies nothing definite; but when it is assumed in a proposition so that it may be denied of the subject, it is definite. For it is no longer taken as one, but as two,

^A revealing that the predicate is divided from the subject by the negative particle.

5. In propositions, therefore, formed from a subject and predicate, if a negation is made, the particle of denial must be joined to the predicate. But in propositions formed with a third added predicate, such a particle of denial must be joined to the added predicate, namely, to the "is," and not to any other. For of the affirmation, "Man is an animal," the negation is that which says, "Man is not an animal."

6. For this is called an affirmation by transposition, because once the negative particle has been transposed from the added predicate to the predicate, through such transposition the negation becomes an affirmation: or because, in place of the definite predicate, an infinite one is transposed, the definite having been removed; and through such a transposition ^B of the predicate, the aforementioned affirmation is made.

7. The proposition, therefore, "Man is not an animal," is an affirmation, not a negation. For he who says, "Man is not an animal," states that man is not an animal, but some other thing besides an animal. But he who says, "Man is not an animal," denies that being animal exists in man, and indicated that the being of an animal does not belong to man. It has been said that of enunciative propositions, that which says something belongs to something is an affirmation; but that which says it does not belong is a negation. Therefore, the affirmation is this: "Man is not an animal"; ^C but the negation of this is: "Man is not not an animal."

8. Likewise, for the affirmation, "Socrates is just," the negation is, "Socrates is not just," not this one: "Socrates is not-just." For this latter is an affirmation by transposition, and the negation of this is, "Socrates is not not-just." In a similar manner, for this one: "Aristotle is philosophizing," the negation is, "Aristotle is not philosophizing." But this: "Aristotle is not-philosophizing," is an affirmation by transposition, the negation of which is, "Aristotle is not not-philosophizing."

9. For in propositions formed with a third added predicate, if the negative particle is simply ^D added to the predicate, it creates affirmations by transposition. And even if the predicate be composed of several parts, whether all of the things from which such a predicate is composed are said of the subject essentially, as in definitions, or whether some part of these belongs to it accidentally, as when we say, "Socrates is a white man," the negative particle must be placed before the whole or entire predicate, so that we may make an affirmation by transposition. For example: "Man is a rational, mortal animal, capable of intellect and knowledge"; this is a simple affirmation. But the affirmation by transposition is: "Man is not a rational, mortal animal, capable of intellect and knowledge." And again, "Socrates is a white, philosophizing man,"

^A *is* a simple affirmation. But an affirmation by transposition is: "Socrates is not a philosopher-man, white."

10. How, therefore, the negation is made in propositions consisting of subject and predicate, but also in those consisting of a third added predicate, has been determined.

11. But in order that the negation may be made in modal propositions as it ought to be, the negative particle should be joined to the mode. For of "It is possible for Socrates to walk," the negation is, "It is not possible for Socrates to walk." "It is possible for Socrates not to walk" is an affirmation by transposition: its negation is, "It is not possible for Socrates not to walk."

12. For a negation is made in such propositions even when the particle of denial is applied to the verb "is," whenever we take this very "is" in act in such propositions, and posit it in reality, not merely sub-understand it: as when we do not say, "Possible Socrates to philosophize," but when we say, "It is possible for Socrates to philosophize." For the negation of this affirmation is also this: "It is not possible for Socrates to philosophize"—and this is not "possible for Socrates not to philosophize." But it is better and safer in all negations of modal propositions to place the negation before the mode, whether they possess the "is" added or not; and of this affirmation, "It is possible for Socrates to philosophize," to set as the negation this: "It is not possible for Socrates to philosophize." And perform the same in other similar cases. ^B

13. In propositions, nouns and verbs, if transposed, signify the same thing at all times. For regarding the rhythm and clarity of the expression, such an order of nouns and verbs produces no small difference; but regarding the thing signified, it produces no change at all. For to say, "Is man just," and "Is just man," and "Just man is," and "Man is just," signifies the same thing.

14. Thus also the negative particle, when transposed along with the term to which it is joined, signifies the same thing. For it is the same to say, "Is not man just," and "Is not just man," and "Just man is not," and "Man is not just." ^C

15. However, the negative particle itself, when transposed by itself, changes the propositions entirely; and when joined to the subject, it makes an affirmation from an infinite subject, as: "Not-man is just." To the predicate, it makes an affirmation by transposition, as: "Man is not-just." Finally, to the added predicate, it makes a negation, as: "Man is just is not." Similarly, also, when joined to certain predefinitions. For in the case of "Every man is just," the particle of negation, being joined to the predefinition "every," ^D makes this negation: "Not every man is just." But to "Some man is just," according to the "some" predefinition...

since "Not-any" (οὔτις) is more poetic (than oratorical) compared to that which is familiar in common usage, there is assumed "no one" (οὐδείς), which possesses equal force and strength to "not-any." Wherefore also the negation, "No man is just," is produced. However, "not-any" (οὐ τὶς), being pronounced with an accent on the last syllable, is in the first place less known to Greek usage, and furthermore it is spoken more abusively (than properly), and it signifies nothing definite in quantity. For this is true: "Not some man is just," both when many are just and when no one is just. Hence, ^A also because of such indefiniteness, this acute form "not-some" (οὐ τὶς) does not exist in usage at all.

17. Just as the negative particle, if it is transposed by itself, makes different propositions out of different ones, yet when it is joined with the particle of the proposition to which it was joined at the beginning, it is transposed in every way while keeping the same proposition; so indeed the predefinitions themselves, if they are transposed by themselves, sometimes overturn the propositions and make false ones out of true ones.

18. But when they are transferred with the terms with which they were joined at the beginning, they preserve the same propositions: as, "Every man is animal," "Animal every man is," "Man every animal is," "Animal every man is." And however else it may happen that these are varied.

19. But if we wish to find all the propositions that are consequent, whether saying true or false ^B altogether, we shall use such a rule as this: in every proposition that has either a finite or an infinite subject; and is either simple or transposed; and according to quantity is either universal or particular, or singular or indefinite; and according to quality is either affirmative or negative: it is necessary that the subject term be kept the same in the propositions that are consequent to one another, as also the quantity, but that all other things be changed.

20. Moreover, one must take care not to take the whole proposition as the predicate, but a part of the proposition. For let it be as in our hypothesis: the proposition "Man is just." It is necessary to take "man" as the subject, and "is just" as the predicate; and not the whole "Man is just" as the predicate.

21. Paying attention to this rule, we shall find all the consequent propositions: as in the case of those predetermined by, "Every man is animal," which is a simple universal affirmation, the universal ^C negation consequent by transposition is, "No man is non-animal": and to this simple particular affirmation, "Some man is philosopher," the particular negation consequent by transposition is, "Not every man is non-philosopher." ^D

^A affirmation being turned into negation, and negation into affirmation; the simple into the transposed, and the transposed into the simple; while all other matters remain unchanged: such as the universal remaining universal; the particular, particular; the pre-defined, pre-defined; the indefinite, indefinite; and the singular, singular; and the subject, the same. 23. Hence, to this, "Socrates is just," will follow, "Socrates is not non-just." 24. And conversely, to this, "Man is learned," [will follow], "Man is not non-learned." 25. But here, that is to say in indefinite propositions, we must be mindful of what we said before: that these negations do not indisputably result in the same meaning as the particulars. Thus, this negation, "Man is not non-learned," does not clearly follow from the proposition, "Man is learned"; because a variation ^B is observed in the quantity, if indeed the affirmations of indefinite propositions possess, by the common consent of all, equal force and weight with the particulars, whereas the negations are not seen to behave in this same way.

310 Table of Chapter 30, on affirmation and negation.

That negation may be made, the negating particle *not* must be added: In propositions consisting of subject and predicate, to the predicate itself; as, Plato does not discourse. In propositions with a third term as predicate, to the predicate; as, Plato is not uneducated. In modal propositions, to the mode; as, It is not contingent for Plato to walk.

The negating particle *not*: Placed before the predicate makes a simple negation; as, Man is not an animal. Placed after it makes an affirmation from transposition; as, Man is *non-animal*. ^C

Affirmation from transposition is said to be either that which: The negating particle, when moved from the place of the predicate to the place of the predicate-term, causes — the finite predicate being removed, the infinite is transposed—and the order of consequence is transposed; for from a simple negation follows an *affirmation by transposition*, and vice versa.

The negating particle added to: A noun, a predicate, or a predicate with the signs *every* and *some*, produces: An affirmation from an infinite subject, an affirmation from transposition, or a simple negation, or a simple affirmation, or a simple negation.

The order of the consequence of propositions, of which this is the rule: 312 To any simple affirmation follows a transposed negation; and conversely, to a simple negation follows a transposed affirmation. For example:

| | Simple Affirmations. | Transposed Negations. | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | Pre-defined | {Every man is just | No man is non-just | | | {Some man is just | Not some man is non-just | | Singular | Socrates is just | Socrates is not non-just | | Indefinite | Man is learned | Man is not non-learned |

| Consequents. | | | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | | Simple Negations. | Transposed Affirmations. | | Pre-defined | {No man is just | Every man is non-just | | | {Some man is not just | Some man is non-just | | Singular | Socrates is not just | Socrates is non-just | | Indefinite | Man is not learned | Man is non-learned |

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXXI. ON THE SYLLOGISM AND CONVERSION.

1. He defines the syllogism. — 2. He explains the definition by its individual parts. — 3. An objection: why "it comes to pass" is placed in the definition. — 4. How "epiphora" is used, and first for the whole composed of premises and conclusion, just as it was defined from the two examples. — 7. Then also for the conclusion alone. — 8. The difference between simple and composite syllogisms is indicated. — 9. That every proposition is constituted of subject and predicate from terms. — 10. How much the predicate to the subject or the subject to the predicate ought to be in a proposition. — 11. What "to be in the whole" is. — 12. What "to be said of every" is. — 13. That what is "in the whole" and "said of every" in affirmative propositions, the same is "not in the whole" and "said of nothing" in negatives. — 14. What "not in the whole" is. — 15. What "to be said of nothing" is. — 16. The proper term for a simple syllogism, namely, how many propositions or premises it has. — 17. How these are distinguished. — 18. Which proposition is called the major. — 19. Which the minor. — 20. In composite syllogisms, which proposition is called major and minor by analogy. — 21. Which proposition in a syllogism is the worse, and which the better, both in quantity and quality. — 22. That the conclusion follows the worse part, as is proved by the induction of syllogistic moods. — 23. That no syllogism is formed from two negative and two particular premises. — 24. We proceed to the second part of the chapter, and conversion is described. — 25. It is divided by its object. — 26. Through precision, the conversion of simple terms is touched upon. — 27. The conversion of syllogisms is declared. — 28. In what propositions conversion is called "contingent," and why. — 29. What conversion with contraposition is, and why it is so indicated, and how broadly it extends. — 30. What simple conversion is and how it is defined. — 31. It is taught in detail how individual propositions are converted, and first, indeed, the universal affirmative. — 32. That a universal negative proposition in contingent matters does not convert into itself.

CHAPTER XXXI. On the syllogism and conversion.

1. A syllogism is a discourse in which, certain things having been laid down, something else other than what is laid down follows of necessity because these things are so.

2. For the syllogism is a discourse composed of names and verbs; in which discourse, when certain things have been laid down, that is to say, agreed upon (and these are propositions), it follows by every necessity, because these very propositions are so, that something else other than these propositions arises, which is clearly also determined, which is the conclusion.

3. But since in the definition it was posited "by necessity," so that no one might perhaps imagine that the conclusion follows upon the premises only in necessary matter, "it comes to pass" has been added. But this signifies that it naturally concurs with the ^B propositions (the conclusion), that is to say, it comes with them (as the etymology of the Greek word is expressed).

4. Every simple syllogism therefore consists of two propositions and a conclusion, which is diverse from the propositions, one and finite, that is to say, affirmative or negative, universal or particular.

5. But it comes to pass necessarily and unavoidably in every matter; which is the same as if it were said that the conclusion follows the propositions not because of the nature of things, but because of the status of the propositions; which propositions, indeed, are sufficient for gathering the conclusion, needing no other proposition for it.

6. But all of this, that is, the two propositions together ^C with the conclusion, is called a syllogism, that is, a ratiocination, because we reason from such propositions through the conclusion; that is to say, we gather logically that which is proposed for demonstration. For a gathering of discourses

or reasons, ^A is the syllogism. Certainly, it is proposed to us, by way of example, to show that the rational soul is always mobile, and we say as follows: The rational soul is self-mobile; this is a proposition. That which is self-mobile is always mobile; this is the other proposition. Therefore, from these two propositions, the conclusion necessarily follows: that the rational soul is always mobile. And this was what was proposed for demonstration. Again, another syllogism, by which we demonstrate that the rational soul is immortal. The rational soul is always mobile; that which is always mobile is immortal; therefore, the rational soul is immortal. One proposition: The rational soul is always mobile. A second proposition: That which is always mobile is immortal. Finally, the conclusion: The rational soul is immortal—which followed of necessity from the assumed propositions, being distinct from them.

7. Sometimes, however, the conclusion itself is called a syllogism, inasmuch as it brings together the intervals in the discourses, or rather in the propositions—the extreme terms, I mean—into one, and, as it were, gathers the demonstration scattered throughout all the terms. ^B

8. Therefore, the simple syllogism precisely consists of two propositions and a conclusion. But composite syllogisms are composed of more propositions. For it is possible, having combined the aforementioned syllogisms, to say: The rational soul is self-mobile; that which is self-mobile is always mobile; that which is always mobile is immortal; therefore, the rational soul is immortal.

9. Now, every proposition consists of a subject and a predicate; these alone are properly termed terms. For the proposition is resolved into them as into certain elements and first principles. ^C

10. And the predicate term ought to be either greater than the subject, or equal; never, however, less. But the subject [ought to be] either less or equal; never, however, greater.

11. Therefore, when we go from the subject to the predicate, it is called "in the whole," as when we say: The rational soul is self-mobile; that is, the rational soul is in everything that is self-mobile, or in the whole that is self-mobile. For the rational soul is as a part in the whole that is self-mobile. It is the same thing to say, the rational soul is in the whole that is self-mobile, and the rational soul is self-mobile.

12. But when we go from the predicate to the subject, then it is said "of all," as when we say: That which is self-mobile [is predicated] of every rational soul; or thus: That which is self-mobile exists in every rational soul, saying by this that all individuals ^D of the rational soul have that which it is to be and to be called self-mobile.

13. And just as "in the whole" and "of all" are in affirmative propositions, so in negative propositions are "not in the whole" and "of none."

14. For when, in the case of affirmative propositions...

we come from the subject to the predicate, then it is said "not in the whole"; as, "Man is not inanimate," or, "Man is not in the whole of the inanimate"; that is to say, "Man is not a part of the inanimate." 15. But when we come from the predicate to the subject, then it is said "neither of any"; as, "The inanimate is of no man," or, "The inanimate belongs to no man"; that is to say, "No individual of the human species shall be found to have the being, or to be called, inanimate." ^A 16. The simple syllogism, therefore, has two propositions. 17. But the one of them is called the major, and the other the minor. 18. And the major is indeed that which has the predicate term, which the conclusion also has. ^B 19. But the minor is the logical one; as in this syllogism: "The soul is always moving; that which is always moving is immortal; therefore the soul is immortal." The major proposition is that which says, "That which is always moving is immortal," for it has "immortal" as the predicate, which is likewise the predicate in the conclusion, for the conclusion is "The soul is immortal." But the minor proposition is that which says that the soul is always moving. 20. But in composite syllogisms, the major of all the propositions is, proportionally, that which has as its predicate the same term as the conclusion; the minor, on the other hand, is that which does not have this term; and furthermore, the minor proposition is that which has the same subject as the conclusion. ^C 21. Furthermore, a proposition in a syllogism is also called "worse" and "better." For since every proposition has both quantity (for it is either universal or particular) and quality (for it is either affirmative or negative), the particular is worse than the universal according to quantity, and according to quality the negative is worse than the affirmative; it remains, therefore, that the universal is better than the particular, and the affirmative than the negative. 22. But the conclusion follows the worse of the propositions. If therefore a syllogism consists of two affirmatives and both are universal, no proposition in this is worse, and the conclusion will also be affirmative and universal. But if a syllogism should be from two affirmative propositions, ^D one universal, the other particular, since the particular is worse than the universal, as has been said, the conclusion which follows this "worse" one will be particular affirmative. But if again a syllogism has been constructed from one affirmative, the other negative, and both are indeed universal, the conclusion will indeed be universal (since no proposition is particular), but it will be negative as following the proposition that is worse in quality. Finally, if a perfect syllogism has been formed from a particular affirmative and a universal negative, the conclusion will follow the particular in quantity and the negative in quality, and it will be particular...

negative; and this is what results from selecting the worse of the two propositions.

23. From two negative propositions, even if they be universal, or from two particular ones, even if they be affirmative, a syllogism can never be formed.

24. Conversion is, as it were, a turning back into the rear and a return (or reciprocity).

25. This conversion is considered in terms, in propositions, and in syllogisms.

26. Now, conversion regarding terms is treated in the chapter on relative things: that the father of a son is a father, and the son of a father is a son, and so forth.

27. In syllogisms, conversion occurs when, having taken the conclusion and having added the major proposition, we construct the minor. For example, let the syllogism be given which says: "The rational soul is self-moving; what is self-moving is always moving; what is always moving is immortal; therefore, the rational soul is immortal." We have, therefore, the same conclusion, that the rational soul is immortal. Taking this and making it the minor proposition, and then adding the others, we make the conclusion the proposition that was previously the minor, saying thus: "The rational soul is immortal; what is immortal is always moving; what is always moving is self-moving; therefore, the rational soul is self-moving." It is also possible, by conjoining the minor proposition with the conclusion, to make the conclusion the proposition that was in the prior syllogism the major one; for example: "The rational soul is immortal; what is immortal is self-moving; what is self-moving is always moving; therefore, the rational soul is always moving." Thus, then, does conversion occur in syllogisms. ^{A B C}

28. The conversion that takes place in propositions either preserves the order of the terms—keeping the predicate the same and the subject the same—but changes only the quality, making a negative proposition affirmative and an affirmative one negative. And this is called "contingent" conversion, because it consists only in contingent matter; for example: "Some man bathes," "Some man does not bathe." Yet this would not strictly be conversion.

29. But if neither the order of the terms is preserved, nor the quality, that which is called conversion by contraposition occurs. It is so called because we convert by moving from the predicate to the subject, taking the opposite of the terms, affirmatives instead of negatives, and negatives instead of affirmatives. For example, if "man is animal," then "what is not an animal is not a man." And if "fire is not cold," then "what is cold is not fire." Such conversion is most necessary in all matter.

30. But if the quality of the propositions remains the same, and the order of the terms alone is changed, and the subject becomes the predicate, and the ^D

^A predicate the subject, the result is simple conversion. For simple conversion is the sharing of two propositions regarding both terms, with the order of the terms changed, but the quality kept the same, along with a consistency of truth.

31. Since there are four kinds of propositions—universal affirmative, universal negative, particular affirmative, and particular negative—the universal affirmative is converted into the particular affirmative according to the aforementioned simple conversion; as, for example, "Every man is an animal," and, "Some animal is a man."

32. The universal negative is converted into itself; as, "No man is irrational," and, "Nothing irrational is a man."

33. And the particular affirmative is also converted into itself; as, "Some man is white," and, "Something white is a man." ^B

34. But the particular negative, in the case of contingent things alone, is converted into itself. For example, "Not every man is five-fingered," and, "Not everything which is five-fingered is a man." In other cases, however, it is converted neither into itself nor into the universal negative. For if we say, "Not every animal is a horse," we cannot say, "Not every horse is an animal," or, "No horse is an animal"; for every horse is an animal. Hence the conversion of the "not every" [particular negative] proposition is disapproved.

35. But not even the universal negative is converted into itself in the case of ^C contingent things. For one may say that it is possible for no man to bathe; but it is not possible, by making a conversion, to say that it is possible for no bathing thing to be a man. For a horse and an ox also bathe, and it is not true to say that it is possible for the horse or the ox not to be a man. For it is rather necessary for these not to be a man; that is, it is impossible for the horse or the ox to be a man. For that which is necessary not to be, is impossible to be. But that which can both be and not be, this we call contingent.

Table of Chapter 31, concerning the syllogism and conversion.

Syllogism is called | generally the whole of this, two propositions with a conclusion; in so far as it is defined, a syllogism is a discourse in which, certain things being posited, something else distinct from those things which were posited follows by necessity, because these things are; sometimes [also] the conclusion itself.

Syllogism is otherwise | simple, which consists of two propositions and a conclusion; composite, which consists of more propositions and is resolved into as many simple syllogisms as it has propositions beyond the two.

Predicate to subject | must be either less, or equal; not less.

Subject to predicate | must be either less, or equal; not greater.

In affirmative propositions if | we come from subject to predicate | we say it is "in toto" | we come from predicate to subject | we say it is "de omni".

".

In negative propositions if | we come from subject to predicate | we say it is "not in toto". | we come from predicate to subject | we say it is "de nullo".

Conversio is viewed either in | terms; as, Father is the father of the son, and the son the father of the father; | syllogisms, concerning which later; when after the conclusion is accepted and one of the premises, the remainder is inferred.

In the conversion of propositions | the order of terms is preserved, only the quality is changed, and this is "contingent conversion": as, Some man washes, Some man does not wash. And this is called "improper" conversion. | neither the order of terms nor the quality is preserved; and this is conversion by contraposition; as, Man is an animal; and, That which is not an animal is not a man. | the quality is preserved, but the order of terms is changed; and it is called "simple" [conversion]; and it is either | simple homonymous, as, No man is a stone, and no stone is a man, | per accidens, as, Every man is an animal; and, Some animal is a man.

A proposition is considered "inferior" according to | quantity | universal [to] particular | quality | affirmative [to] negative | but the conclusion follows the inferior part or premise.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXXII, WHICH IS ABOUT THE THREE FIGURES

1. That and why in a simple syllogism there are strictly three terms. — 2. What those terms are and what kind they are. — 3. Declaratory example. — 4. The common and middle term is arranged in three ways in propositions. — 5. Hence arise the three figures of syllogisms. — 6. The first figure. — 7. The second. — 8. The third. — 9. Singular propositions [are] also called syllogistic conjugations. — 11. How many syllogistic conjugations of the three figures there are in sum. — 12. Of the three figures which are common. — 13. Which are peculiar to the first figure. — 14. Which are the second. — 15. Which the third. — 16. Warning of the commonalities of the three figures that must be observed. — 17. The order of the figures. — 18. The reason for the order. — 19. He repeats what syllogistic modes of the figures are, and explains the cause of the varying number.

CHAPTER XXXII Of the three figures.

1. ^A In a simple syllogism there are strictly three terms. For a simple syllogism has two propositions, each of which possesses two terms: one subject, and one predicate. But it has one term proper, and the other common to the other proposition.

2. 329 Therefore three terms constitute a simple syllogism: two proper and one common. The proper ones, therefore, are the extremes; the common one, however, is the middle.

3. Let the proposition be: Man is an animal. Another proposition: Animal is a substance. In these two propositions, animal is the common term. And the same term is also the middle. But the proper and extreme term is, for that proposition, man; for this one, however, substance. If the extreme terms ^B are gathered into one and, as it were, united, a conclusion is produced. For if man is animal, and animal is substance, man (therefore) is substance.

4. The common and middle term, therefore, is that which is taken in the composition of the propositions, or is subjected in one of the propositions—that is, it is the subject—and in the other it is predicated—that is, it is the predicate—or even in both propositions

5. And thus, three figures of syllogisms arise. ^A

6. For if the common and middle term is subjected in one proposition to one extreme, and in the other is predicated of the remaining extreme, the first figure comes into being. As: Man is an animal; animal is substance; man is substance.

7. But if the same common and middle term is predicated ^B of both extremes in each of the propositions, the second figure is effected. As: Man is an animal; a stone is not an animal; man is not a stone.

8. But if, finally, the same common and middle term is also subjected to both extremes in both propositions, the third figure emerges. As: Man is an animal; man is something rational; ^C therefore, an animal is rational.

9. The first figure, therefore, possesses four syllogistic modes; the second, just as many; but the third figure has six syllogistic modes.

10. Syllogistic modes are also called syllogistic conjugations. For two propositions conjoined by one term produce each of these modes.

11. Therefore, all syllogistic conjugations of the three figures, or syllogistic modes, amount to fourteen.

12. The things common to the three figures are that each of them must necessarily have one affirmative proposition and one universal. For in no figure shall a syllogism ever consist of two negative ^D propositions, or of two particular ones. These, therefore, are common to the three figures.

13. Property of the first figure is to always have the minor proposition affirmative, whether universal or particular, and the major always universal, whether affirmative or negative. And this figure gathers both affirmative and negative conclusions, as well as universal and particular ones.

14. Proper to the second figure is always to have the major proposition universal, whether affirmative or negative. Indeed, this is rather common to both the first and the second figure; but strictly proper to the second figure is to have the minor proposition, whether it be affirmative or negative, or whether it be universal or particular; and that it always keeps the propositions of unlike form, or unlike in quality—that is, one of them, whichever it may be, affirmative, and the other negative. This figure gathers both universal and particular conclusions, yet all are negative, and none is ever affirmative.

15. Of the third figure, it is proper always to have the

minor proposition affirmative, whether universal or particular. But this is more properly common to the first and third figures. It is, however, strictly the property of the third figure to have its major proposition indifferent in quantity—that is, either universal or particular—and whether it be affirmative or negative. The third figure gathers both affirmative and negative conclusions, yet they are all particular, and none is ever universal. ^B

16. One must observe the common rules of the three figures throughout: that in none of the figures may both propositions be particular, nor may both be negative.

17. Therefore, that [first] figure has deservedly received the first rank, as it is able to gather all conclusions: affirmative, negative, universal, and particular. But the second place in order is held by that which, although it does not gather an affirmative conclusion, still concludes both universal and particular [conclusions]. The third and final station has fallen to that which syllogizes affirmative and negative conclusions, yet all are particular. ^C

18. For a figure is better, and more useful for demonstration, if it gathers [a conclusion] simply universal, than one which gathers no universal [conclusion]. Again, it is better if it can gather a universal affirmative. For demonstrative science is especially intent upon the universal affirmative, more than the negative. For the former confirms existing things, whereas the negative [confirms] non-existing things. And a thing is far better and more honorable than that which is not. By a secondary reason, demonstration also has a regard for the universal negative, but it neglects particulars, since it seeks universals and is occupied with them. ^D

19. There are four syllogistic modes of the first figure, four of the second, and six of the third. For in the first figure we take two precautions: that the minor proposition never be negative, and that the major never be particular. Likewise, in the second figure [we take] two: that the propositions never be of the same quality [i.e., both affirmative or both negative], and that the major never be particular. In the third, there is only one observation: that the minor proposition never be negative. Whence it is logically the case that while the other two figures have four syllogistic combinations each, the third has been allotted six.

Table of Chapter 32, concerning the three figures.

The middle term which is taken twice in the propositions, either in one proposition is made the subject and in the other is predicated, and the first figure of syllogisms arises; or in both propositions it is predicated, and hence is the second figure of syllogisms; or in both it is made the subject, and the third figure emerges.

[The following is a tabular summary of the figures not fully parsed in the OCR, here presented as defined by the text:]

1. Having two common [rules]: 1. It is necessary to have an affirmative proposition. 2. One universal, one particular. (From negative and particular, nothing follows). Primæ [Figure]: 1. To have the minor proposition always affirmative; however, it also suits the third. 2. To have the major proposition always universal; however, it also suits the second. 3. To collect conclusions of all types, universal and particular, affirmative and negative.

Secundæ [Figure]: 1. To have the major proposition always universal; however, it also suits the first. 2. To have the minor [proposition] either affirmative or negative, or universal or particular: and to have propositions of different quality, that is, dissimilar in quality - "a-homoeo-schemonas", meaning figure or quality dissimilar. 3. Only negative ones collect conclusions, although they may be universal and particular.

Tertiæ [Figure]: 1. To have the minor proposition always affirmative; it also suits the first. 2. To have the major proposition indefinite in quantity and quality. 3. To collect only particular conclusions, although they may be affirmative or negative.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXXIII, WHICH IS CONCERNING THE FIRST FIGURE

CHAPTER XXXIII. Concerning the first figure.

1. When the common and middle term is the subject of one of the extremes, but the predicate of the other; it is clear, however, that it is predicated of the minor and is the subject of the major, then the first figure arises. 2. The syllogistic modes of this figure, as has been said before, are four. 3. And the first is the mode which consists of two universal affirmative propositions, collecting a universal affirmative conclusion. As from that which is "in the whole": Every man is an animal: every animal is a substance; (therefore) every man is a substance.

And thus: ^B Every man is in the whole of the animal; the animal is in the whole of the substance; every man is in the whole of the substance. From that which is "of every": The substance is of every animal; the animal is of every man; the substance is of every man. And thus: The substance exists in every animal; the animal in every man; the substance exists in every man.

^A 4. The second mode of the first figure, which from a universal affirmative minor and a universal negative major draws a universal negative conclusion: as for instance, from what is in the whole and not in the whole: Every man is an animal; no animal is a stone; no man is a stone. And thus: Man is in the whole of animal; animal is not in the whole of stone; man is not in the whole of stone: that is, man does not exist as a part of the stone, so that the stone would be the whole, and man a part of it. From that which is 'of none' and 'of all': Stone is of no animal; animal is of every man; stone is of no man. In Greek, this is the same as 'of none' [κατὰ μηδενὸς] and 'of none' [κατ' οὐδενός]. And thus: Stone exists in no animal; animal in every man; therefore, stone exists in no man.

^B 5. The third mode of the first figure, which from a particular affirmative minor and a universal affirmative major draws a particular affirmative conclusion: as for instance, from that which is in the whole: Some animal is man; every man is risible; some animal is risible. And thus: Some animal is in the whole of man; every man is in the whole of risible; some animal is in the whole of risible. From that which is 'of all' and 'of some': Risible is of every man; man is of some animal; risible is of some animal. And thus: Risible is in every man; man in some animal; risible is in some animal.

6. We are also able, instead of the particular identifier, to assume a definite person from particulars and again draw the same conclusions: for instance, Socrates is a man; every man is risible; therefore, Socrates is risible. And again: Risible is of every man; man is of Socrates; therefore, risible is of Socrates.

^A 7. The fourth mode of the first figure, which concludes to a particular negative from a universal negative major and a particular affirmative minor: as, from that which is "of none" and "of some." To commit a solecism [is] of no grammarian; the grammatical [is] of some Ethiopian; therefore, to commit a solecism [is] not of every Ethiopian. And thus: To commit a solecism [is] of no grammarian; the grammatical [is] to some Ethiopian; therefore, to commit a solecism does not belong to some Ethiopian, that is, it does not belong to every Ethiopian. From that which is "in the whole" and "not in the whole": Some Ethiopian is a grammarian; no grammarian is a solecist; therefore, not every Ethiopian is a solecist. And thus: Some Ethiopian is in the whole of the grammarian; no grammarian is in the whole of the solecist (for the grammarian is not a part of the solecist, but is rather most distant from him); therefore, some Ethiopian is not in the whole of the solecist, that is, not every Ethiopian is in the whole of the solecist.

^B 8. These four modes of the first figure, therefore, always conclude to the true from true propositions; whence they are also called syllogistic. But all those besides them are asyllogistic, because they conclude to both true and false things while the propositions themselves are true. For as is evident, from a universal affirmative major and a universal negative minor, both the true and the false are gathered in the first figure—the true, indeed: No stone is a man; every man is an animal; therefore, no stone is an animal. But the false: No stone is a man; every man is a substance; therefore, no stone is a substance. Such things occur also in other modes of this figure which have not been handed down by us; and the same may also be found in the other figures.

Tabula capitis 33, de prima figura / Table of chapter 33, concerning the first figure

340 Prima figura ex { a et a e et a a et i e et i } colligit { a e i o } unde Barbara, Celarent, Darii, Ferio.

SYNOPSIS CAPITIS XXXIV. QUOD EST DE SECUNDA ET TERTIA FIGURA. / SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXXIV. CONCERNING THE SECOND AND THIRD FIGURE.

1. Describing the second figure. — 2. Reciting and explaining its modes in order. — 3. Cesare. — 4. Camestres. — 5. Festino. — 6. Baroco. — 7. Giving the reason why these four modes of this figure are syllogistic, and why all others besides them are asyllogistic, and declaring it by one example. — 8. Describing the third figure. — 9. Reciting and explaining its modes in order. — 10. Darapti. — 11. Felapton. — 12. Disaris. — 13. Ferison. — 14. Disamis. — 15. Bocardo. — 16. Concluding about the modes of this figure. — 18. Discussion on syllogisms consisting of indefinite propositions.

CAPUT XXXIV. De secunda et tertia figura. / CHAPTER XXXIV. Concerning the second and third figure.

1. When the common and middle term is predicated of both of the extremes, then the second figure is made.

2. And the syllogistic modes of this figure also are four.

3. The first, therefore, from a universal affirmative...

^A minor and a universal privative (which is the same as saying a negative) major, draws a universal privative conclusion: as, Man is an animal; a stone is not an animal; therefore, man is not a stone.

[Diagrams: 1. A crescent moon with 'οὐδ.' and 'π' at the horns, 'μ. ζῶον' in the center; a triangle with 'οὐδ.' at the top, 'ν. λίθος' at the left, 'ἄνθρωπος ξ.' at the right, and 'οὐδ.' at the bottom.]

And again: The animal [is said] of no stone; the animal [is said] of every man; therefore, the stone [is said] of no man.

^B 4. The second mode of this figure is from a universal privative minor and a universal affirmative major; and it also draws a universal privative conclusion: as, No stone is an animal; every man is an animal; therefore, no stone is a man.

[Diagrams: 1. A crescent moon with 'οὐδ.' and 'π' at the horns, 'μ. ζῶον' in the center; a triangle with 'οὐδ.' at the top, 'ν. ἄνθρωπος' at the left, 'λίθος ξ.' at the right, and 'οὐδ.' at the bottom.]

^C 5. The third mode is that which, from a particular affirmative minor and a universal privative major, reasons a particular negative conclusion: as, Some animal is rational; no irrational [being] is rational; not every animal is irrational.

^A 6. The fourth mode is that which from a particular negative minor and a universal affirmative major, itself also reasons a particular negative conclusion: as, Not every white is an animal; every man is an animal; [therefore] not every white is a man.

^B 7. And these modes, indeed, which conclude the true from true propositions, are called and are syllogistic; but those which are beyond them, because they infer both truths and falsehoods, are both called and are asyllogistic. For it is evident that from two universal negative propositions both a truth and a falsehood are concluded. A truth thus: No stone is a man; no horse is a man; [therefore] no stone is a horse. But a falsehood: No man flies; nothing rational flies; [therefore] no man is rational.

8. But the third figure is when the common and middle term is subject to both of the extremes.

9. The modes of the third figure are six.

^C 10. And the first, indeed, is that which from two universal affirmative propositions reasons a particular affirmative conclusion; as, Every man is an animal; every man is a rational [being]; [therefore] some animal is a rational [being]. And again: Rational [is predicated] of every man; animal [is predicated] of every man; therefore, rational [is predicated] of some animal.

[Diagram: Rational, Animal, Man]

^A 11. The second mode, which from a universal negative major and a universal affirmative minor, infers a particular negative conclusion; for example: Every snow is white; no snow is an animals; not every white thing is an animal. And again: Animal [belongs] to no snow; white [belongs] to all snow; therefore, animal [does not belong] to every white thing.

[Diagram: Animal, White, Snow]

^B 12. The third mode, which from a particular affirmative minor and a universal affirmative major, gathers a particular affirmative conclusion; for example: Some man is black; every man is an animal; [therefore], some black thing is an animal.

[Diagram: Black, Animal, Man]

13. The fourth mode is that which, from a particular affirmative minor and a universal negative major, gathers a particular negative conclusion; for example: Some stone is white; no stone is an animal: therefore, not every white thing is an animal. ^A

14. The fifth mode is that which, ^B from a universal affirmative minor and a particular affirmative major, concludes a particular affirmative: for example, Every man is an animal; some man is white; [therefore], some animal is white.

15. The sixth and final mode is that which, from a universal affirmative minor and a particular negative major, reasons to a particular negative conclusion; for example: Every man is an animal; not every man is black; [therefore], not every animal is black. ^C

16. We can, however, also collect all the syllogisms of the second and third figures in another way from that which is "in the whole" and "not in the whole"; and likewise from that which is "of every" and "of none": just as we have done, for the sake of a common and universal example, in the first figure. ^D

^A 17. See then, the all syllogistic conjugations of the third figure have been declared, and there is no other besides these which always necessarily concludes the truth. These things, therefore, have been said concerning syllogistic conjugations composed of definite propositions.

18. As for syllogisms which also have indefinite propositions, what has been said before concerning such indefinite propositions is sufficient; nevertheless, even in syllogisms that have indefinite propositions, it is necessary for the conclusion to follow the worse of the propositions. And the indefinite is worse than the definite; just as also the negative is worse than the affirmative, and the particular than the universal.

345 Tabula capitis 34, de secunda et tertia figura.

Secunda figura ex { e el a a el e o el i a el o } colligit { e e u o } unde Cesare, Camestres, Festino, Baroco.

Tertia figura ex { a el e o el a i el a c el i a el i o el a } colligit { e u o i o i o } unde Davanti, Felapton, Disacius, Ferison, Datisi, Bocardo.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXXV, WHICH IS ON THE REDUCTION OF THE SECOND AND THIRD FIGURE TO THE FIRST, AND ON REDUCTION TO THE IMPOSSIBLE.

1. Syllogisms divided into perfect and imperfect. — 2. Which are perfect and imperfect, and why the perfect are so called. — 3. The same, how they conclude according to the whole and progress ahead. — 4. How by the impossible. — 5. Why the first figure is perfect, the second and third are imperfect. — 6. What the second figure is. — 7. What the third is. — 8. How the second and third figures are perfected, and what instruments they have need of for perfection. — 9. How reduction to the impossible is done. — 10. Declared by example. — 11. Transition to the exemplary declaration of the ostensive reduction and reduction to the impossible of the individual moods of the second and third figure. — 12. How and whereby the first mood of the second figure is reduced first ostensively and then by reduction to the impossible. — 13. Second mood. — 14. Third mood. — 15. Fourth mood. — 16. From the second figure one passes to the third. — 17. How and whereby the first mood of the third figure is reduced. — 18. Second mood. — 19. Third. — 20. Fourth. — 21. Fifth. — 22. Sixth. — 23. It is shown that both may be converted, to wit, the ostensive proposition, and [that it is] possible that the reduction to the impossible be made by that which is in the whole and not in the whole, and likewise by that which is of every and of none. — 24. Why also the particular moods of the first figure are reduced to the universal, and how this is done. — 25. Darii. — 26. Ferio. — 27. It is concluded that all other moods of all figures, and consequently all syllogisms, are to be reduced to the two universal moods of the first figure.

CHAPTER XXXV. Concerning the reduction of the second and third figures to the first, and concerning abduction to the impossible.

1. Of syllogisms, some are called perfect, others imperfect.

2. Perfect, indeed, are those of the first figure; imperfect, however, those of the second and third ^A. Those of the first figure were called perfect because they make the demonstration straight and manifest by themselves, whether they reason from that which is "in the whole" or from that which is "of all." For they are brought about from one extreme to the other through the middle and common term.

3. And when they conclude from that which is "of all" toward the minor and final term, they advance from the first and major term through that same middle and common term; which middle and common term is, to be sure, smaller than the major term, but larger than the minor ^B. And from this they also depict the consequence and order of nature: since nature also descends from those things that are more universal and simpler to those that are more particular and more composite.

4. But when they collect from that which is "in the whole," then, proceeding by a way more open and more known to sense, they come again in good order from the minor term through the medium to the major; and thus, from both sides, they do not wander from the straight and manifest demonstration, but—from above to below ^C, and from below to above—they exhibit the necessary step by step, imitating both the compositive and the resolutive method.

5. So it is, then, and for these reasons, that the first figure was called perfect. The second and third figures, however, were called imperfect, because they do not make the demonstration straight and manifest by themselves, but rather oblique and hidden, as those which have respect neither to nature nor to sense.

6. For the second figure, when making a demonstration from that which is "of all," proceeds from the more universal to the more particular; and it turns back again and retraces its steps, and, as if having wandered from the straight path, it proceeds again from the prior and more universal principles ^D to other, more particular ones. But when this second figure concludes from that which is "in the whole," then, proceeding from the more particular to the more universal, it becomes regressive; and as if forgetful of the prior principle, it is carried from another [starting point] to the first goal; and thus it renders the demonstration twisted and confused.

7. By contrast, the third figure is affected in the opposite way to this one: from that which is "of all," it has two principles, but one goal more particular than the principles; from that which is "in the whole," it has one principle, but two goals more universal than such a principle.

8. Since, therefore, the two figures, the second and the third, have been unable to attain the straight demonstration, and for this reason have been called imperfect, they require for the perfection—or rather, for the ascent to the straightness of the demonstration, and for simple conversions,

and for the reduction to the impossible and absurd. ^A

9. Such an abduction ^B occurs when someone contradicts the conclusion of a syllogism, or perhaps one of the propositions is proposed as being contradictorily opposed, and from this something impossible and absurd is gathered: impossible, indeed, in respect to the thing itself; but absurd, in respect to the reasoning.

10. For instance, in the present syllogism: "Not every white thing is an animal; every man is an animal; therefore, not every white thing is a man." If someone were to object that "Not every white thing is a man" is not true, then that which is contradictorily opposed to it will be true: namely, "Every white thing is a man." For in all things, both those that exist and those that do not, one part of the contradiction is true, and the other is false. If, therefore, "Not every white thing is a man" were false, then the proposition contradictorily opposed to it must necessarily be true, which is "Every white thing is a man." For "every" and "not every," and again "some" and "none," are contradictorily opposed to one another. If, therefore, because of the objection "Every white thing is a man"—and there was one proposition of the given syllogism, namely, "Every man is an animal"—we take such a proposition and that which comes from the objection of the one who contradicts, we will make such a syllogism: "Every white thing is a man; every man is an animal; therefore, every white thing is an animal." But "Not every white thing is an animal" was also a proposition agreed upon according to the former syllogism. For that syllogism was: "Not every white thing is an animal; every man is an animal; not every white thing is a man." Therefore, through the objection, it followed that "Every white thing is an animal." But for every white thing to be an animal and for not every white thing to be an animal is impossible by the nature of the thing, and it is absurd to say that the entire contradiction is true at once of one and the same thing; that is, such a line of reasoning has no place or ground for acceptance, but is entirely inadmissible. ^C The impossible and the absurd followed upon the objection of the one who contradicts. Hence, the one from the objection is false, and the conclusion of the former syllogism is true: namely, "Not every white thing is a man." The same impossible and absurd conclusion follows if either the minor or the major proposition is taken as false, provided that the figure is preserved as sound. In this way, then, the reduction to the impossible is completed.

21. It is time, then, to reduce the syllogistic modes of the second and third figures to the first figure by means of examples.

22. The first mode of the second figure is: "Every man is an animal; no stone is an animal; therefore, no man is a stone." If we convert the major proposition of this syllogism, we will execute the second mode of the first figure; for since the "none" ^D converts into itself, if "no stone is an animal," then also "no animal is a stone." And "every man is an animal" is ...

^A Since every man is an animal, and no animal is a stone, no man is a stone. And thus, by simple conversion, the first mode of the second figure is reduced to the first figure. By deduction to the impossible, however, as follows: If it is not true that "no man is a stone," then it will be that "some man is a stone." But it is also [the case that] "no stone is an animal." Therefore, it is gathered according to the fourth mode of the first figure that "not every man is an animal." For if some man is a stone, and no stone is an animal, [then] not every man is an animal. But "every" was assumed, which is absurd.

13. The second mode of the second figure will be reduced by two conversions to the second mode of the first figure, for example: No stone is an animal; every man is an animal; no stone is a man. Let the minor be converted. If no stone is an animal, then no animal is a stone. But every man is an animal; if every man is an animal, and no animal is a stone, [then] no man is a stone. But this was not the conclusion of the previous syllogism. Therefore, another conversion is required here: if no man is a stone, then no stone is a man. By deduction to the impossible, as follows: If it is not true that "no stone is a man," it will be true that "some stone is a man." But it is also [the case that] "man is an animal," and it is gathered that "some stone is an animal." But it was assumed that "no stone is an animal," which is absurd.

14. The third mode of the second figure is reduced to the ^B fourth mode of the first figure by conversion as follows: Some animal is rational; no irrational [being] is rational; not every animal is irrational. Let the major be converted: If no irrational is rational, then no rational is irrational. But some animal is rational. If some animal is rational, and no rational is irrational, [then] not every animal is irrational. By deduction to the impossible: If it is false that "not every animal is irrational," then it will be true that "every animal is irrational." But it is posited also that "no irrational is rational"; therefore no animal is rational. But it was assumed also that "some animal is rational," which is impossible.

15. The fourth mode of the second figure will be reduced to the first figure, in no way by conversion, but solely by deduction to the impossible. For this consists of the "not every" and the "every." ^C But "every" converts to "some." But two particular propositions do not form a syllogism in the first figure, nor in any other figure. Therefore, such a mode of the second figure cannot return to the first by conversion; but it returns by deduction to the impossible; for example: Not every white [thing] is an animal; every man is an animal; therefore not every white [thing] is a man. If this is not [true], it will be that every white [thing] is a man. But it is also [true that] every man is an animal; if every white [thing] is a man, and every man is an animal, ^D then every white [thing] is an animal. But it was assumed also [that] "not every [white thing is an animal]," which is absurd.

16 16. Thus, then, the second figure is reduced to the first. But the third is as follows:

17 17. The first mood of the third figure: Every man is an animal; every man is rational; [thus] some animal is rational. Let the minor premise be converted: if every man is an animal, then some animal is a man; but every man is rational; therefore, some animal is rational. If [it be held that] "no animal is rational," then no animal is rational. But every man is an animal; if every man is an animal and no animal is rational, then no man will be rational. But it was assumed that [every man is rational], and [also to be] at least some [man].

18 18. The second mood [of the third figure]: Every snow is white; no snow is an animal; [thus] not everything white is an animal. Let the minor premise be converted: if every snow is white, then some white [thing] is snow; but no snow is an animal; therefore not every white [thing] is an animal. If this is not [so], then every white [thing] will be an animal. But it is [also true that] every snow is white; therefore, if every snow is white, and every white [thing] is an animal, then every snow is an animal. But it was the case also [that] no snow is an animal.

19 19. The third mood: Some man is black; every man is an animal; [thus] some black [thing] is an animal. Let the minor premise be converted: if some man is black, then some black [thing] is a man; but every man is an animal; hence, some black [thing] is an animal. If this is false, [then] no black [thing] is an animal; but some man is black. If some man is black and no black [thing] is an animal, then not every man is an animal. But it was [assumed] that every man is.

20 20. The fourth mood: Some stone is white; no stone is an animal; [thus] not every white [thing] is an animal. Let the minor premise be converted: if some stone is white, and some white [thing] is a stone; but no stone is an animal; therefore not every white [thing] is an animal. If this is not so, then every white [thing] will be an animal. But it is [also true that] some stone is white; if some stone is white and every white [thing] is an animal, [then] some stone is an animal. But it was assumed also [that no stone is an animal].

21 21. The fifth mood: Every man is an animal; some man is white; [thus] some animal is white. Let the major premise be converted: if some man is white, then some white [thing] is a man; but every man is an animal; therefore some white [thing] is an animal. Let the conclusion also be converted: if some white [thing] is an animal, [then] also some animal is white.

22 22. The sixth and last mood: Every man is an animal; not every man is black; [thus] not every animal is black. But this mood is not reduced to the first figure by conversion, for it arises from two particular propositions, while the universal affirmative "every" is converted into the particular affirmative "some." Whence it is completed only through reduction to the impossible. For if it were false that "not every animal is black," the contradictorily opposed [statement] would be true, namely, that "every animal is black." But it was also [held that] every man is an animal. If, therefore, every man is an animal, and every animal is black, [then] every man is black. But it was assumed also [that] "not every [man is black]," which is absurd.

^A 23. It is possible, however, for the reduction of the remaining two figures to the first figure to be effected in another way, from what is "in the whole and not in the whole." In the same way, also, from what is "of every" and "of none," whether such a reduction is brought about through conversion or through reduction to the impossible.

24. Moreover, since philosophy, as has been said often, seeks universals and is occupied with them—and the third and fourth modes of the first figure gather particulars—they themselves are also reduced to those which gather the universal in that same first figure, I mean the first and second modes. They are brought first, through a demonstration by the impossible, to those in the second figure which gather the universal, and from them, thereafter, to the universal syllogisms of the first figure. ^B

25. For example, the third mode of the first figure: Some animal is a man; every man is risible; [therefore] some animal is risible. If there is no animal that is risible, then no animal will be risible. But it is also [the case that] every man is risible, and it is gathered according to the second mode of the second figure: No animal is a man. ^C But it was also assumed [at the outset that] "some animal is a man."

26. The fourth mode of the first figure: Some Ethiopian is a grammarian; no grammarian is a solecist; [therefore] not every Ethiopian is a solecist. If this is not [the case], every Ethiopian is a solecist. But it is also [true that] no grammarian is a solecist; it is gathered, therefore, in the first mode of the second figure: No Ethiopian is a grammarian. But it was also assumed [that] "some Ethiopian is a solecist."

27. Since, therefore, the third and fourth modes of the first figure are referred to the universal syllogisms of the second figure—and these, in turn, are reduced to those which gather the universal in the first figure, as we previously demonstrated—it is sufficiently clear that the third mode of the first figure, and the fourth, will also be reduced to those in that same first figure which conclude the universal. Since all syllogisms are referred to the first figure (for this has also been demonstrated), all of them will be raised back to the first and second modes of the first figure, and no particular conclusion will be found anywhere according to this method.

Table of Chapter 35

Syllogisms are either perfect, as those which are of the first figure, or imperfect, as those which are of the second and third figures, which have need of reduction to the first.

Cesare Camestres Festino Baroco [are reduced] ostensively to Celarent Celarent Ferio Nullum [reduced] per impossible to Ferio Darii Celarent Barbara o et a i et e a et i a et o contradict

Another reduction is ostensive, which in Greek is called *deiktikē* (demonstrative), which is accomplished through the conversion of propositions, [or] by deduction to the impossible, by which something conflicting with the conclusion of the syllogism, or [with] one of the propositions, is taken as a contradictory, and from that something impossible and absurd is inferred.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXXVI. WHICH IS ABOUT HYPOTHETICAL OR CONDITIONAL SYLLOGISMS.

1. It constitutes four integral parts of a hypothetical syllogism. — 2. It shows the antecedent and consequent, or [that they are] expressed and spoken of according to continuity; or according to separation and spoken of as disjunctive. — 3. It declares this by example. — 4. It expounds the first mode of hypothetical syllogisms regarding continuity. — 5. The latter. — 6. It teaches that in both modes, the antecedent and consequent can be taken not in one way only, but in four ways; of which the first is placed. — 7. Second. — 8. Third. — 9. Fourth. — 10. It concludes about the two modes of hypothetical syllogisms regarding continuity and their quadruple variety. — 11. It proceeds to the modes which are according to separation, and treats the first, subjecting [the rule] in what matters it should be applied. — 12. Second. — 13. Third. — 14. It concludes concerning the three modes of hypothetical syllogisms according to separation. — 16. When a disjunctive can be used, and not only by the position of one the rest or remaining part can be removed, but also by the removal of one or two, the remaining can be posited, as in the second and third modes. — 17. It proposes and describes the sixth mode of hypothetical syllogisms. — 18. It makes its four modes. — 19. It proposes individual examples for each. — 20. By a summary it repeats the six modes of hypothetical syllogisms that were expounded.

CHAPTER XXXVI. On hypothetical, or conditional, syllogisms.

1. ^A Every hypothetical syllogism has an antecedent and a consequent, an assumption, and a conclusion.

2. And the antecedent and consequent are either brought forward and spoken of according to some continuous and uninterrupted sequence, and are called together a "connected" [proposition], when the consequent is also one thing; or they are brought forward according to distinction and separation, and together are called "disjunctive," when the consequent consists of different things.

3. For example: "If it is a human, it is an animal. But indeed, it is a human. Therefore, it is an animal." That which is "If it is a human," is called the antecedent; but "It is an animal," is called the consequent, because "animal" follows "human," being carried along ^B with it; but the human precedes the animal, carrying it along with him. And the consequent must always be either broader than or equal to the antecedent, but never of lesser extent; and this whole [compound], "If it is a human, it is an animal," is termed a "connected" [proposition], because the antecedent and consequent are connected with one another. But this, "But indeed, it is a human," is called the assumption, and also the *metalēpsis* (re-assumption). Both terms signify that the same thing is taken twice. And this, "Therefore it is even an animal," is the conclusion. Again: "Ten is either even or odd. But indeed, it is not odd. Even therefore." The antecedent is "ten"; the consequent is "it is even or odd." This whole thing, "Ten is even or odd," is called disjunctive.

^A For here, disseparation and disjunction are considered.

4. The first mode, therefore, of hypothetical syllogisms following continuity is that which, by the position of the antecedent, simultaneously infers the consequent: for example, "If it is night, the sun is beneath the earth. But indeed it is night; therefore the sun is beneath the earth."

5. The second mode, following continuity among hypothetical syllogisms, is that which, by the removal of the consequent, simultaneously removes the antecedent: for example, "If this is a man, it is also an animal. But indeed it is not an animal; therefore it is not a man." In this mode, the entire character of conversion by contraposition is preserved throughout in every respect.

6. Nor must one believe that in either of these two modes it is necessary always to adopt the antecedent and consequent affirmatively. For it is possible to adopt both affirmatively, as in the examples just mentioned. But it is also possible for both to be negative; or for the antecedent to be affirmative and the consequent negative, or vice versa.

7. For example, the first mode from two negatives: "If this is not an animal, neither is it a man. But indeed it is not an animal; therefore it is not a man." The antecedent in this conditional is "not being this animal," and the consequent is "not being a man." By the position, therefore, of "not being an animal," we simultaneously infer "not being a man." The second mode from two negatives: "If this is not an animal, neither is it a man. But indeed it is a man; therefore it is also an animal." The antecedent in this case is "not being an animal," and the consequent is "not being a man." By the removal, then, of "not being a man," "not being an animal" is also removed; and when the "not being" is removed, the "being" is established. ^B

8. The first mode from an affirmative antecedent and a negative consequent is this: "If it is day, it is not night. But indeed it is day; therefore it is not night." The second mode: "If it were one, man would never suffer pain. But he suffers pain; therefore he is not one."

9. The first mode from a negative antecedent and an affirmative consequent is this: "If it is not day, the sun is beneath the earth. But indeed it is not day; therefore the sun is beneath the earth." The second mode: "If man were not composite, that which heals him would be simple and uniform. But that which heals him is not simple and uniform; therefore man is composite." ^C

10. These, then, are the two modes of hypothetical syllogisms, and they are constituted and brought forward according to continuity, as has been said.

11. Of those brought forward according to diastasis, where the consequent also consists of different things, one is from a negative complex involving the position of one of those things which are in the consequent, removing the rest or others. This mode is adopted either in things that are in no way opposed at all, or in things that are indirectly opposed and have an indeterminate medium. Regarding things that are indirectly opposed ^D

^A and have an indeterminate medium, it is thus: "A raven is not both white and black." But it is black; therefore it is not white. And again: "A swan is not both white and black, and tawny and dusky." But it is white; therefore it is not the others. Regarding things which are not opposed, it is thus: "What is seen is not both man and horse and ox and dog." But it is a man; therefore it is not the others. And this is the third mode of the hypothetical syllogisms.

12. The fourth mode is that which from a disjunctive statement, by the positing of one of the consequents, removes the rest or the others. This mode is taken up both for things that are immediately opposed, as well as for those that are indirectly opposed but have a finite medium. And in the immediate case, as: "Ten is either even or odd." But it is even; therefore it is not odd. And in the intermediate and finite case, as: "This is either greater than that, or less, or equal." But it is, perhaps, equal; therefore it is neither greater nor less. ^B

13. The fifth mode is that which from a disjunctive statement, by the removal of one of the consequents, or of the others besides one, brings in the remainder. This is also taken up in the same cases as the fourth; as: "Six is either even or odd." But it is not odd; therefore it is even. And again: "Six is either perfect, or imperfect, or more-than-perfect." But it is neither imperfect nor more-than-perfect; therefore it is perfect.

14. These then are the three modes which exist by way of disjunction and separation, and they are pronounced in this way.

15. For indeed, when things are in no way opposed, or if they are, they are so indirectly and have an indeterminate medium; it is then impossible to go through them all, and for this reason it is not possible to bring them forward disjunctively, nor again to bring in the remainder by the removal of one or of the others. ^C For not even if it is not a man, is it at once a horse; nor again, if it is not white or black, will it be dusky. Therefore, instead of the disjunctive, one must use the conjunction of negation; and by the positing of the one, the rest or the others must be removed. As: "What is seen is not at the same time a dog and a wolf." But it is a wolf; therefore it is not a dog. And again: "The same thing does not exist simultaneously as red and crimson and purple and pale." But it is crimson; therefore it is not the others.

16. When things are immediately opposed, or indirectly so, yet have a finite medium for themselves, then they will be brought forward disjunctively; ^D and not only will a remainder or the rest be removed by the positing of one, but the remainder will be established by the removal of the others.

17. Another mode, besides those mentioned, is that which consists of whole hypotheses, which is also called "wholly hypothetical," not having an assumption, but formulating a conclusion from antecedents and consequents.

18. It shows what is or what is not when something exists, and again what is or what is not when something does not exist.

19. And indeed, concerning that which exists and what it is, as follows: If God is just, then retribution for deeds exists; if God is therefore just, the soul is immort—

immortal. ^A Concerning that which exists and what does not exist, as follows: If the rational soul is self-moved, it might never cease to be moved; if it should never cease to be moved, it will not perish. If, therefore, the rational soul is self-moved, it will not perish. Concerning that which does not exist and what does exist, as follows: If there is no day, it is night; if it is night, the sun is beneath the earth. If, therefore, there is no day, the sun is beneath the earth. Concerning that which does not exist and what does not exist, as follows: If that which heals the sick man is not one, neither is that one from which he is sick. If that from which a man is sick is not one, then man is not simple and incomposite. If, therefore, that which heals the man is not one, then man is not simple and incomposite. ^B 20. The first mode of hypothetical syllogisms is that according to connectivity, which, by the position of the antecedent, brings in the consequent. The second mode of hypothetical syllogisms is that according to connectivity, which, by the removal of the consequent, removes the antecedent. The third mode of hypothetical syllogisms is that according to separation, consisting of a negative complex, which, by the position of one of those things in the consequent, removes the other or others. The fourth mode of hypothetical syllogisms is that according to separation from a disjunctive, which, by the position of one of those things in the consequent, removes the rest or others. The fifth mode of hypothetical syllogisms is that according to separation from a disjunctive, which, by the removal of one of those things in the consequent, or of others besides one, brings in the remainder. The sixth mode of hypothetical syllogisms is that which consists of whole hypotheses, and is called the hypothetical syllogism by totality.

Table of Chapter 36, on hypothetical or conditional syllogisms.

Every hypothetical syllogism has an antecedent and a consequent, an assumption and a conclusion. These two are presented according to connectivity and are called the connected [syllogism]; or according to separation and are called the disjunctive [syllogism].

There are six modes of hypothetical syllogisms. [They consist of:] Two according to connectivity: 1. Which by the position of the antecedent simultaneously brings in the consequent. 2. Which by the removal of the consequent simultaneously removes the antecedent.

Three according to separation: 1. Consisting of a negative complex, which by the position of one of those that are in the consequent, removes the rest. 2. Consisting of a disjunctive, which by the position of one of those that are in the consequent, removes the rest. 3. Consisting of a disjunctive, which by the removal of one of those that are in the consequent or of others besides one, brings in the remainder.

One by totality, which is called the hypothetical [syllogism] throughout, which shows: 1. What it is. 2. What it is not. [And again:] 1. What it is. 2. What it is not.

In the first two modes of hypothetical syllogisms which are taken according to connectivity there are assumed both the antecedent and consequent, [when] the antecedent is affirmative and the consequent affirmative; or the antecedent is affirmative and the consequent negative; or the antecedent is negative and the consequent affirmative.

370 SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXXVII.

WHICH IS ON SOPHISMS IN DICTION.

CHAPTER XXXVII.

On sophisms in diction.

2. A sophism from homonymy, for example: Things required are good. Bad things are required. Therefore, bad things are good. Here "required" (or "the necessary") is an homonym. ^B For it designates both that which is useful for something, and that which is good in itself. In the minor proposition which says: "Bad things are required," the word "required" is assumed for "useful." For the taking away of money, and imprisonments, and scourges, and the like, although they are bad in themselves, are nevertheless useful for those who need correction. But in the major proposition, "required" is said as "good in itself." And thus the paralogism (false reasoning) finds a place from homonymy. It is necessary, therefore, when homonyms are introduced into reasoning, to distinguish the meanings, and thus, by making a firm response, to repel the sophist. This, therefore, is the first sophism, that from homonymy.

3. The second is from amphiboly, for example: "Whatever one knows, does he know this?" Someone knows wood. Therefore, wood knows. "Knows" is ambiguous. For it is not clear whether he who knows is said to know, or that which is known is the one that knows. And again: "Is it possible to speak of things that are silent?" Not so. What, when one says "wood and stones," does he not say things that are silent? Therefore, it is possible to speak of things that are silent. There is an ambiguity in "things that are silent"—where it should be placed: whether to the speaker, that is, the man, or to the things being spoken of, that is, the objects.

^C 4. Now the mode from amphiboly differs from that from homonymy in that the one from homonymy introduces deception from the word itself signifying different things, while the one from amphiboly creates error from the phrase, which does not signify one thing. "Phrase" (or speech) must be understood here as the construction of words, and "name" as the word simply. For "required" (τὸ δέον) signifies many things when declined in every case; whence it is also called an homonym.

5. "Knows" and "things that are silent," and similar things, have the state of signifying different things from such a construction. Whence if one should say: "That which I know, that I know." And again, "Is it possible for you to speak of [that which is] silent?" ^D There is no ambiguity. But if one should say that "the required is good," either "it is good for the required," or however…

^A the homonymy of the "required" is always preserved.

6. The third mode is from composition. For example: "He who is seated is able to walk. Socrates is seated. Socrates therefore walks." But yet he does not walk. He is seated, of course. The paralogism occurred because of composition. For it was necessary, just as in the major premise "is able" and "to walk" were predicated of the middle term, so too in the conclusion "is able" with "to walk" should have been stated compositely and conjunctively regarding Socrates, and not just "walks." Since, therefore, the composition was not fully effected in the conclusion, the paralogism from composition has arisen.

7. The fourth mode is that which is from division. For example, "Five is three and two. Three and two are odd and even. Five therefore is odd and even." This sophism is from division, because the five in the minor premise were divided into three and two, and the major premise says separately concerning each, that three and two are each a number by itself, the one being odd, ^B and the other even; then the conclusion declares concerning the five together those things which were spoken in the premises concerning the very parts of which it consists.

8. But some have posited one mode from composition and division, because the same thing which is divided by this is composed by that, and what is composed by this is divided by that. For example, in the paralogism just mentioned, the five were divided into three and two. And of the three, "odd" was predicated, and of the two, "even," according to division; but both together—that is, "odd" and "even"—were predicated of the five according to composition. Again, in the sophism stated above, "to walk" and "to be able" were predicated ^C of the seated man according to composition; but with "to walk" being divided from "to be able," it was predicated of Socrates, having exchanged the omission.

9. The fifth mode is from accent; for example, "Where (oũ) you dwell, is a house; Oũ (not) you dwell, is a negation; the house therefore is a negation." The sophism is from accent. For in the first proposition, the "oũ" being given with a rough breathing and a circumflex tone, signified "where"; but in the second proposition, having been taken with a smooth breathing and without a tone, it declared a negation.

10. The sixth mode is from the figure of diction. It is called so, since ^D the configuration of the diction is the cause of such a paralogism; for example, "To learn is to work around a discipline. To work around a discipline is to teach. To learn, therefore, is to teach." The sophism is from the figure of diction. For the learning [faculty] has been figured into the active, and the active into the passive. For to work around a discipline has the potential to declare both passion and action. And again: "Is it possible for the same one to do and to have done at the same time? No. What? Is it not possible for the same one both to see and to have seen at the same time?" Wherefore

that which one sees, he has all but seen as well. But it is not possible to "do" and "to have done" at the same time, because of the distance of the times. For "to do" signifies the present time, while "to have done" signifies the past. ^A

Chapter 37. On sophisms in diction.

Synopsis of Chapter 38, which is on sophisms outside diction.

Chapter 38. On sophisms outside diction.

1. The sophistic modes outside diction are seven, of which we have just made mention. 2. The seven outside diction are: from accident, from what is in a certain respect and simply, from ignorance of the refutation, from the consequent, from what is begged at the beginning, from positing the non-cause as cause—which mode is also not named for this reason—and from making many questions into one. 3. From accident, for example: "Socrates is different from Plato. Plato is a man; therefore, Socrates is something different from man." It is called "from accident" because Socrates is not different from Plato according to nature, but according to hypostasis (the individual) and the hypostatic properties (the individuals). ^C But all these things are around the nature, not natures themselves; yet the conclusion, having taken the difference from the things around the nature, transferred it to the nature itself. Again, "Man is an animal; the animal is a genus; therefore, man is a genus." And, "Peter is a man; ^D

man is a trisyllable; therefore, Peter is a trisyllable." ^B These and similar sophisms arise from the accident; for neither is the genus predicated of man essentially, nor is "trisyllable" predicated of man essentially, so that of necessity the one might be said of man, and the other of Peter. But since the predication is made not essentially, but incidentally, it is not necessary that all things which are said of the predicate should also be said of the subject. Again, in the second figure: "Honey does not admit of intension and remission; the sweet admits of intension and remission; therefore, honey is not sweet." And again: "White is [spoken of] according to more and less. The swan, the snow, the ceruse are not [spoken of] according to more and less; therefore, these are not white." These are sophisms from the accident, because neither is the "more and less" of white predicated essentially, nor the "being intensified and remitted" of the sweet.

4. I think, however, that if anyone were to call these paralogisms [arising] also from homonymy, he would not be far from the truth. For "the sweet" and "the white" signify both the qualities themselves—I mean sweetness and whiteness—and, furthermore, the bodies endowed with these qualities. In the major propositions, therefore, the sophisms proposed only the qualities, sweetness and whiteness; but in the conclusions they took the bodies along with the qualities. If, however, they had proposed "that which is sweet" and "that which is white," they would have concluded the same, and perhaps nothing discordant with reason would follow; for neither is honey such a "sweet" as admits of intension and remission—that is, sweetness—nor is the swan such a "white" as is [spoken of] according to more and less—that is, whiteness—but both are bodies: honey is a sweet body, and the swan is a white body. ^C And insofar as they are bodies, they do not admit of more and less, nor of any intension and remission, preserving clearly that which is according to nature in themselves. Such are snow and ceruse and those things similar to them. Thus also, the human being is one thing ^D as an animal, and the genus is another thing as an animal. For the genus is animal simply, that is, that which is comprehensive of all the species, those characterized by a perfect life. But man is one of such species, which [species] possesses, in addition to a perfect life, rationality and a natural aptitude for receiving from without the intellect and the sciences, forming itself. Therefore, man is not animal simply, but an animal of such a kind. But an animal of such a kind is not a genus, but a species.

5. The second mode of sophistical refutations outside the language is that which is from the "in a certain respect" and "simply." And "in a certain respect" is called the composite predication, which is declarative of more particular things. For composition always makes things particular. Wherefore also "rational animal" is more particular than "animal." [alt-version omitted] "Simply" is called the non-composite predication, which reveals or signifies more universal things. For simple things are more universal than composite ones. The paralogism from "in a certain respect" and "simply" therefore occurs...

^A either when we predicate of things "in a certain respect" what should be predicated "simply," or when we predicate of things "simply" what should be predicated "in a certain respect"—that is, either when we predicate of things that are simultaneously and compositely predicated what should be predicated individually and incompositely, or when we predicate of things individually and incompositely predicated what should be predicated together and compositely. An example of the former: "The father is greater than the son by cause; the cause is nature; therefore, the father is greater than the son by nature." The sophism arises from there being "in a certain respect" and "simply." For the father is greater than the son by the cause of nature, that is, the natural [cause], not the creative one. Therefore, since both "cause" and "nature," which ought to have been predicated "in a certain respect" and together and compositely, were predicated "simply" and individually and incompositely, the paralogism ^B found a place. An example of the latter: "Simon is a cobbler and good; every good cobbler skillfully makes shoes; therefore, Simon skillfully makes shoes." But Simon was not good in his craft, but in his character. The sophism is from "in a certain respect" and "simply," for "good" and "cobbler," which were predicated "simply" and individually and incompositely of Simon in the minor proposition, were taken "in a certain respect" and together and compositely in the major.

6. The third mode is from ignorance of the elenchus: as, "Ten is double; ten is not double; for it is double in relation to five, but not double in relation to other numbers. Therefore, doubles are not doubles." It is called [a fallacy] from ignorance of the elenchus, because ^C the paralogism finds a place from the fact that the respondent, and perhaps the interrogator as well, does not know what an elenchus is. For an elenchus is a contradiction of the same [subject] to the same [predicate], not to different things. But ten is said to be double in relation to five, yet not double in relation to other numbers.

7. The fourth mode is from the consequent: for example, "Democritus flees to the desert; he who flees to the desert is insane; therefore, Democritus is insane." It is called [a fallacy] from the consequent, because fleeing to the desert follows the insane person; however, it does not convert. For it is not the case that if someone flees to the desert, he is already insane; rather, there is some person who, having despised human affairs, seeks imperturbability and tranquility, and for this reason retreats to places free from disturbances; just as also the physician Hippocrates of Cos ^D stood corrected after he heard that Democritus had gone insane and had retreated to the desert.

8. The fifth mode is from begging and taking what is in the beginning, that is, putting forward as agreed what is proposed for demonstration: for example, the intent is to demonstrate that the soul is immortal. This is what is "in the beginning," the antecedent by which the syllogism is formed. If, therefore, someone were to say: "The soul is incorruptible; that which is incorruptible is immortal; therefore, the soul is immortal"; this man begs and takes what is in the beginning, that which is sought. For "incorruptible" does not differ from "immortal" in its meaning, but only in its pronunciation. For "immortal" and "incorruptible" are the same in concept. Whence he who syllogizes in this way demonstrates nothing,

but rather begs and accepts the point in question at the beginning without proof.

9. The sixth mode is that which posits a non-cause as a cause. Such a thing happens in syllogisms that proceed through the impossible. For example, if someone says that "the rational belongs to everything risible," and another, starting from this, proceeds to draw the argument into an impossibility, he says: "If the rational belongs to every risible, and the risible to every ape, therefore the rational belongs to every ape because of the hypothesis; ^B which is impossible." Here, what is not the cause is posited as the cause. For that "the rational belongs to every risible" (for this was the hypothesis) was not the cause of the impossibility; nor did the reduction to the impossible happen because of this, but because the risible belongs to every ape. For this, being false, introduced the impossibility, since no ape laughs in reality, even if it perhaps exhibits a certain semblance of laughter, as it is an animal most skilled in imitation.

10. The seventh and last mode is that which makes several interrogations into one: for example, "Socrates teaches Plato and Aristotle; ^C Plato and Aristotle are man; therefore Socrates teaches man, and not men." Here, although there are several things that were interrogated, they have been made into one. Yet every subject requires its own peculiar interrogation. For the discourse concerning Plato is one thing, and that concerning Aristotle is another. Therefore, since diverse subjects were interrogated mixed together as one, they constructed the sophism.

Schematic of Chapter 38, Concerning Sophisms Independent of Language

The sophisms independent of language are: By accident, By what is in a respect and what is simply, By ignorance of the refutation, By the consequent, By begging what is posited in the beginning, By positing a non-cause as a cause, By making several interrogations into one.

Table of Chapter 38, Concerning Sophisms Independent of Language

^D Sophisms independent of language are: By accident, By what is in a respect and what is simply, By ignorance of the refutation, By the consequent, By that which begs what is posited in the beginning, By that which posits a non-cause as a cause, By that which makes several interrogations into one.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXXIX. WHICH IS CONCERNING THE REFUTATION, AND THAT ALL PARALOGISMS ARE REDUCIBLE TO IGNORANCE OF THE REFUTATION.

1. Defines refutation. — 2. Explains the individual particles of the definition of refutation, and shows how he who wishes to convict someone by refutation should collect the opposite and make the contradiction. — 3. How in one and the same [thing]. — 4. How not in name, but in reality. — 5. How not in a synonymous name. — 6. How from things granted of necessity. — 7. How without enumerating that which is proposed in the beginning.

CHAPTER XXXIX. Of the elenchus, and that all paralogisms are reduced to an ignorance of the elenchus.

^A 1. An elenchus is a contradiction of one and the same thing, not in name but in reality; and of a name not synonymous, but the same, from those things which are granted of necessity, without enumerating that which is in the beginning, according to the same thing, in relation to the same thing, and in the same way, and at the same time.

2. If, therefore, any one intends to refute the person with whom he is arguing when he does not speak correctly, he ought to gather the opposite of that which he who is arguing with him declares (for this is contradiction).

3. He must, however, gather the contradiction ^B regarding the same thing and one thing, and not regarding one thing and then another. For, if one person says that Aristotle treats of arts, and another says that Plato does not treat of arts, there is no elenchus. For this reason, the definition says that an elenchus is the contradiction of one and the same thing.

4. Not in name, but in reality—that is to say, not only in name, but also in reality. For if there is one name, but the objects signified by it are diverse, and one person sets forth his argument regarding one meaning, while the other makes his contradiction regarding another, an elenchus does not occur.

5. Nor is the contradiction of a synonymous name an elenchus. For to say, "The animal walks, ^C the animal does not walk," both are true. An elenchus is, therefore, the contradiction of the same and one name and reality.

6. Gathered from things granted of necessity, and not from others.

7. Without enumerating that which is in the beginning—that is, the question is being taken through another name in place of a premise in the argument of the demonstration. For this is what it is to be in the beginning.

8. And it must be according to the same thing, and yet not result in a contradiction regarding one part and another of the subject. For if the same wood be called two cubits long in respect to its length, but not two cubits in respect to its breadth; and if an Ethiopian be black in respect to the surface of his body, ^D but not black in respect to his teeth: even so, an elenchus does not occur.

9. And it must be in relation to the same thing, and not in relation to another. For it is not a refutation to say that a ten is double to a five, and then not double in relation to another number.

10. And it is not only according to the same thing and in relation to the same thing

that contradiction must be fulfilled, but also in the same way, and at the same time. In the same way, so that we may not call an infant both grammatical and not grammatical, or a sleeping person both seeing and not seeing, taking the one in act and the other in potentiality; and at the same time, so that we may not call the same man evil according to one time, and not evil according to another time.

11. All these things must be known by one who wishes neither to be deceived nor to refute those who deceive. ^B

12. From this it is clear that all paralogisms relate to the ignorance of the elenchus, since they are certain false and captious elenchi, and for this reason are called sophistic elenchi, because sophists, who have no other concern than to deceive the one with whom they are debating by means of such colored syllogisms, use them.

13. If, therefore, the true elenchus is a contradiction of one and the same not only name but also thing, he who knows this will not be led astray by sophisms based on diction.

14. For indeed, homonymy introduces different things through the different meaning of the name.

15. And amphiboly, through the discourse and construction which do not have a uniform form, does not concern itself with one thing.

16. And composition and division declare other things when composed and others when divided. But in a properly called elenchus, one and the same thing must be declared both without and with composition. ^C

17. Moreover, accent, besides bringing about different meanings, does not even keep the name the same and one in all respects.

18. And the figure of diction changes the meaning of things.

19. And from this it is not possible to find in any of the sophisms based on diction the same and one name and thing, as the definition of the true elenchus requires.

20. But where, then, will the sophism that makes many questions into one have a place, so that we may also look to sophisms outside of diction, if the elenchus concludes a contradiction of one and only one thing and name, and not of different ones?

21. And how could the paralogism based on "in a respect" and "simply" be placed with the elenchus, if it does not conclude the contradiction in one and the same thing? ^D

22. And if also the elenchus must necessarily be formed of given things, certainly that which is not necessarily from the given things is no elenchus; such as that which posits as a cause what is not a cause.

23. But that which is based on the accidental, and that which is based on the consequent, even if they seem to conclude from the given things, yet they do not conclude of necessity either. For those things which do not belong to the predicate according to its essence need not necessarily be predicated of the subject; whence there is no syllogism of the accident. And a part of that which is based on the accident is also that which is based on the consequent:

which differs only by taking the major proposition from a false conversion. Therefore, neither is the one based on the consequent a syllogism, just as neither is the one based on the accident; for neither has that which is of necessity. For if man is an animal, and the animal is trisyllabic, it is not necessary that man be trisyllabic; since being trisyllabic does not essentially belong to an animal, so that it could also be said of man, who is an animal. Nor again, if a madman runs to a desert, is it truly the converse, that he who runs to the desert is also mad. For it is not the case ^A for one who seeks deserts for the sake of philosophy to be mad; but on the contrary, it is rather to be wise and moderate. Therefore, that which is added to the definition of the *elenchus* out of necessity, necessarily wards off both those who posit the non-cause as cause, and the sophisms based on the accident and the consequent.

24. And those who beg the question, the fact that what is in the principle is not enumerated, refutes.

25. And perhaps in another way, by means of an examination of the various parts of the definition declaring the true *elenchus*, the investigator ^B might refute these sophistical *elenchi* as not being true *elenchi*.

Table of Chapter 39, on the elenchus, etc.

Elenchus is a contradiction: 1. of one and the same not only of name, but also of thing. 2. from those things which are given of necessity. 3. with that which is in the principle not being enumerated. 4. according to the same thing, to the same thing, in the same way, and at the same time.

By an ignorance of those things required for these *elenchi*, all paralogisms err, from: 1. homonymy, amphiboly, composition, division, accent, figure of speech, and many questions. (For all these produce different things; accents also produce different names). 2. the non-cause as cause, the accident, the consequent. (For they do not connect necessarily from the things given). 3. begging the principle, as it is commonly called. (As the very appropriateness of the names shows). 4. ignorance of the *elenchus* in the species so called.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XL, WHICH IS ON PROPOSITIONS AND SYLLOGISMS.

1. It repeats some divisions of the proposition. — 2. It describes the privative proposition, showing at the same time why it is called privative even though it is simple. — 3. It explains a different account regarding predicates in simple propositions, whether they signify a habit or a privation, and in transposed ones. — 4. It warns that these are not to be taken as complete propositions for the examples proposed, but only for predicates and for...

that reason they accept subjects from without. Every proposition has its own proper subject, and does not accept it from without. — 5. It teaches that a transposed negation follows a simple affirmation, and for that reason it is also called a transposed proposition. — 6. It raises the question why privative propositions are not also called transposed, because, indeed, their account is not in all respects equal, and at the same time it proposes a table of the consequence of simple, privative, and transposed propositions. — 7. It shows how far the proposed propositions are equivalent to indefinite ones and are true at the same time. — 8. How far they contradict, and divide the true and the false. — 9. It briefly repeats the individual syllogistic modes of the three figures, and assigns the sum of hypothetical syllogisms and sophistic refutations.

CHAPTER XL. On propositions and syllogisms.

1. Every proposition is either an affirmation or a negation. Every affirmation and every negation has a subject and a predicate, or even a third thing predicated, or even a mode: and it is expressed either with a predefinition (sign) or without a predefinition; and it is either particular, or universal, or singular; and it is either ^C simple, or with transposition; and it signifies either a habit or a privation.

2. Moreover, that which signifies a privation is named privative: as, This one is unjust, or unwise, or unmerciful, or imprudent, or unmanly, or intemperate. And this also is simple; but because it does not show a habit, but a privation, it is specifically called privative.

3. Therefore, "just" signifies one thing, whether "man" be added to it, or even a proper name, provided it is part of an affirmation: and in the same way also "unjust." If it is part of a negation, if it also has a definite name, it again signifies one thing: as, Phalaris is not just: or, Phalaris is not a just man: or, Simon is not an unjust man. But if the negation does not have a proper name, but only "man" is added, the negation signifies not one, but three (certain) things. For "man is not just" signifies the unjust man, and the newborn infant, and if anything else is beyond man, the horse, the stone, that which is not. For these are neither men, nor just. Likewise, "man is not unjust" signifies the just man, and the small child who has participated in neither habit nor privation, and everything else that is not a man. Thus, indeed, is the state of things in simple propositions declaring a habit or a privation. But the negation which is from transposition, not having a proper name, signifies two things: and similarly also the affirmation. For "man is not non-just" signifies the just man, and if anything is beyond man. For the ox, since it is not a man at all, how could it be a "non-just man"? Wherefore, that which is opposed by contradiction is not "man is not just" (of the ox it ^D will be true). But rather it is "man is not non-unjust," and "unjust man," and the infant who is indeed a man, but is neither just nor unjust.

4. But all these things one must know, that they are not propositions in truth, but parts of propositions, namely, the predicates. For this reason they also accept subjects from without. But every proposition has a peculiar subject, and does not accept it from without.

5. Therefore, to the simple affirmation, "Man is just," the negation from transposition follows, "Man is not non-just." For this reason also

^A under "affirmation" is placed, according to the technician, the negation, and from transposition, as some have said, it is named; because under affirmation there is negation, and under negation there is affirmation. 6. But why were not the privative ^B terms also so called, since they are placed in the same order? For the order stands thus: Man is just. Man is not just. Man is not non-just. Man is not just. Man is just. Man is not just. We have already said why they were named from transposition, as we conjectured. That he who is a just man is not an unjust man, and is not a man who is not just, is manifest. But he who is not a just man is not already an unjust man. For a newborn infant is not a just man, but he is not yet an unjust man; rather, he is a man who is not just. But he who is an unjust man, is a man who is not-just, and is not a just man. These things, even without the laborious investigation of art, are manifest to anyone of understanding, who has the very nature of things announcing the truth to him. 7. ^C It is necessary to remark generally that when we take "man" as the subject in the aforementioned phrases, we make those propositions indefinite; and Aristotle professes that indefinite propositions can, with respect to different parts of the subject, just like particular ones, be true at the same time. Whence it is not alien to reason to say that the proposition "Man is just" and the proposition "Man is not just," taken regarding different parts of the universal man, that is, regarding different individuals, consistent with the concept of those making the statements, can simultaneously be true. 8. When, however, one does not take "man" as the subject, but the whole "Man is just" as the predicate of some other subject being assumed—and in the same way also "Man is not just"—then one might deservedly divide the true and the false without any ambiguity. For it is necessary that each of both things that are and things that are not should be, for example, a just man or not be. For the contradiction ^D encompasses all things, both those that are and those that are not; and in those cases where one part of the contradiction speaks the truth, the other lies, and in those cases where that one lies, the other speaks the truth. So much, then, for the present regarding propositions. 9. Four syllogistic modes of the first figure are handed down. The first, from "all" and "all," concludes "all"; the second, from "all" and "none," concludes "none"; the third, from "some" and "all," concludes "some"; the fourth, from "some" and "none," concludes "not all." There are also four syllogistic modes of the second figure: the first, from "all" and "none," concludes "none"; the second, from "none" and "all," likewise concludes "none"; the third, from "some" and "none," concludes "not all"; the fourth, from "not all" and "all," concludes likewise "not all." But six

^A are hypothetical; and there are thirteen sophistical refutations.

40. Concerning propositions and syllogisms.

Every proposition is either ^B affirmation or negation. Furthermore, the proposition declares either state or privation. Furthermore, the proposition is either simple or by transposition.

Table of chapter 40, concerning propositions and syllogisms.

Every proposition is either affirmation, negation. Furthermore, every proposition declares either state, privation. In addition, a proposition is either simple, or by transposition.

Every proposition is not just man and negation innocent recently born, whatever besides man is a horse, a stone, a chimera.

Every proposition is not unjust man and just man, innocent, whatever is man.

Every proposition is man is not just just man, innocent, not also whatever besides man is a horse, a stone.

Every proposition is not man is not just just man, whatever besides man is, not also innocent.

NICEPHORUS BLEMMIDA, ISAGOGICAL EPITOME, BOOK II: PHYSICAL EPITOME

PREFACE BY JOANNES WEGELINUS OF AUGSBURG

To the most noble and magnificent man, most distinguished in piety, learning, and prudence, the Lord Albert von Stetten of Bocksperg, Consul of the Republic of Augsburg, Curator of the Evangelical Church, and Administrator of the College, my most honored Lord: greeting and grace from God.

The grounds by which other arts and sciences are usually recommended, most noble and magnificent sir, most honored lord, are offered most copiously in physics—that is, in that science which concerns itself with the principles, causes, properties, powers, and effects of natural bodies. For since, in the first place, antiquity is wont to win praise for them, physics is the most ancient of all; it has its origin from God himself, the Best and Greatest, who implanted it in the first man, Adam, as though in another god appointed over the creatures on earth. By this favor, Adam, when all the animals were led to him by the Creator, imposed upon them names befitting their nature, and without doubt also perceived the inner mysteries of other natural substances.

Although this knowledge of natural things was indeed diminished not a little by the Fall through the envy of Satan, it was not, however, destroyed entirely. For man retained some part of it and handed it down to his children: so that a purer knowledge of physics remained in the family of the patriarchs and other holy men—Seth, Noah, Shem, Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, etc.—and was transmitted to their descendants, and from there, through so many migrations, even to other unbelieving peoples, especially the Chaldeans, Babylonians, and Egyptians. Of Solomon, that most ancient king, the Holy Scriptures surely testify clearly that he excelled not only in other branches of wisdom, but also in this very science of natural things, in such a way that he discoursed upon the trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon unto the hyssop that springs out of the wall, and discussed the beasts, and the fowl, and the creeping things, and the fishes; indeed, to such an extent that to all peoples and kings of the earth...

* Nicephori Blemmidæ Epitome physica, containing thirty-one most important chapters along with a fragment of an exegesis on the eighth psalm: in which not only physics, but also many geographical, astronomical, optical, astrological, and theological matters are treated. This work, written by the author 370 years ago, was edited for the first time by Joannes Wegelinus of Augsburg from the manuscript codices of the Augsburg library, with a commendation of physics prefixed and an index of the book added at the end. Printed at Augsburg by David Francus, 1605.

^A And people and kings of the earth have had cause to gather to hear not only his remaining wisdom but also this wisdom of his. What of the fact that even the Gentiles, who according to the authority of Aristotle and Cicero say that moral philosophy was first cultivated and brought into cities and introduced into homes by Socrates, yet commemorate before him Thales of Miletus, Anaxagoras, Empedocles, Democritus, Pythagoras, and other illustrious philosophers—all of whom were distinguished and famous in the contemplative ^B philosophy and thus also in natural science—so that it is easy for anyone to deduce from this that natural science is much older than the discipline of morals, insofar as the latter is contained by definite precepts?

Now, since sweetness and pleasantness themselves are accustomed to confer praise upon arts and sciences, physics can deservedly be commended for this too. For what is more pleasant, and indeed more worthy of man, than to ascend from the humility of earthly, narrow, and perishable things to the height and breadth of celestial things? To contemplate so many spheres of the heavens, their magnitudes, their distances; so many most beautiful bodies of stars within them; so many movements of the same, so varied and yet not irregular; such diverse influences of light and, with light, of powers upon these lower things; and especially the effects of the sun and moon upon the vicissitudes of days and nights, upon increments and decrements, and upon the successions of months, years, and established times? What is more delightful than to descend from the heavens and the fire—which holds the highest place among the elements—to the air, and to observe so many and so varied meteors through its different regions—partly existing in reality, and partly appearing merely due to the mixtures of shadow and light and the refractions of rays—and to consider their causes, matter, form, efficiency, and purposes? I speak of the combustion, ^C phenomena, comets, rain, dew, frost, snow, hail, thunder, lightning, halos, rainbows, parhelia, winds, and so on. What is more pleasurable than to be brought to the waters and the earth, and to examine the sources of springs and rivers, the tides of the seas, the tremors of the earth, and the properties and differences of as many substances within them—such as herbs, shrubs, plants, stones, metals, and other fossils? What is more suited to the pleasure of the mind than to know the nature of the many animals living in the air, in the water, and on the earth, and above all that of man? For man consists not only of a body, whose structure of parts and most skillful and divine composition is amazing, but also of an intelligent soul, which has manifold and clearly admirable faculties and operations. Nay, what is more pleasant than to examine the very mutations of the elements into one another, and their first principles, matter and form, and the most common attributes of all things that consist from them, [and to examine] infinite motion, space, and time?

Deservedly, therefore, did the most grave author Cicero say that the consideration and contemplation of nature are as it were the natural food of souls and minds. Many are delighted by the inspection of paintings and images, and others by buildings, basilicas, and theaters. But what are all these inventions and works of human ingenuity compared to the most painted work of the whole universe, and to this most ample theater of nature, which was produced ^D from nothing by God, the best and greatest, and is still most powerfully sustained and governed? Here, indeed—here, I say—true pleasures are prepared for more excellent minds, not those consisting in eating and drinking, in sports, in wealth, in social gatherings, in love affairs, or in the titillations of the body, but in the delicacies and delights of the soul. These do not leave their followers empty with a momentary brevity, as do those crude and corporeal pleasures; nor do they cause distress by their duration, nor bring harm by their very use. Truly, what Cicero said generally about the study of literature can be most truly affirmed specifically about the science and contemplation of natural things: that it nourishes youth, delights old age, adorns prosperity, provides a refuge and consolation for adversity, gives delight at home, does not hinder abroad, stays up with us at night, travels with us, and rusts with us. Who, therefore, would not think that physics is to be held in high regard if only for the name of this sweetness and pleasantness with which it is full?

But indeed, it is not only this sweetness and pleasantness, but also the manifold utility of physics that must be commemorated in its commendations. For although physics is by no means to be despised even on account of the mere knowledge and contemplation of nature—which physics proposes as its end as a contemplative science—nevertheless, very many other utilities are joined to it as well. For it brings many and great utilities to almost the whole of philosophy. To metaphysics, indeed, because it leads us from the continuous series of movers and moving things, which cannot be infinite, to the first mover, God, the best and greatest, who is devoid of all motion and change; and furthermore toward the knowledge of the celestial intelligences assigned by Aristotle to the ethereal spheres; and because it also hands over to metaphysics the nascent explanation of the human soul to be perfected and completed. It also brings benefits to the mathematical disciplines, especially to those that are called less pure and sincere mathematics, because they borrow their objects from physics—astronomy indeed from the heavens, music from sound and voice, and optics from the visual ray—all of which are taken from physics. And even astrological and physiognomonic predictions are only trusted insofar as they rely upon physical principles and the foundations built therefrom. Furthermore, physics brings the greatest benefit to the moral part of philosophy. For just to show this regarding ethics in the specific sense: in the first book to Nicomachus, the philosopher repeats the division of the faculties of the soul from physics, so that the subject of moral happiness and thus also of virtue, by whose exercise it is defined, might become manifest; secondly, he divides virtue into intellectual and moral; thirdly, he treats of the voluntary and involuntary; fifthly, of natural law and retaliation; sixthly, he explains the intellectual virtues; seventhly, he discourses on continence and incontinence, as well as on pleasure, and likewise in the tenth; all of which, without the soul and its various faculties and the knowledge of their various functions and operations, cannot be correctly explained or understood.

^A I shall say nothing now of the other mechanical arts, which all operate upon natural matter and introduce their own forms, and consequently either imitate or perfect nature. If, therefore, physics were of no further use, it would still deserve to be praised and studiously learned for these benefits alone. But it provides not only these benefits to philosophy, but also brings no fewer advantages to other, more sublime faculties. For medicine so depends upon physics that it derives from it not only its subject matter, but also its primary principles and most of its demonstrations. For this reason, the Philosopher himself calls physics and medicine sister arts, because physicians who are more elegant and diligent speak of nature and derive the principles of their art from it; while natural scientists, who are more subtle, pursue the treatment of nature even to the principles of medicine. This is truly so certain that it has become a proverb, which says that where the natural scientist ends, the physician begins. I omit now that contemplative medicine—from which some physicians are also called natural scientists—which concerns itself with the parts of the human body, their temperaments, faculties, operations, and also with the health and disease to which they are subject, and with the food and medicines by which disease is driven away and health is either preserved if acquired or restored if lost, is entirely physics.

But neither is the knowledge of physics entirely unfruitful for jurisprudence. For the law of nature is the rule and measure of civil law, so much so that unless civil law is consonant with the law of nature—with the notions implanted in the human mind at its first creation and still remaining—it no longer merits the name of law, but is deemed an injury. And since jurisprudence has as its purpose that civil justice be preserved among men, without which no society can subsist, he who has looked upon its most beautiful idea in nature will surely contribute more to justice; and he who has weighed in his mind how all the works of nature most diligently perform their duties; that they inflict no mutual injury upon one another, but rather serve one another; that the higher bestow their virtue upon the lower, and the lower receive it and in turn obey the higher; and thus all things, without discord, in the sweetest harmony, refer their operations to this end, that the republic of the universe may suffer no detriment, but rather be preserved inviolate and undamaged.

What, then, shall I now say of theology? Does not the knowledge and consideration of nature lead to the knowledge of God, the best and greatest, as the First Cause and Principle? ^B For it shows Him to be not only an eternal mind, which existed before all other natural things, but also simple, free from all composition and dissolution; and also infinite, who by His wisdom, power, goodness, and other immensities defines all things and is defined by none; and also that He must be most loving of the human race, for whose sake He fashioned all other things, and fashioned man for the knowledge and love of Himself. Certainly, Epicurus, if we believe Cicero, fell into such foul absurdities of opinion, or rather profanities, as to deny the providence of God, chiefly for this reason: that he was ignorant of both mathematics and physics. On the contrary, it is memorable what Aristotle reports of Heraclitus: that when he had once sat in a baker’s oven for the sake of warmth, and some who wished to speak with him had stopped, revering the humility of the place, he bade them enter, adding the reason: "For here, too, the immortal gods are not absent." By this, indeed, the Philosopher, though ignorant of the one true God, wished to indicate that there is no corner in the whole universe in which the vestiges of God’s goodness and power are not impressed; that there is no turf in which one may not see something worthy of wonder, just as Aratus also said:

*Jovis omnia plena;*

But more rightly the Christian poet:

*Et levis est cespes qui probet esse Deum;* *Præsentemque Deum quælibet herba facit.*

Indeed, this is what Paul writes to the Romans (1:20): that from the creation of the world, through those things which are made, the invisible things of God, namely, His eternal power and divinity, are understood and seen. And what he says to the Lystrians: that God did not leave Himself without witness among the nations in times past, doing them good, giving rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling their hearts with food and gladness. And what he says to the Athenians: that all things are so full of the goodness and power of God ^C that it can almost be touched with the hands, for He is not far from each one of us, in whom we live and move and are. What then? Does not this consideration of nature not only present the knowledge of God, but also stir up the love of Him? For who would not be moved to the highest love and desire for such an eternal, most simple, infinite mind, who is most loving of the human race, and who presides over and provides for it? Who would dare to offend Him with the profanity of one’s ways? Who would desire to alienate Him from himself? Yet no one should interpret this as if I thought that this knowledge and love of God, which can arise from the consideration of nature, suffices for attaining salvation and eternal life; for these things are commemorated by me for this end alone: that this knowledge and love of God, however small it may be, when compared to saving knowledge, can nevertheless be had from nature; and he who neglects even this is for that reason to be inexcusable before God: a principle from which Paul also accuses and condemns the greatest part of the Gentiles. But although this usefulness of physics is immense, it brings even greater benefits to theology itself, if indeed it presents itself to it as a manifest ^D

humble subordinate, not as a master arrogantly asserting itself ^A. For who will understand those very many and extremely difficult passages in the doctrine of the Church without the knowledge of physics? Who, without a knowledge of the soul—which is a physical study—will either instruct others or himself happily grasp the doctrine concerning the image of God, in whose likeness man was first created, and whose principal part consists in the soul, in the discernment of the mind, in the rectitude of the will, and in the harmony of all the affections? Who, in the same way, will explain the article concerning original sin, which—alas!—followed upon that image of God for which we were created? Who, likewise, will elucidate the most controversial question concerning free will, which resides both in reason and in the will? And how is that saying of God to Cain to be understood: "Its desire shall be for you, and you will rule over it"? Furthermore, how can man, even before his conversion, control his locomotive power in external matters, and [how is it] that the will has not only elicited acts but also commanded ones, which it dictates to the inferior faculties—sensing, moving, and desiring—along with very many other things of this kind?

I pass over now the question of contingency and necessity, the explanation of which depends almost entirely upon the doctrine of natural causes. If one must arrive at the most holy Bible itself—at the sayings and writings of Moses and the prophets, of Christ and the apostles—who will faithfully and soundly interpret them without an accurate knowledge of physics? For how many things, how many similitudes, how many metaphors, how many other phrases taken from the midst of nature occur throughout them? Especially, indeed, in the Hexaemeron of Moses, in the later chapters of Job, in very many Psalms, in Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, the Song of Songs of Solomon, in Sirach, in Wisdom, and in the Apocalypse, who will walk with an unhindered step unless he has been properly instructed in the knowledge of natural things? ^B This the ancient theologians, both Greek and Latin, certainly considered—Justin Martyr, Clement of Alexandria, Origen, Athanasius, Basil, Nazianzen, Gregory of Nyssa, Cyril of Alexandria, Theodoret, Eusebius of Caesarea, Damascene, Irenaeus, Tertullian, Lactantius, Cyprian, Hilary, Jerome, Augustine, etc.—who devoted diligent effort both to other parts of philosophy and to physics, as can be seen from their writings transmitted to us.

Nor indeed should anyone think that physics is less to be cared for on the grounds that it brings either an impediment to eloquence or certainly no usefulness. For physics partly offers a great abundance of those things in the explanation and amplification of which eloquence can exert its powers, and from which, moreover, it can borrow resources of amplification for the embellishing of other subjects; and partly it explains the nature of the affections, in the seasonable and apposite moving of which the last task of eloquence does not consist. ^C That this is indeed true is argued not only of Aristotle, when he teaches in his *Rhetoric* how to lead listeners to anger, to mildness, to love, to hatred, to fear, to confidence, to shame, to favor, to pity, to indignation, to envy, and to emulation; and that the kinds of character, which vary according to the affections, habits, ages, and fortunes of men, must be diligently known; but it is also confirmed by the testimony of Plato, when he writes that the most eloquent orator of Greece, Pericles, added to the keenness of his genius not only the practice of dialectic but also the contemplation of nature, to which he devoted himself having relied upon his familiarity with Anaxagoras; from which factors, indeed, arises that *to hypseloun kai pantē telesiourgikon*, that is, the loftiness of mind and the effective power in accomplishing any task. Who, therefore, will deny that the study of physics is also profitable for eloquence?

I end, however, the enumeration of the uses of this science, upon which I have perhaps dwelt longer than just. This one thing I add here at least: that the knowledge of this science is not so difficult that it cannot be heard and learned with profit by adolescents of moderate talent and progress. For that Aristotle in his *Ethics* denies that a boy can become a physicist is not to be understood simply, but with a certain distinction; not because he cannot grasp universal physical axioms and pronouncements, but because through his age he cannot have sufficient observation and experience of the particulars from which they are collected. In almost the same way must it be understood when he also denies that a youth is a fit hearer of moral doctrine: ^D not, of course, in the sense that he cannot understand moral precepts, but because his mind is partly devoid of the knowledge of the civil things and actions about which and from which this discipline argues; and partly because his appetite is prone to all kinds of disturbances and affections, and he does not judge that one must act as is commanded. Although this is not true of all youths, but only of some, who have not become better through nature, education, or the benefit of divine regeneration.

But in truth, since in the learning of any art or science so much depends upon the teacher, in the science of physics we have Aristotle, the most learned by the consensus of all nations; who is not only a refuter of those before him who dealt with the causes of natural things partly imperfectly and partly even erroneously—as he frequently refutes their errors—but he even seems preferable to Plato himself, who in the *Timaeus* especially wraps most things in obscurities and ambiguities; [he is preferable] both regarding his method and the perfection of demonstration, and indeed also regarding the accuracy, propriety, and moderate clarity of his pronouncements. Although Aristotle is without doubt the best teacher and master, both in other parts of philosophy and in physics, which he pursued in many books, most of which exist even today, yet not all novices of this science seem as yet fit to be sent to him immediately without any more concise instruction or even guidance; both because he discourses upon some subjects more diffusely than they are able to grasp well, and then also because in some places he...

on account of the matters themselves and the concise style of discourse and the difficulty of certain unique terms—especially indeed even in the refutations of the ancient philosophers whose writings have not reached us, so that it might be clearer from thence regarding their opinions and arguments—is somewhat more obscure. ^A Wherefore, the study of those men is by no means to be disparaged who have gathered from the physical books of the Philosopher certain clear and brief synopses or epitomes of those things which are most necessary and especially useful, having excised other more trivial matters that pertain mostly to the refutation of the ancients: of which there exists today, moreover, a great abundance, and to which a new supplement is made from time to time. Although I would not wish to snatch from anyone the praise which he deservedly obtains, this ^B Epitome Physica of Nicephorus Blemmida (whose Logic I published to the public at the previous Frankfurt fair) has pleased me exceedingly, ahead of many other such compendia, not only for the sake of its antiquity, but especially also on account of the subjects themselves—not only physical, but also geographical, astronomical, optical, astrological, and theological—treated in thirty-one chapters, briefly, clearly, learnedly, and vigorously, in a good method and an excellent style of discourse. Of these: 1° it treats (so that the titles of each may be briefly proposed as it were in a list) of natural principles and causes; 2° Of matter, form, and privation; 3° Of causes and effects, and likewise of fortune and chance; 4° Of motion and rest and of entelechy, and of that which is in potentiality and that which is in act; 5° Further concerning motion and rest; 6° Of generation and corruption; 7° and 8° Of nature; 9° Of place and time; 10° Of the infinite; 11° Of the elements; 12° Of the burning flames which are seen around the sky, and of caprae (goats), torches, and shooting stars, as they are called; 13° Of comets and the milky circle; 14° Of rain, hail, snow, dew, and frost; 15° Of fountains and rivers; 16° Of the sea; 17° Of winds and the remaining exhalations; 18° Of the earthquake; 19° Of thunder and lightning, storm, whirlwind, vortex, and bolt; 20° Of phantasms appearing in the sky; 21° Of the halo, and prior to it, of vision; 22° Of the rainbow; 23° Of rods (virgae) and parhelia, and likewise of metals and fossils; 24° Of the heaven, and that the world is not eternal; 25° Of the ether and the stars; 26° Of the sun; 27° Of the moon; 28° Of the earth and its zones, and that the earth, with respect to the celestial sphere, and indeed with respect to the sun's sphere, holds the position of a center; 29° Of days and nights and the four seasons of the year; 30° Of habitations; 31° Of the void. To all of which, at the end, a fragment of an exegesis on the eighth Psalm by the same author, Blemmida, has been added, so learned that one would wish that the entire exegesis on that Psalm, or even on the whole Psalter (if indeed it was elaborated by the author), were still extant today (a); so that it might not only be equal to the many commentaries on this truly royal book (which I myself now deem worthy of this honor above others, so that I not only resolve the objections brought from it by my students, but also read the individual psalms in Hebrew, interpret them in Latin, and more often explain them grammatically), but also might seem destined to carry off the palm.

Moreover, I found this very physical epitome in two manuscript codices of the Augsburg library, one very old, the other more recent; I discovered it to be learned and worthy of the labor to be expended upon it; I myself transcribed it; and I not only rendered it from Greek into Latin, but also, having thus translated it, I explained the whole to my students, partly by marginal notes leading to Aristotle, and especially to Cleomedes and other more recent physicists and astronomers, and partly by a cursory reading much more diffusely. I am now the first to edit it in Greek, perfect and complete from the collation of manuscript codices, both for the public utility of others and indeed for private repetition instituted with my students, to whom new ones succeed as others depart for the academies from time to time, intending to publish the version with notes also shortly, God willing. To your Magnificence, however—most noble and magnificent man, lord most to be honored—to your Magnificence, I say, I dedicate this Epitome Physica; not because I think that any more could be added to the fame of your name, which among our own citizens and also among foreigners is most ample, by this dedication, but because I wish partly to render some account of my duty to you who also preside over the administration of our college, and partly to win for the book as it goes out into public some authority, nay, and to obtain from it patronage and defense, should it need them. Although perhaps it will seem to some that it is little fitting to call your Magnificence away from the curia and the forum into the schools of the physicists, and from consular business to the solitary contemplation of nature, yet I have at hand that which I may reply to these people. For even if your Magnificence is occupied, by reason of office, mostly with the knowledge and transaction of civil affairs, you are nevertheless not averse to the inspection and consideration of nature; nor do you find nothing therein which beautifully represents some idea of the republic. For when the celestial bodies move with such varied motions, yet all the while concurring excellently without discord, this certainly teaches that among citizens as well, in a well-constituted republic, although they may be very diverse in their studies, there ought to remain concord nonetheless. And now, since not only do the celestial bodies, separated by such an interval from the elements and the things which consist of them, impart their power and virtue with command; but since these also receive from them gratefully and without rebellion; this again proposes, as in a most lucid mirror, the order of magistrates and subjects, the command of the former over the latter, and the obedience of the latter toward the former with subjection. And when, finally, we see natural things in this lower world, some being born, some rotting, some increasing, some diminishing, some being varied in different ways, and some even being moved according to place; who will deny that this has a signification of the vicissitudes of human...

affairs? Since therefore, according to the needs of the time, the morals of the citizens, the convenience of the republic, and various circumstances, laws and customs must now be abrogated, now renewed, now changed; but also since among the citizens themselves some, on account of virtue and noble deeds, deserve to be promoted to honors and dignities, while others, on account of wickedness, deserve to be punished and severed, like cancers and plagues, lest they infect the sounder part of the republic, they must be removed. I shall say nothing now of the fact that even brute animals show forth the order of a community, which themselves have their own kings and magistrates, whom they revere and obey, and among whom they share and perform amazing duties and offices; as may be seen in bees, fishes, and birds. Which being so, and since God the best and greatest has depicted in nature a most beautiful idea of a republic, I judge that the inscription of this *Physical Epitome* does not in the least dishonor your magnificence. Nay rather, since all the writings of Nicephorus Blemmida greatly pleased John Ducas, the Nicaean emperor of the Greeks, three hundred and seventy years ago, I will hope that this small physical work of his, adorned by my labor and study, will not displease your magnificence; whom meanwhile I commend in my prayers to the author, preserver, and moderator of nature, and indeed to the most powerful God of nature, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, in the Holy Spirit.

Given at Augsburg in the college, 21 August, in the year of salvation 1605. Most observant of your magnificence, M. Jo. WEGELINUS, inspector of the college.

TO THE CANDID READER

I have used two manuscript codices from the library of Augsburg for this *Physical Epitome*, friendly reader; one older, the other more recent. And indeed, for about the first half, I transcribed the text from the more recent one, and relegated the variant reading of the old one to the margin. But after I noticed during the transcription that the old codex was much more perfect than the recent one, I took it upon myself to transcribe the old one itself, and I reported the reading of the recent one, where it varied, on the edge of the margin. I have therefore indicated the better reading, whether it was found in the margin or in the text, just as I have often clearly indicated my own judgment concerning a variant reading. In chapter 28, page 232, the older codex failed, and at least the more recent one was available, which, as has been said, was not entirely whole. Therefore, there more than elsewhere I indicated things to be corrected by a certain amount of conjecture. Otherwise, indeed, neither manuscript codex had any distinctions except for small dots, and those were often placed in the wrong position. I, as the meaning seemed to me to require, added these that you see: in which, however, sometimes even a small dot was placed by the typesetter at the bottom, above, or conversely. This you, reader, will recognize and correct yourself. Occasionally I have also enclosed certain things with signs of parentheses, so that the meaning might be rendered clearer. Finally, lest anything should be lacking in this Greek edition, I have added an alphabetical index of notable matters. My efforts in this, you will take in good part. This much alone I desire you to know, if you doubt whether the *Logic* which I published at the previous trade fair, and this *Physics* which I am now editing, are by the same author: you can undoubtedly pass judgment from this, that in the *Logic* there is a reference in two places to this *Physics* (a). From which it is undoubtedly possible to conclude that both are the offspring of the same author, namely of Nicephorus Blemmida: whose name is also explicitly written in the manuscript codices. Fare well.

(a) And in the *Physics* (cap. 4, n. 12) there is a reference to the *Logic*. Edit. Patr.

PREFACE OF JOHANN WEGELINUS OF AUGSBURG

To the most noble and most illustrious man, Lord Leonhard Paller of Hammel and Ainhofen, his most highly honorable lord, health and grace from God.

Most noble and most illustrious man, most honorable lord. I published a year ago the Greek *Physical Epitome* of Nicephorus Blemmida, restored by the collation of two manuscript codices of the Augsburg library; which, not only for the sake of antiquity, since its author...

was a preeminent theologian and philosopher of his time, and most highly commended in history for the sake of his virtue and learning, was written nearly three hundred and seventy years ago: but also on account of the various and difficult subject matter—physical, geographical, astronomical, optical, and theological—which nevertheless beautifully look toward the same scope and end, and furthermore, because it is written in a most polished style and with a most accurate method, following the mind and opinion of Plato and Aristotle, as well as Cleomedes, the foremost philosophers, dealing with these subjects in thirty-two chapters, ought deservedly to be welcome and commended to scholars, especially those devoted to philosophy. Indeed, since not all are skilled in the Greek language, as it is not necessary or useful for all people's training and ways of life; and since I have understood from certain men of no small authority that this Greek epitome would have been more pleasing if it had a Latin version attached to it: therefore, what I could not provide a year ago, being prevented by pressure of time, I undertook, having found an opportunity a few months ago, and I revised my version already completed beforehand, and once revised, I gave it to the printer to be printed separately. I confess, indeed, candidly and willingly, that while translating, when I had already made some progress, I discovered the Physics of St. Damascene, which Jacobus Billius Prunaeus, a Frenchman—a man most learned in Latin and Greek—inserted into the works of St. Damascene, translated by himself and printed at Paris in 1577 and 1603, which, as to certain chapters, exactly agrees with this very Physics of Blemmida (so that it appears to me as not at all the Physics of St. Damascene, but of our Blemmida), and I confess that I subsequently read Billius’s Latin translation and imitated it in some places. But that same Physics, as it is ascribed by Billius to St. Damascene, consists in total of only seventeen chapters. The first chapter on the definitions of philosophy is exactly the same as the sixty-third chapter of the Dialectics of Damascene, but the other sixteen chapters have complete agreement with just as many chapters of Blemmida; but as for the remaining fifteen chapters of Blemmida, as well as the fragment of an exposition on the eighth psalm, it touches upon not even one word; either because Billius did not have them in his manuscript codex of the Physics of Damascene, or he studiously omitted them for some other reason I do not know. Moreover, I also confess this: when I had already brought the version of the Physics of our author, Blemmida, almost to the end, because I was going to research something in the books of Disputations of Dialectics of Laurentius Valla, by chance I happened upon the works of Georgius Valla of Placentia, an Italian, as they were printed at Venice in the year of the Lord 1501 by Aldus Romanus and kept in the Augsburg library, and because, while inspecting his Physiology, among other writings, I noticed, first, that he indeed had copied certain things into it from Blemmida; then truly, having progressed further, I discovered that he had taken this whole Physics of Blemmida, translated into Latin—but without any mention of the author—and had claimed it for himself, and had inserted it into his own book, constructed for the sake of things to be sought and avoided, in the twenty-second and twenty-third books, but in the third and fourth books of his Physiology, having added something from his own with only two chapters on comets and the heavens. But surely, that I may speak with regard to the otherwise intact reputation of so great a philosopher and polymath, and a man most learned in his own time, he strayed in some places from the genuine meaning of Blemmida, and here and there he translated so obscurely, or certainly the printer published it so indistinctly and confusedly, that someone moderately versed in Greek letters and imbued with some knowledge of physical things would understand the Greek itself more easily than that Latin version. Therefore, not at all deterred by this, I continued with the completion of my version, which I had brought almost to an end, and thus I finished a new version of this entire physical Epitome—and not a poor one, I believe, nor one so obscure—except where the gravity of the matters themselves and the law of translation, which constrained me to render the Greek text faithfully, might be able to cast some darkness upon the reader and present difficulty. Here and there, I also cited in the margin the books and chapters from Plato, Aristotle, and Cleomedes, from whom Blemmida borrowed many things. Indeed, I have also cited the places of certain other authors, especially in the final chapters, from which a fuller discussion and explanation of those things which are handed down by Blemmida can be sought. Furthermore, I resolved the individual chapters into certain parts, and I briefly summarized the arguments of each, and prefixed them to their chapters; and finally, for those who wish to combine Latin with Greek, or conversely Greek with Latin, I have annotated in the margin the pages of the Greek text corresponding to the Latin version, so that those who read the Greek and get stuck can immediately consult the Latin by the index number; or even those who read the Latin and wish to compare it with the Greek text, by the benefit of the same index number, can have what they seek at hand, and be successful in their desire. It would not have been difficult for me, moreover, to add a commentary, just as I have indeed explained that entire epitome privately to my students; and at the same time, I frequently referred to the Physics of Philipp Melanchthon, and also to the most praiseworthy compendia of my teachers, the Physics of M. Georgius Liebler, and the Astronomy of M. Michael Maestlin, and other books of this kind by learned men. But because the Frankfurt book fairs were pressing, and I feared also that costs and the price would increase for the printer, and for buyers of the book at the bookseller's, I abstained from further commentary and addition. To you, however, most noble and illustrious man, most honorable lord, I inscribe this version thus adorned by me, not only because you yourself are well versed in the studies of letters and can judge them, just as you have many others in your family related to you, men most noble not only by birth but also by learning and virtue, but also because, when a year ago, to that most noble, most illustrious and most prudent man, lord Albert von Stetten zu Bocksperg, consul

of Augsburg and curator of our church, and administrator of our college, my lord, whom I humbly revere, your father-in-law, I had dedicated this very Greek Epitome, and he, upon learning of the Latin version completed by me and soon to be published, kindly suggested that I might inscribe it to someone of his own acquaintance. Therefore, in order to comply with this counsel of his, since I had previously dedicated the Greek Logical Epitome of the same author, Blemmides (which I also long ago translated and explicated, and am at this time revising), to that most noble, most magnificent and most highly regarded man, lord Wolfgang Paller of Hammel and Ainhofen, senator and aedile of Augsburg, also administrator of our church and college, my lord, whom I humbly revere, your father, I here present to you, inscribe, dedicate, and offer this Physical Epitome, translated by me and thus edited, dealing with many matters both most pleasant and most useful to know. Accordingly, I pray as much as is appropriate and with the submission of my soul that you receive it kindly, interpret my effort in the better part, and provide defense and patronage against the malevolent. In return, I commend you, along with the most noble and magnificent families of your kin, to the divine grace, favor, and protection of God by my own prayers. Given at Augsburg, in the college, 25 August, in the year of the Lord 1606.

Most observant to your Amplitude, M. Johannes Wegelinus of Augsburg, inspector of the college.

TO THE READER

Jacobus Billius, in the works of St. John Damascene, printed at Paris in 1577 and reprinted there in 1603, prefaces the Physics of Damascene as follows: "This Physics of Damascene, the Greek exemplar of which was exhibited to us by that man of singular learning, Jacobus Cujacius, is as it were a certain compendium of Aristotelian Physics. When I had shown it to a certain very learned Italian, gifted with extraordinary kindness, he was delighted beyond measure by its reading, and helped me in several places where I was stuck due to the obscurity of the subject matter rather than the words, explaining those things that were causing me difficulty. For this reason I would have willingly inscribed his name here, had I not been forbidden by him from doing so. But he himself, in a short time, if he obtains the leisure to which he aspires, will render himself famous and illustrious through the excellent monuments of his genius." These are the words of Billius. But if the Physics of Damascene, which consists of only seventeen chapters, and of which the remaining sixteen agree in every respect with just as many chapters of our own Physics from the first, deserves this recommendation of Billius and other learned men (as we readily concede), our Physics will deserve it doubly; for beyond those sixteen chapters which it shares with the Physics of Damascene, it contains another sixteen chapters, no less pleasant, no less useful, and no less necessary for completing a physical Epitome. Indeed, if I may be permitted to say what I feel, that Physics appears to me to have been wrongly ascribed to Damascene by Billius, just as it is found neither in Greek nor in Latin in the works of Damascene printed at Basel in 1575. Perhaps this moved Billius, that he had the name of Damascene written in his manuscript codex. But this has never been done—that the names of the true authors were not written upon certain books, but those of others, from whom it was thought that more authority might accrue to them. Or perhaps Billius also looked to the fact that the first chapter of that Physics is found twice in the Logic of Damascene, namely in order as the sixty-fifth: whence he judged that the following sixteen chapters would also be of the same author, namely Damascene. But this is not an entirely firm argument. For that first chapter appears to have been set out not by the author of the Physics, but by some other scribe or reader in place of a prolegomenon; for that first chapter does not have a manifest connection in the text with the following chapters; just as, indeed, our own Physics omits it and begins immediately with the chapter that is second in that work. That this Physics of ours is Blemmides', and of no other author, I confirm not only from the fact that it has the name of Blemmides expressly prefixed in the manuscript codices, but also because, in the fourth chapter, p. 46, v. 5, the author alleges the logical epitomes of Blemmides, and attributes them to himself—which logic of Blemmides, that it is not of Damascene, can be clearly established for anyone from the manifest difference between the two. Indeed, just as the author of this Physics alleges the logic of Blemmides, so too does Blemmides in his Logic refer the reader to this very Physics in two places, namely p. 118, v. ult., to the first chapter concerning natural principles, and p. 136, v. 3, to the fourth and fifth chapters concerning motion and rest, where he had proposed to say more on these matters; and indeed it also fits: so that no doubt is left but that we must attribute and ascribe both epitomes—the former, the Logic, and the latter, the Physics—to one author, namely Nicephorus Blemmides. This, reader, is what I wanted you to know. Farewell.

PHYSICAL EPITOME

Since our Blemmides gives the title *On Physical Acroasis* or *Natural Auscultation* to this Epitome of his Physics, just as Aristotle is said to have titled his eight books of Physics—although Blemmides pursues much more in his Epitome than Aristotle does in those books—it seemed appropriate to append two letters of the most elegant brevity, woven from the finest thread, exchanged between King Alexander, the pupil, and the philosopher Aristotle, his teacher, regarding these very books, as they are read in Gellius (Book XX, ch. 4) and presented by the philosopher Andronicus: so that students of philosophy might understand from this alone how highly this doctrine of natural things is to be prized, when such a great king and monarch prized it so highly.

*Alexander to Aristotle, greetings.* You have not acted rightly in publishing your auscultatory books. For by what indeed shall we henceforth excel others, if these doctrines by which we have been instructed become common to all? I would prefer, for my part, to excel in the knowledge of the best things than in any power.

*Aristotle to Alexander, greetings.* You have written to me concerning the auscultatory books, thinking that they should be kept in secrecy. Know, therefore, that they are both published and not published. For they can be known and understood only by those who have heard us. ^A

INDEX OF CHAPTERS

1. On natural principles and causes. 2. On matter, form, and privation. 3. On causes and effects, where also on fortune and chance. 4. On motion and rest, where also on entelechy, and on that which is potential and actual. 5. Further on motion and rest. 6. On generation and corruption. 7. On nature. 8. Further on nature. 9. On place and time. 10. On the infinite. 11. On the elements. 12. On burning flames which appear in the sky, and on those called she-goats, torches, and shooting stars. 13. On comets, or hairy stars, and the Milky Circle. 14. On rain, hail, snow, dew, and hoarfrost. 15. On fountains and rivers. 16. On the sea. 17. On winds and other breaths. 18. On the earthquake. ^B 19. On thunder, lightning, and *ecnephia*—that is, storm—and the vortex which is called a typhoon, and the ignited turbine which the Greeks call a *prester*, and the thunderbolt. 20. On portents or apparitions which are seen in the sky. 21. On the halo or crown, and first on vision. 22. On the rainbow or celestial arch. 23. On rods or staves, and parhelia—that is, doubled or counterfeit suns—and furthermore on metallic things in the earth, and fossils. 24. On heaven, and that the world is not eternal.

25. On the ether and the stars. 26. On the sun. 27. On the moon. 28. On the earth and its zones, and first, that the earth holds the position of a center in relation to the celestial sphere, and indeed in relation to the sun itself. 29. On days and nights and the four seasons of the year. 30. On habitations. 31. On the vacuum. Fragment of an exposition on the eighth psalm.

NICEPHORUS BLEMMIDA ISAGOGIC EPITOME BOOK II

ON NATURAL DISCOURSE, THAT IS, ON NATURAL HEARING

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER I, WHICH IS ON NATURAL PRINCIPLES AND CAUSES

1. He treats of the difference between principle and cause, showing that a principle extends more broadly than a cause: yet in that they converge, they are spoken of in many ways; from which [we derive] the "according to what," "from what," "on account of what," also "through what," and "to what" something is or happens. 2. He divides causes into proper causes and concauses, indicating by what distinction they differ from one another. 3. He posits God as the efficient cause of all things properly and primarily; and he piously affirms the final cause to be the recognition and declaration of His goodness: he shows that nature is called the proximately efficient cause, which, however, with Plato, he makes an instrumental cause rather; and he also describes it as the exemplary cause. 4. He explains two other meanings of "principle," by which it exceeds "cause": that which signifies that from which the first movement comes, in which meaning he dwells longer; and that which denotes the principle of the temporary origin of each thing. 5. He proves that the first principles of natural bodies are form and privation; as these are the first and supreme of all contraries; which also, because they are contraries, require a subject, which is matter, so that there are three principles; but strictly two in themselves, matter and form; the third is by accident, [which is] privation, although it too is a necessary principle of generation: so that they will not be in error who number three principles, nor they who number two under a different consideration. 6. He distinguishes physical privation from logical [privation], which is treated in the categories, and describes it as an aptitude in the subject to receive form, to which it also is opposed according to the opposition of contraries; where he makes the contraries twofold. 7. Through an anticipation he dissolves an objection, that whereas form and privation are contraries, they are not under the same genus; explaining meanwhile the difference between form and accident, and why privation is an accident to matter, while form is not. 8. By which solution he shows insofar as form and matter are essences, and insofar as they are not; and in what respect matter is substance more than form, and in what respect form is substance more than matter. 9. In what respect privation is a principle and cause per accidens, and in what per se; and that one and the same thing, being affected in a contrary manner, may be the cause of contraries, as form and privation.

CHAPTER I

On natural principles and causes

1. Every cause is also a principle, but not every principle is at once ^B

a cause. We must first speak of the principle which is said in as many ways as the cause. A principle is therefore said to be that from which, as matter—that from which something first comes to be while existing within it; for example, stones and wood are principles of a house. That according to which, as form, and shape, and essence in general. That by which, as the nature is the principle of natural things, and art of artificial things. That for the sake of which, or the end for which: as victory is the principle of a match; for the match is completed for the sake of victory. According to Plato, a principle is also that through which, as the instrument; and that toward which, as the model. ^A Likewise, a cause is also said to be that from which, such as the material; that according to which, such as the formal; that by which, such as the efficient; that for the sake of which, such as the final; that through which, such as the instrumental; that toward which, such as the model. Now, as regards such significations of cause and principle, the principle and the cause are one and the same in subject, but they differ in thought. For a principle is thought of as far as it precedes; but a cause as far as it produces something and completes what follows it, with the cause existing potentially as a principle and the principle potentially as that which completes.

2. Among the enumerated causes, some are called causes properly so called, while others are concauses. The causes are the efficient, the final, and the model; the concauses are the material, the formal, and the instrumental. A cause properly so called differs from a concause; for a cause properly so called is separate and completely distinct from that which is being produced, ^B while a concause is considered within the thing being produced.

3. Whence the efficient cause, both properly and primarily, is the divine mind; and the final cause is His goodness, for the sake of which He created all creation, that He might be known and proclaimed. Yet proximately the efficient cause is called nature, which Plato rightly sets down as a more instrumental cause, as it is moved by the other, the divine mind, which is immovable in regard to every change, and it moves others, namely natural bodies—from which, since it cannot be separated, it could more reasonably be called a concause than a cause properly so called. ^C Now, as for the model cause, just as we have also been taught about the model principle, we have learned that the substantive-making reasons of beings, which pre-existed unitarily in the Creator-Mind, constitute this. Toward these, as toward pre-eternal archetypes, the whole of creation was perfected by the all-working and divine will. Furthermore, a principle is called that "from which," namely, when the first motion occurs; to which signification of principle the end is opposed. Therefore, according to such a signification of principle, that is, the "from which," the first step is called the principle of a road; the keel, the principle of a ship; the foundation, of a house; the opening, of a speech; the root, of a plant; ^D and the heart, of an animal. But these, as preceding parts, are called principles; yet when they are not parts, the point is the principle of a line. A line, likewise, is the principle of a surface; and a surface, of a body. And again, the principle of time is that of the "now";

"; ^A similarly, for motion, the principle is what is called the "kinema" (or inception of change).

It seems that the principle of every continuous thing is twofold, belonging to the line, to the surface, and to the body, and to time and motion. For there is a principle that is the preceding part of the continuous thing, which is also indeterminate, because it is potentially divisible to infinity. And again, there is a principle that is not a part, nor like the whole, as was stated before. And whatever the principle of the continuous thing is like, such also must the end be taken to be, receiving them reciprocally; for instance, the principle of a line is a point, and the end is a point. But if the preceding part of the line were taken as its principle, the final part of the line could also be taken as its end. And in the same way with every continuous thing.

4. Furthermore, the principle of the generation of each thing in time is said to be the time itself in which the thing first began to come into being; which is not easy to define since every part of every continuous thing is potentially divisible to infinity.

^B 5. These things having been thus distinguished, we must now seek the principles and causes of natural bodies, from which they first originated and into which they are finally dissolved again. Since, therefore, that which is generated is not generated from just anything, but from its contrary, and it is not corrupted into just anything, but into its contrary (for example, from the non-musical comes the musical, and again it is destroyed into the non-musical), the first and highest of the contraries that can be conceived would be the first principles of the bodies subject to generation; and the first and highest of all contraries are conceived to be form and privation. Therefore, these are the first principles of natural (bodies). ^C But since contraries are known to be among things that are in a subject, and when they are by themselves, they cannot be affected by one another (for the thing being affected must persist while being affected, but contraries do not endure one another; yet in a subject they can act upon one another. For the non-musical and the musical cannot be affected by one another while being by themselves, unless they were in a subject, in Socrates, for instance, or Plato); therefore, both form and privation absolutely need a subject in which they could act upon one another. ^D For if the subject were not opposed, it would sustain both of the opposed things. This subject, then, would be formless and qualityless matter, the first subject appropriate to the first contraries. There are, therefore, three first principles of the generation of natural (bodies): form, privation, and matter. Truly, however, form and matter are understood to be principles by themselves; because matter is subjected to form, and is not opposed to it; for which reason it also sustains the form that comes to it, or rather desires it; but privation, being opposed and incompatible with the form, departs as it enters. Whence privation is also thought of as a principle by accident, as only pre-existing before generation. For there would be no generation without privation; since

that which is generated is generated from what is not such, but is naturally apt for it. But if privation were ^A not a principle by accident, but by itself, the subject would necessarily be destroyed in its rejection, since the essence would depend upon that which is privation; for matter would be a form deprived. In one way, therefore, three are considered, and in another, two are considered as principles of natural things; since privation is not a principle by itself, but by accident.

6. Another privation is that which in the categories is opposed to a habit, as blindness is opposed to sight, which does not even return to the habit, being in some way a participant in quality and stained by the form of which it is called a privation. But there is again another privation, which returns to the form and is opposed to it, not as privation to a habit (even if it is called privation), but as rest to motion, and to speak simply, just as contraries. ^B For things that are contrary are either both species, as cold and hot; or one is the furthest falling away from the other (as injustice and cowardice), yet naturally apt to return to the form. But when it is not naturally apt to return, then it is truly privation. And this privation, which is opposed to the form, is considered with aptitude toward the form, just as rest is considered with aptitude toward motion. For rest is the immobility of that which is naturally apt to move, and privation is the absence in that which is naturally apt. Therefore, by the same reasoning as contraries contend with one another, privation and form are opposed, so that through their mutual mutation, ^C generation and corruption are brought to pass.

7. But if contraries are under the same genus, and form and privation are contraries, will they be under the same genus? Or are those exclusively contraries under the same genus which are both species, as the cold and the hot; but those of which one is the furthest falling away from the other, those need not be collected into the same genus; just as, to speak simply, neither need the privation of existence and existence itself. For the one is not, and the other is. But of the non-existent and the existent, how could there be a common genus? It does not follow, therefore, if form is some essence, that ^D privation would necessarily be an essence at all. For while form, since it constitutes the composite essence with matter, could indeed be some essence; but privation, since it dissolves and destroys the composite essence, how then could it be an essence? Form rather will be an essence and not an accident, even if it is recognized to exist in a subject, in matter, because it produces a composite essence with matter, being a part of it, just as is matter itself. And in this way form and accident differ from one another, even though both might be said to exist in a subject, because an accident, having come together with the essence, cannot create any composite with it; just as privation, being unable to [create] with...

matter ^A any composite thing, is an accident to matter. The form, however, creates a composite essence along with the matter, and hence it is not an accident.

8. But if to being there is nothing contrary, while to form privation is contrary, [how will form be essence?] Verily, to that essence which is never contemplated in a subject, there is nothing contrary; but form, insofar as it is known in a subject—that is, in matter—is to that extent contrary to privation. Furthermore, such a form is not strictly an essence, just as matter is not; for if the elements ^B are different from those things which are [formed] from the elements (for the elements of flesh are not flesh), it is sufficiently manifest that the elements of essence (and these are form and matter) would not strictly be essences, such as that which consists of them. But since essence is spoken of in terms of intensity and remission, these also will be in a way essences, though inferior to the composite, and, so to speak, "essential" rather than essences; for which reason they are also called "corporeal," but not "bodies." ^C Since these things are thus, in one way form seems to be more of an essence, and in another way matter. For, with regard to stability and the principle of subjection, matter is considered more an essence than form; but insofar as the "being" of each thing consists through its form (in which it also differs from others by its own peculiar nature), to that extent form is deemed more of an essence.

9. Furthermore, it is one thing to inquire for the principles of natural bodies, from which something has arisen not per accidens, but per se; and it is another thing to investigate the principles of change ^D simply. With respect, therefore, to the first, privation will be both a principle and a cause per accidens, as it does not exist within the thing that is arising, but is separated from it. For matter and form exist within that which is arising, and on account of this they are also called the elementary principles of things subject to generation; for it is necessary for elements to exist within the thing that consists of them. With respect, however, to the latter, privation will not only be a principle and cause per accidens, but also per se. For just as form is the cause of the change toward "being," so is privation the cause of the change toward "not-being." It is manifest, therefore, from this, that one and the same thing, according to how it is disposed, becomes the cause of contraries. For by its presence, form is the cause of generation per se, but by its absence, it is the cause of corruption per accidens. Privation, on the other hand, acts inversely: by its presence it is the cause of corruption per se, but by its absence it is the cause of generation per accidens. Or, to speak more correctly, privation, both when it is present and when it is absent, is the cause of generation per accidens; when it is present, because what is arising must arise out of that which is not of this kind; and when it is absent, because, as it departs, the form is born in.

CHAPTER II. On matter and form and privation.

^A 1. Of the things that properly come into being, some come into being as simple entities, some as composite ones 16. Composite things come into being through composition, as a house: of simple things, some do so through depth, others as if upon the surface. And those which come into being on the surface do so through the changing of figure; as when a statue comes from a globe or simply from bronze. Of those which come into being through depth, some do so in a universal sense, as a man from seed undergoing alteration; others partially. And of these, some come into being through addition, as things which grow, others through detraction, as things which decrease. Therefore, if all things which properly come into being do so according to one of these modes; and things which come into being according to these modes come into being from a subject (for there is something which is changed into another figure, and which is altered; and in that which comes into being by addition, there is something to which it is added: and in that which comes into being by detraction, there is something from which it is detracted; and finally, in composition there are those things which are composed): it is manifest that all things which properly come into being come into being from a subject.

If, therefore, in every generation there is something which is a subject, and something which comes toward the subject, it is manifest that whatever comes into being is made of that from which it comes, that is, the form, and of that from which it becomes, the composite. Yet this latter is twofold: both the subject, that is to say, the matter, and that which is opposed to the form, that is, privation 17. For a form, such as a house, comes into being from existing stones and wood, and from ^B privation, that is, from the fact that it was not a house. And in other things the case is the same. Therefore, the first principles of the generation of natural [bodies] are three: the subject, that is to say, the matter, and the two opposites [contraries], namely, form and privation 18. But in what way are there three, and yet in what way are there two, principles of the generation of natural bodies? It was said before that matter and form are indeed principles by themselves, but privation is a principle per accidens.

^B 2. Some of the ancients not having understood this privation, took away natural generation, and in like manner corruption. For they said: "If everything that comes to be, must come to be either out of what is, or out of what is not; and neither does that which is come to be out of what is (for that which is already exists before it comes to be), nor again out of what is not (for there must be something out of which it might come to be, and in general, that which is not is nothing at all), then there would be neither generation nor corruption." For into what will that which has not come to be out of something be resolved? So that there is only mixing, and the separation of mixed things. Such were the problems they were troubled by, while they thought that what comes to be is identical with being, and that what is "not being" is absolutely nothing of what is.

3. It was necessary to realize that "being" and "not being" are said in two ways: one by itself, and the other by accident. Thus indeed, matter is said to be not being by accident, because it is a participant in privation, which privation is called "not being" by itself. For it is known only as the absence of form, and nothing else. And again, matter is "being" by itself, as a subject; but privation is "being" by accident, because it happens to existence, that is, to matter. Further, "being" signifies both that which is potentially and that which is actually. So matter is potentially that which comes to be, but not actually. The cause of matter having such a nature is privation, being an absence in that which is so naturally apt; and because it is an absence, it causes matter not to be actually that which is coming to be; but because it is in a subject that is naturally apt in such a way, it makes matter potentially all that which is coming to be. Wherefore, that which comes to be, comes to be from that which in one respect is, and in another respect is not; and again, it is corrupted into that which in one respect is, and in another respect is not. For "being" and "not being" are not said in only one way, as they supposed who took away generation and corruption; but it is possible for one and the same thing to be both being and not being. Nor is the contradiction on that account true at the same time. For it will be being in one respect, and not being in another. For it is not only matter and privation that are both beings and not beings, as has been said; but even each of the perfect species is both being and not being; something is being, and something is not being. For example, a man is being in that he is a man; yet he is not being in that he is not a horse. For because of the multitude, "not being" is superinduced even upon the perfect species themselves.

^D 4. Furthermore, matter is known naturally by the analogy it has to other things. For just as bronze is to a statue, or wood to a bed, or to any other thing that is marked by an artificial form, so that which is devoid of form stands before it receives the form; in such a way does prime matter stand in relation to natural bodies. By this way, then, we grasp matter naturally through the analogy to other things; but we grasp it more perfectly from the negation of the forms. For having observed the last species changing into one another, and therefore needing a certain subject which is naturally apt to receive, by turns, those which are opposed to each other.

being such that it is naturally disposed to receive either of the contraries in turn; we have arrived at the conception of matter by the negation of forms, leading us to the subject endowed with the capacity of receiving them. ^B

5. Plato called this matter "great and small," testifying that from one opposition all oppositions are present in it, and he termed it an indeterminate dyad and asymmetry; its parts are excess and defect, and the much and the little, and inequality, all of which are appropriate to matter, which perhaps he himself indicated by the "great and small." Since matter, being bodiless and without magnitude—and for this reason to be called small—is nevertheless the cause of every mass and every dimension, it may for this reason be called great. ^C

6. Some have said that this matter is bodiless; others have called it a qualityless body. The former because it is altogether devoid of magnitude and dimension; the latter because it exists as a sort of relaxation and extension, an indefiniteness of the incorporeal, impartible, and intelligible nature. Hence they also called it a body, not that which subsists through form and reason, and is definitively circumscribed by three dimensions, but that which is completely relaxed and dissolved, and flows away on every side from Being into non-being. ^D

7. They also imagine this matter to be incorruptible and ungenerated. For they say that form and privation, as contraries, come to be and pass away; and that when form is present, privation is absent, and when privation is present, form is absent, and thus generation and corruption are brought about. But matter, being a subject and having its essence in potentiality, exists both with privation, and remains even when form is present in actuality, and preserves what it is in potentiality without alteration; whence it never changes from potentiality to actuality, but remaining what it is, it receives the form; and when the form departs, it remains what it was before, and thus it neither comes to be nor passes away. Perhaps, however, one might ask how matter is ungenerated and incorruptible, and yet how it is generated and naturally corruptible. It is ungenerated, then, because it does not come to be from any first subject existing of itself; for this is the first subject, existing of itself. And it is incorruptible by the same reasoning, because there is no elementary principle of it into which it will be resolved; for that which perishes naturally is not said to perish by being resolved into non-being, but by being resolved into that from which, as a first existing principle—and not per accidens—it had come to be. But matter is generated in that it has an efficient and final cause, having been produced by God from that which was in no way and in no sense whatever existing, for a demonstration and greatness of His goodness and power. Since, therefore, matter

^B was produced from nothing, it will certainly be perfectly subject to corruption; although, on the other hand, God, who is Himself the highest goodness, will not reduce His handiwork to nothing, but will transform it into a better state.

8. Furthermore, the Platonists say that matter is exempt from all alteration, but the Peripatetics say that it is entirely and thoroughly subject to alteration. But the former, as they speak of the primary, qualityless matter, do not grant that it itself is subject to alteration. For that which is endowed with quality is altered, by casting off one quality and taking on another; but how could that which is qualityless be altered? On this account, they say that the composite substance is a form in matter, but not from form and matter, since they are not altered together mutually. The Peripatetics, however, taking proximate matter, such as the four elements, reasonably say that it is also altered as something endowed with qualities, and that the composite thing is from matter and form, in such a way that this kind of matter is transformed into another form, and that other form is received by the matter.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER III,

WHICH IS ON CAUSES AND EFFECTS, WHERE ALSO CONCERNING FORTUNE AND CHANCE.

1. He divides causes and effects into themselves and by accident, and illustrates them again with examples: showing at the same time that causes in themselves and by accident can be spoken of not only absolutely, but also conjointly. 2. He divides these both into proximate and remote, and illustrates them again with examples. 3. Through another division, he partitions causes and effects per se and per accidens, proximate likewise and remote, into such as exist in act and in potency, teaching that causes and effects in act exist simultaneously and do not exist simultaneously; but not so for causes and effects in potency. 4. He gives two precepts for the supreme of any thing, that is, for the principal cause being sought; and that this must be assigned to causes, so that they may agree with the effects. 5. He proposes two theorems; the first, that causes per se are not found separately, some in one effect and others in another, but several in one effect at once, or rather, that all are found; although sometimes a few agree, as form and end in natural things, and sometimes also the efficient: the second, that in the same way some things are causes of each other, just as working is the cause of good health, and good health is the cause of working. 6. He shows that fortune and chance are called causes as if efficient, yet, however, by accident, and that they consist in rare coincidences. 7. He distinguishes the same from one another, so that fortune resides in those things which happen according to choice; chance in those things which happen according to nature. 8. He distinguishes fortune according to quality, into propitious and adverse; according to quantity, into good fortune and misfortune; which, however, both are found only in those things which can act, and therefore in nothing inanimate, nor in beasts, nor even in children, speaking properly. 9. He reduces both fortune and chance to what is generally called *automaton* (self-caused), where he explains the etymology of *automaton*. 10. He teaches why also every chance is called a cause, although by accident. 11. He describes frustration and shows it is spoken of in three ways. 12. By anticipation, he shows that although the father is in a way the efficient cause of the son in material generation, yet in divine generation God the Father is the cause of the Son purely essentially, not efficiently, because the Son is not created, nor made, but begotten; although otherwise He is properly the efficient cause of all other creatures, even of the angels.

CHAPTER III.

On causes and effects, where also concerning fortune and chance.

1. Some causes are per se, others are per accidens. Likewise also those of which they are causes, that is, the effects, some are per se, others are per accidens. For instance, the efficient cause of a statue per se is the sculptor; but per accidens, it is Polycletus, or a man who is fair, or a musician. For it happened to the sculptor that he was perhaps called Polycletus, and was fair, or a musician. Likewise also the effect of the sculptor

^A is the statue. But as for the statue, it is by its nature that it is a statue, but ^B by accident, perhaps it is Marcion, or the three-cubit-tall one, or the fair one. For it happened to the statue to have been erected because of Marcion, and to be called after Marcion, and to be three cubits tall [or "of three cubits"], or to be fair.

2. Moreover, of causes and effects alike—both those that are by their nature and those that are by accident—some are proximate and others are remote. For example, the proximate cause by nature of this statue is this sculptor; a more remote one, simply, is "sculptor"; and still further remote, "artisan." The proximate effect by nature of this sculptor is this statue; remote, however, is simply "statue"; and further still, "image." The proximate cause by accident is Polycletus; remote, however, is "man"; and still further remote, "animal," or "fair"; and further still, "one endowed with color." Now, the fact that he is fair, and generally the fact that he is endowed with color, pertains to Polycletus by accident, but the fact that he is a man and generally an animal pertains to him by nature. With respect to the statue, not only the fair one and the one endowed with color are causes by accident, but also the man and the animal. For if Polycletus is a cause of the statue by accident, and "man" and "animal" pertain to Polycletus by nature, then it is necessary that "man" and "animal" are also causes of the statue by accident. The proximate effect by accident is Marcion; remote is "the one named." And again, the proximate effect is "this three-cubit-tall one"; the remote is simply "three-cubit-tall," and further, "one endowed with magnitude." But "three-cubit-tall" and "endowed with magnitude" pertain to Marcion by accident, whereas "the one named" pertains to him by nature. All these things together and others of this kind are effects of the sculptor by accident. ^C But causes, both those by nature and those by accident, cannot only be spoken of absolutely, but also in conjunction; just as the cause of the statue might be called not only "sculptor" separately, but also conjunctively, "Polycletus the sculptor"; and in the same way do the effects behave.

3. Furthermore, of all the causes and effects mentioned, those that are by nature and those that are by accident, and those that are proximate and those that are remote, some are said to be in potentiality, others in actuality. By "in potentiality," it is not meant here that which can come to be, but simply that which is neither acting nor being acted upon. For things that are capable of acting, and things that have ceased to act, do not act; just as, conversely, things are not being acted upon, both those that are capable of being acted upon and those that have ceased to be acted upon. Now, therefore, the causes and effects that are in actuality both exist at the same time and do not exist at the same time; that is, they bring each other into existence together and do away with each other together. ^D For an architect building and a house being built exist at the same time; and if there is no one building, neither will there be what is being built. In the same way, if there is nothing being built, there is no one building. But those that are in potentiality do not always exist at the same time or not exist at the same time. For it is possible for the house to remain while the architect is dead, or for the latter to still be alive while the house has collapsed.

^A

4. Furthermore, one must always seek the highest, or rather the most principal cause of each thing; as, for example, man builds because he is a builder; but the builder builds by means of the builder’s art: the builder’s art, therefore, is the prior and more principal cause. Moreover, causes must be assigned in a manner corresponding to their effects, as proximal to proximal, and remote to remote; and those that are in act to those that are in act, and those that are in potentiality to those that are in potentiality.

5. Furthermore, it is not the case that in different effects different causes are considered; as if one cause alone pertains to one effect—the efficient to one, the final to another, and yet another to a third—but many to one, or rather, in each thing all of them, even if sometimes some causes happen to coincide. For in a house, the efficient cause is the builder, or rather the architectural science itself. The final cause is the warding off of rains, winds, and heat. The material cause is the stones, the timber, and the mud; the formal is the design and shape, and in general the species according to which it is made. And if someone were also to seek the instrumental cause, he would find the saw, the adze, the plumb line, and other things. And if [he seeks] the exemplary, it is that delineating and shaping of the house which existed first in the mind. ^B However, in certain effects, some of these causes mutually coincide. For in natural things, both the form and the end are the same; since nature fashions all preceding things for the sake of the form. And thus the form and the end are two in regard to reason and definition, but they are one in number and subject. Wherefore, ^C sometimes the formal and final causes can coincide into one. But sometimes also the efficient cause coincides with these, if not in subject or in number, yet in species at any rate. For man begets man; and the father is in a way the efficient cause for him who is begotten, being the same as him according to species and the definition of essence. Moreover, certain things are in the same way causes of one another; as labor is of good health, and good health is of labor; for not only is labor the efficient cause of good health, and good health the final cause of labor—since it is for the sake of good health that labor is undertaken—but good health is also recognized as the efficient cause of labor, since he who is in good health is able to labor and to perform his work. Wherefore, one and the same thing can be called a cause in several ways, and in the same way, one and the same thing can in some cases be found to be both cause and effect at once. ^D

6. Finally, they also call fortune and chance, as it were, efficient causes, but per accidens. For fortune and chance are certain causes by accident in those things which happen for some purpose, and among these, in those things that happen rarely. For since the contingent is divided in three ways: into that which happens for the most part, that which happens equally, and that which

^A happens rarely; fortune and chance are considered in those things which happen rarely.

7. Fortune indeed is in those things which happen according to choice; for instance, if anyone digging to lay a foundation should stumble upon a treasure. Chance, however, is in those things which happen according to nature; for example, if a stone from somewhere, without anyone having thrown it, fell down and struck a man, or if someone's horse, captured by the enemy and imagining its former pastures, escaped by flight from the enemy and betook itself to its own master. For all brute life is called nature. Whence they say that things which occur to irrational and natural operations by an adventitious reason happen by chance, and they call the preceding cause "chance." But things which occur in addition to actions proceeding from choice, these they state happen by fortune; and they call the cause which stands by, alongside the choice and those things which are according to choice, "fortune."

8. But ^B fortune is good, when something good results; and bad, when something bad occurs. Whenever those things which result have a certain magnitude, they call it good fortune and ill fortune. To be fortunate and unfortunate is recognized in those who are able to act. For it is equivalent to acting well and acting poorly. Whence it comes about that no inanimate thing, nor beast, nor child is said to be fortunate or unfortunate in the strict sense, unless by way of similarity; as Protarchus said that the stones from which altars are built are fortunate, because they are honored, while those of the same kind that are stepped upon ^C by feet are not.

9. Both fortune and chance are gathered into what is generically called "chance" [the automatic]. And this, that which is commonly called chance, is so named because it is "in vain" [auto-maton: acting by itself/in vain], inasmuch as it happens relative to the result that follows. For insofar as the discovery of the treasure is concerned, the digging occurred in vain, since it had been undertaken for the sake of laying the foundation; and in the same way, the falling of the stone and the flight of the horse from the enemy, if you look at the effects that followed, have occurred in vain. For neither did the stone fall for the sake of striking someone, nor did the horse flee the enemies in order to come to its own master; but the one, the stone, in order to occupy its own place, that is, the lowest and middle [downward], (for ^D all heavy things naturally hasten to the center with force); and the horse, in order to betake itself to its accustomed pastures.

10. Nevertheless, every chance occurrence is called a cause, because had this not preceded, such an end would not have followed. However, it is the cause of such an end by accident, and not of itself; as digging was the cause in itself of laying the foundation, but it happened to become also the cause of the finding of the treasure, having been done in vain insofar as the finding of the treasure is concerned.

^A

11. For everything is said to be "in vain" which does not conform to the purpose of the activity that preceded it. This is divided into three types. For either we say that it has been done in vain when no end at all follows the action—as if someone, having drunk a purgative for the sake of purging, were not purged; or when some other end follows than the one intended and aimed at by the person acting—as if someone who went to the market to buy something should encounter a friend and spend the day with him; or when the end for which the action was undertaken does indeed come to pass, but something else supervenes as well—as if someone, having gone to be washed, finding a debtor at the bath, having washed, also received the loan. For insofar as the receiving of the loan is concerned, he went to the bath in vain. For the end of the going to the bath was not the recovery of the debt. ^B

12. But since we have already affirmed above that the Father is in a certain way the efficient cause of the Son, it must be understood that in material generation, the Father might perhaps be called the efficient cause, even if not properly so. For he is rather an instrumental and auxiliary cause, as one who does not beget children when he wills, but only when the all-working will from above moves him. However, regarding that entirely immaterial generation—which is the divine one—the Father is not the efficient cause of the Son, but is purely essential. For truly, that is an efficient cause ^C where there is that which is being effected, or that which is being affected, which is matter. But where that which is being effected does not exist, how can that which effects exist there? For that which effects, effects that which is being effected; and that which is being effected is effected by that which effects; for these are among things relative, and they bring each other into being together, and are removed together. But God is properly the efficient cause of every creation, both sensible and intelligible. For even the angels themselves, when compared with things that fall under the senses, are called immaterial; since only the Divine is truly immaterial and, for this reason, also alone unbegotten. ^D

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER IV

WHICH IS CONCERNING MOTION AND REST; WHERE ALSO THE SUBJECT CONCERNS ENTELECHY, AND THAT WHICH IS BY POTENCY AND BY ACT.

1. He defines motion, distinguishing it in the secondary sense taken from Aristotle. 2. He recounts three meanings of the term entelechy, through which motion is defined, of which only the third accords with the definition of motion: that it is an imperfect act, and that of what is in potency, not that it acts by this, but is acted upon, and therefore motion is the passive act of that which is in potency. 3. He teaches that every composite of matter and form has itself by potency and by act, but is moved only insofar as it is in potency; whence he infers that the motion of that which is in potency is a passion rather than an action; proposing meanwhile his conjecture by what reason action might also be called such; although properly whatever is moved, insofar as it is moved, suffers and does not act; so that what does not suffer is not moved. 4. He describes what it is to be in potency, and on the contrary what is in act; the former of which is a part of the definition of motion. 5. He declares by example the parts of the definition of motion hitherto expounded, and delivers that the same reasoning for other examples is used with precision. 6. He explains how it is to be accepted when it is said that something is moved insofar as it is in potency, and thus also unfolds the final part of the definition of motion. 7. He proposes and explains another definition of motion, clearer than the former, and shows that motion is not in the mover, but in that which is moved. 8. He brings forth a third definition of motion, showing meanwhile that the affections remaining from motions are not motions, but effects of motions. 9. On the occasion of the preceding definition, he explains how motion can be called an action with respect both to the movable and to the mover. 10. He shows that motion is one thing, just as effect and passion are one; which indeed differ in reason, but agree in subject; yet soon after they again...

^A correct not only in subject, but also in reason, he says that motion is one, which is from the mover into the movable. 11. He reviews the opinion of others concerning the predicament of motion, that some have posited it as quantity, others as relation, and finally explains his own opinion, that it does not seem to be by itself in any of the ten predicaments. 12. He explains the distinction between being in potentiality and potentiality itself, and likewise between being in act and the act itself, pursuing each with its own descriptions. 13. He pronounces that a thing is said to be in potentiality according to potentiality, and in act according to act; and therefore he distinguishes between both being in potentiality and in act. 14. He institutes a collation of those four, and at the same time determines how moving occurs according to them. 15. Through an occupying argument, he explains how it should be understood when it is said that what is in potentiality is moved; and what is called "to be at rest"; and also what rest is, and what its requirements are; whence he finally infers that it is not fittingly said of God that He rests.

Chapter IV. On motion and rest; where also concerning entelechy, and that which is in potentiality and in act.

1. A perfect act is indeed also called motion, according to the distance from essence to acting. For thus we also speak of an intellectual motion; and we say that the rational soul is moved when it deliberates, and thinks, and contemplates, and judges. But that motion is an act immutable, always having itself in the same way, and belonging to perfect things, insofar as they are perfect. For of those things which are in act, such is the motion. But the motion which is here treated of is a change always flowing, and it is the act of imperfect things, insofar as they are imperfect; because this motion is of those things which are in potentiality, and not yet existing, but which are about to exist. Whence also they define this thus: Motion is the entelechy of that which is in potentiality, insofar as it is such; that is, the act of that which is in potentiality, ^B insofar as it is in potentiality.

2. Entelechy is primarily said to be the having of completion, that is, the habit according to the complete, the perfection of a thing, by which the thing has completeness, by which the thing is a perfect form; wherefore also man is not in entelechy the embryo which is fashioned in the womb and is organized and brought to completion; but that man is at length in entelechy who is fully formed and brought to birth, as one perfected according to the human form. Whence also they define the soul as the entelechy of a natural and organic body, having life in potentiality; not that the soul is an action, but that through it there is perfection for it [the body]. Entelechy is also called the act of the perfect, which is the same as saying, a perfect act. For the acts of perfect things are also perfect; just as those of imperfect things are imperfect. But a perfect act is called entelechy, since it possesses perfection in itself; and also because it has ^C the power of the habit of perfecting, that is, it is the perfection of the habit. For an act brought forth according to a habit is the perfection of the habit. But abusively, act simply is also called entelechy, insofar as each thing acting brings forth its own proper acts according to its own nature, whether the nature be perfect or imperfect. According to this meaning, motion is also called entelechy, that is, an act simply. But such indeed will it be, as is also that which is in potentiality. But that which is in potentiality is imperfect, and its act is imperfect. So that motion would be an imperfect act. ^D

^A For it acts according to its potentiality; not that it acts by means of its potentiality, but because it is acted upon. For that which is in act can act, insofar as it is in act; just as fire heats, being hot in act. But that which is in potentiality, insofar as it is in potentiality, suffers, and does not act; just as water is heated, being hot in potentiality. But if, while being heated, the water also still heats, it is because, insofar as it can be heated further, it is heated—being still hot in potentiality in its own regard—but insofar as it participates in heat, in that respect it heats, being in act hot in its own regard. Therefore, motion is understood as a certain passive act of that which is in potentiality.

3. ^B For since every thing that is subject to generation consists of matter and form, it has both potentiality and act, and [the capacity] to be moved and to move, which is the same as saying, to suffer and to produce. And according to the form it has [being] in act, but according to the matter it has [being] in potentiality. And to be in act pertains to acting, moving, and producing; but to be in potentiality [pertains] to being acted upon, being moved, and suffering. Whence it happens, since the motion of that which is in potentiality is called an act of being, that it is rather a passion. Perhaps it may also be called an act, because that which is moved has the [capacity] to be moved immediately from the nature implanted in it, according to its own aptitude, even if it receives the first principle of its motion from without. But properly, whatever is moved suffers, and does not act. That which does not suffer is not moved either: because that which is in potentiality, insofar as it is in potentiality, is moved as it passes over to that which is in act. And motion is a certain way leading from being in potentiality to being in act; but that which is in act, insofar as it is in act, remains unmoved.

4. ^C By potentiality, then, is that which can and is naturally apt to become this, which is called a potentiality; but [that which is] in act is that which already is this, which is called an act.

5. For example, the scholar Zosimion, who being white was turned black by a lingering disease; previously he was white in act, but black in potentiality, since he could become black. Insofar, therefore, as he was white, he was not said to be in motion; but insofar as he was black, since he was so in potentiality, when he began to blacken and was being led from being black in potentiality to becoming black in act, then he was said to be in motion toward [the state of] black. And that contraction of blackness was motion, being an act of Zosimion who was black in potentiality, according to his potentiality, that is, insofar as he was naturally apt to become black. ^D But when he had become black in act, he was no longer being moved with respect to the black; but he stood fast in the black. In the same way, therefore, everything that is in act is not moved, insofar as it is in act.

6. But neither could anything be said to be moved insofar as it is in potentiality, while it remains only in potentiality and is known only by aptitude. But when from potentiality it [begins to change...]

it is then said to be moved. For this reason, the phrase "insofar as such" is added to the definition of motion—that is, "insofar as it is in potentiality"—so that even though that which is in potentiality and that which is in act may be the same in the subject, motion may be considered as occurring according to potentiality, and for as long as the potentiality itself remains unimpaired. For if this is completely destroyed, there is no motion. For that which has become all that it is in act, insofar as it is in act, is no longer in motion, but is in a state of rest and permanence. In this, motion would differ from what is in act and from perfect actuality: for in those cases, the potentiality is destroyed; but in the case of motion, the activity is performed while that which is in potentiality remains.

7. Again, motion is the entelechy of the mobile insofar as it is mobile—that is, the passive activity of what is able and by nature meant to be moved and to change from this to that, insofar as it is able and is so by nature, not insofar as it already is. If, then, motion is such an entelechy of the mobile, it is manifest that it is not in the mover, but in that which is moved. And if vision is not in that which is seen, but exists in that which sees, it seems to be in the mover and the agent; yet the deception arises from the phrase, which indeed is uttered as if it signified an action, though it nonetheless declares a passive thing. For everything that senses suffers and does not act; wherefore also vision, although it is in the seer, is in the patient and in that which is moved, just as the rest of the senses are in those that sense—not as in movers and agents, but as in those that ^B are moved and suffer.

8. And another logos of motion is also given, showing it to be properly the act of the mover and agent, originating and being granted by it, yet being established and remaining in that which is moved and suffers. The logos is this: Motion is the act of the mover in that which is moved. For, indeed, building is the act of the builder in that which is being built; and healing is the act of the healer in that which is being healed. But building and healing are one thing, and to have been built and to have been healed are another. For building and healing have their being in the process of becoming—that is, in that which is being built being built, and in that which is being healed being healed. But to have been built and to have been healed receive their being from the fact that they have already come to be. Therefore, building and healing are motions; but to have been built and to have been healed is to have been moved. The dispositions, therefore, that supervene from motions are not motions, but the results of motions.

9. Since motion is in that which is moved by the mover, as it exists in that which is moved, it is called a passive and imperfect act ^C (since even that which is moved, ^D which is what is in potentiality, also suffers...

is not yet being). But as it comes from the mover, it might more properly and perfectly be called an act; since the mover, which is that which is in actuality, has the power to act insofar as it is in actuality, and it exists in its nature as something complete. For what is said to be, that is exactly what it is. Movement, therefore, is an act. ^B

10. Action and passion indeed differ in definition, but in subject both are one and the same, as the act of teaching and the act of learning, and as ascent and descent. Or rather, movement is one and the same in both subject and definition, being in that which is moved by the mover. For movement is not divided as action and passion are—the one concerned with the relationship from the agent, the other with that from the patient—nor are they distinct simply as that which is from this, and that which is in this; but both of these together complete the one movement, and fill out its definition in every respect.

11. Furthermore, they place movement under quantity, since it seems continuous because of the magnitude in which it is observed, just as time is observed because of movement. And they also put it under relation, since movement is the movement of that which is moved, and that which is moved is moved by movement. Perhaps, however, since movement is something indefinite, it will not be contained by itself in any of the ten defined categories. For as things that are defined are spoken of with respect to act and potentiality, movement can be placed in neither of these. For that which is only in potentiality is not yet moving, and that which is in actuality is no longer moving. ^C

12. It is one thing to be in potentiality, and another to be power; and another to be in actuality, and another to be an act. Therefore, that which is in actuality is opposed to that which is in potentiality; but an act is opposed to power. Power, indeed, is a perfect preparation of the essence, and an unimpeded readiness for acting, having the force of producing an act, as we say that fire has the power of burning. But to be in potentiality is an imperfect aptitude for that which is said to be in potentiality, receiving the acting from another and not emitting it from itself, as we say that seed is an animal in potentiality. It is in actuality, moreover, as that which can already act according to that which it is said to be. Just as Aristoxenus is called a musician when he is actually a musician, because he can act according to music insofar as he is a musician. ^D An act, however, is an effective movement which is emitted from power. An effective movement is that which consists in a work. Now, a work is both a production and an action. Finally, production and action are from producing and acting, of which we made mention earlier in the first book, in the twenty-fourth chapter.

^A 13. Given these distinctions, one must know that a thing is called "potential" in accordance with potency, and "actual" in accordance with act. Wherefore, both "potential" and "actual" are twofold. For that is called potential which is so only by an imperfect aptitude, and which has not yet become in any way what it is said to be; as we have said, the seed is potentially an animal, and as we say, the child is potentially a musician; because the seed can become an animal, and the child a musician. But that which has already developed and possesses a perfect habit, yet is not acting according to it, is also called potential; just as we say Aristoxenus is potentially a musician when he is not playing the lyre, but is sleeping or doing something else. According to this meaning, we also say fire is potentially burning when it is not burning. The first, therefore, is called an imperfect ^B potentiality; the second, a perfect one. And the first is potential according to aptitude, the second according to habit. That which is actual is also said to be twofold: both that which can act according to that by which it is described, even though it may not be acting—which is the same as the second meaning of "potentiality"—and that which is considered according to an efficacious movement, as when Aristoxenus plays the lyre, and the fire is actually burning.

14. Therefore, the second kind of potentiality is intermediate between those things which are entirely and only potential, and those which are entirely and only actual; since it partakes of both, and is the one toward either, as it were; for instance, it is actual in relation to the first potentiality, but potential in relation to ^C the second actuality. The first potentiality, therefore, is the imperfect one, as has been said, which is brought through movement to the first actuality. For it is not necessarily to the second. And whenever that which is thus potential proceeds to be actual, yet without departing entirely from its potentiality, then we say it is being moved.

15. When we say that a potential thing is moved, we do not mean that the aptitude itself is moved, but rather the thing which possesses the aptitude, that is, the thing itself apt as such is what we pronounce to be moved. Furthermore, when it is not being moved by the movement by which it is apt to be moved, then we say that it is "at rest" ^D with respect to that movement; for rest is the immobility of that which is by nature apt to be moved, when, where, and how it is by nature apt. As to the *when* it is by nature apt, since a newly born puppy is not said to be at rest with respect to seeing; for although it is by nature apt to see, it is not so immediately upon being born. As to the *where* it is by nature apt, since fish are not said to be at rest with respect to movement in the air; for nature has not granted them the ability to live in the air. As to the *how* it is by nature apt, since serpents are not said to be at rest with respect to the movement of walking; for they have from nature the faculty of crawling, not of walking. That which is naturally apt to be moved, therefore, and is not being moved when it is apt, and where it is apt, and as it is apt, being deprived of this movement, is said to be at rest.

Hence it is clear that since the divine numen is altogether immaterial, and is removed from all aptitude and from all imperfection, and itself exists and is of itself perfect; and for this reason it moves, and moves primarily and properly, yet is immobile with respect to every change; it cannot appropriately and fitly be said to be at rest. For of that in which movement resides, the immobility is rest. But in God, immobility is not rest, but identity and a state forever devoid of all mutation. ^A

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER V, IN WHICH WE STILL TREAT OF MOVEMENT AND REST.

1. It shows that movement must be considered in four categories, and that it is predicated homonymously of those things subject to it. — 2. It proves movement of place — which in Greek is also called *phora*, as if one were to say translation — even if it is not described quite properly, to be the most proper movement; because, indeed, it is evidently so in relation to all others. — 3. It demonstrates that local movement is prior to all others, and that by several reasons; the first of which is that it is more perfect. — 4. The second reason is that it does not necessarily change the state of that which is moved. — 5. The third reason is that it precedes other movements by nature, both in augmentation and in alteration. — 6. Furthermore, that in a certain way it distinguishes itself from generation and corruption, which are not properly movements; where it distinguishes between natural generation and that which is higher than natural, that is, creation; for a double cause: the proximate, which is nature; and that which is the primary and proper cause, namely, the architectonic mind. — 7. It proves that circular movement is prior to other local movements, for it is prior not only to mixed movement, but also to rectilinear, as well because it is more ancient as because it is more stable; more ancient, indeed, because it is implanted in the heavens; more stable, however, because it alone can be continuous; where it is also shown that all other movements, and even mutations, cannot be continuous, and likewise it is declared which movement is continuous and which is not. — 8. It explains that rest is one thing, and the end and beginning of movement are another, of which the former occurs in the extension of time, the latter not at all. Whence also to rest, and to be moved, and to halt, and to be stopped, as well as to be generated and the like, occur with the extension of time: but to have rested, to have been moved, to have halted, to have come to a state of rest, to have been generated, etc., not at all. For these are the limits of movements. — 9. By a corollary it infers that the time in which a thing was being changed, along with that in which the change was rendered absolute, is not greater than the time in which it was being changed; because, indeed, the change is rendered absolute at the limit of time, which neither increases nor decreases; for indeed, what a point is in a line, this an *in-stans* is in movement. — 10. It proves that movement upon a straight line, or rectilinear, is not infinite; because, indeed, what is moved by it, if it doubles back, is moved by two movements in succession only, not by continuous ones; where it also describes and distinguishes both those things in their genus which are in succession and continuous, and in their species of movement those which are in succession and continuous. On the contrary, however, it shows that circular movement can be infinite or devoid of a limit, because all its revolutions are linked among themselves by one movement. This is indeed a novel argument, but not much differing from the former, by which it is shown that circular movement is more perfect and prior to rectilinear. — 11. It proves by another argument that circular movement is more excellent and prior to rectilinear, because indeed circular movement alone is also equable. For rectilinear movement is inequable, since it occurs in those things which are moved beyond nature, such as things that are dragged and thrown, and likewise in animals, which are called *autokina* on account of an implanted soul; and then also in those things which are moved according to nature; on the contrary, however, circular movement is more equable; because that which is moved by it, as is the circle itself and the sphere, is always equally distant from the beginning and the end, which is the center; where it is also declared in what respects the center and the end and the beginning and the middle consist in a circle as also in a sphere. — 12. It teaches that circular movement cannot be compared with rectilinear in regard to speed or equality or slowness, and at the same time it determines which movements can be compared; namely, only those which are of the same genus and species, and differ only in number; for such is the division of moveables, such also is the division of movements, so that just as moveables, so also movements differ in genus, species, and number, of which only the last can be compared. — 13. By way of objection it shows that the diversity of instruments by which movements are performed does not prevent them from being compared, provided they are of the same species; where it also teaches that all straight movements can be compared, so that nothing prevents the diversity of 'relation', since they are performed upon one subject. — 14. It declares that every movement has both a movement and a rest opposed to it, which, however, is not a static state, and since to every movement which is one in number a rest is opposed, which precedes and which follows the movement, it determines that the rest which precedes the movement is opposed most of all, and finally it also sets forth movements contrary in species, both in substance and in quantity and in quality and in place. — 15. It shows that of all local movements only three are simple; the two straight ones, which are upward and downward, and the third, which is circular; because indeed these alone are found in simple bodies or those which appear simple. — 16. It proves that there are some things contrary to all straight movements, but to circular, according to the opinion of others, none; not only not another circular one, which it concedes, but not even a straight one, as those desire whose argument it also recounts. — 17. The author appends his critique of this argument, that indeed straight movements and circular movement can be contrary to each other in a different respect: straight to straight on account of the contrariety of place, and in turn to circular on account of other contrarieties which it reviews. And it proves this reason of opposed duality for many things by similar examples of equality and virtues and movements which are themselves also opposed to many things, but in a different respect. — 18. It indicates the cause why Aristotle and those who follow him deny that there is a contrary to circular movement, so that indeed they might maintain that there is no contrary to the heaven itself, and therefore that it was neither generated, nor will it be corrupted, but is eternal. From which, however, even if it were conceded, only this would follow: that the heaven is exempted from natural generation and corruption; but not from divine, namely, from the creation, of which the Sacred Letters testify.

CHAPTER V. Adhuc de motu et quiete.

^A 1. Motion is considered in four categories: in substance, by generation and corruption; in quantity, by increase and decrease; in quality, by alteration; and in the category of place, by change of place, which is called locomotion. This is divided into motion in a straight line, motion in a circle, and motion compounded of these. Motion, therefore, is a certain commonality which is predicated equivocally of different motions. For just as the genera in which motion exists, being most general, have no other genus rising above them, so also do the motions that are within them lack a genus by which they might be comprehended. Since motion is equivocal, it has acquired its definitions through equivocal terms which correspond to the diverse properties of the thing itself.

^B 2. Of these, the first and most proper is locomotion. It is the most proper because it is more evident than the others; hence we say that that which moves according to place is in motion simply. But that which is at rest according to place, yet moves by some other motion, we say moves in a certain way, namely regarding increase, decrease, or alteration. For this reason, also, that which moves according to place by itself—that is, the animal—is specifically called "self-moving." Thus, therefore, it is confirmed that locomotion is the most proper of all the other motions.

^C 3. But it is primary and preceding in dignity, as it is more perfect. For of living, that is, ensouled things, some are entirely unmoved according to this motion, such as plants and those of the animals that are attached to them, which are called plant-animals. But to those endowed with perfection, there belongs the ability to move according to place, as the animals we call "self-moving"—which we are accustomed to call animals simply and without qualification. If, therefore, the plant-animals are more perfect than plants because they possess more faculties of the soul; and conversely, animals are in the same way more perfect than them; and finally, if motion in place is added to animals which have a greater perfection, then this is indeed more perfect, and consequently, it will be more mobile and prior to the rest of the motions. For that which is better is, by as much as it is more perfect, superior to those that are less perfect.

^D 4. But locomotion does not change the state and condition of that which is moved, as the other motions do; neither substance, as generation and corruption do; nor quantity, as increase and decrease do; nor quality, as alteration does. Now, that which preserves the state of the thing being moved would be judged superior to those which do not preserve it, and for this reason also, it is judged prior.

^A Furthermore, local motion is also by nature prior to the other motions. For alternation is by nature prior to augmentation (since that which naturally increases is of such a nature as to be increased by food; but food is not at first similar to that which is being fed, but becomes assimilated to it through alternation. And it attaches itself, nourishes, and increases it, and thus alternation precedes augmentation), and local change precedes alternation; for example, in animals, food brought to the stomach undergoes its first change through alternation, being turned into chyle by the digestive faculty within it, and thus, having reached the liver, it is turned into blood, and from there it is finally assimilated to the body being nourished. And to speak generally, where the thing altering and the thing being altered remain in their own places, no alternation could occur. There is required, therefore, a local motion of either the thing being altered, or the thing altering, or both, if an alternation is to take place. If, then, alternation is prior to natural augmentation (for it is not so to mathematical augmentation, by which a square is increased by the addition of a gnomon), and some local change precedes every alternation, then local motion will be prior by nature to the other motions. For generation and corruption, not being motions in the strict sense, will be shown to be so in what follows. ^B

6. Furthermore, local motion is prior even in time, not only to the other natural motions, but also to generation and corruption. For corruption is subsequent to every change in time, being a transition from that which is to that which is not. But generation, in each of the things that come into being, if we look at one and the same object, will be seen to be prior. For after a thing has been generated and exists according to its essence, then at last it is moved by the other motions, and finally by local motion. But if we consider that a father is older than his son, inasmuch as he was already a perfect man and did not lack local motion even before he became a father; and, to speak summarily, that the heavens are more ancient than all created things, and that local motion is innate in the heavens; then local motion will be found to be prior in time to every motion ^C and change, and indeed even to generation itself. By generation, I mean the natural one, which is a progression and a temporal transit of that which is potentially, but not yet actually, into actual existence. For reason also recognizes another generation, higher than the natural one, which is the existence of the universe from absolutely nothing and its primary coming-into-being. For just as the efficient cause is twofold—both the proximate cause, which is said to be nature, and the primary and proper cause, which is the mind that acts as architect—so too is generation double: one is a production from pre-existing, suitable matter into a certain form, with temporal extension (of this generation, the principle and proximate cause, or more truly the co-cause, is nature); the other generation is the creation ^D

of a thing, and the bringing into being of that which in no way existed, without any extension. And the principle and sole cause of this generation is the all-working wisdom and power of God, which is the creator both of matter and of nature, and of all things that exist. How, therefore, local mutation is the first of all motions, and prior even to generation itself and to what kind of generation, has been stated.

^B 7. It is evident from what has been said that circular motion is also prior to all local motions, because it is also inherent by nature in the first of sensible creatures, namely the heaven. Since, therefore, there are three local motions—that which occurs along a straight line, that which is circular, and that which is mixed from these—it is acknowledged to be manifest that, of the mixed, not only circular motion but also linear motion takes precedence (since by nature simple things are prior to composite ones); but that circular motion is prior to linear motion, both because it is more ancient and because it is more stable. For it alone can be entirely continuous; since others occur from opposites into opposites, and not only local motions (except for the circular), but also other mutations, necessarily interrupt continuity. For generation usually occurs from that which is not into that which is; destruction from that which is into that which is not; augmentation from small to large; decrease or diminution from larger to smaller; alteration from opposite passions to opposite passions; and motion along a straight line from opposite places to opposite places—from above to below, from forward to backward, from the right to the left, and conversely. ^C Since, therefore, all the remaining motions occur from opposites into opposites, having different beginnings and different ends, they could not be continuous throughout. For a motion that is continuous throughout is that which is always the same, and does not have a necessary limit. But that which is not always the same, and for this reason reaches limits at length, this necessarily comes to rest at the limits. Therefore, that which is moved will come to rest in the opposite, and in this way will reach the opposite; and thence the continuity of the motion will be interrupted. But that which is moved circularly, since it always traverses the same path and is borne toward the same things, will necessarily not come to rest.

8. Rest is one thing, and the limit and beginning of motion is another. For rest happens to be the absence of motion, viewed in a certain extension, and for this reason it is also divisible, just as motion is. But the limit and the beginning of motion are in the motion itself, ^D and share in no extension; hence they are also indivisible. For this reason, also, to be at rest in a temporal extension is to be in a state of rest, just as in the case of motion it is to be moved, to be brought to a stand, and to be settling into rest. For to be brought to a stand and to be settling into rest is also to be moved. For the one is to be traveling toward a stance, the other toward rest.

^A Wherefore, all these things endure a temporal extension, just as being generated and being corrupted, and living and dying, and whatever is similar to these. But to have been moved, and to stand, and to have rested, to have been generated and to have been corrupted, and to have lived and to have died, and things of this kind, endure no extension; for they are not brought to pass in time, but in the limit of time, being limits of motions and points of termination, and for this reason they are entirely without parts.

9. Wherefore, also, the time in which a thing has undergone any change whatever, together with that in which it has changed, is not greater than that in which it has changed alone; since the change has not occurred in time, but in the limit of the time in which it underwent the change. Now, the limit, since it is devoid of quantity, neither increases if it is added [to something], nor diminishes if it is subtracted. Just, therefore, as the limit and the beginning of a line are points devoid of magnitude and division, in ^B the same manner also every beginning and every limit of motion are something without parts and indivisible. These are called "kinemata" (motions-points). And just as a line is cut at points, and the point takes nothing away from the line, so also motion is divided at [kinemata], and the [kinema] takes nothing from the motion.

10. And just as it is not possible to find an infinite straight line (for the diameter of the first sphere, which is evidently finite, exceeds every straight line in magnitude), so also there is no motion on a straight line that is infinite. For that which moves upon a straight line, if it turns back, makes two motions, which are indeed consecutive, but not continuous with each other. Now, things are "consecutive" between which nothing of the same kind intervenes; as ^C we say that houses are consecutive between which there is no other house. And there are motions consecutive, between which there is some motion of the same kind. But things are "continuous" with each other whose limit becomes the beginning of the rest. Motions, therefore, are continuous with each other, whose limits are one, while they themselves are of one and the same species, and also that which is moved is one and the same. Those motions, therefore, which are continuous with each other are altogether also consecutive; but those which are consecutive are not necessarily immediately continuous with each other. That, therefore, which moves upon a straight line, if it turns back, makes motions that are consecutive indeed, but not for that reason continuous. For between motions of this kind a certain rest intervenes, which interrupts the continuity. ^D For the first motion is finished, and the other is completed as if from another beginning. And a rest is recognized between the end of the first and the beginning of the second. For two finite rectilinear motions do not touch each other at one [kinema]; just as two finite straight lines can be joined to each other at one point. The rectilinear figures clarify what is said. For the limits of different straight lines...

fit, because they persist; but the boundaries of different rectilinear motions by no means fit together, because motions occur in the unstable flux of time. From this it is manifest that one and the same motion cannot be taken twice as the end of the first motion and the beginning of the second, just as is [true of] a point in lines. For time flows in between and separates the motions. And the separation of ^A motions generates rest. For the end of the stone's motion upwards is separated from the beginning of its motion downwards by the speed of the flux of time; hence some rest is also conceived between the two motions of the stone. For these reasons, therefore, it is not possible to conceive of an infinite motion on a straight line. But in the case of a circle, since the beginning and the end run together into one another, both the circular motion is infinite, or ^B rather, it can become interminable, as all the revolutions are joined together into one motion and continue each other, as if the whole were being completed in a single revolution until they occupy the final limit which was predetermined for them by Him who gave the first principle. Therefore, on account of such continuity, circular motion is more perfect, and is prior to rectilinear motion.

11. And [it is also] that it alone is naturally uniform. For things moving on a straight line, whether according to nature or contrary to nature, are carried unequally from the beginning to the end. For those carried contrary to nature, in so far as they are dragged, are carried more slowly ^C at the beginning, but more quickly as they approach the one dragging them, because the power of the one dragging them then prevails more. But as many as are thrown move more quickly at the beginning, but more slowly when they are further away, as the power that had been implanted by the thrower fails. Thus, therefore, even animal motion can be fast at the beginning, but as it proceeds, it remits in speed. For even if animals may be called "self-moving," ^D because they have within themselves the causes of local motion—that is, their souls—nevertheless the motion of their bodies occurs contrary to nature, as if they were moved by external forces, being pushed violently as if by levers by the souls that use these bodies as instruments; for this reason, they grow weary and require rest because they do not move according to nature. For their natural motion is downward, as it is for every body endowed with weight. Again, those moving according to nature move more quickly as they approach their own places, desiring their proper wholeness, and drawing strength from it, and being, so to speak, more fully informed by it. So that what moves on a straight line, whether according to nature or contrary to nature, makes an unequal motion; but only that which is carried in a circle can be carried uniformly, because it is always at an equal distance from the beginning and the end—which is the center—and is carried neither away from it nor toward it, but around it. Wherefore, by turning around the same thing and always being at an equal distance, it moves uniformly. The beginning, the end, and the middle of a circle and of a sphere...

the beginning, because both the circle and the sphere subsist at an equal distance from the center; the end, because all the lines from the circumference terminate in it; the middle, because it is equally distant from the circumference on all sides. Thus, therefore, circular motion is also more excellent and prior to rectilinear motion with respect to uniformity. ^B

12. But it cannot be compared even with rectilinear motion. To "compare" (συμβάλλειν) is said to mean to juxtapose, to weigh against, and entirely to examine together. Circular motion, therefore, cannot be compared with rectilinear motion in regard to speed, uniformity, or slowness, because a circular line cannot even be compared with a straight line. For there is no common measure for them. Whence it comes about that a straight line cannot be placed equal to a circumference. Those motions, however, can be compared that differ in number, and are of the same genus and species. For since things that differ, differ either in genus, or in species, or in number, according to the difference by which moving things differ from one another insofar as they are moving, the motions themselves also differ. For if the difference of the moving things were in genus, the motions would also differ in genus; for example, if one thing is increasing and another is being whitened, the increase will also differ in genus from the whitening. For the ^C one is according to quantity, the other according to quality, which are different genera of being. If the moving things differ in species, the motions will also differ in species; as whitening differs from blackening, and rectilinear motion differs from rotation. But if the difference in the moving things is only in number, the motions will also differ by number alone, and these are indeed able to be compared with one another; for example, human generation with human generation, and not with equine, because these are not of the same species. And in the same way, increase with an increase of the same species. And likewise in alteration, as whitening with whitening, and blackening with blackening, and in local motion rectilinear with rectilinear, and circular with circular, and similarly in other cases.

13. Furthermore, the diversity of the instruments by which ^D the motions are performed makes no difference to the motions being comparable; for example, if feet were the instruments of movement for one, and wings for another. For walking differs from flying in one way—that is, according to the specific figuration of the quality; but according to the local species, they do not differ. Wherefore they can also be compared, provided that both are accomplished along a straight or a broken line. All rectilinear motions, however, will be able to be compared with one another, so that the diversity of relations brings no obstacle to this, since they have as their subject one and the same straight line, and for this reason they are of the same species and differ only in number.

^A 14. Moreover, every movement has a contrary rest and movement; but rest is not station. For station is a certain act and a species conjugated to movement, just as we say that the earth has its station in the middle. For the act of the earth is its being at a standstill in the middle; just as it is the act of the heaven that it moves around the middle. But rest is not an act, but merely the absence of movement. Therefore, local rest is opposed to local movement, and the rest of alteration to the movement of alteration; and to speak simply, for every movement that is one in number, there is a rest that is repugnant both to that which precedes such a movement and to that which follows it; most of all, however, that which precedes the movement. For what the movement flees and from what it hastens to depart, this is more contrary to it. But that to which it goes and which it strives to grasp, this is more familiar to it. Contrary movements, or rather mutations, are: generation and corruption, growth and diminution. In alteration, heating and cooling, whitening and blackening, and other various conjugations. Finally, in local mutation, there are those that are upward and downward, as in length; those that are to the right and to the left, as in breadth; those that are forward and backward, as in depth.

^B 15. Furthermore, since such local movements as these are in a straight line, only those that are upward and downward are properly simple. For of all local mutations, there are only three that are properly simple: that which is around the middle of the universe, which is circular; that which is from the middle, which is upward; and that which is towards the middle, which is downward. Only these are properly simple, because those bodies which appear to be simple are moved naturally by these alone. Moreover, every simple movement is of some simple body according to nature, and the natural movement of every simple body is a certain simple thing.

^C 16. Therefore, contrariety, as has been said, is present in movements in a straight line; but they say that there is no movement contrary to circular movement. And it is known that the movement from east to west and that from west to east are not contrary to each other. For the spheres of the planets are carried around by both these revolutions: the one according to nature, from west to east; the other violent and beyond nature, ^D since they are carried around toward the west from the east, as they are being led along by the stronger and superior sphere of the fixed stars. Therefore, if the aforementioned revolutions were contrary, how could it happen that they coincide with each other at the same time in one subject? Furthermore, they confirm in this way that not even a rectilinear movement is contrary to one that happens in a circle. Rectilinear movements are contrary to one another. But one is contrary to one. Therefore, no rectilinear...

^A movement is contrary to a circular one, lest several contraries be opposed to one.

17. Perhaps such a construction is not immune to criticism, as some object. For it is not impossible for rectilinear movements to be contrary to a circular one and to each other in different respects, and thus, again, for one contrary to be found for one, in accordance with reason. For in one respect, insofar as one of the simple rectilinear movements is upward and the other downward, they struggle against each other because of the contrariety of the places. But in another respect, insofar as rectilinear movements begin from one set of points and end at others, while the circular movement begins from the same point and arrives at the same point; and again, insofar as rectilinear movements are unbroken in every part, while the circular movement has not even a casual part that is unbroken; furthermore, insofar as it is impossible for rectilinear movements to be performed twice over the same spatial stretches without a pause, while the circular one traverses the same path infinitely without a pause; and because of the fact that among those on a straight line there is no uniform movement, while with the circular one it is possible for the motion to be always uniform; according to these properties of the movements, and not because of the contrariety of places, will a contrariety of the circular movement to the rectilinear movements be found, taken as a whole, as if there were one movement being set in opposition to the circular one. And such a mode of opposition is found in other things as well. ^B For the equal and the mean are opposed to the exceeding and the exceeded—I mean the greater and the lesser. And again, the greater and the lesser are opposed to each other. So, too, virtues, being mediocers, are contrary to those things that are removed from being mediocre, namely, excesses and defects; and conversely, excesses and defects are mutually repugnant. In the same way, movements are opposed to movements and to rests, and again, rests are opposed to each other, which are in contrary places, or have contrary qualities or quantities. For example, a rest in a higher place is opposed to a rest in a lower place; a rest in white to a rest in black; and, in short, those that precede certain movements are opposed to those that follow the same. But in one way a movement is opposed to a rest, and in another way it is opposed to a movement. For it is opposed to a movement as to a contrary species, but to a rest as to a falling away from the species. ^C And again, rests are opposed to one another as extremes. That the circular movement, therefore, also has something contrary to it, and in what manner this happens, has been stated.

18. The aim of *those* who remove the heavens from all contrariety is to show from this, of course, that the heaven is ungenerated, and thence also incorruptible. For if, they say, there are contrary movements for contraries, then that thing for whose movement there is no contrary movement possesses nothing contrary to it either. If, therefore, there is no contrary movement to the celestial movement, then there is nothing contrary to the heaven itself. But that which is generated ^D and...

that which is corrupted, is generated from a contrary and is corrupted into a contrary. The celestial body, therefore, since it has no contrary from which it might be generated and into which it might again be corrupted, is demonstrated to be free from generation and corruption. But those who employ such an argument, by accepting as beyond controversy the proposition they set forth—that no movement is contrary to the celestial motion—conclude that the heaven is exempt from natural generation and from a similar corruption (by which elements are also transformed into one another, while the corruption of the one becomes the generation of the other). ^B Those, however, who think more correctly say that the heaven was generated by another kind of generation, whereby it was produced out of absolute nothingness by divine mandate; and consequently, they hold that it is subject in its proper nature to all-encompassing corruption, attributing to the goodness of the Creator the transformation of all sensible creation toward what is better.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER VI. CONCERNING GENERATION AND CORRUPTION.

1. It affirms that generation and corruption are not properly motion, but only mutations: and from the etymology of the word *metabole* it teaches what mutation is, and in what things it is found, namely in contradiction and in contrary species, both in those which are simply, and in those which are also in some way, contrary; and that mutation is in one respect one thing, and in another respect simply mutation. 2. It indicates that mutation extends more widely than motion, and determines what is properly called motion and what is properly called mutation; meanwhile teaching that mutation occurs either from one contrary species to another, or from the lapse and absence of the other, that is, from privation, which is found everywhere. 3. It distinguishes that some privation occurs with a perfect species, as the privation of fire in water, and then that which is generated is said to be generated not only from its privation, but also from a contrary species; but other privation is not with a perfect species, but in some material at least suited for receiving a form, such as the privation of an animal in semen, and then that which is generated is said to be generated from the mere absence or privation of a species; and it explains by two occupations how this is to be understood. 4. It describes generation and corruption, and proves that neither is motion or rest, and finally shows that, since they are only mutations, [an "ametabolesia"] is analogously opposed to rest. 5. After having completed its discussion of substantial mutations, of substantial generation and corruption, it begins to discourse on accidental mutations: how increase is a certain generation; diminution, a certain corruption; whitening, a certain generation; blackening, a certain corruption is said: where it proposes a rule, that in all predicaments, mutation toward the better is called generation; toward the worse, corruption; which it proves by examples of three predicaments: substance, quantity, and quality: using precision at last, that every secretion is generation, concretions are corruption; because, indeed, secretion is better than concretion, since also in all beings better and worse are found, as is established by the authority of the Pythagoreans too. 6. It teaches when generation occurs simply (which is so called according to the predicaments, not that which is so termed by reason of the better), and when it does not occur, but at least a certain generation or increase or alteration. 7. It proposes an example of augmentation in fire, whose augmentation it distinguishes in passing from generation and the addition of fire; and it shows that augmentation is not only so in other inanimate things, but also in animate ones, and declares the mode of that augmentation, as well as of the opposite diminution; and it further teaches that neither that which departs from the body is diminished, nor that which is added is increased, since [pneumatoneisis] is not nutrition or augmentation, but corruption; and it further explains how augmentation differs from alteration; and finally determines how not only nutrition, but also augmentation occurs, and when only augmentation, and when nutrition and augmentation simultaneously. 8. It briefly adds in the predicament of 'where' concerning local mutations, which are called certain generations, and which certain corruptions: just as was explained above in the other predicaments.

CHAPTER VI. Concerning generation and corruption.

1. Generation and corruption are not properly movements, but only mutations. Mutation is a transition from one thing to another. For the Greek name for mutation indicates one thing after another, signifying that one element is prior in the mutation, and the other is posterior.

^A That which changes is the "prior" thing, while that into which it changes is the "posterior." Furthermore, mutation is considered in contradiction and in contrary species, both with those that are simply contraries—that is, the extremes, such as white and black—and with those that are in a way contrary, that is, the intermediates. For the intermediate holds the relation of a contrary to each of the extremes; for example, "less white" is white in relation to black, but black in relation to "more white." For "less white" arises from the mixing of black. Therefore, when "less white" changes into "more white," the mutation occurs as if from black to white. For "less white" changes toward "more white" according to the black that is in it. Hence, the mutation becomes partial. ^B Likewise, when "more white" changes into "less white," the mutation occurs as if from white to black. For in "less white," something of "more white" changes into black. For this reason, the mutation from intermediates to intermediates is called partial, whereas that which occurs from the extremes is called mutation simply.

2. Moreover, mutation is more extensive than motion. For all progressions from what is in potentiality to what is in actuality, while that which is in potentiality still remains, are mutations. But of these, those which are merely transitions from contrary species in any way whatsoever to contrary species—while the subject remains and undergoes the mutation—these are more properly termed motions. ^C But those in which, while the subject does not remain, they either pass from contrary species to contrary species, or not from contrary species to contrary species but possess an obvious contrariety through the slipping away and absence of one of the species in those things from which and into which they change, these alone are properly called mutations, not motions; these are generation and corruption, which are mutations according to substance. For that which is generated is generated, and that which is corrupted is corrupted, from a contrary to a contrary, whether both are species, or one is the slipping away of the other. For it is not necessary that every species should have a species contrary to it. For what species could be brought forward as contrary to man, or to "the musical"? Yet the absence of one of the species, that is, privation, is found everywhere.

3. But sometimes privation exists with a perfect species, having its constituent qualities intact, ^D just as the privation of fire which is in water coexists with the species of water, which is perfect and possesses its own perfect qualities—namely, cold and moisture, which are contrary to the qualities of fire. And for this reason, fire is said to be generated not only from its own privation, but also from the species contrary to it. When, however, privation does not exist with a perfect species,

but with some material ^A thing aptly suited to receive the species that is opposite to the privation, as is the privation of an animal in seed; then, what is generated is said to come to be, not from a contrary species, but from the absence of a species, that is to say, from privation. This is not because the seed is not also a species, but because it is an imperfect species, possessing the condition of matter in relation to the subsistence of a perfect species, and having its entire reference directed toward that.

Perhaps there are also in the seed certain qualities that have a contrariety to the qualities of the thing being brought to completion, but these are also imperfect, and not perfect in the way that the species of perfect things are. Therefore, those things in the seed which are in some way contrary to the qualities of the thing being completed change into the qualities of the thing being completed, while that which is moist in the seed dries, and that which is spherical extends; but those which are of the same species as the thing being completed change from the imperfect to the perfect.

Certainly, on account of the imperfect disposition of the subject, when an animal is said to be generated from seed, or the musical from the unmusical, it is said to come to be not from a contrary species, but from the absence of the species and from privation. For this reason, also, whatever is generated and corrupted is said to be generated from a contrary and corrupted into a contrary, and all natural generation and corruption are commonly said to occur by contradiction. For being and non-being, insofar as the one is and the other is not, when they are not themselves contrary species, they create a contradictory opposition toward each other.

^B δ'. Generation is the change and transition from non-being to being, that is, the intermediate way by which a thing is established from non-being to being. Corruption is, in the same way, the change from being to non-being, with being and non-being taken in act. Generation and corruption, however, are not properly called motions; because, even though motion is an imperfect and passive act, it is necessary that the thing which is moved exists in act and remains in order to be moved; but what is not in act, and does not remain, is not even moved. For it is not the case that, just as a man existing and remaining in act is moved while he is increased, whitened, or moved locally through the accidents that are in him, so too does matter change in generation. For this reason, the progression from non-being to being is not motion.

Since we do not ^C say that matter exists separately (for when we say that bodies are composed of matter and form, we do not say that bodies are constituted from pre-existing matter or a pre-subsisting form; but that by reason alone we distinguish matter and form from one another, and are able to consider each separately, as neither can subsist apart from the other), that which is taken as matter is called "non-being," and it is found with a form, either perfect or imperfect. And although it is in other respects being, it is nevertheless called "non-being," since that which comes to be does not exist in act. And this "non-being," of course, is not moved, neither by itself nor by accident. For it is not moved insofar as it "is not," nor because it exists as something else ^D

^A in act, while remaining the same, it is able to be moved; for example, seed is not moved as an animal (for it is not yet an animal), nor as seed. For if it changes in any way during generation, it departs from its own nature, and while it is changing, it does not remain seed, but is always becoming something else through the mutation. Since, therefore, that which in this way "is not" cannot for these reasons be moved, and the change from this "non-being" is generation, it follows that generation is not motion. But neither is it rest; for that which is naturally capable of being moved, this also rests when it is not moved, which is that which exists in act. But that which cannot be moved, this cannot even rest. Therefore, generation is neither motion nor rest. If these things are so, then corruption is neither motion nor rest. For either motion or rest is opposed to motion. But if it has been demonstrated that generation is neither of these, how can corruption be motion? Or again, how can it be rest, since generation—to which corruption is opposed—is not a motion? Therefore, generation and corruption are not motions, nor are they rests, but mere mutations. And since they are not motions, they do not possess a rest opposed to them, but rather a "vacuity of mutation"—as they are mutations—a vacuity, I say, ^B from mutation, which corresponds in proportion to rest. For just as rest is the absence of motion, so is the vacuity of mutation the absence of mutation. Just as, therefore, there is an opposition of rests, so there will also be found an opposition of vacuities from mutation; and the one in being and the one in non-being will be opposed to each other. Concerning, therefore, mutations according to substance, that is, of generation and corruption simply, let this much be said by way of a brief reminder.

5. Moreover, accidental mutations are also called certain generations and certain corruptions; for example, increase is a certain generation, whereas decrease ^C is a certain corruption. And we do not say that an animal is generated in the same way when it comes from seed and has been corrupted when it is dead, as we say that an animal is generated simply when, for instance, it becomes two cubits long; but rather that the animal has been generated as two cubits long, and the two-cubits-long animal has been corrupted; and that the animal has been generated white, and the whiteness of the animal has been corrupted. For in alteration also, bleaching is called a certain generation, but blackening a certain corruption. For it is common to all categories (whether generation is considered simply, as in substances, or as a certain generation, as in accidents) that the change which is toward better and more excellent things is called generation, and that ^D toward worse and more base things is called corruption: for example, in substances, the change from earth into fire is called generation simply, but a certain corruption; conversely, the change from fire into earth is called corruption simply, but a certain generation, because the existence of fire is better, more excellent, and more of an essence, while the subsistence of earth is worse, more base, and less of an essence; for in respect of form, fire corresponds, but in respect of matter and privation, earth does. Since, then, matter is contained by the

form, and the form contains the matter as being its extremity and end (for it terminates and circumscribes the immensity and infinity of matter itself), it follows that even in bodies already informed which move naturally according to place, that which is contained (such as that which is endowed with gravity and situated in the middle, namely earth) ^A obtains the status of matter, while that which contains (such as that which is endowed with lightness and is in the superior place, namely fire) performs the function of form. And regarding the intermediate bodies, namely air and water, that which is contained, which is water, has the status of matter in relation to the air that contains it; but the air has the status of form in relation to the water contained by it. ^B Therefore, not only regarding earth and fire can the change from earth into fire be called simple generation, and a certain corruption, and conversely the change from fire into earth be called simple corruption, and a certain generation: but also regarding water and air, the change from water into air can be called simple generation, and a certain corruption; and conversely, the change from air into water is simple corruption, and a certain generation. ^C This analogy is found not only in substances, but in all genera. In quantity, the great and the much correspond to form, the small and the few to matter; and likewise, growth corresponds to form, and diminution to matter. Thus, the former is like generation, the latter like corruption. In quality, white and hot correspond to form, while black and cold correspond to matter. Whence also whitening and heating are generations, while blackening and cooling are corruptions. For, in general, in oppositions, the more excellent things are taken as corresponding to form, and the more deficient as corresponding to matter and privation. Therefore, generally speaking, every separation might be called generation, and concretion conversely ^D corruption, because separation appears to excel concretion. Furthermore, the better and the worse are considered in all beings. Thus, the Pythagoreans also discovered certain opposite conjunctions, ten in number, to which, as to principles, they reduce all beings.

And the more excellent part among them is this: The opposite, worse part is this:

Good, Evil. Limit, Infinite. Odd, Even. One, Multitude. Right, Left. Light, Darkness. Male, Female. Quiescent, Moving. Straight, Curved. Square, Altera parte longius (Oblong).

6. When, therefore, a transition occurs from one substance to another, or from an imperfect [substance], as from seed

to an animal, or from something perfect, as air from water, then it is generation simply. But when a change occurs regarding something endowed with form, in respect to some accident which is in it—as when water is heated without departing from its watery nature—then there is a certain generation, of heat to be sure, but the whole is an alteration. For generation simply makes something *other*, while alteration makes something *altered*. But when, by means of alteration, an addition of something similar from something dissimilar occurs to any of the types, and from this there is an increase of bulk and of the quantity that is in the body, such a thing is a kind of generation, but the whole is ^B augmentation.

7. As when, with wood placed upon a fire and ignited, there is an increase of the flame. But when fire arises from the rubbing together of wood or other bodies, such a thing is not an augmentation of fire, but only a generation. And when fire is added to fire, it is called only an addition of fire. The same is the case with other inanimate bodies. ^C But indeed, it is the same with animate bodies: augmentation occurs, since the nutriment is assimilated to that which is nourished by means of the alterative faculty within it, and is added to it; and from this, the body increases according to the proportion of the whole, the added substance not penetrating the entire body anywhere, but pushing forward that which is before it, and that one in turn the one before it, and so the whole becomes larger, and the entire body increases proportionately; just as, conversely, in a body that is diminished and wrinkled, the whole body suffers diminution from the movement of the near parts, the diminution occurring everywhere by a certain displacement and withdrawal. Nor is what flows out and departs said to be diminished, nor what is added to be augmented, even though the former seems to become less by removal, and the latter greater by addition. For what is diminished and what is augmented must remain, so that the one may endure diminution and the other may receive augmentation. And if ever nourishment is changed into spirit, it is not augmented; for that turning into spirit is a corruption of it, and not augmentation. And by this title augmentation could differ from alteration, because ^D that which alters is sometimes itself altered in turn, just as we warm clothing that is cold, and are warmed in return by it, and the air in the baths warming us is in turn warmed by us. But that which augments is never reciprocally augmented; but when it is added to that which is augmented, and is changed into the substance of that which is augmented, by the natural faculty which is in that which is augmented, only then does it provide the augmentation, first, to be sure, to the similar parts, and from there also receiving it into the dissimilar parts. This, moreover, happens when that which is added exceeds in quantity that which is removed. For since the corporal matter is established in a continuous flux and reflux, when that which flows in and enters is more than that which flows out and departs, nourishment and augmentation occur; but when it is equal, only nourishment; and when...

finally it is less, nourishment and diminution; so that what enters provides only this, that the species in some way be preserved. For it is possible for the species to be preserved even while the quantity is decreasing. For diminution and decrease is not a simple corruption, but a certain kind of corruption; just as augmentation is a certain kind of generation.

8. But in change of place, motion upward, or to the right, or forward, may be considered certain kinds of generation; whereas motion downward, or to the left, or backward ^B can be called certain kinds of corruption.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER VII: CONCERNING NATURE.

CHAPTER VII: De Natura.

2. We understand motion here more broadly for every change. And of this change, just as of the stability from change, nature is the cause, a proximate and moving cause. For nature being moved, moves. Yet primarily, and without motion, and properly, the cause of all things, and of nature itself, is God. But although nature is also said to create, and to act according to reason, nevertheless the efficient reason is twofold: the one acting through knowledge and properly acting, ^D the other without knowledge and reflection upon itself, yet in an orderly and finite way, for the sake of some preceding end. According to this reason, nature is said to act, whereas according to the former reason it is devoid of reason. Whence also Plato deservedly pronounces it an instrumental cause; since, as an adze or a saw know nothing at all in

^A things artificial, so neither does nature in natural things. But that architectrix of all things, the Mind, knows all things before eternity and makes them properly, so that nature provides only the aptitude which it received from the Creator of all things from below; while the Creator of all things himself, according to his own will, offers the end and perfection from above like a certain light. Whence also, the act of nature is rather a being-acted-upon. For, being acted upon, it acts, and being moved, it moves. Thus, nature is the principle and cause of the motion by which something is moved, and of the rest toward which it tends; the principle and cause to that thing in which it primarily resides, in itself, and not according to accident.

3. Furthermore, the term "in which it resides" is added because of things that consist of art. For these have their causes from outside. For the building art is indeed the cause of the house; but it makes it from the outside, and it is not in the house. (For it is in the builder.) Wherefore the building art is not the nature of the house. ^B

γ'. The term "in which it resides" is added on account of things artificial. For these have their causes from outside. For the building art is indeed the cause of the house, but it makes it from outside, and it does not reside in the house (for it is in the builder); wherefore the builder’s art is not the nature of the house.

4. ^C The term "primarily" is also added, because a bed also has in itself a principle of motion and rest. For if it is let down from a higher place, it is carried to the lower. But the principle of such motion does not reside in the bed primarily, but in the wood, and through it, finally, in the bed. And for that reason, a bed is not even called natural, but artificial. For inasmuch as it is a bed, it has no nature.

δ'. The term "primarily" is added, because even a bed has in itself a principle of motion and rest. For if it is dropped from above, it is carried downward. But the principle of such motion does not reside in the bed primarily, but in the wood, and through that, in the bed. Whence it is not called a natural thing, but an artificial one. For as far as it is a bed, it has no nature.

5. ^D The term "in itself and not according to accident" is added, because a sick physician might heal himself; and thus he will have the principle and cause of motion and change toward health in himself and primarily; but not, however, in itself. For not as he is sick does he have the principle of motion toward health in himself; but according to accident, insofar as it happened that the one who was sick was a physician.

ε'. The term "in itself and not according to accident" is added, because a sick physician could heal himself; and thus he will have the principle and cause of the motion and change toward health within himself and primarily; yet not also in itself. For he does not have the principle of motion toward health within himself as he is sick; but according to accident, insofar as it has happened to the person who is sick to be a physician.

6. Natural things, therefore, have the cause of motion in themselves, but artificial things have it from outside. For neither the craftsman nor the art resides in the things themselves. For a clod of earth is borne downward not being moved from outside; but a bed is shaped from outside. And the cause of rest for the clod, once it has attained its own wholeness, is from within; but for the shaping of the bed, it is from outside, from the craftsman. For in things that consist by nature and those which consist by art, wherever the principle of motion is, thence also is the principle of rest. ^C

ζ'. Natural things, therefore, have the cause of motion in themselves, but artificial things have it from outside. For neither the craftsman nor the art resides in the things themselves. For a clod of earth is indeed borne downward, not being moved from outside; but a bed is shaped from outside. And the cause of rest is for the clod, having attained its own wholeness, from within; but for the shaping of the bed, it is from outside, from the craftsman. For in those things that are by nature, and in those that are by art, wherever the principle of motion is, thence is the principle of rest.

7. Moreover, it is not necessary that all things that are moved by nature should rest according to every kind of their motion; but some, while they move, have a rest also subsequent to the motion; while others are moved in a place in such a way that it never happens that they rest as regards this motion. And therefore nature, which exists as the principle and cause of motion and rest, grants to those things that are moved that they be moved; to those things that rest, this same thing, that they rest; and to all natural things in common, it provides that they move and rest. ^D

ζ'. It is not necessary that all things moved by nature should also rest according to every kind of their motion; but some, when they are moved, have a rest that succeeds the motion; but to others, it befalls to be moved in a place, but never to rest according to such motion. Whence nature, being the principle and cause of motion and rest, will be the provider of motion to things being moved, and to things that rest—to the very fact of resting; and to all natural things in common, both to be moved and to rest. Thus nature is known as the principle of motion and rest. For not only is the entire celestial body moved by an unceasing local motion, but also fire, ...

according to this kind of motion, never rests. For it is by nature also itself always in motion. ^B

8. ^A Furthermore, "by nature" (φύσει) and "according to nature" (κατὰ φύσιν) differ from each other. For "by nature" has a wider application than "according to nature." For "by nature" is said of everything that accompanies and happens to a natural substance, insofar as it is such; for instance, being healthy and being sick in relation to the body. Yet we call being healthy "according to nature," as turning out in accordance with the will of nature, whereas being sick we call "contrary to nature." And for fire, its upward movement is "by nature" and "according to nature"; but its downward movement, because of heavy matter, is "by nature" but not "according to nature." For nature does not wish the operation that perfects the species to be harmed.

9. ^B Also, congenital defects, and those things which consist in privation, and, to sum up, those things which happen contrary to intention, are said to be "by nature" because they take place through the operation of nature, but "contrary to nature" and "not according to nature," because nature itself does not intend any such thing. Failure of the end occurs sometimes, just as in the works of art [it happens] contrary to the goal of the art; so too in the works of nature [it happens] contrary to the will of nature. From this, nature is said to deviate from the goal either through a surplus of matter, or through a deficiency, or through a deformity. And from this, the outcomes that are contrary to natural custom come to be and are spoken of.

10. ^C Furthermore, "contrary to nature" (παρὰ φύσιν) and "above nature" (ὑπὲρ φύσιν) differ, for both happen to be deviations from that which is "according to nature"; because that which is "above nature" is a deviation from that which is "according to nature" toward something better and more useful, whereas that which is "contrary to nature" is a deviation from that which is "according to nature" toward the worse and the destructive. And [it differs] in that which is "contrary to nature" is the work of natural weakness, while that which is "above nature" is the work of divine power.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER VIII. STILL CONCERNING NATURE.

CHAPTER VIII. Still concerning nature.

that is, that which in every natural thing primarily exists, devoid of arrangement; as the nature of a statue is bronze, that of a bed is wood, and that of another thing made by art is some other thing; while the nature of every natural body is the primary matter, devoid of quality. They have called matter nature, because it remains in all mutations, and is always the same. ^A Others, on the contrary, have named nature the form which surrounds matter; because according to the natural name, matter is not called nature before it has received (a) form, just as bronze is not called a statue before it has received the form of a statue, so that matter is only in potentiality, whereas each thing is characterized in actuality. These seem to have conjectured about nature more perfectly than the former. Others have called the composite of matter and form nature, because man comes from man, and ox from ox, and, to speak briefly, the composite arises from the composite. But this is by nature, not nature itself. Others have considered nature to be, as it were, production, generation, and movement, by which the product is brought forth by the producer. For just as in a garment there is the one who weaves, that is, the weaver; and that which is woven, that is, the garment; and in the third place, the weaving, which is a certain movement from the agent to that which is being produced: so in a natural thing there is that which produces, and that which is produced, ^B and the movement and mutation we were speaking of—that which is intermediate between both is nature.

2. Therefore, the name of nature ^C is appropriate to this, the "production," as it were; but the concept of the name fits that which is properly nature, which generates and causes natural things to sprout, and is the proximate efficient cause of all natural things. For just as the cause of a statue is the statuary art, and for other things constant by art there are other arts; in the same way, nature is the cause of natural works, as is known from analogy. For to the bronze corresponds the matter devoid of quality; to the form of the statue, the natural form; to the movement of the bronze toward receiving the form of the statue, that "production," as it were—that is, the natural movement and mutation. To the statuary art, which is the cause of movement for the bronze—that is, which moves and regulates the bronze toward the completion of the statue—corresponds that which is properly called nature; finally, to the statue itself, which is a composite of matter and form, corresponds that which is the work of nature, just as ^D the statue is the work of the statuary art. But in the works of art, the cause of movement exists from without, since it is in the artisan and works from him; but in natural works, it is within, since it is innate to the natural works themselves. And in this, art and nature differ from one another. These things, then, are according to the aim of Aristotle, who constitutes nature as the efficient cause.

3. But if Plato philosophizes better about these things, (considering) the supreme mind as the efficient cause of all things

stating that it is organic and that nature is the cause, or rather the co-cause, one may discern this from the same analogy. For that the natural body has both matter and form (for it consists of these), and that it is generated, and because of this it has motion toward generation, and before all things the cause of motion (for if there is motion, it is absolutely necessary that there be something moving it), these things are acknowledged by all who partake of reason. Therefore, according to the aforementioned analogy, let the first and formless and shapeless matter, which only possesses "potentiality"—that is, which is potentially all natural things, or, to say the same thing, all corporeal things—be analogous to the brass ^A which is potentially a statue. And let the natural form, which informs the matter, be analogous to the form of the statue. And let the actuality of that which is in potentiality—that is, the motion by which that which is in potentiality is brought forward into actuality—be analogous to the motion of the brass toward becoming a statue, by dissolution, by molding, and by polishing. For according to these processes, the statue in potentiality, that is to say the brass, is moved toward becoming a statue in actuality. And let the cause of the motion in the matter, according to which motion its potentiality is actualized—that is, the motion by which the matter is brought from being a natural body in potentiality to being a natural body in actuality (this cause we have called "nature")—be analogous to the art of statuary. Thus, to the statuary himself, to the artisan, what is that which corresponds, other than that first and true artisan and creator, who is God? For is it possible for the art to be outside of the artisan? And how would this one be an artisan if he did not possess the art within himself? ^B Those, therefore, who liken nature to the art will either grant that nature is in God and will call this the wisdom and knowledge of God, or, if they say that nature resides in natural things, they will remove God from His own wisdom and knowledge. Might it not be better, therefore, since in the arts there are also subservient instruments, to say that nature corresponds rather to an instrument, which is moved by the divine will and which shifts and transforms natural things in various ways, according to those reasons which the Creator, by His own inherent wisdom—which escapes the comprehension of all men—possesses, and through which He creates, sustains, and governs all these things?

4. So much then concerning nature, which is, as has been said, for things that are only moved, the beginning of motion, and for things that are moved and are at rest, the beginning of motion and rest, the beginning, I say, and the proximate cause; having the power to move and to bring to rest those things which fall under the senses, each one in a certain way, according to the nod of the only wise Architect and Author of all things, God. ^C

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER IX, WHICH IS ABOUT PLACE AND TIME.

1. He divides those things which are divided fourfoldly: into motion, the principle of motion, and those things which are for the sake of these; and furthermore, he sets forth the mutual relation or affection of body, place, motion, and time. — 2. He describes place and explains the description paraphrastically, and first the genus, why it is called a surface, and [assigns] it to the dimensions of length and breadth as a subject.

^A

CHAPTER IX. On place and time.

1. Of things that are, some are motions, such as generations, and alterations, and the remaining changes; others are principles of motions; as, primarily, God—for He is the first and most original cause of all motion; consequently, the soul, which itself moves from itself those things that participate in it; and thirdly, nature, which brings this aptitude to natural things, so that they may move by themselves, though not from themselves. For this is proper to living beings. Therefore, I say, of things that are, some are motions, some are principles of motions, others are things that are moved, such as bodies themselves, both simple and composite; and others exist for the sake of those that are moved, such as place and time. A body, therefore, is in a place, but motion is in the body, and time is in motion.

2. And place is the immovable extremity of that which contains, by which it contains that which is contained: that is, [the extremity] by which that which is contained has contact with that which contains it. For just as a vessel, which is called a place that can be transferred, is not the whole of that which is contained, but the internal hollow surface of it by which it touches that which is contained; in the same way also place, which is called a vessel that cannot be transferred, is understood according to the surface by which it touches the contained bodies. Therefore, also incorporeal ^B

space is incorporeal and, according to a participation of that which is in the place, is subject to dimension; for it is a surface, and a surface is devoid of body, yet it is subject to dimension in length and breadth.

3. The place, therefore, of all bodies within the heaven is the concave surface of the heaven. ^B For even if the heaven moves according to the motion of its parts, it is in another way immovable, in that it does not shift its place as a whole. Thus, it is immovable as a whole, but movable in its parts, and it carries out its motion in the most uniform and strictly ordered manner. Again, the surface of the aether at its juncture with the air is the place of the sublunary elements and of the remaining bodies below; and so on, in sequence, even unto particular bodies, broader and narrower places will be found.

4. And that immediate and more particular place, which is the surface of the air, or of water, or of earth at its juncture with the containing body—assuming the water is not flowing through—so that the body in it may not be apprehended as being in a vessel rather than in a place, because the place which is in the water can be transferred, especially if the body itself is also transferred along with it. The aforesaid place, then, exists by reason of containment and reception. For each of the things that contain becomes a place for the thing contained, both as its container and as its receiver.

5. ^C And this is what is called place in the broad sense, which is also immovable and separate, becoming one thing at one time and another at another according to the migration of bodies. But if we speak more accurately, place seems to be the measure of the position of things that are situated, just as time is the measure of the motion of things that are moved. Position is twofold: the one essential, the other adventitious. Therefore place, too, is twofold: one according to nature, the other by accident. But essential position is also twofold: one is according to the arrangement and order of the proper parts of each thing, considered as a whole, according to which the head, hands, feet, and remaining parts ^D of an animal are situated in such a way toward each other and toward the whole animal, and the whole toward the parts; likewise with roots, trunks, and branches in plants. The other is according to the relation of the whole as a part to that which is more comprehensive. For just as each of the parts, considered by itself, is something of a whole, but is called a part when related to the whole—for instance, the head exists as a whole by itself, but is called a part of the body—in the same way, the whole, when related to something more comprehensive, is a part; for instance, the earth itself is a whole, but is called a part in relation to the totality of the universe. Therefore, the place according to nature is also twofold: the one is the arrangement of the proper parts of each thing, and the other is the delimitation and call-

^A portion for holding together the individual parts of the whole world. In this sense, the place of the earth is called the center of the universe. And if anyone were to remove the earth from the position it has in the middle of the world, it would indeed retain the proper organization of its parts in its own integrity; but then, as a part of the universe, it would not have its own position. Wherefore, even the whole, once released, would be carried toward the center, even though its parts retain their mutual [conjunction of place], even when it is conceived by thought to exist outside the center. For the sake of this place, both things that move naturally and things that stand still, either move or have stood still; so that those which move may attain in comprehension the position proper to them as parts, and those which stand still may rest gently in the place attributed to them as parts.

6. By this reasoning, therefore, place will not be the extremity ^B of the containing [body]. For how could the extremity of the container be the cause of the order or the delimitation, when the extremity itself is rather defined by the things that come to be within it and are contained by it? The arrangement, then, of the proper parts of each thing is an inseparable place, even if the thing moves, and even if it rests; for it remains ever the same, as long as the thing exists. But the remaining kind of place is separated. For when bodies are moved, space is not moved along with them. For this reason, those things that move according to place are said in a certain way to be in a place, and in a certain way not to be in a place. For they are not in the place designated for them as parts (for otherwise they would be at rest if they occupied this place), but they are in a place separated for other bodies, as for example in air or water.

7. And this is the place said to be in extension, assigned to other things, but becoming by accident the place of those things that are moved. For motion according to place is the successive taking up of different positions, because of the intermediate air or water being divided until that which is stronger has passed by. And the position which the thing moved receives is the position of the parts of the air or of the water; but it becomes also an adventitious position for the thing moved. Therefore ^C that which measures it as the position of the thing moving is a place for the thing moved by accident. So that for that which moves according to place, there is no place proper to it beyond the arrangement of its own parts. For the place which it changes is not one separated for it, but one belonging to the containing air or water, in whose different parts the thing that is moved is wont to be situated successively.

8. Rightly, therefore, do they define place who say that ^D it is the measure of the position of those things which are set. For this definition embraces every place, which is considered both in bodies and in incorporeal things. For even in incorporeal things position is understood by reason of order, just as the binary is said to be before the ternary, and the

ternary before the quaternary. And by reason of this position we know the places of numbers. But there is also position in bodies, as has been said, which is essential or adventitious. And the essential is twofold. Therefore, according to the difference of position, the assigned definition of place is accommodated to different locations. What, therefore, place is, has thus been outlined.

9. Time, then, is the number of motion. It is called number, both that which numbers and that which is numbered, ^B just as we speak of a measure, meaning both that which measures and that which is measured: for instance, the monadic number, that is, that which is composed of units, and the number of horses or oxen. And again, the wooden choenix and that of the grain; and the earthen amphora and that of the water. But that which is numbered is twofold: one according to quantity, as when we say two or three motions; the other according to order, as when we say a prior motion and a posterior one. Time, therefore, is the number of motion, both as that which numbers and as that which is numbered; yet it is numbered according to order, that is, according to the prior ^C and posterior, taking the prior and posterior according to the duration of their being. Time is therefore numbered by the primary and simple movement, which is circular, and it in turn numbers it. For if such a motion were not numbered by time, by what, then, could it be numbered?

10. Therefore, the time that measures the first and most sovereign of motions, the circular one, according to it measures the other motions as well. So that for circular motion, time shall be the number both as that which numbers and as that which is numbered; but for the rest of the motions, ^D as that which numbers only, and not also as that which is numbered. For the time of my walking and of your whitening is not a number as something numbered (since if this were so, it would not be indifferent, nor would it be distinguished at once at the one 'now'), but time is the number that is numbered according to the prior and posterior of the first and simple movement of the heaven alone. (For the prior and the posterior of such motion, when it is numbered, is time). Thus it numbers the priors and posteriors in the different motions according to one's own 'now.' Wherefore time is the same everywhere at once, being the measure of every motion. For every motion is measured by time.

11. Just as of other motions that which is in respect of place is the most evident, so also the time associated with this motion is more evident than that which is associated with the other motions. Perhaps, if one considers it more accurately, all the other motions as well, such as generations, increases, and alterations, are measured by the time associated with local motion. For by hours and days and months and years we define the duration of other motions as well.

12. ^A Time is not, however, only a measure of motions, but also of periods of rest. For these too are measured by time incidentally. They are not measured insofar as they are periods of rest—that is, absences of motion—but insofar as they may, in some sense, be termed motions themselves. For motion is twofold: one is that which is opposed to rest, and the other is simply flux and extension, which also comprehends rest. Time, therefore, measures both that which moves and that which is at rest. For it will measure its motion and the extent of its rest, that is, the duration of each of them as regards their essence. Wherefore, to speak of the matter in a few words, time is the measure of the flux that exists in generation, which is common both to motion and to rest and to the existence of all things that are generated.

13. ^B Time has been called a number, not because it is simply a number (since it is itself continuous, just as motion and magnitude are), but because, by the distinction of its prior and posterior parts—which are in a state of continuation—it is known by those who can perceive time, and for this reason, it is called a number. Nor is it simply a number, but it is itself a measure, just as number is. For there are four measures: number, magnitude, place, and time. And number measures distinction; magnitude, distance; place, the position of every kind; and time, the flux and extension of generation.

14. ^C Furthermore, time is properly divided into past and future, and it is divided by the NOW. And the NOW is the end of what is past, but the beginning of what is future, and it is not even the smallest part of time, but is as a point is on a line, and as a movement is in a motion; in time, this is the NOW. For the point, the movement, and the NOW are devoid of quantity and division. And this is how that which is primarily and per se called the NOW stands.

15. ^D Just as place is spoken of as both the extremity of the container and as the whole house being the place of the one who is in the house, insofar as he has the extremity of the container immediately within himself, so the NOW is also spoken of in two ways: primarily and per se, that is, the partless and indivisible; and also that which is called the present time, which is a part of time, distinguished in a broader division from the past and future. And this part of time is called NOW insofar as it contains within itself, immediately, that which is primarily and per se called the NOW. The present time, therefore, is the partial time lying on either side of the properly-called NOW, consisting of past and future; and because of the proximity it has to that which is properly called the NOW, it is itself also called NOW.

CHAPTER X. Of the Infinite.

1. The infinite is spoken of in five ways. In one way, as that which is devoid of parts and quantity, as a point in a line. For the point is an extremity of a line. But the point itself has no proper extremity, because it does not even have any part. Whence it comes about that however many points may come together, they will not constitute a portion of a line, not even the smallest; since they cannot even touch one another, but all coincide. For things that touch do so at the extremities. But if there is no part, it is evident that there is no extremity; and to that to which there is no extremity, touching does not apply. For things are said to touch whose extremities are together. The account which the point has in a line, the same does the NOW have in time, and the movement in motion. Thus, the point, the NOW, and the movement, not having parts, and hence having no extremities, are for this reason called infinite, or to say the same thing, without limits.

2. In a second way, the infinite is spoken of as that whose extremity cannot be found because of its shape, as is the case in circular and spherical things. For in these it is always possible to take [something] during the rotation, even if the cycle happens again and again from the same [points] to the same [points].

3. In a third way, the infinite is spoken of as that which, because of its construction, is impassable, or rather, difficult to pass through; as the labyrinth among the Cretans, and among the Lacedaemonians the Ceadas, into which they cast those condemned. For that the labyrinth was passed through, Daedalus, who built it, is proof, when, having been shut up by Minos within the labyrinth along with his son Icarus, he escaped; and before him, Theseus, who, by the instruction of Daedalus, having tied a thread to the door when entering, pulled it with him when exiting. And that it is possible to exit even from the Ceadas, the fox made manifest, which was the guide to the Messenian Aristomenes and showed him the way out.

4. In a fourth way, the infinite is spoken of as that which is by nature such that it can be traversed, yet for another reason does not admit of being traversed, such as the scorched [regions] and the frozen [regions]. To the one...

^A, however, since the magnitude of them is defined, both can be traversed. But the intemperance of the air prevents their being traveled through.

5. The fifth signification of the infinite, and the one that is more proper, is that which it is not the same to grasp. This is considered in number by way of addition, but in magnitude by way of division. For it is always possible to add to every number, and every continuous [thing] is divisible to infinity. In time, however, both concur, namely addition and division. And by addition the future time has the infinite, but the past by division.

6. Further, in those things which are increased and in those which are divided, the infinite exists potentially, because clearly the former can always be increased, and the latter divided. For neither is a number actually increased to infinity (since every number taken actually is terminated), nor will a magnitude be actually divided into infinite parts. For every division that has actually taken place produces finite sections. Thus, therefore, every time that is actually divided, or has received addition, is terminated. Therefore, the infinite in the things in which it exists is known potentially. For in that which can always be cut, and the cutting never ceases, and can always be increased, and the increase never ceases, the infinite is considered. ^B

7. Therefore the infinite has a place in that which is divisible and in that which is increaseable. For even if that which is divisible is not divided, or that which is increaseable is not increased, still the one is divisible to infinity, and the other is increaseable to infinity. And if the infinite is considered in that which is being divided and being increased, it is [so] only as long as it is being divided or being increased.

8. And there is an infinite process of increase and division in energy ^C of that which is potentially, and it is an imperfect energy. For it exists while that which is potential remains, and it has its being in the process of becoming. And just as the actuality of that which is mobile, which preserves its potentiality, was called movement, so also the actuality of that which is divisible and increaseable, which preserves its potentiality, possesses the infinite. For as soon as it has been separated from its potentiality, it receives a limit and abandons its indefiniteness. Therefore the infinite does not depart from this, that it should be potential.

9. Thus also Plato said the great and the small are infinite, because the infinity is potential in both. ^D

10. But there is no infinite magnitude nor infinite multitude in the world by perfect energy. For there is no magnitude greater than the heavens, and these exist as terminated; since their movement also is terminated. For the whole [heaven] is revolved from the same point to the same point in a space of time shorter than one nychthemeron, or natural day. Since, however, the heaven which contains all things is terminated...

^A, how could there be an infinite multitude within it? Furthermore, since it is not possible to take anything greater than the infinite (for if it were possible, the infinite would not be infinite, as it would have something greater than itself and would therefore be finite), let us suppose the sand to be infinite in multitude. If, then, individual animals, plants, stars, and all other bodies in the universe are added to it, a greater multitude is certainly discovered. ^B Therefore, even the sand is terminated, since a multitude greater than it is found. By the same reasoning, the remaining bodies, if considered separately, will undoubtedly be found to be finite. The entire multitude of all bodies, therefore, is also terminated. For that which is composed of finite things is admittedly finite. Thus, there is nothing in the world that is infinite.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XI, WHICH IS CONCERNING THE ELEMENTS

1. It proposes by way of transition which things it wishes to discuss in this chapter, namely those of the secondary and corporal principles, which are formed from those primary ones of matter and form, and which are called properly elements and simple bodies in a diverse respect. 2. Since contrariety is inherent in the forms of natural things, and principles consist in matter and contrariety, it inquires what that contrariety consists of, namely that which is sensible, yet not just any sensible thing, but only that which is perceived by touch, which is the broadest of all. Just as touch itself, so also no quality of the other contrarieties wanders through all sensible bodies, which it proves by the induction of colors, sounds, odors, and flavors. 3. It explains those contrarieties falling under touch and counts their eight syzygies, of which, however, only two are principal, which not only act upon one another but are also not contained by one another, which two requirements do not apply to the other six. 4. It proves the heavy and light, rough and smooth, do not act upon one another, nor are they contained by one another. 5. It shows that the qualities of the other contrarieties are reduced to the humid and the dry, which it proves by the definitions of both of these. 6. It proves that the thin is contained under the humid, and the thick under the dry. 9. It includes the arid or friable under the dry. 10. It brings the soft to the humid and the hard to the dry. 11. It shows that there are at least two tactile contrarieties which act upon one another and are subject to one another, and which are not contained by others or under others. 12. It recounts three species, as it were, of the simply humid: the soaking, the humectant, and the properly humid. 13. It recounts species as it were of the simply dry: the properly dry, that which is devoid of humectation, and the concrete. 14. It describes the simply humid and the simply dry. 15. The conclusion is that since every contrariety of the hot and cold, humid and dry is reduced to those, the elements which are the nearest principles of natural bodies are constituted and informed by them. 16. It teaches by which qualities the elements of the two syzygies are separately informed and constituted. 17. To what extent elements are generated from one another and corrupted into one another, and which more easily or with greater difficulty. 18. By occupying an objection, it dilutes the silent point that he called water and fire, earth and air, contraries. 19. It declares the substantial qualities of the elements, in so far as they are forms and in so far as they are accidents, and also in so far as they are called forms and informing qualities. 20. Occupation: why this form is sometimes called substance. 21. Which form is secondarily and less a substance, and which form is called first and most properly and greatly a substance, and what kind this is. 22. How contrariety and kinship are inherent in the elements, from which both generation and corruption, as well as the preservation of the universe, exist. 23. Elements are conjoined and divided not only by reason of qualities but also by reason of weights. 24. Occupation, by which it is also taught in what respect fire and water, and in what respect fire and earth, are more contrary. 25. Another occupation. 26. When elements are clearly changed by one another, and when and how many different species of compositions are produced from the elements. 27. Which are elements for the physicists and which are only principles, and what the distinction between them is. 28. Pure and simple elements are perceived only by the mind, and no element as it strikes the senses is unmixed with the others; yet individuals are so denominated by the predominant nature. 29. Proof from sense in the example of earth with the precision of the other elements. 30. Proof from elemental nature and declaration from a similarity of parts. 31. Occupation by which it is shown that even plants and animals participate more in earth because they are in the place of earth; but the other elements do so more or less according to the greater or lesser distance of their places from the earth.

CHAPTER XI. Concerning the elements.

1. Regarding the primary, incorporeal, and simplest elemental principles...

that is to say, of matter and form, or of matter devoid of quality and immaterial quality (for form is quality, since it informs a body affected by a quality)—this was spoken of before. But now, our discourse shall be about certain other secondary corporeal principles, which are formed out of those primary ones, and which are properly called elements and simple bodies. They are called elements because ^A the remaining natural bodies are constituted directly from them; and they are called simple bodies when compared with things composed of them. For all things from which a composition is made are simpler than the things which are composed from them.

2. That generation is from a contrary, and conversely, all corruption is into a contrary, has been mentioned before. Moreover, since in inquiring after the principles of all natural and sensible bodies we have found and posited matter and contrariety, every primary contrariety must be sensible—and not just any sensible thing, but that which is most closely conjoined to matter, is most common, and extends through all bodies. Such is that which falls under the sense of touch. For since touch is naturally the first of all the senses, it fittingly also imparts ^B the capacity to be touched to all sensible things in a most common manner. For of those things that are sensible, some cannot be seen because they lack color, such as the air; others cannot be heard because they do not emit a noise, such as a sponge and wool—since even in the case of solid and resistant bodies, it is not of themselves but because of their collision with the air that it is natural for them to emit a sound. But neither do odors extend through all sensible objects. For you see the air: just as it is devoid of color, so it is also devoid of its own odor, and to that extent it has the capacity to transport colors and odors. Furthermore, not even those qualities that fall under the sense of taste are in all things. For water, which is subject to tastes, is of itself devoid of taste. We see, however, that only those qualities that fall under the sense of touch pervade all bodies. Therefore, those contrarieties that fall under touch are the ones that can pass through all bodies and be the most common principles.

3. What then are those contrarieties which fall ^C under the sense of touch? Heat and cold, humidity and dryness, lightness and heaviness, softness and hardness, viscosity and aridity, smoothness and roughness, fineness and coarseness, rarity and density; these conjunctions are eight in number. Some of these cannot act upon one another, and some are contained within others. But it is fitting for the primary contrarieties that they should act upon each other wholly throughout, so that generation and corruption might be perfected through them, and that some should not be ranked under others. For how could there be principles of equal honor?

4. Therefore, the heavy and the light, the rough and the smooth, can neither act nor be acted upon. For the heavy ^D cannot impart heaviness, nor the light impart lightness, to a neighboring body.

^A 5. But as for soft and hard, viscous and arid, thin and thick, rare and dense, all these are reduced to the humid and the dry. For the humid is easily defined by a foreign boundary and is endowed with the faculty of refilling passages.

6. Such also is that which has thin parts ^B, as that which is easily contained by every boundary and fills up empty spaces. For if fine flour is cast into a bushel of nuts, it is able to penetrate into the empty spaces of the solid body of the walnuts that lie between them, and to fill them. The humid also does the same. For water follows every boundary that touches and contains it. For this reason, then, they rank the thin under the humid, and similarly the thick under the dry. For just as the dry is easily defined by its own boundary, but with difficulty by a foreign one (for it has a power of resisting and does not follow those things that contain it), in the same way the thick, since it has large parts, does not penetrate into every region.

7. Likewise also they place the dense and the rare, one under the dry, and the other under the humid.

8. But perhaps both the thin and the thick, the rare and the dense, might be rejected from the active and passive contrarieties, because they themselves are not able to act ^C through and through upon one another; and one would not be forced to call sand or ash humid because of the thinness of parts that is in them, since they are manifestly dry.

9. The viscous is clearly humid with a certain affection. But if the viscous is humid, its contrary, that is to say the arid, will be dry; for contraries belong to contraries.

10. The soft yields to the touch in as much as it participates in humidity. For yielding is the property of the humid. Wherefore even the soft shall be included under the humid, and as is clear, the hard under the dry.

11. It is clear, then, that the ^D hard [belongs] to the dry. It is evident, therefore, from this that two tactile contrarieties remain which are naturally suited to act and be acted upon through and through, and are in no way contained by any others: these are heat and cold, humidity and dryness, which would altogether be the universal formative principles of all sensible bodies.

12. And the simply humid is inclusive of the moist, the wetted, and that which is properly humid, in so far as they are such. Now, that which has a foreign humidity on its surface is called moist; as if one were to pour water sparingly upon a stone, perhaps, or wood, or an animal body, or a garment. For that which has a foreign humidity in its interior parts is termed wetted, such as mud. But that is called properly humid which has a peculiar humidity hidden in its depth and shows it; just as wax and lead, and the rest of things that can melt, when they melt.

^A 13. But if simple humidity comprises those things mentioned, it is clear that simple dryness comprises those things opposed to it. To the moist is opposed that which is properly dry, which does not receive alien humidity even on its surface; to the wetted is opposed the unwetted; and to what is properly humid is opposed that which is concreted, such as a shell, and of metals both those which are unmeltable and those which are meltable before they melt. For of concreted things, some are able to melt, while others cannot melt.

14. But that is simply humid which always possesses its own proper humidity, evident through and through; and that is simply dry, which likewise has an innate dryness through and through.

15. Since these things are so, and since every tangibly active and passive contrariety is gathered into the two aforementioned couplings, and no one of these is found under another (for neither is any hot and dry thing placed under another—for in that case all hot would be dry, or all dry would be hot; nor is any cold and humid thing placed under the remaining one for the same reasons; and much less are contraries placed under contraries; for how could fighting things be subordinate one to another?), it is altogether evident that those bodies which are first informed by the aforementioned contrarieties are the proximate elements of all natural bodies. ^B

16. Therefore, fire is informed primarily by heat and dryness, and most of all by heat; air by heat and humidity, and more by humidity; water by humidity and coldness, and more by coldness; and earth by coldness and dryness, and most of all by dryness. Fire, then, and air and water and earth are the proximate elements of composite natural bodies. ^C

17. These elements, then, not as elements but as bodies endowed with qualities, both are generated from one another and are corrupted into one another. Those which possess a common quality, such as fire and air in heat, and water and earth in coldness, are easily changed into one another, as they change by reason of only one quality. But those which are opposed by reason of both qualities are changed into one another more slowly, such as water and fire, and earth and air, which indeed are also absolutely contrary. ^D

18. Although these are substances, yet there is no contrary to substance. However, fire and water, and again air and earth, are not contrary to each other insofar as they are substances and subjects, but insofar as they are informed by the qualities. For the heat in fire fights against the cold in water, and the dryness against the humidity. And again, the humidity in air against the dryness in earth, and the heat against the cold. And simply, in all the elements, contrary qualities are opposed to contraries.

19. Moreover, although all substantial qualities are certain forms (for with the first subject, matter to wit, they complete the secondary subject, or body); nevertheless, when considered in themselves without a subject, they are accidents. Therefore, they are called both forms and informing qualities, because the form which they effect is distinct from that according to which they themselves are called forms. For the one is understood with matter, and is an essence and a subject; as fire insofar as it is fire, and earth insofar as it is earth, and the remaining forms that are completed. But that form according to which qualities are called forms, when it is thought of without matter (for by what other means could bodies be said to consist of matter and form?), is then neither a substance nor a subject, but exists most of all in a subject.

20. If at any time a substance should be mentioned, it is called a substance for this reason, that with the subject it can complete one substance, and it does not depart from that which is completed without the destruction, or, to say the same thing, the dissolution, of the latter.

21. For these reasons, the form ^C is also called a secondary and lesser substance, or rather, something substantial and not a substance. And yet again, it is taught and established by true philosophers as most properly, primarily, and chiefly a substance. For that which is conceived without matter, as if it could have existence in a subject—matter, to wit—is deservedly not said to be a substance properly. But that which is in act with matter, and is denominated one subject with it, as if by synecdoche from one of the two parts that concur for the completion of the composite whole, such a form may justly be called a substance most properly, and primarily, and chiefly. And this is the most specific form, which embraces and comprehends all particular substances, and has the same relation to them that an integral whole has to its similar parts. Thus Plato called individual men fragments of man.

22. Since there are four universal qualities, it is fitting that there should also be four elements, and each of them has been allotted a ^D double quality. For thus alone do contrariety and affinity reside in the elements, by which exist the generation and corruption and the permanence of the whole universe. For on account of contrariety, generation and corruption are completed; since every generation is from the contrary and by the contrary; and every corruption is again into the contrary and by the contrary. For that which suffers does not suffer from just anything, but from its contrary; as the cold receives heating from the hot. And although a lamp thrown into a great fire undergoes extinction, the lamp does not suffer from its like, but from its contrary. For the smaller flame is consumed by the greater, and the greater is contrary to the smaller. Thus, then, by means of contrariety, generation and corruption are finished; but by means of affinity, the universe remains. For earth is joined to water through the cold, and water to air through the moist and [the...]

air to fire through the hot, and fire to earth through the dry. And thus a certain harmonious circle of the union of fighting things is completed, and a chain-dancing chorus, bound together by contrarieties and communions, is perfected in all its parts. ^B

23. Moreover, by consideration of weight also, the elements are both joined and separated. For earth alone is heavy; wherefore it underlies all things. Fire alone is light; wherefore it also rises above all things, so far as they naturally move in a straight line. Water, indeed, is lighter than earth and rests upon it, but is heavier than air and underlies it. Air is lighter than water, but heavier than fire. So that, by itself and absolutely, earth is a heavy element and fire is light; but air and water are both light and heavy in a relative sense, and by their intervention they bind together the things most separated from each other—namely, fire and earth.

24. For in what way are fire and water more contrary, and in what way are fire and earth? According to the agent and patient qualities, fire and water are more contrary, but according to weight, earth and fire are most contrary to each other. And indeed from this fact happens their greatest local ^C distance from each other; for earth is inferior to all bodies, while on the contrary, that which is superior—that is, the fire existing immediately beneath the moon—is highest.

25. Now here we speak of the elemental fire, which is properly called the "succension," because when it acquires a certain motion, it is for the most part inflamed, and becomes that fire which is of use and service to us. For elemental fire is something different from that which serves us; because the one that serves us has an excess of heat, just as ice has of cold. Whence neither is anything generated by ice, nor by the fire which is in use among us. But elemental fire and elemental water are life-producing, and are taken up for the constitution of composite bodies; but when they depart into immoderation, the one produces ice, and the other produces this ministerial fire. ^D

26. When, therefore, one of the elements exceeds the other to a greater degree, then the lesser is changed, being overcome by the greater, and the whole becomes such as that which prevails. But when all the contraries have in a certain way equal powers, and no remaining surplus greatly exceeds, then at length the composite is effected, while one acts upon the other and conversely one suffers from the other; and since neither is overcome by the other because of the quasi-equality of their powers, the extremity of each is blunted, and some intermediate state arises. But because this intermediate is not simple and indivisible (for it is considered in range, and is accustomed to differ greatly, just as the intermediate between white and black; for pale, and reddish, and grey, and

^A many others), and for this reason the species of composite things are both more numerous and differ from one another, acquiring diverse essential and non-essential qualities according to the quality, mixture, and alteration of fire, air, water, and earth.

27. For most of the natural philosophers maintain that these alone are the elements of bodies—among whom is Galen, who is esteemed among physicians—setting forth matter and quality, or form, only as principles, and distinguishing between principles and elements in that principles do not of necessity have to be of the same genus as the things of which they are principles, whereas elements must absolutely be of the same genus. For this reason, they say that a simple quality—for example, heat or dryness, or cold or moisture—is an element of a composite quality, such as heat together with dryness, and again cold together with moisture; and that a simple body is an element of a body that is not simple—for example, fire or air or water or earth is an element of a composite body. For a simple body is matter joined with a quality, be it heat or cold or dryness or moisture. ^B

28. As for the four so-called elements, only a discerning mind can perceive them in their pure and unmixed state. For there is not one of them that is immune from the commixture of the rest; because all have been adulterated by those of a different kind—or, that is, of a different species—and have been mixed together, and participate in one another more or less; so that, according to that which predominates, one is named fire, another water, and one air, and another earth. ^C

29. This is also what sense perception itself suggests. For earth is held together and is not shattered, being bound by the interweaving of water as if by a certain glue. It is colored and vivified by fire; and it is always full, yielding no place to a vacuum, even if it might flow out through the sub-ingress of air. For this reason, it also stands upright and is sustained, not having collapsed. And thus it is possible to find the same in the case of the other elements.

30. But it is also possible to understand what is being said from the very nature of elements. For elements, as elements, are nowhere by themselves; just as the twenty-four elements of speech are not [present by themselves]; but by passing through ^D one another they render the composite. For just as the parts of a whole happen to be parts, and cannot be parts by themselves, so also the elements of a composite are elements, and they have always passed through one another, and they never exist by themselves; but having first been mixed together and received form through the predominance of one, thus eventually, out of those that prevail as if from simples, by a secondary composition they constitute both animals and plants and the parts of them.

^A Nevertheless, plants and animals and whatever earthly bodies exist possess more of earth than of the other elements. For each thing gains more around its own proper place. And if the place of the earth is the center of the universe, there will exist for those things that are in the location of the earth a great deal of earth; then also there will be a share of water, of air, and of fire, in proportion to the local distance of these elements from the earth.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XII, ON THE BURNING FLAMES THAT APPEAR IN THE SKY, AND ON THOSE CALLED GOATS, AND TORCHES, AND DISCURSIVE STARS

1. He divides the whole of the universe by a complete division into parts; namely, into the upper or ethereal region, and the lower or elemental. 2. He subdivides the air into that which is around the earth, and into that which he calls elemental fire, which is more properly called *hypékkauma*; and again he subdivides it into the more and less pure, which he asserts moves as a continuum with the ether, just as the air does, except for only that air which is contained within the prominences and inequalities of the earth: which, however, he distinguishes by a further division into that which is nearer to the earth and consequently warmer, and that which is more remote from the earth and for that reason is colder. 3. He shows that a twofold exhalation is generated from earth and water, the vaporous and the smoky, both of which he explains and describes. 4. That the vaporous, especially the smoky, is carried up for some distance mixed and indiscriminately, but at length is separated, and each seeks its own kindred body and convenient place. 5. In what way it is ignited, and how a burning flame is made. 6. How the other ignited impressions are made, as, in the first place, the goat. 7. How the torch or brand. 8. How the discursive stars. 9. That discursive stars occur in this and in another way. 10. That the fire which is generated by excretion in the middle region of the air sometimes falls to the lands and seas, and when this happens. 11. That discursive stars are generated in the colder air by excretion through inflammation. 12. That this excretion is made in the opposite part of condensation. 13. The occupation of those which are cast downward, [the fact that] many move transversely. 14. A recapitulatory conclusion, in which the material and efficient cause of the said specters are repeated. 15. A corollary, in which it is proposed to be argued from the velocity of the course that all the said specters, and especially the discursive stars, occur below the moon.

CHAPTER XII

1. Above, indeed, from the beginning of the firmament to the extremity of the moon, is the ethereal body; but below, toward the center and around the center, are the most heavy and coldest bodies, earth and water; and earth is at the center, but water is around the center; and between these bodies and the ether is the air and that which is called elemental fire; the air is following after the earth and water; but after the air, the elemental fire is placed, which is different from that which is fire in actuality, that is, which is put to our use, and is an excess and a sort of effervescence ^C of heat.

2. Moreover, of the so-called air, because of the predominance of moisture, that which is around the earth is most humid and warm (for it partakes even of some dry exhalation from the earth); but the greater part is of humid vapor. That part, then, of the air which we call that around the earth is such; but that which is above this is already warm and dry. And this is what is called elemental fire, which out of habit is called fire; but more properly it is called *hypékkauma* (a fuel). For it is often ignited by obtaining a small motion, and becomes most actual fire. This *hypékkauma* is indeed continuous with the ether. For according to the

concave surface of the lunar sphere, it is joined to it. And just as one part of the ether is sincere, and another part is less pure, and this is especially the case regarding the conjunction at the *hypékkauma*, which is, as it were, the sediment of the ether; so, too, a part of the *hypékkauma* is altogether hot and dry, in so far as it is higher and nearer to the ether, and part is less so, in so far as it is lower and further from the ether. For as the ether and the bodies within it are carried in a circle, the part always adjacent to the motion is separated and ignited, and is most hot and dry. But in so far as it stands apart from the ether, it exists less as such, in proportion to the distance. The entire *hypékkauma* is moved together with the ether in proportion; and the air adjacent to it is also carried along because of the continuity. Except for that which exists within the prominences of the earth and which fills the unevennesses of the earth and makes it complete, so as to be spherical along with it; for this air is no longer carried around in a circle, because it is turbid and thick, and for this reason also heavier and more difficult to move; because it is also related to water and earth; and perhaps also because the prominences on the mountains hinder its movement. And of this air, which is not moved along with the *hypékkauma*, that which is closer to the earth is also colder, because it is warmed neither by motion nor by the sun's rays reflecting. For when the sun's rays fall upon the earth, and are again reflected from it, the air that is closer to the earth is warmed by the double passage; but that which is further from the earth, in so far as it is further from the earth, does not receive the heat from the refraction of the beams to such an extent. For the refractions are weakened when the rays are spilled out and scattered into the vast air.

3. Having thus laid these foundations, let us speak more clearly: since the earth and water are warmed by the sun—that is, the earth itself and all the moisture in it and around it—various exhalations occur. And the one from the moisture is moist, which is called vapor; but that which is from the very substance of the earth, when it is dry, is dry, which is also called fumous and flatulent exhalation, and is thus simply and indeterminately called exhalation. But both participate in heat, because they come into being on account of heat. And the nature of vapor is hot and moist, while the nature of exhalation is hot and dry. And vapor is in potentiality as it were water; exhalation is in potentiality as it were fire. And the exhalation floats on top because of lightness (for heat, having taken on dryness, becomes light); but vapor settles because of heaviness. For the moist participates in weight.

4. Therefore, up to a certain point, the vapor and the exhalation rise mixed and indistinguishable; but as they proceed, they are separated and each seeks what is akin to it. And hence, the vapor is…

^A left behind below, whereas the exhalation is joined with the fuel. For the fuel, in terms of its substance, is nothing other than an exhalation from which the vapor has been separated and rendered pure.

5. Therefore, when the fuel is moved by the motion of the circulating [bodies], it ignites in the part where it has the greatest aptitude and consistency for undergoing inflammation. Now, if the thing being ignited has [both] length and breadth, an ardent flame appears, not unlike those straws that are set on fire in the fields.

6. But if it has length, yet no longer a corresponding breadth, then it becomes either a *capra* (goat), a torch, or a shooting or leaping star. For if the thing set on fire is greater in length than it is in breadth, and while burning obliquely creates certain conflagrations and excursions of inflammation that are not separate, but are joined to the whole burning body so that it appears to sparkle, such a thing is termed a *capra*.

7. But when it is ignited only in its length, and no longer sparkles, such a thing is called a torch.

8. Finally, when the magnitude of the ignited fuel is not one and continuous, but has intervals (as though its parts were separated from one another, with each of them having its own consistency), and these intervals themselves also have a fine exhalation ^C suitable for undergoing inflammation, while these separated parts of such fuel possess depth and breadth equal to their length, then those stars are formed which appear to leap. For when the first of such consistencies situated [therein] is ignited by movement, the fire is quickly distributed through the fine exhalation that lies between it and the consistency situated next to it; and it does this in the same manner from this one to the next, and continues to do so until it has traversed all the consistencies of such fuel placed one after another in the manner stated; and the same fire which from the beginning was moving or being ^D cast from above appears [to be doing so] on account of its rapid distribution. For just as in lamps, when one is burning and another, recently extinguished, is placed immediately beneath it, the exhalation that is carried from the one recently extinguished to the flame of the burning one is ignited insofar as it is brought near to it, and sets the lamp beneath it on fire, as the exhalation which follows next is ignited by that which was first ignited by the flame of the burning lamp, until it reaches that wick of the lamp from which the exhalation arose—nor does the fire seem to spread itself while one part is ignited from another, but rather the thing which was first ignited seems to be in motion—so it must be thought to occur also in those stars which appear to shoot and be carried along: one is ignited after another with speed because of the aptitude of the underlying matter for this.

^A 9. Intermittent shooting stars occur in this way: since the movement of the celestial bodies ignites the fuel subject to these same celestial bodies, it ignites the next one, as has been said. Sometimes, however, because the air beneath the fuel condenses due to cold, the heat contained within it is compressed; and as it is cooled by the air that surrounds it and is gathered into one, when it is ignited it is forcibly squeezed out and carried along, being shot out just like things that are fired (such as when we squeeze seeds with our fingers, and especially the thumb and the index finger over the middle of the core: the core slips out and leaps away, the more so if it possesses smoothness and viscosity, as the pits of olives which resemble the shape of wheat, and other things similar to these). Then indeed the same fire remains, but it does not ignite what follows. Shooting stars, therefore, seem to be produced in both ways.

10. This fire, however, produced by excretion, is often squeezed into the lower part, and is carried down to the earth and into the sea, both at night and during the day when the sky is clear. It is carried down when the condensation and cooling of the air, beginning in the upper part, pushes whatever heat was left and enclosed within it into the lower part. For this reason, lightning also, even though it is fire, is nevertheless carried down to the lower regions because of the violent compression, since the natural movement for fire is upwards.

^B 11. Now, those phenomena of shooting stars that occur in the layer above, where the fuel is, happen through ignition, as the exhalation is inflamed and is distributed successively to what follows, as has been said. But those that occur in the lower region, where the air is, happen through excretion: because the moist exhalation, condensing through cold, creates the excretion from itself.

12. And in whatever position the exhalation that is condensing and cooling may be, and in whatever direction it is turned, it is likely that the fire excreted from it is carried in that direction as well. For the excretion happens upwards if the condensation is from below; or obliquely if the condensation happens to be in that direction; or downwards if the beginning of the condensation is from above.

^C 13. Most of those, however, that are thrown down to the lower regions are carried obliquely, because they are made to move by two motions at once: the one upwards and according to nature (since it is natural for fire to be carried upwards), and the other downwards, forcibly, because of the compression. And this oblique movement is a mixture of being carried both upwards and downwards. This happens when neither one of the two forces prevails completely.

^A 14. The cause of all these things is, on one hand, the exhalation as material (for this is what is ignited), and on the other, for the moving and efficient cause, sometimes the motion of the circular bodies (for by this those in the sub-burnable region are ignited), and sometimes the cooling and condensation of the air.

15. That such compositions and excursions happen below the moon is shown by the speed of those of them that is visible in their course. For just as things thrown by us appear to move faster than the stars because of their proximity, even though they are quite different from them in speed by a long interval, so also those stars that are said to dart appear to us to move faster than the stars because of their proximity.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XIII, WHICH IS ON COMETS OR HAIRY STARS, AND ON THE MILKY CIRCLE.

1. In general, that the causes of these are the same as those of the meteors in the previous chapter. — 2. The condition of the material and efficient causes of comets in specie. — 3. The division of comets into hairy and bearded, and the homonymy of "comet." — 4. The twofold use of the exhalation which is brought up to a comet. — 5. When a comet is seen by itself, and when under other stars. — 6. Objection. — 7. Another objection. — 8. When a comet moves with a star, when not with a star, and why. — 9. Objection. — 10. From what the concretion of comets is argued to be fiery. — 11. Why comets are generated within the tropics. — 12. Another reason why comets are generated neither in large numbers simultaneously nor frequently; where also the latter part of the head begins. — 13. How the milky circle, according to Aristotle and the author, is generated in nearly the same way from the same causes, material and efficient, as a comet. — 14. Where the milky circle is mostly generated, and why not in the Zodiac. — 15. From the multitude and magnitude of the stars within it, its material cause, namely exhalation, is gathered. — 16. The same is proved from the sign of that duplication. — 17. From the multitude and magnitude of the stars, its efficient cause, namely the motion of the stars, is investigated about the milky circle. — 18. From these he infers the definition of the milk, onto which he again casts the cause of the scarcity and infrequency of comets.

CHAPTER XIII.

Of comets and the milky circle.

1. As for the things mentioned before, the causes of the flames, firebrands, and the rest were stated (the material cause of these was said to be the smoky exhalation, which is fire potentially and for this reason is called the "sub-burnable" fuel; ^B and the efficient cause was said to be the motion of the heavenly bodies); these same things seem to be the causes of those of which we are now speaking.

2. For when, through the revolution of the ether and the bodies contained within it, such an exhalation—which is, by its nature, well-tempered for inflammation—receives a fiery principle, and the exhalation is dense and able to hold fire, not thin and straw-like and easily consumed; ^C but also the fiery principle is neither so intense and abundant that it quickly and violently burns up this density, nor again so weak that it is quickly extinguished, but is more powerful than this exhalation such that it can endure for a longer time; and at the same time it happens that from below, in that part, another exhalation that is well-tempered and suitable for receiving ignition is carried up; then that which is ignited appears as a hairy or bearded star. ^D

3 For if the ignition of the exhalation carried upward is entirely uniform and globular, it is called a "comet"; but if it is oblong, it is called "bearded." 4 Both are called "comets" by a common term. Moreover, that well-tempered exhalation carried from below which is suitable for ignition contributes to the comets, supplying fuel for the fire in terms of duration and being useful for creating the appearance of hair. For that which burns is not bounded and turned on a lathe, but has certain projections and protrusions, on account of which the appearance of hair is produced.

5 Therefore, when such a principle of formation and ignition occurs in a lower place, and not near the stars, the comet is seen by itself. But when such an exhalation gathers near the ether under some one of the stars—whether of the wandering or the fixed stars (which are called "fixed")—having the cause of its formation and ignition from the movement of that star (for not only the sun, but also the stars, by their movement heating the earth, draw up exhalations from it, and even more so from the air), then, at that time, one of the stars already present appears as a comet.

6 For the hair seen upon the stars does not exist in the stars themselves, but, being beneath them, it appears to be upon them and is carried along with them.

7 Whenever, therefore, the hair is formed higher up and near the ether under some star, it moves together with that star, since that star provides the cause for such a formation. But when a comet is formed lower down and by itself, it no longer maintains the same speed as any of the stars, but appears to lag behind and be left in the rear. For such is the motion and rotation of the world around the earth, not maintaining the same speed as the heavenly bodies, nor following them uniformly, nor accurately simulating a spherical path, since the terrestrial bodies are not naturally moved in a spherical manner in this way, but are merely drawn along by the motion of the heavenly bodies.

8 And if even the wandering stars are moved forcefully from east to west, yet their motion is nonetheless spherical; but that of the terrestrial bodies is not so.

9 That the constitution of comets is fiery is indicated by the fact that when they are numerous, they signify droughts and winds. For when a hot and fiery exhalation abounds, these [comets] are formed, and by such an exhalation the air becomes drier; and the moisture evaporating and being carried up from the place around the earth is dispersed and dissolved, so that it does not easily coalesce and change into water.

11. That comets do not occur so many times, nor so frequently as the shooting stars, and that those which do occur arise outside the tropics rather than within them, is attributed by some to the motion of the sun and the other planets; for these, moving ^A within the tropics (for such is the position of the zodiac in which the motion of the planets is completed), disperse and attenuate the denser and more compressed exhalations, which are the matter of comets.

12. The principal reason why comets do not occur in these parts appears to be that, generally speaking, the greater part of such exhalations is separated towards the region of milk, that is, towards the Galaxy or Milky Way, and, being gathered there, produces the light that is perceived. ^B

13. For just as some of the stars, whether planets or fixed stars, appear as comets, as has been said, when a denser exhalation gathers beneath them, becomes inflamed, and revolves along with them; so too it appears to be the case with the Milky Way. For that exhalation which exists around any one star produces the form of a comet, and the same thing occurring around the stars in which the milk appears seems to form a circle that is called the Galaxy. Therefore, that which can happen around one star is not inconsistent to suppose happens in the whole heaven. For if the motion of one star produces such a thing, it is not absurd to consider that the motion of all the stars can accomplish the same result, in that they stir up and inflame ^C the exhalation beneath them and draw it along with them.

14. Moreover, it is more likely that such a thing occurs in that part of the heaven where there are more, denser, and larger stars. Therefore, such an exhalation and condensation does not remain in the Zodiac, because the sun and the other planets that move through it disperse and attenuate such a condensation.

15. Since the Milky Way circle is itself the greatest, and is oblique just as the Zodiac is, it exceeds the tropics in position and touches other circles not far from the poles, and is situated away from the Zodiac ^D so that the planets do not move along it; and since, moreover, it is filled with large and splendid stars, it is reasonable to assume, both because of its position and because of the multitude and magnitude of the stars that are in it, that the exhalation which is gathered, condensed, and inflamed produces the milk in it.

16. A sign of this would be that the condensation of the circle itself is greater, and the light more copious in the other semicircle, in which part the Milky Way is seen to have double the magnitude, where the stars are larger and denser.

17. If, therefore, in this circle the light appears where there are many and great stars, and also of its own

movement, it is reasonable to suppose that the stars themselves are the cause of the phenomenon of the Milky Way; since, of all the circles in what is called the sphere of the fixed stars, it is in this one alone that the intermediate spaces are filled with such stars. For in the other circles, manifest intervals and many spaces void of stars are seen. ^D 18. The Milky Way, therefore, is, if one may define it, the "mane" of the greatest circle, produced by excretion. This is also, as was said before, the reason why comets are not many, nor are they frequent, because a concretion of this kind is separated out and is continually being separated and discharged into this place.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XIV: OF RAIN, HAIL, SNOW, DEW, AND HOAR-FROST.

1. As the material cause of all the aforementioned ^A affections was known to be evaporation, so it is understood that the material cause of those which are now being discussed is vapor. 2. From vapor, one thing—or rain, or hail, or snow, or another thing, dew and hoar-frost—is generated according to the diversity of places. 3. When and how rain is generated. 4. Moisture that is drawn up by the sun falls back to earth, if not in the same year, then in others, which is proven by a manifest sign. 5. The change from water into air is vapor, and afterwards from air into water the cloud is formed, so that both the water and the air are intermediate in a different respect. 6. What a nebula is, in how many ways it is formed, and what it signifies. 7. The generation and species of rain; psecas, that is, minute rain, and shower are listed. 8. They happen at certain times on account of the sun's proper motion. 9. But also daily some of the moisture, and some from the humor of the earth mixed in, becomes vapor on account of the daily motion of the sun, from which vapor that part which subsists in the lowest region of the air generates hoar-frost and dew; the former in winter and in cold places, the latter chiefly in spring and autumn, and in temperate places—but both in clear and calm weather; the sign of their subsistence in the lowest region of the air is offered by the fact that they are not generated on higher mountains. 10. Just as hoar-frost and dew are in the lowest, so rain, hail, and snow are generated in the middle region. 11. Rain and dew are formed for the same reason as hoar-frost and snow; but these and those differ partly in intensity and remission, partly in multitude and paucity. 12. As dew is to rain, so is hoar-frost to snow, and what both are, and for what reason each comes to be, and what each signifies. 13. What a cloud is, what also a nebula is, and in how many ways this is formed, and what is the serenity which is opposed to both clouds and nebula. 14. How rain is formed from a cloud, and what are its differences, and likewise how dew is formed from vapor. 15. What produces snow and, primarily, its whiteness and rigor, and what is called "ningor," and how hoar-frost is formed from vapor, and what is called "drosopachne." [17. What "antiperistasis" is—that is, reciprocal opposing pressure (as some translate it)—and how hail is formed.] 18. "Antiperistasis" also exists in the upper region of the air, and often causes either rain or hail. 19. When hail rather than rain is formed. 20. Mutation of this kind, which has place both in cold and hot [regions], as the experience of subterranean places and fountain waters and the earth born of them testifies concerning what [is the] form and condition [of it]. 21. Why large drops do not fall densely. 22. In which seasons of the year hail is more, or less, generated. 23. Objection: for what cause more frequent and violent rains are generated around Arabia and Ethiopia.

CHAPTER XIV: Of rain, hail, snow, dew and hoar-frost.

1. Just as the material cause of all the affections mentioned before was known to be exhalation, so it is understood that for those of which we now speak, a vapor is the cause of this kind. The efficient cause of the former, however, is the motion of the celestial bodies; of these, however, it is refrigeration. ^B 2. For vapor is carried aloft either more, by being raised by greater heat; or it lingers below in the air near the earth on account of the brevity of the heat that raises it. 3. And so, when it has been carried up and cooled, rain and hail and snow are produced. But when

it becomes further from the earth and is separated from the heat and the smoky exhalation that raises it, and from the heat that accompanies it—the former being separated and carried up to the fuel/ignition point, the latter being extinguished on account of the coldness of the place—then indeed the vapor, cooling on account of the loss of heat, thickens and is constituted as a cloud from the air, and changes into water, and rain is produced. Vapor is that which comes from water being thinned and rarefied; and this, when it has been thinned and rarefied, becomes air; but air, when thickened and condensed, becomes a cloud; and the cloud, when it changes into water, produces rain. ^B 4. The sun therefore draws up and lifts this moisture daily, steaming it with its heat and thinning and separating it. This, having gathered in the upper region and having stood fast and condensed on account of the cold, becomes water again and is carried down to the earth. And although the amount that falls is not equal to that which was raised in every single year, yet at stated times all the moisture that was raised is carried down and returned, including that which delayed there on account of a slower transformation. Therefore, after years in which the heat was greater, it is customary for rain again to arise, as the moist exhalation which had not yet been transformed up to that point undergoes transformation itself along with that which is being raised. 5. The change from water into air therefore occurs by means of vapor. For vapor is thicker air, possessing something also of water, and on that account it is an intermediate between air and water. But the change from air into water occurs by means of a cloud. And what vapor is below, that the cloud is above. For both are intermediates of air and water. ^C 6. Mist is the residue of the cloud's consolidation and change into water. For that which is left over from the cloud in the change into water—that is, whatever was found in the cloud to be sterile, not being able to change into water—is what remains as mist. Mist and cloud also occur when it has not been able to be compressed in such a way as to change into water. Whence mist is more a sign of fair weather than of rain. For a cloud exists as it were sterile, not indeed changing into water because it is drier, yet falling down because it is colder. ^D 7. When therefore the vapor, having gathered in a place further from the earth, grows cold, as has been said, then rain is generated. And if it falls in small particles and not all at once, but little by little, as if being born from the cloud in a manner of speaking, it is called a drizzle (psecas); but if in larger particles and more compactly, as if the change of the cloud into water has already taken place, it is called a shower (imber). 8. These things are accustomed to happen according to the seasonal times of the year. For such exhalations and changes happen primarily according to the own movements of the sun,

^A for as the sun traverses its proper circle, it discerns some of the underlying bodies to which it becomes closer (inasmuch as it rarifies the water and the earth itself), and produces exhalations; while it constricts others from which it departs further. For then the humid exhalation is collected into clouds and waters. Whence, by its approach and recession, the sun is the cause of contrary conditions while it moves in the Zodiac.

9. There occurs also a certain daily transformation from the moisture around the earth into vapor; this also takes its beginning from the daily movement of the sun above and below the earth, according to the rotation it shares with the whole universe. Of this daily vapor, whatever portion is not able to be raised up very high due to the weakness of the heat that draws it up, ^B being cooled near the earth at night (for nights are colder), produces dew and hoarfrost. Hoarfrost, when through intense cold this vapor freezes before it can change into water; dew, however, when, because the surrounding air is not overly cold, the vapor is altered into water—having been neither so warmed that it is dried out, nor so cooled that it freezes. Whence hoarfrost occurs in winter and in colder places, but dew occurs mostly in spring and autumn, and in temperate places. Both occur in clear and calm weather. For if the sky is not clear, the vapor cannot be raised; for dryness and lightness are required in the surrounding air for its elevation, that is, so that the surrounding air may not be ^C humid and thick from falling rains. For then the vapor cannot be raised. Nor, if there is wind, can the vapor settle so as to freeze or change into water, but it is dispersed and destroyed. A sign that hoarfrost and dew settle not far from the earth is that neither of them is produced on higher mountains.

10. Hoarfrost and dew, therefore, settle in places closer to the earth; but rain, hail, and snow in places more remote from the earth; where the air neither flows and is carried along with the body that is moving circularly—so that on account of such a nature and movement the formations of clouds do not occur—nor do the ^D refractions of the sun's rays have the intensity so as to prevent, by their heat, the compression of the air into clouds. In such places, then, where clouds are contained, rain, snow, and hail consist through cooling.

11. Now rain is produced for the same reason as dew, and snow for the same reason as hoarfrost. But rain and dew, and again snow and hoarfrost, differ by degree—that is, by more and less, and by multitude and scarcity. For rain is abundant; for it is produced from abundant vapor that is being cooled; and the place from which it is raised and into which it is gathered is vast; and the time in which it is raised and in which it is cooled is long.

^A Dew is a slight thing of individual days, and is from a slight place, and has a rapid generation.

12. However, as the dew is related to rain, so is hoarfrost to snow. For snow is a congelation of a cloud already formed; but hoarfrost is a congelation of vapor. And both are frozen because of great cold; and they are signs of either an hour or a region that is cold. For if the cold did not prevail, neither would the vapor be frozen—having in itself the heat from which it was raised—nor would the cloud be frozen, although it still has remaining within it the heat from that which lifted the vapor from the earth, from which vapor the cloud is formed. Truly, the cloud is a participant in heat. For if it were not so, it would not remain aloft, but would fall downward like a mist.

13. A cloud, therefore, is a vaporous mass gathered together, having a productive power for water. But mist is a vaporous exhalation, not at all a producer of water; it is denser than the air, but rarer than a cloud. It is formed either from the rarefaction of the beginning of a cloud, or from its remnants. Opposed to these is the serenity (clear sky), which is nothing other than air empty of clouds and mist throughout.

14. From the cloud, therefore, rain is produced by its compression, being greatly thickened; and it has as many differences as the compression of the cloud has; for if it has been released, it disperses soft drops, but if it is intense, it disperses coarser ones. And this is called a shower, when the twisted droplets of rain fall to the earth with both greater size and continuous duration. From vapor, however, dew is generated. For dew is moisture falling in a clear sky by way of minute concretion.

15. Snow is effected by the shattering of a cloud that has been thickened and congealed, happening before its transformation into water. The shattering produces the foamy and white appearance, but the freezing produces the coldness of the moisture which is inside and not yet poured out, nor has the cloud yet been rarefied. Snow falling with force and collectively is called a snowstorm (niphetos). In the same way that snow is from a cloud, so is hoarfrost from vapor. There is also something between dew and hoarfrost, which they call *drosopachne* (dew-hoar), being a semicongelated dew.

16. Therefore, for the rain which is formed in the region aloft, the dew is an analogue in the region around the earth; and for the snow, the hoarfrost. But there is nothing around the earth analogous to hail. For the transformation does not occur from a cloud into hail, but rain occurs first, and it freezes due to antiperistasis.

17. Antiperistasis is a transmutation and a transition occurring from the surroundings toward the center; such as, for instance, when something being pushed around by something else, the immediate neighbor itself likewise is pushed back in turn, and that in turn [what follows... ^{B C D}

meeting resistance, is compelled and constricted and becomes more potent. The same thing happens also to heat when cold is dominant. For this reason, in winter, subterranean places are warmer and the springs of water become warm, as the heat is pushed into the depths by the refrigeration of the surrounding body. Conversely, ^A in warmer seasons, spring waters become cold, since the subterranean places become cooler owing to the dominance of the ambient heat.

18. This same process must also be assumed to occur in the higher regions. For when the surrounding medium is hot, then the cold that is trapped in the clouds, being pushed from the outside inward to the depths by the heat surrounding it, sometimes quickly creates water out of the cloud; and that is why on hotter days the raindrops are larger, and the rainstorms sudden and swift, due to the suddenness of the change. But when the cold is pushed even more to the inside, so as to reside more in the depths, being driven into this state by the outward heat, it simultaneously creates the change of the cloud into water, and immediately upon being formed, it freezes the water and creates hail ^B.

19. This happens when the freezing of the water is faster than its downward motion; for since both the downward descent of the water takes time, and the freezing also takes time, when freezing occurs in less time than the descent, the water freezes while it is still high up in the region of the cloud.

20. The closer to the earth these changes take place, the more violent they are because of the heat of the place; the raindrops are much larger, the rains more torrential, and the hailstones very large and not round in shape, because they are carried over only a short distance, and their extremities are not broken off by a long interval of falling, which happens to those that are carried from further away ^C.

21. Large raindrops do not fall densely, both because their transformation occurs nearby, and because the first ones are carried down before the others are generated, and because these do not divide during their descent, in the way that those carried from a great height are cut up and divided by their long journey downward, and, becoming smaller, fall densely.

22. Hailstones occur mostly in the spring and toward the end of autumn; rarely in the [early] autumn, and even less frequently in winter; and then, only when there is less ^D

^A cold. In general, they occur in more temperate places and in warmer seasons due to the cause of antiperistasis. They do not often occur in summer, even though it is warmer, because of a lack of moisture, which is abundant in the spring, remaining from the winter. And the end of autumn also already becomes moist. Indeed, hailstones occur even at the end of autumn, and more so as it winds down, because there is already moisture, and also because the air that is being transformed into water has been previously warmed. For this also contributes somewhat to the speed of the cooling. For things that have been previously warmed cool more quickly and more intensely. 23. It is said that around Arabia and Ethiopia, the rains occur ^B in the summer, not in the winter, and these are torrential and often happen within the same day. And the cause of such an event is attributed to antiperistasis, which occurs because the region is intensely warm. For if the summer is extremely dry in those parts, nevertheless in other regions the matter for the rains is collected, and by the annual winds is driven toward the mountains there, where it gathers and generates the rains that are documented.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XV, WHICH IS ON FOUNTAINS AND RIVERS.

1. He removes the untrue cause of the generation of fountains and rivers, and proves the removal, and elucidates it with the argument of waters flowing down from the clouds. 2. He indicates the true causes and explains them, which are the same as the causes of the waters descending from above. 3. Anticipation. 4. He institutes a comparison of the generation of waters above and below the earth. 5. He establishes the difference between fountains and springs. 6. He pronounces that most and the greatest fountains have their beginning from higher mountains, to which many neighboring springs also belong; because indeed mountains of this kind, while they receive much rainwater into themselves, at the same time produce much [water] themselves from the vapors generated within them. 7. He infers as if by a corollary that rivers which seem to arise from pools nonetheless have their beginnings in the mountains. 8. From which mountains perennial rivers arise, and from which rivers of short duration arise. 9. He proposes the opinion of others concerning the origin of fountains, and refutes it first for the sake of argument. 10. He proves the same according to his own true opinion, and reconciles it with that previously mentioned opinion of the physicists.

CHAPTER XV. On fountains and rivers.

1. Fountains do not flow out of the earth as if from some vessel or cavity containing a large mass of collected water, as it has seemed to some. For there are indeed some cavities within the earth that are capable of holding waters, from which, when they are filled in winter, some outflow of water occurs. But this would not be the cause of ^C fountains. For the earth would certainly not suffice for such large receptacles of water; just as neither would the clouds, if they themselves also had to hold within themselves all the water that is to fall as rain, which already pre-existed; and not that one part is carried down, while another is being generated in its turn.

2. Wherefore, rather, those things which are judged to be the causes of the waters falling to the earth (for the material cause of them is vapor; the efficient cause is cooling) these same [things] will also be the causes of the waters returned from the earth. For just as the air that evaporates above the earth ^D is transformed into water when it cools; so also we must assume that under

^A the earth, water is generated from the vapors that are within it, because of the cold that is inherent in the earth.

3. Now the earth indeed receives the water brought down into it from the rain, and covers this within itself. But it is also able to generate other water continuously in places within it that are suitable for this.

4. Just as, therefore, in the region above the earth, droplets are first formed little by little, and then, mingling with one another, they are finally brought down in abundance, creating some river flowing from above; in precisely the same way also under the earth, water is first collected from tiny droplets, as if the earth were sweating—both the water that sinks into it from the rains and that which is generated within it—and as if the earth were leaping into one, ^B springs and fountains arise.

5. Springs, then, are the primary sources of rivers; but fountains are small springs, since each one of them is unable to produce a river-flow of its own.

6. Furthermore, most of the greatest rivers flow from the highest mountains. Most fountains are also adjacent to mountains and flow down from the mountains. For in the plains there are very few fountains, springs, and flows of water, apart from those of rivers which run through the plains but have their origin in the mountains. For mountainous and high places, like certain sponges hanging over the lowlands, are broken through little by little in many places, and give back the water which they receive and preserve within themselves from the rains because of their density. Furthermore, such places also cool the vapor rising ^C from the depths through them and change it into water, so that this also, once it has become so, flows out from them—and not only that which pre-exists in them from the rains.

7. Consequently, even those rivers which appear to flow from marshes have their first sources from higher places. For there, the water is collected and flows together and, undermining the marshes, is given out from them as from springs.

8. If, therefore, the mountains that overlook [a region] are very large, dense, and cold, the rivers flowing from them are perennial. For such places both receive and hold and produce a great deal of water. But as for those rivers whose mountain formations hanging over them are small, or porous, ^D and stony, and clay-like, or white and, as it were, chalky—such rivers fail in water before the winter rains arrive.

9. But if these things are so, how could it be deemed reasonable that springs originate from the sea, as if the sea water were filtered and strained through the earth, and thus rendered sweet and returned, as not a few natural philosophers have argued? For if this were the case, it would be logical for springs to flow from the more hollow places, and not from the higher ones.

^A Moreover, this also seems to contribute to the origins of springs. Since the earth is porous and tunnelled, and has, as it were, certain veins, it necessarily receives water from the sea throughout its entirety by distribution and derivation, with the moisture passing from the parts of the earth nearest to the sea toward the more distant ones, and from there providing an abundance of vapors to the earth; and as these are raised up and cooled, as has been said before, a great generation of water will occur.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XVI: WHICH IS ABOUT THE SEA.

CHAPTER XVI.

Regarding the sea.

1. ^B Of the waters that are around the earth and in the earth, some are flowing, and some are stagnant. And all flowing ones have the principles of their flow from some springs, whether they have arisen of their own accord, like rivers, or are produced by hand, like those led out through channels. Furthermore, of the stagnant waters, some are from springs, and some are collected. And of these, some are produced by hand, and some have arisen by themselves. Those that are spring-based and produced by hand are well-waters. For wells are dug and prepared for the catching and containment of the water flowing around them. But those stagnant waters that are spring-based and have arisen by themselves, which possess small springs and the hollows of places, cannot flow out and dissipate. But of the collected waters, which are either from rain or from the influx of rivers, some have receptacles prepared by art, others are gathered into hollows in the earth, which also differ in quantity and scarcity. And if they possess a great quantity, they are called lakes; but if they are few, they are called marshes ^C or stagnant pools.

2. Since these things are so, the claim that the sea is handcrafted and fashioned rests on no reason. But since it has arisen by itself, it must be either flowing or stagnant. And, indeed, it is not flowing. For where would it flow? But among the many who have traveled around the Hyrcanian and Caspian sea, which appear to have no connection with one another in any part, no one has found any outflow for either of them.

^A 3. The sea appears to flow through narrow places where there is an open sea on either side. For wherever the sea is gathered from a wide open expanse into a narrow strait by the surrounding earth being higher, it appears to flow past this point and then back again, because the water is tossed to and fro there many times. This also happens in the open sea; but it is not evident there because the land surrounding it on either side is not near, against which the ebb and flow might be recognized as it hits it.

^B 4. The sea also flows from its higher regions to the deeper ones because of the multitude of rivers that empty into those higher parts of it. For it is natural for water to be carried down from higher places to the hollows and to flow. There are, however, in the sea some parts that are higher and others that are deeper. Yet, however the sea may flow, it returns into itself and does not empty into another receptacle, just as rivers flow into it. For this reason, the water of the sea is stagnant and not flowing.

^C 5. If it is stagnant, it must be either from a spring or gathered. But if it were from a spring, it would surely be flowing. For of the waters that originate by their own nature from springs, few are found to be stagnant. For that which has its beginning from a greater spring cannot be stagnant. For this reason, those lakes that have their beginnings from springs either make visible outflows or are recorded as flowing to the sea through subterranean channels; just as the lake beneath Mount Caucasus, which the inhabitants there call a sea because of its size. For this lake, receiving many and great rivers flowing into it and having no visible outflow, goes under the earth and finally, near the Coraxi, at the so-called deeps of the Pontus, vomits up the waters it has received. ^D Whence also, far from land, at a distance of nearly three hundred stadia, it sends forth potable water in many places.

6. Since therefore the water of the sea is stagnant and not from a spring, as is shown, it remains that it must be gathered. Yet it could not be gathered from the rivers flowing into it, even if they were many and great. For if this were the case, the water of the sea would have been less in ancient times and would have been constantly increasing. Rather, it would have had its beginnings from springs than from rivers; and in that way, it would again be flowing.

7. Those who rely on human wisdom are ready to declare that the sea, just like the whole world, is without a beginning. But those who have acquired knowledge through the instruction of the Holy Spirit have been taught that neither the sea nor the rest of the world is without a beginning, but they have heard: "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth" 1. And again: "Let there be a firmament, and let the water under the firmament be gathered into one

^A gathering"—that is, let there be an assembly and let it exist by itself—"and let the dry land appear." For the phrase "into one gathering" does not signify being in one single place. For behold, the divine voice again called the systems of water "seas."

8. Just as, therefore, the Creator assigned a proper place to each of the other elements, so too did He for the water. And it seems to the physicists as well that the place which the sea occupies is not a "sea's" place, but simply that of water. Whence also all rivers are borne toward the sea as toward their proper place. For by nature the flow of water is toward the deeper part, and the sea occupies the deepest place of the earth.

^B 9. Now the saltness and bitterness which the sea possesses appear to be derived from the fact that it stands still and is constantly being exhaled by the sun. For as it remains in place, the sun draws up the thinner part, but leaves behind the part which is thicker—which is, as it were, a superfluity of the water, and is salty and bitter. For just as in the bodies of animals, when drinkable moist food has entered, that class of superfluity which is collected in the bladder becomes bitter and salty, because the drinkable part is drawn up by the innate heat of the animals and is distributed into the flesh and the rest of the body's substance as is natural; so also must it be thought to occur in the case of water. For since the whole ^C is fresh, because its drinkable part is separated out through evaporation by the heat of the sun, that which is left behind—being as it were a kind of superfluity of the whole—is both salty and bitter.

10. Now, though a great multitude of water flows into the sea every day, the sea does not grow any larger because of it. For all that flows into it is scattered into an immense breadth, and it is quickly and imperceptibly dried up. Nor, on the other hand, is the sea found to be any smaller, even though many exhalations arise from it daily; for the water which has evaporated from the sea is brought back in turn, both by the rivers flowing into it and by the rain which falls into it. And to speak in one word, the cause of the mass of marine water not increasing is the abundance of the ascending ^D vapors; and the cause of its not diminishing, on the other hand, is the water entering from without.

11. Therefore, the sea does not become sweeter because of the water coming from without, nor, conversely, does it become saltier and more bitter because of the exhalations, but almost always retains the same quantity and quality of water.

12. Consequently, those who make the sea to be without beginning consistently say that its quality is also without beginning. But they who have learned the generation of the sea from the holy Scriptures know also the beginning of this quality, following both spiritual and natural dogmas alike. For since by the command of God the water covering the earth was separated from the firmament, that

^A separation did not take place rashly or by chance, but as it was fitting; so that whatever was thinner, more airy, and lighter than the whole was separated and placed above, while the thicker, more earthy, and heavier part was left below, just as it is seen to happen even now when it is separated by the sun. For what the sun now does in a short space of time, the firmament then performed at once. Such thick, heavy, and earthy water, then, by divine nod, formed the seas, having been gathered into receptacles which did not previously exist, but were created later when the collection of water took place. Hence, the fact that the firmament was made in the midst of the water, and divides between water and water, should not be taken to mean that the separation of water was completed with an equality of quantity—such that there was as much water left below the firmament as there was above it, and that the region between the earth and the firmament was therefore filled with waters, which only later arrived at its present state through the gathering of the waters into their own place. For since the whole earth bears a minimal proportion (I would not say none, according to the natural philosophers) to the sphere of the firmament, what cavities could be conceived ^B of this sphere that would be at all sufficient for receiving such a quantity of water? Rather, it must be supposed that the firmament being made in the midst of the water signifies that the body of the firmament was created simply amidst the water; and that its dividing between water and water means nothing else than that it took up, lifted, and carried upwards whatever was light; and that it left below what was entirely most earthy—what one might call the dregs, sediment, and saltiness of the water—and that it acts as a medium between water and water; yet the water which is above the firmament is of an infinite multitude if compared with that which is under the firmament, and it surpasses almost every proportion.

13. If, therefore, the separation of the thinner water effected by solar heat seems to be the cause of the saltness and bitterness in the sea—because, according to natural philosophy, the presence of an igneous faculty is the natural cause of the generation of such qualities in humors (for whatever heat cannot ^C attract to itself during separation becomes salt, such as ash, and sweat in animals, and other superfluities)—then the prior cause of the sea having its quality would be that first such separation made by the firmament. For it is agreed by all natural philosophers that the firmament is of the same nature as the sun, both those who call the aether a fifth body, and those who recognize everything that falls under the senses as being composed of the four elements; and from this they pronounce that the entire mundan structure above the moon was generated from the most pure and refined elements, with the purer fire predominating.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XVII: ON THE WINDS AND REMAINING FLATUS (EXHALATIONS)

1. He divides exhalation into vaporous and smoky, each being so named from the excellence of its own quality; the former is the material cause of rains, the latter of winds and blasts. 2. He exposes the mode in which, just as not every flowing water is called a river, but only that which has a spring as the source of its flow, so not every blast is called a wind; for the pattern is clear even as to what a wind is. 3. When the vaporous exhalation predominates, rainy years arise; when the smoky predominates, windy and dry years. 4. Sometimes in an entire region there arises a surplus of rains, or winds and dryness, because the parts of that region have the same disposition toward the sun; at other times this happens only in a certain part, because exhalations do not always remain in the same region, but sometimes migrate from one to another, propelled by certain blasts. 5. He infers and concludes from the above that the matter of winds is a hot and dry exhalation, and by occupation he teaches that winds nevertheless do not appear hot, because they disturb the air, which is full of a much colder vapor, a fact he also declares by an example taken from the blowing of the human mouth. He explains the mode by which winds arise above and below the earth from the hot and dry exhalation, namely that of thickening, condensation, and coalescence; just as water is generated from vapor above and below the earth. 7. The matter of winds is indeed a hot and dry exhalation, but not unmixed and unconfused—that is, not pure and sincere; this is argued by the generation of winds in the quiet air near the earth. 8. He institutes a comparison of the concretion of waters above and below the earth with the concretion of winds, and indeed of rivers and winds themselves. 9. He also shows that winds do not arise from a solely and purely hot and dry exhalation by their oblique motion. 10. He enumerates twelve winds blowing from the four quarters of the world. 11. He commemorates the qualities and various effects of the winds with respect to Greece, where the author was, of which some are serene, others humid, others snowy, others sultry, others blanket the sky with clouds, others bring lightning, and others cause hail. 12. He teaches which winds are such—that is, squalls and squally winds. 13. He explains which winds are contrary to each other and enumerates them in kind, which member, like the following one, is best understood from a diagram. 14. He declares still more specifically which winds are eastern, which western, which northern, and which southern. 15. He divides winds into stronger and weaker according to the diversity of places. 16. He enumerates other species of winds as well: apogaeos, encolpias, typhonicos, ecnephias, and exhydrias. 17. He parts winds from the line of their motion into euthypnoos and anacampsipnoos. 18. He shows which winds are called etesiae and ornithiae. 19. He describes violent blasts: calaegis, thyella, lelape, strobilos, and the earth's anaphysema or aspiration.

CHAPTER XVII

On the winds and the remaining blasts.

^A α'. Since the exhalation is twofold, the one vaporous and moist, the other smoky and dry, neither of these is found without the other, but both are present together; and the whole is named from that which predominates. Therefore, the exhalation having a greater share of moist is the beginning of the rain that falls; but that which has a greater share of dry is recognized as the beginning, cause, and matter of the winds and the remaining blasts.

β'. Just as not every water that flows in any way is called a river, but only that which has a spring as the beginning of its nature, so not every blast is called a wind, but that which has a spring as the beginning of its own nature; for the exhalations from the earth are indeed blasts, because they blow, but ^B they are not winds.

γ'. When, therefore, the vaporous exhalation predominates, then years are wont to become rainy; but when the dry and smoky predominates, then the years become windy and dry.

δ'. Sometimes it happens that rain or winds and dryness occur simultaneously over a large and continuous region, but sometimes also by parts. For often the surrounding country receives the rains, while some part of it is left dry; or conversely, when the surrounding country is dry, some part of it is found to have a surplus of rain. And the cause may be that in most cases the same condition extends over a wider region, because the parts of the earth near one another have a similar relation toward the sun, which is the cause of the exhalations, unless by some special position ^C certain places differ

have such motions toward the sun differing from those they are adjacent to. Yet, sometimes it happens that the dry exhalation predominates in one part, and the moist in the adjacent part; and conversely. The reason for this is that sometimes the dry [exhalation] remains flowing along the country from which it is raised; and similarly for the moist one from which it is raised. Or, these things are exchanged and pushed by certain winds: the moist one [pushed] to where the dry is, and the dry to where the moist is; or the one remains where it was carried up, while the other is pushed to some other region.

5. They say, then, that the matter of winds is a hot and dry exhalation; and that winds do not appear hot because they move air which is full of a great deal of cold vapor. For thus, the breath exhaled through the mouth is hot near the mouth, but cold further away for the same reason.

6. Perhaps, then, winds might have their origins from hot exhalation, just as rains do (for all exhalation, both dry and moist, is exhaled and carried upward because of the heat it contains). But just as vapor, through cooling, is thickened and condensed and can change into water, it would not, perhaps, be absurd to assume that the hot and dry exhalation is likewise thickened and condensed and coalesces into wind. And just as from the moister exhalation water is formed above the earth and under the earth, so in turn from the drier one, wind is formed both above and below the earth.

7. The matter of winds, then, would be hot and dry exhalation, not unmixed nor pure, since such exhalation passes through to the fuel [the fire-sphere]; but the formation of winds occurs near the ground in the air which is at rest, not in that which is dragged along by the ether together with the fuel. For otherwise all winds would be carried around in the same space; but as it is, some even blow against one another. Furthermore, it is reported in histories that some of the higher mountains are above the clouds and above the winds. Therefore, where the clouds form, there also the winds seem to form.

8. And just as drops, forming bit by bit at first, then mixing with one another, are finally brought down in great numbers; and as water on the earth, trickling little by little as the earth becomes moist and then gathering into one, creates the sources of rivers; in the same way, the formation of winds also occurs. For when many exhalations have gradually gathered together with one another, the winds emerge into visible magnitude. Wherefore they are also smallest where they begin to blow; but as they proceed they grow and become large, as exhalations are added to them during their forward progress, causing them to increase. This is also seen to happen with great rivers. For in the beginnings of their flows

^A they are small, since many of them originate from springs, but as they progress they grow larger, with various streams flowing into them.

9. That the generation of winds is not from a dry and hot exhalation alone is evident also from their motion; for each of them would be carried upward if its substance consisted of an exhalation of that kind. As it is, however, the motion of all the winds is in a sense lateral and oblique.

10. Furthermore, twelve winds in all are observed to blow: from the equinoctial sunrise, the Apeliotes, called the Hellespontias by the Sicilians, the Carnabas by the Phoenicians, and the Berecyntias by those dwelling on the Pontus; from the equinoctial sunset, the Zephyrus, called Favonius in Latin; from the summer sunrise, the Caecias; from the summer sunset, the Argestes, which is also called the Olympias, Iapyx, and Sciron; from the winter sunrise, the Eurus; from the winter sunset, the Lips; from the regions about the north pole, Boreas, which is properly called the Aparctias; and from the southern regions, the Notus, called Auster ^B by the Romans. Between the Aparctias and the Argestes is the Thrascias; between the Caecias and the Aparctias is the one called Meses—this one, according to custom, we are accustomed to call Boreas or Aquilo—between the Notus and the Lips is the Libonotus, as if one were to say "Afric-auster"; between the Vulturnus and the Notus is the Euronotus, which is also called the Phoenicias, as if one were to say "Vulturn-auster," which is also called Vulturnauster.

11. Of these, the Aparctias, the Thrascias, and the Argestes are clear-weather winds ^C in our parts, because they drive the clouds away from us, as they are more northerly. They are clear-weather winds when they do not happen to be very cold, so that they freeze the exhalation and the clouds before they are pushed away. However, the Caecias is not always a clear-weather wind, because it reflects back upon itself from where it begins. For it does not move laterally in a straight line, but in a curve, having the convexity directed toward the earth. Inclining upward and striking the clouds, it does not push them away, but brings them toward the place from which this wind itself blows. This happens to it because, blowing closer to the earth, certain protruding parts of the earth stand in its way, and in this manner the motion of this wind ^D reverses upward. Furthermore, of the winds, the Lips, Caecias, and Apeliotes are the most humid; the Argestes and Eurus are dry, although the Eurus is dry at the beginning, but naturally becomes watery toward the end. The Meses and Aparctias are most prone to bring snow, for they are the coldest; while the Notus, Zephyrus, and Eurus are conducive to storms. The Caecias crowds the sky with thicker clouds, while the Lips does so with somewhat thinner ones. The Aparctias, Thrascias, Argestes, and also the Meses, bring lightning. For being cold because they blow closer to us and originate from the cold arctic regions, they condense the clouds because of their coldness. And when the clouds are condensed, the heat trapped within them is gathered into one, and by the violence of the rapid motion, it is forced out in a mass and ignited. Of these—

^A some are hail-producing, because the water that is squeezed out freezes quickly due to the cold and solidifies into ice. For it is believed that hail is formed in this way as well.

12. ^B There also arise *ecnephiae*—that is, squalls (winds which break forth when they have been shaken from the clouds, which the Greeks therefore call *ecnephiae*): the North, the Thrascias, and the Corus. For they are generated when, as some winds are blowing, others fall upon them and suppress them. When, therefore, those that were blowing first have driven away the clouds, those that fall upon them from the opposite quarters seem to blow from the clouds themselves. These winds fall especially upon those that are already blowing, both because they blow from nearby and because they are violent with momentum.

13. Now, since those things that are furthest apart in space are locally opposite—and things are furthest apart when they are separated by a diameter—the equinoctial sunrise and the equinoctial sunset are diametrically opposed to one another, as viewed within the same horizon; and again, the summer sunrise and the winter sunset; and conversely, the winter sunrise and the summer sunset; and in a similar manner, finally, the North and the South. Since these things are so, it is manifest that the winds blowing ^C from opposite places blow against one another. Hence, the Subsolanus blows against the Favonius, the Caecias against the Africus, the Vulturnus against the Corus, and the Aquilo against the Auster; similarly, the Thrascias against the Phoenicias, and the Meses against the Africo-Auster. One must understand the position of the winds and their local opposition by means of a diagram.

14. The eastern winds, then, are the Caecias, the Subsolanus, and the Vulturnus; the first from the summer sunrise, the second from the equinoctial, and the third from the winter sunrise. The western winds are the Corus, the Favonius, and the Africus; the first from the summer sunset, the second from the equinoctial, and the third, the Africus, from the winter sunset. The Septentrional or Northern winds are the Thrascias, the Septentrio, and the Meses, which is usually called the Aquilo; of these, the Thrascias blows from the right parts of the Bear and as if towards the west, approaching the summer sunrise; the Septentrio from the middle of the Bear; ^D and the remaining one, to be sure, the Meses, from the left parts of the Bear. The meridional or Southern winds are the Vulturnuster, the Auster, and the Africauster; the first from the right of the meridian, that is, nearest the winter sunrise; the second, actually the Auster, from the middle meridian; and the third, the Africauster, from the left.

15. Moreover, some winds are borne more strongly or more weakly in different regions. Some also prevail in certain places in a peculiar manner, having their origin from those places.

16. As for these, those that blow from rain-soaked land are called *apogei* (as if born of the earth); those that burst forth from bays are called *encolpiae* (as if sinuous). Those that originate from rivers and lakes have a certain proportion to these. As for those winds that are formed by the breaking of a cloud, if they are accompanied by the dissolution of the entire...

produced by a reciprocal density ^A of their parts, they are named typhonici, which in Latin are called turbines; but if they are less dense, they are named ecnephiae, that is, storms; and those, finally, which are stirred up by the sudden breaking of a cloud accompanied by water are called exhydriae, as if they were water-pourers.

17. Furthermore, those winds which travel in straight lines are called euthypnoi, that is, those having straight blasts; but those which turn back toward their own principles, as does the Caicias, are called anacampsipnoi, that is, those endowed with reflex blasts.

18. Some winds are also called etesiae (annual), which blow during the summer and have a mixture from both the northern and western winds; others are ornithiae, as one might say, "bird-winds," which are certain vernal and northern winds.

19. Finally, among the violent blasts, a *cataegis* is a wind which strikes suddenly from above with great force. *Thyella* is a wind which is moved with a powerful rush and suddenly leaps forth while blowing. *Laelaps* and *strobilos* is a wind that coils upward from below. An *anaphysema* of the earth is a wind that is carried upward as if it were an exhalation of breath from some depth or fissure. And when it is carried along coiling, being voluminous and hot, it is called a terrestrial *prester*.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XVIII, WHICH IS ABOUT THE EARTHQUAKE

1. From what material and efficient cause the earthquake happens. 2. Earthquakes generally occur in calm weather, even if sometimes they occur when winds have arisen, yet they are smaller. 3. Earthquakes occur more and larger; because those times are most silent from winds. 4. Of the earthquakes that occur by day, many and stronger ones occur around midday, because midday is the hottest part of the entire day. 5. Earthquakes occur most violently in narrow and fluctuating seas. 6. Regions also whose subterranean places are spongy and cavernous are shaken more frequently by earthquakes. 7. ^B occur most at the end [of seasons], more rarely in summer and winter. 8. They are generated in both arid and rainy seasons, and indeed in rainy ones, for two reasons. 9. A similar process is used for the breath of animals intercepted and enclosed within their bodies. 10. He divides the earthquake into that which is trembling and that which is like a pulse and palpitation. 11. The trembling one happens more frequently and along the breadth of the earth. 12. The one similar to a palpitation arises more rarely and along the depth of the earth. 13. Where, however, it arises, it is most violent, as is recognized from its effects. 14. Some earthquakes are produced by wind generated inside the earth, others by wind that has slipped into the earth from outside, as he also said in the second preceding part; an example of the latter is in that celebrated Achaean earthquake by which Burra and Helice were leveled and submerged in the waters. 15. Through epidiaeresis he recounts various species of earthquakes: epiclinias, brastas, chasmatias, theclas, ostas, palmatias, mycetias. 16. Earth-groans often happen even without an earthquake. 17. Analogous phenomena also happen in the sea to the said earthquakes.

CHAPTER XVIII. On the Earthquake.

1. An earthquake ^C seems to happen when the exhalation, which is named from that which dominates it as being hot and dry, is taken downward under the earth, and is collected and gathered into one, and from this a vehement spirit is formed, and it fills the inner cavities of the earth, and it is moved violently and at the same time shakes the portion of the earth lying above it.

2. Whence also many and great earthquakes occur in calm weather and when there is no wind. For when the exhalation is moved continuously, it for the most part assumes its first impetus

^A so that it either inclines and is carried entirely outside the earth or inside. Nor is it foreign to reason that some earthquakes occur even while winds exist. For sometimes several winds blow at the same time: when one of them rushes beneath the earth, it produces an earthquake while the other blows above. Such earthquakes are for the most part of smaller magnitude, because their principle and efficient cause is divided; just as winds blowing simultaneously are not entirely violent.

3. At night, and especially towards dawn, ^B the majority and the greatest of earthquakes occur. For nights are calmer than days, on account of the absence of the sun, as the surface of the earth cools and thickens, and the breaths begin their flow inwards, just as if an ebb of the breath were taking place towards the interior from the external flood and influx; this happens especially towards dawn, since at that time the winds are also naturally accustomed to begin to blow.

4. Of the earthquakes that occur during the day, the majority and the most powerful result around noon. For noon is generally calmer than the whole day, because the sun then, by sending down its rays more vertically and intensely, locks the exhalation into the earth, preventing its outward progression.

5. Furthermore, it happens that the most powerful ^C earthquakes occur in places where the sea is narrow and turbulent. For in such places, the breath, becoming violent and escaping forcibly from the earth, becomes the cause of earthquakes. For the sea provides a great supply of material for the breath, and by flowing through the narrows in a mass with the currents, and occupying the regions through which the breath is carried outside, it thrusts it into the depths. And that which has been thrust back and massed together moves the earth by its force.

6. And those regions which have subterranean parts that are spongy and cavernous are shaken more, as they receive much breath into their internal cavities and are moved by it.

7. Earthquakes occur ^D especially in spring and autumn; for these seasons are more windy. In summer and winter the winds are fewer; in winter, because the warm and dry exhalations are extinguished by the cold; in summer, again, because they dry up and are consumed on account of the heat.

8. But earthquakes also occur especially during droughts and during rainy periods. For during droughts, the air is windy; for this is what drought itself is—the state where the dry exhalation becomes more abundant than the moist. During rainy periods, however, the internal exhalation becomes more abundant. For the earth, possessing much fiery substance within, when drenched to its depths, lets off steam, just as one can see with lime. Therefore, as it steams, it contains more of the internal exhalation. Furthermore, because of the abundance of rain, water

the cavities of the earth are filled, and such an exhalation, being straitened and gathered into one by the water, is forced out. Whence, being abundant and pulled together into a small space, and severely compressed, and moving in this way, it also moves the earth.

9. Just as, therefore, the wind caught within the bodies of animals is the cause of tremors and pulses, or rather, of palpitations, it is accustomed to happen in a similar way in the earth.

10. Therefore, some earthquakes are trembling, while others are similar to a pulse or palpitation.

11. ^B The trembling kind occurs more frequently, namely when, because of the abundance of wind extending in breadth beneath the earth, the earth—being shaken—moves obliquely; for a tremor transfers the body that is affected by it obliquely. On the other hand, a earthquake that is similar to a pulse or palpitation arises very rarely in some places, namely when the earth is not moved obliquely, but from below to above.

12. Such an earthquake happens less often, because it is not so easy for such an abundant exhalation to be accumulated in the depths. For the separation and exhalation which takes place along the breadth of the earth is usually much greater than that which comes from the depths; since the sun also seems to be the greatest aid to the exhalation along the breadth, by heating the earth to such a distance.

13. ^C Where, however, the pulsative or palpitating earthquake occurs, it is most severe. For it breaks the earth, and overturns cities and regions; and sometimes stones are cast up by the force of the wind that causes such an earthquake, while at other times an abundance of water gushes out, sometimes cold and sometimes hot. For the wind also becomes the cause of movement for the water. For just as winds, when they are forced, move waves on the surface, so too, often in earthquakes, the wind beneath, when it is forced, is able to move the subterranean water. This indeed sometimes becomes even hot, either because of the immense heat of this earth, from which there is also an abundance of hot exhalations, or because of the narrowness of the place and the violence of the wind. For sometimes fire also has erupted, and reduced many cities to ash. For because of the narrowness of the place, while the spirit is moved violently and is torn apart and broken up and divided into small parts, it itself also catches fire and becomes flame. For flame is nothing other than wind combined with fire, that is, ignited wind.

14. Sometimes, therefore, the formation of the wind that causes the earthquake occurs below and within the earth; ^D at other times, a wind from among those which have been named, complete and perfect, is formed above and upon the earth, and then, having entirely flowed inside the bowels of the earth, it has caused a most powerful earthquake. Such as is recorded to have happened also around Achaia; whence also

^B maritime cities, Burra and Helice, were simultaneously thrown down and submerged by the incursion of the waves. For externally, the South wind was blowing, pushing the sea; but where the earthquake occurred, the North wind blew from the opposite direction, which, rushing from the quarter against the South wind, could not push the sea back because of the wind forcing it forward. But by obstructing and halting its progress, it caused a great mass of the sea to be gathered into one place. Then, being overcome by the multitude of the sea, as it was poured in all at once due to the wind pushing from behind, it became the cause of both the inundation and the earthquake: of the former, because it stopped the sea and caused a great quantity of it to be gathered into one place; of the earthquake, because, being overcome by this multitude of the sea, it pushed it against the land and shook it.

15. Furthermore, as to earthquakes, some say there are the inclined ones, which shake to the sides at acute angles; others are the *brastai* (boiling ones), which, from a similarity to effervescent water, toss up and down at right angles; others are the *chasmatiai*, as if one were to say "gaping" from the gulf; others are the *rhectai* (splitters), which open chasms and rend the earth; others are the *ostai* (pushers), which with a single thrust overturn what they have struck; others are the *palmatiai* (vibrators), which, as if reciprocating and correcting that which is being shaken by inclinations to either side and by vibrations, ^C always settle. There are also *mycetiai* earthquakes, which shake the earth with a roar.

16. Often, too, a sound of this kind occurs without an earthquake, when, clearly, the wind happens to be finer/thinner; so that while it strikes the earth, it is filtered through it and, not remaining inside, does not cause a constriction by being gathered. Therefore, because it is easily filtered through the earth, it does not shake it; but because it falls upon the masses of the earth—which, being hollow and having all sorts of shapes, cause a diverse sound—it produces a manifold noise, so that at times the earth appears to be bellowing.

17. Analogous to the things mentioned, it also happens in the sea. For there occur gulfs of the sea, and recessions, and very often incursions of waves; at times with a reciprocating motion, at times with a simple forward movement. Frequently also there occur eruptions of fire in the sea, ^D and gushings of springs, and outbursts of rivers, and currents and whirlpools; sometimes in the middle of the seas, sometimes in the straits and passages. And many tides and elevations of waves recur along with the moon at certain fixed times; since, being nearer than the rest of the planets, it changes these things, both those on the earth and those in the sea.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XIX. WHICH IS CONCERNING THUNDER AND LIGHTNING, CONCERNING THE ECNEPHIAS, THAT IS TO SAY THE STORM, AND THE VORTEX, WHICH IS CALLED TYPHON, AND THE IGNITED TURBINE, WHICH THE GREEKS CALL PRESTER, AND THUNDERBOLT.

1. It shows from what material, where, and how thunder is generated. — 2. It defines thunder and explains similar phenomena. — 3. It assigns the cause why the sounds of thunder are various and disparate. — 4. It describes the generation of lightning. — 5. It assigns the cause why, although thunder precedes lightning, yet the lightning is seen...

before it is heard, and it explains this by a comparison taken from the rowing of a boat. — 6. It explains when only thunder and lightning occur, and when also an ecnephias is generated, whose origin it declares by a comparison, and finally it subjoins its description. — 7. It teaches when and how a typhon or vortex is generated in the clouds, which it also explains by a comparison to the whirlwind that sometimes arises on the earth; from which, however, it differs in that the former has a continuous excretion, just like the ecnephias. — 8. It assigns the cause why the vortex is also carried downward to the earth, which is that the condensation of the cloud from which the spirit is excreted begins in the upper part, and therefore the excretion of the spirit occurs in the opposite, that is to say, the lower part. — 9. It recounts some evident general and special effects of the vortex. — 10. It explains how the prester differs from the vortex, that is to say, that the latter lacks igneous heat, while the former is a burning whirlwind, and even stains the air with an igneous color; and furthermore it subjoins what lightning is called, and finally proposes a comparison of the vortex, the prester, and the lightning. — 11. It distinguishes the excretion of spirit that causes thunder and lightning from that which is the cause of lightning, which it also defines. — 12. It enumerates two species of lightning, the clear and the fuliginous, and describes both by their properties and effects, also exposing the nomenclature of the latter. — 13. It also enumerates and describes other species of lightning, the helicias and the scepton. — 14. It relates that all lightning both precedes and follows a certain spirit devoid of inflammation; such as is also sometimes excreted in thunder, which itself also, and not the sound, splits and dissipates other bodies. — 15. It explains the cause why every spirit excreted from the clouds is carried downward, which it also demonstrates from the contrary motion of some heavy bodies moving upward.

CHAPTER XIX.

1. When vapor and dry exhalation are mixed together and brought up from the earth, and when both are in a place further removed from the earth (which is very cold because the solar rays' reflections from the earth are weakened therein), and the dry exhalation is separated and carried to the fuel related to it, while the vapor contracts cold and condenses and thickens into clouds; whatever part of the dry exhalation has been included in such a condensation of clouds, when it is gathered together, it becomes a blast; then, as the clouds thicken further and come together, it is violently excreted from them. And finally, while the blast is so violently excreted and strikes into the density of the clouds, it produces a sound.

2. This is what is called thunder, a blast entangled in a thick and moist cloud, and violently rushing out through that very cloud, and thus breaking the continuous thick patches of the cloud, and from thence producing a great rumble and crash; just as the air violently driven into water produces the turmoil of the waves.

3. Since, however, the density of the clouds is uneven (for in some places it is greater, in others less), and indeed some cavities also exist within the clouds (for the inner parts of the clouds are not equally dense as the outer parts, but they lack the continuity of density); for these reasons the sounds are manifold and uneven. For the blast which is excreted, if it strikes against denser concretions, produces stronger sounds: but if against rarer ones, according to the proportion, weaker ones. And thus, then, is the matter of thunder.

4. But the blast which is expelled, and by its impact against the clouds makes the thunder, is for the most part ignited with a thin and weak conflagration. Therefore, in whatever part this blast which has been excreted is seen to erupt from the clouds tinted with an igneous color, we call it lightning. ^A

^A Since sight perceives its own proper objects before hearing, for this reason, before the thunder is heard, the lightning is seen. This happens just as it does in rowing: for when the oars are already being lifted out of the water, then at last the first sound, which was made in the downward stroke, is heard, while the sight has long since perceived the oars being lowered into the water and striking it.

6. When the blast which is squeezed out of the clouds is thin, and does not have a continuous generation and excretion, but is produced and excreted many times ^B and in small amounts, and consequently does not persist but is dispersed—then it produces thunders and lightnings in the manner described. But when the blast is more corporeal, that is, less thin, and has a dense and continuous generation and excretion, so that it does not vanish but persists—then it creates the wind which is called *eknephias* (nubigena). For just as when the moist exhalation is abundant, when the change into water occurs, the rest of the vapor which is of the same nature changes along with the one that first changed, and a continuous and heavy rain is produced: in the same way, when the dry exhalation predominates, when the blast is generated and excreted, it follows upon the first generation and excretion, and everything else that is of the same nature does likewise. ^C And thus the *eknephias* wind is generated: a great and continuous blast, bursting forth from the cloud itself, being excreted all at once and moving with violence because of the speed of its excretion.

7. When the blast that is being excreted happens to be rolling in a circle, and is borne downward along with the infusion of the cloud, then it is called a whirlwind (*typhon*). This occurs when the blast being excreted from the cloud strikes another cloud and is hindered from its straight path. Just as when wind flowing from a wide place into a narrow one is put under pressure—in gates, for instance, or narrow paths. For it often happens in such places, when the leading portion of the flowing body cannot advance because it finds no passage, either ^D due to the narrowness of the place or because another blast is blowing against it, that a circle and vortex of the blast is formed. For the part of the blast that is in front cannot pass through, while that which flows up from behind presses on the passage; and one resists, while the other pushes. Therefore, it is necessary for the following part of the blast to be borne sideways where there is no resistance, and so on, until the leading and resisting part of the blast is pushed out from the side, dislodged from the place it had occupied, and, having turned back, joins with the part being carried along from behind that is pushing it; and thus the whole becomes one thing: this shape is a circle. And thus, whirlwinds are formed on the earth. In the same way, among the clouds, when they collide with one another

^A at the beginning—for such is a whirlwind—except that, just as a storm arises, the expulsion of spirit is continuous (since wind, in the same way, is also continuous), the whirlwind likewise has a continuous expulsion from the cloud.

8. But because the spirit, due to the density of the cloud, cannot be purely expelled from it, but drags some of the cloud along with itself, for the aforementioned reason it is turned in a circle, yet it is carried downward toward the earth because the expulsion of the spirit happening from the cloud always takes place in the direction toward which the condensation of the cloud proceeds. Therefore, when the condensation, having begun from above, reaches the lower parts of the cloud, it is necessary that the expulsion of the spirit originating from there also be carried downward on account of the force.

9. Since, therefore, the whirlwind is carried downward and, due to the counter-impact, is swirled around in a circle, and thus being twisted, it makes a helix, that is, a circular-winding line; it moves all things upon which it falls by whirling them in a circle. On account of this, it often pulls up into the heights things contained upon the land or sea, since, having no exit, it returns to the same place. ^B And so, it often draws up water from the sea; indeed, it has even lifted a ship, having caught it in its vortex. From the land, it has in the same manner carried up wood, stones, and even animals. Whatever things are carried up by it, when they have been raised slightly into the heights, being contracted by extreme dryness due to the dryness of the spirit that carried them up, are carried back downward.

10. When, therefore, the spirit that is moved in this way is not infected with a fiery hue, such as that by which lightning is colored, then it is called a *typhon*, that is, a whirlwind, being as it were an uncooked storm. For the spirit of the *typhon* is not perfectly separated and freed from the cloud itself as is the blast of a storm, that is, a tempestuous wind; but it draws something of the cloud along with it because it is not cooked, so that one cannot be separated from the other. ^C When, however, that aforementioned spirit, being drawn down, is ignited, having been cooked in the movement and become more subtle, then it is called a *prester*, that is, an ignited whirlwind; because it sets the nearby air on fire in the conflagration, so as even to color it. But if in the cloud itself much subtle spirit is squeezed out, this becomes a thunderbolt. For the *typhon* has a thick expulsion; but the *prester* has a more subtle one than the *typhon*. And the thunderbolt is an expulsion of an even more subtle spirit.

11. But it differs from the expulsion that makes thunder and lightning, in that that one occurs in small parts, and sporadically, and at intervals, and has a weak inflammation. ^D The expulsion of thunderbolts, however, differs from that one both in subtlety, and furthermore in quantity; for the thunderbolt is a very subtle and abundant spirit, which is carried all at once and is vehemently ignited.

^A 12. But if the spirit is exceedingly subtle, yet does not burn the things upon which it falls, the poets call such a spirit a *argetes*, that is, a clear thunderbolt. But if it is not so subtle, but is carried while burning, it is named otherwise, namely *psoloen*, as if you were to say, a sooty thunderbolt. Therefore that which is called *arges*, that is, clear, penetrates the things upon which it falls before it burns or blackens them at all, both because of the velocity of its movement and because, on account of the tenuity of its substance, it makes its passage very quickly. But the other thunderbolt, which is not equally subtle and is carried more slowly, indeed colors the things it approaches, but even this penetrates them before it burns them. Therefore, those things that have offered resistance suffer something, while those that did not obstruct it suffer nothing; just as the bronze of a shield was melted because of its resistance, but the wood was not burned (for because of its rarity, the spirit was transmitted and penetrated through it first); and when it falls upon garments, it does not burn them, but wears them away. Thus, therefore, do burning thunderbolts behave; but those that leap forth quickly are called "clear" [argētes], as I think, by antiphrasis. ^B 13. Those thunderbolts that are carried in a spiral manner are called *heliche* [whorls]; those, however, that strike down onto something in a singular fashion are called *skeptoi* [bolts]. 14. Moreover, it is observed that an uninflamed spirit follows and precedes the thunderbolts. For those things upon which the thunderbolt is about to fall are set in motion even before the strike. But also those things that sometimes are split apart when thunder occurs do not seem to be split by the sound itself, but by the spirit that is separated from the clouds, which creates the sound because of its strike against the clouds. For this, having struck, caused them to split, but did not burn them. 15. Finally, every spirit that is separated is carried downward; although by nature it happens to be upward-tending because it is hot, yet because it is violently squeezed out from the clouds, which are thickening and constricting from above, it makes its excretion toward the contrary direction, that is, downward. For thus in turn some heavier bodies, and those which by nature tend downward, are moved upward, as if leaping out, because of the excretion that was made from below, just as we see things being squeezed out, and much water carried from below to a place above. ^{C D}

Synopsis of Chapter XX, which is about portents or specters that are seen in the sky.

CHAPTER XX.

Concerning the portents which are seen in the sky.

1. Often, when the night is clear, many specters are seen to appear in the sky, such as blood-red colors, chasms, and pits. The cause of all these is attributed to the ignition of the fuel.

2. For when the fuel is ignited, as stated before, its ignition is sometimes like a burning flame, and sometimes like torches or stars shooting forth. It is therefore not unreasonable that, with such combustions arising in it, various colors should appear. For light shining through dense air—or where the air is denser and the light less, or where the light is more abundant and the air less dense—creates the appearance of colors of every kind, but especially crimson and purple. For these colors appear to be formed most of all from the fiery and white elements mixed with black through opposition. Thus, indeed, stars that are rising or setting—when there is heat—appear crimson. For when they are seen through air that is denser and not similarly transparent, though they are white, they appear crimson, as the blackness by which the air is affected is mixed with the whiteness of the stars by diffusion. Such, too, are those seen through smoke. In general, the fiery and the white, when seen through or within the black, display many differences of color according to their varied mixture. For even the color of a flame appears now one way, now another, through smoke. When the smoke is somewhat more humid, the body of the flame appears purple; but it appears crimson when the smoke is less humid. In this way, then, do the different colors appear.

3. Chasms and pits, however, arise from a mixture of white and black, but not in such a way that the white is seen through the black, but rather that the black appears within the white. For when the continuity of light is interrupted by some black or blue, then some depth seems to appear; even though the white and the black are in the same plane and not removed from one another, but are both at an equal distance from us, the white seems to be nearer, and the black in a deeper and more remote place. For since light and white move the sight more, they are therefore seen as nearer; but the black, which does not move the sight in the same way, is thought to be farther away. When, therefore, the black appears more inward—because there is more of it than the white—it is then called a pit ^B; but when it appears open—because the light prevails—it is then called a chasm.

4. From such a constitution of the air—that is, from these pits and chasms—torches often also fall. For when the air gathers together and grows dense, and on account of this takes on blackness, it presents the appearance of a chasm and a pit; but when ^C the air which [contracts blackness]...

^A gathers together and is compressed more firmly, then the heat which is intercepted within it, because it is squeezed into a narrow space and moved, becomes fire and is violently expelled.

5. During the day, none of the aforementioned specters are seen, because the sun dissolves such congealments and renders those appearances invisible; but by night, both chasms and pits occur, as well as mixings of multi-colored tints. The crimson color is seen more clearly; but the rest of the colors often escape the sight on account of their similarity to the darkness, as, for instance, the purple and the green, for these are in a way the same color as black.

6. Of the specters appearing, however, some are at the east, others at the west, and others are seen between them; rarely do they appear in the north or south. All of them are unstable, and it is recorded that none of these is ^B ever manifest and fixed.

CHAPTER XXI. Of the halo, and firstly of vision.

1. Not only does light appearing beneath through thick and misty air provide an appearance of colors

and shapes, because the density and gloom of the air obscures ^A the light and does not allow it to be seen pure and sincere, but rather turbid and confused from such a mixture by obscuration; but the air also, receiving refractions, becomes the cause of the appearance of colors and shapes.

2. According to the opinion of mathematicians, ^A vision is refracted by thicker air possessing a certain concretion toward one of those things that have a natural faculty of illuminating, and according to the certain concretion or habit of the air and light, and furthermore according to the habit of the perceiving vision itself toward the condensed air and toward the light, the appearance of both colors and shapes is completed; but according to the teaching of natural philosophers, [it happens by] the refraction of light toward the vision, and not of the vision toward the light.

3. For mathematicians say that certain rays are poured out from the eyes and fall upon the visible object, and that these are the causes for us of seeing: namely, that these very rays, while they are refracted from mirrors and all ^B similar things to the visible object at equal angles, provide the cause for us to see in this way what is seen; but to the natural philosophers it does not seem that vision is completed through the emission of rays, but through the reception of the quality of the things that are seen. For they say that things seen in a straight line are discerned because the transparent medium between the visible object and the sight is affected by the color which is viewed, and communicates the affection to the vision, which is itself also transparent. And things that are said to be seen by refraction are seen in this way, since the image of the seen object is first made in mirrors ^C and all things of the nature of a mirror, because of a certain habit of the visible object toward the mirror; and the image of the visible object is made in the mirror through the transparent medium, which is between the mirror and the sight, the transparent medium being affected by the color of the seen object and communicating the affection to the transparent mirror [and to that which happens to be there]; and then in this way the aforementioned image comes from the mirror to the sight, again through that same transparent medium which exists between the mirror and the sight. For the mirror can, because of its smoothness and brightness, not only readily receive the color of the visible object communicated to it, but also keep it and send it back in turn to the transparent medium which first transmitted it to it.

4. That, therefore, a light-like and brightness-like spirit is secreted from ^D the eyes, even the nerves themselves, which send down such a spirit continuously flowing from the brain to the eyes, almost clearly proclaim; for these alone of all the nerves that are in the body are hollow and channelled. For this reason Herophilus also named them pores, that is, passages or channels.

5-8. That the light of the vision cannot by itself alone anticipate and comprehend all visible objects unless it is aided by external light, and as it were...

^A led by the hand; from this it is manifest that we do not see clearly, when light of such a kind is absent. For if it were possible that the visual brightness should cut through the air, we would see no less even in deep darkness. Just as if the external light were to bring the quality of a visible object to the eye through the air; the construction of the fistulous nerve for the eye would be truly superfluous, since no instrument of the other senses is provided with such a nerve. And we would see not only in a straight line, but now also from the sides and from behind, and those things that are above and those that are below; while the visible object was being carried from all parts to the visual instrument on account of the continuity of the air; just as also that which falls under hearing is carried to the instrument of hearing, and that which falls under smell is carried to the instrument of smell.

^B 9-11. But neither would we know the magnitude of the visible object. For how, for example, could the likeness of a mountain, which is so great in quantity, once transmitted to the eye itself, permit us to discern such a great magnitude, and not have deprived the obscured eye of such knowledge, as it would be unable to be coextended with such a great magnitude? But how also would the multitude of things lying next to each other be discerned, and why would not a confusion of the colors and shapes that are seen follow from their juxtaposition, as if they were being imparted entirely to the whole of the body containing them? For it is not reasonable that the transparent medium which intervenes between the visible object and the sight should suffer in terms of length, but remain unaffected in terms of breadth, as if it were not entirely of the same nature. And again, how would we distinguish the distance of that which is seen from us at all, and would not all visible things seem to be immediately near to us, if their likeness were to lie upon the eye?

12. Therefore, vision cannot proceed and penetrate to a great distance. But when it falls upon the transparent medium that contains [all things], or even by its first application works a change, it extends itself to the greatest continuous interval, until it apprehends the visible object, as one that is coextended with the light of the intervening air, as with a kin. For air is easily diffused and altered, more than anything else; and vision exists purely clear. And what the light of a lamp effects in a dark house (for, upon its first entry, it simultaneously illuminates the air within it), the same, clearly, it must be understood that vision also does in the light-filled air that intervenes between it and the visible object. For by its first impact, it is able to alter this air, receiving strength from the external light, and cooperating with it on account of their familiarity. ^D For visual light has much familiarity with external light, and the latter no less with the light of vision; to such an extent that both these lights seek each other, and the one is attracted by the stronger, resisting nothing at all, but rather accelerating toward the attraction, and naturally exerting itself toward its kin.

^A 13. Wherefore also the torch is seen by us in the dark of night, even though it be far off, provided that our vision is not obstructed by some more solid body intervening, or that the curves of the earth’s sphere do not hinder it—unless the flame of the torch overreaches these obstructions.

14. For this reason also we are able to see everything bright and luminous from afar, and more easily than anything else; for the object draws the vision toward itself, while the vision hastens toward it, as if longing to be one with it.

15. On account of this kinship of lights—the visual, that is, and the external—and their extreme familiarity and the overwhelming desire for mutual embrace, all things illuminated are seen with an ineffable swiftness, ^B provided that the visual instrument is sound, the distance moderate, and likewise the movement, if indeed there is any, exists in a purer and clearer air. For there is need of these also for the more sincere, integral, and expeditious act of vision.

16. But those who have been occupied for too long, or more than is proper, with sunlight or any other containing body that is bright and pure white, receive damage to their sight, because the visual light is broken apart by the stronger and greater one—the one that, as has been said, attracts the lesser and weaker; for it also longs for its own integrity, as it were, and hastens toward it.

17. Thus, therefore, since ^C vision operates by the convergence of light, it should be understood that among visible objects, some exist by substance, others by appearance; and those that appear in the heavens have this same arrangement. For those that exist by substance are the shooting stars, the comets, and various other luminaries; but those that exist by appearance are the halo, the rainbow, the parhelia [rods], and the like. For the air provides us with a display of colors and variegated shapes, receiving the refractions of both light and vision; since when vision operates, it is with light, and is itself light in the light, as has been shown.

18-21. Wherefore ^D such a refraction is also said to be the cause of the halo. For vision is refracted along with light by water, by dense air, and by all things that have a smooth surface. When, therefore, vapor has been lifted and condenses into a cloud, and the formation is uniform and of fine parts—that is, composed of small particles—and the sun, or moon, or some other bright star is carried above such a formation, that part which lies beneath the perpendicular of the body being carried above necessarily becomes rarer and thinner, being broken apart by the motion of the star; but what is distant from this suffers nothing of the sort. But when the breaking apart occurs equally from every side around the perpendicular because of the uniformity of the formation, it is necessary that the extremity

is formed, from which all that lies beyond is black due to condensation; yet being uniform and of small parts, it holds mirrors along the circumference of the circle: so small that they are, to the sense, partless; and so dense that they hold to one another, and what is composed from them all appears as one continuous whole. Into these mirrors, therefore, the sight, having fallen along with the light and having been reflected toward the star lying above, creates the appearance of the halo. ^B For in the stated mirrors there is an apparition of color alone, but not of shape. For every shape is divisible; but such mirrors are indivisible to the sense. And it is not possible for the divisible to appear in what is indivisible. Whence the white thing appearing in the circle—in the halo—is the star, appearing in each of the mirrors composed together with the others without form; but the circumference adjacent to this—which appears white—seems blacker due to the whiteness of the former. Perhaps it is also because such a formation holds an image of some blackness from the earth; since this also happens closer to the earth; because the place closer to the ground is more windless, and the wind can hinder the formation of the exhalation in which are the mirrors reflecting the color of the star; and if they do not reflect it clearly, nor purely, there is nothing to wonder at, since it is not always the case that the color of what is seen appears the same in the mirrors as it is in reality. For it is possible, while the object seen is brilliant, for an apparition of a different color to occur, either because the mirror is not brilliant, and because of this—through the mixture of its own color—it muddies the color of the visible object; or also because of the weakness of the viewing sight.

^C 22. The halo appears both at night and during the day; sometimes it is a complete circle, when the formation happens to be entirely uniform; sometimes it is a segment of a circle, when, obviously, such a formation is not uniform in every part.

23. Sometimes the halo is broken up; sometimes it fades away; and sometimes it forms more fully. And the surplus formation of the halo is a sign of water (for it is clear that the cloud is becoming denser); but the fading is a token of fair weather (for the formation is overcome by the heat and dryness within it, and thus it fades away). The breaking apart is an indication of wind; for already in that place there is wind, which has caused the breaking of the formation; even if it has not yet reached the ground. ^D Therefore, the wind also comes from that direction where the formation began to break up.

24. But the halo is significant in this way when it stands around the sun or the moon; when, however, around other

stars, it signifies nothing of note, since around them, even from slight and not yet condensed formations, a halo can be produced. But around the sun or the moon, such a slight formation can never occur; for it is quickly dissolved by the heat of the luminaries. For this reason, the halo forms less frequently around the sun. For the sun, being most hot, is able to dissolve these formations and condensations of air more quickly. ^B

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXII, WHICH IS ABOUT THE RAINBOW OR CELESTIAL ARC.

1. The cause of the halo being reflection, it is stated that the same is the cause of the rainbow. 2. The generation of the rainbow is described and taught, why it exhibits only the color of the sun and not its shape; and likewise how, with the cloud positioned, the sun and the sight, the rainbow is made and perceived. 3. The three circumferences of the rainbow, with what colors the encountering sight perceives. 4. The causes of the variety of colors in the rainbow are more fully explained. 5. The cause why the third circumference of the rainbow is purplish or blue, and thus appears darker, is confirmed from optical principles and other similar examples. 6. The explanation concerning the three colors of the rainbow is concluded, and the fourth, namely yellow, is taught to be generated not by refraction, but from the fact that the red and green are seen next to each other. 7. It proves that things less black, when viewed against things more black, appear whiter, from the lunar rainbow, which is white because it is seen only in a black cloud and at night. 8. The rainbow is variegated by the moon for two reasons. 9. Often there are two rainbows from the sun, but they have the opposite and inverted position and order of colors. 10. Concerning the opinion of others on the posterior rainbow. 11. Aristotle’s opinion and its confirmation; both why the colors of the posterior rainbow are more languid, and why they have the opposite position and order. 12. Why the interior, that is, the circumference lower to us, of the second rainbow is red. 13. Why the second, and therefore the circumference more distant from us, is green. 14. Why the outermost and most distant from us is purplish or sea-blue. 15. Objection. 16. A corollary, by which the reason is given why the corona is not varied in colors, like the rainbow. 17. Why the corona often appears as a perfect circle, and the rainbow never as more than a semicircle. 18. An objection, by which the reason is also rendered why such a damp condensation of a cloud does not occur around the sun, such as occurs in its region. 19. When the rainbow appears as a full semicircle, and when it appears even smaller; and that in summer about midday not even the smallest segment of a rainbow can appear, while in winter some segment can appear, and the geometric proof of all these.

CHAPTER XXII.

On the Rainbow.

^B 1-3. Just as the cause of the halo was said to be refraction, so indeed this same cause is said to be the cause of the rainbow. And there, indeed, they say the refraction happens from condensed air; but here, from a cloud which begins to become water, and is already humid. And again, there the formation that makes the halo consists around the sun, the moon, or some other brilliant star; but here, the cloud which makes the rainbow has the sun on the opposite side. When, therefore, the transformation of the cloud has already reached the stage of droplets, but it is not yet raining, if the sun be found on the side opposite to this cloud, the small particles of the cloud—which are indivisible to sense and from whose condensation dew or drizzling rain is generated—are rendered as mirrors to the sight, showing it the sun's color. For in such mirrors, as has also been said before, only the color, not the shape, of the thing seen appears, because every shape is intercepted by parts; ^C whereas each of these mirrors lacks parts and division as far as the senses are concerned. Since, therefore, it is necessary that some appearance be made in the mirror itself—because it is indeed a mirror—but it cannot be that the appearance of the shape occurs, it remains that only the color appears in it. And since each of these mirrors is invisible in itself because of its smallness; but all these being connected and joined

mutually, and because of the density of their adjunction, they come together for the perfection of one continuous whole, and hence the magnitude which is completed from them, if I may so say, appears visible; it is necessary that the magnitude of the color which is exhibited through them also appears. For each of these small mirrors contributes, just as to the greatness of the size, to the whole continuous object in which the appearance occurs; and in the same way, it contributes to the imagination of the whole color that is manifested through it. ^C When, therefore, a cloud, undergoing a change into water, has the sun opposite to it, but the gazing vision intervenes between the sun and the cloud, the cloud itself being hollow and spherical, then the vision, being refracted together with the light from the droplets that are already forming in the cloud toward the sun, and through these very things as if through mirrors, beholds the solar color, the rainbow. And it sees the first and higher circumference of this rainbow as crimson. For the splendid and white object appears crimson when it is seen through the black or in the black. Since, therefore, the cloud in which the iris is (for it is already changing into water) is black, it shows, through its own minute particles as if through black mirrors, the solar color, crimson; which is otherwise splendid and white, but is disturbed and adulterated by the mixture of the color of the mirrors. The vision sees the second circumference of the iris as green, not because of the mirror, but because of its own weakness. For the weakening vision perceives white things as blacker; and green is indeed blacker than crimson. The vision sees the third circumference of the iris as purple, seeing that which is white as still blacker; since, because of its greater weakness and remission, it perceives the purple as even blacker than the green.

4. From the first circumference of the iris, therefore, the vision, striking the sun through reflection, sees its coloring as crimson because of the mirror. ^D For the first circumference is the greatest, and from the greatest circumference the reflection is greatest, and for this reason, more intense; and the crimson color approaches most nearly to white, and is least black. From the second circumference, which is smaller, smaller reflections occur; and for this reason, the vision also acts more weakly, and it sees the solar color, which is splendid and white—though it ought to see it as crimson through the black mirror—as blacker because of its own weakness, and it imagines this as green. From the third circumference, which is the smallest, the reflections also become smallest; and the vision, acting still more weakly, imagines the solar color as still blacker. For black is as it were the negation and privation of seeing.

5. Whence also those things which the vision is not able to see because of distance, it imagines to be black. For this reason...

^A things seen from afar appear blacker; and those things which appear in mirrors seem blacker than they are; and clouds which appear in water appear blacker than if they were looked at directly. And the cause of all these things is the extension of the vision. For the further it is extended, so much the more remiss it becomes; and the more remiss it is, the blacker it imagines the things that are seen, as it is nearly ceasing from its action. The case is the same whether one sees an object far removed from the vision, or makes the vision itself see across a great interval. For the extension of the vision is equal. Whence also, when the vision sees things which are seen through refraction across a longer interval than if it were seeing the same things in a straight line, it rightly imagines them to be blacker.

6. Concerning the three colors of the rainbow, therefore—the puniceous (red), the green, and the purple—the discourse has already spoken. But that a certain yellow color shines through in the rainbow between the red and the green, this does not seem to appear because of the refraction; but from the fact that the red and the green are seen beside each other, the yellow seems to be produced and to emerge. For the red is a remiss white; but when it is seen beside the green, it appears whiter, that is to say, yellow. For that which is a remiss ^B white, if it be placed beside that which is blacker, appears whiter than it is. Wherefore also when the cloud is vehemently black, the entire red circumference appears yellow.

7. That things which are less black appear whiter when seen beside that which is more black, is also declared by the rainbow which rises from the moon. For it is white, both because it is in a very black cloud and because its appearance happens by night. Therefore, while the blackness around this appearance is doubled, both the red of this rainbow appears white, and the other colors seem whiter in a certain ratio; and for this reason they are all confused toward white.

8. And this rainbow from the moon, because of the condition mentioned, generally occurs only at the full moon; and even then, only when the moon is rising or setting.

9. But from the sun, two rainbows often appear, ^C one being interior, the other exterior, and enclosing the other, and being a segment of a larger circle; and it truly displays more obscure colors, and in a position opposite and inverted from the first. For while the interior and first rainbow has its first and upper circumference red, the second green, and the third purple, the exterior and second rainbow has its exterior circumference purple, the second green, and the innermost red, so that the red colors of both rainbows are placed very close to each other.

10. Some, therefore, say that this second rainbow happens because the vision is reflected from the exterior cloud to the first rain-

- ^A cloud, and not to the sun; and for this reason it bears dimmer colors, as they come from a secondary reflection.

11-14. But Aristotle says that the second rainbow also arises from reflection toward the sun, and that its colors appear more dim because of the weakness of the vision. For the reflection from the exterior cloud toward the sun, happening from afar (for this cloud is further from our vision), makes the colors more dim because of the long distance. For just as the vision does not clearly see things viewed in a straight line from afar because of weakness, so too ^B things seen through a long reflection are perceived more dimly. And this, then, is the reason why the colors of the second rainbow appear more dim; but the order of their position is reversed for the previous reason. For as in the first rainbow, the circumference from which the vision strongly strikes the sun appears to have a purple color, that from which it strikes more weakly appears green, and that from which it strikes even more weakly appears violet, so too it is with the second rainbow. For a greater and stronger reflection occurs from the inner circumference ^C because this circumference is nearer to the vision; and those reflections are stronger which come from parts closer to the vision, because the vision, not being extended to such a distance, does not fail, and thus it performs a small and weak reflection; since, when the circumferences are not far from the eye, more reflections occur, and all these visions, being preserved and not dispersed, can be reflected by them. Therefore, the inner circumference of the second rainbow shows a purple hue for this reason. The second circumference shows green, since they are further from the vision, and the reflections from it are ^D weaker. And the outermost circumference, being further removed from the vision, shows the violet color because the reflections are at their weakest.

15. But why is the space between the two purple circumferences not itself also purple? Since it is possible for a strong and powerful reflection toward the sun to occur from there as well, because this part is not far from the vision, or at any rate, if a reflection occurred from it at all, would it not also be purple? But now, no reflection occurs from it; because reflection does not simply occur from every part toward every body that has light, but the places of reflections are determined according to a certain relation of the body naturally endowed with the faculty of illuminating and of the vision toward the mirrors.

16. It is clear from what has been said before why the halo is not mottled with colors, as the rainbow is. It has been stated that the purple color belongs to the rainbow because of the reflection of the vision toward the sun from a moist cloud that has already become water; but the remaining colors…

^A are weak because the impressions of the refractions are, as it were, remote and slight. But in the halo, the refraction occurs from the air, which is by nature clearer than water; and because it occurs nearby, it makes the impression most strongly. For that which appears in it carries the mirrors beneath itself and around itself, not from its opposite region.

17. Therefore, the halo often appears as a complete circle; but the rainbow is never larger than a semicircle, because it does not consist around that which appears within it, as the halo does, nor is there more than a hemisphere above the horizon or the bounding circle under which the cloud is situated, in which the vision beholds the rainbow.

18-19. That such a damp concretion, such as exists opposite the sun, does not occur around the sun itself, the heat of the sun is the cause. For it either immediately makes the cloud pass into water, or it dissolves, thins, and disperses the concretion, unless it happens to be thicker. But when the sun is opposite and far from the cloud’s concretion, in the meantime, while the water is being formed, a certain delay and time intervenes; so that there are some particles of the cloud already changed entirely into water, which, however, are not yet drops; in which watery particles of the cloud, as if in mirrors, the rainbow ^B is seen, sometimes as a semicircle, at other times smaller than a semicircle, but never larger. And it is a semicircle when the sun is on the horizon; but smaller than a semicircle when the sun is above the horizon. For the center of the solar body, and the center of the horizon in which the vision is, and the center of the rainbow’s circle, and its pole are on one straight line; and this line is a diameter of the celestial sphere, since it passes through the center of the horizon, which is a great circle. Therefore, as much as the sun is above the horizon, so much is the pole of the rainbow's circle below ^C the horizon. And since, when the sun is rising or setting, half of the rainbow's circle appears above the earth, and the rest is invisible, as being understood to be beneath the earth; it is clear that when the sun is above the horizon, the segment of the rainbow that appears will be smaller, and the part that does not appear will be larger. And these things will always stand thus in proportion to the sun’s distance from the horizon. But when the sun is around absolute midday, in summer not even the smallest segment ^D of the rainbow appears; but on shorter days, or in winter, it can happen that even with the sun around midday, some segment of the rainbow may appear. For since the center and the pole of the rainbow are on the diameter of the horizon, when the sun performs its summer risings, being most northerly, then the rainbow would consist in the southern parts, as if toward the winter settings; but also toward the winter risings, when the sun approaches the summer settings. Since, however, when the sun rises through the winter risings, being most southerly; then the rainbow will have appeared in the more northerly parts, as if toward the summer settings, just as when the sun approaches the summer risings, it will have made the winter settings.

Since these things are thus, and because the more northerly parts, on account of the elevation of the pole, have larger segments of circles above the earth—along which the sun, moving in summer, produces the long days—while the southernmost parts, conversely, have the smallest segments of circles above the earth—along which the sun, moving in winter, causes the short days—for these reasons, in winter, the rainbow can appear even at the very midday. ^B For the summer settings and risings are far distant from the winter meridian. And because of this, in the middle of the winter day, the rainbow has a place above the earth in which it could exist. In summer, however, as the day is at its middle, it cannot appear, because it does not have a place of existence above the earth. For the winter settings and risings are but slightly distant from the summer meridian, whence the entire circle of the rainbow is then conceived to be under the horizon.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXIII,

WHICH IS ON RODS, OR BARS, PARHELIA, THAT IS, GEMINATED OR ADULTERATED SUNS, AND FURTHERMORE ON METALLIC THINGS IN THE EARTH, AND FOSSILS.

1. How rods are generated, and why they are so called. 2. How parhelia, that is, geminated (as some call them) or adulterated suns, are formed. 3. Both rods and parhelia are formed from the obliquities or to the sides of the sun, though at a moderate distance. 4. Parhelia and rods are formed for the most part when the sun is rising or setting, rarely when it is culminating. 5. He concludes the discussion of meteors from their repeated causes; the material cause of which is either a vaporous or smoky exhalation carried into the air; and thus it paves a way for itself toward the second part of the chapter, and so on. 6. For a vaporous and smoky exhalation, enclosed within the earth, and not yet separated, but congealing and densifying, is the material cause of metallic ^C things and fossils. 7. The matter of fossils is a smoky exhalation, of which he also provides examples. 8. The matter of metallic things is a vaporous exhalation which also divides into those things which are founded, and those which are drawn; and of these some burn and rust, while others do not at all, as gold, of whose nature he provides somewhat more. 9. Meteor. c. 6.

CHAPTER XXIII.

On rods and parhelia, and furthermore on metallic things in the earth and on fossils.

1. When from the obliquities of the sun there is some cloud having an uneven consistency, so as to be in one part dense, in another sparse, and in one part more watery, in another more airy: then, when from such a cloud a refraction toward the sun occurs, on account of the smallness of the mirrors the solar figure is not discerned, but the color of the sun appears in some part of the cloud as purple, in another as green or yellow, on account of the cloud's unevenness and the dissimilarity of the mirrors.

2. They call such appearances "rods" because they are seen along certain straight lines. But when the consistency of the cloud is similarly dense and as smooth as possible, then, on account of the similarity of the mirrors and the smoothness of the consistency, a fantasy of one continuous color is wrought, and indeed a bright and white one. For on account of the denseness and smoothness of the consistency, while at the same time our visions fall upon it and are simultaneously refracted toward the sun, the color of the sun appears pure in it; just as also when from smooth brass ^D

^A refraction occurs, the true color of what is seen appears due to the sudden refraction, which happens even in brass because of the density and smoothness of the structure.

3. Moreover, parhelia and rods ^B occur from the sides of the sun, namely toward the more northern and more southern parts of the sun. For a symmetrical distance is required at which such formations stand apart from the sun. For if they were too close to the sun, they would be dissolved by it; but if they were far away, they would not preserve the refraction. For from a small formation, as from a small mirror, the refraction of the vision, extending far, becomes weakened. Therefore, it is possible to find the aforementioned symmetrical distance in the solar side-regions remaining always the same, because the sun, through its daily movement, neither approaches these parts nor again recedes from them.

4. Furthermore, it happens that parhelia and rods occur most frequently when the sun is at the rising or setting; for when it is in the middle of the sky, it for the most part dissolves and disperses such formations.

5. Parhelia and rods are signs of water, and parhelia more so than rods. For a formation that is ^C uniform and similarly dense indicates that the air is apt and prepared for transformation and the generation of water.

6. Of all such things, namely parhelia, rods, the rainbow, the halo, and others of this kind, the efficient cause is said to be refraction; and again, the material cause of these very things—namely dew, hoarfrost, rain, snow, hail, and the like—is the vaporous exhalation, just as in turn the cause of others is the smoky exhalation. What, then, are the works of the twofold exhalation that has already been taken up, the discourse has previously explained. ^D

7[-9]. But when such an exhalation has not yet been raised nor separated from the earth, but is enclosed under the earth and mixed with the parts of the earth, and thus, by growing together and thickening, two species of bodies are produced: of which some are metallic, others are fossile. And those indeed which are fossile are the effects of the smoky exhalation, such as kinds of stones that do not melt at all, and sulfur, and arsenic, and anything similar. But those which are metallic, the vapor completes. These are either liquifiable or ductile, such as iron, brass, gold, and the like; of which some are burned and contract rust, as iron and brass, because they participate in the smoky exhalation and have obtained a more earthy essence. Gold, however, they say, is neither burned nor contracts rust, as it consists of pure vapor gathered into one and compressed, and has received a more watery essence, and for that reason, is naturally the heaviest. For weight is [attained] either by the earthy or by the watery

nature inheres in bodies; just as, conversely, lightness inheres in bodies either because of a fiery or because of an airy nature. If, therefore, gold has a more watery essence, and is unmixed with a smoky or fiery exhalation, it is also deservedly the heaviest.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXIV. ON THE HEAVENS, AND THAT THE WORLD IS NOT ETERNAL.

255 1. The etymology of *ouranos*, that is, heaven, and the description of this same etymology are proposed. — 2. Heaven, properly so-called, which is the first and devoid of stars, comprehends both sensible and intelligible creatures, except God, concerning whom one philosophizes piously. — 3. Few philosophers recognized this heaven because it is invisible, but they considered the firmament to be the first heaven, and in like manner called the other planetary spheres heavens, and finally called the entire ethereal body from the firmament down to the moon, for the same reason, one heaven. — 4. The Aristotelians called this same ethereal body the fifth body or fifth essence, and posited it to be of a nature different from the four elements. The Platonists, however, deemed it also to consist of the most inward and purest elements, though with fire predominant. — 5. Not all of the ancients agreed on all points; many philosophers held the inerrant or immovable sphere to consist [of them], which he proves from the fact that it can be seen and touched. — 7. An objection, in which he teaches that the celestial body, although it is composite, is nevertheless simple if it is compared with those things that are more composite; just as these elements of ours are called simple bodies if they are compared with those things that are composed from them. — 8. He also proves that the first heaven, which is devoid of stars (he understands by this the *primum mobile*), is composite, and from there infers that the second heaven, namely the firmament, is much more composite, where he also indicates that he is speaking of composition in a better sense. — 9. An objection, in which he shows that, although the heaven is composite, it is nevertheless moved by a simple motion—that of the fire, namely, which predominates in it, the motion of which he confirms to be circular. — 10. Another objection, in which he shows in general that rectilinear motion belongs to elements only when they are being generated and are outside their own place, since, when they are in their own places, they either remain immovable or move circularly. — 11. He enumerates the elements that remain immovable and those that are moved circularly. — 12. In particular, he proves regarding the earth that, according to nature, it is in the middle and remains immovable in that same place. — 13. He pronounces that water and the pool of water are devoid of motion by reason of their affinity to the earth. — 14. He shows that fire is moved circularly, because by nature it is moved to the circumference of the sphere, which is round. — 15. He declares that the purer air is moved circularly along with the fire. — 16. He institutes a special conclusion, partly repeating the higher matters, and partly inferring new *theorems* from there. — 17. He contends that heaven and earth are mutually connected, and that they are bound together by the same creatures in between, and shows that the whole world is thus continuous in itself. — 18. 257 He confirms with several arguments that the heaven, and indeed this whole universe, is endowed with a round figure. — 19. He explains the seven affections of every body which are: below, above, to the right, to the left, in front, behind, and in the middle, and how they behave in the heaven. — 20. He proposes the reasoning of the Peripatetics for the eternity of the heaven and, consequently, of the whole world. — 21. He submits the opinion of Plato and the response to the argumentation of the Peripatetics, where he beautifully discourses upon eternity and time and the parts of both. — 22. He proposes another argument of the Peripatetics for the eternity of the world, and responds to it, where he speaks memorably concerning the creation of the world and the manner of its destruction. — 23. He confirms a philosophical argument that the world is also by natural reason subject to corruption, and therefore also had an origin, against the eternity of the world handed down by Aristotle and defended by some of his followers. — 24. He proposes the third objection of the Peripatetics from the absurd, and submits a twofold response to it; one by way of *instantia* in inferring an absurdity by the same reasoning of consequence, the other by way of the distinction of potency which was explained more copiously above, p. 46. — 25. He explains how the creator and the creatures are simultaneously, and how they are not simultaneously, and why creatures cannot be actually co-eternal with the creator, where he also discourses quite theologically concerning the distinction between creation and generation, and likewise between the creature and the begotten of God. — 26. Towards the end of the chapter in which he also dealt with the heaven, he discourses in a non-vulgar manner concerning the waters above the firmament, by what power they are held there, what kind they are, and what uses they have.

CHAPTER XXIV.

α΄. Τὸν οὐρανὸν ὅρον ἄνω εἶναι καὶ ἡ ἀνάπτυξις δηλοῖ τοῦ ὀνόματος. Περιορισμὸς γάρ ἐστιν εἰς τὸ ἄνω καὶ κατὰ τὸ ἄνω, κατὰ πᾶν μέρος τοῦ παντὸς κόσμου ἔχων τὸ ἀνωτάτω. Καὶ αὐτὸ γὰρ τὸ δοκοῦν τοῖς πολλοῖς ὑποκάτω καὶ ὑπὸ γῆν ἡμισφαίριον ὑπεράνω κατ' ἀλήθειαν τυγχάνει καὶ ὑπὲρ γῆν. Τὸ γὰρ ἐκτὸς τῆς γῆς ὁπωσοῦν ἄνω ἐστίν· ἐπείπερ ἡ γῆ καὶ τὰ ἐν αὐτῇ σώματα καὶ περὶ αὐτὴν τὸν κάτω χῶρον εἴτουν τὸν μέσον κεκλήρωνται.

^A De cœlo et quod mundus non sit æternus.

1. Οὐρανὸν (quem Latini cælum a cavitate vocant), esse ὅρον ἄνω, id est, terminum supra, etiam nominis explicatio declarat. Est enim ^B circum circa determinatio [quædam] ad id quod supra, et secundum id quod supra est, ex omni parte totius mundi supremum obtinens. Nam et illud hemisphærium quod vulgo deorsum videtur et infra terram est, revera sursum exsistit et supra terram. Quod enim quoquo-

- ^A way is outside the earth, it is above: since the earth and the bodies which are in it and around it have been allotted the lower, that is, the middle place.

2. Therefore, the properly called heaven, the first and starless one, is the comprehension of all creatures, both those perceived by sense and those perceived by intellect. For everything that is in any way a body is included within it. And the minds themselves are in a way embodied and materialized, even if they are said to be devoid of body and matter, if they are compared with sensible bodies and elementary matter. Therefore, they too are comprehended by heaven. But the divine majesty alone is in no way determined, because it is also devoid of parts, because it is also perfect in itself, because it is also infinite. Therefore, it is also nowhere, and it is everywhere, and it is above the universe. For insofar as it is devoid of parts, and is entirely exempt from every body and every matter, it is nowhere. But insofar as it is perfect and most full in itself, it is everywhere, filling all things. But insofar as it is infinite, it is above the universe, and it comprehends all things, and it terminates all things round about, nor is anything of all things outside its power. ^B

3. Therefore, a few of those who philosophize have known the first and properly called heaven, or the sphere devoid of stars and truly inerrant: because it is invisible. More have recognized the first heaven as the firmament: but from it, they name the spheres of the planets, heavens. In general, however, they establish every ethereal body that penetrates from the outer and convex surface of the firmament to the cavity and extremity of the lunar sphere as one heaven, as it is of the same nature.

4. The Aristotelians indeed call this the fifth body, different, that is, from those four: fire, air, water, earth. The Platonists, however, say that the firmament itself, that is, that very sphere which comprehends the multitude of stars, consists of elementary extremities, because it can be seen and touched. And indeed, that it can be seen, it is from fire; that it can be touched, it is from earth. But if ^C the firmament participates in some way in fire and earth, it also participates in air and water, so that these elements have intervened as it were as intermediaries in a harmonious connection. Thus, therefore, from the concurrence of the most sincere and pure elements, as from the first elementary beginnings and more excellent secretions, they declare the starry heaven to be composed, having fire in itself as preeminent: and thus similarly the entire ethereal body which is consequent to it. For thus also each of those four, which are called elements below the moon, consists of the four simple and true elements; but it receives its essence, obtains its character, and is denominated from the preeminence of one. ^D

5. Many philosophers judged and called this starry heaven also the inerrant sphere. For they were ignorant of its peculiar motion, which is from

the west to the east, because of its extreme slowness. For it was said by some to be moved one part [or one degree] each year, so that it would complete its own revolution in three hundred and sixty years. Others, however, say that it is moved by its own motion a small particle of a part [or degree] in a whole year, not a whole part. ^B 6. Therefore, that the heaven itself, which according to sense appears inerrant, can be seen, and that celestial bodies can touch one another, sense itself also testifies. And indeed, that it can be seen is because of the colors, which are the bright flashes of light; but that it can be touched is because of the repercussion which is of the earth; nor does this need confirmation, as it is something that everyone admits. Since these things are so, there is manifestly fire and earth in heaven. But since such elements are extremes, and therefore need a middle, there are also in it air and water, which are intermediate elements, and they bind the extremes themselves. 7. The celestial body is called simple, even if it is composed of these, if it is compared with bodies that are more composed. For thus also the four bodies [of the elements] are composed from one another; but they are called simple, with respect to those which are made from them by secondary composition. For properly called simple bodies and pure and sincere elements are far from sense, and are discerned only by the mind. 8. And indeed, the first starless heaven, ^C since it is sensibly moved with an inerrant motion, is not simple. For since it is moved sensibly from the east to the west with a very fast and most vehement motion; and with such vigorous swiftness it turns the firmament, the second heaven, and the consequent entire ether, and the succession, and the air along with itself, except for that little which is left in the cavities of the surface of the earth and stagnates; how can that which is of this kind be simple? For where there is sensible motion, that which is moved is also sensible. But that which sense knows, everyone confesses to be composed. For a simple body cannot subsist by itself. Therefore, since the first heaven is by everyone's confession a body and subsists by itself, it is not simple, but is composed; but I am speaking of a better composition. But if it is composed, much more will the second and ^D apparent heaven be composed, not simple. 9-10. Whence, just as sensible elements which are composed are moved by simple motion, namely rectilinear, so indeed also the heaven which is not simple is moved by simple circular motion. For even that which is composed is moved by simple motion. For that which dominates the rest from the simples contained within it, this also moves, undergoing the motion of that which dominates. Therefore, also, since the heaven is composed, it is moved according to the motion of the most sincere fire dominating within it. But the motion of that which is perfectly informed and according to all parts

^A of absolute fire, is circular. For the motion of the elements is straight while they are still being generated, and they are in a place contrary to nature; nor have they yet received that which is according to nature, as Ptolemy, Plotinus, Xenarchus, and other physicists confess. But Aristotle also says that to be carried to one's own place is nothing other than to be moved toward one's own form. For in truth, if the elements are moved from alien places and from a disposition contrary to nature, desiring their own place and their own integrity and perfection: it is evident that they are moved while not yet possessing their nature perfectly. For when they are in accordance with nature, and are in their proper places, they either subsist or move circularly. Earth, for instance, subsists, as do water and the stagnant part of air; but ^B fire and the purer part of air move circularly, which, on account of their affinity with the heavens, revolve together with them.

11-15. For since where something is carried according to nature, there it is according to nature; and earth is carried according to nature to the center, therefore it is in the center according to nature. For this is proper to earth, that it be carried to the center. This, moreover, will be the cause that earth remains and subsists in the center: namely, the kinship it has with the center, on account of which it is moved toward it. But since the center is immovable (for the center, or middle, of every sphere that moves itself is immovable), the earth also, on account of its affinity with the center of the universe, is immovable. Again, water, since it is carried to the earth by its own nature (for it is proper to water to rest upon the earth), is itself also immovable on account of its kinship with the earth. For this reason, indeed, even the stagnant air—that which is terrestrial, watery, and turbid—is immovable. ^C Now, however, fire moves according to nature toward the circumference of the sphere. For perhaps it would have reached the concave surface of the firmament, had not the place been preoccupied by the ethereal body, which is purer according to the fiery form, as being of the same nature and a participant in the firmament. Since, therefore, fire is carried naturally to the circumference of the sphere, this affinity to the circumference, on account of which it is carried toward it, will be the cause of its circular motion. For on account of its affinity with it, it also moves circularly; just as the earth, on account of the affinity it has with the center, remains at rest. Again, just as water does not move while the earth, with which it has kinship, remains at rest—toward which it is also carried, and which it always wishes to reach—in the same way, pure air is also turned together with the fire that moves, on account of ^D its kinship with it, for which reason it is also carried toward it, and with it, and whatever falls under the senses is composed of the four elements, and only circular motion is perfect and according to nature (for this alone is of those things which are according to nature and are perfect); and that the earth is by natural reason immovable, then water, and after that whatever air is akin to these bodies; and it continuously desires to be.

^A moving in a circle naturally; hence also the bodies joined to it.

17. ^B Just as there is in the earth an extreme degree of stability, so in the heaven there is extreme swiftness of movement. And just as the earth is immobile in place, so the heaven is restless. For neither does the earth shift from its own foundation, nor does the heaven abate the vehemence of its impetus. ^C Since, therefore, the heaven and the earth stand diametrically opposed to one another in the contrariety of their operations, the intermediate creation, possessing neither the extreme swiftness nor, on the other hand, the immobility, intervenes by its own nature between the extremes. And thus the entire universe is linked together, while the outermost revolution uses an intense velocity, and those within use a velocity diminished in proportion to their proximity to the center—the whole becoming a single spherical rotation, and all the circles, both the outer and larger ones, and the inner and smaller ones, at the same time being restored from the same points to the same points through this single turning.

18. ^D Furthermore, the heaven possesses a spherical shape, as it is more capacious than other figures having the same perimeter, and as it is more suitable than any other shape for the movement within itself, and as it is prior by nature, and hence appropriate to the essence of the primary body. For every figure is either rectilinear, or delimited by a curved line, or mixed. But whatever is rectilinear or mixed is contained by many lines; that which is only of a curved line is contained by one circumferential line. In every genus, that which is one is prior by nature to the many, and the simple is prior to the composite. Therefore, the first and simple among all plane figures is the circle. But what the circle is in plane figures, the sphere is in solids. ^B For it alone among all solid figures is embraced by one surface. Since, therefore, the first figure is most appropriate to the first body, and the first body of those which fall under our senses is the celestial, the heaven rightly exists as spherical. And if this is spherical, it is clear that everything continuous with it is also spherical. For that which touches the concave surface of the sphere on all sides must itself also be spherical.

19. ^C Furthermore, since there are seven affections regarding bodies, the heaven also has these, since it is a body; for every body has three dimensions: length, breadth, and depth. There are two limits for each dimension. So three different pairs occur. The limits of length are above and below; of breadth, right and left; and of depth, before and behind. The midpoint of all the dimensions, coinciding at one point, exists as the center of the body. But in bodies that are not spherical, the bottom and the middle are distant from one another; whereas in spherical ^D bodies...

they have absolutely no distance from each other at all. For it is necessary that spherical objects incline from the surface toward their center, and in this way, when considered by themselves, they possess a "downward" direction toward which they have inclined. In the world, therefore, which has a spherical figure, "upward" is that which extends from the entire center to the surface of the sphere itself, while "downward" is the center, since the two relations in the world coincide, and the same one thing is both "down" and "center." The forward parts of the heaven will be those toward the west, for it is moved as if toward the west; the backward parts are those toward the east, for it proceeds from there toward the forward parts. Hence, its right parts are those toward the north, and those toward the south are the left.

20. ^B The followers of the Peripatetic sect, moreover, maintain that the heaven, together with the entire world, is unbegotten and incorruptible, and they confirm this dogma in the following manner. If the heaven was brought into being, there was a time when it was not. But it is not even possible to conceive of time without the heaven, for time is the measure of celestial motion. Therefore, to say, "There was a time when the heaven was not," is the same as saying, "There was a time when time was not." For the expression "there was," is a past portion of time. If, therefore, there was never a time when the heaven was not, but time is eternal (for "there was" precedes everything that is taken), it is clear that the heaven is unbegotten. And if it is unbegotten, it is necessarily also incorruptible; for incorruptibility follows upon that which is unbegotten, and because, just as "there was" precedes all time, so "there shall be" follows it. Since time, then, always exists, the heaven that coexists with it will also always exist. These things they say.

21. ^C But Plato, having anticipated such a dogma, resolved it by philosophically declaring that time was brought into being simultaneously with the heaven. Therefore, both the heaven was brought into being and time was brought into being at the same time. And just as there was a time when the heaven was not, so also was there a time when time was not. But if "was," "is," and "shall be" are parts of time, they are, in a primary sense, parts of eternity. For eternity is a collected extension which always holds itself before time and after time. Time, therefore, having been brought into being, which is an image ^D of eternity, obtained the right to be called "was," "is," and "shall be," so long as it exists, in as much as it is referred to eternity. Those, therefore, who say, "There was [a time] when it was not," do not mean "there was a time when time was not," but there was a certain eternal extension according to which neither the heaven nor time had subsistence. But when time began to be, then also did the heaven. The heaven, then, was not brought into being in time, but at the beginning of time. But the beginning of time is not time; for it is impartible and without quantity. Just as, therefore, it was brought into being at the beginning of time, so it is not impossible that it will be destroyed at the end of time. Having, therefore, subsisted with time, it will also be dissolved along with time.

And one cannot say that there will be a time when there will be no heaven; but there will be again a certain eternal extension, according to which neither the heaven nor time will be able to exist, according to the consequence of nature.

^B 22. Again they say: If the world be generated and corruptible, there must precede [the world] the composition from which it has come to be and into which it will again be destroyed. But the world is one; therefore it is ungenerated and incorruptible. If, then, we were stating that the world is generated and corruptible in the same way as the four bodies and the things from them, those who say these things would be speaking rightly. But since we affirm that it was produced by God not from a pre-existing matter, but from that which is in no way whatever, what strength does their argument have? If, therefore, it has come into being from that which is not at all, it is natural for it to be destroyed into that which is not at all, and the goodness of the Creator, exceeding every nature, just as it produced the world from that which is not at all, so will it transform his creation to a better state.

^B 23. Furthermore, the heaven is finite; for it is impossible for the infinite to be moved. For if it were moved, it would necessarily have to traverse an infinite time in its motion. But the whole [heaven] revolves in a time less than the interval of a day and night. Therefore, the heaven is finite. And if this is finite, then the whole world is finite. For if that which contains is finite, that which is contained is of necessity finite. But no finite body has infinite power. For a part of a finite body would either possess infinite power, and it itself would be found to be something greater than the infinite (for the power in the whole is greater than the power in the part; but nothing is greater than the infinite), or the part of the finite body will have finite power, and the whole will be of finite power. For that which consists of finite things in its entirety is acknowledged to be finite itself. Therefore, every finite body partakes of finite power. Whence, since the world is finite, it possesses finite power. It will therefore fail by the argument of its nature, and its activity will cease, the power having ceased. Whence the activity begins. And what is this other than perfect corruption? Therefore, the world is subject to complete corruption according to a natural law, not being able to coexist with the infinitely powerful Creator. And what else is it but a creation, and from this fact alone, inferior to the eternity of the Creator? If, therefore, the world is corruptible, it is by all means also generated. For the generated and the corruptible follow upon each other, and again the ungenerated and the incorruptible.

24. They say further: If God and the world are not simultaneous, there was a time when God was not Creator in actuality, but in potentiality only. Whence he was also imperfect; for that which is in potentiality is imperfect.

Must they not, in turn, be questioned whether God, who is of infinite power, could have produced this world alone, or many others equal to the present one? For if he was not able to produce other worlds as well, how is he, being of infinite power and possessing all creative knowledge, not weak in being unable to do many like things? But if, being able, he did not produce them, it is evident that his power, which he would have used—had he wished to produce them—upon worlds that did not exist—is only potential, and according to them, imperfect. But one must understand that this ^A potentiality is that which is meant in the second sense, which is not such as to be imperfect. For if the second also were imperfect, no one possessing creative knowledge would be perfect in himself, since he would need that in which he works for his perfection. And thus, the Creator would need something inferior, as would God ^B the Creator, if they were the causes for his appearing as a creator in potentiality.

25. Therefore, God is not simultaneously Creator and creation in actuality; but he is simultaneously Creator and creation according to the creative and formative reasons, which exist eternally in the Creator and are co-eternal with Him; for He always wished to produce also the things created, because He is always good, but He produced them when the things that were being produced were able to exist. For they cannot coexist with the infinite existence of the Producer, because their essence is not God, nor can they be equal to God in the infinity of existence. For if God had produced the objects of his creation by nature and essence, they would of necessity have existed simultaneously with Him, being of the same nature and essence as Him. But since He generates by nature and essence, but creates by will and good pleasure, the offspring coexists with God because it is of the same essence and nature, ^C unchanged in every way, and the Generator and the generated are one God, divided neither by time, nor by will and pleasure, nor by power or glory, or any other of the things that exist. In the same way, He who proceeds does so, for He too proceeds essentially and naturally from God.

But every created work falls far short of the divine existence, just as the thing made by art falls short of the existence of the artisan. For the artisan exists before the thing fashioned by him by art; and everything produced is of necessity later than its efficient cause. But let it suffice to have said this much ^D concerning these things.

26. Since, however, the divine Scripture teaches that there is abundant water above the firmament, and some think it impossible for the nature of water, being fluid, easily diffused, and tending downward, to remain on the convexity of the sphere; let these men think of the divine all-powerful and superhuman power, which implanted a superior strength also in the firmament, to restrain the

of the water's downward motion. For this reason it is also called the firmament, as being solid, strong, and unyielding. That water, then, is very thin and light, as has been said before, above all water; because by the creator's command it has been separated by, as it were, a filtering of that which is of the same kind, and simply to speak, an aqueous quality resisting the impulses of fire. ^A But grant that this water might be thicker and heavier and downward-tending and having a natural inclination toward settling upon the earth, what follows from this? Since such is the nature of the firmament as has been said, it encompasses the whole sphere, and seeks its own place from every side, and thus it is borne along with it. And that this second heaven encompassed this water by the all-wise providence—in power—has been stated just now. ^B For since it was necessary that the fire of the upper bodies prevail, so that from a suitable interval the universe might be brought to life and illuminated appropriately, lest it otherwise become hollow and vanish due to the intensity of the fire, the wise creator and holder-together of all things ordained that the aforementioned water be set over the fire, and through contrary qualities break its powers; and thus the universe remains whole and unharmed until the end.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXV:

ON AETHER AND THE STARS.

1. What aether is and whence it is named. 2. Although the entire aetherial body is of the same nature, yet there is a difference in the aether and the stars regarding density and color, although in the stars themselves it is only regarding color, since all are equally dense. 3. The stars are round, as is argued by the example of the moon, which its illuminations and appearances testify to be round. 4. Since the individual stars are of the same nature and figure as the heaven, they move peculiarly around their own axis and center, as it seems to Plato and the author. 5. Of the first sphere, that is, the primum mobile, there is only one motion; of the star-bearing sphere, that is, the firmament, there is a double motion; of the stars themselves, both fixed and wandering, there is a triple motion, as it seems to the author following Plato. 6. The reason why some stars are called inerrant or fixed, others wandering. 7. Why the pole star appears motionless, whence also it is called the boreal pole; on which occasion the poles are defined. 8. It concludes concerning the motions of the stars, both the inerrant and the wandering. 9. The number and size and order of the planetary spheres, and the names of the planets themselves and their periodic motions are explained. 10. First of all, it is discussed here also concerning the nature of the solar body. 11. Parallels, that is, equidistant circles in the apparent heaven, that is, in the firmament, are first conceived as five: the equinoctial, two tropics, the arctic, and the antarctic, which are described in the text. 12. Likewise they compare themselves to one another; the equinoctial and the tropics are the same, but the arctic and antarctic vary, sometimes larger, sometimes smaller, until somewhere they vanish entirely; but all parallels have the same poles as the sphere. 13. What kind of circle the Zodiac is, how great it is, and why it is so called, and how it is subdivided into three other circles. 14. What circle the horizon is and how great it is, why it is so called, and why it divides the world and other great circles into two equal parts. 15. Porisma. All wandering stars do not move with an aimless and rash motion; but the sun indeed always moves under the middle circle of the Zodiac, which is also called the ecliptic; but the other planets move beyond and on this side of that circle, yet each moves within certain limits under the Zodiac. 16. Those limits of the digression of the planets from the middle of the Zodiac circle or the ecliptic are determined. 17. All the planets, except the sun, because of their digressions from the middle circle of the Zodiac, are said to be depressed high or low, and sometimes to be raised low or high. 18. The planets are figured in relation to one another by five configurations, which they also call aspects, which are also declared geometrically and arithmetically in the text. 19. Three upper planets, namely Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars, as well as all the differences of these configurations or aspects, undergo sun-conjunctions, but Venus and Mercury do not. 20. How much time each planet requires to undergo conjunction with the sun. 21. The names and characters or figures of the twelve signs. 22. At which points of the signs and at which times of the year the sun makes the equinoxes and turnings, which in another respect are also called solstices. 23. In which months and days the sun enters the remaining eight signs besides the four cardinal ones, of which it was spoken before, according to the older calculation which the author used. 24. The division of the Zodiac according to longitude, seeing that it is divided into twelve signs, and a sign into thirty parts or degrees, that is, into three decuries of parts or degrees, the degree into sixty first minutes, the first minute into sixty seconds, the second into sixty thirds, and so forth.

23. Perimeter or circumference of the firmament is inferred from the circumferences of the parts. 26. And the quantity of the diameter of the firmament is investigated and inferred in parts or degrees. 28. The twelve segments of the Zodiac, which also are called signs, are not of one and the same temperament, as the ancient astrologers, such as Ptolemy, have also handed down. 29. They judged the same thing regarding the planets. 30. They assigned to the planets also their houses, a single one each to the sun and moon, but two to the other five; moreover, they assigned to all seven exaltations, dejections, and adversities or detriments, as is declared in this place by the example of the sun. 31. The reason why houses, exaltations, and dejections and adversities or detriments, not only to the sun, but also to the other planets, were attributed. 32. The reason why they adjudged only single houses to the sun and moon, and not two, as to the remaining planets. 33. In particular, it also lists the houses, exaltations, dejections, and adversities or detriments of the remaining planets.

CHAPTER XXV. Of ether and the stars.

1. The space extending from the convex surface of the firmament to the concavity of the lunar sphere: this is called the whole ether, the name being taken from its perpetual course. For it is moved naturally with a most rapid and incessant motion and, to speak keeping the logic of the name in mind, it runs continuously.

2. The more approved physicists say that this entire ethereal body and all the stars are of the same essence and nature. ^B Nevertheless, there is a manifest difference in the ether and the stars, as much regarding density as regarding color. But these are things about nature, not natures. For not even the thick and blacker air would depart from the aerial nature due to its density and color. Therefore, that sphere which appears and is called inerrant participates in density and color that is moderately bright; the wandering spheres, however, are very rare and transparent and entirely devoid of color; but all the stars are both dense and bright. But as regards density, they would not differ from one another (for as many stars as can pass under stars, all alike intercept our sight, so that we are in no way able to see any stars which others of whatever kind pass under); but as regards splendor, there is a great difference between the stars themselves.

3. But they also possess a spherical shape, just as this appears from the moon, which its illuminations testify to be orbicular. But if the moon is orbicular, the other stars will also be orbicular. For all are of the same nature. ^C

4. But if they share in the same nature with the heaven, and are endowed with the same shape, it is consonant with reason, in the first place, that they—as Plato thinks—have the same motion as the heaven, and that each one of them by nature revolves equably and in a circle around its own center and its own axis.

5. Since these things are so, the first and truly inerrant, starless sphere, while it is moved by one and simple motion from the risings to the settings, carries around with it all the others: but that one which bears the multitude of stars, and which appears inerrant ^D

is moved by two opposing motions simultaneously: one, indeed, its own, from the settings toward the risings, which is also imperceptible because of the excess of its slowness; the other, that of the first sphere, by which it is carried around most swiftly from the risings toward the settings. The stars, however, which are called inerrant would be moved by three motions: their own rotation, the revolution with the sphere to which they are bound, and the counter-rotation of the sphere that is properly called inerrant. In the same way it is with the spheres that follow and the stars within them; for they are moved by two opposing motions, but the stars, in addition to these motions, are also moved by another one within themselves, as has been said concerning the inerrant ones. ^B

6. For the planets which were just mentioned were named so because of the manifest counter-motion, in relation to the first sphere and to the truly inerrant one, that they have along with their own spheres, just as the multitude of other stars possesses the name "inerrant" because the counter-motion of such a kind is hidden. When, therefore, the firmament is carried around from the risings to the settings, necessarily the inerrant stars also are carried around with it, since they do not have any proper translatory motion. For this reason they always occupy the same locations and never change the distance between one another.

7. While all the inerrant stars are thus moving, one solitary star is seen to be motionless toward the north; not because it is not carried around with the sphere of the firmament, but because it is one of the two ends of the axis around which the sphere turns; this is the northern end, whence it has been named the northern pole—for the ends of the axis are called poles. Being, therefore, the pole of the sphere of the firmament, the aforementioned star is necessarily carried around as the firmament itself turns. Yet, because it undergoes its rotation around itself as the end of the axis, it appears motionless to the senses, just as all stars might make their own rotation within themselves without being perceived by us in a way that is discernable. ^C

8. Thus, then, the inerrant stars are moved together with the sphere of the firmament both by the motion from the risings and by that from the settings. But indeed, the planets also, being fixed to other spheres, each to its own, are carried both toward the settings and toward the risings with their proper spheres. ^D

9. All the spheres of the planets are seven, bearing magnitudes unequal to one another; for the first contains the second, and the second contains the one after it, and this continues up to the last; and thus, of necessity, those containing are greater than those being contained. The first, then, after the sphere that appears and is called inerrant, is that of Saturn, which is also called Phainon, which, by its erratic motion, is restored from the same point to the same point over the span of thirty years.

^A Within this is the sphere of Jupiter, which is also called Phaethon, which completes its entire revolution in twelve years. Contained within this is the sphere of the fiery Mars—that is, the igneously red one—which carries out a more irregular motion; yet it also appears to complete its revolution fully in two years and five months, with the surplus time included. Following this is that of the Sun, placed in the middle of all of them, which completes its entire revolution, or orbit, in the space of a year—that is, in three hundred sixty-five natural days and a quarter of a day. This annual revolution of the solar sphere constitutes the seasons of the year, while the movement that occurs with the inerrant sphere brings about the days and nights. After the solar sphere is that of Venus. This star is called the Morning Star [aurorifer], and also Vesper [the Evening Star]: by the former name when it emerges before the rising of the sun, and by the latter when it appears toward the west as the sun is setting. This sphere completes its period in a year, as some physicists believe, while others think it is in eight months; some also call Venus Lucifer. Following the sphere of Venus is that of Mercury, which is also called Stilbon, as if to say "radiant," which completes its own revolution in six months and six days. Others, however, believe that this one also completes its period in the space of a year. Those seem to be more accurate who have pronounced the time of the natural revolution of these spheres to be less than a year, according to the order of their ^B placement beneath other spheres. Finally, the last of all the spheres is that of the moon, which is right at the contact of the ether with the sub-calid region. ^C 10. Wherefore the very body of the moon is dark in itself, since it exists at the extremity of the ether; certainly, because it is turbulent, as if something has been mixed into it with succession, yet this dark body, devoid of light, is naturally constituted such that it can be illuminated and become bright by the solar splendor. This sphere of the moon completes its own revolution in twenty-seven days and almost half of one day. Indeed, it is the smallest of all the spheres. 11. Furthermore, five parallel circles are conceived in this apparent heaven; one is the greatest circle, dividing the sphere into two equal parts, which is also called the equinoctial. ^D On either side of this are two circles, smaller than the equinoctial, yet equal to each other. They are called tropical, because they are revolved through the two tropical points of the sun. At each of the tropics there are two other circles: one near the summer tropic, and another near the winter one. And these circles are indeed equal to each other, of which the northern one is called the Arctic, while the one opposite it, namely the southern one, is called the Antarctic.

^A The equinoctial and the tropical ones, however, are always the same, and they continuously occupy the same places. But the Arctic and Antarctic circles shift according to the variations of the climates, and they change their places. And where they are larger, they are much closer to the tropics; where they are smaller, they approach the poles most closely. There are places where they even disappear. But where they do not disappear, one of them is invisible, while the other is always visible; and the whole part of the sphere contained by it toward the pole is always seen, just as that which is contained by the other is not seen. The poles of all the parallel circles are the poles of the sphere.

^B 13. Another great circle is conceived, projected obliquely through the tropics and the equinoctial; touching each of the tropics at one point, and dividing the equinoctial into two equal parts at two points. This oblique circle is called the Zodiac; it is wide and carries many stars, which sketch out certain living creatures in some way. From such a confused and dim sketch, it was called by the ancient astrologers the "animal-bearer" (*zoophoros*) and Zodiac; and the sketches were called "signs" (*zodia*). The width of the zodiac, therefore, is divided and partitioned by three circles. The middle one of these is, and is called, the middle circle; but the ones on either side of this were named, the one the northern and the other the southern, having obtained their names from the parts of the world they approach.

^C 14. Another circle, besides the zodiac and the equinoctial, is also conceived of as a great one, dividing for us the visible part of the sphere from the invisible, which for this reason is called the horizon (or "finisher"). It is also a great circle, since it divides the world into two equal halves. For all great circles necessarily cut both the sphere and each other into equal parts, and they are equal to one another.

^D 15. With these things being so, all the planets, moving in a motion contrary to the firmament [as it appears] and appearing at different times in different parts of the world, do not perform their motion in a disorderly way, nor are they carried through just any parts of the world that might happen, but they are always turned under the zodiac. And the sun, proceeding from one solstice to the other, approaches the northern and southern parts of the world; but it never occupies the parts under the zodiac that are either north or south, always cutting the middle-most circle, which is for this reason called the solar [circle]. But the other wandering stars approach both the northern and southern parts of the world, and indeed also the parts of that very circle which subtends the zodiac. For they move obliquely and in a winding manner within it, descending from the northern to the southern parts, and from there rising again to the northern [parts]; and thus they move while crossing the solar circle.

^A 16. The moon, for its part, is said to depart further than the other planets from the middle and solar path in its planetary motion, approaching both the northern and southern parts situated under the Zodiac. After it, Venus [departs] on either side by five degrees; Mercury by four; Mars and Jupiter by two and a half degrees; and Saturn by one degree.

17. When, therefore, the planets are borne from the northern circle toward the middle, they are said to be "sublimely depressed"; when, having passed the middle, they proceed to the southern [part], they are said to be "humbly depressed." Conversely, when they proceed from the southern part to the middle, they are said to be "humbly raised," and when they have gone past the middle and approach the northern [part], they are said to be "sublimely raised." For it happens that the northern parts of the Zodiac are raised high for us, while the southern [parts] appear closer to the horizon, because the world is inclined from the northern toward the southern parts in the habitable sphere that we know and inhabit.

18. Furthermore, the planets are configured toward one another by five sorts of configuration: conjunction, hexangular [sextile], quadrangular [square], triangular [trine], and diametrical [opposite] aspect. For since the zodiac is divided into twelve segments, which are also called signs, and each of those segments is in turn divided into thirty parts [degrees]; and since the circles under the zodiac, in which the planets are borne, are divided in the same way: when two stars are found in the same part of the same sign, they are said to be in conjunction [in coire]. But when one is borne under a certain sign, and the other under the third from it in the same parts, they are said to have a hexangular aspect. For six times two is twelve, and ^B the interval of two signs is the side of a hexangle, just as three signs make a quadrangle (for four times three is twelve). And [an interval] of four [signs] is a triangle (for three times four is twelve); and an interval of six signs is a diameter, which divides the circle into equal parts. When, therefore, the interval between two stars is sixty degrees, the stars have a hexangular configuration toward one another; when it is ninety degrees, they have a quadrangular one; when it is one hundred and twenty, they have a triangular one; when it is one hundred and eighty, they form a diameter. ^C 19. Now Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, ^D and the moon are configured to the sun in every configuration. For they depart from it by every interval. But Venus and Mercury do not depart from the sun by every interval; rather, Mercury [goes] at most by twenty parts, and Venus by at most fifty parts.

20. Saturn, for its part, makes a conjunction with the sun in three hundred and seventy-eight days, Jupiter in three hundred and ninety-eight, Mars in seven hundred and eighty, Venus in five hundred and eighty-four, [and] Mercury in one hundred and ten; and

^A Mercury in one hundred and ten, and when the moon is in the middle of this [it is] normally thirty days.

21. Further, the names and symbols of the twelve signs are as follows: Aries ♈, Taurus ♉, Gemini ♊, Cancer ♋, Leo ♌, Virgo ♍, Libra ♎, Scorpius ♏, Sagittarius ♐, Capricornus ♑, Aquarius ♒, and Pisces ♓.

^B 22. Therefore, when the sun touches the beginning of the segment under Aries of the middle and solar circle on the twenty-first day of the month of March, it produces the vernal equinox; but when it touches the beginning of that [segment] which is under Libra, on the twenty-fifth day of September, it produces the autumnal equinox. But between the two equinoxes the solstices occur; the summer one on the twenty-third day of June, when the sun begins to traverse the segment under Cancer; and the winter one on the twenty-fifth day of December, when the sun has reached the segment under Capricorn.

23. After the vernal equinox, then, the sun comes under Taurus on the twenty-third day of April; then under Gemini on the twenty-third day of May; after the summer solstice, the sun comes under Leo on the twenty-fifth day of the month of July; after this under Virgo on the twenty-first day of August; after the autumnal equinox, the segment under Scorpio receives the sun on the twenty-fifth day of October; after this, that which is under Sagittarius on the twenty-fifth day of November. After the winter solstice, the sun arrives under Aquarius on the twentieth day of January; from thence under Pisces on the twentieth day of February.

24. Since the Zodiac is divided into twelve equal segments, which are called signs, each of the signs is divided into thirty degrees, that is, three decans. For a decan has ten degrees. And each single degree is cut into sixty first minutes. And each of these is again subdivided into another sixty second minutes; and each of the second [minutes] into another sixty third minutes. And this is done by astrologers until the quantity of the duodenary is ^C completed. But by nature, every magnitude is divisible to infinity.

25. It has been observed by instruments that the circumference between the tropics, which is also called the middle zone, is forty-eight degrees. Therefore, half of this will be twenty-four degrees, which is from one of the tropics to the equator. And the whole circumference between the tropics, being eight degrees and forty [minutes] on one side, will be the same number of degrees on the other side. For the circles are parallel, that is,

^A they will be equal to ninety-six degrees, the two segments between the tropics of the great circle of the sphere. And since that great circle consists of three hundred and sixty degrees, the circumference from each of the poles to the nearest tropic will be sixty-six degrees; for four times sixty-six degrees added together result in two hundred and sixty-four. If ninety-six be added to these, three hundred and sixty-six degrees are gathered, into which the Zodiac and every other great circle is divided.

26. Since, therefore, the perimeter of the firmament is of so many degrees, the diameter will be less than one hundred and twenty degrees. For if the line drawn from the center and the side of the hexagon inscribed in the same circle are equal to each other, as has been demonstrated by a corollary from the fifteenth theorem of the fourth book of the Elements, the third part of the circumference will not be equal to the diameter. For two sides of a hexagon are the diameter, since there are two [lines] from the center. And the two sides of the hexagon subtend two segments of the circumference, each of which is the sixth part of the great circle of the sphere; and together the two are a third. If, therefore, the whole perimeter of the circumference is three hundred and sixty degrees, the third part of this is ^B one hundred and twenty degrees. If indeed the straight line were equal to the circumference, the diameter also would be one hundred and twenty degrees; but since the straight line is less than the circumference which it subtends, for that reason the diameter also will be less than one hundred and twenty degrees. Hence, according to the followers of Archimedes, every sphere and every circle has a ratio to its own diameter of three and one-seventh as nearly as possible, that is, triple the diameter and one-seventh of the diameter, though not with precision; the line drawn from the center will be fifty-seven degrees with some small fraction of a part. But since the diameter is double that line [drawn] from the center, it will be one hundred and fourteen parts, setting aside the exact calculation.

27. Furthermore, the spheres which turn in the opposite direction to the first and truly fixed sphere are said to have been created to provide a counter-impulse to that very rapid rotation and a repression of such great velocity in its course, ^C that from this (the universe) might also be sustained by a natural principle by the wise Creator of all things and of nature itself, and might not be torn apart on account of the extreme speed of the motion, with the motion [naturally] which strives in the opposite direction resisting and supporting the vehemence of the impetus.

28. Therefore, of the starry and visible sphere which is primarily and powerfully borne in the opposite direction to the heavens and is thought and called fixed, which has the Zodiac projected obliquely through its own center, and divided into two

^A twelve segments, the more ancient of these astrologers did not hold that these twelve segments, also called signs, were of one and the same temperament, but that they differ from one another both in heat and cold, and in dryness and moisture.

29. They have done this even in the case of the planets; and they declared some of them to be hot, others cold, and some dry, others moist, and that some happen to be hotter or colder, and drier or moister than others.

30. Therefore, they distributed the twelve signs among the seven planets ^B as houses, assigning the houses suited to their properties. For this reason, to the sun, as the hottest, they gave as a house Leo, which was judged by them to be the hottest sign; and as they considered the moon to be most moist, they gave it the sign of Cancer, which was reckoned by them as the most moist. To the remaining planets they gave two signs each as houses, which they deemed to have an affinity with their own properties; but they also invented exaltations, dejections, and adversities for all the planets. According to them, therefore, the sun has its house in Leo, the hottest [planet] in the hottest sign. ^C For which reason also, when it enters this sign, it intensifies its own heat. And the sun’s house indeed is Leo; its exaltation, Aries; its dejection, Libra; its adversity, Aquarius. Exaltation, indeed, is Aries: for when the sun begins to traverse the segment which is under Aries, it also begins to be exalted to the higher parts of the world, that is, to the more northern, arriving from the more southern and lower parts. Having therefore completed the vernal equinox, it makes the days longer. Dejection, Libra; because the sun, beginning to traverse the segment which is under Libra, is dejected, approaching the lower parts of the world, that is, the more southern; and having completed the autumnal equinox, it causes the days to be shorter. Adversity, Aquarius: because this sign is most wintry and coldest, and is opposed to the hottest sun; and to Leo, the house of the sun, it is also opposed both in quality and in ^D position, being at a diameter's distance.

31. From these things it is clear why, in the case of the other planets also, houses, exaltations, dejections, and adversities are spoken of. Houses, on account of their affinity, appropriateness, and suitability; exaltations, because from that point the planets begin to move toward the parts under the zodiac that are more northern, passing beyond its center; dejections, because from thence they begin to be moved toward the southern part of the zodiac, while they again move past its center below; adversities, because adversity brings in the opposition of the properties of the stars; it brings [the opposition] of dryness to moisture, of heat to cold, [the opposition] of the excessive to the moderate, and of the moderate to the excessive.

^A 32. The sun, therefore, has one and only one house, Leo; and the moon likewise the Cancer alone, because, in the former, heat is in excess, and in the latter, moisture is in excess, so that these two luminaries are formed and distinguished by these qualities.

33. Of the planets, the highest is Saturn, who is also very cold and sufficiently dry. He has two houses, Capricorn and Aquarius: the former as being a participant in dryness, and the latter as being maximally cold; ^B his exaltation is Libra; his dejection is Aries; his adversities are Leo, in that he is cold, and Cancer, in that he is dry. Jupiter, being mildly warm and moderately humid, has the houses Sagittarius and Pisces: the former as a participant in small heat, and the latter in slight moisture. His exaltation is Cancer; his dejection is Capricorn; his adversities are Gemini and Virgo, for the southern parts of Gemini are hot and dry, and the humidity of Virgo exceeds the moderate. Mars, being warm and more dry, has the houses Aries and Scorpio: the former as warm, and Scorpio as being both warm and dry. His exaltation is Capricorn; his ^C dejection is Cancer; his adversities are Taurus and Libra, for both signs are well-tempered. Venus, being of a middle temperament, has the houses Taurus and Libra, since they themselves are also of a middle temperament; her exaltation is Pisces; her dejection is Virgo; her adversities are Aries and Scorpio, which do not have a middle temperament. Mercury, who is also himself a participant in good temperament, has the houses Gemini and Virgo, for the northern and middle parts of Gemini are well-tempered, as are the southern parts of Virgo. He also has his exaltation in Virgo; his dejection in Pisces; and in those same his adversity. For the preceding parts of Pisces are well-tempered, the middle ones humid, and those that follow the middle are fiery and hot. Mercury has another adversity in Sagittarius, since this sign has those parts that are after the middle as fiery, and those that are southern as humid, both of which fall away from a good temperament. The most humid moon has her house in the most humid Cancer, her exaltation in Taurus, her dejection in Scorpio, and her adversity in Capricorn. For although ^D certain parts of it do not have dryness, the majority are both dry and full of coldness; of which coldness, however, the moon is devoid, obtaining a partial heat by induction from the sun.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXVI, WHICH IS ABOUT THE SUN.

1. The sun is larger than the whole earth, although it does not appear so large due to the weakness of our sight at such a great distance. 2. The magnitude of the sun is argued from the shadow of the earth, which is conoid, that is, turbinated. 3. The shadow of the earth is conoid, because it is neither cylindrical nor basket-shaped. 4. [We explain] when the sun appears to be eclipsed, and that its eclipse is only an affection of our sight, while in the meantime it is itself free from all affection. 5. That the body of the moon is large is argued from the shadow which it casts upon the earth when the sun is eclipsed; although it is not only much smaller than the sun, but also many times smaller than the earth. 6. It is permitted, however, [that] the sun be

eclipsed by the moon, though it is smaller than the sun. 7. When a solar eclipse is total, and when it is partial. 8. In partial solar eclipses, when the northern parts of the sun fail first, and when the southern; and of these, which parts in total eclipses are obscured first, and which are restored first. 9. The opinion of the author regarding the miraculous solar eclipse which occurred at the time of the Lord’s crucifixion during the full moon. 10. What the size of the sun is in relation to its circle, and how it was discovered by the ancients through hydrology. 11. Why the sun, when rising and setting, appears larger and further away; [while] when at its highest point [culminating], it appears smaller and nearer to us. 12. Why the sun, to those viewing it from deep wells, appears larger and further away—as, for instance, to those living in Syene at midday near the summer solstice. 13. What is the cause of the sun’s various colors.

CHAPTER XXVI. On the Sun.

1. ^A The sun is larger than the entire earth, but it does not appear as such due to the distance from us, which is very great; for nothing else that is seen from afar appears as it truly is, due to the weakness of the eyesight, which makes even large islands appear easily circumscribed from a long distance.

2. The shadow of the earth clearly demonstrates the size of the sun. For when a spherical body is illuminated by a spherical body, if it is larger than the one illuminating it, it casts a shadow that is always widening toward the end; for it is like an inverted cone, having the narrower part at the beginning. If what is being illuminated is equal to the one illuminating it, it produces a shadow like a cylinder [or column], which maintains its equality throughout. But if what is being illuminated is smaller than the one illuminating it, its shadow becomes conical; for it is always thinning out toward the tip until it completely vanishes. Therefore, since the shadow of the earth is conical, it demonstrates most clearly that the sun is larger than the earth.

3. ^B That the shadow of the earth is conical is evident from what is observed. For if it were cylindrical, it would occupy the entire breadth of the Zodiac, not tapering to a point; and thus the moon would be eclipsed every month, as it would necessarily fall into the shadow of the earth. Moreover, such a shadow would extend even to the host of the stars, ^C and would make some of them appear brighter, and others less so. For every fiery body appears brighter in shadow, but appears dimmer in the brilliance of the sun or moon; just as the stars in nights without a moon, when the sky is clear, appear brighter. If the edges of the shadow widened toward the end, it would extend not only to the breadth of the Zodiac, but also to other parts of the firmament, and thus the moon would remain without light not only every month, but even throughout the entire night, due to being in the shadow. Therefore, since the shadow of the earth is conical, it cannot be denied that the sun is larger than the earth.

^A 4. It seems to be eclipsed when the moon slips under it and in this way obstructs our vision. Indeed, a solar eclipse is an affection of our sight, while the sun remains unaffected. Whenever, therefore, the moon has joined itself with the sun, and having been found at such a conjunction, it has passed under the sun in the middle of the solar circle, it sends down a conical shadow upon the earth; and the shadow is said to extend in width for more than four thousand stadia. For every place in which the sun is not seen while the moon has passed under it is filled with the shadow of the moon.

5. Now the body of the moon is indeed great. For if the part of the shadow that reaches us extends to such an interval of the earth, how much larger will be that part at the base, which also compares to the diameter of the moon! And yet the magnitude of the moon is not only smaller than the sun, but also much smaller than that of the earth.

6. Even though the body of the moon is far inferior in size to the solar magnitude, it can nevertheless hide the sun when it passes under it, and prevent it from emitting its light to us, and prevent us from seeing it. Indeed, even certain small bodies can do this in some way, for example, a cloud, or a hill, or a wall, or something else of that ^B kind.

7. Whenever, therefore, the moon is found to be subtending the middle of the solar circle at the conjunction, a total eclipse of the sun occurs; but whenever it deviates from the middle of the solar circle, the eclipse is seen to be partial according to the proportion.

8. And in the case of partial eclipses, if the moon, moving from the northern as if toward the southern parts, has passed under the sun, it darkens the parts of it toward the north; if it has come under the sun from the southern as if toward the northern parts, it darkens the parts toward the south. But in perfect eclipses, passing under the middle of the sun, it first obscures the parts of the sun ^C turned toward the west; after this, by passing under the whole of it, it covers it; and as it passes by it, it allows those parts to appear first which it had also covered first. In this way, therefore, all the eclipses of the sun that have happened are recorded to have happened. And this is how every eclipse usually occurs.

9. But the only eclipse of all that took place at the time of the saving crucifixion of the Lord happened contrary to all nature. For there being no conjunction—but rather the luminaries were standing opposite one another by the diameter—the moon, ^D having been moved from the east by a divine nod in a unique manner, passed under the whole sun, first having covered its parts toward the east and having obscured it for three hours; then, by a reverse motion, as if being driven from the west toward the east, it allowed the parts of the sun turned toward the west to appear first. These things are regarding the eclipse of the sun.

^A 10. The sun is found by means of water-clocks to be the seven hundred and fiftieth part of its own circle. For when the water which has flowed out during the time in which the entire solar body has ascended above the horizon is measured, after it has shown the first rim over the horizon, it is found that it is the seven hundred and fiftieth part of the whole of the water that flowed throughout the entire day and night. This method was devised by the ancient Egyptians, which has its utility both in the discoveries of the equinoxes and in many other things.

^B 11. The sun appears both rising and setting to be larger in size and further distant from us. But when it is in the middle of the sky, its size and distance from us appear smaller, even though it is everywhere as if equidistant from us, provided that the earth holds the ratio of a center to its sphere. The reason is that, at the horizon, we see it through moist and thicker air; for, indeed, that which is near the earth is of such a kind. Hence, our vision being refracted, the sun appears both larger and further away; but when it arrives at the middle of the sky, because it is seen through thinner and purer air, it is reckoned to be smaller in size and nearer to us.

^C 12. It is reported to appear much larger and further away to those who are able to look at it from deep wells. Those who inhabit Syene are certainly able to do this, when at the very center of the day, during the time of the summer solstice, the sun casts its rays perpendicularly upon them, and makes their earth devoid of shadow to about three hundred stadia in diameter; and all others who have obtained their dwelling closer to the torrid zone. To these, the sun appears larger than to us, because it is seen through the thick and moist and watery air that is in the wells, as a great refraction of the sight occurs from this. And if it were the case that the sun were seen through thicker and solid bodies, it would have seemed to have even greater size and a greater distance from us, because the sight would certainly be more refracted.

^D 13. And as for the various colors seen around it, varying from one time to another, the quality of the air is the cause, our vision suffering from this and at different times perceiving the visible objects differently, both in color and size, and indeed also in shape.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXVII, WHICH IS ABOUT THE MOON.

1. The moon is the lowest of the planets and produces many changes in the elemental region, and has a body that is of itself dark, but which, however, can be illuminated by the sun. — 2. The moon does not illuminate by the refraction of reflected solar rays, as some of the ancients thought. — 3. The moon is illuminated by the sun, and afterward it illuminates the air and the earth, in such a way that the moon receives the sun’s rays into itself like a sponge does water, and retains them and does not transmit them. — 4. The property of the moon is explained more broadly, that it certainly does not transmit the solar rays which it has received.

^A — 5. The illuminations or appearances of the moon, both as it waxes and wanes, are enumerated and explained. — 6. A fuller geometric demonstration of the same through the mutual intersections and congruences of two circles to be conceived in the moon. — 7. When the moon’s conjunction, generation, and rising occur, and that the rising does not always happen at the same time from the conjunction, for which three causes are indicated. — 8. At what distance from the sun and in what aspect the same moon appears hooked, bifurcated, gibbous on both sides, almost whole, and wholly whole. — 9. How great the periodic motion of the moon is, from which the periodic lunar month is also calculated. — 10. The moon does not always make its conjunctions with the sun at an equal time, because of the eccentricity of the planetary spheres and thus also of the solary and lunar spheres in relation to one another and to the firmament, whence the synodic lunar month also becomes unequal. — 11. Hence the twelfth parts of the Zodiac in the firmament, and of the circles subject to it in the lower spheres—namely the solar and lunar circles—are unequal; and because of the eccentricity of the spheres of the sun and moon, the larger are subject to the smaller, and conversely the smaller to the larger; so that even the sun himself, where he is higher, there the moon is lower, and conversely. — 12. Accordingly, if the conjunction of sun and moon occurs at the beginning of Gemini, the synodic lunar month becomes short; it is longest if it occurs at the beginning of Sagittarius; and it behaves proportionally in the intermediate signs. — 13. Another corollary from the above. Hence the exaltations and depressions of the planets in the signs of the Zodiac are argued and proven. — 14. With this posited, the moon in relation to the ecliptic and the sun within it sometimes wanes completely, sometimes only in part, and that unequally; at other times it escapes the whole defect. — 15. The eclipses of the sun and moon differ in this, that the former wanes not in reality, but only apparently with respect to those watching from the earth, whereas the latter wanes in reality and not just in appearance, and thus suffers a loss of light; and indeed sometimes, as in total eclipses, it is as if its location in the heavens were lost, which the author of its time proves by an example. — 16. In total lunar eclipses, which parts of the moon are first obscured and then again illuminated—namely the eastern ones—and why. — 17. In partial lunar eclipses, when the northern parts of the moon wane, the southern ones escape the defect, and conversely. — 18. The moon wanes when it is either at its highest or its lowest or in a middle state, other things being equal; but for this very reason it wanes for a shorter or longer time, as is explained in the text. — 19. Three corollaries are mentioned concerning the lunar eclipse, that the earth’s shadow is conical, and that the earth is larger and the moon smaller than the earth. — 20. He proves that the moon does not wane for any other reason than by falling into the shadow of the earth, from the time of the eclipse itself, and from the parts of the moon when it wanes entirely, and from the sections of the illuminations when it wanes in part. — 21. When both luminaries are above the horizon, a lunar eclipse cannot occur, which consequence necessarily follows from the doctrine of lunar eclipses taught thus far, unless, in the diametrical opposition of the luminaries, shortly after sunset it illuminates the thick air around the western horizon, or is seen above the horizon through the appearance of an anthelion, or the ray of eyes is refracted and bent by a cloud around sunset slightly below the horizon itself.

CHAPTER XXVII. De luna.

1. The moon, being lower and closer to the earth than all the planets, produces many changes and vicissitudes in the air; and it alters many things that are on earth by changing them along with itself: nay, it undergoes the motions of all the planets, none of them undergoes its own. For it is at the very extremity of the aether, where the aether connects with the sub-cautory sphere. For this reason the body of the moon is dark by nature; yet it is so constituted by nature as to be able to receive solar splendors, and to be illuminated by them, and to emit light to the air.

2. Some say, therefore, that the moon illuminates by reflection, as it possesses sufficient density; and hence that the solar rays, after they have fallen upon it, are reflected back from it and illuminate the air. Others, however, standing firmly against this opinion, say that those things which illuminate by reflection illuminate only a small space and emit light at right angles. If, therefore, the moon also illuminated in this way, it would neither transmit light to the earth itself, nor could it illuminate the earth when it is hooked or bifurcated. For since the moon is orbicular, both at sunset and at sunrise, its light is emitted just as it is toward the sun, both in falcate and in halved figures.

^A γ'. It is evident, therefore, from this that the light does not belong to the moon by way of reflection, but by reason of a property whereby it receives the solar rays into its depth, and not merely on its surface; thus, through it, the air and the earth are illuminated. It is reasonable, therefore, that the moon receives light just as sponges receive water, but does not allow it to pass through its whole body; this is because its body participates in no small degree of thickness and density, and because the sun applies its rays to it from afar. For it is far distant from it, if indeed it is more than seventeen times as far as the moon is from the earth, as is demonstrated geometrically.

δ'. It would be a special property of the moon that, just as it receives the solar rays and is illuminated by them and reflects the surrounding light, so also it does not allow them to be transmitted through its entire body; but the moon is always illuminated on the side which is turned toward the sun, and at one time one part, at another time another. Hence, also, the moon (selene) is so called because it always possesses a new light (selas), and never an old one. For if it kept the same relation to the sun at all times, it would always have the same part illuminated by it; but since, in the course of its planetary motion, it sometimes approaches the sun and sometimes moves away from it, for this reason another part is illuminated at another time. And what happens to the earth when it is stationary with respect to solar illumination, the same also happens to the moon as it moves. For just as the earth, while receiving an equal amount of light from the sun, has different parts illuminated at different times according to the sun’s cycle—with the brightness and the shadow upon the earth revolving along with it—so too the moon continuously has the same light from the sun, although it is not always the case that a larger or smaller part of it is illuminated; however, it is not always the same part that is illuminated, because of the varying relations it has to the sun. For as it approaches the sun and moves away from it again, different parts of it are illuminated, as the solar light rotates circularly around its whole body.

ε'. Whenever, therefore, there is a conjunction ^C, the part of it turned toward the heavens is illuminated. For then it faces the sun. But as the moon passes the sun, the part of it that looks toward the earth turns back toward it. And this happens in proportion to its distance; and thus, as the moon begins to be illuminated from the sides, it becomes first falcate; as it moves further away, [it becomes] halved; then it becomes gibbous. Having measured the sun, it becomes full and is perfected as a full moon ^D. But when it has passed the diameter and is approaching the sun again, the light is transferred from the part looking toward us to the part turned toward the heavens, in proportion, until, a conjunction having occurred, the whole part looking toward us is left completely unilluminated.

^A Thus, then, is the manner of the lunar increase and decrease.

6. Furthermore, what is said about them will be clearer from the following. Let two circles be conceived in the moon. One is that by which its shaded part is distinguished from the illuminated, and this also shifts; the other is that by which the part of it seen by us is separated from the part not seen, which is immutable and immovable. Neither of these is a great circle capable of cutting it into equal parts. For since the sun is larger than the moon, it illuminates more than its half; and for this reason, this circle which separates its shaded part from the illuminated is by consensus smaller than the great circles in the moon. And the one from our own perspective is likewise smaller than the great circles in the moon, since we see less than half of it; because the eye which sees is small, and that which is seen is very large. Wherefore, this circle also, which divides the moon not into equal but into unequal parts, is smaller than the great circles in it. Although, as far as sense perception goes, both of the circles mentioned also appear as great circles. And they seem to have the same magnitude always; however, they do not retain the same relationship to one another, but are multipliedly shifted and multiformly transfigured. And sometimes they indeed coincide with one another, but at other times they incline toward a section. And there are ^B very many diversities of sections, but two are general: at right angles and at an inclination. And the coincidences of such circles occur only twice, both in conjunction and at full moon. But when the moon passes the sun from the conjunction, the circles are separated and diverge into a section, so that the small amount remaining between the circumference of both is the only part illuminated as far as we are concerned. And this kind of transition of these circles from coincidence to section produces the crescent shape of the moon. Since, however, as they always proceed so as to cut one another at right angles, they also increase the splendor of the illumination, with the middle of the section of the circles being illuminated in such a progression, when the section itself has become at right angles, the moon appears bisected. ^C But when the circles proceed from this figure to already obtuse angles, they make the figure of the moon gibbous. And again, while they coincide with each other at the diameter (that is, in opposition), they complete the full moon. But afterwards, while they proceed from this to the other coincidence, and perform the same figures also during the diminution, they finally induce the extinction of the entire splendor when they exactly coincide at the part that looks toward the world.

7. A conjunction, therefore, is said to occur when the moon is in the same degree in which the sun also exists. The "genitura" [birth] occurs when it has departed from the sun by one degree...

rising, when it is first seen as new ^A. For on the first day, the moon is carried above the earth only so long as the light of the sun still prevails; hence, on this day it sets alongside the sun’s light; sometimes, however, it sets even earlier. It is clearly visible for the first time on the second day; and sometimes it appears more, sometimes less. This itself happens on account of the quantity of its distance from the sun; and the quantity of the distance itself becomes different at different times, both because of the moon's own motion (for it does not always move equally in its advance, on account of the variation in the latitude of the zodiac) and because the setting of all the signs does not take place in an equal space of time, in that some set upright and others obliquely; and in addition to these, because of the time of the preceding conjunction, whether it occurred at the beginning of the day, or at the onset of night, or in the many and varied intervals between them. Hence, there is not always one single time at which the moon is clearly visible, nor is its appearance invariable according to all its first illuminations. ^B

8. Ortus is called the rising, [when it is lunar] ^C as soon as it has been seen in any way whatever. It is sickle-shaped when it has departed sixty degrees from the sun and makes a sextile configuration with the sun. It is split in two when it has departed ninety degrees from the sun and is configured in a quadrant aspect toward it; it is gibbous on both sides when it has been separated by one hundred and twenty degrees from the sun and has completed a triangular figure. It is almost full moon, and almost full of light, after it has departed one hundred and fifty degrees from the sun. Finally, it is the whole or full moon when it stands diametrically opposite to the sun.

9. The moon completes its proper cycle, according to some, in twenty-seven and a half days; but according to others, in twenty-seven days and nearly a third part of a day. Nevertheless, in always traversing its own cycle, it returns to the same point from the same point through an equal space of time.

10, 11. It does not always make its conjunctions with the sun in an equal space of time, if we look for perfect accuracy, but sometimes in a longer time, and sometimes in a shorter one. The reason is that the spheres of all the planets are eccentric ^D both with respect to that which is seen and called the "inerrant" (the fixed stars) and with respect to each other (that is, they have diverse centers). For this reason, then, the spheres of both the sun and the moon are eccentric both with respect to each other and with respect to that which is seen and called the inerrant. For if, with the zodiac divided into twelve equal segments, the circles underlying it—both that of the solar sphere and that of the lunar—are simultaneously divided, then the

^A parts of these circles will necessarily be unequal; and those that are higher will be greater, while those closer to the earth will be smaller. Therefore, since the sun is higher where the moon is closer to the earth, and vice-versa, due to the eccentricity of the spheres, the smaller segments of the lunar [circle] will lie beneath the greater segments of the solar [circle], and the greater beneath the smaller. The segment of the solar [circle] which lies beneath Gemini is greater, because it is also higher (for this has been observed by astronomers); and that which lies beneath Sagittarius, because it is lower, is smaller. Conversely, therefore, the segment of the lunar [circle] that subtends Sagittarius ^B will be greater, as it is higher, whereas that which subtends Gemini will be smaller, as it is lower. Consequently, the sun will traverse Gemini in a longer time, and Sagittarius in a very short time. But the moon does the reverse.

12. When, therefore, a conjunction occurs at the beginning of Gemini, since here the moon is moving closer to the earth and the sun is higher, the month will be short. For the moon, after the revolution of its own circle and its return from the same point to the same point again, while still in Gemini—or rather, while it is being caught by the sun under Gemini—will traverse this segment in thirty-two days, as is said. If, however, the conjunction occurs around the beginning of Sagittarius, the moon will not catch the sun in Sagittarius (for the sun is said to traverse this sign, or rather to go beneath it, in twenty-eight days, or even a little more); ^C but, having traversed its own circle and arrived at the beginning of Sagittarius, it will find the sun at the end of that sign. In the time it takes the moon to traverse Sagittarius, for which it requires two days and more than half a day, the sun, having traversed Sagittarius, will have occupied Capricorn; and the moon, having arrived at Capricorn, will find that the sun has passed the beginning of that sign, and thus it will require some further interval of time to overtake the sun. And thus the month will become the longest, because the moon is slowly traversing the segment of its own circle that lies beneath Sagittarius, while the sun is quickly completing the portion of its own circle which is subject to Sagittarius, and for this reason allows itself to be overtaken by the moon more slowly. Things are thus in Sagittarius and Gemini; ^D in the intermediate signs, it will happen according to the same proportion.

13. And thus, then, the exaltations and depressions of the planets are proven in the signs, some being in some, others in others. For when each of the signs is divided into thirty degrees, and the planets traverse some more slowly and others more quickly, it is evident that where they are lower and are operating within narrower segments of the cones, they traverse them more quickly; but where they are higher, since the segments of the cones are wider, they traverse them more slowly. For such cones, which divide both the zodiac and the circles of the planets into twelve parts...

have their vertices on the earth, as they have the starting points of the sight of those who see, while their descents are in the firmament; and proportionately those parts which are ^A higher are wider, while those closer to the earth are narrower.

14. Furthermore, when the moon traverses its own circle, and runs beneath the zodiac; if, when it is diametrically opposite to the sun and is found beneath the middle of the zodiac, it subtends the solar circle: then from a full moon and one shining with all its light, it becomes entirely devoid of light, falling into the middle shadow of the earth; for then the three bodies—that of the sun, that of the moon, and that of the ^B earth coming between them—are found on one straight line. But when the moon, while passing beneath the circle which is drawn through the middle of the signs, reaches the diametrical oppositions to the sun, or has a part of itself beneath it; it suffers a partial eclipse in proportion; finally, when it is found in the northern or southern parts of the zodiac, it escapes the shadow. For this reason, an eclipse does not occur at every full moon.

15. The eclipse of the sun, therefore, is a passion of the sight of those who see, not being an eclipse in reality, but appearing so to us, who are deprived of the sun's rays on account of the interposition of the lunar body. But the eclipse of the moon is a passion of the moon itself, and it is an eclipse in reality, not in appearance. For the moon truly fails when the earth ^C casts a shadow upon it and prevents it from receiving the radiance from the sun. Sometimes, however, it fails in such a way that not even a faint shadow of it remains, but even the place where its body is at that time is ignored. We ourselves were once witnesses of such a lunar eclipse, which happened in the month of May, about the seventh hour of the night. Eighteen days of May had passed; the first indiction was running; the year was the six thousand seven hundred and sixty-sixth; and the encompassing air was most serene. Having seen this eclipse, we wondered if the moon has any light of its own at all, as some say.

16, 17. Moreover, in total eclipses, the parts of the moon turned ^D toward the east are obscured first, and these same parts are in turn illuminated first; because the shadow of the earth is carried from the east to the west, while the moon, according to its wandering motion, is carried from the west to the east, and thus it falls into the shadow of the earth. But in partial eclipses, if indeed the moon is descending from the northern to the southern parts, its southern parts fail (for these, as they proceed in the descent, fall into the shadow); while the northern parts escape the eclipse (for these do not enter into the shadow). But if the moon is ascending from the southern to the northern parts, the northern ones indeed

^A receive light, but the southern ones are involved in darkness.

18. Furthermore, the moon, whether high, or low, or at a middle distance, suffers an eclipse. And indeed, when it is eclipsed while at its highest, it appears more quickly, because it moves through a narrower part of the shadow; but when it is nearest to the earth, it is seen more slowly, because it falls into a wider portion of the shadow. Finally, when it is between its highest and lowest positions, it has a middle duration of obscuration.

19. From this, then, it is clear that the shadow is conical, and that the sun is larger than the earth, and the moon much smaller than the earth. For if it is hidden for such a length of time in the narrow part of the shadow, how much would it have been hidden if it had fallen into the breadth of the shadow which is diffused around the surface of the earth?

20. That the moon suffers an eclipse by falling into the shadow of the earth is manifest from the fact that eclipses occur only at full moons, when it is possible for the moon to fall into the shadow. It is manifest also from the appearance of the parts of the moon after the total eclipse, which are circular; but also from partial eclipses. For the sections of illumination are then crescent-shaped; because when a spherical figure meets a conical figure and is cut by it, the shapes of the intersections become circular and crescent-shaped.

21. Since matters are thus, it is impossible that an eclipse should occur ^B at all while both luminaries are seen above the horizon. But because many disturbances occur in the air, it is reasonable that sometimes, after the sun has set, it may appear to some to be above the horizon; either when a thicker and continuous cloud is at the sunset, and is illuminated by the solar rays, and such a cloud provides the appearance of the sun. Or when the rays of sight are reflected from some uniform cloud toward the sun, and, as in a smooth mirror, the solar color is impressed upon such a cloud, an anthelion (which is also called a parhelion) is formed. But there is another way: the ray which is poured out from the eyes, when it meets the moist and humid air toward the sunset, can be refracted and fall upon the ^C sun which is hidden a little below the horizon.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXVIII.

CONCERNING THE EARTH AND ITS ZONES, AND FIRST, THAT THE EARTH POSSESSES THE CHARACTER OF A CENTER IN RELATION TO THE CELESTIAL SPHERE, AND INDEED TO THE SOLAR SPHERE AS WELL.

1. How to understand that which is said, that the earth possesses the character of a center in relation to the firmament sphere, which is also declared by a similar instance. — 2. It is proved by three arguments that the earth holds the character of a center in relation to the heaven, the first of which is taken from the stars, which are seen to be equal to one another and similar in shape from every part of the earth. — 3. The second is taken from the signs of the Zodiac, six of which are always precisely above the earth, where it is also demonstrated by example how this same thing can be known. — 4. The third is drawn from the equator, the whole half of which is always above the earth, as is clearly known by the equinoxes. — 5. That the earth also holds the character of a center in relation to the sun’s sphere, so far as sense is concerned, is proved by the sundials which can be made everywhere on earth, and which also possess the character of a center in relation to the sphere of the sun, no differently than if they had been made in the center of the earth. — 6. That the earth does not hold the character of a center in relation to the moon’s sphere is proved by two arguments, the former of which is drawn from the distances of the moon to the stars, which are unequal according to the diversity of climates. — 7.

CHAPTER XXVIII. Of the earth and its zones, and first, that the earth stands in the ratio of a center to the celestial sphere, and also to the solar one.

1. The earth stands in the ratio of a center to the sphere of the firmament: not that the whole of it is the center (for every center is devoid of dimensions and parts, if it is indeed a point), but because, when compared to the magnitude of the sphere, it seems to have no proportion to it. Just as ten thousand myriads of water-jars ^A have a great quantity when considered in themselves, but when compared to the sea, they appear to be nothing, nor indeed when compared to a great river; so too the earth, when examined by itself, is of great magnitude, but when compared to the celestial sphere, or even to the solar one, it appears to have no proportion. For magnitude is said to have a proportion to magnitude when the greater is capable of being measured by the lesser; being perhaps ten thousand times as large, or having some other greater measurable ratio. But the sea and any great river could not be measured by ten thousand myriads of water-jars of water.

2. Moreover, that the earth is as a point in relation to the heavens is shown by the stars, appearing equal to themselves from every part of it and similar in their forms. Yet neither of these would happen if the straight lines falling from every part of the earth to every part of the heavens were not, as far as the senses are concerned, equal to one another.

3. But also the six signs appearing accurately above the earth ^C show that the earth occupies the ratio of a point to the firmament, in that its depth is unable to hide any part or minute fraction of a part. And in this way, the knowledge is obtained that the six signs appear above the earth. Two certain fixed stars near to one another according to...

^A magnitude and color exist in opposition to one another across the diameter: the one holding the fifteenth degree of Scorpio, and the other the same degree of Taurus, being a part of the Hyades, that is, the Suculae, very similar in color to Mars. Therefore, as one of them sets, the other immediately rises, and both are seen simultaneously on the horizon, the one rising and the other setting. This would not occur if the bulk of the earth were able to obscure any part of the Zodiac.

4. But also, half of the equator is always above the earth, and this is manifest from the equinoxes. For when the rising or setting sun touches a point situated on the equator, then both the day and the night attain the exact state of equality.

5. ^B But also with regard to the solar sphere, the earth is seen to hold the ratio of a center. For sundials are constructed on the earth which have the shadows of their gnomons moving around in conjunction with the shadow of the earth; and it is necessary that all the points of the gnomons hold the ratio of a center with respect to the solar sphere. Since, therefore, there is no sundial that can stand at the very precise center of the earth, yet sundials can be constructed in every part of the earth, it is manifest that the whole earth holds the ratio of a center with respect to the solar sphere. For one sphere has one center. In this way, therefore, all the gnomons are related to the earth as if they were gathered into one single point. From the things said, it is therefore manifest that the earth holds the ratio of a center with respect to the solar sphere; provided, however, that this is always understood according to sensory perception.

6. ^C But that the earth does not hold the ratio of a point with respect to the lunar sphere is shown thus. The intervals of the moon to the stars do not appear equal in every climate of the earth, but are larger for some and smaller for others. This, however, would not be the case if the straight lines produced from the earth to the lunar altitude were equal to one another; for if this were so, the intervals would also appear equal to one another.

7. And the eclipse of the sun, which is not perceived the same by all, gives credence to this reasoning. For if there were the same interval from the earth everywhere to the lunar altitude, the sun would not seem to some men to be wholly eclipsed, to others not wholly but having a part eclipsed, and to others to be entirely free from eclipse at one and the same time.

8-13. And yet some say that the earth does not hold the ratio of a point even to the visible heaven itself. They confirm this objection from the fact that the sense of sight, when lifted up to a height, sees things that are not seen on the plains but are hidden below the horizon; and from this they infer that the heaven is not divided equally from every part of the earth, and for that reason the earth does not hold the ratio of a center to it. But this reasoning then

^A would have strength if the hemisphere were not visible from the plains and the sea. But the reason why more of the hemisphere appears when the sight is raised to a height is that the figure of the earth is spherical. Therefore, since the rays from the eyes are shed all around the earth without hindrance, they encompass more than a hemisphere, as the horizons then become conical because the earth is spherical. Indeed, neither ravines nor the prominences of mountains will destroy the spherical nature of the earth, just as the prominences and cavities on the balls of plane trees do not cause them to cease to be round, even though these have a greater ratio to the integrity of the balls than the cavities and prominences of the earth do to its entire magnitude. For no mountain has been recorded as being fifteen stadia higher according to the perpendicular, nor any place in the sea as being deeper by so many stadia. But even if an altitude and depth of more stadia were assumed, what ratio would such a thing have to the whole diameter of the earth? If the earth were not spherical, how would the horizons shift upon it? How would different fixed stars be seen by different people toward the north and the south? How would the altitude of the pole be different in different climates? How would the magnitude of the arctic circle vary? How would the magnitudes of days and nights be different for different people? All these things attest that the earth is spherical. ^B And that water is also, in a way, endowed with a spherical figure is shown both from the fact that drops falling onto a smooth surface contract, become globular, and rest—as is manifest on the leaves of herbs and trees—and from the fact that those who sail the seas often do not see the land from the ships themselves; but once they have climbed the masts, they see it as if it were closer, having surpassed, by means of the ascent to a height, the curvatures and tumefactions of the water’s surface that previously obstructed their view.

14. Physicists divide the whole earth into five parts: one which is contained by the arctic circle; another which lies beneath the interval that occurs between the arctic and summer tropic; a third, which has as its height the space that extends from the summer tropic to the winter tropic, and in its very middle has the greatest circle, the equinoctial; a fourth, which is under the middle of the winter tropic and the antarctic; and a fifth, which is contained by the antarctic. These parts of the earth they call zones. ^C

15. They say, therefore, that of such zones, each of the extreme ones is uninhabitable because of cold, and the middle one is uninhabitable because of scorching heat; but the others, they claim, are naturally well-tempered and suited for habitation, ^D since each of them is tempered and has taken on the symmetry of heat and cold and the life-giving

^A power, having received this partly from the torrid zone and partly from the nearby frigid zone.

16. That some parts of the earth are scorched, others frozen, and others temperate, the sun is the cause, and the shape of the earth being spherical, as we have said. For as the sun moves in the world through the breadth that is intercepted between the tropics, it necessarily scorches the earth which is subject to such a space, inasmuch as it sends direct and intense rays into it. Again, since in moving from the southern parts toward the northern it does not pass beyond the summer tropic, and from there toward the southern it does not pass the winter one, it happens that the parts under the Great Bear are frozen stiff, as they are as far as possible from the sun, and for this reason receive the solar rays obliquely and weakly. But the remaining zones, receiving the rays of the sun in a somewhat moderate fashion, have a good temperament. ^B

17. Furthermore, the natural philosophers divide each of these temperate zones again into two parts, according to the median which is seen to be partly above and partly beneath the earth, and they say there are four habitable regions. Of these, we who are known to men inhabit one. A second is inhabited by those called *perioikoi* (that is to say, those dwelling around or circum-dwellers), who are supposed to exist in the same temperate climate as we do, but situated beneath the earth. A third is that of the *antoikoi* (that is to say, those dwelling opposite), and the last is that of the *antipodes* (as if walking with feet turned against ours), who also are imagined to dwell in the temperate zone opposite our own. However, the *antoikoi* [inhabit] the climate above the earth (these are also called *antomoioi*, as if having turned their shoulders), but in that which is seen beneath the earth, the *antipodes* [dwell]. ^C For it is necessary that the footprints of all who walk upon the earth look toward the very center of the earth, that is to say, its core. For since the earth has a spherical shape, the middle, the lowest point, and the center are the same. Consequently, the *perioikoi* are not also *antipodes*, but rather those dwelling below in the opposite temperate climate beneath the earth and distant by the diameter; for the footprints of these men are opposite to the footprints of those men with respect to whom they are called *antipodes*. Wherefore the *perioikoi* of our *antoikoi* might be called our *antipodes*; and the *perioikoi* of our *antoikoi* in turn are our *antipodes*; and our *antipodes* have us as their *antipodes*, and the *perioikoi* have the *perioikoi*, and the *antoikoi* have the *antoikoi*, with the relations between them being reciprocated in the same way as among friends and brothers. ^D For an *antipus* is the *antipus* of an *antipode*, and a *perioikos* is the *perioikos* of a *perioikos*, and an *antoikos* is the *antoikos* of an *antoikos*.

18-20. Wherefore the natural philosophers monstrously imagine that the four temperate portions of the earth are inhabited, but that no one can travel to the *perioikoi* because the Ocean, which has manifested itself as full of monsters and innavigable, separates them from one another; nor indeed to those who inhabit the opposite temperate zone, because

they cannot pass through the intermediate scorched zone. These are the findings of physiology. In truth, however, there are no *perioikoi*, no *antioikoi*, and no *antipodes*. For if, in our entire earth, the uncultivated temperate part is much greater than that which is inhabited, what necessity compels us to imagine more inhabited lands? There is, however, nothing to prevent us from assuming that many temperate areas are uninhabitable. For God has created all things with superabundant generosity; and just as He created a small amount of fire, a small amount of air, and a small amount of water to suffice for the use of those to whom these are known to be necessary—while the creative majesty and the abundant providing of the Creator have produced a vast quantity—so too is only a small part of the earth inhabited, while a very great part of it is temperate and naturally adapted for habitation. For the incomprehensible abyss of divine grace has poured forth all things much more abundantly than the need for them requires. ^A

21, 22. Furthermore, there have been various views regarding the size of the earth, none of which is beyond contradiction; yet perhaps those of Eratosthenes and Posidonius seem to speak better than the rest. Eratosthenes, then, attempts to demonstrate the circumference of the earth geometrically as 250,000 stadia, making as a hypothesis for his proof that the interval from Syene to Alexandria is 5,000 stadia. And first, because these cities lie under the same meridian, and the interval between the cities is 5,000 stadia, by a simpler method he arrives at 250,000 stadia for the circumference of the earth. Meridians are those circles which are drawn through the poles of the firmament and through some other point which lies directly over the head of each person walking upon the earth. The poles of all meridians are therefore the same, but the vertical point is different for different people. For this reason, an infinite number of meridians can be drawn. Since all meridians are great circles and divide the world into two equal halves, they are equal both to the Zodiac and to each other, since the Zodiac is also a great circle. And if the wholes are equal to the wholes, then the parts of them that are similar to each other will also be equal. ^B

23. Posidonius, stating that Rhodes and Alexandria lie under the same meridian and that the distance separating the cities from each other is 5,000 stadia, says that a very bright star called Canopus appears in the south, as if upon the rudder of the Argo; it is not seen at all in Greece (which is why Aratus, in his *Phenomena*, said nothing about it), but to those traveling from the more northern parts toward the south, it begins to be seen starting from Rhodes; and having been seen a little above the horizon, it immediately sets upon the turning of the world; to those

^A in turn who have sailed five thousand stadia from Rhodes to Alexandria, this same star appears in Alexandria elevated above the horizon, as soon as it has reached the meridian, by the height of the fourth part of one sign, which is the forty-eighth part of the whole Zodiac. Consequently, the interval between Rhodes and Alexandria, that is, the five thousand stadia, will also be the forty-eighth segment of the great circle of the earth. Moreover, forty-eight times five thousand stadia amount to twenty-four myriads of stadia. Thus, according to Posidonius, the circumference of the earth will be twenty-four myriads of stadia, if indeed the distance extending from Rhodes to Alexandria amounts to five thousand stadia; if not, it is according to its ratio.

24. Since the circumference of the earth is twenty-four myriads of stadia, its diameter will be seven myriads, six thousand, three hundred and sixty-three stadia. For it pleases the followers of Archimedes ^B that the circumference of a sphere possesses a ratio to its own diameter of, not precisely, but as closely as possible, triple and one-seventh; these men declare that the circumference of every circle and every sphere possesses a ratio to its own diameter of as closely as possible triple and one-seventh.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXIX, WHICH IS ABOUT DAYS AND NIGHTS AND THE FOUR SEASONS OF THE YEAR.

1. The sun has a dual motion, one proper and the other adventitious; this is what creates nights and days. 2. The reason why the increases and decreases of days and nights vary, and likewise why there are four seasons of the year, is the inclination of the world and the change in the elevation of the pole, and thus the unequal section of the parallels of the sun by the horizon, and the fact that the climates of the earth are not at the same degree of closeness to the zodiac. 3. What the position of the world is like in a climate subject to the equator, and what its consequences are. 4. From the very first climate, the position of the world varies and there are other consequences, and this occurs more or less according to the difference of distance, as is declared by this same example, and also by what was said in the preceding member. 5. The circles of the fixed stars, which they describe in their first motion, are parallel; yet some are smaller and others larger. The smaller [are those] near the poles; the larger [are those] nearer to the equinoctial, which alone is the greatest. 6. The segments of all these circles in a right sphere—namely, in a climate under the equator—above and below the horizon are equal; in an oblique sphere—that is, in other climates—they are unequal, except for the segments of the equator itself; for the segments of the northern [circles] above the horizon are larger and below the horizon are smaller, while the southern [circles] have the opposite relation, at least in our habitable temperate zone. For in the opposite zone the ratio of these circles is also opposite. 7. The sun, progressing from turning to turning, or as we say elsewhere, from solstice to solstice, travels through all the parallel circles that are within the tropics. 8. When by its motion it reaches the winter tropic from the northern parts of the world, it creates the shortest day and the longest night. 9. When it moves from the winter tropic toward the northern parts of the world, it displays for us a growing day, yet one still shorter than the night, until it reaches the equinoctial circle. 10. From here, when it reaches the equinoctial, it produces the vernal equinox, accurate indeed in the first degree of Aries, which is the other point of intersection of the horizon and the equinoctial; it is less accurate at the points near before and after. 11. When it approaches the northern parts of the world from the equinoctial, it makes the days even longer than the nights, until, having attained the summer tropic, it makes the longest day and the shortest night. 12. From here, when it retreats to the southern parts of the world, it makes the days decreasing, yet still longer than the nights, until it reaches the equinoctial again, and produces the autumnal equinox, both accurate and less accurate at the beginning of Libra and the adjacent points before and after, just as was explained concerning the vernal equinox. 13. And thus, traversing the remaining parallels from the equator, it shows the days to be even shorter than the nights, the ratio of which, as well as of all the former ones, is rendered by the varying section of the parallels and the horizon. 14. The same sun is known to cause the summer turning or summer solstice by four arguments; and likewise the winter [turning], but by contrary [arguments]. 15. The sun, ascending from the winter turning to the equator, produces the vernal equinox, and descending from the summer turning to the same, it produces the autumnal equinox. 16. In general, the sun displays increasing days when it approaches from the southern parts of the world to the northern, and decreasing [days] when it retreats from the latter to the former. 17. But the increases of days and nights happen with unequal accession, just as is declared in the text by an example in specific form. 18. The cause of this thing is the obliquity of the Zodiac, which cuts the equator and the neighboring parallels more straightly, indeed almost at right angles, but lies more obliquely upon the tropics. 19. And therefore the sun approaches the tropics more slowly, and retreats from them more quickly toward the equator and the neighboring parallels; in which matter the divine providence is indeed manifest. 20. [The] part contains 5000 stadia, [the] parts will contain 240000.

21. Although the quadrants of the Zodiac are equal, nevertheless the sun does not pass through them in equal time, because in its own sphere, which is below the firmament, it moves along the solar circle, which is not concentric with the Zodiac. 22. Hence, unequal segments of the solar circle correspond to equal segments of the Zodiac; and for this very reason the sun lingers for the longest time in Gemini and for the shortest time in Sagittarius, according to the author's time. 23. But also the solar days (nychthemera) are not precisely equal, because the additions, as they are called, of the sun are not equal. 24. Nychthemera are unequal due to the inequality of the additions, both on account of the proper motion of the sun and on account of the eccentricity of the solar circle with the heaven—that is, the first movable body. 25. Indeed, if the sun lacked its proper motion, or if the solar circle were not eccentric to the first movable body, all nychthemera would be precisely equal. 26. By conclusion, he infers that both the proper motion of the sun and the eccentricity of the solar circle are causes of the inequality of the nychthemera.

CHAPTER XXIX. Of days and nights and the four seasons of the year.

1. ^A Since the sun is moved by a twofold motion—one, the planet-like motion, through its own sphere; the other, a forced motion, by the revolution of the unmoving heaven—it accomplishes the hours, that is, the stated seasons of the year, by the wandering motion; but by the other, which it has in common with the heaven, it produces days and nights. Days [it produces] when it illuminates our air with its rays; nights, when it is hidden below the horizon and no longer emits its brightness to us because of the obstruction of the earth. For night is nothing else than the shadow of the earth.

2. ^B Furthermore, increases and decreases come to days and nights, and the quaternion of hours is completed: because the world is inclined, and the northern pole is above the horizon and always visible to us, while the other [the southern] is below it and perpetually invisible; and hence all the parallel circles in the firmament under which the sun moves, with the exception only of the greatest, the equinoctial, are divided into unequal segments by the horizon, and the climates (zones) of the earth do not hold the same relation to the zodiac, since some are subject to one part of the firmament and others to another, and consequently they are diverse with respect to their temperaments.

3. ^C Therefore, in the climate that is subject to the equator, which is in the middle of the earth, the world has its most balanced position, where indeed both poles appear on the horizon, and there are no arctic circles in this climate; but all stars both rise and set, so that none appears perpetually, nor on the other hand fails to appear.

4. ^D Now from this climate, as one moves toward the temperate ones, the position of the world changes: one pole becomes hidden, the other elevated; in our habitable world, the northern is elevated, but in the opposite one, the southern. For since the figure of the earth is in a certain way round, one pole is hidden by the obstruction of the earth's curvature from those who are as far from it as they are; but the other appears to those who approach it, insofar as they approach. Let there be someone, therefore, coming from the torrid zone to our temperate [zone]

For one traveling through the climate that lies under the equator, neither pole will appear elevated (for both are in the horizon in a similar fashion), and no star will either be always visible or always invisible. Whence there is no Arctic or, conversely, Antarctic circle. For the Arctic circle, in our estimation, must be the one that encompasses the stars that are always visible; the Antarctic, the one that encompasses those that are hidden. But if one has passed beyond the climate under the equator, the southern pole will be entirely hidden; and insofar as it is hidden, by so much will the northern one be raised on high. And thus, as the world takes on an inclination from the northern toward the southern parts, some of the stars around the poles will become always visible, and others invisible. The circles that contain them must necessarily undergo the same thing: changing according to the progress of the journey, and both always becoming larger in equal measure. ^B

5. Since, then, the world is inclined in this manner, it must be understood that each of the fixed stars, revolving in conjunction with the firmament, circumscribes a circle by means of such a revolution. These circles are therefore parallel; and since the equinoctial is the greatest among them, those around the poles are the smallest of all. Wherefore, in accordance with the proportion, those that recede from the equator toward the poles are always smaller, while those that come from the poles toward the equator are always larger.

6. Of all the parallels, therefore, both the greatest and the least and those in between, in the climate subject to the equator, the middle segments are above the earth, and the remaining halves are under the earth. But to one arriving from there to these regions of ours, just as the northern pole is elevated and the world is inclined, in this same way the circles no longer retain the same state; but the equinoctial, being the greatest ^C [circle] and cutting the world into two equal parts, always keeps one half above the earth and the remaining half exactly under the earth. As for those circles that turn from it toward the poles, however many incline toward the north have greater segments above the earth and smaller ones under the earth; but as many as incline toward the south [have] the opposite. But clearly even the entire Antarctic [circle] is hidden, just as the entire Arctic is always conspicuous. And this is how matters stand in our temperate [zone]; but in the opposite temperate [zone], it is the vice versa. For the things that are high for us are low for them, and conversely. For the world is inclined to them as from the southern to the northern parts; and the Arctic circle is hidden under the horizon, while the Antarctic is equally elevated from the horizon. ^D

7. Since these things are thus, it is manifest that when the sun is carried from the solstices to the solstices under the zodiac,

^A moving in an erratic motion, it traverses all the circles that are understood to be within the tropics.

8. When, therefore, being carried from the northern parts to the southern, it reaches the winter tropic, it makes the day most brief for us, and the night longest. ^B For this circle, of all the circles the sun touches, has the greatest segment below the earth, and the least above the earth.

9. But when the sun, having touched the winter tropic, comes again as towards us, and is seen in the higher parts of the world, it encounters circles that have segments above the earth greater than the segment of the winter tropic above the earth. And by as much as the segments of the circles above the earth are greater, by that much does it also provide the day increasing in proportion, though it be still smaller than the night, until it runs down to the equinoctial.

10. But when it touches the equinoctial, which has half above the earth and an equal part below the earth, it makes the vernal equinox; ^C indeed, entirely accurate when it touches the equinoctial at one of the two points where the horizon and the equinoctial intersect one another, but no longer so accurate when it touches the same equinoctial at another point beside those mentioned.

11. Having therefore finished the equinox in any way, and running back from the equinoctial as if to the summer tropic, since it encounters circles having greater segments above the earth, it necessarily provides the days as greater than the nights; and such increase proceeds until it approaches the summer circle, ^D which has the greatest segment among all the circles the sun touches for us, and for this reason makes the day in the summer solstice the longest.

12-13. From there, as it descends towards the southern parts, when it is in circles having segments above the earth smaller in proportion to the segment of the summer tropic above the earth, it provides the day also decreasing analogously, though it remains greater than the night, until it approaches the equinoctial. When it touches this, it makes the autumnal equinox, just as has been declared regarding the vernal equinox; and thus, proceeding in succession through the circles that have their segments below the earth greater than those above the earth, it also makes the nights greater than the days.

14. So then, the sun, performing its planetary motion under the zodiac, and subsiding into different parts of it at different times, and thus perfecting the hours, makes the summer solstice when it has become nearest to our habitation and appeared most high to us and has traversed the most northerly circle, and has completed the greatest day of all the days of the year, and the shortest night of all the nights. It makes the winter solstice when it has retreated furthest from our habitation and has become most low to us and as if towards

^A the horizon, and having traversed the most southern circle, and having completed the longest night of all nights, and the shortest day of all days.

15, 16. It creates the vernal equinox when, from the winter turnings, it comes toward the northern parts and the summer tropic, and having become in the middle place between both tropics on its course, it traverses the circle which divides the world into two equal halves. It creates the autumnal equinox when, returning to the southern parts and the winter tropic from the summer tropic, and having similarly become exactly between both, it travels the same equinoctial circle. It provides that the days increase when, from the winter tropic, it walks toward the northern parts of the world; but [it provides that they] decrease, descending from the northern parts of the world toward the south and the winter tropic. ^B

17. Now the increments of the days and nights are not made by an equal addition; but when the day begins to increase, during the first month it increases by the twelfth part of the total excess by which the longest day exceeds the shortest; in the second, by a sixth; in the third, by a fourth; in the fourth, likewise by a fourth; in the fifth, by a sixth; and in the sixth, by a twelfth. So that if the longest day exceeds the shortest by six hours, in the first month half an hour will be added to the increasing day; in the second, an hour; in the third, an hour and a half; so that thus in a quarterly space an addition of three hours is made; in the fourth month, again an hour and a half will be added; in the fifth, an hour; and in the last, half an hour. The same happens in the nights.

18. And the cause of the additions not being equal is somewhat of this kind. The zodiacal circle, under which is the solar one, in which the sun completes its course, being oblique and cutting the equinoctial in two points, and touching each of the tropics at one point, cuts the equinoctial and the neighboring parallels more straightly, and nearly at right angles; but to the tropics, it lies more obliquely and is more inclined; and likewise the solar ^C [circle].

19. Since, therefore, the angles at the tropics are acute, the sun approaches them more slowly, and likewise withdraws from them. But at the equinoctial, since the circle of the signs is more direct, and likewise the solar [circle] subjected under it, the sun makes its approaches toward the equinoctial itself, and its withdrawings from it, more quickly; the wisdom of Divine Providence having ordained such a relation of the zodiac to the tropics, for the purpose, indeed, that the changes of the hours might not occur suddenly. ^D

20. From the vernal equinox, therefore, until the summer turnings, there are ninety-four days and half a day; but from the summer turnings until the autumnal...

equinox there are ninety-three days, and likewise half a day; from this equinox until the winter turnings, ninety-one days; and from the winter turnings until the vernal equinox, eighty-six days and a quarter of a day.

^A 21. Therefore, although the quadrants of the zodiac are equal, the sun does not pass through them in an equal amount of time, since it does not perform its journey through the zodiac itself, but through the solar [circle]. But the solar circle is eccentric in relation to the zodiac. Consequently, when the zodiac is divided into four equal parts, the solar circle which is inside it is cut into unequal parts. And the diameters which are drawn from the tropics and the equator cut the zodiac into equal parts, but not likewise the solar circle, because it happens not to be concentric with the zodiac. For only those circles which use the same centers have circumferences which are cut into equal parts by the diameters.

^B 22. If, therefore, the solar circle is divided into twelve segments together with the zodiac, the segments of the solar circle will be subject to unequal parts for the equal segments of the zodiac; and the largest of its segments will be that which is subject to the Twins, and the smallest that which is subject to Sagittarius; and others will be greater or smaller to one another in proportion. Wherefore the sun passes through the Twins in the longest time (for it is at its highest in the Twins), and ^C through Sagittarius in the shortest (for it is at its lowest therein); and in the other zodiacal signs, being proportionately higher or lower, it dwells for a longer or shorter time accordingly.

23. But not even all nychthemera have the most equal time to one another with precision, but they only seem equal to the senses. For the revolution of the world is less than every nychthemeron, because the sun also makes its own movement contrary to the heaven; and from this it follows that when the sun has arrived at the same point of the heaven from the same point, it is not yet seen at the rising; but when the circumference of the circle is brought up, which the sun indeed traversed in its own motion during the nychthemeron, then it is seen at the rising.

^D 24. All nychthemera are unequal to one another on account of the wandering motion of the sun and the eccentricity of the solar circle in relation to the heaven. For if the sun did not have its own motion, but were carried around only with the heaven, all the nychthemera of the zodiacal segments that emerge directly—that is, the summer ones—would have been equal to one another, when they set obliquely, and those that emerge obliquely—that is, the winter ones—would have set directly; and there would be no cause from this for the inequality of the nychthemera, since the revolutions of the aether are always becoming equal.

^A 25, 26. Since, however, the sun also performs its erratic motion without intermission, it does not remain in the part of the zodiac where it rose, so as to set in the same place; but it rises in one part and sets in another. By doing this throughout, it renders the nychthemera unequal in precision, while the parts of the solar circle under the zodiac in which the sun moves emerge in different ways and set in different ways, because the natural motion of the sun never ceases. Again, if the sun had its own proper motion and did not have its circle eccentric to the heavens, then all the nychthemera would be equal, since equal solar erratic motions would always be added to the equal revolutions of the aether, on account of the equality of the parts in which the motion occurs. But this is not the case. Therefore, both the motion of the sun and the eccentricity of its circle are the causes of the inequality of the nychthemera.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXX

Concerning habitations.

1. He makes the habitations threefold according to the differences of shadows, declaring separately in order the periscii, amphiscii, and heteroscii. 2. Periscii. 3. Amphiscii. 4. Heteroscii. 5. He recounts what is common and what is diverse for us and our periscii. 6. He explains what is common and what is diverse for us and our antioeci. 7. The causes on account of which the hours of the year, as well as the increases and decreases of days and nights, are changed in the temperate zones, are the inclination of the world and the unequal division of the solar parallels from the horizon, just as under the equator there is perpetual equinox. 9. The increases and decreases of days and nights among all who dwell in our temperate zone happen at the same time, but the addition and subtraction is not the same among all, the cause of which fact is that the inclination of the world and the elevation of the pole is not the same even among all of them. The reason is the same, though inverted, among those who dwell in the temperate zone opposite to us. 10. For these very reasons the quantity of the longest day varies among different peoples, as is explained in the text. 11. For which reason in Britain, at the time of the longest day, which is eighteen hours, it is light even when it is six hours. 12. In the island of Thule, the entire summer tropic—and thus all parts of Cancer—are above the horizon, and consequently the artificial day there is an entire month. 13. In more boreal places, the longest day becomes two, three, four, and five months long and greater, in proportion to the distance. 14. For those dwelling under the northern pole itself, the longest day does not become six months, but seven, while night becomes five months long. 15. How in Thule and beyond in more boreal places the arctic circle relates to the summer tropic. 16. Under the arctic pole itself, the equator and the horizon coincide, and become one circle in reality and subject, although they differ in definition.

CHAPTER XXX

Concerning habitations.

1. If it is assumed that the whole earth is inhabited, of the habitations some will be periscii [quasi circumumbratile], others amphiscii [quasi utrinque umbram jacientes], others heteroscii [quasi alteram umbram habentes].

2. Periscii are those under the poles, in which the year will be divided into day and night, since the horizon in these places becomes the equinoctial, and six signs are always above the earth, and six are under the earth. Since, therefore, in such habitations shadows describe a circle, they make them periscii, because in the climates that are under the poles the firmament turns like millstones. ^C

3. Amphiscian [inhabitations] are those which are subject to the equator. For when the sun departs toward the south and ^A from the equinoctial circle as if toward the winter tropic, their shadows will decline to the north; but when the sun travels from the equinoctial circle toward the summer tropic, the shadows will turn toward the south.

4. Heteroscian are those which are temperate. For indeed, when the sun reaches the meridian, the shadows of those who inhabit the northern zone decline to the north, but the shadows of those who inhabit the temperate zone opposite to us decline to the south. For the shadow of the earth always circles together with the sun and measures it out. Wherefore the diameter which is drawn through the extremity of the shadow will fall upon the center of the sun. And indeed the shadows of all bodies which are illuminated by the sun circle together with the shadow of the earth. Whence, during the equinoxes, when the sun is rising, the shadows decline toward the equinoctial sunset, and when it is setting, toward the equinoctial sunrise; but during the winter turnings, when the sun is rising, the deviation of the shadows occurs toward the summer sunsets, and when it is setting, toward the summer sunrises; but during the summer turnings, when the sun is rising, the shadows stretch toward the winter sunsets, and when it is setting, toward the winter sunrises; the deviation of the shadows thus occurring by a chiasmus, or decussation, in summer and winter.

5. Now the natural philosophers, dividing the temperate zones into four inhabited segments, and conceiving for us as well inhabitants near by (perioeci), inhabitants opposite (antioeci), and inhabitants with feet opposite (antipodes), say that there are both commonalities and differences between us and them. With the perioeci, indeed, according to the doctrine of the natural philosophers, there will be something common to us: first, that we inhabit the same temperate zone; then, that we possess the hours of the year—that is, the seasons—at the same time, as well as the increments and decrements of days and nights. What is different from us is that when it is day for us, it is night for them, and vice versa—though this is said in a wider sense. For it is not the case that, precisely when the sun sets for us, it begins to rise for them. For thus, when the day was long for us, the night would be long for them, and all matters regarding the hours and the increments and decrements of days and nights would be reversed for us. But now, since the sun circles around the earth (which is spherical) and goes round it, the parts upon which it casts its rays at any given time, these it brightens and illuminates, as it travels over the convexities of the earth. Whence, while it is still seen by us above the earth, it will appear rising to our perioeci.

6. To the antioeci, moreover, there is something common to us, namely that both they and we inhabit the same hemisphere above the earth; and also that we have the days and nights at the same time, though this too is said in a wider sense. For when it is the longest day for us, for them it is the shortest, and vice versa. For being reversed—

^A

7. Finally, with the antipodes we have absolutely nothing in common, but everything is reversed. For we have our climates beneath the earth relative to one another, and the seasons are interchanged, as are the days and the nights, and their increases and decreases.

8. The cause for the interchange of seasons and the increases and decreases of days and nights in temperate regions ^B is the inclination of the world and the sectioning of the parallel circles understood in the heavens into unequal parts. For all of these, except for the equinoctial circle, are divided into larger and smaller segments, with only the arctic and antarctic circles being free from this division. Therefore, whichever parallel circles are low for us are high and much elevated for those who occupy the opposite temperate zone, and vice-versa. Whence also our winter circle is their summer one, as it possesses the largest segment above the earth; and their summer circle is our winter one, with nothing of this kind occurring in the climate subject to the equator, but rather there is equinox continually, since in that climate the world is not inclined in any way at all, but the segments of all the parallels are equal—both those above the earth and those below the earth—for they are semicircles.

9. ^C But the increases and decreases of days and nights occur at the same time for all who inhabit our temperate region, just as they occur at the same time for all who hold the opposite temperate zone; yet the addition and subtraction is not the same for all, but there is great variation in these, with the smallest addition and subtraction occurring for some, and the greatest for others. The cause of this is that the world is not inclined equally for all, nor is the North Pole elevated by the same degrees everywhere from the horizon, but for those living toward the south, it is elevated a little; for those toward the north, more; and for those in the middle, it is elevated in a middle fashion.

10. ^D Whence, for those in Meroe of Ethiopia, since the world is tilted but little, the longest day is known to be thirteen equinoctial hours; for those in Alexandria, fourteen, as the world there clearly receives a greater inclination; for those at the Hellespont, fifteen; for those at Rome, fifteen and more; for those at Massilia, fifteen and a half hours; for the Celts, sixteen; for those at the Maeotis, seventeen; and for the Britons, eighteen, with the night being six equinoctial hours.

11. Whence it is also said that there is light for these at night during this time—that is, at the time of the summer solstice, when the sun passes around the horizon

^A and sends its rays above the earth, which also happens among us when the sun, approaching the horizon, causes much of its light to precede the sunrise, and again to remain after the sunset—for when the sun is distant by half a sign, that is, fifteen degrees, below the earth from the horizon, it sends no small amount of light to those above the horizon. Such, therefore, is said to be the light of the night in Britain when the sun reaches Cancer, ^A since the sun then makes its journey around the horizon. For the segment of the summer circle below the earth is very small for the Britons.

12–16. As for the island of Thule, there is a report that the entire summer circle is above the earth, which is also the arctic circle. When, therefore, the sun passes through Cancer, it will appear in this island for a month's time above the horizon, since all the parts of Cancer are always visible; for as long as the sun is in the always-visible parts of Cancer, for so long also it will be above ^B the horizon. As one progresses from there to more northerly parts, according to the hypothesis, not only will the whole of Cancer be found to be among the always-visible parts, but also more parts of the zodiac. Passing through these, therefore, the sun will not sink below the horizon at all. And thus there will be certain climates of the earth in which a two-month, a three-month, and a longer day will occur. For those who are under the north pole itself, since six signs are always visible above the earth, for as long a time as the sun travels through ^B these, it will not be hidden at all. It travels through these in one hundred and eighty-seven days; the remainder in one hundred and seventy-eight days, with the addition of a quarter of a day. Therefore, since for those living under the north pole the sun is above the earth for one hundred and eighty-seven days, and, being half a sign distant from the horizon below the earth, it sends down no small amount of light to those who are above the earth, the solar light will anticipate the sunrise of the sun by fifteen days for the most northerly inhabitants; and after the sun has set, there will be such solar light for them for fifteen days ^C as well. Consequently, for those living under the north pole, the day will be longer than seven months, while the night will be at most little more than five months; for the illuminations always prevail over the darkness. Therefore, for those on the island of Thule, the summer tropic coincides with the arctic circle; but for those further north, the arctic circle exceeds the summer tropic in proportion. Finally, for those established under the pole itself, who are the most northerly, the circle that is for everyone the equinoctial ^D also becomes the arctic and the horizon; yet it is not the equinoctial in the strict sense. For the arctic is so called because it contains the stars that are always visible, with none rising or setting; the horizon, because it divides the hemisphere above the earth from that which is below the earth. It is not, however, an accurate equinoctial, since in one day and one night the entire

^A year, it divides this day into unequal parts.

SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTER XXXI, WHICH IS ABOUT THE VACUUM.

1. What is called a vacuum by physicists. 2. Diverse opinions of various physicists concerning the vacuum. 3. He proves that a vacuum, strictly so-called, which is stripped of all body, does not exist in the world, which he proves first from the definition of the world. 4. Then he proves it by a double reduction to absurdity: because otherwise there would be no continuation and natural conjunction of the parts of the world, and because the senses, and indeed vision in particular, could not exercise their action over such a distance—that is to say, to the firmament. 5. Thirdly, he confirms the same by vessels with a narrow opening, which, when turned upside down in water, are not filled with liquid on account of the air with which they are full; which would otherwise receive the liquid immediately if they were empty of all body, and therefore even of air. 6. Fourthly, he demonstrates the same by the experiment of the water clock, such as was in use among the ancients. 7. A vacuum is conceived as extending to infinity outside the world.

CHAPTER XXXI.

Concerning the vacuum.

1. Where nothing of any body exists at all, such that it can become a place for a body, this the physicists call a vacuum. For they define a void as a place stripped of body. ^B

2. Some, therefore, say that the void is merely a name, and that it is non-existent; but others declare that to be a vacuum which exists outside the convex surface of the first and truly inerrant heaven; a vacuum of body, certainly, but not of God: for God fills the entire universe, or the world, and that which is above the universe—that is, the supramundane realm. This, then, which is supramundane, they have called the vacuum, which they have, for the most part and properly, said to be a place belonging to God alone; infinite to the infinite, and incorporeal to the incorporeal, and eternal to the eternal. ^C

3. Now, there is no such vacuum within the world. For the whole world is filled with bodies that are connatural to one another. For this is what the world is: a system and a composition derived from heaven and earth and the intervening elements, fire, air, and water, connatural and well-fitted together, and worthy to have been produced by such an all-wise and omnipotent Creator; by whom it was created and fashioned out of nothing at all. Therefore, there is no vacuum whatsoever in the world. ^D

4. For if there were any vacuum at all in the world, there would be no sympathy of the parts of the world toward one another, and their continuation and conjunction would not be perceived, as this would be broken by the vacuum; nor, again, would there be such a great action of the senses, and especially of sight. For how could it be possible for the visual faculty to reach as far as the firmament, if the air were not entirely continuous with itself and united to the burning element [the upper air] by a seamless coalition, and through it to the ether, in an inseparable connection? For if there were certain voids in between, the senses would surely become sluggish, being hindered by those voids.

^A 5. Vessels with narrow mouths, when they are turned upside down in water, would certainly be filled, as water would enter through the empty spaces. But now this does not happen, because they are full of air, and it cannot be expelled, since their mouths are held fast by the water.

6. The clepsydra provides even clearer evidence that there is no vacuum in the world. The clepsydra is a cone-shaped vessel, which has its base perforated with certain small holes; but it has an orifice at its very top. When this vessel is filled with water and lifted up, if the orifice is blocked by the thumb, or securely in some other way so that the air cannot enter through it, it holds the water; this is because no air can enter through all the pores in the base, as they are occupied by the body of the water and are, as it were, plugged up, having blocked the path for the air. Therefore, the water remains inside because a vacuum is not found anywhere in the world, not even for a very short time. For if the water were to flow out, and leave the holes in the base of the vessel, it ^B would not be followed by a continuous flow, and air would have no way to enter and occupy that space which the flowing water previously occupied and had now left empty; thus, there would necessarily be some empty place inside the vessel. But since this is impossible, all the water remains undiminished. However, as soon as some air begins to enter through the orifice, then as much water flows out as the air that enters; and again, when it is blocked, the flow of water ceases immediately, and what remains of the water in the clepsydra remains just as the whole water remained before. It is manifest, therefore, that there is no vacuum in the world.

7. Outside the world, such a vacuum is supposed to extend to infinity. Since everything that is contained is contained by something else, as is apparent in the case of individual bodies (for some of them are contained by air, others by water, and others by something else), the world also, being necessarily limited, ^C would be contained by something else. But there is no body outside the world. For this itself is the grasp and containment of all bodies and, so to speak, the bodily totality. Therefore, that which contains the world will be incorporeal. For if it were also a body, it would necessarily be contained by something else. For it is not possible to conceive of an infinite body. Wherefore, that which ultimately contains the whole composition of the world must necessarily be incorporeal. And as it is the outermost of all things, it will be infinite. Therefore, they name this ultimate, incorporeal, and infinite containment of existing things a "vacuum," as it contains no body at all within itself. ^D

375 CHAPTER XXXII. From the exposition of the eighth Psalm.

1. When the Prophet said to God, "For I will see the heavens, the works of your fingers," and mentioned both heavens, he preached Christ as the Maker of the entire creation, embracing all that is contained within the containment. For the heaven that came into being at the beginning, which is by nature first and starless, is the containment of all creation, both sensible and intelligible. For even the minds themselves are all contained by such a heaven; only the divine nature is devoid of circumscription and definition. "I will see," he says, instead of "I shall know." For the mind, being the eye of the soul, sees better than corporeal eyes. "I shall know the heavens," your works, both metaphorically and by circumlocution. "I shall know" forever; I shall never cease from such knowledge, "that you are the creator of all." And the "that" is narrative and confirmatory, not causal. It is understood in common: "I shall know the moon and the stars, the works of your fingers, which you have founded." ^B

and made stable, and which keep the same order, for as long as you have willed the universe to remain." ^B 2. Now, having discoursed concerning the moon and the stars, he did not omit the sun, as he partly placed it with the stars, seeing that it too is a star—far more excellent, most royal, most brilliant, and by some conveniently called the "prince of stars"; and partly because it should be heard and understood together with the moon, since the light which shines from her exists insofar as it is from him, and not by nature.

3. He speaks separately concerning the moon, and not in agreement with the stars, because she bears many things not in common with the stars: the increases and decreases of light, the occultations and the fullnesses, and the varied figurations; and further, because none of the stars has light coming to it from without, as she does by way of addition. Rather, they all possess it from their own selves and are not able to be deprived of it, even if they are seen in the daytime, when the sun’s full radiance and surpassing brightness hides them.

4. The sun, therefore, is higher than the moon by much more than the distance by which she is removed from the earth, and in many ways further still. But she is understood to be the lowest of every star. For of the stars, some are called "inerrant" (fixed) and others "erratic" (planets). And the inerrant ones are all equally very high and very numerous—I mean the mass of the stars, their sheer multitude. But the erratic ones, with the moon, are seven in number, and one is lower and closer to the earth than another.

5. Since the firmament moves circularly with a movement that is most swift and unceasing, from east to west, as far as sense perception goes, all the stars and the whole ether are carried along with it.

^C 6. Now the interval of the ether, from the firmament to the *hypekkauma* (the "burning-under"), is very great and immense. This *hypekkauma* is the fire, that very element. For the fire known to us is an ignition of such elemental fire, having an excess of fiery heat, just as crystal is [an excess] of the coldness observed in water.

7. The inerrant stars, then, are fixed in the firmament and are carried along with it alone, making no movement of their own in respect to place. But the planets are not fixed in the firmament; rather, they are carried aloft in the ether, below this, at certain levels. And while the firmament is carried along with the whole multitude of the inerrant stars from east to west, according to sense perception, they themselves move in the opposite direction, from west to east, with a distinct and more leisurely motion. Whence they were also named "planets" (erratics), as if

they had strayed from the course of the firmament and the great host of stars, and were walking in the opposite way.

8. ^A I say this indeed with regard to the phenomenon; since it is known that only the first heaven is carried from east to west, drawing along with it also the second, namely the firmament. For the firmament itself is also naturally carried from west to east along with the so-called fixed stars; but because of the extreme slowness of such a planetary motion, it escapes the senses. For since any circle is divided into three hundred and sixty parts, it has been observed that the firmament traverses the space of one degree—in the manner of a planet—in a hundred years; but according to some, not a degree, but the smallest segment of a degree. Wherefore, ^B indeed, from this peculiar and natural motion of the firmament, the first heaven, which is not seen, has been observed by those who have studiously applied themselves to this investigation.

9. ^C The planets, therefore, perform their own motion such as we have described; but they are also carried around with the heaven, being overcome by the impetuosity of its revolution. And hence also the sun, while fulfilling its own (motion) in the space of a year—the planetary motion, which is from west to east—in one day and night returns through the opposite [motion] from the same point to the same point and a little further, as one that is dragged and carried around by the impetuosity of the heaven. Therefore, through the rotation which it has from the heaven, it becomes the cause of days and nights—of days, while it is carried above the earth, of nights, while it is beneath the earth; but [it is the cause] of the four hours, or the seasons of the year, through its own planetary or erratic motion.

10. ^D For since it has the circle of such a motion of its own lying obliquely beneath the firmament, and two of its parts which are along the diameter are positioned opposite the central parts of the firmament, and as for the other two parts, which are also along the diameter, one inclines toward the more northern parts of the firmament, and the other toward the more southern; when it traverses the parts that are beneath the central parts of the firmament, it brings about the equinoxes: the vernal, when it ascends from the southern [parts]; the autumnal, when it returns from the northern; but when it traverses the most northern segment of its own circle, then it produces the summer season; and the winter season, in turn, when it traverses the more southern segment of its circle.

11. The first star of the wandering ones stands apart from the firmament, Saturn, which is also called Phænon, traversing its own circle in a space of thirty years. Beneath this is Jupiter, which is also called Phaethon, completing its own planetary period in twelve years. After it, and beneath it, is Mars, which is also called Pyrois, completing its own proper rotation in two years and five months and a somewhat greater space. Then the fourth, and according to that of the aether

the sun is placed, performing its circuit in the space of a year, namely, three hundred and sixty-five days and a quarter. After it, and below it, is Venus, which is ^A indeed called the star of the dawn and Vesper; it is called the star of the dawn when it rises before the sun, and Vesper when it is seen setting at the same time as the sun. Regarding its natural movement, those who have studied the knowledge of the stars disagree; for some have said that it moves with the same speed as the sun, while others have thought it traverses its own proper circle in eight months. The sixth is Mercury, which is also called Stilbon, completing its whole rotation in six months and six days. But by some ^B astrologers this star also has been thought to complete an annual course like the sun. Those, however, appear more accurate who have assigned to these two aforementioned planets a time of natural movement less than a year, in accordance with the order in which they descend below the other planets. After all the stars, the moon is placed at the lowest level, namely, at the very extremity of the aether, which is troubled because it is mixed with the combustion. Since this star has the smallest circle, because it is the lowest and nearest to the earth, it completes it in a short time, namely in the space of twenty-seven and approximately one half days. Wherefore throughout the year it often ^C gets ahead of and passes by the sun.

12. But as it is in the lowest place of the aether, and at its conjunctions and mixings with the combustion, as has been said, it has a body that is dark and by nature lightless; but by its property it is naturally disposed to receive light from the solar rays. Wherefore it is also called *selene* in Greek, because it continually has *selas*—that is to say, new light—and never old, while different parts of it are illuminated at different times.

13. For since this too is spherical like the sun and every other star, whenever it has the sun at the diameter, standing at the greatest and furthest distance from it, then all its lower parts that are towards us are illuminated, and it becomes very bright; but the closer it approaches the sun, the more dark it appears to us, as the solar rays are transferred from the parts of it that are seen by us to the parts that are not seen by us. But when it comes together with the sun so as to coincide with it, then, being illuminated in all its higher parts that look toward the heavens, it is found to be entirely devoid of illumination in the parts below that are towards us; when, however, it passes the sun, it begins to be illuminated in its lower parts, the illumination always occurring in proportion to its passing.

14. There is indeed a large circular and oblique breadth of the firmament, under which all the stars

^A perform their wandering motion. For they do not run under the entire firmament. This very wide oblique circle carries many stars, which in some way outline and represent certain animals. And from such a confused and dim outlining and representation, the older astrologers called these outlines and representations, the animals or signs and their entire arrangement, the zodiacal or sign-bearing circle, having used these names with great impropriety.

15. Beneath the middle part of the zodiac the sun moves evenly and continuously from west to east; but the other wandering stars, moving in a convoluted and tortuous manner, vary their entire latitude subject to the Zodiac, and are sometimes found at its northern parts, sometimes at the southern, and sometimes even ^B towards the middle. But especially among the others, the moon, undergoing such a varied change, sometimes ascends towards the north, sometimes descends towards the south; and sometimes it journeys through the middle, beneath the solar circle.

16. When, therefore, at the time of its conjunction with the sun, it is more northerly or more southerly, it cannot overshadow and hide the sun. But when it is found in the middle and becomes, as it were, at a perpendicular line with the sun, it places itself as a fence and wall between the sun and us, and thus hides the sun from us; and it neither allows its rays to reach our air and illuminate it, nor allows us to behold the sun itself, through whichever part it may pass.

17. And this coincidence they have called an eclipse of the sun, not because the luminary ^C is actually failing, but because it appears to fail, from the fact that it neither shines nor is seen, as the body of the moon blocks it.

18. Furthermore, in such traversals of the moon, the sun sometimes appears to us totally invisible, but often in part, according to the measure of the obscuration. For as much as the moon has moved into the way, by so much is it also invisible to us; and this part also does not emit light to us.

19-21. But this which is called an eclipse of the sun is not a passion of the sun itself. For the sun possesses its light from every side, at all times free from diminution and sincere. But the eclipse of the moon is a passion ^D of the moon itself; and in truth, not just by appearance, is it an eclipse. For when the moon comes to be diametrically opposite to the sun, if it is found at the northern and southern parts subject to the zodiac, it remains entirely shining and suffering nothing. But if it stands in the middle and underlies the solar circle, then the earth, as a fence, interposes itself, and it does not receive the brilliance from the sun; and the part which does not receive this, it is not illuminated; and what the moon causes in what is called a solar eclipse at the conjunction, by screening the sun from us, this same thing the moon suffers from the earth when it is in diameter. For when the earth is situated between the sun and the moon

^A in the same straight line, it prevents the moon from being illuminated by the rays of the sun. And as much of it as is not illuminated by the solar rays, this remains entirely destitute of light. But sometimes it is even entirely darkened and loses all its light, so that it seems even to have vanished and the place in which it was cannot be recognized at all, because not even a shadow of it, however faint and weak, is left behind. We have ourselves been eye-witnesses of such a lunar eclipse.

22. The sun, therefore, is known beyond doubt from the phenomena concerning the eclipses of the moon to be larger than the earth; and for this reason, when it is beneath the earth, it is not prevented by it from sending its own rays into the height of the ether. For since the earth, by reason of its smallness, is contained by the sun, how could its rays be prevented from passing from its extremities into the height of the ether? Hence even the higher parts of the world are illuminated when the sun is under the earth; while the lower parts and those closer to the earth are then in night. For night is nothing else than the shadow of the earth.

23. Since such shadow, by reason of the sun's magnitude, is conical, and has a base ^B broad and coextensive with that part of the earth which the sun does not illuminate, but a vertex ending in a point, those things which are above the moon and are higher than this shadow, both in length and position, transcend it. Hence no one has ever recorded any of the stars to have fallen into such a shadow. For it would have appeared brighter than itself; for lights appear brighter at night than in the day. Hence also the stars, when the sky is clear on a moonless night, have more brightness than when the moon is shining. The stars, then, all are carried above the shadow, since it does not reach their height; but the moon, being near the earth, falls into the cone about the extremity, when it is measured against the sun and is carried under its circle, neither inclining toward the northern nor toward the southern parts.

24. It is evident from this, that the body of the moon is also very small in proportion to the earth; if indeed the extremities of the shadow ^C and night are able to cover it entirely.

25. And let this be a corollary for us, in addition to those things demonstrated, not geometrically, but logically. These things are from the explanation of the eighth Psalm.

26. Since we have already spoken beforehand concerning the exaltations and dejections, and the houses and oppositions of the wandering stars, such an exaltation and dejection would be twofold: the one according to the sphere of the wandering stars being more distant from the earth or closer to it (for all are eccentric ^D to the sphere of the firmament and to each other; and have some parts higher and others lower), and the other dejection and exaltation according to the variation of the zodiac.

^A For all the wandering stars, except the sun, approach both the northern and the southern parts, and those under the zodiac, in their helicoid motion.

27. Concerning this dejection and this exaltation, I think that the astrologers, in their discourses, relate that certain zodiacal signs are the exaltations of the planets, and others, indeed, are their dejections.

28. For how else could Taurus be the exaltation of the moon, unless it is because, when it is under it, it begins to be exalted toward the more northerly parts that are under the zodiac? For the middle of the lunar sphere is not that which is under Taurus, so that Taurus should be the exaltation of the moon according to its sphere; since neither is that which is under Cancer the highest part of the lunar sphere, but rather the middle of it is that which is under Libra, while the highest part is that which is under Sagittarius. ^B For just as the sun, when it is under Gemini, occupies the highest part of its own sphere, so the moon, when it runs under Sagittarius, also obtains the highest part of its own sphere.

29. The sun, therefore, as it always runs under the middle of the zodiac, reaches the more northerly and higher parts of the world by running through the more northerly zodiacal signs, and by running through the more southerly signs, it goes toward the more southerly and lower parts.

30, 31. It also has the highest point of its own sphere toward the more northerly signs; and for this reason, while it is under Aries, it has a double exaltation in Aries. For it not only begins to reach the higher parts of the world from this point, but it also seeks the higher parts of its own sphere, and is exalted in height all the way to Gemini. ^C But when it runs under Cancer, it does not indeed undergo dejection relative to the parts of the world (for this happens from Leo), but it merely begins to be dejected from the highest altitude of its own sphere.

32. And for this reason, and because of the inclination of the world, it begins to be nearer to the earth and closer to us according to the perpendicular, and having in the zodiac the sign that is hottest and conterminous to it, I mean Leo, it becomes the cause of greater heat than when it was traversing the segment that lies under Gemini, which is the highest part of its own sphere. And the sun is thus.

33. As for the rest of the wandering stars, when they begin to move toward the more southerly parts under the zodiac, they are said to be dejected; but when they ascend from there, having passed their middle point ^D and incline toward the more northerly parts under the zodiac, they are said to be exalted. And the sign under which a planet begins to make its inclination toward the more northerly parts may be called the exaltation of such a planet, while that under which it begins to incline toward the south is its dejection.

34. Moreover, the zodiacal sign that is, by nature, convenient to a planet is called the "house" of that planet, while that which is inconvenient and alien is called its "adversity."

35, 36. Therefore, of the sun, which is the hottest, the hottest…

^A sign has been assigned by astrologers as a house: Leo. Aries they have assigned as its exaltation, Libra as its dejection, and Aquarius as its adversity—the coldest of the signs. Conversely, in the case of Saturn, which is the coldest, they have proceeded in the opposite way, granting to it Aquarius as a house, and another house, Capricorn, which is itself a winter sign, cold, and indeed also dry in most of its parts; Libra as its exaltation, Aries as its dejection, and Leo as its adversity. And because Saturn is also sufficiently dry, they have granted to it yet another adversity, Cancer, which is a most humid sign.

37. The house of Jupiter, which is in a middle state of temperament, is Sagittarius and Pisces; exaltation, Cancer; dejection, Capricorn; adversities, Gemini and Virgo.

38. The houses of Mars, which is hot and more dry, are ^B Aries and Scorpio; exaltation, Capricorn; dejection, Cancer; adversities, Taurus and Libra.

39. The houses of Venus, which is in a middle state of temperament, are Taurus and Libra; exaltation, Pisces; dejection, Virgo; adversities, Aries and Scorpio.

40. The houses of Mercury, which is well-tempered, are Gemini and Virgo; Virgo is also its exaltation; dejection is Pisces, which is also its adversity; another adversity is Sagittarius.

41. The house of the moon, which is the most humid, is Cancer; exaltation, Taurus; dejection, Scorpio; adversity, Capricorn.

42. The first zodiacal sign, the vernal equinoctial sign, is Aries, ♈, which is hot in its temperament. Therefore, it is also the house of Mars, as it is hot; but it is the adversity of Venus, who is recognized as being in a middle state of temperament, to which middle state heat is opposed, just as are other things that are far from ^C that middle state. The second sign is Taurus, ♉, which is known to be of a middle temperament. Therefore, it is the house of Venus; but it is the adversity of Mars, which does not possess the mean of temperament. The third is Gemini, which is completely full of good temperament. Therefore, it is the house of Mercury. Because it bears the southern parts [that are] hot and dry in intensity, it is the adversity of Jupiter, who possesses a middle state of temperament. The fourth is Cancer, ♋, a most humid sign, the house of the most humid moon; but it is the adversity of Saturn, who, with intense cold, also possesses a great deal of dryness. The fifth is Leo, ♌, the hottest of all the signs, the house of the sun, which is the hottest, but the adversity of Saturn, ^D which is the coldest. The sixth is Virgo, ♍, which in the southern parts behaves temperately, and for this reason, it exists as the second house of Mercury; but in other parts, it is also hotter and more humid than the medium. Consequently, it is also the adversity of Jupiter. The seventh is Libra, ♎, the autumnal equinoctial sign, and almost temperate. Consequently, it is the other house of Venus, and the adversity of Mars. The eighth is Scorpio, ♏, a hot and dry sign, and hence the other house of Mars; it is an adversity of Venus. The ninth is Sagittarius, ♐, partaking of moderate humidity and moderate heat in the...

but in the middle parts contains much good temperament. Hence it is also the first house of Jupiter. Since, however, it has fiery posterior parts, which are called the following parts, and dry northern and moist southern parts, on account of this inequality it is an adversity of Mercury. The tenth is Capricorn, ♑, ^A which has some moist parts, but for the most part dry, and on the whole is far from the moderate, being cold. Hence it is the house of Saturn, but an adversity of the moon, as it has no part in coolness, but already obtains something from the sun through the importation of heat, and is far removed from all dryness. The eleventh is Aquarius, ♒, a most cold sign, another house of Saturn, but an adversity of the sun. The twelfth is Pisces, ♓, which has well-tempered preceding parts: the middle and southern parts, however, are in a way moist, whence they are also the other house of Jupiter. Since, however, the remaining parts of Pisces are fiery and sultry, in regard to those parts this sign is an adversity of Mercury. Moreover, the character of Aries is thus depicted, ♈, and thus that of Taurus, ♉, and absolutely that ^B of Aquarius, ♒.

43. These things, having been set forth according to our slender and very meager knowledge of the liberal arts, have been published by us for the sake of those who are studious of literature and the disciplines, who, in order to avoid the censure of ignorance and dullness, have proposed to ourselves to contribute something to philology, which might be worthy of reason. But if gratitude also belongs to reason, how should the philologists reproach us? Nay, rather, they might join us in giving thanks to God. ^C

43. These things, having been set forth according to our slender and very meager knowledge of the liberal arts, have been published by us for the sake of those who are studious of literature and the disciplines, in that we have proposed to ourselves to contribute something to philology so as to escape the censure of ignorance and dullness, as is worthy of reason. But if gratitude also belongs to reason, how should the philologists reproach us? Nay, rather, they might join us in giving thanks to God. ^D

EXPOSITION ON THE PSALMS BY THE WISEST LORD NICEPHORUS MONK BLEMMYDES, EXPLANATION OF THE PSALTER.

The Psalter is strictly a species of musical instrument, called ^A *nabla* among the Hebrews; it derives its name from *psallein* (to pluck/play), just as *eukterion* (house of prayer) comes from *euchomai* (to pray). The name was transferred from the instruments to the books of the Psalms, because they preserve the psalms. All the Psalms are poems of David; but some of them were given to the sons of Korah, others to Asaph, and others to different persons for the purpose of psalmody. For David chose certain men from the tribe of Levi, and assigned them to praise God with various musical instruments. He appointed as choir-masters and lead singers the sons of Korah, Asaph, Jeduthun, and others. They all sang the Psalms together in harmony, with David presiding; but when a psalm was given to a specific choir-master for performance, he would lead it, representing the person of David. Whence in some psalms, the names of the choir-masters are inscribed to whom such psalms are committed; and when they led the singing, they took the place of David. Just as the name of David alone appears in the inscriptions of those very choir-masters whom David himself by his own authority appointed as lead singers... some of the psalms... do not stand in the name of one... and some are nameless, because they are spoken to the Lord. Others bear the inscription *Alleluia*, because they are hymns and thanksgiving to God. For *Alleluia* is interpreted as "Praise Him who is."

The book of the Psalms is called the Psalter; the psalm is the poem itself and its melody; the *psalmodos* is the poet of these; the *psaltodos* is the one who performs this musically. The *psaltos* is God, who is being praised. The *diapsalma* signifies either a change of meaning, or a change of melody, or a pause in the percussion—or rather, a certain occupation of the *psaltodos* and a resting that occurs in the midst of the psalmody, as if at that moment a newer illumination and initiation from the Holy Spirit is occurring in the psalmody. Some, therefore, instead of *diapsalma*, ^B describe it in these intervals, as if from this to manifest that the inspiration of the Holy Spirit is incessant, even if the word was in intervals because the *psaltodos* was occupied with the newer internal prompting of the Spirit, and because of this kept the melody silent. And to speak simply, the *diapsalma* signifies nothing else at all but a pause in the psalmody. For the sake of more detailed knowledge, then, such things were noted in the past.

A psalm and an ode differ. A psalm, strictly speaking, is that which is played melodiously with the instrumental psalter; but an ode is a musical, harmonious voice sung by the mouth alone. An ode is also called a psalm. And a psalm is called an ode more loosely. But the ode is older, for Moses began it, and it lasted until David. David was the first to begin the psalms; for the psalter was formerly an instrument, but artless and common, and for the shepherds who sang alone. David, however, fashioned this more wisely and transferred its use to God. Regarding the psalm of David, it should be understood that when musical instrumentation is placed first, and the voice through the mouth follows, it is a psalm; but when the reverse happens, it is an ode. We must also speak about a hymn, and praise, and confession, and prayer, and supplication, and a song of ascents.

A hymn is called an intense doxology; praise is a brief commendation; confession is an acknowledgment made with emphasis, either of the good things we have received or the evils we have committed. Prayer is a petition, while supplication is a promise, though sometimes ^C supplication is taken in place of petition. All these are said to be directed to God. The song of ascents, according to history, signifies the ascent from Babylon to Jerusalem; for Babylon is lower, and Jerusalem is in a higher position. Anagogically, however, the ascent signifies the rising toward contemplation, and the transition from an earthly and passionate manner of life to an untroubled and heavenly one. Psalm, ode, prayer, and whatever else is found in the poems of David are all more generally called psalms.

^A They say that the choir of those chanting the psalms was composed of two and seventy chanters; all of them were singing with trumpet and cymbal and other kinds of musical instruments. But David alone held the royal instrument, the psaltery. Trumpets and pipes are wind instruments, while lyres and the kithara are stringed instruments, and cymbals and drums are percussion instruments. The psaltery is a stringed instrument but is upright, and it had the origins of the tones from above; for ten kalaboi, that is to say small pegs, turning around the arm of the psaltery, tightened and loosened the strings according to the harmony of the melody and the will of the performer, these being ten in number and also antiphonal to one another. And the right hand held the plectrum, while the left, touching the strings from above at intervals and shifting frequently with the fingers, produced a deep or sharp or blended tone, according to the melody of the chanter; from this we are taught that we too must, as if from the ten antiphonal strings of the powers of the soul and the senses of the body, play a harmonious melody to God, and have every work and thought from above from God, and be drawn entirely toward Him.

The arrangement of the psalms did not come about as they were initially composed, but as they were found. For since the Jews despised God, and took to forgetting their ancestral customs and very much so the Scriptures, and then as dense captivities occurred over time, the books slipped away and were corrupted. Only late did Ezra, that studious and hard-working man, collect them and, adding three thousand psalms, gave them an order of placement according to the time of the discovery of each of these. Later, King Hezekiah, having gone through this collection, rejected many of the psalms; but he approved only the 150, not having changed the order of their placement, but having kept the firsts as firsts and having left those that followed in the rank thereafter. Hezekiah made this same distinction also in the writings of Solomon; for having selected three only—Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Songs—he rejected all others, various odes and traditions concerning plants and stones and their properties of many kinds.

The Psalms and the rest of the Old Scripture were translated from the Hebrew language into the Greek language, first during the time of Ptolemy Philadelphus, who ruled Egypt after Alexander of Philip, by wise men who ^B miraculously agreed on the translation and [did so] from nowhere else than altogether by the guidance of the all-holy Spirit. For in two ways, as the Jew Philo says, or as the divine Justin declares, they were divided and translated the entire Old Scripture separately, without differing from one another either in meaning or in wording. This translation took place one hundred and thirty years ^C after this incarnation of the Lord. But after 133 years of such an edition, Aquila of Sinope made his own translation in the time of the Roman emperor Hadrian, who became leprous, after which the translation of Symmachus the Samaritan took place in the time of Emperor Severus, lagging 56 years after the translation of Aquila. The translation of Theodotion of Ephesus preceded this one, having occurred in the time of Emperor Commodus; and two other anonymous translations were found, one in the time of Caracalla, the Roman ruler, hidden in a jar in Jericho, and the other in Nicopolis at Actium, in the time of Alexander [son] of Mammaea. Later, the great ascetic and martyr Lucian, having painstakingly gone through the books of the Jews, transferred the Old Scripture from there into the Greek language himself. And he was found to be in agreement with the Seventy. The remaining translations possessed many corrupted parts. The translation of the admirable Lucian took place during the reign of the tyrants Diocletian and Maximian; it was found among the Jews in Nicomedia, hidden in a lime-washed small tower, while the great Constantine was then ruling the empire.

The ancient Holy Scripture brings us obscurity for two reasons: because it speaks more symbolically about Christ, and in general shadows forth most of the things concerning the new grace because of the disobedience and hardness of the hearers, and so that the books might not be utterly destroyed because of their own wickedness; and because obscurity is somehow introduced by the translation into another language, since one language possesses certain character traits that are unsharable and inaccessible to other languages.

Now, the God-inspired king and prophet David, as he was instructed by the Spirit, declared [these things] through the psalms and applied them to the various vicissitudes of his own life. But we too can adapt these psalms to ourselves, viewing the enemies of Christians as the enemies of Christ—the demons—and David and the King as each one of us. For just as he was anointed with the oil of authority for kingship, so we too have been anointed with the oil of baptism for the kingdom in the heavens. And again, Saul and Absalom, and whoever else was a tyrant, prefigured the devil, and the insidious ones and those who afflict and persecute, and all such things, while as for the parts of the verses that do not fit, these too we acknowledge simply as the voices of the holy Spirit, through them sanctifying ourselves.

Truly, the divine David had many changes: at one time he was fleeing from enemies, at another he was falling into other afflictions; at another time, again, he had a more pleasant life. And at one time he walked the divine path, and at another he stumbled upon it. Having gathered all these together once, he collected them in the 119th [118th] Psalm, in which he remembers the law, statutes, testimonies, judgments, and justifications. One must therefore know that the law is properly that which is generally inclusive of the commandments, as in "the law ^D was given through Moses; but the commandments are those distributed according to..."

^A a measure"—for example, "Thou shalt not kill." A testimony is that which the lawgiver uses to adjure those who hear with the witness of someone; as Moses also does when he says to the people: "If you do such and such things, I call heaven and earth to witness to you today, that you shall surely perish." And a judgment is that which was written concerning God’s having judged, as in the case of the one who blasphemed His fearful name. For Moses referred the judgment to God. But in having commanded that he be stoned, this became both a judgment and a precedent against every blasphemer. Righteous acts are what such mandates are called; for instance, "If the purchase of Hebrew servants works for you for six years," for a standard of justice arises from this for the Jewish servant, that he work no further. This, then, is the division of those things we have discussed; but the terms are also indifferently applied to all of God's commandments.

One must everywhere in the Psalms use the imprecations against the demons, for these stir up even the men who war against us; but use the reproaches against the men who conspire against us. The achievements, however, one should proclaim in the person of David, having been moved toward imitation. For since David, when he appears to be speaking on his own behalf, does not say these things while boasting, but rather instructs us in what is proper from the example of himself. And when he prays against men, he produces prophecies rather through the supplicatory mode regarding the things that will befall them.

It should be known that one encounters many exchanges throughout the present book, as well as periphrases, metaphors, irregularities of syntax and pleonasms of conjunctions, and especially of "and," and "that," and "for," and misuses of words, and anachronisms, and accounts of the same things from parallels—that is to say, tautologies—and usages drawn from common sources, and deliberate additions, and novel and varied shapings, and exchanges of persons—how sometimes he speaks on behalf of this one, and sometimes on behalf of that one, and leaps across; and this is especially ^B a proof that the prophet was like an instrument, and what was breathed into him by the Spirit, these things he also uttered.

It is customary in the Hebrew dialect to conjoin pronouns to the articles, such as, "Blessed is he whose helper is the God of Jacob," and to frequently append pronouns to nouns, as, "Him who slanders his neighbor in secret, him I drove out." Furthermore, to use inversions often, and case-changes, and grammatical substitutions, and rather to use indicative future tenses instead of optatives, and again, using indicative futures instead of optatives, or past tenses instead of futures, or futures instead of pasts, and to append plurals to singular persons; for example, he said: "The fool in his heart [said] there is not a God. They were corrupted and became abominable, those who suppose, that is, that [there] is not a God." But also, he alternates and appends singulars to plurals; for example, "From all them that persecute me deliver me. Lest he snatch away my soul like a lion." ^C ...position instead of a preposition, and conjunctions instead of conjunctions; and in general to place redundant prepositions, as, "He set his tabernacle in the sun," instead of, "In the sun he set his dwelling there," or "in the height." For "there" (αὐτόθι) in his usage here is adverbial. And again: "Do not drag my soul away with the wicked," using "it" (ᾖ) instead of "Do not drag away." And, "If I have repaid," instead of, "I gave," simply.

It is an idiom of the Old Scripture both to take the noun directly for an intellectual apprehension, and to append the oblique pronoun, and thus to signify the matter proposed; for instance, "God, unblemished is his way," and "Man, as grass are his days." He also links the preposition "unto" (εἰς) with the accusative to be used instead of just the nominative; as, "Become for me unto God a protector," instead of, "God is a protector." But he also uses the preposition "in" (ἐν) with the dative to be used instead of the accusative; as in the Gospels, "Whoever shall admit in me," instead of, "me." And in the Psalms, as, "In the being destroyed of the sinners thou shalt look," that is, thou shalt behold the destruction and perishing of the sinners. It is also Hebrew to call men "sons of men," and again to call regions the "daughters" of such regions; as, "Sons of men, how long will you be dull of heart?" instead of, "O men, until when will you be thinking on vanity?" And as, "Daughter of Babylon, the wretched one," instead of, "O wretched Babylon," on account of the evils that will manifestially befall you in such dialect. And it is also frequent to exchange the verb for a noun, as, "Thou hast hoped in the hope," for instance, "Remember thy words to thy servant in which thou hast made me hope. This has comforted me, this, clearly, the hope." And again, "I remembered" instead of "memory," such as, "I remembered in the night of thy name, and this became for me," that is, this memory. And simply to say, the character of the Jewish Scripture possesses many idiosyncrasies. One must, therefore, bearing this in mind, not seek in it Greek precision.

The explanation of the Psalms is rich and marvelous, having been accomplished by those who composed it, and the industrious man would have the capacity to partake of the psalm-meanings from it without need. But since some accept the abbreviated [explanation] ^D as more ready-to-hand along with broader knowledge, and more so if it harmonizes with their own prayer, for this reason, rendering to the things of God—who is—and not casting away the request of those being instructed by us, we have looked toward such an aim. And we purposed to make a partial memorandum of clarity as far as possible, and of conciseness in some of the psalms; gleaning many things from the most abundant explanation of those before us, but rarely also putting together some meager things of our own. And he who has gone through the older explanation will surely know that this is profitable and very useful, even if something newer is introduced by us.

CONCERNING THE FIRST PSALM. The first psalm is ethical and dogmatic.

^A Ethical, as it honors the good and subsequently encourages them toward virtue, while shaming the wicked and thereby persuading them to depart from wickedness. Dogmatic, because it speaks of resurrection and judgment, not as, "The man who has not walked in the counsel of the ungodly," and stops there, as if he were blessed only for this, but as one who is also girded round about by other good deeds. For this is the entire proposition of the discourse: "The man who has not walked in the counsel of the ungodly, and has not stood in the way of sinners, and has not sat on the seat of the pestilent; but his will is in the law of the Lord, and in his law he will meditate day and night, he is blessed." Since it is necessary first to turn away from evil and thus to do good—and impiety is the worst of all evils, just as piety is the highest of all total goods—he sets as the beginning of the blessed man the turning away from impiety. ^B Blessed, then, is God in the proper sense, being by nature undefiled and deathless. This is what is meant by, "Blessed is the one who always is, and who is good;" for evil is not existing, and in as much as someone is in evil, to that extent he falls away from existence. But in as much as one is in the good, to that extent he partakes of existence, and is found approaching the undefiled and deathless One. Therefore, in men, he is blessed who is occupied with continuous goods—not things that *seem* to be, but those that *are*—namely, he who is adorned with firm and immutable virtues and, by participation, becomes called God. Whence, the statement "Call no man blessed before his death" means something of this sort: do not deify a man before the course of his life is completed, because of the uncertainty in mutability. For many, having trusted in themselves in the harbor, have been unwatchful and were shipwrecked; therefore, it is of the most necessary things that he who wishes to live according to virtue always be sober, and in supreme humility of soul never depart from the continuous gaze toward God. The word "man" [ἀνήρ], instead of "human" [ἄνθρωπος], is spoken synecdochically based on reality. For being blessed is not restricted to the male. Since the entire nature of mankind is receptive to the same rewards in the same struggles. However, according to reason, in the teachings the word "man" is set to initiate the life according to God; for there is need of moral manliness and psychic fortitude for every gender that is to live according to God, not for effeminacy or laxity. For these are unapproved for virtue and to be cast away. It is necessary, therefore, for the one who desires to obtain true blessedness to compel his nature always, and to disregard everything that aims at relaxation, to foresee what is harmful by carrying the unsleeping eye of the soul always, and to beat back the beginnings of them from afar. ^C And if at any time a slip occurs to him, even if it be small, he must in no way disregard it as small, nor remain in it at all, but quickly turn away from it and depart, and make the correction for the small thing great. This is what it would mean, "he has not stood in the way of sinners," to make it plain. And the impious one is he who has no God at all; and together with him is he who does not have the one who is truly God and Creator as God, but instead serves the creature rather than the Creator. He is joined to them in some way and has distorted notions concerning God, and for this reason he offers worship to Him, yet not as is appropriate nor as is due. An impious person is what such a one would be more correctly called. He has established a best foundation of blessedness who has loathed all of them and has not walked in their counsel. That is to say, he has not nodded in agreement to their doctrines; counsel is the gathering and the reflection upon some matter; both are fitting for the psalm’s utterance. For the gathering of the ungodly is ungodly, as are the ungodly ones themselves, and the common counsel concerning their object of worship is destructive. To take no part at all in them, then, initiates blessedness. ^D A sinner, however, is one who does not observe the commandments of God; and he, if he sins with some hesitation and is ashamed of living basely, and attempts for the most part to remain hidden, would be a sinner only in this regard; but if he shamelessly transgresses laws and, putting forth a wicked example of himself, whether by deeds or by words, shares his own baseness with those approaching him, such a one is indeed also a pestilence, being like a contagious disease, with whom it is not even appropriate to sit. This is what "he has not sat on the seat of the pestilent" would indicate—that is, he did not become a co-sitter with the pestilent. Therefore, even if these should be monastics, or hierarchs, or those far off in other names and exaltations, they must be avoided from them with all strength. "Blessed is the man who has not walked in the counsel of the ungodly." He who possesses the mind of the soul as manly, neither from his own source, nor deceived by persuasive arguments, or softened by flatteries and gifts and honors, or terrified by threats and forced by punishments, has gone into the assembly of those who act impiously. The same is to say, he who has not led away his thought in those things in which the ungodly deliberate and reason about God in a manner worthy of their impiety, but is fixed, having been established in piety firmly and immovably. "And has not stood in the way of sinners." In the deportment and conduct of those who sin, he has not remained, neither himself transgressing the laws of the Master, nor agreeing with those who transgress; but if ever he, as a man, did something base and sinned, he moved past it immediately, not lingering with the offense. "And has not sat on the seat of the pestilent." He has not even sat down together with pestilential men, holding them in hatred and considering them detestable. "But his will is in the law of the Lord." But his affection and love are in the commandments of God. "And in his law he will meditate day and night." And he will meditate on the imperatives of the Lord throughout every time, so that having searched out all things and known them accurately, he may do them—he is a blessed man, who has brought all these things to completion. "And he will be like the tree which is planted by the outgoings of the waters." Such a one will be as a tree always being watered, because of being planted where the waters flow through. For just as the

waters provide constant irrigation to the tree nearby, similarly the divine teachings constantly give life to the soul that meditates upon them in this way.

^B "He shall yield his fruit in his season, and his leaf shall not fall." [//] This person will yield his fruits—that is, his virtues—also out of season, and will be flourishing at all times. For the zealous man is like this: rejoicing and exulting even in painful things, because he prevails over pains; for there is nothing in nature more desirable than the life according to virtue, and truly sweeter. It is also well said, "in his season," because one does not achieve the virtues all at once in accordance with the proper time. For it is necessary, it is necessary that many labors and toils of the completion of the virtues precede. And some have named the "leaf" humility, as it is sheltering and nourishing for the fruits. Others have called it the hope of salvation, as it warms and removes the sensation of griefs. Perhaps the leaf might most be that which God has additionally clothed and adorned the righteous man with, that is, the glory and honor in this world; and more so that which is from those in whom there is no perversion; for he says, "he shall be immediately blessed." But even if all the spirits of envy should flow together, even so the leaf of such a tree will not fall off; for even the enemy respects virtue, and often, even while fighting within, he marvels according to his conscience at the one acting virtuously and is struck by his perseverance. God likens to such a leaf those who honor and glorify Him in works and words, and never will such a leaf fall from the plant that is rooted by the outgoings of his thoughts, not even after his departure from here; for the righteous shall be for an eternal memorial.

"And all things whatsoever he does shall prosper." For what is there of things not incumbent that God, who is wholly whole, would ever wish to do, remaining wholly God? Therefore, in everything that he does he shall prosper, being helped and assisted by the right hand of God.

"Not so are the ungodly, not so." ^C Neither shall they bear fruit, nor will they have a leaf that cannot be cast away, nor shall they be prospered by God. For how are the ungodly—those mentioned above—called righteous here in common? For those who confess God with words but deny Him in works by not doing what is pleasing to Him, how could they properly be called pious?

"But rather as the dust which the wind drives away from the face of the earth." But they will be like dust which the wind drives away from the surface of the earth and scatters. Thus, being incinerated, they will be undone; and both their work in Gehenna and their memorial will perish; but they themselves will be saved and preserved, as the divine Apostle says, for the purpose of being punished eternally through fire.

"For this reason the ungodly shall not rise in judgment, nor sinners in the council of the righteous." ^D The holy Scripture knows to call those who have lived according to God by the common name of "righteous," in accordance with the general righteousness which is inclusive of all virtue; for he acts righteously toward nature and the Creator of nature, being adorned in prudence, and courage, and temperance, and in the righteousness toward all. But the parts of the statement should be construed by hyperbaton. For this reason, the ungodly shall not rise in judgment, nor sinners in the council of the righteous—that is, at the time of the final, universal judgment, the ungodly shall not rise, nor indeed shall sinners be permitted to be with the assembly of the righteous, just as now in this world all are mixed together. But the Giver of the righteous will allot the inexpressible and endless enjoyments in the presence of God; but the whole crowd of the ungodly and sinners will be sent away from the presence of God to the unbearable and unquenchable pains.

"For the Lord knows the way of the righteous." The Lord knows all things, even those not yet come to pass; but He will say to some, "I do not know you," as having feelings toward them in opposition because of their deeds. And again, "The Lord knew those who were His own," with a knowledge of appropriation. Thus we, too, call those "acquaintances" toward whom we have a feeling of belonging; with such knowledge the Lord knows the conduct of the righteous, as being dear to Him.

"And the way of the ungodly shall perish." For the wickedness of base men, according to which they led their lives, shall perish; but the virtue of the righteous, according to which they conducted their lives, will be a permanent and imperishable treasure for them by the grace of the Lord and God and our Savior, whose is the glory to the ages of the ages. Amen.

PSALM II [//] The second psalm predicts the madness of the Jews which they raved against the Savior, and the perfect dissolution of the legal governance, and their condemnation at the time of the judgment, the teaching of Christ in Judea, His pre-eternal birth, and again his among men, the appropriation of the nations, His God-befitting kingdom over all the world, and according to the human aspect, the calamities of the Jews and their total destruction. Then it teaches the nations; for it believes in the Lord and keeps His commandments, and threatens punishment to those who do not live well in the day of examination, and finally blesses those who hope in the Lord. It narrates things that will come to pass as if they had happened; for sometimes the prophets proclaim future things as if they were to be, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and sometimes they gaze upon them with mental eyes as if they had been accomplished and delineate them as the same divine Spirit has depicted them, thus saying as they have seen.

"Why have the nations raged and the peoples imagined vain things?" The speech is full of heaviness and indignation. For why, he says, did the Jews so irrationally rage with arrogance and boldness against the Lord Christ? For this is what "raged" means. Wherefore did He illumine the blind, lift up the lame, and make sound the

^A lepers? Did He not bind up the paralyzed? Did He not heal the dumb and the deaf, simply banishing every affliction and every disease from those who approached Him? Or is it that He raised the dead? Or that He cast out demons? What is the cause of such boldness and audacity toward Him? Now, "snorting" [phryagma] is the neighing that occurs in horses out of pride and boldness. The prophet calls the Jews both "nations" and "peoples": peoples, as being under the law; and nations, on account of their lawless deeds, and especially their murder of Christ, which is the head of all transgressions.

They meditated vain things.

The kings of the earth stood by, and the rulers...

They were gathered together against the same, both against the Lord and against His Christ.

Let us break their bonds and cast off from us their yoke.

He who dwells in the heavens shall laugh them to scorn, and the Lord shall mock them.

^A Because of the magnitude of their stupidity and foolishness, in that they killed their own benefactor, their own majesty and glory and boast, and because they hoped to prevent the counsel of God, which had been proclaimed by so many prophets, from reaching its end. And since He called the Father Lord when He spoke against the Lord and against His Christ, He calls the Son Lord as well, as if there were one lordship in the Father and the Son, just as there is there [a reference to] the meditation against Christ. We said that there is also [a reference to] the Father, and even earlier against the Father; thus, here too, He says that the Jews' despising comes from Christ, and also earlier from the Father, simultaneously manifesting the equal honor and the sameness of the operation in the Father and the Son, and showing the Father to be the essential source of the Son. He says that the Father dwells in the heavens, not as if wholly contained in a place, but because of the super-exalted nature and height of the Godhead, and that which has surpassed in worth and glory, and is most high; not that the Son is deficient in these same things, for He too is heavenly as God in the same way as the Father, but because only the Son was seen upon the earth, and dwelt with men bodily.

^B «Then He will speak to them in His anger, and in His wrath He will trouble them.» Now, indeed, the Lord Jesus, having risen from the dead and having ascended into the heavens, and having filled the world with the knowledge of Him and faith in Him, will fill those who mocked Him with laughter and derision and bellowing, with the Father concurring with Him. But then, at His second coming, reproving them in anger, and setting their lawlessness before their faces, He will condemn them, and will subject them to severe punishments, by which they will always be troubled, suffering without ever having any respite, any peace. Thus, He calls the condemnation "anger," and the severe punishments "wrath."

«But I have been established king by Him.» These things are in the person of Christ; for He was established king by the Father also as man; for as God, He was always king.

«Upon Zion, His holy mountain, proclaiming the commandment of the Lord.» Through the mountain in Judea to the knowledge of what is called Zion, He has indicated all of Judea. And such a mountain is the holy one of God, as having been consecrated to God; for within its borders were also Jerusalem, the city, and the temple, in which all worship was continually offered to God. And he calls His teaching the commandment of the Father, as [it is] of [His] own source; for thus He says also in the Gospels: «The word which you hear is not mine, but of the Father who sent me.»

«The Lord said to me, You are my Son.» He says these things to us for the manifestation of the truth, so that we may know that before the ages He was begotten in a manner befitting God by God and Father, and that He is the Son of God by essence.

«Today I have begotten you.» This [refers] to the incarnation without seed. But the "today" ^A corresponds to "temporally." I have, He says, begotten you before the ages as God; I have begotten you temporally as man. For you have had no other Father besides me in total, but also both in the divine begetting and in the human, I am your only Father; in the divine essentially, but in the human as Creator.

«Ask of me, and I will give you the nations as your inheritance and the ends of the earth as your possession.» Since I am your Father and no one else, and since you were also established king by me, ask of me; and I will give [them] to you, as Son for an inheritance, and as king for a possession. And He asks, since He is encouraged by the Father. «For I can do nothing,» He says, «of myself.» Since He has been sent to the Jews, He says, «I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Jerusalem.» But they did not receive Him; for this reason, He asks for the nations as an inheritance according to the good pleasure of the Father, and they are bequeathed to Him, and as man, He receives His power and kingdom [to be] universal, even being administered to the very ends of the earth.

«You shall shepherd them with a rod of iron.» But you will discipline those very Jews with a harsh whip, those who did not receive your word, bringing upon them continuous and severe punishments. A shepherd indeed disciplines the flock with mildness and gentleness and for salvation, but you will discipline them with anger and wrath and for destruction, because of their extreme sacrilege and complete disobedience.

«As vessels of a potter, you will shatter them.» As earthenware vessels you will break them, and they would never find restoration; just as those, once shattered, are not capable of being fired and forged again.

«And now, O kings, understand; be disciplined, all you who judge the earth.» The prophet says this to the kings and rulers in all the earth, and through them also to those who are subject to them. And he calls the same ones both kings and judges, or rather, magistrates. For it belongs to kings and rulers to judge, since it also belongs to them to legislate. And the "now" here signifies both the [reason] "because of this," and indicates that which is from this time forward, and lastly ^D he says: All you kings of the nations who judge all the earth, that is to say, who judge in the whole world, since you have been allotted to Christ, and the Jews have been cast away and have suffered ten thousand terrible things, since they set Christ at naught; since these things are thus, understand and be disciplined, and as judges and lawgivers, set right also the peoples under you. Through "understand," therefore, he leads them toward piety, and through "be disciplined," toward a grave and saving conduct. And the syntax is hyperbatic and unconjoined: «And now, kings, all who judge the earth, understand, be disciplined, you who were formerly senseless and uninstructed,» senseless, indeed, as not understanding the God who is, but [worshipping] those who are not gods senselessly, uninstructed.

^A Since you have not been instructed by the right law, but have acted contrary to the law in an uninstructed manner. Understand the Lord and God to whom you have been allotted, and as He Himself has taught, so offer Him reverence. Be instructed by His ordinances; and as these signify, so also conduct your life; for faith without works is useless.

«Serve the Lord with fear.» A slave is he who has given himself entirely to the will of the master. Therefore, do the desires of the Lord, keeping His commandments; yet not as it may happen, but in fear, fearing lest, having transgressed them, you be subjected to punishment. And this fear is appropriate for those being introduced, namely, to fear punishments, the penalties for transgression. And it is called ^B elementary, as it is the beginning and initiation of the life according to God, and he who has this fear is ranked among slaves; for it is the lot of a slave to fear blows.

There is also another fear, which is called perfecting, when one, not because of the fear of punishments or the hope of glory and rewards, but because of awe toward God, hastens to serve Him, living not only according to the law but even beyond the law; such a one has reached the point of being numbered among the sons of God. And fearing to fall from the sonship and genuineness toward Him, he struggles, straining himself even beyond his power, exceeding, if possible, every commandment—just as Paul the Great did; and when the commandment ordered that the preaching be without pay, but not without expense—for the laborer is worthy of his food, he says—he himself obtained his food solely from the labor of his own hands; and not for himself only, but also for those with him. This fear is called perfecting because it perfects the one who is deemed worthy to possess it with the perfection that is human, just as the elementary [fear] instructs the one who has acquired it toward virtue. There could also be a middle fear between elementary and perfecting, just as there is a middle rank between slavery and sonship. They call this wage-earning. For just as one who is among the hirelings looks to receive and labors for the sake of the recompense, so also he would fear, lest he miss the reward by neglecting the work and slackening his zeal.

«And rejoice in Him with trembling.» ^C Rejoice ^D also in the Lord Himself, not doing His commandments in sorrow and bitterness of soul, but in gladness and cheerfulness; yet let trembling also be in you, the intensity of fear, so that it may make you attentive, and inclined toward the keeping of the commandments. And, rejoice in Him in other ways as well, in that you serve the Lord, having all joy within yourselves: because you have been deemed worthy to become slaves of such a Lord.

«Lay hold of instruction, lest the Lord be angry and you perish from the righteous way.» By instruction He means practical virtue. And "lay hold" signifies two things: to take it quickly, and to hold it securely. For one should not seek virtue languidly or with delay, but eagerly and with haste. To "lay hold" of it is necessary, and to bring it into oneself. For to loiter in evil begets a kind of wicked habit, and one that is difficult to cast off. For just as virtue has its permanence and stability from habit, so also wickedness, once it has aged, is difficult to scour away. And it perishes along with its workers. Do not be sparing of the great zeal that is brought in for the casting off of this [wickedness] and the acquisition of the good. "Lay hold of instruction," having taken it with intensified speed, hold it fast for a short time and keep it, using all eagerness and much struggle, and the Lord will provide help; otherwise He will be angry and will let you be, and you will perish from the way that is righteous, which you knew and made your own. But having fallen from this way, and from the lot of the righteous, you will perish together [with them] at the day of judgment. And he might perhaps also call the rank of the righteous the "righteous way." For we ourselves are accustomed, when we witness the gathering of pious men, to hear people say concerning them, "Good conduct, God-pleasing life," characterizing those who labor by the common designation of the work.

«When His wrath is quickly kindled.» For then His wrath will quickly be kindled. There is no place for Him to be long-suffering, because the entire time for repentance has been closed off.

«Blessed are all who trust in Him.» Those who trust in deed, not by words alone or by a feigned disposition of the soul only. But those who have confidence in Him by doing His desires; for who, O Lord, O Lord, saying [so] with a hollow sound and empty of fruit, will escape His wrath? We must, therefore, truly trust in the Lord, standing apart from all earthly things and looking only to Him, that we may also be deemed worthy of true blessedness. In Him, the Lord and God of us, to whom is the glory forever and ever. Amen.

PSALM III

As fire judges gold, whether it be counterfeit or genuine, so also does temptation [judge] the soul, whether it bears its reasoning as feeble or stable. For it causes some to be cowardly and to collapse, while it causes others to play the man and to stand more firmly, being strengthened by the divine hand. "For without Me," He says, "you can do nothing." Therefore, it is necessary at all times to gaze with the whole eye of the soul toward God, since both being guided and being kept are from God; for the steps of a man are directed by the Lord, and unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman watches in vain, especially during times of wars and tribulations. For this alone is safe against the attacks of enemies, to flee with the whole soul to the Lord. Whether the intelligible enemies may fight and afflict [us] through their crafty schemes, or even through their own instruments—I mean, of course, the envious and wicked men. These things the prophet also teaches from his own actions now through the third psalm, but the discourse is primarily for him about invisible enemies, and is most appropriate for us as we approach.

^A "Lord, why have those who afflict me been multiplied?" — I have no one to whom I can refer the matters of those who grieve me, except to You, my Lord, who alone have the power to help me. But the word "why" is exclamatory. "Alas! Why have those who afflict me been multiplied?" Alas, what a multitude they are!

"Many rise up against me." — Many enemies are rising up against me. And he says the same things again from a suffering soul, calling upon God for help.

"Many say to my soul, 'There is no salvation for him in his God.'" — They say this in my soul on my behalf—mentally, not by spoken word—hurrying me into despair: "There is no salvation for him from his God," in whom he relies as God, and as he says, "You are my God." "There is no salvation for him from Him," because he has sinned against Him.

^B "But You, O Lord, are my supporter." — Some sow such thoughts, desiring to disturb and trouble me, but as for me, holding such attacks of theirs to be mere nonsense, I invoke You alone throughout as my supporter, not imagining any other support for myself from anywhere else; for I know that You are kind and forgiving, and that You support those who turn to You.

"My glory and the one lifting up my head." — You alone are my glory, he who puts my enemies to flight and glorifies me, who looks to no earthly glory. You are the one lifting up my head, who bestows boldness and confidence upon me by helping me continually, and never allowing my head to be bent down by the weight of misfortunes, but lightening and raising it by my trust in You.

"I cried to the Lord with my voice, and He heard me from His holy mountain." — These things are for his own encouragement. He is experienced and says this from the wealth of the Lord’s kindness, having prayed and been heard at another time as well. He calls the mental intercession a "voice"; by "cried" he means the intensity of such an intercession; "heard" means obtaining the request. He calls His "holy mountain" the height of holiness, infinite. Being high in holiness, the Lord did not overlook my humbling in sins. But I made an intercession with the whole movement of my mind toward Him, and He heard me from the height of His holiness.

"I lay down and slept; I arose, because the Lord will support me." — My reason had been darkened by despondency; I had been benumbed by successive misfortunes, and had become inactive, like one sleeping, and, in a state of complete helplessness, unresponsive. But having considered how great is the Lord’s support—even more so in hopeless situations—for those who take refuge in Him, I became sober and took courage, trusting that the Lord would support me.

"I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people surrounding me." — Hence, since the Lord will support me, I will not be afraid of a great multitude of enemies who are falling upon me and fighting against me from every side in unison. And I say these things ^C as I rely on the Lord’s support. From here on, one might say that demons fight against us, when they stand face to face, as it were, clearly and openly inciting us to evil; and from behind, whenever they secretly and invisibly weave plans and snares, as if, by the pretext of love, they might slowly steal us toward wanton desires in secret; or surely they might call us toward banquets and the indifference and chatter in them. We have observed many such things coming from the right, as when they pull us into [social] gatherings through the praise of men, or through an appearance of virtue, in hypocrisy; from the left, when to the contrary they bring upon us—through the abuse and outcry of the many or even through the bringing about of other difficult things—senseless, inconsolable [affliction], or urge us toward despair and the abandonment of salvation through sin. ^D However, the prudent and diligent person will foresee their schemes and will never be terrified, but will stand and fight back against every stratagem of treachery wisely, and against all their battle entanglements manfully; being illuminated and made wise by God, and being strengthened and fortified by His support, he will repel the attacks from the front with a humbling of the soul and with bodily labors, and those from the back through caution and by always keeping his mind preserved, and his entire perception trained, knowing that there is nothing in earthly honors—neither wealth, nor praise, nor status, nor all worldly vanity—for he looks to nothing human, standing as if soon to be dissolved, but he looks toward the justification from God alone, fixedly and without distraction, as being the most secure and most lasting. And he receives His own goodness, through which He gladly welcomes even those who had distanced themselves from Him, and yet who again turn back as they ought.

"Arise, O Lord, save me, my God." — Having said things for his own encouragement, he says again to God: "I, trusting in the salvation from You, spoke these words. So then, arise, save me, my God; and let those who say concerning me, 'There is no salvation for him in his God,' know that You, my God, have saved me." The word "arise" is said metaphorically, from those who stand up from their seat and move to help someone.

"For You have struck all those who have been hostile to me in vain." — "For," if You only arise to save me, You have immediately struck all those who have been hostile to me in vain, without any cause. For what injustice have they suffered from me?

"You have shattered the teeth of sinners." — Immediately You have made the strength of sinners vanish by arising to save Your servant. And this too is said metaphorically, from wild beasts that have the power to bite, which, when their teeth are shattered, remain sluggish and weak. The metaphor is appropriate.

^A And he calls them sinners, as having nothing righteous or hostile towards him, but at the same time as the authors of sin, and as liars, and as deserters of God. The salvation of the Lord. Having said to God that “having arisen only to save me from my enemies, you have already struck them all, you and no one else, and have shattered their strength,” he brings in again the cause, disjointedly and categorically, that it is the Lord’s to save, and no one else’s, just as he says elsewhere, that “the rescue is of the Lord.” For even the act of rescuing and saving is the work of the Lord alone.

^B And upon your people your blessing.

The supplication

PSALM IV

“In my calling, the God of my righteousness heard me.” Furthermore, he says, while I was calling, and before I had even completed the invocation, He himself fulfilled my request. He calls God the “God of his righteousness,” that is to say, the worker and maker of justice in him, and as he says elsewhere, “The God of my salvation,” that is, the very author of my salvation, the God who saves me; and again, “The God of my help,” the one who helps me, that is to say. Thus also here he says, “The God of my righteousness,” the God who justifies me. ^A Since I have recounted in general the benevolence which I had from the divine kindness, now he speaks concerning this to the Benefactor himself. “In much affliction, being constrained and, as it were, suffocated, since I began to call upon you as a helper, you have suddenly widened me with the widening of exultation, having driven away my difficulties.”

“Have pity on me and hear my prayer.” And in what follows, “Have pity on me,” just as you have had pity now, “and hear my prayer,” just as you have just now heard.

“O sons of men, how long will you be heavy-hearted?” He calls the soul the heart, as the first and most sovereign organ and the one that holds life together. Having offered thanksgiving and supplication to God, and having shown that it is our duty to be attentive to God, he sharply rebukes those who crawl around earthly things, because they do not lead their souls to God, but make them heavy and prone to fall, burdening them with strange occupations and cares. But by saying “sons of men,” he distances them from being sons of God at all, as if he were saying, “You humans of flesh and blood, having nothing divine in yourselves, how long will you be heavy-hearted?”

“Why do you love vanity and seek falsehood?” That is called vain which has no substance, whose name exists, but in whose existence is nothing at all. Why do you love earthly prosperity which is nothing? Why do you seek human glory, which turns out to be falsehood? For what is more unstable and unreliable than human glory?

“And know that the Lord has marveled at his holy one.” From having said, “Why do you love vanity and seek falsehood,” you bring in by way of thought that you should renounce such love and seeking. And “know that the Lord has made miraculous all who are dedicated to him,” having honored them on earth with many gifts, and in the heavens having deemed them worthy of unspeakable and eternal brightness and pleasure that is beyond mind and continuous. These are the truthful glory and the lasting and unchangeable prosperity. And he is dedicated to God who is not divided by the world and...

alliance, but has his citizenship in heaven, living a life that is beyond the world.

“The Lord will hear me when I cry out to him.” Since the Lord has made all those who are dedicated to him wonderful, I too am dedicated to the Lord and have placed all my hope in him, counting nothing in the world as worth chasing; I believe surely and safely that the Lord, when I cry out to him, will hear me. Therefore, do you also, you weary-hearted who have abandoned vanity and falsehood, turn to the Lord with all your soul, and you shall be heard.

“Be angry and do not sin.” It is not imperative, but interrogative, the “be angry.” The meaning is this: if you must be angry, dissolve the anger, just as the Gospel commands, saying: “Do not let the sun go down upon your anger.” And the “do not sin” means this: do not commit sin in a complete and perfected way by doing evil or by nursing a grudge, since even simply being angry is a sin. By this, he teaches concerning the blameworthy and harmful anger from which contentions, fights, blows, and other such things—and the worst of all—arise; for to be moved for the correction of those who are sinning is not anger, but a praiseworthy ^B and useful zeal.

“The things you say in your hearts, be pricked in your beds.” Because of what you say and meditate upon in your hearts—things defensive and sinful, for the word is concerning such things—as you lie in your beds at the time of your need, be pricked, be grieved, and repent. To say the same thing: concerning the absurd things you contemplated during the day contrary to the commandment, mourn immediately during the coming night, making a swift correction even of your thoughts. From this, the prophet hands down to us precise ways of repentance, exhorting us to be pierced not only concerning our deeds but also concerning our deliberations. For if this is done, the act of sin would never be performed. For when the origins are destroyed, the outcomes are also destroyed along with them. To be “pricked” means to have the heart pierced by the memory of one’s sins. From this also, the word *katanuxis* (contrition) is used; for it is a piercing of the heart to its depth. It broke open a fountain of tears, and it washed away the punishments for sins.

“Sacrifice a sacrifice of righteousness, and hope in the Lord.” Do no one any wrong, do what is just, and this will be a sacrifice well-pleasing to God. Therefore, having sacrificed such a sacrifice—that of righteousness—hope in the Lord and attain his help. If this sacrifice is absent, the one who claims to hope in the Lord has deceived himself.

“Many say: Who will show us good things?” The many who do not heed the words of God, who do not believe in his promises, governed by ignorance and lack of understanding, say, “Who will show us good things?”

“The light of your face has been marked upon us, O Lord.” Those did not know, did not understand; they walk in darkness. Upon us, however, the light of your visitation and help has been marked, O Lord. We who have known your goodness carry it always within ourselves, unloseable, and having tasted the good things here, we do not ^C even doubt those things there.

“You have given gladness to my heart.” You have gladdened my soul with your myriad benefits and with your truthful promises.

“From the fruit of their wine and oil they were filled.” [alt-version omitted] We, on the other hand, from your visitation, both the one now among us and the one that will be eternally hereafter, have been enlightened and gladdened. But those darkened ones of the earth, as many as have gaped at the dust, have limited all their happiness to bodily pleasures. ^D And according to their own judgment, they have been abundantly filled with the fruit of theirs—that is, from the fruits of bread, wine, and oil gathered for them every year—fattening their flesh and thinking of nothing further than this. But the text indicates the other food as well through the satiety of those mentioned as being very useful. The syntax is with hyperbaton: “From the fruit of their wheat, wine, and oil they were multiplied,” that is, they were gorged into a multitude. And the fact that wheat is taken—which signifies bread—implies, by extension, all food and all sustenance, even if it is inclined into the genitive of wheat. For wheat is a kind of fruit, whereas oil is not from fruit, as oil is from an olive, and wine is from the grape.

“In peace I will lie down and sleep upon the same.” The many, then, have been disposed as I said; but I, sharing as I do in such help from you continuously in this world, and hoping to attain in heaven after my departure a greater and more perfect peace, both bodily and spiritual, I will sleep the final sleep, and I will sleep it for a long time. For this is what “I will sleep” means. Through “I will lie down and sleep,” he clearly signified the resurrection. For the one who lies down and sleeps rises again while among the living.

“For you, O Lord, have settled me upon hope alone.” Why does he say, “Upon the same,” [that is] of me, of soul and body in peace, I will bring my temporary life to an end? Because you, O Lord, have caused me to dwell in this world alone—that is, solitary in the manner of life and separated in mind from the men I spoke of—in the hope of your help, through which I shall be completely delivered from both bodily difficulties and sorrows, and I shall drive away the spirits of wickedness that disturb my soul, and having calmed this race, this very struggle, with a twofold peace and joy, I shall move willingly toward that dwelling, toward which I am drawn by my longing.

^A For he who is not in such a state shall not be able to stand before you. But you will in no wise turn away; I shall stand before you, my King, willing to follow your commands, as I said. For he who is not in such a state will not be able to stand before you. And you will in no wise turn away; I shall stand before you, my King, willing to follow your commands, as I said. For he who is not in such a state will not be able to stand before you.

"For you are not a God who wills iniquity" (Ps. V, 4). — That is, you are not a God who wills or accepts iniquity; it is shown by these words that he who lives lawfully is the one who is able to stand before God. For to the transgression of his own law God does not yield; he casts aside those who transgress his commandments; for they have distanced themselves from him. How then will they later stand before him, not having returned to him through sincere repentance?

"The wicked shall not dwell with you, nor shall the lawless remain before your eyes" (Ps. V, 5). — The wicked shall not dwell with you, that is, he shall not draw near to you, nor shall the lawless obtain your regard and dwelling. Against "I shall stand before you," the words "the wicked shall not dwell with you" are set in opposition; and against "you will look upon me," the words "nor shall the lawless remain before your eyes." Now, the lawless man is the transgressor of certain masterly commandments, but the iniquitous man is a total despiser of the divine laws. Here, however, both the lawless man and the one practicing iniquity are the same person—he who does not live lawfully and rightly.

"You have hated all who work iniquity" (Ps. V, 5). — And rightly so; for since you do not will iniquity, you have hated those who work it—even as you have loved those who do the things that you will.

^C "You will destroy all who speak lies" (Ps. V, 6). — This shows clearly that no one of those who use falsehood shall be saved, even if perhaps they are said to do some good; but together with their father and teacher, Satan, they shall fulfill their destruction. For just as God is the Father and Guide of truth, so the apostate and adversary is known to be the generator and initiator of falsehood. And those who live in truth are ranked with God, being called disciples of God, while those who speak falsehood—it is not hidden whose initiates they are and with whom they are gathered. Falsehood is admittedly the root of every heresy, of slander, of guile, of deceit; why is there any need to go through it in detail? It is the beginning of all wickedness, the first cause of all impiety. Where, then, will that which is thus evil not be an evil? For this reason the Prophet says by the Holy Spirit to the Lord, "You will destroy all who speak lies," not some and not others, but all of them together.

"The Lord abhors the man of blood and the deceitful man" (Ps. V, 6). — That the Lord abhors the murderer—for this is the man of blood—who of all people would doubt? For even those of men who are but a little gentle loathe such a one. But we learn from this that the deceitful man is joined to the murderer by the divine Scripture; so very abominable to God is this man also.

"But I, in the multitude of your mercy, will enter your house; I will worship toward your holy temple" (Ps. V, 7).

^A This is a model and a lesson of humility. For, says he, since the man of God is devoid of all wickedness, "I will enter your house in the multitude of your mercy"—that is, not through my own virtue, but through the multitude of your mercy shall I be deemed worthy of such grace. By "house" and "temple" one must understand both the sensible one on earth and, to a much greater degree, the intelligible and supercelestial one, toward which the God-beloved person, wherever he stands on earth, enters intellectually in fear, and reverently worships God.

"Lord, lead me in your righteousness; because of my enemies, make straight your way before me" (Ps. V, 8). For if you do not guide me to the end, I shall not be able to traverse the path of your commandments without stumbling. "Way" means conduct; and if one walks according to the divine laws, his way is before God, being worthy of divine oversight—inasmuch as it is blameless and pleasing to God, and according to these words, known to God; for "The Lord knows the way of the righteous." But if the way is contrary to the commandment, it is not before God, nor is it known by God with the knowledge of appropriation. Therefore, he who is praying says, "My enemies are constantly trying to deflect me from the middle path, the one that is straight and virtuous, and they contrive to drive me away from virtue either to the right or to the left, through excesses or deficiencies, and as far as it is in their power, they do not permit my conduct to be before you. Do you, therefore, for the sake of these enemies who are enslaving themselves against me, make my conduct before you always unswerving." For as much as one deviates from virtue, by that much he leads his way and conduct away from being before God, distancing himself from God. For "before God" and "the unerring" are shown in many places, as in, "We have sinned before you," and, "I have done the evil thing before you," just as knowledge is "the perception," as in, "The Lord knows the thoughts of men, that they are vain."

"For there is no truth in their mouth; their heart is vain" (Ps. V, 9). They are liars and deceivers. They propose, as it were, something expedient, but the things are harmful. And through the "heart" he revealed their meditations: "they meditate evil against me." But "evil" is "vain," as being non-existent, so that "vain" is used not only of that which is unsubstantial and false, but also of that which is deceitful, meddlesome, wicked, unprofitable, and altogether evil.

"Their throat is an open sepulcher" (Ps. V, 9). Just as an open sepulcher, having a decaying body within it, brings forth an unbearable stench, so too do the demons bring up into the soul filthy thoughts and utter most shameful blasphemies.

"With their tongues they dealt craftily" (Ps. V, 9). They dealt with me craftily, and their work was deceit ^B from the beginning, and they were never anything but treacherous. For tongue, heart, and throat are predicated of the demons by way of metaphor.

"Judge them, O God" (Ps. V, 10). Having passed a just judgment upon them according to their works, repay them, O righteous God. Let them fall away from their counsels; let them fall from the plots they have devised against me; let them achieve nothing of what they meditate against me; let them be rendered ineffective.

"Cast them out according to the multitude of their impieties" (Ps. V, 10). Many are their impieties; for they are always blaspheming against you, and they continually war against your own, hastening to take them captive away from you. Therefore, according to the multitude of their impieties, act against them; for now, cast them away from us, defeated and disgraced, and at the time of judgment, drive them away into Gehenna. And restore them to the eternal fire prepared for them, so that they may be eternally punished.

"For they have embittered you, O Lord" (Ps. V, 10—LXX variation). For while you are concerned with our salvation in many ways and are providentially managing it in varied ways, these men resist and act in opposition, and in every way contrive the ruin of men. By "embitterment" one must understand the opposition of the demons, as much as that can be conceived with regard to the will of God; for the Divine is above all passion.

"And let all who hope in you rejoice" (Ps. V, 11). ^C Here, becoming stronger through your help against the craftiness of the demons, and there, enjoying your ineffable goods, they shall rejoice forever—that is to say, perpetually. Now, throughout all their life, being strengthened by you and becoming superior to every assault, and then, having inherited that ineffable, eternal rejoicing, and having [you as their] dwelling places—now, you resting in their God-loving souls, and then, filling them with your glory and divinity, and dwelling in them, God being known in the midst of "gods" through the word of appropriation, [God] who is by essence what they are by participation—and "they who love your name shall boast in you." Now, having been strengthened by you and having become victors, they shall boast in you; but then, those rewards which are beyond all thought, ^D having been received from you alone, they shall possess as their boast. And by saying "they who love your name," he revealed the burning heat of longing; for those who long for [you] vehemently, and with the most-longed-for name, also love it both when it is spoken and when it is heard, because "You will bless the righteous, O Lord"—all the righteous, clearly. For now, the righteous shall attain your blessing and grace. And they shall be praised by your own, and then, before the universal assembly of both men and angels, they shall be heard: "Come, you blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; as with a shield of good pleasure you have crowned us." A prayer of thanksgiving is the [word] "as," taken instead of "exceedingly," for the reading is exclamatory; "exceedingly"

you have encircled us as with a circular crown, with the shield of your good pleasure, and you have mightily saved us from every harm. Glory be to you, O Benefactor and our Lord and God, now and always and unto the ages of ages. Amen. ^A

PSALM VI

"O Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger, nor discipline me in your wrath." The divine nature is confessed to be without passion. Therefore, anger and wrath in God signify the severe chastisement extended toward us on account of our sins; and where "anger" is placed before "wrath," as here, or conversely as in the second Psalm, "then he will speak to them in his anger, and in his wrath he will trouble them." For in that passage the wrath is linked to the rebuke and the condemnation, and the anger to the torment; but here, the anger is yoked to the rebuke, and the wrath to the punishment. So the order of them is indifferent. Even if I have sinned, he says, in a manner worthy of both anger and wrath, I beseech you, O Lord, now, rebuke me and discipline me in mercy with providence, not in accordance with the time of the final examination, ^B rebuking in anger and disciplining in wrath in a way that apportions my lot. I do not decline the rebuke that occurs in this present life for the sake of correction here, nor am I vexed; for I am persuaded that he brings all painful things for the healing of the wounds of my soul. "Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I am weak—let your mercy, O Lord, assist me." Because I am weak, and regarding my soul and my body, the former to exhibit such intensity as is worthy to recover the preceding slackness, and the latter to bring forward labors and other toils, capable of performing enough for my sins—for the one who has been greatly defiled needs much cleansing, both from labors and toils and from lamentations. "Heal me, O Lord, for my bones have been troubled." ^C By "bones" he means the reasoning powers that support the soul. "Heal me, O Lord, by your mercy; heal me, for I am dreadfully stricken by sin; heal me, because my thoughts, having been filled with the recollection of my transgressions, have no stability but are surging." "And my soul has been troubled exceedingly." It has been cast down and is absolutely unable to keep peace, being troubled by the rebukes of conscience. He speaks the same things in different ways, increasing the lamentation and variously bemoaning the fault. "And you, O Lord, how long?" Elliptically: "How long will you turn away?" Not enduring the divine turning away, he says these things out of the great pain of his soul. "Turn, O Lord, deliver my soul, save me for the sake of your mercy." Asyndetically: "Turn to me, O Lord; deliver my soul from the guilt of my transgressions, count me worthy of salvation. Do all these things for me because of your mercy, not because of my repentance. For I said that I am weak; being unworthy, ^D I am unable to repent for what I have sinned." "For in death there is no one who remembers you," I said;

^A for in this life the sinner is able to remember you while praying, and to obtain your mercy. But in death, at the end of life, there is no one who can remember you and entreat you, so as to have obtained forgiveness; for death has closed every season for the atonement of sins.

"And in Hades who will confess to you?" — That is, one's own sins after one's removal to Hades, so that through confession one might find remission of offenses. For in this world there is a season for confession, but in Hades there is no confession. There is no repentance for the putting away of accusations. "I have labored in my groaning; every night I will wash my bed, with my tears I will bedew my couch." "Have mercy on me, for I have labored in groaning." And yet, even having labored in this way, I will still mourn my sins, and especially at night, partly as having more freedom at that time, and partly as wishing to escape the notice of most people; and furthermore, as taking for myself that time which for others is a time of rest, as a time of suffering. And I shall not mourn merely or for a little while, but every night and with excess; and by "bed" he means the floor, on which he kept the sackcloth laid underneath, for he would leave his bed of mourning on the ground, spreading only sackcloth for himself. "My eye was troubled by anger, because of the anger of my enemies." My mind, the eye of my soul, has been confounded. ^B For as wild beasts they fall upon me, seeking, if possible, to eat my flesh; I have grown old among all my enemies. Just as a worn-out and rotten fence cannot protect you from the incursions of enemies, so I have become to all my enemies, rotted by sin, and having lost the fortification that comes from grace. And because of this, they trample upon me as they wish. "Depart from me, all you who work iniquity." Perceiving within himself divine solace, and at the same time reckoning the compassion of God, and having obtained from both a confidence against the most hostile demons, the workers of iniquity, the creators of evil, he reproves them and with severity sends them away. ^D "For the Lord heard the voice of my weeping, the Lord heard my petition; the Lord received my prayer." "Lord and Lord and Lord." But the Lord is one. But he reports the same thing many times, saying, "Depart from me." Because "I knew that the Lord heard my petition" according to his mercy. "Let all my enemies be shamed and greatly troubled. Let them be turned back and shamed very quickly." By chiding words he sent his enemies away, frightening them, while taking heart himself. Knowing that the whole work is of the God who shows mercy, he asks from God that they turn away from him, and not simply retreat, but with shame and with the surpassing trembling, that they might be dealt a shame from the things that have befallen them. Such, indeed, is the syntax of the words. "Let all my enemies be shamed and troubled very quickly." "Let them be turned back," that is, let them be turned away from me to the rear, "and then let them be shamed," that is, let them be greatly shamed. ^B Whereas, having been defeated, disgraced, and put into confusion, being fearful and trembling, they have fled empty-handed with all possible speed. And indeed, Lord, may all who harbor ill will toward your servants experience such shame and defeat and routing, as you put to flight the invisible and demonic assailants; for the inclination of your will is all-powerful; and your all-holy name is most powerful, fearful, over-glorified and over-praised, now and always and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Psalm VII.

The malice of demons toward men is great, and especially toward those who choose to live an upright life. Therefore they attack them in many ways. For the most part invisibly through themselves, sometimes also through sensible enemies, by every means conspiring toward sin, and plotting to lead them to destruction. There is no other release for this terrible war than to flee wholeheartedly to the Lord, who crushes the wars, and not to be slothful. Nor to fall away, but then, indeed then, to exert oneself even more and to be courageous, and to hold fast to the hope in God, and to call upon the help from there in contrition of heart. This is also what the present, seventh, Psalm instructs.

"O Lord my God, in you I have hoped." — In you alone; for you alone are able to help me; "save me from all those who pursue me and deliver me." Save me and keep me unharmed from all those who pursue me, and deliver me from their wickedness, "lest like a lion he snatch my soul, lest he who pursues me snatch my soul" because of my sin, "suddenly, like a most wild beast a lion." In the singular, then, by the utterance of the word he signifies the devil, but in the plural, the demons; for both the devil and the demons are enemies and pursuers, and when the demons pursue, the devil pursues through them, as if through his own powers, there being no one to deliver, nor any to save. Therefore I said, "Save me and deliver me"; for if you do not save, who is the savior? And if you do not deliver, who is the redeemer? There is no one who saves besides you, the only savior and redeemer. "O Lord my God, if I have done this, if there is injustice in my hands, if I have rendered to those who render evil to me, I might then fall away from my enemies empty." The preposition "anti" ("to/for") is found in the Psalms, and it is redundant; sometimes also the "apo" ("from"), as is the case now; for the expression "to those who render" is said abusively instead of "to those who render" [as if it were simply "to"]. Having said, "I have done this," he divides it into two things,

^A to do injustice and to render evil to those who have done evil. The Father says these things. And rightly before this he said: If I have done this, what is it? If there is injustice in my action; for through the hands he declared the action: if I have rendered to men who do evil to me—if I have committed anything of the sort—by the enemy demons may I not prevail, but empty may I fall away from them, having neither turned them back nor accomplished anything. Through these things he exhorts us to be righteous and long-suffering and, according to the commandment, to do good to those who hate and grieve us. "Let the enemy therefore pursue my soul and overtake it, and trample down my life into the ground, and lay my glory in the dust." If I have done injustice, he says, or repaid evil to those who do evil, may I not only fall away from the enemies, but also may the enemy devil, having become stronger than me, pursue my soul, which has been defeated, and seize it through sin, and place my life trampled down—through dragging me down to the earth and earthly things and pursuits—and make my glory, which is from virtue, to be laid in the dust, bringing it down and casting it to the ground, through the passions of dishonor to overwhelm me entirely. Such things we invoke upon ourselves while not guarding righteousness nor being long-suffering. This is in harmony with the prophetic sayings and is what our Instructor and Lord has delivered for us to say when we pray: "Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors." For to forgive those in debt to us, and not to render evil to those who render us evil, is the same thing. Thus, indeed, as we have been taught, we pray. But when taking vengeance on those who have sinned against us, we say these things directly: "May we pay the penalties of all for which we have sinned, since we also do not forgive others the trespasses against us."

^B "Arise, O Lord, in Your wrath." Remembering the madness of the demons, he prophesies appropriately also concerning the resurrection of the Lord Christ, through which their power was extinguished. "Arise, O Lord," he says, "in Your wrath against the apostates who are harming us." That is, to bring severe punishment upon them, by turning their honor into shame and their strength into weakness. "Be exalted in the boundaries of Your enemies." You are high, and may the height of Your glory become manifest at the boundaries of Your enemies, the demons; that is, at the time when their tyranny has received an end, and their worship, which was through idolatry, has been abolished. "And arise, O Lord my God, in the commandment which You have given." Having said in the second Psalm the person of Christ, declaring the commandment of the Lord to be the commandment of the Father, he called it the evangelic doctrine; here, however, he calls the same thing the commandment of the Son; and rightly, for there is one kingdom of the Father and of the Son, and one commandment. For the Son, being the subsistent Word of the Father, declares all things of the Father, and whatever things the Father says, the Son says them, and whatever things the Son says, the Father says them. And rightfully he spoke earlier of the ^C commandment of the Word of Christ, giving us the cause to understand that it is of the Father. Since, therefore, along with other things Christ taught, he taught that he would also rise again, the prophet says to him supplantly and predictively: "Awake from the dead, O Lord my God, by the word which You have said, that You will arise." And by "word" he means the commandment, and the speaking of such a word, to give a command, because of the royal [nature] and because of the immutability; for every word of Christ, who is the true King, is a commandment and a decree and a law. "And not one word of Christ shall pass away; even heaven and earth shall pass away, and a gathering of peoples shall surround You," and You will gather through faith peoples from all the world around You, and such a gathering will also love You greatly and will be greatly attached to You. For through "shall surround You," both are indicated. For those who love someone deeply, longing to be near him, surround him; likewise, he who is affectionately disposed toward some, wanting them to approach him, makes them a circle around him. "And for this return to the height." This is about the ascension: and for this gathering of Yours from earth to heaven be turned, so that You may lead it up there and make them worthy of the heavenly kingdom and Your glory.

^D "The Lord judges the peoples." This is said to us concerning the universal judgment. The Lord Himself, having risen, having ascended into the heavens, He Himself will judge the peoples. He will render to each according to their worth. "Judge me, O Lord, according to my righteousness and according to my innocence upon me." By righteousness he means the partial [virtue], but by innocence he means long-suffering and not rendering evil for evil; for these two he bore witness to in himself above, not considering them to be great. For what is great in these? Yet they are among the most necessary and indispensable things for one who chooses to live at all according to God. But the "judge" must be linked in common with both "for me" and "upon me." For having made mention of that judgment in the last times, he now also calls the Lord judge untimely both in him and upon him; "judge in me," he says, inasmuch as I have not done injustice, O Lord, and may You not allow me to be treated unjustly by the enemies. And again, "according to my long-suffering judge upon me," and as I was doing to others, not rendering evil to them, so also do You do concerning me, and do not demand of me accounts for the things in which I have variously sinned against You, and for this reason leave me unprotected against the enemies. Therefore, after my righteousness, because there is no injustice in my hands, justify me; but according to my innocence, because I have not rendered evil to those who rendered evil to me, be long-suffering toward me. "Let the wickedness of sinners be finished," let it receive an end, let it be abolished. Having experienced much of the treachery of the wicked demons and those who serve them, he speaks in the form of a prayer about the disappearance of all wickedness in the age to come. For now...

and another inescapable and highly painful one.

^A “His arrows he made ready for those who are burning.” He says these same things are the instruments of death and the arrows, as we have said, which he fashioned and prepared for those who do not turn back. For he called them "burning," as they are inflamed by inappropriate desires and passions, from which every deed of malice is constantly blazing. “Behold, he has travailed with injustice.” Again, he addresses his words to God, and they are turned against the devil; he says that the devil, having pondered the injustice against me within himself, and behold, having brought it to completion, has travailed. He hastens to burst forth with this, and is eager to bring it into action. What is the injustice? To cause me to fall and slip, and to estrange me from the Lord unto shame.

Being indeed the opponent ^B for the sake of the contestants. “And you shall direct the just one.” And not yet even when the wickedness is finished, removing the scandals from the midst, you will prepare the just one to run rightly along the path of virtue. “And you shall direct the just one,” he has said, not “The just one shall be directed,” because God is the cause of all good things; for it is not, he says, of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. And again: “Without me you can do nothing.” Testing the hearts and reins, God, justly is my help from God who saves those who are upright in heart. God is the one who precisely searches out the intentions of men; for he revealed this through the hearts, and indeed these very things, the final and deepest parts of the thoughts, this he revealed through the reins. Whence, seeing all things that are in darkness and secret, he clearly knows also that there is no wickedness and deceit in me. Justly, therefore, and reasonably does he hope, and is there in me help and salvation from God who saves those who happen to be guileless and without deceit in heart.

^C “God is a righteous judge and strong and long-suffering.” Being a righteous judge, he will decide to drive away the injustice of my enemies, the demons, and not allow it to reach the end; being strong, he will have the power to do this and to keep me above their malice; being long-suffering, he will await my conversion, and he will not bring judgment upon me immediately, and not bringing wrath upon me every day. He calls the affliction "wrath." He explains, moreover, who the long-suffering one is: he who does not bring affliction upon those who sin every day, that is, at every time, but who endures and awaits their repentance and correction.

“If you do not turn back, he will polish his sword.” He has bent his bow and made it ready—the "polishing" of the sword and the "stretching" of the bow. And the preparation for shooting is a symbol both of threat and of anger. He counsels others also along with himself not to scorn the long-suffering of God: “For if,” he says, “you do not turn back to God, you who have been distanced from him through the transgression of the commandments, even if not very quickly or with haste, nevertheless at the fitting time, you will be bitterly destroyed.”

“And in it he has prepared the instruments of death.” The arrows are said to be made ready in the bows because the notches on the arrows are inserted into the strings of the bows; but if they carry—or fire, as some put into them—some intending meant to kill swiftly and bitterly, and others to burn, then the arrows and the instruments become those things through which they move. Whence, the Psalm verse has metaphorically called the modes of death that come from divine wrath both arrows and instruments of death. He says, therefore, even in this very bow of death, he prepared modes: the upheavals of the earth, the burnings of fire, the floods of water, the destructions of the air, the slaughters from enemies, and every

^D “He has conceived pain and brought forth iniquity.” The cause for the devil of such an injustice against me is my own suffering, in which he delights and for which he longs; for, indeed, out of extreme envy, desiring that I be cast away from the number of those being saved, he conceived—as if it were a certain seed in his mind—such pain and suffering at the time of the allotting of the retribution, and having contrived the iniquity of the plot, he brought it forth.

“He has dug a pit and hollowed it out.” He calls the machine and the hollowing out—that is, the secondary digging—a pit; it is the most deceitful and deepest part of the machine. He has fashioned, he says, every machine against me, and he rendered it unavoidable, as far as it depended on him, and he will fall into the pit which he fashioned. The devil falls into his own devices when, after planning many things against the servants of God, he will return in complete failure and shamed; for the shame which he was engineering to bring upon those he plotted against through sin, he himself draws it all upon himself, having been repelled in vain from them.

“His pain shall return upon his head.” The pain which he was causing in me through destruction shall turn back upon him, and he will receive the suffering as vital—that is, unbearable. “And upon his pate his iniquity shall descend.” And the iniquity which he was eager to commit against me and to distance me from my Master, and to place me from his glory, will descend upon him from above by divine decree, and the distancing from God and those of God he will obtain most vitally and most extremely; for the head is vital, the part of the body extending from the neck upwards; and the summit of this is the pate, most vital, in which is the brain, from where all sensation and movement come. Through these things he says what will happen rather than curses; for to the devil and his angels the eternal fire has been prepared, which is indeed the outer darkness and far from all divine overlooking. “I will confess to the Lord according to his justice.” Having described in the form of a curse the punishment and affliction that will be brought upon the devil and the demons, “I will show thanks,” he says, “to the Lord, on account of his justice.”

PSALM VIII

^A The wondrousness of Christ is unspeakable in its entire nature and incomprehensible. For neither a human being, even if he has reached the height of wisdom, nor an angel, even if he be among those who are highest and first, could ever grasp the magnitude of this, let alone express it. Nevertheless, it is a way of ingratitude and rejection not to hymn it as far as is possible. But because it is impossible to do so according to its worth, still, not to offer even the small and moderate [praise] is what the present Psalm sets out, being a hymn to the Master Christ Himself. For since the supernatural things in Christ are infinite, the [Psalmist], having called to mind and greatly admired the majesty of the Lord from these, sums up the hymn.

“O Lord, our Lord.” — Christ rules over all creation as God and Creator; but he is also recognized as Lord over all things that have come into being as man, through the union. “For all authority,” he says, “was given to me in heaven and on earth.” Christ is the Lord of the faithful, both according to the word mentioned and according to knowledge; thus his lordship in us is twofold. According to the first word, Christ rules over all, whether they wish it or not; but according to the word of knowledge, the lordship of Christ is voluntarily accepted by those who have acknowledged him through faith, because he is Lord and Master by nature. Therefore, “O Lord” is set down as expressive of authority in the absolute sense, over all creatures; but “our Lord” is said of his lordship specifically toward us the faithful, or also according to knowledge and appropriation: according to knowledge, [because of] our [acknowledgment] of him; according to appropriation, [because of his] own [caring] for us.

“How wondrous is your name in all the earth.” — Very wondrous is your name in the whole world, because of your teachings and your divine signs, which you have accomplished through yourself and through your disciples, and which you continue again through their successors in faith and virtue.

“For your magnificence was lifted up above the heavens.” — There is also among men a practical virtue called magnificence, when one performs magnificent deeds. Therefore, the prophet having spoken to Christ, saying, “Your name is very wondrous in all the earth,” he now gives the cause for why it is so wondrous: because, he says, the virtue of ^B your magnificence was lifted up above the heavens; for you did and do perform deeds most supernatural, and fitting to you alone who are truly great; and the deeds of Christ are both his teachings and his miracles. To such a statement, that of Habakkuk also harmonizes, “His virtue covered the heavens.” So great is the height of glory, the virtue of Christ, the magnificence. I think, however, that the present Psalm verse touches also upon the Master’s Ascension. According to this reasoning, then, “your magnificence” must be understood to be said through circumlocution, and the whole must be clarified thus: that you—O magnificent one and worker of greatness, the [sole] maker of the extraordinary and supernatural divine manifestations, whose grace was poured forth upon the lips of the one teaching—you rose up and were exalted, not merely to the firmament, the first heaven unto us, nor even crossing that, did you reach the highest heaven, but having traversed and ascended even above both heavens, you have surpassed the whole of creation, with your body, as Master over the whole of all creation. “Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings you have perfected praise.” You have caused perfected and complete praise to be wrought, even beyond the understanding and tongue of an infant. And the wonder is most strange: for not only were there babes and still-suckling children who were praising the Lord, speaking clearly and crying out with piercing voice words of perfect knowledge, but they were also hymning him as God and proclaiming dogmas of the most excellent theology; for this reason also the high priests and the scribes, hearing [this], were indignant. For “Hosanna in the highest,” ^C is such as this: “Save now, O you who are in the heavens, appearing on earth as man, and being in the heavens as God. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.” Worthy of praise is he who comes again to judge the world as Lord; because your name is Lord. So the babes and sucklings acknowledged Christ with a great cry as both savior and God and judge and Lord; whence the high priests and scribes could not endure such praise, and most of all because it was being performed in the Temple, where only God was being praised, and with the boldness of a great crowd of listening people.

“On account of your enemies, to destroy the enemy and the avenger.” — This is not referred to, “Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings you have perfected praise,” but to, “Your magnificence was lifted up above the heavens,” so that the whole may be such: “In accordance with your continuous [plan], you ascended above the heavens on account of your enemies, so as to destroy both the primary enemy, the devil, and his avenger and ally, the God-killing people.” For Christ came on earth against the devil, in order to destroy his power and wipe out idolatry. And this came to pass after the ^D return of Christ above the heavens; for only then did the Comforter, having come to the apostles in the form of fiery tongues and having sharpened them with word and wisdom and boldness and the power of miracles…

^A render them the destroyers of the devil and of error. Then too, all the glory of the Jews was brought to nothing. And the city, and the temple, and the worship, and everything that was superior and commanding within them, has been cast down. By saying "because of your enemies," he divided the enemies into the hostile devil and the one who fought alongside him. For indeed, the one who fights alongside the enemy is also an enemy. Yet the crowd of Jews is not named as the devil’s ally, but as his avenger, and very fittingly so; for having killed Christ, who came into this world against the devil, it clearly became the devil’s avenger. ^B By these two things at once, as we have said, he signifies the exaltation of Christ’s majesty above the heavens, both the exceeding loftiness of his glory in his teachings and miracles, and his bodily ascension above the heavens. To the first of these is connected the text, "Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings you have perfected praise," for the prophet says to Christ, "Your glory has become so great and super-wondrous that even babes at the breast have proclaimed it, using a word and thoughts that are disciplined and manly." To the second declaration of Christ’s exaltation, namely "because of your enemies," the things that follow adhere, as we have explained above. But whatever reasons one might conceive for Christ’s ascension above the heavens, let them all look toward the destruction and injury of the enemy.

"that I will look at the heavens, the works of your fingers." ^C He says also elsewhere, "The heavens are the works of your hands." By mentioning both, he proclaimed Christ as the creator of all creation, encompassing all things contained within the firmament. For the heaven that came to be at the beginning, which is by nature the first and starless, is the container of all sensible and intelligible creation. For even the intelligences themselves are all contained by such a heaven; only the Divine is uncircumscribed. I will "look," that is, I will "know"; for the mind, being the eye of the soul, sees better than the bodily eyes. I will know "the heavens, your works," metaphorically and periphrastically, I will know them forever, from which I never will stand apart from such knowledge: that you are the creator of all things. The "that" is narrative and confirmatory, not causal. I will know from the common usage "the moon and the stars, the works of your fingers," which you have made established and permanent, guarding the same order in which you have willed for the whole to persist. ^D Having discoursed about the moon and stars, he did not pass over the sun; at once ranking it with the stars as a star itself, the most prominent, most royal, most brilliant, and by some fittingly named "starrarch," and at once as being understood along with the moon, if indeed in it the light is from it [the sun] as it shines, and not from its nature.

He speaks separately about the moon: and [he] does not attribute to it the many incomparable things that the stars bring, the increases and decreases of light, the occultations and full phases, and the various formations; and furthermore, no star has its light from the outside, as it [the moon] does by addition, but all have it from within and it is inseparable, even if they are seen by day, the solar plenitude of light and surpassing brilliance hiding them. The sun, then, is higher than the moon, by more than it is distant from the earth, indeed by much more; while the moon is found to be the lowest of every star. For of the stars, some are called fixed and others wandering. The fixed ones are all equally very high and very numerous—I mean by the "mass" of the stars, the very abundance of them; but the wandering ones, together with the moon, are seven, and it is lower than another and closer to the earth.

The firmament, being moved in a circle with a motion most swift and ceaseless, from east to west as regards sense perception, all the stars are carried along with it, and the entire ether. The distance of the ether from the firmament to the place of ignition—which place of ignition is the fire itself as an element—is very great and, as it were, infinite. For the fire known to us is an ignition of such elemental fire, having an excess of fiery heat, just as crystal has of the coldness observed in water. The fixed stars, then, are set in the firmament and are carried only with it, making no movement of their own in location; but the wandering stars are not set in the firmament, but are carried aloft in the ether along certain degrees, and while the firmament is carried along with the multitude of the fixed stars from east to west as the senses perceive, they move in a motion of their own, slower, in the opposite direction, from west to east. Whence they were also called "wandering," as if having wandered from the path of the firmament and the swarm of the stars, and walking the opposite way. I say these things toward what is apparent; since, indeed, only the first heaven is known to be carried from east to west, carrying along with itself the second, the firmament; for the firmament itself too, along with the so-called fixed stars, is carried naturally from east to west; but because of the extreme slowness of such planetary motion, it escapes the senses. For the whole circle being divided into three hundred and sixty degrees, the firmament has been observed to pass through one degree every year planetarily, or even not a degree, but the smallest fraction of a degree. For this reason, then, by the same own and natural motion of the firmament, the first heaven, which is not seen, is seen intellectually by those who have painstakingly made this examination. The wandering stars perform their own motion...

^A such as we have described; but they are also carried around with the heaven, being overcome by the impetuosity of its movement. From this, the sun, fulfilling its own motion—the planetary motion—through the year, from west to east, is restored in one day and night, through the contrary motion, from the same point to the same point and a little further, being drawn and carried around by the impetuosity of the heaven. Through, then, the carrying around with the heaven, it becomes the cause of days and nights, being borne above the earth for the days and below the earth for the nights; but through its own planetary motion, it becomes the cause of the four seasons.

For having the circle of such a motion of its own, placed obliquely under the firmament, of its two parts that are diametrically opposed and stationed across from the middle parts of the firmament, and again of the other two parts diameter-wise, and of these themselves, of which one inclines towards the more northern parts of the firmament, and the other towards the more southern; when it passes through the parts under and inside the firmament, it makes the equinoxes: the vernal, coming from the south; returning from the north, the autumnal; but when it traverses the most northern segment of its own circle, then it produces the summer season; and the winter season in turn, when it is at the most southern.

The first wandering star away from the firmament is Saturn, also called Phaenon, traversing its own circle in thirty years. Below this is Jupiter, also called Phaethon, completing its own planetary period in twelve years. After it and below it is Mars, also called Pyrois, fulfilling its own revolution in two years and five months. Then the fourth, and at the very center of the ether, is the sun, completing its own revolution through the year, that is, in three hundred sixty-five and a quarter days. After it is Venus, and below it Lucifer, this star. But it is also Hesperus; for it both is and is called thus when rising before the sun; but it is called the latter when it appears setting at the west. Regarding its natural motion, those who have practiced astrology have disagreed. And some have said it runs equally with the sun; to others, it seemed that this star traverses its own circle in eight months. The sixth is Mercury, called Stilbon, making its whole revolution in six months and six days. To some of the astrologers, it is believed that this one also makes its journey in a year, just as the sun. But those who declare the time of its natural motion to be less than a year for the two aforementioned planets, according to the order of their subservience to the other planets, appear to be more accurate. After all the stars, the moon is placed lowest, ^B towards the very limit of the ether, being murky, as it is mixed with the combustible material. It is very small, as it is the lowest and nearest to the earth, and covers its distance quickly. For it does so in twenty-seven and for the most part half of one day. Therefore, it both overtakes and passes the sun frequently. Being also spherical like the sun and every other star, when it has the sun diametrically opposite, at the greatest and most significant distance, then all its lower parts that are towards us are illuminated, and it becomes fully radiant; but the closer it approaches the sun, the more it appears unilluminated to us; the solar rays being transferred from the parts of it that are seen to those that are not seen. When it comes to the sun so as to be in conjunction with it, then, with all its higher parts illuminated that are directed toward the heavens, the parts towards us are found to be entirely without light. When, however, it again passes the sun, the lower parts begin to be illuminated in proportion to the passing, the luminosity always being produced.

There is, indeed, a wide, circular, and oblique breadth in the middle of the firmament, under which all the planets perform their motion. For they do not run beneath the entire firmament. This very wide oblique circuit bears many stars, sketching out, as it were, certain animals. And from such a confused and dim sketching, the more ancient of the astrologers have called the sketches "animals"; and their whole region, the "zodiacal circle," having very much misused the names.

Under the middle of the zodiac, the sun moves uniformly and continuously, from west to east; but the other planets, being carried in a spiral fashion, deviate through all the breadth under the zodiac; and sometimes they are at its north, sometimes at its south, and sometimes they are found towards the middle. And the moon, especially among others, making such a deviation, sometimes ascends towards the north, and sometimes descends towards the south; and sometimes it travels the middle path under the solar path. At its conjunction, then, with the sun, being more northerly or more southerly, it is not able to shade and hide the sun; but being found at the middle and becoming at that time (even) perpendicular to the sun, it places itself as a barrier and partition between the sun and us, and thus hides the sun from us; and neither are its rays able to reach the air that is by us and illuminate it, nor are we able to see the sun, through whichever part it might pass underneath it. And they have called such an occurrence an eclipse of the sun, not with the reality of the luminary failing, but seeming to fail, by neither beaming nor being seen, because of the moon's body intervening. In such crossings of the moon, the sun becomes invisible to us, sometimes entirely, ^C being at the lowest part of the ether and according to its conjunctions and mixtures towards the combustible material, as has been said, it has a murky body and is by nature unilluminated; but it is in its nature to receive light, introduced as an attribute from the solar rays. For this reason, it is named "moon" (selene) because it has the light (selas) always new, and never old, other parts of it being illuminated at other times.

For it is also spherical, like the sun and every other star; when it has the sun diametrically opposite at the greatest and most significant distance, then all the lower parts towards us are illuminated, and it becomes fully radiant; but by as much as it approaches the sun, by so much does it appear unilluminated to us, the solar rays being transferred from the parts of it that are seen to those that are not seen; but when it comes to the sun so as to be in conjunction with it, then all the higher parts are illuminated that are towards the heavens, and it is found to be entirely without light towards the lower parts and us; when, however, it passes the sun, the lower parts begin to be illuminated in proportion to the passing, the luminosity always being produced. ^D

^A Thus, as much of it as has set is also invisible to us; it does not send light to us, either. But that which is called an eclipse of the sun is not a passion of the sun itself. For the sun always possesses its light entirely undiminished and pure. But the eclipse of the moon is a passion of the moon itself; and in truth, it is an eclipse, not in appearance only. For when the moon comes into diameter with the sun, being found in the northern and southern parts beneath the zodiac, it remains completely luminous, suffering nothing. But when it chances to be in the middle and is stretched beneath the sun, then, with the earth acting as a partition, it does not receive the rays from the sun; and in whatever part it does not receive them, it is not illuminated. And what the moon does in the so-called solar eclipse at conjunction, obstructing the sun from us, this happens to it in diameter by the earth. For when the sun and moon are found at that time and the earth is in the middle, in one straight line, it prevents the moon from radiating with the splendors from the sun.

And as much of its part as is not shone upon by the solar rays remains entirely unilluminated. Sometimes indeed the whole is darkened and it loses its light entirely, so as even to seem to have vanished and for the place in which it was not even to be distinguishable at all, because not even a faint shadow of it remains preserved. We ourselves have been eyewitnesses of such a lunar eclipse. ^B For as much as the moon’s body is in relation to the earth, if the things around the edge of the shadow of the earth and the night could encompass it entirely. And let this, on the basis of what has been demonstrated, be for us a deduction not geometrically but logically.

What is man, that thou art mindful of him?

^C

Son of man, that thou visitest him?

Thou hast made him a little lower than the angels.

And thou hast set him over the works of thy hands,

Thou hast put all things under his feet, sheep and all oxen.

The birds of the sky.

These things, as we have already had occasion to say in the second book of our ordered introductory epitome, we have spoken of here word for word. Now, the psalm-passage has called the air "heaven," at once because it is above the earth and those things around the earth—as we have suggested that it partakes of that nature—and because of the constant connection of the entire body which lies between the earth and the firmament with the firmament itself, with no emptiness being observed anywhere. For the aether is disposed immediately after the firmament, free from all disturbance and change, and named *aether* from the fact that it is always running; for it is ever-moving, being carried with a velocity equal to that of the heaven. After the aether is the sub-burning region, a certain hot and dry substance, and consequently prone to combustion. And so, because in some parts it partakes of consistency and density, being kindled often by the motion of the heavenly bodies, it becomes the cause of shooting stars and comets and other flaming apparitions, being contiguous to the sub-burning region. The air is also a certain hot substance. But not as the sub-burning region is; for the latter is near to fire, and is elemental fire. But the air, possessing by nature [a heat], participates in a measured and life-giving heat and moisture at the same time; but when it is led contrary to nature, it both cools and overheats, and suffers many changes, as it is passible and mutable; for only the aether is impassible and unchangeable, as among bodies. Starting from the air, and because the divine Apostle called it heaven—as it is the first in relation to us—and having joined to it the contiguous sub-burning region, as it is of the same matter, even if it differs in quality, he classified the firmament as a second heaven. Being by nature second, and thus having been created in the beginning by God, he called this a third, starting, as I said, from those things which are around us. Whence he also made the ascent, whether in body and through the senses, or external to the body and beyond the senses; for those things which are prior by nature are posterior to us, and those which are posterior by nature are prior to us. ^A "And the fish of the sea and those that pass through the paths of the seas," he included both the sea and the lakes and the rivers, having indicated by the word "greater" the whole gathering of water. And having mentioned the fish, since other living creatures also—those not having a common nature with the fish—dwell in the waters, such as octopuses and crabs and others, because of these he added, "and those that pass through the paths of the seas"; as if he were saying, all those that perform their journeys in the waters, whether they are of the nature of fish or of some other kind. "O Lord, our Lord, how wonderful is thy name in all the earth," he made both the prologue and epilogue, starting from marvelling at the majesty of the Lord, and having arrived again at this very marvelling. Thus it is necessary that we, too, should begin our hymns both in word and deed from God, and arrive at God, and outside of Him not deviate in any way, but take hold of Him throughout all ^B things, from whom we have been generated, by whom we have been called, and by whom we have been saved. Christ descended immutably from the Father to our lowliness, and having become for our sakes according to our nature—O the sea of His philanthropy!—and having been taken up again to the Father with our essence for our sakes, He who never departed from the bosom of the Father. God descended to man; for He could not endure to overlook such a work being destroyed—a sign of the magnitude of His wisdom and of the multitude of His goodness. Therefore, He visited it both compassionately and wisely; and having visited, He redeemed [it], and deemed [it] worthy of the kingdom of the heavens and of its place, the most high and greatest King and God, to whom be all glory and worship now and always and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

PSALM IX

^A For by saying "my enemy" in the singular, he indicated the devil; but by saying "they shall be weak and perish" in the plural, he meant the demons. And by "presence," he signifies the manifestation; for when the Master Christ appeared in Hades, the devil, not enduring the lightning of His divinity, turned back, routed. And with him having thus turned, defeated and put to shame, all the demons, his powers, were weakened and perished. That is to say, they were scattered, they vanished; the syntax is inverted: "When my enemy is turned back from Thy presence, they shall be weak and perish"—all those who are around him, clearly, and under him.

"For Thou hast performed my judgment and my cause." Thou hast performed the judgment and justification concerning me. And Thou didst condemn the tyrant, but justified me, setting me free from his tyranny. Thus also the Gospel declares: "Now is the ruler of this world judged."

"Thou hast sat upon the throne, O Thou who judgest righteousness." Having ascended after the resurrection into the heavens, Thou didst sit upon a throne of glory with the body. Thou who judgest righteously, and casting the apostate outside, and leading me into Thy dominion—He who then, and now, and always is the righteous judge—Thou didst rebuke the nations, and the ungodly perishes. By "nations" he now means the demons, as being primarily lawless and the creators of lawlessness. Thou didst rebuke the demons through the preaching of the apostles, who have the authority to rebuke demons and to trample upon all the power of the enemy. Through such a rebuke, therefore, not only did the demons flee, but also their ruler and first ungodly one has vanished.

"Thou hast blotted out his name forever and unto the age of the age." Much had the name of the devil spread in the world through idolatry. But Thou didst blot this out entirely, forever; for "unto the age of the age" signifies intensity of duration.

"The swords of the enemy have failed to the end, and Thou hast destroyed the cities." The godless dogmas of the Greeks he calls the swords of the devil; through which the devil himself was destroying the souls of men; and "cities" are the systems of the idolaters, and the fortifications of their religion.

"His memorial has perished with a sound." Idolatry having been removed from everywhere, the memorial of the devil has perished with a sound, that is, the destruction of the diabolical memory has become notorious and famous; for it has resounded in all the earth, how idolatry has been pulled down and vanished.

"And the Lord abides forever." Therefore, it has declared the permanence and eternity of piety. And while the ungodly has perished and his name has been blotted out utterly and from everywhere and forever, the swords of the enemy have failed to the end, his cities have been overthrown, his memorial—after he cried out ^B—the Lord Jesus abides forever, being honored and worshipped; and His all-holy name is eternally magnified and unceasingly glorified; and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against His Church. "He has prepared His throne in judgment." He predestined in judgment to sit at the time of the consummation of this age. "And He shall judge the world." "In righteousness He shall judge peoples in uprightness." These things declare in parallel the justice and impartiality of the universal judge. "And the Lord has become a refuge for the poor." By "poor" he means one deprived of human power and protection; he clarifies through these the compassion and impartiality of the Lord; the Lord Himself, the universal judge, in the latter times, He Himself has also now become a refuge for the poor; a helper in due times, in tribulations; the Lord became to the humble and unprotected, a helper in tribulations, opportunely, that is, in the time of need.

"And let them trust in Thee who know Thy name, for Thou hast not forsaken those who seek Thee, O Lord." And then, since Thou hast not forsaken those who seek Thee from the soul, O Lord, it is just for those who know Thee, those who believe in Thee piously, to hope in Thee. "Chant to the Lord who dwells in Sion." To Him who dwells, according to the principle of appropriation, in the Church of the faithful, and therefore also in each individual believer.

"Declare among the nations His deeds." To declare the works and the economies of Christ, the incarnation, the miracles, the commandments, both with mouth and through letters and writings, to the nations who do not know these things, is fitting for all who have the power of discourse—the faithful, but especially the apostles, to whom the Lord said, "Go, make disciples of all the nations."

"Because He who seeks their blood has remembered, He has not forgotten the cry of the poor." One must organize it thus: "He has remembered the cry of the poor, He has not forgotten." For the poor, being tormented by the demonic tyranny of every good, until slaughter and the shedding of their own blood, were crying out as it were ^D to God. For the action and the suffering—and of those acting or suffering in silence—shout to God, who knows all things even before they come to exist. The Lord, therefore, who seeks the blood of these nations, that shed in the sacrifices of the demons—that is, He who exacts justice for this unholy shedding of blood—remembered the cry of the miserable and wretched humans being slaughtered, and did not forget. "Have mercy on me, O Lord, see my humiliation from my enemies, Thou who liftest me up from the gates of death." Having recounted concerning those things which the Master Christ accomplished through His own incarnation and His passion and His resurrection and ascension, he added fittingly that He Himself shall be also the righteous and impartial judge of the whole world. Then the...

^A book of the Gospels relates the things concerning his own. By means of which, "And the Lord became a refuge for the poor," he returned again to the discourse concerning the Dispensation, saying, "Declare His deeds among the nations." And indeed, having made mention of the audacity of the demons, how they brought those tyrannized by them—some to slaughter their most beloved, and others, they have caused to be slaughtered by their most intimate kin—and thus to sacrifice and be sacrificed with a lawless and inhuman sacrifice, full of bitterness and tears and lamentations and wailings; and furthermore, seeing what shamelessness these furies bring, that even though they have been stripped of power and their strength has been enervated, they nevertheless still harass and maltreat those who believe, [the Psalmist] calls upon the Lord for mercy, saying, "Have mercy on me, O Lord; see my humiliation,"—or rather, the maltreatment brought upon me by my enemies—"see it, You who raise me up from the gates of death." For he named the inescapable dangers of soul or body the gates of death. "That I may declare all Your praises in the gates of the daughter of Zion." That is, in the ears of the faithful. For here, Zion is to be received as the city and dwelling-place of those being saved, the heavenly one; and the daughter and heir of this city as every soul that is pious and dear to God; and the gates of the soul and the entrances are the ears, through which every word enters into the soul. He says, therefore, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, and I shall recount Your works and Your wonders, which it is necessary to praise You for, and I shall not speak Your praises into profane ears, giving what is holy to the dogs, but into the ears of the faithful and those dear to God, through whom Your name shall be magnified. We shall exult in Your salvation." He returns again to the saving Dispensation of Christ, saying to Him, "At the salvation from You we shall greatly rejoice." For one must understand exultation as the intensification of joy, when someone, out of pleasure, leaps and jumps greatly, being unable to contain himself for joy. ^B By such machinations, both the Jews and the demons were caught inescapably; for the worship of the demons was extinguished, and the God-killers ruined their life bitterly, while their fatherland and their priesthood and every other dignity were ruined along with them. "The Lord is known by executing judgments." The prophetic Scripture calls the same thing both a judicial sentence and judgment. "The Lord is known, that He executes judgments," because the aforementioned lawless ones fell into their own plots and machinations as a result of divine judgment.

"The sinner was caught in the works of his own hands." Already, in the narrative against the wicked and evildoers, he brings things out, saying, "Since we know that the Lord judges, logically every sinner and lawless person, in the matters in which he has acted harmfully toward others, has become caught in these same things, if not in the present, then later paying the penalties." He calls the unjust person, the plunderer, the covetous person, and for these reasons the wily and very cunning person, a sinner.

"Let the sinners be turned back into Hades." All the nations that forget God; he sometimes takes [the term] in the singular, or rather generally, concerning the wicked or the gentle, and sometimes in the plural concerning them. He calls both nations and sinners all crooked and base men; nations, indeed, as lawless and base—lawless, because they have rejected the divine laws; nations, indeed, as sinners on the other hand, as those who have slipped from what is just and have missed the mark of the one who is paying attention. By way of a curse, he declares the terrible things that are to justly befall them, worthy of their impiety. "Let the wicked be condemned and turned back from the judgment into Hades." By "Hades," he means the places under the earth where every place of punishment is; for heaven is the place of enjoyment. Every despiser of His laws, he who is not mindful of His commandments to keep them, forgets God.

"For the poor shall not be forgotten forever; the patience of the needy shall not perish forever." The poor and needy is the humble man, the one destitute of every human aid. He provides as the cause for this removal of every wicked person to a place of torments the fact that the humble person will not be forgotten at all by God, ^D nor, indeed, will the patience of the needy perish forever—[the patience] which they were enduring while being deprived of their own, and looking forward to the retribution; and that they would receive back compensations and consolations for what they have been deprived of and aggrieved by, while for those who have harmed [them], appropriate punishments would be brought upon them. "Arise, O Lord; let not man be strengthened." By way of a curse, having discoursed about the terrible things that shall befall the wicked and the covetous in that world, he beseeches God here in this world to effect a restraint of wickedness and to discipline the base, and to comfort the gentle. "Arise" is said metaphorically, from those who rise from their seats to some...

^A judgment or aid. Do not delay to apply defense to the matter; cast down the arrogant eyebrow already. "Man is also himself weak." Even if he looks askance and holds power over those of the same nature as himself, arise, hasten. Humble him, let him not be exalted, let him not be emboldened, deeming himself strong and unconquerable; let him know that he is clothed in human weakness.

"Let the nations be judged before you." As has been demonstrated above, he calls perverse and tyrannical men "nations" because of their iniquities. "Let the lawless be judged while you watch the things done by them." For this is "before you," in your oversight, in your inspection of the face—for the face of the Lord is against those who do evil, not as a provider of goodness for those who perform things that are good, but to destroy ^B their memory from the earth. "Appoint, O Lord, a lawgiver over them." By "lawgiver" he means the commanding master; for the command of the master is law to the servant. Strip them of their autonomy, surrounding them with adversity, catastrophes, captivities, frequent afflictions, and by subjecting them to others—certainly for their benefit, so that, hauling the yoke of servitude, they might relearn from what they suffer that which is mild and philanthropic.

"Let the nations know that they are men." Let the lawless know their own weakness and not boast, being exalted above the nature of men. He asks from God in many ways the breaking and down-fall of those who oppress the humble. ^C "Why, O Lord, have you stood afar off, why do you overlook in times of need, in tribulations?" These are the words of one lamenting and suffering terribly, calling the long-suffering of God toward the wicked and the delay of help for those who suffer a "standing afar off and an overlooking" in tribulations. Why, O Lord, do you stand far from helping those who suffer and from punishing the wicked? And why do you overlook in tribulations those who are being maltreated, not giving them comfort, and to the evildoers, evil—and that in times of need? That is to say, times that are at hand for vengeance. To "overlook" is to see what is placed before the eyes while maintaining a disdainful and detached attitude, and for this reason to lift the eyes elsewhere and to focus the sight far from what is nearest. By the godless being arrogant, the poor man is set ablaze; the poor and small-minded man, in his impiety, seeing the godless and wicked man prospering, and from this being arrogant, is inflamed within, his heart being burned up with intense sorrow and with zeal.

"They are ensnared in the counsels which they argue—that the sinner is applauded in the desires of his soul, and the unjust man is blessed." In the counsels and meditations with which the poor reason in their mind—that the sinner is applauded ^D and the unjust man is blessed—they are ensnared and caught, becoming scandalized regarding Providence. For seeing that while wickedness prevails among men, the sinner is applauded when he ought to be reproached for fulfilling his absurd and irrational desires, and that the unjust man is praised when he should be reviled because he acts unjustly, they argue about the thoughts and meditations [as to] why this is; and not finding a reasonable cause for the matter, as far as what is apparent is concerned, they trip up regarding Providence, and from this, as if in a snare, they are caught in their own perilous assumptions. This they suffer, not yielding the accounts of what happens to the unsearchable judgments of God and to the incomprehensibility of His wisdom.

"The sinner provoked the Lord; according to the multitude of His anger He will not inquire." The sinner, from the things he does, provoked God greatly, making Him quick to anger; yet the Lord, even if He was angered much, nevertheless will not seek out the exaction according to the multitude of His wrath. For God is not long-suffering before him. "His ways are defiled at all times." He acts so absurdly and lawlessly, as if God were not present and watching the things being done, and for this reason his deeds become defiled and unholy at all times. "Your judgments are taken away from before his face." Even if the preposition "anti" ("from") is redundant, it seems for the moment to signify an intensifying: Your judgments are utterly removed from his face so that he sees them, which is to say, they are blotted out from his mind, since he does not reflect at all "that you judge righteously and render to each according to his deeds." He is entirely contrary to your judgments and, so far as it lies with him, a destroyer of them.

"He will master all his enemies, he will hold power over all who stand against him, while you permit the judgments you know; for he said in his heart, 'I shall never be shaken.'" This would follow the meaning of, "His ways are defiled at all times," neither making any interruption of his unholy works nor ceasing. "For he said in his heart," that is, he formed such an opinion in himself, that by acting thus: "I shall not be shaken, I shall not be displaced from my settled state of prosperity and stability, from generation to generation; without evil, elliptically, without evil I shall exist or live." And the "from generation to generation" is indicative of long-livedness, that is, from the now-existing generation of men until the one to come, I shall live without any evil. "Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness and guile." It is possible to find in this psalmic writing the pronouns sometimes joined to the subordinate articles superfluously, as the "Whose God is the helper of Jacob," and "Who is a shelter to him from you." This has come to pass in the present clause, "Whose mouth is full of cursing,"

that is, of railing; for railing is also called a curse. He calls all railing irascible and deceitful, uttering some things through the mouth while concealing others in his mind. "Under his tongue is toil and pain." By the use of the preposition "under," he indicated what is hidden. He "whispers" slander and railings against men, from which these find toil and pain. "He lies in wait in secret against the rich ^A in order to slay the innocent." Being a liar, he has infused deceit into the wicked and fabricated it. The Gospel also calls such people "liers in wait." He calls those "rich" whose work it is to be rich and to gather wealth from robbery and bloodshed. By saying "in secret," he clarified what an ambush is, namely, a secret place. Whence those who are hidden in it to fall suddenly upon some are more commonly called "concealers." Such a concealment does the wicked man become for the innocent, having taken along those of like mind with himself, and he observes how he might strip and, through what machinations, [ruin] the blameless; and having stripped and made the wealthy man destitute, he killed him, having rendered him, for instance, a sacrifice to famine and cold and the rest of his affliction. "His eyes look upon the poor." The eyes of his mind look out for the one who is without boldness and unprotected, to whom there is no strength from anywhere or any help to flee from those who harass him; for he does not call the needy and the beggar "poor"—the wicked man will not even look at him. "He lies in wait in secret like a lion in his den." "He lies in wait to seize the poor." "To seize the poor when he draws him." Just as the lion, sitting in his own den, observes the passing animals and, springing upon them suddenly, kills them, and having dragged them to his own place, makes a meal of them, so too does the wicked and covetous man act; he observes those whom we have called the poor and beggars, and attacking them deceitfully, seizes their possessions and revels in the goods of others. "In his snare he will bring him low." "In his plots he will enslave him, so that, being overreached, he will cower and not even have the power to open his mouth and utter a voice."

"To Thee has the poor man been abandoned, with no one to help him. Thou wert a helper to the orphan; for Thou art his Father according to the word of creation. Break the arm of the sinner and the wicked man." "Arm" is frequently used in the Holy Scripture for power. "His sin will be sought and shall not be found." As if the utterance were framed as a question up to the word "found." Then, by way of a negative answer, and if this happens, "He shall not be found himself; for if Thou shouldst examine the magnitude of his sin, he is worthy of destruction."

"The Lord is King unto the age and unto the age of the age. Ye nations, perish from His earth." Since the Lord is the Creator of all creation. "The earth is the Lord's and the fulness thereof." But the land of those who are saved is also the Lord's. For He Himself prepared it for them. The prophet therefore says to the unjust and the covetous, whom he has now named "nations," that the Lord is King; not temporary like the kings of the nations, but unto the age, and not only unto this age of human earthly life, but also unto the coming and endless one; for he calls this "age of the age" for emphasis. If, therefore, you do not now pay justice for the tyranny and oppression of the humble, you shall certainly pay it later, and you shall perish, O nations, according to your lawlessness from the land of the Lord, whether by being made to disappear from this world, which you do not know and [will experience] most painfully, or from that blessed land which is unambiguously allotted to those who are saved, being sent into Gehenna. "Thou hast heard the desire of the poor, O Lord, ^B preparing [their hearts' longing]; but Thou shalt also [apply] Thine ear [to them] now to the rushing upon the wicked, for the cutting off of their wickedness, for the defense of the wicked, and for the succor of those who are being oppressed. Arise, O Lord. And as Thy power is high and supernatural, so let it also be known through the exceptional destruction of the wicked and arrogant. "For what reason did the impious provoke God? For he said in his heart: He will not search out." The expression is by way of a question: Why did the wicked act in ways that stir God to wrath? Because he calculated within himself that God will pass over the things that are being done and will not demand an account of them. "You see, for you understand [the] toil and anger to deliver him into your hands." You see it in an asyndetic way. One must punctuate: "Toil and anger you understand," the "that" being for "truly"; "understand" being for "know well." For the preposition *kata-* here indicates emphasis. The speech is directed to God. The impious one said: "God has forgotten. He has turned away His face so as not to see, unto the end." But it is not so. You truly see, and you overlook accurately everything, and there is nothing that escapes you; the toil and the affliction of those who are being wronged, and again the anger against the beastliness of the impious one, you know in the highest degree, so that you might deliver the impious one into your hands, for him to be punished as is just. "He will bow down and fall when he masters the poor." "When the wicked man oppresses and exercises dominion over the poor, he himself will be called [one doomed] to ruin and will be carried down into a chasm. "For he said in his heart: God has forgotten. He has turned away His face so as not to see unto the end; for he thought within himself amiss, that God makes no mention of things in the world, but all things are unprovided for, and God has turned away His face, that is, His visitation, completely, so as not to see and visit and overlook the things that are being done. "Arise, O Lord my God. Let Thy hand be lifted up. Do not forget Thy poor unto the end." He supplicates God not [to grant] all the retribution in the

sense of a resting place; but what of those among us who are zealots and are eager for the words he sets down in such abundance? Sometimes this envious race introduces even thoughts into the soul, banishing this truth if it might be persuaded, and transferring it to mountains and pathless places if it might be influenced. For the majority of perverse men, having the advantage in unstable things, as a rule prosper even in doing injustice, overreaching, and oppressing, and by material things are led in a straight line; as all things pertaining to desire fall to them automatically, from this the apostates instill lack of providence into him who accepts their nonsense, and those wretched ones thrust him toward the precipice of madness, attempting to lead him astray far from the level path that is accessible to the pious. But for him who trusts in the Lord, and is established in His teachings, they would never have the strength to make him a migrant to the mountains of destruction like a sparrow that has crouched down, and at another time flies elsewhere. The tenth psalm speaks ^B about these things, composed in the person of every pious man who strengthens his mind and himself wards off the first principles of atheism.

PSALM X

"In the Lord I trust; how then will you say to my soul: Migrate to the mountains as a sparrow!" The discourse is addressed to the demons, who cast disbelief about providence, "I have realized what you wish to say to my soul." But, supported by trust in the Lord, as upon a foundation and a very firm one, I prevent what is to be said from even taking shape; for this reason he did not say "how do you say," but "how will you say." How could you say to my soul: "Migrate and depart from the firm and secure faith in God, to thoughts and dogmas far from divine oversight, so that through an ambiguous mindset I might be unsteady and wander like a wretched and timid sparrow." I will not allow our discourse to be revealed, and it is far from even being accepted.

"For behold, the sinners bent their bow; they prepared arrows in the quiver, to shoot down those who are upright in heart in the darkness." The "for" is narrative. Having cast off the thoughts from the demons, so as not to allow these to proceed to an end, he says to God that the sinners prepared demons in secret and stealthily; ^C this is because the [aim] in darkness is to destroy those who are foolish in soul, by sending forth from afar against them lethal dogmas like arrows, aiming at the souls that receive them toward death. "For the things which Thou didst establish, they destroyed." Because that there is providence and rewards for the just, and what is due for the wicked, Thou didst establish, that is, Thou didst prepare and make complete and sure through the law, and the prophets, and through clear and many examples; they themselves cast down and destroyed as much as lay with them, introducing contrary conceptions instead. What then did the just man do? The sinful demons did these things; but the just man, he who guards the master's laws and is fenced about with the weapons of piety, what did he do? What did he contemplate? What did he declare…

^A “The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord’s throne is in heaven.” These words and those that follow, to the very end of the entire Psalm, constitute the thought and sentiment of the just man. For the Lord is everywhere and watches over everyone; and He provides to all the recompense for their deeds. Every holy place on earth is a temple of God. By saying that God is in his temple, that is, that He is on earth and has his throne in heaven, he reveals that God is present in every place. “His eyes look upon the poor; his eyelids examine the sons of men.” Through these words, he has declared two things: that since He is merciful, He keeps a watch over one who is deprived of human care and protection more than others, and that He knows all things with precision in every way, observing not merely with eyes, as one might say, but with eyelids—and not simply, but in a searching and infallible manner; for the word “examine” is indicative of this. “The Lord examines the just and the ungodly.” He calls the one who does not walk according to the Lord’s commandments ungodly. For what reverence to the Lord is there in one who treats His laws as nothing? Therefore, He examines the just, to see if he is indeed just, and the one who is not so, so that He may give to each what is fitting. Nothing escapes Him, even if there is much ignorance among men. But he who loves wickedness hates his own soul, just as he who honours God in word, and in the disposition of his soul is pious toward Him; but by doing abnormal and base things, he is said to dishonour God through his actions, and he is called ungodly, as has been shown just now, with David having said: “The Lord examines the just and the ungodly,” and having distinguished the ungodly from the just, having acknowledged as just him who obeys the divine commandments, and ungodly him who does not. Thus also, he who loves his own soul in word and disposition, and desires those good things—if it were possible to have attained them without exertion—but yet rejoices in wickedness, is said in deed to hate his own soul, doing things which harm it and deprive it of eternal glory. “He shall rain snares upon sinners.” He shows from this that even in this world, since God so wills, those who scorn His laws are caught in inescapable calamities. For he metaphorically called these “snares.” And by the word “rain,” he signified that they are brought down from above, from God, and noted their abundance and their ease. “Fire and brimstone and a wind of tempest is the portion of his cup.” By “cup,” that is, drink, he meant the divine wrath and affliction, since it is sent down suddenly upon those who have been judged, like a poisonous draught; since, therefore, the heaven-sent punishments are various, he said that the one which caused the destruction in Sodom and Gomorrah and Adama and Seboim is a portion of the whole. For upon these four cities of the whole Pentapolis, sulphur, ignited and brought through the air, and being fanned by a violent wind, consumed and reduced to ash, along with all their surrounding region. And Segor, indeed, after the departure of the just man from there, was consumed. The portion, then, he says, of his cup from the Lord is fire and brimstone and a wind of tempest. ^B “For the Lord is just and loves justice; his countenance looks upon integrity.” Because He is truly just, He loved truly just things, not the majority; for his countenance—that is to say, his overseeing power—looked upon integrities, not crookedness; for indeed, there is no virtue—strictly speaking—among the virtues without the presence of integrity; for crookedness is the property of the serpent. Since, therefore, the Lord is just and has loved justices, and has made integrities his own and deemed them worthy of His oversight, because the Lord our God is upright and there is no injustice in Him, every ungodly and sinful man will pay the penalty for those things in which he has acted ungodly and sinned, if he has not been cleansed. And every upright just man will receive the prizes of integrity and the rewards of justice. Who, then, will say to my soul, “Depart to the precipices,” when I have put my trust in the Lord, who also teaches me His providence through manifest retributions? I have put my trust in Him, and I shall not depart; to Him be the glory unto the ages of ages. Amen.

PSALM X

“Unto the end, concerning the eighth, a Psalm for David.” ^C Such is this; and it has an inscription like the sixth, and it is sufficiently interpreted in that one; for this one also prophesies about the resurrection of Christ and the retribution of the oppressed faithful, and in another way, the end of the life in the world, having been received through death on the eighth day, that is, the Lord’s day, which is called the first as the beginning of the days, but because it comes again after the sixth, which is the Sabbath, it is also called the eighth. But he entreats that that day come more quickly for the sake of the retribution of those being tyrannized by the devil or enslaved to idolatry. “Save me, O Lord, for the holy man has failed.” Just is he who is blameless in his dealings with men; but holy is he who has partaken of deification through the end of the virtues; and these resemble a ladder leading those who walk through them up to God. It has been said that “just” is, as the Scriptures say, the one who is perfect in virtue. But our discourse now is not concerning that one. As, then, there are some who possess human and partial justice, but the holy have failed—some by dying, others by being driven out by the unholy—he prays to be saved from the wicked men. The prophet makes the prayer in the person of those who were to receive the proclamation of the Gospel ^D; for at that time the holy failed most, when the Lord also visited us in the flesh. “For truths have been diminished from the sons of men.” The holy have failed altogether; but a few truths have remained.

^C For the nature of those things which are compensatory in this place is such that, while they lied concerning important matters, they spoke the truth in the least of things.

“Each one spoke vain things to his neighbor.” This means things deceptive; for not only did they deceive strangers, but even those near to them. For he calls those near, not in place, but in kinship.

“Deceitful lips, and spoke with a heart and a heart.” He calls the deceitful man “deceitful lips,” as if from the part speaking of the whole. The deceitful man, he says, speaks evil and harmful things with a double-hearted intention; having one intention within, while showing another without.

“The Lord shall destroy all deceitful lips and the boastful tongue.” ^D Often Scripture molds the optative mood into the future tense, as in the present case; for it either prays that the deceitful may be caused to disappear, and those who exalt themselves against the more humble and boast greatly of themselves, or it prophesies their utter destruction. But teaching whom he calls “boastful,” he added:

“Those who said, ‘We will magnify our tongue.’” Those who considered within themselves that “We will magnify,” that is, we will prepare our tongue to utter great and arrogant things.

“Our lips are our own; who is our lord?” And they said furthermore that we also have dominion over our lips, and henceforth whom do we fear that speaks such things? And who hinders us from such words?

“Because of the misery of the poor and the groaning of the needy, now will I arise, saith the Lord.” The “now” is instead of “at the appropriate time I will arise” from the grave because of the misery of those enslaved by error through human ignorance, which misery has become to them a groaning, in accordance with which we have given an explanation when interpreting, “He did not forget the cry of the needy.” But David heard this with prophetic ears. Some say that “poor” is called the one who has fallen from wealth, according to the verse, “The rich became poor,” but “needy” is the one who through the labor of his own hands procures necessary food. Such also were those who believed; for they were stripped of their goods, and their hands ministered to the hand of the body; for often one is taken for the other interchangeably. But it is also possible to speak in another way: God says that, “Because of the misery and the groaning of those being oppressed, now I will be moved,” that is, immediately, straightway, quickly. And “I will be moved” is understood in a manner worthy of God as “I will defend,” even if it has been said in a manner more fitting to humanity.

“I will place him in safety; I will speak openly in him.” Having made mention of the resurrection, he makes mention also of the burial, having turned the discourse to the death through the salvation; for he says furthermore, “And this the Lord says, ‘I will place,’ that is, I will be fixed, in the salvation.” For this salvation must be taken as ^A the spear of salvation having cast down the tyrant, he saved us and granted us freedom from error, and strengthened those who were weak against the demons. “I will speak openly in it,” that is, in this salvation to make public the power hidden within me; for the veil was rent, the sun was darkened, the rocks were cleft, the earth was shaken, and all that occurred then were wondrous. Or again, “I will set them into salvation,” that is, I will account them worthy of salvation, and I will speak openly in such salvation of theirs, that is, I will manifest, I will show my power.

“The words of the Lord are pure words.” Having said that “Thus saith the Lord,” he confirms also concerning the truths of the words of the Lord, as being pure of lies.

“Silver tried in the fire, an experiment of the earth.” Thus they are unmixed with deception, as refined silver is kept pure from baser matter. And “experiment of the earth” is instead of “being tried in the earth”; for the craftsmen poured the molten metal, or also “experiment of the earth” instead of “an experiment from the earth.” Being intense, moreover, concerning the purity of the Lord’s words, he added:

^B “O Lord, purified sevenfold.” The “sevenfold” is instead of “often”; for the Hebrew dialect adopts “seven times” for “very often.” And what is “often” smelted was altogether pure; so thus are the truths, silver smelted often. He called them “words” (logia), not because of any separation of worthlessness, but because they called the oracles “words” because of their brevity; for in few words they contained great power of thought.

^C “You, O Lord, shall keep us and shall preserve us from this generation and unto the age.” And the “keep” is from those fighting from without, whereas the “preserve” is from those plotting from within; or also “keep” from the present generation, and “preserve” from those who come after, which is “unto the age,” clearly until the end. And indeed, the faith of those who received the preaching of the Gospel remained unconquerable even from that generation, and will remain unto the age, and neither the heretics who openly fought against it succeeded nor will they be able to succeed.

“The ungodly walk in a circle.” For always, he says, they circle us round, hastening to besiege the faith. And this, on the one hand, is concerning the Greeks; but concerning heretics, “they walk in a circle” is instead of their not interpreting the divine Scriptures directly, but in a twisted manner.

“According to your height you have heightened the sons of men.” Having been exalted, he says, upon the salvation [cross], I deemed men worthy of much care, because for them you have suffered; for “care” is much solicitude, just as “negligence” is the opposite. Or also, having been exalted to the heavens at the time of the ascension, you benefited men by sending the Paraclete, illuminating and leading the apostles into the preaching; and this can also be understood historically.

^A And those who turn away do not see those whom they turn away from.

“How long shall I set counsels in my soul, and sorrows in my heart by day and by night?” I am anxious and worried how I might be delivered from temptations, and not being able to find freedom, I am in pain throughout. ^A This eye fits David; for when he was fleeing from the face of Saul, some, pretending friendship, attempted to betray him to his pursuer. He denounces their faithlessness, hypocrisy, deceit, and craftiness; and he calls only upon God as Savior, since friends were offering his things to his enemies. He foretells their destruction, but also proclaims that the boastfulness of those around Saul would be extinguished. Concerning the “octave,” it is inscribed: “I will rise up because of the Lord,” and what follows, which fit the resurrection of the Savior better. For even if we were to draw these toward David, as though he had heard that God promised to be moved at the time of the plot, it signifies (that is, leads to) His vengeance, and setting the poor and needy in salvation, and to have boldness; that is, to appear strong and just. By means of their salvation, we shall oppose the inscription of the “octave.” It must be noted that “salvation” is not interpreted in any other way than as saving.

PSALM XII

To the end, a psalm of David. After the adultery with Bathsheba, and the murder of her husband Uriah, David fell into various temptations. His daughter was defiled by her brother Amnon, and his brother Absalom killed Amnon. And of the royal houses, there was no small confusion of words; since finally, this son, Absalom, having practiced tyranny, drove him out of the kingdom, nor did he stop his anger at that point, but gathered forces and prepared to pursue and kill his father. ^C David, reflecting on the multitude and magnitude of the calamities, thought that because of the adultery and murder mentioned, he was suffering these things because God had abandoned him, even if these things had been permitted. For this reason, he composed the present psalm after the third, when Christ, having scattered the counsel of Ahithophel as we have said before, revealed to him the whole plot of Absalom and suggested what must be done. “To the end,” however, is inscribed because of the foretelling in it of the defeat of the one warring, having reached the end. For, he says, “My heart will exult in your salvation.”

“How long, O Lord, will you forget me to the end?” Forgetting is the loss of memory. To God, all things are present, and not just deeds, but also the movements of the mind. Therefore, forgetting on the part of God is to be taken as the abandonment of those who have sinned, while He permits them to be tempted for discipline; but “to the end” is taken as “for a long time.”

“How long will you turn your face from me?” The face of God is His overseeing and beneficent power; the turning away is the operation contrary to it by Him turning away from those unworthy of His care because He loathes their deeds. ^D He characterizes divine things from human ones; for even those who abandon someone also abandon the memory of him.

“How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?” The patricide who, after a long period of resentment from the time he killed his son Amnon, shall be exalted; instead of this, he will prosper. For the one who rejoices lifts up his head, but the sufferer bows down, humbled. Or the enemy is to be taken as the devil; for he himself is the cause of temptations, stomping on those who suffer and, as it were, trampling and afflicting them while they are raised up by the inclination from God.

“Look upon me, hear me, O Lord my God.” To the “you turn away” corresponds the “look upon me.” Make me worthy of Your kindness; look upon me as I suffer evilly, and having had mercy, hear me as I ask for help.

“Enlighten my eyes, lest I sleep in death.” A sleep of slothfulness took hold of my eyes as the night of calamities poured over me. For those who are grieved are accustomed to fall into sleep, while the darkness and weight of the pain of the heart creates it for the eyes. Enlighten them, therefore. That is, give me to see clearly by instilling joy into my heart, by which, having been darkened, it will drive sleep from the eyes; lest this sleep end my life because of an excess of despondency; lest I sleep in a death-dealing way. Or he speaks of the eyes of the soul, that is, the mind, which is darkened by the gloom of sin; it is from the darkness of this that he entreats for delivery, lest, he says, I die the death in sins, having already become dead to virtue, or having been completely deadened by despair to Your hope.

“Lest at any time my enemy say, ‘I have prevailed against him.’” For if I should suffer this, the enemy will claim my death as being due to his own power, as having become the cause of my painful things. And you may understand “enemy” as either the visible or the invisible one.

“Those who afflict me will exult if I am shaken.” If I am moved away from the safety that is in You, my enemies will rejoice, trusting that I have been cast down, as having no refuge of salvation.

“But I have hoped in Your mercy.” Having lost the boldness from virtues because of the bad things I have done, I have hoped only in Your mercy; for this is bountiful and inexhaustible.

“My heart will exult in Your salvation.” Having foreseen the defeat of the one warring with prophetic eyes, I shall rejoice in the salvation granted by You.

“I will sing to the Lord who has benefited me, and I will play to the name of the Lord Most High.” I will sing with my tongue, and I will play with the organic psaltery or

in a contemplative and practical manner. It is fitting that this Psalm is also for all who are oppressed.

PSALM XIII

To the end, a psalm of David. “The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” This psalm promises the end of the things previously mentioned in it. For some say that it foretells the times later under King Hezekiah of Jerusalem and the Assyrian Sennacherib who was besieging him, who in his own heart asserted that the God of the Jews did not exist; for if he had been wise, he would not have come to such a conclusion, especially while hearing every day the paradoxes that God performed against those who were hostile to the Jews. Thus having reasoned with himself, he also blasphemed God by means of the spoken word, having set up Rabsaces, the leader of his forces, at the end of the city, and having revealed through him such things as those who read the history concerning him will find.

“They are corrupted and have become abominable in their practices.” Those around Sennacherib were corrupted indeed, having fallen from the correct belief; and they became abominable to God because of their impious deeds. For they mocked God, and as if He were not God, they reproached Him for weakness and threatened the inhabitants with total destruction; and thus, being full of arrogance, they were enveloped in drunkenness and lewdness and were polluted. The verse would be hyperbaton: that they were corrupted in their practices and became abominable. “There is none who does goodness; there is not even one, but all are wicked.”

^B “The Lord looked down from heaven upon the sons of men, to see if there is any one who understands or seeks God.” Upon the sons of men, instead of upon those men who have as I said; and from heaven, from where it is assumed He dwells, according to, “He who dwells in the heavens.” And He looked down so that He might see if there is any one among them who understands, by means of wonders, God, or seeks Him, that is to say, invokes Him, as in, “I sought the Lord, and He heard me.” For some who understand in some things behave evilly. But He depicted the Lord in a human way, as leaning down from an upper room and watching; for being present everywhere, He knows all things. And it must be noted that this figure is used in many places in Scripture, and besides, the omniscient nature of this divine surveillance indicates that He looks from heaven to earth and distinguishes everything, with such a distance not hindering anything.

“All have turned aside; together they have become useless; there is no one doing goodness, not even one.” They turned aside to the aforementioned practices; they became useless, having become loathsome, and not even one among them is good.

“Will all the workers of iniquity not know?” This must be read as a question, so that it may convey such a meaning: as if, even if they said that the God of the Jews is not God, will they not know eventually? All of these are profligate, and according to the tongue and every other way they will know, when all one hundred and eighty thousand are taken away by the angel of God. And this Sennacherib himself, fleeing shamefully, will know the One who raises up the trophy; or if he says that not only they, but all other lawless nations who have learned ^C of such great destruction of the Assyrians, will recognize that God is He who destroyed them.

“Those who eat my people as a meal of bread have not called upon the Lord.” This utterance is spoken from the person of God: that those who consume—in the manner of eating bread—and finish off my people by the mouth of the siege of famine and threat have not called upon me, the Lord of all; that is, they have not named Him God. And the people of David who were besieged then might be said to be his own, as descending from his kingdom, so that the speech would be in the person of David, not calling himself the Lord, but God.

“There they feared a fear where there was no fear.” ^D In Jerusalem, then, those around Hezekiah feared with the fear of Sennacherib, where there was no fear—that is, where there was no need to be afraid, as he was unable to prevail because he had God as his opponent; for this he made clear by saying in what follows:

“For God is in the generation of the righteous.” By righteous, He means the pious, and such were those around Hezekiah, shepherding the subjects in a manner pleasing to God. And He has said “generation” because all the Israelites are from one root. Or again, those around Sennacherib feared there with a fear of God, fear of whom was not among them; upon trial, for God Himself was among the people of the besieged Jews, fighting on their behalf. Or they feared with the fear of Hezekiah, where there was no fear—rather, he was cowering and expecting together with all those with him to be destroyed on the morrow; for the Assyrians were being slaughtered, they thought they were being destroyed by the king of the Jews; and that God is indeed the God of the Hebrews helping them, from this they learned.

“You have frustrated the counsel of the poor; but the Lord is his hope.” This He says to the Assyrians, that you have held cheap and disregarded the thought which Hezekiah the poor man devised as much as he could in terms of preparation for war. But he took counsel, despairing of all other things, to take refuge in God in sackcloth and ashes. Or, having learned, those of Sennacherib mocked it as useless. You, therefore, He says, have frustrated his counsel, but he has the Lord as his hope, expecting Him alone as his helper.

“Who will give out of Sion the salvation of Israel?” Who of those dwelling in Sion will give the salvation of Israel to those who have been greatly weakened? And who will save them from the hands of Sennacherib? No one of men, if not God in whom they hoped; and this One, for He seemed to dwell in the temple of Sion.

“When the Lord turns back the captivity of His people, Jacob will rejoice and Israel will be glad.” He refers to a captivity that had not yet occurred.

^A but one which they were imagining, fearing the destruction that was, so to speak, at the doors; for they were surrounded and caught as captives, as those being led away from the root of Jacob and Israel. And what he says is this: that when the Lord has set them free, as if they had been taken captive, those who have been liberated will rejoice and be glad. And they will rejoice ^B bodily, and they will be glad soulfully: the former in the abundance of luxury, and the latter in the study of divine words—from which they were simultaneously barred while under siege. But while we performed the interpretation according to Hezekiah and Sennacherib, we must now interpret it according to the times in which the Lord became man. It says that the foolish multitude of the Jews, not understanding the prophecies concerning Christ, said that Christ, who was performing divine miracles among them, was not God. Having first reasoned this to themselves, they openly accused Him of the divine calling. But what follows must be understood according to the higher interpretation. He was not producing goodness in them—that is, in those who did not receive His teaching. “The Lord looked down from heaven,” that is, the Word, having looked down from heaven, descended to earth to men and conversed with them through flesh. To "look down" is to bend from on high to the earth. And what follows—according to the higher interpretation—the phrase “there is not even one,” means "unless there is one." That is, Christ alone is the Worker of good, moving among them. And the phrase, “Will not all who work iniquity know?” must be read as a question here; for they did not wish to acknowledge Him, being envious and wicked like the lawless nations. And the phrase, “Who eat up my people,” must be spoken from the person of Christ to the ungrateful Jews who, with the mouth of the sword and every kind of wickedness, eat up His disciples as if they were bread; they did not call their Lord, that is, the Son of God, God. “There they were in great fear, where there was no fear,” ^C for they were afraid to acknowledge Christ, lest they transgress the Law, decreeing that there is no other God for you; and again, they were terrified then, when there was no fear. For when they had hung Him upon the cross, and thought they had been freed from Him, He being already dead, then they were afraid exceedingly, seeing the earthquake and the signs that occurred at that time. And again, fearing lest His disciples might come at night and steal Him away, and for this reason stationing guards at the tomb, they were afraid there, in fear where there was no fear. For the disciples were not even thinking of this, He having predicted that He would rise of His own authority after the third day.

And the phrase, “The Lord is in the generation of the righteous,” stands for the congregation of the believers from the nations, who after their acknowledgement walked in the straight and royal path; for since the Jews did not receive Him, He transferred the calling to the nations. And by “You have put to shame the counsel of the poor,” we must understand that it was said to the Jews regarding the people from the nations, who were formerly poor, having been transferred from the essence of the knowledge of God, from which they had fallen into idolatry. ^D For the Jews treated with contempt the counsel of this people, and mocked it as a vain counsel. Now, the counsel of this man was to receive faith in Christ. And the phrase, “Who will give the salvation of Israel from Sion?” stands for: "Who, having ascended the mountain called Sion that surrounds Jerusalem, will read the salvation to the people?" That is, the laws. For it was the custom to do this on appointed days. He says this prophesying that when Jerusalem was besieged by the Romans, and the Gospel had reached the ends of the earth, this would no longer happen; but upon the Lord's turning back the captivity of His people—for "I will give you," He says, "the nations as your inheritance," which the devil had taken captive with the spear of delusion. And the phrase, “Jacob will rejoice and Israel will be glad,” means those from the root of Jacob and Israel who became prophets; these were the ones who proclaimed this in advance. And they will rejoice and be glad, those who have grasped the fulfillments of their prophecies; or, Jacob and Israel are those who believe, as having been substituted for the Jews, whose forefather was Jacob. And to “turn back” means to return to those things from which one fell.

PSALM XIV

“To the end, a Psalm of David.” This one is inscribed “to the end” in another way, because it depicts what sort of person one must be to be perfect in virtue.

“Lord, who shall dwell in Your tabernacle, or who shall rest upon Your holy mountain?” The Jew, hearing of the tabernacles of God and a holy mountain, immediately thinks of the temple in Jerusalem and the neighboring Mount Sion. But let it be known that not yet had the temple been built, nor had Mount Sion been hallowed, for all these things happened after David. Therefore, one must read the statements; for David shapes the discourse into a question, inquiring, “Who is he who will do such and such?”

“Lord, who shall dwell in Your tabernacle?” A sojourn is indeed a temporary stay in a strange house; and the tabernacle of the soul is the body in which it is housed. He asks to learn who is the perfect soul, which will consider life in the body a temporary sojourn, and will use the body as something foreign. Caring little for it, he added the pronoun “Your” to the tabernacle, showing that it is the work of God and the Word, and was built for the soul by Him, or that He Himself also dwells in it. “In Your holy mountain.” A rest is a firm cessation from travel; and a holy mountain is the super-celestial place, raised above the humble and worldly things. For the Apostle says, “You have come to Mount Sion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem.” And who, he says, having run well from the present life, which is a stadium, will rest in the eternal heavenly tabernacles?

“Walking blameless and working righteousness.” This is the response to the question, as to who it is that shall sojourn and rest: he who possesses the things that are to be mentioned—and he delineates the discourse.

the virtuous man, he says, "who walks blameless and works righteousness," and is to be considered blameless who is perfected in contemplation; for through this the mind journeys toward heaven. But the righteous man is he who is perfected in action; for action is the labor of practice. He used the present tense for both, because it is not fitting that one who is in such a state should ever cease. Since the practical life is manifold, he encompassed all of it under the name of general righteousness; for righteousness alone supports all the virtues; for righteousness is the proper operation of each thing. Having set forth righteousness in general, he then proceeds to discuss it in particular.

"Speaking truth in his heart." — ^A Truthful in doctrine and one who is instructed.

"Who has not dealt deceitfully with his tongue." — ^B There is added: speaking true and guileless things; that is to say, both thinking the truth within himself and speaking it to others; by means of the heart he manifested the internal word, and by means of the tongue, the external.

"And has not done evil to his neighbor." — We are neighbors to one another either by the unity of the faith, or by the relation of the speaker. By evil he means injury. Consistently, he first mentioned the heart, then the tongue, then the deed; for a person conceives, then speaks, then acts.

"And has not taken up reproach against those closest to him." — Closest and neighbor are the same; and he who has not taken up reproach, as a weapon against those closest to him; that is, he has not reproached them for having stumbled or been tempted, or for being otherwise unfortunate; for reproach has the nature of a lampoon, while correction is for the amendment of faults; wherefore we accept correction as something good, but we never accept reproach, as it is the most contrary thing possible.

"The evildoer is despised before him; but he glorifies those who fear the Lord." — For distributing to each according to their worth, he considers the wicked worthy of nothing, despising him; even if he boasts in wealth, or in lineage, or in any other most brilliant splendor; but he glorifies those who fear God, even if they are found in contrary misfortunes; for all they who fear the Lord are blessed.

"He who swears to his neighbor and does not set aside [the oath]." — The ancients took swearing to mean confirming; for oaths are nothing else than the confirmation of a word, taking God as witness, where even in the old law a true oath made before God was permitted, so that those swearing by idols might not be led astray. But the law of the Gospel, legislating more perfect things for the more perfect, cut off swearing entirely. There are some sayings that have the form of oaths but are not oaths, but a soothing address to the listeners; "By the health of Pharaoh," he says; and the Apostle to the Corinthians, "By your boasting." And the inspired Paul left behind a type of oath for Christians, saying, "God is my witness, whom I serve." And again: "I call God as witness," and such like.

"His silver he has not given upon usury." — To the ancients, usury was very shameful, and disgraceful, and detestable; for the merciful man, when lending, considers it desirable only to receive back what he gave. But it might be understood even thus, that he did not lower the word concerning piety, which is silver refined and tested in the earth, for the sake of obtaining some bodily good, but taught it to all freely and without guile.

"And has not taken gifts against the innocent." — For the sake of the innocent, so as to harm those who are guiltless.

"He who does these things will not be shaken forever." — Having depicted the one who is perfect in virtue, he attached a fitting conclusion to the word; for he who does these things, that is, the aforementioned, being perfect, will not be moved from his foundation in God. And "forever" is instead of "for all time," or even "for the present life." And if for the present, much more for the future.

PSALM XV

"A Stela-inscription for David." — Stela-inscriptions, and images, and statues are assigned to those who have excelled, for an indelible memory, proclaiming their noble deeds; wherefore this present psalm was dedicated instead to Christ the victor, who with the life-giving spear brought down death and the devil who holds the power of death; for since he remained sinless—that is, he did not reproach them—neither did his soul remain in Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption, rising on the third day; concerning which also Peter the Apostle discoursed in the book of Acts, applying ^C the present psalm to Christ; therefore, on account of his own accomplishments, the Savior set up the stela for himself through the tongue of David, the all-holy Spirit having inspired and moved the prophet. And he records the kind of victory, and whatever happened to him before the end.

"Protect me, O Lord, for I have hoped in thee." — The words of the psalm are human-like; for he fought against the enemy not as God, but as man, at once teaching that he is invincible to those who are watchful, and at the same time leaving us an exact archetype for imitation through the manners by which he overcame him. Therefore, he approaches as man toward God; for even in the Gospels he prayed in various ways to be kept from every visible and invisible plot, saying, "Do thou protect me, for I have hoped in thee alone," having trusted in none of the others; for I know that thou savest those who hope in thee.

"I said to the Lord, Thou art my Lord." — I said to the Father, to the Lord of all, that Thou art my Lord, as a man and not as God, and because of this, protect me; for as man he stood in need of the protection from God; for I have submitted, he says, to the Lord, and I have entreated him.

"For Thou hast no need of my good things." — I said furthermore that of my gifts which are for sacrifice...

I have no need so that I might offer them, and thus be helped from without; for although God accepts what is piously offered, it is not as though he were in need of them, but so that he might judge them a proof of gratitude and make them a pretext for the return of many greater things. ^A "The Lord has done wondrous things for his saints who are in the land." — I am of good hope, he says, knowing that the Lord has done wondrous and paradoxical things for his saints who are in the land. And "saint" is he who loves God sincerely and trusts in him; such was he who was saying these things. These he speaks of might be all those who, before the coming of Christ, were well-pleasing to God. And you might say "land" is this earth, for the earth is the Lord's, or the Jerusalem above, in which they lived while being below, and in which they live even after having died; or you must understand by "saints" the apostles and those who believed from among them, having been rescued from manifold dangers and deaths; and by "land" the Church in which they move. Then he sets forth the cause for which he does wondrous things for them: "All his will is in them." — ^B For where the will of God comes to be, there God is also entirely, guarding and directing them. "Their infirmities were multiplied; after these they made haste." — By "infirmities" he means their toils and their afflictions; but the Lord delivers them. Or also in another way: their sins were multiplied before those who believed in Christ; for when the soul is infirm, sin comes to be; then, the Gospel having been preached, they made haste to piety; and the things which follow are not stated as by a man, but as by God. "I will not gather their gatherings from blood." — This is concerning the Jews who slew him, whose multitudes [the speaker] declines to gather from slaughter, for the things stated will be corrupted. "Nor will I remember their names with my lips." — For that people was named the people of God, and peculiar, and a vine, and a portion and inheritance and a measuring-line, and such like. He says, therefore, that he will no longer call them Jews by the names by which they were called before, but blameless children, or a crooked generation, and offspring of vipers, and an evil seed, and if there be anything of such a sort; or we may understand both of the sayings concerning those from the Gentiles: that I will not claim their churches from blood-sacrifices, but from sincere faith and the sacrifice in the Spirit; nor will I remember the names by which I called them of old through the prophets; ^C but instead of enemies I shall call them friends, and instead of faithless, faithful, and whatever follows from these. The "lips of God" might be understood as his words, for these too are instruments of words; and otherwise, the Savior later, as man, named both the Jews and those from the Gentiles by names contrary to their former ones, as has been shown. "The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and of my cup." — Not against the will of the Father, he says, did I become man; for he himself is also, by his good pleasure, a partaker of the people who have believed from the Gentiles; for this he calls an inheritance, as was said before in the second Psalm. ^D And furthermore [he speaks] of his death — for in some places of Scripture death is interpreted as a cup; for even in the Gospels he says: "The cup that I drink, you cannot drink," and again: "My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me." For he took pleasure also in the calling of the nations and in the death of the Son. Or you may understand "portion" as wealth, in this way: God is the wealth of my inheritance from the Gentiles; and furthermore, also the wealth and head of my teaching; for everywhere the Gospel discourses about the Savior. But wealth is the portion: as "My portion is the land of the living." For even in the case of children dividing the father's substance, the portion is wealth for each, so that it happens that the same thing is called both a portion and wealth and an inheritance; the one, as being divided, the other, again, as being derived from a father. And the "cup" is his teaching, because this too is wine on account of its cheering effect, and Christ is the vine. "You are the one who restores my inheritance to me." — For the nations, being neighbors to the Son and God, rose up into idolatry; then they were restored to him again through faith; and he attributes the grace to the Father, as the cause; and this saying is still an interpretation of the one before it; for because of this, he says, you are a partaker of my inheritance and of my cup, because you have restored this to me. And he placed the inheritance before the cup, because this became the cause of his death; for on its account he died. One must also state a polished sentiment concerning the matters at hand: that having lured the man fashioned according to the image of God — who for this reason was his own inheritance — the enemy, having acted as a tyrant, dragged him away and appropriated one who was not his own. But the Heir sent letters to him through the prophets, demanding back the inheritance that had been taken away. And as he clung to it all the more, the Heir himself, having taken the Father's covenants, goes down to the plunderer, and the Father becomes a judge between them, and having condemned the violent one, restores the inheritance to the Son, for the sake of which the Son called him a partaker of the achievement. "Measuring-lines have fallen to me in my fairest ones." — Those who distribute land, measuring it with lines, bound it; he wishes, therefore, to say that since my inheritance was restored to me, this fell to me, if many lines were cast for me; from thence so much was measured and bounded, and it became known; for through the enigmas he hinted at both the multitude of those believing and their being made known; for there are two works of the measuring-line, as we said. And by "fairest ones" he calls his inheritance; and he presented this through what follows. "For even my inheritance is most fair to me." — Above he said "fairest" in the plural on account of the believers individually; below, however, in the singular "most fair" on account of the one gathering and orthodoxy of those who are individually [believers].

"Nor will you give your Holy One to see corruption." ^A This refers to the Lord's body: you will not allow me, who am devoted to you through the acquisition of virtues, to suffer corruption in the body, but as one who is sinless you will preserve it undissolved in its own parts, so that the soul, having been settled into it with complete adequacy, may rise the sooner. Corruption, then, in the case of those who have died, is the separation of the soul from the body; but decomposition is the dissolution of the body's parts and members into dust.

"You have made known to me the paths of life." You have taught me the virtues; they lead to the immortal life; or you have revealed to me the modes of my resurrection, concerning which he often spoke to his disciples; or you have taught me the paths of resurrection and restoration to life, which I myself, having walked them, will cut out for the disciples.

"And further, even until night my reins have instructed me." By "reins," one must understand the desiring part of the soul; for this is situated around the reins, as we have said in the previous explanations; and by "night," the Lord's death. For until death, he says, my desire instructed and regulated me, not setting its heart on any of the earthly things, but longing only for the divine; or by "night," one must understand the hidden mysteries, that it might be of such a kind that my desire instructed me even in the things unknown to other men.

"I foresaw the Lord always before me." Before everyone else I saw God before me, and he appeared before the eyes of my soul at all times.

"For he is at my right hand, that I may not be shaken." I saw him before me, because he is in my right actions, resting in them; for God draws near through virtue to those who draw near; and he is at my right hand so that, being helped by him, I might not be moved from the straight path to the contrary one; for the Lord guards those who love him.

"Therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue exulted." For my heart having been filled with gladness as having received the inheritance and having conquered the enemy, and having such an ally, my tongue also enjoyed the great joy, as if singing a song of victory and narrating the mighty acts of God.

^D "And moreover my flesh shall dwell in hope, for you will not abandon my soul to Hades." This refers to the burial of the Lord's body; for it will dwell in the tomb in hope of a speedy resurrection; for, knowing this, he had said it to his disciples many times. He sets [it] into Hades, and the cause of the hope; for you will not abandon my soul to Hades, where the souls of the deceased are held; for Hades is a place under the earth allotted to the souls of men who are dying; where then is the chatterer Apollinarius, who dogmatizes that the flesh which was taken up was soulless and mindless, like a fool?

"Nor will you give your Holy One to see corruption." ^A (See above in the text).

"You will fill me with gladness with your countenance." The countenance of the Father is the Son; "for he who has seen me," he says, "has seen my Father," since he is also called his character and image; make me glad, therefore, he says, upon my having been taken up to God after the resurrection; for before this he was both grieving and weeping, out of the law of nature; or "with your countenance" instead of "with you," paraphrastically; for the one was united to the Son, and the Son to the Father. And they had a common gladness over the salvation of men, which the saving death brought about.

"Pleasantness is at your right hand forever." The right hand of the Father is the Son; just as also the arm and power ^C is he who raised those who had fallen and recovered his own inheritance.

PSALM XVI

"A prayer of David." Being pursued by Saul and conspired against in various ways, he wrote this psalm, calling upon God for help.

"Listen, Lord, to my righteousness." To the disposition regarding justice, which through deeds, as through a tongue, cries out; for although able to war in various ways against my most hostile [enemy] Saul, I spared him, as having reigned by God, and I did not even dare to insult him with a word; for he is the head over all the people. But it is just to spare him in all respects for these reasons; or he calls his justification "righteousness" here, by which he is justified; which he also sets forth as he proceeds, so that we, understanding it thus, the Prophet may not display [himself as] boasting, but [may show him] begging reasonably.

"Attend to my supplication." Here one must take the form of the "supplication" as a plea; for it is pitiful, as being full of gloom and contrition and humility, and able to inspire respect by its appearance alone.

"Give ear to my prayer not in deceitful lips." This must be read as a hyperbaton, so that [it is]: "in which is the prayer not made in deceitful lips, or offered"; for my lips are pure of deceit and falsehood, and I am not conscious of ever having spoken deceitfully to Saul.

^A Yet, having confessed my love for Him, I maintain a pure confession, even if he himself violates the covenants made toward me. He puts forward the Trinity for his support: his justice, the form of the petition, and the prayer from lips not deceitful, that he might even more stir Him to defense.

"Let my judgment come forth from Thy presence." ^B You shall judge for us, who know our affairs with precision and are the only unwavering Judge; for God is a just judge and is powerful to bring His own decision to completion. "From Thy presence," instead of "from You," is used circumlocutorily, or "before You." And "my judgment," that is, the decision concerning me; for I consider it unjust to judge for myself and to punish the one who is brought to destroy me.

"Let my eyes behold equity." Let them see the votes cast upon us.

"Thou hast tried my heart, Thou hast visited me by night." Not only did I refrain from unjust action, but also from evil thought; for You have searched, O Knower of hearts, and did not find any meditation against Saul in my heart; and You saw it not only in prosperity standing upright, but also in the night of tribulations and of those things which darken the mind and prepare one to be led astray from what is straight. For to speak according to Job, in Thy light I walked through darkness, because Thy law was a lamp for my feet and a light for my paths; or he says "night," during which, having Saul in the cave under my hand, I did not kill him.

"Thou hast tried me, and unrighteousness was not found in me." You have tried me with the fire of tribulations, as craftsmen do with gold in the fire, so that they might know if it is pure; and when I was melted and tested by these things, the unrighteousness of Saul was not found in me, nor did I, becoming faint-hearted under necessity, plan anything evil.

"That my mouth may not speak the works of men." The present statement is not inconsistent, as some have thought; but it seems to be the cause of the trial by fire; for because of this, he says, You allowed me to be tried by tribulations, so that I might not only rise superior to them and accuse those around Saul, triumphing over those who do unjust things, or perhaps so that, quickly turning to You—for in tribulation we were mindful of You—I might speak rather of Your works, how You order all things for the common benefit.

"Because of the words of Your lips I have kept hard ways." He calls the commandments of the law given through Moses the words of God's lips. And "God's lips" is used catachrestically, as though they were instructed by God. Because of these, therefore, he says, I have kept, that is, I have walked, in the hard ways of the virtues; for these are rough and arduous, deprived of every bodily pleasure; but to keep them in this way in the usage of Scripture is for the most part said to mean the working, as, "I have kept Your commandments," that is, I fulfilled them. ^C

^D "Establish my footsteps in Your paths, that my feet may not be moved." Above, he named the movements of the mind "footsteps," but below, those of the body; for instance, make my thoughts perfect and straight in Your ordinances, which lead to You those who travel through them; for when these are perfected, not even the actions through the body would fall. Or "establish my footsteps," that is, every act of mine in traveling Your paths, which You have laid out through the commandments for those who hasten to come to You; so that they may not be moved from what is fitting, not being established by You; for You are the One who teaches man knowledge.

"I cried out that You have heard me, O God." I do not make the supplication in vain; because again, since I have supplicated, You have heard.

"Incline Your ear, O Lord." And yet, the ear in us is not inclined, but because of the head being bowed toward the one speaking, this seems to be inclined. It has been said beforehand that He characterizes divine qualities more condescendingly because of the weakness of those listening; for those who wish to hear someone more accurately, when he is speaking faintly out of weakness, incline the ear to him by means of the head. Incline, as the High One toward the lowly, as a physician toward the one who is sick. If the sight of God is simply knowledge of things, the ear is the more subtle; for things seen are more dense than things heard, because of the matter. Above and below, "hear me" and "attend" and "give ear" and suchlike are used for the expression of the soul's disposition toward the petition.

"Show Your mercies, You who save those who hope in You." Perform things worthy of a miracle. He calls the support "mercies"; for those who saw him shielded marvelled at him, as one coming quickly and omnipotently, and as not only taking hold of the righteous, but of sinners as well.

"Keep me from those who rise up against Your right hand, O Lord, as the apple of the eye." Keep me, O Lord, from the plotting of those around Saul who resisted Your ordination; for because of this hand, he manifested [the choice]; for You did not ordain me king through the prophet who anointed me. But these are zealous to kill, not accepting [this].

"Concerning the apple of the eye." Truly wonderful is the guardianship around the apple of the eye. For tunic upon tunic and various coverings wall it in, and some are thin and transparent, so that they may not irritate it, being moist and soft; but from without is the thick [layer] of the eyelids, divided into two semicircles, so that it may ward off dust and injury from the air and winged insects. And this is fortified so that it may cover the sweat flowing down from nearby; for it is acrid and annoying; above this, a gorge of the eyebrow is fashioned just like some solid roof. And this, too, is thickened with hairs so that the sweat carried from above might not [fall] onto the...

^A pupil, but, being deflected thence, be diverted to the temples.

«In the shelter of your wings you will cover me from the face of the ungodly who have afflicted me.» ^B Finding another image of protection, he desires to be looked upon after the manner of a fledgling, calling wings the cohesive and guarding and warming powers of the Almighty’s providence, by transferring this from birds that cover chicks with their own wings. Let us then understand "you will cover" instead of "you will protect by prayer," for such a form is frequent in Scripture; or perhaps he prophesies the help which comes from God. By "face of the ungodly" he means the ungodly themselves. But he has now used the term "ungodly" catachrestically to refer to those around Saul, as people who were living in the manner of the ungodly in lawless acts and thirsting to destroy the innocent, and as not revering the divine appointment shown for him. They have ^C afflicted him in his flight, [and] he is enduring every sort of suffering.

«My enemies have surrounded my soul.» He revealed himself by means of his soul, as [speaking] of the whole from a part. "Surrounded" is used instead of "they encircled," besieging [me] from every side.

«They have closed their fat.» By "fat" he signifies the heart and the affections, for therein is much richness. He says that they have shut up against me the mercy from their hearts and affections, from which this [mercy] proceeds. Others say "fat" means their dignity and prosperity, interpreting that they have closed it up and held it as if it were no longer [to be shared] with others, but rather [to be] entirely with them.

«Their mouth has spoken pride.» They were boasting, truly, that they would soon seize him as one easy to hunt, having help from nowhere.

«Casting me out, now they have surrounded me.» Having cast me out of all that is mine, they were not satisfied; but now they have surrounded me, hastening to put me to death.

«They set their eyes to bend down to the earth.» ^D They set [things] and intended to bend their eyes away from You, Who dwellest in the heavens, and from Your commandments which urge not to wrong the innocent, to the earth, that is, to earthly desires, which are foolishly [trying] to satisfy everything according to pleasure; or [else] they fixed their eyes looking to bend [me] and cast me down to the ground, to be slaughtered by them.

«They caught at me like a lion ready for prey, and like a young lion dwelling in hidden places.» Insofar as [it depends] on their own hopes, they caught at me, that is, having laid an ambush, they lifted [me] from the earth [intending] to carry [me] off unseized. Some have returned this distinction between the prey of the lion and the young lion: that the former, trusting in strength, is manifest in hunting, but the young lion, not yet daring to snatch openly, sits hidden. Of his enemies, then, some were daring to snatch openly, and others secretly, not having trusted in themselves. But nothing prevents both signifying the same thing; for it is customary often in variations of words, in order that having increased the pathos, he might draw attention to pity.

«Rise up, O Lord.» Appearing to sleep by reason of longsuffering, be stirred up to defense.

«Anticipate them.» Before they bring to completion the things they have devised, forestall them.

«And trip them up.» Hinder [them] in the course they have taken against me. This is by transfer from those who are accustomed to interrupt the course of certain runners; those [others] place their legs before the feet of the runners in passing, and thus easily cast them down.

«Deliver my soul from the ungodly by your sword, from the enemies of your hand.» By your sword deliver my soul from the ungodly Saul and from his subjects who are acting as enemies to the hand of your ordination, that is, me, or from those who are fighting against your hand—that is, [my persecutors] periphrastically. For if they fight against me, and I am yours, then those who fight against me are fighting against your own [servant]. We have already spoken of why he calls him "ungodly." Let the phrases be read quite absolutely by themselves. And it is also consistent to join "deliver my soul" to what was said above: "for my enemies," he said, "have surrounded my soul." But some are perplexed as to how he who spared Saul in the cave now prays that he be [dealt with] by the sword of God. And let us say that he himself could not bear to become the king's slayer, just as we explained in the preface to the psalm; but he entreated God for justice, being afflicted in every hardship. For just as the first was unjust, so the second is just; or perhaps he says "by the sword," not [in the sense of] destroying, but only frightening the enemies. It is spoken in a human way, for he who wishes to rescue one who is held by enemies, having drawn a sword, rushes against them; and that he does not wish those around Saul to be destroyed, but only [to have them] fail in their affairs, the following [verse] shows.

«O Lord, separate them from the few, from the earth in their life.» While they are yet alive, separate them from the good men, and let them not be counted among them; or as he says elsewhere, "let them not be written with the righteous," for having been separated, they will someday be required to pay the proper penalty. "Few," the Scripture calls the righteous; for if the evil are always more and the worse prevails, yet he says: "the saved are few, and few are chosen." But having said "few," he added "from the earth."

«And your hidden things their belly has been filled with.» Some have said "hidden things" [refers to] gold and silver which, for those who speak of it, is dug up from being hidden in the earth [as] substances being mined. With these, then, their belly has been filled—that is, the things which are gathered as if by a reckoning of bellies, or [it means] their bowels [being filled with] all that they might receive. Others say [it refers to] the punishments stored up by God; since also Moses in Deuteronomy, concerning various punishments, going through [it] from the person of God, [says]: "Behold, are not these gathered with me and sealed in my treasuries?"

^A

He prophesies, therefore, by saying that "their belly shall be filled" with hidden punishments—that is, they themselves; for he puts the whole for the part, as he fittingly placed "the belly" for the filling; but he used terms of the future as though they were present.

"They have been filled with sons"—The Hebrews held the unclean to be such because they did not ruminate with their lips, and because they loved the mire; for this reason, he here hints at the unclean; for he says, "They have been filled with uncleanness," consuming their wealth for the sake of hedonism. But the more accurate of the interpreters say "sons" for "children," so that it might be such: that just as they were filled with money, so also were they filled with children, having become parents of many; or, according to the double interpretation, they were filled either with possessions or with punishments—the preposition "with" being elided with "sons"; for not only they themselves, but also their children flourished or were punished. ^B

"And they have left the rest to their infants"—Extending even unto the grandsons of their sons; for by "infants," he means those of their sons—that is, the wealth or the punishment extended to the whole generation. And if we understand these things concerning punishment, it is a prophecy regarding the evils that had happened to his enemies; but if concerning prosperity, it is an amplification of the accusation, that having enjoyed so many good things, they possessed them unlawfully, despising the long-suffering of God.

"But I shall appear before thee in righteousness"—For the righteousness, regarding which it was spoken of at the beginning of the psalm, will make me worthy of thy visitation, and I shall appear to thee after the time of the final judgment.

"I shall be filled when thy glory appears to me"—And having seen thy glory at that time, I shall be filled with the desire, which is to appear before me and to see thy glory. For sinners shall not see the face of God; and the Lord also says in the Gospels, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled" with the eternal good things they desire. This present psalm also suits every virtuous person who is plotted against, who will not seek to devise snares, and who will not reckon his enemy—whether sensible or perhaps intelligible—with the enemy Saul. And he who will understand the words of the lips of God to be the evangelical commands, and will understand the demons, who act as adversaries and as apostates, to be those who oppose the right hand of God, and also [will understand] the same to be the impious and the enemies who cast him out from the shelter of God or from Paradise, he will hereafter apprehend the following things well. For it will follow that the demons shall be dispersed and separated from the good men, so that these good men may live; for after death they do not fear; and they will adapt the things concerning wealth and punishment and the rest to the world-rulers, of whom he will also understand their disciples and the ministers of the wicked as being their sons and grandsons; for the father of such is the devil. ^C

PSALM XVII

^D"To the end, to the servant of the Lord, to David. He spoke to the Lord the words of this song, in the day the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul."

"To the end" is inscribed either because it contains prophecies [crying out] to the end—for he discusses in part concerning Christ and the calling of the nations—or because upon the completion of his enemies' destruction, he dedicated this hymn to God as an act of thanksgiving for every benefit he enjoyed; or because at the end of his own life he composed this present psalm, "to the servant of the Lord, David," and not to the king or the prophet; because these things are indeed by the gift of God; but he becomes "the servant of the Lord," either through gratitude, as a faithful slave, or also through being benefited, as a beloved child; and he was this through both—both and both; he was allotted the meanings of the servant, having been named both slave and child of God; and it brought him even greater glory, acquired through toil. Those things which he spoke to the Lord, the "of" being omitted—these are he, namely, he spoke the words of this song. He inscribed "of a song" and not "of a psalm," because he sang this song not through musical instruments, but from his lip alone already having aged, as it is written in the book of Kings; we, while using them indiscriminately, call it a psalm and a song. "In the day he delivered him from the hand of all his enemies," that is, on the day when he was judged to be liberated from all the enemies up to that time, foreign and of the same race; and having separated Saul from the other enemies, he has set him [lastly] and separately: either as having become his greatest enemy, or sparing [him] from being numbered with the other enemies, because he had once been his king and benefactor and father-in-law.

"I shall love thee, O Lord, my strength"—Again, he says, having obtained great good things from thee, and not being able to recompense; for what shall I render to the Lord for all [those things] which he has repaid me? I am able to do only this, and I shall do it: for I shall love thee, not as before when I did not love, but as if I will do this even more; for this is also the first of the commandments: "For you shall love," he says, "the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your strength." He called God "strength," as having strengthened his own weakness against such and so many enemies.

"The Lord is my foundation and my refuge and my deliverer"—"Foundation," as having established and made him unshakable against the onsets of the temptations of each time; "refuge," as receiving him when he flees within his own shelter, and keeping him safe with the wall of divine help; "deliverer," as rescuing him from those who are hoped to besiege and take him captive.

"My God is my helper, and I will hope in him"—My God is my only helper always; wherefore I will also hope in him alone, not being faint-hearted regarding what occurs, nor despairing of salvation.

"My defender and the horn of my salvation"

^A the soul, while he who catches it takes hold of it. Or, "the pangs of Hades" are the torments leading to Hades or the ministers of Hades.

"The snares of death forestalled me." ^B By "snares," he means those who work death, for what traps are to hunters, these ambushes are to enemies.

"And in my affliction I called upon the Lord, and cried unto my God." "I lifted up my voice," still being constrained.

"He heard my voice from his holy temple." By "holy temple" one should understand heaven, as we have said before, or the tabernacle of testimony; for the great temple in Jerusalem was built later by Solomon. He heard, not in a sensory manner, but in a way befitting God; for being unable to know and express the cohesive powers of the universe, we divide these into the images of the senses, through which we perceive existing things.

"And my cry before him." "My cry is before him," for he alone cries out to him in necessities.

"It shall enter into his ears." And in time he shall hear me. We also use these steps, giving thanks while simultaneously recounting the attacks of the demons.

"And the earth was shaken and trembled." ^C Henceforth he prophesies concerning Christ, speaking of things about to happen as if they had already occurred; for this is a characteristic of prophecy, as indeed nothing of the sort is recorded as having happened to David. Instead of "And the earth was shaken and trembled," Aquila said, "It was moved and rocked." By "earth" here, one should understand the men from the earth, or those administering the earth; for, hearing of Christ, both the Hebrews and the nations were disturbed by the report about him; for "tumult" is a shaking; and they were afraid, seeing the wonders he performed; for "trembling" here means fear, because those who are greatly afraid shiver. And in another way, they were moved, flocking together toward him because of the report, and they were shaken in their own judgments, being troubled.

"And the foundations of the mountains were troubled and shaken, because God was angry with them." By "mountains" you shall understand the demons because of their pride and arrogance, and by "foundations" their deep designs; for seeing the invincible power of God, they were confounded in their thoughts, being perplexed as to who he is and pondering what they shall suffer; their thoughts, therefore, were thus troubled, and they were themselves shaken, having been moved from the power which they had attained. This they suffered because God was angry with them for having tyrannized and enslaved miserable men to such an extent. These words can also be understood concerning those things which happened at the time of the Lord's passion, so that the earth was shaken and the rocks were split, because God was angry with them, clearly the Jews.

"Smoke went up in his anger." For the Creator being angered because of the destruction of his creature ^D

^A a partial time of the one who played the tyrant preceded the retribution; for he withdrew those who believed from that one's harm, and drove away evil spirits from those demonized. This was a prelude to the trivial retribution, since smoke is also a prelude to fire; for the driven-out demons were crying out: "What have we to do with you, Son of God? Have you come to torment us before the time?"

"And fire from his presence will be kindled." If smoke preceded, fire will also follow, which is the perfect retribution and total neutralization of the devil. "From his presence," that is, before him; for they say, "Fire will go before him and will set his enemies ablaze all around." It will be kindled instead of "will be ignited."

"Coals were ignited from him." Since God is the fire consuming wickedness, the disciples of such an operation likewise changed their power, and from this fire they themselves were ignited as coals, burning up the power of the enemy with the fire of their own faith: "For behold," he says, "I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy."

"And he bowed the heavens and came down." Wishing to manifest the hidden mystery of the divine incarnation, the prophet said that he bowed the heavens even to [the earth] and came down silently; for, unperceived by all the powers, he dwelt in the virginal womb. He has therefore depicted the matter corporeally in the word; and it is clear from what follows; for he says:

"And darkness under his feet." Darkness is ignorance, and feet are his journey; for the way of his becoming human is hidden and its manner incomprehensible. Or otherwise, just as earthly people, or those who inhabit the earth, are often called earth, so too are those who inhabit heaven, whom he bowed [the heavens] down to earth as he descended. For it is written in the Gospels that angels were ministering to him; but you must not conceive of the descent of God corporeally, for he is boundless and filling all things, but it is above any comprehension and ineffable.

"And he mounted upon Cherubim, and flew upon the wings of the winds." These are a prophecy concerning the ascension of Christ. That the Cherubim received the Jesus of that time, Ezekiel, having seen this with prophetic eyes, teaches, saying: "And the Cherubim lifted up their wings, and the wheels alongside them, and the glory of the God of Israel was upon them above, and the glory of the Lord went up from the midst of the city." For he is incontestably saying these things regarding the Savior's ascension; since also Paul called him the radiance of [his] glory. And he flew upon the wings of the Cherubim; which he called winds because of the swiftness of the movement. And in truth he was riding upon the Cherubim, who were drawing near to the divinity, but to the apostles it ^B seemed that they were rising up on the wings of the winds, that is, on the winds; for he brought in the winds as winged because of their swift movement in the air; for things that pass through are winged, since even a cloud is borne by the wind.

"And he set darkness his hiding place." By darkness we must understand that he is no longer seen; therefore, the invisibility hid him; for he set this as a hiding place around himself; for he was taken up and hidden from their eyes. Or by darkness we must understand the flesh, the divinity being hidden in it, which he set as darkness—that is, incomprehensibility, hiding him according to his divinity; for those who attempt to gaze fixedly into the depth of his knowledge are darkened.

"Round about him is his tabernacle." For, he says, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will build it up." And "round about him," because [he was] living in it, not ^C circumscribed by it, but having indwelt ineffably as omnipotent. He said this, showing that he was taken up with the flesh and did not lay it aside, as some later raved. He calls the inaccessible radiance his "tabernacle"; for he is also proclaimed as dwelling in light inaccessible, which surrounds the divinity, which will hide it, but will turn away the eyes of those wishing to behold it.

"Dark water in the clouds of the air." By water here he means the message concerning Christ, and by clouds the prophecies, and by air the prophets, and he gives such an understanding: the proclamation concerning Christ in the prophecies of the prophets is still dark and difficult to discern before the end. And water, as refreshing those who are fainting, while holding that which is signified; but "air" because of the purity and subtlety of the mind. That Scripture often calls the prophets "clouds," Isaiah demonstrates; for having called the house of Israel a vineyard, he introduced clouds commanded no longer to rain upon it, which is prophets no longer foretelling.

"From the radiance before him the clouds passed away." From the brightness of his appearance that shines not only upon those near but also upon those afar, the dark prophecies were dissolved, and their obscurity being scattered, that which was hidden appeared; for the sun having risen, the gloom of the clouds is dissolved, and the part hidden by them is seen. Or we must understand by clouds here the cloud of the dark law. For Christ having shone, the veil of his riddles was dissolved, and these appeared, typifying and foreshadowing Christ. But in these explanations, [take] "before him" from "the radiance before him," that is, of himself or of his appearance, but in another way, having distinguished "from the radiance" and punctuated [it], you will attribute the rest to what follows, and you will give such an understanding: that Christ having shone forth according to his life in the flesh, before him and in his stead the apostles, distilling the word of the proclamation, passed through the inhabited world, the furrows of souls.

^A “Hail and coals of fire.” To this let us also adapt the primary meaning; for prophecies are likened to hail because of the hardness of the obscurity, and to fire because of burning up the contradictions of the unbelieving, so that the same thing is understood as cloud and hail and fire because of the reasons given, yet it is no less adjusted to the final interpretation. We shall likewise take for the apostles hail and fire, the one as blinding and destroying the deception, the other as burning up the impiety.

“And the Lord thundered from heaven, and the Highest gave his voice.” The Lord and Highest is God as Master and exalted. He thundered and gave his voice when the Son cried out to the Father: “Father, glorify thy name. For there came, he says, a voice from heaven, And I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.” The crowd that was standing and heard it said that a thunder had occurred. So the “thundered” was said in view of the assumption of those who heard it; but “gave his voice” was in view of the truth; for being a voice of thunder, it seemed to them to be such. But one must not wonder that prophecies do not have a sequence and order; for it is demonstrated here that the prophets did not prophesy what they wanted, but what they were prompted to say by the Spirit.

^C “He sent out arrows and scattered them.” By arrows he means the disciples sent out into all the world; through them Christ scattered the demons, whom he signified by the pronoun; for the Holy Spirit hates them, and just as he hates them, so does he hate the designation of them.

“And he multiplied lightnings and troubled them.” One must think of the same ones as both arrows and lightnings; the former as striking and overturning the deception of those people, the latter as burning up the impiety and its shrines; for being struck by the prayers, the enemies would fall, and not bearing the lightning of the Holy Spirit dwelling in the disciples, they were troubled and reduced to helplessness.

^D “And the foundations of the waters were seen.” The foundations of the waters are, again, the apostles, the first teachers of the faith in Christ. For water is the teaching of the proclamation, and the foundations are the first springs of such, who appeared to all, having been sent out to everyone.

“And the foundations of the inhabited world were discovered.” The same ones are also the foundations of the earth. The inhabited world, in that it was among the first to believe and was placed as a base for the inhabited world, was built up by all of these. They were discovered through the brilliance of the wonders performed in their life; for foundations are hidden in the earth. But those of faith, on the contrary, appeared above all the earth, shining both in deed and in word.

“At thy rebuke, O Lord.” This happened because they were rebuked by thee and feared the demons.

^A “From the inspiration of the spirit of thy wrath.” Wrath is likened to fire, and when it is kindled, a smoky vapor is given off, and it is breathed through the nostrils into the air; for this reason they are called spirits of wrath, and we say that those who are excessively angry breathe rage. For this reason he implied the movement of wrath, having spoken of it in a human sense. To such an extent, he says, wert thou angered, that an inspiration of a spirit of wrath came to be in the air, scattering the enemies.

“He sent from on high and took me.” The prophet speaks here regarding himself, having returned to the sequence of the account. For he said, God sent help and rescued me.

“He took me out of many waters.” Waters in Holy Scripture are sometimes used for purification and refreshment, just as when we understand the teaching as water, but sometimes for drowning and destruction, as in the present case. For such is the nature of waters, on the one hand purifying, and on the other suffocating, and more so when they are many and deep. One must therefore consider “many waters” to be the multitude of troubles or of the enemies. But “he took me” is instead of “he brought me out to himself.” For he who brings anyone to himself draws this person in, taking hold of him.

“He will rescue me from my strong enemies.” One must understand the strong enemies here to be the demons, both visibly and invisibly warring, and by night and by day, and through every sense, and possessing a nature tireless in battles; for they are spirits. He who rescued me from sensible things, God, he himself shall rescue me also from the strong enemies of wickedness and destruction.

“And from those who hate me, for they were strengthened against me.” For the same ones, being man-haters, hate me too, and especially since I am helped by God. For this reason the Lord shall rescue me from them, because they plotted and shielded one another and were strengthened against me, not having armored myself with the weapons of virtue, as was fitting, but having become rather soft; or because they have a bodiless nature, but I a material one, and I do not see those who wound.

“They prevented me in the day of my affliction.” To “prevent” does not always mean to anticipate, but there are times when it also means simply to arrive and to attack, just as now; for my enemies, he says, whether visible or invisible, attacked me in the time of my affliction, that is, of the weakness of my defensive preparations, whether visible or invisible; for seeing me weak, they attacked me all the more.

“And the Lord became my support.” If I were about to fall he held me up, he became a support to my weakness, instead of a staff leaning against me.

“And he brought me out into a large place.” From the narrowness of afflictions into the breadth of gladness or relief; according to that, “In affliction thou didst enlarge me.”

^A “He will deliver me because he delighted in me.” Having deemed me worthy of such care, he will surely deliver me also in the future; for “he delighted in me,” that is, he chose me.

“And the Lord will recompense me according to my righteousness.” For if I have not wronged those who were hostile to me, and have shown myself just toward them, in accordance with this I shall obtain the reward from God, and in return for this he will render to me his own help, as if it were a debt.

“And according to the cleanness of my hands he will recompense me.” The cleanness of the hands is interpretive of righteousness; for I have neither grasped nor overreached, nor plotted against those who plotted against me; but I have my hands clean from every defilement, when compared with theirs, or even with those things which we do through our hands.

“Because I have kept the ways of the Lord and have not acted wickedly against my God.” He sets these down as the causes of the cleanness of the hands; for I was becoming clean, because I kept the ways of the Lord, that is, the commandments of the Lord; and I have not departed from him as a wicked man, nor by keeping these and walking through them, I will necessarily become clean.

^B “Because all his judgments are before me, and his statutes have not departed from me.” One thing is the Law, another the Commandment, another the Testimony, another the Judgment, and another the Statute. The Law is the universal one, comprehensive of the commandments; as in, “The law was given through Moses.” But the commandments are those that are specific; such as, “You shall not kill, you shall not commit adultery,” and all those which are spoken by type. The Testimony is what the lawgiver charges those who hear, with some kind of attestation; as when Moses says to the people, that “If you do such and such things, I call to witness against you this day the heaven and the earth, that you shall perish with a complete destruction.” The Judgments are as many as were written when God was judging, as in the case of the one who blasphemed the terrible name. For Moses indeed referred the judgment to God; but since he ordered that man to be stoned, this judgment and decree became a standard against other blasphemers. The Statutes ^D are such ordinances; such as, “If you acquire a Hebrew slave, he shall serve you for six years,” and so on. For such things are full of righteousness. And their division is of this kind; but often these are called by one another’s names, and more so in the 118th Psalm; but here, by the names of the judgments and the statutes, he has included all the commandments, as if by a part the whole; for, he says, “all his commandments are before me, being read and never set far away.”

“And I shall be blameless with him.” Instead of being through him or being with him.

“And I shall keep myself from my iniquity.” By keeping he now means abstinence, and by iniquity, sin. And the pronoun is added on account of the one who is enclosed by sin. But when he is brought out from these, he enjoys breadth, no longer being narrowed.

“And the Lord will recompense me according to my righteousness and according to the cleanness of my hands before his eyes.” But if I were such, and shall be, I shall certainly obtain the reward, as was said before. And the cleanness of my hands that is before him; for I did not do this for the display of men, but for the pleasing of God.

“With the holy thou wilt be holy, and with a blameless man thou wilt be blameless, and with the elect thou wilt be elect, and with the crooked thou wilt deal perversely.” ^A Holy refers to him who is pious toward God, and blameless to him who is so toward men; elect is he who is perfect toward virtue; crooked is the perverse man. The discourse is therefore didactic, and directed toward the one who happens to be involved, saying that such as is he with whom you dwell, such you yourself shall also be, changing toward his condition. The term “will deal perversely” is instead of saying, “you will be crooked,” or “you will twist the intention.” They also carry these steps back to God, and they give such an understanding: that you will render to each according to his worth, being most righteous, and to the holy you will show yourself holy, to the blameless blameless, to the elect choosing, and to the crooked dealing perversely and tripping him up. And the figure is a noun in place of a participle; ^B “holy” in place of “hallowing.”

“Because you will save a humble people, and will bring down the eyes of the proud.” Those who are humble by virtue; but by the eyes of the proud, the proud themselves, by a part the whole; or also because such men are wont to be characterized by their eyes, raising their eyebrow; for the proud are so called from raising the eyebrow upwards. Therefore, you will cause the eyes of such to look toward the earth by means of affliction, or even a humble people, those from the nations, who are forced by the weight of their sins to look downward, both because of the Law and their ancestors.

“Because you will light my lamp, O Lord my God; you will light my darkness.” The eye of the soul is the mind; and the eye is also a lamp, as one that leads; but its darkness is passion and desire. He says, therefore, that you will enlighten my mind with divine illuminations; and this you will enlighten, and my darkness; for ^C when my mind is enlightened, the other parts of the soul are enlightened. And this is that which was said by the Savior in the Gospels, “If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness?” That is to say, if the mind is darkened, much more are the irrational powers of the soul. It is possible, however, to call the mind both light and darkness; light with respect to the nature of things, but darkness with respect to God, as he is invisible to it; or the lamp is the Mosaic Law, guiding those who read it toward the good; but darkness is the veil of ambiguity lying upon it, the hidden things of which David prophesies that they shall be enlightened and uncovered; it is evident that this happened when God was incarnate; for the lamp is the proclamation.

^A And the Way of the Gospel, having been enlightened and made known to us by the Savior; but darkness is the error of idols and the ignorance of the right faith; or the lamp is the mind, guiding the man, but the body is darkness due to its obstacle and density. Both shall be enlightened: the one by divine illuminations, the other by purification. Some, however, say that the lamp here is understood as Jesus, who is from the seed of David, ^B whom the Word illuminated by being united to Him and granted (Him) to send forth rays everywhere; for He says, “I am the light of the world,” and the darkness is the flesh, which He assumed, enlightened, and deified.

“For by You I shall be rescued from a marauding band.” In You, that is, through You. And a marauding band, that is, temptation brought on by men or demons.

“And with my God I shall leap over a wall.” ^C Being helped by my God, I shall leap over the sins which block the way to Him, over which Satan has power, and by which he hinders the ascent to the heavens. Or, a marauding band is life according to Job, in which are baits of pleasure and snares of death and ambushes, and invisible and visible enemies; and the wall is the body, set in front of the soul and blocking from it the divine rays; or the wall is the aerial demons, hindering souls as they pass by.

“My God, blameless is His way.” ^D This is also a figure of the Old Scripture; for instead of saying that the way of my God is blameless, he said, “My God, blameless is His way.” And the way of God is virtue leading towards Him; it is necessary, therefore, that he who walks through it should also be blameless. Or the discourse is concerning the Savior; for having walked the life, He did not commit sin.

“The oracles of the Lord are refined.” True and pure from all reproach, like melted gold; for elsewhere He has said: “The oracles of the Lord are pure oracles, and silver refined.”

“He is a protector of all those who hope in Him.” For He does not lie when He promises to help.

“For who is God besides the Lord?” The “for” is redundant here, or it means, “Since there is no other God besides the Lord,” that is, the Father.

“Or who is God, except our God?” Here he called the Son God. And by saying “our,” he joined us together with himself, with the faithful, as one who foreknew the completeness of the faith.

“God who clothes me with power.” This is concerning the Holy Spirit. But if one says that the three verses say the same thing in parallel, it is not unreasonable; for He clothes me with power in wars.

“And He made my way blameless.” Through the commandments He ordered my conduct according to life. Or the discourse is also about the Savior in the person of the Church of the faithful. For He made smooth for me the way by His own foolishness and perfected (me) as blameless.

“Equipping my feet like a deer’s.” Preparing, perfecting for the course in time of flight.

“And setting me on high places.” And saving me on the mountains and setting me and ending the course, like deer fleeing and ascending the mountains, and standing and catching breath by the relief from fear; for He also makes me most swift, so that I may flee the demons who seek to catch me, and leads me to the height of virtues.

“Teaching my hands for war.” He himself has also given me the understanding of martial experience, not only against visible enemies, but also against demons; that I may handle well the shield of faith, and well the sword of the Spirit, and to war against them through the practical virtues, which are shown through the hands. And the stretching out of the hands toward God would also be a battle array against enemies.

“And You made my arms like a bronze bow.” The word “as” is missing, so that it may be “as a bronze bow,” that is, strong and not tiring in the releases of arrows.

“And You gave me the protection of salvation.” Not an ineffective assistance, but one that saves.

“And Your right hand took hold of me.” For those who take hold are accustomed to use their right hand; for this is more active and more powerful and more apt than the left. Or one should think of the right hand as the Creator of creation who became man, who took hold of our nature.

“And Your discipline corrected me to the end.” You shall understand discipline as the pedagogical law, by which one was thoroughly perfected for virtue. Or He also calls grace the temptations brought on by the permission of God for the sake of discipline; for You have benefited me from both sides, he says, by taking hold on the one hand, and by allowing me to be tempted on the other.

“And Your discipline itself shall teach me.” And You will also teach and discipline me, as a son. For in affliction, he says, Your discipline is a little (thing) for us; for when we are prospering we grow slothful, but falling into afflictions we are aroused by the circumstance and become more sober-minded.

“You broadened my footsteps under me.” You broadened, having removed the snares and the traps, in the midst of which I was straitened as I passed; and now I walk out of fear, with no one lying in wait.

“And my footsteps did not grow weak.” For formerly, fleeing from the enemies, I was treading the ground superficially, making faint footprints, due to hastening so that these might not be known to those pursuing, lest they follow them; but now walking firmly, fearing no one. And the discourse could also be from the Church, giving thanks that her way is broadened, with many walking it daily; and the marks of the evangelical conduct are not obscured, but grow and shine through the continuity of those living by them.

^A “I will pursue my enemies, and overtake them.” Informed by the preceding wonders, he speaks also concerning those to come, saying: If ever again enemies of mine should arise, I will pursue them also, as they will be unable to stand, and they shall not even escape my hands. “And I will not turn back until they fail.” Having overtaken them, I will not retreat, having set them as those already defeated, but will utterly destroy them all. “I will constrain them, and they shall not be able to stand.” Having said that “I will pursue my enemies,” he tells also the manner; for I will compel them, pressing and squeezing them from all sides; and they shall not be able to stand face-to-face for battle. “They shall fall under my feet.” Also, being overtaken and restrained as in an inescapable situation, they shall fall while begging for mercy. “And Thou hast girded me with strength for battle.” Again, he enumerates the benefits that have occurred. “Thou hast tripped all those who stood against me under me.” Having shackled them, Thou hast seized them. “And Thou hast given me the back of my enemies.” That is to say, turning their backs, which is to say, fleeing; for those fleeing and turning their backs are said to be turning their backs. Or, “turned” is omitted, so that it might be, “having turned in the act of turning”; or “on the back” is omitted, so that it might be, “to strike upon the back them, unguardedly.” “And You have utterly destroyed those who hate me.” Thou hast reaped them completely from the earth. “They cried out, and there was none to save them, to the Lord, and He did not hear them.” Having said they cried out, he added to whom; for indeed, because of their sins they were not heard. “And I will grind them as dust before the face of the wind.” I will make them vanish like dust ground fine before the wind; for the wind, falling directly upon it, clears the dust from the earth as something slight and weightless. “As mud of the streets, I will trample them.” I will trample, that is, I will tread down; for in the marketplaces, mud being trampled becomes smooth. By the following, therefore, he has indicated the preceding. For a street is a broad way, since it is a carriage-road. A “street,” that is, in comparison to a path, which is very narrow. “Rescue me from the contradictions of the people.” May You make me higher than the contradiction of the people subjected to me, who tremble before me as king, and do not dare to contradict my commands. “You shall establish me as the head of the nations.” Not only will You remove all contradiction of the Jews subject to me, but You will also subject the nations to me. And it is more fitting to refer this from this point to Christ, saying to the Father according to the human nature that “You shall establish me as the head of the nations,” according to that which says, “I will give You the nations as Your inheritance.” For since the people who were formerly His own did not receive Him, but rather disobeyed and contradicted, and at the end killed the Master, sentence was passed upon them, while turning death back upon them, ^B and having risen, he thus escaped them, who had sealed the tomb. But He reigned over the nations, having accepted their voluntary submission. “A people whom I did not know have served me.” The people who were from the nations, not knowing me before, as I did not know them; for the Lord knows those who know Him. “At the hearing of the ear, they obeyed me.” At the hearing of the ear, they accepted my Gospel. “Strange children have lied to me.” Let us understand this saying as from the prophet, attacking the Jews as lying concerning their lineage; for they inscribe for themselves as father Abraham and David, while practicing things contrary to these. And while he calls them sons because they are descended from him (Abraham), he calls them strange because of the dissimilarity of their ways. “Strange children grew old, and they limped from their paths.” They were dishonored, they became useless like worn-out vessels through their wickedness. And they “limped,” that is, they deviated from the path defined for them through the commandments; for the gait of a lame man is distorted because of the perversion regarding coordination. “The Lord lives.” Concerning the resurrection, David proclaims this beforehand to those who think Christ is dead, shouting to the Jews that He lives; for He has risen. “And blessed be God.” For He is worthy also to be blessed, to be praised. “And let the God of my salvation be exalted.” He hastens Him toward the ascension in order that, having departed, He may send the Comforter to the apostles, who are about to head out for the proclamation. But formerly, the Son ^C was the God of creation, but now the God of re-creation, that is to say, of salvation. But he added the pronoun as He makes our nature His own; but it is also said in another way, according to the hypothesis of the Divine, to say that He is Lord, that is to say, He is eternal, having neither beginning nor end, but is always being; for the prophet intermingles doctrines also with the words for the sake of the benefit of those who happen upon them. And “Blessed be God” is for that which He accomplished—miracles. And “Let Him be exalted” instead of “let Him be considered great to us.” “The God who gives vengeance to me, and has subjected the peoples under me.” Vengeances against the enemies. And having subjected the Jews who were fighting against me because of Saul; who even now, though unwilling, have submitted to me as king. But in the case of Christ, you shall understand vengeances against the Hebrews who were destroyed by the Romans, but the subjection of the peoples as that of those from the nations. “My deliverer from my angry enemies.” These are thanksgiving toward God, all transformed into a straight path, and yet having a calling power; and he calls the angry enemies those around Saul, who never abandoned their anger as long as they survived, or the demons. “From those rising up against me, You will exalt me.” What he said before, he says again, delighting in repeating them, being occasions of joy. “Rescue me from the unjust man.” Whoever shall rise up against me, according to those who were serving Saul, He will set me above them, and if there shall be ^D

^A unjust ones plotting against me towards the One who saves, rescue me also from him.

“Therefore I will give thanks to You among the nations, O Lord.” ^B Because You are such a one as my word has praised, I will give thanks to You among all nations. And indeed, he has achieved this through the book of his own Psalms, which is being unfolded among all nations.

“And I will sing unto Your name,” according to the expression, “I will sing unto You on the harp.” That is, to You. ^C “Magnifying the salvations of the king.” The word “Lord” must be understood here, so that it may be, “O Lord, You who make the salvations of my king great.”

“And showing mercy to His Christ.” To the One anointed by Yourself, that is, by Your command.

“To David and to his seed unto eternity.” Having mentioned the king, he then added “Christ,” and the name. Now, to be shown mercy by God fits those from the lineage of David who reigned as Jews; but “unto eternity” is not appropriate to this. For after the return from the captivity, only Zerubbabel held leadership, and he did not leave behind heirs to that leadership. It remains, therefore, that Jesus Christ is spoken of here as the seed of David, because His mother was descended from David, He whose kingdom shall have no end. Wherefore also the Evangelist has said: “The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David.” And the Word and God shows mercy upon Him as if united to Him and made divine.

PSALM XVIII

“Unto the end, a Psalm of David.” This Psalm is also “unto the end,” because he composed it when he had become old, looking already toward the end of his life, or because he is prophesying a matter that will come to pass at the end. For he puts to silence those who are babbling that all things happen automatically.

“Day unto day uttereth speech.” If the world were carried automatically, the days and the nights would not keep their proper bounds. But now, the Provider of the universe is so great that, through excessive good order, the first day seems always to be teaching the next one regarding the bound of the order allotted to them; for it “utters” in a certain way to it, that is, it signifies a “speech,” or rather, the command regarding this matter from God.

“And night unto night declareth knowledge.” And this is also to be seen during the nights. By “knowledge” is meant the instruction concerning the bound of the order, so that they do not harm one another, but by a certain order, this one causes the days to be in excess, and this one the nights, and this one to be equal; and through all things, it harmonizes well. “It utters a speech and declares knowledge,” because the order of God’s providence is a teacher of providence.

“Otherwise.” Day is the Father, and Day is also the Son, because of the radiance of the Godhead. The Father says to the Son—for He says: “I have not spoken from Myself; but the Father who sent Me... gave Me a commandment, what I should say and what I should speak.” And the Night, again, is Christ, according to His humanity in comparison with the Godhead; and He shall declare to the night, that is, to men, knowledge of God.

“Otherwise.” Draw near to the Jordan, and you will find what is being sought: for the Day, as light, is the Father; the Day, as light, is the Son who is being baptized; the “speech” in the midst is the Holy Spirit, in that He descended upon Him in the form of a dove. For Paul the Apostle says concerning the Spirit: “And the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” And the Night is that which is lower, as compared to the Forerunner. And the “knowledge” being declared by John is, to the Jews, faith in the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

“The heavens declare the glory of God.” These very heavens, he says, always preach the majesty of the Lord, using the sight as a voice; for from the magnitude and beauty of created things, their Creator is analogously perceived. Everyone who sees the magnitude and beauty and shape and position of the heaven, and such things, having, as it were, the position as a teacher, believes concerning the power of God. And by “heavens” he means the one beyond the firmament, having used the plural in place of the singular, according to the Hebrew dialect, which sometimes names the heaven in the plural, sometimes in the singular; for even if it is invisible, yet we infer it from the firmament. Or, he calls only the firmament by this name, as being only seen, so that the second verse is an explanation of the first.

“And the firmament declares the work of His hands.” If he called the second line of the first verse interpretive, and in that one he called them “heavens,” in this one he says “firmament,” and they declare this. It shall declare also the glory, the work of the hands, that is, the operation. Briefly to say, he says this, that the heaven, appearing alone, is sufficient as a teacher of the majesty of the God who made it.

“There are no speeches nor words where their voices are not heard.” This should be read as a question, as if David were saying: “Are there not speeches nor words of these inanimate created things? And are their voices not heard?” For if their voice is not heard, because it does not exist, clearly there will be neither speech nor word; for these are parts of speech. Having thus been at a loss, he introduces the solution.

“Into all the earth their sound has gone out, and their words unto the ends of the world.” And, he says, they are so great that even all the earth is filled with their sound, according to the way we have said. And this can also mean, “and their words unto the ends of the world”; for he has repeated the thought for the sake of emphasis; for the “ends” are emphatic of length and breadth, just as “speech” and “word” are the same thing. And it is the custom of the prophets, and especially of David, to express the same meaning in other and other words. And it is possible to say also in another way, that the prophet, having taught that the indicated created things do, as it were, emit a voice that there is a providence of God, regulating and containing the whole, wishes to proclaim—

^A that in every nation there shall be some who understand the voice of such inanimate things and shall announce it through their own voice. Wherefore he says: «There are no speeches nor words» of any national dialect, by which they are not heard—that is, they are announced, having been spread abroad, the unspoken voices of the creatures. This, however, is accomplished; for everywhere on earth, in every nation, those who understand announce: «There is a providence of God.» On the present meaning, however, let us understand «they are heard» as «they will be heard,» by a reversal of time, or he used the present for the future because the prophecy sees what is to come as if it were already happening.

«In the sun he set his tabernacle.» ^B The mind of the saying is this, that God ordained the sun as a dwelling-place in the heaven. For Moses says concerning the two great luminaries, that God set them in the firmament of heaven, so that they might shine upon the earth. And it seemed disordered to many. But we, after marking the tabernacle and understanding the same, do not connect it pronoun-wise, but adverb-wise, so as to connect it easily: as, «he has set, and it has been defined for the sun, the tabernacle and its dwelling-place which is there,» manifestly in the firmament of heaven, with the preposition "in" being placed redundantly, as we have observed in other passages as well. And so the sun, never leaving the tabernacle allotted to it, the heaven, becomes a herald of the glory and providence of God.

«And he, as a bridegroom, coming forth out of his bridal chamber.» — The "is" is missing. He is beautiful, he says, by the beauty of his flashing rays, like a bridegroom proceeding from his chamber.

«He shall rejoice as a giant to run his way.» Here also we have understood a reversal of time; for he rejoices to run the course allotted to him as a giant trusting in his strength, that is, he is adamant, serving the commandment of God for so many years.

«And there is no one who shall be hidden from his heat.» — As heat, or as man. Through "the heat" he included existing things, and through "man," living things; for this is the most wonderful thing, that by its own distance it both illuminates and warms. For the fire among us illuminates from afar, but does not warm unless you approach it. In this way, having praised both its beauty and its strength, and its course and its function, he shows from this the generous power of the One who made it. But this is the straightforward explanation of the sayings; some, however, casting them into allegory, say that heaven is the heavenly orders of the incorporeal beings, always glorifying God, as Ezekiel and Isaiah heard, or those who are superior to earthly men and, through contemplative philosophy, are raised to heaven; and "firmament" are those who are made firm through active virtue and are, ineffably, subject to the assaults of temptations; and "day" again, the luminous powers of the incorporeal beings—for these are called second, ^C conveying to one another the divine commands—and "night" is men, because of the darkness of the carnal thickness that obstructs the soul; and what follows accordingly. And the statement, «Into all the earth their sound has gone out,» the great Paul in the Epistle to the Hebrews opportunely transferred and applied to the evangelists and apostles of Christ. The statement, «In the sun he set his tabernacle,» they allegorize in such a way that Christ dwells in the man who shines with the rays of virtues. «For I,» he says, «and the Father will come, and we will make a dwelling with him,» or the tabernacle of Christ is the assumed humanity, which, having inhabited, he set in the light, living under the sun, and himself manifestly living like a bridegroom; «For he is beautiful,» he says, «in beauty above the sons of men,» as if made bright by the rays of virtues, the grace, which also rejoiced to run for our sake the course to death. And from the end of heaven, coming down, he returned again to it. No one shall be hidden from the heat of his words; and some will be warmed, but others will be saved [i.e., brought to their knees], because to him every knee shall bend, according to the Apostle.

«The law of the Lord is blameless, converting souls.» — He says that the unwritten law is sufficient for the instruction of the knowledge of God, speaking through the greatness and beauty and order of the creatures. But now he has also given a written one, through which one might learn both His providence and wisdom. And by different names he calls the Law: "Law," as regulating our conduct; "testimonies," as testifying against those who sin; "justification," as judging what is just; "commandment," as commanding what is to be done; "fear," as inexorable; "judgments," as passing sentences, as we have said more broadly before in the 17th Psalm [Ps. 18]. The law of the Lord is blameless, converting souls; for what could one find to blame in it? So it was set for the conversion of souls, teaching the greater things through the lesser.

«The testimony of the Lord is faithful, giving wisdom to little ones.» — Trustworthy, since it is also from God. And "little ones" are either those by age, like Daniel and his companions, or those by ignorance of human wisdom, or by innocence.

Otherwise. — The Holy Spirit is the one testifying about the Lord Jesus Christ; for the Lord himself says to his disciples, speaking about this: «When the Paraclete comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see him, he will testify about me.» Manifestly, the testimony of the Lord is the Holy Spirit. ^D One should also understand the mystery in the Jordan; for there the Paraclete testified to the Son. Likewise also in baptism. Since, therefore, the Holy Spirit is called the testimony of the Lord, it is permitted to understand by "little ones" the apostles, who before the

^A reception of the Holy Spirit were children in their understanding, owing to the imperfection which was their state. When, after the saving Resurrection, they were sitting in the upper room, the Paraclete descended and showed those who were formerly unlettered and fishermen to be wiser than orators and all who were admired for their prudence, receiving from them no other reward than most sincere faith and longing. The text can also be referred to those infants who, meeting the Lord with palm branches, praised and glorified Him; for the wise and the scribes did not understand to do this least thing, but infants, having been made wise by the Holy Spirit, have done so.

"The ordinances of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart." ^B Nothing having that is crooked, but rather, by instructing, they even rejoice the hearts; or [they are called] right as creators of uprightness.

"The commandment of the Lord is clear, enlightening the eyes." Those of the soul, and through them also those of the body, so that one does not walk into any evil path.

"The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring for ever and ever." Pure, as being clean of calumny; for human fear is disparaged, being called cowardice. Or, he calls "fear" here the perfect kind, which alone is pure, being constituted solely by the fact of not falling away from the intimacy of God. For the elementary fear is not pure; it is constituted because of one's own transgressions, and it is of these that [the Psalmist] has spoken. Or [it is called] pure as being productive of purity. And this is not temporary like human fear or the elementary kind, but extending throughout the whole life; for its being "continual" indicates, I suppose, that it is for ever and ever. Or [it is called] pure because purification supervenes, and "enduring" [because] while the other reaches only to purification and is cast out through love, this one enters in and co-exists for all eternity.

"The judgments of the Lord are true." True, as being strictly and essentially unerring, in contrast to human judgments which have wandered—insofar as accuracy is concerned—because of the weakness of the mind.

"Justified altogether." In the same [judgment] they are just; for what is truly true is at once also just. ^C

"Who shall understand transgressions?" Since the keeping of them comes through abstinence from transgressions, and this is laboriously achieved, he rightly asks: who shall be so prudent, he says, in distinguishing sins, so as not to fall into them? For some of them are subtle and hidden, and consist rather in the soul.

"Cleanse me from my secret faults." By "hidden things" he means either the transgressions committed in secret, or the shameful thoughts that arise in the mind, for which he prays fervently. For as far as these are unseen, they are also difficult to contend with, polluting one with total license. For one will overcome manifest sins, if he is not utterly enslaved, or [he means] secret perceptions of those things committed in ignorance.

"And spare thy servant from the sins of others." And spare me in the sins of others; for a king is held liable for the sins of his subjects, and a high priest for those of the people, and a father for those of his children, and a master for those of his slaves, when these commit sins because of his negligence. Or he speaks of "others" as those of accidental falls, which occur not by deliberate choice but by circumstance. Or [it means] the secret promptings of the enemies, whether visible or invisible.

"If they do not have dominion over me, then shall I be blameless." If they do not conquer here, then I shall have the perfect [state]; for now, even if I am a keeper of the law, still I have sinned in these things.

"And I shall be cleansed from a great sin." By "great sin" he calls the things mentioned, even if to some they seem contemptible. For the pollution according to the mind drives away the grace of the Spirit; and to overlook those under one's hand is worthy of [God's] judgment or something even greater.

"And the words of my mouth shall be for pleasure." Then, he says, the words of my prayer shall be to [Thy] satisfaction, and Thou wilt accept them, when they are also cleansed from the things mentioned.

"And the meditation of my heart before thee always." This will be plain; for even if it does not unlearn meditating on base things, it would not meditate on Thy things and those in which Thou thyself rejoicest.

"More to be desired than gold and precious stone." More than the things that seem precious among men, the material things; for he who has departed from the desire for these will insatiably desire the judgments of God, that is, the divine law. ^D

"And sweeter than honey and the honeycomb." More than the hive, which is most sweet to sight and taste. But through the more precious materials and the sweeter food, he has manifested the desire and sweetness of the divine judgments.

"For thy servant keeps them." Regarding itself he said this; or that everyone who is Thy servant according to the disposition of virtue keeps them by necessity—that is, all the foretold things. He "keeps" [them], that is, he loves and works them.

"In the keeping of them there is great reward."

"O Lord, my helper and my redeemer." For Thou wilt help me to be redeemed and wilt redeem [me] from the things mentioned. Or, "O Lord, the one helping me in those things in which I succeed, and redeeming in those into which I fall." However, "Cleanse me from my secret faults" and all the following things are fitting to be said by all the faithful.

PSALM XVII

"Unto the end, a Psalm of David." Unto the end, and this one; as predicting the things about to have an end in the time of King Hezekiah. For the Assyrian Sennacherib, through Rabshakeh, having announced those blasphemies, Hezekiah, having been greatly grieved, ran to the divine temple, as the book of Kings records, and announced everything to God, calling upon [Him] for defense.

^A And all those around him, among whom was also the prophet Isaiah, seeing the contrition of his soul, as it were, proclaimed the power of the passages present to him, praying that the supplication of the king might be accepted. Observe how divine grace revealed to David not only events many years later, but also what it was likely that those around the king would say at that time.

«May the Lord hear you in the day of trouble.» For even when Hezekiah sent his messengers to Isaiah, they said: “This is a day of trouble and reproach.”

«May the name of the God of Jacob shield you.» By mentioning the fact that he had been despised and insulted by the Assyrians, [the psalmist] reminded [them] of Jacob, as he, too, had been conversant with great trials and fears, or perhaps because he had been insulted precisely for the sake of God.

«May He send you help from the sanctuary.» The temple was called “Holy” [Sanctuary], in which they believed that God resided.

«And may He uphold you from Zion.» For Zion was consecrated to God; and God, being in Zion, was [thought to be] moving from there to assist you. ^B

«May He remember all your sacrifices.» Which you offered in a time of peace, being god-fearing.

«And may He enrich your burnt offering.» May the oblation that you are about to offer be enriched; and it shall be enriched by enjoying free pasture. This shall come to pass when the siege is eventually lifted, so that the prayer intends the lifting of the siege through the richness of the offering; or, “enrich” may stand for “may He consider it fat and acceptable.” It was called a “burnt offering” because it was entirely consumed; for of the sacrifices, some were wholly burnt, while parts of others were burnt—the fat, the kidneys, and the suet, and other such things, just as the Levitical [law] taught.

«Selah. May the Lord give you according to your heart.» As your heart desires. He often calls the soul “heart” because it is raised above the other parts of the soul, as in: “My heart and my flesh have rejoiced in the living God.”

«And fulfill all your counsel.» Being good and just.

«We will rejoice in your salvation.» We are confident that because of His goodness and your excellence, God will work salvation and make it unconquerable, of which we too shall partake.

«And we shall be magnified in the name of our God.» For if He crushes the enemies, God, if only by being named as the God of Israel, will be terrible to the nations. Through such a name, we shall be magnified by being heard. ^C

«May the Lord fulfill all your petitions.» They persevere in prayer because of the persistent contrition and humility of the king.

«Now I know that the Lord has saved His anointed.» This is said as if each of those praying had received some such assurance from the Holy Spirit; for the king is the “anointed” as having been anointed.

«For He also dwelt in the heavens and overshadowed [the people] in the temple; for this reason they called upon Him at times from the temple, and at times from the heavens; for [it was] holy, being set apart for Him.»

«In dominions is the salvation of His right hand.» In an abundance of power is the salvation occurring through the divine right hand; therefore one ought to be confident and not fear the seemingly insurmountable preparation of the enemies.

«Some in chariots, and some in horses.» They who have surrounded us are in chariots and horses, and they trust in them; but these and those are the same—for this is an idiom of the Hebrew dialect.

«But we shall be magnified in the name of the Lord our God.» But we shall call upon the name of the Lord, which has been reproached by our enemies, for help; or: because of the name of the Lord which has been insulted, we shall call upon the Lord as our helper.

«They were tripped up and fell; but we arose and were set upright.» The preceding verses were for the time of lamentation and wailing; but the [verses] from this point on happened after the invisible destruction of the Assyrians, the siege having been lifted, as all were rejoicing and glorifying and saying such things; for they were tripped up by the divine power and were brought down to a deathbed. But we, who had fallen in fear, arose in spirit.

«Lord, save the king, and hear us in the day when we call upon you.» Just as now you have saved [him] from the hand of the enemies, so also for the future, [since he is] worthy of being saved because of his virtue, hear us again, as you did now, whenever we call upon you. The psalm has been interpreted according to Hezekiah and it fits; but some insist on adapting it to David when he was drawn up in battle against approaching enemies; and they say that David himself fashioned the psalm to be in the person of those around him. It would fit, however, every believer drawn up against the demons, as the body prays [for the soul?], for the demons have also despised the name of the Lord. And you shall understand “Holy” and “Zion” to be the heavens, as has been said often. His “anointed” and “king” is the Christian, as we foretold. And the demons are [represented by] “chariots” and “horses” because of their speed and their equipment in wars. And this psalm might be spoken against our sensible enemies, the barbarians, and on behalf of our king.

PSALM XX

«To the end, a Psalm of David.» “To the end,” as containing prophecy; or it also received an end in the time of Hezekiah; for they say that after that helpless sickness, with fifteen years of life added to him, as the book of Kings recounts, those around him, having seen the miracle, gave thanks to God. Therefore, their voices—

David, foreseeing this, uttered these words on behalf of Hezekiah.

"O Lord, in thy strength shall the king be gladdened." ^A Since He (the Lord) helps him, he shall be gladdened even in the future; and this we believe based on the benefits already received.

"And in thy salvation shall he greatly rejoice." In the salvation that comes from Thee.

"Thou hast given him his soul's desire." The victory over his enemies, or the addition of life, or simply every request.

"And hast not deprived him of the prayer of his lips." He has declared the same thing again, as if dwelling on it with thanksgiving; for what one desires, that one also asks for through his lips; for we shall understand the "prayer" here to mean the "desire."

"For thou hast gone before him with blessings of goodness." Since Thou didst also anticipate him by bestowing benefits many times before his request; for we shall now understand "blessing" as the benefit, and "blessings of Thy goodness" as those that derive from Thy kindness.

"Thou hast placed upon his head a crown of precious stone." He enumerates the benefits, because before all else Thou didst bestow the diadem of kingship.

"He asked life of thee, and thou gavest it to him." So that he might not die either by enemies or by diseases; for we shall understand both here. ^B

"Length of days for ever and ever." Not merely life simply, but also long life. Now, the Prophet uses the phrase "for ever and ever" strictly with reference to the future and indestructible age, but there are times when it refers to a long-extended period, and other times to what is firm and unchangeable, as in the case before us—for example, "Thou gavest him life, and life long and length of days firm." And if he also speaks of the eternal life, this, too, is not wide of the mark.

"Great is his glory in thy salvation." For after the divine alliance and benefit, he became great and conspicuous in the eyes of all, so that even kings send embassies to him and send gifts. And this happened on account of the divine visitation that occurred to him from God.

"Thou shalt set upon him glory and majesty."

On the blessing.

"Thou shalt make him gladdened in joy with thy countenance." ^C Symmachus interpreted this as "with thy countenance," that is, through Thy visitation; for Thou shalt look upon him, and he shall be filled with joy.

"And Thou shalt glorify him still further, and make him greater by reason of his being well-pleasing to Thee."

"For Thou shalt give him blessing for ever and ever." Blessing—and indeed also a salutation, as in the Fourth Book of Kings Elisha says to Gehazi, "If thou meetest a man, give him no greeting, and if a man greets thee, do not answer him"—sometimes signifies praise, sometimes grace, the benefit, as in "Thou hast anticipated him with blessings of goodness," and the impartation of sanctification, and sometimes the grace, as in the present instance; but there are times when it signifies blasphemy, as in "Verily he will curse thee to thy face." Do say "Thou shalt give" (dōseis) instead of "mayest Thou give" (dōēs)—the optative instead of the future. It is also possible to understand it in another way, ^D "That Thou mightest give him blessing for ever and ever."

"For the king trusteth in the Lord, and by the mercy of the Most High he shall not be shaken." He has not placed his trust in armies, nor in wealth or things of that sort, but in the sole God who helps him; therefore he shall not be overturned.

"Let Thy hand be found among all thine enemies." The hand of God is the divine power, with which he prays that all who blaspheme the Lord may meet; let it be found among them, he says, for punishment.

"Thy right hand shall find all those who hate thee." Let it overtake them.

"Thou shalt set them as a furnace of fire at the time of thy countenance." Thou shalt burn them with the fire of Thy wrath; and the "furnace of fire" is the oven for bread; and "at the time of thy countenance," instead of "at the time of the visitation," when Thou seest them as an enemy. And the countenance of the Lord is against those who do evil, to utterly destroy their memorial from the earth.

"The Lord in his wrath shall disturb them, and fire shall devour them. Thou shalt destroy their fruit from the earth, and their seed from among the sons of men." He announces in advance the destruction of the enemies. And he enumerates the species of their punishments: because they have experienced the divine wrath, they shall be disturbed, being utterly at a loss from every side, and they shall be scorched, and the fruit of their labors shall be destroyed, and, to speak simply, they shall perish root and branch; for this is what is meant by "the seed" here. And he has called the human race "sons of men."

"For they have inclined evils toward thee." These they shall suffer, because they have stirred up evils against Thee by blaspheming Thy name and by plotting against Thy servants and doing them harm.

"They have devised a plan which they shall not be able to set up." For even if they have plotted many things against Thee and Thine own, nevertheless they shall not have the strength to abide by what they have determined; for these plans of theirs shall be overturned.

"For Thou shalt set them a back." A fugitive becomes a back; for nothing else of him is visible except only his back.

"In thy remnants Thou shalt prepare their countenance." We shall construe this by hyperbaton,

^A that is, for those of them who have believed in Thee and have been left for Thee, Thou shalt prepare, ^B or rather, Thou shalt adorn and glorify their race. For it is a matter of glory for the Hebrews ^C for the time being that they have become the forefathers of the apostles. Even if they themselves are inglorious and fugitive, we apply this Psalm also to our emperor against the barbarians, just as the former one.

PSALM XXI

"Unto the end, concerning the support of the morning, a Psalm of David." This Psalm is clearly referred to Christ; for it predicts the things concerning His assumption and His saving passion, which have reached their end. It is inscribed "Concerning the support" because it contains a prayer for support to come to Him from the Father at the time of the passion. "Of the morning" is added in place of "of the Christ," for this is called the dawn, which is the beginning of the day; for truly the Sun of righteousness and the Light of knowledge arose for us who were sitting in the darkness of error. He supplicates as a man, teaching us to pray at the time of death; for by nature even the most righteous man feels fear at the strangeness of the separation. Some, taking the preposition as standing for another, for this is a habit also for the ancients, say that this Psalm is about the passions of Christ; for these indeed are the morning support, because then more than ever did the revealed dawn, which is Christ, support us, having conquered by death him who held the power of death.

"O God, my God, look upon me; why hast Thou forsaken me?" These are words of human fear; but this confirms the incarnation, that He was perfect man and was subject to natural fear. "Look upon me": for those who hand someone over to executioners are accustomed to turn their faces away. "Why hast Thou forsaken me?": and yet He was never separated from Him, once having been united to the Word and God; ^D but He says He was forsaken because of the fear. For if Thou, He says, hadst withheld the help from Thee, I would not have feared death. Regarding this fear, the Evangelists also speak at length, that He even prayed for the cup of death to pass by, and He even uttered this word of the Psalm upon the cross: "My God, why hast Thou forsaken me?"—that is, "Why hast Thou left me to fear?" knowing that "the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak"; or, "Why hast Thou abandoned me to death, knowing that I have done nothing worthy of death?"

"Far from my salvation are the words of my transgressions." For the justifications of my sins are far from my salvation, that is, they do not hinder it—because they are not there at all; for "he committed no sin," He says. But death is a penalty for those who sin, or otherwise He assumes the role of the whole of human nature as our kinsman, and says: "Why, O Lord, hast Thou left the universal man to die?" Then He adds the cause: "For my transgressions are far from salvation," to which, therefore, I am joined, I who am distant; for if I were drawing near, I would be saved from...

the ^A worm that has come upon it from above; for just as the worm is generated from that which has come from above by the Holy Spirit upon the Virgin, so also Christ was born. And He might be called a worm for these reasons, but not a man, on account of the supernatural conception and birth. Or, viewed differently: because He wore His flesh as a bait for the demons, under which the hook of His divinity was hidden; for the worm is a bait for fish. For the worm became a bait for the capture of the intelligible sea-monster swimming in the ocean of the present life, with the humanity wrapped around the hook of the divinity. The monster gulped down the bait, was hooked by the hook, and it was not a man who was the author [of its capture]. Or [it is] because the worm is lowly in appearance, but destructive to the material; so also Christ is lowly in appearance, but destructive to the opposing power.

^B "But I am a worm, and no man, a reproach of men and the outcast of the people." This clearly prophesies what they insolently did to Him at the time of the passion, mocking and jeering at Him. And "reproach of men" and "outcast of the people" might well be the same thing; or rather, reproach [coming] from the men who were Roman soldiers, and outcast [meaning] of the people of the Jews.

"All who see me have mocked me; they spoke with their lips, and shook their heads. He hoped in the Lord, let Him deliver Him; let Him save Him, because He desires Him." You will clearly find these things written in Matthew; for he says: "And those passing by reviled Him, shaking their heads and saying," and so forth.

^C "For You are He who drew me from the womb." The intercourse of a man opens the virginal barriers of the womb; the seed, when discharged, naturally opens the matrix. This, having then closed, retains it until the infant has been fully formed, and thus, pressed by the bulk, it opens again and allows it to slip out. But in the case of the Savior, just as the conception was without the intercourse of a man, so also the emergence of the infant was supernatural, the power of God drawing Him forth, the barriers not being opened at all.

^D "...archbishop unto Him." The present phrase seems to signify the things surrounding the birth of the Word of God from the beginning, which have followed upon other men and the rest of the animals; for His conception was not according to the natural law from a man's seed. For this reason, He did not slip out in the manner customary to those born, with the formation of the seed hastening the exit from the mother's womb, but having been conceived from the Holy Spirit, He had God the Father, as it were, acting as midwife to the thing conceived and drawing it from the womb. But He also had another [feature] exceptional, compared to other men born: in that even from maternal breasts and in the very womb He hoped in God His Father, which rarely happens in the case of other men, [the development] of reason being completed in them; which also Isaiah was pointing out regarding Him, saying: "For before the child knows good or evil, he refuses evil, in favor of choosing the good." All of which were being innovated by the one...

united to Him, the Word of God. ^A "My hope from my mother's breasts." ^A That is, my hope from the very nipple; for from then I acknowledged thee as my hope, having been instructed by the divinity united to me. Luke says concerning this: "And the child grew and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him."

"Upon thee I was cast from the womb." ^A Upon thy protection I was cast, as one not having a father on earth.

"From my mother's belly, thou art my God." ^A Truly, I knew thee as God, being instructed, as was said before. And "from the belly" means either while being in the belly, or upon coming forth from the belly.

"Depart not from me, for tribulation is near, for there is no one to help." ^B And concerning these things the evangelists say that "He began to be sorrowful and very heavy," and again: "Then all the disciples forsook him and fled."

"Many calves have encircled me; fat bulls have beset me." ^B By "calves" he calls the common multitude of the Jews because of their youth and unruliness; but by "bulls," the chief priests, and scribes, and elders of the people, because of their seniority and leadership, whom he also calls "fat," because they enjoyed many of his gifts; for Moses also said before that: "And Jacob ate, and was filled, and the beloved kicked; he became fat, he grew thick, he became wide, and forsook God who made him."

"They opened their mouth against me, as a lion ravaging and roaring." ^C When they were gathered together they shouted: "Away with him, away with him, crucify him."

"I am poured out like water, and all my bones are scattered." ^C By his bones we shall understand the apostles, as those holding together and venerating the remainder of the Church of Christ. For all, having forsaken him, fled at that time; for Zechariah says: "I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered." And by "pouring out" he means their moving away from Him.

"My heart has become like wax melting in the midst of my belly." ^D I melted like wax in the fire of tribulations, having dissolved and become completely weak. By "belly" he now calls the entire hollow of the body.

"My strength has dried up like a potsherd." ^D Being frozen by the fire mentioned, its efficacy having been drained away.

^A She called the Jews as being under the yoke of the law, even if they were transgressing the law. "Dogs," however, he calls the soldiers from Rome, just as he named them according to the Canaanite woman, saying: "It is not right to give the bread of the children to the little dogs."

"A synagogue of evildoers has beset me." ^A That is, of the envious Jews.

"They pierced my hands and feet." ^A By the piercing of the nails.

"They have numbered all my bones." ^A By hanging him naked and stretching him exceedingly, so that even the joints of the bones might appear, and be numbered by those who wished to.

"They themselves gazed upon me." ^B They scrutinized me as I hung, and I am the Son of God; for they said: "If thou art the Son of God, come down from the cross."

"And they looked upon me." ^B And they recognized who I am, seeing creation suffering with Him, and yet they remained hard; for Matthew says that "the centurion and those with him, watching Jesus, seeing the earthquake and the things that happened, feared greatly, saying: 'Truly this was the Son of God.'" Or in another way, they scrutinized me lest I be brought down from the cross by my disciples, and for this reason they looked upon me, that is, they kept me under the guard of soldiers.

"They divided my garments among themselves, and for my clothing they cast lots." ^C The evangelist John clearly interpreted these things; for he says thus: "The soldiers, then, when they had crucified Jesus, took his garments and made four parts; to each soldier a part, and the tunic." And the tunic was seamless, woven from above throughout. They said therefore to one another: "Let us not tear it, but let us cast lots for it, whose it shall be"; that, says the Scripture, the present sayings might be fulfilled, which he also cited there; so that "garments" he calls the sewn ones, which they divided among themselves; but "clothing" he calls the seamless tunic woven from above, for which they also cast lots.

"But thou, O Lord, do not remove thy help afar off; attend to my aid." ^D These things presumably coming to pass.

"Deliver my soul from the sword, and my only begotten from the hand of the dog. Save me from the mouth of the lion, and from the horns of the unicorns my humility." ^D By "sword" he calls those from Rome, as sword-bearers; and the same also "dogs," just as we have declared above; but by "lions," the Jews, because of their cruelty and their thirsting for his death and their ambush; for so also a little before he named them. He calls the same people "unicorns," as believing in one hypostasis of God. The unicorn is a wild animal, named appropriately, bearing one horn upon its forehead. He said "dog" and "lion" in the singular because of the genus by which we know each one. By "only begotten" he means his own soul as being solitary because of it being alone among other sou-

"And my tongue has stuck to my throat..." ^D When he was answering nothing to the false witnesses accusing him; but stood silent; or when he was parched upon the cross.

"And thou hast brought me into the dust of death." ^D The dust of death is the tomb, just as if he were saying, into which, as one being buried, you brought me for the sake of humanity.

"For dogs have encircled me." ^D (Calves)

^A for he knows the lack of sin and because he alone has the Son united according to hypostasis. Regarding his own self-lowering, he himself taught this in the holy Gospels, saying: "Learn from me, for I am meek and humble in heart." We have already spoken of why he prayed in this way, and what kind of deliverance he sought.

"I will declare your name to my brothers." ^A Note how the divine Spirit foresees things as having already occurred, whereas he describes others as future, according to the rule of prophecy. He calls the name "that of the Fatherhood," for the Hebrews confessed God, but they did not know the Father of the Son, just as he said in the Gospel according to John: "Go, tell my brothers."

"In the midst of the Church I will praise you." ^B For he taught not only the apostles privately, but also in the synagogues of the Jews he spoke boldly, recounting the mighty acts of God and the Father. The present prophecy concerns these things; and he continues to do this even now, through his Gospel, being read both privately and publicly.

"From you is my praise." ^B When a voice was brought from heaven saying: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." And again: "I have glorified it and I will glorify it again."

"In the great Church." ^B Here he calls praise "confession." The "great" Church is that of the believers, as reaching to the ends of the earth, and as being comprised of great men. Always, through the Gospel, he praises the Father in its midst. Now, above, he simply called the congregation of the Jews "Church," or each individual local parish of the pious; but now he calls the catholic [Church] of the believers "great."

"I will pay my vows before those who fear him." ^B He now calls "vows" the promises, that is to say, the declaring of the name of the Father and of the Son to remember him.

"Those who are poor until then, insofar as regards piety, or insofar as regards human wealth; for those who are Christians in truth are without possessions." But they will eat the spiritual food of evangelical teaching, which causes the soul to grow.

"Those who fear the Lord, praise him." ^C As if already heard, he urges the faithful to thanksgiving, and first those from the Gentiles; because he sent out the apostles to the nations after the resurrection from the dead: "Go, therefore, he says, and disciple all the nations." Those whom he calls "those who fear the Lord," addressing them by their virtue; for Peter also named them thus in the Acts: "Men of Israel and those among you who fear God." But since the Church of believers is composed not of Gentiles only, but also of Jews, he moves them to doxology as well, for he says:

"All the seed of Jacob, glorify him." ^C All those from the Jews who have believed; for Jacob is the progenitor of the tribes.

"Let all the seed of Israel fear him." ^C Here he speaks of both parts, because everyone who has acknowledged Christ is Israel, for Israel is interpreted as "mind seeing God." He commands, therefore, both to praise God and always to fear him as almighty; or he also announces to the other Jews to fear him as almighty, and as one about to bring total destruction upon them for the rejection of his Son.

"For he did not despise nor loathe the petition of the poor." ^C He did not overlook, nor did he count as burdensome, he says, my petition—the one concerning overcoming the devil and granting victory to you. He called himself "poor" both because of the lowliness of the flesh, and because he was otherwise poor, insofar as concerns money and wealth.

"Nor did he turn his face from me." ^D Regarding this idiom, we have already spoken in the explanation of the Psalm of Job.

"And at the moment I cried out to him, he heard me." ^D Immediately, at the cry, he heard me.

"From you is my praise." ^D When a voice was brought from heaven saying: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." And again: "I have glorified it and I will glorify it again."

"They will eat, the poor, and they will be filled. And they who seek the Lord will praise him." ^D Because he did not spare his Only-Begotten for the salvation of men. Everyone who travels the path of his commandments seeks God, [and] they lead straight to him; otherwise, they will eat the body of the Savior, in which also the blood is included, and they will be filled with the Holy Spirit and will use hymns around the mystical table, so that this is a prophecy not only concerning the Gospel, but also concerning the mystical table.

"Their hearts will live forever and ever." ^D The Lord says in the Gospel: "I am the bread of life"; and again: "If anyone eats from my bread, he will live forever," clearly observing the commandments through the heart. He indicated the whole living being by the more vital part; for although he will die according to nature, yet he will rise again to eternal life.

"All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord." ^D Remembrance is spoken of regarding a thing previously known. It appears, therefore, that the knowledge of God is innate to men; but among the Gentiles, the mist of error has called it away. The mist having been scattered by the sun of righteousness, Christ, they remembered the Creator and turned to him. Or "they will remember," instead of "they will be deemed worthy of remembrance by God," having been previously overlooked. See how he used the order: saying "they will remember," then "they will turn," then "they will worship."

"And all the families of the nations will worship before him." ^D And yet, not all the ends of the earth have believed, nor all the families of the nations; but since also to all the ends of the earth the Gospel has reached, from the whole [is] the part...

^A clearly indicated, as in other places the reverse, the whole from the part. Moreover, he calls the kinships "families." It is clear that the kin of every nation have believed in Christ, and through Him have worshipped the Father. "For the kingdom is the Lord's, and He is the master of the nations." — He is their King and Master, according to that, "And I will give you nations as your inheritance and the ends of the earth as your possession," and for this reason they will worship Him, having been liberated from the diabolical tyranny. "All the wealthy of the earth have eaten and worshipped." — By the wealthy he means the rich, those who have become rich in piety; for they were formerly poor, as we have said before. — "Before Him shall fall all who go down to the earth." — All those dying and dissolving into the earth will worship Him; for after the common resurrection every knee shall bow to Him, according to the Apostle, and some willingly and with desire, others unwillingly and with fear. — "And my soul lives for Him." — He is the one who gives life to this, and does not allow it to die by sin. This is also understood in reference to the Spirit and in reference to the Son; alternatively, he says, "My soul lives for God," as being active toward Him; just as, on the contrary, it is dead to the demon, being motionless toward his suggestions. — "And my seed shall serve Him." — The seed of Christ, that is, all children who have been born to Him through the Gospel; whom He also subjected to the Father. — "A generation to come shall be announced to the Lord." — The generation of the faithful from the nations, which will come in the days of the incarnation of the Son, shall be made known to God. — "And they shall announce His righteousness to a people yet to be born." — Those born through faith will announce [it] to those to be born, and this successively always. And [he says] righteousness, because He has struck down the enemy who does injustice to men. — "Which the Lord has made." — Which He made, that is, He established a people for Himself, not previously being a people, but having been rejected, or which He created. But as for "It will be announced to the Lord," some have interpreted [it] differently, saying that it is a prophecy, that is, concerning the Greeks in Jerusalem who sought to see Jesus; for the evangelist John says that "These came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying, 'Sir, we wish to see Jesus.' Philip comes and tells Andrew; and again Andrew and Philip tell Jesus. And Jesus answered and said, 'The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified.'" Behold, therefore, that generation, being present, announces to Christ through the apostles; that is, the Greeks; those who go out to Him, being an overture for all those who have come [to Him] from the nations.

PSALM XXII

^B "A Psalm of David. The Lord shepherds me, and I shall lack nothing." — For He says in the Gospel, "I am the good shepherd"; for He found those from the nations like sheep wandering in places of destruction and led them into the fold, and henceforth He shepherds them; wherefore also each of them, giving thanks, declares His benefits, saying, "The Lord shepherds me, and I shall lack nothing"; that is, I shall no longer lack what is necessary. It should be known that very familiar things are often expressed without an article. — "In a place of pasture, there He caused me to dwell." — By "place of pasture" is meant practical virtue; by "water of rest," theoretical philosophy; there, he says, He caused me to dwell, where there is a place of pasture. Dwell on the metaphor of shepherding, for pasture and water are the abundance of the flock. By this they wish to indicate that He has set me in the enjoyment of pasture. And alternatively, "place of pasture" is the Church; "pasture" being the faithful blooming in virtue; or you may understand "pasture" as the faith of the Christians, always becoming young; for that of the Greeks has grown old and withered like grass. — "He nurtured me upon the water of rest." — This is on account of the laver of baptism; for through such water being washed, we cleanse the pain and weight of sin, and henceforth find rest; wherefore also the Lord said, "Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest"; or alternatively, water is the living stream of Christ's teaching, as we said before in the first psalm, interpreting the [passage] "by the outlets of the waters." — "He turned back my soul." — From the error of idols. — "He guided me upon the paths of righteousness." — By righteousness here he means the general [virtue] that encompasses all the virtues; by "paths of this," the particular virtues; because they lead to it; for He Himself, having become incarnate, cut these ^C and, having walked [them], showed [them] by deed and word, having guided us. — "For the sake of His name." — Because of my being named a Christian, or so that His Name is not blasphemed by the ungodly through absurd acts. — "For even if I walk in the midst of the shadow of death, I will not fear evil, because You are with me." — The shadow of death is the present world; for just as death separates the soul from the body, so the present world separates the lover of the world from God. But if someone is with God, God is also with him. And differently, "shadow of death" is the pain of every danger, as it is like unto death due to the bitterness of the torment; "shadow," however, because of the similarity; and "evil" are the temptations. The understanding of all true Christians is the Lord; for it is His word, "And behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

The ^A house of the Lord is understood to be the Church and the assembly of the faithful, in which the Lord dwells, appearing to those who are worthy; that is, I shall both be deemed worthy of mercy, and I shall be protected, and I shall faithfully remain, or alternatively, "to dwell in the house of the Lord" shall be for me "for a length of days," that is, throughout my whole life.

PSALM XXIII

"Thy rod and Thy staff, they have comforted me." The rod is the judgment of God, but the staff is His providence; they comfort us unto salvation. The rod is the disciplinary instrument for those who go astray, the staff is the protective support for the faint-hearted; that is, Thou hast corrected the one who sins, and supported the one who has labored, and by both Thou hast profited me. And the arrangement is thus: "They have comforted me, Thy rod and Thy staff." They have comforted, instead of, "they have admonished"; for he who admonishes comforts and draws toward what is advantageous. Some have called the cross both rod and staff, as it consists of two parts: the upright ^B part of which is the staff, through which we who were lying in error were set upright; and the transverse part, the rod, through which He struck and shattered the demons; for those who strike resolutely deliver the blow sideways. And they say that the rod is placed first, because through the cross He first cast down the tyrant; then, through the same, He also rescued us; so that the interpretation is that "Thy cross has comforted me unto godliness."

"Thou hast prepared a table before me in the presence of them that afflict me." The table is practical virtue; the oil which makes glad the mind like the head is the contemplation of those things which exist; the cup is the knowledge concerning God; and His mercy is the merciful Son and God, who through His incarnation pursues us always, until He might overtake all those who are to be saved; the house is His kingdom, in which all the saints are restored; and the length of days is eternal life. Therefore, not only didst Thou benefit me, as I said before, but Thou didst also grant me spiritual food; for this is what the table signifies now, and this "in the presence of my enemies," so that they may be pained when they see it; or "over against," meaning the opposite of what they desire; for they themselves always eagerly desire my human destruction. Or he calls the table the enjoyment of the future goods ^C which God prepared for those who love Him; or the table of the altar, on which the mystical supper is set forth.

"Thou hast anointed my head with oil." That is, with the gift of the Spirit. But one should understand the "head" as the mind, as the container of the contained; for the grace of the Spirit gladdens and fattens the mind. Either it proclaims the gift of the baptismal oil, or that of the ointment, by which we shall understand the whole man from the head.

"And Thy cup which makes me drunk, as it were very strong." The draught of the evangelical words is that which makes me drunk; for it produces an ecstasy of the former mindset, as it strengthens against the enemies; or even the cup of the unbloody sacrifice.

"And Thy mercy shall follow me all the days of my life." "Shall follow" instead of "will pursue," for thus it is plain, for the one walking and fleeing from error; or "shall follow" instead of "shall seek me out and will not depart."

"And the dwelling ^D of my stay in the house of the Lord for a length of days." It shall follow me, and the dwelling in the house of the Lord is called the Church and the assembly of the faithful, in which the Lord dwells, appearing to the worthy; that is, I shall be counted worthy of mercy, and I shall be guarded, and I shall remain faithfully; or also, alternatively, the dwelling in the house of the Lord shall be for me "for a length of days," that is, throughout the whole life.

PSALM XXIV

"A Psalm to David, on the first day of the week." This psalm is for the first day of the week, that is, the day on which Christ rose again, having been prophesied concerning it; which the Evangelists also clearly called the first day of the week. It discusses also the ascension of the Savior at the end.

"The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof." That is, when, arising from the tomb, He appeared to the disciples and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me," for from that day the earth of Christ came to be, though previously it was ruled by the demons; for everywhere now, throughout the earth, instead of idol shrines, divine temples have been established, the preaching having run to the ends of the inhabited world, as we have said before. And its fullness is the people who fill it. But from the whole, he signified the greater part; for not all have become the Lord's. Yet by the name of the earth, he has also included the islands; for these too are earth.

"And all who dwell in it." This is explanatory of the things said beforehand; for what he called "earth" there, that he here calls "inhabited world"; and what he called "fullness" there, that he here calls "those dwelling in it"; and alternatively, even if not all have appeared to be of the Lord, they were filled, for He Himself is the maker of these and the Lord.

"He Himself hath founded it upon the seas, and prepared it upon the rivers." One must know that the great Basil says that the foundation of the earth is only the sovereign command, and neither water nor anything else. But through the proposed scripture, the position of the water at the beginning of the creation of the world is signified, being placed upon the earth and suspended over it and held together and not flowing away; for it is likely that the same is called both sea and rivers on account of the multitude; since Moses also named this the abyss on account of its depth: "And the Spirit of God, he says, was moving over the face of the abyss." But John Chrysostom specifically takes the present scripture as a proof that the waters are placed under the whole earth as foundations, and that there is nothing empty; for He Himself was the one who founded it in the beginning: "For all things, he says, were made through Him"; then he joins the novelty of the foundation, that He established it upon seas and rivers. But he does not say this universally; for otherwise the water would be lower. But Moses taught that the earth is lower; it is clear, therefore, that he says this partially; because in many hollows of the earth, certain parts of the sea run under in tube-like channels.

^A And it is wonderful how such great weights of the earth do not sink; for whole mountains are supported by such waters, and yet it remains founded upon them and held together solely by the command of the One who made it; for he used "prepared" instead of "adorned."

«Who shall ascend into the mountain of the Lord; and who shall stand in his holy place?» This, I suppose, is foretold concerning the priests; for it reveals what sort of men they ought to be. By the "mountain of the Lord," you should understand the catholic temple of everyone, because of its being elevated and conspicuous, and because it is blown upon by the counter-winds of the enemies of the faith; and by "holy place," the space in front of the altar. Observe also the precision of the expression; for He said "shall ascend," because it is customary for certain steps to be constructed before the entrance. (Two lines of text are almost completely erased.) Some say the "mountain of the Lord" is the height of the virtues which Christ commanded through the Gospel; and the "holy place" is that of the promised kingdom of the heavens; or otherwise, the mountain is the height of the theology concerning Christ and the orthodox dogmas of His incarnation.

«Innocent in hands, and pure in heart.» The prophet, having fashioned the preceding statement into a question, now answers it. By his "hands" he indicates deeds, and by his "heart," thoughts that are blameless and pure. For he calls him "innocent" here who is blameless; as when one who is not such neither ascends nor stands, even if it seems so; observe how he has yoked both together, for the one is unapproved without the other.

«Who has not received his soul in vain.» Who has not received his soul from God for the sake of something vain, in order that it might be put to trivial use; or who has not used for evil the soul that was created for good things.

«And has not sworn with deceit to his neighbor.» And has not perjured himself; for he who perjures himself acts deceitfully so that he might either be released from what he owes, or receive what is not owed to him; he said similar things in the 14th Psalm; and seek there for a broader discussion concerning the oath, where it is written, «He who swears to his neighbor and does not deceive.»

«He shall receive a blessing from the Lord.» A grace freely given according to the present life; both one who is good in action and pure in thought, and one who has stood aloof from vain things and does not perjure himself to his neighbor.

«And mercy from God his Savior.» According to the future life; for everyone, even the very righteous man, needs mercy from God; for if He does not mingle His own compassion, no one living shall be justified before Him. And otherwise, what works are worthy of the kingdom of heaven?

«This is the generation of those who seek the Lord.» This generation, the one living in this way, is the generation of men seeking ^B the Lord. That is, of those who love; for he who loves seeks.

«Of those who seek the face of the God of Jacob.» The God of Jacob was shown to the Hebrews; and the face of the Father is the Son; for, He says, «He who has seen me has seen the Father.» But He sets Jacob constantly in the psalms, as the father of the tribes of Jacob. Or otherwise, "of those who seek": to see God in the age to come; when the worthy shall see Him face to face, as Paul says.

Diapsalma

«Lift up your gates, you princes.» Henceforth He foretells the ascension of the Savior into the heavens; for He introduces the angels ministering in Christ upon the earth as ascending with Him and going before and commanding those who guard the entrance to heaven to lift up the gates. The passage is arranged thus: "You princes, lift up your gates," that is, you who have authority over these gates, lift them up; "yours" instead of "over which you rule." He did not say "open," but "lift up," thereby signifying that the glory of Him who is about to enter is altogether inseparable. And by "gates," one must think of the guard.

«And be lifted up, you everlasting gates, and the King of glory shall enter.» The guard is "everlasting" because of the eternity of the angels who guard it; or "everlasting" because they were never to be opened; for while they were closed, He descended into the earth, escaping the notice of all the powers.

«Who is this King of glory?» He is called the King of glory and the Lord of glory, as being super-glorious, and as reigning and being lord over all glorious things.

«The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in war.» The princes of the gates, hearing this, were perplexed; as they knew only God as the King of glory; whom, being in three hypostases, they expected to dwell in the supercelestial place. Moreover, the covering of the flesh astonished them, wherefore they ask and listen again.

«Lift up your gates, you princes, and be lifted up, you everlasting gates, and the King of glory shall enter.» The Lord is He whom you know, the strong and mighty one. Then again, the Lord mighty in wars. And the repetition leads them to recognition. At the same time, it also celebrates the victory against the tyrant; by warring against the one who attacked Him, He cast him down and struck him through with the cross as with a spear.

«Who is this, the King of glory? The Lord of hosts.» In like manner they are perplexed, and they both inquire and hear.

24. «He is the King of glory.» The strong Lord, the giver of hosts, or even the master of the mighty, He is the King of glory who is proclaimed by us. One should know that the Hebrews ^C both the present psalm and

^A the one before it, assign to the captives in Babylon: the former recounting their joyful return, and ^A the latter consoling them in their sorrowful captivity, and teaching them not to be distressed by the place, since the whole earth belongs to God, and He is able to be well-pleased with God in every place. This is also clearly tested by the order: for if the other one were arranged after this, it would be narrating the period after the return of the captives. Furthermore, it is proved by the actual verses; for where would the mercy of God remain for them, as the first psalm says, through [their] whole life? And what are the everlasting gates that Jerusalem possesses, as the present [psalm] says, that we should pass over the rest?

PSALM XXIV

^B A Psalm of David. He uttered this while being warred upon by enemies. It is also suitable for all those in distress and [suffering] demonic insults.

"To Thee, O Lord, I have lifted up my soul; my God, I have trusted in Thee." — I have entrusted my soul to Thee. "Let me not be put to shame for ever." — May I never be put to shame, neither in the present age nor in the one to come; "for ever" denotes both [the present and the constant]. "And let not my enemies laugh me to scorn; for all who wait for Thee shall not be put to shame." — In many places David sets [the concept of] "waiting" and "patience" upon expectation, hope, and waiting for. Therefore he says: They who wait for, and hope in, and wait for Thee—that is, help from Thee—shall not be put to shame. "Let those who act lawlessly in vain be shamed." — For the lawless fight in vain and unjustly against one who has wronged them in nothing. "Show me Thy ways, O Lord, and teach me Thy paths." — By both he signified the commandments, which he prays to learn from God practically. "Guide me in Thy truth, and teach me." — Not only to seek the action, but also the correctness of the matters; for through both together, salvation is accomplished. "For Thou art God my Savior, and I have waited on Thee all the day." — That is, through all time. "Remember Thy compassions, O Lord, and Thy mercies, for they are from old." — For He is by nature compassionate and merciful. "Good and upright is the Lord; therefore He will legislate for those who sin in the way." — Since He is not only upright—that is, just—but also good, He will not immediately punish those who sin, but will legislate for them in the way of salvation; that is, through His laws and commandments and exhortations, He will establish and restore them, so that they might follow this if they wish. "He will guide the meek in judgment, He will teach the meek His ways." — But the meek and those who do not know how to contradict, He will guide in the discernment of what is right, so that they may not be led astray due to being of a simple mind.

^C "All the ways of the Lord are mercy and truth to those who seek out His covenant and His testimonies." — By "ways" he means the legislation which the Lord prescribes to men, showing mercy; for it is true that the lawgiver is perfect. "For the sake of Thy name, O Lord, and pardon my sin, for it is great." — The "and" is redundant here. "Who is the man that fears the Lord? He will legislate for him in the way which he has chosen." — Since there are various ways toward salvation, that is, the modes of life according to God, in whatever way the man chooses to walk, God finds him and legislates for him, that is, setting down teachings and rules of the precision of the way of life. "His soul shall lodge in good things." — The soul, having flown off from the body, shall tabernacle in eternal good things. "And his seed shall inherit the earth." — And his genuine disciples and successors in that way shall inherit the heavenly kingdom. "The Lord is the strength of those who fear Him." — Strength and fortification. "And His covenant will make known to them." — His testament will make known to them what is necessary. "Look upon me and have mercy on me, for I am one-only and poor." — By "one-only" is meant abandoned; whence also "poor," as if stripped of the help of those of like mind. "Behold my enemies, for they have multiplied, and have hated me with an unjust hatred." — Having searched out my crushing and my misery, whether the psychic or the bodily [kind]. Forgive those who are the causes of these sins. "The guileless and the upright have clung to me, for I have waited on Thee, O Lord." — Thou didst give to the good and the just the being joined in friendship. "Ransom Israel, O God, out of all his afflictions." — By Israel he refers either to the people suffering in frequent wars, or [to] himself as being led away from there. But properly, Israel is everyone who intellectually fixes his gaze upon God.

PSALM XXV

"A Psalm of David." — The prophet wrote this when fleeing from Saul [and] dwelling among the foreigners. "Judge me, O Lord, for I have walked in my guilelessness, and hoping in the Lord I shall not be weak. ^D Examine me, O Lord, and test me; try my reins and my heart." — Examine within me, O Lord, how I have conducted myself in long-suffering; then, [as one] hoping in the Lord against [my] enemies, I shall not succumb in [my] judgment. "For Thy mercy is before my eyes." — Examine how I always have Thy mercy before my eyes, not hoping in anything else. "And I have been well-pleased in Thy truth." — And how I did what was well-pleasing to Thee, not of my own accord, but being prompted by Thy truthful words; for Thou...

^A hast promised in the law those who are well-pleasing to Thee. — A tabernacle is the divine shelter, and a hidden sanctuary of this.

"I will wash my hands in innocency, and I will go around Thy altar, O Lord." — The ancients, signifying the purity of conscience, used to wash their hands in the presence of the multitude, whenever they wished to bear witness that they were innocent of some matter. David says, therefore, that with the innocent I will wash my hands, testifying that I am guiltless of all things of which I spoke.

"To hear the voice of praise and to tell all Thy wonders." — So that I might both hear the voice of those singing, and that I myself might read to the people the great works proclaimed through the Scriptures, and to recount the things that happened to me.

"O Lord, I have loved the beauty of Thy house, and the place of the tabernacle of Thy glory." — By this, He signifies the tabernacle which he desired to see.

"Take not away my soul with the ungodly, nor my life with men of blood." — He signifies the foreigners among whom he was sojourning.

"In whose hands are iniquities, their right hand is filled with bribes." — Whose hands are always ready to do iniquity.

"My foot has stood in uprightness; in the churches I will bless Thee, O Lord." — The foot of my conduct was established in uprightness, not walking crookedly.

PSALM XXVI

"A Psalm of David, before he was anointed." — This present Psalm is composed for David when he was being pursued by Saul, when the loaves of the presence were taken for food. David was anointed three times: first by Samuel in Bethlehem; second in Hebron by the tribe of Judah after the death of Saul; and third by all the tribes after the death of Mephibosheth.

"When the wicked draw near against me to eat my flesh." — Already my bloodthirsty enemies, reaching me, were not able to do harm, but they fell from their mark.

"If a war should rise up against me, in this I hope." — In this, that is, in my heart, I am bold, as one who has God as his defender, who gives courage.

"One thing I have asked of the Lord, this will I seek: for me to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life." — One request, clearly, have I asked, and still this I will ask.

"To behold the pleasantness of the Lord, and to visit His temple." — That through the beauty of the house I may lead my mind to the divine beauty and be gladdened, and at the same time observe lest anything of the duties in the temple be neglected.

"For He hid me in His tabernacle, in the day of my evils He sheltered me in the secret place of His tabernacle."

"He set me up on a rock." — He placed me in safety.

"And now, behold, He has set up my head above my enemies." — He prophesies about things to come as if they have already happened, and he uses all the past tense instead of the future. But the phrase "He set up my head" means He made me superior to my enemies.

"I have gone around and sacrificed in His tabernacle a sacrifice of praise and shouting; I will sing and I will chant to the Lord." — A sacrifice of thanksgiving, and at the same time a song of victory; for shouting is a warlike cry at the rout of the enemies.

"Hearken, O Lord, to my voice which I have cried; have mercy on me, and hearken to me." — He speaks concerning that one request. ^B

"My heart has said to Thee, I will seek the Lord; my face has sought Thee, Thy face, O Lord, I will seek." — Periphrastically, for "I have sought Thee."

"Turn not Thy face from me, and turn not away in anger from Thy servant." — And do not depart from me on account of Thy anger.

"Be my helper, do not cast me off." — Do not send me away, by a metaphor of dross scraped off from iron in the forging.

"And do not abandon me, O God my Saviour, for my father and my mother have abandoned me." — And I am deprived even of this comfort from my parents; for all fear Saul. ^C

"Teach me, O Lord, in Thy way, and guide me in a straight path because of my enemies." — Even if not for my own goodness, yet for the injustice of my enemies, do not give me over into their hands. Those who afflict me, by periphrasis.

"Deliver me not into the souls of those who afflict me, for unjust witnesses have risen up against me, and iniquity has lied to itself." — The unjust witnesses assigned the harm from the false witness to themselves, having inherited Thy wrath.

"I believe to see the good things of the Lord in the land of the living." — I am fully persuaded in the righteousness of God that while still living in this world I shall receive the gifts from God, or even in the land of the living I shall receive the eternal good things of the Lord.

"Wait for the Lord, be manful, and let thy heart be strengthened, and wait for the Lord." — This and what follows is an encouraging exclamation to himself. ^D

PSALM XXVII

"A Psalm of David." — A prayer of David... and this also the prophet composed while being pursued by Saul.

"Unto Thee, O Lord, will I cry, O my God, do not be silent towards me, lest at any time Thou be silent from me." — Do not refuse to hear me. Often those who...

^A hear nothing to say to those who ask.

"And I shall be likened to them that go down into the pit." — That is, among the dead.

"Hear, O Lord, the voice of my supplication, when I pray unto Thee, when I lift up my hands unto Thy holy temple." — He calls the heaven the temple.

"Draw me not away with sinners." — Through my spending time with sinners, do not also draw me away with them to punishment.

"Give to them according to the works of their hands; render to them their recompense." — Render to them the retribution that is owed, so that the wicked may become better.

"Because they have not understood the works of the Lord." — Because they have not known the divine economies, how God bears with them, unfolding for them a time of repentance. ^B

"And Thou shalt pull them down, and shalt not build them up." — He prophesies that having fallen, they shall not be raised up.

"And my flesh hath flourished again." — Which was previously wasted away by cares and hardships.

"And with my will I will confess unto Him." — Willingly, not under compulsion, I will give thanks to Him; such is: "I will freely sacrifice unto Thee."

"The Lord is the strength of His people, and the protector of the salvation of His Christ." — He is the champion of the salvation of Him who is anointed by His command as King.

"Save Thy people, and bless Thine inheritance; and shepherd them, and lift them up forever." — And exalt them with victories over their enemies unto the end.

PSALM XXVIII

"A Psalm of David, for the exodus of the tabernacle." — Historically, he gives instructions to the priests and Levites concerning the departure from the legal tabernacle, saying, "Prepare yourselves by going forth to the things for worship, young rams and all that is for the honor and glory of God." Anagogically, the tabernacle is the body. The "exodus of the tabernacle" is the departure from this life, for which the Word urges us to prepare.

"Ascribe to the Lord, O ye sons of God." — The Word has force. He says, "Ye sons of God," that is, the apostles, "ascribe to the Lord the sons of the irrational rams," that is, those from the nations. ^C

"Ascribe to the Lord the sons of rams, ascribe to the Lord glory and honor." — The praiseworthy deeds of ours are the glory of the name of Christ.

"Ascribe to the Lord glory in His name, worship the Lord in His holy court." — By the court, he means the one Church and the faithful of the godly.

"The voice of the Lord is upon the waters." — That which was brought down from heaven in the Jordan unto Christ. He speaks of it as thunder, as from heaven, and resounding. And the God of glory is the glorious One.

"The God of glory hath thundered; the Lord is upon many waters." — Christ in the Jordan, and through Him, sanctifying the nature of all the waters.

"The voice of the Lord is in power, the voice of the Lord is in majesty." — The voice of the Lord is both the Gospel and every commandment of God, and it makes those who are worthy both strong and majestic.

"The voice of the Lord breaking the cedars, and the Lord shall break the cedars of Libanus." — By cedars he means the demons and their shrines; he remembered also the mountain of Libanus, because there were many idol temples in it.

"And He shall grind them small as the calf on Libanus." — He will grind them small, I say the whole of Libanus, just as Moses [did] the molten calf.

"And the Beloved is as a son of unicorns." — And Christ shall be subject to no one.

"The voice of the Lord dividing the flame of fire." — For whether it were the three youths or many martyrs, they divided the burning impact of the fire and, in the judgment, also divided its energies: the illuminating one for the righteous, and for the sinners the consuming one.

"The voice of the Lord shaking the desert." — Moving the nations toward the knowledge of God.

"And the Lord shall shake the desert of Cades." — Not every desert, but Cades, that is, the holy one and that which is consecrated to Him.

"The voice of the Lord for those who are being perfected, [making them] like hinds." — Perfecting those apostles who tread upon serpents, for the course of the preaching through the strengthening of the Spirit.

"And He shall uncover the forests." — And He shall purify the wood-mad souls of the nations.

"And in His temple everyone says glory." — And in every temple of His, everyone who believes shall sing a hymn.

"The Lord inhabits the flood." — He shall make the assembly of the nations, which had been closed off by error, an inhabited world through the gifts of the Spirit.

"And the Lord shall sit as King forever." — "Shall sit" is used in place of "shall remain," on account of the immutability of piety.

PSALM XXIX

"Unto the end, a Psalm of David, a song of the dedication of the house." — Transcendentally, a Psalm of a song of David. But the dedication of the house signifies both the renewal of the soul of David towards prophesying—that which became a house of the prophetic gift, which renewal happened through repentance after the transgression concerning Uriah—and it also signifies the renewal of the Church of the faithful through the rebirth of baptism.

"I will exalt Thee, O Lord, for Thou hast lifted me up, and hast not made my enemies to rejoice over me." — I will magnify

^A Thee, since Thou hast drawn me up from the abyss of sin. "I entrust my soul to Thy care and providence, and Thou hast reached out a hand of help to me. Thou hast saved me from those who go down into the pit." — By "pit," one must understand inescapable danger. "Sing to the Lord, O you His saints, and give thanks to the memory of His holiness." — Give thanks to Him who, though we had forgotten Him through our sins, has remembered us. "For there is wrath in His fury and life in His will." — He has rightly assigned punishment to anger, but life-giving to the natural will. "In the evening shall weeping tarry, but in the morning there is gladness." — "Shall tarry" denotes lodging. The scripture teaches that repentance and forgiveness bring about swift relief. "But I said in my prosperity, I shall never be moved." — In my well-being, I thought I would never suffer misfortune. "O Lord, by Thy will Thou hast imparted power to my comeliness." — But they supposed something false; for when Thou didst will it, Thou didst grant power to Thy splendor, that is, Thou didst powerfully glorify me; but when, because of my ^B transgression, Thou didst turn away Thy visitation, I immediately fell into turmoil and calamity. "What profit is there in my blood, in my going down to destruction?" — The flesh is blood solidified by nature; what profit, then, he says, is there in my flesh, so raised and adorned, if I am to rot away having died? "Thou hast turned my lamentation into joy for me; Thou hast rent my sackcloth and girded me with gladness." — "Thou hast girded" instead of "Thou hast gladdened." "That my glory may sing to Thee, and I may not be pierced." — Periphrastically, instead of "I who am glorified by Thy help." And "I may not be pierced" is instead of "I will not be silent"; for those who are pierced and those who grieve in their heart are accustomed to be silent.

PSALM XXX

"Unto the end, a psalm of David of ecstasy. In Thee, O Lord, have I hoped." — By "ecstasy," he denotes the derangement of rectitude which he suffered, having been caught in adultery and murder. He wrote the psalm while being pursued by Absalom. ^C "Let me never be put to shame; in Thy justice deliver me and rescue me." — Even if I am unworthy of help, yet as the Just One, rescue me from those who pursue me. "Incline Thy ear to me, make haste to rescue me." — Rescue me swiftly. "For Thou art my confirmation and my refuge, and for Thy name's sake Thou wilt guide me and nourish me." — Thou wilt guide me to a place of life and wilt nourish me in my hunger. "Into Thy hands I will entrust my spirit." — I entrust my soul to Thy care. "Thou hast redeemed me, O Lord, God of truth." — For the true God has saved me from many dangers. "Thou hast hated those who guard vanities in vain." — Thou turnest away those who persist in empty counsels, even if they do so without cause. "For Thou hast looked upon my humiliation." — By "humiliation," he now means misery and contrition. "Thou hast saved my soul from distress." — That is, from circumstances and dangers. ^D "And Thou hast not shut me up into the hands of enemies; Thou hast set my feet in a spacious place." — Thou hast provided spaciousness for my feet, having redeemed me from the constriction caused by the surrounding of my enemies. "Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I am afflicted. My eye is troubled in fury." — Because of the fury against me, my eye is troubled. The physical [eye] by weeping, and the psychic [eye] by the confusion born of grief. "My soul and my belly." — My soul from anguish, the belly from lack of food; or rather, by "belly" one must understand here the storehouse of thoughts. "For my life has failed in pain, and my years in sighing." — Supply from the previous verse, "have mercy on me," for my whole life has been spent in affliction and sighing. "My strength is weakened in poverty." — By "poverty," he means the wearing out of the soul, or the lack of necessities. "And my bones were troubled." — They were displaced from the foundation that should have held them together but could not. Or rather, by "poverty" one must understand divine abandonment, and by "strength," the fortitude of the soul, and by "bones," its firm and cohesive thoughts. "I have become a reproach among all my enemies." — Before all. "And before my neighbors greatly." — Supply from the previous verse, "I have become a reproach." "And a fear to my acquaintances." — They are afraid lest they suffer danger due to their familiarity with me. "I was forgotten as a dead man from the heart." — I was forgotten by the hearts of my friends just as the dead man is. "For I have heard the slander of many who dwell round about." — Supply again, "have mercy on me, for I have heard [...] slander from many." "But I have hoped in Thee, O Lord; I said, Thou art my God." — In Thy power are my lots of both death and life. And "God" instead of "Master." "Deliver me from the hand of my enemies and from those who pursue me." — He calls himself righteous, as one who did not wrong his enemies first, but [declares] lawlessness to be the transgression...

and insolence to be the mockery.

"How great is the abundance of your kindness, O Lord, which you have hidden for those who fear you." — Which you keep set aside for your servants, exercising their patience.

"You have wrought [this] for those who hope in you before the sons of men." — You have fulfilled it and declared it openly among those who hope in you, when you willed it before many, that they might know that you shield your own.

"You will hide them in the secret place of your presence." — That is, those who hope in you, in a secret place, namely, of your presence, or, by a periphrasis, you yourself, and the enemies shall not find them.

"From the tumult of men." — In a time of tumult when men are rising up in sedition and in a time of questioning of tongues. That is, you will hide them from the disobedience of the people as if in a tent. ^B

"Blessed be the Lord, for he has made his mercy wondrous in a city of containment." — He has performed a paradoxical thing, his mercy in me, who have been called inviolable like an embattled city.

"But I said in my ecstasy, I am cast out from before your eyes." — He calls ecstasy the turning away from the path of the divine commandments. "Therefore you heard the voice of my prayer in my crying out to you." — Because, deeming myself cast out from the manifestation of your oversight because of sin, I was suffering a great crushing of grief.

"Love the Lord, all you his saints, for the Lord seeks out truth." — That is, the true loves toward him.

"And he repays those who act with excess pride." — For he is long-suffering toward those who are moderately arrogant and does not repay them.

PSALM XXXI

"Blessed is the man to whom the Lord shall not impute sin, nor is there guile in his mouth." — He is truly blessed who has not lied against the covenants with God through the remission in baptism; for he says that guile is falsehood.

"For I was silent, my bones grew old from my crying out all day long." — Since I did not immediately celebrate sin, but was waiting for others, I said, "My strength was weakened from crying out and lamenting all day long."

"For day and night your hand was heavy upon me." — For your punishment was heavily brought upon me throughout, and because I did not immediately repent.

"I was turned into misery while a thorn was fixed in me." — My state of good fortune was overturned into misery at the fixing of sin within me. ^D

"I recognized my lawlessness and did not cover my sin." — Even if you did not spontaneously make light of my sin, yet when I was reproved by Nathan, I immediately confessed and did not deny it.

"I said, I will declare my lawlessness against myself to the Lord, and you forgave the impiety of my heart." — I did not respect your laws concerning adultery and murder; but you forgave such impiety, and did not put to death, but rather instructed, as if I had not transgressed exceedingly.

"For this, every holy one shall pray to you in a favorable time." — Stirred by this sin of mine which was forgiven, every God-fearing person shall not despair, but will beseech you in a time of repentance. For the unholy person does not even feel remorse.

"Yet in a flood of many waters they shall not draw near to him." — The "yet" is used for "and"; for he says: "And in a flood of many temptations, the temptations shall not draw near to him so as to drown him, from afar, and they shall disturb and trouble."

"I will instruct you and teach you in this way wherein you shall go; I will fix my eyes upon you." — As if from God is the utterance: I will instruct you how you may prevail, and I will journey with you in the proposed path.

"Do not become as the horse and mule, which have no understanding." — The word is from David; for he exhorts us not to become unreasoning and barren toward virtue. ^D

"With bit and bridle, force the jaws of those who do not draw near to you." — Then he prays to God that, as to those who draw near to you, through conversion you might hold them back from the impulse toward evil even against their will, through the bringing on of temptations.

"Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, O righteous ones, and boast, all you upright in heart." — Not in your own virtues; for they are insecure if they are not guarded by God.

PSALM XXXII

"Sing to him a new song." — For toward new benefits we owe it also to offer new thanksgiving to God; and otherwise, all Christian things are new compared to the ancient and legal ones.

"Sing well to him in clamor." — "Well" signifies that which is undistracted and whole-hearted.

"For the word of the Lord is upright, and all his works are in faithfulness." — Truthful are the words of the Lord, and the outcomes of his works prove them.

"He loves mercy and judgment." — For he is merciful and just. Whether he mingles mercy with justice, or because he pours out mercy in the present age, but reserves justice rather for the age to come, and then in unmixed form; he says... and that (or alternatively, unmixed, or because) he shows mercy to those who are being corrected, but closes off mercy to those who are utterly incorrigible.

"The earth is full of the mercy of the Lord." — He is merciful even to the godless; for how else would it be possible for them to live?

"By the word of the Lord the heavens were made fast, and all their power by the spirit of his mouth." — By the subsistent Word of the Father and by his consubstantial Spirit; for this is why he said "by the spirit of his mouth" they were established, that is, created; both the heavens and their powers, that is, the intellectual and immaterial beings that are within them.

"Gathering the waters of the sea as in a skin." — The preposition "as" implies: for, he says, he confines the waters of the sea into their places as into a skin.

"Putting the abysses in storehouses." — Keeping the multitude of waters in the folds of the earth as in storehouses, because of their being hidden, because of their abundance, and because they are to be opened and closed according to need.

"Let the whole earth fear the Lord." ^B And from him let all who dwell in the world be shaken. — From him, that is, from fear, let all be terrified; through this he teaches the utmost reverence for his awesome majesty.

"The Lord brings the counsels of the nations to nothing; he sets aside the plans of peoples, and sets aside the counsels of princes." — Counsel is a resolved design, whereas a plan is merely a simple thought.

"Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people whom he has chosen for his own inheritance." — Blessed is the nation that is ruled and provided for by its own God.

"The Lord has looked down from heaven; he has seen all the sons of men." — Through this, the all-seeing nature of God is hinted at.

"From his prepared dwelling place he has looked down upon all who dwell on the earth." — Referring to his promptness in seeing all.

"He who fashioned their hearts singly, he who understands all their works." — By "hearts" he means the souls, that is, separated from the rest of the animals; for they are immortal and rational. Thus, he who fashioned the souls knows all things, and understands their movements, discerning each of the things being done, even apart from vision or hearing or any other sense.

"A king is not saved by much power." — That is, by a multitude of soldiers, horses, and weapons.

"And a giant will not be saved by the greatness of his strength." — A giant is one who is, in body, most robust and courageous. ^C "A false horse is for salvation." — For it is uncertain whether it will save the rider. ^D "But in the greatness of his power he will not be saved." — The horse, clearly.

"To rescue their souls from death and to feed them in famine." — Just as he rescued those around Hezekiah from the death expected daily, and fed them during the famine caused by the siege.

"For in him will our heart be glad, and we have hoped in his holy name." — In common, that is, because he himself will gladden us.

"Let thy mercy, O Lord, be upon us, just as we have hoped in thee." — We have hoped greatly; let it be, then, abundantly.

PSALM 33

"A Psalm by David, when he changed his face before Abimelech, and he let him go, and he departed." — Fleeing from Saul, David was going to the foreigner Achish, the king of Gath, and on the road, he turned aside to Ahimelech the high priest, and having taken the bread of the presence and the sword of Goliath which had been dedicated to God, he went to Achish. But being recognized as to who he was, he changed his face, feigning madness, and thus was let go. One must know, then, that "Abimelech" was the name of the kings of Gath, just as "Pharaoh" was of the kings of Egypt; the inscription of the psalm, therefore, naming Achish by his royal title, called him Abimelech. And if the high priest was also called Abimelech, there is nothing wonderful in this, for "king" is a noble name. But rather, the high priest is written as Ahimelech in the Book of Kings, and not Abimelech, even if some say that among the Hebrews the letters *chaph* and *beth* possess a great resemblance, differing by only a small stroke; this is not necessary as proof for him being called Abimelech; for many other letters bear some likeness and similarity to one another, but the names are not confused on that account. Rather, the high priest was called Ahimelech and Abiathar by double naming, as we have been taught by the evangelical traditions. But if the inscription of the 33rd Psalm calls the high priest Abimelech, this is most likely a scribal error.

"I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall be in my mouth." — At every fitting time, and at all times when it is possible, I will praise the Lord, with the body and the literal mouth; but with the intellectual [mouth] unceasingly; for one must remember God more than one must breathe.

"In the Lord shall my soul be praised." — I shall not be magnified through any virtue of my own, but because I have God as my defender.

"Let the meek hear, and let them be glad." — Let them hear that I sought the Lord for assistance, and he heard me. By "meek" he means the long-suffering; he was one such himself.

"Come to him and be enlightened, and your

faces shall not be ashamed." ^A Those of you whose mind has been darkened by levity, flee to God and be enlightened by levity, and you shall not be put to shame in your hopes. "This poor man cried out, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out of all his tribulations." — This is I, the poor man, in need of every human assistance. "The angel of the Lord shall encamp round about them that fear him, and shall deliver them." — He shall camp around each one, fencing him in with his power. For he likens the power of the angel, the guardian of each person’s life, to a whole army. "Taste and see that the Lord is good. Blessed is the man that hopeth in him." — By experience, know and learn the goodness of God. That is: seek him yourselves, and hasten to him, and so on. He also hints at the illumination through baptism and the partaking of the divine mysteries, through which we are taught of the cross and death, which are the manifestations of the Lord’s goodness. "Fear the Lord, all his saints." — By saints he means those given over to the clean God. "For there is no want to them that fear him." — There is no lack of true good for those who fear him. "The rich have become poor, and hungry: but they that seek the Lord shall not be deprived of any good." — Of eternal and undiminishing [good]. "What man is he that desireth life?" — Let him listen to my teaching who pursues the true life. "Who loveth to see good days?" — Good days are the eternal light together with the inexhaustible and ineffable joy. "Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile." ^B — Hence he suggests the works of the elementary fear of God, and first he disciplines the tongue, that slippery member and the readiest instrument for every evil. "Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it." — Having taught about the word, he proceeded in good order to [its] practice. "The face of the Lord is against them that do evil, to cut off their remembrance from the earth." — This is the visitation, even against the wicked, but for the purpose of removing their memory from the land of those who are saved. "The righteous cried, and the Lord heard them, and delivered them out of all their tribulations." — By the cry, we must understand the commanded intellectual prayer, and by the deliverance from tribulations, that the soul is not mastered by them, but remains unconquered. "The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a contrite heart." — To those feeling compunction for their own sins. "And will save the lowly in spirit." — Those who have a humbled soul. ^C "Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but out of them all the Lord shall deliver them." — He continues to hold, yet he will demonstrate that there is a trial in everything. "The Lord keepeth all their bones: not one of them shall be broken." — By bones he calls those thoughts that strengthen the soul, none of which shall be broken by the force of sin. "The death of sinners is evil." — Painful, since they feel at that moment the punishment which follows them. "And they that hate the righteous shall be delinquent." — They are in danger as to their soul. "The Lord will redeem the souls of his servants: and none of them that hope in him shall be delinquent." — They were defeated by their patience in the face of human and demonic plots.

PSALM XXXIV.

^A

"All my bones shall say, O Lord, who is like unto thee?" — Through the bones, he manifests the confession from the depths of his soul. And "who" stands in place of "none."

"Rescuing the poor from the hand of those stronger than him." — Him who is destitute of human support.

"Even the poor and needy from those who plunder him." — Through these terms, he indicated their utter contempt and the extent to which they relied upon their own hopes.

"They repaid me evil for good, and childlessness to my soul." — Since memory is preserved through children, he called the oblivion that comes with death "childlessness." And "to my soul" is in place of "to me."

"But I, in their being sick, clothed myself with sackcloth." — I wasted myself away by fasting.

"And my prayer shall return into my own bosom." — And my petition, having received its efficacy from God, shall return into my own bosom like a precious gift.

"As if for a neighbor and as if for our brother, so did I please them." — He means Saul; and the syntax is of no consequence.

"As one mourning and of sad countenance, so was I humbled." — I was not puffed up by my own virtuous deeds, but rather I was continually humbled, suppressing envy.

"But against me they rejoiced and gathered together." — But those who envied me, thinking that my strength was being wiped away, rejoiced, and gathered together for the meditation of a plot.

"Whips were gathered together against me, and I knew it not." — "Whips" means men; as if to say, scourgers and destroyers; and I knew it not.

"They were torn apart, and were not pricked with remorse." — They were scattered, not finding me where they hoped; yet they did not repent.

"They tempted me, they mocked me with mockery; they gnashed upon me with their teeth." — They stirred up trials and testing and everything against me so as to capture me; for sometimes they used deception—for this is what "mockery" means in this context—and sometimes they became openly beast-like.

"O Lord, when wilt thou look upon this? Restore my soul from their malice, my only begotten from the lions." — Restore me to my former freedom, having delivered me from their malice.

"I will confess to thee in a great congregation; I will praise thee among a mighty people." — That is to say, among a great multitude.

"For they spoke peacefully to me, and they devised angry words of deceit." — On account of the anger which he concealed, they considered deceitfully how I might be endangered.

"And they widened their mouth against me." — And later they even accused me openly and without hesitation.

"They said, 'Well done, well done, our eyes have seen it.'" ^B — Having seen me, he says, fleeing and suffering, they uttered the exclamation of joy, the "well done, well done"; that is to say, "The matter is going well," clearly meaning what they desired.

"Thou hast seen, O Lord; do not keep silent; O Lord, do not depart from me." — Do not wait any longer; for those who wait are accustomed to keeping silent.

"Let them not say in their hearts, 'Well done, well done to our soul'; nor let them say, 'We have swallowed him up.'" — With the mouth of the sword.

"Let them rejoice and be glad, the ones who desire." — The "together" is in place of "all at once."

"Those who desire my righteousness." — My vindication. ^C

"And my tongue shall meditate on thy righteousness, all the day thy praise." — "Shall meditate" here is in place of "shall continually proclaim." It should be noted that the majority and the more important parts of this present psalm are understood to refer to Christ against the ungrateful Jews.

PSALM XXXV

"Unto the end, to the servant of the Lord, David." — Being pursued by Saul, he was hidden in a cave to sleep. Saul, not knowing this, lodged in the same cave. And at night David rose up and cut off the hem of his cloak, and after daybreak he showed it to Saul from afar and reproached him for his unjust plot. But he replied with repentance and a proposal to end the plot. Yet he again plotted the destruction of David, and then David composed this present psalm.

"The wicked man says, in order to sin within himself, 'There is no fear of God before his eyes.'" — The word "says" is in place of "meditates." That is to say, the wicked man meditates within himself so as to sin. For "to" is in place of "so that," or it is redundant.

"For he dealt deceitfully before him, to find out his iniquity, and to hate." — For he dealt deceitfully with himself for the discernment of his iniquity and for the turning away from it.

"The words of his mouth are iniquity and deceit; he did not wish to understand to do good." — He did not choose to acquire good sense so as to do what is good.

"He devised iniquity upon his bed." — And he wasted the time of rest on evil meditations.

"He was present at every way not good." — He was ready for every wicked deed.

"And he did not abhor wickedness." — Nor did he consider wickedness burdensome and heavy—that is, he did not cast it off.

"O Lord, thy mercy is in the heavens, and thy truth up to the clouds." — In place of "up to the sky," that is to say, high and abundant. ^D

"Thy righteousness is like the mountains of God." — And through the mountains he hinted at their height and magnitude. And "mountains of God" are those created by God.

"Thy judgments are a great abyss." — And thy dispensations are incomprehensible.

« Humans and beasts You shall save, O Lord. » ^A — "You shall save" instead of "You are saving," that is, You give life. « But the sons of men shall hope in the shelter of Your wings. » — Those who are truly men, not having marred the name by wickedness. « They shall be intoxicated by the fatness of Your house; they shall be gladdened by the wealth of Your bounty. » — That is, by the abundant supply of things needed, both bodily and spiritual. « And You shall make them drink from the torrent of Your pleasure. » — The vehement stream. « For with You is the spring of life. » — For You are the source of all life. « In Your light we shall see light. » — Through Your Son we shall know the Holy Spirit. « Extend Your mercy to those who know You, and Your righteousness to the upright in heart. » — Your righteous guardianship. « Let not the foot of pride come to me, and let not the hand of the sinner shake me. » — A circumlocution for pride and the sinner. By the sinner, however, we must rather understand the devil. « There the workers of iniquity have fallen. » — Where the lawless fall, and having fallen they are thrust away by You, and once thrust away, they shall not be able to return from their fall.

PSALM XXXVI

^A «The sinner borrows, and will not repay.» — Not only does he not share his own houses, but he does not even repay what is owed; such is he, merciless and lawless. — «But the righteous one has pity and gives.» — He has pity indeed from his own store, and gives what is owed, that is to say, he repays.

«For those who bless him shall inherit the land, but those who curse him shall be utterly destroyed.» — The word "for" is assertive, meaning "truly"; and by "curse" he means "insult."

«The steps of a man are directed by the Lord.» — The righteous man rushes from himself into the path of virtue, but he is guided by the Lord. For without the divine, nothing at all will prosper; for a man, that is, for the righteous man.

«And he will delight in his way.» — For He greatly accepts his conduct.

«When he falls, he shall not be cast down; for the Lord upholds his hand.» — When he slips through words of God’s greater dispensation having withdrawn, he shall not be utterly destroyed, God having set before him a hand of assistance, or rather repentance and turning back.

«I was young, and even grew old, and I have not seen the righteous one forsaken.» — He speaks of total forsaking.

«Nor his seed seeking bread.» — Nor if anyone becomes his by the Spirit, and has succeeded to his manner of life, has he been in want of the food that strengthens the soul.

«All the day the righteous one shows mercy and lends.» — The righteous one always lends what he wishes. And every gift of the righteous is a loan, because he is about to receive it back from God with great interest.

«And his seed shall be for a blessing.» — That is, blessed and praiseworthy.

«Turn away from evil, and do good, and dwell for evermore.» — Dwell for the age to come, while sojourning in this age, because of the temporary nature of life.

«For the Lord loves justice.» — By justice he means righteousness.

«The mouth of the righteous will meditate on wisdom, and his tongue will speak justice.» — He has called the law of God and His commandments wisdom. And he has called these same things justice.

«The law of God is in his heart, and his steps shall not be tripped.» — His path towards God shall not be obstructed.

«The sinner watches the righteous one, and seeks to put him to death.» — The sinner, both in the sensory and the intellectual sense, watches and lays snares for the righteous one.

^D «But the Lord will not leave him in his hands.» — He speaks of total forsaking.

«Nor will he judge him, when he is judged.» — But God will not pronounce the righteous one condemned in the coming judgment, when the sinner is set against him; for even the demons, being punished, will cry out against the righteous, if ever they have sinned as men.

«Wait for the Lord and keep His way, and He will exalt you to inherit the land.» — He will make you higher than the plots and at the same time will glorify you.

«When sinners are destroyed, you shall see.» — That is, may you see the destruction of sinners.

«His place.» — Instead of: "it was not found."

«Keep malice and behold uprightness.» — Keep yourself being blameless; and take uprightness before your eyes.

«For there is a remnant for the man of peace.» — He calls the memorial a remnant.

«But the lawless shall be destroyed together, the remnants of the ungodly shall be destroyed.» — Along with the memorial.

PSALM LXXXVI

«A Psalm for David in remembrance of the Sabbath.» — The psalm is composed for David in remembrance of transgressions, clearly, and of the sufferings because of these, as he prays for the Sabbath, that is, for the cessation of painful things; for he entreats from God relief from the manifold calamities brought upon him through sin.

«O Lord, do not rebuke me in Your wrath, nor chasten me in Your anger. For Your arrows are fastened in me.» — He calls the calamities brought upon him the arrows of God, those which prick the heart like arrows.

«And You have pressed Your hand upon me.» — That is, you have punished me persistently.

«There is no healing in my flesh from the face of Your wrath.» — He calls healing the removal of suffering; but "from the face of Your wrath" is instead of "because of Your wrath," for such things are said periphrastically.

«There is no peace in my bones from the face of my sins.» — For I am shaken and tremble.

«My wounds have stunk and rotted because of my foolishness.» — The wounds of my soul bring forth a stench, not superficially, but they have even rotted completely.

«I have been made miserable and bent over until the end; I was going about mourning all the day.» — I have suffered evil, and having been weakened, I was bowed down completely, my soul, that is, and my body.

«For my loins have been filled with delusions.» — Symmachus called the loins the flanks, by which the desiring faculty is indicated; for the kidneys are around these. He says, therefore: My desire has been deluded by the demon through the fulfillment of transgressive longings.

«I have been made wretched and humbled until very greatly.» — Through this he indicates the hardship and distress.

^A «I roared from the groaning of my heart.» — The ferocity of the groaning from the heart, that is, from the depths, resembled the roaring of a lion. «Lord, before thee is all my desire, and my groaning is not hidden from thee.» — That is, desiring salvation after sin. And thou knowest this, and thou hearest my groaning. «My heart was troubled; my strength failed me.» — My heart was troubled by my conscience; my strength failed me because of the distress. «And the light of my eyes, even this is not with me.» — From constant weeping. «My friends and my neighbors drew near against me, and stood.» — Those who opposed me drew near, pursuing and standing against me. «And my closest ones stood from afar.» — And my allies fled far from me. «And they who sought my soul were using violence.» — And those wishing to kill me were crushing me. «And those who sought evils for me spoke vanities.» — And those wishing for me to be harmed were insulting me, and in these things they were plotting against me. «But I, as a deaf man, heard not; and as a dumb man, not opening his mouth.» — The remainder is missing. ^B «I said, I will guard my ways, that I may not sin with my tongue. I set a guard on my mouth.» — Here he calls words ways. «When the sinner stood against me.» — He said *to stand*, meaning to draw up in battle array. «I became deaf and humbled and was silent from good things.» — I became deaf voluntarily and was humbled, because I remembered that these things were for my sins. I was silent and did not answer the insulting one from good things, that is, from goodness, which is long-suffering. «And my pain was renewed.» — And the pain for my sins was renewed in my memory. «My heart was warmed within me.» — Being insulted, I was inflamed by anger; nevertheless, within, for I did not express it, having made use of long-suffering. «And in my meditation a fire shall be kindled.» — In my meditating and reflecting, because I have done evil and suffer terrible things, a fire of grief will always be kindled for me, consuming my heart. «And I became as a man not hearing, and not having reproofs in his mouth.» — By reproofs he means the retorts by which one reproves the one speaking wrongly. «For I said, Lest my enemies should rejoice over me.» ^C — I said within myself, praying, Lest my enemies should rejoice over me. «And when my feet were shaken, they spoke boastfully against me.» — And when I was turned aside from the foundation of the divine commandments, they boasted against me. «For I am ready for scourges.» — My sin made me ready for punishments. «And my pain is before me continually.» — And the memory of sin is continually within me, pricking and causing pain. «For I will declare my iniquity, and I will be anxious about my sin.» — That is, I will take thought for its healing. «But my enemies live and are strengthened over me.» — They live, instead of are being saved. «They slandered me because I followed goodness.» — By goodness he means long-suffering; “for,” he says, “while I was showing them long-suffering, they slandered me.”

PSALM XXXVIII

^A «And hast made his soul to consume away like a spider.» — In tribulations thou hast made him as thin as the spider, that small creature. «Nevertheless, every man is troubled in vain.» — Therefore, every man hasteneth in vain, that is, he struggles in vain. «Hear my prayer, O Lord, and my supplication; give ear to my tears; pass not over it in silence.» — That is, do not overlook it; the syntax here is indifferent, as it is in many places. «For I am a sojourner with thee, and a stranger, as all my fathers were.» — I am a sojourner toward men, but with thee a stranger; for since thou, O Lord, hast commanded it, I am moving forth from the earth. «Spare me, that I may be refreshed before I go hence, and be no more.» — In this life, clearly.

PSALM 39

PSALM 40

[He] says "bed of pain" concerning that which receives the one in pain. ^A

«You have turned all his bed in his sickness.» He calls the place of reclining a "bed"; and "you have turned" is instead of "you shall turn" or "you shall change" from diseased to healthy. So it is to be syntactically arranged: In his sickness, at the time of his sickness, you shall completely change his reclining.

«I said: Lord, have mercy on me, heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.» Everything from here on [is spoken] in the person of Christ, who takes upon Himself our sins.

«My enemies have spoken evil against me.» The enemies of the Lord are the Jews; and "evil" implies wicked words. ^B

«When will he die, and his name perish? And if he came in to see [me].» Concerning Judas he says this: «He entered where I was sitting, so that he might see if there was an opportunity to betray me.»

«He spoke in vain.» In vain his heart meditated to deceive me, the Knower of hearts.

«His heart gathered iniquity to itself.» He gained nothing from the plot, except that he stored up iniquity for himself.

«He went out and spoke in the same place.» "In the same place" is instead of "together with them, his enemies."

«All my enemies whispered against me.» "They were considering" is instead of "they were meditating and taking counsel."

«They laid a wicked word against me.» They contrived a false accusation against me; for they said that... the mob against Caesar. ^C

«Will he who sleeps not add [to do so] in order to arise?» Does not the one who sleeps arise, he says? And shall I not, having died, thus easily arise just as I slept?

«For even the man of my peace, in whom I hoped.» The "even" is redundant; but he says: Not only my enemies, but also the man of my friendship, that is, my beloved, in whom I trusted, magnified, that is, wrought, great deceit against me.

«But you, Lord, have mercy on me, and raise me up, and I will repay them.» "Have mercy" and "raise me up" is human; but "I will repay" is divine.

«By this I knew that you have favored me, that my enemy shall not rejoice over me.» "You have favored" is instead of "you have loved"; and the enemy is both the Jew and the devil.

«But you upheld me because of my innocence.» By "innocence" he meant sin. ^D

«And you established me before your face forever.» You have caused me to dwell with yourself always.

«Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from eternity and to eternity. So be it, so be it.» David praises the condescension of the Master, for which he also prays earnestly.

PSALM XLI

«Unto the end, for understanding, for the sons of Korah.» ^A

«When shall I come, and appear before the face of God?» When shall I come to the temple and appear before God?

«My tears became my bread.» As bread is to people, so were tears for me desirable and necessary.

«I remembered these things and poured out my soul upon me.» I remembered these insults of the enemies, and I slackened my soul, having made it paralyzed and, as it were, flowing away.

«For I shall pass over into the place of the tabernacle.» The "for" is confirmatory; for he prophesies the return. And he calls the temple the place of the tabernacle, and the immovable [dwelling] the house of God.

«Of the voice of those who feast.» The "of those who feast" is instead of "festal." ^B

«The salvation of my face, and my God.» Recalling the later beneficence of God, he gladly calls upon him, saying, «O my salvation and my God.»

«My soul is troubled within me.» Within myself, not having anyone on the outside who knows the sorrow. And it was troubled both because of my sins and because of the delay of the return.

«Therefore I will remember you from the land of Jordan and of Hermoniim, from a small mountain.» ^C Therefore, being afflicted now, I will remember the care for us from the goods we enjoyed in the land of promise; for from the Jordan and the Hermoniim mountain, that is, the Dourmou, he indicated all of Judea.

«Abyss calls to abyss at the voice of your cataracts.» Now, troubles are coming one after another; for the abyss of calamities calls another abyss to our mourning, [the mourning] of those crushed by you; for the cataract is straight.

«All your heights and your waves have passed over me.» By "heights" and "waves" he refers to the insurrections of temptations.

«By day the Lord will command his mercy...»

The phrase "of day" is used instead of "in the day," that is, manifestly. And "will command" is used for "will send."

«And his song in the night.» By "night" he now refers to the time of singing hymns to God because of the affliction of the day.

«When my bones were broken, my enemies reproached me.» With my bones being broken by the weight of the burden and the scourging, my enemies reproach me, saying, "Where is your God?"

PSALM XLII

«A Psalm of David.» This is in harmony with the one preceding it, adhering to the same thought.

«Who is the one commanding the salvations of Jacob.» Through this he declared the ease of help; for, he says, your word alone suffices for the salvation of the nation that knows you.

«In you we will push back our enemies.» We shall "push back" instead of "we will overcome," a metaphor taken from animals that use their horns for the overthrowing of their opponents.

«And in your name we will despise those rising up against us.» By merely saying, "The God of Israel," we shall make the enemies contemptible.

«In God we will be praised all day.» We shall boast in the Lord at all times.

«Judge me, O God, and plead my cause against a nation not holy; from an unjust and deceitful man deliver me. For you are God, my strength. Why have you cast me off? And why do I go mournfully while an enemy oppresses me?» Become a judge for me against a nation that is not holy; for the phrase "from a nation" is used instead of "against a nation." And the Babylonians and demons are unholy. And the unjust man is Nebuchadnezzar and the Devil.

«Send forth your light and your truth.» By "light" he calls the divine visitation, and by "truth" the true help. Anagogically, the light and truth is Christ.

«They led me and brought me to your holy mountain and into your tabernacles.» Anachronistically, he says, "They will restore me to Zion and to the temple." Anagogically, Christ will lead the way, or will bring those who believe to heaven.

«And I will go in to the altar of God, to worship him and to offer sacrifice.»

«To God who gladdens my youth.» He called "youth" the prime of zeal; and he has spoken periphrastically, "to the God who gladdens me who am in the prime of the zeal of his worship." It also signifies the renewal through baptism.

PSALM XLIII

«To the end, for the sons of Korah, for insight.» The present psalm bears the same superscription as the forty-first; yet it is spoken in the person of the Maccabees, who acted manfully against Antiochus and the Macedonians by their trust in God.

«O God, we have heard with our ears; our fathers have recounted to us the work which you did in their days, in the days of old.» We have heard of your work from our fathers, that your power destroyed nations from Palestine, and settled our fathers and established them.

«Their own arm did not save them.» From the war of the foreigners.

«But your right hand and your arm and the light of your face.» He calls divine power the right hand and arm of the Lord; and by the light of the face, divine visitation and relief; and "good pleasure" signifies good judgment.

«You are the same King, who worked those things, and you are [the same] now, reigning likewise, ruling likewise.»

«And in your name we will confess forever.» The preposition "in" is redundant; for he says, "We will give thanks to your name always."

«And you will not come out, O God.» Anachronistically, he says, "And you will not go out with the armies."

«You have turned us back before our enemies.» Accustomed, O Master, to put our enemies to flight and to strengthen us, now you have done the opposite.

«They were plundering for themselves.» They were plundering our goods.

«You have given us as sheep for meat.» You have delivered us for slaughter.

«And you scattered us among the nations.» For as many as escaped death, being sold here and there, we are forced to serve.

«You have sold your people without price.» As one delivers useless and base slaves for nothing, considering their removal a gain, so you too have delivered us to the enemies.

«And there was no multitude in our shouts.» Of the enemies, in shouting their victories against us; but we were taken captive by a few.

«You have made us a reproach to our neighbors, a derision and a laughingstock to those around us.» The nations among whom we serve (the repetition exists in two codices).

«You have made us a proverb among the nations, a shaking of the head among the peoples.» The nations among whom we serve have us as an example in the multitude of their calamities.

«From the voice of the one reproaching and defaming.» "Defaming" instead of "blaspheming."

«From the face of the enemy and the persecutor.» For the enemies look arrogantly at me, and I have no strength even to look them in the face.

«All these things came upon us, and we have not forgotten you.» To the point of naming another God.

«And we have not acted unjustly in your covenant.» We have not transgressed your law; for he who transgresses it acts unjustly toward the law.

«And our heart has not turned back.» Just as the law leads forward, so lawlessness turns one back.

^A «And you have turned our paths from your way.» This negates the path in common; you have trained us through many painful things, but you have not diverted our conduct away from your law; for you have not completely abandoned us. «And he has covered us.» The shadow somehow imitates the archetype. «Shadow of death.» He calls those things which are like unto death afflictions. «Will not God discover these things? For he knows the secrets of the heart.» The word "discover" is used in place of "examine." «For your sake we are killed all the day long.» Being able to join with the idolaters and to prosper, for your sake we die by choice for everything. «We were regarded as sheep for the slaughter.» Because of the ease of being put to death. «Do you forget our poverty and our affliction?» Poverty is also described as the distress arising from what follows. «For our soul is humbled to the dust.» Periphrastically: we were bent down as far as the very earth, so that we even brought our belly near to the ground. Through these things, he signifies the great weight of the afflictions. These words are also appropriate for the holy martyrs, and for all who are persecuted for Christ’s sake.

PSALM XLIV

«To the end, for those who shall be changed, to the sons of Korah for instruction, a song for the Beloved.» By "those who shall be changed," he means the Christians, as being transformed through the regeneration of divine baptism; and by the "Beloved," Christ, as Son to the Father, and to us as a most providential Father.

«My heart has uttered a good word.» The Prophet begins by saying that he will speak a good and saving word, he will proclaim great things concerning Christ. «I tell my works to the king.» He addresses, he says, his works to the king Christ; and the works of a prophet are the prophecies. ^B «And stretch and advance and reign.» Sharpen your impulse, bring to success all that you wish, and have dominion over those who come upon you for the sake of your virtues. «And your right hand shall guide you wonderfully.» And your power shall lead you to these successes, needing no one else. Wonderfully, moreover, because through the curse you will blot out the curse, and through death you will abolish death. «Your arrows are sharpened, O Mighty One; peoples will fall under you in the heart of the king’s enemies.» By hyperbaton, “your arrows are sharpened”—that is, your evangelical words. They are bright and cutting in the heart of the enemies of your king, for the putting to death of the demons, and for the perception and knowledge of the Master on the part of those men who had fallen away to idolatry. And the apostles might also be the arrows of Christ. «Your throne, O God, is for ever and ever.» Since Christ is twofold, the prophecy speaks at one time of his divine nature, and another time of his human nature. «And the rod of uprightness is the rod of your kingdom.» The throne represents the kingly office, but the rod represents the judicial. «Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your companions.» He hears also the assumption, because he has been deified. He says, therefore, “Therefore as God,” that is, by deification, “your God by nature has anointed you with the divinity,” so that you may do all things that have been said. And he anointed you above all your companions, that is, your partners according to the name Christ, that is, above all kings and priests and prophets. For to which of them is God united according to substance? He called the anointing oil; but the anointing is of gladness, since the divine nature is joy-making and the provider of ineffable cheerfulness. «My tongue is the pen of a ready-writing scribe.» My tongue ministers to the Spirit as a pen writes with a ready hand, speaking easily and without premeditation those things to which it is moved by him. «You are beautiful in form above the sons of men.» ^C It is now directed toward Christ and he discourses about the virtues of the one assumed, saying “beautiful” for his soul above all men, because he alone is sinless. «Grace has been poured out on your lips.» Your words are full of graces. «Therefore God has blessed you forever.» For these virtues of yours, therefore, God has made you to be praised through all. «Gird your sword upon your thigh, O Mighty One.» Take up your punishing power in your virtue; that is, through your sinless nature ^D and your substance, [take up] the tyranny of the devil. «Myrrh and stacte and cassia from your garments.» The garments of the Word are the soul and the flesh, which he put on for our sakes. From the flesh, then, there will be the putting to death, he says, and from the soul the descent into Hades; for stacte is heavy and downward-tending; but from both is the fragrance of sinlessness; for the cassia gives perfume, which also, due to its wood-like nature, points perhaps to the cross as well. «From ivory palaces.» He called the flesh and the soul palaces, that is, dwellings of the divinity. And by the "ivory" he hinted at the brilliance of their virtue. «From which the daughters of kings have gladdened you in your honor.» On account of which—namely the death and the descent into Hades and all that pertains to the saving passion—the souls of the faithful will gladden you in honoring you, whom the apostles of your kingdom will beget through baptism as co-heirs. «The queen stood at your right hand, in a garment of gold, adorned.»

By “queen,” he designates the assembly of the pious whom He betrothed to Christ, who shall stand in His glory, clothed in divine baptism and the grace of the Spirit, and adorned with virtues.

^A “Hear, O daughter, and see, and incline your ear.” The Prophet calls the Church of the orthodox the daughter and bride of Christ—daughter, because she was reborn to Him through baptism; bride, because she was joined to Him through the Gospel. “Hear, therefore,” he says, “what I say, and see the sufferings and wonders of the Master for your sake; and incline your ear to His commandments, and forget your people”—that is, their wicked way of life and the temple of the former father, the devil.

“And the daughters of Tyre shall worship Him with gifts.” And the metropolis of idolatry, Tyre, will worship Christ with gifts, that is, together with gifts.

“Your face the rich of the people shall entreat.” The face, or head, of the Church, is Christ, whom they shall entreat—that is, honor and beseech—both princes and kings.

“All the glory of the daughter of the king is from within.” Adorned, he says, hearing of the King’s Church; understand these things for me as being from within and in the soul.

“Clothed in gold-embroidered fringes, adorned.” By fringes, understand for me the multiform virtues and the various gifts of the Spirit, of which gold serves as a symbol of their preciousness.

“There shall be brought to the king virgins after her.” After the establishment of the Church, afterward, he says, virginity—which was not previously pursued—will be practiced, and virgin souls shall be led to you, the King, rejoicing, and regarding the hardship of virginity as nothing because of their love for you. These are near to the Church in manner because of their shared faith, and they shall be led into the heavenly temple as sacrifices.

“Instead of your fathers, sons shall be born to you.” The word is to the Church. “You have forgotten,” he says, “your fathers; and instead of these, there shall be fathers of many, those born of you through baptism.”

“You shall appoint them rulers over all the earth.” See how great the authority of the Church is; she ordains for herself the sons as stewards and leaders over all the earth. For the laws of the teachers and their doctrines have occupied the whole world, and both living and dead, they cause their decrees to act.

“I will remember your name in every generation and generation.” The Christian Church says these things to the Lord.

“Therefore the peoples shall confess to you forever, and unto the age of ages.” Because you have accounted me worthy of such providence, multitudes of believers shall give thanks to you, both in all the present age and in the one to come.

^B

PSALM XLV

“Unto the end, for the sons of Core, concerning the hidden things.” The phrase “for the sons of Core” signifies that it is sung by David through the sons of Core; and “concerning the hidden things” is for the matters hidden from the many, for many things in it are enigmatic. The psalm is spoken in the person of the apostles and martyrs, foretelling the persecutions of the Church, her endurance, and the peace that follows.

“God is our refuge and power, a helper in the afflictions that have found us greatly.” The “greatly” is to be attributed to the helper.

“Therefore we will not fear when the earth is troubled.” Since we have such a helper, even if everything were turned upside down, we would not tremble. By these sayings, he hinted at the excess of the dangers.

“Their waters roared and were troubled.” All-powerful is our helper; for often the waters of the seas have roared and surged, and the mountains have been shaken by His power.

“The streams of the river gladden the city of God.” The river is the Holy Spirit; the streams are His various gifts; the city of God is the assembly of the faithful.

“The Most High has sanctified His tabernacle.” The Church is the sanctified tabernacle of God, in the midst of which is Christ, keeping her unshaken by temptations.

^C “God shall help her in the morning, early.” In times of distress, He will help her in the morning, being beforehand in the morning, that is, very quickly, more quickly, most quickly.

“Nations were troubled.” As the Gospel was preached, all were stirred: some running to the faith, others running against it.

^D “Kingdoms bowed.” Some kingdoms warring against the Church were defeated; others were subjected to her through faith.

“The Most High gave His voice; the earth was shaken.” God only commands, and the earth is shaken, if He wishes a tremor.

“The Lord of hosts is with us.” The Church says these things.

“He will shatter the bow and break the weapon, and burn the shields with fire.” By “weapon” he means any close-combat instrument.

“Be still, and know that I am God.” Be at peace from the constant wars, both sensible and intellectual, and acknowledge my power.

PSALM XLVI

“Unto the end, for the sons of Core.” In the person of the apostles, foretelling the unconquerable power of the evangelical preaching.

“All you nations, clap your hands, shout to God with a voice of exultation. For the Lord Most High is fearsome, a great king over all the earth.” Because Christ is Most High according to His divinity, fearsome,

^A and a great king over all the earth. This He said on account of the kings of the moment, and those who rule over small parts of the earth. “He subdued nations under us, and peoples under our feet.” By “peoples” he means those from the Jews who believed; by “nations,” those from the remaining gentiles; and again, He calls those from the nations His own inheritance, but calls those from the Jews the splendor of Jacob. He says “splendor” as a remnant and as an election; for a king leaves to himself that which is preeminent over the rest. “He chose for us His own inheritance, the splendor of Jacob which He loved.” “For us” is instead of “for our sake.” “God ascended with a shout, and the Lord with the voice of a trumpet.” By “shout” and “voice of a trumpet,” he means the voices of the angels ascending with the Lord at His ascension, as they proclaim His triumphal praises. “Sing to our God, sing, sing to our King, sing.” Not with the tongue alone, but also with [the mind]. “God has reigned over the nations.” He reigned both according to His human nature and according to the willing submission of those who are reigned over. “God sits upon His holy throne.” The throne signifies the royal and judicial [nature], the seat signifies the stability, the holiness signifies the purity from all respect of persons. ^B Mounts might be Zion, and the teachers from whom the north—that is, Satan—deviates, that is, turns away. But the City of God is the assembly of the faithful. “God is known in her towers.” The Lord is recognized in the towers of the city, that He may aid it from this and protect it unconquerable. “For behold, the kings of the earth were gathered together; they passed by together.” “They passed by against it together.” “They saw, and so they marveled.” “So” is instead of “after seeing.” “There, pangs as of a travailing woman.” In them, there are intense anxieties and forebodings of dangers. “With a violent wind You will shatter the ships of Tarshish.” The “Tarshish” [ships] is figurative and singular. Enemies of Jerusalem were also traveling by way of the ships of Tarshish. The ships of Tarshish are understood as apostasies, and the demons being shattered by the violent movement of divine wrath. “Just as we heard, so also we saw.” We heard that God would become a wonder-worker for His people. This we also saw in works now among us. “God founded it for the ages.” This is clearly about the Church, against which the gates of Hades shall not prevail. “According to Your name, O God, so also is Your praise to the ends of the earth.” Just as Your name is renowned because of Your wonders and is preached even to the very extremities of the earth, so too does Your hymn match the telling of Your wonders. “Your right hand is full of righteousness.” Because it justly defends those who wrong us. “Let Mount Zion be glad, and let the daughters of Judaea rejoice.” Mount Zion is the Catholic Church; the daughters of Judaea, that is, of confession and faith, are the individual churches and the souls of the faithful. “Behold the palaces of her.” “Relate the deeds of Christ.” The towers and palaces of the Catholic Church are the individual [churches], in which the Spirit encourages the apostles to produce discourses regarding the deeds of Christ. “Set your hearts upon her power.” Be concerned for the strengthening of the Church. “And distribute her palaces, that you may relate it to another generation.” Distribute among yourselves, each one, [them] for the ordering of the local churches.

PSALM XLVIII

“To the end, to the sons of Korah. Hear these things, all nations; give ear, all you who inhabit the world.” Being in discourse with us, I will incline the ear of my soul to the [sound] echoing...

^A from me by the Holy Spirit a parable; that is to say, into a hidden discourse: for such are the prophetic [matters].

“I will open my riddle upon the lyre.” — I will manifest through the lyre, that is to say, with musical melody, my discourse.

“Why should I fear in an evil day?” — He calls the day of judgment an evil one.

“The iniquity of my heel shall surround me.” — Why should I fear? Because the iniquity of my deceit shall surround me; but deceit is sin, as it deceives the one who sins. He says this periphrastically instead of, “My sin.”

“Those who trust in their power, and boast in the multitude of their wealth.” — One must understand [the verb] “let them hear” in connection with this.

“Like sheep they are put in Hades; death shall shepherd them.” — Since they became brutish, God will place them in the place of punishment like sheep ready for destruction, and Gehenna shall lord it over them.

“And the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning.” — And the virtuous shall very quickly become superior to them, as masters over slaves, even if this was not the case in this world.

“And their help shall grow old in Hades.” — That is to say, it shall be obliterated.

“They are thrust out from their glory.” — They shall be torn away ^B from their glory [derived] from wealth and buildings, being led to Hades.

“A brother does not redeem; man shall redeem,” — A stranger man, that is to say.

“He shall not give to God an expiation for himself.” — For he who trusts in his power shall not give anything else as a ransom to God for himself in the judgment.

“And the price of the redemption of his soul.” — He signifies to me by redemption [the process of] release, and by price [what is] the ransom. He says that he who boasts in wealth shall not purchase salvation for himself.

“And he labored forever.” — He who labored in this life for the sake of God shall attain to the life to come.

“He shall not see corruption, when he sees the wise dying.” — He calls corruption here the destruction of the soul, the eternal suffering, which he who has labored according to God shall not see in his own case, when he gazes upon the wise men of the world—the inquisitive, that is to say, and wicked men—dying the death in Gehenna.

“Together the senseless and the foolish shall perish, and they shall leave their wealth to others.” — He divides the one who is wise in conceit into the senseless and the foolish; and he calls him senseless who does not know the true God, and foolish him who is alarmed by earthly things; both shall be obliterated together from the portion of those who are saved.

“And their graves shall be their houses forever.” — Their houses and their dwellings shall be until the consummation their graves, and not the brilliant and expensive residences which they constructed.

“They called their names upon the lands.” — They made for themselves cities, and regions, and fields named after themselves.

“And man, being in honor, did not understand; he was compared to senseless cattle and was made like them.” — And every man of them, being in honor by the [image] of the one according to the image, ignored this willfully, and was joined to the cattle.

“This way of theirs is a stumbling block to them.” — This conduct of theirs, that is to say, the likeness to cattle, is for them a hindrance to virtue.

“And after these things, they shall take pleasure in their mouth.” — And after having been made like the cattle, ^C through their mouth they shall be pleased with the deeds [done], that is to say, “We did well,” they will say, and they shall praise the evil.

“But God shall redeem my soul from the hand of Hades, when he takes me.” — He prophesies that the God Word, when He takes the human form, shall rescue the souls of men from the possession of Hades.

“For his soul shall be blessed in his life.” — For He also, so long as we live, shall bestow grace.

“He shall confess to Thee when Thou doest good to him.” — To God the Word he shall give thanks when he encounters good things; but when he encounters painful [ones], he...

“He shall enter even to the generation of his fathers.” — There the generation of his ancestors shall arrive into the outer, eternal darkness.

“And man, being in honor, did not understand.” — He repeats, bewailing [the fact].

PSALM XLIX

“A Psalm to Asaph.” — And this psalm is concerning the common judgment; except that in the one before this, every wicked person is accused, whereas in this one, the Jews specifically are rebuked.

“The God of gods, the Lord, has spoken and called the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting.” — The Lord and God and Creator of all those called gods shall speak as judge and shall call the whole earth, because the judgment is also universal.

“Out of Zion is the beauty of His perfection.” — From this point until the [verse], “Hear, my people,” concerning the divine will. He says now that from Zion shall be the taking [on of humanity] by the Word, which is the temple and the glory of ^D His greatness, that is to say, His divinity.

“God shall come manifested.” — In the first coming He came secretly; but in the second He shall come with power and great glory.

“Our God, and He shall not keep silence.” — He shall not be long-suffering, but shall reward each according to his works.

“Fire shall be kindled in His presence, and a very great tempest round about Him.” — He signifies by these things His fearful and insurmountable [character]; and a tempest is a violent and unbearable onrush of wind.

“He shall call the heaven above, and the earth.”

^A for the sake of judging His people, and for the sake of rebuking His people, the Jewish people.

“Gather unto Him His saints.” He calls the Hebrews holy, as having been consecrated to Him.

“Those who establish His covenant upon sacrifices.” Those who administer and fulfill His law upon sacrifices alone.

“And the heavens shall declare His righteousness, for God is judge.” The heavens shall proclaim His righteousness, because He is truly judge, having righteousness by nature.

“Hear, O my people, and I will speak to thee.” Henceforth are the words of God. And [the expression] “I will testify” is put for “I will speak with boldness.”

“I have known all the birds of the heaven, and the beauty of the field is with me.” “Beauty of the field” [means] the fruits produced at their seasons; and “with me” [is used] instead of “beside me.” ^B

PSALM L.

“Unto the end, a Psalm of David. When Nathan the prophet came unto him, when he went in to Bathsheba.” The word “when” here indicates a subsequent time, instead of “after which.”

“Have mercy on me, O God, according to Thy great mercy, and according to the multitude of Thy compassions, blot out my transgressions.” Worthy of Thy great mercy, have mercy on me who have sinned greatly against Thee.

“Wash me more from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.” For he was forgiven also through Nathan. And “more” (ἐπὶ πλεῖον) is used here for “greatly” (ἄγαν).

“For I know mine iniquity, and my sin is before me always.” Have mercy on me, he says, because I did not forget my sin, despising it, but I turn it over in my mind always. ^C

“If I hunger, I will not tell thee.” This is ironical.

“Sacrifice to God a sacrifice of praise.” He says [this means] thanksgiving.

“And pay to the Highest thy vows.” By vows he means promises of pleasing [God]; for from the fact of being called slaves of God, we have promised to please the Master.

“But to the sinner, God said.” He calls the choir of the priests and scribes a sinner.

“If thou sawest a thief, thou didst run with him, and didst place thy portion with adulterers.” By adulterers here he means anyone who is licentious with fleshly desires.

“Thy mouth abounded with wickedness.” It was filled with falsehood. The construction is indifferent here, as it is in many places.

“Sitting, thou didst speak against thy brother, and against the son of thy mother thou didst lay a stumbling block.” Sitting in counsel with some; and by “brother and son of thy mother,” in parallel terms, he means one who shares the same nature and faith. And by “stumbling block” [he means] the snare, that is, the treachery.

“These things thou hast done, and I kept silent.” I was longsuffering.

“Thou imaginedst iniquity that I should be like thee.” While I was longsuffering, thou didst imagine that I shared in the approval of those who sin.

“Understand then these things, ye who forget God.” Those who are unmindful of God because of His longsuffering.

“Lest He seize, and there be none to deliver.” Lest He snatch away our souls through cutting angels. ^D

“A sacrifice of praise shall glorify Me.” By the sacrifice of thanksgiving I have my glory, and not by that of animals.

“And there is the way by which I will show him My salvation.” And in that sacrifice is the way by which I will show to him who so sacrifices, the salvation from Me.

“To Thee only have I sinned, and done evil before Thee.” Being Myself king, and subject to Thee only as Judge, to Thee only have I sinned. Or otherwise: Even if I wronged Uriah, yet this sin passes through to Thee; for I have transgressed Thy laws. Or that, having escaped the notice of others, to Thee alone have I become known as having sinned.

“That Thou mightest be justified in Thy words.” “That” here is not indicative of cause, but of result. For he says, I have done evil against my own head, so that in Thy pleadings against me, Thou mightest appear justified and blameless, while I am condemned and guilty, and in Thy bringing Thyself into judgment with me, Thou mightest win, and I be defeated. And God is judged with us when He rebukes us.

“For behold, in iniquities I was conceived, and in sins did my mother conceive me.” I was held fast in iniquities; my mother, as it seems, bore me for this, for sinning; for Symmachus said “bore” for “conceive.”

“For behold, Thou hast loved truth.” I confess my iniquities, because Thou lovest the truth.

“The unknown and hidden things of Thy wisdom Thou hast manifested to me.” This he says for his own shame.

“Thou shalt sprinkle me with hyssop, and I shall be cleansed; Thou shalt wash me, and I shall be made whiter than snow.” These things have the power of a prayer. And he denotes forgiveness figuratively by hyssop.

“Thou shalt make me hear gladness and joy.” Thou shalt cause the joy of the assurance of forgiveness to ring in the ears of my soul.

“And the bones which have been humbled shall rejoice.” By the bones he signifies his whole self, crushed by the burden of sin.

“Turn Thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities.” Pass over my transgressions.

^A “Create in me a clean heart, O God.” By heart he means the soul. By “create,” he means “restore.”

“And renew a right spirit within my inmost parts.” A right spirit is the spiritual gift of uprightness. “Renew,” that is, make new again. By “inmost parts,” he calls the hidden things of the understanding and the depths of the reasonings.

“Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation.” The joy I had from being saved by Thee.

“And establish me with Thy governing spirit.” Strengthen me with a gift sovereign over the passions, and a guide toward better things.

“I will teach transgressors Thy ways, and ungodly men shall turn unto Thee.” To other sinners I shall be a model of repentance and conversion.

“Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, the God of my salvation.” Bloodguiltiness is said of unjust murders, and of the demons who rejoice in these things.

“My tongue shall rejoice in Thy righteousness.” Through the proclamation of the justification, that is, the freedom from my sin, which has come to pass from Thee.

“O Lord, Thou shalt open my lips, and my mouth shall declare Thy praise.” Thou shalt open toward Thy glorification and singing those things locked up by the condemnation because of sin.

“For if Thou hadst desired sacrifice, I would have given it; Thou wilt not take pleasure in burnt offerings.” “Thou wilt not take pleasure,” instead of “Thou wilt not accept.”

“A sacrifice to God is a broken spirit.” A soul voluntarily humbled.

“A broken heart God will not despise.” He will not reject, He will not turn away.

“Deal favorably, O Lord, in Thy good pleasure with Zion.” To “deal favorably” is to do good; Zion is the assembly of the faithful and every pious soul, and perhaps also the one presiding over the Church, and the firm reasonings fortifying the soul. Sacrifice is righteousness, that is, just virtue. And an offering, that is, an immolation, is partial virtue; but the total and complete one is a burnt offering; and calves are those who, through action and contemplation, gore the devil and offer themselves up to God as an odor of sweetness.

^D PSALM LI. “Unto the end, a Psalm of instruction for David, when Doeg the Edomite came and told Saul, and said to him, ‘David came into the house of Ahimelech.’” Fleeing from Saul, David became hungry, and having gone to the city of Nob to the priests, to Abimelech the high priest, he was reported to Saul by Doeg, the overseer of the royal mules. Saul, having been driven to madness, came and slaughtered the three hundred and fifty priests through Doeg, and delivered their whole city to utter destruction; having learned of this, David composed the present Psalm. It should be noted that “Ahimelech” seems to be a scribal error, having occurred [because of the] great similarity of the Hebrew characters; for both the *beth* and the *kap* ^A in the Hebrew for this name—and indeed the Books of Kings declare the name of the high priest.

“Why boastest thou thyself in wickedness, mighty man?” Mighty in wickedness and malicious, the traitor Judas, or rather the devil and his minister.

“Thy tongue hath devised all-day iniquity, injustice.” In an unconnected manner, thy tongue uttered iniquity and injustice continually.

“Thou hast made deceit as a sharpened razor.” Thou hast prepared a sharp and active stratagem.

“Thou hast loved all words of shipwreck, a deceitful tongue.” Shipwrecking and destructive words against men.

“Therefore may God tear thee down forever.” The optative used instead of the future indicative; for they are prophecies in the form of a curse.

“May He uproot thee, and remove thee from thy dwelling.” The dwelling of the soul is the body; but the presence [residence] with us is of Satan.

“And thy root from the land of the living.” Root is the race, and the establishing of that presence.

“The righteous shall see, and fear.” They shall see the destruction of the wicked, and by the fear of an inescapable judgment, they shall become more secure.

“And they shall laugh at him, and shall say: Behold, the man who did not set God as his helper.” “Man” is also said of the devil because of his love of pleasure.

“But he trusted in the multitude of his wealth, and was strengthened by his vanity.” By wealth he calls the acquisition of wickedness.

“But I am like a fruitful olive tree in the house of God.” He prophesies that he will be kept uncorrupted under the shelter of God, like an olive tree whose fruit has not fallen off.

“I will confess to Thee forever, because Thou hast done it.” Thou hast done it, namely, dealt judgment.

“And I will wait on Thy name, for it is good before Thy saints.” For this is profitable before those who have been consecrated and dedicated to Thee.

PSALM LII. “Unto the end, concerning Mahalath, a Psalm of instruction for David.” The thirteenth according to the promise; it is the same, except for a few things, but it has a mysterious meaning; for the whole of it accuses the frenzy of the Jews against Christ.

“The fool said in his heart, There is no God; they were corrupted, and became abominable in iniquities.” The foolish Jewish people reasoned in their heart, and formed a dogma concerning Christ, that He is not God, but a mere man.

“For God hath scattered the bones of the men-pleasers.” He calls the Jews men-pleasers, who, even doing service to Caesar, cried out: “We have no king but Caesar,” whose bones, that is, the tribes by which they were composed, He scattered.

^A

“They were put to shame, because God despised them.” — Shame was set before all nations, because Christ made them a contempt and a reproach.

PSALM LIII [LIV]

“Unto the end, in hymns of understanding, by David, when the Ziphites came and said to Saul: Does not David hide with us?” — That is, when the Ziphites came and said to Saul: “Does not David hide with us?” Fleeing from Saul, David sat in the desert of Ziph. The Ziphites feigned friendship toward David, but they betrayed him to Saul, and he marched against him. While this was happening, a war of the foreigners occurred, and Saul, being distracted toward this war of the foreigners, David obtained safety, and fleeing from there, he composed the present psalm as a thanksgiving to God.

“O God, in Thy name save me.” — Either because Thou art named Savior, save me also, or because the invocation of Thy name is sufficient for me for salvation.

“And in Thy power judge me.” — And because Thou art powerful, Thou wilt avenge me.

“O God, hear my prayer; hearken to the words of my mouth, for strangers have risen up against me.” ^B — By “strangers” he might mean the Ziphites, because they were alienated from their good will toward him; and “mighty” those around Saul, because of his military formation. But we know the demons who plot against the soul to be “strangers,” as they are apostates from God, and “mighty” in wickedness, and as they are bodiless and rulers of the world. ^C

“And they have not set God before them.” — They did not set God before the face of their soul, that is, they remembered not that He sees all things and will judge righteously.

“In Thy truth destroy them.” — Because Thou art true, bring to naught them who are liars, who say one thing but hasten to do another.

“I will freely sacrifice to Thee.” — Not out of forced necessity, but from a warm resolve I will offer to Thee a sacrifice of thanksgiving.

“I will confess to Thy name, O Lord.” — I will give thanks to Thee. This serves as an explanation of “I will sacrifice to Thee.” And “I will give thanks to Thee,” because out of every affliction Thou hast delivered me.

“For it is good, for out of every affliction Thou hast delivered me.” — For it is good to confess to the Lord.

“And my eye has looked down upon mine enemies.” — And among my enemies I have already seen with my perceptive eyes what I desired, that is, to see ^D requital. The past tense is used for the future.

PSALM LIV [LV]

“Unto the end, in hymns of understanding, by David. Hearken, O God, to my prayer, and despise not my supplication. Attend to me, and hear me; I was grieved in my complaining, and was troubled.” — By “complaining” here he names the continuous succession of misfortunes, or even the constant meditation and the bewilderment as to how he might escape the plots of his enemies; for the word “complaining” indicates various things, but always denotes continuity.

“Because of the voice of the enemy and because of the affliction of the sinner.” — By “voice of the enemy” he means accusations, reproaches, and insults; but by “affliction,” persecutions.

“For they have turned aside iniquity upon me.” — They have set in motion against me an iniquity of which I knew nothing, having slandered me as being a conspirator against the king.

“And in wrath they were embittered against me.” — And while becoming enraged against me, they bore malice against me.

“Fear and trembling came upon me, and darkness covered me.” — He speaks of dejection.

“And I said, Who will give me wings like a dove, and I will fly away and be at rest?” — He asked for the wings of a dove, not so much because the creature flies quickly, but because of its harmlessness; since such a one the prophet also desired [to be so as] to fly away into safe places, and to rest from constant fears and toils.

“Lo, I have fled far away, and lodged in the wilderness.” — Instead of “fleeing.”

“I awaited God who saves me from smallness of soul and from the tempest.” — By “tempest” he means the storm of temptations.

“Submerge, O Lord, and divide their tongues.” — Shut up in their mouth the blasphemous tongues of the Jews and make them inarticulate, and break up their concord, having scattered the God-killers—as many as the sword of the Romans shall overtake.

“For I saw iniquity and gainsaying in the city.” — I have beheld with prophetic eyes in the city of Jerusalem iniquity, because they were seeking to put to death the Author of life, and gainsaying, because they contradicted Him while He was teaching saving things.

“Day and night iniquity shall surround it upon its walls.” — Continually wickedness has encompassed the whole city.

“Iniquity and labor in the midst of it and injustice.” — Not only that, but there was also labor in the city in the machinations against their opponents, and dishonor in overreaching; and the usury of the Law, which forbids this, and deceit in their transactions.

“For if an enemy had reproached me, I would have endured it.” — What follows is addressed to Judas in the person of Christ.

“But thou, O man, like-minded, my guide and my acquaintance.” — “Wherefore?” is missing, that is, “Why hast thou reproached me?” or “despised me,” or “Why hast thou spoken haughtily?” or “acted shameless.” He calls him “like-minded” as one beloved; “guide,” as one ordained with the other disciples as a teacher of the believers and a leader; and “acquaintance,” as a most intimate associate.

“Who together with me didst sweeten my meals.” — Who, being with me, didst give me food—[that which was] sensible, as a servant, and intelligible, as an apostle; this would be the teaching of the proclamation.

^A “In the house of God we walked in harmony.” — A pit of corruption is the deep and inescapable ^B [place] of punishment, called [so] because the Lord shall bring down those who plot against the innocent, when He renders to each according to their deserts.

“Bloodthirsty and deceitful men shall not halve their days.” — This is said for the sake of intimidation and as a restraint against wickedness for one who abounds in it; for some have grown old in evil.

“Bloodthirsty and deceitful men.” — The bloodthirsty and the deceitful.

PSALM LVI

“To the end, concerning the people far removed from the holy [things], by David for an inscription, when the Philistines held him in Gath. Have mercy on me, O God.” — When David had gone away to the fields, to the Philistine, and was recognized and captured, since he then feigned madness and escaped, he composed the present psalm. But wishing the divine benefit toward him to be proclaimed, he inscribed it for an inscription, that is, for an indelible writing, by transfer from those who record certain words on stone or bronze stelae for eternal remembrance. It is appropriate in its entirety also for the people who have been carried off into captivity, both sensibly and intelligibly; for the one kept away from the holy things, whether the temple in Jerusalem in terms of the body, or saintly men in terms of their conduct.

“Their words were smoother than oil; and they are darts.” — Do not look for sequence and order of events in the prophets. For behold, this utterance foretells the hypocritical words of the Jews toward Christ; for they offered Him smooth words before they killed Him, calling Him “Rabbi,” and saying that He is true, and such things; but within, they were sharpened arrows, thirsting for His blood.

“Cast your burden upon the Lord, and He will nourish you.” — This is an exhortation common to all who are plotted against.

“He will not give trembling for the age to the righteous.” — He will not abandon the righteous to suffer an excess of temptation until the end.

“But Thou, O God, shall bring them down into a pit ^C of corruption.” — A deep and inescapable pit of corruption.

“In the house of God we walked in harmony.” — We walked in the sanctuary with one mind; such an inseparable and genuine [friend] I held you to be.

“Let death come upon them; and let them go down alive into Hades.” — David, proceeding from this, curses the traitor and the rest of the Christ-killers regarding the terrible things that are about to overtake them; and by “death” he means that from hanging and from war, and whatever else is bitter; and by “Hades” he means the precipices and the pits, into which the Hebrews cast themselves alive out of the necessity of the Roman war.

“For there is wickedness in their dwellings, in their midst.” — He called their habitations “dwellings” because of their temporary [nature]; and he said “in their midst” instead of “in the depths,” and not superficially, but in their hearts.

“Evening and morning and at noon I will tell and proclaim, and He will hear my voice.” — Namely, the miracles of God.

“He will redeem my soul in peace from those who draw near to me.” — He will redeem, he says, my soul from my kinsmen without war; and the word implies heaviness. And those who draw near would be the enemies who are already pressing upon me. And “in the many” [is] instead of “with a crowd.” And “with me” indicates the seizure by the enemies, as it were, and the fact that both he himself and those who are pursuing him are in it.

“For there is no exchange for them, and they feared not God.” — There is no exchange for them [to turn] from wickedness.

“He stretched out his hand in rendering.” — Therefore also He has already stretched out, that is, God will stretch out His punishing power, for the purpose of rendering to them the punishment that is owed.

“They profaned His covenant.” — For they despised His Law and the Gospel.

“They were dispersed from the face of His earth.” — Out of His wrath they were dispersed, being taken captive and scattered everywhere, and their hearts were pricked so as to acknowledge the Lord, saying, “Lest peradventure we suffer these things because of Jesus”; ^D yet they did not truly despair.

“For man trampled me, all the day long warring he afflicted me.” — “Man” is understood as Saul, and the Babylonian king, because of his human-minded and pleasure-loving nature. And “trampled” indicates that he despised, that he crushed, and that he seized [me] while pursuing, and, as it were, trampled [me] down.

“From on high.” — “Height” indicates both dominion and accuracy; for the one who shoots from above strikes accurately.

“In the day I will not fear; for I will hope in Thee.” — By “day” he means the prosperity of the enemies.

“In God I will praise my words.” — In speaking concerning God, I will make my words praiseworthy.

“In God I have hoped; I will not fear what flesh shall do to me.” — By “flesh” he means the one subject to passions.

“All the day long they abhorred my words.” — They turned away, they mocked.

“Against me their reasonings are for evil.” — To do me harm.

“They will dwell and hide.” — They will remain and hide snares for me.

“They will watch my heel.” — They will observe my path so as to snare me.

“As they waited for my soul.” — As they, while lying in wait, waited for me, so also Thou shalt cast them off for nothing, which is to say, easily, as being nothing; for “for” here is synonymous with “instead of.”

“In anger Thou shalt bring down the peoples.” — Only being angered, Thou shalt crush entire multitudes.

“O God, my life I have declared to Thee.” — My way of life I have made clear to Thee.

“Thou hast set my tears before Thee, as also in”

Thy promise.” ^A Since Thou hast seen my tears, as Thou didst promise in Thy law concerning the wronged, He moans and says to Me, “And I shall hearken to him; for I am merciful.” “My enemies shall be turned back, in whatever day I shall call upon Thee.” — That is to say, they shall flee. “Behold, I have known that Thou art my God.” — I have already known, or rather I straightforwardly perceive, since I am being hearkened to, that Thou art my God. “In God shall I praise the word, in the Lord shall I praise the discourse.” — And here, “I shall praise” is used to mean “I shall make praiseworthy,” and “word” signifies a brief speech, while “discourse” signifies something greater. “In God have I hoped, I shall not fear what man shall do unto me.” — The one he called “man” in the beginning of the Psalm, he speaks of here also. “In me, O God, are the vows which I will render of Thy praise.” — In my memory are the promises to give praise, which I shall also fulfill. “To make me well-pleasing before the Lord in the light of the living.” — I shall perform things well-pleasing to the Lord so long as I behold this light which shines for the living. ^B “Be Thou exalted above the heavens, O God; and Thy glory above all the earth.” — Be known as exalted and heavenly even to those who do not know Thee, and let Thy majesty run over all the earth. “They prepared a snare for my feet, and bowed down my soul.” — They constructed a hunting-net for me by their plots and put me to death. “They dug a pit before my face, and fell into it themselves.” — They prepared a pit of destruction for me by their words, but they themselves were endangered. “My heart is ready, O God, my heart is ready; I will sing and psalm.” — Having, therefore, Thine assistance, I am prepared for every temptation that passes over me. “In my glory.” — By “glory,” he means the understanding by which he was glorified. “Awake, my glory.” — He speaks of the prophetic gift again as “glory.” “Awake, psaltery and harp.” — The psaltery is referred to the soul, the harp to the body. “I shall awake at dawn.” — “At dawn,” instead of “quickly.”

PSALM LVII

^A To be visited, he entreats, through the incarnation.

“They shall be brought to nothing like water flowing away.” “He shall stretch forth his bow, until he is weakened.” — He shall not cease casting punishments upon them, until he destroys their power. “Fire fell upon them, and they saw not the sun.” — May the God-sent wrath come upon them, and they shall be deprived of life. “Before your thorns can perceive the rhamnus.” — The rhamnus is a large and hard thorny plant. Turning, therefore, to the enemies, he says: Before your thorns, that is, your sins, perceive the rhamnus—practically speaking, because they have grown and multiplied—this fire shall fall. “As if alive, as if in wrath, He shall swallow you up.” — The fire spoken of, that is. Now, “as if alive,” means while they are still living; and “as if in wrath,” means abruptly. And “shall swallow up” denotes the gracefulness of the destruction. “The righteous shall rejoice when he sees the vengeance of the ungodly.” — Not at the fall of the wicked, but at the righteous judgment of God. “He shall wash his hands in the blood of the sinner.” — Not defiling them with blood, but he himself shall be washed in the destruction of the sinner. That is, he shall be shown innocent of such destruction. “And a man shall say: Is there indeed a fruit for the righteous? Is there a God judging them on the earth?” — And the prudent man shall say: “The vengeance is a fruit for the righteous; truly God judges the righteous and the unrighteous in the world.”

PSALM LVIII

“Unto the end, destroy not, for David, for an inscription, when Saul sent, and he watched his house to slay him. Deliver me from my enemies, O God.” The psalm advises one to see to the end of temptations and not to let patience be destroyed; it is made as an unceasing memorial of things that have occurred and is entirely against the God-killers. “And deliver me from them that rise up against me.” — By those rising up, he means those attacking and assaulting. “For behold, they hunted my soul, mighty men set upon me.” — As much as it depends on them. “Neither my iniquity, nor my sin, O Lord.” — The cause is omitted; for I neither transgressed nor have I sinned against them, but I walked without fault, and for this reason I have accomplished great things. These things would suit rather the sinless Christ, who is unjustly plotted against by the Jews. “Awake to meet me and behold.” — Be moved to meet me as I flee, and to strengthen me, and behold what I suffer. “And thou, O Lord the God of hosts, the God of Israel.” — The God of the angels, or the Mighty One, or the Giver of power. “Attend to visit all the nations.” ^B — To be visited, he entreats, through the incarnation.

“Do not show mercy to all them that work iniquity.” — Those who are unrepentant, whether those around Saul, or the God-killers, or the demons. “They shall return at evening.” — They return from the dispersion late and with difficulty to Jerusalem, and they shall have no abundance of food, but they shall even be treated as a defilement and shall lodge in the outskirts, round about the city. “And they shall hunger as a dog, and shall circle the city.” — He takes the dog for an example because this animal is excessively hungry and because of its lack of shame. “Behold, they shall speak with their mouth.” — The cause is that they themselves bring forth a judgment through their own mouth against Christ, saying, “Let him be crucified.” “And a sword is in their lips.” — He calls the death-dealing proclamation which they brought forth a sword, as if no one were hearing or seeing. “For who hath heard?” — They thought that no one heard. “And thou, O Lord, shall laugh them to scorn, thou shalt bring to nothing all the nations.” — By nations he means here those who set themselves against divine laws and the structures of the demons. “I will keep my strength to thee: for thou, O God, art my helper.” — I will leave my kingdom with thee so that I might receive it from thee. “O my God, his mercy shall go before me.” — May he anticipate my request; so swift is he to help. “O my God, thou shalt let me see among my enemies.” — That which I wish is omitted. “Slay them not: lest they at any time forget thy law.” — For death takes away memory. “Scatter them in thy power; and bring them down, my protector, O Lord.” ^C — “Bring them down” denotes “humble them.” “The sin of their mouth, the word of their lips.” — The sin of the God-killing was completed through their mouth, even if they were not the ones who performed the act with their own hands—though they were at the death of the Lord. The word which they spoke, “Take him, take him, crucify him,” that was the sin of the God-killing; that destroyed the Lord. “And let them be taken in their pride.” — Since, when they were acting arrogantly against Christ, they said, “We have no king but Caesar,” let them be delivered to the kingdom of Caesar. “And they shall be spoken of in cursing and lying unto the end.” — And because of the outrage and the slander—that is, because of the outrage and slander against Christ—they shall become a byword and a mockery at the end, that is, at the destruction. “In the wrath of destruction, and they shall be no more.” —

Not simply for a total end, but rather in wrath for a completion, and hence they shall no longer be established again in their commonwealth. For he did not speak of the total destruction, but the ruin of the commonwealth, which he does not announce simply as something the Christ-killers were to suffer, but with the addition of many and severe punishments. ^A “And they shall know that God governs Jacob and the ends of the earth.” Here he calls Christ God. “They themselves shall be scattered to eat; but if they are not satisfied, they shall murmur.” They shall be scattered, begging for the sake of food; but since they will not be satisfied, they will not repent toward the Lord, but will murmur like their ancestors. The conjunction “and” here is superfluous.

PSALM LIX

“Unto the end, for those who shall be changed, for a pillar-inscription to David, for instruction, when he burned the Mesopotamia of Syria and the Syria of Zobah, and Joab returned and smote Edom in the Valley of Salt, twelve thousand.” It is for a pillar-inscription to David for instruction, when he burned the Mesopotamia of Syria and the Syria of Zobah, and Joab returned and smote in the Valley of Salt twelve thousand. The Valley of Salt is a place, through which he pointed out those who dwell there. By “those who shall be changed,” he means the Jews who came from the servitude of their captors into freedom, or rather those who have been liberated from the demonic tyranny through baptism; and by “instruction” he means the benefits or patience.

“O God, you have pushed us away and pulled us down, you were angry and had pity on us.” Historically, he speaks of the earthquake and turmoil of the land of the Jews, up to the destruction of the city that was in it, and the looting and the confusion of the people; but anagogically, he speaks of the transformation of the inhabited world from idolatry to the knowledge of God, and from the Law to the Gospel—all the turmoil that people experienced from the news of the miracles and the teachings of Christ at the time He was living on earth.

“Heal the breaches thereof, for it was shaken.” Historically, he calls the fall of Jerusalem and the cities around it “breaches,” but anagogically, he means the spiritual resistance of men against the Lord, and by “wavering,” the turning aside from what is right.

“You have shown your people hard things.” For the Jews, the things of the captivity were painful; for those who have believed, the narrow and afflicted way of virtue.

“You have given us wine of compunction to drink.” The wine of compunction is the afflictions that bring repentance for past offenses, and the evangelical preaching that at once gladdens and leads to repentance.

“You have given a sign to those who fear you, to flee from the face of the bow.” It is as if he marked ^A those who feared you, and they were not destroyed; for the bow signifies every hostile line of battle. The sign for them was the seal of holy baptism and the form of the life-bearing cross, through which we flee from the varied bow of the demons.

“That your beloved may be delivered.” He again states the cause of the sign.

“Save with your right hand, and hear me.” He now calls the power the right hand.

“God has spoken in His holy one.” David speaks this in his own person, saying, “God has spoken through His Holy Spirit,” that is to say, “I will exult in the satisfaction of my people, and I will allot to them the city of the tribe of Ephraim, called Sichem, and the field lying before Sichem, which is called the Valley of Tents.” Through these, he indicated the whole of Judea.

“Gilead is mine, and Manasseh is mine.” Through these names he has indicated all the tribes which God takes as His own again, even if he pushed them away because of sin. And Christ would say these things, taking as His own those who were His according to the flesh, and even more so those who believed from among them.

“And Ephraim is the strengthening of my head.” He calls “head” the beginning and the kingdom, which they occupy for the sake of the people.

“Moab is the pot of my hope.” Moab, that is, the nation of the Moabites, shall be a pot, that is, a servant—for a pot is a servile vessel; and the servant of my hope, that is, of those who hope in me.

“Upon Edom I will extend my shoe.” By “shoe” he means the journey. He says that I will also subjugate the Edomites to my people, having campaigned with him. The God-bearing flesh of Christ is also called the shoe of His divinity, through which He willed to visit even the Gentiles, that is to say, to lead them to the knowledge of Himself.

“To me the foreigners have been subjected.” “Have been subjected” is used in place of “shall be subjected.”

“Who will lead me into the fortified city?” Through this person of the captives, the Prophet calls out for Jerusalem, naming it a “fortified city” because of its well-walled state. In his own person, he desires to see the Church of the faithful, which is fortified by virtues, spiritual gifts, and divine powers.

“Or who will lead me as far as Edom?” In the same way, the captives long for the unbelieving Judea to be enslaved; but the Prophet seeks to see even this one having believed.

“Is it not you, O God, who have pushed us away?” Namely, the Jewish people who sinned.

“And will you not go forth, O God, in our powers?” These things befit the Church of the faithful as well.

“Give us help in afflictions, and vain is the salvation of man.” Salvation from man is false.

“In God we shall make power.” Through the

^A powerful works of God, that is to say, great achievements, we shall labor.

PSALM LXI

“Unto the end, in hymns, for David. Hear, O God, my supplication, attend to my prayer.” The present psalm has the same purpose as the previous one. “In hymns,” because he praises the Benefactor, recounting His benefits.

“From the ends of the earth I have cried to Thee.” Instead of, “from Babylon.” For Babylon could be called the ends of the earth, as it is the extremity of our inhabited world; or, instead of, “from afar.” But he who does not live uprightly and godly is far from God.

“When my heart was in anguish, Thou hast exalted me on a rock.” ^B When I grew weary with tribulations, Thou didst raise me to the height and security of the hope in Thee, not allowing me to be submerged by calamities.

“Thou hast guided me, for Thou hast become my hope.” Thou hast guided me toward good and saving things, since I possessed a hope of salvation.

“A tower of strength from the face of the enemy.” Taken together, “Thou hast become a tower of strength before the enemy,” so as to prevent him.

“I shall dwell in Thy tabernacle for ever.” The tabernacle of God is the divine temple and the heavenly place. And “for ever” signifies the eternal.

“Thou hast given an inheritance to those that fear Thy name.” For, He says, come, inherit the kingdom prepared for you. Historically, one might say, the land of promise.

“Thou wilt add days to the days of the king.” Thou wilt add many days to the days of the king, he says, because of his love for God. The Jew says this refers to Zorobabel. But what follows fits no one else except the great King, Christ. For over His numbered days of life in the world, the Word of God, as the Author of His life beyond the world, has added days beyond number; wherefore the Prophet, clarifying the added days, brought in the following: and let no one be troubled by the name of “addition.” For it is possible for a finite quantity to have something added to it: that which is infinite at the end, that is, the endless, but not the reverse.

^C “His years even to our generation.” This is clarifying the addition; for His years, he says, are even to the last day of the two generations, that of the old and the new people, that is to say, even to the consummation. For it was that which required confirmation; for after the consummation, it is clear to all that He shall live forever; for death no longer rules over anyone.

“He remains for ever before God.” David most clearly teaches the life of Christ, saying that He shall remain continuously before God and the Father.

“Who shall seek out His mercy and truth?” No one shall search out so as to understand; for they are incomprehensible.

“So will I sing to Thy name for ever.” As now, so, he says, shall I sing to Thee always.

“To render my vows day by day.” So as to render to Thee the promises of my praises day by day, that is, in succession of days; for he has promised many times in the preceding psalms to praise God always.

PSALM LXII

“Unto the end, a psalm for David, for Idithum.” The psalm predicts the stand of the Maccabees for piety, encouraging even us to patience and the hope that is in God. It is fitting for all who have struggled for piety.

“Shall not my soul be subject to God? For from Him is my salvation.” I shall not abide by divine decrees.

“My helper, I shall not be moved more.” He calls cowardice a “staggering.”

“How long do you attack a man? You all murder.” Transpositively: “How long do you all attack a weak man, as one who pushes against a wall inclined to fall, and against a fence that has been shaken, so that they may be completely destroyed, how long do you murder?”

“But they took counsel to push away my honor.” The enemies took counsel to push away from me the piety prepared for you; for indeed, it is an honor to serve God.

“I ran in thirst.” They hastened in great desire toward this.

“With their mouth they blessed, and with their heart they cursed.” In their lips they flattered, but in their soul they practiced outrage.

“For from Him is my patience.” He gives me perseverance in tribulations.

“For He is my God and my savior; my helper, I shall not be moved.” I shall not depart from servitude to God.

“In God is my salvation and my glory.” In God, not in man, both that I am saved and that I am glorified.

“God of my help, and my hope is in God.” God is my helper.

“Hope in Him, all you congregation of peoples; pour out your hearts before Him: for God is our helper for ever.” Empty out before Him all your thoughts; dedicate them to Him and have no division toward Him.

“But vain are the sons of men.” Truly foolish are those who are glued to human things and do not always look toward God.

“False are the sons of men in the balances of injustice.” He calls them judgments and says: False ^D

^A are those who choose things that are unstable over things that are established, so as to act unjustly toward both themselves in their souls and others in practical matters.

“They are of vanity altogether.” — “At the same thing” means they are in agreement because of vanity.

“If wealth flows, do not set your heart upon it.” — If your wealth comes to you like a stream, do not anchor your heart to it.

“God has spoken once; twice have I heard these things.” — “Once” is used instead of “certainly” and “without any ambiguity.”

“That power belongs to God, and to you, O Lord, is mercy.” — That God alone is mighty, and that God alone is merciful; and as the Mighty One, He will drive away our enemies, but as the Merciful One, He will have mercy on us and take us to Himself.

PSALM LXII (LXIII)

“A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judea. O God, my God, I seek you in the morning.” — Thus, in this wilderness, and with such a disposition, I appeared to you, serving you in the tabernacle.

“In a desert and pathless and waterless land; thus I appeared to you in the holy place, to see your power and your glory.” — But I stand before you in the morning, that I might see your power and your glory against my enemies; or rather, you will be glorified as the helper of those who hope in you.

“For your mercy is better than lives.” — He calls “lives” those that are luxurious and pleasurable.

“Thus will I bless you in my life.” — Thus also now, that is, with my whole soul.

“In your name I will lift up my hands.” — To you alone will I stretch out my hands.

“As with fat and richness may my soul be filled.” — Just as someone is delighted by fat and oil, so am I by praising you.

“And with lips of exultation shall my mouth praise.” — And with an exultant mouth I shall praise you.

“If I remembered you upon my bed, in the mornings I meditated on you; for you have been my helper.” — In an inverted chronological order, since I remember you even while sleeping, for that reason, immediately upon waking, I contemplate you.

“My soul has cleaved behind you.” — I have sought to be behind you by the bond of your love; therefore you have laid hold of me.

“They shall be delivered into the hands of the sword.” — By “hands of the sword” should be understood either the suddenness of the blade or the military right hand of the invisible enemies; and by the “invisible ones,” the punishment; and by the “lowest parts of the earth,” Tartarus.

“They shall be portions for foxes.” — Either that they will be set out as food for wild beasts, or that they will be destroyed by common and base people; the destruction of the demons, however, is defeat and total repulsion.

“Everyone who swears by him shall be praised, because the mouth of those who speak unjustly has been stopped.” — It was the custom ^B to make an oath by the life of the king. But rather, he who swears by God is praised—that is, he who confirms and establishes himself in God; for swearing is a symbol of confirmation and stability.

PSALM LXIII (LXIV)

“To the end, a Psalm of David. Hear, O God, my prayer when I make petition to you.” — This psalm follows the one before it, recounting the plots of the enemies mentioned above.

“Shelter me from the conspiracy of the wicked, from the multitude of those who work injustice.” — He calls the system a “conspiracy.”

“They have bent their bow, a bitter thing, that they might shoot in secret at the blameless.” — Hyperbolically, they prepared their tongue like a bow, so that through it they might secretly attempt [their plot] against the innocent; which is a bitter thing.

“Suddenly they shoot him, and will not fear.” — The word “suddenly” indicates what is unexpected; they will not fear divine wrath.

“They strengthened for themselves a wicked word.” — They ratified the word of their plot among themselves.

“They told of hiding snares; they said: Who will see him?” — They suggested and took counsel.

“They searched out lawlessness.” — They sought that they might make use of it.

“They failed, searching out searches.” — They grew weary, seeking treacherous inquiries.

“A man will come, and a deep heart; and God will be exalted.” — A man will approach them for the service of the engine, and this [man] is most servile; and when nothing of his has availed, God will be glorified.

“And their tongues were weakened against them.” — He calls their devices “tongues.”

“All who saw them were troubled.” — They were in a tumult, those who saw them, as they were failing in their attempts; the past tense is used for the future.

“And they declared the works of God, and understood his deeds.” — They knew what he does, helping his servants.

PSALM LXIV (LXV)

“To the end, a Psalm of David, an ode of Jeremiah and Ezekiel to the people of the sojourners, when they were about to be leaving.” — The addition of the inscription is entirely and simply unauthenticated by the interpreters. It appears, however, to indicate that first the Prophet [Jeremiah/Ezekiel] composed the present psalm with his own mouth in certain verses; afterwards, the Prophet himself, with the instrument of the psaltery, sang such a psalm for the captive people when they were about to depart from their sojourn in Babylon towards Jerusalem; he prophesies concerning the return from Babylon and concerning the piety of the nations.

^A "To You a hymn is due, O God, in Zion, and to You shall a prayer be rendered in Jerusalem." "Hear my prayer; to You all flesh shall come." This is a prophecy concerning the knowledge of God, and all the more so concerning that which will happen at the consummation.

"The words of the lawless have overpowered us." Because of the words of the lawless, we have not grown weak in our faith in You, but have even been greatly strengthened; therefore, grant forgiveness for our former acts of impiety.

"He shall dwell in Your courts." The courts of God are, in a sensible sense, the divine temples, but in an intelligible sense, the heavenly abodes.

"We shall be filled with the good things of Your house." The house of God is the heavenly space, and its good things are the enjoyments that await the righteous; the Church of the faithful is also the house of God, and its good things are the divine dogmas. ^B "Holy is Your temple, admirable in righteousness." Your temple is full of holiness. It is admirable below and above, and in Your righteousness. Below, by instructing it through Your oracles; above, by practically explaining it through the distribution of the rests there to each according to his desert.

"Hear us, O God our Saviour, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of those who are far away on the sea." "Far away" signifies that which is distant from the mainland, and by "the sea" He indicated the islands.

"Preparing mountains by His strength." There is understood along with this "He is," and "preparing" signifies "establishing."

"Girded with might." Encircled by infinite power.

"The nations shall be troubled, and those who inhabit the ends shall be afraid at Your signs." Because of the strangeness and novelty of the evangelical preaching.

"You will make the outgoings of the morning and evening to rejoice." And the outgoings of the morning, that is, whence the morning goes forth and begins, and the outgoings of the evening, that is, both the sunrise and the sunset, or the whole inhabited world, You shall make to rejoice through Your incarnation.

"You have visited the earth and intoxicated it." You have visited those on earth by Your presence, and have filled them with the joy of Your teaching.

"You have multiplied to enrich it." You have multiplied the evangelical irrigation, so that You might enrich the aforementioned earth with virtues.

"The river of God was filled with water." The river of God is the Lord Jesus; the waters are His teachings. He sent forth the apostles as conduits, and irrigated the whole inhabited world.

"You have prepared their food, for so is Your preparation." You have prepared the rational food for the nations; for so is the preparation of the true food, and not otherwise; that is, You have excellently prepared the nations to be taught piety.

"Intoxicate her furrows, multiply her offspring." The furrows of the aforementioned ground are the depths of the hearts; the offspring are the virtues.

^C "In her drops she shall rejoice, springing up." The drops are the spray of doctrine dripping from the teachers, by which it shall be fattened, flourishing and increasing. And "of her" signifies that it is for her sake that the drops exist.

"You shall bless the crown of the year of Your goodness." You shall make the cycle of the year of Your goodness holy and praiseworthy. The year of the Lord’s goodness is the time of His advent.

"And Your plains shall be filled with fatness." By the plains and the mountains and the valleys, He reveals how every place shall receive the faithful.

"The beautiful places of the desert shall be fattened, and the hills shall be girded with exultation." The beautiful places of the desert are its parts suitable for the seasons of the year, that is, the fruit-bearing ones. By these, He has indicated those who dwell in them.

"The rams of the sheep have clothed themselves." The rams of the sheep are the leaders of the faithful, clothed in the grace of the Spirit.

"And the valleys shall abound with corn." He calls the fruits of the virtues "corn."

"For they shall cry out and sing hymns." They shall shout in thanksgiving to the Lord and shall sing hymns to the Benefactor; the "for" is redundant.

PSALM LXV

"Unto the end, a song of a psalm of resurrection." "Of resurrection" is used instead of "concerning the resurrection." Historically, of those who were taken captive to Babylon; anagogically, of those who return from sin; for the psalm prophesies concerning the faith of the nations, and furthermore concerning the martyrs of Christ.

"Make a joyful noise to God, all the earth. Sing psalms to His name." Give glory to His praise, that is, praise Him gloriously.

"In the multitude of Your power, Your enemies shall lie to You." ^D The enemies of the truth shall falsely pretend faith in You, because of the fear of Your great power, which is in the kingdom of the pious.

"Come and see the works of God, how terrible He is in His counsels above the sons of men." He is exceedingly terrible and great in methods and dispensations when He wills to save His people.

"They shall pass through in a river on foot." Instead of "our ancestors passed through." "On foot" instead of "on foot and not with a ship." He says this concerning the Jordan, that the Ark passed through it on dry land.

"There we shall rejoice in Him, who reigns in His power for the ages." "There" is used instead of "in such wonders we rejoiced in God, who reigns over every age." By His infinite power, He makes the joy of the ancestors His own.

^A "His eyes look upon the nations." David predicts the incarnation of the Lord and exhorts us to praise Him. "Let not the rebellious exalt themselves in themselves." The grumbling Jews should not think highly of themselves as a chosen people. "Bless God, ye nations, and make the voice of His praise be heard." Make it heard, that is, lift it up with a loud voice and teach these things to others. "Who hath set my soul to life, and hath not suffered my feet to be moved." Who hath delivered me from death of the soul and hath not allowed me to be turned aside from piety. "For Thou, O God, hast proved us; Thou hast tried us as silver is tried." This is the language of those struggling for piety, saying: "Thou hast examined us," to see how we possess faith and patience. ^B "Thou hast brought us into the snare." By a snare, he refers to the constraint of every affliction. "Thou hast laid afflictions upon our back." He refers to the scourges and the burdens of temptations. "Thou hast made men to ride over our heads." Thou hast subjected us to our enemies. "We have passed through fire and water; and Thou hast brought us out into a place of refreshment." Fire that burns and water that suffocates represent the intensity of temptations; refreshment is the resting place. "I will enter into Thy house with whole burnt offerings." The house of God would be the heavens, and the whole burnt offerings are the complete works of the virtues. "I will pay Thee my vows, which my lips have uttered." Vows are the promises. And by "uttered," it is interpretative of "spoke." "I will offer unto Thee whole burnt offerings marrow-filled." Whole burnt offerings marrow-filled, that is, fat, are the most excellent works of the virtues. "With incense and rams." Incense is the spiritual fragrance; rams are the soul’s governing thoughts that gore the passions. "I will offer Thee oxen with goats." Oxen are the operations of the body; for the ox is a worker of the earth, and the body is from the earth; goats are the offerings for sin; for of old the goat was sacrificed for sin. "I cried to Him with my mouth, and exalted Him under my tongue." I exalted my voice, that is; and "under my tongue" is instead of "with my tongue." "If I looked on iniquity in my heart, let not the Lord hear me." Iniquity is also called simply wickedness, just as righteousness is simply virtue. The language is instructional regarding how one ought to pray to God. "Blessed be God, who hath not turned away my prayer, nor His mercy from me." From Him, evidently.

PSALM LXVI ^D "To the end, a psalm of an ode for David." This proclaims more clearly the manifestation of the Savior. "Let God arise, and let His enemies be scattered." The resurrection signifies the movement toward retribution. "And let them that hate Him flee from His face." Let the adversaries flee from the face of His manifestation. "As smoke faileth, let them fail; as wax melteth before the face of fire, so let the sinners perish from the face of God." Scattered into the air. "And let the righteous rejoice, let them leap for joy before God; they shall be gladdened with joy." Let those who have been justified through faith in Christ, now that the tyranny of the Jews has been abolished, rejoice. "Make a way for him that ascendeth upon the west." The word is addressed to the apostles: "Prepare through preaching the way of human souls unto the Lord for His visitation; He who, having inaccessible light, descended upon the west of our own humility and lowliness." And by "west," we resemble the darkness of error. To Him the name is Lord, who is simply the God of all. "Let them be troubled from the face of Him, the father of orphans and judge of the widows." The demons, that is. "God in His holy place." There is wanting: "is." The holy place of God is the heaven, the temple, and every God-beloved human. "God maketh those who are of one mind to dwell in a house." He calls those who are upright and have no entanglement of wickedness "of one mind," whom the Lord causes to dwell.

into an eternal house not made by hands in the heavens. ^A "Leading forth those who are bound with strength." He is the liberator, in great power, of those bound by the chains of the demons, that is, those held by the deception of idolatry.

"Likewise those who provoke, who dwell in tombs." He means not only these Gentiles, but likewise also the murmuring Jews, and those dwelling in tombs, that is, those who have been dead from of old; for He came to save all, both those in the world and those in Hades who believed in Him.

"O God, in Thy going forth before Thy people, in Thy passing through in the desert." In Thy going forth from the Jewish people, ^B or rather, in the manifestation of Thy passing through into the congregation of the nations—the desert of every good—the earth was shaken at the time of Thy passion and resurrection, and the heavens distilled the descent of the All-Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost.

"From the face of the God of Sinai, from the face of the God of Israel." These things have come to pass from the God Who is, and [from] the Mount Sinai of God, and of Jacob. He remembered these things, that He might show that He Who gave the law on the mount, and Who appeared to Jacob, He Himself also does these things.

"Thou wilt set apart a voluntary rain, O God, for Thine inheritance." Rain is the evangelical word, which waters souls; it is called "voluntary" on account of the Mosaic law, [which was] not according to [God's] will, but by dispensation ^C brought forth by God on account of the hardness of heart of the Jews.

"And it was weakened, but Thou didst strengthen it." The congregation of the nations was weakened of old by idolatry; but Thou didst make it sound, having renewed it with the divine baptism.

"Thy living creatures dwell in it." The apostles, who live the life that is in Thee, dwelling in Thine inheritance.

"Thou hast prepared in Thy goodness for the poor, O God." Thou hast prepared the evangelical wealth and the ineffable goods for the poor—the temple of the nations—which [was poor] of every good, because of Thy goodness.

"The Lord will give a word to those who preach it with great power." To the simple apostles, the Father will give a word with great power, that is, He will prove them powerful in speech. ^D

"The King of the powers of the Beloved, of the Beloved." The powers of the beloved Son are the heavenly orders and all who are marshaled against His enemy demons.

"And by the beauty of the house to divide the spoils." He will give a word so that they may measure out to them the spoils of the devil, that is, the nations, in the grace of the Spirit; for this is the beauty and ornament of the Church.

"If you sleep among the lots." But you will receive the spoils of the devil, if you linger or die in the midst of those allotted to you from the nations, whose wings of the Spirit have been lifted up from earthly things, those silvered by the brightness of the preaching, and gilded with the preciousness of the knowledge of the hidden mysteries of the Spirit.

"In the separating of the heavenly King over it." He names the same ones apostles and kings, as leaders of the nations and heirs of the kingdom of Christ. He says, then, in "separating," that is, in dividing and allotting Christ to the apostles over this said inheritance of the nations, the apostles shall be made snow-white, that is, they shall be whitened and brightened by the radiance of the Spirit in Salmon, that is, in Jerusalem.

"The mountain of God is a fat mountain." He calls the Church a mountain as being exalted above earthly things, and [the mountain] of God as having been made His own. [He calls it] "fat" because of the abundance and utility of the spiritual pasturage therein. And [they are] "solid" because of the stability and firmness of the dogmas of the faith therein.

"Why do you suppose, ye curdled mountains?" To those of false belief: why do you suppose there are other mountains curdled besides this one?

"The mountain in which God has been pleased to dwell in it." This, he says, is the mountain in which it pleased God to dwell; for the Lord will dwell in it forever.

"The chariot of God is tens of thousandsfold, thousands of those who prosper." The chariot of God are those worthy of the divine乗. He compares, then, the multitude of the righteous before the incarnation of Christ with the multitude of the righteous after the incarnation of Christ; and he says the chariot of God is now ten-thousandfold, and this [refers to the] chariot, and how then there were few, but now there are thousands in total of those prospering in the fruit-bearing of the virtues.

"The Lord is in them in Sinai in the holy place." And through these things he proclaims the same God of the Old and the New; for the Lord, he says, is in them, [He] Who was in Sinai in the holy place. The "Who" is missing, and the one preposition is redundant. "Thou hast ascended on high," having voluntarily ascended to the height of the cross; those whom the enemy had deceived and taken captive from Thee, these Thou, having cast him down, didst recapture from him.

"For even the disobedient to dwell withal, the Lord God is blessed." He interprets what kind of habitations the Lord received, and he says. For even the disobedient Gentiles Thou hast received, so that He might dwell in them.

"Blessed is the Lord day by day." Day by day, clearly every day. The "day by day" is explanatory of this.

"The God of our salvation will give us prosperous journeys." The apostles pray that the course of the preaching may be made prosperous for them.

"Our God, the God of saving, and of the Lord the Lord are the passages of death."

^A For it is of the Lord’s power to bring one out of death unto life; for it is only by Him that the exit from death and the deliverance have come to pass.

“But God shall crush the heads of his enemies.” ^B He means by the heads of the nations the most vital powers of the demons.

“The top of hair of them that walk in their trespasses.” Of those who walk and search out through their trespasses, being men who trespass, and the top—that is, the extremity—of the hair, that is, of those who investigate at the time of the soul’s accounting even the slightest of their sins.

“The Lord said: I will return from Bashan.” Bashan is interpreted as shame. Therefore, the Lord turned the nations unto Himself from the shame of idols ^B and from the dishonor of the passions.

“I will return into the depths of the sea.” He also turned those in the depths of the sea, that is, those in the depth of multi-surging sin, so that your foot may be dipped. This, he says, you will do, O Lord, so that you may completely conquer the demons. The language is metaphorical.

“The tongue of your dogs, from enemies, by him.” Again, the tongue of your dogs, dipped by Him, that is, by Him who is from the enemies, meaning from the blood itself. Now the dogs of Christ, the Lord of all, are the divine shepherds, who harass His enemies like wild beasts and have all but tasted of this blood. And the foot of Christ is the Church, of which He is the head.

“Thy goings have been seen, O God.” ^C The turnings of Your incarnate manner of life, of the Son who is in the holy Father, were seen by your eyewitnesses.

“Princes forestalled, leaning on those who sing.” The princes of the nations, the apostles, were the first to believe, forestalling all others, leaning—that is, being close to—those who sing, or rather those who proclaim the things concerning Christ, that is, the prophets, as they follow them both in time and in the preaching.

“In the midst of young women playing timbrels.” In the midst, clearly, of those who have believed from the Jewish synagogues, the young women being such due to the imperfection of their manner of life; and they are timbrel-players, due to the bodily nature of their worship toward God.

“In the churches bless the Lord God from the fountains of Israel.” By fountains of Israel, he signifies the Scriptures of the prophets and the law, with which he commands that the hymn to God be gathered.

“There is Benjamin the younger.” There in the churches, clearly, is Benjamin—that is, the holy Paul, who is of the tribe of Benjamin—the younger, that is, having believed later than the other apostles. ^D

“In an ecstasy.” Because of the being snatched up as far as the third heaven.

“Princes of Judah their leaders, princes of Zebulun, princes of Naphtali.” The leaders of them, that is, of the ecclesiastical ones, are the princes or the chosen ones of the Jewish tribe, as are the brothers of the Lord and those of Zebulun and those of Naphtali, as far as the apostles from Galilee; for Galilee has been allotted to Zebulun ^A and to Naphtali.

“Command, O God, with your power.” This is to the Father, that He may command the Son concerning the preaching, as the one reporting the commandment of the Lord.

“Strengthen, O God, that which you have worked in us.” This is to the Son: Strengthen in us the preaching which you established through your temple, that is, your assumption, upon the land of Jerusalem, as upon Mount Zion, His holy mountain.

“To you shall kings bring gifts.” Both temples and offerings.

“Rebuke the beasts of the reed.” Muzzle the intellectual lions, the wild and savage demons.

“The congregation of the bulls among the heifers of the nations.” The leaders of the Jews, among the heifers of the nations—that is, in the midst of the subjected peoples—clearly became such that those who were approved by the Gospel, the apostles, were shut in, that is, hindered from preaching and bringing good tidings.

“Scatter the nations that desire wars.” The sensible and intellectual enemies of the Church.

“Ambassadors shall come from Egypt.” Believers will come, acting as ambassadors for the whole world from Egypt, that is, from every Gentile land, over which the intellectual Pharaoh ruled.

“Ethiopia shall forestall in stretching out her hands to God.” Instead of “shall forestall,” it means that she shall cause her hands to arrive and draw near to God through prayer and the offering of gifts. Through her, that is, through Ethiopia, He signified the ends of the earth; for the Ethiopians are indeed the last of all men to dwell in the east and the west.

“Ye kingdoms of the earth, sing to God; chant to the Lord who mounts above the heaven of heaven toward the east.” The first is instead of the “upward,” to the one who has ascended above the higher heaven toward the east, as far as the east, that is, to His former glory and brightness.

“Lo, He will give to His voice a voice of power.” He will give to the apostles a powerful word.

“Upon Israel is His magnificence.” To the contemplative man, the things of God are made known, and His power to the one who is exalted above earthly things.

“God is wonderful in His saints.” ^B God is wondered at in His saints, as far as to the manner of life of these and to the working of miracles.

“The God of Israel, He will give power and strengthening to His people.” In order to persevere in His blameless faith.

^A

PSALM LXVIII

^A And to the pain of my wounds they have added. They increased my pain from the wounds by the addition of insult, or even of slander, because when I was buried I was stolen, yet I did not rise. “Add iniquity unto their iniquity.” He foretells the increases of the misfortunes that would befall the Jews; for here he calls the punishment brought on by sin “iniquity.” “And let them not enter into Your righteousness.” And let them not come to be justified by You and to attain mercy. “Let them be blotted out of the book of the living.” By the living he means those who inherit life eternal in the kingdom of the heavens. Tropologically, he calls divine knowledge the book. “And let them not be written with the righteous.” This is an explanation of the above. “I am poor and suffering.” The Lord is poor according to the flesh and the most lowly of those upon the earth; and suffering in the passions of His all-holy body for our sake. “Your salvation, O God, has taken me up.” From here on it is in the person of the Church, saying: “The salvation from You has freed me from error.” “And it shall please God better than a young calf that has horns and hooves.” For such is the calf sacrificed according to the Law, already mature; for this is what the fresh growth of horns and hooves indicates; or rather, the Prophet hinted at the deadening of the legal worship through the deadness of the horns and hooves. ^B “Let the poor see and rejoice.” Let the faithful poor see what the Lord has suffered for them and what He has accomplished. “For the Lord has heard the poor, and has not despised His prisoners.” In the psalm before this, it has been discussed regarding the prisoners. “For God will save Zion, and the cities of Judaea shall be built.” By Zion, he means the Catholic Church of the faithful; and by the cities of Judaea, the particular assemblies which come forward to Christ through confession; for Judaea is interpreted as confession. “And they shall dwell there and inherit it.” Your servants, that is to say, the apostles and the shepherds, whose seed are their disciples, the Christians.

PSALM 69

“Unto the end, for David, for a remembrance, that the Lord may save me. O God, attend unto my help; O Lord, make haste to help me.” The title “that the Lord may save me” placed before it has been marked with obeli by the exegetes; but it signifies in short the scope of the psalm; for the Prophet, having composed the present psalm from those things I have mentioned before in the 39th Psalm, had it always at hand, and through it, he [sought] ^C and the other plots, both from the intellectual and the sensible [enemies], that is, salvation from God, using such a psalm as if it were a kind of incantation against every assault of all sorts of enemies.

PSALM 70

“A psalm for David, of the sons of Jonadab, and of those who were first taken captive.” The psalm is composed in the person of these, but it is fitting for those who are athletes of piety, being warred upon by sensible and intellectual enemies. “In You, O Lord, have I hoped, let me not be ashamed forever.” “Upon You was I established from the time I was born, as upon a support.” “In You is my singing always.” You, he says, I always praise; therefore “in You,” instead of “unto You.” “I have become as a portent unto many; but You are my strong helper.” Wasted by fasting and sackcloth-wearers, and appearing loathsome from grief, I was considered as a portent by the common folk, but not by the wise. “Let my mouth be filled with praise, that I may sing of Your glory, all the day Your magnificence.” “Let be filled” instead of “may it be filled,” so that I may praise, he says, Your greatness; and not once, but all day, that is, always. “Cast me not off at the time of old age; when my strength fails, forsake me not.” He who helps me from my youth, do not cast me off at the time of old age; but old age is also understood as sin, due to the weakness of the soul. ^D “For my enemies have spoken against me.” “To me” instead of “against me,” that is, “about me”; they spoke to each other. “And they that watch for my soul consulted together.” By those watching, he means those who observe and plot against him. “O God, my God, be not far from me; O my God, attend to my help.” God withdraws not according to essence—for He is infinite—but according to providence, when we are driven away by the stench of our sins. “But I will always hope in You, and will add to all Your praise.” He said “all” because praise is not by words alone, but also by deeds; for the Savior says: “That they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” “For I have not known letters.” Promising to announce God’s righteousness and the salvation that comes from Him; then realizing that he is not sufficient, he thinks modestly, saying: Because I have not learned technical sophistry, so that from here I might be able to announce it worthily; for this reason I will enter into the promise in the power of God, and trusting in this, I will attempt to announce it. “O Lord, I will remember Your righteousness alone.” He said “alone” as if he were saying, You alone, remembering the iniquity concerning Uriah, shall judge both us and the enemy.

^A “O God, You have taught me from my youth, and until now I shall declare Your wondrous works.” — Hyperbaton: My God, I shall declare Your wondrous works, which You taught me from my youth and until now, both the things written in books and all that has happened in my days. “And until old age and advanced years, O God, do not forsake me.” — The “until” is indefinite, in scriptural idiom. And “advanced years” (presbeion) is the final stage of old age, whence also the word “elder.” “Your power and Your righteousness.” — From the preceding, “until I declare.” And “power” is interpretive of “arm.” The continuation, by hyperbaton, is: “Your righteousness until the highest.” And “highest,” that is, most high, are the heavens. “O God, the great things that You have done until the highest.” — Both the “and” and the “how many” are to be read ethically from the heart; then one must add the continuation, that many and harmful, that is, grievous things [You have shown me]. “How many afflictions, many and evil, You have shown me; and having turned, You made me alive, and from the depths of the earth You brought me up.” — For severe afflictions are likened to death. “You have multiplied Your greatness over me.” — Instead of, “You have lavished.” “For I also will confess to You among peoples, O Lord.” — For the conjunction is superfluous. “With vessels of a psalm, Your truth, O God.” — “Vessels of psalms” means the various kinds of musical instruments, or the vocal instruments themselves that sing; and otherwise, the forms and characters of the hymns; and anagogically, the souls of the faithful. “I will sing to You on the harp, O Holy One of Israel.” — The harp is reduced to the soul; and “Holy One of Israel” is He who sanctifies Israel. “My lips shall rejoice when I sing to You, and my soul, which You have redeemed.” — From visible, that is, and invisible enemies. “And indeed, my tongue, all the day, shall meditate upon Your righteousness.” — “Shall meditate upon,” instead of, “shall speak persistently.” ^B “When those who seek evils for me are shamed and confounded.” — For, having been completely delivered from the enemies, I shall dwell and reside without distraction in Your hymns.

PSALM LXXIII

“That He delivered the poor from the tyrant, and the needy for whom there was no helper.” — By the poor and the needy, he means the people from the Gentiles; and by the tyrant, the devil who formerly tyrannized over them. “He shall spare the poor and the needy, and shall save the souls of the needy.” — At one time he speaks of the second coming of the Savior; at another, of the first, shifting with his discourse and altering the order of the narrative, according to the prophetic custom.

“He shall deliver their souls from usury and injustice.” — By usury, he means the greed of Satan directed against us, and by injustice, the enslavement under him, from which the Lord delivered those who believe.

“And He shall live, and there shall be given to Him.” — After the three-day burial, He shall live forever.

“Of the gold of Arabia.” — Again, by the offering of gifts, he signifies subjection.

“And they shall pray for Him continually.” — The phrase “for Him” stands for “for the salvation that comes from Him.”

^B “He shall be a foundation on the earth on the tops of the mountains.” — Christ shall be a foundation on the earth, that is to say, for those on the earth, meaning His Church, which is on the tops of the mountains, as far as the one that is conspicuous and eminent in its virtues.

“His fruit shall be exalted above Lebanon.” — The fruit, that is to say, His teaching, meaning the Gospel, shall be exalted above the height of Lebanon. He said this because the preaching of Christ was about to be exalted and glorified and to master all idolatry, for Lebanon is a mount full of idols.

“And they shall flourish from the city as the grass of the earth.” — The faithful shall flourish from every city like grass, by reason of their multitude and growth.

“And all the tribes of the earth shall be blessed in Him.” — The expression “shall be blessed in Him” stands for “shall be sanctified.”

“Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel, who does wondrous things alone.” — Behold, he here openly called Him God and alone, by way of distinction from the falsely-named gods.

“And the whole earth shall be filled with His glory. Amen, amen.” — This also foretells the faith of all the nations.

PSALM LXXII

“The hymns of David the son of Jesse have ended. A Psalm for Asaph.” — All the psalms are indeed the compositions of David, but not all were sung by him. And this is what “the hymns of David have ended” means—that is to say, these following psalms were not sung by David. Wherefore, he says, the psalms of David did not end, but the hymns. This present psalm is shaped in the person of the captive people in Babylon; and it is also fitting for every person of faint heart, over whom the wicked prosper while the good suffer adversity, ^C providing comfort for such faint-heartedness.

“How good is God to Israel, to the upright in heart!” — God is exceedingly good to Israel; for if He chastises, He does so out of love and for the sake of correction. And this, being true, is judged so by those who reason correctly; for here one must understand the purpose by the heart.

“But my feet were almost shaken.” — By feet, he calls the devout thoughts that sustain the soul. He says, “I was almost turned aside and slipped into a fall,” from thinking that God does not provide for the world.

“My steps were almost poured out.” — That is to say, my thoughts were weakened.

“For I was jealous of the wicked, seeing the peace of sinners.” — Because I was angry at the wicked enemies, as I supposed, seeing them living in complete tranquility.

“For there is no looking up in their death.” — “Looking up” is the same as despair. He says, therefore: Their death is not to be shunned, seeing that it comes according to nature and not violently.

“And a foundation in their scourge.” — That is to say, there is no persistence in their affliction; for if they should ever come to harm, they are quickly released from the distress.

“They are not in the labors of men, and they shall not be scourged with men.” — They are not in labors as the rest of men are; for labor is proper to men, but they acquire good things without effort, and as for other men, they shall not be harmed, as it seems to me.

“Therefore pride has taken hold of them to the end; their injustice shall come forth as if from fatness.” — Plump and abundant; for such is that which flows from fat.

“They went into the disposition of the heart.” — They arrived at a habit of injustice; for a habit is a disposition, that is to say, a state of the heart that remains about something.

“They thought and spoke in wickedness.” — They spoke evil out of meditation and reflection, and not by way of being carried away.

“They spoke injustice into the heights.” — They blasphemed against the Most High God, saying that He is not God.

“They set their mouth against heaven, and their tongue passed over the earth.” — They were insulting God, but they were enchanting men.

“Therefore my people shall return here.” — Because of the wickedness of the enemies, says God, My people who are in captivity shall return to their own fatherland.

“And full days shall be found in them.”

^A “How did God know?” — Those of the people who are more faint-hearted and more unwise, observing the things that are dared, have said: "How does God know, and why does He endure these things?" ^B “And is there knowledge in the Most High?” — They inquired whether there is any knowledge of the things happening in this way in God. ^C “Behold these are sinners.” — From common parlance I say: Behold these are the Babylonian sinners. “And prospering forever they obtained wealth.” — They have taken hold of wealth continuously. “And I said: Have I in vain justified my heart, and washed my hands in innocency?” — But even I, the more magnanimous and wiser one, suffered something of this kind, and I said within myself: Have I in vain justified my soul, having purified it from all iniquity? ^D “And I was scourged all the day long.” — That is to say, I was afflicted with hardships for the sake of virtue. And “And my rebuke is in the mornings.” — And rising from my bed, I would immediately rebuke myself before the Lord, confessing my sins to Him. He says, therefore, "rebuke" is the reproving word offered by Him every morning for one’s accusation. ^A “How did they come into desolation suddenly?” — Foreseeing their destruction, he expresses astonishment at the suddenness of the change, as though it were a dream of one awakening; just as a beloved dream is lost to one who wakes from sleep after having imagined it. ^B “O Lord, in Thy city Thou shalt bring to nothing their image.” — For the sake of Thy city, Jerusalem, Thou shalt bring to nothing their prosperity, which is like an image, as though it were already not existing, but merely seeming so because of its transience and instability. ^C “Because my heart was kindled, and my reins were changed.” — It was kindled by the fire of wrath. By the “reins” he implies the hidden thoughts, which, he says, I—being a pious man—had nearly abandoned because of their arrogance. ^D “If I said: I will tell thus.” — To act “inconsistently” is said of one who transgresses covenants and makes them void. The generation of the sons of God is the Israelite people, or rather those who in truth know God as Father and Creator, and keep His commandments. He says, therefore: If I were to say within myself that I will tell thus, that is to say, if I were to commit myself to declaring and pronouncing things just as the thought has troubled me—that is, that I have in vain justified my heart, and so forth—behold, as far as such a narrative and declaration of mine is concerned, Thou wouldst have betrayed among Thy people the covenants made with Abraham and our ancestors regarding the promise; it is clear, therefore, that to think in such a way is utterly wretched. I supposed, therefore, or I hoped to know; that is to say, the matter in question is difficult to discern. ^A “And I supposed to know this. It is a labor before me.” — It is a labor for me, until I come into the Temple of Jerusalem in which the people is sanctified, and I understand—that is, I shall know the difficulty—namely, in their ends, that is, the ends of the Babylonians; for then I shall know truly that not in vain have I justified my heart, and the rest, when the end comes upon the Babylonians, and I recover both the prosperity and the civic life of the former time. These things are a clear prophecy. ^B “Nevertheless, because of their deceits Thou hast laid evils upon them.” — “Thou hast laid” is used [to mean] Thou hast made [them] as a deposit; Thou hast stored them up; Thou hast prepared them. ^C “Thou didst cast them down when they were lifted up.” — And “I was brought to nothing, and knew not.” — This is fitting after the return [from exile]. I was brought to nothing, he says, or rather, I was estranged from Thee at that time because of my sins; and for this reason I did not know what was being asked of me, not having the illumination from Thee. ^D “I was made brutish before Thee.” — I differed nothing from a beast, as, when compared to Thee, I knew nothing of Thy dispensations. ^A “And I am continually with Thee.” — I shall be continually with Thee, neither meddling in Thy affairs nor being scandalized, but thinking only of Thee, and not departing from the memory of Thee. ^B “Thou hast held my right hand.” — Like one leading by the hand, Thou didst take hold of my hand, and didst lead me out of the land of the Babylonians and their slavery. ^C “And Thou hast guided me with Thy counsel.” — And Thou gavest me counsel, by which the passage through the nations became easy for me. ^D “And with glory Thou hast taken me.” — And Thou hast granted me a visible journey into Thy city. “For what is there for me in heaven?” — If not Thee, that is to say. “And besides Thee what have I desired on earth?” — If not Thee and Thy help, clearly. “My heart and my flesh have failed.” — My heart was spent, melting with the fire of longing for Thee; my flesh again was spent, turning away from pleasure for the sake of Thy love, and densely afflicted. ^A “O God of my heart, and my portion, God forever.” — Inwardly, then, God is [the God] of my soul, and the God who is my portion and inheritance continually. ^B “For, behold, those who remove themselves from Thee shall perish.” — He who departs from the faith in God and from the keeping of His commandments, he both distances himself and commits fornication away from God, and receives the penalty of destruction and annihilation, by which is signified the loss of salvation. ^C “But for me to cleave to God is good.”

^A It is to place my hope in the Lord. Someone cleaves to God through right faith and the keeping of the commandments. “That I may declare all thy praises in the gates of the daughter of Sion.” There are also intelligible gates of Sion: the local churches, through which one is in the upper Sion.

PSALM LXXIII

^A blackened in their souls, those to whom, through baptism, the devil is given over to be consumed.

“Thou didst cleave fountains and torrents.” — The plural instead of the singular. He speaks of the water from the rock—fountain, on account of the gushing forth; torrent, on account of the vehemence of the flow. And the Lord cleaved, that is, gave forth, fountains and torrents of spiritual teaching in the previously desert Church of the nations.

“Thou didst dry up the rivers of Etham.” —

Etham

“Thine is the day and thine is the night, thou didst prepare the dawn and the sun.” — He calls the rising of the day, that is, the dawn,

phausis

oraia

“Thou didst make all the boundaries of the earth; summer and spring thou didst fashion them.” — Through these two most honored seasons, he has indicated the whole year. And of this he said, that is, of thy congregation, and especially of the new. For the old has been completely forgotten.

“The enemy reproached the Lord.” — ^B Titus or the Roman army, or rather the Jew and the Hellene, reproached Christ as not being God and as being weak, and whatever else is insulting. But they themselves are a foolish people, as they do not think rightly about God.

“Do not deliver to the beasts the soul confessing to thee.” — The perceived and intellectual enemies are beasts; and he indicated the whole man through the soul; and “confessing” instead of “giving thanks.”

“Because the darkened ones of the earth of lawless houses have been filled.” — ^C The word “house” is here taken as a capacious vessel. And he calls those of men “darkened,” as many as serve ignorance and the passions.

“Let not the humbled one be turned away in shame.” — Thy people, that is, praying that they might not be unheard.

“Arise, O God, judge thy cause.” — For the cause of thy people is thine own.

“Remember thy reproach, which for the whole day is from the foolish one.” — For the whole day, that is, the reproach always occurring against thee.

“The pride of those hating thee ascended” — ^D Lifted up, was exalted, or ascended before thee.

PSALM LXXIV

^A “We will confess to thee, O God; we will confess to thee, and we will call upon thy name.” — We will call upon thee for help.

“I will declare all thy wonders, when I shall take the time.” — The saying is from Christ: When I shall take, of my own accord, that is, the time of judgment, I will judge just judgments to both those who wrong and those who are wronged.

“The earth and all who dwell in it were shaken.” — Upon the coming of the judgment, the earth was shaken, that is, its power was dissolved. And “was shaken” instead of “shall be shaken.”

“I made firm its pillars.” — It was shaken by my command; for I established it from the beginning. And the pillars of the earth are the power that holds it together.

“I said to the lawless: Do not act lawlessly; and to the sinners: Do not lift up the horn.” — David says: In the impending judgment, even warning the sinners, saying, Do not boast. For the horn denotes both power and also boasting; because horned animals both defend themselves and exult in their horns.

“For neither from the goings forth, nor from the west, nor from the desert mountains.” — For neither from the “goings forth,” that is, solar, meaning from the east, nor from the west, nor from the mountains of the desert of men, to wit, uninhabited, that is, of the northern and southern extremities, has anything escaped notice, that is, in the judgment; and the cause is that God is judge, who knows all things before their birth.

“This one he humbles and this one he exalts.” — One he dishonors, and another he honors according to the worthiness of one's manner of life.

“For a cup is in the hand of the Lord, full of unmixed wine of composition.” — By “hand of the Lord” he calls his power, and for the composition of the wine, the vessel of punishment; and this wine is unmixed, as it is austere and severe and devoid of philanthropy. But there is also another, previously, in his hand. “Full of composition,” that is, of philanthropy; for a composition of wine is water, but of austerity, it is philanthropy. One must read “full of composition” without connection, by itself, with the “and” having to be understood as a conjunction, which pulls also upon this: “the cup in the hand of the Lord.”

“And he poured out from this into this.” — He poured out from the vessel of severe wrath into the vessel of philanthropy, so as to make a mixture and to give drink to those who are capable of being healed and who are turning back.

“Nevertheless its dregs were not emptied; all the sinners of the earth shall drink.” — He called the dregs the swiftness of the unmixed punishment, the final torment, which is left over for those not turning back from wickedness, whom he also properly called sinners.

“But I will exult unto the age; I will sing to the God of Jacob.” — Having been freed, that is, from the slavery of the enemy.

^A “And all the horns of the sinners I will break.” — Of those who would again fight against me as enemies. “And the horns of the righteous shall be exalted.” — He calls every pious person righteous. Righteous in the proper sense is Christ, as one without sin.

PSALM LXXV

“Unto the end, in hymns a psalm for Asaph, an ode against the Assyrian.” — The expression “against the Assyrian” stands instead of “against the matters concerning Sennacherib the Assyrian”; for he prophesies his destruction, or rather that of the intelligible Assyrian, the devil. He treats also of the coming judgment. “In hymns,” because the psalm is one of thanksgiving. ^B “God is known in Judea.” — By Judea and Israel one must understand Judea and Israel and the Jewish and Israelite Scripture, in which Christ is known and His name is proclaimed great and glorious. It might also be said that Judea and Israel is the Church from the nations. “And his place has been made in peace.” — He calls the peace-making man peace, toward men by loving them, and toward the passions by subjecting them. In such a person, the process of separating unto God comes to pass. And Zion is interpreted as a watchtower; thus Zion would be the one looking out from afar for the onsets of enemies. “There he broke the powers of the bows, the weapon, and the sword, and the war.” — There, in the person making peace, he broke or abolished all the engines of Beliar. ^C “You give light wonderfully from the eternal mountains.” — You give light with the light of joy and perception to those in the darkness of grief and despair. By eternal mountains, one must understand the heavens because of their height and permanence, or rather the angelic powers through whom we are guided toward the better. “All the foolish in heart were troubled.” — The Assyrians were troubled as they were being destroyed, as were the demons as they were being routed, both of whom, as fighters against God, are foolish and senseless. “They slept their sleep; and all the men of wealth found nothing in their hands.” — All the men slept, and they did not find in their hands any of the wealth they expected to receive. By “men” we must understand the Babylonians and the demons; by “sleep,” the inactivity of the demons; and by “wealth,” our sinning. “At your rebuke, O God of Jacob, they who had mounted the horses fell asleep.” ^D — By “rebuke” he means the decree against the enemies; by “drowsiness” the relaxing of their power. Those who had mounted the horses are the enemies; the demons are also said to have mounted horses because of their speed and their rest in those who are possessed. “You are terrible, and who shall stand against you? From then was your wrath.” — The phrase “from then” is either indefinite, meaning “long ago,” or “from the time when” they blasphemed against you. ^A “You caused judgment to be heard from heaven.” — You have made the judgment heard as if to me from heaven, as a prophet, or rather, you have made the universal judgment heard to all men through the holy Scripture inspired by you from above. “The earth feared and was still.” — He calls “earth” all that is born of earth, and more so those who mind earthly things. Men were quiet, every work having been abolished when God moved to the said judgment, so as to save all the righteous; for meekness is proper to every righteous person. “For the thought of man shall give thanks to you.” — Then, he says, every human thought will reveal itself to you as it is judged. “And the remnant of the thought shall keep feast to you.” — And the remnant of the thought, that is, its smallest portion, shall keep feast to you, that is, it shall exhibit and display itself to you; for a feast is a display and a theatrical showing of the thing that is celebrated. ^B “Make vows and pay them to the Lord our God.” — Since these things are thus, perform vows of repentance to God, and pay them to Him as a most necessary debt. “All who are round about him shall bring gifts.” — Those who love Him, all who are round about God, shall bring gifts to Him—namely, the virtues. “To the terrible one who removes the spirits of princes.” — By “spirits” he means souls; by “princes of the earth,” he means Pharaoh and others, as many as have experienced divine wonders. ^D

PSALM LXXVI

“Unto the end, for Idithum, a psalm for Asaph.” — The phrase “for Idithum” signifies that it is by Idithum; for the psalm was given to Idithum to be sung, but since he was not free, Asaph sang it instead. It is composed in the person of the people led captive to Babylon. “My voice is to the Lord, and I cried out; my voice is to God, and he attended to me.” — “I cried out” is to be taken from what follows. “I sought out God.” — “Sought out” signifies an earnest seeking. “With my hands at night before him.” — “I sought out” is to be taken from what follows. “With my hands” means lifting up the hands in prayer. “At night,” because then there is freedom from all sides. “Before him,” that is, in His presence, as He sees all things. I was not deceived in my hopes, that is, I did not fail in having hoped to find Him as a helper. “My soul refused to be comforted.” — It despaired of being comforted by man, being in great sadness. “I remembered God, and I was glad.” — Only then was I comforted, when I remembered that God is able to help me. “I meditated, and my spirit grew despondent.” — I pondered within myself and was concerned how to be delivered from my painful sufferings, and as I was finding no solution, I…

^A felt my soul constricted.

“My eyes have anticipated the watches.” — It is the custom in military camps for the night to be divided into four parts, and at each quarter of the night, soldiers take turns to keep watch and guard the entire camp. Hence, the four quarters of the night were called “watches.” My eyes, he says, anticipated the watches of the night; that is, all the watches of the night kept me awake; for because of constant anxiety, sleep departed from my eyes.

“I was troubled, and I did not speak.” — I was confounded by the afflictions, but I did not reveal them to the enemies, so that they might not furthermore gloat over me.

“I considered the days of old, and I remembered eternal years.” — I pondered the times of long ago, when they [our ancestors] were delivered from the slavery in Egypt and were granted myriad benefits. The expression “I remembered” is used instead of “I reflected in my mind,” while “I meditated” signifies the act of recollection coupled with thought.

“And I meditated by night with my heart; I mused.” — “By night” is instead of “in the night,” for it is a time of calm for all. And “with my heart” is instead of “in my soul.”

“And my spirit made a trial.” — “Made a trial” is used in place of “dug through” or “examined.” And what follows?

^B “Will the Lord cast off forever, and will He be no more favorable?” — “Will He add” is used by the Scripture in regard to doing the same things and acting again. Thus, “will He not add to be favorable” is instead of “will He not again be favorable,” that is, will He not again will good things, or show kindness? The “will He” is superfluous; and the words are interrogative up to, “And I said, Now I have begun.”

“Or will He withhold His mercy unto the end?” — “Unto the end” is now used in place of “utterly.”

“Has He put an end to His word from generation to generation?” — Lest, he says, He has brought to an end, that is, closed off such that it could proceed no further, the ancient promise made to our fathers, which is “the word from generation to generation.”

“And I said, Now I have begun.” — These are words of gratitude; for having reflected, he says: I have sinned, I said that now is the beginning of my restoration from punishment; for the things up to now were only the prelude to this.

“This is the change of the right hand of the Most High.” — The changing, he says, from liberty and praise to the constriction of those works of the divine hand that chasten us. Allegorically, however, the passage concerns the evangelical polity; for seeing this with prophetic eyes, David, as it differs from the legal one, says that this is the work of Christ; for He is invoked as the right hand and arm of the Father according to His divinity, as the Maker of all and as Power.

“I remembered the works of the Lord; for I will remember ^C from the beginning of Thy wonders.” — One must take the “and I said” again from the common sense. By “works and pursuits of the Lord” he calls His dispensations for the salvation of men.

“O God, Thy way is in the holy place.” — That is to say, your action is in holiness; for every action of God is holy and blameless. And in another way, Christ is holy, the only sinless one, in whom the economy of the salvation of men by God and the Father was performed.

“Who is a great god like our God?” — What god of the aliens is as great in power and great in works as ours?

“Thou art the God who doest wonders.” — Thou art the true God, who doest wondrous works.

“Thou hast made known Thy power among the peoples.” — The power of God was made known among the Egyptians and the rest of the aliens by His works themselves (for by “peoples” here he refers to the nations), and the hypostatic power of the Father was later made known among all the nations.

“Thou hast redeemed with Thine arm Thy people, the sons of Jacob and Joseph.” — With divine power working wonders, the ancient people, brought down from Jacob and Joseph, were redeemed from the nations; and in Christ, the new people—we—have been redeemed from the tyranny of the devil, we who are also called sons of God, and Jacob and Joseph, having been adopted by Him in place of the ancient people, and having inherited the intimacy and calling of that, indeed, of the ancient people.

“The waters saw Thee, O God, the waters saw Thee, and they were afraid; and the depths were troubled. The multitude of the sound of the waters gave a voice; the clouds gave a voice.” — The waters of the Red Sea had tested the divine power and, as it were, were afraid and parted, when even the depths of the sea were troubled by the wind that fell upon the waters; and a multitude of the sound of the waters then occurred, that is, a great sound; for “the sound” is found to be straight. But the waters also saw Christ, when the boat was being submerged, and He, being awakened, rebuked the winds and the sea, and they were afraid and became calm. And then the depths of the sea were also troubled by the fear of the masterful rebuke. And the multitude of the sound of the waters is the multitude of the sounding waves.

“For Thine arrows pass on; the voice of Thy thunder is in the wheel.” — In a storm, it is natural for there to be thunders and lightnings, to the terror of the Egyptians; and the thunders are the voices of the clouds; and the arrows passing on against the enemies would be the lightnings. The “pass on” is used instead of “were passing on” in a timeless sense; for the conjunction is also superfluous. And the clouds gave a voice at the Transfiguration. For it says: “And behold a voice from the cloud saying, This is My beloved Son.” And the arrows of Christ are the apostles, passing into the world and destroying the demons. ^D

The sound of the thunder created by you, for in every chariot there is, indeed, a wheel—for the whole chariot can be called a part—by which thunder the axles of the wheels were disturbed and bound together in one another, and the Egyptian army was led along with force. And the voice of the thunder is the evangelical proclamation, as if a sound from heaven, solid and audible to all men. The wheel represents the world, due to its instability.

"Your lightnings flashed upon the world." — "The brightness of your wonders appeared to all."

"The earth was shaken and became trembling." — "All men were afraid at the greatness of your wonders."

"Your way is in the sea, and your paths in the many waters; and your footprints shall be known." Since the Lord was going before His people, the people passed through the sea, and the Lord walked through the sea. But the footprints of such a journey are not known, because the water was gathered together again, and the sea united. But Christ made His way in the sea when He went to the disciples, walking upon the sea. Footprints do not remain on water.

^B "You led your people like sheep by the hand of Moses and Aaron." He says "like sheep," signaling His care for them, since He is also called the shepherd of Israel. The tropological reading is directed toward the person of God and the Father, whose new people is the Christian one. The hand is the guidance and leading of Christ; who is Moses as the lawgiver of the evangelical law, and Aaron as the great high priest, having sacrificed Himself for His people.

PSALM LXXVII.

"Of Asaph. Understanding." For understanding is needed to know that David, in the person of Christ, speaks this psalm to the believers.

"Give heed, O my people, to my law; incline your ear to the words of my mouth." He calls the law the evangelical one.

"I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter problems from the beginning." He named the evangelical parables also problems. Both terms indicate what is enigmatic, though "problems" here signifies the veils. Revealed through these are covered and hidden things; for thus also the evangelist Matthew interpreted: "I will utter things hidden from the foundation of the world." For the providential acts and accomplishments of Christ were hidden from the ages; this is what "from the beginning" signifies, which Christ Himself uttered and preached.

"As many things as we heard and knew them." The "as many" should be read with admiration, as if saying: "Oh, how many things we heard from the divine Scriptures!" And he said "heard" because of their reception; and we knew—instead of ^A we were confirmed and assured. But he wishes to recount the benefits of the Jews, their provocations against their benefactor, the various disciplines and healings resulting from these, by which, from their wickedness, it is clear that the cause of the divine incarnation is prudently shown.

"And our fathers told us." The fathers indeed told them to their immediate children; and the children did not hide what they learned from another generation after them, but similarly told them to their children, and so on; for there was a law that said: "You shall teach them to your children, and to the children of your children."

"Reporting the praises of the Lord and His mighty acts and His wonders which He did." The phrase "our fathers told us" is joined with "reporting" by hyperbaton. He calls "praises" the praiseworthy works of God.

"Sons who shall be born and shall arise and report them to their children." "Shall arise" is instead of "shall be begotten."

"That they might set their hope on God, and not forget the works of God, and seek His commandments." Learning, that is to say, all that God promised to those who hope in Him.

"A generation that did not direct its own heart." It did not straighten its heart, so as to believe simply and firmly, but hesitated, doubting.

"And its spirit was not made steadfast with God." Its soul did not become faithful toward God and His words.

"The sons of Ephraim, bending and casting a bow, turned back in the day of battle." The descendants of Ephraim, those who were bending bows and shooting from bows, were turned back, having given their backs in flight. By the tribe of Ephraim, he signifies also the other tribes that, having committed idolatry, were delivered to their enemies; for the tribe of Ephraim, the son of Joseph, was more skilled in archery than the others and more useful in wars.

^C "They did not keep the covenant of God." Here he clarifies the cause of the defeat. By "covenant" he means the treaties which God made in various ways with the Hebrews, leading them into the land of promise; and by "law" he means the commandments.

"And they forgot His benefits and His wonders which He showed them." By "wonders" he refers to the plagues of the Egyptians and their destruction. And He showed these to them through the instruction of their fathers.

"Before their fathers which He did wonders in the land of Egypt, in the plain of Tanis." Tanis was an Egyptian city in which were the palaces of Pharaoh.

"He made waters stand." "Made stand" is instead of

"swelling up like a wineskin." ^A

"He broke the rock in the wilderness." In the wilderness of Mount Horeb. And by the term "abyss," he indicated the multitude of the waters.

"And he brought forth water out of the rock, and brought down waters as rivers." This is another miracle that occurred in the wilderness of Kadesh... for twice he brought forth [water] from the rock at different times and places; [the people] provoked the Most High in a waterless place, that is, the earth.

"And they tested God in their hearts: to ask food for their souls." [Used] periphrastically instead of "for themselves."

"And they spoke against God." They did not ask to receive what they needed, but accused God as if He were unable.

"Since he struck the rock, and waters flowed, and torrents streamed out." Instead of "they flowed strongly."

"To prepare a table." The "to" [in Greek, *hē*] is instead of "and."

"Because of this, the Lord heard." If they spoke in their hearts, nonetheless, the Knower of hearts heard.

"And he delayed." How He was angered and as it were spewed forth his retinue, preparing as if for vengeance; or, he delayed giving them the land promised to their fathers. ^B

"And fire was kindled out of Jacob, and wrath went up upon Israel." Jacob and Israel is the Jewish people. But the fire did not come down from heaven, for otherwise it would have destroyed everyone, but at God's command, having been kindled near the camp, it went up in wrath; that is, it moved with a strong and irresistible impetus toward the camp, and scorched a part of it.

"Because they did not believe in God, nor hope in his salvation." Having gazed upon so many wonders, they did not believe in the power of God. The prefix "en" is superfluous.

"And he commanded the clouds from above." He commanded the clouds from above, that is, from on high, to rain down, specifically, the manna.

"And opened the doors of heaven." He tilted the clouds and the doors of heaven as if they were gates set before Him.

"And he rained upon them manna to eat, and gave them bread of heaven." He calls the manna "bread of heaven" because it seemed to be brought down from heaven; or he called the air "heaven." He also termed the same manna "bread of angels," as having been dispensed through angels; this he also called sustenance, that is, food.

"He removed the south wind from heaven, and brought in the [south-west wind] by his power." He "removed" instead of "set in motion." ^C He said "it shall rain" because it was carried down from above densely and frequently as if it were a rain-storm.

"And he rained upon them flesh as dust." Because of the abundance and the rapid succession. He remembered the south wind and the south-west wind, since these winds are those which blow upon the places where the race of quails dwells.

"And they ate, and were filled exceedingly, and he brought them their desire." He now calls the result of the desire "desire."

"And while the food was still in their mouths." Upon seeing the quails, they did not believe the promise of God, who had promised to nourish them with them for a month unto fullness; but fearing that at some point it would run out, they laid it up for themselves in store. Therefore, God also was angered against the people and killed many with a pestilence; for in the [Greek] phrase "in the many," that is, "the more part," it is comparative, used here instead of the simple form. And he calls them "chosen" as having been selected in order to be drawn up in battle-line. ^D

"In all these things they sinned still; and did not believe in his wonders." In all things in which they were being well-treated, and in which they were being punished, they sinned further, among many other things, and because they were afraid of those who dwelt in the land of promise, not having trusted in the God who promised.

"And their days failed in vanity." In the disorder of good [things] and in fleshly desires, for pursuing only these in the wilderness, they all perished.

"And their years with haste." By saying "with haste," he indicated the swiftness of death.

"When he killed them, then they sought him." When they were being well-treated they did not perceive it, but when they were being punished they grew wise.

"And they loved him with their mouth." Not from the disposition of the heart, but with fine words only.

"And with their tongue they lied to him." With words they were promising to believe Him and obey, but by their deeds they were disobeying.

"But their heart was not upright with him, and they were not made faithful in his covenant." Not upright, not straight toward believing in Him. They did not believe what He promised them.

"But he is compassionate, and will propitiate for their sins, and will not destroy." Antichronistically, that is, He propitiated and did not destroy immediately or to an end.

"And he will abound to turn away his wrath." Elliptically, and he abounded in showing pity, that is, he pitied them exceedingly, so as to turn away his wrath.

"And he remembered that they are flesh, a spirit that goes and does not return." Just as forgetfulness implies a delay of the customary protection, so too, memory [implies] a sudden assistance. He recalled, therefore, that they were weak flesh and short-lived, and a spirit departing from here, and no longer returning to this life.

"And they turned back and tested God; and provoked the Holy One of Israel." They turned away from their previous wickedness to another: from complaining to testing the power of God.

^A And he did not remember his hand, the day in which he redeemed them from the hand of him that afflicted them." He did not remember his power, and the day in which he redeemed them from the tyranny of Pharaoh. "As he set his signs in Egypt, and his wonders in the field of Zoan." He did not remember how he set his signs in Egypt and turned the Nile into blood and the streams flowing from thence; he refers to the conduits as "rivers," and the reservoirs as "pools." By saying "in Egypt," he adds "of them," that is, of the Egyptians.

"He sent upon them the dog-fly, and it devoured them." He does not place the plagues in order. The dog-fly is a wild and shameless fly. And he says "devoured" figuratively instead of "condemned." "And the frog, and it destroyed them." It caused damage by biting, both the frog itself and by seizing the channels and filling them with all manner of foulness. "And he gave their fruits to the mildew, and their labors to the locust." Mildew causes a dust-like corruption of the seeds; for the pale substance that settles upon the fruits and burns them up, that is what Herodian calls mildew. "He killed their vines with hail, and their sycamores with frost." He put an end to their fruit-bearing. ^B "And he delivered their cattle to the hail and their property to the fire." By "property" he means the possessions, whatever they happened to have.

"He sent upon them the wrath of his anger." By saying "the wrath of his anger," he signified intense indignation, and through it, the punishments which were the result of the divine indignation. "Anger and wrath and tribulation, a sending of evil angels." By anger, he refers to a lesser punishing blow; by wrath, those which cause more afflictions; and by tribulation, those which are even more severe; and he calls the "evil angels" those who cause pains, that is, the punishing ones. "He did not spare their souls from death." He did not spare their souls from death so as not to kill them. He is speaking about the firstborn. "He made a path for his anger." He prepared a path for his anger, which previously was at rest out of philanthropy, so that it might travel against the hardening Egyptians. "And he shut up their cattle in death." By saying "shut up," he has shown the inescapability of the punishment. "And he struck every firstborn in the land of Egypt, the beginning of all their labor in the tabernacles of Ham." By "beginning," he refers to the preeminent and most precious; by "labor," he means possessions; and possessions are also their children. And again, he signifies the firstborn [tabernacles] of Ham, which is Egypt; for Egypt is that from which the country ^C is so named, of which Ham was the forefather.

"And he took away his people like sheep; and he led them as a flock in the wilderness." He led them out of Egypt, guiding and caring for them like a shepherd with sheep. "And he led them on in hope, and they were not afraid; and the sea covered their enemies." He guided them as they went out in the first night, in the hope of the promise made to Abraham. They were not afraid in that night; for later, they were very much afraid. "And he brought them to the mountain of his sanctuary." By "mountain," he refers to Zion; and by "sanctuary," [as] having been assigned to the ark; for this they called the sanctuary. "This is the mountain which his right hand acquired." It was acquired not by the valor of the people, but by the power of God. "And he cast out nations from before them." Seven nations: the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. ^D "And he distributed them in a chord of inheritance." Thus, without hindrance, he distributed to them the land of the nations, as if a father might measure out to his children the portions of his own land with a chord. "And they turned back and broke the covenant." They turned away from God and acted as idolaters and broke their covenant with God. "As their fathers turned back to a crooked bow." They turned from the good deed to impiety, like a crooked bow; for just as a crooked bow does not let fly its arrows straight, so their mind, becoming twisted, does not let fly its thoughts about God straight. Therefore, here "to" is used instead of "as." "And they provoked him in their high places." For the nations made sacrifices in the high places. Their idols were carved images. And "they provoked him" is instead of "they made him jealous," which means to be justly angered on account of the carved images, and as it were to be jealous, as if the worship that belonged to him were being snatched away and given to non-existent gods. "God heard and disregarded." He heard their impiety crying out, and disregarded it, which is to say, he turned away from Israel. "And he greatly dishonored Israel." That is, he made him dishonorable and despicable; for he delivered him in various ways to various nations into captivity. "And he thrust away the tabernacle of Shiloh." He thrust away the dwelling that was in Shiloh, until he no longer willed, through the ark, to dwell in Shiloh; for no other [place] would have been left to the enemy as the ark was. "A tabernacle, where he dwelt among men." The tabernacle that he caused to dwell through the ark among men; for earlier he caused the ark to be settled in Shiloh. But he chose Jerusalem instead of Shiloh. "And he delivered their strength into captivity." He calls their strength and beauty the [index: entries preserved]

^A ark, as it was until that time strengthening and adorning them.

"And their virgins were not lamented." Each of those who were kin to them was occupied with their own calamities.

"Their priests fell by the sword." Hophni and Phinehas, the sons of Eli, who were bound to the ark and were carrying it, were killed together.

"And their widows shall not weep." Because their wives, having become widows, had no one to weep for them—that is, to mourn them. This is an anachronism.

"And the Lord was awakened as one sleeping, as a mighty man who has been overcome with wine." He refers to sleep and strong intoxication as the great long-suffering toward His enemies.

"And He struck His enemies from behind; He gave them everlasting reproach." "He struck" sometimes signifies that He killed, and sometimes that He simply struck, as here; and "from behind"—that is, in their backs—"He gave them everlasting reproach." For it was a reproach to be struck in the back, their licentious and shameful way of life being exposed thereby.

"And He rejected the tabernacle of Joseph." The dwelling in Joseph—that is, the one within the borders of the tribe of Joseph. He means Shiloh.

"And He did not choose the tribe of Ephraim." To rule over it, and he did not choose it for the kingdom, clearly.

"And He chose the tribe of Judah, the mount Zion which He loved." Instead of Shiloh, which was on Mount Ephraim, He chose it as a dwelling for the ark, which he says was also loved, because it was magnified and became famous from the time it received the ark. And instead of the most manly tribe of ^B Ephraim, He chose for the kingdom the tribe of Judah, to which David belonged; for he passed over the matters concerning Saul, who was of the tribe of Benjamin, because he did not become king by divine decree, but because of the wickedness of the people.

"And He built His sanctuary as that of a unicorn upon the earth; He established it forever." He built it, as it were, out of time, for He now prophesies about the temple in Jerusalem. As for "as a unicorn," the horn must be understood. For just as the horn of the unicorn is one, and is greatest and most beautiful and strong, so also the temple of God was built then in all the earth, and was greatest and most beautiful and strong in its construction, and was solely of the one God.

He firmly established the tribe of Judah forever on the earth, that is, the Church of the faithful, against which the gates of Hades shall not prevail; for she is the tribe of the new Judah, Christ. For where is the tribe of the old [Judah] established forever?

"And He chose David His servant, and took him from the flocks of sheep; He took him from behind those that were giving suck." And this is the end; for he was a shepherd, but, in the place of a shepherd, he was following those that were giving birth to the sheep. ^C

"And He tended them in the iniquity of his heart; and He guided them in the skillfulness of his hands." He calls innocence "iniquity" [in the sense of] guileless and meek; and by "skillfulness of his hands" he means wise actions.

PSALM LXXVIII

"A Psalm to Asaph." Which is interpreted as "gathering." He announces in advance the insanity of Antiochus Epiphanes against the Jews, fashioning himself in the person of those among them who were at that time the most godly. It also applies to Christians persecuted by tyrants.

"O God, the nations have come into Thy inheritance." The people appointed to Thee as a portion.

"They have defiled Thy holy temple." Having trodden it with feet and performed impure sacrifices in it, and having brought in idols, and otherwise desecrated it. And the temple of God is a most holy precinct.

"They have laid Jerusalem as a fruit-guarding hut." A fruit-guarding hut is a cabin or tent in which someone staying watches the ripening fruits. Thus, then, he says, Jerusalem was made a ruin, having only the appearance of a city, just as the fruit-guarding hut bears the shape of a house. It would also be called Israel and every city of Christians.

"They have given the dead bodies of Thy servants to be food for the birds of the heaven, the flesh of Thy holy ones to the beasts of the earth." He calls dead bodies "dead-flesh."

"They have poured out their blood like water around Jerusalem, and there was no one to bury them." "Around" signifies everywhere. And "there was no one to bury them," because some had fled, and others were taken captive.

"We have become a reproach to our neighbors." He calls the neighboring foreign nations "neighbors." And to us, the neighbors are the Jews and the heretics, as they are close to us in faith.

"Scorn and derision to those around us." By "scorn" is meant laughter, and by "derision" we must understand mockery.

"How long, O Lord, wilt Thou be angry for an end?" "For an end" instead of "utterly," or "most vehemently."

"For He has devoured." Those around Antiochus devoured the old Israel with the mouth of the sword, while those of the faith devour the one of grace.

"Remember not our former iniquities." He says "former" for those that have preceded.

"Let Thy mercies quickly forestall us, O Lord, for we have become very poor." We have become poor, having fallen away from what we had, or even from the virtues. And they call God "Savior," as He has often accounted them worthy of salvation.

"Help us, O God our Savior, for the sake of the glory of Thy name, deliver us." Even if we are unworthy of mercy, nonetheless deliver us, so that Thy name may not appear to the nations to be reviled as weak and unable to deliver its own people.

^A “Let the groaning of the prisoners enter before You.” — Those who are being led into captivity or those in prisons and chains. “According to the greatness of Your arm, preserve the sons of those who have been put to death.” — By "arm" He means strength. And "preserve" means to save. “Render to our neighbors sevenfold into their bosom.” — Sevenfold [means] the reproach, or rather, the manifold contempt. By saying "into their bosom," He hinted that the punishment for their reproach against God is inalienable and always pressing upon them. “But we are Your people, and the sheep of Your pasture, we will acknowledge You forever.” — We are Your people, even if we have stumbled. The pasture of God is the divine commandments. Acknowledgment denotes thanksgiving for benefits received.

PSALM LXXIX

“Unto the end, concerning those who shall be changed, a testimony for Asaph, a psalm concerning the Assyrian.” — “Concerning those who shall be changed” signifies a change of circumstances in every case. “Testimony” denotes that He testifies, as He announces to the Jews the calamities that will come upon them so that they might become wiser. “Concerning the Assyrian” [is said] for "about the Assyrian," that is, about the things which the Babylonian Nebuchadnezzar, who draws his lineage from the Assyrians, would do to the Jews. The psalm also fits Christians afflicted by the enemies of the faith. At the end, it proclaims the divine Incarnation. “O Shepherd of Israel, attend, You who lead Joseph like a sheep.” — Anachronistically, for "You who have shepherded and led." To Israel, that is to Jacob, He promised to be with him and to guard him; Joseph again, having been freed from the beast-like intent and rage of his brothers, He led into Egypt and was guiding him in all things, and delivering him from the dangers that were coming upon him. But the people drawn from him, Israel and Joseph, could also be spoken of, and also the people of Christ from the nations, as they see God and are set before the believers from among the Jews. “And other sheep I have,” He says, “which are not of this fold.” Joseph is interpreted as "addition." ^B “You who sit upon the Cherubim, appear.” — You who rest in the Cherubim, appear, that is, make Yourself known, that You have come as a helper, clearly before Your people; for from the three most eminent tribes at that time, He signified the entire Israelite race. The Christian people is also called Ephraim, as being fruitful in virtues; Benjamin, as being "right" in faith; Manasseh, as having received oblivion of previous error. They are interpreted: Ephraim as "fruit-bearing," Benjamin as "son of the right hand," and Manasseh as "forgetfulness." “Awaken Your might, and come to save us.” — Awaken the supernatural pow^Cer... “O God, turn us, and show Your face, and we shall be saved.” — From sorrowful things to joyful ones, or turn us to You, cooperating toward Your will. “O Lord God of hosts, how long will You be angry with the prayer of Your servant?” — For "why do You not turn?" “You will feed us with the bread of tears, and will give us to drink with tears in measure.” — How long will You give us to eat the bread in tears, and to drink the drink again in tears? Or instead of food and drink, You will give us tears to drink and to eat. "In measure" stands for "by measure," which is in proportion to our sins. “You have set us as a contradiction to our neighbors.” — By "contradiction" here He means "reproach." “You have brought a vine out of Egypt.” — By "vine" must be understood the congregation of the Jews because of its flourishing state, but also the Church from the nations, likewise led over from the dark Egypt of ignorance to the good land of piety. “You cast out the nations and planted it.” — By "nations" are meant the foreigners and the demons; but by "You planted," He signified stable habitation. “You prepared the way before it, and planted its roots, and it filled the land.” — You made a way by casting out the nations, like thorns and other dog-grass, or by giving a law through which it will walk, that is, the congregation of the Jews will live, whose root is the kingdom. By "land" must be understood that of the promise of the Church from the nations. The "way" is the evangelical ordinances, the "roots" are the dogmas about God. By "land" here you will understand also the inhabited world and the kingdom of heaven. “Its shadow covered the mountains, and its shoots the cedars of God.” — The shadow of the Jewish synagogue is the worship according to the law; the mountains are those in Shiloh and Zion, in which the tent dwelt. The shadow [is] the authority and the power ^D that was placed over them, the mountains are the neighboring nations; and the cedars are the rulers of the nations, being themselves of God, as having received rule from God; the shoots are the judges and leaders of the Jews; and the branches are the multitudes of the people. The Indian sea, and the offshoots are the proselytes from the Gentiles to the knowledge of God; the rivers are the Euphrates in the plural; for the Church the shadow is the glory and the grace of the Spirit that overshadows it; the mountains are those who are high in practical virtue; the cedars are those in contemplative [virtue]; the shoots are the dogmas concerning the Godhead. By "sea" must be understood all [seas] and all rivers by which the inhabited world is signified. “Why have You broken down its fence, and all who pass by the way pluck it?” — He calls the divine oversight that guards them the "fence"; and "to pluck" means to do injury; those passing by...

^A the way, ^B who make its way fruitful, are those who act as foreigners or of a different faith. "The boar out of the wood has ravaged it, and the solitary wild beast has fed on it." The Babylonian, we might say, is as one unclean and wallowing in the mire of pleasures; "solitary" because he attacked the Jews without allies; for the "solitary" one is unsociable due to the excess of his savagery. The "wood" is Babylon, as it is thick with the multitude of its inhabitants, and barren toward virtue, and a dwelling place for intelligible beasts. And the devil could also be meant, who is likewise "solitary" as he delights in uncleanness and lives apart in wickedness. The "wood" also refers to souls that run wild with passions, in which he delights and dwells, according to this more instructive impulse of the discourse. From there, the Prophet, describing what the synagogue of the nations was previously, hastens toward the incarnation of the Lord. "And establish it, which Your right hand has planted." By periphrasis, "which You have planted," that is, which You have settled. But in the case of the synagogue of the nations, you will understand the planting to be the creation. "It is burnt with fire and dug up." The word "is" is missing. He hints through the vine at its land, that is, the city or cities. And the spirits of uncleanness burned the synagogue of the nations in irrational desires, and those who were created for good works were overthrown by evil altogether by the inventors of wickedness. ^C Asaph. — He exposes the ingratitude and disobedience of the Hebrews, and teaches the casting away of them, securing the new people so that they, not imitating the wickedness of the old, might not also be cast away. "Rejoice in God our helper; shout to the God of Jacob." — Receive spiritual instruction, and give the death of the members which are on the earth. "Take a psalm and give a tambourine, a pleasant psaltery with a harp." — By "psaltery" he means contemplation; by "harp," action. "Blow the trumpet in the new moon, in the famous day of your feast." — Just as the law commanded the priests to blow the trumpet on the first of the seventh month in remembrance of the heavenly trumpet at Sinai, so He commands the holy teachers that the Holy Spirit should blow the trumpet, that is, preach the resurrection of the Lord on the day of Christ's resurrection. He calls this day a "new moon" because the creation was renewed on it, and "famous," that is, illustrious, as a feast of feasts. And he calls the tongue the "trumpet." "For it is a statute for Israel, and a judgment to the God of Jacob." — Thus, he says, I command you, that it is a commandment from God for the Israelite people to blow the trumpet in the new moon, and a judgment, that is, a decree of God regarding this. "He established it as a testimony in Joseph, when he went out of the land of Egypt." — He made this very blowing of the trumpet a testimony and a commandment to the people when this same people went out of Egypt. "A language which he did not know, he heard." — A language which he did not know, that is, strange and foreign, the people heard, God commanding the language to them. When, he says, they were afraid, and the whole people stood far off. "And He removed his shoulder from the burdens." — Having taught of what grace the people were counted worthy, he also teaches the benefit of God that preceded them, namely the deliverance from the Egyptian slavery. By "burdens" he means the loads of clay and brick. "In trouble you called upon me, and I delivered you." — Hence David introduces the Master Christ, talking to the Jews and teaching that He Himself was the one who had benefited the people of old, He who is now seen in the flesh. "And upon the son of man whom You strengthened for Yourself." — The word "look" is understood. The "son of man" according to the Jews is Zerubbabel, but according to the prophetic contemplation, it is the man assumed by the Word of God, for He Himself who assumed [him] strengthened [him] as if from Himself, having imparted to him from His own power and having strengthened [him] against the enemy; for the prayer is directed to the one who assumed the man on behalf of the man who was assumed, so that He might quickly assume him; hence "strengthened" is used instead of "will strengthen." Whom the Father strengthens, Him the Son strengthens, according to the reference to the first cause. "And we will not depart from You; You will give us life, and we will call upon Your name." — These are offered in the name of the nations who are about to believe and to be dedicated completely to God. "You will give us life," he says, who were deadened by the calamities or rather by the unbelief. ^D Psalm LXXX. For the end, for the winepresses, a psalm for Asaph. "You heard me in the secret place of the storm." — Being in a secret place, that is, being invisible, I heard you, that is, I fulfilled your supplication and redeemed you from the Egyptians; through the storm that overwhelmed them, namely the Egyptians, and brought them violently to destruction, I tested you; I allowed you to thirst a little, and I found you straightway ungrateful and unmindful. He says that when they came to Meribah and found the water bitter, they murmured against Moses and spoke against God. And the place received the designation from the event. "Hear, O my people, and I will testify to you."

^A That you did not understand is an explanation. "You did not know," he says, they remained regarding these divine words willfully ignorant; for they conduct their lives in error. With boldness I cry out to you and as a witness, that if you hear my word and believe in me, and God is known in you by realization, there shall not be among you any "new god" other than your first God, nor will you, having worshipped me, worship a strange god besides the one whom your fathers worshipped; for I who now lead you into the recognition and faith in me, I am your first God, who brought you—that is, your fathers—out of Egypt; I am he and not another, even if I have taken on flesh for your sake. "Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it." Open the mouth of your mind, and I will fill it with spiritual food, that is, with the wisdom of divine perceptions; or I will fill your physical mouth with suitable food, or I will guide all your senses for your own benefit, clearly. "And I sent them away according to the devices of their hearts." I let them be carried along according to the desires and judgments of their own reasonings as disobedient ones. But I passed on to the nations. "In nothing would I have humbled their enemies." The "in nothing" signifies painlessly and easily. And he calls the physical and the intellectual enemies, respectively. "The enemies of the Lord lied to him." ^B For calling him Rabbi and a good teacher, they rejected his teaching. And not only that, but they have also handed him over to death. "And their time will be for eternity." Therefore, their calamities also shall be for always; for the Hebrews and Syrians give the name "time" to calamities. "And he fed them." That is, he provided manna for food. "He satisfied them with the fat of wheat and from the rock with honey." This is the content of the wheat, which is the finest flour, the semolina; for such did the manna seem to the Jews, as fine wheaten bread, just as the water was most sweet like honey.

PSALM LXXXII

PSALM LXXXIII

^A His deity is named Lord, he who rules over all, and he alone is the true God of all the earth; for they called God "the Most High" as being above the heavens.

PSALM LXXXII

"O Lord of hosts; my soul longs and faints for the courts of the Lord." *Faints* is said of fervent lovers who cannot endure separation from their beloved. My soul, he says, is dissolved (as it were) by the fire of longing; and everyone who loves the heavenly rest would say these things. To long is to hasten toward something out of intense desire.

"My heart and my flesh have exulted in the living God." And the body also has partaken of the joyful pleasure of the soul that is in Christ.

"For the sparrow has found itself a house, and the turtle dove a nest, where it will lay its young." For your inheritance from the nations, having been wandering like a sparrow and a turtle dove in the wilderness, has now found divine instruction.

"Your altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God." That is, your churches, and your house, and your nest, and you have put an end to error, where indeed it shall also place its own spiritual offspring, that is to say, its virtues, and bring them into action. ^B

^C "Blessed is the man whose help is from you. He has disposed ascensions in his heart." Taken together: *Blessed is he who, as regards the valley of weeping, even in this present low and painful life, has not thought of lowly and earthly things, but in his soul has meditated on thoughts that raise him toward God.* And blessed is such a one; and this is manifest, for the Lawgiver will give blessings to this man, and to the place where he has set—that is, in his heart—the aforementioned thoughts. For even in the present world Christ has blessed those who in various ways ascend within it. And he blessed them through the manifold evangelical beatitudes; and those who order these ascensions in their heart will pass on from virtue to virtue; for virtue happens to be a strengthening power of the soul.

"Fill their faces with disgrace, and they shall seek your name, O Lord." For being ashamed at the miraculous defeat, they will ask with astonishment, "Who is this God who works such miracles?"

"So will you pursue them with your tempest, and in your anger you will trouble them." By *tempest* he means the appropriate movement of wrath. And so, he says, you will pursue them, as fire pursues wood.

"Let them be ashamed and troubled forever, and let them be turned back and perish." By way of a curse he foretells what shall come to pass, that in the world to come those who have remained wicked to the end shall be ashamed, as their evil deeds are made public, and they shall be troubled by the severity of the Judge, and then shall be separated with great disgrace from the lot of the righteous, and shall be condemned to destruction in Gehenna, and shall know by their own works that God alone is truly ^D known as Lord, he who rules over all, and he alone is the true God of all the earth; for they called God "the Most High" as being above the heavens.

"They shall go from strength to strength, the God of gods shall be seen in Zion." A light in the world, he says. God will bless, that is to say, he will make blessed, those who set their minds on heavenly things, not through a prophet, nor through an angel's voice, but he himself shall be seen in Zion, incarnate, and thus he will give the blessings, or rather, perform the beatitudes.

"O our defender, behold, O God, and look upon the face of your Christ." Incline toward the visitation of your people, even to that which is to appear to your people, to those who by participation are called with Christ, just as they are also with God.

^A “That one day in your courts is better than thousands.” — Of the thousand years from Solomon, who built the temple, until your coming, Master Christ, one day is better than all of these, because of your bodily presence in the temple. “I chose to be cast aside in the house of my God, rather than to dwell in the tents of sinners.” — To be cast aside means to be discarded as it happened on the ground, rather than to dwell delicately and like a master of a house with sinners. “For God loves mercy and truth.” — For having shown us mercy, he became man and proclaimed the true Gospel. “For the Lord will give grace and glory.” — By grace, the forgiveness of sins, adoption, the miracles, the glory both here and, much more, that in heaven, and goods which are inexpressible.

PSALM 84

PSALM 85

^A rectitude; and he asks simply for the precision of both the practical virtue and the contemplative. “I will go” is put in place of “I would have walked.” “Let my heart rejoice in fearing your name.” — For the true rejoicing is the fruit of the divine fear, that is to say, of the fear which makes one perfect. Let my heart rejoice, therefore, he says, in fearing you, and not in any of the pleasantries of the world. “For your mercy is great upon me; and you have delivered my soul from the lowest hell.” — By “lowest hell” one must understand every strong danger, both bodily and spiritual. “O God, lawless ones have risen up against me.” — These are the bodily and intelligible enemies who fight unjustly. “But you, O Lord my God, are compassionate, and merciful, long-suffering, and plenteous in mercy, and true.” — For you are not false in being God, as are the gods of the nations; therefore you also save those who hope in you. “Look upon me and have mercy on me; give your power to your servant and save the son of your handmaid.” — For I am your servant and the son of your handmaid, that is to say, from ancestors long ago I exist under your lordship. “Work with me a sign for good.” — For of signs, some are evil and destructive, that is to say, painful and annihilating, as in the cases of the Egyptians, while others are good and saving, or rather, as making good and saving. “And let those who hate me see.” — Over-abundantly, “And let those who hate me see that you, O Lord, have helped me and comforted me.” “And let them be ashamed, because you, O Lord, have helped me and comforted me.” — He calls consolation the “soul-guidance”; and the signs for good are truly the gifts of the Paraclete; for the demons fear these most of all.

PSALM LXXXVI

PSALM LXXXVII

^A dead.” — Free, that is to say, innocent; for death is the penalty of sin.

“Like the wounded sleeping in the grave.” — I was born like one wounded, lying in the grave and sleeping the sleep of death, until those who are dying from the slaughter of wounds and blows, and not naturally.

“Of whom you were no longer mindful, and they were thrust away from your hand.” — That is, you were not mindful of them, not yet to bring them to life, and for this reason they fell away from your support, since you forgot them. And by such words he indicates the providential abandonment.

“They set me in the lowest pit, in dark places and in the shadow of death.” — He calls the grave the lowest pit and dark places and the night of death, that is, what death brings about. ^B

“Your wrath is firmly laid upon me, and you have brought all your upheavals upon me.” — By the wrath of God, understand for me the curse of death brought upon the human race, which Christ for our sake accepted upon himself. The term “firmly laid” is placed instead of “weighed heavily,” on account of the death of the cross being heavy and burdensome.

“You have removed my acquaintances far from me.” — Through the fear of those who crucified him.

“They set me as an abomination to themselves.” — That is, the Jews.

“I was handed over and could not go out.” — I was handed over to the Jews by Iscariot, and though able to depart from them, I did not do this, but endured it willingly.

“My eyes have grown weak from poverty.” — Here he calls the affliction and wasting away of the body “poverty.”

“Will you do wonders for the dead? Or shall physicians raise them up, and will they give you thanks?” — Will you do wondrous works for the insensible dead? Shall physicians raise the dead, and will those raised by physicians thus give you thanks? Some say the Lord says these things in human cowardice, asking for life in the face of death; others say he wished to make known to us the reasons why his descent into Hades was necessary. ^C

“Shall any relate your mercy in the grave, and your truth in destruction?” — He called the grave “destruction,” as the corpse lying within it is corrupted there.

“Shall your wonders be known in the darkness, and your righteousness in a land of forgetfulness?” — He calls the grave both darkness and a land of forgetfulness; for the living forget it, as being full of corruption.

“Yet I have cried out to you, O Lord, and in the morning my prayer shall anticipate you.” — “In the morning” signifies quickly; the preposition is used superfluously in “anticipate.”

“Why, O Lord, do you reject my prayer, do you turn your face away from me?” — These things the Master says on behalf of us who were formerly cast away and angry [with God].

“I am poor and in labors from my youth.” — For the Lord was so destitute as not to have where to lay his head, and was in labors from his very infancy, in that from his swaddling clothes he was plotted against and persecuted, perpetually suffering.

“But being exalted, I was humbled.” — Exaltation is to be understood from his miracles, and his being on the cross; humiliation [is to be understood] from the mockeries and revilings, and that very [humiliation] which was unto death and burial.

“And I was in despair.” — That is, helpless and without aid; for which reason they also said, “Let us see if Elijah comes to save him.”

“Your wrath came upon me, [and] your terrors troubled me.” — For the reproofs and threats against humanity, he accepted upon himself through his sufferings.

“They surrounded me like water, they encompassed me all the day together.” — The Jews surrounded him like a flood, and all alike besieged me. He calls the day of the passion “the day.”

“You have removed friend and neighbor far from me, and my acquaintances on account of misery.” — [This happened] through your permission, providentialily. ^D

PSALM 88

“Of Ethan, of the Israelite, a lesson.” — The lesson of Ethan concerning the leading away of those who were taken captive to Babylon, and a prophecy about Christ.

“I will sing of your mercies, O Lord, forever; I will declare your truth with my mouth from generation to generation.” — He calls the divine promise toward him the mercies of God and his truth: to give salvation to men from his seed through an ineffable mercy.

“For you spoke: ‘Mercy shall be built up forever.’” — For the house of the substantive Wisdom of God the Word has been built up from the virginal substance; thus Jesus, being Mercy, is eternally for those who believe in him.

“Your truth shall be prepared in the heavens.” — The truth of God, Christ, was established in the heavens; for the Hebrew Scripture knows the word “established” to be “prepared” in many places.

“I have made a covenant with my chosen ones.” — These things are by the person of God. By “covenant” he means the promise; by “chosen ones,” Abraham and those like him.

“I have sworn to David my servant.” — The oath signifies the firmness of the promise.

“Until the age will I prepare your seed.” — For Christ has established himself unto the age, living and reigning continuously.

“And I will build up your throne from generation to generation.” — By “building up” he means completion, and by “throne,” the kingdom. He calls the kingdom of Christ the kingdom of David, because Christ is descended from him.

“The heavens shall confess your wonders, O Lord.”

^A And “those who possess the heavenly life on earth,” who, he says, magnify your wondrous and true promises in the assembly of your saints in heaven and on earth. “You shall call the heavens the minds in heaven, or the day.” — “In you they shall rejoice always, and in your Son they shall be glorified.”

“For who among the clouds shall be likened to the Lord, shall be likened to the Lord among the sons of God?” — For no one on high, or as an angel, shall be likened to the Lord, nor among the holy men shall he be likened.

“God is glorified in the counsel of the saints.” — In the assembly, God is truly glorified and praised.

“Great and terrible is he over all who are round about him.” — The saints dwell round about; and by “saints” he means both the angels and those among men whom he loves, to whom God is great and terrible, as they strictly understand His transcendence.

“O Lord God of hosts, who is like you? You are mighty, O Lord, and your truth is round about you.” — You are not only capable of doing what you promise, but also your truth has never departed from you.

“You rule the power of the sea.” — By the power of the sea he means the violence of the waves, saying, Your nod rouses the sea, and again produces calm. ^B

“You humbled the proud one as one that is slain.” — This is truly the devil. He said “as one that is slain” because those who are wounded are humbled, being bent down by the pain of the wound.

“The north and the sea, you have created them.” — By north he means the northern part, and by sea the southern; and they are strictly the ends of the world.

“Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice in your name.” — By these mountains, being the boundaries of the land of promise, he indicated such a land, and that Christ spent most of his time in these parts. And in Tabor he was transfigured, and in Hermon he raised the son of the widow; for there is the city of Nain.

“Yours is the arm with might.” — The word is directed to the Father; yours is the arm, that is, the power with might, which is most powerful and strong.

“Let your hand be strengthened; let your right hand be exalted.” — He called the power again both hand and right hand, strengthened against the enemies, but exalted for the protection of his own. And the power of the Father is the Son.

“Righteousness and judgment are the preparation of your throne.” — Upon righteousness and judgment, your judicial throne is established, so that even with the tyranny you shall judge us justly.

“Blessed is the people who know the shout.” — He blesses those who know how to conquer the invisible enemies and to shout against them, and he says: These shall live according to the commandments of your Son. ^C

“And in your name they shall rejoice all the day.” — “For you are the boast of their power.” The power of Christians is Christ, of whom the Father is the boast, in whom he glories, and to whom he attributes all his own achievements.

“And in your favor shall our horn be exalted.” — The favor of the Father is the incarnation of the Son.

“For the protection is of the Lord, and of the Holy One of Israel, our King.” — To protect us is the work of the Lord and our King, who is the Holy One of Israel.

“Then you spoke in a vision to your sons.” — By sons of God he means the prophets here, through the acquisition of virtue. And “in a vision” is used instead of “clearly”; for a vision is clearer than all senses. And the word “then” indicates the time when the prophets were inspired concerning Christ.

“And you said: I have placed help upon the mighty.” — By mighty he means Jesus, as having in himself the power of God, that is, the Son of God; for this one he also says has been provided as help by the Father, since by the favor of the Father the Word is united to Jesus. ^D

“I have exalted the elect from my people.” — He calls him also elect, as one chosen for the union by substance of the Son, and exalted for its sake; and by the people he means the Jewish people; for from this people came she who gave birth to him.

“I have found David my servant.” — He calls him also David, as being descended from David.

“With my holy oil I have anointed him.” — That is, with the Holy Spirit.

“For my hand shall aid him, and my arm shall strengthen him.” — The hand and arm of God is his power, which is the Son. And “shall strengthen” is instead of “shall make strong”; for in such cases the prefix denotes intensity, as also in the word “shall abolish” (καταργήσει), instead of “shall make completely inactive,” and in similar cases.

“The enemy shall not profit him.” — The devil will not succeed in him while tempting.

“And the son of lawlessness shall not continue to afflict him.” — This same one is also called the son of lawlessness, and the lawless one, who will not attempt further to defeat him by tempting, having been repelled at the first moment of the temptation.

“And I will cut off his enemies from his face.” — By “cut off” he denotes destroy; by “from his face” he means from before him. And the enemies who hate him are both the demons and the Jews.

“And my truth and my mercy with him.” — Truth and mercy is the Son, who is of the Father.

“And in my name shall his horn be exalted.” — And upon being called by my name, Lord and God, his glory shall be magnified. And Jesus was called by such a name.

^A or the assumption according to the argument of the compensation.

“And I will set his hand in the sea, and his right hand in the rivers.” — By the sea, he indicated the islands, and by the river, the mainland. He calls the hand and the right hand here his possession and lordship.

“He shall call upon me, Thou art my Father, my God, and the supporter of my salvation.” — According to the Word united to me. But “my God and supporter” refers to his human essence.

“And I will appoint him firstborn.” — For the Lord has as brothers those who have believed, as a man, being firstborn among them, he who is by divine nature the only-begotten Son of the Father.

“Higher than the kings of the earth.” — For as a man also he is lord of all through the deification of the assumption.

“I will keep my mercy for him for ever.” — The Son is called the mercy of the Father, since through him he had mercy on us and rescued us from the tyrant. By this utterance is revealed that which is eternally inseparable of the natures united in Christ.

“And my covenant is faithful with him.” — And my promise made to him shall be firm upon him, that is, what was said to David shall come to pass upon him, namely, “Until the end of time I will establish your seed.”

“And I will set his seed for ever and ever.” — The seed of Christ is his evangelical way of life, or his teaching.

“And his throne as the days of heaven.” — By throne he means the kingdom; by days of heaven he means the heavenly age, that is, that which is on high, the divine and unending one.

“If his sons forsake my law, and do not walk in my judgments.” — The sons of Christ are those who have been regenerated to him through the laver of regeneration.

“If they profane my righteousness, and do not keep my commandments.” — “Profane” ^B is said in contrast to that which is “inaccessible,” meaning that which is accessible and common to all, and for this reason cheapened and dishonored.

“I will visit their iniquities with a rod, and their injustices with scourges.” — The rod and the scourges are calamities and trials.

“But my mercy I will not take away from them.” — That is, I will not make their abandonment complete.

“Nor will I act unjustly in my truth.” — Nor will I wrong my truth by lying, nor will I dishonor my promise by breaking it.

“Nor will I profane my covenant.” — By covenant he means that which he said: “My mercy I will not take away from them.”

“And the things going forth from my lips I will not ignore.” — That is, the things declared through my words.

“Once I have sworn by my holy one, if I shall lie to David.” — I swore by my own holiness, not once, but until the end without any repetition. The “if” instead of “not.” “His seed.” The seed of David is Christ, as has been said before.

“And his throne as the sun before me, and as the moon established for ever.” — “Until the seed of David.” The “as the sun” and “as the filled [moon]” (perhaps moon)—until the full moon and perfectly bright—signifies the illustrious and also lasting nature of Christ’s kingdom.

“And the witness in heaven is faithful.” — And he who testified, or rather promised these things, being in heaven, is firm.

“But thou hast rejected and despised, thou hast deferred thy Christ.” — The following words are in the person of the people who were captives in Babylon. Through these utterances the Prophet reveals the lack of understanding and the folly of the Jews in the Scriptures; for not understanding what the seed of David is and what his kingdom is, they are foolish, supposing that God has lied. And “thou hast deferred” means thou hast thwarted. And by Christ he means David to whom the promise was made.

“Thou hast overturned the covenant of thy servant.” — Thou hast dissolved the promise made to him.

“Thou hast profaned his sanctuary on the ground.” — Thou hast allowed it to be dishonored on the ground, which means for the temple to fall and to be shared in, which David had intended to build, but Solomon performed the work of his father.

“Thou hast pulled down all his hedges.” — The hedges of David, that is, of the people descended from him, were the walls of the cities. And the fortifications are the warriors who stand in the front line. And an iniquity is said for an unjust man, and glory for a glorious man, and cowardice for a coward, and so on; and “thou hast made” means thou hast performed.

“All who pass by the way have plundered him.” — Him, that is, his presence, the foreigners dwelling nearby, who had made the way to it, were plundering.

“Thou hast exalted the right hand of those who afflict him.” — In their striking them in war, thou hast gladdened all the neighboring nations. Thou hast turned away the aid which thou usually didst provide him in battles.

“Thou hast turned away the aid of his sword, and hast not supported him in battle.” — With the Babylonians.

“Thou hast stripped him of cleansing.” — Thou hast caused him to cease from the usual cleansing, that is, thou hast taken away his feasts; for in these the Jews used to employ sprinklings and purifications.

“Thou hast dashed his throne to the ground.” — Thou hast overturned his kingdom.

“Thou hast shortened the days of his time.” — By time he means that which was promised to the seed of David for ever and ever.

^A This yesterday, that is to say the past, is like a portion of the night; for the period of a thousand years flows past, but Thou art immovable and eternal. As for the words “which is past,” this is an explanation of “yesterday.”

“Their rejections shall be the years.” — The preposition is superfluous; furthermore, it will be construed as “I shall treat them with contempt.” Having belittled the thousand years for men, He says, “I shall hold them in contempt.”

“In the morning let it pass away like grass, in the morning let it bloom and pass away; in the evening let it fall, be hardened and withered.” — Swiftly, like grass, may the thousand years pass; and grass is more fleeting than all other herbs, since in the morning ^B of the day it will bloom, and at once it will pass away from blooming, and in the evening it will fall, that is, it will lie upon the earth as the moisture within it is consumed, and thus it will be completely withered. The optative moods are used here instead of the future indicative.

“For we have failed in Thy wrath, and in Thy fury have we been troubled.” — The “for” is narrative here. As to “we have failed,” it means we have been despised, we have perished, in that Thou hast been angry at us because we have sinned, and Thou hast set them before Thee, and Thou hast set them naked before Thee, and they, being seen, provoke Thee against us.

“Our age is for the illumination of Thy countenance.” — Our whole life, until the deeds according to it, that is, our sins, lies in the manifestation of Thy inspection, until it is made known to Thee. ^C

“For all our days have failed; and in Thy wrath we have failed.” — We have died in calamities; we have been suffocated by tribulations.

“Our years...” — I was reckoning our years, the years of men, as if it were a spider.

“Like a spider let them meditate.” — Instead of “they were being meditated upon,” it means they are considered like the web of a spider, because of its... and impermanence.

“And the days of our years are in them seventy years.” — Being in them, until the time when they possess powers from their own limbs and move by their own strength.

“But if in strong ones, eighty years.” — We are destined to be oppressed by old age and to live in violence.

“And the greater part of them is labor and ^D sorrow.” — And the greater part of the enumerated years—not to say the whole—we pass through in misery and pain.

“For a mildness has come upon us, and we shall be chastened.” — By mildness, he means all the painful things in life, that is, a humane punishment and a gentle discipline.

“Who knoweth the power of Thy wrath?” — If Thy small chastening causes us such awareness, who then knows the strength of Thy wrath, how great it is for those who have not returned? He also hints at eternal punishment.

^A “Averted, whether from men or from demons.”

“From an arrow that flies by day,” — From an arrow being discharged by day, whether sensibly or intellectually.

“From a thing that walks in darkness.” — By “thing” he refers to wicked men, the demons, and the passions that come upon one at night.

“From a calamity.” — A calamity is that which happens unexpectedly and involuntarily.

“And from a noonday demon.” — Any passion, which rises up after nourishment.

“It shall fall from your side.” ^B — “Side” he calls the left part.

“A thousand and ten thousand at your right hand, but it shall not come near you.” — From the arrows, clearly; for you shall be shot at, he says, by the intellectual enemies, with many [arrows] from the left, and more from the right; but the arrows shall fall ineffectual, and shall not even come near you. Only with your mind’s eyes shall you recognize them, and behold the punishment of the sinful demons. And what is the punishment? That their projections are energy-less.

“For You, O Lord, are my hope; you have made the Most High your refuge.” — The word “you said” is missing.

“No evil shall come to you.” — By “evils” he speaks of temptations; nor let the temptation overcome your soul, nor does it seem to approach it.

“And a scourge shall not draw near your tent.” ^C — For it is not assumed that any painful thing approaches the body, for the soul is not harmed thereby.

“For He shall command His angels concerning you, to keep you in all your ways.” — By “ways” he refers to actions.

“On their hands they shall bear you up.” — The “hands of angels” are their saving powers.

“Lest you strike your foot against a stone.” — “Stone” is sin, “foot” is the manner of life.

“Upon the asp and basilisk you shall tread, and you shall trample the lion and the dragon.” — All these are designations of the devil. ^D

“For he hoped in Me, and I will deliver him.” — The Prophet introduces God confirming His words.

“I will shelter him, because he knew My name.” — He knows that God is He who is worthily addressed.

“With length of days I will satisfy him.” — He refers to eternal life.

PSALM XCI

“A Psalm of an ode for the day of the Sabbath.” — By “Sabbath” here, one must understand the age to come, which is total rest and cessation from all human affairs.

“It is good to give thanks to the Lord, and to sing to Your name, O Most High.” — By “morning and night” he has indicated the whole of time; and by “mercy” indeed [he indicated] the benefits toward us, and by [the word] “iniquity” [he indicated] that against those who act unjustly th-

the judgment; for ^A frequently he calls justice “truth.”

“For you have gladdened me, O Lord, by your work.” — By “work” he means the whole of creation perceived by the senses, taken as a whole. And he calls the various species of this, their conservation and preservation and providence, and the ineffable economies of God, the “works of [his] hands.”

“How your works have been magnified, O Lord; your thoughts have been made very deep.” — By “thoughts” he means the counsels and the wisdom of God; and by “have been made very deep,” he indicates that these are beyond reach and unsearchable.

“A foolish man will not know, and a senseless man will not understand these things.” — One who is void of divine discernment will not understand these things, because, clearly, your works are great and wonderful, and your counsel and wisdom are unsearchable. ^B

“When the sinners spring up like grass, and all those who work iniquity look out.” — One also adds “they have been multiplied.” And “look out” [is used] instead of “they have sprouted,” “they have grown,” “they have looked out of the earth.” He says, then: The wicked have been multiplied here, so that in the age to come they may inherit the destruction in Gehenna; for the growth of wickedness has such an end.

“But you are most high forever, O Lord.” — But you possess the height of power eternally.

“For behold, your enemies, O Lord, for behold, your enemies shall perish; and all who work iniquity shall be scattered.” — The "enemies of the Lord" are all who obey the apostate devil, who will perish in Gehenna and will be scattered into the various punishments.

“And my horn will be exalted like that of a unicorn.” — The “horn” of David is Christ, who will be magnified at the time of the universal judgment, with all his enemies being humbled before him.

“And my old age in a rich oil.” — There is missing “will be”; for he says, since I knew that thus my horn will be exalted, [he means] he will pass through my old age in great richness.

“And my eye has looked upon my enemies.” — “Has looked” [is used] instead of “shall look.” But the text lacks [the object] “vengeance.” And by enemies we must understand the demons and the wicked.

“And my ear will hear concerning those who rise up against me and behave wickedly.” — Again, he speaks of the same ones rising up against him and proceeding without constraint. And he will hear the sentence against the Despot himself; for this is what is lacking in this clause. ^C

“The righteous will flourish like a palm tree; he will be multiplied like a cedar in Lebanon.” — Having manifested the short-lived nature of sinners through the grass, he has manifested the evergreen nature of the righteous through the palm; and through the cedar, [he indicates] abundance, for it is filled with branches. The righteous man, then, will be evergreen, ^D and he will be multiplied with the abundance of good things.

“Those planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God.” — Girded in the Church of those who truly believe, in the age to come they shall be shown in the heavenly mansions [bearing] the flowers of virtues, the various enjoyments of manifold good things.

“They shall still be multiplied in a rich old age.” — By “rich old age” he means the deepest [old age]. Through this he has made known the future perfection, in which the righteous shall receive in manifold ways the fruit of justice and fare well, having gained the ineffable enjoyments, so as to say with a rejoicing soul: Truly the Lord is righteous, who gives to each according to his works.

PSALM XCII

“For the day before the Sabbath, when the earth was inhabited, a psalm of praise of David. The Lord has reigned.” — Christ reigning as God reigned, and as man after the resurrection; or the kingdom must be understood as that [received] through knowledge.

“He has clothed himself with comeliness; the Lord has clothed himself with power and girded himself.” — He manifested the glory and dominion and power fitting for him as God, and his previously hidden divine glory, and he “girded himself,” that is to say, he prepared himself for the destruction of the apostate powers.

“For he has established the world, which shall not be shaken.” — By “world” he means the catholic Church of Christ throughout the whole world.

“Your throne is prepared from then; you are from eternity.” — Your kingdom is firm from the beginning.

“The rivers have lifted up, O Lord, the rivers have lifted up their voices.” — By “rivers” here he means the apostles, who lifted up their voices for the preaching.

“The rivers will carry their crushings.” — By “rivers” he now means the later teachers, who have followed the paths of the teaching of the apostles; for “crushings” are the incisions that the rivers carve, crushing the earth as they flow. And “carry” here signifies “they shall take.”

“From the voices of many waters.” — By “many waters” we must understand the apostles and the remaining teachers; and by their “voices,” the teachings; and by the “sea,” the multitude of the nations that have believed; and by “tossings,” the exaltations of the minds toward God.

“Wonderful in the heights is the Lord.” — Or rather, in the high matters, even unto the mentioned tossings, the Lord is wonderful, who has brought the wonderful things to accomplishment.

“Your testimonies have been made very sure.” — The prophecies concerning you have been shown to be very true.

“Holiness becomes your house, O Lord, unto length of days.” — The house of God is the Church of the faithful, to which it is fitting to be holy continuously and...

of purity of everything, as having the truly Holy ^A one as its indweller.

PSALM XCIII (XCIV)

« A Psalm of David for the fourth day of the Sabbath. The Lord is a God of vengeance. » — The Lord is a God of vengeance. The psalm introduces comfort for those who are wronged. « God of vengeance has spoken freely. » — "Has spoken freely" is used in place of "speaks freely," that is, he will make his own righteous judgment manifest. « Be exalted, O Judge of the earth; render a recompense to the proud. » — By "proud," he means the powerful, as they despise the poor. « They will speak out and talk iniquity. » — From the preceding [clause], "How long shall all," [and] from the preceding [clause], "iniquity." « They have slain the widow and the orphan, and they have murdered the sojourner. » — Everyone who seizes the property of others will kill and murder. By "sojourner," among the Jews, is meant one who has come over from the nations to Judaism, but among us, it is the resident alien. « And they said, The Lord will not see, neither will the God of Jacob understand. » — "Understand" here means "know." « Understand now, O foolish among the people, and, ye fools, be wise at last. » — Recognize what is known to all. « He who planted the ear, does he not hear? Or he who fashioned the eye, does he not perceive? » — "Perceive" here means "see." « He who disciplines the nations, shall he not rebuke? » — Shall he not rebuke—that is, punish—you who are lawless, even though he disciplines and makes wise the nations that have received the divine law through the laws that are among them, by which those who transgress are punished? « He who teaches man knowledge. » — The Giver of knowledge, God, surely knows the reasonings of those who think human and earthly thoughts, and who for this reason err concerning divine providence because they are false and mistaken. « Blessed is the man whom thou shalt discipline, O Lord. » — Whom thou shalt make wise through the teaching that comes from thee. « And shalt teach him out of thy law. » — Whether it be the natural or the written law. « To quiet him from the days of evil. » — So that he might not complain, nor be angry on account of the painful days, because wickedness is in power, but rather that he might endure and be long-suffering until every transgressor of the divine commandments is cast into the pit of eternal torment. « Until a pit be dug for the sinner. » — Until Christ, the self-righteousness, turns from the present forbearance to the coming judgment, and all the righteous are held ^D and are near him. « Who will rise up for me against the evildoers? » — Who will assist me against the evil enemies, both those perceived by the senses and those perceived by the mind? « Or who will stand with me against those who work iniquity? » — [For one] set in battle array against adversaries.

« If the Lord had not helped me, my soul had well nigh dwelt in Hades. » — Used in place of "dwelt." And by "Hades," he means danger, whether bodily or spiritual. « If I said, My foot has slipped; thy mercy, O Lord, helped me. » — If I confessed my own weakness, I obtained thy philanthropy. « According to the multitude of my sorrows in my heart, thy comforts have gladdened my soul. » — I received consolation from thee that corresponded to my sorrows in my heart. « Let not the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee. » — He calls the demonic swarm a "throne of iniquity" because iniquity both reigns and finds rest within them. And he prays, or rather, he prophesies in the form of a prayer, that the demons might not be present at the judgment with Christ, but that before his coming, they might be allotted the Gehenna prepared for them, so that they, being too misanthropic, might not accuse the righteous, if any fault has been committed by them against their will. ^C « Who fashions labor upon a commandment. » — The demonic swarm fashions labor upon the light commandment of Christ, rendering the Lord's commandments burdensome, as if to make one shrink back from them. « They shall hunt against the soul of the righteous. » — He tells the reason why he prays that the demonic swarm be not present at the judgment of Christ; for he says that the demons are present; they will set a hunt against the righteous, accusing them in every way, hating them excessively. « And they shall condemn innocent blood. » — He speaks of the innocent through periphrasis, whom, if the demons are present, they will make condemned as much as lies in their power. « And the Lord became a refuge for me. » — The past tense is used for the future. « And my God for a helper of my hope. » — A helper of my hope, that is, a helper of me who hopes in him. « And the Lord shall recompense them their iniquity, and their wickedness; the Lord our God shall destroy them. » — For they will nowhere appear, because they are buried in the fire prepared for them.

PSALM XCIV (XCV)

« A song of praise for David. Come, let us rejoice in the Lord; let us shout aloud to God our Savior. » — He reveals him as having conquered the tyrannizing demons. « Let us come before his presence with confession. » — Let us anticipate his second coming with a confession of our faults—that is, let us repent before death; for the second coming of Christ has already overtaken the one who has died. « For the Lord is a great God and a great king over all gods. » — Though he appeared as man,

^A the Lord has made the heavens. » — By the heavens he has declared the whole of creation. « Confession and beauty are before him. » — Those who confess their sins and, through their absolution, become beautiful, have their souls joined to him through their deeds. He has pointed out those who possess this. « Holiness and majesty are in his sanctuary. » — His sanctuary is his temple, which he built from the virgin’s blood, which has purity (for it is sinless) and majesty. He has worked great works, truly fitting. « Bring to the Lord, O families of the nations, bring to the Lord glory and honor. » — We know the gatherings of the priests and teachers to be the spiritual families of the nations. ^B « Bring to the Lord glory to his name. » — Glory is offered to God through hymnody, and honor through our honorable conduct. « Take up sacrifices, and go into his courts. » — Sacrifices are truly the virtues, and the courts of God are the churches of the faithful, many in number but one in faith; this is what is indicated by what follows. The prophet has shown that the teachers are archetypes and exemplars of every virtue. « Let all the earth be shaken before his face. » — Let those who inhabit the earth be moved by his manifestation from error unto the truth. « For he has directed the habitable world, which shall not be shaken. » — Being formerly led astray here and there, it has now been established in the straight faith of his universal Church, against which the gates of Hades shall not prevail. ^C « He shall judge the nations in uprightness. » — According to the coming judgment. « Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice. » — For the heavenly one, then the earthly one, bestowed salvation upon the heavenly and earthly world. « Let the sea be shaken, and the fullness thereof. » — By the sea he declared the islanders, and by the plains and the trees of the forest those who dwell in the plains and those in the mountains; it is the habit of the prophets to attribute joy even to inanimate things whenever they wish to signify overwhelming gladness. To be shaken here signifies in one place to be transferred and changed, in another to be disturbed by fear, and in another to leap with pleasure, as in this instance. « From the face of the Lord, for he comes. » — All things shall have pleasure from the manifestation of Christ, because he comes to direct the habitable world. ^D « For he comes to judge the earth. » — By this he signified the second coming of the Lord, according to which he will render to each according to his works. « He shall judge the habitable world in righteousness, and the peoples in his truth. » — In righteousness as

^A impartial, and in truth as one who knows all, and for this reason, he judges the righteous man without error.

PSALM XCVII

PSALM XCVIII

PSALM XCIX

those who are being tyrannized, but he will strike down the devil who devises tyranny. ^A

« You have prepared directness. » — You have given the law in which you were made straight.

« Exalt the Lord our God and worship at the footstool of his feet, for he is holy. » — The footstool of Christ, according to his divine nature, is his holy flesh; but according to his human nature, it is the cross, upon which his feet stood when he was nailed to it.

« And avenging upon all his devices. » — If anyone were found resisting.

« Exalt the Lord our God and worship at his holy mountain, for the Lord our God is holy. » — And worship, that is to say, the Lord, in his holy mountain. And the holy mountain is Zion, and heaven, and the Church, and the height of the knowledge of God.

PSALM 99

« A Psalm for confession. Shout to God, all the earth; serve the Lord in gladness. » — To him who has delivered us from the bitter tyranny of the devil.

« It is he who made us, and not we ourselves. » — That is to say, we are the workmanship of God and not of men; for even if parents seem to produce children, yet it is God who does these things. The parents only serve the divine command.

« Enter into his gates with confession, into his courts with hymns. » — He calls the churches in various places the gates and courts of God.

« Praise his name, for the Lord is good, his mercy is for eternity, and his truth is even unto generation and generation. » — He calls the unfailing nature of the divine promises his truth here.

PSALM 100

« A Psalm for David. I will sing of mercy and judgment to you, O Lord. » — I will remind you with a song, O Lord, of mercy and judgment; for you exist as merciful and righteous.

« I will sing and understand in a blameless way. » — He who walks and conducts his life blamelessly, I will sing to you, and I will understand the things being sung—that is, I will sing with understanding.

« When will you come to me? » — A fervent yearning for you to come to me and to make an abode with my Father with me.

« I set no lawless thing before my eyes. » — I did not endure to look, either sensibly or intellectually—that is, to contemplate—any lawless deed. ^B

« I hated those who commit transgressions. » — I turned away from those who transgress the divine commandments, whether these be the covenants made with men or with God.

« When the wicked did turn aside from me, I did not know it. » — Instead of despising it, I considered his withdrawal not to have happened; for one ought not to hold onto the kindness of the wicked if he does not change his ways.

« With a proud eye and an insatiable heart, with this one I did not eat. » — As with a boastful and greedy person; the whole from a part.

« My eyes are upon the faithful of the earth. » — I gave heed to them, and I associated with the faithful who demonstrated themselves to God by their godly conduct.

« He who speaks injustice did not direct it before my eyes. » — Meaning, he who speaks injustice did not direct it before my eyes, upon which he was busy; but he was clearly rebuked and missed his goal.

« In the mornings I killed all the sinners of the land. » — Historically, the blessed Josiah killed the priests of the idols who were in the land under him, and utterly destroyed all who were not returning to the fear of God from Jerusalem in the mornings, clearing the holy city of such defilement, when deeds are done more safely by a sober mind. But by anagogical interpretation, one must understand "morning" as when the ray of the All-Holy Spirit shines upon the mind, killing—that is, destroying—the sinners of the land, the impassioned thoughts that sprout simply from the earthy body and the earthly things, and the city of the Lord is the pious soul. "Morning" signifies both that which is quick and that which is manifest. ^C

PSALM 101

« A prayer for the poor, when he is downcast, and before the Lord he pours out his supplication. » — He calls "poor" here the one who is in need of divine help, having become downcast by the war of either visible or invisible enemies. There are also prophecies concerning Christ in this Psalm.

« O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you. » — As wood parched by fire, so my bones have withered; for despondency consumed the natural moisture within them.

« I was struck like grass, and my heart has withered. » — As grass, when struck, withers, so I too, struck by temptations, have withered in my heart.

« For I forgot to eat my bread. » — The ancients call appetite a memory of food, and loss of appetite a forgetting of food.

« Through the voice of my groaning, my bone has cleaved to my flesh. » — For true groaning consumes the thickness of the fats that come between the bone and the skin; for he called the skin "flesh."

« I have become like a desert pelican; I have become like an owl in a ruin. » — By each of the mentioned birds he hinted at his own servitude; for the pelican dwells in the deserts out of fear, and the owl likewise runs to the ruins of buildings, and the sparrow, out of fear, keeps watch and stays alone on the rooftop, which is the part above the ceiling and out in the open. ^D

« All the day my enemies reproached me, and those who praised me swore against me. » — Those who admired me before, swore against me later.

^A So as to loose the bond of the slavery of the demons from the descendants of those who died in unbelief.

« For I have eaten ashes like bread, and mingled my drink with weeping. » — And at the time of food, cast upon my face, in ashes and mourning, I drank in the vapor of the spirit as ashes instead of food, and my drink was mingled with tears.

« Because of the face of your wrath and your anger. » — These things happened to me because of your wrath, expressed periphrastically.

« For having lifted me up, you have dashed me down. » — Because having lifted me up before, you permitted me to fall later and be broken.

« My days declined like a shadow, and I withered like grass. » — They passed away quickly like a shadow; for the shadow shifts and passes by very quickly.

« But you, O Lord, shall arise and have mercy on Zion. » — According to the literal sense, the sensible Jerusalem; according to the deeper sense, the Church of the believers through the resurrection from the dead.

« For it is the time to have mercy on her, for the time has come. » — Either that the time appointed for the captivity, that is, seventy years, is fulfilled, or that all are attacking and waging war against the Church. ^B

« For your servants have taken pleasure in her stones, and they shall have mercy on her dust. » — Either that those who returned from captivity also loved the ruined stones of Jerusalem, and the dust from the destruction moves them to pity; or that the apostles prepared those who were more steadfast in piety for the building up of the Church, and considered the weaker ones worthy of appropriate care.

« And the nations shall fear your name, O Lord, and all the kings of the earth your glory. » — Either because of such a great transformation for the better of those who were taken captive, or because of the signs and wonders performed through the mere invocation of Christ, or rather later, when the Lord shall come with power and great glory.

« Let this be written for another generation. » — Let this prayer be set aside, that is, the present Psalm, for the generation of the new people, since the old one was unfaithful to the prophecies contained therein concerning Christ.

« And the people that is being created shall praise the Lord. » — He says "that is being created" because of the increase of believers until the end. And perceive "creation" not as the original bringing into being, but as the transformation for the better.

« For he has looked down from the height of his sanctuary. » — Having remained on high and appeared below.

« The Lord has looked down from heaven upon the earth. » — Through his visitation he made his presence manifest.

« To hear the groaning of those in bonds. » — The groaning with which the righteous groaned for those who are bound by the chains of sins.

« To loose the sons of those who were slain. » — That he might loose the descendants of those who died in unbelief.

« To declare the name of the Lord in Zion. » — That of the Father. For I have manifested your name to men.

« And his praise in Jerusalem. » — For he was continually praising the Father, attributing all things to him.

« When peoples are gathered together into one, and the kings, to serve the Lord. » — He was making the praise of the Father when the peoples and their rulers were gathered unto him, even to the apostles, in that, having believed, they are his servants, the Lord truly according to his divinity.

« He answered him in the way of his strength. » — Having brought this prophecy to a conclusion, he lays hold again of the first sequence, and says "he answered," which is now instead of "he spoke simply to him," that is, to God, to whom the prayer of the present Psalm is directed. And the poor man spoke, that is, he who was overcome by discouragement (akedia). But by "way of strength" must be understood the time in which he is still able, and has not yet been weakened and completely cast down by discouragement.

« Declare to me the fewness of my days. » — Make known to me the small quantity of the days of my life that remain to me, so that I may set my soul's care toward a more intense effort.

« Do not call me away in the midst of my days. » — By "calling away" he means the departure of the soul from the body; and by "midst of my days," the time before old age. He says, therefore: Give me life until old age, that I may produce fruits of salvation.

« Your years are in generation of generations. » — He adds to the prayer both doctrines; and by "generation of generations" he means forever, and by years, the extension of his being.

« In the beginning you, O Lord, laid the foundation of the earth. » — You made it firm.

« And the heavens are the works of your hands. » — The heaven and the firmament are the products of your active power.

« They shall perish. » — Changing like works.

« But you remain. » — Unchanging like the Maker.

« And all shall grow old like a garment. » — These are interpretations of the things above. ^D And "you shall change them" is instead of "you shall fold them up," that is, those that have grown old, and you shall transform them unto newness.

« The sons of your servants shall dwell. » — The sons of the apostles shall dwell in the Church. And their seed, that is, the preaching, shall be directed forever, prospering.

PSALM CII

« A Psalm of David. » — A psalm of thanksgiving to the Lord.

« Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, his holy name; bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me —

^A and [he says] that they shall be constant descendants of those who keep the commandments of God and turn them over in their minds, so as to act upon and fulfill them. By "descendants" one must understand, whether physical or spiritual, those who by their manner of life verify their genuineness toward their ancestors. « Bless the Lord, all you his angels, mighty in strength. » — He calls the strong "mighty in strength." « You who do his word. » — Those who fulfill every commandment of his as soon as they hear, in a manner befitting angels, the voice of his specific commands. « Bless the Lord, all you his powers, his ministers who do his will. » — Having mentioned the angels, he speaks also of the other actions of the incorporeal powers. « In every place of his dominion. » — The Lord is lord of all, and every place is of his dominion. If we are instructed to bless the Lord in every place, it is manifest that those who cannot sing the song of the Lord are cast out of foreign soil.

PSALM CIII

^A that it will never be overturned, even if it be shaken, nor will it be moved from its central place.

« The abyss as a garment is its covering. » — A multitude of waters as a vestment, the covering of this element, that is, of the earth; for the ocean lies around it on all sides, and the earth is within it like an island.

« Upon the mountains waters shall stand. » — Stand upright, like hills, the waves of the sea departing.

« At your rebuke they shall flee. » — At your harsh command they shall turn back.

« At the voice of your thunder they shall be afraid. » — He spoke of the effect instead of the cause; for from the fact that the voice, that is, the noise of the thunder, by divine nod makes the spirit that produces it, the waters also tremble, and the solid body is often rent by the aforementioned spirit rushing upon it. He called the trembling of the waters fear.

« Mountains rise, and plains descend into the place which you founded for them. » — The waters rise as if lifted by an impetus, and descend as if they were plains being leveled, into the place you established for them, that is, into the hollows of the earth set apart for the sea.

« You set a boundary which they shall not pass over, nor shall they turn to cover the earth. » — For the waters of the sea shall not pass over the boundary set for them, nor shall they turn back from where they originally retreated, so as to cover the earth again, as it covered it before being gathered into its collections and the dry land appeared.

« They shall give all the beasts of the field drink; the wild asses shall await them for their thirst. » — The wild asses take the waters when they are thirsty. The wild ass is a thirsty animal, as it is very dry.

« Upon them the birds of the air shall dwell. » — Upon them, that is, along their banks, the water-loving birds shall nest.

« From the midst of the rocks they shall give voice. » — The waters, clearly, coming forth with force and sound from the rocks.

« Watering the mountains from his upper chambers. » — From the clouds. But if the mountains are watered, so too is all the earth, clearly. He adds the necessity of rain, because this is for the food of men and the grazing of animals.

« From the fruit of your works the earth shall be satisfied. » — The fruit of the works of God are all the fruits; for the works, that is, the creations of God, are both the earth and the trees and the animals, since all things that exist are such. By "earth" he usually means those upon the earth.

« He who makes grass to spring up for the cattle, and green herb for the service of men. » — By "service of men" he means the animals that serve men.

« To bring forth bread out of the earth. » — For this reason, he says, God waters the mountains and the rest of the earth with rain, so as to bring forth also bread from the earth, that is, grain for making bread, and again, without conjunction, so as to make glad the face of man with oil; this is according to an ancient custom; for the ancients were accustomed to anoint both the head and the face with oil. And wine also, he says, being from the earth, gladdens the heart of man, and bread, being from the earth, strengthens the heart of man.

« The trees of the field shall be satisfied. » — All the plants and trees of the earth shall be filled with irrigation.

« The cedars of Lebanon which you planted. » — By naming Lebanon and the trees in it, he has signified the rest of the mountains and trees. And "you planted" stands for "you caused to exist by your command."

« There the sparrows shall nest. » — In the thick trees, in the cedars; and by the sparrows he has also signified other birds.

« The house of the heron leads them. » — A sort of bird that builds its nest first.

« The high mountains for the harts, the rock is a refuge for the conies. » — The heights of the mountains have become a refuge for the harts through Providence, and the clefts of the rocks for the hares.

« He made the moon for seasons. » — He would call the seasons of the night; or because the moon was made for the instruction of the times; for through its waxings and wanings the months are measured, and through the months the whole year.

« The sun knew its going down. » — Metaphorically he indicated the seasonal activity of the sun above the earth and under the earth.

« You set darkness, and it became night. » — You defined darkness as being adjoined to the light as it recedes, and this kind of darkness he called night.

« Lions roaring to snatch and to seek their food from God. » — By this he has shown that Providence provides food even for the wild beasts. And "from God" is used instead of "from God" or "being from God."

« The earth was filled with your creation. » — Full is both the earth and the sea of your creatures.

« This dragon, which you fashioned to sport in it. » — By dragon he means the sea monster, as being the most enormous in the seas, just as the dragon is among land creatures. And this monster, he says, you created to frolic in it, clearly in the water.

« All things wait for you to give them their food in due season. » — In the season of need.

« When you give to them, they shall gather; when you open your hand, all things shall be filled with good things. » — Hand he calls the sustaining power; good things, the benefit. And "when you open," instead of "when you reveal."

« When you turn away your face, they shall be troubled. » — Face he calls your oversight; trouble, despondency and fear; for when there is either a boiling of anger, or a surge of despondency, or a shaking of fear and terror, or a tumultuous sea of irrational thoughts and confusion—

^A or some other such passion harasses the soul, then it is said that it is being shaken.

"You will take away their spirit, and they will fail, and they will return to their dust." — You will take away their soul, and they will die. The discourse is concerning men.

"You will send forth Your Spirit, and they will be created." — He calls the divine Spirit that which gives life, which recreates men through the resurrection.

"And You will renew the face of the earth." — For the whole earth will be delivered from corruption.

"The Lord will rejoice in His works." — In those who have been perfected through His incarnation.

"He who looks upon the earth, and makes it tremble." — For even if the tremor of the earth occurs by way of spirit, still the spirit is established by the nod of God, and thus it falls powerfully into the fissures of the earth, so as to shake the parts thereof into which it might fall. But divine inspection signifies mercy in one place, and wrath in another, as it does here.

"He who touches the mountains, and they smoke." — And the mountains smoke like wood that has approached the fire. By "touch," he speaks here of the faint indication of the power of God.

"I will sing to the Lord in my life, I will chant to my God as long as I exist." — As long as I live.

"May my meditation be pleasing to Him." — May my speaking with Him be pleasing to Him. When this happens, I will reap the joy that comes from it.

"Let the sinners and the lawless fail from the earth, so that they may no longer exist. Bless the Lord, O my soul." — So that they may no longer exist such as they are, but that those who are truly sinners and lawless demons, who even work wickedness in men, having been completely brought to nothing, may be changed. These things will take place at the second coming of Christ. ^B

PSALM CV

"Alleluia." — The "Alleluia" is interpreted as "praise Him who is." For God properly is. In whatever psalms the "Alleluia" is found written, it declares such psalms to be for the praise of God. But now, the discourse is directed toward the apostles.

"Confess the Lord and call upon His name; announce His works among the nations." — Think greatly of yourselves; boast in being called Christians.

"Be praised in His holy name. Let the heart of those who seek the Lord rejoice." — Seek the Lord, he who is carried along the way of His commandments, the way that leads to Him, and who calls upon Him for help and persistently trusts in Him.

"Seek the Lord, and be strengthened." — Be strengthened unto the seeking, that is, seek Him powerfully.

"Remember His wonders that He wrought." — To the end that he might teach.

"His wonders and the judgments of His mouth." — By wonders, he means the supernatural miracles; by judgments, the declarations given through the law.

"Seed of Abraham His servant; children of Jacob His chosen ones." — As it concerns Abraham. He calls the apostles the descendants of Abraham and Jacob, ^C true servants of God and chosen by Him out of the world.

"He is the Lord our God." — He is Christ.

"In all the earth are His judgments. He will judge the whole earth."

"He remembered His covenant forever." — Of His promise unto ages, the eternal, the immovable one, He remembered for the sake of its fulfillment.

"Of the word which He commanded unto a thousand generations." — He remembered the word which He decreed, for a thousand generations, that is, reaching unto many years.

"And He established it to Jacob as a command, and to Israel as an everlasting covenant." — Which very word He promised to Abraham. And again He remembered His oath which He swore to Isaac, and He set it down as immovable to Jacob, to be a command, that is, a royal decree, inviolable.

"Saying: To you I will give the land of Canaan, the cord of your inheritance." — The Palestine which the Canaanites inhabited, saying, "To you I will give the cord of inheritance," that is, a measured portion and a cord. And saying these things, promising, when those around Abraham and Isaac and Jacob were few in number and sojourners in the land of the Canaanites.

"And they went from nation to nation, and from kingdom to another people." — Continually migrating and changing places for places, the patriarchs traveled from this nation to those, and from a people under a king to one living under a democracy.

"He suffered no man to do them wrong, and rebuked kings for their sake." — For thus, with these three patriarchs wandering, God did not allow anyone to do them wrong, but He even rebuked those kings who attempted to insult them, as unjust, and put them to shame and frightened them, like Pharaoh and Abimelech, the one the king of Egypt, the other of Gerar.

"Do not touch My anointed ones, and do no evil to My prophets." — He calls them anointed, as having been anointed with the prophetic gift; for they prophesied many things.

"And He called a famine upon the land; He broke every support of bread." — He caused that which had power to provide sustenance to be scarce, not only meaning wheat, but also barley, and legumes, and whatever else can provide nourishment.

"He sent a man before them." — Before those around Jacob He sent ^D

^A Joseph, having used the wickedness of his brothers for a necessary purpose.

"Joseph was sold for a slave." — By his own brothers to the Ishmaelites, and by the Ishmaelites into Egypt to Pentaphres.

"They humbled his feet in shackles." — Those acting in the service of his master bruised his feet in bonds.

"His soul passed through iron." — That is, he himself. By iron he means the iron collar, or the sword, which his soul escaped, having reached this point.

"Until his word came." — His wisdom, by which he solved the dreams, or the care which God took for him.

"The word of the Lord fired him." — ^B The natural law by which he was instructed not to touch another man's wife caused him to be fired in the furnace of temptations.

"And Israel entered into Egypt, and Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham." — He repeats himself here, for the land of Ham is Egypt.

"And He increased His people exceedingly." — Namely, God increased them. But the "his" is understood both in reference to God and in reference to Jacob.

"And He strengthened him above his enemies." — Above the Egyptians, who were enemies to both the Israelites and to God.

"He turned their heart to hate His people." — Not by Himself changing them, but by giving them over to their self-determination. Here, however, the first "his" refers to Pharaoh—not the one who loved Joseph, but another; the second "his" refers to God.

"To deal treacherously with all His servants." — To plot against them; for He ordered the midwives to kill the male Hebrew infants.

"He put in them the words of His signs and His wonders in the land of Ham." — The commands concerning the signs and wonders to be performed in the land of Ham; for He ordered them to perform such and such signs in Egypt. But, just as in the 77th Psalm he does not keep the order of the Egyptian plagues, so also here.

"He sent darkness, and it grew dark, and they provoked His words." — By "words" he indicates the God who speaks, whom they provoked by disregarding His words; for they did not listen to God commanding them to release His people, commanding this, evidently, through Moses and Aaron.

"Their land brought forth frogs." — "Brought forth" instead of "produced creeping things."

"In the treasuries of their kings." — Not only in other places, but even in the treasuries belonging to the palaces, where there was much watch and security.

"He spoke, and there came dog-flies and gnats in all their borders." — And the soot was transformed into gnats. A gnat is a mosquito-like creature.

"And He brought them out with silver and gold." — Which they borrowed from the Egyptians, God so commanding, so that these might be reckoned as wages for their long-standing service.

"And there was no weak one among their tribes." — So that no one should be left behind because of sickness. David relates this, though it is not recorded in Exodus, having been taught by the Spirit, as also many other things.

"Egypt rejoiced at their departure." — By Egypt he means the Egyptians who were left behind.

"For their fear fell upon them." — The fear of the Hebrews fell upon the Egyptians; that is, the Egyptians feared the Hebrews because of the heaven-sent scourges that came upon them.

"He broke the rock, and waters flowed; rivers ran in the dry places." — By rivers he means the channels of water that gushed from the broken rock, which flowed down into the dry places.

"For He remembered His holy word, that to Abraham His servant." — That He would multiply his seed, and that He would give him the land of Canaan.

"And He gave them the lands of the nations; and they inherited the labors of the peoples." — By justly punishing those who disregarded them and establishing His own promises.

"That they might keep His statutes, and seek out His law." — Instead of "long for"; for what one longs for, one also seeks out.

PSALM 105

"Alleluia. Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His mercy is forever." — Give thanks always to God for your sins, because He is good and does not store up resentment, because His mercy is eternal and continuous; for He always shows mercy to those who repent.

"Who shall tell of the mighty acts of the Lord, who shall make all His praises heard?" — For no word is sufficient for the hymnody of God.

"Blessed are they who keep judgment and do righteousness at all times." — The prophet blesses not those who do so once, but those who at all times judge rightly and justly, both toward others and toward themselves, so that the worse may not yield to the better in rising up against it.

"Remember us, O Lord, in the favor of Thy people; visit us in Thy salvation." — The prophet beseeches that he too might be remembered in the benevolence and salvation of the new people brought about through the divine incarnation. Such prayers are prophetic dogmas; just as now David, while prophesying, teaches as a dogma that Christ, through His descent into Hades, will bring about a saving visitation not only for the living, but also for the dead.

"That I may see in the prosperity of Thy chosen ones, that I may rejoice in the gladness of Thy nation." — So that we might see also, that is, through experience know and

^A suffer the kindness and cheerfulness of Thy Christian people. "We have sinned with our fathers; we have acted unjustly, we have committed iniquity." — They did not understand Thy wonders in Egypt, nor did they remember the abundance of Thy mercy toward them, but seeing the Egyptians behind them, they were afraid and murmured, not believing in Thy power. "And they provoked Him at the Red Sea." — By "going up" He meant that Egypt is low-lying; from where they were going up to the Red Sea, which is situated in higher parts and approaches the desert. "And He saved them for His name's sake." — So that it might not be blasphemed as though He were weak; for they themselves were unworthy of salvation. "To make known His power." — That is, to make His almighty power known everywhere. "And they believed in His word." — In His promises. "And they sang His praise." — The triumphal song which Moses dictated to them. "They made haste, they forgot His works; and they waited not for His counsel." — They quickly forgot His benefits. Because they were hungry and remembered the foods in Egypt, they murmured; they did not wait for His providence to happen for them, just as God desired. "And they lusted a lust in the wilderness." — Of food, that is. "And they tempted God in the dry place." — In a dry place or land, that is; they tested God, saying with hesitation, "Can He provide for us here?" "And He gave them their request." — By request he means the lust, the desire of the soul which they asked for. "And He sent fullness into their souls." — He did not simply give the quail and the manna and the water—which was then sweetened at Marah and flowed from the rock—but [gave them] until they were full. "And they provoked Moses in the camp, Aaron the holy one of the Lord." — For those around Dathan and Abiram plotted tyranny against Moses; those around Korah, however, attempted to snatch the priesthood of Aaron, who had been consecrated to God. "The earth opened and swallowed Dathan, and covered over the congregation of Abiram." — It covered the congregation of Abiram; but "the earth" is implied for both. "And fire was kindled in their congregation, a flame burned up the sinners." — In the congregation of those around Korah, fire being kindled burned up the fifty and two hundred men with its flame, those who were offering incense. He called these men sinners, as they had attempted to seize the priesthood unworthily. "And they exchanged their glory for the likeness of ^B a calf that eateth grass." — They changed the honor of God into the idol of a grass-eating calf. This is added in derision of the foolishness of the Hebrews. "And He said to destroy them." — For God said to Moses, "Let Me be, and being angered, I will wipe them out." He spoke, then, about destroying them. "Had not Moses His chosen stood in the breach before Him." — Moses said to the Lord, "If Thou wilt forgive them their sin, forgive; but if not, blot me out of the book which Thou hast written." "And He despised the desirable land." — Considering it as nothing, that is, when the spies who had been sent into the aforementioned land returned and put fear into the people, saying that those who dwelt in it were brave; for then the whole congregation of the people wept in their tents and murmured. "And they did not believe His word." — That He would give it to them. "And they murmured in their tents; they hearkened not unto the voice of the Lord." — They were not persuaded by God, who had given assurance of the promised land. "And He lifted up His hand against them." — And He moved His chastising power against them. "To cast them down in the wilderness." — To put them to death. "And to cast down their seed among the nations, and to scatter them in the lands." — He cast down the fathers as disobedient in one way, by death; but He scattered the children, that is, He caused them to dwell everywhere among the nations, or rather, in the land of the nations that had been promised. But "the scattering" is also said for their good; for like seed, they were to be uprooted and grow and multiply in all the lands of the nations, or rather, in the land of promise. "And they were initiated to Beelphegor." — Bel and Baal and Beel are the same thing, an idol of Priapus, most indecent. Phegor is a local name. Beelphegor, then, is a compound word, denoting both the idol and the place in which the idol was. And "they were initiated" means they were inducted, became friends with, were consecrated. "And they ate the sacrifices of the dead." — By dead he means the idols as being senseless. "And they provoked Him in their pursuits." — In such works of theirs. "And the fall was multiplied among them." — With many dying. "And Phinehas stood and made atonement, and the slaughter ceased." — He arose and propitiated God, and the death-dealing plague of the people ceased; for Phinehas, filled with zeal and taking a spear, slew Zimri who was openly consorting with the Midianite woman, and with that ^D wound, one plague, and thus the wrath of God stood still...

as he had been propitiated by the zeal of Phinehas.

«And it was counted unto him for righteousness, unto all generations for evermore.» — And this slaying was counted by all as an eternal virtue for Phinehas.

«And they provoked him at the waters of strife.» — The water in the desert of Kadesh, coming from the rock, is called the water of strife from the previous contention and disobedience of the Jews, when, thirsting, they grumbled and did not obey Moses in what he said, but rather reviled him.

«And Moses was afflicted for their sakes.» — He was afflicted by God, being condemned to die outside the promised land, both he and Aaron.

«Because they had embittered his spirit.» — They grieved the soul of Moses, grumbling and abusing him, and being constrained, he said doubtfully, «Must I bring you forth water out of this rock?»

«And he spoke unadvisedly with his lips.» — David euphemistically explained the word of Moses, spoken out of faint-heartedness, by saying «he spoke» [literally: *opened* or *divided*] his lips. Some have thought that "he spoke" is used instead of "he spoke doubtfully." Thus "with his lips" will be instead of "by his lips." The Old Scripture is accustomed to using the word "speak" [literally: *to divide* or *to open*] instead of simply using language.

«And they were mingled among the heathen, and learned their works.» — Works that were lawless and ungodly.

«And they served their graven images, and it became a stumbling-block unto them.» — The serving of graven images became for the Jews an occasion for stumbling and falling. ^B

«And their land was stained with blood.» — And the land was defiled by slaughter, that is to say, by blood, and was polluted by sacrifices and shameful deeds.

«And they went whoring after their own inventions.» — For, having departed from God, they cleaved to the demons, through whom they practiced idol-worships and licentiousness.

«Many times he delivered them; but they provoked him with their counsel.» — In their ungrateful and wicked judgment.

«And they were brought low in their iniquities.» — They were terrified and became weak through doing lawless deeds.

«And he remembered his covenant, and repented according to the multitude of his mercy.» — He changed his wrath into pity, as one who is abundant in mercy.

«And he gave them over to compassions.» — That is to say, He pitied them.

«In the sight of all those that carried them away captive.» — Openly, so that all those who carried them captive might learn this; for he caused various nations to take them captive.

«Save us, O Lord our God, and gather us from among the heathen.» — He has returned to the earlier supplication. By "heathen" he means the lawless ones, among whom the Jews were scattered after their rejection of Christ, and all the Jews shall believe in Christ, and they too shall be gathered into His one and catholic Church.

«That we may give thanks to thy holy name, and glory in thy praise.» — Great, indeed, is the glory of praising Christ.

«Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, from everlasting and to everlasting.» — He shall say, «Blessed be the Lord.» And this too is prophetic; for the entire people shall hereafter praise Jesus as God.

PSALM CVI

«Alleluia. O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever.» — Let them say that he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever.

«Let them say so who have been redeemed by the Lord, whom he redeemed from the hand of the enemy.» — By "enemy" we must understand the devil; for the discourse is about those who have believed in Christ.

«And gathered them out of the lands.» — From the Gentile lands into one Church and faith.

«From the rising and the setting of the sun, and from the north, and from the sea.» — For they were gathered from the four corners of the world.

«They wandered in the wilderness in a dry land.» — They wandered first in the desert of this life, which is void of the fruits of virtue, and possesses no drink of divine instruction.

«They found no way of a city of habitation.» — The city of habitation is heaven; for the entire earthly world is a sojourn. And the way that leads to heaven is the right faith together with the virtues.

«Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them.» — That is to say, they were such; for they did not possess the knowledge of God or instruction to feed and water their souls; and "fainted" signifies that they became exceedingly weak, due indeed to excessive spiritual hunger and thirst.

«And they cried unto the Lord in their affliction.» — The prophets cried out on their behalf, and the divine angels who are set over the nations.

«And he delivered them out of their distresses.» — Out of the tyrannical control of the demons.

«And he guided them into a straight path, that they might go to a city of habitation.» — Their pious and virtuous conduct, which leads to heaven.

«Let them give thanks to the Lord for his mercies, and for his wonderful works to the children of men.» — Here "let them give thanks" signifies "let them declare."

«For he satisfied the empty soul, and filled the hungry soul with good things.» — He calls "empty" that which is deprived of food and drink, that is, spiritual food.

«Sitting in darkness and in the shadow of death.» — The darkness and night of the death of the soul is ignorance and disbelief toward God.

«Bound in poverty and iron.» — The ^{C D} [Text continues to next page].

^A of virtues and in iron—or rather, strong—bonds of sins, their experience of seafaring vanished.

«And He commanded the storm, and it stood into a breeze.» — The storm ceased from its most violent force, so that it became this breeze, that is, a gentle and calm spirit.

«And they were glad because they were quiet.» — Because the waves were quiet.

«And He guided them unto the haven of their will.» — For truly the commandments of the Lord are a haven, keeping the one who puts them into effect safe from every shipwreck of the soul.

«Let them exalt Him in the church of the people; and in the seat of the elders let them praise Him.» — In the council of the superiors.

«He turned rivers into a desert.» — The Greeks, who were formerly flowing freely in words, He turned into a desert of wisdom, the unlettered fishermen muzzling them.

«And water-outlets into thirst.» — And their floods of words into dryness.

«A fruitful land into saltiness, from the wickedness of those who dwell in it.» — The land of the Jews, which was fruitful in prophets, He turned into unfruitfulness; for the salty earth is indeed barren; this happened because of the wickedness of the Jews.

«He turned the desert into pools of water, and dry land into water-outlets.» — The Church, ^B formerly a desert of divine teaching, He brought from the nations, so that she might have the waters of the divine Word in abundance and pour them forth to others also.

«And He settled the hungry there.» — Those who were previously in need of spiritual food, Christ settled in His Church from the nations.

«And they established cities for habitation.» — He speaks of the cities of spiritual habitation as the churches of the faithful in every place.

«And sowed fields.» — The apostles sowed, with the seed of the preaching, the souls of men that were formerly wild.

«And planted vineyards.» — Consider the souls again as vineyards bearing the clusters of virtues.

«And produced fruit of produce.» — Of a mystical produce offered to Christ the Master, and delighting Him.

«And He blessed them.» — For Luke says concerning the apostles that, lifting up His hands, He blessed them, which clearly means through them [He blessed] also the successors of their faith.

«And they were multiplied exceedingly.» — For they grew from ten and seventy into myriads of boundless numbers.

«And their cattle were not diminished.» — Cattle would be the sheep, which are shepherded by the apostles and his successors, the teachers—that is, the common Christian people.

«And they were diminished and afflicted by the tribulation of evils and pain.» — He predicts the persecutions, ^C the diminution of the faithful through their slaughter, and the ^D affliction that arises from their trials.

^A Calling them deceivers, lawless, and anti-God.

«But I was praying.» — This clearly means that he is invoking help from you. «And they rendered against me evil for good.» — They committed evil against me in return for the good with which they were benefited. «And unworthiness was poured out upon their rulers.» — Their rulers, the kings and persecutors together, were brought to nothing by God as useless. «And he let them wander in an untrodden path and not in a way.» — He permitted them to wander in impious doctrines as being incurable. «And he helped the poor from poverty.» — [He helped] the poor people who became poor for the sake of Christ. «And he made families like sheep.» — By "families," or tribes, he denotes the systems of the churches in every place. Which the Lord "made," that is, appointed like his own sheep, so as to shepherd and lead them. And he called them "families" because they have one Father, God, through their kinship by faith. «The upright shall see and shall rejoice.» — Those who are walking the straight path shall see the already prophesied things being fulfilled, these impious ones, and they shall rejoice. «And all iniquity shall stop its mouth.» — By iniquity he means the lawless and impious ones. «Who is wise and will observe these things?» — He will observe these things believing that they will come to pass. «And they shall understand the mercies of the Lord.» — They will know these things when they reach their end.

PSALM CVII

«A song of a psalm by David. My heart is ready, O God, my heart is ready; I will sing and I will play upon my harp in my glory.» — These things are also stated in the fifty-sixth psalm. «That your beloved ones may be delivered.» — Concerning the beloved, the Gospel says: «Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end,» and the rest [of the verse] is also in the fifty-ninth psalm.

PSALM CVIII

«For the end, a psalm by David. O God, do not pass over my praise in silence.» — The Lord Christ, fulfilling the measure of human nature, prays to the Father and says: «Do not pass over my prayer with praise in silence,» that is, do not make it unacceptable, do not make it of no effect. «Because the mouth of the sinner and the mouth of the deceitful were opened against me.» — By the sinner and the deceitful one, Judas must be understood, who opened his mouth against the Savior when he spoke with the chief priests and elders of the people concerning his betrayal. «They spoke against me with a deceitful tongue.» — He [David/the Psalmist] introduces also those with whom Judas spoke, that is, the chief priests and elders of the Jews, and says: «They spoke, both he and they, weaving snares against me.» ^B «And they encompassed me with words of hatred.» — For often, the Jews, surrounding him, spoke words of hatred, slandering, insulting, and maliciously questioning him. «And they fought against me without cause.» — In vain, without reason. «Instead of loving me, they slandered me.» — When they ought to have loved me, as I was benefiting them at every moment in word and deed. But they, on the contrary, mocked me, ^C calling me a deceiver and lawless, an anti-God. «And I was praying.» — [This refers to] the helper sent from you. «And they rendered against me evil for good.» — [This refers to] the wickedness for which they were rewarded with good things. «And hatred instead of my love.» — Instead of the love with which I loved them. «Appoint over him a sinner.» — "Appoint" instead of "permit." Permit [him] to be appointed, that is, he shall be appointed; for in the form of a curse, he prophesies the things that will happen: «For Satan entered into him,» he says. «And let the devil stand at his right hand.» — He shall stand at his right hand, that is, he shall be familiarized with him. «At his being judged, let him go out condemned.» — At his being judged by his own conscience, he shall go out from the council, condemned both by himself and by those others: «For I have sinned,» he says, «by betraying innocent blood.» But they said, «What is that to us? You shall see to it.» And "you shall see to it" [implies] condemnation. «And let his prayer become sin.» — Into failure, that is, he shall miss what he asks for due to his perversity. «Let his days be few.» — He shall die quickly. «And let another take his office.» — Matthias shall take his apostolic office. «Let his children be orphans and his wife a widow.» — Having said above "What has Judas done to him?" he adds also what the Jewish council has done to him again; then, in the form of a curse, having predicted the things that would befall the traitor, he already declares also whatever things will befall the God-killers. And first of all, he speaks of their destruction by the Romans, and the enslavement of their women and children, and the lack of basic necessities resulting from the captivity. «Let them be cast out of their landed properties.» — Not even in their landed properties, that is, the ruins of their houses, will they be allowed to dwell. By "lender" here, he means simply the taker; for this reason, Symmachus interpreted "tax-gatherer" instead of "lender." He says, therefore, the tax-collector; for those who were set over the Roman authority to collect the tax imposed upon the Jews, having searched the hidden things of the Jews, plundered everything. «Let the lender search everything that belongs to him.» — For not yet forty years having passed, the renowned and glorious [people] which the Jewish nation had, it completely destroyed. «Let his children be into destruction; in one generation let his name be blotted out.» — By "iniquity of the fathers," he means the killing of the prophets. «For all innocent blood poured out from Abel to Zachariah the prophet shall be avenged from this generation,» he says.

^A «And in the midst of many I will praise him.» «Before the Lord.» — The womb (mother) of this godly man refers to that ancient synagogue of the people which has many times provoked God. «Let them be before the Lord always.» — They will be unreproached before God, namely the iniquity and the sin. «And let their memory be blotted out from the earth.» — It is clear from this that he speaks of those who stood over all. For he did not say "his," but "their." And by "memory" he indicated those who were worthy of mention among the Jews, and who were famed among the many as men of knowledge. «Because he did not remember to show mercy.» — Because he did not remember those things for which he was benefited by Christ, so as to show mercy to Him who was being unjustly killed. «And he hunted a man who was poor and needy.» — Poor and needy is the Lord, because of the humility of the flesh, and because He had nowhere to lay His head. «And one pricked in heart to kill.» — According to that: «Learn from me that I am meek and lowly in heart.» «And he loved cursing, and it shall come to him.» — For the bad things which come from oneself, from one’s own deeds, reflect upon those who choose them. «And he put on cursing as a garment.» — By the garment he indicates the enclosure, by the water the intensity, by the oil the permanence and that which is hard to wash away, and by the […] that which is always clinging and pressing. «This is the work.» — This is the work, that is to say, the retribution from the Lord upon those who slander me and upon those who devise painful and deadly things against me. «Hyperbaton: "Do thou with me thy mercy, for thou art good always."» — But human mercy is sometimes also harmful. The Master, however, enlightening us to be modest, says: «Do with me, Father, thy mercy,» not that I am worthy, but because Thou art merciful and a lover of mankind. «Of those who slander me from the Lord.» — I was taken away as quickly as a shadow is removed when it passes by. «And let them know that this is thy hand, and thou, Lord, hast done it.» — I was so easily removed from the present life by envy, just as locusts are removed by the wind from any place they chance to be. «Let those who rise up against me be ashamed.» — He was softened toward harshness; for it was a custom for the ancients, when anointed with oil, to soften the flesh thereby. «But thy servant shall be glad.» — For the bloodthirsty ones were taunting and mocking Him; furthermore, they were shaking their heads, saying: «You who destroy the temple,» and so forth. «Let those who slander me be clothed with shame.» — Let them know that this is Thy help, the help which will be for me, and that Thou, O Father, hast helped me as a beloved Son, and hast not overlooked me as an adversary. «I will give thanks to the Lord greatly with my mouth.» ^A «For he stood at the right hand of a poor man, to save my soul from those who persecute it.» Regarding the salvation of men through my passion. A double robe is called a mantle that is folded when it is worn. And thus He thanks the Father, and praises Him in the midst of many through His gospel words. On the right side stand those who fight with him. He saved him by raising him from the dead.

PSALM 109

^A Christ’s priesthood; for he distributed his body and blood to his disciples at the mystical supper, just as Melchizedek did to those with Abraham. «The Lord is at thy right hand.» — A helper to thee as a man. «He shall shatter kings in the day of his wrath.» — In an antichronical sense; for in the day of judgment he shall shatter the impious kings in the appointed punishments. It is clear that he [will shatter] also those who are subject to their impiety. «He shall judge among the nations.» — «He shall fill with corpses.» — He shall judge the nations. He shall cast down many. «He shall shatter the heads over the earth of many.» — Periphrastically for "the many." «He shall drink of the brook in the way, therefore he shall lift up the head.» — He shall be tempted and therefore he shall be glorified, for the brook is temptation; the way is this present life; the drinking is the participation; and the lifting up of the head is the glorification.

PSALM CX

PSALM CXI

^A Thus it must be construed: Who is like the Lord our God in heaven and on earth?

«The righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance.» — Because, on account of his virtues, he attains to perpetual memory, both before God and before those who think on the things of God.

«He shall not be afraid of evil hearing.» — From a report capable of inspiring fear, he shall not tremble.

«His heart is fixed, he shall not fear, until he looks down upon his enemies.» — He shall not fear until he looks down upon his sensible and intelligible enemies as they are overcome, and much more so after this; for it is a scriptural idiom to pass over in silence what is understood thereby.

«He raises the poor from the dust, and lifts the needy from the dunghill.» — By "dust" and "dunghill" he indicates lowliness.

«That he may seat him with princes, with the princes of his people.» — So as to make him a fellow-councillor and an equal in honor to the princes of the people created by Him. The passage is also understood of the Gentile people, who were raised from the dishonor of their passions and became equal in honor to the apostles.

«Who makes the barren woman dwell in a house, a joyful mother of children.» — Who makes the barren woman dwell as a mother in a house. This is also taken as applying to the Church. By "house" one must understand her own people.

«He has dispersed, he has given to the poor.» — The word "dispersed" manifests the lavishness of the distribution, and that almsgiving is a sowing, stored up for the one who works the proportionate harvest. ^B

«His righteousness remains for ever and ever; his horn shall be exalted in glory.» — By "righteousness" here he means almsgiving; for he is accustomed to call every virtue by the common name of righteousness, as being the fulfillment of a commandment. For it is right for mortals to fulfill the commandments of the Master, and because the virtue is able to save its worker at the coming judgment. And at the same time he says that all the statutes of God are righteous, for He Himself is righteousness.

«The sinner shall see and be angry.» — Judging the philanthropy of the righteous as a reproach to his own inhumanity.

«He shall gnash his teeth and waste away.» — He shall gnash them, showing his inward pain; but he does not dare to speak out; his mouth being stopped by virtue, he shall waste away with envy.

«The desire of the sinner shall perish.» — For it perishes together with the things desired, which are corruptible; for what incorruptible thing would the sinner desire?

PSALM CXII

«Alleluia. Praise, O ye servants, the Lord; praise the name of the Lord.» — He called the servants "children."

«Blessed be the name of the Lord from this time forth and for evermore.» — As we glorify God in both words and deeds.

«From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same, the Lord's name is to be praised.» — Not in Palestine alone; for he foretells the universal proclamation.

«The Lord is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens.» — Of the nations who think high thoughts and hold dogmas about Him.

«Who is like unto the Lord our God?» — This is directed against the mockery of the falsely-named gods.

«Who dwells on high.» — This is because of the heavenly powers who fulfill the will of God completely, since the Divine is infinite.

«And looks upon the lowly in heaven and on earth.» ^C

PSALM CXIII

«Alleluia. When Israel went out of Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of strange language; Judah was his sanctuary, and Israel his dominion.» — After the Israelites went out, he says, from Egypt, and the race of Jacob from the Egyptian nation, Palestine became a votive offering to God, and the Israelite people an object of rule by Him by way of appropriation.

«The sea saw it and fled.» — The Red Sea, a mystery, recognized the divine power and was divided. Its speed of division is indicated by the word "fled."

«And thou, Jordan, why wert thou turned back?» — In the time of Joshua, when he caused its stream to stand.

«The mountains skipped like rams, and the little hills like lambs.» — By these things he hints at the excess of the joy at that time.

«What ailed thee, O sea, that thou fleddest?» — He casts the speech into a question because of the supernatural nature of the event, and he himself makes the answer on behalf of the inanimate and irrational elements.

«At the presence of the Lord the earth trembled, at the presence of the God of Jacob.» — "For I am," he says, "the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob."

«Who turned the rock into pools of water.» — Who transformed the rock from its natural hardness into overflowing with water.

«And the flint into fountains of waters.» — He repeats himself as usual. He called the rock "flint" because it was with difficulty broken by an iron tool on account of its extreme solidity. ^D

«Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory.» — Do not glorify us; for we are unworthy: but glorify thy name in thy true mercy, that is to say, in the supreme mercy; for human mercy is not such.

«For thy mercy and for thy truth's sake, lest the nations should say, Where is their God?»

lest they reproach the Almighty for your weakness.

« The house of Israel hoped in the Lord; he is their helper and defender. » — The idols of the nations are such, and those who honor them are so senseless, enjoying not even a single aid from those in whom they have placed their trust. But we, having placed our trust in the true God, are granted both his help and assistance. He divides the people into the Israelite [order] simply, into the priestly [order], and into proselytes from among the nations.

« The Lord having been mindful of us, he has blessed us; he has blessed the house of Israel. » — He prepared for us to be praised and magnified, having bestowed myriad benefits.

« He has blessed them that fear the Lord, the small with the great. » — We must not understand "small and great" by age alone, but also by power, glory, and the like.

« May the Lord add unto you, unto you and unto your children. » — It is clear that the prophecy intercedes for the Christians, directing the second person to the soul.

« Blessed are you of the Lord who made the heaven and the earth. » — For Christ, being about to be taken up, blessed these same disciples, and through them, all the faithful.

« The heaven of heaven belongs to the Lord. » — The first heaven has become a dwelling for Christ.

« But the earth he has given to the sons of men. » — For habitation in this present life.

« The dead shall not praise you, O Lord, nor all they that go down into hades. » — He calls the impious, whose dwelling shall be hades, "the dead"; but "the living" he calls the truly pious, whose rest is in the heavens; for these are the worthy singers of the Lord, both now and in the age to come that has no end.

PSALM 114

« Alleluia. I have loved, because the Lord will hear the voice of my supplication; because he has inclined his ear to me; and I will call upon him in my days. » — I rejoiced, knowing that God will hear me, since formerly he granted me his ear; therefore, I will call upon him without hesitation in all the days of my life.

« The pangs of death encompassed me, the dangers of hades found me. » — He recounts what he has fallen into and [how he] was saved by God.

« O Lord, deliver my soul. » — He asks to be delivered now just as formerly.

« Merciful is the Lord, and righteous. » — The instruction is: Do not despair, he says, having sinned; for God is merciful; but see that you do not fall back, since he is also righteous.

« And our God has mercy. » — He shows from this that God is more inclined toward philanthropy. And he has said "our God" on account of the falsely named gods.

« The Lord keeping the little ones. » — The [clause] is incomplete. ^A It is [a declaration] of divine providence.

« I was brought low, and he saved me. » — I was afflicted by temptations, and he delivered me from them.

« Return, my soul, unto your rest; for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you. » — These words are fitting for the righteous who are already departing from the body.

« For he has delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, and my feet from slipping. » — Death is sin; tears are temptations; slipping is the tripping up by the invisible enemies.

« I will please before the Lord in the land of the living. » — The "land of the living" is the world to come, in which no one lies in wait; therefore, it is also an indissoluble pleasing before God.

PSALM 115

« Alleluia. I believed, therefore I spoke. » — I believed that I would please before the Lord in the land of the living; therefore, I also declared it to him at the end of the preceding psalm, but I was not lifted up with pride. From this, however, I was greatly brought low; for I know myself to be unworthy of such a benefit.

« But I was brought low exceedingly. » — Stunned by that land of the living which the Spirit clearly pointed out to me, saying that all human happiness is nothing, for it is truly vanity in comparison to that blessedness.

« What shall I render to the Lord for all that he has rendered unto me? What shall I render to the Lord for the benefits he has given me? » ^B

« I will take the cup of salvation, and I will call upon the name of the Lord. » — He called death for the sake of piety the "cup of salvation," as it saves. He says then: I will so hold fast to piety toward God as even to accept death for its sake. This I will render to the Lord, and for this I will call upon the name of the Lord; for indeed, to struggle thus for piety is a gift and a benefit from God.

« I will pay my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people. » — These vows of mine I will clearly perform before the people, leading them to imitation.

« Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints. » — I rejoice dying for God; for the death of those devoted to him is precious before God.

« You have broken my bonds. » — By "bonds" he names sufferings from temptations; and [by] sacrifice of praise, thanksgiving and hymn-singing.

« I will sacrifice to you the sacrifice of praise, and in the name of the Lord I will call upon him. » — Instead of "the name of the Lord I will call upon," [he means] also in the upcoming [trials], that is, temptations.

PSALM 116

« Alleluia. Praise the Lord, all you gentiles; praise him, all you peoples. » — For the Lord, having become man for all and having died, is worthy to be praised even by all.

^A “For his mercy was strengthened over us.” Even when He Himself was in Hades and became [Lord] of the Church therein, it became strong. “And the truth of the Lord abides forever.” That is, “I am with you all the days,” and, “The gates of Hades shall not prevail against the Church.”

PSALM CXVII

“Let the house of Israel say that He is good, that His mercy is forever.” For all have enjoyed the goodness and mercy of the Lord. “Out of affliction I called upon the Lord, and He heard me in a broad place.” That is, [He heard me] in order to expand [me] out of distress and lead me into freedom. “The Lord is my helper, and I shall look upon my enemies.” Those who are sensed, with sensed eyes; and those who are thought-perceived, with thought-perceived eyes—namely, that I may see them overcome and defeated. “All the nations encircled me; and in the name of the Lord I defended myself against them.” One must understand the “nations” as both the aliens surrounding Palestine and the multitudes of demons; for even these often unite to war against a single righteous man. ^B “Encircling, they encircled me, and in the name of the Lord I defended myself against them.” Through the bees in the honeycomb is hinted the fierceness of the eagerness of the enemies, and through the fire burning in the dry thorns, the unbridled nature of their rush. “Being pushed, I was overturned to fall; and the Lord supported me.” That is, I came near to falling, whether bodily or spiritually, by the thrust of the enemies. “The Lord is my strength and my hymn; and He became for me salvation.” For through Him I both have strength and am glorified, because He became for me salvation. “The voice of exultation and salvation is in the tents of the righteous.” Taken together, “and there became for me a voice of exultation,” that is, the cause of the voice, which He has granted me—the exultation and the salvation—where the righteous dwell. “The right hand of the Lord has wrought power; the right hand of the Lord has exalted me; the right hand of the Lord has wrought power.” The strength of God has made me capable and glorious. “I shall not die, but live; and I shall recount the works of the Lord.” I shall not die henceforth because of those who surrounded me. “Disciplining, the Lord has disciplined me; and He has not delivered me to death.” What are the works of the Lord? Chastening me, He allowed me to be tempted; yet He did not completely abandon me, so as to be mastered by the temptations. “Open for me the gates of righteousness; having entered within them, I shall confess to the Lord.” The churches of Christ, being many in number but one in faith, are called gates of righteousness, and the gate of the Lord; for through them the entrance to God takes place, to the true righteousness and the truly Lord. David therefore prophesies that he who has believed, even becoming himself in Hades and of the Church therein—for many congregations in Hades have believed—will thus enter to God. “So that, having entered within them.” The “within them” is instead of “through them.” “This is the gate of the Lord; the righteous shall enter into it.” The “into it” is instead of “through it.” “The stone which the builders rejected, the same was born as the head of the corner.” He calls Christ the stone, and the builders the teachers of the Jews, as those who were appointed [to build] upon the foundation of the Law. And Christ is the head of the corner, that is, the cornerstone, as a connector of the two peoples—those who believed from the circumcision and from the nations. But by “corner” is meant the union of the two peoples, which came to be not by a mere man, but by the Lord. And the work is worthy of wonder to those deemed worthy to know it. “This is the day which the Lord has made; let us exult and rejoice in it.” He calls “the day” the achievements of Christ at the time of the resurrection. “O Lord, save now; O Lord, make prosperous now.” He hastens the salvation of those in the world and those in Hades, and for the paradoxical event he prays for the success. ^C “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.” That is, having the name not of a prophet, but of the Lord God. “We have blessed you from the house of the Lord.” We who have foreseen have blessed you who are from the house of the Lord. And the house of the Lord is the Church of the faithful. “God is the Lord, and He has appeared to us.” God is Christ; Christ is the Lord, and He has appeared to men through flesh. “Arrange a festival among those who thatch [or: make dense] even to the horns of the altar.” Celebrate by means of spiritual sacrifices, those that “thatch,” that is, cover, which is to say, those that thicken the altar of the soul through repetition. “Even to the horns,” that is, the extremities of it, which is to say, by a multitude of virtues, celebrate. “You are my God, and I shall confess to You. You are my God, and I shall exalt You. Even though You have become man that You might save me.”

PSALM CXVIII

“Alleluia. Blessed are the blameless in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord.” ^D Blameless are those who are such in the present life. But who are these? Those who live according to the law of God. “Blessed are they who search out His testimonies; with their whole heart they shall seek Him.” They who read the law of God with diligence so as to live accurately according to it. “For they who work iniquity have not walked in His ways.” These [travel] with their whole soul...

towards God by the keeping of His commandments. The imperatives hold optative power. ^A “You have ordained your commandments to be kept exceedingly.” For those who live lawlessly are not able to journey in the paths that lead to Him; therefore, they shall not walk towards God. But the ways of God are His commandments, which lead unto Him.

“Then I shall not be ashamed, when I look unto all your commandments.” You have commanded in the Law to keep your commandments, so that you have even brought a curse upon those who do not remain in all of them. Would that my ways were directed, so as to fulfill your commandments.

“Then I shall not be ashamed.” When my ways are directed, as has been said, then I shall not be ashamed, because I will not overlook even one of your commandments.

“I will confess to you in uprightness of heart, in my having learned the judgments of your righteousness.” When I learn your commandments so as to do them, then I shall be able to give thanks in the uprightness of my soul; for in as much as someone does not keep your law, to that extent he has his own soul crooked.

“Do not abandon me even unto the end.” “Even unto the end” stands for “until the furthest and completely.” The prophet prays against total abandonment.

“Wherewith shall a young man straighten his way? By keeping your words.” For the keeping of the Law straightens the life of the young man, and it restrains and corrects that which is prone to the precipice of sin for the sake of youth—not as a punishment.

“With my whole heart I have sought you; do not cast me off from your commandments.” Prepare me to pray for your commandments continually, kindling in me the fervor for keeping them, and do not permit me to become far from them.

“In my heart I have hid your words, that I might not sin against you.” In my soul I have stored the memory of your commandments, so that I might not transgress them through forgetfulness.

“Blessed are you, O Lord; teach me your justifications.” You are worthy to be praised by all, O Master. But I pray to learn your commandments even more securely and on a higher level.

^B “Uncover my eyes, and I will consider the wondrous things out of your law.” Remove the veil from the eyes of my mind, and I shall know the wondrous thoughts hidden in your law.

“I am a sojourner upon the earth; do not hide your commandments from me.” I use the present life only as a traveler; therefore, make your commandments known to me more deeply, so that I may run more intensely towards the life I hasten to.

“My soul has coveted to desire your judgments at all times.” My soul has coveted your judgments exceedingly, so as to have a desire for them at all times.

“You have rebuked the proud; cursed are they who deviate from your commandments.” You have threatened punishment for the despisers of the Law; therefore it is written: “Cursed is he who does not remain in all things written in the book of the Law to do them.”

“For indeed princes sat and spoke against me.” By princes he means those who are sensible and intelligible, who ridiculed his meditation upon the Law as useless. But he practices such [meditation] even more frequently.

“My soul has cleaved to the dust; make me live according to your word.” I have cleaved to the earth, that is, I have been humbled exceedingly; therefore, make me live according to your law.

“In my lips I have declared all the judgments of your mouth.” Through my lips I have taught all your commandments.

“I have taken pleasure in the way of your testimonies as in all riches.” Walking in the way of your commandments, I have thus rejoiced as if having gained all wealth.

“In your commandments I will discourse; and I will consider your ways.” I will constantly meditate on your commandments, and from there I shall know them more accurately.

“Render to your servant; I shall live and keep your words.” In exchange for the discourse on your commandments and the meditation on your justifications, render a reward to your servant. And what is the reward? I shall escape the death of the soul, and I shall keep your commandments. They have an imperative power.

^C “I have declared my ways, and you have heard me.” I have confessed my deeds before you, that is, my sins, and you heard me as I sought forgiveness. “For I say to you,” he says, “declare your iniquities first, that you may be justified.”

“Teach me your justifications.” More accurately and more deeply.

“Make me understand the way of your justifications, and I will discourse in your wondrous things.” Make known to me the path of your commandments, and I will meditate on those things in which you have worked wonders, so as to recount these and magnify you.

“My soul has slumbered from despondency; strengthen me in your words.” I have been slackened by the despondency brought on by the demons, so as to be unable to meditate in your commandments intensely. Therefore, do you yourself strengthen me for the meditation of your commandments.

“Turn away the way of injustice from me, and in your law have mercy on me.” Cast off from me unjust action, and have mercy on me, as it is the law for you to have mercy on him who asks of you with his whole soul.

“I have chosen the way of truth, and your judgments I have not forgotten.” The way of truth is the true dogmas.

^D “I have cleaved to your testimonies, O Lord; do not put me to shame.” Inseparably I have clung to your commandments. Do not, therefore, permit me to be ashamed in being defeated by enemies.

“I ran the way of your commandments, when you enlarged my heart.” ^A Eagerly I walked the path of your commandments, when you freed me from the narrowness of the tribulations.

“Legislate for me, O Lord, the way of your justifications, and I will search it out always.” Legislate this in my soul, that is, make me understand it as precisely as it has been legislated.

“Incline my heart to your testimonies, and not to covetousness.” Turn my soul to the love of your commandments, and not to the acquisition of things in this life.

“Turn away my eyes from looking at vanity; in your way give me life.” Turn the eyes of my mind away, so as not to look upon the pleasantness of this life, and that I might live according to the law given to me by you. ^B

“Establish your word to your servant, that you may be feared.” Root your law within me, that I may fear you. By “word” he refers to that which is perfecting, the cause of which is the keeping of the commandments, just as the elementary is the cause of this.

“Remove my reproach which I feared, for your judgments are good.” Remove that which had been brought upon me by the demons on account of my sin, which I dreaded and feared; remove it, therefore, for your judgments are good, for you are longsuffering toward those who repent.

“Your salvation according to your word.” For he said in the law that he would show mercy and save those who keep his precepts.

“And I will answer those who reproach me with a word, for I have hoped in your words.” And to those who reproach me for the suffering I endure for the sake of virtue, I will give this answer: “I have hoped in the words of God, who has promised many good things to those who keep his commandments.”

“And do not remove from my mouth a word of truth, even until very much, for I have hoped in your judgments.” For in keeping your commandments, I hope that you will not permit the truth to be removed from my mouth; even until “very much,” you will not allow it, that is, not even in the smallest degree.

“Always, unto the age.” Both in the present age and in the future, ^C most pure.

“And I walked in a broad place, because I sought out your commandments.” And although oppressed, I was not distressed, deeming the love of your commandments to be a great comfort.

“And I spoke of your testimonies before kings, and I was not ashamed.” And I spoke of your laws before kings, and I was not ashamed, having... [the transcript is partial in the original] ...my utterance in your words.

“And I meditated on your commandments, which I loved greatly.” I did not only meditate on them by reading them, but I also practiced them.

“Remember your words to your servant, in which you have made me hope.” Remember, O Lord, your word, that you will show mercy and save those who keep your commandments, on which word you made me to hope. This hope comforted me in my tribulation ^D from the trials. The word of yours which was declared revived me, who was already dead to trials.

“Proud men transgressed exceedingly; but I did not decline from your law.” By “proud men” he indicates those who despise the law.

“I remembered your judgments from of old, O Lord, and I was comforted.” From the judgments from of old, that is, from the beginning, how you glorified all those who suffered for the sake of virtue, delivering them from various trials.

“Despondency has taken hold of me because of the sinners who have forsaken your law.” I was despondent for their sake, because they reject your law and are perishing.

“Your justifications were sung to me in the place of my sojourning.” Singing your justifications, I traversed this life.

“I remembered your name, O Lord, in the night, and I kept your law.” By “night” he refers to the sensory night and the darkness of trials.

“This has happened to me, because I sought out your justifications.” This remembrance came to me from seeking your justifications with all my might.

“You are my portion, O Lord; I said that I would keep your law.” I said you are my inheritance and my riches, O Lord; wherefore I covenanted to keep your law.

“I entreated your presence with my whole heart; have mercy on me according to your word.” I prayed to you with my whole soul regarding my sin.

“I reasoned your ways, and I turned my feet to your testimonies.” I examined your commandments, and thus I ordered my life according to them, so that I would not do what is improper through being caught unawares.

“I was prepared and was not troubled, that I might keep your commandments.” I was readied and strengthened so as to keep your commandments; therefore I was not troubled by the assault of the demons.

“The cords of sinners have entangled me, and I did not forget your law.” He called the plots of both sensory and intelligible enemies “cords.”

“At midnight I would rise to give thanks to you for the judgments of your righteousness.” I would rise so as to give thanks to you for the righteous judgments which you have performed for me and against my enemies.

“I am a companion of all those who fear you and of those who keep your commandments.” By “companion” he means equivalent to a partner or a friend.

“The earth, O Lord, is full of your mercy; teach me your justifications.” Since you show mercy to all, have mercy also upon me and teach me your commandments more perfectly.

“You have dealt kindly with your servant, O Lord, according to your word.” ^A You have dealt kindly with me, as you said in the Law that you would deal kindly with those who are well-pleasing to you.

“Teach me kindness and discipline and knowledge, for I have believed your commandments.” Kindness toward those of my own race, discipline in practice, and knowledge in theory. By “believed,” he means “I have been persuaded.”

“Before I was humbled I went astray; therefore I have kept your word.” I sinned, or rather I was bowed down by temptations; therefore, since I was tested, I kept your commandments so that I might not sin and be tested again.

“Iniquity of the proud has been multiplied against me; but I with my whole heart will search your commandments.” Many were those who acted unjustly toward me.

“Their heart was curdled like milk; but I have meditated on your law.” His heart was hardened against me like milk thickening into cheese.

“It is good for me that you have humbled me, so that I might learn your justifications.” It has become profitable for me that you bowed me down with temptations, in order that I might learn your justice, and how you punish those who sin.

^B “Your hands have made me and fashioned me; give me understanding, and I will learn your commandments. They that fear you will see me and will rejoice, because I have set my hope in your words.” They will see me because I have hoped in your words, and they will rejoice.

“I have known, O Lord, that your judgments are righteousness, and in truth you have humbled me.” I have known by experience that your judgments are righteous, and in truth you have tested me.

“Let your mercy be for my comfort, according to your word to your servant.” Henceforth let your mercy be so as to refresh me, just as you promised in the Law to take hold of those who repent.

“My eyes have failed for your word, saying, When will you comfort me?” The eyes of my soul have been spent and have grown weak looking toward your promise, and seeking when you will refresh me by freeing me from temptations.

“For I have become as a bottle in the frost, yet I did not forget your justifications.” For just as a bottle in the frost freezes and hardens, so also I was pressed together and withered by temptations, and I hold your righteous judgments in my memory always.

“How many are the days of your servant? When will you execute judgment on them that persecute me?” How many are they? Certainly they are few. When will you work for me a vindication from those who persecute me, driving those visible and invisible enemies far away?

“The wicked spoke to me of idle things, but not as your law, O Lord.” The wicked spoke to me of many things contrary to your law, some advising me to destroy my enemies, others introducing twisted dogmas. By the wicked, we must first understand the demons.

“All your commandments are truth; they have persecuted me unjustly; help me.” All are true in that you have commanded us not to commit injustice. Therefore, help me who am being treated unjustly.

“They had almost made an end of me upon earth; but I have not forsaken your commandments.” In a little while they would have destroyed me, having prepared to finish my life in the grave. And I did not, even so, depart from the meditation and keeping of your commandments.

^C “For ever, O Lord, your word stands in heaven.” Your decree always stands unshaken in heaven; the truth of such a decree is true through every generation, as the order established in heaven is not moved.

“You have founded the earth, and it remains.” You have established the earth, and it remains as you ordained; and the day remains as you ordained, increasing and decreasing, and always following the night; for all things serve you, in a word, and are led by your nod.

“Let your mercies come to me, and I shall live, for your law is my meditation.” Let them come to me, because henceforth your law is my meditation.

“Let the proud be ashamed, for they have acted unjustly against me; but I will be occupied in your commandments.”

^D “Let those who fear you turn to me, and those who know your testimonies.” Lest I ever wander away from your commandments.

“Let my heart be blameless in your justifications, that I may not be ashamed.” Accurately keeping your justifications, so that my conscience may not be put to shame.

“My soul fails for your salvation; I have hoped in your words.” With a strong desire I am pining away as I await the salvation from you, even as it lingers and is always being delayed. I await this by the hope of your promises; for the Savior said that he would be for those who…

^A incline themselves to perform your commandments always, on account of the reward which lies in store for those who please you.

“You are my helper and my protector; I have hoped in your words.” — I have placed my trust in your law, which has promised good things to those who fulfill it.

“Depart from me, you evildoers, and I will search out the commandments of my God.” — For wicked men and demons, through their absurd counsels, disturb and hinder one from this.

“Uphold me according to your word, and I shall live; and do not put me to shame from my expectation.” — Having learned in the law that you defend those who keep it, do not let me be put to shame, having failed in the hope I have in you.

“Help me, and I shall be saved, and I will meditate on your statutes always.” — I shall be saved from the intrigue of the enemies.

“You have brought to nothing all those who depart from your statutes, for their inward thought is unrighteous.” — You have brought to nothing and rejected all who depart from your law, while they meditate to act lawlessly.

“I have considered all the sinners of the earth as transgressors; therefore I have loved your testimonies.” — I have considered all those who sin in the world as transgressors; therefore, lest I also be considered a transgressor, I have loved your law.

“Nail down my flesh with your fear; for I have been afraid of your judgments.” — ^C From reading your judgments I was afraid indeed in my soul, but not yet in my body, which is constrained by such fear. Nail down, therefore, even it with this fear of yours, so that it might not be moved toward disordered urges and absurd actions.

“I have done judgment and righteousness; do not deliver me to those who wrong me.” — I have done just judgment.

“Receive your servant for good; let not the proud slander me.” — Persevere, sustain, be long-suffering with your servant for the sake of good, so that through repentance he may turn away from sin. Let not the sensible and intelligible lawless ones slander me, as if I were not troubled on account of the sin committed, by involuntary temptations and by voluntary hardship. ^D

“It is time for the Lord to act; they have broken your law.” — It is time for you, O Lord, to act, that is, to take vengeance... for they have broken, that is to say, they have greatly transgressed your law, those enemies, and there is no further need of long-suffering.

“Therefore I have loved your commandments above gold and topaz.” — Because those men broke it, I loved it more than gold, more than any precious stone; for by the topaz, which was then considered of more value than the other precious stones, he manifested all of them.

“Therefore I directed myself toward all your commandments; I hated every unrighteous way.” — Because

I loved these, I was directed toward all, and tribulations and constraints found me; your commandments were my meditation.

“Wonderful are your testimonies; therefore my soul sought them out.” — For they wondrously teach every kind of virtue and drive away all wickedness.

“The manifestation of your words will illuminate and instruct the simple.” — The manifestation, or the explanation of your commandments, provides to these simple ones also the light of knowledge and understanding.

“I opened my mouth and drew in breath, because I longed for your commandments.” — For by the laying hold of the divine commandments, the mouth of the soul, or rather the intellect, is opened for the drawing in of the spirit of wisdom and understanding.

“Look upon me and have mercy on me according to the judgment of those who love your name.” — Look upon me as I am being tempted ^B and have mercy on me, according to the rule which you have established for those who love you, judging that you should show them mercy, and all the more when they are in temptations, and help them.

“Direct my steps according to your word, and let no iniquity have dominion over me.” — Direct my conduct according to your law, and let no iniquity, that is, let not even one, make me a slave so as to commit it.

“Make your face shine upon your servant, and teach me your judgments.” — The prophet calls the divine visitation the face of God.

“Tribulations and constraints found me; your commandments were my meditation.” — Even if tribulations found me at some time, even if constraints of temptations, your commandments were my meditation, comforting and alleviating the pain.

“Your testimonies are righteousness forever; give me understanding, and I shall live.” — For those who have not been given understanding do not truly live, living a base and deceptive life.

“I cried out with my whole heart, hear me, O Lord; I will seek out your judgments.” — If you hear me as I cry out in tribulations. He calls “outcry” the fervent and total stretching of the soul toward God.

“I anticipated ^C at dawn and cried out; I hoped in your words.” — I anticipated the dawn, before the hour had arrived at which people rise, and I cried out to you.

“My eyes anticipated the dawn to meditate on your words.” — My eyes preceded the day toward the time of dawn, so as to read your law.

“Hear my voice, O Lord, according to your mercy; according to your judgment, give me life.” — Make me live in accordance with the law.

“Those who persecute me with iniquity have drawn near; but they have kept far from your law.” — For as much as they draw near to iniquity, by so much do they keep themselves far from your law.

“You are near, O Lord, and all your ways are truth.” — You are near; for you are present everywhere, and nothing of what is done escapes you; therefore all your judgments are truthful.

“My eyes have sent down streams of water, because I did not keep your law.” — Streams of water are the ravines and the hollows. He says, therefore, that [they] entered into the hollows, that is to say, my eyes were hollowed out and wasted away, pouring out a multitude of tears, because those who act lawlessly did not keep your law; for I wept for the miserable with a sympathetic disposition.

“You have commanded righteousness, your testimonies, and truth exceedingly.” — You have ordered your commandments, that is, you have laid down your law as righteousness and truth in the very essence.

“Your zeal has wasted me away, because my enemies forgot your words.” — Just anger on your behalf made me waste away, when it was despised because my enemies, for this very reason, forgot your commandments.

“Your word is very thoroughly refined, and your servant has loved it.” — Your law is very pure of all blemish and unadulterated.

“I am young and despised, yet I did not forget your judgments.” — David gives thanks to God, because, being younger than his brothers and despised by his father before Samuel, he remembered the divine commandments more than all those who had been preferred before him.

“Your righteousness is righteousness forever, and your law is truth.” — Your commandment justifies eternally the one who keeps it, and as many as the law promises to those who keep it, they are truthful.

“From the beginning I knew from your testimonies that you have founded them forever.” — From the beginning and from the outset I knew that you have made your commandments unshakable; for even if, in comparison with the Gospel, the greater part of the law may seem to be abolished, yet it is not so according to the hidden meaning, but [only] according to the manifested and shadowy [aspect]. But I knew, he says, the unshakable nature of your commandments from this very meditation and understanding of my commandments.

“Judge my judgment and redeem me.” — Judge my case, which is with those who are warring against me.

“For the sake of your word, give me life.” — For the sake of your law, grant me life, for which I am in danger of dying, or for the sake of your promise, just as you have said you would save those who [keep] your law.

“Many are those who pursue me and afflict me; I have not turned aside from your testimonies.” — And if many visible and invisible enemies run against me, yet they have in no way been able to turn me aside from your law.

“I saw the foolish and wasted away, because they did not guard your words.” — I was consumed by zeal because your law was being rejected by the foolish.

“The beginning of your words is truth, and forever [are] all the judgments of your righteousness.” — And the

divine promises from time to time, he says. ^A

“Princes persecuted me without a cause, and at your words my heart was afraid.” — The enemies pursued me unjustly; but I spared them, fearing your commandments.

“I will rejoice in your oracles, as one who finds much spoil.” — Having mentioned enemies, he also mentioned spoils.

“Seven times a day I have praised you because of the judgments of your righteousness.” — Many times a day I have praised you, because of the judgments of your justification.

“Great peace have they that love your law, and there is no stumbling block to them.” — Toward God and those of the same race. By stumbling block he means the opposition and the hindrance to the peace that has been mentioned. ^B

“I kept your commandments and your testimonies.” — “I loved these, that what was expected might come to me.”

“That all my ways are before you, O Lord.” — The reason for observing them, because I conduct myself as one being watched by you.

“Let my petition come before you, O Lord; according to your oracle, give me understanding.” — This is the petition, that I might receive understanding and knowledge in your law.

“Let my request enter before you, O Lord; according to your word, deliver me.” — By request he means the plea and supplication; by words here, the promise. ^C

“My lips shall pour forth a hymn, when you teach me your justifications.” — May they pour forth a hymn of thanksgiving when you teach me your law completely.

“Let your hand be to save me, for I have chosen your commandments.” — May it come to pass for my salvation.

“My soul shall live, and shall praise you, and your judgments shall help me.” — It shall live the life that is truly life, and shall praise you continually, and your ordinances shall help me, who keep these. The statements possess the power of optatives.

“I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek out your servant, for I have not forgotten your commandments.” — For even if he transgressed some at times, yet he had not forgotten these entirely; or the prophet calls his way of life while being persecuted a wandering, and by the search he means the recall to his former dwelling place.

PSALM CXIX

“A song of pilgrimage.” — The fifteen songs of pilgrimage, historically, prophesy concerning the ascent of the captive people from Babylon to Jerusalem, having supplicated and been heard; but anagogically, they teach those who are intelligibly held captive in the slavery of passions how to exhort [them] concerning the ascent into the Jerusalem above from the confusion of the present life. ^D

“To the Lord in my affliction I cried, and he heard me.” — In the affliction of the captivity and the suffering therefrom. By the law of prophecy, he speaks of things to come as having already passed. And the words are in the person of the more pious party.

“O Lord, deliver my soul from unjust lips and from a deceitful tongue.” — Unjust lips generally [mean] all things that are lawless and blasphemous, but specifically those of slanderers; and a deceitful tongue [means] that of these same, and specifically that of those plotting against one.

“What should be given to you, and what should be added to you for a deceitful tongue?” — The Prophet says to the one supplicating: what protection shall be given to you, what shall be set before you against such a difficult-to-struggle-against matter, [namely] the deceitful tongue? Or rather, it is no human protection, but the arrows of the only powerful God, which are sharpened with coals of the desert. Because of this, they are powerful only against the lawless, both to cut and to burn and to destroy. He called the various punishments arrows and coals.

“Woe is me, that my sojourning has been prolonged!” — Again the speech is from the one supplicating, lamenting the long duration of the captivity.

“I have dwelled with the tents of Kedar.” — I have dwelled in the midst of the tents of Kedar. This land is situated near the Babylonians, having abominable inhabitants, where the Babylonians ordered the Jews to pitch [their] tents. Kedar is interpreted as darkness. And the tents of darkness [mean] the dwelling in the midst of passions.

“My soul has long lived as a stranger.” — I have spent many years in the sojourning of captivity.

“With those who hate peace I was peaceable.” — The Word teaches us to be peaceable even with the contentious, as far as it depends on ourselves.

“When I spoke to them, they fought against me without a cause.” — When I spoke of peaceful things, those of Kedar fought against me in vain; but I, even so, kept peace.

PSALM CXX

“A song of pilgrimage. I lifted up my eyes to the mountains, from where my help shall come. My help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” — This ode prophesies concerning those already departed from Babylon, and ascending to Jerusalem. And by mountains he means the heavens.

“May he not give your foot to be moved; and may he not slumber who keeps you.” — In the manner of brotherly love, he prays over each of the others, that he might not be moved, saying, may your foundation, that is, your upright way of life, not be shaken, and may God not therefore be negligent concerning your keeping—He who guards you. And by the slumber and sleep of God, one must understand abandonment in this context.

“Behold, he shall not slumber nor sleep, who keeps Israel.” — If Israel walks securely.

“The Lord shall keep you, the Lord is your protection, at your right hand.” — The Lord shall keep you thus walking; the Lord shall be your protection at your right hand.

^A “The sun shall not burn you by day, nor the moon by night.” — He said this to convey the utmost care. The statement is elliptical. The whole meaning is: nor shall the moon harm you by night; for the moon does not burn, but rather causes heaviness of head and pallor.

“The Lord shall keep your coming in and your going out from now and forever.” — By “coming in and going out,” he has indicated the entire turning of one’s life.

PSALM CXXI

“A Song of Degrees. I was glad for those who said to me, ‘Let us go into the house of the Lord.’” — This was said by those traveling and progressing with great joy.

“Our feet were standing in your courts, O Jerusalem.” — Having heard that we were going into the house of the Lord, we thought we were standing in Jerusalem, such was the intensity of our longing.

“Jerusalem is built as a city.” — Jerusalem, which of old was being built with dwellings throughout every part and crowded together, as a city in truth.

“Whose joining is together in one.” — Jerusalem, whose joined parts, that is, the dwellings, are held together on account of their great density.

“For there the tribes went up, the tribes of the Lord, a testimony to Israel.” — Before the captivity, all the tribes of Israel, who were devoted to the Lord, went up and assembled there at the time of the Passover, Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles; as a testimony, or rather, a divine command, prescribed for the Israelite people.

“To give thanks to the name of the Lord.” — To offer thanksgiving through the prescribed worship.

“For there sat thrones for judgment, thrones for the house of David.” — In Jerusalem were established royal thrones for judging Israel, where the palaces of David were.

^B “Ask for the things that are for the peace of Jerusalem, and prosperity to those who love you.” — Address to Jerusalem things of peace; that is, say to her, “Peace be to you,” and prosperity, not only to your citizens, but also to the surrounding nations who have peace with you. These are all prophecies.

“Let there be peace in your power.” — By “power,” he means the soldiers, for whom peace consists in having no enemy.

“And prosperity in your towers.” — Prosperity and wealth are the strength of the towers.

“For the sake of my brothers and my neighbors, I did speak peace concerning you.” — David says to Jerusalem, “Because of my kinsmen, the Israelites, I prayed for peace in you, and for the sake of the temple of God within you, I sought ^C mercy for you, so that while the former might be delivered from evils, the latter might receive back its ancient beauty.”

PSALM CXXII

“To You I lifted up my eyes, who dwell in heaven.” — The optative instead of the future indicative. These words also belong to those who are still traveling.

“For we were filled with much contempt.” — At length, those who took us captive greatly reproached and slighted us.

“Our soul was filled with more.” — With the aforementioned contempt.

“The reproach to those who prosper, and contempt to the proud.” — Repaid, that is to say.

PSALM CXXIII

“‘If it were not that the Lord was with us,’ let Israel now say; ‘if it were not that the Lord was with us when men rose up against us.’” — These are the words of those who have already returned to their homeland, when the neighboring nations, moved by envy, campaigned against them while Jerusalem was not yet rebuilt.

“Perhaps the water would have drowned us.” — By “water,” he means their violence and vehement commotion.

“Our soul passed through the torrent.” — We escaped their disorderly onslaught.

“Perhaps our soul passed through the water that is insupportable.” — Truly we escaped their violence, the insupportable.

“The snare was broken, and we were delivered.” — By “snare,” he means the ambushes and stratagems.

“Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” — We were not helped by weapons, but by the invocation of the true God.

PSALM CXXIV

“Those who trust in the Lord are as Mount Zion.” — They exist as Mount Zion, secure, that is, and immovable.

“He who dwells in Jerusalem shall not be shaken forever.” — Everyone who dwells in Jerusalem shall not be cast down for the whole allotted age.

“Mountains are round about her; and the Lord is round about his people from now and forever.” — She has the security from the surrounding mountains, and she has also the protection from God.

“For the Lord will not leave the rod of sinners upon the lot of the righteous.” — He gives the reason for the protection from God. By “sinners,” he means the ungodly and lawless, such as the demons are primarily; by “rod,” their kingdom or weapons; by “righteous,” those living according to the law.

“So that the righteous may not stretch out their hands in iniquity.” — In order that, while enjoying such protection from God, they may not touch iniquity, but rather cherish the Benefactor.

“Do good, O Lord, to the good and to the upright in heart.” — Do good things.

“But those who turn aside to crooked paths, the Lord will lead away with the workers of iniquity.”

^A — He will lead them away to punishment, similarly to the lawless. Being "strangled" here means "crookedness."

“Peace be upon Israel.” — Let it be, clearly. But this Psalm is more suitable for those who inhabit the high and indestructible Church, around which the high teachers wall it in and guard it, and Christ is around His people.

PSALM CXXV

“When the Lord turned again the captivity of Sion, we became like those who are comforted.” — Having been turned back by the Lord to our fatherland, we, the captives of Sion, became very joyful.

“Behold, the inheritance of the Lord, children, the reward of the fruit of the womb.” — The reward, that is, the good thing of virtue, given from the fruitfulness of the womb.

“As arrows in the hand of a mighty man, so are the children of those who have been cast out.” — Just as arrows in the hand of a mighty man appear fearful because of his strength, so also the children of those cast out from captivity shall be fearful to the enemies because of the unconquerable power of God. Such are the children in the spirit, of our teachers who have been cast out from the captivity of the demons, fearful to the demons.

“Then was our mouth filled with joy, and our tongue with exultation.” — Of joyful words, signifying the joy of the soul.

“Then shall they say among the nations: The Lord has made great things to do with them.” — Then the nations shall say, The Lord has done great things by doing mercy with them.

“The Lord has made great things to do with us.” — Yes, and indeed God has done great things, as the nations say. ^B

“Turn, O Lord, our captivity as the torrents in the south.” — The Lord commanded all the Jews to return to Jerusalem; but many preferred the sojourn in Babylon out of an evil disposition, whom the Lord will cause to return with great force, like the winter torrents, through the rain-bringing south wind, as those who returned supplicate.

“They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.” — David says: They who seek salvation from God with tears receive the request in joy.

“They went on and wept, casting their seeds.” — He passed from the universal to the particular, saying, When the captives were departing to Babylon, they went on with weeping, asking from God the deliverance from captivity. Returning from there, they shall come in exultation, carrying the fruits of their prayers that were made with lamentation.

PSALM CXXVI

“Unless the Lord build the house.” — The survivors of the captivity who began to build the temple and the city were hindered by the neighboring nations for up to forty years, to whom the Prophet hastens to flee to God, and not to trust in their own haste.

“In vain have they labored who build it.” — Henceforth, for those for whom not even the bread is eaten without sorrow, in vain is it for you to rise early for the building and to rise immediately after sitting down, and to hasten to the work.

“When He gives sleep to His beloved.” — When God gives rest and freedom from anxiety to those loved by Him, not only shall the things desired be accomplished, but there shall also be successors, children being named of God because of their piety.

“Blessed is he who shall satisfy his desire from them.” — From them, the aforementioned things: freedom from anxiety, noble children, and others.

“They shall not be ashamed when they speak to their enemies in the gate.” — Those who have fulfilled their desire from the things mentioned. It was a custom to speak to the messengers of enemies before the gates of the city. The gates of the city above are the churches, and the enemies are those of a different belief. ^C

PSALM CXXVII

“Blessed are all who fear the Lord.” — Even if they be slaves, or barbarians, or disabled.

“Who walk in His ways.” — For he who in truth fears God keeps His commandments.

“You shall eat the labors of your fruits.” — He turns the word toward him who fears God. He says "fruits of your hands," meaning the whole from a part, and the fruit is a part of the hand. He says, therefore, that you shall gain the deeds.

“Your wife shall be as a fruitful vine in the sides of your house.” — Your wife flourishing with children, as a vine with clusters. To the Jews, therefore, according to the body, tangible goods are desirably appropriate; but to the spiritual Israel, the wife is the soul, which is the consort, adorned with virtues; the house is the body; the children are the imitators and successors of piety, flourishing in the growth of spiritual maturity and surrounding him, teaching and feeding [them] with logical food. ^D

“Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the Lord.” — Blessing he calls the grace and beneficence, as worthy of praise.

“May the Lord bless you from Sion, and may you see the good things of Jerusalem all the days of your life.” — To praise, to endow with grace from heaven.

“And may you see your children’s children.” — Good things of the Jerusalem above which the eye has not seen.

“Peace upon Israel.” — Peace upon the spiritual Israel, that which is the peace of the soul within itself, undisturbed.

PSALM CXXVIII

“Many times have they warred against me from my youth.” — By the person of the people, these things having been warred against many times—

^A by neighboring nations. But by “youth” he means the beginning of the return from Babylon. “Let Israel now say.” — Let him say it explicitly, so that all may know from what dangers God has delivered us. “For they could not prevail against me.” — They were not strong against me. “The sinners wrought upon my back.” — Not only openly, but also secretly, they fashioned schemes and plots against me. “They have lengthened their iniquity.” — For a long time they made war against me. “The Lord is righteous; he hath cut the necks of sinners.” — He has cast down the haughtiness of those who warred unjustly, making us the victors. “Let all them be ashamed and turned backward that hate Sion.” — The things in the psalm are fitting to be said also concerning the Church of the faithful. “Let them be as the grass upon the housetops.” — For this is most apt to whither. “Wherewith the mower filleth not his hand, nor he that gathereth sheaves his bosom.” — That is to say, no one harvests it, as it is already corrupted. “And they that passed by said not, The blessing of the Lord be upon you.” — And concerning the grass of which the passers-by did not bless the harvesters, as is the custom in the harvest, of the mature and fruitful grass. “We have blessed you in the name of the Lord.” — ^B And this is the word of the passers-by: saying, “Blessing,” we hinted toward you in the calling upon the Lord.

PSALM CXXIX “Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O Lord, O Lord, hear my voice.” — From the depth of the heart, not from the tips of the lips. “If thou, O Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, who shall stand?” — If you should examine all iniquities, who shall endure this examination? For mercy is truly with you, in you; therefore you examine with sparing. “For thy name’s sake have I waited for thee, O Lord.” — Not because of my good deeds did I expect you as a Savior, but that your name might not be set at naught by the enemies, as unable to save your people. “My soul hath waited for thy word.” — I have hoped in your promise that you will save those who please you and those who repent. “My soul hath hoped in the Lord.” — Not in any other of all things. “From the morning watch even unto night let Israel hope in the Lord.” — He calls the last quarter of the night the “morning watch,” as already indicating the morning and ending in it. He exhorts, therefore, the true Israel to hope in the Lord alone throughout their whole life; for he has declared the rotational period of the entire day and night ^C by saying, “From the morning watch even unto night,” meaning the whole, ^D and again to carry back from the morning watch and so forth. “For with the Lord there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption.” — For he himself is the fountain of redemption. “And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.” — If, in what follows, Israel will please him.

PSALM CXXX “Lord, my heart is not haughty.” — The psalm hastens not to be lifted up. “Nor mine eyes lofty.” — I have not raised my brows out of pride. “Neither have I walked in great matters, or in wonders above me.” — Neither did I desire to associate with the glorious and the dignified, or with those admired for their wealth—those who are above me, or who are thought to be so. “If I did not think humbly, but exalted my soul.” — It should be read without conjunctions and with hyperbaton: “If I were not humble-minded, like the infant already weaned from the breast towards its own mother, but was uplifted, truly may you render unto my soul the reward of the existence.” “Let Israel hope in the Lord from henceforth and for ever.” — Imitating me.

PSALM CXXXI “Lord, remember David, and all his meekness.” — The people who have returned from the captivity beseech you to raise up the people, if not for their sake, at least because of their forefather David, to whom belonged meekness, or long-suffering, in an exceptional way. “As he sware unto the Lord, and vowed unto the God of Jacob.” — Remember how he promised to the Lord: “I will not do this and this until I find a place for the Lord, worthy for his tabernacle, the God of Jacob,” that is, for the ark. “Lo, we heard of it at Ephrata: we found it in the fields of the wood.” — By “Ephrata,” Bethlehem is clearly called, bearing the name of the one who held it before. He says, therefore, that David was zealous and sought a place of residence for the ark, that is, a temple; since we heard from the Scriptures that it had been brought into Bethlehem, and again we found it from the Scriptures dwelling in the fields of the wood, and being carried here and there, because there was no place set apart for it. “Let us go into his tabernacles; let us worship at the place where his feet have stood.” — These are prophecies, that the people will rise again, and they will enter and worship and serve as before. And the places in Palestine are also the tabernacles of Christ. And the place where his feet stood is the cross. “Arise, O Lord, into thy rest; thou, and the ark of thy holiness.” — Into your rest, that is, into your temple, or

^A into the building of yourself, arise both you and the ark of your holiness; for this also is powerful, since you, through your law, dwell within it, and fill it with holiness and power. These words hasten toward the resurrection of Christ from the dead and his restoration to the throne of his kingdom in heaven. And the ark of the holiness of the Master Christ is the assumption of the tabernacle of the Godhead.

“Let thy priests be clothed with justice, and thy saints shall rejoice.” — That is to say, let them be clothed. By justice, he means holy worship, or the conduct according to the Gospel. And he calls the people “saints” as having been dedicated to God.

“For the sake of David thy servant, turn not away the face of thy Christ.” — Used periphrastically. ^B Do not turn away—unproductive—the one anointed by you to rule over us, who prays with us for the temple, the city, and the kingdom, David says to God the Father. Even if not for any other reason, at least for the sake of me, your servant, do not turn away the manifestation of your Christ.

“Of the fruit of thy womb I will set upon thy throne.” — He characterizes the King, in the proper sense, as one who legislates for his subjects, regulates them, cares for them, and dies for them. Such is Christ, the true King of Israel, established from the seed of David according to his mother.

“If thy sons will keep my covenant, and these my testimonies which I will teach them.” — The literal meaning here is clear, but according to the anagogical sense, it is as if the Word from the Father is speaking to Christ: “If those who are adopted as sons to you through faith and baptism keep those things which have been taught through you, not they alone, but also those who are truly their disciples will inherit the rest and enjoyment of the eternal kingdom.”

^C “This is my rest for ever and ever.” — This is the eternal rest of God, the Church of the faithful, against which the gates of Hades shall not prevail.

“Blessing I will bless her provision.” — By “provision” must be understood the acquisition and harvest of food, but primarily the “catching” through which the apostles captured the nations. And the phrase “blessing I will bless” indicates the intensification and confirmation of the blessing and of grace.

“I will satisfy her poor with bread.” — By “satisfying with bread,” he means simple enrichment, but by “salvation,” he means health and safety. The poor of the Church are the poor in spirit, whom God will fill with the uncorrupted food in the kingdom of heaven; and “salvation” is the true crossing over and arrival unto God; and the “rejoicing” is the unspeakable joy that succeeds for those who are truly saints. ^D

“There will I bring forth a horn to David.” — In Zion, I shall bring forth a horn for him from the lineage of David: height, honor, and [the symbol of] his lineage reigning. In the Church, God has brought forth height and honor for David—the kingdom of the Christ who is descended from him.

“I have prepared a lamp for my Christ.” — I have established a lamp in my king David, that is, the glory and brightness of his lineage. For the Savior Christ and God, the lamp that was prepared and fashioned for him is the flesh, bright with the radiance of sinlessness, which contains within itself the light of the Godhead. The Gospel and the Forerunner are also called a “lamp.”

“I will clothe his enemies with shame.” — The enemies of David are the enemies of his lineage; the enemies of Christ, however, are the demons, and all those who act with divine enmity. All such will be ashamed, especially at the universal resurrection.

“But upon him shall my sanctification flourish.” — “Upon him,” that is, “in him,” David, or rather upon his generation, my temple shall blossom and shine forth. Some say that the horn and the lamp refer to Zerubbabel, and they say that his enemies were put to shame, and that in his kingdom the temple that had long since withered blossomed forth. Anagogically, the holy Church shall blossom in Christ, she who sanctifies those who approach correctly, and he himself is blossom and splendor.

PSALM CXXXII

“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together!” — In the time of Roboam, the tribes were divided, and ten followed Roboam, while two embraced the Davidic kingdom. After the return from Babylon, however, they came together again into concord, concerning which David prophesies, and praising the nature of concord, he says: “What is truly good or what is able to give pleasure, as for brothers to dwell together?” that is, in concord.

“Like the ointment on the head that runs down upon the beard.” — Concord is thus good and pleasant, like the legal ointment—good as holy, and pleasant as fragrant—that which says [the one] being poured upon the head of the priest, and from there running down upon the beard, and thence upon the edge, that is, the opening of his garment.

“The beard of Aaron.” — He has said the beard of Aaron, because he was the first to be anointed. It is possible, however, to call every priest “Aaron,” as being descended from Aaron.

“Like the dew of Hermon which descends upon the mountains of Zion.” — Mount Hermon is situated near Lebanon, always having much snow. From there, vapors of dew are given off which produce warmth, and they send it down to the mountains of Zion, being good, as it is necessary for the land, and pleasant, as it is falling gently and sweetly. Since, therefore, it has from Hermon the...

cause of its generation, it called it the dew of Hermon. «For there the Lord commanded the blessing, life for evermore.» There, that is to say, in the dwelling together with concord, the Lord also commanded his grace to be ^A and life for a long time.

PSALM CXXXIII [CXXXIV]. «Behold now, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord, who stand in the house of the Lord, in the courts of the house of our God.» Since the war has ceased and the temple has been rebuilt with the city, the Psalm encourages those who have been deemed worthy of the station in the temple to give thanks always to God, to lift their hands toward the Holy of Holies, not only by day but also by night, and keeping watch to praise God; then it prays on their behalf.

PSALM CXXXIV [CXXXV]. «Praise the name of the Lord; praise, O you servants, the Lord, who stand in the house of the Lord, in the courts of the house of our God. Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good.» For it was not permitted for those not standing in the temple to praise God.

«Sing to his name, for it is good.» It is good to sing to God, for it cleanses the soul of the one singing.

«For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself.» He names Jacob the people drawn from Jacob, whom the Lord chose from all the nations and consecrated to himself.

«Israel for his own possession.» By possession he means the wealth, the property, the riches.

«For I have known that the Lord is great, and our Lord is above all gods.» I have known, he says, more accurately the greatness of God; for such knowledge belongs to those who have ascended.

«All that the Lord pleased, he did in heaven and in earth, in the seas and in all deeps.» By seas he refers to the various gulfs, and by deeps the lowest, unsearchable places.

«Who brings up the clouds from the ends of the earth.» He who from the very lowest depth of the earth makes heavy clouds rise.

«He made lightnings for the rain.» He made lightnings for the rain, and kept together the things destructive of one another, water and fire, at the same time.

«Who brings the winds out of his treasuries.» By his treasuries he means the hidden places whence the winds come forth, or as if out of his treasuries because of the ease of their bringing forth.

«And sent signs and wonders into the midst of you, O Egypt.» The "in the midst" denotes everywhere and openly.

«Who struck many nations and slew mighty kings, Sihon king of the Amorites, ^B and Og king of Bashan, and all the kingdoms of Canaan.» The rulers of such nations.

«O Lord, your name is for ever, and your memorial to generation and generation.» For this reason, he says, your name and your memorial will be eternal among those who have been benefited.

«For the Lord will judge his people.» That is, he will avenge them when they are harmed by enemies.

«And will be entreated concerning his servants.» He will be turned toward those who are supplicating him and will take them up.

«The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the works of men's hands.» An idol is that whose archetype is unsubstantial; but an image is that which has an Archetype that subsists.

«O house of Israel, bless the Lord; O house of Aaron, bless the Lord.» Praise him, all of you, because of the benefits declared.

«Blessed be the Lord from Zion, who dwells in Jerusalem.» The Lord is worthy to be praised from Zion, who has his dwelling in Jerusalem, that is, the temple. And heaven is understood as Jerusalem and Zion.

PSALM CXXXV [CXXXVI]. «Confess to the Lord, for he is good; for his mercy is for ever.» Give thanks to the Lord for his ten thousand benefits, because his mercy is eternal, never interrupted at any time. For the emphasis ^C of such mercy, he has placed in all the following verses the clause, «For his mercy is for ever.»

«Confess to the God of gods; for his mercy is for ever.» And of the demons—gods that is, of the idols, or of the demons acting within them—he himself is God; for he brought all things into existence from nothing.

«Confess to the Lord of lords; for his mercy is for ever.» For he himself is King of kings and Lord of those who rule.

«To him who alone does great wonders; for his mercy is for ever.» To him alone is placed here in contrast to the idols and demons; for he calls the one God and Lord the all-creator and almighty.

«To him who made the heavens in understanding; for his mercy is for ever.» By understanding he means wisdom.

«To him who established the earth upon the waters; for his mercy is for ever.» It has been spoken of in the 23rd [24th] Psalm concerning this.

«The sun to rule over the day; for his mercy is for ever.» To rule over the day; and the heaven and the luminaries and the day and the night and the whole and its parts are all for the sake of the kindness ^D and mercy of God, and those things which seem to suffer evil.

through the fact that wickedness is punished and worn away. — Meaning: through the One who struck.

"To Him who struck Egypt with their firstborn: for His mercy endures forever." — That is, to the One who struck with terror.

"And who brought Israel out from the midst of them: for His mercy endures forever." — From the midst of those Egyptians. By "hand and arm," He signifies His power.

"To Him who divided the Red Sea into parts: for His mercy endures forever." — By "parts," he means the portions; for He divided it into two parts.

"And who shook off Pharaoh and his power into the Red Sea: for His mercy endures forever." — By "shook off," he means the breaking and the drowning.

"To Him who led His people in the wilderness: for His mercy endures forever." — And the passage through the wilderness without harm was a great miracle; for neither hunger, nor thirst, nor heat, nor cold, nor wild beasts, nor anything else was able to harm them.

"For in our humiliation the Lord remembered us: for His mercy endures forever." — In our being humbled, that is, being afflicted; for He says, Seeing, I have seen the affliction of My people who are in Egypt. And He makes the matters of the forefathers His own, giving food appropriate to each nature. ^B

"Give thanks to the God of heaven: for His mercy endures forever." — Even if He is the Maker and Lord of heaven and of those things in heaven, clearly, and of those things contained by heaven, He is called specifically the God of heaven and of the heavenly things, by way of appropriation, as the powers above are set for the fulfillment of the divine will.

PSALM CXXXVI (137)

"By the willows in the midst of it we hung up our instruments." — In the midst of the land of Babylon. By "instrument," he means the psaltery, the cithara, and the rest; for indeed these were employed for the hymnody of piety.

"For there those who took us captive asked us for the words of songs." — Those who took us captive from Israel and carried us off to Babylon said to us, that is, to speak the words of songs, and clearly to sing a hymn.

"And those who carried us away, Sing us a song of the songs of Sion." — "Saying" is omitted.

"How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a strange land?" — We must mentally supply "we said." ^C

"If I forget you, O Jerusalem, may my right hand be forgotten." — May I be forgotten by my right hand, [the hand] having become bereft of sensation and incapacitated.

"May my tongue cleave to my throat, if I do not remember you." — That is, may I become mute. We also ought to understand these things regarding the Jerusalem above.

"If I do not set Jerusalem at the beginning of my joy." — May I suffer what I have said, if I do not set Jerusalem before all others in my memory, as being at the beginning of my joy of whatever kind, that is, the chief of my gladness and my primary pleasure.

"Remember, O Lord, the sons of Edom in the day of Jerusalem." — Remember our relatives, the Aradians, in the day of the calamity of Jerusalem, clearly, how they stood, and render unto them.

"Of those who say, 'Empty it, empty it down to its foundations.'" — For the Aradians, out of envy, fought together with the Babylonians, and while Jerusalem was being razed, they urged them to pry out even the foundations. ^D

"Daughter of Babylon, you wretched one." — These are prophecies concerning the things that will befall Babylon; hence he called her wretched.

"A Psalm of David for/of Jeremiah." — That is, by Jeremiah. But the inscription of the present psalm is rejected by the exegetes, as also those of the two following it, in which the name of Zechariah is inscribed. Such inscriptions are rejected as not being contained in the Hebrew text nor in the books of other exegetes, and as being suspected from this [fact] of not all the psalms being the compositions of David. Perhaps then, since David alone, holding the royal psaltery, chanted, and the rest of the choir-leaders used other instruments for singing, David began to chant the aforementioned psalms, but being hindered by some circumstance, he entrusted the psaltery to a certain Jeremiah and Zechariah, and through such men, as through himself, he chanted the indicated psalms.

"By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat and wept when we remembered Sion." — In the person of the choir-leaders who were taken captive in Babylon, the present psalm was composed. The captives were camping outside the cities.

PSALM CXXXVII (138)

"I will give thanks to You, O Lord, with my whole heart, and before the angels I will sing to You." — That is, before the angel of the Lord and God.

"I will give thanks to Your name for Your mercy and for Your truth." — That You truly had mercy on me, or that You will be true concerning the things which You promised me.

"For you have magnified Your holy name above all." — For You have shown Your name to be great over everything that You have wrought.

"You will sustain me with power in my soul." — You will deem me worthy of great care; You will guard me in my soul by Your power.

"Let all the kings of the earth give thanks to You, O Lord." — The pious, clearly.

"For they heard all the words of Your mouth." — Those through the law and the prophets, those through...

the Gospel and the apostles; for from then comes the true piety, the true benefit of the soul.

"And let them meditate upon the ways of the Lord." — Through the odes of the Lord, that is, through the hymns composed unto the Lord.

"For great is the glory of the Lord, for the Lord is high, and looks upon the lowly." — High in His nature, but He extends His providence even unto the most base and most vile.

"And He knows high things from afar." — And He knows the great matters from afar and even before they come to pass.

"If I walk in the midst of trouble, You will quicken me." — If I am hemmed in by the dangers of wild beasts, You will save me.

"You have stretched forth Your hands against the wrath of my enemies." — Against the rage of my enemies toward me, You have brought forth Your power, and You have extinguished it; but me You have saved.

"The Lord will recompense for me." — To the enemies, that is.

"O Lord, Your mercy is unto the ages." — Since You are perpetual and merciful and our Creator, do not ignore us when we call upon You.

PSALM CXXXVIII

"Unto the end, a Psalm of David, of Zacharias in the dispersion." — ^A Regarding the person of King Josiah, who is praying and is struck with amazement at the foreknowledge concerning him, and marveling how, having blossomed from impious ancestors, he has become entirely of God.

"O Lord, You have tested me and known me." — That is, You know me with testing and knowledge.

"You have known my sitting and my rising." — That is, my life; for all of life is spent either in rest or in action.

"You understood my thoughts from afar." — Before they were stirred.

"My path and my line You have searched out." — The whole way of my life and the measure of it, how much has passed and how much remains, You know accurately.

"And You have foreseen all my ways." — And my deeds, before they came to be, You saw as standing before You.

"That there is no deceit in my tongue." — You know with the others that there is no craftiness in my words.

"Behold, O Lord, You have known all the last ^B and the ancient things." — You, O Lord, know everything in summary, both the things that will be and the things that have been.

"You have fashioned me, and You have laid Your hand upon me." — You have not only created me, but You also cover me with Your providence.

"Your knowledge was too wonderful for me." — The knowledge of Your essence has been magnified beyond me; it has become beyond my comprehension.

"It has been strengthened, and I cannot attain unto it." — It has become stronger than to be grasped by my thoughts; I cannot seize hold of it.

"Where shall I go from Your Spirit, and from Your presence where shall I flee?" — From now on, He teaches that God is present everywhere by His power and His providence and fills all things. And by "Spirit and presence of God," he means the Word, by periphrasis. And "ascent," he says, they descend with the mind.

"If I take my wings at dawn and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea." — By wings, he signifies the swift movement of the mind. By "at dawn," he said it because the mind is more sober then. By "uttermost parts of the sea," he means the depths.

"For even there Your hand shall guide me, and Your right hand shall hold me." — For He who is present everywhere, he says, will find your power before me and seize me in an inescapable way ^C.

"And I said, 'Shall darkness tread upon me? And night is light in my luxury.'" — I considered, therefore, "Shall darkness be able to cover and hide me from You? But even the night is luminous with God, who is my luxury." By these things, he teaches the unerring nature of God.

"For darkness shall not be darkened by You, and night shall be as day." — Because darkness will not have the nature of darkness before You, but the night also will show the things of the day.

"As the darkness of it, so also is the light of it." — As the darkness of the night is luminous with You, in the same way the light of the day is, having nothing more to shine with; for both are equal with You.

"For You have possessed my reins." — Not only do You know my deeds so very unerringly, but You also hold the lower and deeper parts of my thoughts with You always as Your own property.

"You have taken me from my mother's womb." — What do I mean by the depths of thoughts? You have made me entirely Your own from the mother's womb, and not one movement, either of body or soul, has remained far from ^D Your knowledge.

"I will confess to You, for You have been fearfully wondrous." — I will thank You only; with fear I have marveled at Your wisdom and economy and power.

"Wondrous are Your works, and my soul knows it exceedingly." — And I know this exceedingly, that Your works are wondrous; for I inquire concerning them.

"My bone was not hidden from You, which You made in secret." — Not invisible to You and unknown is the binding together of my bones, which You constructed secretly in the womb of my mother; it is not invisible to You how it has its nature.

"And my substance in the lowest parts of the earth." — Taken in common is "it was not hidden from You," that is, even in the depth of the earth, my substance being hidden after death, it is not invisible to You; clearly, how it has its nature, that is, You know accurately.

^A And those of my synthesis, and those of my dissolution. "My unformed substance Your eyes saw." And why do I say synthesis and dissolution? He who gave the very seed which is the first cause of my generation, not yet having obtained in the womb any infantile work, knows it as my self-sufficient substance. "And upon Your book all shall be written." And not only do You know me thus, as I said, but absolutely everyone; for the book of God is accurate knowledge, and the writing of it is His perpetual memory. But "shall be written" is now used in place of "are written," for God knows all things before their generation; all people, therefore, happen to be written in the book of simple knowledge, but in the book of appropriated knowledge only the righteous. "Days shall be formed, and there is no one in them." All, however, who are written in Your book shall be formed with the formation of the day, that is, the diurnal formation, and no one will be in them—that is, clearly, unless he is formed with such a formation. That is to say, the whole nature of mortals shall be reformed through regeneration; for the prophet now philosophizes concerning this, naming it a diurnal formation as one liberated from the darkness of passions, as one having nothing hidden being worked within, as a successor. The life possessed under the shadow of death and yet indissoluble, as one purely cleansed of all things through the first generation, the Word knows how to call a nocturnal formation. "But to me, Your friends, O God, have been greatly honored." Friends of God are as many as by virtue are rendered akin to Him. "Their authorities have been greatly strengthened." Their powers are strong; for they will master every passion, and against every wickedness they always raise trophies with the invincible power of virtue. "I will number them, and they shall be multiplied beyond the sand." Though few in number, they have become incalculably numerous to me; for many myriads are not worth one of these. "I arose, and I am still with You." I arose from the downfall of calamities, and I did not depart from virtue, which is what they suffer who are in great prosperity. ^B And if He says, "Test me and know my heart," how does He say again, "You have known me"? Or is it clear that even if he stretches out words toward God, he does so for the assurance and benefit of those who hear? For we also are accustomed, when we narrate something to God in an informative manner, to fashion such a narrative; what he says there is this: that God knows provably and accurately that there is no unjust deed in me; for the "if" has the power of denial. "And see if there is a way of iniquity in me, and guide me in the way everlasting." Lead me toward eternal life.

PSALM 139

μή με παραχωρήσῃς δρᾶσαί τι αὐτὸν, ὧν ἐπιθυμεῖ εἰς ἐμέ.

« Διελογίσαντο κατ’ ἐμοῦ· μὴ ἐγκαταλίπῃς με, μήποτε ὑψωθῶσιν. » — Ἐμελέτησαν κατ’ ἐμοῦ οἱ ἁμαρτωλοί· μὴ ἐάσῃς με ἀβοήθητον, ἵνα μὴ ἐπὶ πλέον ἐκ τῆς κατ’ ἐμοῦ νίκης ἀλαζονεύσηται. ^A

« Τὸ κεφάλαιον τοῦ κυκλώματος αὐτῶν. » — Τὸ κεφάλαιον τῆς κυκλωσάσης με ταύτης ἐπιβουλῆς, ἡ μοχθηρὰ κατ’ ἐμοῦ συμβουλὴ αὐτῶν, πεσεῖται ἐπ’ αὐτοὺς, καὶ ἀφανίσει αὐτούς.

« Πεσοῦνται ἐπ’ αὐτοὺς ἄνθρακες. » — Ἄνθρακας καὶ ἐμπυρίους τὴν θεήλατον τιμωρίαν εἴρηκε νῦν.

« Ἐν πυρὶ καταβαλεῖς αὐτούς. » — Ἐν ταλαιπωροποιοῖς κακώσεσι, καὶ οὐ μὴ ὑπενέγκωσι ταύτης διὰ σφοδρότητα.

« Ἀνὴρ γλωσσώδης οὐ κατευθυνθήσεται ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς. » — Τὸν ὑβριστὴν, τὸν ἐριστὴν, τὸν φλύαρον οὐ κατευοδωθῆναι γνωμολογεῖ.

« Ἄνδρα ἄδικον κακὰ θηρεύσει εἰς διαφθοράν. » — Τὸν ἄδικον ἄνδρα τὰ κακὰ τούτου ἔργα ἀγρεύσουσιν εἰς ἀπώλειαν, οὐκ εἰς σωτηρίαν ὡς ἡ ἄγρα τῶν μαθητῶν τοῦ Κυρίου.

« Ἔγνων ὅτι ποιήσει Κύριος τὴν κρίσιν τοῦ πτωχοῦ καὶ τὴν δίκην τῶν πενήτων. » — Εἰ καὶ μὴ νῦν, ἀλλά γε κατὰ τὴν μέλλουσαν ζωὴν ποιήσει Κύριος τὴν τῶν καταδυναστευομένων ἐκδίκησιν.

« Πλὴν δίκαιοι ἐξομολογησονται τῷ ὀνόματί σου. » — Πλὴν καὶ τῆς ἐκδικήσεως βραδυνούσης οἱ δίκαιοι οὐ σκανδαλισθήσονται, ἀλλ’ εὐχαριστήσουσι καὶ οὕτως, καὶ κατοικήσουσι σὺν σοι, τουτέστι, τῇ σῇ μνήμῃ συνέσονται. Τοὺς αὐτοὺς δὲ λέγει δικαίους καὶ εὐθεῖς.

« Θοῦ, Κύριε, φυλακὴν τῷ στόματί μου, καὶ θύραν περιοχῆς περὶ τὰ χείλη μου. » ^A — Φυλακὴν καὶ θύραν ἀσφαλείας, ἤγουν ἀσφαλίζουσαν, εἴρηκεν ἐκ παραλλήλου, τὴν ἐπιστασίαν τοῦ νοός· εἰδότος τίνα μὲν ἐκφέρειν τοῦ στόματος, τίνα δὲ κατέχειν ἔνδον χρεών· τοῦτο δὲ θείας ἐπικουρίας ἔργον οἶδε· δυσκάθεκτον γὰρ ἡ γλῶσσα καὶ ἡ ταύτης εὐκολία πολλῶν κακῶν αἰτία καθέστηκε.

« Μὴ ἐκκλίνῃς τὴν καρδίαν μου εἰς λόγους πονηρίας τοῦ προφασίζεσθαι προφάσεις ἐν ἁμαρτίαις. » — Μὴ παραχωρήσῃς ἐκτραπῆναι τὴν καρδίαν μου εἰς πονηροὺς λογισμούς, ὥστε καὶ προφασίζεσθαι προφάσεις ἐν τῷ ἁμαρτάνειν, ὡς τῆς μὲν πορνείας αἰτίαν ἡγεῖσθαι τὴν βίαν τῆς ἐπιθυμίας, τῆς κλοπῆς δὲ τὴν τῆς ἐνδείας ἀνάγκην καὶ ἄλλων ἁμαρτιῶν, ἄλλα τίνεσθαι αἴτια, καὶ μὴ τὸ κυρίως αἴτιον ὁμολογεῖν, τὴν ῥᾳθυμίαν τῆς ψυχῆς καὶ τὴν αὐθαίρετον ἐπὶ τὰ φαῦλα ὁρμήν. ^B

« Σὺν ἀνθρώποις ἐργαζομένοις τὴν ἀνομίαν. » — Τοῦ προφασίζεσθαι μετὰ τῶν παρανόμων· τούτων γάρ ἐστι τὸ προφασίζεσθαι μετὰ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν.

« Καὶ οὐ μὴ συνδυάσω μετὰ τῶν ἐκλεκτῶν αὐτῶν. » — Καὶ εἰ βοηθήσεις μοι, οὐ μὴ συναυλισθῶ οὐδὲ αὐτοῖς τοῖς ὑπερέχουσι τῶν παρανόμων.

« Παιδεύσει με δίκαιος ἐν ἐλέει καὶ ἐλέγξει με. » — Φιλανθρωπευόμενος γὰρ παιδεύσει ὁ δίκαιος, τὴν σωτηρίαν τοῦ πλημμελήσαντος ἐκζητῶν. Κρείττων οὖν ἡ τοῦ δικαίου παιδεία καὶ ὁ ἔλεγμος ἢ τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν ἡ φιλοφροσύνη.

« Ὅτι ἔτι ἡ προσευχή μου ἐν ταῖς εὐδοκίαις αὐτῶν. » — Οὐ μόνον φεύγω τοὺς παρανόμους καὶ ἀπωθοῦμαι τὴν θεραπείαν αὐτῶν, ἀλλ’ ἔτι καὶ προσεύχομαι κατὰ τῶν εὐδοκιῶν, ἤτοι θελήσεων αὐτῶν, ἵνα μὴ τελεσθῶσιν αὗται.

« Κατεπόθησαν ἐχόμενοι πέτρας οἱ κριταὶ αὐτῶν. » — Ἀντιχρονικῶς καταποθήσονται οἱ δυνάσται αὐτῶν, ἤγουν ἀφανισθήσονται οἱ δυνάσται αὐτῶν. Ἤγουν ἀφανισθήσονται ἔγγιστα πέτρας, τουτέστι παραπλησίως πέτρα καταποντιζομένη ἧς οὐδὲν ἴχνος ὑπολιμπάνεται.

« Ὡσεί πάχος γῆς ἐρράγη ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς. » — Καθάπερ πάχος ἀρότρῳ διατεμνόμενον ῥήγνυται, καὶ σκορπίσονται ἐπάνω τῆς γῆς, οὕτω τὰ ὀστᾶ αὐτῶν διασκορπισθήσονται ἐν τῷ τάφῳ, τοῦτον γὰρ ὠνόμασεν ᾅδην. Εὐχῆς δὲ δύναμιν ἅμα καὶ προφητείας ἔχουσι τὰ ῥητά.

« Ἐπὶ σοὶ ἤλπισα, μὴ ἀντανέλῃς τὴν ψυχήν μου. » — Μὴ ἀνέλῃς τὴν ψυχήν μου, ἤγουν ἐμὲ, τουτέστι μὴ παραχωρήσῃς ἀναιρεθῆναι με ὑπὸ τῶν ἐχθρῶν. Ἡ δὲ ἀντὶ πρόθεσις ὥσπερ πολλάκις κἀνταῦθα παρέλκει. Νοοῦνται δὲ καὶ τὴν ὑπὸ δαιμόνων ἀναίρεσιν ἀπευχόμενα τὰ ῥητά. ^{C D}

« Πεσοῦνται ἐν ἀμφιβλήστρῳ αὐτῶν οἱ ἁμαρτωλοί. » — Πεσοῦνται τῷ δικτύῳ τῆς κατ’ ἐμοῦ αὐτῶν συσκευῆς.

« Κατὰ μόνας εἰμὶ ἐγὼ ἕως οὗ παρέλθω. » — Μεμονωμένος εἰμὶ ἀπ’ αὐτῶν καὶ ἀναστροφῇ καὶ προαιρέσει μέχρις ἂν ἀποθάνω.

ΨΑΛΜΟΣ ΡΜΑ’.

« Συνέσεως τῷ Δαυῒδ ἐν τῷ εἶναι αὐτὸν ἐν τῷ σπηλαίῳ· προσευχή. » — Σπήλαιον λέγει τὸ διπλ...

διπλοῦν ^A ὅπου φεύγων τὴν Σαούλ ὁ Δαυΐδ ηυλίσατο κατὰ τὸ ἐνδότερον· εἶτα παρερχόμενος ὁ Σαούλ, κατεσκήνωσεν ἐν τῷ ἐξωτέρῳ ἀγνοῶν. Γνοὺς δὲ ὁ Δαυΐδ ὅτι συγκέκλεισται, τοιαῦτα προσηύξατο.

« Φωνῇ μου πρὸς Κύριον ἐκέκραξα, φωνῇ μου πρὸς Κύριον ἐδεήθην. » — Φωνὴν κράζουσαν φησι, κἀνταῦθα τὴν τοῦ νοὸς σύντονον ἔντασιν πρὸς Θεόν.

« Ἐκχεῶ ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ τὴν δέησίν μου. » — Ἐκκενώσω, προσθήσω.

« Ἐν τῷ ἐκλείπειν ἐξ ἐμοῦ τὸ πνεῦμά μου, καὶ σὺ ἔγνως τὰς τρίβους μου. » — Ταῦτα ποιήσω ἐν τῷ κινδυνεύειν, ἤτοι ἀποθνήσκειν. Σὺ δέ, Κύριε, ἔγνως τὰς ὁδοὺς τῆς πολιτείας μου· μηδὲν γὰρ ἡδικηκὼς τοὺς ἐπιβουλεύοντας μάτην κινδυνεύω διὰ φθόνον.

« Ἐν ὁδῷ ταύτῃ ᾗ ἐπορευόμην ἔκρυψαν παγίδα μοι. » — Ἐν τῇ ὁδῷ ταύτῃ τῆς φυγῆς κρυφίως ἐπελθόντες ἀπέκλεισάν μοι τὴν ἔξοδον.

« Κατενόουν εἰς τὰ δεξιὰ καὶ ἐπέβλεπον, καὶ οὐκ ἦν ὁ ἐπιγινώσκων με. » — Ἐκ τοῦ δεξιοῦ γὰρ μέρους εἰώθασιν οἱ φίλοι παρίστασθαι καὶ συμμαχεῖν. Ἀπεσκόπουν οὖν, φησίν, εἰς τὰ δεξιὰ, καὶ οὐδεὶς γνωστὸς ἦν βοηθῶν.

« Ἀπώλετο φυγὴ ἀπ’ ἐμοῦ, καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ὁ ἐκζητῶν τὴν ψυχήν μου. » — Ἐξέλιπεν ἀπ’ ἐμοῦ τὸ δύνασθαί με φυγεῖν, καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ὁ ἀναζητῶν με ὥστε ῥύσασθαι τῆς καθείρξεως τῶν ἐθνῶν.

« Ἐκέκραξα πρὸς σὲ, Κύριε· εἶπα· Σὺ εἶ ἡ ἐλπίς μου. » — Πανταχόθεν ἀπελπίσας εἶπα, Σὺ μόνος ἐλπίς μου, σὺ μόνος κλῆρός μου καὶ μετοχή μου, ἐν τῷ προσώπῳ τῆς γῆς, ἔνθα οἱ ζῶντες.

« Ῥῦσαί με ἐκ τῶν διωκόντων με· ὅτι ἐκραταιώθησαν ὑπὲρ ἐμέ. » — Ἐν ἀφύκτῳ μου συγκλεισθέντος.

« Ἐξάγαγε ἐκ φυλακῆς τὴν ψυχήν μου τοῦ ἐξομολογήσασθαι τῷ ὀνόματί σου. » — Ἐξάγαγέ με, φησίν, ἐκ τοῦ ἐν τῷ σπηλαίῳ συγκλεισμοῦ, ὥστε εὐχαριστῆσαί σοι.

« Πρόσχες τὴν δέησίν μου· ὅτι ἐταπεινώθην σφόδρα. » — Τὴν πολλὴν κακουχίαν καὶ ταλαιπωρίαν εἰς ἱκεσίαν προβάλλεται.

« Ἐμὲ ὑπομενοῦσιν οἱ δίκαιοι ἕως οὗ ἀνταποδῷς μοι. » — Ἀκύλας· Ἐμὲ περιμενοῦσι δίκαιοι ἕως οὗ ἀμείψῃ με, τουτέστιν ἐκκρεμεῖς ἔσονται οἱ δίκαιοι ἐπ’ ἐμοὶ, προσδοκῶντες ἀεὶ τὴν εἰς ἐμέ σου εὐεργεσίαν, τὴν τῆς τοιαύτης μου ταλαιπωρίας καὶ ὑπομονῆς ἀντίδοσιν· ἔργα γὰρ ἀρετῆς τὸ τοῖς ἀδίκως πάσχουσι συναλγεῖν καὶ τὴν σωτηρίαν ἐκείνων λογίζεσθαι ἑαυτῶν. ^B

« Ὅτι οὐ δικαιωθήσεται ἐνώπιόν σου πᾶς ζῶν. » — « Ὅτι οὐκ ἀθωωθήσεται πᾶν ἄνθρωπος ἔμπροσθέν σου ζωῆς μετασχών· οὐδεὶς γὰρ ἀξίως, ἂν εὐηργέτηται παρὰ σοῦ, τὰς σὰς ἐφύλαξεν ἐντολάς.

« Ὅτι κατεδίωξεν ὁ ἐχθρὸς τὴν ψυχήν μου. » — Τὸ μὲν προηγησάμενον ὅτι αἰτιολογικόν, τοῦτο δὲ διηγηματικόν· ἐχθρὸς δὲ καὶ ὁ Ἀβεσσαλὼμ καὶ ὁ διάβολος.

« Ἐταπείνωσεν εἰς γῆν τὴν ζωήν μου. » — Ἔκαμψε σφόδρα.

« Ἐκάθισέ με ἐν σκοτεινοῖς ὡς νεκροὺς αἰῶνος. » — Ὡς νεκροὺς αἰωνίους, ἤτοι παλαιούς, ἐνέβαλέ μοι σκότει, τουτέστι λίαν ἐζόφωσε τὸν νοῦν μου ταῖς θλίψεσι.

« Καὶ ἠκηδίασεν ἐπ’ ἐμὲ τὸ πνεῦμά μου. » — Ἠθύμησεν ἐν ἐμοὶ ἡ ψυχή μου, καὶ ἠμηχάνησε καὶ ἀπενάρκησε τῇ τῆς λύπης ὑπερβολῇ.

« Ἐν ἐμοὶ ἐταράχθη ἡ καρδία μου. » — Θορυβηθεῖσα καὶ στροβηθεῖσα.

« Ἐμνήσθην ἡμερῶν ἀρχαίων. » — Ἐν αἷς εὐαρεστῶν τῷ Θεῷ καλῶς ἐφερόμην.

« Ἐμελέτησα ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς ἔργοις σου. » — Ἀναλίττων παρ’ ἐμαυτῷ τὰ θαυμάσια καὶ λογιζόμενος τοὺς παραδόξους ἀπαλλαγέντας τῶν συμφορῶν.

« Ἐν ποιήμασι τῶν χειρῶν σου ἐμελέτων. » — Ἐν τοῖς δημιουργήμασί σου διέτριβον τῇ μνήμῃ. Καὶ εὑρίσκων αὐτὰ προνοίας τῆς καὶ παρὰ σοῦ τυγχάνοντα, εὐελπὶς ἦν· οὐ περιόψει με.

« Ἡ ψυχή μου ὡς γῆ ἄνυδρός σοι. » — ^C Ἡ ψυχή μου πρὸς σὲ διψῶσα βοηθείας ὡς γῆ ἄνυδρος πρὸς ὑετὸν διψῶσα ὕδατος.

« Ταχὺ εἰσάκουσόν μου, Κύριε· ἐξέλιπε τὸ πνεῦμά μου. » — Ἐξέλιπεν, ὅσον οὔπω ἀφῆκεν, εἰ μὴ ταχέως ἀκούσεις μου.

« Μὴ ἀποστρέψῃς τὸ πρόσωπόν σου ἀπ’ ἐμοῦ· καὶ ὁμοιωθήσομαι τοῖς καταβαίνουσιν εἰς λάκκον. » — Καὶ γενήσομαι ὡσεὶ νεκρός.

« Ἀκουστὸν ποίησόν μοι τὸ πρωΐ τὸ ἔλεός σου· ὅτι ἐπὶ σοὶ ἤλπισα. » — Ἐπάγγειλαί μοι ταχέως τὸ ἔλεός σου.

« Γνώρισόν μοι, Κύριε, ὁδὸν ἐν ᾗ πορεύσομαι. Ὅτι πρὸς σὲ ἦρα τὴν ψυχήν μου. » — Ποίησον ἐγνωσμένην μοι τὴν πολιτείαν ἣν δεῖ πολιτεύεσθαί με. Γνῶσιν δὲ λέγει τὴν ἔμπρακτον, καθὼς καὶ παρακατιὼν φησι, « Δίδαξόν με τὸ θέλημά σου, » οὐχ ὥστε εἰδέναι ἀλλ’ ὥστε ποιεῖν.

« Τὸ πνεῦμά σου τὸ ἀγαθὸν ὁδηγήσει με ἐν γῇ εὐθείᾳ. » — Ἐν ὁδῷ ὀρθῇ. Τοιαύτη δὲ ἡ τῆς ἀρετῆς.

« Ἕνεκεν τοῦ ὀνόματός σου, Κύριε, ζήσεις με. » — Οὐ διὰ τὴν ἐμὴν ἀρετήν, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸ ὄνομά σου ζωοποίησόν με, νενεκρωμένον ἤδη ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις ὁμοῦ καὶ ταῖς συμφοραῖς.

« Ἐν τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ σου. » — Ἐν τῷ δικαιοῦν με τὸν ἀδικούμενον.

« Ὅτι ἐγὼ δοῦλός σου εἰμι. » — Πρὸς σὲ ἀεὶ κεχηνώς.

ΨΑΛΜΟΣ ΡΜΒ’

« Ψαλμὸς τῷ Δαυΐδ, ὅτε καταδιώκει αὐτὸν Ἀβεσσαλὼμ ὁ υἱὸς αὐτοῦ. Κύριε, εἰσάκουσον τῆς προσευχῆς μου· ἐνώτισαι τὴν δέησίν μου ἐν τῇ ἀληθείᾳ σου. » — Ὡς ἀληθής· ἐπηγγείλω γὰρ εἰσακούειν τῶν ὀρθῶς ἐπικαλουμένων σε.

« Εἰσάκουσόν μου ἐν τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ σου. » — Ὡς τὸν ἀδικούμενον δικαιῶν.

« Καὶ μὴ εἰσέλθῃς εἰς κρίσιν μετὰ τοῦ δούλου σου. » — Μὴ δικαιολογηθῇς μετ’ ἐμοῦ. ^D

ΨΑΛΜΟΣ ΡΜΓ’

« Ψαλμὸς τῷ Δαυΐδ πρὸς τὸν Γολιάθ. » — Ἤγουν διὰ τὸν Γολιάθ. Εὐχαριστήριος ὁ ψαλμὸς πρὸς Θεὸν

Θεὸν ^A μετὰ τὸ κατὰ τὸν Γολιάθ τρόπαιον, ἄλλας τε νίκας πολλάς. Οὐχ ὅπλα γὰρ οὐδὲ στρατόπεδα πλὴν τῆς θείας ῥοπῆς δύναται σῶσαι αὐτούς.

« Εὐλογητός Κύριος ὁ Θεός μου. » — Ὁ ρυθμίζων καὶ εὐοδῶν τὰς χεῖράς μου ἐν παρατάξει, ἕως ἐν καιρῷ παρατάξεως.

« Ὁ διδάσκων τὰς χεῖράς μου εἰς παράταξιν, τοὺς δακτύλους μου εἰς πόλεμον. » — Ὁ διδάσκων τοὺς δακτύλους μου ἐν καιρῷ πολέμου.

« Ἔλεός μου καὶ καταφυγή μου. » — Ἐλεήμων ἐστί μοι καὶ τὰ λοιπά.

« Ὁ ὑποτάσσων τὸν λαόν μου ἐπ’ ἐμέ. » — Ἐν τῇ τῶν οἰκείων γὰρ ὑποταγῇ πολλῆς ἡμῖν δεῖ τῆς ἄνωθεν ῥοπῆς.

« Κύριε, τί ἐστιν ὁ ἄνθρωπος, ὅτι ἐγνώσθης αὐτῷ; » — Ὅτι ἐχαρίσω αὐτῷ τὸ γινώσκειν σε Θεόν.

« Ἢ υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου, ὅτι λογίζῃ αὐτῷ; » — Ὅτι γνωρίζῃ αὐτῷ Θεός. Ἐκ παραλλήλου δέ φησι τὰ αὐτά, μέγεθος τῷ λόγῳ περιτιθείς.

« Ἄνθρωπος ματαιότητι ὡμοιώθη. » — Διὰ τὸ σῶμα λέγει ταῦτα, καὶ τὸ μηδὲν τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων εἶναι βέβαιον.

« Αἱ ἡμέραι αὐτοῦ ὡσεὶ σκιὰ παράγουσιν. » — Ταχέως παρέρχονται. Καὶ ὅταν δὲ πάρεισιν, οὐδὲ μίαν ἰσχὺν ἔχουσιν, ὥσπερ οὐδ' ἡ σκιά.

« Κύριε, κλῖνον οὐρανοὺς καὶ κατάβηθι· ἄψαι τῶν ὀρέων, καὶ καπνισθήσονται. » — Ἀνθρωποπρεπῶς ταῦτά φησιν, ἵνα διὰ τῶν φοβερῶν τούτων ῥημάτων καταπλήξῃ τοὺς καταφρονητὰς τοῦ Θεοῦ.

« Ἀστραψον ἀστραπήν, καὶ σκορπιεῖς αὐτούς. » — Ἀστραψον ἀστραπὴν καὶ βέλη τὰς θεηλάτους τιμωρίας καλεῖ. Νοοῦνται δὲ τὰ ῥητὰ καὶ περὶ τῆς πρώτης τοῦ Κυρίου ἐπιδημίας, καθὼς ἐν τῷ ιζ’ ψαλμῷ περιείληπται· κἀκεῖ γὰρ κλίσεως οὐρανοῦ καὶ ὀρέων καὶ καπνοῦ καὶ βελῶν καὶ ἀστραπῶν μνεία γέγονε. Νοηθεῖεν δ' ἂν ταῦτα καὶ περὶ τῆς δευτέρας τοῦ Χριστοῦ παρουσίας.

« Ἐξαπόστειλον τὰ βέλη σου, καὶ συνταράξεις αὐτούς. » — Τὴν ἀντιληπτικήν σου δύναμιν.

« Ῥῦσαί με ἐξ ὑδάτων πολλῶν. » — Ὕδατα τροπικῶς τὴν σύῤῥοιαν τῶν πολεμίων φησίν.

« Ἐκ χειρὸς υἱῶν ἀλλοτρίων. » — Ὥσπερ υἱοὺς ἀνθρώπων τοὺς ἀνθρώπους φησίν, οὕτω καὶ υἱοὺς ἀλλοτρίων τοὺς ἀλλοτρίους λέγοι ἂν τοὺς ἀπεξενωμένους αὐτοῦ δι’ ἔχθραν, ἢ καὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ διὰ τὰς παρανομίας αὐτῶν.

« Ὧν τὸ στόμα ἐλάλησε ματαιότητα. » — Ψεῦδος καὶ διαβολήν.

« Καὶ ἡ δεξιὰ αὐτῶν δεξιὰ ἀδικίας. » — Χεὶρ ἀδικίας ἡ ἐργαζομένη τὴν ἀδικίαν.

« Ὁ Θεός, ᾠδὴν καινὴν ᾆσομαί σοι. » — Ἐπὶ νέᾳ εὐεργεσίᾳ νέαν καὶ τὴν εὐχαριστήριον ᾠδὴν ᾄσω σοι.

« Ἐν ψαλτηρίῳ δεκαχόρδῳ ψαλῶ σοι. » — Ὅταν πᾶσαν αἴσθησιν καὶ πᾶσαν ψυχῆς δύναμιν ἔχῃ τις τοῦ Θεοῦ, τότε δι’ ἑαυτοῦ καὶ οὗτος ὡς διὰ ψαλτηρίου ψάλλει Θεῷ.

« Τῷ διδόντι τὴν σωτηρίαν τοῖς βασιλεῦσιν. » — ^B « Τὰ ταμιεῖα αὐτῶν πλήρη ἐξερευγόμενα ἐκ τούτου εἰς τοῦτο. » — Ἐκβάλλοντα καὶ ἀποκενοῦντα εἰς ἕτερον, διὰ τὸ στενοχωρεῖσθαι τῷ πλήθει τῶν ἀποτεθησαυρισμένων.

« Τὰ πρόβατα αὐτῶν πολύτοκα πληθύνοντα ἐν ταῖς ἐξόδοις αὐτῶν. » — Ἔξοδον ὑποληπτέον τὴν ἐκ τῆς μήτρας ἐξέλευσιν, ἤγουν γέννησιν. Τὸ πληθύνοντα δὲ ἀντὶ τοῦ πληθυνόμενα, τουτέστι κατὰ τὴν μίαν ἑκάστην γέννησιν πολλὰ τικτόμενα καὶ οὐχ ἕνα· τοῦτο γὰρ δηλοῖ τὸ πολύτοκα παροξυτόνως εἰρημένον.

« Οὐκ ἔστι κατάπτωμα φραγμοῦ. » — Φραγμὸς λέγεται καὶ τὸ τεῖχος τῆς πόλεως καὶ ὁ τῆς οἰκίας τοῖχος.

« Οὐδὲ διέξοδος, οὐδὲ κραυγὴ ἐν ταῖς πλατείαις αὐτῶν. » — Οὐδὲ ἐκδρομὴ οὐδὲ θόρυβος ἐν ταῖς ὁδοῖς τῆς πόλεως αὐτῶν. Διὰ τούτων δὲ ὑπογράφει ^C τὴν εἰρήνην τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν καὶ τὸ ἀπολέμητον.

« Ἐμακάρισαν τὸν λαὸν ᾧ ταῦτά ἐστιν. » — Ἐμακάρισαν οἱ πολλοί.

« Μακάριος ὁ λαὸς οὗ Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς αὐτοῦ. » — Οὗ κυριεύει ὁ Θεός, οὐχ ἁπλῶς, ἀλλὰ πειθομένου ταῖς ἐντολαῖς αὐτοῦ.

ΨΑΛΜΟΣ ΡΜΔ’

« Αἴνεσις τῷ Δαυΐδ. » — Αἴνεσις εἰς Θεὸν κοινὴ καὶ πᾶσιν ἁρμόζουσα.

« Ὑψώσω σε, ὁ Θεός μου, ὁ βασιλεύς μου· καὶ εὐλογήσω τὸ ὄνομά σου εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα καὶ εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ αἰῶνος. » — Ὕψωσιν καὶ εὐλογίαν οὐ μόνον τὴν διὰ θεολογίας καὶ ὑμνολογίας φησίν, ἀλλὰ πλέον τὴν δι’ ἀγαθοεργίας, δι’ ἧς μᾶλλον μεγαλύνεται καὶ δοξάζεται ὁ Θεός.

« Μέγας Κύριος καὶ αἰνετὸς σφόδρα, καὶ τῆς μεγαλωσύνης αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἔστι πέρας. » — ^D Μέγας ὡς μεγαλουργός τε καὶ μεγαλοδραστήριος καὶ διὰ ταῦτα λίαν αἰνετός.

« Γενεὰ καὶ γενεὰ ἐπαινέσει τὰ ἔργα σου. » — Τοὺς ἐν τῇ παρούσῃ καὶ τῇ ἐπιούσῃ γενεᾷ φησι συνετούς. Ἔργα δὲ λέγει τά γε δημιουργήματα καὶ τὰ θαυματουργήματα.

« Καὶ τὴν δύναμίν σου ἀπαγγελοῦσιν. » — Πρῶτα μὲν παρ’ αὐτοῖς μεγαλυνοῦσιν, εἶτα καὶ ἄλλοις διηγήσονται τὴν ἐν τοῖς ἔργοις σου καὶ ἐν τῷ εὐεργετεῖν, ἢ κολάζειν δύναμίν σου.

« Τὴν μεγαλοπρέπειαν τῆς δόξης τῆς ἁγιωσύνης σου λαλοῦσι· καὶ τὰ θαυμάσιά σου διηγήσονται. »

^A Greatness and majesty is that which surpasses the nature and wisdom and power of God. Wonderful, however, are those things which are both brilliant and worthy of admiration; and fearful are those things which are terrifying and threatening.

« They shall proclaim the memory of the abundance of thy goodness. » — Being persuaded that neither is virtue left without reward, nor wickedness without punishment.

« And they shall rejoice in thy righteousness. » — They shall announce a tale containing the memory of thy great goodness and love for mankind.

« The Lord is good to all; and let all thy works confess to thee, O Lord. » — Let the rational beings give thanks by themselves, and the irrational and inanimate through those who behold and understand them.

« And let all thy holy ones bless thee. » — Let those who have been sanctified glorify him by word and by life.

« They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom, and shall speak of thy power. » — They shall teach those who are ignorant concerning these things, so that they may become known to them.

« Thy kingdom is a kingdom of all ages, and thy dominion is in every generation and generation. » — Enduring through all ages and extending everywhere throughout the generations.

« The Lord is faithful in all his words, and holy in all his works. » — Firm and truthful in what he says, and blameless in what he does, providing no harm to anyone.

« The Lord upholds all those who are falling, and raises up all those who have been cast down. » — He makes firm those who are about to fall, so that they may not fall; and he raises up those who have already fallen, provided they are willing and do not resist.

« The eyes of all hope in thee, O Lord. » — Similar to those things said in the 103rd Psalm, concerning those who expect all things, and those that follow.

« The Lord is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works. » — By "righteous" here he means the unerring and unfailing; and by "ways," he means the providential arrangements and actions, such that the following verse of this present [psalm] is explanatory.

« The Lord is near to all who call upon him, to all who call upon him in truth. » — ^B He is near so as to cover and to take hold of; and that which is "in truth" rightly signifies both what is and as it is right.

« He shall do the will of those who fear him. » — For the will of the one who fears the Lord does not differ from the divine will.

« The Lord preserves all those who love him. » — The Lord preserves those who truly love him from those things from which it is fitting to preserve them.

« And he shall destroy all sinners. » — And those who continue in sin without turning back, the Lord shall destroy from the lot of those who love him.

« And let all flesh bless his holy name. » — Synecdochically he speaks of the whole man, that is to say, the believer.