Book 4
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; proclaim, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, the king comes to you righteous and saving, he is meek and mounted upon a beast of burden and a young colt. In these words he openly proclaims henceforth the manifestation of our Savior, so that nothing at all appears arduous. For he has necessarily commanded the spiritual Zion to rejoice, since indeed all our dejection has been taken away. For where is there still dejection, and for what reasons could we lament at all, when sin has been driven away, and death has been trampled, and human nature has been called to a free dignity, and crowned with the grace of adoption, and adorned with the gifts from above and from heaven? But observe that, announcing the coming of our Savior, he immediately calls Zion a daughter. He has therefore commanded her to rejoice very greatly indeed, and he urges Jerusalem to proclaim that her king will now be present and will be revealed in the flesh, righteous and saving. For Christ has justified us by faith, and he widens the path of salvation for those who come to him. And in addition to this he is also meek, not bringing legal severity, nor punishing with death those who transgress a commandment, but rather saving out of gentleness and raising up those who have slipped, and if anyone sins, he himself becomes an advocate with God the Father. And we have read that "the letter kills, but the spirit gives life." For the letter is the punishing law, the shadow and the type; but the life-giving spirit is Christ, for in spirit and in truth we have been taught to worship through the evangelical instruction. But that he also rode upon a young colt and thus entered Jerusalem will not require a long argument for confirmation; for the divine evangelist, having written such things, is sufficient for our faith. For Christ sat on the colt, and its mother followed; and what was done was for us a sign of a most necessary matter. For Christ rested upon the new people, that is, the one called to the knowledge of truth, which was once idolatrous. For it was like a colt, not yet tamed, nor knowing how to walk correctly; for it had not been instructed by the divine law. But he who leads all to spiritual skill, set the colt before himself. But that in due time the Synagogue of the Jews will also follow, he has given us to understand through the donkey that followed, although in the time of the calling it was the elder; for it was called beforehand through Moses and the prophets. But since it stumbled against the saving king—for it did not accept the faith—for this reason it justly comes with difficulty after the colt, and has become the tail, that is, an attendant and behind those from the nations, and the first has become last. But observe how he who knows the reins and hearts showed human nature carried away to extreme irrationality. For both the Synagogue of the Jews and the multitude of the nations itself are compared to the very irrational donkey. For the ones, having served the creation rather than God the creator, and the others, dishonoring the law which was their instructor, have become devoid of good sense and mind, and having inclined towards every form of wickedness, "they were compared to mindless "beasts, and were made like them," according to the voice of the psalmist. And a donkey is in another way a symbol of uncleanness; for the animal is unholy, and has the condemnation from the law. Such are all those who go astray and are lovers of sin. And he shall destroy chariots from Ephraim and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be destroyed, and a multitude and peace from the nations, and he will rule the waters from sea to sea and the outlets of rivers of the earth. For the Only-Begotten, having become man, was about to bring under the feet of those who love him principalities and powers and the world-rulers of this darkness, that is, the abominable hordes of demons, and to subject to them every enemy visible and invisible, and to shatter all war, and to gladden them with the good things of peace, the prophetic word shows us enigmatically. For from time to time the Babylonians went against Jerusalem, and indeed certain others of the neighboring nations, mounted on horses and in chariots, "and shooting with bows," as it is written, they thus subdued them and involved them in bitter toils. From what was accustomed to happen, then, it indicates the splendor of the accomplishments through Christ. For the savior, he says, the just and most gentle king, will indeed arrive, and not after a long time; yet not escorted by a great multitude of shield-bearers, not having ten thousand men who know tactics; but having practiced moderation in his character to such an extent, as to barely sit on a bare colt. Yet he will be so great in virtue, and will so benefit those who trust in him, as to remove chariots from Ephraim, and take away the horse from Jerusalem, and destroy the battle bow, and to spread deep peace from all the nations. And by Ephraim he means the ten tribes in Samaria, and by Jerusalem those who dwelt in it; these are Judah and Benjamin. Therefore the prophetic word brings to us a promise of security and peace. For the holy city, that is, the spiritual Zion, or Jerusalem, "which is the Church of the living God," would not, he says, become easily overrun by those wishing to do evil, and he who saves it so extends his own kingdom, as to rule over all of Judea, from the sea to the rivers. For these are the outlets of the earth, that is, the ends. And somewhere the divine David also sings, as if speaking about the vine of the Synagogue of the Jews: "She stretched out her branches to the sea, and her shoots to the rivers." For the country of the Jews is bounded by the sea to the south and the Indian sea, and by what is called the Middle of the rivers. But the kingdom of Christ is not within these borders; far from it; but the argument proceeds as from a particular example to the universal and most general. For he has reigned not only over Judea, but rather over all that is under heaven, and his authority extends from ends to ends. And you, in the blood of the covenant, have sent forth your prisoners from the pit that has no water. You shall sit in a stronghold, prisoners of the synagogue, and in return for one day of your sojourning I will repay to you double. The discourse now passes to the just and saving king himself, and indeed also gentle, that is, Christ; and it makes manifest the splendid and admirable accomplishments of his coming. For the only-begotten Word of God willingly emptied himself, becoming man; and he endured the cross, despising the shame, and laid down his own life as a ransom for the life of all, and he acquired for God the Father that which is under heaven in the blood of an eternal covenant, of which the type was that which was sprinkled upon the ancients through the all-wise Moses. For, he says, Moses, taking the blood, "sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, "saying, 'This is the blood of the covenant which God has made with you.'" But those things were types, and a representation of the truth; but this at last is the truth, Christ, who purchased all of us in the blood of the covenant. For we have been redeemed, as his disciple says, "not with perishable things, silver or gold, "but with the precious blood as of a lamb without blemish and without spot, Christ." You therefore, he says, O most just and most gentle king, in the blood of the covenant your prisoners who have come to be; that is, those whom you have bound tight with bonds of love, and have clearly persuaded to submit to and be bound fast by your yokes the neck of their mind; you have sent forth, that is, you have brought out or led out or brought up from a pit that has no water; and we say that by this he means either hades, which has no life; for we shall take water as a type of life, for it is life-giving; or we shall reckon as a pit, and very rightly, the deceit concerning the falsely named gods. For the thing is truly a pit, into which if anyone should slip at all, he will be deprived of the life in the age to come. That Christ, having died, has emptied hades, and opened the gates below to the spirits in prison, is clear to everyone. And the God of all said somewhere through the voice of Jeremiah concerning those of Israel, who had abandoned him, and had foolishly turned to idolatrous deceit: "The heaven was astonished at "this, and shuddered much more exceedingly, says the Lord; because "my people have done two evil things, they have forsaken me, "a spring of living water, and have dug for themselves broken "cisterns which cannot hold water." For just as the right and unerring knowledge concerning God is life-giving and a spring of life; so might the toys of idolatry, and the error concerning it, be understood as waterless and as it were broken cisterns. Then he speaks to the prisoners themselves, and encourages them to good hopes, saying, You shall sit in a stronghold, O prisoners of the assembly. And a stronghold, as I think, he calls the Church, as being walled in Christ, and unshakably firm; and sitting he says is being as it were established in faith. For it is written concerning God, "Because you sit for eternity," that is, having an established and unshakable nature. You shall be therefore in safety, he says, having what is firm in faith, O prisoners of my assembly; and these would be the holy multitude of those justified in Christ. And that they will not have their patience in all the best things without reward, and indeed also their reliance on love towards God, he signifies, saying, And for one day of your sojourning I will repay you double. And it is something like this that he wishes to say. For all the saints are sojourners and strangers on the earth, and the life in the body of every man is very short, and if one were to reckon it against the age to come, he would lament it as being altogether short, so as perhaps even to be compared to a single day. Therefore, for one day of your sojourning, he says, that is, for the short and compressed time of life in the body I will repay rewards twofold and in abundance. And Christ also said somewhere that, "A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, "and running over, will be poured into your lap." For we do not expect rewards of equal weight to what we may have done, but with much addition; for the giver is lavish. Because I have bent you, Judah, for myself as a bow, I have filled Ephraim. In what manner indeed the flock from the gentiles will be called and will enter through faith, and how he who formerly lived in luxury, that is, Satan, will be afflicted, being driven out of the worshipers acquired by him through greed, he again makes clear in these things. Indeed he makes his discourse as if to the holy apostles, that is, the teachers from Israel, who also, traveling around the country of the gentiles, called and have drawn in a net those in it to the knowledge of truth. O therefore Judah, he says, I have bent you for myself as a bow, that is, through you I will shoot the adversaries; and you, O Ephraim, I have filled. And what this is, I will say again. For when those skilled in archery bring the string to the breast, and the iron of the bow close, then they are said to fill the bow, and thus they shoot something terrible and unavoidable and as it were leaping up and flying with irresistible impulses, the poison, that is, the arrow. Therefore, it is phrased in different ways. "I have made you a bow," he says, "O Judah, and I have filled you, O Ephraim." And Judah and Ephraim are the whole race of Israel. Therefore, he has made, as it were, a bow of those from the Jews who believed before the others, and who had come to this resolve, to instruct the nations, and to drive away the herds of demons from those who had gone astray, and to strike down Satan and, in short, those who oppose the divine dogmas and fight against the initiations given through them. Thus somewhere the divine David also says to the Savior God of all things, "Your arrows are sharpened, O mighty one; peoples will fall under you, in the heart of the king's enemies." For "the arrows of the mighty one," that is, of Christ, strike the enemies of God and the Father in the heart and kidneys. And His arrows are again the mystagogues, and they strike those who have gone astray and do not know the God who is by nature and in truth, not to death, but bringing them to the love that is in Christ, so that they too might fall under him. such as the bride described in the Song of Songs, who says clearly, "For I am wounded by love." That the divine disciples became most mighty and strong, the most wise psalmist will confirm, saying about them in the Spirit, "Like arrows in the hand of a mighty one, so are the sons of those who have been cast out." For he calls those from Israel "cast out," as having fallen from divine grace because of their insolence toward Christ. But the sons from them have become arrows, as sent from the hand of a mighty one. And Habakkuk also said somewhere, as to Emmanuel Himself again, concerning the holy apostles, "For your darts will go forth at the light of the lightning of your weapons." And I will raise up your children, O Zion, against the children of the Greeks, and I will wield you like a warrior's sword. Behold, he clearly names the mystagogues from the Jews His own bow. For who are the children of Zion who rise up against the children of the Greeks, if not the divine disciples, and those who lead the churches from time to time, and who rightly divide the word of truth? For how could the spiritual Zion be understood as other than the Church? And they contend against the children of the Greeks, and they campaign against those who have gone astray, God having made them like a warrior's sword. Thus also the divine Paul is seen adorning the soldier understood to be in Christ. For he puts on him the breastplate of righteousness in Christ; and indeed also the helmet of salvation. Then he gives the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Using this sword, therefore, against the children of the Greeks, they shear off the deceit sprouting in them, and bringing upon them the sharpest word of God, which is living and active, they cut out the evil and unclean spirit, so that they might be able, henceforth, with a pure and free mind, and one delivered from the oppression of demons, to receive the word of true knowledge of God. And the Lord will be over them, and His dart will go forth like lightning. By these words he indicates that the Lord God will be with them, and will shield them, and will help destroy those who resist; for he says the Lord will be over them, meaning clearly those who have resolved to rise up against those who minister His gospel. And each dart, that is, a mystagogue or apostle; for he again likens them to an arrow or a dart, with God sending it; it will run like lightning, he says, clearly meaning shining brightly, and falling upon the eyes of all without effort. For the divine disciples have become so brilliant, and the heralds of the Savior's gospels, and those after them who led the peoples and presided over the churches, that no one could be ignorant of the brightness of the virtue within them. And the Savior Himself said this: "No one, when he has lit a lamp, covers it with a vessel or under a bed "places it, but on a lampstand, so that those who enter may see 'the light.' And again elsewhere, 'Let your light so shine 'before men, that they may see your good 'works, and glorify your Father who is in 'heaven.' And the Lord almighty will sound the trumpet and will go forth in the storm of his threat. The Lord almighty will shield them; and they will consume them, and will bury them with sling-stones, and they will drink their blood like wine, and will fill the bowls of the altar. and the Lord will save them in that day, his people as sheep. The word, as I said, clearly presents God, who rules over all, as a fellow shield-bearer and comrade-in-arms for them, both arrayed for battle in this way and chosen to contend alongside them, so that he seems to be already equipped for war, and, as one about to advance against enemies, to use his whole power and the strengths inherent in him. Indeed he says he campaigns, not against those netted through faith for justification, but against those who have impiously opposed the divine proclamation, whom Paul also pointed out to us, saying "For a great and ef-fective door has opened to me, and there are many adversaries." Therefore, he says, the Lord will sound the trumpet. For Christ has spoken the evangelical proclamation, rushing into every place under heaven, for the mystery of Christ is audible to those everywhere. For Moses was weak of voice and slow of tongue; therefore he was scarcely heard in Judea alone; but the word from Christ is not at all like this. For it has cried out like a long and most melodious trumpet, sending forth a piercing sound into the ears of all. And he will go forth as in the storm of his threat, and so he will shield his own bodyguards, so that those who oppose him are consumed as if by fire, and all but buried by them, as they strike them nobly with slings. And they will drink their blood, that is, like beasts leaping upon them they will easily prevail, and will render them dead. And they will offer bowls filled with the blood of the fallen, as a libation upon the altar. For the death of those who do not allow the deceived to be saved is a sweet aroma to God and an acceptable sacrifice; for if it is not right to pity the murderers of bodies, but rather for them to be subjected to judgments, suffering the same things, what could one say about those who have become destroyers and corruptors of souls? These again would be the choice spirits of the Greeks, and those who hold to the glory of the wisdom in the world, who name gods and goddesses above and below, and persuade people to worship the creation rather than the creator, and assign to each of the elements the glory due to God. These have deceived the world under heaven, and not only during the time of their life in the body; but also for the times that followed. For countless multitudes at various times have perished, overcome by their false speech, and paying attention to frigid and old wives' tales. Such men, then, have finally been destroyed. For the profanation of their writing is gone, the myths are ineffectual, and their blood has, as it were, been drunk up, and being struck down by the doctrines of truth as if by stones from a sling, they are buried, and the destruction of their garrulity has become, as I said, a sweet aroma to God. And the Lord has saved his people as sheep. For since he himself is the maker of all things, those who were formerly deceived might reasonably be called his people; except that Christ has saved them as a flock driven away by robbers, by casting out the false shepherds, and placing the human race under his own hand. For he is the good shepherd, who has laid down his life for the sheep. For holy stones are rolled upon his land. For if there is anything good of his and if anything beautiful from him, grain for the young men and fragrant wine for the maidens. For we say that the saints at various times in the churches, who would become mystagogues and teachers, are named the holy stones rolled in the land of God. For they have become conformed to the choice, cornerstone, and precious stone, which was laid by God the Father for the foundations of Zion; and if the foundation is a stone, those who are joined and fitted together and rise up into a holy temple for God are fittingly called stones according to it. Moreover, he says they are rolled very well, signifying by this, I think, a certain nimbleness and quickness toward anything holy. For the round, that is, spherical stones, are somehow better than hesitation, and more ready for motion than others, if someone should choose to move them; and the mind of the saints is very easily led to what pleases God. Since the stones are thus for us, it would be fitting for us to be disposed firmly as well. Because if anything is good of him and if anything is beautiful from him, it is clear that it is from God who distributes all things to us for godliness and life. And what are these? Grain for young men, and fragrant wine for virgins. For to those who act manfully and with a youthful spirit have inclined toward what pleases him, and have chosen to fulfill what is good, even greater strength will be given by him, understood as in grain. For bread strengthens a man's heart. Indeed, to those who are already purified, and have an undefiled mind, who might also reasonably be compared to venerable and holy virgins, spiritual wine will be given, that is, the clear and unadulterated knowledge of God, which gladdens a man's heart. Therefore, young men and virgins, according to the words just given by us, will reasonably be called to a broad and abundant participation in the good things from above, and indeed they will hear God saying, "Eat and drink, and be intoxicated, my friends." For such people are near God; and not by spatial relations; for it is nonsense to think or say this; but by a disposition of mind that is most valiant, and by the desire for everything that is best and the love for him. For just as wickedness displaces us and, as it were, carries us far away, so virtue brings us near to God, causing that which separates and comes between us to be removed from our midst, I mean, sin. Ask for rain from the Lord in season, early and late. For just as there would be no grain in the fields without toil, nor a vineyard rich in clusters and good wine, so also in us there would be no spiritual fruitfulness, unless God sends down like rain into the mind and heart his oracles. the revelation, and knowledge, as it were, instilling in us both the ancient and new scripture, that is, of the Law and of the Gospel; for such would be the early and late rains. And that the knowledge and spiritual contemplation of the law is not without benefit, but rather tutors us through type and shadow to the mystery of Christ, the Savior himself will confirm when he says to the Jewish crowds, "Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you, Moses, in whom you have hoped. For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote about me." And somewhere he also spoke about the scribes and Pharisees, as being called from the instruction of the law to something better, that is, to the Gospel: "Therefore every scribe who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house, who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old." Therefore, asking from God both legal and evangelical knowledge, and having presented ourselves as worthy to receive it, we shall certainly receive it, and we will fill the inner treasures of the mind, collecting the old and the new, and filling the mind with the greatest possible spiritual fruitfulness. The Lord made lightnings, and will give them winter rain, to each one grass in the field. because the speakers have spoken troubles, and the diviners false visions and they spoke false dreams, they gave vain comfort; for this reason they were dried up as having no rain, and were afflicted like sheep? because there was no healing. The present text is in labor with some hidden meaning, which I think it is necessary to explain clearly beforehand, for they would understand thus the lovers of learning. For his discourse was about the saints, whom he also called holy stones, and he said that wheat was most fitting for them, as for those growing into men, that is, young men, and indeed also fragrant wine, on account of their being virgins, that is, pure and undefiled. "For those of Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires," as the divine Paul says. He has commanded to ask for them also both early and latter rain; then, with the mention of the erring being inserted, he gives as it were the reason in these things, why they have neither wheat nor indeed wine, nor are they watered by the spiritual rains, so that from this they have no fodder in the field. And the discourse is composed as if about perceptible things; yet the spiritual contemplation in them is exceedingly subtle and has much purity. For he says that while God makes visions, that is, lightnings, and pours down the winter rain on the earth, which is also useful, and indeed also gives fodder to each, of the beasts in the fields, clearly, those who make pronouncements have led them astray, that is, the false-speakers and false-narrators and those who speak divinations from their own heart; these have spoken toils, that is, not things for the repose of those who believe them, but things through which it was necessary to grow weary, offending God and being overlooked; and the diviners also offered false dreams, sounding in them, clearly, what was pleasing to them, and fattening them with good hopes, but speaking nothing true; but carrying them off into deceit and error, and least of all showing them the giver and provider of spiritual things; but rather persuading them to ask for prosperity from the falsely-named gods. For this reason, he says, They were dried up because they had no rain, and they were afflicted like sheep. For there was no fodder, there was no healing. For there was not among them the one who binds up the broken, who raises up the crushed, who restores the afflicted. One must pay attention, then, not to those who pronounce vain things, to the false-speakers and buffoons and dreamers; but rather to God, who makes the light of true knowledge of God flash into our mind, and who pours down spiritual rains, the consolations through the Holy Spirit, I say, and who makes fodder spring up for those in the field, that is again, who as it were pastures us in the most flourishing grass, the blameless knowledge of the God-inspired scripture. "For man, being in honor, did not understand; he was compared to the senseless beasts and was made like them;" but if he should somehow take into his mind the knowledge of the divine oracles, and partake of spiritual nourishment, then indeed, then, having cast off sluggishness, he will be in honor again, governed by sound reasoning, and having recovered the mind that is proper to a man. My anger was kindled against the shepherds, and I will visit the lambs. In these words, as I suppose, he calls shepherds the false prophets and false diviners, and the teachers of deceit, who have become a destruction and a snare to some who, having sinned against the true glory of God, have assigned the honor and worship due to him to creation, "and they worshipped the works of their own hands," as it is written. It is not unreasonable also to join with the false diviners the famous orators of the Greeks, who, being excessively conceited in their eloquence, have led astray those who adhered to them, and like certain not good shepherds have pastured them on thorns and into the great worthlessness of rotten thoughts; for what among them is profitable for the knowledge of truth? Against these also would be the things from divine wrath, and very righteously; for they destroyed not only their own souls, but in addition to this also those of others. For they have led them astray, as I said, by the boastfulness of their diction, all but gilding over the lie and expending the use of speech on deceptions. Yet he visits the lambs, having compassion on them, clearly, and transferring them from deceit to the knowledge of the truth, and moving from being deceived into a straight path. For just as it was fitting for those who had wronged them to inflict the punishment appropriate to the wrongs; so again the philanthropic judgment for those who had suffered would in no way be deprived of God-befitting gentleness and a just vote. For it was necessary, it was necessary for the wronged to be saved, as God forgets wrongs and frees from punishment those who were subjected to their greed perhaps even unwillingly. And the Lord God the almighty will visit his flock the house of Judah, and will set them as his comely horse in war, and from him he looked, and from him he appointed, and from him the bow in wrath, and from him every one that drives out will come forth in it. and they will be as warriors treading clay in the roads in war, and they will be drawn up for battle, because the Lord is with them. In what way He will bring upon the shepherds the things from wrath, but will visit and save the lambs, He makes clear. For having appointed from the Jews the mystagogues of the world, the holy apostles and evangelists, He contended through them against the wise men of the Greeks, and delivered the lambs from their babbling and, having freed them from the snares of deceit, transferred them to the true and blameless knowledge of God. He will visit, therefore, it says, His flock, the house of Judah. And He will make it like a comely and most warlike horse, upon which, so to speak, being spiritually carried, He will wage war against the tongue of the Greeks, as I said, and will write down the uncomeliness and uselessness of the wisdom within them. For that in the dispersions of the Greeks the divine disciples became like certain horses, so to speak, neighing against their babbling and God-hated deceit, how could anyone doubt? Christ saying concerning the blessed Paul to Ananias, "Go, for this man is a chosen vessel for me to bear my name before Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel." And Habakkuk also said somewhere as to our Lord Jesus Christ Himself that, "You will mount upon your horses and your riding is salvation." Therefore, He will set him, it says, "as a comely horse in war and from him He looked. Just as if one might say, As God He looked upon those fit for the ministry of the evangelical proclamations, and truly He made the chosen ones from Judah, and from him He appointed; for He chose them to be servants and ministers of His own will, and as it were mediators and deacons of the grace from Himself. And there is, it says, also from him, that is clearly from Judah, the bow drawn in wrath against the opponents. And from him again will come forth also he that drives out in it. And by "he that drives out," as I think, he means the one who plunders and takes captive. And the divine disciples also did this, seizing those from the Greeks, and bringing them to the great king, I mean Christ, so that they might be under Him, and choose to think His thoughts, having late and with difficulty shaken off the yoke of the devil's greed. And the divine disciples thus prevailed over the wise among the Greeks, so that it now seemed as if they were trampling on clay scattered in the crossroads. For the Lord was with them, who does "great and unsearchable things, glorious and wonderful, of which there is no number." And Christ also somewhere declared to those who believed in Him, "Behold I have given you to tread upon serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy." But it must be known that we, weaving a spiritual interpretation, say such things; but to the Jews the matter does not seem to be so, but they receive it rather historically, and say that after the times of the captivity Antiochus surnamed Epiphanes made war on them, having gathered a very great assembly of fighters from the land of the Greeks and indeed being puffed up by the auxiliary forces from them; but as they themselves say, Israel conquered, and carried off the better glory from his wickedness. for then it has happened that even those from the Maccabees who were martyred have bound on the crown of good repute. And they adduce, as proof of what seems right to them, the things just now said by us, and moreover the things a little later, which are as follows: "For I have bent you, Judah, for myself as a bow, I have filled Ephraim, and I will raise up your children, O Zion, against the children of the Greeks, and I will wield you like the sword of a warrior, and the Lord shall be over them, and His arrow shall go forth like lightning, and the Lord Almighty shall sound the trumpet, and shall go forth in the storm of His threat. The Lord Almighty will defend them." And the riders of horses shall be ashamed, and I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will cause them to dwell, because I have loved them. Again, those who agree with the Jewish narratives say that when the battle against the Greeks was joined, their horsemen perished, but those of the blood of Israel prevailed, so that they inhabited the country, that is, Judea, free from all fear, and with no one at all being taken away, that is, having become a captive. But we, striving to make the interpretation of the thoughts consistent with and a sister to the former, say that the shamed horse riders are none other than those who presided over the Greek dogmas, and who were accustomed to contend for the God-hated deceit, and with them being shattered, Judah has prevailed, and the house of Joseph has been saved. And through these are signified the blood and race of Israel, that is, the multitude of those justified in Christ and bearing the Jew in mind and heart, and having received circumcision in the spirit, and having a mind that sees God; for so is Israel interpreted. And since they have been loved by God, for this reason they have also been made to dwell, that is, they have had a firm permanence in all the best things. For it is written that "The Lord makes the solitary to dwell in a house." And the divine Isaiah also said somewhere concerning the one who practices the exceptional life, "He who walks in righteousness, speaking a straight path, hating lawlessness and injustice, and keeping his hands from gifts, making his ears heavy that he may not hear a judgment of blood, shutting his eyes that he may not see injustice, this one shall dwell in a high cave of a strong rock." And it is not implausible to say that the Church, that is, the mansions above, has been given as a house by God to the saints; and indeed the blessed David deems the matter worthy of all wonder, thus saying to the Savior and God of all, "Blessed are all who dwell in your house, they will praise you forever and ever." and again, "For one day in your courts is better than thousands; I have chosen to be an outcast in the house of my God rather than to dwell in the tents of sinners." And it shall be in the manner that I did not turn them away, because I am the Lord their God, and I will hearken to them, and they shall be as warriors of Ephraim. With the wise men among the Greeks, who were also named horsemen, having been put to shame, he promises to strengthen and cause to dwell those who have received mercy, adding "Because I have loved them." And what they will gain from being loved by God, he explains again. For just as, he says, I did not turn them away. For I did not completely overlook them, but I visited them when they were in danger, because I am the Lord their God; for not "the God of the Jews only," but also of the gentiles, as the Creator and Lord of all. For this reason, he says, I will also hearken to them, that is, I will make their supplications acceptable. and they shall be as warriors of Ephraim. This is similar to if he should say again, Those who were once, because of weakness of mind and heart, as it were paralyzed and lying down, will now be brought into such spiritual strength as to seem to be ranked as equals with those from Ephraim who were well-pleasing, that is, with the apostles and evangelists from the Jews. For such men have become spiritual warriors, contending against enemies, striking down opponents, and conquering principalities, and powers and lordships, and the things spiritual hosts of wickedness, and conquering without a fight those who opposed the divine proclamations. And from the multitude of the Gentiles there have also been men called through faith to the knowledge of Christ, holy men and spirit-bearers, and as warriors of Ephraim; for they have become imitators, as far as possible, of the way of life of the apostles, and tracing their virtue, they themselves also have acted manfully against the enemies of truth and passions and sin. And their heart shall rejoice as with wine, and their children shall see it and be glad, and their heart shall rejoice in the Lord. The mind of those who have drunk wine is always somehow careless, and a despiser of care. For it does not admit that which is accustomed to cause grief, but is released, as it were, and scorns all anxiety. If therefore they should become, he says, as warriors of Ephraim, then indeed they shall receive gladness for themselves, and as brilliant and renowned men they will be made glad by the hope of good things to come, and they will have imitators of their excellent way of life, namely, the sons born of them, spiritual sons, that is. Such also was the divine Paul, writing and saying to those called through him, "For though you have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you have not many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel." Therefore the children who will be from them shall see and be glad. For having come into contemplation of Christ, and having learned the power of the mystery, and been enlightened by the gifts of the Spirit, they will act rightly, and they will receive gladness in Christ the Savior Himself, and will make Him the joy and delight and exultation of soul and heart. And this would be a clear proof of choosing to live in a manner pleasing to God. For those who assign the inclination of their own mind to the affairs of the world, and have inclined toward baser things, rejoice in them, and make this their gladness, and are joyful in the pleasures of the flesh, and being accustomed to revel in the other luxuries of the present life, they consider the things of God to be of almost no account at all; but those who seek Him with their whole heart, and are enriched by contemplations of Him, and open wide the eye of their mind, will receive gladness in Him alone. I will signal to them and I will gather them, because I will redeem them, and they shall be multiplied as they were many; and I will sow them among the peoples, and those far away will remember Me, and they will raise their children and return. He again remembers the flock of the Jews, and indeed He also promises to collect them who have been scattered, and to gather them from every land into Judea, so that absolutely no one is left behind. And in what manner the gathering will be, He indicates again. For they say that beekeepers make certain signs, either by whistling, or being accustomed to do certain other things, and so they collect the swarms of bees that have departed from the hives. And something of this kind has been said also through the voice of Isaiah, "And it shall be, he says, in that day that the Lord will whistle for the flies that are in the part of the river of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of the Assyrians." But others say, also in times of war, if it should happen that the combatants are scattered somehow, either pursuing or being pursued, a certain sign is raised on high by the generals, and looking to it, they are gathered together and come back to the same place. And something of this kind is also suggested by that which is found in the prophet Isaiah, "And it shall be as a mast upon a mountain, and as a standard bearer upon a hill." Therefore from that which naturally occurs He takes the likeness. For I will signal to them, He says, and I will gather them. For a great and glorious sign has been raised among us, the cross of the Savior, through which we have also become acceptable to God the Father, and indeed we have also been redeemed, and we who have believed have run forth into an innumerable multitude. But since He has added that and I will sow them among the peoples and those far from them will come and will remember me, again we say that, and not from of the purpose; for the word has much probability; for the divine disciples and the heralds of the divine gospels were scattered as it were among many nations and in every country and city, and prepared those who had become furthest from God on account of the intervening sin and error to remember Him, and to take into their mind the Savior and Creator of all, although they had long attached their worship to creation, and for that very reason had departed from intimacy with God. And so the divine Paul addressed those called through him to the knowledge of Christ, saying, "But now you who were once "far off have become near." They shall come, therefore, remembering God. And the blessed prophet Jeremiah hints at something of this sort to us, saying as to Israel, "You who are "far off, remember the Lord, and let Jerusalem come up "upon your heart." And if indeed they remember God according to nature at all, then indeed they will advance to this spiritual strength, so as to become fathers of children, and to nourish their own children with words of piety, and to be proud of this very thing. And somewhere the divine Paul also writes to those nourished by him and who have ascended to a perfect man, and have come to the measure of the stature of that in Christ, at one time, "My joy and my crown," and at another time again, "I protest by your boasting, brethren, which I have "in Christ Jesus." "For the crown of old men are the children "of children, according to what is written; and the boast of children are their "fathers." And I will bring them back from the land of Egypt and I will gather them from the Assyrians, and I will bring them into Gilead and into Lebanon, and not one of them shall be left behind. When Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Judaea by force, and the divine temple was burned, and Jerusalem itself, then all Israel suffered miserably. For some were carried away as captives to the Assyrians and Medes; but others, having escaped their cruelty and having been able to flee, and fearing and shrinking from being captured in the same way, went as deserters to the Egyptians, and submitted to the yoke of servitude under them, an unwilling one, to be sure, but imposed by necessity. Therefore, since he promised to gather them from everywhere, he also mentions the places to which they were carried away; some, having become captives, as I said, others being driven by unbearable fears to things contrary to their will. But since it is proper for those who are especially lovers of contemplation and spiritual to lay claim to the spiritual interpretation, we say that He promises to draw them out of the country, or rather the hand, of the invisible enemies, and to free them from every fear; and while they are captives, and as it were subject to others, to all but reshape them into freedom. Or also in another way he says that they will be delivered from darkness and confusion. For Egypt is interpreted as Darkness, and Babylon as Confusion. And the text often makes no distinction, reckoning Assyrians and Babylonians as one nation, because they were under one scepter, and one kingdom was established over them. Therefore, having been redeemed from the hand of the oppressors, he promises to bring them into Gilead; and this is the most fertile and fruitful portion of the land of the Jews; and also into Lebanon, and this is a great mountain, rich in timber, lying on the borders of the land of the Jews and Phoenicians. And through both of these, I suppose, that thing is signified. For our Lord Jesus Christ, having delivered us as from Egypt and from the Assyrians, that is, from the oppression of those who took us captive—and these are wicked and unclean demons—has brought us into the Church, as into a land rich in timber and very fertile, in which the fruit of those who are well-pleasing is very abundant, and the heads of the saints are not easily numbered, and are lifted up on high through virtue, and have blossomed as in the rank of cedars, and concerning them could be said, and very appropriately, that through the voice of David to the God of all: "The cedars of Lebanon, which you planted." "of God for the admirable Paul also clearly names those who have been justified in faith "a field." And they shall pass through a narrow sea, and shall strike the waves in the sea, and all the depths of the rivers shall be dried up, and all the insolence of the Assyrians shall be taken away, and the scepter of Egypt shall be removed, and I will strengthen them in the Lord their God, and in His name they shall boast, says the Lord. The promise of assistance to those who believe in Christ is made by way of a likeness to the things gifted to those of old. For just as Israel was brought across the Red Sea, having overcome the waves in it; "for the waters were solidified as a wall," as God miraculously accomplished the deed; and just as they crossed the Jordan on foot; so, he says, those called through Moses to the knowledge of Christ, and who have been saved anew by the initiations of the holy apostles, will pass through the tempest of this present life as if it were a certain sea wildly surging with waves, and having been removed from worldly turmoil, they will serve at their leisure the God who is God by nature. And they will also cross temptations, like certain flooding rivers, so that greatly rejoicing in this very thing they say, "If it had not been that the Lord was with us, let Israel now say, if it had not been that the Lord was with us, when men rose up against us, then they would have swallowed us up alive, when their wrath was kindled against us, then the water would have overwhelmed us, a torrent would have passed over our soul, then our soul would have passed through the irresistible water." And just as, he says, Israel, having become captive, and carried away to the Assyrians and the Medes, escaped their insolence or greed; for it was brought back again to Judea, and just as it shook off the greed of the Egyptians, who were always attached to them and accustomed to making war on them; in the same way, he says, those redeemed through Christ will be stronger than their enemies, both visible and invisible, of course, who almost forced them into unwilling servitude, and held them as captives with bonds of their own foolishness. But they will be stronger than these as well, and they will escape the insolence and greed from them, with God strengthening them, in whom they will also boast. For we think great things in Christ, and we have made Him our strength, and we have taken courage in Him and have all the hopes of our own life. "For not an ambassador, not an angel, but the Lord Himself saved us." And as the blessed psalmist says, "Our God is a refuge and strength, a helper in the troubles that have found us exceedingly." Open your doors, O Lebanon, and let the fire devour your cedars. Let the pine tree howl, because the cedar has fallen, because the great nobles have been greatly afflicted; howl, you oaks of Bashan, because the dense forest has been cut down. He transfers, therefore, the declaration of what is being said to another path of thoughts. And having made a very sufficient narrative concerning the calling of the Gentiles in Christ through faith, he clearly narrates in advance the future disobedience toward Him on the part of those of Israel, at the time of the Incarnation, of course, and that for this reason both the temple itself and indeed also Jerusalem must be burned, and that the cities of Israel themselves must also be captured, and perish together with those who dwell in them. And these things were done by the hand of the Romans, when Vespasian and Titus were generals at the time. And it is superfluous, as it seems, to relate in detail each of the things that happened to the cities or peoples of the Jews, on account of their insolence toward Christ; it being possible for those who wish to encounter the writings of Josephus, to learn clearly in detail whatever they might choose. He transfers the discourse, then, to those of the blood of Israel. And he likens Judea to Lebanon; for what reason? For Lebanon is a mountain with good wood and is covered with extensive forests. And the country of the Jews is also most populous, and has a multitude of inhabitants beyond number, and like cedars or the tallest pines, those more conspicuous than others, I mean both the priests and those of the tribe of Judah who were kings from time to time, who, having also been exalted by the boasts of their rule, were well-known to those throughout the whole land, and held their glory lifted high. But since they acted impiously against Christ; for they took away "the key of "knowledge, and neither entered themselves, nor allowed those who were entering "to enter," and finally they crucified him, although they knew that he is the heir; for this reason they have justly been utterly destroyed along with their houses and cities and dearest ones. Therefore, enigmatically, as I said, he calls Judea Lebanon; and he likens those in it to the tallest trees, as being exalted above the others and far surpassing them. That it was destined to be captured easily, and, as a city without gates, to receive the pouring in of the Roman army, and to be consumed in this way, as if a forest with a flame brought upon it, he indicates, saying, Open your doors, O Lebanon, and let fire devour your cedars; let the pine wail, because the cedar has fallen. And the word has indeed been made by metaphor. For having named Lebanon, that is, having likened the country of the Jews to a mountain, he necessarily likens those in it to pine and oak. That the word is about men, is easy to see; for he said immediately that greatly the great ones have suffered. And what manner of suffering might be understood, he showed by saying in one place, that let the pine wail because the cedar has fallen. For as the Roman hand ravaged the cities in Judea, it happened daily that the illustrious ones in them were captured. And those who had not yet suffered this, lamented the captured, and received the lamentation upon themselves, and were disheartened and terrified, as being about to suffer it themselves very soon indeed. This, I think, is what Let the pine wail, because the cedar has fallen signifies; indeed, he perhaps specifically calls the oaks of Bashan those in Jerusalem. For Bashan is a place in Judea, fertile and most fruitful, and it raises very tall trees. And since those in Jerusalem were better than the others, I mean the priests and the leaders of the peoples, he called them oaks of Bashan, who indeed have also lamented rightly, because of the tearing down of the kindred forest. For they learned that the multitude throughout the whole land, like a forest, has been consumed and, as it were, cut down by the axes of the enemies' savage attacks. And the kindred forest, which he says was torn down, you will understand to be no less than the multitude in Jerusalem itself; for they perished by both famine and war; while the oaks of Bashan, that is, the leaders, wailed for them. A voice of shepherds wailing, because their majesty has suffered; a voice of lions roaring, because the pride of the Jordan has suffered. In these things, as I just said, he makes the declaration more manifest. For he no longer names pine or oak, but unveiled he signifies the teachers of the Jewish orders, whom he says lament, and as it were, raise their voices, bewailing that their majesty has suffered. For they have become pitiful and cast down, wretched and most dishonored, although formerly they had a more conspicuous glory. But since the shepherds through Christ were revealed, that is, the divine disciples, the majesty of the false shepherds has rightly suffered. For the Master of the flock accused them through the holy prophets, saying thus: "O shepherds who scatter and destroy the sheep "of their pasture." and again, "Because the shepherds became foolish "and did not seek the Lord; for this reason the whole pasture did not understand "and was scattered." And he promised to those who believe in him to reveal genuine shepherds, saying again thus: "And I will bring you to Zion, and I will give you "shepherds according to my heart, and they will shepherd you, "shepherding with knowledge." And who are these again? the divine disciples and the leaders of the churches from time to time, "rightly dividing the word of truth," and knowing how to bring the flocks under their hand to everything that contributes to spiritual benefit. Therefore the false shepherds have lamented, because their greatness has been afflicted; and he signifies this also in another way, immediately adding: A voice of roaring lions, because the pride of the Jordan is ravaged. For roaring is properly the voice of wolves, which they would make, wailing on account of famine and starvation. But the divine scripture also accepts this for lions. Therefore, the leaders of the Jewish orders were detected as roaring lions, that is, hungering and wailing, on account of not having the fruit-offerings from the peoples, tithes, first-fruits, thank-offerings. For since they have fallen away from the flock, they no longer rejoiced in the fruits from it. But if someone should think that the scribes and Pharisees also roared against Christ as in the rank of lions; for they cried out against him, and they let loose voices out of envy and malice and unrestrained madness, calling him a Samaritan, calling him a drunkard and one born of fornication, and "Away, away, crucify him;" he will think what is fitting even in this way. but even if they roared, they have been afflicted not moderately, and the pride of the Jordan has ceased. And what this is, I will say again. For the Jordan flows by Jericho, and very many lions are around it, roaring terribly and instilling an unbearable dread in the inhabitants. Such in their ways were the scribes and the Pharisees, roaring at the flocks, and terrifying the weaker ones with the fears from their authority. But the fear of the lions has been ravaged. And he says this is the pride of the Jordan. And "phryagma" (pride/snorting) is the sound of horses and mules sent through the nostrils and coming out with a wild snort; but it is also taken for being high-minded. For indeed the divine David said concerning those who had acted insolently toward Christ, "Why did the nations rage, and the peoples plot in vain?" Therefore, when he says "the pride of the Jordan," you will understand the mindset, and not entirely of the river, but of the lions around it; for sometimes things in places are signified by the places themselves. Thus says the Lord Almighty: Shepherd the sheep for the slaughter, which those who acquired them slaughtered and did not repent, and those who sold them said, "Blessed be the Lord, for we have become rich," and their shepherds did not suffer for them. The word is to them, the lamenting shepherds, and those roaring in the rank of lions, to whom he still permits to shepherd the sheep of slaughter, although they were exceedingly neglectful, so as not even to feel a little pain, so to speak, for those being sold and slaughtered. For just as the more unreasonable of shepherds, looking only to things for their own pleasure, caring very little for the master of the flock, slaughter some fearlessly, imitating the attacks of wild beasts, and sell others, feeling, as I said, no pain at all, but exulting in the most extraordinary gains, and being overcome by such shameful love of profit; in the same way, I think, the leaders of the Jewish peoples might also be caught, having shown no mercy for the flocks under them, and making their own wealth grow, and widening their purses as if with an insatiable hand. And indeed the Savior, reproving such men, said, "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: judgment and mercy and faith." For being so pedantic, so as even to rebuke down to the most trivial things those not bringing the tithes according to the law, they took absolutely no account of the weightier matters, that is, of the ordinances that were most necessary and profitable. And that they were not good shepherds, but rather looking only to profits, he will make clear, speaking also through the voice of Ezekiel: "O shepherds of Israel, do not do the shepherds feed themselves? Do not the "shepherds feed the sheep? Behold, you eat the milk "and clothe yourselves with the wool and you slaughter the fatling "and you feed on my sheep." Therefore, he says, you feed on the sheep of slaughter, that is, either those about to die by the hand of the Romans; or those that you yourselves slaughter, although holding the rank of shepherds. For the time is not yet at hand, in which they will come to slaughter. For after the advent of the Savior, the multitude of the Jews was destroyed by the swords of the Romans, although God had been exceedingly longsuffering towards them. And that the people under their hand became the possession of the shepherds, he showed by saying, Those who possessed them slaughtered them and did not repent. For just as they made their own possession the spiritual vineyard, which was the master's, I mean Israel, or the man of Judah, the new plant, the beloved; so also they as good as took possession of the flocks, reaping the fruits from them, and always in some way making their possession from them in abundance, but abandoning them to those willing to plunder. Therefore, those who possessed them slaughtered them; and those who sold them said, Blessed be the Lord, for we have become rich. And these could also be understood as judges, who traffic in correctness in judgments, and all but bid farewell to the law through Moses, although it says clearly, "You shall not show partiality in judgment, for the judgment "is God's." For it was sweet and dear to them to sell the judgment on each matter to those who were willing. And this will be clear to us again through the voice of the saints. For one of the holy prophets said concerning Jerusalem, "Her leaders judge for a bribe;" but the divine Habakkuk as good as cried out to God, saying, "How "long, O Lord, shall I cry, and you will not hear? I will cry out "to you, 'Violence!' and you will not save? Why have you shown me "troubles and caused me to look upon toils, misery and impiety? "Judgment is against me, and the judge takes bribes. For "this reason the law is scattered, and judgment is not brought to a conclusion, "because the wicked oppresses the righteous; for "this reason judgment will go forth perverted." Therefore, those who gather wealth from unjust gains, and perverting what is just, and selling, as it were, the judgments on each matter, would be the judges, as I just said. They also say, Blessed be the Lord, for we have become rich; but saying this most senselessly and most irrationally they would rightly be convicted. For they pretend to give thanks, as if God grants them to collect from injustices, and to grow rich from blood. But it were better to say that, having esteemed judging rightly: Blessed be the Lord, for we have been shown to be glorious and genuine guardians of the divine ordinances, bringing forth a right verdict on each matter. Therefore, fair speech is deceit and a blemish, if the things in which God would be pleased are not done by us. Therefore I will no longer spare the inhabitants of the land, says the Lord; and behold, I am delivering the men, each into the hands of his neighbor and into the hands of his king, and they shall smite the land, and I will not deliver them from their hand. And I will feed the sheep of slaughter in the land of Canaan. He threatens the flocks with destruction together with exile and the disasters of war, because although it was possible for them to run under the hand of the chief shepherd of all, I mean Christ, and to be under him, they have instead ignorantly attached themselves to those who both slaughter and sell them. For the Only-begotten Word of God became man, and indeed he spoke clearly, pointing out both their awkwardness and the genuineness of the economy for us, "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life "for the sheep; but the hireling and "he who is not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, sees "the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; "and the wolf snatches them and scatters them; because he is a hireling, "and does not care about the sheep. I am "the the good shepherd." But the wretched Jews, although it was necessary to cry out against the hired shepherds, have not done this, but the good shepherd, who lays down his own soul as a ransom for the life of all, they have grieved in countless ways, stoning, reviling, and finally, opening a boundless mouth against him. For they have cried out together with their own teachers, saying to Pilate, "Away with him, away with him, crucify him," and they have even drawn the righteous blood upon their own heads. For they said again, "His blood be on us and on our children." For this reason, therefore, he says, I will no longer spare the inhabitants of the land. For they are no longer deemed worthy of sparing from God; but rather each has been given into the hands of his neighbor and into the hands of a king, that is, his ruler. For they crucified Emmanuel, and have become slayers of the Lord, and full of all unholiness. Nevertheless, God called them to repentance, and did not immediately inflict the things of wrath. But when the thirtieth year had already passed, after the cross of the Savior, peace departed from the land of the Jews, and there were wars everywhere, city going against city, and those in each were divided into factions, and fighting one another, so that the things happening among themselves appeared an equal evil to those from the war. For the bravest of the Roman generals have taken possession of the land of the Jews, and burning cities with their men, they have subjected it to the yokes of slavery. But those who were able to escape have inhabited the lands of the nations, which can be seen even to this day. And I think this is what it means when it says, I will shepherd the sheep for slaughter into the land of Canaan, that is, into the country and land of the Canaanites. The Canaanites are the nations, among whom the sheep for slaughter are somehow still shepherded by God even to this day, that is, they seem to be shepherded. For they observe some of the things according to the law, and one would not see them as having completely neglected their ancient customs. And indeed they circumcise the flesh, and keep the Sabbath, and consider certain other things besides these worthy of care and consideration. And this was, then, what was said by God through the voice of the prophet, "And I will be to them a little sanctuary in the countries where they shall enter." But the civil wars throughout all Judea, and indeed in Jerusalem, and the things in each city, he who chronicled the tragedies of the Jews has clearly written down; this was Josephus, an eloquent and wise man. And I will take for myself two rods: the one I called Beauty, and the other I called a Cord, and I will shepherd the sheep. In many ways for us in the divinely inspired scriptures the rod is understood. For sometimes it signifies the kingdom, as when it is said to Christ, "A rod of uprightness is the rod of your kingdom;" and sometimes strength, as in the saying, "The Lord will send forth the rod of power out of Zion; and you shall rule in the midst of your enemies;" and sometimes it is taken for instruction and the pastoral science; indeed it has been said again through the voice of a prophet to the Son, "Shepherd your people with your rod, the flock of your inheritance." But in the present context the rods signify for us methods of pastoral science, and a twofold form of instruction, according to what seems blameless. And the chief shepherd of all, "he who laid down his life for the sheep," that is, Christ, receives the rods, in order to shepherd his own sheep with them. For of old; that is, even before the times of the incarnation; being God and lawgiver, the Word from God the Father was tending Israel, using as it were one rod, the instruction according to the law. For he said somewhere through the voice of a prophet to him, "I shepherded you in the desert." But when he became man like us, he receives two rods. For he divides, as it were, his own worshippers, those clearly justified through faith, and sanctified in the Spirit, both by legal and evangelical decrees, not persuading to sacrifice oxen, nor indeed teaching to adhere to the offerings according to the law; but rather having commanded that the power of worship in the Spirit be made in the manner of a bloodless sacrifice. For the shadow has been transferred to the truth, and the things in types have been re-characterized into the refinement of the polity that is in Christ and of the Gospel. And the names for the staffs: for the one, Beauty, which is the new covenant, beautiful and admirable, of which the Son Himself spoke, "You are beautiful in your loveliness beyond the sons of men;" the other, indeed, was Cord, that is, a portion, so that we may understand the law, the cord set apart for God, which was accustomed to instruct. For it is written that, "When the Most High divided the nations, when he scattered the sons of Adam, he set the boundaries of the nations according to the number of the angels of God, and Jacob his people became the Lord's portion; Israel was the cord of his inheritance." With these two staffs, therefore, the great chief shepherd promises to tend his own sheep, and the word is true. For he gathered into one fold both those from Israel and indeed those from the Gentiles, setting before them for their delight both legal and evangelical instruction, and supplying a certain spiritual pasture for their partaking, and richly fattening the souls of the saints. And I will cut off the three shepherds in one month, and my soul will be grieved with them, for their souls also roared against me. And I said, "I will not shepherd you; what is dying, let it die, and what is failing, let it fail, and let the rest devour, each one the flesh of his neighbor." For when the true and good shepherd had already been revealed, it was indeed very likely, or rather now also necessary, for the hirelings and false shepherds, that is, the teachers of the Jews according to the law, to be removed from the midst; of whom some "slaughtered the sheep and did not repent," while others, "selling them, said, 'Blessed is the Lord, and we have become rich.'" Then why, one might say, does he call them three shepherds, and in what way are they cut off, as he says, in one month? Come, let us speak, setting forth what is from the holy scriptures for belief. I think, therefore, that he names three shepherds: those who served as priests according to the law, and those appointed as judges of the people, and in addition to these, the introducers of the letters, or the lawyers. For these, as it were, fed upon Israel. And those who had the glory of the priesthood were from the tribe of Levi alone, and concerning them Moses said, "The lips of a priest will guard judgment, and they will seek the law from his mouth;" but those who were allotted the authority to judge, they too were chosen, yet they were appointed from every tribe; and in the same way, I think, the introducers of letters, that is, as I just said, the lawyers, always attended upon those appointed to judge, bringing the letters of the law for proof in each matter. That, therefore, as I said, the priests of the divine altars were from the tribe of Levi alone, would require no argument for proof. But that the judges were also chosen from every tribe, as men learned in the law, the blessed Moses will confirm, saying in Deuteronomy to the sons of Israel, "You shall appoint for yourself judges and introducers of letters in all your cities which the Lord your God gives you, according to your tribes, and they shall judge the people with righteous judgment; they shall not pervert judgment, they shall not show partiality, nor shall they take bribes; for bribes blind the eyes of the wise and subvert the words of the righteous." Moreover, Moses came to say such things and to command that they be fulfilled, following, admittedly, divine and secret commands, but not dishonoring the counsel of Jethro, who was also his father-in-law; for it is written that, "And it came to pass on the morrow that Moses sat down to judge the people, and all the people stood by Moses from morning until evening; and when Jethro saw all that he was doing for the people, he says, 'What is this you are doing for the people? Why do you sit "alone, and all the people stand by you from morning until "evening?"" Then when Moses said that, for the sake of judging justly and lawfully, he chose to undertake this labor, Jethro said again, "Now therefore listen to me and "I will give you counsel, and God shall be with you. Be "you for the people in things pertaining to God, and you shall bring their "words to God, and you shall testify to them the ordinances "of God and his law, and you shall show "them the ways in which they shall walk and the "works that they shall do. And for yourself look out from all "the people able men, God-fearing, just men, "hating arrogance, and you shall set them over "them." Then what does the sacred scripture say? "And Moses "listened to his father-in-law and did all that he said to him, "and Moses chose able men from all "Israel, and made them over them rulers of thousands and "rulers of hundreds and rulers of fifties and rulers of tens, and "they judged the people at all times; every difficult matter "they brought to Moses, but every light matter they judged "themselves." There were, then, three kinds of shepherds: priests and judges and those skilled in the legal writings, that is, the lawyers. And we will find our Lord Jesus Christ himself denouncing separately the Pharisees and scribes and lawyers. For he would say, "Woe to you, scribes "and Pharisees." And as he said these things, one of the lawyers approached him, saying, "Teacher, in saying these things you insult us "also. But he said, it says, Woe to you lawyers also, "for you load people with burdens hard to bear, and "you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers." I know, therefore, that the kings who ruled from time to time in Jerusalem from the tribe of Judah also fulfilled the role of shepherds for the peoples under their hand. But since at the birth of Christ the line of kings had failed, that is, it had been cast out from the leadership; for at that time Judea was ruled by Herod, the son of Antipater, an Ascalonite, and Pontius Pilate; we have necessarily been silent about those from the tribe of Judah. For that they had failed at the birth of Christ, the scripture will confirm: "A ruler shall not fail from Judah, nor a "leader from his loins, until he comes for whom it is reserved, "and He shall be the expectation of the nations." Therefore, since the expectation of the nations had now arrived and been born, that is Christ, a ruler from Judah and a leader from his loins has necessarily failed. Three shepherds, therefore, as I said, priests and judges and teachers of the law, who also remained in their own offices, that is, in their ranks and places, even up to the times of the visitation. These are also removed, and very justly, in one month. For since they killed the author of life, for this reason they are also cut off, and as it were in the month of new things, in which Emmanuel endured the slaughter for us. For they remained administering Israel even after the cross of the Savior, while the God who rules over all was still being long-suffering and having pity on them, and calling them to repentance; but we say that they were removed, so to speak, according to the decree made by God for this purpose, at that time when, as I said, they handed over the Savior and redeemer of all to the cross. They were removed, therefore, in one month. And so much for the shepherds; but as for the flock, the judgment is this: I will not shepherd you, and this: that if they chose, they would devour and bite one another, and without any mercy would crush and consume. For since they were cast out of the divine fold, and were not deemed worthy of the mercy of the chief shepherd of all, they both devoured one another, and were given as a most ready prey to those who wished to plunder them. And he said, very fittingly, concerning the three shepherds who were also removed in one month, that my soul shall be weighed down over them, that is, I will bring a heavy judgment upon them, because their souls also roared against me. for being no different from wild beasts, they leaped upon very often to Christ, and finally they brought him to Pilate, saying "Away with him, away with him, cruci- "fy him." And he remembers this also through the voice of Jeremiah, saying "I have forsaken my house, I have left my inherit- "ance, I have given my beloved soul into the hands "of her enemies. My inheritance has become to me like a lion in "the forest; she has uttered her voice against me, therefore I have hated "her." And I will take my beautiful staff, and I will cast it away to break my covenant which I made with all the peoples; and it shall be broken in that day, and the Canaanites, the sheep that are kept, shall know that it is the word of the Lord. He calls the staff beautiful, meaning the instruction through the evangelical mystery, which is exceptional in its beauty, clearly, the spiritual beauty. But to say that he would both cast away and scatter it would likely signify not that he would send it away and disperse it, doing away with it, that is, destroying it as use- less; far from it; but I would say rather that we ought to understand the following. For those who are accustomed to watch over flocks, if they should see one of the sheep leap away from the flock, and get as far away as possible from the others, then they certainly cast the staff at it, and immediately drive it back to choose to flock with the others. The word of the prophecy, therefore, has observed the custom in the shepherds' skill. For he says that the beautiful staff will be cast away, that is, it will be sent even to those who are furthest away, clearly, to the Gentiles, for they were the ones far off, but they have become near through faith. And he says that the staff will be cast away in such a way that it will be scattered throughout all the earth, that is, be distribut- ed, and the word concerning Christ, that is, the evangelical preaching, seem as it were to be scattered everywhere. For he says it will be scatter- ed in that day, that is, at that time in which Christ, having trampled the power of death, would live again, and say to the holy apostles "Go "and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them "in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy "Spirit." For then the word of our Savior went about all the earth under heaven; and it is accurate to say concerning the holy apostles that "Their sound went out into all the earth, "and their words to the ends of the world." And that the casting away and scattering over the earth, that is, the distribu- tion in their own lands of the beautiful staff, which is the covenant that he no longer made with Israel alone but rather with all the nations, was not without profit for the Gentiles, we may observe, and very effortlessly, by understanding the word of the prophecy; for he says, the Canaanites, the sheep that are kept, shall know that it is the word of the Lord. For he calls the Gentiles Canaanites. And these may be understood as the sheep that are kept. For they have been kept for Christ, for he himself is the expectation of the nations. And since the covenant with all was scattered also in their own lands, they have believed that he is the Word of the Lord. For we who are called from the Gentiles have been disposed through faith, that the Only-begotten Word of God, being God and having been begotten of God according to nature and existing, has himself through himself addressed to us the divine and evangelical laws. Therefore we have worshipped him, and we serve him, having put aside that ancient and inglorious deceit, and having been transferred from the opinion of many gods. And this, then, was what was sung to him through the voice of David "All the nations you have made "will come and worship before you, O Lord." "For "at the name of Jesus Christ every knee should bow, of things in "heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue "should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of "God the Father." And I will say to them, If it is good in your sight, give me my wages, or refuse. And they weighed out my wages, thirty pieces of silver. And the Lord said to me, Drop them into the furnace, and see if it is approved, in the way that I was approved for them. And they took the thirty pieces of silver and cast them into the house of the Lord, into the furnace. Through the evangelical decrees, that is, through the beautiful staff, that is to say, of the excellent instruction, we have been taught the mystery of the economy in the flesh of the Only-Begotten. For we have heard and have believed, that being God, as I said, the "Word" from God the Father, "became flesh and dwelt among us," and came down also in the form of a servant, and being in the form and in equality with the one who begot him, became "obedient unto death, even death on a cross;" and "though he was rich, he became poor for our sakes, that we through his poverty might become rich." For he delivered us from the bonds of death, he freed us from sin, he made us sons of God; and what good thing has he not bestowed? And in addition to these things we have known that we were also bought with a price; "not with perishable things, with silver or gold; but with the precious blood as of a lamb without blemish and without spot, Christ," and so then we owe our own life to him. For if "One died for all, then all died" in him, and we ought to live no longer for ourselves, according to the probable and right reason, but rather "for him who died for us and was raised." And for this reason he says, If it is good in your sight; it is clear that this means the mystery of the economy in the flesh; if you have been saved through him and have acted rightly, and have known me as Savior and redeemer, and the one who endured death for the life of all, give my wages, having set them, that is, having determined them, or refuse. But those from the nations are grateful. For they set the wage, in no way equal, but somehow resembling what we have received from him. For just as he died for us, so we also have laid down our lives for sincerity and love toward him; and it would be fitting for the holy martyrs to say, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?" For nothing has overcome the courage of the saints. Therefore, the likeness of the things that have come to us from Christ is somehow shown, by the saying that thirty pieces of silver were given to him as a wage. For the traitor and truly most abominable and God-hated Judas, having taken thirty denarii, betrayed Christ to his murderers, and has sold the author of our salvation to the sinners. But thirty pieces of silver were brought by the nations to him as a wage, which also are cast by God's command into the furnace, being very well tested, just as Christ himself was tested for us. For our faith will not be unexamined by the God who knows all things; nor indeed our life untested; but as the blessed Paul says, "the fire itself will test what sort of work each one has done." And it is also written concerning Christ that, "Suddenly the Lord whom you seek will come to his temple, and the angel of the covenant whom you desire; behold, he is coming, says the Lord Almighty. And who will endure the day of his coming? Or who will stand when he appears? For he enters like a refiner's fire and like the fuller's soap, and he will sit refining and purifying as silver and as gold." And the divine David also sings somewhere, as from the person of everyone who has believed in Christ and wishes to live according to the Gospel, "Test me, O Lord, and try me, test my reins and my heart by fire." But that the furnace is in the house of the Lord, the Prophet says. For the Church of Christ tests the character of each person and the genuineness of his love for Christ, and "having the discernment of spirits," it knows precisely who speaks in the Holy Spirit, calling Jesus Lord, and who indeed in Beelzebul, calling him accursed; and who are "the true worshippers," and who, on the other hand, are "wolves" coming to us "in sheep's clothing." And I cast away the second staff, the rope, to scatter the covenant between Judah and between Israel. He said Christ would take two staffs, and so would pasture with them his own sheep, clearly meaning the holy multitude of those called through faith. and we said the beautiful staff was discipline, that is, the evangelical proclamation; but the other, that is, the cord, the commandment through Moses, as given to the cord assigned to God, that is, to Israel, for a help, according to the prophet's voice, "For he says he has given a law for a help." Therefore, that the multitude of the nations was to be instructed not only by the evangelical teachings, but also by the commandments given of old and through Moses—the shadow in the law clearly being transformed into truth—he makes evident through what is set before us. For just as he said the beautiful staff was cast off and scattered—for the evangelical discipline was sown, as it were, in the lands of the Canaanites, being carried about, of course, by the holy apostles—so also the other staff, or discipline, that is, the cord, or the law, which was placed by God in the order of a covenant between Judah and between Israel, that is, of the entire race of Israel; for by Judah he names the two tribes in Jerusalem, I mean Judah itself and Benjamin, but by Israel the other ten, who were settled in Samaria along with Jeroboam; so then the law has been given also to those from Canaan; for we are initiated, as I said, by both legal and evangelical ordinances. For this reason Christ also said, "Do not think that I have come to abolish "the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish, but "to fulfill. For I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, "not one jot or one tittle will pass from the Law "until all is accomplished." For he fulfills the law by teaching what is beyond the law, and not placing the one being instructed outside the law, as for instance in saying, "You have heard "that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder, and whoever murders "will be liable to judgment.' But I say to you that everyone who is "angry with his brother without cause, will be liable to judgment." And again, "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I "say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust, "has already committed adultery with her in his heart." For "You shall not murder" is perfected in refraining even from anger, which is the root and origin of murder. And by not admitting desires at all, that is, by punishing pleasures, the practice of adultery is surely done away with, just as we say that when the roots are damaged, the shoots from them wither away with them, or rather, they would not spring up at all.