(Verses 6-8) Do not speak, speaking ones, for the droppings will not fall upon them, confusion will not overtake them, says the house of Jacob. Has the spirit of the Lord been shortened, or are such his thoughts? Are not my words good when dealing with the one who walks rightly? And yet my people have risen up against me as an adversary, you have lifted up the tunic, the cloak, over those who pass by innocently, and you have turned them into battle. In the church of the Lord, should you not weep with tears, nor should you mourn over them? For he will not reject reproaches, saying, 'The house of Jacob has provoked the spirit of the Lord, if these are his inventions: are not his words good with him, and have they not walked uprightly?' And before, my people resisted against their own peace with enmities: they scraped off its skin, to take away the hope of crushing war. 'Do not speak,' he said, speaking; for which Aquila interpreted: 'Do not be silent, dripping droplets, formerly in the Hebrew idiom, calling the speech that flows and reaches the ears of the hearers, likening it to descending rain, calling it a drip.' Do not let yourselves be deceived, O house of Jacob, and do not say to one another in mutual consolation, God is good: the captivity that we fear will not come. Will his great mercy, his most compassionate spirit, who has risen up widely and abundantly for all, be so limited and severe in us? Or are his thoughts like those that we see in humans, that he holds onto ancient anger and is suddenly stirred up with fury for vengeance? To which the Lord responded: I am certainly good, and my words sound like kindness: but to those who walk the right path. But as for the one who, not just once, but yesterday, revered idols in my dishonor, and as much as he could, seized tyrannical weapons against me, who plundered the unfortunate people with the help of God, and like a garment from above, took away their cloak, who turned even the simplest of believers and those who acquiesce to the authority of their elders into enemies against me, will not the Lord rain down punishment from above and bring confusion upon him? But what we translate as 'Et econtrario populus meus in adversarium consurrexit;' Symmachus translates more openly to say: 'my people rose up against me as an enemy, one day before;' in order to solve the question of why God would not impute past sins to the people, but rather recent ones that seemed like they were committed yesterday. This is according to the Hebrew understanding, but the Septuagint translators do not agree with this interpretation in this passage. For to that which has been said, 'In the Church of the Lord do not weep,' which is a consequence, it is inferred, for he will not reject the reproaches which he says, 'The house of Jacob has provoked the spirit of the Lord.' But also that which follows: 'If these are his inventions: are not his words good with him, and have they not walked uprightly?' What do the following refer to, which are said: 'And my people resisted first, against their own peace, they have flayed his skin, to take away the wound of war?' However, it seems to me that, in a difficult place, the meaning can be rendered or expressed in this way, if the wise reader agrees with our reasoning. Therefore, it is commanded to the Church not to have sadness and concern about worldly matters, and the losses that usually happen in this world, and it is said to the inhabitants of it, O you who are in the Church of the Lord, always rejoice, and whatever judgments may befall you, be glad. I do not say this so that you should not weep; for blessed are those who weep, for they themselves shall laugh (Luke 6:21). But I warn you not to mourn over the things of the world. If someone among your close ones has died, if the treasury has seized your property, if your body is oppressed by gout or any other illness, do not weep, do not shed tears, and do not consider the present, but the future, and be more burdened that you dwell longer in this mortal tent. Rather, be careful not to insult those who have fallen, and do not consider their ruin to be your own accomplishment: let each person measure themselves by their own strength, not the weakness of others. Otherwise, what kind of justice is it to insult the branches of an olive tree with the branches of an olive tree that were broken off due to their unbelief (Rom. XI), and to say, 'The house of Jacob has provoked the spirit of the Lord to anger, killing the prophets, worshiping idols, crucifying the Son of God'? Whoever does this will not be unfamiliar with shame, and the measure by which he judged will be used to judge him. And just as he speaks of the sins of the falling, so another will insult him in his ruin. It follows: If these are his inventions, are not his words good with him, and have they walked uprightly? What offends, he says, the Jewish people, so that the fullness of the Gentiles might enter, is the dispensation of God, so that afterwards, with Israel believing, all might be saved, and all might need God's mercy. And so the Apostle, coming to this place, declares that the depths of wisdom and knowledge and judgments of God are unfathomable. Therefore, if the inventions and thoughts of God are such that the previous branches of the olive tree are broken off, and other branches are grafted in from the wild olive tree, you should not insult, but fear lest you fall, nor should you think that you please God if you read His words, that is, His Scriptures. Then the Scriptures are of benefit to the reader if what is read is fulfilled by deeds. If you can speak about the Scriptures: Are you seeking a proof of Christ speaking in me (II Cor. XIII, 3)? For the Lord will give his word with great power to those who proclaim the Gospel (Ps. LXVII, 12): Ascend to the high mountain, you who proclaim good news to Zion; lift up your voice with strength, you who proclaim good news to Jerusalem (Isai. XL, 9). In this way, the words of God are good if they are accompanied by Him, that is, if God does not abandon the preacher, whose heart and lips are in agreement. Moreover, he who confesses with his lips and his heart is far from God, and narrates his righteousness, and takes his testament on his mouth, and is defiled with the filth of sins, with this, the words of God are not good. Not only of the sinner, but also of him who does not have spiritual grace, that is, of prophecy and doctrine, and interpretation, and the greater charisms, it must be said that if such a man wishes to give reasons for the causes of the elements and for his own faith, and why God, who is good and the Creator of all, came only to the Jews and called the nations in the last age, he does not have good words of God with him; but even those things which are good, he contaminates the words of God, which walk rightly and require righteous ears. And indeed, the Lord commands the people who are his successors and the Church gathered from the nations, not to insult the previous generation and not to be alienated by insulting others. However, it is important to note that he himself, who is the true judge and speaks without disturbance, reveals how in his suffering Israel was against him, and he did this not because the Creator could be harmed by his actions, but because he committed everything against his own peace. Hence, the word came to Jerusalem: If you knew what is for your peace (Luke 19:42). But with peace lost, they stripped off their own skin, that is, they took away from themselves the protection of God, and left themselves like naked flesh without skin and covering, so that whatever appeared beautiful, with the mercy of God covering it from above, would offer ugliness to those who saw it when it withdrew. But with peace and the help of God withdrawing, because they resisted the Lord, of whom it is said: The Lord who breaks wars, the Lord is his name (Judith XVI, 3), they could not resist their adversaries, but in every battle they were defeated, and there was no one to crush the wars that arose against them, on either side of the enemy, or of the men who took them captive, or the strength of their adversaries, who slaughtered their souls daily with blasphemy.
2:9-10
(Versed 9, 10.) You have expelled the women of my people from their delightful homes, and you have taken their praise from their children forever. Arise and go, for you have no rest here, because of your uncleanness. It will be corrupted with the worst decay. The interpretation of the Septuagint (if indeed it is Septuagint; for Josephus writes, and the Hebrews affirm, that only five books of the law of Moses were translated by them and given to King Ptolemy, or rather contradicted) differs so greatly in this passage from the Hebrew truth, that we cannot put the chapters equally nor explain their meanings together. Therefore, let us first discuss our translation, and afterwards we will come to the same points. This is still in opposition to the people of God, of whom he had already said: On the contrary, my people have risen up against me as an adversary: you have taken away their outer garment, not only that, but also the women, that is, the once delicate matrons, have made them go as captives, or under the metaphor of the cities of Judea, which he also calls the daughters of Zion in Isaiah (Isaiah 26), because Zion was the metropolis. You have also taken away the praise of them from their little ones, he says, forever, there remained no one in the people, all being either killed or captured, who would sing my psalms; but even the few who remained in Babylon testify that they cannot sing. How, they say, shall we sing the song of the Lord in a foreign land (Ps. 136:4)? Arise and go into captivity, for in this land you shall not have rest, which has been defiled because of your sins, and it cannot be cleansed unless it has first observed a long sabbath. Therefore I say to you, you do not have rest here, because your land is polluted, and it will be corrupted with the worst decay, namely captivity, whether Babylonian or Roman, because it has shed the blood of the Lord: for it can be understood according to the truth of both histories.
LXX: The leaders of my people will be cast out from their luxurious homes; they have been rejected because of their wicked inventions. This can be understood both generally of the leaders, priests, and Pharisees of the Jewish people, who were cast out of their city of luxury after the passion of the Lord, where they had previously indulged in wicked inventions, and specifically of the lineage of David, because as soon as the Lord was born, the prince of Judah failed, and the ruler from his loins, who was awaited by the nations, came. But even the leaders of the Church who abound in pleasures, and believe that they can preserve their chastity amid feasts and revels, are described by the prophetic word as being expelled from spacious houses and luxurious banquets, and from meals acquired with great effort, and expelled on account of their evil thoughts and deeds. And if you want to know where they will be expelled to, read the Gospel: Into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt. 22:13). (Is it not a confusion and disgrace to preach Jesus crucified, the master, poor and hungry, while gorging on well-fed bodies, and to proclaim the doctrine of fasting with blushing cheeks and bloated mouths? If we are in the place of the Apostles, let us not only imitate their speech, but also embrace their conduct and abstinence.) It is indeed holy and the ministry of the Apostles to serve widows and the poor (Acts 6:2). They say that it is not fitting, with the word of God dismissed, to serve ourselves at the table. But now I am not speaking of the poor, I am not speaking of brothers, and those who cannot invite in return (from whom, except for the favor, the episcopal hand hopes for nothing else), but rather soldiers and those girded with a sword, and judges, with centurions and troops standing guard before their doors, the priest of Christ invites to the meal. The whole clergy runs through the city: they seek to display to judges what they cannot find in their own praetoriums, or certainly what they have found but do not buy. Nor indeed should it be thought that this invective is directed generally at everyone; but rather that the prophetic discourse strikes those who are such, and threatens them with punishments and eternal darkness: so that those who are not bound by shame and modesty may at least take action in repentance through the threat of punishment.
LXX: Approach the eternal mountains. By eternal mountains, we can understand either angels or prophets, about whom it is also written in the psalm: His foundations are on the holy mountains (Ps. 86:1). And in another place: I lift up my eyes to the mountains; from where shall my help come? (Ibid. 120:1). But he approaches the eternal mountains who is not separated from the company of the blessed by his own sins, just as Moses approached God, not by place, but by merit. And to those who approached the eternal mountains, the Lord himself spoke. I am a God who is near, and not a God from afar (Jer. XXIII, 23). But the eternal mountains are called so to distinguish them from those that are not eternal, namely the beginning of the dark mountains of this world, which when they are raised up like the cedars of Lebanon and pass away with the world, their place cannot be found.
LXX: Arise and walk, for there is no rest for you here. We are commanded to think of no rest in worldly things; but, as if rising from the dead, to strive for the heavenly, and to walk after our Lord God, and to say: My soul clings to you (Ps. 62:9). But if we neglect and refuse to listen to the one saying: Awake, you who sleep, and arise from the dead, and Christ will enlighten you (Eph. 5:14), we will indeed sleep, but we will be deceived, and we will not find rest because where Christ does not illuminate one rising up, what appears to be rest is tribulation.
LXX: Because of uncleanness, you have been consumed by corruption. For what we have said, you have been consumed; according to the Greek understanding, in Latin it can sound as 'you have been corrupted', so that there is order, because of uncleanness you have been corrupted by corruption. However, this is said to those who, serving the pleasure of the body and lust, corrupt not only the soul but also their own body, lovers of pleasures rather than lovers of God. He could also say, because of your uncleanness, you were corrupted, and even your understanding would have been filled without corruption. But now, because he says, you are corrupted by corruption, it seems to me that he is speaking of beneficial corruption. Along the lines of which the Apostle also speaks: And if our outward man is corrupted, yet the inward man is renewed day by day (II Cor. IV, 16). The one who always carries the death of Jesus in his body, and corrupts the external man, and subjects the flesh to the control of the soul, he is indeed corrupted, but not by corruption, because his corruption is of a beneficial nature.
You fled, with no one pursuing. It is said of those who, because of the filth of corruption, have been corrupted, that their conscience, even without punishment, does not dare to resist enemies and fight.
And so, they are expelled from the camp and repelled from the battle line, in order to not terrify the minds of their brethren, the fearful ones in the battle of the saints (Deut. 20), and in the curses of Leviticus, a word is directed towards such men: The voice of a flying leaf shall pursue you, and you shall flee, with none pursuing you (Lev. 26:36). I know that I have read in certain commentaries, explaining the beginning of the Gospel of John: All things were made through him, and without him was made nothing, that they have attributed this saying, 'nothing,' to wickedness, and furthermore, that they have interpreted wickedness itself as the devil, and in that same sense, they have understood that which was made without Christ, as nothing, as the devil. Therefore, if malice or the devil is nothing, and those who have been corrupted by corruption have fled, with no one, that is, nothing pursuing, the devil has pursued them into nothingness. But if this seems too forced to anyone, and contrary to the simplicity of Scripture, let him rather follow the skill of speech than a true interpretation, or let him follow the former exposition or any other he may discover.
2:11-12
(Verse 11, 12.) I wish I were not a man with a spirit, and I spoke lies instead. I will pour for you into wine and into drunkenness, and this people on whom it is poured will be overcome. I will gather Jacob together, I will gather all of you: I will bring the remnants of Israel together.
And in this chapter, the Septuagint interpreters differ greatly from Hebrew. Therefore, let us first explain according to what has been handed down to us by the Hebrews, and then, if the Lord wills, we will discuss their translations. O Jewish people, to whom belong the promises, the covenants, the law, and from whom Christ came according to the flesh (Rom. 9), to whom, facing the imminent Babylonians or Romans, I have said: Rise up and go into captivity, for there is no rest for you in this land, which will be devastated by its own wickedness in the final destruction. Do not think that I am unwilling to speak and preach joyfully, for I see the coming of the Lord. I myself would wish to be accursed for the sake of my brethren, the Israelites (Rom. 9:3). I wish I could speak of my own understanding, and not have the Holy Spirit; and be counted among the false prophets, and perish alone, and not have the things I say be true: and such a multitude would believe in the Son of God, and not be handed over to eternal captivity. But because I speak with the spirit of prophecy, and am sent from divinity (or truth), I proclaim the truth: therefore I will pour out my words to you like bitter wine that intoxicates you and makes you fall. But while I am still dripping, and singing of the evil of the future captivity, this people will receive my rain, whether they want it or not, for it has the capability to endure what I say. And do not think, that I am only a prophet of evils (although great evils indeed), for now the predicted captivity will come; but behold, in me the word speaks, a word that is applicable to all the prophets. For when the prophet is silent, he does not speak, and now he says: I will come, and I will assume a human body, I will be born of a Virgin. Either this: Because I came in the humility of flesh, and you did not believe in me, I will come in the consummation of the world in my majesty with the angels and other powers, and then I will gather you, Jacob, completely. Then I will bring together the remnants of Israel and join them together with the people of the nations in my fold. Then I will surround you with a most strong wall, and there will be such a multitude of believers and such a commotion among the sheepfold that the number of sheep will be overcome by the abundance. Lest you possibly think, because I said, I will place him like a flock in a sheepfold, and like a herd in a stable, that I am speaking of sheep, understand that these sheep are men. For it follows: They will be troubled by the multitude of men. Tumult is the voice of many, and the shout of an excessive multitude equally emitted: let us not think it is the voice of one man, but the common voice of all, praising the good shepherd, who has leveled every difficulty and made it equal with his foot, he himself is the gate of paradise, and says: I am the gate: by which, dividing and preceding the journey, and the gate of the way, the believing flock will pass through him. But this shepherd is a king and Lord. Hence follows: And their king shall pass before them, and the Lord at the head of them. And if we wish to understand all these things about His first coming, and the whole of Jacob and the remnant of Israel as signifying the apostles, and that multitude saved out of the Jews which is recorded in the Acts of the Apostles, we shall not depart from the truth in the interpretation of the expositor. For the Lord has truly gathered these together in His sheepfold, and has placed them in the midst of the folds, and has gone before them, and has brought them into the Church, and has been their king before them, and shall be the Lord at the head of them for ever.
LXX: The spirit establishes a falsehood. It drips into wine and drunkenness, and it will be from the drop of this people, Jacob will be gathered together. Not, as many think, the spirit stood as a liar; but the spirit establishes a falsehood, it is read, which in Greek is called πνεῦμα ἔστησε ψευδὲς, that is, deception. Just as in putrid wounds, so that cancer does not spread and devour the dead flesh, doctors establish and burn the wound with a cautery, or with a caustic powder: in the same way, the spirit of God has set a limit to falsehood, so that the people of God are not overthrown by the voices of false prophets. But the Spirit, wherever it is mentioned without addition, should be understood in a good sense, as we have often said, and now we will partially explain, so that no one should be in doubt. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace (Galatians 5:22). And: If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit (Galatians 6:25). And elsewhere: But if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live (Romans 8:13). And in the Old Testament: Giving breath to the people who are in it, and spirit to those who tread on it (Isaiah XLII): without doubt from what comes before that it signifies the earth. For those who trample earthly works and subject them to their feet, certainly deserve to receive not an evil, but a good spirit. On the contrary, an evil spirit is always read with an additional clause, as in this passage: But when the unclean spirit has gone out of a man (Matthew XII, 43). And in another place: He rebuked the unclean spirit (Luke 9:43). And: An evil spirit came upon Saul (1 Samuel 16:14), and similar things to these. Therefore, the Spirit of God, who puts an end to deceit in false prophets, will pour into you wine and drunkenness. Wine that gladdens the heart of man (Psalm 104); and drunkenness with which Noah was intoxicated, and of which it is said: Eat, O friends, and drink until drunk (Song of Solomon 5:1). But all this joy and drunkenness, in comparison to the wisdom of God, is like a heavenly river that waters Jerusalem, it is a drop, and a very small drop. The wisdom of God will not hesitate to call a drop in men, those who have gathered a stone cut from a mountain without hands (Dan. II), and the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the Apostles themselves have known in part, and have prophesied in part (I Cor. XIII, 9). Therefore, concerning this wisdom, that is, concerning the tribe of the Jewish people (for He came only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel), Jacob was gathered: every one who supplants Esau and steals his birthright and blessing, and even before he is born, in his mother's womb, he attacks the heel of his hairy brother.
LXX: When I receive the remnant of Israel with all the Gentiles, and the entire world is brought to my faith, and the fullness of the Gentiles enters, then the remnant of Israel will also be saved, not those remnants about which it is written in the Book of Kings: I have left for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed their knees to Baal (3 Kings 19:18). And concerning them, Paul says: Therefore, even in this present time, the remnants according to the election of grace have been saved (Romans 11:5); concerning whom, the prophet testifies above: And he will gather together the remnant of his people from this drop of water, Jacob will be gathered together. But those remaining, who after all have been received, will be received in the end by God. And concerning them it is now said: 'Gathering the rest of Israel, I will surely receive all, just as it is written: God will conclude all under sin, and have mercy on all.' (Rom. 11:32).
LXX: I will make their destruction like that of sheep in distress. The remaining ones of Israel, whom I will take in after I have taken in all, I will take in: now in the meantime, because they have turned away from me, I will put them in distress, and I will oppress them, and I will make them sit, without priest, without altar, and without prophet: so that those whom they did not perceive through blessings, they may understand through punishments.
LXX: Like a flock in the midst of their fold: it is understood, I will set. Not only, he says, will their aversion, by which they have turned away from me, be set like a flock in tribulation; but after they have been troubled and the time of distress has been completed, they will be set at rest, that is, in their fold. And then (now) they will migrate from men and surpass the state of human condition, and fulfill what follows: They will rise up from among men. Not only they will leap out and go away, but all those to whom the word of God comes, and who, forsaking human vices, imitate the behavior of the divine, and hear: I said, you are gods, and all of you children of the Most High, they will leap out from among men, and be carried as if to heaven.
LXX: Ascend by division. The present passage has a sort of proper beginning and apostrophe of prophetic discourse, speaking to someone who wishes to be saved and commanding them to ascend by division. This will be made clearer if we take an example from Genesis, where twins are born to Tamar, with whom the patriarch Judah had relations: 'And it came to pass, when she travailed, that one put out his hand: and the midwife took and bound upon his hand a scarlet thread, saying, This came out first.' But when he withdrew his hand, his brother came out, and she said, 'Why has the wall been divided because of you?' And she called his name Perez, which means division. And after this his brother came out with the scarlet thread on his hand, and she called his name Zerah, which in our language means seed or east (Gen. XXXVIII, 27, seqq.). Therefore, the elder people showed with their hand, in which there was origin and seed before the Church was born from the nations, and afterwards they withdrew it, hearing the words of Isaiah: For your hands are full of blood (Isai. I, 15). And when he pulled back his hand, and ceased from the works of justice, his brother went out among the nations. And because of him the fence was divided, and the Lord and Saviour destroyed the wall in the middle, and the barrier that separated two peoples: and he made one flock, and in himself he created two, making peace in the new man. Hence the prophetic midwife speaks to the younger people, saying to Phares: Why was the wall divided because of you? If you understand the example from Genesis, ascend to be saved not through the old people who have a contracted hand, but through the new people, in whom is the way of Christ, in whom is the door Jesus, through whom we walk toward the Father, for he himself broke through the middle wall and partition, that is, the darkness of the old prophets, and opened all the sacraments of the ancient Law, and by dispelling the difficulty of walking, revealed the way to the eyes of all: so that whoever wants to proceed is not entangled by any obstacle, nor is he terrified by the darkness of obscurity.
LXX: Before their face they divided and passed through the gate, and went out through it. Their king went out before their face: but the Lord their prince (Heb. shall be) before them. Therefore I said to you: Ascend through the division, you who have risen with Christ, and seek those things that are above: because the Angels, whether the Father and Son, and Holy Spirit, have divided what seemed to obstruct, and have made a way for those who wish to enter, and because they have invaded the path, not only have they entered the gate, but they have also passed through it. But they entered because their king also entered the same gate, and he opened for them the way, so that they could walk without any difficulty. For he himself is the Lord, and king, and shepherd, and the way and the gate, and he says: I am the gate: through me whoever enters will be saved: he will enter and he will go out, and he will find pastures. (John 10:9). Concerning this gate, it is also prophesied elsewhere: This is the gate of the Lord, the righteous shall enter through it. (Psalm 127:20). But whoever enters, should not remain in the state in which they entered; but should go out to the pastures, so that in entering there may be a beginning, in going out and in finding pastures, there may be the perfection of virtues. Whoever enters is still in the world, and through creatures understands the Creator. But whoever goes out, transcends the whole creation, and considering all that can be seen as nothing, will find pastures above the heavens, and will feed on the word of God, and will say: The Lord feeds me, and I shall lack nothing (Psalm 23:1). This is why, in order to understand the Gospel testimony: He will enter and He will go out, and will find pasture; and what is now said through the Prophet: And they passed through the gate, and went out through it: which passage and going out, however, cannot be attributed to our king and Lord Christ, who is king and Lord. For immediately it is connected: But the Lord shall be the Prince.
3:1-4
(Chapter III, verses 1 and following) And I said: Listen, leaders of Jacob, and rulers of the house of Israel. Is it not for you to know judgment, you who hate good and love evil, who violently take off their skin from them, and their flesh from their bones, who have eaten the flesh of my people, and have stripped off their skin from them, and have broken their bones and cut them up like meat in a pot. Then they will cry out to the Lord, but he will not answer them; he will hide his face from them at that time, because they have acted wickedly in their deeds. Clearly, this speech is directed against the princes of Israel, and under the metaphor of lions or robbers, their cruelty is described: that they have plundered the poor, killed them, broken their flesh and bones, and afflicted the miserable people of Jerusalem as if in the midst of a pot. And because of these things, punishment will be brought upon them later on the day of captivity, either by Nebuchadnezzar or by Vespasian and Titus. And they cry out to the Lord, but He does not hear them, and He hides His face from them, because they have acted wickedly in their crimes.
LXX: And he will say: Listen to these things, leaders of the house of Jacob, and the rest of the house of Israel. The idea clings to what precedes. For he had said before: But the Lord will be a leader, and he will say: Listen, leaders of the house of Jacob, and the rest of the house of Israel. Regarding the rest of the house of Israel, except for the Seventy, all the leaders of the house of Israel have passed away. Therefore, the Lord who made a way for his people, and went before them, is the leader of the simpler journey of the people, whom he calls a flock: to those who do not want to follow the easier path, but act arrogantly, and do not follow the footsteps of that judge of the people, he threatens and says: Listen, leaders of the house of Jacob, and leaders of the house of Israel. But why is it that they are determined to hear? It is not your place, he says, to know judgment, you who hate good and seek evil: that is, you do not deserve to understand the judgment that is a bottomless pit; and the twisted mind of justice does not find the depths of his righteousness. Or how can you know the judgment of God, you who hate good, how can you know the judgment of God, you who hate good and seek evil, you who detest the holy poor, and honor sinful rich? At the same time, let us consider the significance of words: to not love good is a sin; how great a wickedness is it to even hate? And conversely, if one does not flee from evil, it is a fault; how great an impiety is it to even diligently inquire? After this, the cruelty of judges is described, and the cruelty towards those who are subject.
LXX: They will take their skins from them, and their flesh from their bones. Just as they devoured the flesh of my people, and peeled the skin from them, and broke their bones, and cut them up like meat in a kettle, so they will cry out to the Lord, but he will not listen to them, and he will turn his face away from them at that time, because they have acted wickedly in their inventions. It was not enough to plunder the helpless flock; they also afflicted their bodies with a harsh rule, and broke their bones, so that they would break and crush whatever happened to be in them. So how they plundered my people and stripped them of all beauty and adornment of skin, and put flesh and bones into a boiling pot, which the Assyrian king lit, delivering my flock to the devil and his angels: so they themselves, when the day of vengeance comes, will cry out to the Lord, and they will not be heard, because they did not hear those who were praying: and they will stretch out their hands to the Lord, and God will turn his face away from them, because they also turned their face away from those who were praying. And all these things suffer, because they acted very badly in their studies and pleasures: and they were not kings, but tyrants: not leaders, but lions: not masters of disciples, but wolves of sheep, and they satisfied themselves with flesh, and they became fat, and like the fattest victim of slaughter, and prepared for the punishments of the Lord. So far against evil rulers: but the following discourse is against false prophets and very bad teachers, who deceive the people of God with flattery, promising knowledge of the Scriptures.
3:5-8
(V. 5 seq.) This is what the Lord says about the prophets who deceive my people: they bite with their teeth and proclaim peace. But if someone does not give them something to eat, they declare war against him. Therefore, night will be for you instead of a vision and darkness instead of divination. The sun will go down on the prophets and the day will be darkened for them. Those who see visions will be put to shame, and the diviners will be confounded. They will all cover their faces because there is no answer from God. However, I am filled with the power of the spirit of the Lord, with justice and strength, to proclaim Jacob's wickedness and Israel's sin. LXX: Thus says the Lord concerning the prophets who deceive my people, who bite with their teeth and proclaim peace, but there is no word from their mouths. They have sanctified a battle against him. Therefore, night shall be to you instead of vision, and darkness instead of divination. The sun shall go down on the prophets, and the day shall be dark for them. Those who see dreams shall be confused, and the soothsayers shall be mocked. All these will speak against them because there is no one who listens to them. Only I will fill them with the power of the spirit of the Lord, with justice and strength, to proclaim Jacob's wickedness and Israel's sins. We read that there were false prophets in Israel, who, because they lacked the gift of peace, which was not given to them, preached, and if someone did not give gifts, even if he was holy, they would announce that the wrath of God would come upon him. Therefore, it is now said to them that they speak falsehoods, and their words are not prophecy, but false divination: they do not have light, but darkness and error. And when the opposite of what they promised is fulfilled, then they will be covered in confusion, because, it is said, there was no answer from God.
Now neither can the power of demons deceive, to deceive them by their own deceit. The oracles will be silent, the unclean spirit will be silent, and it will not dare to mock. This is about false prophets. Again, a speech is introduced about the prophet speaking of himself, while they falsely predict, and with confusion and disgrace hidden, I, who speak, speak from the Holy Spirit, and I speak the judgment of the Lord and the power of truth. And when false prophets bite with their teeth and proclaim peace, I fearlessly proclaim the wickedness of Jacob and the sin of Israel; for they have worshipped either idols or crucified the Son of God. But if we wish to follow the Septuagint, which is said concerning heretics who are truly false prophets and say, 'Thus says the Lord,' and the Lord did not send them, we will not be led astray. For they deceive the people of God by their former error, and they do this in order to consume them, either simply by accepting gifts or mystically in the slaughter of their souls, and they promise them peace and heavenly kingdoms and say, 'You do not need to live constantly and holy, have faith in what we teach and you will attain all the promises of the Lord.' Those who speak these things, rather than appeasing the wrath of the Lord, actually provoke it and sanctify the battle against them. Therefore, O heretics, who think you have prophecy, and you imitate the Church of God, where you deem there to be vision, there it will harm you; and where you boast of prophetic prediction, there the unclean spirit will speak. For the sun of justice will kill such prophets, and they will see their darkness and be confounded. And when they are shown to be more divine than prophets, they will laugh at their dreams, and the people who were previously deceived by them will speak against them. Then even the teachers themselves will repent, and no one will listen to them except me whom they have offended. And because I am merciful and do not desire the death of the sinner (Ezek. XVIII), but rather want them to turn back and live, when I hear them, I will give them the power of my spirit, and I will fill them with my judgment and strength, so that those who previously deceived the people with flattery will later deter them by proclaiming the truth and lead them back to the right path, and those who were the cause of error will begin to heal the wounds they have inflicted and become a source of healing. Take note, in the present place, that someone can be taught after sin, if indeed they have washed away their previous sins with worthy penance. Hence, even David speaks after adultery and murder in the psalm: You will sprinkle me with hyssop and I shall be cleansed; You will wash me, and I shall be made whiter than snow. He is not satisfied with his own purity alone, but adds: Restore to me the joy of your salvation and strengthen me with a generous spirit. And when you have done this, he says, I will teach the wicked your ways, and the impious will be converted to you (Psalm 50).