The Prophecy to Zechariah
He subjected them to bondage and treated them with contempt; for the timbrel has the form of a dead skin.
These are beaten and struck by the five prudent virgins, according to that which is sung in Psalm 67:5: 'Princes have gone before, singing in the midst of young women, timbrel players.'
The Hebrew women used the interpreted timbrels after they had departed from Egypt and crossed the Red Sea, of whom the prophetess Miriam, sister of Moses and Aaron, came forth, having taken the timbrels of themselves in hand; singing triumphantly in accordance with the choir leader, they said: 'I will sing to the Lord, for He has been gloriously exalted; He has cast horse and rider into the sea' (Exodus 15:1), and the following until the end of the song.
For it is not even probable to think that such a multitude of timbrels could be found in a completely desert place with such myriads of women, it being quite possible that the timbrels spoken of allegorically have already been found in more advanced years among the God-fearing, especially spurred on toward the spiritual dance, from which they have been seen to have happened paradoxically for the sake of becoming outside of Egypt.
And they are given by those having received the psalms with the timbrel and a pleasant harp along with lyres, joined to the powers of the soul and the senses toward the divine melody; but sobriety is necessary so that one does not take false instruments and songs, which God rejects, saying: 'Turn away from me the sound of your songs, and I will not hear the melody of your instruments' (Amos 5:23).
He who turns away from what is rejected by God sings and chants praiseworthily, according to the exhortation of the writing Apostle: 'Speaking to one another in psalms, spiritual songs, singing and chanting in the heart' (Ephesians 5:19).
After the crown into the graces of Zephaniah and into the psalm in the house of the Lord, these existing, those who are still far off from the captives will arrive in order to approach the one who has proclaimed to them forgiveness; and praising, they say 'they shall build in the house of the Lord,' in order that they may serve continually in the manner of priests, according to the blessed prophet Samuel.
And each shall be completed, being fulfilled through vision, when the useful ones, having heard, shall hear the voice of the Lord, and having known the cause of the gap which they waited for for a time.
Those who approached and those being far away, the ones who received benefits in the house, they hear the practical things and the mysteries of the kingdom, the priestly iniquities, the things set forth by the Lord Pantokrator.
In the fourth year of Darius the king, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah on the fourth day of the ninth month, who is Chashaleu (Zechariah 7:1-3). The king and his men sent to Bethle Sahara and Arbess to appease the Lord, saying to the priests in the house of the Lord Pantokrator and to the prophets, saying: 'The holy offering has come here in the fifth month, just as I have already done for sufficient years.'
In the fourth year of the captivity, he sent to Arbess and the men to appease the Lord, saying: 'The holy offering, the service, according to the fourth year of the beginning of Darius, to be recorded'; some were being falsely written and being refuted in public.
Some, supposedly of prophecy, having turned away, were written in the Hebrew voice, the number nine upon the receiving in the ninth month.
Greek
ἐδουλαγώγησεν καὶ ὑπωπίασεν· τὸ γὰρ τύμπανον ἐκ δορᾶς νεκροῦ ζῳ´̣ου τὴν κατασκευὴν ἔχει. 2.81 Τοῦτο ψοφοῦσι καὶ κροαίνουσιν αἱ δᾳδουχοῦσαι πέντε φρόνιμοι παρθένοι, κατὰ τὸ ᾀδ̣όμενον ἐν ἑξηκοστῷ καὶ ἑβδόμῳ Ψαλμῷ· «Προέφθασαν ἀ´̣ρχοντες ἐχόμενα ψαλλόντων ἐν μέσῳ νεανίδ̣ων τυμπανιστριῶν.» 2.82 Τοῖς ἡρμηνευμένοις τυμπάνοις̣ ἐχρῶντο μετὰ τὸ ἐξιέναι τῆς Αἰγύπτου καὶ περᾶσαι τὴν Ἐρυθρὰν θάλασσαν αἱ ἑβραῖαι γυναῖκες, ὧν ἐξῆρχεν ἡ π̣ροφῆτις Μαριάμ, ἀδελφὴ Μωϋσέως καὶ Ἀαρών, λαβοῦσαι χερ̣σὶν τὰ τύμπανα ἑαυτῶν· συμφώνως τῇ χοροδιδασκάλῳ ἐπ̣ινικίως μέλπουσαι, ἔφασκον· «Ἄισωμεν τῷ Κυρίῳ, ἐνδόξως γὰρ δεδόξασται· ἵππον καὶ ἀναβάτην ἔρριψεν εἰς θάλασσαν», καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς μέχρι τοῦ τέλους τῆς ᾠδῆς. 2.83 Οὐ γὰρ κἂν πιθανόν ἐστιν νομίζειν τοσοῦτο πλῆθος τυμπάνων ηὐπορῆσθαι ἐν τόπῳ πανερήμῳ ταῖς τοσαύταις μυριάσιν τῶν γυναικῶν, δυνατοῦ τυγχάνοντος πάνυ εὑρεθῆναι τὰ κατ' ἀλληγορίαν λεχθέντα τύμπαν̣α ταῖς ἔτεσιν πλείοσιν ἤδη ἀνηγμέναις θεοσεβῶς, π̣αρορμωμέναις μάλιστα πρὸς τὴν πνευματικὴν χορείαν ἐξ ὧν τεθέανται παραδόξως γεγενημένων ὑπὲρ τοῦ ἔξω τῆς Αἰγύπτου γενέσθαι. 2.84 ∆ίδοται δὲ ὑπὸ τῶν ψαλμὸν δεξ̣αμένων πρὸς τῷ τυμπάνῳ καὶ ψαλτήριον τερπνὸν μετὰ κιθάρας, συνηρμοσμένα πρὸς τῶν δυνάμεων τῆς ψυχῆς καὶ αἰσθήσεων πρὸς τὴν θείαν μελῳδίαν, νήψεως δὲ χρεία ἵνα μὴ ψεκτὰ ὄργανα καὶ ᾠδὰς λάβῃ τις ἃ παραιτεῖται Θεὸς λέγων· 2.85 «Μετάστησον ἀπ' ἐμοῦ ἦχον ᾠδῶν σου, καὶ ψαλμὸν ὀργάνων σου οὐκ ἀκούσομαι.» Ὁ τὰ παραιτητὰ τῷ Θεῷ ἀποστραφεὶς ψάλλε̣ι καὶ ᾄδει ἐπαινετῶς, κατὰ προτροπὴν τοῦ γράφοντος Ἀποστόλου· «Λαλοῦντες ἑαυτοῖς ψαλμοῖς, ᾠδαῖς πνευματικαῖς, ᾄδοντες καὶ ψάλλοντες τῇ καρδίᾳ.» 2.86 Μετὰ τὸ στέφος εἰς χάριτα Σοφονίου καὶ εἰς ψαλμὸν ἐν οἴκῳ Κυρίου, τούτων ὑπαρξάντων, οἱ ἔτι μακρὰν ὄντες τῶν αἰχμαλώτων ἥξουσιν ἐπὶ τῷ συνεγγίσαι τῷ κηρύξαντι αὐτοῖς ἄφεσιν· ἐπαινοῦντες δὲ «οἰκοδομήσουσιν ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ τοῦ Κυρίου», ἵνα διακονω῀̣σιν διηνεκῶς ἱερέων δίκην, κατὰ τὸν μακάριον προφήτην Σαμουήλ. 2.87 Τελεσθήσεται δ' ἕκαστα πληρούμενα δ̣ιὰ ὁράσεως ὅταν «εἰσακούσαντες εἰσακούσωσιν τῆς φωνῆς Κυρίου» οἱ χρήσιμοι καὶ ἐπεγνωκότες τὴν αἰτίαν κα······λ̣μον ἧς ὑπέμειναν πρὸς καιρὸν ························· λην. 2.88 Οἱ πλησιάσαντες τῷ ······················ καὶ μακρὰν ὄντες οἱ ······························ οἴκῳ πρακτικὰς καὶ δ······························· ας, μυστήρια τῆς βασιλείας ······················ ἀδικήματα ἱερέων εἶναι······························· μιν εἰσακούουσιν ································· τῶν εἰρημένων̣ τελεστ̣····························· ται οἱ εὐεργετηθέντες ···························· προκείμενα παρὰ Κυρίου παντοκράτορος. 2.89 Zach. VII, 1®3: Καὶ ἐγένετο ἐν τῷ τετάρτῳ ἔτει ἐπὶ ∆αρείου τοῦ βασιλέως ἐγένετο λόγος Κυρίου πρὸς Ζαχαρίαν τετράδι τοῦ μηνὸς τοῦ ἐνάτου, ὅς ἐστιν Χασ̣ελεύ· καὶ ἐξαπέστειλεν εἰς Βαιθὴλ Σαράσαρ καὶ Ἀρβεσσὲρ ὁ βασιλεὺς καὶ οἱ ἄνδρες αὐτοῦ τοῦ ἐξιλάσασθαι τὸν Κύριον λέγων πρὸς τοὺς ἱερεῖς τοὺς ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ Κυρίου παντοκράτορος καὶ πρὸς τοὺς προφήτας λέγων· Εἰσελήλυθεν ὧδε ἐν τῷ μηνὶ τῷ πέμπτῳ τὸ ἁγίασμα, καθότι ἐποίησα ἤδη ἱκανὰ ἔτη. 2.9091 Ἐν τῷ τετάρτῳ 51 ··················· αἰχμαλωσι········································· μηνὸς τ········································ στειλεν σ······································· Ἀρβεσσε`̣ρ ······································ καὶ οἱ ἄνδρες ···································· τοῦ ἐξιλάσασθαι ·································· λατρι·········································· λέγων̣ ···································· ἁγίασμα Κυρίου ει································ λειτουργία ········································ κατὰ τ·········································· 2.92 ························ τετάρτῳ τῆς ∆αρείου ἀρχῆς ···························· ἀναγράφεσθαι τοὺς ································ ψευδογράφωσί τινες ····························· ε᾿̣λ̣εγχομένων τῶν τυ······························σθαι ἐν τοῖς δημοσίοις 2.93 ···························ενας δῆθεν προφητείας· ·······························αι ηποστη̣·ουμενος ··························· ἐγράφη Ἑβραίων φωνῇ ······························· ἐννέα ἀριθμὸς ἐπὶ ·······························τ̣η παραλαμβανομε2.94 ··························εται ἐν τῷ ἐννάτῳ μηνὶ ········································· μηνὸς
About this text
Didymus the Blind on Zechariah.
Catalogue & scope
Khazarzar scan
Witnesses
- Copy-text PG (Khazarzar) (Greek)
This is an AI-assisted study translation. Source fidelity and completeness have not been independently certified. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.