Fragments on the Psalms · §127

God as Refuge and the Hope of Youth

Hope is held toward a person. One must strive, for the Lord holds hope; for blessed is the man who has trusted in the Lord (Ps 40:4), and he will be the Lord's hope. For this hope is living; therefore it is written, 'Born again into a living hope' (1 Pet 1:3). It has been said by the one possessing it, 'Not to be put to shame through the ages; and in your righteousness save me and bring me out' (Ps 7:10). God saves in righteousness those who hasten to be outside of iniquities, just as in wisdom He takes to Himself those who desire to possess it. And he who says the things set forth prays to be saved and to be set apart even from those who do wrong, 'Stand fast.' It seems appropriate to apply this to those mentioned in the prophecy 'For the sake of other captives' (Ps 141:7); for they do not justly demand to be saved and set apart. For some were doing wrong, but the Israelites did no wrong. It shall also be said thus: since practical virtue is named righteousness, and every sin in practice is injustice from the opposite, he who loves God deserves to be saved from injustice, while he who hates his own soul. And the testimony of saying thus of universal virtue, 'Walking blamelessly and working righteousness,' and the testimony of calling universal sin 'injustice,' is found in: 'I hated and detested injustice' (Ps 52:9), and 'The blood of Jesus Christ will cleanse us from all injustice' (1 John 1:7). He who wishes to surpass the shadow according to the law says this, believing in Jesus Christ, so that he might be found not having in himself his own righteousness from the law, but the righteousness of God, counted as righteous. O Lord, not of much superiority toward the creatures, but especially toward us humans, we are not strong enough to reach your ears with the prayers we offer; therefore I entreat you by much goodness to incline your way of condescension toward me, so that you might save me, receiving the prayer concerning salvation. Of many desiring to fight me, become my defender; cover me with your shield, concerning which it is said, 'His truth shall surround you with a shield' (Ps 5:12). And since I want you to be for me all things, to become for me an invincible fortress and an unshakeable bulwark, most fortified.

You are a place where I remain outside of all fear from enemies, my refuge and my stronghold. Regarding Ps 70:4, the hand of a sinner is a sinful practice from which it is worthy to be rescued, so that he may not act according to it to any extent. Likewise, when one transgresses and acts wickedly, the effective energies of his actions are placed outside of him, having been rescued by God. Whether the sinner himself or another is the subject of the transgressing and acting wickedly, examine this. For it seems to incline toward the two, if a sinner who transgresses and acts wickedly exists. But if the devil is meant by these names, his hand must be seized and his military-like power must be arranged against every evil and unclean spirit. He who is rescued from the hand of those things, having become under the mighty hand of God, is snatched by nothing from it.

Just as God is the wisdom and power of the holy one, so also He is the endurance and hope of the one enduring unto salvation and hoping in Him. For it is said about these things in the 70th Psalm, 'But now where is my hope? Is it not the Lord?' (Ps 70:5) and in the 71st, 'My hope is in God, the hope of all the ends of the earth' (Ps 71:5). One must oversee 'My hope' from youth, being able to demonstrate how one, having been brought up according to God from infancy, has never possessed any hope other than God. And in addition to this, you will say that from youth there is some hope in God, from which, having stripped off the old man, you put on the new and fresh man, created according to God in holiness and knowledge of the truth.

Regarding Ps 70:6ab, 'From the womb from my mother's belly' must be understood wisely, not meaning from the time of birth, but rather then moving logically and God-fearingly regarding the one being born; for it is written, 'Even Samuel, before knowing God' (1 Sam 3:7), although he was brought up God-fearingly from tender nails by God-fearing parents. For the children of men have a time from which they are able to move logically. The great Moses says in the wilderness, 'And all the children with us today will not enter into the land of promise, if indeed they do not enter good or evil' (Num 14:29-30). The children do not know good or evil before the fulfillment of the decisive word, how those who know God in this age do so, just as...

Greek

ἐλπίδα ε χει ἐπ' α νθρωπον. ο θεν σπουδαστέον τὸν κύριον ε χειν ἐλπίδα· Εὐλογημένος γὰρ ὁ α νθρωπος ο ς πέποιθεν ἐπὶ τῷ κυρίῳ, καὶ ε σται κύριος ἐλπὶς αὐτοῦ. ζῶσα γὰρ αυ τη ἡ ἐλπίς· διὸ γέγραπται ̓Αναγεγεννημένοι εἰς ἐλπίδα ζῶσαν. ο θεν ει ρηται ὑπὸ τοῦ ε χοντος αὐτὴν Οὐ καταισχυνθείην εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα· καὶ ἐν τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ σου ῥῦσαί με καὶ ἐξελοῦ με. ̔Ρύεται ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ θεὸς τοὺς σπεύδοντας ει ναι ἐκτὸς ἀδικημάτων, ὡς ἐν σοφίᾳ τοὺς ποθοῦντας ἀναλαμβάνειν αὐτήν. εἰ δὲ 138 καὶ ἐξ ἀδικούντων ἀνθρώπων ευ χεται ῥυσθῆναι καὶ ἐξαιρεθῆναι ὁ τὰ προκείμενα λέγων, ἐπίστησον. δοκεῖ γὰρ ἀκολουθίαν ε χειν τὸ ὑποβαλεῖν τοῦτο τοῖς ἐν τῇ προγραφῇ εἰρημένοις Περὶ τῶν αἰχμαλωτισθέντων α λλων χάριν· δικαίως γὰρ ου τοι ῥυσθῆναι καὶ ἐξαιρεθῆναι ἀπαιτοῦσιν. οἱ μὲν γὰρ ἠδίκουν, οἱ δὲ ̓Ισραηλῖται οὐδὲν ἠδίκησαν. Λελέξεται καὶ ω δε· ἐπεὶ ἡ πρακτικὴ ἀρετὴ δικαιοσύνη ὀνομαζομένη καὶ ἐκ τοῦ ἐναντίου ἀδικία πᾶσα ἡ ἐν πράξεσιν ἁμαρτία, ἐν τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ ἀξιοῖ ῥυσθῆναι ἐκ τῆς ἀδικίας η ν ὁ ἀγαπῶν μισεῖ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ψυχήν. μαρτυρία δὲ τοῦ τὴν καθόλου ἀρετὴν ου τως εἰρῆσθαι τὸ Πορευόμενος α μωμος καὶ ἐργαζόμενος δικαιοσύνην, τοῦ δὲ τὴν καθόλου ἁμαρτίαν προσαγορεύεσθαι ἀδικίαν μαρτυρία τὸ ̓Αδικίαν ἐμίσησα καὶ ἐβδελυξάμην, καὶ Τὸ αι μα ̓Ιησοῦ Χριστοῦ καθαρίσει ἡμᾶς ἀπὸ πάσης ἀδικίας. ̓Ερεῖ τὴν φωνὴν καὶ ὁ ὑπερβῆναι βουλόμενος τὴν κατὰ τὸν νόμον σκιάν, ι να σχῇ θεοῦ δικαιοσύνην πιστεύσας εἰς ̓Ιησοῦν Χριστὸν, ο πως εὑρεθῇ μὴ ε χων ἐν ἑαυτῷ ἰδίαν δικαιοσύνην τὴν ἐκ τοῦ νόμου ἀλλὰ τὴν θεοῦ τὴν εἰς δικαιοσύνην λελογισμένην. 733a Ps 70,2b Πολλῆς ὑπεροχῆς ου σης σου, ω δέσποτα, πρὸς τὰ κτίσματα, μάλιστα δὲ πρὸς ἡμᾶς τοὺς ἀνθρώπους κράζειν τοσοῦτον, οὐ σθένομεν τοῦ φθάνειν εἰς τὰ ω τά σου τὸν προσευχὴν η ν ἀναπέμπομεν· διὸ παρακαλῶ ἀγαθότητι πολλῇ κλῖναί σε τρόπῳ συγκαταβάσεως τὸ ου ς σου πρὸς μέ, ι να σώσῃς με δεξάμενος τὴν περὶ σωτηρίας δέησίν μου. 734a Ps 70,3 Πολλῶν πολεμεῖν με θελόντων, ὑπερασπιστής μου γενοῦ σκέπων με τῇ σῇ ἀσπίδι περὶ η ς ει ρηται Οπλῳ κυκλώσει σε ἡ ἀλήθεια αὐτοῦ. καὶ ἐπειδὴ σὲ θέλω ει ναί μοι πάντα, καὶ φρούριον ἀκαταμάχητον καὶ ε ρυμα ἀκαθαίρετον γενοῦ μοι, ι ν' ὀχυρώτατον τόπον σε ε χων παντὸς φόβου τοῦ ἀπὸ ἐχθρῶν ἐκτὸς μένω, σοῦ καταφυγῆς καὶ στερεώματός μου ο ντος. 735a Ps 70,4 Χεὶρ ἁμαρτωλοῦ ἡ ἁμαρτητική ἐστι πρᾶξις ἀφ' η ς ῥυσθῆναι ἀξιοῖ, ι να μηδὲ κατὰ ποσὸν ἐνεργῇ κατ' αὐτὴν πράττων, ὡσαύτως παρανομοῦντος καὶ ἀδικοῦντος πράξεις αἱ ἀποτελεστικαὶ ἐνέργειαι ω ν καὶ αὐτῶν ε ξω ει ναι ποθεῖ, ῥυσαμένου θεοῦ. πότερον δὲ ὁ αὐτὸς η ε τερος καθ' ὑποκείμενον ὁ ἁμαρτωλὸς τῷ παρανομοῦντι καὶ ἀδικοῦντι, ἐπίστησον. δοκεῖ γὰρ εἰς ἑκάτερα ῥέπειν, παντὸς παρανομοῦντος καὶ ἀδικοῦντος ἁμαρτωλοῦ ο ντος. ἐὰν δὲ ὁ διάβολος ῃ ἐκ τούτων τῶν ὀνομάτων σημαινόμενος, χεῖρα αὐτοῦ ἐκληπτέον καὶ τὴν ὡσεὶ στρατιωτικὴν αὐτοῦ δύναμιν συνταττομένην ἐκ παντὸς πνεύματος πονηροῦ καὶ ἀκαθάρτου. ὁ ῥυσθεὶς ου ν ἐκ χειρὸς τῶν ἐκκειμένων ὑπὸ τὴν κραταιὰν χεῖρα τοῦ θεοῦ γενόμενος ὑπ' οὐδενὸς ἁρπάζεται ἐξ αὐτῆς. 736a Ps 70,5 Ωσπερ σοφία καὶ δύναμις τοῦ ἁγίου ὁ θεός, ου τω καὶ ὑπομονὴ καὶ ἐλπὶς ὑπομείναντος εἰς σωτηρίαν καὶ ἐλπίζοντος ἐπ' αὐτόν. ει ρηται γοῦν περὶ τούτων ἐν τῷ ΛΗ ψαλμῷ, προκειμένου Καὶ νῦν τίς ἡ ὑπομονή μου; οὐχὶ κύριος; καὶ ἐν τῷ ̔Η ἐλπὶς πάντων τῶν περάτων τῆς γῆς. ̓Επιστατέον τὸ ̔Η ἐλπίς μου ἐκ νεότητός μου δυναμένου δηλοῦν ὡς ὁ ἐκ βρέφους κατὰ θεὸν ἀνατραφεὶς α λλην τοῦ θεοῦ ἐλπίδα οὐκ ε σχε ποτέ. πρὸς δὲ τούτοις ἐκ νεότητος ει ναί τινος ἐλπίδα τὸν θεὸν ἐρεῖς, ἀφ' ου τὸν παλαιὸν α νθρωπον ἐκδυσάμενος τὸν καινὸν καὶ νέον ἐνεδύσατο κατὰ θεὸν κτισθέντα ἐν ὁσιότητι καὶ γνώσει τῆς ἀληθείας. 737a Ps 70,6ab 737a Τὸ ̓Απὸ γαστρὸς ἐκ κοιλίας μητρός μου ἐκληπτέον συνετῶς, οὐ σημαινομένου τοῦ ἀπὸ τῆς ω ρας τῆς ἀποτέξεως, ου πω τότε κινουμένου λογικῶς καὶ θεοσεβῶς τοῦ τικτομένου· γέγραπται γὰρ Καὶ τὸν Σαμουὴλ πρὶν γνῶναι θεόν, καίτοι παρὰ θεοσεβέσι γονεῦσιν ἐξ ἀπαλῶν ὀνύχων θεοσεβῶς ἀνατραφέντος. ε χει γὰρ τὰ ἀνθρώπων τέκνα καιρὸν ἀφ' ου λογικῶς κινεῖσθαι δύναται. φησὶν ὁ μέγας Μωσῆς ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ Καὶ πάντα τὰ παιδία μεθ' ἡμῶν σήμερον α οὐκ οι δεν ἀγαθὸν η κακὸν εἰσελεύσεται εἰς τὴν γῆν τῆς ἐπαγγελίας εἰ τοίνυν ἀγαθὸν η κακὸν οὐκ ἐπίστανται τὰ παιδία πρὸ τῆς τοῦ ἐνδιαθέτου λόγου συμπληρώσεως, πῶς οι όν τε τὸν ἐν ταύτῃ τῇ ἡλικίᾳ ο ντα θεὸν εἰδέναι, ὡς καὶ

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Discover how early Christians interpreted the Psalms as divine messages and prophecies about salvation and judgment.

Original English Translation — new OET from PG Greek.

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