The Fleshly Food of the Ethiopians and the Lion of the Enemy
They stand around, preventing her from approaching and making her stay, and her things are present. God rejects the sinner, after he has first distanced himself. For he says, 'He who comes to me I will by no means cast out' (John 6:37). Do not think the wrath and anger of God is against us; it is far from senselessness. For regarding God, no human passion is indicated, but rather the exceeding turning away through the words spoken, for he says he endures the sheep of his pasture. The pasture of God is the words of the Spirit, the law and the prophets, in which as a shepherd pastures the righteous sheep.
The whole life of man is taken as a sea raised for contemplation. God strengthened this by his power to lead it from more abundant snow and more intense storm into happiness and serenity, as it is said, 'He who turns the sea into dry land' (Ps 74:13). The Savior crushed not the many heads of many dragons, but also the many heads of one upon the water, the water being understood as the wickedness of the unstable and disordered affairs of life. For in such water the dragons work harmfully, and he who excels them is written about as king over all those in the waters and how he dwells in the sea.
For this great and spacious sea shows the turbulence of affairs and the wickedness, saying, 'In this small animals are tossed with large ones, and ships are driven about by playing with the dragon within it' (Ps 74:14). Many heads of dragons are crushed; these are the rulers of this age who promise wisdom, and with them principalities and powers, cosmic rulers of this world, and also spiritual evils and the whole host of demons and opposing powers. And the heads of these dragons are divinations, sorceries, superstitions, and all that contributes to idolatry, but also false doctrines and deceptive practices. The work of the Savior alone is to crush the heads of the said dragons. It did not seem to be possible from any other than him to be strong. Since, however, he did not crush the heads of the dragon alone, al-
And he provided all of it, this food, for the Ethiopian peoples. For he did not need others to be carried away by the flesh and parts of it, nor the Ethiopian peoples, being sons of darkness and night through ignorance. Just as the flesh of Jesus is true food, since all the sons of light are nourished from its use and eating, being enlightened beyond a white snow, so the Ethiopian children of the inner man will be fed with the fleshly parts (that is, the things of wickedness and false glory), which will be handed over to the desires of their hearts into uncleanness, and additionally into passions of dishonor and an unproven mind.
He began from the flesh of the numbering to show that the year begins from the flesh, starting from the spring equinox, the beginning of the months and the first in the months of the year, which Moses announced (Ps 73:17b). An enemy mocking the Lord, the devil, but the people is a flock of the other invisible and evil powers (Ps 73:18). The high priest Caiaphas, the enemy, mocked the Savior Christ, and the people, having cried out the Jews, provoked his name: 'Aaron, Aaron, crucify him' (Ps 73:18–21). It is not true the preceding text regarding the taking of sensible beasts. For many perfect men, witnesses of the truth, were eaten by beasts. Let it be said, therefore, that a soul confessing its faith will not be handed over to those beasts, concerning whom it is written, 'A wandering sheep of Israel; lions drove him out.' The Lord crushed the teeth of these lions. Satan is among these, as the apostle Peter writes, 'Your adversary the devil walks like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour' (1 Peter 5:8). But the poor of God are those who are able, having left his possessions having been deprived of wealth, according to those saying, 'Behold, we have left all and have followed you,' whereas others become differently poor, having cast away the wealth of wickedness in false glory. But if those named now the poor of God possess nothing even to the poor in spirit, consider this. After these things, he entreats God to look upon the covenant which he established with the fathers around Abraham, so that he may not leave the ones from his seed incomplete.
Greek
περιεστηκόσι, ι να κωλύσαντες αὐτὴν συναπερχόμενα σχῶσι καὶ τὰ αὐτῆς ε νεκα παρόντα. ̓Απωθεῖται ὁ θεὸς τὸν ἁμαρτάνοντα, ἐκείνου πρότερον ἀποσχοινίσαντος ἑαυτόν· Τὸν γὰρ ἐρχόμενον πρός με οὐ μὴ ἐκβάλλω ε ξω, ει πεν ὁ κύριος. 773a Ps 73,1c ̓Οργὴν τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ θυμὸν μὴ καθ' ἡμᾶς νόμιζε· α παγε τῆς ἀτοπίας. περὶ γὰρ τὸν θεὸν οὐδὲν πάθος ἀνθρώπινον ἀλλὰ τὴν ὑπερβάλλουσαν ἀποστροφὴν διὰ τῶν εἰρημένων αἰνίττεται λέξεων η ν ὑπομένειν φησὶ πρόβατα νομῆς αὐτοῦ. νομὴ δὲ τοῦ θεοῦ τὰ λόγια τοῦ πνεύματος, νόμος οι ον καὶ προφῆται, ἐν οι ς καθάπερ ποιμὴν πρόβατα τοὺς δικαίους νέμει. 774a Ps 73,13.14 Πρὸς θεωρίαν ἀνηγμένην θάλασσα πᾶς ὁ τῶν ἀνθρώπων βίος λαμβάνεται. τοῦτον ἐν τῇ δυνάμει ἑαυτοῦ ὁ θεὸς ἐκραταίωσεν ὡς ἐκ πλείονος χειμῶνος καὶ σφοδροτάτης ζάλης εἰς εὐδίαν καὶ γαλήνην ἀγαγεῖν, ι ν' οἱ πατοῦντες αὐτὴν ὡς διὰ ξηρᾶς βαδίζωσι κατὰ τὰ λεχθέντα ̔Ο μεταστρέφων τὴν θάλασσαν εἰς ξηράν. πλειόνων ου ν δρακόντων πολλὰς κεφαλὰς ἀλλὰ καὶ ἑνὸς πολλὰς κεφαλὰς συνέθλασεν ἐπὶ τοῦ υ δατος ὁ σωτήρ, υ δατος νοουμένου τῆς κακίας η τῶν ἀστάτων καὶ τεταραγμένων πραγμάτων τοῦ βίου. ἐν τῷ τοιούτῳ γὰρ υ δατι ἐνεργοῦσι βλαπτικῶς οἱ δράκοντες, καὶ ὁ τούτων ὑπερέχων ει ς περὶ ου γέγραπται ὡς βασιλεὺς ει η πάντων τῶν ἐν τοῖς υ δασι καὶ ὡς ἐν θαλάσσῃ διατρίβει. Αυ τη γὰρ ἡ θάλασσα ἡ μεγάλη καὶ εὐρύχωρος· δεικνὺς τὴν ταραχὴν τῶν πραγμάτων καὶ τὴν κακίαν λέγει ̓Εν ταύτῃ ζῷα μικρὰ μετὰ μεγάλων ἐννήχεται καὶ διαπορεύεται πλοῖα ἐπὶ τῷ ἐμπαίζειν τῷ ἐν αὐτῇ δράκοντι εἰς τοῦτο πεπλασμένῳ. Πλείονες ου ν δράκοντες ω ν συντρίβονται αἱ κεφαλαὶ οἱ 147 α ρχοντές εἰσι τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου οἱ ἐπαγγελλόμενοι σοφίαν καὶ σὺν αὐτοῖς ἀρχαὶ καὶ ἐξουσίαι κοσμοκράτορες τοῦ κόσμου τούτου καὶ προσέτι πνευματικὰ πονηρίας καὶ πᾶς ὁ τῶν δαιμόνων καὶ ἀντικειμένων δυνάμεων ο χλος, κεφαλαὶ δὲ τούτων τῶν δρακόντων μαντεῖαι γοητεῖαι οἰωνισμοὶ καὶ ο σα συντελεῖ πρὸς εἰδωλολατρίαν ἀλλὰ καὶ ψευδοδοξίαι καὶ πράξεις ἐναγεῖς. μόνου τοῦ σωτῆρος ε ργον συντρίβειν τῶν εἰρημένων δρακόντων τὰς κεφαλάς. οὐκ α λλοθεν ἀλλ' ε νθα ἰσχύειν ἐδόκουν. Ει τ' ἐπεὶ μὴ μόνας τὰς κεφαλὰς τοῦ δράκοντος συνέθλασεν ἀλλὰ καὶ ο λον αὐτὸν ἐνέκρωσεν, βρῶμα τοῦτον παρέσχεν λαοῖς τοῖς Αἰθίοψιν. οὐ γὰρ α λλους ε δει ἐμφορεῖσθαι τῶν σαρκῶν καὶ μερῶν αὐτοῦ η τοὺς λαοὺς τῶν Αἰθιόπων δι' α γνοιαν σκότους καὶ νυκτὸς ο ντας υἱούς. ὡς γὰρ τὰς ̓Ιησοῦ σάρκας τροφὴν ἀληθινὴν ου σαν τρέφονται πάντες οἱ τοῦ φωτὸς υἱοὶ ὡς ἐξ αὐτῆς τῆς χρήσεως τῆς βρώσεως φωτιζομένους ὑπὲρ χιόνα λευκαίνεσθαι, ου τω τὰ τέκνα τοῦ σκότους Αἰθίοπες κατὰ τὸν ε σω α νθρωπον ο ντα τραφήσονται τὰς σάρκας τὰς δρακοντείους (τὰ κακίας καὶ ψευδοδοξίας ει δη), ο ταν παραδοθῶσι ταῖς ἐπιθυμίαις τῶν καρδιῶν αὐτῶν εἰς ἀκαθαρσίαν καὶ προσέτι εἰς πάθη ἀτιμίας καὶ ἀδόκιμον νοῦν. 775a Ps 73,17b Ηρξατο ἀπὸ τοῦ ε αρος τῆς ἐξαριθμήσεως πρὸς δήλωσιν τοῦ ἀπὸ ε αρος α ρχεσθαι τὸν ἐνιαυτόν, ἀρχομένου τοῦ μηνὸς τῶν νέων ἀπὸ ἐαρινῆς ἰσημερίας, ο ν μηνῶν ἀρχὴν καὶ πρῶτον ἐν τοῖς μησὶ τοῦ ἐνιαυτοῦ ἀπήγγειλε Μωυσῆς. 776a Ps 73,18 ̓Εχθρὸς ὀνειδίζων τὸν κύριον ὁ διάβολος, α φρων δὲ λαὸς ὁ τῶν α λλων ἀοράτων καὶ πονηρῶν δυνάμεων ο χλος. 777a Ps 73,18–21 ̓Ωνείδισε τὸν σωτῆρα Χριστὸν ἐχθρὸς Καϊαφᾶς ὁ ἀρχιερεύς, παρώξυνε δὲ τὸ ο νομα αὐτοῦ λαὸς α φρων ὁ τῶν ̓Ιουδαίων κεκραγὼς Αρον α ρον σταύρωσον αὐτόν. Οὐκ ἀληθὲς τὸ προκείμενον αἰσθητῶν θηρίων λαμβανομένων. πολλοὶ γὰρ τέλειοι α νδρες, μάρτυρες τῆς ἀληθείας, ἐβρώθησαν ὑπὸ θηρίων. λεκτέον τοίνυν ὡς οὐ παραδοθήσεται ψυχὴ ἐξομολογουμένη θηρσὶν ἐκείνοις, περὶ ω ν γέγραπται Πρόβατον πλανώμενον ̓Ισραήλ· λέοντες ἐξῶσαν αὐτόν. τούτων τῶν λεόντων τὰς μύλας συνέθλασεν ὁ κύριος. ει ς τούτων ὁ Σατανᾶς ἐστιν, ὡς Πέτρος ὁ ἀπόστολος γράφει ̔Ο ἀντίδικος ὑμῶν διάβολος περιπατεῖ ὡς λέων ὠρυόμενος ζητῶν τίνα καταπίῃ. Πένητες δὲ τοῦ θεοῦ ει ναι δύνανται οἱ αὐτοῦ ε νεκα ἀπεσχημένοι πλούτου κατὰ τοὺς εἰπόντας ̓Ιδοὺ ἡμεῖς ἀφήκαμεν πάντα καὶ ἠκολουθήσαμέν σοι, ἑτέρως πενήτων αὐτοῦ τυγχανόντων τῶν ἐν ψευδοδοξίᾳ κακίας πλοῦτον ἀποβαλόντων. εἰ δὲ αὐτοὶ τοῖς πτωχοῖς τῷ πνεύματι τυγχάνουσιν οἱ ὀνομαζόμενοι νῦν θεοῦ πένητες, ἐπίσκεψαι. Μετὰ ταῦτα παρακαλεῖ τὸν θεὸν ἐπιβλέψαι τὴν διαθήκην η ν διέθετο τοῖς ἀμφὶ τὸν ̓Αβραὰμ πατράσιν, ι να μὴ τέλεον τοὺς ἀπὸ τοῦ σπέρματος αὐτοῦ ἐγκαταλείψῃ·
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Discover how early Christians interpreted the Psalms as divine messages and prophecies about salvation and judgment.
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