Commentary on Job · §56

The Equality of Trials and the Distinction of Ends

These things apply to both kings and commoners. It seems he also stirs them up so that they do not think that they have been separated from their equals because of the duties they are surrounded by; for these things are common to the important and the trivial, to the free and the slave, to the commoner and the ruler, and quite simply to all.

But the things sent upon them because of triviality, he has made a separation for the sinners from all the righteous. For 'the death of the righteous is precious before the Lord' (Ps 116:15). And concerning the trivial, it is said: 'the death of sinners is bitter' (Prov 1:32). And the dissolution of the soul from the body is the same; but the trivial one receives punishment, because his death is shameful, while the important one receives promise and divine rewards; for 'the Lord takes' 'the gentle' (Ps 103:13). And to each of the righteous is a similar voice, by which they say: 'He who raises me from the gates of death' (Ps 18:4). Of what death, indeed, is this, or the one that consumes the soul from blessed life? For this one, having been raised from the gates of death, comes to the gates of blessed life beyond, bringing forth: 'that I may declare all your praises in the gates of the daughter of Zion' (Ps 78:7). These are indeed excellent deeds and entries into good works.

But the righteous are mocked and are delivered into the hands of the ungodly. The trivial ones, he says, truly experience in death what is shameful, but the righteous are mocked by the trivial ones doing this, when they see them being in distress. This is not a reproach of the righteous, but of those who mock, not knowing that they are being delivered into the hands of the ungodly; which he says he is making manifest, thus showing the cause of his own ill-treatment. For it was not fitting then to say, that because of a struggle I am delivered into the hands of the ungodly and such a trial is; for sometimes, as if being self-exalting, he gave space to the adversary to seize him. He will cover the faces of his judges. He shows the harshness of the ungodly by covering his faces to approach deceitfully to deceive. It is therefore said: 'Who shall uncover his face-covering, or who shall enter to fold his garment?' (Job 13:13). For when they change the faces through the same means, they often approach someone deceitfully, baiting him into...

wolves in sheep's clothing

Greek

εἰ῀̣ναι καὶ βασιλεῦσιν καὶ ἰδιώταις. ἔοικεν δὲ καὶ διεγείρειν αὐτο»ὺς» πρὸς τὸ μὴ νομίζειν, ὅτι δι' ἃ περίκεινται ἀξιώματα τῶν ὁμοίων ἀπηλλάγησαν· ταῦτα γὰρ κοινὰ καὶ σπουδαίῳ καὶ φαύλῳ καὶ ἐλευθέρῳ καὶ δούλωι καὶ ἰδιώτῃ καὶ ἄρχοντι καὶ ἁπαξαπλῶς ἅπασιν. τὰ δὲ διὰ φαυλότητα ε᾿̣π̣ιπεμπόμενα ἴδια τῶν ἁμαρτ»αν»όν»τ»ων καθέστηκεν κεχωρισμέ να πάντῃ τῶν δικαίων· "τίμιος" γὰρ "ἐναντίον κυρίου ὁ θάνατος τῶν ὁσίων αὐτοῦ." περὶ δὲ τῶν φαύλων εἴρηται· "θάνατος ἁμαρτωλῶν πονηρός." καὶ τὸ μὲν τῆς διαλύσεως τῆς ψυχῆς ἀπὸ τοῦ σώματος ταὐτόν· διαδέχεται δὲ τὸν φαῦλον κόλασις, ὡς διὰ τοῦτο εἶναι αὐτοῦ τὸν θάνατον ἐξαίσιον, τὸν δὲ σπουδαῖον ἐπαγγελία καὶ ἀμοιβαὶ θεῖαι διαδέχονται· "ἀναλαμβάνων" γὰρ "πραεῖς ὁ κύριος." καὶ ἑκάστῳ τῶν δικαίων ὁμοία φωνή, καθ' ἣν λέγουσιν· "ὁ ὑψῶν με ἐκ τῶν πυλῶν τοῦ θανάτου." ποίου δὴ θανάτου ἢ τοῦ κατασπῶντος τὴν ψυχὴν ἀπὸ τῆς μακαρίας ζωῆς; οὗτος γὰρ ἐκ τῶν πυλῶν τοῦ θανάτου ὑψωθεὶς εἰς τὰς πύλας ἔρχεται τῆς μακαρίας ζωῆς ἑξῆς ἐπιφέρων· "ὅπως ἂν ἐξαγγείλω πάσας τὰς αἰνέσεις 253 σου ἐν ταῖς πύλαις τῆς θυγατρὸς Σίων." αὕται δέ εἰσιν ἐνάιρετοι πράξεις καὶ εἴσοδοι εἰς τὰ ἀγαθὰ ἔργα. ἀλλὰ δίκαιοι καταγελῶνται, παραδέδονται δὲ εἰς χεῖρας ἀσεβοῦς. οἱ μὲν φαῦλοι, φησίν, τῷ ὄντι ἐν τῷ θανάτῳ, ὡς εἴρηται, τῷ ἐξαισί ω τυγχάνουσιν, οἱ δὲ δίκαιοι καταγελῶνται τῶν φαύλων τοῦτο ποιούντων, ὅταν αὐτοὺς θεάσωνται ὄντας ἐν περιστάσεσιν. οὐκ ἔστιν τοῦτο ψόγος τῶν δικαίων, ἀλλὰ τῶν διαχλευαζόντων ἀγνοούντων, ὅτι παραδέδονται εἰς χεῖρας ἀσεβοῦς· ὅπερ φησὶ φανεροποιῶν πως λοιπὸν τὴν αἰτίαν τῆς κακοπραγίας ἑαυτοῦ. οὐ γὰρ ἦν πρέπον αὐτόθεν εἰπεῖν, ὅτι ἀγῶνος ἕνεκα εἰς χεῖρας ἀσεβοῦς παραδέδομαι καὶ πειρασμὸς τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν· ἐνίοτε γὰρ ὡς περιαυτιζόμενος ἐδίδου χώραν τῷ ἀντικειμένῳ λαβῆς. πρόσωπα κριτῶν αὐτοῦ συνκαλύψει. τὴν χαλεπότητα τοῦ ἀσεβοῦς ἐμφαίνει καλύπτοντος αὐτοῦ τὰ πρόσωπα πρὸς τὸ δολίως ἀπάτην προσάγειν. εἴρηται οὖν· "τίς ἀποκαλύψει ἔνδυμα προσώπου αὐτοῦ, εἰς δὲ πτύξιν θώρακος αὐτοῦ, τίς ἂν εἰσέλθοι;" ἐσθότε γὰρ διὰ τῶν αὐτῶν ἐξαλλάττων «τὰ» πρόσωπα ἀπάτῃ πολλάκις πρόσεισί τινι ἀλείφων αὐτὸν εἰς φιλαργυ254 ρίαν διὰ τοῦ τὰς χρείας προβάλλεσθαι. ἀπὸ τῆς αὐτ̣ῆς κακίας καὶ ὑποκριταὶ συνίστανται "ἔσωθεν" ὄντες "λύκοι ἅρπαγες", ἔξωθεν δὲ πρόβατα φαινόμενοι, φοβεροὶ μὲν κα»ὶ» ὅ 61 εἰσι ν φαινόμενοι τοῖς δειλοῖς, πρὸς ἑτέρους δὲ ἄλλως σχηματιζόμενοι. καλύπτουσιν δὲ ἑαυτοὺς πολλάκις καὶ οἱ σπουδαῖοι οὐ διὰ κακουργίαν, ἀλλ' ἵνα ἁρμόσωνται πρὸς τοὺς ἀσθενεῖς, καθὸ λέγει· "γάλα ὑμᾶς ἐπότισα, οὐ βρῶμα." καὶ "σοφίαν" μὲν "ἐν τοῖς τελείοις ἐλάλει", "γενόμενος Ἰουδαίοις Ἰουδαῖος καὶ ἀνόμοις ἄνομος", οὐκ ἂν Τιμοθέῳ ἢ τῷ εὐαγγελιστῇ Λουκᾷ τοιοῦτος φαινόμενος. κριτὰς δὲ διαβόλου τοὺς ὑπ' αὐτὸν δαίμονας ἐκδεκτέον. εἰ δὲ μὴ αὐτός, τίς ἐστιν; εἰ μὴ ὁ ἀσεβής ἐστιν ὁ ταῦτα ποιῶν, ὁ καταγελῶν τῶν σπουδαίων, ὁ συνκαλύπτων τὰ πρόσωπα τῶν κριτῶν αὐτοῦ κατὰ τὴν προτέραν ἐκδοχήν, τίς ἐστιν ἕτερος; δύναται καὶ οὕτως· εἰ μὴ "μετεσχηματίζετο" τολμηρῶς καὶ "εἰς ἄγγελον φωτὸς" καὶ ὅλως ποικίλος ἦν τῇ κακία, τίς ἂν ἦν αὐτὸς φανερῶς φαι νόμενος; –ἀντὶ τοῦ· εὐτελὴς καὶ τὸ μηδέν. τὸ δὲ πολύπλοκον αὐτοῦ λυμαίνεται τοὺς ὑποπίπτοντας αὐτῷ. ὁ δὲ βίος μού ἐστιν ἐλαφρότερος δρο255 μέως. ὁ δρομεὺς ταχυτῆτι δόξει μὴ ἐπιψαύειν τῆς γῆς, ἀλλ' ὡς πτηνὸν εἶναι. ὁ βίος μου οὖν δρομέως ἐστὶν ἐλαφρότερος· τὰ γὰρ ἄνω σκοπῶ "οὕτω τρέχων ὡς οὐκ ἀδήλως", οὐ προσπταίων τῇ γῇ. πόθῳ δὲ τοῦ σκοποῦ οἱ δίκαιοι, κἂν προσπταίσωσιν–οἷον κἂν ἐν θλίψεσιν γένωνται–, ἀδιάκοπον ἔχουσι τὸν δρόμον. οὕτω καὶ ∆αυὶδ ἔτρεχεν λέγων· "ἄνευ ἀνομίας ἔδραμον καὶ κατηύθυνα," καὶ "ὁδὸν ἐντολῶν σου ἔδραμον, ὅταν ἐπλάτυνας τὴν καρδίαν μου." ἀπέδρασαν καὶ οὐκ εἴδοσαν· ἦ καὶ ἔστιν ναυσὶν ἴχνος ὁδοῦ ἢ ἀετοῦ πεταμένου ζητοῦντος βοράν; ὑποβάλλει νοεῖν, ὅτι τὸν τοῦ δικαίου βίον ἐλαφρότερον ὑπάρχοντα δρομέως οἱ κριταί, ὧν τὰ πρόσωπα συνκαλύπτει ὁ ἐξάρχων αὐτῶν, ἀποδιδράσκοντες τῷ φόβῳ τοῦ δικαίου οὐχ ὁρῶσιν αὐτοῦ τὴν τοῦ δρόμου κατόρθωσιν· οὐ γὰρ ἄ ξιοί εἰσιν. εἰ δὲ καὶ περὶ τῶν δικαίων τοῦτό φησιν, ὅτι τοὺς κριτὰς ἀποδράσαντες κατὰ τὸ "ἀλλὰ ἀποπήδησον, μὴ ἐνχρονίσῃς ἐν τῷ τόπῳ" οὐκ εἶδον τῇ ὀξύτητι τῆς ἀρετῆς, ἐπίστησον, καὶ εἰ καίριόν ἐστιν συμβαλεῖν τούτῳ τὸ "ἐκκλίνοντος ἀπ' ἐμοῦ τοῦ

About this text

Didymus the Blind on Job.

Catalogue & scope

Khazarzar scan

Witnesses

Copy-text PG (Khazarzar) (Greek)

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