The Craftsmen of Mercy and Faith
Open your eyes and see: Who has demonstrated all these things? The one who leads out the world by number... and the prophet, placed for examination, lifting up his eyes to the true light, has seen... desiring to know who they are.
And the four horns lying over the citizens of Zion and Jerusalem are builders. There are no others among those enemies about whom the Apostle and the rest say: 'Our struggle is not against blood and flesh, but against the rulers and authorities and the cosmic powers of this darkness and the spiritual forces of wickedness' (Ephesians 6:12). Consistent with the multitude of the powers of the evil ones against which the struggle is for the saints, and the singer who says regarding the one overcoming the enemies: 'He shall mount upon a shield and a basilisk, and shall trample the lion and the dragon' (Psalm 91:13). And since each of the said evil ones rises tyrannically, he says they rule lawlessly.
These horns, promised through enigma, the prophet saw, lifting up the eyes of his mind, so that from having seen the preparation and the power of them, he might put on the invincible panoply of God. Who then are the builders sharpening the presented horns? It is possible to learn from the following, having such knowledge.
Zechariah 2:2: And he said to me: These horns which scattered Judah and Israel have ascended. The responding angel, showing to the prophet the clarified four horns, the work and the need for which they were brought, says to the one being enlightened, that the horns were brought for no other reason than to scatter Israel and Judah from the holy city, so that, having been scattered into captivity, they might become outside of unity and harmony. It was said previously as Judah confessing; but he, seeing God in his mind, is called Israel.
Zechariah 2:3-4: And the Lord showed me four builders. And I said: What are these coming to do? And he said to me: These horns which scattered Judah and Israel have ascended, and none of them bowed his head; and they entered...
The four horns sharpen themselves against the nations raised against the Lord's earth, in order to scatter it.
The seer, being pleased by the multitude of approaching enemies, is shown by the one pointing out the numbers called for help that the craftsmen are praiseworthy; for not all who fashion appropriate works are praised, but some are also counterfeit, whom they send away from one another according to the proverbial rule: 'Good men fashion mercy and faith; evil craftsmen do not know mercy and faith.'
This worst workshop of the craftsmen is nothing other than the four horns, being an instrument of all unfaithfulness and crudity. Those whom God shows coming are craftsmen of mercy and faith, performing practical virtue through mercy toward neighbors, loving them as themselves, and fashioning faith through pious and scientific contemplation. No one else leads and shows to the seer the eyes of the soul, nor does God, who through doing good shows those able to help the afflicted.
Having seen those shown to him and coming by God, he asks the one showing him what they will do having come, and God answers him that they come to sharpen the nations raised against God's earth, the four horns, in order to take the ones being handed over into captivity, so that they may scatter Judah and humble Israel, so that no one of the afflicted is able to lift up his head or defy the approaching enemies. But the word of the horns presents a greater weakness, for even after sharpening, it has not become possible for them to tear apart the ones handed over to them, even while the craftsmen who are sharpening them are present.
The word makes it manifest how the one being scattered is brought down, undergoing destruction by proximity, just as the one coming down from Jerusalem encountered spiritual robbers such that he became like a naked man to them, especially when they stripped him of the garment he had worn in the holy city, which was equal in power to weapons; the Apostle writes concerning this to those being stirred up to war: 'Put on...'
Greek
ὀφθαλμοὺς ὑμῶν καὶ ἴδετε· Τίς κατέδειξεν πάντα ταῦτα; Ὁ ἐξάγων κατ' ἀριθμὸν τὸν κόσμον αὐτοῦ» ············· ··π̣ω καὶ ὁ εἰς ἐξέτασιν προκείμενος προφήτης ··········· ····τος, ἄρας τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτοῦ ··············· ····· τοῦ ἀληθινοῦ φωτός, τεθέαται···················· 1.84 πεῦσιν προσηγίοχεν γνῶναι θέλων τίνα ποτ' εἰσίν. Κέρατα δ' εἰσὶν αἱ ἐπικείμεναι βασιλεῖαι τέτταρες τοῖς πολίταις τῆς Σιὼν καὶ Ἰερουσαλήμ. Οὐκ ἄλλαι ὑπάρχουσιν τῶν πολεμίων ἐκείνων περὶ ὧν ὁ Ἀπόστολος καὶ οἱ λοιποὶ π··· φασίν· «Οὐκ ἔστιν ἡμῖν ἡ πάλη πρὸς αἷμα καὶ σάρκα, ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὰς ἀρχὰς καὶ ἐξουσίας καὶ τοὺς κοσμοκράτορας τοῦ σκότους τούτου καὶ τὰ πνευματικὰ τῆς πονηρίας.» 1.85 Συμφώνως τῷ πλήθει τῶν πρὸς ἃς ἡ πάλη τοῖς ἁγίοις πονηρῶν δυνάμεων, καὶ ὁ 8 ὑμνῳδός πού φησιν πρὸς τὸν κατεξανιστάμενον τῶν πολεμίων· «Ἐπ' ἀσπίδα καὶ βασιλίσκον ἐπιβήσῃ, καὶ καταπατήσεις λέοντα καὶ δράκοντα.» Καὶ ἐπεὶ ἕκαστον τῶν εἰρημένων πονηρῶν τυραννικῶς ἐπαίρεται, παρανόμως βασιλεύειν αὐτό φησιν. 1.86 Ταῦτα τὰ μετ' αἰνιγμοῦ ἐπαγγελθέντα κέρατα εἶδεν ὁ προφήτης ἄρας τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτοῦ τῆς διανοίας, ἵν' ἐκ τοῦ τεθεωρηκέναι τὴν παρασκευὴν καὶ τὴν δύναμιν αὐτῶν ἐνδύσηται τὴν Θεοῦ ἀκαταμάχητον πανοπλίαν. Τίνες δ' εἰσὶν οἱ ὀξύνοντες τὰ προκείμενα κέρατα τέκτονες, ἐκ τῶν ἑξῆς ἔστι μαθεῖν οὕτως ἐχόντων. 1.87 Zach. II, 2: Καὶ εἶπεν πρός με· Ταῦτα τὰ κέρατα τὰ διασκορπίσαντα τὸν Ἰούδαν καὶ τὸν Ἰσραὴλ κατέαξαν. 1.88 Ὁ ἀποκρινόμενος ἄγγελος δεικνὺς τῷ προφήτῃ τὰ σαφηνισθέντα τέσσαρα κέρατα, τὸ ἔργον καὶ τὴν χρείαν δι' ἣν ἐπήχθησαν δεικνὺς τῷ φωτιζομένῳ φησὶν δι' οὐδὲν ἕτερον ἐπῆχθαι τὰ κέρατα ἢ ἕνεκα τοῦ σκορπίσαι ἀπὸ τῆς πόλεως τῆς ἁγίας τὸν Ἰσραὴλ καὶ Ἰούδα, ἵνα σκεδασθέντες εἰς αἰχμαλωσίαν, ὁμοῦ ἑνότητος καὶ συμφωνίας ἐκτὸς γένωνται. Εἴρηται πρότερον ὡς ἐξομολογούμενος Ἰούδας· ὁ δὲ νῷ Θεὸν ὁρῶν Ἰσραὴλ καλεῖται. 1.89 Zach. II, 3®4: Καὶ ἔδειξέν μοι Κύριος τέσσαρας τέκτονας. Καὶ εἶπα· Τί οὗτοι ἔρχονται ποιῆσαι; Καὶ εἶπεν πρός με· Ταῦτα τὰ κέρατα τὰ διασκορπίσαντα τὸν Ἰούδαν καὶ τὸν Ἰσραὴλ κατέαξαν, καὶ οὐδεὶς αὐτῶν ἦρεν κεφαλήν· καὶ εἰσῆλθον οὗτοι τοῦ ὀξῦναι αὐτὰ εἰς χεῖρας αὐτῶν τὰ τέσσαρα κέρατα, τὰ ἔθνη τὰ ἐπαιρόμενα κέρας ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν Κυρίου τοῦ διασκορπίσαι αὐτήν. 1.90 Εὐθυμοποιῶν τὸν θεασάμενον τὸ πλῆθος τῶν πολεμίων τὸ ἐρχόμενον, ἰσαρίθμους τοῖς ἀντιπάλοις τοὺς ἐπὶ βοήθειαν καλουμένους δείκνυσιν αὐτῷ, τέκτονας ἐπαινετῶς τυγχάνοντας· οὐ πάντες γὰρ τεκταίνοντες τὰ κατάλληλα αὐτοῖς ἔργα ἐπαινετοί, ἀλλὰ καὶ ψεκτοί εἰσίν τινες, οὓς διαστέλλον ἀπ' ἀλλήλων τὸ παροιμιῶδες θέσπισμά φησιν· «Ἐλεημοσύνην καὶ πίστιν τεκταίνουσιν ἀγαθοί· οὐκ ἐπίστανται ἔλεον καὶ πίστιν τέκτονες κακῶν.» 1.91 Τὸ κάκιστον τοῦτο τῶν τεκτόνων ἐργαστήριον οὐχ ἕτερον τῶν τεσσάρων κεράτων ἐστίν, δραστήριον ὂν πάσης ἀπιστίας καὶ ὠμότητος. Οὓς δείκνυσιν Θεὸς ἐρχομένους τέκτονας ἐλεημοσύνης καὶ πίστεώς εἰσι τεχνῖται, δι' ἐλεημοσύνης τὴν πρακτικὴν ἀρετὴν πρὸς τοὺς πέλας ἐκτελοῦντες, ἀγαπῶντες ὡς ἑαυτοὺς τοὺς πλησίον, πίστιν τεκταίνοντες δι' εὐσεβοῦς καὶ ἐπιστημονικῆς θεωρίας. Τούτους οὐκ ἄλλος ἄγει καὶ δείκνυσιν τῷ ἄραντι τοὺς τῆς ψυχῆς ὀφθαλμοὺς ἢ ὁ ἐπ' εὐεργεσίᾳ καλῶν Θεὸς τοὺς δυναμένους βοηθεῖν τοῖς καταπονουμένοις. 1.92 Ἑωρακὼς τοὺς δειχθέντας αὐτῷ καὶ ἐρχομένους ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἐρωτᾷ τὸν δείξαντα τί ποιήσουσιν ἐληλυθότες, καὶ ἀποκρίνεται αὐτῷ Θεὸς ὡς ἔρχονται ὀξῦναι τὰ ἐπαιρόμενα ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν τοῦ Θεοῦ ἔθνη τέσσερα ἐπὶ τῷ παραλαβεῖν τοὺς παραδιδομένους εἰς αἰχμαλωσίαν, ἵνα διασκορπίσωσιν τὸν Ἰούδα καὶ κατεάξωσιν τὸν Ἰσραήλ, ὡς μηδένα τῶν κακουμένων ἄραι κεφαλὴν ἀντιβλέψαι καὶ ἀντιδοξῆσαι δυνάμενον τοῖς ἐπικειμένοις ἐχθροῖς. Ἀσθένειαν δὲ πλείονα παρίστησιν ὁ λόγος τῶν κεράτων, ὅτι καὶ μετὰ τὸ ὀξυνθῆναι οὐχ οἷά τε γέγονεν κατασπάσαι τοὺς παραδοθέντας αὐτοῖς παρόντων τῶν τεκτόνων τῶν ὀξυνόντων αὐτά. 1.93 Φανεροῖ ὁ λόγος ὡς κατάγνυται ὁ σκορπιζόμενος, συντριβὴν ὑφιστάμενος παραπλησίαν ᾗ ὑπέμεινεν ὁ ἀπὸ τῆς Ἰερουσαλὴμ καταβὰς περιτυχὼν λῃσταῖς πνευματικοῖς ὥσθ' ἡμιθανὴν αὐτὸν ὑπ' αὐτῶν γενέσθαι, μάλιστα ὅτε ἐξέδυσαν αὐτὸν τὴν ἐσθῆτα ἣν εἶχεν θείαν ἐν τῇ ἱερᾷ πόλει διάγων ὅπλοις ἰσοδυναμοῦσαν· περὶ αὐτῆς γράφει ὁ Ἀπόστολος τοῖς εἰς τὸ πολεμεῖν διεγειρομένοις· «Ἐνδύσασθε
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.