Foot to the lame; Elihu womb of words; night watches
letter: as far as our power goes, we ought to help the poor oppressed by the powerful. "And a foot to a lame one:" he granted feet of the soul even to those lamed in their bases, and by the word he himself became their foot. "A judgment which I did not know, I tracked out:" he teaches how to judge when called to settle brothers affairs.
Chapter 32: "And Job ceased with words." The three friends were quiet still to speak against him, for he was righteous opposite them. He did not simply cease; the heart understanding divine things did not cease. "There is a time for every matter under heaven, a time to be silent and a time to speak." When it was time to answer the three, he spoke; after silencing them, he was silent — said in praise: Job ceased. Elihu: "I was quiet, fearing to announce my own knowledge." He knows how humans suffer, why they fall into circumstances in this life alone, how the unjust prosper. I saw those doing injustice, and my feet were almost shaken. If I look only in this life, my steps were nearly poured out. "Not the long-timed ones are wise:" not only elders; youth can hear something noble. If time makes wise, much more God.
"The spirit of the belly destroys me." As a pregnant person comes to birth-pains until the formed child is born, so the love-of-learning soul conceives a word, forms and stamps it in order, and when ready does not hand over a miscarriage but something brought to term. "My belly is like a wineskin of new wine boiling, bound" — from here, Origen thinks, the Gospel: "No one puts new wine into old wineskins." "I will speak so that I may rest having opened the lips:" full of words before an understanding hearer, speaking rests. "I do not know how to wonder at a face; if not, moths will eat me" — moths eat those who take human faces.
Chapter 35: "If you have sinned, what will you do?" Look up to heaven and clouds and understand the sin. Approach the high priest so he may bring sacrifice: "If anyone sins, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous, and he is the propitiation for our sins." If many lawless deeds, what can you do? Dissolve them — for the incurable we cannot heal, Christ came from heaven: "Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven and whose sins are covered." "Since you are righteous, what will you give him?" What can righteousness add to God? "The one arranging night watches" is God. This whole age is night and darkness; light is kept for you. What you see now you see through a mirror; "in your light we will see light." Because it is night, many wars and wild beasts go about. "The one marking me off from four-footed ones of earth." If you are a sinner you are not marked off: "a human in honor did not understand; he was compared to senseless cattle; "do not become as horse and mule, which have no understanding." — And
Greek
ῥητὸν, ὅση δύναμις, ὀφείλομεν βοηθεῖν τοῖς πτωχοῖς, ὑπὸ τῶν δυνατῶν καταδυναστευομένοις. Στίχ. ιεʹ. Ποῦς δὲ χωλῷ. Αὐτὸς ἐχαρίζετο καὶ τοῖς κεχωλωμένοις τὰς βάσεις, τῆς ψυχῆς πόδας· καὶ τῷ λόγῳ ἐγίνετο αὐτὸς αὐτῶν ποῦς. Στίχ. ι ʹ. ∆ίκην δὲ ἣν οὐκ ᾔδειν, ἐξιχνίασα. ∆ιδάσκει ἡμᾶς πῶς δεῖ δικάζειν, ἐάν ποτε κλη θῶμεν ἐπὶ δίαιταν ἀδελφῶν, ὥστε διαιτῆσαι τὰ κατ' αὐτούς. ΚΕΦ. ΛΒʹ. Στίχ. αʹ. Καὶ ἐπαύσατο Ἰὼβ ῥήμασιν. Ἡσύχασαν δὲ καὶ οἱ τρεῖς φίλοι αὐτοῦ ἔτι ἀντειπεῖν Ἰώβ. Ἦν γὰρ Ἰὼβ δίκαιος ἐναντίον αὐτῶν. Οὐχ ἁπλῶς ἐπαύσατο. Καρδία δὲ ἦν αὐτοῦ νοοῦσα τὰ θεῖα, οὐκ ἐπαύσατο. Ἤδη γὰρ καιρὸς τῷ παντὶ πράγματι ὑπὸ τὸν οὐρανὸν, καιρὸς τοῦ σιγᾷν καὶ καιρὸς τοῦ λαλεῖν. Ὅτε οὖν καιρὸς τοῦ ἀποκρίνασθαι πρὸς τοὺς τρεῖς, ἔλεγεν· ὅτε ἦν καιρὸς, μετὰ τὸ ἐπι στομίσαι αὐτοὺς, ἐσίγησε. Καὶ οἶμαι ἐν ἐπαίνῳ λέ γεσθαι τὸ, Ἐπαύσατο ὁ Ἰώβ. Στίχ. ζʹ. ∆ιὸ ἡσύχασα, φοβηθεὶς τοῦ ὑμῖν ἀναγ γεῖλαι τὴν ἐμαυτοῦ ἐπιστήμην. Ἐπιστήμην ἔχει, πῶς ἄνθρωποι πάσχουσι· διὰ τί ἄνθρωποι ἐν περιστάσεσί τισιν ἐν τῷ βίῳ τούτῳ μόνῳ γίνονται· ὅσοι ἄδικοι ὄντες εὐτυχοῦσιν. Εἶδον ἀδι κοῦντας καὶ παρανομοῦντας, καὶ ἐμοῦ παρὰ μι κρὸν ἐσαλεύθησαν οἱ πόδες. Ἐὰν ἐν τῷ βίῳ τούτῳ μόνον ἐνίδω, παρ' ὀλίγον ἐξεχύθη τὰ διαβήματά μου. Στίχ. ιʹ. Οὐχ οἱ πολυχρόνιοί εἰσι σοφοί. Οὐ γὰρ ἀνάγκη, φησὶ, τοὺς πρεσβύτας μόνους εἶναι σοφούς· ἀλλ' ἔστι καὶ ἀπὸ νεότητος ἀκοῦσαί τι γενναῖον. Εἰ γὰρ χρόνος ποιεῖ σοφοὺς, πολλῷ μᾶλλον Θεός. Στίχ. ιηʹ. Ὠλέκει γάρ με τὸ πνεῦμα τῆς γαστρός. Ὥσπερ τις ἔγκυος γίνεται, καὶ μορφωθέντος τοῦ γεννωμένου ἐν αὐτῷ, ἐπὶ ὠδῖνας ἔρχεται, μέχρις οὗ ἀπογεννήσῃ τοῦτο ὃ πρότερον συνείληφε· τοιοῦ τόν τί μοι νόει γενέσθαι καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς τοῦ φιλομα θοῦς ψυχῆς. Συλλαμβάνει γὰρ τὸν λόγον ὃν ἀπαγγελ λόμενον μορφοῖ καὶ τυποῖ αὐτὸν τῇ τάξει. Ὅτ' ἂν δὲ μετὰ τὸ τυπῶσαι καὶ μορφῶσαι αὐτὸν ἕτοιμον γενόμε νον, μὴ ὡς ἔκτρωμα ἀνέτοιμον καὶ ἀτελὲς παραδιδῷ, ἀλλ' ὡς τελεσφορηθὲν καὶ τετελειωμένον εἴποιμι ἄν. Στίχ. ιθʹ. Ἡ δὲ γαστήρ μου ὥσπερ ἀσκὸς γλεύκους ζέων δεδεμένος. ∆οκεῖ μοι ἐντεῦθεν εἰρῆσθαι τὸ ἐν τῷ Εὐαγγελίῳ. 17.96 Οὐδεὶς οἶνον νέον εἰς ἀσκοὺς παλαιοὺς βάλλει Στίχ. κʹ. Λαλήσω, ἵνα ἀναπαύσωμαι ἀνοίξας τὰ χείλη. Ὁ τυγχάνων συνετοῦ ἀκροατοῦ, καὶ ὢν πλή ρης λόγων, λαλῶν ἀναπαύεται, καὶ λέγει· Λαλήσω, ἵνα ἀναπαύσωμαι. Στίχ. κβʹ. Οὐ γὰρ ἐπίσταμαι θαυμάσαι πρόσωπον. Οὐ γὰρ ἐπίσταμαι θαυμάσαι πρόσωπον. Οὐκ ἔχω ταύτην τὴν ἐπιστήμην, ἵνα θαυμάσω πρόσωπον· ἀλλὰ καταφρονῶ ἀνθρώπων, καὶ τῆς παρ' αὐτοῖς αἰ σχύνης βροτῶν, καὶ τῆς παρ' αὐτοῖς ἐντροπῆς. Στίχ. κβʹ. Εἰ δὲ μὴ, καὶ ἐμὲ σῆτες ἔδονται. Ὡς τῶν σητῶν διεσθιόντων τοὺς λαμβάνοντας πρόσ ωπα ἀνθρώπων. ΚΕΦ. ΛΕʹ. Στίχ. ʹ. Εἰ ἥμαρτες, τί πράξεις; Ἐὰν ἀναβλέψῃς εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν, καὶ κατανοήσῃς τὰ νέφη, νοήσεις τί ἥμαρτες. Τί σε πρᾶξαι δεῖ; Προσέρχεσθαι τῷ ἀρχιερεῖ, καὶ παρακαλεῖν, ἵνα ὁ ἀρχιερεὺς προσαγάγῃ θυσίαν περὶ σοῦ. Ἐὰν γάρ τις ἁμάρτῃ, παράκλητον ἔχομεν πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα Ἰησοῦν Χριστὸν δίκαιον, καὶ αὐτὸς ἱλασμός ἐστι περὶ τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων ἡμῶν. Στίχ. ʹ. Εἰ δὲ καὶ πολλὰ ἠνόμησας, τί δύνασαι ποιῆσαι; Τὸ τηλικοῦτον ποιήσεις· ἀναλύσεις σου τὰς πολλὰς ἀνομίας. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ἐπὶ τοῖς ἀνιάτοις, οἷς ἑαυ τοὺς ἰάσασθαι οὐ δυνάμεθα, ἦλθεν Ἰησοῦς Χριστὸς ἐξ οὐρανῶν, ἵνα τὰ ἀνίατα ἰάσηται, καὶ γίνηται τό· Μακάριοι, ὧν ἀφέθησαν αἱ ἀνομίαι, καὶ ὧν ἀπε καλύφθησαν αἱ ἁμαρτίαι. Στίχ. ζʹ. Ἐπειδὴ οὖν δίκαιος εἶ, τί δώσεις αὐτῷ; Ἀλλ' εἰ δίκαιος εἶ ὡς πρὸς Θεὸν, τί ἔχεις δοῦναι κατὰ τὴν σὴν δικαιοσύνην; Εἰ δὲ καὶ ὡς λέγεις δίκαιος εἶ, τί προσθήσεις αὐτῷ; Στίχ. ιʹ. Ὁ κατατάσσων φυλακὰς νυκτερινάς. Ἐγκώμια τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ αἴνους καὶ ὕμνους αὐτοῦ διεξέρχεται. Ὁ κατατάσσων φυλακὰς νυκτε ρινὰς, αὐτὸς ὁ Θεός ἐστι. Θέλω ἰδεῖν, πῶς κατατάσσων ἐστὶν ὁ Θεὸς φυ λακὰς νυκτερινάς. Ὅλως ὁ αἰὼν οὗτος νύξ ἐστι, σκό τος ἐστί. Τὸ φῶς τηρεῖταί σοι. Ὃ βλέπεις νῦν φῶς, δι' ἐσόπτρου βλέπεις· Καὶ ἐν τῷ φωτί σου ὀψόμεθα φῶς. Μέλλομέν ποτε βλέπειν αὐτό. Οὐκοῦν νύξ ἐστι πᾶς ὁ αἰών· ἐπεὶ νύξ ἐστι, πόλεμοι πολλοὶ, πολ λὰ θηρία περιέρχεται. Στίχ. ιαʹ. Ὁ διορίζων με ἀπὸ τετραπόδων γῆς. Ἐὰν ᾖς ἁμαρτωλὸς, οὐ διωρίσθης ἀπὸ τῶν τετραπόδων γῆς. Ἄνθρωπος γὰρ ἐν τιμῇ ὢν, οὐ συνῆκε. Παρασυνεβλήθη τοῖς κτήνεσι τοῖς ἀνοή τοις, καὶ ὡμοιώθη αὐτοῖς. Ἐὰν ᾖς ἁμαρτωλὸς, οὐ διωρίσθης ἀπὸ τῶν τετραπόδων τῆς γῆς· ἀλλὰ λέγε ταί σοι· Μὴ γίνεσθε ὡς ἵππος καὶ ἡμίονος, οἷς οὐκ 17.97 ἔστι σύνεσις. –Καὶ
About this text
Origen of Alexandria, Enarrationes in Job (Greek).
Original English Translation of Origen’s Enarrationes in Job — new OET from PG 17 Greek.
Catalogue & scope
Khazarzar scan
Witnesses
- Copy-text PG 17 (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.