The Purpose of Trials and the Victory over the Dragon
You have undergone training, not merely for the sake of discipline, but so that you might be revealed. Do not allow yourself to appear unrighteous or godless. We must hold these truths in mind during times of surrounding trials, hearing the glory of God present and speaking to us: 'Do you suppose I have used you for any other purpose than so that your own righteousness might be made manifest to those who are ignorant?'
Therefore, take up height and power; clothe yourself in glory and honor. Crown yourself, don splendor, and put on true beauty. The insolent man has been defeated by your presence; you have humbled the proud and driven his phalanxes far away in shame. Rebuke sinners by exposing their sinfulness, filling their faces with dishonor through the rebuke that resides within you. This is not done for mere display or for any other worldly end, but even for the knowledge of God. Observe how much the lowly nature of the creature rebukes him; he does not say that you are lowly, but rather, 'I am great, and I cannot do what you do.'
But behold, beasts are set against you. Like an athlete, learn the tactics of your opponent's movements. These beasts are set against you and against all who are patient, yet they are eventually subdued and brought to heel. Will you draw a dragon with a hook and put a bridle upon his nose? Can you, O Job, do what the Only-begotten later accomplished? Just as one might catch a fish by projecting his own flesh through his own ribs like hooks, so did Leviathan draw up the dragon; thus the Hebrew text signifies the dragon. You will lay your hand upon him, remembering the war that occurs within his body—a war that shall be no more. This 'war' refers to the disturbance, the wildness, and the embittered state of the beast. How does it happen? It is a wild, powerful, and unmanageable beast. Can you, by your own strength, bind him? Or can you even conceive of the war that is to take place within his own body? He calls the body 'demons,' as if they were his head; yet the Lord conquered this war through the trophy of the cross. The phrase 'let it be no more' exists because once the cross has been established, he who died to sin has died once for all Hebrews 9:28Who, then, will reveal the face of his clothing?
Greek
ἤσκησας), ἀλλ' ἵνα φανῇς. Μὴ ἀναφανῶμεν ἄδικοι, μηδὲ ἀσεβεῖς. Τούτων μνημονεύωμεν ἐν τοῖς τῶν περισ τάσεων καιροῖς, καὶ δόξωμεν τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀκού ειν παρόντος καὶ λέγοντος ἡμῖν· Οἴει δέ με ἄλλως σοι κεχρηματικέναι, ἢ ἵνα τοῖς ἀγνο οῦσιν δήλη ἡ σὴ δικαιοσύνη γίνηται; εʹ. Ἀνάλαβε δὴ ὕψος καὶ δύναμιν, δόξαν δὲ καὶ τιμὴν ἀμφίασαι. Στεφάνωσαι, ἔνδυσαι δόξαν, ἔνδυσαι τι μὴν, ἔνδυσον εὐπρέπειαν. Ὁ ὑβριστὴς ἐστρα τεύσατο κατὰ σοῦ· σὺ δὲ τὸν ὑπερήφανον ἐταπείνωσας, καὶ μακρὰν μετ' αἰσχύνης ἀ πέστρεψας τὰς αὐτοῦ φάλαγγας. –Ἔλεγξον ἁμαρτωλοὺς, δεικνὺς αὐτοὺς ἁμαρτωλούς· πλήρωσον τὰ πρόσωπα αὐτῶν ἀτιμίας, διὰ τοῦ ἐλέγχου τοῦ ἐν σοί. –Οὐκ ἄρα πρὸς ἐπίδειξιν ἢ πρὸς καὶ τὰ ἄλλα πάντα, ἢ καὶ πρὸς θεογνωσίαν. Ὅρα δὲ ὅσον τὸ ταπεινὸν τῆς αὐτοῦ φύσεως ἐλέγχει αὐτὸν, καὶ οὐ λέγει ὅτι ταπεινὸς σὺ, ἀλλ' ὅτι μέγας ἐγὼ, καὶ οὐ δύναται ἅπερ ἐγώ. ιʹ. Ἀλλὰ δὴ ἰδοὺ θηρία παρὰ σοί. Ὡς ἀθλητὴς, μάνθανε τὰ περὶ τοῦ δρά κοντος τοῦ ἀνταγωνίστου. –Παρὰ σοὶ οὖν, φησὶ, καὶ παρὰ παντὶ τῷ ὑπομονητικῷ τὰ θηρία ταῦτα ἐξημεροῦται καὶ ὑποτέτακται· ἔστι μέντοι κτλ. κʹ. Ἄξεις δὲ δράκοντα ἐν ἀγκίστρῳ, πε ριθήσεις δὲ φορβαίαν περὶ ῥῖνα αὐτοῦ; ∆ύνασαι οὖν, φησὶν, ὦ Ἰὼβ, ποιῆσαι ὅπερ ὁ Μονογενὴς ὕστερον εἰργάσατο; Ὥσπερ γάρ τι δέλεαρ αὐτῷ τὴν οἰκείαν σάρκα προβαλ λόμενος διὰ τῶν οἰκείων ἥλων, ὡς δι' ἀγ κίστρων, ἰχθὺν ἤγρευσεν Λευιαθάν. Οὕτω γὰρ τὸ ἑβραϊκὸν ἔχει, καὶ σημαίνει τὸν δράκοντα. 387 κζʹ. Ἐπιθήσεις δὲ αὐτῷ χεῖρα, μνησθεὶς πόλεμον τὸν γινόμενον ἐν σώματι αὐτοῦ [καὶ μηκέτι γινέσθω]; Πόλεμον ἐνταῦθα λέγει τὴν ταραχὴν, τὴν ἀγριότητα, τὸ χρίμψασθαι αὐτοῦ. Πῶς γίνεται, φησί; τοιοῦτόν ἐστι θηρίον ἄγριον καὶ δυνατὸν καὶ ἀπόπληκτον. ∆ύνασαι δὲ αὐτὸν, φησὶ, τῇ σῇ δυνάμει καταδῆσαι; ἢ ὅλως μνησθῆναι καὶ ἐννοῆσαι τὸν μέλλοντα γίνεσθαι ἐν τῷ σώματι αὐτοῦ πόλεμον; Σῶμα δὲ αὐτοῦ δαίμονας λέγει, ὡς αὐτοῦ κεφαλὴ ὄντος· τοῦτον δὲ τὸν πόλεμον ἐνίκησε διὰ τοῦ τροπαίου τοῦ σταυροῦ ὁ Κύριος. –Τὸ δέ· μηκέτι γινέσθω, ἐπειδήπερ ἅπαξ γέγο νεν ὁ σταυρός· ὃς γὰρ ἀπέθανε τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ, φησὶν, ἀπέθανεν ἐφάπαξ. Κεφ. ΜΑʹ, δʹ. Τίς ἀποκαλύψει πρόσωπον ἐνδύσεως αὐτοῦ; Τὸ
About this text
Origen of Alexandria, Homiliae in Job (Greek).
Catalogue & scope
Khazarzar scan
Witnesses
- Copy-text PG 12 (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.