Изъяснение псалма 83-го.

Ps.83:1. To the head of the choir. On the gun of Gath. Korean sons. Psalm. “O sharpener, son of Korah.” The prophecy of the psalm is twofold, for it foreshadows not only the calling of the Jews, but also the salvation of the entire universe. But as we said before, the Prophet calls churches winepresses, because in them the spiritual grapes bear fruit, and we prepare saving wine that truly gladdens the hearts of believers. Ps.83:2. How desirable are Your dwellings, O Lord of hosts! Ps.83:3. My soul is weary, longing for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh delight in the living God. “If Thy village is beloved, O Lord of hosts.” “My soul longs and ends for the courts of the Lord.” And those living in Babylon were taught to say this, so that the desire to return and the desire to perform Divine services according to the law would be aroused in them; This is what we, too, who have achieved salvation and are reaping benefits for ourselves in the fences of God, must learn. Yes, and this prophecy primarily applies to us, because it predicts many future villages, names many winepresses and also mentions many altars, while the Jews had one church, and likewise one altar. Every utterance in what has been said inflames the heart with Divine love, because he calls the villages of God beloved and longed for, and says that he not only desires, but also “ends up in the courts of the Lord.” In accordance with this, the following follows. “My heart and my flesh rejoiced in the living God.” Not only the soul rejoices and rejoices, but the body also partakes of the joy, accepting the hope of the resurrection. This makes sense of the prophetic word, and therefore called God alive, as the giver of life. Since the gods of Babylon and the gods of our ancestors were not animated and completely insensitive, those who freed themselves from them very rightly call the true God alive. Ps.83:4. And the bird finds a home for itself, and a swallow finds a nest for itself, where to lay its chicks, at Thy altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God! “For the bird will find for itself a church, and the turtledove will find a nest for itself, where it will lay its young.” Akila translated it as follows: “and the bird found a home for itself, and the sparrow found a nest where to lay its children.” For just as sparrows, turtle doves, and other birds, not yet having a nest, fly from place to place, and having established it, they usually spend time in it and feed their own chicks: so we also wandered in ancient times, and now, called by Thy grace and having found Thy settlements, we train our chicks at Thy altars, constantly staying with Our children and from You. receiving spiritual food. “Thy altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God.” For us, the nest, the place of feeding the chicks, and the enjoyment of blessings are Thy holy altars; with them, like chicks, with open lips we accept Divine and saving food from You. Ps.83:5. Blessed are those who dwell in Your house: they will praise You without ceasing. “Blessed are all who live in Your house: forever and ever they will praise You.” Each of these sayings, as an image, befits those living in Babylon, but in reality refers to us. For those, being far from the Divine church, please those who enjoy the help found there, and we, having tasted the Divine sweetness, call those worthy of competition who constantly flow to God and enjoy the Divine blessings. Ps.83:6. Blessed is the man whose strength is in You and whose heart's paths are directed toward You. “Blessed is the man, for he has his intercession with you: ascension in your heart.” The prophetic word pleases the one who always uses God's care for him, whose mind is enlightened by Divine grace, and who always gives place to pious thoughts, because the prophetic word called pious thoughts about God the ascents of God in the heart. Ps.83:7. Passing through the valley of mourning, they open springs in it, and the rain covers it with blessing. “Put it in a vale of mourning, put it in a hedgehog’s place, for he who lays down the law will give a blessing.” He who has received in his heart the ascension of God and who has experienced the blessings of the Lawgiver, indulges not in laughter and amusements, but in lamentation and tears, desiring liberation from here. For he hears what God says: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted” (Matt. 5:4), and blessed are those who weep, because they will laugh (Luke 6:21). Therefore, he who has entered into this covenant expects blessing from the Lawgiver. The vale of mourning is allegorically the place where an angel who appeared convicted the people of lawlessness, and caused the whole multitude to cry, for from this this place received such a name (Judges 2:1-5). In its own sense and in reality, the vale of mourning is real life, in which Adam eats bread by the sweat of his brow, and Eve gives birth to children in illness, and not only those who sin, but also the Saints sigh, and one says that he is “sorrowed to the point of death” (Jon. 4:9), and the other cries out: “Take my soul from Me, for it is impossible for me to die without living” ( John 4:3). And the great preacher of truth says: “And we, having the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan within ourselves” (Rom. 8, 23). Thus, one can see that the struggling Saints constantly use tears to help, and in this they find joy for themselves. Therefore, in this deplorable vale, those who have ascended and shed tears, and love a difficult life, and expect blessings from the Lawgiver. Ps.83:8. They come from strength to strength, they appear before God in Zion. “They will go from strength to strength.” For they daily increase in strength, and with the increase in virtues they acquire great strength. Thus, those who love the ascetic life move from prayer to chant, from chant to petition, from petition to reading Divine words, and from this to exhortation and providing advice to the less perfect; rising from strength to strength, they increase their own wealth every day. "The God of gods will appear in Zion." This change in everything, says the Prophet, was made by God the Word becoming human, appearing to people in the flesh, and having previously made His appearance in Zion. Ps.83:9. Lord, God of strength! Hear my prayer, give ear, O God of Jacob! Ps.83:10. God, our protector! Come close and behold the face of Your anointed. “Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer: inspire, O God of Jacob.” “Our Defender, see, O God, and look upon the face of Thy Christ.” The Prophet prays about this, foreseeing the salvation of people from afar and begging God of all kinds, so that by accepting the petition, the saved people will always be worthy of His own care. For he was called the face of Christ. This is what the divine Apostle called him: “you are the body of Christ, and you will receive part of it” (1 Cor. 12:27); and again: “The eye cannot tell the hand; You do not require me; or else you are the head of your feet, you do not require nature” (1 Cor. 12:21). Ps.83:11. For one day in Your courts is better than a thousand. I would rather be at the threshold of the house of God than to live in the tents of wickedness. “For one is better in Thy courts than thousands.” For your people, taking advantage of your care for them, always flow to your church, acquiring great benefit from this. For what a person reaps here in one day, he cannot reap in another place, having spent many thousands of days doing it. So it was proper to speak to the captives in Babylon, who were forced to live with wicked people, who did not receive any benefit from it, but talked about the previous benefit from the Divine Church. “I deign to sneak into the house of my God rather than live in the villages of sinners.” The house of God is so dear to me that it is better to be cast down on its platform and lie at its gates than to spend time in the great and bright houses of those living in lawlessness. And this is equally useful for the Babylonian captives, and useful for us, because the grace of the Spirit taught them not to look indifferently at the desolation of God’s house, and we learn to always long for houses dedicated to God. Ps.83:12. For the Lord God is the sun and the shield, the Lord gives grace and glory; He does not deprive those who walk in integrity of blessings. “For the Lord loves mercy and truth, God will give grace and glory: the Lord will not deprive the good of those who walk in kindness.” For those who have this disposition towards God will enjoy all these blessings, because mercy flows from the Divine fences, from there is a great and abundant gift of truth; from there we accept the teaching of good dogmas, and from the sources of the All-Holy Spirit we draw Divine grace; there we become famous and very glorious, in short, we receive all the enjoyment of blessings, getting rid of vice and guile and preferring to live in simplicity and truth. Ps.83:13. Lord of strength! Blessed is the man who trusts in You! “Lord God of hosts, blessed is the man who trusts in Thee.” This conclusion is in accordance with the entire psalm, because it pleases and calls worthy of competition the one who has neglected all worldly well-being, but encourages himself with a single trust in God, and reaps the salvation that grows from this. You might be interested in: