Глава 9

Hos.9:1–4. Do not rejoice in Israel, nor rejoice like 119 people..., for you have committed adultery from the Lord your God; you have loved the giving of every threshing floor of wheat. The threshing floor and the wine press did not know them, and the wine lied to them. Not to dwell in the lands of the Lord: Ephraim has settled in Egypt, and the unclean will consume the Assyrians 120. Having not poured out the Lord's drink of wine, and not satisfied it 121 by demanding them as the bread of pity for them, all who eat will be defiled: without the bread of their souls, they will not enter into the house of the Lord. The hosts of pagans, since they are sick with the greatest foolishness (for, by all accounts, they have gone astray), had a custom, when starting to cultivate the land and preparing to plow the land, to make sacrifices to demons and ask them for the fertility of the fields. In the same way, starting the harvest, when the time prompted it, and gathering grapes into the winepress, they made libations, made sacrifices to the Mountains 122, sang songs at the winepress, offering thanksgiving sacrifices, and passed the time in joy and merriment. For such and such actions, God condemns the people of Israel, clearly stating that they should not rejoice like other nations. For what reason? - Those who by nature are completely ignorant of the truly existing God, even those born in error, perhaps have a not unproven justification in weakness or ignorance: but Israel fornicatedly turned away to apostasy, being guided by the law and having known the Lord of all. Therefore, it is natural to think that he is guilty of a more serious crime and is subject to the inevitable reproach of wickedness, because, knowing “the will of his master, he was careless and did not fulfill, and for that he will be beaten much, while he who did not know and therefore did not do the punishment will be little,” according to the saying of the Savior (Luke 12:47-48). So, “do not rejoice, he says, as men do: they have gone astray from their mother’s womb, but you, who were guided by the law, have gone astray from God.” What was their method of wandering? “He loved,” he says, “giving,” - of course, not from God, but from heifers and Baal, although they do not give anything to those who ask. On what basis did you seek donations from them? - “On every threshing floor of wheat,” because, as I said, it was wicked and reckless for them to ask insignificant idols for the fertility of the fields. So, Israel sought donations from idols. Were the requests of his prayer fulfilled? - Not at all: “the threshing floor and the winepress did not know them, and the wine lied to them.” For those who are more inquisitive, there is no doubt that there were pestilence 123, crop failures, and prolonged droughts in Samaria. Thus, he was deceived in his hope, not receiving what he asked for. And besides, they withdrew from the most holy land, went to Egypt, as to a fenced country, and began to serve even more numerous gods, because in Egypt there were countless gods, and their worshipers had an amazing concept of power, as if they could easily do everything with the help of magical knowledge. So, they refused to live in the land chosen by God and replaced it with a land of idols. However, although they did so, they will still go to the Assyrians. “The Lord did not offer anything drinkable”: having gathered grape berries in the winepress, they poured out the first fruits to the demons, and not to the Lord who gave. They also offered up loaves in the form of the firstfruits of the harvest. But, he says, this will cause them to lose their purity and become desecrated, and the offerings will be considered “bread of pity,” that is, vile, nasty, disgusting. For what reason? - The law considered unclean the one who approached the dead - approached either by blood relationship, or only by bodily touch: therefore, relatives or friends of the dead necessarily became defiled at the funeral 124, fussing around the dead person and performing on him what was determined by the law, and everything became unclean, no matter what they had to touch. Thus, the “bread of pity” is bread eaten by those who mourn the dead, and eating it seemed terrible for those who tried to avoid defilement from the dead. So, he says, even the very loaves that are brought as the firstfruits of the harvest are unclean and disgusting, “and those who eat them will be defiled”; they will be more good for their souls, that is, as food for them, for “they will not enter into the house of the Lord.” But you should know that the law also commanded that the firstfruits of the harvest be sacrificed - sheaves and bread (Lev. 23ff.). Israel transferred what was done for the glory of God to idols, although God clearly said: “I will not give my glory to another, lower than my virtues to the idols” (Is. 42:8). Therefore, we should ask God for what we need for life and honor Him as the giver and organizer of all our prosperity, physical and spiritual, because besides Him there is no one else, “who will rain,” according to what is written (Jer. 14:22), but according to His gestures, everything grows in the fields according to the season, and we are filled with the highest blessing, eating spiritual bread and receiving heavenly wine, gladdening “the heart of man” (Ps. 103:15). Having internalized this conviction, we will dwell in the holy land, we will be with God and we will not eat “unclean things in Assyria” (Hos. 9:3), for the rulers of this world, the spirits of wickedness in high places, feed their loved ones with uncleanness (Eph. 6:12). Hos.9:5. What will you do on the 125th day of the celebration, and on the 126th day of the Feast of the Lord? Since, he says, you have reached such unreason and wickedness, have become so vile and disgusting, then what remedy will help you? Or what should you do and what should you do in order to avoid such a terrible and cruel fate when My “triumph” takes place in the destruction of the offenders by war? So, God obviously calls His holiday the time when Israel will bear punishment for sins against Him. Therefore, one should not simply, recklessly do whatever one wants and enjoy the present, being carried away by the lusts of what is offensive to God, but, on the contrary, think about the future and try to avoid the consequences of divine wrath. It is in this way that we will become wise and knowledgeable in what is useful to us. Hos.9:6. For this reason they will depart from the labor of Egypt, and Memphis will receive them, and I will bury Mahmas: their money will inherit destruction, thorns will be in their courts. When the Babylonians devastated Samaria, those who were able to escape barely fled to the land of Egypt. Then, when they took Jerusalem itself, at the time of Jeremiah’s prophecy, a rather limited number (of people) remained from the tribe of Judah and Benjamin; It was they who went to Egypt, although God admonished through the mouth of Jeremiah and clearly said that they should not, leaving their homeland, go to the land of Egypt, and threatened that if they did this contrary to His will, they would be subjected to the same, or even more serious, disasters. And the following is written about this: “This is what the Lord says...: If you give your face to Egypt and go down to live there, the sword that you fear will be found in Egypt” (Jer. 42:15-16). Indeed, when they, relying on help from the Egyptians, rebelled against the Babylonians, the offended Babylonians, after taking Jerusalem and Samaria, turned against the Egyptians and easily defeated them; then the remainder of the Jews had to perish along with the Egyptians; and those who could escape from the disaster in Egypt, with difficulty escaped further, retiring to the country of the Arcadians, and settled in Memphis, as a very strong city, and in Mahmas (this is another, probably neighboring city and more famous than others). There they died, apparently having lived for a long time and not having the opportunity to return to Judea. And in another place the prophet Jeremiah says: “For this reason says the Lord...; Behold, I will set my face to destroy all those who remain in Egypt, and they will fall with the sword, and with famine 127 they will disappear, from the least to the greatest: and they will be reproached and destroyed and cursed. And I will visit those who sit in the land of Egypt, and there will not be a single survivor of the remaining Judah who dwell in the land of Egypt, who will return to the land of Judah, to which they hope with their souls to return there; they will not return” (Jer. 44:11-14). Do you hear: they perished in Egypt, because the wrath of God overtook them there too. So: when they, avoiding the “labor of Egypt,” come to Memphis, as a famous city, “will receive them,” but they will die in Mahmas. This is: “I will bury Mahmas.” Therefore, if God persecutes, no one will save the persecuted, and wherever he goes, he will be overtaken by wrath. This is what he says will happen to them in Egypt. And because they irritated (Him) made of their own wealth (for, he says, “of his silver and of his gold he made for himself idols” - (Hos. 8:4)), rightly “destruction will follow” him, that is, he will be prey to the destroyer: he calls the Assyrian destruction, as a stern and cruel conqueror and fighter. He says, “thorns will also grow in their courtyards”: the cities fell into such desolation that they became full of thorns. This is a sign of impassable and abandoned land. So, when someone uses the blessings given from God, bodily or spiritual, incorrectly and not for His glory, but recklessly does something that can anger Him and be caught causing an insult, then he will go to destruction, will be the inheritance of the plunderer Satan and the abode of thorns, that is, wild and unbridled passions, and will not have good fruits in the spirit. First of all, heretics will suffer this, who wickedly abuse the gift of speech, seducing the brothers and striking “their weak conscience” (1 Cor. 8:12), although Christ suffered for us. Hos.9:7. The days of vengeance have come... 128 The days of your recompense have come, and Israel will be embittered, like an astonished prophet, a man carried by the spirit. Usually the Israelites did not heed the words of the holy prophets and did not think at all about divine things, although God often announced that they would have to endure disasters. Thus, the God of all proclaims in one place to the prophet Ezekiel: “Son of man, behold the house of Israel is in great sorrow, they say, the vision that this hedgehog sees for many days, and for the times of this debt he prophesies, for this reason he speaks to them, this says Adonai the Lord 129, whoever will not endure all my words, even if I say: as I say word, and I will do it, says Adonai the Lord” (Ezek. 12:26–28). He says something similar here: “in haste,” he says, “the days of vengeance,” - it’s the same as if he said: judgment is near and trial is already at the very door, trouble is nearby and war is before our eyes: the day of retribution has come. And when, he says, you, Israel, become embittered, without a doubt, every false prophet among you, an astonished person, that is, frantic, frantic, lost his mind, whom you consider to be a “carrying spirit,” will suffer the same punishment. Indeed, along with the others, the priests of the high places, and the servants of idols, and all, no matter how many of them there were, the false soothsayers and false predictors of Israel perished. Since they, when preparing to give prophecies, pretended to be delighted and showed an air of inspiration, he calls such people “amazed.” Hos.9:7. From the multitude of your untruths 130 your amazement has increased. “A multitude of unrighteousness” apparently refers to the diverse and varied service of Israel, in one word: they were lost and all became idolaters: however, they divided among themselves the types of error: some performed sacred rites to one (deities), others to others, and gave false prophecies to those who came; Thus, some served heifers, others served Chemosh, the idol of Moab, others served Ashtoreth, some served Baal and the heavenly host. Therefore, God denounced them, speaking through the mouth of Jeremiah: “according to the number of ... your cities, Judah was your gods” (Jer. 2:28), for each city adopted its own god. He rightly calls this “a multitude of unrighteousness,” because it is truly injustice and an insult to God to depart from Him and to cleave to “wood and stone and the work of human hands,” as it is written (Deut. 4:28). “Amazing” refers to prophecies. Thus, when, he says, you found yourself with “a lot of untruths,” then because of this, your “amazement increased,” i.e. false prophecy, because each of the false prophets seemed to have a special way in which he prophesied. So, the tendency to resort to false speeches of those who are accustomed to speak “from their hearts, as it is written, and not from the mouth of the Lord” (Jer. 23:16) is reckless, illegal, truly unclean and sufficient to terribly offend and anger the God of all. Therefore, Christians should beware of this sin, because having this kind of illness can only be characteristic of residents of the shrine 131. Os.9. The guard of Ephraim, with God the prophet 132, was obstinate in all his ways. Divine Scripture usually refers to the leaders of the people as guardians, exalted to the heights of honor, to whom one who would like to lead a right and impeccable life should look. So, in one place God says to the blessed prophet Ezekiel: “Son of man, I have given you as a guard to the house of Israel, and 133 hear a word from my mouth 134 and rebuke them from Me” (Ezek. 3:17). Typically, such guards not only presented their lives, along with the laws, to their pupils as a model of virtue and behavior, but also introduced what was useful and correctly interpreted the will of God. And those who were under good guards, following the straight path of duty, were saved; those who entrusted the direction of their minds to evil and evil people lived, misleading (others) and being mistaken (themselves), and had a spirit devoid of all virtue and true knowledge. This is precisely what he now reproaches for those who come from the tribe of Ephraim, or Israel: he said that he had “a guardian with God, a prophet,” just as if he had said: each of the false gods had his own false prophet. As I said earlier, they acquired various types of error: some served Baal, others Chemosh or Beelphegor; and in each church a man-made idol and idol was erected, and with each there was a special false prophet; Their methods of fortune telling were different, but they announced the solution to those who came directly as useful and necessary. Therefore, since the Ephraimites, along with each false-named god, had his own false prophet as a guardian, they rushed uncontrollably towards everything most shameful. This was for them “the stubborn obstinate” 135, because it was impossible for those who had fallen into such polytheism to correct themselves and go straight, that under each god they had a special prophet and in him they received a guard who alienated them from true worship of God and dragged them into the ditch of destruction. So, those who want to live according to the law should listen not just to those who teach or speak “from their hearts” (Jer. 23:16), but to those in whom divine and heavenly grace will confirm genuine love for God. Therefore, Christ says: “Take heed from lying prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves” (Matthew 7:15). To tell the truth, the inventors and leaders of godless heresies, “devouring Israel with all their lips” (Is. 9:12), differ little from wild beasts: because they seem to devour the souls of the simple, crushing them with the teeth of error. Let it be said for us 136: “God will break their teeth in their mouths: the Lord has broken the limbs of lions. They will be humbled like flowing water; they will strain their bow until they faint” (Ps. 57:7-8). Hos.9:8–9. Amazement was established in the house of God. Rotten through the day of the Hill: he will remember their iniquities, he will avenge their sins. Here, as usual, he calls false prophecy “amazement,” and calls Israel the house of God. Therefore, in one place it was said by the mouth of Jeremiah to the Jewish synagogue, as if on behalf of God: “Have you not called me a house, and a father, and a leader of your virginity?” (Jer.3:4) He is surprised at the enormity of madness and the abundance of unreasonable undertakings: they have already reached, he says, such wickedness that “they have established astonishment in the house of God,” that is, false prophecy, and they are breaking the prohibitions of divine laws. He said well: “established” 137, because the work of wickedness, which was once dared, did not cease, but, as it were, had already strengthened and taken root 138: Israel did not cease to have false seers and false prophets. And since they dared to do this, then, naturally, while serving the punishment for their actions, “they were corrupted in the days of the Hill, for he would remember their iniquities and avenge their sins.” And what does this “spreading through the day of the Hill” mean? Let us give (to explain) a brief reminder (from history). This is written about in the book of Judges (Judges 17ff), and I will convey the entire story, as far as possible, in extracts, and since it is very long, I will shorten it. “In thy days,” he says, “there was no greater king in Israel: every man did right before his eyes. And there was a young man from Bethlehem..., from the tribe of Judah 139, and this Levitin, and this 140 dwelt there. And the man 141 went from Bethlehem, the city of Judah, 142 to dwell where he found a place: and he came to Mount Ephraim, and even to the house of Michin 143 to make his way. And Micah said to him: Where are you coming from? And Levitin said to him: I am from Bethlehem of Judah, and I am going to dwell where I will find a place. And Micah said to him: sit with me and be my father and priest, and I will give you ten pieces of silver a year 144, and a robe of clothing 145, and even for your living. And the Levite went and began to dwell with her husband. And the youth became like one of his sons. And Micah filled Levi’s hand, and he became... a priest 146, and he was in Micah’s house” (Judges 17:6–12). This means that Micah was an idolater and he hired a descendant of Levi, made him a servant of the idol and dedicated him to the service of idols. What happened after this? - Further, the Holy Scripture says the following: “and in those days the tribe of Dan sought to dwell in an inheritance, for it would not fall... 147 until the day of that 148 among the tribes... of Israel 149 inheritance” (Judges 18:1). Therefore, choosing five men, they commissioned them to go forward and survey the land that they could occupy and make their inheritance. They, he says, reached “as far as Mount Ephraim, to the house of Michin, and stasha tamo,” recognized the Levite as a fellow countryman, because he spoke their language (he spoke to the Jews as a Jew): having asked about the reason and learning that Micah had hired him as a Levite and ordained him as a priest to his idols, instead of condoling him as a captive, a deceived and a wanderer, they immediately themselves rolled into the ditches of deception and demanded that he, questioning the idol, announce whether the enterprise according to their thoughts would be successful - I mean the conquest of the country that they came to inspect. He pronounced the definition as if on behalf of God. Those sent, having surveyed the land, reported to those sending that it was of good quality, fat and could be occupied without difficulty. The people from the tribe of Dan, numbering six hundred, having heard such speeches, set out armed on the campaign. They also reached Micah’s house. “And the five men who went to spy out the land of Laish answered,” he says, “and said to their brethren: Do you understand that in this house there is Ehud, and Teraphin, and carved, and fused? and now take away what ye have done” (Judges 18:14). – Ephod is interpreted as “deliverance” 150 and Teraphim 151 as “release” 152, or “healing them.” It was an idol that had the false reputation that it could heal. A similar rumor is sometimes spread about man-made (gods) by the sons of the Hellenes. - Having learned about this, the descendants of Dan took the statue, convinced the descendant of Levi to follow them, leaving Micah. When they fought and won and took possession of the land, they built a city, which they called Dan, giving it the name of their forefather, because, as I said, they were from the tribe and descendants of Dan. Having placed an idol in it, they began to make sacrifices to it: thus, along with the earth, they obtained God. Their minds were reduced to such nonsense. At this God was finally angry and, of course, with all justice - because He was offended. After this, all the Israelites should have considered the descendants of Dan as enemies and chief enemies and brought to justice for disrespect for God, but they probably themselves joined (to them), and considered it possible to praise (them) as if they had not sinned at all. And what was the retribution for such frivolity of theirs, we will tell you in order. While Israel remained without a king, one “husband of Levi, living in the country of Mount Ephraim,” took one (woman) from Bethlehem as his wife. When the woman ran away to her father, the Levite went after her and persuaded her to return with him again and live in his house. When this happened, he, having reached the middle of the road, stopped with the woman at Gibeah 153, which means “hill.” Gibeah, or Hill, was inhabited by the descendants of Benjamin. After he took refuge with an old man, in the middle of the night the sons of Benjamin came, wicked men, as it is written (Judges 19:22), wanting to capture the Levite himself and others for debauchery; Almost ashamed of the extreme disgrace, they grabbed the Levite’s concubine and killed her, cursing at the woman all night. And he, having cut the body in pieces, sent it among the tribes of Israel, in order to make known both the sin of the sons of Benjamin against foreigners, and the unbridledness of debauchery, and that they had been defiled by the sins of the Sodomites. Outraged by this, all Israel gathered and fought with the tribe of Benjamin in Gibeah 154, that is, on the Hill, and devastated it so much that, although it was very populous, very few escaped, barely escaping into the desert. And from all Israel a considerable number of soldiers perished. But God would not have allowed the Israelites to fight each other if the sons of Dan had not honored the images from the house of Micah, and the other tribes had not foolishly remained silent. Something similar happened when God was offended by the golden heifers: the two tribes of Judah and ten of Ephraim entered into a struggle, and, as in the days of the Hill, tens of thousands fell, while the conquered also perished with the victors, because divine wrath called for this. This happened under Amaziah, king of Judah, and Joash of Israel, who so humbled Jerusalem that he destroyed part of the wall “four hundred lakota” (2 Kings 14:13). Os.9:10. As Israel found dreams in the wilderness, and as their fathers saw figs 155 on an early fig tree; she came down to Beelphegor, and alienated herself in shame, and was beloved as if she were an abomination 156. Further, he tries to show that it was not without reason that corruption befell them (Hos.9:9), but justly. I, he says, chose them, having found them like grapes in the desert and plucked them like ripe figs from a fig tree: I brought them out of the country of Egypt, all idolatrous, erring and much troubled by the lack of every good. What about the elect, delivered by my hand? – They turned aside to Veelphegor, withdrew from communication with Me to shame. This is what it means – “alienated in shame.” He calls Weelphegor “shame” because he was more disgusting in appearance than all the others, and it was indecent to look at him. Therefore, if we love to be with God and honor Him as He who called, chose, who came from the midst of this world, as if from a desert and thorny land, who loved as grapes and as early figs, then we will inviolably maintain unity with Him, of course - spiritual. And if there is a deviation to the obscene and offensive to Him, we will no longer differ in anything from the pagans, we will be “loved as abominations,” which are rightly hated, because, he says, “the righteousness of the righteous will not destroy him: in the same day he will sin 157 (Ezek. 33:12), die” (Ezek. 33:13): and blessed Paul writes very wisely: “the same Be determined to stand, so that you may be careful, lest you fall” (1 Cor. 10:12). Os.9:11. Ephraim is like a bird flying away. Birds that are neither tame nor domestic, when caught, are kept in a cage, and they amuse their owners: if the opportunity arises to fly away, they immediately disappear and quickly rush to their usual location in the summer. So Israel was caught by Moses in a certain way like a bird, brought to God and enjoyed prosperity, guided by the law and benefiting from the care and mercy from above. But again he flew away to where he was before, almost escaping from the hands of the catcher. You can understand what has been said in another way. Many of the birds, unable to endure local winters, fly to other countries, without science, having an understanding of their benefits, according to the will of the Creator. In like manner Ephraim, fearing the calamity of war, flew away to the Egyptians. Hos.9:11–12. Their glory is from birth and illness and conception 158. Moreover, even if they nourish their children, they will be childless from people: they have little and fierce food 159. Leaving their homeland, Israel retired to the Egyptians and called upon the god who ruled that country for protection. Is God really powerless and could not save them? - Not at all. The deity is omnipotent and was able to prevent the war with the Assyrians; but the Ephraimites, or Israel, had to endure this because they, having abandoned God who saves and eliminating the exaltation of Him alone from themselves as something outdated, believed that they themselves would be terrible and invincible for their enemies, since they had grown into a great people and had countless children. Indeed, their women gave birth according to a promise and, as it were, by virtue of a blessing, since Moses said: “the sons of Israel will not be childless, nor barren” (Ex. 23:26). But it was very foolish, because of the multitude of people, to despise the help of God. On the contrary, reasoning sensibly, they should have remembered that with Him and through Him “one will marry thousands, and two will move thousands” (Deut. 32:30). So, he says, they do not boast about God, but consider for themselves the glory of “the birth, and conception, and illness” of their women. Therefore, let them know that at least they gave birth to sons, at least they worked on raising children, then they will regret that they worked in vain: be that as it may, they will cry about childlessness: the sword of the Babylonians will be enough for them to destroy their entire family. That’s why “they eat fiercely,” it’s the same as if he said: when God brings grief to them, who will give them courage? For, according to what is written, “if he shuts it from men, who will open it?” ( Job 12:14 ) Os.9:12. My flesh is from them. While God threatens and even affirms about Ephraim, or about all of Israel, that he will perish completely, will mourn childlessness and will work in vain to raise children, the prophet frees himself from judgment and wants to get rid of anger, saying: “my flesh is from them.” “From them” 160 mean instead of: “far from them” 161. Oh, if, he says, both I myself and my entire race (since flesh sometimes means race) were not among them and farther from them! That this is said correctly, we can conclude from the words of Paul, who writes the following: “Because I am an apostle with my tongue, I glorify my service, lest I provoke my flesh and save someone from them” (Rom. 11:13-14). As a rule, the holy prophets, whenever they noticed terrible and intolerable crimes in someone, henceforth, for their part, alienated themselves from their abomination. Thus, the prophet Jeremiah, seeing that the Jews fell under many accusations and offended God, says: “Lord Almighty 162, I did not sit down in the company of them who play, but they feared from the presence of Your hand; Therefore, we must reverently listen to Blessed Paul when he commands us: “Keep yourself pure, and share in the sin of others” (1 Tim. 5:22). But every pious 163 should also say regarding those who offend God and are soon subject to punishment: “my flesh comes from them.” Os.9:13. Ephraim, like Videh, presented 164 his children for the catch... 165, and then set forth his children for the slaughter. And now the prophet mourns for Ephraim, or Israel. He himself, he says, is to blame for both his childlessness and irreparable misfortune, because, he says, as I see from Your words, O Master, and from their deeds, “Ephraim himself presented his children to be hunted and slaughtered.” And he would not have blamed others and complained of divine wrath if he had followed sound reasoning. On the contrary: he must blame his own foolishness and apostasy, because when he immeasurably offended the protector and savior of God, he almost with his own hand voluntarily betrayed his own seed to the fury of the pagans and presented it for removal and captivity. This is “to be hunted and slaughtered,” that is, to be killed, because the Babylonians killed some of the Israelites and took others to their own land. Therefore, when we sin, then, judging sensibly, we should blame ourselves, and not divine wrath, since we neglect our duty and take lightly what pleases God. And punishment is necessary for the despiser and the dissolute, who almost says to the Lord of all: “depart from Me, I do not want to lead your ways” (Job 21:14) 166. Os.9:14. Give them, Lord: what will you give them? give them a barren womb and dry breasts. If, he says, Israel does not want to know God, but, on the contrary, is carried away by vain and unreasonable hope and believes that it will defeat its enemies because of the multitude of children and because it has a large generation fit for war, and as a result of this there is no need for help from Your right hand, then let its women not give birth at all. This is a “non-fertile womb”. And if they give birth, then let them not nurse, that is, let them perish before their time and let the generation fall before they reach adolescence, because if in this way the arrogance associated with this is suppressed in them and the hope for a multitude of warriors is henceforth destroyed, then they will flow to Your mercy and recognize You as Savior and Deliverer. And now the prophet says this out of love for God and at the same time seeks both the glory of His Master and the conversion of Israel, at least out of necessity, if this cannot already be the fruit of their good will. In the spiritual sense, “the womb is barren and the breasts are dry” can refer to bad workers, to everyone who seduces and leads astray from the right path those who have learned to walk the right way (I mean: in faith) and who are faithful in their ways. Indeed: since their mind does not give birth to anything except false words and perverse concepts, then let them not raise their own children in error - I mean, according to the teaching, and let the churches of the wicked, having “dry breasts,” be mothers of the deceived. Os.9:15. All the evil was in Gilgal 167, because there I hated them 168 for the evil of their undertakings... 169 I will drive away from my house, I will not try 170 to love them. Again the God of all things begins to list the offenses and mentions Gilgal. This is the city in which handicrafts (idols) were most zealously and foolishly revered. What has been said has this meaning: in many respects the Israelites were wicked, but the height of their inherent wickedness could be seen by remembering Gilgal: there I saw “all their wickedness,” there I hated them, not because of the place, which would be unreasonable, but having in mind what was happening in it. Therefore, he says, I will evict them and drive them out of My palace, remove them from communication (with Me) and, having righteously hated them, I will rise up against them and will no longer bow to loving such criminals. But, I think, someone will say: why did He return them from Assyria to Judea? why did you free him from captivity? Is it not because he bowed down to goodness and mercy and honored them with love? – That’s right: I myself would recognize these words as true: undoubtedly, they were pardoned out of love for humanity. But those in question went into captivity and, after a long time, died out as punishment. And how through Moses in Egypt He promised the Israelites to bring everyone into the land about which He swore to their fathers, but some did not enter 171 for disobedience, and their bodies fell in the desert, but the land was inherited by their descendants - so understand here too. Namely: those whom we are talking about died, but over time their descendants returned to Judea, when Cyrus had already allowed (them), after completing seventy years of their stay in a foreign land. Those who dared to commit terrible and beyond all description outrages against Christ and directed their evil and absurd tongue at Him will be thrown out from the house of God, or, better yet, already thrown out; they certainly experience anger on themselves, because they are guilty of mocking not one of the prophets, but the Lord of the prophets himself. Thus, keeping silent about other sins that they committed in themselves, one can see all their malice and extreme corruption in their actions with Christ alone. Hos.9:16–17. Do not subdue all the princes. No matter how much Ephraim through his rooting, 172 let him bear no fruit; even if they give birth, I will smite the coveted womb 173 of them. God will reject me because I did not listen to him, and they will go astray among the nations. No one, he says, turned out to be good or obedient and submissive among them - neither small nor great, nor superior, nor subordinate and subordinate. Therefore, he claims that he (Ephraim) must perish completely, as if torn out from the very roots, and became like worthless and spoiled trees, which only need to be cut down, since they reveal obvious sterility. And that barren trees should be cut down, the Savior himself teaches this, commanding that a fig tree that does not bear fruit be cut down, like the Jewish synagogue: “does he exercise the earth?” (Luke 13:7) Thus, Israel, being found to be barren, should rightly be cut off, because it will not bear fruit. But even if it comes to this, he says, I will destroy their offspring. This is: “the desire of their womb.” I consider it necessary to also consider what the essence of speech is. Why does he say that “all princes will not subdue them”? In general, why did He need the subordination of all the princes? – The speech relates to one of the most ancient events. What kind of event this is, I’ll tell you now. – Israel made a calf in the desert in the absence of Moses, because he went up to Mount Sinai to accept the law. Then he, having descended, was greatly indignant at this crime, crushed the calf and appeased the angry God in some way with his own nobility and dignity: he fell before Him and begged, saying: “If you forgive them their sin, forgive it: otherwise, blot me out of this book 174, you have written it in the book” (Ex. 32:32). God promised the prophet leniency towards everyone and even said: “I am merciful to them according to your word” (Num. 14:20). You see how useful the primate’s love for God was for Israel, when one for all managed to appease God with obedience and obedience. Therefore, he rightly accuses Israel of having completely deviated (from God) and of his leaders no longer had anyone who would rebuke sinners, restrain them from error, or could turn away wrath by the power of his inherent superiority and dignity, begging God in the same way as it was in the time of Moses. Therefore, he says, they will be driven out “and they will go astray among the nations.” This is what they had to endure, both at the time when they were taken to Assyria, no less now, when they were struck for mocking Christ: the descendants of Israel live everywhere in the world as homeless wanderers and without a city, because God said through the holy prophets: I will scatter them to every wind (See Jer. 49:32; Eze. 5:10, 12, 12 and etc.). So, if we have concern and thought about union with God, let us bow our necks before Him and with good submission approach Christ, who says: “Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you” (Matthew 11:28–29), because in this case we will be fruitful and unharmed, we will not have any worthless root or fruit that is wasted without profit, we will not be wandering, we will not be at a distance from God, but near Him and with Him, and we will have a city, high and heavenly, the mother of the firstborn, the nurse of the saints, the pure dwelling place of the spirits on high. St. Cyril: ὀτι; in glory less according to the διότι option. In glory: they will be eaten by the unclean. At St. Kirill: οὐχ ἤδυναν αὐτῷ; in glory: and he was not satisfied with their demands, according to the reading: οὐχ ἠδύναντο αὐτῷ αὶ θυδίαι αὐτῶν and with the usual punctuation. Ὧραι Mountains, minor goddesses corresponding to the seasons, are the givers of fertility, according to pagan ideas. Λοιμοί - pestilence: better in connection with speech: λιμοί - hunger. Ἐν τῷ πένθει, during crying, sadness, mourning for the deceased. In glory: and famine, and they will disappear. Based on the subsequent interpretation, it is more correct to read: your untruths - τῆς ἀδικίας σου. That. false prophets speaking in the name of God can only be where there are true ones; therefore, the sin of being carried away by false prophecy while there is a true prophecy can only occur among followers of revealed religion, worshipers of the true God. In paganism, all prophets are false. In glory: the guard Ephraim is with God, the prophet is obstinate in all his ways. In glory: the word from my mouth. That is, a disastrous network. In Russian: bird catcher's net. Κατέπηξαν, lit.: driven in, driven in. Πέπηγε καὶ ἐνεβοθρεύθη, lit.: driven in (indicating κατέπηξαν) and dug in, driven in and trampled down. At St. Kirill: ἀπὸ Βηθλείμ, δήμου Ἰοὺδα, as in the Vatican list. In glory: Bethlehem Judah, and from the family of the tribe of Judah. In glory: from the city of Bethlehem Judah. At St. Kirill everywhere - Μιχαίας, Μιχαίου: to the house of Micah, Mikheev. We keep the spelling of the Slavic translation. At St. Kirill: εἰς ημέραν, vm. usual: εἰσ ημέρας. Στολήν ιματίων, see Judges 14:12: I will give you ... thirty garments (στολά ιματίων). In glory two vestments according to the Alexandrian reading: ζεῦγος ιματίων. In Slav.: young priest according to the Alexandrian reading: καὶ ἐγένετο αὐτῷ τὸ παιδάριον εις ἱερέα. Ἑως τῆς ημέρας ἐκείνης. In glory: until these days, - ἕως τῶν ἡμερῶν ἐκείνων, as in Alexandria. In glory: the tribes of the sons of Israel. It is obvious that with this translation the word אפיד is derived from the verb פדה with Aleph prostheticum. This verb has a figurative meaning: to deliver, to free. From the verb תרף (uncommon), the meaning of which is not established. In the production on which the cited St. Cyril’s translation of the word “Tiraphim”, תדף is close to the word תְריפָת healing, in the LXX ὑγεία. Some of the newest ones establish a connection both in production and in meaning between the Hebrew “Teraphim” and the Greek θέραπες - healer and guardian gods, which are mentioned in the work of Xenophon Ἀπομνημονεύματα. – When translating “healing them,” the end of the word (m) is considered as a suffix of 3 l. pl. numbers. Ὡς σῦκον. In glory like a guard, according to the usual reading: ὡς σκοπὸν. In glory and was abominable, as if he were beloved. At St. Kirill: καὶ εγένοντο οι ηγαπημενοι ως οι εβδελυγμένοι. Ἁμάρτη; in glory will be deceived, according to another reading: πλανηθῦ. In glory from conceptions, according to the reading of the Complutensian Bible: ἐκ συλλήψεων. In glory (I will leave it behind), after the words: they will eat fiercely. Ἐξ αυτῶν, own. of them . In glory Lord God of strength. Instead of ἀσεβὴς we read εὐσεβής. Παρέστησε. In glory prepostavisha, according to the usual παρέστησαν. At St. Cyril, as in the Complutensian Bible, there are no words: καὶ Ἐφραίμ, glory. and Ephraim. In the indicated place it reads: from us, we do not want. Ἐν Γαλγάλ; in glory: in Galgaleh - ἐν Γαλγάλοις. Τῶν ἐπιτηδευμάτων vm. usual: τ. ἐ. αὐτῶν, in glory: their undertakings. In glory: (to this) I will not apply. The text says: οὐκ ησέβησαν, which does not give a satisfactory meaning. Assuming that ἠσέβησαν came from which the context requires, we translate: did not enter. Or you can not read οὐκ and translate it as Latin: however, some have committed wickedness, showing disobedience, whose bodies therefore .... At St. Kirill: Ἐφραὶμ τὰς ῥίζας αυτοῦ, εξηράνθη, καρπὸν οὐκέτι μὴ ἐνέγκη. In glory: more Ephraim: his rooting is withered, and let it not bear fruit. Κοιλίας - wombs. Interpretation: τῆς κοιλίας, as read in many manuscripts (Holmes and Parsons). Ταύτης vm. ordinary σου (glory is yours). You might be interested in: