Глава 12

Zechariah 12:1. The prophecy of the word of the Lord against Israel, says the Lord, expand the heavens, and found the earth, and build up the spirit of man in it. Having made an excellent and completely sufficient discussion about the good shepherd, that is, about Christ, and also about the unskillful and very cruel shepherd, tearing apart the sheep, which is, we said, the Antichrist, usefully reminds us of the persecutions that once took place, namely against Israel, and of course against Israel not according to the flesh, but against spiritual Israel and against the truly holy Jerusalem, which is “the church of the living God” ( 1 Timothy 3:5). We said that just as there is a spiritual Jew, having circumcision in the heart, through the Spirit, and not in the flesh according to the letter, so Israel, it can be argued, is called, of course, not Israel by blood, but the one who has a mind that sees God. Such, without a doubt, are those who have been called to sanctification through faith in Christ and have come to know God the Father through Him and in Him; for this way of seeing God is true and excellent. So, the speech refers to what we now call Israel. And that the God of all is omnipotent, giving us a prediction about the next thing, this is shown in the words: “spread out the heavens, and found the earth, and create the spirit of man in it,” for “against Israel, he says, the prophecy of words” is received by the omnipotent God, who stretches out the heavens like a skin (Ps. 103:2), according to the word of the psalmist, and who has made the earth so solid that it always and continuously remains motionless, although based on the seas. This is what God-inspired scripture teaches about this. “And create the spirit of man in him”: the Creator and Artist of such great things, how can he not accomplish without difficulty and very easily what He pleases? The spirit of man is created “in him,” not called back to the beginning of his existence, although it came into existence through Him, but as if transformed from weakness to strength, from powerlessness to constancy, and in general, spiritually changed from worse to better. So the divine David sings: “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit in my womb” (Ps. 50:12). Of course, no one will say, if only he has the mind, that (the psalmist) wants to receive a heart or spirit, as if he did not have them at first, but rather he will think that he is asking to create in him a pure heart and a right spirit. And this is transformation. Holy prophets, when they intend to give predictions about subjects of no small importance, usually try first to demonstrate the omnipotence and omnipotence of the God of all, so that their word is in all respects solid for faith, even if they speak about something that exceeds hope and, as far as our understanding is concerned, turns out to be beyond reason and incredible. Zechariah 12:2–3. Now I lay Jerusalem as the threshold of the movement of all the people around, and in Judea there will be a riot against Jerusalem: and on that day I will lay a stone for Jerusalem to be trodden underfoot by all the tongues: everyone who tramples on it will curse, and all the nations of the earth will be gathered together. In previous predictions, the future defeat of the land of Judea by the Roman army is clearly predicted. So the Prophet said: “the voice of the weeping shepherds, as if their greatness had been destroyed.” And a little later again: “For this reason I will not have mercy on anyone who dwells on the earth, says the Lord, and I will betray the people who are in his sincere hand and in the hand of his king: and they will cut up the land: and I will not take it out of their hand.” The above words clearly foreshadow the persecution that took place against the church. Thus, the rulers of the Jewish synagogue armed themselves against those who believed in Christ before all others, forbidding the holy apostles to speak in the name of Christ (Acts 4:17), subjecting them to scourging in assemblies (Acts 16:22), plotting to stone them and otherwise, and what other ungodly things were they not doing or saying? When the word about Christ reached the pagan countries, and those living in them submitted to the preaching of the Gospel, then again other persecutions arose from the kings, who, trying to adopt vile and unclean idolatry and becoming servants of the devil’s wickedness, killed saints and called them to martyrdom. The Church, in the absence of a (visible) defender, seemed susceptible to suffering and looked like “movable vestibules” and falling or like “a stone being trodden down”; for although the Savior of all had the power to easily end all war, and even completely turn it away from His worshipers and make them free from every trial and overcoming the power of the enemy, he wisely allowed them to be glorified through suffering, so that they, having become conformed to Him, would glorify with Him and co-reign. “For as long as we suffer with Him, so that we also may be glorified with Him,” as it is written (Rom. 8:17), “just as we share our passions, so we also share glory” (2 Cor. 1:7). Therefore he says: “I lay down Jerusalem as a movable threshold.” When this happens, then a “denial” will be erected around him, that is, a siege from everyone. And when he turns out to be like a stone being trampled underfoot, then everyone “swearing will swear.” This happened, as I just said, in the once former persecutions, when they rebelled against the saints, showing them off in many ways, and even mocking the dying, the unfortunate ones. They did not know, apparently, that glory is born from suffering, and that they would face inevitable torment, corresponding to their constant joy. Note that the trampling of the church, he says, is not a matter of the power of the pagans, but of His council. He allows, as I have shown, that His worshipers can be perfected through suffering, about which He says: “I place Jerusalem as the threshold of the movement of all the people around.” Close to this, I think, is what was said through the mouth of the Savior to Pilate: “Do not place any authority on me except it is given from above” (John 19:11). So the spiritual Jerusalem again, that is, the church, could rightly say to the persecuting world: you would not have had much power if it had not been given to you from above. Zechariah 12:4. On that day, says the Lord Almighty, I will strike every horse with terror, and its rider with madness: and I will open my eyes against the house of Judah, and I will strike all the horses of the people blind. That he will stop all war and make the attacks of the pursuers fruitless, this makes it clear in the words that he will strike the horse and rider with frenzy and madness and blindness. Being in a frenzy and falling into madness, I think, are one and the same thing, for frenzy can, in all fairness, be understood as going out of the mind. When this happens and happens to those who are thirsty for murder, then it is entirely permissible for the saints to say about their pursuers: “Do not understand our enemies” (Deut. 32:31), and again: “These on chariots, and these on horses: but in the name of the Lord our God we will be magnified 165. They fell asleep and fell; but we groaned and recovered” (Ps. 19:8-9). Otherwise, he who wickedly pursues the innocence of the saints may fall into madness and be subjected to unexpected frenzy, that is, surprise, namely: when he sees that they are victorious in adversity and defeat - and when they seem defeated, then in particular they are overcome most of all, if only it is true that in suffering they are predominantly glorious and have grace from above, corresponding to the greatness of the sorrows. Further: didn’t the blessed martyrs astonish their pursuers, defeating even Satan himself and rebuking evil and unclean spirits, sometimes plunging the murderers themselves into great amazement at their inherent glory? So, he announces the defeat of the rider and at the same time the horse, so that we understand the enemy phalanxes that have taken up arms against the meekness of the saints. “He will open his eyes to the house of Judah,” he says. Judas in this place calls Christ who appeared from the root of Jesse and the tribe of Judah, and His house is His church or the holy multitude of those justified by faith. And the opening of the eyes means, I think, that he will look with a very wide and, as it were, full gaze. And this can serve as a clear sign of favor and protection and mercy, for it is written that “the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous” (Ps. 39:16). And whoever he looks at, he makes them completely blessed, since it can be rightly said that with disgust he punishes the proud and criminal, but with charity he pleases the pious and virtuous. Therefore, the divine David, clearly presenting the harm of disgust and the benefits of charity, once said: “Do not turn Your face away from me, and do not turn away in anger from Your servant” (Ps. 26:9), and again in another case: “Look upon me and have mercy on me” (Ps. 24:16); for disgust will be followed by anger and its consequences, and charity will be followed by mercy. Zechariah 12:5. And the thousands of Judah all said in their hearts: Let us find for ourselves those who dwell in Jerusalem in the Lord Almighty their God. The thousands of Judas, we affirm, called the holy apostles appointed by Christ, as it were, as leaders and who received the lot to rule Judas, that is, called to confession and praise; for (the word) Judas means praise. Yet these could be from the pagans, whom the divine singer charged with the duty of praising Emmanuel, saying in the spirit: “Bless the Gentiles of our God, and let the voice of His praise be heard” (Ps. 65:8). So, Jude in this place signifies those who are called through faith to praise and confession; the captains of thousands placed over them, the chiefs and leaders of the divine disciples. So they can be seen exclaiming and saying to the worshipers of the Savior, as if to some kind of soldiers: “Gird your loins with truth, and put on the breastplate of righteousness, and put on your feet for the preparation of the gospel of peace: and taking up the shield of faith over all, in it you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one” (Eph. 6:14–16 ). So, the thousands, and this is quite fair, are divine disciples. They will say, he says, in their hearts: “We will find ourselves living in Jerusalem”; for the divine disciples wanted the truly holy Jerusalem, that is, the Church, to be filled with worshipers, and so that it would rightly be exalted, like a certain city, by the famous multitude of its inhabitants. Therefore they preached the faith, preaching the good news of Jesus, sealing their words with signs and wonders. However, they did not convince, since (the people) remained stubborn and adamant, like an unbridled horse. Therefore, they finally began to look for the inhabitants of the holy city “in the Lord Almighty their God,” that is, in Christ, and they turned to the pagans, speaking to the people of the Jews; “It is not right for you to speak the word of God first: but having rejected it, and making yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are converted into tongues: for this is the Lord’s commandment to us” (Acts 13:46–47). From there they looked for citizens of the Church, which the divine David also recalled, saying: “glorious words were spoken about you, the city of God” (Ps. 86:3). Having searched, they became rich and gathered an innumerable multitude. And now they are saying to the holy city: “Expand the place of your tent and your covers, set up, do not spare, extend your tent, and strengthen your stake; Stretch also on the gum and on the left” (Is. 54:2-3). He rejoices at the multitude of his inhabitants and, as if surprised at the gathering of his own children, says: “I am childless and a widow, and who will give birth to these for me? Where have I been?” (Isa.49:21) Zechariah 12:6. On the day he will put the thousands of Judah as the chief of fire in the wood, and as I will shine fire into the stalks, and all the people around will devour on the right hand and on the left. The thousands of Judas, as I said before, calls the holy apostles or generally all the heads of the holy churches. Their word or secret wisdom, he said, will prevail as a brand thrown into firewood appears, and a lamp seems to be thrown into easily flammable reeds. “They will eat,” he says, “all the people on the right hand and on the left,” that is, wherever they wish to go, everywhere and in every possible way they will be there in power, calling to knowledge and, as if with divine and spiritual fire, warming the chilled. The God of all things said something similar to the blessed prophet Jeremiah: “Behold, I have put my words in your mouth” as fire, and this people as firewood, and will burn them (Jer. 1:9), instead: he will call to knowledge and make those cooled in sin again warm in spirit. The hearts of those who wander are cooled and their minds are dead, worshiping the creation instead of the God who created, paying veneration to stones and trees. But even such, as I said, become “burning in spirit” (Rom. 12:11), ardent for righteousness and, as the divine John says, are baptized with the Holy Spirit and spiritual fire (Matthew 3:11), which has the property of destroying the sin that has settled on our souls like a kind of rubbish and driving out the impurity of lust. Therefore, through the mouth of Isaiah it is said: “If you place coals of fire, sit on them, they will help you” (Is. 47:14-15). And he also says about himself: “and he was sent to me alone from the Seraphim, and in his hand he had the name of a burning coal, which was taken from the altar with pincers: and I touched my mouth, and said: Behold, I will touch this to your lips, and he will take away your iniquities, and he will cleanse your sins with fire” (Is. 6:6-7), rightly calling the Divine one a coal. and the Most Holy One, who destroys the sins of Christ. So, the divine disciples became like a brand of fire in the reeds and ate the pagans all around, however, not destroying them to destruction, but burning the unclean and godless teachings of false knowledge from them and destroying the uncleanness of the primordial lies, not allowing the minds of those who once believed to cool down in insane and vain desires, so that, rejoicing in themselves, they would say to the Savior of all Christ: “Thy word has been kindled.” dearly: and thy servant will love him” (Ps. 119:140). And that the word of God is hot and sharp, this becomes clear from His words to Jeremiah: “My words are like burning fire, and like blazing stone that blots out a stone” (Jer. 23:29). And truly, the word of God has full ability and power to revive and kindle those who have cooled in sins and easily awaken those who have become hardened and withered, for it is “livingly active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing even to the division of soul and body, members and brains, and judges the mind and the thought of the heart” (Heb. 4:12). It was said in one place and through the mouth of the prophets to the rude and cruel people of Judah: “Be circumcised to your God, men of Judah” (Jer. 4:4). Zechariah 12:7. And Jerusalem will be inhabited again by itself: and the Lord will save the village of Judah as at first, so that the praise of the house of David will not be magnified, and the magnification of those who dwell in Jerusalem will not be magnified against Judah. Not always, he says, the Church will be in an alarming state, and she will not be subjected to endless persecution, but she will once calm down and live “on her own,” that is, apart, when no one will oppress her, nor cause sorrow, nor instill fear, nor increase the sorrow of temptation. And this is because “the Lord will save the villages of Judah as at first.” He will protect His churches or His “villages” in such a way that He will give them care equal to that which was granted in ancient times to Israel, liberated from Egypt. Then the God of all brought Israel out of the house of slavery and “from the furnace of iron,” as it is written (Deut. 4:20), and from intolerable cruelty, “with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm” (Deut. 5:15), when he “flooded those who pursued in the black sea, covered them with the deep” (Ex. 15:4) “and drowned them like tin in greener waters” ( Ex.15:10), and those who were freed crossed over. A pillar of fire led them at night, showing them the way, but during the day a cloud hung over them. Then they ate bread from heaven and were saved in the desert from the bites of snakes; overcame enemies, crossed the Jordan, were circumcised with stone knives, entered the land of promise. Christ gives this to those who seek His villages, that is, the Church. So He will save them, freeing them from slavery under the power of the devil and removing them from demonic dominion, leading them, as it were, across the sea through the temptations of this life and vain excitement, and offering Himself to them as a glorious support and pillar illuminating those in darkness, and as if into a cloud, watering with spiritual dew, becoming for them the bread of life and showing the bites of the spirits ineffective and powerless. serpents, and also brought them across the Jordan, showing them clean through circumcision in the spirit and introducing them into the kingdom of heaven. He grants this to His worshipers and will save them in such ways, “for let not the praise of the house of David be magnified,” that is, the rulers of the Jews, so that there will be no magnification or reasons for magnification against Judah among the inhabitants of sensual and earthly Jerusalem. After all, they were arrogant and treated very haughtily those who believed in Christ and Emmanuel himself, always and everywhere exposing the instructions given to the ancients through Moses, and pointing to the protection shown to their fathers. Therefore, they once said: “Why do you perform a sign, so that we can see and have faith in you? What are you doing? Our fathers ate manna in the desert, as it is written: “Given bread from heaven to them to eat” (John 4:30–31), or: “We know as God said to Moses: but this we do not know, whence there is food” (John 9:29). So, he says, God will perform all sorts of miracles for us, although not as visibly as then, but spiritually, and thus save us living in our own villages, so that the Jews or those in authority over them will not be proud of us. This is exactly what it means, I think, “praise to the house of David.” Zechariah 12:8. And on that day the Lord will protect those living in Jerusalem: and the weak one in them in that day will be like the house of David, 166 and the house of David like the house of God, like the angel of the Lord before them. “The God and Father crowned us with weapons of favor” (Ps. 5:13), for he gave us his own Son, protector and defender, through whom we were saved, safely emerging from every trial and usually defeating the attack of enemies and the ferocity of those pursuing. But in the proposed place something similar is understood, although these words may seem shadowed by great ambiguity. The God of all, said, “will protect those who live in Jerusalem,” but not those living near it 167, and, near Jerusalem, undoubtedly, here is the Church of Christ. There lives near her someone who does not have great firmness, but seems to hesitate and is very accommodating to the wrong, or otherwise careless in wisdom. On the contrary, in Jerusalem lives one who is firm, steadfast in love for Christ and always devoted to the benefit of divine teachings, so that he can say through the mouth of David: “If Your word is sweeter to my throat than honey 168 to my mouth” (Ps. 119:103). So, “he will protect, he says, those who live (in Jerusalem), and the weak in them will be in that day like the house of David.” The House of David is called here, we believe, the most honorable among the Jews, since those who came from the tribe of Judah from Jesse and David once reigned in Jerusalem. And the weak among those living in the holy city, the spiritual Jerusalem, which is the Church, seems to call one who has only just been catechized, but has not yet been baptized - who is still, as it were, ill, burdened with the weight of sin, and not freed from primordial ailments or passions. But even one who is in such a state 169, since he nevertheless believed and departed from the canopy of the law and was completely inclined to the decision to fulfill the requirements of spiritual goodness and a glorious life in Christ, “he will be, he says, like the house of David,” that is, in reason, he is in no way worse than the wise and most honorable of the Jews. The wisest Paul also points to something similar when he addresses the Jewish people and says this: “For the Gentiles, who do not have the law, do things by the lawful nature; these, not having the law, are a law unto themselves, for they show the work of the law written in their hearts” (Rom. 2:14-15), and again: “For circumcision profiteth, if ye do the law: but if he break the law thou art, thy circumcision become uncircumcision. If uncircumcision preserves the justification of the law, will not uncircumcision be counted as circumcision? and he will condemn the uncircumcised by nature, the one who does the law, who is a transgressor of the law by the Scripture and by circumcision. The circumcision is not manifestly a Jew, nor is the circumcision manifest in the flesh; but the circumcision of the heart is a Jew in secret, and the circumcision of the heart is in the Spirit, not in the Scriptures; whose praise is not from man, but from God” (Rom. 2:25-29). And in fact, is he not higher and in virtue superior to the lawyers and the most honorable among the Jews, although, as he is not yet baptized, he may have a remnant of weakness? With the healthy part of his heart, that is, faith, he, of course, must differ from someone who does not accept faith. If anyone belonging to the house of David, that is, one of the nobles and most honorable among them, accepts faith and succeeds in understanding the mystery of Christ, such a person will be honored and will be like “the house of God and like the angel of the Lord before them.” The Savior Himself expresses something similar in the words that “every scribe, having learned the kingdom of heaven, is like a housewife, who wears out of his treasure the new and the old” (Matthew 13:52). He who already has the knowledge of the law collected in himself, as in a treasury, if he adds the gospel, will be rich in understanding, as if from a storeroom offering new and ancient teachings to the inquisitive. Such was the divine Paul, who sometimes tried to confirm the word about Christ with proofs from the law, sometimes with secret teachings that exceeded the law, in some way arousing his listeners to the desire to boast of faith in Him. So, in one case he said: “Speak to us, even if you want to be under the law, do you not listen to the law? For it is written that Abraham had two sons: one by a bondwoman, and the other by a freewoman, according to the promise; even the essence is allegorical: this for there are two covenants: one is from Mount Sinai, who gives birth to work, like Hagar: Hagar, for Mount Sin is in Arabia, and is attached to the present Jerusalem, and works with his children. But the Jerusalem above is freedom, which is the mother of us all” (Gal. 4:21-26). And in another - and about the Son: “Who is the radiance of glory and the image of his hypostasis, bearing all things by the word of his power, having made cleansing for our sins, is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty on high” (Heb. 1:3). So, you understand... that both ancient and new teachings benefit the souls of those being guided. Therefore he says: “The house of David will be like the angel of the Lord before them.” Zechariah 12:9–10. And it shall come to pass on that day that I will require that all the tongues that come against Jerusalem be taken away. And I will pour out on the house of David, and on those who dwell in Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and compassion, and they will look to Me 170. My intention, he says, is to destroy the nations who attacked the holy city, that is, the Church, and with grace and bounty to surround the house of Judah and those living in Jerusalem, that is, citizens of the Church and those who have received the appointment to praise (God). These again are those who worship Christ and decide to follow the instructions of the Gospel, leading a glorious and blameless life. That the enemies of the truth were weakened everywhere and in everything, this is clearly predicted by the Savior Himself, saying: “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). Here he calls the gates those who want to pursue her, who find themselves, as it were, in death and destruction, and usually lead them to the bonds of hell. who is inclined towards them. So, they will weaken, and even more so, those who are at enmity with her will be destroyed and will come to destruction; for it is indisputable that “many are the sorrows of the righteous, but I the Lord will deliver them from them all” (Ps. 33:20), and it is true that “all who want to live godly in Christ will be persecuted” (2 Tim. 3:12), however, Christ makes the plans of those who plot evil and the very enterprises useless and powerless, giving us “the power to tread on the serpent and the scorpion, and all the strength of the enemy" (Luke 10:19). He encourages and says: “You have tribulation in the world, but take heart, for I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). So, those who rebel against the Church at certain times perish, but on their own, that is, on the believers, the “Spirit of grace and generosity” is poured out abundantly; for God and the Father crowns us with heavenly blessings and fills us with spiritual gifts, so that, directing our spiritual eye to Him, we have all hope in Him - which, I think, is what the words indicate: “They will look at Me.” Being in such a state, we rejoice within ourselves, and with our lips we praise God: “Bless the Lord, my soul, who cleanses all your iniquities, who heals all your ailments, who delivers your belly from corruption, who crowns you with mercy and bounties, who fulfills your good desires” (Ps. 102:1-5). Who was abused 171 “and they will mourn for him like a loved one, and they will grieve for him with pain like a firstborn” (Zechariah 12:10). The Hebrew edition makes the beginning of the present section with the words: “and they will look at Me.” However, it does not agree with the tradition and translation of the Seventy. The Jews instead read: they will look at him, whom they have pierced; for, as it is written (John 19:34), Pilate’s soldiers pierced His side, which is why we rightly apply this saying to the Face of Christ. The words also apply to Him: “and they will mourn for him, as for a beloved, and they will ache for him with illness, as for a firstborn.” Having nailed the divine Church to the tree, the crucifiers surrounded (Him), mocking him wickedly. Some said: “Destroy the church and build in three days, save yourself” (Matthew 27:40). Others again: “Savior others, can’t they save themselves?” (Matthew 27:42). When He, having laid down His life for us (1 John 3:16), preached to the spirits in hell (1 Peter 3:19) and came to life during the earthquake that then occurred, those sitting at the cross 172 marveled, saying: “Truly this is the Son of God” (Matthew 27:54); Many people had great repentance at that time. When the Roman war fell upon them, and their country was devastated, cities were burned, houses were devastated, and even Jerusalem itself was already under siege, and famine was raging within, then some barely began to come to the consciousness of the insolence committed against Christ and finally learned the causes of the disaster and that the cause of their suffering was their wickedness in relation to Him. So, since they were violated, they “weep over him with tears, like a beloved, and ache for him with illness, like a firstborn.” After all, parents always shed tears uncontrollably over their lying (dead) first-born and beloved son - crying and sobbing that knows no bounds, prolonged and even seemingly unceasing grief, exhausting the soul with some sharp and unbearable pricks. That the Jews would experience such calamities, Christ predicted about this, reproaching the women weeping for Him and saying: “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for Me, weep both for yourself and for your children” (Luke 23:28). Zechariah 12:11–14. On the day he will exalt the lamentation in Jerusalem, like the lamentation of Adadrimon in the city of Magedon. And the land shall mourn according to the families of the nations: the tribe for themselves, and their wives for themselves: the tribe of the house of David for themselves, and their wives for themselves: the tribe of the house of Nathan for themselves, and their wives for themselves: the tribe of the house of Levi for themselves, and their wives for themselves, the tribe of Simeon for themselves, and their wives for themselves. All the other tribes, tribe and tribe about themselves, and their wives about themselves. When all of Judea is once devastated by the Roman army and Jerusalem itself is besieged, then, he says, among those in it there will be such a cry as a farmer makes about a garden with pomegranate apple trees being cut down 173 . This tree is beautiful; from the root it produces frequent, straight and very long branches, and when it is decorated with its fruits, then it especially causes great surprise. The most pleasant fruit is the pomegranate, distinguished by its natural beauty, hanging from the branches and having seeds and a reddish shell inside. It is very difficult, as I said, and sad when a tree is cut down along with its fruits. But the Jews had to see something similar; for in regard to statutory honors, those in charge can rightly be likened to fruitful pomegranates. Some, from the tribe of Judah, occupying royal thrones, were their lot in glory. Others, from the tribe of Levi, crowned with the high rank of the priesthood, were also glorious and famous. What about judges and lawyers, and those decorated with other honors? But since they raged against Christ, they were given over to the enemies; and when Vespasian and Titus devastated their country, besieged Jerusalem and tormented everyone in it with famine, then everything was filled with sorrow and crying. Joseph also testifies to this. Having compiled books about the captivity 174, in one place he said about Jerusalem in these words: “the groaning was everywhere in the city, the cry was heard far away, and the crying was contagious.” How he (Jerusalem) called it Lebanon and the forest, saying: “Open, O Lebanon, your doors, and let your cedars burn with fire; let Pitis lament, for the cedar fell, as if the nobles were impoverished; weep for the oak groves of the vasanitids, for the planted oak grove has been cut”; This is also what he calls a garden that is being cut down. This word will also be confirmed by the divine Matthew, who conveyed to the Jewish people: “For even the ax lies at the root of the tree: every tree that does not produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire” (Matthew 3:10) and burned. So, he says, there will be great lamentation in it, such as happens over a pomegranate garden, abounding, of course, with fruits and suddenly being cut down. And “the earth will mourn for tribes and tribes, and their wives for themselves.” We think that this is not what the blessed prophet wanted to show, that in each tribe the men would stand apart from the women in one place, and the women in another and would weep, for this, it seems, would be an unnecessary and pointless matter. Rather, it teaches that each tribe with its wives will have some special reason for crying. Therefore, he says, “And the tribe of the house of David for themselves, and their wives for themselves.” Let us now speak, as far as possible, of the misfortune of each tribe. Some, namely from the tribe of David or Judah, who have lost their kingdom, cry uncontrollably over the fact that they have lost such brilliant glory. Others, namely from the tribe of Levi, removed from the honors of the priesthood, together with their wives will cause mourning. Still others, namely from the tribe of Nathan - and this was a prophet, although not entirely true - also cry, for they can no longer predict unjust things, speak from their hearts (Jer. 23:16), offer their own words to the foolish as if from God and thereby collect gain. There is a legend that the judges established in their time were taken by the Jews from the tribe of Simeon, who had wise men and knowledgeable in the law, as well as many who were superior to others in their lives in accordance with the law. Therefore he says that the tribe of Simeon weeps for itself. And they had some lamentation of their own, for they did not judge the right and did not try, following the divine laws, to do what was pleasing to God, but, on the contrary, they were selfish and very corrupt and, as the prophet says, “his judges were like the wolves of Arabia” (Zeph. 3:3). Together with these, it was necessary for other tribes to cry, as they were removed from the most pleasant places and customs for them, and death itself was already hanging over their heads, and hunger itself was overtaking them like an enemy sword. Greek μεγαλυνθησόμεθα in glory. Bible Let us also call for a correspondence to another Greek. reading ἐπικαλεσόμεθα. Κατοικούντων–παροικούντον, i.e. natural inhabitants and foreign immigrants or neighbors. At Kir. added to this καὶ κηρίον (and honeycomb) as in a code. Sinai, etc., Slav. lane code follows. Alex. and some etc. That is, a catechumen, but not yet baptized. Kirill Al. reads πρὸς μέ, as Al., Vat., Sin. etc., but glory. has nan as Heb. Read: ἐις ὅν (other: ἀνθ’ ῶν) κατωρχήσαντο, – but Slav.: his same prodosha (εἲς) ὃν ἐξεκέντησαν, like some. Greek resp. Jewish. John 19:37, – Ignatius. Bogon. Thrall. § 10 (distributed ed.), – Irenaeus, Haeres. IV. 33. 11 (Stieren, p. 672: in quem compunxerunt) and others some. Παρὰ τὸ μνημεῖον. Kirill Al., like all the main lists of the LXX, reads: ὡς κοπετὸς ροώνος ἐν πεδίῳ ἐκκοπτομένου (like a lament for a garden with pomegranate apple trees being cut down in plain). Slavic translation: like the lamentation of Adadrimon on poly Magedon, made according to the Hebrew text. LXX proper names were translated as common nouns. You might be interested in: