Commentary on Chapter 10

(1) "Woe to those who write wickedness, for they who write wickedness," (2) "Blaspheming the judgment of the poor, rapturing the judgment of my poor people, for they may be a widow to plunder, and an orphan to plunder." (3) "And what will they do on the day of the visitation? For sorrow will come to you far away. And to whom will you have recourse, may it help you? And where will you leave your glory," (4) "if you do not fall into captivity? And they will fall under the slain. And in all these His wrath is not turned away, but His hand is still exalted."

There are people who, refusing to follow the fathers and the dogmas handed down to them, wish to become the leaders of heresies themselves. For this reason they invent certain innovations in the right teaching, "writing deceit" and impiety; It is upon them, on these fathers of falsely named knowledge, on these authors of godless teachings, that "woe" falls. For such people plunder those who are poor in faith, take possession of the souls, the widows of the true Bridegroom, God the Word. And if they see that someone has been orphaned from God through sin, then they make him as their prey, promising him every security and offering him a voluptuous life, if only they find him agreeing to godless teachings. Such is the heresy of the Anomoeans, who promise remission of sins to fornicators, adulterers, homosexuals, enslavers of free people, perjurers, and liars, if only they find them partakers in blasphemy against the Only-begotten. The prophetic word speaks to them: "What shall they do in the day of visitation?" and calls the day the appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ from heaven, when He will come into the world to reward each one according to his deeds. On this day, as "writers of wickedness," they will receive the tribulation that comes to them from afar. But "To whom do you have recourse, that it may help you?" for you have written against God, the Judge of the living and the dead. Your accusations will be your writings.

Then the Prophet says: "Where will you leave your glory?" You, who love to do everything for show, who are partial to human honor, but who wanted to become heresies in order to gain a name for yourselves, and therefore "spoke falsehood on high" (cf. Psalm 72:8), "where" then, on the day of judgment, "will you forsake your glory?" Now you, the leader of the deceived, take advantage of their surprise, bear the name of leader and teacher, respect and delight them; and then you will be more dishonorable than they themselves, whom you have killed. For the acceptance of a false opinion is the murder of the soul. Therefore thou shalt fall under them, and the burden of those whom thou hast slain shall fall upon thee."

And since each of us writes his own handwriting, as it were, with his own life, imprinting in his memory the images of deeds, then, perhaps, the prophetic word calls such as "those who write wickedness" unhappy. For the heart of the righteous is "not written with ink, but with the living Spirit of God" (2 Corinthians 3:3), and the heart of the unrighteous is not written with "the living Spirit of God," but with ink, akin to darkness and the enemy of light. For this reason each one either writes for himself, doing good, or, composing a handwriting on himself, gathers evil things. Thus, there is "handwriting on us" (cf. Col. 2:14), which is written with our own hands when we do evil; There is a handwriting for us when we do well. And there are also those who forge letters in contracts and change the letters in papers to the possession of margins, in wills, in sureties, and in various conditions, when they write something that is confirmed by written evidence; and such "write deceit," distorting the just judgment in the reasoning of the poor and plundering the wealth of the poor among the people, from which the widow turns into food for them, and the orphan into gain, as happens with the victors in robberies during war. They are reminded of the prophetic word: "What shall they do in the day of visitation?" And the day of judgment and retribution for each according to the measure of his sins he called the day of visitation, with which he threatens them: "Sorrow will come to you far away."

And let us understand the meaning of the word "far away" as follows: our salvation is not far away, but is near us, for it is said: "God draweth nigh, I am" (Jeremiah 23:23). I am closer to them than the tunic is to their body. And it is also said: "This commandment, which I command you today, is not heavy, it is far from you; Who shall ascend from us into heaven, and shall take it up to us, and make it to us, and to him that heareth it, we shall do? Below it is the land of the sea, saying, Who shall pass over to us the land of the sea, and shall take it to us, and we shall do it to him that hears it? do it" (cf. Deuteronomy 30:11-14). And our Lord says: "The Kingdom of God is within you" (Luke 17:21). That is why the best and salvific is "near" to us and "within" us; and the opposite of this comes to us "far away," since it is outside of us. For sin was not contained in our very constitution, but was brought in afterwards. That is why the Prophet threatens that the sorrow sent for sins "will come far away."

(5) "Woe to Assyria, the rod of my wrath and wrath are in their hand." (6) "I will send my wrath upon the tongue of iniquity, and I will command my people to do covetousness and captivity, and to trample down the cities and lay me in the dust." (7) "This is not such a thought, and the soul is not so intelligible; but his mind will depart, and his tongues will not be small." (8) "And if they say to him, 'Are you the only prince?'" (9) "And he said, 'Have you not taken the countries above Babylon and Halani, where the pillar is made, and take Arabia and Damascus and Samaria?' (10) "As I have taken this, I will take all the principalities."

Because of the many iniquities of the people, the Assyrians are sent against them, not because of their own righteousness, but because of the excessive iniquity of the people. Incidentally, even the Assyrians themselves, who did not understand that instead of a corrective scourge they were given to the people who had transgressed God's laws, but thought highly of themselves, as if they had acquired some kind of power, are called unfortunate by the Prophet. "Woe" to you, Assyrians, you are "the rod of my wrath," you are a punitive instrument, you do not act by your own power, but by the action of Him who moves you, you are sent upon those who are worthy of contrition. "And wrath is in their hand," says the Prophet. Anger, however, is evidently called punishment here, as the Psalmist does: "Punish me with Thy wrath" (Psalm 6:2). So, the punishment of Israel is in the hands of the Assyrians.

"I will send My wrath upon the tongue of the wicked." I will impose punishment on this people who did not want to live according to the Law prescribed for them. "And I will command my people to do gain." The good God, out of love for mankind, also calls the people who committed iniquity His own. Because he committed iniquity, God sends wrath upon him. But since he once chose him, because of the election of the fathers, he does not renounce the attribute with him. Therefore he says: "I will command you to commit gain and captivity, and to trample down the cities and lay me in the dust," so that we may know that all the calamities that we endure, we bear by God's command. For God does not allow us to be given over to evil and punitive forces, but He Himself determines the measure of punishment, having in mind the power of those who are being healed. "Greed" means everything that happens to the dead who have fallen in battle: weapons, clothing, or any other ornament; and "captivity" (προνομη) means the division of the spoils of war, made according to the merits of the victors. Therefore, the Assyrians are commanded to "create gain and captivity" in Israel, to "trample down" its cities and turn them "to dust."

«Сей же не тако помысли и душею не тако возмне», но превознесся умом, как будто не за грехи предан ему народ; а вознесшись умом и изринув из помышления своего истинную причину, почитает себя сильным, «еже потребити языки не малы». И поскольку подвластные с лестью и потворством говорят ему: «ты еси един князь», он, как бы смеясь, отвечает: «не взях ли страны, яже выше Вавилона и Халани?» То есть: «Я еще не стал господином всех, не к моему царству принадлежит страна, которая выше Вавилона и Халани, "идеже столп создан"»; а разумеет тот древний столп, который созидали на поле Сеннаарском говорившие: «приидете» и, прежде нежели разлучились мы друг с другом, «созиждем себе град и столп, егоже верх будет даже до небесе» (Быт. 11, 4). Имя же «Халань» не употребляется в другой раз в Писании; но догадываюсь, что страна сия где–нибудь близ Вавилонии, потому что Вавилон ведет свое имя от смешения языков, которые смесил Господь, расторгая согласие на зло. Ибо Писание говорит, что имя месту тому «наречеся смешение» (ср.: Быт. 11, 9), по–еврейски же «Бабель».

Но у Пророка говорится: «взях Аравию и Дамаск и Самарию? Якоже сия взях, и вся княжения возму». Итак, поскольку взял в мысль себе, что может привести в покорность все города, а не уразумел, что если одержал над людьми победу, то сие произошло не по собственной его силе, но по Домостроительству Бога, вразумляющего согрешивших, то по сей самой причине пророческое слово представляет его достойным оплакивания.

«Возрыдайте, изваянная во Иерусалиме и в Самарии:» (11) «якоже бо сотворих Самарии и рукотворенным ея, тако сотворю и Иерусалиму и кумиром его».

Как возрыдают «изваянная», сделанные из дерева, камня или другого какого вещества и искусством человеческим приведенные в образ или бессловесных четвероногих животных, или птиц, или и пресмыкающихся, каковы кумиры египетские? Ибо рыдание есть скорбный голос, выражающий сердечную болезнь нечленораздельным каким–то звуком. Посему как же возрыдают «изваянная?» Возрыдают потому, что в обделанных человеческими руками деревах, или камнях, или также в золоте, серебре и слоновой кости, и во всех других идолах из дорогого и недорогого вещества, которым кланяются язычники, присутствуют демоны, невидимо прилетающие и наслаждающиеся приятностью нечистых испарений. Ибо как прожорливые псы не отходят от мясных лавок, где есть кровь и гной, так и ненасытные демоны, уловляя случай усладиться кровию и туком жертв, любят быть около жертвенников и поставленных им кумиров. А может быть, и питаются сим тела их, или воздушные, или огненные, или смешанные из обеих стихий. И история Царств показывает, что демонская сила присутствует в изваяниях, посвященных демонам. Ибо сказано: «взяша иноплеменницы кивот Божий и внесоша его», где был Дагон. «И обутреневаша Азотяне наутрие, и се, Дагон паде на лице свое на землю» (ср.: 1 Цар. 5, 2, 3). Итак, видимое изваяние был Дагон, а падающий на лице есть демон, побежденный славой, окружающей кивот Божий; он падает на лице, но ниспровергает с собой и рукотворенное. Посему–то вкушающие идоложертвенное называются «общниками трапезе бесовстей» (ср.: 1 Кор. 10, 20, 21), потому что из жертвы, приводимой к идолу, уделяется нечто присутствующему в нем демону, и он берет некоторую часть из испаряющейся крови, из обращающегося в дым тука и из прочих всесожжений; и кто пьет из чаши, из которой делается возлияние, тот пьет «чашу бесовскую» (ср.: 1 Кор. 10, 21). Посему возрыдают «изваянная», то есть демоны, соименные изваянным. И когда говорится, что «приидет во Египет» Господь и «потрясутся рукотворенная Египетская, и сердца их разслабнут» (ср.: Ис. 19, 1), объясняем слова сии в том же смысле. Ибо в пришествие Господне демоны, обитающие в местах надземных, потрясутся, обращенные в бегство, и прогнаны будут в приличное им место бездны. Посему «проклят» всяк, «иже сотворит изваяние и слияние, дело рук художника, и положит е в сокровении» (ср.: Втор. 27, 15), потому что в изваянии приобрел себе худое сокровище — беса, следующего за изваянием, и с бесом привлек в дом свой клятву.

(12) «И будет, егда скончает Господь вся творя в горе Сиони и во Иерусалиме, наведет на ум великий, на князя Ассирийска и на высоту славы очию его».