(Verse 11 onwards) The mountains saw you and trembled; the raging waters passed by. The abyss gave forth its voice; the heights lifted their hands. The sun and moon stood still in their dwelling place; they will go in the light of your arrows, in the radiance of your glittering spear. In your fury, you trample the earth; in your wrath, you astonish the nations. You have come for the salvation of your people, for salvation with your Christ. You have struck the head from the house of the wicked; you have laid bare the foundation to the neck. Always. We have placed our edition alone, so that according to it, that is, according to the Hebrew, we may discuss the coherence of the passage, then we may discuss the same passage comically by chapters. The mountains saw you, God, and they grieved: namely, the high kingdoms and the lofty powers of this age, and the four chariots in Zechariah, which go forth from the bronze mountains (Zech. VI): these saw you and trembled. And the surge of waters passed over: this is, all their impetus and persecution, by which they vexed your people, passed over after they saw you. Then the abyss, that is, the underworld, praised you: then even the gods, that is, the angels, clapped their hands in applause, as if with a certain gesture and exultation of raised hands they showed you as the victor. Your sun and moon, and all the splendor with which you had previously shone upon your people, and afterwards had been covered by the weight of evil, were enveloped in the horror of darkness, received their light again, and regained their former brightness. Your arrows and your flashing spear, that is, your wounds, and your teaching, provided light to your people. Finally, in the light of your arrows, and in the splendor of your spear, which hast struck them to correct them, your people walked in your fury. So when will you avenge the injury of your people, you will tread upon earthly kingdoms, and cause all nations to marvel, for you have come forth for the salvation of your people, and you have come to them with your Christ: although it is written in Hebrew, 'You have come forth for the salvation of your people with your Jesus Christ: or with your Savior Christ: for Jesus indeed means Savior.' But when Jesus Christ, your Son, comes, you will strike the Antichrist from the house of the wicked, that is, in this world, which is placed in evil. Whether you strike the devil himself, who is the head of wickedness, and uncover its foundation up to its neck, that is, you reveal its hidden things, not for a short time, but forever. For this is what Sela means, that is, always.
LXX: They shall see you and be sorrowful, whether the peoples are in labor; for it signifies both. Consequently, when the earth is broken and the rivers flow, the peoples who have drunk from the rivers of God shall see God and be in labor. For from the very fact that they see God, they immediately conceive and say with God's word: We have conceived and given birth in the womb from your fear, O Lord, and have brought forth and given birth; we shall make the spirit of your salvation upon the earth. Blessed, says He, are the pure in heart, for they shall see God (Matthew 5:8). These people, therefore, cleansed by the rivers, have not yet seen, but they will see God: and when they see, they will conceive, so that they may bear the fruits of teachings. But because they are called people, and it is not possible for the people to see the face of God, although the prayer may be extended to the future, they will see and bear: however, according to the allegory it is more Hebraic to follow, where it is said: They have seen You, and the mountains have given birth: for it is the mountains' task to see God and bear children, whom they conceived from the word of God.
LXX: Disperse the waters of the journey. There are different types of waters: some eternal, others temporary. Concerning the eternal waters, and those that flow from the fountains of Israel, it is said: The land will be split by rivers. Concerning the sudden and temporary ones: All streams flow into the sea. The end of such waters is destruction. Therefore, God will disperse all waters that have been trampled upon by perverse doctrines, when He has dissipated the plans of the rulers and the wisdom of this world. If ever you see that a heresy has briefly flourished and then, by the grace of God, has been dissipated, say that it is complete: you will scatter the waters of the journey. However, what is said, 'of the journey,' can be understood as 'of the devil,' so that the meaning is: The waters which the devil has trampled upon, and which have provided a pathway for many, that is, have made many errors possible, the Lord will divide and scatter. Hence, other interpreters, wanting to describe heretical madness, have translated it as: Mockery, or the onslaught of waters will pass. For they are said to rush headlong in the course of eloquence, and to drag along with them whoever they come across, light and easy.
LXX: The abyss gave voice to its depth of imagination. The abyss is often interpreted in a positive way: sometimes in a negative way, and sometimes indifferently. In a positive way: Your judgments are a vast abyss (Psalm 35:7). And: Deep calls to deep (Psalm 42:7), and so on. In a negative way: The waters saw you, O God (Psalm 77:17), and so on. But even demons plead not to be sent into the abyss (Luke 8), and in Genesis: The abyss over which darkness prevailed (Genesis 1:2), I do not know if it can be interpreted in a positive way. However, it is mentioned there in an indifferent way: The fountains of the deep were broken up, and the floodgates of heaven were opened (Genesis, 7:11). And in the one hundred and forty-eighth psalm: Sea monsters and all deeps, fire and hail, snow and storms, unless perhaps because it is mentioned among sea monsters, fire and hail, it should be interpreted in a negative sense. I do not know if anyone could say this, unless they have seen it resonate with the others in praise of the Lord. Therefore, if we understand the abyss in a positive way, let us say that, with the waters of the worst journey dispersed, your wise ones saw you and borrowed the depth of knowledge they had from your presence. And whatever they previously thought about you, they proclaimed it in praise of their words. And beautifully, the opinion of imagination is called depth, according to Jesus son of Sirach, who says: Who will investigate the abyss and wisdom (Eccl. I, 2)? And from a small mountain (Psalms 41), that is, from the assumption of the human body, which Daniel calls the stone cut out without hands from the mountain, that is, without a wedding work (Daniel 2), Christ invokes the abyss, calling the Father the other abyss, in the voice of his waterfalls (Psalms 41), so that he may give the word with great power to those who proclaim the gospel. Or certainly, the abyss of the New Testament, as a testimony of the small mountain from which the Prince of Tyre was wounded, invokes the abyss of the Old Testament, so that through the waterfalls of Christ, that is, the apostles, the preaching may become more firm. But if anyone wishes to interpret this passage in a negative sense when it says, 'The deep gave forth its voice, the height of its imagination' (Isaiah 14), they will use the argument that after the waters of the journey were dispersed, which were certainly received in a negative sense, this should be rightly understood in the opposite way. At the same time, observe that it does not say 'its height,' but 'the height of its imagination,' that is, of shadows and images. For they seem to possess the height and knowledge of the Scriptures, but all their height, compared to the truth, is imagination, and they raise their voice in vain, because the waters of the journey have already been dispersed. Let us search in the Scriptures wherever we can find imagination in a good sense, and if it has been rarely or never found, we will interpret it as a darker abyss and its imagination in a bad sense.
LXX: The sun was lifted up, and the moon stood in its place. If we follow a simple interpretation, the progress of the sun and moon is shown by the words at hand: that, according to Isaiah, in the future age the sun will shine sevenfold in light, and the moon will shine with the brightness of the sun (Isaiah XXX, 26). For since the creature will be set free from the slavery of corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God (Romans VIII), which is now subjected to vanity, because of the one who subjected it in hope of freedom, when at the consummation of the world every creature will be set free, the sun and the moon will also be set free, and they will stand in their place. But if we desire to receive Christ, the sun of justice, in whose wings is health, and the moon, which is illuminated by the splendor of this sun, as the Church: it is not difficult to say that the true light, the light of men, and the splendor of the glory of God, and the splendor of eternal light, may illuminate it: which now in this age may increase and decrease according to prosperities and trials. But when the sun will be exalted, and, according to the Apostle, God will exalt it, and give it a name above every name (Philippians 2): then also the Church, which in the present age cannot maintain its order, will return to its rightful order, and will not be changed; but will stand firm in its position, and will hear with Moses: But you stand here with me (Exodus 34:2).
LXX: In light, your javelins shall go forth, in the splendor of the flashing of your armor. The javelins of God, that is, the arrows going and advancing, are not sent for the purpose of killing, but for the purpose of illuminating. In distinction to these arrows and javelins, Christ is called the chosen javelin by Isaiah proclaiming: He has made me as a chosen javelin and has hidden me in his quiver, and he said to me: This is great for you, to be called my servant (Isaiah 49:2-3). This arrow will have many arrows (as) it sends into the entire world. Hence even the wounded bride (spouse) says: Wounded by love, I. (Song of Songs 4:9). According to which we can also say: Wounded by chastity, I; wounded by wisdom, I. By this dart of wisdom wounded, the Queen of the South (or, the Queen of Sheba) was not herself, and, astonished, she found more in the true Solomon than the reports had narrated to her. (1 Kings 10). Therefore, these arrows which are sent into the light also pass into the splendor of his armor, that is, of God. For whoever is armed, in order to stand against the cunning of the devil, and girded with the armor of the Apostle (Ephesians VI), the arrows of light come to him, so that it can be said to him: You are the light of the world (Matthew V, 14). But if anyone is a sinner and laments that he dwells in the tents of Kedar, sharp arrows with desolating coals are sent to him (Psalm CXIX), so that he may be first pierced by the words of God and say: I am surrounded by misery, when the thorn is thrust into me (Psalm XXXI). And after he has been struck with remorse, then a scorching coal should be sent to him through the Seraphim, that is, the burning word of God, which not only cleanses the unclean lips that Isaiah had (Isa. VI), but also burns all the parts of his body and leads him to the solitude of sinners.
LXX: In the threat, you will approach the earth, and in anger, you will drag away the nations. This can be understood as occurring at the end of the world, when, through frequent wars, a great multitude is killed, and few people are found, and those who did not want to be part of God's people, but remained as nations and foreigners, are led to Tartarus by the anger of the Lord. But it is better to interpret the threat to the earth as a diminution of earthly works, and those who are established in the Church, not waiting for sinners, are corrected by the anger of the Lord; but hearing in the Scriptures the punishments that await sinners, they repent, and gradually diminish their earthly desires, and advance towards heaven. If anyone of us fears the threatening of the Lord, to him the earth is diminished: but he who perseveres in the number of the nations, and does not want to be among those whose land decreases, nor of the people of God, of whom it is said: They shall see thee, and shall bear children, this one shall be taken away in punishment with the nations.
LXX: You went out for the salvation of your people, to save your anointed ones. First, let us see how many anointed ones there are, and then we will discuss how the Lord went out for the salvation of his anointed ones. The anointed ones in the Old Testament were called Christ and patriarchs, about whom it is written in the Psalms: He rebuked kings for their sake: 'Do not touch my anointed ones, and do not harm my prophets' (Psalm 105:14-15). And in the first book of Chronicles, all those who came out of Egypt are called anointed ones. The anointing oil in Exodus (Ch. XXX) is also used for the priestly consecration, which is later mentioned in Leviticus (Ch. VIII) when the anointed priests are referred to. There is another anointing oil used for anointing kings in the kingdom, which is divided into two. If it is David or Solomon, that is, one who is strong in hand and peaceful (I Sam. XVI), the horn is anointed. But if it is Jehu or Hazael, they are drenched with lentil (II Kings IX and XIX): and the vessel in which it is carried is called fictile, that is, φακός. But even Cyrus, the king of the Persians and the Medes, who released the people from captivity (although many may err and think that it refers to the Lord Savior), is mentioned in Isaiah: Thus says the Lord to my anointed Cyrus, whose right hand I have held to make the nations listen before him (Isaiah 45:1), etc. And at the end it is said: But you did not know me, which is blasphemous to understand about the Savior. It is the prophetic ointment, with which Elijah is commanded to anoint Elisha as a prophet (1 Kings 19). And above all kinds of ointments, there is a spiritual ointment called the oil of gladness, with which the Savior is anointed, and it is said to Him: Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your companions (Psalm 44:8). And I consider those to be His companions to whom John speaks: And you have an anointing from the Holy One (1 John 2:20). And a little later: These things I have written to you concerning those who deceive you: And the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you; but as the anointing teaches you about all things, and it is true, and it is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, abide in Him (ibid., 26, 27). So that those who have lost the anointing of baptism may not despair of receiving the anointing, it is written in Leviticus: When a leper who has been cast out of the camp comes to the priest and his leprosy is cleansed, the priest shall take in his left hand some olive oil and with his right finger sprinkle it seven times before the Lord. The priest shall then touch with the same oil the ear of the one who was a leper, as well as his right hand, his right foot, and the remainder of the oil he shall pour on his head (Leviticus 14). And when he has properly completed all these things: then let him offer a burnt offering for himself, and let him be called the Christ of God. I want to say something; but I fear that I may give occasion for ruin to the negligent: that in the Holy Scriptures the same man is frequently found anointed. Finally, David was anointed a third time (2 Samuel 6 and 19): which we do not understand to be about someone who has sinned; and he is anointed again (for it is enough for a leper to be anointed a second time after the first anointing has been lost), but it is about someone who progresses day by day, and his anointing is always increased. And it goes from the oil of the leper to the oil of the people and the saints, and from the oil of the people it reaches the oil of the priests, and it surpasses the priests to the anointing oil of the high priest, and from the high priest it even goes to the king, from the king to the patriarchs, and from the patriarchs it goes to Christ, and he is anointed with the oil of joy (Psalm 44:8), by which whoever is anointed becomes one with God in spirit, and where the Father and the Son are, there he will also be. But this is rare, and there are the wishes of the believers. However, I do not know if the effect will follow. For it is said: God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your companions, that is, with that oil which those who are your companions will seldom or never be able to find. Therefore, God has gone out from his place for the salvation of these Christians, just as Micah says: And he will go forth from his place to save (Micah 1:3). For those who were in need of salvation did not want to enter to him, therefore he went out from his majesty and his place, so that he could lead those who were outside into the land of gentle ones and the region of the living, from which Adam had been expelled: from which Cain, when he went out, dwelled in the land of Nod (Gen. III and IV, according to the Septuagint). It should be known, however, as we have said above, that where the Septuagint placed the plural number, 'to save your Anointed Ones,' in Hebrew it is Joshua son of Nun and the Anointed One (Messiah), which Aquila translated, 'to salvation with your Anointed One (Messiah),' not that God went out to save the people and save his Anointed One (Messiah), but that he came to the salvation of the people with his Anointed One (Messiah), according to that passage of the Gospel: 'The Father is in me, and I am in the Father'; and the Father, remaining in me, he himself does his works (John XIV, 10). But even the fifth edition translated similarly: 'You went out for the salvation of your people, for the salvation with your Christ.' However, Theodotion, being truly like a poor Ebionite, and Symmachus of the same belief, following a poor interpretation, translated: 'You went out for the salvation of your people, in order to save your Christ.' And: 'You went out to save your people, to save your Christ.' I am going to say something unbelievable, but nevertheless true. These half-Christian Jews translated: and the Jew Aquila interpreted, as a Christian. The sixth edition, clearly revealing the sacrament, thus translated from Hebrew: 'You came forth to save your people by your Jesus Christ,' which in Greek is said: 'ἐξῆλθες τοῦσῶσαι τὸν λαόν σου διὰ Ἰησοῦν τὸν Χριστόν σου.' This meaning can be applied to the fact that the Father came forth with the Son from the temple and the ceremonies of the Jews, saying: 'Your house will be left to you desolate' (Luke 13:35); and he came for the salvation of the Gentiles, to save those who believe through Jesus Christ his Son.
LXX: You have sent death upon the heads of the wicked. We cannot consider this death to be the common one by which we all die, for even Abraham died and was laid to rest with his forefathers (Gen. XXV); and the prophets, and even Christ himself, died (John XIX), but death was sent upon the wicked (1 Sam. II, 6), so that those who had previously lived in wickedness, dead to sin, might live in righteousness (1 Pet. II). Anna also signifies this in her prayer: The Lord kills and gives life. For he kills sinners, sending death upon the heads of the wicked, so that he may give life to righteousness. I will say something bolder: Christ came into the world for this very purpose, to send death upon the heads of the unjust. And just as he himself died for sin once (1 Peter 3): so they also may die to iniquity; and those who have become partakers of this death may also become partakers of life. But according to the Hebrew, where it is written: You have struck the head from the house of the wicked, let us also take the head, as I said, the prince of this world, and his house, the world, and every soul of the sinner, in which the devil had a dwelling. Therefore, the head of the wicked is struck in the house, so that, with him struck and expelled, the house of God may be made, and justice may dwell there, and walk in it. And this is worthy to be understood of God, who went forth for the salvation of his people with his Christ, so that, with such a head struck, he may become in us the head, who is the head of every man and of his Church. If anyone, therefore, still feels the house of the wicked within himself, let him pray for the coming of the Son of God, so that the head of the wicked may be crushed within him.
LXX: You have lifted up the chains until the neck, to the end. The Lord has lifted up the chains of love, so that with the previous burden set aside, and the heavy yoke by which we were oppressed thrown off, we may take up the light yoke of Christ; and, placed in his chariot, we may carry the excellent charioteer. Theodotius also, taking this in a good sense, says: You have adorned the foundation until the neck. Fifth edition: You have stripped, or emptied, the foundation until the neck, selah, that is, always. For the foundation of Christ, which was in the soul of each individual, had been buried under the foreign earth, the accumulated soil is dug out, and the best foundation is uncovered and adorned, so that what was hidden may appear and receive its own clarity, and this is done eternally, which is called 'Sela' in Hebrew. At the same time, consider that the LXX themselves, compelled by the necessity of things, who always interpreted 'sela' as diapsalma, have now translated it as 'in finem'.
And the prophet Habakkuk proclaims the ascension of Christ and the strength of the ecclesiastical order under the titles of the sun and the moon: “The sun raised high its hands; the moon stood still in its exalted place.” So the heart of each of the faithful is not improperly called a spiritual sun terrace, because it is illumined for its salvation by the rays of that sun above. Therefore Rahab the harlot hid those spies of Joshua on the terrace of her house. That is, she kept them in the upper parts because of the deep love of a heart illumined by spiritual knowledge so that she might sing this prophetic word by the truth of her deed: “I treasure your word in my heart, so that I may not sin against you.”
The sun was raised, and the moon stood in its place. For the sun, the Lord of righteousness, was raised to heaven after his passion and resurrection, and having sent the Spirit from the Father, he illuminated the Church and spread it through the whole world, so that it might stand in its place, that is, after the mystery of the Lord's incarnation was fulfilled, rising from a long languor of infidelity, standing in faith, acting manfully, and being strengthened in his love. And because he had aptly compared Christ to the sun and the Church to the moon, he immediately subjected it to the same sun.
In light, your arrows will go forth, in the brightness of the splendor of arms. The arrows of Christ, however, are his words, by which the hearts of men are pierced, so that with the wound of salvation inflicted, the faithful soul may say: "I am wounded with love." Certainly, these arrows go forth in light, because through the ministry of teachers, the words of truth became known openly to the world, according to what the same Truth commanded them, saying: "What I tell you in darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear whispered, preach on the rooftops" (Matthew 10:27). And since the brightness of miracles followed the words of light, he added: "In the brightness of the splendor of your arms." For warriors strike down their adversaries with arrows, defending themselves from wounds with weapons; hence, appropriately it signifies the words of the preachers, by which they overcome the depravity of unbelievers, and the miracles by which they confirm the truth of their preaching. Therefore, the arrows of Christ go forth in light, they go forth in the brightness of the splendor of his arms, because the great deeds he accomplished, the mysteries he revealed, the commandments he set forth, the rewards he promised, are now known to the whole world more clearly than the sun through the evangelical writings. And the holy teachers, because they are children of light, whatever they do or speak with his gift, naturally shine brightly with light and splendor.
[AD 420] Jerome on Habakkuk 3:11-13
LXX: They shall see you and be sorrowful, whether the peoples are in labor; for it signifies both. Consequently, when the earth is broken and the rivers flow, the peoples who have drunk from the rivers of God shall see God and be in labor. For from the very fact that they see God, they immediately conceive and say with God's word: We have conceived and given birth in the womb from your fear, O Lord, and have brought forth and given birth; we shall make the spirit of your salvation upon the earth. Blessed, says He, are the pure in heart, for they shall see God (Matthew 5:8). These people, therefore, cleansed by the rivers, have not yet seen, but they will see God: and when they see, they will conceive, so that they may bear the fruits of teachings. But because they are called people, and it is not possible for the people to see the face of God, although the prayer may be extended to the future, they will see and bear: however, according to the allegory it is more Hebraic to follow, where it is said: They have seen You, and the mountains have given birth: for it is the mountains' task to see God and bear children, whom they conceived from the word of God.
LXX: Disperse the waters of the journey. There are different types of waters: some eternal, others temporary. Concerning the eternal waters, and those that flow from the fountains of Israel, it is said: The land will be split by rivers. Concerning the sudden and temporary ones: All streams flow into the sea. The end of such waters is destruction. Therefore, God will disperse all waters that have been trampled upon by perverse doctrines, when He has dissipated the plans of the rulers and the wisdom of this world. If ever you see that a heresy has briefly flourished and then, by the grace of God, has been dissipated, say that it is complete: you will scatter the waters of the journey. However, what is said, 'of the journey,' can be understood as 'of the devil,' so that the meaning is: The waters which the devil has trampled upon, and which have provided a pathway for many, that is, have made many errors possible, the Lord will divide and scatter. Hence, other interpreters, wanting to describe heretical madness, have translated it as: Mockery, or the onslaught of waters will pass. For they are said to rush headlong in the course of eloquence, and to drag along with them whoever they come across, light and easy.
LXX: The abyss gave voice to its depth of imagination. The abyss is often interpreted in a positive way: sometimes in a negative way, and sometimes indifferently. In a positive way: Your judgments are a vast abyss (Psalm 35:7). And: Deep calls to deep (Psalm 42:7), and so on. In a negative way: The waters saw you, O God (Psalm 77:17), and so on. But even demons plead not to be sent into the abyss (Luke 8), and in Genesis: The abyss over which darkness prevailed (Genesis 1:2), I do not know if it can be interpreted in a positive way. However, it is mentioned there in an indifferent way: The fountains of the deep were broken up, and the floodgates of heaven were opened (Genesis, 7:11). And in the one hundred and forty-eighth psalm: Sea monsters and all deeps, fire and hail, snow and storms, unless perhaps because it is mentioned among sea monsters, fire and hail, it should be interpreted in a negative sense. I do not know if anyone could say this, unless they have seen it resonate with the others in praise of the Lord. Therefore, if we understand the abyss in a positive way, let us say that, with the waters of the worst journey dispersed, your wise ones saw you and borrowed the depth of knowledge they had from your presence. And whatever they previously thought about you, they proclaimed it in praise of their words. And beautifully, the opinion of imagination is called depth, according to Jesus son of Sirach, who says: Who will investigate the abyss and wisdom (Eccl. I, 2)? And from a small mountain (Psalms 41), that is, from the assumption of the human body, which Daniel calls the stone cut out without hands from the mountain, that is, without a wedding work (Daniel 2), Christ invokes the abyss, calling the Father the other abyss, in the voice of his waterfalls (Psalms 41), so that he may give the word with great power to those who proclaim the gospel. Or certainly, the abyss of the New Testament, as a testimony of the small mountain from which the Prince of Tyre was wounded, invokes the abyss of the Old Testament, so that through the waterfalls of Christ, that is, the apostles, the preaching may become more firm. But if anyone wishes to interpret this passage in a negative sense when it says, 'The deep gave forth its voice, the height of its imagination' (Isaiah 14), they will use the argument that after the waters of the journey were dispersed, which were certainly received in a negative sense, this should be rightly understood in the opposite way. At the same time, observe that it does not say 'its height,' but 'the height of its imagination,' that is, of shadows and images. For they seem to possess the height and knowledge of the Scriptures, but all their height, compared to the truth, is imagination, and they raise their voice in vain, because the waters of the journey have already been dispersed. Let us search in the Scriptures wherever we can find imagination in a good sense, and if it has been rarely or never found, we will interpret it as a darker abyss and its imagination in a bad sense.
LXX: The sun was lifted up, and the moon stood in its place. If we follow a simple interpretation, the progress of the sun and moon is shown by the words at hand: that, according to Isaiah, in the future age the sun will shine sevenfold in light, and the moon will shine with the brightness of the sun (Isaiah XXX, 26). For since the creature will be set free from the slavery of corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God (Romans VIII), which is now subjected to vanity, because of the one who subjected it in hope of freedom, when at the consummation of the world every creature will be set free, the sun and the moon will also be set free, and they will stand in their place. But if we desire to receive Christ, the sun of justice, in whose wings is health, and the moon, which is illuminated by the splendor of this sun, as the Church: it is not difficult to say that the true light, the light of men, and the splendor of the glory of God, and the splendor of eternal light, may illuminate it: which now in this age may increase and decrease according to prosperities and trials. But when the sun will be exalted, and, according to the Apostle, God will exalt it, and give it a name above every name (Philippians 2): then also the Church, which in the present age cannot maintain its order, will return to its rightful order, and will not be changed; but will stand firm in its position, and will hear with Moses: But you stand here with me (Exodus 34:2).
LXX: In light, your javelins shall go forth, in the splendor of the flashing of your armor. The javelins of God, that is, the arrows going and advancing, are not sent for the purpose of killing, but for the purpose of illuminating. In distinction to these arrows and javelins, Christ is called the chosen javelin by Isaiah proclaiming: He has made me as a chosen javelin and has hidden me in his quiver, and he said to me: This is great for you, to be called my servant (Isaiah 49:2-3). This arrow will have many arrows (as) it sends into the entire world. Hence even the wounded bride (spouse) says: Wounded by love, I. (Song of Songs 4:9). According to which we can also say: Wounded by chastity, I; wounded by wisdom, I. By this dart of wisdom wounded, the Queen of the South (or, the Queen of Sheba) was not herself, and, astonished, she found more in the true Solomon than the reports had narrated to her. (1 Kings 10). Therefore, these arrows which are sent into the light also pass into the splendor of his armor, that is, of God. For whoever is armed, in order to stand against the cunning of the devil, and girded with the armor of the Apostle (Ephesians VI), the arrows of light come to him, so that it can be said to him: You are the light of the world (Matthew V, 14). But if anyone is a sinner and laments that he dwells in the tents of Kedar, sharp arrows with desolating coals are sent to him (Psalm CXIX), so that he may be first pierced by the words of God and say: I am surrounded by misery, when the thorn is thrust into me (Psalm XXXI). And after he has been struck with remorse, then a scorching coal should be sent to him through the Seraphim, that is, the burning word of God, which not only cleanses the unclean lips that Isaiah had (Isa. VI), but also burns all the parts of his body and leads him to the solitude of sinners.
LXX: In the threat, you will approach the earth, and in anger, you will drag away the nations. This can be understood as occurring at the end of the world, when, through frequent wars, a great multitude is killed, and few people are found, and those who did not want to be part of God's people, but remained as nations and foreigners, are led to Tartarus by the anger of the Lord. But it is better to interpret the threat to the earth as a diminution of earthly works, and those who are established in the Church, not waiting for sinners, are corrected by the anger of the Lord; but hearing in the Scriptures the punishments that await sinners, they repent, and gradually diminish their earthly desires, and advance towards heaven. If anyone of us fears the threatening of the Lord, to him the earth is diminished: but he who perseveres in the number of the nations, and does not want to be among those whose land decreases, nor of the people of God, of whom it is said: They shall see thee, and shall bear children, this one shall be taken away in punishment with the nations.
LXX: You went out for the salvation of your people, to save your anointed ones. First, let us see how many anointed ones there are, and then we will discuss how the Lord went out for the salvation of his anointed ones. The anointed ones in the Old Testament were called Christ and patriarchs, about whom it is written in the Psalms: He rebuked kings for their sake: 'Do not touch my anointed ones, and do not harm my prophets' (Psalm 105:14-15). And in the first book of Chronicles, all those who came out of Egypt are called anointed ones. The anointing oil in Exodus (Ch. XXX) is also used for the priestly consecration, which is later mentioned in Leviticus (Ch. VIII) when the anointed priests are referred to. There is another anointing oil used for anointing kings in the kingdom, which is divided into two. If it is David or Solomon, that is, one who is strong in hand and peaceful (I Sam. XVI), the horn is anointed. But if it is Jehu or Hazael, they are drenched with lentil (II Kings IX and XIX): and the vessel in which it is carried is called fictile, that is, φακός. But even Cyrus, the king of the Persians and the Medes, who released the people from captivity (although many may err and think that it refers to the Lord Savior), is mentioned in Isaiah: Thus says the Lord to my anointed Cyrus, whose right hand I have held to make the nations listen before him (Isaiah 45:1), etc. And at the end it is said: But you did not know me, which is blasphemous to understand about the Savior. It is the prophetic ointment, with which Elijah is commanded to anoint Elisha as a prophet (1 Kings 19). And above all kinds of ointments, there is a spiritual ointment called the oil of gladness, with which the Savior is anointed, and it is said to Him: Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your companions (Psalm 44:8). And I consider those to be His companions to whom John speaks: And you have an anointing from the Holy One (1 John 2:20). And a little later: These things I have written to you concerning those who deceive you: And the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you; but as the anointing teaches you about all things, and it is true, and it is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, abide in Him (ibid., 26, 27). So that those who have lost the anointing of baptism may not despair of receiving the anointing, it is written in Leviticus: When a leper who has been cast out of the camp comes to the priest and his leprosy is cleansed, the priest shall take in his left hand some olive oil and with his right finger sprinkle it seven times before the Lord. The priest shall then touch with the same oil the ear of the one who was a leper, as well as his right hand, his right foot, and the remainder of the oil he shall pour on his head (Leviticus 14). And when he has properly completed all these things: then let him offer a burnt offering for himself, and let him be called the Christ of God. I want to say something; but I fear that I may give occasion for ruin to the negligent: that in the Holy Scriptures the same man is frequently found anointed. Finally, David was anointed a third time (2 Samuel 6 and 19): which we do not understand to be about someone who has sinned; and he is anointed again (for it is enough for a leper to be anointed a second time after the first anointing has been lost), but it is about someone who progresses day by day, and his anointing is always increased. And it goes from the oil of the leper to the oil of the people and the saints, and from the oil of the people it reaches the oil of the priests, and it surpasses the priests to the anointing oil of the high priest, and from the high priest it even goes to the king, from the king to the patriarchs, and from the patriarchs it goes to Christ, and he is anointed with the oil of joy (Psalm 44:8), by which whoever is anointed becomes one with God in spirit, and where the Father and the Son are, there he will also be. But this is rare, and there are the wishes of the believers. However, I do not know if the effect will follow. For it is said: God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your companions, that is, with that oil which those who are your companions will seldom or never be able to find. Therefore, God has gone out from his place for the salvation of these Christians, just as Micah says: And he will go forth from his place to save (Micah 1:3). For those who were in need of salvation did not want to enter to him, therefore he went out from his majesty and his place, so that he could lead those who were outside into the land of gentle ones and the region of the living, from which Adam had been expelled: from which Cain, when he went out, dwelled in the land of Nod (Gen. III and IV, according to the Septuagint). It should be known, however, as we have said above, that where the Septuagint placed the plural number, 'to save your Anointed Ones,' in Hebrew it is Joshua son of Nun and the Anointed One (Messiah), which Aquila translated, 'to salvation with your Anointed One (Messiah),' not that God went out to save the people and save his Anointed One (Messiah), but that he came to the salvation of the people with his Anointed One (Messiah), according to that passage of the Gospel: 'The Father is in me, and I am in the Father'; and the Father, remaining in me, he himself does his works (John XIV, 10). But even the fifth edition translated similarly: 'You went out for the salvation of your people, for the salvation with your Christ.' However, Theodotion, being truly like a poor Ebionite, and Symmachus of the same belief, following a poor interpretation, translated: 'You went out for the salvation of your people, in order to save your Christ.' And: 'You went out to save your people, to save your Christ.' I am going to say something unbelievable, but nevertheless true. These half-Christian Jews translated: and the Jew Aquila interpreted, as a Christian. The sixth edition, clearly revealing the sacrament, thus translated from Hebrew: 'You came forth to save your people by your Jesus Christ,' which in Greek is said: 'ἐξῆλθες τοῦσῶσαι τὸν λαόν σου διὰ Ἰησοῦν τὸν Χριστόν σου.' This meaning can be applied to the fact that the Father came forth with the Son from the temple and the ceremonies of the Jews, saying: 'Your house will be left to you desolate' (Luke 13:35); and he came for the salvation of the Gentiles, to save those who believe through Jesus Christ his Son.
LXX: You have sent death upon the heads of the wicked. We cannot consider this death to be the common one by which we all die, for even Abraham died and was laid to rest with his forefathers (Gen. XXV); and the prophets, and even Christ himself, died (John XIX), but death was sent upon the wicked (1 Sam. II, 6), so that those who had previously lived in wickedness, dead to sin, might live in righteousness (1 Pet. II). Anna also signifies this in her prayer: The Lord kills and gives life. For he kills sinners, sending death upon the heads of the wicked, so that he may give life to righteousness. I will say something bolder: Christ came into the world for this very purpose, to send death upon the heads of the unjust. And just as he himself died for sin once (1 Peter 3): so they also may die to iniquity; and those who have become partakers of this death may also become partakers of life. But according to the Hebrew, where it is written: You have struck the head from the house of the wicked, let us also take the head, as I said, the prince of this world, and his house, the world, and every soul of the sinner, in which the devil had a dwelling. Therefore, the head of the wicked is struck in the house, so that, with him struck and expelled, the house of God may be made, and justice may dwell there, and walk in it. And this is worthy to be understood of God, who went forth for the salvation of his people with his Christ, so that, with such a head struck, he may become in us the head, who is the head of every man and of his Church. If anyone, therefore, still feels the house of the wicked within himself, let him pray for the coming of the Son of God, so that the head of the wicked may be crushed within him.
LXX: You have lifted up the chains until the neck, to the end. The Lord has lifted up the chains of love, so that with the previous burden set aside, and the heavy yoke by which we were oppressed thrown off, we may take up the light yoke of Christ; and, placed in his chariot, we may carry the excellent charioteer. Theodotius also, taking this in a good sense, says: You have adorned the foundation until the neck. Fifth edition: You have stripped, or emptied, the foundation until the neck, selah, that is, always. For the foundation of Christ, which was in the soul of each individual, had been buried under the foreign earth, the accumulated soil is dug out, and the best foundation is uncovered and adorned, so that what was hidden may appear and receive its own clarity, and this is done eternally, which is called 'Sela' in Hebrew. At the same time, consider that the LXX themselves, compelled by the necessity of things, who always interpreted 'sela' as diapsalma, have now translated it as 'in finem'.