§28καλεῖται δ’ ὁ μὲν [ἐν] γενέσει πρεσβύτερος Μανασσῆς, ὁ δὲ νεώτερος Ἐφραΐμ· ταῦτα δ’ εἰ μεταληφθείη τὰ ὀνόματα εἰς Ἑλλάδα γλῶτταν, μνήμης καὶ ἀναμνήσεως εὑρεθήσεται σύμβολα· ἑρμηνεύεται γὰρ Μανασσῆς μὲν „ἐκ λήθης„ — τὸ δ’ ἐστὶν ὀνόματι ἑτέρῳ καλούμενον ἀνάμνησις· ὁ γὰρ ὧν ἐπελάθετο εἰς ἀνάμνησιν ἐρχόμενος ἔξω πρόεισι τῆς λήθης —, Ἐφραῒμ δὲ καρποφορία, μνήμης πρόσρησις οἰκειοτάτη, διότι καρπὸς ὠφελιμώτατος καὶ τῷ ὄντι ἐδώδιμος ψυχαῖς τὸ ἄληστον ἐν
He who is the elder in birth is called Manasseh, and the younger Ephraim; and if these names should be translated into the Greek tongue, they will be found to be symbols of memory and recollection; for Manasseh is interpreted as "from forgetfulness"—which, called by another name, is recollection; for he who comes to the recollection of things he had forgotten, goes out of forgetfulness—and Ephraim as "fruitfulness," a most appropriate appellation of memory, because a most useful and truly edible fruit for souls is the unforgetting state in continuous memories.
§29μνήμαις ἀδιαστάτοις. μνῆμαι μὲν οὖν ἠνδρωμένοις ἤδη καὶ παγίοις συντυγχάνουσι, παρὸ καὶ νεώτεραι ἐνομίσθησαν ὀψὲ φυόμεναι· λήθη δὲ καὶ ἀνάμνησις ἐπαλλήλως σχεδὸν ἐκ πρώτης ἡλικίας ἑκάστῳ σύνεισιν, οὗ ἕνεκα τὰ χρόνου πρεσβεῖα εὕρηνται καὶ ἐπ’ εὐωνύμοις παρὰ σοφῷ ταξιαρχοῦντι τάττονται· τῶν δὲ ἀρετῆς αἱ μνῆμαι κοινωνήσουσι πρεσβείων, ἃς ὁ θεοφιλὴς δεξιωσάμενος τῆς ἀμείνονος παρ’ ἑαυτῷ μοίρας ἀξιώσει.
Memories, indeed, happen to those who are already grown men and stable, wherefore they were considered younger, being late-born; but forgetfulness and recollection accompany everyone almost continuously from the earliest age, for which reason they have obtained the seniority of time and are marshaled on the left side by the wise commander; but the memories of virtue will share in the privileges of the elder, which the one beloved of God, greeting with his right hand, will deem worthy of the better portion in his own presence.
§30Νήψας οὖν ὁ δίκαιος καὶ γνοὺς ὅσα „ἐποίησεν αὐτῷ ὁ νεώτερος αὐτοῦ υἱὸς„ ἀρὰς χαλεπωτάτας τίθεται· τῷ γὰρ ὄντι ὅταν ὁ νοῦς νήψῃ, κατὰ τὸ ἀκόλουθον εὐθὺς αἰσθάνεται ὅσα ἡ νεωτεροποιὸς ἐν αὐτῷ κακία πρότερον εἰργάζετο, ἃ μεθύων ἀδυνάτως καταλαβεῖν εἶχε.
When the righteous man sobered up and knew all that "his younger son had done to him," he uttered most severe curses; for in truth, when the mind sobers up, it immediately perceives as a consequence all that the youth-producing vice within it was previously doing, which while drunk it was unable to grasp.
§31τίνι μέντοι καταρᾶται, σκεπτέον· ἓν γάρ τι καὶ τοῦτο τῶν ἐρεύνης ἀξίων ἐστίν, ἐπειδήπερ οὐ τῷ δοκοῦντι ἡμαρτηκέναι παιδί, ἀλλὰ τῷ ἐκείνου μὲν υἱῷ, ἑαυτοῦ δὲ υἱωνῷ, οὗ φανερὸν οὐδὲν εἴς γε τὸ παρὸν ἀδίκημα, οὐ μικρὸν οὐ μέγα, δεδήλωκεν· §32ὁ μὲν γὰρ ἐκ περιεργίας ἰδεῖν τὸν πατέρα γυμνὸν ἐθελήσας καὶ γελάσας ἃ εἶδε καὶ ἐκλαλήσας τὰ δεόντως ἡσυχασθέντα ὁ υἱὸς ἦν τοῦ Νῶε Χάμ, ὁ δὲ ἐφ’ οἷς ἕτερος ἠδίκησε τὰς αἰτίας ἔχων καὶ τὰς ἀρὰς καρπούμενος Χαναάν ἐστι· λέγεται γὰρ „ἐπικατάρατος Χαναάν· παῖς οἰκέτης [δοῦλος δούλων] ἔσται τοῖς ἀδελφοῖς αὐτοῦ“(Gen. 9, 25).
However, we must consider whom he curses; for this also is one of the things worthy of investigation, since he does not curse the child who seemed to have sinned, but that child's son, his own grandson, of whom no clear wrongdoing, either small or great, is revealed up to the present; for he who out of curiosity wished to see his father naked, and laughed at what he saw, and blabbed what ought to have been kept silent, was Ham, the son of Noah, but he who bears the blame for what another did wrong and reaps the curses is Canaan; for it is said, "Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be to his brothers" (Gen. 9:25).
τί γὰρ ἡμάρτηκεν, ὡς ἔφην, οὗτος;
For what, as I said, did this one sin?
§33ἀλλ’ ἐσκέψαντο μὲν ἐφ’ ἑαυτῶν ἴσως οἷς ἔθος ἀκριβοῦν τὰς ῥητὰς καὶ προχείρους ἀποδόσεις ἐν τοῖς νόμοις· ἡμεῖς δὲ πειθόμενοι τῷ ὑποβάλλοντι ὀρθῷ λόγῳ τὴν ἐγκειμένην ἀπόδοσιν διερμηνεύσωμεν ἐκεῖνα ἀναγκαίως §34προειπόντες·
But perhaps those whose habit it is to examine closely the literal and obvious interpretations in the laws have considered this on their own; but let us, obeying right reason which suggests it, explain the underlying interpretation, having of necessity first stated the following.
σχέσις καὶ κίνησις διαφέρουσιν ἀλλήλων· ἡ μὲν γάρ ἐστιν ἠρεμία, φορὰ δὲ ἡ κίνησις· ἧς εἴδη δύο, τὸ μὲν μεταβατικόν, τὸ δὲ περὶ τὸν αὐτὸν τόπον εἰλούμενον.
State and motion differ from each other; for the former is rest, while motion is carrying; of which there are two kinds: the one transitional, the other revolving around the same place.
σχέσει μὲν οὖν | ἀδελφὸν ἕξις, κινήσει δ’ ἐνέργεια. §35τὸ δὲ λεγόμενον παραδείγματι οἰκείῳ γνωριμώτερον γένοιτ’ ἄν· τέκτονα καὶ ζωγράφον καὶ γεωργὸν καὶ μουσικὸν καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους τεχνίτας, κἂν ἡσυχίαν ἄγωσι μηδὲν τῶν κατὰ τὰς τέχνας ἐνεργοῦντες, οὐδὲν ἧττον τοῖς εἰρημένοις ἔθος καλεῖν ὀνόμασιν, ἐπεὶ τὴν ἐν ἑκάστοις ἐμπειρίαν καὶ ἐπιστήμην ἀνειληφότες ἔχουσιν.
Now, "habit" is brotherly related to "state," and "activity" to "motion." And what is said might become more familiar through an appropriate example; we are accustomed to call a carpenter, a painter, a farmer, a musician, and other craftsmen by the said names, even if they are keeping quiet and doing nothing of the things pertaining to their crafts, since they possess the experience and knowledge in each, having acquired them.
§36ἐπειδὰν δὲ ὁ τεκτονικὸς ξύλων ὕλην ἐργάζηται λαβών, ὁ δὲ ζωγράφος τὰ οἰκεῖα κερασάμενος χρώματα ἐπὶ τοῦ πίνακος διαγράφῃ τοὺς τύπους ὧν ἂν διανοῆται, ὁ δ’ αὖ γεωργὸς ἀνατέμνων γῆς αὔλακας καταβάλλῃ τὰ σπέρματα, κληματίδας δὲ καὶ μοσχεύματα δένδρων ἐμφυτεύῃ, ἅμα δὲ τροφὴν ἀναγκαιοτάτην ἄρδῃ καὶ ἐποχετεύῃ τοῖς φυτευθεῖσι καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις ὅσα γεωργικὰ πᾶσιν ἐγχειρῇ, ὁ δ’ αὖ μουσικὸς αὐλοῖς καὶ κιθάραις καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις ὀργάνοις μέτρα καὶ ῥυθμοὺς καὶ πάσας μέλους ἰδέας ἁρμόττῃ — δύναται δὲ καὶ δίχα τῶν χειροκμήτων τῷ τῆς φύσεως ὀργάνῳ χρῆσθαι διὰ φωνῆς ἡρμοσμένης πᾶσι τοῖς φθόγγοις — καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἕκαστος τεχνιτῶν εἴπερ ἐγχειρεῖ, τοῖς κατὰ τὰς ἐπιστήμας ἕτερα ἐξ ἀνάγκης οἰκεῖα τοῖς προτέροις ὀνόματα προσγίνεται, τῷ μὲν τέκτονι τὸ τεκτονεῖν, τῷ δὲ ζωγράφῳ τὸ ζωγραφεῖν ἤδη, καὶ τὸ γεωργεῖν μέντοι τῷ γεωργῷ, καὶ τὸ αὐλεῖν ἢ κιθαρίζειν ἢ ᾄδειν ἤ τι τῶν παραπλησίων ποιεῖν τῷ μουσικῷ.
But when the carpenter, having taken the material of wood, works on it, and the painter, having mixed his proper colors on the tablet, outlines the forms of whatever he has in mind, and again the farmer, cutting the furrows of the earth, casts the seeds, and plants shoots and grafts of trees, and at the same time waters and channels the most necessary nourishment to the plants and takes in hand all other agricultural works, and again the musician, with flutes and lyres and other instruments, harmonizes measures and rhythms and all forms of melody—and he can also, apart from handmade instruments, use the instrument of nature through a voice harmonized with all sounds—and if each of the other craftsmen takes things in hand, other names appropriate to the former ones based on their sciences are necessarily added, to the carpenter "carpentry," to the painter "painting" indeed, and "farming" to the farmer, and "flute-playing or lyre-playing or singing" or doing something similar to the musician.
τίσιν οὖν οἱ ψόγοι καὶ οἱ ἔπαινοι παρακολουθοῦσιν;
To whom, then, do blames and praises belong?