Hope And Tribulation

Ἐν θλίψει ἐπεκαλεσάμην τὸν κύριον καὶ ἐπήκουσέν μου εἰς πλατυσμόν. κύριος ἐμοὶ βοηθός οὐ φοβηθήσομαι τί ποιήσει μοι ἄνθρωπος. κύριος ἐμοὶ βοηθός κἀγὼ ἐπόψομαι τοὺς ἐχθρούς μου. ἀγαθὸν πεποιθέναι ἐπὶ κύριον ἢ πεποιθέναι ἐπ' ἄνθρωπον.  ̔Ο ἐν θλίψει γενόμενος δίκαιος οὐ τοσοῦτον παρακαλεῖ περὶ τοῦ ἐκτὸς αὐτῆς γενέσθαι, ἀλλ' ὅπως γενναίως καὶ ἱλαρῶς αὐτὴν ἐνέγκῃ. καὶ γὰρ ὁ ἐν σταδίῳ πρὸς ἀντιπάλους θλιβόμενος οὐ τὸν ἀγῶνα εὔχεται αὐτῷ παρελθεῖν, ἵνα μὴ ἐξαγώνιος γένηται, ἀλλὰ παρακαλεῖ τὸν παιδοτρίβην συνεργεῖν αὐτῷ, ὁ πως ἐγκαρτερῶν τοῖς ἐπιφερομένοις πρὸς τοῦ ἀντιπάλου ἐλπίδι νίκης καὶ στεφάνου προσηνῆ δόξῃ εἴναι τὰ δι' ὤν ἀποδίδοται ὁ στέφανος. Καὶ δύναται μὲν περὶ θνητῶν διαφόρων λέγεσθαι τὸ Οὐ φοβηθήσομαι τί ποιήσει μοι ἄνθρωπος, περὶ δὲ ἀοράτων πολεμίων τὸ Κἀγὼ ἐπόψομαι τοὺς ἐχθρούς μου· οἵ τινες ἐχθροὶ καὶ τοὺς ἀνθρώπους ἐπεγείρουσι καθ' ἡμῶν ἐκπολεμοῦντες αὐτοὺς πρὸς ἡμᾶς καὶ φονικῶς διατιθέντες καθ' ἡμῶν. εἰ δὲ καὶ τὸ Οὐ φοβηθήσομαι τί ποιήσει μοι ἄνθρωπος ἐπὶ τὸν διάβολον ἀναφέρεται διὰ τὸ ̓Εχθρὸς ἄνθρωπος ἐποίησε τοῦτο, φανερὸν δ' ὁ τι τὸ ἐπισπεῖραι τὰ ζιζάνια καὶ τὸ Σὺ δὲ ει ἄνθρωπος καὶ οὐ θεός, συνεπίσκεψαι. ̓Αγαθὸν πεποιθέναι ἐπὶ κύριον η πεποιθέναι ἐπ' ανθρωπον, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς· Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Ψαλμους, Ψαλμος ΡΙΖ'

'In tribulation I called on the Lord and He heard me. The Lord is my help and I shall not fear what a man may do to me. The Lord is my help and I will look down on my enemies. Good it is to hope in God rather than to hope in men.' 1   The righteous man in tribulation invokes the Lord, not that he be freed from tribulation, but rather that God might give to him an upright and cheerful soul. Thus he who is sent into the arena to struggle against enemies, rather than begging that he be freed from it, asks that the master of the arena might aid him, by which aid he may try to gain victory over his adversaries, and with which hope of victory and crown, it seems he shall more easily acquire a crown. And he can say against mortal adversaries 'I shall not fear what a man may do to me.' But concerning unseen opponents 'I shall look down on my enemies.' For some enemies are men, who rise up against us and fight against us and strive to slay us, and yet even when it is said, 'I shall not fear what a man may do to me,' this also refers to the devil who is the enemy who makes men do this, for he manifestly sows the weeds, 2 and you being a man, and not God, need double protection. Good it is then to hope in the Lord than to hope in men. Didymus the Blind, Commentary on the Psalms, from Psalm 117 1 Ps 117.5-8 2 Mt 13.24-30