Scattering The Counsels Of Men

Κύριος διασκεδάζει βουλὰς ἐθνων· ἀθετεῖ δὲ λογισμοὺς λαῶν. Ἐξηγησίς ἐστι τοῦ προάγοντος, πῶς ἔκτισεν ὁ Θεὸς τοὺς εἰς αὐτὸν πεπιστευκότας ἐκ τοῦ διασκεδάσει τὰς ἀσυνέτους βουλὰς τῶν λαῶν, ἂς εἶχον περὶ εἰδωλολατρείαν καὶ περὶ πᾶσαν ματαιότητα, καὶ ἀθετεῖν τὰς βουλὰς τῶν ἀρχόντων. Δυνατὸν δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τὸν τοῦ πάθους καιρὸν ἀναγαγεῖν ταῦτα, ὅτε οἱ μὲν ἐνόμιζον σταυροῦν τὸν βασιλέα τῆς δόξης, ὁ δὲ διὰ τῆς τοῦ σταυροῦ οἰκονομίας  ἀνενεοῦτο τὴν ἀνθρωπότητα. Ἐν γὰρ τῇ ἀναστάσει διεσκεδάζετο μὲν ἡ βουλὴ τῶν ἐθνῶν, τοῦ Πιλάτου καὶ τῶν στρατιωτῶν, καὶ ὅσοι τὰ περὶ τὸν σταυρὸν ἐνήργουν· ἠθετοῦντο δὲ αἱ βουλαὶ τῶν ἀρχόντων, ἀρχιερέων καὶ γραμματέων καὶ τῶν βασιλέων τοῦ λαοῦ. Ἡ γὰρ ἀνάστασις πᾶσαν αὐτῶν διέλυσε τὴν ἐπίνοιαν. Ἀναλεγόμενος δὲ τὰ ἐφ' ἑκάστης ἱστορίας ὅσα περὶ τὰ ἄπιστα ἔθνη ἐνήργησεν ὁ Θεὸς, εὑρήσεις καὶ κατὰ τὸν σωματικὸν νοῦν πολλὴν ἔχον τὴν δύναμιν τὸ ῥητόν. Ὅτε γὰρ Ἰωρὰμ υἱὸς Ἀχαὰβ ἐβασίλευσεν ἐν Ἰσραὴλ, τότε ὁ βασιλεὺς Συρίας υἱὸς Ἀδὲρ, πολλῇ  δυνάμει καὶ βαρείᾳ χειρὶ στρατηγήσας, περιεκάθητο τὴν Σαμάρειαν, ὥστε ἐπιλιπεῖν αὐτοῖς τὰ ἀναγκαῖα, καὶ κεφαλὴν ὄνου πεντήκοντα εἶναι σίκλων ἀργυρίου, καὶ τέταρτον κάβου κόπρου περιστερῶν πέντε σίκλων ἀργυρίου. Τότε τοίνυν, ἵνα ἡ ἐπαγγελία τοῦ Ἐλισσαίου πληρωθῇ, διεσκεδάσθησαν αἱ βουλαὶ τῆς Συρίας, καὶ καταλιπόοντες τὰς σκηνὰς ἑαυτῶν καὶ πᾶσαν τὴν περιουσίαν ἔφυγον, τοσαύτην εὐθηνίαν καταλιπόντες ἐν τῇ Σαμαρείᾳ, ὥστε μέτρον σεμιδάλεως σίκλου, καὶ δίμετρον κριθῆς ἑνὸς σίκλου πωλεϊσθαι. Οὕτω μὲν οὖν ὁ Κύριος οἴδε διασκεδαζειν βουλὰς ἐθνῶν. Πῶς δὲ ἀθετεῖ βουλὰς ἀρχόντων, ἐπὶ τοῦ Ἀχιτοφελ μεμαθήκαμεν, ὅτε ηὔξατε εὐχὴν ὁ Δαβὶδ λέγων· Διασκέδασον δὴ τὴν βουλὴν Ἀχιτοφελ. Ὅταν οὗν ἀκούσῃς τινὸς ἀπειλοῦντος μεγάλα, καὶ ἐπαγγελλομένεου σοι παντοδαπὰς ἐπάξειν κακώσεις, ζημίας, ἤ πληγάς, ἤ θανάτους, ἀπόβλεψον πρὸς τὸν Κύριον τὸν διασκεδάζοντα βουλὰς ἐθνῶν, καὶ ἀθετοῦντα λογισμοὺς λαῶν. Ἅγιος Βασίλειος ὁ Μέγας, Ὁμιλία Ἐις Τους Ψαλμούς, Εἰς Τον ΛΒ' Ψαλμον  Source: Migne PG 29.340a-d

The Lord scatters the counsel of the Gentiles; He reproves the thoughts of the peoples. 1   The exposition is as before, how God fashions those who have believed in Him by scattering the mindless counsel of the peoples, which ever has concern for vain idolatry, and  reproving the counsel of princes. These things we can also refer to the  time of the passion, when they who thought to crucify the king of glory rather by the dispensation of the cross renewed the race of man. For in the resurrection the counsel of the Gentiles was scattered, the counsel of Pilate and his soldiers, and the rest of them, as many as worked for the raising of the cross; thus the counsel of the princes and of the priests and of the scribes and of the rulers of the people was reproved. For the resurrection swept away all their contrivances. And if you turn to the histories you shall find there God doing the same with the faithless nations, those who were very strong according to worldly things. For when Joram the son of Ahab ruled in Israel, the king of Syria, the son of Ader, with powerful and heavy hand made war and besieged Samaria, by which they lacked even the necessary things, and the head of an ass sold for fifty silver shekels and the fourth part of a measure of the dung of a dove was worth five silver shekels. 2 Then the promise of Elisha was fulfilled and the counsel of the Syrians was scattered, and fleeing they left all their tents and wealth, abandoning such treasures in Samaria, that then they sold a measure of wheat and two measures of barley for a single shekel. 3 Thus does the Lord know how to scatter the counsels of the Gentiles. And how He reproves the counsel of princes, we learn concerning Achitophel, when David prayed, saying, 'Disperse now the counsel of Achitophel.' 4 When, then, you hear of grave threats and boasting, that against you will be brought all manner of torments, curses or blows, or even death, look to the Lord's scattering of the counsel of the Gentiles, and His reproval of the thoughts of the people. Saint Basil of Caesarea, Homilies on the Psalms, from Psalm 32 1 Ps 32.10 2 4 Kings 6.25 LXX 3 4 Kings 7.1,16,18 4 2 Kings 15.31