Cast Out, Cut Off

Ἐκβαλόντες με νυνὶ περιεκύκλωσάν με, τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτῶν ἔθεντο ἐκκλῖναι ἐν τῇ γῇ Ἔνδον ὄντας οὐ περικυκλοῦσιν οἱ ἐχθροὶ, οὐ γὰρ δύνανται, ἀλλ' ὅταν ἔσωθεν ἐκβάλωσιν. Καὶ ἔθεντο, φησὶν, ἑαυτῶν τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς εἰς τὸ ἐμὲ ἐκκλῖναι ἀπ' οὐρανοῦ ἐν τῇ γῇ, τουτέστιν ἐν τῇ ὕλῃ. Ἐπὶβλάβῃ δὲ περικυκλοῦσιν ἀπολέσαι οἱ ζητοῦντες τὸ πρὸς γῆν ὁρᾷν καὶ σκοπεῖν μόνα τὰ πρόσκαιρα, ἐκκλίνουσι δὲ παρανομοῦντες τὴν εὐθεῖαν ὁδὸν καὶ μὴ βουλόμενοι. Τοῦ αὐτοῦ. Τοῦτον κυκλοῦσιν οἱ δαίμονες ὃν ἐκβάλλουσι τῆς ἀρετῆς· διὸ καλῶς λέγεται τό· Ἐὰν πνεῦμα τοῦ ἐξουσιάζοντος ἀναβῇ ἐπὶ σὲ, τόπον σου μὴ ἀφῇς· καὶ τό· Μὴ δῶτε τόπον τῷ πονηρῷ· ὡσεὶ ἔλεγεν· Ἐὰν πνεῦμα πορνείας ἀναβῇ ἐπὶ σὲ, σωφροσύνην σου μὴ ἀφῇς· καὶ πνεῦμα μίσους ἀναβῇ ἐπὶ σὲ, ἀγάπην σου μὴ ἀφῇς. Πλὴν προσεκτέον πότερον ὁ ἀπὸ πασῶν τῶν ἀρετῶν ἐκπεσὼν κυκλοῦται, ἢ ἀπὸ πολλῶν, ἢ ἀπὸ μιᾶς. Καὶ ἐὰν μὲν ἀντακολουθοῦσιν ἀλλήλαις αἱ κακίαι ὥσπερ καὶ ἀρεταὶ, ὁ ἀπὸ μιᾶς ἐκπεσὼν ἀρετῆς κυκλοῦται· ἐὰν δὲ μὴ ἀντακολου θοῦσιν ἀλλήλαις αἱ κακίαι, οὐχ ὁ ἀπὸ μιᾶς ἐκβληθεὶς ἀρετῆς κυκλοῦται, ἀλλ' ὁ ἀπὸ πασῶν. Ἢ τάχα ἧστινός τις ἀρετῆς ἐκπίπτει, ὑπὸ τῆς ἀντικειμένης ταύτῃ κακίας κυκλοῦται. Ὠριγένης, Εἰς Ψαλμοὺς, Ψαλμός ΙϚ’ Source: Migne PG 12.1220d-1221b

Casting me out they surrounded me, their eyes were set to look down on the earth. 1 Enemies do not surround those who are within, for they are only able to do this with those have been cast outside. And he says that they set their eyes down on me, looking from heaven to earth, that is, to matter. For the sake of harming and destroying they surround those who seek nothing but to look on earthly and temporal things, and they look down on the perverse who have scorned the right way. On The Same The demons surround the one who they have cast out from virtue. Therefore it is well said, 'If a spirit possessing power rises up over you, do not abandon your place.' And again, 'Do not give a space to the wicked one.' 2 As if he said,' If a spirit of fornication rises up in you, do not desert your continence. And if a spirit of hatred rises up in you, do not desert your love.' Besides this we must consider if he who is cut off from all virtue is the one surrounded, or if this happens to one who is cut off from many of them, or even just one virtue. If the virtues follow after one another like the vices, he who is cut off from one, is surrounded. But if they do not follow one another, it is not he who is cut off from one who is surrounded but he who is cut off from all of them. Or perhaps it might be that according to whatever virtue a man is cut off, he is surrounded by the evil that opposes it. Origen, Selecta On the Psalms, from Psalm 16 1 Ps 16.11 2 Eccle 10.4, Ephes 4.27