In this instance, the common version significantly diverges from the Hebrew original, as discerning readers can observe from the preceding remarks. Thus, let us first provide an interpretation based on the Hebrew text, followed, with Christ's assistance, by our thoughts concerning the translation of the Septuagint.
The house of Joseph, representing Ephraim, thus royal, and Bethel, or as the Septuagint renders it, 'the house of Israel,' that is, rulers and nations, idols and idol-worshippers, will face destruction, because they have provoked God’s anger through unjust verdicts. They have exchanged the sweetness of justice for the bitterness of wormwood, forsaking truth to pursue iniquity. What this truth embodies is clarified in the next verse: ‘Who created Arcturus and Orion, and brings the dawn from darkness, turning the day into night.’ Of Him, it is said, ‘Who forms the mountains, and creates the wind, and speaks to man, who makes the morning darkness, and walks upon the heights of the earth; the Lord God of Hosts is His name.’ He is the creator of Arcturus, known as "china" in Hebrew, which Simmachus and Theodotion translate as πλείαδα, commonly referred to as ‘Vota.’ Regarding 'Orion,' referred to as ‘chasil’ in Hebrew, Simmachus translates it as ‘stars’, while Theodotion calls it ‘evening star’; however, our Jewish teacher in Scriptures suggests that ‘chasil’ denotes ‘brightness’ and generally alludes to ‘shining stars.’ When we hear ‘Arcturus’ and ‘Orion,’ we ought to refrain from following poetic fables or absurd mythologies that aim to discredit even the stars and suggest that such transformations into constellations are rewards for immoral acts.
Rather, we must understand that the original Hebrew names, distinct in meaning, have been rendered into our language with terms influenced by pagan mythology, since comprehension relies on using names we have learned and become accustomed to through practice and error. Thus, in the book of Kings, the Greeks translated the Hebrew term ‘raphaim’ as ‘titans,’ connected to a well-known myth among non-believers, giving rise to works honoring gods based on the struggles of giants and the formidable weapons of Titheus, and the mountain Aetna, whose tremors shake Trinacria. Yet God, the Creator of everything, is the one who made Arcturus and Orion, who turns night into day and day into night, purifying the bitter sea waters and releasing them as delightful rain, akin to a healing draught, drawn upwards by the warmth of the heavens. This reveals how rainfall occurs.
In the subsequent phrase, ‘He mocks at the desolation of the strong,’ the prophet returns to the contemporary situation, positing that He, the Creator of all, also threatens the captivity of Samaria and brings ruin to the powerful because they turn justice into bitterness and neglect the truth. In our statement of ‘He laughs,’ Aquila translated it as ‘the one who sneers.’ However, ‘sneer’ conveys annoyance expressed through a slight smile that exhibits anger. Regarding the Septuagint translation, God judges in the highest places, rewarding each according to their deeds. Furthermore, whoever aspires to emulate Him and be His son, aiming for perfection as His Father is perfect in heaven, also judges in these high places, unlike the judge who lacks fear of God and is unashamed before humanity, who, due to corrupted judgment, did not lift his decisions towards heaven, but brought them down instead. The subsequent phrase, ‘and has put righteousness upon the earth,’ suggests that He has granted us His righteousness, Christ, and did not discard it but instead placed it upon the earth, to elevate us from earthly to heavenly through triumph over all unrighteousness.
I believe even the pagan poet drew from this text when he spoke of the uncomplicated and joyful existence of countryfolk, saying, ‘They have only the last hint of truth leaving the earth, departing from it.’ When he remarked, ‘He creates all things and transforms them,’ they encompass Arcturus and Orion in one expression, neglecting to accurately translate their intended meanings into Greek. But God indeed transforms everything by elevating earthly material into heavenly forms, granting humanity the likeness of angels, when the moon will radiate as brightly as the sun, and the sun’s brilliance will surpass all times, when the mortal, weak, and corruptible will be transformed into the spiritual, strong, and incorruptible; exhibiting glory without altering essence, when the wise will shine like the stars in the sky, fulfilling the scripture, ‘And glory to the sun, and glory to the moon, and glory to the stars: for the star differs in glory from the star; even so also the resurrection of the dead,’ when all creation is liberated from decay into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.
This is the God who changes all things, even the shadow of death into light, leading those who dwelt in darkness and the shadow of death to witness the great light, causing those who were sons of night and darkness to become sons of light and daytime. This God even transforms the day into darkness—the day of those who cried out, ‘Crucify Him, crucify Him,’ when the day shifted to night from the sixth hour, symbolizing the blindness of the Jews. Not merely in the literal sense, but also in a spiritual manner, the light that emerged for them through the law and the prophets has become obscured, leaving them unaware of what they read and hear, aligning with what is written about them: ‘Let their eyes be darkened, that they may not see, and let their backs be bent down forever.’ This God calls the waters of the sea to Himself, spilling them over the earth, transforming sinners into the righteous. To illustrate this succinctly, consider the apostle Paul, a forceful whirlwind, a turbulent storm, and the raging sea that persecuted and sought to oppress the church of God. After being called by the Lord, he extended his ministry across the earth, preaching from Jerusalem to Illyricum without laying a foundation where Christ had already been proclaimed.
He journeyed to Spain and traversed from ocean to ocean, emulating his Lord, who is the Sun of Righteousness, of whom it is stated: ‘From the end of heaven His journeying is, and His presence to the end of heaven,’ illustrating his zealous endeavors to preach. This God also confounds the powerful to render weak those who were strong in evil, allowing them to echo the words of the apostle: ‘For when I am weak, then I am strong.’ For indeed, ‘the children of this age are more astute than the children of light in their generation.’ Physical strength leads to weakness of spirit, while spiritual strength brings about the frailties of the body. Thus, the Lord, who arranges all things with wisdom and judges with truth, crushes the strong adversary and brings calamity upon the stronghold that resists divine knowledge. As Proverbs declares: ‘A wise man scales the city of the mighty and brings down the stronghold in which they trust.’ He acts similarly towards worldly authorities and especially against heretics, who seek to propagate false teachings through persuasive arguments and intellectual rhetoric. Yet the wise dismantle their deceptions, and with God’s aid, unveil the futility of their strongholds, bringing suffering upon them, so that they, having renounced their pride, may exclaim alongside the apostle, ‘O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from the body of this death?’
THEOSIS