Desires and cowardice block obedience; God's discipline leads to correction
Apollinaris is explaining why God delayed pleasures and led Israel into dangers, and why he punished the people more severely for their unbelief about the promised land than for earlier sins.
For it is not only desires but also cowardices and small-souledness that strip away the fulfillment of what is owed to God and to human beings. They obstruct the steadfast thing in obedience to God and the well-ordered thing in the honors due to human beings, because the fleshly nature ravages the spiritual and by its own pleasure and ease obliterates the good that belongs to the other. But God brings events upon us by the ways of discipline. The end of discipline is the setting right of the human being toward the upright, with the Spirit in leadership and the flesh in obedience. For this reason he postponed the supply of pleasant things, training the desire for them to be subjected to the mind that follows the will of God. And he led them into dangers, exercising them to endure what would otherwise be avoided, through hope in God, which is fitting for those who think rightly. And since human beings are rather fleshly in their present condition, at first he relaxed the punishment for the disobedient and small-souled, but later he punished them to bring about a turning back. So then, when they were afraid at the Red Sea and spoke against him, he did not punish them; but at the promised land he punished those who did not have the courage to follow him into it. For this was plainly a proof of unbelief. Those who had seen with their own eyes such great and such numerous wonders had every right to be confident in everything through the power of the one who had saved them. And indeed, although the making of the calf was more impious, he punished it less severely, in partial measures; but he punished with the death of the people more harshly in the disobedience of the whole people of that time concerning the possession of the land, because they had not been brought to their senses by the earlier punishment and they persisted to the utmost in testing God.
He did not name the cause of the idolatry, which was the fornication that drew them into fellowship with the object of worship—for that was connected with gluttony—but he accuses the result, for the sake of which the law also forbade intercourse with foreign women, so that they would not be led by affection for the women into fellowship with impiety (Psalm 106:28; LXX 105:28). And that is exactly what happened. For it drove them to such folly that they were initiated into the rites of Beelphegor and defiled themselves with sacrifices performed for the dead.
He shows that the return through the mercy of their captors will not be unshaken, by adding a prayer about the gathering together from the nations and ending with it, so that they may find the firm and immovable salvation that comes from God himself, and may give thanks always to the one who saved them, and may have their boasting in God (Psalm 106:46-47; LXX 105:46-47). And it is necessary to await the mercy that comes after the present disobedience, as the apostle says, so that they may dance before God all their days, making supplication, as Zechariah foretells.
He says these things were spoken about the Jews, who long ago were set free from their sojourn in Egypt by crying out to the Lord, and who now will suffer the same thing and be delivered from their manifold wandering, if they cry out to the Lord and long to obtain the perfect freedom that comes through Christ himself.
This allegory is also about the same people, which is why it is especially clear that these things are spoken allegorically. For if they are taken literally, it does not fit that the same people wander in the desert and are bound in a dark prison. It is clear according to Isaiah, who says to those in bonds, "Come out," and to those in darkness, "Be uncovered" (Isaiah 49:9). Concerning this Zechariah also says, "By the blood of his covenant he sent out prisoners from a pit having no water" (Zechariah 9:11). Christ, then, is the Savior from the Father, and the Father is Savior through Christ. Israel is now covered by death, bound by humiliation, and constrained by the necessity of slavery. For “shadow” is what covers, “poverty” is the humiliation, and “iron” is the necessity. Being cast out to this very thing, they are appointed for the nations into a land of nations poor from the beginning, about whom the twenty-first psalm says, "The poor shall eat and be filled" (Psalm 21 (22):26) (Psalm 22:26).
Greek
οὐ γὰρ ἐπιθυμίαι μόνον ἀλλὰ καὶ δειλίαι καὶ μικροψυχίαι τῶν πρὸς θεὸν ὀφειλομένων καὶ τῶν πρὸς ἀνθρώπους τὴν πλήρωσιν ἀφαιροῦνται, τὸ καρτερικὸν
ἐν ὑπακοῇ θεοῦ καὶ τὸ εὔτακτον ἐν ἀνθρώπων τιμαῖς ἐμποδίζουσαι, τῆς κατὰ σάρκα φύσεως τὴν κατὰ πνεῦμα λυμαινομένης καὶ τῷ ἰδίῳ τερπνῷ καὶ ἀπόνῳ τὸ παρ' ἐκείνῃ καλὸν ἐξαφανιζούσης. θεὸς δὲ παιδεύσεως τρόποις ἐπάγει τὰ πράγματα· τῆς 27 δὲ παιδεύσεως τὸ τέλος ἡ πρὸς τὸ ὀρθὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου κατόρθωσις ἐν ἡγεμονίᾳ πνεύματος, ὑπακοῇ δὲ σαρκός. διὰ τοῦτο τῶν τε ἡδέων τὰς χορηγίας ὑπερετίθετο παιδεύων τὴν τούτων ἐπιθυμίαν ὑποτετάχθαι τῇ κατὰ βούλησιν θεοῦ διανοίᾳ, καὶ ἐπὶ κινδύνους ἦγε διαγυμνάζων ὑπομένειν τὰ ἄλλως φευκτὰ δι' ἐλπίδα τὴν πρὸς θεὸν ἣ προσήκει τοῖς ὀρθῶς διανοουμένοις. καὶ ἐπείπερ ἄνθρωποι σαρκικώτεροι τῇ νῦν καταστάσει, τὰ μὲν πρῶτα καὶ ἀνίει τῆς δίκης τοὺς ἀπειθεῖς καὶ μικροψύχους, ὕστερον δὲ πρὸς ἐπιστροφὴν ἐκόλαζεν. ἐπεὶ γοῦν τῆς ἐρυθρᾶς θαλάσσης δειλιῶντας καὶ ἀντιλέγοντας μὴ κολάσας, ἐπὶ τῇ ἐπηγγελμένῃ γῇ κολάζει τοὺς μὴ θαρρήσαντας ἐπὶ ταύτην ἀκολουθεῖν αὐτῷ. ἀπιστίας γὰρ ἦν προφανῶς τεκμήριον. τοὺς γὰρ τοσούτων καὶ τοιούτων θαυμάτων αὐτόπτας θαρρεῖν εἰς ἅπαντα δίκαιον ἦν τῇ τοῦ σεσωκότος δυνάμει. καὶ μὴν ἐπεὶ τῆς μοσχοποιΐας καίτοι δυσσεβεστέρας οὔσης ἐλαττόνως τιμωρησάμενος ἐν μερικοῖς, θανάτῳ τοῦ λαοῦ χαλεπώτερον ἐκόλασεν ἐν τῇ παντὸς τοῦ τότε λαοῦ ἀπειθείᾳ τῇ περὶ καθέξεως τῆς γῆς, ὅτι διὰ τῆς προτέρας δίκης οὐκ ἐσωφρονίσθησαν καὶ τῷ πειράζειν θεὸν ἐπὶ πλεῖστον ὑπέμειναν. 192 Ps 105,28 Οὐ τὸ τῆς εἰδωλολατρείας αἴτιον εἶπεν ὅπερ ἦν ἡ πορνεία εἰς κοινωνίαν τοῦ σεβάσματος αὐτοὺς ἐπαγομένη (ἦν γὰρ τοῦτο τῇ γαστριμαργίᾳ συναφές), ἀλλὰ τὸ ἀποτέλεσμα κατηγορεῖ οὗ χάριν καὶ τὴν ἐπιμιξίαν τῶν ἀλλοφύλων γυναικῶν ἀπεῖπεν ὁ νόμος, ὡς μὴ τῇ συμπαθείᾳ τῶν γυναικῶν εἰς κοινωνίαν τῆς ἀσεβείας ὑπάγοιντο, ὃ δὴ καὶ γέγονεν. εἰς τοσοῦτον γὰρ αὐτοὺς ἀπονοίας προήγαγεν, ὡς μυεῖσθαι τὰ τοῦ Βεελφεγὼρ καὶ θυσίαις νεκρῶν τελουμέναις συμμολύνεσθαι. 193 Ps 105,46.47 Τὴν δι' ἐλέου τῶν αἰχμαλωτισάντων ἐπάνοδον οὐκ ἀσάλευτον ἐσομένην ἐν τούτῳ δείκνυσιν εὐχὴν ἐπαγαγὼν περὶ τῆς ἐξ ἐθνῶν ἐπισυνάξεως καὶ εἰς ταύτην καταλήξας, ἵνα τὴν βεβαίαν καὶ ἀμετακίνητον εὕρωνται τὴν παρ' αὐτοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ σωτηρίαν καὶ διὰ παντὸς εὐχαριστῶσι τῷ σεσωκότι καὶ τὴν ἐν θεῷ καύχησιν ἔχωσι. καὶ χρὴ τὸν ἔλεον ἐκδέχεσθαι τὸν μετὰ τὴν νῦν ἀπείθειαν, ὡς ὁ ἀπόστολός φησιν, ἵνα χορεύσωσι θεῷ πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας δεηθέντες, ὡς ὁ Ζαχαρίας προαγορεύει. 194 Ps 106,6®9 Περὶ τῶν Ἰουδαίων εἰρῆσθαι ταῦτά φησι πάλαι μὲν ἐλευθερωθέντων ἐκ τῆς ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ διαγωγῆς ἐκ τοῦ κεκραγέναι πρὸς κύριον, νυνὶ δὲ τὸ αὐτὸ πεισομένων καὶ τῆς παντοδαπῆς πλάνης ἀπαλλαττομένων, εἰ πρὸς κύριον κεκράξοιντο καὶ τῆς δι' αὐτοῦ τοῦ Χριστοῦ τελείας ἐλευθερίας ὀρεχθῶσι τυχεῖν. 195 Ps 106,10®12 Καὶ αὕτη περὶ τῶν αὐτῶν ἡ ἀλληγορία ὅθεν οὐχ ἥκιστα καὶ ἀλληγορ ούμενα ταῦτα φαίνεται. κυριολογούμενα γὰρ οὐ συνᾴδει τὸ τοὺς αὐτοὺς ἐν ἐρήμῳ πλανᾶσθαι καὶ ἐν σκοτεινῷ δεσμωτηρίῳ δεδέσθαι. δῆλος δὲ κατὰ τὸν Ἡσαΐαν ὁ λέγων τοῖς ἐν δεσμοῖς Ἐξέλθατε καὶ τοῖς ἐν τῷ σκότει Ἀνακαλύφθητε, περὶ οὗ καὶ Ζαχαρίας ὅτι Αἵματι διαθήκης αὐτοῦ ἐξαπέστειλε δεσμίους ἐκ λάκκου οὐκ ἔχοντος ὕδωρ. Χριστὸς οὖν παρὰ πατρὸς σωτὴρ καὶ πατὴρ διὰ Χριστοῦ. ὑπὸ θανάτου δὲ καλυπτόμενος τὰ νῦν ὁ Ἰσραὴλ καὶ ταπεινότητι δεδεμένος καὶ ἀνάγκῃ δουλείας. σκιὰ μὲν γὰρ τὸ καλύπτον, πενία δὲ ἡ ταπεινότης, σίδηρος δὲ ἡ ἀνάγκη. εἰς αὐτὸ δὲ τοῖς ἔθνεσι καθιστᾶσιν ἀποβληθέντες εἰς χώραν ἐθνῶν τῶν ἐξ ἀρχῆς πενήτων περὶ ὧν ὁ ΚΑ ψαλμὸς τὸ Φάγονται πένητες καὶ ἐμπλησθήσονται.