Thus, here also it calls him a new child who was reborn through the washing of regeneration and educated and made childlike, who is made fit for the kingdom of heaven through this process in the same way. The book of Proverbs, therefore, provides training which imparts perception and understanding to the recently born child who is hungry for rational and genuine milk: a perception of present realities but an understanding of future realities. For the child is educated in human matters and given a perception of reality so that he would neither be enslaved to shameful desires nor long for the empty glory of this world. Beyond this, Proverbs confers an understanding of the coming age and encourages faith in the promises by its words—St Basil the Great

For indeed a person who loses by daily distractions of mind and lack of self control what he appears to gain by the conversion of others puts his profits into a bag with holes. And so it is that while they fancy that they can make larger profits by the instruction of others, they are actually deprived of their own improvement. For “there are who make themselves out as rich though possessing nothing, and there are who humble themselves amid great riches.”—John Cassian

I know why it is written: “Wealth will not profit in the day of wrath.” This was said about the one who does not employ his wealth for mercy. Is not the power of wealth to be brought forth and used at a time of need? At the hour in which you return your spirit to the hands of God, you will understand that the full utility of your riches is to use them for the sake of mercy. For they were given to you by Jesus Christ, God and the Son of God—St Shenoute the Archimandrite

“Wisdom has built her house, and has set seven pillars.” Since wisdom is the Son of God, once he became man he built his house, that is, the flesh from the Virgin—St John Chrysostom

A proverb is a saying that, under the guise of physical things, signifies intelligible things—Evagrius of Pontus

The two women indicate to us the church and the synagogue. The latter, after it tried to suppress the sacrament of human redemption and persecuted and killed the Redeemer through false accusations, claims, nevertheless, that its child should still be alive, that is, that the Jewish people should still be pleasing and acceptable to God and that he should give eternal life to the Mosaic law, which is dead. Since the [synagogue] is soaked in these errors, it perpetually quarrels with the church, which is represented by the other woman. However, the peaceful king settled the argument not by dividing but by gathering the children of both mothers, so that a single body might be created from the Jews and the Gentiles, whose head is Christ. And both mothers assert that they live under the same roof, because the church and the synagogue inhabit this world in dwellings, where they are mixed—Mari Ephrem the Syrian

However, with the other class of unbelievers who either believe that there is no divine power or that it has nothing to do with human affairs, I am not sure that an argument should be undertaken on any subject of dutiful devotion, although hardly anyone can be found nowadays who is so foolish as to dare to say even in his own heart, “There is no God.” [Psa 14:1 (13:1 LXX, Vg.).] But other fools are not lacking who have said, “The Lord shall not see,” that is, he does not extend his providence to these earthly affairs—St Augustine

As a further proof of your [Trypho the Jew, whom Justin is trying to convert to Christianity in this dialogue.] ignorance of the Scripture, I am going to quote another psalm, dedicated to David by the Holy Spirit, which you erroneously think refers to your king Solomon but which in reality refers to Christ. One cause of your error is that you are misled by the false interpretation of equivocal terms. For when the law of God is called a “blameless law,” [Psa 19:7 (18:8 LXX).] you do not understand it as applying to the law that was to come after Moses but to the Mosaic law itself, even though God had promised to establish a new law and a new covenant. And when the psalm says, “Give to the king your judgment, O God,” you claim that the words were spoken of Solomon because he was a king, whereas the words clearly proclaim that they were spoken of the eternal King, that is, Christ. I prove from all the Scriptures that Christ is spoken of as a king, and a priest, and God, and Lord, and an angel, and a man, and a leader, and a stone, and a begotten son and as one who at first endured suffering, then ascended into heaven, and as returning to earth with glory and having the eternal kingdom—St Justin Martyr