Ps 123:6

“What then is our duty, my brothers, for the sake of these things, but to praise and give thanks to God, the king of all? And let us first exclaim in the words of the psalms, "Blessed be the Lord, who has not given us over as a prey to their teeth." Let us keep the feast in that way that he has dedicated for us unto salvation—the holy day Easter—so that we may celebrate the feast which is in heaven with the angels. Thus anciently, the people of the Jews, when they came out of affliction into a state of ease, kept the feast, singing a song of praise for their victory. So also the people in the time of Esther, because they were delivered from the edict of death, kept a feast to the Lord, considering it a feast, returning thanks to the Lord and praising him for having changed their condition. Therefore let us, performing our vows to the Lord and confessing our sins, keep the feast to the Lord, in conversation, moral conduct and manner of life; praising our Lord, who has chastened us a little but has not utterly failed or forsaken us or altogether kept silence from us. For if, having brought us out of the deceitful and famous Egypt of the opponents of Christ, he has caused us to pass through many trials and afflictions, as it were in the wilderness, to his holy church, so that from hence, according to custom, we can send to you, as well as receive letters from you; on this account especially I both give thanks to God myself and exhort you to thank him with me and on my behalf, this being the apostolic custom, which these opponents of Christ, and the schismatics, wished to put an end to and to break off. The Lord did not permit it but both renewed and preserved that which was ordained by him through the apostle, so that we may keep the feast together, and together keep holy day, according to the tradition and commandment of the fathers.”

“Let them escape the water without substance, and say, "Blessed be the Lord, who hath not given us over for a prey unto their teeth" [Psalm 124:6]. For the hunters were following, and had placed a bait in their trap. What bait? The sweetness of this life, so that each man for the sake of the sweetness of this life may thrust his head into iniquity, and be caught in the trap. Not they, in whom the Lord was, they who say, "If the Lord Himself had not been in us;" they have not been taken in the trap. Let the Lord be in thee, and thou wilt not be taken in the trap.”

“We have sung a psalm: Blessed be the Lord, who has not given us as prey to their teeth [Psalm 124:6]. Due gratitude for the gifts of God. Blessed be the Lord, who has not given us as prey to their teeth. It is certainly a voice of gratitude, and worthy gratitude. And when are human thanks sufficient for such divine gifts? When in this place the most blessed martyr shed sacred blood, I do not know whether such a crowd of raging people was here, as there is now a multitude of praising people. I say again—for it delights me indeed, to see people gathered in the house of the Lord with the utmost piety in this place, and to compare times with times—hence I say again and repeat, and commend to your senses, with as much devotion as I can; when in this place the most blessed martyr shed sacred blood, I do not know whether such a crowd of raging people was here, as there is now a multitude of praising people. But even if there was, blessed be the Lord, who has not given us as prey to their teeth. When they were killing, they believed they had won; they were being conquered by those dying, and they rejoiced. If they were conquered, surely they raged. Therefore, the crowd of raging people has departed, and the multitude of praising people has succeeded. Let the multitude of praising people say, say: Blessed be the Lord, who has not given us as prey to their teeth. To whose teeth? To the teeth of enemies, to the teeth of the impious, to the teeth of the persecutors of Jerusalem, to the teeth of Babylon, to the teeth of the hostile city, to the teeth of the crowd raging in crimes, to the teeth of the crowd persecuting the Lord, abandoning the Creator, turning to the creature, worshipping what is made by hand, despising the One by whom it was made. Blessed be the Lord, who has not given us as prey to their teeth. The voice of the martyrs is: surely it is the voice of those who preferred to be killed for the name of Christ, rather than live by denying Christ. Therefore, if they wanted to kill, these were killed; they did what they wanted, these suffered; how: Blessed be the Lord, who did not give us as prey to their teeth? What kind of gratitude is: Blessed be the Lord, who did not give us as prey to their teeth? Because the persecutors did not wish to kill, but to devour, that is, to transfer into their own body. They were pagans, they were impious, they were worshippers of demons and idols; they wanted to do this to us when they desired to devour us. Consider what we do with food when we eat. What indeed do we do, but transfer it into our body? It was the body of the impious: they devoured those who consented to their impiety; without a doubt, they passed into their body. Therefore, the martyrs, being pressed to deny Christ and adore the idol, stood firm, scorned the idol, confessed Christ, and did not consent to transfer into their body. Let them say, let them say gloriously, let them say happily, let them say truly: Blessed be the Lord, who did not give us as prey to their teeth.”