(1.)  In the Septuagint they occur very frequently, especially in the Psalms, in the sense of “giving thanks or praise” (Heb. הדוּה) Ps. xlii. 5; xliii. 4, 5 (ἐξομολογήσομαι); and Ps. c. 4 (ἐ? ἐξομολογήσει)., a meaning which is also found in the New Testament Matt. xi. 25; Phil. ii. 11..  Perhaps the earliest instance in an Ecclesiastical writer is in Hermas, Mandat. X. iii. 2:  ἐξομολογούμενος τῷ θεῷ.  I have not found any instance of this meaning in Cyril.