'servant' and 'ignorant' are used of Him, nature 9, but according to dispensation, in order for indeed He was of a subject and ignorant to confirm the fact that the very body, which nature, and except that it was united with suffered, rose again; such are the weals, the God the Word, His flesh was servile and eating and the drinking after the resurrection. ignorant 3. But because of the union in sub- Others took place actually and naturally, as sistence with God the Word it was neither changing from place to place without trouble servile nor ignorant. In this way, too, He and passing in through closed gates. Others called the Father His God. have the character of simulation, as, He

Others again are for the purpose of reveal-made as though He would have gone further 2. ing Him to us and strengthening our faith, as, And now, O Father, glorify Thou Me with the glory which I had with Thee, before the world Was 4. For He Himself was glorified and is glorified, but His glory was not manifested nor confirmed to us. Also that which the apostle said, Declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead 5. For by the miracles and the resurrection and the coming Those then that are sublime must be assigned of the Holy Spirit it was manifested and con- to the divine nature, which is superior to pasfirmed to the world that He is the Son of sion and body: and those that are humble God 6. And this too 7, The Child grew in

Others are appropriate to the double nature, as, I ascend unto My Father and your Father, and My God and your God 3, and The King of Glory shall come in, and He sat down on the right hand of the majesty on High5. Finally others are to be understood as though He were ranking Himself with us, in the manner of separation in pure thought, as, My God and your God 3.

wisdom and grace.

Others again have reference to His appropriation of the personal life of the Jews, in numbering Himself among the Jews, as He saith to the Samaritan woman, Ye worship know not what: we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews 9.

ye

must be ascribed to the human nature; and those that are common must be attributed to the compound, that is, the one Christ, Who is God and man. And it should be understood that both belong to one and the same Jesus Christ, our Lord. For if we know what is proper to each, and perceive that both are performed by one and the same, we shall have the true faith and shall not go astray. And from all these the difference between the united natures is recognised, and the fact that, as the most godly Cyril says, they are not identical in the natural quality of their divinity and humanity. But yet there is but one Son and And this: And Christ and Lord: and as He is one, He has also but one person, the unity in subsistence being in nowise broken up into parts by the recognition of the difference of the natures.

The third mode is one which declares the one subsistence and brings out the dual nature: for instance, And I live by the Father: so he that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me'. And this: I go to My Father and ye see Me no more 2. And this: They would not have crucified the Lord of Glory 3.

по man hath ascended up to heaven but He that came down from heaven, even the Son of Man which is in heaven 4, and such like.

CHAPTER XIX.

Again of the affirmations that refer to the period after the resurrection some are suitable to God, as, Baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy That God is not the cause of evils. Ghost 5, for here 'Son' is clearly used as God; It is to be observed that it is the custom also this, And lo, I am with you alway, even in the Holy Scripture to speak of God's perunto the end of the world, and other similar mission as His energy, as when the apostle ones. For He is with us as God. Others says in the Epistle to the Romans, Hath not are suitable to man, as, They held Him by the the potter power over the clay, of the same lump feet, and There they will see Me, and so to make one vessel unto honour and another unto forth. dishonour 9? And for this reason, that He Himself makes this or that. For He is Himself alone the Maker of all things; yet it is not He Himself that fashions noble or ignoble things, but the personal choice of

Further, of those referring to the period after the Resurrection that are suitable to man there are different modes. For some did actually take place, yet not according to

each one'. And this is manifest from what victor'. For above comparison He wins. the same Apostle says in the Second Epistle the victor's prize against all, even against to Timothy, In a great house there are not only those who are sinless, being Maker, invessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and comprehensible, uncreated, and possessing of earth and some to honour and some to dis- natural and not adventitious glory. But it honour. If a man therefore purge himself from is because when we sin God is not unjust in these, he shall be a vessel unto honour sanctified, His anger against us; and when He pardons and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto the penitent He is shewn victor over our every good work2. And it is evident that the wickedness. But it is not for this that we sin, purification must be voluntary: for if a man, but because the thing so turns out. It is just he saith, purge himself. And the consequent an- as if one were sitting at work and a friend tistrophe responds, "If a man purge not him- stood near by, and one said, My friend came self he will be a vessel to dishonour, unmeet in order that I might do no work that for the master's use and fit only to be broken day. The friend, however, was not present in pieces." Wherefore this passage that we in order that the man should do no work, have quoted and this, God hath concluded them but such was the result. For being occupied all in unbelief3, and this, God hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear, all these must be understood not as though God Himself were energising, but as though God were permitting, both because of free-will and because goodness knows no compulsion.

His permission, therefore, is usually spoken of in the Holy Scripture as His energy and work. Nay, even when He says that God creates evil things, and that there is no evil in a city that the Lord hath not done, he does

not mean by these words 5 that the Lord is the cause of evil, but the word 'evil' is used in two ways, with two meanings. For sometimes it means what is evil by nature, and this is the opposite of virtue and the will of God: and sometimes it means that which is evil and oppressive to our sensation, that is to say, afflictions and calamities. Now these are seemingly evil because they are painful, but in reality are good. For to those who understand they become ambassadors of conversion and salvation. The Scripture says that of

these God is the Author.

It is, moreover, to be observed that of these, too, we are the cause: for involuntary evils are the offspring of voluntary ones 7.

This also should be recognised, that it is usual in the Scriptures for some things that ought to be considered as effects to be stated in a causal sense 3, as, Against Thee, Thee only, have I sinned and done this evil in Thy sight, that Thou mightest be justified when Thou speakest, and prevail when Thou judgest 9. For

the sinner did not sin in order that God might

prevail, nor again did God require our sin order that He might by it be revealed

in

as

with receiving his friend he did not work. These things, too, are spoken of as effects because affairs so turned out. Moreover, God does not wish that He alone should be just, but that all should, so far as possible, be made like unto Him.

CHAPTER XX.

That there are not two Kingdoms.

That there are not two kingdoms 2, one good and one bad, we shall see from this. For good and evil are opposed to one another and mutually destructive, and cannot exist in one another or with one another. Each of them, therefore, in its own division will circumscribed, not by the whole alone but belong to the whole, and first 3 they will be also each of them by part of the whole.

Next I ask, who it is that assigns 5 to each its place. For they will not affirm that they have come to a friendly agreement with, or been reconciled to, one another. For evil is not evil when it is at peace with, and reconciled to, goodness, nor is goodness good when it is on amicable terms with evil. But

if He Who has marked off to each of these its own sphere of action is something different from them, He must the rather be God.

One of two things indeed is necessary, either that they come in contact with and destroy one another, or that there exists some intermediate place where neither goodness nor evil exists, separating both from one another, like a partition. And so there will be no longer two but three kingdoms.

either that they are at peace, which is quite Again, one of these alternatives is necessary, incompatible with evil (for that which is at peace is not evil), or they are at strife, which

is incompatible with goodness (for that which would they be foreknown. For knowledge is at strife is not perfectly good), or the evil is of what exists and foreknowledge is of what is at strife and the good does not retaliate, will surely exist in the future. For simple but is destroyed by the evil, or they are ever being comes first and then good or evil in trouble and distress, which is not a mark being. But if the very exis'ence of those, of goodness. There is, therefore, but one who through the goodness of God are in the kingdom, delivered from all evil. future to exist, were to be prevented by the fact that they were to become evil of their own choice, evil would have prevailed over the goodness of God. Wherefore God makes

8

But if this is so, they say, whence comes evil?? For it is quite impossible that evil should originate from goodness. We answer, then, that evil is nothing else than absence all His works good, but each becomes of its of goodness and a lapsing from what is own choice good or evil. Although, then, the natural into what is unnatural for nothing Lord said, Good were it for that man that he evil is natural. For all things, whatsoever had never been born, He said it in condemnaGod made, are very good 9, so far as they tion not of His own creation but of the evil were made if, therefore, they remain just as which His own creation had acquired by his they were created, they are very good, but own choice and through his own heedlessness. when they voluntarily depart from what is For the heedlessness that marks man's judgnatural and turn to what is unnatural, they ment made His Creator's beneficence of no slip into evil. profit to him. It is just as if any one, when By nature, therefore, all things are servants he had obtained riches and dominion from of the Creator and obey Him. Whenever, a king, were to lord it over his benefactor, who, then, any of His creatures voluntarily rebels when he has worsted him, will punish him as and becomes disobedient to his Maker, he he deserves, if he should see him keeping introduces evil into himself. For evil is not hold of the sovereignty to the end. any essence nor a property of essence, but an accident, that is, a voluntary deviation from what is natural into what is unnatural,

which is sin.

Whence, then, comes sin1? It is an invention of the free-will of the devil. Is the devil, then, evil? In so far as he was brought into existence he is not evil but good. For he was created by his Maker a bright and very brilliant angel, endowed with free-will as being rational. But he voluntarily departed from the virtue that is natural and came into the darkness of evil, being far removed from God, Who alone is good and can give life and light. For from Him every good thing derives its goodness, and so far as it is separated from Him in will (for it is not in place), it falls into evil.

CHAPTER XXI.

The purpose2 for which God in His foreknow ledge created persons who would sin and not repent.

God in His goodness 3 brought what exists into being out of nothing, and has foreknowledge of what will exist in the future. If, therefore, they were not to exist in the future, they would neither be evil in the future nor

6 Text, κακοῦσθαι. Variant, κακουχεῖσθαι.

7 Basil, Hom. Deum non esse caus, mal.

8 Τύχι, παραδρομή. Variant, παρατροπή, cf. inξία. 9 Gen. i. 31.

1 Basil Hom. Deum non esse caus, mal.

2 Jer., Contr. Pelag, bk. ii.

3 Damasc., Dialog contra Manich.

CHAPTER XXII.

Concerning the law of God and the law of sin.

The Deity is good and more than good, and so is His will. For that which God wishes is good. Moreover the precept, which teaches this, is law, that we, holding by it, may walk in light 5: and the transgression of this precept is sin, and this continues to exist on account of the assault of the devil and our unconstrained and voluntary reception of it. And this, too, is called law 7.

And so the law of God, settling in our mind, draws it towards itself and pricks our conscience. And our conscience, too, is called a law of our mind. Further, the assault of the wicked one, that is the law of sin, settling in the members of our flesh, makes its assault upon us through it. For by once voluntarily the assault of the wicked one, we gave entrance transgressing the law of God and receiving to it, being sold by ourselves to sin. Wherefore our body is readily impelled to it. And so the savour and perception of sin that is stored up in our body, that is to say, lust and pleasure of the body, is law in the members of our flesh.

Therefore the law of my mind, that is, the conscience, sympathises with the law of God, that is, the precept, and makes that its will. But the law of sin, that is to say, the assault

made through the law that is in our members, gardeth the life of his beast: next, in order that or through the lust and inclination and move when they take their ease from the distraction ment of the body and of the irrational part of material things, they may gather together of the soul, is in opposition to the law of my unto God, spending the whole of the seventh mind, that is to conscience, and takes me day in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs captive (even though I make the law of God and the study of the divine Scriptures and my will and set my love on it, and make not resting in God. For when the law did not sin my will), by reason of commixture 9: and exist and there was no divinely-inspired Scripthrough the softness of pleasure and the lust ture, the Sabbath was not consecrated to God. of the body and of the irrational part of the But when the divinely-inspired Scripture was soul, as I said, it leads me astray and induces given by Moses, the Sabbath was consecrated me to become the servant of sin. But what to God in order that on it they, who do not th: law could not do, in that it was weak dedicate their whole life to God, and who through the flesh, God, sending His own Son do not make their desire subservient to the in the likeness of sinful flesh (for He assumed Master as though to a Father, but are like flesh but not sin) condemned sin in the flesh, foolish servants, may on that day talk much that the righteousness of the law might be ful concerning the exercise of it, and may abstract filled in us who walk not after the flesh but a small, truly a most insignificant, portion of in the Spirit. For the Spirit helpeth our their life for the service of God, and this from infirmities and affordeth power to the law fear of the chastisements and punishments of our mind, against the law that is in our which threaten transgressors. For the law members. For the verse, we know not what is not made for a righteous man but for the we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit | unrighteous. Moses, of a truth, was the first itself maketh intercession with groanings that to abide fasting with God for forty days and cannot be uttered 3, itself teacheth us what to again for another forty 2, and thus doubtless pray for. Hence it is impossible to carry out to afflict himself with hunger on the Sabbaths the precepts of the Lord except by patience although the law forbade self-affliction on the and prayer. Sabbath. But if they should object that this took place before the law, what will they say about Elias the Thesbite who accomplished a journey of forty days on one meal 3? For he, by thus afflicting himself on the Sabbaths not only with hunger but with the forty days' journeying, broke the Sabbath and yet God, Who gave the law, was not wroth with him but shewed Himself to him on Choreb as a reward for his virtue. And what will they say about Daniel? Did he not spend three weeks without food4? And again, did not all Israel circumcise the child on the Sabbath, if it happened to be the eighth day after birth 5? And do they not hold the great fast which the law enjoins if it falls on the Sabbath? And further, do not the priests and the Levites profane the Sabbath in the works of the tabernacle and yet are held blameless? Yea, if an ox should fall into a pit on the Sabbath, he who draws it forth is blameless, while he who neglects to do so is condemned. And did not all the Israelites compass the walls of Jericho bearing the Ark of God for seven days, in which assuredly the Sabbath was included 9.

CHAPTER XXIII.

Against the Jews on the question of the
Sabbath.

The seventh day is called the Sabbath and signifies rest. For in it God rested from all His works, as the divine Scripture says: and so the number of the days goes up to seven and then circles back again and begins at the first. This is the precious number with the Jews, God having ordained that it should be held in honour, and that in no chance fashion but with the imposition of most heavy penalties for the transgression 5. And it was not in a simple fashion that He ordained this, but for certain reasons understood mystically by the spiritual and clear-sighted".

So far, indeed, as I in my ignorance know, to begin with inferior and more dense things, God, knowing the denseness of the Israelites and their carnal love and propensity towards matter in everything, made this law: first, in order that the servant and the cattle should 1est as it is written, for the righteous man re

9 Text, κατὰ ἀνάκρασιν. Variants, ἀνάκρισιν, ἀνάκλισιν. The old translation is 'secundum anacrasin,' i.e. 'contractionem, refusionem per laevitatem voluptatis: Faber has secundum contradictionem per suadelam voluptatis. The author's meaning is that owing to the conjunction of mind with body, the law of sin is mixed with all the members.

Rom viii. 3. 4.

4 Gen. ii. 2.

6 Greg. Naz., Orat. 44.

2 Ibid. 26.

3 Ibid.

5 Ex. xiii. 6; Num. xv. 35.
7 Deut. v. 14.

fluous and unnecessary. For the foreskin is nothing else than the skin which is superfluous to the organ of lust. And, indeed, every pleasure which does not arise from God nor is in God is superfluous to pleasure: and of that the foreskin is the type. The Sabbath, moreover, is the cessation from sin; so that both things happen to be one, and so both together, when observed by those who are spiritual, do not bring about any breach of the law at all.

securing leisure to worship God in order that they might, both servant and beast of burden, devote a very small share to Him and be at rest, the observance of the Sabbath was devised for the carnal that were still childish and in the bonds of the elements of the world, and unable to conceive of anything beyond the body and the letter. But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth His Onlybegotten Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law that we might receive the adoption of sons 3. Further, observe 9 that the number seven For to as many of us as received Him, He gave denotes all the present time, as the most wise power to become sons of God, even to them that Solomon says, to give a portion to seven and believe on Him. So that we are no longer also to eight. And David2, the divine singer servants but sons 5: no longer under the law when he composed the eighth psalm, sang but under grace: no longer do we serve God of the future restoration after the resurrection in part from fear, but we are bound to dedicate from the dead. Since the Law, therefore, to Him the whole span of our life, and cause enjoined that the seventh day should be that servant, I mean wrath and desire, to cease spent in rest from carnal things and devoted from sin and bid it devote itself to the service to spiritual things, it was a mystic indication of God, always directing our whole desire to the true Israelite who had a mind to see towards God and arming our wrath against God, that he should through all time offer the enemies of God and likewise we hinder himself to God and rise higher than carnal that beast of burden, that is the body, from things. the servitude of sin, and urge it forwards to assist to the uttermost the divine precepts.

CHAPTER XXIV.

Concerning Virginity.

Carnal men abuse virgin ty 3, and the pleasure-loving bring forward the following verse in proof, Cursed be every one that raiseth not up seed in Israel 4. But we, made confident by God the Word that was made flesh of the Virgin, answer that virginity was implanted in man's nature from above and in the beginning. For man was formed of virgin soil. From Adam alone was Eve created. In Paradise virginity held sway. Indeed, Divine Scripture tells that both Adam and Eve were naked and were not ashamed 3. But after their transgression they knew that they were naked, and in their shame they sewed aprons for themselves. And when, after the transgression, Adam heard, dust thou art and unto dust shalt thou return7, when death entered into the world by reason

These are the things which the spiritual law of Christ enjoins on us and those who observe that become superior to the law of Moses. For when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away and when the covering of the law, that is, the veil, is rent asunder through the crucifixion of the Saviour, and the Spirit shines forth with tongues of fire, the letter shall be done away with, bodily things shall come to an end, the law of servitude shall be fulfilled, and the law of liberty be bestowed on us. Yea we shall celebrate the perfect rest of human nature, I mean the day after the resurrection, on which the Lord Jesus, the Author of Life and our Saviour, shall lead us into the heritage promised to those who serve God in the spirit, a heritage into which He entered Himself as our forerunner after He rose from the dead, and whereon, the gates of the transgression, then Adam knew Eve of Heaven being opened to Him, He took His seat in bodily form at the right hand of the Father, where those who keep the spiritual law shall also come.

What belongs to us, therefore, who walk by the spirit and not by the letter, is the complete abandonment of carnal things, the spiritual service and communion with God. For circumcision is the abandonment of carnal pleasure and of whatever is super

his wife, and she conceived and bare seeds. So that to prevent the wearing out and destruction of the race by death, marriage was devised that the race of men may be preserved through the procreation of children 9.

But they will perhaps ask, what then is the meaning of "male and female," and "Be fruitful and multiply ?" In answer we shall say that "Be fruitful and multiply: 2" does not

9 Greg. Naz, Orat. 42.

3 V de bk ii. ch. 30.

6 Ibid. iv. 7.

4 St. John i. 12.

7 Athan., loc. cit.

8 Gen. iv. I.

1 Gen. i. 27.

1 Eccl. xi. 2. 4 Dent.

7 Ibid. 19.

2 Ps. xvi.

5 Gen. ii. 23

9 Greg N, De opif., hom. 16.

2 Ibid i. 28.