XL 1. Ἀκούσατε δὲ πῶς καὶ περὶ τῶν κηρυξάντων τὴν διδαχὴν αὐτοῦ καὶ μηνυσάντων τὴν ἐπιφάνειαν προερρέθη, τοῦ προειρημένου προφήτου καὶ βασιλέως οὕτως εἰπόντος διὰ τοῦ προφητικοῦ πνεύματος· Ἡμέρα τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐρεύγεται ῥῆμα, καὶ νὺξ τῇ νυκτὶ ἀναγγέλλει γνῶσιν, 2. οὐκ εἰσὶ λαλιαὶ οὐδὲ λόγοι, ὧν οὐχὶ ἀκούονται αἱ φωναὶ αὐτῶν. 3. εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν ἐξῆλθεν ὁ φθόγγος αὐτῶν καὶ εἰς τὰ πέρατα τῆς οἰκουμένης τὰ ῥήματα αὐτῶν. 4. ἐν τῷ ἡλίῳ ἔθετο τὸ σκήνωμα αὐτοῦ, καὶ αὐτός, ὡς νυμφίος ἐκπορευόμενος ἐκ παστοῦ αὐτοῦ, ἀγαλλιάσεται ὡς γίγας δραμεῖν ὁδόν. 5. πρὸς τούτοις δὲ καὶ λόγων ἑτέρων τῶν προφητευθέντων δι’ αὐτοῦ τοῦ Δαυεὶδ καλῶς ἔχον καὶ οἰκείως ἐπιμνησθῆναι λελογίσμεθα, ἐξ ὧν μαθεῖν ὑμῖν πάρεστι πῶς προτρέπεται ζῆν τοὺς ἀνθρώπους τὸ προφητικὸν πνεῦμα, 6. καὶ πῶς μηνύει τὴν γεγενημένην Ἡρώδου τοῦ βασιλέως Ἰουδαίων καὶ αὐτῶν Ἰουδαίων καὶ Πιλάτου τοῦ ὑμετέρου παρ’ αὐτοῖς γενομένου ἐπιτρόπου σὺν τοῖς αὐτοῦ στρατιώταις κατὰ τοῦ Χρῦ συνέλευσιν, 7. καὶ ὅτι πιστεύεσθαι ἔμελλεν ὑπὸ τῶν ἐκ παντὸς γένους ἀνθρώπων, καὶ ὅτι αὐτὸν υἱὸν καλεῖ ὁ θεὸς καὶ ὑποτάσσειν αὐτῷ πάντας τοὺς ἐχθροὺς ἐπήγγελται, καὶ πῶς οἱ δαίμονες, ὅσον ἐπ’ αὐτοῖς, τήν τε τοῦ πατρὸς πάντων καὶ δεσπότου θεοῦ καὶ τὴν αὐτοῦ τοῦ Χρῦ ἐξουσίαν φυγεῖν πειρῶνται, καὶ ὡς εἰς μετάνοιαν καλεῖ πάντας ὁ θεὸς πρὶν ἐλθεῖν τὴν ἡμέραν τῆς κρίσεως. 8. εἴρηνται δὲ οὕτως· Μακάριος ἀνὴρ ὃς οὐκ ἐπορεύθη ἐν βουλῇ ἀσεβῶν καὶ ἐν ὁδῷ ἁμαρτωλῶν οὐκ ἔστη καὶ ἐπὶ καθέδραν λοιμῶν οὐκ ἐκάθισεν, ἀλλ’ ἢ ἐν τῷ νόμῳ κυρίου τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐν τῷ νόμῳ αὐτοῦ μελετήσει ἡμέρας καὶ νυκτός. 9. καὶ ἔσται ὡς τὸ ξύλον τὸ πεφυτευμένον παρὰ τὰς διεξόδους τῶν ὑδάτων, ὃ τὸν καρπὸν αὐτοῦ δώσει ἐν καιρῷ αὐτοῦ, καὶ τὸ φύλλον αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἀπορρυήσεται, καὶ πάντα ὅσα ἂν ποιῇ κατευοδωθήσεται. 10. οὐχ οὕτως οἱ ἀσεβεῖς, οὐχ οὕτως, ἀλλ’ ἢ ὡσεὶ χνοῦς, ὃν ἐκρίπτει ὁ ἄνεμος ἀπὸ προσώπου τῆς γῆς· διὰ τοῦτο οὐκ ἀναστήσονται ἀσεβεῖς ἐν κρίσει οὐδὲ ἁμαρτωλοὶ ἐν βουλῇ δικαίων, ὅτι γινώσκει κύριος ὁδὸν δικαίων, καὶ ὁδὸς ἀσεβῶν ἀπολεῖται. 11. Ἵνα τί ἐφρύαξαν ἔθνη, καὶ λαοὶ ἐμελέτησαν καινά; παρέστησαν οἱ βασιλεῖς τῆς γῆς, καὶ οἱ ἄρχοντες συνήχθησαν ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ κατὰ τοῦ κυρίου καὶ κατὰ τοῦ Χρῦ αὐτοῦ, λέγοντες· Διαρρήξωμεν τοὺς δεσμοὺς αὐτῶν καὶ ἀπορρίψωμεν ἀφ’ ἡμῶν τὸν ζυγὸν αὐτῶν. 12. ὁ κατοικῶν ἐν οὐρανοῖς ἐκγελάσεται αὐτούς, καὶ ὁ κύριος ἐκμυκτηριεῖ αὐτούς· τότε λαλήσει πρὸς αὐτοὺς ἐν ὀργῇ αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐν τῷ θυμῷ αὐτοῦ ταράξει αὐτούς. 13. ἐγὼ δὲ κατεστάθην βασιλεὺς ὑπ’ αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ Σιὼν ὄρος τὸ ἅγιον αὐτοῦ, διαγγέλλων τὸ πρόσταγμα κυρίου. 14. κύριος εἶπε πρός με· Υἱός μου εἶ σύ, ἐγὼ σήμερον γεγέννηκά σε. 15. αἴτησαι παρ’ ἐμοῦ, καὶ δώσω σοι ἔθνη τὴν κληρονομίαν σου, καὶ τὴν κατάσχεσίν σου τὰ πέρατα τῆς γῆς· ποιμανεῖς αὐτοὺς ἐν ῥάβδῳ σιδηρᾷ, ὡς σκεύη κεραμέως συντρίψεις αὐτούς. 16. καὶ νῦν βασιλεῖς σύνετε, παιδεύθητε πάντες οἱ κρίνοντες τὴν γῆν. 17. δουλεύσατε τῷ κυρίῳ ἐν φόβῳ, καὶ ἀγαλλιᾶσθε αὐτῷ ἐν τρόμῳ. 18. δράξασθε παιδείας, μή ποτε ὀργισθῇ κύριος, καὶ ἀπολεῖσθε ἐξ ὁδοῦ δικαίας, ὅταν ἐκκαυθῇ ἐν τάχει ὁ θυμὸς αὐτοῦ. 19. μακάριοι πάντες οἱ πεποιθότες ἐπ’ αὐτόν.
XLI 1. Καὶ πάλιν δι’ ἄλλης προφητείας μηνύον τὸ προφητικὸν πνεῦμα δι’ αὐτοῦ τοῦ Δαυείδ, ὅτι μετὰ τὸ σταυρωθῆναι βασιλεύσει ὁ Χρς, οὕτως εἶπεν· Ἄισατε τῷ κυρίῳ πᾶσα ἡ γῆ, καὶ ἀναγγείλατε ἡμέραν ἐξ ἡμέρας τὸ σωτήριον αὐτοῦ· ὅτι μέγας κύριος καὶ αἰνετὸς σφόδρα, φοβερὸς ὑπὲρ πάντας τοὺς θεούς· ὅτι πάντες οἱ θεοὶ τῶν ἐθνῶν εἴδωλα δαιμονίων εἰσίν, ὁ δὲ θεὸς τοὺς οὐρανοὺς ἐποίησε. 2. δόξα καὶ αἶνος κατὰ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἰσχὺς καὶ καύχημα ἐν τόπῳ ἁγιάσματος αὐτοῦ· δότε τῷ κυρίῳ, τῷ πατρὶ τῶν αἰώνων, δόξαν. λάβετε χάριν καὶ εἰσέλθετε κατὰ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ καὶ προσκυνήσατε ἐν αὐλαῖς ἁγίαις αὐτοῦ· φοβηθήτω ἀπὸ προσώπου αὐτοῦ πᾶσα ἡ γῆ καὶ κατορθωθήτω καὶ μὴ σαλευθήτω. 3. εὐφρανθήτωσαν ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν· ὁ κύριος ἐβασίλευσεν ἀπὸ τοῦ ξύλου.
XLII 1. Ὅταν δὲ τὸ προφητικὸν πνεῦμα τὰ μέλλοντα γίνεσθαι ὡς ἤδη γενόμενα λέγῃ, ὡς καὶ ἐν τοῖς προειρημένοις δοξάσαι ἐστίν, ὅπως ἀπολογίαν μὴ παράσχῃ τοῖς ἐντυγχάνουσιν, καὶ τοῦτο διασαφήσομεν. 2. τὰ πάντως ἐγνωσμένα γενησόμενα προλέγει ὡς ἤδη γενόμενα· ὅτι δὲ οὕτως δεῖ ἐκδέχεσθαι, ἐνατενίσατε τῷ νοῒ τοῖς λεγομένοις. 3. Δαυεὶδ ἔτεσι χιλίοις καὶ πεντακοσίοις πρὶν ἢ Χρν ἄνθρωπον γενόμενον σταυρωθῆναι τὰ προειρημένα ἔφη, καὶ οὐδεὶς τῶν πρὸ ἐκείνου γενομένων σταυρωθεὶς εὐφροσύνην παρέσχε τοῖς ἔθνεσιν, ἀλλ’ οὐδὲ τῶν μετ’ ἐκεῖνον. 4. ὁ καθ’ ἡμᾶς δὲ Ἰης Χρς σταυρωθεὶς καὶ ἀποθανὼν ἀνέστη, καὶ ἐβασίλευσεν ἀνελθὼν εἰς οὐρανόν, καὶ ἐπὶ τοῖς παρ’ αὐτοῦ διὰ τῶν ἀποστόλων ἐν τοῖς πᾶσιν ἔθνεσι κηρυχθεῖσιν εὐφροσύνη ἐστὶ προσδοκώντων τὴν κατηγγελμένην ὑπ’ αὐτοῦ ἀφθαρσίαν.
XLIII 1. Ὅπως δὲ μή τινες ἐκ τῶν προλελεγμένων ὑφ’ ἡμῶν δοξάσωσι καθ’ εἱμαρμένης ἀνάγκην φάσκειν ἡμᾶς τὰ γινόμενα γίνεσθαι, ἐκ τοῦ προειπεῖν προεγνωσμένα, καὶ τοῦτο διαλύομεν. 2. τὰς τιμωρίας καὶ τὰς κολάσεις καὶ τὰς ἀγαθὰς ἀμοιβὰς κατ’ ἀξίαν τῶν πράξεων ἑκάστου ἀποδίδοσθαι διὰ τῶν προφητῶν μαθόντες καὶ ἀληθὲς ἀποφαινόμεθα· ἐπεὶ εἰ μὴ τοῦτό ἐστιν, ἀλλὰ καθ’ εἱμαρμένην πάντα γίνεται, οὔτε τὸ ἐφ’ ἡμῖν ἐστιν ὅλως· εἰ γὰρ εἵμαρται τόνδε τινὰ ἀγαθὸν εἶναι καὶ τόνδε φαῦλον, οὔθ’ οὗτος ἀπόδεκτος οὐδὲ ἐκεῖνος μεμπτέος. 3. καὶ αὖ εἰ μὴ προαιρέσει ἐλευθέρᾳ πρὸς τὸ φεύγειν τὰ αἰσχρὰ καὶ αἱρεῖσθαι τὰ καλὰ δύναμιν ἔχει τὸ ἀνθρώπειον γένος, ἀναίτιόν ἐστι τῶν ὁπωσδήποτε πραττομένων. 4. ἀλλ’ ὅτι ἐλευθέρᾳ προαιρέσει καὶ κατορθοῖ καὶ σφάλλεται, οὕτως ἀποδείκνυμεν. 5. τὸν αὐτὸν ἄνθρωπον τῶν ἐναντίων τὴν μετέλευσιν ποιούμενον ὁρῶμεν. 6. εἰ δὲ εἵμαρτο ἢ φαῦλον ἢ σπουδαῖον εἶναι, οὐκ ἄν ποτε τῶν ἐναντίων δεκτικὸς ἦν καὶ πλειστάκις μετετίθετο· ἀλλ’ οὐδ’ οἱ μὲν ἦσαν σπουδαῖοι, οἱ δὲ φαῦλοι, ἐπεὶ τὴν εἱμαρμένην αἰτίαν φαύλων καὶ ἐναντία ἑαυτῇ πράττουσαν ἀποφαινοίμεθα, ἢ ἐκεῖνο τὸ προειρημένον δόξαι ἀληθὲς εἶναι, ὅτι οὐδέν ἐστιν ἀρετὴ οὐδὲ κακία, ἀλλὰ δόξῃ μόνον ἢ ἀγαθὰ ἢ κακὰ νομίζεται· ἥπερ, ὡς δείκνυσιν ὁ ἀληθὴς λόγος, μεγίστη ἀσέβεια καὶ ἀδικία ἐστίν. 7. ἀλλ’ εἱμαρμένην φαμὲν ἀπαράβατον ταύτην εἶναι, τοῖς τὰ καλὰ ἐκλεγομένοις τὰ ἄξια ἐπιτίμια, καὶ τοῖς ὁμοίως τὰ ἐναντία τὰ ἄξια ἐπίχειρα. 8. οὐ γὰρ ὥσπερ τὰ ἄλλα, οἷον δένδρα καὶ τετράποδα μηδὲν δυνάμενα προαιρέσει πράττειν, ἐποίησεν ὁ θεὸς τὸν ἄνθρωπον· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἦν ἄξιος ἀμοιβῆς ἢ ἐπαίνου, οὐκ ἀφ’ ἑαυτοῦ ἑλόμενος τὸ ἀγαθόν, ἀλλὰ τοῦτο γενόμενος οὐδ’, εἰ κακὸς ὑπῆρχε, δικαίως κολάσεως ἐτύγχανεν, οὐκ ἀφ’ ἑαυτοῦ τοιοῦτος ὤν, ἀλλ’ οὐδὲν δυνάμενος εἶναι ἕτερον παρ’ ὃ ἐγεγόνει.
XLIV 1. Ἐδίδαξε δὲ ἡμᾶς ταῦτα τὸ ἅγιον προφητικὸν πνεῦμα, διὰ Μωυσέως φῆσαν τῷ πρώτῳ πλασθέντι ἀνθρώπῳ εἰρῆσθαι ὑπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ οὕτως· Ἰδοὺ πρὸ προσώπου σου τὸ ἀγαθὸν καὶ τὸ κακόν, ἔκλεξαι τὸ ἀγαθόν. 2. καὶ πάλιν διὰ Ἠσαίου, τοῦ ἑτέρου προφήτου, ὡς ἀπὸ τοῦ πατρὸς τῶν ὅλων καὶ δεσπότου θεοῦ εἰς τοῦτο λεχθῆναι οὕτως· 3. Λούσασθε, καθαροὶ γένεσθε, ἀφέλετε τὰς πονηρίας ἀπὸ τῶν ψυχῶν ὑμῶν, μάθετε καλὸν ποιεῖν, κρίνατε ὀρφανῷ καὶ δικαιώσατε χήραν, καὶ δεῦτε καὶ διαλεχθῶμεν, λέγει κύριος· καὶ ἐὰν ὦσιν αἱ ἁμαρτίαι ὑμῶν ὡς φοινικοῦν, ὡσεὶ ἔριον λευκανῶ, καὶ ἐὰν ὦσιν ὡς κόκκινον, ὡς χιόνα λευκανῶ. 4. καὶ ἐὰν θέλητε καὶ εἰσακούσητέ μου, τὰ ἀγαθὰ τῆς γῆς φάγεσθε, ἐὰν δὲ μὴ εἰσακούσητέ μου, μάχαιρα ὑμᾶς κατέδεται· τὸ γὰρ στόμα κυρίου ἐλάλησε ταῦτα. 5. τὸ δὲ προειρημένον Μάχαιρα ὑμᾶς κατέδεται οὐ λέγει διὰ μαχαιρῶν φονευθήσεσθαι τοὺς παρακούσαντας, ἀλλ’ ἡ μάχαιρα τοῦ θεοῦ ἔστι τὸ πῦρ, οὗ βορὰ γίνονται οἱ τὰ φαῦλα πράττειν αἱρούμενοι. 6. διὰ τοῦτο λέγει· Μάχαιρα ὑμᾶς κατέδεται· τὸ γὰρ στόμα κυρίου ἐλάλησεν. 7. εἰ δὲ καὶ περὶ τεμνούσης καὶ αὐτίκα ἀπαλλασσούσης μαχαίρας ἔλεγεν, οὐκ ἂν εἶπε Κατέδεται. 8. ὥστε καὶ Πλάτων εἰπών· Αἰτία ἑλομένου, θεὸς δ’ ἀναίτιος, παρὰ Μωυσέως τοῦ προφήτου λαβὼν εἶπε· πρεσβύτερος γὰρ Μωυσῆς καὶ πάντων τῶν ἐν Ἕλλησι συγγραφέων. 9. καὶ πάντα, ὅσα περὶ ἀθανασίας ψυχῆς ἢ τιμωριῶν τῶν μετὰ θάνατον ἢ θεωρίας οὐρανίων ἢ τῶν ὁμοίων δογμάτων καὶ φιλόσοφοι καὶ ποιηταὶ ἔφασαν, παρὰ τῶν προφητῶν τὰς ἀφορμὰς λαβόντες καὶ νοῆσαι δεδύνηται καὶ ἐξηγήσαντο. 10. ὅθεν παρὰ πᾶσι σπέρματα ἀληθείας δοκεῖ εἶναι· ἐλέγχονται δὲ μὴ ἀκριβῶς νοήσαντες, ὅταν ἐναντία αὐτοὶ ἑαυτοῖς λέγωσιν. 11. ὥστε ὅ φαμεν, πεπροφητεῦσθαι τὰ μέλλοντα γίνεσθαι, οὐ διὰ τὸ εἱμαρμένης ἀνάγκῃ πράττεσθαι λέγομεν· ἀλλὰ προγνώστου τοῦ θεοῦ ὄντος τῶν μελλόντων ὑπὸ πάντων ἀνθρώπων πραχθήσεσθαι, καὶ δόγματος ὄντος παρ’ αὐτόν, κατ’ ἀξίαν τῶν πράξεων ἕκαστον ἀμείψεσθαι μέλλοντα τῶν ἀνθρώπων, καὶ τὰ παρ’ αὐτοῦ κατ’ ἀξίαν τῶν πραττομένων ἀπαντήσεσθαι, διὰ τοῦ προφητικοῦ πνεύματος προλέγει, εἰς ἐπίστασιν καὶ ἀνάμνησιν ἀεὶ ἄγων τὸ τῶν ἀνθρώπων γένος, δεικνὺς ὅτι καὶ μέλον ἐστὶν αὐτῷ καὶ προνοεῖται αὐτῶν. 12. κατ’ ἐνέργειαν δὲ τῶν φαύλων δαιμόνων θάνατος ὡρίσθη κατὰ τῶν τὰς Ὑστάσπου ἢ Σιβύλλης ἢ τῶν προφητῶν βίβλους ἀναγινωσκόντων, ὅπως διὰ τοῦ φόβου ἀποστρέψωσιν ἐντυγχάνοντας τοὺς ἀνθρώπους τῶν καλῶν γνῶσιν λαβεῖν, αὐτοῖς δὲ δουλεύοντας κατέχωσιν· ὅπερ εἰς τέλος οὐκ ἴσχυσαν πρᾶξαι. 13. ἀφόβως μὲν γὰρ οὐ μόνον ἐντυγχάνομεν αὐταῖς, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὑμῖν, ὡς ὁρᾶτε, εἰς ἐπίσκεψιν φέρομεν, ἐπιστάμενοι πᾶσιν εὐάρεστα φανήσεσθαι· κἂν ὀλίγους δὲ πείσωμεν, τὰ μέγιστα κερδήσαντες ἐσόμεθα· ὡς γεωργοὶ γὰρ ἀγαθοὶ παρὰ τοῦ δεσπόζοντος τὴν ἀμοιβὴν ἕξομεν.
XLV 1. Ὅτι δὲ ἀγαγεῖν τὸν Χρν εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν ὁ πατὴρ τῶν πάντων θεὸς μετὰ τὸ ἀναστῆσαι ἐκ νεκρῶν αὐτὸν ἔμελλε, καὶ κατέχειν ἕως ἂν πατάξῃ τοὺς ἐχθραίνοντας αὐτῷ δαίμονας, καὶ συντελεσθῇ ὁ ἀριθμὸς τῶν προεγνωσμένων αὐτῷ ἀγαθῶν γινομένων καὶ ἐναρέτων, δι’ οὓς καὶ μηδέπω τὴν ἐπικύρωσιν πεποίηται, ἐπακούσατε τῶν εἰρημένων διὰ Δαυεὶδ τοῦ προφήτου. 2. ἔστι δὲ ταῦτα· Εἶπεν ὁ κύριος τῷ κυρίῳ μου· Κάθου ἐκ δεξιῶν μου, ἕως ἂν θῶ τοὺς ἐχθρούς σου ὑποπόδιον τῶν ποδῶν σου. 3. ῥάβδον δυνάμεως ἐξαποστελεῖ σοι κύριος ἐξ Ἰερουσαλήμ· καὶ κατακυρίευε ἐν μέσῳ τῶν ἐχθρῶν σου. 4. μετὰ σοῦ ἡ ἀρχὴ ἐν ἡμέρᾳ τῆς δυνάμεώς σου ἐν ταῖς λαμπρότησι τῶν ἁγίων σου· ἐκ γαστρὸς πρὸ ἑωσφόρου ἐγέννησά σε. 5. τὸ οὖν εἰρημένον Ῥάβδον δυνάμεως ἐξαποστελεῖ σοι ἐξ Ἰερουσαλὴμ προαγγελτικὸν τοῦ λόγου τοῦ ἰσχυροῦ, ὃν ἀπὸ Ἰερουσαλὴμ οἱ ἀπόστολοι αὐτοῦ ἐξελθόντες πανταχοῦ ἐκήρυξαν, καί, καίπερ θανάτου ὁρισθέντος κατὰ τῶν διδασκόντων ἢ ὅλως ὁμολογούντων τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ Χρῦ, ἡμεῖς πανταχοῦ καὶ ἀσπαζόμεθα καὶ διδάσκομεν. 6. εἰ δὲ καὶ ὑμεῖς ὡς ἐχθροὶ ἐντεύξεσθε τοῖσδε τοῖς λόγοις, οὐ πλέον τι δύνασθε, ὡς προέφημεν, τοῦ φονεύειν· ὅπερ ἡμῖν μὲν οὐδεμίαν βλάβην φέρει, ὑμῖν δὲ καὶ πᾶσι τοῖς ἀδίκως ἐχθραίνουσι καὶ μὴ μετατιθεμένοις κόλασιν διὰ πυρὸς αἰωνίαν ἐργάζεται.
XLVI 1. Ἵνα δὲ μή τινες ἀλογισταίνοντες εἰς ἀποτροπὴν τῶν δεδιδαγμένων ὑφ’ ἡμῶν εἴπωσι πρὸ ἐτῶν ἑκατὸν πεντήκοντα γεγεννῆσθαι τὸν Χρν λέγειν ἡμᾶς ἐπὶ Κυρηνίου, δεδιδαχέναι δὲ ἅ φαμεν διδάξαι αὐτὸν ὕστερον χρόνοις ἐπὶ Ποντίου Πιλάτου, καὶ ἐπικαλῶσιν ὡς ἀνευθύνων ὄντων τῶν προγεγενημένων πάντων ἀνθρώπων, φθάσαντες τὴν ἀπορίαν λυσόμεθα. 2. τὸν Χρν πρωτότοκον τοῦ θεοῦ εἶναι ἐδιδάχθημεν καὶ προεμηνύσαμεν λόγον ὄντα, οὗ πᾶν γένος ἀνθρώπων μετέσχε. 3. καὶ οἱ μετὰ λόγου βιώσαντες Χροί εἰσι, κἂν ἄθεοι ἐνομίσθησαν, οἷον ἐν Ἕλλησι μὲν Σωκράτης καὶ Ἡράκλειτος καὶ οἱ ὅμοιοι αὐτοῖς, ἐν βαρβάροις δὲ Ἀβραὰμ καὶ Ἀνανίας καὶ Ἀζαρίας καὶ Μισαὴλ καὶ Ἠλίας καὶ ἄλλοι πολλοί, ὧν τὰς πράξεις ἢ τὰ ὀνόματα καταλέγειν μακρὸν εἶναι ἐπιστάμενοι τανῦν παραιτούμεθα. 4. ὥστε καὶ οἱ προγενόμενοι ἄνευ λόγου βιώσαντες, ἄχρηστοι καὶ ἐχθροὶ τῷ Χρῷ ἦσαν καὶ φονεῖς τῶν μετὰ λόγου βιούντων· οἱ δὲ μετὰ λόγου βιώσαντες καὶ βιοῦντες Χροὶ καὶ ἄφοβοι καὶ ἀτάραχοι ὑπάρχουσι. 5. δι’ ἣν δ’ αἰτίαν διὰ δυνάμεως τοῦ λόγου κατὰ τὴν τοῦ πατρὸς πάντων καὶ δεσπότου θεοῦ βουλὴν διὰ παρθένου ἄνθρωπος ἀπεκυήθη καὶ Ἰης ἐπωνομάσθη, καὶ σταυρωθεὶς ἀποθανὼν ἀνέστη καὶ ἀνελήλυθεν εἰς οὐρανόν, ἐκ τῶν διὰ τοσούτων εἰρημένων ὁ νουνεχὴς καταλαβεῖν δυνήσεται. 6. ἡμεῖς δέ, οὐκ ἀναγκαίου ὄντος τανῦν τοῦ περὶ τῆς ἀποδείξεως τούτου λόγου, ἐπὶ τὰς ἐπειγούσας ἀποδείξεις πρὸς τὸ παρὸν χωρήσωμεν.
XLVII 1. Ὅτι οὖν καὶ ἐκπορθηθήσεσθαι ἡ γῆ Ἰουδαίων ἔμελλεν, ἀκούσατε τῶν εἰρημένων ὑπὸ τοῦ προφητικοῦ πνεύματος· εἴρηνται δὲ οἱ λόγοι ὡς ἀπὸ προσώπου λαῶν θαυμαζόντων τὰ γεγενημένα. 2. εἰσὶ δὲ οἵδε· Ἐγενήθη ἔρημος Σιών, ὡς ἔρημος ἐγενήθη Ἰερουσαλήμ, εἰς κατάραν ὁ οἶκος, τὸ ἅγιον ἡμῶν καὶ ἡ δόξα, ἣν εὐλόγησαν οἱ πατέρες ἡμῶν, ἐγενήθη πυρίκαυστος, καὶ πάντα τὰ ἔνδοξα αὐτῆς συνέπεσε. 3. καὶ ἐπὶ τούτοις ἀνέσχου καὶ ἐσιώπησας καὶ ἐταπείνωσας ἡμᾶς σφόδρα. 4. καὶ ὅτι ἠρήμωτο Ἰερουσαλήμ, ὡς προείρητο γεγενῆσθαι, πεπεισμένοι ἐστέ. 5. εἴρηται δὲ καὶ περὶ τῆς ἐρημώσεως αὐτῆς, καὶ περὶ τοῦ μὴ ἐπιτραπήσεσθαι μηδένα αὐτῶν οἰκεῖν, διὰ Ἠσαίου τοῦ προφήτου οὕτως· Ἡ γῆ αὐτῶν ἔρημος, ἔμπροσθεν αὐτῶν οἱ ἐχθροὶ αὐτῶν αὐτὴν φάγονται, καὶ οὐκ ἔσται ἐξ αὐτῶν ὁ κατοικῶν ἐν αὐτῇ. 6. ὅτι δὲ φυλάσσεται ὑφ’ ὑμῶν ὅπως μηδεὶς ἐν αὐτῇ γένηται, καὶ θάνατος κατὰ τοῦ καταλαμβανομένου Ἰουδαίου εἰσιόντος ὥρισται, ἀκριβῶς ἐπίστασθε.
XLVIII 1. Ὅτι δὲ καὶ θεραπεύσειν πάσας νόσους καὶ νεκροὺς ἀνεγερεῖν ὁ ἡμέτερος Χρς προεφητεύθη, ἀκούσατε τῶν λελεγμένων. 2. ἔστι δὲ ταῦτα· Τῇ παρουσίᾳ αὐτοῦ ἁλεῖται χωλὸς ὡς ἔλαφος, καὶ τρανὴ ἔσται γλῶσσα μογιλάλων· τυφλοὶ ἀναβλέψουσι καὶ λεπροὶ καθαρισθήσονται καὶ νεκροὶ ἀναστήσονται καὶ περιπατήσουσιν. 3. ὅτι τε ταῦτα ἐποίησεν, ἐκ τῶν ἐπὶ Ποντίου Πιλάτου γενομένων ἄκτων μαθεῖν δύνασθε. 4. πῶς τε προμεμήνυται ὑπὸ τοῦ προφητικοῦ πνεύματος ἀναιρεθησόμενος ἅμα τοῖς ἐπ’ αὐτὸν ἐλπίζουσιν ἀνθρώποις, ἀκούσατε τῶν λεχθέντων διὰ Ἠσαίου. 5. ἔστι δὲ ταῦτα· Ἴδε ὡς ὁ δίκαιος ἀπώλετο, καὶ οὐδεὶς ἐκδέχεται τῇ καρδίᾳ· καὶ ἄνδρες δίκαιοι αἴρονται, καὶ οὐδεὶς κατανοεῖ. 6. Ἀπὸ προσώπου ἀδικίας ἦρται ὁ δίκαιος καὶ ἔσται ἐν εἰρήνῃ ἡ ταφὴ αὐτοῦ· ἦρται ἐκ τοῦ μέσου.
XLIX 1. Καὶ πάλιν πῶς δι’ αὐτοῦ Ἠσαίου λέλεκται ὅτι οἱ οὐ προσδοκήσαντες αὐτὸν λαοὶ τῶν ἐθνῶν προσκυνήσουσιν αὐτόν, οἱ δὲ ἀεὶ προσδοκῶντες Ἰουδαῖοι ἀγνοήσουσι παραγενόμενον αὐτόν· ἐλέχθησαν δὲ οἱ λόγοι ὡς ἀπὸ προσώπου αὐτοῦ τοῦ Χρῦ. 2. εἰσὶ δὲ οὗτοι· Ἐμφανὴς ἐγενήθην τοῖς ἐμὲ μὴ ἐπερωτῶσιν, εὑρέθην τοῖς ἐμὲ μὴ ζητοῦσι· εἶπον· Ἰδού εἰμι, ἔθνει, οἳ οὐκ ἐκάλεσαν τὸ ὄνομά μου. 3. ἐξεπέτασα τὰς χεῖράς μου ἐπὶ λαὸν ἀπειθοῦντα καὶ ἀντιλέγοντα, ἐπὶ τοὺς πορευομένους ἐν ὁδῷ οὐ καλῇ, ἀλλ’ ὀπίσω τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν αὐτῶν. 4. ὁ λαὸς ὁ παροξύνων ἐναντίον μου. 5. Ἰουδαῖοι γὰρ ἔχοντες τὰς προφητείας καὶ ἀεὶ προσδοκήσαντες τὸν Χρν παραγενησόμενον, ἠγνόησαν, οὐ μόνον δέ, ἀλλὰ καὶ παρεχρήσαντο· οἱ δὲ ἀπὸ τῶν ἐθνῶν μηδέποτε μηδὲν ἀκούσαντες περὶ τοῦ Χρῦ, μέχρις οὗ οἱ ἀπὸ Ἰερουσαλὴμ ἐξελθόντες ἀπόστολοι αὐτοῦ ἐμήνυσαν τὰ περὶ αὐτοῦ καὶ τὰς προφητείας παρέδωκαν, πληρωθέντες χαρᾶς καὶ πίστεως τοῖς εἰδώλοις ἀπετάξαντο καὶ τῷ ἀγεννήτῳ θεῷ διὰ τοῦ Χρῦ ἑαυτοὺς ἀνέθηκαν. 6. ὅτι δὲ προεγινώσκετο τὰ δύσφημα ταῦτα λεχθησόμενα κατὰ τῶν τὸν Χρν ὁμολογούντων, καὶ ὡς εἶεν τάλανες οἱ δυσφημοῦντες αὐτὸν καὶ τὰ παλαιὰ ἔθη καλὸν εἶναι τηρεῖν λέγοντες, ἀκούσατε τῶν βραχυεπῶς εἰρημένων διὰ Ἠσαίου. 7. ἔστι δὲ ταῦτα· Οὐαὶ τοῖς λέγουσι τὸ γλυκὺ πικρὸν καὶ τὸ πικρὸν γλυκύ.
L 1. Ὅτι δὲ καὶ ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν γενόμενος ἄνθρωπος παθεῖν καὶ ἀτιμασθῆναι ὑπέμεινε, καὶ πάλιν μετὰ δόξης παραγενήσεται, ἀκούσατε τῶν εἰρημένων εἰς τοῦτο προφητειῶν. 2. ἔστι δὲ ταῦτα· Ἀνθ’ ὧν παρέδωκαν εἰς θανάτον τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ, καὶ μετὰ τῶν ἀνόμων ἐλογίσθη, αὐτὸς ἁμαρτίας πολλῶν εἴληφε καὶ τοῖς ἀνόμοις ἐξιλάσεται. 3. ἴδε γὰρ συνήσει ὁ παῖς μου, καὶ ὑψωθήσεται καὶ δοξασθήσεται σφόδρα. 4. ὃν τρόπον ἐκστήσονται πολλοὶ ἐπὶ σέ, οὕτως ἀδοξήσει ἀπὸ ἀνθρώπων τὸ εἶδός σου καὶ ἡ δόξα σου ἀπὸ τῶν ἀνθρώπων, οὕτως θαυμάσονται ἔθνη πολλά, καὶ συνέξουσι βασιλεῖς τὸ στόμα αὐτῶν· ὅτι οἷς οὐκ ἀνηγγέλη περὶ αὐτοῦ, καὶ οἳ οὐκ ἀκηκόασι συνήσουσι. 5. κύριε, τίς ἐπίστευσε τῇ ἀκοῇ ἡμῶν; καὶ ὁ βραχίων κυρίου τίνι ἀπεκαλύφθη; ἀνηγγείλαμεν ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ ὡς παιδίον, ὡς ῥίζα ἐν γῇ διψώσῃ. 6. οὐκ ἔστιν εἶδος αὐτῷ οὐδὲ δόξα· καὶ εἴδομεν αὐτόν, καὶ οὐκ εἶχεν εἶδος οὐδὲ κάλλος, ἀλλὰ τὸ εἶδος αὐτοῦ ἄτιμον καὶ ἐκλεῖπον παρὰ τοὺς ἀνθρώπους. 7. ἄνθρωπος ἐν πληγῇ ὢν καὶ εἰδὼς φέρειν μαλακίαν, ὅτι ἀπέστραπται τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ, ἠτιμάσθη καὶ οὐκ ἐλογίσθη. 8. οὗτος τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἡμῶν φέρει καὶ περὶ ἡμῶν ὀδυνᾶται, καὶ ἡμεῖς ἐλογισάμεθα αὐτὸν εἶναι ἐν πόνῳ καὶ ἐν πληγῇ καὶ ἐν κακώσει. 9. αὐτὸς δὲ ἐτραυματίσθη διὰ τὰς ἀνομίας ἡμῶν καὶ μεμαλάκισται διὰ τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἡμῶν· παιδεία εἰρήνης ἐπ’ αὐτόν, τῷ μώλωπι αὐτοῦ ἡμεῖς ἰάθημεν. 10. πάντες ὡς πρόβατα ἐπλανήθημεν, ἄνθρωπος τῇ ὁδῷ αὐτοῦ ἐπλανήθη· καὶ παρέδωκεν αὐτὸν ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις ἡμῶν, καὶ αὐτὸς διὰ τὸ κεκακῶσθαι οὐκ ἀνοίγει τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ· ὡς πρόβατον ἐπὶ σφαγὴν ἤχθη, καὶ ὡς ἀμνὸς ἐναντίον τοῦ κείροντος αὐτὸν ἄφωνος, οὕτως οὐκ ἀνοίγει τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ. 11. ἐν τῇ ταπεινώσει αὐτοῦ ἡ κρίσις αὐτοῦ ἤρθη. 12. μετὰ οὖν τὸ σταυρωθῆναι αὐτὸν καὶ οἱ γνώριμοι αὐτοῦ πάντες ἀπέστησαν, ἀρνησάμενοι αὐτόν· ὕστερον δέ, ἐκ νεκρῶν ἀναστάντος καὶ ὀφθέντος αὐτοῖς καὶ ταῖς προφητείαις ἐντυχεῖν, ἐν αἷς πάντα ταῦτα προείρητο γενησόμενα, διδάξαντος, καὶ εἰς οὐρανὸν ἀνερχόμενον ἰδόντες καὶ πιστεύσαντες καὶ δύναμιν ἐκεῖθεν αὐτοῖς πεμφθεῖσαν παρ’ αὐτοῦ λαβόντες καὶ εἰς πᾶν γένος ἀνθρώπων ἐλθόντες, ταῦτα ἐδίδαξαν καὶ ἀπόστολοι προσηγορεύθησαν. | CHAPTER XL -- CHRIST'S ADVENT FORETOLD, And hear how it was foretold concerning those who published His doctrine and proclaimed His appearance, the above-mentioned prophet and king speaking thus by the Spirit of prophecy "Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge. There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard. Their voice has gone out into all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world. In the sun hath He set His tabernacle, and he as a bridegroom going out of his chamber shall rejoice as a giant to run his course." And we have thought it right and relevant to mention some other prophetic utterances of David besides these; from which you may learn how the Spirit of prophecy exhorts men to live, and how He foretold the conspiracy which was formed against Chr?st by Herod the king of the Jews, and the Jews themselves, and Pilate, who was your governor among them, with his soldiers; and how He should be believed on by men of every race; and how God calls Him His Son, and has declared that He will subdue all His enemies under Him; and how the devils, as much as they can, strive to escape the power of God the Father and Lord of all, and the power of Chr?st Himself; and how God calls all to repentance before the day of judgment comes. These things were uttered thus: "Blessed is the man who hath not walked in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stood in the way of sinners, nor sat in the seat of the scornful: but his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in His law will he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of waters, which shall give his fruit in his season; and his leaf shall not wither, and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. The ungodly are not so, but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away from the face of the earth. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the council of the righteous. For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous; but the way of the ungodly shall perish. Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine new things? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord, and against His [Anointed / Chr?st], saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast their yoke from us. He that dwelleth in the heavens shall laugh at them, and the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall He speak to them in His wrath, and vex them in His sore displeasure. Yet have I been set by Him a King on Zion His holy hill, declaring the decree of the Lord. The Lord said to Me, Thou art My Son; this day have I begotten Thee. Ask of Me, and I shall give Thee the heathen for Thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth as Thy possession. Thou shall herd them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shalt Thou dash them in pieces. Be wise now, therefore, O ye kings; be instructed, all ye judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Embrace instruction, lest at any time the Lord be angry, and ye perish from the right way, when His wrath has been suddenly kindled. Blessed are all they that put their trust in Him."
CHAPTER XLI -- THE CRUCIFIXION PREDICTED. And again, in another prophecy, the Spirit of prophecy, through the same David, intimated that Chr?st, after He had been crucified, should reign, and spoke as follows: "Sing to the Lord, all the earth, and day by day declare His salvation. For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, to be feared above all the gods. For all the gods of the nations are idols of devils; but God made the heavens. Glory and praise are before His face, strength and glorying are in the habitation of His holiness. Give Glory to the Lord, the Father everlasting. Receive grace, and enter His presence, and worship in His holy courts. Let all the earth fear before His face; let it be established, and not shaken. Let them rejoice among the nations. The Lord hath reigned from the tree."
CHAPTER XLII -- PROPHECY USING THE PAST TENSE. But when the Spirit of prophecy speaks of things that are about to come to pass as if they had already taken place,--as may be observed even in the passages already cited by me,--that this circumstance may afford no excuse to readers [for misinterpreting them], we will make even this also quite plain. The things which He absolutely knows will take place, He predicts as if already they had taken place. And that the utterances must be thus received, you will perceive, if you give your attention to them. The words cited above, David uttered 1500 years before Chr?st became a man and was crucified; and no one of those who lived before Him, nor yet of His contemporaries, afforded joy to the Gentiles by being crucified. But our J?s Chr?st, being crucified and dead, rose again, and having ascended to heaven, reigned; and by those things which were published in His name among all nations by the apostles, there is joy afforded to those who expect the immortality promised by Him.
CHAPTER XLIII--RESPONSIBILITY ASSERTED. But lest some suppose, from what has been said by us, that we say that whatever happens, happens by a fatal necessity, because it is foretold as known beforehand, this too we explain. We have learned from the prophets, and we hold it to be true, that punishments, and chastisements, and good rewards, are rendered according to the merit of each man's actions. Since if it be not so, but all things happen by fate, neither is anything at all in our own power. For if it be fated that this man, e.g., be good, and this other evil, neither is the former meritorious nor the latter to be blamed. And again, unless the human race have the power of avoiding evil and choosing good by free choice, they are not accountable for their actions, of whatever kind they be. But that it is by free choice they both walk uprightly and stumble, we thus demonstrate. We see the same man making a transition to opposite things. Now, if it had been fated that he were to be either good or bad, he could never have been capable of both the opposites, nor of so many transitions. But not even would some be good and others bad, since we thus make fate the cause of evil, and exhibit her as acting in opposition to herself; or that which has been already stated would seem to be true, that neither virtue nor vice is anything, but that things are only reckoned good or evil by opinion; which, as the true word shows, is the greatest impiety and wickedness. But this we assert is inevitable fate, that they who choose the good have worthy rewards, and they who choose the opposite have their merited awards. For not like other things, as trees and quadrupeds, which cannot act by choice, did God make man: for neither would he be worthy of reward or praise did he not of himself choose the good, but were created for this end; nor, if he were evil, would he be worthy of punishment, not being evil of himself, but being able to be nothing else than what he was made.
CHAPTER XLIV -- NOT NULLIFIED BY PROPHECY. And the holy Spirit of prophecy taught us this, telling us by Moses that God spoke thus to the man first created: "Behold, before thy face are good and evil: choose the good." And again, by the other prophet Isaiah, that the following utterance was made as if from God the Father and Lord of all: "Wash you, make you clean; put away evils from your souls; learn to do well; judge the orphan, and plead for the widow: and come and let us reason together, saith the Lord: And if your sins be as scarlet, I will make them white as wool; and if they be red like as crimson, I will make them white as snow. And if ye be willing and obey Me, ye shall eat the good of the land; but if ye do not obey Me, the sword shall devour you: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it." And that expression, "The sword shall devour you," does not mean that the disobedient shall be slain by the sword, but the sword of God is fire, of which they who choose to do wickedly become the fuel. Wherefore He says, "The sword shall devour you: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it." And if He had spoken concerning a sword that cuts and at once despatches, He would not have said, shall devour. And so, too, Plato, when he says, "The blame is his who chooses, and God is blameless," took this from the prophet Moses and uttered it. For Moses is more ancient than all the Greek writers. And whatever both philosophers and poets have said concerning the immortality of the soul, or punishments after death, or contemplation of things heavenly, or doctrines of the like kind, they have received such suggestions from the prophets as have enabled them to understand and interpret these things. And hence there seem to be seeds of truth among all men; but they are charged with not accurately understanding [the truth] when they assert contradictories. So that what we say about future events being foretold, we do not say it as if they came about by a fatal necessity; but God foreknowing all that shall be done by all men, and it being His decree that the future actions of men shall all be recompensed according to their several value, He foretells by the Spirit of prophecy that He will bestow meet rewards according to the merit of the actions done, always urging the human race to effort and recollection, showing that He cares and provides for men. But by the agency of the devils death has been decreed against those who read the books of Hystaspes, or of the Sibyl, or of the prophets, that through fear they may prevent men who read them from receiving the knowledge of the good, and may retain them in slavery to themselves; which, however, they could not always effect. For not only do we fearlessly read them, but, as you see, bring them for your inspection, knowing that their contents will be pleasing to all. And if we persuade even a few, our gain will be very great; for, as good husbandmen, we shall receive the reward from the Master.
CHAPTER XLV -- CHRIST'S SESSION IN HEAVEN FORETOLD. And that God the Father of all would bring Chr?st to heaven after He had raised Him from the dead, and would keep Him there until He has subdued His enemies the devils, and until the number of those who are foreknown by Him as good and virtuous is complete, on whose account He has still delayed the consummation--hear what was said by the prophet David. These are his words: "The Lord said unto My Lord, Sit Thou at My right hand, until I make Thine enemies Thy footstool. The Lord shall send to Thee the rod of power out of Jerusalem; and rule Thou in the midst of Thine enemies. With Thee is the government in the day of Thy power, in the beauties of Thy saints: from the womb of morning hare I begotten Thee." That which he says, "He shall send to Thee the rod of power out of Jerusalem," is predictive of the mighty, word, which His apostles, going forth from Jerusalem, preached everywhere; and though death is decreed against those who teach or at all confess the name of Chr?st, we everywhere both embrace and teach it. And if you also read these words in a hostile spirit, ye can do no more, as I said before, than kill us; which indeed does no harm to us, but to you and all who unjustly hate us, and do not repent, brings eternal punishment by tire.
CHAPTER XLVI -- THE WORD IN THE WORLD BEFORE CHRIST. But lest some should, without reason, and for the perversion of what we teach, maintain that we say that Chr?st was born one hundred and fifty years ago under Cyrenius, and subsequently, in the time of Pontius Pilate, taught what we say He taught; and should cry out against us as though all men who were born before Him were irresponsible--let us anticipate and solve the difficulty. We have been taught that Chr?st is the first-born of God, and we have declared above that He is the Word of whom every race of men were partakers; and those who lived reasonably are Chr?stians, even though they have been thought atheists; as, among the Greeks, Socrates and Heraclitus, and men like them; and among the barbarians, Abraham, and Ananias, and Azarias, and Misael, and Elias, and many others whose actions and names we now decline to recount, because we know it would be tedious. So that even they who lived before Chr?st, and lived without reason, were [wicked / un-GOOD and hostile to Chr?st, and slew those who lived reasonably. But who, through the power of the Word, according to the will of God the Father and Lord of all, He was born of a virgin as a man, and was named J?s, and was crucified, and died, and rose again, and ascended into heaven, an intelligent man will be able to comprehend from what has been already so largely said. And we, since the proof of this subject is less needful now, will pass for the present to the proof of those things which are urgent.
CHAPTER XLVII -- DESOLATION OF JUDAEA FORETOLD. That the land of the Jews, then, was to be laid waste, hear what was said by the Spirit of prophecy. And the words were spoken as if from the person of the people wondering at what had happened. They are these: "Sion is a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation. The house of our sanctuary has become a curse, and the glory which our fathers blessed is burned up with fire, and all its glorious things are laid waste: and Thou refrainest Thyself at these things, and hast held Thy peace, and hast humbled us very sore." And ye are convinced that Jerusalem has been laid waste, as was predicted. And concerning its desolation, and that no one should be permitted to inhabit it, there was the following prophecy by Isaiah: "Their land is desolate, their enemies consume it before them, and none of them shall dwell therein." And that it is guarded by you lest any one dwell in it, and that death is decreed against a Jew apprehended entering it, you know very well.
CHAPTER XLVIII -- CHRIST'S WORK AND DEATH FORETOLD. And that it was predicted that our Chr?st should heal all diseases and raise the dead, hear what was said. There are these words: "At His coming the lame shall leap as an hart, and the tongue of the stammerer shall be clear speaking: the blind shall see, and the lepers shall be cleansed; and the dead shall rise, and walk about." And that He did those things, you can learn from the Acts of Pontius Pilate. And how it was predicted by the Spirit of prophecy that He and those who hoped in Him should be slain, hear what was said by Isaiah. These are the words: "Behold now the righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart; and just men are taken away, and no man considereth. From the presence of wickedness is the righteous man taken, and his burial shall be in peace: he is taken from our midst."
CHAPTER XLIX -- HIS REJECTION BY THE JEWS FORETOLD. And again, how it was said by the same Isaiah, that the Gentile nations who were not looking for Him should worship Him, but the Jews who always expected Him should not recognize Him when He came. And the words are spoken as from the person of Chr?st; and they are these "I was manifest to them that asked not for Me; I was found of them that sought Me not: I said, Behold Me, to a nation that called not on My name. I spread out My hands to a disobedient and gainsaying people, to those who walked in a way that is not good, but follow after their own sins; a people that provoketh Me to anger to My face." For the Jews having the prophecies, and being always in expectation of the Chr?st to come, did not recognise Him; and not only so, but even treated Him shamefully. But the Gentiles, who had never heard anything about Chr?st, until the apostles set out from Jerusalem and preached concerning Him, and gave them the prophecies, were filled with joy and faith, and cast away their idols, and dedicated themselves to the Unbegotten God through Chr?st. And that it was foreknown that these infamous things should be uttered against those who confessed Chr?st, and that those who slandered Him, and said that it was well to preserve the ancient customs, should be miserable, hear what was briefly said by Isaiah; it is this: "Woe unto them that call sweet bitter, and bitter sweet."
CHAPTER L -- HIS HUMILIATION PREDICTED. But that, having become man for our sakes, He endured to suffer and to be dishonoured, and that He shall come again with glory, hear the prophecies which relate to this; they are these: "Because they delivered His soul unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors, He has borne the sin of many, and shall make intercession for the transgressors. For, behold, My Servant shall deal prudently, and shall be exalted, and shall be greatly extolled. As many were astonished at Thee, so marred shall Thy form be before men, and so hidden from them Thy glory; so shall many nations wonder, and the kings shall shut their mouths at Him. For they to whom it was not told concerning Him, and they who have not heard, shall understand. O Lord, who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? We have declared before Him as a child, as a root in a dry ground. He had no form, nor glory; and we saw Him, and there was no form nor comeliness: but His form was dishonoured and marred more than the sons of men. A man under the stroke, and knowing how to bear infirmity, because His face was turned away: He was despised, and of no reputation. It is He who bears our sins, and is afflicted for us; yet we did esteem Him smitten, stricken, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement of peace was upon Him, by His stripes we are healed. All we, like sheep, have gone astray; every man has wandered in his own way. And He delivered Him for our sins; and He opened not His mouth for all His affliction. He was brought as a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before his shearer is dumb, so He openeth not His mouth. In His humiliation, His judgment was taken away." Accordingly, after He was crucified, even all His acquaintances forsook Him, having denied Him; and afterwards, when He had risen from the dead and appeared to them, and had taught them to read the prophecies in which all these things were foretold as coming to pass, and when they had seen Him ascending into heaven, and had believed, and had received power sent thence by Him upon them, and went to every race of men, they taught these things, and were called apostles. |
LI 1. Ἵνα δὲ μηνύσῃ ἡμῖν τὸ προφητικὸν πνεῦμα ὅτι ὁ ταῦτα πάσχων ἀνεκδιήγητον ἔχει τὸ γένος καὶ βασιλεύει τῶν ἐχθρῶν, ἔφη οὕτως· Τὴν γενεὰν αὐτοῦ τίς διηγήσεται; ὅτι αἴρεται ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς ἡ ζωὴ αὐτοῦ, ἀπὸ τῶν ἀνομιῶν αὐτῶν ἥκει εἰς θάνατον. 2. καὶ δώσω τοὺς πονηροὺς ἀντὶ τῆς ταφῆς αὐτοῦ καὶ τοὺς πλουσίους ἀντὶ τοῦ θανάτου αὐτοῦ, ὅτι ἀνομίαν οὐκ ἐποίησεν οὐδὲ εὑρέθη δόλος ἐν τῷ στόματι αὐτοῦ· καὶ κύριος βούλεται καθαρίσαι αὐτὸν τῆς πληγῆς. 3. ἐὰν δῶτε περὶ ἁμαρτίας, ἡ ψυχὴ ὑμῶν ὄψεται σπέρμα μακρόβιον. 4. καὶ βούλεται κύριος ἀφελεῖν ἀπὸ πόνου τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ, δεῖξαι αὐτῷ φῶς καὶ πλάσαι τῇ συνέσει, δικαιῶσαι δίκαιον εὖ δουλεύοντα πολλοῖς, καὶ τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἡμῶν αὐτὸς ἀνοίσει. 5. διὰ τοῦτο αὐτὸς κληρονομήσει πολλοὺς καὶ τῶν ἰσχυρῶν μεριεῖ σκύλα, ἀνθ’ ὧν παρεδόθη εἰς θάνατον ἡ ψυχὴ αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἀνόμοις ἐλογίσθη, καὶ αὐτὸς ἁμαρτίας πολλῶν ἀνήνεγκε καὶ διὰ τὰς ἀνομίας αὐτῶν αὐτὸς παρεδόθη. 6. ὡς δὲ καὶ εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν ἔμελλεν ἀνιέναι, καθὼς προεφητεύθη, ἀκούσατε. 7. ἐλέχθη δὲ οὕτως· Ἄρατε πύλας οὐρανῶν, ἀνοίχθητε, ἵνα εἰσέλθῃ ὁ βασιλεὺς τῆς δόξης. τίς ἐστιν οὗτος ὁ βασιλεὺς τῆς δόξης; Κύριος κραταιὸς καὶ κύριος δυνατός. 8. ὡς δὲ καὶ ἐξ οὐρανῶν παραγίνεσθαι μετὰ δόξης μέλλει, ἀκούσατε καὶ τῶν εἰρημένων εἰς τοῦτο διὰ Ἰερεμίου τοῦ προφήτου. 9. ἔστι δὲ ταῦτα· Ἰδοὺ ὡς υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου ἔρχεται ἐπάνω τῶν νεφελῶν τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, καὶ οἱ ἄγγελοι αὐτοῦ σὺν αὐτῷ.
LII 1. Ἐπειδὴ τοίνυν τὰ γενόμενα ἤδη πάντα ἀποδείκνυμεν πρὶν ἢ γενέσθαι προκεκηρύχθαι διὰ τῶν προφητῶν, ἀνάγκη καὶ περὶ τῶν ὁμοίως προφητευθέντων, μελλόντων δὲ γίνεσθαι, πίστιν ἔχειν ὡς πάντως γενησομένων. 2. ὃν γὰρ τρόπον τὰ ἤδη γενόμενα προκεκηρυγμένα καὶ ἀγνοούμενα ἀπέβη, τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον καὶ τὰ λείποντα, κἂν ἀγνοῆται καὶ ἀπιστῆται, ἀποβήσονται. 3. δύο γὰρ αὐτοῦ παρουσίας προεκήρυξαν οἱ προφῆται· μίαν μέν, τὴν ἤδη γενομένην, ὡς ἀτίμου καὶ παθητοῦ ἀνθρώπου, τὴν δὲ δευτέραν, ὅταν μετὰ δόξης ἐξ οὐρανῶν μετὰ τῆς ἀγγελικῆς αὐτοῦ στρατιᾶς παραγενήσεσθαι κεκήρυκται, ὅτε καὶ τὰ σώματα ἀνεγερεῖ πάντων τῶν γενομένων ἀνθρώπων, καὶ τῶν μὲν ἀξίων ἐνδύσει ἀφθαρσίαν, τῶν δ’ ἀδίκων ἐν αἰσθήσει αἰωνίᾳ μετὰ τῶν φαύλων δαιμόνων εἰς τὸ αἰώνιον πῦρ πέμψει. 4. ὡς δὲ καὶ ταῦτα προείρηται γενησόμενα, δηλώσομεν. 5. ἐρρέθη δὲ διὰ Ἰεζεκιὴλ τοῦ προφήτου οὕτως· Συναχθήσεται ἁρμονία πρὸς ἁρμονίαν καὶ ὀστέον πρὸς ὀστέον, καὶ σάρκες ἀναφυήσονται. 6. καὶ πᾶν γόνυ κάμψει τῷ κυρίῳ, καὶ πᾶσα γλῶσσα ἐξομολογήσεται αὐτῷ. 7. ἐν οἵᾳ δὲ αἰσθήσει καὶ κολάσει γενέσθαι μέλλουσιν οἱ ἄδικοι, ἀκούσατε τῶν ὁμοίως εἰς τοῦτο εἰρημένων. 8. ἔστι δὲ ταῦτα· Ὁ σκώληξ αὐτῶν οὐ παυθήσεται, καὶ τὸ πῦρ αὐτῶν οὐ σβεσθήσεται. 9. καὶ τότε μετανοήσουσιν, ὅτε οὐδὲν ὠφελήσουσι. 10. ποῖα δὲ μέλλουσιν οἱ λαοὶ τῶν Ἰουδαίων λέγειν καὶ ποιεῖν, ὅταν ἴδωσιν αὐτὸν ἐν δόξῃ παραγενόμενον, διὰ Ζαχαρίου τοῦ προφήτου προφητευθέντα ἐλέχθη οὕτως· Ἐντελοῦμαι τοῖς τέσσαρσιν ἀνέμοις συνάξαι τὰ ἐσκορπισμένα τέκνα, ἐντελοῦμαι τῷ βορρᾷ φέρειν, καὶ τῷ νότῳ μὴ προσκόπτειν. 11. καὶ τότε ἐν Ἰερουσαλὴμ κοπετὸς μέγας, οὐ κοπετὸς στομάτων ἢ χειλέων, ἀλλὰ κοπετὸς καρδίας, καὶ οὐ μὴ σχίσωσιν αὐτῶν τὰ ἱμάτια, ἀλλὰ τὰς διανοίας. 12. κόψονται φυλὴ πρὸς φυλήν, καὶ τότε ὄψονται εἰς ὃν ἐξεκέντησαν, καὶ ἐροῦσι· Τί, κύριε, ἐπλάνησας ἡμᾶς ἀπὸ τῆς ὁδοῦ σου; ἡ δόξα, ἣν εὐλόγησαν οἱ πατέρες ἡμῶν, ἐγενήθη ἡμῖν εἰς ὄνειδος.
LIII 1. Πολλὰς μὲν οὖν καὶ ἑτέρας προφητείας ἔχοντες εἰπεῖν ἐπαυσάμεθα, αὐτάρκεις καὶ ταύτας εἰς πεισμονὴν τοῖς τὰ ἀκουστικὰ καὶ νοερὰ ὦτα ἔχουσιν εἶναι λογισάμενοι, καὶ νοεῖν δύνασθαι αὐτοὺς ἡγούμενοι ὅτι οὐχ ὁμοίως τοῖς μυθοποιηθεῖσι περὶ τῶν νομισθέντων υἱῶν τοῦ Διὸς καὶ ἡμεῖς μόνον λέγομεν, ἀλλ’ οὐκ ἀποδεῖξαι ἔχομεν. 2. τίνι γὰρ ἂν λόγῳ ἀνθρώπῳ σταυρωθέντι ἐπειθόμεθα, ὅτι πρωτότοκος τῷ ἀγεννήτῳ θεῷ ἐστι καὶ αὐτὸς τὴν κρίσιν τοῦ παντὸς ἀνθρωπείου γένους ποιήσεται, εἰ μὴ μαρτύρια πρὶν ἢ ἐλθεῖν αὐτὸν ἄνθρωπον γενόμενον κεκηρυγμένα περὶ αὐτοῦ εὕρομεν καὶ οὕτως γενόμενα ἑωρῶμεν, 3. γῆς μὲν Ἰουδαίων ἐρήμωσιν, καὶ τοὺς ἀπὸ παντὸς ἔθνους ἀνθρώπων διὰ τῆς παρὰ τῶν ἀποστόλων αὐτοῦ διδαχῆς πεισθέντας καὶ παραιτησαμένους τὰ παλαιά, ἐν οἷς πλανώμενοι ἀνεστράφησαν, ἔθη, ἑαυτοὺς ἡμᾶς ὁρῶντες, πλείονάς τε καὶ ἀληθεστέρους τοὺς ἐξ ἐθνῶν τῶν ἀπὸ Ἰουδαίων καὶ Σαμαρέων Χροὺς εἰδότες; 4. τὰ μὲν γὰρ ἄλλα πάντα γένη ἀνθρώπεια ὑπὸ τοῦ προφητικοῦ πνεύματος καλεῖται ἔθνη, τὸ δὲ Ἰουδαϊκὸν καὶ Σαμαρειτικὸν φῦλον Ἰσραὴλ καὶ οἶκος Ἰακὼβ κέκληνται. 5. ὡς δὲ προεφητεύθη ὅτι πλείονες οἱ ἀπὸ τῶν ἐθνῶν πιστεύοντες τῶν ἀπὸ Ἰουδαίων καὶ Σαμαρέων, τὰ προφητευθέντα ἀπαγγελοῦμεν. ἐλέχθη δὲ οὕτως· Εὐφράνθητι στεῖρα ἡ οὐ τίκτουσα, ῥῆξον καὶ βόησον ἡ οὐκ ὠδίνουσα, ὅτι πολλὰ τὰ τέκνα τῆς ἐρήμου μᾶλλον ἢ τῆς ἐχούσης τὸν ἄνδρα. 6. ἔρημα γὰρ ἦν πάντα τὰ ἔθνη ἀληθινοῦ θεοῦ, χειρῶν ἔργοις λατρεύοντα· Ἰουδαῖοι δὲ καὶ Σαμαρεῖς, ἔχοντες τὸν παρὰ τοῦ θεοῦ λόγον διὰ τῶν προφητῶν παραδοθέντα αὐτοῖς καὶ ἀεὶ προσδοκήσαντες τὸν Χρν, παραγενόμενον ἠγνόησαν, πλὴν ὀλίγων τινῶν οὓς προεῖπε τὸ ἅγιον προφητικὸν πνεῦμα διὰ Ἠσαίου σωθήσεσθαι. 7. εἶπε δὲ ὡς ἀπὸ προσώπου αὐτῶν· Εἰ μὴ κύριος ἐγκατέλιπεν ἡμῖν σπέρμα, ὡς Σόδομα καὶ Γόμορρα ἂν ἐγενήθημεν. 8. Σόδομα γὰρ καὶ Γόμορρα πόλεις τινὲς ἀσεβῶν ἀνδρῶν ἱστοροῦνται ὑπὸ Μωυσέως γενόμεναι, ἃς πυρὶ καὶ θείῳ καύσας ὁ θεὸς κατέστρεψε, μηδενὸς τῶν ἐν αὐταῖς σωθέντος πλὴν ἀλλοεθνοῦς τινος Χαλδαίου τὸ γένος, ᾧ ὄνομα Λώτ· σὺν ᾧ καὶ θυγατέρες διεσώθησαν. 9. καὶ τὴν πᾶσαν αὐτῶν χώραν ἔρημον καὶ κεκαυμένην οὖσαν καὶ ἄγονον μένουσαν οἱ βουλόμενοι ὁρᾶν ἔχουσιν. 10. ὡς δὲ καὶ ἀληθέστεροι οἱ ἀπὸ τῶν ἐθνῶν καὶ πιστότεροι προεγινώσκοντο. ἀπαγγελοῦμεν τὰ εἰρημένα διὰ Ἠσαίου τοῦ προφήτου. 11. ἔφη δὲ οὕτως· Ἰσραὴλ ἀπερίτμητος τὴν καρδίαν, τὰ δὲ ἔθνη τὴν ἀκροβυστίαν. 12. τὰ τοσαῦτα γοῦν ὁρώμενα πειθὼ καὶ πίστιν τοῖς τἀληθὲς ἀσπαζομένοις καὶ μὴ φιλοδοξοῦσι μηδὲ ὑπὸ παθῶν ἀρχομένοις μετὰ λόγου ἐμφορῆσαι δύναται.
LIV 1. Οἱ δὲ παραδιδόντες τὰ μυθοποιηθέντα ὑπὸ τῶν ποιητῶν οὐδεμίαν ἀπόδειξιν φέρουσι τοῖς ἐκμανθάνουσι νέοις, καὶ ἐπὶ ἀπάτῃ καὶ ἀπαγωγῇ τοῦ ἀνθρωπείου γένους εἰρῆσθαι ἀποδείκνυμεν κατ’ ἐνέργειαν τῶν φαύλων δαιμόνων. 2. ἀκούσαντες γὰρ διὰ τῶν προφητῶν κηρυσσόμενον παραγενησόμενον τὸν Χρν, καὶ κολασθησομένους διὰ πυρὸς τοὺς ἀσεβεῖς τῶν ἀνθρώπων, προεβάλλοντο πολλοὺς λεχθῆναι λεγομένους υἱοὺς τῷ Διΐ, νομίζοντες δυνήσεσθαι ἐνεργῆσαι τερατολογίαν ἡγήσασθαι τοὺς ἀνθρώπους τὰ περὶ τὸν Χρν καὶ ὅμοια τοῖς ὑπὸ τῶν ποιητῶν λεχθεῖσι. 3. καὶ ταῦτα δ’ ἐλέχθη καὶ ἐν Ἕλλησιν καὶ ἐν ἔθνεσι πᾶσιν, ὅπου μᾶλλον ἐπήκουον τῶν προφητῶν πιστευθήσεσθαι τὸν Χρν προκηρυσσόντων. 4. ὅτι δὲ καὶ ἀκούοντες τὰ διὰ τῶν προφητῶν λεγόμενα οὐκ ἐνόουν ἀκριβῶς, ἀλλ’ ὡς πλανώμενοι ἐμιμήσαντο τὰ περὶ τὸν ἡμέτερον Χρν, διασαφήσομεν. 5. Μωυσῆς οὖν ὁ προφήτης, ὡς προέφημεν, πρεσβύτερος ἦν πάντων συγγραφέων, καὶ δι’ αὐτοῦ, ὡς προεμηνύσαμεν, προεφητεύθη οὕτως· Οὐκ ἐκλείψει ἄρχων ἐξ Ἰούδα καὶ ἡγούμενος ἐκ τῶν μηρῶν αὐτοῦ, ἕως ἂν ἔλθῃ ᾧ ἀπόκειται· καὶ αὐτὸς ἔσται προσδοκία ἐθνῶν, δεσμεύων πρὸς ἄμπελον τὸν πῶλον αὐτοῦ, πλύνων τὴν στολὴν αὐτοῦ ἐν αἵματι σταφυλῆς. 6. τούτων οὖν τῶν προφητικῶν λόγων ἀκούσαντες οἱ δαίμονες Διόνυσον μὲν ἔφασαν γεγονέναι υἱὸν τοῦ Διός, εὑρετὴν δὲ γενέσθαι ἀμπέλου παρέδωκαν, καὶ οἶνον ἐν τοῖς μυστηρίοις αὐτοῦ ἀναγράφουσι, καὶ διασπαραχθέντα αὐτὸν ἀνεληλυθέναι εἰς οὐρανὸν ἐδίδαξαν. 7. καὶ ἐπειδὴ διὰ τῆς Μωυσέως προφητείας οὐ ῥητῶς ἐσημαίνετο, εἴτε υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ ὁ παραγενησόμενός ἐστι, καὶ εἰ ὀχούμενος ἐπὶ πώλου ἐπὶ γῆς μενεῖ ἢ εἰς οὐρανὸν ἀνελεύσεται, καὶ τὸ τοῦ πώλου ὄνομα καὶ ὄνου πῶλον καὶ ἵππου σημαίνειν ἐδύνατο, μὴ ἐπιστάμενοι εἴτε ὄνου πῶλον ἄγων ἔσται σύμβολον τῆς παρουσίας αὐτοῦ εἴτε ἵππου ὁ προκηρυσσόμενος, καὶ υἱὸς θεοῦ ἐστιν, ὡς προέφημεν, ἢ ἀνθρώπου, τὸν Βελλεροφόντην καὶ αὐτὸν ἐφ’ ἵππου Πηγάσου, ἄνθρωπον ἐξ ἀνθρώπου γενόμενον, εἰς οὐρανὸν ἔφασαν ἀνεληλυθέναι. 8. ὅτε δὲ ἤκουσαν διὰ τοῦ ἄλλου προφήτου Ἠσαίου λεχθέν, ὅτι διὰ παρθένου τεχθήσεται καὶ δι’ ἑαυτοῦ ἀνελεύσεται εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν, τὸν Περσέα λεχθῆναι προεβάλλοντο. 9. καὶ ὅτε ἔγνωσαν εἰρημένον, ὡς προλέλεκται ἐν ταῖς προγεγραμμέναις προφητείαις, Ἰσχυρὸς ὡς γίγας δραμεῖν ὁδόν, τὸν Ἡρακλέα ἰσχυρὸν καὶ ἐκπερινοστήσαντα τὴν πᾶσαν γῆν ἔφασαν. 10. ὅτε δὲ πάλιν ἔμαθον προφητευθέντα θεραπεύσειν αὐτὸν πᾶσαν νόσον καὶ νεκροὺς ἀνεγερεῖν τὸν Ἀσκληπιὸν παρήνεγκαν.
LV 1. Ἀλλ’ οὐδαμοῦ οὐδ’ ἐπί τινος τῶν λεγομένων υἱῶν τοῦ Διὸς τὸ σταυρωθῆναι ἐμιμήσαντο· οὐ γὰρ ἐνοεῖτο αὐτοῖς, συμβολικῶς, ὡς προδεδήλωται, τῶν εἰς τοῦτο εἰρημένων πάντων λελεγμένων. 2. ὅπερ, ὡς προεῖπεν ὁ προφήτης, τὸ μέγιστον σύμβολον τῆς ἰσχύος καὶ ἀρχῆς αὐτοῦ ὑπάρχει, ὡς καὶ ἐκ τῶν ὑπ’ ὄψιν πιπτόντων δείκνυται· κατανοήσατε γὰρ πάντα τὰ ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ, εἰ ἄνευ τοῦ σχήματος τούτου διοικεῖται ἢ κοινωνίαν ἔχειν δύναται. 3. θάλασσα μὲν γὰρ οὐ τέμνεται, ἢν μὴ τοῦτο τὸ τρόπαιον, ὃ καλεῖται ἱστίον, ἐν τῇ νηῒ σῶον μείνῃ· γῆ δὲ οὐκ ἀροῦται ἄνευ αὐτοῦ· σκαπανεῖς δὲ τὴν ἐργασίαν οὐ ποιοῦνται οὐδὲ βαναυσουργοὶ ὁμοίως εἰ μὴ διὰ τῶν τὸ σχῆμα τοῦτο ἐχόντων ἐργαλείων. 4. τὸ δὲ ἀνθρώπειον σχῆμα οὐδενὶ ἄλλῳ τῶν ἀλόγων ζώων διαφέρει, ἢ τῷ ὀρθόν τε εἶναι καὶ ἔκτασιν χειρῶν ἔχειν καὶ ἐν τῷ προσώπῳ ἀπὸ τοῦ μετωπίου τεταμένον τὸν λεγόμενον μυξωτῆρα φέρειν, δι’ οὗ ἥ τε ἀναπνοή ἐστι τῷ ζώῳ, καὶ οὐδὲν ἄλλο δείκνυσιν ἢ τὸ σχῆμα τοῦ σταυροῦ. 5. καὶ διὰ τοῦ προφήτου δὲ ἐλέχθη οὕτως· Πνεῦμα πρὸ προσώπου ἡμῶν χριστὸς κύριος. 6. καὶ τὰ παρ’ ὑμῖν δὲ σύμβολα τὴν τοῦ σχήματος τούτου δύναμιν δηλοῖ, [ἵνα ἀμε]λῶμεν καὶ τῶν τροπαίων, δι’ ὧν αἵ τε πρόοδοι ὑμῶν πανταχοῦ γίνονται, τῆς ἀρχῆς καὶ δυνάμεως τὰ σημεῖα ἐν τούτοις δεικνύντες, εἰ καὶ μὴ νοοῦντες τοῦτο πράττετε. 7. καὶ τῶν παρ’ ὑμῖν ἀποθνησκόντων αὐτοκρατόρων τὰς εἰκόνας ἐπὶ τούτῳ τῷ σχήματι ἀνατίθετε, καὶ θεοὺς διὰ γραμμάτων ἐπονομάζετε. 8. καὶ διὰ λόγου οὖν καὶ σχήματος τοῦ φαινομένου, ὅση δύναμις, προτρεψάμενοι ὑμᾶς ἀνεύθυνοι οἴδαμεν λοιπὸν ὄντες, κἂν ὑμεῖς ἀπιστεῖτε· τὸ γὰρ ἡμέτερον γέγονε καὶ πεπέρανται. | CHAPTER LI -- THE MAJESTY OF CHRIST. And that the Spirit of prophecy might signify to us that He who suffers these things has an ineffable origin, and rules His enemies, He spake thus: "His generation who shall declare? because His life is cut off from the earth: for their transgressions He comes to death. And I will give the wicked for His burial, and the rich for His death; because He did no violence, neither was any deceit in His mouth. And the Lord is pleased to cleanse Him from the stripe. If He be given for sin, your soul shall see His seed prolonged in days. And the Lord is pleased to deliver His soul from grief, to show Him light, and to form Him with knowledge, to justify the righteous who richly serveth many. And He shall bear our iniquities. Therefore He shall inherit many, and He shall divide the spoil of the strong; because His soul was delivered to death: and He was numbered with the transgressors; and He bare the sins of many, and He was delivered up for their transgressions." Hear, too, how He was to ascend into heaven according to prophecy. It was thus spoken: "Lift up the gates of heaven; be ye opened, that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord, strong and mighty." And how also He should come again out of heaven with glory, hear what was spoken in reference to this by the prophet Jeremiah. His words are: "Behold, as the Son of man He cometh in the clouds of heaven, and His angels with Him."
CHAPTER LII -- CERTAIN FULFILMENT OF PROPHECY. Since, then, we prove that all things which have already happened had been predicted by the prophets before they came to pass, we must necessarily believe also that those things which are in like manner predicted, but are yet to come to pass, shall certainly happen. For as the things which have already taken place came to pass when foretold, and even though unknown, so shall the things that remain, even though they be unknown and disbelieved, yet come to pass. For the prophets have proclaimed two advents of His: the one, that which is already past, when He came as a dishonoured and suffering Man; but the second, when, according to prophecy, He shall come from heaven with glory, accompanied by His angelic host, when also He shall raise the bodies of all men who have lived, and shall clothe those of the worthy with immortality, and shall send those of the wicked, endued with eternal sensibility, into everlasting fire with the wicked devils. And that these things also have been foretold as yet to be, we will prove. By Ezekiel the prophet it was said: "Joint shall be joined to joint, and bone to bone, and flesh shall grow again; and every knee shall bow to the Lord, and every tongue shall confess Him." And in what kind of sensation and punishment the wicked are to be, hear from what was said in like manner with reference to this; it is as follows: "Their worm shall not rest, and their fire shall not be quenched;" and then shall they repent, when it profits them not. And what the people of the Jews shall say and do, when they see Him coming in glory, has been thus predicted by Zechariah the prophet: "I will command the four winds to gather the scattered children; I will command the north wind to bring them, and the south wind, that it keep not back. And then in Jerusalem there shall be great lamentation, not the lamentation of mouths or of lips, but the lamentation of the heart; and they shall rend not their garments, but their hearts. Tribe by tribe they shall mourn, and then they shall look on Him whom they have pierced; and they shall say, Why, O Lord, hast Thou made us to err from Thy way? The glory which our fathers blessed, has for us been turned into shame."
CHAPTER LIII -- SUMMARY OF THE PROPHECIES. Though we could bring forward many other prophecies, we forbear, judging these sufficient for the persuasion of those who have ears to hear and understand; and considering also that those persons are able to see that we do not make mere assertions without being able to produce proof, like those fables that are told of the so-called sons of Jupiter. For with what reason should we believe of a crucified man that He is the first-born of the unbegotten God, and Himself will pass judgment on the whole human race, unless we had found testimonies concerning Him published before He came and was born as man, and unless we saw that things had happened accordingly--the devastation of the land of the Jews, and men of every race persuaded by His teaching through the apostles, and rejecting their old habits, in which, being deceived, they had their conversation; yea, seeing ourselves too, and knowing that the Chr?stians from among the Gentiles are both more numerous and more true than those from among the Jews and Samaritans? For all the other human races are called Gentiles by the Spirit of prophecy; but the Jewish and Samaritan races are called the tribe of Israel, and the house of Jacob. And the prophecy in which it was predicted that there should be more believers from the Gentiles than from the Jews and Samaritans, we will produce: it ran thus: "Rejoice, O barren, thou that dost not bear; break forth and shout, thou that dost not travail, because many more are the children of the desolate than of her that hath an husband." For all the Gentiles were "desolate" of the true God, serving the works of their hands; but the Jews and Samaritans, having the word of God delivered to them by the prophets, and always expecting the Chr?st, did not recognise Him when He came, except some few, of whom the Spirit of prophecy by Isaiah had predicted that they should be saved. He spoke as from their person: "Except the Lord had left us a seed, we should have been as Sodom and Gomorrah." For Sodom and Gomorrah are related by Moses to have been cities of ungodly men, which God burned with fire and brimstone, and overthrew, no one of their inhabitants being saved except a certain stranger, a Chaldaean by birth, whose name was Lot; with whom also his daughters were rescued. And those who care may yet see their whole country desolate and burned, and remaining barren. And to show how those from among the Gentiles were foretold as more true and more believing, we will cite what was said by Isaiah the prophet; for he spoke as follows "Israel is uncircumcised in heart, but the Gentiles are uncircumcised in the flesh." So many things therefore, as these, when they are seen with the eye, are enough to produce conviction and belief in those who embrace the truth, and are not bigoted in their opinions, nor are governed by their passions.
CHAPTER LIV -- ORIGIN OF HEATHEN MYTHOLOGY. But those who hand down the myths which the poets have made, adduce no proof to the youths who learn them; and we proceed to demonstrate that they have been uttered by the influence of the wicked demons, to deceive and lead astray the human race. For having heard it proclaimed through the prophets that the Chr?st was to come, and that the ungodly among men were to be punished by fire, they put forward many to be called sons of Jupiter, under the impression that they would be able to produce in men the idea that the things which were said with regard to Chr?st were mere marvellous tales, like the things which were said by the poets. And these things were said both among the Greeks and among all nations where they [the demons] heard the prophets foretelling that Chr?st would specially be believed in; but that in hearing what was said by the prophets they did not accurately understand it, but imitated what was said of our Chr?st, like men who are in error, we will make plain. The prophet Moses, then, Was, as we have already said, older than all writers; and by him, as we have also said before, it was thus predicted: "There shall not fail a prince from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until He come for whom it is reserved; and He shall be the desire of the Gentiles, binding His foal to the vine, washing His robe in the blood of the grape." The devils, accordingly, when they heard these prophetic words, said that Bacchus was the son of Jupiter, and gave out that he was the discoverer of the vine, and they number wine [or, the ass] among his mysteries; and they taught that, having been torn in pieces, he ascended into heaven. And because in the prophecy of Moses it had not been expressly intimated whether He who was to come was the Son of God, and whether He would, riding on the foal, remain on earth or ascend into heaven, and because the name of "foal" could mean either the foal of an ass or the foal of a horse, they, not knowing whether He who was foretold would bring the foal of an ass or of a horse as the sign of His coming, nor whether He was the Son of God, as we said above, or of man, gave out that Bellerophon, a man born of man, himself ascended to heaven on his horse Pegasus. And when they heard it said by the other prophet Isaiah, that He should be born of a virgin, and by His own means ascend into heaven, they pretended that Perseus was spoken of. And when they knew what was said, as has been cited above, in the prophecies written aforetime, "Strong as a giant to run his course," they said that Hercules was strong, and had journeyed over the whole earth. And when, again, they learned that it had been foretold that He should heal every sickness, and raise the dead, they produced Aesculapius.
CHAPTER LV -- SYMBOLS OF THE CROSS. But in no instance, not even in any of those called sons of Jupiter, did they imitate the being crucified; for it was not understood by them, all the things said of it having been put symbolically. And this, as the prophet foretold, is the greatest symbol of His power and role; as is also proved by the things which fall under our observation. For consider all the things in the world, whether without this form they could be administered or have any community. For the sea is not traversed except that trophy which is called a sail abide safe in the ship; and the earth is not ploughed without it: diggers and mechanics do not their work, except with tools which have this shape. And the human form differs from that of the irrational animals in nothing else than in its being erect and having the hands extended, and having on the face extending from the forehead what is called the nose, through which there is respiration for the living creature; and this shows no other form than that of the cross. And so it was said by the prophet, "The breath before our face is the Lord Chr?st." And the power of this form is shown by your own symbols on what are called "vexilla" [banners] and trophies, with which all your state possessions are made, using these as the insignia of your power and government, even though you do so unwittingly. And with this form you consecrate the images of your emperors when they die, and you name them gods by inscriptions. Since, therefore, we have urged you both by reason and by an evident form, and to the utmost of our ability, we know that now we are blameless even though you disbelieve; for our part is done and finished. |