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he did not disbelieve, nor did he struggle; for he had a trustworthy pledge, the voice of the one who called.

Now he was childless, and did not beget children, nor did Sarah his wife; but he received a son, Isaac, by promise; when nature forbade it, then grace bestowed him; he received a trustworthy reward of obedience, but not knowing this; for if he had known, he would have done nothing trustworthy. And so that you might learn that it was not for this reason that he obeyed, see how when he was commanded to slay him, he does not disobey, but casts away nature, and embraces the love of God, tramples upon his inward affections, and does not desert the one who called him. What then did God say to him? Abraham, Abraham. And he said: Here I am; and He said: Take your beloved son whom you have loved, Isaac, and offer him up as a whole burnt offering on one of the mountains that I will show you. He did not even reveal the mountain to him, but with the indefiniteness of the mountain He cast him into greater despondency. But nevertheless, none of these things troubled Abraham; or rather, they did trouble him; for he was suffering the things of a man, but not suffering the things of sin; he was tossed about as a father, but not overwhelmed as a lover of God; his affections were kindled, but faith was victorious. For do not say that Abraham suffered nothing; consider how he was set on fire, driven by his affections, and see his wisdom. He does not even tell Sarah; for he feared lest she might hinder the mystery being accomplished. For if he had told her, it is likely she would have stopped him short and said: Where are you taking your son, whom I received against hope, whom I received according to promise, whom I received in return for hospitality, whom God granted me in my extreme old age? where are you leading him up? where are you taking him? did no one 50.739 appear to you? For how could God have appeared to you and ask for the son He gave me against hope? He granted him, and He takes him away? If He gave him in order to take him, it would have been better if He had not given him; for the pain of not having is not so great as that of having and then losing. Consider Sarah, inflamed and set on fire, and driven by nature, and her womb being rent, and her affections being altered; for women are compassionate in such matters; for the more gentle and compassionate she was, the more she would have contended with Abraham, and the sacrifice would have been hindered, and the mystery would have been nullified. For what would Sarah not have done to snatch away her son? for she could not have borne what was happening, the son born against hope about to be slain, and the one granted to her in her very old age about to be slaughtered, the hands of a father about to commit infanticide; Sarah would not have borne such things, but would have waged a great battle with Abraham, and with the battle taking place, it would be necessary for some plot to follow, and with a plot following, the mystery would have been hindered. Therefore Abraham did not tell his wife, lest contention should arise, lest with the contention arising, the matter should proceed to a battle, lest with the matter proceeding to a battle, it should advance to a division over the son, lest with it advancing to a division over the son, the promise be delayed, lest with the promise being delayed, the matter be plotted against, lest with the matter being plotted against, the mystery remain unfulfilled.

2. But the philosopher Abraham, the athlete, both striving against nature, and boxing against his affections, and arming himself against nature, did not disobey, but yielding to the command of God, he heard the message, and immediately takes his son. I gladly linger on these words: Take your beloved son whom you have loved, Isaac, and offer him up to me as a whole burnt offering on one of the mountains that I will show you; and Abraham, taking Isaac, and the donkey, and the two servants, departed; then when they had arrived at a certain place, he says to the servants: Sit here, he says; and the lad and I will go over there, and after we have worshiped, we will return to you. Unwittingly Abraham prophesied, the divine grace to him

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ἠπίστησεν, οὐδὲ ἠγωνίασεν· εἶχε γὰρ ἐνέχυρον ἀξιόπιστον τοῦ καλέσαντος τὴν φωνήν.

Ἦν δὲ αὐτὸς ἄγονος, καὶ οὐκ ἐτέκνου, ἀλλ' οὔτε Σάῤῥα ἡ τούτου γυνή· ἔλαβε δὲ ἐξ ἐπαγγελίας υἱὸν τὸν Ἰσαάκ· ὅτε δὲ ἡ φύσις ἀπηγόρευσε, τότε ἡ χάρις ἐδωρήσατο· ἔλαβεν ἀξιόπιστον μισθὸν ὑπακοῆς, ἀλλὰ τοῦτο μὴ εἰδώς· εἰ γὰρ ᾔδει, οὐδὲν ἀξιόπιστον ἦν ποιήσας. Καὶ ἵνα μάθῃς, ὅτι οὐ διὰ τοῦτο ὑπήκουσε, βλέπε πῶς καὶ αὐτὸν κελευόμενος ἀνελεῖν οὐ παρακούει, ἀλλὰ τὴν φύσιν ῥίπτει, καὶ τὴν φιλοθεΐαν ἀσπάζεται, τὰ σπλάγχνα καταπατεῖ, καὶ τοῦ καλέσαντος οὐκ ἀφίσταται. Τί οὖν πρὸς αὐτὸν ὁ Θεός; Ἀβραὰμ, Ἀβραάμ. Ὁ δὲεἶπεν· Ἰδοὺ ἐγώ· καὶ εἶπε· Λάβε τὸν υἱόν σου τὸν ἀγαπητὸν, ὃν ἠγάπησας, τὸν Ἰσαὰκ, καὶ ἀνένεγκε αὐτὸν εἰς ὁλοκάρπωσιν ἐφ' ἓν τῶν ὀρέων, ὧν ἄν σοι εἴπω. Οὔτε τὸ ὄρος αὐτῷ ἐδήλωσεν, ἀλλὰ τῷ ἀδιορίστῳ τοῦ ὄρους εἰς πλείονα αὐτὸν ἀθυμίαν ἐνέβαλεν. Ἀλλ' ὅμως τούτων οὐδὲν τὸν Ἀβραὰμ ἐθορύβησε· μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ ἐθορύβησεν· ἔπασχε μὲν γὰρ τὰ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου, οὐκ ἔπασχε δὲ τὰ τῆς ἁμαρτίας· ἐκλυδωνίζετο μὲν ὡς πατὴρ, οὐ κατεποντίζετο δὲ ὡς φιλόθεος· τὰ σπλάγχνα ἀνήπτετο, ἀλλ' ἡ πίστις ἐνίκα. Μὴ γὰρ εἴπῃς, ὅτι οὐδὲν ἔπασχεν ὁ Ἀβραάμ· ἐννόησον πῶς ἐπυρπολεῖτο ὑπὸ τῶν σπλάγχνων ἐλαυνόμενος, καὶ βλέπε τὴν φιλοσοφίαν αὐτοῦ. Οὐδὲ τῇ Σάῤῥᾳ λέγει· ἐδεδοίκει γὰρ, μή ποτε ἐμποδίσῃ τῷ μυστηρίῳ τῷ ἐπιτελουμένῳ. Εἰ γὰρ εἶπεν, εἰκὸς αὐτὴν ἐπιστομίζειν, καὶ λέγειν· Ποῦ ἀνάγεις τὸν υἱόν σου, ὃν παρ' ἐλπίδας ἔλαβον, ὃν κατ' ἐπαγγελίαν ἐδεξάμην, ὃν ἀντὶ τῆς φιλοξενίας ἔλαβον, ὃν ἐν ἐσχάτῳ γήρᾳ ἐχαρίσατό μοι ὁ Θεός; ποῦ αὐτὸν ἀνάγεις; ποῦ αὐτὸν λαμβάνεις; οὐδείς σοι 50.739 ὤφθη; πῶς γὰρ Θεός σοι εἶχεν ὀφθῆναι, καὶ ζητεῖν τὸν υἱὸν, ὃν παρ' ἐλπίδα μοι ἔδωκεν; αὐτὸς ἐχαρίσατο, καὶ αὐτὸς λαμβάνει; εἰ διὰ τὸ λαβεῖν αὐτὸν ἔδωκε, βέλτιον, εἰ μὴ ἔδωκεν· οὐ γάρ ἐστι τοσοῦτος πόνος τὸ μὴ ἔχειν, ὅσον τὸ λαβεῖν καὶ ἀπολέσαι. Ἐννόησον τὴν Σάῤῥαν ἀναπτομένην καὶ πυρπολουμένην, καὶ ὑπὸ τῆς φύσεως ἐλαυνομένην, καὶ τὴν μήτραν αὐτῆς διαστρεφομένην, καὶ τὰ σπλάγχνα αὐτῆς ἀλλοιούμενα· συμπαθεῖς γὰρ αἱ γυναῖκες περὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα· ὅσον γὰρ μαλακωτέρα καὶ συμπαθεστέρα, τοσοῦτον ἔμελλε διισχυρίζεσθαι πρὸς τὸν Ἀβραὰμ, καὶ ἐνεποδίζετο ἡ θυσία, καὶ τὸ μυστήριον κατηργεῖτο. Τί γὰρ ἂν οὐκ ἐποίησεν ἡ Σάῤῥα πρὸς τὸ ἀποσπάσαι τὸν υἱὸν αὐτῆς; οὐ γὰρ ἠδύνατο βαστάσαι τὸ γινόμενον, τὸν παρ' ἐλπίδας υἱὸν μέλλοντα ἀναιρεῖσθαι, καὶ ἐν αὐτῷ τῷ γήρᾳ δεδωρημένον αὐτῇ μέλλοντα σφάζεσθαι, πατρὸς χεῖρας τεκνοφονίαν μελλούσας ἐργάζεσθαι· οὐκ ἂν ἐβάσταζε τοιαῦτα ἡ Σάῤῥα, ἀλλὰ πολλὴν ἂν εἰργάσατο μάχην μετὰ τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ, τῆς δὲ μάχης γινομένης ἀνάγκη ἐνέδραν τινὰ παρακολουθῆσαι, ἐνέδρας δὲ παρακολουθούσης ἐνεποδίζετο τὸ μυστήριον. Οὐκ εἶπεν οὖν Ἀβραὰμ τῇ γυναικὶ, ἵνα μὴ φιλονεικία γένηται, ἵνα μὴ, γενομένης τῆς φιλονεικίας, εἰς μάχην προέλθῃ τὸ πρᾶγμα, ἵνα μὴ, εἰς μάχην προελθόντος τοῦ πράγματος, εἰς μερισμὸν περὶ τοῦ υἱοῦ προχωρήσῃ, ἵνα μὴ, εἰς μερισμὸν προχωροῦντος τοῦ υἱοῦ, χρονίσῃ ἡ ἐπαγγελία, ἵνα μὴ, χρονισάσης τῆς ἐπαγγελίας, τὸ πρᾶγμα ἐνεδρευθῇ, ἵνα μὴ, τοῦ πράγματος ἐνεδρευθέντος, ἀτέλεστον μένῃ τὸ μυστήριον.

βʹ. Ἀλλ' ὁ φιλόσοφος Ἀβραὰμ, ὁ ἀθλητὴς, καὶ πρὸς φύσιν ἀγωνιζόμενος, καὶ πρὸς σπλάγχνα πυκτεύων, καὶ κατὰ τῆς φύσεως ὁπλιζόμενος, οὐ παρήκουσεν, ἀλλ' ἐπιτάγματι τοῦ Θεοῦ εἴκων, ἤκουσε τῆς ἀγγελίας, καὶ εὐθὺς λαμβάνει τὸν υἱόν. Ἡδέως ἐνδιατρίβω τοῖς ῥήμασι τούτοις· Λάβε τὸν υἱόν σου τὸν ἀγαπητὸν, ὃν ἠγάπησας, τὸν Ἰσαὰκ, καὶ ἀνένεγκέ μοι αὐτὸν εἰς ὁλοκάρπωσιν ἐφ' ἓν τῶν ὀρέων, ὧν ἄν σοι εἴπω· καὶ λαβὼν ὁ Ἀβραὰμ τὸν Ἰσαὰκ, καὶ τὴν ὄνον, καὶ τοὺς δύο παῖδας, ἀπῄει· εἶτα φθασάντων αὐτῶν ἔν τινι τόπῳ, λέγει τοῖς παισί· Καθίσατε, φησὶν, ὑμεῖς ὧδε· ἐγὼ δὲ καὶ τὸ παιδάριον διελευσόμεθα ἕως ὧδε, καὶ προσκυνήσαντες πάλιν ἀναστρέψομεν πρὸς ὑμᾶς. Ἄκων προεφήτευσεν ὁ Ἀβραὰμ, τῆς θείας χάριτος αὐτῷ