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to partake was peculiar to the believers who are in grace. And he rightly added to all this 'according to his will,' that is, since God once willed and approved to use great generosity toward us, so that his grace toward us is also unchangeable, we suspecting no change at all, similar to the former things, of the things once given.

204 Hebr 2,9-10 They suffer something most ridiculous here, changing 'apart from God' and making it 'by the grace of God,' not paying attention to the sequence of scripture, but from not understanding what he ever meant by 'apart from God,' indifferently deleting that one, and putting what seems to them to be easy to understand. For what was Paul's subject here, that he should add 'by the grace of God'? What sequence led him to this? For it is not his custom to put 'by the grace of God' simply, but always from some sequence of argument; for either he adds this when speaking of himself, as in 'by the grace of God I am what I am,' <or> when his subject is to speak of the philanthropy of God toward men, and that he has done all things when we were not worthy to receive them, as is 'for by grace you have been saved,' to which he adds, 'and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God; not by works, so that no one may boast,' clearly demonstrating through these things that he is discussing the grace of God, which he happened to show toward all men. But here his subject is clearly discussing Christ, what sort of person he is and what difference he has in relation to the angels, from which he was led to say in what way he seems to be made lower than them, and that it is because of death. What need, then, was there here for 'by the grace of God'? For it is not his subject to speak of his goodness toward us. The sequence of what follows shows this more; for having said that he tasted death apart from God, the divinity having been harmed in no way by this, and for this reason he received this brief diminishing from his own nature, so that from this he appears to partake also of the honor because of the union with another. Since it was logical for those hearing these things to think the indwelling of the Word of God was superfluous at the time of the passion, contributing nothing to the matter at hand if indeed he tasted the experience of death apart from him, he adds: 'For it was fitting for him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through sufferings.' But the divinity was not without purpose, he says; for its own things were fitting and what was fitting for it; for the suffering was in no way fitting for it. This 'it was fitting' clearly established the 'apart from God'; for as it was not fitting for that one, he himself says what was fitting, showing at the same time both what he was doing then, and what these things were. 'For it was fitting for him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things'—clearly speaking of God the Word, since he shared sonship with many and led them into this glory, to make perfect through sufferings the pioneer of the salvation of all, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the man assumed by him 205, so that the nature of the one and the grace of the other might appear.

Hebr 3,12-14 For not even now, he says, was it fitting to advise you, how you might

turning away from worse things, incline to the better through faith in Christ; for my discourse is to those who have already believed.

so it was fitting to exhort you to the same things, that you might persevere in what you once resolved.

This, then, he says, that we who have believed and partaken of the Spirit have become partakers of the substance of Christ, as if having received a certain natural communion with him.

It remains, then, to preserve this beginning with an intact mind. Hebr 3,16-18 He wants

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πιστευόντων μετέχειν ἴδιον ἦν τῶν ἐν τῇ χάριτι. καὶ καλῶς ἐπὶ πᾶσιν ἐπήγαγε τὸ κατὰ τὴν αὐτοῦ θέλησιν, τοῦτ' ἔστι τοῦ θεοῦ βουληθέντος ἅπαξ καὶ δοκιμάσαντος πολλῇ χρήσασθαι περὶ ἡμᾶς τῇ φιλοτιμίᾳ, ὥστε καὶ ἀμετάθετον εἶναι τὴν περὶ ἡμᾶς χάριν αὐτοῦ, μηδεμίαν ἅπαξ τοῖς πρωτέροις ὁμοίως ὑφορωμένους τῶν ἅπαξ δοθέντων μεταβολήν.

204 Hebr 2,9-10 Γελοιότατον δή τι πάσχουσιν ἐνταῦθα τὸ χωρὶς θεοῦ

ἐναλλάττοντες καὶ ποιοῦντες χάριτι θεοῦ, οὐ προσέχοντες τῇ ἀκολουθίᾳ τῆς γραφῆς, ἀλλ' ἀπὸ τοῦ μὴ συνιέναι ὅτι ποτὲ ἔφη τὸ χωρὶς θεοῦ, ἀδιαφόρως ἐξαλείφοντες μὲν ἐκεῖνο, τιθέντες δὲ τὸ δοκοῦν αὐτοῖς εὔκολον εἶναι πρὸς κατανόησιν. τί γὰρ ἐνταῦθα προέκειτο τῷ Παύλῳ, ἵνα ἐπαγάγῃ τὸ χάριτι θεοῦ; τίς δὲ αὐτὸν ἦγεν πρὸς τοῦτο ἀκολουθία; οὐ γὰρ ἔθος αὐτῷ χάριτι θεοῦ τιθέναι ἁπλῶς, ἀλλὰ πάντως ἀπό τινος ἀκολουθίας λόγου· ἢ γὰρ τὸ καθ' ἑαυτὸν λέγων προστίθησι τοῦτο, ὡς τὸ χάριτι θεοῦ εἰμι ὅ εἰμι, <ἢ> ὅταν πρόκειται αὐτῷ τὴν περὶ τοὺς ἀνθρώπους λέγειν τοῦ θεοῦ φιλανθρωπίαν, καὶ ὅτι ἅπαντα πεποίηκεν οὐχ ἡμῶν ὄντων τοῦ τυχεῖν ἀξίων, οἷόν ἐστι τὸ τῇ γὰρ χάριτί ἐστε σεσωσμένοι, ᾧ ἐπάγει· καὶ τοῦτο οὐκ ἐξ ὑμῶν, θεοῦ τὸ δῶρον· οὐκ ἐξ ἔργων, ἵνα μή τις καυχήσηται, σαφῶς διὰ τούτων παριστῶν, ὅτι περὶ τῆς χάριτος διαλέγεται τοῦ θεοῦ, ἣν περὶ πάντας ἔτυχε τοὺς ἀνθρώπους ἐπιδειξάμενος. ἐνταῦθα δὲ τὸ προκείμενον αὐτῷ δηλονότι περὶ τοῦ Χριστοῦ διαλέγεται, οἷοστίς ἐστιν καὶ τίνα τὴν πρὸς τοὺς ἀγγέλους ἔχων διαφοράν, ἀφ' ὧν ἐξηνέχθη εἰς τὸ εἰπεῖν, κατὰ τί δὲ αὐτῶν ἠλαττῶσθαι δοκεῖ καὶ ὅτι διὰ τὸν θάνατον. τί οὖν ἔδει ἐνταῦθα τοῦ χάριτι θεοῦ; οὐ γὰρ πρόκειται αὐτῷ τὴν περὶ ἡμᾶς ἀγαθότητα λέγειν αὐτοῦ. Τοῦτο δὲ μᾶλλον δείκνυσιν ἡ τῶν ἑξῆς ἀκολουθία· εἰπὼν γὰρ ὅτι χωρὶς θεοῦ ἐγεύσατο τοῦ θανάτου, οὐδὲν πρὸς τοῦτο παραβλαβείσης τῆς θεότητος, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἀπὸ τῆς οἰκείας φύσεως τὴν κατὰ βραχὺ τοῦτο ἐλάττωσιν ἐδέξατο, ὥστε φαίνεσθαι ἐντεῦθεν αὐτὸν καὶ τῆς τιμῆς μετέχοντα διὰ τὴν πρὸς ἕτερον συνάφειαν. ἐπειδήπερ ἀκόλουθον ἦν τοὺς ταῦτα ἀκούοντας περιττὴν ἐν τῷ τοῦ πάθους καιρῷ νομίζειν εἶναι τοῦ θεοῦ λόγου τὴν ἐνοίκησιν, οὐδὲν τοῖς προκειμένοις συμβαλλομένην εἴπερ δὴ χωρὶς ἐκείνου τῆς πείρας ἐγεύσατο τοῦ θανάτου, ἐπάγει· ἔπρεπε γὰρ αὐτῷ, δι' ὃν τὰ πάντα καὶ δι' οὗ τὰ πάντα, πολλοὺς υἱοὺς εἰς δόξαν ἀγαγόντα τὸν ἀρχηγὸν τῆς σωτηρίας αὐτῶν διὰ παθημάτων τελειῶσαι. οὐκ ἀσυντελὴς δὲ ἦν οὐδὲ ἡ θεότης, φησίν· ἔπρεπε γὰρ τὰ οἰκεῖα καὶ ἅπερ ἦν αὐτῇ πρέποντα· τὸ γάρ τοι τοῦ πάθους οὐδαμῶς αὐτῇ πρέπον ἦν. τοῦτο τὸ ἔπρεπε σαφῶς τὸ χωρὶς θεοῦ συνέστησεν· ὡς γὰρ ἐκείνου οὐ πρέποντος τὸ πρέπον αὐτός φησιν, δεικνὺς ὁμοῦ καὶ ἅπερ ἔπραττε τότε, τίνα δὲ ταῦτα ἦν. ἔπρεπε γὰρ αὐτῷ, δι' ὃν τὰ πάντα καὶ δι' οὗ τὰ πάντα· δηλονότι τῷ θεῷ λόγῳ λέγων, ἐπειδήπερ πολλοῖς τῆς υἱότητος μετέδωκεν καὶ εἰς τὴν δόξαν ἤγαγεν ταύτην, τὸν τῆς ἁπάντων σωτηρίας ἀρχηγόν, τὸν κύριον ἡμῶν καὶ σωτῆρα Ἰησοῦν τὸν Χριστόν, τὸν παρ' αὐτοῦ 205 ληφθέντα ἄνθρωπον διὰ τῶν παθημάτων τέλειον ἀποφῆναι, ὥστε φαίνεσθαι καὶ τούτου τὴν φύσιν κἀκείνου τὴν χάριν.

Hebr 3,12-14 Οὐδὲ γὰρ νῦν, φησί, συμβουλεύειν προσῆκεν ὑμῖν, ὅπως ἂν

ἀποστάντες τῶν χειρόνων ἐπὶ τὸ κρεῖττον ῥέψητε διὰ τῆς ἐπὶ τὸν Χριστὸν πίστεως· πρὸς γὰρ ἤδη πεπιστευκότας ὁ λόγος μοι γίνεται. ὥστε τὰ αὐτὰ παραινεῖν ὑμῖν προσῆκεν, ὅπως ἂν ἐπιμείνητε τοῖς δόξασιν ἅπαξ. τοῦτο οὖν λέγει, ὅτι οἱ πιστεύσαντες καὶ τοῦ πνεύματος μετειληφότες μέτοχοι τῆς ὑποστάσεως τοῦ Χριστοῦ γεγόναμεν, ὥσπερ τινὰ φυσικὴν τὴν πρὸς αὐτὸν κοινωνίαν δεξάμενοι. λείπει δὴ λοιπὸν τὸ τὴν ἀρχὴν ταύτην ἐν ἀκεραίῳ διαφυλάξαι γνώμῃ. Hebr 3,16-18 Βούλεται