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flashing forth the intellectual and divine light of the piety proclaimed by him, in no way being defeated by and yielding to its enemies, but not even giving way to the gates of death, because of that one saying which he himself uttered, when he said: "Upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it." 1.3.12 And having collected into their proper context countless other things both spoken and prophesied by our Savior, and having shown the outcomes of events to be in harmony with his divine foreknowledge, we demonstrate the indisputable 1.3.13 truth of the doctrines held by us concerning him. In addition to all these things, the testimony from the Hebrew Scriptures is no small proof of our truth, in which, countless years ago, the prophets among the Hebrews, having proclaimed the promise of good things to all mortal life, both mentioned by name the title of the Christ and foretold his advent among men, and announced the new manner of his teaching which would spread to all nations, foretelling the coming unbelief and contradiction against him by the Jewish nation, both the things done against him by them and the grim things that would immediately and not long after come upon them in consequence; I mean the final siege of their royal metropolis, and the complete destruction of their kingdom, and their dispersion into all the nations, and their servitude under their enemies and foes, which they are seen to have suffered in accordance with the prophecies after the advent of our Savior. 1.3.14 In addition to this, who would not be astonished hearing the same prophets, after the advent of Christ and the falling away of the Jews, proclaiming with brilliant and clear voices the calling of the gentiles? And this very thing has manifestly come to pass in accordance with the prophecies 1.3.15 through the teaching of our Savior. Through whom countless people from every race of mankind, having turned away from the error of idols, have accepted the true knowledge and piety of the God over all, almost confirming the ancient oracles, both the others and indeed the one spoken through Jeremiah the prophet: "O Lord my God, to you shall the nations come from the end of the earth and shall say, 'Our fathers have inherited false idols, and there was no benefit in them. Shall a man make gods for himself, and these are not gods?'" 1.4.1 All these things therefore confirm the account concerning our affairs as not having been undertaken from human impulse, but having been foreknown by God and proclaimed beforehand by God through written oracles, and much more still put forth to all men by God through our Savior, and again being empowered and established by God, so that, though persecuted for so many years both by invisible demons and by the visible rulers of the times, it shines forth much more, and day by day excels and grows and much rather increases, since the cooperation from above, from the God of all, manifestly provides that which is invincible and unconquerable, and that which is victorious over enemies, to the teaching 1.4.2 and name of our Savior. And how could that which was put forth for a good life for all men, not only by his manifest words but also by his ineffable power, not be indicative of his divine power? For it was of a divine and ineffable power that, at the same time as his word and together with his teaching put forth concerning the monarchy of the one God over all, the race of men was set free, both from the much-deceiving and demonic activity and from the polyarchy of the nations. 1.4.3

4. THAT NOT UNCRITICALLY BY US THE FAITH CONCERNING THE MOST BENEFICIAL THINGS ACCORDING TO

TIME IS RECEIVED

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νοερὸν καὶ ἔνθεον φῶς τῆς ὑπ' αὐτοῦ καταγγελθείσης εὐσεβείας ἀπαστράπτουσα οὐδαμῶς τε τοῖς ἐχθροῖς ἡττωμένη καὶ ὑπείκουσα, ἀλλ' οὐδὲ ταῖς τοῦ θανάτου πύλαις ὑποχωροῦσα, διὰ μίαν ἐκείνην ἣν αὐτὸς ἀπεφήνατο λέξιν, εἰπών· «ἐπὶ τὴν πέτραν οἰκοδομήσω μου τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, καὶ πύλαι ᾅδου οὐ κατισχύσουσιν αὐτῆς.» 1.3.12 καὶ ἄλλα δὲ μυρία πρὸς τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν λεχθέντα τε καὶ προρρηθέντα ἐν οἰκείᾳ συναγαγόντες ὑποθέσει, ταῖς ἐνθέοις αὐτοῦ προγνώσεσι τὰς τῶν πραγμάτων ἀποβάσεις συμφώνους παραστήσαντες, ἀναμφίλεκτον τῶν 1.3.13 περὶ αὐτοῦ δοξαζομένων ἡμῖν τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἐπιδείκνυμεν. πρὸς τούτοις δὲ πᾶσιν οὐ μικρὰ τυγχάνει τῆς καθ' ἡμᾶς ἀληθείας ἀπόδειξις καὶ ἡ ἀπὸ τῶν Ἑβραϊκῶν γραφῶν μαρτυρία, ἐν αἷς πρὸ μυρίων ὅσων ἐτῶν οἱ παρ' Ἑβραίοις προφῆται τὴν τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἐπαγγελίαν παντὶ τῷ θνητῷ βίῳ κηρύξαντες ὀνομαστὶ τῆς τε τοῦ Χριστοῦ προσηγορίας ἐμνήσθησαν καὶ τὴν εἰς ἀνθρώπους αὐτοῦ παρουσίαν προὐθέσπισαν τόν τε νέον τῆς εἰς πάντα τὰ ἔθνη διαδραμούσης διδασκαλίας αὐτοῦ τρόπον κατήγγειλαν, προειπόντες τὴν ἐσομένην εἰς αὐτὸν ἀπιστίαν καὶ ἀντιλογίαν τοῦ Ἰουδαίων ἔθνους τά τε κατ' αὐτοῦ δρασθέντα αὐτοῖς καὶ τὰ ἐπὶ τούτοις αὐτίκα καὶ οὐκ εἰς μακρὰν μετελθόντα αὐτοὺς σκυθρωπά· λέγω δὲ τῆς βασιλικῆς μητροπόλεως αὐτῶν τὴν ἐσχάτην πολιορκίαν, καὶ τῆς βασιλείας τὴν παντελῆ καθαίρεσιν αὐτῶν τε τὴν εἰς πάντα τὰ ἔθνη διασπορὰν καὶ τὴν ὑπὸ τοῖς ἐχθροῖς καὶ πολεμίοις δουλείαν, ἃ καὶ ταῖς προρρήσεσιν ἀκολούθως μετὰ τὴν τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν παρουσίαν 1.3.14 φαίνονται πεπονθότες. ἐπὶ τούτοις τίς οὐκ ἂν ἐκπλαγείη τῶν αὐτῶν ἀκούων προφητῶν μετὰ τὴν τοῦ Χριστοῦ παρουσίαν καὶ τὴν Ἰουδαίων ἀπόπτωσιν τὴν τῶν ἐθνῶν κλῆσιν λαμπραῖς καὶ διαυγέσι φωναῖς εὐαγγελιζομένων; ἣ καὶ αὐτὴ ἄντικρυς εἰς ἔργον ἐχώρησεν ταῖς προφητείαις 1.3.15 ἀκολούθως διὰ τῆς τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν διδασκαλίας. δι' οὗ ἐκ παντὸς γένους ἀνθρώπων μυρίοι ὅσοι τὴν τῶν εἰδώλων ἀποστραφέντες πλάνην τοῦ ἐπὶ πάντων θεοῦ τὴν ἀληθῆ γνῶσίν τε καὶ εὐσέβειαν κατεδέξαντο, μονονουχὶ πιστούμενοι τοὺς τῶν παλαιῶν χρησμοὺς τούς τε ἄλλους καὶ δὴ καὶ τὸν διὰ τοῦ Ἱερεμίου τοῦ προφήτου φήσαντα· «κύριε ὁ θεός μου, πρὸς σὲ ἔθνη ἥξουσιν ἀπ' ἐσχάτου τῆς γῆς καὶ ἐροῦσιν ὡς ψευδῆ ἐκτήσαντο οἱ πατέρες ἡμῶν εἴδωλα καὶ οὐκ ἦν ἐν αὐτοῖς ὠφέλεια. εἰ ποιήσει ἑαυτῷ ἄνθρωπος θεούς, καὶ οὗτοι οὐκ εἰσὶν θεοί;» 1.4.1 Πάντα δὴ οὖν ταῦτα τὸν περὶ τῶν καθ' ἡμᾶς πραγμάτων πιστοῦται λόγον ὡς οὐκ ἐξ ἀνθρωπίνης ὁρμῆς ἐπιτηδευθέντα, θεόθεν δὲ προγνωσθέντα καὶ θεόθεν διὰ τῶν ἐγγράφων χρησμῶν προαναφωνηθέντα καὶ πολὺ πλέον ἔτι θεόθεν διὰ τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις προβεβλημένον αὖθίς τε ἐκ θεοῦ δυναμούμενον καὶ συνεστῶτα, ὡς ἐν τοσούτοις ἐτῶν χρόνοις ἐλαυνόμενον πρός τε τῶν ἀοράτων δαιμόνων καὶ πρὸς τῶν κατὰ χρόνους ὁρατῶν ἀρχόντων πολὺ πλέον διαλάμπειν ὁσημέραι τε διαπρέπειν καὶ αὔξειν καὶ πολὺ μᾶλλον πληθύειν, ἄντικρυς τῆς ἄνωθεν ἐκ τοῦ τῶν ὅλων θεοῦ συνεργίας τὸ ἄμαχον καὶ ἀήττητον τό τε κατὰ τῶν ἐχθρῶν νικητικὸν τῇ τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν διδασκαλίᾳ 1.4.2 τε καὶ προσηγορίᾳ παρεχούσης. καὶ τὸ αὐτόθεν δὲ πρὸς εὐζωΐαν πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις οὐ μόνον ἐκ τῶν προφανῶν αὐτοῦ λόγων, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐξ ἀπορρήτου δυνάμεως προβεβλημένον πῶς οὐκ ἂν γένοιτο τῆς ἐνθέου δυνάμεως αὐτοῦ παραστατικόν; θείας μὲν γὰρ καὶ ἀπορρήτου δυνάμεως ἦν τὸ ἅμα τῷ αὐτοῦ λόγῳ καὶ σὺν τῇ περὶ μοναρχίας ἑνὸς τοῦ ἐπὶ πάντων θεοῦ προβεβλημένῃ διδασκαλίᾳ αὐτοῦ ὁμοῦ καὶ τῆς πολυπλανοῦς καὶ δαιμονικῆς ἐνεργείας, ὁμοῦ καὶ τῆς τῶν ἐθνῶν πολυαρχίας ἐλεύθερον καταστῆναι τὸ τῶν ἀνθρώπων γένος. 1.4.3

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