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we disobeyed his word, through the same things he introduced obedience and perseverance towards his word, most clearly showing him to be God; for in the first Adam we stumbled by not doing his commandment, but in the second Adam we were reconciled, having become obedient even unto death; for we were not debtors to any other, but to him whose commandment we also transgressed from the beginning. And this is the Creator, who according to love is Father, according to power is Lord, and according to wisdom is our Maker and Fashioner, whose commandment we also transgressed, becoming enemies to him. And in due time the Lord restored us to friendship through his own incarnation, becoming "a mediator between God and men". 16 Here the prophet showed by deed that the solid Word of God, which we, having carelessly cast away, could not find, we would receive back again through the economy of the wood. That the Word of God is like an axe, John the Baptist says concerning him: "And now the axe is laid to the root of the trees." And Jeremiah likewise says: "The Word of the Lord is like an axe hewing the rock." Therefore, the economy of the wood, as we have said before, made him, who was hidden from us, manifest. For since through a tree we cast him away, through a tree again he was made manifest to all, showing the height and length and breadth and depth in himself, and, as one of the elders said, by the divine extension of his hands gathering the two peoples to the one God; for there are two hands, because there are also two peoples scattered to the ends of the earth, but one head in the middle, because "there is one God who is over all, and through all, and in us all". 17 For this reason, he says, the rulers themselves, having the laws in the abode of justice, for whatever they will do justly and lawfully, they will not be examined concerning these things, but for whatever they will perform unjustly and unlawfully and tyrannically by perverting justice, in these things they will also perish, the just judgment of God reaching all alike. Therefore, earthly rule was established by God for the benefit of the nations, and not by the devil, as some say, so that men, fearing it, might not devour one another like fishes, but through the establishment of laws might check the great injustice of men. And in this respect also "the existing authorities are appointed by God, are ministers of God," as Paul says. It is clear, therefore, that the devil was lying when he said, "because it has been delivered to me, and to whomsoever I will I give it"; for kings are not appointed by his command. For some of them are given for the correction and benefit of their subjects and for the maintenance of justice, others for fear and punishment and rebuke, and others also for mockery and insolence and pride, just as they are worthy of the just judgment of God, as we have said before. 18 And Justin well said that before the advent of the Lord, Satan never dared to blaspheme God, since he did not yet know his own condemnation, because it was set forth in parables and allegories, but after the advent of the Lord, having learned openly from his words and those of the apostles that eternal fire has been prepared for him, who by his own will fell away from God, and for all who unrepentantly remain in the apostasy, through such men he blasphemes the Lord who brings the judgment, as one already condemned, and he attributes the sin of his own apostasy to the one who cast him out, but not to his own free will, just as also those who transgress the laws, and then are punished, blame the lawmakers, but not themselves. 19 To those who keep friendship with God, he gives his own communion; and communion with God is life and light and enjoyment of the good things that come from him. 20 Upon those who by their own will depart from God, he brings separation from himself; and separation from God is death, and separation from light is darkness, and separation from God is the loss of all the good things that come from him. Therefore, those who through apostasy have lost the aforementioned things, since they are deprived of all good things, are engaged in all punishment, from God indeed

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ἠπειθήσαμεν αὐτοῦ τῷ λόγῳ, διὰ τῶν αὐτῶν τὴν ὑπακοὴν εἰσηγήσατο καὶ τὴν πρὸς τὸν λόγον αὐτοῦ πεισμονήν, φανερώτατα αὐτὸν δεικνὺς Θεόν· ἐν μὲν γὰρ τῷ πρώτῳ Ἀδὰμ προσεκόψαμεν μὴ ποιήσαντες αὐτοῦ τὴν ἐντολήν, ἐν δὲ τῷ δευτέρῳ Ἀδὰμ ἀποκατηλλάγημεν ὑπήκοοι μέχρι θανάτου γενόμενοι· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἄλλῳ τινὶ ἦμεν ὀφειλέται, ἀλλ' ἐκείνῳ οὗ καὶ τὴν ἐντολὴν παρέβημεν ἀπ' ἀρχῆς. Ἔστι δὲ οὗτος ὁ ∆ημιουργός, ὁ κατὰ μὲν τὴν ἀγάπην Πατήρ, κατὰ δὲ τὴν δύναμιν Κύριος, κατὰ δὲ τὴν σοφίαν Ποιητὴς καὶ Πλάστης ἡμῶν, οὗ καὶ τὴν ἐντολὴν παραβάντες ἐχθροποιήθημεν πρὸς αὐτόν. Καὶ καιρῷ εἰς φιλίαν ἀποκατέστησεν ἡμᾶς ὁ Κύριος διὰ τῆς ἰδίας σαρκώσεως, «μεσίτης Θεοῦ τε καὶ ἀνθρώπων» γενόμενος. 16 Ὧδε δι' ἔργου ἔδειξεν ὁ προφήτης ὅτι τὸν στερεὸν Λόγον τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὃν ἀμελῶς ἀποβαλόντες οὐχ ηὑρίσκομεν, ἀποληψόμεθα πάλιν διὰ τῆς τοῦ ξύλου οἰκονομίας. Ὅτι δὲ ἀξίνῃ ἔοικεν ὁ Λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ, Ἰωάννης ὁ Βαπτιστής φησι περὶ αὐτοῦ· «Ἤδη δὲ ἡ ἀξίνη πρὸς τὴν ῥίζαν τῶν δένδρων κεῖται.» Καὶ Ἰερεμίας δὲ ὁμοίως φησίν· «Ὁ Λόγος Κυρίου ὡς πέλεκυς κόπτων πέτραν.» Τοῦτον οὖν κεκρυμμένον ἀφ' ἡμῶν ἡ τοῦ ξύλου ἐφανέρωσεν, ὡς προέφαμεν, οἰκονομία. Ἐπεὶ γὰρ διὰ ξύλου ἀπεβάλομεν αὐτόν, διὰ ξύλου πάλιν φανερὸς τοῖς πᾶσιν ἐγένετο, ἐπιδεικνύων τὸ ὕψος καὶ μῆκος καὶ πλάτος καὶ βάθος ἐν ἑαυτῷ καὶ, ὡς ἔφη τις τῶν προβεβηκότων, διὰ τῆς θείας ἐκτάσεως τῶν χειρῶν τοὺς δύο λαοὺς εἰς ἕνα Θεὸν συνάγων· δύο μὲν γὰρ αἱ χεῖρες, ὅτι καὶ δύο λαοὶ διεσπαρμένοι εἰς τὰ πέρατα τῆς γῆς, μία δὲ μέση κεφαλή, ὅτι «εἷς Θεὸς ὁ ἐπὶ πάντων καὶ διὰ πάντων καὶ ἐν πᾶσιν ἡμῖν». 17 ∆ιὰ τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ αὐτοὶ οἱ ἄρχοντες, φησίν, ἐν αὐλίσματι δικαιοσύνης τοὺς νόμους ἔχοντες, ὅσα μὲν δικαίως καὶ νομίμως ποιήσουσιν, οὐ περὶ τούτων ἐτασθήσονται, ὅσα δὲ κατὰ παρατροπὴν τοῦ δικαίου ἀδίκως καὶ ἀνόμως καὶ τυραννικῶς ἐπιτελέσουσιν, ἐν τούτοις καὶ ἀπολοῦνται, τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ δικαιοκρισίας ἅπαντας ὁμοίως ἐξικνουμένης. Ἐπὶ συμφέροντι οὖν τῶν ἐθνῶν ἐπίγειος ἀρχὴ ἐτέθη ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἀλλ' οὐχὶ ὑπὸ τοῦ διαβόλου, ὥς τινές φασιν, ἵνα φοβούμενοι αὐτὴν οἱ ἄνθρωποι ἀλλήλους δίκην ἰχθύων μὴ καταπίνωσιν, ἀλλὰ διὰ τῆς τῶν νόμων θέσεως ἀνακρούωσι τὴν πολλὴν τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἀδικίαν. Καὶ κατὰ τοῦτο καὶ «αἱ οὖσαι ἐξουσίαι ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ τεταγμέναι εἰσὶ λειτουργοὶ Θεοῦ», καθὼς Παῦλός φησι. Φανερὸν οὖν ὅτι ψευδόμενος ὁ διάβολος ἔλεγεν «ὅτι ἐμοὶ παραδέδοται, καὶ ᾧ ἐὰν θέλω δίδωμι αὐτάς»· οὐ γὰρ τῇ τούτου κελεύσει βασιλεῖς καθίστανται. Οἱ μὲν γὰρ αὐτῶν εἰς ἐπανόρθωσιν καὶ ὠφέλειαν τῶν ὑποτεταγμένων δίδονται καὶ συντήρησιν δικαιοσύνης, οἱ δὲ εἰς φόβον καὶ τιμωρίαν καὶ ἐπίπληξιν, οἱ δὲ καὶ εἰς χλευασμὸν ὕβριν τε καὶ ὑπερηφανίαν, καθὼς καὶ ἄξιοί εἰσι τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ δικαιοκρισίας, ὡς προέφημεν. 18 Καὶ καλῶς ὁ Ἰουστῖνος εἶπεν ὅτι πρὸ μὲν τῆς τοῦ Κυρίου παρουσίας οὐδέποτε ἐτόλμησεν ὁ Σατανᾶς βλασφημῆσαι τὸν Θεόν, ἅτε μηδέπω εἰδὼς τὴν ἑαυτοῦ κατάκρισιν, διὰ τὸ ἐν παραβολαῖς καὶ ἀλληγορίαις κεῖσθαι, μετὰ δὲ τὴν παρουσίαν τοῦ Κυρίου ἐκ τῶν λόγων αὐτοῦ καὶ τῶν ἀποστόλων μαθὼν ἀναφανδὸν ὅτι πῦρ αἰώνιον αὐτῷ ἡτοίμασται κατ' ἰδίαν γνώμην ἀποστάντι τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ πᾶσι τοῖς ἀμετανοήτως παραμείνασιν ἐν τῇ ἀποστασίᾳ, διὰ τῶν τοιούτων ἀνθρώπων βλασφημεῖ τὸν τὴν κρίσιν ἐπάγοντα Κύριον, ὡς ἤδη κατακεκριμένος, καὶ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν τῆς ἰδίας ἀποστασίας τῷ ἐκτικότι αὐτὸν ἀποκαλεῖ, ἀλλ' οὐ τῇ ἰδίᾳ αὐθαιρέτῳ γνώμῃ, ὡς καὶ οἱ παραβαίνοντες τοὺς νόμους, ἔπειτα δίκας διδόντες, αἰτιῶνται τοὺς νομοθέτας, ἀλλ' οὐχ ἑαυτούς. 19 Ὅσα τὴν πρὸς Θεὸν τηρεῖ φιλίαν, τούτοις τὴν ἰδίαν παρέχει κοινωνίαν· κοινωνία δὲ Θεοῦ ζωὴ καὶ φῶς καὶ ἀπόλαυσις τῶν παρ' αὐτοῦ ἀγαθῶν. 20 Ὅσα ἀφίστανται κατὰ τὴν γνώμην αὐτῶν τοῦ Θεοῦ, τούτοις τὸν ἀπ' αὐτοῦ χωρισμὸν ἐπάγει· χωρισμὸς δὲ Θεοῦ θάνατος, καὶ χωρισμὸς φωτὸς σκότος, καὶ χωρισμὸς Θεοῦ ἀποβολὴ πάντων τῶν παρ' αὐτοῦ ἀγαθῶν. Οἱ οὖν διὰ τῆς ἀποστασίας ἀποβαλόντες τὰ προειρημένα, ἅτε ἐστερημένοι πάντων τῶν ἀγαθῶν, ἐν πάσῃ κολάσει καταγίνονται, τοῦ Θεοῦ μὲν