7

just as they also think. But law and just indignation is more against those who dare things against a king, than against any of his subjects. For if these things must be thought of in this way, they will then attribute either ignorance to God, as to how He will punish and hinder evil, or powerlessness. But neither of these things is true of the good God; therefore, an uncreated enemy of God would not have risen up against Him; but having been created to be good, he kept the power of virtue incomplete, but brought the aptitude for wickedness into action; for which he must be punished, and was reasonably after a long time subjected to punishment. But if they should also bring forward that which was said by John the Baptist to those who came to baptism with hypocrisy, which is as follows: You snakes, you brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce, therefore, fruit worthy of repentance, and do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. And now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree that does not produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Let them hear, that they cannot bring forward things which they do not accept.

39.1105 For they do not accept John the Baptist, who is one from the Old Scripture. Nevertheless, even so it must be said to them: Through the whole context he refutes the idea of being good by nature and evil by nature. For he says to them: Produce, therefore, fruit worthy of repentance. But repentance and its fruit applies neither to one who is evil by essence, nor to one who is good by nature. For how does the one who is always good need repentance? Or how can the one who is evil by nature make use of the good of repentance? For he who is evil by essence cannot turn aside from sin; but neither does repentance happen for the benefit of the good. Moreover, also from the stones, which were pointed out by him, he says that children would be raised up to Abraham; and by "stones" he means foolish men, and men still abiding in wickedness. For if these should repent and believe in God, they will be children of Abraham, who for this reason was called a man of God, because he believed in God himself, so that his faith was counted for righteousness. Since we have also heard that thing said by them to those born from Abraham and the other holy men, the saying, "You snakes, you brood of vipers," signifies those around Abraham as vipers; let them know that they say things that conflict with the sequence of the chapter. For he rebukes them as not being of Abraham, but a brood of vipers, pretending and vainly boasting to be of Abraham. For in another chapter the Savior says to them: Abraham did not do this, whom you falsely claim to be your father. For if you were children of Abraham, you would do the works of Abraham. But you are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. For he was a murderer from the beginning, and has not stood in the truth. And it was well to say, "has not stood," showing that he previously stood in the truth. And he calls the devil their father, because of the similarity of their turning and quality. So he did not call Abraham and the saints with him vipers. For they had this from a change, to be sons of vipers, because they had made use of evil teachers, as has been said, according to their own choice.

John, therefore, says to them: Since by a change from virtue you wished to become snakes—for you were not such by essence—cease from being a brood of vipers, whose quality you wished to have. For you have striven to be wicked from the wicked, and unjust from the unjust. But since, by coming to baptism, you say you bring a sign of repentance, but you do this hypocritically, I say to you: Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? For he who repents, for this reason

7

ὥσπερ καὶ φρονοῦσιν. Νόμος δὲ καὶ ἀγανάκτησις δικαία ἐστὶ μᾶλλον ἡ κατὰ τῶν κατὰ βασιλέως τολμώντων, ἤ τινων τῶν ὑπηκόων. Εἰ γὰρ ταῦτα οὕτως φρονητέα, ἢ ἄγνοιαν προσάψουσι τῷ Θεῷ τότε, τοῦ πῶς τιμωρήσεται καὶ ἐμποδίσῃ τὸ κακὸν, ἢ ἀδυναμίαν. Ἀλλ' οὐδέτερον τούτων περὶ τὸν ἀγαθὸν Θεόν· οὐκ ἄρα ἀγενήτως ἐχθρὸς ἂν Θεοῦ ἐπανέβη κατ' αὐτοῦ· ἀλλὰ γενόμενος ἐπὶ τῷ εἶναι ἀγαθὸς, τὴν μὲν δύναμιν τῆς ἀρετῆς ἀτελῆ ἐφύλαξεν, τὴν δὲ τῆς κακίας ἐπιτηδειότητα εἰς ἐνέργειαν ἤγαγεν· δι' ὃ καὶ κολαστέος, καὶ εἰκότως μετὰ πολὺ τιμωρίᾳ ὑπεβλήθη. Εἰ δὲ κἀκεῖνο προφέροιντο, τὸ λεχθὲν ὑπὸ τοῦ Βαπτιστοῦ Ἰωάννου τοῖς μεθ' ὑποκρίσεως εἰς τὸ βάπτισμα ἐλθοῦσιν, οὕτως ἔχον· Ὄφεις, γεννήματα ἐχιδνῶν, τίς ὑπέδειξεν ὑμῖν φυγεῖν ἀπὸ τῆς μελλούσης ὀργῆς; Ποιήσατε οὖν καρπὸν ἄξιον τῆς μετανοίας, καὶ μὴ δόξητε λέγειν ἐν ἑαυτοῖς, ὅτι πατέρα ἔχομεν τὸν Ἀβραάμ. ∆ύναται γὰρ ὁ Θεὸς ἐκ τῶν λίθων τούτων ἐγεῖραι τέκνα τῷ Ἀβραάμ. Ἤδη δὲ ἡ ἀξίνη πρὸς τὴν ῥίζαν τῶν δένδρων κεῖται. Πᾶν οὖν δένδρον μὴ ποιοῦν καρπὸν καλὸν ἐκκόπτεται, καὶ εἰς πῦρ βάλλεται. Ἀκουέτωσαν, ὅτι οὐ δύνανται προφέρειν, ἀφ' ὧν μὴ παραδέχονται.

39.1105 Οὐ γὰρ δέχονται τὸν Βαπτιστὴν Ἰωάννην, τυγχάνοντα ἕνα τῆς Παλαιᾶς Γραφῆς. Ὅμως δὲ καὶ οὕτως ῥητέον πρὸς αὐτούς· ∆ιὰ πάσης τῆς συμφράσεως ἀναιρεῖ τὸ φύσει ἀγαθοὺς καὶ φύσει εἶναι κακούς. Λέγει γὰρ πρὸς αὐτούς· Ποιήσατε οὖν καρπὸν ἄξιον τῆς μετανοίας. Μετάνοια δὲ καὶ καρπὸς αὐτῆς οὐ πίπτει, οὔτε πρὸς τὸν κατ' οὐσίαν κακὸν, οὔτε πρὸς τὸν φύσει ἀγαθὸν ὄντα. Πῶς γὰρ ὁ αἰεὶ ἀγαθὸς χρῄζει μετανοίας; ἢ πῶς ὁ φύσει κακὸς χρήσηται τῷ ἀγαθῷ τῆς μετανοίας; Ὁ γὰρ κατ' οὐσίαν ὢν κακὸς, ἐκτραπῆναι τῆς ἁμαρτίας οὐ δύναται· ἀλλ' οὐδὲ ἐπ' ὠφελείᾳ μετάνοια γίνεται τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ. Ἔτι μὴν καὶ ἐκ τῶν λίθων, τῶν δεικνυμένων ὑπ' αὐτοῦ, λέγει τέκνα ἐγερθήσεσθαι τῷ Ἀβραάμ· λίθους δὲ λέγων τοὺς ἠλιθίους, καὶ ἔτι ἐμμένοντας τῇ κακίᾳ ἀνθρώπους. Εἰ γὰρ μετανοήσαιεν οὗτοι, καὶ πιστεύσαιεν τῷ Θεῷ, τέκνα τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ ἔσονται, ὃς διὰ τοῦτο ἄνθρωπος Θεοῦ ἐχρημάτισεν, ὅτι ἐπίστευσεν εἰς αὐτὸν τὸν Θεὸν, ὡς τὴν πίστιν αὐτοῦ εἰς δικαιοσύνην λογισθῆναι. Ἐπεὶ δὲ κἀκεῖνο ἠκούσαμεν λεγόμενον ὑπ' αὐτῶν πρὸς τοὺς ἐκ τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἁγίων ἀνδρῶν γεγεννημένους, τὸ, Ὄφεις, γεννήματα ἐχιδνῶν, λεγόμενον, ἐχίδνας τοὺς ἀμφὶ τὸν Ἀβραὰμ δηλοῖ· ἴστωσαν μαχόμενα τῇ ἀκολουθίᾳ τοῦ κεφαλαίου λέγοντες. Ἐλέγχει γὰρ αὐτοὺς, ὡς μὴ τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ ὄντας, ἀλλ' ἐχιδνῶν γεννήματα, προσποιουμένους καὶ μάτην αὐχοῦντας εἶναι τοῦ Ἀβραάμ. Λέγει γὰρ ἐν ἑτέρῳ κεφαλαίῳ ὁ Σωτὴρ πρὸς αὐτούς· Τοῦτο Ἀβραὰμ οὐκ ἐποίησεν ὃν λέγετε πατέρα ὑμῶν εἶναι ψευδόμενοι. Εἰ γὰρ τέκνα ἦτε τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ, ἐποιεῖτε ἂν τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ τὰ ἔργα. Ἀλλ' ὑμεῖς ἐκ τοῦ πατρὸς ὑμῶν ἐστε τοῦ διαβόλου, καὶ τὰς ἐπιθυμίας τοῦ πατρὸς ὑμῶν θέλετε ποιεῖν. Ἐκεῖνος γὰρ ἀνθρωποκτόνος ἐστὶν ἀπ' ἀρχῆς, καὶ ἐν τῇ ἀληθείᾳ οὐχ ἕστηκεν. Εὖ δὲ καὶ τὸ εἰπεῖν, Οὐχ ἕστηκεν, δεικνὺς αὐτὸν πρότερον ἱστάμενον ἐν τῇ ἀληθείᾳ. Πατέρα δὲ αὐτῶν λέγει τὸν διάβολον, διὰ τὴν ὁμοίωσιν τῆς τροπῆς καὶ τῆς ποιότητος. Ὥστε οὐ τὸν Ἀβραὰμ καὶ τοὺς σὺν αὐτῷ ἁγίους ἐχίδνας εἶπεν. Ἐκ μεταβολῆς γὰρ ἔσχον τοῦτο, τὸ υἱοὶ ἐχιδνῶν εἶναι, διὰ τὸ αὐτοὺς πονηροῖς κεχρῆσθαι διδασκάλοις, ὡς εἴρηται, κατὰ ἰδίαν προαίρεσιν.

Λέγει τοίνυν ὁ Ἰωάννης αὐτοῖς· Ἐπεὶ κατὰ μεταβολὴν τὴν ἐξ ἀρετῆς ὄφεις ἠθελήσατε γενέσθαι οὐδὲ γὰρ κατ' οὐσίαν ἧσαν τοιοῦτοι, παύσασθε τοῦ εἶναι ἐχιδνῶν γεννήματα, ὧν ἐθελήσατε τὴν ποιότητα ἔχειν. Πονηροὶ γὰρ ἐκ πονηρῶν, καὶ ἄδικοι ἐξ ἀδίκων ἐσπουδάσατε εἶναι. Ἀλλ' ἐπεὶ, διὰ τὸ ἐπὶ τὸ βάπτισμα ἔρχεσθαι, μετανοίας λέγετε σημεῖον φέρειν, προσποιητῶς δὲ τοῦτο ποιεῖτε, λέγω ὑμῖν· Τίς ὑπέδειξεν ὑμῖν φυγεῖν ἀπὸ τῆς μελλούσης ὀργῆς; Ὁ γὰρ μετανοῶν, διὰ τοῦτο