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remaining rich. “because of the passing over of the sins previously committed, in the forbearance of God, for the demonstration of his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” That is, the putting to death; for sins put us to death, according to, The soul that sins, it shall die, “Where then is boasting?” Having established their need of grace, he confidently adds that they can no longer boast in the law; so it is, not that it had no power to save any of them, but that it even condemned them. “It is excluded. By what kind of law? Of works? No.” He did not say, it was abolished, or it has been corrupted, sparing the listener. “But by the law of faith.” Since he saw that the Jew was especially attached to the name of the law, for this reason he also calls the grace through faith the law of faith. “For we consider that a person is justified by faith apart from works of the law.” Instead of this, our confidence, this was made manifest. “Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, since God is one—who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith.” Again, proposing a salvation common to all men, he nobly contends, saying: Since God is the creator of all men, for this reason He saves all. For no one can say that He is God of the Jews, but not of the Gentiles; for being the one creator of all, He is clearly also the Savior of all. “Do we then overthrow the law through faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law.” Since he said the law of works is excluded, 95.468 so that one cannot boast in it, for this reason he adds: Do not be troubled, he says. For faith does not abolish the law, but establishes the law. And how does it establish it? The law has one purpose, to save man; but if faith does this, and saves by grace, it clearly establishes the purpose of the law.

CHAPTER IV. “What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, has found?”

Since the Jews turned this over and over, that the patriarch and friend of God was the first to receive circumcision, he wants to teach that he too was justified by faith; and he called him father according to the flesh, excluding them from genuine kinship with him, and preparing the way for the Gentiles' close relationship with him. “For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? 'Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.'” There are two boasts, the one from works, and the one from faith. And the boast from faith is much greater than that from works; for the one boasting in works has his own labors to put forward, but the one who prides himself on believing God displays a much greater occasion for boasting, since he has glorified and magnified God; and the one who works the commandments, has obeyed him; but the one who believed, has received the proper opinion concerning him, and more than by the demonstration of works has glorified and marveled; and that boast belongs to the one who achieves it. But this one glorifies God, and is entirely His; for he boasts in having great imaginings about Him, which pass over to His glory. “Now to the one who works, the wages are not counted as a gift but as a debt. But to the one who does not work, but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness.” Do you wish, he says, to know the difference between faith and works? Test each from its end, and you will find that the end for those who work is a wage, but the outcome for those who believe is righteousness. For one succeeds in not murdering or committing adultery, or something of that sort; but the other receives the proper opinion concerning God, that He is able not only to release the ungodly from punishment, but also to declare him righteous. “Just as David also speaks of the blessing of the man to whom God counts righteousness apart from works: 'Blessed are

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μένοντα πλούσιον. «∆ιὰ τὴν πάρεσιν τῶν προγεγονότων ἁμαρτημάτων ἐν τῇ ἀνοχῇ τοῦ Θεοῦ, πρὸς τὴν ἔνδειξιν τῆς δικαιοσύνης αὐτοῦ ἐν τῷ νῦν καιρῷ, εἰς τὸ εἶναι αὐτὸν δίκαιον, καὶ δικαιοῦντα τὸν ἐκ πίστεως Ἰησοῦν.» Τουτέστι, τὴν νέκρωσιν· ἐνέκρωσαν γὰρ ἡμᾶς τὰ ἁμαρτήματα, κατὰ τὸ, Ψυχὴ ἁμαρτάνουσα, αὕτη καὶ ἀποθανεῖται, «Ποῦ οὖν ἡ καύχησις;» Κατασκευάσας τὸ δεῖσθαι αὐτοὺς τῆς χάριτος, θαῤῥῶν ἐπάγει τὸ μὴ δύνασθαι αὐτοὺς ἔτι καυχᾶσθαι ἐν νόμῳ· οὕτω γε, οὐχ ὅτι σώζειν οὐκ ἴσχυεν αὐτῶν τινα, ἀλλὰ καὶ κατέκρινεν. «Ἐξεκλείσθη· διὰ ποίου νόμου; τῶν ἔργων; Οὐχί.» Οὐκ εἶπεν, ἀνῃρέθη, ἢ διέφθαρται, φειδόμενος τοῦ ἀκροατοῦ. «Ἀλλὰ διὰ νόμου πίστεως.» Ἐπειδὴ τῷ ὀνόματι τοῦ νόμου ἔβλεπεν μάλιστα τὸν Ἰουδαῖον προσκείμενον, τούτου ἕνεκα καὶ τὴν διὰ πίστεως χάριν ὀνομάζει πίστεως νόμον. «Λογιζόμεθα γὰρ δικαιοῦσθαι πίστει ἄνθρωπον χωρὶς ἔργων νόμου.» Ἀντὶ τούτου, τὸ θαῤῥοῦμεν, τοῦτο ἐφανερώθη. «Ἢ Ἰουδαίων ὁ Θεὸς μόνον, οὐχὶ καὶ ἐθνῶν; Ναὶ καὶ ἐθνῶν· εἴπερ εἷς ὁ Θεὸς, ὃς δικαιώσει περιτομὴν ἐκ πίστεως, καὶ ἀκροβυστίαν διὰ πίστεως.» Πάλιν κοινὴν πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις τὴν σωτηρίαν προθεὶς, γενναίως ἀγωνίζεται φάσκων· Ἐπειδὴ πάντων ἀνθρώπων ποιητής ἐστιν ὁ Θεὸς, τούτου χάριν τοὺς πάντας σώζει. Οὐ γὰρ ἔχει τις εἰπεῖν, ὡς Ἰουδαίων μέν ἐστι Θεὸς, τῶν δὲ ἐθνῶν οὔ· εἷς δὲ πάντων κτίστης, πάντων ἐστὶ καὶ Σωτὴρ δηλονότι. «Νόμον οὖν καταργοῦμεν διὰ τῆς πίστεως; Μὴ γένοιτο! ἀλλὰ νόμον ἱστάνομεν.» Ἐπειδὴ εἶπεν τὸν νόμον τῶν ἔργων ἐκκεκλεῖσθαι, 95.468 ὡς μὴ δύνασθαι ἐν αὐτῷ καυχᾶσθαι, λοιπὸν τούτου χάριν ἐπάγει· Μὴ θορυβηθῇς, φησίν. Οὐ γὰρ νόμον ἡ πίστις ἀναιρεῖ, ἀλλὰ τὸν νόμον συνίστησι. Πῶς δὲ συνίστησιν; εἷς σκοπὸς τῷ νόμῳ, τὸ τὸν ἄνθρωπον σῶσαι· εἰ δὲ ἡ πίστις τοῦτο ποιεῖ, καὶ σώζει τῇ χάριτι, τὸν σκοπὸν δηλονότι τοῦ νόμου συνίστησιν.

ΚΕΦΑΛ. ∆ʹ. «Τί οὖν ἐροῦμεν εὑρηκέναι Ἀβραὰμ τὸν προπάτορα ἡμῶν κατὰ σάρκα;»

Ἐπειδὴ ἄνω καὶ κάτω τοῦτο ἔστρεφον οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι, ὅτι ὁ πατριάρχης καὶ τῷ Θεῷ φίλος περιτομὴν ἐδέξατο πρῶτος, βούλεται διδάξαι, ὅτι κἀκεῖνος ἐκ πίστεως ἐδικαιώθη· πατέρα δὲ αὐτὸν κατὰ σάρκα ἐκάλεσεν, ἐκβαλὼν αὐτοὺς τῆς πρὸς αὐτὸν γνησίας συγγενείας, καὶ προοδοποιῶν τοῖς ἔθνεσι τὴν πρὸς αὐτὸν ἀγχιστείαν. «Εἰ γὰρ Ἀβραὰμ ἐξ ἔργων ἐδικαιώθη, ἔχει καύχημα, ἀλλ' οὐ πρὸς τὸν Θεόν. Τί γὰρ ἡ Γραφὴ λέγει; Ἐπίστευσεν δὲ Ἀβραὰμ τῷ Θεῷ, καὶ ἐλογίσθη αὐτῷ εἰς δικαιοσύνην.» ∆ύο εἰσὶ καυχήματα, τὸ μὲν ἀπὸ τῶν ἔργων, τὸ δὲ ἀπὸ τῆς πίστεως. Πόλυ δὲ μεῖζον τοῦ ἀπὸ τῶν ἔργων τὸ ἀπὸ τῆς πίστεως· ὁ μὲν ἐπὶ τοῖς ἔργοις καυχούμενος, τοὺς οἰκείους ἔχει προβαλέσθαι πόνους, ὁ δὲ ἐπὶ τὸ πιστεῦσαι τῷ Θεῷ καλλωπιζόμενος, πολὺ μείζονα καυχήσεως ἀφορμὴν ἐπιδείκνυται, ἅτε δοξάσας καὶ μεγαλύνας τὸν Θεόν· καὶ ὁ μὲν ἐργαζόμενος τὰς ἐντολὰς, ὑπήκουσεν αὐτῷ· ὁ δὲ πιστεύσας, τὴν προσήκουσαν ἔλαβεν περὶ αὐτοῦ δόξαν, καὶ τῆς διὰ τῶν ἔργων ἐπιδείξεως μειζόνως ἐδόξασεν καὶ ἐθαύμασεν· καὶ ἐκεῖνο μὲν τὸ καύχημα τοῦ κατορθοῦντός ἐστιν. Τοῦτο δὲ Θεὸν δοξάζει, καὶ ὅλον ἐστὶν αὐτοῦ· καυχᾶται γὰρ ἐπὶ τῷ περὶ αὐτοῦ μεγάλα φαντάζεσθαι, ἅπερ εἰς τὴν ἐκείνου διαβαίνει δόξαν. «Τῷ δὲ ἐργαζομένῳ ὁ μισθὸς οὐ λογίζεται κατὰ χάριν, ἀλλὰ κατὰ ὀφείλημα· τῷ δὲ μὴ ἐργαζομένῳ, πιστεύοντι δὲ ἐπὶ τὸν δικαιοῦντα τὸν ἀσεβῆ, λογίζεται ἡ πίστις αὐτοῦ εἰς δικαιοσύνην.» Βούλει, φησὶ, τῆς πίστεως καὶ τῶν ἔργων εἰδέναι τὸ μέσον; Ἕκαστον ἀπὸ τέλους δοκίμαζε, καὶ εὑρήσεις, τῶν μὲν ἐργαζομένων μισθὸν ὄντα τὸ τέλος, τῶν δὲ πιστευόντων δικαιοσύνην ὑπάρχειν τὸ πέρας. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ μὴ φονεύειν ἢ μοιχεύειν κατορθοῖ, ἢ τί τοιοῦτο· ὁ δὲ τὴν προσήκουσαν δόξαν λαμβάνει περὶ Θεοῦ, ὅτι τὸν ἀσεβῆ οὐ μόνον ἀπαλλάξαι δίκης ἰσχύει, ἀλλὰ καὶ δίκαιον ἀποφῆναι. «Καθάπερ καὶ ∆αβὶδ λέγει τὸν μακαρισμὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου, οὗ ὁ Θεὸς λογίζεται δικαιοσύνην χωρὶς ἔργων· Μακάριοι