boasting, such as was Paul's when he said: "But far be it from me to boast except | in the cross of my Lord Jesus, through whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world." For he almost says that one should not boast in moderation, nor in righteousness, nor in piety or the other virtues, but only in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. And who, having understood the purity of moderation, which does not need to ... against desires and passions, overturning reason[ing which is in dan]ger, would boast as a moderate | man clothed in flesh? For it is desirable if one were to acquire the habit of self-control, which, as some of those skilled in these matters say, happens to be less 168 than moderation. And who, reading, "Whoever looks at a woman to" *** And who is so able as to never consider the unwise wise, nor the wise not wise? | And having understood the analogous thing concerning the other virtues, you will see how all boasting has been excluded from the human race, and truly all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by his grace *** the "Where then is boasting?" and that he has answered the question to himself, saying: "It is excluded" *** wherefore perhaps it is add|ed: "Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not also of the Gentiles?" For the law of God, more authoritative than the law of the letter, the one written on the hearts of men by the God of not only Jews but also of Gentiles. But he who does not know that boasting was excluded through the law of faith, will boast out of ignorance, not even having paid attention to what was said by | Solomon, which goes like this: "Who will boast that he has a pure heart, or who will be bold, saying that he is cle[a]n from sins?" *** ‖ [Rom. 3, 29-30] And what sort of God is the God of the Jews in secret, that I may speak condescendingly to them, and of the other nations besides these? 170 For if it is the unbegotten, according to them, how could he also be the God of the psychics who do not know him? But if it is the demiurge, as they distinguish, how could th|is one be the God of the pneumatics? And how, according to them, if indeed God is not the God of the dead but of the living, could he also be the God of the Gentiles, or as they would name them, of the psychics, who do not possess the title of the living? *** And through these things he also seems to show that those who have believed in Jesus, whether the circumcised or the uncircumcised, are saved, wh[e]n still the one group | practices the things of the law of Moses as far as possible, while the others live according to the freedom of Christ *** After this, let us consider in what way the circumcision that is justified from faith differs from the uncircumcision that is justified not from faith but through faith. For it must not be thought that Paul randomly u|sed the preposition "from" in the case of circumcision, and "through" in the case of uncircumcision. For neither in other places does he appear to have used the difference between these randomly (for example, in the letter to the Corinthians, "The woman," he says, "is from the man, but the man is through the woman"), and somewhere discussing God, that "Through him and from him and to him 172 are all things." Indeed it seems to me that "from something" is more akin | to "from whom" than "through something" is to "through whom," and "from something" is closer to "from whom" than "through something" is to "through whom." For she is primarily from man, and never through man; for woman is never from another so as to come to be through man, and especially when you hear these things according to Adam and Eve on account of "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my | flesh." But the man is never from the woman; but although he himself is primarily from man, he afterwards comes to be through woman; but this no longer applies to Adam but to every man after him *** and then again scripture <<would>> not have said: All things came to be through God but All things through the Word and not by the Word nor from the Word *** Since, therefore, circumcision is nobler than uncircumcision, circumcision is justified <from faith> as being, so to speak, better than uncircumcision, but the inferior, the uncircumcision, proceeds through faith in order to be justified, not having come from faith; for one who believes comes to circumcision, and

καύχησις, ὁποία ἦν ἡ Παύλου λέγοντος· «Ἐμοὶ δὲ μὴ γένοιτο καυχᾶσθαι, εἰ μὴ | ἐν τῷ σταυρῷ τοῦ Κυρίου μου Ἰησοῦ δι' οὗ ἐμοὶ κόσμος ἐσταύρωται κἀγὼ τῷ κόσμῳ». Μονονουχὶ γάρ φησιν ὅτι μὴ γέ νοιτο καυχᾶσθαι ἐπὶ σωφροσύνῃ μηδὲ ἐπὶ δικαιοσύνῃ, μηδὲ ἐπὶ εὐσεβείᾳ ἢ ταῖς λοιπαῖς ἀρεταῖς, ἢ ἐν μόνῳ τῷ σταυρῷ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ ·· Τίς δὲ τὸ τῆς σωφροσύνης καθαρὸν κατανοήσας μὴ χρῃζούσης ····σθαι πρὸς τὰς ὀρέξεις καὶ τὰ πάθη ἀνατρέπειν τὸν λογισμ[ὸν κινδυ]νεύοντα καυχήσαιτο ἂν ὡς σώφρων | ἄνθρωπος σάρκα περικείμενος· ἀγαπητὸν γὰρ εἰ τὴν ἐγκρά τειάν τις ἀναλάβοι ἕξιν, ὥς φασίν τινες τῶν περὶ ταῦτα δεινῶν, ἐλάττονα 168 τῆς σωφροσύνης τυγχάνουσαν. Καὶ τίς ἀναγινώσκων τὸ «Ὃς ἂν ἐμβλέπῃ γυναικὶ πρ» *** Τίς δ' οὕτως δυνατὸς ὥστε μὴ ἄν ποτε τὸ μὴ σοφὸν σοφὸν νομίσαι μηδὲ τὸ σοφὸν οὐ σοφόν; | Τὸ δ' ἀνάλογον νοήσας περὶ τῶν λοιπῶν ἀρετῶν ὄψει πῶς πᾶσα καύχησις ἐξεκλείσθη ἀπὸ τοῦ γένους τῶν ἀνθρώπων καὶ ἀληθῶς πάντες ἥμαρτον καὶ ὑστεροῦνται τῆς δόξης τοῦ Θεοῦ, δικαιούμενοι δωρεὰν τῇ αὐτοῦ χάριτι *** τὸ «Ποῦ οὖν ἡ καύχησις;» καὶ ἀποκεκρίσθαι πρὸς τὸ πύσμα αὐτὸν ἑαυτῷ λέγοντα· «Ἐξεκλείσθη» *** διὸ τάχα ἐπι|φέρεται· «ἢ Ἰουδαίων ὁ Θεὸς μόνον; οὐχὶ καὶ ἐθνῶν;» Ὁ γὰρ τοῦ Θεοῦ νόμος, ὁ τοῦ νόμου τοῦ γράμματος κυριώτερος, ὁ ἐγγραφεὶς ταῖς καρδίαις τῶν ἀνθρώπων ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν μὴ Ἰουδαίων μόνον ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐθνῶν. Ὁ δὲ μὴ εἰδὼς ὅτι ἡ καύχησις ἐξεκλείσθη διὰ τοῦ τῆς πίστεως νόμου, ἐκ τῆς ἀγνοίας καυχήσεται μηδὲ ὑπὸ | Σολομῶντος εἰρημένῳ ἐπιστήσας τοῦτον ἔχοντι τὸν τρόπον· «Τίς καυχήσεται ἁγνὴν ἔχειν τὴν καρδίαν ἢ τίς παρρησιάσεται λέγων καθαρ[ὸ]ς εἶναι ἀπὸ ἁμαρτιῶν;» *** ‖ [Rom. 3, 29-30] Ποῖος δὲ Θεὸς τῶν ἐν κρυπτῷ Ἰουδαίων Θεός ἐστιν, ἵνα συμπεριφερομένως αὐτοῖς εἴπω, καὶ τῶν ἑτέρων παρὰ τούτους ἐθνῶν; 170 Εἰ μὲν γὰρ ὁ κατ' αὐτοὺς ἀγένητος, πῶς ἂν εἴη καὶ τῶν ψυχικῶν μὴ γινωσ κόντων αὐτὸν Θεός; Εἰ δὲ ὡς αὐτοὶ χωρίζουσιν ὁ δημιουργός, πῶς ἂν εἴη οὗ|τος τῶν πνευματικῶν Θεός; Πῶς δὲ κατ' αὐτοὺς εἴπερ Θεὸς οὐκ ἔστιν Θεὸς νεκρῶν ἀλλὰ ζώντων εἴη ἂν καὶ τῶν ἐθνῶν ἢ ὡς ἂν ἐκεῖνοι ὀνομά σαιεν τῶν ψυχικῶν Θεός, μὴ τυγχανόντων τῆς τῶν ζώντων προσηγορίας; *** Ἔοικεν δὲ καὶ διὰ τούτων παριστάνειν ὅτι πιστεύσαντες εἰς τὸν Ἰησοῦν εἴτε οἱ περιτεμνόμενοι εἴτε οἱ ἀκρόβυστοι σῴζονται [ὅ]τ̣αν ἔτι οἱ μὲν | ἕτεροι τὰ τοῦ νόμου Μωσέως πράττωσιν κατὰ τὸ δυνατόν, οἱ δὲ λοιποὶ κατὰ τὴν Χριστοῦ ἐλευθερίαν πολιτεύωνται *** Μετὰ ταῦτα ἐπιστήσωμεν τίνι διαφέρει ἡ ἐκ πίστεως δικαιουμένη περι τομὴ τῆς οὐκ ἐκ πίστεως ἀλλὰ διὰ πίστεως δικαιουμένης ἀκροβυστίας. Οὐ γὰρ νομιστέον ὡς ἔτυχεν τὸν Παῦλον ἐπὶ μὲν τῆς περιτομῆς κε|χρῆσθαι τῇ «ἔκ» προθέσει, ἐπὶ δὲ τῆς ἀκροβυστίας τῇ «διά». Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐν ἄλλοις φαίνεται τῇ διαφορᾷ τούτων ὡς ἔτυχεν χρησάμενος (οἷον ἐν τῇ πρὸς Κορινθίους «Ἡ γυνή, φησίν, ἐκ τοῦ ἀνδρός, ὁ δὲ ἀνὴρ διὰ τῆς γυναικός»), καὶ περὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ που διαλεγόμενος ὅτι «∆ι' αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐξ αὐτοῦ καὶ εἰς αὐτὸν 172 τὰ πάντα». ∆οκεῖ δή μοι οἰκειότερον εἶναι | τὸ «ἔκ τινος» τῷ «ἐξ οὗ» ἤπερ τὸ «διά τινος» τῷ «δι' οὗ», καὶ προσεχέστερον τὸ «ἔκ τινος» τῷ «ἐξ οὗ» ἤπερ τὸ «διά τινος» τῷ «δι' οὗ». Ἡ μὲν γὰρ πρώτως ἐξ ἀνδρός ἐστιν, οὐδέ ποτε δι' ἀνδρός· οὐ γὰρ ἐξ ἄλλου ποτὲ γυνὴ ἵνα γένηται δι' ἀνδρός, καὶ μάλιστα ἐπὰν ἀκούῃς τούτων κατὰ τὸν Ἀδὰμ καὶ τὴν Εὔαν διὰ τὸ «Τοῦτο νῦν ὀστοῦν ἐκ τῶν ὀστέων μου καὶ σὰρξ ἐκ τῆς | σαρκός μου». Ὁ δὲ ἀνὴρ οὐδέποτε ἐκ τῆς γυναικός· ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὸς πρώτως ἐξ ἀνδρὸς ὢν μετὰ ταῦτα γίνεται διὰ γυναικός· ἀλλὰ τοῦτο οὐκέτι ἁρμόζει ἐπὶ τοῦ Ἀδὰμ ἀλλ' ἐπὶ παντὸς ἀνδρὸς μετ' ἐκεῖνον *** πάλιν τε αὖ οὐκ <<ἂν>> εἶπεν ἡ γραφή· Πάντα διὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐγένετο ἀλλὰ Πάντα διὰ τοῦ λόγου καὶ οὐχ ὑπὸ τοῦ λόγου οὐδ' ἐκ τοῦ λόγου *** Ἐπεὶ τοίνυν εὐγενέστερον περιτομὴ ἀκροβυστίας, δικαιοῦται περιτομὴ <ἐκ πίστεως> ὡσπερεὶ βέλτιον τῆς ἀκροβυστίας ὑπάρχον, τὸ δὲ ὑποδεέστερον ἡ ἀκροβυστία ὁδεύει διὰ τῆς πίστεως ἵνα δικαιωθῇ, οὐκ ἐλθοῦσα ἐκ πίστεως· πιστεύσας γάρ τις ἔρχεται εἰς τὴν περιτομήν, καὶ