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better for those growing, but not for those beginning; since it is as heavy, as more solid food is for infants. But when, by the wiles of the envious murderer, persuaded by the deceptions of the womanly word, he tasted prematurely the sweet-eaten fruit, and put on tunics of skin, the heavy flesh, as a bearer of death (for Christ armed sin with death), he came outside the grove to the earth from which he was born, and received a life of much toil. And to it He set His own fiery Zeal as a precious key to the plant, 456 lest Adam, the former, should prematurely come within, before he flees the devouring food of the sweet shoot, and, being evil, approach the plant of life; and as a seafarer driven back by wintry winds came back again, and again either by spreading his sail to lighter breezes, or with toil at the oars, again completed his voyage, so we, having fallen far from the great God, not without toil do we traverse back our welcome voyage. Such a newly-sown ruin came from the first-born upon wretched mortals, from whence the ear of corn has sprouted. 9. Concerning the Covenants and the Epiphany of Christ. Come now and inquire into the word of the twofold law. 457 The one which is older, and the one which newly appeared, first to the Hebrews, since they first knew God who rules on high, and then to the ends of the earth. For God does not lead mortals with warring doctrines, as if He were ignorant, being the Word that knows all things, nor with counsels that change, which is a reproach even for mortals. But this is my word of God's loving aid. When the raging one first cast Adam from paradise, having stolen him with the baneful fruit of the man-slaying plant, as one strikes with shame an army whose leader has perished, he sought to plant evil and doom also for his children. And having broken away from the heavenly God by a mind-stealing counsel, he turned mortal's eyes toward the starry heaven, 458 blooming with all-shining beauties, and toward the forms of the dead, which longing fashioned and myth honored, faithful in evils not foreign, a liar unrefuted, growing with the ever-advancing years. The destructive race of the sacred Hebrews did not yield to the prophets lamenting, beseeching, ever proclaiming the wrath of the Lord. Indeed, before that they were destroying them. Nor indeed did the kings fear, but rather even of these the more were more evil, nor did they at all forsake the groves, nor the mountain tops, and the bloody demons. For this reason they also drew upon themselves the jealous wrath of the great God, and were shaken out. But I came in their place 459 drawing for them a path of zeal by guidance, to be brought back again to the pious faith of Christ, when they have turned late, after they are sated with sorrow, through envy of the newcomer people, for whom they were exchanged. But these things hereafter. But as they held the law in dishonor, at last such a race of mortals partook of honor, by the nods of the immortal Father, and by the works of the Son. Christ, seeing how much of the heavenly portion He had placed in the mortal body was being devoured by soul-devouring evil, and the crooked serpent ruling mortals, so that He might raise up His own lot, no longer sent the sickness to other helpers (for a small cure is not sufficient for great sufferings); but emptying Himself of His glory, the motherless Son of the immortal God the Father 460 He Himself also, without a father, appeared to me as a strange son; Not strange, for from me this immortal one came, made mortal through a virgin mother, so that He, being whole, might save me wholly. For Adam fell wholly through a sinful taste. For that reason, by human and not mortal laws, in the holy womb of an unwed woman, having been made flesh (O wonder, unbelievable to the weakest!) came God and mortal, gathering two natures into one, the one hidden, the other manifest to mortals; of which the one was God, and the other was lately made for us. One God from both, since being mixed with divinity, both mortal from divinity, the Lord and Christ subsisted; so that as another, new Adam, having appeared to earthly beings, He might heal the former one, and having been covered about with a veil 461 (for it was not possible for Him to approach my sufferings),

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ἀεξομένοισιν ἀρείων, Ἀλλ' οὐκ ἀρχομένοισιν· ἐπεὶ τόσον ἐστὶ βαρεῖα, Ὅσσον νηπιάχοισι τελειοτέρη τις ἐδωδή. Ἀλλ' ἐπεὶ οὖν φθονεροῖο παλαίσμασιν ἀνδροφόνοιο, Θηλυτέροιο λόγοιο παραιφασίῃσι πιθήσας, Γεύσατο μὲν καρποῖο προώριος ἡδυβόροιο, ∆ερματίνους δὲ χιτῶνας ἐφέσσατο σάρκα βαρεῖαν Νεκροφόρος (θανάτῳ γὰρ ἁμαρτάδα Χριστὸς ἔκορσεν), Ἦλθε μὲν ἄλσεος ἐκτὸς ἐπὶ χθόνα τῆς γένος ἦεν, Καὶ ζωὴν πολύμοχθον ἐδέξατο. Τῷ δ' ἄρ' ἔθηκε Ζῆλον ἑὸν πυρόεντα φυτῷ κληῖδ' ἐριτίμῳ, 456 Μήτις Ἀδὰμ, ὁ πρόσθε, προώριος ἐντὸς ἴκηται, Πρὶν πτόρθου γλυκεροῖο φυγεῖν δαπτρεῖαν ἐδωδὴν, Καὶ ζωῆς πελάσειε φυτῷ κακός· ὡς δ' ὑπ' ἀήταις Χειμερίοις παλίνορσος ἁλίπλοος ἦλθεν ὀπίσσω, Αὖθις δ' ἠὲ πνοιῇσιν ἐλαφροτέρῃσι πετάσας Ἱστίον, ἢ ἐρέτῃσι μόγῳ πλόον αὖθις ἄνυσσεν, Ὣς ἡμεῖς μεγάλοιο Θεοῦ ἀπὸ τῆλε πεσόντες, Ἔμπαλιν οὐκ ἀμογητὶ φίλον πλόον ἐκπερόωμεν. Τοίη πρωτογόνοιο νεόσπορος ἤλυθεν ἄτη ∆ειλοῖσιν μερόπεσσιν, ὅθεν στάχυς ἐβλάστησε. Θʹ, Περὶ ∆ιαθηκῶν καὶ Ἐπιφανείας Χριστοῦ. ∆εῦρ' ἄγε καὶ δισσοῖο νόμου λόγον ἐξερέεινε. 457 Ὅς τε παλαιότερος, καὶ ὃς νέος ἐξεφαάνθη, Πρῶτα μὲν Ἑβραίοισιν, ἐπεὶ Θεὸν ὑψιμέδοντα Πρῶτοι καὶ γνώσαντο, ἔπειτα δὲ πείρασιν αἴης. Οὐ γὰρ μαρναμένοισι Θεὸς βροτὸν ἡγεμονεύει ∆όγμασιν, ὥς τις ἄϊδρις ἐὼν, Λόγος ἴδρις ἁπάντων, Οὐδὲ παλιμβούλοισιν, ὃ καὶ θνητοῖσιν ὄνειδος. Ἀλλ' ὅδ' ἐμὸς λόγος ἐστὶ Θεοῦ φιλέοντος ἀρωγῆς. Λυσσήεις ὅτε πρῶτον Ἀδὰμ βάλεν ἐκ παραδείσου, Κλέψας ἀνδροφόνοιο φυτοῦ δηλήμονι καρπῷ, Ὡς στρατὸν ἡγητῆρος ὀλωλότος αἴσχεϊ τύπτων, ∆ίζετο καὶ τεκέεσσι κακὸν καὶ κῆρα φυτεῦσαι, Ῥήξας δ' οὐρανίοιο Θεοῦ κλεψίφρονι βουλῇ, Τρέψατο ὄσσε βροτοῖο πρὸς οὐρανὸν ἀστερόεντα, 458 Κάλλεσι παμφανόωσι τεθηλότα, πρός τε θανόντων Μορφὰς, ἃς ἐτύπωσε πόθος, καὶ μῦθος ἔτισε, Πιστὸς ἐν οὐ ξείνοισι κακοῖς, ψεύστης ἀνέλεγκτος, Αἰὲν ἐπερχομένοισιν ἀεξόμενος λυκάβασιν. Ἑβραίων ἱερῶν ὀλοὸν γένος, οὐχ ὑποφήταις Εἶκον ὀδυρομένοισι, λιταζομένοισιν, ἄνακτος Μῆνιν ἀεὶ προφέρουσι. Πάρος γε μὲν ὤλλυον αὐτούς. Οὐδὲ μὲν οὐ βασιλῆες ἐτάρβεον, ἀλλ' ἄρα καὶ τῶν Οἱ πλέονες κακίους, οὐδ' ἄλσεα πάμπαν ἔλειπον, Οὐδ' ὀρέων κορυφὰς, καὶ δαίμονας αἱματόεντας. Τοὔνεκα καὶ μεγάλοιο Θεοῦ ζηλήμονα μῆνιν Εἴρυσαν, ἐκ δὲ τίναχθεν. Ὁ δ' ἀντεισῆλθον ἔγωγε 459 Ἀτραπιτὸν ζήλοιο ποδηγεσίῃ σφίσιν ἕλκων, Πίστιν ἐς εὐσεβέα Χριστοῦ παλίνορσα φέρεσθαι, Ὀψὲ μεταστρεφθεῖσιν, ἐπὴν κορέσωνται ἀνίης, Βασκανίῃ λαοῖο νεήλυδος, ᾧ διάμειφθεν. Ἀλλὰ τὰ μὲν μετόπισθ'. Οἱ δ' ὡς νόμον εἶχον ἄτιμον, Ὑστάτιον τοιῆσδε βροτῶν γένος ἔμμορε τιμῆς, Νεύμασιν ἀθανάτοιο Πατρὸς, καὶ ἔργμασι Παιδός· Χριστὸς ὅσον βροτέων ἐνὶ σώματι κάτθετο μοίρης Οὐρανίης, λεύσσων κακίης ὕπο θυμοβόροιο ∆απτόμενον, σκολιόν τε βροτῶν μεδέοντα δράκοντα, Ὥς κεν ἀναστήσειεν ἑὸν λάχος, οὐκ ἔτι νοῦσον Ἄλλοισιν ἐφέηκεν ἀρηγόσιν (οὐ γὰρ ἐπαρκὲς Τοῖς μεγάλοις παθέεσσι μικρὸν ἄκος)· ἀλλὰ κενώσας Ὃν κλέος ἀθανάτοιο Θεοῦ Πατρὸς Υἱὸς ἀμήτωρ 460 Αὐτὸς καὶ δίχα πατρὸς ἐμοὶ ξένος υἱὸς ἐφάνθη· Οὐ ξένος, ἐξ ἐμέθεν γὰρ ὅδ' ἄμβροτος ἦλθε βροτωθεὶς Παρθενικῆς διὰ μητρὸς, ὅλον μ' ὅλος ὄφρα σαώσῃ. Καὶ γὰρ ὅλος πέπτωκεν Ἀδὰμ διὰ γεῦσιν ἀλιτρήν. Τοὔνεκεν ἀνδρομέοισι καὶ οὐ βροτέοισι νόμοισι, Σεμνοῖς ἐν σπλάγχνοισιν ἀπειρογάμοιο γυναικὸς Σαρκωθεὶς (ὢ θάμβος ἀφαυροτάτοισιν ἄπιστον!) Ἦλθε Θεὸς θνητός τε, φύσις δύο εἰς ἓν ἀγείρας, Τὴν μὲν κευθομένην, τὴν δ' ἀμφαδίην μερόπεσσιν Ὧν Θεὸς ἡ μὲν ἕην, ἡ δ' ὕστατον ἡμῖν ἐτύχθη. Εἷς Θεὸς ἀμφοτέρωθεν, ἐπεὶ θεότητι κερασθεὶς, Καὶ βροτὸς ἐκ θεότητος ἄναξ καὶ Χριστὸς ὑπέστη· Ὥς κεν Ἀδὰμ νέος ἄλλος ἐπιχθονίοισι φαανθεὶς, Τὸν πάρος ἐξακέσαιτο, πετάσματι δ' ἀμφὶ καλυφθεὶς 461 (Οὐ γὰρ ἔην χωρητὸς ἐμοῖς παθέεσσι πελάσσαι),