Christ faith to be reckoned the righteousness *** [Rom. 4, 13] For if no promise had been spoken to him or to his seed | before "He believed God and it was reckoned to him for 196 righteousness" we would not have been puzzled how the apostolic word was said, that "the promise to Abraham or to his seed, that he should be heir of the world, was not through the law but through the righteousness of faith." But now we find ........as testimony a promise spoken to him which I ‖ think was said concerning his being heir of the world *** but the promise of Melchizedek was not given to him through the law, when he blessed him and said: "Blessed be Abram by God Most High, who created heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies | into your hand" *** perhaps the things before "Abraham believed God and it was reckoned to him for righteousness" can apply to "For the promise to Abraham or to his seed, that he should be heir of the world, was not through the law", but the things after "But Abraham believed God and it was reckoned to him for righteousness" to "But through the righteousness of faith", | such as is ....eos added to "But Abraham believed God and it was reckoned to him for righteousness" *** [Rom. 4, 14-15] the reasonableness of righteousness from faith rather than from the law, and he presents it, saying: If the heirs become heirs not from faith but from the law, clearly faith will be void, since nothing is fulfilled through it for the one who has believed, and the | promise made through faith will be nullified, since the inheritance is not given to the one who has believed in accordance with the promise from faith, but to the one who has fulfilled the law *** Just as the one who believes in Jesus Christ believes in God who sent him, 198 so the one who believes Moses believes in Christ, as is clear from "If you believed Moses, you | would believe me"; and if the one who believes Christ believes the Father, clearly also the one who believes Moses believes God *** Therefore, those who were justified before the law of Moses, such as Enoch who pleased God and Noah who was testified to be righteous in his generation and those deemed worthy of the invocation of God, Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, not having encountered the law of Moses, | were designated as such by God, just as Moses who wrote the law testified them to be; for truly the law is not laid down for a righteous person, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners *** or let those who want a person to be justified from nowhere else than from Moses according to the letter of the law tell us, | whether no one before Moses was ever justified, or he was indeed justified even without the law of Moses, but it was as if God repented of this way of justification as being inferior and gave a better way of justification through Moses *** ‖ It is time, then, in response to these things to say that those not great enough to be justified in the same way as the fathers without the legislation in writing of the law through Moses needed it so that the flood of their wickedness might cease and so that, being preoccupied with types and symbols and images | of more divine realities, they might not fall into idolatry; and indeed the divine and most wise providence, 200 through the sacrifices according to the law and all the worship, kept many of the weaker ones away from idolatry *** being able, by a kind of likeness, to distract them from the Gentiles *** since not even transgression, to which the law brings | punishment, has existence where this law is not *** .[.]i p... of these things, saying, leaving behind Adam and Eve ..... where there is no law, there is no transgression, but the law of Moses was not over Adam and Eve, nor was there transgression over Adam and Eve [.....]; daring against the apostle he might add that not even the serpent itself | did anything transgressive; for if where there is no law, there is no transgression, not even in this case before the law was his deceiving the woman a transgression *** One must listen to the apostle in these matters without slander and understand his intention. For some say: if where there is no law, there is no transgression, clearly

Χριστὸν πίστιν λογισθῆναι τὴν δικαιοσύνην *** [Rom. 4, 13] Εἰ μὲν γὰρ μηδεμία ἐπαγγελία πρὸς αὐτὸν ἢ τὸ σπέρμα | αὐτοῦ εἴρητο πρὸ τοῦ «Ἐπίστευσεν τῷ Θεῷ καὶ ἐλογίσθη αὐτῷ εἰς 196 δικαιοσύνην» οὐκ ἂν ἐπηπορήσαμεν πῶς τὸ ἀποστολικὸν εἴρηται ὅτι «οὐ διὰ νόμου ἐπαγγελία τῷ Ἀβραὰμ ἢ τῷ σπέρματι αὐτοῦ, τὸ κλη ρονόμον αὐτ̣ὸν εἶναι κόσμ]ου ἀλλὰ διὰ δικαιοσύνης πίστεως». Νυνὶ δὲ εὑρίσκομεν ···········ως μαρτυρια̣ ἐπαγγελίαν αὐτῷ εἰρημένην ἣν νο‖μίζω λελέχθαι περὶ τοῦ κληρονόμον αὐτὸν εἶναι κόσμου *** οὐ διὰ νόμου δὲ ἡ Μελχισέδεκ ἐπαγγελία δέδοται αὐτῷ ὅτε ηὐλόγησεν αὐτὸν καὶ εἶπεν· «Εὐλογημένος Ἀβραὰμ τῷ Θεῷ τῷ ὑψίστῳ, ὃς ἔκτισεν τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν· καὶ εὐλογητὸς ὁ Θεὸς ὁ ὕψιστος, ὃς παρέδωκεν τοὺς ἐχθρούς | σου ὑποχειρίους σοι» *** τάχα τὰ μὲν πρὸ τοῦ «Ἐπίσ τευσεν Ἀβραὰμ τῷ Θεῷ καὶ ἐλογίσθη αὐτῷ εἰς δικαιοσύνην» δύνα ται ἐφαρμόζειν τῷ «Οὐ γὰρ διὰ νόμου ἡ ἐπαγγελία τῷ Ἀβραὰμ ἢ τῷ σπέρματι αὐτοῦ τὸ κληρονόμον αὐτὸν εἶναι κόσμου», τὰ δὲ μετὰ τὸ «Ἐπίστευσεν δὲ Ἀβραὰμ τῷ Θεῷ καὶ ἐλογίσθη αὐτῷ εἰς δικαιοσύνην» τῷ «Ἀλλὰ διὰ δικαιοσύνης πίστεως», ὁ|ποῖόν ἐστιν ····ε̣ος ἐπιφερόμενον τῷ «Ἐπίστευσεν δὲ Ἀβραὰμ τῷ Θεῷ καὶ ἐλογίσθη αὐτῷ εἰς δικαιοσύνην» *** [Rom. 4, 14-15] τὸ εὔλογον τῆς ἐκ πίστεως μᾶλλον ἢ ἐκ ν̣όμου δικαιοσύνης καὶ παρίστησιν φάσκων· Εἰ οἱ κληρονόμοι κληρονόμοι γίγνον ται οὐκ ἐκ πίστεως ἀλλ' ἐκ νόμου, δηλονότι κενὴ ἔσται ἡ πίστις, μηδενὸς δι' αὐτῆς πληρουμένου τῷ πεπιστευκότι, καὶ ἡ | διὰ πίστεως ἐπαγγελία γενο μένη ἔσται καταργουμένη τῷ τὴν κληρονομίαν μὴ ἀκολούθως τῇ ἐκ πίστεως ἐπαγγελίᾳ δίδοσθαι τῷ πεπιστευκότι ἀλλὰ τῷ τὸν νόμον πεπληρωκότι *** ὥσπερ δὲ ὁ πιστεύων εἰς Ἰησοῦν Χριστὸν πιστεύει εἰς τὸν πέμψαντα αὐτὸν 198 Θεόν, οὕτως ὁ πιστεύων Μωσεῖ πιστεύει εἰς τὸν Χριστόν, ὡς δῆλον ἐκ τοῦ «Εἰ ἐπιστεύετε Μωσεῖ, ἐ|πιστεύετε ἂν ἐμοί»· εἰ δὲ ὁ πιστεύων Χριστῷ πιστεύει τῷ Πατρί, δηλονότι καὶ ὁ πιστεύων Μωσεῖ πιστεύει τῷ Θεῷ *** Οἱ γοῦν πρὸ τοῦ Μωσέως νόμου δικαιωθέντες, ὥσπερ Ἑνὼχ ὁ εὐαρεστήσας τῷ Θεῷ καὶ Νῶε ὁ μαρτυρηθεὶς εἶναι δίκαιος ἐν τῇ γενεᾷ αὐτοῦ καὶ οἱ καταξιωθέντες τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐπικλήσεως Ἀβραὰμ καὶ Ἰσαὰκ καὶ Ἰακὼβ οὐτῷ Μωσέως ἐντυχόν|τες νόμῳ τοιοῦτοι παρὰ Θεῷ ἐχρηματίσαν, ὁποίους αὐτοὺς ὁ τὸν νόμον γραψὰς Μωσῆς εἶναι ἐμαρτύρησεν· καὶ γὰρ ἀληθῶς δικαίῳ νόμος οὐ κεῖται, ἀνόμοις δὲ καὶ ἀνυποτάκτοις, ἀσεβέσι καὶ ἁμαρ τωλοῖς *** ἢ λεγέτωσαν ἡμῖν οἱ μηδαμόθεν δικαιοῦσθαι θέλοντες τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἢ ἐκ τοῦ Μωσέως κατὰ τὸ γράμμα τοῦ νό|μου, πότερόν ποτε οὐδεὶς πρὸ Μωσέως ἐδικαιώθη, ἢ ἐδικαιώθη μὲν καὶ χωρὶς τοῦ Μωσέως νόμου, ὡσπερεὶ δὲ μετενόησεν ὁ Θεὸς ἀπὸ τοῦ τρόπου τῆς δικαιώσεως τούτου ὡς χείρονος καὶ δέδωκε διὰ Μωσέως βελτίονα τρόπον δικαιώσεως *** ‖ Ὥρα οὖν πρὸς ταῦτα λέγειν ὅτι δεδέηνται οἱ μὴ τηλικοῦτοι ὥστε δικαιωθῆναι ὁμοίως τοῖς πατράσιν χωρὶς τῆς διὰ γραμμάτων νομοθεσίας τοῦ διὰ Μωσέως νόμου ὑπὲρ τοῦ τὴν χύσιν τῆς κακίας αὐτῶν παύσασθαι καὶ ὑπὲρ τοῦ περισπω μένους αὐτοὺς περὶ τύπους καὶ σύμβολα καὶ εἰκόνας | πραγμάτων θειοτέρων μὴ καταπέσειν εἰς τὴν εἰδωλολατρίαν· καὶ ἡ θεῖά γε καὶ σοφωτάτη πρόνοια 200 διὰ τῶν κατὰ νόμον θυσιῶν καὶ πάσης τῆς λατρείας πολλοὺς μὲν ἀσθενεσ τέρους ἀπέστησεν εἰδωλολατρίας *** οἱονεί τινι ὁμοιώματι περισπάσαι αὐτοὺς δυνάμενα ἀπὸ τῶν ἐθνικῶν *** ἐπεὶ μηδὲ παράβασις ᾗ ὁ νόμος προσφέρων τὴν | κόλασιν σύστασιν ἔχει, ἔνθα μὴ ἔστιν οὗτος ὁ νόμος *** ·[·]ι π··· τούτων λέγων καταλείπων τὸν Ἀδὰμ καὶ τὴν Εὔαν ····· οὗ οὐκ ἔστιν νόμος οὐδὲ παράβασις, οὐκ ἦν δὲ νόμος ἐπὶ Ἀδὰμ καὶ Εὔας ὁ Μωσέως, οὐδὲ παράβασις ἦν ἐπ' Ἀδὰμ καὶ Εὔας [·····]· τολμῶν κατὰ τοῦ ἀποστόλου προσθείη ἂν ὅτι οὐδὲ αὐτὸς ὁ ὄφις | παραβατικόν τι πεποίηκεν· εἰ γὰρ οὗ οὐκ ἔστιν νόμος οὐδὲ παρά βασις, οὐδὲ ἐν τούτῳ τῷ πρὸ νόμου αὐτὸν ἠπατηκέναι τὴν γυναῖκα παρά βασις ἦν *** ἀσυκοφαντήτως ἀκούειν χρὴ τοῦ ἀποστόλου ἐν τούτοις καὶ συνιέναι τοῦ βουλήματος αὐτοῦ. Φασὶ γάρ τινες· εἰ ἔνθα οὐκ ἔστι νόμος οὐδὲ παράβασις, δηλονότι