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and he was so named; not having received this nature from the God of all; for he was created good and was co-created with the incorporeal powers; but since he willingly inclined to wickedness and was deprived of the honor which he had received from the beginning and was cast down to the earth. And the animal itself received the curse for the benefit of men; for seeing the serpent crawling and writhing on the ground, we are reminded of the ancient curse; and we learn what great evils sin is the cause of, not only to those who commit it, but also to those who serve it. And the serpent itself receives no harm from this, being by nature made to move in this way; for it has in its nature this kind of movement; and nothing that is natural seems to be burdensome. But man reaps great benefit from this. XXXV But why did God create the serpent, foreknowing that it would be an instrument of wickedness? One might say this also about man; for He foreknew that he too would transgress the commandment. Besides, it was easy for the devil to offer the deceit through another beast as well. XXXVI But why did He make the devil, knowing that he would become such? God created the entire nature of incorporeal beings, having declared it rational and immortal; and free will is a property of the rational. Of these, some maintained their goodwill toward the creator, while others inclined to wickedness; and this can also be found among men; for some are lovers of virtue, others are workers of vice. If, therefore, someone finds fault with the creation of the wicked, he then deprives the athletes of 36 virtue of the prizes of victory; for if they did not have the desire for virtue in the choice of their will, but an ingrained immutability, the worthy champions of piety would have gone unnoticed; but since the will has the choice of good things and their opposites, these rightly receive the crowns of victory and those pay penalties for the sins they committed by their will. XXXVII Calling God good, how do you attribute such severity to Him? for it is of cruelty and harshness to inflict so great a punishment for a little food, not only on those who sinned, but also on those who have sprung from them. First, it is fitting for those who choose to be pious to be persuaded that whatever is done or commanded by the God of all is both holy and just and good and loving toward humanity. For if we confess that He possesses all these things, we must also consider the things ordained and commanded by Him to be such. Then, one must know that every law, even if it legislates about some small things, has the same power as one that commands the greatest things to be done or forbids them to be done; and especially every divine law. For instance, the one commanding circumcision, when transgressed, works no harm to a neighbor. But nevertheless the lawgiver says, that "every uncircumcised male, who shall not be circumcised on the eighth day, shall be utterly destroyed." And the punishment which he appointed for murderers and for adulterers, this he also assigned to this one. But since it is likely that the ill-named heretics who openly war against the old scripture will also accuse this law, I will make my proofs from the evangelical legislation; for we find in those laws that one who looks at a woman lustfully is judged for adultery; and one who is angry without cause, being liable to the judgment; and one who calls his brother 'Raca', again liable to 37 a charge; and one who calls him 'fool', worthy of Gehenna; and one who swears, even if he swears truthfully, being of the devil's party. Why then do they call this one good, but the lawgiver of the old harsh? For these things are crueler than those, according to their definition. But these things are of their blasphemous daring; but we know that both those laws and these laws are of one God; and the difference was produced by the quality of those for whom the laws were made. For like a wise teacher, he offered imperfect things to the imperfect, and perfect things to the perfect. In addition to these things, this too must be considered, how upon the first who transgress the laws penalties are brought apart

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κἀκεῖνος ὠνόμασται· οὐ ταύτην παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων τὴν φύσιν δεξάμενος· ἀγαθὸς γὰρ ἐκτίσθη καὶ ταῖς ἀσωμάτοις συνεδημιουργήθη δυνά μεσιν· ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἑκὼν εἰς πονηρίαν ἀπέκλινε καὶ τῆς τιμῆς ἧς ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἔλαχεν ἐστερήθη καὶ εἰς τὴν γῆν ἀπερρίφη. καὶ αὐτὸ δὲ τὸ ζῷον εἰς ὄνησιν τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐδέξατο τὴν ἀράν· ὁρῶντες γὰρ τὸν ὄφιν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς συρόμενον τε καὶ ἰλυσσώμενον, τῆς ἀρχαίας ἀρᾶς ἀναμιμνησκόμεθα· καὶ μανθάνομεν ὡς ἡλίκων πρόξενος ἡ ἁμαρτία κακῶν, οὐ μόνον τοῖς ταύτην ἐνεργοῦσιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῖς ὑπουργοῦσι. καὶ αὐτὸς μὲν ὁ ὄφις οὐδεμίαν ἐντεῦθεν δέχεται βλάβην, οὕτω βαδίζειν πεφυκώς· ἐν τῇ φύσει γὰρ ἔχει τὸ τοιόνδε τῆς κινήσεως εἶδος· οὐδὲν δὲ τῶν φυσικῶν φορτικὸν εἶναι δοκεῖ. ὁ δὲ ἄνθρωπος πολλὴν ἐντεῦθεν ὠφέλειαν καρποῦται. XXXV ∆ιὰ τί δὲ τὸν ὄφιν ἐδημιούργησεν ὁ Θεός, ὄργανον αὐτὸν προειδὼς τῆς πονηρίας ἐσόμενον; Τοῦτο ἄν τις εἴποι καὶ περὶ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου· προῄδει γὰρ ὡς καὶ αὐτὸς τὴν ἐντολὴν παραβήσεται. ἄλλως τε ῥᾴδιον ἦν τῷ διαβόλῳ, καὶ δι' ἑτέ ρου θηρίου τὴν ἀπάτην προσενεγκεῖν. XXXVI ∆ιὰ τί δὲ τὸν διάβολον ἐποίησεν εἰδὼς τοιοῦτον ἐσόμενον; Ὁ Θεὸς πᾶσαν τῶν ἀσωμάτων τὴν φύσιν ἐδημιούργησε, λογικὴν αὐτὴν καὶ ἀθάνατον ἀποφήνας· τοῦ λογικοῦ δὲ τὸ αὐτεξούσιον ἴδιον. τούτων δὲ οἱ μὲν τὴν περὶ τὸν ποιητὴν ἐφύλαξαν εὔνοιαν, οἱ δὲ εἰς πονηρίαν ἀπέκ λιναν· τοῦτο δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἔστιν εὑρεῖν· οἱ μὲν γάρ εἰσι τῆς ἀρετῆς ἐρασταί, οἱ δὲ τῆς κακίας ἐργάται. εἰ τοίνυν μέμφεταί τις τῇ τῶν πονηρῶν δημιουργίᾳ, ἀποστερεῖ ἄρα τῶν τῆς νίκης βραβείων τοὺς τῆς 36 ἀρετῆς ἀθλητάς· εἰ γὰρ μὴ ἐν τῇ αἱρέσει τῆς γνώμης εἶχον τὸν πόθον τῆς ἀρετῆς, ἀλλὰ ἐμπεφυκὸς τὸ ἄτρεπτον, ἔλαθον ἂν οἱ ἀξιόνικοι τῆς εὐσεβείας ἀγωνισταί· ἐπειδὴ δὲ τὴν αἵρεσιν τῶν ἀγαθῶν καὶ τῶν ἐναν τίων ἔχει ἡ γνώμη, δικαίως καὶ οὗτοι τυγχάνουσι τῶν νικηφόρων στε φάνων κἀκεῖνοι δίκας τιννύουσιν ὑπὲρ ὧν κατὰ γνώμην ἐξήμαρτον. XXXVII Ἀγαθὸν τὸν Θεὸν ὀνομάζοντες, πῶς αὐτῷ περιάπτετε τοσαύτην ἀποτο μίαν; ὠμότητος γὰρ καὶ ἀπηνίας, τὸ διὰ βρῶσιν ὀλίγην τοσαύτην ἐπε νεγκεῖν τιμωρίαν, οὐ τοῖς ἡμαρτηκόσι μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῖς ἐξ ἐκείνων βεβλαστηκόσι. Πρῶτον πεπεῖσθαι προσήκει τοὺς εὐσεβεῖν προαιρουμένους, ὡς πᾶν ὁτιοῦν ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων γινόμενον ἢ κελευόμενον, καὶ ὅσιον καὶ δίκαιον καὶ ἀγαθὸν καὶ φιλάνθρωπον. εἰ γὰρ ταῦτα πάντα ἔχειν αὐτὸν ὁμολογοῦμεν, καὶ τᾶ ὑπ' αὐτοῦ οἰκονομούμενά τε καὶ προσταττόμενα χρὴ τοιαῦτα εἶναι νομίζειν. ἔπειτα εἰδέναι δεῖ, ὡς πᾶς νόμος, κἂν περὶ σμικρῶν τινων διαγορεύῃ τὴν ἴσην ἔχει δύναμιν τῷ τὰ μέγιστα κελεύοντι ποιεῖν ἢ ἀπαγορεύοντι δρᾶν· καὶ διαφερόντως πᾶς θεῖος νόμος. αὐτίκα γοῦν ὁ περιτέμνεσθαι κελεύων, οὐδεμίαν παραβαινόμενος τῷ πέλας ἐρ γάζεται βλάβην. ἀλλ' ὅμως ὁ νομοθέτης φησίν, ὅτι " πᾶς ἀπερίτ μητος ἄρσην, ὃς οὐ περιτμηθήσεται τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τῇ ὀγδόῃ ἐξολοθρευθήσεται ". καὶ ἣν ὥρισε τοῖς ἀνδρο φόνοις καὶ τοῖς μοιχοῖς τιμωρίαν, ταύτην καὶ τούτῳ ἐκλήρωσεν. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ εἰκὸς τοὺς δυσωνύμους αἱρετικοὺς ἄντικρυς τῇ παλαίᾳ πολεμοῦντας γραφῇ καὶ τοῦδε κατηγορῆσαι τοῦ νόμου, ἐκ τῆς εὐαγγελικῆς νομοθε σίας τὰς ἀποδείξεις ποιήσομαι· εὑρίσκομεν γὰρ ἐν ἐκείνοις τοῖς νόμοις τὸν λάγνως ὁρῶντα γύναιον μοιχείας κρινόμενον· καὶ τὸν εἰκῇ ὀργιζό μενον, ἔνοχον ὄντα τῇ κρίσει· τὸν δὲ ῥακὰ τὸν ἀδελφὸν ὀνομάζοντα, γρα 37 φῆς πάλιν ὑπεύθυνον· τὸν δὲ μωρὸν ἀποκαλοῦντα, τῆς γεέννης ἄξιον· καὶ τὸν ὀμνύντα, κἂν ἀληθεύων ὀμνύῃ, τῆς διαβολικῆς ὄντα συμμορίας. τί δή ποτε τοίνυν τοῦτον μὲν ἀγαθὸν ὀνομάζουσιν, ἀπηνῆ δὲ τὸν τῆς παλαιᾶς νομοθέτην; ταῦτα γὰρ ἐκείνων κατὰ τὸν τούτων ὅρον ὠμότερα. ἀλλὰ τῆς ἐκείνων ταῦτα βλασφημίας τολμᾶν· ἡμεῖς δὲ κἀκείνους καὶ τού τους τοὺς νόμους ἑνὸς ἴσμεν Θεοῦ· τὸ δὲ διάφορον ἡ τῶν νομοθετουμένων ποιότης εἰργάσατο. οἷα γὰρ σοφὸς διδάσκαλος τοῖς μὲν ἀτελέσι τὰ ἀτελῆ, τοῖς δὲ τελείοις τὰ τέλεια προσενήνοχε. πρὸς δὲ τούτοις σκοπητέον καὶ τοῦτο, ὡς τοῖς πρώτοις παραβαίνουσι τοὺς νόμους ἐπιφέρονται δίχα