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punishments rather than pardon, so that others seeing the chastisement would not dare the transgression. This also happened in the case of the legislation of the Sabbath; for the one who had dared to gather wood on the Sabbath, and was the first to have transgressed the law concerning this, the whole people stoned to death; God having commanded this, so that becoming the agents of the punishment, they might shudder at the lawlessness, as bringing on the punishment. But later in time, when many had transgressed the law concerning the Sabbath, the lawgiver bore the transgression with long-suffering; thus Cain, who first committed murder, He subjected to incurable punishments, in order to teach those born in his time and after him not to dare similar things. But when many murderers had later appeared, He did not bring on the punishments immediately; it was necessary, therefore, for Adam also, who first received a law, and a very light law; for He had given him the abundance of all kinds of fruits, and had forbidden the eating of only one, to pay the penalty for the offense for the benefit of the race. But if, being slow to anger, as the ill-named Marcion said, He inflicted the punishment of death for a little food, how is it that when all men 38 had run aground on extreme impiety and lawlessness, He did not bring on utter destruction, but gave His Son and bestowed salvation through the cross and passion? And I say these things to those who think that the God of all has done these things out of some anger and are ignorant of the mystery of the economy; for I think it is clear to those instructed in divine things that the God of all is not accustomed to do anything out of repentance; for this passion is indeed characteristic of those who have a changeable nature, and are now pleased with these things, now with those, and are completely ignorant of what is to come. But the God of all has an unchangeable nature; and He knows things that have not yet happened as though they have already happened; for instance, foreseeing and foreknowing the things concerning Adam, that he would become mortal by transgressing the commandment, He also prepared his nature to be such; for He fashioned the formation of the body into male and female; and such a construction of bodies belongs to mortals, who need childbearing for the continuation of the race; for immortal nature does not need the female; for this reason the Creator brought forth the number of incorporeal beings all at once; but of mortal animals He created each kind in pairs, male and female; and He bestowed upon them the blessing of increase; "Increase," He says, "and multiply"; thus also He formed man male and female and gave them the same blessing, "Increase and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it." Therefore, the God of all, foreseeing these things, not only formed them thus, but also gave them the law concerning food; "Behold," He says, "I have given you every seed-bearing herb that sows seed which is upon all the earth, and every tree which has in itself the fruit of a seed 39 that is sown, it shall be for food for you, and for all the beasts of the earth, and for all the birds of the sky, and for every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth which has in itself a living soul; and I have given you every green herb for food." For the God of all said these things to Adam before the commandment; and eating belongs to mortals, for an immortal nature does not need nourishment. And teaching this the Lord said, that "after the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are as angels in heaven." Therefore the punishment was not of anger, but an economy of the greatest wisdom; for in order that the race of men might hate sin, as having become the cause of death, after the transgression of the commandment the all-wise One imposes the sentence of death. By this He contrived hatred for sin, while preparing beforehand for the race the remedy of salvation, that which, through the incarnation of the Only-Begotten, accomplished the resurrection from the dead and immortality. And what harshness does the sentence have, "you are earth and to earth you shall return"? "From earth," He says, "I formed you, and I refashioned you into a much better nature; but since you were not willing to keep my commandment, to

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συγγνώμης τιμωρίαι, ὥστε τοὺς ἄλλους ὁρῶντας τὴν κόλασιν μὴ τολμᾶν τὴν παράβασιν. τοῦτο καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς τοῦ σαββάτου νομοθεσίας ἐγένετο· τὸν γὰρ ἐν σαββάτῳ τὰ ξύλα συλλέξαι τετολμηκότα, καὶ πρῶτον τὸν περὶ τούτου παραβεβηκότα νόμον, ἅπας κατέλευσεν ὁ λαός· τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῦτο προστεταχότος, ἵνα αὐτουργοὶ τῆς τιμωρίας γενόμενοι φρίττωσι τὴν παρανομίαν, ὡς τὴν τιμωρίαν ἐπάγουσαν. χρόνῳ δὲ ὕστερον, πολλῶν τὸν περὶ τοῦ σαββάτου παραβεβηκότων νόμον, μακροθύμως ὁ νομοθέτης ἤνεγκε τὴν παράβασιν· οὕτω τὸν Κάϊν πρῶτον πεφονευκότα ταῖς ἀνηκέσ τοις ὑπέβαλε τιμωρίαις, ἵνα τοὺς ἐπ' ἐκείνου καὶ μετ' ἐκεῖνον γεγενημέ νους δεδίξηται τὰ παραπλήσια μὴ τολμᾶν. πολλῶν δὲ ὕστερον ἀνδρο φόνων γεγενημένων, οὐ παραυτίκα τὰς τιμωρίας ἐπήγαγεν· ἔδει τοίνυν καὶ τὸν Ἀδὰμ πρῶτον δεξαμένον νόμον καὶ νόμον κουφότατον· τῶν παν τοδαπῶν γὰρ αὐτῷ καρπῶν ἐδεδώκει τὴν ἀφθονίαν, ἑνὸς δὲ μόνου τὴν ἐδωδὴν ἀπηγορεύκει δοῦναι δίκην τοῦ πλημμελήματος εἰς ὠφέλειαν τοῦ γένους. εἰ δὲ δυσόργητος ὤν, ὡς ὁ δυσώνυμος ἔφη Μαρκίων, διὰ βρῶσιν ὀλίγην τὴν τοῦ θανάτου τιμωρίαν ἐπήνεγκε, πῶς ἁπάντων ἀνθρώπων 38 εἰς ἀσέβειαν καὶ παρανομίαν ἐσχάτην ἐξωκειλάντων, οὐ πανωλεθρίαν ἐπήνεγκεν, ἀλλὰ τὸν υἱὸν ἔδωκεν καὶ τὴν διὰ σταυροῦ καὶ πάθους ἐδωρή σατο σωτηρίαν; καὶ ταῦτα λέγω πρὸς τοὺς οἰομένους ὀργῇ τινι ταῦτα δεδρακέναι τὸν τῶν ὅλων Θεὸν καὶ ἀγνοοῦντας τὸ τῆς οἰκονομίας μυστή ριον· δῆλον γὰρ οἶμαι τοῖς τὰ θεῖα πεπαιδευμένοις ὡς οὐδὲν ἐκ μεταμελείας ποιεῖν εἴωθε ὁ τῶν ὅλων Θεός· τοῦτο γὰρ δὴ τὸ πάθος ἴδιον τῶν τρεπτὴν ἐχόντων τὴν φύσιν, καὶ νῦν μὲν τούτοις, νῦν δὲ ἐκείνοις ἀρεσκομένων, καὶ τὸ μέλλον ἔσεσθαι παντάπασιν ἀγνοούντων. ὁ δὲ τῶν ὅλων Θεὸς ἄτρεπτον μὲν ἔχει τὴν φύσιν· οἶδε δὲ ὡς ἤδη γεγενημένα τὰ μήπω γεγε νημένα· αὐτίκα γοῦν καὶ τὰ κατὰ τὸν Ἀδὰμ προορῶν καὶ προγινώσκων ὡς θνητὸς γενήσεται τὴν ἐντολὴν παραβάς, τοιαύτην αὐτοῦ καὶ τὴν φύσιν προκατεσκεύασεν· εἰς ἄρρεν γὰρ καὶ θῆλυ τοῦ σώματος ἐσχημάτισε τὴν διάπλασιν· τῶν δὲ θνητῶν, καὶ παιδοποιΐας δεομένων εἰς τὴν τοῦ γένους διαμονήν, ἡ τοιαύτη τῶν σωμάτων κατασκευή· ἡ γὰρ ἀθάνατος φύσις οὐ δεῖται τοῦ θήλεος· τούτου χάριν ὁ ποιητὴς ὁμοῦ τὸν τῶν ἀσω μάτων παρήγαγεν ἀριθμόν· τῶν δὲ θνητῶν ζῴων ἀνὰ δύο καθ' ἕκαστον ἐδημιούργησε γένος, ἄρσεν καὶ θῆλυ· καὶ τῆς αὐξήσεως αὐτοῖς τὴν εὐλο γίαν ἐπήνεγκεν· " αὐξάνεσθε, γάρ φησιν, καὶ πληθύνεσ θε "· οὕτω καὶ τὸν ἄνθρωπον διέπλασεν ἄρσεν καὶ θῆλυ καὶ τὴν αὐτὴν αὐτοῖς ἔδωκεν εὐλογίαν, " αὐξάνεσθε καὶ πληθύ νεσθε καὶ πληρώσατε τὴν γῆν καὶ κατακυριεύσατε αὐτῆς ". ταῦτα τοίνυν προορῶν ὁ τῶν ὅλων Θεός, οὐ μόνον αὐτοὺς οὕτω διέπλασεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν ἐπὶ τῆς βρώσεως αὐτοῖς δέδωκε νόμον· " ἰδού, γάρ φησι, δέδωκα ὑμῖν πάντα χόρτον σπό ριμον σπεῖρον σπέρμα ὅ ἐστιν ἐπάνω πάσης τῆς γῆς καὶ πᾶν ξύλον ὃ ἔχει ἐν ἑαυτῷ καρπὸν σπέρ 39 ματος σπόριμον, ὑμῖν ἔσται εἰς βρῶσιν, καὶ πᾶσι τοῖς θηρίοις τῆς γῆς, καὶ πᾶσι τοῖς πετει νοῖς τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, καὶ παντὶ ἑρπετῷ ἕρποντι ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς ὃ ἔχει ἐν ἑαυτῷ ψυχὴν ζωῆς· καὶ πάντα χόρτον χλωρὸν ὑμῖν δέδωκα εἰς βρῶσιν ". ταῦτα γὰρ πρὸ τῆς ἐντολῆς πρὸς τὸν Ἀδὰμ ὁ τῶν ὅλων ἔφη Θεός· θνητῶν δὲ ἡ βρῶσις, ἀθάνατος γὰρ φύσις οὐ δεῖται τροφῆς. καὶ τοῦτο διδάσκων ὁ Κύριος ἔφη, ὅτι " μετὰ τὴν ἀνάστασιν οὔτε γαμοῦ σιν οὔτε γαμίσκονται, ἀλλ' εἰσὶν ὡς ἄγγελοι ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς ". οὐ τοίνυν ὀργῆς ἡ τιμωρία, ἀλλ' οἰκονομία σοφίας μεγίστης· ἵνα γὰρ μισῇ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὸ γένος, ὡς αἰτίαν θανάτου γεγενημένην, μετὰ τὴν παράβασιν τῆς ἐντολῆς ἐπι φέρει τοῦ θανάτου τὴν ψῆφον ὁ πάνσοφος. τούτῳ μὲν τὸ περὶ τὴν ἁμαρ τίαν μηχανώμενος μῖσος, προευτρεπίζων δὲ τῷ γένει τῆς σωτηρίας τὸ φάρμακον, τὸ διὰ τῆς τοῦ μονογενοῦς ἐνανθρωπήσεως, τὴν ἐκ νεκρῶν ἀνάστασιν καὶ τὴν ἀθανασίαν πραγματευσάμενον. τί δὲ ἀπηνὲς ἡ ἀπό φασις ἔχει, " γῆ εἶ καὶ εἰς γῆν ἀπελεύσῃ "; ἀπὸ γῆς σε, φησίν, ἔπλασα, καὶ εἰς ἀμείνω πολλῷ μετεσκεύασα φύσιν· ἐπειδὴ δὲ φυλάξαι μου τὴν ἐντολὴν οὐκ ἐθέλησας, πρὸς