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which I had against someone, if I did not tear it and give it back, having received nothing from the debtor.” 1.6.29 Such and similar were the deeds of the men beloved of God before Moses, for from one it is fitting to infer the life of the rest, the much-hymned prizes of godliness, on account of which they were also deemed worthy to be called friends of God and prophets. 1.6.30 For such men, what further need was there of the commands of Moses, which were delivered to base and wicked men? Therefore, through all these things, the most ancient way of the forefathers' piety has been manifestly shown by the word of Christ, proclaiming it to all nations, so that the new covenant is none other than that most ancient pious way of life before the times of Moses, so that it is at once both old and new; most ancient through what has been shown, and new again because, having been as it were hidden from men for long intervening ages, it has been revived again through the teaching of our Savior. 1.6.31 For during this intervening time that is indicated, while the way of the new covenant happened to be hidden from men and, as it were, kept quiet, the law of Moses, having come in during the interval, like some guardian and steward of infant and imperfect souls, or even a physician for the entire nation of the Jews, which was afflicted with a terrible and Egyptian disease—that is, for the very descendants of Abraham, who were not able to succeed in the same way as their forefathers—delivered the inferior and imperfect way of life. 1.6.32 For since, during their sojourn among the Egyptians, these men, after the death of their God-loving forefathers, being led away by Egyptian customs, had fallen away into polytheistic superstition, as I said, so that they seemed to be no better than the Egyptians, and had become like them in every respect, both in the error of idols and in other practices; reasonably, Moses, as if drawing them up from an abyss of evils, drew them away from godless polytheism, and led them up to the God and Creator of all, setting that first step of piety before them as an introduction and vestibule to more perfect things. 1.6.33 Then, not to murder, not to commit adultery, not to steal, not to swear falsely, not for males to rage against males, not to have intercourse with mothers, sisters, or daughters, nor did he permit such things as were then permissible to do without fear. 1.6.34 And taking them from a savage and bestial life, he was the first on earth to establish through writing a more rational and lawful way of life in those times, since such a way was not yet then manifest to all men. 1.6.35 Then, having forbidden idolatry to them as imperfect, he commanded them to worship the one God over all with sacrifices and certain more physical rites, having legislated that they perform the worship according to him through certain more secret things or through symbols. And wonderfully perceiving by the divine Spirit that this should not be carried on indefinitely, he confined it to one place, decreeing that the rites according to him should not be performed elsewhere than in one place only, and this was the one in Jerusalem, and no longer outside of it. 1.6.36 Whence even to this day it is not lawful for the children of the Hebrews elsewhere outside their destroyed metropolis either to sacrifice according to the law, or to erect a temple or an altar, or to anoint priests or kings, or to carry out the solemn assemblies and feasts according to Moses, not to be cleansed from defilement, not to be released from transgressions, not to offer gifts to God, not to propitiate according to what has been legislated. 1.6.37 Wherefore they have also reasonably been subjected to the curse of Moses, trying to keep some things in part, but transgressing in the whole, since Moses declared explicitly: “For cursed is everyone who does not abide in all the things that are written in the law, to do them.” 1.6.38 And they have fallen into all these things, Moses himself having foreseen by the divine Spirit, that indeed when the new covenant through Christ was renewed and proclaimed to all the nations, his legislation would be somewhat superfluous, which he reasonably confined to one place

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δὲ ἣν εἶχον κατά τινος εἰ μὴ ῥήξας αὐτὴν ἀπέδωκα, οὐδὲν λαβὼν παρὰ χρεωφειλέτου». 1.6.29 Ταῦτ' ἦν καὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα τῶν πρὸ Μωσέως θεοφιλῶν ἀνδρῶν, ἐξ ἑνὸς γὰρ καὶ τὸν τῶν λοιπῶν τεκμαίρεσθαι προσήκει βίον τὰ περιύμνητα τῆς θεοσεβείας ἆθλα, δι' ἃ καὶ φίλοι θεοῦ καὶ προφῆται κληθῆναι κατηξιώθησαν. 1.6.30 τοιούτοις δ' οὖσιν τίς ἔτι χρεία ἦν τῶν παρὰ Μωσεῖ παραγγελμάτων, φαύλοις ἀνδράσι καὶ μοχθηροῖς παραδεδομένων; οὐκοῦν διὰ τούτων ἁπάντων τὸν ἀρχαιότατον τῆς τῶν προπατόρων θεοσεβείας τρόπον ὁ Χριστοῦ λόγος πᾶσι καταγγείλας τοῖς ἔθνεσιν προφανῶς ἀποδέδεικται, ὡς εἶναι τὴν καινὴν διαθήκην οὐδ' ἄλλην ἐκείνης τῆς ἀρχαιοτάτης πρὸ τῶν Μωσέως χρόνων εὐσεβοῦς πολιτείας, ὥστε ὁμοῦ καὶ παλαιὰν αὐτὴν εἶναι καὶ νέαν· παλαιτάτην μὲν διὰ τὰ ἀποδεδειγμένα, νέαν δὲ αὖθις διὰ τὸ μακροῖς τοῖς μεταξὺ χρόνοις ὥσπερ ἀποκρυβεῖσαν ἐξ ἀνθρώπων αὖθις ἀναβεβιωκέναι διὰ τῆς τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν διδασκαλίας. 1.6.31 τοῦτόν γέ τοι τὸν μεταξὺ δηλούμενον χρόνον ἕως συνέβαινε λανθάνειν ἀνθρώπους καὶ ὥσπερ ἐφησυχάζειν τὸν τῆς καινῆς διαθήκης τρόπον, ὁ Μωσέως ἐν τῷ μεταξὺ παρεισελθὼν νόμος, οἷά τις νηπίων καὶ ἀτελῶν ψυχῶν ἐπίτροπος καὶ οἰκονόμος ἢ καὶ ἰατρὸς δεινῇ καὶ Αἰγυπτιακῇ νόσῳ τετρυχωμένῳ τῷ παντὶ Ἰουδαίων ἔθνει, αὐτοῖς δὴ τοῖς τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ ἀπογόνοις, μὴ οἵοις τε οὖσιν ὁμοίως τοῖς προπάτορσι κατορθοῦν, τὸν ὑποβεβηκότα καὶ ἀτελῆ βίον παρεδίδου. 1.6.32 Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἐν τῇ παρ' Αἰγυπτίοις διατριβῇ οὗτοι μετὰ τὴν τῶν θεοφιλῶν προπατόρων τελευτὴν ταῖς Αἰγυπτιακαῖς ὁμοιοτροπίαις ἀπαχθέντες ἐπὶ τὴν πολύθεον, ὡς ἔφην, δεισιδαιμονίαν ἀποπεπτώκεσαν, ὡς μηδὲν τῶν Αἰγυπτίων πλέον ἔχειν δοκεῖν γεγονέναι δὲ κατὰ πάντα ὁμοίους αὐτοῖς, κατά τε τὴν τῶν εἰδώλων πλάνην ἔν τε τοῖς ἄλλοις ἐγχειρήμασιν· εἰκότως, ὥσπερ ἐκ βυθοῦ κακῶν ἀνιμώμενος αὐτοὺς ὁ Μωσῆς, ἀφίστη μὲν τῆς ἀθέου πολυθεΐας, ἀνῆγεν δὲ ἐπὶ τὸν πάντων δημιουργὸν θεόν, πρῶτον ἐκεῖνον βαθμὸν εὐσεβείας ὡς ἐν εἰσαγωγαῖς καὶ προθύροις τῶν τελεωτέρων προβεβλημένος. 1.6.33 ἔπειτα οὐ φονεύειν, οὐ μοιχεύειν, οὐ κλέπτειν, οὐκ ἐπιορκεῖν, οὐκ ἄρρενας ἄρρεσιν ἐπιμαίνεσθαι, οὐ μητράσιν οὐκ ἀδελφαῖς οὐ θυγατράσιν ἐπιμίγνυσθαι, οὐδ' ὅσα τοιαῦτα τοῖς τότε πράττειν ἐξῆν ἀφόβως συνεχώρει. 1.6.34 παραλαβὼν δὲ ἐξ ἀνημέρου καὶ θηριώδους βίου, λογικωτέραν καὶ εὔνομον ἐν τοῖς τότε χρόνοις πολιτείαν πρῶτος ἐπὶ γῆς διὰ γραφῆς συνεστήσατο, οὔπω· τότε πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις ἐκφανοῦς ὄντος οὐδὲ τοῦ τοιουδὶ τρόπου. 1.6.35 εἶτα δὲ ὡς ἂν ἀτελέσιν ἀπειπὼν τὴν εἰδωλολατρίαν, θυσίαις καί τισι σωματικωτέροις τὸν ἕνα καὶ ἐπὶ πάντων θεὸν θεραπεύειν παρεκέλευεν, διά τινων ἀπορρητοτέρων ἢ διὰ συμβόλων τὴν κατ' αὐτὸν θρησκείαν ἐπιτελεῖν νομοθετήσας. ἣν καὶ θαυμασίως τῷ θείῳ πνεύματι συνιδὼν οὐκ εἰς ἄπειρον δεῖν περιέπειν, ὑφ' ἕνα τόπον περιέγραψεν, ὁρίσας μὴ ἀλλαχόσε συντελεῖν τὰ κατ' αὐτὸν νόμιμα ἢ ἐν μόνῳ ἑνὶ τόπῳ, οὗτος δ' ἦν ὁ ἐν Ἱεροσολύμοις, ἔξω δὲ τούτου μηκέτι. 1.6.36 ὅθεν εἰς ἔτι καὶ δεῦρο παισὶν Ἑβραίων οὐ θεμιτὸν ἄλλοσε ἐκτὸς τῆς καθῃρημένης αὐτῶν μητροπόλεως οὔτε θύειν κατὰ τὸν νόμον, οὔτε ἱερὸν οὔτε θυσιαστήριον ἐγείρειν, οὔτε χρίειν ἱερέας οὔτε βασιλέας, οὔτε τὰς κατὰ Μωσέα πανηγύρεις καὶ ἑορτὰς ἐκτελεῖν, οὐ μιασμοῦ καθαίρεσθαι, οὐ πλημμελείας ἀπολύεσθαι, οὐ δῶρα τῷ θεῷ προσφέρειν, οὐχ ἱλεοῦσθαι κατὰ τὰ νενομοθετημένα. 1.6.37 διόπερ καὶ τῇ Μωσέως εἰκότως ὑποβέβληνται κατάρᾳ, ἐν μέρει μὲν φυλάττειν τινὰ πειρώμενοι, ἐν δὲ τοῖς ὅλοις παρανομοῦντες, διαρρήδην Μωσέως ἀποφηναμένου· «ὅτι δὴ ἐπικατάρατος πᾶς, ὃς οὐκ ἐμμενεῖ ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς ἐγγεγραμμένοις τοῦ νόμου, τοῦ ποιῆσαι αὐτά». 1.6.38 Τούτοις δὲ πᾶσι περιπεπτώκασιν, αὐτοῦ Μωσέως θείῳ πνεύματι προειληφότος, ὅτι δὴ τῆς διὰ Χριστοῦ καινῆς διαθήκης ἀνανεωθείσης καὶ τοῖς πᾶσιν ἔθνεσι καταγγελθείσης περιττή τις ἔσται ἡ κατ' αὐτὸν νομοθεσία, ἣν εἰκότως ὑφ' ἕνα τόπον