Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho

“And God himself proclaimed by Moses, speaking thus: ‘And circumcise the hardness of your hearts, and no longer stiffen the neck. For the Lord your God is both Lord of lords, and a great, mighty, and terrible God, who regardeth not persons, and taketh not rewards.’35 Deut. x. 16 f. And in Leviticus: ‘Because they have transgressed against Me, and despised Me, and because they have walked contrary to Me, I also walked contrary to them, and I shall cut them off in the land of their enemies. Then shall their uncircumcised heart be turned.36 Lev. xxvi. 40, 41. For the circumcision according to the flesh, which is from Abraham, was given for a sign; that you may be separated from other nations, and from us; and that you alone may suffer that which you now justly suffer; and that your land may be desolate, and your cities burned with fire; and that strangers may eat your fruit in your presence, and not one of you may go up to Jerusalem.’37 See Apol., i. 47. The Jews [By Hadrian’s recent edict] were prohibited by law from entering Jerusalem on pain of death. And so Justin sees in circumcision their own punishment. For you are not recognised among the rest of men by any other mark than your fleshly circumcision. For none of you, I suppose, will venture to say that God neither did nor does foresee the events, which are future, nor foreordained his deserts for each one. Accordingly, these things have happened to you in fairness and justice, for you have slain the Just One, and His prophets before Him; and now you reject those who hope in Him, and in Him who sent Him—God the Almighty and Maker of all things —cursing in your synagogues those that believe on Christ. For you have not the power to lay hands upon us, on account of those who now have the mastery. But as often as you could, you did so. Wherefore God, by Isaiah, calls to you, saying, ‘Behold how the righteous man perished, and no one regards it. For the righteous man is taken away from before iniquity. His grave shall be in peace, he is taken away from the midst. Draw near hither, ye lawless children, seed of the adulterers, and children of the whore. Against whom have you sported yourselves, and against whom have you opened the mouth, and against whom have you loosened the tongue?’38 Isa. lvii. 1–4.

[16] Καὶ διὰ Μωυσέως κέκραγεν ὁ θεὸς αὐτός, οὕτως λέγων: Καὶ περιτεμεῖσθε τὴν σκληροκαρδίαν ὑμῶν καὶ τὸν τράχηλον οὐ σκληρυνεῖτε ἔτι: ὁ γὰρ κύριος, ὁ θεὸς ὑμῶν καὶ κύριος τῶν κυρίων, θεὸς μέγας καὶ ἰσχυρὸς καὶ φοβερὸς, ὅστις οὐ θαυμάζει πρόσωπον οὐδὲ μὴ λάβῃ δῶρον. καὶ ἐν τῷ Λευιτικῷ: Ὅτι παρέβησαν καὶ ὑπερεῖδόν με καὶ ὅτι ἐπορεύθησαν ἐναντίον μου πλάγιοι, καὶ ἐγὼ ἐπορεύθην μετ' αὐτῶν πλαγίως, καὶ ἀπολῶ αὐτοὺς ἐν τῇ γῇ τῶν ἐχθρῶν αὐτῶν. τότε ἐντραπήσεται ἡ καρδία ἡ ἀπερίτμητος αὐτῶν. ἡ γὰρ ἀπὸ Ἀβραὰμ κατὰ σάρκα περιτομὴ εἰς σημεῖον ἐδόθη, ἵνα ἦτε ἀπὸ τῶν ἄλλων ἐθνῶν καὶ ἡμῶν ἀφωρισμένοι, καὶ ἵνα μόνοι πάθητε ἃ νῦν ἐν δίκῃ πάσχετε, καὶ ἵνα γένωνται αἱ χῶραι ὑμῶν ἔρημοι καὶ αἱ πόλεις πυρίκαυστοι, καὶ τοὺς καρποὺς ἐνώπιον ὑμῶν κατεσθίωσιν ἀλλότριοι, καὶ μηδεὶς ἐξ ὑμῶν ἐπιβαίνῃ εἰς τὴν Ἰερουσαλήμ. οὐ γὰρ ἐξ ἄλλου τινὸς γνωρίζεσθε παρὰ τοὺς ἄλλους ἀνθρώπους, ἢ ἀπὸ τῆς ἐν σαρκὶ ὑμῶν περιτομῆς. οὐδεὶς γὰρ ὑμῶν, ὡς νομίζω, τολμήσει εἰπεῖν ὅτι μὴ καὶ προγνώστης τῶν γίνεσθαι μελλόντων ἦν καὶ ἔστιν ὁ θεὸς καὶ τὰ ἄξια ἑκάστῳ προετοιμάζων. καὶ ὑμῖν οὖν ταῦτα καλῶς καὶ δικαίως γέγονεν. ἀπεκτείνατε γὰρ τὸν δίκαιον καὶ πρὸ αὐτοῦ τοὺς προφήτας αὐτοῦ: καὶ νῦν τοὺς ἐλπίζοντας ἐπ' αὐτὸν καὶ τὸν πέμψαντα αὐτὸν παντοκράτορα καὶ ποιητὴν τῶν ὅλων θεὸν ἀθετεῖτε καί, ὅσον ἐφ' ὑμῖν, ἀτιμάζετε, καταρώμενοι ἐν ταῖς συναγωγαῖς ὑμῶν τοὺς πιστεύοντας ἐπὶ τὸν Χριστόν. οὐ γὰρ ἐξουσίαν ἔχετε αὐτόχειρες γενέσθαι ἡμῶν διὰ τοὺς νῦν ἐπικρατοῦντας: ὁσάκις δὲ ἂν ἐδυνήθητε, καὶ τοῦτο ἐπράξατε. διὸ καὶ ἐμβοᾷ ὑμῖν ὁ θεὸς διὰ τοῦ Ἠσαίου λέγων: Ἴδετε ὡς ὁ δίκαιος ἀπώλετο, καὶ οὐδεὶς κατανοεῖ. ἀπὸ γὰρ προσώπου τῆς ἀδικίας ἦρται ὁ δίκαιος. ἔσται ἐν εἰρήνῃ: ἡ ταφὴ αὐτοῦ ἦρται ἐκ τοῦ μέσου. ὑμεῖς προσηγάγετε ὧδε, υἱοὶ ἄνομοι, σπέρμα μοιχῶν καὶ τέκνα πόρνης. ἐν τίνι ἐνετρυφᾶτε καὶ ἐπὶ τίνα ἠνοίξατε τὸ στόμα καὶ ἐπὶ τίνι ἐχαλάσατε τὴν γλῶσσαν;