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to send a teacher to the Jews, having first circumcised him, he sent him thus. He did this, so that he might be readily received by his hearers, and he entered with circumcision, in order to abolish circumcision. But he himself and Timothy knew the reason, but he did not tell the disciples. For if they had known that he circumcised for this reason, in order to abolish circumcision, they would not have listened to him speaking in the first place, and the whole gain would have flowed away; but as it was, their ignorance benefited them the most. For thinking he was doing this as a keeper of the law, they received both him and his teaching favorably and graciously. And having received it and been instructed little by little, they departed from the old ways; which would not have happened, if they had known the reason from the beginning. For having learned it, they would have turned away from him, and having turned away, they would not have listened, and not having listened, they would have remained in their former error; so that this would not happen, he did not reveal the reason. For this reason also here he does not state the pretext of the economy, but he manages the argument differently, 61.637 saying thus: But from those who seemed to be something—what they once were makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality to a man. Here he not only does not defend the apostles, but he even weighs heavily upon the saints, so that he might benefit the weak. And what he says is this: Even if those men permit circumcision, they themselves will give an account to God. For it is not because they are great and leaders that God will show them partiality. But he did not say this clearly, but sparingly; for he did not say, But if those men muddy the preaching, and preach contrary to what was commanded, they will pay the ultimate penalty and will undergo punishment; he said none of these things, but he seems to touch upon them more reverently, saying thus: But from those who seemed to be something, what they once were. And he did not say, What they are, but What they were, showing that they too had finally ceased from preaching in this way, since the preaching had shone forth everywhere. And the phrase, what they once were, means, If, he says, they themselves preached thus, they will give an account. For they are not going to give an account to men, but to God.

3. But he said these things, not as though doubting, nor as being ignorant of their affairs, but, as I said before, thinking it advantageous to manage the argument in this way. Then, lest he seem to accuse them as holding the opposite position, and from this create a suspicion of a fight, he immediately added the correction, saying, that those who seemed to be something added nothing to me. What does this mean? The things you say, he says, I do not know; this however I know clearly, that they did not oppose me, but they also breathed together and agreed together; for the phrase, they gave the right hand, indicates this. But for the time being he does not say this, but that they did not teach, they did not correct, they did not add anything more to what I knew. For those who seemed to be something, he says, added nothing to me. That is. Having learned my matters, they added nothing, corrected nothing, and this knowing that I came for this purpose, to communicate with them; and by revelation of the Spirit I came, to communicate with them, and I had Titus, an uncircumcised man, with me, they neither said anything more to me than what I knew, nor did they circumcise him. But on the contrary. What is, On the contrary? Some say he means this, that not only did they not teach him, but they were also taught by him; but I would not say this. For what more were they going to learn from him? For indeed each of them was perfected. Therefore he does not mean this when he says On the contrary, but that not only did they not rebuke, but they were so far from finding fault, that they even praised; for the opposite of finding fault is to praise. Then since it was likely some would object, If they praised, how then did they not abolish circumcision? for if they praised, they ought to have abolished it; to say

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Ἰουδαίοις πέμπειν διδάσκαλον, περιτεμὼν αὐτὸν πρότερον, οὕτως ἔπεμψεν. Ἐποίησε δὲ τοῦτο, ἵνα εὐπαράδεκτος γένηται τοῖς ἀκροαταῖς, καὶ εἰσῆλθε μετὰ τῆς περιτομῆς, ἵνα καταλύσῃ τὴν περιτομήν. Ἀλλὰ τὴν αἰτίαν αὐτὸς μὲν ἠπίστατο καὶ Τιμόθεος, τοῖς δὲ μαθηταῖς οὐκ εἶπεν. Εἰ γὰρ ἔγνωσαν, ὅτι διὰ τοῦτο περιέτεμεν, ἵνα λύσῃ τὴν περιτομὴν, οὐδ' ἂν τὴν ἀρχὴν ἤκουσαν αὐτοῦ δημηγοροῦντος, καὶ τὸ πᾶν ἂν διεῤῥύη κέρδος· νῦν δὲ ἡ ἄγνοια τὰ μέγιστα αὐτοὺς ὠφέλησε. Νομίζοντες γὰρ αὐτὸν ὡς νομοφύλακα τοῦτο ποιεῖν, καὶ εὐμενῶς ἐδέξαντο καὶ προσηνῶς καὶ αὐτὸν καὶ τὴν ἐκείνου διδασκαλίαν. ∆εξάμενοι δὲ κατὰ μικρὸν καὶ παιδευθέντες, ἀπέστησαν τῶν παλαιῶν· ὅπερ οὐκ ἂν ἐγένετο, εἰ παρὰ τὴν ἀρχὴν τὴν αἰτίαν ᾔδεσαν. Μαθόντες γὰρ ἂν αὐτὸν ἀπεστράφησαν, ἀποστραφέντες δὲ οὐκ ἂν ἤκουσαν, μὴ ἀκούσαντες δὲ ἔμειναν ἂν ἐπὶ τῆς πλάνης τῆς προτέρας· ὅπερ ἵνα μὴ γένηται, οὐκ ἐξεκάλυψε τὴν αἰτίαν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ ἐνταῦθα οὐ λέγει τῆς οἰκονομίας τὴν πρόφασιν, ἀλλ' ἑτέρως 61.637 μεθοδεύει τὸν λόγον, οὕτω λέγων· Ἀπὸ δὲ τῶν δοκούντων εἶναί τι· ὁποῖοί ποτε ἦσαν, οὐδέν μοι διαφέρει· πρόσωπον ἀνθρώπου ὁ Θεὸς οὐ λαμβάνει. Ἐνταῦθα οὐ μόνον οὐκ ἀπολογεῖται ὑπὲρ τῶν ἀποστόλων, ἀλλὰ καὶ σφόδρα βαρεῖ τοὺς ἁγίους, ἵνα ὠφελήσῃ τοὺς ἀσθενοῦντας. Ὃ δὲ λέγει, τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν· Εἰ καὶ ἐπιτρέπουσιν ἐκεῖνοι περιτέμνεσθαι, τὸν λόγον αὐτοὶ τῷ Θεῷ δώσουσιν. Οὐ γὰρ, ἐπειδὴ μεγάλοι εἰσὶ καὶ ἔξαρχοι, ὁ Θεὸς πρόσωπον αὐτῶν λήψεται. Ἀλλ' οὕτω μὲν σαφῶς οὐκ εἶπε, πεφεισμένως δέ· οὐ γὰρ εἶπεν, Εἰ δὲ ἐκεῖνοι θολοῦσι τὸ κήρυγμα, καὶ παρὰ τὰ προστεταγμένα κηρύττουσι, δώσουσι τὴν ἐσχάτην δίκην, καὶ τιμωρίαν ὑποστήσονται· τούτων μὲν οὐδὲν εἶπε, σεμνοτέρως δὲ αὐτῶν δοκεῖ καθάπτεσθαι, οὕτω λέγων· Ἀπὸ δὲ τῶν δοκούντων εἶναί τι, ὁποῖοί ποτε ἦσαν. Καὶ οὐκ εἶπεν, Ὁποῖοί ποτέ εἰσιν, ἀλλ' Ἦσαν, δεικνὺς ὅτι καὶ αὐτοὶ λοιπὸν ἦσαν παυσάμενοι τοῦ οὕτω κηρύσσειν, ἅτε τοῦ κηρύγματος πανταχοῦ διαλάμψαντος. Τὸ δὲ, Ὁποῖοί ποτε ἦσαν, Εἰ οὕτω, φησὶν, ἐκήρυττον αὐτοὶ, τὸν λόγον δώσουσιν. Οὐ γὰρ ἀνθρώποις, ἀλλὰ Θεῷ μέλλουσιν ἀπολογεῖσθαι.

γʹ. Ταῦτα δὲ ἔλεγεν, οὐχ ὡς ἀμφιβάλλων, οὐδ' ὡς ἀγνοῶν τὰ ἐκείνων, ἀλλ', ὅπερ ἔφθην εἰπὼν, οὕτω συμφέρειν νομίζων μεθοδεῦσαι τὸν λόγον. Εἶτα ἵνα μὴ δόξῃ ὡς τὴν ἐναντίαν ἔχων τάξιν κατηγορεῖν αὐτῶν, καὶ ἀπὸ τούτου κατασκευάσῃ μάχης ὑπόνοιαν, ἐπήγαγεν εὐθέως τὴν διόρθωσιν, εἰπὼν, ὅτι Ἐμοὶ οἱ δοκοῦντες, οὐδὲν προσανέθεντο. Τί δὲ τοῦτό ἐστιν; Ἃ μὲν ὑμεῖς λέγετε, φησὶν, οὐκ οἶδα· ἐκεῖνο μέντοι οἶδα σαφῶς, ὅτι ἐμοὶ οὐκ ἠναντιώθησαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ συνέπνευσαν καὶ συνεφώνησαν· τὸ γὰρ, ∆εξιὰς ἔδωκαν, τοῦτό ἐστι δηλοῦντος. Ἀλλὰ τέως οὐ λέγει τοῦτο, ἀλλ' ὅτι οὐκ ἐδίδαξαν, οὐ διώρθωσαν, οὐ πλέον τι προσέθηκαν ὧν ᾔδειν. Ἐμοὶ γὰρ οἱ δοκοῦντες, φησὶν, οὐδὲν προσανέθεντο. Τουτέστι. Μαθόντες τὰ ἐμὰ, οὐδὲν προσέθηκαν, οὐδὲν διώρθωσαν, καὶ ταῦτα εἰδότες, ὅτι διὰ τοῦτο παρεγενόμην, ὥστε αὐτοῖς κοινώσασθαι· καὶ κατ' ἀποκάλυψιν Πνεύματος παρεγενόμην, ὥστε αὐτοῖς κοινώσασθαι, καὶ Τίτον ἀκρόβυστον εἶχον μεθ' ἑαυτοῦ, οὔτε ἐμοί τι πλέον εἶπον ὧν ᾔδειν, οὔτε ἐκεῖνον περιέτεμον. Ἀλλὰ τοὐναντίον. Τί ἐστι, Τοὐναντίον; Τινὲς μέν φασι τοῦτο αὐτὸν λέγειν, ὅτι οὐ μόνον αὐτὸν οὐκ ἐδίδαξαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐδιδάχθησαν παρ' αὐτοῦ· ἐγὼ δὲ οὐκ ἂν εἴποιμι τοῦτο. Τί γὰρ ἔμελλον παρ' αὐτοῦ μανθάνειν πλέον; καὶ γὰρ ἕκαστος αὐτῶν ἀπηρτισμένος ἦν. Οὐ τοίνυν τοῦτο βούλεται εἰπεῖν Τοὐναντίον λέγων, ἀλλ' ὅτι οὐ μόνον οὐκ ἐπετίμησαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοσοῦτον ἀπέσχον τοῦ μέμψασθαι, ὅτι καὶ ἐπῄνεσαν· τὸ γὰρ ἐναντίον τοῦ μέμψασθαι τὸ ἐπαινέσαι. Εἶτα ἐπειδὴ εἰκὸς ἦν ἀντειπεῖν τινας, Εἰ ἐπῄνεσαν, πῶς οὖν τὴν περιτομὴν οὐκ ἀνεῖλον; εἰ γὰρ ἐπῄνεσαν, ἐχρῆν ἀνελεῖν· εἰπεῖν