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which plant is useful, and which is deadly, and not to approach all that appears, but to have the discernment, and to know clearly what is harmful to them, and what is beneficial; and is man to be deprived of such security? For if he did not have this, he was worthy of nothing, but was also more insignificant than all things. 54.606 For it was much more preferable for him to live in darkness, and to have had his eyes gouged out, and to have been deprived of light, than not to know what is good and what is evil. For if you take this away from our life, you have taken away our whole life, and you have filled everything with much confusion. For this is what makes us different from the irrational creatures, and by which we are better than the beasts, by knowing vice and virtue, and by recognizing what is evil, and not being ignorant of what is good. And if we know this now, and not only we, but also Scythians and barbarians, much more that man back then knew this before the sin; and he who was honored with so many honors, such as being in the image, in the likeness, and the other blessings, would not have remained destitute of the chief of goods. For only those are ignorant of good and evil who are deprived of their natural wits; but Adam was filled with much wisdom, and was able to discern both of these. And that he was filled with spiritual wisdom, hear the proof of it. God brought the beasts to him, it says, to see what he would call them; and whatever Adam called them, that was their name. Consider, therefore, with how much wisdom he was filled, being able to give names to so many kinds, so various, and of every sort—of cattle, of reptiles, of birds—and all of them proper. For so did God accept the giving of the names that he no longer changed those names, nor did he wish to take away their appellations when he sinned. For whatever, it says, Adam called them, that was their name. 2. Was this man, then, ignorant of what is good and what is evil? And how could that be reasonable? Again he brought the woman to him, and seeing her he immediately recognized his partner in nature. And what does he say? This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh. For since a little before God had brought to him all the animals, Adam, wishing to show that this creature is not one of those animals, said: This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh. But some say that he hints not only at this, but also at the manner of creation, and that for the woman the manner of generation will not be such again, for this reason he said: This now; which indeed another interpreter, explaining more accurately, said, This once, as if he said, Only now has a woman come from a man alone; but after this it will no longer be so, but from both. Bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh. For God, taking a piece from the whole lump, so fashioned the woman, that in all things she might share with the man. She, he says, shall be called woman, because she was taken out of man. Do you see how for this reason he also gives the name, so that the name may teach the fellowship of nature, and the teaching of the fellowship according to nature, and the manner of creation may be a cause of continual love, and a bond of 54.607 harmony? Then what does he say? For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and shall be joined to his wife. He did not say simply, he shall be united, but, He shall be joined, indicating the exact union; And the two shall be one flesh. He who knew so much, tell me, did he not know what is good and what is evil? And how could that be reasonable? For if he did not know what is good and what is evil before eating from the tree, but learned after the eating, sin became a teacher of wisdom to him, and the serpent no longer

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βοτάνη χρήσιμος, ποία δὲ ὀλεθρία, καὶ μὴ πᾶσιν αὐτὰ ἐπιέναι τοῖς φαινομένοις, ἀλλ' ἔχειν τὴν διάγνωσιν, καὶ εἰδέναι σαφῶς, τί μὲν αὐτοῖς ἐπιβλαβὲς, τί δὲ ὠφέλιμον· τὸν δὲ ἄνθρωπον τοσαύτης ἀποστερεῖσθαι τῆς ἀσφαλείας; Εἰ γὰρ μὴ τοῦτο εἶχεν, οὐδενὸς ἄξιος ἦν, ἀλλὰ καὶ εὐτελέστερος πάντων 54.606 ὑπῆρχε. Πολλῷ γὰρ αἱρετώτερον ἦν αὐτῷ ἐν σκότῳ διάγειν, καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς ἐκκεκόφθαι, καὶ τοῦ φωτὸς ἀπεστερῆσθαι, ἢ μὴ εἰδέναι τί μὲν καλὸν, τί δὲ πονηρόν. Ἐὰν γὰρ τοῦτο ἀνέλῃς τῆς ζωῆς τῆς ἡμετέρας, πᾶσαν τὴν ζωὴν ἡμῶν ἀνεῖλες, καὶ πολλῆς συγχύσεως τὰ πάντα ἐνέπλησας. Τοῦτο γάρ ἐστιν, ᾧ τῶν ἀλόγων διαφέρομεν, καὶ ᾧ τῶν θηρίων ἀμείνους ἐσμὲν, τῷ κακίαν καὶ ἀρετὴν εἰδέναι, καὶ τῷ ἐπιγινώσκειν τὸ πονηρὸν, καὶ τὸ καλὸν μὴ ἀγνοεῖν. Εἰ δὲ ἡμεῖς τοῦτο ἴσμεν νῦν, οὐχ ἡμεῖς δὲ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ Σκύθαι καὶ βάρβαροι, πολλῷ μᾶλλον ὁ ἄνθρωπος τότε ἐκεῖνος πρὸ τῆς ἁμαρτίας τοῦτο ἐγνώκει· καὶ οὐκ ἂν ὁ τοσαύταις τιμηθεὶς τιμαῖς, οἷον τῷ κατ' εἰκόνα, τῷ καθ' ὁμοίωσιν, καὶ ταῖς λοιπαῖς εὐλογίαις, τοῦ κεφαλαίου τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἔρημος ἔμεινε. Τὸ γὰρ καλὸν καὶ πονηρὸν ἐκεῖνοι μόνοι ἀγνοοῦσιν, ὅσοι τῶν κατὰ φύσιν εἰσὶν ἀπεστερημένοι φρενῶν· ὁ δὲ Ἀδὰμ σοφίας πολλῆς ἐπεπλήρωτο, καὶ διαγνωστικὸς ἑκατέρων τούτων ἦν. Καὶ ὅτι σοφίας ἐπεπλήρωτο πνευματικῆς, ἄκουσον αὐτῆς τὴν ἀπόδειξιν. Ἤγαγε, φησὶ, πρὸς αὐτὸν ὁ Θεὸς τὰ θηρία, ἰδεῖν τί καλέσει αὐτά· καὶ εἴ τι ἐκάλεσεν αὐτὰ Ἀδὰμ, τοῦτο τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῖς. Ἐννόησον τοίνυν πόσης ἐπέπληστο σοφίας, τοσούτοις γένεσιν, οὕτω ποικίλοις, καὶ παντοδαποῖς, τοῖς τῶν κτηνῶν, τοῖς τῶν ἑρπετῶν, τοῖς τῶν πτηνῶν προσηγορίας ἐπιθεῖναι, καὶ πάσας κυρίας, δυνηθείς. Οὕτω γὰρ ἀπεδέξατο τὴν θέσιν τῶν ὀνομάτων ὁ Θεὸς, ὡς μηκέτι κινῆσαι τὰς προσηγορίας ἐκείνας, μηδὲ ἁμαρτόντος αὐτοῦ θελῆσαι ἀνελεῖν τὰς ἐπωνυμίας αὐτῶν. Πᾶν γὰρ, φησὶν, ὃ ἐκάλεσεν αὐτὰ Ἀδὰμ, τοῦτο ὄνομα αὐτοῖς. βʹ. Οὗτος γοῦν ἠγνόει τί μὲν καλὸν, τί δὲ πονηρόν; Καὶ πῶς ἂν ἔχοι λόγον; Πάλιν ἤγαγε τὴν γυναῖκα πρὸς αὐτὸν, καὶ ἰδὼν αὐτὴν εὐθέως ἐπέγνω τὴν τῆς φύσεως κοινωνόν. Καὶ τί φησι; Τοῦτο νῦν ὀστοῦν ἐκ τῶν ὀστῶν μου, καὶ σὰρξ ἐκ τῆς σαρκός μου. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ πρὸ βραχέος ἦν ὁ Θεὸς παραγαγὼν αὐτῷ τὰ ζῶα ἅπαντα, δεῖξαι βουλόμενος ὁ Ἀδὰμ, ὅτι τοῦτο τὸ ζῶον οὐχὶ ἓν ἐκείνων τῶν ζώων ἐστὶν, εἶπε· Τοῦτο νῦν ὀστοῦν ἐκ τῶν ὀστῶν μου, καὶ σὰρξ ἐκ τῆς σαρκός μου. Τινὲς δὲ, ὅτι οὐχὶ τοῦτο μόνον αἰνίττεται, φασὶν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν τρόπον τῆς δημιουργίας, καὶ ὅτι οὐκ ἔσται πάλιν τῇ γυναικὶ τοιοῦτος τῆς γενέσεως ὁ τρόπος, διὰ τοῦτο εἶπε· Τοῦτο νῦν· ὅπερ οὖν καὶ ἕτερος ἑρμηνευτὴς ἀκριβέστερον ἑρμηνεύων ἔλεγε, Τοῦτο ἅπαξ, ὡσανεὶ ἔλεγε, Νῦν μόνον γυνὴ γέγονεν ἐξ ἀνδρὸς μόνου· μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα οὐκέτι οὕτως ἔσται, ἀλλ' ἐξ ἀμφοτέρων· Ὀστοῦν ἐκ τῶν ὀστῶν μου, καὶ σὰρξ ἐκ τῆς σαρκός μου. Ἐξ ὁλοκλήρου γὰρ τοῦ φυράματος ὁ Θεὸς λαβὼν κόμμα, οὕτω τὴν γυναῖκα ἔπλασεν, ἵνα κατὰ πάντα κοινωνῇ τῷ ἀνδρί. Αὕτη, φησὶ, κληθήσεται γυνὴ, ὅτι ἐκ τοῦ ἀνδρὸς ἐλήφθη. Ὁρᾷς πῶς καὶ τὴν προσηγορίαν διὰ τοῦτο ἐπιτίθησιν, ἵνα ἡ προσηγορία διδάσκῃ τὴν κοινωνίαν τῆς φύσεως, καὶ ἡ διδασκαλία τῆς κατὰ τὴν φύσιν κοινωνίας, καὶ ὁ τῆς δημιουργίας τρόπος ὑπόθεσις ἀγάπης ᾖ διηνεκοῦς, καὶ σύνδεσμος 54.607 ὁμονοίας; Εἶτα τί φησιν; Ἀντὶ τούτου καταλείψει ἄνθρωπος τὸν πατέρα αὐτοῦ καὶ τὴν μητέρα αὐτοῦ, καὶ προσκολληθήσεται τῇ γυναικὶ αὐτοῦ. Οὐκ εἶπεν ἁπλῶς, ἑνωθήσεται, ἀλλὰ, Κολληθήσεται, τὴν ἀκριβῇ συνάφειαν δηλῶν· Καὶ ἔσονται οἱ δύο εἰς σάρκα μίαν. Ὁ τοσαῦτα οὖν εἰδὼς, εἰπέ μοι, οὐκ ᾔδει τί μὲν καλὸν, τί δὲ πονηρόν; Καὶ πῶς ἂν ἔχοι λόγον; Εἰ γὰρ μὴ ᾔδει τί μὲν καλὸν, τί δὲ πονηρὸν πρὸ τοῦ φαγεῖν ἀπὸ τοῦ ξύλου, ἀλλὰ μετὰ τὴν βρῶσιν ἔμαθεν, ἡ ἁμαρτία γέγονεν αὐτῷ σοφίας διδάσκαλος, καὶ ὁ ὄφις οὐκέτι