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showing each by its appropriate qualities, it would be clear that none of the evils can exist apart from our free choice. 2.89 But let us proceed to the next parts of the argument, having been taught this much through the things examined: that that Moses, and he who like him exalts himself through virtue, whenever his soul is strengthened both by long attention to the mountainous and lofty life and by the illumination that comes from above, considers it a loss not to guide his kinsmen as well toward the free life. 2.90 And coming to them, by the comparison of worse sufferings he instills in them a more vehement desire for freedom; and being about to rescue his race from evil, he brings death upon every firstborn Egyptian, through his actions legislating for us that we must destroy the first generation of evil; for it is not possible otherwise to escape the Egyptian life.

2.91 And it seems good to me not to pass over this thought without consideration. For if one looks only at the history, how will the conception worthy of God be preserved in what is said to have happened? The Egyptian does wrong, and in his place his newborn infant is punished, for whom, because of the immaturity of its age, there is no distinction of good and not so. Its life is outside the passion of vice; for infancy does not admit passion. It does not know the difference between right and left; it looks only to the nipple and has one sense indicative of pain: the tear; and, if it happens upon something which nature desires, it signifies its pleasure with a smile. If, then, this one pays the penalty for its father's wickedness, where is justice? where is piety? where is holiness? where is Ezekiel crying out that: the soul that sins, it shall die, and that: the one born from him will not take on the sin of the father? How does the history legislate against the word? 2.92 Therefore it would be easier, looking to the allegorical meaning, even if something happened typologically, to believe that the lawgiver is setting forth a doctrine through what is said. And the doctrine is this: that one who struggles against wickedness through virtue must bring the first beginnings of evil to nothing.

2.93 For by the destruction of the beginning, that which is after it is also destroyed, just as the Lord teaches through the Gospel, all but crying out explicitly to destroy the firstborn of Egyptian evils, through which he commands that, having destroyed desire and anger, we should no longer fear either the pollution of adultery or the curse of murder. For neither of these would exist on its own, unless anger should bring murder to fruition, and desire adultery.

2.94 Since, therefore, he who begets children for wickedness begets desire before adultery and anger before murder, he who has destroyed the firstborn has certainly also destroyed with it the offspring that follows the firstborn, just as in the case of the serpent, he who has struck the head has killed along with it the entire trailing coil which it drags behind.

2.95 But this would not happen unless that blood which turns away the destroyer were poured on our entrances. And if one must understand the meaning given more accurately in what has been said, the history allows us to understand this through both things: both from the destruction of the firstborn and from the entrance being secured by blood. For there the first impulse of evil is destroyed, and here the first entry of wickedness against us is turned away through the true lamb. For we do not cast out the destroyer by some device after he has gotten inside, but we take precautions through the law so that he might not even steal in upon us in the first place. And the guard and security is that the lintel and the posts of the entrance are marked with the blood of the lamb.

2.96 As the word speaks to us about the soul through these riddles, secular education also came to mind, dividing the soul into the rational, the appetitive, and the spirited. And of these they say that spirit and appetite are subordinate, supporting the intellectual part of the soul on either side, and the reason yoked to both

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τοῖς καταλλή λοις δεικνυούσης ἑκάτερον, δῆλον ἂν εἴη τὸ μηδὲν τῶν κακῶν δίχα τῆς ἡμετέρας προαιρέσεως δύνασθαι συστῆναι. 2.89 Ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὰ ἑξῆς τοῦ λόγου προΐωμεν τοσοῦτον παιδευθέντες διὰ τῶν ἐξητασμένων ὅτι Μωϋσῆς τε ἐκεῖνος καὶ ὁ κατ' ἐκεῖνον διὰ τῆς ἀρετῆς ἑαυτὸν ἐπαίρων, ἐπειδὰν διά τε τῆς χρονίας προσοχῆς τοῦ ὀρείου τε καὶ ὑψηλοῦ βίου καὶ διὰ τῆς ἄνωθεν γινομένης φωταγωγίας δυναμωθῇ τὴν ψυχήν, ζημίαν ἡγεῖται τὸ μὴ καὶ τοῖς ὁμογενέσι πρὸς τὸν ἐλεύθερον καθηγήσασθαι βίον. 2.90 Καὶ πρὸς αὐτοὺς γενόμενος τῇ παραθέσει τῶν χειρόνων παθῶν σφοδροτέραν αὐτοῖς τῆς ἐλευθερίας τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν ἐντίθησι· καὶ μέλλων ἐξαιρεῖσθαι τοῦ κακοῦ τὸ ὁμόφυλον, θάνατον ἐπάγει παντὶ πρωτοτόκῳ Αἰγυπτίῳ, τοῦτο δι' ὧν ἐποίησεν ἡμῖν νομοθετῶν τὸ δεῖν τὴν πρώτην τοῦ κακοῦ γένεσιν ἐξαφανίζειν· μὴ γὰρ ἄλλως εἶναι δυνατὸν διαφυγεῖν τὸν Αἰγύπτιον βίον.

2.91 Καί μοι δοκεῖ καλῶς ἔχειν τὴν διάνοιαν ταύτην μὴ παραδραμεῖν ἀθεώρητον. Εἰ γάρ τις μόνον εἰς τὴν ἱστορίαν βλέποι, πῶς ἡ θεοπρεπὴς ἔννοια τοῖς γεγενῆσθαι λεγομένοις διασωθή σεται; Ἀδικεῖ ὁ Αἰγύπτιος καὶ ἀντ' ἐκείνου κολάζεται τὸ ἀρτιγενὲς αὐτοῦ νήπιον, ᾧ διὰ τὸ τῆς ἡλικίας ἀτελὲς οὐδεμία τίς ἐστι καλοῦ τε καὶ μὴ τοιούτου διάκρισις. Ἔξω τοῦ κατὰ κακίαν πάθους ἡ ζωὴ αὐτοῦ· οὐ γὰρ χωρεῖ τὸ πάθος ἡ νηπιότης· δεξιᾶς καὶ ἀριστερᾶς διαφορὰν οὐκ ἐπίσταται· πρὸς μόνην ἀναβλέπει τὴν θηλὴν καὶ μίαν τοῦ λυποῦντος σημαντικὴν αἴσθησιν ἔχει τὸ δάκρυον· καί, εἰ τύχοι τινὸς οὗ ἡ φύσις ἐφίεται, μειδιάματι τὴν ἡδονὴν ἐπισημαίνει. Εἰ τοίνυν τοῦτο τῆς πατρικῆς κακίας ἐκτίνει τὴν δικήν, ποῦ τὸ δίκαιον; ποῦ τὸ εὐσεβές; ποῦ τὸ ὅσιον; ποῦ Ἰεζεχιὴλ βοῶν ὅτι· ψυχὴ ἡ ἁμαρτάνουσα αὐτὴ ἀποθανεῖται, καὶ ὅτι· οὐ λήψεται τὴν τοῦ πατρὸς ἁμαρτίαν ὁ ἐξ ἐκείνου γεννώμενος; πῶς ἀντινομοθετεῖ ἡ ἱστορία τῷ λόγῳ; 2.92 Οὐκοῦν εὐκολώτερον ἂν εἴη, πρὸς τὴν ἀναγωγὴν τοῦ νοήματος ὁρῶντας, εἰ καί τι γέγονε τυπικῶς, δόγμα διὰ τῶν λεγομένων πιστεύειν τὸν νομοθέτην ἐκτίθεσθαι. Τὸ δὲ δόγμα τοιοῦτόν ἐστι, τὸ δεῖν πρὸς τὴν κακίαν τινὰ δι' ἀρετῆς συμπλεκόμενον τὰς πρώτας τῶν κακῶν ἀρχὰς εἰς ἀφανισμὸν ἄγειν. 2.93 Τῇ γὰρ ἀναιρέσει τῆς ἀρχῆς καὶ τὸ μετ' ἐκείνην συναφανίζεται, καθὼς διὰ τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου διδάσκει ὁ Κύριος, μονονουχὶ διαρρήδην βοῶν ἀναιρεῖν τῶν Αἰγυπτίων κακῶν τὰ πρωτότοκα, δι' ὧν κελεύει τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν ἀνελόντας καὶ τὴν ὀργὴν μηκέτι δεδοικέναι μήτε τῆς μοιχείας τὸ μίασμα, μήτε τοῦ φόνου τὸ ἄγος. Οὐ γὰρ ἂν ἐφ' ἑαυτοῦ συσταίη τούτων ἑκάτερον, εἰ μὴ φόνον μὲν ἡ ὀργή, μοιχείαν δὲ ἡ ἐπιθυμία τελεσφορήσειεν. 2.94 Ἐπεὶ οὖν ὁ εἰς κακίαν τεκνογονῶν πρὸ τῆς μοιχείας τίκτει τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν καὶ τὴν ὀργὴν πρὸ τοῦ φόνου, ὁ ἀνελὼν τὸ πρωτότοκον συνανεῖλε πάντως καὶ τὴν ἀκολουθοῦσαν τῷ πρωτοτόκῳ γονήν, ὥσπερ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ ὄφεως ὁ τὴν κεφαλὴν πλήξας ὅλον συναπενέκρωσε τὸν κατόπιν ὁλκὸν ὃν ἐφέλκεται. 2.95 Τοῦτο δὲ οὐκ ἂν γένοιτο μὴ προσχυθέντος ταῖς εἰσόδοις ἡμῶν ἐκείνου τοῦ αἵματος ὃ τὸν ὁλοθρευτὴν ἀποστρέ φει. Καὶ εἰ χρὴ τὴν ἀποδοθεῖσαν διάνοιαν ἀκριβέστερον ἐν τοῖς εἰρημένοις κατανοῆσαι, τοῦτο δι' ἑκατέρων δίδωσιν ἡ ἱστορία νοεῖν ἔκ τε τοῦ ἀνελεῖν τὸ πρωτότοκον καὶ ἐκ τοῦ δι' αἵματος κατασφαλισθῆναι τὴν εἴσοδον. Ἐκεῖ τε γὰρ ἡ πρώτη ὁρμὴ τοῦ κακοῦ ἀφανίζεται καὶ ἐνταῦθα ἡ πρώτη τῆς κακίας εἴσοδος καθ' ἡμῶν διὰ τοῦ ἀληθινοῦ ἀμνοῦ ἀποστρέφεται. Οὐ γὰρ ἐντὸς γενόμενον τὸν ὁλοθρευτὴν δι' ἐπινοίας ἐκβάλλομεν, ἀλλ' ὅπως ἂν μηδὲ τὴν ἀρχὴν ἡμῖν παρεισδύσῃ φυλακὴν διὰ τοῦ νόμου ποιούμεθα. Φυλακὴ δέ ἐστι καὶ ἀσφάλεια τὸ τῷ αἵματι τοῦ ἀμνοῦ τήν τε φλιὰν καὶ τοὺς σταθμοὺς τῆς εἰσόδου κατασημήνεσθαι. 2.96 Ταῦτα περὶ ψυχῆς ἡμῖν φυσιολογοῦντος δι' αἰνιγμάτων τοῦ λόγου, καὶ ἡ ἔξωθεν παίδευσις ἐφαντάσθη, διαιροῦσα τὴν ψυχὴν εἴς τε τὸ λογιστικὸν καὶ ἐπιθυμητικὸν καὶ θυμοειδές. Ἐκ τούτων δὲ τὸν θυμὸν μὲν καὶ τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν ὑποβεβηκέναι φασίν, ἑκατέρωθεν τὸ διανοητικὸν τῆς ψυχῆς ὑπερείδοντας, τὸν δὲ λογισμὸν ἀμφοτέροις ἐπεζευγμένον