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They blaspheme, he says, but we who know his secrets know clearly that he is worthy not to be blasphemed, but to be glorified. At the same time, it also teaches us another divine mystery, that Christ who was born according to the flesh, he himself is God over all. «But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel; nor because they are the seed of Abraham are they all children; but, 'In Isaac your seed shall be called.' That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as the seed. For this is the word of promise: 'At this time I will come to you, and Sarah shall have a son.'» And so when things turned out this way, he says, we are not at a loss to show that the promise stands; how then does the promise stand? God said, "To your seed I will give the land;" meaning the Gentiles as the seed of Abraham. And from where is this clear? From his saying, "In Isaac your seed shall be called." That is, just as Isaac, born through promise, is a legitimate son, so also he would call the one through promise the legitimate seed of Abraham. «Not only this, but also Rebecca, when she had conceived by one man, Isaac our father; for though they were not yet born, nor had done anything good or bad (that the purpose of God according to election might stand), not of works, but of him who calls, it was said to her, 'The older shall serve the younger,' as it is written, 'Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated.'» Why do you marvel, he says, if of the Jews, some were saved and some were not saved? For one might see this happening from the beginning among the patriarchs; and not only among the patriarchs, but also among the Israelites. For although the sin was common, 95.517 some received mercy, and some did not receive mercy; and one might see this also, he says, in the case of those who were punished. For of the Egyptians, some were saved, and some have been punished; and in the case of the Jews, he called 'not a people' a 'people'; and he did not deem all worthy of the same honor. For only the remnant has been saved. And having set forth all these difficulties, he afterward brings on the solution; and what is the solution, but that it is from works, not from faith, and their ignorance of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own; but for what reason did he lead the hearer into such difficulty? So that he might as it were say to the Jews. Since you are perplexed by so many things, and are able to solve none of them, how can you cause us trouble concerning the calling of the Gentiles; although we have a just reason to state, why they were saved, but you have fallen away. And what is this? That they were from faith, but you, as from the works of the law, stumbled at the stone. «What then shall we say? Is there injustice with God? By no means.» Therefore neither in our case and that of the Jews. «For he says to Moses, 'I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.'» It is not for you to know, he says, O Moses, who are worthy of loving-kindness, but concede this to me. And if it was not for Moses to know, much less is it for us. «So then it is not of him who runs, nor of him who wills, but of God who shows mercy. For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, 'For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I might show my power in you, and that my name might be declared in all the earth.'» In the middle he again introduces another objection. «Therefore he has mercy on whom he wills, and whom he wills he hardens. You will say to me then, 'Why does he still find fault? For who has resisted his will?' But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? Shall the thing formed say to him who formed it, 'Why have you made me like this?' Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor?» Again he introduces another objection, leading the hearer into a multitude of difficulties. And he does not solve it first, but silences him, saying, Who are you, O man, who talks back to God? instead of, who contradicts. «What if God, wanting to show his wrath and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, and that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy?» What he says is something like this: Pharaoh was a vessel of wrath, that is, a man of God the

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βλασφημοῦσι, φησὶν, ἀλλ' ἡμεῖς οἱ τὰ ἀπόῤῥητα αὐτοῦ εἰδότες ἴσμεν σαφῶς, ὅτι οὐ βλασφημεῖσθαι, ἀλλὰ τοῦ δοξάζεσθαι ἄξιος. Ἅμα δὲ καὶ ἕτερόν τι ἐκδιδάσκει ἡμᾶς θεῖον μυστήριον, ὅτι ὁ γεννηθεὶς κατὰ σάρκα Χριστὸς, αὐτός ἐστιν ὁ ἐπὶ πάντων Θεός. «Οὐχ οἷον δὲ ὅτι ἐκπέπτωκεν ὁ λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ. Οὐ γὰρ πάντες οἱ ἐξ Ἰσραὴλ, οὗτοι Ἰσραήλ· οὐδὲὅτι εἰσὶ σπέρμα Ἀβραὰμ πάντες τέκνα· ἀλλ' ἐν Ἰσαὰκ κληθήσεταί σοι σπέρμα· τουτέστιν, ὅτι οὐ τὰ τέκνα τῆς σαρκὸς, ταῦτα τέκνα τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἀλλὰ τὰ τέκνα τῆς ἐπαγγελίας λογίζεται εἰς σπέρμα. Ἐπαγγελίας γὰρ ὁ λόγος οὗτος· κατὰ τὸν καιρὸν τοῦτον ἐλεύσομαι πρὸς σὲ, καὶ ἔσται τῇ Σάῤῥᾳ υἱός.» Καὶ οὕτω τῶν πραγμάτων ἐκβάντων, φησὶν, οὐκ ἀποροῦμεν τοῦ δεῖξαι, ὅτι ἕστηκεν ἡ ἐπαγγελία· πῶς οὖν ἕστηκεν ἡ ἐπαγγελία; Εἶπεν ὁ Θεὸς, Τῷ σπέρματί σου δώσω τὴν γῆν· σπέρμα δὲ τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ τὰ ἔθνη λέγων. Καὶ τοῦτο πόθεν ἐστὶ δῆλον; ἐκ τοῦ, Ἐν Ἰσαὰκ, εἰπεῖν αὐτὸν, κληθήσεταί σοι σπέρμα. Τουτέστιν ὥσπερ ὁ Ἰσαὰκ δι' ἐπαγγελίας γεννηθεὶς γνήσιος υἱὸς, οὕτω καὶ ὁ δι' ἐπαγγελίας γνήσιον σπέρμα προσαγορεύσειεν τοῦ Ἀβραάμ. «Οὐ μόνον δὲ, ἀλλὰ καὶ Ῥεβέκκα ἐξ ἑνὸς κοίτην ἔχουσα Ἰσαὰκ τοῦ πατρὸς ἡμῶν· μήπω γὰρ γεννηθέντων, μηδὲ πραξάντων τι ἀγαθὸν ἢ φαῦλον (ἵνα ἡ κατ' ἐκλογὴν πρόθεσις τοῦ Θεοῦ μένῃ), οὐκ ἐξ ἔργων, ἀλλ' ἐκ τοῦ καλοῦντος ἐῤῥέθη αὐτῇ, ὅτι ὁ μείζων δουλεύσει τῷ ἐλάσσονι, καθὼς γέγραπται· Τὸν Ἰακὼβ ἠγάπησα, τὸν δὲ Ἡσαῦ ἐμίσησα.» Τί θαυμάζεις, φησὶν, εἰ Ἰουδαίων, οἱ μὲν ἐσώθησαν, οἱ δὲ οὐκ ἐσώθησαν, Καὶ γὰρ ἄνωθεν τοῦτο ἐπὶ τῶν πατριαρχῶν γινόμενον ἴδοι τις ἄν· καὶ οὐ μόνον ἐπὶ τῶν πατριαρχῶν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν Ἰσραηλιτῶν. Καίτοι γὰρ ὄντος κοινοῦ τοῦ ἁμαρτήματος, 95.517 οἱ μὲν ἠλεήθησαν, οἱ δὲ οὐκ ἠλεήθησαν· καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν κολαζομένων δὲ τοῦτο, φησὶν, ἴδοι τις ἄν. Τῶν γὰρ Αἰγυπτίων οἱ μὲν ἐσώθησαν, οἱ δὲ τετιμώρηνται· καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν Ἰουδαίων, τὸν οὐ λαὸν ἐκάλεσε λαόν· καὶ οὐ πάντας τῆς αὐτῆς ἠξίωσε τιμῆς. Τὸ γὰρ ἐγκατάλειμμα σέσωσται μόνον. Ταῦτα δὲ πάντα τὰ ἄπορα μέσα θεὶς, ὕστερον ἐπάγει τὴν λύσιν· ποία δέ ἐστιν ἡ λύσις, ἢ ὅτι ἐξ ἔργων, οὐκ ἐκ πίστεως, καὶ τὸ ἀγνοεῖν αὐτοὺς τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ δικαιοσύνην, καὶ τὴν ἰδίαν ζητεῖν στῆσαι· τίνος δὲ χάριν εἰς τοσαύτην ἀπορίαν ἐξήγαγε τὸν ἀκροατήν; ἵνα μονονουχὶ λέγῃ πρὸς Ἰουδαίους. Τοσαῦτα ἀποροῦντες, καὶ οὐδὲν τούτων λύειν δυνάμενοι, πως ὑπὲρ τῆς τῶν ἐθνῶν κλήσεως πράγματα ἡμῖν παρέχετε· καίτοι γε ἐχόντων ἡμῶν δικαίαν αἰτίαν εἰπεῖν, δι' ἣν ἐκεῖνοι μὲν ἐσώθησαν, ὑμεῖς δὲ ἐξεπέσατε. Καὶ ποία αὕτη; Ὅτι ἐκεῖνοι μὲν ἐκ πίστεως, ὑμεῖς δὲ ὡς ἐξ ἔργων νόμου προσεκόψατε λίθῳ. «Τί οὖν ἐροῦμεν; μὴ ἀδικία παρὰ τῷ Θεῷ; Μὴ γένοιτο.» Οὐκοῦν οὐδὲ ἐφ' ἡμῶν καὶ τῶν Ἰουδαίων. «Τῷ Μωϋσεῖ γὰρ λέγει· Ἐλεήσω ὃν ἂν ἐλεῶ· καὶ οἰκτειρήσω ὃν ἂν οἰκτείρω.» Οὐ σόν ἐστιν εἰδέναι, φησὶν, ὦ Μωϋσῆ, τίνες ἄξιοι τῆς φιλανθρωπίας, ἀλλ' ἐμοὶ παραχώρει τοῦτο. Εἰ δὲ Μωϋσέως οὐκ ἦν εἰδέναι, πολὺ μᾶλλον ἡμῶν. «Ἄρα οὖν οὐ τοῦ τρέχοντος, οὐδὲ τοῦ θέλοντος, ἀλλὰ τοῦ ἐλεοῦντος Θεοῦ. Λέγει γὰρ ἡ Γραφὴ τῷ Φαραὼ, ὅτι Εἰς αὐτὸ τοῦτο ἐξήγειρά σε, ὅπως ἐνδείξωμαι ἐν σοὶ τὴν δύναμίν μου, καὶ ὅπως διαγγελῇ τὸ ὄνομά μου ἐν πάσῃ τῇ γῇ.» ∆ιὰ μέσου πάλιν ἑτέραν ἀντίθεσιν εἰσάγει. «Ἄρα οὖν ὃν θέλει ἐλεεῖ, ὃν δὲ θέλει σκληρύνει. Ἐρεῖς μοι οὖν· Τί ἔτι μέμφεται; Τῷ γὰρ βουλήματι αὐτοῦ τίς ἀνθέστηκεν; Ὦ ἄνθρωπε μενοῦνγε, σὺ τίς εἶ ὁ ἀνταποκρινόμενος τῷ Θεῷ; μὴ ἐρεῖ τὸ πλάσμα τῷ πλάσαντι, Τί με ἐποίησας οὕτως; ἢ οὐκ ἔχει ἐξουσίαν ὁ κεραμεὺς τοῦ πηλοῦ, ἐκ τοῦ αὐτοῦ φυράματος ποιῆσαι, ὃ μὲν εἰς τιμὴν σκεῦος, ὃ δὲ εἰς ἀτιμίαν;» Πάλιν ἑτέραν ἀντίθεσιν εἰσάγει, εἰς πλῆθος ἀπορίας ἐνάγων τὸν ἀκροατήν. Καὶ οὐ λύει πρῶτον, ἀλλ' ἐπιστομίζει λέγων· Τίς εἶ σὺ, ὁ ἄνθρωπος, ὁ ἀνταποκρινόμενος τῷ Θεῷ; ἀντὶ τοῦ ἀντιλέγων. «Εἰ δὲ θέλων ὁ Θεὸς ἐνδείξασθαι τὴν ὀργὴν, καὶ γνωρίσαι τὸν δυνατὸν αὐτοῦ, ἤνεγκεν ἐν πολλῇ μακροθυμίᾳ σκεύη ὀργῆς κατηρτισμένα εἰς ἀπώλειαν· καὶ ἵνα γνωρίσῃ τὸν πλοῦτον τῆς δόξης αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ σκεύη ἐλέους.» Ὃ λέγει τοιοῦτόν ἐστι· Σκεῦος ὀργῆς ἦν ὁ Φαραῶ, τουτέστιν ἄνθρωπος τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν