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death; for this is, That I might live to God, I have been crucified with Christ. And how, he says, can one who is living and breathing have been crucified? For that Christ was crucified, is clear; but how have you been crucified and yet live? See how he interprets this very thing, saying; Yet I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me. For by saying, I have been crucified with Christ, he alluded to baptism; but by saying, Yet I live; yet not I, he means the life after baptism, through which our members are put to death. But what is, Christ lives in me? Nothing is done by me, he says, which Christ does not will. For just as he speaks of death, not this common one, but that which is from sin, so also of life, the release from those things; for it is not possible to live to God in any other way, than by having died to sin. As Christ, therefore, underwent bodily death, so I, that which is against sin. For Mortify your members which are upon the earth, which are fornication, uncleanness, adultery; and again he says, Our 61.646 old man was crucified; which happened in the laver. And after these things, if you remain dead to sin, you live to God; but if you raise it up again, you have ruined such a life. But Paul was not such a one, but remained dead throughout. If, therefore, I live to God, he says, a life other than that in the Law, and I have become dead to the Law, I cannot keep anything of the Law.

8. And observe the precision of his way of life, and marvel with exceeding wonder at that blessed soul. For he did not say, I live, but, Christ lives in me. Who will dare to utter this voice? For since he made himself docile to Christ, and cast out all worldly things, and did all things according to His will, he did not say, I live to Christ, but, what was much more, but Christ lives in me. For just as sin, when it gains mastery, is itself what is living, leading the soul to what it wills; so if, when that is deadened, the things that please Christ come to pass, then such a life is no longer human, He Himself living in us, that is, working, ruling. But since he was saying, I have been crucified, and, I live no longer, but I died, and seemed to many to be saying something incredible, he added: And the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God. The things I have said, he says, are about the spiritual life; but if anyone should examine also this perceptible life, this too has come to me through faith in Christ. For as regards the old way of life and the Law, I was worthy of the utmost punishment, and would long ago have perished. For all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God, and Christ freed us as we lay under the sentence; for all died, if not in experience, yet by the sentence; and he delivered those awaiting the blow. Since both the Law accused, and God pronounced sentence, Christ came and gave Himself up to death, and snatched us all from death. So that the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith. For if this were not so, nothing would have prevented all from being destroyed; which also happened in the case of the flood; but the coming of Christ, having stayed the wrath of God, has made us live through faith. For that this is what he says, listen to what follows; for having said that the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith, he added, of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me. What are you doing, O Paul, appropriating common things, and making your own those things done for the whole world? for he did not say, who loved us, but, who loved me. And yet the Evangelist says, God so loved the world; and you yourself say, He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up, not for you, but for us all; and again, that He might acquire for Himself a people for His own possession.

What then is it that he says here? Considering the despair of human

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θάνατον· τοῦτο γάρ ἐστιν, Ἵνα Θεῷ ζήσω, Χριστῷ συνεσταύρωμαι. Καὶ πῶς ὁ ζῶν καὶ ἐμπνέων συνεσταυρώθη, φησίν, Ὅτι μὲν γὰρ ὁ Χριστὸς ἐσταυρώθη, δῆλον· σὺ δὲ πῶς ἐσταύρωσαι καὶ ζῇς; Ὅρα πῶς καὶ αὐτὸ ἑρμηνεύει, λέγων· Ζῶ δὲ οὐκέτι ἐγὼ, ζῇ δὲ ἐν ἐμοὶ Χριστός. Τῷ μὲν γὰρ εἰπεῖν, Χριστῷ συνεσταύρωμαι, τὸ βάπτισμα ᾐνίξατο· τῷ δὲ εἰπεῖν, Ζῶ δὲ οὐκέτι ἐγὼ, τὴν μετὰ ταῦτα πολιτείαν, δι' ἧς νεκροῦται ἡμῶν τὰ μέλη. Τί δέ ἐστι, Ζῇ δὲ ἐν ἐμοὶ Χριστός; Οὐδὲν γίνεται, φησὶν, ὑπ' ἐμοῦ, ὧν ὁ Χριστὸς οὐ βούλεται. Ὥσπερ γὰρ θάνατον λέγει οὐ τοῦτον τὸν κοινὸν, ἀλλὰ τὸν ἐκ τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν, οὕτω καὶ ζωὴν, τὴν ἐκείνων ἀπαλλαγήν· Θεῷ γὰρ οὐκ ἔστιν ἄλλως ζῇν, ἀλλ' ἢ νεκρωθέντα τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ. Ὥσπερ οὖν ὁ Χριστὸς τὸν σωματικὸν ὑπέστη θάνατον, οὕτως ἐγὼ τὸν κατὰ τῆς ἁμαρτίας. Νεκρώσατε γὰρ τὰ μέλη ὑμῶν τὰ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, ἅτινά ἐστι πορνεία, ἀκαθαρσία, μοιχεία· παὶ πάλιν λέγει, Ὁ 61.646 παλαιὸς ἡμῶν ἄνθρωπος ἐσταυρώθη· ὅπερ ἐν τῷ λουτρῷ γέγονε. Μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα ἐὰν μένῃς νεκρὸς τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ, ζῇς τῷ Θεῷ· ἂν δὲ πάλιν αὐτὴν ἀναστήσῃς, ἐλυμήνω τῇ τοιαύτῃ ζωῇ. Ἀλλ' οὐχ ὁ Παῦλος τοιοῦτος, ἀλλ' ἔμενε δι' ὅλου νεκρός. Εἰ τοίνυν ζῶ τῷ Θεῷ, φησὶν, ἑτέραν παρὰ τὴν ἐν τῷ νόμῳ ζωὴν, καὶ νεκρὸς ἐγενόμην τῷ νόμῳ, οὐδὲν τοῦ νόμου φυλάττειν δύναμαι.

ηʹ. Καὶ ὅρα τὴν ἀκρίβειαν τῆς πολιτείας, καὶ θαύμασον μεθ' ὑπερβολῆς τὴν μακαρίαν ἐκείνην ψυχήν. Οὐ γὰρ εἶπε, Ζῶ ἐγὼ, ἀλλὰ, Ζῇ ἐν ἐμοὶ Χριστός. Τίς ταύτην τολμήσει ῥῆξαι τὴν φωνήν; Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ εὐήνιον ἑαυτὸν τῷ Χριστῷ κατεσκεύασε, καὶ ἅπαντα ἐξέβαλε τὰ βιωτικὰ, καὶ πρὸς τὸ θέλημα τὸ ἐκείνου πάντα ἔπραττεν, οὐκ εἶπε, Ζῶ τῷ Χριστῷ, ἀλλ', ὃ πολλῷ πλέον ἦν, Ζῇ δὲ ἐν ἐμοὶ Χριστός. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ἡ ἁμαρτία, ὅταν κρατήσῃ, αὕτη ἐστὶν ἡ ζῶσα, πρὸς ἃ βούλεται τὴν ψυχὴν ἄγουσα· οὕτως εἰ ἐκείνης νεκρωθείσης τὰ τῷ Χριστῷ δοκοῦντα γίνεται, οὐδὲ ἀνθρωπίνη λοιπόν ἐστιν ἡ τοιαύτη ζωὴ, αὐτοῦ ζῶντος ἐν ἡμῖν, τουτέστιν, ἐνεργοῦντος, κρατοῦντος. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἔλεγε, Συνεσταύρωμαι, καὶ, Οὐκέτι ζῶ, ἀλλ' ἀπέθανον, καὶ ἐδόκει πολλοῖς ἀπίθανον λέγειν, ἐπήγαγεν· Ὃ δὲ νῦν ζῶ ἐν σαρκὶ, ἐν πίστει ζῶ τῇ τοῦ Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ. Τὰ μὲν εἰρημένα μοι, φησὶ, περὶ τῆς νοερᾶς ζωῆς· εἰ δέ τις ἐξετάζοι καὶ ταύτην τὴν αἰσθητὴν, καὶ αὕτη διὰ τὴν εἰς Χριστόν μοι πίστιν γέγονεν. Ὅσον γὰρ εἰς τὴν παλαιὰν πολιτείαν καὶ τὸν νόμον, ἐσχάτης κολάσεως ἄξιος ἤμην, καὶ πάλαι ἂν ἀπωλώλειν. Πάντες γὰρ ἥμαρτον, καὶ ὑστεροῦντο τῆς δόξης τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ ὑπὸ τὴν ἀπόφασιν ἡμᾶς κειμένους ἠλευθέρωσεν ὁ Χριστός· καὶ γὰρ οἱ πάντες ἀπέθανον, εἰ καὶ μὴ τῇ πείρᾳ, ἀλλὰ τῇ ἀποφάσει· καὶ τὴν πληγὴν ἐκδεχομένους ἀπήλλαξεν. Ἐπειδὴ καὶ ὁ νόμος κατηγόρησε, καὶ ὁ Θεὸς ἀπεφήνατο, ἐλθὼν ὁ Χριστὸς καὶ εἰς θάνατον ἑαυτὸν ἐκδοὺς, πάντας ἡμᾶς ἐξήρπασε τοῦ θανάτου. Ὥστε Ὃ νῦν ζῶ ἐν σαρκὶ, ἐν πίστει ζῶ. Ἐπεὶ εἰ μὴ τοῦτο ἦν, οὐδὲν ἐκώλυσε πάντας ἀφανισθῆναι· ὃ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ κατακλυσμοῦ γέγονεν· ἀλλ' ἡ τοῦ Χριστοῦ παρουσία στήσασα τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν ὀργὴν, διὰ τῆς πίστεως ζῇν ἡμᾶς ἐποίησεν. Ὅτι γὰρ τοῦτό φησιν, ἄκουσον τῶν ἑξῆς· εἰπὼν γὰρ, ὅτι Ὃ δὲ νῦν ζῶ ἐν σαρκὶ, ἐν πίστει ζῶ, ἐπήγαγε· Τῇ τοῦ Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῦ ἀγαπήσαντός με, καὶ δόντος ἑαυτὸν ὑπὲρ ἐμοῦ. Τί ποιεῖς, ὦ Παῦλε, τὰ κοινὰ σφετεριζόμενος, καὶ τὰ ὑπὲρ τῆς οἰκουμένης γενόμενα ἰδιοποιῶν; οὐ γὰρ εἶπε, τοῦ ἀγαπήσαντος ἡμᾶς, ἀλλὰ, Τοῦ ἀγαπήσαντός με. Καὶ μὴν ὁ εὐαγγελιστής φησιν, Οὕτως ἠγάπησεν ὁ Θεὸς τὸν κόσμον καὶ σὺ δὲ αὐτὸς λέγεις, Ὅς γε τοῦ ἰδίου Υἱοῦ οὐκ ἐφείσατο, ἀλλ' ἔδωκεν αὐτὸν, οὐχ ὑπὲρ σοῦ, ἀλλ' ὑπὲρ πάντων· καὶ πάλιν, Ἵνα περιποιήσηται ἑαυτῷ λαὸν περιούσιον.

Τί οὖν ἐστιν ἐνταῦθα ὃ λέγει; Ἐννοήσας τὴν ἀπόγνωσιν τῆς ἀνθρωπίνης