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we should be seen to render. It is clear then that in these things the blessed Paul exhorts us to be subject to rulers. Not that we should obey even if they compel us to impiety; for he clearly stated both the purpose of rule, and for what reason God so ordered human affairs, so that legislating what one ought not concerning piety would not be of the purpose of rule, but of the opinion of those who have not used their rule for what is proper. For it is not the business of rulers to judge matters that relate to God, since they were not established for this purpose, but concerning matters that arise among humans and the rights in relation to one another, rulers are established as certain mediators and arbiters of justice, and when they act in accordance with their proper purpose, they show rule to be a most necessary thing. Ro+m 13,7 He calls the contribution for the land "tribute," and "tax" the contribution for commerce or some bodily craft 163. Ro+m 13,8 To speak concisely, the keeping of love is the fulfillment of the law, and since what was being said was very paradoxical, he added what follows. Ro+m 13,10 Every law contains either a prohibition of evil or a practice of good; for the lawgiver set forth some things so that we might not harm one another, and others so that we might also do good to one another according to our ability. But all these things are comprehended in the law that commands to love one's neighbor; well therefore the phrase "it is summed up," is instead of "all those things that were legislated through many words are contained as a kind of summary in loving one's neighbor." For he who loves, he says, does not endure to harm the one loved, if indeed he has true love for him; therefore the keeping of love is the right observance of the whole law. Then he directs his discourse to exhortation and says what follows. Ro+m 13,11 It should be read thus: "And this," then after a pause, "knowing the time" and what follows; for he means to say that we must also take care of this, that we do what is right, knowing that the time is at hand to put away the pleasure in sins like a deep sleep. He calls our salvation the resurrection, since then we shall enjoy true salvation. Ro+m 13,12 He calls "day" the time from the coming of Christ, since his manifestation made the distinction between good things and things not such most clear, and "night" the time before this; but he says both especially with reference to those who were devoted to idols, among whom there were no laws nor teaching of what was to be done. The time of ignorance, then, he says, has passed, when you were as in night, neither knowing God nor having received the declaration of laws, but the time of day has come, with the coming of Christ shining upon us like a very great light. Ro+m 13,14 But put on, he says, the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires. 164 He says "put on" instead of "you have put on"; for he means to say that through the regeneration of baptism having been united to Christ and shown to be a member of the common body of the church of which he is the head, you as it were put him on in the fellowship of things hoped for, inasmuch as you also hope to share with him in the resurrection. It would be right for you, therefore, to think the things appropriate to that state, in which it is necessary that all such things have ceased; therefore it is not fitting for you to perform anything of the sort that that age will not receive. But among the lovers of sin it has passage in the present time, where our body is still subject to corruption, and from this we receive much disturbance from the passions. We have said above also that Scripture often calls "flesh" not nature itself but what is mortal, that is, what is temporary; this therefore he also says here, "make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires," not speaking of nature itself, but instead of "do not follow your own desires," being eager to do those things that receive their impulse in the present life through the mortality that is in us. He therefore calls "provision for the flesh" the eagerness for present things, that is, also for wicked things, as would be practiced in this life

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ἀποδιδόντες φαινώμεθα. δῆλον δὲ ἄρα κἀκεῖνο ὡς ὑποτάσσεσθαι τοῖς ἄρχουσιν ἐν τούτοις ὁ μακάριος Παῦλος παραινεῖ. οὐχ ἵνα κἂν ἀσεβεῖν ἀναγκάζωσι πειθώμεθα· σαφῶς γὰρ καὶ τὸν σκοπὸν εἶπε τῆς ἀρχῆς, καὶ οὗπερ ἕνεκεν ὁ θεὸς οὕτως ἔταξε τὰ ἀνθρώπινα, ὥστε τὸ περὶ τῆς εὐσεβείας νομοθετεῖν ἃ μὴ δεῖ οὐ τοῦ σκοποῦ τῆς ἀρχῆς εἴη ἄν, ἀλλὰ τῆς γνώμης τῶν οὐκ εἰς δέον τῷ ἄρχειν κεχρημένων. τὰ μὲν γὰρ εἰς θεὸν ἀναφερόμενα οὐ τῶν ἀρχόντων κρίνειν ἴδιον, ἐπειδὴ μηδὲ πρὸς τοῦτο κατέστησαν, περὶ δὲ τῶν ἐν ἀνθρώποις κινουμένων καὶ τῶν πρὸς ἀλλήλους δικαίων μεσίται τινὲς καὶ βραβευταὶ τοῦ δικαίου οἱ ἄρχοντες καθιστάμενοι, ὅταν ἀκόλουθα τῷ οἰκείῳ σκοπῷ διαπράττονται, ἀναγκαιότατόν τι χρῆμα δεικνύουσι τὴν ἀρχήν. Ro+m 13,7 Φόρον καλεῖ τὴν ὑπὲρ τῆς γῆς συντέλειαν, τέλος δὲ τὴν ὑπὲρ τῆς ἐμπορίας ἢ τινὸς τέχνης σωματικῆς 163. Ro+m 13,8 Συντόμως εἰπεῖν νόμου πλήρωσις τῆς ἀγάπης ἡ φυλακή, καὶ ἐπειδὴ παράδοξον ἄγαν ἦν τὸ λεγόμενον, ἐπήγαγε τὸ ἑξῆς. Ro+m 13,10 Ἅπαν νόμιμον ἢ ἀπαγόρευσιν ἔχει κακοῦ ἢ πρᾶξιν καλοῦ· τὰ μὲν γὰρ ἵνα μὴ βλάπτωμεν ἀλλήλους ὁ νομοθέτης ἐξέθετο, τὰ δὲ ἵνα τι καὶ εὐποιῶμεν ἀλλήλους κατὰ δύναμιν. ἀλλὰ πάντα ταῦτα περιείληπται ἐν τῷ ἀγαπᾶν τὸν πλησίον ἐπιτάττοντι νομίμῳ· καλῶς οὖν τὸ ἀνακεφα λαιοῦται, ἀντὶ τοῦ πάντα ἐκεῖνα τὰ διὰ πολλῶν νενομοτεθημένα ὥσπερ τινὰ ἀνακεφαλαίωσιν ἐν τῷ τὸν πλησίον ἀγαπᾶν περιέχεται. Ὁ γὰρ ἀγαπῶν, φησί, βλάπτειν τὸν ἀγαπώμενον οὐκ ἀνέχεται, εἴπερ ἀληθῆ περὶ αὐτὸν ἔχει ἀγάπην· οὐκοῦν τῆς ἀγάπης ἡ φυλακὴ τοῦ παντός ἐστι νόμου κατόρθωσις. εἶτα ἐπὶ παραίνεσιν ἐκφέρει τὸν λόγον καί φησι τὸ ἑξῆς. Ro+m 13,11 Οὕτως ἀναγνωστέον, καὶ τοῦτο, εἶτα διαστήσαντα, εἰδότες τὸν καιρὸν καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς· βούλεται γὰρ εἰπεῖν ὅτι καὶ τούτου δὲ ἡμῖν ἐπιμελητέον ὅπως ἂν πράττωμεν ἃ δεῖ, εἰδότες ἐφεστῶτα τὸν καιρὸν τοῦ ἀποθέσθαι τὴν ἐπὶ τοῖς ἁμαρτήμασιν ἡδονὴν ὥσπερ τινὰ ὕπνον βαθύν. σωτηρίαν δὲ ἡμῶν καλεῖ τὴν ἀνάστασιν, ἐπειδὴ τότε τῆς ἀληθινῆς ἀπολαύσομεν σωτηρίας. Ro+m 13,12 Ἡ μέραν καλεῖ τὸν ἀπὸ τῆς τοῦ Χριστοῦ παρουσίας καιρόν, ὡς τῆς αὐτοῦ φανερώσεως τρανοτάτην τῶν τε καλῶν καὶ μὴ τοιούτων ποιησαμένης τὴν διάκρισιν, νύκτα δὲ τὸν πρὸ τούτου χρόνον· ἄμφω δὲ ὡς πρὸς ἐκείνους μάλιστα λέγει τοὺς εἰδώλοις προσέχοντας, παρ' οἷς οὐκ ἦν νόμιμα οὐδὲ διδασκαλία τῶν πρακτέων. ὁ τῆς ἀγνοίας οὖν, φησί, καιρὸς παρῆλθεν, ὅτε ἦτε ὡς ἐν νυκτὶ οὔτε θεὸν εἰδότες οὔτε νομίμων δεδεγμένοι διαγόρευσιν , ἐπέστη δὲ ὁ τῆς ἡμέρας καιρὸς ἀντὶ μεγίστου φωτὸς τῆς τοῦ Χριστοῦ παρουσίας ἐπιλαμψάσης ἡμῖν. Ro+m 13,14 Ἀλλ' ἐνδύσασθε, φησί, τὸν κύριον Ἰησοῦν Χριστόν, καὶ τῆς σαρκὸς πρόνοιαν μὴ ποιεῖσθε εἰς ἐπιθυμίας. 164 τὸ ἐνδύσασθε ἀντὶ τοῦ ἐνεδύσασθε λέγει· βούλεται γὰρ εἰπεῖν ὅτι διὰ τῆς ἀναγεννήσεως τοῦ βαπτίσματος συναφθέντες τῷ Χριστῷ καὶ μέλος τοῦ κοινοῦ σώματος τῆς ἐκκλησίας ἀποφανθέντες οὗπερ ἐκεῖνός ἐστι κεφαλή, ὥσπερ ἐνεδύσασθε αὐτὸν τῇ κοινωνίᾳ τῶν προσδοκωμένων, καθὸ καὶ συμμετασχεῖν αὐτῷ τῆς ἀναστάσεως ἐλπίζετε. δίκαιοι τοίνυν ἂν εἴητε τὰ πρέποντα τῇ καταστάσει φρονεῖν ἐκείνῃ, ἐν ᾗπερ ἅπαντα πεπαῦσθαι τὰ τοιαῦτα ἀνάγκη· οὐδὲν οὖν ἐπιτελεῖν τοιοῦτον προσῆκεν ὑμᾶς οἶον ὁ μὲν αἰὼν ἐκεῖνος οὐ δέξεται. ἐπὶ δὲ τῶν φιλαμαρτημόνων πάροδον ἔχει κατὰ τὸν παρόντα καιρόν, ἔνθα φθορᾷ μὲν ἔτι τὸ ἡμέτερον ὑπόκειται σῶμα, πολλὴ δὲ καὶ τῶν παθῶν ἐντεῦθεν ἡμῖν ἡ ἐνόχλησις γίνεται. εἰρήκαμεν δὲ καὶ ἀνωτέρω ὅτι σάρκα ἡ γραφὴ πολλάκις οὐ τὴν φύσιν αὐτὴν ἀλλὰ τὸ θνητὸν ἤτοι τὸ πρόσκαιρον οὕτω καλεῖ· τοῦτο οὖν κἀνταῦθα λέγει τῆς σαρκὸς πρόνοιαν μὴ ποιεῖσθε εἰς ἐπιθυμίας, οὐ τῆς φύσεως αὐτῆς λέγων, ἀλλ' ἀντὶ τοῦ μὴ ταῖς ἐπιθυμίαις ἑαυτῶν ἐξακολουθεῖτε, σπουδὴν τιθέμενοι ἐκεῖνα πράττειν ἃ κατὰ τὸν παρόντα βίον διὰ τῆς ἐνούσης ἡμῖν θνητότητος τὴν κίνησιν δέχεται. σαρκὸς οὖν πρόνοιαν λέγει τὴν περὶ τὰ παρόντα ἤτοι καὶ τὰ ἄτοπα σπουδήν, ὡς ἂν ἐν τῷ βίῳ τούτῳ πράττεσθαι