39

For let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men, and being found in fashion as a man; he humbled himself, becoming obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also has highly exalted him, and

given him a name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

1. We have spoken of the things concerning the heretics; it is opportune, then, to also speak of our own things. They say that the phrase, "He thought it not robbery," means to seize; we have shown that this is entirely stale and absurd, because from this no one is exhorted to humility, 62.228 nor does one thus marvel at God, nor even at a man. What then is it, beloved? Pay attention to what is now being said; Since many men suppose that when they are humble-minded, they are deprived of their proper dignity and are diminished and humbled, removing this fear, and showing that one ought not to be so disposed, he says concerning God, that God, the only-begotten Son of the Father, He who is in the form of God, He who has nothing less than the Father, He who is equal to Him, thought it not robbery to be equal with God. But what this is, learn; Whatever one might seize, and take contrary to what is fitting, this he does not dare to set aside, fearing lest it be lost, lest it fall away, but he holds it continuously; he, however, who has some natural dignity, is not afraid to even descend from that dignity, knowing that he will suffer nothing of the sort. For example, that I might speak by way of illustration, Absalom seized the tyranny, and 62.229 did not dare to set this aside thereafter. And we will come to another illustration. But if the illustrations are not strong enough to present the whole matter, do not be displeased; for such are illustrations; they leave the greater part for the mind to reason out. Someone rose up against a king, and seized the kingdom; this man does not dare to set aside and hide the matter; for if he hides it once, he is immediately lost. Or let us come to some other illustration; for example, someone seized something, he holds it continuously; for if he sets it aside, he has immediately lost it. And in general, those who have something from seizure are afraid to set it aside and hide it, and not to be always in that state in which they are. But not so those who do not have it from seizure; for example, a man has the dignity of being rational. I cannot find an example. For there is no natural rule among us; for none of our good things are natural, since by nature all things belong to God. What then do we say? That the Son of God was not afraid to descend from his dignity; for he did not consider his divinity a thing to be seized, he was not afraid that someone might take from him his nature, or his dignity. Therefore he also set it aside, being confident that he would take it up again; and he hid it, considering that he was in no way diminished by this. For this reason he did not say, "He did not seize," but, "He did not consider it a thing to be seized"; because he did not have the rule by seizure, but by nature, not given, but permanent and secure. Therefore he does not refuse to also take on the form of the attendants. The tyrant is afraid in war to set aside the purple robe, but the king does it with much security. Why? Because he does not have the rule by seizure. Therefore, not as one who seized did he not set it aside, but as having it by nature, and as something that could never depart, he hid it. This being equal with God he did not have as a thing seized, but as natural; therefore he emptied himself. Where are they who say that he endured compulsion, that he was subjected? He emptied himself, it says, he humbled himself, becoming obedient unto

39

Τοῦτο γὰρ φρονείσθω ἐν ὑμῖν, ὃ καὶ ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ· ὃς ἐν μορφῇ Θεοῦ ὑπάρχων, οὐχ ἁρπαγμὸν ἡγήσατο τὸ εἶναι ἴσα Θεῷ, ἀλλ' ἑαυτὸν ἐκένωσε, μορφὴν δούλου λαβὼν, ἐν ὁμοιώματι ἀνθρώπων γενόμενος, καὶ σχήματι εὑρεθεὶς, ὡς ἄνθρωπος· ἐταπείνωσεν ἑαυτὸν, γενόμενος ὑπήκοος μέχρι θανάτου, θανάτου δὲ σταυροῦ. ∆ιὸ καὶ ὁ Θεὸς αὐτὸν ὑπερύψωσε, καὶ

ἐχαρίσατο αὐτῷ ὄνομα τὸ ὑπὲρ πᾶν ὄνομα, ἵνα ἐν τῷ ὀνόματι Ἰησοῦ πᾶν γόνυ κάμψῃ ἐπουρανίων καὶ ἐπιγείων καὶ καταχθονίων, καὶ πᾶσα γλῶσσα ἐξομολογήσηται, ὅτι Κύριος Ἰησοῦς Χριστὸς εἰς δόξαν Θεοῦ Πατρός.

αʹ. Εἴρηται ἡμῖν τὰ περὶ τῶν αἱρετικῶν· εὔκαιρον δὴ λοιπὸν καὶ τὰ ἡμέτερα εἰπεῖν. Ἐκεῖνοι λέγουσιν, ὅτι τὸ, Οὐχ ἁρπαγμὸν ἡγήσατο, ἁρπάσαι ἐστίν· ἡμεῖς ἐδείξαμεν, ὅτι πάντη ἕωλον καὶ ἄτοπον τοῦτο, ὅτι οὔτε εἰς ταπεινοφροσύνην τις ἐντεῦθεν παρακαλεῖ, 62.228 οὔτε τὸν Θεὸν οὕτω θαυμάζει, ἀλλ' οὐδὲ ἄνθρωπον. Τί οὖν ἐστιν, ἀγαπητοί; Προσέχετε τοῖς λεγομένοις νῦν· Ἐπειδὴ πολλοὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων νομίζουσιν, ὅταν ταπεινόφρονες ὦσιν, ἀποστερεῖσθαι τοῦ οἰκείου ἀξιώματος καὶ ἐλαττοῦσθαι καὶ ταπεινοῦσθαι, τοῦτον ἐξαιρῶν τὸν φόβον, καὶ δεικνὺς ὅτι οὐ χρὴ οὕτω διακεῖσθαι, περὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ φησιν, ὅτι ὁ Θεὸς, ὁ μονογενὴς Υἱὸς τοῦ Πατρὸς, ὁ ἐν μορφῇ Θεοῦ ὢν, ὁ μηδὲν ἔλαττον ἔχων τοῦ Πατρὸς, ὁ ἴσος αὐτῷ, οὐχ ἁρπαγμὸν ἡγήσατο τὸ εἶναι ἴσα Θεῷ. Τί δὲ τοῦτό ἐστι, μάνθανε· Ὅπερ ἂν ἁρπάσῃ τις, καὶ παρὰ τὸ προσῆκον λάβῃ, τοῦτο ἀποθέσθαι οὐ τολμᾷ, δεδοικὼς μὴ ἀπόληται, μὴ ἐκπέσῃ, ἀλλὰ διαπαντὸς αὐτὸ κατέχει· ὁ μέντοι φυσικόν τι ἔχων ἀξίωμα, οὐ δέδοικε καὶ καταβῆναι ἀπ' ἐκείνου τοῦ ἀξιώματος, εἰδὼς ὅτι οὐδὲν τοιοῦτον πείσεται. Οἷον ὡς ἐπὶ ὑποδείγματος ἵνα εἴπω, ὁ Ἀβεσσαλὼμ ἥρπασε τὴν τυραννίδα, καὶ 62.229 ἀποθέσθαι ταύτην οὐκ ἐτόλμα λοιπόν. Καὶ ἐπὶ ἄλλο δὲ ἐλευσόμεθα ὑπόδειγμα. Ἂν δὲ μὴ ἰσχύῃ τὰ ὑποδείγματα τὸ πᾶν παραστῆσαι, μὴ δυσχεραίνετε· τὰ γὰρ ὑποδείγματα τοιαῦτά ἐστι· τὸ πλέον ἀφιᾶσι τῇ διανοίᾳ λογίζεσθαι. Ἐπανέστη τις βασιλεῖ, καὶ τὴν βασιλείαν ἥρπασεν· οὗτος ἀποθέσθαι καὶ κρύψαι τὸ πρᾶγμα οὐ τολμᾷ· ἂν γὰρ ἅπαξ κρύψῃ, εὐθέως ἀπόλωλεν. Ἢ καὶ ἐπὶ ἄλλου τινὸς ἔλθωμεν ὑποδείγματος· οἷον, ἥρπασέ τίς τι, τοῦτο κατέχει διαπαντός· ἂν γὰρ ἀπόθηται, εὐθέως ἀπώλεσε. Καὶ ὅλως οἱ ἐξ ἁρπαγῆς ἔχοντές τι, δεδοίκασιν ἀποθέσθαι καὶ κρύψαι, καὶ μὴ διαπαντὸς εἶναι ἐν ἐκείνῳ, ἐν ᾧ εἰσιν. Ἀλλ' οὐχ οἱ μὴ ἐξ ἁρπαγῆς ἔχοντες· οἷον, ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἀξίωμα ἔχει τὸ εἶναι λογικός. Οὐχ εὑρίσκω παράδειγμα. Οὐ γὰρ ἔστι παρ' ἡμῖν ἀρχὴ φυσική· οὐδὲν γάρ ἐστι τῶν ἀγαθῶν φυσικὸν, ἐπειδὴ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῇ φύσει πάντα συγκεκλήρωται. Τί οὖν φαμεν; Ὅτι ὁ τοῦ Θεοῦ Υἱὸς οὐκ ἐφοβήθη καταβῆναι ἀπὸ τοῦ ἀξιώματος· οὐ γὰρ ἁρπαγμὸν ἡγήσατο τὴν θεότητα, οὐκ ἐδεδοίκει μή τις αὐτὸν ἀφέληται τὴν φύσιν, ἢ τὸ ἀξίωμα. ∆ιὸ καὶ ἀπέθετο αὐτὸ, θαῤῥῶν ὅτι αὐτὸ ἀναλήψεται· καὶ ἔκρυψεν, ἡγούμενος οὐδὲν ἐλαττοῦσθαι ἀπὸ τούτου. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο οὐκ εἶπεν, Οὐχ ἥρπασεν, ἀλλ', Οὐχ ἁρπαγμὸν ἡγήσατο· ὅτι οὐχ ἁρπάσας εἶχε τὴν ἀρχὴν, ἀλλὰ φυσικὴν, οὐ δεδομένην, ἀλλὰ μόνιμον καὶ ἀσφαλῆ. ∆ιὸ οὐ παραιτεῖται καὶ τὸ τῶν ὑπασπιστῶν ἀναλαβεῖν σχῆμα. Ὁ τύραννος δέδοικεν ἐν πολέμῳ ἀποθέσθαι τὴν ἁλουργίδα, ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς μετὰ πολλῆς αὐτὸ ποιεῖ τῆς ἀσφαλείας. ∆ιὰ τί; ὅτι οὐχ ἁρπαγμὸν ἔχει τὴν ἀρχήν. Οὐχ ὡς ἁρπάσας οὖν οὐκ ἀπετίθετο, ἀλλ' ὡς φυσικὴν ἔχων, καὶ οὐδέποτε ἀποστῆναι δυναμένην, ἔκρυψε. Τοῦτο τὸ εἶναι ἴσα Θεῷ οὐχ ὡς ἁρπαγμὸν εἶχεν, ἀλλὰ φυσικόν· διὸ ἐκένωσεν ἑαυτόν. Ποῦ οἱ λέγοντες, ὅτι ἀνάγκην ὑπέστη, ὅτι ὑπετάγη; Ἑαυτὸν, φησὶν, ἐκένωσεν, ἑαυτὸν ἐταπείνωσεν, ὑπήκοος γενόμενος μέχρι