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For example, who we were and in what circumstances, and that we have been delivered from them, how and in what manner and for what reasons. These things are enough to turn one away; but this is more vehement than all, unpleasant to say, yet not unhelpful, but even beneficial: Because of which things, he says, the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. He did not say, Upon you, but, Upon the sons of disobedience. In which you also once walked, when you lived in them. Reprovingly, When you lived, he says, in them, and with praise, as if not living now; then it was permitted. But now you also put them all away. And he always speaks both generally and specifically; and this is a matter of disposition. Anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language from your mouth. Do not lie to one another. Filthy language, he says, from your mouth, emphatically, because it defiles. Having put off the old man with his practices, and having put on the new man who is being renewed in knowledge after the image of his creator. It is worthwhile here to inquire, why indeed he calls the corrupt life members and man and body, and again the virtuous life the same. And if the man is the sins, how does he say, With his practices? For once he has said old man, showing that this is not man, but that is. For the moral choice is more sovereign than the substance, and this is more man than that. For 62.353 the substance does not cast into hell, nor lead into the kingdom, but moral choice itself, and we neither love nor hate anyone as a man, but as such-and-such a man. If, therefore, the substance is the body, and this is not accountable in either case, how does he say it is evil? 2. But what does he mean, With his practices? The moral choice with its deeds. And he calls it old, wishing to show its shamefulness and its ugliness and its weakness; and new, instead of, Do not expect, he says, that this too will suffer the same, but the contrary. For the more it advances, it does not hasten toward old age, but toward a youth greater than the former. For when it receives more knowledge, it is deemed worthy of greater things, and it flourishes more, and is stronger, not only from its youth, but also from the form toward which it is. Behold, the best way of life is called a creation. After the image of Christ; for this is, After the image of his creator; since Christ also did not die in old age, but was so beautiful, as to be beyond description. Where there is not Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free, but Christ is all, and in all. Behold a third praise of this man, when neither difference of nation, nor of rank, nor of ancestors enters in, when he has nothing from without, nor needs these things; for such are all things from without. Circumcision and uncircumcision; slave, free, Greek, that is, a proselyte; and Jew, that is, from ancestors. If you have this alone, you will attain to the same things as the others who have them. But Christ, he says, is all, and in all; that is, Christ will be all things to you, both rank and race, and he himself in all of you. Or he says something else, that you all became one Christ, being his body. Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved. He shows the ease of virtue, so as both to possess it continually, and to use it as the greatest adornment. And the exhortation is with praise; for then it is most effective. For they became holy, but not elect; but now they are both elect and holy and beloved. Bowels of mercy. He did not say pity, but more emphatically through the two. And he did not say, that one ought to be so disposed as to brothers, but as fathers to children. For do not say to me, that he sinned; for this reason he said bowels. And he did not say, mercy, lest he should cheapen them, but, Bowels of mercy. Kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; forbearing one another, and forgiving yourselves, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ

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οἷον, τίνες ἦμεν καὶ ἐν τίσιν, καὶ ὅτι ἀπηλλάγημεν αὐτῶν, πῶς καὶ τίνι τρόπῳ καὶ ἐπὶ τίσι. Ταῦτα ἱκανὰ ἀποστρέψαι· ἀλλὰ πάντων σφοδρότερον τοῦτο, ἀηδὲς μὲν εἰπεῖν, οὐ μὴν ἀνωφελὲς, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὠφέλιμον· ∆ι' ἃ ἔρχεται, φησὶν, ἡ ὀργὴ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐπὶ τοὺς υἱοὺς τῆς ἀπειθείας. Οὐκ εἶπεν, Ἐφ' ὑμᾶς, ἀλλ', Ἐπὶ τοὺς υἱοὺς τῆς ἀπειθείας. Ἐν οἷς καὶ ὑμεῖς περιεπατήσατέ ποτε, ὅτε ἐζῆτε ἐν αὐτοῖς. Ἐντρεπτικῶς, Ὅτε ἐζῆτε, φησὶν, ἐν αὐτοῖς, καὶ μετ' ἐγκωμίου, ὡς νῦν οὐ ζώντων· τότε ἐξῆν. Νυνὶ δὲ ἀπόθεσθε καὶ ὑμεῖς τὰ πάντα. Καὶ καθολικῶς ἀεὶ λέγει, καὶ ἰδικῶς· τοῦτο δέ ἐστι διαθέσεως. Ὀργὴν, θυμὸν, κακίαν βλασφημίαν, αἰσχρολογίαν ἐκ τοῦ στόματος ὑμῶν. Μὴ ψεύδεσθε εἰς ἀλλήλους. Αἰσχρολογίαν, φησὶν, ἐκ τοῦ στόματος ὑμῶν, ἐμφαντικῶς, ὅτι αὐτὸ ῥυποῖ. Ἀπεκδυσάμενοι τὸν παλαιὸν ἄνθρωπον σὺν ταῖς πράξεσιν αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐνδυσάμενοι τὸν νέον τὸν ἀνακαινούμενον εἰς ἐπίγνωσιν κατ' εἰκόνα τοῦ κτίσαντος αὐτόν. Ἄξιον ἐνταῦθα ζητῆσαι, τί δήποτε μέλη καὶ ἄνθρωπον καὶ σῶμα καλεῖ τὸν διεφθαρμένον βίον, καὶ τὸν ἐνάρετον πάλιν τὸ αὐτό. Καὶ εἰ ὁ ἄνθρωπός εἰσιν αἱ ἁμαρτίαι, πῶς φησι, Σὺν ταῖς πράξεσιν αὐτοῦ; Ἅπαξ γὰρ εἶπε παλαιὸν ἄνθρωπον, δείξας ὅτι οὐ τοῦτό ἐστιν ἄνθρωπος, ἀλλ' ἐκεῖνο, Τῆς γὰρ οὐσίας ἡ προαίρεσις κυριωτέρα, καὶ τοῦτο μᾶλλον ἄνθρωπος, ἢ ἐκεῖνο. Οὐ γὰρ 62.353 ἡ οὐσία ἐμβάλλει εἰς γέενναν, οὐδὲ εἰς βασιλείαν εἰσάγει, ἀλλ' αὐτὴ ἡ προαίρεσις, καὶ οὐδένα οὔτε φιλοῦμεν, οὔτε μισοῦμεν ᾗ ἄνθρωπος, ἀλλ' ᾗ τοιόσδε ἄνθρωπος. Εἰ τοίνυν ἡ μὲν οὐσία τὸ σῶμά ἐστιν, αὕτη δὲ ἀνυπεύθυνος ἐν ἑκατέροις, πῶς αὐτὸ κακὸν εἶναί φησι; βʹ. Τί δέ φησι, Σὺν ταῖς πράξεσι; Τὴν προαίρεσιν μετὰ τῶν ἔργων. Παλαιὸν δὲ αὐτὸν καλεῖ, τὸ αἰσχρὸν αὐτοῦ βουλόμενος δεῖξαι καὶ τὸ δυσειδὲς καὶ τὸ ἠσθενηκός· καὶ νέον, ἀντὶ τοῦ, Μὴ προσδοκήσητε, φησὶν, ὅτι καὶ οὗτος τὸ αὐτὸ πείσεται, ἀλλὰ τοὐναντίον· ὅσῳ γὰρ ἂν προΐῃ, οὐ πρὸς γῆρας ἐπείγεται, ἀλλὰ πρὸς νεότητα μείζονα τῆς προτέρας. Ὅταν γὰρ πλείονα λάβῃ τὴν γνῶσιν, καὶ μειζόνων ἀξιοῦται, καὶ μᾶλλον ἀκμάζει, καὶ μᾶλλον ἰσχύει, οὐκ ἀπὸ τῆς νεότητος μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῦ εἴδους πρὸς ὅ ἐστιν. Ἰδοὺ κτίσις ἡ ἀρίστη πολιτεία λέγεται. Κατ' εἰκόνα Χριστοῦ· τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι, Κατ' εἰκόνα τοῦ κτίσαντος αὐτόν· ἐπεὶ καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς οὐ πρὸς γῆρας ἐτελεύτησεν, ἀλλ' οὕτως ἦν καλὸς, ὡς μηδὲ εἶναι εἰπεῖν. Ὅπου οὐκ ἔνι Ἕλλην καὶ Ἰουδαῖος, περιτομὴ καὶ ἀκροβυστία, βάρβαρος, Σκύθης, δοῦλος, ἐλεύθερος, ἀλλὰ τὰ πάντα, καὶ ἐν πᾶσι Χριστός. Ἰδοὺ τρίτον ἐγκώμιον τοῦ ἀνδρὸς τούτου, ὅταν μήτε ἔθνους, μήτε ἀξιώματος, μήτε προγόνων διαφορὰ ἐπεισέρχηται, ὅταν ἔχῃ τῶν ἔξωθεν μηδὲν, μηδὲ δέηται τούτων· τοιαῦτα γὰρ πάντα τὰ ἔξωθεν. Περιτομὴ καὶ ἀκροβυστία· δοῦλος, ἐλεύθερος, Ἕλλην, τουτέστι, προσήλυτος· καὶ Ἰουδαῖος, τουτέστιν, ἐκ προγόνων. Ἂν τοῦτον ἔχῃς μόνον, τῶν αὐτῶν ἐπιτεύξῃ τοῖς ἄλλοις, τοῖς ἔχουσιν. Ἀλλὰ τὰ πάντα, καὶ ἐν πᾶσι, φησὶν, Χριστός· τουτέστι, Πάντα ὑμῖν ὁ Χριστὸς ἔσται, καὶ ἀξίωμα καὶ γένος, καὶ ἐν πᾶσιν ὑμῖν αὐτός. Ἢ ἕτερόν τί φησιν, ὅτι Πάντες Χριστὸς εἷς ἐγένεσθε, σῶμα αὐτοῦ ὄντες. Ἐνδύσασθε οὖν, ὡς ἐκλεκτοὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἅγιοι καὶ ἠγαπημένοι. Τὸ εὔκολον δείκνυσι τῆς ἀρετῆς, ὥστε καὶ διηνεκῶς αὐτὴν ἔχειν, καὶ ὥστε ὡς μεγίστῳ κόσμῳ κεχρῆσθαι. Καὶ μετ' ἐγκωμίου ἡ παραίνεσις· τότε γὰρ μάλιστα ἰσχύει. Ἐγένοντο γὰρ ἅγιοι, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἐκλεκτοί· νυνὶ δὲ καὶ ἐκλεκτοὶ καὶ ἅγιοι καὶ ἠγαπημένοι. Σπλάγχνα οἰκτιρμοῦ. Οὐκ εἶπεν ἔλεον, ἀλλ' ἐμφαντικώτερον διὰ τῶν δύο. Καὶ οὐκ εἶπεν, ὅτι ὡς ἀδελφοῖς οὕτω διατίθεσθαι δεῖ, ἀλλ' ὡς παισὶ πατέρες. Μὴ γάρ μοι εἴπῃς, ὅτι ἥμαρτε· διὰ τοῦτο εἶπε σπλάγχνα. Καὶ οὐκ εἶπεν, οἰκτιρμὸν, ἵνα μὴ ἐκείνους ἐξευτελίσῃ, ἀλλὰ, Σπλάγχνα οἰκτιρμοῦ. Χρηστότητα, ταπεινοφροσύνην, πραότητα, μακροθυμίαν· ἀνεχόμενοι ἀλλήλων, καὶ χαριζόμενοι ἑαυτοῖς, ἐάν τις πρός τινα ἔχῃ μομφήν· καθὼς καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς