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sends away; but if these things, then also food and drink, and heaven and earth and sea, and the moon and the choir of the stars. For where will these things be useful, when the one for whom they came to be was cut down so pitifully? Do you see the laughter and absurdity to which the argument is forced to conclude? The devil is evil to himself, not to us; for if we wished, we would also reap many good things through him, though he is unwilling 63.632 and does not wish it; and in this the wonder is greater, and the excess of God's love for humanity. For that human beings become better, both in itself bites him and grieves him; but when this is procured for us through him, he will not even be able to bear the insult. Some say that if God had not permitted it, the devil would not have approached, he would not have deceived man in the beginning. What then shall we say to these things? That if this had not happened, Adam would not have learned how much good he had, nor would he ever have descended from that folly. For he who deemed himself worthy of so much as to expect to become a god, what would he not have dared, had he not been disciplined? Let us suppose that the devil had advised nothing; would he then have remained without stumbling if this had not happened? It is not possible to say. For he who was so easily persuaded by a woman, this one, even without the devil's existence, would have quickly fallen into sin on his own. For he who so easily received deceit from another, this one even before the deceit was disposed to laziness and complacency; for that one would not have had such strength if he had been speaking to a sober and watchful soul. And for what reason did God give such a command to Adam, knowing he would sin? Because to give the commandment is a matter of greater care than not to give it. For let Adam have a will so lazy, as the outcome showed, and let him receive no commandment, but remain in luxury; would his weakness and laziness from this relaxation have tended toward the worse, or toward the better? But it is clear to everyone, I suppose, that being without care he would have fallen into the utmost evil. For he who did not yet have confidence in his immortality, but knew this hope was still in suspense, and was lifted up to such arrogance and folly as to hope to become a god, and this, seeing from no quarter that the one promising these things was trustworthy; if he had had immortality assured, to what point of folly would he not have reached? and what would he not have sinned? and when would he have obeyed God? For he who after the giving of the command so despised the one who gave 63.633 him the command, if he had heard nothing at all from him, would have quickly been ignorant that he was even under authority. If no one at all here were punished of the wicked, nor honored of the good, many of those who disbelieve the doctrine of the resurrection would flee virtue as the cause of evils, and pursue wickedness as the producer of good things. But if again everyone here received their due, they would have considered the doctrine of the judgment to be superfluous and false. Therefore, so that this might not be disbelieved, nor the great and common multitude become more worthless by being contemptuous, He pursues many of the sinners even here, and rewards some of those who do right; by not doing this to all, He confirms the doctrine of the judgment, and by punishing some even before the judgment He awakens those sleeping a deep sleep. For from the punishment of the wicked many are roused by the fear of not suffering the same things; and from the fact that not all here receive their due, they are forced to reason that this is being stored up for some other time. For this reason God did not immediately slay Cain when he sinned, so that through him all who came after might be disciplined, and become better through the chastisement laid upon him. For it was not the same to hear that a certain Cain killed his brother and died, and to see the killer paying the penalty. For then this might have been disbelieved when it was said, because of the excess of the hatred, but now by appearing and being present, and making many witnesses of the punishment for a long time, he made it manifest and credible both to those then and to those

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παραπέμπει· εἰ δὲ ταῦτα, καὶ σῖτα καὶ ποτὰ, καὶ οὐρανὸν καὶ γῆν καὶ θάλασσαν, καὶ σελήνην καὶ τὸν τῶν ἄστρων χορόν. Ποῦ γὰρ ἔσται ταῦτα χρήσιμα, τοῦ δι' ὃν ἐγένετο κατακοπέντος οὕτως ἐλεεινῶς; Ὁρᾷς τὸν γέλωτα καὶ τὴν ἀτοπίαν εἰς ἣν ὁ λόγος καταστρέφειν ἀναγκάζεται; Ὁ διάβολος ἑαυτῷ κακὸς, οὐχ ἡμῖν· ἡμεῖς γὰρ εἰ βουλοίμεθα, καὶ πολλὰ καρπωσόμεθα δι' αὐτοῦ καλὰ, ἄκοντος 63.632 μὲν καὶ μὴ βουλομένου· τὸ δὲ θαῦμα καὶ ἐν τούτῳ μεῖζον, καὶ τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ φιλανθρωπίας ἡ ὑπερβολή. Τὸ γὰρ βελτίους γίνεσθαι τοὺς ἀνθρώπους, δάκνει μὲν αὐτὸν καὶ καθ' ἑαυτὸ καὶ λυπεῖ· ὅταν δὲ καὶ δι' αὐτοῦ τοῦτο προξενῆται ἡμῖν, οὐδ' ἐνεγκεῖν δυνήσεται τὴν ἐπήρειαν. Φασί τινες, ὡς, εἰ μὴ συνεχώρησεν ὁ Θεὸς, οὐκ ἂν προσῆλθεν ὁ διάβολος, οὐκ ἂν ἠπάτησε τὴν ἀρχὴν τὸν ἄνθρωπον. Τί οὖν ἐροῦμεν πρὸς ταῦτα; Ὅτι, εἰ μὴ τοῦτο ἐγεγόνει, οὐδ' ἂν ἔμαθεν ὁ Ἀδὰμ ὅσον εἶχεν ἀγαθὸν, οὐδ' ἂν ἐκ τῆς ἀπονοίας ἐκείνης κατέβη ποτέ. Ὁ γὰρ τοσούτου ἑαυτὸν καταξιῶν, ὡς καὶ θεὸς γενέσθαι προσδοκᾷν, τί οὐκ ἂν ἐτόλμησεν οὗτος μὴ σωφρονισθείς; Θῶμεν δὲ μηδὲ συμβεβουλευκέναι τι τὸν διάβολον· ἆρα ἂν ἄπταιστος διετέλεσε μὴ γενομένου τούτου; Οὐκ ἔστιν εἰπεῖν. Ὁ γὰρ ὑπὸ γυναικὸς οὕτως εὐκόλως ἀναπεισθεὶς, οὗτος καὶ διαβόλου οὐκ ὄντος ταχέως ἂν ἀφ' ἑαυτοῦ πρὸς τὴν ἁμαρτίαν κατέπεσεν. Ὁ γὰρ τὴν παρ' ἑτέρου δεξάμενος οὕτως ἀπάτην εὐκόλως, οὗτος καὶ πρὸ τῆς ἀπάτης ῥᾳθύμως καὶ χαύνως διέκειτο· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἂν ἴσχυσε τοσοῦτον ἐκεῖνος, εἰ νηφούσῃ καὶ ἐγρηγορυίᾳ διελέγετο ψυχῇ. Καὶ τίνος ἕνεκεν τοιοῦτον ἐδίδου πρόσταγμα τῷ Ἀδὰμ ὁ Θεὸς, ἁμαρτήσοντα εἰδώς; Ὅτι καὶ τὸ δοῦναι τὴν ἐντολὴν μείζονος κηδεμονίας ἐστὶν, ἢ τὸ μὴ δοῦναι. Ἔστω γὰρ ὁ Ἀδὰμ τὴν μὲν προαίρεσιν ἔχων οὕτω ῥᾴθυμον, ὡς τὸ τέλος ἀπέδειξε, δεχέσθω δὲ μηδεμίαν ἐντολὴν, ἀλλὰ μενέτω τρυφῶν· ἆρα ἡ ἀσθένεια καὶ ἡ ῥᾳθυμία ἀπὸ τῆς ἀνέσεως ταύτης ἐπὶ τὸ χεῖρον, ἢ ἐπὶ τὸ κρεῖττον ἐπέδωκεν ἄν; Ἀλλὰ παντί που δῆλον, ὅτι πρὸς ἐσχάτην ἂν κατέπεσε κακίαν ἄφροντις ὤν. Ὁ γὰρ μηδέπω θαῤῥεῖν ὑπὲρ τῆς ἀθανασίας ἔχων, ἀλλ' ἔτι μετέωρον τὴν ἐλπίδα ταύτην οὖσαν εἰδὼς, καὶ πρὸς τοσοῦτον ἀλαζονείας καὶ ἀνοίας ἀρθεὶς, ὡς ἐλπίσαι γενέσθαι θεὸς, καὶ ταῦτα, οὐδαμόθεν τὸν ταῦτα ἐπαγγειλάμενον πιστὸν ὁρῶν· εἰ βεβαίαν εἶχε τὴν ἀθανασίαν, ποῦ οὐκ ἂν ἔφθασεν ἀπονοίας; τί δὲ οὐκ ἂν ἐξήμαρτε; πότε δὲ ἂν ὑπήκουσε τοῦ Θεοῦ; Ὁ γὰρ μετὰ τὴν τοῦ προστάγματος δόσιν οὕτω καταφρονήσας τοῦ δεδωκότος αὐτῷ 63.633 τὸ πρόσταγμα, εἰ μηδὲν ὅλως ἠκηκόει παρ' αὐτοῦ, ταχέως ἂν, ὅτι καὶ ὑπὸ δεσποτείαν ἐστὶν, ἠγνόησεν. Εἰ μηδεὶς ὅλως ἐνταῦθα ἐκολάζετο τῶν πονηρῶν, μηδὲ ἐτιμᾶτο τῶν χρηστῶν, πολλοὶ τῶν διαπιστούντων τῷ τῆς ἀναστάσεως λόγῳ, τὴν μὲν ἀρετὴν ὡς κακῶν αἰτίαν ἔφευγον, τὴν δὲ πονηρίαν ὡς ἀγαθῶν πρόξενον ἐδίωκον. Εἰ δὲ πάλιν ἐνταῦθα τὸ κατ' ἀξίαν ἅπαντες ἀπελάμβανον, περιττὸν ἂν ἡγήσαντο εἶναι καὶ ψευδῆ τὸν τῆς κρίσεως λόγον. Ἵν' οὖν μήτε οὗτος διαπιστῆται, μήτε ὁ πολὺς καὶ χυδαῖος λαὸς φαυλότερος γίνηται καταφρονῶν, ἐπεξέρχεται καὶ ἐνταῦθα τῶν ἁμαρτανόντων πολλοὺς, καὶ ἀμείβεται τῶν κατορθούντων ἐνίους· τῷ μὲν μὴ εἰς πάντας τοῦτο ποιεῖν τὸν τῆς κρίσεως πιστούμενος λόγον, τῷ δὲ καὶ πρὸ τῆς κρίσεως κολάζειν τινὰς τοὺς πολὺν ὕπνον καθεύδοντας διεγείρων. Ἀπὸ μὲν γὰρ τοῦ τιμωρεῖσθαι τοὺς πονηροὺς διανίστανται πολλοὶ τῷ φόβῳ τοῦ μὴ τὰ αὐτὰ παθεῖν· ἀπὸ δὲ τοῦ μὴ πάντας ἐνταῦθα τὸ κατ' ἀξίαν ἀπολαβεῖν, ἀναγκάζονται λογίζεσθαι, ὅτι εἰς ἕτερόν τινα τοῦτο ταμιεύεται καιρόν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο Κάϊν ἁμαρτήσαντα οὐκ ἀνεῖλεν εὐθὺς ὁ Θεὸς, ὥστε δι' αὐτοῦ τοὺς ἑξῆς ἅπαντας σωφρονίζεσθαι, καὶ γίνεσθαι βελτίους διὰ τῆς εἰς ἐκεῖνον ἐπιτιμήσεως. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἦν ἴσον ἀκούειν, ὅτι Κάϊν τις ἀνελὼν ἀδελφὸν ἀπέθανε, καὶ ὁρᾷν τὸν ἀνελόντα δίκην τίνοντα. Τότε μὲν γὰρ κἂν ἠπιστήθη τοῦτο λεγόμενον διὰ τὴν τοῦ μίσους ὑπερβολὴν, νυνὶ δὲ φαινόμενος καὶ παρὼν, καὶ πολλοὺς δὲ ἐπὶ πολὺν χρόνον μάρτυρας τῆς τιμωρίας ποιούμενος, κατάδηλον καὶ πιστὸν καὶ τοῖς τότε καὶ τοῖς