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only about Christ, "Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly," he says; but here he also adds an exhortation. There he waited for them to speak; here he knew how much they had done, and that these were more closely related. And yet the things said above were not of ignorance. For to ask for the robber, not to accept the release of the one who was judged, to even wish to kill him, what sort of ignorance is that? But nevertheless he gives them the opportunity to deny it, and to repent of what had happened; or rather, he even composes a plausible defense for them, and says: That you were killing an innocent man, you knew; but that he was the Author of life, perhaps you did not know. And from this he acquits not only them of the charges, but also the architects of the evils. For he would have made them more contentious, if he had brought his speech to an accusation. For one who has done something terrible, when someone accuses him, in trying to defend himself, becomes more vehement. And he no longer says, "You crucified," "you murdered;" but, "You did it," leading them to pardon. If they acted through ignorance, much more these; if they are forgiven, much more these. The wonderful thing is that, having said both above and here, there, "by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge," and here, that He foretold Christ to all, he nowhere brings forward a testimony, because each of them is spoken with many accusations and of the punishment against them. "And I will give," he says, "the wicked for his burial, and the rich for his death;" and again, "What He foretold," he says, "by the mouth of all the prophets, that he should suffer, He has so fulfilled." He shows the counsel to be great, if indeed all said this, and not one only. However, it was not because it happened through ignorance, that it happened contrary to what seemed good to God. 60.80 See how great is the wisdom of God, when it has made use of the wickedness of others for what is needful. "He fulfilled," he says. Lest they should think that anything was still left, he added this, showing that as many things as he had to suffer have been fulfilled. But do not think, because the prophets said these things, and because you acted in ignorance, that this is a sufficient defense for you. But he does not say it this way, but more gently: "Repent therefore." Why? "That your sins may be blotted out." I do not mean the things dared at the cross; perhaps those were through ignorance; but that your other sins may be blotted out. Then he adds: "So that times of refreshing may come to you." Here he speaks obscurely about the resurrection. For truly those are times of refreshing, which Paul also sought, saying: "And we who are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened." Then showing that he is the cause of the times of refreshing, "And that he may send," he says, "Jesus Christ, who was appointed for you." He did not say, "that your sin be blotted out," but, "sins," hinting at that one also. "That he may send." Having said this, he does not say from where, then, but only adds, "Whom heaven must receive." Still to receive. And why did he not say, "Whom heaven has received"? He said this as speaking of the times above, "So it has been ordained," he says, "so it has been arranged;" but concerning his eternal existence he does not yet speak, but still dwells on the words of the economy and says: "For Moses said to the fathers, that 'The Lord will raise up for you a prophet.'" Then having said above, "Until the times of restoration of all things, of which God has spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began," he then introduces Christ himself. For if he foretold many things, and it is necessary to hear him, one would not err in saying that the prophets said these things. 4. In another way he wishes to show, that the prophets also foretold the same things. And if one examines carefully, he will find them spoken in the Old [Testament] also, though obscurely; so that there is nothing new. "The one appointed beforehand," he says. Here he also frightens them, as if many things remain, How then did he say, "He fulfilled what he had to suffer"? "He fulfilled," he said, not "It was fulfilled;" showing that the things he had to suffer, he fulfilled; but the things that still remain to happen, not yet. "The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet from your brethren like me." He says that which most conciliated them. Do you see how he scatters lowly and lofty things alongside?

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μόνον περὶ τοῦ Χριστοῦ, Ἀσφαλῶς οὖν γινωσκέτω, λέγων, πᾶς οἶκος Ἰσραήλ· ἐνταῦθα δὲ καὶ παραίνεσιν προσάγει. Ἐκεῖ ἀνέμενεν αὐτοὺς εἰπεῖν· ἐνταῦθα ᾔδει πόσον εἰργάσαντο, καὶ ὡς οὗτοι μᾶλλον ἦσαν ᾠκειωμένοι. Καὶ μὴν τὰ ἄνω εἰρημένα οὐκ ἦν ἀγνοίας. Τὸ γὰρ τὸν λῃστὴν αἰτῆσαι, τὸ τὸν κριθέντα ἀπολυθῆναι μὴ λαβεῖν, τὸ καὶ θελῆσαι ἀνελεῖν, ποίας ἀγνοίας; Ἀλλ' ὅμως δίδωσιν αὐτοῖς ἐξουσίαν ἀρνήσασθαι, καὶ μεταγνῶναι ἐπὶ τοῖς γεγενημένοις· μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ ἀπολογίαν ὑπὲρ αὐτῶν συντίθησιν εὐπρόσωπον, καὶ λέγει· Ὅτι μὲν οὖν ἀθῷον ἀνῃρεῖτε, ᾔδειτε· ὅτι δὲ τὸν ἀρχηγὸν τῆς ζωῆς, ἴσως ἠγνοεῖτε. Καὶ ἐντεῦθεν οὐκ αὐτοὺς μόνους ἀφίησιν ἐγκλημάτων, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς τῶν κακῶν ἀρχιτέκτονας. Ἦ γὰρ ἂν φιλονεικοτέρους αὐτοὺς ἐποίησεν, εἴ γε εἰς κατηγορίαν τὸν λόγον ἐξήγαγεν. Ὁ γάρ τι δεινὸν ἐργασάμενος, ὅταν τις κατηγορῇ, πειρώμενος ἀπολογεῖσθαι, σφοδρότερος γίνεται. Καὶ οὐ λέγει λοιπὸν, ὅτι Ἐσταυρώσατε, ἐφονεύσατε· ἀλλ', Ἐπράξατε, ἐπὶ συγγνώμην αὐτοὺς ἄγων. Εἰ ἐκεῖνοι κατὰ ἄγνοιαν, πολλῷ μᾶλλον οὗτοι· εἰ ἐκεῖνοι ἀφίενται, πολλῷ μᾶλλον οὗτοι. Τὸ δὲ θαυμαστὸν, ὅτι καὶ ἄνω καὶ ἐνταῦθα εἰπὼν, ἐκεῖ μὲν, Τῇ ὡρισμένῃ βουλῇ καὶ προγνώσει, ἐνταῦθα δὲ, ὅτι Προκατήγγειλε πᾶσι τὸν Χριστὸν, οὐδαμοῦ παράγει μαρτυρίαν, διότι ἑκάστη αὐτῶν μετὰ πολλῶν ἐγκλημάτων, καὶ τῆς κολάσεως τῆς κατ' αὐτῶν εἴρηται. Καὶ δώσω, φησὶ, τοὺς πονηροὺς ἀντὶ τῆς ταφῆς αὐτοῦ, καὶ τοὺς πλουσίους ἀντὶ τοῦ θανάτου αὐτοῦ· καὶ πάλιν, Ἃ προκατήγγειλε, φησὶ, διὰ στόματος πάντων τῶν προφητῶν παθεῖν αὐτὸν, ἐπλήρωσεν οὕτω. Μεγάλην δείκνυσι τὴν βουλὴν, εἴ γε πάντες τοῦτο ἔλεγον, καὶ οὐχ εἷς μόνος. Οὐ μὴν ἐπειδὴ κατὰ ἄγνοιαν γέγονε, παρὰ τὸ τῷ Θεῷ δοκοῦν γέγονεν. 60.80 Ὅρα, πόση τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡ σοφία, ὅταν ταῖς ἑτέρων πονηρίαις εἰς τὸ δέον ᾖ κατακεχρημένη. Ἐπλήρωσε φησίν. Ἵνα μὴ νομίσωσι λοιπὸν ὑπολείπεσθαί τι, τοῦτο ἐπήγαγε, δηλῶν ὅτι ὅσα παθεῖν ἔδει, πεπλήρωται. Ἀλλὰ μὴ νομίσητε, ἐπειδὴ οἱ προφῆται ταῦτα εἶπον, καὶ ἐπειδὴ κατὰ ἄγνοιαν ἐπράξατε. ὅτι ἀρκεῖ εἰς ἀπολογίαν ὑμῖν τοῦτο. Ἀλλ' οὐ λέγει οὕτως, ἀλλὰ πραότερον· Μετανοήσατε οὖν. ∆ιὰ τί; Εἰς τὸ ἐξαλειφθῆναι ὑμῶν τὰς ἁμαρτίας. Οὐ λέγω τὰ ἐν τῷ σταυρῷ τετολμημένα· ἴσως ἐκεῖνα κατὰ ἄγνοιαν· ἀλλ' ὥστε τὰς ἑτέρας ὑμῶν ἁμαρτίας ἐξαλειφθῆναι. Εἶτα ἐπάγει· Ὅπως ἂν ἔλθωσιν ὑμῖν καιροὶ ἀναψύξεως. Ἐνταῦθα περὶ τῆς ἀναστάσεως διαλέγεται ἀμυδρῶς. Ὄντως γὰρ ἐκεῖνοι ἀναψύξεως καιροὶ, οὓς ἐπεζήτει καὶ Παῦλος, λέγων· Καὶ ἡμεῖς οἱ ὄντες ἐν τῷ σκήνει στενάζομεν βαρούμενοι. Εἶτα δεικνὺς, ὅτι αὐτὸς τῶν καιρῶν τῆς ἀναψύξεως αἴτιος, Καὶ ἀποστείλῃ, φησὶ, τὸν προκεχειρισμένον ὑμῖν Ἰησοῦν Χριστόν. Οὐκ εἶπεν, Ἐξαλειφθῇ ὑμῶν ἡ ἁμαρτία, ἀλλ', Αἱ ἁμαρτίαι, καὶ ἐκείνην αἰνιττόμενος, Ἀποστείλῃ. Τοῦτο εἰπὼν, οὐ λέγει πόθεν λοιπὸν, ἀλλὰ μόνον ἐπάγει, Ὃν δεῖ οὐρανὸν μὲν δέξασθαι. Ἀκμὴν δέξασθαι. Καὶ πῶς οὐκ εἶπεν, Ὃν οὐρανὸς ἐδέξατο; Τοῦτο ὡς περὶ τῶν ἄνω χρόνων διαλεγόμενος εἶπεν, Οὕτως ᾠκονόμηται, φησὶν, οὕτω συντέθειται· περὶ δὲ τῆς αἰωνίου ὑπάρξεως αὐτοῦ οὐδέπω φησὶν, ἀλλ' ἔτι τοῖς τῆς οἰκονομίας λόγοις ἐνδιατρίβει καὶ λέγει· Μωσῆς μὲν γὰρ εἶπε πρὸς τοὺς πατέρας, ὅτι Προφήτην ὑμῖν ἀναστήσει Κύριος. Εἶτα ἀνωτέρω εἰπὼν, Ἄχρι χρόνων ἀποκαταστάσεως πάντων, ὧν ἐλάλησεν ὁ Θεὸς διὰ στόματος πάντων τῶν ἁγίων αὐτοῦ προφητῶν ἀπ' αἰῶνος, αὐτὸν εἰσάγει λοιπὸν τὸν Χριστόν. Εἰ γὰρ πολλὰ προεῖπεν, αὐτοῦ δὲ ἀκούειν χρὴ, οὐκ ἄν τις ἁμάρτοι ταῦτα τοὺς προφήτας εἰρηκέναι λέγων. δʹ. Ἄλλως δὲ θέλει δεῖξαι, ὅτι τὰ αὐτὰ καὶ οἱ προφῆται προεῖπον. Κἄν τις ἀκριβῶς ἐξετάζῃ, εὑρήσει καὶ ἐν τῇ Παλαιᾷ ἀμυδρῶς μὲν, εἰρημένα δέ· ὥστε οὐδὲν νεώτερον. Τὸν προκεχειρισμένον, φησίν. Ἐνταῦθα αὐτοὺς καὶ φοβεῖ, ὡς πολλῶν ὑπολειπομένων, Πῶς οὖν ἔλεγεν, Ἐπλήρωσεν ἃ ἔδει παθεῖν; Ἐπλήρωσεν, εἶπεν, οὐκ, Ἐπληρώθη· δεικνὺς, ὅτι ἃ μὲν ἐχρῆν παθεῖν, ἐπλήρωσεν· ἃ δὲ γενέσθαι λείπεται ἔτι, οὐδέπω. Προφήτην ὑμῖν ἀναστήσει Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς ἐκ τῶν ἀδελφῶν ὑμῶν ὡς ἐμέ. Ὃ μάλιστα ᾠκειοῦτο αὐτοὺς, λέγει. Ὁρᾷς, πῶς ταπεινὰ καὶ ὑψηλὰ παρασπείρει;