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of the holy rod from the root of Jesse. 2.171 But more on these matters has been said clearly by us in interpreting the section of the prophet Isaiah, having come to the point: “And a little child shall lay his hand on the den of asps, and they will not do evil or harm anyone on my holy mountain, for the whole earth was filled with the knowledge of the Lord.” 2.172 That making the ears of the inner man heavy is a matter of choice, as was said just now, the prophecy of Isaiah testifies, delivered thus to those who practice this maliciously: “For,” it says, “the heart of this people has grown fat, and with their ears they have heard heavily, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart and turn, and I should heal them.” For delighting to remain in the wickedness and impiety which they chose to have, they made their ears heavy and closed their eyes, their hearts having grown fat, so that by not hearing the words about virtue and the knowledge of the truth, they might not be improved and turn to the one from whom they departed, who heals their difficulty of hearing and blindness. 2.173 Many symbols of such healings are found in the Gospels, and with Jesus having healed these things perceptibly; for he led the deaf and the blind to hear keenly and to see sharply, healing “every disease and every affliction” of the body and much more of the soul. 2.174 Just as in the saying of Isaiah, those whose hearts had grown fat made their ears heavy so as not to hear, and the accompanying things they did to their own harm, so also in the preceding voice of Zechariah, those who set their heart to be disobedient so as not to hear the law and the words sent in the Spirit of the Lord Almighty, made the ears of their mind heavy, so that they might not receive the saving and beatific teachings and the words sent in the Spirit of the Lord Almighty, which is the Holy Spirit. 2.175 Let the heretics be refuted, who ignorantly and quite unlearnedly introduce different natures of men; for they dogmatize that some are incapable of virtue, and others are not by nature able to take up wickedness; from which it follows that law accomplishes nothing, nor admonition, nor refutation, nor exhortation, nor prayer sent up to God. 2.176 The most impious have adopted this dogma, having paid very little attention to the New and Old Testament. For in the Gospels, he speaks as to men having a free and autonomous choice: “If anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” And again: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest; and take my yoke and learn from me that I am gentle.” 2.177 For “come” and “take” and “learn” are addressed to those with free will. Indeed, he thus makes the beginning of his teaching, saying to his disciples: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” For repentance for things improperly done before concerns those having free choice, but not a nature devoid of virtue or wickedness. For neither will the wicked be virtuous, nor the good wicked, according to the impious doctrine of those who introduce natures. 2.178 Having set forth from the New Testament the testimonies concerning man’s being endowed with free will, it is time also to bring forward those from the Old. 2.179 And first the Mosaic ones must be spoken, then those of the prophets. 2.180 The first of the ten sayings spoken by God through Moses is: “You shall have no other gods besides me”; and next: “You shall not make for yourself an idol, nor a likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the waters under the earth.” And after a little: “Honor your father and your mother, that it may be well with you.” And next: “You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal.” From which Paul the apostle, having been benefited,

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ἁγίας ῥάβδου ἐκ τῆς τοῦ Ἰεσσαὶ ῥίζης. 2.171 Ἐπὶ πλεῖον δὲ περὶ τούτων εἴρηται ἡμῖν σαφῶς ἑρμηνεύουσιν τὴν τοῦ προφήτου Ἠσαΐου περιοχήν, φθάσασιν εἰς τό· «Καὶ παιδίον νήπιον ἐπιβαλεῖ τὴν χεῖρα ἐπὶ κοίτη̣ς ἀσπίδων καὶ οὐ μὴ κακοποιήσουσιν ἢ λυμανοῦνταί τινα ἐπὶ τὸ ὄρος τὸ ἅγιόν μου, ὅτι ἐνεπλήσθη ἡ σύμπασα τοῦ γνῶναι τὸν Κύριον.» 2.172 Ὅτι δὲ προαιρετικόν, ὡς ἔναγχος εἴρηται, τὸ βαρύνειν τοῦ ἔσω ἀνθρώπου τὰ ὦτα, μαρτυρεῖ ἡ τοῦ Ἠσαΐου προφητεία, οὕτως ἀπαγγελλομένη πρὸς τοὺς τοῦτο ἐπιτηδεύοντας κακεντρεχῶς· «Ἐπαχύνθη γάρ, φησίν, ἡ καρδία τοῦ λαοῦ τούτου, καὶ τοῖς ὠσὶν αὐτῶν βαρέως ἤκουσαν, καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτῶν ἐκάμμυσαν, μήποτε ἴδωσιν τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς καὶ τοῖς ὠσὶν ἀκούσωσιν, καὶ τῇ καρδίᾳ συνῶσιν καὶ ἐπιστρέψωσιν, κἀγὼ ἰάσομαι αὐτούς.» Ἡδόμενοι γὰρ ἐμμένειν ᾗ εἵλαντο ἔχειν κακίᾳ καὶ ἀσεβείᾳ, ἐβάρυναν τὰ ὦτα καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς ἐκάμμυσαν, παχυνθείσης τῆς καρδίας αὐτῶν, ἵνα μὴ ἀκούσαντες τοὺς περὶ τῆς ἀρετῆς λόγους καὶ γνώσεως τῆς ἀληθείας, βελτιωθέντες ἐπιστραφῶσιν πρὸς τὸν οὗ ἀπέστησαν ἰώμενον τὴν δυσηκοΐαν καὶ ἀβλεψίαν αὐτῶν. 2.173 Σύμβολα πολλὰ τῶν τοιούτων θεραπειῶν ἐν τοῖς Εὐαγ2.173 γελίοις φέρεται, καὶ αἰσθητῶς τοῦ Ἰησοῦ ταῦτ' ἰασαμένου· κωφοὺς γὰρ καὶ τυφλοὺς εἰς τὸ ἀκούειν ὀξέως καὶ ὀξυωπεῖν ἤγαγεν, «πᾶσαν νόσον καὶ μαλακίαν» ἰώμενος τοῦ σώματος καὶ πολλῷ πλέον τῆς ψυχῆς. 2.174 Ὥσπερ ἐν τῇ τοῦ Ἠσαΐου λέξει, οἱ παχυνθέντες τῇ καρδίᾳ ἐβάρυναν τὰ ὦτα τοῦ μὴ εἰσακούειν, καὶ τὰ συγκαθειλιγμένα ἐνήργησαν πρὸς βλάβῃ τῇ ἑαυτῶν, οὕτω καὶ ἐν τῇ προκειμένῃ τοῦ Ζαχαρίου φωνῇ, οἱ τάξαντες τὴν καρδίαν αὐτῶν ἀπειθῆ τοῦ μὴ ἀκούειν τοῦ νόμου καὶ τῶν ἀποσταλέντων λόγων ἐν Πνεύματι Κυρίου παντοκράτορος, ἐβάρυνον τὰ ὦτα τῆς διανοίας, ἵνα μὴ καταδέχωνται τὰ σωτηριώδη καὶ μακαριοποιὰ μαθήματα καὶ τοὺς ἀποσταλέντας λόγους ἐν Πνεύματι Κυρίου παντοκράτορος, ὅπερ τὸ ἅγιον Πνεῦμα ὑπάρχει. 2.175 Ἐλεγχέσθωσαν οἱ αἱρετικοί, ἀμαθῶς καὶ ἄγαν ἀπαιδεύτως φύσεις εἰσηγούμενοι διαφόρους τῶν ἀνθρώπων· δογματίζουσιν γὰρ τοὺς μὲν ἀνεπιδέκτους ἀρετῆς, τοὺς δὲ πρὸς ἀνάλημψιν κακίας μὴ πεφυκότας· ᾧ ἕπεται μηδὲ νόμον ἀνύειν τι, μὴ νουθεσίαν, μὴ ἔλεγχον, μὴ προτροπήν, μηδὲ προσευχὴν πρὸς Θεὸν ἀναπεμπομένην. 2.176 Προσήκαντο δὲ τὸ δόγμα τοῦτο οἱ δυσσεβέστατοι, ἥκιστα ἐπιστήσαντες τῇ καινῇ καὶ παλαιᾷ διαθήκῃ. Ἐν μὲν γὰρ τοῖς Εὐαγγελίοις, ὡς πρὸς ἐλευθέραν καὶ αὐτόνομον ἔχοντας προαίρεσιν τοὺς ἀνθρώπους φησίν· «Εἴ τις θέλει ὀπίσω μου ἐλθεῖν, ἀπαρνησάσθω ἑαυτόν, καὶ ἀράτω τὸν σταυρὸν αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἀκολουθείτω μοι.» Καὶ πάλιν· «∆εῦτε πρός με, πάντες οἱ κοπιῶντες καὶ πεφορτισμένοι, καὶ ἐγὼ ἀναπαύσω ὑμᾶς· καὶ ἄρατε τὸν ζυγὸν καὶ μάθετε ἀπ' ἐμοῦ ὅτι πραΰς εἰμι.» 2.177 Πρὸς αὐτεξουσίους γὰρ τὸ «δεῦτε» καὶ τὸ «ἄρατε» καὶ «μάθετε». Αὐτίκα γοῦν τὴν ἀρχὴν τῆς διδασκαλίας ἑαυτοῦ οὕτω ποιεῖται, φάσκων τοῖς γνωρίμοις· «Μετανοεῖτε, ἤγγισεν γὰρ ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν.» Μετάγνωσις γὰρ γίνεται τῶν προπεπραγμένων οὐ προσηκόντως περὶ προαίρεσιν ἐλευθέραν ἔχοντας, ἀλλ' οὐ φύσιν ἀμέτοχον ἀρετῆς ἢ κακίας. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ὁ φαῦλος σπουδαῖος ἔσται, οὐδὲ ὁ ἀγαθὸς κακὸς, κατὰ τὸν ἀσεβῆ λόγον τῶν τὰς φύσεις εἰσηγουμένων. 2.178 Ἐκθεμένους ἐκ τῆς καινῆς διαθήκης τὰς περὶ τοῦ αὐτεξούσιον εἶναι τὸν ἄνθρωπον μαρτυρίας, ὥρα καὶ τὰς ἀπὸ τῆς παλαιᾶς παραγαγεῖν. 2.179 Καὶ πρῶτόν γε τὰς μωϋσαϊκὰς ῥητέον, εἶτα τὰς τῶν προφητῶν. 2.180 Πρῶτον τῶν δέκα λογίων ὑπὸ Θεοῦ λεχθέντων διὰ Μωϋσέως ἐστίν· «Οὐκ ἔσονταί σοι θεοὶ ἕτεροι πλὴν ἐμοῦ»· καὶ ἑξῆς· «Οὐ ποιήσεις σεαυτῷ εἴδωλον, οὐδὲ παντὸς ὁμοίωμα, ὅσα ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ ἄνω, καὶ ὅσα ἐν τοῖς ὕδασιν ὑποκάτω τῆς γῆς.» Καὶ μετ' ὀλίγα· «Τίμα τὸν πατέρα σου καὶ τὴν μητέρα, ἵνα εὖ σοι γένηται.» Καὶ ἑξῆς· «Οὐ φονεύσεις, οὐ μοιχεύσε̣ις, οὐ κλέψεις.» Ἀφ' ὧν ὠφεληθεὶς Παῦλος ὁ ἀπόστολος,