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to the parts of the body, and with colors and materials appropriate to each. {ERAN.} It seems so. {ORTH.} If, then, it sins together with the body, or rather, is the source of the sin (for it was entrusted to guide and govern the living being), why, when it shares in the sin, does it not share in the punishment? {ERAN.} And how was it possible for the immortal to partake of death? {ORTH.} Yet it was just, having shared in the transgression, to share in the punishment. {ERAN.} Just. {ORTH.} But it did not partake. {ERAN.} Indeed not. {ORTH.} But in the life to come it will be handed over to Gehenna with the body. {ERAN.} Thus the Lord has said: "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna." {ORTH.} Therefore, in this life it escaped death as being immortal; but in that life it will pay the penalty, not by undergoing death, but by being punished while living. {ERAN.} The divine scripture teaches this also. {ORTH.} It is impossible, then, for the immortal nature to undergo death. {ERAN.} So it has appeared. {ORTH.} How then do you say that God the Word tasted death? For 193 if where the immortal is created it was shown to be impossible for it to become mortal, how is it possible for the one who is uncreatedly and eternally immortal, the creator of mortal and immortal natures, to partake of death? {ERAN.} We too know his nature is immortal, but we say that he partook of death in the flesh. {ORTH.} But we have expressly demonstrated that it is in no way possible for that which is by nature immortal to partake of death. For not even the soul, created together with and joined to the body and having shared in the sin, shared in death with it, solely because of the immortality of its nature. Let us examine this same point in another way. {ERAN.} Nothing prevents exploring every avenue, so as to find out the truth. {ORTH.} Let us then inquire thus. Do we say that of virtue and of vice there are some teachers, and others who are their pupils? {ERAN.} We do. {ORTH.} And do we say that the teacher of virtue is worthy of greater rewards? {ERAN.} Entirely so. {ORTH.} And likewise, do you say the teacher of vice is worthy of double and triple punishment? {ERAN.} True. {ORTH.} To which part, then, must we assign the devil? Do we say he is a teacher or a student? {ERAN.} Indeed, a teacher of teachers. For he is the father and teacher of all evil. {ORTH.} And who, then, were the first of men to become his students? {ERAN.} Adam and Eve. {ORTH.} And who received the sentence of death? {ERAN.} Adam and all his race. {ORTH.} So the students paid the penalty for what they were wickedly taught; but the teacher, whom we just said was worthy of double and triple punishment, did he escape the punishment? {ERAN.} It seems so. 194 {ORTH.} But even though these things happened thus, we both know and name the judge as just. {ERAN.} Most certainly. {ORTH.} Why then, being just, did he not exact from him the penalties for his wicked teaching? {ERAN.} For him he prepared the unquenchable flame of Gehenna. "For he says, 'Depart, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.'" But in this life, for this reason he did not share in death with his students, as he has an immortal nature. {ORTH.} So not even those who have committed the greatest offenses are able to partake of death, if they should have an immortal nature. {ERAN.} It is agreed. {ORTH.} If then not even the inventor and teacher of evil himself partook of death because of the immortality of his nature, how are you not horrified to say that the fount of immortality and righteousness has partaken of death? {ERAN.} If we were saying that he had undergone the passion unwillingly, the accusation made by you against us would have a just cause. But if the passion is proclaimed by us to be of his own free will and the death voluntary, it is fitting not to accuse us, but to praise the ... of the

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τοῖς μορίοις τοῦ σώματος, χρώμασι δὲ καὶ ὕλαις ταῖς εἰς ἑκάτερα προσφόροις. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ἔοικεν. {ΟΡΘ.} Εἰ τοίνυν συναμαρτάνει τῷ σώματι, μᾶλλον δὲ ἄρχει τῆς ἁμαρτίας (ἡνιοχεῖν γὰρ τὸ ζῷον καὶ κυβερνᾶν ἐπιστεύθη), τί δήποτε κοινωνοῦσα τῆς ἁμαρτίας οὐ κοινωνεῖ τῆς τιμωρίας; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Καὶ πῶς οἷον τ' ἦν τὴν ἀθάνατον θανάτου μεταλαχεῖν; {ΟΡΘ.} ∆ίκαιον δὲ ἦν ὅμως μετασχοῦσαν τῆς παραβάσεως μετα σχεῖν τῆς κολάσεως. {ΕΡΑΝ.} ∆ίκαιον. {ΟΡΘ.} Οὐ μετέλαχε δέ. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Οὐ δῆτα. {ΟΡΘ.} Ἐν δέ γε τῷ μέλλοντι βίῳ μετὰ τοῦ σώματος τῇ γεέννῃ παραδοθήσεται. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Οὕτως ὁ κύριος εἴρηκε· "Μὴ φοβεῖσθε ἀπὸ τῶν ἀποκτε νόντων τὸ σῶμα, τὴν δὲ ψυχὴν μὴ δυναμένων ἀποκτεῖναι· φοβηθήτε δὲ μᾶλλον τὸν καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν καὶ τὸ σῶμα δυνάμενον ἀπολέσαι ἐν γεέννῃ." {ΟΡΘ.} Οὐκοῦν ἐν μὲν τῷδε τῷ βίῳ διέφυγε τὸν θάνατον ὡς ἀθάνα τος· ἐν ἐκείνῳ δὲ τῷ βίῳ δώσει δίκας οὐ θάνατον ὑπομένουσα, ἀλλ' ἐν ζωῇ κολαζομένη. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ἡ θεία καὶ τοῦτο διδάσκει γραφή. {ΟΡΘ.} Ἀδύνατον ἄρα θάνατον ὑπομεῖναι τὴν ἀθάνατον φύσιν. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Οὕτω πέφανται. {ΟΡΘ.} Πῶς τοίνυν τὸν θεὸν λόγον γεύσασθαι θανάτου φατέ; Εἰ 193 γὰρ ἔνθα κτιστὸν τὸ ἀθάνατον ἀδύνατον ὤφθη τοῦτο γενέσθαι θνητόν, πῶς οἷόν τε τὸν ἀκτίστως καὶ ἀϊδίως ἀθάνατον τὸν τῶν θνητῶν καὶ ἀθανάτων φύσεων ποιητὴν θανάτου μεταλαχεῖν; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ἴσμεν αὐτοῦ καὶ ἡμεῖς τὴν φύσιν ἀθάνατον, σαρκὶ δὲ αὐτόν φαμεν μετεσχηκέναι θανάτου. {ΟΡΘ.} Ἀλλὰ διαρρήδην ἡμεῖς ἀπεδείξαμεν, ὡς κατ' οὐδένα τρόπον θανάτου μετασχεῖν δυνατὸν τὸ φύσει ἀθάνατον. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἡ ψυχὴ συνδημιουργηθεῖσα καὶ συναφθεῖσα τῷ σώματι καὶ συμμετασχοῦσά γε τῆς ἁμαρτίας, ἐκείνῳ ἐκοινώνησε τοῦ θανάτου διὰ μόνην τὴν ἀθανασίαν τῆς φύσεως. Ταὐτὸ δὲ τοῦτο καὶ ἑτέρως σκοπήσωμεν. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Οὐδὲν κωλύει πάντα κινῆσαι πόρον, ὥστε τ' ἀληθὲς ἐξευρεῖν. {ΟΡΘ.} Ζητήσωμεν τοίνυν ὡδί. Τῆς ἀρετῆς καὶ τῆς κακίας φαμέν τινας μὲν εἶναι διδασκάλους, τινὰς δὲ τούτων αὐτῶν φοιτητάς; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Φαμέν. {ΟΡΘ.} Τὸν δέ γε τῆς ἀρετῆς διδάσκαλον μειζόνων εἶναι λέγομεν ἄξιον ἀντιδόσεων; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Πάνυγε. {ΟΡΘ.} Ὡσαύτως δὲ καὶ τὸν τῆς κακίας διπλασίας καὶ τριπλασίας λέγεις ἄξιον τιμωρίας; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ἀληθές. {ΟΡΘ.} Τὸν δὲ διάβολον ποίας θετέον μερίδος; διδάσκαλον εἶναί φαμεν ἢ μαθητήν; {ΕΡΑΝ.} ∆ιδασκάλων μὲν οὖν διδάσκαλον. Αὐτὸς γὰρ πάσης ἐστὶ κακίας καὶ πατὴρ καὶ διδάσκαλος. {ΟΡΘ.} Τίνες δὲ ἄρα τούτου ἀνθρώπων πρῶτοι γεγένηνται μαθηταί; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ὁ Ἀδὰμ καὶ ἡ Εὔα. {ΟΡΘ.} Τίνες δὲ τὴν ψῆφον τοῦ θανάτου ἐδέξαντο; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ὁ Ἀδὰμ καὶ πᾶν τοῦδε τὸ γένος. {ΟΡΘ.} Οἱ μαθηταὶ ἄρα δίκας ἔδοσαν ὑπὲρ ὧν κακῶς ἐδιδάχθησαν· ὁ δέ γε διδάσκαλος, ὃν ἀρτίως εἰρήκαμεν διπλασίας εἶναι καὶ τριπλα σίας κολάσεως ἄξιον, τὴν τιμωρίαν διέφυγεν; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ἔοικεν. 194 {ΟΡΘ.} Ἀλλ' ὅμως καὶ τούτων οὕτω γεγενημένων, δίκαιον τὸν κριτὴν καὶ ἴσμεν καὶ ὀνομάζομεν. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Μάλιστα. {ΟΡΘ.} Τί δήποτε τοίνυν δίκαιος ὢν οὐκ εἰσέπραξεν ἐκεῖνον τῆς κακῆς διδασκαλίας εὐθύνας; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Αὐτῷ τὴν ἄσβεστον τῆς γεέννης κατεσκεύασε φλόγα. "Πορεύεσθε, γάρ φησιν, οἱ κατηραμένοι, εἰς τὸ πῦρ τὸ αἰώνιον, τὸ ἡτοιμασμένον τῷ διαβόλῳ καὶ τοῖς ἀγγέλοις αὐτοῦ." Ἐνταῦθα δὲ τού του χάριν οὐκ ἐκοινώνησεν τοῦ θανάτου τοῖς μαθηταῖς, ὡς φύσιν ἔχων ἀθάνατον. {ΟΡΘ.} Οὐδὲ οἱ τὰ μέγιστα ἄρα πλημμελήσαντες θανάτου οἷοί τε μετασχεῖν, εἰ φύσιν ἀθάνατον ἔχοιεν. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ὡμολόγηται. {ΟΡΘ.} Εἰ τοίνυν οὐδὲ αὐτὸς ὁ τῆς κακίας εὑρετὴς καὶ διδάσκαλος μετέλαχε θανάτου διὰ τὴν ἀθανασίαν τῆς φύσεως, πῶς οὐ πεφρίκατε λέγοντες τὴν τῆς ἀθανασίας καὶ δικαιοσύνης πηγὴν μετεσχηκέναι θανάτου; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Εἰ μὲν ἀκουσίως αὐτὸν ὑπομεμενηκέναι τὸ πάθος λέγομεν, ἔσχεν ἂν πρόφασιν ἡ καθ' ἡμῶν παρ' ὑμῶν γινομένη κατηγορία δικαίαν. Εἰ δ' αὐθαίρετον τὸ πάθος καὶ ὁ θάνατος ἐθελούσιος κηρύσσε ται παρ' ἡμῶν, οὐ κατηγορεῖν ἡμῶν, ἀλλ' ὑμνεῖν προσήκει τὴν τῆς