Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho

And Trypho said, “This point has been proved to me forcibly, and by many arguments, my friend. It remains, then, to prove that He submitted to become man by the Virgin, according to the will of His Father; and to be crucified, and to die. Prove also clearly, that after this He rose again and ascended to heaven.”

I answered, “This, too, has been already demonstrated by me in the previously quoted words of the prophecies, my friends; which, by recalling and expounding for your sakes, I shall endeavour to lead you to agree with me also about this matter. The passage, then, which Isaiah records, ‘Who shall declare His generation? for His life is taken away from the earth,’232 Isa. liii. 8. —does it not appear to you to refer to One who, not having descent from men, was said to be delivered over to death by God for the transgressions of the people?—of whose blood, Moses (as I mentioned before), when speaking in parable, said, that He would wash His garments in the blood of the grape; since His blood did not spring from the seed of man, but from the will of God. And then, what is said by David, ‘In the splendours of Thy holiness have I begotten Thee from the womb, before the morning star.233 Note this beautiful rendering, Ps. cx. 3. The Lord hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever, after the order of Melchizedek,’ 234 Ps. cx. 4. —does this not declare to you235 Or, “to us.” that [He was] from of old,236 ἄνωθεν; in Lat. vers. antiquitus, which Maranus prefers. and that the God and Father of all things intended Him to be begotten by a human womb? And speaking in other words, which also have been already quoted, [he says]: ‘Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of rectitude is the sceptre of Thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness, and hast hated iniquity: therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed Thee with the oil of gladness above Thy fellows. [He hath anointed Thee] with myrrh, and oil, and cassia from Thy garments, from the ivory palaces, whereby they made Thee glad. Kings’ daughters are in Thy honour. The queen stood at Thy right hand, clad in garments embroidered with gold.237 Literally, “garments of gold, variegated.” Hearken, O daughter, and behold, and incline thine ear, and forget thy people and the house of thy father; and the King shall desire thy beauty: because he is thy Lord, and thou shalt worship Him.’238 Ps. xlv. 6–11. Therefore these words testify explicitly that He is witnessed to by Him who established these things,239 The incarnation, etc. as deserving to be worshipped, as God and as Christ. Moreover, that the word of God speaks to those who believe in Him as being one soul, and one synagogue, and one church, as to a daughter; that it thus addresses the church which has sprung from His name and partakes of His name (for we are all called Christians), is distinctly proclaimed in like manner in the following words, which teach us also to forget [our] old ancestral customs, when they speak thus:240 “Being so,” literally. ‘Hearken, O daughter, and behold, and incline thine ear; forget thy people and the house of thy father, and the King shall desire thy beauty: because He is thy Lord, and thou shalt worship Him.’ ”

[63] Καὶ ὁ Τρύφων: Ἰσχυρῶς καὶ διὰ πολλῶν δείκνυταί σοι τοῦτο, φίλε, ἔφη. λοιπὸν οὖν καὶ ὅτι οὗτος διὰ τῆς παρθένου ἄνθρωπος γεννηθῆναι κατὰ τὴν τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ βούλησιν ὑπέμεινεν ἀπόδειξον καὶ σταυρωθῆναι καὶ ἀποθανεῖν: δῆλον δὲ καὶ ὅτι μετὰ ταῦτα ἀναστὰς ἀνελήλυθεν εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν, ἀπόδειξον. Κἀγὼ ἀπεκρινάμην: Ἤδη καὶ τοῦτο ἀποδέδεικταί μοι, ὦ ἄνδρες, ἐν τοῖς προανιστορημένοις λόγοις τῶν προφητειῶν, οὓς δι' ὑμᾶς πάλιν ἀναμιμνησκόμενος καὶ ἐξηγούμενος πειράσομαι καὶ εἰς τὴν περὶ τούτου συγκατάθεσιν ἀγαγεῖν ὑμᾶς. ὁ γοῦν λόγος ὃν ἔφη Ἠσαίας: Τὴν γενεὰν αὐτοῦ τίς διηγήσεται; ὅτι αἴρεται ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς ἡ ζωὴ αὐτοῦ: οὐ δοκεῖ σοι λελέχθαι ὡς οὐκ ἐξ ἀνθρώπων ἔχοντος τὸ γένος τοῦ διὰ τὰς ἀνομίας τοῦ λαοῦ εἰς θάνατον παραδεδόσθαι εἰρημένου ὑπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ; περὶ οὗ καὶ Μωυσῆς τοῦ αἵματος, ὡς προέφην, αἵματι σταφυλῆς, ἐν παραβολῇ εἰπών, τὴν στολὴν αὐτοῦ πλύνειν ἔφη, ὡς τοῦ αἵματος αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἐξ ἀνθρωπείου σπέρματος γεγεννημένου ἀλλ' ἐκ θελήματος θεοῦ. καὶ τὰ ὑπὸ Δαυεὶδ εἰρημένα: Ἐν ταῖς λαμπρότησι τῶν ἁγίων σου, ἐκ γαστρὸς πρὸ ἑωσφόρου ἐγέννησά σε. ὤμοσε κύριος καὶ οὐ μεταμεληθήσεται: Σὺ ἱερεὺς εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα κατὰ τὴν τάξιν Μελχισεδέκ: οὐ σημαίνει ὑμῖν ὅτι ἄνωθεν καὶ διὰ γαστρὸς ἀνθρωπείας ὁ θεὸς καὶ πατὴρ τῶν ὅλων γεννᾶσθαι αὐτὸν ἔμελλε; καὶ ἐν ἑτέροις εἰπών, τοῖς καὶ αὐτοῖς προλελεγμένοις: Ὁ θρόνος σου, ὁ θεός, εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ αἰῶνος: ῥάβδος εὐθύτητος ἡ ῥάβδος τῆς βασιλείας σου. ἠγάπησας δικαιοσύνην καὶ ἐμίσησας ἀνομίαν: διὰ τοῦτο ἔχρισέ σε ὁ θεός, ὁ θεός σου, ἔλαιον ἀγαλλιάσεως παρὰ τοὺς μετόχους σου. σμύρναν καὶ στακτὴν καὶ κασσίαν ἀπὸ τῶν ἱματίων σου, ἀπὸ βάρεων ἐλεφαντίνων, ἐξ ὧν εὔφρανάν σε. θυγατέρες βασιλέων ἐν τῇ τιμῇ σου: παρέστη ἡ βασίλισσα ἐκ δεξιῶν σου, ἐν ἱματισμῷ διαχρύσῳ περιβεβλημένη, πεποικιλμένη. ἄκουσον, θύγατερ, καὶ ἴδε καὶ κλῖνον τὸ οὖς σου, καὶ ἐπιλάθου τοῦ λαοῦ σου καὶ τοῦ οἴκου τοῦ πατρός σου: καὶ ἐπιθυμήσει ὁ βασιλεὺς τοῦ κάλλους σου, ὅτι αὐτός ἐστι κύριός σου, καὶ προσκυνήσεις αὐτῷ. ὅτι γοῦν καὶ προσκυνητός ἐστι καὶ θεὸς καὶ Χριστὸς ὑπὸ τοῦ ταῦτα ποιήσαντος μαρτυρούμενος, καὶ οἱ λόγοι οὗτοι διαρρήδην σημαίνουσι. καὶ ὅτι τοῖς εἰς αὐτὸν πιστεύουσιν, ὡς οὖσι μιᾷ ψυχῇ καὶ μιᾷ συναγωγῇ καὶ μιᾷ ἐκκλησίᾳ, ὁ λόγος τοῦ θεοῦ λέγει ὡς θυγατρί, τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ τῇ ἐξ ὀνόματος αὐτοῦ γενομένῃ καὶ μετασχούσῃ τοῦ ὀνόματος αὐτοῦ (Χριστιανοὶ γὰρ πάντες καλούμεθα), ὁμοίως φανερῶς οἱ λόγοι κηρύσσουσι, διδάσκοντες ἡμᾶς καὶ τῶν παλαιῶν πατρῴων ἐθῶν ἐπιλαθέσθαι, οὕτως ἔχοντες: Ἄκουσον, θύγατερ, καὶ ἴδε καὶ κλῖνον τὸ οὖς σου, καὶ ἐπιλάθου τοῦ λαοῦ σου καὶ τοῦ οἴκου τοῦ πατρός σου: καὶ ἐπιθυμήσει ὁ βασιλεὺς τοῦ κάλλους σου, ὅτι αὐτός ἐστι κύριός σου, καὶ προσκυνήσεις αὐτῷ.