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21. -Concerning promises. The munificent One promised to give, not anything perishable nor temporary, but an eternal enjoyment of good things; for, according to Cerinthus, and those like him, the kingdom of our God and Savior will not be earthly, nor circumscribed by a specified time. For let them imagine the period of a thousand years, and perishable luxury, and the other sensual pleasures, and in addition to these the sacrifices, and the Jewish feasts; for we await an ageless life. "For these," says the Lord, "will rise to eternal life, and these to eternal punishment and shame." And again; "Come, you blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you before the foundation of the world." And, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." And; "Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." And to the divine apostles he commanded to say as they preached; "The kingdom of heaven is at hand." And elsewhere he said to them; "When I am lifted up from 83.521 the earth, I will draw all people to myself." And again; "In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you that I go to prepare a place for you." And; "I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am, you may be also." And again; "Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life." And indeed also speaking to the Father, he said thus; "Father, those whom you have given me, I desire that they also, where I am, may be with me, that they may see my glory that you have given me, because you loved me before the foundation of the world." Having learned these things, the divine Apostle said; "We will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord, and so we will always be with the Lord." And again; "The saying is trustworthy; for if we have died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him." And writing to the Romans he said; "If by the trespass of the one man death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ." And again; "For our light and momentary affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal." But the summit of good things is that the promised life is free from sin. For with bodies rising incorruptible and souls receiving immutability, sin will no longer have any place. And with sin having been removed, and the devil with the demons having been delivered to Gehenna, the pains of the struggles will also cease, and the fear of defeat, and the anxiety about victory. And a life without grief and full of gladness will be given to the worthy, and they will enjoy a light both intellectual and divine, or rather they themselves will become luminous. "For then," says the Lord, "the righteous will shine like the sun." 22. -Concerning the second appearance of our God and Savior. And these things will be after the second appearance of our Savior. For thus he also promised to the apostles; "I am going away and I am coming to you." And again; "I will come again to you and I will take you to myself." And in another place; "Then you will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven in his glory, and all the holy angels with him. Then he will sit on his glorious throne, and all the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate 83.524 them from

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ΚΑʹ. -Περὶ ἐπαγγελιῶν. Ἐπηγγείλατο δὲ δώσειν ὁ μεγαλόδωρος, ἐπίκηρον μὲν οὐδὲν οὐδὲ πρόσκαιρον, αἰώνιον δὲ ἀπόλαυσιν τῶν ἀγαθῶν· οὐ γὰρ, κατὰ τὴν Κηρίνθου, καὶ τῶν ἐκείνῳ παραπλησίων, ἐπίγειος ἔσται τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἡ βασιλεία, οὐ χρόνῳ περιγεγραμμένη ῥητῷ. Ἐκεῖνοι γὰρ φανταζέσθωσαν τῶν χιλίων ἐτῶν τὴν περίοδον, καὶ τὴν φθειρομένην χλιδὴν, καὶ τὰς ἄλλας ἡδυπαθείας, καὶ πρὸς τούτοις τὰς θυσίας, καὶ τὰς Ἰουδαϊκὰς πανηγύρεις· ἡμεῖς γὰρ τὴν ἀγήρω προσμένομεν βιοτήν. "Οὗτοι γὰρ, φησὶν ὁ Κύριος, ἀναστήσονται εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον, καὶ οὗτοι εἰς κόλασιν καὶ αἰσχύνην αἰώνιον." Καὶ πάλιν· "∆εῦτε, οἱ εὐλογημένοι τοῦ Πατρός μου, κληρονομήσατε τὴν ἡτοιμασμένην ὑμῖν βασιλείαν πρὸ καταβολῆς κόσμου." Καὶ, "Μακάριοι οἱ πτωχοὶ τῷ πνεύματι, ὅτι αὐτῶν ἐστιν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν." Καί· "Μακάριοι οἱ δεδιωγμένοι ἕνεκεν δικαιοσύνης, ὅτι αὐτῶν ἐστιν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν." Καὶ τοῖς θείοις δὲ ἀποστόλοις κηρύττουσι λέγειν ἐκέλευσεν· "Ἤγγικεν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν." Καὶ ἑτέ ρωθι πρὸς αὐτοὺς εἴρηκεν· "Ὅταν ὑψωθῶ ἐκ 83.521 τῆς γῆς, πάντας ἑλκύσω πρὸς ἐμαυτόν." Καὶ αὖ θις· "Πολλαὶ μοναὶ παρὰ τῷ Πατρί μου· εἰ δὲ μή γε, εἶπον ἂν ὑμῖν ὅτι πορεύσομαι καὶ ἑτοι μάσω τόπον ὑμῖν." Καί· "Πάλιν ἐλεύσομαι, καὶ παραλήψομαι ὑμᾶς πρὸς ἐμαυτὸν, ἵν' ὅπου ἐγώ εἰμι, ἦτε καὶ ὑμεῖς." Καὶ πάλιν· "Ὁ ἐσθίων μου τὴν σάρκα, καὶ πίνων μου τὸ αἷμα, ἔχει ζωὴν αἰώνιον." Καὶ μέντοι καὶ πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα διαλεγόμενος, οὕτως ἔφη· "Πάτερ, οὓς ἔδωκάς μοι, θέλω ἵν' ὅπου ἐγώ εἰμι, καὶ ἐκεῖνοι ὦσι μετ' ἐμοῦ, ἵνα θεωρῶσι τὴν δόξαν τὴν ἐμὴν ἣν ἔδωκάς μοι, ὅτι ἠγάπησάς με πρὸ κατα βολῆς κόσμου." Ταῦτα μεμαθηκὼς ὁ θεῖος Ἀπό στολος, ἔλεγεν· "Ἁρπαγησόμεθα ἐν νεφέλαις εἰς ἀπάντησιν τοῦ Κυρίου, καὶ οὕτω πάντοτε σὺν Κυρίῳ ἐσόμεθα." Καὶ πάλιν· "Πιστὸς ὁ λόγος· εἰ γὰρ συναπεθάνομεν, καὶ συζήσομεν· εἰ ὑπομένομεν, καὶ συμβασιλεύσομεν." Καὶ Ῥωμαίοις δὲ ἐπι στέλλων ἔφη· "Εἰ τῷ τοῦ ἑνὸς παραπτώματι ὁ θά νατος ἐβασίλευσε διὰ τοῦ ἑνὸς, πολλῷ μᾶλλον οἱ τὴν περισσείαν τῆς χάριτος καὶ τῆς δωρεᾶς καὶ τῆς δικαιοσύνης λαμβάνοντες, ἐν ζωῇ βασιλεύσουσι διὰ τοῦ ἑνὸς Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ." Καὶ πάλιν· "Τὸ γὰρ παραυτίκα ἐλαφρὸν τῆς θλίψεως ἡμῶν, καθ' ὑπερ βολὴν εἰς ὑπερβολὴν αἰώνιον βάρος δόξης κατεργά ζεται ἡμῖν, μὴ σκοπούντων ἡμῶν τὰ βλεπόμενα, ἀλλὰ τὰ μὴ βλεπόμενα. Τὰ γὰρ βλεπόμενα, πρόσ καιρα, τὰ δὲ μὴ βλεπόμενα, αἰώνια." Ὁ δὲ τῶν ἀγαθῶν κολοφὼν, τὸ ἁμαρτίας ἐλευθέραν εἶναι τὴν ἐπηγγελμένην ζωήν. Ἀφθάρτων γὰρ τῶν σωμάτων ἀνισταμένων καὶ τῶν ψυχῶν τὸ ἄτρεπτον δεχομέ νων, οὐδὲ μίαν λοιπὸν ἕξει χώραν ἡ ἁμαρτία. Τῆς δὲ ἁμαρτίας ἐκποδὼν γενομένης, καὶ τοῦ διαβόλου μετὰ τῶν δαιμόνων τῇ γεέννῃ παραδοθέντος, παυ θήσονται καὶ τῶν ἀγώνων οἱ πόνοι, καὶ τῆς ἥττης τὸ δέος, καὶ ἡ περὶ τῆς νίκης φροντίς. Ἄλυπος δὲ βίος καὶ θυμήρης τοῖς ἀξίοις δοθήσεται, καὶ φωτὸς ἀπολαύσουσι νοεροῦ τε καὶ θείου, μᾶλλον δὲ αὐτοὶ φωτοειδεῖς γενήσονται. "Τότε γὰρ, φησὶν ὁ Κύριος, ἐκλάμψουσιν οἱ δίκαιοι ὡς ὁ ἥλιος." ΚΒʹ. -Περὶ τῆς δευτέρας τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ Σω τῆρος ἡμῶν ἐπιφανείας. Ἔσται δὲ ταῦτα μετὰ τὴν δευτέραν τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἐπιφάνειαν. Οὕτω γὰρ καὶ τοῖς ἀποστόλοις ὑπέσχετο· "Ὑπάγω καὶ ἔρχομαι πρὸς ὑμᾶς." Καὶ αὖθις· "Πάλιν ἐλεύσομαι πρὸς ὑμᾶς καὶ παραλή ψομαι ὑμᾶς πρὸς ἐμαυτόν." Καὶ ἐν ἑτέρῳ χωρίῳ· "Τότε ὄψεσθε τὸν Υἱὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐρχόμενον ἐπὶ τῶν νεφελῶν τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ἐν τῇ δόξῃ αὑτοῦ, καὶ πάντες οἱ ἅγιοι ἄγγελοι μετ' αὐτοῦ. Τότε καθί σει ἐπὶ θρόνου δόξης αὑτοῦ, καὶ συναχθήσε ται ἔμπροσθεν αὐτοῦ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, καὶ ἀφορί 83.524 σει αὐτοὺς ἀπ'