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he cries out in the Epistle to the Romans: "As it is written: I have made you a father of many nations, in the sight of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that are not. Against all hope, he believed in hope that he might become the father of many nations according to what was said: So shall your offspring be. And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead—being about a hundred years old—and the deadness of Sarah's womb. But he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith, giving glory to God, and being fully persuaded that what God had promised, he was also able to perform. Therefore it was counted to him for righteousness. Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was counted to him, but also for us, to whom it will be counted, who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was delivered up for our trespasses and was raised for our justification." 5.101 And his journeying for three days, until he reached the place which God had shown him, that he might offer up his son as a sacrifice upon one of the mountains, as it is written, and the showing him a ram instead of his true and natural son, that he might offer it, all were symbols and types of the mystery according to Christ of the passion and the resurrection. For all of Scripture looks to this end. Marginal Note 5.102 From this time of Abraham, God first begins to reveal, both through words and through types, the future state of things. For the great Abraham reasoned, when God told him to offer up his beloved son as a sacrifice, that God is able to raise him again from the dead and give him back, as it seems to Scripture; whence also in the Gospels the Lord mentions the type of Abraham's sacrifice, calling the type his own day. And through promises he revealed to him, saying: "In you and in your seed all the nations shall be blessed," which revealed to him the economy according to Christ. 5.103 Further. God, being a foreknower and knowing that from Abraham he would come through whom he works the resurrection and the renewal of all, chooses the faithful Abraham, having tested him in all things, so that he does not choose inopportunely, and having found him most faithful from among the Chaldeans, who were astronomers and astrologers, he transfers him to the sorcerers called Carrhenes; and having appeared faithful there, he is commanded to inhabit the land of the idolatrous Canaanites; and having been found superior there and having inclined to none of the three ways, but rather submitting to the reverence and the commands of God, he was deemed worthy to become a hearer of the great promises and gifts of God, and that from his seed comes the one who first shows the blessing and the promise to the world through himself, through whom also the creator and renewer of the world bestows the resurrection and the promise to the world. They say that Abraham made the sacrifice of Isaac on that very mountain where the Lord Christ also was offered as a sacrifice for the whole world and endured the saving cross. Glory to God. Amen. 5.104 This Isaac, the co-heir of the promises and blessings of God made to Abraham, his father, who became a type of the slaughter of the Lord Christ, walking for three days to die and after this returning alive, who carried on his own shoulders the wood of his own sacrifice, just as the Lord Christ also carried his own cross on his shoulders, who died by choice and was made alive by God, for whom a sheep was slaughtered as a substitute, and the father heard from God that: "You have not spared your beloved son." Thus also concerning Christ the Son of God it is said: "He who did not spare his own Son, but delivered him up for us all," even if it is the flesh alone that was given for the life of the world, since it is impossible for the divinity to die; when the flesh is given, Scripture says that his own Son is given, being a substitute and a counterpart of the son according to the type of the blessed Isaac. For thus also the Lord said that: "Abraham rejoiced to see
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τῇ πρὸς Ῥωμαίους βοᾷ· "Καθὼς γέγραπται· Πατέρα πολλῶν ἐθνῶν τέθεικά σε, κατέναντι οὗ ἐπίστευσε Θεοῦ, τοῦ ζωογονοῦντος τοὺς νεκροὺς καὶ καλοῦντος τὰ μὴ ὄντα ὡς ὄντα, ὃς παρ' ἐλπίδα ἐπ' ἐλπίδι ἐπίστευσεν εἰς τὸ γενέσθαι αὐτὸν πατέρα πολλῶν ἐθνῶν κατὰ τὸ εἰρημένον· Οὕτως ἔσται τὸ σπέρμα σου· καὶ μὴ ἀσθενήσας τῇ πίστει οὐ κατενόησε τὸ ἑαυτοῦ σῶμα ἤδη νενεκρωμένονἑκατονταέτης που ὑπάρχωνκαὶ τὴν νέκρωσιν τῆς μήτρας Σάρας· εἰς δὲ τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν τοῦ Θεοῦ οὐ διεκρίθη τῇ ἀπιστίᾳ, ἀλλ' ἐδυναμώθη τῇ πίστει, δοὺς δόξαν τῷ Θεῷ καὶ πληροφορηθεὶς ὅτι, ὃ ἐπήγγελται, δυνατός ἐστι καὶ ποιῆσαι· διὸ ἐλογίσθη αὐτῷ εἰς δικαιοσύνην. Οὐκ ἐγράφη δὲ δι' αὐτὸν μόνον ὅτι ἐλογίσθη αὐτῷ, ἀλλὰ καὶ δι' ἡμᾶς, οἷς μέλλει λογίζεσθαι τοῖς πιστεύουσιν ἐπὶ τὸν ἐγείραντα Ἰησοῦν τὸν Κύριον ἡμῶν ἐκ νεκρῶν, ὃς παρεδόθη διὰ τὰ παραπτώματα ἡμῶν καὶ ἠγέρθη διὰ τὴν δικαίωσιν ἡμῶν." 5.101 Τὸ δὲ πορευθῆναι τρεῖς ἡμέρας, ἕως οὗ φθάσῃ τὸν τόπον, ὃν ἔδειξεν αὐτῷ ὁ Θεός, ἵνα ἀνενέγκῃ τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ εἰς θυσίαν ἐφ' ἓν τῶν ὀρέων, καθὼς γέγραπται, καὶ τὸ ἀντὶ τοῦ γνησίου καὶ φυσικοῦ υἱοῦ δεῖξαι αὐτῷ κριόν, ἵνα προσενέγκῃ, πάντα σύμβολα ἦσαν καὶ τύποι τοῦ κατὰ Χριστὸν μυστηρίου τοῦ πάθους καὶ τῆς ἀναστάσεως. Πᾶσα γὰρ ἡ Γραφὴ πρὸς τοῦτον τὸν σκοπὸν ἀφορᾷ. Παραγραφή 5.102 Ἐκ τούτου πρῶτον τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ ἄρχεται ὁ Θεὸς ἀποκαλύπτειν καὶ διὰ λόγων καὶ διὰ τύπων τὴν μέλλουσαν κατάστασιν. Ἐλογίσατο γὰρ ὁ μέγας Ἀβραάμ, τοῦ Θεοῦ αὐτῷ εἰπόντος ἀνενεγκεῖν εἰς θυσίαν τὸν υἱὸν τὸν ἀγαπητόν, ὡς δύναται πάλιν ὁ Θεὸς ἐκ νεκρῶν ἀναστῆσαι αὐτὸν καὶ παρασχεῖν αὐτῷ, καθὰ τῇ Γραφῇ δοκεῖ· ὅθεν καὶ ἐν Εὐαγγελίοις μέμνηται ὁ Κύριος τοῦ τύπου τῆς θυσίας τοῦ Ἀβραάμ, ἡμέραν τὴν ἑαυτοῦ καλέσας τὸν τύπον· καὶ δι' ἐπαγγελιῶν δὲ ἐδήλου αὐτῷ λέγων· "Ἐνευλογηθήσονται ἐν σοὶ καὶ ἐν τῷ σπέρματί σου πάντα τὰ ἔθνη", ὅπερ τὴν κατὰ Χριστὸν οἰκονομίαν αὐτῷ ἐδήλου. 5.103 Ἔτι. Προγνώστης ὢν ὁ Θεὸς καὶ εἰδὼς ὅτι ἐκ τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ μέλλει προέρχεσθαι δι' οὗ τὴν ἀνάστασιν καὶ τὸν ἀνακαινισμὸν τοῦ παντὸς ἐργάζεται, ἐκλέγεται τὸν πιστὸν Ἀβραὰμ δοκιμάσας ἐν πᾶσιν, ὡς οὐκ ἀκαίρως ἐκλέγεται, καὶ ἀπὸ μὲν τῶν Χαλδαίων ἀστρονόμων ὄντων καὶ ἀστρολόγων πιστότατον αὐτὸν εὑρηκώς, μεταφέρει πρὸς τοὺς γόητας τοὺς λεγομένους Καρηνούς· κἀκεῖ πιστὸς ἀναφανείς, κελεύεται τῶν εἰδωλολατρῶν Χαναναίων τὴν γῆν οἰκεῖν· κἀκεῖ ἀνώτερος εὑρεθεὶς καὶ πρὸς οὐδεμίαν τῶν τριῶν ἐκκλίνας ὁδόν, ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὸ σέβας καὶ τὰς κελεύσεις τοῦ Θεοῦ μᾶλλον ὑποκύψας, τῶν μεγάλων ἐπαγγελιῶν καὶ δωρεῶν τοῦ Θεοῦ ἠξιώθη ἀκουστὴς γενέσθαι, καὶ ὅτι ἀπὸ τοῦ σπέρματος αὐτοῦ προέρχεται ὁ τὴν εὐλογίαν καὶ τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν τῷ κόσμῳ δι' ἑαυτοῦ πρῶτον δεικνύς, δι' οὗ καὶ τὴν ἀνάστασιν καὶ τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν χαρίζεται τῷ κόσμῳ ὁ κτίστης καὶ ἀνακαινιστὴς τοῦ κόσμου. Φασὶ δὲ τὴν θυσίαν τοῦ Ἰσαὰκ πεποιῆσθαι τὸν Ἀβραὰμ ἐν αὐτῷ τῷ ὄρει, ἔνθα καὶ ὁ ∆εσπότης Χριστὸς θυσία ὑπὲρ παντὸς τοῦ κόσμου ἀνηνέχθη καὶ τὸν σωτήριον σταυρὸν ὑπομεμένηκε. ∆όξα τῷ Θεῷ. Ἀμήν. 5.104 Οὗτος Ἰσαάκ, ὁ συγκληρονόμος τῶν ἐπαγγελιῶν καὶ τῶν εὐλογιῶν τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν γενομένων πρὸς Ἀβραάμ, τὸν αὐτοῦ πατέρα, ὃς τύπος ἐγένετο τῆς σφαγῆς τοῦ ∆εσπότου Χριστοῦ τριημέρως βαδίσας ἐπὶ τὸ θανεῖν καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα ζῶν ὑποστρέψας, ὁ ἐν τοῖς ἰδίοις ὤμοις τὰ ξύλα τῆς ἑαυτοῦ θυσίας βαστάξας, ὥσπερ καὶ ὁ ∆εσπότης Χριστὸς τὸν ἑαυτοῦ σταυρὸν ἐπὶ τῶν ὤμων ἐβάσταξεν, ὁ τῇ προαιρέσει θανὼν καὶ ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ ζωωθείς, οὗπερ ἀντάλλαγμα πρόβατον ἐσφάγη, καὶ ἤκουσεν ὁ πατὴρ παρὰ Θεοῦ ὅτι· "Οὐκ ἐφείσω τοῦ υἱοῦ σου τοῦ ἀγαπητοῦ". Οὕτως καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ Χριστοῦ τοῦ Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ λέλεκται· "Ὅς γε τοῦ ἰδίου Υἱοῦ οὐκ ἐφείσατο, ἀλλ' ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν πάντων παρέδωκεν αὐτόν", κἂν ἡ σάρξ ἐστι μόνη ἡ δοθεῖσα ὑπὲρ τῆς τοῦ κόσμου ζωῆς, ἐπειδὴ ἀδύνατον τὴν θεότητα θανεῖν· τῆς σαρκὸς διδομένης, τὸν ἴδιον Υἱὸν δίδοσθαι λέγει ἡ Γραφή, ἀντάλλαγμα καὶ ἀντίδειξιν οὖσαν τοῦ υἱοῦ κατὰ τὸν τύπον τοῦ μακαρίου Ἰσαάκ. Οὕτως γὰρ καὶ εἶπεν ὁ Κύριος ὅτι· "Ἀβραὰμ ἠγαλλιάσατο ἰδεῖν