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XXIII. -Concerning the antichrist. This, however, it is necessary to add to what has been said, that before the Lord's epiphany will come the avenger of men, the anti-god demon, the robber of the divine name, having assumed human nature. And just as of old, having stolen the name of God, he applied it to himself and to the collaborators of his wickedness, and persuaded men through hand-carved idols to offer him divine worship, so too, having usurped the name of the Lord Christ, he will deceive all, so to speak, and will trick many of those who bear the sacred name, saying that he himself is the Christ, whom the divine, prophesying prophets foretold would appear. He will also entice the easily captured, using certain deceitful wonders; and many of the prophets enigmatically foretold this in the Old [Testament]. But the divine Daniel has prophesied more broadly and clearly concerning this. But if any of these things must be clarified, we have set these things forth previously, having interpreted the entire prophecy word for word. And having interpreted the things written by the divine Paul to the Thessalonians along with the other epistles, we used longer arguments than is customary while investigating the passage concerning the Antichrist. For the divine Apostle necessarily instructed some who had supposed that the time of the Lord's coming had drawn near, that it is necessary first for the world to be illumined by the rays of the knowledge of God, and for the disciples of the faith to be made manifest, and for those who contradict to be separated from the believers, and then for the craftsman of falsehood to appear first, for a refutation of those who did not receive the proclamation of the truth. For the Lord also 83.528 said this to the Jews: "I have come in my Father's name, and you do not receive me. Another comes in his own name, and that one you will receive." And the divine Apostle said this same thing: "Because they did not receive the love of the truth so that they might be saved; and for this reason God will send them a strong delusion, so that they may believe the lie, that all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in unrighteousness for a refutation." Therefore, the father and teacher of wickedness will come for those who have disbelieved the proclamation of the truth. For since the Jews, supposedly championing God, nailed the Lord to the cross as an enemy of God, the coming of the Antichrist will become the greatest refutation of their impiety. For the Lord Christ, being true God, and Son of the true God, called himself Son of man and man, taking his titles from his visible nature, but he rarely named himself Son of God. But the all-wicked demon will name himself the greatest god. For this the holy angel also taught the prophet Daniel: "For he will not regard, he said, the gods of his fathers, and he will honor the god of fortresses in his place;" that is, he will call himself a strong and mighty god. But nevertheless, those who crucified the Lord for calling himself the Son of God will believe in this one when he appears, and in this way they show that they are indeed enemies of the truth, but workers of falsehood. For this very reason the all-wise one permits the sinner to appear. For it is clear that he would not have appeared unless God had willed it. We do not, however, call this will an operation. For God is not the cause of evils, even according to the pagan philosophers. For neither did he himself make Cain a murderer, because he did not prevent him when he wished to slay his brother. Nor did he himself prepare the sons of Jacob to sell Joseph, since he did not stop their attempt. For it is possible to find that while they indeed used their free will badly, the all-wise Lord showed the truth of the dreams through their wickedness. So therefore also

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ΚΓʹ. -Περὶ ἀντιχρίστου. Ἐκεῖνο μέντοι ἀναγκαῖον προσθεῖναι τοῖς εἰρη μένοις, ὡς πρὸ τῆς ∆εσποτικῆς ἐπιφανείας ἥξει φύ σιν ἀνθρωπείαν ὑποδὺς ὁ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἀλάστωρ, ὁ ἀντίθεος δαίμων, ὁ τῆς θείας προσηγορίας λῃστής. Καὶ καθάπερ πάλαι τὸ Θεός ὄνομα κεκλοφὼς ἐπιτέ θεικεν ἑαυτῷ, καὶ τοῖς τῆς πονηρίας αὑτοῦ συνερ γοῖς, καὶ πέπεικε τοὺς ἀνθρώπους διὰ τῶν χειροτμή των ξοάνων τὸ θεῖον αὐτῷ σέβας προσενεγκεῖν, οὕτω τὴν τοῦ ∆εσπότου Χριστοῦ προσηγορίαν σφετερισά μενος, πάντας μὲν, ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν, ἐξαπατήσει, φενακίσει δὲ καὶ τῶν σεπτὸν ὄνομα περικειμένων πολλοὺς, ἑαυτὸν εἶναι λέγων Χριστὸν, ὃν οἱ θεῖοι χρησμῳδοῦντες προφῆται ἐπιφανήσεσθαι προὔλεγον. ∆ελεάσει δὲ καὶ τοὺς εὐαλώτους, θαυματουργίαις τισὶν ἀπατηλαῖς κεχρημένος· καὶ τοῦτο πολλοὶ μὲν τῶν προφητῶν αἰνιγματωδῶς προεῖπον ἐν τῇ Παλαιᾷ. Εὐρύτερον δὲ καὶ σαφέστερον τὰ περὶ τούτου τεθέ σπικεν ὁ θεῖος ∆ανιήλ. Εἰ δέ τινα τούτων καὶ σαφη νίσαι δεῖ, προανεπτύξαμεν ταῦτα, πᾶσαν κατὰ λέξιν ἡρμηνευκότες τὴν προφητείαν. Καὶ τὰ Θεσσαλονι κεῦσι δὲ ὑπὸ τοῦ θείου Παύλου γραφέντα μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων ἐπιστολῶν ἑρμηνεύσαντες, μακροτέροις ἢ κατὰ τὸ εἰωθὸς ἐχρησάμεθα λόγοις τὸ περὶ τοῦ Ἀν τιχρίστου χωρίον διερευνώμενοι. Τινὰς γὰρ ὑπειλη φότας τὸν τῆς ∆εσποτικῆς παρουσίας πελάσαι καιρὸν, ἀναγκαίως ὁ θεῖος Ἀπόστολος ἐξεπαίδευσεν, ὡς χρὴ πρότερον ταῖς τῆς θεογνωσίας ἀκτῖσι καταυγασθῆναι τὴν οἰκουμένην, καὶ δήλους γενέσθαι τοὺς τροφίμους τῆς πίστεως, καὶ ἀποκριθῆναι τῶν πεπιστευκότων τοὺς ἀντιλέγοντας, εἶθ' οὕτω πρότερον ἐπιφανῆναι τὸν τοῦ ψεύδους τεχνίτην, εἰς ἔλεγχον τῶν τῆς ἀλη θείας μὴ δεξαμένων τὸ κήρυγμα. Τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ 83.528 ὁ Κύριος ἔφη τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις· "Ἐγὼ ἦλθον ἐν τῷ ὀνόματι τοῦ Πατρός μου, καὶ οὐ λαμβάνετέ με. Ἔρχεται ἄλλος ἐν τῷ ἰδίῳ ὀνόματι, κἀκεῖνον λή ψεσθε." Ταὐτὸ δὲ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ θεῖος Ἀπόστολος ἔφη· "Ἀνθ' ὧν τὴν ἀγάπην τῆς ἀληθείας οὐκ ἐδέ ξαντο εἰς τὸ σωθῆναι αὐτούς· καὶ διὰ τοῦτο πέμψει αὐτοῖς ὁ Θεὸς ἐνέργειαν πλάνης εἰς τὸ πιστεῦσαι αὐτοὺς τῷ ψεύδει, ἵνα κριθῶσι πάντες οἱ μὴ πιστεύ σαντες τῇ ἀληθείᾳ, ἀλλ' εὐδοκήσαντες τῇ ἀδι κίᾳ εἰς ἔλεγχον." Τοιγαροῦν τῶν ἠπιστη κότων τῷ τῆς ἀληθείας κηρύγματι ἥξει τῆς πονηρίας ὁ πατὴρ καὶ διδάσκαλος. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ Ἰουδαῖοι, τοῦ Θεοῦ δῆθεν ὑπερμαχοῦντες, ὡς ἀντίθεον τῷ σταυρῷ τὸν ∆εσπότην προσήλωσαν, μέγιστος αὐτῶν ἔλεγχος τῆς ἀσεβείας γενήσεται τοῦ Ἀντιχρίστου ἡ παρου σία. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ ∆εσπότης Χριστὸς, Θεὸς ὢν ἀληθι νὸς, καὶ τοῦ ἀληθινοῦ Θεοῦ Υἱὸς, Υἱὸν ἀνθρώπου ἑαυτὸν καὶ ἄνθρωπον προσηγόρευσεν, ἀπὸ τῆς ὁρω μένης φύσεως τὰς προσηγορίας τιθεὶς, ὀλιγάκις δὲ Θεοῦ Υἱὸν ὠνόμασεν ἑαυτόν. Ὁ δὲ παμπόνηρος δαίμων, θεὸν μέγιστον ἑαυτὸν ὀνομάσει. Τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ ὁ ἅγιος ἄγγελος τὸν προφήτην ἐδίδαξε ∆ανιήλ· "Ἐπὶ θεοὺς γὰρ, ἔφη, τῶν πατέρων αὑτοῦ οὐ συνήσει, καὶ θεὸν Μαζουρὶμ ἐπὶ τόπῳ ἑαυτοῦ δοξάσει·" τουτέστιν, ἰσχυρὸν καὶ δυνατὸν ἑαυτὸν προσαγορεύσει θεόν. Ἀλλ' ὅμως οἱ τὸν ∆εσπότην ἐσταυρωκότες, ὡς Υἱὸν Θεοῦ ἑαυτὸν ὀνομάσαντα, τούτῳ φανησομένῳ πιστεύσουσι, καὶ ταύτῃ δεικνύντες, ὡς ἔχθιστοι μὲν εἰσὶ τῆς ἀληθείας, ἐργάται δὲ τοῦ ψεύδους. Τούτου δὴ χάριν ἐνδίδωσιν ὁ πάνσοφος ἐπιφανῆναι τὸν ἀλι τήριον. Εὔδηλον γὰρ ὡς οὐκ ἂν ὤφθη μὴ βουλομένου Θεοῦ. Οὐ μὴν ἐνέργειαν καλοῦμεν τὴν βούλησιν. Κακῶν γὰρ ἀναίτιος ὁ Θεὸς, καὶ κατὰ τοὺς ἔξω σο φούς. Οὐδὲ γὰρ τὸν Κάϊν αὐτὸς ἀνδροφόνον ἀπέφη νεν, ἐπειδὴ βουληθέντα τὸν ἀδελφὸν ἀνελεῖν οὐκ ἐκώλυσεν. Οὐδὲ τοῦ Ἰακὼβ τοὺς παῖδας αὐτὸς ἀπο δόσθαι τὸν Ἰωσὴφ παρεσκεύασεν, ἐπειδήπερ αὐτῶν οὐκ ἔπαυσε τὴν ἐγχείρησιν. Ἔστι γὰρ εὑρεῖν, κἀ κείνους μὲν κακῶς χρησαμένους τῷ αὐθαιρέτῳ τῆς γνώμης, τὸν δὲ πάνσοφον ∆εσπότην διὰ τῆς ἐκείνων πονηρίας δείξαντα τὴν τῶν ὀνείρων ἀλήθειαν. Οὕτω τοιγαροῦν καὶ