72

but also gave forgiveness of sins and life, and the other things we have often mentioned; just as if someone should not only free a man with a fever from his disease, but also make him handsome and strong and honored, or again, not only feed a hungry man, but also make him master of great riches, and bring him to the highest office. And how did sin abound, he says? The law gave countless commandments; 60.479 since therefore they transgressed them all, sin abounded. Do you see how great the difference is between grace and the law? For the one became an addition of condemnation, but the other an abundance of gift. 4. Having spoken of the ineffable generosity, he again seeks the origin and the root both of death and of life. What then is the root of death? Sin; for which reason he also said: That as sin reigned in death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord. And he said these things, showing this one in the rank of a king, but death in the rank of a soldier placed under it, and armed by it. Therefore if it armed death, it is clear that the righteousness which destroys it, brought in through grace, not only disarms death, but also destroys it, and abolishes its entire kingdom, inasmuch as that one is greater than this one, being introduced not through man or devil, but through God and grace, and leading our life to a better and unending good; for there will no longer be an end to it, that from this also you may learn the advantage. For that one cast out from the present life; but grace, having come, gifted us not with the present life, but with the immortal and eternal one. And the author of all these things for us is Christ. Therefore do not doubt concerning life, having righteousness; for righteousness is greater than life, since it is also its mother. What then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? By no means. Again he proceeds to the moral discourse, not introducing it at the start, lest he should seem burdensome and oppressive to many, but out of the sequence of the doctrines. For if even by varying his discourse in this way he was careful, lest they should be displeased at what was said (for which reason he also said, I have written the more boldly unto you in some sort), much more, if he had not done this, would he have appeared harsher to them. Since then he showed that grace was great by healing great sins, from this it seemed to the foolish that what was said was an exhortation to sin. For if on this account grace appeared greater, he says, because we sinned greatly, let us not cease from sinning, that grace may be shown to be more abundant; in order, then, that they might not say or suppose these things, see how he overthrows the objection, first by the prohibition, saying, By no means; which he is accustomed to do in cases of things acknowledged to be very absurd; then he also sets forth an irrefutable argument. What then is this? We who died, he says, to sin, how shall we still live in it? What is, We died? Either that, as far as it was concerned and as far as pertains to it, we have all received a sentence of death; or that we have become dead to it, having believed and been enlightened; which is rather to be said; for what follows indicates this. And what is it to have become dead to it? Henceforth to obey it in nothing. For baptism has done this once for all, it has made us dead to it; but for the rest it must be continually accomplished by our own diligence, so that, even if it commands countless things, we no longer obey, but remain motionless like a dead man. And yet elsewhere he says that this sin has died; but there, wishing to show that virtue is easy, he states this; but here, since he is eager to rouse the hearer, he transfers the death to him. Then, since what was said was unclear, he explains it again, and using his argument in a rebuking manner. Or are you ignorant, he says, brothers, that as many of us as were baptized into Christ 60.480 were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death. What is it, We were baptized into his death? That we ourselves should also die just as he did; for the cross is the

72

ἀλλὰ καὶ ἁμαρτημάτων ἄφεσιν καὶ ζωὴν ἔδωκε, καὶ τὰ ἄλλα ἃ πολλάκις εἰρήκαμεν· ὥσπερ ἂν εἴ τις τὸν πυρέττοντα μὴ νόσου μόνον ἐλευθερώσειεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὡραῖον ἐργάσαιτο καὶ ἰσχυρὸν καὶ ἔντιμον, ἢ τὸν πεινῶντα πάλιν μὴ θρέψειε μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν πολλῶν ποιήσειε χρημάτων εἶναι κύριον, καὶ ἐπ' ἀρχὴν ἀγάγοι μεγίστην. Καὶ πῶς ἐπλεόνασε τὸ ἁμάρτημα, φησί; Μυρίας ἔδωκεν ἐντολὰς ὁ νόμος· 60.479 ἐπεὶ οὖν πάσας ὑπερέβησαν, ἐπλεόνασε τὸ ἁμάρτημα. Εἶδες πόσον τὸ μέσον τῆς χάριτος καὶ τοῦ νόμου; Ὁ μὲν γὰρ καὶ προσθήκη κατακρίσεως ἐγένετο, ἡ δὲ πλεονασμὸς δωρεᾶς. δʹ. Εἰπὼν δὲ τὴν ἄφατον φιλοτιμίαν, ζητεῖ πάλιν τὴν ἀρχὴν καὶ τὴν ῥίζαν καὶ τοῦ θανάτου καὶ τῆς ζωῆς. Τίς οὖν τοῦ θανάτου ἡ ῥίζα; Ἡ ἁμαρτία· διὸ καὶ ἔλεγεν· Ἵνα ὥσπερ ἐβασίλευσεν ἡ ἁμαρτία ἐν τῷ θανάτῳ, οὕτω καὶ ἡ χάρις βασιλεύσῃ διὰ δικαιοσύνης εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον διὰ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν. Ταῦτα δὲ ἔφη, δεικνὺς ταύτην μὲν ἐν τάξει βασιλέως, τὸν δὲ θάνατον ἐν τάξει στρατιώτου ὑπ' αὐτῇ ταττόμενον, καὶ ὑπὸ ταύτης καθοπλιζόμενον. Οὐκοῦν εἰ αὐτὴ τὸν θάνατον καθώπλισεν, εὔδηλον ὅτι ἡ ἀναιρετικὴ ταύτης δικαιοσύνη ἡ διὰ τῆς χάριτος εἰσενεχθεῖσα οὐ μόνον ἀφοπλίζει τὸν θάνατον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀναιρεῖ, καὶ τὴν ἐκείνης καταλύει βασιλείαν ἅπασαν, ὅσῳ καὶ μείζων ταύτης ἐκείνη, οὐ δι' ἀνθρώπου ἢ διαβόλου, ἀλλὰ διὰ Θεοῦ καὶ χάριτος εἰσαγομένη, καὶ ἐπὶ τὸ χρηστότερον ἄγουσα τὴν ζωὴν τὴν ἡμετέραν καὶ ἀπέραντον ἀγαθόν· οὐκ ἔτι γὰρ αὐτῆς ἔσται πέρας, ἵνα καὶ ἐντεῦθεν μάθῃς τὸ πλέον. Ἐκείνη μὲν γὰρ τῆς παρούσης ἐξέβαλε ζωῆς· ἡ δὲ χάρις ἐλθοῦσα οὐ τὴν παροῦσαν, ἀλλὰ τὴν ἀθάνατον ἡμῖν ἐδωρήσατο καὶ αἰώνιον. Τούτων δὲ πάντων πρόξενος ἡμῖν ὁ Χριστός. Μὴ τοίνυν ἀμφίβαλλε περὶ ζωῆς, δικαιοσύνην ἔχων· καὶ γὰρ μείζων ἡ δικαιοσύνη τῆς ζωῆς, ἐπεὶ καὶ μήτηρ αὐτῆς ἐστι. Τί οὖν; ἐπιμενοῦμεν τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ, ἵνα ἡ χάρις πλεονάσῃ; Μὴ γένοιτο. Πάλιν εἰς τὸν ἠθικὸν ἐκβαίνει λόγον, οὐχὶ προηγουμένως αὐτὸν εἰσάγων, ἵνα μὴ δόξῃ φορτικὸς εἶναι πολλοῖς καὶ ἐπαχθὴς, ἀλλ' ἐκ τῆς τῶν δογμάτων ἀκολουθίας. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ οὕτω ποικίλλων τὸν λόγον ἐφείδετο, μή ποτε δυσχεράνωσιν ἐκεῖνοι πρὸς τὰ λεγόμενα (διὸ καὶ ἔλεγε, Τολμηρότερον δὲ ἔγραψα ὑμῖν ἀπὸ μέρους), πολλῷ μᾶλλον, εἰ μὴ τοῦτο ἐποίησε, τραχύτερος ἂν αὐτοῖς ὤφθη. Ἐπεὶ οὖν ἔδειξε μεγάλην οὖσαν τὴν χάριν τῷ μεγάλα ἰάσασθαι ἁμαρτήματα, ἐκ δὲ τούτου ἐδόκει παρὰ τοῖς ἀνοήτοις προτροπὴ τὸ λεγόμενον εἰς ἁμαρτίαν εἶναι. Εἰ γὰρ διὰ τοῦτο μείζων ἐφάνη ἡ χάρις, φησὶν, ἐπειδὴ μεγάλα ἡμάρτομεν, μὴ ἀποστῶμεν ἁμαρτάνοντες, ἵνα πλείων ἡ χάρις δειχθῇ· ἵν' οὖν μὴ ταῦτα λέγωσιν ἢ ὑπονοῶσιν, ὅρα πῶς ἀνατρέπει τὴν ἀντίθεσιν, πρῶτον μὲν τῇ ἀπαγορεύσει, λέγων, Μὴ γένοιτο· ὅπερ ἐπὶ τῶν σφόδρα ὡμολογημένων ἀτόπων ποιεῖν εἴωθεν· ἔπειτα καὶ λογισμὸν τίθησιν ἀναντίῤῥητον. Ποῖον δὴ τοῦτον; Οἵτινες ἀπεθάνομεν, φησὶ, τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ, πῶς ἔτι ζήσομεν ἐν αὐτῇ; Τί ἐστιν, Ἀπεθάνομεν; Ἢ ὅτι, τὸ ἐκείνης μέρος καὶ τὸ εἰς αὐτὴν ἧκον, ἀπόφασιν ἐδεξάμεθα πάντες· ἢ ὅτι νεκροὶ γεγόναμεν αὐτῇ, πιστεύσαντες καὶ φωτισθέντες· ὃ καὶ μᾶλλον ἔστιν εἰπεῖν· τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ τὸ ἑξῆς κείμενον ἐμφαίνει. Τί δέ ἐστιν, νεκροὺς αὐτῇ γεγονέναι; Τὸ πρὸς μηδὲν ὑπακούειν αὐτῇ λοιπόν. Τοῦτο γὰρ τὸ μὲν βάπτισμα ἐποίησεν ἅπαξ, ἐνέκρωσεν ἡμᾶς αὐτῇ· δεῖ δὲ λοιπὸν παρὰ τῆς ἡμετέρας σπουδῆς κατορθοῦσθαι αὐτὸ διηνεκῶς, ὥστε, κἂν μυρία ἐπιτάττῃ, μηκέτι ὑπακούειν, ἀλλὰ μένειν ἀκίνητον ὥσπερ τὸν νεκρόν. Καίτοι γε ἀλλαχοῦ φησιν, ὅτι αὕτη ἡ ἁμαρτία ἀπέθανεν· ἀλλ' ἐκεῖ μὲν εὔκολον βουλόμενος δεῖξαι τὴν ἀρετὴν, τοῦτο τίθησιν· ἐνταῦθα δὲ, ἐπειδὴ διεγεῖραι σπεύδει τὸν ἀκροατὴν, ἐπ' αὐτὸν μεταφέρει τὸν θάνατον. Εἶτα, ἐπειδὴ ἀσαφὲς ἦν τὸ εἰρημένον, ἑρμηνεύει πάλιν αὐτὸ καὶ ἐπιπληκτικῶς τῷ λόγῳ χρώμενος. Ἣ ἀγνοεῖτε γὰρ, φησὶν, ἀδελφοὶ, ὅτι ὅσοι εἰς Χριστὸν 60.480 ἐβαπτίσθημεν, εἰς τὸν θάνατον αὐτοῦ ἐβαπτίσθημεν; Συνετάφημεν οὖν αὐτῷ διὰ τοῦ βαπτίσματος εἰς τὸν θάνατον. Τί ἐστιν, Εἰς τὸν θάνατον αὐτοῦ ἐβαπτίσθημεν; Εἰς τὸ καὶ αὐτοὶ ἀποθανεῖν ὥσπερ ἐκεῖνος· σταυρὸς γάρ ἐστι τὸ