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to the teaching concerning Christ, but they even strongly opposed it, and became an obstacle to those from the Gentiles who wished to be persuaded. But if anyone should wish to examine 83.772 accurately, he will find even the opposition of the Jews becoming an ally of the faith of the Gentiles. For the discussion with the Jews, and the proof from the law and the prophets, became a clear refutation of their folly, and showed to those of the Gentiles that the Christian way of life had been proclaimed from of old. And the testimony from the enemies made the proclaimed word trustworthy. For the preachers of this word brought forward both Abraham the patriarch, who received these promises, and Isaac the fruit of the promise, and Jacob who received this blessing from his father, and Judah, who succeeded to the paternal inheritance of the blessing, and Moses who had foretold these things, and king David who had prophesied these things, and Isaiah and Jeremiah who had foretold these things, and Ezekiel and Daniel who had proclaimed these things beforehand through the Spirit, and the whole choir of the prophets who clearly foretold our affairs. And the hearers, seeing the Jews agreeing that these voices were divine, and also seeing the good deeds performed in the name of Christ, and receiving the signs as pledges of the words, they readily received the preaching, and believed in the preached God, but they loathed the abomination of the Jews. Therefore, not only was the disobedience of the Jews not an obstacle to the divine preaching, but even by the means through which they attempted to oppose it, they made the word trustworthy. For the contradiction compelled the Lord's testimonies to be brought forward; and those refuted the falsehood, and showed the light of truth. Therefore, from the beginning the God of all continued to manage the salvation of men, and for each season brought the appropriate remedy. And teaching this, the blessed Paul said: "For as long as the heir is a child, he is no different from a slave, though he is lord of all; but he is under guardians and managers, until the time set by his father. So we also, when we were children, were enslaved under the elemental principles of the world. But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons." But that He came to this economy not out of repentance, but so ordained it from the beginning, let the same witness teach, writing to the Corinthians and saying: "But we speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away; but we speak God's wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom, which God predestined before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age has understood. For if they had understood it, they would not 83.773 have crucified the Lord of glory." For they would not, being envious of the prosperity of men, have provided them the pretext for their exceeding good fortune; but, being ignorant of the end of the mystery, they raged against the Savior of our souls, and unwillingly became for us the agents of the highest goods. Therefore, the mystery was hidden, but it was predestined before the ages. Knowing these things, therefore, and understanding God's providence through all things, and seeing his immeasurable love for mankind, and beholding his boundless mercy, cease raging against the creator, learn to praise the benefactor, repay his great benefactions with grateful words. Offer to God a sacrifice of praise; do not pollute your tongue with blasphemy, make it an instrument of hymnody, for which it was made. Adore those of the divine economies that are manifest, but do not meddle with those that are hidden, but await the knowledge that will be in its own time.

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περὶ τοῦ Χριστοῦ διδασκαλίᾳ, ἀλλὰ καὶ λίαν ἀντ έπραξαν, καὶ τοῖς ἐξ ἐθνῶν πείθεσθαι βουλομένοις ἐμποδὼν ἐγένοντο. Ἀλλ' εἴ τις ἀκριβῶς ἐξετάσαι 83.772 θελήσειε, καὶ τὴν ἐναντίωσιν Ἰουδαίων σύμμαχον εὑρήσει τῆς τῶν ἐθνῶν πίστεως γινομένην. Ἡ γὰρ πρὸς Ἰουδαίους διάλεξις, καὶ ἡ ἀπὸ τοῦ νόμου καὶ τῶν προφητῶν ἀπόδειξις, σαφὴς μὲν ἔλεγχος τῆς τούτων ἀνοίας ἐγίνετο, ὑπεδείκνυε δὲ τοῖς ἐξ ἐθνῶν ἄνωθεν τὴν χριστιανικὴν πολιτείαν κεκηρυγ μένην. Καὶ ἡ παρὰ τῶν ἐχθρῶν μαρτυρία ἀξιόπιστον ἐποίει τὸν κηρυττόμενον λόγον. Ἔφερον γὰρ οἱ τοῦδε τοῦ λόγου κήρυκες εἰς μέσον, καὶ Ἀβραὰμ τὸν πα τριάρχην, ταύτας τὰς ἐπαγγελίας δεξάμενον, καὶ Ἰσαὰκ τὸν τῆς ἐπαγγελίας καρπὸν, καὶ τὸν Ἰακὼβ ταύτην τὴν εὐλογίαν παρὰ τοῦ πατρὸς κομισάμενον, καὶ τὸν Ἰούδαν, τὸν πατρῷον τῆς εὐλογίας κλῆρον διαδεξάμενον, καὶ τὸν Μωσέα ταῦτα προειρηκότα, καὶ τὸν βασιλέα ∆αβὶδ ταῦτα προθεσπίσαντα, καὶ Ἡσαΐαν καὶ Ἱερεμίαν ταῦτα προαγορεύσαντας, καὶ Ἰεζεκιὴλ καὶ ∆ανιὴλ ταῦτα διὰ τοῦ πνεύματος προ κηρύξαντας, καὶ ἅπαντα τῶν προφητῶν τὸν χορὸν τὰ ἡμέτερα σαφῶς προμηνύσαντα. Ὁρῶντες δὲ οἱ ἀκούοντες, συνομολογοῦντας μὲν Ἰουδαίους θείας εἶναι ταύτας φωνὰς, βλέποντες δὲ καὶ τὰς ἐν τῷ ὀνό ματι τοῦ Χριστοῦ τελουμένας εὐεργεσίας, καὶ ἐχέγγυα λαμβάνοντες τῶν λόγων τὰ σημεῖα, ἐδέ χοντο μὲν ῥᾳδίως τὸ κήρυγμα, ἐπίστευον δὲ τῷ κη ρυττομένῳ Θεῷ, τὴν δὲ Ἰουδαίων ἐβδελύττοντο βδε λυρίαν. Οὐκοῦν οὐ μόνον ἐμποδὼν οὐ γέγονεν ἡ Ἰου δαίων ἀπείθεια τῷ θείῳ κηρύγματι, ἀλλὰ καὶ δι' ὧν ἀντιτείνειν ἐπεχείρουν, ἀξιόπιστον τὸν λόγον εἰργά ζοντο. Ἡ γὰρ ἀντιλογία τὰς ∆εσποτικὰς μαρτυρίας εἰς μέσον ἄγεσθαι κατηνάγκαζεν· ἐκεῖναι δὲ τὸ ψεῦ δος διήλεγχον, καὶ τῆς ἀληθείας τὸ φῶς ὑπεδείκνυσαν. Ἄνωθεν τοιγαροῦν ὁ τῶν ὅλων Θεὸς τὴν τῶν ἀνθρώ πων οἰκονομῶν διετέλεσε σωτηρίαν, καὶ ἑκάστῳ καιρῷ τὴν πρόσφορον προσήνεγκε θεραπείαν. Καὶ τοῦτο διδάσκων ὁ μακάριος ἔλεγε Παῦλος· «Ἐφ' ὅσον χρόνον ὁ κληρονόμος νήπιός ἐστιν, οὐδὲν διαφέρει δούλου, κύριος πάντων ὤν· ἀλλ' ὑπὸ ἐπιτρόπους ἐστὶ καὶ οἰκονόμους, μέχρι τῆς προθεσμίας τοῦ πατρός· οὕτω καὶ ἡμεῖς, ὅτε ἦμεν νήπιοι, ὑπὸ τὰ στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου ἦμεν δεδουλωμένοι. Ὅτε δὲ ἦλθε τὸ πλή ρωμα τοῦ χρόνου, ἐξαπέστειλεν ὁ Θεὸς τὸν Υἱὸν αὑτοῦ, γεννώμενον ἐκ γυναικὸς, γενόμενον ὑπὸ νόμον, ἵνα τοὺς ὑπὸ νόμον ἐξαγοράσῃ, ἵνα τὴν υἱο θεσίαν ἀπολάβωμεν.» Ὅτι δὲ ἐπὶ ταύτην τὴν οἰ κονομίαν οὐκ ἐκ μεταμελείας ἐλήλυθεν, ἀλλ' ἄνωθεν οὕτω διέταξεν, ὁ αὐτὸς διδασκέτω μάρτυς, Κοριν θίοις ἐπιστέλλων καὶ γράφων· «Σοφίαν δὲ λαλοῦμεν ἐν τοῖς τελείοις· σοφίαν δὲ οὐ τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου, οὐδὲ τῶν ἀρχόντων τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου τῶν καταρ γουμένων· ἀλλὰ λαλοῦμεν σοφίαν Θεοῦ ἐν μυστηρίῳ τὴν ἀποκεκρυμμένην, ἣν προώρισεν ὁ Θεὸς πρὸ τῶν αἰώνων εἰς δόξαν ἡμῶν, ἣν οὐδεὶς τῶν ἀρχόντων τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου ἔγνωκεν. Εἰ γὰρ ἔγνωσαν, οὐκ 83.773 ἂν τὸν Κύριον τῆς δόξης ἐσταύρωσαν.» Οὐ γὰρ ἂν φθονοῦντες τῇ τῶν ἀνθρώπων εὐημερίᾳ, πρόφασιν αὐτοῖς τῆς ἄγαν εὐκληρίας παρέσχον· ἀλλ' ἀγνοοῦντες τοῦ μυστηρίου τὸ τέλος, ἐπεμάνησαν μὲν τῷ Σωτῆρι τῶν ἡμετέρων ψυχῶν, ἄκοντες δὲ τῶν ἄκρων ἀγαθῶν ἡμῖν ἐγένοντο πρόξενοι. Οὐκοῦν ἀπεκρύπτετο μὲν τὸ μυστήριον, πρὸ δὲ τῶν αἰώνων προ ώριστο. Ταῦτα τοίνυν εἰδότες, καὶ διὰ πάντων τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ προμήθειαν καταμαθόντες, καὶ τὴν ἀστάθμητον αὐτοῦ φιλανθρωπίαν ὁρῶντες, καὶ τὸν ἀμέτρητον βλέποντες ἔλεον, παύσασθε λυττῶντες κατὰ τοῦ κτίσαντος, μάθετε τὸν εὐεργέτην ὑμνεῖν, λόγοις εὐ γνώμοσι τὰς μεγάλας εὐεργεσίας ἀμείψασθε. Θύσατε τῷ Θεῷ θυσίαν αἰνέσεως· μὴ μολύνητε βλασφημίᾳ τὴν γλῶτταν, ὄργανον ὑμνῳδίας ποιήσατε τὴν εἰς τοῦτο γεγενημένην. Τῶν θείων οἰκονομιῶν τὰς μὲν φαινομένας προσκυνεῖτε, τὰς δὲ κεκρυμμένας μὴ πολυπραγμονεῖτε, ἀλλ' ἀναμείνατε τὴν μάθησιν εἰς καιρὸν ἐσομένην.