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26. And again they boast of having circumcision and pride themselves that this is supposedly a seal and a mark of both the patriarchs and the just who lived according to the law, through which they think they are made equal to them; and indeed they wish to derive its establishment from Christ himself, just as the followers of Cerinthus do. For these too say, according to their nonsensical saying, “it is enough for the disciple to be as his master”; “Christ was circumcised,” he says, “and you be circumcised.” * and so that in every way the seeds of error may be put to shame; just as a bridle was appointed by God for the sea, bars and gates, sand a boundary for the sea and the command, “thus far 1.369 shall you come, and you shall not go beyond, but in yourself your waves shall be broken,” as it says, so too will these be consumed within themselves. But in that case, the word of the boundary was spoken by God for the good order of the sea by God's command, but here wickedness and error of itself, blinding the mind and turning away pious reasoning, has contrived to raise waves, as it were, against itself, clashing the monstrous opinions of its previously announced assumptions with its other waves and, always being broken in itself, it dissolves itself, -or like a dreadful reptile injuring itself and, turning back from its tail and devouring itself, it becomes self-consuming. For they say this once happened with asps shut up in jars, and after each one had consumed another, the more audacious and fierce one remained last; but being left alone and becoming hungry, it began from its own tail to devour itself, as certain natural historians relate in the land of the Egyptians. Whence also they appropriately gave it its name, because of the head of the Gorgon, calling this the Asp-Gorgon. So also the foolish Ebion and those with him have contrived to cut themselves down and destroy from the beginning those things in which they pride themselves. For Christ did not circumcise himself, being born a child; but glory be to the merciful God, that Ebion has anticipated himself, so that he does not confess the truths, so that this may become a refutation for him. For if he had said that he, being God who came from above, was circumcised with the eight-day circumcision by Mary, then, being God and allowing it according to his own good pleasure, he would have furnished the charlatan with plausible reasoning about circumcision. But since he introduces him as being a mere man born from men, the child is no longer responsible, even if he was circumcised with the eight-day circumcision. For he did not circumcise 1.370 himself, but was circumcised by men. For indeed children do not circumcise themselves and are not responsible for their own circumcision, but their parents are. For they, being unknowing, are infants, being ignorant and not even knowing what is done to them by their parents. 27. But we say that he is God who came from heaven and remained in the womb of the virgin Mary for the time of conceived children, so that he might perfectly work out for himself from the virgin womb the incarnate assumption of humanity and economy, in which he was also truly and not in appearance circumcised on the eighth day. “For he came to fulfill the law and the prophets, and not to destroy,” not to declare the law foreign, but one that was granted from him and until him had remained in types, so that in him and through him again what was lacking in the law might be fulfilled, in order that the types, having come to spiritual perfection, might be preached in truth by him and by his apostles, being no longer types but truth. For at this point what was said in the law was fulfilled, having lasted until his time and ceasing in him, but being transformed into fulfillment, as Zipporah said, that “the blood of my child's circumcision has ceased.”

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26. Αὐχοῦσι δὲ πάλιν περιτομὴν ἔχοντες καὶ σεμνύνονται δῆθεν ταύτην εἶναι σφραγῖδα καὶ χαρακτῆρα τῶν τε πατριαρχῶν καὶ δικαίων τῶν κατὰ τὸν νόμον πεπολιτευμένων, δι' ἧς ἐξισοῦσθαι ἐκείνοις νομίζουσι· καὶ δῆτα ἀπ' αὐτοῦ τοῦ Χριστοῦ τὴν σύστασιν ταύτης βούλονται φέρειν, ὡς καὶ οἱ περὶ Κήρινθον. φασὶ γὰρ καὶ οὗτοι κατὰ τὸν ἐκείνων ληρώδη λόγον «ἀρκετὸν τῷ μαθητῇ εἶναι ὡς ὁ διδάσκαλος»· «περιετμήθη, φησίν, ὁ Χριστός, καὶ σὺ περιτμήθητι». * καὶ ἵνα κατὰ πάντα τρόπον καταισχύνηται τῆς πλάνης τὰ σπέρματα· καθάπερ χαλινὸς τῇ θαλάσσῃ ἐκ θεοῦ ὁρισθείς, κλεῖθρα καὶ πύλαι, ψάμμος ὅριον θαλάσσῃ καὶ πρόσταγμα τό «ἕως τούτου 1.369 ἐλεύσῃ, καὶ οὐχ ὑπερβήσῃ, ἀλλὰ ἐν σεαυτῇ συντριβήσονταί σου τὰ κύματα» ὥς φησιν, οὕτω καὶ οὗτοι ἐν ἑαυτοῖς καταδαπανηθήσονται. ἀλλὰ ἐκεῖ μὲν ἐκ θεοῦ προστάγματος εἰς εὐταξίαν θαλάσσης ἐκ θεοῦ εἴρηται ὁ τοῦ ὅρου λόγος, ἐνταῦθα δὲ ἀφ' ἑαυτῆς ἡ κακία καὶ ἡ πλάνη τυφλώττουσα τὸν νοῦν καὶ τὸν εὐσεβῆ λογισμὸν ἀποστρεφομένη προὔλαβε καθ' ἑαυτῆς ὥσπερ κύματα ἐγείρειν, τὰ σχέτλια τῶν προαπαγγελλομένων αὐτῆς ὑπολήψεων ἑτέροις κύμασιν ἑαυτῆς συγκρούουσα καὶ ἐν ἑαυτῇ ἀεὶ συντριβομένη ἑαυτήν τε διαλύουσα, -ἢ καθάπερ ἑρπετὸν δεινὸν ἑαυτὸ λυμαινόμενον καὶ ἀντιστρεφόμενον ἀπὸ τῆς κέρκου καὶ ἑαυτὸ βιβρῶσκον αὐτὸ ἑαυτοῦ ἀναλωτικὸν γινόμενον. τοῦτο γάρ φασι γεγενῆσθαι καιρῷ ὑπὸ ἀσπίδων συγκλεισθεισῶν ἐν πίθοις, καὶ ἑκάστης τὴν ἑτέραν καταναλωσάσης τὴν δὲ ἰταμωτέραν καὶ χαλεπωτέραν εἰς ὕστερον μεμενηκέναι· μόνην δὲ καταλειφθεῖσαν καὶ εἰς πεῖναν ἐλθοῦσαν ἀπὸ τῆς ἰδίας κέρκου ἀρξαμένην ἑαυτὴν καταβεβρωκέναι ἱστοροῦσί τινες φυσιολόγοι κατὰ τὴν Αἰγυπτίων χώραν. ὅθεν καὶ ἁρμοδίως τὸ ὄνομα αὐτῇ ἐπέθεντο, διὰ τὴν κεφαλὴν τῆς Γοργόνος καὶ ταύτην ἀσπιδογοργόνα καλοῦντες. οὕτω καὶ ὁ ματαιόφρων Ἐβίων καὶ οἱ ἀμφ' αὐτὸν προὔλαβον ἑαυτοὺς κατατέμνοντες καὶ ἀναιροῦντες ἀπ' ἀρχῆς ἐκεῖνα ἐφ' οἷς καὶ σεμνύνονται. Χριστὸς γὰρ ἑαυτὸν οὐ περιέτεμεν, παιδίον γεννηθείς· δόξα δὲ τῷ ἐλεήμονι θεῷ, ὅτι ἑαυτὸν προέλαβεν ὁ Ἐβίων, ἵνα τὰ ἀληθινὰ μὴ ὁμολογήσῃ, εἰς τὸ καὶ ἔλεγχον αὐτῷ τοῦτο γενέσθαι. εἰ μὲν γὰρ ἔλεγεν αὐτὸν θεὸν ἄνωθεν ἥκοντα περιτετμῆσθαι τὴν ὀκταήμερον περιτομὴν ὑπὸ τῆς Μαρίας, τὸ τηνικαῦτα θεὸς ὢν καὶ συγχωρῶν κατὰ ἰδίαν εὐδοκίαν παρεῖχεν ἂν τῷ ἀγύρτῃ τὴν περὶ τῆς περιτομῆς πιθανολογίαν. ὁπότε δὲ ψιλὸν ἄνθρωπον αὐτὸν γεγενῆσθαι ἀπὸ ἀνθρώπων παρεισφέρει, οὐκέτι αἴτιός ἐστιν ὁ παῖς, εἰ καὶ τὴν ὀκταήμερον περιτομὴν περιετμήθη. οὐ γὰρ ἑαυτὸν περιέ1.370 τεμεν, ἀλλὰ ὑπὸ ἀνθρώπων περιετμήθη. καὶ γὰρ οἱ παῖδες οὐχ ἑαυτοὺς περιτέμνουσι καὶ οὐδὲ αἴτιοί εἰσι τῆς ἑαυτῶν περιτομῆς, ἀλλ' οἱ αὐτῶν γονεῖς. ἐκεῖνοι γὰρ ἀδαεῖς ὄντες νηπιάζουσιν ἀγνοοῦντες καὶ οὐδὲ οἴδασι τί αὐτοῖς ἀπὸ τῶν γονέων γίνεται. 27. Ἡμεῖς δὲ καὶ θεὸν αὐτὸν λέγομεν ἀπ' οὐρανοῦ ἐλθόντα καὶ ἐν μήτρᾳ παρθένου Μαρίας τὸν χρόνον τῶν ἐγκυμονουμένων παίδων παραμεμενηκότα, ὅπως τελείως ἀπὸ τῆς παρθενικῆς μήτρας τὴν ἔνσαρκον ἐνανθρώπησιν ἑαυτῷ καὶ οἰκονομίαν οἰκονομήσῃ, ἐν ᾗ καὶ περιετμήθη ἀληθινῶς καὶ οὐ δοκήσει ἡμέρᾳ τῇ ὀγδόῃ. «ἦλθεν γὰρ πληρῶσαι τὸν νόμον καὶ τοὺς προφήτας, καὶ οὐ καταλῦσαι», οὐ τὸν νόμον ἀλλότριον ἀποφῆναι, ἀλλὰ ἐξ αὐτοῦ μὲν δεδωρημένον ἕως δὲ αὐτοῦ ἐν τύποις μεμενηκότα, ὅπως ἐν αὐτῷ καὶ δι' αὐτοῦ πάλιν ὅπερ ἐνέλιπεν ἐν τῷ νόμῳ πληρωθῇ, ἵνα οἱ τύποι εἰς πνευματικὴν τελείωσιν ἐλθόντες ἐν ἀληθείᾳ ὑπ' αὐτοῦ τε καὶ τῶν αὐτοῦ ἀποστόλων κηρυχθῶσιν, οὐκέτι ὄντες τύποι ἀλλὰ ἀλήθεια. ἐπὶ τούτῳ γὰρ ἐπληροῦτο τὸ ἐν τῷ νόμῳ εἰρημένον, ἕως αὐτοῦ τοῦ χρόνου διαρκέσαν καὶ ἐν αὐτῷ ἀφιστάμενον, εἰς πλήρωμα δὲ μεθιστάμενον, ὅπερ ἔφη ἡ Σεπφώρα, ὅτι «ἔστη τὸ αἷμα τῆς περιτομῆς τοῦ παιδίου μου».