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he says. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. Since he said something great and wonderful, that those who were under the curse of the law were called sons of God through faith, he establishes it, first by the putting on of Christ. But if Christ is the Son of God, and you have put him on, he says, having the Son in yourself, and being conformed to him, you have been brought into one kinship. There is not Jew nor Greek; there is not slave nor free; there is not male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus. He further explains the goodness of God, where he has given the same gift to all. And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, heirs according to the promise. If Christ is the seed of Abraham, and you have put on Christ, and have become his body, it is clear that you are the seed of Abraham. Therefore, also heirs. For to his seed is the promise.

CHAPTER 4 I say that as long as the heir is a child, he is no different

from a slave, though he is lord of all, but is under guardians and managers, until the date set by the Father. So also we, when we were children, were enslaved under the elements of the world. But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law. A child, he says, not in age but in understanding; showing that from the beginning God wished to bestow these things 95.801. But since we were still in a more childish state, he allowed us to be under the elements of the world, that is, New Moons and Sabbaths. For the days come from the course of the moon and the sun. But if even now they lead us under the law, they do nothing else but lead us back again in the time of full age, and make us no different from slaves. that we might receive the adoption. He rightly said, receive, showing that it was owed. For from of old he promised it in the case of Abraham. And because you are sons, he sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. So you are no longer a slave, but a son. And if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. Again and again he brings forward to them the argument concerning adoption. And he has already shown in the preceding by saying, you have put on Christ; but now also by another saying, that we could not call God Father, and receive his Spirit, unless we had become his sons. But then, indeed, not knowing God, you served those which by nature are not gods. But now, having known God, or rather having been known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and poor elements, which you desire to serve again from the beginning? Here he addresses those who believed from the Gentiles; because such a thing is also idolatry, the keeping of the observance of days. You observe days, and months, and seasons, and years. From these things it is clear, that they preached not only that circumcision alone, but also to keep the feasts and the New Moons. I am afraid for you, lest I have labored for you in vain. I am afraid, he says, but I have not despaired. For you are masters to correct the whole matter. Become as I am, for I also am as you are, brethren, I beseech you. You have not wronged me at all. He says these things to those from the Jews. Therefore he also brings himself forward, persuading them to depart from the old ways, by imitating him. You know that because of a weakness of the flesh I preached the gospel to you at first, and my trial, which was in my flesh, you did not despise, nor did you reject, but you received me as an angel of God, as Christ Jesus. Preaching to you, he says, I was driven out, I was scourged, I endured deaths, and even so you did not despise me. For this is, My trial which was in my flesh you did not despise, nor did you reject. How then is it not absurd, to receive me as an angel when persecuted, but when exhorting what is necessary, not to receive me. 95.804 Where then is the blessing

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φησίν. Ὅσοι γὰρ εἰς Χριστὸν ἐβαπτίσθητε, Χριστὸν ἐνεδύσασθε. Ἐπειδὴ μέγα εἶπε, καὶ θαυμαστὸν, τοὺς ὑπὸ κατάραν ἐκ τοῦ νόμου γεγενημένους, διὰ τῆς πίστεως υἱοὺς προσαγορευθῆναι Θεοῦ, κατασκευάζει αὐτὸ, πρῶτον μὲν τῷ ἐνδύσασθαι τὸν Χριστόν. Εἰ δὲ ὁ Χριστὸς Υἱὸς Θεοῦ, σὺ δὲ αὐτὸν ἐνεδύσω, φησὶ, τὸν Υἱὸν ἔχων ἐν σαυτῷ, καὶ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἀφομοιωθεὶς, εἰς μίαν συγγένειαν ἤχθης. Οὐκ ἔνι Ἰουδαῖος, οὐδὲ Ἕλλην· οὐκ ἔνι δοῦλος, οὐδὲ ἐλεύθερος· οὐκ ἔνι ἄρσεν καὶ θῆλυ. Πάντες γὰρ ὑμεῖς εἷς ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ. Ἐπὶ πλεῖον διηγεῖται τὴν ἀγαθότητα τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὅπου γε πᾶσι τὴν ἴσην δέδωκε δωρεάν. Εἰ δὲ ὑμεῖς Χριστοῦ, ἄρα τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ σπέρμα ἐστὲ, κατ' ἐπαγγελίαν κληρονόμοι. Εἰ ὁ Χριστὸς σπέρμα τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ, ὑμεῖς δὲ Χριστὸν ἐνεδύσασθε, καὶ σῶμα αὐτοῦ γεγόνατε, δῆλον ὅτι σπέρμα τοῦ Ἀβραάμ ἐστε. Οὐκοῦν καὶ κληρονόμοι. Τῷ σπέρματι γὰρ αὐτῷ ἡ ἐπαγγελία.

ΚΕΦΑΛ. ∆ʹ Λέγω δὲ ἐφ' ὅσον χρόνον ὁ κληρονόμος νήπιος ἐστιν, οὐδὲν διαφέρει

δούλου, Κύριος πάντων ὣν, ἀλλ' ὑπὸ ἐπιτρόπους ἐστὶ καὶ οἰκονόμους, ἄχρι τῆς προθεσμίας τοῦ Πατρός. Οὕτω καὶ ἡμεῖς, ὅτε ἦμεν νήπιοι, ὑπὸ τὰ στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου ἦμεν δεδουλωμένοι. Ὅτε δὲ ἦλθε τὸ πλήρωμα τοῦ χρόνου. ἐξαπέστειλεν ὁ Θεὸς τὸν Υἱὸν αὐτοῦ, γεννώμενον ἐκ γυναικὸς, γεννώμενον ὑπὸ νόμου, ἵνα τοὺς ὑπὸ νόμον ἐξαγοράσῃ. Νήπιος, οὐ τὴν ἡλικίαν, ἀλλὰ τὴν γνώμην φησί· δεικνὺς ὅτι καὶ ἐξ ἀρχῆς μὲν ἐβούλετο ὁ Θεὸς ταῦτα 95.801 χαρίσασθαι. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἔτι νηπιωδέστερον διεκείμεθα, ἀφῆκεν ὑπὸ τὰ στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου εἶναι, τουτέστι Νουμηνίας καὶ Σάββατα. Αἱ γὰρ ἡμέραι ἀπὸ δρόμου σελήνης καὶ ἡλίου γίνονται. Εἰ δὲ καὶ νῦν ἡμᾶς ὑπὸ νόμον ἄγουσιν, οὐδὲν ἕτερον ποιοῦσιν, ἀλλ' ἢ καὶ ἐν τῷ χρόνῳ τῆς τελείας ἡλικίας, εἰς τοὐπίσω πάλιν ἀπάγουσι, καὶ δούλων οὐδὲν διαφέρειν ποιοῦσιν. Ἵνα τὴν υἱοθεσίαν ἀπολάβωμεν. Καλῶς εἶπεν, ἀπολάβωμεν, δεικνὺς ὀφειλομένην. Ἄνωθεν γὰρ ἐπηγγείλατο ἐπὶ τοῦ Ἀβραάμ. Ὅτι δέ ἐστε υἱοὶ, ἐξαπέστειλε τὸ Πνεῦμα τοῦ Υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ εἰς τὰς καρδίας ὑμῶν, κράζον, Ἀββᾶ, ὁ Πατήρ. Ὥστε οὐκέτι εἶ δοῦλος, ἀλλὰ υἱός. Εἰ δὲ υἱὸς, καὶ κληρονόμος Θεοῦ διὰ Χριστόν. Ἄνω καὶ κάτω τὸν περὶ τῆς υἱοθεσίας αὐτοῖς προφέρει λόγον. Καὶ ἤδη μὲν ἔδειξεν ἐν τοῖς ἀνωτέρω διὰ τοῦ εἰπεῖν, Χριστὸν ἐνεδύσασθε· νῦν δὲ καὶ ἑτέρου τοῦ εἰπεῖν, ὅτι οὐκ ἂν ἐδυνάμεθα Πατέρα καλεῖν τὸν Θεὸν, καὶ τὸ Πνεῦμα αὐτοῦ λαβεῖν, εἰ μὴ υἱοὶ αὐτοῦ ἐγεγόνειμεν. Ἀλλὰ τότε μὲν οὐκ εἰδότες Θεὸν, ἐδουλεύσατε τοῖς φύσει μὴ οὖσι θεοῖς. Νῦν δὲ γνόντες Θεὸν, μᾶλλον δὲ γνωσθέντες ὑπὸ Θεοῦ, πῶς ἐπιστρέψετε πάλιν ἐπὶ τὰ ἀσθενῆ καὶ πτωχὰ στοιχεῖα, οἷς πάλιν ἄνωθεν δουλεύειν θέλετε; Ἐνταῦθα πρὸς τοὺς ἐξ ἐθνῶν πιστεύσαντας ἀποτείνεται· ὅτι καὶ εἰδωλολατρεία τὸ τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν, ἡ τῆς τῶν ἡμερῶν παρατηρήσεως φυλακή. Ἡμέρας παρατηρεῖσθε, καὶ μῆνας, καὶ καιροὺς, καὶ ἐνιαυτούς. Ἐκ τούτων δῆλον, ὅτι οὐ μόνον περιτομὴν αὐτοὶ ἐκήρυττον ἐκείνην μόνην, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰς ἑορτὰς, καὶ τὰς Νουμηνίας τηρεῖν. Φοβοῦμαι ὑμᾶς, μήπως εἰκῆ κεκοπίακα εἰς ὑμᾶς. ∆έδοικα, φησὶν, οὐ μὴν ἀπέγνωκα. Κύριοι γὰρ ὑμεῖς τὸ πᾶν διορθῶσαι. Γίνεσθε ὡς ἐγὼ, ὅτι κἀγὼ ὡς ὑμεῖς, ἀδελφοὶ, δέομαι ὑμῶν. Οὐδέν με ἠδικήσατε. Ταῦτα πρὸς τοὺς ἐξ Ἰουδαίων λέγει. ∆ιὸ καὶ ἑαυτὸν εἰς μέσον ἄγει, πείθων αὐτοὺς ἀποστῆναι τῶν παλαιῶν, μιμουμένους αὐτόν. Οἴδατε, ὅτι δι' ἀσθένειαν τῆς σαρκὸς εὐηγγελισάμην ὑμῖν τὸ πρότερον, καὶ τὸν πειρασμόν μου, τὸν ἐπὶ τῇ σαρκί μου οὐκ ἐξουθενήσατε, οὐδὲ ἐξεπτύσατε, ἀλλ' ὡς ἄγγελον Θεοῦ ἐδέξασθε ἐμὲ, ὡς Χριστὸν Ἰησοῦν. Κηρύσσων ὑμῖν, φησὶν, ἠλαυνόμην, ἐμαστιγούμην, θανάτους ὑπέμενον, καὶ οὐδὲ οὕτω κατεφρονήσατέ μου. Τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι, Τὸν πειρασμόν μου τὸν ἐν τῇ σαρκί μου οὐκ ἐξουθενήσατε, οὐδὲ ἐξεπτύσατε. Πῶς οὖν οὐκ ἄτοπον, διωκόμενον ὡς ἄγγελον δέχεσθαι, παραινοῦντα δὲ τὰ δέοντα, μὴ δέχεσθαι. 95.804 Ποῦ οὖν ὁ μακαρισμὸς