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placing a sign of salvation, 60.592 so that no one might draw it back to former times and join it with them, he says; And this is the covenant from me with them, when I take away their sins; not when they are circumcised, not when they sacrifice, not when they do the other things of the law, but when they obtain remission of sins. If, then, this has been promised, but it has not yet happened for them, nor have they enjoyed the remission through baptism, it will surely happen; wherefore he also added: For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. And not by this alone does he comfort them, but also by what has already occurred; and what happened as a consequence, he presents as though it were the primary thing, saying thus; As regards the gospel, they are enemies for your sake; but as regards election, they are beloved for the sake of their fathers. For so that the one from the Gentiles may not be puffed up, saying, 'I stand, do not tell me what might have been, but what has been,' he also puts him down from this point, saying, As regards the gospel, they are enemies for your sake. For since you were called, they have become more contentious. 7. But nevertheless God did not on that account cut off your calling, but waits for all from the Gentiles who are to believe to come in, and then they too will come. Then he bestows also another favor on them, saying: But as regards election, they are beloved for the sake of their fathers. And what is this? For where they are enemies, there is their punishment; and where they are beloved, the virtue of their ancestors is of no avail to them, unless they believe. But nevertheless, as I said before, he does not cease comforting them with words, in order to draw them in. Therefore, also establishing from another angle what was said before, he says: For just as you were once disobedient to God, but now have received mercy because of their disobedience; so they too have now been disobedient because of the mercy shown to you, so that they also may receive mercy. For God has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all. Here he shows that those from the Gentiles were called first, then since they were not willing, the Jews were chosen, and the same thing happened again after this; for since the Jews were not willing to believe, again the Gentiles were brought in. But he does not stop at this, nor does he conclude everything with their expulsion, but with their also receiving mercy again. See how much he gives to those from the Gentiles; as much as before to the Jews. For since you were disobedient, he says, you who were once of the Gentiles, the Jews came; again since these were disobedient, you came. But they will not perish in the end. For God has consigned all to disobedience; that is, he convicted them, showed them to be disobedient, not that they should remain disobedient, but that he might save the one group through the contentiousness of the other, these through those, and those through these. But consider: you were disobedient, and these were saved; again these were disobedient, and you were saved; but you were not saved in such a way as to depart again, like the Jews, but so that, by remaining, you might draw them in by jealousy. O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments! Here, returning to former times, and understanding the divine economy from above, from the time the world came into being until the present, and considering how variously he has ordered all things, he was amazed and cried out, assuring his hearers that what he said will certainly come to pass. For he would not have cried out and been amazed, unless this was certainly going to happen. And that there is a depth, he knows; but how much, he does not know. For the saying is of one who marvels, not of one who knows the whole. And marveling 60.593 and being amazed at the goodness, and as far as he was able, he proclaimed it through two of the intensive words, that of riches and that of depth, and he was amazed that He both willed and was able to do these things, and through opposites accomplished opposites. How unsearchable are his judgments! For not only is it impossible for them to be comprehended, but not even to be searched out. And his ways are past finding out. That is, his dispensations; for these not only cannot be known, but cannot even be investigated. For not even I, he says, have found all things, but a small part, not the whole; for He alone knows His own things clearly. Wherefore he also added: For who has known the mind

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παράσημον τῆς σωτηρίας τιθεὶς, 60.592 ἵνα μή τις εἰς τοὺς ἔμπροσθεν αὐτὸ χρόνους ἑλκύσῃ καὶ συζεύξῃ, φησί· Καὶ αὕτη αὐτοῖς ἡ παρ' ἐμοῦ διαθήκη, ὅταν ἀφέλωμαι τὰς ἁμαρτίας αὐτῶν· οὐχ ὅταν περιτμηθῶσιν, οὐχ ὅταν θύσωσιν, οὐχ ὅταν τὰ ἄλλα νόμιμα ποιῶσιν, ἀλλ' ὅταν ἁμαρτημάτων ἀφέσεως τύχωσιν. Εἰ τοίνυν τοῦτο ἐπήγγελται, γέγονε δὲ ἐπ' αὐτῶν οὐδέπω, οὐδὲ ἀπήλαυσαν τῆς διὰ τοῦ βαπτίσματος ἀφέσεως, πάντως ἔσται· διὸ καὶ ἐπήγαγεν· Ἀμεταμέλητα γὰρ τὰ χαρίσματα καὶ ἡ κλῆσις τοῦ Θεοῦ. Καὶ οὐδὲ τούτῳ μόνον αὐτοὺς παραμυθεῖται, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῷ ἤδη συμβεβηκότι· καὶ ὅπερ ἐξ ἀκολουθίας συνέβη, τοῦτο ὡς προηγούμενον τίθησιν, οὕτω λέγων· Κατὰ μὲν τὸ εὐαγγέλιον ἐχθροὶ δι' ὑμᾶς, κατὰ δὲ τὴν ἐκλογὴν ἀγαπητοὶ διὰ τοὺς πατέρας. Ἵνα γὰρ μὴ φυσᾶται ὁ ἐξ ἐθνῶν, λέγων, Ἐγὼ ἕστηκα, μή μοι λέγε, τί ἂν ἐγένετο, ἀλλὰ τί γέγονε, καὶ ἐντεῦθεν αὐτὸν καταστέλλει λέγων, Κατὰ μὲν τὸ εὐαγγέλιον ἐχθροὶ δι' ὑμᾶς. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ὑμεῖς ἐκλήθητε, φιλονεικότεροι γεγόνασιν ἐκεῖνοι. ζʹ. Ἀλλ' ὅμως ὁ Θεὸς οὐδὲ οὕτως ἀνέκοψεν ὑμῶν τὴν κλῆσιν, ἀλλ' ἀναμένει πάντας τοὺς ἐξ ἐθνῶν μέλλοντας πιστεύειν εἰσελθεῖν, καὶ τότε κἀκεῖνοι ἥξουσιν. Εἶτα χαρίζεται καὶ ἑτέραν τινὰ χάριν αὐτοῖς λέγων· Κατὰ δὲ τὴν ἐκλογὴν ἀγαπητοὶ διὰ τοὺς πατέρας. Καὶ τί τοῦτο; Ἔνθα μὲν γὰρ ἐχθροὶ, ἡ κόλασις αὐτῶν· ἔνθα δὲ ἀγαπητοὶ, οὐδὲν πρὸς αὐτοὺς ἡ τῶν προγόνων ἀρετὴ, ἐὰν μὴ πιστεύσωσιν. Ἀλλ' ὅμως, ὅπερ ἔφθην εἰπὼν, οὐ παύεται ῥήμασιν αὐτοὺς παραμυθούμενος, ἵνα ἐφελκύσηται ∆ιὸ καὶ ἑτέρωθεν κατασκευάζων τὸ ἔμπροσθεν εἰρημένον, φησίν· Ὥσπερ γὰρ καὶ ὑμεῖς ποτε ἠπειθήσατε τῷ Θεῷ, νυνὶ δὲ ἠλεήθητε τῇ τούτων ἀπειθείᾳ· οὕτω καὶ οὗτοι νῦν ἠπείθησαν τῷ ὑμετέρῳ ἐλέει, ἵνα καὶ αὐτοὶ ἐλεηθῶσι. Συνέκλεισε γὰρ τοὺς πάντας ὁ Θεὸς εἰς ἀπείθειαν, ἵνα τοὺς πάντας ἐλεήσῃ. ∆είκνυσιν ἐνταῦθα τοὺς ἐξ ἐθνῶν πρότερον κεκλημένους, εἶτα ἐπειδὴ οὐκ ἠθέλησαν, τοὺς Ἰουδαίους ἐκλεγέντας, καὶ τὸ αὐτὸ πάλιν συμβὰν μετὰ ταῦτα· ἐπειδὴ γὰρ οὐκ ἠθέλησαν οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι πιστεῦσαι, πάλιν προσήχθη τὰ ἔθνη. Ἀλλ' οὐ μέχρι τούτου ἵσταται, οὐδὲ εἰς τὴν ἐκβολὴν αὐτῶν καταστρέφει τὸ πᾶν, ἀλλ' εἰς τὸ καὶ αὐτοὺς ἐλεηθῆναι πάλιν. Ὅρα πόσον δίδωσι τοῖς ἐξ ἐθνῶν· ὅσον ἔμπροσθεν τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ὑμεῖς ἠπειθήσατε, φησὶν, οἱ ἐξ ἐθνῶν ποτε, προσῆλθον οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι· πάλιν ἐπειδὴ οὗτοι ἠπείθησαν, προσήλθετε ὑμεῖς. Οὐ μὴν εἰς τέλος ἀπολοῦνται· Συνέκλεισε γὰρ τοὺς πάντας εἰς ἀπείθειαν ὁ Θεός· τουτέστιν, ἤλεγξεν, ἀπέδειξεν ἀπειθοῦντας, οὐχ ἵνα μείνωσιν ἀπειθοῦντες, ἀλλ' ἵνα τοὺς ἑτέρους διὰ τῆς ἑτέρων σώσῃ φιλονεικίας, τούτους δι' ἐκείνων, κἀκείνους διὰ τούτων. Σκόπει δέ· ἠπειθήσατε ὑμεῖς, καὶ οὗτοι ἐσώθησαν· πάλιν οὗτοι ἠπείθησαν, καὶ ὑμεῖς ἐσώθητε· οὐ μὴν οὕτως ἐσώθητε, ὡς πάλιν ἐξελθεῖν, καθάπερ οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι, ἀλλ' ὥστε αὐτοὺς ἐπισπάσασθαι τῷ ζήλῳ μένοντες. Ὦ βάθος πλούτου καὶ σοφίας καὶ γνώσεως Θεοῦ! ὡς ἀνεξερεύνητα τὰ κρίματα αὐτοῦ! Ἐνταῦθα ἐπὶ τοὺς προτέρους χρόνους ἐπανελθὼν, καὶ τὴν ἄνωθεν τοῦ Θεοῦ κατανοήσας οἰκονομίαν τὴν ἐξ οὗπερ ὁ κόσμος ἐγένετο μέχρι τοῦ παρόντος, καὶ λογισάμενος πῶς ποικίλως πάντα ᾠκονόμησε, ἐξεπλάγη καὶ ἀνεβόησε, πιστούμενος τοὺς ἀκούοντας, ὅτι ἔσται πάντως ἅπερ εἶπεν. Οὐ γὰρ ἂν ἀνεβόησε καὶ ἐξεπλάγη, εἰ μὴ πάντως ἔμελλεν ἔσεσθαι τοῦτο. Καὶ ὅτι μὲν βάθος ἐστὶν, οἶδε· πόσον δὲ, οὐκ οἶδε· θαυμάζοντος γάρ ἐστιν ἡ ῥῆσις, οὐκ εἰδότος τὸ πᾶν. Θαυμάσας δὲ 60.593 καὶ ἐκπλαγεὶς τὴν χρηστότητα, καὶ κατὰ τὸ ἐγχωροῦν αὐτῷ διὰ δύο τῶν ἐπιτατικῶν ὀνομάτων αὐτὴν ἀνεκήρυξε, τοῦ πλούτου καὶ τοῦ βάθους, καὶ ἐξεπλάγη, ὅτι καὶ ἠθέλησε καὶ ἴσχυσε ταῦτα, καὶ διὰ τῶν ἐναντίων τὰ ἐναντία κατεσκεύασεν. Ὡς ἀνεξερεύνητα τὰ κρίματα αὐτοῦ! Οὐ γὰρ μόνον καταληφθῆναι αὐτὰ ἀδύνατον, ἀλλ' οὐδὲ ἐρευνηθῆναι. Καὶ ἀνεξιχνίαστοι αἱ ὁδοὶ αὐτοῦ. Τουτέστιν αἱ οἰκονομίαι· καὶ γὰρ αὗται οὐ μόνον γνωσθῆναι, ἀλλ' οὐδὲ ζητηθῆναι δύνανται. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐγὼ, φησὶν, εὗρον ἅπαντα, ἀλλὰ μέρος μικρὸν, οὐ τὸ πᾶν· μόνος γὰρ αὐτὸς οἶδε τὰ αὑτοῦ σαφῶς. ∆ιὸ καὶ ἐπήγαγε· Τίς γὰρ ἔγνω νοῦν