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He foreknew the mystery from the foundation of the world, and how the correction of Adam must happen. And it is not surprising, since He also foreknew the calling through faith of those who are being saved. "For those whom He knew," it says, "He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, these He also called." Therefore, much more was the one who would save foreknown. But some have spoken thus: For it is He who also strengthened Cyrus against all nations, whom he also calls righteousness here, who freed Israel, and who from the prophecy concerning him 2349 received the power of God. And how by the will [of God] he assumed power over the nations who were seized like brushwood, and were compelled to make peace with him. Therefore, Cyrus is called righteousness for these reasons, and because He justly raised him up against Babylon. But the argument, not stopping at the righteousness in Cyrus of this beautiful conclusion, ascends to Christ, righteousness itself, just as also the wicked kings in Scripture are referred back to the arch-evil demon, since unmixed wickedness has no place in a human being. But concerning future things, he speaks as if they have already happened: Who has wrought and done these things? showing that what God has ordained to happen, will so be, as if it had already happened; for none of them will fail to be brought to accomplishment. And showing that He is before all things, being without beginning and without end, He says, I am God, the first, and after these things. For He is the one who was known to the God-loving from the beginning, and who [who after the] former people was entrusted to the Church from the nations. Whence he added: The nations saw, and were afraid. Or that I so disposed the Assyrian, raising up Cyrus against him, that those wishing to help him became useless, and cried out against the weakness of the idols, marveling at the power of God; or that, ceasing from their former blindness, they knew the one who said: I am God, the first and into the things to come. And having seen they were afraid, having come to the beginning of wisdom. "For the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." And the proclamation went through to the ends of the earth, and to the most barbarous, and the fear of the knowledge of God according to this: Let them draw near, and let them speak together. But there they were commanded to meet and speak, that is, to glorify God; but here, They drew near, and came together, each one judging to help his neighbor. For the God-loving are eager to save their neighbors along with themselves, drawing them out of unbelief by the law of love, saying that We too were once children of wrath, given to idolatry, but now having known the true God we have been saved, having condemned the weakness of idols that require something to prop them up for standing, which they do not have of themselves; but neither, once set up, will it be able to move. And how are these still gods? These were the things he said above: Let them speak together, after drawing near, no longer being far off on account of sin, but having received spiritual kinship. For having tasted they understood that Christ is the Lord, and having seen the beauty of the truth, they did not keep it for themselves alone but taught others, how a carpenter and a smith prevailed. But how did they prevail? The 2352 one who composed and carved an idol with a carpenter's skill, and the one who made a statue hammered out, led the deceived into a reprobate mind, making those who were made in the image of God worshippers of their own works, praising the work, and calling the symbol beautiful, as if it were well-fitted from its own parts. Some have interpreted the first parts of the whole saying thus: Having spoken sufficiently about the calling from the nations, he has moved on to those from Israel. For when they stumbled on the stumbling block, and were far from salvation, with the shadow according to the law, the grace through faith was brought in instead. And they were murmuring, saying: My way is hidden from God; that is, He no longer pays attention to the worship according to the law. And He took away my judgment, and departed; that is, He put an end to the law. For David also says: "You have executed judgment and righteousness in Jacob," that is, you ordained the law through Moses. And Moses also says: "And He gave him the ordinances of the law." Of old, the purpose of the shadows they had, in which

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μυστήριον ἀπὸ κόσμου προέγνω καταβολῆς, καὶ πῶς δέοι τὴν Ἀδὰμ γενέσθαι διόρθωσιν. Καὶ οὐ θαυμαστὸν, ὅπου καὶ τῶν σωζομένων τὴν διὰ πίστεως προέγνωκε κλῆσιν. "Οὓς γὰρ ἔγνω, φησὶ, καὶ προώρισε συμμόρφους τῆς εἰκόνος τοῦ Υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ, τούτους καὶ ἐκάλεσεν." Οὐκοῦν πολλῷ μᾶλλον ὁ σώσων προέγνωστο. Τινὲς δὲ οὕτως εἰρήκασιν· Αὐτὸς γάρ ἐστιν ὁ καὶ Κῦρον ἐνισχύσας, κατὰ πάντων ἐθνῶν, ὃν καὶ δικαιοσύνην ἐνταῦθα καλεῖ, ἐλευθερώσαντα μὲν τὸν Ἰσραὴλ, ἐκ δὲ τῆς περὶ αὐ 2349 τοῦ προῤῥήσεως κατειληφότα τὴν δύναμιν τοῦ Θεοῦ. Καὶ ὡς βουλήσει [Θεοῦ] τὸ κατὰ τῶν ἐθνῶν ἀνεδήσατο κράτος ἴσα φρυγάνοις ἁλόντων, καὶ τὴν πρὸς αὐτὸν ἄγειν ἀναγκασθέντων εἰρήνην. Εἴρηται μὲν οὖν ὁ Κῦρος δικαιοσύνη διὰ ταῦτα, καὶ ὅτι δικαίως αὐτὸν ἐπήγειρε Βαβυλῶνι. Ὁ δὲ καλῶν τοῦδε συμπεράσματος τῆς δικαιοσύνης ἐν τῷ Κύρῳ μὴ ἱσταμένου ἐπὶ τὴν αὐτοδικαιοσύνην Χριστὸν ὁ λόγος ἀνάγεται, ὡς καὶ οἱ πονηροὶ βασιλεῖς ἐν τῇ Γραφῇ ἐπὶ τὸν ἀρχέκακον ἀνάγονται δαίμονα, τῆς ἀκράτου κακίας ἐν ἀνθρώπῳ μὴ χωρουμένης. Περὶ δὲ τῶν μελλόντων, ὡς γεγονότων φησί· Τίς ἐνήργησε καὶ ἐποίησε ταῦτα; δεικνὺς ὡς ἅπερ ὥρισε γενέσθαι Θεὸς, οὕτως ἔσται, ὡς ἤδη γενόμενα· οὐδὲν γὰρ αὐτῶν διαπεσεῖται μὴ πρὸς ἔργον ἀχθέν. Τὸ δὲ πρὸ πάντων εἶναι ἄναρχόν τε καὶ ἀτελεύτητον ὄντα δεικνὺς, Ἐγὼ Θεὸς πρῶτος, φησὶ, καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα. Αὐτὸς γὰρ ὁ καὶ τοῖς ἐξ ἀρχῆς θεοφιλέσι γνωσθεὶς, καὶ ὁμ [ὁ μετὰ τὸν] πρότερον λαὸν τῇ ἐξ ἐθνῶν Ἐκκλησίᾳ πεπιστευμένος. Ὅθεν ἐπήνεγκεν· Ἴδοσαν ἔθνη, καὶ ἐφοβήθησαν. Ἢ ὅτι οὕτω διέθηκα τὸν Ἀσσύριον, ἐπαναστήσας αὐτῷ Κῦρον, ὡς ἀνόνητα γενέσθαι βοηθεῖν ἐκείνῳ βουλόμενα, καὶ τῆς τῶν εἰδώλων ἀσθενείας καταβοᾷν, τοῦ Θεοῦ τὸ κράτος θαυμάζοντα· ἢ ὅτι τῆς προτέρας ἀβλεψίας παυσάμενα, ἔγνωσαν τὸν εἰρηκότα· Ἐγὼ Θεὸς πρῶτος καὶ εἰς τὰ ἐπερχόμενα. Καὶ ἰδόντα ἐφοβήθησαν ἐν ἀρχῇ γενόμενα σοφίας. "Ἀρχὴ γὰρ σοφίας φόβος Κυρίου." Καὶ μέχρι τῶν περάτων τῆς γῆς, καὶ τῶν βαρβαρωτάτων διῆλθε τὸ κήρυγμα, καὶ τῆς θεογνωσίας ὁ φόβος κατὰ τό· Ἐγγισάτωσαν, καὶ λαλησάτωσαν ἅμα. Ἀλλ' ἐκεῖ μὲν ἐκελεύοντο ἀπαντᾷν καὶ λαλεῖν, δηλονότι δοξάζειν Θεόν· ἐνταῦθα δὲ, Ἤγγισαν, καὶ ἦλθον ἅμα κρίνων ἕκαστος τῷ πλησίον βοηθῆσαι. Σώζειν γὰρ οἱ θεοφιλεῖς μεθ' ἑαυτῶν καὶ τοὺς πλησίον ἐπείγονται, ἀγάπης αὐτοὺς νόμῳ τῆς ἀπιστίας ἐξέλκοντες, λέγοντες ὡς Καὶ ἡμεῖς ποτε ἦμεν τέκνα ὀργῆς, εἰδωλολατρείᾳ προσκείμενοι, νῦν δὲ τὸν ὄντως ἐγνωκότες Θεὸν διεσώθημεν, τῆς τῶν εἰδώλων ἀσθενείας κατεγνωκότες δεομένων τοῦ πρὸς στάσιν στηρίζοντος, ὅπερ οὐκ ἔχουσιν οἴκοθεν· ἀλλ' οὐδὲ σταθέντα κινεῖσθαι δυνήσεται. Καὶ πῶς ἔτι ταῦτα θεοί; Ταῦτα δὲ ἦν ἅπερ ἔλεγεν ἄνω· Λαλησάτωσαν ἅμα, μετὰ τὸ ἐγγίσαι, μηκέτι διὰ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ὄντες μακρὰν, οἰκειότητα δὲ λαβόντες πνευματικά. Γευσάμενοι γὰρ συνῆκαν ὅτι Χριστὸς ὁ Κύριος, καὶ τὸ κάλλος τῆς ἀληθείας ἰδόντες, οὐχ ἑαυτοῖς καὶ μόνοις ἐτήρησαν διδάσκοντες ἑτέρους, ὡς ἴσχυσε τέκτων ἀνὴρ καὶ χαλκεύς. Πῶς δὲ ἴσχυσαν; Ὁ 2352 μὲν συνθεὶς καὶ διαγλύψας εἴδωλον τέχνῃ τεκτονικῇ, ὁ δὲ ποιήσας ἀνδριάντα σφυρήλατον, ἀπεκόμισαν τοὺς ἠπατημένους εἰς ἀδόκιμον νοῦν, ποιήσαντες τῶν ἰδίων ἔργων προσκυνητὰς τοὺς κατ' εἰκόνα γεγονότας Θεοῦ, ἐπαινοῦντες τὸ ἔργον, καὶ σύμβλημα καλοῦντες καλὸν, ὡς καλῶς ἐκ τῶν ἰδίων ἡρμοσμένον μερῶν. Τῆς δὲ πάσης ῥήσεως τὰ πρῶτά τινες οὕτως ἑρμήνευσαν· Περὶ τῆς ἀπὸ τῶν ἐθνῶν κλήσεως αὐταρκῶς εἰπὼν, ἐπὶ τοὺς ἐξ Ἰσραὴλ μεταβέβηκεν. Προσκοψάντων γὰρ αὐτῶν τῷ λίθῳ τοῦ προσκόμματος, καὶ τῆς σωτηρίας γεγονότων μακρὰν, μετὰ τῆς κατὰ νόμον σκιᾶς, ἀντεισήχθη μὲν ἡ διὰ πίστεως χάρις. ∆ιεγόγγυζον δὲ λέγοντες· Ἀπεκρύβη ἡ ὁδός μου ἀπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ· τοῦτ' ἔστιν, οὐκέτι τῇ κατὰ νόμον προσέχει λατρείᾳ. Ἀφεῖλε δέ μου τὴν κρίσιν, καὶ ἀπέστη· τοῦτ' ἔστιν, ἔπαυσε τὸν νόμον. Καὶ ∆αβὶδ γάρ φησι· "Κρίσιν καὶ δικαιοσύνην ἐν Ἰακὼβ σὺ ἐποίησας," δηλονότι σὺ τὸν διὰ Μωσέως νόμον διώρισας. Καὶ Μωσῆς δέ φησι· "Καὶ ἔδωκεν αὐτῷ δικαιώματα νόμου." Πάλαι σκοπὸς δὲ αὐτῶν ὧν εἶχε σκιῶν, ἐν αἷς