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we have used this word for the repetition of things that have happened once. Therefore, by the word it signifies the fearful manifestation of the judge at the end of the ages, when he is no longer seen in the form of a servant, but magnificently seated upon the throne of the kingdom and worshipped by all the 3.2.48 angels who are around him. For this reason the one who once entered into the world, having become firstborn from the dead and of the brethren and of all creation, when he enters again into the world, the one judging all the world in righteousness, as the prophecy says, he does not cast off the name of firstborn, which he once accepted for our sake, but just as in the name of Jesus every knee bends to the name which is above every name, so also the whole fullness of angels worships him who was made in the name of the firstborn, rejoicing at the recalling of men, which, by becoming our firstborn, he again 3.2.49 called back to the grace from the beginning. For since there is joy for the angels over those who are saved from sin, because until now that creation groans together and travails together with our vanity, judging our destruction its own loss, when the revelation of the sons of God occurs, which for our sake they always eagerly await and expect, and when the sheep is restored to the hundred above (and we are surely this sheep, the human nature, which the good shepherd saved by becoming firstborn), then especially in intense thanksgiving for us they will offer worship to God, to the one who through the first-birthright called back him who had departed from the paternal hearth. 3.2.50 But when these things are thus understood by us, no one would any longer doubt about the rest, for what reason he becomes firstborn either <from> the dead or of creation or among many brethren. For all these things look to the same purpose, even if some particular meaning appears in each. For he becomes firstborn from the dead, being the first to loose through himself the pains of death, 3.2.51 in order that he might make a way for all for the birth from resurrection. And again becoming firstborn among brethren, the one born before the new birth of regeneration in the water, whose pains the flight of the dove acted as midwife to, through whom he makes his own brethren those who shared with him in the like birth, and he becomes firstborn of those born after him from water and the Spirit; and to speak concisely, there being three births in us, through which human nature is made alive, the one from the body, the one according to the mystery of regeneration, and the one through the hoped-for resurrection again from the dead, in the three he becomes firstborn, of the twofold regeneration which is effected through both, through baptism and through the resurrection, himself becoming the pioneer in each case; but in the flesh he becomes firstborn, first and only, having innovated in himself the birth unknown to nature through virginity, of which no one in so many generations of 3.2.52 men has been a forerunner. If therefore these things have been understood rationally, neither will the meaning concerning creation, of which he is firstborn, be unknown. For we have known a twofold creation of our nature, the first according to which we were formed and the second according to which we were re-formed, but there would have been no need of our second creation, if we had not rendered the first useless through 3.2.53 disobedience. Therefore, that one having grown old and vanished, it was necessary for a new creation to come to be in Christ, as the apostle says, who thinks it right to see nothing any more of the things that have grown old in the second creation, saying, "Having put off the old man with his deeds and his desires; Put on the new man who was created according to God," and "If anyone is in Christ," he says, "he is a new creation; the old things have passed away, behold, all things have become new;" for one and the same is the maker of human nature both at the beginning and after 3.2.54 these things. then taking dust from the earth he formed man, again taking the dust from the virginity

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ἐπαναλήψεως τῶν ἅπαξ γεγονότων τῇ λέξει ταύτῃ κεχρήμεθα. οὐκοῦν τὴν ἐπὶ τῷ τέλει τῶν αἰώνων φοβερὰν τοῦ κριτοῦ ἐπιφάνειαν σημαίνει τῷ λόγῳ, ὅτε οὐκέτι ἐν τῇ τοῦ δούλου καθορᾶται μορφῇ, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ τοῦ θρόνου τῆς βασιλείας μεγαλοπρεπῶς προκαθήμενος καὶ ὑπὸ τῶν 3.2.48 ἀγγέλων πάντων τῶν περὶ αὐτὸν προσκυνούμενος. διὰ τοῦτο ὁ ἅπαξ εἰσελθὼν εἰς τὴν οἰκουμένην πρωτότοκος γενόμενος ἐκ τῶν νεκρῶν τε καὶ ἀδελφῶν καὶ πάσης τῆς κτίσεως, ὅταν πάλιν εἰσέρχηται εἰς τὴν οἰκουμένην, ὁ κρίνων πᾶσαν τὴν οἰκουμένην ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ, καθὼς ἡ προφητεία λέγει, οὐκ ἀποβάλλει τοῦ πρωτοτόκου τὸ ὄνομα, ὃ ἅπαξ ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν κατεδέξατο, ἀλλ' ὡς ἐν ὀνόματι Ἰησοῦ πᾶν γόνυ κάμπτει τῷ ὑπὲρ πᾶν ὄντι ὄνομα, οὕτως καὶ τὸν ἐν τῷ ὀνόματι τοῦ πρωτοτόκου γενόμενον προσκυνεῖ ἅπαν τῶν ἀγγέλων τὸ πλήρωμα, τῇ ἀνακλήσει τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐπευ φραινόμενον, ἣν διὰ τοῦ γενέσθαι ἡμῶν πρωτότοκος πάλιν 3.2.49 εἰς τὴν ἐξ ἀρχῆς χάριν ἀνεκαλέσατο. ἐπειδὴ γὰρ χαρὰ γίνεται τοῖς ἀγγέλοις ἐπὶ τοῖς ἀνασῳζομένοις ἐξ ἁμαρτίας, διότι μέχρι τοῦ νῦν συστενάζει ἡ κτίσις ἐκείνη καὶ συνω δίνει τῇ καθ' ἡμᾶς ματαιότητι, ζημίαν οἰκείαν κρίνουσα τὴν ἡμετέραν ἀπώλειαν, ὅταν ἡ ἀποκάλυψις γένηται τῶν υἱῶν τοῦ θεοῦ, ἣν ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν ἀεὶ καραδοκοῦσι καὶ ἀπεκδέ χονται, καὶ ὅταν ἀποσωθῇ τῇ ἄνω ἑκατοντάδι τὸ πρόβατον (ἡμεῖς δὲ πάντως ἐσμέν, ἡ ἀνθρωπίνη φύσις, τοῦτο τὸ πρό βατον, ὃ διὰ τοῦ γενέσθαι πρωτότοκος ὁ ἀγαθὸς ποιμὴν ἀνεσώσατο), τότε διαφερόντως ἐν ἐπιτεταμένῃ τῇ ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν εὐχαριστίᾳ προσάξουσι τῷ θεῷ τὴν προσκύνησιν τῷ διὰ τῆς πρωτοτοκίας ἀνακαλεσαμένῳ τὸν τῆς πατρῴας ἑστίας ἀπο φοιτήσαντα. 3.2.50 Τούτων δὲ οὕτως ἡμῖν νοηθέντων οὐκέτ' ἄν τις περὶ τῶν λοιπῶν ἀμφιβάλλοι, ὅτου χάριν ἢ <ἐκ> νεκρῶν γίνεται πρωτότοκος ἢ κτίσεως ἢ ἐν πολλοῖς ἀδελφοῖς. πάντα γὰρ ταῦτα πρὸς τὸν αὐτὸν σκοπὸν βλέπει, κἂν ἑκάστῳ τι κατὰ τὸ ἰδιάζον ἐμφαίνηται νόημα. πρωτότοκος γὰρ ἐκ νεκρῶν γίνεται ὁ πρῶτος δι' ἑαυτοῦ τὰς ὠδῖνας τοῦ θανάτου λύσας 3.2.51 ἵνα καὶ πᾶσιν ὁδοποιήσῃ τὸν ἐξ ἀναστάσεως τόκον. ἐν ἀδελφοῖς δὲ πάλιν πρωτότοκος γινόμενος ὁ τοῦ καινοῦ τῆς παλιγγενεσίας τόκου προγεννηθεὶς ἐν τῷ ὕδατι, οὗ τὰς ὠδῖνας ἡ πτῆσις τῆς περιστερᾶς ἐμαιεύσατο, δι' οὗ τοὺς συμμετασχόντας αὐτῷ τῆς ὁμοίας γεννήσεως ἀδελφοὺς ἑαυτοῦ ποιεῖ, καὶ πρωτότοκος γίνεται τῶν μετ' αὐτὸν γεν νωμένων ἐκ τοῦ ὕδατός τε καὶ τοῦ πνεύματος· καὶ συνε λόντι φάναι, τριῶν οὐσῶν ἐν ἡμῖν τῶν γεννήσεων, δι' ὧν ζωοποιεῖται ἡ ἀνθρωπίνη φύσις, τῆς μὲν ἀπὸ σώματος, τῆς δὲ κατὰ τὸ τῆς παλιγγενεσίας μυστήριον, τῆς δὲ διὰ τῆς ἐλπιζομένης ἐκ τῶν νεκρῶν πάλιν ἀναστάσεως, ἐν ταῖς τρισὶ πρωτότοκος γίνεται, τῆς μὲν διπλῆς παλιγγενεσίας τῆς δι' ἀμφοτέρων ἐνεργουμένης, διά τε τοῦ βαπτίσματος καὶ διὰ τῆς ἀναστάσεως, αὐτὸς γενόμενος ἀρχηγὸς καθ' ἑκάτερον· ἐν δὲ τῇ σαρκὶ πρωτότοκος γίνεται πρῶτος καὶ μόνος τὸν ἄγνωστον τῇ φύσει τόκον ἐφ' ἑαυτοῦ διὰ τῆς παρθενίας καινοτομήσας, οὗ μηδεὶς ἐν ταῖς τοσαύταις τῶν 3.2.52 ἀνθρώπων γενεαῖς καθηγήσατο. εἰ ταῦτα τοίνυν κατὰ λόγον νενόηται, οὐδὲ τὸ τῆς κτίσεως σημαινόμενον, ἧς πρωτότοκός ἐστιν, ἀγνοηθήσεται. διπλῆν γὰρ τῆς φύσεως ἡμῶν τὴν κτίσιν ἐγνώκαμεν, τήν τε πρώτην καθ' ἣν ἐπλάσθημεν καὶ τὴν δευτέραν καθ' ἣν ἀνεπλάσθημεν, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἂν ἦν τῆς δευτέρας ἡμῶν κτίσεως χρεία, εἰ μὴ τὴν πρώτην διὰ τῆς 3.2.53 παρακοῆς ἠχρειώσαμεν. ἐκείνης τοίνυν παλαιωθείσης τε καὶ ἀφανισθείσης ἔδει καινὴν ἐν Χριστῷ γενέσθαι κτίσιν, καθώς φησιν ὁ ἀπόστολος, ὃς οὐδὲν ἔτι τῶν πεπαλαιωμένων ἐπὶ τῆς δευτέρας κτίσεως ἀξιοῖ βλέπειν, Ἀπεκδυσάμενοι, λέγων, τὸν παλαιὸν ἄνθρωπον σὺν ταῖς πράξεσι καὶ ταῖς ἐπιθυμίαις αὐτοῦ· Ἐνδύσασθε τὸν καινὸν ἄνθρωπον τὸν κατὰ θεὸν κτισθέντα, καὶ Εἴ τις ἐν Χριστῷ, φησί, καινὴ κτίσις, τὰ ἀρχαῖα παρῆλθεν, ἰδοὺ γέγονε τὰ πάντα καινά· εἷς γὰρ καὶ ὁ αὐτὸς τῆς ἀνθρωπίνης φύσεως ποιητὴς καὶ τὸ 3.2.54 κατ' ἀρχὰς καὶ τὸ μετὰ ταῦτα. τότε λαβὼν χοῦν ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἔπλασε, πάλιν λαβὼν τὸν ἐκ τῆς παρθενίας χοῦν