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the Egyptians, the most superstitious of all men, to be deemed worthy of the calling through you. Therefore, through the Egyptians he alluded to all the superstitious and idolaters, and through Ethiopia and Syene, those who dwell even to the ends of our inhabited world. And if Sheba is also mentioned, it should be known that there is a nation of the Sabaeans, from whence the “queen of Sheba” came during the times of Solomon. All these, therefore, he says I have acquired as my own instead of you, or on your behalf, but those who war against you on account of the word proclaimed by you, I will deliver to destruction. Wherefore I exhort you to be of good courage, as I am with you always, and the seeds which you have sown throughout the whole world, having begotten many children according to God, I will gather into “my heavenly city,” taking them up on high through the air, lifted up as by winged winds, I mean, by angelic powers. And some I will take from the north, and others from the southwest, or according to the other interpreters: from the south; for I will command them to do this, because those sown and reborn through you in my church are my sons and my daughters. But if it is necessary to declare by name who these are, from this point I now make it manifest to all, that these are they who shall be called by my name. For from where else did the name of Christians arise, if not from the appellation of Christ? And he himself was the one who prophesied these things through the prophet. But instead of: for in my glory I have prepared him, the other interpreters: for my glory, he says, I created him; for this new people I created for glory, so that I might be glorified through it, but I also formed it, being unformed in its ways. And I led him out, he says, who was formerly in darkness and a blind people; for even if they seemed to have eyes of the soul and some human understanding, they were nevertheless blind concerning the error of idolatry. Next to these things it is said: All the nations were gathered together, and rulers will be gathered from them. And the effect of the events demonstrates the outcome of this word; for through the apostolic seeds and their teaching, those who were formerly blind and deaf were changed and gathered into the church of God, and already rulers from these very nations have been appointed over the people of God. Having said these things, the prophet, filled with wonder and astonishment at what he had prophesied, cried out, saying: Who will declare these things? Or who will declare to you the things from the beginning? Let them bring forth their witnesses and be justified, and let them speak the truth. Who then, he says, will be the one who is to see with his eyes the outcomes of these words, and who are the witnesses of the results? Let them come, let them be justified by testifying, since I, God, will also become their witness, and the servant, whom I have chosen, about whom he said above: “Behold my servant, whom I have chosen, my elect one, in whom my soul has delighted.” I myself therefore am God, and this servant is my chosen one. Which indeed the Savior also made clear in the Gospels, saying: “Whoever confesses me before men, I will also confess him before my Father who is in heaven.” I will bear witness to my witnesses, that you may know and believe and understand that I am he; before me there was no other God, and after me there will be none. For the reason for the coming of Christ and of the witness of his apostles to all nations was nothing other than to proclaim the knowledge of the God over all and faith in him and understanding concerning him to those who were previously without understanding and without composition and without faith and in ignorance of him, and for this reason were blind in the eyes of their mind and were ensnared in the error of godless idolatry. Wherefore, having prophesied: Become my witnesses, and I am a witness, says the Lord God, and the servant whom I have chosen, he added: that you may know and believe and understand that I am he; before me there was no other God and

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πάντων ἀνθρώπων δεισιδαιμονεστάτους Αἰγυπτίους τῆς διὰ σοῦ κλήσεως καταξιωθῆναι. διὰ μὲν οὖν τῶν Αἰγυπτίων πάντας ᾐνίξατο τοὺς δεισιδαίμονας καὶ εἰδωλολάτρας, διὰ δὲ τῆς Αἰθιοπίας καὶ Συήνης τοὺς μέχρι τῶν ἐσχατιῶν τῆς καθ' ἡμᾶς οἰκουμένης οἰκοῦντας. ἐὰν δὲ ἡ καὶ Σαβὰ μνημονεύεται, ἰστέον ὥς ἐστι Σαβαϊτῶν ἔθνος, ὅθεν «βασίλισσα Σαβὰ» ἐπεδήμει κατὰ τοὺς Σολομῶντος χρόνους. τούτους μὲν οὖν ἀντὶ σοῦ φησιν ἢ ὑπὲρ σοῦ πάντας οἰκείους ἐκτησάμην, τοὺς δὲ σὲ πολεμοῦντας διὰ τὸν ὑπὸ σοῦ καταγγελλόμενον λόγον ἀπωλείᾳ παραδώσω. ∆ιόπερ θαρσεῖν σοι παρακελεύομαι ὡς ἂν ἐμοῦ διὰ παντὸς συνόντος σοι, καὶ τὰ σπέρματα δέ, ἃ καθ' ὅλης τῆς οἰκουμένης ἔσπειρας, πολλὰ τέκνα κατὰ θεὸν γεννήσας συνάξω εἰς «τὴν ἐπουράνιόν μου πόλιν» μετεώρους αὐτοὺς ἀναλαβὼν δι' ἀέρος ὥσπερ πτηνοῖς ἀνέμοις ὑποκουφιζομένους, λέγω δὲ ἀγγελικαῖς δυνάμεσι. καὶ τοὺς μὲν ἀπὸ βορρᾶ παραλήψομαι, τοὺς δὲ ἀπὸ λιβός, ἢ κατὰ τοὺς λοιποὺς ἑρμηνευτάς· ἀπὸ νότου· ἐγὼ γὰρ αὐτοῖς τοῦτο ποιεῖν προστάξω διὰ τὸ ἐμοὺς εἶναι υἱοὺς καὶ θυγατέρας ἐμὰς τοὺς δι' ὑμῶν σπαρέντας καὶ ἀναγεννηθέντας ἐν τῇ ἐμῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ. Εἰ δὲ δεῖ τούτους ὀνομαστὶ τίνες εἶεν δηλῶσαι, ἐντεῦθεν ἤδη τοῖς πᾶσι φανερὸν ποιῶ, ὡς ἄρα οὗτοί εἰσιν οἱ ἐπικληθησόμενοι τῷ ὀνόματί μου. πόθεν δὲ ἄλλοθεν ὑπέστη τὸ Χριστιανῶν ὄνομα ἢ ἐκ τῆς τοῦ Χριστοῦ προσηγορίας; αὐτὸς δὲ ἦν ὁ διὰ τοῦ προφήτου ταῦτα θεσπίζων. ἀντὶ δὲ τοῦ· ἐν γὰρ τῇ δόξῃ μου κατεσκεύασα αὐτόν, οἱ λοιποὶ ἑρμηνευταί· εἰς δόξαν μού φησιν ἔκτισα αὐτόν· τοῦτον γὰρ τὸν νέον λαὸν εἰς δόξαν ἔκτισα πρὸς τὸ δοξάζεσθαί με δι' αὐτοῦ, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἔπλασα αὐτὸν ἄπλαστον ὄντα τοῖς τρόποις. Καὶ ἐξήγαγον δὲ αὐτὸν πρότερον ὄντα φησὶν ἐν σκότῳ καὶ λαὸν ὄντα τυφλόν· εἰ γὰρ καὶ ἐδόκουν ὀφθαλμοὺς ἔχειν ψυχῆς καί τινα ἀνθρωπίνην φρόνησιν, ἀλλ' ὅμως ἦσαν ἀβλεπτοῦντες περὶ τὴν πλάνην τῆς εἰδωλολατρίας. τούτοις ἑξῆς εἴρηται· πάντα τὰ ἔθνη συνήχθησαν ἅμα, καὶ συναχθήσονται ἄρχοντες ἐξ αὐτῶν. καὶ τούτου δὲ τοῦ λόγου τὸ ἀποτέλεσμα ἡ τῶν πραγμάτων ἐνέργεια παρίστησι· διὰ γὰρ τῶν ἀποστολικῶν σπερμάτων καὶ τῆς διδασκαλίας αὐτῶν μεταβαλόντες οἱ πάλαι τυφλοὶ καὶ κωφοὶ συνήχθησαν εἰς τὴν ἐκκλησίαν τοῦ θεοῦ, ἤδη δὲ καὶ ἄρχοντες ἐξ αὐτῶν τούτων τῶν ἐθνῶν ἐπὶ τὸν λαὸν τοῦ θεοῦ κατέστησαν. ταῦτ' εἰπὼν ὁ προφήτης θαύματος καὶ ἐκπλήξεως ἐφ' οἷς ἐθέσπισε πληρωθεὶς ἀνεφώνει λέγων· Τίς ἀναγγελεῖ ταῦτα; ἢ τὰ ἐξ ἀρχῆς τίς ἀναγγελεῖ ὑμῖν; ἀγαγέτωσαν τοὺς μάρτυρας αὐτῶν καὶ δικαιωθήτωσαν καὶ εἰπάτωσαν ἀληθῆ. τίς ἄρα ἔσται φησὶν ὁ μέλλων τούτων τῶν λόγων τὰς ἐκβάσεις ὀφθαλμοῖς ποτε ὁρᾶν, τίνες δὲ οἱ μάρτυρες τῶν ἀποτελεσμάτων ἡκέτωσαν, δικαιωθήτωσαν μαρτυρήσαντες, ἐπειδὴ κἀγὼ ὁ θεὸς μάρτυς αὐτῶν γενήσομαι, καὶ ὁ παῖς, ὃν ἐξελεξάμην, περὶ οὗ ἀνωτέρω ἔλεγεν· «ἰδοὺ ὁ παῖς μου, ὃν ᾑρέτισα, ὁ ἐκλεκτός μου, προσεδέξατο αὐτὸν ἡ ψυχή μου». ἐγὼ τοίνυν αὐτὸς ὁ θεός, καὶ ὁ παῖς οὗτος ὁ ἐκλεκτός μου. ὃ δὴ καὶ ὁ σωτὴρ ἐν Εὐαγγελίοις ἐδήλου λέγων· «ὃς ἂν ὁμολογήσῃ ἐν ἐμοὶ ἔμπροσθεν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, κἀγὼ ὁμολογήσω αὐτὸν ἔμπροσθεν τοῦ πατρός μου τοῦ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς». μαρτυρήσω τοῖς ἐμοῖς μάρτυσιν, ἵνα γνῶτε καὶ πιστεύσητε καὶ συνῆτε ὅτι ἐγώ εἰμι, ἔμπροσθέν μου οὐκ ἐγένετο ἄλλος θεὸς καὶ μετ' ἐμὲ οὐκ ἔσται. τὸ γὰρ αἴτιον τῆς τοῦ Χριστοῦ παρουσίας καὶ τῆς τῶν ἀποστόλων αὐτοῦ εἰς πάντα τὰ ἔθνη μαρτυρίας οὐδὲν ἕτερον ἦν ἢ τὸ κηρύξαι τὴν τοῦ ἐπὶ πάντων θεοῦ γνῶσιν καὶ τὴν εἰς αὐτὸν πίστιν καὶ τὴν περὶ αὐτοῦ σύνεσιν τοῖς πρὶν ἀσυνέτοις καὶ ἀσυνθέτοις καὶ ἀπίστοις καὶ ἐν ἀγνωσίᾳ οὖσιν αὐτοῦ καὶ διὰ τοῦτο τυφλώττειν τοὺς τῆς διανοίας ὀφθαλμοὺς καὶ περὶ τὴν πλάνην τῆς ἀθέου εἰδωλολατρίας εἱλεῖσθαι. διὸ προφήσας· γένεσθέ μοι μάρτυρες, κἀγὼ μάρτυς, λέγει κύριος ὁ θεός, καὶ ὁ παῖς, ὃν ἐξελεξάμην, ἐπήγαγεν· ἵνα γνῶτε καὶ πιστεύσητε καὶ συνῆτε ὅτι ἐγώ εἰμι, ἔμπροσθέν μου οὐκ ἐγένετο ἄλλος θεὸς καὶ