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if an angel or a mere man had been appointed to save us from the fall, we would not so much have enjoyed salvation, but rather the race would have fallen from the most beautiful and most precious, the inexpressible glory. What is this, then? That which it was not possible for us even to come near to attaining, which we now, since the Word was made flesh, revel in and enjoy. For how would it have been granted to our race, if a human or angelic nature had undertaken the economy concerning us, to be enthroned at the right hand of the Father, and to be above every angelic and archangelic choir, and to enjoy honor and glory so great and of such a kind that even the powers above, who stand nearest God, desire to look into our glory, which we enjoy through our humanity, but find its attainment greater than their desire; and the human race would have endured the deprivation of this blessed lot, since indeed our humanity, through a human or angelic union, would not have had enjoyment of the glory in which it now shines, nor would we have ascended to such strength and vigor and the excellence of this honor? What audacity would the enemy have unleashed against us? What devices would he not have set in motion, through which he again nourished hopes 63.825 of taking the race captive, and of dragging it down under his ancient tyranny? Against whom would he not have been lifted up to regain power, and would he not have displayed an insolence greater than before, and would he not have thought it an audacity to meddle with heaven itself? For these reasons, then, and for many like them, the Word and Son of God and true God, and no other, taking up our flesh, worked out the common salvation of the race. And let no one accuse us of saying things unworthy of God, that for the salvation of the whole world God, having prepared for himself a living temple in the virgin’s womb, through it introduced the heavenly commonwealth into our life; for what harm could come to God from this economy? Do you not see this sun, which is perceptible to the body, and corruptible and subject to fate, even if the Greeks choke on it, associating with mire and many other such things, and yet not taking on the least bit of foulness? but on the contrary, it even dries up the foul odor by the touch of its ray. Or do you not grant that the Only-begotten Child of God can work upon our flesh at least as much as a corruptible element, so as not only not to be defiled by it, but to make it itself purer and holier? And you, while daring to bring down the substance of God into wood and stones and things even more dishonorable than these, do not shudder; but you accuse us and say that it is unfitting for God to inhabit a pure and blameless body, and through it to set the world aright? For if it is shameful for God to become man, as you say, it is much more so to be in stone and wood, inasmuch as stone and wood are more dishonorable than man; unless, perhaps, our race seems to you to be more worthless even than these perceptible materials. But let the discussion of such matters be reserved by us for another time; it is necessary to bring the discussion to the very words of the Gospel; for it says: Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows. What birth are you telling me of? The one in the flesh, clearly. For concerning the birth without beginning no one knows, except the only-begotten Child of God himself, who is in the bosom of the Father. How then is the birth of Christ according to the flesh? For when his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. It should be observed that he did not say, When the virgin was betrothed, but simply, When his mother was betrothed. And he did this so that the account might be readily acceptable, and not overwhelm by the introduction of a paradoxical matter, saying that Before they came together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. For what reason then did she not conceive and give birth before the betrothal? So that what was happening might be veiled for a time, and so that she might escape all wicked

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ἄγγελος ἢ ψιλὸς ἄνθρωπος ἀνασώσασθαι ἡμᾶς τοῦ πτώματος προεβέβλητο, οὐχὶ σωτηρίας μᾶλλον ἀπηλαύομεν, ἀλλὰ τοῦ καλλίστου καὶ τιμιωτάτου τῆς ἀνεκφράστου δόξης τὸ γένος κατέπιπτε. Ποίαν δὴ ταύτην; Ὅπερ οὐκ ἦν ἡμῖν δυνατὸν οὐδὲ ἐγγὺς τυχεῖν, οἷς νῦν, τοῦ Λόγου σαρκωθέντος, ἐντρυφῶμεν καὶ ἀπολαύομεν. Πῶς γὰρ ἂν τῷ ἡμετέρῳ γένει ἐκεχάριστο, ἀνθρωπίνης φύσεως ἢ ἀγγελικῆς τὴν περὶ ἡμᾶς οἰκονομίαν ὑπερχομένης, ἐν δεξιᾷ τοῦ Πατρὸς ἱδρυνθῆναι, καὶ πάσης ἀγγελικῆς καὶ ἀρχαγγέλων χοροστασίας ὑπεράνω γενέσθαι, καὶ τιμῆς καὶ δόξης ἀπολαῦσαι τοσαύτης καὶ τηλικαύτης, ὡς καὶ αὐτῶν τῶν ἄνω δυνάμεων καὶ ἐγγυτάτω Θεοῦ ἑστηκότων, ἐπιθυμούντων μὲν εἰς τὴν ἡμετέραν δόξαν, ἧς διὰ τοῦ φυράματος ἀπολαύομεν, παρακύψαι, μείζονα δὲ τὴν ἐπιτυχίαν τῆς ἐπιθυμίας εὑρισκόντων, ταύτης δὲ τῆς μακαρίας λήξεως τοῦ ἀνθρωπίνου γένους τὴν στέρησιν ὑπομένοντος, ἅτε δὴ μηδὲ τοῦ φυράματος ἡμῶν δι' ἀνθρωπίνης ἢ ἀγγελικῆς ἑνώσεως, τῆς δόξης, ἐν ᾖ νῦν ἐκλάμπει, τὴν ἀπόλαυσιν προεσχηκότος, μηδὲ πρὸς τὴν τοιαύτην ἡμῶν ἀναδραμόντων ἰσχὺν καὶ ῥώμην καὶ τῆς τιμῆς τὸ ἐξαίρετον; τινα ἂν παρῆκεν ὁ ἐχθρὸς καθ' ἡμῶν τόλμαν; τίνας δὲ οὐκ ἂν ἐκίνει μηχανὰς, δι' ὧν πάλιν ἐλπίδας ἔτρε 63.825 φεν ὑποχείριον λαβεῖν τὸ γένος, καὶ ὑπὸ τὴν ἀρχαίαν αὐτοῦ καθελκύσαι τυραννίδα; κατὰ τίνων δὲ τὸ κράτος ἀναλαβεῖν οὐκ ἐπήρθη, καὶ τὸ φρύαγμα τοῦ προτέρου μεῖζον οὐκ ἂν ἐπεδείκνυ, καὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν αὐτὸν πολυπραγμονεῖν οὐχ ἡγεῖτο τόλμαν; ∆ιὰ γοῦν ταῦτα καὶ πολλὰ τοιαῦτα ὁ τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγος καὶ Υἱὸς καὶ Θεὸς ἀληθινὸς, καὶ οὐχ ἕτερός τις, τὴν ἡμετέραν ἀναλαβόμενος σάρκα, τὴν κοινὴν τοῦ γένους σωτηρίαν ἀπειργάσατο. Καὶ μηδεὶς ἐγκαλοῖτο ἡμῖν ἀνάξια τοῦ Θεοῦ λέγειν, ὅτι ἐπὶ σωτηρίᾳ τῆς οἰκουμένης ἁπάσης ναὸν ἑαυτῷ κατασκευάσας ὁ Θεὸς ζῶντα ἐν τῇ παρθενικῇ μήτρᾳ, δι' ἐκείνου τὴν τῶν οὐρανῶν πολιτείαν εἰς τὸν βίον εἰσήγαγε τὸν ἡμέτερον· ποία γὰρ ἂν καὶ βλάβη γένοιτο τῷ Θεῷ ἀπὸ τῆς οἰκονομίας ταύτης; Οὐχ ὁρᾷς τουτονὶ τὸν ἥλιον τὸν τῷ σώματι αἰσθητὸν καὶ φθαρτὸν καὶ ἐπίκηρον κἂν Ἕλληνες ἀποπνίγωνται, βορβόροις προσομιλοῦντα, καὶ πολλοῖς ἄλλοις τοιούτοις πράγμασι, καὶ μηδὲ τὸ τυχὸν τῆς κακίας προσλαμβανόμενον; τοὐναντίον δὲ, καὶ τὴν δυσώδη καταξηραίνει ὀσμὴν τῇ τῆς ἀκτῖνος προσβολῇ. Ἢ οὐδὲ τῷ φθαρτῷ στοιχείῳ ἴσον δίδως ἐνεργῆσαι τὸν Μονογενῆ τοῦ Θεοῦ Παῖδα ἐπὶ τῆς ἡμετέρας σαρκὸς, ὡς μὴ μόνον ἐξ αὐτῆς μὴ μολυνθῆναι, ἀλλ' αὐτὴν ταύτην καὶ καθαρωτέραν καὶ ἁγιωτέραν ἐργάσασθαι; Καὶ σὺ μὲν εἰς ξύλα καὶ λίθους καὶ εἰς ἔτι τούτων ἀτιμότερα τοῦ Θεοῦ κατάγειν τολμῶν τὴν οὐσίαν, οὐ φρίττεις· ἡμῖν δὲ ἐγκαλεῖς καὶ λέγεις, ὅτι ἀπρεπὲς Θεῷ σῶμα οἰκῆσαι καθαρὸν καὶ ἄμωμον, καὶ δι' αὐτοῦ τὴν οἰκουμένην διορθώσασθαι; Εἰ γὰρ αἰσχρὸν Θεῷ ἐνανθρωπῆσαι, ὡς σὺ φῂς, πολλῷ μᾶλλον ἐν λίθῳ καὶ ξύλῳ, ὅσον λίθος καὶ ξύλον ἀτιμότερον ἀνθρώπου· εἰ μὴ ἄρα καὶ τῶν αἰσθητῶν τούτων ὑλῶν εὐτελέστερον τὸ γένος ἡμῶν εἶναί σοι δοκεῖ. Ἀλλ' ὁ μὲν περὶ τῶν τοιούτων λόγος εἰς ἕτερον ἡμῖν ὑπερκείσθω καιρόν· ἀναγκαῖον δὲ ἐπ' αὐτῶν τῶν τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου ῥημάτων τὸν λόγον ἀγαγεῖν· φησὶ γάρ· Τοῦ δὲ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ ἡ γέννησις οὕτως ἦν. Ποίαν μοι γέννησιν λέγεις; Τὴν ἔνσαρκον δηλονότι. Περὶ γὰρ τῆς ἀνάρχου γεννήσεως οὐδεὶς οἶδεν, εἰ μὴ αὐτὸς ὁ μονογενὴς τοῦ Θεοῦ Παῖς, ὁ ὢν εἰς τὸν κόλπον τοῦ Πατρός. Πῶς οὖν ἐστιν ἡ κατὰ σάρκα τοῦ Χριστοῦ γέννησις; Μνηστευθείσης γὰρ τῆς μητρὸς αὐτοῦ Μαρίας τῷ Ἰωσὴφ, πρὶν ἢ συνελθεῖν αὐτοὺς, εὑρέθη ἐν γαστρὶ ἔχουσα ἐκ Πνεύματος ἁγίου. Παρατηρητέον δὲ, ὅτι οὐκ εἶπε, Μνηστευθείσης τῆς παρθένου, ἀλλὰ ἁπλῶς, Μνηστευθείσης τῆς μητρὸς αὐτοῦ. Τοῦτο δὲ ἐποίει, ὥστε εὐπαράδεκτον γενέσθαι τὸν λόγον, καὶ μὴ καταπλῆξαι τῇ τοῦ παραδόξου πράγματος ἐπαγωγῇ λέγων, ὅτι Πρὶν ἢ συνελθεῖν αὐτοὺς, εὑρέθη ἐν γαστρὶ ἔχουσα ἐκ Πνεύματος ἁγίου. Τίνος δὲ χάριν οὐ πρὸ τῆς μνηστείας οὖν ἔλαβε καὶ ἐκύησεν; Ἵνα συσκιάσῃ τὸ γινόμενον τέως, καὶ ἵνα πᾶσαν πονηρὰν διαφύγῃ ἡ