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almost saying, I am about to make a deep incision, but do not be shaken. Or rather, even through these very words, He suppressed the arrogance of their mind. From what will it set you free, tell me? From sins. What then did those arrogant ones say? We are the seed of Abraham, and have never been slaves to anyone. Their mind immediately fell; and this happened from being alarmed about worldly things. If you abide in My word, was an indication of the things in their heart, and of His knowing that they believed, but did not abide. And He makes a great promise, that they should become His disciples. For since some had previously withdrawn, hinting at them He says, If you abide; since they too heard and believed, and withdrew, because they did not abide. For many of 59.297 His disciples went back, and no longer walked openly with him. You will know the truth; that is, Me; For I am the truth. All Jewish things were a type; but you will know the truth from Me, and it will set you free from sins. For just as He said to those, You will die in your sins; so also He said to these, It will set you free. And He did not say, I will deliver you from slavery; but He left this for them to understand. What then did they say? We are the seed of Abraham, and have never been slaves to anyone. And yet if they ought to have been indignant, it was fitting for it to be at the first statement, at His having said, You will know the truth, and to say: What then? Do we not now know the truth? Is the law then a lie, and our knowledge? But they cared for none of these things, but are pained by worldly matters, suspecting this to be slavery. For there are, there are even now many who are ashamed of indifferent things, and of this slavery; but of the slavery of sin, no longer, and they would choose ten thousand times to be called slaves of that slavery, than of this one once. Such were they, and they did not know another slavery, and they say: Did you call those from the race of Abraham, the noble, slaves? Whom it was not right to call slaves for this reason. For never, he says, have we been slaves. For such are the boasts of the Jews: We are the seed of Abraham, we are Israelites. Nowhere do they remember their own right actions. For this reason John cried out to them, saying: Do not think to say, We have Abraham as our father. But why did Christ not rebuke them? For they had often been enslaved, both to Egyptians, and to Babylonians, and to many others. Because what He said was not for ambition, but for salvation, and for beneficence, and He was hastening toward this. Since He could have mentioned the four hundred years; He could have mentioned the seventy; He could have mentioned the times of the judges, sometimes twenty, sometimes two, sometimes seven; He could have mentioned how they never ceased being slaves. But He was not eager to show this, that they had become slaves of men, but of sin, which is the most grievous slavery, from which God alone can deliver. For the forgiveness of sins belongs to no other; and they themselves confessed this. Since therefore they confessed this to be the work of God, He leads them to this, and says: Everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin, showing that He is speaking of this freedom, from this slavery. But the slave does not remain in the house; but the son remains forever. Gently and from here He casts down the things of the law, hinting at the former times. For so that they might not run back and say: We have sacrifices which Moses commanded; those are able to deliver us; for this reason He added these things. For what sequence did the things said have? For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by his grace, and the priests themselves. For this reason Paul also says concerning the priest: that He ought, he says, to offer for himself, as for the people, since he himself also is beset with weakness. And this is indicated by saying, The slave does not remain in the house. Here 59.298 He shows also His equality of honor with the Father, and the difference between a slave and a free man; for the parable intends this, that is, the slave does not have authority; for this is the meaning of,

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μονονουχὶ λέγων, Μέλλω βαθεῖαν διδόναι τομὴν, ἀλλὰ μὴ σαλεύεσθε. Μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ διὰ τούτων αὐτῶν τὸν τύφον αὐτῶν τῆς διανοίας κατέστειλε. Τίνος ἐλευθερώσει, εἰπέ μοι; Ἁμαρτημάτων. Τί οὖν οἱ ἀλαζόνες ἐκεῖνοι; Σπέρμα Ἀβραάμ ἐσμεν, καὶ οὐδενὶ δεδουλεύκαμεν πώποτε. Κατέπεσεν εὐθέως αὐτῶν ἡ διάνοια· τοῦτο δὲ γέγονεν, ἀπὸ τοῦ πρὸς τὰ κοσμικὰ ἐπτοῆσθαι. Ἐὰν μείνητε ἐν τῷ λόγῳ τῷ ἐμῷ, δηλοῦντος ἦν τὰ ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ αὐτῶν, καὶ εἰδότος ὅτι ἐπίστευσαν μὲν, οὐκ ἔμειναν δέ. Καὶ μέγα ἐπαγγέλλεται, τὸ μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ ἐκείνους γενέσθαι. Ἐπειδὴ γάρ τινες ἀνεχώρησαν πρώην, αἰνιττόμενος αὐτούς φησιν, Ἐὰν μείνητε· ἐπεὶ κἀκεῖνοι ἤκουσαν καὶ ἐπίστευσαν, καὶ ἀνεχώρησαν, ἐπειδὴ οὐκ ἔμειναν. Πολλοὶ γὰρ τῶν 59.297 μαθητῶν αὐτοῦ ἀπῆλθον εἰς τὰ ὀπίσω, καὶ οὐκ ἔτι μετ' αὐτοῦ παῤῥησίᾳ περιεπάτουν. Γνώσεσθε τὴν ἀλήθειαν· τουτέστιν, Ἐμέ· Ἐγὼ γάρ εἰμι ἡ ἀλήθεια. Τὰ μὲν Ἰουδαϊκὰ πάντα τύπος ἦν· τὴν δὲ ἀλήθειαν παρ' ἐμοῦ εἴσεσθε, καὶ ἐλευθερώσει ὑμᾶς τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ἐκείνοις ἔλεγεν· Ἐν ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις ὑμῶν ἀποθανεῖσθε· οὕτω καὶ τούτοις ἔλεγεν, Ἐλευθερώσει ὑμᾶς. Καὶ οὐκ εἶπεν, Ἀπαλλάξω ὑμᾶς δουλείας· ἀλλὰ τοῦτο αὐτοῖς εἴασε συνιδεῖν. Τί οὖν ἐκεῖνοι; Σπέρμα Ἀβραάμ ἐσμεν, καὶ οὐδενὶ δεδουλεύκαμεν πώποτε. Καίτοι εἰ ἐχρῆν ἀγανακτῆσαι, ἐπὶ τῷ προτέρῳ εἰκὸς ἦν, τῷ εἰρηκέναι, Γνώσεσθε τὴν ἀλήθειαν, καὶ εἰπεῖν· Τί οὖν; νῦν τὴν ἀλήθειαν οὐκ ἴσμεν; ὁ νόμος οὖν ψεῦδος καὶ ἡ γνῶσις ἡ ἡμετέρα; Ἀλλ' οὐδενὸς τούτων αὐτοῖς ἔμελεν, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ κοσμικοῖς πράγμασιν ἀλγοῦσι, καὶ ταῦτα δουλείαν ὑποπτεύσαντες. Εἰσὶ γὰρ, εἰσὶ καὶ νῦν πολλοὶ οἳ ἐπὶ μὲν τοῖς ἀδιαφόροις αἰσχύνονται, καὶ ἐπὶ τῇ δουλείᾳ ταύτῃ· ἐπὶ δὲ τῆς δουλείας τῆς ἁμαρτίας οὐκέτι, καὶ ἕλοιντο ἂν μυριάκις ἐκείνην κληθῆναι δοῦλοι τὴν δουλείαν, ἢ ταύτην ἅπαξ. Τοιοῦτοί τινες ἦσαν κἀκεῖνοι, καὶ οὐδὲ ᾔδεσαν ἄλλην δουλείαν, καί φασι· ∆ούλους ἐκάλεσας τοὺς ἀπὸ τοῦ γένους τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ, τοὺς εὐγενεῖς; οὓς οὐκ ἐχρῆν διὰ τοῦτο καλέσαι δούλους. Οὐδέποτε γὰρ, φησὶν, ἐδουλεύσαμεν. Τοιαῦτα γὰρ τῶν Ἰουδαίων τὰ αὐχήματα· Σπέρμα Ἀβραάμ ἐσμεν, Ἰσραηλῖταί ἐσμεν. Οὐδαμοῦ τῶν οἰκείων κατορθωμάτων μέμνηνται. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο πρὸς αὐτοὺς ἀνέκραγεν Ἰωάννης, λέγων· Μὴ δόξητε λέγειν, ὅτι πατέρα ἔχομεν τὸν Ἀβραάμ. ∆ιατί δὲ μὴ ἤλεγξεν αὐτοὺς ὁ Χριστός; καὶ γὰρ πολλάκις ἐδούλευσαν, καὶ Αἰγυπτίοις, καὶ Βαβυλωνίοις, καὶ ἑτέροις πολλοῖς. Ὅτι οὐ πρὸς φιλοτιμίαν αὐτῷ τὰ λεγόμενα ἦν, ἀλλὰ πρὸς σωτηρίαν, καὶ πρὸς εὐεργεσίαν, καὶ πρὸς τοῦτο ἠπείγετο. Ἐπεὶ εἶπεν ἂν τὰ τετρακόσια ἔτη· εἶπεν ἂν τὰ ἑβδομήκοντα· εἶπεν ἂν τὰ ἐπὶ τῶν κριτῶν, τὰ ποτὲ μὲν εἴκοσι, ποτὲ δὲ δύο, ποτὲ δὲ ἑπτά· εἶπεν ἂν, πῶς οὐδέποτε διέλιπον δουλεύοντες. Ἀλλ' οὐ τοῦτο ἐσπούδαζε δεῖξαι, δούλους ἀνθρώπων γενομένους, ἀλλὰ τῆς ἁμαρτίας, ἥπερ ἐστὶ καὶ χαλεπωτάτη δουλεία, ἧς Θεὸς μόνος ἀπαλλάξαι δύναται. Τὸ γὰρ ἀφεῖναι ἁμαρτίας, οὐδενὸς ἑτέρου ἐστί· καὶ τοῦτο καὶ αὐτοὶ ὡμολόγουν. Ἐπεὶ οὖν τοῦτο ὡμολόγουν Θεοῦ ἔργον εἶναι, εἰς τοῦτο αὐτοὺς ἐνάγει, καί φησι· Πᾶς ὁ ποιῶν τὴν ἁμαρτίαν, δοῦλός ἐστι τῆς ἁμαρτίας, δεικνὺς ὅτι περὶ ταύτης λέγει τῆς ἐλευθερίας, τῆς ἀπὸ ταύτης τῆς δουλείας. Ὁ δὲ δοῦλος οὐ μένει ἐν τῇ οἰκίᾳ· ὁ δὲ υἱὸς μένει εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα. Ἠρέμα καὶ ἐντεῦθεν τὰ τοῦ νόμου καταβάλλει, αἰνιττόμενος τοὺς προτέρους χρόνους. Ἵνα γὰρ μὴ ἀνατρέχωσι καὶ λέγωσι· Θυσίας ἔχομεν ἃς ἐπέταξε Μωϋσῆς· ἐκεῖναι ἡμᾶς ἀπαλλάξαι δύνανται· διὰ τοῦτο ταῦτα ἐπήγαγεν. Ἐπεὶ ποίαν ἀκολουθίαν εἶχε τὰ εἰρημένα; Πάντες γὰρ ἥμαρτον καὶ ὑστεροῦνται τῆς δόξης τοῦ Θεοῦ, δικαιούμενοι δωρεὰν τῇ αὐτοῦ χάριτι, καὶ οἱ ἱερεῖς αὐτοί. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ Παῦλός φησι περὶ τοῦ ἱερέως· ὅτι Ὀφείλει, φησὶ, προσφέρειν ὑπὲρ ἑαυτοῦ, καθὼς ὑπὲρ τοῦ λαοῦ, ἐπεὶ καὶ αὐτὸς περίκειται ἀσθένειαν. Καὶ τοῦτο δηλοῦται διὰ τοῦ εἰπεῖν, Ὁ δοῦλος οὐ μένει ἐν τῇ οἰκίᾳ. Ἐνταῦθα 59.298 δὲ καὶ τὸ ὁμότιμον αὐτοῦ δείκνυσι τὸ πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα, καὶ τὸ διάφορον δούλου καὶ ἐλευθέρου· ἡ γὰρ παραβολὴ τοῦτο βούλεται, τουτέστιν, οὐκ ἔχει ἐξουσίαν ὁ δοῦλος· τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι τὸ,