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refuting an opinion as mistaken, he now makes a promise to the childless and those unable to have children because they have been castrated, saying that nothing will be an obstacle for the eunuchs to obtain the good things from God, if they should choose to live according to God. For which reason also for the eunuchs, who are like a fruitless tree according to the childlessness of the body, he outlines a hope equal to that of Israel; for if these too should keep the things said before, abstaining from all injustice and through works according to God pursuing a life pleasing to God, in addition to keeping the strict law concerning the Sabbaths, they too would obtain the things promised. At any rate, he carefully makes the distinction, also in their case, that in addition to keeping the Sabbaths it is fitting for them, he says, to choose the things that I will; but he says that he does not will the sabbaths. For which reason he said at the beginning of the book: "Your new moons and your sabbaths and the great day I cannot bear." For which reason if they should accept the things that I will, and hold fast to my covenant, which I just now showed when I said that it is necessary to keep judgment and to do justice, and: blessed is the man who does these things, and the person who holds fast to them and keeps his hands from doing any wrong; for how is he not blessed, having received such promises? For these were the things that I will, which if the proselytes and the eunuchs should do, even the keeping of the sabbaths for the sake of the commandment of the law would not grieve them at all. So to the eunuchs who are keepers of the things that have been said, who possess no fruit as in the succession of men, instead of any abundance of children he promises to give in his house and in his wall a renowned place, or according to the other translators: a hand and a name better than sons and daughters, and an everlasting name I will give to them, he says, which shall not be cut off; for just as once I bestowed "a name on Jacob," calling him "Israel" instead of Jacob, and in fact making him a man who beholds God, for this is how Israel is translated into the Greek language, "a man seeing God", so also to the childless according to the flesh, if they should choose to worship God, I will provide a name which will be for them beyond all abundance of children. And if also according to the saving teaching "there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven," it would be logical to understand this even more concerning these men, how it is said: I will give to them in my house and in my wall a renowned place; for if "in my Father's house are many rooms," and there is "the city of God, the heavenly Jerusalem," and a place for them inside the house of God "in the many rooms," a portion will also be given in the wall "of the heavenly city of God." And a name will be given to them better than sons and daughters, or according to Aquila: and a good name beyond sons and daughters, an everlasting name I will give to them. Through these things I think that the Word refutes the opinion of the Jews, since they considered themselves to be beloved of God on account of having many children; for in this they supposed the blessing of God to consist. But to the proselytes from the nations, if they should keep the things said before and set themselves not only to serve God but also indeed to love him and to hold fast to his covenant, he promises to bring these also to his holy mountain, and to make them joyful and to accept the sacrifices from them, even if they should seem to be foreigners and of another race; for his house does not belong to some but not to others, but is opened to all the nations, through an excess of love for mankind so as to receive both eunuchs and proselytes, and he says he will accept sacrifices in these cases from the aforementioned, doubtless those offered through prayers and praises. But if someone should speak of physical ones, he will not be wrong, for these things were said to those before the new covenant who were living according to the law of Moses, but all these things, he says, God who is about to gather the dispersed of Israel promised, or the outcasts according to Aquila;

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δόξαν, ἐσφαλμένην τε οὖσαν ἐλέγχων ἀγόνοις καὶ μὴ δυνατοῖς παιδοποιεῖν διὰ τὸ ἐκτετμῆσθαι τὴν νῦν ὑπισχνεῖται ἐπαγγελίαν μηδὲν ἐμποδὼν ἔσεσθαι τοῖς εὐνούχοις φάσκων πρὸς τὸ τυχεῖν τῶν παρὰ θεῷ ἀγαθῶν, εἰ ζῆν κατὰ θεὸν προέλοιντο. διόπερ καὶ τοῖς εὐνούχοις τοῖς ἐοικόσι κατὰ τὴν τοῦ σώματος ἀτεκνίαν ἀκάρπῳ ξύλῳ τὴν ἴσην τῷ Ἰσραὴλ ὑπογράφει ἐλπίδα· εἰ γὰρ φυλάξαιντο καὶ οὗτοι τὰ προλεχθέντα πάσης μὲν ἀδικίας ἀποσχόμενοι διὰ δὲ τῶν κατὰ θεὸν ἔργων τὸν τῷ θεῷ ἀρεστὸν μετιόντες βίον πρὸς τῷ φυλάττειν τὸν ἀκριβῆ περὶ τῶν σαββάτων νόμον τεύξασθαι καὶ αὐτοὺς τῶν ἐπηγγελμένων. ἀκριβῶς γοῦν διαστέλλεται καὶ ἐπὶ τούτων πρὸς τῷ φυλάττειν τὰ σάββατα προσήκειν αὐτοὺς φάσκειν ἐκλέγεσθαι, ἅπερ ἐγὼ θέλω, ἀλλ' οὐ τὰ σάββατα θέλω φησί. διὸ κατ' ἀρχὰς ἔφασκον τῆς βίβλου· «τὰς νουμηνίας ὑμῶν καὶ τὰ σάββατα καὶ ἡμέραν μεγάλην οὐκ ἀνέχομαι». διόπερ εἰ καταδέξαιντο, ἃ ἐγὼ θέλω, καὶ ἀντέχοιντο τῆς ἐμῆς διαθήκης, ἣν παρεδείκνυον ἀρτίως λέγων φυλάσσεσθαι δεῖν κρίσιν καὶ ποιεῖν δικαιοσύνην, καί· μακάριος ἀνὴρ ὁ ποιῶν ταῦτα καὶ ἄνθρωπος ὁ ἀντεχόμενος αὐτῶν καὶ ὁ διατηρῶν τὰς χεῖρας αὐτοῦ μὴ ποιεῖν ἀδίκημα· πῶς γὰρ οὐ μακάριος τοιαύτας εἰληφὼς τὰς ἐπαγγελίας; ταῦτα γὰρ ἦν ἃ θέλω, ἅπερ εἰ πράττοιεν οἱ προσήλυτοι καὶ οἱ εὐνοῦχοι, οὐδὲν ἂν λυπήσειεν αὐτοὺς καὶ τὸ φυλάττειν τὰ σάββατα τῆς τοῦ νόμου παραγγελίας εἵνεκα. Τοῖς μὲν οὖν εὐνούχοις τοῖς τῶν λελεγμένων φύλαξι καρπὸν ὡς ἐν ἀνθρώπων διαδοχῇ μηδένα κεκτημένοις ἀντὶ πάσης πολυτεκνίας δώσειν ἐπαγγέλλεται ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ καὶ ἐν τῷ τείχει αὐτοῦ τόπον ὀνομαστόν, ἢ κατὰ τοὺς λοιποὺς ἑρμηνευτάς· χεῖρα καὶ ὄνομα βέλτιον υἱῶν καὶ θυγατέρων, καὶ ὄνομα δὲ αἰώνιον δώσω φησὶν αὐτοῖς, ὃ οὐκ ἐξαρθήσεται· ὥσπερ γάρ ποτε «τῷ Ἰακὼβ ὄνομα» ἐδωρησάμην «Ἰσραὴλ» αὐτὸν προσειπὼν ἀντὶ τοῦ Ἰακώβ, ἔργῳ δὲ ποιήσας αὐτὸν ἄνθρωπον θεωρὸν θεοῦ, οὕτω γὰρ μεταλαμβάνεται εἰς τὴν Ἑλλάδα φωνὴν ὁ Ἰσραὴλ ἑρμηνευόμενος ἄνθρωπος ὁρῶν θεόν, οὕτως καὶ τοῖς κατὰ σάρκα ἀτέκνοις, εἰ θεοσεβεῖν προέλοιντο, παρέξω ὄνομα, ὅπερ ὑπάρξει αὐτοῖς ὑπὲρ πᾶσαν πολυπαιδίαν. εἰ δὲ καὶ κατὰ τὴν σωτήριον διδασκαλίαν «εἰσὶν εὐνοῦχοι οἵτινες εὐνουχίασαν ἑαυτοὺς διὰ τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν», ἀκόλουθον ἂν εἴη καὶ περὶ τούτων ἔτι μᾶλλον νοῆσαι, ὅπως εἴρηται τό· δώσω αὐτοῖς ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ μου καὶ ἐν τῷ τείχει μου τόπον ὀνομαστόν· εἰ γὰρ «πολλαὶ μοναὶ παρὰ τῷ πατρί», καὶ ἔστι «πόλις θεοῦ Ἰερουσαλὴμ ἐπουράνιος» καὶ τόπος αὐτοῖς εἴσω τοῦ οἴκου τοῦ θεοῦ «ἐν ταῖς πολλαῖς μοναῖς», δοθήσεται καὶ μερὶς ἐν τῷ τείχει «τῆς ἐπουρανίου τοῦ θεοῦ πόλεως». καὶ ὄνομα δὲ τοῖς αὐτοῖς δοθήσεται κρεῖττον υἱῶν καὶ θυγατέρων, ἢ κατὰ τὸν Ἀκύλαν· καὶ ὄνομα ἀγαθὸν παρὰ υἱοὺς καὶ θυγατέρας, ὄνομα αἰώνιον δώσω αὐτοῖς. διὰ τούτων οἶμαι τὴν Ἰουδαίων δόξαν ἀπελέγχειν τὸν λόγον, ἐπειδὴ θεοφιλεῖς ἑαυτοὺς ἐνόμιζον εἶναι ἐπὶ τῇ πολυτεκνίᾳ· ἐν ταύτῃ γὰρ ὑπελάμβανον εἶναι τὴν εὐλογίαν τοῦ θεοῦ. Τοῖς δ' ἐξ ἐθνῶν προσηλύτοις, εἰ τὰ προλεχθέντα φυλάττοιεν καὶ μὴ μόνον δουλεύειν τῷ θεῷ, ἀλλὰ δὴ καὶ ἀγαπᾶν αὐτὸν προθέμενοι εἶεν καὶ ἀντέχεσθαι τῆς διαθήκης αὐτοῦ, καὶ τούτους εἰσάξειν ἐπαγγέλλεται εἰς τὸ ὄρος τὸ ἅγιον αὐτοῦ, εὐφρανεῖν τε αὐτοὺς καὶ τὰς παρ' αὐτῶν ἀποδέξασθαι θυσίας, εἰ καὶ ἀλλογενεῖς καὶ ἀλλόφυλοι δοκοῖεν τυγχάνειν· τὸν γὰρ οἶκον αὐτοῦ μὴ τῶν δὲ μὲν ὑπάρχειν τῶν δὲ μή, ἀνεῷχθαι δὲ πᾶσιν τοῖς ἔθνεσι, δι' ὑπερβολὴν φιλανθρωπίας ὡς καὶ εὐνούχους παραδέχεσθαι καὶ προσηλύτους, θυσίας δ' ἐν τούτοις παρὰ τῶν εἰρημένων καταδέξασθαί φησι πάντως που τὰς δι' εὐχῶν καὶ αἰνέσεων. Εἰ δὲ κατὰ τὰς σωματικὰς φήσειέ τις οὐχ ἁμαρτήσεται, πρὸς γὰρ τοὺς πρὸ τῆς καινῆς διαθήκης κατὰ τὸν Μωσέως νόμον πολιτευομένους ταῦτα ἐλέγετο, ταῦτα δέ φησιν ἅπαντα ὁ μέλλων συνάγειν τοὺς διεσκορπισμένους Ἰσραὴλ θεὸς ἐπηγγείλατο, ἢ τοὺς ἐξωσμένους κατὰ τὸν Ἀκύλαν·