288

would doubt, for what reason He becomes firstborn <from> the dead, or of creation, or among many brethren. For all these things look to the same end, even if in each some particular meaning is displayed. For He becomes firstborn from the dead who first through Himself loosed the pangs of death, 3.2.51 so that He might make a way for all for the birth from the resurrection. And again becoming firstborn among brethren, He who was born first in the new birth of regeneration in the water, whose birth pangs the flight of the dove assisted, through whom He makes brethren to Himself those who have shared with Him in the same 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 from the dead again, in the three He becomes firstborn, of the twofold regeneration that is effected through both, through baptism and through the resurrection, He Himself having become the author of each; and in the flesh He becomes firstborn, first and alone inaugurating for Himself through virginity a birth unknown to nature, which no one in so many 3.2.52 generations of men had pioneered. If, therefore, these things are understood according to reason, neither will the meaning of "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 reformed, but there would have been no need of our second creation, if we had not corrupted the first through 3.2.53 disobedience. Therefore, since that one had grown old and vanished, it was necessary for a new creation to come into being in Christ, as the apostle says, who deems it right to look at nothing of the old things 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 the maker of human nature is one and the same both 3.2.54 in the beginning and afterwards. Then, taking dust from the earth, He formed man; again, taking the dust from the virgin, He did not simply form man, but He formed him around Himself; then He created, afterwards He was created; then the Word made flesh, afterwards the Word became flesh, so that He might transform our flesh into spirit by sharing with us in flesh and blood. Therefore, of this new creation in Christ, of which He Himself was the pioneer, He was named firstborn, having become the firstfruits of all, both of those being born into life and of the dead being made alive through resurrection, so that He might be Lord of both the dead and the living and might sanctify the whole 3.2.55 lump through the firstfruits in Himself. For that "firstborn" is not applied to the Son according to His pre-eternal existence, the appellation "only-begotten" testifies. For the truly only-begotten has no brothers. For how could one be only-begotten while being numbered among brothers? But just as He is called God and man, Son of God and Son of man, form [for] of God and form of a servant, being the one according to His pre-eminent nature, and becoming the other according to the benevolent economy, so also, being only-begotten God, He becomes firstborn of all creation, being only-begotten who is in the Father's bosom, but among those being saved through the new creation, both becoming and being called firstborn 3.2.56 of creation. But if, as the heresy wishes, He is called firstborn because He was pre-fashioned before the rest of creation, the name does not agree with what is fashioned by them concerning the only-begotten God. For they do not say this, that from the Father both the Son and all things came to be in like manner, but they say that the 3.2.57 only-begotten God is a 20work20 of the Father, and all other things are of Him. 3.2.57 Therefore, by what reason, when they dogmatize that the Son was created, they name God the Father of the creature, by the same reason certainly

288

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 οὐχ ἁπλῶς τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἔπλασεν, ἀλλ' ἑαυτῷ περιέπλασε· τότε ἔκτισε, μετὰ ταῦτα ἐκτίσθη· τότε ὁ λόγος σάρκα ἐποίησε, μετὰ ταῦτα ὁ λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο, ἵνα μετασκευάσῃ πρὸς πνεῦμα τὴν ἡμετέραν σάρκα διὰ τοῦ συμμετασχεῖν ἡμῖν σαρκός τε καὶ αἵματος. ταύτης τοίνυν τῆς καινῆς ἐν Χριστῷ κτίσεως, ἧς αὐτὸς καθηγήσατο, πρωτότοκος ὠνομάσθη, πάντων ἀπαρχὴ γενόμενος καὶ τῶν εἰς ζωὴν γεννωμένων καὶ τῶν δι' ἀναστάσεως νεκρῶν ζωο ποιουμένων, ἵνα καὶ νεκρῶν καὶ ζώντων κυριεύσῃ καὶ ὅλον 3.2.55 διὰ τῆς ἐν ἑαυτῷ ἀπαρχῆς συναγιάσῃ τὸ φύραμα. ὅτι γὰρ οὐ κατὰ τὴν προαιώνιον ὕπαρξιν ἐφαρμόζεται τῷ υἱῷ τὸ πρωτότοκον, ἡ τοῦ μονογενοῦς προσηγορία διαμαρτύρεται. ὁ γὰρ ἀληθῶς μονογενὴς ἀδελφοὺς οὐκ ἔχει. πῶς <γὰρ> ἄν τις εἴη μονογενὴς ἐν ἀδελφοῖς ἀριθμούμενος; ἀλλ' ὡς λέγεται θεὸς καὶ ἄνθρωπος, υἱὸς θεοῦ καὶ υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου, μορφὴ [γὰρ] θεοῦ καὶ μορφὴ δούλου, τὰ μὲν κατὰ τὴν ὑπερέ χουσαν φύσιν ὤν, τὰ δὲ κατὰ τὴν φιλάνθρωπον οἰκονομίαν γενόμενος, οὕτω καὶ μονογενὴς θεὸς ὢν πρωτότοκος πάσης κτίσεως γίνεται, μονογενὴς μὲν ὁ ὢν ἐν τῷ πατρῴῳ κόλπῳ, ἐν δὲ τοῖς διὰ τῆς καινῆς κτίσεως σῳζομένοις πρωτότοκος 3.2.56 τῆς κτίσεως καὶ γενόμενος καὶ λεγόμενος. εἰ δέ, καθὼς ἡ αἵρεσις βούλεται, διὰ τὸ προκατεσκευάσθαι τῆς λοιπῆς κτίσεως πρωτότοκος λέγεται, οὐ συμφωνεῖ τοῖς παρ' αὐτῶν περὶ τοῦ μονογενοῦς θεοῦ κατασκευαζομένοις τὸ ὄνομα. οὐ γὰρ τοῦτό φασιν, ὅτι παρὰ τοῦ πατρὸς ὁμοίως ὅ τε υἱὸς καὶ τὰ πάντα ἐγένετο, ἀλλὰ 20ποίημα20 μὲν τοῦ πατρὸς τὸν 3.2.57 μονογενῆ θεὸν λέγουσιν, τούτου δὲ τὰ ἄλλα πάντα. ᾧ 3.2.57 τοίνυν λόγῳ κτισθῆναι τὸν υἱὸν δογματίζοντες πατέρα τοῦ κτίσματος τὸν θεὸν ὀνομάζουσι, τῷ αὐτῷ λόγῳ πάντως