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Adversus haereses (liber 4)

1 As Isaiah says: “The children of Jacob shall bud, and Israel shall blossom, and the world will be filled with his fruit.” Therefore, his fruit having been scattered into the whole world, it was fittingly abandoned and removed from the midst what once bore fruit well—for from them Christ according to the flesh was brought forth as fruit, and the apostles—but now are no longer fit for bearing fruit. 2 God does all things with measure and order, and there is nothing without measure with Him, because nothing is without number. 3 “But Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him for righteousness,” first, that He is the Maker of heaven and earth, the only God, and then that He will make his seed as the stars of heaven, that is, what was said by Paul: “As lights in the world.” Rightly, therefore, having left all his earthly kinship, he followed His Word, living as a stranger so that he might live as a citizen with the Word. And rightly also the apostles, being of the race of Abraham, leaving their boat and their father, followed the Word. And rightly also we, having the same faith as Abraham, taking up the cross as Isaac did the wood, follow Him. And he, having willingly offered his own only-begotten and beloved son as a sacrifice to God, so that God also might be pleased, on behalf of all his seed, to offer His own only-begotten and beloved Son as a sacrifice for our redemption. 4 And Justin well says in his work against Marcion that I would not have believed the Lord Himself if he had announced another God besides the Creator. 5 The Lord taught us that no one can know God unless God has taught him, that is, that God is not known without God; but that being known is itself the will of the Father; for they will know Him to whom the Son reveals Him. 6 Every just king has a priestly order. 7 How can they say that the flesh passes into corruption and does not partake of life, when it is nourished by the body of the Lord and by His blood? Let them either change their opinion, therefore, or let them cease from offering the aforesaid things. But our opinion is in accordance with the Eucharist, and the Eucharist in turn establishes our opinion. We offer to Him His own, fittingly proclaiming the communion and union of flesh and Spirit. For as the bread, which is from the earth, when it receives the invocation of God, is no longer common bread, but Eucharist, consisting of two realities, earthly and heavenly; so also our bodies, when they receive the Eucharist, are no longer corruptible, having the hope of the resurrection to eternity. 8 Well, therefore, does the scripture say: “First of all, believe that God is one, who created and perfected all things”. 9 And this is His Word, our Lord Jesus Christ, who in the last times became God among men, that He might join the end to the beginning, that is, man to God. And for this reason the prophets, having received the gift of prophecy concerning this very Word, prophesied His coming in the flesh. 10 Just as those who see the light are within the light and partake of its brightness, so those who see God are within God, partaking of His brightness; those who see God will therefore partake of life. And for this reason He who is uncontainable and incomprehensible and invisible, offered Himself to be seen and comprehended and contained by the faithful, that He might give life to those who contain and see Him through faith. For as His greatness is unsearchable, so also His goodness is ineffable, through which, being seen, He bestows life on those who see Him. Since it was not possible to live without life, and the existence of life comes from participation in God, and participation in God is to know God and to enjoy His goodness. 11 Through the marriage of Moses the spiritual marriage of Christ was shown, and through the Ethiopian bride the one from the Gentiles

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Adversus haereses (liber 4)

1 Καθὼς Ἠσαΐας φησί· «Τέκνα Ἰακὼβ βλαστήσει, καὶ ἐξανθήσει Ἰσραήλ, καὶ πλησθήσεται ἡ οἰκουμένη τοῦ καρποῦ αὐτοῦ.» Εἰς ὅλην οὖν τὴν οἰκουμένην τοῦ καρποῦ αὐτοῦ διασπαρέντος εἰκότως ἐγκατελείφθη καὶ ἐκ μέσου ἐγένετο τὰ ποτὲ μὲν καρποφορήσαντα καλῶς-ἐξ αὐτῶν γὰρ τὸ κατὰ σάρκα ὁ Χριστὸς ἐκαρποφορήθη καὶ οἱ ἀπόστολοι-, νῦν δὲ μηκέτι εὔθετα ὑπάρχοντα πρὸς καρποφορίαν. 2 Ἅπαντα μέτρῳ καὶ τάξει ὁ Θεὸς ποιεῖ, καὶ οὐδὲν ἄμετρον παρ' αὐτῷ, ὅτι μηδὲν ἀναρίθμητον. 3 «Ἐπίστευσεν δὲ Ἀβραὰμ τῷ Θεῷ, καὶ ἐλογίσθη αὐτῷ εἰς δικαιοσύνην», πρῶτον μὲν ὅτι αὐτός ἐστιν ὁ Ποιητὴς οὐρανοῦ καὶ γῆς μόνος Θεός, ἔπειτα δὲ ὅτι ποιήσει τὸ σπέρμα αὐτοῦ ὡς τὰ ἄστρα τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, τουτέστιν τὸ ὑπὸ τοῦ Παύλου εἰρημένον· «Ὡς φωστῆρες ἐν κόσμῳ.» ∆ικαίως οὖν καταλιπὼν τὴν ἐπίγειον συγγένειαν πᾶσαν, ἠκολούθει τῷ Λόγῳ αὐτοῦ, ξενιτεύων ἵνα σὺν τῷ Λόγῳ πολιτευθῇ. ∆ικαίως δὲ καὶ οἱ ἀπόστολοι ἐξ Ἀβραὰμ τὸ γένος ἔχοντες, καταλιπόντες τὸ πλοῖον καὶ τὸν πατέρα, ἠκολούθουν τῷ Λόγῳ. ∆ικαίως δὲ καὶ ἡμεῖς, τὴν αὐτὴν τῷ Ἀβραὰμ πίστιν ἔχοντες, ἄραντες τὸν σταυρὸν ὡς καὶ Ἰσαὰκ τὸ ξύλον, ἀκολουθοῦμεν αὐτῷ. Αὐτὸς δὲ προθύμως τὸν ἴδιον μονογενῆ καὶ ἀγαπητὸν παραχωρήσας θυσίαν τῷ Θεῷ, ἵνα καὶ ὁ Θεὸς εὐδοκήσῃ ὑπὲρ τοῦ σπέρματος αὐτοῦ παντὸς τὸν ἴδιον μονογενῆ καὶ ἀγαπητὸν Υἱὸν θυσίαν παρασχεῖν εἰς λύτρωσιν ἡμετέραν. 4 Καὶ καλῶς ὁ Ἰουστῖνος ἐν τῷ πρὸς Μαρκίωνα συντάγματί φησιν ὅτι αὐτῷ τῷ Κυρίῳ οὐκ ἂν ἐπείσθην ἄλλον Θεὸν καταγγέλλοντι παρὰ τὸν ∆ημιουργόν. 5 Ἐδίδαξεν ἡμᾶς ὁ Κύριος ὅτι Θεὸν εἰδέναι οὐδεὶς δύναται μὴ οὐχὶ Θεοῦ διδάξαντος, τουτέστιν ἄνευ Θεοῦ μὴ γινώσκεσθαι τὸν Θεόν· αὐτὸ δὲ τὸ γινώσκεσθαι αὐτὸν θέλημα εἶναι τοῦ Πατρός· γνώσονται γὰρ αὐτὸν οἷς ἂν ἀποκαλύψῃ ὁ Υἱός. 6 Πᾶς βασιλεὺς δίκαιος ἱερατικὴν ἔχει τάξιν. 7 Πῶς τὴν σάρκα λέγουσιν εἰς φθορὰν χωρεῖν καὶ μὴ μετέχειν τῆς ζωῆς τὴν ἀπὸ τοῦ σώματος τοῦ Κυρίου καὶ τοῦ αἵματος αὐτοῦ τρεφομένην; Ἢ τὴν γνώμην οὖν ἀλλαξάτωσαν, ἢ τὸ προσφέρειν τὰ εἰρημένα παραιτησάσθωσαν. Ἡμῖν δὲ σύμφωνος τῇ γνώμῃ ἡ εὐχαριστία καὶ ἡ εὐχαριστία βεβαιοῖ τὴν γνώμην. Προσφέρομεν αὐτῷ τὰ ἴδια, ἐμμελῶς κοινωνίαν καὶ ἕνωσιν καταγγέλλοντες σαρκὸς καὶ Πνεύματος. Ὡς γὰρ ὁ ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς ἄρτος προσλαβόμενος τὴν ἐπίκλησιν τοῦ Θεοῦ οὐκέτι κοινὸς ἄρτος ἐστίν, ἀλλ' εὐχαριστία ἐκ δύο πραγμάτων συνεστηκυῖα, ἐπιγείου τε καὶ οὐρανίου, οὕτως καὶ τὰ σώματα ἡμῶν μεταλαμβάνοντα τῆς εὐχαριστίας μηκέτι εἶναι φθαρτά, τὴν ἐλπίδα τῆς εἰς αἰῶνα ἀναστάσεως ἔχοντα. 8 Καλῶς οὖν ἡ γραφὴ ἡ λέγουσα· «Πρῶτον πάντων πίστευσον ὅτι εἷς ἐστιν ὁ Θεὸς ὁ τὰ πάντα κτίσας καὶ καταρτίσας». 9 Ἔστι δὲ οὗτος ὁ Λόγος αὐτοῦ ὁ Κύριος ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, ὁ ἐν ἐσχάτοις καιροῖς Θεὸς ἐν ἀνθρώποις γενόμενος, ἵνα τὸ τέλος συνάψῃ τῇ ἀρχῇ, τουτέστιν ἄνθρωπον Θεῷ. Καὶ διὰ τοῦτο προφῆται περὶ αὐτοῦ τοῦ Λόγου τὴν προφητείαν λαβόντες προεφήτευσαν αὐτοῦ τὴν ἔνσαρκον παρουσίαν. 10 Ὥσπερ οἱ βλέποντες τὸ φῶς ἐντός εἰσι τοῦ φωτὸς καὶ τῆς λαμπρότητος αὐτοῦ μετέχουσιν, οὕτως οἱ βλέποντες τὸν Θεὸν ἐντός εἰσι τοῦ Θεοῦ, μετέχοντες αὐτοῦ τῆς λαμπρότητος· ζωῆς οὖν μετέξουσιν οἱ ὁρῶντες Θεόν. Καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ὁ ἀχώρητος καὶ ἀκατάληπτος καὶ ἀόρατος ὁρώμενον ἑαυτὸν καὶ καταλαμβανόμενον καὶ χωρούμενον τοῖς πιστοῖς παρέσχεν, ἵνα ζωοποιήσῃ τοὺς χωροῦντας καὶ βλέποντας αὐτὸν διὰ πίστεως. Ὡς γὰρ τὸ μέγεθος αὐτοῦ ἀνεξιχνίαστον, οὕτως καὶ ἡ ἀγαθότης αὐτοῦ ἀνεξήγητος, δι' ἧς βλεπόμενος ζωὴν ἐνδίδωσι τοῖς ὁρῶσιν αὐτόν. Ἐπεὶ ζῆσαι ἄνευ ζωῆς οὐχ οἷόν τε ἦν, ἡ δὲ ὕπαρξις τῆς ζωῆς ἐκ τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ περιγίνεται μετοχῆς, μετοχὴ δὲ Θεοῦ ἐστι τὸ γινώσκειν Θεὸν καὶ ἀπολαύειν τῆς χρηστότητος αὐτοῦ. 11 ∆ιὰ τοῦ γάμου Μωϋσέως ὁ τοῦ Χριστοῦ νοητὸς γάμος ἐδείκνυτο καὶ διὰ τῆς αἰθιοπικῆς νύμφης ἡ ἐξ ἐθνῶν