(NOTE: The electronic text obtained from The Electronic Bible Society was
not completely corrected. EWTN has corrected all mistakes found.)
CYPRIAN OF CARTHAGE
THREE BOOKS OF TESTIMONIES AGAINST THE JEWS.
Translated by the Rev. Ernest Wallis, Ph.D.
Cyprian to his son Quirinus, greeting. It was necessary, my beloved
son, that I should obey your spiritual desire, which asked with most urgent
petition for those divine teachings wherewith the Lord has condescended to
teach and instruct us by the Holy Scriptures, that, being led away from the
darkness of error, and enlightened by His pure and shining light, we may
keep the way of life through the saving sacraments. And indeed, as you have
asked, so has this discourse been arranged by me; and this treatise has
been ordered in an abridged compendium, so that I should not scatter what
was written in too diffuse an abundance, but, as far as my poor memory
suggested, might collect all that was necessary in selected and connected
heads, under which I may seem, not so much to have treated the subject, as
to have afforded material for others to treat it. Moreover, to readers
also, brevity of the same kind is of very great advantage, in that a
treatise of too great length dissipates the understanding and perception of
the reader, while a tenacious memory keeps that which is read in a more
exact compendium. But I have comprised in my undertaking two books of
equally moderate length: one wherein I have endeavoured to show that the
Jews, according to what had before been foretold, had departed from God,
and had lost God's favour, which had been given them in past time, and had
been promised them for the future; while the Christians had succeeded to
their place, deserving well of the Lord by faith, and coming out of all
nations and from the whole world. The second book likewise contains the
sacrament of Christ, that He has come who was announced according to the
Scriptures, and has done and perfected all those things whereby He was
foretold as being able to be perceived and known.[4] And these things may
be of advantage to you meanwhile, as you read, for forming the first
lineaments of your faith. More strength will be given you, and the
intelligence of the heart will be effected more and more, as you examine
more fully the Scriptures, old and new, and read through the complete
volumes of the spiritual books.[5] For now we have filled a small measure
from the divine fountains, which in the meantime we would send to you. You
will be able to drink more plentifully, and to be more abundantly
satisfied, if you also will approach to drink together with us at the same
springs of the divine fulness.[6] I bid you, beloved son, always heartily
farewell.
FIRST BOOK. HEADS.
1. That the Jews have fallen under the heavy wrath of God, because they
have departed from the Lord, and have followed idols.
2. Also because they did not believe the prophets, and put them to
death.
3. That it was previously foretold that they would neither know the
Lord, nor understand nor receive Him.
4. That the Jews would not understand the Holy Scriptures, but that
they would be intelligible in the last times, after Christ had come.
5. That the Jews could understand nothing of the Scriptures unless they
first believed on Christ.
6. That they would lose Jerusalem, and leave the land which they had
received.
7. That they would also lose the Light of the Lord.
8. That the first circumcision of the flesh was made void, and a second
circumcision of the spirit was promised instead.
9. That the former law, which was given by Moses, was about to cease.
10. That a new law was to be given.
11. That another dispensation and a new covenant was to be given.
12. That the old baptism was to cease, and a new one was to begin.
13. That the old yoke was to be made void, and a new yoke was to be
given.
14. That the old pastors were to cease, and new ones to begin.
15. That Christ should be God's house and temple, and that the old
temple should pass away, and a new one should begin.
16. That the old sacrifice should be made void, and a new one should be
celebrated.
17. That the old priesthood should cease, and a new priest should come
who should be for ever.
18. That another prophet, such as Moses, was promised, to wit, who
should give a new testament, and who was rather to be listened to.
19. That two peoples were foretold, the elder and the younger; that is,
the ancient people of the Jews, and the new one which should be of us.
20. That the Church, which had previously been barren, should have more
sons from among the Gentiles than the synagogue had had before.
21. That the Gentiles should rather believe in Christ.
22. That the Jews should lose the bread and the cup of Christ, and all
His grace; while we should receive them, and that the new name of
Christians should be blessed in the earth.
23. That rather the Gentiles than the Jews should attain to the kingdom
of heaven.
24. That by this alone the Jews could obtain pardon of their sins, if
they wash away the blood of Christ slain in His baptism, and, passing over
into the Church, should obey His precepts.[1]
TESTIMONIES.
1. That the Jews have fallen under the heavy wrath of God because they have
forsaken the Lord, and have followed idols.
In Exodus the people said to Aaron: "Arise and make us gods which shall
go before us: because as for this man Moses, who brought us out of Egypt,
we know not what has become of him."[2] In the same place also Moses says
to the Lord: "O Lord, I pray thee, this people have sinned! a great sin.
They have made to themselves gods of gold and silver. And now, if thou wilt
forgive them their sin, forgive; but if not, blot me out of the book which
Thou hast written. And the Lord said unto Moses, If any one hath sinned
against me, him will I blot out of my book."[3] Likewise in Deuteronomy:
They sacrificed unto demons, and not unto God."[4] In the book of Judges
too: "And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord God of
their fathers, who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed the
gods of the peoples that were round about them, and offended the Lord, and
forsook God, and served Baal."[5] Also in the same place: "And the
children of Israel added again to do evil[6] in the sight of the Lord, and
served Baal and the gods of the strangers, and forsook the Lord, and served
Him not."[7] In Malachi: "Judah is forsaken, and has become an abomination
in Israel and in Jerusalem, because Judah has profaned the holiness of the
Lord in those things wherein He hath loved, and courted strange gods. The
Lord will cut off the man who doeth this, and he shall be made base in the
tabernacles of Jacob."[8]
2. Also because they did not believe the prophets, and put them to death.
In Jeremiah the Lord says: "I have sent unto I you my servants the
prophets. Before the daylight I sent them (and ye heard me not, and did not
listen with your ears), saying, Let every one of you be converted from his
evil way, and from your most wicked desires; and ye shall dwell in that
land which I have given you and your fathers for ever and ever."[9] And
again:[10] "Go not after other gods, to serve them, and do not worship
them; and provoke me not to anger in the works of your hands to scatter you
abroad; and ye have not hearkened unto me."[11] Also in the third book of
the Kings, Elias saith unto the Lord: "In being jealous I have been jealous
for the Lord God Almighty; because the children of Israel have forsaken
Thee, have demolished Thine altars, and have slain Thy prophets with the
sword; and I have remained solitary, and they seek my life, to take it away
from me."[12] In Ezra also: "'They have fallen away from Thee, and have
cast Thy law behind their backs, and have killed Thy prophets which
testified against them that they should return to Thee."[13]
3. That it was previously foretold that they would neither know the Lord,
nor understand, nor receive Him.
In Isaiah: "Hear, O heaven, and give ear, O earth: for the Lord hath
spoken; I have begotten and brought up children, but they have rejected me.
The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib: but Israel hath
not known me, and my people hath not perceived me. Ah sinful nation, a
people filled with sins, a wicked seed, corrupting children: ye have
forsaken the Lord, and have sent that Holy One of Israel into anger."[1] In
the same also the Lord says: "Go and tell this people, Ye shall hear with
the ear, and shall not understand; and seeing, ye shall see, and shall not
perceive. For the heart of this people hath waxed gross, and they hardly
hear with their ears, and they have shut up their eyes, lest haply they
should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with
their heart, and should return, and I should heal them."[2] Also in
Jeremiah the Lord says: "They have forsaken me, the fountain of living
water, and have dug for themselves worn-out cisterns, which could not hold
water."[3] Moreover, in the same: "Behold, the word of the Lord has become
unto them a reproach, and they do not wish for it."[4] Again in the same
the Lord says: "The kite knoweth his time, the turtle, and the swallow;[5]
the sparrows of the field keep the time of their coining in; but my people
doth not know the judgment of the Lord. How say ye, We are wise, and the
law of the Lord is with us? The false measurement[6] has been made vain;
the scribes are confounded the wise men have trembled, and been taken,
because they have rejected the word of the Lord."[7] In Solomon also: "Evil
men seek me, and shall not find me; for they held wisdom in hatred and did
not receive the word of the Lord."[8] Also in the twenty-seventh Psalm:
"Render to them their deserving, because they have not perceived in the
works of the Lord."[9] Also in the eighty-first Psalm: "They have not
known, neither have they understood; they shall walk on in darkness."[10]
In the Gospel, too, according to John: "He came unto His own, and His own
received Him not. As many as received Him, to them gave He power to become
the sons of God who believe on His name."[11]
4. That the Jews would not understand the Holy Scriptures, but that they
would be intelligible in the last times, after that Christ had come.
In Isaiah: "And all these words shall be unto you as the words of a
book that is sealed, which, if you shall give to a man that knoweth letters
to read, he shall say, I cannot read, for it is sealed. But in that day the
deaf shall hear the words of the book, and they who are in darkness and in
a cloud; the eyes of the blind shall see."[12] Also in Jeremiah: "In the
last of the days ye shall know those things."[13] In Daniel, moreover:
"Secure the words, and seal the book until the time of consummation, until
many learn, and knowledge is fulfilled, because when there shall be a
dispersion they shall know all these things."[14] Likewise in the first
Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: "Brethren, I would not that ye should
be ignorant, that all our fathers were under the cloud."[15] Also in the
second Epistle to the Corinthians: "Their minds are blinded even unto this
day, by this same veil which is taken away in Christ, while this same veil
remains in the reading of the Old Testament, which is not unveiled, because
it is made void in Christ; and even to this day, if at any time Moses is
read, the veil is upon their heart. But by and by, when they shall be
turned unto the Lord, the veil shall be taken away."[16] In the Gospel, the
Lord after His resurrection says: "These are the words which I spake unto
you while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled which are
written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the Psalms,
concerning me. Then opened He their understanding, that they might
understand the Scriptures; and said unto them, That thus it is written, and
thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise again from the dead the third
day; and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His
name even among all nations."[17]
5. That the Jews could understand nothing of the Scriptures unless they
first believed in Christ.
In Isaiah: "And if ye will not believe, neither will ye
understand."[18] Also the Lord in the Gospel: "For if ye believe not that I
am He, ye shall die in your sins."[19] Moreover, that righteousness should
subsist by faith, and that in it was life, was predicted in Habakkuk: "Now
the just shall live by faith of me."[1] Hence Abraham, the father of the
nations, believed; in Genesis: "Abraham believed in God, and it was counted
unto him for righteousness."[2] In like manner, Paul to the Galatians:
"Abraham believed in God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Ye
know, therefore, that they which are of faith, the same are children of
Abraham. But the Scripture, foreseeing that God justifieth the heathens by
faith, foretold to Abraham that all nations should be blessed in him.
Therefore they who are of faith are blessed[3] with faithful Abraham."[4]
6. That the Jews should lose Jerusalem, and should leave the land which
they had received.
In Isaiah: "Your country is desolate, your cities are burned with fire:
your land, strangers shall devour it in your sight; and the daughter of
Zion shall be left deserted, and overthrown by foreign peoples, as a
cottage in a vineyard, and as a keeper's lodge in a garden of cucumbers, as
a city which is besieged. And unless the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a
seed, we should have been as Sodoma, and we should have been like unto
Gomorrah."[5] Also in the Gospel the Lord says: "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, that
killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee, how often
would I have gathered thy children as a hen gathereth her chickens under
her wings, and thou wouldst not! Behold, your house shall be left unto you
desolate."[6]
7. Also that they should lose the Light of the Lord.
In Isaiah: "Come ye, and let us walk in the light of the Lord. For He
hath sent away His people, the house of Israel."[7] In His Gospel also,
according to John: "That was the true light which lighteth every man that
cometh into this world. He was in this world, and the world was made by
Him, and the world knew Him not."[8] Moreover, in the same place: "He that
believeth not is judged already, because he hath not believed in the name
of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the judgment, that light is
come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light." [9]
8. That the first circumcision of the flesh is made void, and the second
circumcision of the spirit is promised instead.
In Jeremiah: "Thus saith the Lord to the men of Judah, and to them who
inhabit Jerusalem, Renew newness among you, and do not sow among thorns:
circumcise yourselves to your God, and circumcise the foreskin of your
heart; lest my anger go forth like fire, and burn you up, and there be none
to extinguish it."[10] Also Moses says: "In the last days God will
circumcise thy heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the Lord thy
God."[11] Also in Jesus the son of Nave: "And the Lord said unto Jesus,
Make thee small knives of stone, very sharp, and set about to circumcise
the children of Israel for the second time."[12] Paul also, to the
Colossians: "Ye are circumcised with the circumcision not made with hands
in the putting off of the flesh, but with the circumcision of Christ."[13]
Also, because Adam was first made by God uncircumcised, and righteous Abel,
and Enoch, who pleased God and was translated; and Noah, who, when the
world and men were perishing on account of transgressions, was chosen
alone, that in him the human race might be preserved; and Melchizedek, the
priest according to whose order Christ was promised. Then, because that
sign did not avail women,[14] but all are sealed by the sign of the Lord.
9. That the former law which was given by Moses was to cease.
In Isaiah: "Then shall they be manifest who seal the law, that they may
not learn; and he shall say, I wait upon the Lord, who turneth away His
face from the house of Jacob, and I shall trust in Him."[15] In the Gospel
also: "All the prophets and the law prophesied until John."[16]
10. That a new law was to be given.
In Micah: "For the law shall go forth out of Sion, and the word of the
Lord from Jerusalem. And He shall judge among many peoples, and He shall
subdue and uncover strong nations."[17] Also in Isaiah: "For from Sion
shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem; and He
shall judge among the nations."[18] Likewise in the Gospel according to
Matthew: "And behold a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved
Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye Him."[19]
11. That another dispensation and a new covenant was to be given.
In Jeremiah: "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, and I will
complete for the house of Israel, and for the house of Judah, a new
testament, not according to the testament which I ordered with their
fathers in that day in which I took hold of their hands to bring them out
of the land of Egypt, because they remained not in my testament, and I
disregarded them, saith the Lord: Because this is the testament which will
establish with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord: I will
give them my laws, and into their minds I will write them; and I will be to
them for a God, and they shall be to me for a people; and they shall not
teach every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me,
from the least even to the greatest of them: for I will be merciful to
their iniquities, and will no more be mindful of their sins."[1]
12. That the old baptism should cease, and a new one should begin.
In Isaiah: "Therefore remember ye not the former things, neither
reconsider the ancient things. Behold, I make new the things which shall
now arise, and ye shall know it; and I will make in the desert a way, and
rivers in a dry place, to give drink to my chosen race, my people whom I
acquired, that they should show forth my praises."[2] In the same also: "If
they thirst, He will lead them through the deserts; He will bring forth
water from the rock; the rock shall be cloven, and the water shall flow:
and my people shall drink."[3] Moreover, in the Gospel according to
Matthew, John says: "I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but
He that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to
bear; He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire."[4] Also
according to John: "Except a man be born of water, and of the Spirit, he
cannot enter into the kingdom of God. For that which is born of the flesh
is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit."[5]
13. That the old yoke should be made void, and a new yoke should be given.
In the second Psalm: "For what purpose have the heathen raged, and the
people imagined vain things? The kings of the earth stood up, and the
rulers have gathered together against the Lord, and against His Christ.
Let us break their bonds asunder, and cast away their yoke from us."[6]
Likewise in the Gospel according to Matthew, the Lord says: "Come unto me,
all ye that labour and are burdened, and I will cause you to rest. Take my
yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye
shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is excellent, and my burden is
light."[7] In Jeremiah: "In that day I will shatter the yoke from their
neck, and will burst their fetters; and they shall not labour for others,
but they shall labour for the Lord God; and I will raise up David a king
unto them."[8]
14. That the old pastors should cease and new ones begin.
In Ezekiel: "Wherefore thus saith the Lord, Behold, I am above the
shepherds; and I will require my sheep from their hands, and I will turn
them away from feeding my sheep; and they shall feed them no more, and I
will deliver my sheep from their mouth, and I will feed them with
judgment."[9] In Jeremiah the Lord says: "And I will give you shepherds
according to my own heart, and they shall feed you with the food of
discipline."[10] In Jeremiah, moreover: "Hear the word of the Lord, ye
nations, and tell it to the islands which are afar off. Say, He that
scattereth Israel will gather him, and will keep him as a shepherd his
flock: for the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and taken him out from the hand of
him that was stronger than he."[11]
15. That Christ should be the house and temple of God, and that the old
temple should cease, and the new one should begin.
In the second book of Kings: "And the word of the Lord came to Nathan,
saying, Go and tell my servant David, Thus saith the Lord, Thou shall not
build me an house to dwell in; but it shall be, when thy days shall be
fulfilled, and thou shall sleep with thy fathers, I will raise up thy seed
after thee, which shall come from thy bowels, and I will make ready his
kingdom. He shall build me an house in my name, and I will raise up his
throne for ever; and I will be to him for a father, and he shall be to me
for a son: and his house shall obtain confidence, and his kingdom for
evermore in my sight."[12] Also in the Gospel the Lord says: "There shall
not be left in the temple one stone upon another that shall not be thrown
down."[13] And "After three days another shall be raised up without
hands."[14]
16. That the ancient sacrifice should be made void, and a new one should be
celebrated.
In Isaiah: "For what purpose to me is the multitude of your sacrifices?
saith the Lord: I am full; I will not have the burnt sacrifices of rams,
and fat of lambs, and blood of bulls and goats. For who hath required these
things from your hands?"[1] Also in the forty-ninth Psalm: "I will not eat
the flesh of bulls, nor drink the blood of goats. Offer to God the
sacrifice of praise, and pay your vows to the Most High. Call upon me in
the day of trouble, and I will deliver thee: and thou shall glorify me."[2]
In the same Psalm, moreover: "The sacrifice of praise shall glorify me:
therein is the way in which I will show him the salvation of God."[3] In
the fourth Psalm too: "Sacrifice the sacrifice of righteousness, and hope
in the Lord."[4] Likewise in Malachi: "I have no pleasure concerning you,
saith the Lord, and I will not have an accepted offering from your hands.
Because from the rising of the sun, even unto the going down of the same,
my name is glorified among the Gentiles; and in every place odours of
incense are offered to my name, and a pure sacrifice, because great is my
name among the nations, saith the Lord."[5]
17. That the old priesthood should cease, and a new priest should come, who
should be for ever.
In the cixth Psalm: "Before the morning star I begat thee. The Lord
hath sworn, and He will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever, after the
order of Melchizedek."[6] Also in the first book of Kings, God says to the
priest Eli: "And I will raise up to me a faithful priest, who shall do all
things which are in my heart: and I will build him a sure house; and he
shall pass in the presence of my anointed ones for all days. And it shall
be, whosoever shall remain in thine house, shall come to worship for an
obolus of money, and for one loaf of bread."[7]
18. That another Prophet such as Moses was promised, to wit, one who should
give a new testament, and who rather ought to be heard.
In Deuteronomy God said to Moses: "And the Lord said to me, A Prophet
will I raise up to them from among their brethren, such as thee, and I will
give my word in His mouth; and He shall speak unto them that which I shall
command Him. And whosoever shall not hear whatsoever things that Prophet
shall speak in my name, I will avenge it."[8] Concerning whom also Christ
says in the Gospel according to John: "Search the Scriptures, in which ye
think ye have eternal life. These are they which set forth testimony
concerning me; and ye will not come to me, that ye might have life. Do not
think that I accuse you to the Father: there is one that accuseth you, even
Moses, on whom ye hope. For if ye had believed Moses, ye would also believe
me: for he wrote of me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye
believe my words?"[9]
19. That two peoples were foretold, the eider and the younger; that is, the
old people of the Jews, and the new one which should consist of us.
In Genesis: "And the Lord said unto Rebekah, Two nations are in thy
womb, and two peoples shall be separated from thy belly; and the one people
shall overcome the other people; and the elder shall serve the
younger."[10] Also in Hosea: "I will call them my people that are not my
people, and her beloved that was not beloved. For it shall be, in that
place in which it shall be called not my people, they shall be called the
sons of the living God."[11]
20. That the Church which before had been barren should have more children
from among the Gentiles than what the synagogue had had before.
In Isaiah: "Rejoice, thou barren, that bar-est not; and break forth and
cry, thou that travailest not: because many more are the children of the
desolate one than of her who hath an husband. For the Lord hath said,
Enlarge the place of thy tabernacle, and of thy curtains, and fasten them:
spare not, make long thy measures, and strengthen thy stakes: stretch forth
yet to thy right hand and to thy left hand; and thy seed shall possess the
nations, and shall inhabit the deserted cities. Fear not; because thou
shalt overcome: nor be afraid because thou art cursed; for thou shalt
forget thy eternal confusion."[12] Thus also to Abraham, when his former
son was born of a bond-woman, Sarah remained long barren; and late in old
age bare her son Isaac, of promise, who was the type of Christ. Thus also
Jacob received two wives: the eider Leah, with weak eyes, a type of the
synagogue; the younger the beautiful Rachel, a type of the Church, who also
remained long barren, and afterwards brought forth Joseph, who also was
himself a type of Christ. And in the first of Kings it is said that Elkanah
had two wives: Peninnah, with her sons; and Hannah, barren, from whom is
born Samuel, not according to the order of generation, but according to the
mercy and promise of God, when she had prayed in the temple; and Samuel
being born, was a type of Christ. Also in the first book of Kings: "The
barren hath borne seven and she that had many children has grown weak."[1]
But the seven children are the seven churches. Whence also Paul wrote to
seven churches; and the Apocalypse sets forth seven churches, that the
number seven may be preserved; as the seven days in which God made the
world; as the seven angels who stand and go in and out before the face of
God, as Raphael the angel says in Tobit; and the sevenfold lamp in the
tabernacle of witness; and the seven eyes of God, which keep watch over the
world; and the stone with seven eyes, as Zechariah says; and the seven
spirits; and the seven candlesticks in the Apocalypse; and the seven
pillars upon which Wisdom hath builded her house in Solomon.
21. That the Gentiles should rather believe in Christ.
In Genesis: "And the Lord God said unto Abraham, Go out from thy
country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, and go into
that land which I shall show thee: and I will make of thee a great nation,
and I will bless thee, and I will magnify thy name; and thou shalt be
blessed: and I will bless him that blesseth thee, and I will curse him that
curseth thee. and in thee shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed."[2]
On this same point in Genesis: "And Isaac blessed Jacob.[3] Behold, the
smell of my son is as the smell of a plentiful field which the Lord hath
blessed: and God give thee of the dew of heaven, and of the fertility of
the earth, abundance of corn, and wine, and oil: and peoples shall obey
thee, and princes shall worship thee: and thou shalt be lord over thy
brother, and the sons of thy father shall worship thee; and he that curseth
thee shall be cursed, and he that blesseth thee shall be blessed."[4] On
this matter too in Genesis: "But when Joseph saw that his father placed his
right hand on the head of Ephraim, it seemed displeasing to him: and Joseph
laid hold of his father's hand, to lift it from the head of Ephraim on to
the head of Manasseh. Moreover, Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my
father: this is my first-born; place thy right hand upon his head. But he
would not, and said, I know it, my son, I know it: and he also shall be a
people, and he shall be exalted; but his younger brother shall be greater
than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of nations."[5] Moreover in
Genesis: "Judah, thy brethren shall praise thee: thine hand shall be upon
the back of thine enemies; the sons of thy father shall worship thee. Judah
is a lion's whelp: from the slender twig,[6] my son, thou hast ascended:
thou layedst down and sleepedst as a lion, and as a lion's whelp. Who shall
stir him up? There shalt not fail a prince from Judah, and a leader from
his loins, until those things entrusted to him shall come; and he is the
hope of the nations: binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass's colt
unto the branch of the vine;[7] he shall wash his garments in wine, and his
clothing in the blood of the grape: terrible are his eyes with wine, and
his teeth are whiter than milky,"[8] Hence in Numbers it is written
concerning our people: "Behold, the people shall rise up as a lion-like
people."[9] In Deuteronomy: "Ye Gentiles shall be for the head; but this
unbelieving people shall be for the tail."[10] Also in Jeremiah: "Hear the
sound of the trumpet. And they said, We will not hear: for this cause the
nations shall hear, and they who shall feed their cattle among them."[11]
In the seventeenth Psalm: "Thou shalt establish me the head of the nations:
a people whom I have not known have served me: at the hearing of the ear
they have obeyed me."[12] Concerning this very thing the Lord says in
Jeremiah: "Before I formed thee in the belly, I knew thee; and before thou
wentest forth from the womb, I sanctified thee, and established thee as a
prophet among the nations."[13] Also in Isaiah: "Behold, I have manifested
him for a witness to the nations, a prince and a commander to the
peoples."[14] Also in the same: "Nations which have not known Thee shall
call upon Thee; and peoples which were ignorant of Thee shall flee to
Thee."[15] In the same, moreover: "And in that day there shall be a root of
Jesse, which shall rise to rule in all the nations; in Him shall the
Gentiles hope: and His rest shall be honour."[1] In the same again: "The
land of Zebulon, and the land of Nephtalim, by the way of the sea, and ye
others who inhabit the maritime places, and beyond Jordan[2] of the
nations. People that walk in darkness, behold yea great light; ye who dwell
in the region of the shadow of death, the light shall shine upon you."[3]
Also in the same: "Thus saith the Lord God to Christ my Lord, whose right
hand I hold, that the nations may hear Him; and I will break asunder the
strength of kings, I will open before Him gates; and cities shall not be
shut."[4] Also in the same: "I come to gather together all nations and
tongues; and they shall come, and see my glory. And I will send out over
them a standard, and I will send those that are preserved among them to the
nations which are afar off, which have not heard my name nor seen my glory;
and they shall declare my glory to the nations."[5] Also in the same: "And
in all these things they are not converted; therefore He shall lift up a
standard to the nations which are afar, and He will draw them from the end
of the earth."[6] Also in the same: "Those who had not been told of Him
shall see, and they who have not heard shall understand."[7] Also in the
same: "I have been made manifest to those who seek me not: I have been
formal of those who asked not after me. I said, Lo, here am I, to a nation
that has not called upon my! name."[8] Of this same thing, in the Acts of
the Apostles, Paul says: "It was necessary that the word of God should
first be shown to you; but since ye put it from you, and judged yourselves
unworthy of eternal life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles: for thus said the
Lord by the Scriptures, Behold, I have set Thee a light among the nations,
that Thou shouldest be for salvation even to the ends of the earth."[9]
22. That the Jews would lose while we should receive the bread and the cup
of Christ and all His grace, and that the new name of Christians should be
blessed in the earth.
In Isaiah: "Thus saith the Lord, Behold, they who serve me shall eat,
but ye shall be hungry: behold, they who serve me shall drink, but ye shall
be thirsty:[10] behold, they who serve me shall rejoice, but ye shall be
confounded; the Lord shall slay you. But to those who serve me a new name
shall be named, which shall be blessed in the earth."[11] Also in the same
place: "Therefore shall He lift up an ensign to the nations which are afar
off, and He will draw them from the end of the earth; and, behold, they
shall come swiftly with lightness; they shall not hunger nor thirst."[12]
Also in the same place: "Behold, therefore, the Ruler, the Lord of Sabaoth,
shall take away from Judah and from Jerusalem the healthy man and the
strong man, the strength of bread and the strength of water."[13] Likewise
in the thirty-third Psalm: "O taste and see how sweet is the Lord. Blessed
is the man that hopeth in Him. Fear the Lord God, all ye His saints: for
there is no want to them that fear Him. Rich men have wanted and have
hungered; but they who seek the Lord shall never want any good thing."[14]
Moreover, in the Gospel according to John, the Lord says: "I am the bread
of life: he that cometh to me shall not hunger, and he that trusteth in me
shall never thirst."[15] Likewise He saith in that place: "If any one
thirst, let him come and drink. He that believeth on me, as the Scripture
saith, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water."[16] Moreover,
He says in the same place: "Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and
drink His blood, ye shall have no life in you."[17]
23. That the Gentiles rather than the Jews attain to the kingdom of heaven.
In the Gospel the Lord says: "Many shall come from the east and from
the west, and shall lie down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the
kingdom of heaven; but the children of the kingdom shall go out into outer
darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."[18]
24. That by this alone the Jews can receive pardon of their sins, if they
wash away the blood of Christ slain, in His baptism, and, passing over into
His Church, obey His precepts.
In Isaiah the Lord says: "Now I will not release your sins. When ye
stretch forth your hands, I will turn away my face from you; and if ye
multiply prayers, I will not hear you: for your hands are full of blood.
Wash you, make you clean; take away the wickedness from your souls from the
sight of mine eyes; cease from your wickedness; learn to do good; seek
judgment; keep him who suffers wrong; judge for the orphan, and justify the
widow. And come, let us reason together, saith the Lord: and although your
sins be as scarlet, I will whiten[1] them as snow; and although they were
as crimson, I will whiten[2] them as wool. And if ye be willing and listen
to me, ye shall eat of the good of the land; but if ye be unwilling, and
will not hear me, the sword shall consume you; for the mouth of the Lord
hath spoken these things."[3]
SECOND BOOK.
HEADS.
1. That Christ is the First-born, and that He is the Wisdom of God, by
whom all things were made.
2. That Christ is the Wisdom of God; and about the sacrament of His
incarnation, and passion, and cup, and altar, and the apostles who were
sent and preached.
3. That Christ also is Himself the Word of God.
4. That the same Christ is God's hand and arm.
5. That the same is Angel and God.
6. That Christ is God.
7. That Christ our God should come as the Illuminator and Saviour of
the human race.
8. That although from the beginning He had been Son of God, He had yet
to be begotten again according to the flesh.
9. That this should be the sign of His nativity, that He should be born
of a virgin--man and God--Son of man and of God.
10. That Christ is man and God, compounded of either nature, that He
might be a mediator between us and the Father.
11. That He was to be born of the seed of David after the flesh.
12. That He should be born in Bethlehem.
13. That He should come in lowly condition on His first advent.
14. That He was the righteous One whom the Jews should put to death.
15. That He was called a Sheep and a Lamb who would have to be slain,
and concerning the sacrament of the passion.
16. That He is also called a Stone.
17. That subsequently that stone should become a mountain, and should
fill the whole earth.
18. That in the last times the same mountain t should be manifested,
upon which the Gentiles t should come, and on which the righteous should
go up.
19. That He is the Bridegroom, having the Church as His bride, from
whom children should be spiritually born.
20. That the Jews should fasten Him to the Cross.
21. That in the passion and the sign of the cross is all virtue and
power.
22. That in this sign of the cross is salvation for all who are marked
on their foreheads.
23. That at mid-day, during His passion, there should be darkness.
24. That He should not be overcome of death, nor should remain in hell.
25. That He should rise again from hell on the third day.
26. That when He had risen, He should receive from His Father all
power, and His power should be eternal.
27. That it is impossible to attain to God the Father, except through
the Son Jesus Christ.
28. That He is to come as a Judge.
29. That He is to reign as a King for ever. 30. That He is both Judge
and King.
TESTIMONIES.
1. That Christ is the First-born, and that He is the Wisdom of God, by whom
all things were made.
In Solomon in the Proverbs: "The Lord established[4] me in the
beginning of His ways, into His works: before the world He rounded me. In
the beginning, before He made the earth, and before He appointed the
abysses, before the fountains of waters gushed forth, before the mountains
were settled, before all the hills, the Lord begot me. He made the
countries, and the uninhabitable places, and the uninhabitable bounds under
heaven. When He prepared the heaven, I was present with Him; and when He
set apart His seat. When He made the strong clouds above the winds, and
when He placed the strengthened fountains under heaven, when He made the
mighty foundations of the earth, I was by His side, ordering them: I was He
in whom He delighted: moreover, I daily rejoiced before His face in all
time, when He rejoiced in the perfected earth."[5] Also in the same in
Ecclesiasticus: "I went forth out of the mouth of the Most High, first-born
before every creature: I made the unwearying light to rise in the heavens,
and I covered the whole earth with a cloud: I dwelt in the high places, and
my throne in the pillar of the cloud: I compassed the circle of heaven, and
I penetrated into the depth of the abyss, and I walked on the waves of the
sea, and I stood in all the earth; and in every people and in every nation
I had the pre-eminence, and by my own strength I have trodden the hearts of
all the excellent and the humble: in me is all hope of life and virtue:
pass over to me, all ye who desire me."[1] Also in the eighty-eighth Psalm:
"And I will establish Him as my first-born, the highest among the kings of
the earth. I will keep my mercy for Him for ever, and my faithful covenant
for Him; and I will establish his seed for ever and ever. If his children
forsake my law, and walk not in my judgments; if they profane my judgments,
and do not observe my precepts, I will visit their wickednesses with a rod,
and their sins with scourges; but my mercy will I not scatter away from
them."[2] Also in the Gospel according to John, the Lord says: "And this is
life eternal, that they should know Thee, the only and true God, and Jesus
Christ, whom Thou hast sent. I have glorified Thee on the earth: I have
finished the work which Thou gavest me to do. And now, do Thou glorify me
with Thyself, with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was
made."[3] Also Paul to the Colossians: "Who is the image of the invisible
God, and the first-born of every creature."[4] Also in the same place: "The
first-born from the dead, that He might in all things become the holder of
the pre-eminence."[5] In the Apocalypse too: "I am Alpha and Omega, the
beginning and the end. I will give unto Him that is thirsting from the
fountain of the water of life freely."[6] That He also is both the wisdom
and the power of God, Paul proves in his first Epistle to the Corinthians.
"Because the Jews require a sign, and the Creeks seek after wisdom: but we
preach Christ crucified, to the Jews indeed a stumbling-block, and to the
Gentiles foolishness; but to them that are called, both Jews and Greeks,
Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God."[7]
2. That Christ is the Wisdom of God; and concerning the sacrament of His
incarnation and of His passion, and cup and altar; and of the apostles who
were sent, and preached.
In Solomon in the Proverbs: "Wisdom hath builded herself an house, and
she has placed under it seven pillars; she has slain her victims; she hath
mingled her wine in the goblet, and hath made ready her table,[8] and hath
sent her servants, calling with a loud announcement to the cup, saying, Let
him who is foolish turn to me: and to them that want understanding she has
said, Come, eat of my loaves, and drink the wine which I have mingled for
you. Forsake foolishness, and seek wisdom, and correct knowledge by
understanding."[9]
3. That the same Christ is the Word of God.
In the forty-fourth Psalm: "My heart hath breathed out a good Word. I
tell my works to the King."[10] Also in the thirty-second Psalm: "By the
Word of God were the heavens made fast; and all their strength by the
breath of His mouth."[11] Also in Isaiah: "A Word completing and shortening
in righteousness, because a shortened word will God make in the whole
earth."[12] Also in the cvith Psalm: "He sent His Word, and healed
them."[13] Moreover, in the Gospel according to John: "In the beginning was
the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word. The same was in
the beginning with God. All things were made by Him, and without Him was
nothing made that was made. In Him was life; and the life was the light of
men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it
not."[14] Also in the Apocalypse: "And I saw the heaven opened, and lo, a
white horse; and he who sate upon him was called Faithful and True, judging
rightly and justly; and He made war. And He was covered with a garment
sprinkled with blood; and His name is called the Word of God."[15]
4. That Christ is the Hand and Arm of God.[16]
In Isaiah: "Is God's Hand not strong to save? or has He made His ear
heavy, that He cannot hear? But your sins separate between you and God;
anti on account of your sins He turns His face away from you, that He may
not pity. For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with
sins. Moreover, your lips have spoken wickedness, and your tongue meditates
unrighteousness. No one speaketh truth, nor is there true judgment: they
trust in vanity, and speak emptiness, who conceive sorrow, and bring forth
wickedness."[17] Also in the same place: "Lord, who hath believed our
report? and to whom is the Arm of God revealed?"[18] Also in the same:
"Thus saith the Lord, Heaven is my throne, and the earth is the support of
my feet. What house will ye build unto me? or what is the place for my
rest? For all these things hath mine hand made."[1] Also in the same: "O
Lord God, Thine Arm is high, and they knew it not; but when they know it,
they shall be confounded."[2] Also in the same: "The Lord hath revealed His
Arab that holy Arm, in the sight of all nations; all nations, even the ends
of the earth, shall see salvation from God."[3] Also in the same place:
"Behold, I have made thee as the wheels of a thrashing chariot, new and
turned back upon themselves;"[4] and thou shalt thrash the mountains, and
shalt beat the bills small, and shalt make them as chaff, and shall winnow
them; and the wind shall seize them, and the whirlwind shall scatter them:
but thou shall rejoice in the saints of Israel; and the poor and needy
shall exult. For they shall seek water, and there shall be none. For their
tongue shall be dry for thirst. I the Lord God, I the God of Israel, will
hear them, and will not forsake them; but I will open rivers in the
mountains, and fountains in the midst of the fields. I will make the
wildernesses watery groves, and a thirsty land into watercourses. I will
establish in the land of drought the cedar-tree and the box-tree, and the
myrtle and the cypress, and the elm[5] and the poplar, that they may see
and acknowledge, and know and believe together, that the Hand of the Lord
hath done these things, and the Holy One of Israel hath shown them."[6]
5. That Christ is at once Angel and God.[7]
In Genesis, to Abraham: "And the Angel of the Lord called him from
heaven, and said unto him, Abraham, Abraham! And he said, Here am I. And He
said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou anything unto him.
For now I know that thou fearest thy God, and hast not spared thy son, thy
beloved son, for my sake."[8] Also in the same place, to Jacob: "And the
Angel of the Lord spake unto me in dreams, I am God, whom thou sawest in
the place of God[9] where thou anointedst me a pillar of stone, and vowedst
to me a vow."[10] Also in Exodus: "But God went before them by day indeed
in a pillar of cloud, to show them the way; and by night in a pillar of
fire."[11] And afterwards, in the same place: "And the Angel of God moved
forward, which went before the army of the children of Israel."[12] Also in
the same place: "Lo, I send my Angel before thy face, to keep thee in the
way, that He may lead thee into the land which I have prepared for thee.
Observe Him, and obey Him, and be not disobedient to Him, and He will not
be wanting to thee. For my Name is in Him."[13] Whence He Himself says in
the Gospel: "I came in the name of my Father, and ye received me not. When
another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive."[14] And again in
the cxviith Psalm: "Blessed is He who cometh in the name of the Lord."[15]
Also in Malachi: "My covenant of life and peace was with Levi;[16] and I
gave him fear, that he should fear me, that he should go from the face of
my name. The law of truth was in his mouth, and unrighteousness was not
found in his lips. In the peace of the tongue correcting, he walked with
us, and turned many away from unrighteousness. Because the lips of the
priests shall keep knowledge, and they shall seek the law at His mouth; for
He is the Angel of the Almighty."[17]
6. That Christ is God.
In Genesis: "And God said unto Jacob, Arise, and go up to the place of
Bethel, and dwell there; and make there an altar to that God who appeared
unto thee when thou reddest from the face of thy brother Esau."[18] Also in
Isaiah: "Thus saith the Lord, the God of Sabaoth, Egypt is wearied; and the
merchandise of the Ethiopians, and the tall men of the Sabeans, shall pass
over unto Thee, and shall be Thy servants; and shall walk after Thee bound
with chains; and shall worship Thee, and shall pray to Thee, because God is
in Thee, and there is no other God beside Thee. For Thou art God, and we
knew it not, O God of Israel, our Saviour. They shall all be confounded and
fear who oppose Thee, and shall fall into confusion."[19] Likewise in the
same: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the
Lord, make straight the paths of our God. Every channel shall be filled up,
and every mountain and bill shall be made low, and all crooked places
shall be made straight, and rough places plain; and the glory of the Lord
shall be seen, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God, because the
Lord hath spoken it."[20] Moreover, in Jeremiah: This is our God, and no
other shall be esteemed beside Him, who hath found all the way of
knowledge, and hath given it to Jacob His son, and to Israel His beloved.
After this He was seen upon earth, and He conversed with men."[1] Also in
Zechariah God says: "And they shall cross over through the narrow sea, and
they shall smite the waves in the sea, and they shall dry up all the depths
of the rivers; and all the haughtiness of the Assyrians shall be
confounded, and the sceptre of Egypt shall be taken away. And I will
strengthen them in the Lord their God, and in His name shall they glory,
saith the Lord."[2] Moreover, in Hosea the Lord saith: "I will not do
according to the anger of mine indignation, I will not allow Ephraim to be
destroyed: for I am God, and there is not a holy man in thee: and I will
not enter into the city; I will go after God." [3] Also in the forty-fourth
Psalm: "Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: the sceptre of
righteousness is the sceptre of Thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness,
and hated iniquity: wherefore God, Thy God, hath anointed Thee with the oil
of gladness above Thy fellows."[4] So, too, in the forty-fifth Psalm: "Be
still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, and I
will be exalted in the earth."[5] Also in the eighty-first Psalm: "They
have not known, neither have they understood: they will walk on in
darkness."[6] Also in the sixty-seventh Psalm: "Sing unto God, sing praises
unto His name: make a way for Him who goeth up into the west: God is His
name."[7] Also in the Gospel according to John: "In the beginning was the
Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word."[8] Also in the
same: "The Lord said to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my
hands: and be not faithless, but believing. Thomas answered and said unto
Him, My Lord and my God. Jesus saith unto him, Because thou hast seen me,
thou hast believed: blessed are they who have not seen, and yet have
believed."[9] Also Paul to the Romans: "I could wish that I myself were
accursed from Christ for my brethren and my kindred according to the flesh:
who are Israel-ires: whose are the adoption, and the glory, and the
covenant, and the appointment of the law, and the service (of God), and the
promises; whose are the fathers, of whom, according to the flesh, Christ
came, who is God over all, blessed for evermore."[10] Also in the
Apocalypse: "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end I will give to
him that is athirst, of the fountain of living water freely. He that
overcometh shall possess these things, and their inheritance; and I will be
his God, and he shall be my son."[11] Also in the eighty-first Psalm: "God
stood in the congregation of gods, and judging gods in the midst."[12] And
again in the same place: "I have said, Ye are gods; and ye are all the
children of the Highest: but ye shall die like men." [13] But if they who
have been righteous, and have obeyed the divine precepts, may be called
gods, how much more is Christ, the Son of God, God! Thus He Himself says in
the Gospel according to John: "Is it not written in the law, that I said,
Ye are gods? If He called them gods to whom the word of God was given, and
the Scripture cannot be relaxed, do ye say to Him whom the Father hath
sanctified and sent into the world, that thou blasphemest, because I said,
I am the Son of God? But if I do not the works of my Father, believe me
not; but if I do, and ye will not believe me, believe the works, and know
that the Father is in me, and I in Him."[14] Also in the Gospel according
to Matthew: "And ye shall call His name Emmanuel, which is, being
interpreted, God with us."[15]
7. That Christ our God should come, the Enlightener and Saviour of the
human race.
In Isaiah: "Be comforted, ye weakened hands; and ye weak knees, be
strengthened. Ye who are of a timorous heart, fear not. Our God will
recompense judgment, He Himself will come, and will save us. Then shall be
opened the eves of the blind, and the ears of the deaf shall hear. Then the
lame man shall leap as a stag, and the tongue of the dumb shall be
intelligible; because in the wilderness the water is broken forth, and the
stream in the thirsty land."[16] Also in that place: "Not an elder nor an
angel, but the Lord Himself shall deliver them; because He shall love them,
and shall spare them, and He Himself shall redeem them.[17] Also in the
same place: "I the Lord God have called Thee in righteousness, that I may
hold Thine hand, and I will comfort Thee; and I have given Thee for a
covenant of my people, for a light of the nations; to open the eyes of the
blind, to bring forth them that are bound from chains, and those who sit in
darkness from the prison-house. I am the Lord God, that is my name. I will
not: give any glory to another, nor my powers to given images."[18] Also in
the twenty-fourth Psalm: "Show me Thy ways, 0 Lord, and teach me Thy paths,
and lead me unto Thy truth, and teach me; for Thou art the God of my
salvation."[1] Whence, in the Gospel according to John, the Lord says: "I
am the light of the world. He that will follow me shall not walk in
darkness, but shall have the light of life."[2] Moreover, in that according
to Matthew, the angel Gabriel says to Joseph: "Joseph, thou son of David,
fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife. For that which shall be born to
her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt
call His name Jesus; for He shall save His people from their sins."[3] Also
in that according to Luke: "And Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost,
and prophesied, saying, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who hath
foreseen redemption for His people, and hath raised up an horn of salvation
for us in the house of His servant David."[4] Also in the same. place, the
angel said to the shepherds: "Fear not; for, behold, I bring you tidings
that unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is
Christ Jesus."[5]
8. That although from the beginning He had been the Son of God, yet He had
to be begotten again according to the flesh.
In the second Psalm: "The Lord said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day
have I begotten Thee. Ask of me, and I will give Thee the nations for
Thine inheritance, and the bounds of the earth for Thy possession."[6] Also
in the Gospel according to Luke: "And it came to pass, when Elisabeth
heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and she was
filled with the Holy Ghost, and she cried out with a loud voice, and said,
Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And
whence does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to
me?"[7] Also Paul to the Galatians: "But when the fulness of the time was
come, God sent His Son, horn of a woman."[8] Also in the Epistle of John:
"Every spirit which confesses that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of
God. But whosoever denies that He is come in the flesh is not of God, but
is of the spirit of Antichrist."[9]
9. That this should be the sign of His nativity, that He should be born of
a virgin--man and God--a son of man and a Son of God.
In Isaiah: "And the Lord went on to speak to Ahaz, saying, Ask thee a
sign from the Lord thy God, in the height above and in the depth below.
And Ahaz said, I will not ask, and I will not tempt the Lord my God. And He
said, Hear ye, therefore, O house of David: it is no trifling contest unto
you with men, since God supplies the struggle. On this account God Himself
will give you a sign. Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and shall bear a
son, and ye shall call His name Emmanuel. Butter and honey shall He eat;
before that He knows to prefer the evil, He shall exchange the good."[10]
This seed God had foretold would proceed from the woman that should trample
on the head of the devil. In Genesis: "Then God said unto the serpent,
Because thou hast done this, cursed art thou from every kind of the beasts
of the earth. Upon thy breast and thy belly shalt thou crawl, and earth
shall be thy food all the days of thy life. And I will place enmity between
thee and the woman and her seed. He shall regard thy head, and thou shalt
watch his heel."[11]
10. That Christ is both man and God, compounded of both natures, that He
might be a Mediator between us and the Father.
In Jeremiah: "And He is man, and who shall know Him?[12] Also in
Numbers: "A Star shall arise out of Jacob, and a man shall rise up from
Israel."[13] Also in the same place: "A Man shall go forth out of his
seed,[14] and shall rule over many nations; and His kingdom shall be
exalted as Gog,[15] and His kingdom shall be increased; and God brought Him
forth out of Egypt. His glory is as of the unicorn, and He shall eat the
nations of His enemies, and shall take out the marrow of their fatnesses,
and will pierce His enemy with His arrows. He couched and lay down as a
lion, and as a lion's whelp. Who shall raise Him up? Blessed are they who
bless Thee, and cursed are they who curse Thee."[16] Also in Isaiah: "The
Spirit of the Lord is upon me; on account whereof He hath anointed me: He
hath sent me to tell good tidings to the poor; to heal the bruised in
heart, to preach deliverance to the captives, and sight to the blind, to
proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of retribution."[17]
Whence, in the Gospel according to Luke, Gabriel says to Mary: "And the
angel, answering, said to her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the
power of the Highest shall overshadow thee. Wherefore that holy thing which
is born of thee shall be called the Son of God."[1] Also in the first
Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: "The first man is of the mud[2] of the
earth; the second man is from heaven. As was he from the soil, such are
they also that are of the earth; and as is the heavenly, such also are the
heavenly. As we have borne the image of him who is of the earth, let us
also bear the image of Him who is from heaven."[3]
11. That Christ was to be born of the seed of David, according to the
flesh.
In the second of Kings: "And the word of the Lord came to Nathan,
saying, Go and tell my servant David, Thus saith the Lord, Thou shall not
build me an house to dwell in; but it shall come to pass, when thy days
shall be fulfilled, and thou shall sleep with thy fathers, I will raise up
thy seed after thee who shall come from thy loins, and I will establish His
kingdom. He shall build me a house in my name, and I will set up His throne
for ever; and I will be to; Him a Father, and He shall be to me a Son; and
His house shall obtain confidence, and His kingdom for ever in my
sight."[4] Also in Isaiah: "And a rod shall go forth of the root of Jesse,
and a flower shall go up from his root; and the Spirit of the Lord shall
rest upon Him, the spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the spirit of
counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and piety; and the spirit of the
fear of the Lord shall fill Him."[5] Also in the cxxxist Psalm: "God hath
sworn the truth unto David himself, and He has not repudiated it; of the
fruit of thy belly will I set upon my throne."[6] Also in the Gospel
according to Luke: "And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary. For thou
hast found favour before God. Behold, thou shall conceive, and shalt bring
forth a son, and shalt call His name Jesus. The same shall be great, and He
shall be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God shall give Him the
throne of His father David, and He shall reign over the house of Jacob for
ever, and of His kingdom there shall be no end."[7] Also in the Apocalypse:
"And I saw in the right hand of God, who sate on the throne, a book written
within, and on the back sealed with seven seals; and I saw a strong angel
proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to receive the book, and to
open its seals? Nor was there any one either in heaven or upon the earth,
or under the earth, who was able to open the book, nor even to look into
it. And I wept much because nobody was found worthy to open the book, nor
to look into it. And one of the elders said unto me, Weep not; behold, the
Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the
book, and to loose its seven seals."[8]
12. That Christ should be born in Bethlehem.
In Micah: "And thou, Bethlehem, house of Ephrata, art not little, that
thou shouldst be appointed among the thousands of Judah. Out of thee shall
He come forth to me, that He may be a prince in Israel, and His goings
forth from the beginning from the days of old."[9] Also in the Gospel: "And
when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judah, in the days of Herod the king,
behold, Magi came from the east to Jerusalem, saying, Where is He that is
born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the east, and we have
come with gifts to worship Him."[10]
13. That Christ was to come in low estate in His first advent.
In Isaiah: "Lord, who hath believed our report, and to whom is the Arm
of the Lord revealed? We have declared in His presence as children, as a
root in a thirsty ground. There is no form nor glory in Him; and we saw
Him, and He had no form nor beauty; but His form was without honour, and
lacking beyond other men. He was a man set in a plague, and knowing how to
bear weakness; because His face was turned away, He was dishonoured, and
was not accounted of. He bears our sins, and grieves for us; and we thought
that He was in grief, and in wounding, and in affliction; but He was
wounded for our transgressions, and He was weakened[11] for our sins. The
discipline of our peace was upon Him, and with His bruise we are healed. We
all like sheep have gone astray; than has gone out of his way. And God has
delivered Him for our sins; and He, because He was afflicted, opened not
His mouth."[12] Also in the same: "I am not rebellious, nor do I
contradict. I gave my back to the stripes, and my cheeks to the palms of
the hands. Moreover, I did not turn away my Gee from the foulness of
spitting, and God was my helper."[13] Also in the same: "He shall not cry,
nor will any one hear His voice in the streets. He shall not break a
bruised reed, and a smoking flax He shall not extinguish; but He shall
bring forth judgment in truth. He shall shine forth, and shall not be
shaken, until He set judgment in the earth, and in His name shall the
nations trust."[1] Also in the twenty-first Psalm: "But I am a worm, and no
man; the accursed of man, and the casting away of the people. All they who
saw me despised me, and spoke within their lips, and moved their head. He
hoped in the Lord, let Him deliver him; let Him save him, since he will
have Him."[2] Also in that place: "My strength is dried up like a potsherd,
and my tongue is glued to my jaws."[3] Also in Zechariah: "And the Lord
showed me Jesus, that great priest, standing before the face of the Angel
of the Lord, and the devil was standing at his right hand to oppose him.
And Jesus was clothed in filthy garments, and he stood before the face of
the Angel Himself; and He answered and said to them who were standing
before His face, saying, Take away his filthy garments from him. And he
said to him, Behold, I have taken away thine iniquities. And put upon him a
priestly garment,[4] and set a fair mitre[5] upon his head."[6] Also Paul
to the Philippians: "Who, being established in the form of God, thought it
not robbery that He was equal with God, but emptied Himself, taking the
form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men; and being found in
fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, becoming obedient even unto death,
even the death of the cross. Wherefore also God exalted Him, and gave Him a
name which is above every name, that in the name[7] of Jesus every knee
should bow, of things in heaven, of things in earth, and of infernal
things, and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord in the
glory of God the Father."[8]
14. That He is the righteous One whom the Jews should put to death.
In the Wisdom of Solomon: "Let us lay hold of the righteous, because He
is disagreeable to us, and is contrary to our works, and reproacheth us
with our transgressions of the law.[9] He professeth that He has the
knowledge of God, and calls Himself the Son of God; He has become to us an
exposure of our thoughts; He is grievous unto us even to look upon, because
His life is unlike to others, and His ways are changed. We are esteemed by
Him as frivolous, and He restraineth Himself from our ways, as if from
uncleanness; and He extols the last end of the righteous, and boasts that
He has God for His Father. Let us see, then, if His words are true, and let
us try what will come to Him. Let us interrogate Him with reproach and
torture, that we may know His reverence and prove His patience. Let us
condemn Him with a most shameful death. These things they considered, and
erred. For their maliciousness hath blinded them, and they knew not the
sacraments of God."[10] Also in Isaiah: "See ye how the righteous
perisheth, and no man understandeth; and righteous men are taken away, and
no man regardeth. For the righteous man is taken away froth the face of
nnrighteousness, and his burial shall be in peace."[11] Concerning this
very thing it was before foretold in Exodus: "Thou shalt not slay the
innocent and the righteous."[12] Also in the Gospel: "Judas, led by
penitence, said to the priests and elders, I have sinned, in that I have
betrayed the innocent blood."[13]
15. That Christ is called a sheep and a lamb who was to be slain, and
concerning the sacrament (mystery) of the passion.
In Isaiah: "He was led as a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb
before his shearer is dumb, so He opened not His mouth. In His humiliation
His judgment was taken away: who shall relate His nativity? Because His
life shall i be taken away from the earth. By the transgressions of my
people He was led to death; and I will give the wicked for His burial, and
the rich themselves for His death; because He did no wickedness, nor
deceits with His mouth. Wherefore He shall gain many, and shall divide the
spoils of the strong; because His soul was delivered up to death, and He
was counted among transgressors. And He bare the sins of many, and was
delivered for their offences."[14] Also in Jeremiah: "Lord, give me
knowledge, and I shall know it: then I saw their meditations. I was led
like a lamb without malice to the slaughter; against me they devised a
device, saying, Come, let us cast the tree into His bread,[15] and let us
erase His life from the earth, and His name shall no more be a
remembrance."[16] Also in Exodus God said to Moses: "Let them take to
themselves each man a sheep, through the houses of the tribes, a sheep
without blemish, perfect, male, of a year old it shall be to you. Ye shall
take it from the lambs and from the goats, and all the congregation of the
synagogue of the children of Israel shall kill it in the evening; and they
shall take of its blood, and shall place it upon the two posts,[1] and upon
the threshold in the houses, in the very houses in which they shall eat it.
And they shall eat the flesh on the same night, roasted with fire; and they
shall eat unleavened bread with bitter herbs.[2] Ye shall not eat of them
raw nor dressed in water, but roasted with fire; the head with the feet and
the inward parts. Ye shall leave nothing of them to the morning; and ye
shall not break a bone of it. But what of it shall be left to the morning
shall be burnt with fire. But thus ye shall eat it; your loins girt, and
your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hands; and ye shall eat
it in haste: for it is the Lord's passover."[3] Also in the Apocalypse:
"And I saw in the midst of the throne, and of the four living creatures,
and in the midst of the elders, a Lamb standing as if slain, having seven
horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent forth
throughout all the earth. And He came and took the book from the right.
hand of God, who sate on the throne. And when He had taken the book, the
four living creatures and the four and twenty elders cast themselves before
the Lamb, having every one of them harps and golden cups[4] full of odours
of supplications, which are the prayers of the saints; and they sang a new
song, saying, Worthy art Thou, O Lord, to take the book, and to open its
seals: for Thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us with Thy blood from every
tribe, anti and people, and nation; and Thou hast made us a kingdom unto
our God, and hast made us priests, and they shall reign upon the earth."[5]
Also in the Gospel: "On the next day John saw Jesus coming to him, and
saith, Behold the Lamb of God, and behold Him that taketh away the sins of
the world!"[6]
16. That Christ also is called a Stone.
In Isaiah: "Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I place on the foundations of
Sion a precious stone, elect, chief, a corner stone, honourable; and he who
trusteth in Him shall not be confounded."[7] Also in the cxviith Psalm:
"The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the
corner. This is done by the Lord, and it is wonderful in our eyes. This is
the day, which the Lord hath made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. O
Lord, save therefore, O Lord, direct therefore. Blessed is He who cometh in
the name of the Lord."[8] Also in Zechariah: "Behold, I bring forth my
servant. The Orient is his name, because the stone which I have placed
before the face of Jesus; upon that one stone are seven eyes."[9] Also in
Deuteronomy: "And thou shall write upon the stone all this law, very
plainly."[10] Also in Jesus the son of Nave: "And be took a great stone,
and placed it there before the Lord; and Jesus said unto the people,
Behold, this stone shall be to you for a testimony, because it hath heard
all the things which were spoken by the Lord, which He hath spoken to you
to-day; and it shall be for a testimony to you in the last of the days,
when ye shall have departed from your God."[11] Also in the Acts of the
Apostles, Peter: "Ye princes of the people, and elders of Israel, hearken:
Behold, we are this day interrogated by you about the good deed done to the
impotent man, by means of which he is made whole. Be it known unto you all,
and to all the people of Israel, that in the name of Jesus Christ of
Nazareth, whom ye have crucified, whom God hath raised up from the dead, by
Him he stands whole in your presence, but by none other. This is the stone
which was despised by you builders, which has become the head of the
corner. For there is no other name given to men under heaven in which we
must be saved."[12] This is the stone in Genesis, which Jacob places at his
head, because the head of the man is Christ; and as he slept he saw a
ladder reaching to heaven, on which the Lord was placed, and angels were
ascending and descending.[13] And this stone he designating Christ
consecrated and anointed with the sacrament of unction. This is the stone
in Exodus upon which Moses sate on the top of a hill when Jesus the son of
Nave fought against Amalek; and by the sacrament of the stone, and the
stedfastness of his sitting, Amalek was overcome by Jesus, that is, the
devil was overcome by Christ. This is the great stone in the first book of
Kings, upon which was placed the ark of the covenant when the oxen brought
it back in the cart, sent back and returned by the strangers. Also, this is
the stone in the first book of Kings, with which David smote the forehead
of Goliath and slew him; signifying that the devil and his servants are
thereby thrown down--that part of the head, namely, being conquered[1]
which they have not had sealed. And by this seal we also are always safe
and live. This is the stone which, when Israel had conquered the aliens,
Samuel set up and called its name Ebenezer; that is, the stone that
helpeth.
17. That afterwards this Stone should become a mountain, and should fill
the whole earth.
In Daniel: "And behold a very great image; and the aspect of this image
was fearful, and it stood erect before thee; whose head was of fine gold,
its breast and arms were silver, its belly and thighs were of brass, and
its feet were partly indeed of iron, and partly of clay, until that a stone
was cut[2] out of the mountain, without the hands of those that should cut
it, and struck the image upon the feet of iron and clay, and brake them
into small fragments. And the iron, and the clay, and the brass, and the
silver, and the gold, was made altogether; and they became small as chaff,
or dust in the threshing-floor in summer; and the wind blew them away, so
that nothing remained of them. And the stone which struck the image became
a great mountain, and filled the whole earth."[3]
18. That in the last times the same mountain should be manifested, and upon
it the Gentiles should come, and on it all the righteous should go up.
In Isaiah: "In the last times the mountain of the Lord shall be
revealed, and the house of God upon the tops of the mountains; and it shall
be exalted above the hills, and all nations shall come upon it, and many
shall walk and say, Come, and let us go up into the mountain of the Lord,
and into the house of the God of Jacob; and He will tell us His way, and we
will walk in it. For from Sion shall proceed the law, and the word of the
Lord from Jerusalem; and He shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke
much people; and they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their
spears into pruning-hooks, and they shall no more learn to fight."[4] Also
in the twenty-third Psalm: "Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord, or
who shall stand in His holy place? He that is innocent in his hands, and of
a clean heart; who hath not received his life in vanity, and hath not sworn
craftily to his neighbour. He shall receive the blessing from the Lord, and
mercy[5] from the God that saveth him. This is the generation of those who
seek Him, that seek the face of the God of Jacob." [6]
19. That Christ is the Bridegroom, having the Church as His bride, from
which spiritual children were to be born.
In Joel: "Blow with the trumpet in Sion; sanctify a fast, and call a
healing; assemble the people, sanctify the Church, gather the elders,
collect the little ones that suck the breast; let the Bridegroom go forth
of His chamber, and the bride out of her closet."[7] Also in Jeremiah: "And
I will take away from the cities of Judah, and from the streets of
Jerusalem, the voice of the joyous, and the voice of the glad; the voice of
the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride."[8] Also in the eighteenth
Psalm: "And he is as a bridegroom going forth from his chamber; he exulted
as a giant to run his course. From the height of heaven is his going forth,
and his circuit even to the end of it; and there is nothing which is hid
from his heat."[9] Also in the Apocalypse: "Come, I will show thee the new
bride, the Lamb's wife. And he took me in the Spirit to a great mountain,
and he showed me the holy city Jerusalem descending out of heaven from God,
having the glory of God."[10] Also in the Gospel according to John: "Ye are
my witnesses, that I said to them who were sent from Jerusalem to me, that
I am not the Christ, but that I am sent before Him. For he who has the
bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom is he who
standeth and heareth him with joy, and rejoiceth because of the voice of
the bridegroom."[11] The mystery of this matter was shown in Jesus the son
of Nave, when he was bidden to put his shoes from off him, doubt less
because he himself was not the bridegroom. For it was in the law, that
whoever should refuse marriage should put off his shoe, but that he should
be shod who was to be the bridegroom: "And it happened, when Jesus was in
Jericho, he looked around with his eyes, and saw a man standing before his
face, and holding a javelin[12] in his hand, and said, Art thou for us or
for our enemies? And he said, I am the leader of the host of the Lord; now
draw near. And Jesus fell on his rice to the earth, and said to him, Lord,
what dost Thou command unto Thy servant. And the leader of the Lord's host
said, Loose thy shoe from thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is
holy ground."[13] Also, in Exodus, Moses is bidden to put off his shoe,
because he, too, was not the bridegroom: "And there appeared unto him the
angel of the Lord in a flame of fire out of a bush; and he saw that the
bush burned with fire, but the bush was not consumed. And Moses said, I
will pass over and see this great sight, why the bush is not consumed. But
when He saw that he drew near to see, the Lord God called him from the
bush, saying, Moses, Moses. And he said, What is it? And He said, Draw not
nigh hither, unless thou hast loosed thy shoe from off thy feet; for the
place on which thou standest is holy ground. And He said unto him, I am the
God of thy father, the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of
Jacob."[1] This was also made plain in the Gospel according to John: "And
John answered them, I indeed baptize with water, but there standeth One in
the midst of you whom ye know not: He it is of whom I said, The man that
cometh after me is made before me, the latchet of whose shoe I am not
worthy to unloose."[2] Also according to Luke: "Let your loins be girt, and
your lamps burning, and ye like to men that wait for their master when he
shall come from the wedding, that when he cometh and knocketh, they may
open unto him. Blessed are those servants whom their Lord, when He cometh,
shall find watching."[3] Also in the Apocalypse: "The Lord God omnipotent
reigneth: let us be glad and rejoice, and let us give to Him the honour of
glory; for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself
ready."[4]
20. That the Jews would fasten Christ to the cross.
In Isaiah: "I have spread out my hands all day to a people disobedient
and contradicting me, who walk in ways that are not good, but after their
own sins."[5] Also in Jeremiah: "Come, let us cast the tree into His bread,
and let us blot out His life from the earth."[6] Also in Deuteronomy: "And
Thy life shall be hanging (in doubt) before Thine eyes; and Thou shall fear
day and night, and shalt not trust to Thy life."[7] Also in the twenty-
first Psalm: "They tore my hands and my feet;[8] they numbered all my
bones. And they gazed upon me, and saw me, and divided my garments among
them, and upon my vesture they cast a lot. But Thou, O Lord, remove not Thy
help far from me; attend unto my help. Deliver my soul from the sword, and
my only one from the paw[9] of the dog. Save me from the mouth of the lion,
and my lowliness from the horns of the unicorns. I will declare Thy name
unto my brethren; in the midst of the Church I will praise Thee." [10] Also
in the cxviiith Psalm: "Pierce my flesh with nails through fear of
Thee."[11] Also in the cxlth Psalm: "The lifting up of my hands is an
evening sacrifice."[12] Of which sacrifice Sophonias said: "Fear from the
presence of the Lord God, since His day is near, because the Lord hath
prepared His sacrifice, He hath sanctified His elect."[13] Also in
Zechariah: "And they shall look upon me, whom they have pierced."[14] Also
in the eighty-seventh Psalm: "I have called unto Thee, O Lord, the whole
day; I have stretched out my hands unto Thee."[15] Also in Numbers: "Not as
a man is God suspended, nor as the son of man does He suffer threats."[16]
Whence in the Gospel the Lord says: "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the
wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up, that whosoever
believeth in the Son may have life eternal."[17]
21. That in the passion and the sign of the cross is all virtue and power.
In Habakkuk: "His virtue covered the heavens, and the earth is full of
His praise, and His splendour shall be as the light; there shall be horns
in His hands. And there the virtue of His glory was established, and He
founded His strong love. Before His face shall go the Word, and shall go
forth unto the plains according to His steps."[18] In Isaiah also:
"Behold, unto us a child is born, and to us a Son is given, upon whose
shoulders shall be government; and His name shall be called the Messenger
of a mighty thought."[19] By this sign of the cross also Amalek was
conquered by Jesus through Moses. In Exodus Moses said to Jesus: "Choose
thee out men, and go forth, and order yourselves with Amalek until the
morrow. Behold, I will stand on the top of the hill, and the rod of God in
mine hand. And it came to pass, when Moses lifted up his hands, Israel
prevailed; but when Moses had let down his hands, Amalek waxed strong. But
the hands of Moses were heavy; and they took a stone, and placed it under
him, and he sate upon it i and Aaron and Hur held up his hands, on the one
side and on the other side; and the hands of Moses were made steady even to
the setting of the sun. And Jesus routed Amalek and all his people. And the
Lord said unto Moses, Write this, that it may be a memorial in a book, and
tell it unto the ears of Jesus, that I may utterly destroy the memory of
Amalek from under heaven."[1]
22. That in this sign of the Cross is salvation for all people who are
marked on their foreheads.[2]
In Ezekiel the Lord says: "Pass through the midst of Jerusalem, and
thou shalt mark the sign I upon the men's foreheads, who groan and grieve
for the iniquities which are done in the midst of them."[3] Also in the
same place: "Go and smite, and do not spare your eyes. Have no pity on the
old man, and the youth, and the virgin, and slay little children and women,
that they may be utterly destroyed. But ye shall not touch any one upon
whom the sign is written, and begin with my holy places themselves."[4]
Also in Exodus God says to Moses: "And there shall be blood for a sign to
you upon the houses wherein ye shall be; and I will look on the blood, and
will protect you. And there shall not be in you the plague of wasting when
I shall smite the land of Egypt."[5] Also in the Apocalypse: "And I saw[6]
a Lamb standing on Mount Sion, and with Him a hundred and forty and four
thousand; and they had His name and the name of His Father written on their
foreheads."[7] Also in the same place: "I am Alpha and Omega, the first and
the last, the beginning and the end. Blessed are they that do His
commandments, that they may have power over the tree of life."[8]
23. That at mid-day in His passion there should be darkness.
In Amos: "And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord, the
sun shall set at noonday, and the day of light shall be darkened; and I
will turn your feast-days into grief, and all your songs into
lamentation."[9] Also in Jeremiah: "She is frightened that hath borne
children, and her soul hath grown weary. Her sun hath gone down while as
vet it was mid-day; she hath been confounded arid accursed: I will give the
rest of them to the sword in the sight of their enemies."[10] Also in the
Gospel: "Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the earth
even to the ninth hour."[11]
24. That He was not to be overcome of death, nor should remain in Hades.
In the twenty-ninth Psalm: "O Lord, Thou hast brought back my soul from
hell."[12] Also in the fifteenth Psalm: "Thou wilt not leave my soul in
hell, neither wilt Thou suffer Thine Holy One to see corruption."[13] Also
in the third Psalm: "I laid me down and slept, and rose up again, because
the Lord helped me."[14] Also according to John: "No man taketh away my
life from me; but I lay it down of myself. I have the power of laying it
down, and I have the power of taking it again. For this commandment I have
received from my Father."[15]
25. That He should rise again from the dead on the third day.
In Hosea: "After two days He will revive us; we shall rise again on the
third day."[16] Also in Exodus: "And the Lord said unto Moses, Go down and
testify to the people, and sanctify them to-day and to-morrow; and let them
wash their garments, and let them be prepared against the day after to-
morrow. For on the third day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai."[7]
Also in the Gospel: "A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a
sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it but the sign of the prophet
Jonas: for as Jonas was in the whale's belly three days and three nights,
so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the
earth."[18]
26. That after He had risen again He should receive from His Father all
power, and His power should be everlasting.
In Daniel: "I saw in a vision by night, and behold as it were the Son
of man, coming in the clouds of heaven, came even to the Ancient of days,
and stood in His sight. And they who stood beside Him brought Him before
Him: and to Him was given a royal power, and all the kings of the earth by
their generation, and all glory obeying Him: and His power is eternal,
which shall not be taken away, and His kingdom shall not be destroyed."[19]
Also in Isaiah: "Now will I arise, saith the Lord; now will I be glorified,
now will I be exalted, now ye shall see, now ye shall understand, now ye
shall be confounded. Vain will be the strength of your spirit: the fire
shall consume you."[20] Also in the cixth Psalm: "The Lord said unto my
Lord, Sit Thou on my fight hand, until I make Thine enemies the footstool
of Thy feet. God will send the rod of Thy power out of Sion, and Thou shalt
rule in the midst of Thine enemies."[1] Also in the Apocalypse: "And I
turned and looked to see the voice which spake with me. And I saw seven
golden candlesticks, and in the midst of the candlesticks one like unto the
Son of man, clothed with a long garment,[2] and He was girt about the paps
with a golden girdle. And His head and His hairs were white as wool or
snow, and His eyes as a flame of fire, and His feet like to fine brass from
a furnace of fire, and His voice like the sound of many waters. And He had
in His right hand seven stars: and out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged
sword; and His face shone as the sun in his might. And when I saw Him, I
fell at His feet as dead. And He laid His right hand upon me, and said,
Fear not; I am the first and the last, and He that liveth and was dead;
and, lo, I am living for evermore[3] and I have the keys of death and of
hell."[4] Likewise in the Gospel, the Lord after His resurrection says to
His disciples: "All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go
therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, teaching them to observe all things
whatsoever I have commanded you."[5]
27. That it is impossible to attain to God the Father, except by His Son
Jesus Christ.
In the Gospel: "I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no one
cometh to the Father but by me."[6] Also in the same place: "I am the door:
by me if any man shall enter in, he shall be saved."[7] Also in the same
place: "Many prophets and righteous men have desired to see the things
which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye
hear, and have not heard them."[8] Also in the same place: "He that
believeth on the Son hath eternal life: he that is not obedient in word to
the Son hath not life; but the wrath of God shall abide upon him."[9] Also
Paul to the Ephesians: "And when He had come, He preached peace to you, to
those which are afar off, and peace to those which are near, because
through Him we both have access in one Spirit unto the Father."[10] Also to
the Romans: "For all have sinned, and fail of the glory of God; but they
are justified by His gift and grace, through the redemption which is in
Christ Jesus."[11] Also in the Epistle of Peter the apostle: "Christ hath
died once for our sins, the just for the unjust, that He might present us
to God."[12] Also in the same place: "For in this also was it preached to
them that are dead, that they might be raised again."[13] Also in the
Epistle of John: "Whosoever denieth the Son, the same also hath not the
Father. He that confesseth the Son, hath both the Son and the Father."[14]
28. That Jesus Christ shall come as a Judge.
In Malachi: "Behold, the day of the Lord cometh, burning as an oven;
and all the aliens and all the wicked shall be as stubble; and the day that
cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord."[15] Also in the forty-ninth (or
fiftieth) Psalm: "God the Lord of gods hath spoken, and called the earth.
From the rising of the sun even to the going down thereof, out of Sion is
the beauty of His glory. God shall come manifestly, our God, and shall not
keep silence. A fire shall burn before Him, and round about Him shall be a
great storm. He hath called the heaven above, and the earth, that He may
separate His people. Gather together His saints unto Him, those who arrange
His covenant with sacrifices. And the heavens shall announce His
righteousness, for God is the judge."[16] Also in Isaiah: "The Lord God of
strength shall go forth, and shall break war in pieces: He shall stir up
contest, and shall cry over His enemies with strength. I have been silent;
shall I always be silent?"[17] Also in the sixty-seventh Psalm: "Let God
arise, and let His enemies be scattered: and let those who hate Him flee
from His face. As smoke vanisheth, let them vanish: as wax melteth from the
face of fire, thus let the sinners perish from the face of God. And let the
righteous be glad and rejoice in the sight of God: and let them be glad
with joyfulness. Sing unto God, sing praises unto His name: make a way to
Him who goeth up into the west. God is His name. They shall be put to
confusion from the face of Him who is the Father of the orphans, and the
Judge of the widows. God is in His holy place: God, who maketh men to dwell
with one mind in an house, bringing forth them that are bound with might,
and equally those who provoke unto anger, who dwell in the sepulchres: God,
when Thou wentest forth in the sight of Thy people, in passing into the
desert."[18] Also in the eighty-first Psalm: "Arise, O God; judge the
earth: for Thou wilt exterminate among all nations."(1) Also in the Gospel
according to Matthew: "What have we to do with Thee, Thou Son of David? why
art Thou come hither to punish us before the time?"(2) Likewise according
to John: "The Father judgeth nothing, but hath given all judgment to the
Son, that all may honour the Son as they honour the Father. He that
honoureth not the Son, honoureth not the Father who hath sent Him."(3) So
too in the second Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: "We must all appear
before the judgment-seat of Christ, that every one may bear the things
proper to his body, according to those things which he hath done, whether
they be good or evil."(4)
29. That He will reign as a King for ever.
In Zechariah: "Tell ye the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy King cometh
unto thee: just, and having salvation; meek, sitting upon an as that hath
not been tamed."(5) Also in Isaiah: "Who will declare to you that eternal
place? He that walketh in righteousness, and holdeth back his hands from
gifts; stopping his ears. that he may not hear the judgment of blood; and
closing his eyes, that he may not see unrighteousness: this man shall dwell
in the lofty cavern of the strong rock; bread shall be given him, and his
water shall be sure. Ye shall see the King with glory."(6) Likewise in
Malachi: "I am a great King, saith the Lord, and my name is illustrious
among the nations."(7) Also in the second Psalm: "But I am established as a
King by Him upon His holy hill of Zion, announcing His empire."(8) Also in
the twenty-first Psalm: "All the ends of the world shall be reminded, and
shall turn to the Lord: and all the countries of the nations shall worship
in Thy sight. For the kingdom is the Lord's: and He shall rule over all
nations."(9) Also in the twenty-third Psalm: "Lift up your gates, ye
princes; and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory
shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the
Lord strong in battle. Lift up your gates, O ye princes; and be ye lifted
up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in. Who is this
King of glory? The Lord of hosts, He is the King of glory."(10) Also in the
forty-fourth Psalm: "My heart hath breathed forth a good discourse:(11) I
tell my works to the king: my tongue is the pen of a writer intelligently
writing. Thou art lovely in beauty above the children of men: grace is shed
forth on Thy lips, because God hath blessed Thee for ever. Be girt with Thy
sword on Thy thigh, O most mighty. To Thy honour and to Thy beauty both
attend, and direct Thyself, and reign, because of truth, and meekness, and
righteousness."(12) Also in the fifth Psalm: "My King, and my God, because
unto Thee will I pray. O Lord, in the morning Thou shalt hear my voice; in
the morning I will stand before Thee, and will contemplate Thee."(13) Also
in the ninety-sixth Psalm: "The Lord hath reigned; let the earth rejoice;
let the many isles be glad."(14) Moreover, in the forty-fourth Psalm: "The
queen stood at thy right hand in a golden garment; she is clothed in many
colours. Hear, O daughter, and see, and incline thine ear, and forget thy
people and thy father's house; for the King hath desired thy beauty, for He
is thy Lord God."(15) Also in the seventy-third Psalm: "But God is our King
before the world; He hath wrought salvation in the midst of the earth."(16)
Also in the Gospel according to Matthew: "And when Jesus was born in
Bethlehem of Judah in the days of Herod the king, behold, Magi from the
east came to Jerusalem, saying, Where is He who is born King of the Jews?
for we have seen His star in the east, and have come to worship Him."(17)
Also, according to John, Jesus said: "My kingdom is not of this world. If
my kingdom were of this world, my servants would be in trouble, that I
should not be delivered to the Jews; but now is my kingdom not from hence.
Pilate said, Art thou a king, then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a
king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I am come into the
world, that I might bear testimony to the truth. Every one that is of the
truth heareth my voice."(18)
30. That He Himself is both Judge and King.
In the seventy-first Psalm: "O God, give Thy judgment to the king, and
Thy righteousness to the king's son, to judge Thy people in
righteousness."(19) Also in the Apocalypse: "And I saw the heaven opened,
and behold a white horse; and He who sate upon him was called Faithful and
True; and He judgeth justice and righteousness, and maketh war. And His
eyes were. as it were, a flame of fire, and upon His head were many crowns;
and He bare a name written that was known to none other than Himself: ad He
was clothed with a garment sprinkled with blood, and His name is called the
Word of God. And the armies which are in heaven followed Him on white
horses, clothed in linen white and Clean. And out of His mouth went forth a
sword with two edges, that with it He should smite the nations, which He
shall shepherd(1) with a rod of iron; and He shall tread the winepress of
the wrath of God Almighty. Also He has on His garment and on His thigh the
name written, King of kings, and Lord of lords."(2) Likewise in the Gospel:
"When the Son of man shall come in His glory, and all the angels with Him,
then He shall sit in the throne of His glory; and all nations shall be
gathered together before Him, and He shall separate them one from another,
even as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; and He shall place
the sheep at His right hand, but the goats at His left hand. Then shall the
King say unto them who shall be at His right hand, Come, ye blessed of my
Father, receive the kingdom which is prepared for you from the beginning of
the world: for I was hungry, and ye gave me to eat: I was thirsty, and ye
gave me to drink: I was a stranger, and ye received me: naked, and ye
clothed me: sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
Then shall the righteous answer, and say unto Him, Lord, when saw we Thee
hungry, and fed Thee? thirsty, and gave Thee to drink? And when saw we Thee
a stranger, and received Thee? naked, and clothed Thee? And when saw we
Thee sick, and in prison, and came unto Thee? And the King, answering,
shall say unto them, Verily I say unto you, In as far as ye have done it to
the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me. Then shall He say
unto them who shall be on His left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into
everlasting fire, which my Father hath prepared(3) for the devil and his
angels: for I have been hungry, and ye gave me not to eat: I have been
thirsty, and ye gave me not to drink: I was a stranger, and ye received me
not: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me
not. Then shall they also answer and say, Lord, when saw we Thee hungry, or
thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and have not
ministered unto Thee? And He shall answer unto them, Verily I say unto you,
Inasmuch as ye have not done it to one of the least of these, ye have not
done it unto me. And these shall go away into everlasting burning, but the
righteous into life eternal."(4)
THIRD BOOK.
Cyprian to his son Quirinus,(5) greeting. Of your faith and devotion
which you manifest to the Lord God, beloved son, you asked me to gather out
for your instruction from the Holy Scriptures some heads bearing upon the
religious teaching of our school;(5) seeking for a succinct course of
sacred reading, so that your mind, surrendered to God, might not be wearied
with long or numerous volumes of books, but, instructed with a summary of
heavenly precepts, might have a wholesome and large compendium for
nourishing its memory. And because I owe you a plentiful and loving
obedience, I have done what you wished. I have laboured for once, that you
might not always labour.(6) Therefore, as much as my small ability could
embrace, I have collected certain precepts of the Lord, and divine
teachings, which may be easy and useful to the readers, in that a few
things digested into a short space are both quickly read through, and are
frequently repeated. I bid you, beloved son, ever heartily farewell.
HEADS.(7)
1. On the benefit of good works and mercy.
2. In works and alms, even if by smallness of power less be done, that
the will itself is enough.
3. That charity and brotherly love must be religiously and stedfastly
practised.
4. That we must boast in nothing, since nothing is our own.
5. That humility and quietness is to be maintained in all things.
6. That all good and righteous men suffer more, but ought to endure
because they are proved.
7. That we must not grieve the Holy Spirit whom we have received.
8. That anger must be overcome, lest it constrain us to sin.
9. That brethren ought to sustain one another.
10. That we must trust in God only, and in Him we must glory.
11. That he who has attained to faith, having put off the former man,
ought to regard only celestial and spiritual things, and to give no heed to
the world which he has already renounced.
12. That we must not swear.
13. That we are not to curse.
14. That we must never murmur, but bless God concerning all things that
happen.
15. That men are tried by God for this purpose, that they may be
proved.
16. Of the benefit of martyrdom.
17. That what we suffer in this world is of less account than is the
reward which is promised.
18. That nothing must be preferred to the love of God and of Christ.
19. That we must not obey our own will, but that of God.
20. That the foundation and strength of hope and faith is fear.
21. That we must not rashly judge of another.
22. That when we have received a wrong, we must remit and forgive it.
23. That evil is not to be returned for evil.
24. That it is impossible to attain to the Father but by Christ.
25. That unless a man have been baptized and born again, he cannot
attain to the kingdom of God.
26. That it is of small account to be baptized and to receive the
Eucharist, unless one profits by it both in deeds and works.
27. That even a baptized person loses the grace which he has attained,
unless he keep innocency.
28. That remission cannot in the Church be granted unto him who has
sinned against God.
29. That it was before predicted concerning the hatred of the Name.
30. That what any one has vowed to God, he must quickly pay.
31. That he who does not believe is judged already.
32. Of the benefit of virginity and of continency.
33. That the Father judgeth nothing, but the Son; and the Father is not
honoured by him by whom the Son is not honoured.
34. That the believer ought not to live like the Gentiles.
35. That God is patient for this end, that we may repent of our sin and
be reformed.
36. That a woman ought not to be adorned in a worldly manner.
37. That the believer ought not to be punished for other offences but
for the name he bears only.
38. That the servant of God ought to be innocent, lest he fall into
secular punishment.
39. That the example of living is given to us in Christ.
40. That we must not labour boastfully or noisily.
41. That we must not speak foolishly and offensively.
42. That faith is of advantage altogether, and that we can do as much
as we believe.
43. That he who truly believes can immediately obtain.
44. That the believers who differ among themselves ought not to refer
to a Gentile judge.
45. That hope is of future things, and therefore that faith concerning
those things which are promised ought to be patient.
46. That a woman ought to be silent in the church.
47. That it arises from our fault and our desert that we suffer, and do
not perceive God's help in everything.
48. That we must not take usury.
49. That even our enemies are to be loved.
50. That the sacrament of the faith must not be profaned.
51. That no one should be uplifted in his doing.
52. That the liberty of believing or of not believing is placed in free
choice.
53. That the secrets of God cannot be seen through, and therefore that
our faith ought to be simple.
54. That none is without filth and without sin.
55. That we must not please men, but God.
56. That nothing that is done is hidden from God.
57. That the believer is amended and reserved.
58. That no one should be made sad by death, since in living is labour
and peril, in dying peace and the certainty of resurrection.
59. Of the idols which the Gentiles think gods.
60. That too great lust of food is not to be desired.
61. That the lust of possessing, and money, are not to be desired.
62. That marriage is not to be contracted with Gentiles.
63. That the sin of fornication is grievous.
64. What are those carnal things which beget death, and what are the
spiritual things which lead to life.
65. That all sins are put away in baptism.
66. That the discipline of God is to be observed in Church precepts.
67. That it was foretold that men would despise sound discipline.
68. That we must depart from him who lives irregularly and contrary to
discipline.
69. That the kingdom of God is not in the wisdom of the world, nor in
eloquence, but in the faith of the cross and in virtue of conversation.
70. That we must obey parents.
71. And that fathers ought not to be bitter against their children.
72. That servants, when they believe, ought the more to be obedient to
their fleshly masters.
73. Likewise that masters ought to be more gentle.
74. That every widow that is approved ought to be honoured.
75. That every person ought to have care rather of his own people, and
especially of believers.
76. That one who is older must not rashly be accused.
77. That the sinner is to be publicly reproved.
78. That we must not speak with heretics.
79. That innocency asks with confidence, and obtains.
80. That the devil has no power against man unless God have allowed it.
81. That wages be quickly paid to the hireling.
82. That divination must not be used.
83. That a tuft of hair(1) is not to be worn on the head.
84. That the beard must not be plucked.
85. That we must rise when a bishop or a presbyter comes.
86. That a schism must not be made, even although he who withdraws
should remain in one faith and in the same tradition.
87. That believers ought to be simple with prudence.
88. That a brother must not be deceived.
89. That the end of the world comes suddenly.
90. That a wife must not depart from her husband; or if she departs,
she must remain unmarried.
91. That every one is tempted so much as he is able to bear.
92. That not everything is to be done which is lawful.
93. That it was foretold that heresies would arise.
94. That the Eucharist is to be received with fear and honour.
95. That we are to live with the good, but to avoid the evil.
96. That we must labour with deeds, not with words.
97.That we must hasten to faith and to attainment.(2)
98. That the catechumen ought to sin no more.
99. That judgment will be in accordance with the terms, before the law,
of equity; after Moses, of the law.
100. That the grace of God ought to be gratuitous.
101. That the Holy Spirit has often appeared in fire.
102. That all good men ought willingly to hear rebuke.
103. That we must abstain from much speaking.
104. That we must not lie.
105. That they are frequently to be corrected who do wrong in domestic
service.
106. That when a wrong is received, patience is to be maintained, and
that vengeance is to be left to God.
107. That we must not use detraction.
108. That we must not lay snares against our neighbour.
109. That the sick are to be visited. 110. That tale-bearers are
accursed.
111. That the sacrifices of evil men are not acceptable.
112. That those are more severely judged who in this world have more
power.
113. That widows and orphans ought to be protected.
114. That while one is in the flesh, he ought to make confession.
115. That flattery is pernicious.
116. That God is more loved by him Who has had many sins forgiven in
baptism.
117. That there is a strong conflict to be waged against the devil, and
that therefore we ought to stand bravely, that we may be able to conquer.
118. Of Antichrist, that he will come as a man.
119. That the yoke of the law was heavy, which is cast off by us; and
that the Lord's yoke is light, which is taken up by us.
120. That we are to be urgent in prayers.
TESTIMONIES.
1. Of the benefit of good works and mercy.
In Isaiah: "Cry aloud," saith He, "and spare not; lift up thy voice
like a trumpet; tell my people their sins, and the house of Jacob their
wickednesses. They seek me from day to day, and desire to know my ways, as
a people which did righteousness, and did not forsake the judgment of God.
They ask of me now a righteous judgment, and desire to approach to God,
saying, What! because we have fasted, and Thou hast not seen: we have
humiliated our souls, and Thou hast not known. For in the days of fasting
are found your own wills; for either ye torment those who are subjected to
you, or ye fast for strifes and judgments, or ye strike your neighbours
with fists. For what do you fast unto me, that to-day your voice should be
heard in clamour? This fast I have not chosen, save that a man should
humble his soul. And if thou shalt bend thy neck like a ring, and spread
under thee sackcloth and ashes, neither thus shall it be called an
acceptable fast. Not such a fast have I chosen, saith the Lord; but loose
every knot of unrighteousness, let go the chokings of impotent
engagements.(1) Send away the harassed into rest, and scatter every
unrighteous contract. Break thy bread to the hungry, and bring the
houseless poor into thy dwelling. If thou seest the naked, clothe him; and
despise not them of thy own seed in thy house. Then shall thy seasonable
light break forth, and thy garments shall quickly arise; and righteousness
shall go before thee: and the glory of God shall surround thee. Then thou
shalt cry out, and God shall hear thee; while thou art yet speaking, He
shall say, Here I am."(2) Concerning this same thing in Job: "I have
preserved the needy from the hand of the mighty; and I have helped the
orphan, to whom there was no helper. The mouth of the widow blessed me,
since I was the eye of the blind; I was also the foot of the lame, and the
father of the weak."(3) Of this same matter in Tobit: "And I said to
Tobias, My son, go and bring whatever poor man thou shalt find out of our
brethren, who still has God in mind with his whole heart. Bring him hither,
and he shall eat my dinner together with me. Behold, I attend thee, my son,
until thou come."(4) Also in the same place: "All the days of thy life, my
son, keep God in mind, and transgress not His precepts. Do justice all the
days of thy life, and do not walk in the way of unrighteousness; because if
thou act truly, there will be respect of thy works. Give alms of thy
substance, and turn not thy face from any poor man. So shall it come to
pass that the face of God shall not be turned away from thee. Even as thou
hast, my son, so do: if thou hast abundant substance, give the more alms
therefrom; if thou hast little, communicate even of that little. And do not
fear when thou givest alms: thou layest up for thyself a good reward
against the day of need; because alms delivereth from death, and does not
suffer to go into darkness. Alms is a good office for all who do it in the
sight of the most high God."(5) On this same subject in Solomon in
Proverbs: "He that hath pity on the poor lendeth unto the Lord."(6) Also in
the same place: "He that giveth to the poor shall never want; but he who
turns away his eye shall be in much penury."(7) Also in the same place:
"Sins are purged away by alms-giving and faith."(8) Again, in the same
place: "If thine enemy hunger, feed him; and if he thirst, give him to
drink: for by doing this thou shalt scatter live coals upon his head."(9)
Again, in the same place: "As water extinguishes fire, so alms-giving
extinguishes sin."(10) In the same in Proverbs: "Say not, Go away, and
return, to-morrow I will give; when you can do good immediately. For thou
knowest not what may happen on the coming day."(11) Also in the same place:
"He who stoppeth his ears that he may not hear the weak, shall himself call
upon God, and there shall be none to hear him."(12) Also in the same place:
"He who has his conversation without reproach in righteousness, leaves
blessed children."(13) In the same in Ecclesiasticus: "My son, if thou
hast, do good by thyself, and present worthy offerings to God; remember
that death delayeth not."(14) Also in the same place: "Shut up alms in the
heart of the poor, and this will entreat for thee from all evil."(15)
Concerning this thing in the thirty-sixth Psalm, that mercy is beneficial
also to one's posterity: "I have been young, and I have also grown old; and
I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging their bread.
The whole day he is merciful, and lendeth; and his seed is in
blessing."(16) Of this same thing in the fortieth Psalm: "Blessed is he who
considereth over the poor and needy: in the evil day God will deliver
him."(17) Also in the cxith Psalm: "He hath distributed, he hath given to
the poor; his righteousness shall remain from generation to
generation."(18) Of this same thing in Hosea: "I desire mercy rather than
sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than whole burnt-offerings."(19)
Of this same thing also in the Gospel according to Matthew: "Blessed are
they who hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be
satisfied."(20) Also in the same place: "Blessed are the merciful: for they
shall obtain mercy."(21) Also in the same place: "Lay up for yourselves
treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where
thieves do not dig through and steal: for where your treasure is, there
will your heart be also."(22) Also in the same place: "The kingdom of
heaven is like unto a merchantman seeking goodly pearls: and when he hath
found a precious pearl, he went away and sold all that he had, and bought
it."(23) That even a small work is of advantage, also in the same place:
"And whoever shall give to drink to one of the least of these a cup of cold
water in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, His reward shall
not perish."(1) That alms are to be denied to none, also in the same place:
"Give to every one that asketh thee; and from him who would wish to borrow,
be not turned away."(2) Also in the same place: "If thou wilt enter into
life, keep the commandments. He saith, Which? Jesus saith unto him, Thou
shalt not kill, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not bear false
witness, Honour thy father and mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour
as thyself. The young man saith unto Him, All these things have I observed:
what lack I yet? Jesus saith unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell
all that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in
heaven; and come, follow me."(3) Also in the same place: "When the Son of
man shall come in His majesty, and all the angels with Him, then He shall
sit on the throne of His glory: and all nations shall be gathered together
before Him; and He shall separate them one from another, even as a shepherd
separates the sheep from the goats: and He shall place the sheep on the
right hand, but the goats on the left hand. Then shall the King say unto
them that are on His right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, receive the
kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the world. For I was hungry,
and ye gave me to eat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me to drink: I was a
stranger, and ye took me in: naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye
visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous
answer Him, and say, Lord, when saw we Thee(4) a stranger, and took Thee
in: naked, and clothed Thee? And when saw we Thee sick, and in prison, and
came to Thee? And the King, answering, shall say unto them, Verily I say
unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it to one of the least of these my brethren,
ye did it unto me. Then shall He say unto them who are on His left hand,
Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, which my Father hath
prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was hungry, and ye gave me not
to eat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me not to drink: I was a stranger, and
ye took me not in: I was naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison,
and ye visited me not. Then shall they also answer, and say, Lord, when saw
we Thee hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison,
and did not minister unto Thee? And He shall answer them, Verily I say unto
you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not
unto me. And these shall go away into everlasting burning: but the
righteous into life eternal."(5) Concerning this same matter in the Gospel
according to Luke: "Sell your possessions, and give alms."(6) Also in the
same place: "He who made that which is within, made that which is without
also. But give alms, and, behold, all things are pure unto you."(7) Also in
the same place: "Behold, the half of my substance I give to the poor; and
if I have defrauded any one of anything, I restore him fourfold. And Jesus
said unto him, that salvation has this day been wrought for this house,
since he also is a son of Abraham."(8) Of this same thing also in the
second Epistle to the Corinthians: "Let your abundance supply their want,
that their abundance also may be the supplement of your want, that there
may be equality: as it is written, He who had much had not excess; and he
who had little had no lack."(9) Also in the same place: "He who soweth
sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he who soweth in blessing shall
reap also of blessing. But let every one do as he has proposed in his
heart: not as if sorrowfully, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful
giver."(10) Also in the same place: "As it is written, He hath dispersed
abroad; he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth for
ever."(11) Likewise in the same place: "Now he who ministereth seed to the
sower, shall both supply bread to be eaten, and shall multiply your seed,
and shall increase the growth of the fruits of your righteousness: that in
all things ye may be made rich."(12) Also in the same place: "The
administration of this service has not only supplied that which is lacking
to the saints, but has abounded by much giving of thanks unto God."(13) Of
this same matter in the Epistle of John: "Whoso hath this world's
substance, and seeth his brother desiring, and shutteth up his bowels from
him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?"(14) Of this same thing in the
Gospel according to Luke: "When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not
thy friends, nor brethren, nor neighbours, nor the rich; lest haply they
also invite thee again, and a recompense be made thee. But when thou makest
a banquet, call the poor, the weak, the blind, and lame: and thou shalt be
blessed; because they have not the means of rewarding thee: but thou I
shalt be recompensed in the resurrection of the I just."(15)
2. In works and alms, even if by smallness of power less be done, that the
will itself is sufficient.
In the second Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: "If there be a ready
will, it is acceptable according to what a man hath, not according to that
which he hath not; nor let there be to others a mitigation, but to you a
burdening.(1)
3. That charity and brotherly affection are to be religiously and
stedfastly practised.
In Malachi: "Hath not one God created us? Is there not one Father of us
all? Why have ye certainly deserted every one his brother?"(2) Of this same
thing according to John: "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto
you."(3) Also in the same place: "This is my commandment, That ye love one
another, even as I have loved you. Greater love than this has no man, than
that one should lay down his life for his friends."(4) Also in the same
place: "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of
God."(5) Also in the same place: "Verily I say unto you, That if two of you
shall agree on earth concerning everything, whatever you shall ask it shall
be given you from my Father which is in heaven. For wherever two or three
are gathered together in my name, I am with them."(6) Of this same thing in
the first Epistle to the Corinthians: "And I indeed, brethren, could not
speak unto you as to spiritual, but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. I
have given you milk for drink, not meat: for while ye were yet little ye
were not able to bear it, neither now are ye able. For ye are still carnal:
for where there are in you emulation, and strife, and dissensions, are ye
not carnal, and walk after man?"(7) Likewise in the same place: "And if I
should have all faith, so that I can remove mountains, but have not
charity, I am nothing. And if I should distribute all my goods for food,
and if I should deliver up my body to be burned, but have not charity, I
avail nothing. Charity is great-souled; charity is kind; charity envieth
not; charity dealeth not falsely; is not puffed up; is not irritated;
thinketh not evil; rejoiceth not in injustice, but rejoiceth in the truth.
It loveth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, beareth all
things. Charity shall never fail."(8) Of this same thing to the Galatians:
"Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. But if ye bite and accuse one
another, see that ye be not consumed one of another."(9) Of this same
thing in the Epistle of John: "In this appear the children of God and the
children of the devil. Whosoever is not righteous is not of God, and he who
loveth not his brother. For he who hateth his brother is a murderer; and ye
know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him."(10) Also in the
same place: "If any one shall say that he loves God, and hates his brother,
he is a liar: for he who loveth not his brother whom he seeth, how can he
love God whom he seeth not?"(11) Of this same thing in the Acts of the
Apostles: "But the multitude of them that had believed acted with one soul
and mind: nor was there among them any distinction, neither did they esteem
as their own anything of the possessions that they had; but all things were
common to them."(12) Of this same thing in the Gospel according to Matthew:
If thou wouldest offer thy gift at the altar, and there rememberest that
thy brother hath ought against thee; leave thou thy gift before the altar,
and go; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy
gift at the altar."(13) Also in the Epistle of John: "God is love l and he
that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him." (14) Also in the
same place: "He who saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is a
liar, and walketh in darkness even until now."(15)
4. That we must boast in nothing, since nothing is our own.
In the Gospel according to John: "No one can receive anything, except
it were given him from heaven."(16) Also in the first Epistle of Paul to
the Corinthians: "For what hast thou that thou hast not received? But if
thou hast received it, why boastest thou, as if thou hadst not received
it?"(17) Also in the first of Kings: "Boast not, neither speak lofty
things, and let not great speeches proceed out of your mouth, for the Lord
is a God of knowledge."(18) Also in the same place: "The bow of the mighty
men has been made weak, and the weak are girt about with strength."(18) Of
this same thing in the Maccabees: "It is just to be subjected to God, and
that a mortal should not think things equal to God."(19) Also in the same
place: "And fear not the words of a man that is a sinner, because his glory
shall be filth and worms. Today he shall be lifted up, and to-morrow he
shall not be found; because he is turned into his earth, and his thought
has perished."(20)
5. That humility and quietness are to be maintained in all things.
In Isaiah: "Thus saith the Lord God, The heaven is my throne, and the
earth is the stool of my feet. What seat will ye build for me, or what is
the place for my rest? For all those things hath my hand made, and all
those things are mine. And upon whom else will I look, except upon the
lowly and quiet man, and him that trembleth at my words?"(1) On this same
thing in the Gospel according to Matthew: "Blessed are the meek, for they
shall inherit the earth."(2) Of this same thing, too, according to Luke:
"He that shall be least among you all, the same shall be great."(3) Also in
the same lace: "Whosoever exalteth himself shall be made low, and whosoever
abaseth himself shall be exalted."(4) Of this same thing to the Romans: "Be
not high-minded, but fear; for if God spared not the natural branches,
(take heed) lest He also spare not thee."(5) Of this same thing in the
thirty-third Psalm: And He shall save the lowly in spirit."(6) Also to the
Romans: "Render to all what is due: tribute to whom tribute is due, custom
to whom custom, fear to whom fear, honour to whom honour; owe no man
anything, except to love another."(7) Also in the Gospel according to
Matthew: "They love the first place of reclining at feasts, and the chief
seat in the synagogues, and salutations in the market, and to be called of
men Rabbi. But call not ye Rabbi, for One is your Master."(8) Also in the
Gospel according to John: "The servant is not greater than his lord, nor
the apostle greater than He that sent himself. If ye know these things,
blessed shall ye be if ye shall do them."(9) Also in the eighty-first
Psalm: "Do justice to the poor and lowly."(10)
6. That all good and righteous men suffer more, but ought to endure
because they are proved.
In Solomon: "The furnace proveth the vessels of the potter, and the
trial of tribulation righteous men."(11) Also in the fiftieth Psalm: "The
sacrifice to God is a contrite spirit; a contrite and humbled heart God
will not despise."(12) Also in the thirty-third Psalm: "God is nearest to
them that are contrite in heart, and He will save the lowly in spirit."(13)
Also in the same place: "Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but out
of them all the Lord will deliver them."(14) Of this same matter in Job:
"Naked came I out of my mother's womb, naked also shall I go under the
earth: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away: as it hath pleased the
Lord, so it is done; blessed be the name of the Lord. In all these things
which happened to him Job sinned in nothing with his lips in the sight of
the Lord."(15) Concerning this same thing in the Gospel according to
Matthew: "Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted."(16)
Also according to John: "These things have I spoken unto you, that in me ye
may have peace. But in the world ye shall have affliction; but have
confidence, for I have overcome the world."(17) Concerning this same thing
in the second Epistle to the Corinthians: "There was given to me a thorn in
the flesh, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, that I should not be exalted.
For which thing I thrice besought the Lord, that it should depart from me.
And He said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee; for strength is
perfected in weakness."(18) Concerning this same thing to the Romans: "We
glory in hope of the glory of God. And not only so, but we also glory in
afflictions: knowing that affliction worketh patience; and patience,
experience; and experience, hope: and hope does not confound; because the
love of God is infused in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, which is given
unto us."(19) On this same subject, according to Matthew: "How broad and
spacious is the way which leadeth unto death, and many there are who go in
thereby: how straight and narrow is the way that leadeth to life, and few
there are that find it!"(20) Of this same thing in Tobias: "Where are thy
righteousnesses? behold what thou sufferest."(21) Also in the Wisdom of
Solomon: "In the places of the wicked the righteous groan; but at their
ruin the righteous will abound."(22)
7. That we must not grieve the Holy Spirit, whom we have received.
Paul the apostle to the Ephesians: "Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God,
in which ye were sealed in the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and
wrath, and indignation, and clamour, and blasphemy, be taken away from
you."(23)
8. That anger must be overcome, lest it constrain us to sin.
In Solomon in the Proverbs: "Better is a patient man than a strong man;
for he who restrains his anger is better than he who taketh a city."(1)
Also in the same place: "The imprudent man declareth his anger on the same
day, but the crafty man hideth away his dishonour."(2) Of this same thing
to the Ephesians: "Be ye angry, and sin not. Let not the sun set upon your
wrath."(3) Also in the Gospel according to Matthew: "Ye have heard that it
was said by the ancients, Thou shalt not kill; and whoever shall kill shall
be guilty of the judgment. But I say unto you, That every one who is angry
with his brother without cause shall be guilty of the judgment."(4)
9. That brethren ought to support one another.
To the Galatians: "Each one having others in consideration, lest ye
also should be tempted. Bear ye one another's burdens, and so ye shah
fulfil the law of Christ."(5)
10. That we must trust in God only, and in Him we must glory.
In Jeremiah: "Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the
strong man glory in his strength, nor let the rich man glory in his riches;
but let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understands and knows that
I am the Lord, who do mercy, and judgment, and righteousness upon the
earth, because in them is my pleasure, saith the Lord."(6) Of the same
thing in the fifty-fourth Psalm: "In the Lord have I hoped; I will not fear
what man can do unto me."(7) Also in the same place: "To none but God alone
is my soul subjected."(8) Also in the cxviith Psalm: "I will not fear what
man can do unto me; the Lord is my helper."(9) Also in the same place: "It
is good to trust in the Lord rather than to trust in man; it is good to
hope in the Lord rather than to hope in princes."(10) Of this same thing in
Daniel: "But Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to king
Nebuchadnezzar, O king, there is no need to answer thee concerning this
word. For God, whom we serve, is able to deliver us from the furnace of
burning fire; and He will deliver us from thine hand, O king. And if not,
be it known unto thee that we serve not thy gods, and we adore not the
golden image which thou hast set up."(11) Likewise in Jeremiah: "Cursed is
the man who hath hope in man; and blessed is the man who trusts in the
Lord, and his hope shall be in God."(12) Concerning this same thing in
Deuteronomy: "Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou
serve."(13) Of this same thing to the Romans: "And they worshipped and
served the creature, forsaking the Creator. Wherefore also God gave them up
to ignominious passions."(14) Of this thing also in John: "Greater is He
who is in you than he who is in this world."(15)
11. That he who has attained to trust, having put off the former man, ought
to regard only celestial and spiritual things, and to give no heed to the
world which he has already renounced.
In Isaiah: "Seek ye the Lord; and when ye have found Him, call upon
Him. But when He hath come near unto you, let the wicked forsake his ways,
and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him be turned unto the Lord,
and he shall obtain mercy, because He will plentifully pardon your
sins."(16) Of this same thing in Solomon: "I have seen all the works which
are done under the sun; and, lo, all are vanity."(17) Of this same thing in
Exodus: "But thus shall ye eat it; your loins girt, and your shoes on your
feet, and your staves in your hands: and ye shall eat it in haste, for it
is the Lord's passover."(18) Of this same thing in the Gospel according to
Matthew: "Take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we
drink? or, Wherewith shall we be clothed? for these things the nations seek
after. But your Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. Seek
first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall
be added unto you."(19) Likewise in the same place: "Think not for the
morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for itself. Sufficient unto the
day is its own evil."(20) Likewise in the same place: "No one looking back,
and putting his hands to the plough, is fit for the kingdom of God."(21)
Also in the same place: "Behold the fowls of the heaven: for they sow not,
nor reap, nor gather into barns; and your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are
not ye of more value than they?"(1) Concerning this same thing, according
to Luke: "Let your loins be girded, and your lamps burning; and ye like
unto men that wait for their lord, when he cometh from the wedding; that,
when he cometh and knocketh, they may open to him. Blessed are those
servants, whom their lord, when he cometh, shall find watching."(2) Of this
same thing in Matthew: "The foxes have holes, and the birds of the heaven
have nests; but the Son of man hath not where He may lay His head."(3) Also
in the same place: "Whoso forsaketh not all that he hath, cannot be my
disciple."(4) Of this same thing in the first to the Corinthians: "Ye are
not your own, for ye are bought with a great price. Glorify and bear God
in your body."(5) Also in the same place: "The time is limited. It
remaineth, therefore, that both they who have wives be as though they have
them not, and they who lament as they that lament not, and they that
rejoice as they that rejoice not, and they who buy as they that buy not,
and they who possess as they who possess not, and they who use this world
as they that use it not; for the fashion of this world passeth away."(6)
Also in the same place: "The first man is of the clay of the earth, the
second man from heaven. As he is of the clay, such also are they who are of
the clay; and as is the heavenly, such also are the heavenly. Even as we
have borne the image of him who is of the clay, let us bear His image also
who is from heaven."(7) Of this same matter to the Philippians: "All seek
their own, and not those things which are Christ's; whose end is
destruction, whose god is their belly, and their glory is to their
confusion, who mind earthly things. For our conversation is in heaven,
whence also we expect the Saviour, our Lord Jesus Christ, who shall
transform the body of our humiliation conformed to the body of His
glory."(8) Of this very matter to Galatians: "But be it far from me to
boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is
crucified unto me, and I unto the world."(9) Concerning this same thing to
Timothy: "No man that warreth for God bindeth himself with worldly
annoyances, that he may please Him to whom he hath approved himself. But
and if a man should contend, he will not be crowned unless he fight
lawfully."(10) Of this same thing to the Colossians: "If ye be dead with
Christ froth I the elements of the world, why still, as if living in the
world, do ye follow vain things?"(11) Also concerning this same thing: "If
ye have risen together with Christ, seek those things which are above,
where Christ is sitting on the right hand of God. Give heed to the things
that are above, not to those things which are on the earth; for ye are
dead, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. But when Christ your life
shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory." (12) Of this
same thing to the Ephesians: Put off the old man of the former
conversation, who is corrupted, according to the lusts of deceit. But be ye
renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new man, him who
according to God is ordained in righteousness, and holiness, and
truth."(13) Of this same thing in the Epistle of Peter: "As strangers and
pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul; but
having a good conversation among the Gentiles, that while they detract from
you as if from evildoers, yet, beholding your good works, they may magnify
God."(14) Of this same thing in the Epistle of John: "He who saith he
abideth in Christ, ought himself also to walk even as He walked."(15) Also
in the same place: "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the
world. If any man loveth the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
Because everything which is in the world is lust of the flesh, and lust of
the eyes, and the ambition of this world, which is not of the Father, but
of the lust of this world. And the world shall pass away with its lust. But
he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever, even as God abideth for
ever."(16) Also in the first Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: "Purge out
the old leaven, that ye may be a new dough, as ye are unleavened. For also
Christ our passover is sacrificed. Therefore let us celebrate the feast,
not in the old leaven, nor in the leaven of malice and wickedness, but in
the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth."(17)
12. That we must not swear.
In Solomon: "A man that sweareth much shall be filled with iniquity,
and the plague shall not depart from his house; and if he swear vainly, he
shall not be justified."(18) Of this same matter, according to Matthew:
"(Again, ye have heard that it was said to them of old, Thou shalt not
swear falsely, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths.) I say unto
you, Swear not at all: (neither by heaven, because it is God's throne; nor
by the earth, because it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, because it is
the city of the great King; neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because
thou canst not make one hair white or black.) But let your discourse be,
Yea, yea; Nay, nay: (for whatever is fuller than these is of evil.")(1) Of
this same thing in Exodus: "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy
God in vain."(2)
13. That we must not curse.
In Exodus: "Thou shalt not curse nor speak ill of the ruler of thy
people."(3) Also in the thirty-third Psalm: "Who is the man who desires
life, and loveth to see good days? Restrain thy tongue from evil, and thy
lips that they speak no guile."(4) Of this same thing in Leviticus: "And
the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Bring forth him who hath cursed abroad
outside the camp; and all who heard him shall place their hands upon his
head, and all the assembly of the children of Israel shall stone him."(5)
Of this same thing in Paul's Epistle to the Ephesians: "Let no evil
discourse proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good for the
edification of faith, that it may give grace to the hearers."(6) Of this
same thing to the Romans: "Blessing, and not cursing."(7) Of this same
thing in the Gospel according to Matthew: "He who shall say to his brother,
Thou fool! shall be liable to the Gehenna of fire."(8) Of this same matter,
according to the same Matthew: "But I say unto you, That every idle word
which men shall speak, they shall give account for it in the day of
judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou
shalt be condemned."(9)
14. That we must never murmur, but bless God concerning all things that
happen.
In Job: "Say some word against the Lord, and die. But he, looking upon
her, said, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women. If we have received
good things from the Lord's hand, why shall we not endure evil things? In
all these things which happened unto him, Job sinned not with his lips in
the sight of the Lord."(10) Also in the same place: "Hast thou regarded my
servant Job? for there is none like unto him in the earth: a man without
complaint: a true worshipper of God, restraining himself from all
evil."(11) Of the same thing in the thirty-third Psalm: "I will bless the
Lord at all times: His praise shall ever be in my mouth."(12) Of this same
thing in Numbers: "Let their murmuring cease from me, and they shall not
die."(13) Of this same thing in the Acts of the Apostles: "But about the
middle of the night Paul and Silas prayed and gave thanks to God, and the
prisoners heard them."(14) Also in the Epistle of Paul to the Philippians:
"But doing all things for love, without murmurings and revilings,(15) that
ye may be without complaint, and spotless sons of God."(16)
15. That men are tried by God for this purpose, that they may be proved.
In Genesis: "And God, tempted Abraham, and said to him, Take thy only
son whom thou lovest, Isaac, and go into the high land, and offer him there
as a burnt-offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell thee."(17)
Of this same thing in Deuteronomy: "The Lord your God proveth you, that He
may know if ye love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all
your soul."(18) Of this same thing in the Wisdom of Solomon: "Although in
the sight of men they suffered torments, their hope is full of immortality;
and having been in few things distressed, yet in many things they shall be
happily ordered, because God tried them, and found them worthy of Himself.
As gold in the furnace He proved them, and as a burnt-offering He received
them. And in their time there shall be respect of them; they shall judge
the nations, and shall rule over the people; and their Lord shall reign for
ever."(19) Of this same thing in the Maccabees: "Was not Abraham found
faithful in temptation, and it was accounted unto him for
righteousness?"(20)
16. Of the benefits of martyrdom.
In the Proverbs of Solomon: "The faithful martyr delivers his soul from
evils."(21) Also in the same place: "Then shall the righteous stand in
great boldness against them who have afflicted them, and who took away
their labours. When they see them, they shall be disturbed with a horrible
fear; and they shall wonder at the suddenness of their unhoped-for
salvation, saying among themselves, repenting and groaning with distress of
spirit, These are they whom some time we had in derision, and in the
likeness of a proverb; we fools counted their life madness, and their end
without honour. How are they reckoned among the children of God, and their
lot among the saints! Therefore we have wandered from the way of truth, and
the light of righteousness has not shined upon us, and the sun has not
risen upon us. We have been wearied in the way of iniquity and of
perdition, and we have walked through difficult solitudes; but we have not
known the way of the Lord. What hath pride profited us? or what hath the
boasting of riches brought to us? All these things have passed away as a
shadow."(1) Of this same thing in the cxvth Psalm: "Precious in the sight
of the Lord is the death of His saints."(2) Also in the cxxvth Psalm: "They
who sow in tears shall reap in joy. Walking they walked, and wept as they
cast their seeds; but coming they shall come in joy, raising up their
laps."(3) Of this same thing in the Gospel according to John: "He who
loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world
shall find it to life eternal."(4) Also in the same place: "But when they
shall deliver you up, take no thought what ye shall speak; for it is not ye
who speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you."(5) Also in
the same place: "The hour shall come, that every one that killeth you shall
think he doeth service to God l but they shall do this also because they
have not known the Father nor me."(6) Of this same matter, according to
Matthew: "Blessed are they which shall suffer persecution for
righteousness' sake; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."(7) Also in the
same place: "Fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill
the soul; but rather fear Him which is able to kill the soul and body in
Gehenna."(8) Also in the same place: "Whosoever shall confess me before
men, him also will I confess before my Father which is in heaven; but he
who shall deny me before men, him also will I deny before my Father which
is in heaven. And he that shall endure to the end, the same shall be
saved."(9) Of this same thing, according to Luke: "Blessed shall ye be
when men shall hate you, and shall separate you (from their company), and
shall drive you out, and shall speak evil of your name, as wicked, for the
Son of man's sake. Rejoice in that day, and exult; for, lo, your reward is
great in heaven."(10) Also in the same place: "Verily I say unto you, There
is no man that leaveth house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or
children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, and does not receive seven
times as much in this present time, but in the world to come life
everlasting."(11) Of this same thing in the Apocalypse: "And when he had
opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar of God the souls of them that
were slain on account of the word of God and His testimony. And they cried
with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost Thou not
judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And unto every
one of them were given white robes; and it was said to them, that they
should rest still for a short time, until the number of their fellow-
servants, and of their brethren, should be fulfilled, and they who shall
afterwards be slain, after their example."(12) Also in the same place:
"After these things I saw a great crowd, which no one among them could
number, from every nation, and from every tribe, and from every people and
tongue, standing before the throne and before the Lamb; and they were
clothed with white robes, and palms were in their hands. And they said with
a loud voice, Salvation to our God, that sitteth upon the throne, and to
the Lamb. And one of the elders answered and said to me, What are these
which are clothed with white robes? who are they, and whence have they
come? And I said unto him, My lord, thou knowest. And he said unto me,
These are they who have come out of great tribulation, and have washed
their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore they
are before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple;
and He who sitteth upon the throne shall dwell among them. They shall
neither hunger nor thirst ever; and neither shall the sun fall upon them,
nor shall they suffer any heat: for the Lamb who is in the midst of the
throne shall protect them, and shall lead them to the fountains of the
waters of life; and God shall wipe away every tear from their eyes."(13)
Also in the same place: "He who shall overcome I will give him to eat of
the tree of life, which as in the paradise of my God."(14) Also in the same
place: "Be thou faithful even unto death, and I will give thee a crown of
life."(15) Also in the same place: "Blessed shall they be who shall watch,
and shall keep their garments, lest they walk naked, and they see their
shame."(16) Of this same thing, Paul in the second Epistle to Timothy: "I
am now offered up, and the time of my assumption is at hand. I have fought
a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. There now
remains for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous
Judge, will give me in that day; and not only to me, but to all also who
love His appearing."(1) Of this same thing to the Romans: "We are the sons
of God: but if sons and heirs of God, we are also joint-heirs with Christ;
if we suffer together, that we may also be magnified together."(2) Of this
same thing in the cxviiith Psalm: "Blessed are they who are undefiled in
the way, and walk in the law of the Lord. Blessed are they who search into
His testimonies."(3)
17. That what we suffer in this world is of less account than is the reward
which is promised.
In the Epistle of Paul to the Romans: "The sufferings of this present
time are not worthy of comparison with the glory that is to come after,
which shall be revealed in us."(4) Of this same thing in the Maccabees: "O
Lord, who hast the holy knowledge, it is manifest that while I might be
delivered from death, I am suffering most cruel pains of body, being beaten
with whips; yet in spirit I suffer these things willingly, because of the
fear of thine own self."(5) Also in the same place: "Thou indeed, being
powerless, destroyest us out of this present life; but the King of the
world shall raise us up who have died for His laws into the eternal
resurrection of life."(6) Also in the same place: "It is better that, given
up to death by men, we should expect hope from God to be raised again by
Him. For there shall be no resurrection to life for thee."(7) Also in the
same place: "Having power among men, although thou art corruptible, thou
doest what thou wilt. But think not that our race is forsaken of God.
Sustain, and see how His great power will torment, thee and thy seed."(8)
Also in the same place: Do not err without cause; for we suffer these
things on our own accounts, as sinners against our God. But think not thou
that thou shalt be unpunished, having undertaken to fight against God."(9)
18. That nothing is to be preferred to the love of God and Christ.
In Deuteronomy: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart,
and with all thy soul, and with all thy might."(10) Also in the Gospel
according to Matthew: "He that loveth father or mother above me, is not
worthy of me; and he that loveth son or daughter above me, is not worthy of
me; and he that taketh not up his cross and followeth me, is not my
disciple."(11) Also in the Epistle of Paul to the Romans: "Who shall
separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or
persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written,
Because for thy sake we are killed all the day long, we are counted as
sheep for the slaughter. But in all these things we are more than
conquerors for His sake who loved us."(12)
19. That we are not to obey our own will, but the will of God.
In the Gospel according to John: "I came not down from heaven to do
mine own will, but the will of Him that sent me."(13) Of this same matter,
according to Matthew: "Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from
me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what Thou wilt."(14) Also in the
daily prayer: "Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth."(15) Also
according to Matthew: "Not every one who saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall
enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he who doeth the will of my Father
which is in heaven, he shall enter into the kingdom of heaven."(16) Also
according to Luke: "But that servant which knoweth his Lord's will, and
obeyed not His will, shall be beaten with many stripes."(17) In the Epistle
of John: "But he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever, even as He
Himself also abideth for ever."(18)
20. That the foundation and strength of hope and faith is fear.
In the cxth Psalm: "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of
wisdom."(19) Of the same thing in the Wisdom of Solomon: "The beginning of
wisdom is to fear God."(20) Also in the Proverbs of the same: "Blessed is
the man who reverences all things with fear."(21) Of the same thing [in
Isaiah: "And upon whom else will I look, except upon him that is lowly and
peaceful, and that trembleth at my words?"(12) Of this same thing in
Genesis: "And the angel of the Lord called him from heaven, and said unto
him, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. And he said, Lay not thine
hand upon the lad, neither do anything unto him: for now I know that thou
fearest thy God, and hast not spared thy beloved son for my sake."(23) Also
in the second Psalm: "Serve the Lord in fear, and rejoice unto Him in
trembling."(1) Also in Deuteronomy, the word of God to Moses: "Call the
people together to me, and let them hear my words, that they may learn to
fear me all the days that they themselves shall live upon the earth."(2)
Also in Jeremiah: "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will
perfect upon the house of Israel, and in the house of Judah, a new
covenant: not according to the covenant that I had ordered with their
fathers in the day when I laid hold of their hand to bring them out of the
land of Egypt; because they have not abode in my covenant, and I have been
unmindful of them, saith the Lord; because this is the covenant which I
will ordain for the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I
will give my law, and will write it in their mind and I will be to them for
a God, and they shall be to me for a people. And they shall not teach every
man his brother, saying, Know the Lord because all shall know me, from the
least even to the greatest of them: because I will be favourable to their
iniquities, and their sins I will not remember any more. If the heaven
should be lifted up on high, saith the Lord, and if the earth should be
made low from beneath, yet I will not cast away the people of Israel, saith
the Lord, for all the things which they have done. Behold, I will gather
them together from every land in which I have scattered them in anger, and
in my fury, and in great indignation; and I will grind them down into that
place, and I will leave them in fear; and they shall be to me for a people,
and I will be to them for a God: and I will give them another way, and
another heart, that they may fear me all their days in prosperity with
their children: and I will perfect for them an everlasting covenant, which
I will not turn away after them; and I will put my fear into their heart,
that they may not depart from me: and I will visit upon them to do them
good, and to plant them in their land in faith, and with all the heart, and
with all the mind."(3) Also in the Apocalypse: "And the four and twenty
elders which sit on their thrones in the sight (of God), fell upon their
faces, and worshipped God, saying, We give Thee thanks, O Lord God
omnipotent, which art and which wast; because Thou hast taken Thy great
power, and hast reigned. And the nations were angry, and Thy wrath is come,
and the time in which it should be judged concerning the dead, and the
reward should be given to Thy servants the prophets, and the saints that
fear Thy name, small and great; and to disperse those who have corrupted
the earth."(4) Also in the same place: "And I saw another angel flying
through the midst of the heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach to
those who dwell upon the earth, and to all the nations, and tribes, and
tongues, and peoples, saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give Him
honour, because the hour of His judgment is come; and adore Him who made
the heaven, and the earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters."(5)
Also in the same place: "And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with
fire; and the beasts were feeding with His lambs;(6) and the number of His
name a hundred and forty and four, standing upon the sea of glass, having
the harps of God; and they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and
the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are Thy works, O Lord
God Almighty; just and true are Thy ways, Thou King of the nations. Who
would not fear Thee, and give honour to Thy name? for Thou only art holy:
and because all nations shall come and worship in Thy sight, because Thy
righteousnesses have been made manifest."(7) Also in Daniel: "There was a
man dwelling in Babylon whose name was Joachim; and he took a wife by name
Susanna, the daughter of Helchias, a very beautiful woman, and one that
feared the Lord. And her parents were righteous, and taught their daughter
according to the law of Moses."(8) Moreover, in Daniel: "And we are lowly
this day in all the earth because of our sins, and there is not at this
time any prince, or prophet, or leader, or burnt-offering, or oblation, or
sacrifice, or incense, or place to sacrifice before Thee, and to find mercy
from Thee. And yet in the soul and spirit of lowliness let us be accepted
as the burnt-offerings of rams and bulls, and as it were many thousands of
lambs which are fattest. If our offering may be made in Thy presence this
day, their power shall be consumed, for they shall not be ashamed who put
their trust in Thee. And now we follow with our whole heart, and we fear
and seek Thy face. Give us not over unto reproach, but do with us according
to Thy tranquillity, and according to the multitude of Thy mercy deliver
us."(9) Also in the same place: "And the king exceedingly rejoiced, and
commanded Daniel to be taken up out of the den of lions; and the lions had
done him no hurt, because he trusted and had believed in his God. And the
king commanded, and they brought those men who had accused Daniel; and they
cast them in the den of lions, and their wives and their children. And
before they had reached the pavement of the den they were seized by the
lions, and they brake all their bones in pieces. Then Darius the king
wrote, To all peoples, tribes, and languages which are in my kingdom, peace
be unto you from my face. I decree and ordain that all those who are in my
kingdom shall fear and tremble before the most high God whom Daniel serves,
because He is the God who liveth and abideth for ever, and His kingdom
shall not pass away, and His dominion goeth on for ever; and He alone doeth
signs, and prodigies, and marvellous things in the heaven and the earth,
who snatched Daniel from the den of lions."(1) Also in Micah: "Wherewith
shall I approach the Lord, and lay hold upon Him? in sacrifices, in burnt-
offerings, in calves of a year old? Does the Lord favour and receive me
with thousands of fat goats? or shall I give my first-fruits of
unrighteousness, the fruit of my belly, the sin of my soul? It is told
thee, O man, what is good; or what else the Lord doth require, save that
thou shouldst do judgment and justice, and love mercy, and be ready to go
with the Lord thy God. The voice of the Lord shall be invoked in the city,
and He will save those who fear His name."(2) Also in Micah: "Feed Thy
people with Thy rod, the sheep of Thine inheritance; and pluck up those who
dwell separately in the midst of Carmel. They shall prepare Bashan and
Gilead according to the days of the age; and according to the days of their
going forth from the land of Egypt I will show them wonderful things. The
nations shall see, and be confounded at all their might; and they shall
place their hand upon their mouth. Their ears shall be deafened, and they
shall lick the dust as do serpents. Dragging the earth, they shall be
disturbed, and they shall lick the dust: in their end they shall be afraid
towards the Lord their God, and they shall fear because of Thee. Who is a
God as Thou art, raising up unrighteousness, and passing over impiety?"(3)
And in Nahum: "The mountains were moved at Him, and the hills trembled; and
the earth was laid bare before His face, and all who dwell therein. From
the face of His anger who shall bear it, and who withstandeth in the fury
of His soul? His rage causes the beginnings to flow, and the rocks were
melted by Him. The Lord is good to those who sustain Him in the day of
affliction, and knoweth those who fear Him."(4) Also in Haggai: "And
Zerubbabel the son of Salathiel, of the tribe of Judah, and Jesus the son
of Josedech, the high priest, and all who remained of the people, obeyed
the voice of the Lord their God, because the Lord sent him to them, and the
people feared from the face of God."(5) Also in Malachi: "The covenant was
with life and peace; and I gave to them the fear to fear me from the face
of my name."(6) Also in the thirty-third Psalm: "Fear the Lord, all ye His
saints: for there is no want to them that fear Him."(7) Also in the
eighteenth Psalm: "The fear of the Lord is chaste, abiding for ever."(8)
21. That we must not rashly judge of another.
In the Gospel according to Luke: "Judge not, that ye be not judged:
condemn not, that ye be not condemned."(9) Of this same subject to the
Romans: "Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master
he standeth or falleth. But he shall stand; for God is able to make him
stand."(10) And again: "Wherefore thou art without excuse, O every man that
judgest: for in that in which thou judgest another, thou condemnest
thyself; for thou doest the same things which thou judgest. But dost thou
hope, who judgest those who do evil, and doest the same, that thou thyself
shalt escape the judgment of God"(11) Also in the first Epistle of Paul to
the Corinthians.: "And let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he
fall."(12) And again: "If any man thinketh that he knoweth anything, he
knoweth not yet in what manner he ought to know."(13)
22. That when we have received a wrong, we must remit and forgive it.
In the Gospel, in the daily prayer: "Forgive us our debts, even as we
forgive our debtors."(14) Also according to Mark: "And when ye stand for
prayer, forgive, if ye have ought against any one; that also your Father
who is in heaven may forgive you your sins. But if ye do not forgive,
neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive you your sins."(15)
Also in the same place: "In what measure ye mete, in that shall it be
measured to you again."(16)
23. That evil is not to be returned for evil.
In the Epistle of Paul to the Romans: "Rendering to no man evil for
evil."(17) Also in the same place: "Not to be overcome of evil, but
overcome evil with good."(18) Of this same thing in the Apocalypse: "And He
said unto me, Seal not the words of the prophecy of this book; because now
the time is at hand. And let those who persist in hurting, hurt: and let
him who is filthy, be filthy still: but let the righteous do still more
righteousness: and in like manner, let him that is holy do still more
holiness. Behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to render to
every man according to his deeds."(1)
24. That it is impossible to attain to the Father but by His Son Jesus
Christ.
In the Gospel according to John: "I am the way, the truth, and the
life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."(2) Also in the same place:
"I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved."(3)
25. That unless a man have been baptized and born again, he cannot attain
unto the kingdom of God.
In the Gospel according to John: "Except a man be born again of water
and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. For that which is
born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is
spirit."(4) Also in the same place: "Unless ye eat the flesh of the Son of
man, and drink His blood, ye shall not have life in you."(5)
26. That it is of small account to be baptized and to receive the
Eucharist, unless one profit by it both in deeds and works.
In the first Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: "Know ye not, that
they which run in a race run indeed all, although one receiveth the prize?
So run, that ye may obtain. And those indeed that they may receive a
corruptible crown, but we an incorruptible."(6) In the Gospel according to
Matthew: "Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit shall be cut down,
and cast into the fire."(7) Also in the same place: "Many shall say unto me
in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name, and in Thy
name have cast out devils, and in Thy name have done great works? And then
shall I say to them, I never knew you; depart from me, ye who work
iniquity."(8) Also in the same place: "Let your light shine before men,
that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in
heaven."(9) Also Paul to the Philippians: "Shine as lights in the
world."(10)
27. That even a baptized person loses the grace that he has attained,
unless he keep innocency.
In the Gospel according to John: "Lo, thou art made whole: sin no more,
lest a worse thing happen unto thee."(11) Also in the first Epistle of Paul
to the Corinthians: "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and the
Spirit of God abideth in you? If any one violate the temple of God, him
will God destroy."(12) Of this same thing in the Chronicles: "God is with
you, while ye are with Him: if ye forsake Him, He will forsake you."(13)
28. That remission cannot in the Church be granted unto him who has sinned
against God (i.e., the Holy Ghost).
In the Gospel according to Matthew: "Whosoever shall say a word against
the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him; but whosoever shall speak against
the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world nor in
the world to come."(14) Also according to Mark: "All sins shall be
forgiven, and blasphemies, to the sons of men; but whoever shall blaspheme
against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, but he shall be
guilty of eternal sin."(15) Of this same thing in the first book of Kings:
"If a man sin by offending against a man, they shall pray the Lord for him;
but if a man sin against God, who shall pray for him?"(16)
29. That it was before predicted, concerning the hatred of the Name,
In the Gospel according to Luke: "And ye shall be hated of all men for
my name's sake."(17) Also according to John: "If the world hate you, know
ye that it first hated me. If ye were of the world, the world would love
what would be its own: but because ye are not of the world, and I have
chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the
word which I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If
they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you."(18) Also in
Baruch:(19) "For the time shall come, and ye shall seek me, both ye and
those who shall be after you, to hear the word of wisdom and of
understanding; and ye shall not find me. But the nations shall desire to
see the wise man, and it shall not happen to them; not because the wisdom
of this world shall be wanting, or shall fail to the earth; but neither
shall the word of the law be wanting to the world. For wisdom shall be in a
few who watch, and are silent and quiet, and who hold converse with one
another; because some shall dread them, and shall fear them as evil. But
some do not believe the word of the law of the Highest. But some who are
amazed in their countenance will not believe; and they also who contradict
will believe, and will be contrary to and hindering the spirit of truth.
Moreover, others will be wise to the spirit of error, and declaring the
edicts, as if of the Highest and the Strong One. Moreover, others are
possessors of faith.(1) Others are mighty and strong in the faith of the
Highest, and hateful to the stranger."
30. That what any one has vowed to God, he must quickly repay.
In Solomon: "According as thou hast vowed a vow to God, delay not to
pay it."(2) Concerning this same thing in Deuteronomy: "But if thou hast
vowed a vow to the Lord thy God, I thou shalt not delay to pay it: because
the Lord thy God inquiring shall seek it of thee; and it shall be for a
sin. Thou shalt observe those things that shall go forth out of thy lips,
and shalt perform the gift which thou hast spoken with thy mouth."(3) Of
this same matter in the forty-ninth Psalm: "Sacrifice to God the sacrifice
of praise, and pay thy vows to the Most High. Call upon me in the day of
trouble, and I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me."(4) Of this
same thing in the Acts of the Apostles: "Why hath Satan filled thine heart,
that thou shouldst lie to the Holy Ghost, when thy estate was in thine own
power? Thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God."(5) Also in Jeremiah:
"Cursed is he who doeth the work of God negligently."(6)
31. That he who does not believe is judged already.
In the Gospel according to John: "He that believeth not is already
judged, because he hath not believed in the name of the only(7) Son of God.
And this is the judgment, that light has come into the world, and men have
loved darkness rather than light."(8) Of this also in the first Psalm:
"Therefore the ungodly shall not rise up in judgment, nor sinners in the
council of the righteous."(9)
32. Of the benefit of virginity and of continency.(10)
In Genesis: "Multiplying I will multiply thy sorrows and thy groanings,
and in sorrow shalt thou bring forth children; and thy turning shall be to
thy husband, and he shall rule over thee."(11) Of this same thing in the
Gospel according to Matthew: "All men do not receive the word, but they to
whom it is given: for there are some eunuchs who were born so from their
mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who have been constrained by men, and
there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of
heaven's sake. He who can receive it, let him receive it."(12) Also
according to Luke: "The children of this world beget, and are begotten. But
they who have been considered worthy of that world, and the resurrection
from the dead, do not marry, nor are married: for neither shall they begin
to die: for they are equal to the angels of God, since they are the
children of the resurrection. But, that the dead rise again, Moses
intimates when he says in the bush, The Lord, the God of Abraham, and the
God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. He is not the God of the dead, but of
the living: for all live unto Him."(13) Also in the first Epistle of Paul
to the Corinthians: "It is good for a man not to touch a woman. But, on
account of fornication, let every man have his own wife, and every woman
have her own husband. Let the husband render what is due to the wife, and
similarly the wife to the husband. The wife hath not power over her own
body, but the husband. And in like manner, the husband hath not power over
his own body, but the wife. Defraud not one the other, except by agreement
for a time, that ye may have leisure for prayer; and again return to the
same point, lest Satan tempt you on account of your incontinency. This I
say by way of allowance, not by way of command. But I wish that all men
should be even as I am. But every one has his proper gift from God; one in
one way, but another in another way."(14) Also in the same place: "An
unmarried man thinks of those things which are the Lord's, in what way he
may please God; but he who has contracted marriage thinks of those things
that are of this world, in what way he may please his wife. Thus also, both
the woman and the unmarried virgin thinketh of those things which are the
Lord's, that she may be holy both in body and in spirit; but she that hath
married thinks of those things which are of this world, in what way she may
please her husband."(1) Also in Exodus, when the Lord had commanded Moses
that he should sanctify the people for the third day, he sanctified them,
and added: "Be ye ready, for three days ye shall not approach to women."(2)
Also in the first book of Kings: "And the priest answered to David, and
said, There are no profane loaves in my hand, except one sacred loaf. If
the young men have been kept back from women, they shall eat."(3) Also in
the Apocalypse: "These are they who have not defiled themselves with women,
for they have continued virgins; these are they who follow the Lamb
whithersoever He shall go."(4)
33. That the Father judgeth nothing, but the Son; and that the Father is
not glorified by him by whom the Son is not glorified.
In the Gospel according to John: "The Father judgeth nothing, but hath
given all judgment unto the Son, that all may honour the Son as they honour
the Father. He who honoureth not the Son, honoureth not the Father who hath
sent Him."(5) Also in the seventy-first Psalm: "O God, give the king Thy
judgment, and Thy righteousness to the king's son, to judge Thy people in
righteousness."(6) Also in Genesis: "And the Lord rained upon Sodom and
Gomorrah sulphur, and fire from heaven from the Lord."(7)
34. That the believer ought not to live like the Gentile.
In Jeremiah: "Thus saith the Lord, Walk ye not according to the way of
the Gentiles."(8) Of this same thing, that one ought to separate himself
from the Gentiles, lest he should be a companion of their sin, and become a
partaker of their penalty, in the Apocalypse: "And I heard another voice
from heaven, saying, Go forth from her, my people, lest thou be partaker of
her crimes, and lest thou be stricken with her plagues; because her crimes
have reached even to heaven, and the Lord God hath remembered her
iniquities. Therefore He hath returned unto her double, and in the cup
which she hath mixed double is mingled for her; and in how much she hath
glorified herself and possessed of delights, in so much is given unto her
both torment and grief. For in her heart she says, I am a queen, and cannot
be a widow, nor shah I see sorrow. Therefore in one hour her plagues shall
come on her, death, grief, and famine; and she shall be burned with fire,
because the Lord God is strong who shall judge her. And the kings of the
earth shall weep and lament themselves for her, who have committed
fornication with her, and have been conversant in her sins."(9) Also in
Isaiah: "Go forth from the midst of them, ye who bear the vessels of the
Lord."(10)
35. That God is patient for this end, that we may repent of our sin, and be
reformed.
In Solomon, in Ecclesiasticus: "Say not, I have sinned, and what sorrow
hath happened to me? For the Highest is a patient repayer."(11) Also Paul
to the Romans: "Or despisest thou the riches of His goodness, and
forbearance, and patience, not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth
thee to repentance? But, according to thy hardness and impenitent heart,
thou treasurest up to thyself wrath in the day of wrath and of revelation
of the just judgment of God, who will render to every man according to his
deeds."(12)
36. That a woman ought not to be adorned in a worldly fashion.
In the Apocalypse: "And there came one of the seven angels having
vials, and approached me, saying, Come, I will show thee the condemnation
of the great whore, who sitteth upon many waters, with whom the kings of
the earth have committed fornication. And I saw a woman who sate upon a
beast. And that woman was clothed with a purple and scarlet robe; and she
was adorned with gold, and precious stones, and pearls, holding a golden
cup in her hand full of curses, and impurity, and fornication of the whole
earth."(13) Also to Timothy: "Let your women be such as adorn themselves
with shamefacedness and modesty, not with twisted hair, nor with gold, nor
with pearls, or precious garments, but as becometh women professing
chastity, with a good conversation."(14) Of this same thing in the Epistle
of Peter to the people at Pontus: "Let there be in a woman not the outward
adorning of ornament, or of gold, or of apparel, but the adorning of the
heart."(15) Also in Genesis: "Thamar covered herself with a cloak, and
adorned herself; and when Judah beheld her, she appeared to him to be a
harlot."(1)
37. That the believer ought not to be punished for other offences, except
for the name he bears.
In the Epistle of Peter to them of Pontus: "Nor let any of you suffer
as a thief, or a murderer, or as an evil-doer, or as a minder of other
people's business,(2) but as a Christian.(3)
38. That the servant of God ought to be innocent, lest he fall into secular
punishment.
In the Epistle of Paul to the Romans: "Wilt thou not be afraid of the
power? Do that which is good, and thou shall have praise of it."(4)
39. That there is given to us an example of living in Christ.
In the Epistle of Peter to them of Pontus: "For Christ suffered for us,
leaving you an example, that ye may follow His steps; who did no sin,
neither was guile found in His mouth; who, when He was reviled, reviled not
again; when He suffered, threatened not, but gave Himself up to him that
judgeth unrighteously."(5) Also Paul to the Philippians: "Who, being
appointed in the figure of God, thought it not robbery that He was equal
with God; but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, He was made in
the likeness of man, and was found in fashion as a man. He humbled Himself,
becoming obedient even unto death, and the death of the cross. For which
cause also God hath exalted Him, and hath given Him a name, that it may be
above every name, that in the name of Jesus every knee should be bowed, of
things heavenly, and earthly, and infernal; and that every tongue should
confess that the Lord Jesus Christ is in glory of God the Father."(6) Of
this same thing in the Gospel according to John: "If I have washed your
feet, being your Master and Lord, ye also ought to wash the feet of others.
For I have given you an example, that as I have done, ye also should do to
others."(7)
40. That we must not labour noisily nor boastfully.
In the Gospel according to Matthew: "Let not thy left hand know what
thy right hand doeth, that thine alms may be in secret; and thy Father,
which seeth in secret, shall render to thee."(8) Also in the same place:
"When thou doest an alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the
hypocrites do in the streets and in the synagogues, that they may be
glorified of men. Verily I say unto you, They have fulfilled their
reward."(9)
41. That we must not speak foolishly and offensively.
In Paul's Epistle to the Ephesians: "Foolish speaking and scurrility,
which are not fitting for the occasion, let them not be even named among
you."(10)
42. That faith is of advantage altogether, and that we can do as much as we
believe.
In Genesis: "And Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for
righteousness."(11) Also in Isaiah: "And if ye do not believe, neither
shall ye understand."(12) Also in the Gospel according to Matthew: "O thou
of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?"(13) Also in the same place:
"If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say to this
mountain, Pass over from here to that place, and it shall pass over; and
nothing shall be impossible unto you."(14) Also according to Mark: "All
things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye shall receive them,
and they shall be yours."(15) Also in the same place: All things are
possible to him that believeth."(16) In Habakkuk: "But the righteous liveth
by my faith."(17) Also in Daniel: "Ananias, Azarias, and Misael, trusting
in God, were delivered from the fiery flame."
43. That he who believes can immediately obtain (i.e., pardon and peace).
In the Acts of the Apostles: "Lo, here is water; what is there which
hinders me from being baptized? Then said Philip, If thou believest with
all thine heart, thou mayest."(18)
44. That believers who differ among themselves ought not to refer to a
Gentile judge.(19)
In the first Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: "Dares any of you,
having a matter against other, to discuss it among the unrighteous, and not
among the saints? Know ye not that the saints shall judge this world?"(1)
And again: "Now indeed there is altogether a fault among you, because ye
have judgments one against another. Wherefore do ye not rather suffer
injury? or wherefore are ye not rather defrauded? But ye do wrong, and
defraud, and this your brethren. Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not
obtain the kingdom of God?"(2)
45. That hope is of future things, and therefore that our faith
concerning those things which are promised ought to be patient.
In the Epistle of Paul to the Romans: "We are saved by hope. But hope
that is seen is not hope; for what a man seeth, why doth he hope for? But
if we hope for what we see not, we hope(3) for it in patience."(4)
46. That a woman ought to be silent in the church.
In the first Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: "Let women be silent
in the church. But if any wish to learn anything, let them ask their
husbands at home."(5) Also to Timothy: "Let a woman learn with silence, in
all subjection. But I permit not a woman to teach, nor to be set over the
man, but to be in silence. For Adam was first formed, then Eve; and Adam
was not seduced, but the woman was seduced."(6)
47. That it arises from our fault and our desert that we suffer, and do not
perceive God's help in everything.
In Hosea: "Hear ye the word of the Lord, ye children of Israel: because
judgment is from the Lord against the inhabitants of the earth because
there is neither mercy nor truth, nor acknowledgment of God upon the earth;
but cursing, and lying, and slaughter, and theft, and adultery is scattered
abroad upon the earth: they mingle blood to blood. Therefore the land shall
mourn, with all its inhabitants, with the beasts of the field, with the
creeping things of the earth, with the birds of heaven; and the fishes of
the sea shall fail: so that no man may judge, no man may refute."(7) Of
this same thing in Isaiah: "Is not the Lord's hand strong to save, or has
He weighed down His ear that He may not hear? But your sins separate
between you and God; and on account of your iniquities He turns away His
face from you, lest He should pity. For your hands are polluted with blood,
and your fingers with sins; and your lips have spoken wickedness, and your
tongue devises unrighteousness. No one speaks true things, neither is
judgment true. They trust in vanity, and speak emptiness, who conceive
sorrow, and bring forth wickedness."(8) Also in Zephaniah: "In failing, let
it fail from the face of the earth, saith the Lord. Let man fail, and
cattle; let the birds of heaven fail, and the fishes of the sea; and I will
take away the unrighteous from the face of the earth."(9)
48. That we must not take usury.
In the thirteenth Psalm:(10) "He that hath not given his money upon
usury, and has not received gifts concerning the innocent. He who doeth
these things shall not be moved for ever."(11) Also in Ezekiel: "But the
man who will be righteous, shall not oppress a man, and shall return the
pledge of the debtor, and shall not commit rapine, and shall give his bread
to the hungry, and shall cover the naked, and shall not give his money for
usury.."(12) Also in Deuteronomy: "Thou shalt not lend to thy brother with
usury of money, and with usury of victuals."(13)
49. That even our enemies must be loved.
In the Gospel according to Luke: "If ye love those who love you, what
thank have ye? For even sinners love those who love them."(14) Also
according to Matthew: "Love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute
you, that ye may be the children of your Father who is in heaven, who
maketh His sun to rise upon the good and the evil, and giveth rain upon the
righteous and the unrighteous."(15)
50. That the sacrament of faith must not be profaned.
In Solomon, in the Proverbs: "Say not anything in the ears of a foolish
man; lest, when he hears it, he may mock at thy wise words."(16) Also in
the Gospel according to Matthew: "Give not that which is holy to dogs;
neither cast ye your pearls before the swine, lest perchance they trample
them down with their feet, and turn again and crush you."(17)
51. That no one should be uplifted in his labour.(1)
In Solomon, in Ecclesiasticus: "Extol not thyself in doing thy
work."(2) Also in the Gospel according to Luke: "Which of you, having a
servant ploughing, or a shepherd, says to him when he cometh from the
field, Pass forward and recline? But he says to him, Make ready somewhat
that I may sup, and gird thyself, and minister to me, until I eat and
drink; and afterwards thou shalt eat and drink? Does he thank that servant
because he has done what was commanded him? So also ye, when ye shall have
done that which is commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants; we
have done what we had to do."(3)
52. That the liberty of believing or of not believing is placed in free
choice.
In Deuteronomy: "Lo, I have set before thy face life and death, good
and evil. Choose for thyself life, that thou mayest live."(4) Also in
Isaiah: "And if ye be willing, and hear me, ye shall eat the good of the
land. But if ye be unwilling, and will not hear me, the sword shall consume
you. For the mouth of the Lord hath spoken these things."(5) Also in the
Gospel according to Luke: "The kingdom of God is within you."(6)
53. That he secrets of God cannot be seen through, and therefore that our
faith ought to be simple.(7)
In the first Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: "We see now through
the glass in an enigma, but then with face to face. Now I know partly; but
then I shall know even as also I am known."(8) Also in Solomon, in Wisdom:
"And in simplicity of heart seek Him."(9) Also in the same: "He who walketh
with simplicity, walketh trustfully."(10) Also in the same: "Seek not
things higher than thyself, and look not into things stronger than
thyself."(11) Also in Solomon: "Be not excessively righteous, and do not
reason more than is required."(12) Also in Isaiah: "Woe unto them who are
convicted in themselves."(13) Also in the Maccabees: "Daniel in his
simplicity was delivered from the mouth of tile lions."(14) Also in the
Epistle of Paul to the Romans: "Oh the depth of the riches of the wisdom
and knowledge of God! How incomprehensible are His judgments, and how
unsearchable are His ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord? or who
has been His counsellor? or who has first given to Him, and it shall be
recompensed to him again? Because from Him, and through Him, and in Him,
are all things: to Him be glory for ever and ever."(15) Also to Timothy:
"But foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that they generate
strifes. But the servant of God ought not to strive, but to be gentle
towards all men."(16)
54. That no one is without filth and without sin.
In Job: "For who is pure from filth? Not one; even if his life be of
one day on the earth."(17) Also in the fiftieth Psalm: "Behold, I was
conceived in iniquities, and in sins hath my mother conceived me."(18) Also
in the Epistle of John: "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive
ourselves, and the truth is not in us."(19)
55. That we must not please men, but God.
In the fifty-second Psalm: "They that please men are confounded,
because God hath made them nothing."(20) Also in the Epistle of Paul to the
Galatians: "If I wished to please men, I should not be the servant of
Christ."(21)
56. That nothing that is done is hidden from God.
In the Wisdom of Solomon: "In every place the eyes of God look upon the
good and evil."(22) Also in Jeremiah: "I am a God at hand, and not a God
afar off. If a man should be hidden in the secret place, shall I not
therefore see him? Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the Lord."(23)
Also in the first of Kings: "Man looketh on the face, but God on the
heart."(24) Also in the Apocalypse: "And all the churches shall know that I
am the searcher of the reins and heart; and I will give to every one of you
according to his works."(25) Also in the eighteenth Psalm: "Who understands
his faults? Cleanse Thou me from my secret sins, O Lord."(26) Also in the
second Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: "We must all be manifested
before the tribunal of Christ, that every one may bear again the things
which belong to his own body, according to what he hath done, whether good
or evil."(1)
57. That the believer is amended and reserved.
In the cxviith Psalm: "The Lord amending hath amended me, and hath not
delivered me to death."(2) Also in the eighty-eighth Psalm: "I will visit
their transgressions with a rod, and their sins with scourges. But my mercy
will I not scatter away from them."(3) Also in Malachi: "And He shall sit
melting and purifying, as it were, gold and silver; and He shall purify the
sons of Levi."(4) Also in the Gospel: "Thou shalt not go out thence until
thou pay the uttermost farthing."(5)
58. That no one should be made sad by death; since in living is labour and
peril, in dying peace and the certainty of resurrection.
In Genesis: "Then said the Lord to Adam, Because thou hast hearkened to
the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of that tree of which alone I
commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat, cursed shall be the ground in
all thy works; in sadness and groaning shalt thou eat of it all the days of
thy life: thorns and thistles shall it cast forth to thee; and thou shalt
eat the herb of the field in the sweat of thy brow. Thou shall eat thy
bread until thou return unto the earth from which also thou wast taken;
because earth thou art, and to earth thou shall go."(6) Also in the same
place: "And Enoch pleased God, and was not found afterwards: because God
translated him."(7) And in Isaiah: "All flesh is grass, and all the glory
of it as the flower of grass. The grass withered, and the flower hath
fallen away; but the word of the Lord abideth for ever."(8) In Ezekiel:
"They say, Our bones are become dry, our hope hath perished: we have
expired. Therefore prophesy, and say, Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I open
your monuments, and I will bring you forth from your monuments, and I will
bring you into the land of Israel; and I will put my Spirit upon you, and
ye shall live; and I will place you into your land: and ye shall know that
I the Lord have spoken, and will do it, saith the Lord."(9) Also in the
Wisdom of Solomon: "He was taken away, lest wickedness should change his
understanding; for his soul was pleasing to God."(10) Also in the eighty-
third Psalm: "How beloved(11) are thy dwellings, Thou Lord of hosts? My
soul desires and hastes to the courts of God."(12) And in the Epistle of
Paul to the Thessalonians: "But we would not that you should be ignorant,
brethren, concerning those who sleep, that ye sorrow not as others which
have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, so also
them which have fallen asleep in Jesus will God bring with Him."(13) Also
in the first Epistle to the Corinthians: "Thou fool, that which thou sowest
is not quickened except it have first died."(14) And again: "Star differeth
from star in glory: so also the resurrection. The body is sown in
corruption, it rises without corruption; it is sown in ignominy, it rises
again in glory; it is sown in weakness, it rises again in power; it is sown
an animal body, it rises again a spiritual body."(15) And again: "For this
corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal put on immortality.
But when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal
shall have put on immortality, then shall come to pass the word that is
written, Death is absorbed Into striving. Where, O death, is thy sting?
Where, O death, is thy striving?"(16) Also in the Gospel according to John:
"Father, I will that those whom Thou hast given me be with me where I shall
be, and may see my glory which Thou hast given me before the foundation of
the world."(17) Also according to Luke: "Now lettest Thou Thy servant
depart in peace, O Lord, according to the word; for mine eyes have seen Thy
salvation."(18) Also according to John: "If ye loved me, ye would rejoice
because I go to the Father; for the Father is greater than I."(19)
59. Of the idols which the Gentiles think to be gods.
In the Wisdom of Solomon: "All the idols of the nations they counted
gods, which neither have the use of their eyes for seeing, nor their
nostrils to receive breath, nor their ears for hearing, nor the fingers on
their hands for handling; but their feet also are slow to walk. For man
made them; and he who has borrowed his breath, he fashioned them. But no
man will be able to fashion a god like to himself. For since he is mortal,
he fashioneth a dead thing with wicked hands. But he himself is better than
they whom he worships, since he indeed lived, but they never."(1) On this
same matter: "Neither have they who have regarded the works known who was
the artificer, but have thought that either fire, or wind, or the rapid
air, or the circle of the stars, or the abundant water, or the sun and
moon, were the gods that rule over the world; and if, on account of the
beauty of these, they have thought thus, let them know how much more
beautiful than these is the Lord; or if they have admired their powers and
operations, let them perceive from these very things that He who has
established these mighty things is stronger than they."(2) Also in the
cxxxivth Psalm: "The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of
men's hands. They have a mouth, and speak not; they have eyes, and see not;
they have ears, and hear not; and neither is there any breath in their
mouth. Let them who make them become like unto them, and all those who
trust in them."(3) Also in the ninety-fifth Psalm: "All the gods of the
nations are demons, but the Lord made the heavens."(4) Also in Exodus: "Ye
shall not make unto yourselves gods of silver nor of gold."(5) And again:
"Thou shalt not make to thyself an idol, nor the likeness of any thing."(6)
Also in Jeremiah: "Thus saith the Lord, Walk not according to the ways of
the heathen; for they fear those things in their own persons, because the
lawful things of the heathen are vain. Wood cut out from the forest is
made. the work of the carpenter, and melted silver and gold are beautifully
arranged: they strengthen them with hammers and nails, and they shall not
be moved, for they are fixed. The silver is brought from Tharsis, the gold
comes from Moab. All things are the works of the artificers; they will
clothe it with blue and purple; lifting them, they will carry them, because
they will not go forward. Be not afraid of them, because they do no evil,
neither is there good in them. Say thus, The gods that have not made the
heaven and the earth perish from the earth, and from under this heaven. The
heaven hath trembled at this, and hath shuddered much more vehemently,
saith the Lord. These evil things hath my people done. They have forsaken
the fountain of living water, and have dug out for themselves worn-out
wells, which could not hold water. Thy love hath smitten thee, and thy
wickedness shall accuse thee. And know and see that it shall be a bitter
thing for thee that thou hast forsaken me, saith the Lord thy God, and thou
hast not hoped in me, saith thy Lord. Because of old time thou hast
resented my yoke, and hast broken thy bonds, and hast said, I will not
serve, but I will go upon every lofty mountain, and upon every high hill,
and upon every shady tree: there I will be confounded with fornication. To
the wood and to the stone they have said, Thou art my father; and to the
stone, Thou hast begotten me: and they turned to me their back, and not
their face."(7) In Isaiah: "The dragon hath fallen or is dissolved; their
carved works have become as beasts and cattle. Labouring and hungry, and
without strength, ye shall bear them bound upon your neck as a heavy
burden."(8) And again: "Gathered together, they shall not be able to be
saved from war; but they themselves have been led captive with thee."(9)
And again: "To whom have ye likened me? See and understand that ye err in
your heart, who lavish gold out of the bag, and weigh silver in the
balance, bringing it up to the weight. The workmen have made with their
hand the things made; and, bowing themselves, they have adored it, and have
raised it on their shoulders: and thus they walked. But if they should
place them down, they will abide in their place, and will not be moved; and
they will not hear those who cry unto them: they will not save them from
evils."(10) Also in Jeremiah: "The Lord, who made heaven and earth, in
strength hath ordered the world, in His wisdom hath stretched forth the
heaven, and the multitude of the waters in the heaven. He hath brought out
the clouds from the end of the earth, the lightnings in the clouds; and He
hath brought forth the winds from His treasures. Every man is made foolish
by his knowledge, every artificer is confounded by his graven images;
because he hath molten a falsehood: there is no breath in them. The works
shut up in them are made vain; in the time of their consideration they
shall perish."(11) And in the Apocalypse: "And the sixth angel sounded with
his trumpet. And I heard one of the four corners of the golden ark, which
is in the presence of God, saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet,
Loose the four angels which are bound upon the great river Euphrates. And
the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day,
and a month, and a year, to slay the third part of men; and the number of
the army of the horsemen was two hundred thousand of thousand: I heard the
number of them. And then I saw the horses in the vision, and those that
sate upon them, having breastplates of fire, and of hyacinth, and of
sulphur: and the heads of the horses (as the heads of lions); and out of
their mouth went fire, and smoke, and sulphur. By these three plagues the
third part of men was slain, by the fire, and the smoke, and the sulphur
which went forth from their mouth, and is in their tails: for their tails
were like unto eels; for they had heads, and with them they do mischief.
And the rest of the men who were not slain by these plagues, nor repented
of the works of the deeds of their hands, that they should not worship
demons and idols, that is, images of gold, and of silver, and of brass, and
of stone, and of wood, which can neither see nor walk, repented not also of
their, murders."(1) Also in the same place: "And the third angel followed
them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image,
and hath received his mark in his forehead or upon his hand, the same shall
drink of the wine of His wrath, and shall be punished with fire and
sulphur, under the eyes of the holy angels, and under the eyes of the Lamb;
and the smoke of their torments shall ascend up for ever and ever."(2)
60. That too great lust of food is not to be desired.
In Isaiah: "Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we shall die. This sin
shall not be remitted to you even until ye die."(3) Also in Exodus: "And
the people sate down to eat and drink, and rose up to play."(4) Paul, in
the first to the Corinthians: "Meat commendeth us not to God; neither if we
eat shall we abound, nor if we eat not shall we want."(5). And again: "When
ye come together to eat, wait one for another. If any is hungry, let him
eat at home, that ye may not come together for judgment."(6) Also to the
Romans: "The kingdom of God is not meat and drink, but righteousness, and
peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost."(7) In the Gospel according to John: "I
have meat which ye know not of. My meat is, that I should do His will who
sent me, and should finish His work."(8)
61. That the lust of possessing, and money, are not to be sought for.
In Solomon, in Ecclesiasticus: "He that loveth silver shall not be
satisfied with silver."(9) Also in Proverbs: "He who holdeth back the corn
is cursed among the people; but blessing is on the head of him that
communicateth it."(10) Also in Isaiah: "Woe unto them who join house to
house, and lay field to field, that they may take away something from their
neighbour. Will ye dwell alone upon the earth?(11) Also in Zephaniah: "They
shall build houses, and shall not dwell in them; and they shall appoint
vineyards, and shall not drink the wine of them, because the day of the
Lord is near."(12) Also in the Gospel according to Luke: "For what does it
profit a man to make a gain of the whole world, but that he should lose
himself?"(13) And again: "But the Lord said unto him, Thou fool, this night
thy soul is required of thee. Whose, then, shall those things be which thou
hast provided?"(14) And again: "Remember that thou hast received thy good
things in this life. and likewise Lazarus evil things. But now he is
besought, and thou grievest."(15) And in the Acts of the Apostles: "But
Peter said unto him, Silver and gold indeed I have not; but what I have I
give unto you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.
And, taking hold of his right hand, he lifted him up."(16) Also in the
first to Timothy: "We brought nothing into this world, but neither can we
take anything away. Therefore, having maintenance and clothing, let us with
these be content. But they who will become rich fall into temptation and a
snare, and many and hurtful lusts, which drown man in perdition and
destruction. For the root of all evils is covetousness, which some
coveting, have made shipwreck from the faith, and have plunged themselves
in many sorrows."(17)
62. That marriage is not to be contracted with Gentiles.
In Tobias: "Take a wife from the seed of thy parents, and take not a
strange woman who is not of the tribe of thy parents."(18) Also in Genesis,
Abraham sends his servant to take from his seed Rebecca, for his son Isaac.
Also in Esdras, it was not sufficient for God when the Jews were laid
waste, unless they forsook their foreign wives, with the children also whom
they had begotten of them. Also in the first Epistle of Paul to the
Corinthians: "The woman is bound so long as her husband liveth; but if he
die, she is freed to marry whom she will, only in the Lord. But she will be
happier if she abide thus."(19) And again: "Know ye not that your bodies
are the members of Christ? Shall I take the members of Christ, and make
them the members of an harlot? Far be it from me. Or know ye not that he
who is joined together with an harlot is one body? for two shall be in one
flesh. But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit."[1] Also in the
second to the Corinthians: "Be not joined together with unbelievers. For
what participation is there between righteousness and unrighteousness? or
what communication hath light with darkness?"[2] Also concerning Solomon in
the third book of Kings: "And foreign wives turned away his heart after
their gods."[3]
63. That the sin of fornication is grievous.
In the first Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: "Every sin whatsoever
a man doeth is outside the body; but he who committeth fornication sinneth
against his own body. Ye are not your own, for ye are bought with a great
price. Glorify and bear the Lord in your body."[4]
64. What are those carnal things which beget death, and what are the
spiritual things which lead to life.
Paul to the Galatians: "The flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the
Spirit against the flesh: for these are contrary the one to the other, that
ye cannot do even those things which ye wish. But the deeds of the flesh
are manifest, which are: adulteries, fornications, impurities, filthiness,
idolatries, sorceries, murders, hatreds, strifes, emulations, animosities,
provocations, hatreds, dissensions, heresies, envyings, drunkenness,
revellings, and such like: with respect to which I declare, that they who
do such things shall not possess the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the
Spirit is charity, joy, peace, magnanimity, goodness, faith, gentleness,
continency, chastity. For they who are Christ's have crucified their flesh,
with its vices and lusts."[5]
65. That all sins are put away in baptism.
In the first Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: "Neither fornicators,
nor those who serve idols, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor the lusters
after mankind, nor thieves, nor cheaters, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor
robbers, shall obtain the kingdom of God. And these things indeed ye were:
but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified in the name of our Lord Jesus
Christ, and in the Spirit of our God."[6]
66. That the discipline of God is to be observed in Church precepts.
In Jeremiah: "And I will give to you shepherds according to my own
heart; and they shall feed the sheep, feeding them with discipline."[7]
Also in Solomon, in the Proverbs: "My son neglect not the discipline of
God, nor fail when rebuked by Him. For whom God loveth, He rebuketh."[8]
Also in the second Psalm: "Keep discipline, lest perchance the Lord should
be angry, and ye perish from the right way, when His anger shall burn up
quickly against you. Blessed are all they who trust in Him."[9] Also in the
forty-ninth Psalm: "But to the sinner saith God, For what dost thou set
forth my judgments, and takest my covenant into thy mouth? But thou hatest
discipline, and hast cast my words behind thee."[10] Also in the Wisdom of
Solomon: "He who casteth away discipline is miserable."[11]]
67. That it was foretold that men should despise sound discipline.
Paul, in the second to Timothy: "There will be a time when they will
not endure sound doctrine; but according to their own lusts will heap to
themselves teachers itching in hearing, tickling their ears; and shall turn
away their hearing indeed from the truth, but they shall be converted unto
fables."[12]]
68. That we must depart from him who lives irregularly and contrary to
discipline.
Paul to the Thessalonians: "But we have commanded you, in the name of
Jesus Christ, that ye depart from all brethren who walk disorderly, and not
according to the tradition which they have received from us."[13] Also in
the forty-ninth Psalm: "If thou sawest a thief, at once thou rannest with
him, and placedst thy portion with the adulterers."[14]]
69. That the kingdom of God is not in the wisdom of the world, nor in
eloquence, but in the faith of the cross, and in virtue of conversation.
In the first Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: "Christ sent me to
preach, not in wisdom of discourse, lest the cross of Christ should become
of no effect. For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who perish;
but to those who are saved it is the power of God. For it is written, I
will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will reprove the prudence of the
prudent. Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of
this world? Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? Since
indeed, in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased
God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. Because the
Jews desire signs, and the Greeks seek for wisdom: but we preach Christ
crucified, to the Jews indeed a stumbling-block, and to the Gentiles
foolishness; but to them that are called, Jews and Greeks, Christ the power
of God, and the wisdom of God."[1] And again "Let no man deceive himself.
If any man think that he is wise among you, let him become a fool to this
world, that he may be wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness
with God. For it is written, Thou shall rebuke the wise in their own
craftiness."[2] And again: "The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise, that
they are foolish."[3]
70. That we must obey parents.
In the Epistle of Paul to the Ephesians: "Children, be obedient to your
parents: for this is right. Honour thy father and thy mother (which is the
first command with promise), that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest
be long-lived on the earth."[4]
71. And that fathers also should not be harsh in respect of their children.
Also in the same place: "And, ye fathers, drive not your children to
wrath: but nourish them in the discipline and rebuke of the Lord."[5]
72. That servants, when they have believed, ought to serve their carnal
masters the better.
In the Epistle of Paul to the Ephesians: "Servants, obey your fleshly
masters with fear and trembling, and ill simplicity of your heart. as to
Christ; not serving for the eye, as if you were pleasing men; but as
servants of God."[6]
73. Moreover, that masters should be the more gentle.
Also in the same place: "And, ye masters, do the same things to them,
forbearing anger: knowing that both your Master and theirs is in heaven;
and there is no choice of persons with Him."[7]
74. That all widows that are approved are to be held in honour.
In the first Epistle of Paul to Timothy: "Honour widows which are truly
widows. But the widow that is wanton, is dead while she liveth."[8] And
again: "But the younger widows pass by: for when they shall be wanton in
Christ, they wish to marry; having judgment, because they have cast off
their first faith."[9]
75. That every person ought to have care rather of his own people, and
especially of believers.
The apostle in his first Epistle to Timothy: "But if any take not care
of his own, and especially of those of his own household, he denies the
faith, and is worse than an infidel."[10] Of this same thing in Isaiah: "If
thou shalt see the naked, clothe him; and despise not those who are of the
household of thine own seed."[11] Of which members of the household it is
said in the Gospel: "If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub,
how much rather them of his household!"[12]
76. That an elder must not be rashly accused.
In the first to Timothy: "Against an eider receive not all
accusation."[13]
77. That the sinner must be publicly reproved.
In the first Epistle of Paul to Timothy: "Rebuke them that sin in the
presence of all, that others also may be afraid."[14]
78. That we must not speak with heretics.
To Titus: "A man that is an heretic, after one rebuke avoid; knowing
that one of such sort is perverted, and sinneth, and is by his own self
condemned."[15] Of this same thing in the Epistle of John: "They went out
from among us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they
would doubtless have remained with us."[16] Also in the second to Timothy:
"Their word doth creep as a canker."[17]
79. That innocency asks with confidence, and obtains.
In the Epistle of John: "If our heart blame us not, we have confidence
towards God; and whatever we ask, we shall receive from Him."[18] Also in
the Gospel according to Matthew: "Blessed are they of a pure heart, for
they shall see God."[19] Also in the twenty-third Psalm: "Who shall ascend
into the hill of the Lord? or who shall stand in His holy place?The
innocent in hands and of a pure heart."[1]
80. That the devil has no power against man unless God have allowed it.
In the Gospel according to John: "Jesus said, Thou couldest have no
power against me, unless it were given thee from above."[2] Also in the
third of Kings: "And God stirred up Satan against Solomon himself."[3] Also
in Job, first of all God permitted, and then it was allowed to the devil;
and in the Gospel, the Lord first permitted, by saying to Judas, "What thou
doest, do quickly."[4] Also in Solomon, in the Proverbs: "'The heart of the
king is in God's hand."[5]
81. That wages be quickly paid to the hireling.
In Leviticus: "The wages of thy hireling shall not sleep with thee
until the morning."[6]
82. That divination must not be used.
In Deuteronomy: "Do not use omens nor auguries."[7]
83. That a tuft of hair is not to be worn on the head.
In Leviticus: "Ye shall not make a tuft from the hair of your head."[8]
84. That the beard must not be plucked.
"Ye shall not deface the figure of your beard."[9]
85. That we must rise when a bishop or a presbyter comes.
In Leviticus: "Thou shalt rise up before the face of the elder, and
shall honour the person of the presbyter."[10]
86. That a schism must not be made, even although he who withdraws should
remain in one faith, and in the same tradition.
In Ecclesiasticus, in Solomon: "He that cleaveth firewood shall be
endangered by it if the iron shall fall off."[11] Also in Exodus: "In one
house shall it be eaten: ye shall not cast forth the flesh abroad out of
the house."[12] Also in the cxxxiid Psalm: "Behold how good and how
pleasant a thing it is that brethren should dwell in unity!"[13] Also in
the Gospel according to Matthew: "He that is not with me is against me; and
he that gathereth not with me scattereth."[14] Also in the first Epistle of
Paul to the Corinthians: "But I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our
Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all say the same thing, and that there be no
schisms among you; but that ye be all joined together in the same mind and
in the same opinion."[15] Also in the sixty-seventh Psalm: "God, who maketh
men to dwell with one mind in a house."[16]
87. That believers ought to be simple, with prudence.
In the Gospel according to Matthew: "Be ye prudent as serpents, and simple
as doves."[17] And again: "Ye are the salt of the earth. But if the salt
have lost his savour, in what shall it be salted? It is good for nothing,
but to be cast out abroad, and to be trodden under foot of men."[18]
88. That a brother must not be deceived.
In the first Epistle of Paul to the Thessalonians: "That a man do not
deceive his brother in a matter, because God is the avenger for all
these."[19]
89. That the end of the world comes suddenly.
The apostle says: "The day of the Lord shall so come as a thief in the
night. When they shall say, Peace and security, then on them shall come
sudden destruction."[20] Also in the Acts of the Apostles: "No one can know
the times or the seasons which the Father has placed in His own power."[21]
90. That a wife must not depart from her husband; or if she should depart,
she must remain unmarried.
In the first Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: "But to them that are
married I command, yet not I, but the Lord, that the wife should not be
separated from her husband; but if she should depart, that she remain
unmarried or be reconciled to her husband: and that the husband should not
put away his wife."[22]
91. That every one is tempted so much as he is able to bear.
In the first Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians:" No temptation shall
take you, except such is human. But God is faithful, who will not suffer
you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also
make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it."[1]
92. That not everything is to be done which is lawful.
Paul, in the first Epistle to the Corinthians: "All things are lawful,
but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful, but all things
edify not."[2]
93. That it was foretold that heresies would arise.
In the first epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: "Heresies must needs
be, in order that they which are approved may be made manifest among
you."[3]
94. That the Eucharist is to be received with fear and honour.[4]
In Leviticus: "But whatever soul shall eat of the flesh of the
sacrifice of salvation, which is the Lord's, and his uncleanness is still
upon him, that soul shall perish from his people."[5] Also in the first to
the Corinthians: "Whosoever shall eat the bread or drink the cup of the
Lord unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord."[6]
95. That we are to live with the good, but to avoid the evil.
In Solomon, in the Proverbs: "Bring not the impious man into the
habitation of the righteous."[7] Also in the same, in Ecclesiasticus: "Let
righteous men be thy guests."[8] And again: "The faithful friend is a
medicine of life and of immortality."[9] Also in the same place: "Be thou
far from the man who has the power to slay, and thou shalt not suspect
fear."[10] Also in the same place,: "Blessed is he who findeth a true
friend, and who speaketh righteousness to the listening ear."[11]Also in
the same place: "Hedge thine ears with thorns, and hear not a wicked
tongue."[12] Also in the seventeenth Psalm: "With the righteous Thou shalt
be justified; and with the innocent man Thou shalt be innocent; and with
the froward man Thou shalt be froward."[13] Also in the first Epistle of
Paul to the Corinthians: "Evil communications corrupt good
dispositions."[14]
96. That we must labour not with words, but with deeds.
In Solomon, in Ecclesiasticus: "Be not hasty in thy tongue, and in thy
deeds useless and remiss."[15] And Paul, in the first to the Corinthians:
"The kingdom of God is not in word, but in power."[16] Also to the Romans:
"Not the hearers of the law are righteous before God, but the doers of the
law shall be justified."[17] Also in the Gospel according to Matthew: "He
who shall do and teach so, shall be called greatest in the kingdom of
heaven."[18] Also in the same place: "Every one who heareth my words, and
doeth them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house upon a rock.
The rain descended, the floods came, the winds blew, and beat upon that
house, and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one who
heareth my words, and doeth them not, I will liken him to the foolish man,
who built his house upon the sand. The rain descended, the floods came, the
winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and its ruin became
great."[19]
97. That we must hasten to faith and to attainment.
In Solomon, in Ecclesiasticus: "Delay not to be converted to God, and
do not put off from day to day; for His anger cometh suddenly."[20]
98. That the catechumen ought now no longer to sin.[21]]
In the Epistle of Paul to the Romans: "Let us do evil until the good
things come; whose condemnation is just."[22]
99. That judgment will be according to the times, either of equity before
the law, or of law after Moses.
Paul to the Romans: "As many as have sinned without law, shall perish
without law; and as many as have sinned in the law, shall be judged also by
the law."[23]
100. That the grace of God ought to be without price.
In the Acts of the Apostles: "Thy money be in perdition with thyself,
because thou hast thought that the grace of God is possessed by money."[1]
Also in the Gospel: "Freely ye have received, freely give."[2] Also in the
same place: "Ye have made my Father's house a house of merchandise; and ye
have made the house of prayer a den of thieves."[3] Also in Isaiah: "Ye who
thirst, go to the water, and as many as have not money: go, and buy, and
drink without money."[4] Also in the Apocalypse: "I am Alpha and Omega, the
beginning and the end. I will give to him that thirsteth from the fountain
of the water of life freely. He who shall overcome shall possess these
things, and their inheritance; and I will be his God, and he shall be my
son."[5]
101. That the Holy Spirit has frequently appeared in fire.
In Exodus: "And the whole of Mount Sinai smoked, because God had come
down upon it in fire."[6] Also in the Acts of the Apostles
"And suddenly there was made a sound from heaven, as if a vehement blast
were borne along, and it filled the whole of that place in which they were
sitting. And there appeared to them cloven tongues as if of fire, which
also settled upon each of them; and they were all filled with the Holy
Ghost."[7] Also in the sacrifices, whatsoever God accounted accepted, fire
descended from heaven, which consumed what was sacrificed. In Exodus: "The
angel of the Lord appeared in a flame of fire from the bush."[8]
102. That all good men ought willingly to hear rebuke.
In Solomon, in the Proverbs: "He who reproveth a wicked man shall be
hated by him. Rebuke a wise man, and he will love you."[9]
103. That we must abstain from much speaking.
In Solomon: "Out of much speaking thou shall not escape sin; but
sparing thy lips, thou shalt be wise."[10]
104. That we must not lie.
"Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord."[11]
105. That they are frequently to be corrected who do wrong in domestic
duty.
In Solomon: "He who spareth the rod, hateth his son."[12] And again:
"Do not cease from correcting the child."[13]
106. That when a wrong is received, patience is to be maintained, and
vengeance to be left to God.
Say not, I will avenge me of mine enemy; but wait for the Lord, that He
may be thy help."[14] Also elsewhere: "To me belongeth vengeance; I will
repay, saith the Lord."[15] Also in Zephaniah: "Wait on me, saith the Lord,
in the day of my rising again to witness; because my judgment is to the
congregations of the Gentiles, that I may take kings, and pour out upon
them my anger."[16]
107. That we must not use detraction.
In Solomon, in the Proverbs: "Love not to detract, lest thou be taken
away."[17] Also in the forty-ninth Psalm: "Thou sattest, and spakest
against thy brother; and against the son of thy mother thou placedst a
stumbling-block."[18] Also in the Epistle of Paul to the Colossians:[19]
"To speak ill of no man, nor to be litigious."[20]
108. That we must not lay snares against our neighbour.
In Solomon, in the Proverbs: "He who diggeth a pit for his neighbour,
himself shall fall into it."[21]
109. That the sick are to be visited.[22]
In Solomon, in Ecclesiasticus: "Be not slack to visit the sick man; for
from these things thou shall be strengthened in love."[23] Also in the
Gospel: "I was sick, and ye visited me; I was in prison, and ye came unto
me."[24]
110. That tale-bearers are accursed.
In Ecclesiasticus, in Solomon: "The talebearer and the double-tongued
is accursed; for he will disturb many who have peace."[25]
111. That the sacrifices of the wicked are not acceptable.
In the same: "The Highest approveth not the gifts of the
unrighteous."[1]
112. That those are more severely judged, who in this world have had more
power.
In Solomon: "The hardest judgment shall be made on those who govern.
For to a mean man mercy is granted; but the powerful shall suffer torments
mightily."[2] Also in the second Psalm "And now, ye kings, understand; be
amended, ye who judge the earth."[3]
113. That the widow and orphans ought to be protected.
In Solomon: "Be merciful to the orphans as a father, and as a husband
to their mother; and thou shalt be the son of the Highest if thou shalt
obey."[4] Also in Exodus: "Ye shall not afflict any widow and orphan. But
if ye afflict them, and they cry out and call unto me, I will hear their
cryings, and will be angry in mind against you; and I will destroy you with
the sword, and your wives shall be widows, and your children orphans."[5]
Also in Isaiah: "Judge for the fatherless, and justify the widow; and come
let us reason, saith the Lord."[6] Also in Job:" have preserved the poor
man from the hand of the mighty, and I have helped the fatherless who had
no helper: the mouth of the widow hath blessed me."[7] Also in the sixty-
seventh Psalm: "The Father of the orphans, and the Judge of the widows."[8]
114. That one ought to make confession while he is in the flesh.
In the fifth Psalm: "But in the grave who will confess unto Thee?"[9]
Also in the twenty-ninth Psalm: "Shall the dust make confession to
Thee?"[10] Also elsewhere that confession is to be made: "I would rather
have the repentance of the sinner than his death."[11] Also in Jeremiah:
"Thus saith the Lord, Shall not he that falleth arise? or shall not he that
is turned away be converted?"[12]
115. That flattery is pernicious.
In Isaiah: "They who call you blessed, lead you into error, and trouble
the paths of your feet."[13]
116. That God is more loved by him who has had many sins forgiven in
baptism.
In the Gospel according to Luke: "To whom much is forgiven, he loveth
much; and to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little."[14]
117. That there is a strong conflict to be waged against the devil, and
that therefore we ought to stand bravely, that we may be able to conquer.
In the Epistle of Paul to the Ephesians: "Our wrestle is not against
flesh and blood, but against the powers and princes of this world, and of
this darkness; against the spiritual things of wickedness in the heavenly
places. Because of this, put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be
able to resist in the most evil day; that when ye have accomplished all, ye
may stand, having your loins girt in the truth of the Gospel, putting on
the breastplate of righteousness, and having your feet shod with the
preparation of the Gospel of peace; in all things taking the shield of
faith, in which ye may extinguish all the fiery darts of the most wicked
one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which
is the word of God."[15]
118. Also of Antichrist, that he will come as a man.
In Isaiah: "This is the man who arouseth the earth, who disturbeth
kings, who maketh the whole earth a desert."[16]]
119. That the yoke of the law was heavy, which is cast off by us, and that
the Lord's yoke is easy, which is taken up by us.
In the second Psalm: "Wherefore have the heathen been in tumult, and
the peoples medirated vain things? The kings of the earth have stood up,
and their princes have been gathered together against the Lord, and against
His Christ. Let us break their bonds asunder, and cast away from us their
yoke."[17] Also in the Gospel according to Matthew: "Come unto me, ye who
labour and are burdened, and I will make you to rest. Take my yoke upon
you, and learn of me: for I am meek and lowly of heart,[1] and ye shall
find rest for your souls. For my yoke is good, and my burden is light."[2]
Also in the Acts of the Apostles: "It seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to
us, to impose upon you no other burden than those things which are of
necessity, that you should abstain from idolatries, from shedding of blood,
and from fornication. And whatsoever you would not to be done unto you, do
not to others."[3]
120. That we are to be urgent in prayers.
In the Epistle of Paul to the Colossians: "Be instant in prayer, and
watch therein."[4] Also in the first Psalm: "But in the law of the Lord is
his will, and in His law will he meditate day and night."[5]
Taken from "The Early Church Fathers and Other Works" originally published
by Wm. B. Eerdmans Pub. Co. in English in Edinburgh, Scotland beginning in
1867. (ANF 5, Roberts and Donaldson). The digital version is by The
Electronic Bible Society, P.O. Box 701356, Dallas, TX 75370, 214-407-WORD.
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