Are these things too small to produce faith in the resurrection of the dead? or dost thou seek that thy judgment on this point should be confirmed by yet other proofs? In truth the Lord seems to me not to have spoken in vain to them of Capernaum, when He said to Himself, as in the person of men, "Ye will surely say unto me this proverb, `Physician, heal thyself .'" For it behoved Him, when He had accustomed men to the miracle of the resurrection in other bodies, to confirm His word in His own humanity. Thou sawest the thing proclaimed working in others-those who were about to die, the child which had just ceased to live, the young man at the edge of the grave, the putrefying corpse, all alike restored by one command to life. Dost thou seek for those who have come to death by wounds and bloodshed? does any feebleness of life-giving power hinder the grace in them? Behold Him Whose hands were pierced with nails: behold Him Whose side was transfixed with a spear; pass thy fingers through the print of the nails thrust thy hand into the spear-wound ; thou canst surely guess how far within it is likely the point would reach, if thou reckonest the passage inwards by the breadth of the external scar; for the wound that gives admission to a man's hand, shows to what depth within the iron entered. If He then has been raised, well may we utter the Apostle's exclamation, "How say some that there is no resurrection of the dead ?"

Since, then, every prediction of the Lord is shown to be true by the testimony of events, while we not only have learnt this by His words, but also received the proof of the promise in deed, from those very persons who returned to life by resurrection, what occasion is left to those who disbelieve? Shall we not bid farewell to those who pervert our simple faith by "philosophy and vain deceit ," and hold fast to our confession in its purity, learning briefly through the prophet the mode of the grace, by his words, "Thou shalt take away their breath and they shall fail, and turn to their dust. Thou shalt send forth Thy Spirit and they shall be created, and Thou shalt renew the face of the earth ;" at which time also he says that the Lord rejoices in His works, sinners having perished from the earth: for how shall any one be called by the name of sin, when sin itself exists no longer?

Ἆρα μικρὰ ταῦτα πρὸς πίστιν τῆς τῶν νεκρῶν ἀναστάσεως; Εἰ ζητεῖς καὶ δι' ἑτέρων βεβαιωθῆναί σοι τὴν περὶ τούτου κρίσιν, ἀλλά μοι δοκεῖ μὴ μάτην τοῖς κατὰ Καφαρναοὺμ εἰρηκέναι͵ ὡς ἐκ προσώπου τῶν ἀνθρώπων ὁ Κύριος τοῦτο πρὸς ἑαυτὸν λέγων, Πάντως ἐρεῖτέ μοι τὴν παραβολὴν ταύτην, Ἰατρέ͵ θεράπευσον σεαυτόν. Ἔδει γὰρ ἐν ἑτέροις σώμασι προσεθίσαντα τοὺς ἀνθρώπους τῷ κατὰ τὴν ἀνάστασιν θαύματι͵ ἐν τῷ καθ' ἑαυτὸν ἀνθρώπῳ βεβαιῶσαι τὸν λόγον. Εἶδες ἐν ἑτέροις ἐνεργὸν τὸ κήρυγμα. Τοὺς τεθνήξεσθαι μέλλοντας͵ τὸ παιδίον τὸ τοῦ ζῇν ἄρτι παυσάμενον͵ τὸν πρὸς τῷ τάφῳ νεανίαν͵ τὸν διεφθορότα νεκρόν͵ πάντας κατὰ τὸ ἶσον ἐνὶ προστάγματι πρὸς τὴν ζωὴν ἀναλύοντας. Ζητεῖς καὶ τοὺς διὰ τραυμάτων καὶ αἵματος ἐν τῷ θανάτῳ γεγονότας͵ μή τις ἐπὶ τούτων ἀτονία τῆς ζωοποιοῦ δυνάμεως λύῃ τὴν χάριν; Εἶδε τὸν ἐν ἥλοις διαπερονηθέντα τὰς χεῖρας. Εἶδε τὸν τὴν πλευρὰν λόγχῃ διαπαρέντα. Διένεγκε τοὺς δακτύλους σου διὰ τῶν τύπων τῶν ἥλων. Ἔμβαλε τὴν χεῖρά σου τῷ ἐκ τῆς λόγχης τραύματι. Στοχάζῃ πάντως ἐπὶ πόσων εἰκὸς ἦν εἰς τὸ ἐντὸς τὴν αἰχμὴν διαδῦναι͵ διὰ τοῦ πλάτους τῆς ὠτειλῆς͵ τὴν ἐπὶ τὸ ἔσω πάροδον λογιζόμενος. Ἡ γὰρ εἴσοδον χειρὸς ἀνθρωπίνης χωρήσασα πληγή͵ πόσον ἐντὸς τοῦ βάθους γεγενῆσθαι τὸν σίδηρον ὑποδείκνυσιν; Εἰ οὖν οὗτος ἐγήγερται͵ εὔκολον [224] ἂν εἴη τὸ ἀποστολικὸν ἐπιφθέγξασθαι, Πῶς λέγουσί τινες͵ ὅτι ἀνάστασις νεκρῶν οὐκ ἔστιν;

Ἐπειδὴ τοίνυν πᾶσα μὲν πρόῤῥησις τοῦ Κυρίου διὰ τῆς τῶν γεγονότων μαρτυρίας ἀληθὴς ἐπιδείκνυται͵ τοῦτο δὲ οὐ λόγῳ μεμαθήκαμεν μόνον͵ ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐξ αὐτῶν τῶν ἐπὶ τὴν ζωὴν ἐξ ἀναστάσεως ἐπανελθόντων͵ ἔργῳ τὴν ἀπόδειξιν τῆς ἐπαγγελίας ἐλάβομεν, τίς ὑπολείπεται τοῖς μὴ πιστεύουσιν ἀφορμή; Οὐκ͵ Ἔῤῥωσθε͵ φράσαντες τοῖς διὰ τῆς φιλοσοφίας καὶ κενῆς ἀπάτης παρακρουομένοις τὴν ἀκατάσκευον πίστιν͵ ψιλῆς ἑξόμεθα τῆς ὁμολογίας; μαθόντες ἐν ὀλίγῳ διὰ τοῦ Προφήτου τὸν τρόπον τῆς χάριτος͵ δι' ὧν φησιν, Ἀντανελεῖς τὸ πνεῦμα αὐτῶν καὶ ἐκλείψουσι καὶ εἰς τὸν χοῦν αὐτῶν ἐπιστρέψουσιν. Ἐξαποστελεῖς τὸ Πνεῦμά σου καὶ κτισθήσονται καὶ ἀνακαινιεῖς τὸ πρόσωπον τῆς γῆς. Ὅτε καὶ εὐφραίνεσθαι τὸν Κύριον ἐπὶ τοῖς ἔργοις αὐτοῦ λέγει͵ ἐκλειπόντων τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς. Πῶς γάρ τις ἐξ ἁμαρτίας ὀνομασθήσεται͵ τῆς ἁμαρτίας οὐκ οὔσης;