¹¹⁹ Athan. here assumes, for the purpose of his argument, the principles of the Neo-platonist schools. They were influenced, in regard to the Logos, by Philo, but even on this subject the germ of their teaching may be traced in Plato, especially in the Timoeus, (See Drummond's Philo, i. 65-88. Bigg's Bamp. Lect. 14, 18, 248-253, and St. Aug. Confess. in `Nicene Fathers,' Series 1, vol. 1, p. 107 and notes.)

¹²⁰ Especially Plato, Tim. 30, &c.

¹²¹ epibebhkenai, cf. above, 20. 4, 6. The Union of God and Man in Christ is of course `hypostatic' or personal, and thus (supra 17. 1), different in kind from the union of the Word with Creation. His argument is ad homines. It was not for thinkers who identified the Universe with God to take exception to the idea of Incarnation.

¹²² See Acts. xvii. 28.

¹²³ epibainwn, see supra, note 3.

¹²⁴ The superfluous pepoihkenai is ignored, being untranslateable as the text stands. For a less simple conjecture, see the Bened. note.

¹²⁵ This thought is beautifully expressed by Keble :-

`All true, all faultless, all in tune, Creation's wondrous choir

Opened in mystic unison, to last till time expire.

And still it lasts: by day and night with one consenting voice

All hymn Thy glory Lord, aright, all worship and rejoice:

Man only mars the sweet accord" ....

(`Christian Year,' Fourth Sunday after Trinity.)

¹²⁶ Cf. 41. 5, note 3.

¹²⁷ Cf. Orig. c. Cels. vi. 64, where there is the same contrast between metexein and metexesqai.

¹²⁸ Ath. paraphrases loosely Plat. Politic. 273 D. See Jowett's Plato (ed. 2) vol. iv. pp. 515, 553.

¹²⁹ Lit. "sate down", as four lines above.

¹³⁰ With this discussion compare that upon `repentance' above 7. (esp. 7. 4).

¹³¹ Restoration by a mere fiat would have shewn God's power, the Incarnation shews His Love. See Orat. i. 52, note 1, ii. 68, note 1.

¹³² Cf. Orat. i. 56, note 5, 65, note 3.

¹³³ See above 28. 3. He appears not to have seen the substance.

¹³⁴ Isa. xi. 9. For the arguments, compare §§11-14.

¹³⁵ See Döllinger, Gentile and Jew, i. 449.

¹³⁶ Col. ii. 15.

¹³⁷ The Incarnation completes the circle of God's self-witness and of man's responsibility.

¹³⁸ Cf. notes on c. Gent. 10, and 12. 2.

¹³⁹ On the following argument see Döllinger ii. 210 sqq., and Bigg, Bampt. Lect. 248, note 1.

¹⁴⁰ On the local character of ancient religions, see Döllinger i. 109, &c., and Coulanges, La Cité Antique, Book III. ch. vi., and V. iii. (the substance in Barker's Aryan Civilisation).

¹⁴¹ On these, see Döllinger, i. 216, &c., and Milton's Ode on the Nativity, stanza xix.

¹⁴² i.e. that of Trophonius.

¹⁴³ Patara.

¹⁴⁴ Ammon.

¹⁴⁵ See Döllinger, i. 73, 164-70: the Cabiri were pre-Hellenic deities, worshipped in many ancient sanctuaries, but principally in Samothrace and Lemnos.

¹⁴⁶ Cf. Vit. Ant. xvi.-xliii., also Döllinger, ii. 212, and a curious catena of extracts from early Fathers, collected by Hurter in `Opuscula SS. Patrum Selecta,' vol 1, appendix.

¹⁴⁷ For this opinion, see note 1 on c. Gent. 12.

¹⁴⁸ See Döllinger, ii. 210, and (on Julian) 215.

¹⁴⁹ In Plato's ideal Republic, the notion of any direct influence of the highest ideals upon the masses is quite absent. Their happiness is to be in passive obedience to the few whom those ideals inspire. (Contrast Isa. liv. 13, Jer. xxxi. 34.)

¹⁵⁰ Cf. Hist. Arian. 25, Apol. Const. 33.

¹⁵¹ e.g. Iamblichus, &c., cf. Introd. to c. Gent.

¹⁵² Cf. Thucy. i. 5 6: `pasa gar h #Ellaj esidhroforei,' &c.

¹⁵³ Isa. ii. 4.

¹⁵⁴ St. Augustine, Civ. D. IV. xvi. commenting on the fact that the temple of `Repose' (Quies) at Rome was not within the city walls, suggests `qui illam turbam colere perseveraret ...doemoniorum, cure Quietem hahere non posse.'

¹⁵⁵ 1 Cor. ii. 8.

¹⁵⁶ qeopoihqwmen. See Orat. ii. 70, note 1, and many other passages in those Discourses, as well as Letters 60. 4, 61 2. (Eucharistic reference), de Synodis 51, note 7. (Compare also Iren. IV. xxxviii. 4, `non ab initio dii facti sumus, sed primo quidem homines, tunc demum dii,' cf. ib. praef. 4. fin. also V. ix. 2, `sublevat in vitam Dei.' Origen Cels. iii. 28 fin. touches the same thought, but Ath. is here in closer affinity to the idea of Irenaeus than to that of Origen.) The New Test. reference is 2 Pet. i. 4, rather than Heb. ii. 9 sqq; the Old Test., Ps. lxxxii. 6, which seems to underlie Orat. iii. 25 (note 5). In spite of the last mentioned passage, `God' is far preferable as a rendering, in most places, to `gods,' which has heathenish associations. To us (1 Cor. viii. 6) there are no such things as `gods.' (The best summary of patristic teaching on this subject is given by Harnack Dg. ii. p. 46 note.)

¹⁵⁷ Matt. xxvi. 64.

¹⁵⁸ Cf. Matt. xxiv 42; Marc. xiii. 35.

¹⁵⁹ 2 Cor. v. 10; cf Rom. xiv. 10.

WWW.Bible.ca