Ante-Nicene Fathers/Volume VI/Arnobius/Adversus Gentes/Book II/Chapter LXIV

by Arnobius

64. But, my opponents ask, if Christ came as the Saviour of men, as^[1] you say, why^[2] does He not, with uniform benevolence, free all without exception? I reply, does not He free all alike who invites all alike? or does He thrust back or repel any one from the kindness of the Supreme who gives to all alike the power of coming to Him,—to men of high rank, to the meanest slaves, to women, to boys? To all, He says, the fountain of life is open,^[3] and no one is hindered or kept back from drinking.^[4] If you are so fastidious as to spurn the kindly^[5] offered gift, nay, more, if your wisdom is so great that you term those things which are offered by Christ ridiculous and absurd, why should He keep on inviting^[6] you, while His only duty is to make the enjoyment of His bounty depend upon your own free choice?^[7] God, Plato says, does not cause any one to choose his lot in life;^[8] nor can another’s choice be rightly attributed to any one, since freedom of choice was put in His power who made it. Must you be even implored to deign to accept the gift of salvation from God; and must God’s gracious mercy be poured into your bosom while you reject it with disdain, and flee very far from it? Do you choose to take what is offered, and turn it to your own advantage? You will in that case have consulted your own interests. Do you reject with disdain, lightly esteem, and despise it? You will in this case have robbed yourself of the benefit of the gift.^[9] God compels no one, terrifies no one with overpowering fear. For our salvation is not necessary to Him, so that He would gain anything or suffer any loss, if He either made us divine,^[10] or allowed us to be annihilated and destroyed by corruption.

Footnotes

1. So the ms. and Oehler, reading ut, which is omitted in all other edd.; in this case, the words in italics are unnecessary.
2. So Orelli, reading cur (quur in most edd.) for the ms. quos. Instead of non—“not,” which follows, the ms., according to Oehler, reads nos, and he therefore changes quos into quæso—“I ask, does He free all of us altogether?”
3. There is clearly no reference here to a particular passage of Scripture, but to the general tone of Christ’s teaching: “Him that cometh unto me, I will in nowise cast out.” Orelli, however with his usual infelicity, wishes to see a direct reference, either to Christ’s words to the woman of Samaria (John iv. 13–15), or, which is rather extraordinary, to John vi. 35–37: “I am the bread of life,” etc. Cf. n. 9, p. 459.
4. Lit., “the right of drinking.”
5. Lit., “the kindness of.”
6. Lit., “what waits He for, inviting,” quid invitans expectat; the reading of the ms., both Roman edd. and Oehler. Gelenius, followed by Canterus and Elmenhorst, changed the last word into peccat—“in what does He sin,” adopted by the other edd., with the addition of in te—“against you.”
7. Lit., “exposes under decision of your own right.”
8. Cf. Plato, Rep., ii. st. p. 379: “of a few things God would be the cause, but of many He would not;” and x. st. p. 617 fin.
9. So LB., Orelli, Oehler, adopting the emendation of Ursinus, tu te muneris commoditate privaveris, for the unintelligible reading of the ms., tuti m. c. probaveris.
10. i.e., immortal, deos, so corrected by Gelenius for the ms. deus—“if either God made us.”