Against Celsus 2.78
Summary: Origen replies that Jesus did not come to cause the Jews' unbelief but foresaw it, and that God's providence used it to call the Gentiles, as the prophets and Paul foretold.
Greek text · Koetschau 1:200–201
Μετὰ ταῦτα λέγει ὁ Ἰουδαῖος· ἢ ἐπὶ τούτῳ κατῆλθεν, ἵνʼ ἀπιστήσωμεν; πρὸς ὃν λελέξεται· οὐκ ἐπὶ τούτῳ μὲν ἦλθεν, ἵνʼ ἐργάσηται τὴν ἀπιστίαν Ἰουδαίοις, προγινώσκων δʼ αὐτὴν ἐσομένην προεῖπε καὶ συνεχρήσατο τῇ ἀπιστίᾳ τῶν Ἰουδαίων πρὸς τὴν κλῆσιν τῶν ἐθνῶν. τῷ γὰρ ἐκείνων „παραπτώματι ἡ σωτηρία τοῖς ἔθνεσι“ γεγένηται, περὶ ὧν ὁ ἐν τοῖς προφήταις Χριστός φησι· „λαὸς, ὃν οὐκ ἔγνων, ἐδούλευσέ μοι· εἰς ἀκοὴν ὠτίου ὑπήκουσέ μου, “ καὶ „εὑρέθην τοῖς ἐμὲ μὴ ζητοῦσιν, ἐμφανὴς ἐγενόμην τοῖς ἐμὲ μὴ ἐπερωτῶσι.“ καὶ σαφὲς ὅτι καὶ τὴν ἐν βίῳ κόλασιν Ἰουδαῖοι μετὰ τὸ διαθεῖναι τὸν Ἰησοῦν ἃ διέθηκαν ἐκολάσθησαν. λεγέτωσαν δʼ Ἰουδαῖοι, ἐὰν ἡμῖν ἐγκαλοῦντες φάσκωσιν· θαυμαστή γε ὑμῖν ἡ τοῦ θεοῦ πρόνοια καὶ φιλανθρωπία, κολαζομένοις καὶ στερηθεῖσι καὶ τῆς Ἱερουσαλὴμ καὶ τοῦ λεγομένου ἁγιάσματος καὶ τῆς σεμνοτάτης λατρείας· ὃ γὰρ ἐὰν εἴπωσιν ἀπολογούμενοι περὶ τῆς προνοίας τοῦ θεοῦ, ἡμεῖς μᾶλλον κατασκευάσομεν καὶ ἐπὶ τὸ βέλτιον λέγοντες θαυμαστὴν γεγονέναι πρόνοιαν τοῦ θεοῦ, συγχρησαμένην τῷ ἁμαρτήματι τοῦ λαοῦ ἐκείνου εἰς τὸ τοὺς ἀπὸ τῶν ἐθνῶν διὰ Ἰησοῦ κληθῆναι, τοὺς ξένους „τῶν διαθηκῶν“ καὶ ἀλλοτρίους τῶν ἐπαγγελιῶν εἰς τὴν τοῦ θεοῦ βασιλείαν. καὶ ταῦτα δὲ προεῖπον οἱ προφῆται, ὡς ἄρα διὰ τὰ ἁμαρτήματα τοῦ τῶν Ἑβραίων λαοῦ ἐκλέξεται ὁ θεὸς οὐχὶ ἔθνος ἀλλὰ λογάδας πανταχόθεν, καὶ „τὰ μωρὰ τοῦ κόσμου“ ἐκλεξάμενος ποιήσει τὸ ἀσύνετον ἔθνος γενέσθαι ἐν τοῖς θείοις λόγοις, αἰρομένης μὲν ἀπʼ ἐκείνων τῆς τοῦ θεοῦ βασιλείας τούτοις δὲ διδομένης. ἀρκεῖ δʼ ἀπὸ πλειόνων ἐπὶ τοῦ παρόντος παραθέσθαι τὴν ἀπὸ τῆς ᾠδῆς τοῦ Δευτερονομίου προφητείαν περὶ τῆς τῶν ἐθνῶν κλήσεως οὕτως ἔχουσαν. λεγομένην ἐκ προσώπου κυρίου· „αὐτοὶ γὰρ παρεζήλωσάν με ἐπʼ οὐ θεοῖς, παρώργισάν με ἐν τοῖς εἰδώλοις αὐτῶν· κἀγὼ παραζηλώσω αὐτοὺς ἐπʼ οὐκ ἔθνει, ἐπʼ ἔθνει ἀσυνέτῳ παροργιῶ αὐτούς.“
English · Claude translation
After this the Jew says: “Or did he come down for this, that we should disbelieve?” To him it will be said: he did not come to produce unbelief in the Jews; but foreknowing that it would happen, he foretold it, and made use of the Jews' unbelief for the calling of the nations. For by their “trespass salvation has come to the nations,” of whom the Christ in the prophets says: “A people whom I did not know served me; at the hearing of the ear they obeyed me,” and “I was found by those who did not seek me; I became manifest to those who did not ask for me.” And it is clear that the Jews also suffered punishment in this life, after doing to Jesus what they did. Let the Jews speak, if they accuse us, saying: “Wonderful indeed is God's providence and love for mankind toward you, who have been punished and deprived of Jerusalem, of what is called the sanctuary, and of the most solemn worship.” Whatever they say in defense of God's providence, we shall establish more fully and better, saying that God's providence has been wonderful, making use of that people's sin so that those of the nations should be called through Jesus into God's kingdom, those who were strangers to “the covenants” and aliens to the promises. The prophets foretold this too: that because of the sins of the Hebrew people God would choose not a nation but select persons from everywhere, and, having chosen “the foolish things of the world,” would make the nation without understanding come to be in the divine oracles, the kingdom of God being taken from those and given to these. For the present it is enough, out of many, to cite the prophecy from the song of Deuteronomy about the calling of the nations, spoken in the person of the Lord: “They made me jealous with what is no god, they provoked me with their idols; and I will make them jealous with what is no nation, I will provoke them with a nation without understanding.”
About this passage
Notes
Translation notes
- The quotations are Rom 11:11, Ps 18:43–44 (17:44–45 LXX), Isa 65:1, Eph 2:12, 1 Cor 1:27, and Deut 32:21; “taken from those and given to these” echoes Matt 21:43. The references to the Jews' punishment and loss of Jerusalem reflect Origen's theology of history; translated as written.
Cite this passage
Origen, Cels. 2.78 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/origen-celsum/2/78/).
Plain text
Origen, Cels. 2.78 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/origen-celsum/2/78/).
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