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The City of God

Chapter 17.--That the Flaw of Wickedness is Not Nature, But Contrary to Nature, and Has Its Origin, Not in the Creator, But in the Will.

It is with reference to the nature, then, and not to the wickedness of the devil, that we are to understand these words, "This is the beginning of God's handiwork;" ¹ for, without doubt, wickedness can be a flaw or vice ² only where the nature previously was not vitiated. Vice, too, is so contrary to nature, that it cannot but damage it. And therefore departure from God would be no vice, unless in a nature whose property it was to abide with God. So that even the wicked will is a strong proof of the goodness of the nature. But God, as He is the supremely good Creator of good natures, so is He of evil wills the most just Ruler; so that, while they make an ill use of good natures, He makes a good use even of evil wills. Accordingly, He caused the devil (good by God's creation, wicked by his own will) to be cast down from his high position, and to become the mockery of His angels,--that is, He caused his temptations to benefit those whom he wishes to injure by them. And because God, when He created him, was certainly not ignorant of his future malignity, and foresaw the good which He Himself would bring out of his evil, therefore says the psalm, "This leviathan whom Thou hast made to be a sport therein," ³ that we may see that, even while God in His goodness created him good, He yet had already foreseen and arranged how He would make use of him when he became wicked.

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De civitate Dei (CCSL)

Caput XVII: Vitium malitiae non naturam esse, sed contra naturam, cui ad peccandum non conditor causa est, sed uoluntas.

Propter naturam igitur, non propter malitiam diaboli, dictum recte intellegimus: hoc est initium figmenti domini. quia sine dubio, ubi esset uitium malitiae, natura non uitiata praecessit. uitium autem ita contra naturam est, ut non possit nisi nocere naturae. non itaque esset uitium recedere a deo, nisi naturae, cuius id uitium est, potius conpeteret esse cum deo. quapropter etiam uoluntas mala grande testimonium est naturae bonae. sed deus sicut naturarum bonarum optimus creator est, ita malarum uoluntatum iustissimus ordinator, ut, cum illae male utuntur naturis bonis, ipse bene utatur etiam uoluntatibus malis. itaque fecit, ut diabolus institutione illius bonus, uoluntate sua malus, in inferioribus ordinatus inluderetur ab angelis eius, id est, ut prosint tentationes eius sanctis, quibus eas obesse desiderat. et quoniam deus, cum eum conderet, futurae malignitatis eius non erat utique ignarus et praeuidebat quae bona de malo eius esset ipse facturus: propterea psalmus ait: draco hic, quem finxisti ad inludendum ei, ut in eo ipso quod eum finxit, licet per suam bonitatem bonum, iam per suam praescientiam praeparasse intellegatur quomodo illo uteretur et malo.