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An Answer to the Jews

Chapter XII.--Further Proofs from the Calling of the Gentiles.

Look at the universal nations thenceforth emerging from the vortex of human error to the Lord God the Creator and His Christ; and if you dare to deny that this was prophesied, forthwith occurs to you the promise of the Father in the Psalms, which says, "My Son art Thou; to-day have I begotten Thee. Ask of Me, and I will give Thee Gentiles as Thine heritage, and as Thy possession the bounds of the earth." ¹ For you will not be able to affirm that "son" to be David rather than Christ; or the "bounds of the earth" to have been promised rather to David, who reigned within the single (country of) Judea, than to Christ, who has already taken captive the whole orb with the faith of His gospel; as He says through Isaiah: "Behold, I have given Thee for a covenant ² of my family, for a light of Gentiles, that Thou mayst open the eyes of the blind"--of course, such as err--"to outloose from bonds the bound"--that is, to free them from sins--"and from the house of prison"--that is, of death--"such as sit in darkness" ³ --of ignorance, to wit. And if these blessings accrue through Christ, they will not have been prophesied of another than Him through whom we consider them to have been accomplished. ⁴

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Adversus Iudaeos

XII.

Neque, nisi ille venisset post quem habebant expungi quae nuntiabantur, quae completa sunt etiam probarentur. XII. [1] Aspice universas nationes de voragine erroris humani exinde emergentes ad dominum deum creatorem et Christum eius, et, si audes negare prophetatum, statim tibi promissio patris occurrit in psalmis dicens: Filius meus es tu, ego hodie genui te; pete a me, et dabo tibi gentes hereditatem tuam et possessionem tuam terminos terrae. [2] Nec poteris alium dei filium dicere quam Christum aut terminos terrae David potius promissos qui intra unicam Iudaeam regnavit quam Christo qui totum iam orbem evangelii sui fide cepit, sicut per Esaiam dicit: Ecce dedi te in dispositionem generis mei, in lucem gentium, aperire oculos caecorum, utique errantium, solvere de vinculis vinctos, id est de delictis liberare, et de domo carceris, id est mortis, sedentes in tenebris, ignorantiae scilicet. Quae si per Christum eveniunt, non in alium erunt prophetata quam per quem expuncta consideramus.