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| Chapter IV.—The malignity and folly of Satan.
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And indeed, before the cross was
erected, he (Satan) was eager that it should be so; and he
“wrought” [for this end] “in the children of
disobedience.”1320
He
wrought in Judas, in the Pharisees, in the Sadducees, in the old, in the
young, and in the priests. But when it was just about to be erected, he
was troubled, and infused repentance into the traitor, and pointed him to
a rope to hang himself with, and taught him [to die by] strangulation. He
terrified also the silly woman, disturbing her by dreams; and he, who had
tried every means to have the cross prepared, now endeavoured to put a
stop to its erection;1321
| 1321
[This is the idea worked out by St. Bernard. See my note (supra)
suffixed to the Syriac Epistle to Ephesians.] | not that he was
influenced by repentance on account of the greatness of his crime (for in
that case he would not be utterly depraved), but because he perceived his
own destruction [to be at hand]. For the cross of Christ was the
beginning of his condemnation, the beginning of his death, the beginning
of his destruction. Wherefore, also, he works in some that they should
deny the cross, be ashamed of the passion, call the death an appearance,
mutilate and explain away the birth of the Virgin, and calumniate the
[human] nature1322
| 1322 The
various Gnostic sects are here referred to, who held that matter was
essentially evil, and therefore denied the reality of our Lord’s
incarnation. | itself as being abominable. He fights along with
the Jews to a denial of the cross, and with the Gentiles to the
calumniating of Mary,1323
| 1323
The ms. has μαγείας, “of
magic;” we have followed the emendation proposed by Faber.
| who are heretical in holding that Christ possessed a mere
phantasmal body.1324
| 1324
Literally, “heretical in respect to phantasy.” |
For the leader of all wickedness assumes manifold1325
| 1325 Literally, is “various,” or
“manifold.” | forms, beguiler of men as he is,
inconsistent, and even contradicting himself, projecting one course and
then following another. For he is wise to do evil, but as to what good
may be he is totally ignorant. And indeed he is full of ignorance, on
account of his voluntary want of reason: for how can he be deemed
anything else who does not perceive reason when it lies at his very
feet?E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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