44. But, you say, they came
of their own accord, not sent3713
| 3713
So the ms., reading non
missione—“not by the sending;” but, unaccountably
enough, all edd. except Hildebrand and Oehler read,
jussione—“not by the command.” |
by their
lord. And
3714
where was the
Almighty Creator, where the
authority of His
royal and exalted
place,
3715
| 3715
Lit., “royal sublimity.” |
to prevent
their departure, and not
suffer them to fall into
dangerous
pleasures? For if He knew that by change of place they would
become base—and, as the arranger of all things,
3716
He must have known—or that
anything would reach them from without which would make them
forget
their greatness and
moral dignity,—a
thousand times would I beg
of Him to pardon
my words,—the cause of all is no other
than Himself, since He allowed them to have
freedom to
wander3717
| 3717
The ms. and both Roman edd. read
abscondere—“to hide,” for which the other edd.
read, as above, abscedere, from the margin of Ursinus. |
who He
foresaw would not abide by their state of innocence; and thus it is
brought about that it does not matter whether they came of their own
accord, or obeyed His command, since in not preventing what should have
been prevented, by His inaction He made the guilt His own, and
permitted it before
it was done by neglecting to withhold them
from action.
E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
