Chapter 46.— How the Passage of the Law Agrees with that of the Prophet Augustine If therefore the apostle, when he mentioned that theGentiles do by nature the things contained in the law, and have the work of the law written in their hearts,Romans 2:14-15 intended those to be understood whobelieved in Christ—who do not come to the faith like the Jews, through a precedent law,— there is no goodreason why we should endeavour to distinguish them from those to whom the Lord by the prophetpromises the new covenant, telling them that He will write His laws in their hearts, Jeremiah 32:32 inasmuch as they too, by the grafting which he says had been made of the wild olive, belong to the self-same olive-tree, Romans 11:24 — in other words, to the same people of God. There is therefore a good agreement of this passage of the apostle with the words of theprophet so that belonging to the new testament means having the law of God not written on tables, but on the heart—that is, embracing the righteousness of the law with innermost affection, where faith works by love. Galatians 5:6 Because it is by faith that God justifies the Gentiles; and theScripture foreseeing this, preached the gospel before to Abraham, saying, In your seed shall all nations beblessed, in order that by this grace of promise the wild olive might be grafted into the good olive, andbelieving Gentiles might be made children ofAbraham, in Abrahams seed, which is Christ,Galatians 3:16 by following the faith of him who, without receiving the law written on tables, and not yet possessing even circumcision, believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness. Now what the apostle attributed to Gentiles of this character,— how that they have the work of the law written in their hearts; Romans 2:15 must be some such thing as what he says to the Corinthians: not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart. 2 Corinthians 3:3For thus do they become of the house of Israel, when their uncircumcision is accounted circumcision, by the fact that they do not exhibit the righteousness of the law by the excision of the flesh, but keep it by thecharity of the heart. If, says he, the uncircumcisionkeep the righteousness of the law, shall not hisuncircumcision be counted for circumcisionRomans 2:26 And therefore in the house of the trueIsrael, in which is no guile, they are partakers of the new testament, since God puts His laws into theirmind, and writes them in their hearts with his own finger, the Holy Ghost, by whom is shed abroad in them the love Romans 5:5 which is the fulfilling of thelaw. Romans 13:10 St Chrysostom on Galatians Ver. 15, 16. “For neither is circumcision any thing, nor but a new creature. And as many as shall walk by this rule, peace be upon them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God.” Observe the power of the Cross, to what a pitch it has raised him! not only has it put to death for him all mundane affairs, but has set him far above the Old Dispensation. What can be comparable to this power? For the Cross has persuaded him, who was willing to be slain and to slay others for the sake of circumcision, to leave it on a level with uncircumcision, and to seek for things strange and marvellous and above the heavens. This our rule of life he calls “a new creature,” both on account of what is past, and of what is to come; of what is past, because our soul, which had grown old with the oldness of sin, has been all at once renewed by baptism, as if it had been created again. Wherefore we require a new and heavenly rule of life. And of things to come, because both the heaven and the earth, and all the creation, shall with our bodies be translated into incorruption. Tell me not then, he says, of circumcision, which now avails nothing; (for how shall it appear, when all things have undergone such a change?) but seek the new things of grace. For they who pursue these things shall enjoy peace and amity, and may properly be called by the name of “Israel.” While they who hold contrary sentiments, although they be descended from him (Israel) and bear his appellation, have yet fallen away from all these things, both the relationship and the name itself. But it is in their power to be true Israelites, who keep this rule, who desist from the old ways, and follow after grace.
Posted on: Sun, 28 Dec 2014 14:56:48 +0000
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