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Dialogue with Trypho

Justin Martyr

Chapter 30

About this work

A literary dialogue in which Justin recounts his conversion to Christianity and debates Scripture, covenant, messianic prophecy, law, and the identity of God’s people with a Jewish interlocutor.

Author: Justin Martyr
Date: Mid-2nd century
Origin: Rome
Genre: Dialogue

Chapter XXX.—Christians possess the true righteousness.

“But impute it to your own wickedness,

‹ Chapter 29 Chapter 31 ›

that

God

even

can

be

accused

by

those

who

have

no

understanding

,

of

not

having

always

instructed

all

in

the

same

righteous

statutes

.

For

such

institutions

seemed

to

be

unreasonable

and

unworthy

of

God

to

many

men

,

who

had

not

received

grace

to

know

that

your

nation

were

called

to

conversion

and

repentance

of

spirit

,

while

they

were

in

a

sinful

condition

and

labouring

under

spiritual

disease

;

and

that

the

prophecy

which

was

announced

subsequent

to

the

death

of

Moses

is

everlasting

.

And

this

is

mentioned

in

the

Psalm

,

my

friends

.

And

that

we

,

who

have

been

made

wise

by

them

,

confess

that

the

statutes

of

the

Lord

are

sweeter

than

honey

and

the

honey

-

comb

,

is

manifest

from

the

fact

that

,

though

threatened

with

death

,

we

do

not

deny

His

name

.

Moreover

,

it

is

also

manifest

to

all

,

that

we

who

believe

in

Him

pray

to

be

kept

by

Him

from

strange

,

i

.

e

.

,

from

wicked

and

deceitful

,

spirits

;

as

the

word

of

prophecy

,

personating

one

of

those

who

believe

in

Him

,

figuratively

declares

.

For

we

do

continually

beseech

God

by

Jesus

Christ

to

preserve

us

from

the

demons

which

are

hostile

to

the

worship

of

God

,

and

whom

we

of

old

time

served

,

in

order

that

,

after

our

conversion

by

Him

to

God

,

we

may

be

blameless

.

For

we

call

Him

Helper

and

Redeemer

,

the

power

of

whose

name

even

the

demons

do

fear

;

and

at

this

day

,

when

they

are

exorcised

in

the

name

of

Jesus

Christ

,

crucified

under

Pontius

Pilate

,

governor

of

Judæa

,

they

are

overcome

.

And

thus

it

is

manifest

to

all

,

that

His

Father

has

given

Him

so

great

power

,

by

virtue

of

which

demons

are

subdued

to

His

name

,

and

to

the

dispensation

of

His

suffering

.

Notes

78
Or, “repentance of the Father;” πατρός for πνεύματος. Maranus explains the confusion on the ground of the similarity between the contractions for the words, πρς and πνς.
79
Ps. xix.