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The Second Apology

Justin Martyr

Chapter 7

About this work

A shorter defense responding to recent judicial violence against Christians and arguing that persecution, philosophical reason, human freedom, and Christian hope must be judged justly.

Author: Justin Martyr
Date: c. AD 150–160
Origin: Rome
Genre: Apology

Chapter VII.—The world preserved for the sake of Christians. Man’s responsibility.

Wherefore God delays causing the confusion and destruction of

‹ Chapter 6 Chapter 8 ›

the

whole

world

,

by

which

the

wicked

angels

and

demons

and

men

shall

cease

to

exist

,

because

of

the

seed

of

the

Christians

,

who

know

that

they

are

the

cause

of

preservation

in

nature

.

Since

,

if

it

were

not

so

,

it

would

not

have

been

possible

for

you

to

do

these

things

,

and

to

be

impelled

by

evil

spirits

;

but

the

fire

of

judgment

would

descend

and

utterly

dissolve

all

things

,

even

as

formerly

the

flood

left

no

one

but

him

only

with

his

family

who

is

by

us

called

Noah

,

and

by

you

Deucalion

,

from

whom

again

such

vast

numbers

have

sprung

,

some

of

them

evil

and

others

good

.

For

so

we

say

that

there

will

be

the

conflagration

,

but

not

as

the

Stoics

,

according

to

their

doctrine

of

all

things

being

changed

into

one

another

,

which

seems

most

degrading

.

But

neither

do

we

affirm

that

it

is

by

fate

that

men

do

what

they

do

,

or

suffer

what

they

suffer

,

but

that

each

man

by

free

choice

acts

rightly

or

sins

;

and

that

it

is

by

the

influence

of

the

wicked

demons

that

earnest

men

,

such

as

Socrates

and

the

like

,

suffer

persecution

and

are

in

bonds

,

while

Sardanapalus

,

Epicurus

,

and

the

like

,

seem

to

be

blessed

in

abundance

and

glory

.

The

Stoics

,

not

observing

this

,

maintained

that

all

things

take

place

according

to

the

necessity

of

fate

.

But

since

God

in

the

beginning

made

the

race

of

angels

and

men

with

free

-

will

,

they

will

justly

suffer

in

eternal

fire

the

punishment

of

whatever

sins

they

have

committed

.

And

this

is

the

nature

of

all

that

is

made

,

to

be

capable

of

vice

and

virtue

.

For

neither

would

any

of

them

be

praiseworthy

unless

there

were

power

to

turn

to

both

[

virtue

and

vice

]

.

And

this

also

is

shown

by

those

men

everywhere

who

have

made

laws

and

philosophized

according

to

right

reason

,

by

their

prescribing

to

do

some

things

and

refrain

from

others

.

Even

the

Stoic

philosophers

,

in

their

doctrine

of

morals

,

steadily

honour

the

same

things

,

so

that

it

is

evident

that

they

are

not

very

felicitous

in

what

they

say

about

principles

and

incorporeal

things

.

For

if

they

say

that

human

actions

come

to

pass

by

fate

,

they

will

maintain

either

that

God

is

nothing

else

than

the

things

which

are

ever

turning

,

and

altering

,

and

dissolving

into

the

same

things

,

and

will

appear

to

have

had

a

comprehension

only

of

things

that

are

destructible

,

and

to

have

looked

on

God

Himself

as

emerging

both

in

part

and

in

whole

in

every

wickedness

;

or

that

neither

vice

nor

virtue

is

anything

;

which

is

contrary

to

every

sound

idea

,

reason

,

and

sense

.

Notes

12
This is Dr. Donaldson’s rendering of a clause on which the editors differ both as to reading and rendering.
13
Literally, “becoming (γινόμενον) both through the parts and through the whole in every wickedness.”