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Address to the Greeks

Tatian

Chapter 14

About this work

Tatian attacks Greek claims to cultural and philosophical superiority, defends Christian teaching about God, creation, resurrection, and ethics, and argues for the antiquity of biblical wisdom.

Author: Tatian
Date: c. AD 165–175
Origin: Rome or the eastern Mediterranean
Genre: Apology

The Demons Shall Be Punished More Severely Than Men.

And such are you also, O Greeks,—

‹ Chapter 13 Chapter 15 ›

profuse

in

words

,

but

with

minds

strangely

warped

;

and

you

acknowledge

the

dominion

of

many

rather

than

the

rule

of

one

,

accustoming

yourselves

to

follow

demons

as

if

they

were

mighty

.

For

,

as

the

inhuman

robber

is

wont

to

overpower

those

like

himself

by

daring

;

so

the

demons

,

going

to

great

lengths

in

wickedness

,

have

utterly

deceived

the

souls

among

you

which

are

left

to

themselves

by

ignorance

and

false

appearances

.

These

beings

do

not

indeed

die

easily

,

for

they

do

not

partake

of

flesh

;

but

while

living

they

practice

the

ways

of

death

,

and

die

themselves

as

often

as

they

teach

their

followers

to

sin

.

Therefore

,

what

is

now

their

chief

distinction

,

that

they

do

not

die

like

men

,

they

will

retain

when

about

to

suffer

punishment

:

they

will

not

partake

of

everlasting

life

,

so

as

to

receive

this

instead

of

death

in

a

blessed

immortality

.

And

as

we

,

to

whom

it

now

easily

happens

to

die

,

afterwards

receive

the

immortal

with

enjoyment

,

or

the

painful

with

immortality

,

so

the

demons

,

who

abuse

the

present

life

to

purposes

of

wrong

-

doing

,

dying

continually

even

while

they

live

,

will

have

hereafter

the

same

immortality

,

like

that

which

they

had

during

the

time

they

lived

,

but

in

its

nature

like

that

of

men

,

who

voluntarily

performed

what

the

demons

prescribed

to

them

during

their

lifetime

.

And

do

not

fewer

kinds

of

sin

break

out

among

men

owing

to

the

brevity

of

their

lives

,

while

on

the

part

of

these

demons

transgression

is

more

abundant

owing

to

their

boundless

existence

?

Notes

44
[The shortening of human life is a gracious limitation of transgression and of the peril of probation. “Let not our years be multiplied to increase our guilt.”]