For to this end the Lord endured to deliver up His flesh to corruption, that we might be sanctified through the remission of sins, which is effected by His blood of sprinkling. For it is wTitten concerning Him, partly with reference to Israel, and j^artly to us ; and [the Scripture] saith thus : " He was wounded for our trans- gressions, and bruised for our iniquities : with His stripes we are healed. He was brought as a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb which is dumb before its shearer." '^ Therefore we ought to be deeply grateful to the Lord, because He has both made known to us things that are past, and hath given us wisdom concerning things present, and hath not left us without understand- ing in regard to things which are to come. Now, the Scripture saith, " Not unjustly are nets spread out for birds." '° This means that the man perishes justly, who, ha\-ing a knowl- edge of the way of righteousness, rushes off into the way of darkness. And further, my brethren : if the Lord endured to suffer for our soul. He being Lord of all the world, to whom God said at the foundation of the world, " Let us make man after our image, and after our likeness," " understand how it was that He endured to suffer at the hand of men. The prophets, having ob- tained grace from Him, prophesied concerning Him. And He (since it behoved Him to ap- pear in flesh), that He might abolish death, and reveal the resurrection from the dead, endured [what and as He did], in order that He might fulfill the promise made unto the fathers, and by preparing a new people for Himself, might show, while He dwelt on earth, that He, when He has raised mankind, will also judge them. Moreover, teaching Israel, and doing so great miracles and signs. He preached [the truth] to him, and greatly loved him. But when He chose His own apostles who where to preach His Gospel, [He did so from among those] who were sinners above all sin, that He might show He came "not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." " Then He manifested Himself to be the Son of God. For if He had not come in the flesh, how could men have been saved by beholding Him ? '^ Since looking upon