Fulgentius of Ruspe : The reason for saying "he destined us in love is" that he empowered us with his gracious love in order to predestine us. — ON THE TRUTH OF PREDESTINATION 3.5 Fulgentius of Ruspe : The eternal firmness and firm eternity of God's predestinating will consist not only in the ordaining of works. God also knows in advance the number of the elect. No one of that full number may lose his eternal grace, nor may any outside that total attain the gift of eternal salvation. For God, who knows all things before they come to pass, is not confused about the number of the predestined, any more than he doubts the effectiveness of the works he has ordained. — ON THE TRUTH OF PREDESTINATION 3.6 Gaius Marius Victorinus : God in his love has predestined us to adoption through Christ. How could God possibly have Christ for his Son by adoption?… We speak of ourselves as heirs of God the Father and heirs through Christ, being sons through adoption. Christ is his Son, through whom it is brought about that we become sons and fellow heirs in Christ. — AGAINST THE ARIANS 1.2 Jerome : The former [verse] refers to those saints who did not previously exist and who before they came into being were thought of and subsequently acquired existence. This [verse] speaks of God, who was preceded by no thought or willing but always existed and never had a beginning for his existence. Therefore he rightly used the term destined for those who, having once not existed, subsequently acquired existence. But of the Son, that is, of our Lord Jesus Christ, he wrote ordained in another place also. — Commentary on Ephesians 1:5 Jerome : Christ, as we have often said already, is wisdom, justice, peace, joy, temperance and the rest. Note that the names of all these virtues are loved even by those who do not pursue them! No one is such a brazen criminal that he does not claim to love wisdom and justice. — Commentary on Ephesians 1:6 John Chrysostom : That is to say, because He earnestly willed it. This is, as one might say, His earnest desire. For the word "good pleasure" every where means the precedent will, for there is also another will. As for example, the first will is that sinners should not perish; the second will is, that, if men become wicked, they shall perish. For surely it is not by necessity that He punishes them, but because He wills it. You may see something of the sort even in the words of Paul, where he says, "I would that all men were even as I myself." And again, "I desire that the younger widows marry, bear children." By "good pleasure" then he means the first will, the earnest will, the will accompanied with earnest desire, as in case of us, for I shall not refuse to employ even a somewhat familiar expression, in order to speak with clearness to the simpler sort; for thus we ourselves, to express the intentness of the will, speak of acting according to our resolve. What he means to say then is this, God earnestly aims at, earnestly desires, our salvation. Wherefore then is it that He so loveth us, whence hath He such affection? It is of His goodness alone. For grace itself is the fruit of goodness. And for this cause, he saith, hath He predestinated us to the adoption of children; this being His will, and the object of His earnest wish, that the glory of His grace may be displayed. — Homily 1 on Ephesians John Damascene : He willingly gave us His grace, it was not given do to any work on our part, for we have been appointed as His sons. Methodius of Olympus : For we believe that, together with the Son, who was made man for our sakes, according to the good pleasure of His will, was also present the Father, who is inseparable from Him as to His divine nature, and also the Spirit, who is of one and the same essence with Him. For, as says Paul, the interpreter of the divine oracle, "God was in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them." He thus shows that the Father was in the Son, because that one and the same will worked in them. — Methodius Oration Concerning Simeon and Anna