Every Part of Creation Made to Know the Word

In keeping with all this, then, the Word of God took a body and made use of a human instrument. He did it to give life to the body as well, and so that, as he is known in creation by his works, he might work in man too and show himself everywhere, leaving nothing empty of his own divinity and of the knowledge of him. For I take it up again and repeat what I said before: the Savior did this so that, as he fills all things on every side by his presence, he might also fill all things with the knowledge of him, as the divine Scripture also says, “The whole earth was filled with the knowledge of the Lord.” [a]

If a person will only look up to heaven, he sees its order. Or if he cannot raise his face to heaven, but only to man, he sees the Savior’s power, beyond comparison with the power of men, shown by his works, and learns that he alone among men is God the Word. Or if someone has gone astray among demons and is afraid of them, he may see this man drive them out and make up his mind that he is their Master. Or if someone has sunk down to the waters and thinks they are God, as the Egyptians, for example, revere the water, he may see its nature changed by him and learn that the Lord is the Creator of the waters. But if someone has gone down even to Hades, and stands in awe of the heroes who have gone down there, regarding them as gods, he may still see the fact of Christ’s resurrection and his victory over death, and conclude that among them too Christ alone is true God and Lord. For the Lord touched every part of creation, and set all of it free from every illusion and undeceived it, as Paul says: “Having put off from himself the rulers and the authorities, he triumphed on the cross.” He did this so that no one could possibly be deceived any longer, but everywhere might find the true Word of God. For in this way man, shut in on every side, and seeing the divinity of the Word unfolded everywhere, that is, in heaven, in Hades, in man, and on earth, is no longer exposed to deception about God. Instead he is to worship Christ alone, and through him come to know the Father rightly.

By these arguments, then, on grounds of reason, the Gentiles in their turn will rightly be put to shame by us. But if they think the arguments are not enough to shame them, let them at least be convinced of what we are saying by facts plain to the sight of everyone.