46. You⁹¹ will also be made acquainted with the Divinity of His power, if you will consider of what nature He was; and how it was that all this superiority of the Divine power (operated) in the overcoming of tilings exceeding all description. For let it be considered, No one -- who ever wished to disseminate his laws, or any strange doctrine among all nations, and, who would shew himself to be a Teacher of the worship of the one supreme God, to all races of men, -- would be willing to make use of those as the ministers of his will, who were of all men the most rustic and deficient. And it is likely, one might

think, he would attempt this with the greatest impropriety. For, How could they who could scarcely open their lips, ever be the Teachers of any one man, much less of multitudes ? And, How could they, -- destitute of every sort of erudition, -- address whole assemblies, unless this were indeed a shewing forth of the will of God ? For He called them, as we have already shewn, and said in the first place "Follow me, and I will make you Fishers of men⁹²." And, because He thenceforth made them His own, and they adhered to Him, He breathed into them the Divine power⁹³, and filled them both with strength and courage: and, as He was THE WORD or GOD in truth, and the Doer of all these miracles, He made them the Fishermen of intellectual and reasonable souls; adding, at once to the word "Follow me, and I will make you" the Deed, making them both the Doers, and Teachers, of the worship of His God⁹⁴. And thus He sent them forth into all nations throughout the whole creation, and demonstrated that they were the Preachers of His doctrine. And, Who is not astonished, and probably incredulous, as to this miracle, --  which could scarcely (indeed) have been imagined ? Since no one, of those who have been eminent, has ever been commemorated as having had recourse to any such thing as this; or has come up to any thing resembling it⁹⁵. For it has been the desire of each one of these, to set up something promising to himself, in his own land only; or, to be able to establish such laws as seemed to him good, among some one people of his own. But observe of Him, who availed himself of nothing either human or mortal, how, in reality, He again put forth the word of God in the precept, which He gave

to these His powerless Disciples, (viz.) "Go ye and make Disciples of all nations⁹⁶!" It is likely too, His Disciples would thus address their Lord, by way of answer: How can we do this ? For, How can we preach to the Romans ? And, How can we discourse with the Egyptians? What diction can we use against the Greeks; being brought up in the Syrian language only ? How can we persuade the Persians, the Armenians, the Chaldeans, the Scythians, the Hindoos, and other nations called Barbarians, to desert the gods of their forefathers, and to worship the one Creator of all things? And, upon What superiority of words can we rely, that we shall succeed in this ? Or. How can we hope, that we shall prevail in the things attempted ? (viz.) that we shall legislate for all nations, in direct opposition to the laws laid down from ancient times, (and this) against their gods ? And, What power have we upon which to trust, that we shall succeed in this enterprise ? These things therefore, the Disciples of our Saviour would either have thought, or said. But He who was their Lord solved, by one additional word, the aggregate of the things of which they doubted, (and) pledged them by saying, '' Ye shall conquer in my name." For it was not that He commanded them, simply and indiscriminately, to go and make Disciples of all nations; but with this excellent addition which He delivered, (viz): "In my name." Since it was by the power of His name that all this came to pass ; as the Apostle has said, "God has given Him a name, which is superior to every name: that, at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow which is in heaven, and which is in earth, and which is beneath the earth." It is likely therefore, that He would shew forth the excellency of the unseen power, which was

hidden from the many, by His name; and, (accordingly) He made the addition, "In my name." He thus accurately foretold moreover, something which should come to pass, (when) He said, "It is expedient that this my Gospel be preached in the whole world, for the testimony of all nations⁹⁷." Now, this matter was then declared in a corner of the earth, so that those only who were at hand could have heard it. But, How could they have believed Him when He said this, unless they had taken experiment as to the truth of His words, from the other Divine acts which were done by Him ? For this, you are compelled to confess when it is considered, that they gave credence to what He said. For, when He gave them the command, not so much as one sought to be excused; but they confided in what He had intimated : and, just as His promises had been, so DID they make Disciples of the whole race of men ! They did go forth from their own land into all nations ; and, in a short time, His words were seen in effect! His Gospel was therefore shortly preached, throughout the whole creation, for the testimony of all nations, so that the Barbarians and Greeks received the Scriptures, respecting the common Saviour of all, in the handwriting of their Progenitors, and in the words of their spiritual Fathers.