Chapter V.—Of Sacrifices.

So, again, we show that sacrifices of earthly oblations and of spiritual sacrifices72    This tautology is due to the author, not to the translator: “sacrificia…spiritalium sacrificiorum.” were predicted; and, moreover, that from the beginning the earthly were foreshown, in the person of Cain, to be those of the “elder son,” that is, of Israel; and the opposite sacrifices demonstrated to be those of the “younger son,” Abel, that is, of our people. For the elder, Cain, offered gifts to God from the fruit of the earth; but the younger son, Abel, from the fruit of his ewes. “God had respect unto Abel, and unto his gifts; but unto Cain and unto his gifts He had not respect. And God said unto Cain, Why is thy countenance fallen? hast thou not—if thou offerest indeed aright, but dost not divide aright—sinned? Hold thy peace. For unto thee shalt thy conversion be and he shall lord it over thee.  And then Cain said unto Abel his brother, Let us go into the field: and he went away with him thither, and he slew him. And then God said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: am I my brother’s keeper? To whom God said, The voice of the blood of thy brother crieth forth unto me from the earth. Wherefore cursed is the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive the blood of thy brother. Groaning and trembling shalt thou be upon the earth, and every one who shall have found thee shall slay thee.”73    See Gen. iv. 2–14. But it is to be observed that the version given in our author differs widely in some particulars from the Heb. and the LXX. From this proceeding we gather that the twofold sacrifices of “the peoples” were even from the very beginning foreshown. In short, when the sacerdotal law was being drawn up, through Moses, in Leviticus, we find it prescribed to the people of Israel that sacrifices should in no other place be offered to God than in the land of promise; which the Lord God was about to give to “the people” Israel and to their brethren, in order that, on Israel’s introduction thither, there should there be celebrated sacrifices and holocausts, as well for sins as for souls; and nowhere else but in the holy land.74    See Lev. xvii. 1–9; Deut. xii. 1–26. Why, accordingly, does the Spirit afterwards predict, through the prophets, that it should come to pass that in every place and in every land there should be offered sacrifices to God? as He says through the angel Malachi, one of the twelve prophets:  “I will not receive sacrifice from your hands; for from the rising sun unto the setting my Name hath been made famous among all the nations, saith the Lord Almighty: and in every place they offer clean sacrifices to my Name.”75    See Mal. i. 10, 11, in LXX. Again, in the Psalms, David says: “Bring to God, ye countries of the nations”—undoubtedly because “unto every land” the preaching of the apostles had to “go out”76    Comp. Matt. xxviii. 19, 20, Mark xvi. 15, 16, Luke xxiv. 45–48, with Ps. xix. 4 (xviii. 5 in LXX.), as explained in Rom. x. 18.—“bring to God fame and honour; bring to God the sacrifices of His name: take up77    Tollite = Gr. ἄρατε. Perhaps ="away with.” victims and enter into His courts.”78    See Ps. xcvi. (xcv. in LXX.) 7, 8; and comp. xxix. (xxviii. in LXX.) 1, 2. For that it is not by earthly sacrifices, but by spiritual, that offering is to be made to God, we thus read, as it is written, An heart contribulate and humbled is a victim for God;”79    See Ps. li. 17 (in LXX. l. 19). and elsewhere, “Sacrifice to God a sacrifice of praise, and render to the Highest thy vows.”80    Ps. l. (xlix. in LXX.) 14. Thus, accordingly, the spiritual “sacrifices of praise” are pointed to, and “an heart contribulate” is demonstrated an acceptable sacrifice to God. And thus, as carnal sacrifices are understood to be reprobated—of which Isaiah withal speaks, saying, “To what end is the multitude of your sacrifices to me? saith the Lord”81    Isa. i. 11.—so spiritual sacrifices are predicted82    Or, “foretold.” as accepted, as the prophets announce.  For, “even if ye shall have brought me,” He says, “the finest wheat flour, it is a vain supplicatory gift: a thing execrable to me;” and again He says, “Your holocausts and sacrifices, and the fat of goats, and blood of bulls, I will not, not even if ye come to be seen by me: for who hath required these things from your hands?”83    Comp. Isa. i. 11–14, especially in the LXX. for “from the rising sun unto the setting, my Name hath been made famous among all the nations, saith the Lord.”84    See Mal. i. as above. But of the spiritual sacrifices He adds, saying, “And in every place they offer clean sacrifices to my Name, saith the Lord.”85    See Mal. i. as above.

CAPUT V.

Sic et sacrificia terrenarum oblationum et spiritualium sacrificiorum praedicata ostendimus. Et quidem a primordio majoris filii, id est Israel, terrena fuisse in Cain praeostensa sacrificia; et minoris filii Abel, id est populi nostri, sacrificia diversa demonstrata. Namque major natu Cain de fructu terrae obtulit munera Deo, minor vero filius Abel de fructu ovium suarum. Respexit Deus in Abel et in munera ejus, in Cain autem et in munera ejus non respexit. Et dixit Deus ad Cain: Quare concidit vultus tuus? nonne si recte quidem offeras, non recte autem dividas, 0607B peccasti? quiesce: ad te enim conversio tua, et ipse tui dominabitur. Et tunc dixit Cain ad Abel fratrem suum: Eamus in campum. Et abiit cum eo illic, et interfecit eum. Et tunc dixit Deus ad Cain: Ubi est Abel frater tuus? Et dixit: Nescio: numquid custos fratris mei sum ego? Et dixit ei Deus: Vox sanguinis fratris tui clamat ad me de terra: propter quod, maledicta terra, quae aperuit os suum ad excipiendum sanguinem fratris tui. Gemens et tremens eris super terram. Et dixit Cain ad Dominum: Majus delictum meum, quam ut remittatur mihi; et ejicies me hodie a facie terrae, et a facie tua abscondar, et ero gemens et tremens super terram, et omnis qui me invenerit, occidet (Gen. IV). Ex hoc igitur duplicia duorum populorum sacrificia praecostensa jam tunc a primordio animadvertimus. 0607C Denique, cum per Moysen in Levitico lex sacerdotalis conscriberetur, invenimus praescriptum populo Israeli, ut sacrificia nullo in loco offerentur Deo quam in terra repromissionis, quam Dominus Deus daturus esset populo Israeli et fratribus eorum: ut, introducto Israel, illic celebrarentur sacrificia et holocausta tam pro peccatis quam pro animabus, et nusquam alibi nisi in terra sancta (Deut. XII). Cur itaque postea per prophetas praedicat Spiritus futurum ut in omni terra aut in omni loco offerantur sacrificia Deo, sicut 0608A per Malachiam angelum, unum ex duodecim prophetis dicit: Non recipiam sacrificium de manibus vestris, quoniam ab oriente sole usque ad occidentem nomen meum clarificatum est in omnibus gentibus, dicit Dominus omnipotens. Et in omni loco offeruntur sacrificia munda nomini meo (Malach. I, 10, 11). Item in Psalmis David dicit: Adferte Deo, patriae gentium (Psal. XCVI, 7). Indubitate quod in omnem terram exire habebat (Psal. XVIII, 5) praedicatio Apostolorum. Adferte Deo claritatem et honorem, adferte Deo sacrificia nominis ejus. Tollite hostias, et introite in atria ejus (Psal. XCVI, 8). Namque quod non terrenis sacrificiis, sed spiritalibus Deo litandum sit, ita legimus ut scriptum est: Cor contribulatum et humiliatum hostia Deo est (Psal. L, 19). Et alibi: Sacrifica 0608B Deo sacrificium laudis, et redde Altissimo vota tua (Ps XLIX, 14). Sic itaque sacrificia spiritalia laudis designantur, et cor contribulatum acceptabile sacrificium Deo demonstratur. Itaque quomodo carnalia sacrificia reprobata intelliguntur, de quibus et Esaias loquitur, dicens: Quo mihi multitudinem sacrificiorum vestrorum? dicit Dominus (Isa. I, 11), ita sacrificia spiritalia accepta praedicantur, ut Prophetae annuntiant. Quoniam etsi adtuleritis, inquit, mihi similam, vanum supplicamentum, execramentum mihi est (Ibid). Et adhuc dicit: Holocaustomata et sacrificia vestra, et adipem hircorum, et sanguinem taurorum nolo: nec si veniatis videri mihi; quis enim exquisivit haec de manibus vestris (Ibid. 12)? De spiritalibus vero sacrificiis addit, dicens: Et in omni loco sacrificia munda offerentur 0608C nomini meo, dicit Dominus.