He appeared to mortal men in the form of mortal flesh, He
14 ON CnRISTIAN DOCTRINE. [BOOK I.
wisely, He when He came to us was considered by proud men to liave done very foolislily. And since we when we come to Him become strong, He when He came to us was looked upon as weak But " the foolishness of God is wiser than men ; and the weakness of God is stronger than men."
And thus, though Wisdom was Himself our home, He made Himself also the way by which we should reach our home.
Chap. xii.—In ichat sense the Wisdom of God came to us. And though He is everywhere present to the inner eye when it is sound and clear, He condescended to make Himself manifest to the outward eye of those whose inward sight is weak and dim. " For after that, in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe." ^
12. Not then in the sense of traversing space, but because He appeared to mortal men in the form of mortal flesh, He is said to have come to us. For He came to a place where He had always been, seeing that " He was in the world, and the world was made by Him." But, because men, who in their eagerness to enjoy the creature instead of the Creator had grown into the likeness of this world, and are therefore most appropriately named " the world," did not recognise Him, therefore the evangelist says, "and the world knew Him not." ^ Tims, in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew not God. "Why then did He come, seeing that He was already liere, except that it pleased God through the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe ?
Chap. xiii.— The Word was made flesh.
In what way did He come but this, " The "Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us"?* Just as when we speak, in order that what we have in our minds may enter through the ear into the mind of the hearer, tlie word which we have in our hearts becomes an outward sound and is called speech; and yet our thought does not lose itself in the sound, but remains complete in itself, and takes the form of speech without being modified in its own nature by the change : so
' 1 Cor. i. 25. ' 1 Cor. i. 21. ^ John i. 10. « John i. 14.