Letter 17: It is delightful to listen to you, and delightful to read you; and I think you give me the greater pleasure by your writings. All thanks to our good God Who has not suffered the truth to suffer in consequence of its betrayal by the chief powers in the State, but by your means has made the defense of the doctrine of true religion full and satisfa...
It's a pleasure to listen to you, and a pleasure to read you — though I think your writing gives me the greater joy.
All thanks to our good God, who hasn't allowed the truth to be destroyed just because the most powerful people in the state betrayed it. Through you, He's made the defense of true religion complete and convincing.
False teachers are like hemlock and monkshood and other poisons: they bloom for a short time, then wither away. But the reward the Lord will give you for everything you've said in defense of His name — that will bloom forever.
I pray God grants you every happiness in your home, and that His blessing reaches your sons. I was delighted to meet and embrace those fine boys of yours — they're the spitting image of their excellent father. Everything I could wish for them is what you yourself would wish.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.
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