Letter 444: A bishop cannot content himself with having done no harm.
To Isidore: That the Lord had his birth according to the flesh from the seed of David, Matthew, Paul, and David -- those inspired men -- clearly declare. Matthew writes, "The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, son of David." Paul makes it evident that our Lord according to the flesh has arisen from Judah. And David: "Once I have sworn by my holiness -- shall I lie to David? His seed shall endure forever, and his throne as the sun before me; and the witness in heaven is faithful" -- signifying through these words the Lord's assumption of flesh and his ascension into heaven, which shall be eternal, since thenceforth the flesh is united inseparably to God the Word.
AI-assisted translation — This translation was produced with AI assistance and has not been peer-reviewed. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek below for scholarly use.
Latin / Greek Original
ΥΟΗ'. – ΙΣΙΔΩΡΟ,
Ὅτι ἐκ σπέρματος Δαβὶδ τὴν κατὰ σάρκα γένε-
σιν ἔσχεν ὁ Κύριος, καὶ Ματθαῖος καὶ Παῦλος καὶ
Δαβίδ, οἱ θεσπέσιοι, σαφῶς ἀποφαίνονται· ὁ μὲν
γράφων, « Βίβλος γενέσεως Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ υἱοῦ
Δαβίδ· » ὁ δὲ πρόδηλον, ὡς ἐξ Ἰούδα ἀνατέταλκεν ὁ
Κύριος ἡμῶν τὸ κατὰ σάρκα · ὁ δὲ Δαβίδ, « ῞Απαξ
ὤμοσα ἐν τῷ ἁγίῳ μου, εἰ τῷ Δαβιδ ψεύσομαι, τὸ
σπέρμα αὐτοῦ εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα μένει, καὶ ὁ θρόνος
αὐτοῦ ὡς ἥλιος ἐναντίον μου· καὶ ὁ μάρτυς ἐν
οὐρανῷ πιστός· · τὴν μετὰ σαρκὸς (69) διὰ τούτων
σημαίνων τοῦ Κυρίου ἀνάληψιν ἐν οὐρανῷ, ἀἰδίου
ἐσομένης, ὡς ἀδιαιρέτως λοιπὸν τῷ Θεῷ Λόγῳ ἡνως
μένης.
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