Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers: Series I/Volume II/City of God/Book XX/Chapter 4

Chapter 4.—That Proofs of the Last Judgment Will Be Adduced, First from the New Testament, and Then from the Old.

The proofs, then, of this last judgment of God which I propose to adduce shall be drawn first from the New Testament, and then from the Old.&#160; For although the Old Testament is prior in point of time, the New has the precedence in intrinsic value; for the Old acts the part of herald to the New.&#160; We shall therefore first cite passages from the New Testament, and confirm them by quotations from the Old Testament.&#160; The Old contains the law and the prophets, the New the gospel and the apostolic epistles.&#160; Now the apostle says “By the law is the knowledge of sin.&#160; But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; now the righteousness of God is by faith of Jesus Christ upon all them that believe.” &#160; This righteousness of God belongs to the New Testament, and evidence for it exists in the old books, that is to say, in the law and the prophets.&#160; I shall first, then state the case, and then call the witnesses.&#160; This order Jesus Christ Himself directs us to observe, saying, “The scribe instructed in the kingdom of God is like a good householder, bringing out of his treasure things new and old.” &#160; He did not say “old and new,” which He certainly would have said had He not wished to follow the order of merit rather than that of time.