Striking And Protecting

Καὶ πατάξεις πᾶν ἀρσενικὸν αὐτῆς ἐν φόνῳ μαχαίρας. Μάχαιρα δὲ τοῦ πνεύματος εἴη ἂν ὁ Λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ. Καὶ τὴν μάχαιραν δὲ τοῦ πνεύματος, ὃ ἐστι ῥῆμα Θεοῦ, ᾦτινι οἱ θεσπέσιοι μαθηταὶ ἀτέκτεινον ἂπαν ἀρσενικον τῆς ἀντικειμένης δυνάμεως, ὡς Σίμωνα καὶ Ἐλύμαν τοὺς μάγους, καὶ τὰ ἰσχυρὰ δὲ αὐτῶν κατέλεον δόγματα· περιεποιοῦντο δὲ τὰς γυναῖκας, καὶ δυναμένας εἰπεῖν ψυχάς· Διὰ τὸν φόβον σου, Κύριε, ἐν γαστρὶ ἐλαβομεν ἕως ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς· καὶ τὰ νήπια δὲ ὡσαύτως, οἴς καὶ Παῦλος γράφει· Τεκνία, μὴ ταῖς φρεσὶν νήπιοι γίνεσθε, ἀλλὰ τῂ κακίᾳ νηπιαζετε. Καὶ κτήνη δὲ, φησί, περιποιήσατε. Δίκαιος γὰρ οἰκτείρει ψυχὰς κτηνῶν αὐτοῦ· τοὺς ἀλογωτέρους διὰ τῶν κτηνῶν αἰνιττόμενος. Κτῆνος ἦν καὶ ὁ Κορνήλιος, κατὰ τὴν ὁπρασίαν τὴν περὶ τῶν τετραπόδων φανεῖσαν τῷ Πέτρῳ. Ὠριγένης, Εἰς Δευτερονόμιον, Κεφ Κ', Ἐκλογή Source: Migne PG 17.29b-c

And you shall strike all the males in it to death with the sword. 1 The spiritual sword is the word of God, and with the spiritual sword, that is, the speech of God, we are able to discern, by which divine discipline we slay every opposing masculine power, like the magicians Simon and Elymas, 2 and with strength we dissolve their teachings. However, we spare the superstitious females, the souls who were yet able to say, 'On account of the fear of you, Lord, we have conceived in our wombs, even unto the earth,' 3 which infants Paul writes about, saying, 'Children, do not be little ones in your minds, but be childish in evil.' 4 And again it says: You shall protect the cattle.' 5 And even: 'The righteous man has mercy on the souls of his beasts.' 6 That is, they who have little reason are alluded to as beasts. And Cornelius was a beast in the vision of the quadrupeds which appeared to Peter. 7 Origen, On Deuteronomy, Fragment 1 Deut 20.13 2 Acts 13, Acts 8 3 Isaiah 26.18 4 1 Cor 14.20 5 Joshua 8.2 6 Prov 12.10 7 Acts 10.12