Death And Hope

ΕΡΩΤ ΛΗ' Τίνος ἕνεκα τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰρηκότος, ᾗ δ' ἂν ἡμέρᾳ φάγῃ ἀπὸ τοῦ ξύλου, θανάτῳ ἀποθανῇ, οὐκ εὐθὺς ἀπέθανε τὴν ἐντολὴν παραβάς; Ἐναντία αὕτη κατηγορία. Πρὸ βραχέος γὰρ ἀπηνῆ τὸν Θεὸν ἀποκαλοῦντες, νῦν αὐτοῦ φιλανθρωπίαν κατηγορεῖτε. Ὑμεὶν δὲ μᾶλλον ἐρχῆν, ἀλλ' οὐ κατηγορεῖν τῆς ἀγαθότητος τοῦ Θεοῦ. Εἴωθε γὰρ μείζονα μὲν ἀπειλεῖν ἐλάττους δὲ τῶν ἀπειλῶν τὰς τιμωρίας ἐπάγειν. Καὶ τοῦτο πολλαχῆ ἔστιν εὑρεῖν παρὰ τῇ θείᾳ Γραφῇ. Ἐνταῦθα μέντοι τὸν τῆς θνητότηος ὅρον ὠνόμασε θάνατον· οὕτω γὰρ καὶ ὁ Σύμμαχος ἡρμήνευσεν· Ἧ δ' ἂν ἡμέρᾳ φάγῃ ἀπὸ τοῦ ξύλου, θνητὸς ἔσῃ. Μετὰ γὰρ δὴ τὴν θείαν ἀπόφασιν, καθ' ἐκάστην, ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν, ἡμέραν τὸν θάνατον προσεδέχετο· οὕτως οἱ πεπιστευκότες τῷ Δεσπότῃ Χριστῷ, καὶ σφαττόμενοι ζῶσι, προσμένοντες τὴν ἀνάστασιν, καὶ τὴν τῶν οὐρανῶν βασιλείαν. Τῇ γὰρ ἐλπίδι ἐσώθημεν. Θεοδώρητος Ἐπίσκοπος Κύρρος, Εἰς Τὴν Γένεσιν Source: Migne PG 80.138c

Question 38 How when God had said, 'On whatever day you eat for this tree, you will die the death,' 1 did the man not instantly die, having transgressed the commandment? This is a contrary accusation. For a little while ago you called God cruel and now you reprove Him because of His benevolence. But it befits to praise Him for His goodness rather than accuse Him. He is accustomed to threaten grave things but to inflict as punishment less that what was threatened. This is often found in Holy Scripture. Here, then, the sentence of mortality is what He calls death. For so Symmachus translates it in this manner: 'On whatever day you eat from this tree, you will be mortal.' Thus after the divine sentence, as man expects death every single day, so those who believed in Christ the Lord, live even when they are slain, waiting for the resurrection, and the kingdom of heaven. 'For by hope we have been saved.' 2 Theodoret of Cyrrhus, Questions On Genesis 1 Genes 2.17 2 Rom 8.24