Summary of the prophecies

Although we could give many other prophecies, we have stopped, judging these to be sufficient to persuade those who have ears capable of hearing and understanding. We believe they can recognize that we do not merely make assertions, as people do with the myths told about the supposed sons of Zeus, without being able to provide proof.

For on what reasonable basis would we believe that a crucified human being is the firstborn of the unbegotten God and will himself judge the whole human race, if we had not found testimonies concerning him proclaimed before he came and became a human being, and if we did not see events happening accordingly? We see the desolation of the land of the Jews; people from every nation persuaded through the teaching of his apostles and abandoning the former customs in which they had lived while deceived; and we see ourselves and know that Christians from the nations are more numerous and more genuine than those from the Jews and Samaritans.

All the other races of humanity are called “nations” by the prophetic Spirit, while the Jewish and Samaritan peoples are called Israel and the house of Jacob. We will give the prophecy in which it was foretold that there would be more believers from the nations than from the Jews and Samaritans: “Rejoice, barren woman who does not bear; break forth and cry aloud, you who are not in labor, because the children of the desolate woman are more numerous than those of the woman who has a husband.”

For all the nations were desolate of the true God, serving the works of their hands. The Jews and Samaritans, however, had received from God the word handed down to them through the prophets and were always expecting the Christ, yet they failed to recognize him when he came, except for a few whom the holy prophetic Spirit foretold through Isaiah would be saved. It spoke as from their person: “Unless the Lord had left us offspring, we would have become like Sodom and Gomorrah.”

Moses relates that Sodom and Gomorrah were cities of ungodly people that God destroyed by burning them with fire and sulfur. None of their inhabitants was saved except a certain foreigner, a Chaldean by birth, named Lot, and his daughters were also rescued with him. Anyone who wishes can still see their whole region lying desolate and burned and remaining barren.

And to show that those from the nations were foreknown to be more sincere and believing, we will report what was said through the prophet Isaiah: “Israel is uncircumcised in heart, but the nations in the flesh.” So many things, when seen, are sufficient to fill with conviction and faith those who embrace the truth, do not cling stubbornly to their own opinions, and are not ruled by passions, but act with reason.