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Saint Augustine in His Study (detail), Sandro Botticelli

Augustine of Hippo, The Enchiridion Chapter 102: The Will of the Omnipotent God is Never Defeated, and is Never Evil

Sandro Botticelli, Saint Augustine in His Study (detail), c. 1480 · Ognissanti, Florence · Public domainSandro Botticelli, Saint Augustine in His Study (detail), c. 1480, Ognissanti, Florence

SectionAugustine of HippoPublic domain

But however strong may be the purposes either of angels or of men, whether of good or bad, whether these purposes fall in with the will of God or run counter to it, the will of the Omnipotent is never defeated; and His will never can be evil; because even when it inflicts evil it is just, and what is just is certainly not evil. The omnipotent God, then, whether in mercy He pitieth whom He will, or in judgment hardeneth whom He will, is never unjust in what He does, never does anything except of His own free-will, and never wills anything that He does not perform.

Reproduced in full. Translation: Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 3 (Schaff, 1887), public domain (Public domain).

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