Oh, the surpassing kindness and love of God! He did not hate or reject or bear a grudge against us but he was patient and bore with us, having mercy he himself experienced our sin, he himself gave his own son, a ransom on our behalf, the Holy for the lawless, the innocent for the guilty, the righteous for the unrighteous, the incorruptible for the corruptible, the immortal for the mortal. For what else than that one’s righteousness could cover up our sin? In who else than in the Son of God alone could our lawlessness and ungodliness possibly be justified? Oh, the sweet exchange! Oh, the fathomless creation! Oh, the unexpected benefits that the lawlessness of many should be concealed in the one righteous, and righteousness of the one should justify many lawless.
Epistle to Diognetus [author unknown] (c 200 A.D.) 9.1–9.5, [Rick Brannan (Translator), The Apostolic Fathers in English. (Lexham Press, 2012)]
