"The stone signifies the Messiah," replied the Jews, and added, "if according to the prophets and other events, as you say, the Messiah has already come, then why does the Roman kingdom still have power?"

"No," answered the philosopher, "he no longer holds power, but has passed by, like other kingdoms. Our kingdom is not Roman, but Christ's, as the prophet said: "God will build a kingdom of heaven, which will never be destroyed, and this kingdom will not be handed over to another people; it shall crush and destroy all kingdoms, and shall stand for ever" (Dan. 2:44). Is this not a Christian kingdom, so called after the name of Christ? The Romans served idols, but these Christians, consisting partly of this people, partly of other tribes and peoples, reign in the name of Christ, as the prophet Isaiah describes it, saying: "Leave your name to My chosen ones to be cursed; but the Lord will kill you, and He will call His servants by another name, with which whoever blesses himself on earth will swear by the true God" (Isaiah 65:1516). Have not all the prophecies spoken about Christ been fulfilled? Isaiah foretold His birth from a Virgin, saying: "Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel" (Isaiah 7:14). And the holy prophet Micah says about his birth in Bethlehem: "And you, Bethlehem, the house of Ephrathah, are you small among the thousands of Judah? From thee shall come forth unto me One who is to be ruler in Israel, and whose origin is from the beginning, from everlasting days. Therefore He will leave them until the time when she who has to give birth shall give birth" (Micah 5:23).

"We," said the Jews, "are the blessed descendants of Shem, who received a blessing from his father, Noah. You have not received a blessing.

"Noah's blessing of Shem has nothing to do with you," said Constantine, "but is only the glorification of God, for Noah said: 'Blessed be the Lord God of Shem' (Gen. 9:26). Here the Lord God is blessed by the mouth of Noah for the sake of the virtuous Shem and nothing more. And to Japheth, from whom we are descended, Noah said, Let God spread Japheth; and let him dwell in the dwellings of Shem" (Gen. 9:27). You yourselves can see how Christianity is spread by the grace of God, and how you are losing more and more significance. Even where you once dwelt, there the name of our Lord Jesus Christ is now blessed and glorified by Christians.

"Behold, you," said the Jews, "trusting in man, think to be blessed, while the books curse such people."

To this, the philosopher asked the Jews the following question:

"Cursed or blessed is David?"

"Very blessed," answered the Jews.

"Then," said Constantine, "we are also blessed, because we trust in Him in Whom he also trusted, when he said in the Psalm: 'The man of My peace, in whom I trusted' (Psalm 40:10). This man is Christ God. Whoever trusts in the common man, we also consider accursed.

After this, the Jews proposed another question:

- Why do you, Christians, reject circumcision, when Christ did not reject it, but fulfilled it according to the law?

The philosopher answered:

- Who was the first to say to Abraham, "It shall be for a sign between Me and you," He who came and performed it (circumcision), which is why it was observed from that (Abraham) to this (Christ) [40]. Instead of circumcision, Christ instituted baptism.

Then the Jews said,