[205] No, clearly by “god,” he is not here alluding to the Primal God, the Begetter of the Universe, but to the gods of the different cities who are falsely so called, being fashioned by the skill of painters and sculptors. For the world as we know it is full of idols of wood and stone, and suchlike images. We must refrain from speaking insultingly of these, lest any of Moses’ disciples get into the habit of treating lightly the name “god” in general, for it is a title worthy of the highest respect and love.
[206] But if anyone, I will not say blasphemes the Lord of gods and men, but even ventures to utter His Name unseasonably, let him suffer the penalty of death.
[207] For, even in the case of our own parents, though they are but mortals, all who have regard for the honour due to parentage abstain from using their personal names, and, leaving these unsaid, call them instead by the terms of natural relationship—father and mother—and their so addressing them is seen at once to be an indirect acknowledgement of unsurpassed benefits conferred by them and an expression of their own standing gratitude.
[208] After this, can we still think worthy of pardon those, who, with a reckless tongue, make unseasonable use of the most holy name of the Deity and treat it as a mere expletive?