A prayer as the seventh book begins
In the six books before this one, holy brother Ambrose, we have contended as well as we could against Celsus’s accusations against the Christians. So far as our strength allowed, we left nothing untested or unexamined and passed nothing by, but answered each point as best we could. Now we call upon God through Jesus Christ himself, the one whom Celsus accuses, that he, who is the Truth (John 14:6), may shine into our heart (2 Corinthians 4:6) what overturns falsehood; and so we begin this seventh treatise as well.
As we begin, we say to God in prayer that prophetic word: “In your truth destroy them” (Psalm 54:5). Plainly this means the arguments opposed “to the truth.” For these are destroyed by the truth of God, so that, once they are destroyed, everyone, set free from distraction, may say the words that follow: “Willingly I will sacrifice to you” (Psalm 54:6), and may offer to the God of the universe a rational sacrifice that sends up no smoke.
Greek
Ἐν ἓξ τοῖς πρὸ τούτων. ἱερὲ ἀδελφὲ Ἀμβρόσιε, ἀγωνισάμενοι κατὰ τὸ δυνατὸν ἡμῖν βιβλίοις πρὸς τὰς Κέλσου (κατὰ) Χριστιανῶν κατηγορίας καὶ μηδὲν ὅση δύναμις ἀβασάνιστον καὶ ἀνεξέταστον ἐάσαντες μηδὲ παρελθόντες, πρὸς ὃ ὡς οἷόν τε ἡμῖν ἀπηντήσαμεν. θεὸν ἐπικαλεσάμενοι δι᾿ αὐτοῦ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, τοῦ κατηγορουμένου ὑπὸ Κέλσου, ἵν᾿ ἡμῶν ἐλλάμψῃ ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ ἀλήθεια τυγχάνων τὰ ἀνατρεπτικὰ τοῦ ψεύδους, ἀρχόμεθα καὶ ἑβδόμου συγγράμματος, τὸ προφητικὸν ἐκεῖνο ἐν τῇ πρὸς θεὸν λέγοντες εὐχῇ τό· „ἐν τῇ ἀληθείᾳ σου ἐξολόθρευσον αὐτοὺς,“ δῆλον δ᾿ ὅτι τοὺς ἐναντίους „τῇ ἀληθείᾳ“ λόγους· οὗτοι γὰρ ἀληθείᾳ θεοῦ ἐξολοθρεύονται, ἵν᾿ ἐξολοθρευθέντων αὐτῶν οἱ πάντες περισπασμοῦ ἀπολυθέντες εἴπωσι τὸ ἑξῆς ἐκείνῳ τό· „ἑκουσίως θύσω σοι,“ λογικὴν καὶ ἄκαπνον θυσίαν προσφέροντες τῷ θεῷ τῶν ὅλων.