But when it came about that the time was fulfilled, God sent his Son—evidently that God who is the God even of those times of which the ages consist, who also has ordained the signs of the times, suns and moons and constellations and stars, and in short has both foreordained and foretold the revelation of his own Son at the far end of the times [5.4]
If he has done nothing, it was foolish enough that he waited for the Creator's times, and thus did service to the Creator. But to what purpose did he send his Son? To redeem them that were under the law, that is, to make crooked places into a straight way, and rough places into smooth ways, as Isaiah says, so that old things might pass away and new things might arise, a new law out of Sion and the word of the Lord out of Jerusalem,and that we might receive the adoption of sons, we the gentiles, who once were not sons [5.4]
Christ has appeared as dispenser of spiritual things—for the apostle says, But when the time was fulfilled God sent his Son, and again, Because the time is now short—it is clear also from that foretelling of the last times that this grace of the Spirit appertains to the Christ of him who foretold it. Set side by side the apostle's details and those of Isaiah [5.8]
Compare that with his citation from his On the Flesh of Christ:
when he says, "God sent forth His Son, made of a woman."
Does this difference come down to Tertullian citing directly from Marcion's Apostolikon or Irenaeus's anti-Marcionite treatise? I suspect the latter but it is still a tough argument.
