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Better than this one, in a choice of evils, is he who does not divide the unoriginate and unbegotten and divine power, but confesses with bare word that it is the same, but how much better than either is the Jew, who does not divide the one God into Father and Son in a manner similar to Marcellus, nor introduce the same one as Son-Father according to Sabellius, but worships God while also acknowledging and expecting His Christ who was proclaimed through the prophets to be coming, whom, when he came, because they did not receive him, they have paid and will pay the penalty for their unbelief in him. 1.6.1 But those who have it as their prayer to believe in the one who has come will recognize these three things: the one "from the seed of David" and of the same holy virgin, and the Son of God who indwelt this one, pre-existing and subsisting in essence, and the Father of this one, God, by whom he himself continually confesses that he was sent. "To us," therefore, "there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things," according to the apostle, "and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things," the pre-existing only-begotten Son of God, and third, the Son of man according to the flesh, whom the Son of God assumed for our sake. 1.6.2 But neither was the body which he assumed the same as the Son of God who assumed it, nor would the Son of God himself be considered one and the same as the one who begot him. These three things being established, those who grant two but remove the third would be cast out of the church. 1.7.1 Certain godless men among the heretics, having rejected the flesh of the Savior, and saying that he appeared on the earth in some semblance of an apparition, have been the first to miss the mark of the truth. But those who have accepted the incarnate economy, but have denied the pre-existing Son of God, have devised for themselves, as I said, various impasses: some saying that he was a mere man of the common nature of all, in no way superior except insofar as he excelled in virtue; others dogmatizing that the God of all himself indwelt the body, and saying that he named himself his own Son because of the human economy which he endured. These, granting two things, God and man, deprived themselves of the third, having denied the Savior himself, the only-begotten Son of God. 1.7.2 Of these, formerly Sabellius and now Marcellus, being carried away by this opinion, maintained that they know very well the God over all, in the same way as the unbelieving Jews, and they have agreed on the second point, the flesh from the holy virgin; but the third, the very head of our common salvation, the Son of God, they have pushed aside, who is light and truth, and together with the denial of the Son they have fallen away from the light of truth. 1.7.3 Hence you will hear them confessing one God and honoring the flesh of the Savior; but the Son of God who indwelt the flesh they accept with voice and lips, but reject in deed. For one must seek the Son of God, truly living and subsisting, being neither the same as the body which he assumed, nor the same as God the Father. For neither would one be pious if he called the God beyond all things a Son—for whose son would he be who is clothed with unoriginate and unbegotten divinity?—nor will one who says the only-begotten Son of God is himself the Father escape the judgment against blasphemers. 1.8.1 Wherefore the church of God, rightly dividing the straight and royal way, has rejected the other deviations, and to her own nurslings she hands down the knowledge of divine grace, teaching them to confess, according to the very mystery of regeneration, belief in one God, the Father Almighty, providing this perfect and accurate and complete theology to be known, which hands down one God, separating from the Greek and polytheistic error, and knows him as Father, separating from the Jewish teaching, and confesses him as Almighty, turning away from the impiety of the godless heretics. 1.8.2 For indeed none of the heretics would say that the Father of Christ is himself God Almighty, just as none of the Jews would confess that God is a Father, not knowing the only-begotten Son, nor indeed would a Greek say that there is only one

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τούτου κρείττων, ἐν κακῶν ἐκλογῇ, ὁ μὴ διαιρῶν μὲν τὴν ἄναρχον καὶ ἀγέννητον καὶ θεϊκὴν δύναμιν τὸν αὐτὸν δ' εἶναι ὁμολογῶν γυμνῷ τῷ λόγῳ, πόσῳ δὲ ἑκατέρων βελτίων ὁ Ἰουδαῖος, τὸν ἕνα θεὸν οὐ διαιρῶν εἰς πατέρα καὶ υἱὸν Μαρκέλλῳ παραπλησίως οὐδὲ τὸν αὐτὸν υἱοπάτορα κατὰ τὸν Σαβέλλιον εἰσάγων, ἀλλὰ σέβων μὲν τὸν θεὸν γνωρίζων δὲ καὶ προσδοκῶν τὸν Χριστὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν διὰ τῶν προφητῶν ἥξειν κηρυττόμενον, ὃν ἐλθόντα ἐπεὶ μὴ παρεδέξαντο, δίκην τῆς εἰς αὐτὸν ἀπιστίας ὑπέσχον τε καὶ ὑφέξουσιν. 1.6.1 οἱ δὲ πιστεύειν εἰς τὸν ἀφικόμενον δι' εὐχῆς ἔχοντες τρία ταῦτα γνωριοῦσιν· τὸν «ἐκ σπέρματος ∆αυὶδ» καὶ τῆς αὐτῆς ἁγίας παρθένου καὶ τὸν ἐνοικήσαντα τούτῳ υἱὸν τοῦ θεοῦ προόντα καὶ οὐσιωδῶς ὑφεστῶτα καὶ τὸν τούτου πατέρα θεόν, ὑφ' οὗ καὶ αὐτὸς ἀπεστάλθαι συνεχῶς ὁμολογεῖ. «ἡμῖν» τοίνυν «εἷς θεὸς ὁ πατήρ, ἐξ οὗ τὰ πάντα» κατὰ τὸν ἀπόστολον «καὶ εἷς κύριος Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, δι' οὗ τὰ πάντα», ὁ προὼν τοῦ θεοῦ μονογενὴς υἱός, καὶ τρίτος ὁ κατὰ σάρκα υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου, ὃν δι' ἡμᾶς ἀνείληφεν ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ 1.6.2 θεοῦ. ἀλλ' οὔτε ὃ ἀνείληφεν σῶμα ταὐτὸν ἦν τῷ ἀνειληφότι υἱῷ τοῦ θεοῦ, οὔτε αὐτὸς ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ εἷς καὶ ὁ αὐτὸς ἂν νομισθείη τῷ γεγεννηκότι. τριῶν δὴ τούτων ὑποκειμένων, οἱ δύο διδόντες τὸ τρίτον δ' ἐκποδὼν ποιούμενοι τῆς ἐκκλησίας εἶεν ἂν ἀπόβλητοι. 1.7.1 τὴν μὲν δὴ σάρκα τοῦ σωτῆρος ἄθεοί τινες τῶν ἑτεροδόξων παραιτησάμενοι, δόξῃ δέ τινι φαντασίας ὦφθαι αὐτὸν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς εἰρηκότες, πρῶτοι τοῦ τῆς ἀληθείας σκοποῦ διημαρτήκασιν. οἱ δὲ τὴν ἔνσαρκον οἰκονομίαν παραδεδεγμένοι, τὸν δὲ προόντα τοῦ θεοῦ υἱὸν ἀρνησάμενοι, ποικίλας ὡς ἔφην ἑαυτοῖς ἀνοδίας ἐπενόησαν· οἱ μὲν ψιλὸν ἄνθρωπον τῆς κοινῆς ἁπάντων φύσεως κατ' οὐδὲν κρείττονα ἢ ὅσον ἀρετῆς προτερήμασιν γεγονέναι αὐτὸν εἰρηκότες, οἱ δ' αὐτὸν ἐνοικῆσαι τὸν τῶν ὅλων θεὸν τῷ σώματι δογματίσαντες υἱόν τε αὐτὸν ἑαυτοῦ χρηματίσαι φάντες δι' ἣν ὑπέμεινεν κατὰ ἄνθρωπον οἰκονομίαν. δύο διδόντες οὗτοι, θεὸν καὶ ἄνθρωπον, τοῦ τρίτου σφὰς αὐτοὺς ἐστέρησαν, αὐτὸν τὸν σωτῆρα τὸν μονογενῆ τοῦ θεοῦ 1.7.2 υἱὸν ἀρνησάμενοι. τούτων πάλαι μὲν Σαβέλλιος νυνὶ δὲ Μάρκελλος τῇ γνώμῃ συναπαχθέντες τὸν μὲν ἐπὶ πάντων θεὸν Ἰουδαίων τοῖς ἀπίστοις ὁμοίως εὖ μάλα εἰδέναι διισχυρίζοντο, καὶ τὸ δεύτερον, τὴν σάρκα τὴν ἐκ τῆς ἁγίας παρθένου, συνωμολογήκασιν· τὸ δὲ τρίτον, αὐτὸ τὸ κεφάλαιον τῆς ἁπάντων ἡμῶν σωτηρίας, τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ θεοῦ παραγκωνισάμενοι, φῶς ὄντα καὶ ἀλήθειαν, ὁμοῦ τῇ ἀρνήσει 1.7.3 τοῦ υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ τῆς ἀληθείας φωτὸς ἐκπεπτώκασιν. ἔνθεν ἕνα μὲν θεὸν ὁμολογούντων αὐτῶν ἀκούσει καὶ τὴν σάρκα δὲ τοῦ σωτῆρος τιμώντων· τὸν δ' ἐνοικήσαντα τῇ σαρκὶ θεοῦ υἱὸν φωνῇ μὲν καὶ χείλεσιν παραδεχομένων, ἔργῳ δὲ παραιτουμένων. υἱὸν γὰρ θεοῦ χρῆν ζητεῖν, ἀληθῶς ζῶντα καὶ ὑφεστῶτα, οὔτε τὸν αὐτὸν ᾧ ἀνείληφεν ὄντα σώματι, οὔτε τὸν αὐτὸν ὄντα τῷ θεῷ καὶ πατρί. οὔτε γὰρ τὸν ἐπέκεινα τῶν ὅλων θεὸν υἱὸν ἄν τις εἰπὼν εὐσεβήσειεν τίνος γὰρ ἔσται υἱὸς ὁ τὴν ἄναρχον καὶ ἀγέννητον θεότητα περιβεβλημένος;, οὔτε τὸν μονογενῆ τοῦ θεοῦ υἱὸν αὐτὸν εἶναι τὸν πατέρα τις εἰπὼν διαδράσεται τὴν κατὰ τῶν δυσφήμων δίκην. 1.8.1 διὸ δὴ τὴν εὐθεῖαν καὶ βασιλικὴν ὁδὸν ὀρθοτομοῦσα ἡ ἐκκλησία τοῦ θεοῦ τὰς μὲν ἄλλας παρεκτροπὰς ἀπεδοκίμασεν, τοῖς δ' αὐτῆς θρέμμασιν τῆς ἐνθέου χάριτος παραδίδωσιν τὴν γνῶσιν, κατ' αὐτὸ τὸ τῆς παλιγγενεσίας μυστήριον ὁμολογεῖν διδάσκουσα πιστεύειν εἰς ἕνα θεὸν πατέρα παντοκράτορα, τελείαν καὶ ἀκριβῆ καὶ ὁλόκληρον ταύτην εἰδέναι παρέχουσα τὴν θεολογίαν, ἣ θεὸν μὲν ἕνα παραδίδωσιν ἀφορίζουσα τῆς Ἑλληνικῆς καὶ πολυθέου πλάνης, πατέρα δὲ αὐτὸν οἶδεν τῆς Ἰουδαϊκῆς χωρίζουσα διδασκαλίας, παντοκράτορα δὲ αὐτὸν ὁμολογεῖ τῆς τῶν ἀθέων ἑτεροδόξων ἀποστρεφομένη τὴν δυσσέβειαν. 1.8.2 οὐδεὶς γοῦν τῶν ἑτεροδόξων εἴποι ἂν τὸν πατέρα τοῦ Χριστοῦ αὐτὸν εἶναι τὸν θεὸν τὸν παντοκράτορα, ὡς οὐδὲ Ἰουδαίων ὁμολογήσειεν ἄν τις τὸν θεὸν πατέρα εἶναι τὸν μονογενῆ υἱὸν μὴ εἰδώς, οὐδέ γε Ἕλλην ἕνα μόνον φήσειεν