to make," he says; here the prophet proverbially says that the abysses are the hearts of the saints, which have in their own depth the gift of the spirit. 23 What then is this main point also: "before the springs of waters came forth"? He says they are the holy apostles. This the writing of Exodus presents to us as a mystery, long ago foretelling the types of the apostles. For since the apostles are twelve in number, it makes mention of twelve springs. 24 Rightly therefore concerning the generation according to the flesh, the Lord said through the prophet Solomon, who says, "before the springs of waters came forth." 25 For thus the Savior said to the holy springs, "Go and make disciples of all the nations." 26 It is clear from every side that the holy apostles were also figuratively named springs by the prophet. 27 Therefore, since we have spoken about the preceding things, it is consequent to fill up what is lacking. And what is lacking is that concerning the mountains and the hills. For "before the mountains were settled," he says, "and before all the hills, he begets me." He speaks of the mountains and hills as the apostles and the successors of the apostles, so that he may proverbially signify their righteous way of life in comparison to other men. 28 For this reason, then, it seems good to me now to go through those things which I have not yet gone through before. For most of the things written by him have become clear from what we have already said. "From the womb," he says, "before the morning star I begot you," instead of "I brought you forth from," for he thought that certainly the preposition "from" (ex), having been stolen, would run together with the opinion of the heresy. Wherefore, having removed the most important part, the syllable "ex" (out of), he wished to signify his ancient regeneration. 29 How then do those who are "full of deceit and all villainy," to speak in apostolic terms, transfer the saying to his first creation, as they think, and this when David had spoken clearly about his generation according to the flesh? 30 For since there was darkness before on account of the ignorance of piety, and when the day was about to appear (for "I am," he says, "the day"), he rightly names the star the morning star. 31 For this reason, then, since the star signifying the day was rightly named the morning star by the prophet David, it is no longer right to inquire who this morning star happens to be; for this was the star that appeared at that time, the one both bringing and showing the day to the magi. It is therefore manifest that "before the morning star I begot you" was spoken by the almighty Lord concerning the Word who was born through the virgin with human flesh, with the gospel clearly signifying this also, that first our Lord was born through the virgin, and later the star appeared showing the day. 32 Since from where will they be able to show us from the divine sayings, that one is unbegotten, and one is begotten in such a way as they themselves have believed him to have been begotten, when neither prophets nor evangelists nor apostles have said this? 33 Therefore the holy apostle and disciple of the Lord, John, recalling his eternity, became a true witness of the Word, saying "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." Here he makes no mention of the generation of the Word, but using three successive testimonies, he confirmed that the Word was in the beginning. 34 And I will remind you of what he himself has written, agreeing with the things badly written by Eusebius, so that you may know that he clearly departs from his former promise. For he has written in these very words thus: for the main point of the letter is to refer the generation of the Son to the will of the Father, and not to declare the begetting of God a passion. This is what the wisest of the fathers declared in their own compositions, guarding against the impiety of the heretics, who falsely alleged that the child-bearing of God was something corporeal and subject to passion, dogmatizing the 'projections'. 35 So that Asterius, wishing to advocate for Eusebius who wrote badly, having made mention of the nature of a father and of an [un]begotten nature, has become his own accuser. For much better was the depth of the

ποιῆσαι" φησίν· ἐνταῦθα τὰς ἀβύσσους παροιμιωδῶς ὁ προφήτης τὰς τῶν ἁγίων καρδίας εἶναι λέγει τὰς ἐν τῷ ἑαυτῶν βάθει τὴν τοῦ πνεύματος ἐχούσας δωρεάν. 23 τί τοίνυν ἔστιν καὶ τουτὶ τὸ κεφάλαιον "πρὸ τοῦ προελθεῖν τὰς πηγὰς τῶν ὑδάτων"; τοὺς ἱεροὺς ἀποστόλους εἶναί φησιν. τοῦτο δὲ ἡμῖν τὸ μυστήριον παρίστησιν ἡ τῆς Ἐξόδου γραφὴ τοὺς τῶν ἀποστόλων τύπους πάλαι προαγορεύουσα. δώδεκα γὰρ ὄντων τὸν ἀριθμὸν τῶν ἀποστόλων, δώδεκα πηγῶν μέμνηται. 24 εἰκότως οὖν περὶ τῆς κατὰ σάρκα γενέσεως ὁ δεσπότης διὰ τοῦ προφήτου Σολομῶνος λέγοντος "πρὸ τοῦ προελθεῖν τὰς πηγὰς τῶν ὑδάτων" ἔφη. 25 οὕτω γὰρ ὁ σωτὴρ πρὸς τὰς ἱερὰς πηγὰς ἔφη "πορευθέντες μαθητεύσατε πάντα τὰ ἔθνη". 26 πανταχόθεν δῆλόν ἐστιν τοὺς ἱεροὺς ἀποστόλους καὶ πηγὰς τροπικῶς ὠνομάσθαι ὑπὸ τοῦ προφήτου. 27 οὐκοῦν ἐπειδήπερ περὶ τῶν προαγόντων εἰρήκαμεν, ἀκόλουθόν ἐστιν καὶ τὸ λεῖπον ἀναπληρῶσαι. λείπει δὲ τὸ κατὰ τὰ ὄρη καὶ τοὺς βουνούς. "πρὸ" γὰρ "τοῦ ὄρη ἑδρασθῆναι" φησὶν "πρὸ δὲ πάντων τῶν βουνῶν γεννᾷ με". ὄρη καὶ βουνοὺς τοὺς ἀποστόλους καὶ τοὺς τῶν ἀποστόλων διαδόχους λέγει, ἵνα παρὰ τοὺς ἄλλους ἀνθρώπους τὴν κατ' αὐτοὺς δικαίαν πολιτείαν παροιμιωδῶς σημήνῃ. 28 διὰ τοῦτο τοίνυν δοκεῖ μοι καλῶς ἔχειν ἔτι περὶ ὧν μηδέπω πρότερον διῆλθον νυνὶ διελθεῖν. τὰ γὰρ πλεῖστα τῶν ὑπ' αὐτοῦ γραφέντων ἐκ τῶν ἤδη προειρημένων ἡμῖν γέγονεν δῆλα. "ἐκ γαστρὸς" φησὶν "πρὸ ἑωσφόρου ἐγέννησά σε" ἀντὶ τοῦ "ἐξεγέννησά σε" ᾤετο γὰρ πάντως που τὴν ἐξ πρόθεσιν κλαπεῖσαν συνδραμεῖσθαι τῇ τῆς αἱρέσεως γνώμῃ. διὸ τὸ κυριώτατον, τὴν συλλαβὴν ἐξ, ἐξελὼν τὴν ἀρχαίαν αὐτοῦ ἀναγέννησιν σημῆναι ἐβουλήθη. 29 πῶς οὖν οἱ "πλήρεις δόλου καὶ ῥᾳδιουργίας", ἀποστολικῶς εἰπεῖν, μεταφέρουσιν τὸ ῥητὸν εἰς τὴν πρώτην αὐτοῦ, ὡς οἴονται, κτίσιν, καὶ ταῦτα τοῦ ∆αυὶδ περὶ τῆς κατὰ σάρκα αὐτοῦ γενέσεως σαφῶς εἰρηκότος. 30 σκότους γὰρ ὄντος πρότερον διὰ τὴν τῆς θεοσεβείας ἄγνοιαν, τῆς δὲ ἡμέρας φαίνεσθαι μελλούσης ("ἐγὼ" γάρ "εἰμι" φησὶν "ἡ ἡμέρα") εἰκότως τὸν ἀστέρα ἑωσφόρον ὀνομάζει. 31 διὰ τοῦτο τοίνυν τοῦ τὴν ἡμέραν δηλοῦντος ἀστέρος ἑωσφόρου ὑπὸ τοῦ προφήτου ∆αυὶδ εἰκότως ὀνομασθέντος, οὐκέτι ζητεῖσθαι δίκαιον τὸν ἑωσφόρον, τίς δήποτε ὢν οὗτος τυγχάνει· οὗτος γὰρ ἦν ὁ τηνικαῦτα φανεὶς ἀστήρ, ὁ φέρων τε καὶ δηλῶν τὴν ἡμέραν τοῖς μάγοις. πρόδηλον οὖν τὸ "πρὸ ἑωσφόρου ἐγέννησά σε" ὑπὸ τοῦ παντοκράτορος εἰρῆσθαι δεσπότου περὶ τοῦ διὰ τῆς παρθένου γεννηθέντος σὺν τῇ ἀνθρωπίνῃ σαρκὶ λόγου, σαφῶς καὶ τοῦτο τοῦ εὐαγγελίου σημαίνοντος, πρότερον μὲν τὸν δεσπότην ἡμῶν διὰ τῆς παρθένου τετέχθαι, ὕστερον δὲ τὸν ἀστέρα φανῆναι τὸν τὴν ἡμέραν δεικνύντα. 32 ἐπεὶ πόθεν ἡμῖν ἐκ τῶν θείων δυνήσονται δεῖξαι ῥητῶν, ὅτι εἷς μὲν ἀγέννητος, εἷς δὲ γεννητὸς οὕτως, ὡς αὐτοὶ γεγεννῆσθαι αὐτὸν πεπιστεύκασιν, οὔτε προφητῶν οὔτε εὐαγγελιστῶν ἢ ἀποστόλων τοῦτ' εἰρηκότων; 33 ὁ τοίνυν ἱερὸς ἀπόστολός τε καὶ μαθητὴς τοῦ κυρίου Ἰωάννης τῆς ἀιδιότητος αὐτοῦ μνημονεύων ἀληθὴς ἐγίγνετο τοῦ λόγου μάρτυς, "ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ λόγος" λέγων "καὶ ὁ λόγος ἦν πρὸς τὸν θεόν, καὶ θεὸς ἦν ὁ λόγος". οὐδὲν γενέσεως ἐνταῦθα μνημονεύων τοῦ λόγου, ἀλλ' ἐπαλλήλοις τρισὶν μαρτυρίαις χρώμενος, ἐβεβαίου ἐν ἀρχῇ τὸν λόγον εἶναι. 34 ὑπομνήσω δέ σε ὧν αὐτὸς γέγραφεν συνιστάμενος τοῖς κακῶς ὑπὸ Εὐσεβίου γραφεῖσιν, ἵνα γνῷς ὅτι ἀφίσταται σαφῶς τῆς προτέρας ἐπαγγελίας. γέγραφεν γὰρ αὐταῖς λέξεσιν οὕτως· τὸ γὰρ κεφάλαιον εἶναι τῆς ἐπιστολῆς ἐπὶ τὴν βουλὴν τοῦ πατρὸς ἀνενεγκεῖν τοῦ υἱοῦ τὴν γένεσιν, καὶ μὴ πάθος ἀποφῆναι τοῦ θεοῦ τὴν γονήν. ὅπερ οἱ σοφώτατοι τῶν πατέρων ἐν τοῖς οἰκείοις συντάγμασιν ἀπεφήναντο, φυλαξάμενοι τῶν αἱρετικῶν τὴν ἀσέβειαν, οἳ σωματικήν τινα καὶ παθητικὴν κατεψεύσαντο τοῦ θεοῦ τὴν τεκνογονίαν, τὰς προβολὰς δογματίζοντες. 35 ὥστε συνηγορῆσαι Εὐσεβίῳ κακῶς γράψαντι βουλόμενος Ἀστέριος, φύσεώς τε πατρὸς καὶ φύσεως [ἀ]γεννητοῦ μνημονεύσας, αὐτὸς ἑαυτοῦ κατήγορος γέγονεν. πολὺ γὰρ βέλτιον ἦν τὸ βάθος τοῦ