5

the divinity of the Son pre-exists, we will raise these questions, how He who even according to these prophecies is unchangeable, and immutable, and again saying He alone as God fills heaven and earth, and is clearly shown to be almost invisible even according to the law itself, according to the text, 12 no one shall see my face and live, was again changed, and as if altering his own substance, became containable in some small parts of the earth, and was seen at one time by Abraham, and at another by the other prophets? For if these things were to refer to the God of all, they would seem to conflict not only with the voice of the Gospel, but also with the prophetic ones, which declared him to be uncontainable and unchangeable and invisible to men; unless perhaps someone might say that God himself was not seen by those recorded, but only gave them an impression, so that they seemed to see and hear, but did not truly behold any of the things that seemed to appear, nor indeed hear in truth, but were deceived in these things, thinking and seeming to hear, which is both unfitting and foreign to the true and unerring nature of the God of all; furthermore, it is shown to be inconsistent from the fact that God himself is recorded as saying concerning Abraham, "For I know that he will command his children and his household after him, and they will keep the ways of the Lord to do righteousness and judgment, that the Lord may bring upon Abraham what he has spoken to him." Unquestionably, therefore, the Lord himself says these things as if concerning another Lord; how then is it possible to suppose that the God of all said these things? For concerning what other lord besides himself can the contents be said? But it is clear from these things that what is shown does not seem to pertain to the God of all; and it has been shown that it does not pertain to the nature of angels either; for, as I said, the word knows to speak truly upon the appearance of 13 angels, clearly indicating the visions through them. If, then, these things seem to fit neither the angelic nature nor the supreme and unbegotten nature of the God of all, one single solution for these things would remain, if we were to reserve the unchangeable and immutable and invisible for the unbegotten substance, and to refer the recorded oracles as from God to the Word of God, whom we have believed to have appeared in various ways even before the incarnation for the salvation of men and to have carried out the dispensations mentioned in the divine scriptures; and on him alone after the God of all have we found the tetragrammaton name to be placed, as this divine title is also fitting for the only-begotten and heir of the Father. Therefore, Abraham, knowing well, being wise and being testified by God himself to be a prophet, that he has given all judgment to the Son, both worships him and says to him alone above the others, "Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?" which to think is said to an angel who has taken the place of the divine Word is both unfitting and most implausible, but it would be most fitting for the divine Word alone, along with the other things, to say also this, "Shall I hide from Abraham my servant what I am about to do?" and this, "For I know that he will command his children and his household after him, and they will keep the ways of the Lord to do righteousness and judgment, that the Lord may bring upon Abraham what he has spoken to him." And it is fitting for him to say these things, teaching that all things done piously by 14 men should be referred to the single piety of the God and Father of all, from whom, while on earth, all good things are supplied to the pious for their benefit and salvation; and the divine Word says these things as teaching concerning another Lord, his own Father; for he also confesses him to be his own Lord and God to his own disciples, saying, "I am ascending to my Father and your Father, and to my God and your God." Both the law and all scripture are filled with this character of the Lord, that is, of the divine Word, speaking as if concerning another Lord, clearly the Father. Of much

5

προϋπάρχειν θεότητα τοῦ υἱοῦ, ταῦτα ἐπαπορήσομεν, πῶς ὁ καὶ κατὰ ταύτας τὰς προφητείας ἀναλλοίωτος, καὶ ἄτρεπτος, καὶ πάλιν τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν λέγων πληροῦν μόνος Θεὸς, σαφῶς τε καὶ κατ' αὐτὸν τὸν νόμον σχεδὸν ἀόρατος εἶναι δηλούμενος, κατὰ τὸ, 12 οὐδεὶς ὄψεταί μου τὸ πρόσωπον καὶ ζήσεται, ἀλλοιούμενος πάλιν, καὶ ὡς περιτρέπων τὴν αὐτὸς ἑαυτοῦ οὐσίαν εἰς ἐν μικροῖς τισὶ μορίοις τῆς γῆς χωρητὸς ἐγίγνετο, καὶ ἑωρᾶτο τότε μὲν τῷ Ἁβραὰμ, τότε δὲ τοῖς ἄλλοις προφήταις; Ταυτὶ γὰρ εἰ ἐπὶ τὸν τῶν ὅλων ἀναφέροιτο Θεὸν, οὐ μόνον τῇ εὐαγγελικῇ φωνῇ δόξαι ἂν διαφωνεῖν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ταῖς προφητικαῖς, ἀχώρητον καὶ ἀναλλοίωτον αὐτὸν καὶ ἀόρατον ἀνθρώποις ἀποφηναμέναις· εἰ μὴ ἄρα μὴ δὲ ὦφθαι τίς εἴποι αὐτὸν τὸν Θεὸν τοῖς ἀναγεγραμμένοις, φαντασιῶσαι δὲ αὐτοὺς αὐτὸ μόνον, ὡς δοκεῖν μὲν ὁρᾶν καὶ ἀκούειν, οὐ μὴν καὶ ἀληθῶς τί τῶν νομιζομένων φαίνεσθαι θεωρεῖν, οὐδὲ μὴν ἀκούειν κατ' ἀλήθειαν, ἀπατωμένους δὲ καὶ ἐν τούτοις νομίζειν, καὶ δοκεῖν ἀκούειν, ὅπερ ἀνοίκειόν τε καὶ ἀλλότριον ὑπάρχει τῆς ἀψευδοῦς καὶ ἀπλανοῦς τοῦ τῶν ὅλων Θεοῦ φύσεως· ἔτι δὲ καὶ ἀσύστατον ὂν δείκνυται ἐκ τοῦ λέγειν ἱστορεῖσθαι αὐτὸν τὸν Θεὸν περὶ τοῦ Ἁβραὰμ τὸ, ἤδειν γὰρ ὅτι συντάξει τοῖς υἱοῖς αὐτοῦ καὶ τῷ οἴκῳ αὐτοῦ μετ' αὐτὸν καὶ φυλάξουσιν τὰς ὁδοὺς κυρίου ποιεῖν δικαιοσύνην καὶ κρίσιν, ὅπως ἂν ἐπαγάγῃ κύριος ἐπὶ Ἁβραὰμ ἃ ἐλάλησεν πρὸς αὐτόν. Ἀναμφιλέκτως γοὖν ταῦτα ὡς περὶ ἑτέρου κυρίου αὐτὸς ὁ Κύριος διαλέγεται· πῶς οὖν ἐστὶ οἷόν τε τὸν τῶν ὅλων ὑπονοεῖν Θεὸν ταῦτα εἰρηκέναι; Περὶ ποίου γὰρ ἑτέρου παρ' αὐτὸν κυρίου δύναται λέγεσθαι τὰ ἐγκείμενα; Ἀλλὰ γὰρ σαφῆ ἐκ τούτων ὅτι μηδὲ τῷ τῶν ὅλων Θεῷ προσήκειν ἔοικε τὰ δηλούμενα· δέδεικται δὲ ὅτι μηδὲ τῇ τῶν ἀγγέλων φύσει· οἶδεν γοῦν, ὡς ἔφην, ὁ λόγος ἐπαληθεύειν ἐπὶ τῇ τῶν 13 ἀγγέλων ἐπιφανείᾳ, σαφῶς ἐπισημαινόμενος τὰς δι' αὐτῶν ὀπτασίας. Εἰ δὴ οὖν μήτ' ἀγγελικῇ φύσει μήτε τῇ ἀνωτάτω καὶ ἀγενήτῳ τοῦ τῶν ὅλων Θεοῦ ταῦτα ἔοικεν ἁρμόττειν, λείποιτ' ἂν τούτων μία μόνη λύσις, εἰ τὸ μὲν ἀναλλοίωτον καὶ ἄτρεπτον καὶ ἀόρατον ἐπὶ τὴν ἀγένητον διαφυλάττοιμεν οὐσίαν, τοὺς δ' ἀναγεγραμμένους ὡς ἐκ Θεοῦ χρηματισμοὺς ἐπὶ τὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγον μεταλαμβάνοιμεν, ὃν διαφόρως καὶ πρὸ τῆς ἐνανθρωπήσεως ὑπὲρ τῆς τῶν ἀνθρώπων σωτηρίας ὀφθῆναί τε καὶ τὰς ἐν ταῖς θείαις γραφαῖς ἐμφερομένας οἰκονομίας ἐκτελέσαι πεπιστεύκαμεν· ἐπὶ μόνου δὲ τούτου μετὰ τὸν τῶν ὅλων Θεὸν καὶ τὴν τετράγραμμον προσηγορίαν κειμένην εὕρομεν, ἅτε μονογενεῖ καὶ κληρονόμῳ τοῦ Πατρὸς ἁρμοττούσης καὶ ταύτης τῆς θεϊκῆς ἐπινοίας. Εὖ γοὖν εἰδὼς ὁ Ἁβραὰμ, ἅτε σοφὸς ὢν καὶ πρὸς αὐτοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ προφήτης εἶναι μαρτυρούμενος, ὡς ὅτι πᾶσαν τὴν κρίσιν ἔδωκεν τῷ υἱῷ, προσκυνεῖ τε αὐτὸν, καὶ μόνῳ παρὰ τοὺς ἄλλους φησὶν τὸ, μηδαμῶς ὁ κρίνων πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν οὐ ποιήσεις κρίσιν, ὅπερ ἀγγέλῳ τὸν θεῖον Λόγον ὑποβεβηκότι λέγεσθαι νομίζειν ἀνοίκειόν τε καὶ ἀπιθανώτατον, μόνῳ δὲ τῷ θείῳ Λόγῳ οἰκειότατον ἂν εἴη μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων φάσκειν καὶ τὸ, μὴ κρύψω ἐγὼ ἀπὸ Ἁβραὰμ τοῦ παιδός μου ἃ ἐγὼ ποιῶ· καὶ τὸ, ἤδειν γὰρ ὅτι συντάξει τοῖς υἱοῖς αὐτοῦ καὶ τῷ οἴκῳ αὐτοῦ μετ' αὐτὸν, καὶ φυλάξουσι τὰς ὁδοὺς κυρίου ποιεῖν δικαιοσύνην καὶ κρίσιν, ὅπως ἂν ἐπαγάγῃ κύριος ἐπὶ Ἁβραὰμ ἃ ἐλάλησε πρὸς αὐτόν. Καὶ πρέπει γε αὐτῷ ταῦτα λέγειν παιδεύοντι, ὅτι δὴ πάντα τὰ ἐξ ἀνθρώπων ὁσίως 14 δρώμενα εἰς μόνην τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ Πατρὸς τῶν ὅλων ἀναφέρειν θέμις εὐσέβειαν, παρ' οὗ ἐπὶ γῆς ὄντος τῶν ἀγαθῶν τὰ πάντα τοῖς εὐσεβέσιν εἰς ὠφέλειάν τε καὶ σωτηρίαν χορηγεῖται· ταῦτα δὲ ὁ θεῖός φησι Λόγος ὡς περὶ ἑτέρου κυρίου τοῦ ἑαυτοῦ πατρὸς διδάσκων· καὶ γὰρ καὶ ἑαυτοῦ Κύριόν τε καὶ Θεὸν αὐτὸν ὁμολόγει πρὸς τοὺς ἰδίους μαθητὰς, ἀνέρχομαι φάσκων πρὸς τὸν πατέρα μου καὶ πατέρα ὑμῶν, καὶ Θεόν μου καὶ Θεὸν ὑμῶν. Πεπλήρωται δ' ὅ τε νόμος καὶ πᾶσα γραφὴ τοῦ τοιοῦδε χαρακτῆρος τοῦ κυρίου, τοῦτ' ἔστιν τοῦ θείου Λόγου, ὡς περὶ ἑτέρου κυρίου διαλεγομένου, δῆλον δ' ὅτι τοῦ Πατρός. Πολλῆς