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5 Proof, that God is one and not many That God exists has been sufficiently demonstrated, and that his essence is incomprehensible. But that he is one and not many is not doubted by those who are persuaded by the divine scripture. For the Lord says at the beginning of the lawgiving: "I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt. You shall have no other gods besides me," and again: "Hear, O Israel: The Lord your God is one Lord," and through Isaiah the prophet: "For I," he says, "am the first God and I am after these things and besides me there is no God. Before me there was no other God, and after me there will be none, and besides me there is none," and the Lord also in the holy gospels speaks thus to the Father: "This is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God." But with those who are not persuaded by the divine scripture, we shall reason thus. The divine is perfect and without defect in goodness, in wisdom, and in power, without beginning, without end, eternal, uncircumscribable, and, to put it simply, perfect in all things. If, therefore, we speak of many gods, a difference must be observed among the many. For if there is no difference among them, he is rather one and not many. But if there is a difference among them, where is the perfection? For whether in goodness, or in power, or in wisdom, or in time, or in place it falls short of the perfect, it would not be God. But identity in all things shows one rather than many. And how, if they are many, will the uncircumscribable be preserved? For where one might be, the other could not be. And how will the world be governed by many and not be dissolved and destroyed, if strife is observed among the governors? For difference introduces opposition. But if one should say that each rules a part, what is it that assigned and made the distribution to them? For that would rather be God. Therefore, God is one, perfect, uncircumscribable, maker of the universe, its sustainer and governor, more than perfect and before perfection. And furthermore, it is a physical necessity that the monad be the beginning of the dyad. 6 Concerning the Word of God This one and only God, therefore, is not without a Word. And having a Word, he will not have one that is non-subsistent, one that neither began to be nor will cease to be; for there was not a time when God was without a Word. But he always has his own Word, begotten of himself, not like our word, non-subsistent and poured into the air, but subsistent, living, perfect, not going forth outside of him, but always being in him; for where will he be, being outside of him? For since our nature is mortal and easily dissolved, for this reason our word is also non-subsistent. But God, being eternal and perfect, will have his own Word perfect and subsistent and always existing and living and having all things that the begetter has. For just as our word, proceeding from the mind, is neither wholly the same as the mind nor altogether different—for being from the mind it is other than it, but in bringing the mind itself to manifestation it is no longer altogether different from the mind, but being one in nature, it is different in subject—so also the Word of God, in subsisting in himself, is distinct from him from whom he has his subsistence, but in showing in himself those things that are seen in God, he is the same in nature with him; for just as perfection in all things is seen in the Father, so also will it be seen in the Word begotten of him. 7 Concerning the Holy Spirit And the Word must also have a Spirit; for indeed our word is not without spirit. But in our case, the spirit is alien to our essence; for it is a drawing in and movement of air, drawn in and poured forth for the constitution of the body, which at the time of utterance becomes the voice of the word, revealing in itself the power of the word. But in the case of the divine nature, which is simple and uncompounded, it must be piously confessed that there is a Spirit of God, so that the Word of God may not be less complete than our word, but it is not pious to consider the Spirit as something foreign entering into God from without, as is the case with us who are composite. But just as, having heard of the Word of God, not non-subsistent nor from

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5 Ἀπόδειξις, ὅτι εἷς ἐστι θεὸς καὶ οὐ πολλοί Ὅτι μέν ἐστι θεός, ἱκανῶς ἀποδέδεικται, καὶ ὅτι ἀκατάληπτός ἐστιν ἡ αὐτοῦ οὐσία. Ὅτι δὲ εἷς ἐστι καὶ οὐ πολλοί, τοῖς μὲν τῇ θείᾳ πειθομένοις γραφῇ οὐκ ἀμφιβάλλεται. Φησὶ γὰρ ὁ κύριος ἐν τῇ τῆς νομοθεσίας ἀρχῇ· «Ἐγὼ κύριος ὁ θεός σου ὁ ἐξαγαγών σε ἐκ γῆς Αἰγύπτου. Οὐκ ἔσονταί σοι θεοὶ ἕτεροι πλὴν ἐμοῦ», καὶ πάλιν· «Ἄκουε, Ἰσραήλ· Κύριος ὁ θεός σου κύριος εἷς ἐστι», καὶ διὰ Ἡσαΐου τοῦ προφήτου· «Ἐγὼ γάρ, φησί, θεὸς πρῶτος καὶ ἐγὼ μετὰ ταῦτα καὶ πλὴν ἐμοῦ οὐκ ἔστι θεός. Ἔμπροσθέν μου οὐκ ἐγένετο ἄλλος θεὸς καὶ μετ' ἐμὲ οὐκ ἔσται καὶ πλὴν ἐμοῦ οὐκ ἔστι», καὶ ὁ κύριος δὲ ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς εὐαγγελίοις οὕτω φησὶ πρὸς τὸν πατέρα· «Αὕτη ἐστὶν ἡ αἰώνιος ζωή, ἵνα γινώσκωσί σε τὸν μόνον ἀληθινὸν θεόν». Τοῖς δὲ τῇ θείᾳ γραφῇ μὴ πειθομένοις οὕτω διαλεξόμεθα. Τὸ θεῖον τέλειόν ἐστι καὶ ἀνελλιπὲς κατά τε ἀγαθότητα κατά τε σοφίαν κατά τε δύναμιν, ἄναρχον, ἀτελεύτητον, ἀίδιον, ἀπερίγραπτον καὶ ἁπλῶς εἰπεῖν κατὰ πάντα τέλειον. Εἰ οὖν πολλοὺς ἐροῦμεν θεούς, ἀνάγκη διαφορὰν ἐν τοῖς πολλοῖς θεωρεῖσθαι. Εἰ γὰρ οὐδεμία διαφορὰ ἐν αὐτοῖς, εἷς μᾶλλόν ἐστι καὶ οὐ πολλοί. Εἰ δὲ διαφορὰ ἐν αὐτοῖς, ποῦ ἡ τελειότης; Εἴτε γὰρ κατὰ ἀγαθότητα, εἴτε κατὰ δύναμιν, εἴτε κατὰ σοφίαν, εἴτε κατὰ χρόνον, εἴτε κατὰ τόπον ὑστερήσει τοῦ τελείου, οὐκ ἂν εἴη θεός. Ἡ δὲ διὰ πάντων ταυτότης ἕνα μᾶλλον δείκνυσι καὶ οὐ πολλούς. Πῶς δὲ καὶ πολλοῖς οὖσι τὸ ἀπερίγραπτον φυλαχθήσεται; Ἔνθα γὰρ ἂν εἴη ὁ εἷς, οὐκ ἂν εἴη ὁ ἕτερος. Πῶς δὲ ὑπὸ πολλῶν κυβερνηθήσεται ὁ κόσμος καὶ οὐ διαλυθήσεται καὶ διαφθαρήσεται μάχης ἐν τοῖς κυβερνῶσι θεωρουμένης; Ἡ γὰρ διαφορὰ ἐναντίωσιν εἰσάγει. Εἰ δὲ εἴποι τις, ὅτι ἕκαστος μέρους ἄρχει, τί τὸ τάξαν καὶ τὴν διανομὴν αὐτοῖς ποιησάμενον; Ἐκεῖνο γὰρ ἂν εἴη μᾶλλον θεός. Εἷς τοίνυν ἐστὶ θεός, τέλειος, ἀπερίγραπτος, τοῦ παντὸς ποιητὴς συνοχεύς τε καὶ κυβερνήτης, ὑπερτελὴς καὶ προτέλειος. Πρὸς δὲ καὶ φυσικὴ ἀνάγκη μονάδα εἶναι δυάδος ἀρχήν. 6 Περὶ λόγου θεοῦ Οὗτος τοίνυν ὁ εἷς καὶ μόνος θεὸς οὐκ ἄλογός ἐστι. Λόγον δὲ ἔχων οὐκ ἀνυπόστατον ἕξει, οὐκ ἀρξάμενον τοῦ εἶναι οὐδὲ παυσόμενον· οὐ γὰρ ἦν, ὅτε ἦν ποτε θεὸς ἄλογος. Ἀεὶ δὲ ἔχει τὸν ἑαυτοῦ λόγον ἐξ αὐτοῦ γεννώμενον, οὐ κατὰ τὸν ἡμέτερον λόγον ἀνυπόστατον καὶ εἰς ἀέρα χεόμενον, ἀλλ' ἐνυπόστατον, ζῶντα, τέλειον, οὐκ ἔξω αὐτοῦ χωροῦντα, ἀλλ' ἐν αὐτῷ ἀεὶ ὄντα· ποῦ γὰρ ἔσται ἔξω αὐτοῦ γινόμενος; Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἡ ἡμετέρα φύσις ἐπίκηρός ἐστι καὶ εὐδιάλυτος, διὰ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ λόγος ἡμῶν ἐστιν ἀνυπόστατος. Ὁ δὲ θεὸς ἀεὶ ὢν καὶ τέλειος ὢν τέλειον καὶ ἐνυπόστατον ἕξει τὸν ἑαυτοῦ λόγον καὶ ἀεὶ ὄντα καὶ ζῶντα καὶ πάντα ἔχοντα, ὅσα ὁ γεννήτωρ ἔχει. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ὁ ἡμέτερος λόγος ἐκ τοῦ νοῦ προερχόμενος οὔτε δι' ὅλου ὁ αὐτός ἐστι τῷ νῷ οὔτε παντάπασιν ἕτερος -ἐκ τοῦ νοῦ μὲν γὰρ ὢν ἄλλος ἐστὶ παρ' αὐτόν, αὐτὸν δὲ τὸν νοῦν εἰς τὸ ἐμφανὲς ἄγων οὐκέτι παντάπασιν ἕτερός ἐστι παρὰ τὸν νοῦν, ἀλλὰ κατὰ τὴν φύσιν ἓν ὢν ἕτερόν ἐστι τῷ ὑποκειμένῳ-οὕτως καὶ ὁ τοῦ θεοῦ λόγος, τῷ μὲν ὑφεστάναι καθ' ἑαυτὸν διῄρηται πρὸς ἐκεῖνον, παρ' οὗ τὴν ὑπόστασιν ἔχει, τῷ δὲ ταῦτα δεικνύειν ἐν ἑαυτῷ, ἃ περὶ τὸν θεὸν καθορᾶται, ὁ αὐτός ἐστι κατὰ τὴν φύσιν ἐκείνῳ· ὥσπερ γὰρ τὸ ἐν ἅπασι τέλειον ἐπὶ τοῦ πατρὸς θεωρεῖται, οὕτως καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ ἐξ αὐτοῦ γεγεννημένου λόγου θεωρηθήσεται. 7 Περὶ πνεύματος ἁγίου ∆εῖ δὲ τὸν λόγον καὶ πνεῦμα ἔχειν· καὶ γὰρ καὶ ὁ ἡμέτερος λόγος οὐκ ἄμοιρός ἐστι πνεύματος. Ἀλλ' ἐφ' ἡμῶν μὲν τὸ πνεῦμα ἀλλότριον τῆς ἡμετέρας ἐστὶν οὐσίας· τοῦ ἀέρος γάρ ἐστιν ὁλκὴ καὶ φορὰ εἰσελκομένου καὶ προχεομένου πρὸς τὴν τοῦ σώματος σύστασιν, ὅπερ ἐν τῷ καιρῷ τῆς ἐκφωνήσεως φωνὴ τοῦ λόγου γίνεται τὴν τοῦ λόγου δύναμιν ἐν ἑαυτῇ φανεροῦσα. Ἐπὶ δὲ τῆς θείας φύσεως τῆς ἁπλῆς καὶ ἀσυνθέτου τὸ μὲν εἶναι πνεῦμα θεοῦ εὐσεβῶς ὁμολογητέον διὰ τὸ μὴ εἶναι τὸν τοῦ θεοῦ λόγον ἐλλιπέστερον τοῦ ἡμετέρου λόγου, οὐκ ἔστι δὲ εὐσεβὲς ἀλλότριόν τι ἔξωθεν ἐπεισερχόμενον τῷ θεῷ τὸ πνεῦμα λογίζεσθαι ὡς καὶ ἐφ' ἡμῶν τῶν συνθέτων. Ἀλλ' ὥσπερ θεοῦ λόγον ἀκούσαντες οὐκ ἀνυπόστατον οὐδὲ ἐκ