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who worship carved images,” and “gods, who did not make the heaven and the earth, may they perish,” and all such things in this manner “God, who in times past spoke to the fathers through the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us through his only-begotten Son, through whom He also made the ages.” I know the one who said: “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” I believe in one God, the one principle of all things, without beginning, uncreated, indestructible and immortal, everlasting and eternal, incomprehensible, bodiless, invisible, uncircumscribed, without form, one supersubstantial substance, a divinity beyond deity, in three hypostases, Father and Son and Holy Spirit, and to Him alone I give worship, and to Him alone I offer the adoration of worship. I adore one God, one Godhead, but I also worship a Trinity of hypostases, God the Father and God the Son incarnate and God the Holy Spirit, one God. I do not adore creation instead of the Creator, but I adore the Creator who became created for my sake and descended into creation without humiliation and without being debased, that He might glorify my nature and make it a partaker of the divine nature. I adore along with the King and God the purple robe of the body not as a garment nor as a fourth person (God forbid), but as having been called and made of one substance with God, that which was anointed, unchangeably; for the nature of the flesh did not become divinity, but just as the Word became flesh unchangeably, remaining what He was, so also the flesh became Word, not losing that which it is, but rather being identified with the Word according to hypostasis. Therefore I boldly make an image of the invisible God, not as invisible, but as He became visible for our sake by partaking of flesh and blood. I do not make an image of the invisible Godhead, but I make an image of the seen flesh of God. For if it is impossible to make an image of a soul, how much more so of God who gave to the soul its immateriality? But they say: God said through Moses the lawgiver: “You shall worship the Lord your God and Him only shall you serve,” and “you shall not make any likeness of anything that is in heaven or on the earth.” Brothers, truly they are mistaken who do not know the scriptures, who do not know that “the letter kills, but the spirit gives life,” who do not investigate the spirit hidden beneath the letter. To whom I might fittingly say: Let him who taught you this also teach you what follows. Learn how the lawgiver interprets this in some way in Deuteronomy, saying: “And the Lord spoke to you from the midst of the fire; you heard the sound of words, but saw no form, only a voice,” and a little later “and take good heed to yourselves, for you saw no form on the day that the Lord spoke to you at Horeb on the mountain from the midst of the fire, lest you act corruptly and make for yourselves a carved image, any kind of figure, the likeness of male or female, the likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged bird” and so on, and a little after “lest when you look up to the heaven and see the sun and the moon and the stars and all the host of heaven, you be led astray and worship them and serve them.” 3,6 I know the one who spoke truly: “The Lord your God is one Lord,” and “you shall worship the Lord your God and Him only shall you serve,” and “you shall have no other gods,” and “you shall not make a carved image, any likeness of anything that is in heaven and that is on the earth,” and “let all who worship carved images be ashamed,” and “gods, who did not make the heaven and the earth, may they perish,” and all such things in this manner “God, who in times past spoke to the fathers, has in these last days spoken to us through his only-begotten Son, through whom He made the ages.” I know the one who said: “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only living and true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” And I believe in one God, the one principle of all things, without beginning, uncreated,

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οἱ προσκυνοῦντες τοῖς γλυπτοῖς», καὶ «θεοί, οἳ τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν οὐκ ἐ ποίησαν, ἀπολέσθωσαν», καὶ ὅσα τοιουτοτρόπως «πάλαι ὁ θεὸς λαλήσας τοῖς πατράσιν ἐν τοῖς προφήταις ἐπ' ἐσχάτων τῶν ἡμερῶν ἐλάλησεν ἡμῖν ἐν τῷ μονογενεῖ αὐτοῦ υἱῷ, δι' οὗ καὶ τοὺς αἰῶνας ἐποίησεν.» Οἶδα τὸν εἰπόντα· «Αὕτη δέ ἐστιν ἡ αἰώνιος ζωή, ἵνα γινώσκωσί σε, τὸν μόνον ἀληθινὸν θεὸν καὶ ὃν ἀπέστειλας Ἰησοῦν Χριστόν.» Πιστεύω εἰς ἕνα θεόν, μίαν τῶν πάντων ἀρχήν, ἄναρχον, ἄκτιστον, ἀνώλεθρον καὶ ἀθάνατον, αἰώνιον καὶ ἀίδιον, ἀκατάληπτον, ἀσώματον, ἀόρατον, ἀπερίγραπτον, ἀσχημάτιστον, μίαν ὑπερούσιον οὐσίαν, ὑπέρθεον θεότητα, ἐν τρισὶν ὑποστάσεσι, πατρὶ καὶ υἱῷ καὶ ἁγίῳ πνεύματι, καὶ τούτῳ μόνῳ λατρεύω καὶ τούτῳ μόνῳ προσάγω τὴν τῆς λατρείας προσκύνησιν. Ἑνὶ θεῷ προσκυνῶ, μιᾷ θεότητι, ἀλλὰ καὶ τριάδι λατρεύω ὑποστάσεων, θεῷ πατρὶ καὶ θεῷ υἱῷ σεσαρκωμένῳ καὶ θεῷ ἁγίῳ πνεύματι, ἑνὶ θεῷ. Οὐ προσκυνῶ τῇ κτίσει παρὰ τὸν κτίσαντα, ἀλλὰ προσκυνῶ τὸν κτίστην κτισθέντα τὸ κατ' ἐμὲ καὶ εἰς κτίσιν ἀταπεινώτως καὶ ἀκαθαιρέτως κατεληλυθότα, ἵνα τὴν ἐμὴν δοξάσῃ φύσιν καὶ θείας κοινωνὸν ἐπεργάσηται φύσεως. Συμπροσκυνῶ τῷ βασιλεῖ καὶ θεῷ τὴν ἁλουργίδα τοῦ σώματος οὐχ ὡς ἱμάτιον οὐδ' ὡς τέταρτον πρόσωπον (ἄπαγε) ἀλλ' ὡς ὁμόθεον χρηματίσασαν καὶ γενομένην, ὅπερ τὸ χρῖσαν, ἀμεταβλήτως· οὐ γὰρ θεότης ἡ φύσις γέγονε τῆς σαρκός, ἀλλ' ὥσπερ ὁ λόγος σὰρξ ἀτρέπτως γέγονε μείνας, ὅπερ ἦν, οὕτω καὶ ἡ σὰρξ λόγος γέγονεν οὐκ ἀπολέσασα τουθ', ὅπερ ἐστί, ταυτι ζομένη δὲ μᾶλλον πρὸς τὸν λόγον καθ' ὑπόστασιν. ∆ιὸ θαρρῶν εἰκονίζω θεὸν τὸν ἀόρατον οὐχ ὡς ἀόρατον, ἀλλ' ὡς ὁρατὸν δι' ἡμᾶς γενόμενον μεθέξει σαρκός τε καὶ αἵματος. Οὐ τὴν ἀόρατον εἰκονίζω θεότητα, ἀλλ' εἰκονίζω θεοῦ τὴν ὁραθεῖσαν σάρκα. Εἰ γὰρ ψυχὴν εἰκονίσαι ἀμήχανον, πόσῳ μᾶλλον θεὸν τὸν καὶ τῇ ψυχῇ δόντα τὸ ἄυλον; Ἀλλά φασιν· Εἶπεν ὁ θεὸς διὰ Μωσέως τοῦ νομοθέτου· «Κύριον τὸν θεόν σου προσκυνήσεις καὶ αὐτῷ μόνῳ λατρεύσεις», καὶ «οὐ ποιήσεις πᾶν ὁμοίωμα, ὅσα ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ καὶ ὅσα ἐν τῇ γῇ.» Ἀδελφοί, ὄντως πλανῶνται οἱ μὴ εἰδότες τὰς γραφὰς οἱ μὴ εἰδότες, ὡς «τὸ γράμμα ἀποκτένει, τὸ δὲ πνεῦμα ζωοποιεῖ», οἱ μὴ ἐρευνῶντες τὸ ὑπὸ τῷ γράμματι κεκρυμμένον πνεῦμα. Πρὸς οὓς ἂν ἀξίως εἴποιμι· Ὁ τοῦτο διδά ξας ὑμᾶς διδαξάτω καὶ τὸ ἑπόμενον. Μάθε, ὅπως ἑρμηνεύει ὁ νομοθέτης ὧδέ πως ἐν τῷ ∆ευτερονομίῳ λέγων· «Καὶ ἐλάλησε κύριος πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἐκ μέσου τοῦ πυρός· φωνὴν ῥημάτων ὑμεῖς ἠκούσατε καὶ ὁμοίωμα οὐκ εἴδετε, ἀλλ' ἢ φωνήν», καὶ μετ' ὀλίγα «καὶ φυλάξασθε σφόδρα τὰς ψυχὰς ὑμῶν, ὅτι ὁμοίωμα οὐκ εἴδετε ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ, ᾗ ἐλάλησε κύριος πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἐν Χωρὴβ ἐν τῷ ὄρει ἐκ μέσου τοῦ πυρός, μήποτε ἀνομήσητε καὶ ποιήσητε ὑμῖν ἑαυτοῖς γλυπτὸν ὁμοίωμα, πᾶσαν εἰκόνα, ὁμοίωμα ἀρσενικοῦ ἢ θηλυκοῦ, ὁμοίωμα παντὸς κτήνους τῶν ὄντων ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, ὁμοίωμα παντὸς ὀρνέου πτερωτοῦ» καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς, καὶ μετὰ βραχέα «μήποτε ἀναβλέψας εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ ἰδὼν τὸν ἥλιον καὶ τὴν σελήνην καὶ τοὺς ἀστέρας καὶ πάντα τὸν κόσμον τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, πλανηθεὶς προσκυνήσῃς αὐτοῖς καὶ λατρεύσῃς αὐτοῖς.» 3,6 Οἶδα τὸν ἀψευδῶς εἰπόντα· «Κύριος ὁ θεός σου κύριος εἷς ἐστι», καὶ «κύριον τὸν θεόν σου προσκυνήσεις καὶ αὐτῷ μόνῳ λατρεύσεις», καὶ «οὐκ ἔσονταί σοι θεοὶ ἕτεροι», καὶ «οὐ ποιήσεις γλυπτὸν πᾶν ὁμοίωμα, ὅσα ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ καὶ ὅσα ἐν τῇ γῇ», καὶ «αἰσχυνθήτωσαν πάντες οἱ προσκυνοῦντες τοῖς γλυπτοῖς», καὶ «θεοί, οἳ τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν οὐκ ἐ ποίησαν, ἀπολέσθωσαν», καὶ ὅσα τοιούτῳ τρόπῳ «πάλαι ὁ θεὸς λαλήσας τοῖς πατράσιν ἐπ' ἐσχάτων τῶν ἡμερῶν ἐλάλησεν ἡμῖν ἐν τῷ μονογενεῖ υἱῷ αὐτοῦ, δι' οὗ τοὺς αἰῶνας ἐποίησεν.» Οἶδα τὸν εἰπόντα· «Αὕτη δέ ἐστιν ἡ αἰώνιος ζωή, ἵνα γινώσκωσί σε, τὸν μόνον ζῶντα καὶ ἀληθινὸν θεὸν καὶ ὃν ἀπέστειλας Ἰησοῦν Χριστόν.» Καὶ πιστεύω εἰς ἕνα θεόν, μίαν τῶν πάντων ἀρχήν, ἄναρχον, ἄκτιστον,