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in things divided, which is also paradoxical. Into Father and Son and Holy Spirit, into whom we have also been baptized; for thus the Lord commanded the apostles to baptize, saying, "Baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." Into one Father, the beginning and cause of all things, not begotten from anyone, but existing as alone uncaused and unbegotten, the maker of all, but Father by nature of his only-begotten Son alone, our Lord and God and Savior Jesus Christ, and the emitter of the all-holy Spirit. And into one Son of God, the only-begotten, our Lord Jesus Christ, begotten of the Father before all ages, light from light, true God from true God, begotten not made, consubstantial with the Father, through whom all things were made. By saying "before all ages" we show that his generation is timeless and without beginning; for the Son of God was not brought from non-being into being, the radiance of the glory, the character of the Father's hypostasis, the living wisdom and power, the enhypostatic Word, the essential and perfect and living image of the invisible God, but he was always with the Father and in him, eternally and without beginning begotten of him; for there was never a time when the Father was, when the Son was not, but at the same time Father, at the same time Son, begotten of him; for a father could not be called father without a son. If he existed not having a Son, he was not a Father, and if afterwards he had a Son, afterwards he became a Father, not being a Father before this, and he was changed from not being a Father into becoming a Father, which is worse than any blasphemy. For it is impossible to say that God is devoid of natural generative power; and generative power is to beget from himself, that is from his own essence, one who is like him in nature. In the case of the Son's generation, therefore, it is impious to say that time intervened or that the existence of the Son came to be after the Father; for we say the generation of the Son is from him, that is, from the Father's nature. And if we do not grant that the Son, begotten of the Father, co-exists with him from the beginning, we introduce a change in the Father's hypostasis, because not being a Father, he later became a Father; for creation, even if it came to be afterwards, is not from the essence of God, but was brought from non-being into being by his will and power, and change does not touch the nature of God. For generation is the bringing forth of the one begotten from the essence of the begetter, being like in essence, but creation and making is the coming to be of the thing created and made from outside and not from the essence of the creator and maker, being completely unlike. In the case, therefore, of the only impassible and unalterable and immutable God who is always the same, both begetting and creating are impassible; for being by nature impassible and without flux, as he is simple and uncompounded, he is not of a nature to undergo passion or flux either in begetting or in creating, nor does he need any cooperation, but generation is without beginning and eternal, being an act of nature and proceeding from his essence, so that the begetter might not undergo change and so that there might not be a first God and a later God and he receive an addition. But creation, in God's case, being an act of will, is not co-eternal with God, since that which is produced from non-being into being is not by nature co-eternal with the one who is without beginning and ever-existing. Just as, therefore, man and God do not create in the same way—for man brings nothing from non-being into being, but whatever he makes, he makes from pre-existing matter, not only willing but also preconceiving, and forming in his mind what is to be, then also working with his hands and enduring toil and weariness, and often even failing, the undertaking not turning out as he wishes; but God, by merely willing, brought all things from non-being into being—, so also God and man do not beget in the same way. For God, being timeless and without beginning and impassible and without flux and bodiless and alone and without end, begets timelessly and without beginning and impassibly and without flux and without copulation, and his incomprehensible generation has neither beginning nor end. And without beginning, on account of his immutability, and without flux, on account of his impassibility

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διαιρουμέναις, ὃ καὶ παράδοξον. Εἰς πατέρα καὶ υἱὸν καὶ ἅγιον πνεῦμα, εἰς ἃ καὶ βεβαπτίσμεθα· οὕτω γὰρ ὁ κύριος τοῖς ἀποστόλοις βαπτίζειν ἐνετείλατο· «Βαπτίζοντες αὐτούς», φάσκων, «εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος». Εἰς ἕνα πατέρα, τὴν πάντων ἀρχὴν καὶ αἰτίαν, οὐκ ἔκ τινος γεννηθέντα, ἀναίτιον δὲ καὶ ἀγέννητον μόνον ὑπάρχοντα, πάντων μὲν ποιητήν, ἑνὸς δὲ μόνου πατέρα φύσει τοῦ μονογενοῦς υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ, κυρίου δὲ καὶ θεοῦ καὶ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, καὶ προβολέα τοῦ παναγίου πνεύματος. Καὶ εἰς ἕνα υἱὸν τοῦ θεοῦ τὸν μονογενῆ, τὸν κύριον ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦν Χριστόν, τὸν ἐκ τοῦ πατρὸς γεννηθέντα πρὸ πάντων τῶν αἰώνων, φῶς ἐκ φωτός, θεὸν ἀληθινὸν ἐκ θεοῦ ἀληθινοῦ, γεννηθέντα οὐ ποιηθέντα, ὁμοούσιον τῷ πατρί, δι' οὗ τὰ πάντα ἐγένετο. «Πρὸ πάντων τῶν αἰώνων» λέγοντες δείκνυμεν, ὅτι ἄχρονος καὶ ἄναρχος αὐτοῦ ἡ γέννησις· οὐ γὰρ ἐκ τοῦ μὴ ὄντος εἰς τὸ εἶναι παρήχθη ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ, τὸ ἀπαύγασμα τῆς δόξης, ὁ χαρακτὴρ τῆς τοῦ πατρὸς ὑποστάσεως, ἡ ζῶσα σοφία καὶ δύναμις, ὁ λόγος ὁ ἐνυπόστατος, ἡ οὐσιώδης καὶ τελεία καὶ ζῶσα εἰκὼν τοῦ ἀοράτου θεοῦ, ἀλλ' ἀεὶ ἦν σὺν τῷ πατρὶ καὶ ἐν αὐτῷ ἀιδίως καὶ ἀνάρχως ἐξ αὐτοῦ γεγεννημένος· οὐ γὰρ ἦν ποτε ὁ πατήρ, ὅτε οὐκ ἦν ὁ υἱός, ἀλλ' ἅμα πατήρ, ἅμα υἱὸς ἐξ αὐτοῦ γεγεννημένος· πατὴρ γὰρ ἐκτὸς υἱοῦ οὐκ ἂν κληθείη. Εἰ δὲ ἦν μὴ ἔχων υἱόν, οὐκ ἦν πατήρ, καὶ εἰ μετὰ ταῦτα ἔσχεν υἱόν, μετὰ ταῦτα ἐγένετο πατὴρ μὴ ὢν πρὸ τούτου πατὴρ καὶ ἐτράπη ἐκ τοῦ μὴ εἶναι πατὴρ εἰς τὸ γενέσθαι πατήρ, ὅπερ πάσης βλασφημίας ἐστὶ χαλεπώτερον. Ἀδύνατον γὰρ τὸν θεὸν εἰπεῖν ἔρημον τῆς φυσικῆς γονιμότητος· ἡ δὲ γονιμότης τὸ ἐξ αὐτοῦ ἤγουν ἐκ τῆς ἰδίας οὐσίας ὅμοιον κατὰ φύσιν γεννᾶν. Ἐπὶ μὲν οὖν τῆς τοῦ υἱοῦ γεννήσεως ἀσεβὲς λέγειν χρόνον μεσιτεῦσαι ἢ μετὰ τὸν πατέρα τὴν τοῦ υἱοῦ γενέσθαι ὕπαρξιν· ἐξ αὐτοῦ γὰρ ἤγουν τῆς τοῦ πατρὸς φύσεώς φαμεν τὴν τοῦ υἱοῦ γέννησιν. Καὶ εἰ μὴ ἐξ ἀρχῆς δῶμεν τὸν υἱὸν συνυπάρχειν τῷ πατρὶ ἐξ αὐτοῦ γεγεννημένον, τροπὴν τῆς τοῦ πατρὸς ὑποστάσεως παρεισάγομεν, ὅτι μὴ ὢν πατὴρ ὕστερον ἐγένετο πατήρ· ἡ γὰρ κτίσις, εἰ καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα γέγονεν, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἐκ τῆς τοῦ θεοῦ οὐσίας, ἐκ δὲ τοῦ μὴ ὄντος εἰς τὸ εἶναι βουλήσει καὶ δυνάμει αὐτοῦ παρήχθη, καὶ οὐχ ἅπτεται τροπὴ τῆς τοῦ θεοῦ φύσεως. Γέννησις μὲν γάρ ἐστι τὸ ἐκ τῆς οὐσίας τοῦ γεννῶντος προάγεσθαι τὸ γεννώμενον ὅμοιον κατ' οὐσίαν, κτίσις δὲ καὶ ποίησις τὸ ἔξωθεν καὶ οὐκ ἐκ τῆς οὐσίας τοῦ κτίζοντος καὶ ποιοῦντος γίνεσθαι τὸ κτιζόμενον καὶ ποιούμενον ἀνόμοιον παντελῶς. Ἐπὶ μὲν οὖν τοῦ μόνου ἀπαθοῦς καὶ ἀναλλοιώτου καὶ ἀτρέπτου καὶ ἀεὶ ὡσαύτως ἔχοντος θεοῦ καὶ τὸ γεννᾶν καὶ τὸ κτίζειν ἀπαθές· φύσει γὰρ ὢν ἀπαθὴς καὶ ἄρρευστος ὡς ἁπλοῦς καὶ ἀσύνθετος οὐ πέφυκεν ὑπομένειν πάθος ἢ ῥεῦσιν οὔτε ἐν τῷ γεννᾶν οὔτε ἐν τῷ κτίζειν οὐδέ τινος συνεργίας δεῖται, ἀλλ' ἡ μὲν γέννησις ἄναρχος καὶ ἀίδιος φύσεως ἔργον οὖσα καὶ ἐκ τῆς οὐσίας αὐτοῦ προάγουσα, ἵνα τροπὴν ὁ γεννῶν μὴ ὑπομείνῃ καὶ ἵνα μὴ θεὸς πρῶτος καὶ θεὸς ὕστερος εἴη καὶ προσθήκην δέξηται. Ἡ δὲ κτίσις ἐπὶ θεοῦ θελήσεως ἔργον οὖσα οὐ συναΐδιός ἐστι τῷ θεῷ, ἐπειδὴ οὐ πέφυκε τὸ ἐκ τοῦ μὴ ὄντος εἰς τὸ εἶναι παραγόμενον συναΐδιον εἶναι τῷ ἀνάρχῳ καὶ ἀεὶ ὄντι. Ὥσπερ τοίνυν οὐχ ὁμοίως ποιεῖ ἄνθρωπος καὶ θεός-ὁ μὲν γὰρ ἄνθρωπος οὐδὲν ἐκ τοῦ μὴ ὄντος εἰς τὸ εἶναι παράγει, ἀλλ' ὅπερ ποιεῖ ἐκ προϋποκειμένης ὕλης ποιεῖ, οὐ θελήσας μόνον ἀλλὰ καὶ προεπινοήσας, καὶ ἐν τῷ νῷ ἀνατυπώσας τὸ γενησόμενον, εἶτα καὶ χερσὶν ἐργασάμενος καὶ κόπον ὑπομείνας καὶ κάματον, πολλάκις δὲ καὶ ἀστοχήσας μὴ ἀποβάντος, καθὰ βούλεται τοῦ ἐπιτηδεύματος· ὁ δὲ θεὸς θελήσας μόνον ἐκ τοῦ μὴ ὄντος εἰς τὸ εἶναι τὰ πάντα παρήγαγεν-, οὕτως οὐδὲ ὁμοίως γεννᾷ θεὸς καὶ ἄνθρωπος. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ θεὸς ἄχρονος ὢν καὶ ἄναρχος καὶ ἀπαθὴς καὶ ἄρρευστος καὶ ἀσώματος καὶ μόνος καὶ ἀτελεύτητος ἀχρόνως καὶ ἀνάρχως καὶ ἀπαθῶς καὶ ἀρρεύστως γεννᾷ καὶ ἐκτὸς συν δυασμοῦ, καὶ οὔτε ἀρχὴν ἔχει ἡ ἀκατάληπτος αὐτοῦ γέννησις οὔτε τέλος. Καὶ ἀνάρχως μὲν διὰ τὸ ἄτρεπτον, ἀρρεύστως δὲ διὰ τὸ ἀπαθὲς