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indicating the nature of atoms by such terms, which is similar to nothing, and nothing. But let us proceed again to the continuation of the theory, how, once the fire has traveled around the highest limit of the sensible nature, the firmament consequently comes into being; which it says is a boundary between the waters that are above and the waters that are below. For I think that no body that is solid and resistant, whether one of the four, or something else besides these, as was imagined by profane philosophy, is to be contemplated in the firmament, but that the extremity of sensible substance, which the nature of fire traverses according to its ever-moving power, this was called firmament by Scripture, by comparison with the eternal and incorporeal and intangible property.

For who does not know that everything solid has been made dense by some resistance? But that which is dense and resistant is not free from the quality of weight; but that which is heavy by nature cannot be borne upward. But surely the firmament lies above all sensible creation, therefore 81 the consequence of the argument does not permit us to think of anything thick and corporeal about it, but as has been said, by comparison with the intelligible and incorporeal, everything that is of the sensible kind is called solid, even if by its natural subtlety it escapes comprehension. Therefore, consequently, as much as was encompassed by the circuit of the fire; and the limit of the material substance was encompassed; once described by its own proper limit, it was called firmament because of its material nature, by comparison with the things below. And it received the name heaven, just as he gave the name day to the light, and night to the darkness. But the division of the waters, separated by the medium of the firmament, is neither alienated from this supposition, and is consistent with Scripture. For it is written in the sequence of what was said after speaking about the earth: that “Darkness was upon the face of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the face of the waters.” We conjecture, therefore, that the Spirit of God is as far from being darkness as it is also alien from all evil. And it is possible to adduce countless passages from the holy Scripture concerning this, that God is true light, and dwells in unapproachable light. But the Spirit of God is the same in nature as God himself; and if the nature of God and of the Spirit is one, and God is light, then the Spirit of God would certainly also be light. But the light certainly makes those things light upon which it moves. But the water upon which the Spirit of God was moving, is something other than this downward-tending nature of flowing waters, which is separated by the firmament from the heavy and downward-tending water. And if that is also called water by Scripture, by which through a higher contemplation we conjecture that the fullness of the intelligible powers is signified, let no one be surprised by the homonymy. For God is also a consuming fire, but the word is free from the material meaning of fire. Therefore, just as, having learned that God is fire, you understood him to be something other than this fire; so also, being taught of water moved upon by the divine Spirit, do not think of the downward-tending nature that flows down to the earth. For the Spirit of God is not moved upon things that are lowly and unstable. Therefore, that the meaning may be revealed to us more clearly, let us briefly recapitulate the sense of what has been said: that the firmament, which was called heaven, is the boundary of the sensible creation, and that from that point, an intelligible creation succeeds, in which there is no form, no magnitude, no position in a place, no measure of intervals, no color, no shape, no quantity, nor anything else of those things that are seen under heaven. And let no one suppose that through this figurative language I am introducing confusion into the interpretation of the text, as if I were agreeing with the suppositions of those before us who have contemplated such things, and saying that the apostate powers are called the abyss, and that the ruler of the world of this darkness is understood as the darkness over the abyss. May I never so transgress as to think of evil as a creation of God; for he has clearly said

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τῶν ἀτόμων φύσιν διὰ τῶν τοιούτων φωνῶν ἐνδεικνύμενος, ὅπερ ὅμοιόν ἐστι τῷ οὐδὲν, καὶ οὐθέν. Ἀλλ' ἐπὶ τὰ συνεχῆ τῆς θεωρίας πάλιν προΐωμεν, πῶς εἰσάπαξ τοῦ πυρὸς τὸν ἀκρότατον τῆς αἰσθητῆς φύσεως ὄρον περιοδεύσαντος, ἀκολούθως τὸ στερέωμα γίνεται· ὅπερ μεθόριόν φησιν εἶναι τῶν τε ὑπερ κειμένων καὶ τῶν ὑποκειμένων ὑδάτων. Ἐγὼ γὰρ οἶμαι σῶμα μέν τοι στεῤῥὸν καὶ ἀντίτυπον, εἴ τέ τι τῶν τεσσάρων, εἴ τέ τι καὶ παρὰ ταῦτα ἕτερον, κα θὼς ἡ ἔξωθεν ἐφαντάσθη φιλοσοφία, μηδὲν περὶ τὸ στερέωμα θεωρεῖσθαι, ἀλλὰ τὸ ἄκρον τῆς αἰσθητῆς οὐσίας, ὅπερ ἡ τοῦ πυρὸς φύσις κατὰ τὴν ἀεικίνητον δύναμιν περιπολεῖ, τοῦτο στερέωμα παρὰ τῆς Γραφῆς ῥηθῆναι, συγκρίσει τῆς ἀϊδίου τε καὶ ἀσωμάτου καὶ ἀναφοῦς ἰδιότητος.

Τίς γὰρ οὐκ οἶδεν ὅτι πᾶν τὸ στεῤῥὸν διά τινος πάντως ἀντιτυπίας πεπύκνωται; Τὸ δὲ πυκνὸν καὶ ἀντίτυπον, οὐ καθαρεύει τῆς κατὰ τὸ βάρος ποιότητος· τὸ δὲ βαρὺ κατὰ τὴν φύσιν, ἀνωφερὲς εἶναι οὐ δύναται. Ἀλλὰ μὴν πάσης ὑπέρ κειται τῆς αἰσθητῆς κτίσεως τὸ στερέωμα, οὐκ ἄρα 81 παχύ τι καὶ σωματῶδες περὶ αὐτὸ νοεῖν ἡ ἀκολουθία τοῦ λόγου δίδωσιν, ἀλλὰ καθὼς εἴρηται, τῇ πρὸς τὸ νοητόν τε καὶ ἀσώματον παραθέσει, πᾶν ὅσον τοῦ αἰσθητοῦ γένους ἐστὶ, στεῤῥὸν λέγεται, κἂν τῇ φυσικῇ λεπτότητι διαφεύγει τὴν κατανόησιν. Οὐκοῦν ἀκο λούθως ὅσον τῇ περιόδῳ τοῦ πυρὸς διελήφθη· διελήφθη δὲ τὸ πέρας τῆς ὑλικῆς οὐσίας· τῷ ἅπαξ ἰδίῳ τινὶ ὅρῳ περιγραφὲν, στερέωμα μὲν διὰ τὴν ὑλικὴν φύσιν τῇ συγκρίσει τῶν ὑποκειμένων προσηγορεύθη. Οὐρανὸς δὲ ἔσχε τὸ ὄνομα, ὥσπερ καὶ τῷ φωτὶ ὄνομα τὴν ἡμέραν ἔθετο, καὶ τῷ σκότει τὴν νύκτα. Ἡ δὲ τῶν ὑδάτων διάκρισις ἡ κεχωρισμένη τῇ μεσιτείᾳ τοῦ στερεώματος, οὔτε τῆς ὑπολήψεως ἀλλοτριοῦται ταύ της, καὶ πρὸς τὴν Γραφὴν ἀκολούθως ἔχει. Γέγραπται γὰρ ἐν τῇ ἀκολουθίᾳ τῶν εἰρημένων μετὰ τὸ περὶ τῆς γῆς εἰπεῖν· ὅτι «Σκότος ἦν ἐπάνω τῆς ἀβύσσου, καὶ πνεῦμα Θεοῦ ἐπεφέρετο ἐπάνω τοῦ ὕδατος.» Στοχαζόμεθα τοίνυν ὅτι τὸ πνεῦμα τοῦ Θεοῦ τοσοῦ τον ἀπέχει τοῦ σκότους εἶναι, ὅσον καὶ παντὸς κα κοῦ ἀλλοτρίως ἔχει. Καὶ μυρίας ἔστι περὶ τούτου τῆς ἁγίας Γραφῆς παραθέσθαι φωνὰς, ὅτι καὶ φῶς ἐστιν ἀληθινὸν ὁ Θεὸς, καὶ οἰκεῖ ἀπρόσιτον φῶς. Τὸ δὲ πνεῦμα τοῦ Θεοῦ ταὐτὸν τῇ φύσει ἐστὶν αὐτῷ τῷ Θεῷ· εἰ δὲ μία φύσις τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ τοῦ πνεύματος, φῶς δὲ ὁ Θεὸς, φῶς ἂν εἴη πάντως καὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ τὸ πνεῦ μα. Τὸ δὲ φῶς ἐν φωτὶ πάντως ποιεῖ ἐκεῖνα, οἷς ἐπι φέρεται. Τὸ δὲ ὕδωρ ᾧ τὸ πνεῦμα τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐπεφέρετο, ἄλλο τι παρὰ τὴν κατωφερῆ ταύτην τῶν ῥευστῶν ὑδάτων φύσιν ἐστὶν, ὃ τῷ στερεώματι πρὸς τὸ βαρύ τε καὶ κατωφερὲς ὕδωρ διατειχίζεται. Εἰ δὲ ὕδωρ κἀκεῖνο παρὰ τῆς Γραφῆς ὀνομάζεται, ᾧ διὰ τῆς ὑψηλοτέρας θεωρίας τὸ τῶν νοητῶν δυνάμεων πλή ρωμα σημαίνεσθαι στοχαζόμεθα, ξενιζέσθω διὰ τῆς ὁμωνυμίας μηδείς. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ ὁ Θεὸς πῦρ κατ αναλίσκον ἐστὶν, ἀλλὰ καθαρεύει τῆς ὑλικῆς σημα σίας τοῦ πυρὸς ὁ λόγος. Ὥσπερ οὖν τὸν Θεὸν πῦρ μαθὼν εἶναι, ἄλλο τι αὐτὸν παρὰ τὸ πῦρ τοῦτο ἐνόη σας· οὕτω καὶ ὕδωρ θείῳ πνεύματι ἐπιφερόμενον διδαχθεὶς, μὴ τὴν κατωφερῆ φύσιν νοήσῃς τὴν εἰς γῆν καταῤῥέουσαν. Τὸ γὰρ πνεῦμα τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῖς χθαμαλοῖς τε καὶ ἀστάτοις οὐκ ἐπιφέρεται. Οὐκοῦν ὡς ἂν φανερώτερον ἡμῖν ἐκκαλυφθείη τὸ νόημα, διὰ συντομίας τὸν νοῦν τῶν εἰρημένων ἀναληψώμεθα· ὅτι τὸ στερέωμα ὃ ἐπεκλήθη οὐρανὸς, μεθόριον τῆς αἰσθητῆς ἐστι κτίσεως, τὸ δὲ ἀπ' ἐκείνου, νοητή τις διαδέχεται κτίσις, ἐν ᾗ οὐκ εἶδος, οὐ μέγεθος, οὐχ ἡ ἐπὶ τόπου θέσις, οὐ τὸ ἐκ διαστημάτων μέτρον, οὐ χρῶμα, οὐ σχῆμα, οὐ πηλικότης, οὐκ ἄλλο τι τῶν ὑπὸ τὸν οὐρανὸν θεωρουμένων οὐδέν. Καί με μηδεὶς ὑπονοείτω διὰ τῆς τροπολογίας σύγχυσιν ἐπάγειν τῇ θεωρίᾳ τῆς λέξεως, ὡς ταῖς ὑπονοίαις τῶν πρὸ ἡμῶν τὰ τοιαῦτα τεθεωρηκότων συμφέρεσθαι, καὶ λέγειν· τὰς μὲν ἀποστατικὰς δυνάμεις, ἄβυσσον λέ γεσθαι· τὸν δὲ κοσμοκράτορα τοῦ σκότους, τὸ ἐπάνω τῆς ἀβύσσου νοεῖσθαι σκότος. Μήποτε οὕτω παρα νομήσαιμι, ὡς ποίημα Θεοῦ τὴν κακίαν νοῆσαι· σαφῶς εἰπόντος