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the ultimate blessedness. For when we no longer recognize God in mirrors nor through other things, but approach Him as alone and one, then we shall know the final end. For they say that the kingdom of Christ is all knowledge of things with matter, but that of God the Father is the immaterial vision and, as one might say, the contemplation of the Godhead itself. And our Lord is Himself also the end and the ultimate blessedness according to the concept of the Word. For what does He say in the Gospel? "And I will raise him up on the last day," speaking of the resurrection as the transition from the knowledge of things with matter to the immaterial contemplation, and calling this knowledge the last day, after which there is no other. For then our mind rises up and is stirred to a blessed height, whenever it contemplates the unity and oneness of the Word. But since our mind, having become dense, was bound to the dust and is mingled with the clay and is unable to gaze upon the contemplation bare, being guided by the adornments kindred to its body, it perceives the operations of the creator and recognizes these for the time being from their effects, so that thus, having grown little by little, it might one day be strong enough to approach the Godhead itself unveiled. And I think that according to this concept was said both "My Father is greater than I," and "It is not mine to give, but for those for whom it has been prepared by the Father." For this is also Christ’s delivering the kingdom to God the Father, being the first-fruits and not the end, according to the denser teaching, as I said, which is considered in relation to us and not to the Son Himself. And that these things are so, when the disciples asked again in the Acts of the Apostles, "When will you restore the kingdom to Israel," He says, "It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has set by his own authority." That is, the knowledge of such a kingdom is not for those bound by flesh and blood. For the Father has placed this contemplation in His own authority, calling authority those who are under authority, and His own those in whom ignorance of lower things has no part. And do not understand times and seasons for me as perceptible, but as certain intervals of knowledge produced by the intelligible sun. For that prayer of our Master must be brought to completion. For it is Jesus who prayed: "Grant to them that they also may be one in us, just as I and you are one, Father." For God being one, by being in each He unifies all, and number is destroyed by the presence of the monad. And I, for my part, have thus applied this to the saying according to the second Argument. But if someone might speak better or piously correct our words, let him both speak and correct, and the Lord will repay on our behalf. For no envy lodges with us, since we have not proceeded to this examination of the words for the sake of contentiousness or vainglory, but for the benefit of the brethren, so that the earthen vessels that hold the treasure of God might not seem to be deceived by the stone-hearted and uncircumcised men who are armed with foolish wisdom. 8.8 Again, through the wise Solomon in Proverbs He is created. "For the Lord," it says, "created me." And he is called the beginning of the gospel ways leading us to the kingdom of heaven, not a creature in essence, but having become a way according to the economy. For to have become and to have been created signify the same thing. For just as he became a way and a door and a shepherd and an angel and a sheep and again a high priest and an apostle, with the names being applied according to different concepts. What would the heretic say again about the unsubmissive God and the one who became sin for our sake? For it is written: "When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who subjected all things to him." Do you not fear, O man, God being called unsubmissive because of you? For He makes your submission His own, and because you resist virtue, He calls Himself unsubmissive. So too did He once say that He Himself was the one being persecuted. "For Saul," He says, "Saul, why are you persecuting me?" when he was running to Damascus against the disciples

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ἡ ἐσχάτη μακαριότης. Ὅταν γὰρ μηκέτι Θεὸν ἐν τοῖς κατόπτροις μηδὲ διὰ τῶν ἀλλο τρίων ἐπιγινώσκωμεν, ἀλλ' αὐτῷ ὡς μόνῳ καὶ ἑνὶ προσέλ θωμεν, τότε καὶ τὸ ἔσχατον τέλος εἰσόμεθα. Χριστοῦ γὰρ βασιλείαν φασὶν εἶναι πᾶσαν τὴν ἔνυλον γνῶσιν, τοῦ δὲ Θεοῦ καὶ Πατρὸς τὴν ἄϋλον καί, ὡς ἂν εἴποι τις, αὐτῆς τῆς θεότητος θεωρίαν. Ἔστι δὲ καὶ ὁ Κύριος ἡμῶν καὶ αὐτὸς τὸ τέλος καὶ ἡ ἐσχάτη μακαριότης κατὰ τὴν τοῦ Λόγου ἐπίνοιαν. Τί γάρ φησιν ἐν τῷ Εὐαγγελίῳ; «Κἀγὼ ἀναστήσω αὐτὸν ἐν τῇ ἐσχάτῃ ἡμέρᾳ», ἀνάστασιν λέγων τὴν ἀπὸ τῆς ἐνύλου γνώσεως ἐπὶ τὴν ἄϋλον θεωρίαν μετά βασιν, ἐσχάτην δὲ ἡμέραν τὴν γνῶσιν ταύτην εἰπὼν μεθ' ἣν οὐκ ἔστιν ἑτέρα. Τηνικαῦτα γὰρ ὁ νοῦς ἡμῶν ἐξανίσ ταται καὶ πρὸς ὕψος μακάριον διεγείρεται, ὁπηνίκα ἂν θεωρήσῃ τὴν ἑνάδα καὶ μονάδα τοῦ Λόγου. Ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ παχυνθεὶς ἡμῶν ὁ νοῦς τῷ χοῒ συνεδέθη καὶ τῷ πηλῷ συμφύρεται καὶ ψιλῇ τῇ θεωρίᾳ ἐνατενίζειν ἀδυνατεῖ, διὰ τῶν συγγενῶν τοῦ σώματος αὐτοῦ κόσμων ποδηγούμενος τὰς ἐνεργείας τοῦ κτίστου κατανοεῖ καὶ ταῦτα ἐκ τῶν ἀποτελεσμάτων τέως ἐπιγινώσκει, ἵν' οὕτω κατὰ μικρὸν αὐξηθεὶς ἰσχύσῃ ποτὲ καὶ αὐτῇ γυμνῇ προσελθεῖν τῇ θεότητι. Κατὰ ταύτην δὲ οἶμαι τὴν ἐπίνοιαν εἰρῆσθαι καὶ τὸ «Ὁ Πατήρ μου μείζων μού ἐστι», καὶ τὸ «Οὐκ ἔστιν ἐμὸν δοῦναι, ἀλλ' οἷς ἡτοίμασται ὑπὸ τοῦ Πατρός». Τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι καὶ τὸ παραδοῦναι τὴν βασιλείαν τὸν Χριστὸν τῷ Θεῷ καὶ Πατρί, ἀπαρχὴν ὄντα καὶ οὐ τέλος, κατὰ τὴν παχυτέραν, ὡς ἔφην, διδασκαλίαν, ἥτις ὡς πρὸς ἡμᾶς καὶ οὐ πρὸς αὐτὸν τὸν Υἱὸν θεωρεῖται. Ὅτι δὲ ταῦθ' οὕτως ἔχει, πάλιν ἐρωτήσασι τοῖς μαθηταῖς ἐν ταῖς Πράξεσι τῶν Ἀποστόλων τὸ «Πότε ἀποκαθιστανεῖς τὴν βασιλείαν τῷ Ἰσραήλ» φησιν· Οὐχ ὑμῶν ἐστι γνῶναι χρόνους ἢ και ροὺς οὓς ὁ Πατὴρ ἔθετο ἐν τῇ ἰδίᾳ ἐξουσίᾳ». Τουτέστιν οὐ τῶν συνδεδεμένων σαρκὶ καὶ αἵματι τῆς τοιαύτης βασι λείας ἡ γνῶσις. Ταύτην γὰρ τὴν θεωρίαν ὁ Πατὴρ ἐναπέ θετο τῇ ἰδίᾳ ἐξουσίᾳ, ἐξουσίαν λέγων τοὺς ἐξουσιαζομέ νους, ἰδίους δὲ ὧν μὴ μετέχει ἄγνοια τῶν κατωτέρω πραγμάτων. Χρόνους δὲ καὶ καιροὺς μή μοι νόει αἰσθητούς, ἀλλὰ διαστήματά τινα γνώσεως ὑπὸ τοῦ νοητοῦ ἡλίου γινόμενα. ∆εῖ γὰρ τὴν προσευχὴν ἐκείνην ἐπὶ πέρας ἀχθῆναι τοῦ ∆εσπότου ἡμῶν. Ἰησοῦς γάρ ἐστιν ὁ προσ ευξάμενος· «∆ὸς αὐτοῖς ἵνα καὶ αὐτοὶ ἐν ἡμῖν ἓν ὦσι, καθὼς ἐγὼ καὶ σὺ ἕν ἐσμεν, Πάτερ». Εἷς γὰρ ὢν ὁ Θεός, ἐν ἑκάστῳ γινόμενος ἑνοῖ τοὺς πάντας καὶ ἀπόλλυται ὁ ἀριθμὸς τῇ τῆς μονάδος ἐπιδημίᾳ. Κἀγὼ μὲν οὕτως ἐπέ βαλον τῷ ῥητῷ κατὰ τὴν δευτέραν Ἐπιχείρησιν. Εἰ δέ τις βέλτιον λέγοι ἢ διορθοίη εὐσεβῶς τὰ ἡμέτερα, καὶ λεγέτω καὶ διορθούσθω, καὶ ὁ Κύριος ἀνταποδώσει ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν. Οὐδεὶς γὰρ παρ' ἡμῖν αὐλίζεται φθόνος, ὅτι μηδὲ φιλονει κίας ἕνεκεν ἢ κενοδοξίας ἐπὶ τήνδε τὴν ἐξέτασιν τῶν ῥημάτων κεχωρήκαμεν, ἀλλ' ὠφελείας ἕνεκεν τῶν ἀδελφῶν, ὑπὲρ τοῦ μὴ δοκεῖν παρακρούεσθαι τὰ ὀστράκινα σκεύη τὰ τὸν θησαυρὸν ἔχοντα τοῦ Θεοῦ ὑπὸ τῶν λιθοκαρδίων καὶ ἀπεριτμήτων ἀνθρώπων τῶν ἐκ τῆς μωρᾶς ὡπλισμένων σοφίας. 8.8 Πάλιν διὰ τοῦ σοφοῦ Σολομῶντος ἐν Παροιμίαις κτίζε ται. «Κύριος γάρ, φησίν, ἔκτισέ με». Καὶ ἀρχὴ ὁδῶν εὐαγγε λικῶν ὀνομάζεται ἀγουσῶν ἡμᾶς πρὸς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν, οὐ κατ' οὐσίαν κτίσις, ἀλλὰ κατὰ τὴν οἰκονομίαν ὁδὸς γεγονώς. Τὸ γὰρ γεγονέναι καὶ τὸ ἐκτίσθαι ταὐτὸν δηλοῖ. Ὡς γὰρ ὁδὸς γέγονε καὶ θύρα καὶ ποιμὴν καὶ ἄγγε λος καὶ πρόβατον καὶ πάλιν ἀρχιερεὺς καὶ ἀπόστολος, ἄλλων κατ' ἄλλην ἐπίνοιαν τῶν ὀνομάτων κειμένων. Τί ἂν εἴποι πάλιν ὁ αἱρετικὸς περὶ τοῦ ἀνυποτάκτου Θεοῦ καὶ τοῦ δι' ἡμᾶς ἁμαρτίας γεγενημένου; Γέγραπται γάρ· «Ὅταν ὑποταγῇ αὐτῷ τὰ πάντα, τότε καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ Υἱὸς ὑποταγή σεται τῷ ὑποτάξαντι αὐτῷ τὰ πάντα». Οὐ φοβῇ, ἄνθρωπε, τὸν Θεὸν ἀνυπότακτον ὀνομαζόμενον διὰ σέ; Τὴν γὰρ σὴν ὑποταγὴν ἰδίαν ποιεῖται καὶ ἐν τῷ ἀντιτείνειν σε πρὸς τὴν ἀρετὴν ἀνυπότακτον ἑαυτὸν ὀνομάζει. Οὕτω ποτὲ καὶ ἑαυτὸν ἔφη εἶναι τὸν διωκόμενον. «Σαῦλε γάρ, φησί, Σαῦλε, τί με διώκεις;» ἡνίκα ἐπὶ ∆αμασκὸν ἔτρεχε τοὺς μαθητὰς