Chapter XI.—Concerning what is affirmed about God as though He had body.

Since we find many terms used symbolically in the Scriptures concerning God which are more applicable to that which has body, we should recognise that it is quite impossible for us men clothed about with this dense covering of flesh to understand or speak of the divine and lofty and immaterial energies of the Godhead, except by the use of images and types and symbols derived from our own life191    Dionys., De div. nom., c. 1; De Cæl. Hier., c. 15.. So then all the statements concerning God, that imply body, are symbols, but have a higher meaning: for the Deity is simple and formless. Hence by God’s eyes and eyelids and sight we are to understand His power of overseeing all things and His knowledge, that nothing can escape: for in the case of us this sense makes our knowledge more complete and more full of certainty. By God’s ears and hearing is meant His readiness to be propitiated and to receive our petitions: for it is this sense that renders us also kind to suppliants, inclining our ear to them more graciously. God’s mouth and speech are His means of indicating His will; for it is by the mouth and speech that we make clear the thoughts that are in the heart: God’s food and drink are our concurrence to His will, for we, too, satisfy the necessities of our natural appetite through the sense of taste. And God’s sense of smell is His appreciation of our thoughts of and good will towards Him, for it is through this sense that we appreciate sweet fragrance. And God’s countenance is the demonstration and manifestation of Himself through His works, for our manifestation is through the countenance. And God’s hands mean the effectual nature of His energy, for it is with our own hands that we accomplish our most useful and valuable work. And His right hand is His aid in prosperity, for it is the right hand that we also use when making anything of beautiful shape or of great value, or where much strength is required. His handling is His power of accurate discrimination and exaction, even in the minutest and most secret details, for those whom we have handled cannot conceal from us aught within themselves. His feet and walk are His advent and presence, either for the purpose of bringing succour to the needy, or vengeance against enemies, or to perform any other action, for it is by using our feet that we come to arrive at any place. His oath is the unchangeableness of His counsel, for it is by oath that we confirm our compacts with one another. His anger and fury are His hatred of and aversion to all wickedness, for we, too, hate that which is contrary to our mind and become enraged thereat192    Greg. Naz., Orat. 37.. His forgetfulness and sleep and slumbering are His delay in taking vengeance on His enemies and the postponement of the accustomed help to His own. And to put it shortly, all the statements made about God that imply body have some hidden meaning and teach us what is above us by means of something familiar to ourselves, with the exception of any statement concerning the bodily sojourn of the God-Word. For He for our safety took upon Himself the whole nature of man193    Text, πάντα τὸν ἄνθρωπον: variant, ἅπαντα., the thinking spirit, the body, and all the properties of human nature, even the natural and blameless passions.

Περὶ τῶν σωματικῶς ἐπὶ θεοῦ λεγομένων

Ἐπεὶ δὲ πλεῖστα περὶ θεοῦ σωματικώτερον ἐν τῇ θείᾳ γραφῇ συμβολικῶς εἰρημένα εὑρίσκομεν, εἰδέναι χρή, ὡς ἀνθρώπους ὄντας ἡμᾶς καὶ τὸ παχὺ τοῦτο σαρκίον περικειμένους τὰς θείας καὶ ὑψηλὰς καὶ ἀύλους τῆς θεότητος ἐνεργείας νοεῖν ἢ λέγειν ἀδύνατον, εἰ μὴ εἰκόσι καὶ τύποις καὶ συμβόλοις τοῖς καθ' ἡμᾶς χρησαίμεθα. Ὅσα τοίνυν περὶ θεοῦ σωματικώτερον εἴρηται, συμβολικῶς ἐστι λελεγμένα, ἔχει δέ τινα ὑψηλοτέραν διάνοιαν: ἁπλοῦν γὰρ τὸ θεῖον καὶ ἀσχημάτιστον. Ὀφθαλμοὺς μὲν οὖν θεοῦ καὶ βλέφαρα καὶ ὅρασιν τὴν τῶν ἁπάντων ἐποπτικὴν αὐτοῦ δύναμιν καὶ τὸ ἀλάθητον τῆς αὐτοῦ γνώσεως ἐννοήσωμεν ἀπὸ τοῦ παρ' ἡμῖν διὰ ταύτης τῆς αἰσθήσεως ἐντελεστέραν γνῶσίν τε καὶ πληροφορίαν ἐγγίνεσθαι. Ὦτα δὲ καὶ ἀκοὴν τὸ ἐξιλεωτικὸν αὐτοῦ καὶ τῆς ἡμετέρας δεκτικὸν δεήσεως: καὶ γὰρ ἡμεῖς τοῖς τὰς ἱκεσίας ποιουμένοις διὰ ταύτης τῆς αἰσθήσεως εὐμενεῖς γινόμεθα γνησιώτερον αὐτοῖς τὸ οὖς ἐπικλίνοντες. Στόμα δὲ καὶ λαλιὰν τὸ ἐνδεικτικὸν τῆς βουλήσεως αὐτοῦ ἐκ τοῦ παρ' ἡμῖν διὰ στόματος καὶ λαλιᾶς σημαίνεσθαι τὰ ἐγκάρδια νοήματα. Βρῶσιν δὲ καὶ πόσιν τὴν ἡμετέραν πρὸς τὸ αὐτοῦ θέλημα συνδρομήν: καὶ γὰρ ἡμεῖς διὰ τῆς γευστικῆς αἰσθήσεως τὴν τῆς φύσεως ἀναπληροῦμεν ὄρεξιν ἀναγκαίαν. Ὄσφρησιν δέ, τὸ ἀποδεκτικὸν τῆς πρὸς αὐτὸν ἡμῶν ἐννοίας τε καὶ εὐνοίας ἐκ τοῦ παρ' ἡμῖν διὰ ταύτης αἰσθήσεως τὴν τῆς εὐωδίας ἀποδοχὴν ἐγγίνεσθαι. Πρόσωπον δὲ τὴν δι' ἔργων αὐτοῦ ἔνδειξίν τε καὶ ἐμφάνειαν ἐκ τοῦ τὴν ἡμετέραν ἐμφάνειαν διὰ προσώπου γίνεσθαι. Χεῖρας δὲ τὸ ἀνυστικὸν τῆς ἐνεργείας αὐτοῦ: καὶ γὰρ ἡμεῖς τὰ χρειώδη καὶ μάλιστα τιμιώτερα διὰ τῶν οἰκείων κατορθοῦμεν χειρῶν. Δεξιὰν δὲ τὴν ἐπὶ τοῖς αἰσίοις αὐτοῦ βοήθειαν ἐκ τοῦ καὶ ἡμᾶς μᾶλλον ἐπὶ τῶν εὐσχημοτέρων καὶ τιμιωτέρων καὶ πλείστης ἰσχύος δεομένων τῇ δεξιᾷ κεχρῆσθαι. Ψηλάφησιν δὲ τὴν ἀκριβεστέραν αὐτοῦ καὶ τῶν λίαν λεπτῶν τε καὶ κρυπτῶν διάγνωσίν τε καὶ εἴσπραξιν ἐκ τοῦ παρ' ἡμῖν μὴ δύνασθαι τοὺς ψηλαφωμένους ἐν ἑαυτοῖς τι κρύπτειν. Πόδας δὲ καὶ βάδισιν τὴν πρὸς ἐπικουρίαν τῶν δεομένων ἢ ἐχθρῶν ἄμυναν ἢ ἄλλην τινὰ πρᾶξιν ἔλευσίν τε καὶ παρουσίαν ἐκ τοῦ παρ' ἡμῖν διὰ τῆς τῶν ποδῶν χρήσεως ἀποτελεῖσθαι τὴν ἄφιξιν. Ὅρκον δὲ τὸ ἀμετάθετον τῆς βουλῆς αὐτοῦ ἐκ τοῦ παρ' ἡμῖν δι' ὅρκου τὰς πρὸς ἀλλήλους βεβαιοῦσθαι συνθήκας. Ὀργὴν δὲ καὶ θυμὸν τὴν πρὸς τὴν κακίαν ἀπέχθειάν τε καὶ ἀποστροφήν: καὶ γὰρ ἡμεῖς τὰ ἐναντία τῆς γνώμης μισοῦντες ὀργιζόμεθα. Λήθην δὲ καὶ ὕπνον καὶ νυσταγμὸν τὴν ὑπέρθεσιν τῆς κατὰ τῶν ἐχθρῶν ἀμύνης καὶ τὴν τῆς συνήθους πρὸς τοὺς οἰκείους βοηθείας ἀναβολήν. Καὶ ἁπλῶς εἰπεῖν πάντα τὰ σωματικῶς εἰρημένα ἐπὶ θεοῦ κεκρυμμένην ἔχει τινὰ ἔννοιαν ἐκ τῶν καθ' ἡμᾶς τὰ ὑπὲρ ἡμᾶς ἐκδιδάσκουσαν, εἰ μή τι περὶ τῆς σωματικῆς τοῦ θεοῦ λόγου ἐπιδημίας εἴρηται: αὐτὸς γὰρ πάντα τὸν ἄνθρωπον διὰ τὴν ἡμετέραν σωτηρίαν ἀνεδέξατο, ψυχὴν νοερὰν καὶ σῶμα καὶ τὰ τῆς ἀνθρωπίνης φύσεως ἰδιώματα τά τε φυσικὰ καὶ ἀδιάβλητα πάθη.