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having associated with them, he learned from them what he taught about the One who is. But the most divine Moses, not following human reasonings like these men, wrote his theology, but having clearly heard the very voice of the One who is. For the Maker of all things, beginning his lawgiving, enjoined the worship of one God. "For I am," He said, "the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt." 2.52 And reminding them of the recent benefit, He exhorted them to remain in His service and not to divide their worship, but to assign it to the One who is alone. "For you shall have," He said, "no other gods besides me." Then He teaches clearly that none of the visible things resembles Him, and He absolutely forbids the making of any image in imitation of any of the visible things and considering this 2.53 to be a representation and an image of the invisible God. "For you shall not make," He said, "for yourself an idol, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters under the earth; you shall not make them for yourselves, nor shall you worship them; for I am the Lord your God." You have heard a voice, he says, but you have seen no form; therefore do not make any type, whose archetype you do not 2.54 know. And elsewhere, refuting the falsely-named gods and banishing the error of the Egyptians, He said to them: "Hear, O Israel, the Lord your God is one Lord." 2.55 This is the teaching that the writings of the great Moses contain; and this theology he joined with the histories and the laws and indeed with the prophecies; and having written five books, he forbids the honor of the many so-called gods, who are considered and named gods, but are not, and commands that worship be offered only to the Creator of all. These things also Jesus, the successor of his leadership and command, and indeed the whole chorus of the prophets, continued to counsel and 2.56 to legislate. But perhaps you might say that you yourselves have not kept this law inviolate; for you profess a triad, not a monad. But the Jews, being nurtured in the words of Moses and the prophets, honor the one, but they accuse your 2.57 triad. But I, my dear sirs, have supposed you to be worthy of forgiveness, since you do not know the divine scripture; but I lament the extreme ignorance of the Jews, because "borne," according to the prophet, "from the womb" and taught the divine things from childhood to old age, they are ignorant of the truth of 2.58 theology. For since they had spent a very long time in Egypt and had learned the polytheistic religion of the Egyptians, the all-wise Lord did not teach them the doctrines concerning the Trinity too clearly, lest they should take it as a pretext for polytheism, being inclined to the error of the Egyptians; He did not, however, completely hide the doctrines concerning the Trinity from those who would come later, sowing the seeds of the more perfect 2.59 theology. For this reason He legislates monadically, but reveals the Trinity enigmatically. For "Hear, O Israel, the Lord your God is one Lord" both teaches the monad and indicates the triad; for having said "God" once and having subjoined "Lord" twice, He indicated the number of the Trinity, and by adding "is one," He both offered the teaching suitable for the Jews and signified the identity of the divine 2.60 substance. For the substance and power and indeed the will of the holy Trinity is one; for this reason also the choirs of the invisible powers, when offering their hymn to God, say "holy" three times, but "Lord" once, by the one indicating the number of the properties, and by the other signifying the commonality of the 2.61 lordship. But in these things the doctrines of the divine Trinity have been revealed through riddles, but in others the divinely inspired men teach these things more clearly. For the most divine Moses, writing the account of the world's creation, then explaining the formation of man, said that the Creator of the universe had spoken: "Let us make man 2.62 in our image and after our likeness." Then he added, "God made man, in the image of God He made him
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ξυγγεγονώς, παρ' ἐκείνων μεμάθηκεν, ἃ περὶ τοῦ ὄντος ἐδίδαξε· Μωϋσῆς δὲ ὁ θειό τατος, οὐ λογισμοῖς ἀνθρωπίνοις ἑπόμενος καθάπερ οὗτοι, τὴν θεολογίαν ξυνέγραψεν, ἀλλ' αὐτῆς ἐναργῶς τῆς τοῦ ὄντος ἐπα κούσας φωνῆς· τῆς γάρ τοι νομοθεσίας ἀρξάμενος τῶν ὅλων ὁ ποιητὴς τὸν ἕνα σέβειν Θεὸν παρεγγύησεν· "Ἐγὼ γάρ εἰμι" ἔφη "Κύριος ὁ Θεός σου, ὁ ἐξαγαγών σε ἐκ γῆς Αἰγύπτου." 2.52 Καὶ τῆς ἔναγχος γεγενημένης ἀναμνήσας εὐεργεσίας, προσμεῖναι τῇ δουλείᾳ παρεκελεύσατο καὶ μὴ μερίσαι τὸ σέβας, ἀλλὰ τῷ ὄντι μόνῳ προσνεῖμαι. "Οὐκ ἔσονται γάρ σοι" ἔφη "θεοὶ ἕτεροι πλὴν ἐμοῦ". Εἶτα διδάσκει σαφῶς, ὡς οὐδὲν αὐτῷ τῶν ὁρωμένων προσέοικε, καὶ παντάπασιν ἀπαγορεύει μηδεμίαν εἰκόνα πρὸς μίμησίν τινος τῶν ὁρωμένων κατασκευάσαι καὶ νομίσαι τοῦτο 2.53 δείκηλον εἶναι καὶ ἴνδαλμα τοῦ ἀοράτου Θεοῦ. "Οὐ ποιήσεις" γὰρ ἔφη "σαυτῷ εἴδωλον οὐδὲ παντὸς ὁμοίωμα, ὅσα ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ ἄνω, καὶ ὅσα ἐν τῇ γῇ κάτω, καὶ ὅσα ἐν τοῖς ὕδασιν ὑποκάτω τῆς γῆς· οὐ ποιήσετε ἑαυτοῖς οὐδὲ μὴ προσκυνήσετε αὐτοῖς· ὅτι ἐγώ εἰμι Κύριος ὁ Θεός σου." Φωνῆς, φησίν, ἀκήκοας, εἶδος δὲ οὐχ ἑώρακας· μηδένα οὖν τύπον κατασκευάσῃς, οὗ τὸ ἀρχέτυπον οὐκ 2.54 ἐπίστασαι. Καὶ ἑτέρωθι δέ, τοὺς ψευδωνύμους ἐξελέγχων θεοὺς καὶ τὸν Αἰγυπτίων ἐξορίζων πλάνον, ἔφη πρὸς αὐτούς· "Ἄκουε, Ἰσραήλ, Κύριος ὁ Θεός σου κύριος εἷς ἐστιν." 2.55 Ταύτην ἔχει τὴν διδασκαλίαν τὰ Μωϋσοῦ τοῦ μεγάλου ξυγ γράμματα· ταύτην δὲ τὴν θεολογίαν καὶ ταῖς ἱστορίαις καὶ ταῖς νομοθεσίαις καὶ μὲν δὴ καὶ ταῖς προφητείαις ξυνέζευξε· καὶ πέντε βίβλους ξυγγράψας, τὴν μὲν τῶν πολλῶν καὶ νομιζομένων καὶ καλουμένων, οὐκ ὄντων δὲ θεῶν ἀπαγορεύει τιμήν, μόνῳ δὲ τὸ σέβας τῷ τῶν ἁπάντων κελεύει προσφέρειν δημιουργῷ. Ταῦτα καὶ Ἰησοῦς, ὁ τῆς ἐκείνου δημαγωγίας καὶ στρατηγίας διάδοχος, καὶ μέντοι καὶ ἅπας τῶν προφητῶν ὁ χορὸς καὶ παραινῶν καὶ 2.56 νομοθετῶν διετέλεσεν. Ἀλλὰ γὰρ ἴσως εἴποιτε ἄν, ὡς οὐδὲ ὑμεῖς τόνδε τὸν νόμον ἀνέπαφον τετηρήκατε· τριάδα γάρ, οὐ μονάδα, πρεσβεύετε. Ἰουδαῖοι δέ, τοῖς Μωϋσοῦ καὶ τῶν προ φητῶν ἐντρεφόμενοι λόγοις, τὸν μὲν ἕνα τιμῶσι, τῆς δὲ ὑμετέρας 2.57 τριάδος κατηγοροῦσιν. Ἐγὼ δέ, ὦ φίλοι ἄνδρες, ὑμᾶς μὲν ξυγ γνώμης εἶναι ἀξίους ὑπείληφα, τὴν θείαν οὐκ ἐπισταμένους γρα φήν· Ἰουδαίων δὲ τὴν ἐσχάτην ἀμαθίαν ὀδύρομαι, ὅτι δὴ "αἰρό μενοι", κατὰ τὸν προφήτην, "ἐκ κοιλίας" καὶ παιδευόμενοι ἐκ παιδίου μέχρι γήρως τὰ θεῖα, τὴν τῆς θεολογίας ἀγνοοῦσιν ἀλή 2.58 θειαν. Ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ γὰρ αὐτοὺς πλεῖστον διατρίψαντας χρόνον καὶ τὴν πολύθεον τῶν Αἰγυπτίων μεμαθηκότας θρησκείαν, ὁ πάν σοφος Κύριος οὐκ ἐναργῶς ἄγαν τὰ περὶ τῆς Τριάδος ἐξεπαί δευσε δόγματα, ἵνα μὴ πρόφασιν πολυθεΐας λάβωσιν, εἰς τὸν τῶν Αἰγυπτίων ἐπιρρέποντες πλάνον· οὐ μὴν παντάπασι τὰ περὶ τῆς Τριάδος ἀπέκρυψε δόγματα τοῖς ὕστερον ἐσομένοις, τῆς ἐντε 2.59 λεστέρας θεολογίας κατασπείρων τὰς ἀφορμάς. ∆ιά τοι τοῦτο μοναδικῶς μὲν νομοθετεῖ, αἰνιγματωδῶς δὲ τὴν Τριάδα μηνύει. Τὸ γὰρ "ἄκουε, Ἰσραήλ, Κύριος ὁ Θεός σου κύριος εἷς ἐστιν" καὶ τὴν μονάδα διδάσκει καὶ τὴν τριάδα δηλοῖ· ἅπαξ γὰρ εἰπὼν τὸ "Θεός" καὶ δὶς τὸ "Κύριος" ὑπειπών, τῆς Τριάδος τὸν ἀριθμὸν παρεδήλωσεν, ἐπαγαγὼν δὲ τὸ "εἷς ἐστιν", καὶ τὴν πρόσφορον Ἰουδαίοις διδασκαλίαν προσήνεγκε καὶ τὸ ταὐτὸν τῆς 2.60 θείας οὐσίας ἐμήνυσεν. Μία γὰρ τῆς ἁγίας Τριάδος καὶ οὐσία καὶ δύναμις καὶ μέντοι καὶ βούλησις· ταύτῃ τοι καὶ τῶν ἀοράτων δυνάμεων οἱ χοροὶ τῷ Θεῷ τὸν ὕμνον προσφέροντες, τρὶς μὲν τὸ "ἅγιος", ἅπαξ δὲ τὸ "Κύριος" λέγουσι, τῷ μὲν τῶν ἰδιοτήτων δηλοῦντες τὸν ἀριθμόν, τῷ δὲ τὸ κοινὸν τῆς δεσποτείας μηνύον 2.61 τες. Ἀλλ' ἐν τούτοις μὲν δι' αἰνιγμάτων τὰ τῆς θείας Τριάδος δεδήλωται, ἐν ἑτέροις δέ γε σαφέστερον ταῦτα διδάσκουσιν οἱ θεσπέσιοι ἄνδρες. Μωϋσῆς μὲν γὰρ ὁ θειότατος, τὴν κοσμογένειαν ξυγγράφων, εἶτα τὴν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου διάπλασιν ἐξηγούμενος, ἔφη τὸν τοῦ παντὸς εἰρηκέναι δημιουργόν· "Ποιήσωμεν ἄνθρωπον 2.62 κατ' εἰκόνα ἡμετέραν καὶ καθ' ὁμοίωσιν." Εἶτα ἐπήγαγεν, ὡς "ἐποίησεν ὁ Θεὸς τὸν ἄνθρωπον, κατ' εἰκόνα Θεοῦ ἐποίησεν