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For this reason, they say, the waters above the heavens also praise God; that is, the good powers, being worthy, because of the purity of their ruling principle, give fitting praise to the creator; but the waters below the heavens are the spiritual hosts of wickedness, having fallen from their natural height into the depth of evil; which, being turbulent and rebellious and tossed by the tumults of the passions, are called sea because of the changeable and unstable nature of their movements according to choice. Dismissing such arguments then as interpretations of dreams and old wives’ tales, let us understand water as water, and let us accept the division made by the firmament according to the reason given. And indeed, even if the waters above the heavens are at any time taken for the doxology of the common Lord of all, we do not for this reason posit that they have a rational nature. For neither are the heavens ensouled, because they Declare the glory of God; nor is the firmament a sentient living creature, because it Proclaims the work of His hands. And if someone should say that the heavens are the contemplative powers, and the firmament the powers that are practical and perform their duties, we accept the argument as elegant, but we shall not at all grant that it is true. For in this way also dew, and frost, and cold, and heat, since they were commanded by Daniel to praise the creator of all, would be some intelligent and invisible nature. But the meaning in these things, being understood contemplatively by those who have understanding, is complementary to the doxology of the creator. For not only does the water above the heavens, as preeminent in honors on account of the superiority it possesses from virtue, render praise to God, but, for "Praise Him," it says, "also you things from the earth, dragons and all deeps." So that also the deep, which the allegorists rejected to the worse lot, was not judged by the psalmist to be rejected, being included in the common chorus of creation, but it also, according to the principles existing in it, harmoniously completes the hymnody to the Maker. 3.10 And God saw that it was good. The things made by Him do not provide delight to the eyes of God, nor is His acceptance of good things such as ours; but that is good which is completed according to the principle of art, and which contributes to the utility of the end. He therefore, having set forth the clear purpose of the things being made, approved the things made in part as completing the end, having gone over them with His artistic principles. Since even a hand by itself, and an eye separately, and each of the members of a statue lying divided, would not appear beautiful to the average person; but when put into their proper order, that which comes from their proportion, though scarcely apparent, becomes recognizable even to the layman. The artisan, however, even before the composition, knows the beauty of each, and praises the individual parts, referring his thought to their end. As such a one, therefore, God is now also described as an artistic praiser of the works in part; and He is about to render the fitting praise also to the whole world altogether when it is completed. But now at this point let our discourse on the second day come to an end, so as to provide for the diligent hearers time for the examination of what they have heard, so that if there is anything useful in it, to retain this in memory, and through diligent study, as through a kind of digestion, to await the assimilation of what is beneficial; and to give leisure to those occupied with their livelihood to set aside their cares during the intervening time, to come to the evening feast of words with a soul clear of anxieties. But may God, who created great things, and arranged for these small things to be said, grant you understanding in everything of His truth, so that from the things that are seen you may perceive the one who is unseen, and from the greatness and beauty of created things you may form a fitting opinion about the one who created us. For His invisible attributes from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, both His eternal power

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∆ιὰ τοῦτο δὴ, φασὶ, καὶ τὰ ἐπάνω τῶν οὐρανῶν ὕδατα αἰνεῖν τὸν Θεόν· τουτέστι, τὰς ἀγαθὰς δυνάμεις ἀξίας οὔσας, διὰ καθαρότητα τοῦ ἡγεμονικοῦ, τὸν πρέποντα αἶνον ἀποδι δόναι τῷ κτίσαντι· τὰ δὲ ὑποκάτω τῶν οὐρανῶν ὕδατα τὰ πνευματικὰ εἶναι τῆς πονηρίας, ἀπὸ τοῦ κατὰ φύσιν ὕψους εἰς τὸ τῆς κακίας βάθος καταπεσόντα· ἅπερ ὡς ταραχώδη ὄντα καὶ στασιαστικὰ καὶ τοῖς θορύβοις τῶν παθῶν κυμαι νόμενα, θάλασσαν ὠνομάσθαι διὰ τὸ εὐμετάβλητον καὶ ἄστατον τῶν κατὰ προαίρεσιν κινημάτων. Τοὺς δὴ τοιούτους λόγους ὡς ὀνειράτων συγκρίσεις καὶ γραώδεις μύθους ἀποπεμψάμενοι, τὸ ὕδωρ, ὕδωρ νοήσωμεν, καὶ τὴν διάκρισιν τὴν ὑπὸ τοῦ στερεώματος γενομένην, κατὰ τὴν ἀποδο θεῖσαν αἰτίαν δεξώμεθα. Καὶ μέντοι κἂν εἰς δοξολογίαν ποτὲ τοῦ κοινοῦ τῶν ὅλων ∆εσπότου τὰ ὑπεράνω τῶν οὐρανῶν παραλαμβάνηται ὕδατα, οὐ λογικὴν αὐτὰ φύσιν παρὰ τοῦτο τιθέμεθα. Οὔτε γὰρ οἱ οὐρανοὶ ἔμψυχοι, ἐπειδὴ ∆ιηγοῦνται δόξαν Θεοῦ· οὔτε τὸ στερέωμα ζῷόν ἐστιν αἰσθητικὸν, ἐπειδὴ Ἀναγγέλλει ποίησιν τῶν χειρῶν αὐτοῦ. Κἂν λέγῃ τις οὐρανοὺς μὲν εἶναι τὰς θεωρητικὰς δυνάμεις, στερέωμα δὲ τὰς πρακτικὰς καὶ ποιητικὰς τῶν καθηκόντων, ὡς κεκομψευμένον μὲν τὸν λόγον ἀποδεχόμεθα, ἀληθῆ δὲ εἶναι οὐ πάνυ τι δώσομεν. Οὕτω γὰρ ἂν καὶ δρόσος, καὶ πάχνη, καὶ ψῦχος, καὶ καῦμα, ἐπειδὴ ὑμνεῖν παρὰ τῷ ∆ανιὴλ τὸν τῶν ὅλων δημιουργὸν ἐπετάχθη, νοερά τις ἔσται καὶ ἀόρατος φύσις. Ἀλλ' ὁ ἐν τούτοις λόγος παρὰ τῶν νοῦν ἐχόντων τεθεωρημένως ἐκλαμβανόμενος, συμπλη ρωτικός ἐστι τῆς δοξολογίας τοῦ κτίσαντος. Οὐ μόνον γὰρ τὸ ἐπάνω τῶν οὐρανῶν ὕδωρ, ὡς προηγούμενον ταῖς τιμαῖς διὰ τὴν ἐξ ἀρετῆς προσοῦσαν αὐτῷ ὑπεροχὴν τῷ Θεῷ τὸν αἶνον ἀποπληροῖ, ἀλλ', Αἰνεῖτε γὰρ αὐτὸν, φησὶ, καὶ τὰ ἐκ τῆς γῆς, δράκοντες καὶ πᾶσαι ἄβυσσοι. Ὥστε καὶ ἡ ἄβυσσος, ἣν εἰς τὴν χείρονα μοῖραν οἱ ἀλληγοροῦντες ἀπέρριψαν, οὐδὲ αὐτὴ ἀπόβλητος ἐκρίθη τῷ ψαλμῳδῷ, εἰς τὴν κοινὴν τῆς κτίσεως χοροστασίαν παραληφθεῖσα, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὴ κατὰ τοὺς ἐνυπάρχοντας αὐτῇ λόγους ἁρμονίως συμπληροῖ τὴν ὑμνῳδίαν τῷ ποιητῇ. 3.10 Καὶ εἶδεν ὁ Θεὸς ὅτι καλόν. Οὐχὶ ὀφθαλμοῖς Θεοῦ τέρψιν παρέχει τὰ παρ' αὐτοῦ γινόμενα, οὐδὲ τοιαύτη παρ' αὐτῷ ἡ ἀποδοχὴ τῶν καλῶν, οἵα καὶ παρ' ἡμῖν· ἀλλὰ καλὸν τὸ τῷ λόγῳ τῆς τέχνης ἐκτελεσθὲν, καὶ πρὸς τὴν τοῦ τέλους εὐχρηστίαν συντεῖνον. Ὁ τοίνυν ἐναργῆ τὸν σκοπὸν τῶν γινομένων προθέμενος, τὰ κατὰ μέρος γινόμενα ὡς συμπληρωτικὰ τοῦ τέλους, τοῖς τεχνικοῖς ἑαυτοῦ λόγοις ἐπελθὼν ἀπεδέξατο. Ἐπεὶ καὶ χεὶρ καθ' ἑαυτὴν, καὶ ὀφθαλμὸς ἰδίᾳ, καὶ ἕκαστον τῶν τοῦ ἀνδριάντος μελῶν διῃρημένως κείμενα, οὐκ ἂν φανείη καλὰ τῷ τυχόντι· πρὸς δὲ τὴν οἰκείαν τάξιν ἀποτεθέντα, τὸ ἐκ τῆς ἀναλογίας, ἐμφανὲς μόλις ποτὲ, καὶ τῷ ἰδιώτῃ παρέχεται γνώριμον. Ὁ μέντοι τεχνίτης καὶ πρὸ τῆς συνθέσεως οἶδε τὸ ἑκάστου καλὸν, καὶ ἐπαινεῖ τὰ καθ' ἕκαστον, πρὸς τὸ τέλος αὐτῶν ἐπαναφέρων τὴν ἔννοιαν. Τοιοῦτος οὖν δή τις καὶ νῦν ἔντεχνος ἐπαινέτης τῶν κατὰ μέρος ἔργων ὁ Θεὸς ἀναγέγραπται· μέλλει δὲ τὸν προσήκοντα ἔπαινον καὶ παντὶ ὁμοῦ τῷ κόσμῳ ἀπαρτισθέντι πληροῦν. Ἀλλὰ γὰρ ἐνταῦθα ἡμῖν οἱ περὶ τῆς δευτέρας ἡμέρας καταληξάτωσαν λόγοι, ὥστε τοῖς μὲν φιλοπόνοις ἀκροαταῖς καιρὸν παρασχεῖν τῆς ὧν ἤκουσαν ἐξετάσεως, ὥστε εἴ τι χρήσιμον ἐν αὐτοῖς, τοῦτο τῇ μνήμῃ συσχεῖν, καὶ διὰ τῆς φιλοπόνου μελέτης, οἷον διά τινος πέψεως, τὴν τῶν ὠφελίμων ἀνάδοσιν ἀναμεῖναι· τοῖς δὲ περὶ τὸν βίον ἀσχολουμένοις δοῦναι σχολὴν διὰ τοῦ μέσου χρόνου τὰς φροντίδας διαθεμένοις, καθαρᾷ μεριμνῶν τῇ ψυχῇ πρὸς τὴν ἑσπερινὴν τῶν λόγων ἑστίασιν ἀπαντῆσαι. Ὁ δὲ τὰ μεγάλα δημιουργήσας Θεὸς, καὶ τὰ μικρὰ ταῦτα λεχθῆναι οἰκονομήσας, δώῃ ὑμῖν σύνεσιν ἐν παντὶ τῆς ἑαυτοῦ ἀληθείας, ἵν' ἐκ τῶν ὁρωμένων τὸν ἀόρατον ἐννοῆτε, καὶ ἐκ μεγέθους καὶ καλλονῆς τῶν κτισμάτων τὴν πρέπουσαν δόξαν περὶ τοῦ κτίσαντος ἡμᾶς ἀναλαμβάνητε. Τὰ γὰρ ἀόρατα αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ κτίσεως κόσμου τοῖς ποιήμασι νοούμενα καθορᾶται, ἥ τε ἀΐδιος αὐτοῦ δύναμις