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Shall we reject the creator and the craftsman? For just as it is absurd to say of the cosmos, so skillfully constructed, that it became such without a wise craftsman, so also it is equally irrational for matter—so great, of such a kind, and so yielding to the craftsman’s divine word—to have subsisted ungenerated. 7.20.9 However, to those who make the comparison that no creator works without matter, it must be said that they draw a dissimilar comparison. For providence supplies the matter to every craftsman, it coming from a prior art, whether human or divine. These things, then, will suffice for the present against those who, because it is said, “but the earth was invisible and unformed,” think that corporeal nature is ungenerated.” So much from him also. And the Hebrew Philo, in his *On Providence*, also discusses these things about matter: 7.21.1 “Concerning the quantity of substance, if indeed it has truly come into being, this must be said: For the generation of the cosmos, God aimed at a most self-sufficient matter, so that it would neither be deficient nor excessive. For it would be absurd for craftsmen of individual things, whenever they create something, and especially of the most costly things, to have weighed out a self-sufficient amount of materials, but for him who discovered numbers and measures and the equalities therein not to have taken thought 7.21.2 for the sufficient amount. I will say, then, with boldness that the cosmos needed neither less nor more substance for its construction, since it would not have become perfect nor complete in all its parts; but, having been well-crafted, it was completed from a perfect substance. For it is the mark of one all-wise in his art, before beginning any 7.21.3 construction, to see the sufficient matter. A man, therefore, even if he excels others in knowledge, being unable to escape completely the error congenital to mortals, might perhaps be deceived concerning the quantity of matter when he practices his art, at one time adding to it as being too little, at another taking away from it as being excessive. But he, being a certain fount of knowledge, was not about to provide anything deficient or excessive, using as he did 7.21.4 measures exquisitely crafted with a precision praiseworthy in all respects. But he who wishes to babble otherwise would not fail also to set himself against the works of all craftsmen, on the grounds that a better construction could be obtained by some addition or subtraction of materials? But it is the work of sophistry to quibble with words, but of wisdom to investigate each of the things in nature.” 7.21.5 And so let these be the words of Philo. But for Maximus, a not insignificant man of Christ’s school, a fitting treatise has also been written, *On Matter*. From this I think I will usefully quote some moderate selections for a precise examination of the problem:

7.22.1 19. THAT MATTER IS NOT UNGENERATED NOR THE CAUSE OF EVILS

“That it is impossible for two ungenerated things to exist at the same time I think not even you are ignorant, even if you seem especially to have anticipated and added this to the argument, namely that one must by all necessity say one of two things, either that God is separated from matter, or again 7.22.2 that he is inseparable from it. If, then, one should wish to say that he is united with it, he will say the ungenerated is one; for each of these will be a part of the other; and being parts of one another, they will not be two ungenerated things, just as we do not divide different parts into many generated things, but rather, as the argument demands, we say that the one generated thing, man, being of many parts, has been made by God. Thus, it is necessary, if God is not separated 7.22.3 from matter, to say that the ungenerated is one. But if someone should say that they are separated, it is necessary for there to be something between them both, which also demonstrates their separation. For it is impossible for something to be considered at a distance from something else, if there is not another thing by which the distance of each is made. which does not stop at this alone, but also at 7.22.4 very many other things. For the argument we stated concerning the two ungenerated things,

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ἀθετήσομεν τὸν δημιουργὸν καὶ τὸν τεχνίτην; ὥσπερ γὰρ ἄτοπον ἐπὶ τοῦ κόσμου εἰπεῖν οὕτως τεχνικῶς κατεσκευασμένου τὸ χωρὶς τεχνίτου σοφοῦ αὐτὸν τοιοῦτον γεγονέναι, οὕτως καὶ τὸ τὴν ὕλην, τοσαύτην καὶ τοιαύτην καὶ τοιούτως εἰκτικὴν τῷ τεχνίτῃ λόγῳ θεοῦ, ὑφεστηκέναι ἀγενήτως ἐπ' 7.20.9 ἴσης ἐστὶν ἄλογον. πρὸς μέντοι γε τοὺς παραβάλλοντας ὅτι οὐδεὶς δημιουργὸς χωρὶς ὕλης ποιεῖ, λεκτέον ὅτι ἀνομοίως παραβάλλουσι. πρόνοια γὰρ παντὶ τεχνίτῃ ὑποβάλλει τὴν ὕλην ἀπὸ προτέρας τέχνης, ἢ ἀνθρωπίνης ἢ θείας, ἐρχομένην. ταῦτα μὲν οὖν ἐπὶ τοῦ παρόντος ἀρκέσει πρὸς τοὺς διὰ τὸ λέγεσθαι «ἡ δὲ γῆ ἦν ἀόρατος καὶ ἀκατασκεύαστος» οἰομένους ἀγένητον εἶναι τὴν σωματικὴν φύσιν.» Τοσαῦτα καὶ οὗτος. καὶ ὁ Ἑβραῖος δὲ Φίλων ἐν τῷ Περὶ τῆς προνοίας ταῦτα περὶ τῆς ὕλης διέξεισι· 7.21.1 «Περὶ δὲ τοῦ ποσοῦ τῆς οὐσίας, εἰ δὴ γέγονεν ὄντως, ἐκεῖνο λεκτέον· ἐστοχάσατο πρὸς τὴν τοῦ κόσμου γένεσιν ὁ θεὸς αὐταρκεστάτης ὕλης, ὡς μήτ' ἐνδέοι μήδ' ὑπερβάλλοι. καὶ γὰρ ἄτοπον ἦν τοὺς μὲν κατὰ μέρος τεχνίτας, ὁπότε τι δημιουργοῖεν καὶ μάλιστα τῶν πολυτελῶν, τὸ ἐν ὕλαις αὔταρκες σταθμήσασθαι, τὸν δ' ἀριθμοὺς καὶ μέτρα καὶ τὰς ἐν τούτοις ἰσότητας ἀνευρηκότα μὴ 7.21.2 φροντίσαι τοῦ ἱκανοῦ. λέξω δὴ μετὰ παρρησίας ὅτι οὔτ' ἐλάττονος οὔτε πλείονος οὐσίας ἔδει τῷ κόσμῳ πρὸς κατασκευήν, ἐπεὶ οὐκ ἂν ἐγεγένητο τέλειος οὐδ' ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς μέρεσιν ὁλόκληρος, εὖ δὲ δεδημιουργημένος ἐκ τελείας οὐσίας ἀπετελέσθη. πανσόφου γὰρ τὴν τέχνην ἴδιον, πρὶν ἄρξασθαί τινος κατα7.21.3 σκευῆς, τὴν ἱκανὴν ἰδεῖν ὕλην. ἄνθρωπος μὲν οὖν κἂν εἰ τῶν ἄλλων τὴν ἐπιστήμην διαφέροι, μὴ δυνάμενος κατὰ τὸ παντελὲς ἐκφυγεῖν τὴν συγγενῆ τῶν θνητῶν πλάνην, ἀπατῷτο ἂν ἴσως περὶ τὴν ποσότητα τῆς ὕλης, ὁπότε τεχνιτεύοι, τοτὲ μὲν ὡς ἐλάττονι προστιθέναι, τοτὲ δὲ ὡς περιττῆς ἀφαιρεῖν· ὁ δὲ πηγή τις ὢν ἐπιστημῶν ἐνδέον ἢ περιττεῦον οὐδὲν ἔμελλεν ὑποβάλλεσθαι, μέτροις 7.21.4 ἅτε χρώμενος εἰς ἀκρίβειαν ὑπερφυῶς πεπονημένοις ἅπασιν ἐπαινετοῖς. ὁ δὲ βουλόμενος ἄλλως ὑθλεῖν οὐκ ἂν φθάνοι καὶ τὰ πάντων ἔργα τῶν τεχνιτῶν ἀντία τιθέμενος, ὡς ἀμείνονος τῆς κατασκευῆς ἐπιλαχόντα προσθέσει τινὸς ἢ μειώσει τῶν ἐν ὕλαις; ἀλλὰ γὰρ σοφιστείας μὲν ἔργον εὑρεσιλογεῖν, σοφίας δὲ ἕκαστα διερευνᾶν τῶν ἐν τῇ φύσει.» 7.21.5 Καὶ τὰ μὲν τοῦ Φίλωνος τοῦτον ἐχέτω τὸν τρόπον. Μαξίμῳ δὲ τῆς Χριστοῦ διατριβῆς οὐκ ἀσήμῳ ἀνδρὶ καὶ λόγος οἰκεῖος συγγέγραπται ὁ Περὶ τῆς ὕλης. ἐξ οὗ μοι δοκῶ μέτρια χρησίμως παραθήσεσθαι εἰς ἀκριβῆ τοῦ προβλήματος ἔλεγχον·

7.22.1 ιθʹ. ΟΤΙ ΜΗ ΑΓΕΝΗΤΟΣ Η ΥΛΗ ΜΗ∆Ε ΚΑΚΩΝ ΑΙΤΙΑ

«Ὅτι μὲν ἀδύνατον ὑπάρχειν ἀγένητα δύο ἅμα οὐδὲ σὲ ἀγνοεῖν νομίζω, εἰ καὶ τὰ μάλιστα δοκεῖς προλαβὼν τοῦτο προστεθεικέναι τῷ λόγῳ, τὸ πάντως ἐξ ἀνάγκης τὸ ἕτερον δεῖν λέγειν, ἢ ὅτι κεχώρισται τῆς ὕλης ὁ θεὸς ἢ αὖ πάλιν 7.22.2 ὅτι ἀμέριστος αὐτῆς τυγχάνει. εἰ μὲν οὖν ἡνῶσθαί τις αὐτὸν εἰπεῖν ἐθέλοι, ἓν τὸ ἀγένητον λέξει· ἑκάτερον γὰρ τούτων μέρος ἔσται τοῦ πλησίον· ἀλλήλων δὲ μέρη τυγχάνοντα οὐκ ἔσται ἀγένητα δύο, ὡς οὐδὲ διάφορα μέρη κατακερματίζομεν εἰς πολλὰ γενητά, ἀλλ' ἢ ὡς ὁ λόγος ἀπαιτεῖ, ἕν τι γενητὸν τὸν ἄνθρωπον πολυμερὲς πρὸς τοῦ θεοῦ γεγονέναι φαμέν. οὕτως ἀνάγκη, εἰ μὴ κεχώρισται 7.22.3 τῆς ὕλης ὁ θεός, ἓν τὸ ἀγένητον εἶναι λέγειν. εἰ δὲ κεχωρίσθαι φήσει τις, ἀνάγκη εἶναί τι τὸ ἀνὰ μέσον ἀμφοτέρων, ὅπερ καὶ τὸν χωρισμὸν αὐτῶν δείκνυσιν. ἀδύνατον γὰρ ἐν διαστάσει ἐξετάζεσθαί τι ἀπό τινος, οὐκ ὄντος ἑτέρου καθ' ὃ ἡ διάστασις ἑκατέρου γίνεται. ὅπερ οὐ μέχρι τούτου ἵσταται καὶ μόνου, ἀλλὰ καὶ 7.22.4 πλείστων ὅσων. ὃν γὰρ ἐπὶ τῶν δύο ἀγενήτων εἴπομεν λόγον,