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carried over the Hebrew expression; as Sabaoth, and Adonai, and Eloi, and anything of the sort, showing this reverence not only for the divine names, but also for many others; how great a fear should we have for the names of the Lord? And yet when would they have tolerated it [them], to invent any of the names from themselves, they who did not even dare to interpret some of them, lest they should destroy the vividness of the expression through the unsuitability of the meanings? But if God begot, he says, how is it not necessary to call the one begotten an offspring? Because it is a dreadful thing for us to address him with our own names, to whom God gave the name that is above every name. You are my Son, he says, today I have begotten you. And yet it would have been more consistent with their argument, because he was begotten, to be called offspring, and not Son; but it is not said. Therefore, one who has the judgment seat of Christ before his eyes, and knows how great is the danger of taking away or adding to the things delivered by the Spirit, ought not be ambitious to innovate from himself, but should rest in the things proclaimed beforehand by the saints. That, therefore, which neither common custom nor the usage of the Scriptures has accepted, how is it not of the utmost madness to dare this? For what father or mother, being well and gently disposed toward his own, leaving off calling him son or child, would call him an offspring? For, Child, he says, go into the vineyard; and elsewhere, God will provide himself a lamb for the slaughter, child; and again Isaac, Who are you, child? and, My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline; and, A wise son makes a glad father; and whatever is of this sort. But nowhere is anyone shown to have called his own an offspring. And the reason is clear: because son and child are names of animate beings, but offspring is not always so. For an offspring can be said even of that which is expelled in abortions before it is formed; but such a thing is not worthy of the name of child. And the fruits of the earth are offspring, but these are no longer children. For I will not drink, he says, of this fruit of the vine. And we find this name rarely used for animate beings. And where 29.588 it is said, it can be seen predicated of an animal and taken as an image of wickedness. For, Serpents, he says, brood of vipers. For this reason, I think, common custom has dishonored this appellation, and the divine Scripture appears to refuse it, and especially in the case of the only-begotten Son of God. But also the name of child, as having much that is human, it did not accept. And the Apostle shows this, calling the Lord Son everywhere, and celebrating him with various other names, firstborn, and image, and radiance; but avoiding the name of offspring. But if this man says so, let him show it, or any other of the champions of the argument, and we will grant them to erase everything. But he could not; unless perhaps in imitation of the impious Marcion, he might remove some things from the divine oracles, and insert others. Thus, then, the word offspring has been proved foreign both to common custom and to the usage of the Scriptures. Let us now see if it is possible for this name to be applied to the very substance of the Son. For he himself says: {EUN.} It is impossible to think of the substance as one thing, and the thing signified, besides it, as something else, but that it is the very hypostasis which the name signifies, the appellation corresponding truly to the substance. {BAS.} These doctrines of yours are truly worthy of the judges you have fabricated. For as in a marketplace of dreams, or an assembly of drunkards, where no one is either hearing or understanding what is being said, you legislate with great impunity, thinking it sufficient proof for everything that you yourself have said it. For who does not know, that of names, some, uttered absolutely and by themselves, are significant of their underlying realities, while others in relation to

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τὴν τὴν Ἑβραϊκὴν φωνὴν μετεκόμισαν· ὡς τὸ Σαβαὼθ, καὶ τὸ Ἀδωναῒ, καὶ τὸ Ἐλωῒ, καὶ εἴ τιτοιοῦτον, οὐκ ἐπὶ τῶν θείων ὀνομάτων μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐπὶ ἄλλων πλειόνων τὴν εὐλάβειαν ταύτην ἐπιδεικνύ μενοι· πόσον τινὰ προσῆκεν ἡμᾶς περὶ τῶν τοῦ Κυ ρίου ὀνομάτων τὸν φόβον ἔχειν; Καίτοι πότε ἂν ἐκεῖνο [ἐκεῖνα] παρ' ἑαυτῶν τινα πλάσαι τῶν ὀνο μάτων ἠνέσχοντο, οἵγε μηδὲ τῆς ἑρμηνείας τινῶν καταθαῤῥήσαντες, ὡς ἂν μὴ τὸ ἐναργὲς τῆς ἐμφάσεως τῷ ἀκαταλλήλῳ τῶν σημαινομένων ἐκλύσειαν; Ἀλλ' εἰ ἐγέννησε, φησὶν, ὁ Θεὸς, πῶς οὐ χρὴ τὸν γεννηθέντα προσαγορεύειν γέννημα; Ὅτι φοβε ρὸν ἡμῖν ἡμετέροις αὐτὸν ὀνόμασι προσφωνεῖν, ᾧ ἐχαρίσατο ὁ Θεὸς ὄνομα τὸ ὑπὲρ πᾶν ὄνομα. Υἱός μου εἶ σὺ, φησὶν, ἐγὼ σήμερον γεγέννηκά σε. Καί τοι ἀκολουθότερον ἦν κατὰ τὸν τούτων λόγον, διὰ τὸ γεγεννῆσθαι, γέννημα προσαγορευθῆναι, καὶ οὐχ Υἱόν· ἀλλ' οὐκ εἴρηται. ∆ιόπερ χρὴ τὸν πρὸ ὀφθαλμῶν ἔχοντα τὸ Χριστοῦ δικαστήριον, καὶ εἰδότα ὅσος ὁ κίνδυνος ἀφελεῖν τι ἢ προσθεῖναι τοῖς παραδεδομέ νοις ὑπὸ τοῦ Πνεύματος, μὴ παρ' ἑαυτοῦ φιλοτιμεῖ σθαι καινοτομεῖν, ἀλλὰ τοῖς προκατηγγελμένοις παρὰ τῶν ἁγίων ἐφησυχάζειν. Ὃ τοίνυν οὔτε ἡ κοινὴ συνήθεια, οὔτε ἡ τῶν Γραφῶν χρῆσις παραδέ δεκται, τούτου κατατολμᾷν πῶς οὐχὶ τῆς ἐσχάτης ἀπονοίας ἐστί; Τίς γὰρ πατὴρ ἢ μήτηρ εὐμενῶς καὶ ἡμέρως πρὸς τὸν ἐξ αὐτοῦ διακείμενος, ἀφεὶς τὸ προσαγορεύειν αὐτὸν υἱὸν ἢ τέκνον, γέννημα ἂν προσείποι; Τέκνον γὰρ, φησὶν, ὕπαγε εἰς τὸν ἀμπελῶνα· καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ· Ὁ Θεὸς ὄψεται ἑαυτῷ πρόβατον εἰς σφαγὴν, τέκνον· καὶ πάλιν ὁ Ἰσαάκ· Τίς εἶ, τέκνον; καὶ, Υἱὲ, μὴ ὀλιγώρει παιδείας Κυρίου· καὶ, Υἱὸς σοφὸς εὐφραίνει πατέρα· καὶ εἴ τι τοιοῦτον. Οὐδαμοῦ δὲ γέννημα τὸν ἐξ αὐτοῦ ἕκα στος προσειπὼν ἐπιδείκνυται. Καὶ ἡ αἰτία σαφής· ὅτι ὁ μὲν υἱὸς καὶ τὸ τέκνον ἐμψύχων εἰσὶν ὀνόματα, τὸ γέννημα δὲ οὐ πάντως. Γέννημα μὲν γὰρ δύνα ται λέγεσθαι καὶ τὸ πρὸ τοῦ ἐξεικονισθῆναι ἐν ταῖς ἀμβλώσεσιν ἐκβαλλόμενον· οὐ μὴν καὶ τῆς τοῦ τέκνου προσηγορίας ἄξιον τὸ τοιοῦτον. Καὶ γεννήματα μὲν οἱ καρποὶ τῆς γῆς, τέκνα δὲ ταῦτα οὐκέτι. Οὐ γὰρ μὴ πίω, φησὶν, ἐκ τοῦ γεννήματος τῆς ἀμπέλου ταύτης. Σπανίως δὲ ἐπὶ ἐμψύχων τὴν προσηγορίαν ταύτην παραληφθεῖσαν εὕρομεν. Καὶ ὅπου γε 29.588 εἴρηται, ἐπὶ ζώου κατηγορουμένου καὶ εἰς εἰκόνα πονηρίας παραληφθέντος ἔστιν ἰδεῖν. Ὄφεις γὰρ, φησὶ, γεννήματα ἐχιδνῶν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο, οἶμαι, ἥ τε κοινὴ συνήθεια τὴν προσηγορίαν ταύτην ἠτίμασε, καὶ ἡ θεία Γραφὴ παραιτουμένη φαίνεται, καὶ μά λιστα ἐπὶ τοῦ μονογενοῦς Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ. Ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν τέκνου προσηγορίαν, ὡς πολὺ τὸ ἀνθρώπινον ἔχουσαν, οὐ προσήκατο. ∆ηλοῖ δὲ ὁ Ἀπόστολος, Υἱὸν μὲν ἄνω καὶ κάτω τὸν Κύριον ἀποκαλῶν, καὶ ἄλλαις ποικίλαις προσηγορίαις αὐτὸν ἀνυμνῶν, πρωτότοκον, καὶ εἰκόνα, καὶ ἀπαύγασμα· τὴν δὲ τοῦ γεννήματος προσηγορίαν ἀποφυγών. Εἰ δέ φησιν οὗτος, δειξά τω, ἢ ἄλλος τις τῶν προϊσταμένων τοῦ λόγου, καὶ πάντα αὐτοῖς δώσομεν ἀπαλεῖψαι. Ἀλλ' οὐκ ἂν ἔχοι· εἰ μὴ ἄρα μιμούμενος τὸν ἀσεβῆ Μαρκίωνα, τὰ μὲν ἐξαίροι τῶν θείων λογίων, τὰ δὲ παρεγγρά φοι. Οὕτω μὲν οὖν ἀλλοτρία τῆς τε κοινῆς συνηθείας καὶ τῆς τῶν Γραφῶν χρήσεως ἡ φωνὴ τοῦ γεννή ματος ἀπελήλεγκται. Ἴδωμεν δὲ λοιπὸν εἰ δυνατὸν τὸ ὄνομα τοῦτο κατ' αὐτῆς τετάχθαι τῆς οὐσίας τοῦ Υἱοῦ. Φησὶ γὰρ αὐτός· {ΕΥΝ.} Ἀδύνατον εἶναι ἕτερον μέν τι τὴν οὐσίαν νοεῖν, ἕτερον δέ τι παρ' αὐτὴν τὸ σημαινόμενον, ἀλλ' αὐτὴν εἶναι τὴν ὑπόστασιν, ἣν σημαίνει τοὔνο μα, ἐπαληθευούσης τῇ οὐσίᾳ τῆς προσηγορίας. {ΒΑΣ.} Ἄξιά γε ὡς ἀληθῶς τῶν δικαστῶν, οὓς ἀνέπλασας, ταυτί σου τὰ δόγματα. Ὡς γὰρ ἐν ὀνεί ρων ἀγορᾷ, ἢ ἐκκλησίᾳ μεθυόντων, καὶ οὐ δενὸς οὔτε ἀκούοντος οὔτε συνιέντος τῶν λεγομένων, ἐπὶ πολλῆς τῆς ἀδείας νομοθετεῖς, ἀντὶ πάσης ἀπο δείξεως ἐξαρκεῖν ἡγούμενος τὸ αὐτὸς εἰρηκέναι. Ἐπεὶ τίς οὐκ οἶδεν, ὅτι τῶν ὀνομάτων τὰ μὲν ἀπολελυμέ νως καὶ καθ' ἑαυτὰ προφερόμενα τῶν ὑποκειμένων αὐτοῖς πραγμάτων ἐστὶ σημαντικὰ, τὰ δὲ πρὸς