Chapter XXXI.—At the Last Day Great Changes Take Place Amongst the Æons as Well as Among Men. How Achamoth and the Demiurge are Affected Then. Irony on the Subject.

It remains that we say something about the end of the world,283    De consummatione. and the dispensing of reward. As soon as Achamoth has completed the full harvest of her seed, and has then proceeded to gather it into her garner, or, after it has been taken to the mill and ground to flour, has hidden it in the kneading-trough with yeast until the whole be leavened, then shall the end speedily come.284    Urgebit. Then, to begin with, Achamoth herself removes from the middle region,285    See above, ch. xxiii. p. 514. from the second stage to the highest, since she is restored to the Pleroma: she is immediately received by that paragon of perfection286    Compacticius ille. Soter, as her spouse of course, and they two afterwards consummate287    Fient. new nuptials. This must be the spouse of the Scripture,288    Query, the Holy Scriptures, or the writings of the Valentinians? the Pleroma of espousals (for you might suppose that the Julian laws289    Very severe against adultery, and even against celibacy. were interposing, since there are these migrations from place to place). In like manner, the Demiurge, too, will then change the scene of his abode from the celestial Hebdomad290    In ch. xx. this “scenam de Hebdomade cælesti” is called “cælorum septemplicem scenam” ="the sevenfold stage of heaven.” to the higher regions, to his mother’s now vacant saloon291    Cœnaculum. See above, ch. vii. p. 506.—by this time knowing her, without however seeing her. (A happy coincidence!) For if he had caught a glance of her, he would have preferred never to have known her.

CAPUT XXXI.

Superest de consummatione, et dispensatione mercedis. Ubi totam messem Achamoth seminis sui presserit, dein colligere in horreum coeperit, vel cum ad molas delatum, et defarinatum, in conspersionis alvearia absconderit, donec totum confermentetur , tunc consummatio urgebit. Igitur in primis ipsa Achamoth, de regione medietatis, de tabulato secundo in summum transfertur, restituta Pleromati: et statim excipit compactitius ille Soter, sponsus scilicet: ambo conjugium novum. 0586B Et hic erit in scripturis sponsus et sponsa, et sponsale Pleroma. Credas enim, ubi de loco in locum transmigratur, leges quoque Julias intervenire, sicut et coenam . Et Demiurgus tunc de hebdomade sub coelesti in superiora mutabit, 0587A in vacuum jam coenaculum matris, sciens jam nec videns illam. Nam si ita erat, semper ignorare maluisset .