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to mention by name the detailed and subordinate authorities, taxiarchs and company commanders, centurions and chiliarchs, and whatever other partial dominions are named, having gone through them all in his account, should make no mention of the authority that rules over all and administers all power, not having been silent about the supreme authority through contempt or forgetfulness, but because, whether commanded or having proposed to go through only the obedient and subordinate rank, he would have committed an outrage by including the ruling authority also in the mention of the subordinate ones, so it seems to me also with Paul, who was initiated into the ineffable things in paradise, when he was caught up in it and became a spectator of the super-celestial wonders and saw and heard things unutterable to men, this man, proposing to teach the things created in the Lord, when he went through these in his account, having run through the angelic and super-cosmic power with some comprehensive terms, he stopped his account with those things mentioned, dragging nothing from above creation into the catalogue of created things, so that from this it is clearly testified by Scripture that the Holy Spirit is above creation. But if someone should overturn the argument on the grounds that the Cherubim 1.1.309 were not mentioned by Paul, but that these too, along with the Spirit, were passed over in silence in the enumeration of things that have come into being, and should argue because the mention of these was omitted, either that these too are above creation or that one ought not to think the Spirit is, let him consider the meaning of the things enumerated, and what seems to have been omitted, because the 1.1.310 mention was not by name, he will see in the things that were said; for he who mentioned thrones described the Cherubim by another name, Hellenizing the obscurity of the Hebrew with a more familiar appellation. for having heard that God sits upon the Cherubim, he named these powers 'thrones' of him who sits upon them; and likewise also the Seraphim in Isaiah, by whom the mystery of the Trinity was clearly proclaimed, when, struck with wonder at the beauty in each of the persons in the Trinity, they cried out in admiration the "1holy"2 cry, are included in the catalogue of those mentioned, having been named by the appellation of "1powers"2 both by the great 1.1.311 Paul and before him by the prophet David. For the one says: Bless the Lord, all his powers, who do his will; but Isaiah, instead of saying "1bless"2, wrote down the words of the blessing: Holy, holy, holy, Lord Sabaoth, the whole earth is full of his glory. But that these powers are ministers <that> do the will of God he hinted at through the cleansing of sins that happened by one of the Seraphim according to the will of him who sent him; for this is the ministry of these spirits, to be sent out for the salvation of those who are being saved. 1.1.312 It seems to me that the divine apostle, having understood these things and having learned that the same thing is signified by the two prophets with different appellations, having chosen the most familiar of the terms, called the Seraphim "1powers"2, so that no occasion might be left for the slanderers to say that the Holy Spirit is also included, as one of these, in the catalogue of 1.1.313 creation. For some things are said, as has been shown, and others are passed over in silence, as can be learned from the things listed by Paul, who enumerated all creation in the plural; but mentioned none of the things spoken of in the singular. For this is proper to the Holy Trinity, to be proclaimed singularly, one Father and one Son and one Holy Spirit. But all the things mentioned have been listed in plurality, principalities and authorities and dominions and powers, so as to offer no suspicion that the Holy Spirit is also one of these. 1.1.314 But Paul is silent on the ineffable things, and he does well; for he knows to hear the unspeakable words in paradise, but to refrain from proclaiming the unutterable things, when he makes his discourse about the lower things. But the enemies of the truth dare even against the unutterable things, the majesty of the Spirit to the lowly

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λεπτομερεῖς καὶ ὑποβεβηκυίας ἀρχὰς εἰπεῖν ἐπ' ὀνόματος, ταξιάρχας καὶ λοχαγοὺς ἑκατοντάρ χους τε καὶ χιλιάρχους καὶ εἴ τινες ἄλλαι τῶν κατὰ μέρος δυναστειῶν ὠνομασμέναι εἰσὶ πάσας διεξελθὼν τῷ λόγῳ τῆς πάντων κρατούσης καὶ πᾶσαν τὴν δύναμιν διεπούσης ἀρχῆς μηδεμίαν μνήμην ποιήσαιτο, οὐ δι' ὑπεροψίαν ἢ λήθην τὴν ὑπερέχουσαν ἀρχὴν σιωπήσας, ἀλλ' ὅτι μόνον τὴν ὑπήκοόν τε καὶ ὑποχείριον τάξιν διεξελθεῖν ἢ προσταχθεὶς ἢ προ θέμενος ὑβρίσειεν ἂν ἐν τῇ τῶν ὑποκειμένων μνήμῃ συμ περιλαβὼν καὶ τὴν ἄρχουσαν, οὕτω μοι δοκεῖ καὶ ὁ ἐν παραδείσῳ μυηθεὶς τὰ ἀπόρρητα Παῦλος, ὅτε ἁρπαγεὶς ἐν αὐτῷ ἐγένετο καὶ τῶν ὑπερουρανίων θαυμάτων θεατὴς καταστὰς τὰ ἀνθρώποις ἄρρητα καὶ εἶδε καὶ ἤκουσεν, οὗτος τὰ ἐν τῷ κυρίῳ κτισθέντα διδάξαι προθέμενος, ἐπειδὴ διεξῆλθε ταῦτα τῷ λόγῳ, περιληπτικαῖς τισι φωναῖς δια δραμὼν τὴν ἀγγελικὴν καὶ ὑπερκόσμιον δύναμιν, ἔστησεν ἐν τοῖς μνημονευθεῖσι τὸν λόγον, τῶν ὑπὲρ τὴν κτίσιν οὐδὲν εἰς τὸν κατάλογον τῶν κτιστῶν καθελκύσας, ὡς ἐκ τούτου σαφῶς ἄνω τῆς κτίσεως εἶναι τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον ὑπὸ τῆς γραφῆς μαρτυρεῖσθαι. Εἰ δέ τις ἀνατρέποι τὸν λόγον ὡς οὐδὲ τῶν Χερουβὶμ 1.1.309 ὑπὸ τοῦ Παύλου μνημονευθέντων, ἀλλὰ καὶ τούτων μετὰ τοῦ πνεύματος ἐν τῇ τῶν γεγονότων ἀπαριθμήσει σιωπη θέντων, καὶ κατασκευάζοι διὰ τοῦ παραλελεῖφθαι τὴν περὶ τούτων μνήμην ἢ καὶ ταῦτα ὑπὲρ τὴν κτίσιν ἢ μηδὲ τὸ πνεῦμα δεῖν οἴεσθαι, λογισάσθω τὴν τῶν ἀπηριθμημένων διάνοιαν, καὶ τὸ παρεῖσθαι δοκοῦν, ὅτι μὴ ἐξ ὀνόματος ἡ 1.1.310 μνήμη γέγονεν, ἐν τοῖς εἰρημένοις κατόψεται· ὁ γὰρ θρό νων μνημονεύσας ἄλλῳ ὀνόματι τὰ Χερουβὶμ διηγήσατο, τῇ γνωριμωτέρᾳ προσηγορίᾳ τὸ ἀσαφὲς τῆς Ἑβραΐδος ἐξ ελληνίσας. καθῆσθαι γὰρ τὸν θεὸν ἐπὶ τῶν Χερουβὶμ ἀκούσας τὰς δυνάμεις ταύτας τοῦ ἐπ' αὐτῶν καθεζομένου θρόνους ὠνόμασεν· ὡσαύτως δὲ καὶ τὰ παρὰ τῷ Ἠσαΐᾳ Σεραφίμ, παρ' ὧν ἐναργῶς τὸ τῆς τριάδος ἐκηρύχθη μυ στήριον, ὅτε τὴν "1ἅγιος"2 φωνὴν τὸ ἐν ἑκάστῳ τῶν ἐν τῇ τριάδι κάλλος καταπλησσόμενα θαυμαστικῶς ἐξεβόησαν, περιείληπται τῷ καταλόγῳ τῶν μνημονευθέντων, τῇ προση γορίᾳ τῶν "1δυνάμεων"2 ὀνομασθέντα παρά τε τοῦ μεγάλου 1.1.311 Παύλου καὶ πρὸ τούτου παρὰ τοῦ προφήτου ∆αβίδ. ὁ μὲν γάρ φησιν· Εὐλογεῖτε τὸν κύριον πᾶσαι αἱ δυνάμεις αὐτοῦ, ποιοῦντες τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ, ὁ δὲ Ἠσαΐας ἀντὶ τοῦ "1εὐλο γεῖτε"2 εἰπεῖν τὰ ῥήματα τῆς εὐλογίας ἀνέγραψεν· Ἅγιος ἅγιος ἅγιος κύριος Σαβαώθ, πλήρης πᾶσα ἡ γῆ τῆς δόξης αὐτοῦ. τὸ δὲ λειτουργοὺς εἶναι τὰς δυνάμεις ταύτας <τὰς> ποιούσας τὸ θέλημα τοῦ θεοῦ διὰ τῆς γενομένης ἁμαρτιῶν καθάρσεως κατὰ τὸ βούλημα τοῦ ἀποστείλαντος παρ' ἑνὸς τῶν Σεραφὶμ ὑπῃνίξατο· αὕτη γάρ ἐστιν ἡ λειτουργία τῶν πνευμάτων τούτων, ἐπὶ σωτηρίᾳ τῶν σῳζομένων ἐκπέμπεσθαι. 1.1.312 ἅ μοι δοκεῖ κατανοήσας ὁ θεῖος ἀπόστολος καὶ μαθὼν ὅτι τὸ αὐτὸ πρᾶγμα παρὰ τῶν δύο προφητῶν ἐν διαφόροις ταῖς προσηγορίαις σημαίνεται, τὴν γνωριμωτάτην τῶν φωνῶν ἐκλεξάμενος "1δυνάμεις"2 τὰ Σεραφὶμ ὠνόμασεν, ὡς μηδεμίαν ἀφορμὴν τοῖς συκοφάνταις καταλελεῖφθαι τοῦ κατὰ τὸ ἴσον τούτων ἑνὸς καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον ἐν τῷ καταλόγῳ τῆς 1.1.313 κτίσεως περιειλῆφθαι λέγειν. τὰ μὲν γὰρ εἴρηται, καθὼς ἀποδέδεικται, τὰ δὲ σεσιώπηται, καθὼς ἔστιν ἐκ τῶν κατει λεγμένων ὑπὸ τοῦ Παύλου μαθεῖν τοῦ πᾶσαν μὲν πλη θυντικῶς ἀπαριθμησαμένου τὴν κτίσιν; τῶν δὲ μοναδικῶς λεγομένων οὐδενὸς μνημονεύσαντος. τοῦτο γὰρ ἴδιον τῆς ἁγίας τριάδος ἐστί, τὸ μοναχῶς ἐξαγγέλλεσθαι, εἷς πατὴρ καὶ εἷς υἱὸς καὶ ἓν πνεῦμα ἅγιον. τὰ δὲ εἰρημένα πάντα ἐν πλήθει κατείλεκται, ἀρχαὶ καὶ ἐξουσίαι καὶ κυριότητες καὶ δυνάμεις, ὡς μηδεμίαν παρέχειν ὑπόνοιαν τοῦ ἓν τού των εἶναι καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον. 1.1.314 Ἀλλὰ Παῦλος μὲν σιωπᾷ τὰ ἀπόρρητα, καὶ καλῶς ποιεῖ· οἶδε γὰρ ἀκούειν μὲν ἐν παραδείσῳ τὰ ἄρρητα ῥή ματα, φείδεσθαι δὲ τῆς τῶν ἀνεκφωνήτων ἐξαγορεύσεως, ὅταν περὶ τῶν κατωτέρων ποιῆται τὸν λόγον. οἱ δὲ τῆς ἀληθείας πολέμιοι καὶ τῶν ἀρρήτων κατατολμῶσι, τὸ μεγα λεῖον τοῦ πνεύματος τῷ ταπεινῷ