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building his upper chambers in the waters." And a little after: "who lays the foundation of the earth on its security." And again: "To him that made the heavens by understanding, to him that established the earth upon the waters." And before this, Moses the great teaches us more securely, that he himself made the heaven and the earth along with the other elements; that he himself created the nature of light, and adorned, the heaven with luminaries, and the earth with groves, and meadows, and cornfields, and he himself brought forth the kinds of animals, and to the winged creatures he has given the air as a dwelling, and to the swimming creatures he assigned the watery substance, and to cattle and wild beasts, the earth. And how over all things he fashioned the nature of men. And all the prophets also teach us in harmony; and Isaiah cries out: "He who made the heaven, and fixed it, 83.461 who established the earth, and the things in it, who gives breath to the people on it, and spirit to them that walk on it." And again: "Who has established the heaven as a vault, and stretched it out as a tent." And God himself says through him: "I alone stretched out the heaven." And the blessed Jeremiah spoke thus: "This is the God who pointed out the earth, he filled it with cattle and four-footed beasts. He who sends forth the light, and it goes, he called it, and it obeyed him with trembling." But indeed I have no need of prophetic voices. For before the law and the prophets, nature taught these things to men. And that Melchizedek of old, blessing Abraham, spoke thus: "Blessed be Abram by God Most High, who created the heaven and the earth." And the patriarch himself said the same things to those from Sodom: "I will stretch out my hand to God Most High, who created the heaven and the earth." And again, Abraham, sending his servant for the betrothal of the bride: "‘Place,’ he said, ‘your hand under my thigh, and I will make you swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and of earth.’" And the noble Job, who excelled in virtue before the giving of the law, knows the true God as Creator. "‘For he alone,’ he says, ‘stretched out the heaven, who walks upon the sea as upon firm ground.’" And the prize-giver himself also teaches the victorious champion many things about creation. But, lest we give an occasion to those who do not accept the old Scripture to contradict what has been said, let us cross over to the New, and show that it speaks in harmony; for thus it will be clear that these streams and those have one source. Let us hear, then, the divine John, who said that all things were made through the Word, and that of the things seen or conceived in creation, nothing was made without him. "‘For without him,’ he says, ‘not even one thing was made.’" Let us also hear the divine Paul crying out, that "In him all things were created, whether visible or invisible." And again, that "through him the Father made the ages." And speaking publicly on the Areopagus, he said thus: "‘The God who made the world and all things in it, he, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all life and breath and all things. And he made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth.’" And in Lystra, to those who wished to offer sacrifice, he said these things: "‘And 83.464 we are men of like nature with you, preaching the gospel to you to turn from these vain things to the living God, who made the heaven and the earth, and the sea, and all things that are in them.’" And what follows is of the same mind. But indeed it is superfluous to lengthen the argument about this, and to produce many testimonies from the divine Scripture, and from those among the Greeks who excelled in philosophy, who said that God is the Creator." For indeed Socrates son of Sophroniscus, and Plato son of Ariston, and their successors, and certainly others also

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γάζων ἐν ὕδασι τὰ ὑπερῷα αὑτοῦ." Καὶ μετ' ὀλίγα· "Ὁ θεμελιῶν τὴν γῆν ἐπὶ τὴν ἀσφάλειαν αὐτῆς." Καὶ αὖθις· "Τῷ ποιήσαντι τοὺς οὐρανοὺς ἐν συν έσει, τῷ στερεώσαντι τὴν γῆν ἐπὶ τῶν ὑδάτων." Καὶ πρὸ τούτου δὲ Μωϋσῆς ὁ μέγας ἀσφαλέστερον ἡμᾶς διδάσκει, ὡς αὐτὸς ἐποίησε τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν σὺν τοῖς ἄλλοις στοιχείοις· ὡς αὐτὸς τοῦ φωτὸς τὴν φύσιν ἐδημιούργησε, καὶ ἐκόσμησε, τοῖς μὲν φω στῆρσι τὸν οὐρανὸν, ἄλσεσι δὲ, καὶ λειμῶσι, καὶ ληΐοις τὴν γῆν, καὶ τῶν ζώων αὐτὸς τὰ γένη προ ήγαγε, καὶ τοῖς μὲν πτηνοῖς ἐνδιαίτημα δέδωκε τὸν ἀέρα, τοῖς δὲ νηκτοῖς τὴν ὑγρὰν οὐσίαν ἀπένειμε, κτήνεσι δὲ καὶ θηρίοις τὴν γῆν. Καὶ ὅπως ἐπὶ πᾶσι τὴν τῶν ἀνθρώπων διέπλασε φύσιν. Συμφώνως δὲ καὶ οἱ προφῆται ἡμᾶς διδάσκουσιν ἅπαντες· καὶ βοᾷ μὲν Ἡσαΐας· "Ὁ ποιήσας τὸν οὐρανὸν, καὶ πήξας αὐ 83.461 τὸν, ὁ στερεώσας τὴν γῆν, καὶ τὰ ἐν αὐτῇ, ὁ διδοὺς πνοὴν τῷ λαῷ τῷ ἐπ' αὐτῆς, καὶ πνεῦμα τοῖς πατοῦσιν αὐτήν." Καὶ πάλιν· "Ὁ στήσας τὸν οὐ ρανὸν ὡσεὶ καμάραν, καὶ διατείνας αὐτὸν ὡς σκηνήν." Καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ Θεὸς δι' αὐτοῦ φησιν· "Ἐξέτεινα τὸν οὐρανὸν μόνος." Ὁ δὲ μακάριος Ἱερεμίας οὕτως ἔφη· "Οὗτος ὁ Θεὸς, ὁ καταδείξας τὴν γῆν, ἐπλήρωσεν αὐτὴν κτηνῶν καὶ τετραπόδων. Ὁ ἀποστέλλων τὸ φῶς καὶ πορεύεται, ἐκάλεσεν αὐτὸ καὶ ὑπήκουσεν αὐτῷ τρόμῳ." Ἀλλὰ γὰρ οὐ δεῖ μοι προ φητικῶν φωνῶν. Πρὸ γὰρ τοῦ νόμου καὶ τῶν προφη τῶν, ἡ φύσις ταῦτα τοὺς ἀνθρώπους ἐπαίδευσε. Καὶ Μελχισεδὲκ ἐκεῖνος ὁ παλαιὸς, οὕτως ἔφησε τὸν Ἀβραὰμ εὐλογῶν· "Εὐλογητὸς Ἀβραὰμ τῷ Θεῷ τῷ ὑψίστῳ, ὃς ἔκτισε τὸν οὐρανὸν, καὶ τὴν γῆν." Καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ πατριάρχης ταὐτὰ τοῖς ἀπὸ Σο δόμων προσείρηκεν· "Ἐκτενῶ τὴν χεῖρά μου πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν τὸν ὕψιστον, ὃς ἔκτισε τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν." Καὶ πάλιν, τὸν οἰκέτην ἐκπέμπων πρὸς τὴν τῆς νύμφης μνηστείαν ὁ Ἀβραάμ· "Θὲς, ἔφη, τὴν χεῖρά σου ὑπὸ τὸν μηρόν μου, καὶ ἐξορκιῶ σε Κύριον τὸν Θεὸν τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καὶ τῆς γῆς." Καὶ ὁ γενναῖος δὲ Ἰὼβ πρὸ τῆς τοῦ νόμου θέσεως ἐν ἀρετῇ διαπρέψας, τὸν ἀληθινὸν Θεὸν οἶδε ∆ημιουργόν. "Ὁ τανύσας γὰρ, φησὶ, τὸν οὐρανὸν μόνος, ὁ περι πατῶν ἐπὶ θαλάσσης ὡς ἐπὶ ἐδάφους." Καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ ἀθλοθέτης πολλὰ περὶ τῆς κτίσεως διδάσκει τὸν νικηφόρον ἀγωνιστήν. Ἀλλ' ἵνα μὴ δῶμεν ἀφορμὴν τοῖς τὴν παλαιὰν οὐ δεχομένοις Γραφὴν, ἀντειπεῖν τοῖς εἰρημένοις, εἰς τὴν Καινὴν διαβῶμεν, καὶ δείξω μεν ταύτην σύμφωνα φθεγγομένην· οὕτω γὰρ δὴ φανήσεται μίαν ἔχοντα πηγὴν ταῦτα κἀκεῖνα τὰ νά ματα. Ἀκούσωμεν τοίνυν Ἰωάννου τοῦ θεσπεσίου πάντα διὰ τοῦ Λόγου γεγενῆσθαι φήσαντος, καὶ τῶν ἐν τῇ κτίσει θεωρουμένων ἢ νοουμένων μηδὲν δίχα τούτου γεγενῆσθαι. "Χωρὶς γὰρ αὐτοῦ, φησὶν, ἐγένετο οὐδὲ ἕν." Ἀκούσωμεν δὲ καὶ τοῦ θείου Παύ λου βοῶντος, ὅτι "Ἐν αὐτῷ ἐκτίσθη τὰ πάντα, εἴτε ὁρατὰ, εἴτε ἀόρατα." Καὶ πάλιν· ὅτι "∆ι' αὐτοῦ τοὺς αἰῶνας ἐποίησεν ὁ Πατήρ." Καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ Ἀρείου δὲ πάγου δημηγορῶν, οὕτως ἔφη· "Ὁ Θεὸς ὁ ποιή σας τὸν κόσμον καὶ πάντα τὰ ἐν αὐτῷ, οὗτος οὐρα νοῦ καὶ γῆς ὑπάρχων Κύριος, οὐκ ἐν χειρο ποιήτοις ναοῖς κατοικεῖ, οὐδὲ ὑπὸ χειρῶν ἀνθρωπί νων θεραπεύεται ὡς προσδεόμενός τινος, αὐτὸς διδοὺς πᾶσι ζωὴν καὶ πνοὴν κατὰ πάντα. Ἐποίησέ τε ἐξ ἑνὸς αἵματος πᾶν ἔθνος ἀνθρώπων κατοικεῖν ἐπὶ πᾶν πρόσωπον τῆς γῆς." Καὶ ἐν Λύστροις δὲ τοῖς θῦσαι βουληθεῖσι ταῦτα ἔφη· "Καὶ 83.464 ἡμεῖς ὁμοιοπαθεῖς ὑμῖν ἐσμεν ἄνθρωποι, εὐαγ γελιζόμενοι ὑμᾶς ἀπὸ τούτων τῶν ματαίων ἐπιστρέ φειν ἐπὶ τὸν Θεὸν ζῶντα, ὃς ἐποίησε τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν, καὶ τὴν θάλασσαν, καὶ πάντα τὰ ἐν αὐ τοῖς." Καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς δὲ τῆς αὐτῆς ἔχεται διανοίας. Ἀλλὰ γὰρ περιττὸν περὶ τούτου μηκύνειν, καὶ πολλὰς παράγειν μαρτυρίας ἐκ τῆς θείας Γραφῆς, καὶ τῶν παρ' Ἕλλησιν ἐν φιλοσοφίᾳ διαπρεψάντων τὸν Θεὸν εἶναι φησάντων ∆ημιουργόν." Καὶ γὰρ ὁ Σωφρονίσκου Σωκράτης, καὶ ὁ Ἀρίστωνος Πλάτων, καὶ οἱ τούτων διάδοχοι, καὶ μέντοι καὶ ἕτεροι