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it is fitting to measure. For it is easy for him to produce many times more than these. And this the divine David has shown. "For all that the Lord willed," he says, "he has done." He did not say, "As much as he was able," but, "As much as he willed." For his power is equal in measure to his will. Wherefore he creates not only from things that are, but also from things that are not. Rightly, therefore, has the argument concerning matter been driven out from the doctrines of the truth. But let those who disparage creation, and attempt to slander the all-harmonious work of the Creator, and for this reason introduce the argument concerning matter, hear the divine oracles crying out: "God saw all that he had made, and behold, it was very good." For nothing that has come to be from God is evil by nature. But we will unfold the argument concerning this later. For now, let us briefly discuss the mythology of the Aeons. 66. -Concerning Aeons. Valentinus, and Secundinus, and Marcus, and their successors say that there are very many Aeons older than the Creator, not having learned this from the divine oracles, but having fabricated the myths themselves. And the fools did not understand that an aeon is not some subsisting essence, but indicates a certain interval of time, sometimes infinite, when it is said of God, sometimes commensurate with creation, and at other times with human life. For concerning us 83.468 the divine David says: "Our age is in the light of your face." But concerning creation the Lord says: "Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." But concerning the God of all, again the blessed David: "From everlasting to everlasting, you are," instead of, "You have neither beginning nor end." And since the aeon signifies a certain interval, lest anyone should foolishly suppose that the God of all was not before the aeons, in another psalm the same Prophet said: "God will hear, and he who exists before the ages will humble them." Therefore the God of all, the Creator of all things, did not come into being after thirty-five aeons from the passion of Achamoth, after the Ogdoad, and the Decad, and the Dodecad, and Achamoth, and Horos, and the Son, and the Spirit; but he is before all the aeons, not these shameful ones mythologized in syzygies, but those signifying any interval whatsoever. For this very reason the blessed Paul has said that the Father and the Son are the maker of the ages: "For he has spoken to us in his Son," he says, "whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the ages." And "he made" does not indicate the essence of the aeons, but that no one is older than the God of all. And in another place he says: "Now to the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen." not teaching that there are certain subsistent aeons, but proclaiming the kingdom of God to be eternal. And again the same Apostle: "But we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing; but we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages." If, then, the mystery of the economy is, according to the divine definition, older than the ages, it is of the utmost impiety to call the God of all younger than the ages. And the prophet Isaiah cries out: "The eternal God, who has prepared the ends of the earth." And again: "From of old we have not heard, nor have our eyes seen a God besides you." Therefore God, the creator of all, is before the ages. 7. -Concerning angels.

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προσήκει μετρεῖν. Πολλαπλάσια γὰρ τούτων παραγαγεῖν αὐτῷ ῥᾴδιον. Καὶ τοῦτο ∆αβὶδ ὁ θεσπέσιος παρεδήλωσε. "Πάντα γὰρ, φησὶν, ὅσα ἠθέλησεν ὁ Κύριος ἐποίησεν." Οὐκ εἶπεν, Ὅσα ἴσχυσεν, ἀλλ', Ὅσα ἠθέλησεν. ἰσόμετρον γὰρ ἔχει τῇ βουλήσει τὴν δύναμιν. Ὅθεν οὐ μόνον ἐξ ὄντων, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐκ μὴ ὄντων δημιουργεῖ. Εἰ κότως τοίνυν τῶν τῆς ἀληθείας δογμάτων ὁ περὶ τῆς ὕλης ἐξελήλαται λόγος. Οἱ δὲ τὴν κτίσιν κακίζοντες, καὶ τὴν παναρμόνιον δημιουργίαν διαβάλλειν ἐπι χειροῦντες, καὶ τούτου χάριν τὸν περὶ τῆς ὕλης ἐπεισάγοντες λόγον, ἀκουσάτωσαν τῶν θείων βοών των λογίων· "Εἶδεν ὁ Θεὸς πάντα ὅσα ἐποίησε, καὶ ἰδοὺ καλὰ λίαν." Οὐδὲν γὰρ ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ γεγενη μένον φύσει κακόν. Ἀλλὰ τὸν περὶ τούτου λόγον ὕστερον ἀναπτύξομεν. Τέως δὲ περὶ τῆς τῶν Αἰώνων μυθολογίας μικρὰ διεξέλθωμεν. ςϛʹ. -Περὶ Αἰώνων. Βαλεντῖνος, καὶ Σεκουνδῖνος, καὶ Μάρκος, καὶ οἱ ἐκείνων διάδοχοι παμπόλλους Αἰῶνας πρεσβυτέρους τοῦ ∆ημιουργοῦ φασιν εἶναι, οὐκ ἐκ τῶν θείων λο γίων τοῦτο μεμαθηκότες, ἀλλ' αὐτοὶ τοὺς μύθους συμπλάσαντες. Καὶ οὐ συνεῖδον οἱ ἐμβρόντητοι, ὡς ὁ αἰὼν οὐκ οὐσία τίς ἐστιν ὑφεστῶσα, ἀλλὰ διάστημά τι χρόνου δηλωτικὸν, ποτὲ μὲν ἀπείρου, ὅταν περὶ Θεοῦ λέγηται, ποτὲ δὲ τῇ κτίσει συμμέτρου, ἄλλοτε δὲ τῇ ἀνθρωπίνῃ ζωῇ. Περὶ μὲν γὰρ ἡμῶν 83.468 φησιν ὁ θεῖος ∆αβίδ· "Ὁ αἰὼν ἡμῶν εἰς φωτισμὸν τοῦ προσώπου σου." Περὶ δὲ τῆς κτίσεως ὁ Κύριος λέγει· "Ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ μεθ' ὑμῶν εἰμι πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας, ἕως τῆς συντελείας τοῦ αἰῶνος." Περὶ δὲ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων πάλιν ὁ μακάριος ∆αβίδ· "Ἀπὸ τοῦ αἰῶνος καὶ ἕως τοῦ αἰῶνος σὺ εἶ," ἀντὶ τοῦ, Οὔτε ἀρχὴν, οὔτε πέρας ἔχεις. Καὶ ἐπειδὴ ὁ αἰὼν διάστημά τι δηλοῖ, ἵνα μή τις ὑπολάβῃ ἀνοήτως, μὴ εἶναι πρὸ τῶν αἰώνων τὸν τῶν ὅλων Θεὸν, ἐν ἑτέρῳ ψαλμῷ ὁ αὐτὸς ἔφη Προφήτης· "Εἰσακούσεται ὁ Θεὸς, καὶ ταπεινώσει αὐτοὺς ὁ ὑπάρχων πρὸ τῶν αἰώνων." Οὐκοῦν ὁ τῶν ὅλων Θεὸς, ὁ τῶν ἁπάντων ∆ημιουργὸς, οὐ μετὰ πέντε καὶ τριάκοντα αἰῶνας ἐκ τοῦ πάθους ἔφυ τῆς Ἀχαμὼθ μετὰ τὴν ὀγδοάδα, καὶ τὴν δεκάδα, καὶ τὴν δωδεκάδα, καὶ τὴν Ἀχαμὼθ, καὶ τὸν ὅρον, καὶ τὸν Υἱὸν, καὶ τὸ Πνεῦμα· ἀλλὰ πρὸ πάντων ἐστὶ τῶν αἰώνων, οὐ τῶν αἰσχρῶν τούτων κατὰ συζυγίαν μεμυθολογημένων, ἀλλὰ τῶν πᾶν ὁτιοῦν διάστημα σημαινόντων. ∆ιά τοι τοῦτο καὶ τῶν αἰώνων εἶναι ποιητὴν τὸν Πατέρα καὶ τὸν Υἱὸν ὁ μακάριος εἴρηκε Παῦλος· "Ἐλάλησε γὰρ ἡμῖν ἐν Υἱῷ, φησὶν, ὃν ἔθετο κληρονόμον πάντων, δι' οὗ καὶ τοὺς αἰῶνας ἐποίησε." Τὸ δὲ ἐποίησεν, οὐκ οὐσίαν τῶν αἰώνων δηλοῖ, ἀλλ' ὅτι οὐδεὶς τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων πρεσβύτερος. Καὶ ἐν ἑτέρῳ δὲ χωρίῳ φησί· "Τῷ δὲ βασιλεῖ τῶν αἰώνων ἀφθάρτῳ, ἀοράτῳ, μόνῳ Θεῷ, τιμὴ καὶ δόξα εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν." Οὐκ ἐνυποστάτους δή τινας εἶναι διδάσκων αἰῶνας, ἀλλ' αἰώνιον τοῦ Θεοῦ κηρύττων τὴν βασι λείαν. Καὶ πάλιν ὁ αὐτὸς Ἀπόστολος· "Σοφίαν δὲ λαλοῦμεν ἐν τοῖς τελείοις, σοφίαν δὲ οὐ τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου, οὐδὲ τῶν ἀρχόντων τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου, τῶν καταργουμένων· ἀλλὰ λαλοῦμεν σοφίαν Θεοῦ ἐν μυστηρίῳ τὴν ἀποκεκρυμμένην, ἣν προώρισεν ὁ Θεὸς πρὸ τῶν αἰώνων." Εἰ δὲ τὸ τῆς οἰκονομίας μυ στήριον τῶν αἰώνων, κατὰ τὸν θεῖον ὅρον, πρεσβύ τερον, ἀσεβείας ἐσχάτης, τὸν τῶν ὅλων Θεὸν νεώτε ρον τῶν αἰώνων ἀποκαλεῖν. Καὶ ὁ προφήτης δὲ Ἡσαΐας βοᾷ· "Ὁ Θεὸς ὁ αἰώνιος, ὁ κατασκευάσας τὰ ἄκρα τῆς γῆς." Καὶ πάλιν· "Ἀπὸ τοῦ αἰῶνος οὐκ ἠκούσαμεν, οὐδὲ οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ ἡμῶν εἶδον Θεὸν πλὴν σοῦ." Πρὸ τῶν αἰώνων τοίνυν ὁ Θεὸς, ὁ τῶν ὅλων δημιουργός. Ζʹ. -Περὶ ἀγγέλων.