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approaching God more. Again we, as rational, are said to live more than the irrational; again the irrational, as having sensation, live more than plants, as not having sensation, but only vegetative life.

§ 4. The one who is of all being. 'Being' when said of God, is above all being taken together; for this he calls supersubstantial, (14S_216> instead of 'above being in generation'; for being is substance; for from 'to be' the name of substance is derived. God, therefore, as being above even 'to be' (for 'to be' indicates being brought into being from some cause) is understood supersubstantially; wherefore he is also said to be the aeon of the aeons produced by him; for that which neither was, nor will be, but only is, this, having its being in a static state, not changing into 'will be', nor again having changed from 'was' to 'is', this is an aeon; for not only must all beings be present to the all and the whole, but also nothing of ever not being; for nothing has been added to it, that was not before. This disposition and nature, therefore, might be called and would be an aeon; for 'aeon' (αἰών) is said from 'always being' (ἀεί ὄντος). If, then, someone should so define an aeon as infinite life, because it is all already and consumes none of itself by having passed, nor again remains, it would not be all, but it would be close to defining what an aeon is. For that is infinite, which does not fail; and this is properly so, because it consumes nothing of itself: thus, then, is God both aeon, and maker of aeons. An aeon, therefore, is not the substrate, but that which shines forth from the substrate itself; therefore the intelligible and the unseen things, according to the Apostle, are eternal (aeonian), but eternal is not the aeon itself, but that which partakes of an aeon, that is, of the undimensioned and infinite life. As God, therefore, is the maker of those things that partake of an aeon, that is, of 'always being', which are called aeons by similitude, he is said to have made the aeons, instead of the intelligible things, being their aeon and sustainer, so (14S_218> he is also called timeless time, as being also the cause of times; for what aeon is in the intelligible things, that time is in the sensible things. Just as, therefore, the visible things are images of the invisible and intelligible things, and we call that unmoved and all-at-once life, already infinite and in every way unbending and pre-existing in unity, an aeon, so too time then rested in the always being, but was manifested by subsistence, when later a visible nature had to come forth. The procession, therefore, into the sensible things of the goodness of God for creating these things we call time; for time is not the movement of the dimensions into parts and hours and nights and days, but something homonymous with time; for just as we are accustomed to call the measure and the measured homonymously, so also here; for example, if that which is measured by a cubit, whether ground, or a wall, or another thing, we call a cubit. The movements of the stars, at least, according to what was said, "let them be for signs and for seasons and for years," were made by God for our clear definition and indication. He, therefore, who also arranged these things, would himself be these things as cause, super-eternally and timelessly.

And he neither was: Because neither 'was', nor 'is', nor 'will be' is properly said of God; for God is above these things. But these things are also said because according to every concept he is supersubstantially.

He was not: He said well, 'he was not'; for 'was' is indicative of time. But God is also above 'was', that is, above time. You will say then: And how is it written concerning God the Word, "in (14S_220> the beginning was the Word"? For behold, 'was' is written here. We often say that the Father is the beginning and cause of all things; for this reason, therefore, "in the beginning was," he says, "the Word," since the Son is in the Father. He said well, therefore, "in the beginning was the Word"; but 'will be' is clear. For this indicates that he is not now, but will be at some time, which to say of God is impious and unfitting.

Rather, he is not: These things must be understood additionally of those things of which 'he became' and the things associated with it are properly said; or it must also be understood in another way, as above all of being

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μᾶλλον Θεῷ πλησιάζοντες. Πάλιν ἡμεῖς ὡς λογικοί, τῶν ἀλόγων πλέον λεγόμεθα ζῇν· παλιν τά ἄλογα, ὡς αἴσθησιν ἔχοντα, πλέον ζῇν τῶν φυτῶν, ὡς αἴσθησιν μή ἐχόντων, ἀλλά μόνην τήν φυτικήν ζωήν.

§ 4. Ὁ ὤν ὅλου τοῦ εἶναι. Τό 'ὄν' ἐπί τοῦ Θεοῦ λεγόμενον, ὅλου συλλήβδην τοῦ εἶναι ὑπέρεστι· τοῦτο γάρ φησιν ὑπερούσιον, (14S_216> ἀντί τοῦ ὑπέρ τό ἐν γενέσει ὄν· τό γάρ ὄν οὐσία· ἀπό γάρ τοῦ εἶναι τό ὄνομα παρῆκται τῆς οὐσίας. Ὁ οὖν Θεός, ὡς καί τοῦ εἶναι ὑπερκείμενος (τό γάρ εἶναι ἐξ αἰτίας τινός δηλοῖ εἰς τό εἶναι ἀχθῆναι) ὤν, ὑπερουσίως νοεῖται· διό καί αἰών λέγεται εἶναι τῶν παρηγμένων ὑπ' αὐτοῦ αἰώνων· ὅπερ γάρ μηδέ ἦν, μήτε ἔσται, ἀλλ' ἔστι μόνον, τοῦτο ἐστώς ἔχων τό εἶναι, τό μή μεταβάλλειν εἰς τό ἔσται, μήτ' αὖ μεταβεβηκέναι ἀπό τοῦ ἦν εἰς τό ἔστι, τοῦτό ἐστιν αἰών· οὐ γάρ μόνον τά ὄντα πάντα δεῖ παρεῖναι τῷ παντί καί ὅλῳ, ἀλλά καί τό μηδέν τοῦ ποτε μή ὄντος· οὐδέ γάρ τι προσγέγονεν αὐτῷ, μή ὄν πρότερον. Αὕτη οὖν ἡ διάθεσις καί φύσις καλοῖτο ἄν καί εἴη αἰών· αἰών γάρ ἀπό τοῦ ἀεί ὄντος εἴρηται. Εἴ τις οὖν οὕτω τόν αἰῶνα λέγοι ζωήν ἄπειρον, τῷ πᾶσαν ἤδη εἶναι καί μηδέν ἀναλίσκειν αὐτῆς τῷ παρεληλυθέναι, μηδ' αὖ μένειν, οὐκ ἄν εἴη πᾶσα, ἐγγύς δέ ἄν εἴη τοῦ ὁρίζεσθαι τί αἰών. Ἐκεῖνο γοῦν ἐστιν ἄπειρον, τό μή ἐπιλεῖπον· καί τοῦτο κυρίως, ὅτι μηδέν ἑαυτοῦ ἀναλίσκει οὕτως οὖν ὁ Θεός καί αἰών, καί αἰῶνας ποιῶν. Αἰών τοινυν ἐστίν οὐ τό ὑποκείμενον, ἀλλά τό ἐξ αὐτοῦ τοῦ ὑποκειμένου ἐκλάμπον· τά οὖν νοητά καί τά μή ὁρώμενα κατά τόν Ἀπόστολον αἰώνια, αἰώνιον δέ οὐκ αὐτός ἐστιν ὁ αἰών, ἀλλά τό αἰῶνος μετέχον, τουτέστι τῆς ἀδιαστάτου καί ἀπείρου ζωῆς. Ὡς οὖν καί τῶν αἰῶνος, τουτέστι τοῦ ἀεί ὄντος μετεχόντων, καθ' ὁμοιότητα αἰώνων λεγομένων ποιητής ὁ Θεός, πεποιηκέναι τούς αἰῶνας λέγεται, ἀντί τοῦ τά νοητά, αἰών αὐτῶν ὤν καί συνοχεύς, οὕτω (14S_218> καί χρόνος ὁ ἄχρονος λέγεται, ἅτε καί χρόνων αἴτιος· ὅπερ γάρ ἐν τοῖς νοητοῖς αἰών, τοῦτό ἐστιν ἐν τοῖς αἰσθητοῖς χρόνος. Ὥσπερ οὖν τά ὁρώμενα εἰκόνες εἰσί τῶν ἀοράτων καί νοητῶν, καί αἰῶνα λέγομεν τήν ἀτρεμῆ ἐκείνην καί ὁμοῦ πᾶσαν ζωήν, καί ἄπειρον ἤδη καί ἀκλινῆ πάντῃ καί ἐν ἑνί καί προεστῶσαν, οὕτω καί τόν χρόνον τότε μέν ἐν τῷ ἀεί ὄντι ἀναπαύεσθαι, ἐκφανῆναι δέ καθ' ὑπόβασιν, ὅτε καί ὕστερον φύσιν ὁρατήν ἐχρῆν προελθεῖν. Τήν οὖν εἰς τά αἰσθητά πρόοδον τῆς εἰς τό ταῦτα δημιουργεῖν ἀγαθότητος τοῦ Θεοῦ καλοῦμεν χρόνον· οὐ γάρ ἡ κίνησις τῶν εἰς μοίρας καί ὥρας καί νύκτας καί ἡμέρας διαστάσεων, τοῦτο χρόνος, ἀλλ' ὁμώνυμον τῷ χρόνῳ· ὥσπερ γάρ τό μετροῦν καί μετρούμενον εἰώθαμεν ὁμωνύμως καλεῖν, οὕτω καί ἐνταῦθα· οἷον, ἐάν τό ὑπό πήχεως μετρούμενον, εἴτε ἔδαφος, εἴτε τεῖχος, ἤ ἕτερον, πῆχυν λέγομεν. Αἱ γοῦν τῶν ἀστέρων φοραί, κατά τό εἰρημένον, «ἔστωσαν εἰς τά σημεῖα καί εἰς καιρούς καί εἰς ἐνιαυτούς», πρός διορισμόν καί δήλωσιν ἡμῖν ἐναργῆ παρά Θεοῦ ἐγένοντο. Ὁ οὖν καί ταῦτα διατάξας, αὐτός ἄν εἴη ὑπεραιωνίως καί ἀχρόνως ταῦτα ὡς αἴτιος.

Καί οὔτε ἦν: Ὅτι οὔτε τό ἦν, οὔτε τό ἔστιν, οὔτε τό ἔσται κυρίως λέγεται ἐπί Θεοῦ· ὑπέρ γάρ ταῦτα ὁ Θεός. Λέγεται δέ καί ταῦτα διά τό κατά πᾶσαν ἐπίνοιαν ὑπερουσίως αὐτόν εἶναι.

Οὔτε ἦν: Καλῶς εἶπεν, οὔτε ἦν· τό γάρ 'ἦν' δηλωτικόν ἐστι χρόνου. Ἔστι δέ ὁ Θεός καί ὑπέρ τό ἦν, τουτέστιν ὑπέρ χρόνον. Ἐρεῖς οὖν· Καί πῶς κεῖται περί τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγου, «ἐν (14S_220> ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ Λόγος»; Ἰδού γάρ ἐνταῦθα κεῖται τό ἦν. Πολλάκις λέγομεν, ὅτι ἀρχή καί αἰτία πάντων ὁ Πατήρ διά τοῦτο οὖν, «ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν», φησίν, «ὁ Λόγος», ἐπειδή ὁ Υἱός ἐν τῷ Πατρί ἐστι. Καλῶς οὖν εἶπεν, «ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ Λόγος»· τό δέ ἔσται σαφές ἐστι. Τοῦτο γάρ δηλοῖ, ὅτι νῦν οὐκ ἔστιν, ἀλλ' ἔσται ποτέ, ὅπερ ἐπί Θεοῦ λέγειν ἀνόσιον καί ἀπρόσφορον.

Μᾶλλον δέ οὔτε ἐστι: Προσυπακουστέον καί ταῦτα οἷς ἐπιλέγεται κυρίως τό 'ἐγένετο' καί τά σύν αὐτῷ κειμενα· ἤ καί ἑτέρως νοητέον, ὡς ὑπέρ πᾶσαν τοῦ εἶναι