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But the angels, we neither deify according to the poets and philosophers of the Greeks, and divide the incorporeal nature into female and male, and accuse the invisible powers of intemperate unions; nor do we define them as creators of the creation according to the myths of the heretics, nor indeed do we say they are co-eternal with the God of all. For to humans, the female is useful for the increase of the race. For foreseeing this, the God of all, so formed this na 83.469 ture. Therefore, He also brought this blessing to the race, saying: "Increase, and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it." For since death plunders the nature of men, and like some reaper, cuts down not only the old, but also the young; nature necessarily required those who farm, and sow, and in place of those cut down, bring in other ears of corn, and by farming overcome the hands of the one who reaps. But for the immortal nature the division of the kind is superfluous; For they neither need increase, not being diminished, nor union, being freed from bodies. And of this the teacher is the divine Scripture. For He did not create only two angels in the beginning, as He did humans, but brought forth as many myriads as He wished. For a nature free from corruption is not in need of increase. But humans, having a mortal body, and living under death, necessarily have need of the female. But let no lover of pleasure make an accusation against the angels out of ignorance, taking as an occasion for blasphemy that which was related by the all-wise Moses; that "when the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were beautiful, they took them as wives." For it is of the utmost madness to attribute to the angels the intemperance of men. For there were two races at that time, that of Cain, and that of Seth; and that of Cain was accursed, while that of Seth was concerned with piety. For Enos, his son, hoped to call upon the name of the Lord God. Hence those descended from him, being called sons of God, fled from intermingling with the race of Cain. But after many years had passed, the descendants of the pious, having seen that their daughters were attractive, were overcome by their beauty, and transgressed the law of their fathers, and embraced marriage with them. Then the intermingling introduced wickedness. Therefore, when we hear the divine Scripture saying: "The sons of God came in to the daughters of men," let us not accuse the incorporeal angels; for men dared the transgression, being called sons of God. And that these things are so, the witness is the God of all Himself, saying thus: "My spirit shall not abide in these men, because they are flesh." And again the historian: "And the Lord saw the earth, and it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth." And to Noah the God of all said: "Behold, I will destroy all flesh." And having commanded him to build an ark, he added: "For I have found you righteous in this generation." But if angels had sinned, would he have punished humans, 83.472 the lawgiver of righteousness, and humans, not ten and twenty, and a hundred, but infinite myriads? Therefore, neither for the sake of increase nor of union, does the nature of angels need the female. And that there are many myriads of angels the divine Scripture teaches; "For," it says, "a thousand thousands ministered to him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him." And the liturgy of the angels is hymnody. For concerning the Seraphim, the blessed Isaiah says, that they cried out, and said, "Holy, holy, holy, Lord Sabaoth; heaven and earth are full of his glory." And concerning the Cherubim, the divine Ezekiel said, that he heard them saying: "Blessed is the glory of the Lord from his place." But they not only sing hymns, but also minister to the divine economies. And this

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Τοὺς δὲ ἀγγέλους, οὔτε κατὰ τοὺς τῶν Ἑλλήνων ποιητὰς καὶ φιλοσόφους θεοποιοῦμεν, καὶ εἰς θῆλυ καὶ ἄῤῥεν τὴν ἀσώματον διακρίνομεν φύσιν, καὶ μίξεις ἀκολάστους τῶν ἀοράτων κατηγοροῦμεν δυνά μεων· οὐδὲ κατὰ τοὺς τῶν αἱρετικῶν μύθους ποιητὰς τῆς κτίσεως ὁριζόμεθα, οὔτε μὴν συναϊδίους εἶναί φαμεν τῷ τῶν ὅλων Θεῷ. Τοῖς μὲν γὰρ ἀνθρώποις τὸ θῆλυ χρήσιμον διὰ τὴν αὔξησιν τοῦ γένους. Τοῦτο γὰρ προορῶν ὁ τῶν ὅλων Θεὸς, οὕτω τήνδε τὴν φύ 83.469 σιν διέπλασε. ∆ιὸ δὴ καὶ ταύτην τῷ γένει τὴν εὐλο γίαν προσήνεγκεν, εἰπών· "Αὐξάνεσθε, καὶ πληθύνε σθε, καὶ πληρώσατε τὴν γῆν, καὶ κατακυριεύσατε αὐτῆς." Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ὁ θάνατος ληΐζεται τῶν ἀνθρώ πων τὴν φύσιν, καὶ οἷόν τις θεριστὴς, οὐ πρεσβύτας μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ νέους ἐκτέμνει· ἀναγκαίως ἡ φύσις ἐδεῖτο τῶν γεωργούντων, καὶ σπειρόντων, καὶ ἀντὶ τεμνομένων ἑτέρους στάχυς ἀντεισαγόντων, καὶ νικώντων τῇ γεωργίᾳ τοῦ ἀμῶντος τὰς χεῖρας. Τῇ δὲ ἀθανάτῳ φύσει περιττὴ τοῦ γένους ἡ διαίρεσις· Οὔτε γὰρ αὐξήσεως δέονται μὴ μειούμενοι, οὔτε μί ξεως σωμάτων ἀπηλλαγμένοι. Καὶ τούτου διδάσκαλος ἡ θεία Γραφή. Ἀγγέλους μὲν γὰρ οὐ δύο κατ' ἀρχὰς καθάπερ τοὺς ἀνθρώπους ἐδημιούργησε μόνους, ἀλλ' ὅσας ἠθέλησε μυριάδας ἐπήγαγεν. Ἡ γὰρ φθορᾶς ἐλευθέρα φύσις αὐξήσεως ἀπροσδεής. Οἱ δὲ ἄνθρωποι θνητὸν ἐσχηκότες σῶμα, καὶ ὑπὸ τῷ θανάτῳ τελοῦντες, τοῦ θήλεος ἀναγκαίως προσδέον ται. Μηδεὶς δὲ τῶν φιληδόνων ἐξ ἀγνοίας τῶν ἀγγέ λων ποιησάσθω κατηγορίαν, ἀφορμὴν λαβὼν εἰς βλασφημίαν τὸ παρὰ τοῦ πανσόφου ἱστορηθὲν Μωϋσέως· ὅτι ἰδόντες οἱ υἱοὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ τὰς θυγα τέρας τῶν ἀνθρώπων ὅτι καλαί εἰσιν, ἔλαβον ἐξ αὐτῶν εἰς γυναῖκας. Παραπληξίας γὰρ ἐσχάτης τὸ τοῖς ἀγγέλοις προσάψαι τὴν τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἀκολα σίαν. ∆ύο γὰρ ἦν γένη τηνικαῦτα, τὸ τοῦ Κάϊν, καὶ τὸ τοῦ Σήθ· καὶ τὸ μὲν τοῦ Κάϊν ἐπάρατον ἦν, τὸ δὲ τοῦ Σὴθ εὐσεβείας ἐπεμέλετο. Ἐνὼς γὰρ, ὁ τούτου υἱὸς, ἤλπισεν ἐπικαλεῖσθαι τὸ ὄνομα Κυρίου τοῦ Θεοῦ. Ἐντεῦθεν οἱ ἐκ τούτου φύντες υἱοὶ Θεοῦ χρηματίζοντες, ἔφυγον τὴν πρὸς τὸ γένος τοῦ Κάϊν ἐπι μιξίαν. Πολλῶν δὲ διεληλυθότων ἐτῶν, ἐπιτερπεῖς τὰς ἐκείνων θεασάμενοι θυγατέρας οἱ τῶν εὐσεβῶν ἀπόγονοι, ἡττήθησαν τοῦ κάλλους, καὶ τὸν πατρῷον παρέβησαν νόμον, καὶ τὸ πρὸς ἐκείνους ἠσπάσαντο κῆδος. Εἶτα ἡ ἐπιμιξία τὴν πονηρίαν εἰσήγαγεν. Ὅταν οὖν ἀκούσωμεν τῆς θείας λεγούσης Γραφῆς· "Εἰσῆλθον οἱ υἱοὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ πρὸς τὰς θυγατέρας τῶν ἀνθρώπων," μὴ τῶν ἀσωμάτων ἀγγέλων κατη γορῶμεν· ἄνθρωποι γὰρ τὴν παρανομίαν ἐτόλμησαν υἱοὶ Θεοῦ προσαγορευόμενοι. Καὶ ὅτι ταῦθ' οὕτως ἔχει, μάρτυς αὐτὸς ὁ τῶν ὅλων Θεὸς, οὑτωσὶ λέγων· "Οὐ μὴ καταμείνῃ τὸ πνεῦμά μου ἐν τοῖς ἀνθρώ ποις τούτοις διὰ τὸ εἶναι αὐτοὺς σάρκας." Καὶ πάλιν ἱστοριογράφος· "Καὶ εἶδε Κύριος τὴν γῆν, καὶ ἦν κατεφθαρμένη, ὅτι κατέφθειρε πᾶσα σὰρξ τὴν ὁδὸν αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς." Καὶ πρὸς τὸν Νῶε δὲ ὁ τῶν ὅλων ἔφη Θεός· "Ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ καταφθείρω πᾶσαν σάρκα." Καὶ κελεύσας κατασκευάσαι κιβωτὸν, ἐπήγαγεν· "Ὅτι σε εὗρον δίκαιον ἐν τῇ γενεᾷ ταύτῃ." Οὐκ ἂν δὲ ἀγγέλων ἡμαρτηκότων ἀνθρώπους 83.472 ἐκόλασε τῆς δικαιοσύνης ὁ νομοθέτης, καὶ ἀνθρώπους, οὐ δέκα καὶ εἴκοσι, καὶ ἑκατὸν, ἀλλὰ μυριάδας ἀπεί ρους. Οὔτε αὐξήσεως τοίνυν οὔτε μίξεως χάριν, δεῖται τοῦ θήλεως τῶν ἀγγέλων ἡ φύσις. Πολλὰς δὲ μυριάδας εἶναι ἀγγέλων ἡ θεία διδάσκει Γραφή· "Χίλιαι γὰρ, φησὶ, χιλιάδες ἐλειτούργουν αὐτῷ, καὶ μύριαι μυριάδες παρειστήκεισαν αὐτῷ." Λειτουργία δὲ τῶν ἀγγέλων ἡ ὑμνῳδία. Περὶ μὲν γὰρ τῶν Σε ραφὶμ ὁ μακάριός φησιν Ἡσαΐας, ὅτι ἐκέκραγον, καὶ ἔλεγον, "Ἅγιος, ἅγιος, ἅγιος, Κύριος Σαβαώθ· πλήρης ὁ οὐρανὸς καὶ ἡ γῆ τῆς δόξης αὐτοῦ." Περὶ δὲ τῶν Χερουβὶμ ὁ θεῖος εἶπεν Ἐζεκιὴλ, ὡς ἤκουσε λεγόντων· "Εὐλογημένη ἡ δόξα Κυρίου ἐκ τοῦ τόπου αὑτῆς." Οὐ μόνον δὲ ὑμνοῦσιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ταῖς θείαις οἰκονομίαις διακονοῦσι. Καὶ τοῦτο