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the all-wise Paul taught us, saying: "Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?" And the Lord Himself in the holy Gospels said: "See that you do not despise one of these little ones who believe in me; for I tell you truly, their angels daily see the face of my Father, who is in heaven." And the divine prophet Daniel says that some are rulers of nations; or rather, not he himself, but an angel speaking with him. "For he stood, he says, against me, the prince of the Persians." And he mentions the prince of the Greeks, and added that no one else worked with him on behalf of the Jews' freedom while interceding with God, except Michael their prince. And the great Moses said in the ode: "When the Most High divided the nations, when he scattered the sons of Adam, he set the boundaries of the nations according to the number of the angels of God." These things, and those spoken in Daniel, and those said by the Lord, provide evidence that some of the angels protect nations, while others are entrusted with the care of each one of mankind, so that the accursed demons may not sift and harm them. We believe that the angels were made by the God of all; for so we have been taught. For the hymnist David, having exhorted the angels and the heavenly powers to praise the God of all, added: "For he spoke, and they were made; he commanded, and they were created." And again: "Who makes his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire." And the three children in the furnace, blessing God, called all creation into fellowship of their hymnody, and first the angels. And the prelude of the hymnody is thus: "Bless, 83.473 all you works of the Lord, the Lord; hymn, and exalt him for ever." Then they immediately add: "Bless the Lord, you angels of the Lord;" teaching that these too are part of the divine works. And the divine Apostle taught us this more clearly. For having mentioned our Lord Jesus Christ, he added: "For in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, whether visible or invisible." And leaving aside the visible things as obvious, he speaks of the orders of the invisible: "Whether Thrones, or Dominions, or Principalities, or Powers, all things were created through him and for him." These things we have been taught to believe also concerning the angels. 8. — Concerning the devil and the demons. The devil and the demons under him, according to the myths of Marcion, and Cerdon, and Mani, we say are not unbegotten. For if they are unbegotten, then they are of equal honor with the God of all; and if they are of equal honor, it is clear that they are also of equal power; and if they are of equal power, how can we say they were created by the God of all? For how could those who have received such a nature from the beginning be justly punished? That they will be punished, the Lord expressly said to those on his left: "Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels." And the demons themselves clearly know this; whence they cried out: "What have we to do with you, Son of the most high God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?" And again: "I adjure you, do not torment me." That they will be punished, therefore, we have been clearly taught. Let us then consider if they will suffer this justly, having received such a nature from their maker. How could the maker of evil reasonably be called good, and how could he be just who punishes a nature unable to do anything good, but bound by the chains of evil? But we know that the God of all is just, and the source of justice; therefore he will not unjustly punish the demons, and

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ἡμᾶς ὁ πάνσοφος ἐδίδαξε Παῦλος, εἰπών· "Οὐχὶ πάντες εἰσὶ λειτουργικὰ πνεύμα εἰς διακονίαν ἀποστελλό μενα διὰ τοὺς μέλλοντας κληρονομεῖν σωτηρίαν;" Καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ Κύριος ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς Εὐαγγελίοις ἔφη· "Ὁρᾶτε μὴ καταφρονήσητε ἑνὸς τῶν μικρῶν τού των τῶν ἐλαχίστων τῶν πιστευόντων εἰς ἐμέ· ἀμὴν γὰρ λέγω ὑμῖν, καθ' ἡμέραν οἱ ἄγγελοι αὐτῶν ὁρῶσι τὸ πρόσωπον τοῦ Πατρός μου, τοῦ ἐν οὐρα νοῖς." Ὁ δὲ θεσπέσιος ∆ανιὴλ ὁ προφήτης, καὶ ἐθνῶν ἄρχοντας εἶναι λέγει τινάς· μᾶλλον δὲ οὐκ αὐτὸς, ἀλλ' ἐκείνῳ προσδιαλεγόμενος ἄγγελος. "Ἔστη γὰρ, φησὶν, ἐξεναντίας μου, ὁ ἄρχων Περσῶν." Μέμνηται δὲ τοῦ ἄρχοντος τῶν Ἑλλήνων, καὶ προστέθεικεν, ὡς οὐδεὶς ἕτερος αὐτῷ συνέπραξεν ὑπὲρ τῆς Ἰουδαίων ἐλευθερίας πρεσβευομένῳ πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν, εἰ μὴ Μιχαὴλ ὁ ἄρχων αὐτῶν. Καὶ ὁ μέγας δὲ Μωϋσῆς ἐν τῇ ᾠδῇ ἔφη· "Ὅτε διεμέριζεν ὁ Ὕψιστος ἔθνη, οὒς διέσπειρεν υἱοὺς Ἀδὰμ, ἔστησεν ὅρια ἐθνῶν κατὰ ἀριθμὸν ἀγγέλων Θεοῦ." Τεκμηριοῖ δὲ καὶ ταῦτα, καὶ τὰ ἐν τῷ ∆ανιὴλ εἰρη μένα, καὶ τὰ ὑπὸ τοῦ Κυρίου λεχθέντα, τινὰς μὲν τῶν ἀγγέλων ἐθνῶν προστατεύειν, τινὰς δὲ ἑνὸς ἑκά στου τῶν ἀνθρώπων πεπιστεῦσθαι τὴν ἐπιμέλειαν, ὥστε μὴ σίνεσθαι αὐτοὺς καὶ πημαίνειν τοὺς ἀλά στορας δαίμονας. Πεποιῆσθαι δὲ ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων τοὺς ἀγγέλους πιστεύομεν· οὕτω γὰρ ἐδιδάχθη μεν. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ ὑμνοποιὸς ∆αβὶδ, ὑμνῆσαι παρεγ γυήσας τοῖς ἀγγέλοις καὶ ταῖς ἐπουρανίαις δυνάμεσι τὸν τῶν ὅλων Θεὸν, ἐπήγαγεν· "Ὅτι αὐτὸς εἶπε, καὶ ἐγενήθησαν· αὐτὸς ἐνετείλατο, καὶ ἐκτίσθησαν." Καὶ πάλιν· "Ὁ ποιῶν τοὺς ἀγγέλους αὑτοῦ πνεύματα, καὶ τοὺς λειτουργοὺς αὐτοῦ πυρὸς φλόγα." Οἱ δὲ τρεῖς παῖδες ἐν τῇ καμίνῳ τὸν Θεὸν εὐλογοῦν τες, πᾶσαν μὲν τὴν κτίσιν εἰς κοινωνίαν τῆς ὑμν ωδίας ἐκάλεσαν, πρώτους δὲ τοὺς ἀγγέλους. Ἔχει δὲ οὕτως τὸ τῆς ὑμνῳδίας προοίμιον· "Εὐλογεῖτε, 83.473 πάντα τὰ ἔργα Κυρίου, τὸν Κύριον· ὑμνεῖτε, καὶ ὑπερυψοῦε αὐτὸν εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας." Εἶτ' εὐθὺς ἐπισυνάπτουσιν· "Εὐλογεῖτε, ἄγγελοι Κυρίου, τὸν Κύριον·" διδάσκοντες, ὡς μέρος καὶ οὗτοι τῶν θείων ἔργων εἰσίν. Ὁ δὲ θεῖος Ἀπόστολος τοῦτο σαφέστερον ἡμᾶς ἐξεπαίδευσε. Τοῦ γὰρ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ μνημονεύσας, ἐπήγαγεν· "Ὅτι ἐν αὐτῷ ἐκτίσθη πάντα τὰ ἐν οὐρανοῖς καὶ τὰ ἐπὶ γῆς, εἴτε ὁρατὰ, εἴτε ἀόρατα." Καὶ ὡς δῆλα κατα λιπὼν τὰ ὁρώμενα, τῶν ἀοράτων λέγει τὰ τάγματα· "Εἴτε Θρόνοι, εἴτε Κυριότητες, εἴτε Ἀρχαὶ, εἴτε Ἐξουσίαι, πάντα δι' αὐτοῦ καὶ εἰς αὐτὸν ἔκτισται." Ταῦτα καὶ περὶ τῶν ἀγγέλων φρονεῖν ἐδιδάχθημεν. Ηʹ. -Περὶ τοῦ διαβόλου καὶ τῶν δαιμόνων. Τὸν δὲ διάβολον καὶ τοὺς ὑπ' ἐκείνῳ τελοῦντας δαίμονας, κατὰ τοὺς Μαρκίωνος, καὶ Κέρδωνος, καὶ τοὺς Μάνεντος μύθους, οὐκ ἀγενήτους εἶναί φαμεν. Εἰ γὰρ ἀγένητοι, ὁμότιμοι ἄρα τῷ τῶν ὅλων Θεῷ· εἰ δὲ ὁμότιμοι, δῆλον ὅτι καὶ ἰσοδύναμοι· εἰ δὲ ἰσο δύναμοι, πῶς ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων δημιουργηθῆ ναί φαμεν; Πῶς γὰρ ἂν κολασθεῖεν ἐνδίκως οἱ τοιαύτην φύσιν ἐξ ἀρχῆς εἰληχότες; Ὅτι δὲ κολα σθήσονται, διαῤῥήδην εἶπεν ὁ Κύριος τοῖς ἐξ εὐωνύ μων· "Πορεύεσθε ἀπ' ἐμοῦ, οἱ κατηραμένοι, εἰς τὸ πῦρ τὸ αἰώνιον, τὸ ἡτοιμασμένον τῷ διαβόλῳ, καὶ τοῖς ἀγγέλοις αὐτοῦ." Τοῦτο δὲ καὶ αὐτοὶ σαφῶς οἱ δαίμονες ἴσασιν· ὅθεν ἐβόων· "Τί ἡμῖν καὶ σοὶ, Υἱὲ Θεοῦ τοῦ ὑψίστου; Ἦλθες πρὸ καιροῦ βασανίσαι ἡμᾶς;" Καὶ πάλιν· "Ὁρκίζω σε, μή με βασανίσῃς." Ὅτι μὲν οὖν κολασθήσονται, σαφῶς ἐδιδάχθημεν. Σκοπήσωμεν δὲ λοιπὸν, εἰ δικαίως τοῦτο πείσονται φύσιν τοιαύτην παρὰ τοῦ πεποιηκό τος δεξάμενοι. Πῶς δ' ἂν ἀγαθὸς εἰκότως κληθείη τῆς κακίας ὁ ποιητὴς, πῶς δὲ δίκαιος ὁ φύσιν κολά ζων ἀγαθόν τι δράσαι μὴ δυναμένην, ἀλλὰ τοῖς τῆς κακίας πεπεδημένην δεσμοῖς; Ἀλλὰ δίκαιον ἴσμεν τὸν τῶν ὅλων Θεὸν, καὶ δικαιοσύνης πηγήν· οὔκουν ἀδίκως κολάσει τοὺς δαίμονας, καὶ