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For what could the impassible by nature suffer? -nor was the simple changed by becoming composite; for change is a passion, and the impassible is altogether also unchangeable. Therefore, when He was incarnate, He acted, He did not suffer; for neither was His divine nature changed or did it receive any addition, nor was the property of His hypostasis, that is, His sonship, changed; for He remained the Son of God even when He became the Son of man. He did not suffer, therefore, but He acted, fashioning for Himself flesh animated with a rational and intellectual soul, and giving it Himself as a hypostasis, and making it subsist in Himself. -For it must be known that in the case of heating by fire one must consider two things. For that which is heated by fire is said to be heated in one way, because iron, for example, or wood, entering into a pre-existing fire, receives from it fire which did not yet subsist in itself, and it becomes a hypostasis for it (for in the pre-existing and pre-subsisting wood, the fire subsists, which it receives from the pre-subsisting fire), and the hypostasis of the iron and of the fire seen in it becomes one hypostasis of both the wood and the fire in it (for the fire in the wood did not subsist in itself, but the wood was the cause of its hypostasis and of its existence and consolidation as a part separated from the other fires) and it is one hypostasis of both the wood and the fire which subsisted in it, primarily of the wood, and secondarily of the fire; for, pre-existing as that of the wood, it afterwards became also that of the fire. And heating by fire is also spoken of in another way, as the wood that is being heated receiving the energy of the fire; for the subtler imparts of its own energy to the grosser. In the case of heating by fire, therefore, it is the wood that is heated, and it is called a heating of the wood and not a 'wooding' of the fire; for the wood pre-exists and becomes a hypostasis for the fire and receives the energy of the fire. But in the case of our Lord Jesus Christ, it is not so, but it is called the incarnation of the Word, since the Word became a hypostasis for the flesh (for the hypostasis of the Word pre-existed, and in it the flesh subsisted), but the deification of the flesh; for the latter partook of the things of the Godhead, and not the Godhead of its passions; for through the flesh the Godhead acted, as the fire through the wood, not the flesh through the Word. Therefore the Word, when incarnate, did not suffer, but He acted the incarnation, imparting to the flesh both His hypostasis and deification. And by deification I mean, not that it was changed into the nature of Godhead, but its participation in the glories of the Godhead; for it gave life not according to its own nature, but through its union with the Godhead. And on Tabor it shone and flashed forth not through its own nature, but through the energy of the Godhead united to it hypostatically, just as wood shines and burns not according to its own natural energy, but through its participation in the energy of the fire united to it hypostatically. 52 Against those who say: Are the natures of the Lord to be classed under continuous or under discrete quantity? If anyone should ask concerning the natures of the Lord, whether they are to be referred to continuous or to discrete quantity, we will say that the natures of the Lord are neither one body, nor one surface, nor one line, not time, not place, that they should be classed under continuous quantity; for these are the things that are numbered continuously. But it must be known that number applies to things that differ, and it is impossible to number things that differ in no respect; and in that in which they differ, in that they are also numbered. For example, Peter and Paul, in that in which they are united, are not numbered; for being one in the principle of their essence, they cannot be called two natures, but differing in hypostasis, they are called two hypostases. So number applies to things that differ, and in the manner in which the differing things differ, in that manner they are also numbered. The natures of Christ are united without confusion in hypostasis, but are divided without separation in the principle and manner of their difference. And in the manner in which they are united, they are not numbered; for we do not say that the natures of Christ are two in hypostasis. But in the manner in which they are divided without separation, they are numbered; for the natures of Christ are two in the principle and manner of

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γὰρ ἂν πάθοι τὸ φύσει ἀπαθές; -οὐδὲ ἐτράπη ὁ ἁπλοῦς σύνθετος γενόμενος· ἡ γὰρ τροπὴ πάθος ἐστί, τὸ δὲ ἀπαθὲς πάντως καὶ ἄτρεπτον. Ἐνήργησε τοιγαροῦν σαρκωθείς, οὐκ ἔπαθεν· οὔτε γὰρ ἡ φύσις αὐτοῦ ἡ θεία ἐτράπη ἢ προσθήκην ἐδέξατο, οὐδὲ τὸ τῆς ὑποστάσεως αὐτοῦ ἰδίωμα, τουτέστιν ἡ υἱότης, ἐτράπη· ἔμεινε γὰρ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου γενόμενος. Οὐκ ἔπαθεν οὖν, ἀλλ' ἐνήργησε δημιουργήσας ἑαυτῷ σάρκα ἐψυχωμένην ψυχῇ λογικῇ τε καὶ νοερᾷ καὶ δοὺς αὐτῇ ἑαυτὸν ὑπόστασιν καὶ ἐν ἑαυτῷ αὐτὴν ὑποστήσας. -Ἰστέον γάρ, ὡς ἐπὶ τῆς πυρώσεως δύο χρὴ ἐννοεῖν. Πεπυρῶσθαι γὰρ λέγεται τὸ πυρούμενον καθ' ἕνα μὲν τρόπον, ὅτι ὁ σίδηρος τυχὸν ἢ τὸ ξύλον εἰς πῦρ προϋφεστὼς εἰσερχόμενον λαμβάνει ἐξ αὐτοῦ πῦρ μήπω καθ' αὑτὸ προϋποστὰν καὶ γίνεται αὐτῷ ὑπόστασις (ἐν αὐτῷ γὰρ τῷ ξύλῳ προϋπάρχοντι καὶ προϋφεστῶτι ὑφίσταται τὸ πῦρ, ὃ λαμβάνει ἐκ τοῦ προϋφεστῶτος πυρός) καὶ γίνεται ἡ τοῦ σιδήρου ὑπόστασις καὶ τοῦ ἐν αὐτῷ θεωρουμένου πυρὸς ὑπόστασις μία ὑπόστασις τοῦ τε ξύλου καὶ τοῦ ἐν αὐτῷ πυρός (οὐ γὰρ ὑπέστη καθ' αὑτὸ τὸ ἐν τῷ ξύλῳ πῦρ, ἀλλ' αἰτίαν τῆς ὑποστάσεως καὶ τῆς ἀναμέρος κεχωρισμένης ἐκ τῶν λοιπῶν πυρῶν ὑπάρξεως καὶ συμπήξεως τὸ ξύλον ἔσχε) καὶ ἔστι μία ὑπόστασις τοῦ τε ξύλου καὶ τοῦ ἐν αὐτῷ ὑποστάντος πυρός, προηγουμένως μὲν τοῦ ξύλου, ἑπομένως δὲ τοῦ πυρός· προϋπάρχουσα γὰρ τοῦ ξύλου μετὰ ταῦτα ἐγένετο καὶ τοῦ πυρός. Λέγεται δὲ καὶ καθ' ἕτερον τρόπον πύρωσις ὡς τοῦ πυρουμένου ξύλου δεχομένου τὴν τοῦ πυρὸς ἐνέργειαν· τὸ γὰρ λεπτότερον μεταδίδωσι τῷ παχυτέρῳ τῆς οἰκείας ἐνεργείας. Ἐπὶ μὲν οὖν τῆς πυρώσεως τὸ ξύλον ἐστὶ τὸ πυρούμενον, καὶ λέγεται πύρωσις τοῦ ξύλου καὶ οὐ ξύλωσις τοῦ πυρός· τὸ γὰρ ξύλον προϋπάρχει τε καὶ ὑπόστασις τῷ πυρὶ γίνεται καὶ τὴν τοῦ πυρὸς ἐνέργειαν δέχεται. Ἐπὶ δὲ τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ οὐχ οὕτως, ἀλλὰ σάρκωσις μὲν τοῦ λόγου λέγεται ὡς τοῦ λόγου γενομένου τῇ σαρκὶ ὑποστάσεως (προϋπῆρχε γὰρ ἡ ὑπόστασις τοῦ λόγου, καὶ ἐν αὐτῇ ὑπέστη ἡ σάρξ), θέωσις δὲ τῆς σαρκός· αὕτη γὰρ μετέσχε τῶν τῆς θεότητος, καὶ οὐχ ἡ θεότης τῶν αὐτῆς παθῶν· διὰ γὰρ τῆς σαρκὸς ἡ θεότης ἐνήργει ὡς τὸ πῦρ διὰ τοῦ ξύλου, οὐχ ἡ σὰρξ διὰ τοῦ λόγου. Οὐκ ἔπαθε τοίνυν σαρκωθεὶς ὁ λόγος, ἀλλ' ἐνήργησε τὴν σάρκωσιν μεταδοὺς τῇ σαρκὶ τῆς τε ὑποστάσεως καὶ τῆς θεώσεως. Θεώσεως δὲ λέγω οὐχὶ τραπείσης εἰς θεότητος φύσιν, ἀλλὰ τῆς μεθέξεως τῆς ὑπὸ τῶν τῆς θεότητος αὐχημάτων· ἐζωοποίει γὰρ οὐ κατ' οἰκείαν φύσιν, ἀλλὰ τῇ ἑνώσει τῇ πρὸς τὴν θεότητα. Καὶ ἐν Θαβὼρ ἤστραψε καὶ ἀπαστράπτει οὐ διὰ τὴν ἰδίαν φύσιν, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὴν τῆς καθ' ὑπόστασιν ἡνωμένης αὐτῇ θεότητος ἐνέργειαν, ὡς τὸ ξύλον λάμπει καὶ καίει οὐ κατὰ τὴν οἰκείαν φυσικὴν ἐνέργειαν, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὴν τοῦ καθ' ὑπόστασιν ἡνωμένου αὐτῷ πυρὸς τῆς ἐνεργείας μέθεξιν. 52 Πρὸς τοὺς λέγοντας· Ὑπὸ τὸ συνεχὲς ποσὸν ἀνάγονται αἱ τοῦ κυρίου φύσεις ἢ ὑπὸ τὸ διωρισμένον Εἰ δέ τις ἐρωτῶν περὶ τῶν τοῦ κυρίου φύσεων, εἰ ὑπὸ τὸ συνεχὲς ποσὸν ἀναφέροιντο ἢ ὑπὸ τὸ διωρισμένον, ἐροῦμεν, ὅτι αἱ τοῦ κυρίου φύσεις οὔτε ἓν σῶμά εἰσιν οὔτε μία ἐπιφάνεια οὔτε μία γραμμή, οὐ χρόνος, οὐ τόπος, ἵνα ὑπὸ τὸ συνεχὲς ἀναχθῶσι ποσόν· ταῦτα γάρ εἰσι τὰ συνεχῶς ἀριθμούμενα. Ἰστέον δέ, ὡς ὁ ἀριθμὸς τῶν διαφερόντων ἐστὶ καὶ ἀδύνατον ἀριθμεῖσθαι τὰ κατὰ μηδὲν διαφέροντα· καθ' ὃ δὲ διαφέρουσι, κατὰ τοῦτο καὶ ἀριθμοῦνται. Οἷον ὁ Πέτρος καὶ ὁ Παῦλος, καθ' ὃ μὲν ἥνωνται, οὐκ ἀριθμοῦνται· τῷ λόγῳ γὰρ τῆς οὐσίας ἑνούμενοι δύο φύσεις οὐ δύνανται λέγεσθαι, καθ' ὑπόστασιν δὲ διαφέροντες δύο ὑποστάσεις λέγονται. Ὥστε ὁ ἀριθμὸς τῶν διαφερόντων ἐστί, καὶ ᾧ τρόπῳ διαφέρουσι τὰ διαφέροντα, τούτῳ τῷ τρόπῳ καὶ ἀριθμοῦνται. Ἥνωνται μὲν αἱ τοῦ Χριστοῦ φύσεις ἀσυγχύτως καθ' ὑπόστασιν, διῄρηνται δὲ ἀδιαιρέτως λόγῳ καὶ τρόπῳ τῆς διαφορᾶς. Καὶ ᾧ μὲν τρόπῳ ἥνωνται, οὐκ ἀριθμοῦνται· οὐ γὰρ καθ' ὑπόστασιν δύο εἶναί φαμεν τὰς φύσεις τοῦ Χριστοῦ. Ὧι δὲ τρόπῳ ἀδιαιρέτως διῄρηνται, ἀριθμοῦνται; δύο γάρ εἰσιν αἱ φύσεις τοῦ Χριστοῦ λόγῳ καὶ τρόπῳ τῆς