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God and the creator of the sun and moon and stars and of heaven itself and of the entire cosmos 3.10.2 was he casting down? But from where did he have knowledge of the incorporeal? But in fact he knows none of these things; for the creative mind of the universe is neither composed of many parts, nor could heaven be its head, nor its body fire and water and earth, nor indeed its eyes the sun and moon. And how could the shoulders and breast and back and belly of the God who is creator of all things be “air of broad strength” and earth “and the steep peaks of mountains”? Or how could the aether ever be conceived as the mind of the maker of all things, or of the creative mind? 3.10.3 That these things, then, have been sophistically argued by the interpreter of the verses, it is not necessary to say anything further. I for my part, however, say that he commits the utmost impiety who asserts that the parts of the cosmos are parts of God, and even more so he who declares God to be the same as the cosmos, and in addition to these things he who holds that the mind of the cosmos is the creator of all things. 3.10.4 For to declare him maker and father of the cosmos, being other than what has been made, is pious; but to say he is the mind of the cosmos, like the soul of some living creature, united throughout it and clothed in the universe, would no longer be holy to say. 3.10.5 And yet our sacred oracles teach that he is present to the universe and provides for the cosmos, speaking of God worthily and in a manner befitting God, through the words: “Do I not fill heaven and earth? says the Lord.” And again: “that God is in heaven above and on the earth below.” And again: “For in him we live and move and have our being,” but not as in a part of the cosmos, nor 3.10.6 as in its soul and mind. But if it is necessary to use an example, the sacred word somewhere has declared in a more God-befitting manner and appropriately to the truth, saying: “Heaven is my 3.10.7 throne, and the earth is the footstool of my feet.” For if it were necessary to personify at all with a more human expression, behold the difference in the theology. For the one who called heaven a throne has set apart the all-sovereign God beyond the throne and above all things, without even separating the earth from his providence; for he teaches that the providential powers of his divinity descend even to the things here, which is why he says: “and the earth is the footstool of my 3.10.8 feet.” But neither the footstool nor indeed the throne is the body of the one seated, nor could they ever be called his parts. But the one who said that the head of God is heaven and the things in it, and his mind the aether, and his limbs and body the remaining parts of the cosmos, is found to know neither creator nor God. 3.10.9 For he could not create himself, nor could he still be called mind, whose mind was the aether. And what kind of god would he be, whose parts are earth and the mountains on the earth, irrational masses of bodies? And how is it reasonable to proclaim as god the brother and kinsman of fire and water and air, the offspring of irrational and perishable matter? 3.10.10 But if the mind of Zeus was nothing other than the aforementioned aether, and aether is the highest and fiery air, having received this name, as they say, from “to blaze,” which is “to be burned,” and both air and aether are bodies, 3.10.11 see where the mind of your Zeus has fallen. And who among those of sound mind would still call this one a god, whose mind was mindless and irrational, if indeed such is the nature of every body? Wherefore for us in our theologies we must accept all the opposites of what has been said: that he is not heaven, nor aether nor sun nor moon, nor the whole choir of the stars, nor the entire cosmos as a whole, but that these are works of his hands, still small and insignificant when compared to the incorporeal and intelligible substances; that indeed every body is perishable and irrational, and such is the nature of visible things, but the things beyond in the invisible realm are rational and immortal, co-eternal with the blessed life of the all-sovereign God, and would be by far better than all visible things. 3.10.12 Reasonably therefore the divine oracles teach thus concerning the visible parts of the cosmos: “I will see the heavens, the works of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have established.” And again: “And you, Lord, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the works of your hands.” And

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θεὸν καὶ τὸν ἡλίου καὶ σελήνης καὶ ἄστρων καὶ αὐτοῦ τε οὐρανοῦ καὶ τοῦ σύμπαντος κόσμου δημιουργὸν 3.10.2 κατεβάλλετο; ἀσωμάτου δὲ ἡ γνῶσις αὐτῷ πόθεν; ἀλλ' οὐ τούτων γε οὐδὲν εἰδὼς τυγχάνει· ὁ γάρ τοι τῶν ὅλων δημιουργικὸς νοῦς οὔτ' ἐκ πλειόνων μερῶν συνέστηκεν οὔτ' ἂν γένοιτο αὐτοῦ κεφαλὴ οὐρανός, οὐ σῶμα πῦρ καὶ ὕδωρ καὶ γαῖα, ἀλλ' οὐδὲ ὄμματα αὐτοῦ ἥλιος καὶ σελήνη. πῶς δ' ἂν εἶεν ὦμοι καὶ στέρνα καὶ νῶτα καὶ νηδὺς τοῦ τῶν ὅλων δημιουργοῦ θεοῦ «ἀὴρ εὐρυβίης» καὶ γῆ «ὀρέων τ' αἰπεινὰ κάρηνα»; ἢ πῶς ὁ αἰθὴρ νοῦς ποτ' ἂν ἐπινοηθείη τοῦ τῶν ὅλων ποιητοῦ, ἢ τοῦ νοῦ τοῦ δημιουργικοῦ; 3.10.3 ὅτι μὲν οὖν ταῦτα σεσόφισται τῷ τῶν ἐπῶν ἑρμηνεῖ, οὐδὲν ἐπιλέγειν χρή. ἔγωγε μὴν τὰ ἔσχατα ἀσεβεῖν φημι τὸν φάσκοντα μέρη εἶναι τοῦ θεοῦ τὰ μέρη τοῦ κόσμου καὶ ἔτι μᾶλλον τὸν ἀποφηνάμενον τὸν αὐτὸν εἶναι τῷ κόσμῳ τὸν θεὸν καὶ ἐπὶ τούτοις τὸν ἡγούμενον τοῦ κόσμου νοῦν εἶναι τὸν τῶν ὅλων 3.10.4 δημιουργόν. ποιητὴν μὲν γὰρ αὐτὸν καὶ πατέρα τοῦ κόσμου ἕτερον ὄντα τοῦ πεποιημένου εὐσεβὲς ἀποφαίνειν, νοῦν δὲ τοῦ κόσμου, ὥσπερ τινὸς ζῴου ψυχήν, ἡνωμένον διόλου καὶ τὸ πᾶν ἠμφιεσμένον, οὐκέθ' ὅσιον ἂν εἴη λέ3.10.5 γειν. καίτοι παρεῖναι αὐτὸν τῷ παντὶ καὶ προνοεῖν τοῦ κόσμου παιδεύει τὰ καθ' ἡμᾶς ἱερὰ λόγια, θεολογοῦντα ἐπαξίως καὶ θεοπρεπῶς δι' ὧν φησιν· «οὐχὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν ἐγὼ πληρῶ; λέγει κύριος.» καὶ πάλιν· «ὅτι ὁ θεὸς ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ ἄνω καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς κάτω.» καὶ πάλιν· «ἐν αὐτῷ γὰρ ζῶμεν καὶ κινούμεθα καὶ ἐσμέν,» ἀλλ' οὐχ ὡς ἐν μέρει τοῦ κόσμου οὐδ' 3.10.6 ὡς ἐν ψυχῇ αὐτοῦ καὶ νοΐ. ἀλλ' εἰ δεῖ παραδείγματι χρήσασθαι, θεοπρεπέστερον καὶ ἀληθείας οἰκείως ὁ ἱερός που λόγος ἐξεφώνησεν· «ὁ οὐρανός μοι 3.10.7 θρόνος» εἰπών, «ἡ δὲ γῆ ὑποπόδιον τῶν ποδῶν μου.» εἰ γὰρ χρῆν ὅλως προσωποποιεῖν ἀνθρωπινωτέρῳ λόγῳ, θέα τὸ διάφορον τῆς θεολογίας. ὁ μὲν γὰρ τὸν οὐρανὸν εἰπὼν θρόνον ἐπέκεινα τοῦ θρόνου καὶ ἀνωτάτω τῶν ὅλων τὸν παμβασιλέα θεὸν ἀφωρίσατο οὐδὲ τὴν γῆν τῆς προνοίας αὐτοῦ χωρίσας· συγκατιέναι γὰρ καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ τῇδε τῆς θεότητος αὐτοῦ τὰς προνοητικὰς δυνάμεις διδάσκει, διό φησιν· «ἡ δὲ γῆ ὑποπόδιον τῶν ποδῶν 3.10.8 μου.» ἀλλ' οὔτε τὸ ὑποπόδιον οὔτε μὴν ὁ θρόνος σῶμα τοῦ καθιδρυμένου οὐδέ γε μέρη ποτ' ἂν αὐτοῦ λεχθείη. ὁ δὲ κεφαλὴν τοῦ θεοῦ τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὰ ἐν τούτῳ φήσας καὶ νοῦν αὐτοῦ τὸν αἰθέρα μέλη τε αὐτοῦ καὶ σῶμα τὰ λοιπὰ τοῦ κόσμου μέρη, οὔτε δημιουργὸν οὔτε θεὸν ἁλίσκεται εἰδώς. 3.10.9 οὐ γὰρ ἂν αὐτὸς ἑαυτὸν δημιουργοίη οὐδ' ἂν ἔτι νοῦς λέγεσθαι δύναιτο οὗ νοῦς ἦν ὁ αἰθήρ. ποῖος δὲ καὶ εἴη θεὸς οὗ μέρη γῆ καὶ τὰ ἐπὶ γῆς ὄρη, ὄγκοι σωμάτων ἄλογοι; πῶς δὲ καὶ εὔλογον θεὸν ἀναγορεύειν τὸν ἀδελφὸν καὶ συγγενῆ πυρὸς καὶ ὕδατος καὶ ἀέρος, ἀλόγου καὶ φθαρτῆς ὕλης ἐκγόνων; 3.10.10 εἰ δὲ καὶ ὁ νοῦς τοῦ ∆ιὸς οὐδὲν ἄλλο πλὴν τοῦ δηλωθέντος αἰθέρος ἦν, αἰθὴρ δὲ ἀήρ ἐστιν ὁ ὑψηλότατος καὶ πυρώδης ἀπὸ τοῦ αἴθεσθαι, ὅπερ ἐστὶ καίεσθαι, ταύτην, ὥς φασιν, εἰληχὼς τὴν ἐπωνυμίαν, σώματα δὲ ἄμφω ὅ τε 3.10.11 ἀὴρ ὅ τε αἰθήρ, ὅρα ποῦ σοι τοῦ ∆ιὸς ὁ νοῦς ἀποπέπτωκεν. καὶ τίς ἂν ἔτι προσείποι θεὸν τῶν εὖ φρονούντων τοῦτον ᾧ νοῦς ὑπῆρχεν ἄνους καὶ ἄλογος, εἰ δὴ τοιαύτη παντὸς σώματος φύσις; διόπερ ἡμῖν ἐν ταῖς θεολογίαις πάντα τοῖς εἰρημένοις τἀναντία παραληπτέον, ὅτι γε μὴ οὐρανὸς ὢν τυγχάνει μήτε αἰθὴρ μήτε ἥλιος μήτε σελήνη μήτε ὁ σύμπας τῶν ἄστρων χορὸς μήτ' αὐτὸς ἀθρόως ὁ πᾶς κόσμος, ἔργα δὲ χειρῶν αὐτοῦ ταῦτα σμικρὰ ἔτι καὶ βραχέα, ταῖς ἀσωμάτοις καὶ νοεραῖς οὐσίαις παραβαλλόμενα· ὅτι δὴ πᾶν σῶμα φθαρτὸν καὶ ἄλογον, τοιαύτη δὲ τῶν ὁρωμένων ἡ φύσις, τὰ δ' ἐπέκεινα ἐν ἀοράτοις λογικὰ καὶ ἀθάνατα, συνδιαιωνίζοντα τῇ τοῦ παμβασιλέως θεοῦ μακαρίᾳ ζωῇ, μακρῷ γένοιτ' ἂν τῶν ὁρωμένων ἁπάντων βελτίω. 3.10.12 εἰκότως οὖν τὰ θεῖα λόγια περὶ τῶν ὁρωμένων τοῦ κόσμου μερῶν ὧδέ πως παιδεύει· «ὄψομαι τοὺς οὐρανούς, ἔργα τῶν δακτύλων σου, σελήνην καὶ ἀστέρας, ἃ σὺ ἐθεμελίωσας.» καὶ πάλιν· «καὶ σὺ κατ' ἀρχάς, κύριε, τὴν γῆν ἐθεμελίωσας, καὶ ἔργα τῶν χειρῶν σου εἰσὶν οἱ οὐρανοί.» καὶ