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having a beginning, and those from him have a beginning; but of God the Father, as being without beginning, those from him also came forth without beginning, being with him eternally, just as the radiance and the heat are with the sun, and just as the word and the mind are with our soul, according to the examples of the divine Scripture. 5.237 And certain fathers also used more corporeal examples concerning the holy Trinity, some as of an ever-flowing spring and two rivers pouring forth from it, others of a tree, as of a root, and a branch, and a fruit. But all, whether apostles or fathers, as all being human, inspired by the Spirit, spoke in a more corporeal way, as in examples, which are, however, very far short of the divine essence; but in the future state, rising again as spiritual beings, we will know more accurately concerning God. 5.238 Thus, then, wishing to present the hypostases here, the divine Scripture often uses this particular idiom, as speaking of the creation from the Father, and the incarnation from the Son, and the resurrection from the Holy Spirit; but in fact the holy Trinity accomplishes all things. 5.239 And the blessed Moses, saying as from God, "Let us make man," the voice is indeed plural, but it can also be understood of two only. Since, therefore, from the beginning God saw fit not to hand down to us the confession of the holy Trinity, so that we would not think of them in a more corporeal way, as bodies, and suspect there to be three gods, when he came to the creation of man, he then enigmatically uttered a plural voice, which could also be understood of two only. 5.240 And after a time, again he pronounces an even more plural voice, saying: "Come, let us go down and confuse their languages"; and the "come" can no longer be understood of two only, but of three or more. Again, therefore, after very many years, so that we would not be carried away into a multitude, he established the voice again enigmatically on the Trinity through Isaiah, saying "holy" three times, and joining them into one God and saying: "Lord Sabaoth, the whole earth is full of his glory," and having declared the number of the three hypostases and the oneness of the Godhead. And in the time of the Lord Christ in the flesh, he taught plainly, saying: "Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit," speaking of one name, but dividing it into three hypostases. And since he was about to preach these things plainly through the form of a servant, foretelling this at the creation of man, he first uttered the plural voice: "Let us make man." 5.241 When, therefore, the Lord comes from heaven, he brings the faithful and righteous and worthy with himself into the kingdom of heaven, both men and angels, but the rest, some he leaves outside the firmament, and others below around the earth, just as he also says in the Gospel at the consummation thus: "Then two will be in the field, one is taken and one is left; and two women grinding at the mill, one is taken and one is left," meaning to say: All those in the field, who are in the world, whether rich or of middling station, that is, in whatever rank anyone is found worthy, he is taken up into heaven, but if he is not worthy, he is left on the earth; then he also speaks of those at the mill, the slaves, that even from the slaves, if they are found worthy, they are taken up into heaven, but if unworthy, they are left on the earth; and by speaking in the masculine for the first and in the feminine for the second, he signified the difference of gender; whether males or females will be found, both among the righteous and among the sinners. 5.242 And the apostle Paul also signifies this in the second Epistle to the Thessalonians, saying thus: "In the revelation of the Lord Jesus from heaven with his mighty angels, in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the Gospel of our Lord Jesus, who will pay the penalty of destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the

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ἐσχηκότος καὶ οἱ ἐξ αὐτοῦ ἀρχὴν ἔχουσι· τοῦ δὲ Θεοῦ καὶ Πατρὸς ὡς ἀνάρχου καὶ οἱ ἐξ αὐτοῦ ἀνάρχως προῆλθον, συνόντες αὐτῷ ἀϊδίως, ὥσπερ τὸ ἀπαύγασμα καὶ ἡ θέρμη τῷ ἡλίῳ, καὶ ὥσπερ ὁ λόγος καὶ ὁ νοῦς τῇ ἡμετέρᾳ ψυχῇ, κατὰ τὰ τῆς θείας Γραφῆς παραδείγματα. 5.237 Ἐχρήσαντο δὲ καί τινες πατέρες παραδείγμασι σωματικωτέροις ἐπὶ τῆς ἁγίας Τριάδος, οἱ μὲν ὡς ἐπὶ ἀενάου πηγῆς καὶ ἐξ αὐτῆς δύο ποταμοὺς προχεομένης, οἱ δὲ δένδρῳ, ὡς ῥίζῃ, καὶ κλάδῳ καὶ καρπῷ. Πάντες δέ, εἴτε ἀπόστολοι εἴτε πατέρες, ὡς ἄνθρωποι πάντες, σωματικώτερον, ἐκ τοῦ Πνεύματος ἐμπνευσθέντες, ἐξεῖπον, ὡς ἐν παραδείγμασι, λειπόμενα μέντοι πάνυ τῆς θείας οὐσίας· ἐν τῇ δὲ μελλούσῃ καταστάσει ὡς πνευματικοὶ ἀνιστάμενοι πάλιν ἀκριβέστερον γνωσόμεθα περὶ Θεοῦ. 5.238 Οὕτως οὖν ἐνταῦθα τὰς ὑποστάσεις παραστῆσαι βουλομένη ἡ θεία Γραφὴ κέχρηται πολλάκις τῷ ἰδιώματι τούτῳ, ὡς ἀπὸ Πατρὸς λέγουσα τὴν δημιουργίαν, καὶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ τὴν ἐνανθρώπησιν, καὶ τοῦ Πνεύματος τοῦ ἁγίου τὴν ἀνάστασιν· ἀλλ' οὖν γε τὰ πάντα ἡ ἁγία Τριὰς κατεργάζεται. 5.239 Καὶ ὁ μακάριος δὲ Μωϋσῆς εἰπὼν ὡς ἀπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ τὸ "ποιήσωμεν ἄνθρωπον", καὶ πληθυντικὴ μέν ἐστιν ἡ φωνή, δυναμένη δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ δύο μόνων νοεῖσθαι. Ἐπειδὴ οὖν ἐξ ἀρχῆς ὁ Θεὸς ἐδοκίμασε μὴ παραδοῦναι ἡμῖν τὴν τῆς ἁγίας Τριάδος ὁμολογίαν, ἵνα μὴ ὡς σώματα σωματικώτερον αὐτὰ νοήσωμεν καὶ ὑποπτεύσωμεν τρεῖς εἶναι θεούς, ἐπὶ τῆς δημιουργίας τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐλθὼν τότε αἰνιγματωδῶς πληθυντικὴν φωνὴν ἐξεφώνησε, δυναμένην δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ δύο μόνων νοεῖσθαι. 5.240 Μετὰ δὲ χρόνον πάλιν ἔτι πληθυντικωτέραν φωνὴν ἀποφαίνεται λέγων· "∆εῦτε, καταβάντες συγχέωμεν αὐτῶν τὰς γλώσσας"· τὸ δὲ "δεῦτε" οὐκ ἔτι ἐπὶ δύο μόνων δύναται νοεῖσθαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐπὶ τριῶν καὶ πλειόνων. Πάλιν οὖν μετὰ πολλὰ πάνυ ἔτη, ἵνα μὴ εἰς πλῆθος ἐξενεχθῶμεν, ἔστησε τὴν φωνὴν πάλιν αἰνιγματωδῶς ἐπὶ τῆς Τριάδος διὰ Ἠσαΐου τριχῶς λέγων τὸ "ἅγιος", συνάπτων δὲ εἰς ἕνα Θεὸν καὶ λέγων· "Κύριος Σαβαώθ, πλήρης πᾶσα ἡ γῆ τῆς δόξης αὐτοῦ", καὶ τῶν τριῶν ὑποστάσεων δηλώσας τὸν ἀριθμὸν καὶ τῆς θεότητος τὸ μοναδικόν. Ἐπὶ δὲ τοῦ ∆εσπότου Χριστοῦ κατὰ σάρκα φανερῶς ἐδίδαξε λέγων· "Πορευθέντες μαθητεύσατε πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, βαπτίζοντες αὐτοὺς εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ Πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος", ἓν ὄνομα μὲν εἰπών, εἰς τρεῖς δὲ ὑποστάσεις διελών. Καὶ ἐπειδήπερ ἤμελλε ταῦτα φανερῶς κηρύττειν διὰ τῆς τοῦ δούλου μορφῆς, προμηνύων ἐπὶ τῆς δημιουργίας τοῦ ἀνθρώπου τὴν πληθυντικὴν φωνὴν πρώτως ἐξεφώνησε τό· "Ποιήσωμεν ἄνθρωπον." 5.241 Ἡνίκα τοίνυν παραγίνεται ἐξ οὐρανοῦ ὁ Κύριος τοὺς μὲν πιστοὺς καὶ δικαίους καὶ ἀξίους μεθ' ἑαυτοῦ εἰσφέρει εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν, ἀνθρώπους τε καὶ ἀγγέλους, τοὺς δὲ λοιπούς, τοὺς μὲν ἔξωθεν τοῦ στερεώματος ἐᾷ, τοὺς δὲ κάτω περὶ τὴν γῆν, καθάπερ καὶ ἐν τῷ Εὐαγγελίῳ λέγει ἐν τῇ συντελείᾳ οὕτως· "Τότε ἔσονται δύο ἐν τῷ ἀγρῷ, εἷς παραλαμβάνεται καὶ εἷς ἀφίεται· καὶ δύο ἀλήθουσαι ἐν τῷ μύλῳ, μία παραλαμβάνεται καὶ μία ἀφίεται", ἵνα εἴπῃ· Τοὺς ἐν τῷ ἀγρῷ πάντας τοὺς ὄντας ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ, εἴτε πλουσίους εἴτε καὶ μέσους, δηλονότι ἐν οἱᾳδηποτοῦν τάξει εὑρέθη τις ἄξιος, παραλαμβάνεται ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, ἐὰν δὲ μὴ ᾖ ἄξιος, ἀφίεται ἐν τῇ γῇ· εἶτα καὶ τοὺς ἐν τῷ μύλῳ τοὺς δούλους λέγει, ὅτι καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν δούλων, ἐὰν εὑρεθῶσιν ἄξιοι, παραλαμβάνονται ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, εἰ δὲ ἀνάξιοι, ἀφίενται ἐν τῇ γῇ· τὸ δὲ ἀρρενικῶς ἐπὶ τῶν πρώτων εἰπὼν καὶ τὸ θηλυκῶς ἐπὶ τῶν δευτέρων, ἐσήμανεν τὴν διαφορὰν τοῦ γένους· εἴτε ἄρρενες εὑρεθήσονται εἴτε θήλειαι, εἴς τε τοὺς δικαίους, εἴς τε τοὺς ἁμαρτωλούς. 5.242 Καὶ ὁ ἀπόστολος δὲ Παῦλος σημαίνει ἐν τῇ πρὸς Θεσσαλονικεῖς δευτέρᾳ Ἐπιστολῇ λέγων οὕτως· "Ἐν τῇἀποκαλύψει τοῦ Κυρίου Ἰησοῦ ἀπ' οὐρανοῦ μετ' ἀγγέλων δυνάμεως αὐτοῦ, ἐν πυρὶ φλογός, διδόντος ἐκδίκησιν τοῖς μὴ εἰδόσι Θεὸν καὶ τοῖς μὴ ὑπακούουσι τῷ Εὐαγγελίῳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ, οἵτινες δίκην τίσουσιν ὀλέθριον ἀπὸ προσώπου Κυρίου καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς