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of cares, so as to waste our energy on foolish arguments and to fight against those who say that 20we declare the care of men to be more authoritative and more sovereign20 than the providence of God, and the negligence that troubles the more careless 20we transfer to20 20His20 20providence20? This, verbatim, is the voice of the one who slanders us. But I consider being zealous about such things to be equal to occupying oneself with old wives' dreams. For to think that the dignity of rule and sovereignty is preserved for the divine nature in the form of certain sounds, and that the great 20providence of God20 is shown in this, and again that God is neglectful and disregards the providence that befits Him, and to slander us because human beings, having received rational power from God, then use words with authority for the indication of things, what else is such a thing but an old wives' tale or the dream of drunkards? For the true power and authority and rule and sovereignty of God, at least according to our account, does not have its being in syllables, or else in this way any inventor of words whatsoever would come to be of equal honor with God. But infinite ages and the beauties of the cosmos and the splendors of the luminaries and the wonders on land and sea and the armies of angels and super-cosmic powers, and whatever else in the upper realm we hear from Scripture exists through riddles, these are the things that testify to God's power over all. But one who bears witness to the sound of a voice for those who are by nature able to speak will commit no impiety against the one who gave the voice. For we do not think this is anything great, to invent sounds significant of things. For that which Scripture, according to the historical cosmogony, gave the name of "man" to the creature like us, Job calls this one "mortal," and some of the pagans call him "light," and others "articulate," to say nothing of the differences of this name according to each nation. Do we then bring their honors to an equal level with God, because they too invented some sounds equivalent to the appellation "man," by which the subject is similarly indicated? But we must leave aside this idle talk, as I said before, and we must treat the subsequent revilings as of no account, in which he says that we 20falsify the divine20 20oracles`20`, 20and with all impunity slander all other things and God himself20. Let us proceed in our discourse to what remains. He again puts forward a saying of the teacher, which goes like this. "1Similarly and in no different way we have been taught the use of 'conception' from the divine word. Our Lord Jesus Christ, indicating the nature of the Godhead to men, signifies it by certain properties observed in himself, calling himself a door and bread and a way and a vine and a shepherd and a light."2 Therefore, the things said insolently against us by him on these points (for thus dialectic taught him to fight against his opponents), I think it is proper to overlook and not to be at all disturbed by his boyish follies. But let us examine this sharp and inescapable saying, which is proposed for the overthrow of our argument. 20"Who,"20 he says, 20"of the saints is it who testifies that these names are said of the Lord by 'conception'?"20 And who forbids it, I might say to him, judging it to be blasphemous to consider the use of the names in 'conception'? For if he says that not being said is proof of being forbidden, he will surely agree that not being forbidden is a sign of being permitted. Is the Lord named by these names, or does Eunomius deny these things also? But if he denies that these words are said of Christ, we have won without a fight. For what victory could be more manifest than to show the adversary openly fighting against God by rejecting the divine words of the gospel? But if he truly confesses that Christ is named by these things, let him state the manner in which the names are piously applied to the Only-Begotten. Does he define "the stone" as indicative of his nature?

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φροντίδων, ὥστε τοῖς ἀνοήτοις τῶν λόγων προσαναλίσκειν τὴν σπουδὴν καὶ διαμάχεσθαι πρὸς τοὺς λέγοντας ὅτι 20ἀρχηγικωτέραν μὲν καὶ κυριωτέραν20 ἀποφαίνομεν 20τὴν τῶν ἀνθρώπων φροντίδα τῆς τοῦ θεοῦ κη δεμονίας, τὴν δὲ τοῖς ἀμελεστέροις ἐνοχλοῦ σαν ὀλιγωρίαν εἰς20 τὴν 20ἐκείνου20 μεταφέρομεν 20πρό 2.1.290 νοιαν20; ταῦτα ἐπὶ λέξεως ἡ τοῦ διαβάλλοντος ἡμᾶς ἔχει φωνή. ἐγὼ δὲ ἴσον ἡγοῦμαι περί τε τὰ τοιαῦτα σπου δάζειν καὶ γρᾳδίων ὀνείροις ἀποσχολάζειν. τὸ γὰρ ἐν τύπῳ φθόγγων τινῶν οἴεσθαι τῇ θείᾳ φύσει τὸ τῆς ἀρχῆς καὶ κυριότητος ἀξίωμα διαφολάσσειν καὶ τὴν μεγάλην 20τοῦ θεοῦ κηδεμονίαν20 ἐν τούτῳ δεικνύειν ἀμελεῖν τε πάλιν τὸν θεὸν καὶ ὀλιγωρεῖν τῆς προσηκούσης αὐτῷ προνοίας ἡμᾶς τε διαβάλλειν, ὅτι τὴν λογικὴν δύναμιν παρὰ τοῦ θεοῦ λαβόντες οἱ ἄνθρωποι ἔπειτα κατ' ἐξουσίαν τοῖς λό γοις πρὸς τὴν τῶν πραγμάτων δήλωσιν κέχρηνται, τί ἄλλο ἢ οὐχὶ γραώδης μῦθος ἢ κραιπαλώντων ὄνειρος τὸ τοιοῦτόν 2.1.291 ἐστιν; ἡ γὰρ ἀληθὴς τοῦ θεοῦ δύναμίς τε καὶ ἐξουσία καὶ ἀρχὴ καὶ κυριότης κατά γε τὸν ἡμέτερον λόγον οὐκ ἐν συλλαβαῖς τὸ εἶναι ἔχει, ἢ οὕτως ἂν εἰς ὁμότιμον ἔλθοι τῷ θεῷ πᾶς ὁστισοῦν εὑρετὴς ῥημάτων γενόμενος, ἀλλ' αἰῶνες ἄπειροι καὶ κόσμου κάλλη καὶ φωστήρων αὐγαὶ καὶ τὰ ἐπὶ γῆς καὶ θαλάττης θαύματα ἀγγέλων τε στρα τιαὶ καὶ ὑπερκόσμιοι δυνάμεις καὶ εἴ τι ἄλλο κατὰ τὴν ἄνω λῆξιν παρὰ τῆς γραφῆς εἶναι δι' αἰνιγμάτων ἀκούομεν, ταῦτά ἐστι τὰ μαρτυροῦντα τῷ θεῷ ὑπὲρ πάντα δύναμιν. 2.1.292 φωνῆς δὲ ἦχον τοῖς πεφυκόσι φθέγγεσθαι μαρτυρῶν τις οὐδὲν εἰς τὸν δεδωκότα τὴν φωνὴν ἀσεβήσει. οὐδὲ γὰρ μέγα τι τοῦτο οἰόμεθα τὸ σημαντικὰς τῶν πραγμάτων ἐξευρίσκειν φωνάς. ᾧ γὰρ ἡ γραφὴ κατὰ τὴν ἱστορικὴν κοσμογένειαν ἀνθρώπου ὄνομα τῷ καθ' ἡμᾶς ἔθετο πλάσ ματι, τοῦτον ὁ Ἰὼβ βροτὸν ὀνομάζει καί τινες τῶν ἔξωθεν φῶτα καὶ μέροπα ἕτεροι, ἵνα ἐάσω τὰς κατὰ ἔθνος τοῦ 2.1.293 ὀνόματος τούτου διαφοράς. ἆρ' οὖν εἰς ἴσον ἄγομεν τῷ θεῷ καὶ τὰς ἐκείνων τιμάς, ὅτι ἰσοδυναμούσας τῇ τοῦ ἀν θρώπου προσηγορίᾳ κἀκεῖνοί τινας ἐξεῦρον φωνάς, δι' ὧν ὁμοίως δηλοῦται τὸ ὑποκείμενον; ἀλλὰ ταύτην μὲν τὴν ματαιολογίαν ἐατέον ἡμῖν, καθὼς προεῖπον, καὶ τὰς ἐφεξῆς λοιδορίας ἐν οὐδενὸς μέρει θετέον, ἐν αἷς 20καταψεύδε σθαι τῶν θείων20 ἡμᾶς 20λογίων20 φησί, 20καὶ κατὰ πᾶσαν ἄδειαν συκοφαντεῖν τά τε ἄλλα πάντα καὶ αὐτὸν τὸν θεόν20. μετέλθωμεν δὲ τῷ λόγῳ πρὸς τὰ λειπόμενα. 2.1.294 Προτίθησι πάλιν τοῦ διδασκάλου ῥῆσιν ἔχουσαν οὕτως. "1παραπλησίως δὲ καὶ οὐδὲν ἀλλοιότερον τὴν τῆς ἐπινοίας χρῆσιν παρὰ τοῦ θείου δεδιδάγμεθα λόγου. ὁ κύριος ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦς Χριστὸς τὴν φύσιν τῆς θεότητος τοῖς ἀνθρώποις παραδηλῶν ἰδιώμασί τισι τοῖς θεωρουμένοις περὶ αὐτὸν ἀποσημαίνει ταύτην, θύραν ἑαυτὸν λέγων καὶ ἄρτον καὶ 2.1.295 ὁδὸν καὶ ἄμπελον καὶ ποιμένα καὶ φῶς."2 τὰ μὲν οὖν ἐφ' ὕβρει ῥηθέντα καθ' ἡμῶν παρ' αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τούτοις (οὕτω γὰρ αὐτὸν ἡ διαλεκτικὴ μάχεσθαι τοῖς ἀντιλέγουσιν ἐδι δάξατο), παριδεῖν οἶμαι πρέπειν καὶ μηδὲν πρὸς τὰς μειρα κιώδεις ἀνοίας ὑποταράσσεσθαι. ἀλλὰ τὸ δριμὺ τοῦτο καὶ ἄφυκτον ῥῆμα κατεξετάσωμεν, ὅπερ εἰς ἀνατροπὴν τοῦ καθ' ἡμᾶς προτείνεται λόγου. 20τίς20, φησί, 20τῶν ἁγίων ἐστὶν ὃς κατ' ἐπίνοιαν λέγεσθαι τῷ κυρίῳ ταῦτα 2.1.296 μαρτυρεῖ τὰ ὀνόματα20; τίς δὲ ἀπαγορεύει, πρὸς αὐτὸν εἴποιμι ἄν, βλάσφημον εἶναι κρίνων τὸ ἐν ἐπινοίᾳ θεωρεῖν τῶν ὀνομάτων τὴν χρῆσιν; εἰ γὰρ τὸ μὴ εἰρῆσθαι τοῦ κεκωλῦσθαι λέγει τεκμήριον εἶναι, καὶ τὸ μὴ κεκωλῦσθαι τοῦ συγκεχωρῆσθαι σημεῖον εἶναι πάντως συνθήσεται. ὀνο μάζεται τοῖς ὀνόμασι τούτοις ὁ κύριος, ἢ καὶ περὶ τούτων ἔξαρνος ὁ Εὐνόμιος γίνεται; ἀλλ' εἰ μὲν ἀρνεῖται τὸ λέ γεσθαι ταύτας ἐπὶ Χριστοῦ τὰς φωνάς, ἀμαχητὶ κεκρατή 2.1.297 καμεν. τίς γὰρ ἂν περιφανεστέρα γένοιτο νίκη τοῦ δεῖξαι φανερῶς θεομαχοῦντα τὸν ἀντικείμενον διὰ τοῦ τὰς θείας τοῦ εὐαγγελίου φωνὰς παραγράφεσθαι; εἰ δὲ ἀληθῶς ὁμο λογεῖ ταῦτα τὸν Χριστὸν ὀνομάζεσθαι, λεγέτω τὸν τρόπον καθ' ὃν εὐσεβῶς ἐφαρμόζεται τῷ μονογενεῖ τὰ ὀνό ματα. μὴ τῆς φύσεως αὐτοῦ τὸν λίθον ἐνδεικτικὸν διορί ζεται;