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each day twelve degrees and some minutes, but of the highest circle of all, that is, of the twelve months, the circle of the sun falls behind one degree each day. 9.3 These things the invisible Powers move in an orderly and rational way according to the will of God, having received this law from Him, as it is written in David: "Bless the Lord, all His angels, mighty in strength, who do His word, hearkening to the voice of His words. Bless the Lord, all His hosts, His ministers who do His will." To Him be glory for ever. Amen. 9.4 And these courses along the length of the three circles, of the twelve houses of the stars and of the two great luminaries, being moved by divine help, and reasoning from the phenomena through sight, as we were able to explain in a Christian manner, we have expounded; but concerning the course in latitude of the two great luminaries, and their transitions, ascents and descents, conjunctions and full moons, conjunctions and diametrically opposite courses, parallaxes and phases, and both regular and irregular motions, and the northern and southern limit, and the other names which those outside wish to name, in which they calculate the eclipses of the same luminaries, to those who know and philosophize about such things we concede the calculation, both to calculate and to foretell eclipses, we being in no way harmed by this, but rather even being supported. 9.5 For if such names—I mean the transitions and ascents and descents and all the rest—are preserved in our model, the contention is out of place. For we have been eager to show nothing else through this treatise of ours than that these eclipses of both luminaries also happen and are consistent in this model of ours, with heaven itself not moving at all from east to west, or from west to east, nor being spherical, or of many spheres, but with the stars and the luminaries in the air accomplishing their course and order through the rational Powers, and the figure of the two heavens and the earth being preserved according to the divine Scripture, in which God from the beginning wrought the two states, both the present and the one to come. 9.6 These circles, which we have drawn, we did not draw as spherical heavens, continuous and solid in their bodies and transparent, according to the nonsense of those outside, but wishing to signify the circular, airy courses of the stars accomplished by the angels, we drew these, so that they might be easily seen by those who look. In the second book we mentioned, saying that the angels move the luminaries and the stars and all other things, as having been appointed for the service of men, but here we have also drawn the figure, as it is possible to set it down in writing. 9.7 For we have testimonies from the divine Scripture signifying that these things are so; for that they move circularly, the blessed David signifies, saying: "Thou wilt bless the crown of the year of thy goodness," wonderfully calling the circle of the twelve months a "crown," as crowning the earth from above with beauty, whence he added: "And thy plains shall be filled with fatness." For by the circle and the succession of the seasons the fruits of the earth both grow and are ripened. 9.8 Moreover, Moses, in the type of the earth, that is the table, placed above in a circle the twelve loaves of the shewbread, three at each corner, signifying by the corners the four seasons of three months, by the circle the twelve months, and by the loaves the yearly fruits of the earth, enigmatically making the months a circle crowning the earth from above. 9.9 Likewise he also arranged the twelve tribes again in a circle around the tabernacle, three to the east and three to the south and three to the west and three to the north, beginning from the east, then going up to the south and again coming down to the west, then also running through the remaining north according to the motion of the stars and the position of the earth.

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ἑκάστην ἡμέραν μοίρας δεκαδύο καὶ λεπτά τινα, τοῦ δὲ ἀνωτέρου πάντων κύκλου, τουτέστι τῶν δεκαδύο μηνῶν, ὑστερεῖ ὁ κύκλος τοῦ ἡλίου καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν μοῖραν μίαν. 9.3 Ταῦτα δὲ κινοῦσιν αἱ ἀόρατοι ∆υνάμεις εὐτάκτως καὶ λογικῶς κατὰ βούλησιν Θεοῦ, νόμον τοῦτον εἰληφότες παρ' αὐτοῦ, καθὰ γέγραπται ἐν τῷ ∆αυΐδ· "Εὐλογεῖτε τὸν Κύριον, πάντες ἄγγελοι αὐτοῦ, δυνατοὶ ἰσχύϊ, ποιοῦντες τὸν λόγον αὐτοῦ τοῦ ἀκοῦσαι τῆς φωνῆς τῶν λόγων αὐτοῦ. Εὐλογεῖτε τὸν Κύριον, πᾶσαι αἱ ∆υνάμεις αὐτοῦ, λειτουργοὶ αὐτοῦ ποιοῦντες τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ." Αὐτῷ ἡ δόξα εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας. Ἀμήν. 9.4 Καὶ ταύτας κατὰ τὸ μῆκος τῶν τριῶν κύκλων πορείας, τῶν δώδεκα οἴκων τῶν ἀστέρων καὶ τῶν δύο μεγάλων φωστήρων, ἔκ τε θείας βοηθείας κινούμενοι, ἔκ τε τῶν φαινομένων διὰ τῆς ὄψεως συλλογιζόμενοι, ὡς ἐνῆν ἡμᾶς χριστιανικῶς εἰπεῖν, ἐξηγησάμεθα· περὶ δὲ τῆς κατὰ πλάτος τῶν δύο μεγάλων φωστήρων πορείας, μεταβάσεών τε ἀνόδων τε καὶ καθόδων, συνόδων καὶ πανσελήνων, συνδέσμων τε καὶ ἐκδιαμέτρων δρόμων, παραλλάξεών τε καὶ φάσεων, καὶ ὁμαλῶν κινήσεων καὶ ἀνωμάλων, καὶ βορείου πέρατος καὶ νοτίου, καὶ λοιπῶν ὀνομάτων ὧν βούλονται οἱ ἐκτὸς ὀνομάζειν, ἐν οἷς τὰς ἐκλείψεις τῶν αὐτῶν φωστήρων ψηφίζουσι, τοῖς εἰδόσι καὶ φιλοσοφοῦσι περὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα τὴν ψῆφον παραχωροῦμεν, ψηφίζειν τε καὶ προλέγειν ἐκλείψεις, μηδὲν ἡμεῖς ἐκ τούτου βλαπτόμενοι, ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον καὶ συνιστάμενοι. 9.5 Εἰ γὰρ τὰ τοιαῦτα ὀνόματα, τὰς μεταβάσεις λέγω καὶ ἀνόδους καὶ καθόδους καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ πάντα, ἐν τῷ ἡμετέρῳ σῴζονται σχήματι, ἄκαιρος ἡ φιλονεικία. Οὐδὲν γὰρ ἕτερον δεικνύναι ἐσπουδάσαμεν διὰ ταύτης ἡμῶν τῆς πραγματείας ἢ ὅτι καὶ αὗται αἱ ἐκλείψεις ἀμφοτέρων τῶν φωστήρων συμβαίνουσί τε καὶ ἁρμόζουσιν ἐν τούτῳ τῷ ἡμετέρῳ σχήματι, αὐτοῦ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ μηδόλως κινουμένου ἀπὸ ἀνατολῶν ἐπὶ δυσμάς, ἢ ἀπὸ δυσμῶν ἐπὶ ἀνατολάς, μήτε σφαιροειδοῦς ὄντος, ἢ σφαιρῶν πολλῶν, ἀλλὰ τῶν ἄστρων καὶ τῶν φωστήρων ἐν τῷ ἀέρι διὰ τῶν λογικῶν ∆υνάμεων καὶ τὸν δρόμον καὶ τὴν τάξιν ἐκτελούντων, καὶ τοῦ σχήματος τῶν δύο οὐρανῶν καὶ τῆς γῆς σῳζομένων κατὰ τὴν θείαν Γραφήν, ἐν ᾧ τὰς δύο καταστάσεις, τήν τε νῦν καὶ τὴν μέλλουσαν, ἐξ ἀρχῆς ὁ Θεὸς εἰργάσατο. 9.6 Τοὺς κύκλους τούτους, οὓς κατεγράψαμεν, οὐκ οὐρανοὺς σφαιροειδεῖς, συνεχεῖς καὶ ναστοὺς τοῖς σώμασι καὶ διαφανεῖς, κατὰ τὴν τῶν ἔξωθεν ληρωδίαν κατεγράψαμεν, ἀλλὰ πορείας ἄστρων κυκλοφερεῖς ἀερίας διὰ τῶν ἀγγέλων ἐκτελουμένας θέλοντες σημᾶναι, τούτους κατεγράψαμεν, ἵν' εὐσύνοπτα τοῖς θεωμένοις γένωνται. Ἐν τῷ δευτέρῳ λόγῳ μεμνήμεθα εἰπόντες τοὺς ἀγγέλους κινεῖν τοὺς φωστῆρας καὶ τὰ ἄστρα καὶ τὰ ἄλλα πάντα, ὡς πρὸς διακονίαν τῶν ἀνθρώπων τεταγμένους, ἐνταῦθα δὲ καὶ τὸ σχῆμα κατεγράψαμεν, ὡς ἐνδέχεται αὐτὸ γραφῇ παραδοῦναι. 9.7 Ἔχομεν γὰρ μαρτυρίας ἐκ τῆς θείας Γραφῆς σημαινούσας ὅτι ταῦτα οὕτως ἔχει· ὅτι μὲν γὰρ κυκλοφορητικῶς κινοῦνται, ὁ μακάριος ∆αυῒδ σημαίνει λέγων· "Εὐλογήσεις τὸν στέφανον τοῦ ἐνιαυτοῦ τῆς χρηστότητός σου", θαυμασίως τὸν κύκλον τῶν δώδεκα μηνῶν "στέφανον" ἐξειπών, ὡς στεφανοῦντα τῷ κάλλει ἄνωθεν τὴν γῆν, ὅθεν ἐπήνεγκε· "Καὶ τὰ πεδία σου πλησθήσονται πιότητος." Τῷ γὰρ κύκλῳ καὶ τῇ διαδοχῇ τῶν τροπῶν οἱ καρποὶ τῆς γῆς αὔξουσί τε καὶ πεπαίνονται. 9.8 Οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ καὶ ὁ Μωϋσῆς ἐν μὲν τῷ τύπῳ τῆς γῆς, τουτέστι τῇ τραπέζῃ, ἄνωθεν ἔθηκε κύκλῳ τοὺς δώδεκα τῆς προθέσεως ἄρτους κατὰ γωνίαν τρεῖς, σημαίνων μὲν διὰ τῶν γωνιῶν τὰς τέσσαρας τροπὰς ἀπὸ μηνῶν τριῶν, διὰ δὲ τοῦ κύκλου τοὺς δώδεκα μῆνας, διὰ δὲ τῶν ἄρτων τοὺς ἐνιαυσίους καρποὺς τῆς γῆς, αἰνιγματωδῶς κύκλον τοὺς μῆνας ἐργασάμενος ἄνωθεν στεφανοῦντα τὴν γῆν. 9.9 Ὁμοίως καὶ τὰς δεκαδύο φυλὰς κύκλῳ πάλιν τῆς σκηνῆς ἔταξεν, εἰς ἀνατολὰς τρεῖς καὶ εἰς νότον τρεῖς καὶ εἰς δυσμὰς τρεῖς καὶ εἰς βορρᾶν τρεῖς, ἐξ ἀνατολῶν μὲν ἀρξάμε νος, εἶτα ἀνιὼν ἐπὶ τὸν νότον καὶ πάλιν κατιὼν ἐπὶ τὴν δύσιν, εἶτα καὶ τὸ λοιπὸν τὸν βορρᾶν διατρέχων κατὰ τὴν κίνησιν τῶν ἄστρων καὶ τῆς θέσεως τῆς γῆς.