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that it would certainly be noble and good was undermining the training. Therefore, it is expedient that we do not know whether we will be good or evil. 6.11.51 But since we have said that God has blinded us to future things, see if we can thus clarify a certain passage in question from Exodus: “Who has made the slow of speech and the deaf, and the seeing and the blind? Is it not I, the Lord God?” so that He may have made the same man blind and seeing: seeing, on the one hand, with regard to present things, but blind, on the other, with regard to future things. For the matter concerning the slow of speech and 6.11.52 the deaf is not for the present occasion to explain. But that for many of the things in our power, most of the causes are things not in our power, we too will confess; if these things had not happened, I mean the things not in our power, certain of these things in our power would not have been done. But certain of these things in our power are done in consequence of these prior events that were not in our power, it being possible, given the same prior events, 6.11.53 to do other things besides what we do. But if anyone seeks for that which is in our power to be detached from the whole, so that we do not choose these things on account of certain things that have happened to us, he has forgotten that he is a part of the cosmos and is contained within human 6.11.54 society and the surrounding environment. Moderately, then, and as in an epitome, I think it has been shown that God's foreknowledge is in no way compelling of the things foreknown. Come, let us also contend about the stars being in no way causative 6.11.55 of human affairs, but only indicative. It is clear, then, that if a certain configuration of the stars were thought to be causative of certain events concerning a man—for let the discussion now be about this—the configuration that came into being today, for instance, concerning this man could not be conceived to have caused past events concerning another man or even other men; for every 6.11.56 cause is prior to its effect. But as far as the teachings of those who profess such things are concerned, things prior to the configuration are considered to be foretold 6.11.57 concerning men. For they profess, in a certain place, having taken the hour of this man's birth, to comprehend how each of the planets was positioned vertically, or at this degree of the zodiac or at the minutes within it, and which star of the zodiac was at the eastern horizon, and which at the western, and which at midheaven, and which 6.11.58 at the point opposite midheaven. And when they have set the stars, which they think have configured themselves for them, configured in this way at the time of so-and-so’s birth, from the time of the birth of the one they are examining they investigate not only future things, but also past things and things that happened before the birth and conception of the person in question, concerning his father, what sort of man he is, rich or poor, whole in body or maimed, better or worse in character, possessing little or possessing much, having this or that occupation. And the same things concerning the mother and older brothers, if there happen 6.11.59 to be any. But for the present, let us grant that they comprehend the true positions of things, concerning which we will also show later that this is not so. Let us ask, then, of those who suppose that human affairs are compelled by the stars, in what way a configuration of today, of such and such a kind, 6.11.60 can have caused earlier things. For if this is impossible, by which indeed the truth concerning earlier times is discovered, it is clear that the stars, moving thus in heaven, did not cause past events that happened before they were in this position. But if this is so, perhaps one who grants that they speak the truth, having paid attention to the things said about future events, will say that they speak the truth 6.11.61 not because the stars cause them, but because they only signify them. But if someone should assert that the stars do not cause past events, but that other configurations were the cause of their coming into being, and the present configuration has only signified them, but that future events are revealed from the present configuration at so-and-so's birth, let him set forth the difference of being able to show from the stars that

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πάντως καλὸν καὶ ἀγαθὸν ἔσεσθαι ὑπεκλύει τὴν ἄσκησιν. διόπερ συμφερόντως οὐκ ἴσμεν οὔτε εἰ ἀγαθοὶ οὔτε εἰ πονηροὶ ἐσόμεθα. 6.11.51 Ἐπεὶ δὲ εἰρήκαμεν ὅτι ἀπετύφλωσεν ἡμᾶς πρὸς τὰ μέλλοντα ὁ θεός, ζητούμενόν τι ῥητὸν ἀπὸ τῆς Ἐξόδου ὅρα εἰ δυνάμεθα οὕτως σαφηνίσαι· «Τίς ἐποίησε δύσκωφον καὶ κωφόν, καὶ βλέποντα καὶ τυφλόν; οὐκ ἐγὼ κύριος ὁ θεός;» ἵνα τὸν αὐτὸν τυφλὸν καὶ βλέποντα πεποιηκὼς ᾖ· βλέποντα μὲν πρὸς τὰ ἐνεστηκότα, τυφλὸν δὲ πρὸς τὰ μέλλοντα. τὸ γὰρ περὶ τοῦ δυσκώφου καὶ 6.11.52 κωφοῦ οὐ τοῦ παρόντος καιροῦ διηγήσασθαι. ὅτι μέντοι γε πολλῶν τῶν ἐφ' ἡμῖν αἴτια πλεῖστα τῶν οὐκ ἐφ' ἡμῖν ἐστι, καὶ ἡμεῖς ὁμολογήσομεν· ὧν μὴ γενομένων, λέγω δὲ τῶν οὐκ ἐφ' ἡμῖν, οὐκ ἂν τάδε τινὰ τῶν ἐφ' ἡμῖν ἐπράττετο. πράττεται δὲ τάδε τινὰ τῶν ἐφ' ἡμῖν ἀκόλουθα τοῖσδε τοῖς προγενομένοις οὐκ ἐφ' ἡμῖν, ἐνδεχομένου τοῦ ἐπὶ τοῖς αὐτοῖς προγενομένοις 6.11.53 καὶ ἕτερα πρᾶξαι παρ' ἃ πράττομεν. εἰ δέ τις ζητεῖ τὸ ἐφ' ἡμῖν ἀπολελυμένον εἶναι τοῦ παντός, ὥστε μὴ διὰ τάδε τινὰ συμβεβηκότα ἡμῖν ἡμᾶς αἱρεῖσθαι τάδε, ἐπιλέλησται κόσμου μέρος ὢν καὶ ἐμπεριεχόμενος ἀνθρώπων 6.11.54 κοινωνίᾳ καὶ τοῦ περιέχοντος. μετρίως μὲν οὖν ὡς ἐν ἐπιτομῇ οἶμαι ἀποδεδεῖχθαι τὸ τὴν πρόγνωσιν τοῦ θεοῦ μὴ εἶναι καταναγκαστικὴν τῶν προεγνωσμένων πάντως. Φέρε δὲ ἀγωνισώμεθα καὶ περὶ τοῦ τοὺς ἀστέρας μηδαμῶς εἶναι ποιητι6.11.55 κοὺς τῶν ἐν ἀνθρώποις, σημαντικοὺς δὲ μόνον. σαφὲς δὴ ὅτι εἰ ὅδε τις ὁ σχηματισμὸς τῶν ἀστέρων ποιητικὸς νομίζοιτο τῶνδέ τινων τῶν γινομένων περὶ τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἔστω γὰρ περὶ τούτου νῦν ζητεῖσθαι τὸν λόγον, οὐκ ἂν ὁ σήμερον φέρε εἰπεῖν γενόμενος σχηματισμὸς περὶ τόνδε δύναιτο νοεῖσθαι πεποιηκέναι τὰ παρεληλυθότα περὶ ἕτερον ἢ καὶ περὶ ἑτέρους· πᾶν γὰρ τὸ 6.11.56 ποιοῦν πρεσβύτερον τοῦ πεποιημένου. ὅσον δὲ ἐπὶ τοῖς μαθήμασι τῶν τὰ τοιαῦτα ἐπαγγελλομένων, πρεσβύτερα τοῦ σχηματισμοῦ προλέγεσθαι 6.11.57 νομίζεται περὶ τοὺς ἀνθρώπους. ἐπαγγέλλονται γὰρ τόνδε τινὰ τόπον, τὴν ὥραν λαβόντες τοῦδε τοῦ ἀνθρώπου, καταλαμβάνειν πῶς ἕκαστος τῶν πλανωμένων κατὰ κάθετον ἢ τῆσδε τῆς μοίρας τοῦ ζῳδίου ἢ τῶν ἐν αὐτῷ λεπτῶν καὶ ποῖος ἀστὴρ τοῦ ζῳδιακοῦ κατὰ τοῦ ἀνατολικοῦ ἐτύγχανεν ὁρίζοντος ποῖός τε κατὰ τοῦ δυτικοῦ καὶ τίς κατὰ τοῦ μεσουρανήματος καὶ τίς 6.11.58 κατὰ τοῦ ἀντιμεσουρανήματος. καὶ ἐπὰν θῶσι τοὺς ἀστέρας, οὓς νομίζουσιν ἑαυτοῖς ἐσχηματικέναι, κατὰ τὸν καιρὸν τῆς τοῦ δεῖνος γενέσεως ἐσχηματισμένους οὑτωσί, τῷ χρόνῳ τῆς ἀποτέξεως τοῦ περὶ οὗ σκοποῦσιν οὐ μόνον τὰ μέλλοντα ἐξετάζουσιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ παρεληλυθότα καὶ τὰ πρὸ τῆς γενέσεως καὶ τῆς σπορᾶς τοῦ περὶ οὗ ὁ λόγος γεγενημένα, περὶ πατρὸς ποταπὸς ὢν τυγχάνει, πλούσιος ἢ πένης, ὁλόκληρος τὸ σῶμα ἢ σεσινωμένος, τὸ ἦθος βελτίων ἢ χείρων, ἀκτήμων ἢ πολυκτήμων, τήνδε τὴν πρᾶξιν ἢ τήνδε ἔχων. τὰ δ' αὐτὰ καὶ περὶ τῆς μητρὸς καὶ περὶ πρεσβυτέρων ἀδελφῶν, ἐὰν τύχωσιν 6.11.59 ὄντες. ἔστω δὲ ἡμᾶς ἐπὶ τοῦ παρόντος προσίεσθαι αὐτοὺς καταλαμβάνειν τὰ ἐν τόπῳ ἀληθῆ, περὶ οὗ καὶ αὐτοῦ ὕστερον δείξομεν ὅτι οὐχ οὕτως ἔχει. πευσώμεθα τοίνυν τῶν ὑπολαμβανόντων κατηναγκάσθαι ὑπὸ τῶν ἄστρων τὰ τῶν ἀνθρώπων πράγματα, τίνα τρόπον ὁ σήμερον σχηματισμὸς ὁ τοιόσδε 6.11.60 δύναται πεποιηκέναι τὰ πρεσβύτερα. εἰ γὰρ τοῦτο ἀμήχανον, καθ' ὃ δὴ [ὅτι] εὑρίσκεται τὸ περὶ τῶν πρεσβυτέρων τοῦ χρόνου ἀληθές, σαφὲς τὸ μὴ πεποιηκέναι τοὺς ἀστέρας οὑτωσὶ κινουμένους ἐν οὐρανῷ τὰ παρεληλυθότα καὶ γενόμενα πρὸ τοῦ οὕτως ἔχειν αὐτούς. εἰ δὲ τοῦτο, τάχα ὁ προσιέμενος ἀληθεύειν αὐτούς, ἐπιστήσας τοῖς περὶ τῶν μελλόντων λεγομένοις, ἐρεῖ ἀλη6.11.61 θεύειν αὐτοὺς οὐ τῷ ποιεῖν τοὺς ἀστέρας, ἀλλὰ τῷ σημαίνειν μόνον. ἐὰν δέ τις φάσκῃ τὰ μὲν παρεληλυθότα μὴ ποιεῖν τοὺς ἀστέρας, ἀλλὰ ἄλλους μὲν σχηματισμοὺς τοὺς τῆς ἐκείνων γενέσεως αἰτίους γεγονέναι, τὸν δὲ νῦν σχηματισμὸν σεσημαγκέναι μόνον, τὰ μέντοι μέλλοντα δηλοῦσθαι ἀπὸ τοῦ ἐνεστηκότος σχηματισμοῦ τῆς τοῦ δεῖνος γενέσεως, παραστησάτω τὴν διαφορὰν τοῦ ἀπὸ τῶν ἀστέρων δύνασθαι δεῖξαι ὅτι