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These things have been truly understood as 6.11.62 from things that cause, but those as from things that only signify. And not being able to give the difference, they will reasonably agree that none of the things concerning men happen from the stars, but, as we have said before, are, if at all, signified; as if one did not also receive the things that have passed and the things that are to come from the stars, 6.11.63 but from the mind of God through some prophetic word. For just as we have previously demonstrated that God's knowing the things that will be done by each person in no way harms the doctrine of what is in our power, so also the signs, which God ordained for signifying, do not hinder what is in our power, but similarly to a book containing future things prophetically, the whole heaven is able, being, as it were, a book of God, to contain 6.11.64 the future things. Therefore in the Prayer of Joseph what is said by Jacob can be understood in this way: "For I read on the tablets of heaven all that will happen to you and to your sons." And perhaps also the phrase "the heaven will be rolled up like a book" indicates that the words contained therein, signifying the things that will be, will be brought to completion and, so to speak, fulfilled, just as 6.11.65 the prophecies are said to have been fulfilled by having come to pass. And thus it will be that the stars have been made for signs, according to the voice that says, "Let them be for signs." But Jeremiah, turning us toward ourselves and removing the fear of things thought to be signified, and perhaps also of things supposed to come from there, says: "Be not dismayed at the signs of heaven." 6.11.66 Let us see also a second argument, how the stars cannot be causative, but, if at all, significative. For from very many nativities it is possible to derive the things concerning one man—and we say this hypothetically, conceding that knowledge of them can be acquired by men—for example, concerning a certain man suffering a certain thing and dying by falling among robbers and being killed, they say it is possible to derive this both from his own nativity and if 6.11.67 he happens to have several brothers, from the nativity of each of them. For they think that the nativity of each one contains that a brother will die at the hands of robbers, and likewise that of his father and that of his mother and that of his wife and of his sons and 6.11.68 of his servants and his dearest friends, and perhaps also of his murderers themselves. How then is it possible for the one who is contained in so many nativities—if this be conceded to them—to be caused by the configuration of the stars of this particular nativity rather than of those? For it is also implausible to say that the configuration in the nativity of this particular person has caused these things, but that the one in the nativity of these others has not caused 6.11.69 them, but only signified them. For it is foolish to say that the nativity of all contained in each case the cause of this one being killed; so that in fifty nativities, hypothetically speaking, is contained that a certain person is killed. I do not know how they will be able to save the argument that for nearly all in Judea the configuration at birth is of such a kind that they receive circumcision on the eighth day, being mutilated and wounded and falling into inflammation and injuries and, at the same time as their entry into life, needing physicians; but that for the Ishmaelites in Arabia it is of such a kind that all are circumcised 6.11.70 at thirteen years of age. For this is recorded about them. And again for certain peoples in Ethiopia, for these the sockets of the knees are removed, and for the Amazons one of their breasts. For how do the stars cause these things for these nations? I think that if we were to investigate, we would not be able 6.11.71 to establish anything true to say about them. But with so many prognostic methods being available, I do not know how men have run aground on saying that augury and divination by sacrifice do not contain the efficient cause, but only signify, and 6.11.72 likewise star-gazing, but no longer the casting of nativities. For if it is known—that we may also concede that it is known—and it happens from the source from which the knowledge is derived, why will the things that happen come more from the stars than from the birds of omen, and more from the birds of omen than from

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τάδε μὲν νενόηται ἀληθῆ ὡς 6.11.62 ἀπὸ ποιούντων, τάδε δὲ ὡς ἀπὸ σημαινόντων μόνον. μὴ ἔχοντες δὲ δοῦναι τὴν διαφοράν, εὐγνωμόνως συγκαταθήσονται μηδὲν τῶν κατὰ τοὺς ἀνθρώπους ἀπὸ τῶν ἀστέρων γίνεσθαι, ἀλλ' ὡς προειρήκαμεν, εἰ ἄρα, σημαίνεσθαι· ὡς εἰ μὴ καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν ἀστέρων τις ἐλάμβανε τὰ παρεληλυθότα καὶ τὰ μέλλοντα, 6.11.63 ἀλλ' ἀπὸ τοῦ νοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ διά τινος λόγου προφητικοῦ. ὥσπερ γὰρ προαπεδείξαμεν ὅτι οὐδὲν λυπεῖ τὸν περὶ τοῦ ἐφ' ἡμῖν λόγον τὸ τὸν θεὸν εἰδέναι τὰ πραχθησόμενα ἑκάστῳ, οὕτως οὐδὲ τὰ σημεῖα, ἃ ἔταξεν ὁ θεὸς εἰς τὸ σημαίνειν, ἐμποδίζει τὸ ἐφ' ἡμῖν, ἀλλὰ παραπλησίως βιβλίῳ περιέχοντι τὰ μέλλοντα προφητικῶς ὁ πᾶς οὐρανὸς δύναται, οἱονεὶ βίβλος ὢν θεοῦ, περιέχειν 6.11.64 τὰ μέλλοντα. διόπερ ἐν τῇ προσευχῇ τοῦ Ἰωσὴφ δύναται οὕτω νοεῖσθαι τὸ λεγόμενον ὑπὸ τοῦ Ἰακώβ· «Ἀνέγνων γὰρ ἐν ταῖς πλαξὶ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ὅσα συμβήσεται ὑμῖν καὶ τοῖς υἱοῖς ὑμῶν.» τάχα δὲ καὶ τὸ «εἱλιγήσεται ὁ οὐρανὸς ὡς βιβλίον» τοὺς λόγους τοὺς περιεχομένους σημαντικοὺς τῶν ἐσομένων δηλοῖ ἀπαρτισθησομένους καὶ ἵν' οὕτως εἴπω πληρωθησομένους, ὥσπερ λέγονται 6.11.65 αἱ προφητεῖαι πεπληρῶσθαι τῷ ἐκβεβηκέναι. καὶ οὕτως ἔσται εἰς σημεῖα τὰ ἄστρα γεγονότα, κατὰ τὴν λέγουσαν φωνὴν «ἔστωσαν εἰς σημεῖα». ὁ δὲ Ἱερεμίας ἐπιστρέφων ἡμᾶς πρὸς ἑαυτοὺς καὶ περιαιρῶν φόβον τὸν ἐπὶ τοῖς νομιζομένοις σημαίνεσθαι, τάχα δὲ καὶ ὑπολαμβανομένοις ἐκεῖθεν ἔρχεσθαί φησιν· «Ἀπὸ τῶν σημείων τοῦ οὐρανοῦ μὴ φοβεῖσθε.» 6.11.66 Ἴδωμεν καὶ δεύτερον ἐπιχείρημα, πῶς οὐ δύνανται οἱ ἀστέρες εἶναι ποιητικοί, ἀλλ', εἰ ἄρα, σημαντικοί. ἀπὸ πλείστων γὰρ ὅσων γενέσεων ἔστι λαβεῖν τὰ περὶ ἑνὸς ἀνθρώπου τοῦτο δὲ καθ' ὑπόθεσιν λέγομεν, συγχωροῦντες τὸ ἐπιστήμην αὐτῶν ἀναλαμβάνεσθαι ὑπ' ἀνθρώπων δύνασθαι· φέρε γὰρ εἰπεῖν περὶ τοῦ τόνδε πείσεσθαι τόδε καὶ τεθνήξεσθαι περιπεσόντα λῃσταῖς καὶ ἀναιρεθέντα φασὶ δύνασθαι λαμβάνειν ἀπό τε τῆς ἰδίας αὐτοῦ γενέσεως κἂν 6.11.67 τύχῃ ἔχων ἀδελφοὺς πλείονας, ἀπὸ τῆς ἑκάστου αὐτῶν. περιέχειν γὰρ οἴονται τὴν ἑκάστου γένεσιν ἀδελφὸν ὑπὸ λῃστῶν τεθνηξόμενον, ὁμοίως καὶ τὴν τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ τὴν τῆς μητρὸς καὶ τὴν τῆς γαμετῆς καὶ τῶν υἱῶν αὐτοῦ καὶ 6.11.68 τῶν οἰκετῶν καὶ τῶν φιλτάτων, τάχα δὲ καὶ αὐτῶν τῶν ἀναιρούντων. πῶς οὖν δυνατὸν τὸν τοσαύταις γενέσεσιν, ἵνα αὐτοῖς τοῦτο συγχωρηθῇ, ἐμπεριεχόμενον γίνεσθαι ὑπὸ τοῦ σχηματισμοῦ τῶν ἀστέρων τῆσδε μᾶλλον τῆς γενέσεως ἢ τῶνδε; ἀπίθανον γὰρ καὶ τὸ φάσκειν τὸν σχηματισμὸν τὸν ἐν τῇ ἰδίᾳ τοῦδέ τινος γενέσει ταῦτα πεποιηκέναι, τὸν δὲ ἐν τῇ τῶνδε γενέσει μὴ πεποιη6.11.69 κέναι, ἀλλὰ σεσημαγκέναι μόνον. ἠλίθιον γὰρ τὸ εἰπεῖν ὅτι ἡ πάντων γένεσις περιεῖχε καθ' ἕκαστον ποιητικὸν τοῦ τόνδε ἀναιρεθῆναι· ὥστε ἐν γενέσεσιν, καθ' ὑπόθεσιν λέγω, πεντήκοντα περιέχεσθαι τὸ τόνδε τινὰ ἀναιρεθῆναι. οὐκ οἶδ' ὅπως δυνήσονται σῶσαι τὸ τῶν μὲν ἐν Ἰουδαίᾳ σχεδὸν πάντων τοιόνδε εἶναι τὸν σχηματισμὸν ἐπὶ τῆς γενέσεως, ὡς ὀκταήμερον αὐτοὺς λαμβάνειν περιτομήν, ἀκρωτηριαζομένους καὶ ἑλκουμένους καὶ φλεγμονῇ περιπεσουμένους καὶ τραύμασι καὶ ἅμα τῇ εἰς τὸν βίον εἰσόδῳ ἰατρῶν δεομένους· τῶν δὲ ἐν Ἰσμαηλίταις τοῖς κατὰ τὴν Ἀραβίαν τοιόνδε ὡς πάντας περιτέ 6.11.70 μνεσθαι τρισκαιδεκαετεῖς. τοῦτο γὰρ ἱστόρηται περὶ αὐτῶν. καὶ πάλιν τῶνδέ τινων τῶν ἐν Αἰθίοψι τοῖσδε τὰς κόγχας τῶν γονάτων περιαιρεῖσθαι καὶ τῶν Ἀμαζόνων τοὺς ἑτέρους τῶν μαστῶν. πῶς γὰρ ταῦτα ποιοῦσιν οἱ ἀστέρες τοῖσδε τοῖς ἔθνεσιν; οἶμαι ὅτι <εἰ> ἐπιστήσαιμεν, οὐδὲ μέχρι τοῦ στῆσαι δυνησό6.11.71 μεθά τι ἀληθὲς εἰπεῖν περὶ αὐτῶν. τοσούτων δὲ φερομένων ὁδῶν προγνωστικῶν, οὐκ οἶδ' ὅπως ἐξώκειλαν οἱ ἄνθρωποι ἐπὶ τὸ τὴν μὲν οἰωνιστικὴν καὶ τὴν θυτικὴν μὴ λέγειν περιέχειν τὸ ποιοῦν αἴτιον, ἀλλὰ σημαίνειν μόνον, 6.11.72 καὶ τὴν ἀστεροσκοπικήν, οὐκέτι δὲ τὴν γενεθλιαλογικήν. εἰ γὰρ ἐπιγινώσκεται ἵνα καὶ χαρισώμεθα τὸ γινώσκεσθαι, γίνεται δὲ ἐκεῖθεν ὅθεν ἡ γνῶσις λαμβάνεται, τί μᾶλλον ἀπὸ τῶν ἀστέρων ἢ ἀπὸ τῶν οἰωνῶν ἔσται τὰ γινόμενα καὶ μᾶλλον ἀπὸ τῶν οἰωνῶν ἢ ἀπὸ