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in the covenant the teaching concerning the holy, consubstantial, and life-giving Trinity is mystically sown, so that even Philo, although being a Jewish man and a zealot, through the writings he has left behind, fought against his own religion. For examining the saying "in the image of God I made man," he was compelled by the truth and forced to theologize about the Word of God. For what if he calls the co-eternal Word, who is superior 1.508 to number and time, a second, not grasping the truth? Nevertheless, he had a concept of another person. He did not experience this only here, but also in trying to interpret "God" and "Lord" he conceived the idea of the most royal Trinity. For in stating that God is one, he did not have recourse to the number of a monad, but to the mystery of the holy Trinity, which is more unified than things entirely divisible, and richer than things truly monadic. And so it powerfully seized his soul that he was compelled to state this explicitly and to leave it in his writings. For he said there are two powers of the Being, of which the one that is creative and beneficent by nature is called God, and the one that is royal and punitive, Lord. Not going far from the one who said, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God, a power not unsubstantial but substantial, and all-powerful, and creator of substance, and equal in strength to him whose power he is. And again the same Philo, expressing himself concerning the divine vision which Moses saw in the bush, said: A most astonishing sight. Then after a little while he sees in the midst of the flame a certain most beautiful form, like none of the visible things, a most godlike image, flashing forth a light more radiant than fire; which if anyone supposed it to be an image of the Being, he has supposed well.

But if anyone wishes to learn accurately about the image, let him hear Paul saying concerning the Son "who is the image of the invisible God." Therefore that 1.509 man also touches upon orthodox theology. For do not seek precision from one who was able at all through sincere understanding to behold the truth and to fight against his own religion. But consider this, that he did not confine theology to one person, as the uneducated and idle teachers of the Jews, possessed by a certain preconception, dogmatize. He was led to this concept, as I suppose, not only from these most striking things, but also from "Let us make man in our image and likeness," and from "the Lord rained fire from the Lord," and from "The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand," and from "for in you is God, and you are God." For those who say that God is holy ten thousand times, and dare to misinterpret "holy, holy, holy Lord," the saying "I have sought your face, your face, Lord, will I seek; do not turn your face from me" brilliantly refutes. For if the one who spoke did not mystically proclaim the holy Trinity, he would rightly be required to pay the penalty for redundancy. Not only in this (for I think it is necessary to rush to a clearer saying) but also in "Offer to God a sacrifice of praise, and pay your vows to the Most High, and call upon me in the day of your trouble, and I will deliver you, and you will glorify me." For if the Trinity were not clearly proclaimed here, it should have been said "Offer to God a sacrifice of praise, and pay your vows to the Most High, and call upon him in the day of your trouble, and 1.510 he will deliver you, and you will glorify him." And so it was not said, 1.510 but it has been said as it has been said. For clearly through these and many other things the Old Testament proclaims that it does not signify the lordship of one person, but of three hypostases of one essence, in order to expose the unsound concept of the Jews as if of one person. Whom Sabellius also followed. Perhaps having been strained by the excessive equality of the Son to the Father into dogmatizing one hypostasis, he banished the polytheism of the Greeks, of whom Arius and Eunomius were found to be disciples, the difference of the hypostases

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διαθήκῃ περὶ τῆς ἁγίας καὶ ὁμοουσίου καὶ ζῳοποιοῦ τριάδος μυστικῶς ἡ διδασκαλία ἐγκατέ σπαρται, ὡς καὶ Φίλωνα καίτοι γε Ἰουδαῖον ἄνδρα ὑπάρχοντα καὶ ζηλωτήν, δι' ὧν καταλέλοιπε συγγραμμάτων, ἀπομάχεσθαι τῇ οἰκείᾳ θρησκείᾳ. βασανίζων γὰρ τὸ εἰρημένον "ἐν εἰκόνι θεοῦ ἐποίησα τὸν ἄνθρωπον," ἠναγκάσθη ὑπὸ τῆς ἀληθείας καὶ ἐξε βιάσθη καὶ τὸν τοῦ θεοῦ λόγον θεολογῆσαι. τί γὰρ εἰ καὶ δεύτε ρον τὸν συναΐδιον λόγον τῷ πατρὶ καὶ ἀριθμοῦ καὶ χρόνων ἀνώτε 1.508 ρον ὄντα καλεῖ, τῆς ἀληθείας μὴ ἐφικνούμενος; ὅμως ἔννοιαν ἔσχε καὶ ἑτέρου προσώπου. οὐκ ἐνταῦθα δὴ μόνον ἔπαθε τοῦτο, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ θεὸς καὶ τὸ κύριος ἑρμηνεῦσαι πειρώμενος τῆς βασι λικωτάτης τριάδος ἔννοιαν ἔσχε. φάσκων γὰρ ὅτι εἷς ἐστὶν ὁ θεός, οὐ πρὸς τὸν ἀριθμὸν κατέδραμε τῆς μονάδος, ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὸ μυ στήριον τῆς ἁγίας τριάδος τὸ τῶν μὲν πάντῃ διαιρετῶν ἑνικώτε ρον, τῶν δὲ ὄντως μοναδικῶν ἀφθονώτερον. καὶ οὕτω κατὰ κράτος εἷλεν αὐτοῦ τὴν ψυχὴν ὡς ἀναγκασθῆναι διαρρήδην τοῦτο φάναι καὶ ἐν γράμμασι καταλεῖψαι. δύο μὲν γὰρ εἶπε τὰς τοῦ ὄντος δυνάμεις, ὧν ἡ μὲν ποιητικὴ καὶ εὐεργετικὴ φύσει καλεῖται θεός, ἡ δὲ βασιλικὴ καὶ τιμωρητικὴ κύριος. οὐ πόρρω βαίνων τοῦ φήσαντος, Χριστὸς θεοῦ δύναμις καὶ θεοῦ σοφία, δύναμις οὐκ ἀνυπόστατος ἀλλ' ἐνυπόστατος, καὶ παντοδύναμος, καὶ ὑπο στάσεως δημιουργός, καὶ ἰσοσθενὴς ἐκείνου οὗ δύναμις ἐστί. καὶ πάλιν ὁ αὐτὸς Φίλων περὶ θεοῦ θεάματος, οὗ εἶδε Μωϋσῆς ἐν τῇ βάτῳ, ἐκφράζων ἔφη· θέαμα ἐκπληκτικώτατον. εἶτα ὁρᾷ μετ' ὀλίγον κατὰ μέσον τῆς φλογὸς μορφήν τινα περικαλλεστάτην, ἐμφερῆ οὐδενὶ τῶν ὁρατῶν, θεοειδέστατον ἄγαλμα, φῶς αὐγοει δέστερον τοῦ πυρὸς ἀπαστράπτουσαν· ἣν ἐάν τις ὑπετόπησεν εἰ κόνα τοῦ ὄντος εἶναι, καλῶς ὑπείληφεν.

Eἰ δέ τις περὶ τῆς εἰκό νος ἀκριβῶς μαθεῖν βούλεται, ἀκουέτω Παύλου λέγοντος περὶ τοῦ υἱοῦ "ὅς ἐστιν εἰκὼν τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ ἀοράτου." οὐκοῦν κἀκεῖ 1.509 νος θεολογίας ὀρθοδόξου ἅπτεται. μὴ γὰρ τὴν ἀκρίβειαν ζήτει παρὰ τοῦ δυνηθέντος ὅλως διὰ σύνεσιν εἰλικρινῆ κατοπτεῦσαι τὴν ἀλήθειαν καὶ τῇ ἰδίᾳ θρησκείᾳ ἀπομάχεσθαι. ἀλλ' ἐκεῖνο ἐννόει, ὅτι εἰς ἓν πρόσωπον οὐ συνέκλεισε τὴν θεολογίαν, ὡς οἱ ἀπαίδευ τοι καὶ κακόσχολοι τῶν Ἰουδαίων καθηγηταὶ προλήψει τινὶ κατ εχόμενοι δογματίζουσιν. οὐκ ἐκ τούτων δὲ μόνων πληκτικωτάτων ὄντων εἰς ταύτην προήχθη, ὥς γε ἡγοῦμαι, τὴν ἔννοιαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐκ τοῦ "ποιήσωμεν ἄνθρωπον κατ' εἰκόνα ἡμετέραν καὶ καθ' ὁμοίωσιν," καὶ ἐκ τοῦ "ἔβρεξε κύριος πῦρ παρὰ κυρίου," καὶ ἐκ τοῦ "εἶπεν ὁ κύριος τῷ κυρίῳ μου, κάθου ἐκ δεξιῶν μου," καὶ ἐκ τοῦ "ὅτι ἐν σοὶ ὁ θεός, καὶ σὺ εἶ ὁ θεός." τοὺς γὰρ λέγον τας ὅτι μυριάκις ἐστὶν ἅγιος ὁ θεός, καὶ τό "ἅγιος ἅγιος ἅγιος κύ ριος" παρερμηνεῦσαι τολμῶντας, λαμπρῶς ἐλέγχει τό "ἐξεζήτησα τὸ πρόσωπόν σου, τὸ πρόσωπόν σου κύριε ζητήσω, μὴ ἀποστρέ ψῃς τὸ πρόσωπόν σου ἀπ' ἐμοῦ." εἰ μὴ γὰρ τὴν ἁγίαν ἀνεκή ρυττε μυστικῶς τριάδα ὁ φράσας, περιττολογίας δίκαιος ἂν εἴη ἀπαιτηθῆναι δίκην. οὐ μόνον δὲ ἐν τούτῳ (χρῆναι γὰρ οἶμαι ἐπὶ σαφέστερον ὁρμῆσαι ῥητὸν) ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν τῷ "θῦσον τῷ θεῷ θυ σίας αἰνέσεως, καὶ ἀπόδος τῷ ὑψίστῳ τὰς εὐχάς σου, καὶ ἐπι κάλεσαί με ἐν ἡμέρᾳ θλίψεώς σου, καὶ ἐξελοῦμαί σε καὶ δοξάσεις με." εἰ μὴ γὰρ ἡ τριὰς ἐνταῦθα σαφῶς ἐκηρύττετο, ἔδει ῥηθῆ ναι "θῦσον τῷ θεῷ θυσίαν αἰνέσεως, καὶ ἀπόδος τῷ ὑψίστῳ τὰς εὐχάς σου, καὶ ἐπικάλεσαι αὐτὸν ἐν ἡμέρᾳ θλίψεώς σου, καὶ 1.510 ἐξελεῖταί σε, καὶ δοξάσεις αὐτόν." καὶ οὕτω μὲν οὐκ ἐρρήθη, 1.510 εἴρηται δὲ ὡς εἴρηται. σαφῶς γὰρ διὰ τούτων καὶ δι' ἄλλων πολλῶν ἡ παλαιὰ διαθήκη κηρύττει ὅτι οὐχ ἑνὸς προσώπου ση μαίνει δεσποτείαν, ἀλλὰ τριῶν μὲν ὑποστάσεων μιᾶς δὲ οὐσίας, ἵνα καὶ Ἰουδαίων στηλιτεύσῃ τὴν ὡς ἐφ' ἑνὸς προσώπου οὐχ ὑγιῆ ἔννοιαν. οἷς καὶ Σαβέλλιος ἠκολούθησεν. ἴσως δὲ ἐκ τῆς ἄγαν τοῦ υἱοῦ πρὸς τὸν πατέρα ἰσότητος εἰς τὸ μίαν ὑπόστασιν δογμα τίσαι νευρωθείς, τὴν πολυθεΐαν Ἑλλήνων ἐξωστράκισεν, ὧν Ἄρειος καὶ Εὐνόμιος ἑάλωσαν εἶναι φοιτηταί, τὴν τῶν ὑποστά σεων διαφορὰν