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not to be seen. Therefore, what is said about such things, they also declare about the only-begotten; and just as hunters are said to catch the passage of wild beasts with certain pits, and to hide their plot by covering the mouths of the pits with some rotten and unsubstantial things, so that the pit might appear level with the adjacent ground, so the heresy devises something of this sort against men, covering the pit of impiety with these fair-sounding and pious names as with some superficial roof, so that the more irrational, thinking that their preaching is the same as the true faith because of the agreement of words, running to the mere name of Son and Only-begotten, might fall into the pit, the meaning of the titles not supporting their foundation, but bringing them down into the pit of the denial of Christ. For this reason it makes mention of a generated substance, leaving no room for anyone for communion, and calls him Only-begotten; these are the coverings 3.2.132 of the pit. But when someone stands by, before being caught in the chasm, and brings to the word the test of reason as a kind of hand, he sees the destruction of idolatry dug under the dogma. For approaching him as God and Son of God, he finds a creature of God set forth for worship. For this reason they carry about the name of the Only-begotten up and down, so that the destruction might become easily acceptable to those being deceived, as if someone, having mixed poison with bread, should offer death to those in need of food, who would not have accepted the deadly poison offered bare, had they not been enticed by its appearance. Wisely, therefore, at least according to his 3.2.133 own mind, he looks to what is being pursued. For if he had completely cast out the word "Son" from his dogma, the deceit would have been unacceptable to men, the denial being openly proclaimed in a manifest preaching; but now, having left only the name, but having transferred the meaning to the concept of creation, he both establishes 3.2.134 idolatry and steals away the refutation. But since we were not commanded to honor God with our lips, nor is piety judged by the sound of a voice, but it is necessary first to believe in the Son with the heart for righteousness, and then to confess with the mouth for salvation, and those who say in their heart that there is no God, even if with their mouth they confess him Lord, have become corrupt and abominable, as the prophecy says, for this reason I say it is necessary to look to the mind of those who allegedly put forward the words of the faith, not to be enticed by the 3.2.135 sounds. If therefore one who says "Son" does not look to a creature through the word, he is ours and not of our adversaries; but if anyone applies the name of "Son" to the creation, he will be ranked among the idolaters. For they too called Dagon and Bel and the dragon "god," but for this reason they did not worship God. For the wood and the bronze and the beast are not God. 3.2.136 But why must we, by guessing at the thought, uncover the hidden deceit with our argument and perhaps provide occasions to the hearers, as if we were not truly bringing these charges against our enemies? For behold, he lays out the blasphemy naked before us, concealing the guile with no veil, but speaking boldly his absurdities with a free 3.2.137 voice. And thus are the writings. 20We, therefore20, he says, 20finding nothing else besides the substance of the Son that admits of generation, we think it necessary to assign the titles to the substance itself, or else we say Son and Begotten in vain and with mere words, if we separate these from the substance. Starting from these things, we also confirm 3.2.138 that the substances are different from one another20. I think there is no need for the absurdity in what has been said to be refuted by our words; for the very reading of the writings is sufficient to denounce the blasphemy. But let us examine it thus. He says 20to be different20 20the substances from one another20 of both the Son and of the Father. What then is signified by 20"different"20? first

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μὴ θεωρεῖσθαι. ἃ τοίνυν ἐπὶ τῶν τοιούτων λέγεται, ταῦτα καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ μονογενοῦς ἀποφαίνονται· καὶ καθάπερ οἱ θηρεύοντες λέγονται βόθροις τισὶν ὑπολαμβάνειν τῶν θηρίων τὴν πάροδον, κρύπτειν δὲ τὴν ἐπιβουλὴν διὰ σαθρῶν τινῶν καὶ ἀνυποστάτων τὰ στόμια τῶν βόθρων ἐπικαλύπτοντες, ὡς ἂν ἰσόπεδον φαίνοιτο τῷ παρακειμένῳ τὸ βάραθρον, τοιοῦτόν τι μηχανᾶται κατὰ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἡ αἵρεσις, τὸν βόθρον τῆς ἀσεβείας διὰ τῶν εὐφήμων τούτων καὶ εὐσεβῶν ὀνομάτων οἷον διά τινος ἐπιπολαίου στέγης ἐπικαλύπτουσα, ὥστε τοὺς ἀλογωτέρους, ταὐτὸν εἶναι τῇ ἀληθινῇ πίστει τὸ τούτων κήρυγμα διὰ τῆς τῶν ῥημάτων ὁμολογίας νομίζοντας, πρὸς ψιλὸν τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ μονογενοῦς ἐπιδραμόντας, κενεμβα τῆσαι τῷ βόθρῳ, τῆς τῶν προσηγοριῶν σημασίας οὐχ ὑπε ρειδούσης αὐτῶν τὴν βάσιν, ἀλλ' εἰς τὸ τῆς ἀρνήσεως τοῦ Χριστοῦ βάραθρον καταφερούσης. διὰ τοῦτο γεννηθείσης οὐσίας μέμνηται μηδενὶ χώραν εἰς κοινωνίαν καταλιπούσης καὶ μονογενῆ ὀνομάζει· ταῦτά ἐστι τὰ τοῦ βόθρου καλύμ 3.2.132 ματα. ἐπειδὰν δέ τις παραστάς, πρὶν ὑποληφθῆναι τῷ χά σματι, καθάπερ τινὰ χεῖρα τὴν διὰ τοῦ λόγου πεῖραν ἐπα γάγῃ τῷ λόγῳ, βλέπει τὸν τῆς εἰδωλολατρείας ὄλεθρον ὑπορωρυγμένον τῷ δόγματι. ὡς γὰρ θεῷ καὶ υἱῷ θεοῦ προσερχόμενος κτίσμα θεοῦ εὑρίσκει τῇ λατρεία προκεί μενον. διὰ τοῦτο ἄνω καὶ κάτω τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ μονογενοῦς περιφέρουσιν, ἵν' εὐπαράδεκτος γένηται τοῖς ἀπατωμένοις ὁ ὄλεθρος, ὡς εἴ τις ἄρτῳ τὸ δηλητήριον καταμίξας θανάτῳ τοὺς δεομένους τῆς τροφῆς δεξιώσαιτο, οὐκ ἂν δεξαμένους γυμνὸν προσέσθαι τὸ φθοροποιὸν δηλητήριον, μὴ δελεα σθέντας πρὸς τὸ φαινόμενον. σοφῶς τοίνυν κατά γε τὸν 3.2.133 ἑαυτοῦ νοῦν πρὸς τὸ σπουδαζόμενον βλέπει. εἰ γὰρ παντε λῶς ἐξέβαλε τοῦ καθ' ἑαυτὸν δόγματος τοῦ υἱοῦ τὴν φωνήν, ἀπαράδεκτος ἡ ἀπάτη τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ἐγίνετο, φα νερῶς διαβοωμένης τῆς ἀρνήσεως ἐν προδήλῳ κηρύγματι· νυνὶ δὲ καταλιπὼν μόνον τὸ ὄνομα, τὸ δὲ σημαινόμενον πρὸς τὴν τῆς κτίσεως ἔννοιαν μεταγαγὼν καὶ κατορθοῖ 3.2.134 τὴν εἰδωλολατρείαν καὶ ὑποκλέπτει τὸν ἔλεγχον. ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ οὐ χείλεσι τιμᾶν τὸν θεὸν προσετάχθημεν οὐδὲ ἐν ἤχῳ φωνῆς ἡ εὐσέβεια κρίνεται, ἀλλὰ χρὴ πρῶτον τῇ καρδίᾳ πιστευθῆναι τὸν υἱὸν εἰς δικαιοσύνην καὶ τότε ὁμο λογηθῆναι τῷ στόματι εἰς σωτηρίαν, καὶ οἱ ἐν καρδίᾳ λέγοντες μὴ εἶναι θεόν, κἂν τῷ στόματι κύριον ὁμολογῶσι, διεφθάρησαν καὶ ἐβδελύχθησαν, καθὼς ἡ προφητεία φησί, διὰ τοῦτό φημι χρῆναι πρὸς τὸν νοῦν βλέπειν τῶν προβαλ λομένων δῆθεν τὰ τῆς πίστεως ῥήματα, μὴ πρὸς τὰς 3.2.135 φωνὰς δελεάζεσθαι. εἰ οὖν υἱὸν λέγων οὐ πρὸς κτίσμα βλέπει διὰ τῆς λέξεως, ἡμέτερος καὶ οὐχὶ τῶν ἐναντίων ἐστί· εἰ δέ τις υἱοῦ ὄνομα τῇ κτίσει τίθεται, ἐν τοῖς εἰδω λολάτραις τετάξεται. καὶ γὰρ ἐκεῖνοι καὶ τὸν ∆αγὼν καὶ τὸν Βὴλ καὶ τὸν δράκοντα θεὸν ὠνόμαζον, ἀλλ' οὐ διὰ τοῦτο καὶ τὸν θεὸν προσεκύνουν. οὐ γὰρ θεὸς τὸ ξύλον καὶ ὁ χαλκὸς καὶ τὸ θηρίον. 3.2.136 Ἀλλὰ τί χρὴ καταστοχαζομένους τῆς διανοίας ἀνα καλύπτειν τῷ λόγῳ τὴν κεκρυμμένην ἀπάτην καὶ παρέχειν ἴσως ἀφορμὰς τοῖς ἀκούουσιν, ὡς οὐκ ἀληθῶς ἡμῶν ταῦτα τοῖς ἐχθροῖς προφερόντων; ἰδοὺ γὰρ γυμνὴν ἡμῖν ἐκτίθεται τὴν βλασφημίαν, δι' οὐδενὸς προκαλύμματος τὸν δόλον ἐπι κρυπτόμενος, ἀλλ' ἐμπαρρησιαζόμενος τοῖς ἀτόποις ἐλευ 3.2.137 θέρᾳ φωνῇ. οὕτω δὲ ἔχει τὰ γεγραμμένα. 20ἡμεῖς μὲν οὖν20, φησίν, 20οὐδὲν ἕτερον εὑρίσκοντες παρὰ τὴν οὐσίαν τοῦ υἱοῦ τὸ δεχόμενον τὴν γέννησιν, ἐπ' αὐτῆς τῆς οὐσίας τάττειν οἰόμεθα δεῖν τὰς προσηγορίας, ἢ μάτην γε καὶ ψιλοῖς ῥή μασι λέγομεν υἱὸν καὶ γεννητόν, εἴ γε ταῦτα τῆς οὐσίας χωρίσαιμεν. ἐκ τούτων ὁρμώμενοι καὶ τὸ παρηλλάχθαι τὰς οὐσίας ἀλλήλων πι 3.2.138 στούμεθα20. οὐδὲν οἶμαι χρῆναι τὴν ἐν τοῖς εἰρημένοις ἀτοπίαν διὰ τῶν ἡμετέρων ἐλέγχεσθαι λόγων· αὐτὴ γὰρ ἡ τῶν γεγραμμένων ἀνάγνωσις ἱκανὴ στηλιτεῦσαι τὴν βλασφη μίαν. οὑτωσὶ δὲ διασκοπήσωμεν. 20παρηλλάχθαι20 λέγει 20τὰς οὐσίας ἀλλήλων20 τοῦ υἱοῦ τε καὶ τοῦ πατρός. τί τοίνυν διὰ τοῦ 20παρηλλαγμένου20 σημαίνεται; πρῶτον