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making known. For the angel becomes an informant of something, and the word likewise reveals the thought contained within, and the seal in its own impression shows the archetype, and the image through itself interprets the beauty of the one imaged, so that all these things are equivalent 3.9.41 to one another in what they signify. For this reason "angel" is placed before the title "He who is," being called angel as the messenger of the Father, but "He who is" as not having a name that makes his essence known, but being above all nominal signification. Wherefore also it has been testified by the apostle that his name is above every name, not as one thing honored before the others, but as He who truly is being above every name. 3.9.42 But I see that the argument is already being stretched out to an immeasurable length and I fear I may seem to be some idle talker and superfluous in voice for having brought forth the refutation at great length, although I have passed over much of the intervening discourse of my opponent with the foresight that my argument might not be extended to many myriads of words. For to the more industrious even a lack of brevity is an occasion for slander, but for those whose mind looks not to what is needed but to the desire of the lazy and unstudious, it is a matter of prayer to cover many stadia of the road in a few steps. What then must be done when the blasphemy 3.9.43 draws us forward? Or is it perhaps superfluous and truly idle to contend with similar arguments? For all their zeal, even according to his subsequent argument, is in harmony with what has been previously examined, having nothing new for its construction beyond the preceding arguments. If therefore our overthrow of what was previously set forth is sound, the remaining points have also been refuted along with what was previously examined; but if to the contentious and obstinate what has been passed over seems to be the strongest point, it would be necessary for their sake to run through the remainder briefly. 3.9.44 He says that the Lord did not exist before his own generation who is unable to show that he is separated from the Father by any interval, and he says this not by confirming his argument from scripture, but by constructing his proposition from his own reasonings. But this has been shown to be common to all parts of creation; no frog, no worm, no beetle, no grass, no thorn, nor anything else of the most insignificant things existed before its own 3.9.45 constitution. So that what he constructs with sweat and toil for the Son by means of his logical art, this has been previously admitted for even the random particles of creation, and the great labor for the writer is to show that the only-begotten God is of equal honor with the lowest things in creation in the communion of their properties. Therefore, it is a sufficient proof that they think wrongly concerning their doctrines that their suppositions concerning the only-begotten God and the 3.9.46 concerning the generation of frogs coincide. Then he says that not to exist before generation is equal in truth and power to not being unbegotten. Again the same argument will be fitting for me against this as well, that someone saying the same thing about a dog and a flea and a snake and any of the lowest things will not be in error, since for the dog not to exist before its generation is equal in truth and power to not being unbegotten. But if according to their definition, which they have defined in many places, whatever things share in properties also share in nature, and it is a property of the dog and of each individual thing not to exist before coming into being, which he thinks it necessary to construct for the Son as well, the hearer will surely see what remains of the construction from what follows. 3.9.47 But he changes his argument to something more moderate, bestowing some philanthropy upon it as well, and says, 20we say that the Son not only exists and is above all existing things20 he who a little before was fencing him off from the title "He who is", 20but also him as Lord20, he says, 20and creator and God of all sensible and intelligible substance we call him20. Which does he think this is, created or uncreated? For if he confesses that the Son is Lord and God and creator of all intelligible substance, it is entirely necessary, if he should say this is uncreated,

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γνωρίζων. ὅ τε γὰρ ἄγγελος μηνυτής τινος γίνεται, καὶ ὁ λόγος ὡσ αύτως ἐκκαλύπτει τὸ ἐγκείμενον νόημα, καὶ ἡ σφραγὶς ἐν τῷ ἰδίῳ τύπῳ τὸ ἀρχέτυπον δείκνυσι, καὶ ἡ εἰκὼν τὸ τοῦ ἀπεικονισθέντος κάλλος δι' ἑαυτῆς ἑρμηνεύει, ὡς ἰσοδυνα 3.9.41 μεῖν ταῦτα πάντα τῷ σημαινομένῳ πρὸς ἄλληλα. διὰ τοῦτο τὸ ἄγγελος τῆς τοῦ ὄντος ἐπωνυμίας προτέτακται, ἄγγελος μὲν λεγόμενος ὡς μηνυτὴς τοῦ πατρός, ὢν δὲ ὡς οὐκ ἔχων ὄνομα γνωριστικὸν τῆς οὐσίας, ἀλλὰ πάσης ὑπερ κείμενος τῆς ὀνοματικῆς σημασίας. διὸ καὶ τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ ὑπὲρ πᾶν εἶναι ὄνομα παρὰ τοῦ ἀποστόλου μεμαρ τύρηται, οὐχ ὡς ἕν τι προτετιμημένον τῶν ἄλλων, ἀλλ' ὡς ὑπὲρ πᾶν ὄνομα ὄντος τοῦ ὄντως ὄντος. 3.9.42 Ἀλλ' ὁρῶ γὰρ εἰς ἄμετρον ἤδη τὸν λόγον παρατει νόμενον καὶ δέδοικα τὸ δοκεῖν ἀδόλεσχός τις εἶναι καὶ περιττὸς τὴν φωνὴν εἰς πλῆθος προαγαγὼν τὴν ἀντίρρησιν, καίτοι πολλὰ τῆς διὰ μέσου λογογραφίας τοῦ ἀντιπάλου παραδραμὼν προμηθείᾳ τοῦ μὴ πρὸς πολλὰς ἐπῶν μυριάδας ἐκταθῆναι τὸν λόγον. τοῖς γὰρ φιλοπονωτέροις καὶ τὸ μὴ σύντομον διαβολῆς ἐστιν ἀφορμή, οἷς δὲ μὴ πρὸς τὴν χρεῖαν, ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὴν τῶν ἀργῶν τε καὶ ἀσπούδων ἐπι θυμίαν βλέπει ὁ νοῦς, δι' εὐχῆς ἐστιν ὀλίγοις βήμασι πολλὰ στάδια τῆς ὁδοῦ διανύειν. τί οὖν χρὴ πράττειν ἐφελκο 3.9.43 μένης ἡμᾶς ἐπὶ τὸ πρόσω τῆς βλασφημίας; ἢ τάχα περιττόν ἐστι καὶ ὄντως ἀδόλεσχον τοῖς ὁμοίοις τῶν ἐπιχειρημάτων ἐναγωνίζεσθαι; πᾶσα γὰρ αὐτῶν ἡ σπουδὴ καὶ κατὰ τὸν ἐφεξῆς αὐτοῦ λόγον σύμφωνος τοῖς προεξητασμένοις ἐστίν, οὐδὲν καινὸν εἰς κατασκευὴν παρὰ τὰ προλαβόντα τῶν ἐπιχειρημάτων ἔχουσα. εἰ τοίνυν ἔρρωται ἡμῖν ἡ τῶν προ εκτεθέντων ἀνατροπή, καὶ τὰ λειπόμενα τοῖς προεξητασ μένοις συναπελήλεγκται· εἰ δὲ τοῖς ἐριστικοῖς καὶ ἀντι τύποις ἐν τῷ παρειμένῳ τὸ κράτιστον εἶναι δοκεῖ, ἀναγκαῖον ἂν εἴη τούτων ἕνεκεν διὰ βραχέων ἐπιδραμεῖν τὸ ὑπόλοιπον. 3.9.44 Λέγει μὴ εἶναι τὸν κύριον πρὸ τῆς ἰδίας γεννήσεως ὁ μηδενὶ τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτὸν διειργόμενον ἐπιδεικνύειν ἔχων, καὶ τοῦτό φησιν οὐκ ἀπὸ γραφῆς τὸν λόγον πιστούμενος, ἀλλ' ἐκ τῶν ἰδίων λογισμῶν κατασκευάζων τὸ λῆμμα. τοῦτο δὲ κοινὸν πρὸς ἅπαντα τὰ τῆς κτίσεως ἀποδέδεικται μέρη· οὐ βάτραχος, οὐ σκώληξ, οὐ κάνθαρος, οὐ πόα, οὐκ ἄκανθα, οὐκ ἄλλο τι τῶν εὐτελεστάτων πρὸ τῆς ἰδίας 3.9.45 συστάσεως ἦν. ὥστε ὅπερ διὰ τῆς λογικῆς τεχνολογίας ἐπὶ τοῦ υἱοῦ σὺν ἱδρῶτι καὶ πόνῳ κατασκευάζει, τοῦτο καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν τυχόντων τῆς κτίσεως μορίων προωμολόγηται, καὶ ὁ πολύς ἐστι πόνος τῷ λογογράφῳ δεῖξαι τοῖς ἐσχάτοις τῶν ἐν τῇ κτίσει τὸν μονογενῆ θεὸν ἐν τῇ κοινωνίᾳ τῶν ἰδιωμάτων ὁμότιμον. οὐκοῦν ἱκανὸν τεκμήριον τοῦ κακῶς αὐτοὺς περὶ τῶν δογμάτων φρονεῖν τὸ συμβαίνειν αὐτοῖς τὰς ὑπολήψεις τήν τε περὶ τοῦ μονογενοῦς θεοῦ καὶ τὴν 3.9.46 περὶ τῆς τῶν βατράχων γενέσεως. εἶτά φησιν ἴσον κατ' ἀλήθειαν καὶ δύναμιν τῷ ἀγέννητον μὴ εἶναι τὸ πρὸ γεν νήσεως μὴ εἶναι. πάλιν ὁ αὐτὸς ἁρμόσει καὶ πρὸς τοῦτό μοι λόγος, ὅτι καὶ ἐπὶ κυνὸς καὶ ψύλλης καὶ ὄφεως καὶ οὑτινοσοῦν τῶν ἐσχάτων τὸ ἴσον εἰπών τις οὐχ ἁμαρτήσεται, ἐπείπερ ἴσον κατὰ ἀλήθειαν καὶ δύναμιν τῷ ἀγέννητον μὴ εἶναι τὸν κύνα τὸ πρὸ τῆς γεννήσεως αὐτὸν μὴ εἶναι. εἰ δὲ κατὰ τὸν διορισμὸν αὐτῶν, ὃν πολλαχῇ διωρίσαντο, ὅσα κοινωνεῖ τῶν ἰδιωμάτων, κοινωνεῖ καὶ τῆς φύσεως, ἴδιον δὲ τοῦ κυνὸς καὶ τῶν καθ' ἕκαστον τὸ πρὸ τοῦ γενέσθαι μὴ εἶναι, ὅπερ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ υἱοῦ κατασκευάζειν οἴεται χρῆναι, τὸ λειπόμενον τῆς κατασκευῆς ὁ ἀκροατὴς πάντως ἐκ τοῦ ἀκολούθου κατόψεται. 3.9.47 Ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὸ μετριώτερον μετάγει τὸν λόγον, νέμων τι καὶ φιλανθρωπίας αὐτῷ, καί φησιν 20οὐ μόνον ὄντα καὶ ὑπὲρ πάντα τὰ ὄντα φαμὲν εἶναι τὸν υἱὸν20 ὁ μικρὸν ἐν τοῖς κατόπιν τῆς τοῦ ὄντος ἐπωνυμίας αὐτὸν ἀποσχοινίζων, 20ἀλλὰ καὶ κύριον αὐτόν20, φησί, 20καὶ δημιουργὸν καὶ θεὸν πάσης αἰσθητῆς τε καὶ νοητῆς οὐσίας λέγομεν20. ἣν τί οἴεται, κτιστὴν εἶναι ἢ ἄκτιστον; εἰ γὰρ πάσης νοητῆς οὐσίας ὁμολογεῖ κύριον καὶ θεὸν καὶ δημιουργὸν εἶναι τὸν υἱόν, ἀνάγκη πᾶσα, εἰ μὲν ἄκτιστον εἶναι λέγοι ταύτην,