Front Matter

On Ecclesiastical Theology

περὶ τῆς ἐκκλησιαστικῆς θεολογίας

Eusebius of Caesarea

APPIAN WAY PRESS

ON ECCLESIASTICAL THEOLOGY ΠΕΡῚ ΤΗ͂Σ ἘΚΚΛΗΣΙΑΣΤΙΚΗ͂Σ ΘΕΟΛΟΓΊΑΣ

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About This Translation

This translation was created on 2024-12-31 using the model gpt-4o-mini from OpenAI. To ensure the translation is communicating the same meaning as the original, a sentence-level semantic similarity check was performed between the source text and translation using bowphs/SPhilBerta, available from HuggingFace. In addition to the sentence-level semantic similarity check, the text-to-translation length ratio was evaluated for each verse to locate and review possible hallucination.

Disclaimer

Please note, as indicated above, that this translation is a machine-generated translation. There are several older works, like Eusebius of Caesarea's περὶ τῆς ἐκκλησιαστικῆς θεολογίας, that are either not available in English or only available in old and difficult to read translations. This translation is an attempt to provide a readable and fairly literal modern English translation of the source text. The process that created this translation has done its best to mitigate hallucinations, but there may still be translation issues.

About the Source

Translated from: Eusebius, Eusebius Werke. J. C. Hinrichs:Leipzig, 1906.

The source edition of περὶ τῆς ἐκκλησιαστικῆς θεολογίας was retrieved from the Github repository First1KGreek.

For more information: First1KGreek. The Greek edition this translation uses as its source text is available as well.

Book 1

Outline

This contains the first book. a. that Marcellus slandered Sabellius in vain, praising the same things as him. b. that the grace of Christ gave the church of God an exceptional knowledge about the Father and the Son. c. that the heretics have erred in many ways in their teachings about the Son. d. that those who do not confess the Son of God call themselves Christians in vain. e. that Marcellus denied the Son of God, imitating the heresy of Sabellius. f. that the church of God believes. g. that the heretics have fallen away in various ways from the theology about the Son. h. a presentation of the healthy and ecclesiastical orthodoxy. i. that the Son is not like the many created things. j. that he alone, begotten from the Father, is rightly called both God and the only-begotten Son. k. that the church knows one God, even while accepting the Son of God to be from God. l. as his birth from the Father is unspeakable. m. that the oversight of the Son is necessary and saving for all. n. that the church rightly rejected Marcellus, who thought the same as Sabellius. o. with what words Marcellus attacked Sabellius, pretending not to think the same as him. p. that he is caught by his own words, praising the same things as Sabellius. q. that he denied the existence of the Son's essence with a bare head. r. that before the incarnation, he said nothing else about the Son except that he was a word only, similar to that of humans. s. that the divine scriptures not only called the Son of God a word but also many other things even before the incarnation. t. some presentations and interpretations of certain proofs from the divine scripture in all 30 chapters.

Introduction

I thought that the quotes of Marcellus would be enough, which I have examined earlier, for his own refutation. For they clearly and undeniably contained the denial of the Son of God, so that the word among those who are nourished by the church of God would be avoided without any objection.

² But after I examined this, I wondered if perhaps some of the church's theology might be undermined by the many quotes that the man used for his beliefs. Therefore, I decided to express the refutation at this time, so that everyone would know that not even one word from the divine scripture, denying the Son of God, provided him with support. Instead, all spoke against him with the opposite voice, correcting his misunderstandings of the divine writings. I will also connect the theology of our Savior with this same voice. I have nothing new to say, nor have I discovered anything wise or original of my own, but I hold on to the uncorrupted teaching of the church of God, which has been received from those who have seen and heard the word from the beginning.

Book 1, Section 1

Before examining these matters, since I found that he was attacking Sabellius in his writing, I was amazed at the man's foolishness. He did not hesitate to speak badly of someone whom he should have praised more than anyone else, as he was supposed to be of the same faith and opinion. I did not think it right to pass over his words in silence, but I decided to also include a refutation of this in the present writing. For it is true that the servants of God have been assured against him, and while he himself brought blame upon himself, he brought honor to those who were freed from their association with him.

² However, it seemed reasonable that he would think that what is not friendly to him is worthless. But I believe that he is both shameless and insensitive, as he harms himself through the slander of someone who shares his beliefs. If this is true, he could be his own refutation, calling God the Father a son according to Sabellius, even if he does not do so openly, at least introducing the truth that denies the Son's existence and defines one God. And he calls this one his own father and again refers to him as his son. For he gives a reason that is in God.

³ He defined this one as both one and the same, saying that he is the father of this one; and he claimed that the Word is his son, not truly being a son in essence or substance, but primarily and truly being the Word. It is emphasized that he is not a Word in a misleading way. But he is primarily and truly the Word, and nothing other than the Word.

⁴ If he is nothing other than the Word, it is clear that he is not a son primarily and truly, but is named in a misleading way, even to the point of voice and name. By saying that the Word is one and the same with God, he declared that the Word, who became flesh and was born of the virgin, is God himself. The church of God has long ago rejected Sabellius, classifying him among the godless heretics.

Book 1, Section 2

For the first ones to accept that God is one, in contrast to the Greeks' error of polytheism, were the children of the Jews. The grace of salvation has given the church the special honor of knowing the same father as the only-begotten son. They know only Jesus Christ as the son, and no other, not according to the flesh that he took on (for he has been taught to call this a servant's form and a son of man), but according to the nature from God the Father, which is unknown to all before all ages. In this nature, the fullness of the Father's divinity has established him as the son of God, not separate or distinct from the Father, nor an unoriginated or unbegotten being, nor a foreign divinity drawn from elsewhere, but filled from the Father's essence, just as water flows from a spring. For "in him all the fullness" of the Father's "divinity" dwells, as the great apostle taught. Therefore, one God is preached in the church of God, "and there is no other besides him." And he is one and the only-begotten son of God, the image of the Father's divinity, and for this reason, he is God.

Book 1, Section 3

Many people, not understanding this theology, invented various paths of error. a) Some claimed that God gave the son, while denying the man he took on. b) Others assumed he was just a mere man. Not knowing the God within him, c) some, out of fear of appearing to introduce a second God, defined the father and son as the same. The church of God, having turned away from these, proudly proclaims the truth of the gospel, asserting that there is one God above all, and also one only-begotten God from God, Jesus Christ, calling him the same savior who became the son of man. It acknowledges him as the son of God before he became a man, and this happened through the immeasurable excess of the Father's love for humanity.

Book 1, Section 4

The word of truth cries out these things on behalf of the church: those who deny the son of God, while claiming that there is one God and nothing else, why do they trouble the church in vain, needing to speak with the synagogues of the Jews? And why do they surround themselves with blasphemous words, slandering the one God with contradictory claims, if they say that the father and the son are the same? For whose father will there be, if no son exists? And whose son will he be, if the one who begets does not exist before him? For being one, he will certainly be the one who became flesh, suffered, and lived a mortal life among people.

Book 1, Section 5

But saying these things, the church of God drove Sabellius away as an impious and irreverent person. Marcello tries to renew these ideas, using an unconvincing argument as a cover. For rightly defining one God, he claims that this same word is united and connected within himself. Then, he calls part of the one God the father and part the son, as if there is a double and composite nature within him.

² And how much greater is the one who does not divide the uncreated, unborn, and divine power, while agreeing that it is the same, compared to the Jew, who does not divide the one God into father and son, similarly to Marcello, nor introduces the same son-father as Sabellius does. Instead, he honors God, knowing and expecting the Christ who is proclaimed to come through the prophets. When he comes, since they did not accept him, they will suffer the consequences of their disbelief in him.

Book 1, Section 6

Those who believe in the one who has come through prayer know these three things: the one "from the seed of David," and the same holy virgin, and the one who dwelt in him, the son of God, who truly exists and is substantial, and the father God, by whom he himself continuously claims to have been sent. "For us," then, "there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things," according to the apostle, "and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things," the only-begotten son of God, and thirdly, the son of man according to the flesh, whom the son of God took on for us.

² But neither was the body he took on the same as the son of God who was received, nor would the son of God himself be considered one and the same with the one who begot him. With these three being present, if the two give rise to the third, they would be cast out from the church.

Book 1, Section 7

Some of the atheists among the heretics, having rejected the flesh of the Savior, claimed that he appeared on earth in some kind of vision, and thus they first missed the mark of the truth. Those who accepted the incarnation, but denied the son of God who came from God, invented various ways to explain themselves. Some said he was just a plain man of the common human nature, no better than anyone else except for some virtues. Others claimed that he was the son of the one true God dwelling in the body, saying that he endured the human experience. These two, presenting God and man, deprived themselves of the third, denying the Savior, the only-begotten son of God.

² Long ago, Sabellius, and now Marcello, have come together in their thinking. They strongly argued that the God of the Jews is the same as the one who is above all, and they agreed on the second point, that the flesh came from the holy virgin. But for the third point, which is the key to our salvation, they pushed aside the son of God, who is both light and truth. With their denial of the son and the light of truth, they have fallen away.

³ From this, while they acknowledge one God and honor the flesh of the Savior, they accept with their words and lips the son of God who dwells in the flesh, but deny him in their actions. For one must seek the son of God, truly living and existing, who is neither the same as the one who took on a body nor the same as the one who is God and Father. No one can call the one who is beyond all things the son of God (for who would be his son, the one clothed in the unbegotten and eternal divinity?), nor can anyone say that the only-begotten son of God is the Father without facing the judgment against those who speak ill.

Book 1, Section 8

Therefore, the church of God, straightening and guiding the royal path, has rejected all other deviations. To its members, it gives the knowledge of divine grace, teaching them to confess the mystery of rebirth and to believe in one God, the Almighty Father. It provides a complete, accurate, and whole understanding of theology, which teaches that there is one God, separating it from the Greek and polytheistic error, and recognizes him as Father, distinguishing it from the Jewish teachings. It also acknowledges him as Almighty, turning away from the impiety of the atheists and those with different beliefs.

² No one among the different believers would say that the Father of Christ is the Almighty God. Just as no one among the Jews would confess that the only-begotten Son is God the Father without knowing, nor would a Greek claim to know only one God. Therefore, the church, cleansing the error of all these, proclaims the one God, teaching that he is both Father and Almighty, being the Father of only Christ, while being God, Creator, and Lord of all others. Thus, it also teaches about the only-begotten Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was born from the Father before all ages, not being the same as the Father, but being himself living and truly the Son, God from God, light from light, and life from life. He is beyond all words that are unutterable, unknown, and incomprehensible to us, born from the Father for the salvation of all, and he is not like the other created beings, nor is he a life similar to those who live through him, but he alone is born from the Father and has life in himself.

³ For it was fitting for the God above all, before any created thing and before all ages, to bring forth this only-begotten offspring, like a solid foundation and cornerstone for what will come to be through him. Therefore, the Son was born before all that will exist, like a ray of light and a source of life, and a treasure of good things, "in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge," according to the divine apostle.

⁴ The only good Father, for the sake of so many good things, establishes the Son, who has life in himself and gives life to all. He is the true light and the enlightening source of all spiritual and rational beings, and he is the reason and wisdom, wisely sustaining and governing all things. For this reason, the only-begotten Son of God alone is proclaimed and exists, and no one else.

Book 1, Section 9

Therefore, it would be reasonable for someone to blame those who dare to say that he was made from nothing, just like the other created beings. And how can he still be called Son? How can he be the only-begotten of God if he is said to have the same nature as the other created beings? For in that case, he would rather be a brother to them, not the Son of God, and he would be just one among many created beings, sharing in the same kind of existence that comes from nothing.

² But the divine teachings about him do not say this. When they speak of the existence of created beings, they clearly testify that everything came to be through him. "For all things were made through him, and without him nothing was made." And "in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, whether visible or invisible." And "all things were created through him and for him." He is before all things, and in him all things hold together, according to the teachings of the apostles.

³ But when it introduces the theology about him, it sets him apart from all the others, recognizing him as the Lord, Master, Creator, God, and Savior of all. It declares him to be the only-begotten Son of God and no one else. It calls him only wisdom, word, life, and light, and teaches many other titles that honor him, such as "the image of the invisible God" and "the radiance of eternal light." In this way, it shows the unique relationship of the Father's divinity to him as the only-begotten Son.

⁴ For this reason, the Father's voice declared him to be the beloved Son with a loud testimony by the Jordan River, saying, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." And it confirmed this same testimony again during the transfiguration on the mountain.

⁵ Therefore, since the God of all gives this testimony about him, the evangelist clearly teaches that he is the only-begotten Son. He said, "No one has ever seen God; the only-begotten Son (or "the only-begotten God"), who is in the bosom of the Father, he has explained him." This is also confirmed by the Savior himself in his teachings about him, where he said, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life."

⁶ He who, after these voices, defines the Son as a creature made from nothing and a creation brought forth from non-existence, has forgotten to give him only the name. But he denies that he is truly a Son. For one who comes from nothing could not truly be the Son of God, just as he could not be anything else that is created.

Book 1, Section 10

But the true Son of God, since he comes from the Father, is rightly called the only-begotten and beloved of the Father; thus, he would also be God. For what could be a creation of God or something like the one who created it? A king builds a city but does not beget a city; to beget a son is different from creating. And a craftsman is a creator but would not be called a father of what he creates, while the one who is born from him as a son would not be called a creator. Therefore, the God of all is rightly called the Father of the Son, and the creator of the world.

² But if someone finds written somewhere in Scripture, "The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways for his works," it is necessary to consider the meaning of the word, which I will explain shortly. However, one should not twist the most important teaching of the church based on a single word, as Marcellus did. For he, having heard that the Son is a word, fell into the error of denying his existence as a human.

³ How can the one who is truly called the Son, being testified to by both him and the Father, be compared to other created beings? And how can he be the only-begotten if he is counted among the many that exist? Moreover, the very name "Son" shows the natural relationship to the Father, as the name "only-begotten" connects to both his kind and his birth, indicating that he is the only one and shares nothing of sonship with others. It seems that these people have suffered the same error as Marcellus.

⁴ For those who deny the Son argue against saying there are two gods, rejecting his existence. But those who affirm two substances claim one is uncreated and the other created from nothing, yet they still maintain one god. In this view, the Son will no longer be the only-begotten, nor will he be Lord or God, having no share in the divinity of the Father, and being compared to other creations from nothing. However, the church does not hold this view.

⁵ The Son of God is proclaimed as God and Lord, and it teaches that he is truly the Son and God. This is not like the many who are called sons and gods, about whom it is said, "I said, you are gods and all of you are sons of the Most High." Only he, who is born from the Father, "existed in the form of God," and he was "the image of the invisible God and the firstborn of all creation." Therefore, the church has learned to honor, respect, and worship him alone, as Lord, Savior, and God of itself.

Book 1, Section 11

If they are afraid that they might be thought to proclaim two gods, let them understand that if the Son is acknowledged as God, then that one alone would be the only God, the only uncreated and unbegotten one, who possesses his own divinity. He is the cause of the Son being and of his being like this. Because of him, the Son also claims to live, directly saying, "As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father," and "Just as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in himself."

² Therefore, the Father teaches that he is God of both us and himself, as he says, "I am going up to my Father and your Father, and my God and your God." The great apostle teaches that the Son is the head of the church, saying, "But God is the head of Christ," and about the Son he says, "And he gave him to be the head over all the church, which is his body."

³ Therefore, he himself would be the leader and head of the church, while the Father is the head of him. Thus, the Father of the only-begotten Son is one God, and there is one head of Christ. Since there is one source and head, how could there be two gods? Is it not that one alone, who is not above anyone else and does not have another cause besides himself, possesses his own divinity, which is uncreated and unbegotten? He has granted the Son a share in his own divinity and life, supporting all things through him. He is the one who sends him, commands him, instructs him, gives everything to him, honors him, exalts him, and has made him king over all. He also gives all judgment to him and desires us to obey him, commanding him to sit at his right hand in his glory while addressing him and saying.

⁴ "Sit at my right hand," says God, who exists through all these things and is the Son. The only-begotten Son, being obedient, "emptied himself, humbled himself, took the form of a servant, and became obedient to death." He prays to him, obeys him when he commands, and gives thanks to him. He teaches us to regard him as "the only true God," and he admits that the Father is greater than himself. He wants all of us to know that he is also his God.

⁵ The Father, who is glorified by the Son in this way, also glorifies him in return, and he has revealed him as Lord, Savior, and God of all, and has made him co-ruler in his kingdom. Thus, the church of God, well-taught, knows both her own God and Lord and Savior, and recognizes the only-begotten Son of God above all. She does not call any other created being God, but knows this one alone as God, whom the Father has begotten from himself.

⁶ Just as he himself, through Solomon, presents himself saying, "Before the mountains were settled, before the hills, I was brought forth," here he is hinting at the divine and heavenly powers as mountains and hills.

Book 1, Section 12

But if someone were to be curious about how God could beget, and how he could be a Father beyond all things, the boldness of such questioning will be silenced by the one who says, "Do not seek deeper than you should, and do not investigate higher than you should. Focus on what has been commanded to you; for you have no need of the hidden things." And Paul also said, "Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!" Let those who dare to go further not attempt the impossible. Or let them first say themselves how he claims to have made things from nothing, and in what way he existed before anything was at all.

² For he did not take pre-existing material like the craftsmen among us to create everything with his hands. Just as it is impossible by nature for humans (I mean to bring something that does not exist into being), it became possible for him, and he became the creator of all things not in a human way. And with words that are unspeakable and beyond our understanding, so much more is the birth of his only-begotten Son unsearchable and inscrutable, not just to us as someone might claim alone, but also to all greater or equal powers.

³ For how could one who has descended far from the nature of the divine and mysterious essence reach the higher and utmost understanding? And how could those things that did not exist before, which came into being through him from nothing, have knowledge of the first generation, since he is the cause of their existence? Or where are we, who are clothed in "skin and flesh," bound by "bones and sinews," and knowing nothing about ourselves, to make a safe inquiry about the hidden things, wondering how the Father begets the Son? That there are countless things right at our feet that teach us knowledge is clear from this.

⁴ For who could say how the soul is bound to the body, how it will leave, how its origin was determined, what its nature is, what its shape is, who its form is, and what its essence is? I do not want to be busy with questions about demons, nor about the essence of angels, nor about powers and thrones and dominions, nor about authorities and world rulers.

⁵ But if we are at a loss about these things, why should we try to understand the knowledge of the unoriginated and uncreated deity? Why ask the impossible questions about how God became the Father of the only-begotten Son, when we do not have the Father's voice to testify about the beloved, whom he declared by saying, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; listen to him"?

⁶ If he commands us to listen to him, let us obey the royal law and listen to the beloved Son. What does he want us to know about himself? He will present it by saying, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life." We must believe in him so that we may have eternal life, for he says, "The one who believes in him has eternal life."

⁷ No one knows how he was born from the Father, for no one would share in eternal life if this is true, since it is said, "No one has known the Father except the Son, nor has anyone known the Son except the Father who begot him." Therefore, faith is enough for us for salvation, which allows us to know God the Father Almighty and to call his only-begotten Son our Savior. He also taught this by saying, "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." "God is spirit."

⁸ Therefore, it follows that what is born of God would also be God. As much as the God who is above all is separated and distinct by nature from earthly flesh, so we must understand that the way in which the Father begets the Son is also different from the way flesh gives birth. For he does not change, does not become different, does not move passively, nor does he endure anything that we experience. He remains himself.

⁹ For there was no body, as if it were a result, a decrease, an expansion, a change, a transformation, a flow, a part, or a passion that could be thought of in relation to him. Beyond all these things, his generation is unspeakable and beyond understanding, even more so than any created nature, being unsearchable and unfathomable. Just as the sun gives birth to the dawn, the Son is called "the radiance of eternal light" and "the reflection of glory," but not in the way we see light. For he exists beyond any example, described by unspeakable and incomprehensible words, and he is one and only-begotten.

¹⁰ Let every mouth of the wicked and atheistic men who are sick with their many gods' delusion be stopped. They have reduced the unique and special birth of the only-begotten Son to a multitude, claiming that the Father is "of men and gods," mixing men with gods. They also suggest that the same Father is of the same nature. But these men, through demonic activity, have brought forth this wicked and godless saying, making gods that are similar and share the same nature and suffering as the mortal, passive, and sinful race of humans, and they have set up a common Father for them, resembling their children. But the church proclaims one God and one only-begotten Son to all, who is the source of salvation and care for all created beings.

Book 1, Section 13

Since the nature of created things, both in bodies and in non-bodies, in living and non-living, in rational and irrational, in mortal and immortal, has its differences, it was not possible to approach the God who is above all and over all, nor to share in the glories of his divinity, due to the overwhelming lack from the greater source. It would be far removed and distant from the weakness of nature. Unless one received help from the Savior God, it is reasonable that the Father's loving kindness establishes his only-begotten Son over all, who fills all things, oversees all, and bestows his gifts to everyone.

² For the Father who has begotten him has revealed him as the only shepherd and savior, guardian and protector, healer and ruler of all things, both in heaven and on earth. He has entrusted to him alone the care and governance of all creation. He teaches, saying, "All things have been given to me by my Father," and again, "For the Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand."

³ He, as a wise ruler, having received the inheritance from the Father, looks up to his Father while governing the whole universe. He leads and carries everything, not overlooking even the smallest needs for his gifts, nor being dismissive of the tiniest. Therefore, he is present to all, providing what is suitable for each person, and like a healer, he supplies what is necessary for salvation.

⁴ Therefore, it is fitting that he did not think too highly of human life, but even long ago, he provided help to those godly men from ages past. He appeared in human form to the Hebrew ancestors and gave suitable laws to their descendants. He also revealed through the prophets that his divine presence would shine upon all people in the future, giving them his decrees.

⁵ As time passed, he fulfilled the ancient prophecies with his works, and he was present, mingling with human life. He was the only Son of God, like a divine statue, teaching through the instrument of the body, with lessons and healings for the human race.

⁶ With divine wisdom and secret teachings, he drove them to the gates of death with a surpassing love from the Father. This was so that he could also grant them the grace to rise to the life that is with him. Thus, "God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself." He endured the reality of being in the flesh, existing before it and honored with the glory of the Father. He did not consider it "something to be grasped to be equal with God," but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant. He humbled himself, becoming obedient to the Father "even to death," so that just as "death came through one man's sin," it might also be that eternal life would reign through "his grace" for those who believe in him and come to know God and his Father.

Book 1, Section 14

The church rightly proclaims these things, just as it rejected the false coin of denying the Son of God, Sabellius. Although he said that there is one God and that besides him there is no other, he spoke similarly to Marcellus. The first preachers also called the Ebionites, who in Hebrew called the poor "the poor," said that they knew one God and did not deny the body of our Savior, but they did not understand the divinity of the Son.

² And concerning Samosata, although he taught that Jesus is the Christ of God and confessed one God who is over all, the church fathers declared that he was foreign to the church of God. This was because he did not confess that Christ was both the Son of God and God before his incarnation. Thus, he was driven far from the church as a blasphemer against Christ.

³ Sabellius, as he was guilty against the Father, whom he dared to call the Son, faced punishment equal to that of the godless heretics. Marcellus, taking on the same faults, found a newer way of deception, defining God and the Word within him as one, while attributing two titles to him: Father and Son. However, he did not escape notice and was eventually caught in his own nets.

⁴ But even before being caught, he was struck by his conscience and was driven to blaspheme against Sabellius.

Book 1, Section 15

As he slandered the man by mentioning his name, listen to what Sabellius wrote about him in these words: For Sabellius himself, having strayed from the true faith, neither knew God accurately nor his holy Word. For whoever does not know the Word has also ignored the Father. "No one," he says, "knows the Father except the Son," that is, the Word; for "the Word" provides knowledge of the Father. Thus, he also spoke against those Jews who thought they knew God, while rejecting his Word, through which alone God is known, saying, "No one knows the Father except the Son and whoever the Son chooses to reveal him." For it was impossible to know God in any other way; he teaches that people know him through his own Word, so he was wrong not to know the Father and his Word accurately.

² These things were written by Marcellus, clearing himself of the suspicion of being a Sabellian, up to the point of voice and speech. Yet, in his opinion and in his agreement with the man, he is caught by the same arrows, as it seems to me that he would have avoided falling into the same trap through prayer. But now he appears worse than that one who was at fault. For perhaps he, being misled, was unaware; but the one who admits that he has wronged the man and then pushes himself toward the obvious cliff of the same impiety deserves no excuse at all. But let us examine what has been said.

Book 1, Section 16

First of all, he said that neither Sabellius nor the Jews knew God because they did not know the Word. We must consider what kind of Word is being suggested. For if it is the only-begotten Son of God, who is present and alive, he himself did not know him. Immediately, when our Savior spoke differently about the Son and often referred to him as the only-begotten Son, and never called himself the Word, he taught through all the Gospels that he is the Son of God. (On this, he blessed Peter when he said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God," and he testified that this knowledge came to him through a revelation from the Father, saying, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my Father in heaven.") This wonderful one writes these words as if he is deaf, and for this reason, he does not call himself the Son of God. But everywhere he calls himself the Son of Man, so that through such a confession, he prepares for man to become a Son of God through his relationship with him.

² You see that he does not dare to confess that he is the Son of God, so that he does not fall into the doctrine of Sabellius. But he calls himself the Son of Man, by which he took on flesh. And he continuously refers to the Word throughout his own writings, pointing out that it was nothing other than the Word.

³ And in those things, he criticizes Sabellius, presenting the words of the Savior, in which he said, "No one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him."

⁴ Just as he corrects this, instead of calling the Son, he again names the Word, saying, "No one knows the Father except the Son," that is, the Word. For the Word alone provides knowledge of the Father, and he adds that it was impossible to know God in any other way than through the Word itself. Again, he puts the Word in place of the Son and calls his own Word. And in these very brief statements, he often mentions the Word, but he never once mentions the Son. But he also changes the statement of the Savior.

⁵ Instead of saying "the Son," he brings in, that is, the Word, as if it does not fit the meaning of the Son with the authority of the Father. Therefore, the Savior rightly connected the Son with the Father, while the other person, avoiding saying the Son, talks endlessly about the Word. He accuses Sabellius of denying the Son, but he does the same thing as Sabellius. He thinks he can escape the suspicion of false belief by attacking him. If he criticizes Sabellius for denying the Son of God, he should first criticize himself. If he thinks that Sabellius misunderstood the trap he set, then he is not rightly accusing him.

⁶ For neither Sabellius nor the Jews, who deny Christ as the Son of God, whom Marcellus says is the Word of God, through whom Moses and the prophets spoke, can be said to be ignorant of this. But he knows it well, and anyone could say this, not only Jews but also Greeks. For who would not agree that God is logical, wise, good, and powerful? Sabellius would not deny knowing this. However, that he does not also acknowledge the living and existing Son of God, who came in the flesh, is why he fell into agreement with Marcellus and similarly led the Church of God astray.

⁷ How Marcellus thought the same as Sabellius would be clear from the fact that he ordered God and his Word to be one and the same, sometimes saying to them in words.

Book 1, Section 17

If the examination of the Spirit were to happen alone, it would rightly seem that the Word is one and the same as God. But sometimes, comparing the Word of God to the human word and saying that the Word within the human is one and the same, it is not separated from anything else except for the action itself. Therefore, at one point, it was shown that before the creation of the world, there was nothing else except God, and again, he said in words that before the world came into being, there was nothing else except God alone.

² At one point, he compared our significant word to the Word of God, in which he wrote as follows: just as all things that have happened came from the Father through the Word, so also the things said by the Father are signified through the Word. And indeed, calling it a significant word, he goes on to present it as inseparable and one and the same in essence with the Father. He says this is easy, I think, for those who think well and can understand from a small and humble example like us.

³ For it is not possible to separate the human word in power and essence from anything else. For the word is one and the same as the person, and it is not separated from anything else except for the action itself. And again, he uses the same image when he says that everything the Father says seems to be said everywhere through the Word. This is also clear from our own experience, as we can compare small things to the great and divine. For we also can say and do everything we want according to our own word.

⁴ It is fitting to think that these things are said no more by Marcellus than by Sabellius, unless Marcellus is mocking Sabellius for daring to call the significant word in God, which he thinks of as the Son, without being shameless. For he would not have such foolish thoughts. He was not so stupid as to give the same word to both humans and to the God who is above all, nor was he so foolish as to call the word that does not exist the Son of God. Therefore, Sabellius, while saying there is one God, denied the Son.

⁵ Therefore, he claimed that the Father and the Son are the same under the same assumption. Marcellus also taught that God and the Word in Him are one and the same. It is in vain that Sabellius has gone wrong, for he does not even admit this about himself.

⁶ For he must either accept that one as well, or he must blame himself and, while blaming that one, turn away from the same bad belief. He should not treat God as if He were a statue, speaking to Him as if He were having a conversation based on his own thoughts and reasoning. He should not say, "Come, let us make," as if he were making a statue (for this is how he has said God spoke when He said, "Let us make man").

⁷ Neither should he ever think of the Word in God as a hidden thought like that of a human, nor as a significant word like the spoken word among us. For these ideas are more unacceptable from Sabellius or from some Jews who openly deny the Son of God than from a Christian who says to listen.

⁸ He, as if he were beautifying the Jewish teaching, brings into the Church of Christ the ungodly and godless doctrine that the Son of God does not exist. Before the world was made, he claims that there was nothing else but God alone, constructing this idea through his entire wicked writing, in order to shut out the Son. But he also boasts that he knows one God.

⁹ As if we are not also saying this. We accept that the Son of God is truly the Son. From him, we have learned to know one God, and that he is God together with the Father of the only-begotten Son, who is truly his Son, born from him before all ages. Not only is he called the Word before the flesh was taken up, which the brave one defines, but also many other things. Yet in this, he contradicts the divine scripture, claiming that before the incarnation, he was called nothing other than the Word.

Book 1, Section 18

Listen, then, as he assures them, writing in this way, so that it is clear from everywhere that nothing else fits the eternal nature of the Word except what the most holy disciple and apostle of God, John, said at the beginning of the Gospel. For after the ascension of the flesh, Christ and Jesus are preached, along with life, way, day, resurrection, door, bread, and if anything else is named by the divine writings, we should not be ignorant of the first name, that he was the Word. For this reason, the most holy evangelist and disciple of the Lord, being very alert in spirit, recalls the beginning and nothing newer, saying, "In the beginning was the Word," and "the Word was with God," and "the Word was God," to show that if there is any new and younger name, it came from the new and fresh existence according to the flesh and economy.

² And next, he chooses to say that before the descent and being born through the virgin, there was only the Word. For what else was there before he took on human flesh, coming "in the last days," as he himself wrote, and what was born from the holy virgin? Nothing else but the Word. And again, he adds, as I have often said before, there was nothing else but the Word.

³ And he adds again, saying that the Word "was in the beginning," being nothing other than the Word. But the man who was united with the Word did not exist before; he became a man. As John teaches us, "And the Word became flesh." Therefore, when he mentions the Word, it seems to refer to him alone.

⁴ For whether the divine scripture mentions the name of Jesus or Christ, it seems to refer to the Word of God who exists after taking on human flesh. And if someone claims that before the New Testament, the name of Christ or Jesus could only point to the Word alone, they will find this stated prophetically. And he goes on to say that it was rightly so before the descent. As we have often said, it was the Word; but after the descent and the taking up of the flesh, there are different names and titles. Therefore, through these things, Marcello is caught denying the Son of God, who is truly alive and truly the Son, while introducing the Word as merely a name.

⁵ It has been shown through the earlier statements of his voices what kind of Word he proposed to be, using the example of the human word and saying that it is one and the same as God. And indeed, having established this principle, he then proceeds from the given assumption to distort the interpretations of the divinely inspired scripture, making them twisted.

Book 1, Section 19

It seemed good to me to briefly discuss these matters at present. I want to show those who are unaware that no scripture agrees with someone who introduces new ideas and turns away from healthy faith; on the contrary, all scriptures speak out against him and testify against the stories he has incorrectly accepted. This is something that should especially be pointed out to those who honor the man, so that no one might think he is missing the truth due to ignorance of the divine readings.

² And indeed, this must first be examined, which he has dared to declare first, that before the Son of God was born through the virgin, he was not called by any other name or word. For he did not exist as anything before the incarnation or as a word, nor was he named otherwise unless it was prophetically. For he claims to be both a word and to be named as such, and nothing else; but after the incarnation, he has different names and titles.

Book 2

This then must first be shown, as he speaks ignorantly and without knowledge of the divine scriptures. First, the divine evangelist John, who speaks of the word, did not call him a god from afar, but immediately and closely named him God, saying, "And the word was God." He could have said, "And the word was of God," but he did not say this, so that no one might claim he was like a man; instead, he calls him God, thus demonstrating the greatness of the divine nature concerning him.

² Third, having moved to another idea about his glory, he named him light, showing that he existed before the taking up of the body.

³ In which he says about the Baptist, "He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light, which gives light to every person coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, and the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own did not receive him."

⁴ You see that he named him not only the word, as it seemed to Marcellus, but also God and light. He taught that he existed before and that the world was made through him. Just as it was said that all things came into being through the word of God and that nothing was made without him, so it is also said about the light: "the world was made through him."

⁵ He says that the light and the word of God are one and the same. By saying that the world was made through him, he shows the service of God. The evangelist is able to say: "All things were made through him," and again: "the world was made through him." He did not say "by him," but "through him," so that he may lead us back to the creative authority of the Father of all things.

⁶ But also "the world" says "it did not know him." All people agree on the existence of God above all things through natural understanding. And first, the children of the Jews, guided by the prophetic writings, as Marcellus himself presents in the following sections.

⁷ So this was another, whom "the world" did not know, God and the word, existing as light and named as such. This light is not something that can be seen by the eyes of the flesh, just like the sun lights up. For in this way, even the nature of irrational animals shared in it. Now he teaches what kind of light it was, saying, "The light that gives light to every person coming into the world." Therefore, this rational light was only for humans.

⁸ Therefore, by his powerful and rational mind, he created souls that are rational and intelligent "in his image" and "likeness." Just as the light was not something that could be seen, so neither was God himself, who is above all things. "For God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all." Indeed, the light was inaccessible. As the divine apostle teaches, saying, "Light dwelling in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see."

⁹ He was "in the world," "giving light to every person coming into the world." But the world also says this. Through this light, it came to be, from the greater one, namely the Father, through the Son, holding everything together. These three are indeed well-spoken and pious titles of the powers of the Son of God, received by the theologian of the scripture: the word, God, and the light.

¹⁰ Now the same one adds a fourth, calling the only-begotten one, in which he says, "And the word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth." Therefore, even the only-begotten of God, before taking on flesh, was already known. For he says, "The word became flesh" for us, but still, we were made worthy to show his divinity. Not looking at the flesh (for this was "the form of a servant"), but at his glory, which is seen in a pure mind outside the body, "we have seen his glory," a glory that is unspeakable and surpasses all human thought, which someone might understand as "the glory of the only Son of God."

¹¹ This glory was "from the Father." You see that he did not say, "And we have seen his glory, glory as of the word," even though he had previously said, "The word became flesh," but to teach what kind of word he took on (that it was not just any word; for how could such a one become flesh?). He necessarily called him the only-begotten.

¹² And he teaches that this glory is understood as the only-begotten Son of God. He says that this glory exists from no other source than from the Father; for he did not have a glory that was uncreated, without beginning, or owned by himself. But he received it from the Father. This is what he himself shows when he says, "Father, glorify me with the glory I had before the world existed with you."

¹³ The Father answers him, saying, "I have glorified him and will glorify him again." And even more, the same evangelist shows his nature by bringing in, "John bears witness about him and cried out, saying: This was he of whom I said, 'He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.' For from his fullness we have all received."

¹⁴ But when John cries out that "he was before me," the young Sabellius does not hear. And yet, according to the flesh, John the Baptist was born before the Savior; so how does he bear witness that he was before him? For in the flesh, the Savior was not born before him.

¹⁵ Therefore, according to what is only-begotten of God, he was "before" John and "came before" him. Does this then refer to the Father and God of all, or to a meaningless and ungrounded word that is the same as God? And how could it be possible to say "he came before me" about the word that does not exist? Who would be so mad as to think that John the Baptist said "he came before me" and "he was before me" about God of all?

¹⁶ Therefore, it has been shown that the one who is spoken of as God existed before John's birth and came before him. He is not only the word but also God and light and the only-begotten, existing and named before the incarnation. From where then does the evangelist get this knowledge? He himself will explain, saying next, "the only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has made him known." Do you see from whom the Son learned this theology?

¹⁷ For neither does Moses say this, nor any of the prophets after Moses, nor any angels or greater powers, but the only-begotten Son himself explained this. Therefore, the invisible God did not explain it, but the only-begotten Son, who became visible, made the explanation about the Father known to people. He is indeed another, alongside the invisible God. But he also existed before, not in the mind of the Father, as Marcello thought, but in his bosom. Just as the Savior has been promised to rest in the bosoms of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, so the Son was "in the bosom" of the Father, not one and the same as the Father, since we will not be the same as the holy fathers.

¹⁸ But indeed, on these points, he keeps in mind that after naming the word and God once, he also calls him light and says he is the only-begotten Son of God. He no longer just names him the word, but he also tells about the Savior, not calling him just the word, but also Son, only-begotten, light, life, truth, and many other things. Just as it is possible to hear him teaching here, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him should not perish," and again, "For God did not send the Son into the world,"

¹⁹ To judge the world," and again, "But the one who does not believe is already judged because he has not believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God." And here again, God gave and "sent the Son, the Savior of the world," while the Son was sent as another, alongside the one who sends. Therefore, it seems to me that through the following words, the Savior himself spoke to Marcello and to those who are confused about the nature of the Son, saying, "Is it not written in the law, 'I said: You are gods?'

²⁰ "If he called them gods to whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken, whom the Father has sanctified and sent into the world, you say that he blasphemes because I said, 'I am the Son of God.'" Do you hear how many times the Savior called himself not just the word, but also named himself Son and said he is the only-begotten?

²¹ But he taught that he was sent and sanctified before being sent by the Father, and as he teaches those who hesitate to confess him as the Son of God, he shows from the divine scriptures that not only are they called sons of God, but also mortal men are called gods. Therefore, it should not be thought to be blasphemous to confess both the Son of God and God, 'whom the Father has sanctified and sent into the world.'

²² What then should the one who dared to say such things suffer? He is to be considered only a word, and nothing else, having spoken literally, and for this reason he does not call himself the Son of God, but everywhere he calls himself the Son of Man, so that through this confession he might prepare for man to become a son of God through his connection with him. For these things, Marcello said, I do not know how he was able to look back with such eyes or speak with such lips in the face of so many testimonies.

²³ And the Savior also presents himself as light, agreeing with what has been said about light, saying, 'I am the light of the world,' and again, 'I am the light, and the truth, and the life,' and once more, 'that the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness more than the light.'

²⁴ And if someone were to ask, 'Where has he come from?' the one who speaks would answer, 'The one who comes from above is above all,' and 'the one who comes from heaven testifies to what he has seen and heard.' But who is 'the one coming from heaven'? Is it not the flesh that the Savior took on? Not at all. But he clearly is the light, the word, God, the only-begotten, and the Son, being all these things. Therefore, he says, 'What he has seen and heard' he testifies to. So he has both seen and heard before coming to earth.

²⁵ Whom did he see, or the Father? Whose voice did he hear, or the Father's? Thus, he did not teach himself as just a word, but as a truly living Son who exists, saying, 'The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into his hand. The one who believes in the Son has eternal life.' So let us believe that 'the Father, loving the Son, has given all things into his hand.'

²⁶ One should carefully consider the word 'all,' which is a summary of the existence of all created things. Through this, someone might see the greatness of the power of the Son of God, realizing how and in what way he has received the existence of all things from the Father.

²⁷ For if the whole sky and world are great, and even greater and different are the things that exist beyond what we see, which are unembodied, imperishable, and have divine and intelligent powers, all these things escape our understanding and knowledge. Yet, one hand of the only-begotten Son of God, grasping the greatness of his infinite power, shows forth his excellence.

²⁸ Indeed, the Son himself again presents this through another voice, saying, 'All things have been given to me by my Father.' Then, as we wonder about who he was and what kind of being he is who has received such a great gift, he says, 'Do not seek or ask.' For it is not in human nature to know, nor is it possible for even the greater and more divine powers to fully grasp the nature of the Son of God.

²⁹ Therefore, having prophesied, 'All things have been given to me by my Father,' he added, 'and no one knows the Son except the Father.' Let every secret word about the Son of God be silent, and let the knowledge of his generation from the Father be given only to the Father. No one should seek further about the nature and essence of this secret. Instead, let his teaching about himself be confirmed for us by the grace of faith, clearly showing that all things have been entrusted to him by the Father.

³⁰ Therefore, God was giving and entrusting for improvement and benefit, making the gift like a savior, a healer, and a ruler of all. The Son received this gift and, as a faithful guardian, held it, not as a meaningless and empty word, but as truly being the only-begotten and beloved Son of the Father.

³¹ Moreover, he called himself the bread of life, saying, 'I am the bread of life,' 'I am the living bread that came down from heaven.' And just as he was living, he clearly explained, saying, 'As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father.'

³² And the one who eats me will live because of me." This he also taught in another way, saying, "For just as the Father has life in himself, so he has given the Son to have life in himself." Therefore, he was both the bread of life and existed in heaven, nourishing the angelic powers with the strength of his divinity. He was all this even before coming to earth, being the Son who has life "in himself," just like the Father who has life "in himself.

³³ For the unique and special nature of the Father's uncreated and divine life. For which it is said, according to the divine apostle, that the Son alone "has immortality," being the image of the Father and in this way. He has this mentioned life not as unoriginated, nor uncreated, nor privately owned like the Father, but rather receiving it from the Father.

³⁴ For he says, "And he has given the Son to have life in himself, just as the Father has life in himself." Therefore, the one gave, and the other received. And only he has received this honor, so that he does not get his life from anywhere outside himself like the other living beings, but rather has it springing up within himself according to what is in the Father. Thus, all those who share in life live through the Son's support; but he himself has life springing up within himself, which the Father has given him for the enjoyment of those who will be made alive through him.

³⁵ This is what he himself teaches, saying, "Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so the one who eats me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven." You see that there was also bread of life in heaven. Therefore, it is said somewhere, "A man ate the bread of angels." And before he was sent by the Father, he was in heaven and lived because of the Father.

³⁶ Not as a significant word, nor as one and the same existing with God, but as one who exists and has his own life, which the Father has given to him.

³⁷ And going on, he presented the glory of the Father and said, "Just as the Father taught me, I speak these things. And the one who sent me is with me; he has not left me alone, because I always do what pleases him." And he carefully keeps in mind how it was said, "always."

³⁸ For he says, "Not now, when I am speaking with people on earth through the flesh, do I do what pleases the Father, but always." And he testifies that he speaks these things, which he learned from the Father as from a teacher. Therefore, the Father is also called a teacher, being different from him, since anyone who learns is different from the one teaching.

³⁹ If the word was in God, through whom it could be called logical, being a sign of the thoughts of the Father, how could he be a teacher of himself? And how, being inseparable from God, could he say he was sent? And how, being one and the same with God, could he testify that he does what pleases him? But if Marcello says that the word spoke these things while being in the flesh, what can we say about not agreeing that he is the Son, but only a word?

⁴⁰ How was he in the flesh when he said these things? Was he living and existing, apart from the Father? And who was the Father then, if he did not have the word within himself? But was he existing without the word? And the word was dwelling in the flesh. When he was on earth doing his work, if he was outside the Father, living and existing and moving the flesh like a soul, then he would be different from the Father, and there would be two distinct beings, both he and the Father.

⁴¹ The effort of Marcello is completely in vain if he claims that the living and existing word, which became flesh, is defined. If the word dwelling in the body existed outside of God, and was united and connected to God as one and the same, then it must either be the Father in the flesh, or the Son existing by himself and acting in the body, or the soul of a man, or if none of these, then the flesh would move on its own, being lifeless and without reason.

⁴² If he speaks of the Father, then the Father will be the one who was born and suffered, and all human-like actions will remain under him. This is why the church wrote a letter against Sabellius for his impiety. But if it is not right to say that the Father became human, then it is necessary for him to acknowledge the Son, teaching his followers this.

⁴³ But if Marcello denies that the Son exists, he would have to suggest that he is just a plain man made up of body and soul. He would not differ at all from the common nature of humans. But this belief has also been rejected by the church. Long ago, the Ebionites held it, and recently, the Samostateans and those called Paulinians, who thought similarly, have faced punishment for their slander.

⁴⁴ So what is left after this, except to say that the flesh alone is introduced, moving by itself like those wonders done by miracle workers? And how could the flesh say, "As I was taught, I speak these things"? How could the flesh say, "I always do what is pleasing to him"? How could the flesh claim to have been sent by the Father? Is it right to call God the Father of the flesh, or rather the one who dwells and acts within it? So who is this? Is it the Word in God, who is himself God according to Sabellius, or, as it is right and true to say, the living and existing only-begotten Son of God?

⁴⁵ But if he says neither of these things, then it must be accepted that the soul of a man will be present, and Christ will be just a plain man. He will no longer be Sabellian, but the new writer will be Paulinian for us. But if he claims that the Word in God dwells in the flesh as nothing other than a Word that is significant or active,

⁴⁶ And how could he say that he lives a unique life from the Father? How could he be sent, always joined and united with God? How could he say that the Father is his teacher? How could he say that he always does what is pleasing to the Father? For these are clear voices of a Son who exists and lives, and throughout the whole Gospel, the one who prays to the Father, who glorifies the Father, who claims to be worthy to be glorified by the Father, shows that he exists as someone distinct, especially when he says, "The testimony of two men is true."

⁴⁷ "I am the one who bears witness about myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness about me." For so many reasons, the Savior, presenting himself as living, never called himself just a Word, but rather a Son, and Light, and Only-begotten, and Bread of Life, and much more than just a Word.

⁴⁸ And he teaches that he has a Word, saying, "If anyone loves me, he will keep my Word," but he does not say that he is just a Word. How then, after all this, does he not blush when he claims to be only a Word and nothing else? Listen to how he wrote, saying, so it is clear from everywhere that nothing else fits the nature of the Word but this, which the most holy disciple and apostle of God, John, said at the beginning of the Gospel.

⁴⁹ And again, to show that if there is any new and younger name, this comes from the new and recent arrangement he had in the flesh.

⁵⁰ And again, before he came down and was born through the virgin, there was only the Word. For what else was there before he took on human flesh when he came down "in the last days"? As he himself wrote, and born from the virgin? There was nothing else but the Word.

⁵¹ It is possible to say so much to Marcellus and to declare this because he does not confess the Son of God. To him, the evangelist would cry out loudly: "What do you say, man? I did not say only the Word, but also God, and 'the light that gives light to everyone coming into the world,' and the only-begotten Son 'who is in the bosom of the Father.'"

⁵² So let no one slander the theologian, but let them listen carefully to what he said, having joined the words "and the Word was God" and added "all things were made through him." According to him, the Savior of all is never called just the Word. Instead, he is called the Son of God, the only-begotten, the light, the life, the truth, and much more than just the Word.

⁵³ If he says that these things are spoken from the New Testament, it will be said to him that "in the beginning was the Word" was not from elsewhere but from it. Therefore, the same gospel is one and the same, as the same evangelist who spoke of the Word also wrote everything else about him.

⁵⁴ And Paul, the divine apostle, says, "For us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things, and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things." It is clear that before the Son of God became human, "through whom are all things" refers to him, not calling him the Word, but calling him Lord Jesus and Christ. But if, according to Marcellus, God and the Word in him were one and the same, it would have been enough for the apostle to say, "For us there is one God, the Father."

⁵⁵ "From whom are all things." For the mind was full, and the Word was self-sufficient, introducing God as the creator of all. But even a Jew could say this. However, the herald of the church teaches not to be ignorant of the former and the latter.

⁵⁶ What does this mean? "And one Lord Jesus Christ." Therefore, he adds the second part, saying, "For us (for even if not for all, he says, for us) there is one Lord Jesus Christ." But why, after mentioning one God, does he also say, "For us there is one Lord"? He presents this by choosing "through whom are all things." Since "all things were made through him," it is fitting for us who know this to believe that he is Lord of all, along with the God who is over all.

⁵⁷ That he was not speaking about the flesh, but about the Word of God, is clear from the phrase "through whom are all things." For he says, "For us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things, and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things." This is also said about the light and about the pre-existing Word. Therefore, Jesus Christ himself was the light and the Word. "Through whom are all things" came to be, but not the flesh. For he would not have said "through whom are all things" in such a disconnected way if he were speaking about the flesh.

⁵⁸ Paul himself knows to call the Son of God, who existed before the flesh, Christ, referring to him as the same rock. He writes about those who spent time with Moses in the wilderness, saying, "For they drank from the spiritual rock that followed them, and that rock was Christ." He confirms this by saying with other words, "Let us not test Christ, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the serpents."

⁵⁹ And even more, he confirms this by saying, "By faith, Moses, when he grew up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, considering the disgrace of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt." He makes this even clearer when he says, "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, and being found in appearance as a man."

⁶⁰ You see that before he emptied himself and took the form of a servant, he existed "in the form of God." Who was this? No one other than Jesus Christ. Therefore, he was the Word of God, Jesus Christ, even before he took on flesh.

⁶¹ For it must be heard clearly from the divine apostle saying, "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus," and explaining further who this Jesus Christ was, by adding, "who, being in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant."

⁶² So, is it possible to take the Word here in relation to the flesh? Is it fitting to say "who" and "being" about the flesh? But isn't it the case that he "emptied himself, taking the form of a servant"? This seems ridiculous. Therefore, let us examine how it is said, "who, being in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but emptied himself." If indeed the Word was non-existent, not standing outside of God, but being within him, sometimes in quiet and silence, and sometimes in action,

⁶³ And how was he "in the form of God," being God himself? How did he "not consider equality with God something to be grasped," being God himself? How did he "humble himself by becoming obedient" to the Father? For obeying this one to that one would indeed create a representation of two persons.

⁶⁴ And since Marcello has used the word in a way that people understand, we must ask if it fits to say: "who, being in the form of a man, did not consider equality with a man something to be grasped, but emptied himself by becoming obedient to the man." And how could the Word, which is united with man, do these things, being one and the same with man? Therefore, the Word will not be just a simple and non-existent thing, but truly the only Son of God, "who, being in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but emptied himself by taking the form of a servant," whom the divine apostle called Jesus Christ, knowing well that he existed before the flesh.

⁶⁵ 11. To these things, he himself named him as the mediator of God, saying that the law of Moses was given through him, as he says, "the law was given through angels, by the hand of a mediator. But the mediator is not of one, and God is one." Do you hear how he calls God specifically and names the angels, introducing the mediator by saying, "but the mediator is not of one"? Therefore, there was also mediation before the incarnation during the time of Moses concerning the law.

⁶⁶ 12. And the same apostle calls him a high priest, saying, "Therefore, having a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God."

⁶⁷ 13. Not only that, but he also knows him as the radiance of glory and the exact representation of God, and as the Son and heir, saying, "In these last days, he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also made the ages; who being the radiance of his glory and the exact representation of his being." And here, just as it was said above about the Word, "all things were made through him," and about the light, "he was in the world, and the world was made through him," and about Jesus Christ, "one Lord, Jesus Christ, for us."

⁶⁸ 14. Through whom all things were made.) It is worth noting how similarly it is said about the same, "through whom he also made the ages." 15. It is important to understand that he is called the radiance; for I think the Word is a representation of the Son's birth from the Father. For often, when the Son and God the Father are mentioned, so that we do not fall into thinking of something like the births of animals, the apostle has used a more divine image of God.

⁶⁹ 16. About the Father, he said, "an inaccessible light," and he defined the Son as the radiance of the Father's light, so that the radiance is a product of the first light, not according to the way mortal beings are born, but according to the mentioned example. Therefore, it is fitting that he also calls him "the image of the invisible God," because he exists "in the form of God," and because he is "the radiance" and "the exact representation of his being."

⁷⁰ 17. For writing about him, he said, "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation, because in him all things were created, both in the heavens and on the earth, whether visible or invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities; all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together."

⁷¹ 18. For these things have been said about the divinity of the Son of God, even if it does not seem so to Marcellus. For the divine apostle would not have said so much about the flesh. This would be foolish and unreasonable, as well as inconsistent with the meaning of the statement. For how could it be appropriate to say "he is the image" about the flesh, unless it is necessary to say: "what is the image"?

⁷² 19. And in another place, he again called him the image of God, saying, "But if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whom the god of this age has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of Christ, who is the image of God."

⁷³ 20. Here, it is fitting to understand that the divine apostle clearly explained about Christ, calling him the image of God, so that no one would think there are two gods, but rather one who is above all. For if "there is one God, and there is no other besides him," then he himself is known through the Son as through an image.

⁷⁴ 21. Therefore, the Son is God, because he shows the form of the Father as in an image. This is what the divine apostle presents, sometimes saying "who, existing in the form of God," and at other times defining him as "the image of God." So, along with other titles, the Son was and is called "the image of God" even before his earthly presence. But these are just a few examples from the New Testament, out of many, that fit our discussion.

⁷⁵ 22. And the ancient prophets of God honored the same one with different titles. For one called him "the Spirit of God," saying, "A rod will come out of the stem of Jesse, and a flower will rise from its root, and the Spirit of God will rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding," and so on. For he clearly showed the one "who is from the seed of David according to the flesh" and the one who dwelt in him, the Word of God, through these words. Hence, the divine apostle sometimes said, "the Lord is the Spirit," and at other times, "Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God." Another similarly called him the Spirit, saying, "the Spirit before our face is Christ the Lord." And in the Gospel, it is clearly said about him, "Behold my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased. I will put my Spirit upon him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations."

⁷⁶ 23. Another prophet called him life and light when he addressed God, saying, "For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we will see light." For who was the fountain of life and the light from God but he himself, who said in the Gospels, "I am the light of the world," and "I am the way, the truth, and the life"? Therefore, again, the prophet, pleading in prayer to God, says, "Send out your light and your truth; let them guide me."

24. And he also spoke of truth when he mentioned Zerubbabel, and he was honored with victories. For when it was written during the reign of the Persian king, he said, "And the truth endures and is strong forever."

⁷⁷ 25. "And it lives and endures forever and ever. And there is no favoritism with it, but it does what is right, and it stays away from all the unjust and wicked." To these, it is added, "And its strength, kingdom, power, and greatness are all ages." For by saying the truth and winning and enduring, it clearly shows its essence. Therefore, the Savior himself, calling himself the truth, confirmed the testimony of Zerubbabel.

⁷⁸ 26. And he called him a river, saying, "The streams of the river make glad the city of God."

⁷⁹ 27. And he also called it a mountain, saying, "The mountain that God chose to dwell in." Therefore, also in Daniel, "A stone cut out of the mountain without hands" was seen, and again the same stone was seen becoming a high mountain. This shows the preexistence of his divinity in the mountain and the humanity in the stone.

⁸⁰ 28. And they called him righteousness, as the one saying, "Who has raised up righteousness from the east?" And the sun of righteousness, as the one who said, "But for those who fear me, the sun of righteousness will rise, and healing will be in its wings." And another says, "The sun will set upon the prophets who lead my people astray." For indeed, these things would not apply to the visible sun, nor to the incarnate word.

⁸¹ 29. And Solomon calls him wisdom in the Proverbs, saying, "Wisdom has built a house for herself, and she has set up seven pillars." And that wisdom was pre-existing, living and standing, teaching these things from her own presence, saying, "I, wisdom, dwell with counsel, and knowledge and understanding I call." Then, continuing, she says, "Through me kings reign, and rulers write justice; through me nobles are honored, and tyrants hold power."

⁸² 30. But Solomon also called him the wood of life and lord, saying, "The wood of life is for all who hold on to it, and for those who lean on it as on a safe lord."

⁸³ 31. And David, the father of Solomon, also called him lord and priest in the Psalms, sometimes saying, "The lord said to my lord: Sit at my right," and at other times declaring, "The lord has sworn and will not change his mind: You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek."

⁸⁴ 32. And the same one also acknowledged him as God, saying, "Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions." For in this anointing by God, who could be other than the one called Christ because of the anointing from the Father?

⁸⁵ 33. And this same one was also the beloved of God, as the title of the psalm shows, which contains "A song for the beloved."

⁸⁶ 34. Isaiah also called him the arm, saying, "The Lord will reveal his holy arm before all the nations." And David knew him as righteousness and salvation, which is why he said, "The Lord has made known his salvation; he has revealed his righteousness before the nations."

⁸⁷ 35. And again, "Proclaim the salvation of him day after day," and also, "Who will give salvation from Zion to Israel?" and "Show us, Lord, your mercy, and give us your salvation." And why should I go through each one, when someone who loves to learn can gather these things from all the inspired writings, through which the people of God, enlightened by the divine spirit, understand the knowledge of the only-begotten Son of God, which was then secret and hidden from the crowds of the Jewish people. That is why they spoke of him in various ways with hidden references. For the grace of the preaching of the theology about him was kept safe by his presence, which the church, like an ancient secret and silent mystery, has received and honors throughout the whole world.

⁸⁸ 36. This is what the divine apostle teaches, saying, "According to the plan of God that was given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God, the mystery that has been hidden from ages and from generations — but now has been revealed to his holy ones, to whom God wanted to make known what is the wealth of the glory of this mystery among the nations, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." Do you see how it was a mystery that was hidden before, but now the Son of God has been revealed?

⁸⁹ 37. Therefore, the prophets of God spoke about him mystically through the prophetic spirit, while the crowds of the Jewish nation were in ignorance of the hidden mystery. For they were taught that there is one God, because they were continually drawn away by the many false beliefs, but they did not know God as a Father or the only-begotten Son. For this mystery was kept safe by the church from among the nations.

⁹⁰ 38. This was given to her by special grace, for in him, according to the apostle, "are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." But indeed, because of so many things, the word of God, "that was in the beginning with God," was shown to be more than just a word, as Marcellus thinks. He is also Son, only-begotten, light, bread, Jesus, Christ, Lord, high priest, radiance, image, firstborn of all creation, source of life, truth, river, righteousness, sun of righteousness, wisdom, tree of life, Lord, God, beloved, priest, arm, righteousness, and savior. And being all these things and existing before the flesh, he was named, as the scriptures presented.

⁹¹ 39. What then does Marcellus mean by all this? He stands only on the word itself, not crossing over to the other names, claiming that it is only the word of God and a significant word, sometimes quiet in God, and sometimes speaking or acting only by its own power. Or is it because he is influenced by Sabellianism and does not believe in the Son of God or understand the mystery that has existed for a long time, but is known only to the church of Christ through its revealed grace?

⁹² 40. But if he says that the mystery is unknown, having God within the word and using the word (for this seems to him, Marcellus, to be the way he writes), what else could be the hidden mystery but that according to the word? Thus, this mystery was hidden in God before, so that no one from the earlier people clearly knew the things according to the word. Therefore, if he says this, let him learn that every Jew who does not know Christ of God would agree that the word has God and is not without reason.

⁹³ 41. But both Sabellius himself and every Greek and barbarian, who acknowledges that God exists, would certainly say this: for when one speaks of God, they also think of him as wise, rational, powerful, just, and good. So what kind of mystery was hidden that is acknowledged by all? For who would not say that in God there is wisdom, power, life, light, truth, justice, reason, and everything that is good and beautiful? Rather, he is all these things, and if there is anything greater and better than these that is unknown to us, for nature itself compels every person to acknowledge all these things about God. From this, we learn that the Son is all these things.

⁹⁴ 42. Since he is the only begotten Son and heir of the Father, having everything that the Father has. Therefore, he is called in the form of God, and the image of God, according to the divine apostle who said, "Who, existing in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God," and again, "who is the image of God."

⁹⁵ 43. Therefore, the logical nature of God was not "the mystery that was hidden from the ages and from generations," nor was it "now revealed" to all people through natural understanding. But if someone were to ask what it is, the apostle answers, saying, "But now it has been revealed" to "his holy ones, to whom God wanted to make known what is the richness of the glory of this mystery among the nations, which is Christ in you."

⁹⁶ 44. Therefore, Christ was the mystery, and it is clear that he is the Son of God. For before, the prophets of God honored him with various titles, hiding the secret and keeping the revelation of him for all through his grace. When Marcello strongly argues that the Word was nothing other than the Word before taking on flesh, and that it did not take another name, and then that it became flesh at a certain time, how could he not be ignorant and foolish about divine matters? But since this is established, let us now examine the young Sabellius as if he has come to life.

Outline

45. This is what the second book contains about ecclesiastical theology. 1. How Marcello renewed the view of Sabellius. 2. How he debates with the Jews about this view. 3. How he defined the Word of God as being uncreated and without beginning while being in God. 4. How he said that the Word and God are one and the same. 5. That in saying these things, he denied the Son. 6. How the church speaks of the Son. 7. How the church proclaims the monarchy of the Father. 8. The words by which Marcello denied the Son of God. 9. A refutation of the man's false teaching. 10. That he did not correctly accept "In the beginning was the Word." 11. That at times he called the Word of God spoken, and at other times he called it unspoken, similarly to that which is in humans. 12. That the evangelist did not present the theology of the Word as Marcello thought. 13. In how many ways the meaning is understood from the voice of the Word. 14. How it is necessary to interpret the evangelical teaching about the Word. 15. The quotations from Marcello's words, by which he clearly denied the Son of God, claiming that he is both the spoken Word and the unspoken Word. 16. A refutation of the man's false teaching. 17. An explanation of the true meaning of the Word. 18. Why the evangelist named the Son at the beginning of his writing. 19. How Marcello, while bearing witness to the scriptures of the Old Testament about one God, similarly denied the Son of God to the Jews. 20. Why Moses and the prophets did not plainly hand down the theology about the Son to the Jews. 21. That the Son was of God, speaking to Moses and Abraham. 22. That even in the prophets, the Father was spoken of through the Son. 23. That the church does not proclaim two gods. 24. How Marcello separated the only-begotten Word from the commandments of God given to the doers. 25. How he wrote contradictory things to himself.

Book 2, Section 1

After the testimonies of the divine writings have been presented, which show that the Son of God was not only called the Word before his incarnation (as Marcello thought), but also many other things, let us now examine the image of Sabellius as if it has risen from the ground. He dared to say that the God above all, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, was born from the holy virgin and that he himself suffered. Writing in this way, what then was the descent before he became human? He certainly says it was a spirit. For if he wants to say anything different from this, the angel who spoke to the virgin said, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you." But if he says it is a spirit, let him listen to the Savior saying, "God is spirit."

² Because of this, the God of all, about whom our Savior and Lord taught, saying, "God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth," he claimed that the spirit that came upon the virgin was a spirit, directly opposing Sabellius.

³ And going on, he clearly mentioned the prophecy of Jeremiah about the incarnation of the Savior, saying, "After this, he was seen on the earth and lived among men." He refers this saying to the Father, claiming that in the word, the Father seems to be present, even if Asterius does not think so and those who think the same as him.

⁴ And about the suffering of the Savior, he does the same. For he quotes from the Lamentations of Jeremiah, "The spirit of our face, Christ the Lord, was taken in their destruction," and here the prophet similarly speaks about the flesh taken from us. He adds, saying that a creative spirit of shadow could never exist. And that the spirit is God himself, the Savior said, "God is spirit." That God is light, he teaches us by saying, "I am the light." You see how what is said about the Savior refers to the divinity of the Father.

⁵ And again, he denies the existence of the Son's substance, saying that before the creation of those who are born, there was nothing else except God alone. He writes here literally that the authority given to him is called glory by Asterius, and not only glory but also pre-worldly glory, not realizing that before the world existed, there was nothing else except God alone. And again, he confirms the same by saying that heaven and earth and all that is in heaven and on earth were made by God. If you believe this, you must also agree that there was nothing else except God.

Book 2, Section 2

You see a Jew directly denying the only-begotten Son of God, "by whom all things were made." For if there was nothing else except God before the creation of the world, then the Son did not exist. And how could "all things were made through him, and without him nothing was made"? The Jew, who denies Christ of God, knows nothing before the creation of the world except God alone, with Marcello agreeing with him. But the Church of Christ boldly proclaims, saying, "We have one God the Father, from whom are all things, and one Lord Jesus Christ."

² By whom all things were made." When he says "by whom all things were made," he knows him before all things. Therefore, the one who claims that before the creation of the world there was nothing else except God alone is lying about the truth. For with the only God, the only-begotten Son was also there before the creation of the world. And he was with the Father. For this is what he taught, saying, "In these last days, he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also made the ages.

³ And in Proverbs, through Solomon, the Son himself teaches about himself, saying, "When he prepared the heavens, I was there with him." But he also "was the light, the light that gives light to every person coming into the world," since "he was in the world, and the world was made through him." If "the world was made through him," it is clear that he existed before the world.

⁴ Therefore, God was not alone before the creation of the world; his only-begotten Son was with him. The Father rejoiced in him, as Wisdom teaches, saying in Proverbs, "I was beside him, rejoicing daily." And the Son, looking at the thoughts of the Father, was filled with joy, for he says, "I was rejoicing before him at all times." These are the pious and divine mysteries that the Church of Christ has received and keeps. But the one who says that before the world was made, there was nothing else except God alone...

⁵ One must present oneself as either a Jew or a Sabellian. For if someone denies the Son and only introduces God, he will be a Jew denying Christ. Or if he accepts the expression of the Son to a certain extent, claiming that he is the one God, both Son and Father, he will renew the belief of Sabellius. For if before the world there was nothing else except God, then he will either be both Father and Son or will not have a Son at all.

Book 2, Section 3

But it seems that Marcellus claims that the Word in God, which is understood as rational, is the Son; so he is both his own Father and again his own Son. Listen, then, to his own words, through which he writes in this way: "For before all creation, there was a certain silence, as is likely."

² While the Word was in God. For if Asterius has believed that God is the creator of all, it is clear that he will agree with us that the Word always exists, never having had a beginning, and that all things were made by him and came from nothing. You see how he supports the idea of God being without beginning, claiming that the Word in him was in silence before creation; and then he goes on to choose to say that if he believes this, he must also agree that nothing else existed besides God. Therefore, the Word had its own nature, being in the Father.

³ From this, he rightly says that the Word is eternal, meaning uncreated. You hear, then, how he writes about the agreement of the Holy Spirit, witnessing to the eternity of the Word through many and different persons? And again, for this reason, he begins with the eternity of the Word, saying, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." He wants to show the eternity of the Word by using three repeated testimonies.

⁴ He claimed that the Word is united with God and is born from him. It is possible to hear him saying this: we know that the arrangement according to the flesh differs for man, but we have believed that the eternity according to the Spirit is united with the Father.

Book 2, Section 4

In this way, by saying that the Word is in God, he shows that it is one and the same with him, writing here: if the examination of the Spirit were alone, it would rightly seem that the Word is one and the same with God. But if the addition according to the flesh were examined in the Savior, it seems that only the divine nature expands. Therefore, it rightly is truly one and indivisible.

² And again, he says: not because of the exact agreement in all words and deeds, as Asterius said, does the Savior say, "I and the Father are one." But because it is impossible for either the Word of God or God to be divided from the Word. Therefore, if God and the Word in him were one and the same, as it seems to Marcellus, the one who was born from the holy Virgin, became flesh, became human, suffered the things that are written, and died for our sins, he himself was the God above all. This is what the church of God has declared about Sabellius, calling him an atheist and a blasphemer.

Book 2, Section 5

If Marcellus says that the Word of God is the one who became flesh, he has defined him to be an indivisible unity of God, giving one essence to both God and the Word in him, so that one cannot think of the one who became human as different from the God above all. If there is indeed an indivisible unity, then God and the Word in him are one and the same. So, who would one call the Father, and who the Son, if there is only one subject? Thus, Marcellus introduces the idea of a father-son relationship, bringing in Sabellius again.

Book 2, Section 6

But the church of God recognizes the indivisible unity, confessing one source, the one and uncreated and eternal God. And the only-begotten Son, who was born from him, is truly existing, living, and sustaining, and is called Savior, not being uncreated or unbegotten, so that there are not two sources and two gods. He was born from the Father and has the one who begot him as his source.

² Therefore, it has been received to believe in one God, the Father Almighty, and in our Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, who provides the rebirth in this holy and mysterious faith in Christ for those who are enlightened through it. But Marcellus says that the unity expands in action; it has a place in bodies, but no longer in the immaterial, formless, and ineffable essence.

³ For neither does it expand in action, nor does it contract when not acting, nor does it act in the same way with people, nor does it move in the same way with people. But being an indivisible unity, God begot his only-begotten Son from himself, without being divided or undergoing any change, alteration, or suffering.

⁴ For neither commanding, nor ordering, nor making laws, does he speak in the same way to people with language and lips. Nor does he look at the arrangement of everything in the same way with our eyes, but whenever he sees "the non-existent," he perceives them as already existing and standing, by an unspeakable and divine power.

⁵ But neither does he, as a maker and creator, take pre-existing material like the craftsmen among us and shape it with hands and fingers. Instead, by an unspeakable and incomprehensible power, he brought into being the essence of all created things from what did not exist. If indeed he did all things with words that are unspeakable and beyond understanding, why should we struggle to say that something happened to him, like a passion, in the birth of the Son, which he experienced before all things and above all things, not according to anything known to mortal nature, but in a way known only to himself?

Book 2, Section 7

But be afraid. O man, do not confess two substances and introduce two beginnings, falling away from the unity of divine authority. Learn then that there is one unoriginated and uncreated God, and that the Son is begotten from him; there will be one beginning, one monarchy, and one kingdom, since the Son himself refers to his father as the beginning. "For God is the head of Christ," according to the apostle.

² But are you struggling, thinking that one must accept two gods if one confesses that there are two substances, the Father and the Son? But also know this: one who acknowledges two substances of the Father and the Son is not forced to say there are two fathers or two sons, but will say one is the Father and the other is the Son. In the same way, it is not necessary to say there are two gods if one places the two substances.

³ For we do not define them as equal, nor both as unoriginated and uncreated, but we say that one is unbegotten and unoriginated, while the other is begotten and has the Father as the beginning. Therefore, the Son himself teaches that his Father is God, as he says, "I am going to my Father and your Father, and my God and your God."

⁴ The Father is indeed God, and he shows that the Son is also God.

⁵ Therefore, there is one God proclaimed to the church of the Son. When the Son is compared to the Father, he will no longer be called God himself, but he is the only-begotten and beloved Son, and "the image of the invisible God" and "the radiance" of the Father's glory. He honors, worships, and glorifies his Father, calling him God, and he is the one to whom it is written that he prays, gives thanks, and "became obedient to death."

⁶ He also confesses that he lives "because of the Father" and cannot do anything without the Father, and he does not do his own will but the will of the Father. He says in these words, "I have come down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of the one who sent me," and again, "I cannot do anything on my own; I judge as I hear, and my judgment is just, because I do not seek my own will but the will of the one who sent me." And since the one who sent him is different from him, he continues to say, "If I testify about myself, my testimony is not true."

⁷ There is another who testifies about me." Then, remembering the Baptist, he teaches that the Father is his witness, saying, "And the one who sent me, the Father, has himself testified about me," and he adds, "If you loved me, you would rejoice because I am going to the Father, for my Father is greater than I.

⁸ Through all these things, he shows that he is different from the Father. He presents the greatness of the Father's glory by saying that the Father sent him, and he himself was sent and came down from heaven "not to do his own will but the will of the one who sent him." And what would Marcellus say to this, hearing the one who came down from heaven teaching these things? For surely even now the flesh of the Savior would not say these things; for the flesh did not come down from heaven.

⁹ Who then would he say is the one who came down from heaven and is teaching these things? Would it be God himself or the Word that is joined to him? But if he says the Father, he would openly expose Sabellius, as the Savior himself would prove him wrong by saying, "I have come down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of the one who sent me."

¹⁰ And "I cannot do anything on my own; as I hear, I judge," and "I do not seek my own will but the will of the one who sent me," and "my Father is greater than I." For to think that the Father says these things would be the height of madness.

¹¹ But if he says that the Word that is united with God and his mind, in which he thinks and considers within himself, explains the things that are set before him, then how could the thought of God and his mind have come down from heaven? And how could it explain these things in the flesh that he took on? And how could the Word in God say that he has come down "not to do his own will but the will of the one who sent him"?

¹² Through these things, the Son of God shows his respect toward the Father. But when he leads all created things that came into being through him, as he is the Savior, Lord, and Creator of all (for "all things were made through him, and without him nothing was made"), then at that time he would be called both God and Master and Savior and King.

¹³ Therefore, the church has been taught to honor, worship, and respect him as God, doing this after learning from him.

¹⁴ The Savior says, "For the Father does not judge anyone. But he has given all judgment to the Son, so that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father." He clearly commands that he should be honored not in the same way as the prophets or the angels or the powers that are different from them, but in a way similar to the Father. For this is what the Father wanted: "He has given all judgment to the Son, so that all may honor him just as they honor the Father."

¹⁵ Indeed, Thomas the Twin, knowing this well as one of the twelve disciples, called him both God and Lord with shining words, saying, "My Lord and my God." Therefore, we should honor only the Son with divine respect, just as we honor the Father. And in this, the Father is honored through the Son.

¹⁶ He also teaches this, saying, "Whoever honors the Son honors the Father who sent him." Just as when we honor an image sent by a king, we would also honor the king himself, in the same way, the Father would be honored through the Son, as he is seen through him.

¹⁷ "For whoever has seen the Son has seen the Father," seeing the unbegotten divinity, as if in an image or mirror, is seen in the Son. "For he is the radiance of eternal light, and a spotless mirror of God's activity, and an image of his goodness." He receives all these things from the Father, having the glory from both the Father and his divinity, as a true and only Son. But the Father has not received from anyone, for he is the source and origin of all good things, rightly called one and only God.

Book 2, Section 8

But Marcello, being ignorant of these things, does not truly want to say that the Son is born from the Father, as a living and existing Son, but claims that he comes from God in some significant or commanding way. Therefore, listen clearly to what he says with these words: he seems to say that the Son was born before the ages, which implies that he is a product of the Father. However, this is not a healthy or pious belief for him. For to say that the one who comes from him is not a word, and to claim that this is the true way of generation, but only to say that he is a Son, gives a certain human perspective to those who hear it.

² Then, since he says that the Word was not born from the Father, the holy apostle and disciple of the Lord, John, while remembering his eternity, became a true witness of the Word, saying, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God," mentioning nothing about the generation of the Word here. Thus, denying the Son of God, he claimed that the Word was sometimes within God, sometimes going out from God, and at other times returning to God and being in him.

³ As he was before. Listen to how he says these words: "Now I believe in the divine scriptures that there is one God. And the Word of this God came forth from the Father so that everything might come into being through him. But after the time of judgment and the correction of all things, and the destruction of all opposing forces, 'then he will be subjected to the one who subjected everything to him, to God and the Father,' so that the Word may be in God, just as he was before the world existed. For before anything existed except for God alone, and since everything was to come into being through the Word, the Word came forth with active power, being the Word of the Father.

⁴ And again, he expresses the same idea more clearly by writing: "Before the world existed, the Word was in the Father." When the Almighty God planned to create everything in heaven and on earth, the creation of the world needed active power. And for this reason, since nothing else existed except for God (for everything is agreed to have come into being by him), then the Word came forth and became the creator of the world, who had also been preparing it in thought before.

⁵ And again, he adds by saying: "And for this reason, he does not call himself the Son of God, but everywhere he calls himself the Son of Man, so that through this confession he may prepare for man to become the Son of God through his relationship with him. And after the end of the action, as the Word, he will be united with God, fulfilling what was said by the apostle: 'Then he will be subjected to the one who subjected everything to him, so that God may be all in all.' For at that time, it will be the same as it was before. Thus, Marcello, having said so much about the Word that is in God, which we understand to be rational, has fallen into a terrible difficulty, daring to say that the Word in him once came to be outside of God, and again within him after the time of judgment, so that he may be united with God, just as he was before.

Book 2, Section 9

Now, therefore, they ask him to answer us. What then should we understand about the time in between, when the Word was outside of God? How did he come forth? In what state was God, not having the Word within himself? For if the Word will be in God at the completion of everything, just as he was before the time of completion, how will the Word that came forth from God be? If he existed by himself as another being apart from God, then Marcello's effort is in vain. But if, having come forth from God, he remained inseparable from the Father according to the spoken Word within us, then he was always and forever in God, even when he acted.

² How then, at the time of judgment, does he say that he will be united with God and will be as he was before? For if he will be as he was before, then the Word that came forth from God will not exist as it was before, and God himself will be unlike himself, having the Word within himself long ago and then receiving it at the completion of everything, becoming then as he was before, while in the time in between he is in a different state. And the Word, having become outside of God, will not be what it was before the completion of everything.

³ And who could be more impious than this idea? For the concepts of being, becoming, and having been, and again becoming, are all signs of change in time. They would be completely foreign to the timeless, unoriginated, and unchanging essence, in which being can only be understood as always existing in the same way, without decreasing, contracting, expanding, or simplifying, and having nothing outside or inside itself. It does not become something different at one time and then return to its original state.

⁴ What Marcello dared to suggest was that God was once in a state of silence and tranquility with himself (according to him, he was the leader of the atheistic sects, who taught that God was silent). After this silence and tranquility, the Word of God came forth at the beginning of creation with active power. As if he was no longer the same as he was when he was silent with God before, but instead was acting as he came forth from God. And how could this be?

⁵ In any case, according to the spoken word, when God is expressed and speaking to humans. This is what he thought while writing in this way: just as all things that have happened came from the Father through the Word, so also the things that are said by the Father are signified through the Word.

⁶ And again, everything that the Father says is shown everywhere through the Word. This is also clear from ourselves, as we can compare small things to the great and divine. For we can say and do everything we want, as far as we are able, through our own creative word.

⁷ If indeed the Word came forth from the Father with active power, then how did Marcello come to limit the time of the Word's activity to the moment of creation, when he claims the Word was in God, just as it was before (before it was given while being silent with God)? Therefore, after the creation, there will also be some silence, with the Word not acting at all. But before the creation of beings, he says, there was nothing except God, and since there was nothing, it is reasonable that he was silent to himself.

⁸ But at the time of the creation, the prophet Daniel proclaims that there will be myriads before the throne of God, saying, "Thousands of thousands served him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him."

⁹ And then all the sons of the coming age will be there, both the blessed souls of patriarchs and prophets, and the holy spirits of martyrs, and all the sheep of our Savior, standing on his right and hearing, "Come, you blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world."

¹⁰ Since so many will be there and will seek immortal life after the time of judgment, why will the Word of God not act then? And how did Marcello come to say that God will no longer speak to the saints at that time, nor will he use his active Word, but will be as he was before, silent and resting in himself? For he often said that he would be as he was before: he was before, as he himself said, in silence.

¹¹ So will God be silent then, who before spoke and acted through his Word, but then, in the promised kingdom of heaven, will deny his saints the Word and the wisdom within it? Do you see how he has withdrawn like a cliff, not using any guide or even the divine scriptures? All these things, indeed, he has gathered from a single voice, which he has not understood for himself.

¹² Immediately, having turned to the proofs of the new and fresh covenant, he was troubled from all sides, but finding only one word that matched his own false belief, he clung to it like someone who has stumbled upon a single statue. And he did not take it from the face of our Savior, but from the face of the evangelist, through whom he named him, saying, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." From this, he rushed to deny that there was anything other than the Word, which is like the Son known to us.

Book 2, Section 10

And yet, the great and divine evangelist has not only called him the Word, as has often been said to us, but also God, light, Son, and only-begotten. He tells the story of the Savior himself, calling him the Word nowhere in the scriptures, but throughout the whole gospel, he speaks of life, light, only-begotten Son of God, truth, resurrection, bread of life, vine, shepherd, and many other things, just as has already been shown.

² So then, with so many things being true, why does he not stand on the rest of them, but instead meddles with the meaning of what is said, while claiming that the Word is nothing other than the Word? He writes to them, saying that he is not called the Word in a misleading way, even if those who teach differently break this down with lies, but that he is the Word that truly and genuinely exists.

³ And again, let him learn that the Word of God has come, not called the Word in a misleading way, as they say, but being truly the Word. And again, as I have often said before, there was nothing other than the Word. And again, before he came down and was born of the virgin, there was only the Word. For what else was there before he took on human flesh, coming "in the last days," as he himself wrote, and the one born of the virgin? There was nothing other than the Word. When Markellius says these things, it would be fair to bring forth such a question: and from where to us, oh this one,

⁴ Why do you add "nothing other" and "only"? For we have known exactly that "in the beginning was the Word." And not only that, but also "and the Word was God" and "the light that enlightens every person was the light" and "he was the only-begotten Son" and all the other things that are stated. That the Word was only and nothing other than the Word, no one could prove otherwise.

⁵ Where then does the boldness of the addition come from? For why would someone not rather say that he is only the Son and nothing other than the Son? And why not God and nothing other than God? Why not the light of the world and nothing other than this? And why not life and nothing other? And for similar things, someone could justly propose the same.

⁶ But just as if someone were to say this, they would be refuted for making mistakes (for all these things are together, being one Son of God, and if anything is greater than these, according to each idea of the divine powers within him and the honors he deserves),

⁷ So also, regarding the Word, if someone were to say that it is only the Word and nothing other, they would be mistaken rightly; for only the evangelist John called it the Word and not just this, but also other things. But the Savior did not call himself the Word at all, but rather light, truth, life, and only-begotten Son, among other things. How is it not strange that regarding those things he named himself, he does not say that one of them is only this and nothing other, but regarding the voice of the evangelist, which named him the Word, he insists that it was nothing other than the Word?

⁸ But also, he says, the Word truly and primarily exists. Why then is he not primarily and truly God? For the one who called himself the Word was not different from the one who called him God. The same evangelist taught that he is both God and the Word, saying, "And the Word was God," and he also called him light. Why then is he not primarily and truly the only-begotten Son and all the other things that the Lord and Savior testified about himself through the evangelist? But he insists that only the Word primarily and truly exists. And he adds that it would seem that it is only the Word, thus falling into the likeness of human speech.

Book 2, Section 11

And when he hears that he is light, he does not fall into the idea of physical light, nor does he say that he is like the brightness of the sun. But regarding the Word, he gives a significant meaning and makes it similar to human understanding. Sometimes he says that it rests within God, and sometimes that it comes forth from God, and that it exists both within and outside of him, in a way similar to the way we understand the Word, both the inner word and the one that is heard through speech.

² He says to them that everything the Father says is shown everywhere through the Word. This is clear even from ourselves, as we can compare small things to great and divine things. For we can say and do everything we want according to our ability through our own word. And again, he says that before all creation there was a kind of silence, as it seems, with the Word being in God. Then, when nothing existed before except God alone, and all things were about to come into being through the Word, the Word came forth with active power.

³ Having said so much about the Word, listen to the evangelic voice as it tries to explain this by writing. The holy apostle and disciple of the Lord, John, clearly and openly teaches at the beginning of the Gospel that the Word, which was unknown among people before, is called the Word of the Almighty. He said, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." He does not rely on just one testimony to show the eternal nature of the Word.

⁴ And again, he says that he wants to show the eternal nature of the Word by using three overlapping testimonies. He also chooses to say "In the beginning was the Word" to show that the Word is in the Father (for God is the beginning of all things, "from whom are all things"), and in the phrase "and the Word was with God."

⁵ The Word is in action with God ("for all things were made through him, and without him nothing was made"). In saying that the Word is God, he does not divide the divine nature, since the Word is in him and he is in the Word. For he says, "The Father is in me, and I am in the Father." Because of these things, Marcellus denies the existence of the unique Son of God, showing that he believes the divine evangelist knows nothing other than the Word, sometimes acting and at other times resting in God, and being nothing other than God himself.

Book 2, Section 12

And yet the great evangelist and theologian, mentioning the Word a third time in the same context, has not once called him the Word of God. For he did not say, "In the beginning was the Word of God," but rather, "In the beginning was the Word," leaving us to seek what kind of Word he was. And again, he said, "And the Word was with God," meaning that the Word of God was in God. But he also said, "And the Word was God," not to suggest that the Word has some significant or creative action of God.

² Marcellus, thinking that the Word of God is eternal, meaning unbegotten, has often defined it this way. He does not see that if he claims the Word is different from God, there will be two eternal beings (the Word and God), and there will no longer be one beginning. But if he says that the eternal being is the same as God, he will openly agree with Sabellius, introducing a father-son relationship in that one being.

³ Therefore, the Father will be born and suffer for him, and he himself will be the one praying to himself, saying that he is both his own son and the only begotten, not confirming this but rather contradicting it with irony. And who could be more impious than this Word? But let us see what kind of Word the evangelist proclaims, saying, "In the beginning was the Word. And the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

Book 2, Section 13

The word, therefore, shows a meaning that, through the Greek language, suggests much about its nature. First, the Word is called the one that is placed in the rational soul, through which we are able to think. Second, there is another kind, the one that expresses something through language and voice. Third, in another way, the Word is arranged in writing by the one who writes.

² Fourth, we have also come to call the Word the seed-like or vegetative one, through which the potential for things that have not yet come into being lies in the seeds, waiting to come into light through actualization. Fifth, besides these, they are accustomed to name the scientific Word as something related to a certain art or knowledge, and capable of understanding all such theories, like those of medicine, architecture, or geometry.

Book 2, Section 14

Since there are different ways of presenting the voice of the Word, and since the evangelist has clearly said, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God," it is fitting for the mind to carefully consider this. The evangelist is delivering something strange and unfamiliar to us, adding something foreign and paradoxical to its unique power in the phrase "and the Word was God."

² For he says not to think of this as something related to a particular thing, like the Word in the soul, or the one heard through voice, or the one in physical seeds, or the one that exists in mathematical theories. All of these are understood as being related to something else that underlies them. But the divine Word does not need anything else to exist; it exists in itself, living and standing as God. "For the Word was God."

³ Hearing that he is God, do not think that he is without beginning and uncreated, like his Father. Learn that "this God, the Word, was in the beginning." He does not explain what the beginning of this Word is, saying instead, "And the Word was God," with the addition of the article, so that he is not defined as the one above all, but also "the Word was with God," so that he does not reduce to human likeness, but rather emphasizes that "the Word was with God."

⁴ For if he had said, "And the Word was in God," it would imply that the Word is something added to God, as if it were another thing in another thing, making it a composite, as if he were introducing God. This would suggest that the essence of the Word is separate from God, while the Word is merely an addition to the essence.

⁵ This is what Marcello thought, bringing together the Father and the Son as one, calling the Father the essence and the Son the Word within him. He did not realize that by doing this, he was suggesting that God exists without the Word. He would fall into an atheistic and irreverent belief, accepting a god without reason, having a reason as something that happens to him, but not being the reason itself.

⁶ It is necessary to acknowledge one divine thing, which is unutterable, good, simple, uncompounded, and unique, existing beyond all things. It is self-god, self-mind, self-logic, self-wisdom, self-light, self-life, self-beauty, and self-goodness. Whatever someone might think is greater than these, it is even more so beyond all understanding and beyond all thought and reflection.

⁷ The only-begotten Son, who is like an image of the Father, comes from him and is in every way and completely similar to the one who generated him. He is also God, mind, Word, wisdom, life, and light, being the image of the good and the beautiful. He is not the Father himself, but the only-begotten Son of the Father. He is not the ungenerated and eternal one, but the one who comes from him and is called the beginning of the one who generated him.

⁸ If Marcello argues that God and the Word within him are the same, defining God as uncompounded and simple, he would not acknowledge him as either Father or Son. Instead, he would bring up the Jew or introduce Sabellius, claiming that the Father and the Son are the same. Therefore, according to him, "in the beginning was the Word" would be equal to "the Word was with God," and "the Word was God" would be equal to "God was with God."

⁹ Similarly, it would be absurd to say that the third is the same as "the God was God." How can "all things were made through him" make sense if there is only one subject? For it does not say that all things came from him or out of him. Instead, it says "through him." The preposition "through" indicates a servant role, as the same evangelist later presents, saying, "the law was given through Moses." "Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ." Just as the law was not human or belonging to Moses, but was from God, who appointed Moses as a servant and messenger to people, it is said, "the law was given through Moses." In the same way, "grace came through Jesus Christ," which the Father accomplished through Christ.

¹⁰ In the same way, it is said that "all things were made through him," with another being the creator and him serving. Therefore, one should seek a different creator of all things, who supports everything through the one being spoken of as God. And who could this be? But he would not be able to say.

¹¹ With these things being so, it is necessary to agree that the one spoken of as God by the evangelist is not the God above all, nor is he the Father, but rather his only Son, who does not exist as a part of the Father, nor is he in any way the same as God, but is truly a Son, living and existing, being in the beginning, being with God, and being God, through whom all things are created.

¹² As one might correctly say to be clearer, instead of "in the beginning was the Word," one could say "in the beginning was the Son," and instead of "and the Word was with God," one could say "and the Son was with the Father," and instead of "and the Word was God," one could say "and the Son was God." Thus, it would fit with what follows, for "all things were made through him, and without him nothing was made."

¹³ Therefore, it is fitting that the divine evangelist said that he had a beginning, clearly indicating his birth from the Father. For everything that is born from something has its beginning in the one who gave birth. However, he did not say "and the Word was in God," but rather "the Word was with God," teaching that the one who was born is not far from the Father, nor is he separated or distant from him, but rather is present with him and exists together with him.

¹⁴ This is also what he taught in the Proverbs, first saying, "Before all the mountains, he gave birth to me," and then adding, "When he was preparing the heavens, I was there with him." Therefore, the Word, clearly the only-begotten Son, was always present with his own Father, God, and was always alongside him.

¹⁵ This is why it says, "And the Word was with God." Since we needed to know what kind of status he had, it necessarily added, "And the Word was God." For how could he not be God, being born from the one and only unbegotten God? If what is born from the flesh is flesh, and what is born from the Spirit is spirit, according to the saving teaching, then what is born from God would also be God. That is why it says, "The Word was God."

¹⁶ And God is the creator and maker of all things. This is what the evangelist also showed next by adding, "All things were made through him." The law, which was a teacher through Moses, introduced God as the creator of everything, giving elements and teachings of true worship, saying, "In the beginning, God made the heavens and the earth," and what follows after that.

¹⁷ Through these things, he advised the people of the Jews to consider the world as created. He urged them not to worship the creation instead of the creator.

¹⁸ But as to why God created everything and through whom, Moses no longer delivered to those under him, "For grace and truth came through Jesus Christ." This revealed the mystery that was hidden by Moses, announcing a new and secret teaching to the church of God. It boldly proclaimed to all, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God," and "All things were made through him."

¹⁹ And without him, nothing was made. And adding to this, "What was made in him was life." And the life was the light of people. And the light shines in the darkness. Through these things, he teaches about the Son of God and the wonders of the divine light and the life in him, showing how through him everything said by Moses and even more was established. But none of this was known by Marcellus, who sometimes followed Jewish ideas and sometimes Sabellian ideas.

²⁰ According to the Jew, before the creation of the world, there was nothing except God alone. The church acknowledges the Father and the Son before the creation of the world. But according to Sabellius, he claims that the Son and the Father are one and the same, sometimes introducing him as an internal Word and sometimes as an external Word.

²¹ For if he pretends not to accept these voices, it is clear that sometimes he speaks of him as being within God, and at other times he shows him going out through active power, from which he resembles him with human words. But the divine evangelist did not support any of the accepted ways of speaking about him, but rather, as it was fitting, he understood the only-begotten Son of God to be a Word that is, through which everything was made, and without the Word, nothing was made. He is truly God and the only-begotten, being the only true Son of the God above all, a genuine and beloved Son, fully resembling his Father in every way.

²² Therefore, he was truly light, as he shines light on the rational and logical souls made in his image. That is why he does not say that he is the light of all, but only of humans; for "the light was the one that enlightens every person coming into the world," he said. In this way, life also truly existed, as it provides the source of life to all living things. And in every thought of the divine powers in him, you would find his true and fitting names. For the Son of God was truth in every way, as he himself presents it by saying, "I am the truth."

Book 2, Section 15

But the young writer neither understands these things nor knows that he is ignorant of them, even though he boasts that he knows them. Come, let us take this up again and listen, as he compares him to a human with words, both in thought and in speech, the way he writes (Nr. 55). I think this is easy for those who think well and can understand from a small and humble example. For it is not possible to separate the word of a human by power and substance; for the word is one and the same with the human, and it is not separated from anything else except by the action itself.

² In these spoken words, he uses an image, but in the inner thought where he says these things (Nr. 53), God did not need any other material, like matter or something else human, for the creation, but rather this preparation in his own mind. Since it was impossible to understand God concerning the creation of the heavens without the word and the wisdom that belongs to the word, he rightly said, "When he was preparing the heavens, I was with him."

³ Then, moving on, he presents the inner word of God. Writing this way (Nr. 52), who among the holy angels or righteous men was trustworthy enough to lift the punishment set upon him by God, unless it was the word itself, who is present and shapes everything, to whom the Father said, "Let us make man"?

⁴ Next, he explains what kind of word he introduces, saying (Nr. 52) that if someone uses a small and human example to examine the divine action through an image: just as a skilled sculptor, wanting to create a statue, first considers the shapes and features within himself, then thinks about how wide and tall it should be to look good, and examines the proportion of the whole in each part, preparing bronze as the suitable material, and imagining the future statue in his mind, he consciously believes that the word helps him, by which he thinks and by which he usually does everything (for nothing good happens without the word), he begins this visible work as if addressing another, saying: "Come, let us make, come, let us shape a statue." In the same way, the Lord God, creating a living statue from the earth, does not command anyone else but speaks to his own word, saying, "Let us make man." Through this, he clearly connects the inner word, by which someone thinks, and the spoken word, by which he speaks, suggesting that there is something like the word in us and the word in God.

Book 2, Section 16

All these things, then, are negative concerning the Son of God, and there is nothing to be worked out. But I think it is worth asking, if indeed there was one God and nothing else, neither Father nor Son, why does the scripture deceive with such names? And why does Marcellus pretend to call the word a son, not the son? And since he has used the example of the word in humans, it should be noted that not every human has a son, being rational and having the inherent word within himself.

² So, what else is a son besides the word? If God is said to have the word within himself and nothing else, by which he also thought and spoke to himself, saying, "Let us make man," why does he call it a son in vain? And what does he pretend about the church? What does he, who does not believe in the Son of God, pretend to believe, forming the word in God to be called a son, clearly teaching that it is far from the example of the inherent word in the soul, compared to the one that was born from someone and exists by itself, living and acting as a son?

³ But I will not say it, as it seems likely, but the divine evangelist said the word himself. Therefore, it would also be fitting for us to agree with this. Yes, I say, and I myself agree.

Book 2, Section 17

However, I think it is not appropriate to hear the voice in any other way than to be taught by the evangelist himself, who defined the word. Clearly, he was able to present this, saying, 'And the word was God.' He could indeed say, 'And the word was God,' with the addition of the article, if he thought that the Father and the Son were one and the same, and that the word was the God above all. The scripture did not express it in this way.

² For it should have been said that the word was of God or that the word was God, with the addition of the article, if the scripture was made to agree with Marcello's thinking. But now it presents the word itself as God, in the same way as the God to whom it was. For having said, 'And the word was with God,' it goes on to say, 'And the word was God,' teaching us more clearly first to understand that the God above all is the Father of the word, to whom the word was, and then not to be unaware that the word itself is his only Son, not that he himself was the God above all, but that he was also God.

³ For the word 'and' connects the divinity of the Son to the Father. That is why it says, 'And the word was God,' so that we may see the God above all, to whom the word was. And the word itself is heard as God, not as an image in lifeless matter, but as in a living Son, closely resembling the original divinity of the Father.

⁴ But since Marcello thought it right to compare the human word to the word of God, we would say how much better it is to use an image related to the human word, and to say that the mind is the Father of the word, being something different from the word. For no one among humans has ever known the mind, which exists in its own essence, like a king hidden inside his own treasury, planning what should be done. But the word that comes from it is made known to all, like a Son born from the hidden depths of the Father.

⁵ Then some benefit from the word, but no one has ever seen the hidden and invisible mind, which is indeed the Father of the word.

⁶ In the same way, and even beyond any image or example, the perfect word of the all-ruling God is not made up of sounds, words, and names like the spoken human word. Rather, like the only-begotten Son of God, it goes forth from the Father's divinity and kingdom, and it bestows gifts of life, word, wisdom, light, and all good things to all created beings, overflowing from the Father and God of all, who is beyond all, ungraspable and uncontainable by anyone, according to the hidden and invisible mind, of which it is said, 'It dwells in inaccessible light.'

⁷ But the Father would indeed be unapproachable and uncontainable by all, while the Son is near to all, since he governs everything by the Father's command. That is why it is said about the Son, 'He was in the world, and the world was made through him.' The Father is beyond all and above all, 'dwelling in inaccessible light,' while the Son is present through all and in all, caring for everything with his providence. Thus, only in this way can we relate the image of the human word to him. But since these things have been demonstrated to us, it is likely that some of the eager learners will ask...

Book 2, Section 18

Why then does the evangelist begin his writing with the only-begotten Son of God? To this, we will say that it is because of the hidden prophecies about him from long ago. For it is said for each prophet, 'The word of the Lord that came to Isaiah,' and 'The beginning of the word of the Lord in Hosea,' and 'The word of the Lord that came to Joel,' and 'The word of the Lord came to Jonah.'

² And similarly, 'to Micah' and for the other prophets, it was said for each one, 'the word of the Lord came.' This is noted precisely and necessarily in the divine scripture, as it was not the same for all the prophets, but it happened for each one according to their own power, which was able to receive the appropriate spirit from it and provide it to each soul. And now, the evangelist was about to announce the economy of the word, not in the same way as it happened to the old prophets, but teaching that he took on flesh and became a man. Then, since he was about to proclaim his saving presence to all people, he continues by saying, 'And the word became flesh and dwelt among us,' necessarily going back to the beginning to show who and what the word that was made flesh yesterday and before was.

³ He speaks of God, announcing both his knowledge and his divine appearance to people. Then, as those from the old divine writings learned about the word that came to each prophet, he himself proclaims his more divine and exceptional beginning, which no prophet has revealed to people so openly and without a veil.

⁴ Therefore, with a loud voice, he reveals to everyone the hidden and secret mystery about the word, shouting, 'In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, and the word was God. All things were made through him. And without him, nothing was made.'

⁵ For if you have been taught by the earlier divine writings, he says, that the word of the Lord came to this prophet and then to another in the same way, now it is necessary to announce not how it happened, but how it was in the beginning. It is necessary to proclaim to all that 'he was God' and 'all things were made through him' and that this same word of God, 'through whom all things,' became flesh by the love of the Father and dwelt among us.

⁶ These things were announced by John, the great disciple and apostle of Christ, teaching all people the new and fresh mysteries of the Savior. Not that God was logical, nor that he thought to himself and spoke to himself, saying, 'Let us make man,' nor that he used words like those who give commands. For anyone who denies this would say that he is the Son of God.

⁷ Indeed, Markellius, seeking refuge in the old writings, tries to gather together the teachings given to the Jewish people about not worshiping idols, but knowing and honoring only one God. There he found the teaching about the one God, which was useful and timely for the Jews who worshiped idols. And so, having taken refuge there and, as if in a stronghold, he closed himself off with a hard heart, he presented the denial of the Son of God.

Book 2, Section 19

Listen to what voices are used, as he writes word for word (Nr. 57). Who then does he think is saying 'I am the one who is'? Is it the Son or the Father? For there are two persons, considering the human form that the Word of God took on, and through this he is seen as both Father and Son. Thus, he separates the Son of God from the Father, just as someone would separate a son from his natural father.

² And he goes on to say (Nr. 58) that if he claims to separate the Father from the Son in what he says to Moses, he will not admit that the Son is God. For how can he who says 'I am the one who is' not agree that, in contrast to what is not, the one who is claims to be himself? And if he says that the Son, being a separate person, speaks the words 'I am the one who is,' it will be thought that he is saying the same thing about the Father. But each of these would be disrespectful.

³ And again, trying to show that the Father and the Son are one, he writes (Nr. 66) for he himself admits, saying 'the Father is in me and I am in the Father.' That he did not say this simply or without purpose is clear from another apostolic saying: 'One Lord, one faith, one baptism,' and he said 'one God and Father, who is over all and through all and in all.' You see that he does not depart from this agreement, but here too he has experienced the same thing. For having said 'one Lord,' he again said 'one God,' so that whenever he remembers the one Lord, he also includes the Father, and whenever he speaks of the Father, he does not testify outside of the Word of God.

⁴ Having said these things, Marcellus then gathers more writings from the Old Testament to prove that there is no Son with God.

⁵ Indeed, claiming that God is an indivisible unity, he presents the same being as both Father and Son, writing in this way (Nr. 68). So then, if we do not pay attention to the Spirit and think that the unity is indivisible, will we not sin, clearly taught by the word saying, 'You shall worship the Lord your God and serve him only'?

⁶ The same is also preached through the Gospel according to Mark. For when a certain scribe came to him and asked, 'What is the first of all the commandments?' he answered him saying this: 'The first of all is: Hear, O Israel. The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your strength. This is the first; and the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'

⁷ There is no other commandment greater than these. And the scribe said to him, 'Well said, teacher, you have spoken the truth that there is one God and there is no other besides him.'

⁸ But the scribe, thinking he had learned true worship through the law, praises the Savior's saying, 'Hear, O Israel,' when he says, 'The Lord your God is one,' and he believes it is well said with an oath: 'You have truly said that there is one God and there is no other besides him.' But those who boast of knowing the mysteries of the New Testament want to reshape God a second time, separating him in essence and power from the Father.

⁹ He adds to these, explaining that there is one God and that there is no Son because of these things. That the one Lord and God is known, has already been made clear from what has been said before. For God said to his servant Moses, 'God said again to Moses: Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.' You see how he shows us here that he calls the same Lord and God one.

¹⁰ Again, the scripture says, 'And the Lord spoke all these words, saying: I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods besides me.' You hear how, through the pronoun, it shows that there is only one God.

¹¹ And again, a little later, it says, 'I am the Lord your God,' declaring himself to be Lord and God. What else do we learn from another scripture? It says, 'And you shall know today and not be led astray in your mind, that the Lord your God, this God, is in heaven above and on the earth below, and there is no other besides him.' And again, in the same Deuteronomy, it says, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'

¹² And again in the same scripture, it says, 'See, see that I am, and there is no god besides me; I kill and I make alive; I strike and I heal.' How then does Asterius, pretending to simply and fearfully follow the holy scriptures, not understand this part, saying, 'The Lord your God, this God, is in heaven above and on the earth below, and there is no other besides him,' and that 'he is one' and besides him there is no other?

¹³ And with other things, he adds again, saying (Nr. 68) how then does the holy prophet Jeremiah not clearly rebuke him for teaching differently? For prophesying about the Savior, he said this: 'This God of ours will not be considered another beside him. He found every path of knowledge and gave it to Jacob, his child, and to Israel, his beloved.' After this, he was seen on the earth and lived among men.

¹⁴ And again he adds, saying (Nr. 50) but it seems that the Father is in the word, even if it does not seem so to Asterius and those who think the same as him. For this is what the divine prophet Isaiah says, speaking through the holy spirit: 'And they will worship you, and they will pray to you; for in you is God, and there is no other besides you. For you are God.' Do you see how he completely overturns the clever evil of those who teach differently?

¹⁵ And again he chooses (Nr. 67) if you also want to hear other parts of the same prophecy confirming one God for us, 'I am God,' he says, 'the first, and I am here for what is to come.' For the 'I' points to one person. For the two statements signify one person to us. For by saying 'I,' he also brings in 'am,' so through the two parts of the word, the pronoun and the verb, the unity of divinity is being testified.

¹⁶ But if he should ask for other testimony, again I will provide the same prophet saying to him, 'I am the first, and I am after these things. And besides me, there is no God.' If Asterius thinks that the Son of the Father is divided in substance as the Son of Man, let him show us the one who says these things.

¹⁷ For the saying mentioned is of one person. So who is the one saying, 'There is no God besides me'? Let him also hear another prophecy saying, 'There is no one righteous and savior besides me.' If he thinks there are two gods, he must admit that the other is neither righteous nor a savior. But if he is neither righteous nor a savior, how can he still be a god? For it declares that there is one who is righteous and a savior. And again, he says, 'Before me, no other was made, and after me, there will be none. I am God, and there will be no savior besides me.'

¹⁸ But if he wants to hear another prophetic saying, let him listen to Isaiah saying, 'Repent, you who are wandering, return to your heart, and remember the former things from before the age, for I am God, and there is no one besides me.'

¹⁹ He did not say, 'I am God,' so that he could clearly show that there is one God through the addition of the article. And what does the prophet Hosea say? He also bears witness to the same things, saying, 'I brought you up from Egypt.' He says, 'And you will not know a god besides me, and there is no savior except me.' Again, Malachi says, 'Is there not one God?'

²⁰ Did he not create you?" he says, "Is there not one father of all of you?" But he seems to say that David did not mention anything about this, even though he is the oldest among the prophets after Moses. And for this reason, he is uncertain whether it is right to think there are two gods divided in substance or not. Therefore, to avoid saying this, I think it is fitting to show him the same things that the previously mentioned holy ones say, saying, 'Listen,' he says, 'my people, and I will speak to you; Israel, and I will testify to you. If you listen to me, there will not be a new god among you, nor will you worship a foreign god.'

²¹ "For I am the Lord your God." He shows himself and says, "I am." Is it not clear that he is saying there is only one God, that is, himself?

Book 2, Section 20

All these things Marcello and even more than these argued against the Son of God, not realizing because of ignorance that such teaching was given to the hard-hearted people of the Jews. For it was not possible for the Holy Spirit through the prophets of God to give complete understanding to people who were unworthy of the true teachings of piety.

² So indeed, he commanded them to offer sacrifices, to practice circumcision of the body, to keep the Sabbath, to avoid certain foods, and to perform physical cleansings, along with physical blessings of the land, like "milk and honey," but not the promise of the kingdom of heaven. And when our Savior and Lord was asked how Moses commanded to give a certificate of divorce and to send away one's wife, he gave a different teaching, saying, "Moses wrote this because of your hard hearts; but from the beginning it was not so."

³ Therefore, he would say the same if anyone asked why Moses and the prophets with him did not teach them about the knowledge of the Son, while urging them to worship one God. For they were not able to accept the grace of the Gospel, being led away by the many gods. So, because of their hard hearts, they taught about one God, first guiding them by preventing them from thinking there were many gods and then leading them to the understanding of the one.

⁴ Thus, Moses delivered an incomplete teaching to those under him because of their limited understanding, so that he did not make any mention of the creation of angels in his account of the creation of the world. However, the later prophets not only remembered angels but also spoke of divine powers and holy spirits that serve the God of the heavens. About these, Daniel taught, saying, "Thousands upon thousands served him, and myriads upon myriads stood before him."

⁵ But indeed, he delivered the words of Moses in silence about all these things, even though he was not ignorant of them, having received the precise knowledge of all things from the divine spirit. However, he made no mention of them in the account of creation as related to God.

⁶ And no one could say any other reason for this except for the hardness of the people's hearts, just as the Savior himself taught. There are also many other things in the structure of the universe that one could learn from the readings of the New Testament, which are not at all mentioned in the writings of Moses. Therefore, he did not mention rulers, authorities, or world powers, nor spiritual forces of "evil," against which the divine apostle says we struggle.

⁷ What then? Since neither in Moses nor in the other prophets can one clearly find words about these things, should we disbelieve the apostle? Or when he again mentions the rank of the greater ones, saying that Christ "sits at the right hand" of God "above all rule and authority and power and dominion and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come,"

⁸ And again, when he names thrones and dominions and authorities and powers, saying, "For in him all things were created in the heavens and on the earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or authorities or powers," should we not accept these things because neither Moses nor the other prophets spoke about them? Or should we say the same about these things, that those who were "stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears" were not able to believe the words about these matters? To them, even the prophets of God did not reveal anything about the heavenly Jerusalem. Just as Paul, explaining to the church of Christ, cried out about those things, saying, "But the Jerusalem above is free, which is our mother," and "You have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to countless angels, to the festival gathering and to the church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven."

⁹ Let Marcello say about these things, if he is able to bring forth the teaching from the ancient writings.

¹⁰ But if he does not find it, let him give the reason why the prophets of God were silent about all these things and many other related matters, for which the same apostle prayed to God on our behalf, "That we may be able to grasp with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height, and to know the love of God that surpasses knowledge."

¹¹ And our Savior revealed many mysteries about the kingdom of heaven, about the completion of all things, and about the promises, sometimes through parables and sometimes in secrets to his disciples, to whom he said, "It has been given to you to know the mysteries of God." No one would find the same things from Moses or the other prophets.

¹² So what? Since these things were not given to the Jewish people, but were kept for the church of Christ for a suitable time, should we reject the grace that has been given to us or should we be even more thankful to the one who has made us worthy of such knowledge? In the same way, we should also receive the teachings about the Son from his new covenant, without being surprised if the knowledge about him was not revealed to the hard-hearted people, while the servants of God kept the words about him for a timely moment.

¹³ For it did not seem suitable at that time to reveal the mystery about the Father and the Son to men who were being led into the many-god error, to whom even the words about the fallen powers were not revealed, so that they would not use this as an excuse to fall into Greek polytheism, which made a god from their own father "of men and gods."

¹⁴ Therefore, the word, raising them from such a delusion, proclaimed the one God, yet it did not deny that he was the same as the Father. It taught to truly honor the one God and advised that no one else should be known besides him, yet it did not deny that he was the Father. If he also called himself Lord and God, just and Savior, he did not exclude being understood as the Father of his only and beloved Son, whether the Father said it or the Son said, "I am the one who is."

¹⁵ The word would be true in both ways. For the Father would be "the one who is," being the only one "above all, and through all, and in all," as the divine apostle taught. The Son, also calling himself "the one who is," would be true, being the only Son of the One. But he would also be the image of the invisible God, and in this way, he would be his likeness, as he alone was "the one who is." Therefore, he would also call himself "the one who is," since he is both God and Lord, just like the Father, and he is proclaimed throughout all the inspired scripture.

Book 2, Section 21

This is also known from the message to Moses, for the scripture says, "And God spoke to Moses and said to him: I am the Lord; and I appeared to Abraham and to Isaac and to Jacob, being their God." You see how he said he appeared to the fathers. When did he appear? The scripture again testifies, saying, "And the Lord God appeared to Abraham by the oak of Mamre, as he sat by the door." But how did he appear? In the form of a man? Who should be believed to be this one, or the Son of God? This is what he himself presents in the Gospels, saying to the Jews, "Abraham, your father, rejoiced to see my day, and he saw it and was glad."

² When they were amazed at his words, he added, "Before Abraham was born, I am," clearly showing his pre-existence. So what does the word show? That he is the Son of God, who spoke to Moses and said, "I am the one who is"? For he taught that he appeared to Abraham. It is said how he was "the one who is."

³ And the great apostle Paul knew that the Son of God became a mediator of the law given through Moses, in which he teaches, saying, "The law was given through angels, by the hand of a mediator. But the mediator is not of one." Therefore, the one who spoke to Moses was the mediator, interceding for the salvation of people before he took on flesh.

⁴ The same apostle presented that this is Jesus Christ, saying, "There is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ." So whether it was from his presence that Moses heard "I am the one who is," or if the Father was the one who sent this voice through him, both statements would be true.

⁵ Therefore, let not Marcellus be troubled, thinking, as he does, that it is impossible to know who is saying "I am the one who is." Does he think it is the Son or the Father? Then he goes on to argue that if the Father is the one who is, the Son will no longer be God. He claims that the one who is says he is himself in contrast to the one who is not. But if he says that the Son, being a separate being, speaks "I am the one who is," it will also be thought that he is saying the same about the Father. Yet both of these ideas are impious.

⁶ In saying these things, he has fallen into a contradiction. He defines the one who is as one, while denying another. And who would he know this to be? For if he claims the Father gives the Son, he will deny the Father, or if he only accepts the Son, he will reject the Father. More likely, he will be shown not to know either the Father or the Son, giving one and pushing the other away. And if he hears God saying, "I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery,"

⁷ You shall have no other gods besides me." Again, let not the soul be troubled here, but let it also listen to what follows. For after saying, "You shall have no other gods besides me," he added, "You shall not make for yourself an idol or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or on the earth below, or in the waters beneath the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them; for I am the Lord your God, a jealous God.

⁸ Do you see how he instructed not to be led astray by the many gods of the nations, but to know only him as God and Lord? Who was this? The Son, having the image of the Father within himself, was commanding these things to those who suffer from idol worship. For "all things were made through him," as the Father, through the Savior, upheld the essence of all created beings. Thus, the Father was giving knowledge and reverence of himself to people through the mediation of the Son.

⁹ This is what the apostle also taught them when he wrote to the Galatians, saying, "The law was given through angels, by the hand of a mediator. But the mediator is not of one, and God is one."

¹⁰ And if he says, "See, see that I am. And there is no god besides me," again the Father was speaking this through the image and mediator, the Son. For when the prophet Isaiah said, "I have begotten and raised sons," and again, "Israel does not know me, and my people do not understand," and again, "I commanded all the stars, and with my hand I established the heavens," we should not say that Isaiah is speaking these things, but rather the God who is speaking through him. Shouldn't the Father, through the only-begotten Son of God, testify to those who are asking for such commands? But these were idol worshipers, as the same scripture teaches, saying, "The Lord said: Where are their gods, in whom they trusted? They ate the fat of their sacrifices and drank the wine of their offerings; let them rise up and help you. And let them be your shelter." For this is connected to the saying, "See, see that I am, and there is no god besides me."

Book 2, Section 22

And even if a thousand times through the prophet he cries out, "There is no god besides me," and "There is no righteous and savior besides me," and "You will not know a god besides me, and there is no savior except me," and all other similar statements are made by the other prophets, God was also the one "reconciling the world to himself in Christ." And it was the Father who was speaking these things through the only-begotten Son, as if through an interpreter, speaking to people. The Son himself also handed down in the Gospels, teaching that there is only one true God, in which he said, "And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent."

² Therefore, the true God was the one, and there is no other besides him, who not only through the prophets but also through his own Son was commanding the idol-worshiping nation of the Jews at that time. Immediately, Isaiah (more accurately, God through him) said, "There is no god besides me. Who is like me?" And next, "You are my witnesses if there is a god besides me," he brought in the saying, "And there were none then. All who make idols and carve them are worthless, making their own worthless things."

³ And throughout all his prophecy, you would find lifeless idols being cut down, and in each prophet, you will similarly find the one God being proclaimed to turn people away from the error of many gods. Thus, we have been accustomed to present the teaching about Christ to the superstitious Greeks in our discussions with them, first offering proofs against their idol-worshiping error and then building arguments to show that there is only one God.

⁴ Let Marcello learn, then, that if he has grown old in the leadership of the church of Christ and has not yet learned that knowledge of the hidden mystery about the Son of God was never suitable for the old people, who were slipping toward idol-worship. And that this mystery, "the hidden mystery from the ages and from generations," was kept safe only in his church through his grace, in which the teaching about the holy Trinity of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit was contained.

⁵ But he, gathering so much as he can say, speaks as a teacher of the Jews about cutting off in the Jewish synagogue, boasting to the disciples of Christ with these things, not knowing that a physical Jew could say more than he. Therefore, while he boasts about these things, he is not covered up by distorting the true teachings about our Savior God.

Book 2, Section 23

Immediately, then, he does not understand the words of the divine apostle, who taught that he is the image of God through which I have set forth his words. It is necessary to understand from this that the church of God proclaims not two gods; for there are not two unbegotten or two without beginning, as has often been said to us, nor does it introduce two natures that are equal to each other. Therefore, there are not two gods, but one source and one God, teaching that the same Father is of the only-begotten and beloved Son. Likewise, there is one image of "the invisible God," which is the same as that of his only-begotten and beloved Son. And when the apostle speaks of the Father as "the blessed and only ruler" and again as "the only one who has immortality,"

² "Light unapproachable" and again "to the King of ages, the immortal, invisible, only God," and again "to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ be glory forever. Amen." Even if more is said about the glory of the one and only God, from all these things, it is necessary to understand that the only-begotten Son of God is the image, not as a lifeless substance, but as something living formed in the Son. And the Savior himself teaches that the Father is the only true God, saying, "that they may know you, the only true God." But it should not be doubted that he himself is also acknowledged as the true God, as in an image, and this is held, so that the addition of "only" to the Father fits as the archetype of the image.

³ Clearly, then, Paul taught that he is the image and radiance of the Father "in the form" of God, as has been shown before. Just as no one who thinks rightly would say there are two fathers when there is one Father and one Son born from the Father, so also, when a king rules, no one who is sensible would say there are two rulers when there is one king and his image is honored everywhere on earth. In the same way (as has often been said to us), the church of God, receiving one God, worships the same God through the Son. It worships as through an image.

⁴ Indeed, Marcello did not understand that the image of "the invisible God" is the flesh of the Savior, which the apostle called "the form of a servant." He did not consider that all humans are formed according to the flesh of the Savior. He insists that the body which the Savior took is an image of the unbegotten, ineffable, and paternal divinity, but he denies that the only-begotten Son of God, through whom all things were made (for "all things were made through him, and without him nothing was made"), is an image of God, saying with these words (No. 82) that it is clear that before the assumption of our body, the Word was not an image of the invisible God. You see how twisted his understanding is of the apostolic interpretation.

⁵ Thus, the evangelist John, while revealing the mystery that was secretly known to Moses and the other prophets, proclaims loudly the great message: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

⁶ All things were made through him," and he testifies that "the light that gives light to everyone coming into the world was there. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him." He clearly presents the Son's nature by saying about the Father, "No one has ever seen God," but about the Son, "The only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has made him known.

Book 2, Section 24

This wonderful teacher of the words of Christ gathers the commands of God and the practical sayings from the divine scriptures and defines the "Word" as "in the beginning." Listen to how he tries to present these things, writing in this way (No. 41). Those who teach them seem to be ashamed to remember the Word. All the divine writings proclaim him. For David says about him, "By the word of the Lord the heavens were made," and again he says, "He sent his word and healed them." Solomon says, "They will seek me in vain, and they will not find me. They hated wisdom and did not choose the word of the Lord." Isaiah says, "The law will go out from Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem." And again, Jeremiah says, "The wise are ashamed," and he adds, "They were terrified and captured because they rejected the word of the Lord."

² And the prophet Hosea said, "They hated him who reproved them at the gates, and they rejected the holy word." Micah also mentions the word, saying, "The law will go out from Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem." By gathering these and similar things, he thinks to strengthen his own glory.

³ See how he has gathered together the testimonies from the divine scriptures and the Word of God that is sent, which is saving and healing, along with the practical commands. For when he says, "They hated him who reproved them at the gates, and they rejected the holy word," what kind of word is he suggesting? It is certainly about the commands concerning holy and righteous actions, and he wants to confess nothing more than the Son of God, as if he is ashamed to remember the Son. For we know that the Son of God is truly the greatest Son and the only-begotten of God, and we know that he is a Word not like that of humans, but rather the Word of God, living and existing as a Son. But since he introduces a significant word and the practical commands, it is understandable that he hesitates to confess the Son, whom he has denied in action.

Book 3

Then he, writing contradictory things for himself, does not notice. For in other places, he insists that no one from the earlier people has known about the Word, for it is a mystery that has been hidden. He writes in these words (No. 45), "What other hidden mystery was there than that concerning the Word?" Thus, this mystery was hidden in God before, so that no one from the earlier people knew clearly about the Word, but now we enjoy the riches of glory and the hidden mystery. And again, the holy apostle and disciple of the Lord, John, clearly and openly teaches at the beginning of the Gospel, that it was unknown among humans before, calling it the Word of the Almighty, saying, "In the beginning was the Word." In these things, then, it is defined that the mystery concerning God is to have the Word, while in the recently presented prophetic voices, all the divine scriptures proclaim the things concerning him and gather many testimonies about the Word of God.

² Therefore, it was not unknown to the earlier people, for they all knew such words, bringing forth the prophetic sayings by mouth and from memory. But the Christian leads us to the scribe of the Jews, not hearing the Savior saying, "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites," and he marvels at him, believing with an oath that "there is one God and there is none but him," not knowing that "even the demons believe and shudder."

³ He keeps in mind how he gathers the things about the Word from those prophetic writings of the practical teachings. The children of the Jews will also confess that they know him, since they received him before us. But even Sabellius did not know such a Word.

⁴ How then did the Jews and Sabellius say that they did not know the Word through those voices I presented? And since he has already said that no one could know God or know his Word unless they received the image of the unseen God, namely, the flesh, as he himself said?

⁵ (For he stretched out that God and his Word could be known only through the image, saying that the flesh is the image.) It should be remembered from what has been said that without the presence in the flesh, all the Jews knew the Word of God and the words in the prophetic writings of the holy works very well, studying them from their early years. They acknowledged God as the creator and maker of all, just as the scribe who believes this with an oath does.

⁶ These things are indeed proof that the man follows Sabellius. Now it is time to also address the twists in the interpretations of the divine writings, so that everyone who honors the man may learn that not only has the right faith been misled, but also the healthy understanding of the God-inspired writings in both their meaning and vision.

Outline

Chapters of the third book. 1. How Marcello dared to interpret the divine writings in a twisted way. 2. How "the Lord created me as the beginning of his ways" and what is connected to this is understood, and how Marcello transferred the same to the flesh of the Savior. 3. A refutation of the things that were not correctly said by him and a healthy interpretation of the same. 4. How Marcello, not understanding the writings, defined the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as one substance. 5. How the Savior taught about the Holy Spirit. 6. How the church teaches about the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 7. How Marcello insisted that the flesh is the image of the unseen God. 8. How he claimed that the flesh of the Savior was of no benefit. 9. How he dared to say that the flesh of the Savior would be left desolate at the end of all things. 10. What the divine writings teach about the flesh of the Savior, and how Marcello thought the opposite. 11. How, not understanding the Gospel voice, he said that the flesh of the Savior was a scandal and of no benefit. 12. An interpretation of the Gospel word. 13. How he claimed that the kingdom of Christ would begin after four hundred years and would end at the completion, making twisted interpretations of the divine writings. 14. Explanations of the healthy understanding of the readings. 15. How it is said that all things will be subjected to the Son and he to the Father. 16. How it is said to the apostle, "Then God will be all in all." 17. How the divine writings present the things about our Savior's everlasting kingdom, and how Marcello claimed that his kingdom would cease without a head. 18. How in the kingdom of the Son, all who are worthy of that blessedness will become one. 19. That just as the Father and the Son are said to be one, so all the saints will be. 20. That just as the Father is in the Son, and the Son is in the Father, so it will be with all the saints. 21. How one must understand the saying, "He who has seen me has seen the Father."

Book 3, Section 1

The great evangelist John proclaimed the theology of our Savior in different ways. But Marcello, rejecting this, fell into Jewish unbelief. This is shown by what has been said. He also twisted the clear and accepted teachings about our Savior, so that you might learn from many other accounts of his, but also from this one. In the Proverbs of Solomon, wisdom is introduced speaking for herself, saying, "I am wisdom, I dwell in counsel."

² And knowledge and understanding I have called." "The fear of the Lord hates evil, pride, and the ways of the wicked. But I hate the crooked paths of the wicked. My counsel and safety, I am understanding; my strength.

³ Through me kings reign, and rulers write justice. Through me nobles are honored, and tyrants rule the earth. I love those who love me, and those who seek me will find me. Wealth and glory are with me, and lasting riches and justice.

⁴ It is better to gain me than gold and precious stones, and my fruits are better than chosen silver. I walk in the ways of righteousness, and I go along the paths of justice, to give wealth to those who love me, and to fill their treasures with good things. If I announce to you the things that happen every day, I will remember the things from ages past.

⁵ The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways for his works. Before the ages, he established me, at the beginning before he made the earth, before he made the depths, before the springs of water came forth, before the mountains were set, before all the hills, he gave birth to me. The Lord made the lands and the uninhabited places and the heights that are under heaven. When he prepared the heavens, I was there with him; when he marked out his throne over the winds. When he made the strong clouds above, and set the springs under heaven securely, and made the foundations of the earth strong, I was beside him, fitting together. I was his delight every day; I rejoiced in his presence at all times; when he rejoiced in the inhabited world and delighted in the children of men.

Book 3, Section 2

These things are about wisdom in Proverbs. I have arranged everything on purpose, showing that there is one face that the Savior took on. While saying this, there was no change in the one speaking. Therefore, wisdom shows these things about herself, teaching. And here it should first be noted that wisdom is called absolutely wise; for she says, 'I' (wisdom) 'have settled in counsel,' and it is not said 'the wisdom of God.' But just as the evangelist wrote 'In the beginning was the Word' absolutely, and again 'the Word was with God,' and it is not said 'the Word of God,' so that no one might think of it as something added to God, nor as something that happened in God, but as something that exists and lives (that is why it chooses to say 'and the Word was God'). It does not say 'and the Word was of God,' so also with wisdom.

² For the Word of God and wisdom were one and the same. Therefore, in Proverbs, she is named absolutely, both in the sayings that have been presented and also through those that have been said in this way: 'Blessed is the man who has found wisdom,' and 'God established the earth with wisdom,' and 'I said that wisdom is your sister,' and 'Proclaim wisdom, so that understanding may follow you,' and 'For wisdom is better than precious stones.'

³ And 'wisdom has built a house for herself, and she has set up seven pillars,' and all the other similar sayings are found in the same book. In these, the wisdom of God is not named, but simply wisdom, so that we do not think of her as something added to God, like knowledge in a knowledgeable man, but as wisdom that exists and lives, the same as the Son of God.

⁴ But if someone thinks that the wisdom spoken of here is the same as the wisdom of God, as we understand God to be wise, let him listen to the scripture saying, 'I said that wisdom is your sister.' Who would be so mad as to think that the God above all and the wisdom in Him could be called a sister to the wisdom of those who are among men?

⁵ But if you take the saying about Christ of God ('for Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God'), there will be no obstacle to your understanding, since the brotherhood towards us is not hidden by an excess of love. But if God and the wisdom introduced in Proverbs were one and the same, being wise in the way that God is wise, what would stop God from being called instead of wisdom? So that 'wisdom has built a house for herself, and she has set up seven pillars,' and the things connected to this could be said instead of: God has built a house for himself and the following things, and again instead of...

⁶ "I said that wisdom is your sister" could be said instead of: "I said that God is your brother." But you see how such a statement strikes the ear without harmony.

⁷ But if you take the words about the Son (for he himself was the effort), you will find everything clear, with no unholy meaning standing in the way, supported by the apostle Paul, who named our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ as wisdom with a bright voice, saying, "Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God."

⁸ With these things set up, it follows that, along with all that has been said, one should also say from his face, "The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways for his works." And if he says he was created, he does not mean as coming from non-existence into being, nor like the other creations that came from non-existence, as some wrongly assume. Rather, he exists as one who is present and alive, having come before and existing before the creation of the whole world. And he is set to rule over all by the Lord, the same Father, where "created" here means "appointed" or "established."

⁹ Clearly, the apostle who said this named the rulers and leaders among humans as creations, saying, "Submit to every human creation for the Lord; whether to the king as being in authority, or to governors as sent by him."

¹⁰ And the prophet who said this prepared for Israel to call upon their God. For behold, he strengthens thunder and creates spirit and announces to people his Christ. And it is written, "Let this be written for another generation, and a people that is created will praise the Lord." The one who creates is not taken from what did not exist. For God did not create the spirit at the time when he announced his Christ to all people; for there is nothing "new under the sun."

¹¹ But he was indeed existing and had come before, and he was sent at the time when the apostles were gathered. When there was a sound from heaven like the rushing of a mighty wind, they were filled with the Holy Spirit, and thus they announced the Christ of God to all people, following the prophecy that says, "For behold, he strengthens thunder and creates spirit and announces to people his Christ." The word "creates" here means instead of "sending down" or "appointing," while the thunder shows in another way the gospel message. And the one who says, "Create in me a clean heart, O God," does not say this as if he did not have a heart, but he was praying for his mind to be made pure.

¹² Thus it is also said, "That he might create the two into one new man" instead of "gathering them together." Look, perhaps this is also true for "put on the new man created according to God" and "if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation," and all the other similar phrases one might find by examining the God-inspired scripture. So do not be amazed if in a figurative sense the phrase "the Lord created me the beginning of his ways" uses "created" instead of "established" or "appointed to lead," since it is also said in the Gospels by our Savior, "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children." This does not refer to the confession of sins (as it is said in another place, "confess your sins to one another"), but rather to the thanksgiving to the little children instead of the "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth" that has been said.

¹³ If someone were to search carefully through all of the divine scripture, they would find countless examples said in a figurative way, and many other phrases that have deep meaning, as well as others that are named the same but refer to different things. Discussing these would take a long time and is not suitable for the present moment.

¹⁴ So here too, the phrase "the Lord created me the beginning of his ways for his works" is said instead of "he appointed me to lead his works." Therefore, it is not simply said "he created me," but with the addition of "the beginning of his ways for his works."

¹⁵ This is especially shown by the Hebrew word. If someone were to examine the true meaning of the God-inspired scripture closely, they would find that the Hebrew reading does not include "he created me," which is why none of the other translators have used this wording. Immediately, Aquila says, "the Lord acquired me as the head of his ways." The Symmachus says, "the Lord acquired me as the beginning of his ways," while Theodotion says, "the Lord acquired me as the beginning of his way."

¹⁶ And the translation makes sense. For the head of all created things, both seen and unseen, was himself the one who was born. The Father generated a unique Son, and having given birth, he appointed him as the savior of all, summarizing in him and through him the order of everything, as the divine apostle taught, saying, "to sum up all things in Christ, both things in heaven and things on earth." This means that not only did all things come into being through him from nothing, but he also takes on the care of the governance of all, being the Word, wisdom, and life, the fullness of all that is good and beautiful, so that through him all things are governed and saved.

¹⁷ This is also shown through the previously mentioned sayings, in which it was said, "through me kings reign, and rulers write justice; through me nobles are honored, and tyrants rule the earth."

¹⁸ With unspoken words, the whole wisdom and providence of the Son of God governs all things. Therefore, through the previously mentioned teachings, he taught these things, encouraging to hold on to him, saying, "I love those who love me, and those who seek me will find me." He also turned away from the opposite path, saying, "But I hated the crooked ways of evil."

¹⁹ And indeed, the Son of God, who was wisdom itself, having distinguished these things and their siblings, next gives the secret knowledge about himself to those who benefit from them, saying, "If I announce to you the things that happen every day, I will remember the things that have been counted from eternity."

²⁰ For if I am to teach the things that are done by me each day, he says, I must also remember the works from the beginning of all time and show how the Father who begot me appointed me to rule over all things, in which I lead the paths of his works made through me. Therefore, he goes on to say, "The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways for his works," or "The Lord acquired me," according to the given interpretation.

²¹ For the great possession of God was the only-begotten Son, who, being his Son, came from him, and who has been established as beneficial and saving for all. He exists as the greatest and most precious possession of the Father, both being and being called such. For nothing else could be a more precious possession for a father than a son. Hence, when the first-created Adam acquired the first son among men, it was said about him, "I have acquired a man through God," using the Hebrew word instead of "I have acquired."

²² But the word "acquired" is pronounced as "kanah" among the Hebrews. Thus, it is said about Abraham, "the field which Abraham acquired," where the Hebrew "kanah" is included, with the same word being used among the Hebrews in "The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways for his works." And here too, since the word "kanah" is present, all the interpreters agree that "acquired" is the correct translation.

²³ But the word "created" is used among the Hebrews, which does not appear in the text at hand. There would be a great difference between "created" and "acquired," since the former generally means the act of bringing something from non-existence into existence, while the latter refers to a special relationship of ownership towards something that already exists.

²⁴ So, when the Son of God says, "The Lord acquired me as the beginning of his ways for his works," he shows both his pre-existence and his special relationship with the Father. At the same time, he highlights the usefulness and necessity of his role in the Father's works of care and management.

²⁵ Therefore, it follows that "Before the ages, he established me, at the beginning before he made the earth, before the springs of the waters came forth, before the mountains were set, before all the hills, he gave birth to me." Through all these things, it shows that his existence is useful and necessary for all, that he was and existed before the whole universe, and that he necessarily leads, teaching. For Moses, in the creation of the world, made no mention of the heavenly and invisible powers because of the incompleteness of those being taught through him. But he went through the creation of the visible world, mentioning the four elements at the beginning: heaven, earth, abyss, and water. And two were made by God, as it is said, "In the beginning, God made the heaven and the earth." But he did not similarly mention the water and the abyss as if these were also created, but simply said, "And darkness was over the abyss; and the Spirit of God was moving over the waters." Necessarily, through these things, the Son of God teaches that they are created and that he himself is before all and that through him all things were made.

²⁶ For this reason, he says, "Before the ages, he established me, at the beginning before he made the earth and before he made the abysses, before the springs of the waters came forth." After mentioning these three—earth, abyss, and water—he brings in the fourth, keeping the greater one, heaven, last. Therefore, he continues, "When he prepared the heaven, he was present with him."

²⁷ Therefore, since these things are clearly presented by divine scripture, let us briefly recount, as in a summary of the narrative, how Markellos, having lowered his mind, insists on all these things being said about the flesh, which the Savior took on, writing in this exact way.

²⁸ Therefore, with this in mind, it is fitting to consider the proverbially stated chapter, "The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways." For truly, he created what did not exist, our Lord God; for the flesh, which the Word took on, did not exist, but he created it as not existing. And he chooses (Nr. 17) therefore, if even at the very end of times this new mystery has appeared, it is rightly said that before this age, it was foreordained, as the prophet said, "Before the ages, he established me," meaning the flesh.

²⁹ And again, he brings up, saying (Nr. 18), "In the beginning," he says, "before he made the earth." What kind of earth is this, or rather, is it our flesh, which after the disobedience became earth again? For he says, "You are earth, and to the earth you shall return." You see how far he has strayed, turning away from the straight path and thinking of a rough and hard road, as if it were some kind of indelible path for himself.

³⁰ Indeed, how he was forced to speak a more shameless and bold word, rather than confess that the wisdom itself is the Son of God.

³¹ So then, "The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways for his works" refers to the person of the Savior, confessing that he is the one who speaks these things in Proverbs. And he says to them with these words (Nr. 11), "Surely, it is not in vain that the ancient things have passed, and all new things are about to come through the newness of our Savior." Our Lord Christ cried out through the prophet, saying, "The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways."

³² Having said this, he brings down the understanding about the flesh of our Savior, choosing next (Nr. 10) "For truly, our Lord God created what does not exist." For the flesh, which the Word took on, was not existing, but "he created the beginning of his ways." And the brave one does not understand how there is one expression and one person in saying, "I, Wisdom, have made my home in counsel," and "The Lord created me." So if one were to refer to the flesh, it is necessary to also refer to the other; and Wisdom will be the one saying both.

³³ But if the flesh were to say according to Marcellus, "The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways," this would be Wisdom. And the flesh would be the one saying, "Through me kings reign," and "Through me rulers are honored." But how could the flesh say, "I will remember the things from eternity to count," to which it leads to "The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways"? And what are the ways that he presents, saying next (Nr. 12), "For this has become the way of true worship for us who are about to live righteously; it is the beginning of all the ways that follow after this."

³⁴ And he adds (Nr. 12) "the beginning of ways" for this reason, our Lord the Savior rightly said, because it has become the beginning of the other ways that follow after the first way, which are shown through the sacred traditions of the holy apostles, proclaiming this new mystery according to the prophecy of the "preaching." This is what Marcellus says.

Book 3, Section 3

3 If he did not accept the writings of Moses and the prophets after Moses, he would have had some reasonable argument for his opinion. But since it is not those who reject the old covenant, why then did he name the apostles and their teachings as ways, and not pay attention to the many things written by the prophets of God about the ways of God? For first, Moses wrote here saying, "You will walk in the royal way," and "Behold, I have set before you the way of life and the way of death."

² And David similarly said, "The Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish," and Jeremiah said, "Stand in the ways and ask for the eternal paths of the Lord, and see what is the good way, and walk in it." And each of the prophets, mentioning the ways of God in different ways, you will find.

³ If then our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ [of God] teaches that he is the beginning of the ways of God, saying, "The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways for his works" (certainly also being older than Moses and the prophets and those who lived before according to the ways of God), it is not correct to take this saying as referring to the flesh he took from all of them, since that flesh existed before.

⁴ Therefore, the Savior did not say these things because of the flesh, but because of his preexistence and his leading of all the ways of God, which all the ancient God-loving men followed.

⁵ Since the divine apostle says, "Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and how inscrutable are his ways," he presents other ways, the providential ones, through which by an unutterable judgment and ungraspable words, he governs all things by divine power. It is fitting to say that the one who said, "The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways for his works," is the beginning of these ways. But the one who does not understand the ways of God has declared that the flesh of our Savior is the beginning of these.

⁶ He also explains the phrase "for his works," saying, "Therefore, he created me as the beginning of his ways for his works." What works is he talking about? About which the Savior says, "My Father is working until now, and I am working," and again he says, "I have finished the work that you gave me."

⁷ Then, as if clarifying the meaning of what has been said, he asks, "Who would have believed before the proof of things that the word of God, having been born of a virgin, would take on our flesh and show all divinity in it physically?" And just as he gives a complete understanding, he leads to this: "The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways for his works."

⁸ And he wrote these things, unable to lift the eyes of his mind "to the heights," and to say similarly to the prophet, "For I will see the heavens, the works of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established," nor remembering the prophetic word, through which it is said that they do not look at the works of the Lord, and they do not understand the works of his hands.

⁹ For if he had paid attention to these things, he would have known that before heaven and earth and before the whole universe, and not only before the visible things but also before the invisible works of God, which exist in incorporeal and supernal powers, he was already there and existed. But moving to "He established me before the ages," he again brings the flesh into the middle, calling this foundation the arrangement made according to his flesh.

¹⁰ As the apostle says, "For no one can lay another foundation than the one that is laid, which is Jesus Christ." And he mentions here the foundation of one age, from which he said that the things concerning Christ are established, even though many ages have passed, as David said, "He who exists before the ages."

¹¹ And moving next to "In the beginning, before making the earth," he again says that the earth is the flesh, and he writes this way about what this earth is, or rather our flesh, which was made again after the disobedience. For he says, "You are earth, and to the earth you shall return." For this needed to receive healing. And he says these things, not remembering that the wisest one also mentioned above that before making the earth, the flesh was created as the beginning of the ways of God.

¹² If he clearly showed the flesh through the earth, how can he not agree that he existed before the flesh? For he says, "Before making the earth, he established me; before the age, he laid the foundation." Therefore, the one who says these things existed before making the flesh.

¹³ And if he did not mention many ages, but only one, of which the Savior also remembered when he said, "The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage," then the flesh that our Savior took did not exist before this present age, but he himself taught these things through Solomon. Do you see how much trouble the one who strayed from the straight and royal path has fallen into?

¹⁴ But he also adds these things to what has been said, saying, "Before making the abysses." Here, the prophet speaks metaphorically, saying that the abysses are the hearts of the saints, which have the gift of the spirit deep within themselves. And he does not understand that before the presence of our Savior in the flesh, the holy prophets of God shared the same spirit, including Moses and those even older than Moses. Therefore, it is necessary that all of these abysses, if indeed these are the hearts of the saints, existed before the one who says, "Before making the abysses."

¹⁵ How then could these things be referred to the flesh of the Savior? And if anyone had knowledge of the divine scriptures, he would not easily say that the hearts of the saints are the abysses, having noted that "darkness was over the abyss," according to the testimony of Moses, and that the words about them in the divine scripture are many and hard to explain. For the apostle says, "Do not say, 'Who will ascend into heaven?'"

¹⁶ That is, to bring Christ down; or who will descend into the abyss? That is, to bring Christ up from the dead. It seems that in these things, the places of Hades are called abysses. And the Lord himself makes this clearer in his message to Job, saying, "Have you come to the source of the sea, and have you walked in the depths of the abyss? The gates of death open to you in fear, and the keepers of Hades, seeing you, trembled."

¹⁷ And the evil powers in the abyss, about which it is said, "Praise him from the earth, you dragons and all abysses," and also the darkness over the abyss, concerning which Moses said, "And darkness was over the abyss," having learned all these things, if indeed he had studied the divine scriptures carefully but not superficially, he would not have dared to say that the hearts of the saints are the abysses.

¹⁸ And he knew that it is also said, "The abyss calls to the voice of your waterfalls," and again, "The abysses were troubled, the sound of many waters," and once more, "The abyss is like a garment wrapped around him."

¹⁹ He could have explained these things and their related matters well if he had the understanding to grasp them. But now, speaking so carelessly and loosely about the hearts of the saints being the abysses, he did not understand as those holy and God-loving men from ancient times taught him, who said, "Before making the abysses." He could not apply the words given to the flesh of the Savior from everywhere.

²⁰ But he, moving to another saying from the same scripture, interprets it like this, asking, "What then is this chapter, 'Before the springs of the waters came forth'?" He claims that it refers to the holy apostles. But this scripture from Exodus presents to us the mystery, long ago proclaiming the types of the apostles.

²¹ For there are twelve apostles, and he remembers twelve springs. And in saying this, he does not understand that there were also twelve tribes of Israel and twelve patriarchs of these tribes, as well as one book of the twelve prophets. There are also twelve hours of the day and twelve months in the whole year.

²² What then is the difference for the apostles in the number of twelve compared to all those others, if indeed some number provided the reason for such an interpretation? It should be seen that the prophets of God, who shared in the same Holy Spirit, were not strangers to the springs. That is why it is said about them in the Psalms, "In the assemblies, bless the Lord God from the springs of Israel."

²³ So, even before those springs, it is necessary to confess that the one who says "before the springs of the waters came forth" is the Son of God. And listen to how he interprets this, saying (Nr. 20) that it is fitting for the master to speak about the birth according to the flesh through the prophet Solomon, saying "before the springs of the waters came forth."

²⁴ And he adds (Nr. 20), for the Savior said to the holy springs, "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations." Then, as if gathering the argument, he leads to his own narrative, saying (Nr. 21) that it is clear from everywhere that the holy apostles are called springs by the prophet. And he wants the apostles to be the springs. But the prophets do not please him;

²⁵ Why, then, is it that he could not give the flesh of the Savior before those? And yet, even before the natural springs, which Moses mentioned in the creation, saying, "And a spring rose up from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground, and again a river went out of Eden to water the garden," the Son of God existed, teaching these things in Proverbs about himself. And he, speaking to Job and mentioning the springs of the sea, says, "But you came to the spring of the sea, and you walked in the traces of the abyss"?

²⁶ Since the scripture teaches that there are some waters above the heavens, saying, "Praise him, you heavens of heavens, and you waters above the heavens," it follows that from those waters (whatever their nature may be) one can understand that there are some springs, so that the one who said he existed before "the springs of the waters came forth" may be shown to be older than those.

²⁷ But he, not understanding any of these things and not wanting to think, insists on the same points, since he also says (Nr. 22), "Before the mountains were settled," and "Before all the hills, he gives birth to me." He calls the apostles mountains and the successors of the apostles hills, so that he may figuratively show their just way of life compared to other people.

²⁸ So, the springs, the mountains, and the hills are all the same. But just as it is not right to say that the springs of water and the mountains are the same (for there is nothing in common between the qualities of water springs and the heights of mountains), in the same way, one must show the difference when considering the springs, mountains, and hills in a figurative sense. However, he, knowing nothing that has been examined, claims that all are the same and says that the springs of water, mountains, and hills are all the apostles, without distinguishing the way they differ.

²⁹ So why did he not also call the mountains and hills perfect in righteousness and godliness before the flesh of our savior, except that he could not have the flesh of the savior existing before those? Therefore, the reference to the flesh of the savior is forced and unnatural. But how could "he gives birth to me" apply to the flesh? For he said that he was born before the springs, before the mountains, and before the hills, saying, "The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways for his works; before the ages, he established me."

³⁰ If the flesh says these things, as Marcellus thinks, how could the flesh say, "he gives birth to me before all the hills"? Let the flesh be before the apostles; but how can it claim to be born by God? For Marcellus seems to say that the flesh was created without existing before.

³¹ For he said that our Lord God truly created what did not exist; for the flesh, which the Word took, was not existing, but he created it from nothing. So we understand that it was created, but how could it also be said to be born by God? Our savior says that what is born from the flesh is flesh, and the apostle also says, "born of a woman, born under the law."

³² How then could the flesh say about God, "he gives birth to me before all the hills"? I think that this interpretation seems forced and is clear to everyone. Someone could easily say that the Son of God confirms this without any allegorical way, since he existed before the earth and was there before the physical sources of water came forth and before the so-called abysses and before the shape of the earth was formed in the heights of the mountains and hills. For "all things were made through him, and without him nothing was made."

³³ But if someone were to ask why he did not teach that he existed before the heavens or before those in the heavens or the divine and transcendent powers and spirits beyond, it will be said to him that the Word did not mention these things before, since he was giving some kind of teaching through the Proverbs to those whose souls were like children.

³⁴ This is also clear from the saying, "Listen, my son, to the teaching of your father, and do not reject the rules of your mother." And again, "My son, pay attention to my laws, and listen closely to my words." And again, "My son, do not despise the discipline of the Lord, and do not lose heart when you are corrected by him."

³⁵ "If you are good to yourself, you will be good to those around you; but if you turn out bad, you will only bring bad things upon yourself." You could find many similar sayings for yourself from the book of Proverbs. Through these, the Word seems to be speaking to the souls of those who are like children.

³⁶ So also, Moses, being a teacher of the imperfect, had in mind the thoughts of the heavens and the earth and the creation of visible things. However, he did not mention the creation of angels, nor of divine powers, nor of holy spirits, because he did not want to include their teaching for his students.

³⁷ Therefore, the teaching in the Proverbs is made for such people, drawing from what is known about the earth, hills, and springs, as if starting from a lower level to guide the students to higher things. It prepares them to move from smaller matters to more divine ones.

³⁸ These things, then, if no one were to go beyond the words, would be enough. But if someone wants to think more deeply about them, they will lead not only to the apostles but also to all the righteous and god-loving men who have ever existed. From here, one will also move on to the divine and angelic powers, speaking of mountains and hills as symbols of the differences among angels, archangels, and divine spirits, as well as thrones, dominions, authorities, and powers.

³⁹ Indeed, the divine apostle taught that all these things were created through him and for him, and that he is before all things. From this, as is fitting, he begins to speak in the person of the Son of God, saying, "Before the mountains were born, before the hills, I was brought forth." He said that all other things were created sweetly, but he alone was born before the creation of those things that were revealed.

⁴⁰ The same apostle knew about the heavenly Jerusalem and the heavenly mountain on which he says it exists, saying, "You have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to countless angels, to the festival and assembly of the firstborn who are registered in heaven." Therefore, before all of these things, the only-begotten Son of God was hidden in the secret of his own birth, hinted at through the Proverbs.

⁴¹ And that he suggested these things to think about is clear from what he connects next, saying, "When he prepared the heavens alongside him." There, the brave interpreter of the scriptures stood excluded, no longer able to go beyond, because he could not smooth out the sequence of what was given to him regarding the flesh of the Savior's situation.

⁴² For having mentioned both above and below the flesh and having declared everything about the flesh, he reached the mountains and hills by saying that the apostles are these things. But he willingly handed over the following things in silence, no longer daring to go further in the scripture.

⁴³ Here, then, the word stands: after many things said between him, it departs from the teaching about the flesh, but it agrees that the word of God is the one who said these things. And he says to them in words, "Before the world existed, the word was in the Father." When the almighty God planned to make all things in heaven and on earth, the creation of the world needed active power. And for this reason, since there was no other being except God (for all things are acknowledged to have come into being by him), then the word, coming forth, became the creator of the world, who also prepared it within himself beforehand, as the prophet Solomon teaches us when he says, "When he prepared the heavens," saying, "He was alongside him," and as he firmly established the springs under heaven, when he made the strong foundations of the earth, I was beside him, fitting together.

⁴⁴ "I was beside him," for the Father rejoiced with wisdom and power, making all things through the word. This is what Markellius says. If indeed it is hard to admit that these things are said from the presence of the word, it is necessary to accept that all the connections of what is presented refer to the same word of God.

⁴⁵ For the one who said, "When he prepared the heavens, I was beside him," is the same one who also said, "The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways for his works." For one and the same person was shown to us at the beginning, who carries out all things that are presented. Therefore, the one who said, "The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways for his works," also brought forth, "Before the ages, he established me," and "In the beginning, before he made the earth," and "Before the mountains were set," "Before all the hills, he gave birth to me."

⁴⁶ The same one who said, "When he prepared the heavens, I was beside him," also connected these things that follow. If indeed the word was the one who said these things, how could he be within God and, being born together with God, existing as one and the same with him, say that he was created and came into being? For, as I said, one and the same person was shown to be the one who carries out all things that are presented.

⁴⁷ But if at some later time he admitted that these things were said from the presence of the word in God, then he is forced to accept the things about the flesh of the Savior. And all those things are shown to be empty, vain, and unnecessary. If the flesh of the Savior was the one saying, "The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways for his works," according to the interpretation given to him. And if the flesh was "established before the ages and in the beginning before he made the earth" (meaning the earth as the flesh, since it was said, "You are dust, and to dust you shall return"), and if the flesh was the one saying, "Before he made the depths, before the springs of the waters came forth, before the mountains were set, before all the hills, he gave birth to me" (because it was believed to have been born before the choice of the apostles, as it seemed to the wisest), it follows that it is said from the presence of the flesh, "When he prepared the heavens, I was beside him."

⁴⁸ But no one, unless they have lost their senses, would ever agree with this interpretation. For the great voice of the word of truth will respond to him, showing who he was that carried out these things.

⁴⁹ As there was another, the only begotten son born from God, living and existing, being before the creation of all things, he himself presents this, saying, "When he prepared the heavens, I was beside him." For he was present with him before the heavens and the things beyond the heavens, and all things in heaven. This is indeed hinted at by saying, "When he prepared the heavens, I was beside him."

⁵⁰ But how did God prepare or establish him before he came to be, making laws and outlining how he should be formed? The Father was shaping and preparing, thinking about how the vast heaven should be formed, how big it needed to be, and what kind of shape, measurements, and parts it should have, both those that would be contained within it and those that would be outside of it, and those that would create paths within it. And he, looking at the thoughts of the Father and alone overseeing the depths within him, moved forward through works, serving the Father's commands.

⁵¹ Therefore, it is said somewhere, "Praise the Lord from the heavens; praise him in the highest."

⁵² Praise him, all his angels; praise him, all his powers. Praise him, sun and moon; praise him, all the stars and light. Praise him, you heavens of heavens, and you waters above the heavens. Let them praise the name of the Lord; for he spoke, and they came to be; he commanded, and they were created.

⁵³ But even before the heavens and what is beyond the heavens came to be, the Son of God was there, and he was with the Father, still thinking about the creation of all these things. That is why it says, "When he was preparing the heavens, I was there with him." Then, as a good writer, he took the original ideas from the Father's thoughts and brought them into the realities of creation, forming living things and being, just as he saw what was in the Father's mind.

⁵⁴ He himself would be a worthy witness to these things, teaching here in the Gospels: "Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing by himself unless he sees the Father doing it; for whatever the Father does, the Son does likewise."

⁵⁵ For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself does." Here, one might reasonably ask how the Son does again what has once been done by the Father. But he himself answered this by saying, "For whatever the Father does, the Son does likewise."

⁵⁶ Therefore, the works that happen through the Son are like the original patterns that exist in the hidden thoughts of the Father. The Son, seeing clearly in the Father's mind, creates imitations of what he has seen. The act of seeing the depths of the Father's love is shown by the following words: "For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself does." Thus, as the Father reveals his hidden things, the Son establishes the works of the Father's will through his actions. So, being one with the Father and present with him as he prepared the heavens, he taught this, saying, "When he was preparing the heavens, I was there with him."

⁵⁷ The Father rejoiced before the world was created, looking at his only Son and seeing himself in him, like in a mirror. That is why wisdom says, "I was there when he rejoiced every day." But the Son was also filled with joy, delighting in the presence of the Father. Indeed, he himself teaches this by saying, "I was rejoicing before him at all times, when he was happy creating the world."

⁵⁸ Here, the world is understood as the completion of all created things, which comes from non-existence to existence through the Son. The God of all rejoiced. The true word, as presented briefly and concisely from the divine scripture, would be something like this. The mind, being lifted from above to the flesh of our Savior, strayed by twisting and misinterpreting the true meaning of the inspired scripture.

⁵⁹ But also, moving to the word, he says that the one within the Father is like a thought and reflection, with the heaven being prepared.

⁶⁰ He said to them with these words: "Before the world was made, the word was in the Father. When the Almighty God planned to create everything in heaven and on earth, the creation of the world needed active power. And because there was nothing else but God (for everything is agreed to have come from him), then the word came forth and became the creator of the world, who had already been preparing it in thought, as the prophet Solomon teaches us, saying, 'When he prepared the heaven, I was there with him.'"

⁶¹ In which it is fitting to consider how some deaf people do not hear the word "I was there with him," which clearly means the presence of the Son with the Father. The scripture shows that there was no one else but God before the created things came to be. And he did not fear leaving this voice, which denies the Son, nor did he ignore the divine scripture that testifies that only he was with the Father before the creation of heaven. For it says, "When he prepared the heaven, I was there with him."

⁶² For the intention of being present alongside another shows a special kind of presence. Therefore, it does not just mean to be present, but it teaches that he was there with the Father. And the Father did not simply rejoice, but he especially rejoiced in the presence of the Son. That is why it says, "I was there when he rejoiced every day."

⁶³ But how can his rejoicing before the Father fit with a word that does not stand? For in that God, who is being and acting significantly, the essence of his being present is opposite to the idea of rejoicing and being "before him." However, Marcello, without saying anything about these things, denies the Son. He claims that at times the Son is within God, acting powerfully, and at other times he is within him without acting. And he does not see that saying something exists inside and outside of God suggests a composite and physical condition, which is not acceptable regarding the nature that is uncreated and incorporeal.

⁶⁴ But how did the Word become the creator of the world? Did he use language and voice, or perhaps some kind of speech from God? And to whom would he have spoken if no one else was with him? And to whom would he have conversed if no one was present? Rather, he spoke to himself, using voice and speech, as if the Word came forth from him.

⁶⁵ And how could the Word, being within him, not have the powerful ability to create what he wanted? After all, most of the creators among humans accomplish their works even while being silent, especially when no one is present with them. So what prevented God from creating everything in this way, having the Word within him? He even suggests an image of a sculptor talking to himself and saying, "Come, let us make a statue." For this is how the Lord God of all is said to have spoken to himself, "Let us make man," as he has often been shown to do before. I believe this reveals the denial of the Son of God.

⁶⁶ For saying that God speaks to himself while having his own Word within him would be a Jewish way of thinking. But saying that he is the Father of the Word within him and that the Word is his Son is a mark of Sabellian heresy.

Book 3, Section 4

For again, saying that the three are one—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit—is also a view of Sabellius. This is what Marcellus was writing about, saying that it is impossible for three distinct persons to be united as one unless the Trinity has its origin from a single unity. For the holy Paul said that those things are summed up in one. They do not differ in the unity of God; for in unity, the Word and the Spirit differ only as individuals.

² Then he tries to build this argument, saying that if the Word seems to have come out from the Father and has come to us, and the Holy Spirit, as Asterius also admitted, proceeds from the Father. Again, the Savior says about the Spirit that "he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and will declare to you the things to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you." Here, the unity seems to be hidden in a mysterious way. It expands into a Trinity, but it does not divide in any way.

³ For if the Word proceeds from the Father, and the Spirit is also said to proceed from the Father, then when the Savior speaks about the Spirit, saying, "He will take from what is mine and declare it to you," is it not clear that something hidden is being revealed as a mystery? For how could the unity, being undivided, expand into a Trinity, allowing him to sometimes say that the Spirit proceeds from the Father and at other times say, "He will take from what is mine and declare it to you," and also breathe on the disciples saying, "Receive the Holy Spirit"?

⁴ For how could the Spirit be said to receive this ministry from the Son if he proceeds from the Father? For if there are two separate persons, as Asterius said, then either the Spirit, proceeding from the Father, does not need the ministry from the Son (for everything that comes from the Father must be perfect and does not need help from another), or if he receives from the Son and serves grace from his power, then he would no longer be proceeding from the Father.

⁵ And he goes on to say that if the Gospel states that after breathing on the disciples he said, "Receive the Holy Spirit," it is clear that the Spirit came from the Word. So how, if the Spirit came from the Word, does he also proceed from the Father? And he adds that it is not correct or fitting to say there are three persons, stating it not just once but also a second time. Therefore, through these and similar points, the wisest one tries to show that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are one and the same, existing as three names in one essence.

⁶ For he did not understand how the Son is said to proceed from the Father and the Holy Spirit in the same way, nor could he grasp how the Savior said about the Holy Spirit, "He will take from what is mine and declare it to you," nor how after breathing on his disciples he said, "Receive the Holy Spirit." For those who think piously will find the answer easy if one considers that the Son is always present and united with the Father, as if he were in the hidden and inaccessible kingdom of the Father, and then, for the salvation of humanity, he is sent forth from the Father, saying that he has come out from the Father. This is also shown elsewhere through a parable when he says, "The sower went out to sow."

⁷ For where did he come from, or from the innermost realms of the Father's divinity? According to the same reasoning, the Holy Spirit is always present at the throne of God, since "myriads upon myriads" stand before him, as Daniel said. The Spirit was also sent forth, sometimes in the form of a dove to the Son of Man, and at other times upon each of the prophets and apostles.

⁸ That is why it is said that he proceeds from the Father. And why are you amazed? It is also said about the devil, "And the devil went out from the Lord," and again it is said, "But the devil went out from the Lord." You would also find in the case of Ahab, where the scripture says, "And a lying spirit went out and stood before the Lord and said, 'I will deceive him.'"

⁹ But these are opposing spirits, and it is not the time to discuss how and in what way this is said. The only-begotten Son of God teaches that he has come forth from the Father because he is always united with him, and the Holy Spirit also exists as another beside the Son. This is clearly shown by the Savior himself when he says, "He will take from what is mine and declare it to you." For this would directly suggest that the Son and the Holy Spirit are not one and the same; for receiving something from another implies that it is different from the one giving it.

Book 3, Section 5

And that the Holy Spirit is different from the Son, the Savior and our Lord himself clearly taught with very clear words, in which he said to his disciples, "If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper to be with you forever, the Spirit of truth. The world cannot receive him." You see how he says that the Helper is another and different from himself. And when he breathed on the disciples and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit," it should not be ignored that this breathing was somehow a cleansing of the souls of the apostles, preparing them to receive the Holy Spirit.

² For it is not said that he breathed into their faces, nor that it was the breath of life or the Holy Spirit, as it is written about Adam that "God breathed into his face the breath of life." Instead, it is said that he breathed first, and then he said, "Receive the Holy Spirit." The act of giving the Spirit again shows that it is different from the one giving it.

³ For the one giving and the one given cannot be the same. The one providing is the Savior, while the Holy Spirit is what is given. The apostles are the ones receiving, and the breathing, as I said, is a cleansing of the apostles or even an active preparation for the giving of the Holy Spirit, for both can be understood in different ways.

⁴ But from these things, it is shown that the Holy Spirit exists as something different from him, as it is also stated through those who are mentioned, where it is written, "If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him."

⁵ To those he says, "I have spoken these things to you while staying with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom my Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and remind you of everything I have said to you." | Do you hear how the phrase "we will come to him and make our home with him" is used in the plural about himself and the Father, and how when speaking about the Holy Spirit, he refers to him as another by saying "he will teach you all things"?

⁶ Such was also the statement, "I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper to be with you forever, the Spirit of truth." Therefore, the Helper was another one besides him, about whom he taught so many things. So again, he added, saying, "I have spoken these things to you while staying with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom my Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and remind you of everything I have said to you."

⁷ For I have spoken these things to you so far, he says, but the Spirit of truth, whom my Father will send, will teach you all things. What you have not learned now is because you cannot bear it.

⁸ But when he comes, I say, the Helper will complete the teaching and will bring to your memory what I have said to you. And again, he says, "When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify about me." Through all these things, he clearly shows that the one sent by him is another who will testify about him.

⁹ He is working out the message even more and chooses these words: "But I tell you the truth, it is better for you that I go away. For if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you." By saying he will go away, he was indicating his suffering and the journey to the Father that would come after this.

¹⁰ Who then is so foolish as to say that the one speaking these things and the one about whom he is speaking are the same, when he clearly defines the truth? And what is the truth being presented, as if he would not come unless he goes away?

¹¹ But if at some time the Father sends the Holy Spirit and at another time he defines himself, he is not teaching anything contradictory. For all that "he sees the Father doing," "the Son does likewise," and "as he hears, he judges." Therefore, by the Father's judgment, when the Father wishes. At that time, the Son and the Savior sends the Spirit of truth, the Helper, to encourage them and comfort them in the things they suffer while preaching the gospel.

¹² Not only to encourage them, but also to teach them all the truth of the new covenant, which they could not bear to be taught by the Savior, when he spoke to them because they were still bound by the Jewish way of life.

¹³ These things were fulfilled in actions after his resurrection from the dead. After saying to Mary, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to my Father," after this, having ascended to the Father, he appeared to the disciples, with the Holy Spirit sent and present with him, ready to assist in the ministry for which he was appointed, when he also allows them to touch him.

¹⁴ Then he "breathed on them" and gave them a part of the gift of the Holy Spirit, which is the power to forgive sins. "There are different kinds of gifts," of which he gave them a portion while he was with them, and after this, he filled them with greater and complete power. About this, in the Acts of the Apostles, he said to them, "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you," when he also promised that they would be baptized in the Holy Spirit, which was fulfilled after his ascension on the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit was sent to them with his voices.

¹⁵ Since more work and clarity are needed about the place, it is not the right time to go into detail about the examination, since this is not what we are discussing. It was necessary to present another comforter, the Spirit of the Son, which was shown in different ways by the Savior, both to others and in what he said, "I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. But when he comes, the Spirit of truth, he will tell you all the truth."

¹⁶ For he will not speak on his own, but he will speak what he hears and will announce to you what is to come. He will glorify me, because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you. In this, he again promises that the Holy Spirit will teach his disciples things that he himself did not teach them, as if speaking about another when he says, "When he comes" and "For he will not speak on his own" and "He will glorify me" and "Because he will take from what is mine." For all this shows that the Savior is saying something very deep and difficult to understand about himself.

¹⁷ But clearly through these things, the Savior taught that the Holy Spirit exists as another beside himself, having honor, glory, and authority that surpasses and is greater and higher than all intellectual and rational being (which is why he is included with the holy and most blessed Trinity).

¹⁸ He has indeed come down from himself. He says, "For he will not speak on his own, but he will speak what he hears." And when he says, "He will take from what is mine and declare it to you," he is referring to his own treasure. For in him are all the hidden treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

¹⁹ The only Son receives and hears from the Father, but the Holy Spirit is given from him. That is why he says, "He will take from what is mine and declare it to you." God, who is over all, is also called Spirit, as the Savior taught when he said, "God is Spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth." He will truly be the Holy of Holies and will rest among the saints. But the Son of God is also Spirit, and he himself is the Holy Spirit, since he is the image of the invisible.

²⁰ That is why it is said about him, "The Lord is the Spirit," and "The Spirit is before us, Christ the Lord."

²¹ But since the Holy Spirit is another being beside the Father and the Son, the Savior has called him the Advocate, distinguishing him by the name of the Advocate. This is because even the angelic powers could be called spirits; for it is said, "He makes his angels spirits." However, none of these can be compared to the Advocate Spirit. Therefore, this is only accepted in the Holy and Blessed Trinity.

²² In no other way did the Savior command his apostles to hand down the mystery of his rebirth to all those from the nations who believe in him, except by baptizing them "in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." The Father gives grace and is in charge, the Son serves in this, for "grace and truth came through Jesus Christ," and the Holy Spirit, that is, the Advocate, is the one who distributes according to the different gifts in him. "For to one is given through the Spirit the word of wisdom, to another the word of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit," and so on with the others listed similarly.

Book 3, Section 6

The Holy Spirit has been given to the holy ones alone, distributed through the Son to whomever the Father chooses. This is indeed his work, to make all holy, by sharing with them some of the gifts in him, such as prophets, apostles, and every soul that loves God, and likely also the greater and divine powers. They receive holiness from him. The Son alone, honored with the Father's divine nature, would be the creator and maker of all things that are created, both visible and invisible, and indeed also of the very existence of the Advocate Spirit; for "all things were made through him."

² And without him, nothing was made; and in him, all things were created that are in the heavens and that are on the earth, whether visible or invisible. But beyond all things is God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, being something unspeakably good and greater than all thought, speech, and memory. He is above all that ever was and whatever happens, and he is also the Holy Spirit and the only-begotten Son. Only he, who is over all and through all and in all, is called God, as the apostle says, "One Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all."

³ And he alone is "one God and Father" of our Lord Jesus Christ; the Son is "the only-begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father." But the Advocate Spirit is neither God nor Son, since he does not have his origin from the Father in the same way as the Son does. He is one of those things that came to be through the Son, because indeed "all things were made through him, and without him nothing was made."

⁴ These things are therefore handed down to the holy and universal church through divine voices regarding the mysteries. Marcello mixes everything. Sometimes he dives into the whole depth of Sabellius, sometimes he tries to renew the heresy of Paul of Samosata, and sometimes, being a Jew, he is directly refuted. For he introduces one substance with three faces, saying that God, the Word in him, and the Holy Spirit are the same.

⁵ Then, having moved on to the apostolic teachings about Christ, he has again used twisted interpretations. For the divine apostle clearly speaks of the Son of God, saying, "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation, for in him all things were created, both in the heavens and on the earth, whether visible or invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities; all things were created through him and for him; and he is before all things, and in him all things hold together."

Book 3, Section 7

This marvelous one, having again fallen upon the flesh, shows that it is the image of the invisible God, not hearing that "who is the image" is expressed with a masculine character. For the word "who" does not know how to apply to the flesh, and he says that this is shown as being the very image of "the invisible God." And again, the phrase "he is before all things" speaks about the flesh, not being ashamed to take "he" in reference to the flesh.

² And he says that the "firstborn of all creation" is called through the flesh, and he insists firmly that "the things in the heavens and the things on the earth" were created, "both the visible and the invisible," and he does not hesitate to mention thrones, dominions, rulers, and authorities through the flesh of the Savior, claiming that creation in Christ is worthy. Now, having presented the voices of Marcello about these things from the previous writings, I will be careful to use their testimony without excessive words. Since such a twisted and forced interpretation of the apostolic word is clear to everyone, I think I do not need to provide more explanation because the boldness of the interpretation is obvious.

Book 3, Section 8

But after saying so much about the flesh of the Savior, he does not keep it safe for us. For I wish that even he would maintain a pious thought about it. Now, after all that has been said about it, he seems to leave it empty of the word at the end of the ages, writing this way: "If he therefore acknowledges that the flesh is of no benefit to him, how can he allow it, being from the earth and of no benefit, to be useful to the word in the ages to come?"

Book 3, Section 9

And he says the same thing again in another way: "If, then, Paul said that at the time of the restoration of all things, creation itself will be changed from slavery to freedom (for he says, 'that the creation itself will be set free from the bondage of corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God'), how can the form of a slave, which the word has taken, still be able to exist with the word?"

Book 3, Section 10

Do you see what kind of voices he has dared to speak against the flesh of our Savior, not realizing that even before the ascension into heaven, it was still on earth before the passion, and thus it was glorified on the mountain? Showing only to his three chosen disciples a glimpse of his kingdom, his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became bright as light.

² For the divine scripture says, "His face shone like the sun, and his clothes were white as light," but the divine apostle did not understand what kind of glorious body Christ had. He also taught that our bodies would be made like that body, saying, "He will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body." But he did not realize how the mortal would be swallowed up by life, writing, "For we do not wish to be unclothed but to be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life." Holding these things in ignorance, he confidently claims that the word will become one and the same with God, just as it was before, but he does not know what will happen to the flesh that is left behind by the word.

³ Listen then to what he says. If someone were to ask about this flesh that has become immortal in the word, what should we say to him? We think that it is not safe to speculate about things we have not learned accurately from the divine scriptures. For how can it be possible to do this when they overturn the doctrines of others?

⁴ But we will say to those who wish to learn the truth about this, that believing the holy apostle, we know that it is fitting for us to see the hidden mysteries as he said: "For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face." So do not ask me about things I have not learned clearly from the divine scripture. Therefore, I will not be able to speak clearly about that divine scripture which shares in the flesh of the word. Then, I admit that I cannot say anything, nor have I learned anything from the scripture.

⁵ He has spoken such things about the flesh, neither taking from the scripture, nor receiving from others, nor learning from the church. He has reshaped it for himself and thought up something foreign and strange to the truth. He did not consider the saying of the scripture, "Do not add to his words, lest he rebuke you, and you be found a liar," and "Woe to those who prophesy from their own hearts."

⁶ See then how great is the wickedness he has fallen into. For he who has brought down the whole theology about the pre-existing only-begotten Son to the flesh, calling it a crown of victory with his words (for he said that the word of God made human flesh immortal through the resurrection and seated it like a crown of victory at the right hand of the Father), this same person says that it will be desolate and orphaned in the fullness of all things, separating the word from God and leaving the flesh without the action of the word. I do not know how it can be immortal and incorruptible, yet soulless and inactive because of the word.

⁷ And again, he tries to establish these things from the divine readings, which he has not understood. For when our Savior spoke to those who do not understand his teachings about the flesh and his blood, does this scandalize you? If you see the Son of Man going back to where he was before, what then? The spirit gives life; the flesh is of no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.

Book 3, Section 11

He did not understand the meaning of the word and assumed that he could reject the flesh, which he took from the holy virgin. Then, from this, he tries to build an idea that after the end of all things, the word of God will leave the flesh empty of its own action. He says to them, "Does this scandalize you?" For concerning the flesh, which he had and spoke with his disciples, he says, "If you see the Son of Man going back to where he was before, what then? The spirit gives life; the flesh is of no help at all." If he admits that the flesh is of no benefit to him, how can he allow the flesh, which is from the earth and of no help, to be joined with the word in the ages to come? You see how much he has twisted the gospel message because he does not understand the saving voice of the word, as it has been said and for what reason.

Book 3, Section 12

But you, taking up the gospel writing, should see the whole teaching of our Savior, how he did not speak about the flesh he took, but about the mystical body and blood. For when he fed the crowds with five loaves, this was a great miracle for those who saw it. But most of the Jews, belittling the event, said to him, "What then do you do as a sign, so that we may see and believe?" Then they brought up the manna that was in the desert, saying, "Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, as it is written: 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'"

² In response to this, the Savior answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven." Then he adds, "I am the bread of life," and again, "I am the bread that came down from heaven," and once more, "The bread that I will give is my body." And he adds again, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life in yourselves."

³ The one who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.

⁴ The one who eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him." As he spoke these and similar mysterious things, some of his disciples said, "This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?" To them, the Savior answered, "Does this offend you? What if you see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before?"

⁵ It is the spirit that gives life; the flesh is of no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life." By this, he was teaching them to understand spiritually the things he said about his flesh and blood. "Do not think that I am saying you should eat the flesh that I have, or drink the physical blood. Rather, know well that 'my words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life,' so these words are the flesh and blood. Whoever shares in these is always nourished like with heavenly bread, partaking in heavenly life.

⁶ Do not let this, about eating my flesh and drinking my blood, cause you to stumble, nor let the quick hearing of what I said about flesh and blood disturb you. For these things are 'of no help' when heard in a physical way, but the spirit is what gives life to those who can hear spiritually.

⁷ But the new interpreter of the gospel teachings does not understand any of this. Listen to what he says about touching the human body and showing it to those who see; does this cause you to stumble? He said, 'What if you see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? The spirit gives life; the flesh is of no help at all.'

⁸ To whom was this to be said? And from where, noble one, do you add things not found in the gospel writings? For does the Savior touching the human body and showing it to those who see cause you to stumble? You dare to create this addition from yourself. Taking this boldness from yourself, do you think to prepare the flesh of the Savior to be left empty of the power of the word, saying that if he admits the flesh is of no help, how can it be that the flesh, which is from the earth and of no help, can be useful to the word in the ages to come? Thus, he foolishly and ignorantly began to misinterpret the gospel voice. And he also made twisted explanations of the apostolic sayings.

Book 3, Section 13

Indeed, in the Acts of the Apostles, Peter speaks about our Savior, saying, 'He must be received in heaven until the times of restoration.' Not understanding the meaning of the word, he tries to describe the kingdom of Christ from this, claiming that a certain limit and deadline for his kingdom is shown by the phrase 'until the times of restoration.'

² He says the same thing also through the saying of the Psalm, 'Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.' And Paul the apostle has said this too, for it is necessary for him to reign until he puts his enemies under his feet. For he thought that 'until' and 'up to' indicate a limited time. Listen then to how it is written word for word, saying, 'For this reason, it seems to me that the Almighty God, the Lord, says to him, "Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet."' He thinks that by the mere action of the human flesh, he separates him and sets a certain time for him on the right hand, thus he says to him, 'until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.'

³ This prophetic saying of David is explained more clearly by the holy apostle, who says that it is necessary for him to reign until he puts his enemies under his feet. Therefore, it seems that his governance and kingdom have a certain limit according to his humanity. And he chooses other things, and for this reason, the Acts of the Apostles teach about this man, whom the word of God took up, and having taken him up, he sits at the right hand of the Father. They say, 'He must be received in heaven until the times of restoration,' and these words set a certain limit and deadline.

⁴ With other things, he asks how it could be possible for the form of a servant, which the word took on, to be united with the word itself. Clearly, in a brief time, it has happened that the governance of the word according to the flesh has taken place for us, and this has both a beginning and an end, as the divine Paul has said, saying that the end will come when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father.

Book 3, Section 14

Because of these things, Markellius has ignored the body of the glory of the Son and denies his endless kingdom, not realizing that according to a certain custom of scripture, it is usual to say 'until' when referring to being taken up. Thus, the Savior said to his disciples, 'Behold, I am with you all the days until the end of the age,' not taking away the fact that he will be with them even after the end, teaching that even now he will be with them until the end, watching over and keeping all those who are his disciples, and after the end, he will be even more closely united with them, showing them the glory of his kingdom.

² Thus, 'sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet' and 'heaven must receive him until the times of restoration' is not said as if he will no longer be there after this, but as if he will leave the throne of the Father at the time of the end and make a second coming from heaven. About this, the apostle teaches, saying, 'The Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and so we will always be with the Lord.' Therefore, the Savior must remain in heaven and sit at the right hand of the Father until the end. At that end, he will make his glorious and second coming and will take his saints to be with him forever, not just for a time, but for an endless age; for he says, 'we will always be with the Lord.'

³ Therefore, the saints will always enjoy the glory of his kingdom in the proclaimed kingdom of heaven. But the brave one does not understand these things, as the divine apostle has said about our Savior, 'For it is necessary for him to reign until he puts his enemies under his feet.' The last enemy to be destroyed is death; and again, 'when all things are subjected to him.'

⁴ "Then he himself will be subjected to the one who subjected all things to him, so that God may be all in all." Using this custom, he misinterprets these things, not knowing how the Son being subjected to the Father is different from the Word being united with God. For when was he not united with him, if the Word existed eternally in God? How then does he say 'then he will be subjected to God and the Father'?

Book 3, Section 15

It is necessary to understand that the apostle said that all things will be subjected to the Son, and he teaches that with the same submission, he himself will be subjected to the Father, saying, 'When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will be subjected to the one who subjected all things to him.'

² "That God may be all in all." He does not hear this; for he does not say that all things will be in the Son, but 'in all.' This seems to mean a connection and unity of all things, if God is to be in all. And he interprets the Son's submission as a unity of the Word, becoming one and the same with the Father, as he said before.

³ If then the submission to the Father is defined as a unity, it would follow that the submission of all things to the Son also means the same unity with him, so that the Son would no longer exist on his own, nor would the many things that are subjected to him live their own separate lives. Instead, there would be a blending and confusion of all things, becoming one and the same with the Son and all the rest, and not only that but also with God himself.

⁴ For if all things are subjected to the Son, and the Son is united to the Father in his submission, see what follows from this statement.

⁵ But just as the apostle did not show a unity by saying that 'all things will be subjected to the Son,' but rather the obedience that comes from free choice, and the glory and honor that all things will give him as the Savior and King of all, in the same way, the submission to the Father would mean nothing different than the glory, honor, and reverence, along with the great and voluntary obedience that he himself will give to God and the Father, when he prepares all those who are worthy of the Father's divinity.

⁶ For indeed, just as when they are not worthy of this, he himself, like a common Savior for all, rules over the kingdom that corrects the imperfect and heals those in need of healing, leading the enemies of the kingdom to his own feet; this is what the psalmist says: 'The Lord said to my Lord: Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.'

⁷ When he puts the enemies under his feet, he will establish those worthy of his kingdom in eternal life. For then, even death, the last enemy of all, will be destroyed; for no one will die anymore, while those worthy of the kingdom will be living in eternal life. It is likely that death will no longer have those whom it could kill.

⁸ When these things are prepared for the Son of God, all the saints will submit to him in a saving way. They will live eternally, being wise in wisdom, and having become learned in the word. In this way, they will also become Christ-like, anointed with his fragrant spirit, shining as lights of the new age, receiving light from him. They will be sons of God, adorned with the spirit of adoption, and those who submit to him will share in the other powers, becoming righteous from his righteousness and holy from his holiness. Since 'the Word was God,' he will not be envious of their divinity.

⁹ So that the apostle's words will be fulfilled, saying that the saints will become 'heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ.' Yes, they will also use heavenly bodies like the sun, moon, and stars. And in this, they will share in his glory.

¹⁰ Indeed, he himself presents, saying from whom we also expect a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, according to the power that enables him to subject all things to himself. Do you see how he can subject all things to himself and will change our body to be like his glorious body, and will accomplish this for us?

¹¹ If our body will be like his glorious body, how much more will his glorious body be a partner in his kingdom? And if our body will be swallowed up by life, as the apostle testified, saying, 'we do not wish to be unclothed, but to be clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life,' how much more will his body, having served his divinity, be swallowed up? Not just by life like ours, but also by his divinity? Therefore, let no one ask or be confused about what to think regarding the saving body, clearly hearing Paul say that the mortal must be swallowed up by life, and that our body will be like the body of Christ's glory according to the power that enables him to subject all things to himself.

¹² Will he then subject all things to himself? And we must understand this kind of saving submission, in which 'the Son himself will be subjected to the one who subjected all things to him,' making a unique and unspoken submission that belongs only to him. When he gathers all those under him like a dance, he will present to God and the Father the glory, honor, reverence, and greatness, as he brings all good things to their source.

Book 3, Section 16

When the conclusion of the apostolic teaching is reached, it says, 'so that God may be all in all.' We will understand this from another promise, in which God says, 'I will dwell in them and walk among them; and I will be their God, and they will be my people.' But now, in this present age, the promise only goes to a few worthy ones and partially, as it is said, 'we know in part, and we prophesy in part.' After the end of everything, when the new age arrives, he will no longer dwell in just a few, but in all those who are worthy of the kingdom of heaven.

² Thus, it will be 'all in all,' meaning 'dwelling in them and walking among them' and 'being their God,' not refusing to have all his people as his own. So, he will be in them just as it is said to the Son, as he teaches, saying, 'the Father is in me and I am in the Father.' And 'all' will be in them, providing himself to everyone, as each person's power shares in his divinity. This will establish the blessed hope and the endless and incorruptible life in the end, where God will be 'all in all,' filling everyone with the shining light of his divinity. The Son, rejoicing and happy with the achievement, will crown those who are made worthy of blessedness through him, and he will present to the Father an everlasting and endless kingdom, fulfilling the words about him at that time, including those of the angel Gabriel to the holy virgin, saying that he will 'reign forever, and his kingdom will have no end.'

³ Then the Son of God, reigning, will hand over all those who are ruled by him to the Father. He will not stop his reign or withdraw from it. For the divine apostle said that he would not cease to reign, as he wrote to Gabriel, who announced to the virgin that he would 'reign forever, and his kingdom will have no end.' Instead, he will hand over 'the kingdom,' meaning those who are ruled by him, 'to God and the Father.'

⁴ For when all are made perfect by him, he will joyfully hand them over to the Father, as if presenting a gift he has received. He teaches this by saying, 'All things have been handed over to me by my Father.' Therefore, like a good guardian, he will carry the complete and strong gift to God, presenting all those who are made holy under him, like a high priest, shining in the purest robes of the resurrection, with their incorruptible bodies shining brightly before him. This is so that they may not only enjoy the kingdom he rules, but also be filled with the unspeakable goods of the Father.

⁵ For it will be, according to the apostle, 'God will be all in all,' with the Son bringing those who are ruled by him to God, so that all this may happen. I mean that 'all in all' refers to the Father. Just as the Father was in the Son, as it is said, 'the Father is in me and I am in the Father,' so it will be then in all those who are made perfect under the Son.

⁶ For the apostle said that the Son will not stop his reign, but he will hand over the kingdom to God and the Father, showing the complete gift that is sufficient for the worship and priesthood of the Father. And God will be 'all in all,' dwelling and walking 'in them' and becoming all things to them. For he will be the master of some, the king of others, and something else for others; but he will be God overall, becoming all things to them through his divine qualities and powers.

⁷ This is the end of the most blessed hope, as the great apostle wrote, 'so that God may be all in all.' But in all, he will be all things according to each person's strength, giving different gifts of his divinity to everyone. However, he will keep for his only-begotten Son the special and paternal glory, honor, and kingdom, which will not be shared with the others.

Book 3, Section 17

If it is necessary to confirm these things with a prophetic seal for a sure belief in what has been said, I will use the prophetic spirit as a witness through Ezekiel the prophet, who speaks with such voices: 'Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will seek my sheep and visit them. Just as a shepherd seeks his flock on a day when there is darkness and cloud among scattered sheep, so I will seek my sheep.' And with other words: 'And I will save my sheep, and they will no longer be for prey. And I will judge between sheep and sheep.'

² And I will raise up a shepherd over them, and he will tend them. My servant David will be their shepherd; and I, the Lord, will be their God, and David will be a ruler among them. I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will make a covenant with David." And with other words, repeating the same prophecy: "And I will rescue them from all their sins in which they have sinned, and I will cleanse them, and they will be my people, and I will be their God. And my servant David will be a ruler among them, and he will be the shepherd of all of them.

³ And again it is chosen: 'And David, my servant, will be their ruler forever.' But in all these things, it is said that God will not be a shepherd or ruler, but will be God for those who are worthy of the blessed end. And it is prophesied that David will become a ruler and shepherd, hinting here at Christ, who comes from the seed of David.

⁴ This is clear from the fact that David had already died at the time when these things were said. Daniel the prophet also more clearly speaks of Christ as the Son of God, calling him plainly like this, just as the sacred Gospels are accustomed to call him. He says in this way: 'I saw in a night vision, and behold, with the clouds of heaven, one like a son of man was coming, and he came to the Ancient of Days. And he was presented to him. And to him was given dominion, glory, and a kingdom, and all peoples, nations, and languages will serve him.'

⁵ "His authority is an everlasting authority that will not pass away, and his kingdom will not be destroyed." You see that in these things, the kingdom will not be corruptible, ageless, or endless, not because of the word that is in God, but the prophet presents the Son of Man. He clearly teaches that the Son of Man has the incorruptible kingdom from the Ancient of Days, that is, from the same Father, who receives him.

⁶ But Marcellus defines that there is one and the same, and one essence under two names. Moreover, he even dares to describe his kingdom and shamelessly claims that there will be an end to Christ's kingdom after the time of judgment, writing in this way (Nr. 101). Here, the apostle reveals to us a great mystery, saying that there will be an end to Christ's kingdom.

⁷ But there will be an end then, when everything is put under his feet. And he works through the word, saying (Nr. 102) that we have said in our earlier statements that our Lord Christ has taken the beginning of the kingdom, using proofs from the divine scriptures. And he chooses (Nr. 102) and there are many statements to testify that it is necessary to show. That the man has received the beginning of the kingdom through the word.

⁸ If then he has received the beginning of the kingdom more than four hundred years ago, it is not strange if the apostle says that he will hand over the kingdom to God shortly before the end of this kingdom.

⁹ And he adds, saying (Nr. 103) what then do we learn about the human flesh, which the word has taken for us more than four hundred years ago? Will this flesh also exist in the future ages? Or only until the time of judgment? Marcellus dares to say such things; but the prophets of God declare that the kingdom of Christ will be everlasting, stating that after the time of judgment, he will establish the beginning of the new age. For as the prophet Ezekiel sets a standard for the sheep of God after their judgment, he appoints David as their shepherd and proclaims that he will be their ruler.

¹⁰ But Daniel said, 'I watched until thrones were set up, and the Ancient of Days sat down. His clothing was white like snow, and the hair of his head was like pure wool. His throne was like a flame of fire, and its wheels were burning fire. A river of fire flowed out before him; thousands upon thousands served him, and myriads upon myriads stood before him. The court sat in judgment, and the books were opened.' After saying these things, he sees the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, approaching the Ancient of Days and receiving the everlasting kingdom. Therefore, even then, he will have the beginning of ruling those who are worthy of blessedness, differently and more powerfully than now.

¹¹ The Gospel bears witness to these things, where the Savior confirms the prophetic words, giving the words about the end to his own disciples, teaching them, saying, 'When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. And all the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate them from one another, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the king will say to those on his right, "Come, you blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." As these things agree with what is said in the prophecy about the judgment of sheep and goats, the Son of Man enters after the judgment of the sheep. But his Father is God.'

¹² For he also taught, saying, 'Then the king will say to those on his right, "Come, you blessed of my Father,"' just like what is named in the prophecy about David. The word teaches that he will be a shepherd and ruler of the sheep, under the authority of God, who will shepherd and rule over the creatures of God.

¹³ And it is also necessary for him to understand the mind, as it is said by the apostle in 'when he abolishes all rule and all authority and power.' The prophecy hinted at this, saying, 'And I will destroy wicked beasts from the earth.'

¹⁴ For what would the beasts be that troubled the sheep before, except for the opposing powers? When they are removed, the new and fresh age will have the Son of Man as king (or according to the prophecy, secretly hinted at, the shepherd and ruler David, because he was born from the seed of David). But God is not said to be a shepherd or ruler, but rather God himself, in a greater thought than being a shepherd, ruler, or king, will be seen as the majestic power of divinity, not only over the sheep but also over the shepherd himself. For it says, 'My servant David will be their shepherd; and I will be their God.' David is called a servant because 'from the seed of David' the Savior and our Lord took on 'the form of a servant.'

Book 3, Section 18

And this was the most blessed end, by which the promised kingdom of heaven will be given to those worthy of it, believing in our Savior, the God and Father of all, the highest good of all. He will give himself to those ruled by the Son, becoming 'all in all.' This is what our Savior and Lord presents again. He offers a great prayer for his own, saying 'to God and the Father.' Through this, he asks, saying 'that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be one in us, so that the world may believe that you sent me.'

² And I have given them the glory that you gave me, so that they may be one, just as we are one. I in them and you in me, so that they may be made perfect in one. So that the world may know that you sent me and loved them as you loved me.

³ "Father, those whom you have given me, I want them to be with me where I am, so that they may see the glory that you have given me." This is the great intercession of our Savior for us, so that we may be with him wherever he is, and so that we may see his glory and so that he may love us as his Father loved him. And whatever he has given to him, let him also give to us, and let him give us the glory that he has given to him. Making us all one, so that we may no longer be many but all one, united with him in his divinity and in the glory of the kingdom, not by mixing into one substance, but by the perfection of the highest virtue.

⁴ For this he taught, saying 'so that they may be made perfect.' For in this way, through his wisdom, understanding, righteousness, piety, and every virtue, we will be made perfect. We will be joined to the light of the Father's divinity, becoming lights ourselves from our connection to him. And we will be made sons of God by sharing in the communion of his only Son, transformed by the shining of his divinity.

Book 3, Section 19

And in this way, we will all become one with the Father and the Son. Just as he said that he and the Father are one, saying 'I and the Father are one,' he also wishes for all of us to share in this same unity. Not like Marcellus, who thought the Word was mixed with God and became one substance, but as the truth testified, the Savior himself said, 'The glory that you gave me, I have given to them, so that they may be one just as we are one; I in them and you in me, so that they may be made perfect in one.' For in this way, the apostolic saying will also reach its conclusion, saying 'so that God may be all in all.'

² And since Marcellus and those who think like him, the Sabellians, are used to saying that the Father and the Son are one, trying to show this with three sayings, sometimes saying 'I and the Father are one,' and sometimes 'the Father is in me and I am in the Father,' and 'he who has seen me has seen the Father,' they must also consider the context of 'I and the Father are one.' They wish for all of his disciples to share in the same unity. Therefore, he says that they may be one just as we are one.

³ I in them and you in me, so that they may be made perfect in one." And to the saying "the Father is in me and I am in the Father," we will add his voice again, in which he prayed for them, saying, "Just as you, Father, are in me and I am in you, so that they may also be in us, and I have given them the glory that you gave me." Through this, he clearly shows that the Father is in him just as he wants to be in us. It is not that he and the Father are one in substance, but that the Father has given him his own glory, and he, following the Father, shares it with his own.

⁴ Therefore, he says, 'And I have given them the glory that you gave me, so that they may be one just as we are one.' 'Just as you, Father, are in me and I am in you, so that they may also be in us.' Thus, the Father and the Son are one in the sharing of glory, and by sharing this same unity with his disciples, he makes them worthy of it.

Book 3, Section 20

And again, the Father was in him and he was in the Father. As the divine apostle teaches about all those worthy of the heavenly kingdom, saying, 'Then God will be all in all,' just as it is said, 'I will dwell in them and walk among them.' But we also 'live and move and exist in him.' And all these things are said about us, who have our own individual existence and life, and have nothing in common with the divine nature of the Father.

² What then is there to wonder at, if similar voices are also attributed to the Son? They do not deny his existence nor teach that he is not both Father and Son, but they present the unique and special honor and glory of the Father in relation to him, showing the special nature of their divine relationship.

Book 3, Section 21

Thus, he who has seen him has seen the Father. He is the only image of the invisible God and the radiance of his glory and the exact representation of his being, existing in the form of God, according to the apostolic teachings. Just as someone who has seen the royal image, perfectly resembling the king, imagines the king by removing the types of the form through writing, in the same way, a pure mind, cleansed of the soul and illuminated by the holy spirit, gazes upon the greatness of the only Son and Lord's power. And having understood that 'all the fullness of the Father's deity dwells in him' and that 'all things were made through him' and 'everything in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, was created in him,' he considers that the Father alone has begotten him as the only Son, perfectly resembling him in every way. By this power, he will also see the Father through the Son, being regarded by those whose minds are pure, as it is said, 'Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.'

² Therefore, while setting these things before us, let us aim for brevity as if in a summary. But since we need much work on the place where we care about accurately understanding these things, let the mind be stirred up by the gospel and apostolic readings, and let it gather all thoughts from them in leisure. Indeed, many other unrelated things have been mixed together in Markell's writing, and many more have been said that go against the intention of the text, along with other forced claims that do not save any sequence. The common refutation has become clear to those who think well, based on what we have examined, and I will be satisfied with these.