The Eternal Word and Divine Substance

It is clear that the Father is not the Son, and so the Son dwells in what is his own, always remaining and never being turned toward the Father, in order that this character might be seen as truly belonging to the substance of the Father.

One might behold in him the surpassing excellence and glorious beauty that befit the one who begot him.

For he is true God from true God, light from light, life from life.

Yet he has surpassed the entire creation by as much as the Father himself can conceive.

He is unbegotten from one who is unbegotten, and not counted among those who are brought into being from non-existence.

For the Word was in the beginning, and the Word was God.

How then could it be true to say of him, 'He was not,' as those who wage war against the divine writings claim? For if they regard him as begotten, he must necessarily be made subject to all other things and accept the yoke of slavery, yet in no way does this apply to any of his own occurrences.

Therefore God is more rightly understood as proceeding from God.

For he upholds all things by the word of his power.

He has indeed become 'through him all things came to be, and without him not even one thing came to be,' yet he himself sustains all things toward an unshakable endurance.

We previously said that among the ancients, God established his will through Moses and the prophets.

But we have become, according to the prophet's voice, 'those taught by God,' for we have accepted him as our teacher—the Word from God who became incarnate for our sake, the maker of all ages, the radiance of the Father's glory, the very imprint of his substance.

Having observed these things from time to time, we will now add what follows.

These things are.....

The Word, who is God the Father’s Almighty, spoke and all things came into being; He commanded and they were created. He established them firm for the age and for the age of ages, issuing a decree that shall not pass away. For the nature of things brought into being does not possess incorruption, nor can it always remain as it is.

This is peculiar to the substance of the Highest over all. He upholds all things by the utterance of His own power. He indeed is subsistent Word, begotten from God the Father according to nature, while His utterance is all-powerful and active, easily accomplishing all things in strength.

Moreover, having made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in the heights, having become so much better than the angels, as He has inherited a name more excellent than theirs. He shows the character of the Father’s substance and is the radiance of His glory, necessarily proceeding into the economy of the incarnation, through which we have been saved, enriched with the forgiveness of sins, and sanctified through His blood.

As He Himself says, the most wise Paul: 'In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.'