The Distinction Between Human and Divine Thought
And indeed these manias are not false; for instance, those receiving God or those receiving Christ are god-bearers, and these manias are not false but true, instead of being 'repressed.' For if they were not also true manias, he would not have said: 'he who has had a false hope regarding madness' (1 Cor 6:9). The Phrygian party, not having been ignorant of how these things are said, understanding both the meaning of madness and of ecstasy, call the spirit-bearing men as having spoken in ecstasy or having prophesied. And they speak truly regarding ecstasy, but not regarding derangement or insanity.
If indeed Paul says: 'whether we have gone out of our minds, it is to God' (1 Cor 6:9), he is not speaking of madness, but of standing outside of human limits and having given. And this word is also said regarding wonder: 'And after these things the sons of Israel will turn back and will seek the Lord their God and David their king; and they will be astonished at the Lord and in His good things' (Ps 142:7). He signifies wonder here.
'You have done many things, Lord my God, Your wonders' (Ps 142:5). Having been tested by the doing of the things spoken, since he did not merely enjoy these good things, but was drawn to them since childhood—and so indeed His anointing while being a child has happened paradoxically, and he says: 'You have done many things, Lord my God, Your wonders.' Many and great things are, 'and with Your thoughts' (Ps 142:4), according to which You do wonders, 'no one shall be like You.' No one is able to do such wonders; no one is able to bring someone out of the pit of misery and from the filth of material things and set his feet upon a rock and direct his steps and the other things.
the statement 'there is no one who shall be like' if said in reference to the Father, does not speak concerning the Son; for none of the begotten can be like the Father. But the Son is not to be compared; for He is eternal, the icon and character of the divine essence. There is not...
Him; for he is like. Regarding: the 'thoughts'? Thoughts are primarily called the thoughts concerning each individual thing. Just as the act of reasoning is a conversation of the soul, and it is not possible to say many things at once, so also the thoughts concerning each individual thing are called thoughts.
A logical place is given for asking whether knowing is the same as reasoning, and it has been said that they are not the same; for there are many things known without reasoning, and many things reasoned about without being known, so that knowing is not the same as reasoning. One is able to grasp a concept of a whole genus and of a whole species. But to know each individual thing, each being reasoned about by itself, it is not possible to do all at once. Regarding: so that the reasoning is upon sensation? But it is upon the individual things being reasoned about. Just as it is not possible to say many things at once while knowing many things, since the intellect is a kind of speech of the soul, it is not possible to reason about many things at once.
God, therefore, has such thoughts that He knows all things at once, yet in a different way than men; for in Isaiah He said: 'As the heavens are far from the earth, so are your thoughts from my thought' (Isaiah 55:9). He wished to show the superiority of His own intellect through a sensory example; for His intellect has not stayed away from the intellect of men locally, but by a greatness of superiority. And with your thoughts no one shall be like. No one is like the thoughts of God. Just as you would say: 'No one shall be like the creation of God.'
For even if they were creators among men, they do not construct the underlying matter of the things coming into being. For example, if a craftsman makes a bed or a throne, he does not make the wood by his art. He only imposes the end upon the previously taken matter. But God, not finding matter, imposes the form upon it, but rather composes it with the form. I have declared and I have spoken, they were multiplied beyond...
Greek
δὲ καὶ μανίαι οὐ ψευδεῖς· οἷον οἱ θεολημπτούμενοι, οἱ χριστολημπτούμενοι θεοφοροῦνται, καὶ οὔκ εἰσιν αὗται αἱ μανίαι ψευδεῖς, ἀλλὰ ἀληθεῖς, ἀντὶ τοῦ "ἡ κατακωχή"· εἰ μὴ γὰρ ἦσαν καὶ ἀληθεῖς μανίαι, οὐκ ἂν ἔλεγεν· "ὁ μὴ ἐπὶ μανίας ψευδεῖς ἐσχηκὼς τὴν ἐλπίδα". οἱ κατὰ Φρύγαν, πῶς ταῦτα λέγεται οὐκ ἠγνοηκότες, καθ' ἓν σημαινόμενον κα̣ὶ τὴν μανίαν καὶ τ̣ὴν ἔκστασιν λαβόντες τοὺς πνευματοφόρους ἄνδρας λέγουσιν ἐν ἐκστάσει λελαληκέναι, πεπροφητευκέναι. καὶ ἀληθεύουσιν μὲν ὅτι κατ' ἔκστασιν, οὐ μέντοι τὴν παραφοράν, οὐ τὴν παραφροσύνη̣ν. ἐὰν γοῦν λέγῃ Παῦλος· "εἴτε ἐξέστημεν, θεῷ", οὐ μανίαν λέγει, ἀλλὰ τὸ ἐκστῆναι τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων καὶ ····· 284 ····· ········ δεδωκότα. λέγεται δὲ τὸ ῥῆμα τοῦτο καὶ ἐπὶ θαυμασμοῦ· "καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα ἐπιστρέψουσιν οἱ υἱοὶ Ἰσραὴλ καὶ ἐπιζητήσουσιν κύριον τὸν θεὸν αὐτῶν καὶ ∆αυὶδ τὸν βασιλέα αὐτῶν· καὶ ἐκστήσονται ἐπὶ τῷ κυρίῳ καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἀγαθοῖς αὐτοῦ". θαυμασμὸν ὧδε σημαίνει. 6 πολλὰ ἐποίησας σύ, κύριε ὁ θεός μου, τὰ θαυμάσιά σου. πειραθεὶς τῶν εἰρημένων εὐποιιῶν ἐπεὶ μὴ μόνων τούτων τῶν α᾿̣γα̣θῶν ἀπήλαυσεν, ἀλλ' , ἵν' οὕτως εἴπω, μητρόθεν εἰς ταῦτα ἤχθη–καὶ αὐτὴ οὖν ἡ χρίσις αὐτοῦ παιδίου ὄντος παραδόξως γέγον̣εν, καὶ λέγει ὅτι· "πολλὰ ἐποίησας σύ, κύριε ὁ θεός μου, τὰ θαυμάσιά σου". πολλὰ καὶ μεγάλα ἐστίν, "καὶ τοῖς διαλογισμοῖς σου", καθ' οὓς ποιεῖς τὰ θαυμάσια, "οὐδεὶς ὁμοιωθήσεται". οὐδεὶς δυνήσεται τοιαῦτα θαυμάσια ποιῆσαι, οὐδεὶς δυνήσεται ἐξαγαγεῖν τινα ἐκ λάκκου ταλαιπωρίας καὶ ἀπὸ πηλοῦ ὕλεως καὶ στῆσαι τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ πέτραν καὶ κατευθῦναι τὰ διαβήματα αὐτοῦ καὶ τὰ ἄλλα. τὸ "οὐκ ἔστιν τίς ὁμοιωθήσεται" ἐὰν πρὸς τὸν πατέρα λέγηται, οὐ περὶ τοῦ υἱοῦ λέγει· οὐδεὶς γὰρ τῶν γενητ̣ῶν ὁμοιωθήσεται. ὁ δὲ υἱὸς οὐχ ὁμοιωθήσεται· ἀίδιος γάρ ἐστιν, εἰκὼν καὶ χαρακτὴρ τῆς θεοῦ ὑποστάσεως. οὔκ ἐστιν τῶν ἐπὶ μέλλοντι ἔχων τὸ ὁμοιωθῆναι· ὅμοιος γάρ ἐστιν. ἐπερ · τὸ "τοῖς διαλογισμοῖς"; –διαλογισμοὶ κυρίως λέγονται οἱ λογισμοὶ οἱ περὶ τῶν καθέκαστα. ὥσπερ ὁμιλία ἐστὶν ψυχῆς τὸ διαλογίζεσθαι καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ἐν προφορᾷ ἅμα πο̣λλὰ εἰπε̣ῖν, οὕτω καὶ οἱ λογισμοὶ οἱ τῶν καθέκαστα διαλογισμοὶ λέγονται. παραδέδοται τόπος ἐπιχειρηματικὸς ἐρωτῶν, εἰ ταὐτόν ἐστιν τὸ ἐπίστασθαι τῷ διανοεῖσθαι, καὶ εἴρηται, ὅτι οὐ ταὐτόν ἐστιν· πολλὰ μὲν γὰρ ἔστ̣ιν ἄφ̣ν̣ω ἐπίστασθαι, πολλὰ δὲ διανοεῖσθαι οὐχί, ὥστε οὐ ταὐτὸν τὸ ἐπίστασθαι τῷ διανοεῖσθαι. δύναται καὶ ὅλου̣ γένους λαβεῖν ἔννοιαν καὶ ὅλου εἴδους. ἐπιστῆσαι δὲ τοῖς καθέκαστα, ἕκαστον καθ' ἑαυτὸ διανοηθῆναι ἅμα οὐ δύναται. ἐπερ · ἵνα τὸ διανοηθῆναι ἐπὶ τῆς αἰσθήσεως; –ἀλλ' ἐπὶ τῶν καθέκαστα διανοητῶν. ὡς οὐκ ἔστιν ἅμα πολλὰ εἰπεῖν, πολλὰ δὲ εἰδέναι, λόγος δέ τις τῆς ψυχῆς ἐστιν ἡ διάνοια, οὐ δυνατὸν ἅμα πολλὰ διανοεῖσθαι. ὁ θεὸς οὖν διαλογισμοὺς τοιούτους ἔχει ὥστε ἅμα πάντα εἰδέναι, ὅμως δὲ ἑτέρως ἢ ὡς οἱ ἄνθρωποι· καὶ γὰρ ἐν Ἰσαίᾳ εἶπεν ὅτι· "ὡς ἀπέχει ὁ οὐρανὸς ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς, οὕτω διανοήματα ὑμῶν ἀπὸ 195 τῆς διανοίας μου". τὴν ὑπεροχὴν τῆς ἑαυτοῦ διανοίας ἠθέλησεν ἐξ αἰσθητικοῦ παραδείγματος δεῖξαι· οὐ γὰρ τοπικῶς ἀφέστηκεν ἡ αὐτοῦ διάνοια τῆς διανοίας τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ἀλλὰ μεγέθει ὑπεροχῆς. 6 καὶ τοῖς διαλογισμοῖς σου οὐκ ἔστιν τίς ὁμοιωθήσεται. οὐδεὶς τοῖς διαλογισμοῖς τοῦ θεοῦ ὁμοιοῦται. ὡς εἰ ἔλεγες· "οὐδεὶς τῇ δημιουργίᾳ τοῦ θεοῦ ὁμοιωθήσεται". κἂν γὰρ ὦσιν δημιουργοὶ παρὰ ἀνθρώποις, ἀλλὰ οὐ τὴν ὑποκειμένην ὕλην κατασκευάζουσιν τῶν γινομένων. οἷον ὁ τέκτων ἐὰν ποιῇ κλίνην ἢ θρόνον οὐχὶ καὶ τὸ ξύλον ποιεῖ ἐν τῇ τέχνῃ. τὸ τέλος μόνον ἐπιτίθη̣σιν̣ τῇ π̣ρολαβούσῃ ὕλ̣ῃ. ὁ δὲ θεὸς οὐχ εὑρὼν ὕλην τὸ εἶδος αὐτῇ ἐπιτίθησιν, ἀλλὰ συνυφίστησιν αὐτὴν τῷ εἴδει. 6 ἀπήγγειλα καὶ ἐλάλησα, ἐπληθύνθησαν ὑπὲρ
About this text
Didymus the Blind on the Psalms.
Catalogue & scope
Khazarzar scan
Witnesses
- Copy-text PG (Khazarzar) (Greek)
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