Christ's Agency and the Knowledge of God
The Son is the true and free light and teaching for all; and he mystically demonstrates this to them, which they are ignorant of, through the ever-present memory of the many-fold exodus from Egypt within them. Thus, the noble Son of God testifies by his own nature to being free from above and not to have the character of a sister to the creation—for everything produced is a slave to the one who brought it into being, and the created thing is a slave to the creator—and he says to Peter: 'From whom do the kings of the earth receive taxes or customs?' (Matt 17:25). 'From their sons or from strangers?' Answering, 'From strangers,' Jesus said to him; 'therefore the sons are free. But so that we do not scandalize them, having gone into the sea, cast a hook, and the first fish that comes up will have a coin in its mouth. Taking that, give it to them instead of me and you.' (Matt 17:27). These things regarding these matters. But others still persist.
Concerning those who mythologize that the Father made the Son through the agency of creation: Blasphemously contending and mythologizing, they say that the Father made a Son most necessary to serve him regarding the rest of the creations, no longer understanding that this depends upon their own speculative reasoning—envy and sloth and other material things. For it is necessary indeed to see even these things. For if it is good to create—just as it is good and only proper and only exceptional of the divine abundant nature, so that he might also be glorified by the created—would he have felt pity if he created all things himself? And if indeed it is great for those being created to be carried along by the greater—if, according to them, the Father is greater than his own Son the Word—would he have been flattered by those glorifying his making through another? And if indeed they have not fled from all things at once, both pride and weakness, in making the produced through a mediator—the one making it through himself being greater in glory than the one making it through another—for he is not yet obeying the ever-existing by the rains, and as long as he is not yet permeated, he receives fitting measures and does not have in him anything lacking; not only is the proud one proud, but if he were already shown all that he would have authority and from...
And Jesus says to Lazarus, having died, 'Come out.' And to another, 'Your sins are forgiven you'; and to another, 'I command you. Come out of it.' But the fact that God does these things through another, according to the understanding of those men, demonstrates the God the Father, for whom the lawful Paul, having been inspired by the divine Spirit, guarantees to the believers among the creators of gods.
Furthermore, he also calls 'atheists' those who before this knew only God and the Father, being outside of the Son, because he does not complete the work in works, writing in one way that 'you remember that once you were among the Gentiles in the flesh, those called uncircumcised by the so-called circumcision in the flesh of human making, because at that time you were without Christ, being alienated from the hope of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and being atheists in the world' (Romans 1:26-28). And in another way, 'but at that time, not knowing God, you served gods which are not gods by nature—but now, having known God, rather having been known by God, how do you turn back again to the weak and poor elements, to which you desire again to serve from above?' (Galatians 4:8-9).
But truly, the message concerning Christ and the Holy Spirit is an ever-new salvation of the elder law, not declining into old age, and the ecclesiastical institution leads more forward because of its perfection and because it has neither lawlessness troubling it nor is it less or greater. For he writes by word or manner with this matter, having written that 'I became so... pursuing the church with zeal, having become blameless according to righteousness in the law; but whatever things were gains to me, these I have counted loss for the sake of Christ. But indeed I also consider all things loss because of the surpassingness of the knowledge of Jesus Christ our Lord, for whom all things were lost to me, and I count them as rubbish, so that I may gain Christ' (Philippians 3:6-8).
To the Romans: 'For if he who comes preaches another Jesus, whom we did not preach, or if you receive a different spirit, which you did not receive' (2 Corinthians 11:4). So then, for what purpose, having given up and having thought in such a way, has he again written his own words of sharp divine knowledge? To the Corinthians, the second time, that if anyone is reconciled to the Son, he has been reconciled to God, and that in Christ there is a covenant with the world; and it has: 'as if God were in Christ'...
Greek
1 σωτη̣ρία̣ν̣ καὶ διδασ̣καλίαν πᾶσιν φῶς τὸ ἀληθινὸν καὶ ἐλεύθερο̣ν ὁ υἱός· καὶ παρίστησι τοῦτο τό τισιν αὐτῶν ἀγν̣οου´̣μενον μυστι̣κῶς διὰ τὴν ἔναυλον ἐν αὐτοῖς τῆς πολυθεΐας ἐξ Αἰγύπτου μνήμην· 7.17 προσμαρτυρῶν τοίνυν ὁ σεπτο`̣ς θεοῦ υἱὸς τῇ οἰκείᾳ φύσει τὸ ἄνωθεν ἐλεύθερον καὶ μὴ ἀδελφὴν οἷον ἔχειν τὴν κτίσιν–δοῦλον γὰρ πᾶν τὸ παραχθὲν καὶ εἰς γένεσιν τοῦ παραγαγόντος καὶ τὸ κτισθὲν κτίσμα τοῦ κτίσαντος–λέγει πρὸς Πέτρον· 7.18 «οἱ βασιλεῖς τῆς γῆς ἀπὸ τίνων λαμβάνουσιν τέλη ἢ κη῀̣ν̣σον; ἀπὸ τῶν υἱῶν αὐτῶν ἢ ἀπὸ τῶν ἀλλοτρίων; ἀποκρινομε´̣νου· ἐκ τῶν ἀλλοτρίων, ἔφη αὐτῷ ὁ Ἰησοῦς· ἄρα γε ἐλε̣ύθεροί εἰσιν οἱ υἱοί. ἵνα δὲ μὴ σκανδαλίσωμεν αὐτούς, πορευθεὶς εἰς θάλασσαν βάλε ἄγκιστρον καὶ τὸν ἀναβάντα πρῶτον ἰχθῦν ἇρον, καὶ ἀνοίξας τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ εὑρήσεις στατῆρα. υ ἐκεῖνον λαβὼν δὸς αὐτοῖς ἀντὶ ἐμοῦ καὶ σοῦ.» 7.19 ταῦτα μὲν περὶ τούτων. οἱδὲ παύονται ἔτι. 8.ν Περὶ τῶν διαμυθολογούντων ὅτι ὁ πατὴρ ἐποίησε τὸν υἱὸν ἐπὶ τῇ ὑπουργίᾳ τῆς κτίσεως. 8.1 Βλασφήμως ἀντεξάγοντες καὶ διαμυθολογοῦντες φασὶ τὸν πατέρα πεποιῆσθαι υἱὸν χρειωδέστατον ἐπὶ τὸ ὑπουργεῖν αὐτῷ πρὸς τὰ λοιπὰ τῶν κτισμάτων, οὔκετι κατανοοῦντες ὡς ἐξήρτ̣ηται τοῦτο ἐκ τοῦδε στ̣ο̣χαστικοῦ αὐτῶν λόγου· φθόνος τε καὶ ὄκνος καὶ ἕτερα υ῾̣λ̣ι̣κά. 8.2 ∆εῖ γὰρ δήπου καὶ ταῦτα ὁρᾶν. εἰ γὰρ καλὸν τὸ δημιουργεῖν–ὥσπερ οὖν καλὸν καὶ μόνον ἴδιον καὶ μόνον ἐξαίρετον τῆς θεϊκῆς ἀφθόνου φύσεως, ἵν' ἔχοι καὶ ὑπό του δοξάζηται–, ἀνθ' ὅτου μὴ πάντα δι̣' ἑαυτ̣ο̣ῦ ἔκτισεν, ἀλλ' οἱονεί πως κατώκνησεν; 8.3 εἰ δὲ καὶ μ̣έγα̣ τοῖς κτιζομένοις τὸ ὑπὸ τοῦ μείζονος καὶ ἐ παρα φέρεσθαι, εἴπερ κατ' αὐτοὺς μείζων τοῦ ἰδίου υἱοῦ λόγου ὁ πατήρ, ε᾿̣βάσκαινε τοῖς δοξάζουσιν αὐτὸν τὴν δι' ἑαυτοῦ ποίησιν; 8.4 εἰ δὲ καὶ ὑπερηφανία̣ς̣ ἀδυναμίας τε ἅμ̣α παντάπασιν οὐκ ἀπήλλακται τὸ διὰ μεσίτου ποιεῖν τὸ παραγόμενον, τοῦ παράγοντος αὐτὸ δι' ἑαυτοῦ ἤπερ τοῦ δι' ἑτέρου ποιοῦντος μείζονα τὴν δόξαν ἐκφαίνει. 8.5 οὔπω γὰρ ὂν τοῦ ἀεὶ ὄντος νεύμασιν ὑπακούει καὶ ὅσον οὐδέπω διαπεραίνεται καὶ μέτρα προσήκοντα δέχεται καὶ οὐκ ἔχει ἔν τινι τὸ ἐλλεῖπον οὐχ ὑπερήφανος μόνον ὁ ὑπερη ἀλλ' ἤδη καταν̣ τ̣ ι δειχθείη πάν̣τ̣α ὁ´̣σα ἂν ἐξουσίαν καὶ ἀπ ρωμ τ εἰ δὲ Ἰησοῦς λέγει τῷ Λαζα´̣ρ̣ῳ τεθνηκότι· «δεῦρο ἔξω.» καὶ ἄλλῳ· 8.6 «ἀφέωνταί σοι αἱ ἁμαρτίαι σου» καὶ ἄλλῳ· «ἐγώ σο̣ι̣ ἐπιτάσσω. ἔξελθε ἐξ αὐτοῦ» τὸ δὲ τὸν θεὸν ταῦτα ποιεῖν δι' ἄλλου κατὰ τὸν ἐκείνων νοῦν δείκνυσι τὸν μὲν θεὸν πατέρα, οὗ αἱ νοή7.1 κτιστῶν θεῶν τοὺς πιστεύοντας τῷ υἱῷ ὁ ἔννομος Παῦλος τῷ θεϊκῷ πνεύματι σεσοφισμένος ἐγγυᾶται. 7.2 ἔτι δὲ καὶ "ἀθέους" ἀποκαλεῖ τοὺς πρὸ τούτου ἐκτὸς τοῦ υἱοῦ τὸν θεὸν καὶ πατέρα μόνον ἐγνωκότας, ἐπειδὴ οὐκ ἐν π̣ο̣ι̣ήμασι τ̣ελ̣εῖ, γράφων πῇ μὲν ὅτι «μνημονεύετε ὅτι ποτὲ ὑμεῖς τὰ ἔθνη ἐν σαρκί, οἱ λεγόμενοι ἀκροβυστία ὑπὸ τῆς λεγομένης περιτομῆς ἐν σαρκὶ χειροποιήτου, ὅτι ἦτε τῷ καιρῷ ἐκείνῳ χωρὶς Χριστοῦ, ἀπηλλοτρι̣ω̣μ̣ένοι τῆς ἐλπ̣ι´̣δος τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ καὶ ξένοι τῶν διαθηκῶν τῆς ἐπ̣αγγελίας, ἐλπίδα μὴ ἔχοντες καὶ ἄθεοι ἐν τῷ κ̣όσμῳ». 7.3 πῇ δέ «ἀλλὰ τότε μὲν οὐκ εἰδότες θεὸν ἐδουλεύσατε τοῖς φύσει μὴ οὖσι θεοῖς–νῦν δὲ γνόντες θεόν, μᾶλλον γν̣ωσθέντες ὑπὸ θεοῦ, πῶς ἐπιστρέφετε πάλιν ἐπὶ τὰ ἀσθενῆ καὶ πτωχὰ στοιχεῖα, οἷς πάλιν ἄνωθεν δ̣ουλεύειν θ̣έλετε»; 7.4 ἀλλὰ μὴν τοῦ πρεσβυτέρου νόμου τὸ ἀεὶ νέον καὶ οὐκ εἰς γῆρας ἀποκλῖνον σω̣τ̣η´̣ρ̣ιον κήρυγμα τὸ περὶ Χριστοῦ καὶ ἁγίου πνεύματος καὶ τὸν ἐκκλησιαστικὸν θεσμὸν προφερέστερον ἡγεῖται διὰ τὸ τέλ̣ε̣ι̣ο̣ν καὶ τὸ μὴ ἔχειν μήτε ἀνομ ἐνοχλοῦν μήτε ··κάλλιον ἢ μεῖζον χρὴ προτεθη ο·· λόγῳ ἢ τρόπῳ καλλ γὰρ τῷ χρήματι τούτῳ γράφει π̣ε̣π σι τὸ μὲν ὁ´̣τι «ἐγενόμην» «κατὰ ζῆλον διώκων τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, κατὰ δικαιοσύνην τὴν ἐν νόμῳ γενόμενος ἄμεμπτος· ἀλλὰ ἅτινα ἦν μοι κέρδη, ταῦτα ἥγημαι διὰ τὸν Χριστὸν ζημίαν. ἀλλὰ μὲν οὖν γε καὶ ἡγοῦμαι πάντα ζημίαν εἶναι διὰ τὸ ὑπερέχον τῆς γνώσεως Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τ̣ο̣ῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν, δι' ὃν 2 τὰ πάντα ἐζημιώθην καὶ ἡγοῦμαι σκύβαλα εἶναι, ἵνα Χριστὸν κερδήσω». 7.5 Ῥωμαίοις δέ· «εἰ μὲν γὰρ ὁ ἐρχόμενος ἄλλον Ἰησοῦν κηρύσσει, ὃν οὐκ ἐκηρύξαμεν, ἢ πνεῦμα ἕτερον λαμβάνετε, ὃ οὐκ ἐλάβετε». 7.6 Ἆρα δὲ καὶ πρὸς τί ἀπιδὼν καὶ οἷα διανοηθεὶς ἀκραιφνοῦς θεογνωσίας αὖθις ἴδια γέγραφεν· Κορινθίοις μὲν τὸ δεύτερον ὅτι γε εἰ τῷ υ̣ἱῷ τις καταλλαγῇ, τῷ θεῷ κατηλλάγη κ̣αὶ ὅτ̣ι ἐν Χριστῷ η῾̣ πρὸς τὸν θεὸν σ̣ύμβασίς ἐστι τοῦ κόσμου· 7.7 ἔχει δέ· «ὡς ὅτι θεὸς ἦν ἐν Χριστῷ
About this text
Didymus the Blind defends the full divinity of Father, Son, and Spirit against those who rank them.
Catalogue & scope
Khazarzar scan
Witnesses
- Copy-text PG (Khazarzar) (Greek)
This is an AI-assisted study translation. Source fidelity and completeness have not been independently certified. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.