The Word of God and the Nature of the Spirit
His Spirit remains with the Christ, being inseparable from the divine nature; and the divine works are done in agreement by the ineffable Trinity; and just as the Father, being in his own subsistence, is represented in the Only-begotten because of the unchangeable nature of the deity, that is, the very essence; so too the Only-begotten is in the same manner in the one Holy Spirit.
And how many other things are brought forward concerning the divine Spirit that do not differ from what is written concerning God and the Father and his Only-begotten Son, from which some are contained in different places of this book, through which the course of the Logos came. 5.27 Since they will not yet say, having been questioned, that Eve is from Adam and the children from her; and how some were written as born, but she was neither a child of him, nor a sister of those born from oblivion; when it is not possible to show the unity and incomparable nature from a parable of creatures, the unseen remaining to the mind, but being endured by hearing and words. Even if a small thing, like a shadow of a likeness, should be found, one must flee from the more abundant, leaving the one who drives downward. For in no way can the example be one of identity; but it is only safe to say those things which the Scriptures have taught us according to our measures. 5.28 That therefore to be one and only Spirit of God the Father has been written, because it is separated in nature from the other spirits, but is joined to the Father and to his Son the Word of the essence; Paul is directed as writing to the Corinthians in the first epistle: 'but different gifts of healings in the one Spirit' (1 Cor 12:4); and again: 'but all these works the one and the same Spirit performs, dividing to each one individually as he wills' (1 Cor 12:11); and again: 'we were all made to drink of one Spirit' (1 Cor 12:13); and to the Ephesians: 'that through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father' (Eph 2:18); and again: 'endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit' (Eph 4:3); that is: to make much guarding so that it does not divide itself from the highest unity and self-sufficient essence. 5.29 That they are also called a word, they testify thus: Paul, writing to the Ephesians: 'having taken up the armor of God and the breastplate of righteousness and the shield of faith and the helmet of salvation and the ma-'
rejoicing in the Spirit, which is the word of God. Of which a certain sword Matthew also mentioned from the person of Christ, saying: 'I did not come to cast peace, but a sword' (Matt 10:34). Not a sword, he says, but the unsearchable wisdom of the Holy Spirit, which lies beyond the peace of the sanctified hearts. And toward the Hebrews: 'for he carries all things by the word of his power' (Heb 1:3). By what kind of word? David prophesied: 'By the word of the Lord the heavens were established, and by the spirit of his mouth all their strength' (Ps 33:6). And again Paul: 'for it is impossible for those having been once enlightened, having tasted the heavenly gift, and having become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and having tasted the good word of God' (Heb 6:4-5). Peter also: 'because all flesh is as grass, and all its glory as the flower of grass; the grass withered and the flower fell, and its beauty perished; but the word of God remains forever' (1 Pet 1:24). In the same manner concerning the Son, he sings in the Psalms: 'Forever, Lord, your word remains in heaven' (Ps 89:37). For many things regarding the most supreme and most divine Hypostases are handed down most mystically.
Regarding all that is proper to the Divinity, testimony is given concerning the Holy Spirit thus: Then therefore they testify concerning the pure and ineffable nature of the Holy Spirit, just as concerning God who exercises authority over all, and Father, and the Son who is over all and Lord of all, because he does not have heterousia, nor is he lesser in power and glory. And nothing of these is found to exist of itself from nothing to any creature. For what he does have, he has through the zeal of the Triad in one Divinity; and each has always been such that it is possible to know from what it is, what it is and what it is not, whether it be God or a creature. For example: that it is not a creature first, according to the heretics, but God; for the first creature turns out to be Satan. Creation has being, but is not the beginning. And this was shown in Job, and what kind of thing it is in logical terms: first, a poem. For he says the devil is one who deceives nature in manner. And that the Holy Spirit is a creature, as 'the breath of the Pantokrator,' or that he is entirely a beginning, has not been written at all. For a creation could not pre-exist the creative Spirit, and such a thing...
Greek
πνεῦμα αὐτοῦ παρὰ τῷ Χριστῷ μένει, ἀχώριστον ὂν τῇ θείᾳ φύσει· καὶ ὅτι τὰ θεϊκὰ ἔργα ὑπὸ τῆς ἀρρήτου τριάδος ὁμοφρόνως γίνεται· καὶ καθὰ ὁ πατὴρ ἐν ἰδίᾳ ὑποστάσει ὢν ἐξεικονίζεται ἐν τῷ μονογενεῖ, διὰ τὸ ἀπαράλλακτον τῆς θεότητος, τουτέστιν τῆς οὐσίας· τὸν ἴσον τρόπον καὶ ὁ μονογενὴς ἐν τῷ ἑνὶ ἁγίῳ πνεύματι. πόσα δὲ ἄλλα ἐμφέρεται περὶ τοῦ θεϊκοῦ πνεύματος οὐ διαφέροντα πρὸς τὰ γεγραμμένα περὶ τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ μονογενοῦς αὐτοῦ υἱοῦ, ἐξ ὧν τινα διαφόροις τόποις τοῦδε περιέχεται τοῦ βιβλίου, δι' ὧν ἦλθεν ὁ τοῦ λόγου δρόμος. 5.27 ἐπεὶ μή γ' ἔτι ἐροῦσιν ἀντερωτηθέντες, ὅτι ἐκ τοῦ Ἀδὰμ ἡ Εὔα καὶ οἱ ἐξ αὐτῆς παῖδες; καὶ πῶς οἱ μὲν ἐγράφησαν γεννηθέντες, ἡ δὲ οὔτ' αὐτοῦ παῖς, οὔτ' ἀδελφὴ τῶν τεχθέντων ἐκ λήθη; ὁπότε οὐ δυνατὸν παραδειχθῆναι ἐκ παραβολῆς κτισμάτων τὴν μονάδα καὶ ἀσύγκριτον φύσιν, τὴν ἀθέατον μένουσαν τῷ νῷ, ἀκοῇ δὲ καὶ ῥήμασιν οὔτε προοισθῆναι ἀνεχομένην. κἂν γὰρ μικρά τις ὡσεὶ σκιὰ ὁμοιώσεως οἱονείπως. εὑρεθῇ, φεύγει τὸ πλέον ἀφὲν τὸν παρεκβάλλοντα κάτω που. οὐδαμῶς γὰρ τὸ παράδειγμα ταυτότης εἶναι δύναται· ἐκεῖνα δὲ μόνον λέγειν ἀσφαλές, ἅπερ πρὸς τὰ μέτρα ἡμῶν ἐδίδαξαν αἱ γραφαί. 5.28 ὅτι οὖν ἓν καὶ μόνον εἶναι πνεῦμα τοῦ 54 θεοῦ πατρὸς γέγραπται, διὰ τὸ κεχωρίσθαι μὲν τῇ φύσει τῶν ἄλλων πνευμάτων, συνῆφθαι δὲ τῷ πατρὶ καὶ τῷ υἱῷ αὐτοῦ τῷ λόγῳ τῆς οὐσίας, Παῦλος ὑφηγεῖται γράφων πρὸς μὲν Κορινθίους ἐν τῇ πρώτῃ ἐπιστολῇ· «ἄλλῳ δὲ χαρίσματα ἰαμάτων ἐν τῷ ἑνὶ πνεύματι·» καὶ πάλιν· «πάντα δὲ ταῦτα ἐνεργεῖ τὸ ἓν καὶ αὐτὸ πνεῦμα, διαιροῦν ἰδίᾳ ἑκάστῳ, καθὼς βούλεται,» καὶ πάλιν· «πάντες ἓν πνεῦμα ἐποτίσθημεν·» πρὸς δὲ Ἐφεσίους· «ὅτι δι' αὐτοῦ ἔχομεν τὴν προσαγωγὴν οἱ ἀμφότεροι ἐν ἑνὶ πνεύματι πρὸς τὸν πατέρα·» καὶ πάλιν· «σπουδάζοντες τηρεῖν τὴν ἑνότητα τοῦ πνεύματος·» τουτέστιν· πολλὴν ποιεῖσθαι φυλακὴν τοῦ μὴ χωρίζειν αὐτὸ τῆς ἀνωτάτω ἑνάδος καὶ αὐτοτελοῦς οὐσίας. 5.29 ὅτι δὲ καὶ ῥῆμα ὠνόμασται, μαρτυροῦσιν οὑτωσί· Παῦλος γράφων πρὸς Ἐφεσίους μέν· «ἀναλαβόντες τὴν πανοπλίαν τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ θώρακα τῆς δικαιοσύ νης καὶ τὸν θυρεὸν τῆς πίστεως καὶ τὴν περικεφαλαίαν τοῦ σω τηρίου καὶ τὴν μάχαιραν τοῦ πνεύματος, ὅ ἐστιν ῥῆμα θεοῦ.» ἧς τινος μαχαίρας ἐμνημόνευσεν καὶ Ματθαῖος ἐκ προσώπου τοῦ Χριστοῦ εἰπών· «οὐκ ἦλθον βαλεῖν εἰρήνην, ἀλλὰ μάχαιραν·» οὐ ξίφος λέγων, ἀλλὰ τὴν εἰρήνης ἐπέκεινα τμητικὴν τῶν πεπωρωμένων καρδιῶν τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος ἀκατάλεκτον σοφίαν· πρὸς δὲ Ἑβραίους· «φέρων γὰρ τὰ πάντα τῷ ῥήματι τῆς δυνάμεως αὐτοῦ.» 5.30 ποίῳ δὲ ῥήματι; προεφήτευσεν ∆αυίδ· «τῷ λόγῳ κυρίου οἱ οὐρανοὶ ἐστερεώθησαν καὶ τῷ πνεύματι τοῦ στόματος αὐτοῦ πᾶσαι αἱ δυνάμεις αὐτῶν·» καὶ πάλιν ὁ Παῦλος· «ἀδύνατον γὰρ τοὺς ἅπαξ φωτισθέντας γευσαμένους τε τῆς δωρεᾶς τῆς ἐπουρανίου καὶ μετόχους γενηθέντας πνεύματος ἁγίου καὶ καλὸν γευσαμένους θεοῦ ῥῆμα·» Πέτρος δέ· «διότι πᾶσα σὰρξ ὡς χόρτος καὶ πᾶσα δόξα αὐτῆς ὡς ἄνθος χόρτου· ἐξηράνθη ὁ χόρτος καὶ τὸ ἄνθος ἐξέπεσεν καὶ ἡ εὐπρέπεια αὐτοῦ ἀπώλετο· τὸ δὲ ῥῆμα τοῦ θεοῦ μένει εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα·» ὃν τρόπον περὶ τοῦ υἱοῦ ψάλλει ἐν ριηʹ· «εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα, κύριε, ὁ λόγος σου διαμένει ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ.» πολλὰ γὰρ περὶ τῶν ἀκροτάτων καὶ θειοτάτων ὑποστάσεων μυστικώτατα παραδίδωσιν. 6.ν Περὶ τοῦ πάντα, ὅσα ἴδια θεότητος, μαρτυρεῖσθαι περὶ τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος οὕτως· Ἔπειτα οὖν χρησμῳδοῦσιν περὶ τῆς ἀκηράτου καὶ ἀφράστου φύσεως τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος οἷα περὶ τοῦ ὅλων κατεξουσιάζοντος θεοῦ καὶ πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ πάντων ἐπέκεινα καὶ πάντων κυρίου υἱοῦ, διὰ τὸ μὴ ἑτεροουσίως ἔχειν μηδὲ δυνάμει καὶ δόξῃ ἐλαττόνως. καὶ οὐδὲν εὑρίσκεται τούτων ἀφ' ἑαυτοῦ ὑπάρχον οὐδενὶ κτιστῷ. ὅπερ γὰρ καὶ ἔχει, φιλοτιμηθὲν παρὰ τῆς ἐν μιᾷ θεότητι τριάδος ἔχει· καὶ πέφυκεν ἕκαστον ἀεὶ ἀφ' ὧν ἐστιν ἐπιγινώσκεσθαι, τί τέ ἐστιν, καὶ τί μή ἐστιν, εἴτε θεὸς ἔφυ, εἴτε κτίσμα. οἷον· 6.1ν ὅτι οὐ κατὰ αἱρετικοὺς πρῶτον κτίσμα ἐστίν. ἀλλὰ θεός· τὸ γὰρ πρῶτον κτίσμα ὁ σατανᾶς τυγχάνει. ἡ κτίσις τὸ εἶναι ἔχει, οὐκ οὖσα τὴν ἀρχήν. ἐδείχθη δὲ ἐν τῷ Ἰὼβ καὶ ποῖον αὐτῆς ἐστιν ἐν λογικοῖς πρῶτον ποίημα· λέγει γὰρ τὸ ψευσάμενον τῷ τρόπῳ τὴν φύσιν διάβολον. τὸ δ' ἅγιον πνεῦμα ὡς «πνοὴ τοῦ παντοκράτορος» κτίσμα εἶναι ἢ ἀρχὴν ὅλως ἔχειν, οὐδαμῇ γέγραπται. οὐδὲ γὰρ ἂν προϋπῆρξεν τοῦ δημιουργικοῦ πνεύματος δημιούργημα, καὶ τοιοῦτο
About this text
Didymus the Blind defends the full divinity of Father, Son, and Spirit against those who rank them.
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- Copy-text PG (Khazarzar) (Greek)
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