On Providence (ten orations) 2.1–2.6
Greek text: PG 83.English: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), public domain (CC0).
Chapter 2
2.1PG 83
Οἱ ταῖς τῆς Προνοίας ἡνίαις ἀπιστοῦντες, καὶ τὸν οὐρανοῦ καὶ γῆς κόσμον ἡνιόχου δίχα μετὰ τοσαύτης ἁρμονίας καὶ τάξεως φέρεσθαι λίαν ἀνοήτως ἰσχυριζόμενοι, ἐοικέναι μοι δοκοῦσιν, ὥσπερ ἄν τις ἐν νηῒ καθήμενος, καὶ τὸ πέλαγος διαπεραιούμενος, καὶ ὁρῶν τῶν οἱάκων ἐπειλημμένον, καὶ τὰ πηδάλια πρὸς τὴν χρείαν κινοῦντα, καὶ νῦν μὲν τὸ δεξιὸν φέροντα, νῦν δὲ τὸ εὐώνυμον μεταφέροντα, καὶ τὸ σκάφος πρὸς οὺς ἂν ἐθέλῃ λιμένας ἰθύνοντα, τῇ ἀληθείᾳ μαχόμενος, μήτε χυδερνήτην ἐπὶ ἑστάναι, μήτε πηδάλια τὸ σκάφος ἀλλ᾽ αὐτόματον φέρεσθαι, καὶ τῆς τῶν κυμάτων οὕτω ῥύμης, καὶ τῇ τῶν πνευμάτων ἐμδολῇ τὸ κοινῇ συμφέρον τοῖς ἐρέταις Ἐναργῶς γὰρ καὶ οὗτοι, καὶ λίαν προφανῶς, τὸν ἁπάντων Δεσπότην ὁρῶντες ἣν ἐποίησεν ἰθύνοντα κτίσιν, καὶ πάντα ἐν ῥυθμῷ καὶ τάξει ἄγοντά τε καὶ φέροντα, καὶ τὴν ἁρμονίαν ἐχάχρείαν ἐν ἁπάσῃ θεωροῦντες τῇ κτίσει, καὶ ἐν ἑκάστῳ δὲ μορίῳ ταύτης ἄμφω ταῦτα διαλάμποντα, ἑχόντες τυφλώττουσι, μᾶλλον δὲ ὁρῶντες ἀναισχυντοῦσι, καὶ τὰ δῶρα τῆς Προνοίας λαμθάνοντες, οἷς καὶ δι᾽ ὧν ἀπολαύουσι, τῷ Γ θὰ εὐγνωμόνως ἀκούειν, καὶ τὰ χθὲς ἡμῖν εἰρημένα περὶ οὐρανοῦ, καὶ ἡλίου, καὶ σελήνης, καὶ τῶν ἄλλων φωστήρων, πεῖσαι αὑτοὺς σωγρονεῖΐν, καὶ τὸν εὐεργέτην ὑμνεῖν. Ἵνα δὲ μή τις τῶν τὴν σελήνην ὅρον τῇ Προνοίᾳ τεθειχότων, καὶ μέχρι ταύτῆς αὐτὴν διήκειν εἰρηκότων, καὶ λίαν αὑτὴν σμιλάθῃ τῶν λόγων τὴν συμμετρίαν, δεῦρο δή σε πάλιν, ὦ φιλότης, ἐκεῖθεν διὰ τοῦ ἀέρος ἐπὶ τὴν γὴν καταβιβάσωμεν, καὶ κατὰ βραχύ σε πάλιν καθάπερ τῇ καὶ ἐν τοῖς καὶ δεικνυμένην τοῖς προσέχειν ἐθέλουσι, καὶ ἁπαξαπλῶς τοῖς γεννητὴν λαχοῦσι φύσιν, καὶ ἰδίᾳ 'Οδῷ τοίνυν βαδίξοντες, ἐξετάσωμεν τοῦ ἀέρος νουσα, καὶ ῥᾳδίως διαφεύγουσα, καὶ τῶν συνεχόντων δεομένη: Διὸ τῶν ὅλων ὁ Ποιητὴς, ὀὐρανὸν καὶ γἦν Α δημιουργήσας, ἐν μέσῳ τοῦτον διέχεε, καὶ τούτῳ τεῖχος ἀῤῥαγὲς διὰ τῶν δύο τούτων σωμάτων μηχανησάμενος, καὶ αὐτὸν τοῖς ἐν μέσῳ τούτων ἐμψύχοις σώμασι ζωῆς συνεργὸν ἀποφήνας. Τοῦτον γὰρ καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀναπνέοντες ζῶμεν οἱ ἄνθρωποι, καὶ τῶν ἀλόγων δὲ ζώων ὅσα πτηνὰ, καὶ ἑρπετὰ, καὶ ἀμφίὄια, τοῦτον ἔχει τῆς ζωῆς συνεργόν. Οὗτος χινούμε-νος, τῶν ἀνέμων ἡμῖν παρέχει τὰς αὔρας" οὗτος πυχνούμενος, τὴν ἀπὸ τῶν νεφῶν ἀρδείαν παραπέμπει τῇ γῇ τούτῳ τὸ φῶς ὀχήματι κεχρημένον, ἑστιᾷ «ὧν ὁρώντων τὰς ὄψεις" οὗτος; ἡλίῳ καὶ γῇ μεσιτεύιων, τὸ σφοδρὸν τῆς ἀκτῖνος χεράννυσι, καὶ τῇ οἰκείᾳ ὑγρότητι καὶ ψυχρότητι, τὴν ἐχείνου χαταπραὔνων ξηρότητα καὶ θερμότητα, ἄλυπον ἡμῖν πραγματεύεται τοῦ φωτὸς τὴν ἀπόλαυσιν. Ἵνα δὲ μὴ νομίσῃ; αἴτιον τουτωνὶ τῶν ἀγαθῶν τὸν ἀέρα, μάθε ὡς καὶ τούτου τὴν ἀμετρίαν ἡ τοῦ ἡλίου χοιμίξει θερμότης. ᾿Αχραιφνῇ γὰρ οὐδεὶς ἂν ἤνεγκε τὴν τοῦ ἀέρος ψυχρότητα καὶ μάρτυς ἡ χειμέριος ὥρα" ἐν ταύτῃ γὰρ ἐπὶ τὰ νοτιώτερα τοῦ πόλου διατρέχων ὁ ἥλιος, καὶ τὰ βορειότερα καὶ τὰ μέσα καταλιμπάνων, ἄδειαν δίδωσι τῷ ἀέρι κεχρῆσθαι τῇ φύσει" οὗ χάριν, μηκέτι ὁμοίως δαπανώμενος ὑπὸ τῆς τοῦ ἡλίου θερμότητος, πυχνούμενος δὲ καὶ συχνὸς Ὑινόμενο;, καὶ ὑετὸν ἀφίησι λάβρον, καὶ τῇ σφοδροτέρᾳ τῶν ἀνέμων πρησδολῇ τοῦτον ἐξα» ρίζων, εἰς νιφετὸν μεταπήγνυσι καὶ χάλαζαν, καὶ τὴν ἐν ταῖς δρόσον τῇ αὔρᾳ πηγνὺς, ψυχρότητι τὴν πάχνην ἐργάζεται" καὶ ταῦτα εἰ καὶ πόῤῥωθεν, ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως τῷ ἡλίῳ θερμαινόμενος ἀπο-
Hoi tais tēs Pronoias hēniais apistountes, kai ton ouranou kai gēs kosmon hēniochou dicha meta tosautēs harmonias kai taxeōs pheresthai lian anoētōs ischyrizomenoi, eoikenai moi dokousin, hōsper an tis en nēï kathēmenos, kai to pelagos diaperaioumenos, kai horōn tōn hoiakōn epeilēmmenon, kai ta pēdalia pros tēn chreian kinounta, kai nyn men to dexion pheronta, nyn de to euōnymon metapheronta, kai to skaphos pros ous an ethelę̄ limenas ithynonta, tę̄ alētheią machomenos, mēte chydernētēn epi hestanai, mēte pēdalia to skaphos all᾽ automaton pheresthai, kai tēs tōn kymatōn houtō rhymēs, kai tę̄ tōn pneumatōn emdolę̄ to koinę̄ sympheron tois eretais Enargōs gar kai houtoi, kai lian prophanōs, ton hapantōn Despotēn horōntes hēn epoiēsen ithynonta ktisin, kai panta en rhythmǭ kai taxei agonta te kai pheronta, kai tēn harmonian echachreian en hapasę̄ theōrountes tę̄ ktisei, kai en hekastǭ de moriǭ tautēs amphō tauta dialamponta, hechontes typhlōttousi, mallon de horōntes anaischyntousi, kai ta dōra tēs Pronoias lamthanontes, hois kai di᾽ hōn apolauousi, tǭ G tha eugnōmonōs akouein, kai ta chthes hēmin eirēmena peri ouranou, kai hēliou, kai selēnēs, kai tōn allōn phōstērōn, peisai hautous sōgroneiïn, kai ton euergetēn hymnein. Hina de mē tis tōn tēn selēnēn horon tę̄ Pronoią tetheichotōn, kai mechri tautēs autēn diēkein eirēkotōn, kai lian hautēn smilathę̄ tōn logōn tēn symmetrian, deuro dē se palin, ō philotēs, ekeithen dia tou aeros epi tēn gēn katabibasōmen, kai kata brachy se palin kathaper tę̄ kai en tois kai deiknymenēn tois prosechein ethelousi, kai hapaxaplōs tois gennētēn lachousi physin, kai idią 'Odǭ toinyn badixontes, exetasōmen tou aeros nousa, kai rhądiōs diapheugousa, kai tōn synechontōn deomenē: Dio tōn holōn ho Poiētēs, ouranon kai gēn A dēmiourgēsas, en mesǭ touton diechee, kai toutǭ teichos arrhages dia tōn dyo toutōn sōmatōn mēchanēsamenos, kai auton tois en mesǭ toutōn empsychois sōmasi zōēs synergon apophēnas. Touton gar kai hēmeis anapneontes zōmen hoi anthrōpoi, kai tōn alogōn de zōōn hosa ptēna, kai herpeta, kai amphioia, touton echei tēs zōēs synergon. Houtos chinoume-nos, tōn anemōn hēmin parechei tas auras" houtos pychnoumenos, tēn apo tōn nephōn ardeian parapempei tę̄ gę̄ toutǭ to phōs ochēmati kechrēmenon, hestią «hōn horōntōn tas opseis" houtos? hēliǭ kai gę̄ mesiteuiōn, to sphodron tēs aktinos cherannysi, kai tę̄ oikeią hygrotēti kai psychrotēti, tēn echeinou chatapraunōn xērotēta kai thermotēta, alypon hēmin pragmateuetai tou phōtos tēn apolausin. Hina de mē nomisę̄? aition toutōni tōn agathōn ton aera, mathe hōs kai toutou tēn ametrian hē tou hēliou choimixei thermotēs. ᾿Achraiphnę̄ gar oudeis an ēnenke tēn tou aeros psychrotēta kai martys hē cheimerios hōra" en tautę̄ gar epi ta notiōtera tou polou diatrechōn ho hēlios, kai ta boreiotera kai ta mesa katalimpanōn, adeian didōsi tǭ aeri kechrēsthai tę̄ physei" hou charin, mēketi homoiōs dapanōmenos hypo tēs tou hēliou thermotētos, pychnoumenos de kai sychnos Huinomeno?, kai hyeton aphiēsi labron, kai tę̄ sphodroterą tōn anemōn prēsdolę̄ touton exa» rizōn, eis nipheton metapēgnysi kai chalazan, kai tēn en tais droson tę̄ aurą pēgnys, psychrotēti tēn pachnēn ergazetai" kai tauta ei kai porrhōthen, all᾽ homōs tǭ hēliǭ thermainomenos apo-
Those who do not trust the reins of Providence, and very foolishly insist that the order of heaven and earth is carried along with such harmony and order without a charioteer, seem to me like someone sitting in a ship and crossing the sea, who sees someone holding the tiller and moving the rudders as need requires, now carrying it to the right, now shifting it to the left, and steering the ship to whatever harbors he wishes, and yet fights against the truth and says that no pilot stands over it and no rudder steers the ship, but that it is carried along of its own accord, and that the rush of the waves and the onset of the winds … what is good for the rowers in common. For these people too see clearly, and very plainly, the Master of all steering the creation he made, leading and carrying everything in rhythm and order; they observe harmony and usefulness in the whole creation, and both shining out in each part of it; and yet they willingly blind themselves, or rather they see and are shameless, and receiving the gifts of Providence … through the very things they enjoy … to listen with good will, and that what we said yesterday about heaven, the sun, the moon, and the other lights might persuade them to come to their senses and praise their benefactor. And so that none of those who have set the moon as the boundary of Providence, and said that it reaches only that far, may … the due proportion of the arguments, come, my friend, let us bring you down again from there through the air to the earth, and little by little again, as … and shown to those willing to pay attention, and in a word to all that have received a created nature, both in general and individually. Walking along the road, then, let us examine the air … easily escaping and needing things to hold it together. For this reason the Maker of all things, having fashioned heaven and earth, poured it out between them, contriving through these two bodies an unbreakable wall for it, and making it a co-worker of life for the living bodies between them. For we human beings live by breathing it, and of the irrational animals, all that fly, creep, or live both on land and in water have it as a co-worker of life. When it moves, it gives us the breezes of the winds; when it thickens, it sends to the earth the watering from the clouds; light uses it as a vehicle and feasts the eyes of those who see; standing between the sun and the earth, it tempers the force of the rays, and, softening the sun's dryness and heat by its own moisture and coolness, it makes the enjoyment of light painless for us. But so that you may not think that the air is the cause of these good things, learn that the sun's heat in turn restrains the air's excess. For no one could bear the air's coldness unmixed, and the winter season is a witness: then the sun runs to the more southerly part of the sky, leaving the northern and middle parts, and gives the air freedom to follow its own nature. Therefore, no longer consumed in the same way by the sun's heat, but thickening and becoming dense, it sends down heavy rain, and, chilling it by the stronger blast of the winds, it freezes it into snow and hail, and freezing the dew … by the breeze, it produces hoarfrost by its coldness; and yet, though from far away, it is warmed by the sun
Notes and citation
Summary: Opening his second discourse, Theodoret likens the deniers of providence to a passenger who denies the helmsman he sees, and turns from heaven to the air, which God placed between heaven and earth to sustain life and temper the sun.
- "What we said yesterday": the orations were delivered on successive days.
- The OCR has lost many words in this part, together with long runs of debris from Migne's Latin column: after "the rush of the waves and the onset of the winds"; after "receiving the gifts of Providence" (where a clause such as "they make war on the giver" and the start of a sentence asking them to listen are missing); after "so that none … may"; after "little by little again, as"; after "let us examine the air"; and in "freezing the dew …". These are marked … and not supplied.
- "Set the moon as the boundary of Providence": the Peripatetic view mentioned in 1.2.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (OCR debris; OCR misreading and stray mark; OCR misreading of λίαν; OCR misreading of νηῒ; debris from Migne's Latin column inside the word καταβιβάσωμεν; debris from Migne's Latin column inside the word ἁπαξαπλῶς; debris from Migne's Latin column inside the word ἑκάστῳ; debris from Migne's Latin column inside the word ἰσχυριζόμενοι; debris from Migne's Latin column read as Greek; debris from Migne's Latin column read as Greek; some Greek words are lost with it; debris inside a hyphenated word; leaked footnote (variant reading) and debris): ἰσχυρ!:πῃ] (ἃ- ζόμενοι → ἰσχυριζόμενοι; ἐν ντ' καθήμενος → ἐν νηῒ καθήμενος; χα) οἰ τὰ πηδάλια → καὶ τὰ πηδάλια; ἰῃ δ᾽ ἰδίγιι πὶ → ; 5οα δυἃ Βροηία [δτγὶ, οἱ βού 86 Πιιοίαυπι ργΟΘ6}]Δ8 → ; καὶ )έαν προφανῶς → καὶ λίαν προφανῶς; καὶ οἱ όνογο νἱ- τάξει → καὶ τάξει; ἑκά-".Π), (πὶ στῳ → ἑκάστῳ; β'η συ} 5 μυι8 ματι δυ5 υἱτάαυθ ἢδὸ ουϊἀθηΐοῦ ἃρ- → ; ἀναισχυννἱ- τοῦσι → ἀναισχυντοῦσι; ἡλίου (ἐδ), → ἡλίου,; καὶ οἱ το- τῶν → καὶ τῶν; οἵ θθπθνο 5 δυάϊίΐο- → ; πάλιν, (η- ὦ → πάλιν, ὦ; χατα- ΘΓ, δκ 86 γι) η8. ποϑίγὶ Ὀτου αι θ]βρ θη ὀιάσωμεν → καταβιβάσωμεν; ἀπα- 165, Ῥτγονϊἀδηιδηι ἱῃ τ} 118 σασαθσ πα πὰ ϊ ρατγι}- ὃ ξαπλῶς → ἁπαξαπλῶς; ῬΩ καὶ ἰδίᾳ → καὶ ἰδίᾳ; [Δ6}}]ἴπ|ὸ ἀν ΒΟ ἢ 8 8115 ἰρσαπι ΘΟἢ 6 η τ 0115 πο ]8 → ; καί. ἰθ. κτ. 1014. κτίσιν ἰθύνοντα. → ; οἱ 1115 πὰ πὶ πη Γι πὶ Θοἀ {|0ἀγ} 1, Πα 6. δία οὐπ- Υἱ(" τ ρα οἱ Δ ρἢ 14, δος σοὺ οἱ πᾶοἱ ο}} → ; ἴδ ἀλη πδίυγαπι πη ἰἰραηβ, υἱ “ → ; λαῦρον (, → λάβρον,.
Cite (SBL): Theodoret, Prov. 2.1 (PG 83; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-de-providentia/2-1). (abbreviation not yet checked)
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-de-providentia/2-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude (Opus) from the Greek as printed in Migne PG 83 (archive.org OCR); no public-domain English exists, so each batch was re-read against the Greek.
2.2PG 83
δάλλει. Ἔστι δὲ καὶ ἐντεῦθεν ἀχριδῶς καταμαθεῖν τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν προμήθειαν. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ πολλὴ καὶ μεγάλη τῶν στοιχείων ἣ χρεία, καὶ πρὸς τῇ χρεέᾳ, πολὺ τὸ κάλλος, καὶ ἄῤδητος ἣ ὥρα, τὰ δοκοῦντα λυπηρὰ γίνεσθαι διὰ τούτων ὁ πάνσοφος ᾧκονόμησεν, ἵνα μὴ θεοὺς, ἀλλὰ Θεοῦ ποιήματα ταῦτα εἶναι πιστεύωμεν, ἰθυνόμενά τε καὶ χυδερνώμενα ἦ ἂν ἐκεῖνος ἰθύνῃ. Τούτου χάριν ὁ τῆς ζωῆς ἡ μῶν συνεργὸς οὗτο; θησαυρὸς, καὶ πενομένων καὶ ἐπὶ πλούτῳ βρενθυομένων, οἰκετῶν καὶ δεσποτῶν, ἰδιωτῶν καὶ βφσιλέων, ὃν οὐ μᾶλλον τοῦ πένητο; ἀναπνέουσιν οἱ τῇ ἁλουργίδι κοσμούμενοι, ἀλλὰ τῇ ἰσομοιρίᾳ κατὰ τὴν τούτου χρείαν ἅπασα. τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἡ φύσι; τετίμηται, οὐ μόνον ἡμᾶς εὐφραίνει ταῖς ἀναπνοαῖς, καὶ ταῖς αὔραις, καὶ τῇ τοῦ ὑετοῦ χορηγίᾳ, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀνιᾷ τῷ χρυμῷ, διδάσκων ἡμᾶ;, ὡς οὐκ ἀρκεῖ μόνος εἰς ζωογονίαν, καὶ τῶν ζώντων τὴν θεραπείαν. Οὕτως ὁ ἥλιος οὐ μόνον εὐφραίνει τῇ προσὀολῇ τῶν ἀκτίνων ἡμᾶς, καὶ τὴν διαφορὰν ἡμᾶς τῶν ὁρωμένων διδάσκει σωμάτων, ὄγκων τε καὶ χρωμάτων, ἁλλὰ καὶ ἀνιᾷ τῇ θερμοτέρα προσὀολῇ τῶν ἀκτίνων " κἂν μὴ τὸν ἀέρα κινήσας ὁ τοῦ παντὸς ἡνίοχος αὔρας ἡμῖν ψυχρὰς προσενέγκῃ, ὁ προσχυνηθεὶ; οὗτος ὑπὸ τῶν ἀνοήτων ἥλιος ἄρδην ἐμπίπρησιν ἅπαντα, καὶ τὸ ζἧν ἀφαιρεῖται τῶν προσκυνούντων. Οὐδὲν τοιγαροῦν τῶν στοιχείων αὐτὸ καθ᾽ ἑαυτὸ τῆς ξωῆς τυγχάνει παρεκτικὸν, οὔτε μὴν ἅπαντα κοινῇ κχεραννύμενα, δίχα τῆς τὰ πάντα χυδερνώσης δυνάμεως, ἀγαθοῦ τινος αἴτια γίνεται. Ἔστι γὰρ πάλιν ἰδεῖν, εἰς εὔχρατον μὲν τὸν ἀέρα γεγενημένον, ἐπὶ καιρὸν δὲ τὸν ὑετὸν παρασχεθέντα τῇ γῇ, ἀλύπως τὸν ἥλιον ταῖς ἀκτῖσι χρησάμενον, τὰς τῶν ἀνέμων αὔρας κινηθείσας ἐν τάξει, τοὺς γηπόνους ἐπιμελῶς τὴν γὴν γεωργήσαντας, συνήθως χαταθδαλόντας τὰ σπέρματα, καὶ οὔτε τὴν γῆν εὐγνωμόνως ἐχτίσασαν τοὺς καῤποὺς, οὔτε τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὴν φύσιν ἄνοσον νασαν. Ταῦτα δὲ ποιεῖ τῶν ὅλων ὁ πρύτανις, πείθων ἡμᾶς μὴ τῇ κτίσει θαῤῥεῖν, μνδ᾽ εἰς αὐτὴν ἀναφέρεῖν τῶν ἀγαθῶν τὴν αἰτίαν, ἀλλὰ τῷ ταύτης μιουργῷ πιστεύειν. ᾿Επειδὴ τοίνυν εἶδες, καὶ τὸν ἀέρα τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀπολαύοντα προμηθείας, καὶ δι᾽ ἐκεῖνον τοσαύταις ἐτῶν χιλιάσιν ἀρχέσαντα, καὶ μήτε ὑπὸ τῶν ἀναπνεόντων ζώων δαπανηθέντα, μὴτε ἐκτὸς τῶν συνεχόντων αὐτὸν σωμάτων ἐχρεύσαντα, δεῦρό σε πρὸς τὴν γῆν ἀγάγωμεν, τὴν κοινὴν τροφὸν, καὶ μητέρα, καὶ τάφον" ἐξ ἧς σου τὸ σῶμα τὸ πῆλινον, καὶ τὸ στόμα τὸ κατὰ τοῦ Πλάστου λαλοῦν μεγάλα, κατὰ τὴν τοῦ Δανιὴλ ὀπτασίαν.
dallei. Esti de kai enteuthen achridōs katamathein tou Theou tēn promētheian. Epeidē gar pollē kai megalē tōn stoicheiōn hē chreia, kai pros tę̄ chreeą, poly to kallos, kai ardētos hē hōra, ta dokounta lypēra ginesthai dia toutōn ho pansophos hǭkonomēsen, hina mē theous, alla Theou poiēmata tauta einai pisteuōmen, ithynomena te kai chydernōmena ē an ekeinos ithynę̄. Toutou charin ho tēs zōēs hē mōn synergos houto? thēsauros, kai penomenōn kai epi ploutǭ brenthyomenōn, oiketōn kai despotōn, idiōtōn kai bphsileōn, hon ou mallon tou penēto? anapneousin hoi tę̄ halourgidi kosmoumenoi, alla tę̄ isomoirią kata tēn toutou chreian hapasa. tōn anthrōpōn hē physi? tetimētai, ou monon hēmas euphrainei tais anapnoais, kai tais aurais, kai tę̄ tou hyetou chorēgią, alla kai anią tǭ chrymǭ, didaskōn hēma?, hōs ouk arkei monos eis zōogonian, kai tōn zōntōn tēn therapeian. Houtōs ho hēlios ou monon euphrainei tę̄ prosoolę̄ tōn aktinōn hēmas, kai tēn diaphoran hēmas tōn horōmenōn didaskei sōmatōn, onkōn te kai chrōmatōn, halla kai anią tę̄ thermotera prosoolę̄ tōn aktinōn " kan mē ton aera kinēsas ho tou pantos hēniochos auras hēmin psychras prosenenkę̄, ho proschynēthei? houtos hypo tōn anoētōn hēlios ardēn empiprēsin hapanta, kai to zēn aphaireitai tōn proskynountōn. Ouden toigaroun tōn stoicheiōn auto kath᾽ heauto tēs xōēs tynchanei parektikon, oute mēn hapanta koinę̄ kcherannymena, dicha tēs ta panta chydernōsēs dynameōs, agathou tinos aitia ginetai. Esti gar palin idein, eis euchraton men ton aera gegenēmenon, epi kairon de ton hyeton paraschethenta tę̄ gę̄, alypōs ton hēlion tais aktisi chrēsamenon, tas tōn anemōn auras kinētheisas en taxei, tous gēponous epimelōs tēn gēn geōrgēsantas, synēthōs chatathdalontas ta spermata, kai oute tēn gēn eugnōmonōs echtisasan tous karpous, oute tōn anthrōpōn tēn physin anoson nasan. Tauta de poiei tōn holōn ho prytanis, peithōn hēmas mē tę̄ ktisei tharrhein, mnd᾽ eis autēn anapherein tōn agathōn tēn aitian, alla tǭ tautēs miourgǭ pisteuein. ᾿Epeidē toinyn eides, kai ton aera tēs tou Theou apolauonta promētheias, kai di᾽ ekeinon tosautais etōn chiliasin archesanta, kai mēte hypo tōn anapneontōn zōōn dapanēthenta, mēte ektos tōn synechontōn auton sōmatōn echreusanta, deuro se pros tēn gēn agagōmen, tēn koinēn trophon, kai mētera, kai taphon" ex hēs sou to sōma to pēlinon, kai to stoma to kata tou Plastou laloun megala, kata tēn tou Daniēl optasian.
it sends forth. From this too one can learn God's forethought precisely. Since the use of the elements is great and manifold, and besides their use their beauty is great and their charm beyond words, the all-wise one arranged that what seems painful should come about through them, so that we might believe them to be not gods but works of God, directed and steered wherever he directs them. For this reason this co-worker of our life, this treasure of the poor and of those who swagger in wealth, of slaves and masters, of private men and kings, which those adorned in purple do not breathe more than the poor man, but in whose use the whole human race has been honored with an equal share, not only gladdens us with breathing, breezes, and the supply of rain, but also distresses us with frost, teaching us that it is not sufficient by itself to give life and to care for the living. So too the sun not only gladdens us by the touch of its rays and teaches us the difference between the bodies we see, in size and color, but also distresses us by the hotter touch of its rays; and if the charioteer of the universe did not move the air and bring us cool breezes, this sun, worshipped by the foolish, would burn everything up utterly and take life from its worshippers. None of the elements, then, is by itself a giver of life, nor do all of them blended together become causes of any good without the power that steers all things. For again one can see the air become well tempered, rain given to the earth in its season, the sun using its rays without harm, the breezes of the winds moving in order, the farmers working the earth carefully and sowing their seeds as usual; and yet the earth did not gratefully repay the fruits, nor did human nature remain free of disease. The ruler of all things does this to persuade us not to trust in creation, nor to refer the cause of good things to it, but to believe in its Creator. Since, then, you have seen that the air too enjoys God's forethought, and through him has sufficed for so many thousands of years, neither used up by the breathing animals nor flowing out beyond the bodies that hold it in, come, let us lead you to the earth, the common nurse, mother, and tomb, from which come your body of clay and your mouth that speaks great things against the Fashioner, as in Daniel's vision.
Dan 7:8 (allusion, high confidence) · Dan 7:20 (allusion, medium confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: The same air and sun that sustain life also cause hardship, teaching that no element gives life by itself and that the cause of good things is the Creator, who preserves the air through the ages.
- "The mouth that speaks great things": Dan 7:8, 20 (the little horn).
- "Nor did human nature remain free of disease": the verb is lost in the OCR (printed ἄνοσον νασαν); translated by sense.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (OCR misreading of τῇ; debris from Migne's Latin column and a leaked footnote read as Greek; debris from Migne's Latin column read as Greek): οἱ «ἢ ἁλουργίδι → οἱ τῇ ἁλουργίδι; ἢ τοῦτ. [Ρ]4. τούτου. οὶ Πρ οῖ, 8110 στα [ὁ- {{Ὑἰ{ 118, δὶ Οἱ δἰ οἱ (ἰ΄, δἰ πὶ 416 {Πα {τὶ οἱ 9018 γὰ- ἣμ.. τ. ὁρ. διδ. Ἑάϊι. Ῥαγὶ5. διδάσκει τῶν ἀϊι μοι ποο πο5 ἀοἰδοίδηϊ, δἰ νἱβὶ 1 ΠΠπὶ οογροτυπι Α → ; οἷηποὺ εϑὶ το Ά, οἱ 56- [ΐτο 8 -“ → .
Cite (SBL): Theodoret, Prov. 2.2 (PG 83; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-de-providentia/2-2). (abbreviation not yet checked)
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-de-providentia/2-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude (Opus) from the Greek as printed in Migne PG 83 (archive.org OCR); no public-domain English exists, so each batch was re-read against the Greek.
2.3PG 83
πρὸ τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων τὴν θέσιν, καὶ τῶν σχημάτων τὴν ποικιλίαν. Οὔτε γὰρ ὑπτία πᾶσα, οὔτε προσάντης, ἀλλ᾽ εἰς ὅρη, καὶ νάπας, καὶ πεδία διήρηται. ἽἼδοι δ᾽ ἄν. τις πεδίων ἐν μέσῳ μεγάλων λόφους εἰς ὕψος ἐγηγερμένους, καὶ μεταξὺ τῶν ὁρῶν, πρηνεῖς τινας τόπους καὶ λείους, ἐν κόλπων τινῶν θαλαττίων σχήματι. Καὶ τὰ ὄρη δὲ αὐτὰ πρὸς τὴν χρείαν τῶν ἀνθρώπων διεῖλεν ὁ Ποιητὴς, καὶ εἰς κρημνοὺς διαστήσας βαθεῖς, τοῖς χειμερίοις ὕδασι τὰς πορείας ἐμηχανήσατο, καὶ τοῖς ἀνθρώποις εὐπόρους ἐν ταῖς δυσχωρίαις τὰς ὁδοὺς ἐτεκτήνατο. Καὶ τὰ μὲν ὅρη παρέχει τῇ τῶν οἰκοδόμων τέχνῃ τὰς ὕλας, τὰ δὲ πεδία τοῖς τῶν πυρῶν τὴν ἀφθονίαν. Καὶ τὸ ποικίλον τῆς θέσεως οὐ τρέφει μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τέρπει τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὰς ὄψεις " φιλεῖ γὰρ τὰ μονοειδῇ ταχὺν ἐπάγειν τὸν κόρον. Εἰπέ μοι, τίς ὁ ταῦθ᾽ οὕτω διακοσμήσας : τίς ὁ τοῦαὐτὴν αὐτοῖς ἐναποθέμενος δύναμιν, ὥστε τοσούτους ἐνιαυτῶν κύκλους μὴ δαπανῖσαι τὸν θησαυρόν; τίς ὁ τὰ ὄντα διαρυλάττων ἀκίνητα : τίς ἐπείγει τῶν ποταμῶν τὰ ῥεύματα: τίς ὠθεῖ τῶν πηγῶν τὰς ὠδῖνας; Βλέπε ταύτας ὧδε μὲν, ἐν ταῖς; τῶν ὁρῶν κορυφαῖς ἀναθλυζούσα:, καὶ ἄνωθεν κάτω προχεούσας τὰ ῥεύματα" ἐκεῖ δὲ, οὐδ᾽ ἐν ταῖς δ] παρεχούσας τοῖς ἀνθρώποις τὰ νάματα. ἵνα γὰρ μὴ νομίσῃς αὐτόματον ἅττειν ἄνω τῶν ὑδάτων τὴν φύσιν, διδάσκει σς ὁ Ποιητὴς διὰ τῶν πραγμάτων, ὡς τῷ θείῳ λόγῳ πειθόμενον τὸ ὕδωρ, καὶ τὰς ἀκρωρείας ἀπόνως χαταλαμόάνον, οὐδὲ βιαζόμενον ὑπὸ τῆς σῆς τέχνης, εἰς τὴν τῶν πεδίων ἄνεισιν ἐπιφάγειᾶν " ἀλλ᾽ ὀρύττεις μὲν καὶ βαθύνεις τὰ φρέατα, ἀπολαύεις δὲ τῶν ὑδάτων κάτωθεν ἀνιμώμενος " ὁμόδουλος γὰρ, ἀλλ᾽ οὐ ποιητὴ: τῶν στοιχείων ὑπάρχεις. Τῷ δὲ Ποιητῇ ῥάδιον; οὐκ εἰς ἀκρώρειαν μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ εἰς ἀέρα μέσον ἀνασπᾶσαι τῶν ὑδάτων τὴν φύσιν, καὶ τὴν πικρὰν γλυχᾶναι, καὶ πῆξαι τὴν λελυμένην, καὶ λῦσαι τὴν δεδεμένην, καὶ τὴν συνεχῆ διακρῖναι, καὶ τὴν ῥοώδη στῆσαι, καὶ τὴν κάτω φέρεσθαι πεφυκυΐαν ἀνατρέχουσαν δεῖξαι, καὶ τὴν ψυχρὰν δίχα πυρὸς θερμῆναι. Καὶ ταῦτα ποιεῖ διὰ σὲ τὸν ἀχάριστον, ἵν᾽ ἔχης ἀπολαύειν καὶ θερμῶν ἀχειροποιήτων, ἵνα τὰ τοῦ σώματος; θεραπεύσῃς παθήματα. Καὶ ταῦτα δὲ πάλιν ποικίλα σοι προὔθηχεν καὶ εἰς ἐναντίας χρείας ἁρμόζοντα. Τὰ μὲν γὰρ χαυνοῖ τὰ τεταμένα τῶν νΞύρων" τὰ δὲ σφίγγει καὶ τονοῖ τὰ λελυμένα" καὶ τὰ μὲν φλέγματι πολεμεῖ. τὰ δὲ μελαίνῃ χολῇ " τὰ δὲ ἕλκη ξηραίνει. Τοσαύτην καὶ ἐν τοῖς θερμοῖς ὕδασι χρείαν ὁ κηδεμών σοι προτέθειχε" σὲ δὲ οὐδὲν πείθει μὴ βλασφημεῖν, ἀλλὰ μένεις ἀχαριστῶν, καὶ λοιδορούμενος, καὶ τὰ Μανικαίου νοσῶν, ὃς σιτίων καὶ ποτῶν ἀπολαύων, λοιδορεῖται τοῖς χορτοῖς τὸν ἄρτον διχῆ τέμνουσιν ἑπαρᾶται, αὐτὸς τέμνεῖν μὲν οὐκ ἀνεχόμενος, ἐσθίων δὲ τὸ τεμνόμενον.
pro tōn allōn hapantōn tēn thesin, kai tōn schēmatōn tēn poikilian. Oute gar hyptia pasa, oute prosantēs, all᾽ eis horē, kai napas, kai pedia diērētai. HiIdoi d᾽ an. tis pediōn en mesǭ megalōn lophous eis hypsos egēgermenous, kai metaxy tōn horōn, prēneis tinas topous kai leious, en kolpōn tinōn thalattiōn schēmati. Kai ta orē de auta pros tēn chreian tōn anthrōpōn dieilen ho Poiētēs, kai eis krēmnous diastēsas batheis, tois cheimeriois hydasi tas poreias emēchanēsato, kai tois anthrōpois euporous en tais dyschōriais tas hodous etektēnato. Kai ta men horē parechei tę̄ tōn oikodomōn technę̄ tas hylas, ta de pedia tois tōn pyrōn tēn aphthonian. Kai to poikilon tēs theseōs ou trephei monon, alla kai terpei tōn anthrōpōn tas opseis " philei gar ta monoeidę̄ tachyn epagein ton koron. Eipe moi, tis ho tauth᾽ houtō diakosmēsas : tis ho touautēn autois enapothemenos dynamin, hōste tosoutous eniautōn kyklous mē dapanisai ton thēsauron? tis ho ta onta diarylattōn akinēta : tis epeigei tōn potamōn ta rheumata: tis ōthei tōn pēgōn tas ōdinas? Blepe tautas hōde men, en tais? tōn horōn koryphais anathlyzousa:, kai anōthen katō procheousas ta rheumata" ekei de, oud᾽ en tais d] parechousas tois anthrōpois ta namata. hina gar mē nomisę̄s automaton hattein anō tōn hydatōn tēn physin, didaskei ss ho Poiētēs dia tōn pragmatōn, hōs tǭ theiǭ logǭ peithomenon to hydōr, kai tas akrōreias aponōs chatalamoanon, oude biazomenon hypo tēs sēs technēs, eis tēn tōn pediōn aneisin epiphageian " all᾽ orytteis men kai bathyneis ta phreata, apolaueis de tōn hydatōn katōthen animōmenos " homodoulos gar, all᾽ ou poiētē: tōn stoicheiōn hyparcheis. Tǭ de Poiētę̄ rhadion? ouk eis akrōreian monon, alla kai eis aera meson anaspasai tōn hydatōn tēn physin, kai tēn pikran glychanai, kai pēxai tēn lelymenēn, kai lysai tēn dedemenēn, kai tēn synechē diakrinai, kai tēn rhoōdē stēsai, kai tēn katō pheresthai pephykyïan anatrechousan deixai, kai tēn psychran dicha pyros thermēnai. Kai tauta poiei dia se ton achariston, hin᾽ echēs apolauein kai thermōn acheiropoiētōn, hina ta tou sōmatos? therapeusę̄s pathēmata. Kai tauta de palin poikila soi prouthēchen kai eis enantias chreias harmozonta. Ta men gar chaunoi ta tetamena tōn nXyrōn" ta de sphingei kai tonoi ta lelymena" kai ta men phlegmati polemei. ta de melainę̄ cholę̄ " ta de helkē xērainei. Tosautēn kai en tois thermois hydasi chreian ho kēdemōn soi protetheiche" se de ouden peithei mē blasphēmein, alla meneis acharistōn, kai loidoroumenos, kai ta Manikaiou nosōn, hos sitiōn kai potōn apolauōn, loidoreitai tois chortois ton arton dichē temnousin heparatai, autos temnein men ouk anechomenos, esthiōn de to temnomenon.
First of all, look at its position and the variety of its shapes. For it is not all flat, nor all steep, but is divided into mountains, glens, and plains. One may see in the middle of great plains hills raised to a height, and between the mountains some low and smooth places shaped like bays of the sea. And the Maker divided the mountains themselves for the use of human beings: separating them by deep ravines, he devised courses for the winter waters, and built for people easy roads through difficult country. The mountains supply the builders' craft with material, and the plains supply an abundance of wheat. And the variety of its position not only feeds but also delights people's eyes, for what is uniform tends to bring on satiety quickly. Tell me, who arranged these things so? Who … stored up such power in them that so many cycles of years have not used up the treasure? Who keeps what exists unmoved? Who drives the streams of the rivers? Who pushes forth the birth pangs of the springs? See them here gushing up on the summits of the mountains and pouring their streams down from above, and there, not even in … supplying people with their waters. For so that you may not think that the nature of water leaps upward of its own accord, the Maker teaches you through the facts themselves that water, obeying the divine word, reaches the mountain tops without effort, but when forced by your art it does not rise to the surface of the plains; you dig and deepen wells, and you enjoy the water by drawing it up from below. For you are a fellow slave of the elements, not their maker. But for the Maker it is easy to draw the nature of water up not only to the mountain top but also into mid-air, to sweeten what is bitter, to freeze what is loose, to loosen what is bound, to separate what is continuous, to stop what flows, to show what by nature moves downward running upward, and to warm what is cold without fire. And he does this for your sake, ungrateful as you are, so that you may enjoy hot springs not made by hands and treat the ailments of the body. These too he has set before you in variety, fitted for opposite uses. Some relax the tense sinews, others tighten and brace the slack ones; some fight phlegm, others black bile; others dry up sores. So much use has your guardian set before you even in hot waters; yet nothing persuades you not to blaspheme, but you go on being ungrateful, reviling, and sick with the disease of Mani, who, while enjoying food and drink, reviles … and curses those who cut the grain and divide the bread, refusing to cut it himself but eating what is cut.
Notes and citation
Summary: The shape of the earth, its mountains, springs, and hot waters, all serve human beings and show the Maker's power, yet the ungrateful still blaspheme like Mani, who curses those who cut the bread he eats.
- The OCR has lost words at the opening ("First of all, look at" is supplied by sense from the surviving πρὸ τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων … τὴν θέσιν), after "Who" in the question on stored power, and after "not even in"; marked … where nothing can be supplied.
- Mani: the Manichaean elect would not reap, grind, or break bread themselves, regarding it as harming the particles of light held in plants, but ate food prepared by their followers. The text of the sentence is damaged (printed λοιδορεῖται τοῖς χορτοῖς τὸν ἄρτον διχῆ τέμνουσιν ἑπαρᾶται) and is translated by sense; Theodoret's polemic is rendered as written.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (debris from Migne's Latin column read as Greek; stray marginal mark): αἰν 8 Οἱ 105 φυϊάσιῃ φ᾿, αι πὶ οοὺηί. αἱ ἴῃ ἢ → ; καὶ (ὃ8) ἄνωθεν → καὶ ἄνωθεν.
Topics: Heresy
Cite (SBL): Theodoret, Prov. 2.3 (PG 83; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-de-providentia/2-3). (abbreviation not yet checked)
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-de-providentia/2-3
BibTeX · RIS · CSL-JSON (whole work; this passage's key: sophiascriptura-theodoret-de-providentia-2-3) · Report an error
Translation: Translated by Claude (Opus) from the Greek as printed in Migne PG 83 (archive.org OCR); no public-domain English exists, so each batch was re-read against the Greek.
2.4PG 83
Οὕτω καὶ σὺ, μυρίων ὅσων ἀγαθῶν ἀπολαύων, ὧν ὁ Δημιουργός σοι προσφέρει χαθεχάστην ἡ μέραν διὰ τῆς κτίσεως, ἀχαριστεῖς τῷ προσφέροντι, καὶ λοιδηορῇ, Κκαὶ βλασφημεῖς, λέγων αὐτὸν μὴ προνοεῖν ὧν πεποίηκεν. Ὅρα δὲ πόσην ἀδικίαν αὐτοῦ χαταψηφίζῃ, τοιαῦτα συκοφαντῶν. Τί δήποτε γὰρ καὶ “πεποίηκε, τούτων ἐπιμελεῖσθαι μὴ θέλων; Τίνος δὲ χάριν οὐ κήδεται; ὡς δυνάμενος μὲν, οὐ βουλόμενος δέ; ἣ βούλεται μὲν, οὐ δύναται δέ; ᾿Λλλ᾽ ὅτι μὲν δύναται, μαρτυρεῖ τὰ γεγονότα. Πῶς γὰρ ἂν ἐποίησε τῶν ὁρωμένων τὰ μεγέθη, τὰ κάλλη, τὴν ἀρμονίαν, δύναμιν οὐκ ἔχων ἀρχοῦσαν τῇ γνώμῃ; Πῶς δ᾽ ἂν εἰς κοινωνίαν καὶ σχέσιν τὰ διεστῶτα συνήγαγεν, ὕδωρ καὶ πῦρ, ἡμέραν καὶ νύκτα, καὶ μίαν ἐκ πάντων ἁρμονίαν καὶ συμφωνίαν εἰργάσατο, ὁ προνοεῖν οὐ δυνάμενος; Μεῖζον γὰρ πολλῷ τῷ μέτρῳ, τὸ ἐκ μὴ ὄντων εἰς τὸ εἶναι παραγαγεῖν, τοῦ τῶν ὄντων προνοεῖν. ᾿Αλλ᾽ ὅτι μὲν δύναται, μάρτυς ἢ κτίσις " ὅτι δὲ καὶ βούλεται, πάλιν αὐτὴ μαρτυρεῖ. Οὐ γὰρ ἄλλου τινὸς ἀναγκάζοντος ἐπὶ τὴν δημιουργίαν ἐλήλυθεν, οὔτε μὴν ὡς δεόμενος τὴν κτίσιν παρήγαγεν " ἀλλὰ ἀγαθὸς ὧν, καὶ ἀγαθότητα ἔχων μέτρου παντὸς μείζονα, ἠθέλησε καὶ τοῖς μὴ οὖσι τὸ εἶναι δωρήσασθαι. Ὃ δὲ τοσαύτῃ περὶ τὰ μὴ ὄντα χρησάμενος ἀγαθότητι, πῶς ἂν γεγονότων ἀμελήσειεν; Οὔτε γὰρ ἔστιν εἰπεῖν, ὡς ἐφθόνησε γεγονόσιν " ἄφθονον γὰρ ἔχει τὴν φύσιν, καὶ πάθουπαντὸς ἐλευθέραν. Ἵνα δὲ ἐκ πολλοῦ τοῦ περιόντος χρόν τι αὑτοὺς προσερωτήσωμεν. Τί δήποτε γὰρ, εἴπατε, τῇ τὸ εἶναι παρ᾽ αὑτοῦ λαθούσῃ ἐφθόνησε κτίσει: Διὰ τὸ μέγεθος - ᾿Αλλ᾽ αὐτὸς ἄχτιατός ἐστι καὶ ἀόριστος, οὔτε ἀρχὴν ἐσχηκὼς, οὔτε τέλος δεξάμενος πώποτε, πάντα περιέχων, ὑπ᾽ οὐδενὸς δὲ περιγραφόμενος " ἐν τῇ χειρὶ γὰρ αὐτοῦ τὰ πέρατα τῆς γῆς, καὶ αὐτὸς ἐμέτρησε τῇ χειρὶ αὑτοῦ τὸ ὕδωρ, καὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν σπιθαμῇ, καὶ πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν δρακί, ᾿Αλλὰ διὰ τὸ χάλλο:; ᾿Αλλ᾽ ὑπ᾽ αὐτοῦ γεγένηται. Οὐδεὶς δὲ, οὐδὲ τῶν ἄγαν φθονερωτάτων ἀνθρώπων, οἰκίαν εὐπρεπῆ γαὶ λαμπρὰν δειμάμενος, ἐφθόνησε ταύτῃ πώποτε, ἀλλ᾽ ἐναδρύνεται, καὶ σεμνύνεται, καὶ οὗτός τε γάνγυται, καὶ τοῖς ἀγνοοῦσιν ὑποδείκνυσιν. Ὅσον δὲ τὸ τῆς κτίσεως κάλλος τοῦ νοεροῦ φωτὸς τοῦ πεποιηχόπος ἀφέστηκε, τίς ἂν μετρήσειε λόγος; Ὁρᾶτε τοιγαροῦν ποῦ τὰ τῆς ἀσεδείας κεχώρηκε. Τῶν γὰρ πονηροτάτων ἀνθρώπων, οὐ μόνον οὐ φθονούντων ταῖς ὑπ᾽ αὑτῶν οἰχοδομουμέναις οἰκίαις, ἀλλὰ καὶ τος πηγὴν, καὶ ὑπ᾽ οὐδενὸς πάθους θολοῦσθαι χυΐαν, φθόνῳ βάλλεσθαι λέγειν, ποίας ἀσεθείας ὑπερόολὴν καταλείπει; Εἰ τοίνυν καὶ δύναται κατἐχειν τοὺς τῆς κτίσεως οἴακας, καὶ βούλεται αὐτὴν πάντων ἀγαθῶν ἀπολαύειν, δῆλον ὅτι καὶ κήδεται, καὶ ἐφέστηκε, καὶ τῶν ἡνιῶν ἐπειλημμένος, τὴν γενητὴν ἅπασαν φύσιν ἡνιοχεῖ, καὶ οὐδὲν ἀτημέλητον καταλείπει.
Houtō kai sy, myriōn hosōn agathōn apolauōn, hōn ho Dēmiourgos soi prospherei chathechastēn hē meran dia tēs ktiseōs, acharisteis tǭ prospheronti, kai loidēorę̄, Kkai blasphēmeis, legōn auton mē pronoein hōn pepoiēken. Hora de posēn adikian autou chatapsēphizę̄, toiauta sykophantōn. Ti dēpote gar kai “pepoiēke, toutōn epimeleisthai mē thelōn? Tinos de charin ou kēdetai? hōs dynamenos men, ou boulomenos de? hē bouletai men, ou dynatai de? ᾿Lll᾽ hoti men dynatai, martyrei ta gegonota. Pōs gar an epoiēse tōn horōmenōn ta megethē, ta kallē, tēn armonian, dynamin ouk echōn archousan tę̄ gnōmę̄? Pōs d᾽ an eis koinōnian kai schesin ta diestōta synēgagen, hydōr kai pyr, hēmeran kai nykta, kai mian ek pantōn harmonian kai symphōnian eirgasato, ho pronoein ou dynamenos? Meizon gar pollǭ tǭ metrǭ, to ek mē ontōn eis to einai paragagein, tou tōn ontōn pronoein. ᾿All᾽ hoti men dynatai, martys ē ktisis " hoti de kai bouletai, palin autē martyrei. Ou gar allou tinos anankazontos epi tēn dēmiourgian elēlythen, oute mēn hōs deomenos tēn ktisin parēgagen " alla agathos hōn, kai agathotēta echōn metrou pantos meizona, ēthelēse kai tois mē ousi to einai dōrēsasthai. Ho de tosautę̄ peri ta mē onta chrēsamenos agathotēti, pōs an gegonotōn amelēseien? Oute gar estin eipein, hōs ephthonēse gegonosin " aphthonon gar echei tēn physin, kai pathoupantos eleutheran. Hina de ek pollou tou periontos chron ti hautous proserōtēsōmen. Ti dēpote gar, eipate, tę̄ to einai par᾽ hautou lathousę̄ ephthonēse ktisei: Dia to megethos - ᾿All᾽ autos achtiatos esti kai aoristos, oute archēn eschēkōs, oute telos dexamenos pōpote, panta periechōn, hyp᾽ oudenos de perigraphomenos " en tę̄ cheiri gar autou ta perata tēs gēs, kai autos emetrēse tę̄ cheiri hautou to hydōr, kai ton ouranon spithamę̄, kai pasan tēn gēn draki, ᾿Alla dia to challo:? ᾿All᾽ hyp᾽ autou gegenētai. Oudeis de, oude tōn agan phthonerōtatōn anthrōpōn, oikian euprepē gai lampran deimamenos, ephthonēse tautę̄ pōpote, all᾽ enadrynetai, kai semnynetai, kai houtos te gangytai, kai tois agnoousin hypodeiknysin. Hoson de to tēs ktiseōs kallos tou noerou phōtos tou pepoiēchopos aphestēke, tis an metrēseie logos? Horate toigaroun pou ta tēs asedeias kechōrēke. Tōn gar ponērotatōn anthrōpōn, ou monon ou phthonountōn tais hyp᾽ hautōn oichodomoumenais oikiais, alla kai tos pēgēn, kai hyp᾽ oudenos pathous tholousthai chyïan, phthonǭ ballesthai legein, poias asetheias hyperoolēn kataleipei? Ei toinyn kai dynatai katechein tous tēs ktiseōs oiakas, kai bouletai autēn pantōn agathōn apolauein, dēlon hoti kai kēdetai, kai ephestēke, kai tōn hēniōn epeilēmmenos, tēn genētēn hapasan physin hēniochei, kai ouden atēmelēton kataleipei.
So you too, enjoying countless good things which the Creator brings you every day through creation, are ungrateful to the giver, revile him, and blaspheme, saying that he does not care for what he has made. See how great an injustice you charge him with by such slander. Why did he make these things if he did not want to care for them? For what reason does he not care? Because he can but will not? Or because he wills but cannot? That he can, the things that have come to be bear witness. For how could he have made the greatness, the beauty, the harmony of the things we see, if he had no power equal to his purpose? How could he have brought things far apart into fellowship and relation, water and fire, day and night, and produced from them all one harmony and concord, if he were unable to exercise providence? For it is greater by far to bring into being from what is not than to provide for what is. That he can, creation is a witness; and that he also wills, creation again bears witness. For he did not come to the work of creation because someone else compelled him, nor did he bring forth creation because he needed it; but being good, and having a goodness greater than every measure, he willed to give being even to things that were not. And how could he who showed such goodness toward things that were not neglect things that have come to be? Nor can one say that he begrudged them once they had come to be; for his nature is free of envy and of every passion. But to give them more than enough, let us ask them a further question. Why, tell us, should he begrudge creation, which received its being from him? Because of its greatness? But he is uncreated and unbounded, having had no beginning and never receiving an end, containing all things and circumscribed by nothing; for "in his hand are the ends of the earth," and he "measured the water with his hand, and heaven with a span, and all the earth with a handful." Because of its beauty, then? But it came to be by him. No one, not even among the most envious of men, who has built a handsome and splendid house, has ever begrudged it; rather he delights in it, prides himself on it, rejoices in it, and shows it to those who do not know it. And what argument could measure how far the beauty of creation falls short of the intelligible light of its maker? See, then, where impiety has gone. When the wickedest of men not only do not begrudge the houses they have built but even … to say that God, the spring of goodness, who cannot be troubled by any passion, is struck by envy: what excess of impiety does that leave out? If, then, he can hold the tiller of creation, and wills that it enjoy all good things, it is plain that he also cares for it and presides over it, and holding the reins drives the whole created nature, leaving nothing uncared for.
Ps 95:4 (94:4 LXX) (quotation, high confidence) · Isa 40:12 (quotation, high confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: Theodoret argues that God both can and wills to care for creation, since he made it out of goodness, and that it is impious to say he envies what he made.
- "In his hand are the ends of the earth": Ps 95:4 (LXX 94:4). "He measured the water …": Isa 40:12.
- Words are lost in the OCR in "but even … to say that God, the spring of goodness" (the surviving text has only the end of a word, -τος, before πηγὴν); "God, the spring of goodness" is supplied by sense from the context.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (debris from Migne's Latin column and a column letter; debris from Migne's Latin column read as Greek; debris from Migne's Latin column read as Greek; some Greek words are lost with it; footnote marker): (θ4) → ; ]υλῃ ἴῃ δ ρογ Ρ 65, 86 ἴῃ πιράϊυτ 4046 ἤυ]ἀλη Εἰ 6 [λοὶ δ, ὧἱ εἴ πἰ τυ ἢ αἱ τοπὶ» οἱ [1105 αυὶ μηδ νοῦ} 5. ἢ ἰά [ἃ- Ἰιος πο Παθοὶ ἢ Κι εὐδὰ μεγ. [ἢ π γν. [υϊ4. γλώττῃ. τοάορὶὶ 4035 ἰηίον 56 ἀΐϊνδῦϑα δι ηϊ, ΠΘΙῚΡ6 δηυλπι οἱ ἃ → ; υἱ πη 400- Β ἃ θυ → ; δ (οπί θη), οὐ} 5 πἃεἱ → .
Cite (SBL): Theodoret, Prov. 2.4 (PG 83; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-de-providentia/2-4). (abbreviation not yet checked)
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-de-providentia/2-4
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Translation: Translated by Claude (Opus) from the Greek as printed in Migne PG 83 (archive.org OCR); no public-domain English exists, so each batch was re-read against the Greek.
2.5PG 83
Καὶ ὅτι ταῦθ᾽ οὕτως ἔχει, μετάθδηθι πάλιν ἐπὶ τὴν θάλατταν, καὶ βλέπε ταύτης τὰ χύτη, τὰ μεγέθη, τὴν εἰς πελάγη διαίρεσιν, τὰς ἀκτὰς, τοὺς ὅρμους, τὰς ἐν μέσῳ νήσους, τῶν ἰχθύων τὰ γένη, τὰ εἴδη, τὰ σχήματα, τὴν ποικιλίαν, τὴν πρὸς τὴν χέρσον φιλίαν, τὰ τῶν κυμάτων σχιοτήματα, τὲν ἐπικείμενον αὐτοῖς τῆς προνοίας χαλινὸν, δι᾽ ὄν τὴν ἥπειρον ἐπιχλύζειν οὐ δύναται, ἀλλ᾽ ὁρμῶντα κατὰ τῆς ψάμμου φοθδεῖται τοὺς ὄρους, καὶ τὸν θεῖον ἐχεῖΐ νόμον γεγραμμένον ὁρῶντα, οἷόν τις γαῦρος ἵππος καὶ εἰς τοὐπίσω χωρεῖ, ὥσπερ μεταμελάμενα ὅτι καὶ τῇ ψάμμῳ προσέψαυσε. Διὰ ταύτης ἔστιν ἰδεῖν τὰς μεμερισμένας ἠπείρους, καὶ πόῤῥωθεν ἀλλήλων ἐνθεῖναι τῇ φύσει τῶν ἀνθρώπων ὁ Ποιητὴς ἐθελήσας, ταῖς χρείαις αὐτοὺς ἀλλήλοις συνέδησε. Διὰ ταύτης τὰς μακρὰς ἀποδημίας ποιούμεθα, καὶ τὰς χρείας παρ᾽ ἀλλήλων ἐρανιζόμεθα, καὶ τῶν ἀναγκαίων τὰς ὕλας ἀντιδιδόαμεν. Οὔτε γὰρ εἴασεν ὁ κηδεμὼν ἔκαστον τμῆμα τῆς γῆς ἅπασαν τοῖς ἀνθρώποις φέρειν τὴν χρείαν, ἵνα μὴ τὸ ἀνενδεὲς τῇ φιλίᾳ λυμήνηται. Ὑδριστὴς γὰρ ὁ κόρος, κκαὶ ἀταξίας πατήρ. Πρόχειται τοιγαροῦν ἡ θάλασσα μέση τῆς οἰκουμένης, εἰς κόλπους μυρίους διῃρημένη, οἷόν τις πόλεως μεγίστης ἀγορὰ, πᾶσαν τῶν ἀναγκαίων τὴν ἀφθονίαν παρέχουσα, καὶ πολλοὺς πρατῆρας καὶ ὠνητὰς δεχομένη, καὶ τούς τε ἐντεὺθεν ἐκεῖσε παραπέμπουσα, καὶ τοὺς ἐκεῖθεν ἄγουσα τἧδε. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἐπίπονος ἡ διὰ τῆς ἢπείρου πορεία, οὐκ ἐπίπονον δὲ μόνον ἦν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀδύνατον, διὰ ταύτης πᾶσαν ἀναπληρῶσαι τὴν ἔνδειαν, πρόκειται τῆς θαλάττης τὰ νῶτα, σκάφη καὶ σμικρὰ καὶ μεγάλα δεχόμενα, καὶ φόρτον πολὺν καὶ ἀναγκαῖον τοῖς δεομένοις χομίζοντα. "Ἔστι γὰρ ἰδεῖν μιᾶς ὁλκάδος φορτία πολλὰς κτηνῶν χιλιάδας ἀχθοφορούσας. “ἵνα δὲ μὴ δυσχεραίνωσιν οἱ ταύτης ὁδῖται, οἷόν τινας σταθμοὺς χατέπηξε τὰς νήσους ὁ Ποιητὴς, ἐν αἷς χαταγόμενοι, καὶ διαναπαυόμενοι, καὶ τὰς χρείας ὠνούμενοι, πάλιν ἀπαίρουσιν ἔνθα ἂν τὴν ὁρμὴν ἔχωσιν. Αἰσχύνθητι τοιγαροῦν τῶν εὐεργεσιῶν τὸ πλῆθος, εἶπεν ἡ θάλασσα. Ἃρεἰόττει σοι γὰρ μᾶλλον, ἢ τῇ Σιδῶνι, τοῦ προφήτου τὰ ῥήματα. Ἡ μὲν γὰρ ἀγνοοῦσα τὸν Ποιητὴν, εἰς πολλοὺς τὸ Θεῖον διύρει θεοὺς, καὶ τὴν μίαν προσκύνησιν χατατέμνουσα, τοῖς μὴ οὖσι ταύτην προσέφερεν, οὐκ ἀρνουμένη τὴν Πρόνοιαν, ἀλλὰ τούτοις αὐτὴν προσάπτουσα. Οὐ γὰρ ἂν ἔθυσεν οἷς ἐνόμιζε θεοῖς, εἰ μὴ λίαν ἑαυτὴν ἔπειθεν, ὡς καὶ ὠφέλειαν πορίζουσι, καὶ βλάθην ἀποτρέπουσι. Σὺ δὲ τῆς πολυθέου πλάνης ἀπηλλαγμένος καὶ πάντα τὰ ὁρώμενα ὁμολογῶν εἶναι ποιήματα, καὶ τὸν τούτων Ποιητὴν προσκυνῶν, ἐχδάλλεις αὐτὸν ὧν ἐποίησε, καὶ πέῤῥω ποὺ χαθίζεις τῆς κτίσεως, καὶ τὸν τοσοῦτον κόσμον ἀχυδέρνητον εἶναι λέγεις, καὶ οἷόν τι σκάφος ἀνερμάτιστον ὡς ἔτυχε φέρεσθαι. Αἰσχύνθητι τοιγαροῦν τὰς διὰ θαλάττης εὐεργεσίας, τὰς ἐκ γῆς, τὰς ἐξ ἀέρος, τὰς ἐξ ἡλίου, οὐρανὸν τὸν ἐπικείμενον ὅροφον, Αἰδέσθητι τὸν δασμὸν, ὃν λαμδάνεις παρὰ τῆς κτίσεως " δασμοφορεῖ γάρ σοι τῶν εἰρημένων ἕκαστον, καὶ οἷόν τινα φόρον προσφέρει τὴν χρείαν "» ἥλιος μὲν φωτίζει, θερμαίνει, τοὺς ἐκ γῆς πεπαίνει καρπούς" σελήνη δᾳδουχεῖ σοι νύκτωρ" ἀστέρες, ἐπὶ γῆς μένοντί σοι τὸν νυκτερινὸν δηλοῦσι καιρὸν, καὶ τῶν ὡρῶν τὰς μεταδολὰς προσημαίνουσι, θα- “λαττίῳ δὲ γινομένῳ ποδηγοὶ γίνονται πρὸς τὴν ἤπειρον " ἀὴρ, ἀναπνεόμενος μὲν, τὴν ἔμφυτόν σου χαταψύχει θερμότητα - ὕων δὲ, τοὺς τῆς γεωργίας ἐκτρέφει καρπούς " χρυμὸν ἐργαζόμενος, παύει μὲν τὴν ἐπὶ τὰ ἄνω βλάστην, καὶ φντῶν, καὶ σπερμά-
Kai hoti tauth᾽ houtōs echei, metathdēthi palin epi tēn thalattan, kai blepe tautēs ta chytē, ta megethē, tēn eis pelagē diairesin, tas aktas, tous hormous, tas en mesǭ nēsous, tōn ichthyōn ta genē, ta eidē, ta schēmata, tēn poikilian, tēn pros tēn cherson philian, ta tōn kymatōn schiotēmata, ten epikeimenon autois tēs pronoias chalinon, di᾽ on tēn hēpeiron epichlyzein ou dynatai, all᾽ hormōnta kata tēs psammou phothdeitai tous orous, kai ton theion echeiï nomon gegrammenon horōnta, hoion tis gauros hippos kai eis toupisō chōrei, hōsper metamelamena hoti kai tę̄ psammǭ prosepsause. Dia tautēs estin idein tas memerismenas ēpeirous, kai porrhōthen allēlōn entheinai tę̄ physei tōn anthrōpōn ho Poiētēs ethelēsas, tais chreiais autous allēlois synedēse. Dia tautēs tas makras apodēmias poioumetha, kai tas chreias par᾽ allēlōn eranizometha, kai tōn anankaiōn tas hylas antididoamen. Oute gar eiasen ho kēdemōn ekaston tmēma tēs gēs hapasan tois anthrōpois pherein tēn chreian, hina mē to anendees tę̄ philią lymēnētai. Hydristēs gar ho koros, kkai ataxias patēr. Procheitai toigaroun hē thalassa mesē tēs oikoumenēs, eis kolpous myrious dię̄rēmenē, hoion tis poleōs megistēs agora, pasan tōn anankaiōn tēn aphthonian parechousa, kai pollous pratēras kai ōnētas dechomenē, kai tous te enteuthen ekeise parapempousa, kai tous ekeithen agousa tēde. Epeidē gar epiponos hē dia tēs ēpeirou poreia, ouk epiponon de monon ēn, alla kai adynaton, dia tautēs pasan anaplērōsai tēn endeian, prokeitai tēs thalattēs ta nōta, skaphē kai smikra kai megala dechomena, kai phorton polyn kai anankaion tois deomenois chomizonta. "Esti gar idein mias holkados phortia pollas ktēnōn chiliadas achthophorousas. “hina de mē dyscherainōsin hoi tautēs hoditai, hoion tinas stathmous chatepēxe tas nēsous ho Poiētēs, en hais chatagomenoi, kai dianapauomenoi, kai tas chreias ōnoumenoi, palin apairousin entha an tēn hormēn echōsin. Aischynthēti toigaroun tōn euergesiōn to plēthos, eipen hē thalassa. Hareiottei soi gar mallon, ē tę̄ Sidōni, tou prophētou ta rhēmata. Hē men gar agnoousa ton Poiētēn, eis pollous to Theion diyrei theous, kai tēn mian proskynēsin chatatemnousa, tois mē ousi tautēn prosepheren, ouk arnoumenē tēn Pronoian, alla toutois autēn prosaptousa. Ou gar an ethysen hois enomize theois, ei mē lian heautēn epeithen, hōs kai ōpheleian porizousi, kai blathēn apotrepousi. Sy de tēs polytheou planēs apēllagmenos kai panta ta horōmena homologōn einai poiēmata, kai ton toutōn Poiētēn proskynōn, echdalleis auton hōn epoiēse, kai perrhō pou chathizeis tēs ktiseōs, kai ton tosouton kosmon achydernēton einai legeis, kai hoion ti skaphos anermatiston hōs etyche pheresthai. Aischynthēti toigaroun tas dia thalattēs euergesias, tas ek gēs, tas ex aeros, tas ex hēliou, ouranon ton epikeimenon horophon, Aidesthēti ton dasmon, hon lamdaneis para tēs ktiseōs " dasmophorei gar soi tōn eirēmenōn hekaston, kai hoion tina phoron prospherei tēn chreian "» hēlios men phōtizei, thermainei, tous ek gēs pepainei karpous" selēnē dądouchei soi nyktōr" asteres, epi gēs menonti soi ton nykterinon dēlousi kairon, kai tōn hōrōn tas metadolas prosēmainousi, tha- “lattiǭ de ginomenǭ podēgoi ginontai pros tēn ēpeiron " aēr, anapneomenos men, tēn emphyton sou chatapsychei thermotēta - hyōn de, tous tēs geōrgias ektrephei karpous " chrymon ergazomenos, pauei men tēn epi ta anō blastēn, kai phntōn, kai sperma-
And to see that this is so, cross over again to the sea and look at its depths, its size, its division into open seas, its shores, its anchorages, the islands in its midst, the kinds of fish, their forms, their shapes, their variety, its friendship with the dry land, the breaking of the waves, and the bridle of providence laid on them, by which it cannot flood the mainland; but rushing against the sand it fears the boundary, and seeing the divine law written there, like a proud horse it draws back, as though regretting that it had even touched the sand. Through it one can see the continents divided and lying far from one another … the Maker, wishing to implant … in human nature, bound them to one another by their needs. Through it we make long journeys, gather what we need from one another, and exchange the materials of necessities. For the guardian did not allow each portion of the earth to bear everything people need, so that self-sufficiency might not harm friendship; for satiety is insolent and the father of disorder. So the sea lies in the middle of the inhabited world, divided into countless bays, like the market of a very great city, supplying an abundance of all necessities, receiving many sellers and buyers, sending those from here to there and bringing those from there to here. For since travel by land is laborious, and it would be not only laborious but impossible to supply every lack by that means, the back of the sea lies open, receiving ships small and great and carrying much necessary cargo to those in need. For one can see the cargo of a single merchant ship equal to the loads of many thousands of pack animals. And so that those who travel on it may not be distressed, the Maker fixed the islands like staging posts, where they put in, rest, buy what they need, and set off again wherever they are bound. Be ashamed, then, at the multitude of benefits, "said the sea." For the prophet's words suit you better than Sidon. For she, not knowing the Maker, divided the Divine into many gods, and cutting up the one worship, offered it to beings that do not exist; yet she did not deny Providence, but attached it to them. For she would not have sacrificed to those she thought gods unless she was fully persuaded that they provide benefit and avert harm. But you, freed from the error of many gods, confessing that all things seen are works made, and worshipping their Maker, drive him out of what he made, seat him somewhere far from creation, and say that so great a world is without a pilot and is carried along at random like an unballasted ship. Be ashamed, then, of the benefits from the sea, from the earth, from the air, from the sun, from heaven, the roof set over you. Respect the tribute you receive from creation; for each of the things mentioned pays you tribute and brings its use as a kind of tax: the sun gives light and warmth and ripens the fruits of the earth; the moon carries a torch for you at night; the stars show you the time of night when you stay on land and foretell the changes of the seasons, and when you go to sea they become your guides to land; the air, when breathed, cools your inborn heat, when it rains, it nourishes the crops of the farm, and when it produces frost, it stops the upward growth of plants and seeds,
Isa 23:4 (quotation, high confidence) · Jer 5:22 (allusion, medium confidence) · Job 38:11 (echo, low confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: The sea, bounded by God's law, joins the separated lands by trade, so that the deniers of providence, worse than idolatrous Sidon, should be ashamed before the tribute every part of creation pays them.
- "Be ashamed … said the sea": Isa 23:4 LXX ("Be ashamed, Sidon, said the sea"), applied to the denier of providence.
- The bounds of the sea: compare Jer 5:22 and Job 38:10-11 (not quoted).
- Words are lost in the OCR after "lying far from one another" (perhaps "for, wishing to implant friendship in human nature"); marked … and not supplied.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (OCR debris; OCR misreading; column letter and debris inside the word ἐθελήσας; debris from Migne's Latin column and a leaked footnote read as Greek; debris from Migne's Latin column read as Greek; debris inside the word ἕκαστον; stray word; the word σπερμάτων continues in the next part): δὺἀἰο οἦ115 5148 ᾿η58}148, ρἰ βοΐ πι ἰ(6 πὶ β μ βοὰ δἰ δὶ δί 6}. Δὰ ἔσο (δὴ τό. [9]4. τῷ. χὰ ὲ → ; ἀλλήλων ἢ]. ἐνθεῖναι → ἀλλήλων ἐνθεῖναι; ἐθελή- Α 564υ 6 5,Γ0 40 σας → ἐθελήσας; τῇ Σιδῶν!: → τῇ Σιδῶνι; γα βογίοπι Βα τη ΠΊ05 116 ΓΟΓυ τη Δ πη] δι Γαίου οὐ] τὶ ἀϊ- Ἔχ] 6 5, τὴ }οἱ δ 85 οἱ ἤθη πυπὶ Δνογ το ῖ. Τὰ δι!) 60 αἱ οἱ ἴλπ| τυ πὰϊ πο η8Π| συ κτίσεως → κτίσεως; ἔκα- ἢ πᾶνΐπη στον → ἕκαστον; σπερμάἀλλήλους. → σπερμά-.
Cite (SBL): Theodoret, Prov. 2.5 (PG 83; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-de-providentia/2-5). (abbreviation not yet checked)
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-de-providentia/2-5
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Translation: Translated by Claude (Opus) from the Greek as printed in Migne PG 83 (archive.org OCR); no public-domain English exists, so each batch was re-read against the Greek.
2.6PG 83
των, εἰς δὲ τὰς ῥίζας ἐκπέμπει τὴν αὐξητιχὴν δύναμιν, καὶ οἷόν τινι μάστιγι τῷ χρυμῷ, τὴν ἄνω φερομένην ἐπὶ τὰ κάτω διώκει., Διαφθείρει τῶν ἑρπετῶν τὰ σώματα, καὶ φυτοῖς καὶ σπέρμασι λυμαινόμενα " χορηγεῖ σοι τῶν τροφίμων ὀρνίθων τὰ γένη. Καὶ τί δεῖ λέγειν τοὺς ἀπὸ γῆς καρποὺς, τοὺς ἐκ πηγῶν, τοὺς ἐκ ποταμῶν, τοὺς ἐκ θαλάττης; Ἰούτων ἀπολαύων ἀμνημονεῖς τοῦ δοτῆρος; Καὶ τὴν κτίσιν τρυγῶν, κατὰ τοῦ Κτίστου λυττᾷς, καὶ δωρεῶν, ταύτας ἐν ταῖς χερσὶ περιφέρων, ἀλλ᾽ ὡδίγεις τὴν ἀντίῤῥησιν; Οἶδα γάρ σου τὰς ἀντιθέσεις, ἐγὼ δὲ οὔτε ταύτας τῷδε τῷ λόγῳ προσθήσω, οὔτε τάς λύσεις προσαρμόσω. “Ἕτερον δὲ λόγον συνεργὸν ἔχων, τὴν ὑπὸ σοῦ πολεμουμένην Β προμήθειαν ὑφῆναι διὰ τούτων βεδούλευμαι. Ἐνταῦθά σε τοίνυν καταλιπὼν, καὶ τῇ τῶν εἰρημένων ἐντρυφῆσαι θεωρίᾳ παρακαλέσας, καὶ πανταχόθεν ἑλκῦσαι τὴν ὠφέλειαν, τὸν τοῦ παντὸς Κυδερνήτην που ᾧ πρέπει δόξα εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.
tōn, eis de tas rhizas ekpempei tēn auxētichēn dynamin, kai hoion tini mastigi tǭ chrymǭ, tēn anō pheromenēn epi ta katō diōkei., Diaphtheirei tōn herpetōn ta sōmata, kai phytois kai spermasi lymainomena " chorēgei soi tōn trophimōn ornithōn ta genē. Kai ti dei legein tous apo gēs karpous, tous ek pēgōn, tous ek potamōn, tous ek thalattēs? Ioutōn apolauōn amnēmoneis tou dotēros? Kai tēn ktisin trygōn, kata tou Ktistou lyttąs, kai dōreōn, tautas en tais chersi peripherōn, all᾽ hōdigeis tēn antirrhēsin? Oida gar sou tas antitheseis, egō de oute tautas tǭde tǭ logǭ prosthēsō, oute tas lyseis prosarmosō. “Heteron de logon synergon echōn, tēn hypo sou polemoumenēn B promētheian hyphēnai dia toutōn bedouleumai. Entautha se toinyn katalipōn, kai tę̄ tōn eirēmenōn entryphēsai theōrią parakalesas, kai pantachothen helkysai tēn ōpheleian, ton tou pantos Kydernētēn pou hǭ prepei doxa eis tous aiōnas tōn aiōnōn. Amēn.
and sends the power of growth down into the roots, and with the frost as a whip it drives downward what was moving upward. It destroys the bodies of reptiles that damage plants and seeds; it supplies you with the kinds of birds good to eat. And why speak of the fruits of the earth, of springs, of rivers, of the sea? Enjoying these, do you forget the giver? Harvesting creation, do you rage against the Creator, and … gifts, carrying them in your hands, and yet labor to bring forth your contradiction? For I know your objections; but I will neither add them to this discourse nor fit the answers to them. I have decided to weave the defense of the forethought you attack through these points with the help of another discourse. Here, then, I leave you, urging you to delight in the contemplation of what has been said and to draw benefit from every side, … the pilot of the universe, to whom glory is fitting to the ages of ages. Amen.
Notes and citation
Summary: Frost, birds, and all the fruits of land and water serve human beings, so Theodoret ends his second discourse rebuking those who enjoy God's gifts and rage against the giver, deferring their objections to a later discourse.
- Words are lost in the OCR in the question "and … gifts, carrying them in your hands" and before "the pilot of the universe" (probably a verb such as "to praise"); marked … and not supplied.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (OCR damage to the closing doxology; debris from Migne's Latin column and a leaked footnote read as Greek; debris from Migne's Latin column inside the word δύναμιν): Θχ Πηδιΐ 806] ρ15 θα ποί οἷα : ἴυτὴ οἱ 118, 488 χ οἱ οἱ 6 Ἴ) οὐκ. ἰν14. οὐδ᾽. σοι. ἰοιῖραβ ἱπάϊοδηι, οἱ τοπιρογαπὶ υἱοἰββιυἀϊπαπι 5]- Α → ; δύοὕ, ἀρτὶδἰ πῆ} οἱ βοι 8 ἰῃ Δ] 10} πίη Οὐ οἰοΠ68 [088 : 868 ποο [1188 ναμιν → δύναμιν; αἱώ-. μήν. γὸτ]εἶπα → αἰώνων. Ἀμήν..
Cite (SBL): Theodoret, Prov. 2.6 (PG 83; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-de-providentia/2-6). (abbreviation not yet checked)
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-de-providentia/2-6
BibTeX · RIS · CSL-JSON (whole work; this passage's key: sophiascriptura-theodoret-de-providentia-2-6) · Report an error
Translation: Translated by Claude (Opus) from the Greek as printed in Migne PG 83 (archive.org OCR); no public-domain English exists, so each batch was re-read against the Greek.