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Contre Hermogène
XVII.
L'essence du Dieu unique exige impérieusement cette condition: il n'est unique que parce qu'il est seul; il n'est seul qu'autant que rien n'existe avec lui; il sera donc le premier, parce que tout est après lui; tout est après lui, parce que tout provient de lui; tout provient de lui, parce que tout sort du néant; de sorte que cette Ecriture a pu dire avec raison: « Qui a pénétré les desseins du Seigneur? qui est entré dans son conseil? qui a-t-il consulté? qui lui a enseigné les voies de l'intelligence et de la sagesse? qui lui a donné pour qu'il lui soit rendu? » Personne apparemment, parce qu'il n'y avait pour le seconder aucune force, aucune matière, aucune nature de substance quelle qu'elle fût. Or, s'il a opéré sur la Matière préexistante, il faut nécessairement qu'il en ait reçu et la pensée et le plan de ses dispositions comme une voie d'intelligence et de sagesse. Car il a dû pour opérer consulter la qualité de la chose et la nature de la matière, bien plus que sa volonté: tant, il est vrai qu'il a créé les maux suivant les dispositions de la Matière, mais que sa propre nature n'y a été pour rien.
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Against Hermogenes
Chapter XVII.--The Truth of God's Work in Creation. You Cannot Depart in the Least from It, Without Landing Yourself in an Absurdity.
This rule is required by the nature of the One-only God, 1 who is One-only in no other way than as the sole God; and in no other way sole, than as having nothing else (co-existent) with Him. So also He will be first, because all things are after Him; and all things are after Him, because all things are by Him; and all things are by Him, because they are of nothing: so that reason coincides with the Scripture, which says: "Who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been His counsellor? or with whom took He counsel? or who hath shown to Him the way of wisdom and knowledge? Who hath first given to Him, and it shall be recompensed to him again?" 2 Surely none! Because there was present with Him no power, no material, no nature which belonged to any other than Himself. But if it was with some (portion of Matter) 3 that He effected His creation, He must have received from that (Matter) itself both the design and the treatment of its order as being "the way of wisdom and knowledge." For He had to operate conformably with the quality of the thing, and according to the nature of Matter, not according to His own will in consequence of which He must have made 4 even evil things suitably to the nature not of Himself, but of Matter.