Chapter
XLIV.—Respecting the Generation of the Twenty-Four
Letters.
And so far for these points. Respecting,
however, the generation of the twenty-four elements, he expresses
himself thus: that Henotes coexists with Monotes, and that from
these issue two projections, viz., Monas and Hen, and that these being
added together
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become four, for
twice two are four. And again, the two and four (projections)
being added together, manifested the number six; and these six made
fourfold, produce the twenty-four forms.
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And these are the names of the first
tetrad, and they are understood as Holy of Holies, and cannot be
expressed and they are recognised by the Son alone. These the
Father knows which they are. Those names which with Him are
pronounced in silence and with faith, are Arrhetus and Sige, Pater and
Aletheia. And of this tetrad the entire number is (that) of
twenty-four letters. For Arrhetus has seven elements, Sige five,
and Pater five, and Aletheia seven.
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And in like manner also (is it
with) the second tetrad; (for) Logos and Zoe, Anthropos and Ecclesia,
exhibited the same number of elements. And (he says) that the
expressed name—(that is, Jesus)
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—of the Saviour consists of six
letters, but that His ineffable
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name, according to the number of the letters, one by one,
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consists of twenty-four elements, but
Christ a Son of twelve. And (he says) that the ineffable (name)
in Christ consists of thirty
letters, and this exists, according to
the letters which are in Him, the elements being counted one by
one. For the (name) Christ
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consists of eight elements; for
Chi
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consists of
three, and R[ho] of two, and EI of two, and I[ota], of four, S[igma] of
five, and T[au] of three, and OU of two, and San of three. Thus
the ineffable name in Christ consists, they allege, of thirty
letters. And they assert that for this reason He utters the
words, “I am Alpha and Omega,” displaying the dove, which
(symbolically) has this number, which is eight hundred and
one.
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Literally, “being twice two:” some for
οὖσαι
read
οὐσίαι
.
Irenæus has
ἐπὶ δύο
οὖσαι
, i.e., “which being
(added) into two.”
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Hippolytus has only the word “twenty-four,” to which
Schneidewin supplies “letters,” and Irenæus
“forms,” as given above. Hippolytus likewise omits
the word “produced,” which Irenæus supplies. The
text of the latter is
τὰς
εἰκοσιτέσσαρας
ἀπεκύσαν
μορφάς
.
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Irenæus adds, “which being added together, I mean the twice
five and twice seven, complete the number of the twenty-four
(forms).”
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The
parenthetical words had fallen into a wrong part of the sentence, and
are placed here by Schneidewin.
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This
is a correction for “expressed” from Irenæus.
Marcus observes the distinction afterwards.
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κατὰ ἓν
γραμμάτων
.
The
ms.
. has
ἐγγραμάτων
.
Irenæus omits these words.
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This
entire sentence is wanting in Irenæus.
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Corrected from Chri, which is in the
ms.
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Irenæus has the passage thus: “And for this
reason He says that He is Alpha and Omega, that He may manifest the
dove, inasmuch as this bird (symbolically) involves this number
(801).” See a previous note in chap. xlii. p. 95,
supra
.