Wednesday, December 06, 2023

Places Where Tertullian of Carthage Refers to God the Father As "Creator"

Adversus Praxean 3: "I prefer your exercising yourself on the meaning of the thing rather than on the sound of the word. Now you must understand the overthrow of a monarchy to be this, when another dominion, which has a framework and a state peculiar to itself (and is therefore a rival), is brought in over and above it: when, e.g., some other god is introduced in opposition to the Creator, as in the opinions of Marcion; or when many gods are introduced, according to your Valentinuses and your Prodicuses. Then it amounts to an overthrow of the Monarchy, since it involves the destruction of the Creator."

The context shows that he is referring to the Father.

Adv Prax 19: "But this very declaration of His they will hastily pervert into an argument of His singleness. I have, says He, stretched out the heaven alone. Undoubtedly alone as regards all other powers; and He thus gives a premonitory evidence against the conjectures of the heretics, who maintain that the world was constructed by various angels and powers, who also make the Creator Himself to have been either an angel or some subordinate agent sent to form external things, such as the constituent parts of the world, but who was at the same time ignorant of the divine purpose. If, now, it is in this sense that He stretches out the heavens alone, how is it that these heretics assume their position so perversely, as to render inadmissible the singleness of that Wisdom which says, When He prepared the heaven, I was present with Him? (Proverbs 8:27) — even though the apostle asks, Who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been His counsellor? (Romans 11:34) meaning, of course, to except that wisdom which was present with Him. (Proverbs 8:30) In Him, at any rate, and with Him, did (Wisdom) construct the universe, He not being ignorant of what she was making. Except Wisdom, however, is a phrase of the same sense exactly as except the Son, who is Christ, the Wisdom and Power of God, (1 Corinthians 1:24) according to the apostle, who only knows the mind of the Father. For who knows the things that be in God, except the Spirit which is in Him? (1 Corinthians 2:11) Not, observe, without Him. There was therefore One who caused God to be not alone, except alone from all other gods. But (if we are to follow the heretics), the Gospel itself will have to be rejected, because it tells us that all things were made by God through the Word, without whom nothing was made. (John 1:3) And if I am not mistaken, there is also another passage in which it is written: By the Word of the Lord were the heavens made, and all the hosts of them by His Spirit. Now this Word, the Power of God and the Wisdom of God, must be the very Son of God. So that, if (He did) all things by the Son, He must have stretched out the heavens by the Son, and so not have stretched them out alone, except in the sense in which He is alone (and apart) from all other gods."

Adv Herm 22: "He confirms (by that silence our assertion) that they were produced out of nothing. In the beginning, then, God made the heaven and the earth. (Genesis 1:1) I revere the fullness of His Scripture, in which He manifests to me both the Creator and the creation. In the gospel, moreover, I discover a Minister and Witness of the Creator, even His Word. (John 1:3) But whether all things were made out of any underlying Matter, I have as yet failed anywhere to find. Where such a statement is written, Hermogenes' shop must tell us. If it is nowhere written, then let it fear the woe which impends on all who add to or take away from the written word. (Revelation 22:18-19)"

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

"He must have stretched out the heavens by the Son, and so not have stretched them out alone, except in the sense in which He is alone (and apart) from all other gods."" - this sounds familiar where have I read something like this this before?

Deuteronomy 32:12

Gills exposition says:
though this is not to be understood to the exclusion of the ministry of Moses and Aaron, by whom he led them, Psalm 77:20; it may be interpreted of the people being alone in the wilderness when led

though I partially disagree with the last sentence, Gill gets the correct sense.. How could it be interpreted of the people? YHWH is apositional to the word for alone..

Edgar Foster said...

From Ibn Ezra:

"Adonai badad (the Lord alone) means only the Lord. Its meaning is similar to At the commandment of the Lord they encamped, and at the commandment of the Lord they journeyed (Num. 9:23). God had no associate. It is possible that the word badad (alone) refers to Israel. Compare, Lo, it is a people that shall dwell alone (Num. 23:9)."

Footnote: "In this case we should render our clause: the Lord did lead them (Israel) alone; that is, He never led any other people."

Roman said...

One of my favorite quotes from Tertullian (not really, but it's funny):

"Show me your authority. If you are a prophet, foretell us a thing; if you are an apostle, open your message in public; if a follower of apostles, side with apostles in thought; if you are only a (private) Christian, believe what has been handed down to us: if, however, you are nothing of all this, then (as I have the best reason to say) cease to live." On the Flesh, 2

He certainly had flair.

Anonymous said...

I find them all highly amusing in certain cases... they were all philosophers, starke contrast to Jesus and the apostles

Edgar Foster said...

Roman, I think you also know that many of the early fathers (pre and post Nicene) were rhetoricians. Tertullian, Lactantius, and Arnobius were all teachers of rhetoric and they displayed their skills when writing. Moreover, Tertullian was called the "burning man," apparently because of his fiery disposition. I think one historian also said it was impossible for Tertullian to be boring.

Anonymous said...

Makes sense... that's possibly why their writing is more "exciting" (for lack of a better word)

Anonymous said...

nvm - I figured it out (I think)the English translation's punctuation threw me off