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Against Hermogenes

Tertullian

Chapter 34

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Author: Tertullian

Chapter XXXIV.—A Presumption that All Things Were Created by God Out of Nothing Afforded by the Ultimate Reduction of All Things to Nothing. Scriptures Proving This Reduction Vindicated from Hermogenes’ Charge of Being Merely Figurative.

Besides, the belief that everything was made from nothing will

‹ Chapter 33 Chapter 35 ›

be

impressed

upon

us

by

that

ultimate

dispensation

of

God

which

will

bring

back

all

things

to

nothing

.

For

“

the

very

heaven

shall

be

rolled

together

as

a

scroll

;

”

nay

,

it

shall

come

to

nothing

along

with

the

earth

itself

,

with

which

it

was

made

in

the

beginning

.

“

Heaven

and

earth

shall

pass

away

,

”

says

He

.

“

The

first

heaven

and

the

first

earth

passed

away

,

”

“

and

there

was

found

no

place

for

them

,

”

because

,

of

course

,

that

which

comes

to

an

end

loses

locality

.

In

like

manner

David

says

,

“

The

heavens

,

the

works

of

Thine

hands

,

shall

themselves

perish

.

For

even

as

a

vesture

shall

He

change

them

,

and

they

shall

be

changed

.

”

Now

to

be

changed

is

to

fall

from

that

primitive

state

which

they

lose

whilst

undergoing

the

change

.

“

And

the

stars

too

shall

fall

from

heaven

,

even

as

a

fig

-

tree

casteth

her

green

figs

when

she

is

shaken

of

a

mighty

wind

.

”

“

The

mountains

shall

melt

like

wax

at

the

presence

of

the

Lord

;

”

that

is

,

“

when

He

riseth

to

shake

terribly

the

earth

.

”

“

But

I

will

dry

up

the

pools

;

”

and

“

they

shall

seek

water

,

and

they

shall

find

none

.

”

Even

“

the

sea

shall

be

no

more

.

”

Now

if

any

person

should

go

so

far

as

to

suppose

that

all

these

passages

ought

to

be

spiritually

interpreted

,

he

will

yet

be

unable

to

deprive

them

of

the

true

accomplishment

of

those

issues

which

must

come

to

pass

just

as

they

have

been

written

.

For

all

figures

of

speech

necessarily

arise

out

of

real

things

,

not

out

of

chimerical

ones

;

because

nothing

is

capable

of

imparting

anything

of

its

own

for

a

similitude

,

except

it

actually

be

that

very

thing

which

it

imparts

in

the

similitude

.

I

return

therefore

to

the

principle

which

defines

that

all

things

which

have

come

from

nothing

shall

return

at

last

to

nothing

.

For

God

would

not

have

made

any

perishable

thing

out

of

what

was

eternal

,

that

is

to

say

,

out

of

Matter

;

neither

out

of

greater

things

would

He

have

created

inferior

ones

,

to

whose

character

it

would

be

more

agreeable

to

produce

greater

things

out

of

inferior

ones

,

—

in

other

words

,

what

is

eternal

out

of

what

is

perishable

.

This

is

the

promise

He

makes

even

to

our

flesh

,

and

it

has

been

His

will

to

deposit

within

us

this

pledge

of

His

own

virtue

and

power

,

in

order

that

we

may

believe

that

He

has

actually

awakened

the

universe

out

of

nothing

,

as

if

it

had

been

steeped

in

death

,

in

the

sense

,

of

course

,

of

its

-

existence

for

the

purpose

of

its

coming

into

existence

.

Notes

1
Ceterum.
2
Isa. xxxiv. 4; Matt. xxiv. 29; 2 Pet. iii. 10; Rev. vi. 14.
3
Matt. xxiv. 35.
4
Rev. xxi. 1.
5
Rev. xx. 11.
6
Ps. cii. 25, 26.
7
Acerba sua “grossos suos” (Rigalt.). So our marginal reading.
8
Rev. vi. 13.
9
Ps. xcvii. 5.
10
Isa. ii. 19.
11
Isa. xlii. 15.
12
Isa. xli. 17.
13
Etiam mare hactenus, Rev. xxi. 1.
14
Causam.
15
Etiam.
16
Emortuam.
17
In hoc, ut esset. Contrasted with the “non erat” of the previous sentence, this must be the meaning, as if it were “ut fieret.”