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Against Praxeas

Tertullian

Chapter 11

About this work

A polemical Latin treatise opposing a modalist account of God and articulating distinctions among Father, Son, and Spirit while insisting on divine unity and the reality of Christ’s incarnation.

Author: Tertullian
Date: Early 3rd century
Origin: Carthage, North Africa
Genre: Theological Treatise

Chapter XI.—The Identity of the Father and the Son, as Praxeas Held It, Shown to Be Full of Perplexity and Absurdity. Many Scriptures Quoted in Proof of the Distinction of the Divine Persons of the Trinity.

It will be your duty, however, to

‹ Chapter 10 Chapter 12 ›

adduce

your

proofs

out

of

the

Scriptures

as

plainly

as

we

do

,

when

we

prove

that

He

made

His

Word

a

Son

to

Himself

.

For

if

He

calls

Him

Son

,

and

if

the

Son

is

none

other

than

He

who

has

proceeded

from

the

Father

Himself

,

and

if

the

Word

has

proceeded

from

the

Father

Himself

,

He

will

then

be

the

Son

,

and

not

Himself

from

whom

He

proceeded

.

For

the

Father

Himself

did

not

proceed

from

Himself

.

Now

,

you

who

say

that

the

Father

is

the

same

as

the

Son

,

do

really

make

the

same

Person

both

to

have

sent

forth

from

Himself

(

and

at

the

same

time

to

have

gone

out

from

Himself

as

)

that

Being

which

is

God

.

If

it

was

possible

for

Him

to

have

done

this

,

He

at

all

events

did

not

do

it

.

You

must

bring

forth

the

proof

which

I

require

of

you

—

one

like

my

own

;

that

is

,

(

you

must

prove

to

me

)

that

the

Scriptures

show

the

Son

and

the

Father

to

be

the

same

,

just

as

on

our

side

the

Father

and

the

Son

are

demonstrated

to

be

distinct

;

I

say

distinct

,

but

not

separate

:

for

as

on

my

part

I

produce

the

words

of

God

Himself

,

“

My

heart

hath

emitted

my

most

excellent

Word

,

”

so

you

in

like

manner

ought

to

adduce

in

opposition

to

me

some

text

where

God

has

said

,

“

My

heart

hath

emitted

Myself

as

my

own

most

excellent

Word

,

”

in

such

a

sense

that

He

is

Himself

both

the

Emitter

and

the

Emitted

,

both

He

who

sent

forth

and

He

who

was

sent

forth

,

since

He

is

both

the

Word

and

God

.

I

bid

you

also

observe

,

that

on

my

side

I

advance

the

passage

where

the

Father

said

to

the

Son

,

“

Thou

art

my

Son

,

this

day

have

I

begotten

Thee

.

”

If

you

want

me

to

believe

Him

to

be

both

the

Father

and

the

Son

,

show

me

some

other

passage

where

it

is

declared

,

“

The

Lord

said

unto

Himself

,

I

am

my

own

Son

,

to

-

day

have

I

begotten

myself

;

”

or

again

,

“

Before

the

morning

did

I

beget

myself

;

”

and

likewise

,

“

I

the

Lord

possessed

Myself

the

beginning

of

my

ways

for

my

own

works

;

before

all

the

hills

,

too

,

did

I

beget

myself

;

”

and

whatever

other

passages

are

to

the

same

effect

.

Why

,

moreover

,

could

God

the

Lord

of

all

things

,

have

hesitated

to

speak

thus

of

Himself

,

if

the

fact

had

been

so

?

Was

He

afraid

of

not

being

believed

,

if

He

had

in

so

many

words

declared

Himself

to

be

both

the

Father

and

the

Son

?

Of

one

thing

He

was

at

any

rate

afraid

—

of

lying

.

Of

Himself

,

too

,

and

of

His

own

truth

,

was

He

afraid

.

Believing

Him

,

therefore

,

to

be

the

true

God

,

I

am

sure

that

He

declared

nothing

to

exist

in

any

other

way

than

according

to

His

own

dispensation

and

arrangement

,

and

that

He

had

arranged

nothing

in

any

other

way

than

according

to

His

own

declaration

.

On

your

side

,

however

,

you

must

make

Him

out

to

be

a

liar

,

and

an

impostor

,

and

a

tamperer

with

His

word

,

if

,

when

He

was

Himself

a

Son

to

Himself

,

He

assigned

the

part

of

His

Son

to

be

played

by

another

,

when

all

the

Scriptures

attest

the

clear

existence

of

,

and

distinction

in

(

the

Persons

of

)

the

Trinity

,

and

indeed

furnish

us

with

our

Rule

of

faith

,

that

He

who

speaks

,

and

He

of

whom

He

speaks

,

and

to

whom

He

speaks

,

cannot

possibly

seem

to

be

One

and

the

Same

.

So

absurd

and

misleading

a

statement

would

be

unworthy

of

God

,

that

,

when

it

was

Himself

to

whom

He

was

speaking

,

He

speaks

rather

to

another

,

and

not

to

His

very

self

.

Hear

,

then

,

other

utterances

also

of

the

Father

concerning

the

Son

by

the

mouth

of

Isaiah

:

“

Behold

my

Son

,

whom

I

have

chosen

;

my

beloved

,

in

whom

I

am

well

pleased

:

I

will

put

my

Spirit

upon

Him

,

and

He

shall

bring

forth

judgment

to

the

Gentiles

.

”

Hear

also

what

He

says

to

the

Son

:

“

Is

it

a

great

thing

for

Thee

,

that

Thou

shouldest

be

called

my

Son

to

raise

up

the

tribes

of

Jacob

,

and

to

restore

the

dispersed

of

Israel

?

I

have

given

Thee

for

a

light

to

the

Gentiles

,

that

Thou

mayest

be

their

salvation

to

the

end

of

the

earth

.

”

Hear

now

also

the

Son’s

utterances

respecting

the

Father

:

“

The

Spirit

of

the

Lord

is

upon

me

,

because

He

hath

anointed

me

to

preach

the

gospel

unto

men

.

”

He

speaks

of

Himself

likewise

to

the

Father

in

the

Psalm

:

“

Forsake

me

not

until

I

have

declared

the

might

of

Thine

arm

to

all

the

generation

that

is

to

come

.

”

Also

to

the

same

purport

in

another

Psalm

:

“

O

Lord

,

how

are

they

increased

that

trouble

me

!

”

But

almost

all

the

Psalms

which

prophesy

of

the

person

of

Christ

,

represent

the

Son

as

conversing

with

the

Father

—

that

is

,

represent

Christ

(

as

speaking

)

to

God

.

Observe

also

the

Spirit

speaking

of

the

Father

and

the

Son

,

in

the

character

of

a

third

Person

:

“

The

Lord

said

unto

my

Lord

,

Sit

Thou

on

my

right

hand

,

until

I

make

Thine

enemies

Thy

footstool

.

”

Likewise

in

the

words

of

Isaiah

:

“

Thus

saith

the

Lord

to

the

Lord

mine

Anointed

.

”

Likewise

,

in

the

same

prophet

,

He

says

to

the

Father

respecting

the

Son

:

“

Lord

,

who

hath

believed

our

report

,

and

to

whom

is

the

arm

of

the

Lord

revealed

?

We

brought

a

report

concerning

Him

,

as

if

He

were

a

little

child

,

as

if

He

were

a

root

in

a

dry

ground

,

who

had

no

form

nor

comeliness

.

”

These

are

a

few

testimonies

out

of

many

;

for

we

do

not

pretend

to

bring

up

all

the

passages

of

Scripture

,

because

we

have

a

tolerably

large

accumulation

of

them

in

the

various

heads

of

our

subject

,

as

we

in

our

several

chapters

call

them

in

as

our

witnesses

in

the

fulness

of

their

dignity

and

authority

.

Still

,

in

these

few

quotations

the

distinction

of

Persons

in

the

Trinity

is

clearly

set

forth

.

For

there

is

the

Spirit

Himself

who

speaks

,

and

the

Father

to

whom

He

speaks

,

and

the

Son

of

whom

He

speaks

.

In

the

same

manner

,

the

other

passages

also

establish

each

one

of

several

Persons

in

His

special

character

—

addressed

as

they

in

some

cases

are

to

the

Father

or

to

the

Son

respecting

the

Son

,

in

other

cases

to

the

Son

or

to

the

Father

concerning

the

Father

,

and

again

in

other

instances

to

the

(

Holy

)

Spirit

.

Notes

1
Distincte, non divise.
2
For this version of Ps. xlv. 1, see our Anti-Marcion, p. 66, note 5, Edin.
3
Ecce.
4
Ps. ii. 7.
5
In allusion to Ps. cx. 3 (Sept.)
6
In allusion to Prov. viii. 22.
7
Isa. xlii. 1.
8
Isa. xlix. 6.
9
Isa. lxi. 1 and Luke iv. 18.
10
Ps. lxxi. 18.
11
Ps. iii. 1.
12
Sustinent.
13
Ex.
14
Ps. cx. 1.
15
Tertullian reads Κυρίῳ instead of Κύρῳ, “Cyrus.”
16
Isa. xlv. 1.
17
Isa. liii. 1, 2.
18
[See Elucidation III., and also cap. xxv. infra.]
19
[See De Baptismo, cap. v. p. 344, Ed. Oehler, and note how often our author cites an important text, by half quotation, leaving the residue to the reader’s memory, owing to the impetuosity of his genius and his style: “Monte decurrens velut amnis, imbres quem super notas aluere ripas fervet, etc.”]