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The Five Books Against Marcion

Tertullian

Book 1 · Chapter 3

About this work

A sustained refutation of Marcion’s theology and edited Scriptures, defending the unity of the Creator and Christ’s Father and reading the Gospel and Pauline letters against Marcionite claims.

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

Chapter III.—The Unity of God. He is the Supreme Being, and There Cannot Be a Second Supreme.

The principal, and indeed the whole, contention

‹ Book 1 · Chapter 2 Book 1 · Chapter 4 ›

lies

in

the

point

of

number

:

whether

two

Gods

may

be

admitted

,

by

poetic

licence

(

if

they

must

be

)

,

or

pictorial

fancy

,

or

by

the

third

process

,

as

we

must

now

add

,

of

heretical

pravity

.

But

the

Christian

verity

has

distinctly

declared

this

principle

,

“

God

is

not

,

if

He

is

not

one

;

”

because

we

more

properly

believe

that

has

no

existence

which

is

not

as

it

ought

to

be

.

In

order

,

however

,

that

you

may

know

that

God

is

one

,

ask

what

God

is

,

and

you

will

find

Him

to

be

not

otherwise

than

one

.

So

far

as

a

human

being

can

form

a

definition

of

God

,

I

adduce

one

which

the

conscience

of

all

men

will

also

acknowledge

,

—

that

God

is

the

great

Supreme

existing

in

eternity

,

unbegotten

,

unmade

without

beginning

,

without

end

.

For

such

a

condition

as

this

must

needs

be

ascribed

to

that

eternity

which

makes

God

to

be

the

great

Supreme

,

because

for

such

a

purpose

as

this

is

this

very

attribute

in

God

;

and

so

on

as

to

the

other

qualities

:

so

that

God

is

the

great

Supreme

in

form

and

in

reason

,

and

in

might

and

in

power

.

Now

,

since

all

are

agreed

on

this

point

(

because

nobody

will

deny

that

God

is

in

some

sense

the

great

Supreme

,

except

the

man

who

shall

be

able

to

pronounce

the

opposite

opinion

,

that

God

is

but

some

inferior

being

,

in

order

that

he

may

deny

God

by

robbing

Him

of

an

attribute

of

God

)

,

what

must

be

the

condition

of

the

great

Supreme

Himself

?

Surely

it

must

be

that

nothing

is

equal

to

Him

,

i

.

e

.

that

there

is

no

other

great

supreme

;

because

,

if

there

were

,

He

would

have

an

equal

;

and

if

He

had

an

equal

,

He

would

be

no

longer

the

great

Supreme

,

now

that

the

condition

and

(

so

to

say

)

our

law

,

which

permits

nothing

to

be

equal

to

the

great

Supreme

,

is

subverted

.

That

Being

,

then

,

which

is

the

great

Supreme

,

must

needs

be

unique

,

by

having

no

equal

,

and

so

not

ceasing

to

be

the

great

Supreme

.

Therefore

He

will

not

otherwise

exist

than

by

the

condition

whereby

He

has

His

being

;

that

is

,

by

His

absolute

uniqueness

.

Since

,

then

,

God

is

the

great

Supreme

,

our

Christian

verity

has

rightly

declared

,

“

God

is

not

,

if

He

is

not

one

.

”

Not

as

if

we

doubted

His

being

God

,

by

saying

,

He

is

not

,

if

He

is

not

one

;

but

because

we

define

Him

,

in

whose

being

we

thoroughly

believe

,

to

be

that

without

which

He

is

not

God

;

that

is

to

say

,

the

great

Supreme

.

But

then

the

great

Supreme

must

needs

be

unique

.

This

Unique

Being

,

therefore

,

will

be

God

—

not

otherwise

God

than

as

the

great

Supreme

;

and

not

otherwise

the

great

Supreme

than

as

having

no

equal

;

and

not

otherwise

having

no

equal

than

as

being

Unique

.

Whatever

other

god

,

then

,

you

may

introduce

,

you

will

at

least

be

unable

to

maintain

his

divinity

under

any

other

guise

,

than

by

ascribing

to

him

too

the

property

of

Godhead

—

both

eternity

and

supremacy

over

all

.

How

,

therefore

,

can

two

great

Supremes

co

-

exist

,

when

this

is

the

attribute

of

the

Supreme

Being

,

to

have

no

equal

,

—

an

attribute

which

belongs

to

One

alone

,

and

can

by

no

means

exist

in

two

?

Notes

1
Et exinde.
2
Si Forte.
3
Jam.
4
Of eternity.
5
We subjoin the original of this difficult passage: Hunc enim statum æternitati censendum, quæ summum magnum deum efficiat, dum hoc est in deo ipsa, atque ita et cetera, ut sit deus summum magnum et forma et ratione et vi et potestate.
6
Quid.
7
Unicus. [Alone of his kind.]
8
As its first principle.
9
Porro.
10
Forma.