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The Five Books Against Marcion

Tertullian

Book 2 · 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.—God Known by His Works. His Goodness Shown in His Creative Energy; But Everlasting in Its Nature; Inherent in God, Previous to All Exhibition of It. The First Stage of This Goodness Prior to Man.

It will therefore be right for us,

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

as

we

enter

on

the

examination

of

the

known

God

,

when

the

question

arises

,

in

what

condition

He

is

known

to

us

,

to

begin

with

His

works

,

which

are

prior

to

man

;

so

that

His

goodness

,

being

discovered

immediately

along

with

Himself

,

and

then

constituted

and

prescriptively

settled

,

may

suggest

to

us

some

sense

whereby

we

may

understand

how

the

subsequent

order

of

things

came

about

.

The

disciples

of

Marcion

,

moreover

,

may

possibly

be

able

,

while

recognising

the

goodness

of

our

God

,

to

learn

how

worthy

it

is

likewise

of

the

Divine

Being

,

on

those

very

grounds

whereby

we

have

proved

it

to

be

unworthy

in

the

case

of

their

god

.

Now

this

very

point

,

which

is

a

material

one

in

their

scheme

,

Marcion

did

not

find

in

any

other

god

,

but

eliminated

it

for

himself

out

of

his

own

god

.

The

first

goodness

,

then

,

was

that

of

the

Creator

,

whereby

God

was

unwilling

to

remain

hidden

for

ever

;

in

other

words

,

(

unwilling

)

that

there

should

not

be

a

something

by

which

God

should

become

known

.

For

what

,

indeed

,

is

so

good

as

the

knowledge

and

fruition

of

God

?

Now

,

although

it

did

not

transpires

that

this

was

good

,

because

as

yet

there

existed

nothing

to

which

it

could

transpire

,

yet

God

foreknew

what

good

would

eventually

transpire

,

and

therefore

He

set

Himself

about

developing

His

own

perfect

goodness

,

for

the

accomplishment

of

the

good

which

was

to

transpire

;

not

,

indeed

,

a

sudden

goodness

issuing

in

some

accidental

boon

or

in

some

excited

impulse

,

such

as

must

be

dated

simply

from

the

moment

when

it

began

to

operate

.

For

if

it

did

itself

produce

its

own

beginning

when

it

began

to

operate

,

it

had

not

,

in

fact

,

a

beginning

itself

when

it

acted

.

When

,

however

,

an

initial

act

had

been

once

done

by

it

,

the

scheme

of

temporal

seasons

began

,

for

distinguishing

and

noting

which

,

the

stars

and

luminaries

of

heaven

were

arranged

in

their

order

.

“

Let

them

be

,

”

says

God

,

“

for

seasons

,

and

for

days

,

and

years

.

”

then

,

to

this

temporal

course

,

(

the

goodness

)

which

created

time

had

not

time

;

nor

before

that

beginning

which

the

same

goodness

originated

,

had

it

a

beginning

.

Being

therefore

without

all

order

of

a

beginning

,

and

all

mode

of

time

,

it

will

be

reckoned

to

possess

an

age

,

measureless

in

extent

and

endless

in

duration

;

nor

will

it

be

possible

to

regard

it

as

a

sudden

or

adventitious

or

impulsive

emotion

,

because

it

has

nothing

to

occasion

such

an

estimate

of

itself

;

in

other

words

,

no

sort

of

temporal

sequence

.

It

must

therefore

be

accounted

an

eternal

attribute

,

inbred

in

God

,

and

everlasting

,

and

on

this

account

worthy

of

the

Divine

Being

,

putting

to

shame

for

ever

the

benevolence

of

Marcion’s

god

,

subsequent

as

he

is

to

(

I

will

not

say

)

all

beginnings

and

times

,

but

to

the

very

malignity

of

the

Creator

,

if

indeed

malignity

could

possibly

have

been

found

in

goodness

.

Notes

1
That is, “the goodness” of God.
2
Agnitionis, their Gnostic scheme.
3
Denique. This particle refers back to the argument previous to its interruption by the allusion to Marcion and his followers.
4
Fructus, the enjoyment of God’s works.
5
Apparebat. [Was not manifest.]
6
Commisit in.
7
Obventiciæ bonitatis.
8
Provocaticiæ animationis.
9
Gen. i. 14.
10
Immensa.
11
Interminabili.
12
Deo ingenita “Natural to,” or “inherent in.”
13
Perpetua. [Truly, a sublime Theodicy.]
14
Suffundens jam hinc.