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24. And all these things which the Word made flesh did and bare for
us in time and place, belong, according to the distinction which we
have undertaken to demonstrate, to knowledge, not to wisdom. And as
the Word is without time and without place, it is co-eternal with the
Father, and in its wholeness everywhere; and if any one can, and as
much as he can, speak truly concerning this Word, then his discourse
will pertain to wisdom. And hence the Word made flesh, which is
Christ Jesus, has the treasures both of wisdom and of knowledge.
For the apostle, writing to the Colossians, says: "For I would
that ye knew what great conflict I have for you, and for them at
Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh; that
their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto
all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the
acknowledgment of the mystery of God which is Christ Jesus: in whom
are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." To what extent
the apostle knew all those treasures, how much of them he had
penetrated, and in them to how great things he had reached, who can
know? Yet, for my part, according to that which is written, "But
the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit
withal; for to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom, to
another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;" if these two are
in such way to be distinguished from each other, that wisdom is to be
assigned to divine things, knowledge to human, I acknowledge both in
Christ, and so with me do all His faithful ones. And when I read,
"The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us," I understand by
the Word the true Son of God, I acknowledge in the flesh the true
Son of man, and both together joined into one Person of God and
man, by an ineffable copiousness of grace. And on account of this,
the apostle goes on to say, "And we beheld His glory, the glory as
of the Only-begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth." If
we refer grace to knowledge, and truth to wisdom, I think we shall
not swerve from that distinction between these two things which we have
commended. For in those things that have their origin in time, this
is the highest grace, that man is joined with God in unity of person;
but in things eternal the highest truth is rightly attributed to the
Word of God. But that the same is Himself the Only-begotten of
the Father, full of grace and truth, this took place, in order that
He Himself in things done for us in time should be the same for whom
we are cleansed by the same faith, that we may contemplate Him
steadfastly in things eternal. And those distinguished philosophers of
the heathen who have been able to understand and discern the invisible
things of God by those things which are made, have yet, as is said of
them, "held down the truth in iniquity;" because they philosophized
without a Mediator, that is, without the man Christ, whom they
neither believed to be about to come at the word of the prophets, nor
to have come at that of the apostles. For, placed as they were in
these lowest things, they could not but seek some media through which
they might attain to those lofty things which they had understood; and
so they fell upon deceitful spirits, through whom it came to pass,
that "they changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image
made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and four-fooled beasts,
and creeping things." For in such forms also they set up or
worshipped idols. Therefore Christ is our knowledge, and the same
Christ is also our wisdom. He Himself implants in us faith
concerning temporal things, He Himself shows forth the truth
concerning eternal things. Through Him we reach on to Himself: we
stretch through knowledge to wisdom; yet we do not withdraw from one
and the same Christ, "in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom
and of knowledge." But now we speak of knowledge, and will hereafter
speak of wisdom as much as He Himself shall grant. And let us not so
take these two things, as if it were not allowable to speak either of
the wisdom which is in human things, or of the knowledge which is in
divine. For after a laxer custom of speech, both can be called
wisdom, and both knowledge. Yet the apostle could not in any way have
written," To one is given the word of wisdom, to another the word of
knowledge," except also these several things had been properly called
by the several names, of the distinction between which we are now
treating.
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