Chapter V.
On the mode of describing the aforementioned things in Sacred Scripture.
From what has already been said, it is gathered that, just as God in an orderly manner established things with respect to time and in an orderly manner arranged them with respect to position, so also He in an orderly manner governs them with respect to influence; and Scripture in an orderly manner narrates them with respect to the sufficiency of doctrine; although it does not so explicitly describe the distinction of the spheres, whether celestial or elemental, and says little or nothing about the motions and powers of the higher bodies and about the mixtures of elements and things composed of elements, and what is more, narrates nothing explicitly about the creation of the higher spirits, especially when it describes this universe as brought into being.
Now the reason for understanding the aforesaid is this: since the first principle renders itself knowable to us both through Scripture and through creation, through the book of creation it manifests itself as the efficient principle, through the book of Scripture as the reparative principle; and since the reparative principle cannot be known unless the efficient principle is also known, therefore Sacred Scripture, although it principally treats of the works of reparation, must nevertheless treat of the work of creation, insofar however as it leads to the knowledge of the first efficient and restoring principle; and therefore it is a knowledge both sublime and salutary: sublime, because it treats of the efficient principle, which is God the Creator; salutary, because it treats of the reparative principle, which is Christ the Savior and Mediator.
Again, because it is sublime, inasmuch as it treats of the first principle and the highest being, therefore it does not descend to describing the particular natures, motions, powers, and differences of beings, but remains at a certain level of generality in which particular things are implied, describing namely the condition of the world with respect to its arrangement and influence as regards luminous, opaque, and transparent nature at a certain level of generality.
And since the first principle, which it treats, has in itself an order of nature in existing, an order of wisdom in disposing, an order of goodness in influencing: such that the order of nature has simultaneity and equality; the order of wisdom considers priority and posteriority; the order of influence considers superiority and inferiority: therefore, to intimate the order of nature, Scripture determines, according to what was fitting for God to work: that in the beginning, before the course of time, that threefold nature was brought from non-being into being, when it says: In the beginning God created heaven and earth: and the Spirit of God moved over the waters. Where by the name of heaven the luminous nature is intimated; by the name of earth, the opaque; by the name of water, the pervious or transparent, whether subject to contrariety or elevated above contrariety. — Where also the eternal Trinity is intimated, namely the Father in the name of God creating, the Son in the name of the beginning, the Holy Spirit in the name of the Spirit of God. — And thus is to be understood that which is said: He who lives forever created all things simultaneously: not because he created them in a chaos of every kind of confusion, as the poets imagined, since he brought forth this threefold nature, the highest in the highest place, the middle in the middle, and the lowest in the lowest: nor indeed into a being of every kind of distinction, since heaven was perfect, and the earth unformed, and the middle nature, as it were holding a middle position, had not yet been brought to perfect distinction.
To intimate the order of wisdom in disposing, it determines that this threefold nature was not simultaneously distinguished and adorned, but according to the requirement of the threefold created nature, was distinguished over three days and adorned over another three days: so that, just as God in the beginning simultaneously created the threefold nature at the dawn of time, so in the succession of time, in the threefold measure of time, namely the three days, he would make a threefold distinction of the threefold created nature: and again in another three days, a threefold adornment of the threefold distinguished nature.
To intimate the order of goodness in influencing, it determines that this threefold nature is placed in the world according to below and above in accordance with its dignity and influence.
And because the luminous has the most of form, therefore the circumference is due to it: because the opaque has the least of form, therefore the center is due to it; but because the transparent holds the middle, therefore it has received a middle position. And since the nature of the pervious and transparent is common to both celestial and elemental nature, and again the luminous agrees with both: therefore it is rightly said that the firmament was made in the midst of the waters, not because the waters above the heavens are fluid, cold, heavy, and corruptible waters, but because they are subtle and incorruptible, pervious and raised above all contrariety, and on this account are of celestial nature and to be placed among the celestial things by reason of the nobility of their form.
They are also placed there by reason of power and influence. For since every bodily action in lower things takes its rule, origin, and vigor from celestial nature, and since there are two active qualities, namely the hot and the cold , and some heaven is principally influencing the hot, namely the sidereal heaven by reason of its luminosity: it was fitting that some heaven should influence the cold, and thus the crystalline. - And just as the sidereal heaven, although it influences toward heat, is nevertheless not formally hot: so also the heaven that is called watery or crystalline is not essentially cold. - Hence what the Saints say, that the waters are placed there to restrain the heat of the higher bodies and other similar things, are to be understood not according to formal predication, but according to efficacy and influence. - Therefore the condition of the creature according to the aforesaid order befits the order of creative wisdom and of divine Scripture, because it is a sublime science.
Again, because it is a salutary science: therefore it does not treat of the work of creation except for the sake of the work of reparation. And since the Angels were so created that those who fell are in no way restored, as will appear in what follows; therefore the fall and creation of the Angels is passed over in silence according to the outer letter, because no reparation was to follow.
But because it did not befit the sublimity of Scripture to be entirely silent about the creation of the most sublime creature; therefore sacred Scripture so describes the creation of things, according as a sublime and salutary science requires: so that nevertheless according to the spiritual understanding the entire creation literally described may be spiritually referred to describing the angelic and ecclesiastical hierarchy: therefore according to the spiritual understanding there is described in those three natures first produced the angelic hierarchy under the name of heaven , and the ecclesiastical under the name of earth, and grace, by which both are watered, under the name of water.
Again, through the sevenfold number of days is understood the sevenfold state of the Church according to the course of the seven ages. Through the same sevenfold number is also understood the sevenfold turning of the Angels from creature to God.
And thus from the foregoing the sufficiency and truth of Scripture appears in the diverse opinions of the Saints, namely of Augustine and the others, which do not contradict one another, since they are true, if they are rightly understood.