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‘ἀλλ᾽ ἔστιν ὁ θεὸς, χρὴ φάναι, καὶ ἔστι κατ᾽ οὐδένα χρόνον ἀλλὰ
κατὰ τὸν αἰῶνα τὸν ἀκίνητον καὶ ἄχρονον καὶ ἀνέγκλιτον καὶ οὗ
πρότερον οὐδέν ἐστιν οὐδ᾽ ὕστερον οὐδὲ μέλλον οὐδὲ παρῳχημένον
οὐδὲ πρεσβύτερον 1 οὐδὲ νεώτερον ἀλλ᾽
εἷς ὢν ἑνὶ τῷ νῦν τὸ ἀεὶ πεπλήρωκε, καὶ μόνον ἐστὶ τὸ κατὰ τοῦτον ὄντως
ὄντως ὄν, 2 οὐ γεγονὸς οὐδ᾽ ἐσόμενον οὐδ᾽ ἀρξάμενον οὐδὲ παυσόμενον.
οὕτως οὖν αὐτὸν 3 δεῖ σεβομένους ἀσπάζεσθαι καὶ προσαγορεύειν, 4
ἢ καὶ νὴ Δία, ὡς ἔνιοι τῶν
παλαιῶν,‘εἶἕν.’ οὐ γὰρ πολλὰ τὸ θεῖόν ἐστιν, ὡς ἡμῶν
ἕκαστος ἐκ μυρίων διαφορῶν ἐν πάθεσι γιγνομένων, ἄθροισμα παντοδαπὸν
καὶ πανηγυρικῶς μεμιγμένον: ἀλλ᾽ ἓν εἶναι δεῖ τὸ ὄν, ὥσπερ ὂν τὸ
ἕν. ἡ δ᾽ ἑτερότης, διαφορᾷ τοῦ ὄντος,
εἰς γένεσιν ἐξίσταται τοῦ μὴ ὄντος. ὅθεν εὖ καὶ τὸ πρῶτον ἔχει τῷ θεῷ τῶν
ὀνομάτων καὶ τὸ δεύτερον καὶ τὸ τρίτον. Ἀπόλλων μὲν γὰρ οἷον
ἀρνούμενος τὰ πολλὰ καὶ τὸ πλῆθος ἀποφάσκων ἐστίν, Ἰήιος 5 δ᾽ ὡς
εἷς καὶ μόνος: Φοῖβον δὲ δήπου τὸ
καθαρὸν καὶ ἁγνὸν οἱ παλαιοὶ πᾶν ὠνόμαζον, ὡς [p. 24] ἔτι
Θεσσαλοὶ τοὺς ἱερέας ἐν ταῖς ἀποφράσιν ἡμέραις αὐτοὺς ἐφ᾽ ἑαυτῶν
ἔξω διατρίβοντας, οἶμαι, ‘φοιβονομεῖσθαι’ λέγουσι. τὸ δ᾽ ἓν
εἰλικρινὲς καὶ καθαρόν: ἑτέρου γὰρ μίξει πρὸς ἕτερον ὁ μιασμός,
ὥς που καὶ Ὅμηρος 6 ‘ἐλέφαντα’ τινὰ 7
φοινισσόμενον βαφῇ‘μιαίνεσθαι’ φησί: καὶ τὰ μιγνύμενα τῶν χρωμάτων
οἱ βαφεῖς φθείρεσθαι καί ‘φθοράν’ τὴν μῖξιν ὀνομάζουσιν. οὐκοῦν ἕν τ᾽
εἶναι καὶ ἄκρατον ἀεὶ τῷ ἀφθάρτῳ καὶ καθαρῷ προσήκει.’
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