Part XIX.

The Chaldaicl\^ Oracles,
6i
Being and Life, Eflentially and Vitally ^ thofe which have Being, and Life and Mind, Eflenti¬ ally, and Vitally, and Intdle£lually. E-fom One therefore’^// things came^ and to One is their re¬ turn : This Oracle is not to be condemned, but is full of our Dodrine.
Whit the Mind, fpeaks^ it /peaks by IntelleUionT^
When (faith he) thou (halt hear an articu¬ late Voice, Thundering from above out of Hea¬ ven, think not that the Angel or God who fends forth that Voice, did articulate it after our man¬ ner Enunciatively ^ but that He, according to his own Nature, conceived it only inarticulately; but thou, according to thy own Impotence, hear- eft the Notion fyllabically and enuntiatively. For as God heareth our Voice not vocally, fo Man receiveth the Notions of God vocally, eve¬ ry one according to the operation of his Nature.
The/e the Earth bewails^ e-pen to their Children.']
It is meant of Athei/s., that God extends his Vengeance even to their Pofterity : for the Ora¬ cle, to exprefs the Torments which they fhall re. ceive under the Earth, faith. It howls beneath for them ; that is, the Place under theEarth bellows to them, and roareth like a Lion. Whence Fro- clus alfo faith, The compofition of Souls that are of Affinity with one another, is of like Nature ^ and thofe which are not yet loofed from the Bands of Nature, are entangled and detained by like Paffions. Thefe therefore muft fulfil all Punifliments, and fince by Natural Affinity they are infefiled with Pollutions, muft again be cleanfed from them.
Enlarge not thy^ Dejiiny.^ ]
The wifeft of the Greeks call Natitre or ra¬ ther the Gonmletion of the Illuminations which the Nature of Beings receiveth ) Fate.
Providence is an immediate Beneficence from God. But Fate is that which Governs all our Affairs, by the concatenation of Beings. "We are Subjefts to Providence, when we a£f IntelleGu- ally *, to Fate, when Corporeally. Encreafe not therefore, faith he, thy Fate, nor endeavour to furmount it, but commit thy felf wholly to the Government of God.
For nothing proceeds from the paternal Frinci-
pality imperfeU- ]
The Father f faith hej produceth all things perfefl and felf-fufficient according to their Or¬ der, but the Imbecillity and Remiffion of the, things produced fometimescailfethaDefeQand Imperfedion, but the Father calleth back again that defect to Perfection ^ and converts it to its Self ftifficience. Like this, is that which James the Brother of our Lord pronounceth in the be¬ ginning of his Epiftle, Every per feJ Gift cometh down from above from the rather of Lights. For nothing proceeds ImperfeCt from the Perfea,and efpecially when we chance to be ready tp receive that wliich is primarily diftilled from him.
But the Fatemal Mind accepts her not until Jhe come forth.]
The Paternal Mind doth not admit the Im- pulfions of the defires of th^Soufbefbre ftie hath excluded the forgetfulnefs^of the RiObes which (he received from’ the moft bountiful Father, and called back to her Memory the Sacred Watch¬ words which ftie teceiyed from him, and pro¬ nounce the, good:- Speech imprinting in her re¬ membrance theSymbols.of.theFather who begot her. For -the Soul confilfs of Sacred Words and Divine Symbols, of which thofe proceed from the Sacred Species, thefe from the Divine Mo¬ nads and we are (etKom ) Images of the Sacred £irence.s,but fyeb-fuCld) ^atues of -the unkuown Symbols. Moreover we muft know that every Soul differs from another ^oyl ipepifica(ly^ and that there are as feveral Species of Souls as there are Souls. , ^
When thou fejf the Terrefirial Ltempn approach.^ Sacrifke thie Stone Mnff.ur’is:^ ufmg Invocation.]
« • --w ' • - ' "
The Daemons that are near the Earth are by Nature lying, as beingi i^r off from the Divine knowledge, and filled with dark Matter. Now if you would have any true difeourfefrom thefe, prepare, an Altar, and Sacrifice the Stone Alniju- ri& \ this Stone hath the power of evocating the other greater Datraon,;Who, invifibly approach^ ing to the material Dafpou, will pronounce the true Iblution of demands, which he tranfmits to the demandant. The Oracle joyneth the evoca¬ tive Name with the Sacrificing of the Stone. The Chaldeans .aflert fome Datmons gbod,others ill ; but our Religion .^fines them to be all ill, as having by a pretpe^ftated defeftion exchanged good for ill, , , 'ijAj . - i -f
. ; Learn the Intelligible; Jorafmuch as it exifls bcr
yondphe Mind. ] .
• i - ' ■ ■
For though all things are comprehended by the Mind, yet God the firft Intelligible exifts without, or beyond the Mind. . This vaiihout you muft not underftand diftantjally, nor according to intelleclual alternityy butaccording to the in- telligibk excels alonq and the propriety pf the exiftenoe, it being without, orbeyond'aH' Mind', whereby the fupereffential is manii^fed.’ For the firft intelligible" Mind is Eflence, beyond which is the Self intelligible. Befides thefe is God, who is beyond the Intelligible, and Self-in¬ telligible : for weaflert tbe-Divipity to be nei* ther intelligible nor felf-intelh'gible, it being more excellent than allSpeecdi andNotion,fb as that, it is wholly unintelligibfe,^tnd unexpreflible, and more to be Honoured by Silence, than Re¬ verenced by wonderful Fxpreffions. For it is more Sublime than ro be Reverenced, Spoken, and Conceived. '"i -
Intelligent Jynges do ihemfelves alfo tmderjland from the Father.,
By unfpeakahle Counfels being moved fa aetous^^ derjtand. ] . ,
Jynges are certain (Vertues or). Powers, next
the
“the Chaldaic\ Orgies.
P
ART
XIX.
the Paternal Depth, confifting of three Triads. Tliele underftand^ according to the Paternal Mind, which containeth their Caufe Iblely in himfelf. Now the Counfels of the Father in regard of their intelligible Sublimity, are not vocal i but the Ini^lleftual Marks of abftra£t things, though underftood by Secondaries (or Inferiours) are underftood as without Ipeaking, and as it were abftra£led from Intelligible Pro- lations. For as the Conceptions of Souls, they underftand Intelle£lual Orders, yet underftand them as Immutable .* So the A^s of the Intelle- ttuals underftanding the Intelleftual Signs, un¬ derftand them as not a vocal fubfifting in un known Exiftences.
K
Perhaps K]
— - l^VtlJAV ^
^ ’ueps crf«f®- J'eyV©-,
Read y.iasa, ,
Ktti TiYyti vtiyuy.'}
Perhaps,
Krti 'xtiySvy
The reft being a Glofs.
Ic ftiould be ’'EK'3-’ apJ^lai. '■
"'Rvd-ey (rveffl^Q- afAv^^lo
Pf'oclus reads in Theolog.
nATHP KAI NOT 2.
ErtOTtj' 9 TttTwf wfTfltyer, iv in.J
Pletho reads,
Ovi' cv i» J^uvdfiet Kheurat ihw Tt/f*
TIa/Ja ^ ^STiASO-g.]]
Plethoy
TIxVTA ^iTiKtast TATtif, ^ N« TAfi/^aKS
A
•TAv •)!5J©- AvJ^^uy.
rioAt) jS /i-csrO-J
Diftinguifli,
-TO^U f^oy©- OK Teclf/f A\Knf}
ayS©-.
IlAfiy iv'itmigi] ly'iimigfy . and afterwards, Sao-^-
{iy KaffpiOY.
M»Tg TAAt TA Tetl^i Xoi^Si CfA^pj^^A
..wxv up)uu uicrciT
will find Prints enough, by which they may be traced and demonftrated to have been of the | &c.
fame kind, though confounded in the manner ' voav 'xaIukIv vh oKMyAtJ
of Citations, fometimes bf the Authors out of P"haps, - ^ ':rA'l&iKSy^^y
which Patriaus took them, fometimes by Pa- ! 'RvhHvcu Tci himfelf, who was far more diligent to '
Collefcl and Digeft, than Cunons to Diftinguifli DHtiniuilh,
CONJECTURES
Upon the Greek Text of the
ORACLES.
WH O it was that rendred thefe Oracles in Greek is (as we laid) uncertain ; m15ch more certain is it that they were all com- pofed in Hexameter Verfe: though they are lometimes cited indiftinclly and abruptly by Prz- feeming wholly irreconcileable with Po- etick Numbers j yet that the greater part of them are Hexameters, none can deny; andwho- foever fliall look more cautioufly upon the reft
_ t- ! .. f. • ^
them, or to regard their Numbers; which De- fea we fhall endeavour, in fome meafure to fupply. ’
Mona 2, ata2, kai tpia2.
"O-STK ‘O-A'JeeK^ llOVAt ^.J
The latter part of the Hexameter, -r-rr fTAitiKu (xoydf s?t. as is that alfo which imme¬ diately follows,
— ■ -TAYAii C^r/] pt.0V Afy H /l/9 HWA.
aud the next,
— - - ^VA{ [)8] T«A KA^tf} CU^ That
which follov«s is cited again by itfelf after- •ward.
Kcti 70 KvCiiVAy]
This feems to be a loofe Citation of two feve' ral Hemiftichs, with ^ reference to the Phrafe (infinitively) not to the Verfe.
'TAjrnf Tumzvi « o' « TA^li}
Read, perhaps,
TO/ TelTMf Twa-gfiif, Sd'i >5 TA^tS.
Ou 70 ^bKiv KATiydffif 3^ nJ'u 's-avta hir- (/■HT9.J
The Verfe requires^;; — gTgTft»T*.
Elf Tfi/ct ««-g KKf TTAj^f, J
Before, •
Eh re/oc
- - •« if vkUjj
ITyf iTTiKiyA to rr^uToy iljS J^uvApuy kaIauk^ ^Efyoif, Ko®-
Diftinguifh,
Nij? ^ xAriyei-J
-vS TA yonTA,
Ai
NOT2, NOHTA, KAI NOEPA.
Oil jb av£/ Vo©" voyiTH b Jorotj^e/. J
Afterwards cited thus,
Ow ^ Aydi vqQ- SJt yoxTO, to yctniy Ow (/? VTTApyU'
MAyd-Aye to yotjToy. J Afterwards,
(AABiff 70 yoHToy . .
N« ^ yxf ^y 0 xoiTfCK rgyv/Twr weli-l
Diftinguifh,
■ytt jS yif ^y o KoApix •
Teyi'iTHf Tveio'
'Eft yof T/ roHTDi'J ’'Er/i'.
*H jS tTriyKhiyify uf uy y7y» j Read and diftinguifh ,
'H jS iTTiyAKivipf ffiv yoy, kak^vo yont^,
‘ilf T/ yoZvy H Ketyo vonfif' Ir/ AKKnf ’AftpfMf J'vyAy.if voi^jSf c^.'/Iisaa To}X(u P J /» yf » C(poi'^Txlt yoaP 70 yoVTvy htomoy Ah.hA KOX 'tXHHM Totr/tH fhoylt TA*1a
'1
mtuf