Book One: On the Pentateuch of Moses #

Augustinus Hibernicus (655AD)

Preface #

¹ To the most venerable bishops and presbyters of cities and monasteries, especially those of Carthage, Augustine, ever your humble servant, sends his greetings in Christ.

² Bound by the command of my most blessed father, Eusebius, while he was still alive, and encouraged by you, my fellow Christians—above all, compelled by the authority of the most venerable master of the empire—I have composed three books on the Wonders of Holy Scripture, both of the Old and New Testaments. With the Lord’s guidance, I have endeavored to present a historical exposition in the greatest brevity possible. The boldness of this undertaking finds its justification in the authority of those who commanded it.

³ For though I saw myself unequal to the task before me, I did not dare to resist the orders of my superiors or turn away to something else, knowing with absolute certainty that greater punishment awaits the disobedient who flee their commission than the reproach of critics who judge one unfit for the work assigned. Indeed, the prophet Jonah found greater peril in the waves of the sea when he tried to escape than he would have suffered from the reproach of his people, had he obeyed and carried out the command he feared.

⁴ The prophet of the altar at Bethel, because he did not endure the hunger and thirst of his arduous journey as he had been commanded, soon after found death on the road as the punishment for his disobedience. But Jeremiah, though still a child and lacking both learning in letters and the wisdom of manhood when he was sent by the Lord to prophesy, received the knowledge he did not yet possess as a reward for his obedience.

⁵ Therefore, I do not look to the poverty of my own limited abilities, but rather to the wise authority of those who have commanded me. For if you did not believe that even a small spark of light was in me, you would never have entrusted me with the intellectual labor of so great a work.

⁶ In these volumes, the arrangement follows this order: the first book concerns the Pentateuch of Moses, the second the Prophets, and the third the New Testament. The chief aim of this entire work is to show that, in all matters where something seems to occur outside the course of daily affairs, God does not create a new nature, but rather governs the same nature that He established in the beginning.

⁷ Furthermore, in this work, we have taken care to set aside, for now, the interpretation of figures and instead to present only the account and order of events as they occurred. This is because, in the passages where we have touched upon certain matters through historical narration, there exists a manifold depth of meaning. If we were to discuss each point in detail, we would burden the reader with many books and a more laborious work.

⁸ We have particularly chosen to omit this aspect because those authors who have sought to explain these passages have devoted themselves to the mystical understanding of allegories—that is, to figurative exposition, which has been found within them.

⁹ As for whether this work will endure or be lost, that depends on your judgment. From one of you—Bathanus, who follows after his father Manchinan—I have, if anything, received an addition to my understanding. And from another, as I believe, I have taken up the labor of this endeavor through the very words of his mouth.

¹⁰ To all readers in general, my appeal and request is this: that they not grow weary of what is written before they have fully considered it, allowing no pretext for disdain before understanding has been reached.

Chapter 1: On God the Creator and the Order of Creation #

¹ With the help of Almighty God, we desire to speak of the wonders of creation. And what beginning could be more fitting than to start with the very Creator of all things, of whom Scripture frequently testifies, saying:

² “He does great and unfathomable things, marvelous deeds without number”.

³ Among all these wonders, the most fundamental act was when He created all things from nothing. The eternal and almighty Creator of all, ever remaining a Trinity in perfect unity, existed before all creatures without any loss of His power. Then, in order to reveal through creation the boundless goodness, power, and benevolence that He first possessed in Himself alone, He formed from the formless matter— which He Himself had previously created from nothing— the various kinds of all things, both visible and invisible. That is, He distinguished between the sensible and the insensible, the intellectual and the non-intellectual, assigning each its proper form and nature.

⁴ This, as confirmed by the authority of the Book of Genesis, is shown to have been accomplished through the succession of six days, so that it is firmly declared that on the sixth day, God completed everything pertaining to the creation and order of the universe. For it is written:

⁵ “And God completed all His works on the sixth day, and He blessed the seventh day, because on it He rested from all His works”.

⁶ From this, we understand that God completed everything on the sixth day so that on the seventh, He did not cease from labor—since He never grows weary—but rather from the work of creation itself. Yet, when the Lord Jesus responded to the Jews questioning Him about the Sabbath rest, saying: “My Father is working even until now, and I am working”.

⁷ We believe that God indeed completed all things on the sixth day and rested on the seventh, and yet we do not doubt that He continues to work even now. But how can it be understood that the same God both completed His work then and still works now? This requires deeper inquiry.

⁸ For on the sixth day, He perfected the nature of creatures, yet He has never ceased to govern them. And on the seventh day, He rested from the work of creation, yet He never ceases from the task of sustaining and ruling over all things.

⁹ Therefore, we must understand that God was then the Creator, but now He is the Governor of all things. Thus, even if we see something new arise in creation, we should not think that He is creating a new nature, but rather that He is governing what was already created. However, He is so powerful in governing His creation that when He brings forth what was hidden within the depths of nature, He may appear as if He were creating something new.

¹⁰ It is through this extraordinary governance that, when things manifest themselves according to the will and power of the Governor in ways not seen in the ordinary course of nature, Scripture refers to them as wonders and miracles. Yet, since we will discuss these miracles more fully when we come to their proper place, let this truth remain fixed for now: after completing the creation of all natures, God rested from His work on the seventh day, but from that time onward, He has never ceased governing the whole of creation.

¹¹ Although all creation is said to have been established over the course of six alternating days, this alternation of days should not be understood as a passage of time. Rather, it signifies a succession of works. For the narrator of the historical account divides in words what God did not divide in the perfection of His work. Indeed, God created all things at once, for in a single act of His will, He ordained the manifold variety of all species. In this same act of will, He brought everything into existence simultaneously, without the passage of time, though from the very moment of their origin, He arranged for them to unfold over time.

Chapter 2: On the Different Sins of Rational Natures #

¹ In the creation of all things, the spiritual creature was originally brought forth first, as an invisible reality. Then, so that what existed inwardly might also exist outwardly in God’s works, the bodily and visible creation was also brought into being. In this principal and universal division of all things, the Creator established two rational natures: one in the spiritual realm and the other in the corporeal—namely, the angels and humanity. And according to the distinction of their natures, He also assigned them different places of habitation: He granted heaven to the angels and earth to mankind.

² Once these were established, the sin of both rational natures followed—namely, that of the angels and of men. The transgression of the commandment committed by humanity is recounted in the historical account of the Book of Genesis. However, for those who reflect upon it, a significant question arises: why does Scripture remain silent regarding how the sin of the angels occurred, offering no explicit testimony about it?

³ Although the prophet, speaking in the person of the king of Babylon, declares the words of that angelic ruin, saying: “I will sit upon the mount of the covenant, on the sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, and I will establish my throne in the north, and I will be like the Most High”, these words can most easily be understood with a historical interpretation regarding the king of Babylon—unless, perhaps, through a figurative interpretation, the words are transferred from the body to the head by way of allegory.

⁴ Thus, the question raised in this passage is not resolved, since the cause of the fall, the sentence, and the punishment are not explicitly revealed in the Gospel’s historical account. Unless, as some believe, one might say that his original sin was in the seduction of man through the serpent, for which he had also received a sentence of condemnation, as the Lord said: “Cursed are you among all animals and all beasts of the earth; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life”.

⁵ But far be it from us to think that an angel could incite man to sin on earth unless he himself had first sinned in heaven, as the Lord said: “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven”. For how could he have envied human happiness unless he had first lost his own blessedness?

⁶ Therefore, we must believe not only that the fall of the devil preceded the sin of man, but also that it came before the perfection of creation, which was completed on the sixth day. For when the Lord pronounces judgment on the damned at the end of time, He says: “Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire, which my Father has prepared for the devil and his angels”. But when was that fire prepared, if not at the completion of all creation?

⁷ Unless, of course, we were to say that after the perfection of the sixth day, God created something else—which is impossible, lest we make Scripture, or rather ourselves, into liars. Thus, since a prison was prepared for him within that order of creation, his sin must have preceded those creatures in its origin. For as Scripture says: “He was a liar from the beginning, and he did not stand in the truth”.

⁸ It remains, then, for us to explain the fall of the angels, the cause of which the Lord has left unspoken. Yet we cannot doubt that the angel, who was created as the highest of God’s creatures, fell. However, the true physician did not wish to reveal how the angelic wound occurred, since He did not intend to heal it afterward.

⁹ And how he was cast out by the sentence of judgment is left unspoken, for in no way was he recalled through repentance. Yet the way in which man’s sin was committed is set forth, for it is not altogether despaired that he might obtain pardon. God chose rather to show how man was cast out, whom He later, in the end, called back to his former state. Nor did He hide how man received the sentence of punishment, from whom He did not refuse, at times, to accept satisfaction through the pardon of His mercy. Considering this difference between men and angels, the Apostle says: “For surely it is not angels He helps, but the seed of Abraham”. For when the merciful and compassionate Creator, abiding in the supreme and unchangeable substance of God the Father, willed to empty Himself in the form of a servant, He did not take on the nature of angels, but that of man. Yet even in this, a question arises: since God did not spare the angels when they sinned, yet granted pardon to sinful man by assuming human flesh, why then was the highest angel struck down with an irrevocable punishment, while man, though sinning and transgressing the command of his Creator, was later mercifully called to repentance—John, the Lord, and Peter all crying out: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand”?

¹⁰ The angel, therefore, who was established in the highest order of honor, had no change to a more excellent state except by being confirmed through the contemplation of his Creator, so that he might remain in the state in which he was created. And for this reason, having fallen, he could in no way be recalled, since he had plunged from the most exalted height of his order. Man, however, still placed on earth, destined for the office of procreation and appointed to the consumption of food, would have received a transformation into a higher, better, and more spiritual life without experiencing death—if only he had remained obedient to the command for as long as he dwelled in this life. But sin seized him before he could reach that higher state, and so he immediately fell from his lower order—that is, from the immortality of his body—as the Lord said: “You are dust, and to dust you shall return”. Yet, through the mercy of the Creator, man is called back to that blessedness, which he had not yet attained when he sinned, through the Passion of the Lord. If he had fallen from it as the angel did, he would never have been recalled. For man will never reach that state again—that is, the immortality of his body—except after the death of all is fulfilled, when that blessedness to which we are recalled is restored through the resurrection.

¹¹ However, the restoration will not be to the same order or state from which the first man fell, but to another, even more exalted, as the Lord said: “They will be like the angels of God in heaven”. Furthermore, to the fullness of the devil’s sin was added the fact that, immediately after he sinned, he fell into the pit of despair. For if he had not despaired of obtaining pardon for his sin, he would never have sought to bring about the loss of salvation for man, who consented to him. Indeed, one who hopes for pardon from a previous sin in no way prepares to increase his guilt with another. Thus, through this despair, he not only found for himself the pit of destruction but also became the cause of man’s ruin by leading him into sin.

¹² Yet this serves to lessen man’s guilt: for not only did he not fall into transgression by himself, but he consented to the persuasion of the serpent. Moreover, he did not lead another rational creature into offense against God. Because of this, he more easily found the door of repentance open to him. But whoever does not enter through this door will be subject to the loss of eternal life. On the other hand, whoever washes away his sins through repentance will forever share in the blessedness of the angels.

Chapter 3: On Abel and Enoch Holding Primacy in Human Righteousness #

¹ From the very beginning of humanity after original sin, God showed that people could sometimes obtain His mercy by choosing a few individuals to reveal His friendship. Over time, He gradually increased their number until He visited humanity with His presence, ultimately bringing light to the whole human race across the world with His coming. Among these few, the first was Abel, the leader of all human righteousness, and the second after him was Enoch, the most distinguished before the Flood. To these two, the highest standard of righteousness was entrusted at the very dawn of the world and its ultimate fulfillment. One, at the very start of injustice and at the beginning of the world itself, was taken by martyrdom, crowned in the triumph of his own blood. The other has not yet experienced death and has been reserved as a witness for the last days. But to Abel, the Lord Jesus Christ entrusted the primacy of human righteousness, saying: “From the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah”.

² In saying, “From the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah,” without adding the word “righteous” to Zechariah, Christ shows that Zechariah inherits Abel’s righteousness. A similar pattern is found in the genealogy of the Savior, where it is written, “Jesse begot David the king, and David the king begot Solomon”. Here, the title “king” is not repeated for Solomon, even though he inherited a greater dominion from his father. This indicates that Solomon possessed David’s kingdom by hereditary right and that the honor of kingship pertains more to David, as he was the first in his lineage to obtain the throne. Likewise, Abel held the primacy in human righteousness because he was the first to become righteous on earth. Therefore, just as heirs succeed their fathers by hereditary right, so do all the just follow in Abel’s footsteps, embracing every aspect of righteousness.

³ And if he had fulfilled that command, he would certainly not have remained a virgin. And if God had preserved him from death, he would by no means have received the primacy of martyrdom. It was therefore fitting that the one who was first chosen as righteous on earth should preserve in himself the pattern of all righteousness, and that to him, as the first among men after the fall, should be granted the privilege of bearing the figure of the Savior, who is seen to be a virgin, a priest, and a martyr. But Enoch, without experiencing death, was kept apart from human society for nearly an entire age so that in him it might be shown how, if men had not sinned, they would, after begetting offspring, be transformed into spiritual life without dying. Yet, although he has been preserved for a long time and still lives, he will not be able to avoid the debt of death, which we have all inherited in Adam. Indeed, in this case, too, arises that question from which the occasion for writing about wonders seems to have been taken—namely, why his life has been extended for such an extraordinarily long time, seemingly beyond the limits of human nature. However, in this, no new nature is created for one man, but rather the original and universal condition of all men is maintained. For it is evident to those who consider the history of Genesis that it was implanted in man’s first state that he should not only live for a long time but even forever, unless the sting of sin had driven death beyond the boundaries of nature.

Chapter 4: On the Fact That Only Earthly Animals Were Destroyed in the Flood #

¹ In the course of time, as men, after original sin, advanced toward offending God through their own pursuits and fell into forgetfulness of their Creator—so much so that through immense sin and great bodily stature, giants arose—God prepared to cleanse the wickedness of the whole earth with water. And when He found one man perfect in his generation, namely Noah, the son of Lamech, He revealed to him alone the mystery of His plan. He commanded him to build an ark over a long period of time so that either, by this act, he and his household might be saved from the impending destruction, or those who saw the coming doom and feared it might be moved to repentance for their sins.

² But when that judgment was stubbornly and negligently despised, God, provoked by their offense, suddenly brought about the destruction of the entire world, covering all the land with water. He wiped out everything that could live only on land—both humans and other creatures—by means of the water that He commanded to descend from heaven, except for those that were enclosed in the ark. However, all creatures that could live in the water were untouched by that plague; only the land animals were destroyed.

³ At this point, an inquiry arises that requires a solution for those who question it with keen discernment: “Why do land animals suffer more than aquatic ones as part of the punishment of mankind, when they have committed no greater sins?” Yet in the sin of the first man, the earth from which he had taken and eaten was immediately cursed. For through the divine oracle it was declared: “Cursed is the ground because of you”.

⁴ It should be noted that the very animals that fed on the cursed earth could not themselves be free from the curse, especially since the earth, along with its creatures, had been cursed. Another question therefore arises: “Why did God not also curse the waters when He pronounced the curse on Adam?” The answer is simple: it was not water that man drank in disobedience to the Lord’s command, but the fruit of the earth that he ate. Beyond this reasoning, God also spared the waters from Adam’s curse because He had prepared them to wash away that very curse, as was done in the Flood, and as is now granted through Baptism; for in water and the Holy Spirit, all human sins, both of the body and of the soul, are cleansed. Aquatic creatures, indeed, are not subject to the punishment of the curse, for they did not partake in it. And so the Lord, when He had cast off the curse of human death by rising again, did not eat the flesh of land animals but of those from the waters. To confirm His resurrection before the disciples, He took and ate a piece of broiled fish and a honeycomb.

Chapter 5: How did the animals that can neither live solely on land nor solely in water survive the flood? #

¹ The question arises concerning animals that can neither live solely on land nor solely in water, such as otters, seals, and many species of birds that seek their food in the water but rest, sleep, and nourish themselves on dry land. If they had been enclosed within the ark, they would not have been able to survive without access to water; but if they had remained outside, with the waters covering everything, where would they have found rest? Thus, as I have said before, the question is debated whether God, by His power, tempered their nature during the time of the flood so that they could survive either entirely in water or entirely on dry land. However, since God chose to preserve Noah and his household by means of the ark rather than by an act of power, why would He have preserved these creatures by a miracle? Or could it be that some rocky refuges existed for them? But how could such places have provided relief when all the mountains were covered by water, exceeding them by fifteen cubits? Or perhaps the roof of the ark could have served as a resting place for them? For though the ark measured three hundred cubits in length, thirty in height, and fifty in width, its roof was contracted on all sides into a single cubit-wide space, forming a stable surface. Could it be that this space, designed to preserve those inside safely, might also have served as a refuge for creatures wandering over the depths?

Chapter 6: Concerning the bursting forth of the waters of the flood #

¹ The account of the breaking forth of the waters of the flood is given as follows: “All the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the floodgates of heaven were opened, and rain fell upon the earth for forty days and forty nights”. Later, it is stated: “The fountains of the deep were closed, and the rain from heaven was restrained”.

² We are prevented by the limitations of our knowledge from explaining this matter with a fixed and definitive conclusion. Nevertheless, let us present in an impartial manner whatever interpretations the learned have been able to propose, without granting greater authority to any particular opinion over another. Regarding these accounts, we allow the freedom to assess and either accept or reject each viewpoint individually.

³ A question arises concerning whether rivers existed before the flood, flowing from springs. There is no definitive statement in the account of creation as to whether they were formed or not, except that a single spring rose from the earth and was divided into four streams, which watered the regions. Unless, perhaps, one might argue that from this one spring, all other fountains throughout the whole expanse of the earth also gushed forth even then—so that mentioning that one great original spring would be sufficient to account for them all individually.

⁴ Or were they indeed not present before the flood, until that exceedingly great eruption of waters caused the veins of all the fountains to break forth, even in places where they had not existed before—something we still observe happening even now? However, it is not said that these were fountains of the earth, but rather fountains of the deep: “And the fountains of the deep were broken up”. Yet this statement about fountains can be understood in a general sense. For from where else could the earth have received water unless the deep, lying beneath it, supplied veins of springs through hidden channels? Therefore, the fountains of the deep may also be called the fountains of the earth.

⁵ But those who interpret it this way must explain what follows shortly after, when, upon the completion of the forty-day deluge, it is stated: “And the fountains of the great deep were closed, and the rain from heaven was restrained”. If the fountains that now flow across the earth were opened during the flood, how can it be said that they were closed again? Unless, perhaps, not all fountains are meant to have been closed—only those specifically through which the waters of the flood were made to pour forth. Yet, they also assert that this statement applies only to that particular time.

⁶ For the sources that had been closed—since that unprecedented eruption was restrained—subsequent reasoning confirms that they were later opened, as the waters advanced and then receded. After all, to where would they have returned, if not to where they had come from? Thus, the waters had burst forth through opened springs, which were later closed to stop the eruption. But when the waters were called back once more, even the springs that had been sealed were reopened. For how could the waters, which could not have entered while the gates were shut, have flowed back unless the openings had been unsealed?

⁷ Regarding the statement, “And the floodgates of heaven were opened, and rain fell,” this question requires no less careful consideration, as it has been examined through various interpretations by different scholars. Some believe that these floodgates were opened in the clouds, which are often referred to as “heaven” in the divine Scriptures—for example: “And the heavens shall give rain, and the earth shall yield its fruit”; “He gave them the bread of heaven”; “The birds of heaven may dwell there”; and “The birds of heaven have nests where they may rest”. Therefore, those aforementioned scholars interpret the floodgates of heaven as formations within the clouds, allowing rain to fall—just as even today, the whole world acknowledges that such a process takes place through the clouds. But at that time, Holy Scripture recalls that the floodgates of heaven were opened because an immense outpouring of rain occurred, far beyond the usual amount.

⁸ Others, however, say that these floodgates were originally established in that highest firmament, which God created in the beginning to divide the waters above from the waters below. They hold that God prepared those upper waters for this very purpose. In this arrangement of both the higher and lower waters, they perceive a symbolic foreshadowing of the sacred ministry of Baptism: the heavenly rain represents the Holy Spirit, while the waters of the abyss signify the baptismal water. Just as the upper and lower waters cleansed the sins of the first world, so too does the Holy Spirit, along with the water, wash away the transgressions of our former life.

⁹ However, since in this work we have chosen to focus on the literal understanding of events rather than a figurative interpretation, let us proceed with what directly pertains to the matter at hand.

¹⁰ Thus, those who believe that the waters of the firmament were set in place to bring forth the Flood also hold that rain did not exist in the world before the Flood. They are led to this conclusion by the fact that the rainbow was established in the clouds only after the Flood. They reason from the nature of created things themselves, arguing that if rain had ever fallen before the Flood under clear skies, the rainbow—formed by sunlight interacting with moist, serene clouds—would have appeared then as well. Indeed, the rainbow is always produced by the sun and humid clouds, and it can sometimes be seen at night by the light of the moon in clear, moist conditions.

¹¹ Thus, in the earliest age of the newly created world, it was possible for the earth to be nourished solely by the morning and evening dew, without any disturbances in the atmosphere or rainfall. Just as that first age produced humans who lived long lives and enjoyed robust health, so too could the world itself have remained undisturbed, producing abundant fruits suitable for sustenance. Then, from the second age onward, just as human life began to be marked by turmoil, so too did the world become subject to storms and turbulent seasons. Even today, in the land of Egypt, fertility does not come from seasonal rains but rather from the moisture of the earth itself, the favorable conditions of the air, and the periodic flooding of the Nile.

¹² However, how this inquiry should be regarded with certainty is for learned and faithful Catholic scholars to determine.

Chapter 7: On the Recession of the Waters of the Flood #

¹ Let us present, without presuming upon our own authority, the opinions of learned and insightful teachers regarding the recession of the waters of the Flood. This question presents an intricate problem for those who study it with keen minds. When the waters of the Flood covered the entire expanse of the earth, did they leave any space unoccupied? And if they did not leave such a space, then when they receded, what did they fill?

² On this matter, concerning the waters that flowed down from the floodgates of heaven, there are two principal opinions among scholars. Some hold that these waters were drawn back through those same floodgates, just as dry clouds customarily draw moisture from the sea to produce rain. In the same way, the vast region of the firmament above could have recalled the waters it had sent down from the clouds. For Scripture says, “The waters receded and returned”. But where did they return to, if not from where they had come?

³ If, then, from that lofty firmament— as we have said according to the estimation of some— the waters had flowed down from above and left the space they had occupied, and if they were later recalled there, what wonder is it that they would fill again the very spaces they had abandoned? Or, if we grant that the same great mass of rain was produced from the clouds, what contradiction is there for those who reason intelligently, if that same water was drawn back into the clouds— just as we observe in the daily course of nature, where rain falls from the clouds and is later taken up again?

⁴ However, those who deny that rain existed before the Flood hold a different view regarding the retreat of the waters. For while they claim that the waters were poured out from the firmament, they nevertheless insist that they returned only to the clouds. Moreover, they say that the excess water, which had come from above, still continues to generate turbulent movements in the air and different atmospheric hemispheres. By means of alternating cycles, the same cloudy air now releases moisture into the lower parts of the world— that is, upon the earth and the sea— and now draws it back up again from those very places, namely the sea and the land. This is similar to how, in the human chest, breath follows a reciprocal motion, being exhaled and then drawn back in, so that it may be inhaled again.

⁵ Amid these various opinions and the many complexities of learned teachers, we hold firmly to this truth: whatever waters had come from above, the wind sent by God dried them up so that the land would be exposed. For it is written: “The Lord sent a wind over the earth, and the waters receded”. Whether the wind gathered the dispersed waters into the clouds or they returned to the expanse of the upper firmament, let the learned determine with certainty.

⁶ As for the waters that had poured forth abundantly from the broken fountains of the abyss, by the Lord’s command they returned again through the very channels from which they had come. Yet, even here, a common question arises for us—one that seemed to have been settled in other matters. If, when they flooded the earth, the waters had left some space unfilled, then when they receded, what did they occupy?

⁷ Others explain this question in the following way: by God’s command at that time, the sea, departing from its usual boundaries, was able to rise through the opening of those fountains, overflowing with an extraordinary flood and spreading across all the land. Then, it could either reclaim what it had lost or even deposit its excess into the spaces of the earth, which belonged to the lower waters. For the land, which always absorbs the waters that lie above it, is accustomed to draw them back into itself unless they come from springs. And indeed, we see that even very small things can grow into something much greater, without violating the natural order.

⁸ Nor is it contrary to the nature of the earth for it to continually consume the waters that lie upon it, especially since God has granted even His saints the power to do this—just as He gave it to Elijah and Elisha in the form of a small cloud. Moreover, the sea customarily expands beyond its ancient boundaries, reducing and cutting away portions of the land, as even elderly men still living in our time affirm that they have witnessed.

⁹ Thus, over time, islands have formed in places where, as many assert, there were none when the world was first created. This occurs when nearby headlands are severed from the mainland by the encroaching sea. From this, we understand that the wild animals now enclosed within these islands were not transported there by human effort, but were rather discovered on the land when the islands became separated from the mainland.

¹⁰ For who, for instance, would have transported wolves, deer, wild boars, foxes, badgers, hares, and squirrels to Ireland? Or how could it be that, if these domestic animals had once escaped from the hands of those who brought them, they would now be seen roaming the forests in such numbers? Yet some authors claim that these species of wild beasts and animals are generated by the land itself, believing that the creatures now enclosed within islands were not descended from those saved in the Ark, but rather sprang forth from the earth itself.

¹¹ However, even if someone were to accept this explanation—regarding the retreat of the floodwaters—as sufficient and reasonable, the question still remains unresolved in our minds. Indeed, with the daily rising and receding of the ocean, this question continually resurfaces. Just as we do not know from where these floodwaters come or to where they retreat, so too do we remain ignorant of how the waters of the great flood receded.

¹² For this daily inundation occurs unfailingly every twenty-four hours, from time to time, in a cyclical pattern. Moreover, the alternating phases of Ledo and Maline follow a regular sequence. Ledo brings six hours of rising waters and six hours of recession, whereas the great Maline swells for five hours and then withdraws, uncovering the shores for seven hours.

¹³ This demonstrates such great harmony with the moon that, before the moon is born, it always begins three days and twelve hours earlier; and after the beginning of the new moon, it similarly continues for another three days and twelve hours. Likewise, before the full moon, it begins three days and twelve hours earlier and completes its course at the same interval after reaching its full phase. Each season—spring, summer, autumn, and winter—has six Malinas according to lunar reckoning, meaning that a common year contains a total of twenty-four, except in embolismic years, which have twenty-six Malinas. Additionally, during the midpoint of each of the aforementioned seasons, particularly at the equinoxes, and at other times when either day or night reaches its course’s end, the usual increase in inundation heightens even more significantly. However, after these intervals, there is always an equally long period of receding waters.

¹⁴ However, the reason for the persistence of this inundation and its retreat remains hidden from our understanding; yet even for those who do not comprehend it, human knowledge provides no lesser benefit. For whoever desires true wisdom should hasten toward the eternal kingdom, where there is no ignorance, and in the meantime, let him say with the great teacher of the nations: “For we know in part, and we prophesy in part”. Indeed, all things we possess we scarcely know in part. The surface of the earth, on which we labor, are nourished, live, and are sustained, is visible to our eyes, yet how it itself is sustained remains unknown to us. The sun is given for our service by day, but what benefit it accomplishes during the night is concealed from our knowledge. Who can fully comprehend the reasons for the moon’s waxing for fifteen days and waning for the same duration? We are permitted to observe the swelling tides of the sea, yet we are deprived of understanding its retreat.

¹⁵ Within ourselves, we know and remember the day of our birth, but we do not know the day of our death, even though we are certain it will come. Even the physical things we see, we can only partially understand. Thus, we know in part as long as we remain in this world. But if we reach that light of the Father of lights, there will be nothing in creation that we do not understand. However, to return to our subject concerning this great flood, which is such a marvelous work of God, it is clear that nothing has been done against nature, for nothing appears to have been added that God did not create in the beginning, except that the sea’s waters have gathered in greater abundance than usual, drawn together along with the rains. I do not assert any of this with absolute authority, nor do I wish to be contentious in defending a particular view; but if someone with greater understanding perceives these matters more clearly, perhaps their insight will also be pleasing to me. For I have merely conveyed in these small writings what I have learned from the teaching of various masters. If anything here appears faulty or lacking in sound reasoning, the error is mine, not theirs.

Chapter 8 #

¹ The question concerning the course of the sun and moon during the flood, as well as the boundaries and their recurrence, though widely debated by many, is clarified by the very passage of the year in which the flood took place, showing that nothing in the usual functioning of the heavenly lights or stars was altered. For Noah entered the ark with all who belonged to him on the seventeenth day of the second month. After one hundred and fifty days, on the twenty-seventh day of the seventh month, the ark came to rest on the mountains of Armenia. On the first day of the tenth month, the mountain peaks became visible. On the first day of the first month, the waters began to dry up. And after the full course of the year had passed, on the twenty-seventh day of the second month, the dry land was revealed; on this day, by the command of the Lord, Noah and his whole household left the ark. From these indications, it is most clearly shown that, in all matters concerning the completion of the year’s cycle, in the functioning of the heavenly lights, and in the fulfillment of days and nights, nothing appears to have been diminished. For if the course of the heavenly lights—namely, the sun and moon—had been in any way disrupted, the alternation of days and nights would have first been disturbed, and then the entire cycle of the year would have been hindered. But since the yearly cycle returns undisturbed, it is evident that the course of the heavenly lights in the preceding year was not disrupted.

Chapter 9: On the Dispersion of Languages #

¹ Now that the universal cleansing of the whole world by water had been completed under God’s guidance, and the land had once again been revealed by His command, the descendants of Noah—the sole righteous man at that time—went forth from the ark and quickly multiplied, destined to fill all the regions of the world. But before they were divided across all the lands, an impious and arrogant thought crept into their hearts: they resolved, by common agreement, to magnify their own name rather than that of God, their Creator, by constructing a most magnificent tower that would reach to heaven. In doing so, they sought to ensure that their fame would be celebrated by all generations to come, across every rule and throughout the entire span of the world’s history, as an indelible monument to their own glory.

² But because of this recklessness and arrogant presumption, God was once again offended, and through the shared guilt of all humanity, He did not wish to destroy the entire nation utterly by an indiscriminate massacre of all, as He had recently done among men—especially since no righteous person was found to remain. However, at that time, when all the people still spoke one language, He divided the tongues of all who had come for such a work into different languages. By the most just judgment of the righteous Judge, those who had scorned God with the swelling pride of their arrogance would indeed feel punishment in the most fragile part of their nature—their speech. And this did not happen only to those fathers themselves, but the condition of such punishment extended through all their descendants, so that those who had sought an everlasting reputation for their posterity would instead find, through all the ages to come, the lasting consequence of that presumption upon their descendants.

³ Later, this division of languages also occurred by God’s design so that the mystery of the Holy Scriptures would be preserved in the language of one chosen people among many until the appointed time. When, at the predetermined moment, He willed to reveal the mystery of His plan to all nations, He sent the Holy Spirit from on high, bringing knowledge of all languages to the ministers He had foreordained for this sacrament. The same wonders of God, which had been proclaimed up to that point in one language, were now preached at His first coming through the Apostles as a consecration of all tongues. Thus, those whom God had gathered in Jerusalem at that time from all nations, as a testimony to this event, said, “We have heard them speaking in our own tongues the mighty works of God”. In this way, the humility of the Apostles, through the gift of the Holy Spirit, gathered together what the arrogant presumption and vain desire for glory had scattered. Many authorities agree that the number of these languages was seventy-two, because it is said that an equal number of fathers had assembled for the building of that tower in the land of Shinar, which is now Babylon.

⁴ Thus, the Lord is said in the Gospel to have chosen seventy-two disciples, apart from the chief Apostles, through whom the same Gospel would later be preached to all nations. In prefiguration of this, the spirit of Moses was also distributed among the seventy elders, and to two others who remained in the camp—namely, Eldad and Medad—the gift of the spirit of prophecy was granted. As their hereditary successors, seventy wise men, descended from the lineage of Israel, were sent to King Ptolemy Philadelphus of Alexandria by the high priest Eleazar and the other leaders of the Jewish people at that time, and they translated the Scriptures of the ancient Law into the Greek language.

⁵ In the time of the New Testament, however, the preeminence among all languages was given to three—Hebrew, Greek, and Latin—because the title of Christ’s cross was written in these three languages, as testified by the authority of the Gospel. Yet, in this, God did nothing against the natural order of human speech that He had once established by dividing and confounding the languages of men; for the nature of speech itself remains unchanged in humanity, except that different customs cause languages to diverge from one another, not by nature, but by habit. For a Latin or a Greek who is raised among barbarian nations speaks in a barbarous manner, while, conversely, the son of a barbarian who is taught by Greeks or Latins speaks with refined eloquence. From this, it is understood that God did not change human nature or create something new within them, but only divided the modes and forms of speech among different peoples.

Chapter 10: On the Punishment of Sodom #

¹ After a long period of time had passed, five cities situated on the border of Arabia and Palestine—Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Zoar—enjoyed the habitation of extremely fertile land and the abundance of all things. However, they were found guilty of improper indulgence in luxury and greed in the gathering of wheat, and so they opened the way for the Lord’s vengeance. Thus, fire and sulfur rained down upon them, and the entire region, along with its inhabitants, animals, and cities, was consumed in flames. It was fitting that those who had offended God with a shared determination should perish together by the same outpouring of judgment. Those who burned with unnatural lust in defiance of human custom were consumed by a punishment that was not earthly but rather the outpouring of heavenly fire. And those who had not only committed their sin but had also openly proclaimed it were consumed by a public punishment to match their infamous way of life. This punishment has not abandoned their land even to this day, serving as a warning of the torment that awaits those who commit such deeds.

² Between the two primary punishments seen in the world—the Flood and the destruction of Sodom—this distinction is observed: the earth appears to have been punished by one through water and by the other through fire. In the Flood, the earth was submerged by the dew of heaven and the waters of the abyss, whereas in the destruction of Sodom, it was condemned by a fiery downpour and an outpouring of sulfur. In the case of the Flood, the earth was uncovered again after the course of a single year, but in the case of Sodom, the land still remains desolate. The first punishment was for natural wickedness among men, while the second was for the invention of lust contrary to nature. Yet in the punishment of Sodom, God is seen to have done nothing against nature, for as the air above burned with fiery wrath, so too was the flame of their perverse desire kindled.

Chapter 11: On Lot’s Wife Being Turned into a Pillar of Salt #

¹ Lot, the servant of God, was rescued from the destruction of sinners through the intervention of angels. However, his wife, who was commanded not to look back, was turned into a pillar of salt when she disobeyed and looked behind her. This happened so that, since her gaze was not free from the guilt of complicity, she could not escape death, even though she had been spared from the fire due to her association with a righteous man. But while we affirm that nothing in God’s creation exists contrary to nature and that everything is always governed by its inherent nature, we must ask: how, then, was the human body’s nature maintained when Lot’s wife was turned into a pillar of salt?

² No one can doubt that the nature of salt exists within the human body, as is evident from the salinity of tears. As physicians explain, tears flow from an agitated gall, and their salty nature—conceived within the hidden workings of nature—is perceptible even in their taste. This salinity is present not only in tears but also in phlegm and in the sputum expelled by coughing, demonstrating that the nature of salt is infused throughout the human body. Therefore, when the Almighty Governor of all things wills to transform an entire being into one of its component elements, He spreads throughout the whole what was previously contained in a small part.

³ For this reason, when He chose to turn Lot’s wife into a pillar of salt, the tiny portion of salt naturally present in her flesh permeated her entire body. Thus, the One who completed the creation of all things on the sixth day did not mix different natures together, but rather preserved each one according to the order in which He originally established it.

Chapter 12: On Sarah, a Ninety-Year-Old Woman, Giving Birth to a Son #

¹ Around the same time, Sarah, the barren wife of Abraham—who had been chosen from among many nations to be a friend of God—gave birth to a son named Isaac when she was already ninety years old. Throughout her entire life until that point, she had been unable to conceive. However, this was most fitting because the son she bore prefigured Christ, who would be born of a virgin without any desire of human passion. Thus, it was appropriate that she did not give birth at the usual age for women—between twelve and forty-nine—but beyond the limits of that custom. In this way, the child would not only be born beyond the age of fifty, when childbirth naturally ceases, but even at the age of ninety, when the desire for pleasure has also ended. And although this was contrary to the usual course of events, it was not against nature, for while it is uncommon for an elderly woman to give birth, it is not against nature for a child to be conceived in a woman’s womb at any time.

Chapter 13: About the Well That Hagar Saw When She Was Cast Out with Her Son #

¹ When her son was born and weaned, the servant Hagar was cast out along with her son Ishmael, who was the firstborn. Wandering through the wilderness, she ran out of water and, as she and the boy were dying of thirst, she wept. But when an angel spoke to her and said, “The Lord has heard the voice of the boy,” her eyes were opened, and she saw a well in the wilderness.

² Regarding this well, it is reported in such a way that either it is revealed as having sprung forth from the earth at that moment, or, if it had already been there, Hagar’s eyes were opened at that time so that she could see what she previously had not been able to perceive.

Chapter 14: The Ram That Abraham Offered in Place of His Son #

¹ In order to make it clear to all that Abraham remained steadfast in his friendship with God, the Lord commanded him to offer his son Isaac—who was already grown—as a burnt offering on one of the mountains that He had designated. Abraham obeyed without hesitation and quickly set out for the place that God had shown him. Taking his son with him, he was on the verge of sacrificing him when an angel called out and told him not to harm the boy. At that moment, he saw a ram caught by its horns in the thicket. Following the angel’s instruction, he immediately offered the ram as a burnt offering in place of his son.

² But the presence of this ram in the wilderness raises a question: where did it come from? Some assert that it was brought forth from the earth at that very moment, just as God caused animals to be born from the earth at the beginning of creation. However, since we do not say that God created anything from the earth after the sixth day, perhaps we should believe that an angel transported the ram from elsewhere—just as an angel took Philip away from the Ethiopian eunuch and placed him in Azotus, or as an angel is said to have carried Habakkuk to Babylon to bring food to Daniel in the lions’ den.

Chapter 15: Concerning Jacob and Joseph; Why One Was Buried in the Promised Land and the Other in Egypt #

¹ After Isaac begot his sons Jacob and Esau, Jacob became the father of the twelve patriarchs. Out of jealousy, ten of his brothers sold Joseph into slavery in Egypt. Yet, even in a land of exile and captivity, Joseph became a source of salvation to the nations he encountered. He was entrusted with the administration of the entire Egyptian kingdom and given authority over the land of Egypt.

² Because of this, he invited his father Jacob and all his household to come to Egypt. Jacob lived there for sixteen years, and as the day of his death approached, he made his son Joseph swear an oath to carry his body to the burial place of his ancestors—the land of the promise. There, Abraham and Isaac lay with Sarah and Rebekah, and where Leah had also been laid to rest.

³ Joseph fulfilled this solemn oath through his actions, for he had his father’s body carried to the ancestral tomb. Yet, when he himself later died in Egypt, he did not immediately wish to be taken to his ancestral tomb after death. Instead, he accepted a burial place in Egypt for the time being and commanded that his bones be carried away when the people left Egypt, saying, “Carry my bones with you from here”.

⁴ Why, then, was one (Jacob) immediately transported to the tomb of Abraham in the Promised Land, while the other (Joseph) was buried in Egypt, to be carried away at a later time? Jacob never intermarried with foreign women, except for those who had come with him from Mesopotamia. For this reason, he was immediately taken in his entirety to his ancestral tomb after death. But Joseph, having taken Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, the priest of Heliopolis, as his wife, was mixed with foreign blood. Therefore, after his death, he was laid to rest in foreign soil.

⁵ Why, then, did he later wish to be brought to the Promised Land, when he had first been buried in Egypt? As a prophetic man, Joseph foresaw that the Egyptian people, devoted to idolatry, would at some point seek to worship him—he who had been the source of their earthly prosperity and had saved them from the danger of famine. And indeed, they did so. Near Joseph’s tomb, they set up the image of an ox, since the ox is a helper to men in agriculture. This is also why, when the Israelites in the wilderness sought to worship an idol, they did not make any other kind of statue but a calf—that is, an ox—primarily because Joseph had been worshiped in Egypt near his tomb in this way.

⁶ To prevent himself from becoming the object of Egyptian idolatry, Joseph, foreseeing the future exodus of the Israelites, said, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry my bones from here with you”. I have included this explanation here—not because it should be counted among the miracles—but so that I would not leave such a great span between Abraham and Moses without mentioning something worthy of remembrance.

Chapter 16: Moses and the Bush at Horeb #

¹ After the death of Joseph, the Egyptian nation began to oppress the people of Israel under the harshest yoke of slavery. They even ordered that their male infants be cast into the river to prevent the Israelites from increasing too greatly, and they commanded various forms of execution for them.

² During this time, Moses, the son of Amram, was born—a man of the Levite lineage. He rose up to avenge his people, and when he saw an Egyptian striking an Israelite, he killed him. When news of this event reached the king of Egypt, Moses fled from the land and spent forty years in exile, tending sheep in the land of Midian.

³ When the appointed time of the promise made to the patriarchs had arrived, as he was leading his flock through the pastures, he saw a burning bush on Mount Horeb that was not consumed by the fire. As he approached to investigate why the bush burned yet was not consumed, the Lord called to him from the midst of the bush, saying: “I am the Lord, the God of your fathers”.

⁴ “I will send you to Egypt, so that you may deliver their offspring from the yoke of oppression”. In this terrifying vision, the first thing that appears to us in our study is how the fire seemed to burn, yet the thing in which it burned was not consumed. If, therefore, the fire drew its sustenance from the material, why was the thing from which it grew not consumed? And if the flame that was visible did not arise from this material, why was it necessary for it to appear in the bush? It is said that there is a certain kind of shrub that, the more it burns, is not only not consumed but is rather purified through the burning.

⁵ Regarding this type of wood, Saint Jerome, in his explanation of the wooden altar that was shown in a vision of the Lord in the book of Ezekiel, says that it has a color similar to flax. However, while describing its nature, he refrains from naming it. If, therefore, the fire shown to Moses burned in the bush of such a tree, what wonder is it that it was in no way consumed? The nature of both fire and wood is preserved: for fire naturally burns wood, and yet the wood, though burning, is naturally not consumed by the fire.

⁶ Or rather, in that bush, the fire did not appear as the enemy of the tree, but rather as the fire of which it is said: “He makes his angels spirits, and his ministers a flaming fire”. The incorporeal fire, then, is revealed in the bush. And because it was shown to a corporeal man, it was necessary that it be manifested through some corporeal material.

Chapter 17: On the Two Signs: The Hand Turned to the Bosom and the Staff Changed into a Serpent #

¹ As Moses journeyed to Egypt, he was granted a double sign so that, in accordance with the testimony of three witnesses—himself and the two signs—the word might be confirmed. The staff, which Moses had carried in his hand as a shepherd of sheep, became a serpent when cast upon the ground. Likewise, when he placed his hand into his bosom, it became leprous the first time, but when he returned it to his bosom a second time, it was restored to health.

² However, there does not appear to be anything contrary to nature in what happened to his hand or the staff. For leprosy and health are conditions naturally inherent in human flesh, as is often demonstrated through alternating occurrences. Yet, the remarkable frequency and immediacy of this transformation—wherein the same hand appeared whole, then leprous and white, and once more whole in a single moment—presents to the observer a most extraordinary miracle.

³ Thus, the staff turning into a serpent and the serpent being restored to wood poses a challenge for those who seek to understand nature. However, since both—the staff and the serpent—are clearly said to have originated from the earth, it follows that what is drawn from the same substance can, by the power of God, be transformed from one into the other.

⁴ But if we were to concede that all things made from the earth can be changed into one another—so that an animal could turn into a tree, bread into a stone, or a human into a bird—then nothing would be able to remain firmly within the boundaries of its own nature. We would seem to be granting credibility to the ridiculous fables of magicians who claim that their ancestors flew through the ages in the form of birds. And in doing so, we would no longer regard God as the governor of nature but as one who changes natures—which is unthinkable. God forbid that we should believe He created something new after the first establishment of all natures, something that does not retain its own proper nature. For there is nothing new under the sun, nor can anyone say, “See, this is new”.

⁵ For this reason, many learned teachers say that the true staff, which always remained a branch in the hands of Moses, was transformed into the form of a serpent only in an imaginary sense, as a sign—especially since it was needed solely for the purpose of displaying a sign. For if it had truly been a serpent, then it would have remained a serpent even after the sign had been given. Indeed, it was truly a staff, the same one Moses used to strike Egypt with plagues. It was never changed into a serpent but always remained a staff. With this staff, the sea was divided, and the rock was struck in Horeb and Kadesh.

⁶ Therefore, if that serpent appeared only as an imaginary sign, why did it swallow the other serpents of the magicians before Pharaoh? Learned scholars can easily respond to this objection by saying that the magicians’ serpents were also imaginary. Thus, the illusion of a divine sign was able to consume what had been produced through the diabolical incantations of the magicians. According to this reasoning, the staff was not truly transformed into the nature of a serpent but was only changed in appearance as a sign. For there is nothing in the nature of a tree that could make it into a serpent. And so, except at the moment of the sign, what was naturally a staff was only seen as a serpent in a special, symbolic way.

Chapter 18: On the Water Turned into Blood #

¹ Thus, as Moses went forth into Egypt, he performed signs before Pharaoh as the Lord had commanded him. He proclaimed God’s decree to the king, demanding that he release the people of Israel. However, the king obstinately refused to obey the command of God. Consequently, at the Lord’s bidding, ten plagues struck the land of Egypt.

² First, he struck the waters and turned them into blood, so that all the water throughout Egypt was transformed. This change brought death to the creatures that lived within the waters and inflicted severe suffering upon the people through thirst and devastation.

³ This first act of divine retribution befell the Egyptians and their king appropriately. For just as they had ordered the infants of God’s people to be cast into the river, so too was the very water of that river turned into blood—bringing destruction to those who drank it and punishment to those who refrained.

⁴ Moreover, it is necessary to consider, in accordance with the purpose of this work, how God, the governor of nature, altered the water into blood by His divine power while still preserving the natural order. Water, therefore, as the fundamental substance of all liquids, undergoes constant transformation in the service of various things, being naturally and ceaselessly drawn into the nourishment and sustenance of each individual nature. When it is taken up by the vine, it is changed into the taste and color of wine. When it ascends through the lofty branches of the olive tree, this same water produces the richness of oil. When gathered by bees into honeycombs, it becomes the sweetness of honey. When processed through the strength of palm trees, it brings forth dates, and when pressed, it attains the pleasantness of palm wine. When assigned as food for various animals, it is distinguished into different kinds of blood within the same flesh.

⁵ Indeed, in nourishing offspring, it is transformed into milk—white in color and of the most delightful sweetness—within the udders. Meanwhile, in the rest of the body’s flesh, it takes on the red hue of blood. Furthermore, there are many types of blood within the same flesh—up to twenty-three, according to natural philosophers—among which they identify urine, seed, black and red bile, saliva, tears, and various other substances. Water, through its daily interactions with different things, prepares all these according to their nature.

⁶ What, then, prevents a mind of understanding from accepting that what normally takes a long time can be accomplished in an instant by the command of the Almighty Governor? Water being turned into blood is not contrary to nature; rather, what it usually accomplishes over time through various processes, it now achieves immediately at the Lord’s command within itself.

Chapter 19: Concerning the Other Plagues of Egypt #

¹ Regarding the other plagues by which God, through Moses—and Moses, through Aaron—punished Pharaoh, his land, and his servants, the simple account of these plagues clearly shows that nothing exceeded the limits of nature. For even though they occurred in greater numbers than usual at that time, frogs always originate from water; gnats arise from the dust in the summer heat of the sun; locusts and flies, driven by the sun’s intense heat, gather from all directions; cattle meet their natural end through various causes of death; dust, when disturbed, often darkens the clear sky; and the infected air generates blisters and, later, ulcers in both humans and animals. Hail and lightning fall from clouds that are frozen and violently agitated; and the absence of light impairs sight, so that the darkness grows more oppressive the farther the light withdraws. Moreover, death, which was first sown in Adam, reigns over all his descendants, and through it, the firstborn of all in Egypt were struck down with greater severity.

² But although all these things are naturally occurring, they befell the Egyptians in the form of plagues, coming upon them both suddenly and in greater measure than usual to curb their stubbornness. The sequence of these plagues increased not only in their variety but also in the agency by which they were brought about. The first three plagues were accomplished through Aaron. When he first struck the water, it immediately turned into blood. Then, when he stretched out the same staff over the water once more, a flood of frogs covered the land. And when he stretched out his staff over the dust of the earth for the third time, gnats swarmed forth. These three plagues, therefore, were brought about by Aaron.

³ The next three plagues are administered through the word of Moses. For at his command, locusts and flies appear, and the death of livestock follows. However, the next three plagues are not merely ordered by word but are summoned through the actions of Moses. Indeed, Moses took ashes from the furnace and scattered them toward the sky, and boils with festering sores broke out on both people and animals, spreading like dust throughout all the land of Egypt. Then, stretching out his staff toward the heavens, he called forth an extraordinary downpour of hail and lightning upon the earth. Again, Moses extended his staff toward the sky, and there came thick darkness—so dense that it could be felt—which lasted for three days and three nights, bringing terror over the land.

⁴ However, the final plague was not carried out by Aaron or even by Moses, but rather by the angel of the Lord, who passed through Egypt and struck down all the firstborn of the Egyptians.

⁵ Thus, whenever a punishment arises from the earth, it is carried out through Aaron, a minister of lower rank. When the punishment concerns flying creatures or the death of livestock—beings that move as though they fly over the land—it is enacted by the command of Moses. But when chastisement is summoned from the lofty clouds, it is invoked by Moses raising his hand to the heavens. And when the decree of human death is dispensed by God, it is entrusted not to a man but to an angel—so that those who had remained unshaken by the scourges afflicting their possessions might at last be moved by the grievous loss of their own firstborn and come to revere the common destruction that followed.

⁶ The plagues, moreover, encompassed every aspect of creation—earth, water, living creatures, air, fire, clouds, the heavens, and even the angels—demonstrating that the entire universe is armed against those who rebel and defy God. Just as all creation turns against those whom God intends to punish, so too does all creation aid those whom He chooses to help. Indeed, the Red Sea itself was divided for these two peoples: for one, it marked the end of all oppression; for the other, the beginning of utter destruction.

Chapter 20: On the Retreating and Dried-Up Red Sea #

¹ When the Egyptians, worn down by so many plagues, were finally compelled to release the Israelite people, they soon regretted their decision. Driven by this renewed determination, Pharaoh and his entire army pursued them, seeking to bring them back into slavery. The Israelites, finding themselves trapped by the narrow confines of the Red Sea, saw Moses stretch out his staff over the waters. At once, the waters of the Red Sea parted, and as the people entered, walking on dry ground, the path widened before them.

² Then God sent a strong wind, which blew throughout the night, turning the divided sea into dry land. Between the two groups, He placed a cloud—darkness for the Egyptians but a pillar of light for the Israelites—so that the pursuing army could not overtake them. Though Pharaoh’s forces entered the sea after Israel, what had become a path of salvation for one became a trap for the other. The cloud stood between them, casting darkness over the Egyptians, preventing them from reaching the Israelites, while illuminating the path through the depths for God’s people.

³ At dawn, the Israelites, now safe from both the sea and their enemies, reached the wilderness beyond. But the entire army of Pharaoh, without even a single survivor to bring word of their fate, was swallowed by the returning waters, sinking into the depths as the sea resumed its natural course.

⁴ From this extraordinary miracle of God, one particular aspect concerns our present discussion—how the retreating and dried-up sea was sustained. However, we do not find this difficult to explain, with God’s help, for we often observe frozen waters when ice forms on the surface of lakes. What naturally occurs when the wind and rain subside, allowing the lower air to freeze the waters, happened then by divine command, as God sent an icy wind that instantly drove back the sea. But just as the sea was dried up at His command, so too, at His word, it melted and returned to its fluid state, covering the land once more.

⁵ As for the retreat of the sea, we have already noted that we observe a similar phenomenon daily in the tidal ebb and flow of the ocean. From this, we can infer that just as the sea naturally recedes from the shore each day, so too, though in an entirely different and supernatural manner, God caused it to withdraw from its own shores at that moment.

Chapter 21: On the Harmonious Song of the Children of Israel #

¹ Considering the immense power that the Lord displayed in delivering them, the children of Israel, led by Moses, all together sang a harmonious song to the Lord. Here, a truly astonishing miracle took place, worthy of great wonder: all of them—elders and children alike, people of every age—moved by the same divine breath, sang in perfect harmony as if with one voice, without any prior instruction, uttering the same words in unison.

² Yet, in this instance, anyone who inquires into nature can rest assured: this was not the result of human ingenuity or practice but of the divine Spirit, who inspired both the hearts and voices of the singers. However, even among these singers, the same Spirit is not seen to have acted against nature, for breath and voice naturally move the tongue and lips to form words. What they could have achieved through effort and study, the Lord granted them in an instant—the ability to sing a harmonious song as one. The very One who had just opened the depths of the sea before them now guided their tongues and minds to utter such a song.

Chapter 22: On the Waters Made Sweet at Marah #

¹ After departing from the barren wilderness of birds, the Israelites, exhausted from three continuous days of travel, tormented by burning thirst, came to Marah, where they found waters that were unbearably bitter. Unable to drink them because of their salinity, they found no relief for their thirst. But the Lord showed Moses a piece of wood, and when he cast it into the water, its bitterness was transformed into sweetness. The people, refreshed by its pleasant taste, were relieved of the burning thirst that had wearied them unceasingly until that moment.

² But how can one who studies nature explain as natural the fact that, in an instant, bitter waters became sweet merely by contact with a piece of wood? What kind of wood could possess such a nature or such an extraordinary sweetness that, when dipped just once into the bitter stream, it immediately turned the water pleasant and drinkable? If someone were to cast a honeycomb into bitter water today, would not the honeycomb itself become bitter rather than the water becoming sweet?

³ From this, it is understood that the wood did not, by its own nature, make the water sweet, but rather, by the command of the Creator and Governor of nature, the water was transformed in taste. For the same is true of the staff with which Moses struck the Red Sea, as well as when it was used to strike the river, the sky, and the earth, bringing plagues upon the land of Egypt. That rod itself had no inherent natural power when Moses or Aaron raised it to perform these signs—whether to turn the river’s water into blood, to summon gnats from the dust, or to bring darkness from the sky. If anyone other than Moses, acting without God’s command, had struck the sea with that rod, the waters of the deep would certainly not have obeyed. And if someone were to strike the waters again by chance, they would certainly never turn into blood.

⁴ Likewise, that tree through which the bitter water at Marah was made sweet—if someone were to dip it into bitter liquid, and God did not command as He did the first time, then surely it would not transform the bitterness into a pleasant taste.

⁵ From this, we must understand that God did not command these pieces of wood, or even the dust from the furnace, to be involved in these miracles because their natural properties or their own power brought about the effects. Rather, through these elements, He intended to foreshadow future mysteries. It is for a wise teacher, through figurative interpretation, to discern what these things now signify in the growth of the Church.

⁶ Since we have established that the wood itself did not naturally cause these effects, it remains for us to explain how they occurred by nature. Whatever is discovered in anything through human effort, no matter how long the process, is not drawn from some foreign nature through human ingenuity. Instead, it already lies hidden within nature’s depths, waiting to be revealed by diligent effort and refined by the assistance of another element.

⁷ And what is accomplished through human effort or the long cultivation of things, nature itself performs by God’s will when necessity demands it. Therefore, sailors frequently confirm that bitter or even extremely salty waters can be turned into a sweet taste. They do this by filtering the water through soil of the finest earth, which, by this method, is also purified and often used to quench their thirst. Likewise, the clouds draw up salty vapors from the sea, yet when they rain, they provide fresh water for earthly needs. This happens because the defect of salinity, which the water has absorbed within itself, is removed through its passage into the earth or the clouds.

⁸ Similarly, fresh water, when drawn through the ashes of marine plants, acquires a salty taste, even stronger than that of the ocean. This transformation is naturally inherent in water itself, but it occurs more swiftly by the command of the Creator than by the efforts of human diligence and the processes of material elements.

⁹ Through the aid of one substance, human effort or the very operation of a thing can alter the surface properties of nature. However, the Creator and Governor of all things reveals a hidden nature within a substance itself—one that would otherwise have required another medium to be made manifest. Just as bitter water, when purified through soil or clouds, reveals the sweetness hidden within its own nature, so too, by the command of the Almighty Governor of nature, it is transformed by itself, without the assistance of any other element.

Chapter 23: On the Manna That Rained from Heaven #

¹ So, when they entered the wilderness, this people—about six hundred thousand foot soldiers ready for battle, not counting the mixed multitude, that is, the countless and diverse crowd that had come up from Egypt with them—was sustained by God for forty years with manna, that is, the bread from heaven. Indeed, the Psalmist later recalled this bread, saying, “He gave them bread from heaven; man ate the bread of angels”. It always descended at night, except on the night of the Sabbath, and with the dew, appearing around the camp with the whiteness of snow. For Scripture says it was “like coriander seed, and of the color of bdellium, white like snow”. However, it could not endure the rising sun but melted away at once. Yet, conversely, when gathered and ground in a mill, it withstood the heat of fire when baked into bread. And if anyone kept some of it until the morning of the next day, it became infested with worms—except for the portion stored in a full gomor measure inside the Ark, which remained whole and sound for a long time. In this wondrous and necessary sign, beyond those aspects that pertain to symbolic interpretation, there are matters that aid the minds of the diligent, requiring the enlightenment of explanation through the Lord’s guidance.

² The first question to consider is whether it is truly bread and how it is called the bread of angels. If that food is described as having nothing of an earthly nature, how can men, who are still on earth and subject to carnal vices, be sustained by it? For the Psalmist, as we have mentioned, writes in the verse that this bread is heavenly, given from the clouds along with the rain. These clouds, as we have previously said, are called “heavens” in the Scriptures. That food is called the bread of angels not because the angels, who do not require food, were nourished by it, but because such a gift was provided through the ministry of angels, just as the Law and other things were given to the people, which were ordained through angels in the hand of the Mediator. How, then, could it have sustained men of any kind unless it contained something earthly in its substance? But how can manna, which rained down from the clouds, be shown to have an earthly substance unless perhaps the lower part of the air itself retains some earthly nature? For how could it have borne the bodies of flying birds if the air did not contain some degree of earthly solidity? Therefore, that substance, along with the clouds supported by the nature of the earth itself, also congeals into snow and hail, which nearly attain the hardness of stones.

³ What, then, is so difficult for perceptive minds to accept if, just as clouds can form hailstones, they could also produce grains of manna? Especially since, when it descended to the earth, it would vanish like hail melting upon the ground if the rising sun found it, dissolving as if it were dew akin to it. Thus, it is possible that manna, generated within the lower regions of the air, provided sustenance to earthly men. Indeed, this lower part of the air is even called “earth” in divine Scripture, as seen in Psalm 148, where all creatures are exhorted by the prophetic spirit to praise the Lord, their Creator. After describing those things that pertain to the adornment of the higher heavens, the passage moves to the lower parts of the air, saying, “Praise the Lord from the earth,” continuing on to “all that fulfill His word”. Behold, the Prophet has called the denser air, thickened with clouds and vapors, “earth,” even before reaching the mention of the lower terrestrial regions that follow. Therefore, it was in this upper part of the earth, where hail and snow are formed, that manna was generated and, through the ministry of angels, was provided as food for the inhabitants of the lower part of the earth. From this, it is clear that God did not seek sustenance for His people outside of nature but prepared it from the earth. Not that God could not have provided them with ordinary bread daily, even in the wilderness, but rather, by feeding them from the clouds, He taught them that “man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God”. For just as He commanded nature to sustain man with bread, so too, if He so willed, He could provide for them from anything whatsoever—just as He then gave them sustenance from the rain of the clouds.

Chapter 24: The Rock Struck in Horeb #

¹ The same people, thirsting in the wilderness, asked for relief through drink. Therefore, Moses, their leader, at God’s command, struck the rock in Horeb with his staff, and water flowed from the rock. Here, the investigator of nature is perplexed as to how the nature of water can be hidden within hard stone. But does he not understand how, in the beginning, stones were formed from water—he who does not doubt that the nature of crystal, when snow remains frozen for a long time, hardens into the unchangeable solidity of stone? Especially when we often observe clumps of earth not arising from the soil itself but from the initial growth of moss on the tops of trees or cliffs, in which we later find small stones produced by the infusion of rain and the transformation of the moss into soil. We have also seen certain clayey lands, habitually covered by the flow of passing waters, turned into the hardness of stone. Among these, we even notice harder stones, as if from an earlier age, embedded in the very soil that had previously contained them.

² Just as we now see that certain concave oyster shells, once embedded in soft earth, have become incorporated into the natural hardness of stones, so too with other objects that the sea, over long ages, has cast upon the land. These often bear layers of accretions that appear not to have been lifted from the gravel of the sea but to have been concretely formed by the very quality of the marine moisture and the hardened outer surface of these bodies. Many marine creatures are also enclosed in shells of the same age, whose hardness surpasses that of most stones. From all these clear observations, any learned person would not deny that stones are now generated solely from water, and some from both water and earth, as the nature and consistency of tear-stone marble also indicate. Indeed, nature frequently transforms liquid into the hardness of stone, and likewise, it is seen to dissolve stone back into liquid. Moreover, as the history recorded in the book of Job relates, stone, when melted by heat, turns into liquid metal; but this could not occur unless it first became fluid in nature. Furthermore, every metal, no matter how hard, though it may not initially appear to be of a liquid nature, melts when subjected to fire. Since it is thus proven that the nature of stones is generated from the moisture of water, what prevents the reverse from happening—that by the will of God, the supreme governor, stone may be transformed into water, so that nature hastens to return to its original state—especially when God commands water to be drawn from the rock for His people?

Chapter 25: On the Sons of Moses and Why They Were Deprived of the Priesthood #

¹ After these events, the kinsman of Moses, having brought Zipporah, the wife of Moses, along with his two sons, caused Moses to hasten through the wilderness to meet them. Although he was a Gentile, by his counsel, when they reached the camp, captains over thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens were appointed among the people of God. However, a question arises regarding the sons of Moses—why they did not inherit their father’s leadership over the people and were even deprived of the priesthood, when the Psalmist declares, “Moses and Aaron among His priests”. Yet, this question is resolved by reasoning, since the sons of Moses were born of a Gentile mother during his time of wandering. Thus, it is written concerning Moses when he had his firstborn: “And he called his name Gershom, saying, ‘For I have been a stranger in a foreign land’”.

Chapter 26: On the Fast of Forty Days #

¹ Meanwhile, at God’s command, Moses fasted for forty days, and after delivering God’s people from Egypt through the ten plagues, on the fiftieth day from the celebration of the Passover in Egypt, he brought down the law of the Ten Commandments from Mount Sinai, inscribed on two stone tablets. However, when he saw the people’s sin, he shattered the tablets at the foot of the mountain in his anger. Then, after the same number of tablets, made of the same material, were restored, he fasted again for forty days and, through God’s gracious gift, was deemed worthy to receive the same commandments once more. Yet during this time, contrary to the usual human condition, he suffered no weariness from such prolonged fasting, nor did he consume any earthly food, for he was sustained by communion with God’s word, enabling him to endure such an extended period without nourishment.

Chapter 27: On the People Demanding Meat #

¹ Furthermore, a portion of the faithless people, inflamed with desire for meat, murmured against God, preferring the flesh pots of Egypt to the heavenly manna. When Moses found the matter unbearable, the Lord said, “Sanctify the people for tomorrow, for I will satisfy them with meat for a whole month”. But Moses, stirred by human weakness, replied, “Six hundred thousand foot soldiers make up this people, not counting the countless multitude—will an immense number of sheep and oxen be slaughtered for them, or will all the fish of the sea be gathered together to satisfy such a vast crowd?”. And so, to prevent anything conceived in Moses’ frail human mind from being used to feed the people, God acted according to His own power and will.

² A wind sent by the Lord came forth and carried over the sea quails, bringing them to the camp, where they flew at a height of two cubits above the ground around the camp, covering as much distance as a person could travel in a day. He introduced the ortygometra (a species of quail), which the people gathered and ate for a whole month, that is, for thirty days. But punishment followed the unbelievers for their murmuring. For in that place, before the people departed, those who had craved meat were struck down by the Lord’s wrath and buried there. Certainly, in this, nothing new or contrary to nature was provided by the Lord, who seems to have simply made available to His people, in their time of need, a species of bird that He had long ago created and hidden in some remote corner of the world. Although the Book of Wisdom states, “They saw a new kind of bird”, this means that it was newly revealed, not newly created. What God had formed in the beginning along with the rest of creation, He now provided for His people in their time of necessity. Nevertheless, He sent the quails again for this purpose, which, when previously given together with the manna, had caused no harm to those who ate them. This was done so that no one might think that eating the birds alone had brought about the people’s death apart from their sin of murmuring. For even in this punishment, He preserved those who ate with a clear conscience, and when the quails were previously given alongside the manna, they caused no harm to the entire multitude.

Chapter 28: On Moses’ Ethiopian Wife and the Leprosy of the Complaining Miriam #

¹ Later, because of Moses’ Ethiopian wife, Aaron and Miriam spoke arrogantly against him, even though The words of the Holy Spirit describe him as the meekest of all the people living on earth at that time. However, when God summoned only those three to the Tabernacle, Aaron was rebuked by the Lord’s words but was spared from punishment due to the anointing oil. Miriam, on the other hand, was stricken with leprosy, her body becoming white as snow, and was therefore commanded to remain outside the camp. Yet, when Moses prayed on her behalf, she was healed and restored on the seventh day.

² Regarding this Ethiopian wife of Moses, scholars hold two differing opinions. One view suggests that he married her while he was in Pharaoh’s household in Egypt and that she waited for him throughout his long period of wandering until he left Egypt at the age of forty. Another view holds that Moses took an Ethiopian wife when he returned to Egypt after his exile and that she accompanied him through the wilderness. Some also argue that Zipporah was called an Ethiopian, based on historical records that describe another Ethiopia to the north of the Red Sea, where the ancient Ethiopians once lived. Ecclesiastical history states that this region was adjacent to part of India. Additionally, the Canonical Chronicles of Eusebius report that the Ethiopians, having risen from the Indus River, eventually settled near Egypt. From this, it is understood that the land where the first Ethiopians dwelled could have been called Ethiopia. If Moses took his wife from that region, she would naturally have been referred to as an Ethiopian.

Chapter 29: On Korah, Dathan, and Abiram #

¹ Korah, the son of Izhar, from the tribe of Levi, the cousin of Moses and Aaron, along with Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On, the son of Peleth from the tribe of Reuben—along with two hundred and fifty men, leaders of the assembly who were called by name at the time of counsel—rose up in arrogant pride against Moses and Aaron. Korah sought to claim the priesthood for himself, while the others contended for leadership over the people.

² However, when Korah attempted to offer a burnt sacrifice to God without His command, a fire from heaven consumed him and those who followed him at the time of the offering. And as for those who exalted themselves and began to resist the ordination of God, the earth opened beneath their feet and, gaping wide, swallowed them into the underworld.

³ In this, it is clearly shown that both sentient and non-sentient creatures obey the command of God. Just as living beings swiftly respond to His command, so too do inanimate things, as if they were alive, carry out what is commanded. Yet, even though the earth executed this act of judgment as if it were a living thing, nothing in it happened contrary to its nature. For the earth is undeniably recognized as having a kind of insensible life, by which trees and plants grow and visibly move upon it. Just as pulsating veins course through living flesh, so too do flowing streams of water run through the earth. By this insensible life, at God’s command, the earth opened its mouth, and in serving as an instrument of divine punishment, it swallowed up the dwellings of the sinful men.

Chapter 30: The Plague That Struck the People When Moses Fled to the Tabernacle #

¹ On the following day, the entire people rose up against Moses and Aaron, as if they were guilty of bloodshed, and sought to kill them in vengeance. But both of them—Moses and Aaron—fled to the Tabernacle of God, and once again, a heavenly fire raged against the rebellious people. Then, at Moses’ command, Aaron took a censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and went out among the people; and the plague did not pass beyond the place where he stood between the living and the dead.

² Thus, with just governance on both sides, those who had burned inwardly with the fire of anger against their righteous leaders were outwardly consumed by the flames of divine justice. Yet those whose hearts had mercifully forgiven the faults of their neighbors were shielded by Aaron’s presence, and the fire sent from heaven did not dare to touch them. That day, the fire consumed fourteen thousand people.

Chapter 31: The Rod of Aaron That Blossomed #

¹ Those who were more severely burdened by the guilt of rebellion still remained. However, after the turmoil had subsided, so that everyone might clearly know whom the Lord had chosen for the priesthood, Moses commanded that the leaders of each of the twelve tribes bring forth their staffs, each inscribed with their respective names. For the tribe of Levi, he received Aaron’s staff, bearing his name. These he placed overnight before the Lord in the Tabernacle.

² The next morning, Aaron’s staff had sprouted buds and displayed blossoms of almond flowers, making it evident that God had chosen him above all others for the priesthood. Yet, even in this, the staff did not perform anything contrary to nature.

Chapter 32: The Rock Struck Twice at Kadesh #

¹ After some time, the people, suffering from thirst at Kadesh in the Wilderness of Zin, raised a bitter complaint against Moses and Aaron. When this matter was brought before the Lord by Moses, God commanded that the rock be struck with a staff. However, Moses, disturbed by the people’s persistent unbelief, wavered in his own faith in God’s command. In the presence of the assembly, he and Aaron struck the rock twice, and water gushed forth abundantly, quenching the people’s thirst. Yet, because of this act, Moses was denied entry into the Promised Land.

² Previously, at Horeb, the rock was struck only once, and there the people’s lack of faith alone was noted. However, at Kadesh in the Wilderness of Zin, the rock was struck twice, revealing not only the unbelief of the people but also the wavering faith of their leader.

Chapter 33: The Bronze Serpent #

¹ Once again, the people murmured against God, and in response, the Lord sent fiery serpents among them, which burned with their venomous breath and struck down many of the grumblers. Terrified by the punishment and moved to repentance, the survivors cried out to Moses and pleaded with the Lord to remove the plague from them.

² In His mercy, the Lord commanded Moses to fashion a bronze serpent and set it high on a staff before the people. As soon as it was raised, those who looked upon it were healed of their wounds caused by the serpents.

³ However, just as we previously mentioned regarding the staff and the tree that made the bitter water sweet, salvation did not come from the serpent itself but from obedience to the Lord’s command. Whatever He ordained at that time was the source of healing for the people. Yet, the events of this history were but a foreshadowing—the true power of salvation is now found in Christ and His Church.

Chapter 34: Balaam and His Donkey #

¹ Balak, the son of Zippor, when he learned that Israel had entered his land, sent messengers to summon Balaam, a soothsayer, so that he might curse the people of Israel. As Balaam was traveling, seated on his donkey, the animal saw an angel standing in a narrow path with a drawn sword and, out of fear, stopped three times, even after being beaten. Finally, after being struck even more severely, the donkey, like a distressed servant, spoke in human language. As soon as the donkey spoke, Balaam’s eyes were opened, and he saw the angel.

² In this extraordinary sign, although the donkey uttered words appropriate to the situation, it did not speak from its own mind or intent. Rather, the Lord—of whom it is said, “And the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey”—not only caused its mouth to open for speech but also directed its tongue and palate to form words. The donkey had no awareness of what it was saying or even that it was speaking at all. In the same way, those who speak under the influence of a foreign spirit are often unaware of what they say while speaking and retain no memory of it once they come to their senses.

³ But He who often revealed His ways of speaking both in the clouds and in fire also guided the tongue of a mute animal to form words, as if striking a harp with His hand. From this, we understand that the Lord changed nothing in the nature of the donkey, but rather, through the air passing from its mouth—even without the animal’s own awareness—He restrained the prophet’s ignorance. This was to show that the Spirit of the Lord, even when speaking through a person, should not lead them to arrogance, since they would frequently find that He also speaks through inanimate things, through a brute, mute, and even subordinate animal. For the Spirit of God blows where He wills, even if it does not align with the will of the one speaking.

⁴ Likewise, Saul, though he had come with wicked intent, incited by malice to kill the prophets, was seized by the Spirit of the Lord and found himself prophesying among those he had come to persecute. In the same way, Balaam, though brought to curse, and fully intending to do so, was unable to pronounce a curse upon God’s people. Instead, he was compelled by the Spirit of the Lord—against his own will—to bless them.

⁵ Thus, Balaam was permitted by the Lord to come for two reasons: first, so that his own folly would be refuted by a mute animal, and second, so that the coming of Christ, who was to be the Savior of the nations, might be written in the Law of God through a prophet of the Gentiles.

⁶ Throughout Israel’s entire journey, the pillar never failed to go before them by day, nor did the pillar of fire ever cease to appear before the people at night. By this, they were both shielded from the cold of the night and given light amid darkness. Likewise, they were protected from the heat of the sun during the day under the cloud. Truly, the Lord, the guardian of Israel, protects His people so that neither the sun burns them by day, nor does the moon strike them by night.

Chapter 35: Moses Ascends Mount Abarim #

¹ In the fortieth year after the Israelites had left Egypt, during their forty-second encampment in the plains of Moab by the Jordan, the people settled there. It was at this time that Moses proclaimed Deuteronomy, which means the repetition of the Law. Later, after appointing Joshua, the son of Nun from the tribe of Ephraim, as his successor to lead the people, Moses, following the Lord’s command, ascended alone to Mount Abarim—also called Mount Nebo. There, at the age of one hundred and twenty years, with his teeth still firm, his eyesight undimmed, and his body intact, he fulfilled the common destiny of all humanity.

² As wise men have observed, no one was made aware of either his death or his burial for two reasons. First, so that no one might see that face—once radiant from conversing with the Lord—now dimmed by the sorrow of death. And second, so that the people of Israel, had they known the location of his tomb, would not venerate it. For this same reason, he is believed to have taken away with him the staff by which he had performed signs, lest it too be worshiped, just as the Israelites later worshiped the bronze serpent he had made.

³ Moses’ life is divided into three periods of forty years. For forty years, he lived in Egypt, learning in Pharaoh’s household from his infancy. For another forty years, he was an exile from Egypt, dwelling in the house of the priest of Midian. And for the final forty years, he led the people through the wilderness.

⁴ Now that we have completed the historical narrative drawn from the Pentateuch, it is fitting that we conclude the first book here, concerning the wonders of God. The second book, which will focus on prophecy, will begin with Joshua, the son of Nun, and the crossing of the Jordan.