Tripartite Tractate 2

1If, then, he is incomprehensible, consequently, he cannot be known, and he is ungraspable by any thought, invisible to everything, unspeakable by any words, beyond the touch of any hand. Only he knows himself as he [] is, and his form and his greatness and his scale as they are. And because he can conceive of himself, see himself, name himself, and comprehend himself, he is the only one whose own mind, own eye, own mouth, own form are equivalent to his own being. And so he is what he conceives of, what he sees, what he speaks, what he comprehends, being what is inconceivable, unspeakable, ungraspable, and unchanging, whereas what he conceives of, sees, and speaks of, what he has thought of, is sustenance, joyful, true, pleasing, and restful. He surpasses all wisdom, and is above all mind, and all glory, and all beauty, and all sweetness, and all greatness, and every depth and every height.

2The one unknowable in nature, possessing all the great attributes I listed, if from the riches of his sweetness wants to grant the knowledge to know him, he can do this. His power to do this is his will. Nevertheless, in silence the great one restrains himself, who causes the Totalities to come forth into their eternal existence.

3[] Strictly speaking, he begets himself in an unspeakable mode, because only he is self-begotten, because conceived from himself, and because he knows himself as he is. He makes whatever deserves his respect and glory and honor and praise out of his infinite greatness, and his unsearchable wisdom, and his immeasurable power, and his sweetness beyond taste. He projects himself in the mode of generation, receiving glory and praise, honor and love, and he glorifies and praises himself, giving himself honor and love. In this way he has a Son, subsisting in him, remaining silent about him, being unspeakable in the unspeakable one, invisible in the invisible one, ungraspable in the ungraspable one, incomprehensible in the incomprehensible one.

4In this way the Son exists in the Father forever. As we explained previously, in an unbegotten mode the Father knows himself in himself, who begot himself by thought, the thought about him, being the perceiving [] of himself, the [. . .] of his eternal nature. However, strictly speaking, that is the silence and the wisdom and the gift, if in this manner it is named properly. As the Father, strictly speaking, exists, before whom no [one else existed], and apart from [whom] there is no other who is unbegotten, so [the Son] also, strictly speaking, exists, before whom no one else existed, and after whom no other son will exist. He is, therefore, a Firstborn and only Son. He is the Firstborn because no one exists before him, and he is an only Son because no one will be after him. Moreover, he has his fruit, being what cannot be known because of its transcendent greatness. He, nevertheless, willed his fruit to become known, out of the riches of his sweetness. And he revealed inexplicable might, and he mingled it with the great wealth of his generosity.