Confessions - Book Xii - Chapter Xii
St. Augustine explores the nature of God's eternal immutability contrasted with the temporal creation of heaven and earth, emphasizing God's sovereign act in bringing order from formlessness.
In this profound exposition, St. Augustine reflects on the eternal nature of God contrasted with the temporal creation of the universe. He delves into the formless state of the earth before God’s creative act and explains how God brought order and form to creation. This sermon invites listeners to contemplate the immutability of God and the ordered beauty of the created world as an expression of divine sovereignty.
Text
15. These things I have considered as thou hast given me ability, O my God, as thou hast excited me to knock, and as thou hast opened to me when I knock. Two things I find which thou hast made, not within intervals of time, although neither is coeternal with thee. One of them is so formed that, without any wavering in its contemplation, without any interval of change--mutable but not changed--it may fully enjoy thy eternity and immutability. The other is so formless that it could not change from one form to another (either of motion or of rest), and so time has no hold upon it. But thou didst not leave this formless, for, before any \"day\" in the beginning, thou didst create heaven and earth--these are the two things of which I spoke.
But \"the earth was invisible and unformed, and darkness was over the abyss.\" By these words its formlessness is indicated to us--so that by degrees they may be led forward who cannot wholly conceive of the privation of all form without arriving at nothing. From this formlessness a second heaven might be created and a second earth--visible and well formed, with the ordered beauty of the waters, and whatever else is recorded as created (though not without days) in the formation of this world. And all this because such things are so ordered that in them the changes of time may take place through the ordered processes of motion and form.
Sermon Outline
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I. The Nature of God’s Eternity
- God’s immutability and eternal nature
- Distinction between mutable creation and immutable God
- God’s existence beyond time
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II. The Formless Beginning of Creation
- Description of earth as invisible and unformed
- Darkness over the abyss as indication of formlessness
- God’s creative act bringing order and form
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III. The Ordered Creation of Heaven and Earth
- Creation of visible heaven and earth with form
- Role of time and motion in creation
- God’s sovereignty in ordering creation
Key Quotes
“These things I have considered as thou hast given me ability, O my God, as thou hast excited me to knock, and as thou hast opened to me when I knock.” — St. Augustine
“One of them is so formed that, without any wavering in its contemplation, without any interval of change--mutable but not changed--it may fully enjoy thy eternity and immutability.” — St. Augustine
“The earth was invisible and unformed, and darkness was over the abyss.” — St. Augustine
Application Points
- Recognize and trust in God’s unchanging nature amid life’s uncertainties.
- Appreciate the ordered beauty of creation as a reflection of God’s sovereignty.
- Contemplate the mystery of God’s existence beyond time and change.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Augustine mean by God’s immutability?
He means that God is unchanging and eternal, existing beyond the constraints of time and change.
How does Augustine describe the state of the earth before creation?
He describes it as invisible, unformed, and covered in darkness, indicating a formless void.
What is the significance of time in Augustine’s explanation?
Time applies to the created order and change, but God exists outside of time, unchanging.
Why does Augustine emphasize the distinction between mutable creation and immutable God?
To highlight God’s transcendence and the divine nature as fundamentally different from created things.