1-9:9
Ἀλλ οὐδὲ θυσίαις πολλαῖς καὶ πλοκαῖς ἀνθῶν τιμῶμεν, οὓς ἄνθρωποι μορφώσαντες καὶ ἐν ναοῖς ἱδρύσαντες θεοὺς προσωνόμασαν, ἐπεὶ ἄψυχα καὶ νεκρὰ ταῦτα γινώσκομεν καὶ θεοῦ μορφὴν μὴ ἔχοντα (οὐ γὰρ τοιαύτην ἡγούμεθα τὸν θεὸν ἔχειν τὴν μορφήν, ἣν φασί τινες εἰς τιμὴν μεμιμῆσθαι), ἀλλ ἐκείνων τῶν φανέντων κακῶν δαιμόνων καὶ ὀνόματα καὶ σχήματα ἔχειν. Τί γὰρ δεῖ εἰδόσιν ὑμῖν λέγειν,ἃ τὴν ὕλην οἱ τεχνῖται διατιθέασι ξέοντες καὶ τέμνοντες καὶ χωνεύοντες καὶ τύπτοντες; Καὶ ἐξ ἀτίμων πολλάκις σκευῶν διὰ τέχνης τὸ σχῆμα μόνον ἀλλάξαντες καὶ μορφοποιήσαντες θεοὺς ἐπονομάζουσιν. Ὅπερ οὐ μόνον ἄλογον ἡγούμεθα, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐφ ὕβρει τοῦ θεοῦ γίνεσθαι, ὃς ἄῤῥητον δόξαν καὶ μορφὴν ἔχων ἐπὶ φθαρτοῖς καὶ δεομένοις θεραπείας πράγμασιν ἐπονομάζεται. Καὶ ὅτι οἱ τούτων τεχνῖται ἀσελγεῖς εἰσι καὶ πᾶσαν κακίαν, ἵνα μὴ καταριθμῶμεν, ἔχουσιν, ἀκριβῶς ἐπίστασθε· καὶ τὰς ἑαυτῶν παιδίσκας συνεργαζομένας φθείρουσιν.Ὤ τῆς ἐμβροντησίας, ἀνθρώπους ἀκολάστους θεοὺς εἰς τὸ προσκυνεῖσθαι πλάσσειν λέγεσθαι καὶ μεταποιεῖν, καὶ τῶν ἱερῶν, ἔνθα ἀνατίθενται, φύλακας τοιούτους καθιστάναι, μὴ συνορῶντας ἀθέμιτον καὶ τὸ νοεῖν ἢ λέγειν ἀνθρώπους θεῶν εἶναι φύλακας
我們也不用許多祭物與花環去尊崇那些人手所塑、設立在廟中、稱之為神的偶像，因為我們知道這些乃是無生命、死的東西，並無神的形像（我們並不以為神有那種形狀，就是有人所說、為尊崇祂而摹仿的那種），反倒是有那些顯現過的惡鬼的名稱與形狀。我們何必向你們這些已知道的人說明工匠如何處理材料——又刮、又削、又鑄、又錘呢？他們常把不值錢的器皿，藉手藝僅僅改變形狀、塑成偶像，就稱之為神。我們認為這不僅是無理的，更是對神的侮辱——祂既有不可言喻的榮耀與形像，竟被人安在那些必朽壞、需人服事的物件之上。至於這些偶像的工匠是放蕩的、滿有各樣的惡——不必一一細數——你們都確切知道；他們連與自己同工的婢女也加以玷污。何等的瘋狂啊！竟說那些放縱無度的人塑造、改製諸神供人敬拜，又立這等人作偶像所安放之廟宇的守護者，卻不曉得連想或說「人是諸神的守護者」都是不法的！
Nor do we honor with many sacrifices and garlands of flowers those whom men have shaped and set up in temples and named gods, since we know them to be lifeless and dead things that have not the form of God (for we do not suppose God to have such a form as some say is imitated in his honor), but rather to have the names and shapes of those wicked demons who appeared. For why need we tell you, who know it, what the craftsmen do with the material—scraping and cutting and casting and hammering? And often, out of vessels of no worth, by their art they merely change the shape and fashion an image, and call them gods. This we hold to be not only irrational but also done in insult to God, who, having ineffable glory and form, is named over corruptible things that need care. And that the craftsmen of these are licentious and possess every kind of vice—not to enumerate them—you know exactly; they even corrupt their own slave-girls who work with them. O the madness, that licentious men should be said to fashion and to remake gods for worship, and to appoint such men as guardians of the temples where they are set up, not perceiving that it is unlawful even to think or say that men are guardians of gods!