1. Given that everyone, (both) cosmic gods and humans, says that nothing existed before Chaos, in contrast to them, I will prove all of them to be in error, because they are ignorant of the origin of Chaos and of its root as well. The proof is here:
2. When it comes to the topic of Chaos, how it pleases all people to claim that it is a type of darkness, when it actually originates from a shadow called by the name “Darkness,” and the shadow originates from a created entity that has existed from the beginning.
3. Furthermore, it clearly existed before Chaos came to be, and the latter came to exist subsequent to the former created entity.
4. Consequently, let us occupy ourselves with the realities of the case, and in addition to this, with the first created entity, out of which Chaos was propelled, and thus will the truth be clearly proven.
1. After the natural form of the deathless entities had finished evolving out of infinity, at that time a likeness, who is called Sophia, emanated from Pistis.
2. She exerted her will and became a created entity like the primordial light, and straightaway her will displayed itself in the likeness of heaven, possessing an incomprehensible size which was between the deathless entities and those entities that came to be after they had, resembling [...].
3. She acted like a veil that separated humanity from the entities above.
4. Now, the aeon of Truth possesses no external shadow, because the infinite light dwells inside it everywhere.
5. However, its exterior is a shadow called by the name “Darkness,” from which appeared a host which ruled above the darkness, and the hosts that came to be after them called the shadow “Infinite Chaos,” from which every type of divinity sprung upwards [...] together with the entire place, with the additional result that shadow is subsequent to the first created entity.
6. It appeared ‹inside› the Abyss, originating from the previously mentioned Pistis.
7. The shadow next realized that something more powerful than it existed, and grew envious, and when it had grown pregnant by its own will, it straightaway gave birth to jealousy.
8. From that day, the law of jealousy prevailing among all the aeons and their worlds has been evident.
9. Now, regarding that jealousy, it was discovered to be an abortion lacking all spirit inside it.
10. It came to be as a shadow inside an immense aqueous substance.
11. The bile that had come to be from the shadow was next thrust into a section of Chaos.
12. From that day, an aqueous substance has been evident, and that which sank down inside of it gushed away while it was visible inside Chaos.
13. Like the case of a woman who gives birth to a child, when all her accumulated matter gushes out, even so, matter came to be from out of a shadow, and was propelled away from it, and it did not exit from Chaos.
1. Instead, matter dwelt inside Chaos, dwelling inside one of its sections, and when these things had transpired, Pistis then arrived and manifested above the matter of Chaos, which had been ejected like an aborted fetus, given that nothing of spirit dwelt in it, because it was completely infinite darkness and bottomless water.
2. When Pistis had seen what resulted from her defect, she then grew troubled, and the troubling manifested as a frightful created entity which hastened to her in the Chaos.
3. She turned herself toward it and blew into its face inside the Abyss, which dwells beneath all the heavens, and when Pistis Sophia willed that the entity without spirit would be formed into a likeness and would rule over matter, as well as over all her hosts, an androgynous archon looking like a lion manifested itself for the first time from out of the waters, possessing great authority inside himself, and not knowing from where he had come to be.
4. Now, as Pistis Sophia watched him moving around inside the watery depths, she said to him, “Child, pass over to here,” which is the same as yalda-baoth.
5. From that day, the law of verbal articulation manifested itself, which extended to the gods, and to the angels, and to humanity, and what had come to be as a consequence of verbal articulation was completed by the gods, and the angels, and humanity.
6. Now, regarding the archon Yaltabaoth, he was unaware of the force of Pistis, not seeing her face, but instead seeing in the water the likeness that conversed with him, and on account of that voice, he called himself “Yald‹ab›aoth.”
7. “Ariael,” however, is what the perfect ones call him, because he resembled a lion.
8. Now, when he had gained authority over matter, Pistis Sophia retreated up into her light.