1 Objection 1: It seems that those who see the essence of God do not see all they see in Him at one and the same time. For according to the Philosopher Topic. ii): It may happen that many things are known, but only one is understood. But what is seen in God, is understood; for God is seen by the intellect. Therefore those who see God do not see all in Him at the same time.
1 Ad decimum sic proceditur. Videtur quod videntes Deum per essentiam non simul videant omnia quae in ipso vident. Quia, secundum philosophum, contingit multa scire, intelligere vero unum. Sed ea quae videntur in Deo, intelliguntur, intellectu enim videtur Deus. Ergo non contingit a videntibus Deum simul multa videri in Deo.
2 Objection 2: Further, Augustine says Gen. ad lit. viii, 22, 23), God moves the spiritual creature according to time, that is, by intelligence and affection. But the spiritual creature is the angel who sees God. Therefore those who see God understand and are affected successively; for time means succession.
2 Praeterea, Augustinus dicit, VIII super Gen. ad litteram, quod Deus movet creaturam spiritualem per tempus, hoc est per intelligentiam et affectionem. Sed creatura spiritualis est Angelus, qui Deum videt. Ergo videntes Deum, successive intelligunt et afficiuntur, tempus enim successionem importat.
3 On the contrary, Augustine says De Trin. xvi): Our thoughts will not be unstable, going to and fro from one thing to another; but we shall see all we know at one glance.
3 Sed contra est quod Augustinus dicit, ultimo de Trin., non erunt volubiles nostrae cogitationes, ab aliis in alia euntes atque redeuntes; sed omnem scientiam nostram uno simul conspectu videbimus.
4 I answer that, What is seen in the Word is seen not successively, but at the same time. In proof whereof, we ourselves cannot know many things all at once, forasmuch as understand many things by means of many ideas. But our intellect cannot be actually informed by many diverse ideas at the same time, so as to understand by them; as one body cannot bear different shapes simultaneously. Hence, when many things can be understood by one idea, they are understood at the same time; as the parts of a whole are understood successively, and not all at the same time, if each one is understood by its own idea; whereas if all are understood under the one idea of the whole, they are understood simultaneously. Now it was shown above that things seen in God, are not seen singly by their own similitude; but all are seen by the one essence of God. Hence they are seen simultaneously, and not successively.
4 Respondeo dicendum quod ea quae videntur in verbo, non successive, sed simul videntur. Ad cuius evidentiam considerandum est, quod ideo nos simul non possumus multa intelligere, quia multa per diversas species intelligimus; diversis autem speciebus non potest intellectus unus simul actu informari ad intelligendum per eas, sicut nec unum corpus potest simul diversis figuris figurari. Unde contingit quod, quando aliqua multa una specie intelligi possunt, simul intelliguntur, sicut diversae partes alicuius totius, si singulae propriis speciebus intelligantur, successive intelliguntur, et non simul; si autem omnes intelligantur una specie totius, simul intelliguntur. Ostensum est autem quod ea quae videntur in Deo, non videntur singula per suas similitudines, sed omnia per unam essentiam Dei. Unde simul, et non successive videntur.
5 Reply to Objection 1: We understand one thing only when we understand by one idea; but many things understood by one idea are understood simultaneously, as in the idea of a man we understand animal and rational; and in the idea of a house we understand the wall and the roof.
5 Ad primum ergo dicendum quod sic unum tantum intelligimus, inquantum una specie intelligimus. Sed multa una specie intellecta simul intelliguntur, sicut in specie hominis intelligimus animal et rationale, et in specie domus parietem et tectum.
6 Reply to Objection 2: As regards their natural knowledge, whereby they know things by diverse ideas given them, the angels do not know all things simultaneously, and thus they are moved in the act of understanding according to time; but as regards what they see in God, they see all at the same time.
6 Ad secundum dicendum quod Angeli, quantum ad cognitionem naturalem qua cognoscunt res per species diversas eis inditas, non simul omnia cognoscunt, et sic moventur, secundum intelligentiam, per tempus. Sed secundum quod vident res in Deo, simul eas vident.