the words of Isa. 40:12, "Who hath
measured the waters in the hollow of His hand," etc. It also contains
matters relating to human conduct, according to Isa. 58:1, "Deal thy
bread to the hungry," etc.; and besides this it contains things
pertaining to future events, according to Isa. 47:9, "Two things
shall come upon thee suddenly in one day, barrenness and widowhood."

Since, however, prophecy is about things remote from our knowledge,
it must be observed that the more remote things are from our
knowledge the more pertinent they are to prophecy. Of such things
there are three degrees. One degree comprises things remote from the
knowledge, either sensitive or intellective, of some particular man,
but not from the knowledge of all men; thus a particular man knows by
sense things present to him locally, which another man does not know
by human sense, since they are removed from him. Thus Eliseus knew
prophetically what his disciple Giezi had done in his absence (4
Kings 5:26), and in like manner the secret thoughts of one man are
manifested prophetically to another, according to 1 Cor. 14:25; and
again in this way what one man knows by demonstration may be revealed
to another prophetically.

The second degree comprises those things which surpass the knowledge
of all men without exception, not that they are in themselves
unknowable, but on account of a defect in human knowledge; such as
the mystery of the Trinity, which was revealed by the Seraphim
saying: "Holy, Holy, Holy," etc. (Isa. 6:3).

The last degree comprises things remote from the knowledge of all
men, through being in themselves unknowable; such are future
contingencies, the truth of which is indeterminate. And since that
which is predicated universally and by its very nature, takes
precedence of that which is predicated in a limited and relative
sense, it follows that revelation of future events belongs most
properly to prophecy, and from this prophecy apparently takes its
name. Hence Gregory says (Hom. i super Ezech.): "And since a prophet
is so called because he foretells the future, his name loses its
significance when he speaks of the past or present."

Reply Obj. 1: Prophecy is there defined according to its proper
signification; and it is in this sense that it is differentiated from
the other gratuitous graces.

Reply Obj. 2: This is evident from what has just been said. We might
also reply that all those things that are the matter of prophecy have