all incorruptible
things, have their perfection at once from the beginning. Hence the
angelic and the Divine intellect have the entire knowledge of a thing
at once and perfectly; and hence also in knowing the quiddity of a
thing they know at once whatever we can know by composition, division,
and reasoning. Therefore the human intellect knows by composition,
division and reasoning. But the Divine intellect and the angelic
intellect know, indeed, composition, division, and reasoning, not by
the process itself, but by understanding the simple essence.

Reply Obj. 1: Composition and division of the intellect are made by
differentiating and comparing. Hence the intellect knows many things
by composition and division, as by knowing the difference and
comparison of things.

Reply Obj. 2: Although the intellect abstracts from the phantasms, it
does not understand actually without turning to the phantasms, as we
have said (A. 1; Q. 84, A. 7). And forasmuch as it turns to the
phantasms, composition and division of the intellect involve time.

Reply Obj. 3: The likeness of a thing is received into the intellect
according to the mode of the intellect, not according to the mode of
the thing. Wherefore something on the part of the thing corresponds
to the composition and division of the intellect; but it does not
exist in the same way in the intellect and in the thing. For the
proper object of the human intellect is the quiddity of a material
thing, which comes under the action of the senses and the
imagination. Now in a material thing there is a twofold composition.
First, there is the composition of form with matter; and to this
corresponds that composition of the intellect whereby the universal
whole is predicated of its part: for the genus is derived from common
matter, while the difference that completes the species is derived
from the form, and the particular from individual matter. The second
comparison is of accident with subject: and to this real composition
corresponds that composition of the intellect, whereby accident is
predicated of subject, as when we say "the man is white."
Nevertheless composition of the intellect differs from composition of
things; for in the latter the things are diverse, whereas composition
of the intellect is a sign of the identity of the components. For the
above composition of the intellect does not imply that "man" and
"whiteness" are identical, but the assertion, "the man is white,"
mean