Against Heresies: Book II
In the first book, which comes right before this one, addressing "knowledge falsely so called," I showed you, my very dear friend, that the entire system created, in many and opposite ways, by those of the Valentinian school, was false and baseless. I also presented the beliefs of their predecessors, proving that they not only disagreed among themselves but had long previously strayed from the truth itself. I further explained, with great care, the doctrine and practice of Marcus the magician, since he also belongs to these people; and I carefully noted the passages they distort from the Scriptures to fit their own fictions.
Moreover, I described in detail how, using numbers and the twenty-four letters of the alphabet, they boldly attempt to establish what they consider truth. I also explained how they think and teach that creation as a whole was formed after the image of their invisible Pleroma, and what they believe regarding the Demiurge, sharing at the same time the doctrine of Simon Magus of Samaria, their progenitor, and all those who followed him. I mentioned, too, the multitude of those Gnostics who have sprung from him, and noted the differences between them, their various doctrines, and the order of their succession, while I set forth all the heresies they started.
I showed, moreover, that all these heretics, stemming from Simon, have introduced impious and irreligious doctrines into this life; and I explained the nature of their "redemption," and their method of initiating those considered "perfect," along with their invocations and mysteries. I also proved that there is one God, the Creator, and that He is not the result of any defect, nor is there anything either above Him or after Him. In this current book, I will establish those points that fit with my plan, as time allows, and overthrow, through in-depth treatment under distinct headings, their entire system.
For this reason, since it is an exposure and subversion of their views, I have titled the composition of this work accordingly. It is fitting, through a clear revelation and overthrow of their unions, to put an end to these hidden connections, and to Bythus himself, and thereby to demonstrate that he never existed at any previous time, nor does he exist now.