The Pleroma in the Septuagint: The Waters Above the Heavens
In the Septuagint, the Greek word πλήρωμα (plērōma) appears in several passages that describe the created world, including the sea, the heavens, and the earth. While a surface reading might interpret plērōma simply as the fullness or abundance of the physical world, from a Valentinian perspective, it refers to something deeper: not a spiritual abstraction outside the cosmos, but a corporeal, material, atomic realm that undergirds and completes all things—the Pleroma.
The Pleroma is not beyond or separate from the universe; it is within the universe. It is not immaterial or incorporeal, but composed of atoms—though of a finer, incorruptible order. It is tangible and physical, the structured totality of the divine emanations (Aeons), arranged in atomic harmony. It is this structured realm that gives coherence and fullness to all creation.
Psalm 148:4–5 – “Waters Above the Heavens”
“Praise Him, O highest heavens, and you waters above the heavens. Let them praise the name of the LORD, for He gave the command and they were created.”
In this passage, the “waters above the heavens” are not to be interpreted as mere poetic metaphor. Valentinians understand this to signify the corporeal Pleroma—a structured material realm composed of atoms, distinct from earthly seas yet just as physical. These waters are the atomic fullness above the visible sky, located above the firmament, in a higher layer of the Natural World.
The Aeons, who proceed from Bythos (the Depth), dwell within this upper atomic structure—a realm made of atoms not subject to decay. These “waters above” are not mystical abstractions but part of the same universe, organized in higher form. They represent the Pleroma as a physical foundation, supporting the visible heavens from above with ordered atomic configuration.
1 Chronicles 16:32 – “The Sea and Its Fullness”
“Let the sea roar, and the fullness [πλήρωμα] thereof.”
While this verse speaks of the sea and its fullness, a Valentinian reading understands the plērōma as more than just natural abundance. The sea, often a symbol of the unstable and chaotic lower world, is shown here as being filled—not with emptiness or randomness, but with something from above. That something is the atomic order of the Pleroma, which descends to bring structure and meaning.
The Pleroma does not originate from the sea, but pours into it, infusing even the turbulent depths with the divine arrangement of atoms that reflects the harmony of the Aeons. The sea's fullness is its participation in the structured, atomic plērōma.
Psalm 89:11 – “The World and Its Fullness”
“The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine: the world and the fullness [πλήρωμα] thereof, thou hast founded them.”
Here, both heaven and earth, and the plērōma of the world, are described as founded by the Deity. From a Valentinian view, this founding is atomic and corporeal. The fullness is not merely spiritual in an abstract sense—it is the divine atomic structure emanating from the Aeons, configuring the world into a coherent and purposeful whole.
The Pleroma is not a distant realm but the material source of divine order, present within the universe, layered above the visible sky, yet constructed from the same fundamental substance—atoms, only in incorruptible form. The plērōma is thus the unseen but real foundation that upholds all that exists.
Psalm 96:11 – “Let the Sea Roar and the Earth Be Glad”
“Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fullness [πλήρωμα] thereof.”
This verse portrays a universal rejoicing that includes heaven, earth, and sea. The plērōma of the sea allows it to participate in this harmony—not because it is spiritualized, but because it is being ordered by the atomic emanations of the Aeons. Valentinian teaching sees the sea’s fullness as the result of the material descent of Aeonic structure into the lower realms.
This is not immaterial influence, but corporeal transformation—the extension of atomic order from the Pleroma into the Natural World. The Pleroma does not exist in a realm of pure spirit; it exists as material structure, hidden but real, composed of atoms that do not decay.
Psalm 98:7 – “The World and They That Dwell Therein”
“Let the sea roar, and the fullness [πλήρωμα] thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.”
This passage highlights the inclusiveness of divine order. The sea, again a figure of chaos, is made full by the descending order of the Pleroma. The plērōma is atomic reality—the Aeons’ tangible, incorruptible emanations, extending their harmony into the lower world.
The world and its inhabitants, seen through this lens, are not abandoned or left to entropy. They are destined to be configured by the same atomic structure that upholds the heavens. The fullness of the sea and the world is the result of their material incorporation into the Pleroma’s order, not by spiritual elevation, but by atomic reconstitution.
Conclusion
The word πλήρωμα (plērōma) in the Septuagint holds far more than a poetic meaning when viewed through the Valentinian lens. It describes not merely the fullness of nature, but a corporeal, atomic structure that sustains all creation. The Pleroma is not beyond the universe but exists within it—above the heavens, yet just as material and physical as the lower world, only in a form not subject to decay.
Psalm 148 describes the waters above the heavens—not a spiritual dimension, but a tangible, atomic domain. 1 Chronicles 16, Psalms 89, 96, and 98 all show how the plērōma extends into the sea and the world, bringing harmony and structure.
The Pleroma is composed of atoms in their most refined, incorruptible state, forming the Aeons who transmit divine order throughout the cosmos. This is not a realm of shadows or metaphors—it is real, structured, and physical. It is the atomic source of fullness, the material cause behind the harmony and completeness of all creation.
Through this understanding, the Pleroma emerges not as something outside the world, but as its deepest layer, its atomic root, and its ultimate end.
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