But when heaven and earth and the things which were therein had been created as it is written by Moses, the twelve angels of the Mother were divided into four authorities and each quarter, he says, is called a river, (to wit) Phison and Gihon, Tigris and Euphrates, as Moses says: [Sidenote: p. 231.] These twelve angels visiting the four parts encompass and arrange the world, having a certain satrapial[308] power over the world by the authority of Edem. But they abide not always in their own places, but as it were in a circular dance, they go about exchanging place for place, and at certain times and intervals giving up the places assigned to them. When Phison has rule over the places, famine, distress and affliction come to pass in that part of the world, for miserly is the array of these angels. And in like manner in each of the quarters according to the nature and power of each, come evil times and troops of diseases. And evermore the flow of evil according to the rule of the quarters, as if they were rivers, by the will of Edem goes unceasingly about the world.
But from some such cause as this did the necessity of evil come about.[309] When Elohim had built and fashioned [Sidenote: p. 232.] the world from mutual pleasure, he wished to go up to the highest parts of heaven and to see whether any of the things of creation lacked aught. And he took his own angels with him, for he was (by nature) one who bears upward, and left below Edem, for she being earth did not wish to follow her spouse on high. Then Elohim coming to the upper limit of heaven and beholding a light better than that which himself had fashioned, said: “Open unto me the gates that I may enter in and acknowledge the Lord: For I thought that I was the Lord.”[310] And a voice from the light answered him, saying: “This is the gate of the Lord (and) the just enter through it.” And straightway the gate was opened, and the Father entered without his angels into the presence of the Good One and saw “what eye has not seen nor ear heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man.” Then the Good One says to him, “Sit thou on my right hand.”[311] But the Father says to the Good One: “Suffer me, O Lord, to overturn the world which I have made; for my spirit is bound in men and I wish to recover it.” Then says the Good One to him: “While with me thou canst do no evil; for thou and Edem made the world from mutual pleasure. Let therefore Edem hold creation [Sidenote: p. 233.] while she will;[312] but do thou abide with me.” Then Edem knowing that she had been abandoned by Elohim was grieved, and sat beside her own angels and adorned herself gloriously lest haply Elohim coming to desire of her should descend to her.