Now that Philosophy has laid the foundation of the true nature of knowledge, she can discuss God’s nature, so we can see his knowledge. God is eternal, possessing perfect life forever, possessing all of time as his “now.” Therefore, God knows all things simultaneously, discerning between events that occur out of necessity and those that do not, so that we act freely, even while God knows perfectly what we will do in advance. No human being can evade God’s all-encompassing foreknowledge, which never changes, and indeed which is logically prior to future events, controlling them. But because God’s knowledge does not force people to act, they still have true free will; God can justly reward and punish the righteous and the wicked; and we can pray effectively. We must then pursue virtue with reliance on God, living before him.

Written in the 6th-century from a prison cell as the author awaits execution for a crime he did not commit, The Consolation of Philosophy is a dialogue between Boethius and a mysterious woman—Lady Philosophy—who helps him rediscover wisdom and virtue.

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