What metaphor does Boethius use to describe God's perspective on time?

Boethius uses the metaphor of someone looking from a lofty peak to illustrate God's transcendence and omniscience concerning time. In this metaphor, God is depicted as being outside of time and space, able to see all of history—past, present, and future—in one eternal moment. This viewpoint emphasizes that while humans experience time linearly and sequentially, God perceives the entirety of time simultaneously, just as someone on a high mountain can see a vast landscape all at once rather than being limited to the view available at ground level.

This understanding aligns with Boethius's views on free will and divine foreknowledge, where he argues that God's knowledge is not constrained by temporal limitations. Instead, God's perspective allows for a complete understanding and observation of human actions without interfering with human free will. Consequently, this metaphor effectively captures the essence of Boethius's explanation of God's relationship to time, highlighting the contrast between human temporal experience and divine eternity.