Fragments

From the Discourse on Soul and Body.

II.

From the Discourse on Soul and Body.^[1]

For this reason did the Father send His Son from heaven without a bodily form, that, when He should put on a body by means of the Virgin’s womb, and be born man, He might save man, and gather together those members of His which death had scattered when he divided man.

And further on:—The earth shook, and its foundations trembled; the sun fled away, and the elements turned back, and the day was changed into night: for they could not endure the sight of their Lord hanging on a tree. The whole creation was amazed, marvelling and saying, “What new mystery, then, is this? The Judge is judged, and holds his peace; the Invisible One is seen, and is not ashamed; the Incomprehensible is laid hold upon, and is not indignant; the Illimitable is circumscribed, and doth not resist; the Impossible suffereth, and doth not avenge; the Immortal dieth, and answereth not a word; the Celestial is laid in the grave, and endureth! What new mystery is this?” The whole creation, I say, was astonished; but, when our Lord arose from the place of the dead, and trampled death under foot, and bound the strong one, and set man free, then did the whole creation see clearly that for man’s sake the Judge was condemned, and the Invisible was seen, and the Illimitable was circumscribed, and the Impassible suffered, and the Immortal died, and the Celestial was laid in the gave. For our Lord, when He was born man, was condemned in order that He might show mercy, was bound in order that He might loose, was seized in order that He might release, suffered in order that He might feel compassion,^[2] died in order that He might give life, was laid in the grave that He might raise from the dead.^[3]

From the Discourse on the Cross.

III.

From the Discourse on the Cross.^[4]

On these accounts He came to us; on these accounts, though He was incorporeal, He formed for Himself a body after our fashion,^[5]—appearing as a sheep, yet still remaining the Shepherd; being esteemed a servant, yet not renouncing the Sonship; being carried in the womb of Mary, yet arrayed in the nature of His Father; treading upon the earth, yet filling heaven; appearing as an infant, yet not discarding the eternity of His nature; being invested with a body, yet not circumscribing the unmixed simplicity of His Godhead; being esteemed poor, yet not divested of His riches; needing sustenance inasmuch as He was man, yet not ceasing to feed the entire world inasmuch as He is God; putting on the likeness of a servant, yet not impairing^[6] the likeness of His Father. He sustained every character^[7] belonging to Him in an immutable nature: He was standing before Pilate, and at the same time was sitting with His Father; He was nailed upon the tree, and yet was the Lord of all things.

On Faith.

IV.

On Faith.^[8]

We have collected together extracts from the Law and the Prophets relating to those things which have been declared concerning our Lord Jesus Christ, that we may prove to your love that this Being is perfect reason, the Word of God; He who was begotten before the light; He who is Creator together with the Father; He who is the Fashioner of man; He who is all in all; He who among the patriarchs is Patriarch; He who in the law is the Law; among the priests, Chief Priest; among kings, the Ruler; among prophets, the Prophet; among the angels, Archangel; in the voice of the preacher, the Word; among spirits, the Spirit; in the Father, the Son; in God, God; King for ever and ever. For this is He who was pilot to Noah; He who was guide to Abraham; He who was bound with Isaac; He who was in exile with Jacob; He who was sold with Joseph; He who was captain of the host with Moses; He who was the divider of the inheritance with Jesus the son of Nun; He who in David and the prophets announced His own sufferings; He who put on a bodily form in the Virgin; He who was born in Bethlehem; He who was wrapped in swaddling-clothes in the manger; He who was seen by the shepherds; He who was glorified by the angels; He who was worshipped by the Magi; He who was pointed out by John; He who gathered together the apostles; He who preached the kingdom; He who cured the lame; He who gave light to the blind; He who raised the dead; He who appeared in the temple; He who was not believed on by the people; He who was betrayed by Judas; He who was apprehended by the priests; He who was condemned by Pilate; He who was pierced in the flesh; He who was hanged on the tree; He who was buried in the earth; He who rose from the place of the dead; He who appeared to the apostles; He who was carried up to heaven; He who is seated at the right hand of the Father; He who is the repose of those that are departed; the recoverer of those that are lost; the light of those that are in darkness; the deliverer of those that are captive; the guide of those that go astray; the asylum of the afflicted; the bridegroom of the Church; the charioteer of the cherubim; the captain of the angels; God who is from God; the Son who is from the Father; Jesus Christ the King for evermore. Amen.

Part V.

V.^[9]

This is He who took a bodily form in the Virgin, and was hanged upon the tree, and was buried within the earth, and suffered not dissolution; He who rose from the place of the dead, and raised up men from the earth—from the grave below to the height of heaven. This is the Lamb that was slain; this is the Lamb that opened not His mouth.^[10] This is He who was born of Mary, fair sheep of the fold. This is He that was taken from the flock, and was led to the slaughter, and was slain in the evening, and was buried at night; He who had no bone of Him broken on the tree; He who suffered not dissolution within the earth; He who rose from the place of the dead, and raised up the race of Adam from the grave below, This is He who was put to death. And where was He put to death? In the midst of Jerusalem. By whom? By Israel: because He cured their lame, and cleansed their lepers, and gave light to their blind, and raised their dead! This was the cause of His death. Thou, O Israel, wast giving commands, and He was being crucified; thou wast rejoicing, and He was being buried; thou wast reclining on a soft couch, and He was watching in the grave and the shroud.^[11] O Israel, transgressor of the law, why hast thou committed this new iniquity, subjecting the Lord to new sufferings—thine own Lord, Him who fashioned thee, Him who made thee, Him who honoured thee, who called thee Israel? But thou hast not been found to be Israel: for thou hast not seen God, nor understood the Lord. Thou hast not known, O Israel, that this was the first-born of God, who was begotten before the sun, who made the light to shine forth, who lighted up the day, who separated the darkness, who fixed the first foundations, who poised the earth, who collected the ocean, who stretched out the firmament, who adorned the world. Bitter were thy nails, and sharp; bitter thy tongue, which thou didst whet; bitter was Judas, to whom thou gavest hire; bitter thy false witnesses, whom thou stirredst up; bitter thy gall, which thou preparedst; bitter thy vinegar, which thou madest; bitter thy hands, filled with blood. Thou slewest thy Lord, and He was lifted up upon the tree; and an inscription was fixed above, to show who He was that was slain. And who was this? (that which we shall not say is too shocking to hear, and that which we shall say is very dreadful: nevertheless hearken, and tremble.) It was He because of whom the earth quaked. He that hung up the earth in space was Himself hanged up; He that fixed the heavens was fixed with nails; He that bore up the earth was borne up on a tree; the Lord of all was subjected to ignominy in a naked body—God put to death! the King of Israel slain with Israel’s right hand! Alas for the new wickedness of the new murder! The Lord was exposed with naked body: He was not deemed worthy even of covering; and, in order that He might not be seen, the luminaries turned away, and the day became darkened^[12] because they slew God, who hung naked on the tree. It was not the body of our Lord that the luminaries covered with darkness when they set,^[13] but the eyes of men. For, because the people quaked not, the earth quaked; because they were not affrighted, the earth was affrighted. Thou smotest thy Lord: thou also hast been smitten upon the earth. And thou indeed liest dead; but He is risen from the place of the dead, and ascended to the height of heaven, having suffered for the sake of those who suffer, and having been bound for the sake of Adam’s race which was imprisoned, and having been judged for the sake of him who was condemned, and having been buried for the sake of him who was buried.

And further on:—This is He who made the heaven and the earth, and in the beginning, together with the Father, fashioned man; who was announced by means of the law and the prophets; who put on a bodily form in the Virgin; who was hanged upon the tree; who was buried in the earth; who rose from the place of the dead, and ascended to the height of heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of the Father.

Part VI.

VI.^[14]

He that bore up the earth was borne up on a tree. The Lord was subjected to ignominy with naked body—God put to death, the King of Israel slain!

From the Work on the Passover.

Fragments.^[15]

I.

From the Work on the Passover.^[16]

When Servilius Paulus was proconsul of Asia, at the time that Sagaris^[17] suffered martyrdom, there arose a great controversy at Laodicea concerning the time of the celebration of the Passover, which on that occasion had happened to fall at the proper season;^[18] and this treatise was then written.^[19]

From the Apology Addressed to Marcus Aurelius Antoninus.

II.

From the Apology Addressed to Marcus Aurelius Antoninus.^[20]

For the race of the pious is now persecuted in a way contrary to all precedent, being harassed by a new kind of edicts^[21] everywhere in Asia. For unblushing informers, and such as are greedy of other men’s goods, taking occasion from the orders issued, carry on their robbery without any disguise, plundering of their property night and day those who are guilty of no wrong.

If these proceedings take place at thy bidding,^[22] well and good.^[23] For a just sovereign will never take unjust measures; and we, on our part, gladly accept the honour of such a death. This request only we present to thee, that thou wouldst first of all examine for thyself into the behaviour of these reputed agents of so much strife, and then come to a just decision as to whether they merit death and punishment, or deserve to live in safety and quiet. But if, on the contrary, it shall turn out that this measure, and this new sort of command, which it would be unbecoming to employ even against barbarian foemen, do not proceed from thee, then all the more do we entreat thee not to leave us thus exposed to the spoliation of the populace.

For the philosophy current with us flourished in the first instance among barbarians;^[24] and, when it afterwards sprang up among the nations under thy rule, during the distinguished reign of thy ancestor Augustus, it proved to be a blessing of most happy omen to thy empire. For from that time the Roman power has risen to greatness and splendour. To this power thou hast succeeded as the much desired^[25] possessor; and such shalt thou continue, together with thy son,^[26] if thou protect that philosophy which has grown up with thy empire, and which took its rise with Augustus; to which also thy more recent ancestors paid honour, along with the other religions prevailing in the empire. A very strong proof, moreover, that it was for good that the system we profess came to prevail at the same time that the empire of such happy commencement was established, is this—that ever since the reign of Augustus nothing untoward has happened; but, on the contrary, everything has contributed to the splendour and renown of the empire, in accordance with the devout wishes^[27] of all. Nero and Domitian alone of all the emperors, imposed upon by certain calumniators, have cared to bring any impeachment against our doctrines. They, too, are the source from which it has happened that the lying slanders on those who profess them have, in consequence of the senseless habit which prevails of taking things on hearsay, flowed down to our own times.^[28] But the course which they in their ignorance pursued was set aside by thy pious progenitors, who frequently and in many instances rebuked by their rescripts^[29] those who dared to set on foot any hostilities against them. It appears, for example, that thy grandfather Adrian wrote, among others, to Fundanus, the proconsul then in charge of the government of Asia. Thy father, too, when thou thyself wast associated with him^[30] in the administration of the empire, wrote to the cities, forbidding them to take any measures adverse to us: among the rest to the people of Larissa, and of Thessalonica, and of Athens, and, in short, to all the Greeks. And as regards thyself, seeing that thy sentiments respecting the Christians^[31] are not only the same as theirs, but even much more generous and wise, we are the more persuaded that thou wilt do all that we ask of thee.

From the Same Apology.

III.

From the Same Apology.^[32]

We are not those who pay homage to stones, that are without sensation; but of the only God, who is before all and over all, and, moreover, we are worshippers of His Christ, who is veritably God the Word^[33] existing before all time.

From the Book of Extracts.

IV.

From the Book of Extracts.^[34]

Melito to his brother Onesimus, greeting:—

As you have often, prompted by your regard for the word of God, expressed a wish to have some extracts made from the Law and the Prophets concerning the Saviour, and concerning our faith in general, and have desired, moreover, to obtain an accurate account of the Ancient Books, as regards their number and their arrangement, I have striven to the best of my ability to perform this task: well knowing your zeal for the faith, and your eagerness to become acquainted with the Word, and especially because I am assured that, through your yearning after God, you esteem these things beyond all things else, engaged as you are in a struggle for eternal salvation.

I accordingly proceeded to the East, and went to the very spot where the things in question were preached and took place; and, having made myself accurately acquainted with the books of the Old Testament, I have set them down below, and herewith send you the list. Their names are as follows:—

The five books of Moses—Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy; Joshua,^[35] Judges, Ruth, the four books of Kings, the two of Chronicles, the book of the Psalms of David, the Proverbs of Solomon, also called the Book of Wisdom, Ecclesiastes, the Song of Songs, Job, the books of the prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, of the twelve contained in a single book, Daniel, Ezekiel, Esdras. From these I have made my extracts, dividing them into six books.

From the Catena on Genesis.

V.

From the Catena on Genesis.^[36]

In place of Isaac the just, a ram appeared for slaughter, in order that Isaac might be liberated from his bonds. The slaughter of this animal redeemed Isaac from death. In like manner, the Lord, being slain, saved us; being bound, He loosed us; being sacrificed, He redeemed us…

For the Lord was a lamb, like the ram which Abraham saw caught in the bush Sabec.^[37] But this bush represented the cross, and that place Jerusalem, and the lamb the Lord bound for slaughter.

For as a ram was He bound, says he concerning our Lord Jesus Christ, and as a lamb was He shorn, and as a sheep was He led to the slaughter, and as a lamb was He crucified; and He carried the cross^[38] on His shoulders when He was led up to the hill to be slain, as was Isaac by his father. But Christ suffered, and Isaac did not suffer: for he was but a type of Him who should suffer. Yet, even when serving only for a type of Christ, he smote men with astonishment and fear.

For a new mystery was presented to view,—a son led by his father to a mountain to be slain, whose feet he bound together, and laid him on the wood of the sacrifice, preparing with care^[39] whatever was necessary to his immolation. Isaac on his part is silent, bound like a ram, not opening his mouth, nor uttering a sound with his voice. For, not fearing the knife, nor quailing before the fire, nor troubled by the prospect of suffering, he sustained bravely the character of the type of the Lord. Accordingly there lies Isaac before us, with his feet bound like a ram, his father standing by, with the knife all bare in his hand, not shrinking from shedding the blood of his son.

Two Scholia on Genesis XXII. 13.

VI.

Two Scholia on Gen. 22:13.^[40]

The Syriac and the Hebrew use the word “suspended,”^[41] as more clearly typifying the cross.

The word Sabek^[42] some have rendered remission,^[43] others upright,^[44] as if the meaning, agreeing with the popular belief, were—a goat walking erect up to a bush, and there standing erect caught by his horns, so as to be a plain type of the cross. For this reason it is not translated, because the single Hebrew word signifies in other languages^[45] many things. To those, however, who ask it is proper to give an answer, and to say that Sabek denotes lifted up.^[46]

On the Nature of Christ.

VII.

On the Nature of Christ.^[47]

For there is no need, to persons of intelligence, to attempt to prove, from the deeds of Christ subsequent to His baptism, that His soul and His body, His human nature^[48] like ours, were real, and no phantom of the imagination. For the deeds done by Christ after His baptism, and especially His miracles, gave indication and assurance to the world of the Deity hidden in His flesh. For, being at once both God and perfect man likewise, He gave us sure indications of His two natures:^[49] of His Deity, by His miracles during the three years that elapsed after His baptism; of His humanity, during the thirty similar periods which preceded His baptism, in which, by reason of His low estate^[50] as regards the flesh, He concealed the signs of His Deity, although He was the true God existing before all ages.

From the Oration on Our Lord's Passion.

VIII.

From the Oration on Our Lord’s Passion.^[51]

God has suffered from the right hand of Israel.^[52]

From 'The Key.'

IX.^[53]

Head of the Lord—His simple Divinity; because He is the Beginning and Creator of all things: in Daniel. (Dan. 7:9; Dan. 7:13; Dan. 7:22)

The white hair of the Lord, because He is “the Ancient of Days:” as above.

The eyes of the Lord—the Divine inspection: because He sees all things. Like that in the apostle: For all things are naked and open in His eyes.” (Heb. 4:13)

The eyelids of the Lord—hidden spiritual mysteries in the Divine precepts. In the Psalm: “His eyelids question, that is prove, the children of men.” (Ps. 11:4)

The smelling of the Lord—His delight in the prayers or works of the saints. In Genesis: “And the Lord smelled an odour of sweetness.” (Gen. 8:21)

The mouth of the Lord—His Son, or word addressed to men. In the prophet, “The mouth of the Lord hath spoken;” (Isa. 1:20) and elsewhere, “They provoked His mouth to anger.” (Lam. 1:18)

The tongue of the Lord—His Holy Spirit. In the Psalm: “My tongue is a pen.” (Ps. 45:1)

The face of the Lord—His manifestation. In Exodus, “My face shall go before thee;” (Exod. 33:14) and in the prophet, “The face of the Lord divided them.” (Lam. 4:16)

The word of the Lord—His Son. In the Psalm: “My heart hath uttered a good word.” (Ps. 45:1)

The arm of the Lord—His Son, by whom He hath wrought all His works. In the prophet Isaiah: “And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?” (Isa. 53:1)

The right hand of the Lord—that is, His Son; as also above in the Psalm: “The right hand of the Lord hath done valiantly.” (Ps. 118:16)

The right hand of the Lord—electio omnis. As in Deuteronomy: “In His right hand is a fiery law.” (Deut. 33:2)

The wings of the Lord—Divine protection. In the Psalm: “In the shadow of Thy wings will I hope.” (Ps. 57:1)

The shoulder of the Lord—the Divine power, by which He condescends to carry the feeble. In Deuteronomy: “He took them up, and put them on His shoulders.” (Deut. 33:12)

The hand of the Lord—Divine operation. In the prophet: “Have not my hands made all these things?” (Isa. 66:2)

The finger of the Lord—the Holy Spirit, by whose operation the tables of the law in Exodus are said to have been written; (Exod. 34:1) and in the Gospel: “If I by the finger of God cast out demons” (Luke 11:20)

The fingers of the Lord—The lawgiver Moses, or the prophets. In the Psalm: “I will regard the heavens,” that is, the books of the Law and the Prophets, “the works of Thy fingers.” (Ps. 8:3)

The wisdom of the Lord—His Son. In the apostle: “Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God;” (1 Cor. 1:24) and in Solomon: “The wisdom of the Lord reacheth from one end to the other mightily.”^[54]

The womb of the Lord—the hidden recess of Deity out of which He brought forth His Son. In the Psalm: “Out of the womb, before Lucifer, have I borne Thee.” (Ps. 110:3)

The feet of the Lord—His immoveableness and eternity. In the Psalm: “And thick darkness was under His feet.” (Ps. 18:9)

The throne of the Lord—angels, or saints, or simply sovereign dominion.^[55] In the Psalm: “Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever.” (Ps. 45:6; Ps. 5; Ps. 29)

Seat—the same as above, angels or saints, because the Lord sits upon these. In the Psalm: “The Lord sat upon His holy seat.” (Ps. 47:8)

The descent of the Lord—His visitation of men. As in Micah: “Behold, the Lord shall come forth from His place; He shall come down trampling under foot the ends of the earth.” (Mic. 1:3) Likewise in a bad sense. In Genesis: “The Lord came down to see the tower.” (Gen. 11:3)

The ascent of the Lord—the raising up of man, who is taken from earth to heaven. In the Psalm: “Who ascendeth above the heaven of heavens to the east.” (Ps. 68:33)

The standing of the Lord—the patience of the Deity, by which He bears with sinners that they may come to repentance. As in Habakkuk: “He stood and measured the earth; (Hab. 3:6) and in the Gospel: “Jesus stood, and bade him be called,” (Mark 10:49) that is, the blind man.

The transition of the Lord—His assumption of our flesh, through which by His birth, His death, His resurrection, His ascent into heaven, He made transitions, so to say. In the Song of Songs: “Behold, He cometh, leaping upon the mountains, bounding over the hills.” (Song 2:8)

The going^[56] of the Lord—His coming or visitation. In the Psalm.

The way of the Lord—the operation of the Deity. As in Job, in speaking of the devil: “He is the beginning of the ways of the Lord.” (Job 40:19)

Again: The ways of the Lord—His precepts. In Hosea: “For the ways of the Lord are straight, and the just shall walk in them.” (Hos. 14:10)

The footsteps of the Lord—the signs of His secret operations. As in the Psalm: “And Thy footsteps shall not be known.” (Ps. 77:19)

The knowledge of the Lord—that which makes men to know Him. To Abraham He says: “Now I know that thou fearest the Lord;” (Gen. 22:12) that is, I have made thee to know.

The ignorance of God^[57]is His disapproval. In the Gospel: “I know you not.” (Luke 13:25)

The remembrance of God—His mercy, by which He rejects and has mercy on whom He will. So in Genesis: “The Lord remembered Noah;” (Gen. 8:1) and in another passage: “The Lord hath remembered His people.” (Esth. 10:12)

The repentance of the Lord—His change of procedure.^[58] As in the book of Kings: “It repented me that I have made Saul king.” (1 Sam. 15:11)

The anger and wrath of the Lord—the vengeance of the Deity upon sinners, when He bears with them with a view to punishment, does not at once judge them according to strict equity. As in the Psalm: “In His anger and in His wrath will He trouble them.” (Ps. 2:5)

The sleeping of the Lord—when, in the thoughts of some, His faithfulness is not sufficiently wakeful. In the Psalm: “Awake, why sleepest Thou, O Lord?” (Ps. 44:23)

The watches of the Lord—in the guardianship of His elect He is always at hand by the presence of His Deity. In the Psalm: “Lo! He will not slumber nor sleep.” (Ps. 121:4)

The sitting of the Lord—His ruling. In the Psalm: “The Lord sitteth upon His holy seat.” (Ps. 47:8)

The footstool of the Lord—man assumed by the Word; or His saints, as some think. In the Psalm: “Worship ye His footstool, for it is holy.”

The walking of the Lord—the delight of the Deity in the walks of His elect. In the prophet: “I will walk in them, and will be their Lord.” (Ezek. 37:27)

The trumpet of the Lord—His mighty voice. In the apostle: “At the command, and at the voice of the archangel, and at the trumpet of God, shall He descend from heaven.”^[59]

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