Ante-Nicene Christian Library; Translations Of The Writings Of The Fathers Down To A.D. 325, Volume 2: Justin Martyr and Athenagoras

발행: 1867년

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resolving them in his violent rage into thoir original and pristine formation iram earth. These things Homor and Plato, having learned in Egypt hom the ancient histories,

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320JUSTIN'S HORTATORI A RE

CHAP. XXXI.-Further proos of Plataea aequaintanee with Soripture.

after the wind an eariliquae, but the Lord was not in theeariliquae; and aster the eariliquas a fro, but the LordWas not in the firo ; and astor tho firo a still smali voico V But theso things pious men must underatand in a hi ersenso with profound and meditative insight. But Plato, notattending to the words With tho fuit te insight, said that God Oxisis in a fieo substanee.

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festly transferred to what he calis virtve. For as the sacredpropheis say that one and the samo spirit is dividod intoseven spiriis, so he also, naming it one and the fame Viriue,

says this is dividod into four virtves; mishing by ali means to avoid montion of the Holy Spirit, but clearly declaring ina hind of allegory what tho propheis sald of the Ηοly Spirit.

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322JUSTINE HORTATOR F AD ESS

Let us maho man in our imago and likeness,' these persons, under tho impression stat this meant that mon moro like God

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mCHAP. XXXV.-Appeal to the Greeis. Τho time, then, ye men os Graece, is noW come, that Π, having been persuaded by the secular historios that Μosos and tho rest of the propheis Were far more ancient than any of those Who have been est med sages among you, abandonthe ancient delusion of your foresathera, and read the divine histories of the propheis, and ascertain hom them the true religion; lax they do not present to Du arisul discourses, nor

profess to leach stat philosophy Which is falsely so cassed, it

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their oWn opinions somelimes in one Way, fometimes in

another.

seriousness and truth he was confessing his ignorance: But

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the others Who wrote the fame things concerning one God.

d you may in pari eastly learn the right religion homthe ancient Sibyl, who by somo hind of potent inspirationteaches Fou, throuo her oracular predictions, truths whichseem to be much ahin to the teaching of the propheis. She, they say, Was oi Babylonian extraction, being the daughteros Berosus, Who Wrote the Chaldaean History; and whenino had crossed Over ho , Ι know not) into the region os Campania, sile there ultered her oracular svings in a ci called Cumae, fix miles from Baiae, Where the hol springs of Campania are found. And being in that citri We saW also a certain place, in Which We were sho n a very large basilica

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326JUSTINE HORTATORY AD ESScut out of one stone; a Vast allair, and mortis of ali admiration. And thoy who had heard it fram their fastora as partos stola counto's tradition, told us that it Was hero ine modis publish her oracles. And in tho midiae of tho basilica they sh-ed us three receptacles cui out of one stone, in Which, when filled with mater, they said that sho Washed, and having put on her robe again, retires into tho inmost chambor of tho basilica, Which is stili a part of the one stone; and sitiing in tho middis of tho chamber on a lito rostrum and throne, thus proclaims her oraclos. And both by many othor Writers has the Sibyl been mentioned as a prophetes' andalso is Plato in his Phoedrus. And Plato seems to me to have counted propheta divinely inspired When he read her prophecies. For lio μου that what she had long ago predicted Was accomptished ; and on this account he expresses in the Dialoguemith Mono his Wonder at and admiration os propheta in theselloming tems: Those Whom me noW cali prophetic persons Wo inould rightly name divine. And not least Would me saythat they are divino, and are raised to the prophetic ecfiasy by the inspiration and possession os God, When they correctlyspeah of many and important matters, and yet know nothingos What they are saying, lainly and manifestly referring totho prophecies of ths Sibyl. For, unlike the poets Who, after their poems are penned, have poWer to correct and polisti, specialty in the way of increasing the accura of thela Verse, sho was filiod indoed with prophecy at tho timo of the inspira

Often ment quite astru from the accura of the metres; and this, they sail Was the cause of the want of metre in

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some of the verses, ins prophetem haring no remembrance of what ino had sald, aiter the possession and inspirationceased, and the reporters having, throuo their lach of educ tion, fallod in record tho metres With accura . And on this account, it is manifest that Plato had an e to the pro

in a clear and patent manner, the advent of our Saviour

in ali tho Worid, and who by some hind of potent inspiration

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both teaches us in hex oracular ulterances concerning thoso that are. called gods, that they have no existenco; and also clearly and manifestly prophesies concerning the predicted advent oi our Saviour Jesus Christ, and concerning ali thosethings Which wero in be dono by Him. For the knowledgo of theso things Will constitute your necessary preparatorytraining for the study of the prophecies of the sacred writers. And is any one supposes that he has learned tho doctrine concerning God hom the most ancient of those whom youname philosophers, let him listen to Ammon and Μercu tto Ammon, Who in his discourso concerning God calis Himwholly hidden; and to Mercu , Who says plainly and distinctin that it is dissiculi to comprehend God, and that itis impossibio even ior tho man who can comprehend Him todeclare Him to others.' From every potnt of VieW, therelare, it must be seen that in no other Way than only hom the propheis Who teach us is divine inspiration, is it at ali possibioto leam anSthing concerning God and the true religion.

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