Ante-Nicene Christian Library; Translations Of The Writings Of The Fathers Down To A.D. 325, Volume 12: The Writings Of Clement Of Alexandria, Volume 2

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es, but also the abandonment os idolatry, Were necemary. StratotWay, on tho revelation of the truth, they also repented of their previous conduci.

abandoned themselves to destruction, as persons Who havethrown themselves voluntarily hom a shil' into the sea. They, then, are those that hear the divine pomer and Volce. r Who in his senses can suppose the fouis of the righteous and thoso of sinners in the fame condemnation, charging

3 εὐηγγελίσθαι used actively sor εὐαγγελίσαι, M iam immediately alter

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330 THE MISCEL MES.

of the Stromata, stat the apostles, sollowing the Lota, preached the gospei to those in Hades. For it Was requisite, in myopinion, that as here, so also there, the best of tho discipies should bo imitators of tho Master; so that He should bring to repentanco those belonging to the HebreWs, and theytho Gentiles; stat is, those Who had lived in righteoumem according to the LaW and Philosophy, Who had en led liis notpersectiy, but sinsvlly. For it Was fuit te in tho divino

administration, that those possessed os greater Worth in right- eousness, and whose lise had been pre-eminent, on repentingos their transgressions, though found in another place, yet

profession there; since God's punishments are saving and disciplina , leading to conversion, and choosing rather therepentance than the deast os a sinner ; and Ospecialty sincesouis, although darhened by passions, When rete ed fromtheir bodies, are ablo to perceive more clearly, because of

God is no respecter of persons, the apostles alio, as here, sothere, preached the gospei to those of the heathen who Were ready for conversion. And it is Woli faid by the Shephord, They went down with them thereiore into the water, and again ascended. But these descended alive, and again ascendod alive. But those Who had fallen astoep, descended

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many bodies of those stat flept arose,V-plainly as having been translated is a betior state.' There toa place, then, a universal movement and translation through the economyof tho Savio . One righinous man, then, dissere nos, as righteous, homanother righteous man, Whether he M of the Law or a Greeh.

here or elwWhere. For it is not here alone that tho activo

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332 THE MISCELLANTES.

clearly What Would talis placo by the satin es Christ; that

to see corruption. Thou hast mado known to me the paths

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os satin, and polluted in illa, and not purified by the right-

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334 THE MISCELLA MES

thmo Who had departed this life besore His advent Forthe righteous Lota loveth righteousnem: His countenanceboholdoth uprightnoss.' But he that lovetti Mehetaeas haleth his omn foui.'' Is, then, in tho delago an sinsul flest perished, punishmenthining been inflicted on them for correction, me must firat bellovo stat the will os God, whicli is disciplinary and ben ficent, saves those Who turn to Him. Then, too, the more subito substance, the wul, could neVer receive any injuryhom the grosser element of mater, ita subue and simple naturerendering it impalpabie, called as it is incorporeia. But Wha, ever is gros' made so in consequence of sin, this is cast aWayalong mith the carnal spirit Whicli lusis against the foui. Now also Valentinus, the Coryphaeus of thom Who herald communi , in his book on The Intereourse of Frienda, Writes in theso motas: μ Many of tho things that aro Written, thoughin common books, are found written in the church of God. For those sayings Which proceed from tho heari are Vain. For the laπ writton in the hoari is sto Peopla ' of tho Belouod loved and loving Him.' For Whether it bo tho JowishWri tings or those of tho philosophera that ho calis tho Common Books,' ho mahos tho truth common. And Isidore, at onco son and discipis to Basilides, in tho fidit book of tho positions of the Prophet Arehor, Writes also in thes Words: Tho Attios say that certain things mero intimaledio Socrates, in consequence of a daemon attending on him. And Aristolle sus that ali men are provided With daemons, stat attond on them during the timo they ars in tho bo ,having taken ibis piece of prophetic instruction and tran foreta it in his own books, without achno ledging Whence heliad abstracted this statement.' And again, in the secondbook of his Work, ho thus writes: μ And tot no one thinh that What Wo say is peculiar to the elech mas sald besore is anyphilosophora. For it is not a discovery of theira. For having

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THE MISCELLINI ES. 335 appropriated it hom our propheis, they attributed it to him .ho is Wiso according to them.' Again, in the same: For tomo it appears that those Who profera in philosophiete, do so thatthey may leam What is the winged Ois,' and the variegaledrobo on it, ali of Which Pherecydes has employed as theologueat allegorius, haring taen them iram the prophecy of Cham.

HAT TRUE PHILOSOPHY IS, AND UENOE SO CALLED.

Aa We have long ago potnted oui, What We propose as our subject is not the discipline Which obtains in each seci, butthat which is reatly philosophy, strictly systematic Wisdom, Whicli furnishes acquaintance With the things which perlatato lite. And wo define Wisdom to bo certain knowledge, Ming a fure and irrefragabie apprehension of things divinoand human, comprehending the present, past, and future, .hieh tho Loes liath taught us, both by His advent and by tho propheta. And it is irrefragabie by reason, in muchas it has been communicatod. And so it is Wholly truo Meording to God'H intention, as being known throuo means of the Son. And in one aspect it is eternat, and in another it comes use ut in time. Partly it is ono and the fame, partly many and indifferent Mily Without any movement of passion, partly With passionate destre artly perfeci, parib incomplete. This misdom, then-rectitude os foui and of reason, and

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336-E MISCELLANTES.

philosophy) as cannot be impugned, With a corresponding

measures and magnitudes and forms, is delineation on plain suriaces; and just as patiating appears to tahe in the wholo sold of vlew in the scenes represented. But it gives a salse description of the vie , according to the rules of the ar employing the signf that result from the incideiace of tholines of vision. By this means, the higher and loWer potnis in tho Vie' and those belWeen, are preserved; and some objecta seem to appear in the foreground, and othera in thobachground, and others to appear in some other Way, on thesmooth and levet sursaeo. So also the philosophers copy the truth, aster the manner of painting. And alWays in the caso of each one of them, their sel Diove is the cause of ali theirmistahes. Wherelare ono ought not, in the desim for tho ory that terminates in men, to be animaled by self-love;

then, one treais What is particular as universal, and regardathat, Whicli serves, as the Lord, he misses the truth, notunderstanding What Was spolien by David is Way of conse ston : I have eaten earth fasheri like bread. in Nom self- love and self-conceit are, in his Viem earth and error. Butis so, science and knowledge are derived hom instruction. Αnd is there is instruction, Du must seeh for the master. Cleanthes claims Zeno, and Metrodorus Epicurus, and Theophrastus Aristolle, and Plato Socrates. But is I como to

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-E MISCELLANTES. 337 Pythagoras, and Pherecydes, and Thales, and the fidit missmen, I come to a stand in my March for their teacher. Should you say the Egyptians, the Indians, the Babylonians, and the Magi themselves, Ι mill not stop from ashing their Macher. And I lead you up to the firsi generation os men; and from that mini I begin to investigate Who is stelateacher. No one of men; ior they had not yet leamed. Nor yet any of the angela: for in the Way that anget' in

virtve of being angeis, speis, men do not hear; nor, as have eam, have they a longue to correspond; nor Would any one attribute to the angeis organs of speech, lips I mean, and the paris contiguous, throat, and Windpipe, and chest, breath and air to vibrate. And God is far from calling aloudin the unapproach le sancti , separated as He is hom eventho archangelS.

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and leads and contributes to this. But is from any creature they received in any Way WhaNover the feods of the Truth, they did not nourish them; butcommitting them to a barren and mini s soli, they chohod them With Woeds, as the Pharisees revolted from tho Lamis introducing human toachings,-the cause of these beingnot tho Teacher, but thoso who clioso to disobey. But those of them Who belloved the Lord's advent and tho plaintoaching of the Scriptures, attain to tho knowledge of tholaw; as also those addicted to philosophy, by the teaching of the Lord, ars introduced into the knowledgo of the truo philosophy: For the oracles of the Lord are pure oracles, meliod in tho fire, tested in the earili,' purified seventimes. Just as silver osten purissed, so is the just manbrought to the test, becoming the Lord's coin and receiving the royal image. Or, since Solomon also calis the longue of the righteous man gold that has been subjectod to firo,' 'intimating that the doctrine Whicli has been proved, and is Wise, is to bo pratsed and received, wheneuer it is amplytriod by tho earth : that is, When the gnostic fout is in mani- sold ways sanctified, through WithdraWal from earthy fires.

srst, is abstinenco from evit things, Whicli somo considerperfection, and is, in truth, the persection of the commonbellever-JeW and Greeh. But in the case of the Gnostic, astor that whicli is rechonod perfection in othera, his right- cousness advances to activity in Well-doing. And in Whom-

doing oi good, in his case persection abidos in tho fixod habitos melicioing after the likeness of God. For those Who are

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