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ON
THE CHANGE OF NAMES II.
(7) Do not, however, think that the living God, he who is truly living, is ever
seen so as to be comprehended by any human being; for we have no power in
ourselves to see any thing, by which we may be able to conceive any adequate
notion of him; we have no external sense suited to that purpose (for he is not
an object which can be discerned by the outward sense), nor any strength
adequate to it: therefore, Moses, the spectator of the invisible nature, the man
who really saw God (for the sacred scriptures say that he entered "into the
Darkness,"{3}{Exodus 20:21.} by which expression they mean figuratively to
intimate the invisible essence), having investigated every part of every thing,
sought to see clearly the much-desired and only God; (8) but when he found
nothing, not even any appearance at all resembling what he had hoped to behold;
he, then, giving up all idea of receiving instruction on that point from any
other source, flies to the very being himself whom he was seeking, and entreats
him, saying, "Show my thyself that I may see thee so as to know
Thee."{4}{Exodus 33:13.} But, nevertheless, he fails to obtain the end
which he had proposed to himself, and which he had accounted the most
all-sufficient gift for the most excellent race of creation, mankind, namely a
knowledge of those bodies and things which are below the living God. (9) For it
is said unto him, "Thou shall see my back parts, but my face shall not be
beheld by Thee."{5}{Exodus 33:23.} As if it were meant to answer him: Those
bodies and things which are beneath the living God may come within thy
comprehension, even though every thing would not be at once comprehended by
thee, since that one being is not by his nature capable of being beheld by man.
(10) And what wonder is there if the living God is beyond the reach of the
comprehension of man, when even the mind that is in each of us is unintelligible
and unknown to us? Who has ever beheld the essence of the soul? the obscure
nature of which has given rise to an infinite number of contests among the
sophists who have brought forward opposite opinions, some of which are
inconsistent with any kind of nature. (11) It was, therefore, quite consistent
with reason that no proper name could with propriety be assigned to him who is
in truth the living God. Do you not see that to the prophet who is really
desirous of making an honest inquiry after the truth, and who asks what answer
he is to give to those who question him as to the name of him who has sent him,
he says, "I am that I Am,"{6}{Exodus 3:14.} which is equivalent to
saying, "It is my nature to be, not to be described by name:" (12) but
in order that the human race may not be wholly destitute of any appellation
which they may give to the most excellent of beings, I allow you to use the word
Lord as a name; the Lord God of three natures--of instruction, and of holiness,
and of the practice of virtue; of which Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob are
recorded as the symbols. For this, says he, is the everlasting name, as if it
has been investigated and discerned in time as it exists in reference to us, and
not in that time which was before all time; and it is also a memorial not placed
beyond recollection or intelligence, and again it is addressed to persons who
have been born, not to uncreated natures. (13) For these men have need of the
complete use of the divine name who come to a created or mortal generation, in
order that, if they cannot attain to the best thing, they may at least arrive at
the best possible name, and arrange themselves in accordance with that; and the
sacred oracle which is delivered as from the mouth of the Ruler of the universe,
speaks of the proper name of God never having been revealed to any one, when God
is represented as saying, "For I have not shown them my
Name;"{7}{Exodus 6:3.} for by a slight change in the figure of speech here
used, the meaning of what is said would be something of this kind: "My
proper name I have not revealed to them," but only that which is commonly
used, though with some misapplication, because of the reasons abovementioned.
(14) And, indeed, the living God is so completely indescribable, that even those
powers which minister unto him do not announce his proper name to us. At all
events, after the wrestling match in which the practicer of virtue wrestled for
the sake of the acquisition of virtue, he says to the invisible Master,
"Tell me thy Name;"{8}{Genesis 32:29.} but he said, "Why askest
thou me my name?" And he does not tell him his peculiar and proper name,
for says he, it is sufficient for thee to be taught my ordinary explanations.
But as for names which are the symbols of created things, do not seek to find
them among immortal natures. III.
(15) Therefore do not doubt either whether that which is more ancient than any
existing thing is indescribable, when his very word is not to be mentioned by us
according to its proper name. So that we must understand that the expression,
"The Lord was seen by Abraham,"{9}{Genesis 17:1.} means not as if the
Cause of all things had shone forth and become visible, (for what human mind is
able to contain the greatness of his appearance?) but as if some one of the
powers which surround him, that is to say, his kingly power, had presented
itself to the sight, for the appellation Lord belongs to authority and
sovereignty. (16) But when our mind was occupied with the wisdom of the
Chaldaeans, studying the sublime things which exist in the world, it made as it
were the circuit of all the efficient powers as causes of what existed; but when
it emigrated from the Chaldaean doctrines, it then knew that it was moving under
the guidance and direction of a governor, of whose authority it perceived the
appearance. (17) On which account it is said, "The Lord," not the
living God, "was seen;" as if it had been meant to say, the king
appeared, he who was from the beginning, but who was not as yet recognized by
the soul, which, indeed, was late in learning, but which did not continue for
ever in ignorance, but received a notion of there being an authority and
governing power among existing things. (18) And when the ruler has appeared,
then he in a still greater degree benefits his disciple and beholder, saying,
"I am thy God;"{10}{Genesis 17:2.} for I should say to him, "What
is there of all the things which form a part of creation of which thou art not
the God?" But his word, which is his interpreter, will teach me that he is
not at present speaking of the world, of which he is by all means the creator
and the God, but about the souls of men, which he has thought worthy of a
different kind of care; (19) for he thinks fit to be called the Lord and Master
of bad men, but the God of those who are in a state of advancement and
improvement; and of those which are the most excellent and the most perfect,
both Lord and God at once. On which account, having made Pharaoh the very
extreme instance of impiety, he has never once called himself his Lord or his
God; but he calls the wise Moses so, for he says to him, "Behold I give
thee as a god to Pharaoh."{11}{Genesis 7:1.} But he has in many passages of
the sacred oracles delivered by him, called himself Lord. (20) For instance, we
read such as passage as this: "Thus says the Lord;"{12}{Exodus 7:17.}
and at the very beginning we read, "The Lord spake unto Moses, saying, I am
the Lord, say unto Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, all the things which I say unto
Thee."{13}{Exodus 6:29.} (21) And Moses, in another place, says,
"Behold, when I go forth out of the city I will spread out my hands unto
the Lord, and the sounds shall cease, and the hail, and there shall be no more
rain, that thou mayest know that the earth is the Lord's;" that is to say,
every thing that is made of body or of earth, "and that thou," that is
the mind which bears in itself the images of things, "and thy
servants," that is the particular reasonings which act as body-guards to
the mind, "for I know that ye do not yet fear the Lord;"{14}{Exodus
9:29.} by which he means not the Lord who is spoken of commonly and in different
senses, but him who is truly the Master of all things. (22) For there is in
truth no created Lord, not even a king shall have extended his authority and
spread it from one end of the world even to the other end, but only the
uncreated God, the real governor, whose authority he who reverences and fears
receives a most beneficial reward, namely, the admonitions of God, but utterly
miserable destruction awaits the man who despises him; (23) therefore he is held
forth as the Lord of the foolish, striking them with a terror which is
appropriate to him as ruler. But he is the God of those who are improved; as we
read now, "I am thy God, I am thy God, be thou increased and
Multiplied."{15}{Genesis 17:1, also 35:2.} And in the case of those who are
perfect, he is both together, both Lord and God; as we read in the ten
commandments, "I am the Lord thy God."{16}{Exodus 20:2.} And in
another passage it is written, "The Lord God of our
Fathers."{17}{Deuteronomy 4:1.} (24) For he thinks it right for the wicked
man to be governed by a master as by a lord; that, being in a state of alarm and
groaning, he may have the fear of a master suspended over him; but him who is
advancing in improvement he thinks deserving to receive benefits as from God in
order that by means of these benefits he may arrive at perfection; and him who
is complete and perfect he thinks should be both governed as by the Lord, and
benefited as by God; for the last man remains for ever unchangeable, and he is,
by all means and in all respects, the man of God: (25) and this is especially
shown to be the fact in the case of Moses; for, says the scripture, "This
is the blessing which Moses, the man of God, Blessed."{18}{Deuteronomy
33:1.} O the man that thus thought worthy of this all-beautiful and sacred
recompense, to give himself as a requital for the divine IV.
(27) But it is not right to be ignorant of this thing either, that the
statement, "I am thy God,"{19}{Genesis 17:1.} is made by a certain
figurative misuse of language rather than with strict propriety; for the living
God, inasmuch as he is living, does not consist in relation to anything; for he
himself is full of himself, and he is sufficient for himself, and he existed
before the creation of the world, and equally after the creation of the
universe; (28) for he is immovable and unchangeable, having no need of any other
thing or being whatever, so that all things belong to him, but, properly
speaking, he does not belong to anything. And of the powers which he has
extended towards creation for the advantage of the world which is thus put
together, some are spoken of, as it were, in relation to these things; as for
instance his kingly and his beneficent power; for he is the king of something,
and the benefactor of something there being inevitably something which is ruled
over and which receives the benefits. (29) Akin to these powers is the creative
power which is called God: for by means of this power the Father, who begot and
created all things, did also disperse and arrange them; so that the expression,
"I am thy God," is equivalent to, "I am thy maker and
creator;" (30) and it is the greatest of all possible gifts to have him for
one's maker, who has also been the maker of the whole world. The soul, indeed,
of the wicked man he did not make, for wickedness is hateful to God; and the
soul, which is between good and bad, he made not by himself alone, according to
the most sacred historian Moses, since that, like wax, was about to receive the
different impressions of good and evil. (31) On which account it is said in the
scriptures, "Let us make man in our own image," that if it receives a
bad impression it may appear to be the work of others, but if it receives a good
impression it may then appear to be the work of him who is the Creator only of
what is beautiful and good. By all means, therefore, that must be a good man to
whom he says, "I am thy God," as he has had him alone for his creator
without the cooperation of any other being. (32) Moreover he brings up with this
that doctrine which is established in many other passages, showing that God is
the creator only of those men who are virtuous and wise; and the whole of this
company has voluntarily deprived itself of the abundant possession of external
things, and has neglected those things which are dear to his flesh. (33) For the
athletes of vigorous health and high spirit have erected their servile bodies as
a sort of fortification against the soul, but those men who have been devoted to
the pursuit of instruction, and who are pale, and weak, and emaciated, having
overloaded the vigor of the body with the power of the soul, and if one must
tell the plain truth, being entirely dissolved into one species of soul, have
through the energy of their minds become quite disentangled from the body. (34)
Therefore that which is earthly is very naturally destroyed and overwhelmed when
the entire mind resolves in every particular to make itself acceptable to God.
But the race of these persons is rare and scarcely to be found, and one may
almost say is unable to exist; and the following oracle, which is given with
respect to Enoch, proves this: "Enoch pleased God, and he was not
Found;"{20}{Genesis 5:24.} (35) for by what kind of contemplation could a
man attain to this good thing? What seas must he cross over? What islands, or
what continents, must he visit? Must he dwell among Greeks or among the
barbarians? (36) Are there not even to the present day some of those persons who
have attained to perfection in philosophy, who say that there is no such thing
as wisdom in the world, since there is also no such thing as a wise man? for
that from the very beginning of the creation of mankind up to the present
moment, there has never been any one who could be considered entirely blameless,
for that it is impossible for a man who is bound up in a mortal body to be
entirely and altogether happy. (37) Now whether these things are said correctly
we will consider at the proper time: but at present let us stick to the subject
before us, and follow the scripture, and say that there is such a thing as
wisdom existing, and that he who loves wisdom is wise. But though the wise man
has thus an actual existence he has escaped the notice of us who are wicked: for
what is good will not unite with what is bad. (38) On this account it is that
"the disposition which pleased God was not found;" as if in truth it
has a real existence, but was concealed and had fled away to avoid any meeting
in the same place with us, since it is said to have been translated; the meaning
of which expression is that it emigrated and departed from its sojourn in this
mortal life, to an abode in immortal life. V.
(39) These men then, being mad with this divinely inspired madness, were made
more ferocious; but there are others who are companions of a more manageable and
humanised wisdom. By those men piety is practiced
to a most eminent degree, and the observance due to man is not neglected. And
the sacred oracles are witnesses of this in which Abraham is addressed (the
words being put in the mouth of God), "Thou shall be pleasing in my
Sight,"{21}{Genesis 17:3.} that is to say, thou shall be pleasing, not only
to me but also to my works, in my eyes as judge, and overseer, and
superintendant; (40) for if you honor your parents, or show mercy to the poor,
or do good to your friends, or fight in defense of your country, or pay proper
attention to the common principles of justice towards all men, you most
certainly are pleasing to those with whom you associate, and you are also
acceptable in the sight of God: for he sees all things with an eye which never
slumbers, and he unites to himself with especial favor all that is good, and
that he accepts and embraces. (41) Therefore the practicer of virtue, even while
praying, proves the very same thing, saying, "The God to whom my fathers
were Acceptable,"{22}{Genesis 48:15.} and he adds the words "before
him," for the sake of giving you to know the difference, the real practical
difference between the expression, "to please God," by itself, and the
same words with the addition of the sentence, "before him." For the
one expression gives both meanings, and the other only one. (42) Thus also
Moses, in his exhortatory admonitions, recommends his disciples such and such
things, saying, "Thou shall do what is pleasing before the Lord thy
God,"{23}{Deuteronomy 12:28.} as if he were to say, Do such things as we
shall be worthy to appear before God, and what he when he sees them will accept.
And these things are wont to appear equally pure both externally and
Internally.{24}{this passage is given up by Mangey as corrupt and quite
unintelligible. Mangey corrects it and gives a Latin translation which I have
followed.} (43) And proceeding onwards from thence he wove the tent of the
tabernacle with two boundaries of space, placing a veil between the two, in
order to separate what is within from what is without. And also he gilded the
sacred ark, the place wherein the laws were kept, both within and without; and
he gave the great high priest two robes, the inner one made of linen, and the
other one beautifully embroidered, with one robe reaching to the feet. (44) For
these and such things as these are symbols of the soul which in its inner parts
shows itself pure towards God, and in its exterior parts shows itself without
reproach in reference to the world which is perceptible to the outward senses
and to this life: with great felicity therefore was this said to the victorious
wrestler, when he was about to have his brows crowned with the garlands of
victory: and the declaration made with respect to him was of the following
tenor, "You have been mightily powerful both with God and with
Men;"{25}{Genesis 32:28.} (45) for to have a good reputation with both
classes, namely, with the uncreated God and with the creature, is the task of no
small mind, but, if one must say the truth, it is one fit for that which is in
the confines between the world and God. In short, it is necessary that the good
man should be an attendant of God, for the creature is an object of care to the
Ruler and Father of the universe; (46) for who is there who does not know, that
even before the creation of the world God was himself sufficient to himself, and
that he remained as much a friend as before after the creation of the world,
without having undergone any change? Why then did he make what did not exist
before? Because he was good and bounteous. Shall we not then, we who are slaves,
follow our master, admiring, in an exceeding degree, the great first Cause of
all things, and not altogether despising our own nature? VI.
(47) But after he has said, "Be thou pleasing to me before me," he
adds further, "and be thou blameless," using here a natural
consequence and connection of the previous sentence. Do thou therefore all the
more apply thyself to what is good that thou mayest be pleasing; and if thou
canst not be pleasing, at all events abstain from open sins, that thou mayest
not incur reproach. For he who does right is praiseworthy, and he who avoids
doing wrong is not to be blamed. (48) And the most important prize is assigned
to those who do right, namely, the prize of feeling that they are acceptable to
God: but the second prize belongs to those who do no sin, that, namely, of
avoiding blame; and, perhaps, in the case of the mortal race of mankind, the
doing no sin is set down as equivalent to doing right; for who, as Job says is
"pure from pollution, even if his life be but one single day
Long?"{26}{Job 14:4.} (49) In fact, the things which pollute the soul are
infinite in number, and it is impossible completely to wash them away and to
efface their stains; for there are, of necessity, left disasters which are akin
to every mortal man, which it is natural indeed to weaken, but impossible wholly
to eradicate. (50) Does any one therefore seek a just, or prudent, or temperate,
or, in short, any perfectly good man, in this confused life? Be content if you
find one who is not wholly unjust, or foolish, or intemperate, or cowardly, or
who is not utterly worthless; for the avoidance of evil is a thing with which to
be content, but the complete acquisition of the virtues is unattainable to any
man, such as is endowed with our nature. (51) It was therefore with great reason
that it was said, "and be thou blameless," the speaker thinking that
it is a great addition towards a happy life to live without sin and without
reproach; but the man who has deliberately chosen this way of life, promises to
leave his inheritance in accordance with the covenant, such as is becoming to
God to give, and to a wise man to accept, (52) for he says, "I will place
my covenant between me and between Thee;"{27}{Genesis 17:2.} and covenants
and testaments are written for the advantage of those who are worthy of the
gift, so that a testament is a symbol of grace, which God has placed between
himself who proffers it and man who receives it; (53) and this is the very
extravagance of beneficence, that there is nothing between God and the soul
except his own virgin grace. And I have written two commentaries on the whole
discussion concerning testaments, and for that reason I now deliberately pass
over that subject, for the sake of not appearing to repeat what I have said
before; and also at the same time, because I do not wish here to interrupt the
connected course of this discussion. VII.
(54) And immediately afterwards it is said, "And Abraham fell on his
face:" was he not about, in accordance with the divine promises, to
recognize himself and the nothingness of the race of mankind, and so to fall
down before him who stood firm, by way of displaying the conception which he
entertained of himself and of God? Forsooth that God, standing always in the
same place, moves the whole composition of the world, not by means of his legs,
for he has not the form of a man, but by showing his unalterable and immovable
essence. (55) But man, being never settled firmly in the same place, admits of
different changes at different times, and being tripped up, miserable man that
he is (for, in fact, his whole life is one continued stumble), he meets with a
terrible fall; (56) but he who does this against his will is ignorant, and he
who does it voluntarily is docile; on which account he is said to fall on his
face, that is to say, in his outward senses, in his speech, in his mind, all but
crying out loudly and shouting that the outward sense has fallen, inasmuch as it
was unable, by itself, to feel as it should, if it had not been aroused by the
providence of the Savior, to take hold of the bodies which lay in its way. And
speech too has fallen, being unable to give a proper explanation of anything in
existence, unless he who originally made and adapted the organ of the voice,
having opened its mouth and enabled its tongue to articulate, should strike it
so as to produce harmonious sounds. Moreover, the king of all the mind has
fallen, being deprived of its comprehension, unless the Creator of all living
things were again to raise it up and re-establish it, and furnishing it with the
most acutely seeing eyes, to lead it to a sight of incorporeal things. VIII.
(57) Therefore admiring this same disposition when thus taking to flight, and
submitting to a voluntary fall by reason of the confession which it had made
respecting the living God, namely, that he stands in truth and is one only,
while all other things beneath him are subject to all kinds of motions and
alterations, he speaks to it, and allows it to enter into conversation with him,
saying, "And I, behold my covenant is with Thee."{28}{Genesis 17:4.}
(58) And this expression conceals beneath its figurative words such a meaning as
this: There are very many kinds of covenants, which distribute graces and gifts
to those who are worthy to receive them; but the highest kind of covenant of all
is I myself: for God, having displayed himself as far as it was possible for
that being to be displayed who cannot be shown by the words which he has used,
adds further, "And I too, behold my covenant;" the beginning and
fountain of all graces is I myself. (59) For on some persons God is in the habit
of bestowing his graces by the intervention of others; as, for instance, through
the medium of earth, water, air, the sun, the moon, heaven, and other
incorporeal powers. But he bestows them on others through himself alone,
exhibiting himself as the inheritance of those who receive him, whom from that
he thinks worthy of another appellation: (60) for it is said in the scripture,
"Thy name shall not be called Abram, but Abraham shall thy name be."
Some, then, of those persons who are fond of disputes, and who are always eager
to affix a stain upon what is irreproachable, on things as well as bodies, and
who wage an implacable war against sacred things, while they calumniate
everything which does not appear to preserve strict decorum in speech, being the
symbols of nature which is always fond of being concealed, perverting it all so
as to give it a worse appearance after a very accurate investigation, do
especially find fault with the changes of names. (61) And it is only lately that
I heard an ungodly and impious man mocking and ridiculing these things, who
ventured to say, "Surely they are great and exceeding gifts which Moses
says that the Ruler of the universe offers, who, by the addition of one element,
the one letter alpha, a superfluous element; {29}{the text here is very corrupt.
Mangey adopts the emendations of Markland, and I have followed his translation.}
and then again adding another element, the letter rho, appears to have bestowed
upon men a most marvelous and great benefit; for he has called the wife of Abram
Sarrah instead of Sarah, doubling the Rho," and connecting a number of
similar arguments without drawing breath, and joking and mocking, he went
through many instances. (62) But at no distant period he suffered a suitable
punishment for his insane, wickedness; for on a very slight and ordinary
provocation he hanged himself, in order that so polluted and impure a person
might not die by a pure and unpolluted death. IX.
But we may justly, in order to prevent any one else from falling into the same
error, eradicate the erroneous notions which have been formed on the subject,
arguing the matter on the principle of natural philosophy, and proving that
these things which are here said are worthy of all attention. (63) God does not
bestow on men mutes and vowels, or, in short, nouns and verbs; since when he
created plants and animals, he summoned them before man as their governor, that
he might give each of them their appropriate names by a reference to the
knowledge which he had of all things; for, says the scripture, "Whatever
Adam called any thing, that was the name Thereof."{30}{Genesis 2:19.} (64)
Therefore since God did not think fit to take upon himself even the active
imposition of the names, but entrusted the task to a wise man, the author of the
whole race of mankind, it is reasonable to suppose that he himself gave and
arranged the different parts, and syllables, and letters of nouns, disposing not
only the vowels, but even the mutes, and that he did this too to make a show of
liberality and exceeding beneficence? It is impossible to say so. (65) But such
things as these are the characteristic marks of different powers; small marks of
great powers, marks perceptible by the outward senses of powers which are
indistinct; and the powers themselves are discerned in most excellent doctrines,
in true and pure conceptions, in the improvement of souls. And it is easy to see
a proof of this if we make a beginning with the man who is here spoken of as
having his name changed; (66) for the name Abram, being interpreted, means
"sublime father," but Abraham means the "elect father of
sound;" and how these names differ from one another we shall know more
clearly if we first of all read what is exhibited under each of them. (67) Now
using allegorical language, we call that man sublime who raises himself from the
earth to a height, and who devotes himself to the inspection of high things; and
we also call him a haunter of high regions, and a meteorologist, inquiring what
is the magnitude of the sun, what are his motions, how he influences the seasons
of the year, advancing as he does and retreating back again, with revolutions of
equal speed, and investigating as he does the subjects of the radiance of the
moon, of its shape, of its waning, of its increase, and of the motion of the
other stars, whether fixed or wandering; (68) for the inquiry into these matters
belongs not to an ill-conditioned or barren soul, but to one which is eminently
endowed by nature, and which is able to produce an entire and perfect offspring;
on which account the scripture calls the meteorologist, "father,"
inasmuch as he is not unproductive of wisdom. X.
(69) Now the symbols represented by the name of Abram are thus accurately
defined; those conveyed under the name of Abraham are such as we shall proceed
to demonstrate. The meanings now are three, "the father," and
"elect," and "of sound." Now by the word "sound"
here, we mean uttered speech; for the sounding organ of the living animal is the
organ of speech. Of this faculty we say that the father is the mind, for it is
from the mind, as from a fountain, that the stream of speech proceeds. The word
"elect" belongs to the mind of the wise man, for whatever is most
excellent is found in him; (70) therefore the man devoted to learning and
occupied in the contemplation of sublime subjects, was sketched out according to
the former characteristic marks, but the philosopher, or I should rather say the
wise man, was exhibited in accordance with those of which we have just given an
outline. Think not, then, any longer that the Deity bestows a change of names,
but consider that what he gives is a correction of the moral character by means
of symbols; (71) for having invited the nature of heaven, and whom some call a
mathematician, to a participation in virtue, he made him wise and called him so.
For having given an appropriate name to his transformed disposition, he named
him, as the Hebrews would call it, "Abraham," but in the language of
the Greeks, "the elect father of sound;" (72) for says he, On what
account dost thou investigate the motions and periods of the stars? and why hast
thou bounded up so high from the earth to the heavens? Is it merely that you may
indulge your curiosity with respect to those matters? And what advantage could
accrue to you from all this curiosity? What destruction of pleasure would is
cause? What defeat of appetite? What dissolution of pain or fear? What
eradication of the passions which disturb and agitate the soul? (73) For as
there is no advantage in trees unless they are productive of fruit, so in the
same way there is no use in the study of natural philosophy unless it is likely
to confer upon a man the acquisition of virtue, for that is its proper fruit.
(74) On which account some of the ancients have compared the discussion and
consideration of philosophy to a field, and have likened the physical portion of
it to the plants, the logical part to the hedges and fences, the moral part to
the fruit, (75) thinking that the walls which are built around for the sake of
protecting the fruit have been erected by the possessors of the land, and that
the plants have been created for the sake of the production of fruit; thus,
therefore, they said that in philosophy it is requisite for the consideration of
the physical and the logical part of philosophy to be referred to the moral
part, by which the moral character is improved, which as a desire at the same
time for both the acquisition and the use of virtue. (76) This is the lesson
which we have been taught concerning the man who in word indeed had his name
changed, but who in reality changed his nature from the consideration of natural
to that of moral philosophy, and who abandoned the contemplation of the world
itself for the knowledge of the Being who created the world; by which knowledge
he acquired piety, the most excellent of all possessions. XI.
(77) We will now speak of his wife, Sarah, for she too had her name changed to
Sarrah by the addition of the one element, the letter rho. These, then, are the
names, and we must now explain what they mean. Sarah, being interpreted,
signifies "my authority," but Sarrah signifies "princess;"
the former name, (78) therefore, is a symbol of specific virtue, but the latter
of generic virtue. But in proportion as genus is superior to species in regard
of quantity, in the same proportion does the latter name excel the former; for
species is something small and perishable, but genus is numerous and immortal,
(79) and the intention of God is to bestow great and immortal things instead of
such as are small and perishable, and this is a task suited to his dignity. Now
the prudence which exists in the virtuous man is the authority of himself alone,
and he who has it would not err if he were to say, my authority is the prudence
which is in me; but that which has stretched out this authority is generic
prudence, not any longer the authority of this or that person, but absolute
intrinsic authority; therefore that which exists only in species will perish at
the same time with its possessor, but that which, like a seal, has stamped it
with an impression, is free from all mortality, and will remain for ever and
ever imperishable. (80) Thus also those arts which exist only in species perish
along with those who have acquired them, such as geometricians, grammarians, and
musicians, but the generic arts remain exempt from destruction. And, again, he
gives an additional sketch of his meaning when he teaches by the same name that
every virtue is a princess, and a queen, and a ruler of all the affairs of life.
XII.
(81) But it has also happened that Jacob had his name changed to XIII.
(83) And it is worth while here to raise the question why Abraham, from the time
that his name was changed, is always thought worthy of this same appellation,
and is no longer called by his former name; but Jacob, who is also called
Israel, is nevertheless called Jacob too, as he was before the change of his
name; and, indeed, is called Jacob oftener than Israel. We must say, then, that
these facts are characters by which it is seen that the virtue which is taught
differs from that which is acquired by practice; (84) for the man who is
improved by instruction, having received a happy and virtuous nature, uses that
virtue alone which, by means of memory co-operating with it, implants in him an
absence of forgetfulness, so that he comprehends and takes firm hold of all the
things which he has once learnt; but he who practices virtue, since he is
continually exercising himself, stops to take breath, and relaxes his efforts
for a while, collecting himself and recovering the vigor which was a little
impaired by his exertions, just as those men do who have oiled their bodies for
the contests in the arena. For these men, also, laboring at their training
exercises, in order to prevent their powers being utterly broken down, anoint
themselves with oil on account of the violent and continued nature of their
exercise. (85) Then the man who is improved by instruction, having an immortal
monitor, receives from him a harmonious and imperishable advantage, without
suffering any change; but the practicer of virtue is impelled to action by his
own inclination alone, and he exercises himself in it, and labors at it in order
to change that passion, which is akin to a created being; and even if he attains
to perfection, he still, being fatigued, returns to his ancient kind of labor;
(86) for he is more inclined to endure toil, but the other is more fortunate,
for he has another person as a teacher. But this man, by his own unassisted
efforts, investigates, and inquires, and pushes his examination, investigating
the mysteries of nature with great earnestness, and exerting continual and
incessant labor. (87) For this reason God, who never changes, altered the name
of Abraham, since he was about to remain in a similar condition, in order that
that which was to be firmly established might be confirmed by him who was
standing firmly, and who was remaining in the same state in the same manner. But
it was an angel who altered the name of Jacob, being the Word, the minister of
God; in order that it might be confessed and ascertained, that there is none of
the things whose existence is subsequent to that of the living God, which is the
cause of unchangeable and unvarying firmness. ... but of that harmony which, as
in a musical instrument, contains the intensity and relaxation of sounds so as
to produce an artistical combination of melody. XIV.
(88) But, there being three leaders and authors of this race, the two at each
extremity of it had their names changed, namely Abraham and Jacob: but the one
in the middle, Isaac, always retained the same appellation. Why was this?
Because both that virtue which is derived from teaching and that which is
attained to by practice, admit of improvement and advancement: for the man who
receives instruction desires a knowledge of those matters of which he is
ignorant and he who applies himself to practice desires the crowns of victory,
and the prizes which are proposed to his industrious and contemplation-loving
soul. But the race which is self-taught and which derives all its learning from
its own diligence inasmuch as it exists rather by nature than by study, was at
the very beginning introduced as equal, and perfect, and even, there being no
number whatever deficient of those which tend to completeness. (89) Nor indeed
does Joseph have any such need, he who is the president of the necessities of
the body; for he also changes his name, being called Psonthomphanech by the king
of the country. And what the meaning of these names is we must explain; the name
Joseph, being interpreted, signifies "an addition." For things which
are put by the side are an addition to those which exist by nature; for
instance, gold, silver, possessions, revenues, the ministrations of servants,
abundant treasure of heirlooms, and furniture, and other superfluities, and the
infinite multitude of the different efficients of pleasure which some persons
possess; (90) the provider and superintendant of which was called Joseph, or
addition, by a very felicitous nomenclature: since he had undertaken the
superintendence of the things which were to be brought in from without, and
added to the natural things previously existing in the course of nature. And the
sacred scriptures testify that this is the case, showing that he was the
purveyor of the food of all the corporeal region, XV.
(91) Such a person as this, then, Joseph is recognized as being by his
distinctive marks and name. Let us now see what sort of person is indicated by
the name Psonthomphanech. Now this name being interpreted means, "a mouth
judging in an answer;" for every foolish person thinks that the man who is
very rich and overflowing with external possessions, must at once be wise and
sensible, competent to give an answer to any question which any one puts to him,
and competent also of his own head to deliver advantageous and sagacious
opinions. And, in short, by such men prudence is supposed to be identical with
good fortune, while one ought, on the contrary, to consider good fortune as
consisting in being prudent; for it is fitting that what is unstable should be
under the direction of that which stands firmly. (92) And indeed his father gave
to his own uterine brother the name of Benjamin:{31}{Genesis 35:18.} but his
mother called him the son of her sorrow, speaking most completely in accordance
with nature. For the name Benjamin being interpreted means, "the son of
days:" and the day is illuminated by the light of the sun which is
perceptible by the outward senses: and to this we liken vain glory. (93) For
that has a certain brilliancy appreciable by the outward senses in the praises
which it receives from the multitude and from the common herd of men, in
formally enrolled decrees, in the erection of statues and images, in purple
robes and golden crowns, in chariots and teams of four horses, and processions
of the multitude. He therefore who is an admirer and desirer of such things is
very appropriately called a son of days: that is to say, of that light which is
perceptible by the outward senses and of the brilliancy which attends vain
glory. (94) This felicitous and appropriate name the elder word and real father
imposes on him; but the soul which has suffered gives him a name suited to what
she has suffered. For she calls him the son of her sorrow. Why so? Because those
men who are borne about by vain glory are supposed indeed to be happy, but in
real truth are unhappy. (95) For the things which oppose their happiness are
numerous, envy, discontent, emulation, continual strife, irreconcileable
enmities lasting till death, hostilities handed down in succession to one's
children's children--a destiny not at all to be desired. (96) Very necessarily
therefore did the divinely inspired prophet represent that vain glory as dying
in the very act of bringing forth; for says he, "Rachel died, having had a
bad Delivery."{32}{Genesis 35:16.} Since, in truth and reality, the sowing
and generation of vain glory perceptible by the outward senses is the death of
the soul. XVI.
(97) And what shall we say of the sons of Joseph, Ephraim and Manasseh? Are they
not, in strict accordance with nature, compared to the two eldest sons of Jacob,
Reuben and Simeon? For the scripture says, "Thy two sons who were born in XVII.
(103) And indeed the scriptures at one time call the father-in-law of the first
prophets Jother, and at another time Raguel-Jother, when pride is flourishing
and at its height; for the name Jother being interpreted means
"superfluous," and pride is superfluous in an honest and sincere life,
turning into ridicule, as it does, all that is equal and necessary to life, and
honoring the unequal things of excess and covetousness. (104) This passion
honors human things above divine, and customs above laws, and profane above
sacred things, and mortal above immortal things, and, in short, appearances
above reality; and it even ventures of its accord to pass on into the rank of
counsellors, suggesting to the wise man not to teach those things which alone
are worthy to be known, namely, "the commandments of God, and the
Law,"{34}{Exodus 18:11.} but to study the covenants and contracts of men
with one another, which are almost the causes of the society which exists among
them being so little sociable. But the great man is obedient in all things,
thinking that little things are adapted to little people, and that great things
are justly added to the great; (105) but very often this man who is wise in his
own conceit, and who, passing over from the herds which the blind had assigned
to him for him to guide, having sought out the divine herd, becomes no small
portion of it; admiring the leader of nature, and marveling at his way of
leading which he employs in his care of his own flocks, for the name Raguel
being interpreted, signifies the "pastoral care of God."{35}{Exodus
2:18.} XVIII.
(106) The main part has now been explained; we will now proceed to adduce the
proofs. In the first place the scripture represents him as the cultivator of
judgment and of justice, for the name Midian, being interpreted, means "out
of judgment." And this is said in a twofold sense, for some times it
signifies both selection and rejection, such as usually happens to those who are
competitors in those contests which are called sacred; for numbers as they
appear not qualified, are rejected by the masters of the games. (107) These are
the men who have been initiated in the unholy rites of Beelphegor, {36}{Numbers
25:3.} and having widened all the mouths of the body to enable them to receive
the streams which are poured into them from without, for the name Beelphegor is
interpreted "the mouth above the skin," for they have overwhelmed the
mind, the governor of the body, and have sunk it down to the lowest depth, so
that it can never emerge, nor even hold up its head in ever so slight a degree.
(108) And it suffered this until Phineas, the lover of peace and manifest priest
of God, came as a champion of his own accord, being by nature a hater of all
that is evil, and filled with an admiration and desire for what is good; and as
he took a coadjutor, that is to say, the well sharpened and sharp-edged sword,
competent to investigate and examine everything, he could not be deceived, but
exerting a vigorous strength, he pierced passion through her womb, that it might
not hereafter bring forth any divinely caused evil. (109) Now between these men
and the seeing race there is a terrible war, in which no one of the combatants
differed in language, {37}{Exodus 31:29} but each returned home unwounded and
safe, crowned with the garlands of victory. XIX.
(110) This now is one of the things which are shown by the name of Midian;
another is that more excellent and judicial species which by the affinity of
marriage is connected with the prophetic race. The scripture then says,
"The priest of judgment and justice" (that is to say, of Midian)
"has seven Daughters;"{38}{Exodus 2:16.} (111) by which seven
daughters are frequently intimated the powers of the irrational part of the
soul, the power of generation and the voice, and the five outward senses,
tending the flocks of their father; for by means of these seven powers it is
that all the progresses and increases of their father, the mind, exist in the
perceptions which are produced from him. These, then, coming each to its
appropriate object, the power of sight to colors and shapes, the sense of
hearing to sounds, the faculty of smelling to scents, taste to flavors, and all
the other faculties to those objects which are adapted for their exercise do in
a manner imbibe some of the external objects of the outward senses, until they
have filled all the channels of the soul, and from these channels they give
drink to the sheep of their father; I mean by these sheep that most pure flock
of the reason which bears safety and ornament at the same time. (112) But the
companions of envy and jealousy, the leaders of the wicked herd coming up, drive
them away from that use of their powers which is in accordance with nature, for
some conduct these things which are without, inwards to the mind as to a judge
and a king, in order that they may do well from having the most excellent of
governors; (113) but others take the opposite side, pursuing and proclaiming the
exact contrary, while it is possible for the mind to be drawn towards them, and
to give up the flock which was entrusted to it to Feed.{39}{this passage is very
corrupt in the original. I have followed Mangey in adopting the corrections of
Marsland.} Until the good disposition, devoted to virtue and inspired by God,
which for awhile has appeared to be resting in inactivity, by name Moses, holds
his shield over them and defends them from those who would attack them,
nourishing the flock of his father on wholesome words, (114) and they having
escaped the attack of the enemies of intellect who admire only the external
appendages, like people in tragedies, go no longer to Jother but to Raguel, for
they have abandoned all connections with pride, and having connected themselves
with lawful persuasion, choosing to become a portion of the sacred flock, of
which the divine word is the leader, as his name shows, for it signifies the
pastoral care of God. XX.
(115) But while he is taking care of his own flock, all kinds of good things are
given all at once to those of the sheep who are obedient, and who do not resist
his will; and in the Psalms we find a song in these words, "The Lord is my
shepherd, therefore shall I lack Nothing;"{40}{psalm 23:1.} (116) therefore
the mind which has had the royal shepherd, the divine word, for its instructor,
will very naturally ask of his seven daughters, "Why is it that you have
contended with such great haste to come hither this Day?"{41}{Exodus 2:18.}
for formerly, when you met with the objects of the outward sense, remaining a
long time outside, you were a long time in returning again by reason of the
manner in which you were allured by them, but now I do not know what it is that
has happened to you, but you are speedy in your return, contrary to your usual
custom. (117) Therefore they will say that there were not the same causes why
they should run back with such exceeding speed, making the double course from
the objects of the outward sense and to the objects of the outward sense,
without stopping to take breath, and with excessive impetuosity; but that the
cause was rather the man who delivered them from the shepherds of the wild
flock. And they call Moses an Egyptian, a man who was not only a Hebrew, but
even a Hebrew of the very purest race, of the only tribe which is consecrated,
because they are unable to rise above their own nature; (118) for the outward
senses, being on the confines between the objects of the intellect and those of
the outward senses, we must be content if they aim at both of them, and are not
allured by the objects of the outward sense alone. And to think that they are
inclined only to attend to the things which are purely objects of the intellect
is great folly; on which account they give him both these names, since when they
call him a man, they indicate the things which are within the province of reason
alone to contemplate, and when they call him an Egyptian, they indicate the
objects of the external senses. (119) When they had heard this, he will again
inquire, "Where is the man?" In what part of you is the reasonable
species dwelling? Why have you left it so easily, and have not rather after
having once met with it, preserved that which was the most beautiful of
possessions, and the most advantageous for yourselves? (120) But even if you
have not done so before, at least call it to you now, that it may eat of and be
supported by your improvement and your close connection with him; for perhaps he
will even dwell with you, and will bring with him the winged, and divinely
inspired, and prophetical race by name Zipporah. XXI.
(121) Thus much we have thought fit to say on this subject. But, moreover, Moses
also changes the name of Hosea into that of Joshua; displaying by his new name
the distinctive qualities of his character; (122) for the name Hosea is
interpreted, "what sort of a person is this?" but Joshua means
"the salvation of the Lord," being the name of the most excellent
possible character; for the habits are better with respect to those persons who
are of such and such qualities from being influenced by them: as, for instance,
music is better in a musician, physic in a physician, and each art of a
distinctive quality in each artist, regarded both in its perpetuity, and in its
power, and in its unerring perfection with regard to the objects of its
speculation. For a habit is something everlasting, energizing, and perfect; but
a man of such and such a quality is mortal, the object of action, and imperfect.
And what is imperishable is superior to what is mortal, the efficient cause is
better than that which is the object of action; and what is perfect is
preferable to what is imperfect. (123) In this way the coinage of the above
mentioned description was changed and received the stamp of a better kind of
appearance. And Caleb himself was changed wholly and entirely; "For,"
as the scripture says, "a new spirit was in Him;"{42}{Numbers 14:24.}
as if the dominant part in him had been changed into complete perfection; for
the name Caleb, being interpreted, means "the whole heart." (124) And
a proof of this is to be gathered from the fact that the mind is changed, not by
being biassed and inclining in one particular direction or the other, but wholly
and entirely in the direction which is good; and that, even if there is any
thing which is not very praiseworthy indeed, it makes that to depart by
arguments conducive to repentance; for, having in this manner washed off all the
defilements which polluted it, and having availed itself of the baths and
purifications of wisdom, it must inevitably look brilliant. XXII.
(125) But it happens to the arch-prophet to have many names: for when he
interprets and explains the oracles which are delivered by God, he is called
Moses; and when he prays for and blesses the people, he is called the man of
God; {43}{Deuteronomy 33:1.} and when Egypt is paying the penalty of its impious
actions, he is then denominated the god of him who is the king of the country,
namely, of Pharaoh.{44}{Exodus 7:1.} And why is all this? (126) Because to alter
a code of laws for the advantage of those who are to use them is the part of a
man who is always handling divine things, and having them in his hands; and who
is called a lawgiver by the allknowing God, and who has received from him a
great gift--the interpretation of the sacred laws, and the spirit of prophecy in
accordance with them. For the name Moses, being translated, signifies
"gain," and it also means handling, for the reasons which I have
already enumerated. (127) But to pray and to bless are not the duties of any
ordinary man, but they belong to one who has not admitted any connection with
created things, but who has devoted himself to God, the governor and the father
of all men. (128) And any one must be content to whom it has been allowed to use
the privilege of blessing. And to be able also to procure good for others
belongs to a greater and more perfect soul, and is the profession
of one who is really inspired by God, which he who has attained to may
reasonably be called God. But also, this same person is God, inasmuch as he is
wise, and as on this account he rules over every foolish person, even if such
foolish person be established and strengthened by a haughty sceptre, and be ever
so proud on this account; (129) for the Ruler of the universe, even though some
persons are about to be punished for intolerable acts of wickedness,
nevertheless is willing to admit some intercessors to mediate on their behalf,
who, in imitation of the merciful power of the father, exercise their power of
punishment with more moderation and humanity; but to do good is the peculiar
attribute of God. XXIII.
(130) Having now discussed at sufficient length the subject of change and
alteration of names, we will turn to the matters which come next in order in our
proposed examination. Immediately after the events which we have just mentioned,
came the birth of Isaac; for after God had given to his mother the name of
Sarrah instead of Sarah, he said to Abraham, "I will give unto thee a
Son."{45}{Genesis 17:16.} We must consider each of the things here
indicated particularly. (131) Now he who is properly said to give any thing
whatever must by all means be giving what is his own private property. And if
this is true beyond controversy, then it would follow that Isaac must not have
been a man, but a being synonymous with that most exquisite joy of all
pleasures, namely, laughter, the adopted son of God, who gave him as a soother
and cheerer to the most peace-loving souls; (132) for it is absurd to suppose
that there was one who was a man, and another of whom bastard and illegitimate
offspring were descended: and, indeed, Moses calls the man of an intellect
devoted to virtue a god, when he says, "The Lord, seeing that Leah was
hated, opened her Womb."{46}{Genesis 29:31.} (133) For having felt
compassion and pity for virtue as being hated by the race of mankind, and for
the soul which loves virtue, he makes the nature which loves beauty barren, but
opens the fountain of fecundity and gives it a prosperous labor. (134) But
Tamar, when she became pregnant of divine seeds, and did not know who it was who
had sown them (for it is said that at that time "she had covered her
face," as Moses did when he turned away, having a reverential fear of
beholding God), still when she saw the tokens and the evidences and decided
within herself that it was not a mortal man who gave these things, cried out,
"To whomsoever these things belong, it is by him that I am with
Child."{47}{Genesis 38:25.} (135) Whose was the ring, or the pledge, or the
seal of the whole, or the archetypal appearance, according to which all the
things, though devoid of species and of distinctive quality, were all stamped
and marked? And whose again was the armlet, or the ornament; that is to say,
destiny, the link and analogy of all things which have an indissoluble
connection? Whose, again, was the staff, the thing of strong support, which
wavers not, which is not moved; that is to say, admonition, correction,
instruction? Whose is the sceptre, the kingly power? (136) does it not belong to
God alone? Therefore, the disposition inclined to confession, that is to say,
Judah, being pleased at her possessed and inspired condition, speaks freely,
saying, "She has spoken justly, because I gave her in marriage to no mortal
Man;"{48}{Genesis 17:26.} thinking it an impious thing to pollute divine
with profane things. XXIV.
(137) And wisdom, which, after the fashion of a mother, has conceived and
brought fourth the self-taught race, points out that it is God who is the sower
of it; for, after the offspring is brought forth, she speak magnificently,
saying, "The Lord has caused me Laughter;"{49}{Genesis 21:6.} an
expression equivalent to, he has fashioned, he has made, he has begotten Isaac,
since Isaac is the same with laughter. (138) But it does not belong to every one
to hear this sound, since the evil of superstition is very widely spread among
us, and has overwhelmed many unmanly and ignoble souls; on which account she
adds, "For whoever hears this will not rejoice with me." As if those
persons were very few whose ears are opened and pricked up so as to be inclined
to the reception of these sacred words, which teach that it is the peculiar
employment of the only God to sow and to beget what is good; to which words all
other persons are deaf. (139) And I know that this illustrious oracle was
formerly delivered from the mouth of the prophet. "Thy fruit has been found
from me: who is wise and will understand these things? who is prudent and will
know Them?"{50}{Hosea 14:9.} But I have observed, and comprehended, and
admired him who causes to resound, and who himself, invisible as he is, does in
an invisible manner strike the organ of the voice; being amazed also at the same
time at what was uttered. (140) For if there be any good thing among existing
things, that, or I should rather say the whole heaven and the whole world, if
one must tell the truth, is the fruit of God; being preserved upon his eternal
and everflourishing nature as upon a tree. But it belongs to wise and
understanding men to understand and to confess such things as these, and not to
the ignorant. XXV.
(141) We have now then explained what is meant by the words, "I will give
unto thee." We must now explain the words, "out of her." Some now
have understood them as meaning that which exists out of her, thinking that it
has been most correctly decided by right reason that the soul never displays any
peculiar beauty of its own, but only such as comes to it from without, in
accordance with the greatness of the good will of God who showers his graces
upon it. (142) But others understand these words to mean instant rapidity; for
that the words (ex auteµs, which we have translated) "out of her,"
are here equivalent to, "at once, immediately, without any delay, without
hesitation." And it is in this way that the gifts of God usually come to
men, outstripping the differences of time. There is a third class of persons who
say, that virtue is the mother of all created good, without having received the
seed of it from any mortal man; (143) and to those who ask, whether she who is
barren has an offspring (for the holy scriptures, which some time ago
represented Sarrah as barren, now confess that she will become a mother); this
answer must be given, that a woman who is barren cannot, in the course of
nature, bring forth an offspring, just as a blind man cannot see, nor a deaf man
hear; but that the soul, which is barren of bad things, and which is
unproductive of immoderate license of the passions and vices, is alone very
nearly attaining to a happy delivery, bringing forth objects worthy of love,
namely, the number seven, according to the hymn which is sung by Grace, that is,
by Hannah, who says, "she who was barren hath born seven, and she who had
many children has become weak:"{51}{1Samuel 2:5.} (144) and what she means
by, "She who has many children," is the mind, which being pregnant of
mixed and promiscuous reasonings, from all quarters confused together, by reason
of the multitudes which crowd around her, and of the disorder which they cause,
brings forth incurable evils; and by "she who was barren," she means
that the mind which had never received any mortal seed, as if it were productive
of offspring, but has avoided and shunned all association and all connection
with the wicked, and clings to the seventh, and to the most peaceful numbers in
accordance with it, for it deserves to be pregnant of it, and to be called its
mother. XXVI.
(145) This then is the meaning of the words, "out of her." We must now
consider the third point, namely, what that is which is called her son. In the
first place, then, there is this worthy of our admiration, that God does not say
that he will give her many children, but that he will give her one only. And why
is this? Because it is the nature of what is good to be investigated, not so
much with respect to its number or magnitude, as with respect to its power;
(146) for musical precepts, to take them for an instance, or rules of grammar,
or of geometry, or of justice, or of wisdom, or of manly courage, or of
temperance, are very numerous indeed; but the science itself of music, or
grammar, or geometry, and still more the virtue of justice, or temperance, or
wisdom, or manly courage, is only one thing, the loftiest perfection, in no
respect differing from the archetypal model, after which all those numerous and
countless precepts were formed. (147) And this is why he only says that he will
give her one son. And now he called it a son, not speaking carelessly or
inconsiderately, but for the sake of showing that it is not a foreign, or a
supposititious, nor an adopted, nor an illegitimate child, but a legitimate
child, a proper citizen, inasmuch as a foreign child cannot be the offspring of
a truly citizen soul, for the Greek word teknon (son), is derived from tokos
(bringing forth), by way of showing the kindred by which children are, by
nature, united to their parents. XXVII.
(148) And, says God, "I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of
Nations;"{52}{Genesis 17:16.} because, not only is generic virtue divided
into its proximate species, and into individuals subordinate to the species, as
if into nations; but also because, as there are nations of living animals, so in
a manner are there nations of things, to which virtue is a very great advantage;
(149) for all things which are devoid and destitute of wisdom are mischievous,
just as all places upon which the sun does not shine are of necessity dark; for
it is by virtue that a farmer is able to pay better attention to his crops, and
by virtue that a charioteer drives his chariot in the horse-races so as to avoid
falling; and by virtue too, that a pilot and a steersman guides his vessel in
its voyage. (150) Virtue again has caused houses, and cities, and countries to
be inhabited in a better manner, making men competent to manage houses and
cities, and fit to associate with one another. Virtue has also introduced most
excellent laws, and has sown the seeds of peace everywhere; since, from the
contrary habit, things of a contrary character do naturally arise--war,
lawlessness, bad constitutions, confusion, unnecessary voyages, overthrows, that
which, in science, is the most grievous of all diseases, namely, cunning, from
which, instead of art, all kinds of evil artifice has flowed. Very necessarily,
therefore, will virtue be divided among all nations, which are large and
collected systems of living beings and things taken together, for the advantage
of those who receive her. XXVIII.
(151) Immediately afterwards it is said, "And kings of the nations shall be
born of her." For those with whom she is pregnant and whom she brings forth
are all rulers; not because they have been elected as such for a short period by
lot, which is an uncertain thing, or by the show of hands of men who are for the
most part bribed, but because they have been destined and appointed so for
everlasting by nature herself. (152) And these are not my words only, but those
of the most holy scriptures, in which certain persons are introduced as saying
to Abraham, "Thou art a king from God among Us;"{53}{Genesis 23:6.}
not out of consideration for his resources (for what resources could a man have
who was an emigrant and who had no city to inhabit, but who was wandering over a
great extent of impassable country?), but because they saw that he had a royal
disposition in his mind, so that they confessed, in the words of Moses, that he
was the only wise king. (153) For in real truth the wise man is the king of
those who are foolish, since he knows what he ought and what he ought not to do;
and the temperate man is the king of the intemperate, as he has attained to no
careless or inaccurate knowledge of what relates to choice and avoidance. Also
the brave man is king over the cowardly, inasmuch as he has thoroughly learnt
what he ought to endure and what he ought not. So too the just man is king of
the unjust, as he is possessed of the knowledge of undeviating equality as to
what is to be distributed. And the holy man is king over the unholy, as he is
possessed with the most just and excellent notions of God. XXIX.
(154) It was natural then for the mind, being puffed up by these promises, to be
elated and raised to an undue height in its own estimation; and accordingly, by
way of producing conviction in us, who were accustomed to hold up our heads at
the slightest trifles, "it falls down and immediately laughs the laughter
of the soul," looking mournful as to its face, but smiling in its mind a
great and unmixed joy having entered into it: (155) and both these feelings,
namely, to laugh and also to fall, do at the same time occur to a wise man who
inherits good things beyond his expectation; the one being his fate, as a proof
that he is not over-proud because of his thorough knowledge of his mortal
nothingness; and the other, by way of a confirmation of his piety on account of
his looking upon God as the sole cause of all graces and of all good things.
(156) Let, then, the creature fall down and wear a melancholy countenance very
naturally; for it has no stability in its own nature, and as far as that goes is
easily dissolved; but let it be raised up again by God, and laugh, for he alone
is the support and joy of it. (157) And here any one may reasonably express a
doubt how it is possible for any one to laugh when laughter had not as yet come
among one branch of the creation; for Isaac is laughter, who, according to the
account under our consideration at present, was not yet born. For just as it is
impossible to see without eyes, or to hear without ears, or to smell without
nostrils, or to exert any other of the external senses without the organs
adapted to each respectively, or to comprehend without the reason, so also it is
not likely that a person can have laughed, if laughter had not as yet been made.
(158) What, then, are we to say? Nature foreshows many of the things which are
hereafter to happen by certain symbols. Do you not see how the young bird,
before it commits itself to the air, is fond of fluttering its wings and shaking
its pinions, giving a previous happy indication of its hope that it will be able
to fly? (159) And have you never seen a lamb, or a kid, or an ox, while still
young, and before his horns are as yet grown and noticed, if by chance any one
irritates him, how he opposes him, and moves forward to defend himself with
those parts in which nature has planted his arms for defense? (160) And in the
battles which take place with wild beasts, the bulls do not at once gore the
adversaries who are opposed to them, but standing well apart, and relaxing their
neck in a moderate degree and bending their heads on one side, and looking
fierce, as it were, they then, after a truce, rush on with the determination of
persevering in the contest. And this sort of conduct those who are in the habit
of inventing new words call "sparring," being a sort of sham attack
before the real one. XXX.
(161) And the soul is subject to many things of much the same kind. For when
something good is hoped for it rejoices beforehand, so that in a manner it
rejoices before its joy, and is delighted before its delight. And one may also
compare this to what happens with respect to plants; for they, too, when they
are about to bear fruit, bud beforehand and flower previously, and are green
previously. (162) Look at the cultivated vine, how marvelously it is furnished
by nature with young shoots, and tendrils, and suckers, and leaves redolent of
wine, which, though they utter no voice, do nevertheless indicate the joy of the
tree at the coming fruit. And the day also laughs in anticipation of the early
dawn, when the sun is about to rise; for one ray is a messenger of another, and
one beam of light, as the forerunner of another though more obscure, is still a
herald of that which shall be brighter. (163) Therefore, joy accompanies a good
when it is already arrived, and hope while it is expected. For we rejoice when
it is come, and we hope while it is coming; just as in the case also with the
contrary feelings; for the presence of evil brings us grief, and the expectation
of evil generates fear, and fear is nothing more than grief before grief, as
hope is joy before joy. For the same relation that, I imagine, fear bears to
grief, that same does hope bear to joy. (164) And the external senses afford
very manifest proofs of what has now been said; for smell, sitting as it were in
front of taste, pronounces judgment beforehand on almost every thing which is
eaten and drunk; from which fact some persons have very felicitously named it
the foretaster, having a regard to its employment. And so hope is by nature
adapted to have as it were a foretaste of the coming good: and to represent it
to the soul, which is to have a firm possession of it. (165) Moreover, when any
one who is engaged in a journey is hungry or thirsty, if he on a sudden sees a
fountain or all kinds of trees weighed down with eatable fruits, he is at once
filled with a hope of enjoyment, not only before he has either eaten or drunk,
but before he has either come near them or gathered of them. And do we then
think that we are able to feast on the nourishment of the body before we receive
it, but that the food of the mind is not able to render us cheerful beforehand,
even when we are on the very point of feasting on it? XXXI.
(166) He laughed then very naturally, even though laughter did not as yet appear
to have been scattered among the human race: and not only did he laugh but the
woman also laughed; for it is said presently, "And Sarrah laughed in
herself, saying, There has never up to the present time come any good unto me of
its own accord without care on my part; but he who has promised is my Lord, and
is older than all creation, and him I must of necessity believe." (167) And
at the same time it also teaches us that virtue is naturally a thing to be
rejoiced at, and that he who possesses it is at all times rejoiced; and, on the
contrary, that vice is a painful thing, and that he who possesses that is most
miserable. And do we even now marvel at those philosophers who affirm that
virtue consists in apathy? (168) For, behold, Moses is found to be the leader of
this wise doctrine, as he represents the good man as rejoicing and laughing. And
in other passages he not only speaks of him in that way, but also of all those
who come to the same place with him; for he says, "And when he seeth thee
he will rejoice in Himself;"{54}{Exodus 4:14.} as if the bare sight of a
good man were by itself sufficient to fill the mind with cheerfulness while the
soul would cast off its most fearful burden, sorrow. (169) But it is not allowed
to every wicked man to rejoice, as it is said in the predictions of the prophet,
"There is no rejoicing for the wicked, says God."{55}{Isaiah 47:22.}
For this is truly a divine saying and oracle, that the life of every wicked man
is melancholy, and sad, and full of unhappiness, even if with his face he
pretends to feel happiness; (170) for I should not say that the Egyptians
rejoiced in reality when they heard that the brethren of Joseph were come, but
that they only feigned joy, putting on a false appearance like hypocrites; for
no convictor, when standing by and pressing upon a foolish man is a pleasure to
him, just as no physician is to an intemperate man who is sick; for labor
attends on what is useful, and laziness on what is hurtful. And those who prefer
laziness to labor are very naturally hated by those who advise them to a course
which will be useful and laborious. (171) When, therefore, you hear that
"Pharaoh and all his servants rejoiced on account of the arrival of
Joseph's Brethren,"{56}{Genesis 45:16.} do not think that they rejoiced in
reality, unless perhaps in this sense, that they expected that he would become
changed from the good things of the soul in which he had been brought up, and
would come over to the profitless appetites of the body, having adulterated the
ancient and hereditary coinage of that virtue which was akin to him. XXXII.
(172) The mind, then, which is devoted to pleasure, having entertained these
hopes, does not think that it is sufficient to attract the younger men, and
those who are as yet only attending the school of temperance, by its
allurements; but it looks upon it as a terrible thing, if it cannot also bring
over the elder reasoning, the more impetuous passions of which have now passed
their prime; (173) for in a subsequent passage Joseph says to them, proposing
injuries to them as though they were benefits, "Now, therefore, bringing
with you your father and all your possessions, come hither to
Me;"{57}{Genesis 45:18.} speaking in this way of Egypt and of that terrible
king who drags back all our paternal inheritance and the good things which
really belong to us and which have advanced beyond the body (for by nature they
are free), endeavoring by force to surrender them to a very bitter prison,
having, as the holy scripture tells us, "appointed as guardian of the
prison Pentaphres, the eunuch and chief Cook,"{58}{Genesis 39:1.} who was a
man in great want of all that is good, and who had been deprived of the
generative parts of the soul; and who was also unable to sow and to plant any of
those things which bear upon instruction; but who like a cook slew the living
animals, and cut them up and divided them in different portions limb by limb,
and who wallowed about in dead and lifeless bodies and things equally, and who,
by his superfluous preparations and refinements, excited and stirred up the
appetites of the profitless passions, while it was natural to expect that those
who were able to tame them should mollify. (174) And he also says, "I will
give unto you all the good things of XXXIII.
(175) Something like this, then, is the falsely named joy of the foolish. But
the true joy has already been described, which is adapted only to the virtuous,
"Therefore, falling down he Laughed."{60}{Genesis 17:17.} Not falling
from God, but from himself; for he stood near the unchangeable God, but he fell
from his own vain opinion. (176) On which account that pride which was wise in
its own conceit, having been thrown down, and the feeling which is devoted to
God having been raised in its place, and been established around the only
unalterable being, he, immediately laughing, said in his mind, "Shall a
child be born to one who is a hundred years old, and shall Sarrah, who is ninety
years old, have a child?" (177) Do not fancy, my good friend, that the
word, "he said" not with his mouth but "in his
Mind,"{61}{Genesis 17:20.} has been added for no especial use; on the
contrary, it is inserted with great accuracy and propriety. Why so? Because it
seems by his saying, "Shall a child be born to him who is a hundred years
old?" that he had a doubt about the birth of Isaac, in which he was
previously stated to believe; as what was predicted a little before showed,
speaking thus, "This child shall not be thy heir, but he who shall come out
of thee;" and immediately afterward he says, "Abraham believed in the
Lord, and it was counted to him for righteousness." (178) Since then it was
not consistent for one who had already believed to doubt, he has represented the
doubt as of no long continuance, extending only as far as the mouth of the
tongue, and stopping there at the mind which is endowed with such celerity of
motion; for, says the scripture, "he said in his mind," which nothing,
and no person ever so celebrated for swiftness of foot, could ever be able to
outstrip, since it outruns even all the winged natures; (179) on which account
the most illustrious of all of the Greek poets appears to me to have said:-- "Swift
as a winged bird or fleeter Thought."{62}{homer, Odyssey 8.171.} Showing
by these words the exceeding speed of its promptitude, placing the thought after
the winged bird as a sort of climax; for the mind advances at the same moment to
very many things and bodies, hurrying on with indescribable impetuosity, and
without a moment's lapse of time it speeds at once to the borders of both earth
and sea, bringing together and dividing infinite magnitudes by a single word;
and at the same time it soars to such a height above the earth, that it
penetrates through the air and reaches even the aether, and scarcely stops at
the very furthest circle of the fixed stars. (180) For the fervid and glowing
heat of that region does not suffer to to rest tranquil; on which account,
overleaping many things, it is borne far beyond every boundary perceptible by
the outward senses, to that which is compounded of ideas and appearances by the
law of kindred. On which account in the good man there is a slight change,
indivisible, unapportionable, not perceptible by the outward senses, but only by
the intellect, and being in a manner independent of them. XXXIV.
(181) But, perhaps, some one may say, What then? is he who has once believed
bound never to admit the slightest trace, or shadow, or moment of incredulity at
all? But this man appears to me to have nothing else in his mind except an idea
of proving the creature uncreated, and the mortal immortal, and the corruptible
incorruptible, and man, if it be lawful to say so, God. (182) For he says that
the belief which man has once conceived ought to be so firm as in no respect to
differ from that which is entertained of the truly living God and which is
complete in every part; for Moses, in his greater hymn, says, "God is
faithful, and there is no unrighteousness in Him."{63}{Deuteronomy 32:4.}
(183) And it is great folly to fancy that the soul of man is able to contain the
virtues of God, which never vary and which are established on the most solid
footing; for it is sufficient, and one must be content to have been able to
acquire the images of them, though they are inferior to the archetypal patterns
by many and large numbers. (184) And is not this reasonable? for it follows of
necessity that the virtues of God must be pure and unmixed, since God is not a
compound being, inasmuch as he is a single nature; on the other hand, the
virtues of men must be mixed with some alloy, since we ourselves are compounds,
the divine and human nature being combined in us, and adapted together according
to the principles of perfect music; and that which is composed of many separate
things has a natural attraction to each of its parts. (185) But he is happy to
whom it has happened that for the greater portion of his life he has inclined
towards the more excellent and more divine part; for that he should have done so
all his life is impossible, since at times the mortal weight which is opposed to
him has preponderated in the opposite scale, and impending over his mind, has
kept watch for the opportunities of coming upon his reason at an unfavorable
time, so as to drag it back again. XXXV.
(186) Abraham therefore believed in God; but he believed as a man; that you may
be aware of the peculiar attribute of mortals, and may learn that his fall did
not happen to him in any other way than in consequence of the ordinances of
nature. And if it was of short duration and only momentary, it is a thing to be
thankful for: for many other men have been so overturned by the violence and
impetuosity of error, and by its irresistible force, that they have been utterly
destroyed for ever. (187) For know, my good man, that, according to the most
holy Moses, virtue is not perfect in the human body, but it suffers something
like torpor, and is often ever so little lame. For says the scripture, "The
broader part of his thigh became torpid, on which he was Lame."{64}{Genesis
32:25.} (188) And perhaps some man of an over-confident disposition may come
forward and say that this is not the language of one who disbelieves, but of one
praying, so that if that most excellent of all the happy feelings were about to
be produced, it would not be brought forth according to any other number than
that of ninety years, that so the perfect good might arrive at its production
according to perfect numbers. (189) But the aforesaid numbers are perfect, and
especially according to the sacred scriptures. And let us consider each of them:
now first of all there is the son of the just Noah and the ancestor of the
seeing race, and he is said to have been a hundred years old when he begat
Arphaxad, {65}{Genesis 11:10.} and the meaning of the name of Arphaxad is,
"he disturbed sorrow." At all events it is a good thing that the
offspring of the soul should confuse, and disorder, and destroy that miserable
thing iniquity, so full of evils. (190) But Abraham also planted a field,
{66}{Genesis 21:33.} using the ratio of an hundred for the measurement of the
ground: and Isaac found some barley yielding a hundred Fold.{67}{Genesis 26:12.}
And Moses also made the vestibule of the sacred tabernacle in a hundred arches,
{68}{Exodus 27:9.} measuring out the distance towards the east and towards the
west. (191) Moreover the ratio of a hundred is the first fruit of the first
fruit which the Levites assign to those who are consecrated to the priesthood;
{69}{Numbers 18:28.} for after they have taken the tenth from the nation they
are enjoined to give unto the priests a sacred tenth of the whole share, as if
from their own possessions. (192) And if a person were to consider, he might
find many other instances to the praise of the aforesaid number brought forward
in the law of Moses, but for the present what have been enumerated are
sufficient. But if from the hundred you set aside the tenth part as a sacred
first fruit to God who produces, and increases, and brings to perfection the
fruit of the soul--for how can it be anything but perfect, inasmuch as it is on
the confines between the first and the tenth, in the same manner in which the
Holy of Holies is separated by the veil in the middle. [...]{70}{there is an
hiatus in the text here.} by which those things which are of the same genus are
divided according to the differences in species? XXXVI.
(193) Therefore the good man was speaking and saying things which were really
good in his mind. But the bad man at times interprets good things in a very
excellent manner, but nevertheless does shameful things in a most shameful one,
as Shechem does who is the offspring of folly. For he is the son of Hamon his
father, and the name Hamon, being translated, means "an ass," but the
Shechem means "a shoulder" when interpreted, the symbol of labor. But
that labor of which folly is the parent is miserable and full of suffering, as,
on the other hand, that labor is useful to which prudence is related. (194)
Accordingly the holy scriptures tell us that, "Shechem spake according to
the mind of the virgin, having first humbled Her."{71}{Genesis 34:3.} It is
not said then, with great purpose and accuracy, that he spake according to the
mind of the damsel, for the purpose of showing distinctly that he acted in a
contrary manner to that in which he spoke? For Dinah means "incorruptible
judgment:" justice the attribute seated by God, the everlasting virgin; for
the name Dinah, being interpreted, means either thing, "judgment" or
"justice." (195) Fools, then, laying violent hands upon and attempting
to defile her, by means of their daily designs and practices, by their
plausibility of speech escape conviction. Therefore they must either act in a
manner consistent with the language that they hold, or else they must hold their
tongues while committing iniquity. For it is said, "Silence is one half of
evil:" as Moses says when rebuking the man who accounted the creature
worthy of the principal honor, and the immortal God worthy only of the second
place, "Thou has sinned, be silent." (196) For to use bombastic
language, and to boast of one's evil deeds, is a double sin: and men in general
are very prone to this; for they are constantly saying what is pleasing to the
ever-virgin virtue, and such things as are just: but they never omit any
opportunity of insulting and violating her when they are able. For what city is
there which is not full of those who are continually celebrating the praises of
virtue?--(197) men who weary the ears of those who hear them by everlastingly
dwelling on such subjects as these; wisdom is a necessary good; folly is
pernicious; temperance is desirable; intemperance is hateful; courage is a thing
proper to be cultivated; cowardice must be avoided; justice is advantageous;
injustice is disadvantageous; holiness is honorable; unholiness is shameful;
piety towards the gods is praiseworthy; impiety is blamable; that which is most
akin to the nature of man is to design, and to act, and to speak virtuously;
that which is most alien from his nature is to do the contrary of all these
things. (198) By continually stringing together these and similar aphorisms they
deceive the courts of justice, and the council chambers, and the theatres, and
every assembly and company which they meet; as men who put beautiful masks on
ugly faces, with the intention of not being discovered by those who see them.
(199) But it is of no use; for some persons will come endowed with great vigor,
and occupied with a real zeal and admiration for virtue, and who will strip them
of all their coverings, and disguises, and appendages which they had woven round
themselves by the evil artifice of plausible speeches, and will display their
soul naked by itself as it really is, and will make themselves acquainted with
the secret things of their nature which are hidden as it were in recesses. And
then having brought to light all its shame and all the reproaches to which it is
liable, they will display them in broad daylight to every one, and show what
sort of thing it is, how disgraceful and ridiculous, and what a spurious kind of
beauty it has disguised itself with by means of its appendages and coverings.
(200) And those who are prepared to avenge themselves on such profane and impure
dispositions are Simeon and Levi, {72}{Deuteronomy 33:6.} two indeed in number,
but only one in mind; on which account, in his blessings of his sons, their
father numbers them together under one classification, on account of the
harmonious character of their unanimity and of their violence in one and the
same direction. But Moses does not make any mention of them afterwards as a
pair, but classes the whole tribe of Simeon under that of Levi, combining
together two essences, of which he made one impressed as it were with one idea
and appearance, hearing to doing. XXXVII.
(201) When, therefore, the virtuous man knew that the promise was uttering
things full of reverence and prudent caution, according to his own mind, he
admitted both these feelings into his breast, namely, faith in God, and
incredulity as to the creature. Very naturally therefore he says, using the
language of entreaty, "Would that this Ishmael might live before
Thee,"{73}{Genesis 17:18.} using each word of those which he utters here
with deliberate propriety, namely, the "this," the "might
live," the "before thee." (202) For it is no small number of
persons who have been deceived by the similarity of the names of different
things, and we had better examine here what I am saying. The name of Ishmael,
being interpreted, means "the hearing of God," but some men listen to
the divine doctrines to their benefit, and others listen to both his admonitions
and to those of others only to their destruction. Do you recollect the case of
the soothsayer Balaam?{74}{Numbers 24:17.} He is represented as hearing the
oracles of God, and as having received knowledge from the Most High, (203) but
what advantage did he reap from such hearing, and what good accrued to him from
such knowledge? In his intention he endeavored to injure the most excellent eye
of the soul, which alone has received such instruction as to be able to behold
God, but he was unable to do so by reason of the invincible power of the Savior;
therefore, being overthrown by his own insane wickedness, and having received
many wounds, he perished amid the heaps of wounded, {75}{Numbers 31:8.} because
he had stamped beforehand the divinely inspired prophecies with the sophistry of
the soothsayers. (204) Very righteously, therefore, does the good man pray that
this his only son, Ishmael, may be sound in mind and health, because of those
persons who do not listen in a sincere spirit to the sacred admonitions, whom
Moses has expressly forbidden to come into the assembly of the Ruler of the
universe, (205) for those men are broken as to the generative parts of their
minds, or are even rendered completely impotent in that respect, who magnify
their own minds, and their external sense, as the only causes of all the events
which take place among men; and there are others who are lovers of a system of
polytheism, and who honor the company which is devoted to the service of many
gods, being the sons of a harlot, having no knowledge of the one husband and
father of the virtue-loving soul, namely, God; and are not all these men very
properly driven away and banished from the assembly of God? (206) They appear to
me very much to resemble those parents who accuse their sons of intemperance in
wine, for they say, "This our son is Disobedient,"{76}{Deuteronomy
21:20.} indicating, by the addition of the word "this," that they have
other sons likewise who are temperate and self-denying, and who obey the
injunctions of right reason and instruction; for these are the most genuine
parents, by whom it is a most disgraceful thing to be accused, and a most
glorious thing to be praised. (207) Then as to the words, "This is Aaron
and Moses, whom God directed to lead the children of XXXVIII.
(210) And he indeed prays that the hearing of sacred words and the learning of
sacred doctrine may live, as has been already said; but Jacob, the practicer of
virtue, prays that the good natural disposition may live; for he says, "May
Reuben live and not Die,"{78}{Deuteronomy 33:6.} does he then here pray for
immortality for him, a thing impossible for man to attain to? (211) Surely not,
we must then explain what it is which he intends to signify. All the lessons and
all the admonitions of instruction are built up and established on the nature
which is calculated to receive instruction, as on a foundation previously laid;
but if there is no natural foundation previously in existence, everything is
useless; for men, by nature destitute of sense, would not appear at all to
differ from a stock or a lifeless stone; for nothing could possibly be adapted
to them so as to cleave to them, but everything would rebound and spring back as
from some hard body. (212) But on the other hand, we may see the souls of those
who are well endowed by nature, like a well-smooth waxen tablet, neither too
solid nor too tender, moderately tempered, and easily receiving all admonitions
and all lessons, and themselves giving an accurate representation of any
impression which has been stamped upon them, being a sort of distinct image of
memory. (213) It was therefore indispensable to pray that a good natural
disposition, free from all disease and from all mortality, should be joined to
the rational race; for they are but few who partake of the life according to
virtue, which is the most real and genuine life. I do not mean of the common
herd of men only, for of them there is not one who partakes of real life: but
even of those to whom it has been granted to shun the objects of human desire,
and to live to God alone. (214) On which account the practicer of virtue, that
courageous man, marveled greatly, if any one being borne along the middle of the
stream of life, was not dragged down by any violence, but was able to withstand
the flow of abundant wealth coming over him, and to stem the impetuosity of
immoderate pleasure, and to avoid being carried away by the whirlwind of vain
opinion. (215) At all events Jacob does not speak to Joseph more than the sacred
scripture speaks to every one who is vigorous in his body, and who is seen to be
immersed amid abundant treasures, and riches, and superfluities, and to be
overcome by none of them, when he says, "For still thou livest,"
uttering a most marvelous sentiment, and one which is quite beyond the daily
life of us who, if we have fallen in with ever so slight a breeze which bears us
towards the good fortune, immediately set all sail and became greatly elated,
and being full of great and high spirits, hurry forward with all our speed to
the indulgence of our passions, and never will check our unbridled and
immoderately excited desires until we run ashore and are wrecked as to the whole
vessel of our souls. XXXIX.
(216) Very beautifully therefore, do we pray that this Ishmael may live.
Therefore, Abraham adds, "May he live before God," looking upon it as
the perfection of all happiness for the mind to be accounted worthy of him who
is the most excellent of all beings, as its inspector and overseer; (217) for
if, while the teacher is present the pupil cannot go wrong, and if a monitor
being at hand is of service to the learner, and if while an elder person is
present the younger man is adorned by modesty and temperance, and if the
presence of his father or of his mother have often prevented a son when about to
commit sin, even though they are only beheld by him in silence, then what excess
of good must we imagine that man to enjoy, who believes that he is always
watched and beheld by God? for while he fears and reverences and looks up to the
dignity of him as being present, he will flee from committing iniquity with all
his might. (218) But when he prays that Ishmael may live, he does not despair of
the birth of Isaac, as I have already said, but he believes in God; for it does
not follow that what it is possible for God to give, it is also possible for man
to receive, since to God it is easy to give the most numerous and important
benefits, but to us it is not easy to accept of the gifts which are proffered to
us; (219) for we must be content, if, by means of labor and diligence, we obtain
a share of those good things which are familiar and customary to us. But there
is no hope that we can attain to those which come of their own accord, and from
some ever ready and previously prepared source, without any art, or in short,
any human contrivance whatever; for inasmuch as these things are divine, they
must of necessity be found out by more divine and unadulterated natures, such as
have no connection with any mortal body. (220) And Moses has shown that every
one, to the best of his power, ought to make grateful acknowledgments for
benefits received; for instance, that the clever man ought to offer up as a
sacrifice his acuteness and wisdom; the eloquent man should consecrate all his
excellences of speech, by means of psalms and a regular enumeration of the
greatness and panegyric on the living God; and to proceed with each species, he
who is a natural philosopher should offer up his natural philosophy; he who is a
moral philosopher should make an offering of his ethical philosophy; he who is
skilful in any art or science should dedicate to God his knowledge of the arts
and sciences. (221) Thus again a sailor and a pilot should dedicate their
successful voyage; the agricultural farmer, his productive crops; the
stock-farmer, the prolific increase of his flocks and herds; the physician, the
good health of his patients; the commander of an army, his success in war; the
magistrate or the king will offer up his administration of the laws or his
sovereign power. And, in short, the man who is not blinded by self-love, looks
upon the only true maker of all things, God, as the cause of all the good things
affecting his soul, or body, or his external circumstances. (222) Let no one
therefore, of those who seem to be somewhat obscure and humble, from a despair
of any better hope, hesitate to become a suppliant to God. But even if he no
longer looks forward to any great advantages, still let him, to the best of his
power, give God thanks for the blessings which he has already received, (223)
and in effect, those which he has received are countless; his birth, his life,
his soul, his food, his outward senses, his imagination, his inclinations, his
reason; and reason is a very short word, but a most perfect and admirable thing,
a fragment of the soul of the universe, or, as it is more pious to say for those
who study philosophy according to Moses, a very faithful copy of the divine
image. XL.
(224) It is right also to praise those inquirers after truth, who have
endeavored to tear up and carry off the whole trunk of virtue, root and branch:
but since they have not been able to do it, have at least taken either a single
shoot, or a single bunch of fruit, as a specimen and portion of the whole tree,
being all that they were able to Bear.{79}{Numbers 13:25.} (225) It is a
desirable thing, indeed, to associate at once with the entire company of the
virtues; but if this be too great an indulgence to be granted to human nature,
let us be content if it has fallen to our lot to be connected with any one of
the particular virtues, as a portion of the whole band, such as temperance, or
courage, or justice, or humanity; for the soul may produce and bring forth some
good from even one of them, and so avoid being barren and unproductive of any.
(226) But will you impose any such injunctions as these on your own son? Unless
you treat your servants with gentleness, do not treat those of the same rank as
yourself socially. Unless you behave decorously to your wife, never bear
yourself respectfully to your parents. If you neglect your father and your
mother, be impious also towards God. If you delight in pleasure, you must not
keep aloof from covetousness. Do you desire great riches? Then be also eager for
vain-glory. (227) For what more need we add? Need you not desire to be moderate
in some things unless you are able to be so in all? Would not your son say to
you in such a case, My father, what do you mean? Do you wish your son to become
either perfectly good or perfectly bad, and will you not be content if he keeps
the middle path between the two extremes? (228) Was it not for this reason that
Abraham also, at the time of the destruction of XLI.
(233) But what makes an impression on me in no ordinary degree is the law which
is enacted with respect to those who put off their sins and seem to be
repentant. For this law commands that the first victim which such persons offer
shall be a female sheep without spot. But, if it proceeds, "his hand is not
strong enough to bring a sheep, then for the trespass which he has committed he
shall bring two turtle doves or two young pigeons, one for his trespass and one
for a burnt offering; (234) and if his hand cannot find a pair of turtle doves
or two young pigeons, then he shall bring as his gift the tenth part of an ephah
of fine flour for a sin offering; he shall not pour oil upon it, nor shall he
place any frankincense thereon, because it is a sin offering; and he shall bring
it to the priest, and the priest having taken it from him shall take a full
handful of it, and place it as a memorial on the Altar."{83}{Leviticus
5:5.} (235) God therefore here is propitiated by three different kinds of
repentance, by the aforesaid beasts, or by the birds, or by the while flour,
according, in short, to the ability of him who is being purified and who
repents. For small offences do not require great purifications, nor are small
purifications fit for great crimes; but they should be equal, and similar, and
in due proportion. (236) It is worth while, therefore, to examine what is meant
by this purification which may be accomplished in three ways. Now it may almost
be said that both offences and good actions are perceived to exist in three
things; in intention, or in words, or in actions. On which account Moses,
teaching in his hortatory admonitions that the attainment of good is not
impossible nor even very difficult, says, (237) "It is not necessary to
soar up to heaven, nor to go to the borders of the earth and sea, for the
attainment of it, but it is near, yea, and very Near."{84}{Deuteronomy
30:10.} And then in a subsequent passage he shows it all but to the naked eye as
one may say, where he says, "Every action is in thy mouth, or in thy heart,
or in thy Hands:"{85}{Deuteronomy 30:14.} meaning under this symbolical
expression, in thy words, or in they designs, or in thy actions. For he means
that human happiness consists in wise design, and good language, and righteous
actions, just as the unhappiness arises from the contrary course. (238) For both
well-doing and wrong-doing exist in the same regions, in the heart, or in the
mouth, or in the hand; for some persons decide in the most righteous, and
sagacious manner, some speak most excellently, some do only what ought to be
done: again, of the three sources of error the most unimportant is to design to
do what ought not to be done, the most grievous is to do what is iniquitous, the
middle evil is to speak improperly. (239) But it often happens that even what is
least important is the most difficult to be removed; for it is very hard to
bring an agitated state of the soul to tranquility; and one may more easily
check the impetuosity of a torrent than the perversion of the soul which is
hurrying in a wrong direction, without restraint. For innumerable notions coming
one upon the other like the waves of a stormy sea, bearing everything along with
them, and throwing everything into confusion, overturn the whole soul with
irresistible violence. (240) Therefore the most excellent, and most perfect kind
of purification is this, not to admit into one's mind any improper notions, but
to regulate it in peace and obedience to law, the ruler of which principles is
justice. The next kind is, not to offend in one's language either by speaking
falsely, or by swearing falsely, or by deceiving, or by practicing sophistry, or
by laying false informations; or, in short, by letting loose one's mouth and
tongue to the injury of any one, as it is better to put a bridle and an
insuperable chain on those members. XLII.
(241) But why it is a more grievous offence to say what is wrong than only to
think it, is very easy to see. For some times a person thinks without any
deliberate previous intention of so thinking, but inconsiderately: for he is
compelled to admit ideas in his mind which he does not wish to admit; and
nothing which is involuntary is blamable: (242) but a man speaks intentionally,
so that if he utters words which are not proper he is unhappy and is committing
offence, since he does not even by chance choose to say anything that is proper,
and it would be more for his advantage to adopt that safest expedient of
silence: and, in the second place, anyone who is not silent can be silent if he
pleases. (243) But what is even a still more grievous offence than speaking
wrongly, is unjust action. For the word, as it is said, is the shadow of the
deed; and how can an injurious deed help being more mischievous than a shadow of
the same character? On this account Moses released the mind, even when it
yielded to many involuntary perversions and errors, from accusations and from
penalties, thinking that it was rather acted upon by notions which forced their
way into it, than was itself acting. But whatever goes out through the mouth
that he makes the utterer responsible for and brings him before the tribunal,
since the act of speaking is one which is in our own power. (244) But the
investigation to which words are subject is a much more moderate one, and that
with which words are united is a more vigorous one. For he imposes severe
punishments on those who commit gross offences, and who carry out in action, and
utter with hasty tongues what they have been designed in their unjust minds. XLIII.
(245) Therefore he has called the purifying victims which are to be offered up
for the three offenders, the mind, speech, and the action, a sheep, and a pair
of turtle doves or pigeons, and the tenth part of a sacred measure of fine
flour; thinking it fit that the mind should be purified by a sheep, the speech
by winged creatures, and the action by fine flour: Why is this? (246) Because,
as the mind is the most excellent thing in us, so also is the sheep the most
excellent among irrational animals, inasmuch as it is most gentle, and also as
it gives forth a yearly produce in its fleece, for the use and also for the
ornament of mankind. For clothes keep off all injury from both cold and heat,
and also they conceal the unmentionable parts of nature, and in this way they
are an ornament to those who use them: (247) therefore the sheep, as being the
most excellent of animals, is a symbol of the purification of the most excellent
part of man, the mind. And birds are an emblem of the purification of speech:
for speech is a light thing, and winged by nature, flying and penetrating in
every direction more swiftly than an arrow. For what is once said can never be
re-called; {86}{this resembles what is said by Horace in A. P. 390 and in Epist.
I. 18.71.} but being borne abroad, and running on with great swiftness, it
strikes the ears and penetrates every sense of hearing, resounding loudly: but
speech is of two kinds, one true and the other false; (248) on which account it
appears to me to be here compared to a pair of turtle doves or young pigeons:
and of these birds one he says is to be looked upon as a sin offering, since the
speech which is true is wholly and in all respects sacred and perfect, but that
which is false is very wrong and requires correction. (249) Again, as I have
already said, fine flour is a symbol of the purification of activity, but it is
sorted from the commoner sort by the hands of the bakers, who make the business
their study. On which account the law says, "And the priest having taken an
entire handful, shall place it on the altar as a memorial of them," by the
word handful, indicating both the endeavor and the action. (250) And he speaks
with exceeding accuracy with respect to the sheep, when he says, "And if
his hand be not strong enough to supply a sheep;" but with respect to the
birds he says, "And if he cannot find a bird." Why is this? Because it
is a sign of very great strength and of excessive power, to get rid of the
errors of the mind: but it does not require any great strength, to check the
errors of words; (251) for, as I have said already, silence is a remedy for all
the offences that can be committed by the voice, and every one may easily
practice silence; but yet, by reason of their chattering habits and want
of moderation in their language, many people cannot find out how to impose a
limitation on their speech. XLIV.
(252) Since the, the virtuous man has been bred up among and
practiced in these and similar divisions and discriminations of things,
does he not rightly appear to pray that Ishmael may live, if he is not as yet
able to become the father of Isaac? (253) What then does the merciful God say?
To him who asks for one thing he gives two, and on him who prays for what is
less he bestows what is greater; for, says the historian, he said unto Abraham,
"Yea, behold, Sarrah thy wife shall bring forth a Son."{87}{Genesis
17:19.} Very felicitous and significant is this answer, "Yea;" for
what can be more suitable to and more like the character of God, than to promise
good things and to ratify that promise with all speed! (254) But what God
promises every foolish man repudiates; therefore the sacred scriptures represent
Leah as hated, and on this account it is that she received that name; for Leah,
being interpreted, means "repudiating and laboring," because we all
turn away from virtue and think it a laborious thing, by reason of its very
often imposing commands on us which are not pleasant. (255) But nevertheless,
she is thought worthy of such an honorable reception from the prince, that her
womb is opened by him, so as to receive the seed of divine generation, in order
to cause the production of honorable pursuits and actions. Learn therefore, O
soul, that Sarrah, that is, virtue, will bring forth to thee a son; and that
Hagar, or intermediate instruction, is not the only one who will do so; for her
offspring is one which has its knowledge from teaching, but the offspring of the
other is entirely self-taught. (256) And do not wonder, if God, who brings forth
all good things, has also brought forth this race, which, though rare upon the
earth, is very numerous in heaven. And you may learn this also from other things
of which man consists: do the eyes see from having been taught to do so? And
what do the nostrils do? Do they smell by reason of their having learnt? And do
the hands touch, or the feet advance, in accordance with the commands or
recommendations of instructors? (257) Again, do the appetites and imaginations
(and these are the first moving powers and persuasions of the soul) exist in
consequence of teaching? And has our mind gone as a pupil to any sophist, in
order to learn to think and to comprehend? All these things repudiate all kinds
of instruction, and avail themselves only of the spontaneous gifts of nature to
exert their appropriate energies. (258) Why then do you any longer wonder if God
showers upon men virtue, unaccompanied by any labor or suffering, such as stand
in need of no superintending care or instruction, but is from the very beginning
entire and perfect? And if you wish to receive any testimony in corroboration of
this view, can you find any more trustworthy than that of Moses? And he says
that the rest of mankind derive their food from earth, but that he alone who is
endowed with the power of sight, derives his from heaven. (259) And men occupied
in agriculture co-operate to produce the food from the earth; but God, the only
cause and giver, rains down the food from heaven without the cooperation of any
other being. And, indeed, we read in the scriptures, "Behold, I rain upon
you bread from Heaven."{88}{Exodus 16:4.} Now what nourishment can the
scriptures properly say is rained down, except heavenly wisdom? (260) which God
sends from above upon those souls which have a longing for virtue, God who
possesses a great abundance and exceeding treasure of wisdom, and who irrigates
the universe, and especially so on the sacred seventh day which he calls the
sabbath; for then, he says, that there is an influx of spontaneous good things,
not rising from any kind of art, but shooting up by their own spontaneous and
self-perfecting nature, and bearing appropriate fruit. XLV.
(261) Virtue, therefore, will bring thee forth a legitimate male child, far
removed from all effeminate passions; and thou shall call the name of thy son by
the name of the passion which thou feelest in regard to him; and thou wilt by
all means feel joy; so that thou shall give him a name which is an emblem of
joy, namely, Laughter. (262) As grief and fear have their appropriate
expressions which the passion, when more than usually violent and predominant,
gives utterance to; so also, good counsels and happiness compel a man to employ
a natural expression of them, for which no one could find out more appropriate
and felicitous names, even if he were very skilful in the imposition of names.
(263) On which account God says, "I have blessed him, I will increase him,
I will multiply him, he shall beget twelve Nations;"{89}{Genesis 17:20.}
that is to say, he shall beget the whole circle and ring of the sophistical
preliminary branches of education; but I will make my covenant with Israel, that
the race of mankind may receive each kind of virtue, the weaker part of them
receiving both that which is taught by others, and that which is learnt by one's
self, and the stronger part that which is ready and prepared. XLVI.
(264) "And at that time," says he, "she shall bring forth a son
to Thee;"{90}{Genesis 15:10.} that is to say, wisdom shall bring forth joy.
What time, O most marvelous being, are you pointing out? Is it that which cannot
be indicated by the thing brought forth? For that must be the real time, the
rising of the universe, the prosperity and happiness of the whole earth, and of
heaven, and of all intermediate natures, and of all animals, and of all plants.
(265) On which account Moses also took courage to say to those who had run away,
and who did not dare to enter upon a war in the cause of virtue against those
who were arrayed against it, "The Lord has departed from them, but the Lord
is in Us;"{91}{Numbers 14:9.} for he here almost confesses in express words
that God is time, who stands aloof and at a distance from every impious person,
but walks among those souls which cultivate virtue. (266) "For," says
he, "I will walk among you, and I will be your God."{92}{Leviticus
26:12.} But those who say that what is meant by time is only the seasons of the
year are misapplying the names with great inaccuracy, like men who have not
studied the nature of things with any care, but have gone on to a great degree
at random. XLVII.
(267) But by way of amplifying the beauty of the creature to be born, he says
that it shall be born the next year, indicating by the term, "the next
Year,"{93}{Genesis 18:10.} not a difference of time, such as is measured by
lunar or solar periods, but that which is truly marvelous, and strange, and new,
being an age which is very different from those which are visible to the eyes
and perceptible to the outward senses, being investigated in incorporeal things
appreciable only by the intellect, which, in fact, is the model and archetype of
time. But an age is a name given to the life of the world, intelligible only by
the intellect, as time is that given to the life of the world, perceptible by
the outward senses. (268) And in this year the man who had sown the graces of
God so as to produce many more good things, in order that the greatest possible
number of persons worthy to share them might participate in them, finds also the
barley producing a Hundredfold.{94}{Genesis 26:12.} But he who has sown does
usually also reap. (269) And he sowed, displaying the virtue, the enemy of envy
and wickedness; he is, however, here said to find, not to reap. For he who has
made the ear of his good deeds more productive and full, was a different person,
having laid up an abundance of greater hopes well prepared, and he also proposed
more abundant advantages to all those who sought them, encouraging them to hope
to find them. XLVIII.
(270) And the words, "He finished speaking to Him,"{95}{Genesis
17:22.} are equivalent to saying, he made his hearer perfect, though he was
devoid of wisdom before, and he filled him with immortal lessons. But when his
disciple became perfect, the Lord went up and departed from Abraham, showing,
not that he separated himself from him; for the wise man is naturally an
attendant of God, not wishing to represent the spontaneous inclination of the
disciple in order that as he had learnt while his teacher was no longer standing
by him, and without any necessity urging him, giving of his own accord a
specimen of himself, and displaying a voluntary and spontaneous eagerness to
learn, he might for the future exert his energies by himself; for the teacher
assigns a model to him who has learnt by voluntary study without any suggestions
from other quarters, stamping on him a most durable species of indelible
recollection. |
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