Clement, Ignatius, Polycarp & others · a new plain-English translation from the original language
For Christ belongs to the humble-minded, not to those who lift themselves up over his flock. The scepter of God's majesty, our Lord Jesus Christ, did not appear amid arrogant display or pride, though this lay within his power; rather he came in a lowly spirit, exactly as the Holy Spirit had foretold concerning him. For the word runs: 'Lord, who has trusted what we heard, and to whom has the Lord's arm been disclosed? We proclaimed him, before the Lord's face, as an infant, as a root planted in parched soil; no shape was his, no splendor - when we looked upon him he possessed neither beauty nor comeliness, but his appearance was without honor, lesser than that of ordinary men; a man acquainted with suffering, versed in bearing infirmity, for his face was averted; he was despised and held in no regard. Yet this is the one carrying our offenses and enduring grief for our sake, while we reckoned him stricken, afflicted, and brought low. He, though, was pierced on account of our transgressions and crushed for our iniquities; correction bringing us peace rested upon him, and by his wound we were made whole. We had all wandered like sheep, each turning aside to a private path, and the Lord laid upon him the guilt belonging to us all; and because he was oppressed he refuses to open his mouth. Like a lamb brought toward the slaughter, or a sheep dumb before its shearer, so he keeps his mouth shut. His sentence was lifted away amid his degradation - who shall recount his lineage? For his life is carried off from the earth. Because of my people's transgressions he goes to his death; and I will hand over the wicked in return for his burial, and the rich in return for his death, for he had done no wrong, nor was any deceit discovered in his speech. Yet it pleased the Lord to purify him from his affliction; should you present an offering for sin, your soul shall behold offspring living long. And the Lord desired to relieve him of his soul's torment, granting him light and shaping him with insight, and to acquit the just one who serves many well; and their transgressions he himself will carry. Therefore he shall receive many as his inheritance and shall share the plunder of the mighty, since his soul was given over to death and he was numbered among transgressors; and he it was who bore the sin of many and was delivered up on their account.' And elsewhere he himself declares: 'Yet I am a worm, not even a man, scorned by mankind and despised by the people. Everyone watching me jeered, curling their lips and wagging their heads: He put his hope in the Lord - let him deliver him, let him rescue him, since he takes delight in him.' Observe, beloved, what a model has been set before us. For if the Lord humbled himself to this degree, what ought we to do, we who through him have entered under the yoke of his grace?
Let us also imitate those who went about clothed in goatskins and sheepskins, heralds of Christ's coming - Elijah, I mean, and Elisha, and likewise Ezekiel among the prophets, along with the other well-attested figures of old. Abraham stood in high repute and was named God's friend, and beholding the divine glory he spoke in a humble spirit: 'Yet I am only dust and ashes.' Concerning Job it stands written: 'Job was upright, blameless, honest, reverent toward God, and kept himself apart from every wrong.' Even so he condemns himself, saying: 'No one is free from stain, not though his days on earth number but one.' Of Moses scripture records that he proved trustworthy throughout God's whole household, and by his ministry God brought plagues and afflictions upon Egypt; yet this man, for all his renown, spoke of himself with no arrogance at all - when the oracle addressed him from the bush he answered: 'Who am I, that you would send me? My voice falters and my tongue is slow.' And once more he says: 'I am nothing but a wisp of smoke rising from a pot.'
Now what shall we say of David, a man well attested, of whom God declared: 'I have discovered one after my own heart, David son of Jesse; with everlasting mercy I anointed him'? Yet even he addresses God: 'Show me mercy, O God, according to your abundant compassion, and according to the greatness of your pity wipe away my offense. Wash me again and again from my wrongdoing, and purify me from my sin, for I am aware of my wrongdoing, and my sin stands before me continually. Against you alone have I sinned, doing what is evil in your sight, so that you would be shown just in your sayings and victorious when you judge. Behold, I was shaped in wrongdoing, and in sin my mother conceived me. Behold, you desired truth; you revealed to me wisdom's hidden and secret depths. You will purge me clean with hyssop's sprinkling; wash me, and I shall grow whiter than the snow itself. Let me hear joy and gladness, that the bones you have crushed may exult. Turn your face from my sins and wipe away every one of my wrongdoings. Fashion in me a pure heart, God, and set a steadfast spirit new within me. Cast me not away out of your presence, nor take your holy Spirit away from me. Give back to me the joy of your saving help, and uphold me with a willing spirit. I will instruct the lawless in your paths, and sinners shall return to you. Rescue me from bloodguilt, O God, God of my salvation, and my tongue shall sing aloud of your righteousness. Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will proclaim your praise. Had you wanted sacrifice, I would have offered it; whole burnt offerings bring you no pleasure. God's sacrifice is a spirit broken; a heart crushed and humbled God will never scorn.'
With so many great examples thus set on record, the humility and obedient submissiveness they display made better not only ourselves but also every generation before us that received his sayings in reverence and truth. Having, then, been given a share in deeds so numerous, so glorious, let us hasten back toward the peaceful goal entrusted to us since the beginning, fixing our gaze upon the Father and Maker of the entire universe, and holding fast to his magnificent, surpassing gifts and to the blessings of his peace. Let us behold him with the understanding, and gaze with the soul's eye upon his patient purpose; let us grasp how untouched by anger he remains toward the whole of his creation.
Stirred by his governance, the heavens yield themselves to him in tranquility; day gives way to night and night to day along the path he has laid out, and neither hinders the other's passage. Sun and moon, together with the bands of stars, revolve in concord according to his decree, staying within the limits marked out for them, turning aside from nothing. The earth, bearing life according to his will in its due seasons, yields nourishment abundantly for men, for beasts, and for every creature dwelling upon it, never rebelling against itself nor departing from any of his ordinances. The unfathomable depths and the boundless regions below are ruled by these same decrees. The immense reach of the boundless sea, drawn together into its basins by his design, never crosses the limits set around it, but acts precisely as he has directed; for he said: 'Thus far shall you come, and here your waves shall break.' The ocean, impassable to mankind, and the worlds that lie beyond it, are governed by the identical statutes of the Master. Spring gives way to summer, summer to autumn, and autumn to winter, each season yielding to the next in peace. The stations of the winds carry out their appointed work in season without disorder, and the springs that never cease, fashioned for delight and for health, unfailingly offer their life-sustaining streams to mankind; even the tiniest living things meet together in harmony and peace. All of this the great Maker and Ruler of the universe ordained to exist in peace and concord, doing good to every creature, though he lavishes his goodness beyond all measure upon us, since it is to his compassion that we have run for shelter through our Lord Jesus Christ - to whom be glory and majesty forever and ever. Amen.
See to it, beloved, that his many kindnesses do not turn into a verdict against us, should we fail to conduct ourselves worthily of him and to do together what is good and acceptable in his sight. For somewhere he says: 'The Lord's breath is a light that searches the innermost chambers.' Let us consider how close he stands to us, and that not one of our thoughts, not one calculation we form, escapes his notice. Reason, then, demands that we not run away from his purpose. Better that we provoke foolish, mindless men, who puff themselves up and glory in the pride of their own talk, than provoke God. Let us hold in reverence the Lord Jesus, whose blood was poured out on our behalf; let us honor our leaders, esteem our elders, train the young in the fear of God's discipline, and set our wives on the right course toward goodness. Let them exhibit the winsome character of chastity, display the innocent resolve of gentleness, prove through their silence the restraint of their tongues, and grant their affection - not by favoring one over another, but equally, in holiness, to every one who fears God. Let our children share in the training that Christ gives; let them learn what strength lowliness carries before God, what strength pure love commands before God, and how magnificent a thing his fear truly is - great enough to bring safety to all who conduct themselves within it in holiness and with an honest mind. For he examines both intentions and thoughts; his breath dwells within us, and whenever he chooses, he withdraws it.
All this the faith we hold in Christ affirms; for he himself calls to us in this way through the Holy Spirit: 'Come, children, hear me; I will instruct you in the fear of the Lord. Who is the man that longs for life, that loves to see good days? Guard your tongue from what is evil, and your lips from uttering deceit. Turn aside from evil, and do what is good. Pursue peace, and run after it. Upon the just the Lord's eyes are fixed, and toward their petitions his ears incline; yet against evildoers his face is set, to erase their memory utterly from the earth.' The just man called out, and the Lord listened to him, rescuing him from every one of his troubles. 'Many are the sorrows of the sinner, but mercy shall surround whoever trusts in the Lord.'
The Father, tender-hearted in every way and generous, feels compassion for those who fear him, and bestows his gifts kindly and gently on those who draw near to him with sincerity. Therefore let us not be of two minds, nor let our souls entertain vain imaginings about his surpassing and glorious gifts. Far be this passage from us, where it reads: 'Miserable are those torn between two opinions, who waver in their souls and say: We have heard such things even from our fathers' time, and see - we have grown gray, yet nothing of this has come upon us. You senseless people, look instead to a tree - take a vine, for instance: its leaves fall away first, then a bud forms, next a leaf appears, then a blossom, and after that a sour grape, and finally a cluster hangs ripe and ready.' Notice how the tree's fruit reaches maturity within so brief a span. Truly his purpose shall be fulfilled swiftly and without warning, as the very scripture testifies that he will arrive without delay and that the Lord shall appear abruptly in his temple - the Holy One you are watching for.
Let us reflect, beloved, on how ceaselessly the Master demonstrates to us the resurrection yet to come, of which our Lord Jesus Christ became the firstfruits when he was raised up from among the dead. Let us also observe, beloved, the resurrection that unfolds season by season. Night and day themselves display a kind of resurrection: night lies down to sleep, day gets up; day withdraws, and night takes its place. Consider the harvest crops - by what process, in what manner, does the sowing come about? The sower goes forth and scatters each seed upon the earth; these fall to the ground dry and bare, and decay, yet from that very decay the Master's vast providence raises them again, and from a single seed many spring up and yield their fruit.
Consider, too, the strange portent that occurs in the regions of the East, in the neighborhood of Arabia. A bird exists there named the phoenix. Unique of its kind, it lives for five hundred years, and once it nears the season of its release through death, it constructs for itself a dwelling out of frankincense, myrrh, and other fragrant spices; when the appointed hour arrives, it goes inside and perishes. From the decaying flesh, however, a certain grub is generated, which feeds upon the moisture of the dead bird and in time grows wings; once fully grown, it lifts up that dwelling containing the remains of its predecessor and, bearing this burden, journeys all the way from the land of Arabia to Egypt, to a city named Heliopolis. There, in broad daylight, before the eyes of all, it flies to the altar of the sun, deposits its burden, and departs on its journey home. The priests then consult their chronicles and confirm that its arrival falls exactly at the close of the five-hundredth year.
Should it then strike us as some vast, astonishing wonder that the Maker of the universe will raise up those who served him faithfully in a holy life of confident trust, seeing that even by means of a bird he reveals to us the magnitude of his promise? For somewhere he says: 'You will raise me up, and I will render you thanks,' and again: 'I lay down and slept, and I woke, for you are with me.' And Job likewise declares: 'You will raise up this very flesh of mine that has endured through all these things.'
Let our souls, then, cling fast to this hope - to him who keeps faith with his promises and is just in all his judgments. Since he commanded us not to lie, how much less would he lie himself; indeed nothing lies beyond God's power except falsehood. May trust in him be kindled anew inside us, and may we grasp that everything stands close to him. Through the word of his majesty he brought all things into being, and by a mere word he can likewise unmake them. 'Who shall say to him: What have you done? Who can stand against the strength of his power?' Whatever he wills, whenever he wills it, he accomplishes, and not one of his decrees will fail to be realized. Everything lies open before him, nothing hidden from his counsel - since 'day after day pours forth speech, and night after night imparts knowledge, without words, without any voice that can be heard, while the sky above tells of God's splendor and the vault overhead announces what his hands have made.'
Given, therefore, that all things lie open to sight and hearing, let us stand in awe of him and turn away from the base cravings behind wicked acts, so that his mercy may shelter us from the judgment still to come. For to what place could any one of us escape his powerful hand? And which realm would take in anyone who runs away from him? Somewhere scripture asks: 'Where can I go, where can I hide from your face? Should I climb to heaven, you are already there; should I travel to earth's farthest edge, your right hand awaits me there; should I make my bed among the depths, your spirit is there too.' So where might a person go, or to what place could he flee, from the one who holds all things within his grasp?
Let us draw near to him, then, with souls made holy, raising toward him hands kept clean and unstained, cherishing our Father, gentle and full of compassion, who has given us a place among those he has chosen for himself. For scripture puts it this way: 'When the Most High parceled out the nations, when he dispersed Adam's sons, he fixed each nation's borders to match the number of God's angels. And Jacob, his people, became the Lord's own share, Israel the measured portion of his inheritance.' And elsewhere it says: 'See, the Lord selects a people for himself out of every nation on earth, just as one gathers the firstfruits from his threshing floor; and from that people shall come the holy of holies.'
Since, then, we belong to the Holy One as his own portion, let us practice everything that holiness requires - fleeing from slander, from tainted and unclean embraces, from drunken revelry, from detestable cravings, from foul adultery, and from contemptible arrogance. As scripture says, 'God stands against the arrogant, yet grants favor to the lowly.' Let us therefore attach ourselves to those on whom God has bestowed his favor; let us dress ourselves in unity - humble in mind, disciplined, steering well clear of every kind of gossip and slander, proving ourselves through actions rather than through speech. For it is said: 'The talkative man will have plenty said back to him in turn; or does the glib speaker suppose himself righteous? Happy the one, born of woman, whose life is brief. Do not multiply words.' Let whatever praise comes our way come from God, never from ourselves, since God despises self-praise. Let others bear witness to our conduct, just as was granted to our righteous forebears of old. Insolence, stubborn self-will, and brazenness are the mark of those God curses; gentleness, humility, and meekness mark those God blesses.
Let us hold fast, then, to his blessing, and consider by what paths blessing comes. Let us unfold, one by one, the things that have happened since the earliest times. Why, we may ask, did our forefather Abraham receive blessing? Was it not because he practiced righteousness and truth through his faith? Isaac, assured of what lay ahead, offered himself up willingly as a sacrifice. Jacob, in humility, left his homeland on his brother's account, went to serve Laban, and was in the end given Israel's twelve-tribed scepter.
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