Clement, Ignatius, Polycarp & others · a new plain-English translation from the original language
After she pointed these things out to me, she meant to rush away. But I asked her: Lady, what use is my having witnessed this if I still don't grasp its meaning? Her reply: You're a cunning man, eager to learn what concerns the tower. Yes, lady, I answered, so that I can bring word to the brothers, and their spirits may lift, and by hearing of it may recognize the Lord amid great splendor. She then told me: Many will hear; some among those hearers will be glad, others will weep — yet even the weeping ones, provided they listen and turn back, will in the end rejoice too. Give your attention, then, to the tower's parables, since I intend to disclose the whole of it to you. And do not keep pressing me further for disclosures, because this set of revelations has run its course and stands finished. Still, you won't quit begging for more — such is your shamelessness. As for the tower under construction before your eyes, I myself am it: the Church, made visible to you now just as before. Whatever, then, you desire to know, put your question about the tower, and I shall disclose it so you may share the saints' joy. Lady, I said, seeing that you have judged me worthy on this one occasion of a full disclosure, disclose it. She answered: Whatever it is proper for you to learn will indeed be made known. Only keep your heart fixed on God and harbor no doubts over anything you witness. I then asked her, lady, why the tower was raised over water. She replied: I already told you this once, yet you keep digging carefully — and in your digging you uncover the truth. Listen, then, to why it stands over water: because your life was rescued by means of water, and will go on being rescued by it. The foundation of the tower rests upon the utterance of the mighty and glorious name, while it is held aloft by the Master's power, invisible to sight.
In response I told her: Lady, what a great and astonishing matter this is. Yet who might the six young builders be, lady? Her answer: These are God's holy angels, the very first to be brought into being, to whom the Lord entrusted his whole creation, that they might cause it to grow, construct it, and govern the entirety of it; it is through them, accordingly, that the tower's construction will reach completion. And the rest, the ones hauling the stones — who are those? They too are holy angels of God, though these six outrank them; so once the tower's building is brought to its finish, everyone together will celebrate around it and give God glory, since its construction stands complete. I put a further question to her: Lady, I'd like to understand the stones — their origin and what they signify. She replied: It isn't that you outrank everyone else in worth, such that this should be shown to you. Others came before you and surpass you, and it was to them that these sights were owed; but it was revealed to you, and will go on being revealed, so that God's name might receive glory — for the benefit of the double-minded, those debating within themselves whether or not these matters hold true. Tell them that every one of these things is genuine, that truth lies nowhere apart from them, and that all of it stands solid, certain, and unshakably grounded.
Listen now to the account of the stones going into the structure. The square white ones whose edges match perfectly — those represent the apostles, overseers, teachers, and ministers who lived out God's own sanctity, and who shepherded, instructed, and served the chosen of God with purity and dignity, some now at rest, others still among the living; and among themselves they were always in accord, kept peace with one another, and gave ear to each other. This harmony is precisely why their edges match so well within the tower's structure. Now what of those hauled up out of the depths and set into the structure, matching at their edges with the stones already in place — who might they be? Those represent people who suffered on account of the Lord's name. And I want an account of the remaining stones, the ones carried in from dry ground — who do they represent, lady? She answered: Those going into the structure without needing to be shaped — the Lord has already approved these, for they proceeded along a straight course under the Lord and kept his commands undeviating. And what of the ones being carried and set into the structure — who are they? Those are recent converts to the faith and are faithful, yet the angels must correct them toward doing good, since some evil turned up in them. What of the ones cast off to the side and discarded — who do these represent? Those are the ones who sinned but wish to turn back; and that is precisely why they weren't flung a great distance from the tower — they'll still serve a purpose in the structure if they turn back. So for those on the verge of turning back: should they do so promptly, before the tower's building is finished, they will grow firm in the faith. Once construction is finished, however, no place remains for them — they'll be discarded outright. The only thing left to them is to lie there beside the tower.
As for the stones smashed apart and hurled a great distance away from the tower, would you like their meaning? Those stand for the children of lawlessness; their belief was mere pretense, and wickedness of every sort clung to them still. This is precisely why salvation eludes them — their wickedness disqualifies them from usefulness in the structure. This is likewise why they were shattered and cast off at a distance, on account of the Lord's wrath, since it was they who roused his anger. As for the others you noticed strewn about in large numbers, taking no part in the structure — those represent people whose skin, so to speak, has gone scaly: they once knew truth but did not abide in it. What of the ones bearing fissures — what do they represent? Those stand for people carrying resentment against each other deep down, lacking real peace among themselves though wearing peace on their faces; and once they go their separate ways, the malice lodged in their hearts persists. Such, then, is the nature of the fissures found in these stones. As for the ones with pieces broken off — these represent believers who mostly hold fast to righteousness yet still carry some measure of lawlessness in them; hence they come out chipped rather than whole. And the smooth round white ones unable to join the structure — what of them, lady? Her answer: How long will your foolish incomprehension continue, quizzing me about everything yet grasping nothing? These stand for people possessing faith, yet also possessing the riches of this present age; when hardship strikes, their wealth and their business dealings lead them to disown their Lord. I then asked her: Lady, when, then, might they become fit for the structure? Her reply: Once the riches that seduce them have been sliced away, then they become fit for God's purposes. Just as a round stone must be trimmed and reduced before it can take a square shape, so those wealthy in the present age cannot serve the Lord's purposes unless their riches are trimmed away. Apply this lesson to yourself first: while rich, you were good for nothing, but now, useful and beneficial to life. Make yourselves fit for God's purposes — for you yourself are cut from these very same stones.
Now the further stones you saw cast at a distance from the tower, tumbling onto the road and then rolling off it into pathless country — those stand for believers who, owing to their divided minds, desert their genuine road; imagining a superior road exists to be found, they wander off course and end up miserable, roaming the pathless country. The ones falling into fire and consumed there stand for people who have turned decisively away from the living God, and no urge to repent ever again surfaces in their hearts, on account of their lustful cravings and the wrongs they have committed. And would you like to know about the remaining ones, those falling near the water yet lacking the momentum to roll into it — who are those? These stand for people who heard the message and meant to be baptized in the Lord's name; yet later, once the memory of truth's purity comes back to them, they reverse course and return to their base cravings once more. With that, her account of the tower drew to a close. Emboldened once more, I put it to her whether any of these discarded stones, unfit for the tower's structure, might still have repentance open to them, and whether a place remained for them in this tower. Her answer: Repentance is open to them, yet a place in this tower is not; a far humbler place elsewhere awaits them, and only once they have undergone torment and served out the full term of their sins. This is the reason they will be transferred — because they had some share in the message of righteousness; and it is then, after their torments, that their transfer will take place, on account of the wrongs they committed. Yet if it fails to surface in their hearts, they are not saved, given how hardened their hearts have become.
Once, then, I had exhausted my questions on all this, she asked me: Would you care to view something further? Craving the sight, I found myself thrilled at the prospect. She glanced at me, gave a small smile, and asked: Do you notice seven women stationed around the tower? Yes, lady, I told her, I notice them. This tower rests upon these women's shoulders, at the Lord's own command. Now attend to what each one does. The foremost of them, gripping the tower with her hands, bears the name Faith; through her, God's chosen ones find salvation. The next, girded and displaying manly vigor, is named Self-Control, Faith's own daughter. Whoever falls in step behind her attains blessedness in life, for he will refrain from every wicked deed, trusting that abstaining from all wicked desire secures him eternal life. And the rest, lady, who might they be? Her reply: Each is daughter to the one before — named respectively Simplicity, Knowledge, Innocence, Reverence, and Love. Once you carry out every work belonging to their mother, life becomes possible for you. Lady, I said, I wished to learn what capability belongs to each of them. Listen, then, she said, to their respective capabilities. Each one's capability is restrained by the next and trails after it, in the very order of their birth. Self-Control is born from Faith; from Self-Control comes Simplicity; from Simplicity, Innocence; from Innocence, Reverence; from Reverence, Knowledge; and from Knowledge, Love. The deeds belonging to these, then, are undefiled, dignified, and godly. Whoever, then, gives himself to their service and manages to hold firm to their labors will make his home inside the tower alongside God's holy ones. I then questioned her about the appointed times, whether the consummation drew near already. At this she shouted out at full volume: Senseless man, can't you see the tower still under construction? Once its construction is brought to completion, it reaches its end. Yet the building will proceed swiftly. Question me no further; this much of a reminder suffices, both for you and for the saints, along with the refreshing of your spirits. Yet this was disclosed not to you alone, but so that you could make it known to all, three days from now — since you yourself must first take it in. And I charge you above all, Hermas, to speak every one of these words I am now telling you directly into the saints' ears, so that upon hearing and acting on them they might be purified of their wickedness — you included among them.
Give me your attention, children: I brought you up amid great simplicity, innocence, and reverence, on account of the Lord's mercy, since he poured out his righteousness upon you so you might become righteous and purified from every wickedness and every crookedness — yet you refuse to be rid of your own wickedness. So now, give me your attention: keep peace among yourselves, watch over one another, hold each other up, and stop consuming God's creatures to excess, keeping them for yourselves alone — share instead with the needy; for some ruin their own flesh through excess of food, while those lacking food have their flesh ruined for want of adequate nourishment, and their bodies waste away. This disparity, then, does harm to you who possess plenty and share nothing with those lacking. Keep watch for the judgment now approaching. So you who possess abundance, go seek out the hungry while the tower still stands unfinished, for once its building is done you will wish to act generously and find no opportunity left. Take care, then, you who take pride in your riches, that the needy do not groan, with their groaning rising up to the Lord, leaving you shut out together with your possessions beyond the tower's gate. So now I address you, the church's foremost men and those occupying the seats of honor: do not resemble the sorcerers. Sorcerers stash their potions inside small containers, whereas you keep your potion and venom lodged within your own heart. You have grown callous, unwilling to purify your hearts and blend your understanding as one within a clean heart, so that mercy from the great King might be yours. Watch, then, children, that these quarrels do not strip you of your life. How can you expect to teach the Lord's chosen ones self-discipline when you lack it yourselves? Discipline each other, then, and keep peace among yourselves, so that I too, standing joyful before the Father, can render account to the Lord on all your behalf.
Once her conversation with me had ended, the six builder-youths arrived and bore her away toward the tower, while four more picked up the bench and carried that too in the same direction. Their faces I never glimpsed, since they kept turned away from me. While she was departing I begged her to explain the three distinct appearances she had taken with me. Her reply: For an explanation of these, you'll need to ask someone else. Now brothers, in that first vision, the one from a year earlier, she showed herself to me quite aged and sitting upon a chair. In the vision after that her face had grown younger, though her flesh and hair remained aged, and she addressed me while standing; and her cheer surpassed what it had been. By the third vision, she was youthful all over and exceptionally lovely, with only her hair still aged; she stayed cheerful right through, seated upon a bench. Over all this I felt considerable anguish, longing to grasp the meaning of this disclosure, and then, in a night vision, I catch sight of the aged woman telling me: Every petition calls for humility. Fast, therefore, and what you ask of the Lord will be granted you. So I kept a one-day fast, and that very night a young man appeared before me, asking: Why do you keep pressing your case for disclosures in your prayer? Take care that excessive asking does not injure your own flesh. What has already been disclosed to you is sufficient. Could you even bear to view disclosures more powerful than what you've already witnessed? My answer to him: Lord, my one request is this — a full disclosure regarding the aged woman's three appearances. His reply: How long will your people remain senseless? Your divided minds are the very cause of your senselessness, along with your failure to keep your heart directed toward the Lord. Once more I answered him: Yet it is from you, lord, that we shall come to understand these matters with greater precision.
Hear, he said, about the forms you are asking about. In the first vision, why did she appear to you as elderly and seated in a chair? Because your spirit is old, and already withered, and without strength, from your weaknesses and double-mindedness. For just as the elderly, having no more hope of being renewed, expect nothing else but their falling asleep, so also you, weakened by the affairs of daily life, have given yourselves over to listlessness and have not cast your cares upon the Lord; instead your understanding has been shattered and you have grown old in your sorrows. Why then was she seated in a chair, I wanted to know, lord? Because every weak person takes a chair on account of his weakness, so that his bodily frailty finds something to lean on. You now have the meaning of the first vision.
In the second vision you saw her standing, with a younger face and more cheerful than before, though her flesh and hair were older. Hear, he said, this parable too: when someone elderly, having already given up hope for himself because of his weakness and poverty, expects nothing else but the last day of his life — then suddenly an inheritance is left to him; hearing of it, he is roused, and becoming overjoyed he puts on strength; and he no longer lies down, but stands, and his spirit, already worn away by his former deeds, is renewed, and he no longer sits but acts with manly strength. So it is also with you: having heard the revelation which the Lord revealed to you, since he felt pity toward you and gave your spirits fresh life, and you set aside your weaknesses, strength came to you and you were made strong in the faith; and the Lord, seeing your strengthening, rejoiced. And for this reason he made known to you the building of the tower, and he will make known other things too, if you are at peace among yourselves with your whole heart.
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