Miscellanies 1.23.156
Summary: Ezekiel's drama continues with the Hebrew's challenge to Moses; Moses fled and became a shepherd, a training for ruling the human flock.
Greek text · Stählin 2:98
ἔπειτα τὴν διαμάχην τοῦ θʼ Ἑβραίου καὶ τοῦ Αἰγυπτίου διηγησάμενος καὶ τὴν ταφὴν τὴν ἐν τῇ ψάμμῳ τοῦ Αἰγυπτίου, ἐπὶ τῆς ἑτέρας μάχης φησὶν οὕτως· τί τύπτεις ἀσθενέστερον σέθεν; ὃ δʼ εἶπεν· ἡμῖν τίς σʼ ἀπέστειλεν κριτὴν ἢπιστάτην ἐνταῦθα; μὴ κτενεῖς δέ με ὥσπερ τὸν ἐχθὲς ἄνδρα; καὶ δείσας ἐγὼ ἔλεξα· πῶς ἐγένετο συμφανὲς τόδε; φεύγει δὴ ἐντεῦθεν καὶ ποιμαίνει πρόβατα προδιδασκόμενος εἰς ἡγεμονίαν ποιμενικῇ· προγυμνασία γὰρ βασιλείας τῷ μέλλοντι τῆς ἡμερωτάτης τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐπιστατεῖν ἀγέλης ἡ ποιμενικὴ καθάπερ καὶ τοῖς πολεμικοῖς τῇ φύσει ἡ θηρευτική. ἄγει δὲ αὐτὸν ἐντεῦθεν ὁ θεὸς ἐπὶ τὴν τῶν Ἑβραίων στρατηγίαν.
English · Claude translation
Then, having told of the fight between the Hebrew and the Egyptian and the burial of the Egyptian in the sand, he says of the second fight: “Why do you strike one weaker than yourself? And he said: Who sent you as judge or ruler over us here? Will you not kill me as you did the man yesterday? And I, afraid, said: How did this become known?” He fled from there and tended sheep, being trained beforehand for leadership by shepherding; for shepherding is a preparation for kingship for one who is to rule the tamest flock, that of human beings, just as hunting is for those warlike by nature. From there God led him to the command of the Hebrews.
About this passage
Notes
Translation notes
- Ezekiel the Tragedian, Exagoge 42–47. The allusions are Exod 2:12–15 and 3:1.
Cite this passage
Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 1.23.156 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/clement-stromata/1/23/156/).
Plain text
Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 1.23.156 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/clement-stromata/1/23/156/).
Download citation:BibTeX ·RIS (Zotero, EndNote)
Whole work:BibTeX ·RIS ·Markdown text