Miscellanies 2.19.101
Summary: The Stoics' “life according to nature” borrows from Moses but wrongly calls God nature; Scripture praises those who love the law; Clement lists three kinds of friendship: of virtue, of exchange, and of habit or pleasure.
Greek text · Stählin 2:168
ἐντεῦθεν καὶ οἱ Στωϊκοὶ τὸ ἀκολούθως τῇ φύσει ζῆν τέλος εἶναι ἐδογμάτισαν, τὸν θεὸν εἰς φύσιν μετονομάσαντες ἀπρεπῶς, ἐπειδὴ ἡ φύσις καὶ εἰς φυτὰ καὶ εἰς σπαρτὰ καὶ εἰς δένδρα καὶ εἰς λίθους διατείνει. Σαφῶς τοίνυν εἴρηται· ἄνδρες κακοὶ οὐ νοοῦσι νόμον, οἱ δὲ ἀγαπῶντες νόμον προβάλλουσιν ἑαυτοῖς τεῖχος. σοφία γὰρ πανούργων ἐπιγνώσεται τὰς ὁδοὺς αὐτῆς, ἄνοια δὲ ἀφρόνων ἐν πλάνῃ. ἐπὶ τίνα γὰρ ἐπιβλέψω ἀλλʼ ἢ ἐπὶ τὸν πρᾷον καὶ ἡσύχιον καὶ τρέμοντά μου τοὺς λόγους; ἡ προφητεία λέγει. Τριττὰ δὲ εἴδη φιλίας διδασκόμεθα, καὶ τούτων τὸ μὲν πρῶτον καὶ ἄριστον τὸ κατʼ ἀρετήν· στερρὰ γὰρ ἡ ἐκ λόγου ἀγάπη· τὸ δὲ δεύτερον καὶ μέσον τὸ κατʼ ἀμοιβήν· κοινωνικὸν δὲ τοῦτο καὶ μεταδοτικὸν καὶ βιωφελές· κοινὴ γὰρ ἡ ἐκ χάριτος φιλία· τὸ δὲ ὕστατον καὶ τρίτον ἡμεῖς μὲν τὸ ἐκ συνηθείας φαμέν, οἳ δὲ τὸ καθʼ ἡδονὴν τρεπτὸν καὶ μεταβλητόν.
English · Claude translation
From this the Stoics too laid down that the goal is to live consistently with nature, improperly renaming God “nature,” since nature extends to plants, to seeds, to trees, and to stones. Clearly, then, it has been said: “Evil men do not understand the law, but those who love the law put a wall around themselves.” “For the wisdom of the shrewd will recognize its ways, but the folly of fools is in error.” “For on whom shall I look, but on the one who is meek and quiet and trembles at my words?” says the prophecy. We are taught that there are three kinds of friendship. Of these the first and best is that according to virtue; for love that comes from reason is firm. The second and middle is that according to exchange; this is sociable, generous, and useful for life; for friendship from favor is shared. The last and third we call that from habit, while others call it the one according to pleasure, changeable and unstable.
About this passage
Notes
Translation notes
- The quotations are Prov 28:4–5 (a combination with LXX additions), Prov 14:8, and Isa 66:2 (LXX). The three kinds of friendship follow Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics 8.3.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (misspelling in the digital text): καἰ εἰς λίθους → καὶ εἰς λίθους.
Cite this passage
Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 2.19.101 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/clement-stromata/2/19/101/).
Plain text
Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 2.19.101 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/clement-stromata/2/19/101/).
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