First Apology 31
Summary: The Hebrew prophets foretold Christ's birth, miracles, death, resurrection, and the mission to the Gentiles; the Scriptures were translated into Greek for Ptolemy.
Greek text · Rauschen, 58–60
Ἄνθρωποι οὖν τινες ἐν Ἰουδαίοις γεγένηνται θεοῦ προφῆται, διʼ ὧν τὸ προφητικὸν πνεῦμα προεκήρυξε τὰ γενήσεσθαι μέλλοντα πρὶν ἢ γενέσθαι· καὶ τούτων οἱ ἐν Ἰουδαίοις κατὰ καιροὺς γενόμενοι βασιλεῖς τὰς προφητείας, ὡς ἐλέχθησαν ὅτε προεφητεύοντο, τῇ ἰδίᾳ αὐτῶν ἑβραΐδι φωνῇ ἐν βιβλίοις ὑπʼ αὐτῶν τῶν προφητῶν συντεταγμένας κτώμενοι περιεῖπον. Ὅτε δὲ Πτολεμαῖος, ὁ Αἰγυπτίων βασιλεύς, βιβλιοθήκην κατεσκεύαζε καὶ τὰ πάντων ἀνθρώπων συγγράμματα συνάγειν ἐπειράθη, πυθόμενος καὶ περὶ τῶν προφητειῶν τούτων, προσέπεμψε τῷ τῶν Ἰουδαίων τότε βασιλεύοντι Ἡρώδῃ ἀξιῶν διαπεμφθῆναι αὐτῷ τὰς βίβλους τῶν προφητειῶν. Καὶ ὁ μὲν βασιλεὺς Ἡρώδης τῇ προειρημένῃ ἑβραΐδι αὐτῶν φωνῇ γεγραμμένας διεπέμψατο. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ οὐκ ἦν γνώριμα τὰ ἐν αὐταῖς γεγραμμένα τοῖς Αἰγυπτίοις, πάλιν αὐτὸν ἠξίωσε πέμψας τοὺς μεταβαλοῦντας αὐτὰς εἰς τὴν ἑλλάδα φωνὴν ἀνθρώπους ἀποστεῖλαι. Καὶ τούτου γενομένου ἔμειναν αἱ βίβλοι καὶ παρʼ Αἰγυπτίοις μέχρι τοῦ δεῦρο, καὶ πανταχοῦ παρὰ πᾶσίν εἰσιν Ἰουδαίοις, οἳ καὶ ἀναγινώσκοντες οὐ συνιᾶσι τὰ εἰρημένα, ἀλλʼ ἐχθροὺς ἡμᾶς καὶ πολεμίους ἡγοῦνται, ὁμοίως ὑμῖν ἀναιροῦντες καὶ κολάζοντες ἡμᾶς ὁπόταν δύνωνται, ὡς καὶ πεισθῆναι δύνασθε. Καὶ γὰρ ἐν τῷ νῦν γεγενημένῳ ἰουδαϊκῷ πολέμῳ Βαρχωχέβας, ὁ τῆς Ἰουδαίων ἀποστάσεως ἀρχηγέτης, Χριστιανοὺς μόνους εἰς τιμωρίας δεινάς, εἰ μὴ ἀρνοῖντο Ἰησοῦν τὸν Χριστὸν καὶ βλασφημοῖεν, ἐκέλευεν ἀπάγεσθαι. Ἐν δὴ ταῖς τῶν προφητῶν βίβλοις εὕρομεν προκηρυσσόμενον παραγινόμενον, γεννώμενον διὰ παρθένου, καὶ ἀνδρούμενον καὶ θεραπεύοντα πᾶσαν νόσον καὶ πᾶσαν μαλακίαν καὶ νεκροὺς ἀνεγείροντα, καὶ φθονούμενον καὶ ἀγνοούμενον καὶ σταυρούμενον Ἰησοῦν τὸν ἡμέτερον Χριστόν, καὶ ἀποθνήσκοντα καὶ ἀνεγειρόμενον καὶ εἰς οὐρανοὺς ἀνερχόμενον, καὶ υἱὸν θεοῦ ὄντα καὶ κεκλημένον, καί τινας πεμπομένους ὑπʼ αὐτοῦ εἰς πᾶν γένος ἀνθρώπων κηρύξοντας ταῦτα, καὶ τοὺς ἐξ ἐθνῶν ἀνθρώπους μᾶλλον αὐτῷ πιστεύειν. Προεφητεύθη δέ, πρὶν ἢ φανῆναι αὐτόν, ἔτεσι ποτὲ μὲν πεντακισχιλίοις, ποτὲ δὲ τρισχιλίοις, ποτὲ δὲ δισχιλίοις, καὶ πάλιν χιλίοις καὶ ἄλλοτε ὀκτακοσίοις· κατὰ γὰρ τὰς διαδοχὰς τῶν γενῶν ἕτεροι καὶ ἕτεροι ἐγένοντο προφῆται.
English · Claude translation
There were, then, among the Jews certain men who were prophets of God, through whom the prophetic Spirit proclaimed beforehand things that were to come to pass, before they happened; and the kings who arose among the Jews from time to time acquired these prophecies, as they were spoken when they were prophesied, in the prophets' own Hebrew language, arranged in books by the prophets themselves, and kept them carefully. And when Ptolemy, king of Egypt, was building a library and trying to collect the writings of all peoples, he heard about these prophecies too, and sent to Herod, who was then king of the Jews, asking that the books of the prophecies be sent to him. And King Herod sent them written in their Hebrew language, as we said. But since what was written in them was not understood by the Egyptians, he again sent and asked him to send men to translate them into the Greek language. And when this was done, the books remained with the Egyptians to this day, and are everywhere among all Jews, who read them but do not understand what is said, but consider us enemies and foes, killing and punishing us, like you, whenever they can, as you can be persuaded. For in the Jewish war that took place recently, Bar Kokhba, the leader of the Jewish revolt, ordered Christians alone to be led away to terrible punishments, unless they would deny Jesus the Christ and blaspheme. In the books of the prophets, then, we found Jesus our Christ foretold as coming, born of a virgin, growing to manhood, healing every disease and every sickness and raising the dead, being envied and not recognized and crucified, dying and rising again and ascending into heaven, and being and being called the Son of God, and that certain people would be sent by him into every race of people to proclaim these things, and that people from the Gentiles would rather believe in him. And he was foretold before he appeared, sometimes five thousand years before, sometimes three thousand, sometimes two thousand, and again one thousand, and at another time eight hundred; for in the succession of generations there arose one prophet after another.
About this passage
Notes
Translation notes
- The story of the translation of the Hebrew Scriptures into Greek (the Septuagint) for King Ptolemy II (3rd century BC) is told in the Letter of Aristeas. Justin's “Herod” is an error: Herod the Great lived two centuries later.
- Bar Kokhba led the Jewish revolt against Rome in 132–135.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (digitization slip against Rauschen's printed text (dropped letter)): ἀθρώπους ἀποστεῖλαι → ἀνθρώπους ἀποστεῖλαι.
Cite this passage
Justin, 1 Apol. 31 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/justin-1-apology/31/).
Plain text
Justin, 1 Apol. 31 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/justin-1-apology/31/).
Download citation:BibTeX ·RIS (Zotero, EndNote)
Whole work:BibTeX ·RIS ·Markdown text