Exhortation to Martyrdom 6
Summary: Origen distinguishes outwardly bowing to idols from inwardly serving them, and warns that denying Christ in court, even without belief, is still bowing to idols.
Greek text · Koetschau 1:7–8
Εἴπερ δὲ ὁ φάσκων· „οὐ ποιήσεις σεαυτῷ εἴδωλον οὐδὲ παντὸς ὁμοίωμα“ καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς, ὡς διαφερόντων πρὸς ἄλληλα τοῦ· „οὐ προσκυνήσεις αὐτοῖς“ καὶ τοῦ· „οὐδὲ μὴ λατρεύσῃς αὐτοῖς“, ταῦτα λέγει, μή ποτε ὁ μὲν διακείμενος πρὸς τὰ εἴδωλα λατρεύῃ αὐτοῖς· ὁ δὲ μὴ διακείμενος ἀλλὰ διὰ δειλίαν, ἥνπερ ὀνομάζει συμπεριφορὰν, καθυποκρινόμενος αὐτὰ ὑπὲρ τοῦ δοκεῖν ὁμοίως τοῖς πολλοῖς εὐσεβεῖν οὐ λατρεύει μὲν προσκυνεῖ δὲ τοῖς εἰδώλοις. καὶ εἴποιμʼ ἂν ὅτι οἱ ἐπὶ δικαστηρίου ἐξομνύμενοι τὸν χριστιανισμὸν ἢ πρὸ δικαστηρίου οὐ λατρεύουσι μὲν προσκυνοῦσι δὲ τοῖς εἰδώλοις. λαμβάνοντες τὸ ὄνομα κυρίου τοῦ θεοῦ τὸ „θεὸς“ ἐπὶ ματαίῳ καὶ ἀψύχῳ ὕλῃ. προσεκύνουν δὲ οὕτως καὶ οὐκ ἐλάτρευον εἰδώλοις ὁ βεβηλωθεὶς λαὸς „εἰς τὰς θυγατέρας Μωάβ“. γέγραπται γοῦν αὐταῖς λέξεσιν ὅτι „ἐκάλεσαν αὐτοὺς ἐπὶ ταῖς θυσίαις τῶν εἰδώλων αὐτῶν, καὶ ἔφαγεν ὁ λαὸς τῶν θυσιῶν αὐτῶν, καὶ προσεκύνησαν τοῖς εἰδώλοις αὐτῶν καὶ ἐτελέσθησαν τῷ Βεελφεγώρ“. καὶ παρατήρει ὅτι οὐκ εἴρηται· καὶ ἐλάτρευσαν τοῖς εἰδώλοις αὐτῶν, οὐδὲ γὰρ οἷόν τε ἦν μετὰ τοσαῦτα σημεῖα καὶ τέρατα ὑπὸ μίαν καιροῦ ῥοπὴν πεισθῆναι ὑπὸ τῶν γυναικῶν, μεθʼ ὧν ἐξεπόρνευον, πρὸς τὸ νομίσαι θεοὺς τὰ εἴδωλα. τάχα δὲ οὕτως καὶ κατὰ τὴν ἐν τῇ Ἐξόδῳ μοσχοποιΐαν „προσεκύνησαν“, οὐ λατρεύσαντες τῷ μόσχῳ, ὃν γινόμενον ἐθεάσαντο. δοκίμιον οὖν καὶ ἐξεταστήριον τῆς πρὸς τὸ θεῖον ἀγάπης νομιστέον ἡμῖν γεγονέναι τὸν ἑστηκότα πειρασμόν. „πειράζει γὰρ ὁ κύριος ὑμᾶς“, ὡς ἐν Δευτερονομίῳ γέγραπται, „εἰδέναι, εἰ ἀγαπᾶτε τὸν κύριον τὸν θεὸν ὑμῶν ἐξ ὅλης τῆς καρδίας ὑμῶν καὶ ἐξ ὅλης τῆς ψυχῆς ὑμῶν“. ἀλλʼ ὑμεῖς πειραζόμενοι „ὀπίσω κυρίου τοῦ θεοῦ ὑμῶν πορεύσεσθε καὶ αὐτὸν φοβηθήσεσθε καὶ τὰς ἐντολὰς αὐτοῦ φυλάξεσθε“, καὶ μάλιστα τήν· „οὐκ ἔσονταί σοι θεοὶ ἕτεροι πλὴν ἐμοῦ“, „καὶ τῆς φωνῆς αὐτοῦ ἀκούσεσθε καὶ αὐτῷ προστεθήσεσθε“, λαμβάνοντι μὲν ὑμᾶς ἀπὸ τῶν τῇδε χωρίων, προστιθέντι δὲ αὐτῷ εἰς „τὴν“, ὡς ὁ ἀπόστολος ὠνόμασεν, „αὔξησιν τοῦ θεοῦ“ ἐν αὐτῷ.
English · Claude translation
If the one who says, “You shall not make for yourself an idol, nor a likeness of anything,” and what follows, speaks these words as though “You shall not bow down to them” and “nor shall you serve them” differ from each other, perhaps the one who is inwardly devoted to idols serves them, while the one who is not so devoted, but out of cowardice (which he calls accommodation) plays the part, in order to seem pious as the many are, does not serve idols but does bow down to them. And I would say that those who abjure Christianity in court, or before the court, do not serve idols but do bow down to them, applying the name of the Lord God, the name “God,” to vain and lifeless matter. In this way the people who were defiled “with the daughters of Moab” bowed down to idols and did not serve them. For it is written in these very words: “They invited them to the sacrifices of their idols, and the people ate of their sacrifices, and they bowed down to their idols and were initiated into Baal of Peor.” And observe that it is not said, “and they served their idols”; for it was not possible, after so many signs and wonders, that in a single moment they should be persuaded by the women with whom they committed fornication to believe that the idols were gods. Perhaps in the same way at the making of the calf in Exodus they “bowed down” without serving the calf, which they had watched being made. So we must regard the present temptation as a trial and test of our love for God. “For the Lord is testing you,” as it is written in Deuteronomy, “to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.” But you, when tested, “will walk after the Lord your God and fear him and keep his commandments,” and especially “You shall have no other gods besides me,” “and you will hear his voice and be joined to him,” who takes you from the places here and joins you to himself in what the apostle called “the growth of God” in him.
About this passage
Notes
Translation notes
- The quotations are Exod 20:4–5, Num 25:1–3, Exod 32 (the golden calf), Deut 13:3–4, Exod 20:3, and Col 2:19. “Accommodation” renders συμπεριφορά, the excuse of conforming outwardly to others. The verb for the Israelites' sin with the Moabite women (ἐκπορνεύω) is rendered “committed fornication,” though the Numbers passage also uses the image of idolatry as harlotry.
Cite this passage
Origen, Mart. 6 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/origen-exhortatio/6/).
Plain text
Origen, Mart. 6 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/origen-exhortatio/6/).
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