Sophia Scriptura

Epistle of Barnabas 1.5

Anonymous · Epistle of Barnabas · ca. 70–135 (often ca. 130) · place unknown · Read in context

Traditional ascription rejected: The letter names no author. From Clement of Alexandria (late second century) onward it was ascribed to Barnabas, Paul's companion (Acts 4:36), but its date and its hostility to Jewish practice make that unlikely; modern scholars treat it as anonymous.

Summary: He writes so that they may have perfect knowledge along with their faith.

Greek text · Lake, LCL 24:340–342

λογισάμενος οὖν τοῦτο, ὅτι ἐὰν μελήσῃ μοι περὶ ὑμῶν τοῦ μέρος τι μεταδοῦναι ἀφʼ οὗ ἔλαβον, ὅτι ἔσται μοι τοιούτοις πνεύμασιν ὑπηρετήσαντι εἰς μισθόν, ἐσπούδασα κατὰ μικρὸν ὑμῖν πέμπειν, ἵνα μετὰ τῆς πίστεως ὑμῶν τελείαν ἔχητε τὴν γνῶσιν.

English · Claude translation

Considering this, then, that if I take care to share with you some part of what I have received, it will bring me a reward for having served such spirits, I have hastened to send you a short letter, so that along with your faith you may have perfect knowledge.

About this passage

Source
Lake, LCL 24:340–342 · Kirsopp Lake, ed. and trans., The Apostolic Fathers, vol. 1, LCL 24 (London: Heinemann; New York: Macmillan, 1912), 340–407 · Greek text: K. Lake, The Apostolic Fathers (LCL, 1912), digitized by the Perseus Digital Library and published by the First Thousand Years of Greek project (Open Greek and Latin), CC BY-SA 4.0
Text
As printed in Lake, LCL 24. Manuscript variants and the editor's apparatus are not reproduced; no textual problem is noted in this passage.
Translation
Claude translation (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-26 · Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 24, 1912); made independently of existing English translations.
Compare
Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1 (1885) (an older public-domain English translation, whole volume at CCEL; checked against ours only after ours was made)

Notes

Translation notes

  • “Knowledge” (γνῶσις): a key word of the letter, meaning the deeper, largely allegorical understanding of scripture that the author offers.

Cite this passage

Barn. 1.5 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/barnabas/1/5/).

Plain text
Barn. 1.5 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/barnabas/1/5/).

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