Sophia Scriptura

The Instructor 1.6.26

Clement of Alexandria · The Instructor · ca. 190–200 · Alexandria · Read in context

Summary: Baptism enlightens, makes us sons, perfects, and makes immortal; it is called grace, enlightenment, perfection, and washing, and God's gift in it is complete.

Greek text · Stählin 1:105–106

Τὸ δὲ αὐτὸ συμβαίνει τοῦτο καὶ περὶ ἡμᾶς, ὧν γέγονεν ὑπογραφὴ ὁ κύριος· βαπτιζόμενοι φωτιζόμεθα, φωτιζόμενοι υἱοποιούμεθα, υἱοποιούμενοι τελειούμεθα, τελειούμενοι ἀπαθανατιζόμεθα »ἐγώ«, φησίν, »εἶπα, θεοί ἐστε καὶ υἱοὶ ὑψίστου πάντες.« καλεῖται δὲ πολλαχῶς τὸ ἔργον τοῦτο, χάρισμα καὶ φώτισμα καὶ τέλειον καὶ λουτρόν· λουτρὸν μὲν διʼ οὗ τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἀπορρυπτόμεθα, χάρισμα δὲ ᾧ τὰ ἐπὶ τοῖς ἁμαρτήμασιν ἐπιτίμια ἀνεῖται, φώτισμα δὲ διʼ οὗ τὸ ἅγιον ἐκεῖνο φῶς τὸ σωτήριον ἐποπτεύεται, τουτέστιν διʼ οὗ τὸ θεῖον ὀξυωποῦμεν, τέλειον δὲ τὸ ἀπροσδεὲς φαμέν. τί γὰρ ἔτι λείπεται τῷ θεὸν ἐγνωκότι; καὶ γὰρ ἄτοπον ὡς ἀληθῶς χάρισμα κεκλῆσθαι θεοῦ τὸ μὴ πεπληρωμένον· τέλειος δὲ ὢν τέλεια χαριεῖται δήπουθεν· ὡς δὲ ἅμα τῷ κελεῦσαι αὐτὸν πάντα γίνεται, οὕτως ἕπεται τῷ χαρίσασθαι μόνον βουληθῆναι αὐτὸν τὸ πεπληρῶσθαι τὴν χάριν. τὸ γὰρ μέλλον τοῦ χρόνου τῇ δυνάμει τοῦ θελήματος προλαμβάνεται.

English · Claude translation

The same thing happens with us, for whom the Lord became a model. Being baptized, we are enlightened; being enlightened, we are adopted as sons; being adopted, we are made perfect; being made perfect, we are made immortal. “I said,” it says, “You are gods, and all of you sons of the Most High.” This work is called by many names: grace, enlightenment, perfection, and washing. It is a washing, by which we are cleansed of our sins; a grace, by which the penalties due to our sins are remitted; an enlightenment, by which that holy light of salvation is beheld, that is, by which we see the divine clearly; and we call perfect that which lacks nothing. For what more does the one who has known God still lack? It would truly be absurd for something not complete to be called a grace of God; being perfect, he will surely give perfect gifts. And as everything comes to be at the moment he commands, so the completion of the grace follows at the moment he merely wills to give it. For the future is anticipated by the power of his will.

About this passage

Source
Stählin 1:105–106 · Otto Stählin, ed., Clemens Alexandrinus, vol. 1, Protrepticus und Paedagogus, GCS 12 (Leipzig: Hinrichs, 1905) · Greek text: Otto Stählin, Clemens Alexandrinus 1: Protrepticus und Paedagogus (GCS 12, 1905), digitized by the First Thousand Years of Greek project (Open Greek and Latin), CC BY-SA 4.0
Text
As printed in Stählin, GCS 12. 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 Stählin (1905); made independently of existing English translations.
Compare
Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 2 (1885) (an older public-domain English translation, whole volume at CCEL; checked against ours only after ours was made)
Scripture
Extrabiblical texts
  • Justin, 1 Apol. 61.12 (First Apology) · echo, low confidence
Topics
Baptism

Notes

Translation notes

  • This is one of the earliest and fullest statements of the effects of baptism in Christian literature. The quotation is Ps 82:6 (81:6 LXX).
  • “Enlightenment” (φώτισμα, φωτισμός) was a common early Christian name for baptism (compare Heb 6:4; Justin, 1 Apol. 61.12).

Cite this passage

Clement of Alexandria, Paed. 1.6.26 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/clement-paedagogus/1/6/26/).

Plain text
Clement of Alexandria, Paed. 1.6.26 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/clement-paedagogus/1/6/26/).

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