Sophia Scriptura

Miscellanies 2.15.71

Clement of Alexandria · Miscellanies · ca. 198–203 · Alexandria · Read in context

Summary: Knowing oneself leads to love of God and neighbor, on which the law and the prophets hang, and to Christ's command of mutual love; mercy and faithfulness purge sins, and the fear of the Lord turns from evil.

Greek text · Stählin 2:150–151

ταύτῃ που ἀγαπήσεις κύριον τὸν θεόν σου, ἐξ ὅλης καρδίας καὶ τὸν πλησίον σου ὡς σεαυτόν· ἐν ταύταις λέγει ταῖς ἐντολαῖς ὅλον τὸν νόμον καὶ τοὺς προφήτας κρέμασθαί τε καὶ ἐξηρτῆσθαι. συνᾴδει τούτοις κἀκεῖνα· ταῦτα λελάληκα ὑμῖν, ἵνα ἡ χαρὰ ἡ ἐμὴ πληρωθῇ. αὕτη δέ ἐστιν ἡ ἐντολὴ ἡ ἐμή, ἵνα ἀγαπᾶτε ἀλλήλους καθὼς ἠγάπησα ὑμᾶς· ἐλεήμων γὰρ καὶ οἰκτίρμων ὁ κύριος, καὶ χρηστὸς κύριος τοῖς σύμπασι. σαφέστερον δὲ τὸ γνῶθι σαυτὸν παρεγγυῶν ὁ Μωυσῆς λέγει πολλάκις· πρόσεχε σεαυτῷ. ἐλεημοσύναις οὖν καὶ πίστεσιν ἀποκαθαίρονται ἁμαρτίαι· τῷ δὲ φόβῳ κυρίου ἐκκλίνει πᾶς ἀπὸ κακοῦ. φόβος δὲ κυρίου παιδεία καὶ σοφία.

English · Claude translation

In this way, I suppose, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and your neighbor as yourself.” On these commandments, he says, the whole law and the prophets hang and depend. With these the following agree: “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be fulfilled. And this is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” “For the Lord is merciful and compassionate, and the Lord is kind to all.” And Moses, enjoining “Know yourself” more clearly, often says, “Take heed to yourself.” “By acts of mercy and faithfulness, then, sins are purged; and by the fear of the Lord everyone turns away from evil.” And the fear of the Lord is instruction and wisdom.

About this passage

Source
Stählin 2:150–151 · Otto Stählin, ed., Clemens Alexandrinus, vol. 2, Stromata Buch I–VI, GCS 15 (Leipzig: Hinrichs, 1906); vol. 3, Stromata Buch VII und VIII, GCS 17 (Leipzig: Hinrichs, 1909) · Greek text: Otto Stählin, Clemens Alexandrinus 2–3 (GCS 15, 17, 1906–1909), digitized by the Perseus Digital Library, CC BY-SA 4.0
Text
As printed in Stählin, GCS 15, 17. 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), 2026-09-27 · Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Stählin (1906–1909); 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) · Book 3 is left partly untranslated (in Latin) there.
Scripture
Topics
Ethics

Notes

Translation notes

  • The quotations are Matt 22:37–40, John 15:11–12, Ps 145:8–9 (144:8–9 LXX), Deut 4:9 (and often), Prov 16:6 (15:27a LXX), and Prov 15:33.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (wrong breathing on ἐμή): ἡ ἐντολὴ ἡ ἑμή → ἡ ἐντολὴ ἡ ἐμή.

Cite this passage

Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 2.15.71 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/clement-stromata/2/15/71/).

Plain text
Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 2.15.71 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/clement-stromata/2/15/71/).

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