Sophia Scriptura

Miscellanies 4.6.25

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

Summary: Christ's beatitudes apply to spiritual and material states; the one who is persecuted, poor, or hungry for righteousness' sake is a witness, a martyr, to righteousness.

Greek text · Stählin 2:259

Ὁ σωτὴρ ἡμῶν ὁ ἅγιος καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν πνευματικῶν καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν αἰσθητῶν τὴν πενίαν καὶ τὸν πλοῦτον καὶ τὰ τούτοις ὅμοια ἔταξεν· εἰπὼν γὰρ μακάριοι οἱ δεδιωγμένοι ἕνεκεν δικαιοσύνης σαφῶς ἡμᾶς διδάσκει ἐν πάσῃ περιστάσει τὸν μάρτυρα ζητεῖν· ὃς ἐὰν πτωχὸς ᾖ διὰ δικαιοσύνην, μαρτυρεῖ δικαιοσύνην ἀγαθὸν εἶναι ἣν ἠγάπησεν, κἂν πεινῇ κἂν διψῇ διὰ δικαιοσύνην, μαρτυρεῖ δικαιοσύνην τὸ ἄριστον τυγχάνειν.

English · Claude translation

Our holy Savior applied poverty, wealth, and the like both to spiritual and to sensible things. For in saying, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake,” he clearly teaches us to seek the martyr in every circumstance. The one who is poor for righteousness' sake bears witness that righteousness, which he loved, is good; and if he hungers and thirsts for righteousness' sake, he bears witness that righteousness is the best.

About this passage

Source
Stählin 2:259 · 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
Martyrdom, Ethics

Notes

Translation notes

  • The quotation is Matt 5:10. Clement again plays on “martyr” (witness).

Cite this passage

Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 4.6.25 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/clement-stromata/4/6/25/).

Plain text
Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 4.6.25 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/clement-stromata/4/6/25/).

Download citation:BibTeX ·RIS (Zotero, EndNote)

Whole work:BibTeX ·RIS ·Markdown text

Report an error in this passage