To the Romans 1.2

Ignatius of Antioch · To the Romans · ca. 110 (range ca. 105–135) · Smyrna · Read in context

Summary: Ignatius fears the Romans' love might lead them to prevent his martyrdom.

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Greek text · Lake, LCL 24:226

ἡ μὲν γὰρ ἀρχὴ εὐοικονόμητός ἐστιν, ἐάνπερ χάριτος ἐπιτύχω εἰς τὸ τὸν κλῆρόν μου ἀνεμποδίστως ἀπολαβεῖν. φοβοῦμαι γὰρ τὴν ὑμῶν ἀγάπην, μὴ αὐτή με ἀδικήσῃ. ὑμῖν γὰρ εὐχερές ἐστιν, ὃ θέλετε, ποιῆσαι· ἐμοὶ δὲ δύσκολόν ἐστιν τοῦ θεοῦ ἐπιτυχεῖν, ἐάνπερ ὑμεῖς μὴ φείσησθέ μου.

English · Claude translation

for the beginning is well ordered, if I obtain the grace to receive my lot without hindrance. For I am afraid of your love, lest it do me wrong. For it is easy for you to do what you want, but it is difficult for me to attain to God, unless you spare me.

About this passage

Source: Lake, LCL 24:226 · Kirsopp Lake, ed. and trans., The Apostolic Fathers, vol. 1, LCL 24 (London: Heinemann; New York: Macmillan, 1912), 172–277 · Greek text: K. Lake, The Apostolic Fathers (LCL, 1912-1913), digitized 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)
Topics: Martyrdom

Notes

Translation notes

“Unless you spare me”: that is, refrain from intervening to save him.

Cite this passage

Ign. Rom. 1.2 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/ign-romans/1/2/).

Plain text

Ign. Rom. 1.2 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/ign-romans/1/2/).

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