Second Apology 5
Summary: God the Father has no proper name; the Son is called Christ and Jesus, and in his name Christians cast out demons.
Greek text · Rauschen, 122
Ὄνομα δὲ τῷ πάντων πατρὶ θετόν, ἀγεννήτῳ ὄντι, οὐκ ἔστιν· ᾧ γὰρ ἂν καὶ ὄνομά τι προσαγορεύεται, πρεσβύτερον ἔχει τὸν θέμενον τὸ ὄνομα. Τὸ δὲ πατὴρ καὶ θεὸς καὶ κτίστης καὶ κύριος καὶ δεσπότης οὐκ ὀνόματά ἐστιν, ἀλλʼ ἐκ τῶν εὐποιϊῶν καὶ τῶν ἔργων προσρήσεις. Ὁ δὲ υἱὸς ἐκείνου, ὁ μόνος λεγόμενος κυρίως υἱός, ὁ λόγος πρὸ τῶν ποιημάτων καὶ συνὼν καὶ γεννώμενος, ὅτε τὴν ἀρχὴν διʼ αὐτοῦ πάντα ἔκτισε καὶ ἐκόσμησε, Χριστὸς μὲν κατὰ τὸ κεχρῖσθαι καὶ κοσμῆσαι τὰ πάντα διʼ αὐτοῦ τὸν θεὸν λέγεται, ὄνομα καὶ αὐτὸ περιέχον ἄγνωστον σημασίαν, ὃν τρόπον καὶ τὸ θεὸς προσαγόρευμα οὐκ ὄνομά ἐστιν, ἀλλὰ πράγματος δυσεξηγήτου ἔμφυτος τῇ φύσει τῶν ἀνθρώπων δόξα. Ἰησοῦς δὲ καὶ ἀνθρώπου καὶ σωτῆρος ὄνομα καὶ σημασίαν ἔχει. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ ἄνθρωπος, ὡς προέφημεν, γέγονε κατὰ τὴν τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ πατρὸς βουλὴν ἀποκυηθεὶς ὑπὲρ τῶν πιστευόντων ἀνθρώπων καὶ ἐπὶ καταλύσει τῶν δαιμόνων· καὶ νῦν ἐκ τῶν ὑπʼ ὄψιν γινομένων μαθεῖν δύνασθε. Δαιμονιολήπτους γὰρ πολλοὺς κατὰ πάντα τὸν κόσμον καὶ ἐν τῇ ὑμετέρᾳ πόλει πολλοὶ τῶν ἡμετέρων ἀνθρώπων, τῶν Χριστιανῶν, ἐπορκίζοντες κατὰ τοῦ ὀνόματος Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, τοῦ σταυρωθέντος ἐπὶ Ποντίου Πιλάτου, ὑπὸ τῶν ἄλλων πάντων ἐπορκιστῶν καὶ ἐπᾳστῶν καὶ φαρμακευτῶν μὴ ἰαθέντας, ἰάσαντο καὶ ἔτι νῦν ἰῶνται, καταργοῦντες καὶ ἐκδιώκοντες τοὺς κατέχοντας τοὺς ἀνθρώπους δαίμονας.
English · Claude translation
But no name is given to the Father of all, since he is unbegotten; for whoever is called by a name has someone older than himself who gave him the name. “Father” and “God” and “Creator” and “Lord” and “Master” are not names, but titles drawn from his benefits and works. And his Son, who alone is properly called Son, the Word who was with him and was begotten before the things made, when in the beginning he created and ordered all things through him, is called Christ because he was anointed and because God ordered all things through him; this name too contains an unknown meaning, just as the title “God” is not a name, but a notion implanted in human nature of a thing hard to explain. But “Jesus” has the name and meaning of both “man” and “savior.” For, as we said before, he also became man, born according to the will of God the Father for the sake of believing men and for the destruction of the demons; and even now you can learn this from what happens before your eyes. For many of our people, the Christians, adjuring many who were possessed by demons throughout the whole world and in your city by the name of Jesus Christ, who was crucified under Pontius Pilate, have healed them and still heal them, when they had not been healed by all the other exorcists and enchanters and sorcerers, overpowering and driving out the demons who possess the people.
About this passage
Notes
Translation notes
- “The Word who was with him and was begotten before the things made”: the Greek order leaves it debated whether Justin means the Son was begotten when creation began; compare Prov 8:22–25 and John 1:1–3.
- “Christ” (Χριστός, “anointed”) is linked by Justin with “ordered” (κοσμῆσαι), a play on sound; “Jesus” (Hebrew Yeshua) means “the Lord saves.”
- This is chapter 6 in older editions and in ANF.
Cite this passage
Justin, 2 Apol. 5 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/justin-2-apology/5/).
Plain text
Justin, 2 Apol. 5 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/justin-2-apology/5/).
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