David alone of the prophets prophesied with an instrument, called by the Greeks the “psaltery,” and by the Hebrews the “nabla,” which is the only musical instrument that is quite straight, and has no curve. And the sound does not come from the lower parts, as is the case with the lute and certain other instruments, but from the upper. For in the lute and the lyre the brass when […]
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Hippolytus: On Daniel
Visions of Golden Image and the Four Beasts [1] In speaking of a “lioness from the sea,” he meant the rising of the kingdom of Babylon, and that this was the “golden head of the image.” And in speaking of its “eagle wings,” he meant that king Nebuchadnezzar was exalted and that his glory was lifted up against God. Then he says “its wings were plucked off,” i.e., that his […]
Read moreHippolytus: On Genesis
An Interpretation of Jacob’s Blessings Gen. xlix. 3 Reuben, my first-born, thou art my strength, and the first of my children; hard to bear with, and hard and self-willed: thou hast waxed wanton as water; boil not over. For there was a great display of strength made by God in behalf of His first-born people from Egypt. For in very many ways was the land of the Egyptians chastised. That […]
Read moreHippolytus On Pythagoras
Pythagoras’ System of Numbers Pythagoras, then, declared the originating principle of the universe to be the unbegotten monad, and the generated duad, and the rest of the numbers. And he says that the monad is the father of the duad, and the duad the mother of all things that are being begotten—the begotten one (being mother) of the things that are begotten. And from the duad, again, as Pythagoras states, […]
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Origen: An Ideal Scholar
Origen was a Christian philosopher, Biblical scholar and theologian of the third century, His full name in Latin, Oregenes Adamantius, can perhaps be translated as Origen the Immovable. Apart from his erudition, imagination, intellect and piety, I would use one word to describe my impression of Origen: gravitas. He is the type of scholar who demands respect, even from his most formidable opponents, without at the same time making them […]
Read moreHippolytus: The Refutation of All Heresies
The Peratic Heresy They denominate themselves, however, Peratæ, imagining that none of those things existing by generation can escape the determined lot for those things that derive their existence from generation. … For they suppose little Egypt to be body, and that it crosses the Red Sea—that is, the water of corruption, which is Cronus—and that it reaches a place beyond the Red Sea, that is, generation; and that it […]
Read moreOrigen on the Differences Between Jewish and Christian Scriptures
Why should I enumerate all the instances I collected with so much labour, to prove that the difference between our copies and those of the Jews did not escape me? In Jeremiah I noticed many instances, and indeed in that book I found much transposition and variation in the readings of the prophecies. Again, in Genesis, the words, “God saw that it was good,” when the firmament was made, are […]
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