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Fragments on the Epistle to the Hebrews

0 Hebr Prolog That he was not writing to unbelievers who possessed an implacable hatred towards him, but to those who had partaken of all the things in which believers must partake; then, not even to ordinary people simply, but indeed to those who had demonstrated confirmation in the works of faith and precision in virtue, as the contents of the epistle also show. So the epistle had to be delivered to them as having been written to them by Paul, just as indeed happened in the case of the others; for the things written could not even benefit them if this did not happen. In addition to these things, the things written at the end of the epistle also show what I say; for "I urge you," he says, "brothers, to bear with the word of exhortation, for I have written to you briefly." But to whom was he writing "I have written to you," if they were not those to whom the letter had to be delivered? Then he adds: "Know that our brother Timothy has been set free, with whom, if he comes sooner, I shall see you." You see that the one who also served with the epistle of the letter was known, with whom he clearly promises that he will also see them if he should return sooner. What then is the reason for this that his name was not placed at the beginning ? It is evident and very clear. Barnabas and he himself, along with the blessed Peter and his companions, divided the preaching, not so that some might teach one thing and others another—for their aim was one 201 but so that some might bring those from the Gentiles to the faith, and others those from the Jews, because of the contentiousness still prevailing at that time from the custom in the Law, as the Jews would not tolerate mingling with those from the Gentiles, they used this division more stewardly. So some were called apostles to the Gentiles, and others to the circumcision; but the believers, as was likely, considered them to be common teachers and apostles. Therefore, when he wrote to those from the Gentiles, he reasonably addressed them as their apostle, but when to those from the Hebrews, he no longer did so.

Hebr 1,2-3a Through whom also he made the ages. The age is not a nature having its being in a hypostasis, but is understood to be a certain interval. It is conceived, therefore, from something that has a beginning of being until its end, or similarly of something else that has received a beginning; for we do not conceive of temporal intervals in their own hypostasis, but we conceive of them together with those things that have received a beginning of being, receiving from them the concept both of its beginning and of its end. Not as in the case of God, of whom it is said that he only was, who, since he always was, it is not possible for us to conceive of intervals co-existing with his life. Therefore, to say "maker of the ages" is nothing other than to say "eternal," superior to every interval, having his own existence without limit. For the maker is prior to the things made, and it is necessary for an interval to be conceived along with that which has a beginning. And just as when the blessed David says, "who exists before the ages," he does not mean to say that he pre-exists things that have no subsistence, but that he is superior to every interval, always having being. Thus, when he says, "through whom also he made the ages," he does not mean to call him the maker of things that have no subsistence, but as one who is always and the cause of all things that have had a beginning. Who being the radiance of his glory and the express image of his person. He rightly said not "of God" but "of glory," by the awe-inspiring nature of the name not even permitting us to pry into the things of that nature, as it ought only to be glorified by us; using the comparison of the radiance for what he thought most necessary, but by the addition dissolving what was unsuitable in the comparison; for, he says, he preserves the exact character of the

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Fragmenta in epistulam ad Hebraeos

0 Hebr Prolog Ὡς οὐκ ἀπίστοις ἔγραφε τοῖς ἄσπονδον πρὸς αὐτὸν μῖσος κεκτημένοις, ἀλλὰ τοῖς μετεσχηκόσιν ἁπάντων ὧν δεῖ μετεῖναι τοῖς πιστεύουσιν· εἶτα οὐδὲ τοῖς τυχοῦσιν ἁπλῶς, ἀλλὰ γὰρ τοῖς ἐπὶ τῶν ἔργων τῆς πίστεως τὴν βεβαίωσιν καὶ τῆς ἀρετῆς τὴν ἀκρίβειαν ἐπιδειξαμένοις, ὡς καὶ τὰ ἐν τῇ ἐπιστολῇ κείμενα δείκνυσιν. ὥστε καὶ ἀποδεδόσθαι αὐτοῖς ἔδει τὴν ἐπιστολὴν ὡς Παύλου γεγραφότος αὐτοῖς, ὥσπερ οὖν καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν λοιπῶν ἐγίνετο· οὐδὲ γὰρ αὐτοὺς ὠφελεῖν τε τὰ ἀναγεγραμμένα ἐδύνατο μὴ τούτου γιγνομένου. πρὸς δ' αὖ τούτοις καὶ τὰ πρὸς τῷ τέλει τῆς ἐπιστολῆς γεγραμμένα δείκνυσιν ὅ φημι· παρακαλῶ γὰρ ὑμᾶς, φησίν, ἀδελφοί, ἀνέχεσθαι τοῦ λόγου τῆς παρακλήσεως· καὶ γὰρ διὰ βραχέων ἐπέστειλα ὑμῖν. τίσι δὲ ἔγραφεν ὅτι ἐπέστειλα ὑμῖν, οὐκ ὄντων ἐκείνων οἷς ἀποδεδόσθαι ἦν ἀνάγκη τὸ γράμμα; εἶτα ἐπάγει· γινώσκετε τὸν ἀδελφὸν Τιμόθεον ἀπολελυμένον, μεθ' οὗ ἐὰν τάχιον ἔρχηται ὄψομαι ὑμᾶς. ὁρᾷς ὅτι δῆλος ἦν ὁ καὶ τῇ ἐπιστολῇ τοῦ γράμματος διακονησάμενος, μεθ' οὗ καὶ ὄψεσθαι αὐτοὺς εἰ τάχιον ἐπανέλθοι, σαφῶς ὑπισχνεῖται. τίς οὖν ἡ τούτου αἰτία <τοῦ μὴ προτετάχθαι αὐτοῦ τὸ ὄνομα>; εὔδηλος καὶ ἄγαν σαφής. διείλοντο Βαρνάβας τε καὶ αὐτὸς μετὰ τῶν περὶ τὸν μακάριον Πέτρον τὸ κήρυγμα, οὐχ ἵνα τὰ μὲν οὗτοι, τὰ δὲ ἐκεῖνοι διδάσκωσινεἷς γὰρ ἦν αὐτοῖς ὁ σκοπός 201 ἀλλ' ἵνα οἱ μὲν τοὺς ἀπὸ ἐθνῶν, οἱ δὲ τοὺς ἀπὸ τῶν Ἰουδαίων τῇ πίστει προάγωσιν, διὰ τὴν τότε κρατοῦσαν ἔτι φιλονεικίαν ἀπὸ τῆς ἐν τῷ νόμῳ συνηθείας τῶν Ἰουδαίων τοῖς ἐξ ἐθνῶν ἐπιμίγνυσθαι οὐκ ἀνεχομένων, οἰκονομικώτερον τῇ διαιρέσει ταύτῃ χρησάμενοι. ἐχρημάτιζον οὖν οἱ μὲν ἐθνῶν ἀπόστολοι, οἱ δὲ τῶν ἐκ περιτομῆς· οἱ δέ γε πεπιστευκότες κοινούς, ὡς εἰκός, διδασκάλους τε καὶ ἀποστόλους ἐνόμιζον εἶναι. ὅτε μὲν οὖν ἔγραφε τοῖς ἀπὸ ἐθνῶν, εἰκότως ὡς αὐτῶν ἀπόστολος αὐτοῖς ἐπιστέλλει, ὅτε δὲ πρὸς τοὺς ἀπὸ Ἑβραίων, οὐκέτι.

Hebr 1,2-3a ∆ι' οὗ καὶ τοὺς αἰῶνας ἐποίησεν. ὁ αἰὼν φύσις μέν ἐστιν οὐδεμία

ἐν ὑποστάσει τὸ εἶναι ἔχουσα, διάστημα δέ τι νοεῖται εἶναι. ἀπό τινος οὖν ἐπινοούμενον ἀρχὴν τοῦ εἶναι ἔχοντος ἄχρις τῆς ἐκείνου τελευτῆς, ἢ ἑτέρου τινὸς ἀρχὴν εἰληφότος ὁμοίως· οὐ γὰρ ἐν ἰδίᾳ ὑποστάσει τὰ χρονικὰ νοοῦμεν διαστήματα, τοῖς δὲ ἀρχὴν τοῦ εἶναι εἰληφόσιν αὐτὰ συνεπινοοῦμεν, ἐκείνοις τῆς τε ἀρχῆς αὐτοῦ καὶ τοῦ τέλους τὴν φαντασίαν δεχόμενοι. οὐχ ὥσπερ ἐπὶ τοῦ θεοῦ λεγόντων ὅτι ἦν μόνον ὃς ἐπειδήπερ ἦν ἀεί, οὐ δυνατὸν ἡμᾶς αὐτοῦ συνόντα ἐπινοεῖν διαστήματα τῇ ζωῇ. τὸ τοίνυν εἰπεῖν τῶν αἰώνων ποιητὴν οὐδὲν ἕτερόν ἐστιν εἰπεῖν ἢ ἀΐδιον, παντὸς ὑπερκείμενον διαστήματος, ἀπέραντον ἔχοντα τὴν οἰκείαν ὕπαρξιν. ὁ μὲν γὰρ ποιητὴς πρότερός ἐστι τῶν ποιηθέντων, τῷ δὲ ἀρχὴν ἔχοντι συνεπινοεῖσθαι διάστημα ἀνάγκη. ὥσπερ δὲ ὅταν λέγῃ ὁ μακάριος ∆αυίδ· ὁ ὑπάρχων πρὸ τῶν αἰώνων, οὐ τοῦτο βούλεται εἰπεῖν ὅτι τῶν οὐχ ὑφεστώτων προϋπάρχει, ἀλλ' ἵνα εἴπῃ ὅτι παντός ἐστι διαστήματος ἀνώτερος ἀεὶ τὸ εἶναι ἔχων. οὕτως, ὅταν λέγῃ· δι' οὗ καὶ τοὺς αἰῶνας ἐποίησεν, οὐχὶ τῶν οὐχ ὑφεστώτων βούλεται αὐτὸν ποιητὴν εἰπεῖν, ἀλλ' ἀεὶ ὄντα καὶ τῶν ἀρχὴν ἐσχηκότων αἴτιον ἁπάντων. Ὃς ὢν ἀπαύγασμα τῆς δόξης καὶ χαρακτὴρ τῆς ὑποστάσεως αὐτοῦ. καλῶς οὐκ εἶπεν τοῦ θεοῦ ἀλλὰ τῆς δόξης, τῷ καταπληκτικῷ τοῦ ὀνόματος οὐδὲ περιεργάζεσθαι τὰ τῆς φύσεως ἐκείνης ἐπιτρέπων ἡμῖν, ὡς ἂν μόνον δοξάζεσθαι ὀφειλούσης παρ' ἡμῶν· τῇ μὲν παραβολῇ τοῦ ἀπαυγάσματος χρησάμενος εἰς ὃ μάλιστα ἀναγκαῖον ἐνόμιζεν, τῇ δὲ ἐπαγωγῇ τὸ ἀπεμφαῖνον τῆς παραβολῆς ἐκλύσας· ἀκριβῆ γάρ, φησί, σώζει τὸν χαρακτῆρα τῆς