Unit 4 rem early

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it is said, “eager to keep the unity of the Spirit”; but to those who do not yet have the unity of the Spirit one might say “eager to arrive at the unity of the Spirit” or “to do the things of the Spirit’s unity.” The unity of the Spirit is kept when love binds those being united according to the Spirit and gathers them into one body of Christ.

Eph. 4:5–6: “one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in us all. But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift.” Origen says: because of those who confuse Father and Son, “Lord” is set of the Son and “one God” of the Father; and against the Valentinians who give two baptisms one must use the saying “one baptism.”

God is also Father of all, in that of some he is God and not Father, and of some God and Father—as if someone pointing out ten people, of whom five are sons of this man and five slaves, said, “This man is lord and father of the ten.”

Besides this one must examine the difference of the prepositions—over, through, and in. Use a bodily image such as this: by place the sun is over all things on earth, say; by its rays it might be said to be through all; and if the power of its light also reached into the depth of each, it would be said to be in all. So also in the intelligibles we take “over all” to show superiority, “through all” the sufficiency toward each, and “in all” that God’s power reaches into all, so that none is utterly empty of him.

And “to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift” we think understood thus. God does not give the Spirit and the grace from measure—there is no limit to his greatness—yet he gives a measure, sparing the receivers, since each cannot hold more than he profitably receives. Yet since what is given is grace—and not from works, since then grace would no longer be grace—grace is given according to the measure of Christ’s gift; and even if not from works, still upon something in our power. For grace is given from faith, so that with its cooperation faith may also be adorned with works, so that the receiver of grace may say, “and his grace toward me was not in vain, but I labored so much.”

Eph. 4:11–12: “And he himself gave some as apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ.” These too he adds in sequence with what precedes. For if Christ is over all and through all and in all, yet to each of the saints grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift, so that some are apostles, some prophets, others evangelists, and after these pastors and, over all, teachers.

If then to be a teacher is a gift given according to the measure of Christ’s gift, clearly also a pastor who shepherds with knowledge must shepherd having a gift. And how will someone be an evangelist whose feet of the soul are not, so to speak, beautiful? And that they may become so, God must supply them beauty. But also a prophet who convicts and examines the unbeliever (for such is the prophet of the new covenant) must be thought appointed to the church from God. And if these can always be in the church, perhaps also apostles, to whom the signs of an apostle are given to work, can be found even now. There is need of apostles and prophets and the rest for the equipping of the saints, that they may be equipped according to the work of Christ’s ministry, so that the body of Christ may be built and energized from living stones.

Eph. 4:13–15: “until we all arrive at the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, at a perfect man, at the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, that we may no longer be infants, tossed and carried about by every wind of teaching in the trickery of men, in craftiness toward the scheming of error, but speaking truth in love we may grow up in all things into him who is the head, Christ.” Who are “all” who will arrive at the unity of the faith must be asked: whether simply all humans, or we who have been

Greek

λέγεται ἐν ἀγάπῃ σπουδάζοντες τηρεῖν τὴν ἑνότητα τοῦ πνεύματος· τοῖς δὲ μηδέπω ἔχουσι τὴν ἑνότητα τοῦ πνεύματος λέγοιτο <ἂν> «σπουδάζοντες καταντᾶν ἐπὶ τὴν ἑνότητα τοῦ πνεύματος» ἢ «ποιεῖν τὰ τῆς ἑνότητος τοῦ πνεύ ματος.» τηρεῖται δὲ ἡ ἑνότης τοῦ πνεύματος, τῆς ἀγάπης συνδεούσης τοὺς κατὰ τὸ πνεῦμα ἑνουμένους καὶ εἰς ἓν σῶμα αὐτοὺς συναγούσης τοῦ Χριστοῦ. 17 Eph. iv5, 6 [εἷς κύριος, μία πίστις, ἓν βάπτισμα· εἷς θεὸς καὶ πατὴρ πάντων, καὶ ἐπὶ πάντων καὶ διὰ πάντων καὶ ἐν πᾶσιν ἡμῖν. ἑνὶ δὲ ἑκάστῳ ἡμῶν ἐδόθη ἡ χάρις κατὰ τὸ μέτρον τῆς δωρεᾶς τοῦ Χριστοῦ.] [Ὠριγένης δέ φησι] διὰ τοὺς συγχέοντας πατέρα καὶ υἱὸν τὸ μὲν κύριος τέτακται ἐπὶ τοῦ υἱοῦ τὸ δὲ εἷς θεὸς ἐπὶ τοῦ πατρός· καὶ πρὸς τοὺς ἀπὸ Οὐαλεντίνου δὲ δύο διδόντας βαπτίσματα χρηστέον τῷ ῥητῷ ἓν βάπτισμα. πάντων δέ ἐστιν ὁ Θεὸς καὶ πατήρ, τῷ τινῶν μὲν εἶναι Θεὸς καὶ μὴ πατήρ, τινῶν δὲ Θεὸς καὶ πατήρ, ὡς εἴ τις δείξας δέκα τινὰς τὸν ἀριθμὸν ἀνθρώπους, ὧν οἱ μὲν πέντε τοῦδέ τινος υἱοί εἰσιν, οἱ δὲ πέντε δοῦλοι, ἔλεγεν «οὗτος τῶν δέκα κύριός ἐστι καὶ πατήρ.» πρὸς τούτοις ἐξεταστέον τὴν διαφορὰν τῶν προθέσεων, τῆς ἐπὶ καὶ τῆς διὰ καὶ τῆς ἐν. καὶ σωματικῇ γε εἰκόνι χρηστέον τοιαύτῃ· τόπῳ ὁ ἥλιος ἐπὶ πάντων ἐστι φέρ' εἰπεῖν τῶν ἐπὶ γῆς, ταῖς δὲ αὐγαῖς λέγοιτο ἂν εἶναι διὰ πάντων, εἰ δὲ καὶ εἰς τὸ βάθος ἑκάστου ἔφθανεν ἡ δύναμις τοῦ φωτὸς αὐτοῦ ἐλέγετο ἂν εἶναι καὶ ἐν πᾶσιν· οὕτως τοίνυν καὶ κατὰ τὰ νοητὰ τὴν μὲν ὑπεροχὴν οἰόμεθα δηλοῦσθαι διὰ τοῦ ἐπὶ πάντων, τὸ δὲ διαρκὲς πρὸς ἕκαστον ἐν τῷ διὰ πάντων, τὸ δὲ καὶ φθάνειν ἐν πᾶσι τῆς δυνάμεώς ἐστι τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὥστε μηδένα εἶναι κενὸν πάντῃ αὐτοῦ διὰ τοῦ ἐν πᾶσιν. καὶ τ<ὸ> ἑνὶ δὲ ἑκάστῳ ἡμῶν ἐδόθη ἡ χάρις κατὰ τὸ μέτρον τῆς δωρεᾶς τοῦ Χριστοῦ οὕτω νενοῆσθαι νομίζομεν. οὐκ ἐκ μέτρου μὲν δίδω ι τὸ πνεῦμα καὶ τὴν χάριν ὁ Θεός, οὗ τῆ μεγαλω ύνη αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἔ τι πέρα · μέτρον δὲ δίδωσι φειδόμενος τῶν λαμβανόντων, μὴ χωροῦντος ἑκάστου πλέον οὗ συμφερόντως λαμβάνει. πλὴν ἐπεὶ χάρις ἐστὶν ἡ διδομένη–καὶ οὐκ ἐξ ἔργων ἐστίν, ἐπεὶ ἡ χάρι οὐκέτι γίνεται χάρι – δίδοται ἡ χάρις κατὰ τὸ μέτρον τῆς δωρεᾶς τοῦ Χριστοῦ· εἰ καὶ μὴ ἐξ ἔργων δέ, ἀλλ' ἐπί τινός γε τῶν ἐφ' ἡμῖν. ἐκ πί τεω γὰρ δίδοται ἡ χάρις, ἐπὶ τῷ συνεργούσης αὐτῆς τὴν πίστιν κατακοσμηθῆναι καὶ τοῖς ἔργοις, ὡς εἰπεῖν τὸν λαμβάνοντα τὴν χάριν καὶ ἡ χάρι αὐτοῦ ἡ εἰ ἐμὲ οὐκ εἰς κενὸν ἐγενήθη ἀλλὰ τοσόνδε ἐκοπία α. [ iv 11, 12] καὶ αὐτὸς ἔδωκεν τοὺς μὲν ἀποστόλους τοὺς δὲ προφήτας, τοὺς δὲ εὐαγγελιστάς, τοὺς δὲ ποιμένας καὶ διδασκάλους, πρὸς τὸν καταρτισμὸν τῶν ἁγίων εἰς ἔργον διακονίας, εἰς οἰκοδομὴν τοῦ σώματος τοῦ Χριστοῦ. ἐχομένως τῶν προκειμένων καὶ ταῦτα ἐπιφέρει. εἰ γὰρ ἐπὶ πάντων καὶ διὰ πάντων καὶ ἐν πᾶσίν ἐστιν ὁ Χριστός, ἀλλ' ἑκάστῳ τῶν ἁγίων ἐδόθη ἡ χάρις κατὰ τὸ μέτρον τῆς δωρεᾶς τοῦ Χριστοῦ, ὥστε τοὺς μέν τινας εἶναι ἀποστόλους τοὺς δὲ προφήτας καὶ ἄλλους εὐαγγελιστὰς καὶ μετὰ τούτους ποιμένας καὶ ἐπὶ πᾶσι διδασκάλους. εἴπερ οὖν διδάσκαλον εἶναι χάρισμά ἐστι διδόμενον κατὰ τὸ μέτρον τῆς δωρεᾶς τοῦ Χριστοῦ, δηλονότι καὶ ποιμένα ποιμαίνοντα μετ' ἐπιστήμης χρὴ χάρισμα ἔχοντα ποιμαίνειν· πῶς δὲ καὶ εὐαγγελιστής τις ἔσται, οὗ μὴ εἰσὶν ὡραῖοι, ἵν' οὕτως εἴπω, οἱ πόδε τῆς ψυχῆς; ἵνα δὲ γένωνται, Θεὸν δεῖ ὡραιότητα αὐτοῖς παρασχεῖν· ἀλλὰ καὶ προφήτην ἀπί του ἐλέγχοντα καὶ ἀνακρίνοντα (τοιοῦτος γάρ ἐστιν ὁ τῆς καινῆς διαθήκης προφήτης), ὃν ἀπὸ Θεοῦ καθίστασθαι τῇ ἐκκλη ίᾳ νομιστέον. εἰ δὲ ταῦτα δυνατὸν ἀεὶ εἶναι ἐν τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ, μήποτε καὶ ἀποστόλους, οἷς δίδοται τὰ ημεῖα τοῦ ἀπο τόλου κατεργάζε θαι, δυνατὸν εὑρεθῆναι καὶ νῦν. χρεία δὲ ἀποστόλων καὶ προφητῶν καὶ τῶν ἑξῆς εἰς τὸν καταρτισμὸν τῶν ἁγίων, ἵνα καταρτίζωνται κατὰ τὸ ἔργον τῆς Χριστοῦ διακονίας, ὅπως οἰκοδο μῆται <καὶ> ἐνεργῇται τὸ σῶμα τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐκ τῶν ζώντων λίθων. [ iv 13–15] μέχρι καταντήσωμεν οἱ πάντες εἰς τὴν ἑνότητα τῆς πίστεως καὶ τῆς ἐπιγνώσεως τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ, εἰς ἄνδρα τέλειον, εἰς μέτρον ἡλικίας τοῦ πληρώματος τοῦ Χριστοῦ, ἵνα μηκέτι ὦμεν νήπιοι, κλυδωνιζόμενοι καὶ περιφερόμενοι παντὶ ἀνέμῳ τῆς διδασκαλίας ἐν τῇ κυβείᾳ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐν πανουργίᾳ πρὸς τὴν μεθοδείαν τῆς πλάνης, ἀληθεύοντες δὲ ἐν ἀγάπῃ αὐξήσωμεν εἰς αὐτὸν τὰ πάντα, ὅς ἐστιν ἡ κεφαλή, Χριστός. τίνες πάντες καταντήσομεν εἰς τὴν ἑνότητα τῆς πίστεως ζητητέον, πότερον πάντες ἁπαξαπλῶς ἄνθρωποι, ἢ ἡμεῖς οἱ

About this text

Origen of Alexandria, Fragmenta ex commentariis in epistulam ad Ephesios (Greek).

Original English Translation of Origen’s Fragmenta ex commentariis in epistulam ad Ephesios — new OET from PG 14 Greek.

Catalogue & scope

Khazarzar scan

Witnesses

Copy-text PG 14 (Khazarzar) (Greek)

This is an AI-assisted study translation. Source fidelity and completeness have not been independently certified. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.