Barnabas

“ Thou shalt not take glory to thyself. Thou shalt not take evil counsel against thy neighbour. Thou shalt not allow overboldness to enter into thy soul. [246] Thou shalt not commit fornication: thou shalt not commit adultery: thou shalt not be a corrupter of youth. Thou shalt not let the word of God issue from thy lips with any kind of impurity. [247] Thou shalt not accept persons when thou reprovest any one for transgression. Thou shalt be meek: thou shalt be peaceable. Thou shalt tremble at the words which thou hearest. [248] Thou shalt not be mindful of evil against thy brother. ”

“ Let us bind the just one, because he is displeasing to us." [61] And Moses also says to them, [62] "Behold these things, saith the Lord God: Enter into the good land which the Lord sware [to give] to Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and inherit ye it, a land flowing with milk and honey." [63] What, then, says Knowledge? [64] Learn: "Trust," she says, "in Him who is to be manifested to you in the flesh—that is, Jesus." For man is earth in a suffering state, for the formation of Adam was from the face of the earth. ”

“ Having received the forgiveness of sins, and placed our trust in the name of the Lord, we have become new creatures, formed again from the beginning. Wherefore in our habitation God truly dwells in us. How? His word of faith; His calling [236] of promise; the wisdom of the statutes; the commands of the doctrine; He himself prophesying in us; He himself dwelling in us; opening to us who were enslaved by death the doors of the temple, that is, the mouth; and by giving us repentance introduced us into the incorruptible temple. ”

“ Let us then utterly flee from all the works of iniquity, lest these should take hold of us; and let us hate the error of the present time, that we may set our love on the world to come: let us not give loose reins to our soul, that it should have power to run with sinners and the wicked, lest we become like them. ”

“ Blessed be our Lord, who has placed in us wisdom and understanding of secret things. For the prophet says, "Who shall understand the parable of the Lord, except him who is wise and prudent, and who loves his Lord?" [65] Since, therefore, having renewed us by the remission of our sins, He hath made us after another pattern, [it is His purpose] that we should possess the soul of children, inasmuch as He has created us anew by His Spirit. [66] For the Scripture says concerning us, while He speaks to the Son, "Let us make man after our image, and after our likeness ”

“ Therefore we ought to be deeply grateful to the Lord, because He has both made known to us things that are past, and hath given us wisdom concerning things present, and hath not left us without understanding in regard to things which are to come. Now, the Scripture saith, "Not unjustly are nets spread out for birds." [39] This means that the man perishes justly, who, having a knowledge of the way of righteousness, rushes off into the way of darkness. ”

“ Let us further inquire whether the Lord took any care to foreshadow the water [of baptism] and the cross. Concerning the water, indeed, it is written, in reference to the Israelites, that they should not receive that baptism which leads to the remission of sins, but should procure [148] another for themselves. The prophet therefore declares, "Be astonished, O heaven, and let the earth tremble [149] at this, because this people hath committed two great evils: they have forsaken me, a living fountain, and have hewn out for themselves broken cisterns. ”

“ Moses, as a servant, [203] received it; but the Lord himself, having suffered in our behalf, hath given it to us, that we should be the people of inheritance. But He was manifested, in order that they might be perfected in their iniquities, and that we, being constituted heirs through Him, [204] might receive the testament of the Lord Jesus, who was prepared for this end, that by His personal manifestation, redeeming our hearts (which were already wasted by death, and given over to the iniquity of error) from darkness, He might by His word enter into a covenant with us. ”

“ For if He had not come in the flesh, how could men have been saved by beholding Him? [42] Since looking upon the sun which is to cease to exist, and is the work of His hands, their eyes are not able to bear his rays. The Son of God therefore came in the flesh with this view, that He might bring to a head the sum of their sins who had persecuted His prophets [43] to the death. For this purpose, then, He endured. For God saith, "The stroke of his flesh is from them;" ”

“ Chap. xiii.—Christians, and not Jews, the heirs of the covenant.
But let us see if this people [187] is the heir, or the former, and if the covenant belongs to us or to them. Hear ye now what the Scripture saith concerning the people. Isaac prayed for Rebecca his wife, because she was barren; and she conceived. [188] Furthermore also, Rebecca went forth to inquire of the Lord; and the Lord said to her, "Two nations are in thy womb, and two peoples in thy belly; and the one people shall surpass the other, and the elder shall serve the younger." ”

“ And that He might remind them, when assailed, that it was on account of their sins they were delivered to death, the Spirit speaks to the heart of Moses, that he should make a figure of the cross, [165] and of Him about to suffer thereon; for unless they put their trust in Him, they shall be overcome for ever. Moses therefore placed one weapon above another in the midst of the hill, [166] and standing upon it, so as to be higher than all the people, he stretched forth his hands, [167] and thus again Israel acquired the mastery. ”

“ Moreover, the Lord saith to them in Deuteronomy, "And I will establish my ordinances among this people." [133] Is there then not a command of God that they should not eat [these things] ? There is, but Moses spoke with a spiritual reference. [134] For this reason he named the swine, as much as to say, "Thou shalt not join thyself to men who resemble swine." For when they live in pleasure, they forget their Lord; but when they come to want, they acknowledge the Lord. And [in like manner] the swine, when it has eaten, does not recognise its master ”

“ But the way of darkness [270] is crooked, and full of cursing; for it is the way of eternal [271] death with punishment, in which way are the things that destroy the soul, viz. idolatry, over-confidence, the arrogance of power, hypocrisy, double-heartedness, adultery, murder, rapine, haughtiness, transgression, [272] deceit, malice, self-sufficiency, poisoning, magic, avarice, [273] want of the fear of God. ”

“ The intention of the writer, as he himself states (chap, i.) , was "to perfect the knowledge" of those to whom he wrote. Hilgenfeld, who has devoted much attention to this epistle, holds that "it was written at the close of the first century by a Gentile Christian of the school of Alexandria, with the view of winning back, or guarding from a Judaic form of Christianity, those Christians belonging to the same class as himself." ”

“ Since, therefore, the days are evil, and Satan [13] possesses the power of this world, we ought to give heed to ourselves, and diligently inquire into the ordinances of the Lord. Fear and patience, then, are helpers of our faith; and longsuffering and continence are things which fight on our side. ”

“ Sin. seems properly to omit "of the wicked man." ↑ Cod. Sin. places stars before moon. ↑ Cod. Sin. reads "again," but is corrected as above. ↑ The meaning is, "If the Sabbaths of the Jews were the true Sabbath, we should have been deceived by God, who demands pure hands and a pure heart."—Hefele. ↑ Cod. Sin. has, "But if not." Hilgenfeld's text of this confused passage reads as follows: "Who then can sanctify the day which God has sanctified, except the man who is of a pure heart? We are deceived (or mistaken) in all things. ”

“ Since, therefore, He was about to be manifested and to suffer in the flesh. His suffering was foreshown. For the prophet speaks against Israel, "Woe to their soul, because they have counselled an evil counsel against themselves, [60] saying. ”

“ What, then, says He in the prophet? "And let them eat of the goat which is offered, with fasting, for all their sins." [85] Attend carefully: "And let all the priests alone eat the inwards, unwashed with vinegar." Wherefore? Because to me, who am to offer my flesh for the sins of my new people, ye are to give gall with vinegar to drink: eat ye alone, while the people fast and mourn in sackcloth and ashes. [These things were done] that He might show that it was necessary for Him to suffer for them. [86] How, [87] then, ran the commandment? ”

“ He means, "Thou shalt not be an adulterer, nor a corrupter, nor be like to them that are such." Wherefore? Because that animal annually changes its sex, and is at one time male, and at another female. Moreover, he has rightly detested the weasel. For he means, "Thou shalt not be like to those whom we hear of as committing wickedness with the mouth, [139] on account of their uncleanness; nor shalt thou be joined to those impure women who commit iniquity with the mouth. For this animal conceives by the mouth." Moses then issued [140] three doctrines concerning meats with a spiritual significance ”

“ Sin. inserts, "and gaze about for some way of escape on account of their greediness, even as these birds alone do not procure food for themselves (by labour) , but sitting idle, seek to devour the flesh of others." The text as above seems preferable: Hilgenfeld, however, follows the Greek. ”

“ This meaneth, [161] that we indeed descend into the water full of sins and defilement, but come up, bearing fruit in our heart, having the fear [of God] and trust in Jesus in our spirit. "And whosoever shall eat of these shall live for ever." This meaneth: Whosoever, He declares, shall hear thee speaking, and believe, shall live for ever.
Chap. xii.—The cross of Christ frequently announced in the Old Testament.
In like manner He points to the cross of Christ in another prophet, who saith, [162] "And when shall these things be accomplished? ”

“ Sin. here inserts "the goat." ↑ Cod. Sin. reads, "for as he who ... so, says he," etc. ↑ Comp. Acts xiv. 22. ↑ Literally, "men in whom sins are perfect." Of this, and much more that follows, no mention is made in Scripture. ↑ Cod. Sin. has "upon sticks," and adds, "Behold again the type of the cross, both the scarlet wool and the hyssop,"—adopted by Hilgenfeld. ↑ Cod. Sin. has, "the law is Christ Jesus," corrected to the above. ↑ The Greek text is, "then no longer [sinful] men, no longer the glory of sinners," which Dressel defends and Hilgenfeld adopts, but which is surely corrupt. ”

“ The first clause of this sentence is wanting in Cod. Sin. ↑ Cod. Sin. has "Lord." ↑ Isa. i. 2. ↑ In proof of the spiritual meaning of circumcision; but Hilgenfeld joins the words to the preceding sentence. ↑ Isa. i. 10. ↑ Cod. Sin. reads, "it is the voice," corrected, however, as above. ↑ Cod. Sin. has, "that we might hear the word, and not only believe," plainly a corrupt text. ↑ Cod. Sin., at first hand, has "slew them," but is corrected as above. ↑ The meaning is here very obscure, but the above rendering and punctuation seem preferable to any other. ”

“ The Latin text seems preferable, implying that, instead of the outward sacrifices of the law, there is now required a dedication of man himself. Hilgenfeld follows the Greek. ↑ Jer. vii. 22; Zech. viii. 17. ↑ So the Greek. Hilgenfeld, with the Latin, omits "not." ↑ Ps. li. 19. There is nothing in Scripture corresponding to the last clause. ↑ Literally, "sling us out." ↑ Isa. lviii. 4, 5. ↑ The original here is χειροτονίαν from the LXX. Hefele remarks, that it may refer to the stretching forth of the hands, either to swear falsely, or to mock and insult one's neighbour. ”

“ Sin. reads "temple," which is adopted by Hilgenfeld. ↑ Not to be found in Scripture, as is the case also with what follows. Hefele remarks, that "certain false traditions respecting the Jewish rites seem to have prevailed among the Christians of the second century, of which Barnabas here adopts some, as do Justin (Dial. c. Try. 40) and Tertullian (adv. Jud.; adv. Marc.) ." ↑ Cod. Sin. has "by them." ↑ Cod. Sin. reads, "what commanded He?" ↑ Cod. Sin. reads, "one as a burnt-offering, and one for sins." ↑ Cod. Sin. reads, "type of God," but it has been corrected to "Jesus." ”