The Letters of Ignatius · §6.9 · Ignatius of Antioch

Honor the bishop; God will repay

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Ignatius is closing his letter to the Smyrnaeans, urging them to use the remaining time for repentance and to honor the bishop, and promising that God will reward their love shown to him.

It is good for us now to come to our senses, while we still have time to repent and turn to God. It is good to know God and the bishop. Whoever honors the bishop has been honored by God. Whoever does anything in secret from the bishop serves the devil.

So let everything abound among you in grace, for you are worthy of it. You have refreshed me in every way, and Jesus Christ will refresh you. You loved me both when I was absent and when I was present. God is your reward: through him, enduring all things, you will obtain him.

Greek

Εὔλογόν ἐστιν λοιπὸν ἀνανῆψαι ἡμᾶς, ὡς ἔτι καιρὸν ἔχομεν εἰς θεὸν μετανοεῖν. καλῶς ἔχει, θεὸν καὶ ἐπίσκοπον εἰδέναι. ὁ τιμῶν ἐπίσκοπον ὑπὸ θεοῦ τετίμηται: ὁ λάθρα ἐπισκόπου τι πράσσων τῷ διαβόλῳ λατρεύει.

πάντα οὖν ὑμῖν ἐν χάριτι περισσευέτω: ἄξιοι γάρ ἐστε. κατὰ πάντα με ἀνεπαύσατε, καὶ ὑμᾶς Ἰησοῦς Χριστός. ἀπόντα με καὶ πάροντα ἠγαπήσατε. ἀμοιβὴ ὑμῖν ὁ θεός, δἰ ὃν πάντα ὑπομένοντες αὐτοῦ τεύξεσθε.

About this text

The seven letters Ignatius of Antioch wrote on his way to martyrdom in Rome, urging each church to stand united with its bishop.

Ignatius of Antioch (d. c. 110) was the bishop of Antioch in Syria. He wrote these letters while being taken under guard from Syria to Rome, where he expected to be executed for his Christian faith during the reign of Emperor Trajan.

The letters were written in great haste, modelled after the biblical epistles of Paul, Peter, and John. Ignatius wrote to the churches in Ephesus, Magnesia, Tralles, and Rome from Smyrna, and to Philadelphia, Smyrna, and Polycarp the bishop of Smyrna from Troas. In them he urges each church to unite around its bishop, the council of elders, and the deacons as the visible order willed by God. He warns against teachers who deny the real flesh, suffering, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and against any return to Judaism.

A reader will meet bishops such as Onesimus of Ephesus, Damas of Magnesia, Polybius of Tralles, and Polycarp of Smyrna, along with deacons and companions who visited Ignatius. , and he reports words of the Spirit. He presents his own coming death by wild beasts as the completion of his discipleship.

New English from the Greek base text; no published English used as wording.

Printed text used

Translated from Ignatius of Antioch The Apostolic Fathers Kirsopp Lake Cambridge, MA Harvard University Press London William Heinemann 1912 1 Loeb Classical Library (Greek)

This work has passed this project's source check. 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.