Church as body and fullness; dead in trespasses made alive (Eph 1:22–2:5)
foreknowledge this too has been said. Another, presenting the ranking by which God ranks each into some order, will say this: he subjected under his feet all things that belong to the order of those who are being subjected. And he gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all. Finding the church called Christ’s body, we ask whether, as the rest of the body beside the head, one must think it an instrument of the head, or as a human body of which the head is a part, so Christ’s body is the whole church of Christ, ensouled by his deity and filled by his Spirit—or whether these things must be taken otherwise. If the second is so, his more human side will itself also be a part of the whole body, while the divine and life-giving of the whole church will be the divine power that as it were ensouls it. And we want to know how the church, being Christ’s body, is the fullness of him who fills all in all, and why it is not said “of him who fills all in all” but “of him who is filled.” For it will seem more consistent to have said that Christ is the one who fills, not the one filled; for he is not only fullness of law but fullness of all fullnesses, nothing becoming full apart from him. See whether one can answer thus: just as through the Son’s great relation and fellowship with the rational beings the Son of God is as it were fullness of all rational beings, so also he himself as it were takes fullness into himself, being most fully revealed in each of the blessedssed. And to make the saying clearer, think of a king filled with the kingdom in each who increase the kingdom, and emptied of it in those who withdraw; and nothing fits Christ’s philanthropic kingship better than this king, each of those who fill it out being benefited by him rationally and perfected, who, fleeing to him, fill out his body, somehow empty when the benefited are lacking. Therefore Christ is filled in all who approach, lacking them before they come.
Ephesians 2:1–5: “And you, being dead in your trespasses and your sins, in which you once walked according to the age of this world, according to the ruler of the authority of the air, of the spirit now working in the sons of disobedience, among whom we all also once conducted ourselves in the desires of our flesh, doing the wills of the flesh and of the thoughts, and we were by nature children of wrath, as the rest also; but God, being rich in mercy because of his great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ.” The sequence is: and you, being dead in your trespasses and your sins, God made alive together with Christ, being rich in mercy because of the great love with which he loved us; and even when we were dead in trespasses, in which we once walked according to the age of this world, according to the ruler of the authority of the air, of the spirit now working in the sons of disobedience, among whom we all also once conducted ourselves in the desires of our flesh, doing the wills of the flesh and of the thoughts, and we were by nature children of wrath, he made us alive together with Christ. The connective “but God, being rich in mercy” we think either has been inserted uselessly in the copies or, as by an unskilled hand, was not seen as redundant beside Paul’s wording. And sins are clearly said to be death of the soul, from “and you being dead in your trespasses and your sins.” And since “trespass” is a name proper to Scripture, one must examine whether it differs from “sin,” especially since here they are woven together: “dead in your trespasses and your sins.” And we ask whether the evils already finished by us are called our “sins,” while their beginnings, not yet falls but journeying toward our falling, are “trespasses.” And perhaps for this reason Psalm 18 says, “Who will understand trespasses?”—because the one who understands the roots and beginnings of sins that are “trespasses” would also be able to guard himself so as not to fall under the “sins” as well. What is according to the
Greek
πρόγνωσιν εἴρηται καὶ τοῦτο. ἕτερος δέ, τὴν κατάταξιν τοῦ Θεοῦ ᾗ κατατάσσει ἕκαστον εἴς τι τάγμα παριστάς, ἐρεῖ τόδε· πάντα ὑπέταξεν ὑπὸ τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ ὅσα τῆς τάξεώς ἐστι τῶν ὑποτασσομένων. καὶ αὐτὸν ἔδωκε κεφαλὴν ὑπὲρ πάντα τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ, ἥτις ἐστι τὸ σῶμα αὐτοῦ, <τὸ πλήρωμα> τοῦ τὰ πάντα ἐν πᾶσι πληρουμένου. σῶμα Χριστοῦ εὑρίσκοντες λεγομένην τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, ζητοῦμεν πότερόν ποτε, ὡς παρὰ τὴν κεφαλὴν τὸ λοιπὸν σῶμα, ὄργανον τῆς κεφαλῆς δεῖ αὐτὴν νοεῖν, ἢ ὥσπερ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου σῶμα, οὗ σώματος μέρος ἐστὶν ἡ κεφαλή, οὕτως Χριστοῦ σῶμά ἐστι ψυχούμενον ὑπὸ τῆς θειότητος αὐτοῦ καὶ πληρούμενον ὑπὸ τοῦ πνεύματος αὐτοῦ ἡ πᾶσα ἐκκλησία Χριστοῦ, ἢ ἄλλως πως δεῖ ταῦτα ἐκλαμβάνειν. ἐὰν μέντοιγε τὸ δεύτερον ᾖ, ἔσται τὸ μὲν ἀνθρωπικώτερον αὐτοῦ καὶ αὐτὸ μέρος τυγχάνον τοῦ ὅλου σώματος, τὸ δὲ θεῖον καὶ ζωοποιοῦν πᾶσαν τὴν ἐκκλησίαν ἡ ὡσπερεὶ ψυχοῦσα αὐτὴν δύναμις θεία. πῶς δὲ ἡ ἐκκλησία οὖσα σῶμα Χριστοῦ πλήρωμά ἐστι τοῦ τὰ πάντα ἐν πᾶσι πληρουμένου θέλομεν γνῶναι, καὶ διατί οὐ λέγεται τοῦ τὰ πάντα ἐν πᾶσι πληροῦντος ἀλλὰ τοῦ πληρουμένου. δόξει γὰρ ἀκολουθότερον ἂν εἰρῆσθαι τὸ τὸν Χριστὸν εἶναι τὸν πληροῦντα, οὐχὶ δὲ τὸν πληρούμενον· αὐτὸς γὰρ οὐ μόνον νόμου ἐστὶ πλήρωμα, ἀλλὰ καὶ πάντων τῶν πληρωμάτων ἐστὶ πλήρωμα, οὐκ ἂν χωρὶς αὐτοῦ τινὸς πλήρους γινομένου. ὅρα δὲ εἰ δύναται πρὸς ταῦτα οὕτως ἀπαντῆσαι ὁ λέγων ὅτι, καθάπερ διὰ τὴν πολλὴν σχέσιν καὶ κοινωνίαν τοῦ υἱοῦ πρὸς τὰ λογικὰ ὥσπερ πλήρωμά ἐστι πάντων τῶν λογικῶν ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ, οὕτως καὶ αὐτὸς ὡσπερεὶ πλήρωμα εἰς ἑαυτὸν ἀναλαμβάνει, πληρέστατος ἀποδεικνύμενος καθ' ἕκαστον τῶν μακαρίων. καὶ ἵνα γε σαφέστερον γένηται τὸ λεγόμενον, ἐννόει βασιλέα μὲν πληρούμενον τῆς βασιλείας καθ' ἕκαστον τῶν αὐξόντων τὴν βασιλείαν, κενούμενον δὲ ταύτης ἐν τοῖς ἀφισταμένοις· τούτου τοῦ βασιλέως οὐδὲν δὲ ὅλως ἁρμοδιώτερον τῇ Χριστοῦ φιλανθρώπῳ ἐστὶ βασιλείᾳ, ἑκάστου τῶν συμπληρούντων αὐτὴν εὐεργετουμένων ὑπ' αὐτοῦ λογικῶ<ς> καὶ τελειουμένων, οἵτινες προσφεύγοντες αὐτῷ συμπληροῦσιν αὐτοῦ τὸ σῶμα, κενόν πως ὂν ὅτε λείπει τῶν εὐεργετουμένων. διὸ πληροῦται ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς προσιοῦσιν ὁ Χριστός, λείπων τούτοις πρὶν προσέλθωσιν. [ii 1–5] Καὶ ὑμᾶς ὄντας νεκροὺς τοῖς παραπτώμασι καὶ ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις ὑμῶν, ἐν αἷς ποτε περιεπατήσατε κατὰ τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ κόσμου τούτου, κατὰ τὸν ἄρχοντα τῆς ἐξουσίας τοῦ ἀέρος τοῦ πνεύματος τοῦ νῦν ἐνεργοῦντος ἐν τοῖς υἱοῖς τῆς ἀπειθείας, ἐν οἷς καὶ <ἡ>μεῖς πάντες ἀνεστράφημέν ποτε ἐν ταῖς ἐπι θυμίαις τῆς σαρκὸς ἡμῶν, ποιοῦντες τὰ θελήματα τῆς σαρκὸς καὶ τῶν δια νοιῶν, καὶ ἦμεν τέκνα φύσει ὀργῆς, ὡς καὶ οἱ λοιποί· ὁ δὲ Θεὸς πλούσιος ὢν ἐν ἐλέει διὰ πολλὴν ἀγάπην αὐτοῦ ἣν ἠγάπησεν ἡμᾶς, καὶ ὄντας ἡμᾶς νεκροὺς τοῖς παραπτώμασι συνεζωοποίησε τῷ Χριστῷ. τὸ ἑξῆς ἐστι· καὶ ὑμᾶς ὄντας νεκροὺς τοῖς παραπτώμασι καὶ ταῖς ἁμαρ τίαις ὑμῶν συνεζωοποίησε τῷ Χριστῷ ὁ Θεός, πλούσιος ὢν ἐν ἐλέει διὰ τὴν πολλὴν ἀγάπην αὐτοῦ ἣν ἠγάπησεν ἡμᾶς· καὶ ὄντας ἡμᾶς νεκροὺς τοῖς παρα πτώμασιν, ἐν οἷς ποτε περιεπατήσαμεν κατὰ τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ κόσμου τούτου, κατὰ τὸν ἄρχοντα τῆς ἐξουσίας τοῦ ἀέρος τοῦ πνεύματος τοῦ νῦν ἐνεργοῦντος ἐν τοῖς υἱοῖς τῆς ἀπειθείας, ἐν οἷς καὶ ἡμεῖς πάντες ἀνεστράφημέν ποτε ἐν ταῖς ἐπιθυμίαις τῆς σαρκὸς ἡμῶν, ποιοῦντες τὰ θελήματα τῆς σαρκὸς καὶ τῶν διανοιῶν, καὶ ἦμεν φύσει τέκνα ὀργῆς, συνεζωοποίησε τῷ Χριστῷ. τὸν δὲ σύνδεσμον τοῦ τόπου ὁ δὲ Θεὸς πλούσιος ὢν ἐν ἐλέει ἡγούμεθα ἤτοι παρεμ βεβλῆσθαι μάτην ἐν τοῖς ἀντιγράφοις ἢ ὡς ὑπ' ἰδιώτου τῷ λόγῳ Παύλου μὴ τεθεωρῆσθαι παρέλκοντα. σαφῶς δὲ θάνατος τῆς ψυχῆς εἶναι λέγεται τὰ ἁμαρτήματα, ἐκ τοῦ καὶ ὑμᾶς ὄντας νεκροὺς τοῖς παραπτώμασι καὶ ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις ὑμῶν. καὶ ἐπεὶ ἴδιόν ἐστι τῆς γραφῆς ὄνομα τὸ «παράπτωμα,» ἐξεταστέον εἰ διαφέρει τῆς «ἁμαρτίας,» καὶ μάλιστα ἐπειδὴ ἐνθάδε συμπεπλεγμένως εἴρηται τὸ καὶ ὑμᾶς ὄντας νεκροὺς τοῖς παραπτώμασι καὶ ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις ὑμῶν. καὶ ζητοῦμεν εἰ τὰ κακῶς ἡμῖν ἤδη τετελεσμένα «ἁμαρτίαι» ἡμῶν λέγονται, αἱ δὲ ἀρχαὶ τούτων, οἱονεὶ μηδέπω πτώματα οὖσαι ἀλλ' ὁδεύουσαι ἐπὶ τὸ καὶ πεσεῖν ἡμᾶς, «παραπτώματα.» καὶ τάχα διὰ τοῦτο ἐν τῷ ὀκτωκαι δεκάτῳ λέγεται ψαλμῷ παραπτώματα τί υνή ει; τῷ τὸν συνιέντα τὰς ῥίζας καὶ τὰς ἀρχὰς ἁμαρτημάτων οὔσας «παραπτώματα» δύνασθαι ἂν καὶ φυλάττεσθαι πρὸς τὸ μὴ ὑποπεσεῖν καὶ ταῖς «ἁμαρτίαις.» τί ἐστι κατὰ τὸν
About this text
Origen of Alexandria, Fragmenta ex commentariis in epistulam ad Ephesios (Greek).
Catalogue & scope
Khazarzar scan
Witnesses
- Copy-text PG 14 (Khazarzar) (Greek)
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