Coals of true words; enemy becomes friend
—the bread from what is holy, and when thirsty is given living water from the holy spring. So it is a fine work to heap coals—that is, chosen words—on the enemy's head. The Lord Jesus consumes that head with the spirit of his mouth; this is the saving fire of which he said, I came to cast fire on the earth—meaning the consuming and vanishing of all that is bodily and material.
Many coals are needed so the enemy's head may be thoroughly burned away; they are the true words that make falsehood vanish. When that head is consumed or mastered by the heaped coals, feeding the hungry enemy turns the former enemy into a friend who now has Christ as head.
Greek
τὸν ἀπὸ τοῦ ἁγίου ἄρτον, καὶ διψήσας ποτισθῇ τῷ ἀπὸ τῆς ἁγίας πηγῆς ὕδατι ζῶντι· διὸ καλόν ἐστιν ἔργον σωρεῦσαι ἄνθρακας ὅ ἐστι λόγους ἐκλεκτοὺς ἐπὶ τὴν τοῦ ἐχθροῦ κεφαλήν· ὃν ὁ κύριο Ἰη οῦ ἀναλοῖ τῷ πνεύματι τοῦ τόματο αὐτοῦ, τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι τὸ σωτήριον πῦρ, περὶ οὗ εἶπεν πῦρ ἦλθον βαλεῖν ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν, ἀντὶ τοῦ ἀναλῶσαι καὶ ἐξαφανίσαι πάντα τὰ σωματικὰ καὶ ὑλικά. πολλῶν δὲ ἀνθράκων χρεία ἵνα ἡ τοῦ ἐχθροῦ κεφαλὴ ἐξαναλωθῇ· οἵτινές εἰσιν οἱ ἀληθεῖς λόγοι οἱ ἐξαφανίζοντες τὸ ψεῦδος· ὅταν οὖν ἀναλωθῇ ἢ χειρωθῇ ἡ κεφαλὴ ὑπὸ τῶν σωρευομένων ἀνθράκων, ἐκ τοῦ τρέφεσθαι πεινῶντα τὸν ἐχθρὸν γίνεται ὁ ποτὲ ἐχθρὸς φίλος καὶ κέχρηται κεφαλῇ τῷ Χριστῷ.
About this text
Origen of Alexandria, Commentarii in epistulam ad Romanos (catena Greek) (Greek).
Original English Translation of Origen’s Commentarii in epistulam ad Romanos (catena Greek) — 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.