The Martyrdom of Polycarp · §20 · Origen of Alexandria

Farewell greeting, date, and copying of the letter

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The church of Smyrna finishes its account of Polycarp and sends it to Philomelium, then copyists add when he died and how the text was preserved.

You asked to be told what happened in fuller detail. For the present we have made it known to you as in summary through our brother Marcian. Now that you have learned these things, send our letter on to the brothers beyond you, so that they too may glorify the Lord, the one who makes choices of his own servants.

To him who is able to lead us all by his grace and gift into his heavenly Kingdom through his only-begotten Child Jesus Christ belong glory and honor and power and greatness forever. Greet all the saints for us. Those with us greet you, and Evarestus who wrote this with whole house greets you.

The blessed Polycarp suffered martyrdom on the second day of the month of Xanthicus now in course, seven days before the Kalends of May, on the Great Sabbath at the eighth hour. Herod arrested him while Philip of Tralles was high priest and Statius Quadratus was proconsul, while Jesus Christ reigns forever. To him belong glory and honor and greatness and an eternal throne from generation to generation. Amen.

We pray that you farewell, brothers, as you keep walking in line with the word according to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Through him be glory to God for the salvation of the holy elect, as the blessed Polycarp suffered martyrdom. May we be found at his footsteps in the Kingdom of Jesus Christ.

Gaius copied this account out from the writings of Irenaeus, the disciple of Polycarp, who also shared his life with Irenaeus. I, Socrates, wrote it in Corinth from the copies of Gaius. Grace be with all. I, Pionius, in turn wrote it again from what was written before, after I had searched it out, because the blessed Polycarp appeared to me in a revelation, as I shall explain in what follows. I gathered the pages when they were already almost worn out by time, so that the Lord Jesus Christ may gather me also with his elect into his heavenly Kingdom. To him be glory with the Father and the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen.

Greek

XX. Ὑμεῖς μὲν οὖν ἠξιώσατε διὰ πλειόνων δηλωθῆναι ὑμῖν τὰ γενόμενα· ἡμεῖς δὲ κατὰ τὸ παρὸν ὡς ἐν κεφαλαίῳ μεμηνύκαμεν διὰ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ ἡμῶν Μαρκίωνος. Μαθόντες οὖν ταῦτα καὶ τοῖς ἐπέκεινα ἀδελφοῖς τὴν ἐπιστολὴν διαπέμψασθε, ἵνα καὶ ἐκεῖνοι δοξάσωσι τὸν κύριον, τὸν ἐκλογὰς ποιούμενον τῶν ἰδίων δούλων. Τῷ δὲ δυναμένῳ πάντας ἡμᾶς εἰσαγαγεῖν ἐν τῇ αὐτοῦ χάριτι καὶ δωρεᾷ εἰς τὴν ἐπουράνιον αὐτοῦ βασιλείαν, διὰ παιδὸς αὐτοῦ τοῦ μονογενοῦς Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, δόξα, τιμή, κράτος, μεγαλωσύνη εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας. Προσαγορεύετε πάντας τοὺς ἁγίους. Ὑμᾶς οἱ σὺν ἡμῖν προσαγορεύουσιν καὶ Εὐάρεστος ὁ γράψας πανοικεί. XXI. Μαρτυρεῖ δὲ ὁ μακάριος Πολύκαρπος μηνὸς Ξανθικοῦ δευτέρᾳ ἱσταμένου, πρὸ ἑπτὰ καλανδῶν Μαΐων, σαββάτῳ μεγάλῳ, ὥρᾳ ὀγδόῃ· συνελήφθη ὑπὸ Ἡρώδου ἐπὶ ἀρχιερέως Φιλίππου Τραλλιανοῦ, ἀνθυπατεύοντος Στατίου Κοδράτου, βασιλεύοντος δὲ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ· ᾧ ἡ δόξα, τιμή, μεγαλωσύνη, θρόνος αἰώνιος ἀπὸ γενεᾶς εἰς γενεάν, ἀμήν. XXII. Ἐρρῶσθαι ὑμᾶς εὐχόμεθα, ἀδελφοί, στοιχοῦντας τῷ κατὰ τὸ εὐαγγέλιον λόγῳ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ· δι᾽ οὗ δόξα τῷ θεῷ ἐπὶ σωτηρίᾳ τῇ τῶν ἁγίων ἐκλεκτῶν, καθὼς ἐμαρτύρησεν ὁ μακάριος Πολύκαρπος, οὗ γένοιτο ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ πρὸς τὰ ἴχνη εὑρεθῆναι ἡμᾶς. Ταῦτα μετεγράψατο μὲν Γάϊος ἐκ τῶν Εἰρηναίου, μαθητοῦ τοῦ Πολυκάρπου, ὃς καὶ συνεπολιτεύσατο τῷ Εἰρηναίῳ. Ἐγὼ δὲ Σωκράτης ἐν Κορίνθῳ ἐκ τῶν Γαΐου ἀντιγράφων ἔγραψα. Ἡ χάρις μετὰ πάντων. Ἐγὼ δὲ πάλιν Πιόνιος ἐκ τοῦ προγεγραμμένου ἔγραψα ἀναζητήσας αὐτά, κατὰ ἀποκάλυψιν φανερώσαντός μοι τοῦ μακαρίου Πολυκάρπου, καθὼς δηλώσω ἐν τῷ καθεξῆς, συναγαγὼν αὐτὰ ἤδη σχεδὸν ἐκ τοῦ χρόνου κεκμηκότα, ἵνα κἀμὲ συναγάγῃ ὁ κύριος Ἰησοῦς Χριστὸς μετὰ τῶν ἐκλεκτῶν αὐτοῦ εἰς τὴν ἐπουράνιον βασιλείαν αὐτοῦ· ᾧ ἡ δόξα σὺν πατρὶ καὶ ἁγίῳ πνεύματι εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων, ἀμήν.

About this text

They wanted the report shared with other Christians so that God would be glorified and Polycarp would be remembered and imitated.

This letter was written by the Church of Smyrna (c. 156) to the church of God at Philomelium and to all congregations of the holy and universal church everywhere. The Smyrnaeans were answering a request from Philomelium for a fuller account of their recent martyrs, especially bishop Polycarp, whose death closed the persecution. They wanted the report shared with other Christians so that God would be glorified and Polycarp would be remembered and imitated.

The letter argues that true martyrdom happens according to God's will and the gospel, when the martyr waits to be handed over like Christ, endures torture patiently with Christ present, and seeks the salvation of others. It therefore praises the tortured Christians and Germanicus, who provoked the beast, but blames Quintus the Phrygian and other volunteers whose self offering ended in denial, and presents Polycarp as the model who withdrew, prayed, accepted betrayal and arrest, fed his captors, refused to swear by Caesar, revile Christ or deny he was a Christian, and accepted burning in fulfilment of his vision. A reader will meet Polycarp, Germanicus, Quintus, Herod and his father Nicetes with Alce, the provincial official Philip, the proconsul, and later transmitters such as Irenaeus, Gaius, Socrates or Isocrates, Pionius, Marcian and the scribe Evarestus, and will hear quoted speech from Polycarp, the proconsul, Herod and Nicetes, the crowd, the herald, a heavenly voice and Nicetes petitioning about the body, with argument against Quintus and against the heretical teacher Marcion.

As rendered here, martyr means one who confesses himself a Christian under trial and dies rather than deny him, martyrdom means faithful suffering unto death, confess means to declare oneself a Christian before authority and denial means denying Christ by swearing, sacrificing or reviling him, while universal means worldwide, proconsul means the Roman governor, police chief means the local arresting officer, provincial official means the leader in charge of festivals and beast shows, crown means the reward for enduring, anniversary means the yearly celebration of a martyr death, and worship is owed to Christ alone. Godless people renders the crowd insult against Christians for rejecting pagan gods. There are no formal book citations, only unattributed gospel like phrases given as modern allusions. Evarestus is the scribe who wrote with his household, Marcion is the heretical teacher Polycarp rebuked, and Herod and Philip of Tralles appear as names in the closing date formula.

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.