Martyrdom of Polycarp (complete)
Greek text: Lake, LCL 25 (Greek text: K. Lake, The Apostolic Fathers (LCL, 1912-1913), digitized by the First Thousand Years of Greek project (Open Greek and Latin), CC BY-SA 4.0).English: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), public domain (CC0). Compare: Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1 (1885).
Inscription
0Lake, LCL 25:312; PG 5:1029a
Ἡ ἐκκλησία τοῦ θεοῦ ἡ παροικοῦσα Σμύρναν τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ τοῦ θεοῦ τῇ παροικούσῃ ἐν Φιλομηλίῳ καὶ πάσαις ταῖς κατὰ πάντα τόπον τῆς ἁγίας καὶ καθολικῆς ἐκκλησίας παροικίαις· ἔλεος, εἰρήνη καὶ ἀγάπη θεοῦ πατρὸς καὶ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ πληθυνθείη.
Hē ekklēsia tou theou hē paroikousa Smyrnan tę̄ ekklēsią tou theou tę̄ paroikousę̄ en Philomēliǭ kai pasais tais kata panta topon tēs hagias kai katholikēs ekklēsias paroikiais; eleos, eirēnē kai agapē theou patros kai kyriou hēmōn Iēsou Christou plēthyntheiē.
The church of God that sojourns at Smyrna, to the church of God that sojourns in Philomelium and to all the congregations of the holy and catholic church sojourning in every place: may mercy, peace, and love from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ be multiplied.
Jude 1:2 (allusion, high confidence) · 1 Pet 1:2 (echo, low confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: The church at Smyrna greets the church at Philomelium and all churches everywhere.
- “Sojourns” (παροικοῦσα): the church lives in the city as a resident alien lives in a foreign land; “congregations” (παροικίαις) is the noun from the same root, literally “sojournings” (the source of English “parish”).
- “Catholic” (καθολικῆς): “universal, whole.” With Ign. Smyrn. 8.2 this is among the earliest uses of the word for the church.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (digitization slip against Lake's printed text (missing accent); digitization slip against Lake's printed text (missing breathing)): ἐλεος → ἔλεος; Ἰησου Χριστοῦ → Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ.
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. inscr. (PG 5:1029a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/0).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/0
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 1
1.1Lake, LCL 25:312; PG 5:1029a
Ἐγράψαμεν ὑμῖν, ἀδελφοί, τὰ κατὰ τοὺς μαρτυρήσαντας καὶ τὸν μακάριον Πολύκαρπον, ὅστις ὥσπερ ἐπισφραγίσας διὰ τῆς μαρτυρίας αὐτοῦ κατέπαυσεν τὸν διωγμόν. σχεδὸν γὰρ πάντα τὰ προάγοντα ἐγένετο, ἵνα ἡμῖν ὁ κύριος ἄνωθεν ἐπιδείξῃ τὸ κατὰ τὸ εὐαγγέλιον μαρτύριον.
Egrapsamen hymin, adelphoi, ta kata tous martyrēsantas kai ton makarion Polykarpon, hostis hōsper episphragisas dia tēs martyrias autou katepausen ton diōgmon. schedon gar panta ta proagonta egeneto, hina hēmin ho kyrios anōthen epideixę̄ to kata to euangelion martyrion.
We are writing to you, brothers, about those who were martyred and about the blessed Polycarp, who put an end to the persecution, setting a seal on it, as it were, by his martyrdom. For nearly everything that led up to it happened so that the Lord might show us from above a martyrdom in accordance with the gospel.
Notes and citation
Summary: The church writes about the martyrs and especially Polycarp, whose death ended the persecution and showed what a gospel martyrdom looks like.
- “We are writing” (ἐγράψαμεν): Greek letters often use the past tense from the reader's point of view (“we have written”).
- “From above” (ἄνωθεν) can also mean “once again”: the Lord showed “once again” a martyrdom like the one in the Gospels.
Topics: Martyrdom, Persecution
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 1.1 (PG 5:1029a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/1-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/1-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
1.2Lake, LCL 25:312–314; PG 5:1029b
περιέμενεν γάρ, ἵνα παραδοθῇ, ὡς καὶ ὁ κύριος, ἵνα μιμηταὶ καὶ ἡμεῖς αὐτοῦ γενώμεθα, μὴ μόνον σκοποῦντες τὸ καθʼ ἑαυτούς, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ κατὰ τοὺς πέλας. ἀγάπης γὰρ ἀληθοῦς καὶ βεβαίας ἐστίν, μὴ μόνον ἑαυτὸν θέλειν σώζεσθαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ πάντας τοὺς ἀδελφούς.
periemenen gar, hina paradothę̄, hōs kai ho kyrios, hina mimētai kai hēmeis autou genōmetha, mē monon skopountes to kathʼ heautous, alla kai to kata tous pelas. agapēs gar alēthous kai bebaias estin, mē monon heauton thelein sōzesthai, alla kai pantas tous adelphous.
For he waited to be handed over, just as the Lord did, so that we too might become imitators of him, “looking not only to what concerns ourselves, but also to what concerns our neighbors.” For it belongs to true and steadfast love to want not only oneself to be saved, but all the brothers as well.
Phil 2:4 (allusion, high confidence) · 1 Cor 11:1 (echo, low confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: Like Jesus, Polycarp waited to be handed over, setting an example of love that seeks others' salvation, not only one's own.
- “Handed over” (παραδοθῇ): the verb the Gospels use of Jesus being betrayed and delivered up; the letter draws many such parallels with the Passion.
Topics: Martyrdom
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 1.2 (PG 5:1029b; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/1-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/1-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 2
2.1Lake, LCL 25:314
Μακάρια μὲν οὖν καὶ γενναῖα τὰ μαρτύρια πάντα τὰ κατὰ τὸ θέλημα τοῦ θεοῦ γεγονότα. δεῖ γὰρ εὐλαβεστέρους ἡμᾶς ὑπάρχοντας τῷ θεῷ τὴν κατὰ πάντων ἐξουσίαν ἀνατιθέναι.
Makaria men oun kai gennaia ta martyria panta ta kata to thelēma tou theou gegonota. dei gar eulabesterous hēmas hyparchontas tǭ theǭ tēn kata pantōn exousian anatithenai.
Blessed and noble, then, are all the martyrdoms that have taken place in accordance with the will of God. For we must be very reverent and ascribe to God the authority over all things.
Notes and citation
Summary: True martyrdoms happen according to God's will, since God rules over all.
- “Very reverent” (εὐλαβεστέρους) is a comparative in Greek; some translate “we who are more reverent” (than others).
Topics: Martyrdom
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 2.1 (Lake, LCL 25:314; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/2-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/2-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
2.2Lake, LCL 25:314; PG 5:1029b–1032a
τὸ γὰρ γενναῖον αὐτῶν καὶ ὑπομονητικὸν καὶ φιλοδέσποτον τίς οὐκ ἂν θαυμάσειεν; οἳ μάστιξιν μὲν καταξανθέντες, ὥστε μέχρι τῶν ἔσω φλεβῶν καὶ ἀρτηριῶν τὴν τῆς σαρκὸς οἰκονομίαν θεωρεῖσθαι, ὑπέμειναν, ὡς καὶ τοὺς περιεστῶτας ἐλεεῖν καὶ ὀδύρεσθαι· τοὺς δὲ καὶ εἰς τοσοῦτον γενναιότητος ἐλθεῖν, ὥστε μήτε γρύξαι μήτε στενάξαι τινὰ αὐτῶν, ἐπιδεικνυμένους ἅπασιν ἡμῖν, ὅτι ἐκείνῃ τῇ ὥρᾳ βασανιζόμενοι τῆς σαρκὸς ἀπεδήμουν οἱ γενναιότατοι μάρτυρες τοῦ Χριστοῦ, μᾶλλον δέ, ὅτι παρεστὼς ὁ κύριος ὡμίλει αὐτοῖς.
to gar gennaion autōn kai hypomonētikon kai philodespoton tis ouk an thaumaseien? hoi mastixin men kataxanthentes, hōste mechri tōn esō phlebōn kai artēriōn tēn tēs sarkos oikonomian theōreisthai, hypemeinan, hōs kai tous periestōtas eleein kai odyresthai; tous de kai eis tosouton gennaiotētos elthein, hōste mēte gryxai mēte stenaxai tina autōn, epideiknymenous hapasin hēmin, hoti ekeinę̄ tę̄ hōrą basanizomenoi tēs sarkos apedēmoun hoi gennaiotatoi martyres tou Christou, mallon de, hoti parestōs ho kyrios hōmilei autois.
For who would not marvel at their nobility, their endurance, and their love for their Master? Some were so torn by whips that the structure of their flesh could be seen down to the veins and arteries within, and yet they endured, so that even the bystanders pitied them and wept. Others reached such a height of nobility that not one of them uttered a murmur or a groan, showing all of us that in that hour, while they were tortured, the most noble martyrs of Christ were absent from the flesh, or rather, that the Lord stood by them and spoke with them.
2 Cor 5:8 (echo, low confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: The martyrs endured horrible torture without complaint, because the Lord was present with them.
- “Love for their Master” (φιλοδέσποτον): δεσπότης is the master of a household; here Christ.
- “Were absent from the flesh” (τῆς σαρκὸς ἀπεδήμουν): literally “were away from home, out of the flesh.”
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (digitization slip against Lake's printed text (stray punctuation)): μάστιξιν· μὲν → μάστιξιν μὲν.
Topics: Martyrdom, Persecution
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 2.2 (PG 5:1029b–1032a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/2-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/2-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
2.3Lake, LCL 25:314–316; PG 5:1032a–1032b
καὶ προσέχοντες τῇ τοῦ Χριστοῦ χάριτι τῶν κοσμικῶν κατεφρόνουν βασάνων, διὰ μιᾶς ὥρας τὴν αἰώνιον ζωὴν ἐξαγοραζόμενοι. καὶ τὸ πῦρ ἦν αὐτοῖς ψυχρὸν τὸ τῶν ἀπηνῶν βασανιστῶν. πρὸ ὀφθαλμῶν γὰρ εἶχον φυγεῖν τὸ αἰώνιον καὶ μηδέποτε σβεννύμενον, καὶ τοῖς τῆς καρδίας ὀφθαλμοῖς ἀνέβλεπον τὰ τηρούμενα τοῖς ὑπομείνασιν ἀγαθά, ἃ οὔτε οὖς ἤκουσεν οὔτε ὀφθαλμὸς εἶδεν οὔτε ἐπὶ καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου ἀνέβη, ἐκείνοις δὲ ὑπεδείκνυτο ὑπὸ τοῦ κυρίου, οἵπερ μηκέτι ἄνθρωποι, ἀλλʼ ἤδη ἄγγελοι ἦσαν.
kai prosechontes tę̄ tou Christou chariti tōn kosmikōn katephronoun basanōn, dia mias hōras tēn aiōnion zōēn exagorazomenoi. kai to pyr ēn autois psychron to tōn apēnōn basanistōn. pro ophthalmōn gar eichon phygein to aiōnion kai mēdepote sbennymenon, kai tois tēs kardias ophthalmois aneblepon ta tēroumena tois hypomeinasin agatha, ha oute ous ēkousen oute ophthalmos eiden oute epi kardian anthrōpou anebē, ekeinois de hypedeiknyto hypo tou kyriou, hoiper mēketi anthrōpoi, allʼ ēdē angeloi ēsan.
And giving heed to the grace of Christ, they despised the tortures of the world, purchasing eternal life at the cost of a single hour. The fire of their savage torturers was cold to them, for they kept before their eyes escape from the fire that is eternal and never quenched; and with the eyes of the heart they looked up to the good things kept for those who endure, “which neither ear has heard nor eye has seen, nor has it entered into the human heart,” but which were shown by the Lord to them, since they were no longer human beings but already angels.
Textual problem in this passage: see the notes.
1 Cor 2:9 (quotation, high confidence) · Isa 64:4 (allusion, medium confidence) · Mark 9:43 (echo, low confidence) · Eph 1:18 (echo, medium confidence) · Matt 22:30 (echo, low confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: Looking to eternal life and the good things God has prepared, the martyrs counted their tortures as nothing.
- The quotation puts “ear” before “eye,” unlike 1 Cor 2:9; the same order occurs in 1 Clem. 34.8.
- “No longer human beings but already angels”: compare Jesus's saying that the resurrected are “like angels” (Matt 22:30).
- “Eternal life”: the text followed here (Lake). Other manuscripts read “eternal punishment” (“buying themselves off from eternal punishment”), which older translations such as the Ante-Nicene Fathers (1885) follow.
Topics: Martyrdom, Eschatology
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 2.3 (PG 5:1032a–1032b; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/2-3).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/2-3
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
2.4Lake, LCL 25:316
ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ οἱ εἰς τὰ θηρία κατακριθέντες ὑπέμειναν δεινὰς κολάσεις, κήρυκας ὑποστρωννύμενοι καὶ ἄλλαις ποικίλων βασάνων ἰδέαις κολαζόμενοι, ἵνα, εἰ δυνηθείη, ὁ τύραννος διὰ τῆς ἐπιμόνου κολάσεως εἰς ἄρνησιν αὐτοὺς τρέψῃ. πολλὰ γὰρ ἐμηχανᾶτο κατʼ αὐτῶν ὁ διάβολος.
homoiōs de kai hoi eis ta thēria katakrithentes hypemeinan deinas kolaseis, kērykas hypostrōnnymenoi kai allais poikilōn basanōn ideais kolazomenoi, hina, ei dynētheiē, ho tyrannos dia tēs epimonou kolaseōs eis arnēsin autous trepsę̄. polla gar emēchanato katʼ autōn ho diabolos.
Likewise those condemned to the wild beasts endured terrible punishments: they were stretched out on sharp shells and tormented with various other kinds of torture, so that, if he could, the tyrant might turn them to denial through the unrelenting punishment. For the devil devised many things against them.
Notes and citation
Summary: Those sentenced to the beasts were tortured further to make them deny the faith, for the devil was at work against them.
- “Sharp shells” (κήρυκας): trumpet shells (whelks), whose points made them an instrument of torture.
- “The tyrant” is probably the devil, named in the next sentence, though the Roman governor may also be in view.
- Older translations (e.g. the Ante-Nicene Fathers, 1885) have “beds full of spikes,” following a different reading.
Topics: Martyrdom, Persecution
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 2.4 (Lake, LCL 25:316; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/2-4).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/2-4
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 3
3.1Lake, LCL 25:316; PG 5:1032c
Ἀλλὰ χάρις τῷ θεῷ· κατὰ πάντων γὰρ οὐκ ἴσχυσεν. ὁ γὰρ γενναιότατος Γερμανικὸς ἐπερρώννυεν αὐτῶν τὴν δειλίαν διὰ τῆς ἐν αὐτῷ ὑπομονῆς· ὃς καὶ ἐπισήμως ἐθηριομάχησεν. βουλομένου γὰρ τοῦ ἀνθυπάτου πείθειν αὐτὸν καὶ λέγοντος, τὴν ἡλικίαν αὐτοῦ κατοικτεῖραι, ἑαυτῷ ἐπεσπάσατο τὸ θηρίον προσβιασάμενος, τάχιον τοῦ ἀδίκου καὶ ἀνόμου βίου αὐτῶν ἀπαλλαγῆναι βουλόμενος.
Alla charis tǭ theǭ; kata pantōn gar ouk ischysen. ho gar gennaiotatos Germanikos eperrōnnyen autōn tēn deilian dia tēs en autǭ hypomonēs; hos kai episēmōs ethēriomachēsen. boulomenou gar tou anthypatou peithein auton kai legontos, tēn hēlikian autou katoikteirai, heautǭ epespasato to thērion prosbiasamenos, tachion tou adikou kai anomou biou autōn apallagēnai boulomenos.
But thanks be to God, for he did not prevail against them all. For the most noble Germanicus strengthened their fearfulness by his own endurance, and he fought the wild beasts with distinction. When the proconsul wanted to persuade him, telling him to have pity on his youth, he forcibly dragged the beast onto himself, wanting to be released the more quickly from their unjust and lawless life.
Notes and citation
Summary: Germanicus encouraged the others by his courage and chose death rather than accept the proconsul's pity.
- “Strengthened their fearfulness” (ἐπερρώννυεν αὐτῶν τὴν δειλίαν): literally “their cowardice”; he gave strength to those who were afraid.
- “His youth” (τὴν ἡλικίαν): the word means “time of life”; here probably youth. The same word is used of Polycarp's old age in 9.2.
- “Their unjust and lawless life”: the life of the pagans around them.
Topics: Martyrdom, Persecution
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 3.1 (PG 5:1032c; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/3-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/3-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
3.2Lake, LCL 25:316; PG 5:1032c
ἐκ τούτου οὖν πᾶν τὸ πλῆθος, θαυμάσαν τὴν γενναιότητα τοῦ θεοφιλοῦς καὶ θεοσεβοῦς γένους τῶν Χριστιανῶν, ἐπεβόησεν· Αἶρε τοὺς ἀθέους· ζητείσθω Πολύκαρπος.
ek toutou oun pan to plēthos, thaumasan tēn gennaiotēta tou theophilous kai theosebous genous tōn Christianōn, epeboēsen; Aire tous atheous; zēteisthō Polykarpos.
At this the whole crowd, amazed at the nobility of the God-loving and God-fearing race of the Christians, shouted out, “Away with the atheists! Let Polycarp be searched out!”
Notes and citation
Summary: Stirred by the martyrs' courage, the crowd demanded Polycarp.
- “Atheists” (ἀθέους): Christians refused to worship the gods, so their neighbors called them “godless.”
- “Race” (γένους): the Christians as a distinct people.
Topics: Persecution
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 3.2 (PG 5:1032c; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/3-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/3-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 4
4.1Lake, LCL 25:316–318; PG 5:1032d
Εἷς δέ, ὀνόματι Κόϊντος, Φρύξ προσφάτως ἐληλυθὼς ἀπὸ τῆς Φρυγίας, ἰδὼν τὰ θηρία ἐδειλίασεν. οὗτος δὲ ἦν ὁ παραβιασάμενος ἑαυτόν τε καί τινας προσελθεῖν ἑκόντας. τοῦτον ὁ ἀνθύπατος πολλὰ ἐκλιπαρήσας ἔπεισεν ὀμόσαι καὶ ἐπιθῦσαι. διὰ τοῦτο οὖν, ἀδελφοί, οὐκ ἐπαινοῦμεν τοὺς προδιδόντας ἑαυτούς, ἐπειδὴ οὐχ οὕτως διδάσκει τὸ εὐαγγέλιον.
Heis de, onomati Koïntos, Phryx prosphatōs elēlythōs apo tēs Phrygias, idōn ta thēria edeiliasen. houtos de ēn ho parabiasamenos heauton te kai tinas proselthein hekontas. touton ho anthypatos polla ekliparēsas epeisen omosai kai epithysai. dia touto oun, adelphoi, ouk epainoumen tous prodidontas heautous, epeidē ouch houtōs didaskei to euangelion.
But one man, named Quintus, a Phrygian who had recently come from Phrygia, turned coward when he saw the wild beasts. He was the one who had pushed himself and some others to come forward of their own accord. The proconsul, by much pleading, persuaded him to swear the oath and offer sacrifice. For this reason, therefore, brothers, we do not praise those who hand themselves over, since the gospel does not teach this.
Matt 10:23 (echo, medium confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: Quintus, who had volunteered for martyrdom, gave way; so the church does not approve of handing oneself over.
- Phrygia was later the home of the Montanist movement, known for zeal for martyrdom; some see a warning against it here, but the link is uncertain.
Topics: Martyrdom, Persecution
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 4.1 (PG 5:1032d; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/4-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/4-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 5
5.1Lake, LCL 25:318; PG 5:1033a
Ὁ δὲ θαυμασιώτατος Πολύκαρπος τὸ μὲν πρῶτον ἀκούσας οὐκ ἐταράχθη, ἀλλʼ ἐβούλετο κατὰ πόλιν μένειν· οἱ δὲ πλείους ἔπειθον αὐτὸν ὑπεξελθεῖν. καὶ ὑπεξῆλθεν εἰς ἀγρίδιον οὐ μακρὰν ἀπέχον ἀπὸ τῆς πόλεως καὶ διέτριβεν μετʼ ὀλίγων, νύκτα καὶ ἡμέραν οὐδὲν ἕτερον ποιῶν ἢ προσευχόμενος περὶ πάντων καὶ τῶν κατὰ τὴν οἰκουμένην ἐκκλησιῶν, ὅπερ ἦν σύνηθες αὐτῷ.
Ho de thaumasiōtatos Polykarpos to men prōton akousas ouk etarachthē, allʼ ebouleto kata polin menein; hoi de pleious epeithon auton hypexelthein. kai hypexēlthen eis agridion ou makran apechon apo tēs poleōs kai dietriben metʼ oligōn, nykta kai hēmeran ouden heteron poiōn ē proseuchomenos peri pantōn kai tōn kata tēn oikoumenēn ekklēsiōn, hoper ēn synēthes autǭ.
Now the most wonderful Polycarp, when he first heard, was not disturbed, but wanted to remain in the city; but the majority persuaded him to withdraw. And he withdrew to a small farm not far from the city and stayed there with a few others, doing nothing else night and day but pray for everyone and for the churches throughout the world, as was his custom.
Notes and citation
Summary: Polycarp was persuaded to leave the city and spent his time in prayer for all the churches.
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 5.1 (PG 5:1033a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/5-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/5-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
5.2Lake, LCL 25:318
καὶ προσευχόμενος ἐν ὀπτασίᾳ γέγονεν πρὸ τριῶν ἡμερῶν τοῦ συλληφθῆναι αὐτόν, καὶ εἶδεν τὸ προσκεφάλαιον αὐτοῦ ὑπὸ πυρὸς κατακαιόμενον· καὶ στραφεὶς εἶπεν πρὸς τοὺς σὺν αὐτῷ· Δεῖ με ζῶντα καῆναι.
kai proseuchomenos en optasią gegonen pro triōn hēmerōn tou syllēphthēnai auton, kai eiden to proskephalaion autou hypo pyros katakaiomenon; kai strapheis eipen pros tous syn autǭ; Dei me zōnta kaēnai.
And while he was praying he had a vision, three days before he was arrested, and he saw his pillow being burned up by fire. And he turned and said to those who were with him, “I must be burned alive.”
Notes and citation
Summary: In a vision Polycarp saw his pillow on fire and knew he would be burned alive.
Topics: Prayer, Martyrdom, Spiritual gifts and visions
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 5.2 (Lake, LCL 25:318; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/5-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/5-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 6
6.1Lake, LCL 25:318; PG 5:1033a
Καὶ ἐπιμενόντων τῶν ζητούντων αὐτὸν μετέβη εἰς ἕτερον ἀγρίδιον, καὶ εὐθέως ἐπέστησαν οἱ ζητοῦντες αὐτόν· καὶ μὴ εὑρόντες συνελάβοντο παιδάρια δύο, ὧν τὸ ἕτερον βασανιζόμενον ὡμολόγησεν.
Kai epimenontōn tōn zētountōn auton metebē eis heteron agridion, kai eutheōs epestēsan hoi zētountes auton; kai mē heurontes synelabonto paidaria dyo, hōn to heteron basanizomenon hōmologēsen.
And since those who were searching for him kept on, he moved to another farm, and at once those searching for him arrived. When they did not find him, they seized two young slaves, one of whom confessed under torture.
Notes and citation
Summary: Polycarp moved again, but his pursuers tortured a young slave into revealing where he was.
- “Young slaves” (παιδάρια): “boys,” often in the sense of young household servants.
Topics: Persecution
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 6.1 (PG 5:1033a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/6-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/6-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
6.2Lake, LCL 25:318–320; PG 5:1033a–1033b
ἦν γὰρ καὶ ἀδύνατον λαθεῖν αὐτόν, ἐπεὶ καὶ οἱ προδιδόντες αὐτὸν οἰκεῖοι ὑπῆρχον, καὶ ὁ εἰρήναρχος, ὁ κεκληρωμένος τὸ αὐτὸ ὄνομα, Ἡρώδης ἐπιλεγόμενος, ἔσπευδεν εἰς τὸ στάδιον αὐτὸν εἰσαγαγεῖν, ἵνα ἐκεῖνος μὲν τὸν ἴδιον κλῆρον ἀπαρτίσῃ Χριστοῦ κοινωνὸς γενόμενος, οἱ δὲ προδόντες αὐτὸν τὴν αὐτοῦ τοῦ Ἰούδα ὑπόσχοιεν τιμωρίαν.
ēn gar kai adynaton lathein auton, epei kai hoi prodidontes auton oikeioi hypērchon, kai ho eirēnarchos, ho keklērōmenos to auto onoma, Hērōdēs epilegomenos, espeuden eis to stadion auton eisagagein, hina ekeinos men ton idion klēron apartisę̄ Christou koinōnos genomenos, hoi de prodontes auton tēn autou tou Iouda hyposchoien timōrian.
For it was impossible for him to remain hidden, since those who betrayed him were members of his own household. And the police captain, who had been allotted the very same name, being called Herod, was in a hurry to bring him into the stadium, so that Polycarp might fulfill his own appointed lot by becoming a sharer with Christ, while those who betrayed him might undergo the punishment of Judas himself.
Matt 10:36 (echo, medium confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: Betrayed by his own household, Polycarp was sought by an official named Herod, in a story that echoes Christ's Passion.
- “Police captain” (εἰρήναρχος): a city official responsible for public order, literally “ruler of the peace.”
- “The very same name”: the same as King Herod in the Gospel account of Jesus's death.
- “Who had been allotted the very same name” (ὁ κεκληρωμένος τὸ αὐτὸ ὄνομα): some older translations take this as a job title (“whose office is that of the Cleronomus”), but the Greek means that he happened to bear the same name as Herod.
Topics: Martyrdom, Persecution
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 6.2 (PG 5:1033a–1033b; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/6-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/6-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 7
7.1Lake, LCL 25:320; PG 5:1033b–1033c
Ἔχοντες οὖν τὸ παιδάριον, τῇ παρασκευῇ περὶ δείπνου ὥραν ἐξῆλθον διωγμῖται καὶ ἱππεῖς μετὰ τῶν συνήθων αὐτοῖς ὅπλων ὡς ἐπὶ λῃστὴν τρέχοντες. καὶ ὀψὲ τῆς ὥρας συνεπελθόντες ἐκεῖνον μὲν εὗρον ἐν ὑπερῴῳ κατακείμενον· κἀκεῖθεν δὲ ἠδύνατο εἰς ἕτερον χωρίον ἀπελθεῖν, ἀλλʼ οὐκ ἠβουλήθη εἰπών· Τὸ θέλημα τοῦ θεοῦ γενέσθω.
Echontes oun to paidarion, tę̄ paraskeuę̄ peri deipnou hōran exēlthon diōgmitai kai hippeis meta tōn synēthōn autois hoplōn hōs epi lę̄stēn trechontes. kai opse tēs hōras synepelthontes ekeinon men heuron en hyperǭǭ katakeimenon; kakeithen de ēdynato eis heteron chōrion apelthein, allʼ ouk ēboulēthē eipōn; To thelēma tou theou genesthō.
So, taking the young slave with them, on the day of Preparation, at about the dinner hour, police and horsemen went out with their usual weapons, as though running out against a bandit. And coming upon him late in the evening, they found him lying down in an upstairs room. Even from there he could have gone away to another place, but he would not, saying, “The will of God be done.”
Matt 26:55 (allusion, high confidence) · Acts 21:14 (allusion, high confidence) · Matt 6:10 (echo, medium confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: Police came for Polycarp at night; he could have fled but accepted God's will.
- “The day of Preparation” (παρασκευή): Friday, the day before the Sabbath. The details here (Friday, “as against a bandit,” the upstairs room) echo the Gospel Passion narratives.
Topics: Martyrdom
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 7.1 (PG 5:1033b–1033c; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/7-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/7-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
7.2Lake, LCL 25:320; PG 5:1033c
ἀκούσας οὖν παρόντας αὐτούς, καταβὰς διελέχθη αὐτοῖς, θαυμαζόντων τῶν παρόντων τὴν ἡλικίαν αὐτοῦ καὶ τὸ εὐσταθές, καὶ εἰ τοσαύτη σπουδὴ ἦν τοῦ συλληφθῆναι τοιοῦτον πρεσβύτην ἄνδρα. εὐθέως οὖν αὐτοῖς ἐκέλευσεν παρατεθῆναι φαγεῖν καὶ πιεῖν ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ ὥρᾳ, ὅσον ἂν βούλωνται, ἐξῃτήσατο δὲ αὐτούς, ἵνα δῶσιν αὐτῷ ὥραν πρὸς τὸ προσεύξασθαι ἀδεῶς.
akousas oun parontas autous, katabas dielechthē autois, thaumazontōn tōn parontōn tēn hēlikian autou kai to eustathes, kai ei tosautē spoudē ēn tou syllēphthēnai toiouton presbytēn andra. eutheōs oun autois ekeleusen paratethēnai phagein kai piein en ekeinę̄ tę̄ hōrą, hoson an boulōntai, exę̄tēsato de autous, hina dōsin autǭ hōran pros to proseuxasthai adeōs.
Hearing that they had arrived, he went down and talked with them, while those present marveled at his age and his calm, and that there should be such eagerness to arrest so old a man. So he at once ordered that food and drink be set before them at that hour, as much as they wanted, and he asked them to give him an hour to pray undisturbed.
Notes and citation
Summary: Polycarp welcomed his captors with a meal and asked for an hour to pray.
Topics: Prayer
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 7.2 (PG 5:1033c; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/7-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/7-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
7.3Lake, LCL 25:320–322; PG 5:1033c
τῶν δὲ ἐπιτρεψάντων, σταθεὶς προσηύξατο πλήρης ὢν τῆς χάριτος τοῦ θεοῦ οὕτως ὥστε ἐπὶ δύο ὥρας μὴ δύνασθαι σιγῆσαι καὶ ἐκπλήττεσθαι τοὺς ἀκούοντας, πολλούς τε μετανοεῖν ἐπὶ τῷ ἐληλυθέναι ἐπὶ τοιοῦτον θεοπρεπῆ πρεσβύτην.
tōn de epitrepsantōn, statheis prosēuxato plērēs ōn tēs charitos tou theou houtōs hōste epi dyo hōras mē dynasthai sigēsai kai ekplēttesthai tous akouontas, pollous te metanoein epi tǭ elēlythenai epi toiouton theoprepē presbytēn.
When they allowed it, he stood and prayed, so full of the grace of God that for two hours he could not be silent, and those who heard were astonished, and many regretted that they had come after so godly an old man.
Notes and citation
Summary: Polycarp prayed aloud for two hours, and many of his captors regretted coming for him.
- “Regretted” (μετανοεῖν): the usual word for “repent”; here it probably means that they were sorry they had come.
Topics: Prayer
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 7.3 (PG 5:1033c; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/7-3).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/7-3
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 8
8.1Lake, LCL 25:322; PG 5:1036a
Ἐπεὶ δέ ποτε κατέπαυσεν τὴν προσευχήν, μνημονεύσας ἁπάντων καὶ τῶν πώποτε συμβεβληκότων αὐτῷ, μικρῶν τε καὶ μεγάλων, ἐνδόξων τε καὶ ἀδόξων καὶ πάσης τῆς κατὰ τὴν οἰκουμένην καθολικῆς ἐκκλησίας, τῆς ὥρας ἐλθούσης τοῦ ἐξιέναι, ὄνῳ καθίσαντες αὐτὸν ἤγαγον εἰς τὴν πόλιν, ὄντος σαββάτου μεγάλου.
Epei de pote katepausen tēn proseuchēn, mnēmoneusas hapantōn kai tōn pōpote symbeblēkotōn autǭ, mikrōn te kai megalōn, endoxōn te kai adoxōn kai pasēs tēs kata tēn oikoumenēn katholikēs ekklēsias, tēs hōras elthousēs tou exienai, onǭ kathisantes auton ēgagon eis tēn polin, ontos sabbatou megalou.
When at last he had finished his prayer, having remembered all who had ever met him, small and great, well known and unknown, and the whole catholic church throughout the world, and the hour for departure had come, they set him on a donkey and led him into the city. It was a great Sabbath.
John 19:31 (echo, medium confidence) · Matt 21:7 (echo, low confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: After praying for all, Polycarp was taken into the city on a donkey on a “great Sabbath.”
- “A great Sabbath”: probably a Sabbath that coincided with a festival (compare John 19:31); which festival is meant is disputed.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (digitization slip against Lake's printed text (missing accent)): δε ποτε → δέ ποτε.
Topics: Prayer
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 8.1 (PG 5:1036a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/8-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/8-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
8.2Lake, LCL 25:322; PG 5:1036a
καὶ ὑπήντα αὐτῷ ὁ εἰρήναρχος Ἡρώδης καὶ ὁ πατὴρ αὐτοῦ Νικήτης, οἳ καὶ μεταθέντες αὐτὸν ἐπὶ τὴν καροῦχαν ἔπειθον παρακαθεζόμενοι καὶ λέγοντες· Τί γὰρ κακόν ἐστιν εἰπεῖν· Κύριος Καῖσαρ, καὶ ἐπιθῦσαι καὶ τὰ τούτοις ἀκόλουθα καὶ διασώζεσθαι; ὁ δὲ τὰ μὲν πρῶτα οὐκ ἀπεκρίνατο αὐτοῖς, ἐπιμενόντων δὲ αὐτῶν ἔφη· Οὐ μέλλω ποιεῖν, ὃ συμβουλεύετέ μοι.
kai hypēnta autǭ ho eirēnarchos Hērōdēs kai ho patēr autou Nikētēs, hoi kai metathentes auton epi tēn karouchan epeithon parakathezomenoi kai legontes; Ti gar kakon estin eipein; Kyrios Kaisar, kai epithysai kai ta toutois akoloutha kai diasōzesthai? ho de ta men prōta ouk apekrinato autois, epimenontōn de autōn ephē; Ou mellō poiein, ho symbouleuete moi.
And the police captain Herod and his father Nicetes met him, moved him into their carriage, and sitting beside him tried to persuade him, saying, “What harm is there in saying ‘Lord Caesar,’ and offering sacrifice, and doing the other things that go with it, and so saving yourself?” At first he did not answer them, but when they kept on, he said, “I am not going to do what you advise me.”
Notes and citation
Summary: Officials urged Polycarp to call Caesar “Lord” and sacrifice to save himself; he refused.
- “Lord Caesar” (Κύριος Καῖσαρ) can also be read as a statement, “Caesar is Lord.” Either way, Christians reserved the title “Lord” for Christ.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (digitization slip against Lake's printed text (capital lost)): Κύριος καῖσαρ → Κύριος Καῖσαρ.
Topics: Persecution
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 8.2 (PG 5:1036a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/8-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/8-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
8.3Lake, LCL 25:322; PG 5:1036a–1036b
οἱ δὲ ἀποτυχόντες τοῦ πεῖσαι αὐτὸν δεινὰ ῥήματα ἔλεγον αὐτῷ καὶ μετὰ σπουδῆς καθῄρουν αὐτόν, ὡς κατιόντα ἀπὸ τῆς καρούχας ἀποσῦραι τὸ ἀντικνήμιον. καὶ μὴ ἐπιστραφείς, ὡς οὐδὲν πεπονθὼς προθύμως μετὰ σπουδῆς ἐπορεύετο, ἀγόμενος εἰς τὸ στάδιον, θορύβου τηλικούτου ὄντος ἐν τῷ σταδίῳ, ὡς μηδὲ ἀκουσθῆναί τινα δύνασθαι.
hoi de apotychontes tou peisai auton deina rhēmata elegon autǭ kai meta spoudēs kathę̄roun auton, hōs kationta apo tēs karouchas aposyrai to antiknēmion. kai mē epistrapheis, hōs ouden peponthōs prothymōs meta spoudēs eporeueto, agomenos eis to stadion, thorybou tēlikoutou ontos en tǭ stadiǭ, hōs mēde akousthēnai tina dynasthai.
When they failed to persuade him, they said terrible things to him and pulled him down in such haste that, as he was getting down from the carriage, he scraped his shin. Without turning back, as though nothing had happened to him, he walked on eagerly and quickly as he was led into the stadium, where there was such an uproar that no one could even be heard.
Notes and citation
Summary: Thrown from the carriage and injured, Polycarp walked calmly into the noisy stadium.
- “Scraped his shin” (ἀποσῦραι τὸ ἀντικνήμιον): literally “tore the skin off his shin.” Some older translations say “dislocated his leg.”
Topics: Persecution
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 8.3 (PG 5:1036a–1036b; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/8-3).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/8-3
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 9
9.1Lake, LCL 25:322–324
Τῷ δὲ Πολυκάρπῳ εἰσιόντι εἰς τὸ στάδιον φωνὴ ἐξ οὐρανοῦ ἐγένετο· Ἴσχυε, Πολύκαρπε, καὶ ἀνδρίζου. καὶ τὸν μὲν εἰπόντα οὐδεὶς εἶδεν, τὴν δὲ φωνὴν τῶν ἡμετέρων οἱ παρόντες ἤκουσαν. καὶ λοιπὸν προσαχθέντος αὐτοῦ, θόρυβος ἦν μέγας ἀκουσάντων, ὅτι Πολύκαρπος συνείληπται.
Tǭ de Polykarpǭ eisionti eis to stadion phōnē ex ouranou egeneto; Ischye, Polykarpe, kai andrizou. kai ton men eiponta oudeis eiden, tēn de phōnēn tōn hēmeterōn hoi parontes ēkousan. kai loipon prosachthentos autou, thorybos ēn megas akousantōn, hoti Polykarpos syneilēptai.
As Polycarp was entering the stadium, a voice came from heaven: “Be strong, Polycarp, and act like a man.” No one saw the speaker, but those of our people who were present heard the voice. And then, as he was brought forward, there was a great uproar among those who heard that Polycarp had been arrested.
Josh 1:6 (allusion, high confidence) · Deut 31:6 (echo, low confidence) · John 12:28 (echo, low confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: As Polycarp entered the stadium, a voice from heaven told him to be strong.
- “Be strong … and act like a man” (ἴσχυε … καὶ ἀνδρίζου): the words of encouragement given to Joshua (Josh 1:6–9; compare Deut 31:6).
Topics: Martyrdom
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 9.1 (Lake, LCL 25:322–324; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/9-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/9-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
9.2Lake, LCL 25:324; PG 5:1036c
προσαχθέντα οὖν αὐτὸν ἀνηρώτα ὁ ἀνθύπατος, εἰ αὐτὸς εἴη Πολύκαρπος. τοῦ δὲ ὁμολογοῦντος, ἔπειθεν ἀρνεῖσθαι λέγων· Αἰδέσθητί σου τὴν ἡλικίαν, καὶ ἕτερα τούτοις ἀκόλουθα, ὡς ἔθος αὐτοῖς λέγειν· Ὄμοσον τὴν Καίσαρος τύχην, μετανόησον, εἶπον· Αἶρε τοὺς ἀθέους. ὁ δὲ Πολύκαρπος ἐμβριθεῖ τῷ προσώπῳ εἰς πάντα τὸν ὄχλον τὸν ἐν τῷ σταδίῳ ἀνόμων ἐθνῶν ἐμβλέψας καὶ ἐπισείσας αὐτοῖς τὴν χεῖρα, στενάξας τε καὶ ἀναβλέψας εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν εἶπεν· Αἶρε τοὺς ἀθέους.
prosachthenta oun auton anērōta ho anthypatos, ei autos eiē Polykarpos. tou de homologountos, epeithen arneisthai legōn; Aidesthēti sou tēn hēlikian, kai hetera toutois akoloutha, hōs ethos autois legein; Omoson tēn Kaisaros tychēn, metanoēson, eipon; Aire tous atheous. ho de Polykarpos embrithei tǭ prosōpǭ eis panta ton ochlon ton en tǭ stadiǭ anomōn ethnōn emblepsas kai episeisas autois tēn cheira, stenaxas te kai anablepsas eis ton ouranon eipen; Aire tous atheous.
So when he was brought forward, the proconsul asked him whether he was Polycarp. When he said that he was, the proconsul tried to persuade him to deny, saying, “Have respect for your age,” and other such things as they customarily say: “Swear by the fortune of Caesar; change your mind; say, ‘Away with the atheists!’” But Polycarp, with a solemn face, looked at the whole crowd of lawless Gentiles in the stadium, waved his hand at them, groaned, and looking up to heaven said, “Away with the atheists!”
Notes and citation
Summary: Told to say “Away with the atheists,” Polycarp said it, but of the pagan crowd.
- “The fortune of Caesar” (τὴν Καίσαρος τύχην, Latin genius): the guardian spirit of the emperor. Swearing by it was a religious act as well as an oath of loyalty.
- Polycarp turns the crowd's cry against them: the “godless” are the pagans, not the Christians.
- “Change your mind” (μετανόησον): the usual word for “repent”; the proconsul uses it of giving up Christianity (again in 11.1–2).
Topics: Persecution, Martyrdom
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 9.2 (PG 5:1036c; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/9-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/9-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
9.3Lake, LCL 25:324; PG 5:1036c
ἐγκειμένου δὲ τοῦ ἀνθυπάτου καὶ λέγοντος· Ὄμοσον, καὶ ἀπολύω σε, λοιδόρησον τὸν Χριστόν, ἔφη ὁ Πολύκαρπος· Ὀγδοήκοντα καὶ ἓξ ἔτη δουλεύω αὐτῷ, καὶ οὐδέν με ἠδίκησεν· καὶ πῶς δύναμαι βλασφημῆσαι τὸν βασιλέα μου τὸν σώσαντά με;
enkeimenou de tou anthypatou kai legontos; Omoson, kai apolyō se, loidorēson ton Christon, ephē ho Polykarpos; Ogdoēkonta kai hex etē douleuō autǭ, kai ouden me ēdikēsen; kai pōs dynamai blasphēmēsai ton basilea mou ton sōsanta me?
When the proconsul pressed him and said, “Swear, and I will release you; curse Christ,” Polycarp said, “Eighty-six years I have served him, and he has done me no wrong. How then can I blaspheme my King who saved me?”
Notes and citation
Summary: Polycarp refused to curse Christ, whom he had served for eighty-six years.
- “Eighty-six years” may count from his birth or from his baptism; if from birth, and if he died in 155/156, he was born about AD 70.
Topics: Martyrdom, Christology
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 9.3 (PG 5:1036c; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/9-3).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/9-3
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 10
10.1Lake, LCL 25:324–326; PG 5:1036c–1036d
Ἐπιμένοντος δὲ πάλιν αὐτοῦ καὶ λέγοντος· Ὄμοσον τὴν Καίσαρος τύχην, ἀπεκρίνατο· Εἰ κενοδοξεῖς, ἵνα ὀμόσω τὴν Καίσαρος τύχην, ὡς σὺ λέγεις, προσποιεῖ δὲ ἀγνοεῖν με, τίς εἰμι, μετὰ παρρησίας ἄκουε· Χριστιανός εἰμι. εἰ δὲ θέλεις τὸν τοῦ Χριστιανισμοῦ μαθεῖν λόγον, δὸς ἡμέραν καὶ ἄκουσον.
Epimenontos de palin autou kai legontos; Omoson tēn Kaisaros tychēn, apekrinato; Ei kenodoxeis, hina omosō tēn Kaisaros tychēn, hōs sy legeis, prospoiei de agnoein me, tis eimi, meta parrēsias akoue; Christianos eimi. ei de theleis ton tou Christianismou mathein logon, dos hēmeran kai akouson.
When he persisted again and said, “Swear by the fortune of Caesar,” Polycarp answered, “If you vainly suppose that I will swear by the fortune of Caesar, as you put it, and you pretend not to know who I am, hear it plainly: I am a Christian. And if you want to learn the teaching of Christianity, give me a day and listen.”
Notes and citation
Summary: Polycarp openly declared himself a Christian and offered to explain the faith.
- “Christianity” (Χριστιανισμοῦ): with the letters of Ignatius, among the earliest uses of the word.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (digitization slip against Lake's printed text (capital lost)): τὴν καίσαρος τύχην → τὴν Καίσαρος τύχην.
Topics: Martyrdom
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 10.1 (PG 5:1036c–1036d; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/10-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/10-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
10.2Lake, LCL 25:326; PG 5:1037a
ἔφη ὁ ἀνθύπατος· Πεῖσον τὸν δῆμον. ὁ δὲ Πολύκαρπος εἶπεν· Σὲ μὲν κἂν λόγου ἠξίωσα· δεδιδάγμεθα γὰρ ἀρχαῖς καὶ ἐξουσίαις ὑπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ τεταγμέναις τιμὴν κατὰ τὸ προσῆκον, τὴν μὴ βλάπτουσαν ἡμᾶς, ἀπονέμειν· ἐκείνους δὲ οὐχ ἡγοῦμαι ἀξίους τοῦ ἀπολογεῖσθαι αὐτοῖς.
ephē ho anthypatos; Peison ton dēmon. ho de Polykarpos eipen; Se men kan logou ēxiōsa; dedidagmetha gar archais kai exousiais hypo tou theou tetagmenais timēn kata to prosēkon, tēn mē blaptousan hēmas, aponemein; ekeinous de ouch hēgoumai axious tou apologeisthai autois.
The proconsul said, “Persuade the people.” Polycarp said, “You I would have thought worthy of an explanation, for we have been taught to render honor, as is fitting, to rulers and authorities appointed by God, so long as it does us no harm. But as for them, I do not consider them worthy that I should make a defense to them.”
Rom 13:1 (allusion, high confidence) · 1 Pet 2:13 (echo, medium confidence) · Titus 3:1 (echo, low confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: Polycarp was willing to explain himself to the governing authority, but not to the mob.
- “So long as it does us no harm”: honor that does not require denying the faith.
Topics: Persecution, Ethics
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 10.2 (PG 5:1037a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/10-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/10-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 11
11.1Lake, LCL 25:326; PG 5:1037a
Ὁ δὲ ἀνθύπατος εἶπεν· Θηρία ἔχω, τούτοις σε παραβαλῶ, ἐὰν μὴ μετανοήσῃς. ὁ δὲ εἶπεν· Κάλει, ἀμετάθετος γὰρ ἡμῖν ἡ ἀπὸ τῶν κρειττόνων ἐπὶ τὰ χείρω μετάνοια· καλὸν δὲ μετατίθεσθαι ἀπὸ τῶν χαλεπῶν ἐπὶ τὰ δίκαια.
Ho de anthypatos eipen; Thēria echō, toutois se parabalō, ean mē metanoēsę̄s. ho de eipen; Kalei, ametathetos gar hēmin hē apo tōn kreittonōn epi ta cheirō metanoia; kalon de metatithesthai apo tōn chalepōn epi ta dikaia.
The proconsul said, “I have wild beasts; I will throw you to them unless you change your mind.” He said, “Call them. For a change of mind from better to worse is impossible for us; but it is good to change from what is cruel to what is just.”
Notes and citation
Summary: Threatened with the beasts, Polycarp said that Christians cannot change from better to worse.
- The proconsul uses the Christian word for repentance (μετανοέω, “change one's mind, repent”), and Polycarp answers him in the same terms.
Topics: Martyrdom
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 11.1 (PG 5:1037a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/11-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/11-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
11.2Lake, LCL 25:326; PG 5:1037a–1037b
ὁ δὲ πάλιν πρὸς αὐτόν· Πυρί σε ποιήσω δαπανηθῆναι, εἰ τῶν θηρίων καταφρονεῖς, ἐὰν μὴ μετανοήσῃς. ὁ δὲ Πολύκαρπος εἶπεν· Πῦρ ἀπειλεῖς τὸ πρὸς ὥραν καιόμενον καὶ μετʼ ὀλίγον σβεννύμενον· ἀγνοεῖς γὰρ τὸ τῆς μελλούσης κρίσεως καὶ αἰωνίου κολάσεως τοῖς ἀσεβέσι τηρούμενον πῦρ. ἀλλὰ τί βραδύνεις; φέρε, ὃ βούλει.
ho de palin pros auton; Pyri se poiēsō dapanēthēnai, ei tōn thēriōn kataphroneis, ean mē metanoēsę̄s. ho de Polykarpos eipen; Pyr apeileis to pros hōran kaiomenon kai metʼ oligon sbennymenon; agnoeis gar to tēs mellousēs kriseōs kai aiōniou kolaseōs tois asebesi tēroumenon pyr. alla ti bradyneis? phere, ho boulei.
He said to him again, “I will have you consumed by fire, since you despise the wild beasts, unless you change your mind.” But Polycarp said, “You threaten a fire that burns for an hour and after a little while is put out; for you do not know the fire of the coming judgment and eternal punishment that is reserved for the ungodly. But why do you delay? Bring what you wish.”
Matt 25:41 (echo, medium confidence) · Matt 25:46 (echo, medium confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: Threatened with fire, Polycarp contrasted it with the eternal fire of the coming judgment.
Topics: Eschatology, Martyrdom, Hell and eternal punishment
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 11.2 (PG 5:1037a–1037b; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/11-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/11-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 12
12.1Lake, LCL 25:326–328; PG 5:1037b
Ταῦτα δὲ καὶ ἕτερα πλείονα λέγων θάρσους καὶ χαρᾶς ἐνεπίμπλατο, καὶ τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ χάριτος ἐπληροῦτο, ὥστε οὐ μόνον μὴ συμπεσεῖν ταραχθέντα ὑπὸ τῶν λεγομένων πρὸς αὐτόν, ἀλλὰ τοὐναντίον τὸν ἀνθύπατον ἐκστῆναι, πέμψαι τε τὸν ἑαυτοῦ κήρυκα ἐν μέσῳ τοῦ σταδίου κηρῦξαι τρίς· Πολύκαρπος ὡμολόγησεν ἑαυτὸν Χριστιανὸν εἶναι.
Tauta de kai hetera pleiona legōn tharsous kai charas enepimplato, kai to prosōpon autou charitos eplērouto, hōste ou monon mē sympesein tarachthenta hypo tōn legomenōn pros auton, alla tounantion ton anthypaton ekstēnai, pempsai te ton heautou kēryka en mesǭ tou stadiou kēryxai tris; Polykarpos hōmologēsen heauton Christianon einai.
As he said these and many other things, he was filled with courage and joy, and his face was full of grace, so that not only did he not collapse, troubled by what was said to him, but on the contrary the proconsul was astonished and sent his own herald into the middle of the stadium to proclaim three times, “Polycarp has confessed that he is a Christian.”
Acts 6:15 (echo, low confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: Polycarp remained joyful and calm, and the herald announced his confession to the crowd.
Topics: Martyrdom
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 12.1 (PG 5:1037b; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/12-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/12-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
12.2Lake, LCL 25:328; PG 5:1037b–1037c
τούτου λεχθέντος ὑπὸ τοῦ κήρυκος, ἅπαν τὸ πλῆθος ἐθνῶν τε καὶ Ἰουδαίων τῶν τὴν Σμύρναν κατοικούντων ἀκατασχέτῳ θυμῷ καὶ μεγάλῃ φωνῇ ἐπεβόα· Οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ τῆς Ἀσίας διδάσκαλος, ὁ πατὴρ τῶν Χριστιανῶν, ὁ τῶν ἡμετέρων θεῶν καθαιρέτης, ὁ πολλοὺς διδάσκων μὴ θύειν μηδὲ προσκυνεῖν. ταῦτα λέγοντες ἐπεβόων καὶ ἠρώτων τὸν Ἀσιάρχην Φίλιππον, ἵνα ἐπαφῇ τῷ Πολυκάρπῳ λέοντα. ὁ δὲ ἔφη, μὴ εἶναι ἐξὸν αὐτῷ, ἐπειδὴ πεπληρώκει τὰ κυνηγέσια.
toutou lechthentos hypo tou kērykos, hapan to plēthos ethnōn te kai Ioudaiōn tōn tēn Smyrnan katoikountōn akataschetǭ thymǭ kai megalę̄ phōnę̄ epeboa; Houtos estin ho tēs Asias didaskalos, ho patēr tōn Christianōn, ho tōn hēmeterōn theōn kathairetēs, ho pollous didaskōn mē thyein mēde proskynein. tauta legontes epeboōn kai ērōtōn ton Asiarchēn Philippon, hina epaphę̄ tǭ Polykarpǭ leonta. ho de ephē, mē einai exon autǭ, epeidē peplērōkei ta kynēgesia.
When this had been said by the herald, the whole multitude of Gentiles and Jews living in Smyrna cried out with uncontrollable rage and in a loud voice, “This is the teacher of Asia, the father of the Christians, the destroyer of our gods, who teaches many not to sacrifice or to worship.” Saying this, they shouted and asked the Asiarch Philip to let a lion loose on Polycarp. But he said that he was not permitted to do so, since he had closed the animal hunts.
Notes and citation
Summary: The crowd called Polycarp the destroyer of their gods and demanded a lion, but the games were over.
- “Asiarch”: a leading official of the province of Asia connected with the imperial cult and the public games; in 21.1 Philip is called high priest.
- The letter's repeated statements about the Jews of Smyrna (12.2; 13.1; 17.2; 18.1) reflect local conflict and are partly shaped by the Gospel Passion narratives; their historical accuracy is debated.
Topics: Persecution
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 12.2 (PG 5:1037b–1037c; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/12-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/12-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
12.3Lake, LCL 25:328; PG 5:1037c
τότε ἔδοξεν αὐτοῖς ὁμοθυμαδὸν ἐπιβοῆσαι, ὥστε τὸν Πολύκαρπον ζῶντα κατακαῦσαι. ἔδει γὰρ τὸ τῆς φανερωθείσης αὐτῷ ἐπὶ τοῦ προσκεφαλαίου ὀπτασίας πληρωθῆναι, ὅτε ἰδὼν αὐτὸ καιόμενον προσευχόμενος εἶπεν ἐπιστραφεὶς τοῖς σὺν αὐτῷ πιστοῖς προφητικῶς· Δεῖ με ζῶντα καῆναι.
tote edoxen autois homothymadon epiboēsai, hōste ton Polykarpon zōnta katakausai. edei gar to tēs phanerōtheisēs autǭ epi tou proskephalaiou optasias plērōthēnai, hote idōn auto kaiomenon proseuchomenos eipen epistrapheis tois syn autǭ pistois prophētikōs; Dei me zōnta kaēnai.
Then they decided to shout with one accord that Polycarp should be burned alive. For the vision that had been shown to him about the pillow had to be fulfilled, when he saw it burning while he was praying, and turned and said prophetically to the faithful who were with him, “I must be burned alive.”
Notes and citation
Summary: The crowd demanded that Polycarp be burned, fulfilling his earlier vision.
Topics: Martyrdom
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 12.3 (PG 5:1037c; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/12-3).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/12-3
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 13
13.1Lake, LCL 25:328; PG 5:1037d–1040a
Ταῦτα οὖν μετὰ τοσούτου τάχους ἐγένετο, θάττον ἢ ἐλέγετο, τῶν ὄχλων παραχρῆμα συναγόντων ἔκ τε τῶν ἐργαστηρίων καὶ βαλανείων ξύλα καὶ φρύγανα, μάλιστα Ἰουδαίων προθύμως, ὡς ἔθος αὐτοῖς, εἰς ταῦτα ὑπουργούντων.
Tauta oun meta tosoutou tachous egeneto, thatton ē elegeto, tōn ochlōn parachrēma synagontōn ek te tōn ergastēriōn kai balaneiōn xyla kai phrygana, malista Ioudaiōn prothymōs, hōs ethos autois, eis tauta hypourgountōn.
These things happened with such speed, faster than it can be told, as the crowds at once gathered wood and brushwood from the workshops and baths, the Jews especially helping eagerly with this, as is their custom.
Notes and citation
Summary: The crowd quickly gathered wood for the fire.
- “As is their custom”: a polemical remark; see the note on 12.2.
Topics: Persecution
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 13.1 (PG 5:1037d–1040a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/13-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/13-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
13.2Lake, LCL 25:328–330; PG 5:1040a
ὅτε δὲ ἡ πυρκαϊὰ ἡτοιμάσθη, ἀποθέμενος ἑαυτῷ πάντα τὰ ἱμάτια καὶ λύσας τὴν ζώνην ἐπειρᾶτο καὶ ὑπολύειν ἑαυτόν, μὴ πρότερον τοῦτο ποιῶν διὰ τὸ ἀεὶ ἕκαστον τῶν πιστῶν σπουδάζειν, ὅστις τάχιον τοῦ χρωτὸς αὐτοῦ ἅψηται· παντὶ γὰρ καλῷ ἀγαθῆς ἕνεκεν πολιτείας καὶ πρὸ τῆς μαρτυρίας ἐκεκόσμητο.
hote de hē pyrkaïa hētoimasthē, apothemenos heautǭ panta ta himatia kai lysas tēn zōnēn epeirato kai hypolyein heauton, mē proteron touto poiōn dia to aei hekaston tōn pistōn spoudazein, hostis tachion tou chrōtos autou hapsētai; panti gar kalǭ agathēs heneken politeias kai pro tēs martyrias ekekosmēto.
When the pyre was ready, he took off all his outer garments himself, loosened his belt, and tried also to take off his shoes, though he had not done this before, because each of the faithful was always eager to be the first to touch his skin; for he had been adorned with every good thing because of his good way of life, even before his martyrdom.
Notes and citation
Summary: Polycarp undressed for the pyre himself; the faithful had always honored him for his holy life.
- “Way of life” (πολιτεία): literally “citizenship,” one's conduct as a member of a community.
Topics: Martyrdom
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 13.2 (PG 5:1040a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/13-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/13-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
13.3Lake, LCL 25:330; PG 5:1040a
εὐθέως οὖν αὐτῷ περιετίθετο τὰ πρὸς τὴν πυρὰν ἡρμοσμένα ὄργανα. μελλόντων δὲ αὐτῶν καὶ προσηλοῦν, εἶπεν· Ἄφετέ με οὕτως· ὁ γὰρ δοὺς ὑπομεῖναι τὸ πῦρ δώσει χωρὶς τῆς ὑμετέρας ἐκ τῶν ἥλων ἀσφαλείας ἄσκυλτον ἐπιμεῖναι τῇ πυρᾷ.
eutheōs oun autǭ perietitheto ta pros tēn pyran hērmosmena organa. mellontōn de autōn kai prosēloun, eipen; Aphete me houtōs; ho gar dous hypomeinai to pyr dōsei chōris tēs hymeteras ek tōn hēlōn asphaleias askylton epimeinai tę̄ pyrą.
At once the fittings prepared for the pyre were placed around him. When they were about to nail him as well, he said, “Leave me as I am. For he who grants me to endure the fire will grant me to remain on the pyre without flinching, even without the security you seek from the nails.”
Notes and citation
Summary: Polycarp asked not to be nailed, trusting God to keep him steady in the fire.
Topics: Martyrdom
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 13.3 (PG 5:1040a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/13-3).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/13-3
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 14
14.1Lake, LCL 25:330; PG 5:1040a–1040b
Οἱ δὲ οὐ καθήλωσαν μέν, προσέδησαν δὲ αὐτόν. ὁ δὲ ὀπίσω τὰς χεῖρας ποιήσας καὶ προσδεθείς, ὥσπερ κριὸς ἐπίσημος ἐκ μεγάλου ποιμνίου εἰς προσφοράν, ὁλοκαύτωμα δεκτὸν τῷ θεῷ ἡτοιμασμένον, ἀναβλέψας εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν εἶπεν· Κύριε ὁ θεὸς ὁ παντοκράτωρ, ὁ τοῦ ἀγαπητοῦ καὶ εὐλογητοῦ παιδός σου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ πατήρ, διʼ οὗ τὴν περὶ σοῦ ἐπίγνωσιν εἰλήφαμεν, ὁ θεὸς ἀγγέλων καὶ δυνάμεων καὶ πάσης τῆς κτίσεως παντός τε τοῦ γένους τῶν δικαίων, οἳ ζῶσιν ἐνώπιόν σου·
Hoi de ou kathēlōsan men, prosedēsan de auton. ho de opisō tas cheiras poiēsas kai prosdetheis, hōsper krios episēmos ek megalou poimniou eis prosphoran, holokautōma dekton tǭ theǭ hētoimasmenon, anablepsas eis ton ouranon eipen; Kyrie ho theos ho pantokratōr, ho tou agapētou kai eulogētou paidos sou Iēsou Christou patēr, diʼ hou tēn peri sou epignōsin eilēphamen, ho theos angelōn kai dynameōn kai pasēs tēs ktiseōs pantos te tou genous tōn dikaiōn, hoi zōsin enōpion sou;
So they did not nail him, but they tied him. And he, with his hands put behind him and bound, like a choice ram taken from a great flock for an offering, a whole burnt offering prepared and acceptable to God, looked up to heaven and said: “Lord God Almighty, Father of your beloved and blessed Servant Jesus Christ, through whom we have received the knowledge of you, the God of angels and powers and of all creation, and of the whole race of the righteous who live in your presence:
Gen 22:13 (echo, medium confidence) · Rev 4:8 (echo, low confidence) · Acts 4:27 (echo, low confidence) · Matt 12:18 (echo, low confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: Bound to the stake like a sacrificial ram, Polycarp began his final prayer to God the Father.
- “Servant” (παῖς) can also mean “Child.” It is an early title of Jesus in prayer (Acts 4:27, 30; Did. 9.2), recalling the Servant of Isa 42:1 (Matt 12:18).
- “Choice” (ἐπίσημος): “marked out, notable.”
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 14.1 (PG 5:1040a–1040b; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/14-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/14-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
14.2Lake, LCL 25:330–332; PG 5:1040b–1040c
εὐλογῶ σε, ὅτι ἠξίωσάς με τῆς ἡμέρας καὶ ὥρας ταύτης, τοῦ λαβεῖν με μέρος ἐν ἀριθμῷ τῶν μαρτύρων ἐν τῷ ποτηρίῳ τοῦ Χριστοῦ σου εἰς ἀνάστασιν ζωῆς αἰωνίου ψυχῆς τε καὶ σώματος ἐν ἀφθαρσίᾳ πνεύματος ἁγίου· ἐν οἷς προσδεχθείην ἐνώπιόν σου σήμερον ἐν θυσίᾳ πίονι καὶ προσδεκτῇ, καθὼς προητοίμασας καὶ προεφανέρωσας καὶ ἐπλήρωσας, ὁ ἀψευδὴς καὶ ἀληθινὸς θεός.
eulogō se, hoti ēxiōsas me tēs hēmeras kai hōras tautēs, tou labein me meros en arithmǭ tōn martyrōn en tǭ potēriǭ tou Christou sou eis anastasin zōēs aiōniou psychēs te kai sōmatos en aphtharsią pneumatos hagiou; en hois prosdechtheiēn enōpion sou sēmeron en thysią pioni kai prosdektę̄, kathōs proētoimasas kai proephanerōsas kai eplērōsas, ho apseudēs kai alēthinos theos.
I bless you because you have counted me worthy of this day and hour, to receive a share among the number of the martyrs in the cup of your Christ, for resurrection to eternal life of both soul and body in the incorruptibility of the Holy Spirit. Among them may I be received before you today as a rich and acceptable sacrifice, just as you prepared beforehand, revealed beforehand, and have fulfilled, you the God who does not lie and is true.
Mark 10:38 (allusion, medium confidence) · Matt 20:22 (echo, low confidence) · John 5:29 (allusion, medium confidence) · Titus 1:2 (echo, low confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: Polycarp thanked God for the honor of sharing Christ's suffering and prayed to be received as a sacrifice.
- “The cup of your Christ”: the cup of suffering (Mark 10:38–39).
- “Rich” (πίονι): literally “fat,” that is, choice, as in sacrificial language.
- The prayer's form (blessing, remembrance, doxology) resembles early Eucharistic prayers, which has led some to think its wording was shaped by liturgical use.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (digitization slip against Lake's printed text (wrong accent)): ἐν οἶς → ἐν οἷς.
Topics: Prayer, Martyrdom, Eschatology
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 14.2 (PG 5:1040b–1040c; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/14-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/14-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
14.3Lake, LCL 25:332
διὰ τοῦτο καὶ περὶ πάντων σὲ αἰνῶ, σὲ εὐλογῶ, σὲ δοξάζω διὰ τοῦ αἰωνίου καὶ ἐπουρανίου ἀρχιερέως Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ἀγαπητοῦ σου παιδός, διʼ οὗ σοὶ σὺν αὐτῷ καὶ πνεύματι ἁγίῳ δόξα καὶ νῦν καὶ εἰς τοὺς μέλλοντας αἰῶνας. ἀμήν.
dia touto kai peri pantōn se ainō, se eulogō, se doxazō dia tou aiōniou kai epouraniou archiereōs Iēsou Christou, agapētou sou paidos, diʼ hou soi syn autǭ kai pneumati hagiǭ doxa kai nyn kai eis tous mellontas aiōnas. amēn.
For this reason, and for all things, I praise you, I bless you, I glorify you, through the eternal and heavenly High Priest Jesus Christ, your beloved Servant, through whom be glory to you, with him and the Holy Spirit, both now and for the ages to come. Amen.”
Textual problem in this passage: see the notes.
Heb 4:14 (echo, medium confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: Polycarp ended his prayer with praise to God through Christ, the eternal High Priest.
- The closing words give glory to God “with him [Christ] and the Holy Spirit.” Eusebius's quotation of this passage (Hist. eccl. 4.15.35) reads “in the Holy Spirit,” and some scholars think the wording was adjusted in later use.
- “High Priest” (ἀρχιερέως) is in Lake's text; some manuscripts and older translations lack it.
Topics: Prayer, Trinity, Christology
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 14.3 (Lake, LCL 25:332; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/14-3).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/14-3
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 15
15.1Lake, LCL 25:332; PG 5:1040c
Ἀναπέμψαντος δὲ αὐτοῦ τὸ ἀμὴν καὶ πληρώσαντος τὴν εὐχήν, οἱ τοῦ πυρὸς ἄνθρωποι ἐξῆψαν τὸ πῦρ. μεγάλης δὲ ἐκλαμψάσης φλογός, θαῦμα εἴδομεν, οἷς ἰδεῖν ἐδόθη· οἳ καὶ ἐτηρήθημεν εἰς τὸ ἀναγγεῖλαι τοῖς λοιποῖς τὰ γενόμενα.
Anapempsantos de autou to amēn kai plērōsantos tēn euchēn, hoi tou pyros anthrōpoi exēpsan to pyr. megalēs de eklampsasēs phlogos, thauma eidomen, hois idein edothē; hoi kai etērēthēmen eis to anangeilai tois loipois ta genomena.
When he had offered up the Amen and finished the prayer, the men in charge of the fire lit it. And as a great flame blazed up, we saw a marvel, we to whom it was given to see; and we were preserved in order to report to the rest what happened.
Notes and citation
Summary: The fire was lit, and the writers saw a marvel they were spared to report.
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 15.1 (PG 5:1040c; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/15-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/15-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
15.2Lake, LCL 25:332; PG 5:1040c–1041a
τὸ γὰρ πῦρ καμάρας εἶδος ποιῆσαν, ὥσπερ ὀθόνη πλοίου ὑπὸ πνεύματος πληρουμένη, κύκλῳ περιετείχισεν τὸ σῶμα τοῦ μάρτυρος· καὶ ἦν μέσον οὐχ ὡς σὰρξ καιομένη, ἀλλʼ ὡς ἄρτος ὀπτώμενος ἢ ὡς χρυσὸς καὶ ἄργυρος ἐν καμίνῳ πυρούμενος. καὶ γὰρ εὐωδίας τοσαύτης ἀντελαβόμεθα, ὡς λιβανωτοῦ πνέοντος ἢ ἄλλου τινὸς τῶν τιμίων ἀρωμάτων.
to gar pyr kamaras eidos poiēsan, hōsper othonē ploiou hypo pneumatos plēroumenē, kyklǭ perieteichisen to sōma tou martyros; kai ēn meson ouch hōs sarx kaiomenē, allʼ hōs artos optōmenos ē hōs chrysos kai argyros en kaminǭ pyroumenos. kai gar euōdias tosautēs antelabometha, hōs libanōtou pneontos ē allou tinos tōn timiōn arōmatōn.
For the fire, taking the shape of a vaulted room, like a ship's sail filled by the wind, made a wall around the body of the martyr; and he was in the middle, not like flesh burning, but like bread baking, or like gold and silver being refined in a furnace. And we caught such a fragrance as of incense rising, or some other precious spice.
1 Pet 1:7 (echo, low confidence) · 2 Cor 2:15 (echo, low confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: The flames formed an arch around Polycarp without consuming him, and a sweet fragrance filled the air.
- “Like bread baking”: some readers see a Eucharistic image; the comparison with refined gold and silver recalls the testing of faith by fire.
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 15.2 (PG 5:1040c–1041a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/15-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/15-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 16
16.1Lake, LCL 25:332–334; PG 5:1041a
Πέρας γοῦν ἰδόντες οἱ ἄνομοι μὴ δυνάμενον αὐτοῦ τὸ σῶμα ὑπὸ τοῦ πυρὸς δαπανηθῆναι, ἐκέλευσαν προσελθόντα αὐτῷ κομφέκτορα παραβῦσαι ξιφίδιον. καὶ τοῦτο ποιήσαντος, ἐξῆλθεν περιστερὰ καὶ πλῆθος αἵματος, ὥστε κατασβέσαι τὸ πῦρ καὶ θαυμάσαι πάντα τὸν ὄχλον, εἰ τοσαύτη τις διαφορὰ μεταξὺ τῶν τε ἀπίστων καὶ τῶν ἐκλεκτῶν·
Peras goun idontes hoi anomoi mē dynamenon autou to sōma hypo tou pyros dapanēthēnai, ekeleusan proselthonta autǭ komphektora parabysai xiphidion. kai touto poiēsantos, exēlthen peristera kai plēthos haimatos, hōste katasbesai to pyr kai thaumasai panta ton ochlon, ei tosautē tis diaphora metaxy tōn te apistōn kai tōn eklektōn;
At length, when the lawless saw that his body could not be consumed by the fire, they ordered an executioner to go up to him and plunge a dagger into him. When he had done this, there came out a dove and a great quantity of blood, so that it put out the fire, and the whole crowd marveled that there should be so great a difference between the unbelievers and the elect.
Textual problem in this passage: see the notes.
John 19:34 (echo, medium confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: An executioner stabbed Polycarp, and so much blood flowed that it put out the fire.
- “A dove” (περιστερά) stands in the Greek manuscripts, but Eusebius's quotation (Hist. eccl. 4.15.39) lacks it, and many editors think it a later addition or a corruption of another word.
- “Executioner” (κομφέκτορα, Latin confector): the official who finished off wounded beasts or condemned people in the arena.
Topics: Martyrdom
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 16.1 (PG 5:1041a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/16-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/16-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
16.2Lake, LCL 25:334; PG 5:1041a
ὧν εἷς καὶ οὗτος γεγόνει ὁ θαυμασιώτατος μάρτυς Πολύκαρπος, ἐν τοῖς καθʼ ἡμᾶς χρόνοις διδάσκαλος ἀποστολικὸς καὶ προφητικὸς γενόμενος, ἐπίσκοπος τῆς ἐν Σμύρνῃ καθολικῆς ἐκκλησίας. πᾶν γὰρ ῥῆμα, ὃ ἀφῆκεν ἐκ τοῦ στόματος αὐτοῦ. καὶ ἐτελειώθη καὶ τελειωθήσεται.
hōn heis kai houtos gegonei ho thaumasiōtatos martys Polykarpos, en tois kathʼ hēmas chronois didaskalos apostolikos kai prophētikos genomenos, episkopos tēs en Smyrnę̄ katholikēs ekklēsias. pan gar rhēma, ho aphēken ek tou stomatos autou. kai eteleiōthē kai teleiōthēsetai.
Among these elect was this man, the most wonderful martyr Polycarp, who in our own times was an apostolic and prophetic teacher, bishop of the catholic church in Smyrna. For every word that he uttered from his mouth was fulfilled and will be fulfilled.
Notes and citation
Summary: Polycarp was an apostolic and prophetic teacher and the bishop of Smyrna, whose words all came true.
- The digital text has a full stop after “his mouth” (αὐτοῦ); the sentence evidently continues, and the translation follows the sense.
Topics: Church office
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 16.2 (PG 5:1041a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/16-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/16-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 17
17.1Lake, LCL 25:334; PG 5:1041b
Ὁ δὲ ἀντίζηλος καὶ βάσκανος καὶ πονηρός, ὁ ἀντικείμενος τῷ γένει τῶν δικαίων, ἰδὼν τό τε μέγεθος αὐτοῦ τῆς μαρτυρίας καὶ τὴν ἀπʼ ἀρχῆς ἀνεπίληπτον πολιτείαν, ἐστεφανωμένον τε τὸν τῆς ἀφθαρσίας στέφανον καὶ βραβεῖον ἀναντίρρητον ἀπενηνεγμένον, ἐπετήδευσεν, ὡς μηδὲ τὸ σωμάτιον αὐτοῦ ὑφʼ ἡμῶν ληφθῆναι, καίπερ πολλῶν ἐπιθυμούντων τοῦτο ποιῆσαι καὶ κοινωνῆσαι τῷ ἁγίῳ αὐτοῦ σαρκίῳ.
Ho de antizēlos kai baskanos kai ponēros, ho antikeimenos tǭ genei tōn dikaiōn, idōn to te megethos autou tēs martyrias kai tēn apʼ archēs anepilēpton politeian, estephanōmenon te ton tēs aphtharsias stephanon kai brabeion anantirrēton apenēnegmenon, epetēdeusen, hōs mēde to sōmation autou hyphʼ hēmōn lēphthēnai, kaiper pollōn epithymountōn touto poiēsai kai koinōnēsai tǭ hagiǭ autou sarkiǭ.
But the jealous and envious evil one, the adversary of the race of the righteous, seeing the greatness of his martyrdom and his blameless way of life from the beginning, and that he had been crowned with the crown of incorruptibility and had carried off a prize no one could dispute, saw to it that not even his poor body should be taken away by us, although many desired to do this and to have a share in his holy flesh.
1 Cor 9:25 (echo, low confidence) · 2 Tim 4:8 (echo, low confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: The devil, envious of Polycarp's victory, tried to keep the Christians from recovering his body.
- “Poor body” (σωμάτιον): a diminutive, suggesting tenderness toward his remains.
- “To have a share” (κοινωνῆσαι): to be in fellowship with him through his remains.
Topics: Martyrdom, Martyrs' shrines and relics
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 17.1 (PG 5:1041b; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/17-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/17-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
17.2Lake, LCL 25:334–336; PG 5:1041b–1041c
ὑπέβαλεν γοῦν Νικήτην τὸν τοῦ Ἡρώδου πατέρα, ἀδελφὸν δὲ Ἄλκης, ἐντυχεῖν τῷ ἄρχοντι, ὥστε μὴ δοῦναι αὐτοῦ τὸ σῶμα· μή, φησίν, ἀφέντες τὸν ἐσταυρωμένον τοῦτον ἄρξωνται σέβεσθαι. καὶ ταῦτα εἶπον ὑποβαλλόντων καὶ ἐνισχυόντων τῶν Ἰουδαίων, οἳ καὶ ἐτήρησαν, μελλόντων ἡμῶν ἐκ τοῦ πυρὸς αὐτὸν λαμβάνειν· ἀγνοοῦντες, ὅτι οὔτε τὸν Χριστόν ποτε καταλιπεῖν δυνησόμεθα, τὸν ὑπὲρ τῆς τοῦ παντὸς κόσμου τῶν σωζομένων σωτηρίας παθόντα ἄμωμον ὑπὲρ ἁμαρτωλῶν, οὔτε ἕτερόν τινα σέβεσθαι.
hypebalen goun Nikētēn ton tou Hērōdou patera, adelphon de Alkēs, entychein tǭ archonti, hōste mē dounai autou to sōma; mē, phēsin, aphentes ton estaurōmenon touton arxōntai sebesthai. kai tauta eipon hypoballontōn kai enischyontōn tōn Ioudaiōn, hoi kai etērēsan, mellontōn hēmōn ek tou pyros auton lambanein; agnoountes, hoti oute ton Christon pote katalipein dynēsometha, ton hyper tēs tou pantos kosmou tōn sōzomenōn sōtērias pathonta amōmon hyper hamartōlōn, oute heteron tina sebesthai.
So he prompted Nicetes, the father of Herod and brother of Alce, to petition the governor not to give up his body, “lest,” he said, “they abandon the crucified one and begin to worship this man.” And they said this at the prompting and urging of the Jews, who also kept watch when we were about to take him from the fire. They did not know that we will never be able either to abandon Christ, who suffered for the salvation of the whole world of those who are being saved, the blameless one for sinners, or to worship any other.
1 Pet 3:18 (echo, medium confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: Opponents claimed Christians would worship Polycarp instead of Christ, but Christians worship Christ alone.
- Alce may be the woman of Smyrna greeted by Ignatius (Ign. Smyrn. 13.2; Ign. Pol. 8.3).
- “The governor” (τῷ ἄρχοντι): the proconsul.
Topics: Christology, Martyrdom, Worship
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 17.2 (PG 5:1041b–1041c; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/17-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/17-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
17.3Lake, LCL 25:336; PG 5:1041c
τοῦτον μὲν γὰρ υἱὸν ὄντα τοῦ θεοῦ προσκυνοῦμεν, τοὺς δὲ μάρτυρας ὡς μαθητὰς καὶ μιμητὰς τοῦ κυρίου ἀγαπῶμεν ἀξίως ἕνεκα εὐνοίας ἀνυπερβλήτου τῆς εἰς τὸν ἴδιον βασιλέα καὶ διδάσκαλον· ὧν γένοιτο καὶ ἡμᾶς κοινωνούς τε καὶ συμμαθητὰς γενέσθαι.
touton men gar huion onta tou theou proskynoumen, tous de martyras hōs mathētas kai mimētas tou kyriou agapōmen axiōs heneka eunoias anyperblētou tēs eis ton idion basilea kai didaskalon; hōn genoito kai hēmas koinōnous te kai symmathētas genesthai.
For him, being the Son of God, we worship; but the martyrs, as disciples and imitators of the Lord, we love as they deserve, because of their unsurpassed devotion to their own King and Teacher. May it be granted to us also to become their companions and fellow disciples.
Notes and citation
Summary: Christians worship Christ as Son of God and love the martyrs as his disciples.
- The contrast is between “worship” (προσκυνοῦμεν), given to Christ alone, and “love” (ἀγαπῶμεν), given to the martyrs.
Topics: Christology, Martyrdom, Worship
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 17.3 (PG 5:1041c; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/17-3).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/17-3
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 18
18.1Lake, LCL 25:336
Ἰδὼν οὖν ὁ κεντυρίων τὴν τῶν Ἰουδαίων γενομένην φιλονεικίαν, θεὶς αὐτὸν ἐν μέσῳ, ὡς ἔθος αὐτοῖς, ἔκαυσεν.
Idōn oun ho kentyriōn tēn tōn Ioudaiōn genomenēn philoneikian, theis auton en mesǭ, hōs ethos autois, ekausen.
So the centurion, seeing the contentiousness of the Jews, placed the body in the middle, as is their custom, and burned it.
Notes and citation
Summary: The centurion had Polycarp's body burned.
- “As is their custom” probably refers to the Roman practice of burning the bodies of the condemned.
Topics: Martyrdom
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 18.1 (Lake, LCL 25:336; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/18-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/18-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
18.2Lake, LCL 25:336
οὕτως τε ἡμεῖς ὕστερον ἀνελόμενοι τὰ τιμιώτερα λίθων πολυτελῶν καὶ δοκιμώτερα ὑπὲρ χρυσίον ὀστᾶ αὐτοῦ ἀπεθέμεθα, ὅπου καὶ ἀκόλουθον ἦν.
houtōs te hēmeis hysteron anelomenoi ta timiōtera lithōn polytelōn kai dokimōtera hyper chrysion osta autou apethemetha, hopou kai akolouthon ēn.
And so we afterward took up his bones, more precious than costly stones and more refined than gold, and laid them where it was fitting.
1 Pet 1:7 (echo, low confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: The Christians gathered Polycarp's bones and laid them to rest.
- This is among the earliest witnesses to Christian care for the remains of martyrs.
Topics: Martyrdom, Martyrs' shrines and relics
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 18.2 (Lake, LCL 25:336; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/18-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/18-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
18.3Lake, LCL 25:336; PG 5:1044b
ἔνθα ὡς δυνατὸν ἡμῖν συναγομένοις ἐν ἀγαλλιάσει καὶ χαρᾷ παρέξει ὁ κύριος ἐπιτελεῖν τὴν τοῦ μαρτυρίου αὐτοῦ ἡμέραν γενέθλιον, εἴς τε τὴν τῶν προηθληκότων μνήμην καὶ τῶν μελλόντων ἄσκησίν τε καὶ ἑτοιμασίαν.
entha hōs dynaton hēmin synagomenois en agalliasei kai charą parexei ho kyrios epitelein tēn tou martyriou autou hēmeran genethlion, eis te tēn tōn proēthlēkotōn mnēmēn kai tōn mellontōn askēsin te kai hetoimasian.
There, as far as possible, when we gather in gladness and joy, the Lord will grant us to celebrate the birthday of his martyrdom, both in memory of those who have already contended and for the training and preparation of those who are yet to do so.
Notes and citation
Summary: The church planned to gather yearly on the anniversary of Polycarp's martyrdom.
- “Birthday” (ἡμέραν γενέθλιον): the day of death as birth into heavenly life. This is the earliest known reference to an annual commemoration of a martyr.
Topics: Martyrdom, Martyrs' shrines and relics
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 18.3 (PG 5:1044b; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/18-3).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/18-3
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 19
19.1Lake, LCL 25:336–338; PG 5:1044b
Τοιαῦτα τὰ κατὰ τὸν μακάριον Πολύκαρπον, ὃς σὺν τοῖς ἀπὸ Φιλαδελφίας δωδέκατος ἐν Σμύρνῃ μαρτυρήσας, μόνος ὑπὸ πάντων μᾶλλον μνημονεύεται, ὥστε καὶ ὑπὸ τῶν ἐθνῶν ἐν παντὶ τόπῳ λαλεῖσθαι· οὐ μόνον διδάσκαλος γενόμενος ἐπίσημος, ἀλλὰ καὶ μάρτυς ἔξοχος, οὗ τὸ μαρτύριον πάντες ἐπιθυμοῦσιν μιμεῖσθαι κατὰ τὸ εὐαγγέλιον Χριστοῦ γενόμενον.
Toiauta ta kata ton makarion Polykarpon, hos syn tois apo Philadelphias dōdekatos en Smyrnę̄ martyrēsas, monos hypo pantōn mallon mnēmoneuetai, hōste kai hypo tōn ethnōn en panti topǭ laleisthai; ou monon didaskalos genomenos episēmos, alla kai martys exochos, hou to martyrion pantes epithymousin mimeisthai kata to euangelion Christou genomenon.
Such is the account of the blessed Polycarp, who, though he was the twelfth to be martyred in Smyrna, counting those from Philadelphia, is alone especially remembered by everyone, so that he is spoken of in every place even by the Gentiles. He was not only a notable teacher but also an outstanding martyr, whose martyrdom all desire to imitate, since it took place in accordance with the gospel of Christ.
Notes and citation
Summary: Polycarp, though one of twelve martyrs, is remembered everywhere as a teacher and model martyr.
Topics: Martyrdom
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 19.1 (PG 5:1044b; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/19-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/19-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
19.2Lake, LCL 25:338; PG 5:1044b
διὰ τῆς ὑπομονῆς καταγωνισάμενος τὸν ἄδικον ἄρχοντα καὶ οὕτως τὸν τῆς ἀφθαρσίας στέφανον ἀπολαβών, σὺν τοῖς ἀποστόλοις καὶ πᾶσιν δικαίοις ἀγαλλιώμενος δοξάζει τὸν θεὸν καὶ πατέρα παντοκράτορα καὶ εὐλογεῖ τὸν κύριον ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦν Χριστόν, τὸν σωτῆρα τῶν ψυχῶν ἡμῶν καὶ κυβερνήτην τῶν σωμάτων ἡμῶν καὶ ποιμένα τῆς κατὰ τὴν οἰκουμένην καθολικῆς ἐκκλησίας.
dia tēs hypomonēs katagōnisamenos ton adikon archonta kai houtōs ton tēs aphtharsias stephanon apolabōn, syn tois apostolois kai pasin dikaiois agalliōmenos doxazei ton theon kai patera pantokratora kai eulogei ton kyrion hēmōn Iēsoun Christon, ton sōtēra tōn psychōn hēmōn kai kybernētēn tōn sōmatōn hēmōn kai poimena tēs kata tēn oikoumenēn katholikēs ekklēsias.
Having overcome the unjust ruler by his endurance, and so received the crown of incorruptibility, he rejoices with the apostles and all the righteous, and glorifies God the Father Almighty, and blesses our Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior of our souls, the Pilot of our bodies, and the Shepherd of the catholic church throughout the world.
1 Pet 2:25 (echo, medium confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: Polycarp now rejoices with the apostles and praises God and Christ.
- “The unjust ruler” may be the proconsul or the devil.
- “Pilot” (κυβερνήτην): the helmsman of a ship.
Topics: Christology, Eschatology
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 19.2 (PG 5:1044b; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/19-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/19-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 20
20.1Lake, LCL 25:338; PG 5:1044b–1044c
Ὑμεῖς μὲν οὖν ἠξιώσατε διὰ πλειόνων δηλωθῆναι ὑμῖν τὰ γενόμενα, ἡμεῖς δὲ κατὰ τὸ παρὸν ἐπὶ κεφαλαίῳ μεμηνύκαμεν διὰ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ ἡμῶν Μαρκίωνος. μαθόντες οὖν ταῦτα καὶ τοῖς ἐπέκεινα ἀδελφοῖς τὴν ἐπιστολὴν διαπέμψασθε, ἵνα καὶ ἐκεῖνοι δοξάζωσιν τὸν κύριον τὸν ἐκλογὰς ποιοῦντα ἀπὸ τῶν ἰδίων δούλων.
Hymeis men oun ēxiōsate dia pleionōn dēlōthēnai hymin ta genomena, hēmeis de kata to paron epi kephalaiǭ memēnykamen dia tou adelphou hēmōn Markiōnos. mathontes oun tauta kai tois epekeina adelphois tēn epistolēn diapempsasthe, hina kai ekeinoi doxazōsin ton kyrion ton eklogas poiounta apo tōn idiōn doulōn.
You asked that what happened be made known to you more fully, but for the present we have reported it in summary through our brother Marcion. When you have learned these things, send the letter on to the brothers farther away as well, so that they too may glorify the Lord who makes choices from among his own servants.
Textual problem in this passage: see the notes.
Notes and citation
Summary: The church asks the readers to pass the letter on to other churches.
- “Marcion” (some manuscripts “Marcianus”): the messenger, not the second-century teacher of the same name.
- The Ante-Nicene Fathers translation (1885) reads “Marcus,” another variant of the name.
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 20.1 (PG 5:1044b–1044c; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/20-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/20-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
20.2Lake, LCL 25:338–340
Τῷ δὲ δυναμένῳ πάντας ἡμᾶς εἰσαγαγεῖν ἐν τῇ αὐτοῦ χάριτι καὶ δωρεᾷ εἰς τὴν ἐπουράνιον αὐτοῦ βασιλείαν διὰ τοῦ μονογενοῦς παιδὸς αὐτοῦ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, δόξα, τιμή, κράτος, μεγαλωσύνη εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας. προσαγορεύετε πάντας τοὺς ἁγίους. ὑμᾶς οἱ σὺν ἡμῖν προσαγορεύουσιν καὶ Εὐάρεστος ὁ γράψας πανοικεί.
Tǭ de dynamenǭ pantas hēmas eisagagein en tę̄ autou chariti kai dōreą eis tēn epouranion autou basileian dia tou monogenous paidos autou Iēsou Christou, doxa, timē, kratos, megalōsynē eis tous aiōnas. prosagoreuete pantas tous hagious. hymas hoi syn hēmin prosagoreuousin kai Euarestos ho grapsas panoikei.
To him who is able to bring us all by his grace and gift into his heavenly kingdom, through his only-begotten Servant Jesus Christ, be glory, honor, might, and majesty forever. Greet all the saints. Those with us greet you, and so does Evarestus, who wrote this, with his whole household.
Jude 1:24 (allusion, medium confidence) · Jude 1:25 (allusion, medium confidence) · 2 Tim 4:18 (echo, low confidence)
Notes and citation
Summary: The letter closes with a doxology and greetings from Evarestus, its writer.
- “Who wrote this”: Evarestus was probably the scribe who wrote the letter down.
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 20.2 (Lake, LCL 25:338–340; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/20-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/20-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 21
21.1Lake, LCL 25:340; PG 5:1044c–1045a
Μαρτυρεῖ δὲ ὁ μακάριος Πολύκαρπος μηνὸς Ξανθικοῦ δευτέρᾳ ἱσταμένου, πρὸ ἑπτὰ καλανδῶν Μαρτίων, σαββάτῳ μεγάλῳ, ὥρᾳ ὀγδόῃ. συνελήφθη δὲ 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.
Martyrei de ho makarios Polykarpos mēnos Xanthikou deuterą histamenou, pro hepta kalandōn Martiōn, sabbatǭ megalǭ, hōrą ogdoę̄. synelēphthē de hypo Hērōdou epi archiereōs Philippou Trallianou, anthypateuontos Statiou Kodratou, basileuontos de eis tous aiōnas Iēsou Christou; hǭ hē doxa, timē, megalōsynē, thronos aiōnios apo geneas eis genean. amēn.
The blessed Polycarp was martyred on the second day of the first part of the month Xanthicus, the seventh day before the Kalends of March, on a great Sabbath, at the eighth hour. He was arrested by Herod, when Philip of Tralles was high priest and Statius Quadratus was proconsul, while Jesus Christ was reigning forever; to whom be glory, honor, majesty, and an eternal throne from generation to generation. Amen.
Notes and citation
Summary: An appended note gives the date of Polycarp's death (23 February) and the officials of the time.
- “The seventh day before the Kalends of March”: 23 February. The eighth hour is about 2 p.m.
- Chapter 21 is widely thought to be a later addition. The proconsulship of Statius Quadratus is the main evidence for dating the martyrdom to 155/156, though some date it later.
- Some older editions and translations (e.g. the Ante-Nicene Fathers, 1885) read “the Kalends of May” (that is, 25 April); Lake's text reads “March.”
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 21.1 (PG 5:1044c–1045a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/21-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/21-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
Chapter 22
22.1Lake, LCL 25:340; PG 5:1045a
Ἐρρῶσθαι ὑμᾶς εὐχόμεθα, ἀδελφοί, στοιχοῦντας τῷ κατὰ τὸ εὐαγγέλιον λόγῳ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, μεθʼ οὗ δόξα τῷ θεῷ καὶ πατρὶ καὶ ἁγίῳ πνεύματι, ἐπὶ σωτηρίᾳ τῇ τῶν ἁγίων ἐκλεκτῶν, καθὼς ἐμαρτύρησεν ὁ μακάριος Πολύκαρπος, οὗ γένοιτο ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ πρὸς τὰ ἴχνη εὑρεθῆναι ἡμᾶς.
Errōsthai hymas euchometha, adelphoi, stoichountas tǭ kata to euangelion logǭ Iēsou Christou, methʼ hou doxa tǭ theǭ kai patri kai hagiǭ pneumati, epi sōtērią tę̄ tōn hagiōn eklektōn, kathōs emartyrēsen ho makarios Polykarpos, hou genoito en tę̄ basileią Iēsou Christou pros ta ichnē heurethēnai hēmas.
We bid you farewell, brothers, as you walk by the word of Jesus Christ that is in accordance with the gospel; with him be glory to God the Father and the Holy Spirit, for the salvation of the holy elect, just as the blessed Polycarp bore witness; may we be found following in his footsteps in the kingdom of Jesus Christ.
Notes and citation
Summary: A farewell asking that readers follow in Polycarp's footsteps.
- “Bore witness” (ἐμαρτύρησεν): the same verb as “was martyred”; both senses are present.
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 22.1 (PG 5:1045a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/22-1).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/22-1
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
22.2Lake, LCL 25:340–342; PG 5:1045a
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.
Tauta metegrapsato men Gaïos ek tōn Eirēnaiou, mathētou tou Polykarpou, hos kai synepoliteusato tǭ Eirēnaiǭ. egō de Sōkratēs en Korinthǭ ek tōn Gaïou antigraphōn egrapsa. hē charis meta pantōn.
Gaius copied these things from the papers of Irenaeus, a disciple of Polycarp; he had also lived in the same city as Irenaeus. And I, Socrates, wrote them out in Corinth from the copies of Gaius. Grace be with all.
Notes and citation
Summary: A copyist's note on how the text was passed down from Irenaeus.
- 22.2–3 are notes added by later copyists. “The papers of Irenaeus” translates “those of Irenaeus,” meaning his copies or writings.
- “Lived in the same city” (συνεπολιτεύσατο): or “was a fellow citizen with.”
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 22.2 (PG 5:1045a; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/22-2).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/22-2
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.
22.3Lake, LCL 25:342; PG 5:1045b
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 οὐράνιον βασιλείαν αὐτοῦ, ᾧ ἡ δόξα σὺν τῷ πατρὶ καὶ ἁγίῳ πνεύματι εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. ἀμήν.
Egō de palin Pionios ek tou progegrammenou egrapsa anazētēsas auta, kata apokalypsin phanerōsantos moi tou makariou Polykarpou, kathōs dēlōsō en tǭ kathexēs, synagagōn auta ēdē schedon ek tou chronou kekmēkota, hina kame synagagę̄ ho kyrios Iēsous Christos meta tōn eklektōn autou eis tēn ouranion basileian autou, hǭ hē doxa syn tǭ patri kai hagiǭ pneumati eis tous aiōnas tōn aiōnōn. amēn.
And I, Pionius, again wrote them out from the copy just mentioned, having searched for them after the blessed Polycarp showed them to me in a revelation, as I will make clear in what follows. I gathered them when they were already almost worn out with age, so that the Lord Jesus Christ may gather me too with his elect into his heavenly kingdom; to whom be glory with the Father and the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen.
Textual problem in this passage: see the notes.
Notes and citation
Summary: A later copyist, Pionius, tells how he recovered the text.
- Pionius may be the Smyrnaean martyr of ca. 250, or a later writer using his name; the Life of Polycarp is attributed to him. “What follows” refers to a work not included here.
- One manuscript (Moscow) has a different and longer ending in place of 22.2–3; it is not published here.
Cite (SBL): Mart. Pol. 22.3 (PG 5:1045b; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/22-3).
Permanent link: https://sophiascriptura.com/p/mart-pol/22-3
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.