# Cure of Greek Maladies - Author: [Theodoret of Cyrus](https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/authors/theodoret-of-cyrus/) - Latin title: *Graecarum affectionum curatio* - Date: ca. 437 (approximate) - Source: J. Raeder, ed., Theodoreti Graecarum affectionum curatio, Bibliotheca scriptorum Graecorum et Romanorum Teubneriana (Leipzig: Teubner, 1904) - Translation: Claude, from the original text, unless a passage says otherwise; each passage below gives the translator - Editions and translations: P. Canivet, ed. and trans., Thérapeutique des maladies helléniques, 2 vols., Sources chrétiennes 57 (Paris: Cerf, 1958); cited only; J.-P. Migne, ed., Patrologia Graeca 83 (Paris, 1864), with the Latin of J. Sirmond; cited only - Work page: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/ - Passages: 1096 ## Prologue 1 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-0-1 - Source: Raeder, 1 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret explains that pagans have mocked Christian faith, the unlettered apostles, and the honoring of martyrs. ### Greek text Πολλάκις μοι τῶν τῆς Ἑλληνικῆς μυθολογίας ἐξηρτη- Ῥ μένων ξυντετυχηκότες τινὲς τήν τε πίστιν ἐκωμῴδησαν τὴν ἡμετέραν, οὐδὲν ἄλλο λέγοντες ἡμᾶς τοῖς τὰ θεῖα παρ᾽ ἡμῶν παιδευομένοις ἢ τὸ πιστεύειν παρεγγυᾶν, καὶ τῆς τῶν ἀποστόλων κατηγόρουν ἀπαιδευσίας, βαρβάρους ἀποχαλοῦντερ, τὸ γλαφυρὸν τῆς εὐεπείας οὐκ ἔχοντας" καὶ τὸ γεραίρειν δὲ τοὺς μάρτυρας καταγέλαστον ἔφασκον, καὶ λίαν ἀνόητον τὸ πειρᾶσθαι τοὺς ζῶντας παρὰ τῶν τεθνεώτων. ὠφέλειαν πορίζεσθαι" προσετίθεσαν δὲ καὶ ἕτερα ἄττα παραπλήσια τούτοις, ἃ διδάξει τὸ ξύγγραμμα. ### English translation (Claude) Several people attached to Greek mythology have often met me and mocked our faith, saying that we enjoin nothing on those whom we instruct in divine things except to believe; they accused the apostles of lack of education, calling them barbarians who lack the polish of fine speech; they said that honoring the martyrs was laughable, and that it was quite senseless for the living to try to obtain help from the dead. They added other things of the same kind, which the book will show. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 0.1 (Raeder, 1; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1). ## Prologue 2 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-0-2 - Source: Raeder, 1 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: He writes for simple believers who are being misled by these charges. ### Greek text ἐγὼ δὲ πρὸς μὲν ἐκείνους ὅπερ ἐχρῆν διεξῆλθον, τὰ κατηγορήματα διαλύων" ἀνόσιον δὲ ὠήθην καὶ δυσσεβὲς παριδεῖν τοὺς ἁπλοῖς ἤθεσι. μεχγρημένους ὑπ᾽ ἐκείνων ἀπατωμένους καὶ. μὴ ξυγγρόψαιν καὶ διελέγξαι τῶν κατνηγορημάτων τὸ μάταιον. ### English translation (Claude) To them I gave the reply that was needed, refuting their charges. But I thought it unholy and impious to overlook people of simple character who mix with them and are deceived by them, and not to write a work exposing the emptiness of the charges. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 0.2 (Raeder, 1; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-2). ## Prologue 3 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-0-3 - Source: Raeder, 1 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The work has twelve discourses in a plain teaching style suited to the philosophical testimonies it quotes. ### Greek text καὶ διεῖλον. μὲν εἰς δυοκαίδεκα διαλέξεις τὴν πραγματείαν, τὸν ἀνειμένον δὲ χαρακτῆρα τοῖς λόγοις ἐντέθεικα᾽ τῇ διδασκαλίᾳ γὰρ εἶναι. τοῦτον ὑπείληφα πρόσφορον, ἄλλως τε καὶ ταῖς Πλάτωνὸς καὶ τῶν ἄλλων φιλοσύφων χρώμενον μαρτυρίαις ἔδεν καὶ τοὺς λόγους μὴ παντάπασιν ἀπῴδοντας ξυναρμύσαι, ἀλλ᾽ ἔχοντάς τινα πρὸς ἐκείνας ἐμφέρειαν. ### English translation (Claude) I have divided the treatise into twelve discourses, and I have given the discourses a relaxed style; for I judged that this suits teaching, especially since I use the testimonies of Plato and the other philosophers and had to make my own words fit with them, not wholly out of tune but bearing some likeness to them. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 0.3 (Raeder, 1; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-3). ## Prologue 4 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-0-4 - Source: Raeder, 2 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The first discourse defends faith and the unlettered apostles. ### Greek text ἙἩἭἩ δὲ πρώτη διάλεξις τὴν ὑπὲρ τῆς πίστεως καὶ τῆς τῶν ἀποστόλων ἀπαιδευσίας ἀπολογίαν ποιεῖται, ἐκ τῶν Ἑλληνικῶν φιλοσόφων τὰς ἀποδείξεις προσφέρουσα. ### English translation (Claude) The first discourse makes the defense of faith and of the apostles' lack of education, bringing its proofs from the Greek philosophers. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 0.4 (Raeder, 2; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-4). ## Prologue 5 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-0-5 - Source: Raeder, 2 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The second discourse sets Greek views of the first principle against Moses' theology. ### Greek text Ἡ δὲ δευτέρα τῶν παρ᾽ Ἕλλησιν ὀνομαστοτάτων σοφῶν καὶ τῶν μετ᾽ ἐκείνους φιλοσόφων ἐπικληθέντων τὰς περὶ τῆς τῶν ὕλων ἀρχῆς ἀπαριθμεῖται δόξας" καὶ Μωῦσοῦ τοῦ πάντῶν ἐκείνων πρεσβυτάτου τὴν ἀληθῆ θεολογίαν ἔκ παραλλήλου τιθεῖσα, τὴν μὲν ἐκείνων διελέγχει ψευδολογίαν, τῆς δὲ τούτου διδασκαλίας ἀστράπτουσαν δείκνυσι τὴν ἀλήθειαν. ### English translation (Claude) The second lists the opinions on the first principle of the universe held by the most renowned sages among the Greeks and by those after them called philosophers; and setting beside them the true theology of Moses, the oldest of them all, it refutes their false talk and shows the shining truth of his teaching. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 0.5 (Raeder, 2; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-5). ## Prologue 6 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-0-6 - Source: Raeder, 2 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The third discourse compares pagan lesser gods with the angels of Scripture. ### Greek text ἭἩ δὲ τρίτη διδάσκει, τίνα μὲν περὶ τῶν δευτέρων παρ᾽ “Ἕλλησι καλουμένων θεῶν παρ᾽ ἐκείνοις μεμυθολόγηται, τίνα δὲ περὶ τῶν ἀσωμάτων, κτιστῶν δὲ φύσεων ἡμᾶς ἡ θεία διδάσπει γραφή, ὥστε πάλιν τῇ παρεξετάσει καὶ τῶν παρ᾽ ἡμῖν θρησκευομένων δειχθῆναι τὸ ἀξιέπαινον καὶ τῶν μυσαρῶν ἐκείνων μύθων τὸ δυσειδὲς καὶ δυσῶδες διελεγχθῆναι. ### English translation (Claude) The third teaches what myths the Greeks told about those they call secondary gods, and what the divine Scripture teaches us about the bodiless but created natures, so that by the comparison the praiseworthiness of what we honor may again be shown and the ugliness and foulness of those loathsome myths exposed. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 0.6 (Raeder, 2; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-6). ## Prologue 7 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-0-7 - Source: Raeder, 2 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The fourth discourse treats matter and the world's origin. ### Greek text ὭἩ δὲ τετάρτη περὶ τῆς ὕλης καὶ τοῦ χόσμου τὴν ὑπόθεσιν ἔχει καὶ δείκνυσι τὴν ἡμετέραν κοσμογένειαν πολλῷ τῆς Πλάτωνος καὶ τῶν ἄλλων πρεπωδεστέραν. ### English translation (Claude) The fourth takes as its subject matter and the world, and shows that our account of the world's origin is far more fitting than that of Plato and the others. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 0.7 (Raeder, 2; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-7). ## Prologue 8 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-0-8 - Source: Raeder, 2 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The fifth discourse treats human nature. ### Greek text Περὶ δὲ τῆς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου φύσεως ἡ πέμπτη δέδεκται τὸν ἀγῶνα, καὶ τὰς “Ἑλληνικὰς δόξας καὶ τὰς Χριστιανικὰς ἐπιδειινῦσα καὶ ὅσον φωτὸς καὶ σκότους διδάσκουσα τὸ διάφορον. ### English translation (Claude) The fifth has taken up the contest about the nature of the human being, setting out both the Greek opinions and the Christian ones and teaching that they differ as light from darkness. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 0.8 (Raeder, 2; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-8). ## Prologue 9 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-0-9 - Source: Raeder, 2 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The sixth discourse treats providence against Diagoras, Epicurus, and Aristotle. ### Greek text Τὴν ἕκτην δὲ τάξιν ὃ περὶ τῆς προνοίας ἔλαχε λόγος. ἔδει γὰρ τοῖς περὶ Θεοῦ καὶ τοῖς ὑπὸ Θεοῦ γεγενημένοις τοῦτον ἀκολουθῆσαι τὸν λόγον, διελέγχοντα ΖΔιαγόρου μὲν τὸ ἄθεον, ᾿Επικούρου δὲ τὸ βλάσφημον, τῆς Ἀριστοτέλους δὲ προνοίας τὸ σμιπρολόγον, ἐπαινοῦντα δὲ Πλάτωνος καὶ Πλωτίνου καὶ τῶν ἄλλων, ὅσοι τούτων εἰσὶν ὁμογνώμονες, τὰ περὶ τῆς προνοίας διδάγματα᾽ καὶ φυσικοῖς δὲ λογισμοῖς ἐπιδείκνυσι ταύτην ἔν τῇ κτίσει θεωρουμένην καὶ ἐν ἑκάστῳ τῶν θεόθεν γινομένων προφαινομένην. ### English translation (Claude) The discourse on providence has received the sixth place. For this discourse had to follow those about God and about the things made by God. It refutes the atheism of Diagoras, the blasphemy of Epicurus, and the pettiness of Aristotle's providence, and praises the teachings on providence of Plato, Plotinus, and the others who agree with them; and by arguments from nature it shows that providence is seen in creation and appears in each of the things that come from God. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 0.9 (Raeder, 2; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-9). ## Prologue 10 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-0-10 - Source: Raeder, 3 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The seventh discourse treats sacrifices, Greek and Jewish. ### Greek text Ἐπειδὴ δὲ καὶ τῶν θυσιῶν ἔδει δεῖξαι τὸ περιττόν, ἡ ἑβδόμη διάλεξις τοῦτον περιέχει τὸν λόγον, φιλοσόφοις μὲν λόγοις τῶν θυσιῶν τῶν Ἑλληνικῶν κατηγοροῦσα, προφητικοῖς δὲ τὸ νηπιῶδες τῆς Ιουδαίων νομοθεσίας ἐπιδειπνῦσα. ### English translation (Claude) Since it was also necessary to show that sacrifices are superfluous, the seventh discourse contains this argument, accusing the Greek sacrifices with the arguments of philosophers and showing the childish character of the Jewish legislation with the words of the prophets. ### Translation notes - Theodoret's description of the Mosaic law as 'childish' (fit for an early stage) is his own view, developed in Discourse 7. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 0.10 (Raeder, 3; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-10). ## Prologue 11 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-0-11 - Source: Raeder, 3 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The eighth discourse defends the honoring of martyrs. ### Greek text Τὴν δὲ κατὰ τῶν τοὺς νιπηφόρους μάρτυρας γεραιρόντῶν κατηγορίαν, καὶ μέντοι καὶ τὴν ἀπολογίαν, ἡ ὀγδόη περιέχει, ταῖς τῶν φιλοσόφων καὶ ξυγγραφέων, καὶ μέντοι καὶ ποιητῶν μαρτυρίαις χρωμένη καὶ ἐπιδειενῦσα, ὡς Ἕλληνες οὐ μόνον χοαῖς, ἀλλὰ καὶ θυσίαις τοὺς τεθνεῶτας ἐτίμων, τοὺς μὲν θεούς, τοὺς δὲ ἡμιθέους, τοὺς δὲ ἥρωας ὀνομάζοντες, καὶ τούτων τοὺς πλείστους ἀκολασίᾳ ξυνεξηκότας. ### English translation (Claude) The eighth contains the charge against those who honor the victorious martyrs, and also the defense; it uses the testimonies of philosophers and historians, and of poets as well, and shows that the Greeks honored the dead not only with libations but even with sacrifices, calling some of them gods, some demigods, some heroes, though most of these had lived in licentiousness. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 0.11 (Raeder, 3; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-11). ## Prologue 12 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-0-12 - Source: Raeder, 3 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The ninth discourse compares Greek lawgivers with the apostles. ### Greek text Προύργου δὲ φήθην καὶ τοῖς παρ᾽ “Ἕλλησιν ὀνομαστοτάτοις γεγενημένοις νομοθέταις τοὺς ἡμετέρους. παρεξετάσαι., τοὺς ἁλιέας λέγω καὶ τὸν σκυτοτόμον καὶ τοὺς τελώνας, καὶ. δεῖξαι πάλιν ἐκ ξυγκρίσεως τὸ διάφορον, καὶ ὡς ἐκεῖνοι μὲν οἱ νόμον μετὰ τῶν τεθεικότων τῷ τῆς λήθης παρεδόθησαν ξόφῳ, οἱ δὲ τῶν. ἁλιέων ἀνθοῦσιν- οὐ μόνον παρ᾽ Ἕλλησι καὶ Ῥωμαίοις, ἀλλὰ καὶ παρὰ Σούθαις καὶ Σαυρομάταις καὶ Πέρσαις καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις βαρβάροις. ταύτην δὲ τὴν παρεξέτασιν ἡ ἐνάτη περιέχει ] διάλεξιρ. ### English translation (Claude) I thought it worthwhile also to compare our lawgivers with the most famous lawgivers among the Greeks (I mean the fishermen, the leather-worker, and the tax collectors), and again to show the difference by comparison: how those lawgivers, laws and all, were handed over to the darkness of oblivion, while the laws of the fishermen flourish not only among Greeks and Romans but also among Scythians, Sauromatians, Persians, and the other barbarians. The ninth discourse contains this comparison. ### Scripture references - Acts 18:3: echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The leather-worker is Paul, a tentmaker (Acts 18:3). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 0.12 (Raeder, 3; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-12). ## Prologue 13 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-0-13 - Source: Raeder, 3 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The tenth discourse contrasts biblical prophecy with pagan oracles. ### Greek text Ἢ δὲ δεκάτη διδάσκει, ὁποῖα μὲν οἱ θεῖοι χρησμοὶ προηγόρευσαν, καὶ ὡς Θεῷ πρέποντα καὶ τοῖς εὖ φρονοῦσι τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἁρμόττοντα, τίνα δὲ ὁ Πύθιος καὶ ὁ Δωδωναῖος καὶ οἱ ἄλλοι τῶν “Ελλήνων ψευδομάντεις προειπόντες ἐφωράθησαν μὲν ψευδόμενοι καὶ τῶν᾽ ἐσομένων οὐδὲν προγινώσκοντες, τοιαῦτα δὲ τεθεσπικότες, ὁποῖα οὐδὲ τῶν ἐπιεικῶν τις ἀνθρώπων ἠνέσχετο ἂν εἰσηγήσασθαι. ### English translation (Claude) The tenth teaches what the divine oracles foretold, how fitting they are to God and suited to people of sound mind; and what the Pythian, the Dodonaean, and the other false seers of the Greeks foretold, who were caught lying and foreknowing nothing of the future, and who gave oracles such as no decent human being would have consented to propose. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 0.13 (Raeder, 3; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-13). ## Prologue 14 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-0-14 - Source: Raeder, 4 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The eleventh discourse treats the end and judgment. ### Greek text ἸἘπειδὴ δὲ καὶ περὶ τέλους καὶ πρίσεως ἔδει γνῶναι τοὺς ἀγνοοῦντας, τίνα μὲν ἡμεῖς, τίνα δὲ ἐκεῖνοι διδάσκουσι, ταύτην ἡ πρώτῃ καὶ δεκάτη διάλεξις τοῖς ἐντυχεῖν βουλομένοις τὴν διδασκαλίαν προσφέρει. ### English translation (Claude) Since those who do not know needed also to learn about the end and the judgment, what we teach and what they teach, the eleventh discourse offers this teaching to those who wish to read it. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 0.14 (Raeder, 4; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-14). ## Prologue 15 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-0-15 - Source: Raeder, 4 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The twelfth discourse compares the lives of philosophers and apostles. ### Greek text ἰΔλλὰ γὰρ καὶ τῆς πρακτινῆς ἀρετῆς ἐπιδείκνυμι τὸ διάφορον; ἐπειδὴ μάλα καὶ τὴν Ἑλληνινὴν ξυμμορίαν ἐπὶ τοῖς πάλαι γεγενημένοις φιλοσόφοις βρενθυομένην ὁρῶ καὶ τὸν ἐκείνων βίον αἴρειν τοῖς λόγοις ἐπιχειροῦντας. ἐπι»δείξει τοίνυν ἡ δευτέρα καὶ δεκάτη διάλεξις, ὡς ὃ ἐκείνων μὲν βίος οὐ μόνον φιλοσόφων, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀνδραπόδων ἐπαινουμένων ἀνάξιος, ὁ δὲ τῶν ἀποστόλων καὶ τῶν ἐκείνοις ἑπομένων τῆς φύσεως τῆς ἀνθρωπίνης ὑπέρτερος καὶ τοῖς σωμάτων ἀπηλλαγμένοις καὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν περιπολοῦσι, προσύμοιος. ### English translation (Claude) But I also show the difference in practical virtue, since I see the Greek company priding itself on the philosophers of old and trying to exalt their life in words. The twelfth discourse, then, will show that their life was unworthy not only of philosophers but even of slaves who are praised, while the life of the apostles and of those who follow them surpasses human nature and is like that of beings freed from bodies who move about heaven. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 0.15 (Raeder, 4; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-15). ## Prologue 16 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-0-16 - Source: Raeder, 4 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret gives the title of the book. ### Greek text Ὄνομα δὲ τῷ βιβλίρ Ἑλληνικῶν θεραπευτικὴ παθημάτων ἢ Εὐαγγελικῆς ἀληθείας ἐξ Ἕλληνικῆς φιλοσοφίας ἐπίγνωσις. ### English translation (Claude) The name of the book is The Cure of Greek Maladies, or, The Knowledge of Gospel Truth from Greek Philosophy. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 0.16 (Raeder, 4; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-16). ## Prologue 17 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-0-17 - Source: Raeder, 4 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: He asks readers to pray for the author and take profit from what is well said. ### Greek text Ἐγὼ μὲν οὖν τῆς τε τῶν νοσούντων ἕνεκα θεραπείας καὶ τῆς τῶν ὑγιαινόντων προμηθούμενος. ὠφελείας τοῦτον ἀνεδεξάμην τὸν πόνον᾽ τοὺς δὲ τοῖς ἀλλοτρίοις ἐντυγχάνοντας πόνοις παραπαλῶ, εἰ μὲν ἅπαντα εὖ ἔχει τὰ γεγραμμένα, τὸν τούτων ἀνυμνῆσαι δοτῆρα καὶ τοῖς πεπονὴηπόσι προσευχὰς ἀντιδοῦναι᾽ εἰ δέ τινα ἐλλείπει, μὴ πάντων ὁμοῦ τούτων εἵνεκα καταγνῶναι, ἀλλ᾽ ἐκ τῶν εὖ εἰρημένων τὸ κέρδος κομίσασθαι. ### English translation (Claude) I have undertaken this labor out of concern both for the cure of the sick and for the benefit of the healthy. I urge those who read the labors of others, if everything written is in good order, to praise the Giver of it and to repay those who toiled with prayers; and if anything falls short, not to condemn the whole because of it, but to take the profit from what is well said. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 0.17 (Raeder, 4; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-17). ## Discourse 1.1 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-1 - Source: Raeder, 5 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Both body and soul need healing, but the soul's ills are mostly self-chosen. ### Greek text Ἰατρικὴ θεραπεία ἔστι μέν που καὶ σώματος, ἔστι δ᾽ ἄρα καὶ ψυχῆς᾽ καὶ γὰρ δὴ καὶ ταύτῃ κἀκείνῳ συχνὰ προσγίνεται πάθη, ἀλλὰ τῷ μὲν ἀκούσια, τῇ δέ, ὡς ἐπίπαν, αὐθαίρετα. ### English translation (Claude) There is a medical treatment for the body, and there is one also for the soul; for many ailments befall both, but those of the body are involuntary, while those of the soul are, for the most part, self-chosen. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.1 (Raeder, 5; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-1). ## Discourse 1.2 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-2 - Source: Raeder, 5 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God has provided remedies and physicians for both body and soul. ### Greek text τοῦτο οὖν εὖ εἰδώς, οἷα δὴ πάνσοφος ὃ Θεὸς καὶ ψυχῶν καὶ σωμάτων καὶ τῶν ὅλων δημιουργός, ἑκατέρᾳ φύσει προσένειμεν ἁρμόδια φάρμακα, καὶ μέντοι καὶ ἰατροὺς ἐπέστησε, τοὺς μὲν ταύτην, τοὺς δὲ ἐκείνην ἐκπαιδεύσας τὴν ἐπιστήμην, καὶ στρατηγεῖν καὶ ἀριστεύειν κατὰ τῶν νοσημάτων ἐκέλευσεν. ### English translation (Claude) Knowing this well, God, being all-wise and the maker of souls, of bodies, and of the universe, assigned fitting remedies to each nature; he also appointed physicians, training some in the one science and some in the other, and commanded them to lead the battle and fight bravely against the diseases. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.2 (Raeder, 5; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-2). ## Discourse 1.3 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-3 - Source: Raeder, 5 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Bodily patients accept painful treatment without questioning the physician's methods. ### Greek text ἀλλ᾽ οἵ μὲν τὸ σῶμα οὐκ εὖ διακείμενον καὶ τὴν νόσον δυσχεραίνουσι καὶ ὑγείας ἱμείρονται καὶ τοῖς ἰατροῖς εἴκουσιν, οὐ μόνο ἤπια προσφέρουσι φάρμακα, ἀλλὰ κἂν τέμνωσι., κἂν καίωσι, κἂν λιμώττειν κελεύωσι, κἂν πιιρῶν τινῶν καὶ ἀηδῶν μεστὰς προσφέρωσι κύλικας καὶ διὰ τοιαύτης ἀνιαρᾶς ἐπιμελείας τὴν ὑγείαν καρπούμενοι, μισθὸν τοῖς οὕτως ἀκουμένοις ὀρέγουσι, καὶ τὴν θεραπείαν δεχόμενοι τὴν τῶν φαρμάκων οὐ περιεργάἕονταιν σηξυασίαν᾽ τὴν γάρ τοι σωτηρίαν ποθοῦσιν, οὐ τὸν ταύτης τρόπον ἀνερευνῶσιν. ### English translation (Claude) But those whose body is in poor condition are vexed by the disease, long for health, and yield to the physicians, not only when they offer gentle remedies but even if they cut, burn, order fasting, or offer cups full of bitter and unpleasant things; and reaping health through such painful care, they hold out a fee to those who heal them so; and accepting the treatment, they do not pry into how the remedies are prepared, for they long for recovery and do not investigate its method. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.3 (Raeder, 5; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-3). ## Discourse 1.4 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-4 - Source: Raeder, 5 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The sick in unbelief think themselves healthy and flee the cure. ### Greek text οἱ δὲ τῆς ἀπιστίας τὴν λώβην εἰσδεδεγμένοι οὐ μόνον ἀγνοοῦσι τὴν παγχάλεπον νόσον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς ἄκρας εὐκληρίας ἀπολαύειν ὑπολαμβάνουσιν᾽ ἣν δέ τις τῶν ταῦτα θεραπεύειν ἐπισταμένων ἀλεξίκαπον φάρμακον τῷ πάθει προσενεγκεῖν ἐθελήσῃ, ἀποπηδῶσιν αὐτίκα, καθάπερ οἱ φρενίτιδι κατεχόμενοι νόσῳ καὶ τὴν σφίσι προσφερομένην ἀποσείονται θεραπείαν καὶ τὴν ἰατρείαν ὡς ἀρρωστίαν ἀποδιδράσκουσιν. ### English translation (Claude) Those who have taken in the injury of unbelief, however, are not only unaware of their very grievous disease but even think that they enjoy the highest good fortune; and if one of those who know how to treat these things wishes to apply a protective remedy to the ailment, they jump away at once, like those gripped by frenzy, shaking off the treatment offered them and fleeing the cure as though it were a sickness. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.4 (Raeder, 5; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-4). ## Discourse 1.5 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-5 - Source: Raeder, 6 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Like physicians with the frenzied, the healer of souls must bear abuse patiently. ### Greek text χρὴ μέντοι τοὺς ταύτην μετιόντας τὴν ἐπιστήμην καὶ χαλεπαίνοντας φέρειν καὶ λοιδορουμένων ἀνέχεσθαι, κἂν πὺξ παίωσι, κἂν λακτίξωσι" τοις αὗτα γὰρ δὴ ἄττα πλημμελοῦσιν οἵ παραπαίοντες᾽ καὶ οὐ δυσχεραίνουσι τούτων γινομένων οἷ ἰατροί, ἀλλὰ καὶ δεσμὰ προσφέρουσι καὶ καταιονῶσι βίᾳ τὰς κεφαλὰς καὶ πᾶσαν μηχανὴν ἐπινοοῦσιν, ὥστε τὸ πάθος ἐξελάσαι καὶ τὴν προτέραν τῶν μορίων ἁρμονίαν ἀποδοῦναι τῷ ὅλῳ. ### English translation (Claude) Those who practice this science must nevertheless bear with them when they are angry and endure them when they revile, even if they strike with their fists or kick; for madmen commit faults of exactly this kind. And physicians are not annoyed when this happens, but they even apply restraints, forcibly drench their heads, and devise every means to drive out the ailment and restore to the whole the former harmony of its parts. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.5 (Raeder, 6; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-5). ## Discourse 1.6 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-6 - Source: Raeder, 6 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Even if the unbelievers are few, they must be cared for. ### Greek text τοῦτο δὴ καὶ ἡμῖν ποιητέον. καὶ τῶν οὕτω διακδιμένων ἐπιμελητέον εἰς δύναμιν. εἰ γὰρ καὶ ὀλίγοι λίαν εἰσὶν οἱ τῷ πάθει δεδουλωμένον καὶ ἐοίκασιν ὑποστάθμῃ τινὶ παχείᾳ τῶν τοῦ διυυλιστῆρος οὐ διϊκνουμένῃ πόρων διὰ παχύτητα, ἀλλ᾽ οὖν οὐκ ἀμελητέον αὐτῶν οὐδὲ παροπτέον φθειρομένους ὑπὸ τοῦ πάθους, ἀλλὰ πάντα πόρον ἐξευρητέον, ὥστε τὴν ἐπικειμένην αὐτοῖς ὁμίχλην ἀποσκεδάσαι καὶ τοῦ νοεροῦ φωτὸς τ ἐπιδεῖξαι τὴν αἴγλην. ### English translation (Claude) This we too must do, and care for those so disposed as far as we can. For even if those enslaved to the ailment are very few, and resemble a thick sediment that cannot pass through the holes of a strainer because of its thickness, still they must not be neglected or overlooked while the ailment destroys them; every way must be found to scatter the fog that lies over them and to show them the radiance of the spiritual light. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.6 (Raeder, 6; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-6). ## Discourse 1.7 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-7 - Source: Raeder, 6 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Like a farmer, the Christian must deal with every thorn, but by transforming it. ### Greek text οὐδεὶς γὰρ φιλόπονος γεωργὸς τὰς μὲν πολλὰς ἀχάνθας ἐχτέμνει, τὰς δὲ ὀλίγας ἐᾷ, ἀλλὰ κἂν δύο εὕρῃ, κἂν μίαν, πρόφριξον ἀνασπᾷ καὶ καθαρὸν ἀποφαίνει τὸ λήϊον. πολλῷ δὴ οὖν μᾶλλον τοῦτο ποιητέον ἡμῖν" οὐ γὰρ ἐκτέμνειν, ἀλλὰ μεταβάλλειν τὰς ἀμάνθας ὃ τῆς ἡμετέρας γεωργίας παρακελεύεται νόμος. ### English translation (Claude) No hard-working farmer cuts out most of the thorns and leaves a few; even if he finds two, or one, he pulls it up root and all and makes the field clean. All the more must we do this; for the law of our husbandry orders us not to cut out the thorns but to change them. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.7 (Raeder, 6; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-7). ## Discourse 1.8 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-8 - Source: Raeder, 6 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: He resolves to work on the unbelievers with argument as with farming and medicine. ### Greek text φέρε τοίνυν καὶ ὡς ἀκάνθαις τὴν γεωργικὴν προσενέγκωμεν δίκελλαν καὶ τῇ μακέλλῃ τοῦ λόγου τὰς τῶν ἀκοῶν ἀνευρύνωμεν αὔλακας, ἵνα μηδὲν τῶν ἐν μέσῳ κειμένων κωλυμάτων ἐπίσχῃ τῆς ἀρδείας τὸ ῥεῖθρον᾽ καὶ μὲν δὴ καὶ ὡς ἀρρωστοῦντας καταιονήσωμεν καὶ τὰ σωτήρια καὶ παιώνια. προσΠρ ### English translation (Claude) Come then, let us apply the farmer's two-pronged hoe to them as to thorns, and with the mattock of the word widen the furrows of their hearing, so that no obstacle lying in the way may hold back the stream of irrigation; and let us also, as with the sick, drench them with saving and healing remedies. ### Translation notes - The section ends mid-word (προσ-); the verb is completed at the start of 1.9. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.8 (Raeder, 6; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-8). ## Discourse 1.9 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-9 - Source: Raeder, 7 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The first ailment to heal is the conceit of the half-educated who scorn the fishermen apostles. ### Greek text ῶτον δέ γε τῶν ἄλλων τὸ τῆς οἰήσεως ἰατρεύσωμεν πάθος. καὶ γὰρ δή τινες αὐτῶν, ποιητικῶν καὶ δητορικῶν λόγων μετεσχηκότες, τινὲς δὲ καὶ τῆς Πλάτωνος εὐεπείας ἀπογευσάμενοι, καταφρονοῦσι μὲν τῶν θείων λογίων, ὡς ἥκιστα επαλλιεπημένῃ φράσει πεκομιψευμένων οὐκ ἀξιοῦσι δὲ παρ᾽ ἀνδρῶν ἁλιέων μαθεῖν τὴν τοῦ ὄντος ἀλήθειαν. ### English translation (Claude) First of all, let us heal the ailment of conceit. For some of them, who have had some share in poetry and rhetoric, and some who have tasted Plato's eloquence, despise the divine oracles as not adorned with a polished style, and do not think it worthy to learn the truth of what is from men who were fishermen. ### Translation notes - The first letters of the section's first word stand at the end of 1.8 in the printed division. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.9 (Raeder, 7; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-9). ## Discourse 1.10 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-10 - Source: Raeder, 7 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: People use craftsmen's skills without caring about their nationality or speech. ### Greek text καὶ τέχνης μὲν ἑκάστης δρεπόμενοι τοὺς καρπούς, τὰς τῶν τεχνιτῶν οὐ περιεργάζονται γλώττας᾽ οὐδὲ γὰρ Ἀττικοὺς εἶναι τοὺς σπυτοτόμους ἀπαιτοῦσιν ἢ τοὺς χαλιξας ἢ τοὺς τέκτονας ἢ τοὺς ξωγφάφους ἢ τοὺς ναυπηγοὺς ἢ τοὺς κυβερνήτας, ἀλλὰ κἂν Σκύθαι ὦσι, κἂν Σαυρομάται, κἂν Ἴβηρες, κἂν Αἰγύπτιοι, μεθ᾽ ἡδονῆς ἀπολαύουσι τῶν τεχνῶν, μόνην ἀπαιτοῦντες τὴν τούτων ἀκρίβειαν, τὴν δὲ τῶν ἐθνῶν διαφορὼν ἥκιστα δυσχεραίνουσιν. ### English translation (Claude) In each craft they enjoy the fruits without prying into the craftsmen's tongues; they do not demand that shoemakers, smiths, carpenters, painters, shipwrights, or helmsmen be Attic speakers. Even if they are Scythians, Sauromatians, Iberians, or Egyptians, they enjoy their crafts with pleasure, demanding only accuracy in them, and are not in the least troubled by the difference of nation. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.10 (Raeder, 7; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-10). ## Discourse 1.11 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-11 - Source: Raeder, 7 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Only in truth do the half-learned object to a barbarian teacher. ### Greek text καὶ κυθαριστοῦ μὲν ἀκούοντες, τῶν κρουμάτων μόνον ἀπωιτοῦσι τὴν ἄρμογίαν, οὐ μὴν εἰ Ἕλλην ἐστὶν ἢ βάρβαρος ἐπιξητοῦσι μαθεῖν᾽ μόνην δ᾽ ἄρα τῆς ἀληθείας τὴν. μάθησιν ἀπεριέργως λαβεῖν οὐκ ἐθέλουσιν, ἀλλ᾽ ἀτιμίαν ὑπολαμβάνουσιν, εἰ βάρβάρος αὐτοὺς ταύτην τὴν γλῶτταν παιδεύοι᾽ καὶ τοῦτον ἔχουσι τὸν τύφον ἄνδρες οὐδ᾽ εἰς ἄκρον τῆς “Ἑλληνικῆς φιλοσοφίας ἐληλακότες, ἀλλ᾽ ὀλίγων τινῶν, τὸ δὴ λεγόμενον, ἄκροις χείλεσι γεγευμένοι καὶ σμιπρὰ ἄττα ἔνθεν κἀκεῖθεν ἠρανισμένοι. ### English translation (Claude) When they hear a lyre player, they demand only harmony in the notes and do not seek to learn whether he is a Greek or a barbarian. Only the learning of truth are they unwilling to receive without fuss; they think it a disgrace if a barbarian teaches them this tongue. And this arrogance is held by men who have not even reached the heights of Greek philosophy but, as the saying goes, have tasted a little with the tips of their lips and gathered some small scraps here and there. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.11 (Raeder, 7; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-11). ## Discourse 1.12 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-12 - Source: Raeder, 8 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The greatest Greek philosophers traveled widely to learn the truth. ### Greek text Οἱ δὲ "τῶν Ἑληνικῶν" φιλοσόφων περιφανέστατοι; ὧν ἡ μνήμη παρὰ τοῖς ἐλλογίμοις μέχρι καὶ τήμερον πολυθρύχητος, Φερεκύδης ὁ Σύριος καὶ Πυθαγόρας ὁ Σάμιος καὶ «(Θαλῆς ὃ Μιλήσιος καὶ Σόλων ὃ ᾿4θηναῖος, καὶ μέντοι καὶ Πλάτων ἐκεῖνος, ὃ Ἀρίστωνος μὲν υἱός, Σωκράτους δὲ φοιτητής, εὐστομίᾳ δὲ πάντας ἀποχρύψας, οὖ» ὥξνησαν ἕνεκα τοῦ τἀληθὲς ἐξευρεῖν καὶ ἀἴγυπτον περινοστῆσαι καὶ "Θήβας τὰς Αἰγυπτίας καὶ Σικελίαν καὶ ᾿Ιταλίαν, καὶ ταῦτα οὐ μιᾶς βασιλείας τάδε τὸ τηνιμαῦτα ἰθυνούσης τὰ ἔθνη, ἀλλὰ διαφόρων, μὲν πολιτειῶν ἐν ταῖς πόλεσιν Ι οὐσῶν, ### English translation (Claude) Yet the most illustrious of the Greek philosophers, whose memory is still celebrated among the learned today (Pherecydes of Syros, Pythagoras of Samos, Thales of Miletus, Solon of Athens, and also the famous Plato, son of Ariston and pupil of Socrates, who outshone all in eloquence), did not shrink, for the sake of finding the truth, from traveling around Egypt, Egyptian Thebes, Sicily, and Italy, and that when no single kingdom then governed the nations, but the cities had different constitutions ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 1.13. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.12 (Raeder, 8; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-12). ## Discourse 1.13 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-13 - Source: Raeder, 8 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Political obstacles did not stop the Greek sages from learning from barbarians. ### Greek text διαφόρων δὲ νόμων᾽ αἵ μὲν γὰρ δημοκρατίαν, αἵ δὲ ὀλιγαρχίαν ἠσπάξοντο᾽ καὶ οἵ μὲν ἐτυραννοῦντο, οἵ δὲ ἐννόμως ἐβασιλεύοντο. ἀλλ᾽ ὕμως οὐδὲν αὐτοὺς τούτων ἐπέσχε τῶν χκωλυμάτων παρὰ βαρβάρους ἀνθρώπους δραμεῖν καὶ μαθεῖν παρ᾽ αὐτῶν, ἅπερ αὐτοὺς ἄμεινον γινώσκειν ἑαυτῶν ὑπελάμβανον. ### English translation (Claude) and different laws: some embraced democracy, some oligarchy; some were ruled by tyrants, others by lawful kings. Still, none of these obstacles kept them from hastening to barbarian peoples and learning from them what they supposed those peoples knew better than themselves. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.13 (Raeder, 8; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-13). ## Discourse 1.14 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-14 - Source: Raeder, 8 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plutarch, Porphyry, and Numenius say the Greek sages learned of God from Egyptians and Hebrews. ### Greek text φασὶ δὲ αὐτοὺς ἐν «Αἰγύπτῳ οὐ μόνον παρ᾽ Αἰγυπτίων, ἀλλὰ καὶ παρ᾽ Ἑβραίων τὰ περὶ τοῦ ὄντος 'διδαχθῆναι Θεοῦ. καὶ ταῦτα διδάσπει μὲν Πλούταρχος ὁ Βοιώτιος, διδάσκει δὲ καὶ Πορφύριος ὃ κατὰ τῆς ἀληθείας λυττήσας, καὶ μέντοι καὶ Νουμήνιος ὃ Πυθαγύρειος καὶ ἕτεροι πλεῖστοι. ### English translation (Claude) They say that in Egypt these men were taught about the God who is, not only by Egyptians but also by Hebrews. Plutarch of Boeotia teaches this, and so does Porphyry, who raged against the truth, and Numenius the Pythagorean, and very many others. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plutarch (Plutarch): allusion, low confidence - Numenius (Numenius of Apamea): allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - The passages of Plutarch, Porphyry, and Numenius meant are not specified. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.14 (Raeder, 8; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-14). ## Discourse 1.15 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-15 - Source: Raeder, 8 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pythagoras' circumcision is traced through Egypt back to Abraham. ### Greek text φασὶ δὲ τὸν Πυθαγόραν καὶ περιτομῆς ἀνασχέσθαι, τοῦτο παρ᾽ Αἰγυπτίων μεμαθηκότα᾽ ἰγύπτιοι δὲ παρ᾽. Ἑβραίων τόνδε τὸν νόμον παρέλαβον. ᾿Αβραὰμ γὰρ τοῦ πατριάρχου παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων τῆς περιτομῆς δεξαμένου τὴν ἐντολήν, ἐφύλαξε μὲν ταύτην τὸ γένος᾽ ᾧκησε δ᾽ ἐπὶ πλεῖστον τὴν ἀἴγυπτον, ἐζήλωσαν δὲ τοὺς Ἕβραίους Αἰγύπτιοι. ### English translation (Claude) They say that Pythagoras even submitted to circumcision, having learned it from the Egyptians; and the Egyptians received this law from the Hebrews. For when the patriarch Abraham received the command of circumcision from the God of the universe, his race kept it; it lived for a very long time in Egypt, and the Egyptians imitated the Hebrews. ### Scripture references - Gen 17:10: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.15 (Raeder, 8; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-15). ## Discourse 1.16 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-16 - Source: Raeder, 9 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pharaoh's daughter recognized Moses as Hebrew, showing Egyptians did not then circumcise. ### Greek text ὅτι δὲ οὐκ ἦν πάλαι νόμος Αἰγυπτίοις περιτέμνειν τὰ βρέφη, ἡ τοῦ. Φαραὼ θυγάτηρ ἀξιόχρεως μάρτυς" τῇ γὰρ Ὄχθῃ τοῦ ποταμοῦ προσερριμμένον. εὑροῦσα τὸν ἹΜωὐσῆν, εὐθύς τε τὴν περιτομὴν εἶδε καὶ τὸ γένος ἐπέγνω καὶ τῶν Ἑβραίων ἔκγονον τὸ βρέφος ὠνόμασεν. ### English translation (Claude) That the Egyptians did not of old have a law to circumcise infants, Pharaoh's daughter is a trustworthy witness: when she found Moses cast out on the riverbank, she at once saw the circumcision, recognized the race, and called the baby a child of the Hebrews. ### Scripture references - Exod 2:6: allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret's inference about circumcision is not stated in Exod 2:6, which says only that she recognized the child as Hebrew. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.16 (Raeder, 9; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-16). ## Discourse 1.17 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-17 - Source: Raeder, 9 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates did not disdain learning even from women such as Diotima and Aspasia. ### Greek text Οἱ μὲν οὖν διὰ πάσης ἐληλυθότες παιδείας τοσοῦτον ἔρωτα εἶχον φιλομαθείας, ὡς καὶ πολέμων καὶ πελαγῶν μεγίστων καταφρονῆσαι καὶ βαρβάροις ἀνδράσι φοιτῆσαι καὶ πανταχόθεν ξυλλέξαι ὅπερ ἀναγκαῖον ἐνόμισαν Σωκράτης δὲ ὁ Σωφρονίσκου, τῶν φιλοσόφων ὁ ἄριστος, οὐδὲ παρὰ γυναικῶν μαθεῖν τι χρήσιμον ὑπέλαβε φιλοσοφίας ἀνάξιον" τῷ τοι καὶ τὴν Διοτίμαν οὐκ ἠρυθρία προσαγορεύων διδάσκαλον, καὶ μέντοι καὶ παρὰ τὴν Ἀσπασίαν διετέλει θαμίζων. ### English translation (Claude) These men, who had gone through every branch of learning, had so great a love of learning that they despised wars and the greatest seas, went to barbarian men as pupils, and gathered from every quarter what they thought necessary. Socrates, son of Sophroniscus, the best of the philosophers, did not think it unworthy of philosophy to learn something useful even from women; that is why he did not blush to call Diotima his teacher, and he kept frequenting Aspasia. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Symp. 201d (Plato (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Diotima appears in Plato's Symposium; Socrates' visits to Aspasia are reported in Plato's Menexenus and elsewhere. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.17 (Raeder, 9; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-17). ## Discourse 1.18 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-18 - Source: Raeder, 9 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Today's critics know little literature yet scorn Scripture as barbarous. ### Greek text τούτων δέ γε οἱ πλεῖστοι μὲν οὐδὲ τὴν ΜΜῆνιν ἴσασι τὴν ᾿Αχιλλέως, ἐξ ἧς ἄρχεσθαι τῶν ἐλλογίμων μαθημάτων εἴωθε τὰ μειράκια οἵ δέ, ὀλίγα μὲν παρὰ ποιητῶν, ὀλίγα δὲ παρὰ ῥητόρων ἐρανισάμενοι, τῶν δέ γε φιλοσόφων οὐδὲ αὐτὰς τὰς προσηγορίας μεμωθηκότες, πλὴν δυοῖν ἢ τριῶν τῶν ἐπισήμων, βάρβαρον μὲν τὴν θείαν γραφὴν ὀνομάξουσι, μαθεῖν δὲ τἀληθὲς παρ᾽ αὐτῆς αἰσχρὸν ὑπειλήφασιν. ἐξ ἀγνοίας δὲ αὐτοῖς τὸ τῆς ἀλαζονείας. ἐπιγίνεται πάθημα. ### English translation (Claude) But most of these people do not even know the 'Wrath of Achilles', with which boys usually begin their literary studies; others, having gathered a little from the poets and a little from the orators, and not having learned even the names of the philosophers, except two or three of the famous ones, call the divine Scripture barbarous and think it shameful to learn the truth from it. The ailment of boastfulness comes upon them from ignorance. ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 1.1 (Homer, Iliad): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - 'Wrath of Achilles' is the opening of Homer's Iliad. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.18 (Raeder, 9; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-18). ## Discourse 1.19 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-19 - Source: Raeder, 9 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Greek histories show that the sciences came from barbarians. ### Greek text εἰ γὰρ τὰς “Ἑλληνικὰς ἀνεγνώκεσαν ἱστορίας.. ἔγνωσαν ἂν δήπουθεν, ὡς καὶ τὰς περιφανεῖς ἐπιστήμας καὶ τῶν τεχνῶν τὰς πλείστας παρὰ βαρβάρων ἐπαιδεύθησαν “Ἕλληνες. “γεω-. μετρίαν μὲν γὰρ καὶ ἀστρονομίαν «Αἰγυπτίους πρώτους εὑρηκέναι φασίν᾽ ἀστρολογία δὲ καὶ γενεθλιαλογία Χαλδαίων εὕρημα λέγεται" Γάραβες δὲ καὶ Φρύγες οἰωνοσκοπικὴ ### English translation (Claude) For had they read the Greek histories, they would surely have known that the Greeks were taught the famous sciences and most of the arts by barbarians. They say the Egyptians first discovered geometry and astronomy; astrology and the casting of nativities are called a discovery of the Chaldeans; the Arabs and Phrygians first devised ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 1.20. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.19 (Raeder, 9; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-19). ## Discourse 1.20 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-20 - Source: Raeder, 10 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Trumpet, pipes, letters, medicine, and ships came from barbarians. ### Greek text ν ἐπενόησαν πρῶτοι ὅτι δὲ καὶ ἡ σάλπιγξ Τυρρηνῶν ἐστιν ἔργον, καὶ αὐλοὶ Φρυγῶν, διδάσκουσι μὲν αἱ τραγῳδίαι, διδάσκουσι δὲ μετὰ τούτων αἵ ἱστορίαι. καὶ τὰ γράμματα δέ γε Φοίνικας εὑρηκέναι λογοποιοῦσιν οἱ Ἕλληνες, καὶ τὸν Κάδμον ταῦτα πρῶτον εἰς τὴν “Ελλάδα κομίσαι" ἰατρικῆς δὲ ἄρξαι τὸν 'άπιν φασὶ τὸν Αἰγύπτιον, εἶτα τὸν Ἀοκληπιὸν αὐξῆσαι τὴν τέχνην᾽ σκάφος δὲ πρῶτον ἐν 1ιβύῃ ναυπηγηθῆναν λέγουσιν. ### English translation (Claude) augury. That the trumpet is the work of the Tyrrhenians and the pipes of the Phrygians, the tragedies teach, and with them the histories. The Greeks tell that the Phoenicians invented letters and that Cadmus first brought them to Greece; they say Apis the Egyptian began medicine and Asclepius then developed the art; and that a ship was first built in Libya. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.20 (Raeder, 10; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-20). ## Discourse 1.21 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-21 - Source: Raeder, 10 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plutarch, Diodorus, and Demosthenes say Orpheus brought Egyptian rites to Greece. ### Greek text ὅτι δὲ καὶ τῶν Διονυσίων καὶ τῶν Παναθηναίων, καὶ μέντοι καὶ τῶν Θεσμοφορίων καὶ τῶν Ἐλευσινίων τὰς τελετὰς Ὀρφεύς, ἀνὴρ Ὀδρύσης, εἰς τὰς ᾿ἀθήνας ἐκόμισε καὶ εἰς Αἴγυπτον ἀφικόμενος τὰ τῆς Ἴσιδος καὶ τοῦ Ὀσίριδος εἰς τὰ τῆς Δηοῦς καὶ τοῦ Διονύσου μετατέθεικεν ὄργια, διδάσκει μὲν Πλούταρχος ὁ ἐκ Χαιρωνείας τῆς Βοιωτίας, διδάσκει δὲ καὶ ὃ Σικελιώτης “Διόδωρος, μέμνηται δὲ καὶ 4Δημοσθένης ὃ ῥήτωρ καί φησι τὸν Ὀρφέα τὰρ ἁγιωτάτας αὐτοῖς τελετὰς καταδεῖξαι. ### English translation (Claude) That Orpheus, an Odrysian, brought to Athens the rites of the Dionysia and the Panathenaea, and of the Thesmophoria and the Eleusinia, and that having come to Egypt he transferred the rites of Isis and Osiris to the mysteries of Deo and Dionysus, Plutarch of Chaeronea in Boeotia teaches, and so does Diodorus of Sicily; Demosthenes the orator also mentions it, and says that Orpheus revealed their most holy rites. ### Extrabiblical texts - Diodorus Siculus, 1.96 (Diodorus Siculus, Library of History): allusion, medium confidence - Demosthenes, Aristog. 1.11 (Demosthenes (orations)): allusion, medium confidence - Plutarch (Plutarch): allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - Diodorus 1.96; Demosthenes, Against Aristogiton 1.11 (traditional attribution). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.21 (Raeder, 10; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-21). ## Discourse 1.22 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-22 - Source: Raeder, 10 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The cult of Rhea or Cybele also came from Phrygia. ### Greek text ὅτι δὲ καὶ τὰ τῆς Ῥέας ἢ τῆς Κυβέλης ἢ τῆς ριμοῦς. (ἢ ὅπως ὁ ἂν ἐθέλητε, ὀνομάξετε' πολλὴ γὰρ εὐπορία παρ᾽ ὑμῖν ὀνομάτων, οὐχ ὑποκειμένων πραγμάτων) --- ἀλλ᾽ ὕμως ὅτι καὶ ταύτης τὰς ἑορτὰς καὶ τὰ ἐν αὐταῖς τελούμενα ἀπὸ Φρυγίας εἰς τὴν “Ἑλλάδα μετεκόμισαν Ἕλληνες, οἱ προκληθέντες ἤδη μάρτυρες διαρρήδην διδάσκουσιν. ### English translation (Claude) That the rites of Rhea, or Cybele, or Brimo (or whatever you wish to call her; you have a great wealth of names, but not of real things behind them), at any rate, that the Greeks brought her festivals and the rites performed at them from Phrygia to Greece, the witnesses already called plainly teach. ### Translation notes - 'Brimo' is a probable reading of the garbled OCR (ριμοῦς). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.22 (Raeder, 10; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-22). ## Discourse 1.23 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-23 - Source: Raeder, 11 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: If the Greeks learned so much from barbarians, critics should not refuse truth from the apostles. ### Greek text εἰ δὲ καὶ τὰς τέχνας καὶ τὰς ἐπιστήμας καὶ τῶν δαιμόνων τὰς τελετὰς καὶ τὰ πρῶτα στοιχεῖα παρὰ βαρβάρων ἐδιδάχθησαν Ἕλληνες καὶ ἐπὶ τοῖς διδασκάλοις ἁβρύνονται, τί δήποτε ὑμεῖς, οὐδὲ ξυνιέναι τὰ ὑπ᾽ ἐκείνων ξυγγεγραμμένα δυνάμενοι, παραιτεῖσθε μαθεῖν τὴν ἀλήθειαν παρ᾽ ἀνδρῶν θεόσδοτον σοφίαν εἰσδεξαμένων; ### English translation (Claude) If the Greeks were taught by barbarians the arts and sciences, the rites of the demons, and the first letters, and pride themselves on their teachers, why do you, who cannot even understand what they wrote, refuse to learn the truth from men who received God-given wisdom? ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.23 (Raeder, 11; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-23). ## Discourse 1.24 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-24 - Source: Raeder, 11 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Many famous sages were not born in Greece proper. ### Greek text εἰ δέ, ὅτι οὐκ ἐκ τῆς Ἑλλάδος ἐβλάστησαν, τὰς ἀκοὰς αὐτοῖς ὑπέχειν οὐ βούλεσθε, ὥρα ὑμῖν μήτε Θαλῆν ὀνομάζειν σοφὸν μήτε Πυθαγόραν φιλόσοφον μήτε Φερεκύδην τὸν ἐκείνου διδάσκαλον. ὃ μὲν γὰρ Φερεκύδης Σύριος ἦνς οὐκ ᾿4θηναῖος οὐδὲ Σπαρτιάτης οὐδέ γε Κορίνθιος᾽ τὸν δὲ Πυθαγόραν Ἀριστόξενος καὶ Ἀρίσταρχος καὶ Θεόπομπος Ῥυρρηνὸν εἶναί φασιν, ὁ δὲ Νεάνθης Τύριον ὀνομάζει᾽ τὸν δὲ Θαλῆν οἵ μὲν “Μιλήσιον λέγουσι, «Πέαν-δρος. δὲ καὶ “Ἡρόδοτος Φοίνικα; προσηγύρευσαν᾽ καὶ μέντοι καὶ ὁ Ἀριστοτέλης Σταγειρίτης ἦν, Σινωπεὺς δὲ ὁ Διογένης; καὶ Ἀλυμὰν ὁ Πειρίθου Κροτωνιάτης, ὃν πρῶτόν φασι περὶ φύσεως ξυγγράψαι λόγον" Ἀκραγαντῖνος δὲ ὁ Ἔμπεδονλῆς, Σικελικὴ δὲ αὕτη πόλις. ### English translation (Claude) But if you will not lend them your ears because they did not spring from Greece, it is time for you neither to call Thales wise nor Pythagoras a philosopher nor Pherecydes his teacher. For Pherecydes was a Syrian, not an Athenian, a Spartan, or a Corinthian; Aristoxenus, Aristarchus, and Theopompus say Pythagoras was a Tyrrhenian, while Neanthes calls him a Tyrian; some call Thales a Milesian, but Leandrus and Herodotus called him a Phoenician. Aristotle too was a Stagirite, Diogenes a Sinopean, and Alcmaeon son of Pirithous, who they say first wrote a treatise on nature, a Crotoniate; Empedocles was from Acragas, which is a Sicilian city. ### Extrabiblical texts - Herodotus, Hist. 1.170 (Herodotus, Histories): allusion, medium confidence - Theopompus (Theopompus of Chios (fragments)): allusion, low confidence - Aristoxenus (Aristoxenus): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Herodotus 1.170 calls Thales of Phoenician descent. Theodoret makes Pherecydes 'Syrian', confusing Syros with Syria. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.24 (Raeder, 11; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-24). ## Discourse 1.25 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-25 - Source: Raeder, 11 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Greeks themselves admire non-Greek sages. ### Greek text Εἰ δὲ ἄρα τοῦτό φατε, ὡς ἔξω μὲν τῆς “Ἑλλάδος καὶ ἔφυσαν οἵδε οἱ ἄνδρες καὶ ἐτράφησαν, τὴν δέ γε “Ἑλληνικὴν ἠσκήθησαν γλῶτταν, πρῶτον μὲν ὁμολογεῖτε καὶ ἐν ἄλλοις ἔθνεσιν ἄνδρας γεγενῆσθαι σοφούς᾽ καὶ γὰρ δὴ καὶ Ζάμολξιν τὸν Θρᾷκα καὶ ᾿ἀνάχαρίσιν τὸν Σκύθην ἐπὶ σοφίᾳ θαυμάζετε, καὶ τῶν Βραχμάνων πολὺ παρ᾽ ὑμῖν τὸ κλέος" Ἰνδοὶ δὲ οὗτοι. ### English translation (Claude) If you say that these men were born and raised outside Greece but trained in the Greek tongue, first you admit that wise men have arisen among other nations too; for you admire Zamolxis the Thracian and Anacharsis the Scythian for wisdom, and the fame of the Brahmans is great among you; these are Indians, ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 1.26. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.25 (Raeder, 11; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-25). ## Discourse 1.26 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-26 - Source: Raeder, 12 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates, the best philosopher, was a stonecutter's son and practiced the craft. ### Greek text οὐχ Ἕλληνες. ἔπειτα δὲ καὶ ἑτέρωθεν ἐξελέγχεσθε οὐχ» ὀρθῶς προτιθέντες τῆς ἀληθείας τὴν εὐέπειαν. τὸν γάρ τοι Σωφρονίσκου Σωκράτην ὁμολογεῖτε δήπου καὶ ὑμεῖς τῶν Ἑλληνικῶν φιλοσόφων ἄριστον γεγενῆσθαι" ἀλλ᾽ οὗτος ἐκ λιθοκόπου μὲν ἔφυ πατρός, ἐπὶ πλεῖστον δὲ τὴν πατρῴαν μετελήλυθε τέχνην. ### English translation (Claude) not Greeks. Next, you are refuted from another side, since you wrongly put eloquence before truth. For you surely admit that Socrates son of Sophroniscus was the best of the Greek philosophers; yet he was born of a stonecutter father, and for a very long time practiced his father's craft. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.26 (Raeder, 12; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-26). ## Discourse 1.27 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-27 - Source: Raeder, 12 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry's Philosophical History discusses Socrates' stonecutting. ### Greek text καὶ τοῦτο πολλοὶ μὲν εἰρήπασι καὶ ἄλλοι, καὶ ὁ Πορφύριος δὲ ἐν τῷ τρίτῳ τῆς Φιλοσόφου αὐτοῦ ἱστορίας ξυνέγραψεν᾽ ἔφη δὲ οὕτως" »λέγωμεν περὶ τοῦ Σωπράτους τὰ καὶ παρὰ τοῖς ἄλλοις μνήμης κατηξιωμένα, τὰ μὲν πρὸς ἔπαινον αὐτοῦ καὶ ψόγον πολλαχῶς ὑπὸ τῶν λογίων ἀνδρῶν μεμυθευμένα ἐπ᾽ ὀλίγον φυλοκρινοῦντες, καταλιπόντες δὲ ἀνεξέταστον τὸ εἴτε αὐτὸς εἰργάσατο ξὺν τῷ πατρὶ τὴν λιθοκοπιμὴν τέχνην, εἴτε ὃ πατὴρ αὐτοῦ μόνος. οὐδὲν γὰρ ἐνέχοπτεν αὐτῷ τοῦτο πρὸς σοφίαν πρὸς ὀλίγον χρόνον ἐργασθέν. εἰ δὲ δὴ ἑρμογλύφος ἦν, καὶ μᾶλλον καθάριος γὰρ ἡ τέχνη καὶ οὐ πρὸς ὀνείδο ### English translation (Claude) Many others have said this, and Porphyry wrote it in the third book of his Philosophical History. He said: 'Let us tell about Socrates the things others have thought worth recording, briefly sifting what learned men have told in many ways for praise and blame of him, but leaving unexamined whether he himself practiced the stonecutter's craft with his father or only his father did. For this did him no harm with regard to wisdom, being practiced for a short time. And if he was a sculptor of herms, so much the better; for the craft is clean and not a matter of reproach ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry (Porphyry, Philosophical History): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophical History, book 3 (fragment); no extrabiblical id exists for this work. The quotation ends at the start of 1.28. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.27 (Raeder, 12; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-27). ## Discourse 1.28 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-28 - Source: Raeder, 12 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret considers whether Socrates was educated later in life. ### Greek text υς.“ καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς δὲ τῆς αὐτῆς ἔχεται διανοίας" εἰσάγει γάρ τινας λέγοντας λιθουργικῇ τέχνῃ τὸν Σωκράτην χρησάμενον. ἀλλ᾽ ἴσως τὴν μὲν πρώτην ἡλικίαν λιθουργῶν διετέλεσεν, ὕστερον δέ, λόγων ποιητιμῶν καὶ δητορικῶν ἐρασθείς, παιδείας μετέλαχεν. ### English translation (Claude) ...'. What follows holds to the same sense, for he introduces some who say that Socrates practiced the stoneworker's craft. But perhaps he spent his early youth working stone, and later, having fallen in love with poetry and rhetoric, acquired an education. ### Translation notes - The section begins with the last letters of the word 'reproach' from the quotation in 1.27. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.28 (Raeder, 12; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-28). ## Discourse 1.29 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-29 - Source: Raeder, 12 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry says Socrates was almost unlettered. ### Greek text ἀλλ᾽ οὐδὲ τοῦτο ἔστιν εἰπεῖν᾽ πᾶν γὰρ τοὐναντίον εἶπεν ὁ Πορφύριος. λέγει δὲ οὕτως" εἶναι δὲ αὐτὸν πρὸς οὐδὲν μὲν ἀφυῆ, ἀπαίδευτον δὲ περὶ πάντα, ὡς ἁπλῶς εἰπεῖν᾽ σχεδὸν γὰρ οὐδὲ γράμματα πάνυ τι ἐπίστασθαι, ἀλλ᾽ εἶναι γελοῖον, ὑπότε τι δέοι ἢ γράψαι ### English translation (Claude) But one cannot say even this; for Porphyry said the very opposite. He speaks thus: 'He was not ill-endowed for anything, but uneducated in everything, so to speak; for he hardly knew his letters at all, but was ridiculous whenever he had to write ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry (Porphyry, Philosophical History): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophical History (fragment). The sentence continues in 1.30. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.29 (Raeder, 12; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-29). ## Discourse 1.30 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-30 - Source: Raeder, 13 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Apology shows Socrates disclaiming fine speech. ### Greek text ἢ ἀναγνῶναι, βατταρίξοντα ὥσπερ τὰ παιδία.“ καὶ ὁ Πλάτῶν δὲ αὐτὸν ἐν, ᾿Απολογίᾳ τοιάδε τέθεικε λέγοντα᾽ «οὐ μέντοι, νὴ Δία, ὦ ἄνδρες ᾿Αθηναῖοι, κδμαλλιεπημένους γε λόγους; ὥσπερ οἵ τούτων; ῥήμασί τε καὶ ὀνόμασιν. οὐδὲ κεκοσμημένους, ἀλλ᾽ ἀκούσεσθε εἰκῇ λεγόμενα τοῖς ἐπιτυχοῦσιν ὀνόμασιν. καὶ μετ᾽ ὀλίγα δὲ ταῦτα πάλιν προστέθεικεν᾽.»"αἱ δὴ καὶ νῦν ὑμῶν τοῦτο δέομαι δίκαιον, ὥς γέ μον δοκῶ, τὸν σκοπὸν τῆς λέξεως ἐᾶν (ἴσως μὲν γὰρ χείρῶν, ἴσως δὲ βελτίων ἂν εἴη), αὐτὸ δὲ τοῦτο σκοπεῖν καὶ ### English translation (Claude) or read, stammering like children.' And Plato in the Apology makes him say this: 'Not, by Zeus, men of Athens, speeches elegantly worded like theirs, adorned with phrases and words; but you will hear things said at random in whatever words come to hand.' And a little later he adds again: 'And now I ask of you this, which seems to me just: leave aside the manner of my speech (perhaps it is worse, perhaps better), and consider this alone and ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Apol. 17b–c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Plato, Apol. 18a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Apology 17b–c and 18a. The second quotation ends in 1.31. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.30 (Raeder, 13; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-30). ## Discourse 1.31 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-31 - Source: Raeder, 13 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Unlearned Socrates was more honored than eloquent Plato, who put his own works in Socrates' mouth. ### Greek text τούτῳ τὸν νοῦν προσέχειν, εἰ δίκαια λέγω.“ ἀλλ᾽ ὕμως καὶ ἀμαθῆ γε γλῶτταν καὶ ἀπαίδευτον ἐσχηκώς, οὐ μόνον τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων, ἀλλὰ καὶ Πλάτωνος τοῦ ἅπαντας “Ἕλληνας δὐεπείᾳ νενικηκότος αἰδοῦς ἀξιώτερος ἦν. καὶ τοῦτο οὐδ᾽ ἂν αὐτὸς ὁ ᾿ἀφίστωνος ἀρνηθείη. πῶς γάρ, ὅ γε πάντας ὅσους ὦδινε λόγους ἐκείνῳ προσαναθείς τὲ καὶ προσαρμόσας καὶ τῆς ἐκείνου διανοίας ἐκγόνους εἶναι [ παρασκευἄσας νομίξεσθαι; ### English translation (Claude) pay attention to this, whether what I say is just.' Yet although he had an untaught and uneducated tongue, he was more deserving of respect not only than all the others but even than Plato, who surpassed all the Greeks in eloquence. Even the son of Ariston himself would not deny this. How could he, who attributed and fitted to Socrates all the discourses he labored over, and arranged for them to be thought the offspring of Socrates' mind? ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Apol. 18a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.31 (Raeder, 13; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-31). ## Discourse 1.32 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-32 - Source: Raeder, 13 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato himself urges attention to thought rather than words. ### Greek text ὅτι δὲ καὶ οὗτος, ὁ ἅπαντας ἀνθρώπους χαὶ οὐ τοὺς ἄλλους Ἕλληνας μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτοὺς ᾿4θηναίους εὐγλωττίᾳ καὶ ὀνομάτων κάλλει πάμπαν ἀποπρύψας, μὴ τῇ πομψείᾳ τῶν λόγων, ἀλλὰ τῇ τῶν ἐνθυμημάτων ἁρμονίᾳ προσέχειν παρεγγυῇ, ἀκούσατε αὐτοῦ διαρρήδην ἐν τῷ Πολιτυκῷ λέγοντος «»«κἂν διαφυλάξῃς τὸ μὴ σπουδάζειν ἐπὶ τοῖς ὀνόμασι, πλουσιώτερος εἰς τὸ γῆρας ἀναφανήσῃ ### English translation (Claude) And that even Plato, who completely outshone all people, not only the other Greeks but the Athenians themselves, in fluency and beauty of words, urges us to attend not to the elegance of speech but to the harmony of thoughts, hear him say plainly in the Statesman: 'If you guard against being serious about words, you will be found richer in wisdom ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Pol. 261e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Statesman 261e. The quotation ends in 1.33. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.32 (Raeder, 13; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-32). ## Discourse 1.33 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-33 - Source: Raeder, 14 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Republic distinguishes true philosophers, lovers of truth, from those skilled in the arts. ### Greek text φρονήσεως.“ ἀκούσατε δὲ καὶ ἔν τῷ πέμπτῳ τῆς Πολιτείας οἷά φησιν" «τούτους οὖν ἅπαντας καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους τοιούτων τινῶν μαθηματικοὺς καὶ τοὺς τῶν τεχνυδρίων φιλοσόφους θήσομεν; οὐδαμῶς, εἶπον, ἀλλ᾽ ὁμοίους φιλοσόφοις. τοὺς ὃ ἀληθινούς, ἔφη, τίνας λέγεις: τοὺς τῆς ἀληθείας, ἦν δ ἐγώ, φιλοθεάμονας. οὐ γὰρ ἕν γεωμετρίᾳ, αἰτήματα καὶ ὑποθέσεις ἐχούσῃ, φιλοσοφία, οὐδ᾽ ἐν μουσικῇ, στοχαστικῇ γε οὔσῃ, οὐδ᾽ ἐν ἀστρονομίᾳ, φυσικῶν καὶ ῥεόντων καὶ εἰκότων βεβυσμένῃ λόγων, ἀλλ᾽ αὐτοῦ τἀγαθοῦ δι’ ἐπιστήμης ### English translation (Claude) when you reach old age.' Hear also what he says in the fifth book of the Republic: 'Shall we then call all these, and the others who learn such things, and the masters of the petty arts, philosophers? Not at all, I said, but like philosophers. Whom then, he said, do you call the true ones? Those who love the sight of the truth, I said. For philosophy is not in geometry, which has postulates and hypotheses, nor in music, which is conjectural, nor in astronomy, crammed with physical, fluid, and probable reasonings, but in knowledge of the good itself ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 475d–e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 5.475d–e; the sentence on geometry, music, and astronomy is not found there in this form and appears to be a later addition to the quotation (source uncertain). The quotation ends in 1.34. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.33 (Raeder, 14; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-33). ## Discourse 1.34 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-34 - Source: Raeder, 14 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret draws the lesson that teachers of truth are the true philosophers. ### Greek text καὶ τῆς ἀληθείας.“ ἀκούσατε, ὦ ἄνδρες, τοῦ φιλοσόφου τοὺς μὲν τῆς μουσικῆς καὶ τῆς γεωμετρίας καὶ τῶν ἄλλων τῶν τοιούτων ἐπιστήμονας οὐ φιλοσόφους, ἀλλ᾽. ὁμοίους φιλοσόφοις προδαγορεύσαντος, τοὺς δὲ τῆς ἀληθείας διδασκάλους ἀληθινοὺς ὄντως ὀνομάσαντος φιλοσόφους. ### English translation (Claude) and of the truth.' Hear, gentlemen, the philosopher declaring that those versed in music, geometry, and the other such sciences are not philosophers but like philosophers, and calling the teachers of truth the truly real philosophers. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.34 (Raeder, 14; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-34). ## Discourse 1.35 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-35 - Source: Raeder, 14 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Laws calls wise those who know the essential things even if unlettered. ### Greek text καὶ ἐν τῷ τρίτῳ δὲ τῶν Νόμων ταῦτά φησιν"..τοῦτο μὲν τοίνυν οὕτω πείσθω δεδογμένον καὶ λεγόμενον, ὡς τοῖς ταῦτα ἀμαθαίνουσι τῶν πολιτῶν οὐδὲν ἐπιτρεπτέον ἀρχῆς ἐχόμενον καὶ ὡς ἀγνοοῦσιν ὀνειδιστέον, κἂν πάνυ λογιστικοὶ ὧσι καὶ πάντα κομψὰ καὶ ὅσα πρὸς αὔξην τῆς ψυχῆς πεφυκότα διαπεπονημένοι ἅπαντα᾽ τοὺς δὲ τοὐναντίον ἔχοντας, τούτους ὡς σοφούς τὲ προσρητέον, κἂν, τὸ λεγόμενον, μήτε γράμματα μήτε νεῖν ἐπίὅτωνται, καὶ τὰς ἀρχὰς ἐγχειριστέον ὡς ἔμφροσιν.“ ### English translation (Claude) And in the third book of the Laws he says this: 'Let this then be settled as decided and declared: that to those citizens who are ignorant of these things nothing involving rule is to be entrusted, and they are to be reproached as ignorant, even if they are very good at calculation and have worked through every subtlety and everything that naturally contributes to the growth of the soul; but those of the opposite condition are to be called wise, even if, as the saying goes, they know neither letters nor how to swim, and offices are to be entrusted to them as to sensible men.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 689c–d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 3.689c–d. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.35 (Raeder, 14; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-35). ## Discourse 1.36 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-36 - Source: Raeder, 15 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato defines wisdom as knowledge of truth, not literary learning. ### Greek text Πῶς ἄν τις ἀληθέστερόν τε καὶ σαφέστερον τὴν νῦν δὴ κατέχουσαν ἀπαιδευσίαν ἐξελέγχοι καὶ οἴησιν; τῶν γὰρ δὴ φιλοσύφων ὁ πολοφὼν οὐκ ἐν μαθήσει γραμμάτων, ἀλλ ἐν ἀληθείας γνώσει τὴν σοφίαν ὁρίζεται" καὶ τοὺς μὲν ταύ- (τὴν ἐπισταμένους, κἂν μηδὲ τὰ πρῶτα στοιχεῖα γινώσκοιεν, ὀνομάζεν σοφούς" τοὺς δὲ διὰ πάσης ἐληλυθότας παιδείας, ἀληθείας δὲ καὶ δικαιοσύνης τὴν ἐπιστήμην οὐκ ἔχοντας, ἀποπρίνεν καὶ ἐξελαύνει καὶ ἄρχειν οὖ» ἐπιτρέπει. ### English translation (Claude) How could anyone refute more truly and clearly the lack of education and conceit that now prevails? For the crowning figure of the philosophers defines wisdom not as learning letters but as knowledge of truth; he calls wise those who know it, even if they do not know the first letters, while those who have gone through every branch of learning but lack the knowledge of truth and justice he rejects, drives out, and does not allow to rule. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.36 (Raeder, 15; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-36). ## Discourse 1.37 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-37 - Source: Raeder, 15 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Theaetetus tells of Thales falling into a well while stargazing. ### Greek text καὶ μέντον κἀν τῷ Θεαιτήτῳ͵ τοὺς μετεωρολέσχας διαβάλλων ὧδε λέγει »ὥσπερ καὶ “Θαλῆν ἀστρονομοῦντα, ὦ Θεόδωρε; καὶ ἄνω βλέποντα, πεσόντα εἰς φρέαρ, Θρᾶττά τις ἐμμελὴς καὶ χαρίεσσα θεραπαινὶς ἀποσκῶψαι λέγεται, ὡς τὰ μὲν ἐν οὐρανῷ προθυμοῖτο εἰδέναι, τὰ δ᾽ ὕπισθεν αὐτοῦ καὶ παρὰ ### English translation (Claude) And in the Theaetetus, attacking those who chatter about the heavens, he says this: 'Just as, Theodorus, when Thales was studying the stars and looking upward and fell into a well, a witty and charming Thracian servant girl is said to have mocked him, saying that he was eager to know the things in heaven, but what was behind him and at his ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Theaet. 174a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Theaetetus 174a. The quotation ends in 1.38. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.37 (Raeder, 15; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-37). ## Discourse 1.38 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-38 - Source: Raeder, 15 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Theaetetus describes the ruler as a rustic herdsman. ### Greek text πόδας λανθάνοι αὐτόν“ καὶ αὖθις ἐν τῷ αὐτῷ διαλόγῳ᾽ υἄγροιπον δέ τινα καὶ ἀπαίδευτον ὑπὸ ἀσχολίας οὐδὲν ττὸν τῶν νομέων τὸν τοιοῦτον ἀναγκαῖον γίνεσθαι, σηκὸν ἐν ὄρει τὸ τεῖχος περιβαλλόμενον. γῆς δὲ ὅταν μυρία πλέθρα, ] ἢ εἴ τι πλέον ἀκούσῃ ὥς τις ἄρα κεητημένος θαυμαστὰ πλήθη κέκτηται, πάντα σμικρὰ δοκεῖ ἀκούειν, εἰς ### English translation (Claude) feet escaped him.' And again in the same dialogue: 'Such a man must become rustic and uneducated for lack of leisure, no less than herdsmen, having a wall around him like a pen on a mountain. And when he hears of ten thousand acres of land or more, that someone owns an amazing amount, he thinks he hears of very little, being accustomed to look ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Theaet. 174d–e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Theaetetus 174d–e. The quotation ends in 1.39. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.38 (Raeder, 15; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-38). ## Discourse 1.39 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-39 - Source: Raeder, 15 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato says true wisdom is knowledge of God's justice. ### Greek text ἅπασαν εἰωθὼς τὴν γῆν βλέπεινΞ πρὸς δὲ τούτοις ἐπιλέγει καὶ ταῦτα᾽..ἡ μὲν γὰρ τούτου γνῶσίς τε καὶ ἀρετὴ ἀληθινή, ἡ δὲ ἄγνοια καὶ κοκία ἐναργής, αἱ δὲ ἄλλαν δεινότητες δοκοῦσαι καὶ σοφίαι γίνεσθαι ἐν μὲν πολιτείαις καὶ δυναστ ### English translation (Claude) at the whole earth.' And besides this he adds the following: 'For the knowledge of this is wisdom and true virtue, and ignorance of it is manifest folly and vice; and the other things that seem to be cleverness and wisdom, when found in politics and positions of power, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Theaet. 176c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Theaetetus 176c. The quotation ends in 1.40. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.39 (Raeder, 15; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-39). ## Discourse 1.40 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-40 - Source: Raeder, 16 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Even masters of speech knew truth is worth more than elegance. ### Greek text είαις γινόμεναι, φορτικαί, ἐν δὲ τέχναις, βάναυσοι.“ οὕτως ἄρα ἔδεσαν ἀκριβῶς καὶ οἵ πᾶσαν λόγων ἰδέαν μεμωθηκότες, ὑπόσον ἡ ἀλήθεια βημάτων τε καὶ ὀνομάτων τιμαλφεστέρα, καὶ ὡς οὐδὲν ταύτην λωβᾶται τῆς τοιαύτης κομψείας ἣ ὄγνοια, ### English translation (Claude) are vulgar, and in the arts, mechanical.' So well did even those who had learned every form of speech know how much more precious truth is than phrases and words, and that ignorance of such elegance does it no harm. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.40 (Raeder, 16; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-40). ## Discourse 1.41 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-41 - Source: Raeder, 16 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret asks why critics scorn apostolic speech when their own philosophers credit barbarians with truth. ### Greek text ᾿άνθ᾽ ὅτου δὴ οὖν, ὦ φίλοι ἄνδρες, τῆς ἀποστολικῆς διδασκαλίας τὴν μὲν διάνοιαν καταμαθεῖν οὐκ ἐθέλετε, τὸ δὲ βαρβαρόφωνον ὀνειδίξετε μόνον, καὶ ταῦτα τῶν ὑμετέρων᾽ ἐπαΐοντες φιλοσόφων, ὡς Ἕλληνες μὲν τῆς ἀληθείας ἀπεπλανήθησαν, βάρβαροι δὲ μᾶλλον ταύτην ἐξεῦρον; ### English translation (Claude) Why then, my friends, do you refuse to learn the meaning of the apostolic teaching and only reproach its barbarous speech, though you hear your own philosophers say that the Greeks strayed from the truth, while barbarians rather found it? ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.41 (Raeder, 16; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-41). ## Discourse 1.42 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-42 - Source: Raeder, 16 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry admits that barbarians, including Hebrews, found the way to the gods while Greeks strayed. ### Greek text καὶ γὰρ Πορφύριος ἐκεῖνος, ὃ τὸν πρὸς ἡμᾶς ἐκθύμως ἀναδεξάμενος πόλεμον, ἐν τοῖς Περὶ τῆς ἐκ λογίων φιλοσοφίας οὕτως ἔφη" οχαλκόδετος γὰρ ἡ πρὸς θεοὺς ὁδός, αἰπεινή τὲ καὶ τραχεῖα᾽ ἧς πολλὰς ἀτραποὺς βάρβαροι μὲν ἐξεῦρον, Ἕλληνες δὲ ἀπεπλανήθησαν᾽ οἵ δὲ κρατοῦντες ἤδη καὶ διέφθειραν᾽ τὴν δὲ εὕρεσιν ὃ θεὸς “Αἰγυπτίοις ἐμαρτύρησε, Φοίνιξί τε καὶ Χαλδαίοις, «Δυδοῖς τε καὶ “Ἑβραίοις. ### English translation (Claude) For that Porphyry, who furiously took up the war against us, said this in his work On the Philosophy from Oracles: 'For the road to the gods is bound with bronze, steep and rough; barbarians found many of its paths, but Greeks strayed, and those already in power even destroyed it. The god testified that the discovery belonged to Egyptians, Phoenicians and Chaldeans, Lydians and Hebrews.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Phil. orac. (Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragment), citing an oracle of Apollo. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.42 (Raeder, 16; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-42). ## Discourse 1.43 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-43 - Source: Raeder, 16 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret urges the pagans to accept Porphyry's own witness and listen to the Hebrew prophets and apostles. ### Greek text “εἰ δὲ καὶ ὃ πάντῶν ἡμῖν ἔχθιστος κατηγορεῖ μὲν Ἑλλήνων ὡς πλάνῃ δεδουλευκότων, “Ἑβραίοις δὲ καὶ Φοίνιξι καὶ «Αἰγυπτίοις καὶ Χαλδαίοις μαρτυρεῖ τὴν ἀλήθειαν, καὶ ταῦτα τὸν Ἀπόλλω ἔφησεν ἀνελεῖν, τί δήποτε μὴ πείθεσθε μὲν τῷ φιλοσόφῳ, δέχεσθε δὲ τοῦ 4Δελφιποῦ τρίποδος τὸν χρησμὸν καὶ τὰς. ἀκοὰς τοῖς Ἑβραίων προφήταις καὶ ἀποστόλοις ὑπέχετε; ### English translation (Claude) If even the bitterest enemy of us all accuses the Greeks of having been slaves to error and testifies that the Hebrews, Phoenicians, Egyptians, and Chaldeans have the truth, and says that Apollo pronounced this, why do you not believe the philosopher, and accept the oracle of the Delphic tripod, and lend your ears to the prophets and apostles of the Hebrews? ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.43 (Raeder, 16; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-43). ## Discourse 1.44 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-44 - Source: Raeder, 16 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The other peoples named by the oracle learned truth from the Hebrews. ### Greek text καὶ γὰρ ὃ Πύθιος τούτους εὑρετὰς ἀληθείας ὠνόμασεν. εἰ δὲ καὶ Αἰγυπτίους καὶ Χαλδαίους καὶ Φοίνικας τούτοις ξυνέζευξεν, ἰστέον ὡς καὶ Φοίνικες, πρόσχωροι τούτων ὄντες καὶ ἀγχιτέρμονες, παρὰ τούτων ἔμαθον, εἴπερ ἔμαθον, τὴν ἀλήθειαν. καὶ μέντοι καὶ Αἰγύπτιοι πλεῖστον ὅσον τῆς τούτῶν μετοικίας ἀπώναντο᾽ συχνὸν γὰρ ᾧκησαν χρόνον Ἑβραῖον τὴν Αἴγυπτον. ### English translation (Claude) For the Pythian god called these the discoverers of truth. And if he joined the Egyptians, Chaldeans, and Phoenicians to them, one must know that the Phoenicians, being their neighbors and bordering on them, learned the truth from them, if indeed they learned it; and the Egyptians too profited very greatly from their sojourn, for the Hebrews lived in Egypt a long time. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.44 (Raeder, 16; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-44). ## Discourse 1.45 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-45 - Source: Raeder, 17 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Chaldeans learned from the Hebrew exiles through the miracles of the furnace and the lions. ### Greek text καὶ Χαλδαῖοι δὲ ὡσαύτως ἐκ τούτων μεγίστην ὠφέλειαν ἐδρέψαντο᾽ ἀνδραποδίσαντες γὰρ αὐτοὺς εἰς Βαβυλῶνα κατῴκισαν᾽ εἶτα ἐκ τῶν αὐτόθι γεγενημένων θαυμάτων περί τε τὴν κάμινον καὶ τοὺς λέοντας ἀξιοχρέους εἶναι διδασκάλους ἀληθείας ὑπέλαβον. ### English translation (Claude) The Chaldeans likewise reaped the greatest benefit from them; for having enslaved them, they settled them in Babylon; then, from the miracles that took place there concerning the furnace and the lions, they came to regard them as trustworthy teachers of truth. ### Scripture references - Dan 3:19: allusion, high confidence - Dan 6:16: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.45 (Raeder, 17; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-45). ## Discourse 1.46 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-46 - Source: Raeder, 17 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Cyrus learned from Daniel and passed the teaching to the Lydians. ### Greek text καὶ Κῦρος δὲ ὁ Καμβύσου, τὸν Ζαννὴλ ὁμοδίαιτον ἐσχηκώς, τῶν τῆς θεοσεβείας μετέλαχε μαθημάτων᾽ “υδοὺς δὲ καταστρεψάμενος καὶ τούτους ὑποχειρίους λαβών, μετέδωμε δήπου τοῖς ὑπηκόοις ὧν παρ᾽ ἐκείνου μεμάθηκεν. ### English translation (Claude) And Cyrus son of Cambyses, who had Daniel as a companion, received a share of the teachings of godliness; and having overthrown the Lydians and made them his subjects, he no doubt passed on to his subjects what he had learned from him. ### Scripture references - Dan 6:28: allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret's inference that Cyrus taught the Lydians is his own conjecture. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.46 (Raeder, 17; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-46). ## Discourse 1.47 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-47 - Source: Raeder, 17 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry also accuses Greek philosophers of ignorance. ### Greek text Ὅτι μὲν οὖν 'Ββραίοις ἀλήθειαν καὶ ὃ Ἰτύθιος ἐμαρ- τύρησε, καὶ ὃ Πορφύριος ἀπεμνημόνευσε τοῦ χρησμοῦ, ἀπόχρη δηλῶσαι καὶ ταῦτα ὅτι δὲ τῶν παρ᾽ Ἕλλησι φιλο: σόφων πλείστην ἄγνοιαν οὗτος πάλιν κατηγορεῖ, ἀκούσατε οἷά φησιν ἐν οἷς Πρὸς Βοηθὸν περὶ ψυχῆς ἔγραψεν. ### English translation (Claude) That the Pythian god testified that the Hebrews had the truth, and that Porphyry recorded the oracle, this suffices to show. But that this same man again accuses the philosophers among the Greeks of very great ignorance, hear what he says in what he wrote To Boethus on the Soul. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.47 (Raeder, 17; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-47). ## Discourse 1.48 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-48 - Source: Raeder, 17 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry admits Greek philosophy is conjecture and quarrel over words. ### Greek text λέγει δὲ πρὸς πολλοῖς ἑτέροις καὶ ταῦτα᾽,»τίς γὰρ λόγος τῶν ἐν φιλοσοφίᾳ οὐκ ἀμφισβητήσιμος:“ καὶ πρὸς ᾿Ανεβὼ δὲ τὸν Αἰγύπτιον τοιαῦτα γέγραφεν᾽ οιἄρξομαι δὲ τῆς πρὸς σὲ φιλίας ἀπὸ θεῶν καὶ δαιμόνων ἀγαθῶν τῶν τε τούτοις ξυγγενῶν φιλοσοφημάτων᾽ περὶ ὧν εἴρηταν μὲν πλεῖστα καὶ παρὰ τοῖς Ἑλλήνων φιλοσόφοις, εἴρηται δ᾽ ἐκ στοχασμοῦ υ τὸ πλέον τὰς ἀρχὰς ἔχον τῆς πίστεως.“ καὶ αὖθις μετ᾽ ὀλίγα᾽ «παρὰ μὲν γὰρ ἡμῖν λογομαχία τίς ἐστι πολλή, ἅτε ἐξ ἀνθρωπίνων λογισμῶν τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ εἰκαζομένου" οἷς δὲ μεμηχάνηται πρὸς τὸ κρεῖττον ξυνουσία, ἀεὶ παρεῖται τὸ ### English translation (Claude) Among many other things he says this: 'For what argument among those in philosophy is not disputable?' And to Anebo the Egyptian he wrote thus: 'I will begin my friendship with you from the gods and the good demons and the philosophical teachings akin to them; about which very much has been said also by the philosophers of the Greeks, but most of it has been said from conjecture, having its foundations in belief.' And again, a little later: 'For among us there is much battling over words, since the good is guessed at from human reasonings; but those who have devised a way of converse with the higher being have always left ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Boeth. (Porphyry, Against Boethus, On the Soul): quotation, high confidence - Porphyry, Anebo (Porphyry, Letter to Anebo): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, To Boethus on the Soul (fragment) and Letter to Anebo (fragment). The last quotation ends in 1.49. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.48 (Raeder, 17; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-48). ## Discourse 1.49 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-49 - Source: Raeder, 18 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Since philosophy is disputed, the critics should accept the teaching of men dear to God. ### Greek text μέρος τοῦτο εἰς ἐξέτασιν.“ εἰ τοίνυν ἀμφισβητήσιμα μὲν τὰ τῶν φιλοσόφων δόγματα (λογισμῶν γάρ ἐστιν ἀνθρωπίνων εὑρέματα), ἔρις δὲ πολλὴ παρ᾽ αὐτοῖς καὶ λογομαχία τίς ἄσπονδος, ἄλλοις δὲ τισι τὴν πρὸς Θεὸν ξυνουσίαν τε καὶ ὁμιλίαν ὁ Πορφύριος μεμαρτύρηκε, τοῦ δὴ χάριν, ὦ φιλότης, τῶν μὲν ἀνθρωπίνων καὶ ἀμφιβόλων ἐξήρτησθε λόγων, τῶν δὲ θεοφιλῶν ἀνδρῶν οὐ προσίεσθε τὰ μαθήματα; ### English translation (Claude) this part aside from examination.' If then the doctrines of the philosophers are disputable (for they are the discoveries of human reasonings), and there is much strife among them and a truceless battle over words, while Porphyry has testified that converse and fellowship with God belong to certain others, why, my friend, do you hang on human and doubtful words and not accept the teachings of men dear to God? ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Anebo (Porphyry, Letter to Anebo): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.49 (Raeder, 18; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-49). ## Discourse 1.50 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-50 - Source: Raeder, 18 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Rejecting barbarians would mean rejecting many admired philosophers. ### Greek text ὡς βαρβάρους μὲν γὰρ εἰ παραιτεῖσθε, ἐναντία ὑμῖν αὐτοῖς ἂν ποιοῖτε᾽ πείθεσθε γὰρ καὶ Πυθαγόρᾳ, Τυρρηνῷ κατά τινας ὄντι, Τυρίῳ δὲ καθ' ἑτέρους, καὶ τῷ Σταγειφίτῃ δὲ κέχρησθε διδασκάλῳ καὶ τὸν Σινωπέα θαυμάξετε καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους, οἱ πατρίδας οὐχ Ἕλληνικάς, ἀλλὰ βαρβάρους ἐσχήκασιν" ἀπεδείξαμεν δὲ καὶ τὸν Σόλωνα καὶ τὸν Πλάτωνα πλεῖστα παρὰ βαρβάρων μεμαθηκότας". ### English translation (Claude) For if you reject them as barbarians, you would be acting against yourselves; for you believe Pythagoras, a Tyrrhenian according to some and a Tyrian according to others; you use the Stagirite as your teacher, you admire the Sinopean and the others whose homelands were not Greek but barbarian; and we have shown that Solon and Plato learned very much from barbarians. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.50 (Raeder, 18; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-50). ## Discourse 1.51 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-51 - Source: Raeder, 18 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Timaeus has an Egyptian priest call the Greeks children. ### Greek text ἀκούομεν δὲ καὶ τοῦ Αἰγυπτίου ἱερέως πρὸς τὸν Σόλωνα λέγοντος (τοῦ Πλάτωγος δὲ καὶ ταῦτα ἐν τῷ Τιμαίῳ γεγραμμένα)" οοὦ Σόλων, Σόλων, Ἕλληνες ὑμεῖς ἀεὶ παῖδές ἔστε, 7ένῶν δὲ Ἕλλην ### English translation (Claude) And we hear the Egyptian priest saying to Solon (this too is written by Plato in the Timaeus): 'O Solon, Solon, you Greeks are always children; an old Greek there is ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Tim. 22b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Timaeus 22b. The quotation ends in 1.52. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.51 (Raeder, 18; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-51). ## Discourse 1.52 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-52 - Source: Raeder, 18 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Hebrew learning, being older and true, is to be preferred. ### Greek text οὐδείς" οὐ γὰρ ἔχετε χρόνῳ μάθημα πολιόν.“ εἰ δὲ νεώτερα τὰ Ἑλλήνων μαθήματα, πρεσβύτατα δὲ καὶ παλαιότατα τὰ Ἑβραίων, ἔχεν δὲ καὶ τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἐπανθοῦσαν τῷ χρόνῳ, προαιρετέα δηλονότι “καὶ προκριτέα τῶν νέων καὶ ἀμφιβόλων, μᾶλλον δὲ ψευδῶν τε καὶ οὐ πιθανῶς πεπλασμένων. ### English translation (Claude) none; for you have no learning grey with age.' If, then, the learning of the Greeks is more recent, while that of the Hebrews is the most ancient and oldest, and has truth flourishing in it along with its age, it is clearly to be chosen and preferred over the new and doubtful, or rather false and unconvincingly fabricated, teachings. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Tim. 22b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.52 (Raeder, 18; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-52). ## Discourse 1.53 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-53 - Source: Raeder, 18 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Unpolished speech is no reason to refuse the apostles. ### Greek text ἀλλ᾽ οὐδὲ τὸ ἀπαίδευτον τῆς γλώττης ἱκανὸν ὑμῖν εἰς παραίτησιν. ἐδείξαμεν γὰρ τὸν Σωκράτην, τῶν φιλοσόφων τὸν κορυφαῖον, τῆς λληνικῆς παιδείας ἀμύητον, καὶ τὸν Πλάτῶνα πάσης ἐπιστήμης καὶ εὐγλωττίας προκρίνοντα τὴν ἀλήθειαν. ] } ### English translation (Claude) Nor is the unlearned speech a sufficient reason for you to refuse. For we have shown that Socrates, the chief of the philosophers, was uninitiated in Greek education, and that Plato preferred truth to all knowledge and eloquence. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.53 (Raeder, 18; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-53). ## Discourse 1.54 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-54 - Source: Raeder, 19 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The charge that Christians demand mere faith is slander, and turns against the critics. ### Greek text Εἰ δὲτοῦ τῆς πίστεως κατηγορεῖτε προσρήματος (ἤκουσα δὰ γὰρ ὑμῶν καὶ τοῦτο λεγόντων, ὡς ἡμεῖς γε ἀπόδειξιν μὲν οὐδεμίαν τῶν ἡμετέρων δογμάτων προσφέρομεν, πιστεύειν δὲ μόνον τοῖς μαθητευομένοις παρεγγυῶμεν), μάλιστα μὲν ἄντικρυς τὴν ἡμετέραν συκοφαντεῖτε διδασκαλίαν᾽ αὐτῶν γάρ τοι τῶν πραγμάτων τὴν μαρτυρίαν ἡμεῖς τοῖς ἡμετέροις ξυναρμόντομεν λόγοις᾽ πάλιν δ᾽ αὖ ὑμεῖς τοῖς ὑμετέροις βέβλησθε, κατὰ τὴν παροιμίαν, πτίλοις. ### English translation (Claude) If you find fault with the word 'faith' (for I have heard you say this too, that we offer no demonstration of our doctrines but only enjoin our pupils to believe), you are first of all slandering our teaching outright; for we fit to our words the testimony of the facts themselves; and again, as the proverb has it, you are struck by your own feathers. ### Translation notes - The proverb (an eagle shot by an arrow fledged with its own feathers) is from Aeschylus, Myrmidons, fragment. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.54 (Raeder, 19; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-54). ## Discourse 1.55 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-55 - Source: Raeder, 19 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pythagoras made his pupils keep five years' silence and simply believe. ### Greek text καὶ γὰρ ὁ Πυθαγόρας ἐκεῖνος ὁ πολυθρύλητος, ὁ Μνησάρχου μὲν υἱός, Φερεκύδου δὲ φοιτητής, ὃ τῆς ᾿ταλωνῆς αἱρέσεως ἡγησάμε-νος, νόμον ἐτεθείκει τοῖς φοινηταῖς πενταετῆ χρόνον σιγὴν ἄγειν καὶ μόνον ὑπέχειν τῷ λόγῳ τὰς ἀκοάς, ἵνα ἀναμφισβητήτως καὶ ἀδηρίτως δέχωνται τὰ λεγόμενα, πιστεύοντες οὕτως ἔχειν καὶ μὴ ᾿πολυπραγμονοῦντες ὡς ἐνδοιάξοντες. ### English translation (Claude) For that much-celebrated Pythagoras, son of Mnesarchus and pupil of Pherecydes, who led the Italian school, laid down a law for his pupils to keep silent for five years and only to lend their ears to the teaching, so that they might receive what was said without dispute or contention, believing that it was so and not meddling as people in doubt. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.55 (Raeder, 19; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-55). ## Discourse 1.56 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-56 - Source: Raeder, 19 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Pythagoreans answered 'he himself said it' instead of proofs. ### Greek text τῷ τοι καὶ οἵ ἐκεῖνον διαδεξάμενοι, εἴ τις ἀπήτησε τῶν λεγομένων ἀπόδειξιν,..αὐτὸς ἔφα" λέγειν εἰώθεσαν, πάσης ἀποδείξεως ἰσχυροτέραν καὶ εἶναι νομίξοντες καὶ ἔχειν πελεύοντες τὴν Πυθαγόρου φωνήν. ### English translation (Claude) That is why his successors, if anyone demanded a proof of what was said, used to say, 'He himself said it,' thinking the voice of Pythagoras stronger than every proof and bidding others hold it so. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.56 (Raeder, 19; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-56). ## Discourse 1.57 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-57 - Source: Raeder, 19 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God deserves at least the trust the Pythagoreans gave their master. ### Greek text εἰ δ᾽ ἀποχρῆν εἰς πίστιν ἐνόμιζον καὶ οἱ λέγοντες καὶ οἵ ἀκούοντες τὸ Πυθαγόρου εἶναι δόγματα καὶ μαθήματα, τίς οὕτως ἄρα ἠλίθιος, μᾶλλὸν δὲ ἄγαν ἐμβρόντητος, ὡς τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων διδάσκοντος ἐνδοιάσανι καὶ μὴ πιστεῦσαι τοῖς λεγομένοις καὶ μηδὲ τοσοῦτον ἀπονεῖμαι σέβας τῷ τῶν ὅλων Θεῷ, ὅσον τῷ Πυθαγόρῳᾳ προσένεμον οἵ τῆς ἐκείνου διδασκαλίας. μετεσχηκότες; ### English translation (Claude) If both speakers and hearers thought it enough for belief that the doctrines and teachings were those of Pythagoras, who is so foolish, or rather so thunderstruck, as to doubt when the God of the universe teaches, not to believe what is said, and not to give the God of the universe even as much reverence as those who shared in Pythagoras' teaching gave to Pythagoras? ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.57 (Raeder, 19; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-57). ## Discourse 1.58 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-58 - Source: Raeder, 20 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato urges belief in poets, yet pagans object when Christians urge belief in God. ### Greek text πῶς δέ γε, ὦ φίλοι ἄνδρες, οὐ σχέτλιον, τὸν μὲν Πλάτωνα καὶ τοῖς πονηταῖς ἀνενδοιάστως πιστεύειν παρεγγυᾶν, ἡμῖν δὲ χαλεπαίνειν ὑμᾶς, ὅτι δὴ τῷ Θεῷ διδάσκοντι παραινοῦμεν πιστεύειν; ### English translation (Claude) And how, my friends, is it not outrageous that Plato enjoins people to believe even the poets without hesitation, while you are angry with us because we urge belief in God when he teaches? ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.58 (Raeder, 20; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-58). ## Discourse 1.59 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-59 - Source: Raeder, 20 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Timaeus tells us to believe the poets about the gods without proof. ### Greek text ἢ οὐ Πλάτωνος ἐκεῖνα τὰ ῥήματα; »περὶ δὲ τῶν ἄλλων δαιμόνων εἰπεῖν καὶ γνῶναι τὴν γένεσιν μεῖξον ἢ καθ' ἡμᾶς" πιστευτέον δὲ τοῖς εἰρηκόσιν ἔμπροσθεν, ἐκγόνοις μὲν θεῶν οὖσιν, ὡς ἔφασαν, σαφῶς δέ πῶς τοὺς ξαυτῶν προγόνους εἰδότων. ἀδύνατον οὖν θεῶν παισὶν ἀπιστεῖν, καίπερ ἄνευ εἰκότων καὶ ἀναγκαίων ἀποδείξεων λέγουσιν, ἀλλ᾽ ὡς οἰκεῖα φασμόντων ἀπαγγέλλειν ἑπομένους ### English translation (Claude) Or are these not Plato's words? 'To speak of the other divinities and know their origin is beyond us; we must believe those who have spoken before, who were, as they said, descendants of the gods, and surely knew their own ancestors. It is impossible, then, to disbelieve the children of gods, even though they speak without probable or necessary proofs; but since they claim to report family matters, we must follow ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Tim. 40d–e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Timaeus 40d–e. The quotation ends in 1.60. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.59 (Raeder, 20; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-59). ## Discourse 1.60 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/0-1/#p-1-60 - Source: Raeder, 20 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato bids belief in mythmaking poets while mocking them elsewhere. ### Greek text τῷ νόμῳ πιστευτέον.“ ταῦτα ἐν τῷ Τιμαίῳ περὶ τῶν πονητῶν ὁ Πλάτων εἴρηκε καὶ προσέταξεν Ὁμήρῳ καὶ ᾿Ησιόδῳ χαὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις ποιηταῖς μυθολογοῦσι πιστεῦσαι καὶ οὐκ ἠδέσθη φάναι, ὅτι ἄνευ εἰκότων καὶ ἀναγκαίων ἀποδείξεων λέγουσι, καὶ ταῦτα κωμῳδῶν ἀλλαχοῦ τὰ παρ᾽ ἐκείνων λεγόμενα, ὡς ἐν ἑτέρῳ δὴ χωρίῳ σαφῶς ἐπιδείξομεν. ### English translation (Claude) custom and believe them.' Plato said this in the Timaeus about the poets, and ordered belief in Homer, Hesiod, and the other poets who tell myths, and was not ashamed to say that they speak without probable or necessary proofs, though elsewhere he mocks what they say, as we shall clearly show in another place. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Tim. 40e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.60 (Raeder, 20; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-60). ## Discourse 1.61 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-61 - Source: Raeder, 20 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: It is far more just to believe the prophets and apostles than the poets. ### Greek text εἰ δὲ τοῖς τοὺς λήρους ἐκείνους μυθολογοῦσι καὶ τοὺς αἰσχροτάτους διαπλάττουσι μύθους πιστεύειν ὃ Πλάτων παρακελεύεται καὶ μηδεμίαν αὐτοὺς ἀπόδειξιν ἀπαιτεῖν, πολλᾷ μᾶλλον ὁσιώτερόν τε καὶ δικαιότερον τοῖς θεσπεσίοις ἀποστόλοις καὶ προφήταις πιστεῦσαι, αἰσχρὸν μὲν οὐδὲν οὐδὲ μυθῶδες οὐδὲ ἀπίθανον λέγουσι, θεοπρεπῆ δὲ ὅπαντα καὶ παναγῆ διδάσκουσι καὶ σωτήρια. ### English translation (Claude) If Plato urges belief in those who told those nonsensical tales and invented the most shameful myths, and bids us demand no proof from them, it is much holier and more just to believe the divine apostles and prophets, who say nothing shameful, mythical, or unconvincing, but teach everything fitting to God, all-holy, and saving. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.61 (Raeder, 20; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61). ## Discourse 1.62 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-62 - Source: Raeder, 20 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Followers of the philosophers chose among their opinions by faith. ### Greek text ὋὍτει δέ γε καὶ οἵ ταῖς δόξαις τῶν φιλοσόφων ἀπολουθήσαντες, πίστει χρώμενον ποδηγῷ, οἵ μὲν τὰ τούτων, οἱ δὲ τὰ ἐκείνων ἠσπάσαντο, μάλα ἄν τις μάθοι ῥαδίως, τὰς τῶν δογμάτων διαφορὰς ἐξετάσας. ### English translation (Claude) That those who followed the opinions of the philosophers used faith as their guide, some embracing the views of these, others of those, one could easily learn by examining the differences of their doctrines. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.62 (Raeder, 20; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-62). ## Discourse 1.63 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-63 - Source: Raeder, 21 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The philosophers contradict one another on soul and world. ### Greek text οὗ μὲν γὰρ ἀθάνατον ἔφασαν τὴν ψυχήν, οἱ δὲ θνητήν, οἱ δὲ μικτήν τινα ὡρίσαντο καὶ φτὸ μὲν αὐτῆς θνητόν, τὸ δὲ ἀθάνατον ἔφασαν᾽ καὶ τὰ ὁρώμενα οἵ μὲν ἀγένητα, οἱ δὲ γενητά, καὶ οἵ μὲν ἐκ γῆς; οἱ δὲ ἐξ ὕλης, οἵ δὲ ἐξ ἀτόμων ξυστῆναι᾽ καὶ οἱ μὲν ἔμψυχον εἶναι τὸ πᾶν, οἵ δὲ ἄψυχον. ### English translation (Claude) For some said the soul was immortal, some mortal, and some defined it as mixed, saying one part of it is mortal and another immortal; some said visible things were unbegotten, others begotten, and some that they were composed of earth, others of matter, others of atoms; some said the universe was ensouled, others soulless. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.63 (Raeder, 21; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-63). ## Discourse 1.64 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-64 - Source: Raeder, 21 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Each school's followers believed by faith. ### Greek text ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως καὶ διάφορα λέγοντες, ἔσχον καὶ οὗτοι κἀκεῖνοί τινας τοῖς παρὰ σφῶν λεγομένοις πιστεύοντας. οὐκ ἂν δὲ οἵ μὲν ταῦτα, οἵ δὲ ἐκεῖνα εὖ ἔχειν ὑπέλαβον, εἰ μή τις αὐτοὺς πίστις ἔπεισε δέξασθαι τὰ λεγόμενα. ### English translation (Claude) Yet though they said different things, both these and those had people who believed what they said. And some would not have thought these things right and others those, unless some faith had persuaded them to accept what was said. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.64 (Raeder, 21; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-64). ## Discourse 1.65 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-65 - Source: Raeder, 21 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Socrates says he believes what he has heard about judgment in Hades. ### Greek text τῷ τοι καὶ ὃ Πλάτωνος Σωχράτης ἐν τῷ Γοργίᾳ, πολλὰ περὶ τῶν ἐν τῷ “Δ4ιδῃ κολαξομένων εἰσνών, καὶ μέντοι καὶ περὶ τῶν ἀναπηρυττομένων ὡς εὐσεβῶν ἐπήγαγεν᾽..«ταῦτά ἐστιν, ὦ Καλλίμλεις, ἃ ἐγὼ ἀκηκοὼς πιστεύω ἀληθῆ εἶναι“. ### English translation (Claude) That is why Plato's Socrates in the Gorgias, after saying much about those punished in Hades and about those proclaimed godly, added: 'These are the things, Callicles, which I have heard and believe to be true.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Gorg. 524a–b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Gorgias 524a–b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.65 (Raeder, 21; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-65). ## Discourse 1.66 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-66 - Source: Raeder, 21 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates offered no proof of his belief and none was demanded. ### Greek text καίτοι οὔτε δῆλα ἦν οὔτε ὁρώμενα πράγματα, ἀλλὰ τοὺς πλείστους τῶν ἀνθρώπων λανθάνοντα καὶ παρ᾽ ὀλίγων ὁμολογούμενα" ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως ἔφη πιστεύειν ὡς ἀληθῆ ἔστι, καὶ τῆς πίστεως ἀπόδειξιν οὔτε αὐτὸς προσενήνοχεν, οὔτε οἵ ἀκούσαντες ἀπῃτήκασιν. ### English translation (Claude) Yet these were neither evident nor visible things, but hidden from most people and admitted by few; still he said he believed them to be true, and neither did he offer proof of his belief nor did his hearers demand it. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.66 (Raeder, 21; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-66). ## Discourse 1.67 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-67 - Source: Raeder, 21 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Laws forbids the young to question the laws. ### Greek text καὶ μέντοι κἀν τῷ πρώτῳ τῶν Νόμων ὁ Πλάτων τὸν περὶ τῆς πίστεως ἐβεβαίωσε λόγον. λέγει δὲ ὧδε᾽ ὑμῖν γὰρ εἰ καὶ μετρίως κατεσκεύασται τὰ τῶν νόμων, εἷς τῶν καλλίστων ἂν εἴη νόμων, μὴ ζητεῖν νέων μηδένα ἐᾶν, ποῖα καλῶς αὐτῶν ἢ μὴ καλῶς ἔχει, μιᾷ δὲ φωνῇ καὶ ἐξ ἑνὸς στόματὸς πάντας ξυμφωνεῖν, ὡς πάντα καλῶς κεῖται.“ οὐδ᾽. ### English translation (Claude) And in the first book of the Laws Plato confirmed the argument about faith. He says this: 'For you, if your laws are even moderately well framed, one of the finest laws would be one that allows none of the young to inquire which of them are right and which not, but that all should agree with one voice and from one mouth that all are rightly laid down.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 634d–e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 1.634d–e. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.67 (Raeder, 21; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-67). ## Discourse 1.68 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-68 - Source: Raeder, 21 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato wants laws received by faith. ### Greek text ἐν τούτοις ἄρα ὃ Πλάτων περιεργάζεσθαι ξυγχωρεῖ, ἀλλὰ πιστῶς δέχεσθαι τὰ νομοθετούμενα καὶ μὴ πολυπραγμονεῖν, εἶτε εὖ ἔχει, εἴτε καὶ μή. ### English translation (Claude) So in these matters Plato does not allow meddling, but wants the laws to be received faithfully, without busy inquiry whether they are good or not. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.68 (Raeder, 21; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-68). ## Discourse 1.69 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-69 - Source: Raeder, 22 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theognis praises the faithful man as worth gold and silver. ### Greek text καὶ Θέογνις δὲ ὁ Σικελιώτης ποιητὴς τῆς πίστεως ἀναγορεύει τὸν τρύφιμον παί φησιν" πιστὸς ἄνηρ χρυσοῦ καὶ ἀργύρου ἀντερύσασθαι ἄξιος ἐν χαλεπῇ, Κύρνε, διχοστασίῃ“ εἰ δὲ τὸν ἔν στάσει πιστὸν χρυσοῦ. καὶ ἀργύρου τιμιώτερον ἔφη, τίνος ἀντάξιον ἀποφήναιτο ἄν τις τὸν τοῖς θείοις «λογίοις ἀναμφιβύλως πιστεύοντας ### English translation (Claude) And Theognis, the Sicilian poet, proclaims the luxury of faith, saying: 'A faithful man is worth his weight in gold and silver, Cyrnus, in bitter discord.' If he called the faithful man in civil strife more precious than gold and silver, what could one declare equal in worth to those who believe the divine oracles without doubting? ### Extrabiblical texts - Theognis, 77–78 (Theognis (elegies)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Theognis 77–78. Theodoret calls him Sicilian (Theognis of Megara was associated with Megara Hyblaea in Sicily). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.69 (Raeder, 22; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-69). ## Discourse 1.70 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-70 - Source: Raeder, 22 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Heraclitus' saying about the deaf fits the critics. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ 7ὰ ἀτεχνῶς οἶμαν ἁρμόττει τοῖς ὁμοίως ὑμῖν ἀντιλέγουσιν, ἅπερ ράκλειτος ὁ Ἐφέσιος εἴρηχεν᾽,,ἀξύνετοι ἀκούσαντες κωφοῖς ἐοίμπασι᾽ φάτις αὐτοῖσι μαρτυρεῖ, παρεϊόντας ἀπεῖναι.“ ### English translation (Claude) But what Heraclitus of Ephesus said, I think, fits exactly those who speak against us as you do: 'The witless, when they hear, are like the deaf; the saying bears witness of them: present, they are absent.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Heraclitus, fr. 34 (Heraclitus (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Heraclitus, fragment 34 (Diels–Kranz). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.70 (Raeder, 22; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-70). ## Discourse 1.71 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-71 - Source: Raeder, 22 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Empedocles says distrust is the mark of the wicked. ### Greek text ξυμφωνεῖ δὲ τῷ ᾿Εφεσίῳ καὶ ὁ ᾿ἀκραγαντῖνος ᾿Εμπεδοκλῆς λέγῶν ὡδί" ηὐλλὰ κακοῖς μὲν κάρτα πέλει ἀρατέουσιν ἀπιστεῖν" ὧδε γὰρ ἡμετέρης κέλεται πιστώματα Μούσης." τῆς τῶν καπῶν ἄρα μερίδος. κατὰ τὸν Ἀκραγαντῖνον οἵ ἄπιστοι" ἀξύνετοι δὲ οἵ αὐτοὶ καὶ ἐοικότες πωφοῖς κατὰ τὸν Ἡράχλειτον. ### English translation (Claude) Empedocles of Acragas agrees with the Ephesian, saying this: 'But it is the way of the wicked to distrust those who are stronger; but as the pledges of our Muse command, so learn.' So according to the man of Acragas the unbelieving belong to the party of the wicked; and according to Heraclitus the same people are witless and like the deaf. ### Extrabiblical texts - Empedocles, fr. 4 (Empedocles (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Empedocles, fragment 4 (Diels–Kranz); the text is uncertain and is translated by sense. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.71 (Raeder, 22; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-71). ## Discourse 1.72 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-72 - Source: Raeder, 22 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Parmenides bids seeing absent things with the mind, which needs faith. ### Greek text ἀτὰρ δὴ καὶ Παρμενίδης ὃ Ἐλεάτης, ὃ τοῦ Κολοφωνίου Ξενοφάνους ἑταῖρος, πίστει τοῖς νοητοῖς προσβάλλειν παρεγγυᾷ. φησὶ γάρ᾽.,»λεῦσσε δ᾽ ὕμως ἀπεόντα, νόῳ παρεόντα βεβαίως.“ νῷ γὰρ μόνῳ πελάζειν τοῖς νοητοῖς δυνατόν᾽ δίχα δὲ πίστεως οὐδὲ ὃ νοῦς ὁρῶν δύναται τὰ νοούμενα. ### English translation (Claude) Moreover, Parmenides of Elea, the companion of Xenophanes of Colophon, enjoins approaching intelligible things by faith. For he says: 'Yet behold things absent as firmly present to the mind.' For only by the mind can one draw near to intelligible things; and without faith not even the mind can see what it understands. ### Extrabiblical texts - Parmenides, fr. 4 (Parmenides (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Parmenides, fragment 4.1 (Diels–Kranz). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.72 (Raeder, 22; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-72). ## Discourse 1.73 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-73 - Source: Raeder, 22 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Solon says the measure of judgment is hardest to grasp. ### Greek text τοῦτο δὲ καὶ ὃ Σόλων αἰνίττεται" ογνωμοσύνης δ᾽ ἀφανὲς χαλεπώτατόν ἔστι νοῆσαι μέτρον, ὃ δὴ πάντα πείρατα μοῦγον ἔχει εἰ δὲ νοῆσαι χαλεπώτατον, εἰπεῖν ἄρα πάμπαν ἀδύνατον. ### English translation (Claude) Solon too hints at this: 'Hardest of all is it to grasp the invisible measure of judgment, which alone holds the limits of all things.' If it is hardest to grasp, it is quite impossible to express. ### Extrabiblical texts - Solon, fr. 16 (Solon (elegies and fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Solon, fragment 16 (West). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.73 (Raeder, 22; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-73). ## Discourse 1.74 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-74 - Source: Raeder, 22 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Empedocles says the divine cannot be reached by eyes or hands. ### Greek text καὶ ὁ ᾿Ἐμπεδοκλῆς δὲ περὶ τῶν ἀοράτων φησίν᾽ οὐκ ἔστιν πελάσασθαι ὀφθαλμοῖσιν ἐφικτὸν ἡμετέροις ἢ χερσὶ λαβεῖν" ἥπερ τε μεγίστη πειθοῦς ἀνθρώποισιν ἁμαξιτὸς ### English translation (Claude) And Empedocles says of invisible things: 'It is not possible to bring it near within reach of our eyes or grasp it with our hands, which is the greatest highway of persuasion that leads into men's ### Extrabiblical texts - Empedocles, fr. 133 (Empedocles (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Empedocles, fragment 133 (Diels–Kranz). The quotation ends in 1.75. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.74 (Raeder, 22; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-74). ## Discourse 1.75 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-75 - Source: Raeder, 23 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Antisthenes says God is invisible and like nothing. ### Greek text εἰς φρένα πέπτει καὶ Ἀντισθένης δέ, ὁ Σωκράτους μὲν φοιτητής, τῆς δὲ Κυνινῆς αἱρέσεως ἡγησάμενος, περὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων βοᾷ".,θἀπὸ εἰκόνος οὐ γνωρίξεται, ὀφθαλμῷ οὐχ ὁρᾶται, οὐδενὶ ἔοικε᾽ διόπερ αὐτὸν οὐδεὶς ἐπμαθεῖν ἐξ ### English translation (Claude) minds.' And Antisthenes, pupil of Socrates and leader of the Cynic school, cries out about the God of the universe: 'He is not known from an image, he is not seen with the eye, he is like nothing; therefore no one can learn of him from ### Extrabiblical texts - Empedocles, fr. 133 (Empedocles (fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Antisthenes (Antisthenes (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Antisthenes, fragment. The quotation ends in 1.76. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.75 (Raeder, 23; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-75). ## Discourse 1.76 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-76 - Source: Raeder, 23 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Faith is necessary to see what cannot be imaged; Xenophon agrees. ### Greek text εἰκόνος δύναται.“ ἀναγκαία ἄρα ἡ πίστις τοῖς τὰ νοητὰ κατιδεῖν βουλομένοις, ἐπειδήπερ οὐδὲ εἰκόνα ἐξευρεῖν αὐτοῖς ξυμβαίνουσαν οἷόν τε. καὶ βενοφῶν δὲ ὁ ᾿4θηναῖος ὃ Σωκρατικός, ὃ Τούλλου παῖς, ξυνῳδὰ τούτοις γέγραφεν. ### English translation (Claude) an image.' Faith, therefore, is necessary for those who wish to behold intelligible things, since one cannot even find an image that fits them. And Xenophon of Athens, the Socratic, son of Gryllus, wrote in agreement with these. ### Extrabiblical texts - Antisthenes (Antisthenes (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.76 (Raeder, 23; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-76). ## Discourse 1.77 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-77 - Source: Raeder, 23 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Xenophon says God's power is evident but his form invisible. ### Greek text φησὶ γάρ᾽,.ὃ γοῦν πάντα σείων καὶ ἀτρεμίζων, ὡς μὲν μέγας τις καὶ δυνατός, φανερός" ὁποῖος δέ ἐστι μορφήν, ἀφανής.“ δεῖ δήπου πίστεως τοῖς τἀφανὲς ὀριγνωμένοις κοταμαθεῖν. ### English translation (Claude) For he says: 'He who shakes all things and stills them is evident as someone great and mighty; but what he is like in form is invisible.' Surely faith is needed by those who long to understand the invisible. ### Extrabiblical texts - Xenophon, Mem. 4.3.13 (Xenophon, Memorabilia): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Xenophon, Memorabilia 4.3.13 (wording as in Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 5.14.108). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.77 (Raeder, 23; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-77). ## Discourse 1.78 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-78 - Source: Raeder, 23 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: As eyes see visible things, faith sees divine things. ### Greek text ἀκούσαι δ᾽ ἄν τις καὶ Βακχυλίδου λέγοντος ἐν τοῖς Παιᾶσιν᾽ «οὐδὲ γὰρ ῥᾷστον ἀρρήτων ἐπέων πύλας ἐξευρεῖν.“ χρεία τοίνυν ἡμῖν νοερῶν ὀμμάτων εἰς τὴν τῶν γοητῶν κατανόησιν, καὶ καθάπερ δεόμεθα τῶν τοῦ σώματος ὀφθαλμῶν εἰς τὴν θεωρίαν τῶν ὁρατῶν; οὕτω δήπου χρήξομεν πίστεως εἰς τὴν ἐποπτείαν τῶν θείων. ### English translation (Claude) One may hear Bacchylides too, saying in his Paeans: 'For it is not easiest to find the gates of unspoken words.' We need, therefore, spiritual eyes to contemplate intelligible things; and just as we need the eyes of the body to see visible things, so surely we shall need faith for beholding divine things. ### Extrabiblical texts - Bacchylides, Paean fr. (Bacchylides (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Bacchylides, Paeans, fragment. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.78 (Raeder, 23; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-78). ## Discourse 1.79 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-79 - Source: Raeder, 23 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Faith is to the mind what light is to the eye. ### Greek text ὅπερ γὰρ δή ἐστιν ὀφθαλμὸς ἐν σώματι, τοῦτο ἄρα πίστις ἐν διανοίᾳ᾽ μᾶλλον δέ, ὥσπερ ὀφθαλμὸς δεῖται φωτὸς ἐπιδευκνύντὸς τὰ ὁρατά, οὕτω δὴ αὖ καὶ ὁ νοῦς δεῖται πίστεως ἐπιδειννύσης τὰ θεῖα καὶ τὴν περὶ τούτων δόξαν φυλαττούσης βεβαίαν. : ### English translation (Claude) What the eye is in the body, faith is in the mind; or rather, just as the eye needs light to show it visible things, so the mind needs faith to show it divine things and to keep its opinion about them firm. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.79 (Raeder, 23; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-79). ## Discourse 1.80 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-80 - Source: Raeder, 24 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato condemns those who believe only in what they can touch. ### Greek text Τῶν δέ γε τὰ νοητὰ θεωρεῖν οὐ βουλομένων ἀκούσατε ὕπως ὁ Πλάτων κατηγορεῖ" »»ἄθρει γὰρ δή φησι »»πξρισκοπῶν, μή τις τῶν ἀμυήτων ἐπακούσῃ. εἰσὶ δὲ οὗτοι, οἵ οὐδὲν ἄλλο ἡγούμενοι εἶναι ἢ οὗ ἂν ἀπρὶξ ταῖς χερσὶ λαβέσθαι δύναιντο, πράξεις δὲ [ καὶ γενέσεις καὶ πᾶν τὸ ### English translation (Claude) Hear how Plato accuses those who will not contemplate intelligible things: 'Look around,' he says, 'and see that none of the uninitiated is listening. These are those who think nothing exists but what they can grasp tightly with their hands, and do not admit actions, comings-into-being, and all that is ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Theaet. 155e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Theaetetus 155e. The quotation ends in 1.81. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.80 (Raeder, 24; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-80). ## Discourse 1.81 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-81 - Source: Raeder, 24 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Idol-worshipers are like those Plato condemns. ### Greek text ἀόρατον οὐ» ἀποδεχόμενοι ὡς ἐν οὐσίας μέρει.Ζ ταύτης δὲ τῆς ξυμμορίας καὶ ὑμεῖς ἐστε ἀλλὰ μὴ δυσχεράνητε τὸν ἔλεγχον μόνοις γὰρ τοῖς ὁρατοῖς προστετήματε καὶ τὰ χειρόχμητα ξόανα σέβοντες, τὴν περὶ τῆς τοῦ ἀοράτου φύσεως διδασκαλίαν οὐ δέχεσθε. ### English translation (Claude) invisible as having a part in being.' You too belong to this company; but do not be annoyed at the refutation. For you are fixed on visible things alone, and worshiping handmade images you do not accept the teaching about the invisible nature. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Theaet. 155e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.81 (Raeder, 24; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-81). ## Discourse 1.82 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-82 - Source: Raeder, 24 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Sensible people seek truth rather than clinging to custom. ### Greek text καὶ ἴσως τοῖς οὕτω διακειμένοις ἀνθρώποις ᾿Ἐπίχαρμος ὃ κωμικὸς τὸν ἴαμβον ἐκεῖνον προσἠρμοσε᾽ ὡφύσεις ἀνθρώπων, ἀσκοὶ πεφυσημένοι.“ ἀνδρῶν δέ γε σωφρονούντων ἴδιον μὴ προλήψει δουλεύειν μηδὲ ἔθεσι προσδεδέσθαι πατρῴοις, ἀλλὰ ξητεῖν τἀληθὲς καὶ τὸ χρήσιμον. ### English translation (Claude) And perhaps Epicharmus the comic poet fitted that iambic line to people so disposed: 'Human natures, inflated wineskins.' But it is the mark of sensible men not to be slaves to prejudice nor bound to ancestral customs, but to seek the truth and gather what is useful ### Extrabiblical texts - Epicharmus (Epicharmus (fragments)): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Epicharmus, fragment (attribution uncertain). The sentence ends in 1.83. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.82 (Raeder, 24; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-82). ## Discourse 1.83 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-83 - Source: Raeder, 24 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates in the Crito follows reason, not prejudice. ### Greek text πανταχόθεν ξυλλέγειν. ἢ οὐ τοιαῦτα καὶ Σωκράτης τῷ Κρίτων! ἔλεγεν; (ὡς ἐγὼ οὐ μόνον νῦν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀεὶ τοιοῦτος, οἷος τῶν ἐμῶν οὐδενὶ ἄλλῳ πείθεσθαι ἢ ἢ τῷ λόγῳ, ὃς ἄν μοι λογιζομένῳ, βέλτιστος φαίνοιτο.“ δηλοῖ ᾿δὲ διὰ τούτων, ὡς λόγῳ ολθώμενος ἐξευρεῖν ἐπόθει τὸ ξυμφέρον καὶ οὔ τι νόμον εἶχε τὸ τῇ προλήψει δουλεύειν. ### English translation (Claude) from every quarter. Or did not Socrates say such things to Crito? 'For I, not only now but always, am the kind of man who obeys nothing else of mine than the reason which on reflection seems best to me.' By this he shows that, being guided by reason, he longed to find what is beneficial, and did not make it his rule to be a slave to prejudice. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Crit. 46b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Crito 46b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.83 (Raeder, 24; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-83). ## Discourse 1.84 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-84 - Source: Raeder, 24 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates teaches Alcibiades that knowing one's ignorance comes first. ### Greek text οὕτω τὸν Ἀλπιβιάδην πείθει μαθεῖν τὴν τῆς γνώσεως οἴησιν πρότερον ἐξορίδας. πρότερον μὲν γὰρ αὐτὸν ἐξήλεγξεν οὐκ εἰδότα" εἶτ᾽ ἐκείνου εἰρηκότος" ἀλλ οὐκ ἂν εὑρεῖν με ἡγῆγ' ἐπήγαγεν" γπαὶ μάλα εἰ ξητήσαις.“ ἐκείνου δ᾽ αὖ φάντος᾽ εἶτα ζητῆσαί μὲ οὐκ ἂν οἴει ὑπολαβὼν ἐ ἔφη".,ἔγωγε, εἰ οἰηθείης ### English translation (Claude) In this way he persuades Alcibiades to learn by first banishing the conceit of knowledge. First he proved that he did not know; then, when Alcibiades said, 'But do you not think I could find out?', he replied, 'Very much so, if you searched.' And when Alcibiades said again, 'Then do you not think I would search?', Socrates answered, 'I do, if you thought ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Alc. maj. 106d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Alcibiades I 106d. The dialogue ends in 1.85. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.84 (Raeder, 24; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-84). ## Discourse 1.85 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-85 - Source: Raeder, 25 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Knowing one's ignorance and purging false teachings precede receiving the divine. ### Greek text 85γε μὴ εἰδέναι.“ ἀρχὴ ἄρα γνώσεως τῆς ἀγνοίας ἡ γνῶσις. δεῖ δὲ πρὸς τούτῳ καὶ τὰ πονηρὰ μαθήματα τῆς ψυχῆς ἐξελάσαι, εἶθ᾽ οὕτως τὰ θεῖα προσδέξασθαι. καὶ τοῦτο δὲ πάλιν ὃ Πλάτων ἐδίδαξεν εἰπών" ηοὐ καθαρῷ γὰρ καθαροῦ ἐφάπτεσθαι μὴ οὐ θεμιτὸν εἶναι(Ξ τοῦτο δὲ: ### English translation (Claude) that you did not know.' The beginning of knowledge, then, is the knowledge of ignorance. Besides this one must drive bad teachings out of the soul and then receive divine things. Plato again taught this, saying: 'For it is not lawful for the impure to touch the pure.' This ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 67b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 67b. The sentence continues in 1.86. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.85 (Raeder, 25; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-85). ## Discourse 1.86 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-86 - Source: Raeder, 25 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Orpheus and Euripides show that divine teaching is for the initiated, and initiation requires faith. ### Greek text καὶ Ὀρφεύς φησιν᾽ φθέγξομαι οἷς θέμις ἐστί, θύρας δ᾽ ἐπίθεσθε βέβηλοι.“ ξυμφωνεῖ δὲ καὶ ὁ Εὐριπίδης βοῶν᾽.,ἄρρητ᾽ ἀβακχεύτοισιν εἰδέναι βροτῶν.“ τοῖς γὰρ ἀμυήτοις πῶς ἄν τις προσενέγποι τὰ θεῖα παιδεύματα; πῶς δ᾽ ἂν μυηθείη τις, μὴ τῇ πίστει κρατύνας ἐν ἑαυτῷ τὰ παρὰ τῶν διδασκάλων προσφερόμενα δόγματα; πῶς δ᾽ ἂν πιστεύσαι, μὴ πρότερον ἐξορίσας τῆς διανοίας τὰ κακῶς προεντεθέντα μαθήματα; ### English translation (Claude) Orpheus too says: 'I will speak to those for whom it is lawful; shut the doors, you profane.' And Euripides agrees, crying: 'Unspeakable things, not to be known by mortals uninitiated in Bacchus.' For how could one bring divine teachings to the uninitiated? And how could one be initiated without strengthening in oneself by faith the doctrines offered by the teachers? And how could one believe without first banishing from the mind the teachings wrongly instilled before? ### Extrabiblical texts - Orpheus (attributed), Orph. frag. fr. 245 (Orpheus (attributed), Orphic poems (fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Euripides, Bacch. 472 (Euripides (plays and fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Orphic fragment 245 (Kern); Euripides, Bacchae 472. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.86 (Raeder, 25; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-86). ## Discourse 1.87 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-87 - Source: Raeder, 25 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Euripides says the sick argument needs remedies and God helps those who toil. ### Greek text ἀληθὴς ἄρα ὁ τραγικὸς λόγος ἐκεῖνος, ὃν ἐν Φοινίσσαις εἴρηκεν Ἐῤριπίδης᾽ »»ἱἡὉ δ᾽ ἄδικος λόγος νοσῶν ἐν ἑαυτῷ φαρμάπων δεῖται σοφῶν.“ ὅτι δὲ καὶ ξυνεργεῖ ὁ Θεὸς τοῖς ἀπολαῦσαι θεραπείας ἐφιεμένοις, ὁ αὐτὸς τραγῳδοποιὸς ἔφη" «τῷ δ᾽ αὖ πογοῦντι καὶ θεὸς ξυλλαμβάνει προυργιαίτατον ἄρα χρῆμα ### English translation (Claude) True, then, is that tragic saying which Euripides spoke in the Phoenician Women: 'The unjust word, sick in itself, needs wise remedies.' And that God also works with those who wish to enjoy treatment, the same tragedian said: 'To him who toils, God too lends a hand.' Most useful of things, then, ### Extrabiblical texts - Euripides, Phoen. 471–472 (Euripides (plays and fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Euripides, fr. 432 (Euripides (plays and fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Euripides, Phoenician Women 471–472, and fragment 432 (Nauck). The sentence continues in 1.88. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.87 (Raeder, 25; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-87). ## Discourse 1.88 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-88 - Source: Raeder, 25 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Epicharmus and Heraclitus point to faith and hope as the way to find truth. ### Greek text ἡ πίστις, κατὰ γὰρ δὴ τὸν ᾿Ἐπίχαρμον, τὸν Πυθαγόρειον λέγω, «νοῦς ὁρῇ, καὶ νοῦς ἀκούει, τἄλλα κωφὰ καὶ τυφλά.“ καὶ ὃ “Ηράπλειτος δὲ πάλιν παρεγγυᾷ ξεναγεῖσθαν ὑπὸ τῆς πίστεως, οὕτω λέγων᾽,»ἐὰν μὴ ἐλπίξητε, ἀνέλπιστον οὐχ εὑρήσετε, ἀνεξερεύνητον ἐὸν καὶ ἄπορον.“ καὶ πάλιν οοχρυσὸν οἵ διξήμενοι γῆν πολλὴν ὀρύσσουσι καὶ εὑρίσκουσιν ὀλίγον.“ ### English translation (Claude) is faith. For according to Epicharmus (I mean the Pythagorean), 'Mind sees, and mind hears; all else is deaf and blind.' And Heraclitus again enjoins being guided by faith, saying: 'Unless you hope, you will not find the unhoped-for, since it is unsearchable and trackless.' And again: 'Those who seek gold dig much earth and find little.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Epicharmus, fr. 12 (Epicharmus (fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Heraclitus, fr. 18 (Heraclitus (fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Heraclitus, fr. 22 (Heraclitus (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Epicharmus, fragment 12 (Diels–Kranz); Heraclitus, fragments 18 and 22. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.88 (Raeder, 25; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-88). ## Discourse 1.89 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-89 - Source: Raeder, 26 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: If gold-seekers toil for a little gold, one should seek truth much more. ### Greek text εἰ δὲ ἐκεῖνοι ὀλίγων ἕνεκα ψηγμάτων πλεῖστον ὅσον ὑπομένουσι πόνον, καὶ μέντον καὶ κίνδυνον, τίς οὕτως ἐστὶ τῶν θείων ἀνέραστος, ὡς τὴν περὶ τῆς ἀληθείας διαδρᾶναι διδασχαλίαν, μυριοπλάσιον ἔχουσαν κέρδος; ### English translation (Claude) If they endure very great toil, and danger too, for the sake of a few grains, who is so lacking in love for divine things as to run away from teaching about the truth, which holds a gain ten thousand times greater? ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.89 (Raeder, 26; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-89). ## Discourse 1.90 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-90 - Source: Raeder, 26 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Aristotle and Epicurus both give faith a place in knowledge. ### Greek text “Μηδεὶς τοίνυν, ὦ φίλοι, κατηγορείτω τῆς πίστεως. καὶ γὰρ δὴ τὴν πίστιν Ἀριστοτέλης κριτήριον ἐπιστήμης ἐκάλεσεν᾽ ὁ δέ γε ᾿Επίκουρος πρόληψιν διανοίας αὐτὴν ἐκάλεσε᾽ τὴν δὲ πρόληψιν, προσλαβοῦσαν τὴν γνῶσιν, κατάληψιν γίνεσθαι. ### English translation (Claude) So let no one, my friends, find fault with faith. For Aristotle called faith the criterion of knowledge; and Epicurus called it an anticipation of the mind, and said that anticipation, when it takes knowledge to itself, becomes firm apprehension. ### Extrabiblical texts - Aristotle (Aristotle (works)): allusion, low confidence - Epicurus (Epicurus (sayings and fragments)): allusion, low confidence - Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 2.4.16 (Miscellanies): echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The definitions follow Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 2.4.16–17, where they are attributed in the same way. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.90 (Raeder, 26; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-90). ## Discourse 1.91 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-91 - Source: Raeder, 26 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret gives Christian definitions of faith. ### Greek text κατὰ δὲ τὸν ἡμέτερον λόγον πίστις ἐστὶν ἑκούσιος τῆς ψυχῆς ξυγκατάθεσις, ἢ ἀφανοῦς πράγματος θεωρία, ἢ περὶ τὸ ὃν στάσις καὶ κατάληψις τῶν ἀοράτων τῇ φύσει ξύμμετρος, ἢ διάθεσις ἀναμφίβολος ἐν Ταῖς ψυχαῖς τῶν χκεχτημένων ἐνιδρυμένη. ### English translation (Claude) According to our account, faith is a voluntary assent of the soul; or the contemplation of a thing unseen; or a standing firm regarding what is, and an apprehension of invisible things suited to their nature; or an undoubting disposition settled in the souls of those who possess it. ### Scripture references - Heb 11:1: echo, medium confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 2.2.8 (Miscellanies): echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - These definitions also follow Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 2.2.8–9; 'contemplation of a thing unseen' echoes Heb 11:1. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.91 (Raeder, 26; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-91). ## Discourse 1.92 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-92 - Source: Raeder, 26 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Faith leads to knowledge, knowledge to impulse, impulse to action. ### Greek text δεῖταν μέντοι ἡ πίστις τῆς γνώσεως; παθάπερ αὖ ἡ γνῶσις τῆς πίστεως. οὔτε γὰρ πίστις ἄνευ γνώσεως, οὔτε γνῶσις δίχα ἂν ὃ πίστεως γένοιτο. ἡγεῖται μέντοι τῆς γνώσεως ἡ πίστις, ἕπεται δὲ τῇ πίστει ἡ γνῶσις, ἔχεται δὲ τῆς γνώσεως ἡ ὁρμή, ἀκολουθεῖ δὲ ταύτῃ ἡ πρᾶξις. ### English translation (Claude) Faith, however, needs knowledge, just as knowledge in turn needs faith. For neither could there be faith without knowledge nor knowledge apart from faith. Faith leads knowledge, knowledge follows faith, impulse attaches to knowledge, and action follows impulse. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.92 (Raeder, 26; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-92). ## Discourse 1.93 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-93 - Source: Raeder, 26 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Even learning letters requires believing the teacher. ### Greek text δεῖ γὰρ πιστεῦσαι πρῶτον, εἶτα μαθεῖν, γνόντα δὲ ὁρμῆσαι, ὁρμήσαντα δὲ πρᾶξαι. οὐδὲ γὰρ τὰ πρῶτα στοιχεῖα μαθεῖν οἷόν τε μὴ τῷ γραμματιστῇ πεπιστευκότα, ὅτι τοιῶσδε χρὴ τὸ πρῶτον ὀνομάζειν καὶ τοιῶσδε τὸ δεύτέρον, καὶ τἄλλα ὡσαύτως. ### English translation (Claude) One must first believe, then learn, and having come to know, be moved, and having been moved, act. For one cannot even learn the first letters without believing the schoolmaster that the first must be called so and the second so, and the rest likewise. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.93 (Raeder, 26; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-93). ## Discourse 1.94 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-94 - Source: Raeder, 27 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: A pupil who trusts the teacher quickly gains knowledge. ### Greek text εἰ γὰρ δὴ εὐθὺς ἀντείποι, φάσκων μὴ χρῆναι ἄλφα τὸ πρῶτον προσαγορεῦσαι, ἀλλ᾽ ἕτερον αὐτῷ ὄνομα ἐπιθεῖναι, οὐκ ἂν μάθοι τἀληθές᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ἀνάγκη περιπλανᾶσθαν καὶ τὸ ψεῦδος ὑπολαμβάνειν ἀλήθειαν. εἰ δὲ πιστεύσας τῷ διδασκάλῳ, κατὰ τοὺς ἐκείνου νόμους τὰ μαθήματα δέξαιτο, ἕψεταν ὅτι τάχιστα τῇ πίστει ἡ γνῶσις. ### English translation (Claude) If he immediately objected, saying the first should not be called alpha but given another name, he would not learn the truth, but would necessarily wander and take falsehood for truth. But if he believes the teacher and receives the lessons by his rules, knowledge will very quickly follow faith. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.94 (Raeder, 27; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-94). ## Discourse 1.95 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-95 - Source: Raeder, 27 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Geometry also begins with definitions accepted by faith. ### Greek text οὕτω καὶ τῷ γεωμέτρῃ προσήκει πιστεῦσαι δὲδάσκοντι εἶναι μέν τι σημεῖον, ὃ παντάπασίν ἐστιν ἀμερές, εἶναι δέ τι μῆκος εὔρους ἐστερημένον. τοῦτο δέ γε λόγῳ οὐδεὶς ἂν ἀποδείξαι ποτέ εἰ γὰρ ἀφέλοι τοῦ μήκους τὸ εὖρος, ξυναφανισθήσεται δήπουθεν τῷ πλάτει τὸ μῆκος. ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως οὕτω κελεύει νοεῖν ὁ γεωμέτρης᾽ καὶ πείθεταί γε καὶ πιστεύξι προχείρως ὁ τὰ γραμμικὰ σχήματα ἐκεῖνα μαθεῖν ὀριγνώμενος. ### English translation (Claude) So too one must believe the geometer when he teaches that there is a point which is wholly without parts, and that there is a length deprived of breadth. No one could ever prove this by argument; for if you take breadth away from length, the length will surely vanish together with the width. Yet the geometer bids us think so; and the one who longs to learn those linear figures readily obeys and believes. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.95 (Raeder, 27; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-95). ## Discourse 1.96 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-96 - Source: Raeder, 27 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Astronomy pupils believe their teachers despite disagreements. ### Greek text οὕτω τοῖς ἀστρονόμοις οἵ φοιτῶντες πιστεύουσι, καὶ τῶν ἄστρων τὸν ἀριθμὸν λέγουσι. καὶ τὰ διαστήματα μετροῦσιν, οἷς ἀφεστήκασιν ἀλλήλων, καὶ πόσαις μυριάσι σταδίων τῆς γῆς ἀφέστηκεν ὁ ὁρώμενος οὐρανός" καὶ πολλῆς οὔσης ἐν τῷ μέτρῳ διαφωνίας, καὶ τῶν μὲν τετρακοσίας καὶ ἑβδομήκοντα σταδίων μυριάδας εἶναι λεγόντῶν, τῶν δὲ ἐλάττους, τῶν δὲ πολλῷ πλείους. ὅμως πείθονται οἵ φοιτηταὶ τοῖς διδασχάλοις καὶ τοῖς παρ᾽ αὐτῶν λεγομένοις πιστεύουσιν. ### English translation (Claude) So pupils believe the astronomers, who tell the number of the stars, measure the distances that separate them from one another, and how many myriads of stades the visible heaven is from the earth. And though there is much disagreement on the measure, some saying it is four hundred and seventy myriads of stades, some less, some much more, still the pupils obey their teachers and believe what they say. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.96 (Raeder, 27; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-96). ## Discourse 1.97 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-97 - Source: Raeder, 27 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The astronomers also dispute about the sun. ### Greek text καὶ αὖ πάλιν περὶ ἡλίου λογομαχία παρ᾽ ἐκείνοις πολλή. ### English translation (Claude) And again there is much battling over words among them about the sun. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.97 (Raeder, 27; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-97). ## Discourse 1.98 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-98 - Source: Raeder, 28 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The philosophers' estimates of the sun's size differ absurdly. ### Greek text Ἀναϊξίμανδρος μὲν γὰρ καὶ ᾿άναξιμένης ἑπτακαιεικοσαπλασίονα τῆς γῆς τοῦτον ἔφασαν εἶναι, ᾿Ἀναξαγόρας δὲ Πελοποννήσου μείζονα, Ἡράκλειτος δὲ ὁ ᾿Εφέσιος ποδιαῖον. τίς οὖν ἄρα ἀξίως τὴν τοιαύτην διαφωνίαν γελάσειεν; οὐδὲ γὰρ περὶ σμικροῦ τινος αὐτοῖς μέτροῦ 'γέγονεν ἡ διχόνοια, ἀλλὰ περὶ ἀπείρου, καὶ ὅσον οὐκ ἄν τις παραστήσαι τῷ λόγῳ. τίς γὰρ ὅπασαν μέτρῳ. ἂν περιλάβοι τὴν γῆν, εἶτα ἑπτάκις καὶ εἰκοσάπις πολυπλασιάσας τὸ μέτρον, ξυναγάγοι τῆς ψήφου τὸν λογισμὸν καὶ τοῦτον τῷ μέτρῳ τοῦ ἀνθρωπείου παραθείη ποδός; ### English translation (Claude) Anaximander and Anaximenes said it was twenty-seven times the size of the earth, Anaxagoras that it was larger than the Peloponnese, Heraclitus of Ephesus that it was a foot wide. Who could laugh at such disagreement as it deserves? For their dispute is not over some small measure but over an immense one, beyond what words can represent. For who could encompass the whole earth by measure, then multiply the measure twenty-seven times, add up the calculation, and set it beside the measure of a human foot? ### Extrabiblical texts - Anaxagoras (Anaxagoras): allusion, medium confidence - Heraclitus, fr. 3 (Heraclitus (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Aëtius (Aëtius, Placita): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The same opinions are in Aëtius, Placita 2.21. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.98 (Raeder, 28; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-98). ## Discourse 1.99 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-99 - Source: Raeder, 28 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pagans accept irrational beliefs yet fault Christian faith. ### Greek text ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως. εἰσί τνες, οἱ μὲν τούτοις, οἵ δὲ ἐκείνοις τιθέμενοι" πιστεύοντες δέ, οἷ μὲν ταῦτα, οἱ δὲ ἐκεῖνα καταδέχονται λέγειν. τί δήποτε τοίνυν τὴν μὲν ἀλογωτάτην ἐκείνην ὑπερβαΐίνετε πίστιν, μόνης δὲ τῆς ἡμετέρας κατηγορεῖτε, τῶν μὲν τοιούτων μύθὼν καὶ λήρων ἀπηλλαγμένης, τὰ θεῖα δὲ καὶ νοητὰ νοητῶς δεχομένης; ### English translation (Claude) Yet there are some who side with these and some with those; and believing, some accept this, others that. Why then do you pass over that most irrational faith and find fault only with ours, which is free from such myths and nonsense and receives divine and intelligible things intelligibly? ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.99 (Raeder, 28; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-99). ## Discourse 1.100 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-100 - Source: Raeder, 28 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: An apprentice shoemaker learns by first trusting his master. ### Greek text Πρὸς δὲ τοῖς εἰρημένοις χαὶ τόδε σχοπήσωμεν, ὡς ἕκαστος τῶν ἀνθρώπων, τέχνην μαθεῖν ἐθέλων τινά, φοιτᾷ μὲν τῷ διδάσκειν ἐπισταμένῳ, στέργει δὲ τὰ προσφερόμενα παρ᾽ ἐκείνου μαθήματα᾽ καὶ ὁ μὲν σκυτοτόμος ἐπιδείκνυσιν, ὅπως δεῖ τὸν περιτομέα κατέχειν καὶ τὰ δέρματα διατέμνειν, καὶ μέντοι καὶ ξυρράπτειν καὶ τῷ καλόποδι προσαρμόττειν᾽ ὁ δὲ πιστεύει τοῖς λεγομένοις καὶ οὐκ ἀντιλέγει διδάσκοντι" καὶ ὃ μὲν ἔχει τῶν γινομένων τὴν γνῶσιν, ὃ δὲ στέργει τὴν πίστιν, κατὰ βραχὺ δέ γε διὰ τῆς πίστεως προσλαμβάνει τὴν γνῶσιν. ### English translation (Claude) Besides what has been said, let us consider this too: every person wishing to learn some craft goes as a pupil to one who knows how to teach it and is content with the lessons he offers. The shoemaker shows how to hold the cutting knife and cut the leather, and also how to stitch and fit it to the last; the pupil believes what is said and does not contradict the teacher. The one has knowledge of what is done, the other is content with faith, and little by little through faith he acquires knowledge. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.100 (Raeder, 28; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-100). ## Discourse 1.101 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-101 - Source: Raeder, 28 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: A shipwright's pupil also learns through trust. ### Greek text οὕτω δὴ καὶ ὁ ναυπηγὸς ἐκπαιδεύει τὸν μαθεῖν ὀριγνώμενον, πῶς μὲν χρὴ διατείνειν τὴν στάθμην; πῶς δὲ κινεῖν προσήκει τὸν πρίονα, πῶς δὲ τῷ σκεπάῤνῳ καὶ τῷ τερέτρῳ καὶ τῷ τρυπάνῳ κεχρῆσθαν᾽ μανθάνει δὲ τούτων ἕκαστον ὃ φοιτῶν, πᾶν γε τὸ κελευόμενον δρῶν καὶ νόμους τοῦ διδασκάλου τοὺς λόγους ποιούμενος καὶ πιστεύων γε δι’ ἐκείνου κατορθώσειν τὴν τέχνην. ### English translation (Claude) So too the shipwright trains one who longs to learn: how to stretch the line, how to move the saw, how to use the adze, the gimlet, and the drill; the pupil learns each of these, doing all he is told, making the teacher's words his laws, and believing that through him he will master the craft. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.101 (Raeder, 28; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-101). ## Discourse 1.102 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-102 - Source: Raeder, 29 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The patient trusts the physician without understanding medicine. ### Greek text οὕτω καὶ ὁ ἰατρὸς οὐ μόνον. ἐκπαυδεύει τὴν ἐπιστήμην, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἰατρεύει τοὺς ἡ κάμνοντας" καὶ αὐτὸς μὲν οἷδὲ τῆς ἰατρείας τὸν λόγον, ὁ δέ γε τῇ νόσῳ παλαίων τοῦτο μὲν οὐκ ἐπίσταται, τῆς νόσου δέ γε πιστεύει διὰ τῆς ἰατρινῆς ἀπαλλαγήσεσθαι τέχνης. ### English translation (Claude) So too the physician not only teaches the science but also treats the sick; he knows the rationale of the treatment, while the one wrestling with disease does not understand it, but believes that he will be freed from the disease through the medical art. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.102 (Raeder, 29; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-102). ## Discourse 1.103 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-103 - Source: Raeder, 29 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Passengers trust the helmsman. ### Greek text καὶ μέντοι καὶ τὸ σκάφος ἰθύνειν μόνοι γε ἴσασιν οἵ τὴν κυβερνητινὴν ἐπιστάμενοι τέχνην, οἵ δὲ πλωτῆρες δι΄ ἐκείγῶν πιστεύουσι τοῖς ποθουμένοις λιμέσι προσορμισθήσεσθαι. ### English translation (Claude) And only those who know the helmsman's art know how to steer the ship, while the passengers believe that through them they will put in at the harbors they long for. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.103 (Raeder, 29; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-103). ## Discourse 1.104 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-104 - Source: Raeder, 29 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Faith is common to all; knowledge belongs to experts. ### Greek text οὐκοῦν, ὦ φιλότης, κοινὸν μέν τι χρῆμα πάντων ἡ πίστις, παὶ τῶν μαθεῖν τινα τέχνην ἐφιεμένων καὶ τῶν πλεόντων καὶ γεωργούντων καὶ ἰατροῖς προσεδρευόντων᾽ ἡ δὲ γνῶσις οὐ πάντων, ἀλλὰ μόνων τῶν τὰς τέχνας ἐπισταμένων. ### English translation (Claude) Therefore, my friend, faith is something common to all, to those who wish to learn a craft, to those who sail, farm, and attend upon physicians; but knowledge is not for all, only for those who know the crafts. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.104 (Raeder, 29; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-104). ## Discourse 1.105 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-105 - Source: Raeder, 29 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: We trust experts to test gold and gems. ### Greek text αὖτίκα τοίνυν ἣν ἐθελήσωμεν διαγνῶναν χρυσὸν δόκιμόν τὲ καὶ ὄπεφθον, οὐχ ἡμεῖς τῇ βαϊσάνῳ τοῦτον προσφέρομεν, ἀλλὰ τὸν ἐπισνάμενον τὰ τοιαῦτα δοκιμάσαν κελεύομεν" ὃ δέ, ἢ τῇ λίθῳ προσφέρων ἢ τῷ πυρί, ἢ κίβδηλον ἢ δόκιμον ἀποφαίνει. οὕτω καὶ πολυτελεῖς ὠνούμενοι λίθους, οὐχ ἡμῖν αὐτοῖς τὴν τούτων διάγνωσιν ἐπιτρέπομεν, ἀλλ᾽ οἷς ὃ χρόνος καὶ ἡ πεῖρα τήνδε τὴν ἐπιστήμην ἐνέθηκεν. ### English translation (Claude) For instance, if we wish to determine whether gold is genuine and refined, we do not put it to the touchstone ourselves but bid one who knows how to test such things; he, applying it to the stone or to fire, declares it counterfeit or genuine. So too when we buy costly stones, we do not entrust their assessment to ourselves, but to those in whom time and experience have placed this knowledge. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.105 (Raeder, 29; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-105). ## Discourse 1.106 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-106 - Source: Raeder, 30 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Buyers trust weavers and weighers. ### Greek text καὶ τὴν σηρικὴν δὲ καὶ ποικίλην καὶ χρυσύπαστον ἐσθῆτα εἶ τις πρίασθαι βούλεται, τοῖς τῆς ὑφαντικῆς ἐπιστήμοσιν ἐπιτρέπει τὴν ἀξίαν τούτοις ἐπιθεῖναι τιμήν. καὶ μὲν δὴ καὶ ὁ σταθμὸν σκευῶν τινῶν χρυσῶν ἢ ἀργυρῶν ἢ νομισμάτων ἐθέλων μωθθεῖν τῷ τὴν στατιπὴν ἐπισταμένῳ τέχνην ταῦτα προσφέρει καὶ παρ᾽ ἐκείνου διδάσκεται τὸν σταθμὸν καὶ πιστεύει καὶ οὐκ ἀντιλέγει μηνύοντι. ### English translation (Claude) And if someone wants to buy a silk, embroidered, or gold-spangled garment, he leaves it to those skilled in weaving to set its proper price. And the one who wishes to learn the weight of some gold or silver vessels or coins brings them to the one who knows the art of weighing, is taught the weight by him, believes him, and does not contradict him when he tells it. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.106 (Raeder, 30; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-106). ## Discourse 1.107 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-107 - Source: Raeder, 30 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Faith is the foundation of knowledge, as the philosophers' own definitions show. ### Greek text οὔχουν ἁπάντων ἡ ἑπιστήμη, ἀλλὰ τῶν διδασκαλίᾳ καὶ χρόνῳ καὶ πείρᾳ ταύτὴν μεμαθηκότων᾽ ἡ δέ γε πίστις ἁπάντων ἐστὶ τῶν μαθεῖν τι προθυμουμένων. ὑποβάθρα μέντοι καὶ πρηπὶς τῆς ἐπιστήμης ἧ πίστις. τὴν μὲν γὰρ πίστιν καὶ οἱ ὑμέτεροι φιλόσοφοι. ὡρίσαντο εἶναι ἐθελούσιον τῆς ψυχῆς ξυγκατάθεσιν, τὴν δὲ ἐπιστήμην ἕξιν ἀμετάπτωτον ὑπὸ λόγου. ### English translation (Claude) Knowledge, then, does not belong to all, but to those who have learned it by teaching, time, and experience; but faith belongs to all who are eager to learn something. Faith, however, is the foundation and base of knowledge. For your own philosophers defined faith as a voluntary assent of the soul, and knowledge as a state unshakable by argument. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.107 (Raeder, 30; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-107). ## Discourse 1.108 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-108 - Source: Raeder, 30 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: It is absurd to demand knowledge before faith only in divine matters. ### Greek text ἄτοπον δὲ καὶ λίαν παγχάλεπον, τοὺς μὲν τέχνης ἁπάσης διδασχάλους ἔχειν τὴν ἐπιστήμην, τοὺς δὲ φοιτῶντας τὴν πίστιν, ἐπὶ μόνων δέ γε τῶν θείων παιδευμάτων ἀνατετράφθαι τὴν τάξιν, καὶ πρὸ τῆς πίστεως ἀπαιτεῖσθαι τὴν ἐπιστήμην. οὐχ ἥκιστα γὰρ ἐπὶ τῶν ἀοράτων τῶν τῆς πίστεως ὀμμάτων δεόμεθα. ### English translation (Claude) It is absurd and very grievous that in every craft the teachers have knowledge and the pupils faith, but in divine teachings alone the order is turned upside down and knowledge is demanded before faith. For we need the eyes of faith most of all with invisible things. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.108 (Raeder, 30; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-108). ## Discourse 1.109 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-109 - Source: Raeder, 30 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Following Hebrews 11:6, the church teaches faith first and explains the mysteries to the initiated. ### Greek text τῷ τοι καὶ ὁ θεῖος ἀπόστολος διαρρήδην βοᾷ' »γυιστεῦσαι γὰρ δεῖ τὸν προσερχόμενον τῷ Θεῷ, ὅτι ἔστι καὶ τοῖς ἐκζητοῦσιν αὐτὸν μισθαποδότης γίνεται.“ διά τοι τοῦτο καὶ ἡμεῖς τοῖς προσιοῦσι καὶ τὰ θεῖα ποθοῦσι μαθεῖν πρὸ τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων τὴν τῆς πίστεως διδασκαλίαν προσφέρομεν, εἶτα τελουμένοις καὶ μυουμένοις δηλοῦμεν, τίνων ἐστὶν αἰνίγματα τὰ γινόμενα. ### English translation (Claude) That is why the divine apostle cries out plainly: 'For whoever approaches God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.' For this reason we too offer to those who come and long to learn divine things the teaching of faith before all else, and then, when they are being initiated and admitted to the mysteries, we make clear of what things the rites are symbols. ### Scripture references - Heb 11:6: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret describes the instruction of catechumens before and at baptism. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.109 (Raeder, 30; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-109). ## Discourse 1.110 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-110 - Source: Raeder, 30 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: In pagan mysteries too only the hierophant knows the meaning. ### Greek text καὶ παρ᾽ ὑμῖν δέ γε ὡσαύτως τὸν ἱεροφαντικὸν οὖχ ὅπαντες ἴσασι λόγον, ἀλλ᾽ ὃ μὲν πολὺς ὅμιλος τὰ δρώμενα θεωρεῖ, οἱ δὲ προσαγορευόμενον ἱερεῖς τὸν τῶν ὀργίων ἐπιτελοῦσι θεσμόν, ὁ δὲ ἱεροφάντης μόνος οἶδε τῶν γινομένων τὸν λόγον, καὶ οἷς ἂν δοωμάσῃ καταμηνύει. ### English translation (Claude) Among you too not all know the hierophant's account; the great crowd watches what is performed, those called priests carry out the ritual of the rites, but the hierophant alone knows the meaning of what is done, and reveals it to whom he pleases. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.110 (Raeder, 30; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-110). ## Discourse 1.111 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-111 - Source: Raeder, 31 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Only the hierophant explains the meaning of Priapus. ### Greek text καὶ ὅτι μὲν ὁ Πρίαπος Διονύσου καὶ τῆς Ἀφροδίτης υἱός, ἴσασι τῶν ταῦτα μεμυημένων τινές" ἀνθ᾽ ὕτου δὲ τούτων υἱὸς ὀνομάξεται, καὶ σμικρῷ γε ὄντι ἐντίθεται μύριον ἐντεταμένον καὶ μέγιστον, ὃ τῶν μυσαρῶν μυστηρίων ἱεροφάντης ἐπίσταταῖς καὶ εἶ τις ἕτερος τοῖς ἐναγέσι βιβλίοις ἐκείνοις ἐνέτυχεν. ### English translation (Claude) Some of those initiated in these things know that Priapus is the son of Dionysus and Aphrodite; but why he is called their son, and why an enormous, erect member is attached to him though he is small, the hierophant of those loathsome mysteries knows, and anyone else who has read those accursed books. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.111 (Raeder, 31; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-111). ## Discourse 1.112 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-112 - Source: Raeder, 31 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Priapus is explained as pleasure joined with drunkenness. ### Greek text τοτὴν γάρ τοι ᾿ἀφροδίτην ἡδονὴν ὀνομάζοντες, τὸν δέ γε Διόνυσον μέθην προσαγορεύοντες, τὸ ἐξ ἀμφοτέρων τελούμδνον ἐκάλεσαν Πρίαπον᾽ ἡδονὴ γὰρ προσλαβοῦσα μέθην τὴν τῶν παιδογόνων μορίων ἔντασιν ἀπεργάζεται. ### English translation (Claude) For naming Aphrodite pleasure and calling Dionysus drunkenness, they called what is produced by both Priapus; for pleasure joined with drunkenness produces the arousal of the generative parts. ### Translation notes - Theodoret's polemic against pagan cult is translated as written. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.112 (Raeder, 31; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-112). ## Discourse 1.113 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-113 - Source: Raeder, 31 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The phallus rite derives from the Egyptian myth of Osiris and Isis. ### Greek text οὕτω ᾿πάϊλιν τὸν τοῦ Διονύσου φαλλόν (τὸ δὲ ἀνδρεῖον οὕτω καλοῦσι μόριον οἵ τοῦ γέλωτος ποιηταί, καὶ ἐκαλεῖτό γε παρὰ τοῖς Ἕλλησι φαλλαγώγια ἡ τοῦ φαλλοῦ ξορτή) ---- προσεηύνουν μὲν τοῦτον καὶ κατεφίλουν οἵ ὀργιάζοντες ὅπαντες, τὸν δὲ λόγον οὐκ ἤδεσαν᾽ ὁ δὲ καλούμενος ἱεροφάντης ἤδει τὸν Ὄσιριν καὶ τὸν Τυφῶνα καὶ τὰ τοῦ Ὀσίριδος ὑπὸ τοῦ Τυφῶνος κατακοπτόμενα μέλη καὶ πανταχόσε διασπειρόμενα, τὴν δὲ σιν, τὴν τοῦ Ὀσίριδος ἀδελφήν, ταῦτα ξὺν πόνῳ ξυλλέγουσαν, μόνον δὲ τὸν φαλλὸν οὐχ εὑρίσκουσαν παὶ τούτου γε χάριν εἰκόνα τούτου κατασκευάζουσαν καὶ παρὰ ### English translation (Claude) So again with the phallus of Dionysus (so the comic poets call the male member, and the festival of the phallus was called among the Greeks the phallagogia): all who took part in the rites worshiped and kissed it, but did not know its meaning. The so-called hierophant knew of Osiris and Typhon, and of the limbs of Osiris cut up by Typhon and scattered everywhere, and of Isis, the sister of Osiris, collecting them with toil, finding only the phallus missing, and for that reason making an image of it and ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 1.114. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.113 (Raeder, 31; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-113). ## Discourse 1.114 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-114 - Source: Raeder, 31 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Since even pagan rites are known only to hierophants, it is madness to demand knowledge before faith in the Christian mysteries. ### Greek text πάντων προσπυνεῖσθαι κελεύουσαν --- ταῦτα ἐκ τῆς Αἰγύπτου τὰ ὄργια μαθὼν ὁ Ὀδρύσης Ὀρφεὺς εἰς τὴν Ἑλλάδα μετ’ ἤνεγκε καὶ τὴν τῶν Διονυσίων ἑορτὴν διεσχεύασεν. Εἰ τοίνυν οὐδὲ τὰ δυσαγῆ ταῦτα καὶ βδελυρὰ ὄργια πᾶσίν ἐστι γνώριμα, μόνοι δὲ αὐτὰ ἔδεσαν οὗ ἱεροφάνται καλούμενοι, μανία σαφὴς τῶν.-παναγῶν καὶ θείων μυστηρίων πρό γε τῆς πίστεως τὴν γνῶσιν ἐπιζητεῖν. ### English translation (Claude) ordering it to be worshiped by all. Orpheus the Odrysian learned these rites from Egypt, brought them over to Greece, and arranged the festival of the Dionysia. If, then, not even these unholy and disgusting rites are known to all, but only those called hierophants knew them, it is plain madness to seek knowledge before faith in the all-holy and divine mysteries. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.114 (Raeder, 31; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-114). ## Discourse 1.115 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-115 - Source: Raeder, 32 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pindar, Plato, and Orpheus forbid revealing sacred teaching to all. ### Greek text ἢ οὐδὲ Πινδάρῳ τῷ λυρικῷ πείθεσθε σαφῶς ἀπαγορεύοντι᾽ μὴ πρὸς ἅπαντας ἀναρρῆξαι τὸν ἀρχαῖον λόγον“ ταὐτὸ δὲ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ Πλάτων παρεγγυᾷ᾽ «εὐλαβοῦ γάρ φησι μήποτε ἐκπέσῃ ταῦτα εἰς ἀνθρώπους ἀπαιδεύτους. σχεδὸν γάρ, ὡς ἐμοὶ δοκεῖ, οὐκ ἔστι τούτων τοῖς πολλοῖς καταγελαστότερα ἀκούσματα, οὐδ᾽ αὖ πρὸς τοὺς εὐφυεῖς θαυμασιώτερά τε καὶ ἐνθουσιαστιπώτερα. πολλάκις δὲ λεγόμενα καὶ ἀεὶ ἀκουόμενα καὶ πολλὰ ἔτη μόλις ὥσπερ χρυσὸς ἐκκαθαίρεται μετὰ πολλῆς πραγματείαςΞ ἠκούσατε δὲ καὶ ἐν τοῖς πρόσθεν εἰρηκότος Ὀρφέως" οιφθέγξομαι οἷς θέμις ἐστί, θύρας δ᾽ ἐπίθεσθε ### English translation (Claude) Or do you not obey even Pindar the lyric poet, who plainly forbids 'to break the ancient word to all'? Plato enjoins the very same: 'Beware,' he says, 'lest these things ever fall among uneducated people. For, as it seems to me, there are hardly any teachings more ridiculous to the many than these, nor, again, more wonderful and inspiring to the well-endowed. Spoken often and heard always for many years, they are barely refined like gold with much labor.' And you heard Orpheus too, in what preceded, saying: 'I will speak to those for whom it is lawful; shut the doors, ### Extrabiblical texts - Pindar, fr. 180 (Pindar (odes and fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Plato, Ep. 2.314a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Orpheus (attributed), Orph. frag. fr. 245 (Orpheus (attributed), Orphic poems (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Pindar, fragment 180 (Snell); Plato, Letter 2.314a; Orphic fragment 245 (Kern), already cited in 1.86. The verse ends in 1.116. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.115 (Raeder, 32; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-115). ## Discourse 1.116 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-116 - Source: Raeder, 32 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Faith leads and the Lord gives knowledge to those who believe. ### Greek text βέβηλοι.“ τοιγαροῦν ἡγείσθω ἡ πίστις, καὶ ἕψεται ἡ γνῶσις. τοῖς γάρ τοῦ εἰλιπρινῶς καὶ ἀκραιφνῶς πιστεύουσι παρέχει τὴν γνῶσιν ὃ πιστευόμενος κύριος, προσγενομένη δὲ τῇ πίστει ἡ γνῶσις τελεσιουργεῖ τῆς ἀληθείας τὴν ἐπιστήμην ὁ δέ γε ταύτην κεκνημένος ὄλβιος καὶ τρισόλβιος. ### English translation (Claude) you profane.' So let faith lead, and knowledge will follow. For to those who believe sincerely and purely the Lord in whom they believe grants knowledge; and knowledge added to faith perfects the understanding of truth; and whoever possesses it is blessed and thrice blessed. ### Extrabiblical texts - Orpheus (attributed), Orph. frag. fr. 245 (Orpheus (attributed), Orphic poems (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.116 (Raeder, 32; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-116). ## Discourse 1.117 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-117 - Source: Raeder, 32 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Laws says the happy person must share in truth from the start. ### Greek text καὶ τοῦτο δὲ ὁ Πλάτων ἐν τοῖς Νόμοις δεδήλωχεν᾽.«τὸν μέλλοντας γάρ 'φησι «μακάριον καὶ εὐδαίμονα ἔσεσθαι τῆς ἀληθείας εὐθὺς ἐξ ἀρχῆς εἶναι μέτοχον χρή, ἵν᾽ ὡς ἐπὶ πλεῖστον χρόνον ἀληθὴς ὧν διαβιῷ. ### English translation (Claude) Plato too showed this in the Laws: 'He who is to be blessed and happy,' he says, 'must from the very beginning share in the truth, so that he may live as long as possible as a true man.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 730c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 5.730c. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.117 (Raeder, 32; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-117). ## Discourse 1.118 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-118 - Source: Raeder, 33 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Heaven awaits those who live by the truth; unending punishment awaits the rest. ### Greek text τοῖς γὰρ δὴ μετασχοῦσι τῆς ἀληθείας καὶ ταύτης ἀξίως βεβιωκόσιν οὐρανὸς εὐτρεπὴς καὶ τὰ τῶν ἀγγέλων ἐνδιαιτήματα᾽ ὃ δὲ ταύτης ἔρημος καὶ ἀτέλεστος καὶ τῶν παναγῶν καὶ θείων ἀμύητος μυστηρίων ἔρημος μὲν τῶνδε τῶν ἀγαθῶν γενήσεται, κολαστηρίοις δὲ διηνεκέσι παραδοθήσεται. ### English translation (Claude) For to those who have shared in the truth and lived worthily of it, heaven stands ready and the dwellings of the angels; but whoever is without it, uninitiated and without share in the all-holy and divine mysteries, will be deprived of these goods and handed over to unending punishments. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.118 (Raeder, 33; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-118). ## Discourse 1.119 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-119 - Source: Raeder, 33 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Phaedo says the uninitiated lie in mire in Hades. ### Greek text καὶ τοῦτο αὖ πάλιν καὶ ὃ Πλάτῶν δεδήλωχεν ἐν τῷ Φαίδωνι. τοὺς γὰρ τὰς τελετὰς αὖτοῖς παραδεδωκότας εἰρηκέναι φησίν, ὅτι οὖς ἂν ἀμύητος καὶ ἀτέλεστος εἰς “ιδου ἀφίκηται, ἐν βορβόρῳ πείσεται" ὁ δὲ πεκαθαρμένος τε καὶ τετελεσμένος, ἐκεῖσε ἀφικόμενος, μετὰ θεῶν οἰκήσει." ### English translation (Claude) And Plato again showed this in the Phaedo. For he says that those who handed down the rites to them said that whoever arrives in Hades uninitiated and unperfected will lie in mire, while he who has been purified and perfected, when he arrives there, will dwell with the gods. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 69c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 69c. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.119 (Raeder, 33; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-119). ## Discourse 1.120 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-120 - Source: Raeder, 33 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The philosophers anticipate Christian truths without understanding them, like talking birds. ### Greek text Πείσθητε τοίνυν, ὦ φίλοι, τοῖς ὑμετέροις φιλοσόφοις, Ϊ προτελοῦσιν ὑμᾶς "αἱ τὰ ἡμέτερα προδιδάσπουσιν. ἀτεχνῶς γὰρ ἐοίκασι τῶν ὠδινῶν ὀρνίθων ἐκείνοις, οἱ τὴν μὲν ἀνθρωπείαν μιμοῦνται φωνήν, ἀγνοοῦσι δὲ τῶν λεγομένων τὸν νοῦν᾽ παραπλησίως γὰρ δὴ καὶ οὗτοι, περὶ θείων πραγμάτων διαλεγόμενοι, οὐκ ἔγνωσαν ὧνπερ ἔλεγον τὴν ἀλήθείαν. ### English translation (Claude) Be persuaded then, my friends, by your own philosophers, who initiate you beforehand and teach our doctrines in advance. For they are exactly like those songbirds that imitate the human voice but do not know the sense of what they say; in the same way these men too, discoursing about divine things, did not know the truth of what they were saying. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.120 (Raeder, 33; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-120). ## Discourse 1.121 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-121 - Source: Raeder, 33 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The philosophers had only nature, whose witness God preserved through creation. ### Greek text ἔχουσι δὲ οἶμαι ἀμηγέπη ξυγγνώμην, οὔτε προφητιμῆς δαδουχίας οὔτε ἀποστολικῆς ἀπολαύσαντες φωταγωγίας, Ὁ μύνην δὲ τὴν φύσιν ποδηγὸν ἐσχηκότες, ἧς ὃ τῆς δυσσεβείας πλάνος τὰ θεοχάραμτα πάλαι διέφθειρε γράμματα" ἀνενεοῦτο δέ τινα ὅμως τούτων ὃ ποιητὴς καὶ πάμπαν ἐξίτηλα γενέσθαν οὐκ εἴα, τὴν οἰκείαν τοῖς ἀνθρώποις διὰ τῆς κτίσεως προμήθειαν ἐπιδειννύμενος. ### English translation (Claude) Yet they have some excuse, I think, since they enjoyed neither the torch of the prophets nor the illumination of the apostles, but had only nature as their guide, whose God-engraved letters the error of impiety long ago corrupted. Yet the Maker renewed some of them and did not let them become wholly effaced, showing through creation his care for human beings. ### Scripture references - Rom 2:15: echo, low confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.121 (Raeder, 33; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-121). ## Discourse 1.122 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-122 - Source: Raeder, 33 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul at Lystra says God left himself a witness in nature. ### Greek text καὶ τοῦτο δεδήλωκεν ὁ θεῖος ἀπόστολος ἐν «Αύστροις δημηγορήσας" πρὸς γὰρ αὖ πολλοῖς ἑτέροις καὶ τάδε εἴρηκεν᾽ οοὃς ἐν ταῖς παρῳχημέναις γενεαῖς εἴασε πάντα τὰ ἔθνη πορεύεσθαι ταῖς ὁδοῖς αὐτῶν᾽ καίτοιγε οὐκ ἀμάρτυρον ἑαυτὸν ἀφῆκεν ἀγαθοποιῶν, οὐρανόθεν ὑμῖν ὑετοὺς διδοὺς καὶ καιροὺς καρποφύρους, ### English translation (Claude) The divine apostle showed this when he spoke to the people at Lystra; among many other things he said this: 'In past generations he let all the nations go their own ways; yet he did not leave himself without witness, doing good, giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, ### Scripture references - Acts 14:16–17: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The scanned page is cropped at the right edge; the text here appears complete. The quotation ends in 1.123. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.122 (Raeder, 33; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-122). ## Discourse 1.123 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-123 - Source: Raeder, 34 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Israel had law and prophets; other nations were guided by nature. ### Greek text ἐμπιπλῶν τροφῆς καὶ εὐφροσύνης τὰς καρδίας ὑμῶν.“ τὸ μὲν γὰρ ᾿Αβραμιαῖον γένος καὶ νόμον θεῖον ἐδέξατο καὶ προφητινῆς ἀπήλαυσε χάριτος᾽ τὰ δέ γε ἄλλα ἔθνη διὰ τῆς φύσεως καὶ τῆς πτίσεως ἐποδήγει πρὸς θεοσέβειαν τῶν ὅλων ὁ πρύτανις. ### English translation (Claude) filling your hearts with food and gladness.' For the race of Abraham received a divine law and enjoyed the grace of prophecy; but the other nations the Ruler of the universe guided toward godliness through nature and creation. ### Scripture references - Acts 14:17: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The scanned page is cropped at the right edge; the text here appears complete. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.123 (Raeder, 34; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-123). ## Discourse 1.124 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-124 - Source: Raeder, 34 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God gives knowledge chiefly to the godly but some also to others, like rain on wild land. ### Greek text καὶ καθάπερ τὸν ὑετὸν διαφερόντως μὲν τῇ γεωργουμένῃ γῇ τῆς τῶν ἀνθρώπων εἵνεκα χορηγίας ὁ μεγαλόδωρος ἐνίησιν, ἔμ περιουσίας δὲ καὶ φιλοτιμίας κἀι ταῖς ἐρήμοις κἀν τοῖς ὄρεσιν ὕει (καὶ ἡ μὲν ἀρουμένη τοὺς ἡμέρους φύει καρπούς, ἡ δὲ ἀγεώργητος τοὺς ἀγρίους ὁρῶμεν δὲ ἔστιν ὅτε καὶ ἐν μνήμασι καὶ ἐν τοίχοις φυο. μένας συκᾶς), οὕτω τὸ τῆς γνώσεως δῶρον ἐξαιρέτως μὲϊ τοῖς εὐσεβέσι δεδώρηται, τοῖς δέ γε οὐ τοιούτοις, ὡς ταῖς ἐρήμοις καὶ ταῖς λόχμαις ὃ ὑετός. ### English translation (Claude) And just as the generous Giver sends rain especially on the cultivated land for the supply of human beings, but out of abundance and munificence rains also on deserts and mountains (the plowed land bears cultivated fruits, the uncultivated wild ones; and sometimes we see fig trees growing even on tombs and walls), so he has given the gift of knowledge especially to the godly, but also to those who are not such, as the rain falls on deserts and thickets. ### Scripture references - Matt 5:45: echo, low confidence ### Translation notes - The scanned page is cropped at the right edge; the text here appears complete. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.124 (Raeder, 34; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-124). ## Discourse 1.125 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-125 - Source: Raeder, 34 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pagan wisdom bears some good fruit, mixed with bitterness, from which the useful is picked. ### Greek text ὅθεν πολλάκις καί τινι ἐδώδιμα φύουσι καὶ τοὺς τῶν γεωργουμένων μιμοῦνται καρ πούς, ἐπίδηλα δὲ ὅμως ἐστίν, ὡς γεωργίας προφητικῆς οἱ τενύχηκε" τραχύτης γάρ τις αὐτοῖς ἀναμέμινται καὶ πιμρότης οἱ δέ γε διακρίνειν εἰδότες, τὸ χρειῶδες καρπούμενοι, τι λοιπὸν χαίρειν ἐῶσι, καθάπερ οἱ τὰς ῥοδωνιὰς τρυγῶντε: καταλείπουσι μὲν τὰς ἀκάνθας, ξυλλέγουσι δὲ τὰς κάλυκας ### English translation (Claude) Hence they often bear some edible things too and imitate the fruits of cultivated plants, but it is nonetheless evident that they have not had the cultivation of the prophets; for a certain roughness and bitterness is mixed in them. Those who know how to discern gather what is useful and let the rest go, just as those who pick roses leave the thorns and gather the buds. ### Translation notes - The scanned page is cropped at the right edge; the text here appears complete. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.125 (Raeder, 34; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-125). ## Discourse 1.126 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-126 - Source: Raeder, 34 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Bees make honey even from bitter flowers. ### Greek text καὶ μὲν δὴ καὶ ταῖς μελίτταις οὗτος ὃ νόμος ἐμπέφυκεν οὐ γλυκέσι γὰρ μόνοις, ἀλλὰ καὶ πικροῖς ἄνθεσιν ἐφιξά γουσαι, τὴν μὲν γλυκεῖαν ἀνιμῶνται ποιότητα, τὴν ὃ πικρὰν ἀποστρέφονται καὶ ἐκ διαφόρων ποιοτήτων, πιχρῶν τε καὶ στρυφνῶν καὶ αὐστηρῶν καὶ δριμέων, τὸ γλυκύτατον μέλι τοῖς ἀνθρώποις κατασκευάζουσιν. ### English translation (Claude) This law is implanted in bees too: settling not only on sweet but also on bitter flowers, they draw out the sweet quality and turn away from the bitter, and from different qualities, bitter, sour, harsh, and pungent, they make the sweetest honey for human beings. ### Translation notes - The scanned page is cropped at the right edge; the text here appears complete. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.126 (Raeder, 34; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-126). ## Discourse 1.127 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-127 - Source: Raeder, 35 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret will use pagan writers as antidotes and as witnesses for Christian faith. ### Greek text ταύτας δὴ καὶ ἡμεῖς μιμούμενοι, ἐκ τῶν πιερῶν ὑμῶν λειμώνων τὸ γλυκὺ τῆς ὠφελείας ὑμῖν κοατασχευάζομεν μέλι. καὶ ὥσπερ οἱ τὰ σώματα θεραπεύοντες ἐκ τῶν ἰοβόλων θηρίων ὀνησιφόρα κατασκευάζουσι φάρμακα, καὶ τῶν ἐχιδνῶν τὰ μὲν ἀποβάλλοντες, τὰ δὲ ἕψοντες, πολλὰς διὰ τούτων ἐξελαύνουσι γόσους, οὕτως καὶ ἡμεῖς, τὰ τῶν ὑμετέρων ποιητῶν καὶ ξυγγραφέων καὶ φιλοσόφων πονήματα μεταχειρισάμενοι, τὰ μὲν ὡς δηλητήρια καταλείπομεν, τὰ δὲ τῇ τῆς διδασκαλίας ἐπιστήμῃ διασκευάσαντες, ἀλεξιφάρμακον ὑμῖν θεραπείαν προσφέρομεν᾽ καὶ ος ἀντιπάλους ἡμῶν ὑπειλήφατε, τούτους τῶν ἡμετέρων λόγων ἀποφαίνομεν ξυνηγόρους καὶ τῆς πίστεως δείμνυμεν διδασκάλους. ### English translation (Claude) Imitating them, we too prepare for you from your bitter meadows the sweet honey of benefit. And just as those who heal bodies prepare helpful remedies from venomous animals, discarding some parts of vipers and boiling others, and so drive out many diseases, so we too, handling the works of your poets, historians, and philosophers, leave some aside as poisonous, but others we prepare with the skill of teaching and offer you as an antidote; and those you took for our opponents we show to be advocates of our words and teachers of faith. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.127 (Raeder, 35; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-127). ## Discourse 1.128 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-1-128 - Source: Raeder, 35 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Readers are asked to listen in Pythagorean silence and receive the teaching in faith. ### Greek text οὕτω, ξὺν Θεῷ “φάναι, καὶ τὴν ἄλλην ὑμῖν διδασκαλίαν προσοίσομεν. ὑμεῖς δὲ μεμαθημότες ὡς ἀναγκαῖον τὸ τῆς πίστεως χρῆμα, τὴν Πυθαγόρειον σιωπὴν ἀγαπήσατε καὶ τὰς ἀκοὰς ἡσυχῇ τῷ λόγῳ παράσγετε, πιστῶς δεχόμενοι τὰ λεγόμενα" οὕτω γὰρ δὴ κατὰ βραχὺ δυνήσεσθε μαθεῖν τὴν ἀλήθειαν. ### English translation (Claude) In this way, God willing, we shall offer you the rest of the teaching as well. And you, having learned how necessary a thing faith is, embrace the Pythagorean silence and quietly lend your ears to the word, receiving faithfully what is said; for so you will be able little by little to learn the truth. ### Translation notes - The scanned page is cropped at the right edge; the text here appears complete. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 1.128 (Raeder, 35; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-128). ## Discourse 2.1 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-2-1 - Source: Raeder, 36 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Light shows the world only to those who can see. ### Greek text Τὸ φῶς τὸ αἰσθητόν, καὶ τὸ ἄνωθεν. φερόμενον καὶ τὸ κάτω παρ᾽ ἀνθρώπων ἐπινοούμενον, ἐπιδείκνυσι τοῖς ὁρῶσι, τί μὲν χρυσὸς καὶ τί ἄργυρος, τί δὲ χαλκὸς κα σίδηρος καὶ κασσίτερος, καὶ τὰς ἄλλας ὕλας ὡσαύτως, κα μὲν δὴ καὶ χρωμάτων καὶ σχημάτων καὶ φυτῶν καὶ ζῴω! διδάσκει διαφοράν, ἀλλ᾽ οἵ τὰς ὄψεις ἐρρωμένον μόνοι τήνδ τὴν γνῶσιν δέχονται. οἵ γὰρ δὴ τυφλώττοντες οὐδὲν ἀπ τῆς ἀκτῖνος ὀνίνανται᾽ οὐδὲ γὰρ αὐτὴν τοῦ φωτὸς ὁρῶσ τὴν αἴγλην. ### English translation (Claude) Sensible light, both that which comes from above and that devised by human beings below, shows those who see what gold is and what silver, what bronze, iron, and tin, and the other materials likewise; it also teaches the difference of colors, shapes, plants, and animals. But only those with healthy sight receive this knowledge; the blind gain nothing from the ray, for they do not even see the radiance of the light. ### Translation notes - The scanned page is cropped at the right edge (2.1–2.4); only final letters of some lines are lost, and the words are clear. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.1 (Raeder, 36; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-1). ## Discourse 2.2 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-2-2 - Source: Raeder, 36 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Those who refuse truth are like bats and night birds. ### Greek text τούτοις ἐοίκασιν οἵ τὸ νοερὸν φῶς τῆς ἀλη: θείας ἰδεῖν οὐκ ἐθέλοντες, ἀλλ᾽ ἀσπασίως ἐν τῷ ξόφῳ τῆς ἀγνοίας διάγοντες, καθάπερ τῶν πτηνῶν τὰ νύκτωρ πετό. θ “ ᾿ Ἂς ν " Α » μδνα, ἅπερ δὴ μάλα εἰκότως ἀπὸ τῆς νυκτὸς παρωνύμω. προσαγορεύονται" νυκτερίδες γάρ τοῦ καὶ νυκτικόρακες ἀπο φυγγάνουσι μὲν τὸ φῶς ὡς πολέμιον, τὸ δὲ σκότος ἀσπά ἕονται ὡς σωτήριον. ### English translation (Claude) Those who will not see the spiritual light of truth, but gladly spend their lives in the gloom of ignorance, are like them, or like the birds that fly by night, which are very fittingly named after the night: bats and night-ravens flee the light as an enemy and embrace darkness as their safety. ### Translation notes - A line of the scan is unreadable noise (between πετό- and -μενα); no words appear to be lost. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.2 (Raeder, 36; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-2). ## Discourse 2.3 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-2-3 - Source: Raeder, 36 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Those who choose darkness have no excuse now that the divine light shines everywhere. ### Greek text τούτοις μὲν οὖν δή τις οὐκ ὃ! νεμεσήσειε σωφρονῶν᾽ ἡ γάρ τοι φύσις αὐτοῖς τὴν τοιάνὸ ξωὴν ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἀπεμλήρωσεν᾽ οἱ δ΄ αὐθαιρέτως σφᾶς αὐ τοὺς τῷ σκότῳ ξυζεύξαντες ποίας ἂν τύχοιεν εἰκότως ξυγ γνώμης, μάλιστα τοῦ θείου φωτὸς ἅπασαν ἤπειρον χα νῆσον τῆς ἀκτῖνος πληρώσαντος καὶ αὐτὰ κατειληφότος τῆς ### English translation (Claude) No sensible person would be indignant with these creatures, for nature allotted them such a life from the beginning; but those who have of their own choice yoked themselves to darkness, what pardon could they fairly receive, especially when the divine light has filled every continent and island with its ray and has reached the very ends ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 2.4. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.3 (Raeder, 36; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-3). ## Discourse 2.4 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-2-4 - Source: Raeder, 36 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Since Christ, the Sun of righteousness, has risen, unbelief has no excuse. ### Greek text οἰκουμένης τὰ τέρματα; οἵ μὲν γὰρ πρὸ τῆς θείας ἐπιφα νείας τῇδε τῇ πάθῃ περιπεσόντες ἔχουσί τινα μετρίαν οὔτι πῶς παραίτησιν, τῷ μηδέπω τῆς δικαιοσύνης ἀνατεῖλαι τὸν ἥλιον, ἀλλ᾿ ὥσπερ ἐν νυκτὶ διάγειν καὶ ὑπὸ μόνης δαδουχεῖσθαι τῆς φύσεως᾽ ἐπειδὴ δὲ οὗτος οὐ μόνον ἀνέτειλεν, ἀλλὰ καί, ποιητικῶς εἰπεῖν, μέσον οὐφανὸν ἀμφιβέβηκε,“ τίς ἀπολογίας ὑπολείπεται λόγος τοῖς νῦν ἐν μεσημβρίᾳ τυφλώττουόι καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς μύουσιν, ἵνα μὴ τοῦ φωτὸς ἀπολαύσωσιν; ### English translation (Claude) of the inhabited world? Those who fell into this ailment before the divine appearing have some modest excuse, since the Sun of righteousness had not yet risen and they lived as if at night, lit only by the torch of nature. But since he has not only risen but, to speak poetically, 'has bestridden the middle of heaven', what plea of defense is left to those who are now blind at midday and shut their eyes so as not to enjoy the light? ### Scripture references - Mal 4:2 (3:20 LXX): allusion, high confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 8.68 (Homer, Iliad): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - 'Sun of righteousness': Mal 4:2 (LXX 3:20). The poetic phrase is from Homer, Iliad 8.68. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.4 (Raeder, 36; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-4). ## Discourse 2.5 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-2-5 - Source: Raeder, 37 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Conceit keeps the educated from seeing the truth. ### Greek text ] οὐκ ἐᾷ δὲ αὐτοὺς τὴν ἀχλὺν ἀποσκπεδάσαι ὅ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν τὸ τῆς οἰήσεως πάθος. πάντων γὰρ ὄμειγον εἰδέναν νομίζουσι τὴν ἀλήθειαν, ἐπειδὴ τοῖς τῶν ἐλλο-γίμων ἀνδρῶν μαθήμασιν ἐνετράφησαν, καὶ ξυνιδεῖν οὐκ ἐθέλουσιν. ὡς οἱ θαλάττιον ἰχθύες ἐν ἅλμῃ μὲν τρέφονται ὅτι μάλιστα πλείστῃ, ἁλῶν δὲ ὅμως εἰς σκευασίαν προσδέονται. ### English translation (Claude) The ailment of conceit in their eyes does not let them scatter the mist. For they think they know the truth better than everyone, because they were brought up on the teachings of learned men, and they will not perceive that, just as sea fish are fed in the saltiest brine and yet still need salt to be prepared, ### Translation notes - The comparison is left incomplete in the sentence; Theodoret's point is that learning does not make further instruction unnecessary. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.5 (Raeder, 37; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-5). ## Discourse 2.6 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-2-6 - Source: Raeder, 37 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato banished Homer from his ideal city despite his eloquence. ### Greek text οὐδὲ μὴν ἐκεῖνο ξυνορῶσιν, ὡς τῆς ἀληθείας οὐ πάντως ἡ εὐγλωττία διδάσκαλος. τί γὰρ τῆς Ὁμήρου ποιἤσεως ἥδιον; τί δὲ τῆς εὐεπείας ἐκείνης γλυκύτερον; ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως τοῦτον τῶν φιλοσόφων ὃ ἄριστος (ἐπέγνωτε δὲ δήπου τὸν Ἀρίστωνος, ὡς ἡγοῦμαι) μύρῳ γε ἀλείψας, καθάπερ αἵ γυναῖκες τὰς χελιδόνας, ἐκ τῆς ὑπ᾽ αὐτοῦ ξυντεθείσης ἀπέπεμψε πόλεως, ἀκολασίας καλέσας καὶ δυσσεβείας διδάσκαλον. ### English translation (Claude) nor do they perceive that eloquence is not at all the teacher of truth. What is more pleasant than Homer's poetry? What sweeter than that fine speech? Yet the best of the philosophers (you surely recognize the son of Ariston, I think), having anointed him with myrrh, as women do with swallows, sent him away from the city he had composed, calling him a teacher of licentiousness and impiety. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 398a (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 3.398a. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.6 (Raeder, 37; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-6). ## Discourse 2.7 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-2-7 - Source: Raeder, 37 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato charged Homer with teaching impiety to the young. ### Greek text οβλασφημεῖν"" γάρ φησιν.,ἐκπαιδεύει τοὺς νέους καὶ πονηρὰς αὐτοῖς περὶ τῶν θεῶν ἐντίθησι δόξας καὶ ἁπαλοῖς ἔτι οὖσι μωθήματα πονηρὰ καὶ διεφθαρμένα ἐνίησιν καὶ ἕτερα δὲ ἄττα κατηγορήματα πάμπολλα ἐπονήσατο τοῦ κορυφαίου τῶν ποιητῶν. οὔχουν ἅπας εὐγλωττίαν ἠσκημένος ἀξιόθ χρεῶς ὧν γένοιτο ἀληθείας διδάσκαλος. ### English translation (Claude) For he says he trains the young to blaspheme, puts wicked opinions about the gods into them, and instills wicked and corrupt teachings in them while they are still tender; and he made very many other charges against the chief of the poets. So not everyone trained in eloquence would be a trustworthy teacher of truth. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 377e–392a (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - A paraphrase of Plato, Republic 2.377e–3.392a. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.7 (Raeder, 37; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-7). ## Discourse 2.8 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-2-8 - Source: Raeder, 37 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The philosophers each took different paths of error. ### Greek text εἰ δὲ δὴ τοὺς φιλοσόφους ἡμῖν προβάλλεσθε, εὖ ἴστε, ὡς καὶ οὗτοι πλά γον ὑπέμειναν πάμπολυν. οὐ γὰρ δὴ μίαν ἅπαντες λεῶ φόρον ἐσχήκασιν οὐδὲ τοῖς τῶν προωδευκότων ἠκολούθησα ἴχνεσιν, ἀλλ᾽ ἰδίαν ἕκαστος ἐτέμετο τρίβον καὶ μυρίας ἐπι νενοήκασι Ἴ τρίβους᾽ πολυσχιδεῖς γάρ που τοῦ ψεύδους ο ἀτραποί. καὶ τοῦτο διαρρήδην αὐτίκα δὴ μάλα δειχθήσετα ### English translation (Claude) If you put the philosophers forward to us, know well that they too underwent very great wandering. For they did not all have one highway, nor follow in the footsteps of those who went before, but each cut his own path, and they devised countless paths; for the tracks of falsehood are many-branched. This will be plainly shown at once. ### Translation notes - The scanned page is cropped at the right edge (2.8–2.11, 2.14–2.17); only final letters are lost, and the words are clear. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.8 (Raeder, 37; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-8). ## Discourse 2.9 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-2-9 - Source: Raeder, 38 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Thales, Anaximander, Anaximenes, and Diogenes held different first principles. ### Greek text Θαλῆς μὲν γάρ, τῶν ἑπτὰ καλουμένων σοφῶν ὃ πρεσβύτο τος, ἀρχὴν πάντων τὸ ὕδωρ ὑπέλαβεν, Ὁμήρῳ γε οἶμο εἰρηκότι πιστεύσας" οἰ κεανόν τε θεῶν γένεσιν καὶ μητέρ Τηθύν. Ἀναξίμανδρος δέ, τοῦτον διαδεξάμενος, ἀρχὴν ἔφ τὸ ἄπειρον᾽ ᾿ἀναξιμένης δέ, ὃ τούτου διάδοχος, καὶ Διογένη ὁ ᾿Ζπολλωνιάτης τὸν ἀέρα ξυμφώνως ἀρχὴν προσηγορεῦ ### English translation (Claude) Thales, the eldest of the so-called Seven Sages, supposed that water was the first principle of all things, trusting, I think, Homer's words: 'Ocean, the origin of the gods, and mother Tethys.' Anaximander, his successor, said the first principle was the infinite; Anaximenes, his successor, and Diogenes of Apollonia agreed in calling air the first principle; ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 14.201 (Homer, Iliad): quotation, high confidence - Aëtius (Aëtius, Placita): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Iliad 14.201 (and 302). The list follows the doxographers (Aëtius, Placita 1.3). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.9 (Raeder, 38; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-9). ## Discourse 2.10 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-2-10 - Source: Raeder, 38 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Others named fire, the four elements, or earth as the first principle. ### Greek text σάτην᾽ Ἵππασος δὲ ὃ Μεταποντῖνος καὶ ᾿Ηράκλειτος Ἐφέσιος τῷ πυρὶ τὴν ἀρχὴν τῶν πάντων ἀπενειμάτην᾽ δὲ ᾿ἀκραγαντῖνος ᾿Εἰμπεδοχλῆς τὰ στοιχεῖα ἔφη τὰ τέτταρα Ἀενοφάνης δὲ ὃ Κολοφώνιος τὸ πᾶν ἀΐδιον, ἐκ δὲ τῆς γῆ τὰ πάντα καὶ Παρμενίδης δὲ ὁ τούτου ἑταῖρος ὁ ᾿Ελεάτη ὡσαύτως τόνδε τὸν λόγον ἐκράτυνε, ψεῦδος δὲ ἀπέφηνε τῶ αἰσθήσεων τὸ κριτήριον, ἥκιστα λέγων ἐφιπνεῖσθαι τοῦτ ### English translation (Claude) Hippasus of Metapontum and Heraclitus of Ephesus assigned the first principle of all things to fire; Empedocles of Acragas named the four elements; Xenophanes of Colophon said the universe is eternal and all things come from earth; and Parmenides of Elea, his companion, likewise strengthened this doctrine, and declared the criterion of the senses false, saying that it by no means reaches ### Extrabiblical texts - Heraclitus (Heraclitus (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Empedocles (Empedocles (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Xenophanes (Xenophanes (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Parmenides (Parmenides (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 2.11. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.10 (Raeder, 38; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-10). ## Discourse 2.11 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-2-11 - Source: Raeder, 38 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates mocked the natural philosophers for their contradictions, as Xenophon reports. ### Greek text τῆς ἀληθείας" ““ημόκριτος δὲ ὁ ᾿Αβδηρίτης ἄπειρον τὸ πᾶ εἴρηκε καὶ ἀγένητον᾽ ᾿Επίκουρος δὲ ὃ Νεοκλέους ὁ ᾿4θη γαῖος ἐκ τῶν ἀτόμων ἐξ ἀρχῆς ξυστῆναι τὸ πᾶν, εἶναι μέντοι ἄναρχον καὶ ἀΐδιον καὶ Μητρόδωρος δὲ ὁ Χῖος καὶ Ζήνων ὁ ᾿Ελεάτης καὶ Διογένης ὃ Σμυρναῖος διαφόρους ἀρχὰς τῶν ὅλων ὑπέθεντο. διά τον τοῦτο καὶ Σωκράὕτης ὃ Σωφρονίσκου κωμῳδῶν αὐτοὺς διετέλει, ὅτι [ τὰ ἀνθρώποις οὐκ ἐφικτὰ εἰδέναι λίαν ἰσχυριξόμενοι; πρὸς ἀλλήλους ἀεὶ διεμάχοντο, καινῶν προστατεύοντες καὶ ἐναντίων δογμάτων, ἢ φήσιν ὁ Βενοφῶν ἐν τοῖς ᾿ἀπομνημονεύμασιν. ### English translation (Claude) the truth. Democritus of Abdera said the universe is infinite and unbegotten; Epicurus of Athens, son of Neocles, that the universe was put together at the beginning from atoms, yet is without beginning and eternal; and Metrodorus of Chios, Zeno of Elea, and Diogenes of Smyrna proposed different first principles of the universe. That is why Socrates son of Sophroniscus kept mocking them, because, while insisting strongly that they knew things inaccessible to human beings, they were always fighting one another, championing new and contradictory doctrines, as Xenophon says in the Memorabilia. ### Extrabiblical texts - Democritus (Democritus (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Epicurus (Epicurus (sayings and fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Xenophon, Mem. 1.1.11–14 (Xenophon, Memorabilia): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Xenophon, Memorabilia 1.1.11–14. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.11 (Raeder, 38; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-11). ## Discourse 2.12 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-2-12 - Source: Raeder, 39 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: In the Phaedo Socrates recalls his youthful zeal for natural philosophy. ### Greek text καὶ ὁ Πλάτων δὲ αὐτὸν ἐν τῷ Φαίδωνι γέγραφε λέγοντα ιθ,»ἐγὼ γάρ, ὦ Κέβης, νέος ὦν, ὑπερφυῶς ὡς ἐπεθύμησ οἱ) γᾶ, νξος ὧν, θφυῶς ὡς μήῆσα ταυτησὶ τῆς σοφίας. ἣν δὴ καλοῦσι περί φυσεῶς ἰὐτορίαν. ὑπερήφανον γάρ μοι. ἐδόκει. εἶναι εἰδέναι τὰς αἰτίας ἑκάστου, διὰ τί γίνεται ἕκαστον, καὶ διὰ τί ἀπόλλυται, καὶ διὰ τί ### English translation (Claude) And Plato in the Phaedo wrote that he said: 'For when I was young, Cebes, I was wonderfully eager for that wisdom which they call the inquiry into nature. For it seemed to me a splendid thing to know the causes of each thing, why each comes to be, why it perishes, and why it ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 96a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 96a. The OCR repeats part of the first line in garbled form. The quotation ends in 2.13. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.12 (Raeder, 39; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-12). ## Discourse 2.13 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/1-61/#p-2-13 - Source: Raeder, 39 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates says natural philosophy blinded him. ### Greek text ἔστιν.“ εἶτα πολλὰ τοιαῦτα διεξελθών., ἐπή ᾿ ή ἔστιν.“ εἶτα πολλὰ τοιαῦτα διεξελθών, ἐπήγαγεν" «τεκμήριον δέ σοι ἐρῶ ἱκανόν. ἐγὼ γάρ, ἃ καὶ πρότερον σαφῶς ἦπιστάμην, ὥς γε ἐμαυτῷ καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις ἐδόκουν, ὑπὸ ταύτῆς τῆς σχέψεως οὕτω σφόδρα διετυφλώθην, ὥστ᾽ ἀπέμαθον ### English translation (Claude) is.' Then, after going through many such things, he added: 'I will give you sufficient evidence. For by this inquiry I was so utterly blinded, even about things I had clearly known before, as I and others thought, that I unlearned ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 96c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 96c. The OCR repeats the opening words. The quotation ends in 2.14. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.13 (Raeder, 39; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-13). ## Discourse 2.14 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-14 - Source: Raeder, 39 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Theaetetus mocks the philosophers' endless quarrels. ### Greek text καὶ ἃ πρὸ τοῦ ᾧμην εἰδέναι. καὶ αὖθις δέ, τῆς τῶν φιλοσόφων,ὔ κατηγορῶν “- ἔριδος, Ρ τοιάδε,ὔ ὁ ς Πλάτων,ὔ ἐν τῷ “ Θεαιτήτῳ διέξεισιν",,ὄἀλλ᾽ ἄν τινὰ ἔρῃ, ὥσπερ ἐκ φαρέτρας ῥηματίσκια αἰνιγμάτων ἀνασπῶντες πονοῦσι' καὶ ἂν τούτου ζητῇς λόγον λαβεῖν, τί εἰρήκασιν, ἑτέρῳ πεπλήξῃ καινῶς μετωνομασμένῳ, περανεῖς δὲ οὐδέποτε οὐδὲν πρὸς οὐδένι αὐτῶν, οὐδέ γε ἐκεῖνοι πρὸς ἀλλήλους᾽ ἀλλ᾽ εὖ πάνυ φυ λάξουσι τὸ μηδὲν βέβαιον ἐᾶν εἶναι, μήτε ἐν λόγῳ μήτε ἔ ταῖς αὑτῶν ψυχαῖς, ἡγούμενοι, ὡς ἐμοὶ δοκεῖ, αὐτὸ στάσι μὸν εἶναι τούτῳ δὲ πάνυ πολεμοῦσι καὶ καθόσον ἂν δύ νῶνται πανταχόθεν (ἐκβάλλουσιν). ἴσως, ὦ Θεόδωρε, τοὺ ἄνδρας μαχομένους ξώρακας, εἰρηνεύουσι δὲ οὐ ξυγγέγονας οὐ γάρ σοι ἕταϊροί εἰσιν᾽ ἀλλ᾽ οἶμαν ταῦτα τοῖς μαθηταῖ ἐπὶ σχολῆς φράξουσιν, οὗς ἂν βούλωνται ὁμοίους αὐτοί ποιῆσαι. ποίοις μαθηταῖς, ὦ δαιμόνιε; οὐδὲ γίνεται τῶ τοιούτων ἕτερος ἑτέρου μαθητής, ἀλλ᾽ αὐτόματοι ἀναφύοντα ὁπόθεν ἂν τύχῃ ἕχαστος αὐτῶν ἐνθουσιάσας, καὶ τὸν ἕτερον ἕτερος οὐδὲν ἡγεῖται εἰδέναι. ### English translation (Claude) even what I thought I knew before.' And again, accusing the strife of the philosophers, Plato sets out the following in the Theaetetus: 'But if you ask one of them anything, they draw out little enigmatic phrases as from a quiver and shoot them off; and if you seek to get an account of what he has said, you will be struck by another newly coined term, and you will never reach any conclusion with any of them, nor do they with one another; but they take very good care to allow nothing to be fixed, either in argument or in their own souls, thinking, as it seems to me, that this would be something stationary; and this they fight against with all their might and drive out from everywhere as far as they can. Perhaps, Theodorus, you have seen the men fighting but have not been with them when they are at peace; for they are not your companions. But I suppose they explain these things at leisure to their pupils, whom they wish to make like themselves. What pupils, my good man? Among such men one does not become the pupil of another; they spring up of themselves, wherever each happens to be inspired, and each thinks the other knows nothing.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Theaet. 180a–c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Theaetetus 179e–180c (abridged). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.14 (Raeder, 39; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14). ## Discourse 2.15 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-15 - Source: Raeder, 40 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato notes that Parmenides and Melissus held the opposite view. ### Greek text αὶ μὲν ὀλίγα πάλιν υὐλίγο δ᾽ ἐπελαθόμην, ὦ Θεόδωρε, ὅτι ἄλλοι αὖ τἀναντία τούτοι ἀπεφήναντο, οἷον ἀκίνητον τελέθει τῷ παντὶ ὄνομα εἶνα καὶ ὅσα Μέλισσοί τε καὶ Παρμενίδαι, ἐναντιούμενον πᾶς τούτοιρ. ### English translation (Claude) And a little later again: 'But I almost forgot, Theodorus, that others again declared the opposite of these views, such as "motionless is the name for the all", and all that the Melissuses and Parmenideses ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Theaet. 180d–e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Parmenides (Parmenides (fragments)): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Theaetetus 180d–e, quoting Parmenides. The quotation ends in 2.16. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.15 (Raeder, 40; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-15). ## Discourse 2.16 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-16 - Source: Raeder, 40 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Sophist also accuses the philosophers; the accuser is not an apostle but the chief philosopher. ### Greek text διϊσχυρίζονται. κὰν μέντοι. κᾶν τῷ Σοφιστῇ τ τοιαῦτα πάλιν αὐτῶν κατηγορεῖ, οὐκ ἀπόστολος οὐδέ } προφήτης, ἀλλὰ τῶν φιλοσόφων ὁ πρῶτος, εἶτε Πλάτων τὸν Ἀρίστωνος ἐθέλοι τις λέγειν, εἴτε Σωκράτην τὸν Σὰ φρονίσπκου᾽ Σωκράτους μὲν γὰρ τὰ ἐνθυμήματα, Πλάτωνο δὲ τὰ ξυγγράμματα. ### English translation (Claude) maintain in opposition to all these.' And in the Sophist again he makes similar charges against them. It is not an apostle or a prophet who does so, but the first of the philosophers, whether one wishes to call him Plato son of Ariston or Socrates son of Sophroniscus; for the thoughts are Socrates' and the writings Plato's. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.16 (Raeder, 40; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-16). ## Discourse 2.17 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-17 - Source: Raeder, 40 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Sophist describes the philosophers' rival accounts of being as children's myths. ### Greek text ᾿ εἴτε δὲ οὗτος, εἴτε ἐκεῖνος, οὔτ φησίν" οὐὖὔθόν τινα ἕκαστος φαίνεταί μοι διηγεῖσθαι παισὶ ὡς οὖσιν ἡμῖν᾽ ὃ μέν, ὡς τρία τὰ ὄντα᾽ πολεμεῖ δὲ ἀλλήλοις ἐνίοτε αὐτῶν ἄττα πῃ" τοτὲ δὲ καὶ φίλα γινόμενα, γάμους τε καὶ τόκους καὶ τροφὴν ἐκγόνων παρέχεται" δύο δὲ ἕτερος εἰπών, ὑγρὸν καὶ ξηρόν, ἢ θερμὸν καὶ Ψυχρόν, ξυνοιρίξει τε αὐτὰ "αὶ ἐκδίδωσιν. τὸ δὲ παρ᾽ ἡμῖν Ἔλεατιπὸν ἔθνος ἀπὸ Ξενοφάνους τε καὶ ἔτι πρόσθεν ἄρχεται; ὡς ἑνὸς ὄντος τῶν ἁπάντων καλουμένων διεξέρχεται τοὺς μύθους. [ ἤδη δὲ καὶ Σικελικαί τινες Μοῦσαν ξυνενόησαν, ὅτι ξυμπλέχειν ἀσφαλέστερον ἀμφότερα καὶ λέγειν, ὡς τὸ ὃν πολλά τε καὶ ἕν ἐστιν, ἔχθρᾳ δὲ καὶ φιλίᾳ ξυνέχεται. ### English translation (Claude) Whether it is the one or the other, he says this: 'Each of them seems to me to tell us a kind of myth, as if we were children. One says that the things that are are three, and that some of them are sometimes at war with one another in some way, and at other times become friends and provide marriages, births, and the rearing of offspring. Another, saying there are two, wet and dry, or hot and cold, marries them off and settles them together. Our Eleatic tribe, beginning from Xenophanes and even earlier, tells its myths as though what are called all things were one. And later certain Sicilian Muses perceived that it is safer to weave both together and say that what is is both many and one, and is held together by enmity and friendship.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Soph. 242c–e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Sophist 242c–e. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.17 (Raeder, 40; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-17). ## Discourse 2.18 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-18 - Source: Raeder, 41 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato describes the materialists' battle of giants over being. ### Greek text καὶ τοιαῦτα ἄντα ἐφεξῆς εἰπών, ἐπάγει" »αὶ μὴν ἔοικέ γε ἐν αὐτοῖς οἷον γιγαντομαχία τις εἶναι διὰ τὴν ἀμφισβήτησιν περὶ τῆς οὐσίας πρὸς ἀλλήλους. πῶςς οἱ μὲν εἰς γῆν ἐξ οὐρανοῦ καὶ περὶ τοῦ ἀοράτου πάντα ἕλκουσι, ταῖς χερσὶν ἀτεχνῶς πέτρας καὶ δρῦς λαβόντες. τῶν γὰρ τοιούτων ἐφαπτόμενοι πάντων, σφόδρα διϊσχυρίζονται τοῦτο εἶναι μόνον, ὅπερ ἔχει προσβολὴν καὶ ἐπαφήν τινα, ταὐτὸν σῶμα καὶ οὐσίαν ὁριξόμενοι.““ ### English translation (Claude) And after saying more of the same kind he adds: 'Indeed there seems to be among them a sort of battle of giants because of their dispute with one another about being. Some drag everything down to earth from heaven and the invisible, literally grasping rocks and oaks in their hands; for laying hold of all such things, they strongly insist that only that exists which offers some resistance and touch, defining body and being as the same.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Soph. 246a–b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Sophist 246a–b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.18 (Raeder, 41; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-18). ## Discourse 2.19 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-19 - Source: Raeder, 41 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato and Socrates, not the apostles, made these charges. ### Greek text Ταῦτα οὐ Πέτρος ὁ ἡμέτερος οὐδὲ Παῦλος τῶν ὗμετέρων κατηγόρησε φιλοσόφων, ἀλλὰ Πλάτων ὃ εὐγλωττότατος καὶ Σωκράτης ὁ κατὰ τὴν Πυθίαν ἀνδρῶν ἁπάντων σοφώτατος" καὶ ἔφασαν αὐτοὺς διϊσχυρίξεσθαι, τοῦτο εἶναι μόνον, ὅπερ ἔχδι προσβολὴν καὶ ἐπαφήν τινα, καὶ ταὐτὸν σῶμα καὶ οὐσίαν δρίξεσθαι καὶ μηδὲν περαιτέρω τῶν ὁρω- μένων φαντάζεσθαι. ### English translation (Claude) It was not our Peter nor Paul who made these charges against your philosophers, but Plato the most eloquent and Socrates, according to the Pythian priestess the wisest of all men; and they said that these men insisted that only that exists which offers some resistance and touch, defined body and being as the same, and imagined nothing beyond what is seen. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.19 (Raeder, 41; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-19). ## Discourse 2.20 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-20 - Source: Raeder, 41 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Timon of Phlius ridiculed the philosophers in his Silloi. ### Greek text πῶς οὖν ἄν τις τούτοις χρήσαιτο ποδηγοῖς τῆς ἀληθείας, τοσοῦτον δὴ καὶ τοιοῦτον ὑπομείνασι, πλάνον καὶ ἐναντίας γε ὠδίνασι δόξας καὶ σφοδρὸν κατ᾽ ἀλλήλων ἀναρριπίσασι πόλεμον; καὶ Τίμων δὲ αὐτοὺς ὁ Φλιάσιος, ὁ Πύρρωνος ἕταῖρος, ἔν τοῖς σίλλοις ἐτραγῴδησεν᾽ ἐγὼ δὲ ἐκ μάλα πολλῶν ὀλίγων μνησθήσομαι" σχέτλιοι. ἄνθρωποι, κάκ᾽ ἐλέγχεα, γαστέρες οἷον, τοίων ἔκ τ ᾿ ἐρίδων ἔκ ἐ τὲ στοχασμῶν ### English translation (Claude) How then could anyone use as guides to truth men who underwent so great and such wandering, gave birth to contradictory opinions, and fanned a fierce war against one another? Timon of Phlius, companion of Pyrrho, made tragedy of them in his Silloi; I will mention a few out of very many: 'Wretched men, base reproaches, mere bellies, of such strifes and of such groanings ### Extrabiblical texts - Timon of Phlius, Timon Silloi (Timon of Phlius, Silloi): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Timon of Phlius, Silloi, fragment (adapting Hesiod, Theogony 26). The quotation ends in 2.21. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.20 (Raeder, 41; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-20). ## Discourse 2.21 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-21 - Source: Raeder, 42 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Timon long ago charged the philosophers with conceit; guessing is not knowing. ### Greek text πέπλησθε, ἄνθρωποι, πενεῆς οἰήσιος ἔμπλεοι ἀσκοί οὐ μόνον ἄρα ἡμεῖς τὸ τῆς οἰήσεως ἐπιπροσθεῖν ὑμῖν εἰρήκαμεν πάθος᾽ πάλαι γὰρ καὶ πρόπαλαι ταύτην ὃ Τίμων τῶν ὑμετέρων φιλοσόφων τὴν κατηγορίαν πεποίηται. ἄλλο δέ ἐστιν εἰδέναι, καὶ ἄλλο τὸ οἴεσθαι εἰδέναι, μηδὲν ἐπιστάμενον. πολλῷ γάρ τινι διαφέρουσιν, ὦ φιλότης, ἀλλήλοιν ἀλήθεια καὶ στοχασμὸς ἀληθείας. ### English translation (Claude) you are full, men, wineskins full of empty conceit.' So we are not the only ones who have said that the ailment of conceit stands in your way; long, long ago Timon made this accusation against your philosophers. It is one thing to know and another to think one knows while understanding nothing. For truth and a guess at truth differ greatly from each other, my friend. ### Extrabiblical texts - Timon of Phlius, Timon Silloi (Timon of Phlius, Silloi): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The Greek of the quotation is partly garbled in the scan and is translated by sense. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.21 (Raeder, 42; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-21). ## Discourse 2.22 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-22 - Source: Raeder, 42 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Anaxagoras first spoke of Mind ordering the world; Pythagoras of the monad. ### Greek text ὃ μὲν γὰρ στοχασμὸς καὶ διαμαρτίας ἔχει πολλάς. ἡ δὲ ἀλήθεια ἐκπαιδεύειν οὐδὲν ἐναντίον ἀνέχεται. τοιγαροῦν ἄλλως τις ἀληθείας πέρι τεκμαιρόμενος λέγει, καὶ ἄλλως αὐτὴ ξαυτὴν ἕρμηνεύει᾽ ἐπεὶ καὶ 'άναξαγόρας ὁ Ἡχγησιβούλου ὃ Κλαζομένιος, τῶν πρὸ αὐτοῦ γεγενημένων φιλοσόφων οὐδὲν περαιτέρω τῶν ὁρωμένων γενοηκότων, πρῶτος νοῦν ἔφησεν ἐφεστάναι τῷ κόσμῳ, καὶ τοῦτον εἰς τάξιν ἐκ τῆς ἀταξίας ἀγαγεῖν τὰ στοιχεῖα καὶ Πυθαγόρας δὲ ὃ Μνησάρχου ἀρχὴν τῶν πάντων ἔφησε τὴν μονάδα᾽ κατὰ δὲ τὸν αὐτὸν χρόνον ἐγενέσθην Ἀναξαγόρας καὶ Πυθαγόρας. ### English translation (Claude) For guesswork has many failures, but truth does not tolerate teaching anything contrary. So one person speaks in one way when conjecturing about truth, and truth interprets itself in another. Anaxagoras of Clazomenae, son of Hegesibulus, when the philosophers before him had conceived of nothing beyond visible things, was the first to say that Mind presides over the world and brought the elements from disorder into order; and Pythagoras son of Mnesarchus said that the first principle of all things is the monad. Anaxagoras and Pythagoras lived at the same time. ### Extrabiblical texts - Anaxagoras (Anaxagoras): allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.22 (Raeder, 42; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-22). ## Discourse 2.23 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-23 - Source: Raeder, 43 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Anaxagoras and Pythagoras learned of God in Egypt from Egyptians and Hebrews. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ τὴν Πυθαγόρου μὲν διατριβὴν ἡ γαμετὴ Θεανὼ διεδέξατο καὶ Τηλαύγης καὶ Μνήσαρχος οἵ τούτου παῖδες, Τηλαύγους δὲ ᾿Εμπεδοκλῆς ὁ Ἀχραγαντῖνος ἐγένετο φοιτητής, τοῦ δ᾽ ᾿ἀναξαγόρου ᾿Αρχέλαος, ᾿Αρχελάου δὲ Σωκράτης ὁ ᾿4θηναῖος. καὶ ᾿ἀναξαγόρας δὲ καὶ Πυθαγόρας εἰς ἀἄϊγυπτον ἀφικόμενοι τοῖς Αἰγυπτίων καὶ Ἑβραίων αὐτόθι σοφοῖς ξυνεγενέσθην καὶ τὴν περὶ τοῦ ὄντος ἠρανισάσθην γνῶσιν. ### English translation (Claude) Pythagoras' school was taken over by his wife Theano and his sons Telauges and Mnesarchus; Empedocles of Acragas became a pupil of Telauges, Archelaus of Anaxagoras, and Socrates of Athens of Archelaus. Both Anaxagoras and Pythagoras went to Egypt, associated there with the wise men of the Egyptians and Hebrews, and gathered knowledge about the One who is. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.23 (Raeder, 43; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-23). ## Discourse 2.24 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-24 - Source: Raeder, 43 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plutarch and a letter ascribed to Xenophon report Plato's journey to Egypt. ### Greek text χρόνῳ δὲ ὕστερον καὶ ὁ Πλάτοτῶν τήνδε τὴν ἀποδημίαν ἐστείλατο᾽ καὶ τοῦτο λέγει μὲν ἐν τοῖς Παραλλήλοις ὃ Πλούταρχος, λέγει δὲ καὶ Ξενοφῶν ὁ ΓΙ Γρύλλου, ἐν οἷς πρὸς τὸν Σωκρατικὸν Αἰσχίνην ἐπέστειλε" γράφει δὲ ὧδε᾽,, Αἰγύπτου γὰρ ἠράσθησαν καὶ τῆς Πυθαγόρου τερατώδους σοφίας" ὧν τὸ περιττὸν καὶ μὴ μόνιμον ἐπὶ Σωκράτει διήλεγχεν ἔρως τυραννίδος, καὶ ἀντὶ διαίτης ### English translation (Claude) Later Plato too made this journey abroad. Plutarch says this in his Parallels, and so does Xenophon son of Gryllus in what he wrote to Aeschines the Socratic. He writes thus: 'They fell in love with Egypt and with the marvel-mongering wisdom of Pythagoras; their excess and inconstancy toward Socrates was exposed by love of tyranny and, instead of a simple diet, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plutarch (Plutarch): allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - The letter to Aeschines is one of the Socratic letters ascribed to Xenophon, generally regarded as not his. The quotation ends in 2.25. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.24 (Raeder, 43; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-24). ## Discourse 2.25 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-25 - Source: Raeder, 43 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The letter accuses Plato of leaving Socrates for Pythagorean wisdom and Sicilian luxury. ### Greek text λιτῆς Σικελιῶτις γαστρὸς ἀμέτρου τράπεζα.“ τοιαῦτα περὶ τοῦ Πλάτωνος ὃ Ξενοφῶν ἔγραψεν, ὅτι τῆς Σωκράτους διδασκαλίας ὑπεριδών, τὴν τερατώδη Πυθαγόρου σοφίαν ἐζήλωσε καὶ Διονυσίῳ τῷ Σικελίας τυράννῳ ξυνῆν, Συρακουσίας ἀπολαύων χλιδῆς. ἔφη δὲ αὐτὸν καὶ τῆς Αἰγυπτίων ἐρασθῆναν σοφίας. ### English translation (Claude) the Sicilian table of an immoderate belly.' Xenophon wrote this about Plato: that he scorned Socrates' teaching, eagerly pursued the marvel-mongering wisdom of Pythagoras, and lived with Dionysius, tyrant of Sicily, enjoying Syracusan luxury. He said that he also fell in love with the wisdom of the Egyptians. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.25 (Raeder, 43; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-25). ## Discourse 2.26 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-26 - Source: Raeder, 43 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Why believe those who learned imperfectly rather than their teachers? ### Greek text οὐκοῦν καὶ Πυθαγόρας καὶ Ἀναξαγόρας καὶ Πλάτων αἰνίγματά τινα περὶ τοῦ ὄντος παρ᾽ «Αἰγυπτίων καὶ ᾿Εβραίων ξυνέλεξαν᾽ τί δήποτ᾽ οὖν τούτοις μὲν οὐκ ἀκριβῶς τὰ θεῖα μεμαθηγόσι πιστεύετε, παρ᾽ ὧν δὲ οὗτοι ταῦτά γε ἔμαθον, μαθεῖν οὐκ ἐθέλετε; ### English translation (Claude) So Pythagoras, Anaxagoras, and Plato collected some riddles about the One who is from Egyptians and Hebrews. Why then do you believe these men, who did not learn divine things accurately, and refuse to learn from those from whom they learned them? ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.26 (Raeder, 43; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-26). ## Discourse 2.27 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-27 - Source: Raeder, 44 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Cratylus says the first Greeks worshiped only the heavenly bodies. ### Greek text ὅτι γὰρ οἵ πρὸ τούτῶν γενόμενοι ποιηταὶ καὶ φιλόσοφοι πλέον τῶν ὁρωμένων οὐδὲν ὑπέλαβον εἶναι, ὁ Πλάτων ἐν τῷ Κρατύλῳ δεδήλωκεν" »»φαίνονται γάρ μοι φησίν,,οἱ πρῶτοι τῶν ἀνθρώπων περὶ τὴν Ἑλλάδα τούτους μόνους ἡγεῖσθαι θεούς, οὔσπερ νῦν οἷ πολλοὶ τῶν βαρβάρων, ἥλιον καὶ σελήνην καὶ γῆν καὶ ἄστρα καὶ οὐρανόν" ὅτε οὖν αὐτὰ ὁρῶντες ἰόντα δρόμῳ καὶ θέοντα, ἀπὸ ταύτης τῆς φύσεως, τῆς τοῦ θεῖν, θεοὺς αὖτο ### English translation (Claude) That the poets and philosophers before them thought nothing existed beyond the visible, Plato showed in the Cratylus: 'It seems to me,' he says, 'that the first men in Greece thought these alone were gods, as many of the barbarians do now: sun, moon, earth, stars, and heaven. Seeing them always moving on their course and running, from this nature of running (thein) they named them gods (theoi).' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Crat. 397c–d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Cratylus 397c–d. The word 'them' at the end is split between 2.27 and 2.28 in the printed division. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.27 (Raeder, 44; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-27). ## Discourse 2.28 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-28 - Source: Raeder, 44 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Hesiod's genealogy of the gods shows ignorance of the Creator. ### Greek text ὺς ἐπονομάσαι.“ καὶ Ὅμηρος δὲ καὶ Ἡσίοδος παντάπασι τὸν τοῦ παντὸς ἠγνόησαν ποιητήν᾽ ᾿Ησίοδος μὲν γὰρ ἐκ τοῦ Χάους ἔφησεν Ἰθκεανὸν καὶ Τηθὺν γεγενῆσθαι, ἐκ δὲ χεανοῦ καὶ Τηθύος τὸν Οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν Γῆν, ἐκ δὲ τούτοιν Κρόνον τε καὶ Ῥέαν καὶ τούτων τοὺς ἀδελφούς, ἐκ δὲ Κρόνου καὶ Ῥέας τὸν Δία καὶ τὴν Ἥραν καὶ Ποσειδῶνα καὶ Πλούτωνα. ### English translation (Claude) And Homer and Hesiod were wholly ignorant of the Maker of the universe. Hesiod said that Ocean and Tethys were born from Chaos, and from Ocean and Tethys Heaven and Earth, and from these Cronus and Rhea and their brothers, and from Cronus and Rhea Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, and Pluto. ### Extrabiblical texts - Hesiod, Theog. 116–137 (Hesiod, Theogony): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret's summary differs from Hesiod's Theogony, where Earth and Heaven come before Ocean and Tethys. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.28 (Raeder, 44; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-28). ## Discourse 2.29 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-29 - Source: Raeder, 44 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Homer too erred, yet Plato bids belief in the poets. ### Greek text ὃ δὲ Ὅμηρος τὸν Ἰβπέανόν φησι ν»θεῶν γένεσιν καὶ μητέρα Τηθύν"“ καὶ ὃν θεῶν καὶ ἀνδρῶν ὀνομάξει πατέρα, ὡς ἐκ Κρόνου γεγενημένον, Κρονίδην ἀποκαλεῖ, πολλῷ οὖν ἄρα καὶ οὗτοι δεδουλεύχασν πλάνῳ. ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως καὶ τοῦτο εὖ μάλα ὁ Πλάτων εἰδώς, πιστεύειν αὐτοῖς που παρεγγυᾷ τὰ τοιαῦτα μυθολογοῦσι, καὶ ἄνευ εἰκότων καὶ ἀληθῶν ἀποδείξεων λέγουσιν. ### English translation (Claude) And Homer calls Ocean 'the origin of the gods and mother Tethys'; and the one he names father of gods and men he calls son of Cronus, as born of Cronus. These too, then, were slaves to great error. And yet Plato, knowing this very well, enjoins us somewhere to believe them when they tell such myths, and to believe them even when they speak without probable and true proofs. ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 14.201 (Homer, Iliad): quotation, high confidence - Plato, Tim. 40d–e (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Iliad 14.201; 'father of gods and men' (e.g. Iliad 1.544). Plato, Timaeus 40d–e, already quoted in 1.59. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.29 (Raeder, 44; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-29). ## Discourse 2.30 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-30 - Source: Raeder, 44 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato calls poets inspired; Orpheus learned in Egypt of the one invisible God. ### Greek text καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ δὲ ὁ Πλάτων φησίν᾽ ο«κοῦφον γάρ τι χρῆμα καὶ ἱερὸν ποιητὴς καὶ οὐχ οἷός τε ποιεῖν, πρὶν ἂν ἔνθεος καὶ ἔκφρων γένηται ὃ δὲ Ὀδρύσης. Ὀρφεύς, καὶ αὐτὸς εἰς Αἴγυπτον ἀφιυχκόμενος, τὰ περὶ τοῦ ὄντος οὕτω πῶς μεμάθηκε καὶ βοᾷ" ο»δἷς ἔστ᾽ αὐτοτελής, αὐτοῦ δ᾽ ὑπὸ πάντα τελεῖται" [ ἐν δ᾽ αὐτοῖς αὐτὸς περινίσσεται. οὐδὲ τις αὐτὸν εἰσοράᾳ θνητῶν, αὐτὸς δέ γε πάντας ὁρᾶται. αὐτὸν δ᾽ οὐχ ὁρόω" περὶ γὰρ νέφος ἐσνήρικται᾽ πᾶσι γὰρ θνητοῖς θνηταὶ κόραι εἰσὶν ἐν ὄσσοις, μικραί, ἐπεὶ σάρχερ τε καὶ ὀστέα ἐμπεφύκασιν." ### English translation (Claude) And elsewhere Plato says: 'For a poet is a light and holy thing, and cannot compose until he is inspired and out of his senses.' And Orpheus the Odrysian, who himself came to Egypt, somehow learned the truth about the One who is, and cries out: 'He is one, complete in himself, and all things are brought to completion by him; he himself moves among them, and no mortal sees him, but he sees all. I do not see him, for a cloud is fixed around him; for all mortals have mortal pupils in their eyes, small ones, since flesh and bones have grown upon them.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Ion 534b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Orpheus (attributed), Orph. frag. fr. 245–247 (Orpheus (attributed), Orphic poems (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Ion 534b. The Orphic verses are from the so-called Testament of Orpheus (Orphic fragment 245–247 Kern), a Jewish or Hellenistic composition known also from Ps.-Justin and Clement of Alexandria. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.30 (Raeder, 44; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-30). ## Discourse 2.31 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-31 - Source: Raeder, 45 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Orpheus describes the one God enthroned and holding beginning, middle, and end. ### Greek text καὶ πάλμιν᾽ «αὐτὸς δ᾽ αὖ μέγαν αὖτις ἐπ᾽ οὐρανὸν ἐστήρικται χρυσέῳ ἐνὶ θρόνῳ, γαίη δ᾽ ὑπὸ ποσσὶ βέβηχε᾽ χεῖρα δὲ δεξιτερὴν περὶ τέρμασιν ᾿ῷὡκεανοῖο ἐκτέτακεν᾽ ὀρέων δὲ τρέμει βάσις ἔνδοθι θυμῷ" οὐδὲ φέρειν δύναται ᾿ κρατερὸν μένορ᾽ ἔστι δὲ πάντῃ αὐτὸς ἐπουράνιος καὶ ἐπὶ χθονὶ πάντα τελευτᾷ, ἀρχὴν αὐτὸς ἔχων καὶ μέσσον ἠδὲ τελευτήν. ### English translation (Claude) And again: 'He himself is established in turn upon the great heaven on a golden throne, and the earth stands beneath his feet; he has stretched out his right hand to the ends of Ocean; the base of the mountains trembles in its heart, and cannot bear his mighty strength; he is everywhere heavenly himself, and brings all things to their end on earth, himself holding beginning, middle, and end.' ### Scripture references - Isa 66:1: echo, low confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Orpheus (attributed), Orph. frag. fr. 247 (Orpheus (attributed), Orphic poems (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Orphic fragment 247 (Kern), Testament of Orpheus. The lines echo Isa 66:1. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.31 (Raeder, 45; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-31). ## Discourse 2.32 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-32 - Source: Raeder, 45 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Orpheus mixed his truths with the rites of pagan cult. ### Greek text ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως καὶ ταῦτα “" παρ᾽ “Αἰγυπτίων μεμαθηκώς, οἱ παρ ᾽ Ἑβραίων μαθήματά τινα τῆς ἀληθείας παρέλαβον, παρέμιξε τοῦ πλάνου τῇ θεολογίᾳ τινὰ καὶ τῶν 4ιονυσίων καὶ Θεσμοφοφίων τὰ δυσαγῆ παραδέδωκεν ὄργια, καὶ οἷόν τινι μέλιτι περιχρίσας τὴν κύλικα, τὸ δηλητήριον πόμα τοῖς ἐξαπατωμένοις προσφέρει. ### English translation (Claude) Yet although he learned these things from the Egyptians, who received certain teachings of the truth from the Hebrews, he mixed some error into his theology and handed down the unholy rites of the Dionysia and Thesmophoria; and as though he had smeared the cup with honey, he offers the poisonous drink to those he deceives. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.32 (Raeder, 45; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-32). ## Discourse 2.33 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-33 - Source: Raeder, 45 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Timaeus distinguishes eternal being from becoming. ### Greek text ταὐτὸ δὲ τοῦτο καὶ Πλάτων πεποίημεν᾽ ἀξιάγαστα γὰρ αὐτοῦ τῷ ὄντι τὰ περὶ τοῦ ὄντὸς ἐν τῷ Τιμαίῳ ξυγγεγραμμένα. τίς γὰρ οὐκ ἂν ἀγασθείη λέγοντος ἀκούων;..τἰ τὸ ὃν ἀεί, γένεσιν δὲ οὐκ ἔχον; καὶ τί τὸ γινόμενον μὲν ἀεί, ὃν δὲ οὐδέποτε; τὸ μὲν δὴ νοήσει μετὰ λόγου περιληττὸν ἀεὶ κατὰ τὸ αὐτὸ ὄν, τὸ δὲ αἰσθήσει ἀλόγῳ δοξαστὸν γινόμενον καὶ ἀπογινόμενον, ὄντως δὲ οὐδέποτε ἦν. ### English translation (Claude) Plato did the same. For what he wrote in the Timaeus about the One who is is truly admirable. Who would not admire him on hearing him say: 'What is that which always is and has no coming into being, and what is that which is always coming into being but never is? The one is grasped by thought with reason, being always the same; the other is opined by unreasoning sense perception, coming to be and passing away, but never really being.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Tim. 27d–28a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Timaeus 27d–28a. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.33 (Raeder, 45; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-33). ## Discourse 2.34 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-34 - Source: Raeder, 46 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato says only 'is' fitly belongs to eternal being. ### Greek text προστίθησι δὲ καὶ τάδε τοῖς εἰρημένοις" υταῦτα γὰρ πάντα μέφος χρόνου, τὸ ἦν καὶ ἔσται, ἃ δὴ φέροντες λανθάνομεν ἐπὶ τὴν ἀΐδιον οὐσίαν οὐκ ὀρθῶς. λέγομεν γὰρ δή, ὡς ἦν ἔστι τε καὶ ἔσται" τῇ δὲ τὸ ἔστι μόνον κατὰ τὸν ἀληθῆ λόγον προσήκει" τὸ δὲ ἦν καὶ τὸ ἔσται περὶ τὴν ἐν χρόνῳ γένεσιν οὖσαν πρέπει λέγεσθαι. τὸ δὲ ἀεὶ καὶ κατὰ τὰ αὐτὰ ἔχον ἀκινήτως οὔτε πρεσβύτερον οὔτε ### English translation (Claude) He adds this too to what was said: 'For all these are parts of time, the "was" and the "will be", which we wrongly and unawares transfer to the eternal being. For we say that it was, is, and will be; but in truth only "is" belongs to it; "was" and "will be" are fitly said of the coming into being that is in time. But what is always unchangeably the same cannot become older or ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Tim. 37e–38a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Timaeus 37e–38a. The quotation ends in 2.35. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.34 (Raeder, 46; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-34). ## Discourse 2.35 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-35 - Source: Raeder, 46 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret approves Plato's distinction, illustrating becoming by the stages of human life. ### Greek text νεώτερον προσήκει γίνεσθαι.“ τίς οὖν οὕτω φιλαίτιος καὶ μεμψίμοιρος, ὡς νεμεσῆσαι τοῖς εἰρημένοις καὶ μὴ πᾶσαν αὐτοῖς προσμαρτυρῆσαι ἀλήθειαν; τὸ γὰρ ὃν ἀεὶ γενέσεώς ἐστιν ἁπάσης ὑπέρτερον᾽ τὸ δὲ γινόμενον; ἀλλοιώσεις παμπόλλους ἐπιδεχόμενον, εἰκότως ἔφη οὐδέποτε εἶναι" τὸ γάρ τοι ἔμβρυον, γενόμενον βρέφος, οὐκέτι ἄρα ἐστὶν ἔμβρυον, ἀλλὰ βρέφος" καὶ αὖ πάλιν τὸ βρέφος, παιδίον γενόμενον, οὐκέτι προσαγορεύεται βρέφος᾽ οὕτω τὸ παιδίον τὴν τοῦ μειρακίου προσλαβὺν ἡλικίαν, τοῦτο παλεῖται, ὅπερ ἐγένετο" καὶ ὅταν πάλιν εἰς ἄνδρας τελέσῃ, οὐκέτι μειράκιον; ἀλλ᾽ ἀνὴρ ὀνομάξεται" καὶ πρεσβύτης δὲ γεγονώς, τοῦτο αὖ πάλιν προσαγορεύεται, ὅπερ δὴ καὶ ἐγένετο. ### English translation (Claude) younger.' Who is so fault-finding and discontented as to be indignant with what is said and not to bear witness that it is wholly true? For what always is is above all coming into being; and what comes into being, admitting very many alterations, he rightly said never is. For the embryo, when it becomes a baby, is no longer an embryo but a baby; and the baby, becoming a child, is no longer called a baby; so the child, taking on the age of a youth, is called what it has become; and when again it reaches manhood, it is called no longer a youth but a man; and having become an old man, it is again called what it has become. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.35 (Raeder, 46; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-35). ## Discourse 2.36 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-36 - Source: Raeder, 46 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: In the Crito Socrates speaks of the one who knows, to be feared above all. ### Greek text εἰκότως οὖν ἄρα οὐκ ὄντα ὠνόμασε τὰ γινόμενά τε καὶ ἀλλοιούμενα. καὶ τῷ Κρίτωνι δὲ διαλεγόμενος ὃ Σωκράτης. ἕνα πάντων ὀπτῆρά φησιν. λέγει δὲ ταῦτα" ]..καὶ δὴ καὶ περὶ τῶν δὲκαίων τὸ καὶ ἀδίκων καὶ αἰσχρῶν καὶ καλῶν καὶ κακῶν καὶ ἀγαθῶν, περὶ ὧν νῦν ἡ βουλὴ ἡμῖν ἐστι, πότερον τῇ τῶν πολλῶν δόξῃ δεῖ ἡμᾶς πείθεσθαι καὶ φοβεῖσθαι αὐτήν, ἢ τῇ τοῦ ἕνός, ἥτις ἐστὶν ἐπαΐων, ὃν δεῖ καὶ αἰσχύνεσθαι μαὶ φοβεῖσθαν μᾶλλον ἢ ξύμπαντας τοὺς ἄλλους; ᾧ εἰ μὴ ἀκολουθήσομεν, διαφθεροῦμεν ἐκεῖνο καὶ λωβησόμεθα, ὃ ### English translation (Claude) Rightly, then, he called things that come into being and change not-beings. And Socrates, conversing with Crito, says there is one overseer of all. He says this: 'And so about just and unjust things, shameful and noble, bad and good, about which we are now deliberating, must we follow and fear the opinion of the many, or that of the one, if there is one who knows, whom we must respect and fear more than all the others together? If we do not follow him, we shall corrupt and maim that which ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Crit. 47c–d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Crito 47c–d. Theodoret reads 'the one who knows' as God. The quotation ends in 2.37. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.36 (Raeder, 46; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-36). ## Discourse 2.37 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-37 - Source: Raeder, 47 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates says we must heed the one who knows and the truth itself. ### Greek text τῷ μὲν δικαίῳ βέλτιον ἐγίνετο, τῷ δὲ ἀδίκῳ ἀπώλλυτο.“ καὶ μετ᾽ ὀλίγα πάλιν" ο»οὐκ ἄρα γὲ, ὦ βέλτιστε, πάνυ ἡμῖν οὕτω φροντιστέον, τί δροῦσιν οἵ πολλοὶ ἡμᾶς, ἀλλ᾽ ὅ τι ὃ ἐπαΐων τῶν δικαίων καὶ ἀδίκων, ὁ εἷς, καὶ αὐτὴ ἡ ἀλήθειας ### English translation (Claude) becomes better by the just and is destroyed by the unjust.' And a little later again: 'So, my excellent friend, we must not care so much what the many will say of us, but what the one who knows about just and unjust things will say, he alone, and the truth itself.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Crit. 48a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Crito 47d and 48a. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.37 (Raeder, 47; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-37). ## Discourse 2.38 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-38 - Source: Raeder, 47 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates and Plato honored one God and mentioned many only because of the Athenian crowd. ### Greek text Ὁρᾶτε, ὦ ἄνδρες, ὅπως ἐν τούτοις ὃ Πλάτων καὶ ὁ Σωκράτης τὸν τῶν οὐκ ὄντων θεῶν ἐξήλασεν δρμαθὸν καὶ μόνον τῶν ὅλων τὸν πρύτανιν αἰδεῖσθαν καὶ φοβεῖσθαι παρενελεύσατο, διδάσκων ὡς, εἴποτε πλειόνων ἐμνήσθη θεῶν, διὰ τὸν ἐξηπατημένον τῶν ᾿4θηναίων ὅμιλον τοῦτο ποιῆσαν προσηναγχάσθη. ### English translation (Claude) See, gentlemen, how in these words Plato and Socrates drove out the string of nonexistent gods and urged reverence and fear of the Ruler of the universe alone, teaching that if he ever mentioned many gods, he was forced to do so because of the deceived crowd of the Athenians. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.38 (Raeder, 47; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-38). ## Discourse 2.39 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-39 - Source: Raeder, 47 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates died for less; Plato's letter to Dionysius shows the same caution. ### Greek text εἰ γὰρ δὴ καὶ ταῦτα δεδρακὼς ὁ Σωκράτῆς οὐ διέφυγε τὴν τοῦ κωνείου φιάλην, τί οὐκ ἂν ἔπαθεν, εἰ προφανῶς ἠρνήθη τὸν πολὺν ἐσμὸν τῶν θεῶν; καὶ τοῦτο δῆλον ὃ Πλάτων πεποίηκεν, ἐν οἷς πρὸς Διονύσιον ἔγραψεν. ### English translation (Claude) For if even after doing this Socrates did not escape the cup of hemlock, what would he not have suffered if he had openly denied the great swarm of gods? Plato made this clear in what he wrote to Dionysius. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.39 (Raeder, 47; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-39). ## Discourse 2.40 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-40 - Source: Raeder, 47 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's thirteenth letter distinguishes serious letters beginning with 'God' from others. ### Greek text πρὸρ γὰρ αὖ πολλοῖς ἑτέροις καὶ ταῦτα προστέθεικεν" οππερὶ δὲ δὴ τοῦ ξυμβόλου τοῦ περὶ τὰς ἐπιστολάς, ὅσας τε ἐπιστέλλω σπουδῇ, καὶ ὅσας μή, οἶμαι μέν σε μεμνῆσθαι" ὅμως δὲ νόει καὶ πρόσεχε τὸν νοῦν" πολλοὶ γὰρ οἵ κελεύοντες γράφειν, οὃς οὐ ῥάδιον φανερῶς διωθεῖσθαι. τῆς μὲν οὖν σπουδαίας ἐπιστολῆς θεὸς ἀρχή, θεοὶ δὲ τῆς ### English translation (Claude) For among many other things he added this: 'As for the token regarding my letters, which ones I write in earnest and which not, I think you remember; yet consider it and pay attention, for many bid me write whom it is not easy to refuse openly. The serious letter begins with "God", the others with ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Ep. 13.363b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Letter 13.363b (the authenticity of the Platonic letters is disputed). The quotation ends in 2.41. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.40 (Raeder, 47; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-40). ## Discourse 2.41 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-41 - Source: Raeder, 48 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's letter shows he spoke of many gods only for the crowd's sake. ### Greek text ἧττον.“ πῶς ἄν τις σαφέστερον τὸν οἰκεῖον ἐπιδείξει σκοπόν; γυμνὴν γὰρ ἔδειξεν, ἣν εἶχε περὶ τῶνδε τῶν ὀνομάτων διαφοράν, μονονουχὶ λέγων᾽ τῆς τῶν πολλῶν εἵνεκα δόξης τὸ πληθυντικὸν ὄνομα περὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ τίθημι, τὰς ἐξηπατημένας προλήψεις τῶν πολιτῶν ὑφορώμενος᾽ σπουδαίως γὰρ ἐπιστέλλων καὶ θαρρῶν τῷ τὲ πομίζοντι.. καὶ τῷ δεχομένῳ τὰ γράμματα, ἑνικῶς τὸν Θεὸν ὀνομάζω καὶ τοῦτον ἀρχὴν ποιοῦμαι τῶν λόγων. ### English translation (Claude) "the gods".' How could anyone show his own purpose more clearly? He laid bare the difference he made between these names, all but saying: 'For the sake of the opinion of the many I use the plural name for God, wary of the deceived prejudices of the citizens; but when I write in earnest and trust both the bearer and the receiver of the letter, I name God in the singular and make him the beginning of my words.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Ep. 13.363b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The last word of the quotation (ἧττον, 'less [seriously]') is rendered by sense: the less serious letters begin with 'the gods'. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.41 (Raeder, 48; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-41). ## Discourse 2.42 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-42 - Source: Raeder, 48 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato speaks of the ineffable Maker yet elsewhere of many gods. ### Greek text καὶ ἑτέρωθι δὲ περὶ τοῦ ὄντος τοιάδε γέγραφεν" τὸν γὰρ πατέρα καὶ ποιητὴν τοῦδε τοῦ παντὸς εὑρεῖν τε ἔργον, καὶ εὑρόντα εἰς πάντας ἐξειπεῖν ἀδύνατον᾽ ῥητὸν γὰρ οὐδαμῶς ἐστιν ὡς ἄλλα μαθήματα. ἀλλ᾽ ὅ γε ἐν τούτοις ἀκριβῶς οὕτω θεολογήσας, ἐν ἄλλοις, ἢ τοὺς πολλοὺς ὀρρωδήσας ἢ τῷ ὄντι γε ἀγνοήσας, πολλῶν ἐποιήσατο μνήμην θεῶν καὶ πολλὴν ἐνεργάξεται τοῖξ ἐντυγχάνουσι λώβην. ### English translation (Claude) And elsewhere he wrote this about the One who is: 'To find the Father and Maker of this universe is a task, and having found him, to declare him to all is impossible; for he cannot be expressed at all as other subjects of learning can.' But he who spoke of God so accurately here, elsewhere, either fearing the many or really ignorant, made mention of many gods and does great harm to his readers. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Tim. 28c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Timaeus 28c, with words from Letter 7.341c. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.42 (Raeder, 48; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-42). ## Discourse 2.43 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-43 - Source: Raeder, 48 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Moses is older than all Greek writers, as even Porphyry attests. ### Greek text Ἀνθ' ὅτου δὴ οὖν, ὦ φίλοι, τὸ θολερὸν καὶ γεῶδες ἀρυόμεθα νᾶμα, καὶ μὴ τὴν πηγὴν ἐκείνην ξητοῦμεν τὴν διαυγῆ χαὶ διαφανῆ, ἐξ ἧς ἧ οὗτος λαβὼν τῆς θεολογίας τὰς ἀφορμάς, τὸ ἰλυῶδες αὐτοῖς καὶ γεῶδες ἀνέμιξεν; ἢ ἀγνοεῖτε, ὅτε Πωῦσῆς τῶν ᾿Ιουδαίων ὃ νομοθέτης τάρτων ἐστὶ τῶν ὑμετέρων ποιητῶν καὶ ξυγγραφέων καὶ φιλοσόφων πρεσβύτατος; εἰ δ᾽ ἔτι καὶ νῦν ἐνδοιάξετε καὶ πλάττειν ἡμᾶς τόνδε τὸν λόγον ὑπολαμβάνετε, Πορφύριος γοῦν ὑμῖν μάρτὺυς ἀξιόχρεως ἔστω, ὃς τῆς ἀσεβείας γενόμενος πρόμαχος χατὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν ὕλων τὴν ἀκόλαστον ἐκίνησε γλῶτταν. ἀκούσατε οὖν αὐτοῦ ταῦτα λέγοντος, ἐν οἷς καθ' ἡμῶν ### English translation (Claude) Why then, my friends, do we draw the muddy, earthy stream, and not seek that clear and transparent spring from which he took the starting points of his theology and then mixed in the mud and earth? Or do you not know that Moses, the lawgiver of the Jews, is the oldest of all your poets, historians, and philosophers? If you still doubt it even now and suppose that we invent this account, let Porphyry at least be a trustworthy witness for you, who became champion of impiety and moved his unbridled tongue against the God of the universe. Hear him then saying this in what he wrote against us: ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.43 (Raeder, 48; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-43). ## Discourse 2.44 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-44 - Source: Raeder, 49 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry cites Sanchuniathon as a reliable early historian of the Jews. ### Greek text ξυγγέγραφεν᾽ οοἷστορεῖ δὲ τὰ περὶ ᾿Ιουδαίων ἀληθέστατα, ὅτι καὶ τοῖς τόποις καὶ τοῖς ὀνόμασιν αὐτῶν τὰ ξυμφωνότατα, Σαγχωνιάθων ὁ Βηρύτιος, εἰληφὼς τὰ ὑπομνήματα παρὰ Ἱερομβάλου τοῦ ἱερέως τοῦ θεοῦ Ἰαώ, ὃς Ἀβεμβάλῳ τῷ βασιλεῖ Βηρυτίων τὴν ἱστορίαν ἀναθείς, ὑπ᾽ ἐκείνου καὶ τῶν κατ᾽ ἐκεῖνον ἐξεταστῶν τῆς ἀληθείας παρεδέχθη. ### English translation (Claude) 'The most truthful account of the Jews, since it agrees most closely with their places and names, is given by Sanchuniathon of Berytus, who received the records from Hierombalus, the priest of the god Ieuo; he dedicated his history to Abelbalus, king of the Berytians, and it was accepted by him and by the examiners of truth in his time. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Chr. (Porphyry, Against the Christians (fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Philo of Byblos, Philo Byb. (Philo of Byblos, Phoenician History): allusion, medium confidence - Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.21 (Preparation for the Gospel): echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Against the Christians, book 4 (fragment), quoted through Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.21; the reference is to Philo of Byblos's Sanchuniathon. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.44 (Raeder, 49; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-44). ## Discourse 2.45 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-45 - Source: Raeder, 49 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry dates Sanchuniathon to the time of Semiramis, before the Trojan War. ### Greek text οἷ δὲ τούτων χρόνοι καὶ πρὸ τῶν Τρωϊκῶν πίπτουσι χρόνων καὶ σχεδὸν καὶ τοῖς Μωσέως πελάζουσιν, ὡς αἱ τῶν Φοινίκης βασιλέων μηνύουσι διαδοχαί. Σαγχωνιάθων δέ, ὁ κατὰ τὴν Φοινίμων διάλεκτον φιλαλήθης, πᾶσαν τὴν παλαιὰν ἱστορίαν ἐκ τῶν κατὰ πόλιν ὑπομνημάτων καὶ τῶν ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς γραφῶν ξυναγαγὼν καὶ ξυγγράψας, ἐπὶ Σεμιράμεως γέγονε τῆς ᾿Ασσυρίων βασιλίδος. ### English translation (Claude) Their times fall even before the Trojan times and come close to those of Moses, as the successions of the kings of Phoenicia show. Sanchuniathon, who in the Phoenician tongue means 'lover of truth', collected and wrote down all the ancient history from the records of each city and from the writings in the temples, and lived in the time of Semiramis, queen of the Assyrians.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Chr. (Porphyry, Against the Christians (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Against the Christians (fragment); Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.21; 10.9.12. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.45 (Raeder, 49; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-45). ## Discourse 2.46 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-46 - Source: Raeder, 49 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Moses is thus older still than Sanchuniathon. ### Greek text ἐντεῦθεν ἔστι σαφῶς μαθεῖν, ὁπόσοις τῶν Τρωϊκῶν ὁ Μωῦσῆς πρεσβύτερος ἔτεσιν. εἰ γὰρ ὁ τὴν Ἰουδαϊκὴν ἱστορίαν ξυγγράψας Σαγχωνιάθων ἐπὶ Σεμιράμεως τῆς Ἀσσυρίων γέγονε βασιλίδος (ἱστόρησε δὲ δηλονότι Σαγχωνιάθων τὰ πολλῷ χρόνῳ πρεσβύτερα), Μωῦσῆς δὲ Ἰουδαίων νομοθέτης ἐγένετο, πολλοῖς ἄρα ἔτεσι Σαγχωνιάθωνος πρεσβύτερος Μωῦσῆς. ### English translation (Claude) From this one can learn clearly by how many years Moses is older than the Trojan times. For if Sanchuniathon, who wrote the Jewish history, lived under Semiramis, queen of the Assyrians (and Sanchuniathon clearly recorded events much older), and Moses became the lawgiver of the Jews, Moses is many years older than Sanchuniathon. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.46 (Raeder, 49; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-46). ## Discourse 2.47 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-47 - Source: Raeder, 49 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Orpheus lived one generation before the Trojan War; Homer and Hesiod long after. ### Greek text ὅτι δὲ πλείοσιν ἢ χιλίοις ἔτεσιν ἡ Σεμίραμις τῶν Τρωϊκῶν πρεσβυτέρα, δηλοῦσι σαφῶς οἵ τοὺς χρόνους ξυντεθεικότες. ἀλλὰ τὸ μὲν ἐξελέγχειν τὸν Πορφύριον ὡς ἠγνοηκότα τοὺς χρόνους οὐ τοῦ παρόντος καιροῦ" ἀπόχρη δέ μοι δηλῶσαι, πόσοις πρεῦσβύτερος ἔτεσι τῶν Τρωϊκῶν Μωῦσῆς" Ὅμηρος δὲ καὶ Ἡσίοδος μετὰ πολὺν χρόνον τῶν Τρωϊκῶν ἐγενέσθην᾽ Ὀρφεὺς δέ, τῶν ποιητῶν ὃ πρῶτος, μιᾷ γενεᾷ πρεσβύτερος τῶν Τρωϊκῶν᾽ ᾿Ιάσονι γὰρ καὶ Πηλεῖ καὶ Τελαμῶνι καὶ «Ηρακμλεῖ καὶ Διοσκούροις εἰς τὴν Κολχίδα ξυνέπλευσεν᾽ ᾿Ιάσονος δὲ Εὔνηός ἐστιν υἱός, ὃ τὸν οἶνον εἰς Τροίαν πέμπων τοῖς ### English translation (Claude) That Semiramis is more than a thousand years older than the Trojan times, those who have compiled the chronologies clearly show. But to refute Porphyry as ignorant of chronology is not for the present occasion; it is enough for me to show by how many years Moses is older than the Trojan times. Homer and Hesiod lived long after the Trojan times; Orpheus, the first of the poets, was one generation older than the Trojan times; for he sailed to Colchis with Jason, Peleus, Telamon, Heracles, and the Dioscuri. Euneus is the son of Jason, who sent wine to Troy for ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 2.48. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.47 (Raeder, 49; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-47). ## Discourse 2.48 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-48 - Source: Raeder, 50 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The sons of the Argonauts fought at Troy, as Homer shows. ### Greek text Ἀχαιοῖς, καὶ Τληπόλεμος Ἡρακλέους υἱός, ὃν ὁ Σαρπηδὼν ἐν τῷ πολέμῳ τῷ Τρωϊκῷ κατηκόντισε, καὶ ὃ ἀϊας δὲ Τελαμῶνος υἱός, καὶ Ἀἀχιλλεὺς Πηλέως" Κάστορα δὲ καὶ Πολυδεύκην, τοὺς ἐπίπμλην Διοσκούρους, ἰδεῖν ἀπὸ τοῦ τείχους ἡ Ἑλένη ποθήσασα, οἷα δὴ ἀδελφούς, εἶτα τοῦ ποθουμένου διαμαρτοῦσα πιμιρῶς ἀπωδύρατο, τεθνάναν τούτους ὑπολαβοῦσα. ### English translation (Claude) the Achaeans; Tlepolemus is the son of Heracles, whom Sarpedon killed with a spear in the Trojan War; Ajax is son of Telamon, and Achilles of Peleus; and Helen longed to see Castor and Polydeuces, called the Dioscuri, from the wall, since they were her brothers, and missing what she longed for, lamented bitterly, supposing they were dead. ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 3.236–244 (Homer, Iliad): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Iliad 7.467–469 (Euneus); 5.628–662 (Tlepolemus); 3.236–244 (Helen and her brothers). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.48 (Raeder, 50; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-48). ## Discourse 2.49 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-49 - Source: Raeder, 50 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Linus, Musaeus, Thamyris, and Philammon also lived about the time of Troy. ### Greek text ταῦτα δὲ οὐκ ἀδολεσχῶν διεξῆλθον, ἀλλὰ σαφῶς ἐπιδεῖξαι βουλόμενος, ὡς Ὀρφεὺς γενεᾷ μιᾷ πρεσβύτερος ἐγεγόνει τῶν Τρωϊκῶν. [ Δῖνος δὲ καὶ ΙΠουσαῖος ἀμφὶ τὰ Τρωϊκὰ ἐγενέσθην, καὶ Θάμυρις μετὰ τούτων, καὶ Φιλάμμων ὡσαύτως. ### English translation (Claude) I have gone through these things not out of idle talk, but wishing to show clearly that Orpheus lived one generation before the Trojan times. Linus and Musaeus lived about the Trojan times, and Thamyris with them, and Philammon likewise. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.49 (Raeder, 50; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-49). ## Discourse 2.50 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-50 - Source: Raeder, 50 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Since Moses is oldest of all, one should turn to him, the ocean of theology. ### Greek text εἰ τοίνυν τούτων μὲν κατὰ τὸν Πορφύριον ὃ Μωυσῆς πλείοσιν ἢ χιλίοις πρεσβύτερος ἔτεσιν, οὗτοι δὲ παλαιότατοι τῶν ποιητῶν ἐγένοντο (μετὰ γὰρ τούτους Ὅμηρος καὶ Ἡσίοδος ἐγενέσθην, καὶ οὗτοι δ᾽ αὖ πάλιν Θαλοῦ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων φιλοσόφων πολλοῖς ἔτεσιν ἀρχαιότεροι, καὶ οἵ ἀμφὶ Θαλῆν τῶν μετ᾽ αὐτοὺς πεφιλοσοφηκότων), τί δήποτε μὴ τούτους πάντας καταλιπόντες πρὸς ωῦσέα τὸν τῆς θεολογίας ὠκεανὸν μεταβαίνομεν,,ν»ἐξ οὗπερ,“ ποιητ ### English translation (Claude) If, then, according to Porphyry, Moses is more than a thousand years older than these, and they were the most ancient of the poets (for Homer and Hesiod came after them, and these again are many years older than Thales and the other philosophers, and Thales' circle than those who philosophized after them), why do we not leave all these and go over to Moses, the ocean of theology, 'from which', to speak ### Translation notes - The quotation of Homer, Iliad 21.196, continues in 2.51. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.50 (Raeder, 50; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-50). ## Discourse 2.51 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-51 - Source: Raeder, 51 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Moses heard God's own voice, which commanded the worship of one God. ### Greek text ιπῶς εἰπεῖν,,»«πάντες ποταμοὶ καὶ πᾶσα θόάλασσα:““ καὶ γὰρ Ἀναξαγόρας καὶ Πυθαγόρας καὶ Πλάτων ὕστερον ἐκεῖθεν εἴλνυσαν σμιπρὰ ἄττα τῆς ὀληθείας ἐναύσματα᾽ χαὶ ὃ Σωπράτης, Ἀἀναξαγόρᾳ καὶ Ἀρχελάῳ ξυγγεγονώς, παρ᾽ ἐκείνων μεμάθηκεν, ἃ περὶ τοῦ ὄντος ἐδίδαξε᾽' Μωύσης δὲ ὁ θειότατος, οὐ λογισμοῖς ἀνθρωπίνοις ἑπόμενος καθάπερ οὗτοι, οτὴν θεολογίαν ξυνέγραψεν, ἀλλ᾽ αὐτῆς ἐναργῶς τῆς τοῦ ὄντος ἐπακούσας φωνῆς" τῆς γάρ τοι νομοθεσίας ἀρξάμενος τῶν ὅλων ὁ ποιητὴς τὸν ἕνα σέβειν Θεὸν παρεγγύησεν᾽ »ἐγὼ γάρ εἰμι ἔφη » Κύριος ὁ Θεός σους ὃ ἐξαγαγών δε ἐκ γῆς Αἰγύπτου. ### English translation (Claude) poetically, 'come all rivers and all the sea'? For Anaxagoras, Pythagoras, and later Plato drew from there some small sparks of truth; and Socrates, who associated with Anaxagoras and Archelaus, learned from them what he taught about the One who is. But the most divine Moses wrote his theology not by following human reasonings as these did, but having clearly heard the very voice of the One who is. For at the beginning of the giving of the law the Maker of the universe enjoined the worship of one God: 'For I am,' he said, 'the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.' ### Scripture references - Exod 20:2: quotation, high confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 21.196 (Homer, Iliad): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Iliad 21.196. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.51 (Raeder, 51; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-51). ## Discourse 2.52 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-52 - Source: Raeder, 51 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God forbade other gods and any image of himself. ### Greek text καὶ τῆς ἔναγχος γεγενημένης ἀναμνήσας εὐεργεσίας, προσμεῖναν τῇ δουλείᾳ παρεκελεύσατο καὶ μὴ μερίσαι τὸ σέβας, ἀλλὰ τῷ ὄντι μόνῳ προσνεῖμαι...οὐκ ἔσον-ται γάρ σοι( ἔφη.»θεοὶ ἕτεροι πλὴν ἐμοῦ“ εἶτα διδάσκει σαφῶς, ὡς οὐδὲν αὐτῷ τῶν ὁρωμένων προσέοικε, καὶ παντάπασιν ἀπαγορεύει μηδεμίαν εἰκόνα πρὸς μίμησίν τινος τῶν ὁρωμένων κατασκευάσαι καὶ νομίσαι τοῦτο δείκηλον εἶναι καὶ ἴνδαλμα τοῦ ἀοράτου Θεοῦ. ### English translation (Claude) And reminding them of the benefit recently given, he urged them to remain in his service and not to divide their worship, but to give it to the One who is alone: 'You shall have no other gods,' he said, 'besides me.' Then he teaches clearly that none of the visible things resembles him, and wholly forbids making any image in imitation of any visible thing and thinking it a likeness and image of the invisible God. ### Scripture references - Exod 20:3: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.52 (Raeder, 51; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-52). ## Discourse 2.53 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-53 - Source: Raeder, 51 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Moses forbids idols since Israel heard God's voice but saw no form. ### Greek text ,,οὐ ποιήσεις“ γὰρ ἔφη οοσαυτῷ εἴδωλον οὐδὲ παντὸς ὁμοίωμα, ὅσα ἐν τῷ. οὐρανῷ ἄνω, χαὶ ὅσα ἐν τῇ γῇ κάτω, καὶ ὅσα ἐν τοῖς ὕδασιν ὑποκάτω τῆς γῆφ᾽ οὐ ποιήσετε ἑαυτοῖς οὐδὲ μὴ προσχυνήσετε αὐτοῖρ᾽ ὅτι ἐγώ εἶμι Κύριος εός σου φωνῆς, φησίν, ἀκήκοας, εἶδος δὲ οὐχ ξώρακας᾽ μηδένα οὖν τύπον κατασκευάσῃς, οὗ τὸ ἀρχέτυπον οὐκ ἐπίστασαι. ### English translation (Claude) 'You shall not make for yourself an idol,' he said, 'nor a likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or on the earth beneath, or in the waters under the earth; you shall not make them for yourselves nor worship them; for I am the Lord your God.' 'You heard a voice,' he says, 'but you did not see a form'; so do not make any likeness whose archetype you do not know. ### Scripture references - Exod 20:4–5: quotation, high confidence - Deut 4:12: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Exod 20:4–5 combined with Deut 4:12; the last clause is Theodoret's paraphrase. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.53 (Raeder, 51; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-53). ## Discourse 2.54 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-54 - Source: Raeder, 52 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Moses proclaims that the Lord is one. ### Greek text καὶ ἑτέρωθι δέ, τοὺς ψευδωνύμους ἐξελέγχων θεοὺς καὶ τὸν Αἰγυπτίων ἐξορίζων πλάνον, ἔφη πρὸς αὐτούς᾽, ἄκουε, Ἰσραήλ, Κύριος ὃ Θεός σου κύριος εἷς ἐστιν.“ ### English translation (Claude) And elsewhere, refuting the falsely named gods and banishing the error of the Egyptians, he said to them: 'Hear, O Israel: the Lord your God is one Lord.' ### Scripture references - Deut 6:4: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.54 (Raeder, 52; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-54). ## Discourse 2.55 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-55 - Source: Raeder, 52 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Moses, Joshua, and the prophets all taught the worship of the one Creator. ### Greek text Ταύτην ἔχει τὴν διδασκαλίαν τὰ Μωῦσοῦ τοῦ μεγάλου ξυγγράμματα᾽ ταύτην δὲ τὴν θεολογίαν καὶ ταῖς ἱστορίαις καὶ ταῖρ νομοθεσίαις καὶ μὲν δὴ καὶ ταῖς προφητείαις ξυνέζευξε᾽ καὶ πέντε βίβλους ξυγγράψας, τὴν μὲν τῶν πολλῶν καὶ νομιζομένων καὶ καλουμένων, οὐκ ὄντων δὲ θεῶν ἀπαγορεύει τιμήν, μόνῳ δὲ τὸ σέβας τῷ τῶν ἁπάντων κελεύει προσφέρειν δημιουργῷ. ταῦτα καὶ Ἰησοῦς, ὁ τῆς ἐκείνου δημαγωγίας καὶ στρατηγίας διάδοχος, καὶ μέντοι παὶ ἅπας τῶν προφητῶν ὁ χορὸς καὶ παραινῶν καὶ νομοθετῶν διετέλεσεν. ### English translation (Claude) This is the teaching contained in the writings of the great Moses; and he joined this theology to histories, laws, and prophecies too; and writing five books, he forbids honoring the many gods who are thought and called gods but are not, and commands that worship be offered only to the Maker of all things. Joshua, the successor of his leadership and generalship, and the whole choir of the prophets as well, continued to urge and legislate these things. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.55 (Raeder, 52; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-55). ## Discourse 2.56 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-56 - Source: Raeder, 52 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pagans object that Christians worship a Trinity, which the Jews reject. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ γὰρ ἴσως εἴποιτε ἄν, ὡς οὐδὲ ὑμεῖς τόνδε τὸν νόμον ἀνέπαφον τετηρήκατε᾽ ] τριάδα γάρ, οὐ μονάδα, πρεσβεύετε᾽ Ιουδαῖοι δέ, τοῖς Μωῦσοῦ καὶ τῶν προφητῶν ἐντρεφόμενοι λόγοις, τὸν μὲν ἕνα τιμῶσι, τῆς δὲ ὑμετέρας τριάδος κατηγοροῦσιν. ### English translation (Claude) But perhaps you would say: 'You too have not kept this law untouched; for you revere a triad, not a monad; while the Jews, brought up on the words of Moses and the prophets, honor the One and accuse your Trinity.' ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.56 (Raeder, 52; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-56). ## Discourse 2.57 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-57 - Source: Raeder, 52 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret laments that the Jews, taught Scripture from birth, miss the Trinity. ### Greek text ἐγὼ δέ, ὦ φίλοι ἄνδρες, ὑμᾶς μὲν ξυγγνώμης εἶναι ἀξίους ὑπείληφα, τὴν θείαν οὖκ ἐπισταμένους γραφήν᾽ ᾿ἸΙουδαίων δὲ τὴν ἐσχάτην ἀμαθίαν ὀδύρομαι, ὅτι δὴ,ναἰρόμενοι,“Ζ κατὰ τὸν προφήτην,.. ν΄ κοιλίας" καὶ παιδευόμενοι ἐκ παιδίου ### English translation (Claude) I, my friends, think that you deserve pardon, since you do not know the divine Scripture; but I lament the utter ignorance of the Jews, because, though 'carried', as the prophet says, 'from the womb', and instructed from childhood ### Scripture references - Isa 46:3: quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Isa 46:3. Theodoret's polemical judgment on the Jews is translated as written. The sentence continues in 2.58. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.57 (Raeder, 52; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-57). ## Discourse 2.58 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-58 - Source: Raeder, 52 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God taught the Trinity only obscurely to Israel lest they fall into polytheism. ### Greek text μέχρν γήρως τὰ θεῖα, τὴν τῆς θεολογίας ἀγνοοῦσιν ἀλήθειαν. ἐν “Ἵἰγύπτῳ γὰρ αὐτοὺς πλεῖστον διατρίψαντας χρόνον καὶ τὴν πολύθεον τῶν «Αἰγυπτίων μεμαθηκότας θρησπείαν, ὃ πάνσοφος Κύριος οὐκ ἐναργῶς ἄγαν τὰ περὶ τῆς Τριάδος ἐξεπαίδευσε δόγματα, ἵνα μὴ πρόφασιν πολυθεΐας λάβωσιν, εἰς τὸν τῶν 4ἰγυπτίων ἐπιρρέποντες πλάνον" οὐ μὴν παντάπασι τὰ περὶ τῆς Τριάδος ἀπέερυψε δόγματα τοῖς ὕστερον ἐσομένοις, τῆς ἐντελεστέρας θεολογίας κατασπείρων τὰς ἀφορμάς. ### English translation (Claude) to old age in divine things, they do not know the truth of theology. For since they had spent a very long time in Egypt and learned the polytheistic religion of the Egyptians, the all-wise Lord did not teach them the doctrines about the Trinity too plainly, so that they would not take a pretext for polytheism by inclining to the Egyptians' error; yet he did not wholly hide the doctrines of the Trinity from those who would come later, sowing the seeds of a more perfect theology. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.58 (Raeder, 52; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-58). ## Discourse 2.59 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-59 - Source: Raeder, 53 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Deut 6:4 hints at the Trinity by naming God three times while affirming oneness. ### Greek text διά τοι τοῦτο μοναδικῶς μὲν νομοθετεῖ, αἰνιγματωδῶς δὲ τὴν Τριάδα μηνύει. τὸ γὰρ οὔκουε, Ἰσραήλ, Κύριος ὃ Θεός σου κύριος εἷς ἐστιν καὶ τὴν μονάδα διδάσκει καὶ τὴν τριάδα δηλοῖ" ἅπαξ γὰρ εἰπὼν τὸ θεός“ καὶ δὲς τὸ, Κύριος" ὑπειπών, τῆς Τριάδος τὸν ἀρυθμὸν παρεδήλωσεν. ἐπαγαγὼν δὲ τὸ,,εἷς ἐστιν,“ καὶ τὴν πρόσφορον ᾿Ιουδαίοις διδασκαλίαν προσήνεγκε καὶ τὸ ταὐτὸν τῆς θείας οὐσίας ἐμήνυσεν. ### English translation (Claude) For this reason he legislates in terms of the One, but indicates the Trinity in riddles. For 'Hear, O Israel: the Lord your God is one Lord' both teaches the unity and shows the Trinity: by saying 'God' once and 'Lord' twice, he hinted at the number of the Trinity; and by adding 'is one', he both offered teaching suited to the Jews and signified the sameness of the divine being. ### Scripture references - Deut 6:4: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.59 (Raeder, 53; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-59). ## Discourse 2.60 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-60 - Source: Raeder, 53 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The angels' threefold 'holy' and single 'Lord' show the Trinity's three properties and one lordship. ### Greek text μία γὰρ τῆς ἁγίας Τριάδος καὶ οὐσία καὶ δύναμις καὶ μέντοι καὶ βούλησις. ταύτῃ τοι καὶ τῶν ἀοράτων δυνάμεων οἵ χοροὶ τῷ Θεῷ τὸν ὕμνον προσφέροντες, τρὶς μὲν τὸ οὕγιος,“’ ἅπαξ δὲ τὸ,, Κύριος" λέγουσι, τῷ μὲν τῶν ἰδιοτήτων δηλοῦντες τὸν ἀριθμόν, τῷ δὲ τὸ ### English translation (Claude) For the holy Trinity has one being, one power, and one will. That is why the choirs of the invisible powers, offering their hymn to God, say 'holy' three times and 'Lord' once, showing by the one the number of the distinct properties and by the other ### Scripture references - Isa 6:3: allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 2.61. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.60 (Raeder, 53; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-60). ## Discourse 2.61 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-61 - Source: Raeder, 53 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Moses speaks more clearly of the Trinity in 'Let us make man'. ### Greek text κοινὸν τῆς δεσποτείας μηνύοντες, ἀλλ᾽ ἐν τούτοις μὲν δι΄ αἰνιγμάτων τὰ τῆς θείας Τριάδος δεδήλωται, ἐν ἑτέροις δέ γὲ σαφέστερον ταῦτα διδάσκουσιν οἵ θεσπέσιοι ἄνδρεο. Πωὐσῆς μὲν γὰρ ὁ θειότατος, τὴν κοσμογένειαν ξυγγράφων, εἶτα τὴν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου διάπλασιν ἐξηγούμενος, ἔφη τὸν τοῦ παντὸς εἰρηκέναι δημιουργόν᾽ ποιήσωμεν ἄνθρωπον ### English translation (Claude) signifying the common lordship. In these passages the doctrine of the divine Trinity is shown in riddles, but in others the divine men teach it more clearly. For the most divine Moses, writing of the world's origin and then explaining the forming of the human being, said that the Maker of the universe had said: 'Let us make man ### Scripture references - Gen 1:26: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation continues in 2.62. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.61 (Raeder, 53; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-61). ## Discourse 2.62 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-62 - Source: Raeder, 53 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Gen 1:26–27 names God as both maker and model, though the Trinity's nature is one. ### Greek text κατ᾽ εἰκόνα ἡμετέραν καὶ καθ' ὁμοίωσιν εἶτα ἐπήγαγεν, ὡς οἐποίησεν ὃ Θεὸς τὸν ἄνθρωπον, κατ᾽ εἰκόνα Θεοῦ ἐποίησεν αὐτόν.“ χαὶ Θεὸν ὠνόμασε τὸν πεπονηκότα τὸν ἄνθρωπον καὶ τὸν οὗ πρὸς μίμησιν ἐξενύπωσεν ὃν διέπλασεν᾽ οὐκ ἐπειδὴ ἄλλο τούτου καὶ ἄλλο ἐκείνου τὸ εἶδος μία γὰρ δὴ τῆς Τριάδος ἡ φύσις" τούτου γὰρ δὴ χάριν καὶ τὸν Θεὸν ἔφησεν εἰρηκέναι" οςποιήσωμεν ἄνθρωπον κατ᾽ εἰκόνα ἦμετέραν καὶ καθ' ὁμοίωσιν. ### English translation (Claude) in our image and after our likeness.' Then he added that 'God made man; in the image of God he made him.' He named God both the one who made man and the one in whose likeness he formed the one he fashioned, not because the form of the one is different from that of the other, for the nature of the Trinity is one. For this reason he said that God said: 'Let us make man in our image and after our likeness.' ### Scripture references - Gen 1:26–27: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.62 (Raeder, 53; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-62). ## Discourse 2.63 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-63 - Source: Raeder, 54 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Genesis 9 again speaks of God making man in God's image. ### Greek text καὶ ἐπήγαγε,,»κατ᾽ εἰκόνα Θεοῦ ἐποίησεν αὐτόν,“ ἵνα δείξῃ τὸ τῶν προσώπων διάφορον. καὶ δὴ καὶ τῷ Νῶε περὶ κρεηφαγίας νομοθετῶν καὶ τοῦ αἵματος ἀπαγορεύων τὴν ἐδωδήν, ἔφη τὸν τῶν ὅλων εἰρηκέναι Θεόν" »ἔδεσθε πάντα ὡς λάχανα χόρτου" πλὴν κρέας ἐ ἐν αἵματι ψυχῆς οὐκ ἔδεσθε' [ καὶ γὰρ τὸ ὑμέτερον αἷμα ἐπξητήσω᾽ ἐκ πάντων τῶν θηρίων ἐκξητήσω αὐτό, καὶ ἐκ χειρὸς ἀνθρώπου ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ. ὁ ἐκχέων αἷμα ἀνθρώπου, ἀντὶ τοῦ αἵματος αὐτοῦ ἐκχυθήσεται, ὅτι ἐν εἰκόνι ### English translation (Claude) And he added, 'In the image of God he made him,' to show the distinction of the persons. And when he gave Noah the law about eating meat and forbade eating blood, he said that the God of the universe said: 'You shall eat all things as the green plants; only flesh with the blood of life you shall not eat. For I will require your blood; from every beast I will require it, and from the hand of a man's brother. Whoever sheds man's blood, in return for his blood shall his be shed; for in the image ### Scripture references - Gen 1:27: quotation, high confidence - Gen 9:3–6: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Gen 9:3–6. The quotation ends in 2.64. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.63 (Raeder, 54; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-63). ## Discourse 2.64 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-64 - Source: Raeder, 54 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Gen 9:6 and the tower of Babel again show distinct persons. ### Greek text Θεοῦ ἐποίησα τὸν ἄνθρωπον.“ καὶ οὐκ ἔφη..ἐν εἰκόνι ἐμαυτοῦ,“ ἀλλ, ἐν εἰκόνι Θεοῦ,“ τῶν προσώπων πάλιν δειωονὺς τὸ διάφορον. καὶ ἡνίκα δὲ κατὰ ταὐτὸν ξυλλεγέντες οἵ κατὰ τοῦ πεποιηκότος λυττήσαντες, τὸν πύργον ἐκεῖνον ὠκοδόμουν τὸν μέγιστον, τῆς τῶν γλωττῶν ξυγχύσεως τὸν ἐπώνυμον, φάναι τὸν Θεὸν εἴρηκεν ὁ νομοθέτης᾽..δεῦτε καὶ καταβάντες ### English translation (Claude) of God I made man.' And he did not say 'in my own image' but 'in the image of God', again showing the distinction of the persons. And when those who raged against their Maker gathered in one place and were building that great tower named after the confusion of tongues, the lawgiver says that God said: 'Come, and going down, ### Scripture references - Gen 9:6: quotation, high confidence - Gen 11:7: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation of Gen 11:7 continues in 2.65. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.64 (Raeder, 54; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-64). ## Discourse 2.65 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-65 - Source: Raeder, 54 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: 'Let us go down' at Babel shows the equality of Father, Son, and Spirit. ### Greek text συγχέωμεν αὐτῶν τὰς γλώσσας.“ καὶ τὸ μὲν,,καταβάντες συγχέωμεν δηλοῖ τὸ ὁμότιμον" οὐ γὰρ εἶπε »Κατάβηθι ἢ ο»"αταβήτω,““ ὅπερ δὴ τοῖς ὑπηκόοις καὶ προσταττομένοις ἁρμόττει, ἀλλὰ,»καταβάντες συγχέωμεν,“ ὃ σαφῶς δηλοῖ τὴν ἰσότητα. τὸ δὲ,.,δεῦτε"“ τὸν ὙἹὸν καὶ τὸ Πνεῦμα σημαίνει, τῆς δημιουργίας τοὺς κοινωνούς. ### English translation (Claude) let us confound their tongues.' 'Going down, let us confound' shows equality of honor; for he did not say 'Go down' or 'Let him go down', which suits subjects who receive orders, but 'Going down, let us confound', which clearly shows equality. And 'Come' signifies the Son and the Spirit, the partners in the work of creation. ### Scripture references - Gen 11:7: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.65 (Raeder, 54; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-65). ## Discourse 2.66 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-66 - Source: Raeder, 54 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: As at creation, God works with the Son and Spirit at Babel. ### Greek text ἐπειδὴ γὰρ καὶ διαπλάττῶν τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἔφη.»«πονήσωμεν ἄνθρωπον κατ᾽ εἰκόνα ἡμετέραν καὶ καθ' ὁμοίωσιν,“ εἰκότως ἄρα καὶ μερίξων εἰς πολλὰς τὴν μίαν φωνὴν ξυνεργοὺς λαμβάνει τὸν ὙἹὸν καὶ τὸ πανάγιον Πνεῦμα. ### English translation (Claude) For since in forming man he said, 'Let us make man in our image and after our likeness,' it is fitting that when dividing the one language into many he should take the Son and the all-holy Spirit as fellow workers. ### Scripture references - Gen 1:26: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.66 (Raeder, 54; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-66). ## Discourse 2.67 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-67 - Source: Raeder, 54 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The destruction of Sodom shows two who are called Lord. ### Greek text χρόνῳ δὲ ὕστερον πρηστῆρσι καὶ κεραυνοῖς ἀναλῶσαι τὰ Σόδομα βουληθεὶς καὶ τὰς ἀγχιτέρμονας πόλεις, τῆς ἀσεβείας καὶ παρανομίας τὰς κοινωνούς, δυάδα Κυρίων ἡμῖν ἐπέδειξε, καί φησι Μωῦσῆς ὁ ταῦτα ξυγγεγραφώς᾽ «καὶ ἔβρεξε Κύριος παρὰ Κυρίου ἐπὶ Σόδομα ### English translation (Claude) Later, wishing to consume Sodom and the neighboring cities, partners in its impiety and lawlessness, with fiery storms and thunderbolts, he showed us a pair of Lords; and Moses, who wrote this, says: 'And the Lord rained from the Lord upon Sodom ### Scripture references - Gen 19:24: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation of Gen 19:24 ends in 2.68. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.67 (Raeder, 54; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-67). ## Discourse 2.68 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-68 - Source: Raeder, 55 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: David's psalms also speak of the Word, the Spirit, and the Son. ### Greek text καὶ Γόμορρα πῦρ καὶ θεῖον ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ.“ καὶ ἵνα μή τις ὑπολάβῃ, τοῦτον μόνον τὸν προφήτην τὰ περὶ τῆς θείας εἰρηκέναι Τριάδος, ἀκούσατε, ὦ φιλότης, καὶ τοῦ θεσπεσίου βοῶντος Ζαυΐδ᾽,,τῷ λόγῳ Κυρίου οἱ οὐρανοὶ ἐστερεώθησαν, καὶ τῷ πνεύματι τοῦ στόματος αὐτοῦ πᾶσα ἡ δύναμις αὐτῶν. καὶ πάλιν᾽, εἶπεν ὃ Κύριος τῷ Κυρίῳ μου κάθου ἐκ δεξιῶν μου, ἕως ἂν θῶ τοὺς ἐχθρούς σου ὑποπόδιον τῶν ποδῶν σου. καὶ μετὰ βραχέα δὲ πρὸς τὸν αὐτὸν Κύριον ὁ τοῦ Κυρίου λέγει πατήρ᾽..ἐκ γαστρὸς πρὸ ἑωσφόρου ἐγέννησά σε καὶ ἐν ἑτέρῳ ψαλμῷ"..ὃ θρόνος σου ὃ Θεὸς εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ αἰῶνος" ῥάβδος εὐθύτητος ἡ ῥάβδος τῆς βασιλείας σου ἠγάπησας δικαιοσύνην καὶ ἐμίσησας ἀνομίαν᾽ διὰ τοῦτο ἔχρισέ σε. ὃ Θεὸς ὁ Θεός σου ἔλαιον ἀγαλλιάσεως παρὰ τοὺς μετόχους σου. ### English translation (Claude) and Gomorrah fire and sulfur out of heaven.' And so that no one may suppose that this prophet alone spoke of the divine Trinity, hear, my friend, the divine David crying: 'By the word of the Lord the heavens were made firm, and all their power by the breath of his mouth.' And again: 'The Lord said to my Lord: Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies the footstool of your feet.' And a little later the Father of the Lord says to the same Lord: 'From the womb before the morning star I begot you.' And in another psalm: 'Your throne, O God, is for ever and ever; a scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your companions.' ### Scripture references - Gen 19:24: quotation, high confidence - Ps 33:6 (32:6 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 110:1 (109:1 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 110:3 (109:3 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 45:6–7 (44:7-Ps LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Ps 110:3 is quoted in the Greek (LXX) form. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.68 (Raeder, 55; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-68). ## Discourse 2.69 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-69 - Source: Raeder, 55 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The other prophets teach the same, but more proofs are needless for those not yet believing. ### Greek text τὴν αὐτὴν δὲ ἡμῖν διδασκαλίαν καὶ “Ησαΐας ὃ προφήτης καὶ Ἱερεμίας καὶ ᾿Ιεξεκιὴλ καὶ 4Δανιὴλ καὶ Ζαχαρίας καὶ Μιχαίας καὶ ἅπας ὁ τούτων προσφέρει χορός᾽ ἀλλὰ παρέλκον οἶμαι ταῦτα ὑμῖν ἐπιδειπνύναν μηδέπω προσενηνοχόσι τὴν ὁμολογίαν τῆς πίστεως. ### English translation (Claude) The prophet Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Zechariah, Micah, and their whole choir offer us the same teaching; but I think it superfluous to show you these things while you have not yet made the confession of faith. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.69 (Raeder, 55; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-69). ## Discourse 2.70 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-70 - Source: Raeder, 55 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret will show that Plato borrowed theology from the Hebrew prophets. ### Greek text Ἔφ᾽ ἑτέραν τοίνυν μέθοδον διδασκαλίας τραπήσομαι καὶ δείξω τὸν Πλάτωνα καὶ τοὺς μετ᾽ ἐκεῖνον ἐκ τούτων μὲν τῶν θείων ἀνδρῶν τῆς θεολογίας σεσυληκότας τινά, τοῖς δὲ σφετέροις ἐντεθεικότας ξυγγράμμασιν. ### English translation (Claude) I shall therefore turn to another method of teaching and show that Plato and those after him stole some points of theology from these divine men and put them into their own writings. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.70 (Raeder, 55; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-70). ## Discourse 2.71 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-71 - Source: Raeder, 56 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's sixth letter speaks of the leader of all and the Father of the leader. ### Greek text καὶ γὰρ ὃ ] Πλάτων, ἐν οἷς πρὸς Κορίσκον ἐπέστειλε, καὶ τάδε προστέθεικεν᾽ οἐπομνύντας σπουδῇ τε ὅμα μὴ ἀμούσῳ καὶ τῇ τῆς σπουδῆς ἀδελφῇ παιδείᾳ καὶ τὸν πάντων θεῶν ἡγεμόνα τῶν τε ὄντων καὶ τῶν μελλόντων τοῦ τὲ ἡγεμόνος καὶ αἱτίου πατέρα καὶ κύριον ἐπομνύντας, ὅν, ἐὰν ὀρθῶς φιλοσο-. φῆτε, εἴσεσθε.“ ταῦτα, ὦ φίλοι ἄνδρες, τοῦ Πλάτωνός ἐστι δόγματα. ### English translation (Claude) For Plato, in what he wrote to Coriscus, added this: 'Swearing with a seriousness that is not unrefined and with the learning that is sister to seriousness, and swearing by the God who is leader of all things, those that are and those that will be, and by the Father and Lord of the leader and cause, whom, if you philosophize rightly, you will know.' These, my friends, are Plato's doctrines. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Ep. 6.323d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Letter 6.323d (to Hermias, Erastus, and Coriscus). Theodoret's text reads 'leader of all things' where Plato's manuscripts read 'leader of all gods' (see 2.73). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.71 (Raeder, 56; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-71). ## Discourse 2.72 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-72 - Source: Raeder, 56 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's words mix truth with mythology. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ τούτων τὰ μὲν ἀξιέπαινα καὶ τῆς ἀποστολινῆς καὶ προφητιμῆς διδασκαλίας ἐχόμενα, τὰ δὲ τῆς Ἑλληνικῆς μυθολογίας κυήματα. ### English translation (Claude) Some of these are praiseworthy and close to the apostolic and prophetic teaching, others are offspring of Greek mythology. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.72 (Raeder, 56; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-72). ## Discourse 2.73 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-73 - Source: Raeder, 56 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's distinction of cause and Father reflects truth; his 'gods' reflect error or pretense. ### Greek text τὸ μὲν γὰρ φάναι ἄλλον εἶναι τὸν τοῦ παντὸς ἡγεμόνα καὶ αἴτιον, ἄλλον δὲ τὸν τοῦ αἰτίου πατέρα, ἀτεχνῶς ἔδειξε τὴν ἀλήθειαν, ἐξ ἧς ἀρυσάμενος τοὺς οἰκείους διεκάλλυνε λόγους" τὸ δέ γε θεῶν αὐτὸν προσειπεῖν ἡγεμόνα, τῶν τε ὄντων καὶ τῶν μελλόντῶν, δυοῖν αἰνίττεται θάτερον, ἢ τῷ τῆς ἀγνοίας πάθει περιπεσεῖν τὸν φιλόσοφον, ἢ τοὺς ταύτην νοσοῦντας ὑποκρινόμενον ἀναμῖξαι τῇ ἀληθείᾳ τὸ ψεῦδος. ### English translation (Claude) For to say that the leader and cause of the universe is one, and the Father of the cause another, plainly showed the truth from which he drew to embellish his own words; but to call him the leader of gods, those that are and those that will be, hints at one of two things: either the philosopher fell into the ailment of ignorance, or, playing the part of those sick with it, he mixed falsehood with truth. ### Translation notes - Theodoret here quotes the phrase 'leader of gods' (the reading of Plato's manuscripts). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.73 (Raeder, 56; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-73). ## Discourse 2.74 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-74 - Source: Raeder, 56 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Gods that come to be in time cannot be gods by nature. ### Greek text πρὸς δὲ τούτοις δείκνυσι τοὺς καλουμένους θεοὺς οὐ φύσει ὄντας θεούρ" τίς γὰρ μὴ κομιδῇ παραπαίων καλέσαι ἂν θεὸν τὸν οὐκ ἀεὶ ὄντα θεόν; οὗτος δέ γε ἐν χρόνῳ τούτους εἴρηκε γίνεσθαι᾿ ἔφη γάρ᾽ τῶν τὲ ὄντων θεῶν καὶ τῶν μελλόντων.“ πῶς δ᾽ ἂν εἴη τις θεὸς ὃ μηδέπω γενόμενος; ### English translation (Claude) Besides this, he shows that the so-called gods are not gods by nature. For who that is not utterly deranged would call god one who is not always god? But he said that these come to be in time; for he said: 'of the gods that are and those that will be.' How could anything be a god that has not yet come to be? ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.74 (Raeder, 56; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-74). ## Discourse 2.75 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-75 - Source: Raeder, 56 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Scripture calls no created thing god by nature. ### Greek text πῶς δ᾽ ἂν τοῦ σεπτοτάτου μεταλάχοι ὀνόματος ὁ μηδέπω τὸ εἶναι λαβών; τὰ δὲ θεῖα λόγια τῶν γεγονότων οὐδὲν φύσει προσἀγορεύειν θεόν. ### English translation (Claude) How could one share the most venerable name who has not yet received being? The divine oracles call nothing that has come to be 'god' by nature. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.75 (Raeder, 56; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-75). ## Discourse 2.76 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-76 - Source: Raeder, 57 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Scripture gives the name 'god' to judges and saints only by courtesy; Plato knows the Father and the cause. ### Greek text ὀνόματος μὲν γὰρ ψιλοῦ μεταδέδωπε τοῖς δικάζειν πεπιστευμένοις, καὶ μέντοι καὶ τοῖς. τὴν θείαν εἰκόνα ὡς οἷόν τε τετηρηκόσιν ἀπήρατον᾽ φύσει δὲ Θεὸν τὸν ἀεὶ ὄντα καὶ κατὰ ταὐτὰ καὶ ὡσαύτως ἔχοντα μόνον εἴωθεν ὀνομάζειν. ἀλλὰ τοῦτον εἰς ὕστερον τὸν λόγον φυλάξωμεν᾽ νῦν δέ γε ἀρκέσει δηλῶσαι, ὡς ὃ φιλόσοφος οἶδε τὸν τοῦ παντὸς ἡγεμόνα καὶ αἴτιον καὶ τὸν τοῦ αἰτίου πατέρα. ### English translation (Claude) They have given a share in the bare name to those entrusted with judging, and also to those who have kept the divine image unmaimed as far as possible; but God by nature they are accustomed to call only him who always is and is always the same and unchanging. But let us keep this argument for later; for now it will suffice to show that the philosopher knows the leader and cause of the universe and the Father of the cause. ### Scripture references - Ps 82:6 (81:6 LXX): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret probably has in mind Ps 82:6 (LXX 81:6) and Exod 22:28 (LXX 22:27). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.76 (Raeder, 57; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-76). ## Discourse 2.77 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-77 - Source: Raeder, 57 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Epinomis says the most divine Word ordered the cosmos. ### Greek text ἔστι δὲ αὐτοῦ ἀκοῦσαι κἀν τῇ Ἐπινομίδι λέγοντος ε»νμαὶ τιμὰς ἀποδιδῶμεν, μὴ τῷ μὲν ἐνιαυτόν, τῷ δὲ μῆνα, τῷ δὲ μηνός τίνος μοῖραν τάττωμεν, μηδέ τινα χρόνον, ἐν ᾧ διεξέρχεται τὸν αὐτοῦ πόλον, ξυναποτελῶν κόσμον, ὃν ἔταξε λόγος ὃ πάντων θειότατος᾽ ὃν ὃ μὲν εὐδαίμων πρῶτον μὲν ἐθαύμασεν, ἔπειτα ἔρωτα ἔσχε καταμαθεῖν, ὁπόσα ἐνῆν τῇ φύσει δυνατά.“ κἀν τούτοις τὸν λόγον ἔφησε τὰ πάντα διαποσμῆσαι, οὐ τὸν τοῦ λόγου πατέρα. ### English translation (Claude) One can also hear him say in the Epinomis: 'And let us give them honors, not assigning a year to one, a month to another, a portion of a month to another, nor any time in which it completes its own circuit, helping to perfect the order which the most divine Word of all arranged; which the happy man first wondered at, and then conceived a love of understanding as much as is possible for nature.' Here too he said that the Word set all things in order, not the Father of the Word. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Epin. 986c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato (or a pupil), Epinomis 986c; Theodoret reads logos as 'the Word', where Plato means 'reason'. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.77 (Raeder, 57; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-77). ## Discourse 2.78 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-78 - Source: Raeder, 57 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's second letter speaks in riddles of a first, second, and third. ### Greek text καὶ Διονυσίῳ δὲ γράφων τοιάδε φησίν." ὠφραστέον δή σοι δι αἰνιγμάτων, ἵν᾽, ἄν τι δέλτος ἢ πόντου ἢ γῆς ἐν πτυχαῖς πάθῃ, ὃ ἀναγνοὺς μὴ γνῷ. ὧδε γὰρ ἔχει περὶ τὸν πάντων βασιλέα πάντα ἐστί, καὶ ἐκείνου γε εἵνεκα πάντα, καὶ ἐκεῖνό γὲ αἴτιον πάντων καλῶν᾽ δεύτερον δὲ περὶ τὰ δεύτερα, χαὶ τρίτον περὶ τὰ τρίτα." ### English translation (Claude) And writing to Dionysius he says this: 'I must speak to you in riddles, so that if the tablet meets with any accident in the folds of sea or land, whoever reads it may not understand. It is thus: all things are about the King of all, and all things are for his sake, and he is the cause of all beautiful things; second things are about the second, and third things about the third.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Ep. 2.312d–e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Letter 2.312d–e. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.78 (Raeder, 57; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-78). ## Discourse 2.79 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-79 - Source: Raeder, 57 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato spoke in riddles out of fear of the crowd. ### Greek text Ὁρᾶτε, πῶς ὀρρωδοῦντες καὶ δεδιότες τὰ τῆς ἀληϊθείας προσέφερον δόγματα καὶ αἰνιγματωδῶς, οὐ σαφῶς, ἐκήρυττον τὴν ἀλήθειαν, τὸν τῶν πολλῶν ὑφορώμενοι πλάνον; τοῦτο δέ γε τὸ δέος κὰν τῷ Τιμαίῳ δεδήλωκεν. ### English translation (Claude) Do you see how, shrinking and afraid, they offered the doctrines of truth and proclaimed the truth in riddles, not plainly, wary of the error of the many? He showed this fear in the Timaeus too. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.79 (Raeder, 57; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-79). ## Discourse 2.80 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-80 - Source: Raeder, 58 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: In the Timaeus Plato declines to speak of the first principle. ### Greek text λέγει δὲ οὕτως" ηνῦν δὴ οὖν τὸ παρ᾽ ἡμῶν ὧδε ἐχέτω" τὴν μὲν οὖν πάντων εἴτε ἀργὴν εἴτε ἀρχάς, εἴτε ὅπῃ δοκεῖ τούτων πέρι, τὸ νῦν οὐ ῥδητέον᾽.,δι᾽ ἄλλο μὲν οὐδέν, διὰ δὲ τὸ χαλεπὸν εἶναι πατὰ τὸν παρόντα λόγον τῆς διεξόδου τὰ δοκοῦντα δηλῶσαι. ### English translation (Claude) He speaks thus: 'Let our position now be this: the first principle of all things, or principles, or however one thinks about them, is not to be spoken of now, for no other reason than that it is difficult to show our views by the present method of exposition.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Tim. 48c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Timaeus 48c. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.80 (Raeder, 58; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-80). ## Discourse 2.81 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-81 - Source: Raeder, 58 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Numenius distinguishes the first god from the creator god. ### Greek text χαὶ Νουμήνιος δὲ ὁ Πυθαγόρειος, ἐν οἷς τὰ περὶ τἀγαθοῦ γέγραφε, σαφέστερον ταῦτα ἐδίδαξε᾽ φησὶ γάρ᾽,,οὔτε δημιουργεῖν ἐστι χρεὼν τὸν πρῶτον, καὶ τοῦ δημιουργοῦντος θεοῦ χρὴ εἶναι γομίξειν πατέρα τὸν πρῶτον θεόν. ### English translation (Claude) Numenius the Pythagorean taught these things more clearly in what he wrote On the Good; for he says: 'The first god ought not to create, and the first god must be considered father of the creating god.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Numenius, fr. 12 (Numenius of Apamea): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Numenius, On the Good, fragment 12 (des Places), known also from Eusebius, Praep. ev. 11.18.6. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.81 (Raeder, 58; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-81). ## Discourse 2.82 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-82 - Source: Raeder, 58 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plotinus wrote of three principal hypostases. ### Greek text (ὁ χαὶ Πλωτῖνος δέ, ὁ τὴν Πλάτωνος φιλοσοφίαν ξηλώσας, περὶ τῶν τριῶν ἀρχικῶν ὑποστάσεων βιβλίον ξυνέγραψεν, ἐν ᾧ καὶ τάδε ἔφη"..τχἰ οὖν χρὴ περὶ τοῦ τελειοτάτου λέγεινς οὐδὲν ἀπ αὐτοῦ, ἢ τὰ μέγιστα μετ᾽ αὐτόν. μέγιστα δὲ μετ᾽ αὐτὸν ### English translation (Claude) And Plotinus, who emulated Plato's philosophy, wrote a book On the Three Principal Hypostases, in which he said this: 'What then must be said of the most perfect? Nothing comes from it except the greatest things after it. The greatest after it is ### Extrabiblical texts - Plotinus, Enn. 5.1.6 (Plotinus, Enneads): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plotinus, Enneads 5.1.6. The quotation continues in 2.83. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.82 (Raeder, 58; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-82). ## Discourse 2.83 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-14/#p-2-83 - Source: Raeder, 58 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plotinus says Mind is the image of the One, separated only by otherness. ### Greek text νοῦς καὶ δεύτερον᾽ καὶ γὰρ ὁρᾷ ὁ νοῦς ἐκεῖνον.“ καὶ πάλιν" »μοθεῖ δὲ πᾶν τὸ γεννῆσαν καὶ τοῦτο ἀγαπῷ, καὶ μάλιστα ὅταν ὦσι μόνοι τὸ γεννῆσαν καὶ τὸ γεγεννημένον" ὅταν δὲ καὶ τὸ ἄριστον ῇ τὸ γεγεννημένον, ἐξ ἀνάγκης ξύνεστιν αὐτῷ, ὡς τῇ ἑτερότητι μόνον πεχωρίσθαι. εἰμόνα δὲ ἐκείνου εἶναι λέγομεν τὸν νοῦν᾽ δεῖ γὰρ σαφέστερον ### English translation (Claude) Mind, and it is second; for Mind sees it.' And again: 'Everything that has begotten longs for and loves its offspring, especially when the begetter and the begotten are alone; and when the begotten is the best, it necessarily is with it, so as to be separated only by otherness. We say that Mind is its image; for we must speak ### Extrabiblical texts - Plotinus, Enn. 5.1.6–7 (Plotinus, Enneads): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plotinus, Enneads 5.1.6–7. The quotation ends in 2.84. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.83 (Raeder, 58; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-83). ## Discourse 2.84 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-84 - Source: Raeder, 58 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Later philosophers borrowed from Christian theology. ### Greek text λέγειν’ καὶ ἕτερα δέ γε πλεῖστα εἴρηται καὶ τούτῳ καὶ Πλουτάρχῳ καὶ Νυουμηνίῳ καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις, ὅσοι τῆς τούτῶν ἦσαν ξυμμορίας. μετὰ γὰρ δὴ τὴν τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἐπιφάνειαν οὗτοι γενόμενοι, τῆς Χριστιανιπῆς θεολογίας πολλὰ τοῖς οἰκείοις ἀνέμιξαν λόγοις. ### English translation (Claude) more clearly.' And very many other things were said by him, by Plutarch, by Numenius, and by the others of their company. For these men, living after the appearing of our Savior, mixed much of Christian theology into their own words. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plutarch (Plutarch): allusion, low confidence - Numenius (Numenius of Apamea): allusion, low confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.84 (Raeder, 58; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84). ## Discourse 2.85 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-85 - Source: Raeder, 59 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plotinus and Numenius find three eternal principles in Plato, paralleling the Trinity. ### Greek text αὐτίκα τοίνυν τὴν Πλάτωνος διάνοιαν ἀναπτυύσσοντες, καὶ ὁ Πλωτῖνος καὶ ὃ Νουμήνιος τρία φασὶν αὐτὸν εἰρηκέναι ὑπέρχρονα καὶ ἀΐδια, τἀγαθὸν καὶ νοῦν καὶ τοῦ παντὸς τὴν ψυχήν, ὃν μὲν ἡμεῖς Πατέρα καλοῦμεν, Τἀγαθὸν ὀνομάζοντα, Νοῦν δέ, ὃν ἡμεῖς Ὑἱὸν καὶ “όγον προσαγορεύομεν, τὴν δὲ τὰ πάντα ψυχοῦσαν καὶ ξωοποιοῦσαν δύναμιν ἹΒυχὴν καλοῦντα, ἣν Πνεῦμα ἅγιον οἵ θεῖοι προσαγορεύουσι λόγοι. ### English translation (Claude) For instance, unfolding Plato's thought, Plotinus and Numenius say that he spoke of three beings above time and eternal: the Good, Mind, and the Soul of the universe; calling the Good the one we call the Father, Mind the one we call Son and Word, and Soul the power that ensouls and gives life to all things, which the divine words call the Holy Spirit. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plotinus (Plotinus, Enneads): allusion, medium confidence - Numenius (Numenius of Apamea): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret's equation of the Neoplatonic triad with the Trinity is his apologetic reading. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.85 (Raeder, 59; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-85). ## Discourse 2.86 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-86 - Source: Raeder, 59 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The triad was taken from David's psalm on the Word and Spirit. ### Greek text καὶ ταῦτα δέ, ὡς ἔφην, ἐκ τῆς τῶν Ἑβραίων φιλοσοφίας τε καὶ θεολογίας σεσύληται. ὃ γὰρ δὴ ὑμνοποιὸς Δαυίδ, τὸ θεῖον ἀνακρουόμενος μέλος καὶ ὑπὸ τῆς θείας ἐνηχούμενος χάριτος, πέκραγε λέγων᾽ τῷ λόγῳ Κυρίου οἱ οὐρανοὶ ἐστερεώθήσαν, καὶ τῷ πνεύματι τοῦ στόματος αὐτοῦ πᾶσα ἡ δύναμι ### English translation (Claude) And these too, as I said, were stolen from the philosophy and theology of the Hebrews. For the hymn-writer David, striking up the divine song and sounded through by divine grace, cried out: 'By the word of the Lord the heavens were made firm, and by the breath of his mouth all ### Scripture references - Ps 33:6 (32:6 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation ends in 2.87. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.86 (Raeder, 59; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-86). ## Discourse 2.87 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-87 - Source: Raeder, 59 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Amelius admired the prologue of John's Gospel. ### Greek text ς αὐτῶν.“ χαὶ μὲν δὴ καὶ τῶν θείων εὐαγγελίων ὅ τε Πλούταρχος καὶ ὁ Πλωτῖνος ἐπήκουσαν. δηλοῖ δὲ τοῦτο σαφῶς ὁ Ἀμέλιος, ὁ τῆς Πορφυρίου πρωτεύσας διατριβῆς᾽ ὑπεράγαται γὰρ τὸ τῆς Ἰωάννου θεολογίας προοίμιον, οὗτω ### English translation (Claude) their power.' And indeed both Plutarch and Plotinus listened to the divine Gospels. Amelius, the head of Porphyry's school, shows this clearly; for he greatly admires the prologue of John's theology, speaking ### Scripture references - Ps 33:6 (32:6 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Amelius was in fact Plotinus's pupil and Porphyry's fellow pupil. The quotation follows in 2.88. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.87 (Raeder, 59; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-87). ## Discourse 2.88 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-88 - Source: Raeder, 59 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Amelius paraphrases John's prologue about the Word who became flesh. ### Greek text σ' λέγων᾽ «ο»καὺ οὗτος “ἄρα ἣν ὁ λόγος, καθ' ὃν ἀεν ὕντα τὰ γινόμενα ἐγίνετο, ὡς ἂν καὶ ὁ ᾿Ηράκλειτος ἀξιώσειεν, καὶ νὴ Δία καὶ ὃ βάρβαρος ἀξιοῖ ἐν τῇ τῆς ἀρχῆς τάξει τε καὶ ἀξίᾳ καθεσνηκότα πρὸς θεὸν εἶναι καὶ θεὸν εἶναι, δύ οὗ πάντα. ἁπλῶς γεγενῆσθαι, ἐν ᾧ τὸ γενόμενον ζῶν καὶ ζωὴν καὶ ὃν πεφυκέναι [ εἴς τὰ σώματα πίπτειν καὶ σάρκα ἐνδυσάμενον φαντάζεσθαι ἄνθρωπον, μετὰ τὸῦ καὶ τηνικαῦτα δεικνύειν τῆς φύσεως τὸ μεγαλεῖον, ἀμέλει “καὶ. ἀναλυθέντα πάλιν ἀποθεοῦσθαι καὶ θεὸν εἶναι, οἷος ἦν πρὸ τοῦ. εἰς τὸ σῶμα καὶ τὴν σάρκα καὶ τὸν ἄνθρωπον καταχθῆναι." ### English translation (Claude) thus: 'And this then was the Word, by whom, being eternal, the things that come to be came to be, as Heraclitus too would hold, and, by Zeus, as the barbarian holds, that he, established in the rank and dignity of the beginning, is with God and is God; through whom absolutely all things came to be; in whom what came to be has its nature as living, as life, and as being; and that he falls into bodies, and putting on flesh, appears as a man, while even then showing the greatness of his nature; and indeed, when released, he is deified again and is God, as he was before being brought down into the body, the flesh, and the man.' ### Scripture references - John 1:1–4: allusion, high confidence - John 1:14: allusion, high confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Amelius (Amelius): quotation, high confidence - Heraclitus (Heraclitus (fragments)): allusion, low confidence - Eusebius, Praep. ev. 11.19.1 (Preparation for the Gospel): echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Amelius, fragment, known also from Eusebius, Praep. ev. 11.19.1. 'The barbarian' is John the Evangelist. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.88 (Raeder, 59; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-88). ## Discourse 2.89 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-89 - Source: Raeder, 60 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Even a Platonist confessed the Word's divinity and incarnation as John teaches. ### Greek text οὕτως ἄγαν τὴν τοῦ βαρβάρου θεολογίαν τεθαύμαλεν. ὃ τῇ Πλάτωνος καὶ τῶν ἄλλων φιλοσόφων ἐντραφεὶς εὐεπείᾳ᾽ καὶ ξυνωμολόγησε τὸν λόγον καὶ ἐν ἀρχῇ εἶναι καὶ θεὺν εἶναι καὶ πρὸς τὸν θεὸν εἶναι καὶ τὰ πάντα πεποιηκέναι καὶ ζωῆς τοῖς ὅπασιν αἴτιον ὑπάρχειν καὶ χορηγὸν καὶ τῆς τῶν ὕλων ἕνεκα σωτηρίας σαρκὶ μὲν ξυγκρύψαι τὸ μεγαλοπρεπὲς τῆς θεότητος, ἀποκαλύψαι δὲ ὕμως κἀν τῇ σμικρᾷ καὶ παχείᾳ νεφέλῃ τὴν πατρῴαν εὐγένειαν. ### English translation (Claude) So greatly did the man brought up on the eloquence of Plato and the other philosophers admire the theology of the barbarian; he agreed that the Word was in the beginning, is God, is with God, made all things, is cause and supplier of life to all, and for the salvation of the universe hid the majesty of the Godhead in flesh, yet revealed even in that small, thick cloud his Father's nobility. ### Scripture references - John 1:1–3: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.89 (Raeder, 60; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-89). ## Discourse 2.90 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-90 - Source: Raeder, 60 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: John 1:14 teaches that the incarnate Word still showed his divine glory. ### Greek text καὶ γὰρ ὁ θεσπέσιος εὐαγγελιστὴς εἰρηκὼς »»καὶ ὁ λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετοζ καὶ δείξας τὸ τῆς θείας φύσεως ἀναλλοίωτον, ἐπήγαγε «καὶ ἐσκήνωσεν ἐν ἡμῖν“ καὶ ἐδίδαξεν, ὡς καὶ σάρκα περικείμενος τὴν ἄρρητόν τε καὶ ἄφθαρτον ἠφίει τῆς θεότητος αἴγλην᾽.,ἐθεασάμεθα γὰρ ἔφη..«τὴν δόξαν αὐτοῦ, δόξαν ὡς μονογενοῦς παρὰ πατρύς, πλήρης χάριτος καὶ ἀληθείας.“ οὖν ἡμαύρωσε γὰρ αὐτοῦ τὰς τῆς θεότητος ἀκτῖνας ἡ περιβολὴ τῆς σαρκός, ἀλλὰ καὶ ταύτην ἀμπεχόμενος δῆλος ἦν, τίς τε ἦν, καὶ ἐκ τίνος ἐξέλαμψεν. ### English translation (Claude) For the divine Evangelist, having said 'And the Word became flesh', and having shown the unchangeableness of the divine nature, added 'and dwelt among us', and taught that even clothed in flesh he sent forth the ineffable and incorruptible radiance of the Godhead: 'For we beheld,' he said, 'his glory, glory as of the only-begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.' For the covering of flesh did not dim the rays of his Godhead; even clothed in it, it was evident who he was and from whom he shone forth. ### Scripture references - John 1:14: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.90 (Raeder, 60; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-90). ## Discourse 2.91 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-91 - Source: Raeder, 60 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: If truth shines even among pagan errors, it is far more admirable on its own. ### Greek text εἰ δὲ χαὶ οἱ τῆς ἀληθείας ἀντίπαλοι οὕτω κομιδῇ θαυμάζουσι τὴν ἀλήθειαν, ὡς καὶ βραχέσι μορίοις ἐκεῖθεν σεσυλημένοις διακαλλύνειν τὰ οἰκεῖα ξυγγράμματα, καὶ πολλῷ ψεύδει ταῦτα μιγνύμενα μὴ ἀμβλύνειν τὸ σφέτερον κάλλος, ἀλλὰ κἀν φορυτῷ κειμένους τοὺς μαργαρίτας ἀστράπτειν καί, κατὰ τὴν εὐαγγελικὴν διδασκαλίαν,,γτὸ φῶς ἐν τῇ σκοτίᾳ φαίνειν καὶ ὑπὸ τῆς σχοτίας μὴ κρύπτεσθαι ξυνιδεῖν εὐπετές, ὕπως ἐστὶν ἀξιέραστα "καὶ ἀξιάγαστα, τὰ θεῖα μαθήματα, τοῦ ψεύδοὺς κεχωρισμένα. ### English translation (Claude) If even the opponents of truth so admire the truth as to adorn their own writings with small pieces stolen from it, and these, though mixed with much falsehood, do not lose their beauty, but pearls flash even lying in rubbish, and, as the Gospel teaches, 'the light shines in the darkness' and is not hidden by the darkness, it is easy to see how lovable and admirable the divine teachings are when separated from falsehood. ### Scripture references - John 1:5: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.91 (Raeder, 60; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-91). ## Discourse 2.92 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-92 - Source: Raeder, 61 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Truth separated from error is like a pearl in a diadem. ### Greek text πολλὴν γάρ που διαφορὰν ἔχει μαργαρέτης ἔν βορβόρῳ πείμενος καὶ ἐν διαδήματε λάμπων᾽ καὶ μὲν δὴ καὶ τῶν δαχτύλων ἀΐ σκυταλίδες ἀφηρμοσμέναι τε ἀλλήλων καὶ διεσκεδασμέναι, οὐ τὴν αὐτὴν ἔχουσιν εὐπρέπειάν' τὸ καὶ χάριν καὶ χρείαν, ὅσην ξυμπεφυκυῖαί τε ἀλλήλῶυς καὶ ξυνηρμοσμέναι ἔχουσαί τε καὶ ἐπιτελοῦσὰν ὁρῶνται. ### English translation (Claude) For a pearl lying in mud and one shining in a diadem differ greatly; and the joints of the fingers, disjointed and scattered, do not have the same comeliness, grace, and use that they are seen to have and perform when grown together and joined. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.92 (Raeder, 61; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-92). ## Discourse 2.93 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-93 - Source: Raeder, 61 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Truth shines brighter unmixed. ### Greek text ὑχήδυτον τοίνυν καὶ ἀμιγὲς τῆς ἀληθείας θεωρητέον τὸ εἰ γὰρ καὶ χρώμασιν ἐναντίοις μιγνύμενον λάμπει, ῥῆτον ὅτι λαμπρότερον φανεῖταν τῶν πημαινόντων πεχῶοὐ ### English translation (Claude) So the beauty of truth must be contemplated unadulterated and unmixed. For if it shines even mixed with contrary colors, it is plain that it will appear brighter when separated from what spoils it. ### Translation notes - The ends of the lines are garbled in the scan; the sense is clear and is translated by sense. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.93 (Raeder, 61; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-93). ## Discourse 2.94 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-94 - Source: Raeder, 61 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret lists writers of pagan mythology: Sanchuniathon, Philo of Byblos, Manetho. ### Greek text σ ἐναργέστερον δὲ τοῦτο καταμόθοι τις ἄν, τὴν Γ ἐνιιὴν μυθολογίαν τῇ ἀποστολικῇ καὶ προφητιηνῇ διδαλίᾳ παρατιθεὶς καὶ ἐκ παραλλήλου θεώμενος τὸ διάφορον. διαγχωνιάθων μὲν οὖν ὃ Βηρύτιος τὴν Φοινίκων θεολογίαν ξυνέγραψε᾽ μενήνεγκε δὲ ταύτην εἰς τὴν Ἑλλάδα φωνὴν ᾧίλων, οὐχ ὃ Ἕβραῖος, ἀλλ᾽ ὃ Βύβλιος (τὸν δὲ Σαγχωνιόθωνα λίαν τεθαύμακεν ὁ Πορφύριοο) ΜΜάνεθως δὲ τὰ περὶ Ἴσιδος καὶ Ὀσίριδος καὶ ᾿ἄπιδος καὶ Σαράπιδος καὶ ### English translation (Claude) One could learn this more clearly by setting Greek mythology beside the apostolic and prophetic teaching and seeing the difference side by side. Sanchuniathon of Berytus wrote the Phoenician theology; Philo translated it into the Greek language, not the Hebrew Philo but the one from Byblos (Porphyry greatly admired Sanchuniathon); Manetho told the myths about Isis, Osiris, Apis, Serapis, and ### Extrabiblical texts - Philo of Byblos, Philo Byb. (Philo of Byblos, Phoenician History): allusion, high confidence - Manetho (Manetho, Aegyptiaca): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 2.95. The list follows Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1–3. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.94 (Raeder, 61; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-94). ## Discourse 2.95 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-95 - Source: Raeder, 61 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Further sources of pagan theology: Diodorus, Hesiod, Cornutus, Plutarch, Aëtius, Porphyry. ### Greek text ν ἄλλων θεῶν τῶν «Αἰγυπτίων ἐμυθολόγησεἈιόδωρος δὲ ὁ Σικελιώτης ποσμογένειαν ξυνέγραψε᾽ τὴν δὲ τοῦ Ἀσκραίου ποιητοῦ Θεογονίαν οἶδε καὶ τὰ μειράκια" ὁ δέ γε Ὀδρύσης Ὀρφεὺς τὰς «ἰγυπτίων τελετὰς τοϊὺς Ἕλληνας ἐξεπαίδευσε᾽ Κάδμος δὲ τὰς Φοινίκων" Κορνογτος δὲ ὃ φιλόσοφος τὴν Ἑμηνικὴν θεολογίαν ξυντέθεικε" 1ζλούταρχος δὲ καὶ "Δέτιος τὰς τῶν φιλοσόφων ἐκπαιδεύουσι δόξας" τὸν αὐτὸν δὲ καὶ ὁ Πορφύριος ἀνεδέξατο πόνον, τὸν ἑκάστου. ### English translation (Claude) the other gods of the Egyptians; Diodorus of Sicily wrote a cosmogony; even boys know the Theogony of the poet of Ascra; Orpheus the Odrysian taught the Greeks the rites of the Egyptians, and Cadmus those of the Phoenicians; Cornutus the philosopher composed the Greek theology; Plutarch and Aëtius teach the opinions of the philosophers; and Porphyry took on the same labor, adding each one's ### Extrabiblical texts - Diodorus Siculus, 1.7 (Diodorus Siculus, Library of History): allusion, medium confidence - Hesiod, Theog. (Hesiod, Theogony): allusion, high confidence - Plutarch (Plutarch): allusion, medium confidence - Cornutus (Cornutus, Compendium of Greek Theology): quotation, medium confidence - Aëtius (Aëtius, Placita): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 2.96. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.95 (Raeder, 61; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-95). ## Discourse 2.96 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-96 - Source: Raeder, 62 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christian teaching differs from pagan myth as heaven from Tartarus; some myths will be shown in the next discourse. ### Greek text βίον ταῖς δόξαις προστεθεικώς. τούτοις ὑμᾶς, ὦ᾽ ἱἄνδρες, ἀξιῶ τὰ ἡμέτερα παραθεῖναι. καὶ μαθεῖν ὡς οὐ μόνον; κατὰ τὸν ποιητήν, οοὖσον οὐρανός ἐστ᾽ ἀπὸ γαίης“ ἀφέστηκεν) ἀλλ᾽ ὅσον ὁ καλούμενος Τάρταρος οὐρανοῦ. ἐγὼ δ᾽ αὐτοὺς θεῖναι παραιτοῦμαι τοὺς μύθους, ἵνα μή μέ τις ἀδολέσχην ὀνομάσῃ καὶ φλήναφον᾽ ἐνίων δὲ καὶ μάλα ὀλίγων ἐν τῇ μετὰ τήνδε, ξὺν θεῷ φάναι, γραφησομένῃ διαλέξει μνησθήσομαι, ἵνα τῶν μυθολογουμένων περὶ τῶν καλουμένων θεῶν μὴ μόνον τὸ ἀπίθανον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ ἀνόητον καὶ δυσαγὲς ἐπιδείξω. ### English translation (Claude) life to his opinions. I ask you, gentlemen, to set our teachings beside these and learn that they stand apart not only, as the poet says, 'as far as heaven is from earth', but as far as the so-called Tartarus is from heaven. I decline to set out the myths themselves, so that no one may call me a chatterer and a babbler; but some, very few, I shall mention in the discourse to be written after this one, God willing, to show not only the implausibility of the myths told about the so-called gods but also their folly and impurity. ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 8.16 (Homer, Iliad): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Iliad 8.16. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.96 (Raeder, 62; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-96). ## Discourse 2.97 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-97 - Source: Raeder, 62 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Eusebius's Preparation gives the full comparison; pagans deified elements or benefactors. ### Greek text εἰ δέ τῳ φίλον καὶ αὐτὴν διαγνῶναι τὴν ξύγκρισιι, εὑρήσει ταύτην ἐν τοῖς Εὐσεβίου τοῦ Παλαιστίνου ξυγγράμμασιν (Εὐαγγελυκὴν δὲ προπαρασκευὴν τόνδε τὸν πόνον ἐκεῖνος ὠνόμασεν) ἐγὼ δὲ ξυντόμως ἐρῶ, ὡς Αἰγύπτιοι καὶ Φοίνικες καὶ τῶν Ἑήνων οἵ ποιηταὶ καὶ φιλόσοφοι ἢ τὰ ὁρώμενα στοιχεῖα θεοὺς ὑπετόπασαν ἢ ἀνθρώπων τοὺς εὖ τι πεποιηιότας καὶ ἔν τισι πλεονεητήμασι διαπρέψαντας ### English translation (Claude) If anyone wishes to know the comparison itself, he will find it in the writings of Eusebius of Palestine (he named this work the Preparation for the Gospel). I shall say briefly that the Egyptians, the Phoenicians, and the poets and philosophers of the Greeks either supposed the visible elements to be gods, or proclaimed as gods those human beings who had done some good and excelled in some advantages, ### Extrabiblical texts - Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1–3 (Preparation for the Gospel): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 2.98. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.97 (Raeder, 62; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-97). ## Discourse 2.98 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-98 - Source: Raeder, 62 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christians worship only the Father, Word, and Spirit, honoring saints as human beings. ### Greek text θεοὺς ἀνηγόρευσαν καὶ τεθνεῶσι ναοὺς ἐδομήσαντο᾽ ἡμεῖς δὲ τῶν μὲν ὁρωμένων θεολογοῦμεν οὐδέν, τῶν δὲ ἀνθρώπῶν τοὺς ἐν ἀρετῇ διαπρέψαντας ὡς ἀνθρώπους ἀρίστους γεραίρομεν, μόνον δὲ τὸν τῶν ὕλων προσκυνοῦμεν Θεὸν καὶ Πατέρα καὶ τὸν ἐκείνου γε “όγον καὶ τὸ πανάγιον Πνεῦμα. ### English translation (Claude) and built temples to them when dead. We, however, ascribe divinity to none of the visible things; those human beings who excelled in virtue we honor as the best of human beings; and we worship only the God and Father of the universe, and his Word, and the all-holy Spirit. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.98 (Raeder, 62; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-98). ## Discourse 2.99 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-99 - Source: Raeder, 63 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christians name God by many names, positive and negative. ### Greek text τὸν αὐτὸν δὲ καὶ ὙἹὸν μονογενῆ καὶ “όγον καὶ Ζωὴν ταὶ Φῶς καὶ Ἀλήθειαν ὀνομάζομεν, καὶ ἄλλοις δὲ παμπόλλοις ὀνόμασι κεχρημένοι τὴν θείαν φύσιν ἀνυμνοῦμεν. φοὐ μόνον δὲ αὐνὴν ἀπὸ τῶν προσόντων. ὀνομάζομεν, ἀλλὰ ### English translation (Claude) The same one we also name only-begotten Son, Word, Life, Light, and Truth, and using very many other names we hymn the divine nature. We name it not only from what belongs to it but ### Scripture references - John 14:6: allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 2.100. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.99 (Raeder, 63; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-99). ## Discourse 2.100 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-100 - Source: Raeder, 63 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God is named negatively: without beginning, invisible, incomprehensible. ### Greek text καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν μὴ προσόντων προσαγορεύομεν᾽ ἄναρχον γὰρ καὶ ἄφθαρτον καὶ ἀθάνατον καὶ ἄπειρον καὶ ἀνώλεθρον ἀόρατόν τε καὶ ἀνείδεον καὶ ἀσχημάτιστον ἀπερίγραφόν τε καὶ ἀπερίληπτον καὶ ἀνέφιμτον καλοῦμεν, ἀπό γε τῶν μὴ προσόντων τὰς προσηγορίας τυθέντες. ### English translation (Claude) also from what does not belong to it. For we call it without beginning, incorruptible, immortal, infinite, indestructible, invisible, formless, shapeless, uncircumscribed, incomprehensible, and unattainable, giving it names from what does not belong to it. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.100 (Raeder, 63; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-100). ## Discourse 2.101 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-101 - Source: Raeder, 63 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Each negative name denies a limitation of God. ### Greek text ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ὁρατὸς οὐκ ἔστιν, ἀόρατος ὀνομάζετων; καὶ ἀθέατος, καὶ ὡς ὑπερβαίνων τοῦ νοῦ τὴν φαντασίαν, ἀνέφικτος. δὴ καλεῖται" παὶ αὖ πάλιν ἄπειφοβ, ὡς οὔτε ἀρχὴν οὔτε τέλος ἔχων, καὶ ὡς φθορᾶς καὶ θανάτου κρείττων, ἄφθαρτος καὶ ### English translation (Claude) For since he is not visible, he is called invisible and unseen; and as surpassing the imagination of the mind he is called unattainable; and again infinite, as having neither beginning nor end; and as superior to corruption and death, incorruptible and ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 2.102. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.101 (Raeder, 63; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-101). ## Discourse 2.102 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-102 - Source: Raeder, 63 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Positive names signify what God has and does. ### Greek text ἀθάνατος᾽ | καὶ τἄλλα δέ, ὅσα τούτοις ἔοικεν, ὧν ἡ θεία φύσις οὐκ ἔχει, τυγχάνει ὄντα δηλωτιχά, τὸ δέ γε ἀγαθὸς καὶ δίκαιος καὶ φῶς καὶ ζωὴ καὶ δημιουργὸς καὶ τῶν ὅλων πρύτανίς τε καὶ κυβερνήτης καὶ τὰ τούτοις προσόμοια, ὧν ἔχει τὲ καὶ ἐνεργεῖ, τὴν κτίσιν ἰθύνων καὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὴν φύσιν εὐεργετῶν, ὑπάρχει σημαντικά. ### English translation (Claude) immortal. These and the others like them indicate what the divine nature does not have; but 'good', 'just', 'light', 'life', 'Maker', 'Ruler and Helmsman of the universe', and the like signify what it has and does, steering creation and benefiting human nature. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.102 (Raeder, 63; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-102). ## Discourse 2.103 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-103 - Source: Raeder, 63 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The names Son, Word, and Radiance express the Son's eternal birth. ### Greek text οὕτως Ὑἱὸς ὄνομάξεται, ὡς ἔρ τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ Πατρὸς γεγεννημένος, καὶ “4ύγος, ὡς ἀχρόνως καὶ ἀπαθῶς προελθὼν καὶ μὴ μερίσας τὸν φύσαντα᾽ καὶ αὖ πάλιν ᾿ζπαύγασμα δόξης, ὡς ξυναΐδιος ὧν τοῦ γεννήσαντος. ### English translation (Claude) So he is called Son, as begotten of God the Father; and Word, as having come forth timelessly and impassibly without dividing the one who begot him; and again Radiance of glory, as co-eternal with the one who begot him. ### Scripture references - Heb 1:3: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.103 (Raeder, 63; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-103). ## Discourse 2.104 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-104 - Source: Raeder, 64 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: If Plato makes matter and ideas from God and with God, the Word and Spirit can be so too. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ μὴ θορυβήσητε, "καὶ ἐκ τοῦ Πατρὸς καὶ ξὺν τῷ Πατρὶ τὸν “όγον ἀκούσαντες. τῶν γὰρ ἀτοπωτάτων Πλάτωνος μὲν ἀνέχεσθαι καὶ αἴτιον τῆς ὕλης τὸν Θεὸν λέγοντος καὶ ξυναΐδιον τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν ὕλην ἀποκαλοῦντος καὶ τὰς ἰδέας ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ ξὺν τῷ Θεῷ φάσκοντος εἶναι, τὸν δὲ τοῦ Θεοῦ “όγον καὶ τὸ πάνάγιον Πνεῦμα μὴ πείθεσθαι καὶ ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ φῦναι καὶ ξὺν τῷ Θεῷ εἶναι. ### English translation (Claude) But do not be disturbed when you hear that the Word is both from the Father and with the Father. For it is most absurd to tolerate Plato saying that God is the cause of matter, calling matter co-eternal with God, and saying that the ideas are from God and with God, but not to believe that the Word of God and the all-holy Spirit both sprang from God and are with God. ### Translation notes - Theodoret's account of Plato reflects later Platonist doctrine. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.104 (Raeder, 64; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-104). ## Discourse 2.105 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-105 - Source: Raeder, 64 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christian teaching is more reasonable, for Son and Spirit share God's one being. ### Greek text εἰ γὰρ τὴν ἑτεροφυᾶ καὶ ἕτερογενῆ καὶ ἀλλόφυλον ὕλην καὶ ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ ξὺν τῷ Θεῷ εἶναν ὁ φιλόσοφος ἔφη, πολλῷ δήπουθεν εὐλογώτερόν τε καὶ ἀληθέστερον ὑποληστέον τὸν ἡμέτερον λόγον. οὐ γὰρ ἑτεροφυᾶ τὸν ὙἹὸν, οὐδέ γε τὸ πανάγιον Πνεῦμα εἶναί φαμὲν, ἀλλὰ μίαν εἶναι τῆς Τριάδος τὴν οὐσίαν κηρύττομεν. ### English translation (Claude) For if the philosopher said that matter, of another nature, another kind, and alien race, is both from God and with God, much more reasonable and true must our teaching be thought. For we do not say that the Son or the all-holy Spirit is of another nature, but we proclaim that the being of the Trinity is one. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.105 (Raeder, 64; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-105). ## Discourse 2.106 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-106 - Source: Raeder, 64 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The mode of the Son's and Spirit's existence is no harder than that of the unbegotten Father. ### Greek text Εἰ δέ τις τῆς ὑπάρξεως τοῦ ὙἹοῦ καὶ τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος ἐπιξητεῖ τὸν τρόπον μαθεῖν, εἰπάτω δὴ πρότερος τὸν τρόπον τῆς τοῦ ἀγεννήτου ὑπάρξεως, πῶς ἔστιν οὐκ ἔχων τὸν αἴτιον. τοῦτο γὰρ δὴ παντελῶς ἄπορον καὶ μόνῃ γὲ τῇ πίστει τῇ καθαρᾷ καὶ ἀκραιφνεῖ χωρητόν. ### English translation (Claude) If anyone seeks to learn the manner of the existence of the Son and the Holy Spirit, let him first tell the manner of the existence of the unbegotten, how he exists without having a cause. For this is wholly baffling and can be grasped only by pure and sincere faith. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.106 (Raeder, 64; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-106). ## Discourse 2.107 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-107 - Source: Raeder, 64 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Belief in an uncaused God makes belief in the Word's begetting and the Spirit's procession reasonable. ### Greek text τὸ μὲν γὰρ ἐξ αἰτίου γενέσθαι τι ἢ γεννητὸν ἢ κτιστὸν δέξαιτ᾽ ἂν ῥαδίως ὃ λογισμός᾽ τὸ δὲ εἶναί τι ἄτερ αἰτίου οὐδεὶς προσίεται λογισμός, εἰ μή πῃ ἄρα φανείη τῆς πίστεως τὸ ἐχέγγυον. εἰ δὲ πιστεύομεν εἶναί τι καὶ ἀγέννητον καὶ ἄναρχον καὶ ἀναίτιον, πιστευτέον ἄρα, ὡς ἐκ τούτου νοῦ γε ὄντος ἐγεννήθη ὃ “Δύγος, καὶ προῆλθε τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον. ### English translation (Claude) For reason would easily accept that something comes from a cause, whether begotten or created; but no reasoning admits that something exists without a cause, unless the pledge of faith appears. If we believe that there is something unbegotten, without beginning, and uncaused, we must also believe that from it, which is Mind, the Word was begotten, and the Holy Spirit proceeded. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.107 (Raeder, 64; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-107). ## Discourse 2.108 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-108 - Source: Raeder, 65 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Timaeus of Locri, Parmenides, and Plutarch speak of an unbegotten principle. ### Greek text ὅτι δὲ καὶ τῶν παλαιῶν τινες ἀγέννητον καλοῦσι τὸν τῶν ὅλων. Θεόν, ἀκούσαι ἄν τις καὶ Τιμαίου τοῦ “Δοκροῦ λέγοντος" ομία ἀρχὰ πάντων ἐστὶν ἀγέννατος᾽ εἰ γὰρ ἐγένετο, οὐκ ἂν ἦν ἔτι ἀρχά, ἀλλ᾽ ἐκείνα, ἐξ ἃς ἀρχὰ ἐγένετο Παρμενίδης δὲ ὁ Ἐλεάτης καὶ τὸν κόσμον ἀγέννητον εἶναι λέγων βοᾷ᾽ μοῦνον μουνογενές τε καὶ ἀτρεμὲς ἦἠδ᾽ ἀγέννητον.“ καὶ Πλούταρχος δὲ ὁ Χαιρωνεὺς περὶ τοῦ εἰ τοῦ ἐν Δελφοῖς γράφων, οὕτως ἔφη",,τἰ οὖν ἐστι τὸ ἀΐδιον καὶ ἀγέννητον καὶ ἄφθαρτον, ὦ χρόνος οὐδεὶς μεταβολὴν ἐπάγει" |. ### English translation (Claude) That some of the ancients call the God of the universe unbegotten, one may hear from Timaeus of Locri too, who says: 'There is one first principle of all things, unbegotten; for if it had come to be, it would no longer be a first principle, but that from which the first principle came to be.' And Parmenides of Elea, saying that the world is unbegotten, cries: 'Alone, only-begotten, unmoving, and unbegotten.' And Plutarch of Chaeronea, writing on the E at Delphi, said this: 'What then is eternal, unbegotten, and incorruptible, to which no time brings change?' ### Extrabiblical texts - Timaeus of Locri, Tim. Locr. (Timaeus of Locri (Pseudo-Timaeus), On the Nature of the World and Soul): quotation, high confidence - Parmenides, fr. 8.4 (Parmenides (fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Plutarch, De E 392e (Plutarch): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Timaeus of Locri (a later pseudepigraphon); Parmenides, fragment 8.4 (Diels–Kranz; the wording differs from modern texts); Plutarch, On the E at Delphi 392e–393a. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.108 (Raeder, 65; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-108). ## Discourse 2.109 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-109 - Source: Raeder, 65 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: From the unbegotten God the Word is begotten and the Spirit proceeds. ### Greek text εἰ τοίνυν φαμὲν εἶναί τι ἀγέννητον καὶ ἀναίτιον, κατὰ μὲν τὸν Παρμενίδην τὸν κόσμον, κατὰ δὲ τὸν Πλάτωνα καὶ Τίμαιον τὸν “οκρὸν καὶ Πλούταρχον καὶ ἡμᾶς αὐτοὺς τὸν τῶν ἁπάντων δημιουργόν, πολλῷ τούτου πυθανώτερον τὸ φάναι, ἐξ ἐκείνου γε τοῦ ἀγεννήτου φῦναι τὸν “όγον καὶ τὸ πανάγιον Πνεῦμα, τὸν μέν, ὡς λόγον, ἐκ τοῦ νοῦ γεννώμένον, τὸ δέ, ὡς πνεῦμα, ἐκπορευόμενον᾽ ξυμπρύεισι γὰρ τῷ “Δόγῳ τὸ Πνεῦμα, οὐ ξυγγεννώμενον, ἀλλὰ ξυνὸν καὶ παρομαρτοῦν καὶ ἐκπορευόμενον. ### English translation (Claude) If then we say there is something unbegotten and uncaused (according to Parmenides the world, but according to Plato, Timaeus of Locri, Plutarch, and ourselves the Maker of all things), it is much more convincing to say that from that unbegotten one sprang the Word and the all-holy Spirit: the one, as Word, begotten from the Mind; the other, as Spirit, proceeding. For the Spirit comes forth together with the Word, not begotten with it, but being with it, accompanying it, and proceeding. ### Scripture references - John 15:26: allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.109 (Raeder, 65; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-109). ## Discourse 2.110 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-110 - Source: Raeder, 65 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Word and Spirit are not breath or speech, but subsistent, united in nature and distinct in properties. ### Greek text ἀλλ᾽ οὔτε τὸ Πνεῦμα πνοήν τινα στόματος εἶναί φαμεν (ἀξύνθετον γὰρ τὸ θεῖον καὶ ἀσχημάτιστον) οὔτε τὸν Λόγον τοῦτον τὸν εἰς ἀέρα χεύμενον, ἀλλ᾽ ἐνούσιον “όγον καὶ ἐνυπόστατον Πνεῦμα, καὶ ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ θεωρούμενα καὶ καθ᾽ ἑαυτὰ πιστευόμενα, καὶ ξυνημμένα καὶ διῃρημένα, τῷ μὲν ταὐτῷ τῆς φύσεως ἡνωμένα, τῇ δὲ τῶν ἰδιονήτων διαφορᾷ διῃρημένα καὶ καθ' ἑαυτὰ ψοούμενα. ### English translation (Claude) But we do not say that the Spirit is some breath of a mouth (for the divine is uncompounded and without shape), nor that the Word is this word that is poured into the air; but the Word is substantial and the Spirit subsistent, both contemplated in the Father and believed in as existing by themselves, both joined and distinguished: united by the sameness of nature, and distinguished and conceived by themselves by the difference of properties. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.110 (Raeder, 65; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-110). ## Discourse 2.111 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-111 - Source: Raeder, 66 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: These truths are learned from Scripture by grace. ### Greek text ταῦτα δὲ οὐ» ἔνεστι μαθεῖν ἀκριβῶς τὸν μὴ τοῖς θείοις ἐντετυχηκότα λογίοις καὶ τὸ τῆς γνώσεως φῶς παρὰ τῆς θείας ἐκδεξάμενον χάριτος. ### English translation (Claude) These things cannot be learned accurately by one who has not read the divine oracles and received the light of knowledge from divine grace. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.111 (Raeder, 66; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-111). ## Discourse 2.112 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-112 - Source: Raeder, 66 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Reading both prophets and apostles reveals their harmony and exposes atheists. ### Greek text ᾿ἀναγνωστέον δὲ οὐ μόνον τὰ τῶν ἱερῶν ἀποστόλων μαθήματα, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ τῶν θείων προφητῶν θεσπίσματα. ὕτω γάρ τις καὶ τῆς παλαιᾶς καὶ τῆς καινῆς θεολογίας τὴν ξυμφωνίαν ὁρῶν, θαυμάσεται τὴν ἀλήθειαν καὶ φεύξεται μὲν ΖΔιαγόρου τοῦ Μιλησίου καὶ τοῦ Κυρηναϊκοῦ Θεοδώρου καὶ Εὐημέρου τοῦ Τεγεάτου τὸ ἄθεον᾽ τούτους γὰρ ### English translation (Claude) One must read not only the teachings of the holy apostles but also the oracles of the divine prophets. For so, seeing the harmony of the old and the new theology, one will admire the truth and will flee the atheism of Diagoras of Miletus, Theodorus of Cyrene, and Euhemerus of Tegea; for these ### Extrabiblical texts - Euhemerus (Euhemerus, Sacred Record): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 2.113. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.112 (Raeder, 66; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-112). ## Discourse 2.113 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-113 - Source: Raeder, 66 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plutarch names atheists; the Stoics and Protagoras also erred about God. ### Greek text ὁ Πλούταρχος ἔφησε μηδένα νενομιπέναι θεόν᾽ φεύξεται δὲ καὶ τῶν Στωϊκῶν τὴν ἀπρεπῆ περὶ τοῦ θείου δόξαν᾽ σωματοειδῆ γὰρ οὗτοι τὸν θεὸν ἔφασαν εἶναι" βδελύξεται δὲ καὶ Πρωταγόρου τοὺς ἀμφιβόλους περὶ τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ ἀπίστους λόγους. ἐκείνου γάρ ἐστι τὰ τοιάδε" περὶ μὲν οὖν τῶν θεῶν οὐκ οἶδα, οὔτε εἰ εἰσίν, οὔθ᾽ ὡς οὐκ εἰσίν, οὐθ᾽ ### English translation (Claude) Plutarch said believed in no god. One will flee also the unfitting opinion of the Stoics about the divine; for these said that god is corporeal. One will abhor Protagoras's doubtful and faithless words about god, for these are his: 'About the gods I do not know, either that they exist or that they do not exist, or ### Extrabiblical texts - Plutarch, Plac. 1.7 (Plutarch): allusion, high confidence - Aëtius (Aëtius, Placita): quotation, medium confidence - Protagoras (Protagoras): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Plutarch (Ps.-Plutarch), Placita 1.7. Protagoras, fragment 4 (Diels–Kranz). The quotation ends in 2.114. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.113 (Raeder, 66; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-113). ## Discourse 2.114 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-114 - Source: Raeder, 66 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Numenius called Plato 'Moses speaking Attic'. ### Greek text ὁποῖοί τινες τὴν ἰδέαν εἰσίν“ ἀποδράσει δὲ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων μυθολύγων τὸν πλάνον᾽ Πλάτωνος δὲ καὶ τῶν ἐκείνῳ παραπλησίων, ὅσα μὲν ἐκ τῶν θείων λογίων πεκλόφασιν, εὑρήσει τε καὶ θαυμάσεται, ὕσα δὲ τοῦ ψεύδους ἀνέμιξαν, ἀποξύσει καθάπερ φορυτὸν ἀπορρίψει καὶ τῶν τῆς ψυχῆς ἀπελάσει, χωρίων, καὶ ὁρῶν τῆς πλοπῆς τὰ φώρια, τῷ Πυθαγορικῷ Νουμηνίῳ πιστεύσει λέγοντι",,τί γάρ ἐστι Πλάτων ἢ Μωῦσῆς᾿ Αττικίξζων:" ### English translation (Claude) what they are like in form.' He will escape the error of the other mythmakers too. In Plato and those like him he will find and admire whatever they stole from the divine oracles; whatever falsehood they mixed in he will scrape off, throw away like rubbish, and drive from the regions of the soul; and seeing the evidence of the theft, he will believe the Pythagorean Numenius, who says: 'For what is Plato but Moses speaking Attic?' ### Extrabiblical texts - Numenius, fr. 8 (Numenius of Apamea): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Numenius, fragment 8 (des Places). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.114 (Raeder, 66; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-114). ## Discourse 2.115 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-115 - Source: Raeder, 67 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's piety was taken from Moses. ### Greek text διὰ γὰρ δὴ τούτων ἀναφανδὸν ἔδειξεν ὁ Νουμήνιος, ὡς ὁπόσα Πλάτων εὐσεβῶς εἴρηκεν, ἐκ τῆς ΜΙῦσοῦ θεολογίας σεσύληκεν. ### English translation (Claude) By these words Numenius showed openly that whatever Plato said piously he stole from the theology of Moses. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.115 (Raeder, 67; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-115). ## Discourse 2.116 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-116 - Source: Raeder, 67 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Like miners following grains of gold, readers should seek the source of truth. ### Greek text Ὥρα δὴ οὖν, ὦ ἄνδρες, αὐτὴν ἀνιχνεῦσαι τῆς ἀληθείας τὴν θίξζαν᾽ καὶ καθάπερ οἱ τὴν χρυσῖτιν καὶ ἀργυρῖτιν μεταλλεύοντες γῆν, ὅταν μιηρὰ ψήγματα εὕρωσιν, ἐκείνοις ἑπόμενοι ] πάσας διερευνῶσι τὰς φλέβας καὶ οὐ πρότερον παύονται διορύττοντες, ἕως ἂν εὕρωσι τοῦ χρυσοῦ τὸ πλῆθος, ἐξ οὗ διεσπάρη τὰ ψήγματα, οὕτως ὑμᾶς δεῖ τῶν ᾿ἀναξαγόρου καὶ Πυθαγόρου καὶ Πλάτωνος, καὶ μέντοι καὶ ΝΝουμηνίου καὶ Πλουτάρχου καὶ Πλωτίνου καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἐπακούσαντας λόγων, ἐπιξητῆσαι τὴν πηγήν, ἐξ ἧς ὀλίγα ἄττα τῶν θείων ναμάτων ### English translation (Claude) It is time, then, gentlemen, to track down the very root of truth. Just as those who mine gold-bearing and silver-bearing earth, when they find small grains, follow them, search all the veins, and do not stop digging until they find the mass of gold from which the grains were scattered, so you, having heard the words of Anaxagoras, Pythagoras, and Plato, and also of Numenius, Plutarch, Plotinus, and the others, must seek the spring from which these men drew a few of the divine streams ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 2.117. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.116 (Raeder, 67; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-116). ## Discourse 2.117 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-2-117 - Source: Raeder, 67 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Those who learn from Scripture will worship the one God and become guides of others. ### Greek text ἀνιμησάμενοι οὗτοι τοὺς οἰκείους διεκόσμησαν λόγους, καὶ τὴν τούτων πενίαν καταλιπόντας ἀντιλαβεῖν τῆς σοφίας τὴν ἄβυσσον καὶ μαθεῖν ἀκριβῶς παρ᾽ ἐκείνης, τί μὲν ποιητής, τί δὲ ποίημα, καὶ τίς μὲν ἣ τῶν ἀοράτων δημιουργημάτων ἀξία, τίς δὲ τῶν ὁρωμένων ἡ χρεία. τοῦτο γὰρ μεμαθηκότες, οὐκέτι τὸ θεῖον εἰς πολλὰ μερίσετε σέβας, ἀλλὰ τὸν ἀεὶ ὄντα καὶ ἀληθῶς ὄντα καὶ τοῖς οὖσι τὸ εἶναι διὰ μόνην ἀγαθότητα δωρησάμεγὸν προσκυνήσετε, καὶ ἀντὶ πολεμίων καὶ δυσμενῶν οἰκεῖοι καὶ φίλοι γενήσεσθε, καὶ πολλῆς, ὧς ξυνήθεις, ἀπολαύσεσθε παρρησίαο᾽ καὶ οἵ ποδηγῶν ἐπὶ τοῦ παρόντος δεόμενοι ἄλλους τῶν πλανωμένων πρὸς τὴν ἀλήθειαν ξεναγήσετε. ### English translation (Claude) and adorned their own words; and leaving their poverty, take hold of the abyss of wisdom and learn accurately from it what the Maker is and what the made, what is the dignity of the invisible creatures and what the use of the visible. For having learned this, you will no longer divide the divine worship among many, but will worship him who always is and truly is and who gave being to the things that are out of goodness alone; and instead of enemies and foes you will become his household and friends, and like intimates will enjoy great freedom of speech; and you who at present need guides will guide others who wander to the truth. ### Scripture references - Rom 11:33: echo, low confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 2.117 (Raeder, 67; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-117). ## Discourse 3.1 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-1 - Source: Raeder, 68 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Bodies lacking or exceeding their natural parts are called monstrous. ### Greek text Τῶν σωμάτων ἐκεῖνα θαυμάξειν εἰώθαμεν, ὅσα ἀρτιμελῆ τὸ καὶ ἄπηρα, καὶ ὃν ἐξ ἀρχῆς παρὰ τῆς φύσεως ἔλαχεν ἀριθμόν, σῶον ἔχει καὶ ἄρτιον᾽ ὅσοις δὲ τούτων ἐνδεῖ τι ἢ πλεονάζει, ταῦτα τέρατα προσαγορεύειν εἰώθαμεν. ### English translation (Claude) Among bodies we usually admire those that are whole-limbed and unmaimed, keeping intact and complete the number of parts nature allotted them from the beginning; those that lack something or have too much we usually call monsters. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.1 (Raeder, 68; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-1). ## Discourse 3.2 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-2 - Source: Raeder, 68 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Monarchy is praised, as in Homer's maxim. ### Greek text καὶ τῆς ἀναρχίας δὲ καὶ τῆς πολυαρχίας ὡς βλαβερῶν χατηγοροῦντες, τὴν μοναρχίαν θαυμάξομεν καὶ τὴν Ὁμηριρὴν ἐπαινοῦμεν γνώμην, ἣ τοῦτον εἰσηγεῖται τὸν νόμον" οὐκ ἀγαθόν"“ 2άρ φήσι »γ"εολυκοιφανίη, εἷς κοίρανος ἔστως εἷς ### English translation (Claude) And condemning both anarchy and the rule of many as harmful, we admire monarchy and praise the Homeric maxim that lays down this law: 'The rule of many is not good; let there be one ruler, one ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 2.204–205 (Homer, Iliad): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Iliad 2.204–205. The quotation ends in 3.3. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.2 (Raeder, 68; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-2). ## Discourse 3.3 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-3 - Source: Raeder, 68 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Polytheists, like atheists, are maimed in their theology. ### Greek text βασιλεύς.“ ταῦτα δὲ οὐ τηνάλλως ἀδολεσχῶ, ἀλλ᾽ ἀπὸ τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων δεικνύναι τὰ θεῖα πειρώμενος καὶ ἀξιῶν ὑμᾶς, ὦ ἄνδρες, καὶ ἐπ᾽ ἐκείνων τόνδε διατηρῆσαι τὸν ὅρον καὶ ὑγιεῖς μὲν καὶ ἀρτίους ἀποκαλεῖν τοὺς τὴν ὀληθῆ θεολογίαν ἀσπαζομένους, ἣν καὶ ἡ φύσις ἐξ ἀρχῆς παραδέδωκε, καὶ τὰ θεῖα ὕστερον ἐκράτυνε λόγια, ἀναπήρους δ᾽ αὖ προσαγορεύειν μὴ μόνον ἐκείνους, οἱ οὐδένα θεὸν εἶναι νομίζουσιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τούτους, οἷ εἰς πολλὰ τὸ θεῖον κατεμέρισαν σέβας καὶ τῷ δημιουργῷ τῶν ὅλων τὴν κτίσιν ξυνέταξαν. ### English translation (Claude) king.' I am not chattering idly in saying this, but trying to show divine things from human ones, and asking you, gentlemen, to keep this rule in divine matters too: to call sound and whole those who embrace the true theology, which nature handed down from the beginning and the divine oracles later confirmed; and to call maimed not only those who think there is no god, but also those who divided the divine worship among many and ranked creation with the Maker of the universe. ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 2.205 (Homer, Iliad): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.3 (Raeder, 68; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-3). ## Discourse 3.4 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-4 - Source: Raeder, 68 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Homer, Hesiod, and the philosophers are as godless as the declared atheists. ### Greek text οὔκουν μόνοι γε ἄθεοι “Διαγόρας ὃ Μιλήσιος καὶ ὁ Κυρηναῖος Θεόδωρος χαὶ Ἐὐήμερος. ὃ Τεγεάτης καὶ οἵ τούτοις ἦἠκολουθηπότες, Ι παντάπασι φάντες μὴ εἶναι θεούς, ὡς ὁ Πλούταρχος ἔφη, ἀλλὰ καὶ Ὅμηρος καὶ ᾿Ησίοδος καὶ αἵ τῶν φιλοσόφων ξυμμορίαι, παμπόλλους μὲν θεῶν μυθολογήσαντες ὁρμαθούς, ἀνδραποδώδεις δέ τινας καὶ παθῶν ἀνθρωπίνων ἀποφήναντες δούλους. ### English translation (Claude) So the atheists are not only Diagoras of Miletus, Theodorus of Cyrene, Euhemerus of Tegea, and their followers, who said outright that there are no gods, as Plutarch said, but also Homer, Hesiod, and the companies of the philosophers, who told myths of very many strings of gods and showed some of them to be slavish and slaves to human passions. ### Extrabiblical texts - Euhemerus (Euhemerus, Sacred Record): allusion, medium confidence - Plutarch, Plac. 1.7 (Plutarch): allusion, high confidence - Aëtius (Aëtius, Placita): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Plutarch (Ps.-Plutarch), Placita 1.7. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.4 (Raeder, 68; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-4). ## Discourse 3.5 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-5 - Source: Raeder, 69 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Some even deified the passions they condemned. ### Greek text εἰσὶ δὲ οἱ καὶ ἀνέδην τὰ αἴσχιστα πάθη, τὰ παρὰ σφῶν κατηγορούμενα, καὶ ὧν ἐπιμελῶς κρατεῖν τοῖς νέους παρακελεύονται, θεούς τε ὠνόμασαν καὶ ὡς θεοῖς τὸ γέρας ἀπένειμαν. ### English translation (Claude) There are some who openly named as gods the most shameful passions, which they themselves condemn and which they urge the young carefully to master, and gave them the honor due to gods. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.5 (Raeder, 69; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-5). ## Discourse 3.6 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-6 - Source: Raeder, 69 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Diodorus says the Egyptians first deified sun and moon. ### Greek text ὡς δέ φησιν. ὃ Σιπελιώτης Αιόδωρος, Αἰγύπτιοι τὸν ἥλιον καὶ τὴν σελήνην θεοὺς ὠνόμασαν πρῶτοι καὶ ἐκάλεσαν τὸν μὲν ἥλιον Ὄσιριν, τὴν δὲ σελήνην Ἶσιν καὶ Φοίνικας δὲ ὡσαύτως παρ᾽ ἐκείγῶν τοῦτο μεμωθηκότας τὴν Αἰγυπτίων ζηλῶσαι θεοποιΐαν. ### English translation (Claude) As Diodorus of Sicily says, the Egyptians first named the sun and the moon gods, calling the sun Osiris and the moon Isis; and the Phoenicians likewise, having learned this from them, imitated the Egyptians' making of gods. ### Extrabiblical texts - Diodorus Siculus, 1.11.1 (Diodorus Siculus, Library of History): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Diodorus Siculus 1.11.1. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.6 (Raeder, 69; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-6). ## Discourse 3.7 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-7 - Source: Raeder, 69 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Cratylus says the first Greeks deified the heavenly bodies. ### Greek text ξυνομολογεῖ δὲ καὶ ὁ Πλάτων ἐν τῷ Κρατύλῳ, καὶ τοὺς Ἕλληνας τόνδε πρῶτον περὶ τῶν καλουμένων θεῶν τὸν πλάνον εἰσδέξασθαι. λέγει δὲ ὧδε᾽ φαίνονταί μοι οἵ πρῶτοι τῶν ἀνθρώπων οἱ περὶ τὴν ἱἙλλάδα τούτους μόνους ἡγεῖσθαι θεούς, οὔσπερ νῦν οἵ πολλοὶ τῶν βαρβάρων, ἥλιον καὶ σελήνην καὶ γῆν καὶ ἄστρα καὶ οὐρανόν᾽ ἅτε οὖν αὐτὰ ὁρῶντες ἰόντα δρόμῳ καὶ θέοντα, ἀπὸ ταύτης τῆς φύσεως, τῆς τοῦ θεῖν, θεοὺς αὐτοὺς ἐπονομάσαι. ### English translation (Claude) Plato in the Cratylus agrees that the Greeks too first received this error about the so-called gods. He says this: 'It seems to me that the first men in Greece thought these alone were gods, as many of the barbarians do now: sun, moon, earth, stars, and heaven. Seeing them always moving on their course and running, from this nature of running they named them gods.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Crat. 397c–d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Cratylus 397c–d (quoted already in 2.27). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.7 (Raeder, 69; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-7). ## Discourse 3.8 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-8 - Source: Raeder, 70 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God, needing nothing, made the visible world for human use and enjoyment. ### Greek text ὃ μὲν οὖν πάνσοφος τῶν ὕλων δημιουργός, ἀνενδεὴς ὧν καὶ οὐδενὸς τὸ παράπαν ἢ ὁρατῶν ἢ ἀοράτων δεόμενος, καὶ οὐρανὸν “καὶ γῆν καὶ ἥλιον καὶ σελήνην καὶ τἄλλα, ὅσα ἐστὶν αἰσθητά τε καὶ ὁρατά, τῆς τῶν ἀνθρώπων χάριν ἐδημιούργησε χρείας" μᾶλλον δὲ ὑπερέβη τῇ τῆς μεγαλουργίας φιλοτιμίᾳ τὴν χρείαν καὶ προσφέρει διὰ τούτων αὐτοῖς παντοδαπῶν ἀπόλαυσιν ἀγαθῶν. ### English translation (Claude) The all-wise Maker of the universe, being without need and wholly lacking nothing visible or invisible, made heaven and earth, sun and moon, and the other things that are sensible and visible, for the use of human beings; or rather, in the generosity of his magnificence he exceeded their need, and through these offers them the enjoyment of all kinds of goods. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.8 (Raeder, 70; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-8). ## Discourse 3.9 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-9 - Source: Raeder, 70 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Sun, moon, and stars serve human needs. ### Greek text ἥλιος μὲν γὰρ ἀνίσχων καὶ τὴν ἡμέραν ποιῶν πρὸς ἐργασίαν διεγείρει τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὸ γένος" ἡ δὲ σελήνη, τοῦ μείζονος ὑποχωροῦντος φωστῆρος, τῆς νυκτὸς τὸ ζοφῶδες κεράννυσι καὶ οὔτε τοὺς διαναπαύεσθαν βουλὸμένους ἀλγύνει τῇ τοῦ φωτὸς περιουσίᾳ καὶ τοῖς ὁδοιπορεῖν ἢ δρᾶν ἄλλο τι βουλομένοις χορηγεῖ δαδουχίαν ἀρκοῦσαν" καὶ φθινούσης δὲ ταύτης, οἵ ἀστέρες τήνδε πληροῦσι τὴν χρείαν. ### English translation (Claude) For the sun, rising and making the day, rouses the human race to work; the moon, when the greater light withdraws, tempers the gloom of the night, neither troubling those who wish to rest with too much light nor failing to supply sufficient torchlight to those who wish to travel or do something else; and when it wanes, the stars fill this need. ### Scripture references - Gen 1:16: echo, low confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.9 (Raeder, 70; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-9). ## Discourse 3.10 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-10 - Source: Raeder, 70 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Humans worshiped the gifts instead of the Giver, as Paul says. ### Greek text ὃ μὲν οὖν δημιουργός, ὡς ἔφην, τοσαύτην τῶν ἀνθρώπων πεποίηται προμήθειαν᾽ οἱ δέ, τῶν μεγίστων τούτῶν δωρεῶν τετυχηκότες, ποδηγεῖσθαι δέον ἐκ τούτων καὶ τὸν τούτων δημιουργόν τε καὶ χορηγὸν ὡς μεγαλόδωρον ἀνυμνεῖν, τὸν μὲν ἀγέραστον εἴασαν,..ἐσεβάσθησαν δὲ καὶ ἐλάτρευσαν,’ ἀποστολικῶς εἰπεῖν,.,«τῇ πτίσει παρὰ τὸν κτίσωντα,“ καὶ τῶν δωρεῶν τό τε μέγεθος καὶ τὸ κάλλος ἀφορμὴν αὐτοῖς ἀχαριστίας προὐξένησεν. τὸν γὰρ δοτῆρα τούτων ἠγνόησαν καὶ τούτοις τὸ τῷ Θεῷ προσῆκον ἀπένειμαν σέβας. ### English translation (Claude) The Maker, as I said, has taken such great care of human beings; but they, having received these greatest gifts, when they should have been guided by them to praise their Maker and Giver as generous, left him unhonored, and 'worshiped and served', to speak with the apostle, 'the creature rather than the Creator'; and the greatness and beauty of the gifts gave them occasion for ingratitude. For they did not know the Giver of them and gave them the worship due to God. ### Scripture references - Rom 1:25: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.10 (Raeder, 70; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-10). ## Discourse 3.11 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-11 - Source: Raeder, 70 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God gave the elements weaknesses to prevent their worship. ### Greek text καίτοι γε προορῶν, ἅτε δὴ πάνσοφος ὦν, ὁ δημιουργὸς τόνδε τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὸν πλάνον, πάθη τινὰ ξυνεκλήρωσε τοῖς στοιχείοις, ἵνα τὸ μὲν κάλλος αὐτῶν καὶ τὸ μέγεθος θαυμάξεσθὰι παρασκξυάξῃ τὸν ποιητήν, Ι τὰ δέ γε. ξυνἐζευγμένα παθήματα κωλύῃ τὴν θείαν αὐτοῖς προσφέρξιῦ, προσπύνησιν. ### English translation (Claude) Yet the Maker, being all-wise and foreseeing this error of human beings, allotted certain weaknesses to the elements, so that their beauty and greatness might cause the Maker to be admired, while the weaknesses joined to them might prevent divine worship from being offered to them. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.11 (Raeder, 70; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-11). ## Discourse 3.12 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-12 - Source: Raeder, 71 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Clouds and eclipses show the weakness of sun and moon. ### Greek text - αὐτίκα τοίνυν τὸν φανότατον ἥλιον καὶ τὴν σελήνην πρύπτει μὲν νέφη σμικρά, ὁμίμη δὲ καὶ ἀχλὺς ἀμβλυτέρας αὐτοῖν τὰς ἀκτῖνας ποιεῖ, ἔστι δὲ ὅτε καὶ πάμπαν μεσούσης ἡμέρας, οὔτε νεφῶν ἐπιπροσθούντων οὔτε ᾿βεχυμένης ὁμίχλης, φροῦδον᾽ γίνεται τοῦ ἡλίου τὸ φῶρ᾽ ταὐτὸ δὲ τοῦτο καὶ τῇ σελήνῃ νύχτωρ τὸ πάθος προσγίνεται. ### English translation (Claude) For instance, small clouds hide the brilliant sun and the moon, and fog and mist make their rays duller; and sometimes even at midday, with no clouds in the way and no fog spread out, the light of the sun vanishes altogether; and the same thing happens to the moon at night. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.12 (Raeder, 71; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-12). ## Discourse 3.13 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-13 - Source: Raeder, 71 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The sun's harmful heat shows it is only God's servant. ### Greek text ἀτὰρ δὴ καὶ τόδὲ πάλιν ὃ σοφὸς ἐμηχανήσατο Κύριος. ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἡ μετρία ᾽τοῦ ἡλίου θερμότης. καὶ σώμασιν. ἐπιτηδεία καὶ σπέρμασι καὶ φυτοῖς (τὰ μὲν γὰρ αὔξει καὶ τρέφει, τοὺς δὲ καρποὺς πεπαίνει καὶ ὡρίμους ποιεῖ), σφοδροτέραν ἔστιν ὅτε παρασκευάζει προσβάλλειν τὴν ἀκτῖνα, ὡς ἀνιᾶσαι μὲν τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὰ σώματα καὶ τῶν ἄλλων γε ζῴων, διαφθεῖραι δὲ τῶν σπερμάτων καὶ τῶν φυτῶν τὰς ὠδῖνας, ἵνὰ μὴ ἑωῆς τοῦτον ὑπολάβωμεν αἴτιον, ἀλλ᾽ ὑπουργὸν εἶναι πιστεύωμεν τοῦ θείου θελήματος. ### English translation (Claude) The wise Lord contrived this too: since the moderate warmth of the sun is suited to bodies, seeds, and plants (it makes some grow and nourishes them, and ripens the fruits and makes them seasonable), he sometimes makes the ray strike more fiercely, so as to distress the bodies of human beings and other animals and to ruin the fruits of seeds and plants, so that we may not suppose the sun to be the cause of life but believe it to be a servant of the divine will. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.13 (Raeder, 71; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-13). ## Discourse 3.14 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-14 - Source: Raeder, 71 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The air gives life but also brings plague, so it is no god. ### Greek text καὶ μέντοι καὶ τὸν ἀέρά ζωῆς μὲν ἡμῖν ἀπέφηνε ξυνεργόν᾽ τοῦτον γάρ τοὶ οὐ “μόνον ἡμεῖς, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἀλόγων ἕκαστον ἀναπνέον διαξῇ,. καὶ τῇ εἰσροῇ τὴν ἔμφυτον κεράννυσι θερμασίαν" ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως καὶ λοιμώδης ἔκ τοῦ ἀέρος ἐπιγίνεται νόσος, καὶ φθείρεται τὰ σώματα τῇ εὐκρασίᾳ τῇ τούτου τρεφόμενα, ὅπως ἂν μὴ καὶ τοῦτον θεὸν ὑπολάβωμεν, ἀλλὰ τρεπτὸν καὶ ἀλλοιωτὸν ὁρῶντες ἀποδράσωμεν τὴν προσκύνησιν. ### English translation (Claude) He also made the air a partner of our life; for not only we but every irrational animal lives by breathing it, and by its inflow tempers its innate heat. Yet pestilential disease also comes from the air, and the bodies nourished by its good temper perish, so that we may not suppose it a god, but, seeing it changeable and alterable, shun its worship. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.14 (Raeder, 71; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-14). ## Discourse 3.15 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-15 - Source: Raeder, 71 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The earth's many weaknesses show it is no god. ### Greek text καὶ τὴν γῆν δὲ ὡσαύτως φερέσβιον μὲν καὶ πλουτοδότειραν καὶ μητέρα καὶ τιθήνην καὶ κοινὸν ἔδαφος ἀπέφηνεν ὁ δημιουργός᾽ ἀλλ ὡς ἂν μὴ ταῦτα ὁρῶντες ἀποβουκοληθῶμεν καὶ θεοποιήσωμεν ὡς ἀγαθῶν χοφηγόν; πολλὰ καὶ ταύτῃ χαὶ διάφορα ξυνεκλήρωσε πάθη" καὶ γὰρ ψυχρότητος αὐτῇ καὶ θερμότῆτος ἀμετρία λυμαίνεται, καὶ πέρα τῆς χρείας ὁομένη διαλύεται παὶ διαφθείρει καὶ τὰ φυτὰ καὶ τὰ σπέρματα᾽ καὶ αὖ πάλιν, τῶν νεφῶν κατὰ καιρὸν τὰς ὠδῖνας οὐ προχεόντῶν, διαυαίνεταί τε καὶ ἄκαρπος γίνεται" πολλάκις δὲ καὶ ψεκάδες οὐκ εἰς καιρὸν φερόμεναι σηπεδόνα ἐμποιοῦσι, καὶ κνώδαλα ἄττα καὶ θηρία τίκτειν ἐπὶ λύμῃ τῶν ἀνθρώπων βιάξεται. ### English translation (Claude) Likewise the Maker made the earth life-bearing, giver of wealth, mother, nurse, and common ground; but so that seeing this we might not be beguiled and deify it as supplier of goods, he allotted it many and various weaknesses. For excess of cold and heat injures it; watered beyond need, it dissolves and ruins plants and seeds; and again, when the clouds do not pour out their burdens in season, it dries up and becomes fruitless; and often showers coming out of season cause rot and force it to breed vermin and beasts to the harm of human beings. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.15 (Raeder, 71; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-15). ## Discourse 3.16 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-16 - Source: Raeder, 72 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The created world leads the wise to its invisible Maker, as Wisdom 13:5 says. ### Greek text τοιγαροῦν ταύτην ὁρῶντες τὴν ἀσθένειαν οἱ τὸν νοῦν ἐρρωμένοι; προσκυνεῖν ὡς θεὸν οὐκ ἀνέχονται, ἀλλὰ διά γε ταύτης καὶ τῶν ἐν αὐτῇ φυομένων πρὸς τὸν τούτῆς καὶ τὸν τούτων ποιητὴν ξεναγοῦνται καὶ διὰ τῶν ὁρωμένων πρὸς τὸν ἀόρατον ποδηγοῦνται. ταύτῃ τοι μάλα σοφῶς ὄρα καὶ ἐπηβόλως ἔφη τις τῶν ἡμετέρων᾽..ἐκ γὰρ μεγέθους καὶ καλλονῆς “τισμάτων ἀναλόγως ὃ γενεσιουργὸς αὐτῶν θεωρεῖται. οὐ γὰρ οἷα τὰ ποιήματα, τοιοῦτος ὁ ποιητής, οὐδὲ ἡλίκα ταῦτα, τηλικοῦτος ἐκεῖνος" τὰ μὲν γὰρ ὁρατὰ καὶ ἁπτὰ καὶ αἰσθητὰ καί τισι πάθεσι ξυνεζευγμένα, ] ὁ δὲ ἀναφὴς καὶ ἀόρατος ἀπαθής τε καὶ ἄφθαρτος καὶ περιγραφὴν οὐχ ὑπομένων ὥσπερ δὴ τὰ ποιήματα. ### English translation (Claude) So those strong in mind, seeing this weakness, do not consent to worship it as a god, but through it and what grows in it they are guided to the Maker of it and of them, and are led through visible things to the Invisible. For this reason one of our own said very wisely and aptly: 'For from the greatness and beauty of created things their Maker is correspondingly perceived.' For the Maker is not such as his works are, nor as great as they; they are visible, tangible, perceptible, and joined to certain weaknesses, but he is intangible, invisible, impassible, incorruptible, and does not admit circumscription as the works do. ### Extrabiblical texts - Wis 13:5 (Wisdom of Solomon): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Wisdom of Solomon 13:5, which Theodoret ascribes to 'one of our own'. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.16 (Raeder, 72; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-16). ## Discourse 3.17 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-17 - Source: Raeder, 73 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: 'Correspondingly' means God infinitely surpasses his works. ### Greek text διὸ δὴ μάλα γε ἁρμοδίως τὸ.,ἀναλόγως“ τῷ λόγῳ προστέθεικεν. ὅταν γὰρ ἴδωμεν τῶν οὐρανῶν τὰ κύτη καὶ τῆς γῆς τὸ εὖρος καὶ τῶν πελαγῶν τὰ μεγέθη καὶ τὴν ἡλίου λαμπρότήτὰ καὶ τῆς σελήνης τὸ σέλας καὶ τἄλλα ὅσα ἐστὶν ὁρατά, οὐ τούτοις παρισοῦμεν τὸν ποιητήν, ἀλλ᾽ ἀπείρῳ τινὶ καὶ μεγέθει καὶ πάλλει κρείττονα τῶν πονημάτων εἶναί φαμεν. ### English translation (Claude) That is why he very aptly added 'correspondingly' to the sentence. For when we see the vaults of the heavens, the breadth of the earth, the size of the seas, the brightness of the sun, the gleam of the moon, and the other visible things, we do not make the Maker equal to them, but say that he surpasses his works by an infinite greatness and beauty. ### Extrabiblical texts - Wis 13:5 (Wisdom of Solomon): allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.17 (Raeder, 73; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-17). ## Discourse 3.18 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-18 - Source: Raeder, 73 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul in Romans confirms the teaching of Wisdom 13:5. ### Greek text εἰκότως οὖν ἄρα ὃ σοφὸς ἐκεῖνος ἀνὴρ ἔφησεν"..ἐκ γὰρ μεγέθους καὶ καλλονῆς κτισμάτων ἀναλόγως ὁ γένεσιουργὸς αὐτῶν θεωρεῖται. τοῦτον ἐμπεδοῖ τὸν λόγον καὶ ὃ θεῖος ἀπόστολος, λέγων ὡδί ο.ιτὰ γὰρ ἀόρατα αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ χτίσεως κόσμου τοῖς ποιήμασιν νοούμενα καθορᾶται, ἥ τε ἀΐδιος αὖτο ### English translation (Claude) Rightly then that wise man said: 'For from the greatness and beauty of created things their Maker is correspondingly perceived.' The divine apostle confirms this argument too, saying: 'For his invisible things are clearly seen from the creation of the world, being understood through the things that are made, his eternal ### Scripture references - Rom 1:20: quotation, high confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Wis 13:5 (Wisdom of Solomon): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation of Rom 1:20 ends in 3.19. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.18 (Raeder, 73; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-18). ## Discourse 3.19 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-19 - Source: Raeder, 73 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: As works point to their craftsman, creation points the mind to its Maker. ### Greek text ῦ δύναμις καὶ θειότης. διὰ γὰρ δὴ τῶν ὁρωμένων τὸν ἀόρατον φανταξζόμεθα ποιητήν. καὶ καθάπερ κιβωτὸν ἢ βάθρον ὁρῶντες, οὐ τέκτονα ταῦτα καλοῦμεν, ἀλλὰ τέκτονος ὀνομάζομεν ἔργα, καὶ σκάφος ἄριστα κατεσκευασμένον θεώμδνοι, οὐ μόνον ἐκεῖνο θαυμάξομεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν ναυπηγόν, ὅτι μάλιστα καὶ μὴ παρόντα, ἐπαινοῦμεν, κἂν ὅρμον ἴδωμεν ἢ ἄλλο τι περιδέραιον εὖ ἠσκημένον, τῷ χρυσοχύῳ τὴν εὐφημίαν προσφέρομεν᾽ οὕτω δὴ καὶ τῇ κτίσει τὼ ὀφθαλμὼ προσφέροντες, ἀγάμεθα μὲν ταύτης καὶ τὸ μέγεθος καὶ τὸ κάλλος καὶ τὴν ἀναβλύξουσαν χρείαν, παταλιπὼν δὲ ταῦτα ὁ νοῦς, πρὸς ἐκεῖνόν γε τρέχει τὸν ταῦτα σοφῶς τεμτηνάμενον. ### English translation (Claude) power and divinity.' For through visible things we picture the invisible Maker. And just as when we see a chest or a stool we do not call these a carpenter but name them a carpenter's works, and when we behold a well-built ship we admire not only it but also praise the shipwright, even though he is not present, and if we see a necklace or other well-worked collar we offer praise to the goldsmith, so too, turning our eyes to creation, we admire its greatness, beauty, and abundant usefulness, but the mind leaves these and runs to him who wisely contrived them. ### Scripture references - Rom 1:20: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.19 (Raeder, 73; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-19). ## Discourse 3.20 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-20 - Source: Raeder, 73 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul says those who worship creation instead of its Maker are without excuse. ### Greek text ἄριστα τοίνυν ὁ θεῖος ἀπόστολος εἴρηκεν" τὰ γὰρ ἀόρατα αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ κτίσεως κόσμου τοῖς ποιήμασι νουύμενα παθορᾶται; ἥ τε ἀΐδιος αὐτοῦ δυνάμις καὶ θειότης.“ εἶτα πάσης ἀναξίους εἶναι ξυγγνώμης φησὶ τοὺς τὴν μὲν κτίσιν τεθεαμένους, τὸν δὲ ταύτης οὐκ ἀγασθέντας δημιουργόν, ἀλλ᾽ αὐτῇ τὸ θεῖον ἀπονείμαντας σέβας. ### English translation (Claude) So the divine apostle spoke excellently: 'For his invisible things are clearly seen from the creation of the world, being understood through the things that are made, his eternal power and divinity.' Then he says that those who beheld creation but did not admire its Maker, giving divine worship to creation itself instead, are unworthy of any pardon. ### Scripture references - Rom 1:20: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.20 (Raeder, 73; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-20). ## Discourse 3.21 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-21 - Source: Raeder, 74 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul describes the folly of idolaters. ### Greek text ὅθεν εἰκότως ἐπήγαγεν" »»δἱρ τὸ εἶναι αὐτοὺς ἀναπολογήτους" διότι γνόντες τὸν Θεόν, οὐχ ὡς Θεὸν ἐδόξασαν ἢ ηὐχαρίστήησαν, ἀλλ᾽ ἐματαιώθησαν ἐν τοῖς διαλογισμοῖς αὐτῶν, καὶ ἐσκοτίσθη ἡ ἀσύνετος αὐτῶν καρδία “ὁ αὔξων δὲ τὴν κατής γορίαν, καὶ τὴν οἴησιν αὐτῶν. εἰς μέσον προτέθειαεν" υφάσεοντεςς γάρ φησιν οοξἶναι σοφοί, ἐμωράνθησαν.“: ελέγει "δὲ καὶ τῆς ἀνοίας τὰ εἴδη".»καὶ ἤλλαξαν τὴν δόξαν τοῦ ἀφθάρτου ### English translation (Claude) Hence he rightly added: 'So that they are without excuse; because, knowing God, they did not glorify him as God or give thanks, but became futile in their reasonings, and their senseless heart was darkened.' And increasing the charge, he set out their conceit too: 'Claiming,' he says, 'to be wise, they became fools.' And he names the forms of their folly too: 'And they exchanged the glory of the incorruptible ### Scripture references - Rom 1:20–23: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation of Rom 1:23 ends in 3.22. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.21 (Raeder, 74; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-21). ## Discourse 3.22 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-22 - Source: Raeder, 74 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Idolaters worshiped images of men, beasts, and even venomous creatures. ### Greek text Θεοῦ ἐν ὁμοιώματι εἰκόνος φθαρτοῦ ἀνθρώπου.“ ἄφθαρτον γὰρ δὴ τὸν Θεὸν ὀνομάζοντες, τῶν φθειρομένων σωμάτων εἰκόνα κατασκευάσαντες (οὐ γὰρ δὴ τῆς ἀθανάτου ψυχῆς ἴσασι τὴν ἰδέαν). ταύτῃ τὸ θεῖον προσένειμαν σέβας. καὶ οὐκ ἀπέχρησεν αὐτοῖς εἰς ἀσέβειαν ἡ τῆσδε τῆς ἀφροσύνης ἀπόνοια, ἀλλὰ καὶ πτηνῶν καὶ τετραπόδων καὶ ἑρπετῶν κατασκευάσαντες δείνηλα, θεοὺς καὶ ταῦτα κεκλήκασι" καὶ ἅπερ ζῶντα πτείνουσιν ὡς ἰοβόλα τε καὶ ὀλέθρια, τούτων τὰς εἰκόνας θεοὺς σωτῆρας [ ὠνόμασαν. ### English translation (Claude) God for the likeness of an image of corruptible man.' For while calling God incorruptible, they made an image of corruptible bodies (for they do not know the form of the immortal soul) and gave it divine worship. And the madness of this folly was not enough impiety for them; they also made images of birds, four-footed beasts, and reptiles, and called these gods too; and the very creatures they kill when alive as venomous and deadly, they named saviour gods in their images. ### Scripture references - Rom 1:23: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.22 (Raeder, 74; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-22). ## Discourse 3.23 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-23 - Source: Raeder, 74 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato, Diodorus, and Plutarch say the first gods were the elements. ### Greek text “Ἀλλ᾽ ἐπανέλθωμεν ἐπ᾽ ἐκεῖνο, ὃ τούσδε ἡμῖν τοὺς λόγους γεγέννηκεν, ὅτι πρώτους θεοὺς ἐνόμισαν καὶ «Αἰγύπτιοι καὶ Φοίνικες καὶ μέντοι καὶ Ἕλληνες ἥλιον καὶ σελήνην καὶ γῆν καὶ ἄστρα καὶ τἄλλα στοιχεῖα᾽ τοῦτο γὰρ δὴ “καὶ ὃ Πλάτων καὶ ὁ Σικελιώτης Διόδωρος καὶ ὁ Χαιρωνεὺς ἐδί-. ### English translation (Claude) But let us return to the point that gave rise to these words: that the Egyptians, the Phoenicians, and also the Greeks first thought the sun, moon, earth, stars, and the other elements to be gods. Plato, Diodorus of Sicily, and Plutarch of Chaeronea taught ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Crat. 397c–d (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence - Diodorus Siculus, 1.11 (Diodorus Siculus, Library of History): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 3.24. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.23 (Raeder, 74; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-23). ## Discourse 3.24 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-24 - Source: Raeder, 75 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Later the pagans deified human benefactors. ### Greek text δαξε Πλούταρχος" χρόνῳ δὲ ὕστερον τοὺς εὖ τι δεδρακότας ἢ ἐν' πολέμοις ἀνδραγαθισαμένους ἢ γεωργίας τινὸς ἄρξαντας ἢ σώμασί τισι θεραπείαν προσενηνοχότας ἐθεοποίησάν τὲ καὶ νεὼς τούτοις ἐδείμαντο. ### English translation (Claude) this. Later they deified those who had done some good deed, or shown valor in wars, or begun some kind of farming, or brought healing to bodies, and built temples to them. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plutarch (Plutarch): allusion, low confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.24 (Raeder, 75; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-24). ## Discourse 3.25 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-25 - Source: Raeder, 75 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Sanchuniathon says Cronus, Rhea, Zeus, and Hera were deified humans. ### Greek text καὶ γὰρ δὴ καὶ τὸν Κρόνον ἄνθρωπον εἶναι Σαγχωνιάθων ἔφησε καὶ γυναῖκα τὴν Ῥέαν τὴν ἐκείνου ὁμόξυγα καὶ τὸν Δία καὶ τὴν “Ἥραν ἐκείνων γε παῖδας, εἶτα εὐεργεσιῶν τινῶν ἄρξαντας καὶ δεξαμένους τοῦ βίου τὸ τέλος, θείας παρὰ Φοινίκων ἀξιωθῆναι τιμῆς, καὶ θεοὺς ἀναγορευθῆναι καὶ βωμοῖς καὶ θυσίαις καὶ ἐτησίοις τιμηθῆναι δημοθοινίαις. ### English translation (Claude) For Sanchuniathon said that Cronus was a man, and Rhea a woman, his wife, and Zeus and Hera their children; then, having begun certain benefactions and reached the end of their life, they were thought worthy of divine honor by the Phoenicians, proclaimed gods, and honored with altars, sacrifices, and yearly public feasts. ### Extrabiblical texts - Philo of Byblos, Philo Byb. (Philo of Byblos, Phoenician History): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Sanchuniathon as rendered by Philo of Byblos (Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.10). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.25 (Raeder, 75; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-25). ## Discourse 3.26 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-26 - Source: Raeder, 75 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Heracles, Asclepius, and Apis were deified for their deeds. ### Greek text καὶ Ἡρακλέα δέ, ὡς γενναῖόν τε καὶ ἀνδρεῖον, ἐθεοποίησαν Ἕλληνες, καὶ τὸν Ἠσηληπιόν, ὡς τῆς ἰατρωνῆς ἐπιστήμης εὑρετὴν γεγενημένον, θεὸν τελευτήσαντα προσηγόρευσαν. διὰ δὲ τὴν αὐτὴν αἱτίαν καὶ τὸν "άπιν Αἰγύπτιοι θείας προσηγορίας ἠξίωσαν. ### English translation (Claude) The Greeks also deified Heracles as noble and brave, and called Asclepius a god after his death as the discoverer of medical science. For the same reason the Egyptians thought Apis worthy of the divine name. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.26 (Raeder, 75; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-26). ## Discourse 3.27 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-27 - Source: Raeder, 75 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Yet the Greeks admit Heracles and Asclepius died as men. ### Greek text καίτοι φασὶν “Ἕλληνες τὸν μὲν Ἡρακλέα διὰ τὴν ξυμβᾶσαν ἐκ τῆς Δηϊανείρας ἐπιβουλὴν ξαυτὸν καταπρῆσαι καὶ τοῦτον τὸν τρόπον καταλῦσαι τὸν βίον, τὸν δὲ Ἠσκληπιόν, ἄνθρωπον. ὄντα καὶ πολλοὺς ἀνθρώπους διὰ τῆς ἰατρίνῆς ἐπιστήμης παμπόλλων ἀπαλλάξαντα παθημάτων, κεραυνῷ βληθῆναι ὑπὸ τοῦ Διὸς καὶ διαφθαρῆναι. ### English translation (Claude) Yet the Greeks say that Heracles, because of the plot of Deianira, burned himself and ended his life in this way, and that Asclepius, a man who freed many people from very many ailments by medical science, was struck by Zeus's thunderbolt and destroyed. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.27 (Raeder, 75; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-27). ## Discourse 3.28 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-28 - Source: Raeder, 75 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Diodorus records these deaths, yet the Greeks still call these men gods. ### Greek text καὶ ταῦτα πρὸς ἑτέροις πολλοῖς ὃ Σικελιώτης Διόδωρος ἐν τῷ τετάρτῳ τῶν βιβλιοθηκῶν ξυνέγραψεν. ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως οὐδὲν ἧττον “Ἕλληνες, καὶ ταῦτα μεμαθηκότες, καὶ τὸν Ἡρακλέα καὶ τὸν Ἠσκληπιὸν θεοὺς ὀνομάζουσι, καὶ πρὸς τούτοις καὶ τοὺς Τυνδάρεω παῖδας Κάστορα καὶ Πολυδεύκην, οὺς Διοσκόρους προσαγορεύουσι, καίτοι οὐδὲ παλαιοτάτους ὄντας, ἀλλὰ τοῖς Ἀργοναύταις ξυμπλεύσαντας. ### English translation (Claude) Diodorus of Sicily wrote this, among many other things, in the fourth book of his Library. Yet the Greeks, knowing this, nonetheless call Heracles and Asclepius gods, and besides them the sons of Tyndareus, Castor and Polydeuces, whom they call Dioscuri, though they are not even very ancient but sailed with the Argonauts. ### Extrabiblical texts - Diodorus Siculus, 4.38 (Diodorus Siculus, Library of History): allusion, high confidence - Diodorus Siculus, 4.71 (Diodorus Siculus, Library of History): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Diodorus Siculus 4.38; 4.71. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.28 (Raeder, 75; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-28). ## Discourse 3.29 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-29 - Source: Raeder, 76 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Dioscuri, Heracles, and Orpheus were Argonauts, a generation before Troy. ### Greek text καὶ γὰρ καὶ οὗτον καὶ Ἥραφλῆς καὶ πρὸς τούτοις Ὀρφεύς, τῇ κιθάρᾳ χρώμενος καὶ τοῖς προύμασι τοὺς ἰχθύας καταθέλγων καὶ ἕπεσθαι τῇ τῆς ἠχῆς ἁρμονίᾳ καταναγκάζων, τὸν τῶν Ἀργοναυτῶν ἐπλήρουν κατάλογον ὅτι δὲ μιᾷ γενεᾷ τῶν Τρωϊκῶν οὗτοί γε ἦσαν πρεσβύτεροι, ἐν τῇ πρὸ ταύτης ἀπεδείξαμεν διαλέξει. ### English translation (Claude) For these, and Heracles, and besides them Orpheus, who used the lyre, charmed the fish with his notes, and compelled them to follow the harmony of the sound, filled up the list of the Argonauts; and that these were one generation older than the Trojan times we showed in the discourse before this one. ### Translation notes - See 2.47–49. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.29 (Raeder, 76; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-29). ## Discourse 3.30 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-30 - Source: Raeder, 76 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Dionysus and even Aphrodite, a courtesan, were deified. ### Greek text καὶ τὸν Διόνυσον δέ, ὡς πρῶτον ἄμπελον πεφυτευκπότα καὶ τὸν ταύτης καρπὸν ἀποθλέίψαντα παὶ δείξαντα τοῦ οἴνου τὴν χρείαν, τῷ τῶν ἄλλων θεῶν ξυνέταξαν δρμαθῷ. τὴν δέ γε Ἀφροδίτην, οὐδὲ εὐεργεσίας τινὸς ἄρξασαν, ἀλλὰ χαὶ ἀκολασίας γεγενημένην διδάσκαλον (χαμαιτύπην γὰρ αὐτὴν καὶ ἑταίραν γεγενῆσθαί φασι καὶ ἐρωμένην Κινύρου), θεὰν ὠνομάκασιν. ### English translation (Claude) And they ranked Dionysus with the string of other gods, as the first to plant a vine, press its fruit, and show the use of wine. And Aphrodite, who began no benefaction but became a teacher of licentiousness (for they say she was a common harlot, a courtesan, and the mistress of Cinyras), they named a goddess. ### Extrabiblical texts - Clement of Alexandria, Protr. 2.33 (Exhortation to the Greeks): echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret repeats the euhemerist account of Aphrodite found in Clement of Alexandria, Protr. 2.33. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.30 (Raeder, 76; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-30). ## Discourse 3.31 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-31 - Source: Raeder, 76 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Ganymede and adulterous Helen were taken to heaven, the poets say. ### Greek text καὶ θαυμαστὸν οὐδέν᾽ οἵ γὰρ δὴ καὶ τοῖς ἰοβόλοις τῶν ἑρπετῶν τήνδε τὴν προσηγορίαν προσνείμαντες σχολῇ γ᾽ ἂν τὰς γυναῖκας τοῦδε τοῦ γέρως ἐστέρησαν. καὶ μὲν δὴ καὶ τὸν Γανυμήδην, καθά φασιν οἱ ποιηταί,,,ἀνηρείψαντο θεοὶ ΐ οἰνοχοεύειν“ καὶ τὴν Ἑλένην δέ, μετὰ. τὴν πολυθρύλητον καὶ παμπόλλην μοιχείαν, τοῦ Μενέλεω χωρίσαντες, εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν, ἢ φησιν Εὐριπίδης, ἀνήγαγο ### English translation (Claude) And no wonder; for those who gave this title even to venomous reptiles would hardly have deprived women of this honor. And indeed, as the poets say, 'the gods carried off' Ganymede 'to pour their wine'; and Helen, after her much-celebrated and enormous adultery, they separated from Menelaus and brought up to heaven, as Euripides says. ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 20.234 (Homer, Iliad): quotation, high confidence - Euripides, Or. 1629–1690 (Euripides (plays and fragments)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Iliad 20.234; Euripides, Orestes 1629–1690. The word 'brought up' is split between 3.31 and 3.32. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.31 (Raeder, 76; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-31). ## Discourse 3.32 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-32 - Source: Raeder, 76 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Romans deified even unjust emperors. ### Greek text ν, οὔκουν τοὺς ἀγαθόν τι δεδρακότας μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς ἀσελγεστάτους ἄνδρας καὶ γυναῖκας ἐθεοποίησαν “Βλληνες. ταῦτα καὶ Ῥωμαῖοι. παρὰ τούτων μεμαθηκότες, τοὺς σφετέρους βασιλέας μετὰ τὸ τέρμα τοῦ βίου θεοποιΐας ἠξίουν, καὶ οὐ μόνον τοὺς ἐννόμως γε βεβασιλευκότας καὶ τοῦ δικαίου πεφροντιπότας, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς τυρανθνικῶς τε καὶ ἀδίκως καὶ παρανόμως ἰθύναντας τὴν ἀρχήν. ### English translation (Claude) So the Greeks deified not only those who had done some good, but also the most licentious men and women. The Romans, learning this from them, thought their own emperors worthy of deification after the end of their life, not only those who ruled lawfully and cared for justice, but also those who governed tyrannically, unjustly, and lawlessly. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.32 (Raeder, 76; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-32). ## Discourse 3.33 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-33 - Source: Raeder, 77 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Nero, Domitian, and Commodus were counted among the gods. ### Greek text χαὶ γὰρ Νέρωνα, πᾶσαν ἰδέαν ἀκολασίας καὶ παρανομίας κατακόρως μετεληλυθότα, καὶ Ζομετιανὸν καὶ Κόμοδον, καὶ μέντοι καὶ ἄλλους μιαιφόνους ἄνδρας καὶ λαγνιστάτους τῷ τῶν σφετέρων θεῶν καταλόγῳ ξυνέταξαν. ### English translation (Claude) For Nero, who pursued every form of licentiousness and lawlessness to the full, and Domitian and Commodus, and other bloodstained and most lustful men, they ranked in the list of their gods. ### Translation notes - Nero and Domitian were not in fact officially deified; Theodoret's claim is polemical. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.33 (Raeder, 77; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-33). ## Discourse 3.34 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-34 - Source: Raeder, 77 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The third source of gods is the poets' myths, which Plato bids us believe. ### Greek text Τοῦτο δεύτερον οἵ ἄνθρωποι θεοποιΐας ἐπενόησαν εἶδος, τρίτον δὲ τοῖς μύθοις πεπιστευκότες τῶν ποιητῶν. τούτοις δὲ καὶ ὁ Πλάτων ἐν τῷ Τιμαίῳ πιστεύειν παρεγγυᾷ" »»"ιερὶ γὰρ τῶν ἄλλων δαιμόνων φησίν «εἰπεῖν καὶ γνῶναι τὴν γένεσιν μεῖζον ἢ καθ' ἡμᾶς" πιστευτέον δὲ τοῖς εἰρηκύσιν ἔμπροσθεν, ἐκγόνοις μὲν οὖσι θεῶν, ὡς αὐτοὶ ἔφασαν, σαφῶς δέ πως τοὺς ἑαυτῶν προγόνους εἰδότων. ἀδύνατον οὖν θεῶν παισὶν ἀπιστεῖν, καίπερ ἄνευ εἰκότων καὶ ἀναγκαίων ἀποδείξεων λέγουσιν ἀλλ᾽ ὡς οἰκεῖα φασκόντων ἀπαγγέ ### English translation (Claude) This was the second form of making gods that human beings devised; the third came from believing the myths of the poets. Plato in the Timaeus also enjoins believing these: 'To speak of the other divinities,' he says, 'and to know their origin is beyond us; we must believe those who have spoken before, who were descendants of gods, as they themselves said, and surely knew their own ancestors. It is impossible, then, to disbelieve the children of gods, even though they speak without probable or necessary proofs; but since they claim to report ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Tim. 40d–e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Timaeus 40d–e (quoted already in 1.59). The quotation ends in 3.35. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.34 (Raeder, 77; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-34). ## Discourse 3.35 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-35 - Source: Raeder, 77 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato then sets out Hesiod's genealogy of the gods. ### Greek text λλειν, ἑπομένους τῷ νόμῳ πιστευτέον.“ εἶτα τὸν “Ησίοδον εἰς μέσον παράγει καὶ τὸ Χάος καὶ τὸν ἸὩκεανὸν καὶ τὴν Τηθὺν καὶ τὸν Οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν Γῆν καὶ τούτοιν τοὺς παῖδας, τὸν Κρόνον, τὴν “Ῥέαν, τὸν ᾿απετὸν καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους᾽ καὶ αὖ πάλιν τοὺς ἐκ Κρόνου καὶ Ῥέας φύντας, τὸν Δία, τὴν Ἥραν, τὸν Ποσειδῶνα, τὸν Πλούτωνα. ### English translation (Claude) family matters, we must follow custom and believe them.' Then he brings Hesiod forward, and Chaos, Ocean, Tethys, Heaven, Earth, and their children, Cronus, Rhea, Iapetus, and the others; and again those born of Cronus and Rhea: Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Pluto. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Tim. 40e–41a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Hesiod, Theog. (Hesiod, Theogony): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Timaeus 40e–41a. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.35 (Raeder, 77; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-35). ## Discourse 3.36 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-36 - Source: Raeder, 77 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The poets' gods are parricides and child-killers. ### Greek text καὶ οὐκ ἐρυθριῷ ὁ φιλόσοφος πιστεύειν κελεύων τοῖς τὰ τοιαῦτα μυθολογοῦσι. καὶ ἀκολάστους ἡμῖν θεοὺς καὶ πατραλοίας καὶ παιδοκτόνους εἰσάγουσιν. ὅ τὲ γὰρ Κρόνος Οὐρανοῦ τοῦ πατρὸς ἐξέτεμε τὰ αἰδοῖα καὶ τοὺς τικτομένους αὐτῷ κατέπινε παῖδας, ὅ τε Ζεύς, τὸν πατέρα τὸν Κρόνον ἔξε. λάσας τῆς βασιλείας καὶ παραδοὺς τῷ Ταρτάρῳ, τύραννος ### English translation (Claude) And the philosopher does not blush to bid us believe those who tell such myths and present to us licentious, father-beating, child-killing gods. For Cronus cut off the genitals of his father Heaven and swallowed the children born to him; and Zeus, having driven his father Cronus from the kingdom and handed him over to Tartarus, showed himself a tyrant ### Extrabiblical texts - Hesiod, Theog. 178–182 (Hesiod, Theogony): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 3.37. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.36 (Raeder, 77; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-36). ## Discourse 3.37 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/2-84/#p-3-37 - Source: Raeder, 78 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato bids belief in tales of Zeus's incest only because of custom. ### Greek text ἀνεφάνη καὶ λίων ἀκόλαστος οὐ γὰρ δὴ μόνην τὴν ἀδελφήν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν μητέρα καὶ τὴν θυγατέρα γαμετὰς ἐποιήσατο, καὶ πρὸς ταύταις ἄλλαις καὶ θεαῖς καὶ γυναιξὶ ξυνεμίγη μυρίαις. ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως καὶ ταῦτα ὁ Πλάτων σαφῶς ἐπιστάμενος, πιστεύειν τοῖς ποιηταῖς παρεγγύησε, καὶ ταῦτα ἄνευ εἰκότων καὶ ἀναγκαίων ἀποδείξεων λέγουσι, διὰ μόνον γε τὸν νύμον. ### English translation (Claude) and extremely licentious; for he made not only his sister but also his mother and his daughter his wives, and besides these he lay with countless other goddesses and women. Yet Plato, knowing this clearly, enjoined belief in the poets, even though they speak without probable and necessary proofs, solely because of custom. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.37 (Raeder, 78; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-37). ## Discourse 3.38 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-38 - Source: Raeder, 78 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: In the Republic Plato calls Hesiod's tales the greatest lie. ### Greek text δῆλος οὖν ἐστι τὸν ᾿4θηναίων ὅμιλον ὀρρωδῶν καὶ τὸν ἐκεῖνον κατέχοντα πλάνον.. καὶ ὅτι γε τοῦτο ἀληθές, μάρτυς αὐτός, ὧδε λέγων ἐν Πολιτείᾳ" «»πρῶτον μέν, ἦν δ᾽ ἐγώ, τὸ μέγιστον καὶ περὶ τῶν μεγίστων ψεῦδος ὃ εἰπὼν οὐκ ἀληθῶς ἐψεύσατο, ὅτι Οὐρανός τε εἰργάσατο, ἅ φησι δρᾶσαι αὐτὸν Ἡσίοδος, ὅ ὃ τε αὖ Κρόνος ὡς ἐτιμωρήσατο αὐτόν. ὅτι δὲ δὴ τὰ περὶ τοῦ Κρόνου ἔργα καὶ πάθη ὑπὸ τοῦ υἱέος, οὐδ᾽ ἂν εἰ ἦν ἀληθῆ, δεῖν ῥᾳδίως οὕτω λέγεσθαι πρὸς ἄφρονάς τε καὶ νέους, ἀλλὰ μάλιστα μὲν σιγᾶσθαι, εἶ δὲ ἀνάγκη τις ἦν λέγειν, δι᾽ ἀπορρήτων ἀκούειν.“ χαὶ αὖ πάλιν μετ᾽ ὀλίγα καὶ τάδε ἔφη". ### English translation (Claude) It is plain, then, that he feared the crowd of the Athenians and the error that held it. That this is true, he himself is witness, saying this in the Republic: 'First,' I said, 'the greatest lie, and about the greatest things, which the one who told it lied ignobly: that Heaven did what Hesiod says he did, and that Cronus in turn took vengeance on him. And the deeds of Cronus and what he suffered from his son, even if they were true, ought not to be told so lightly to the foolish and young, but best kept in silence; and if there were some need to tell them, they should be heard in secret.' And again, a little later, he said this too: ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 377e–378a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 2.377e–378a. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.38 (Raeder, 78; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38). ## Discourse 3.39 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-39 - Source: Raeder, 78 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato forbids telling the young that the gods did such things. ### Greek text .»καὶ γάρ; ἦ. δ᾽ ὅς, οἵ τε. λόγοι χαλεποὶ καὶ οὐ λεκτέοι γε, ὦ Ἀδείμαντε, ἐν τῇ ἡμετέρᾳ πόλει". οὐδὲ λεκτέον νέῳ ἀκούοντι, ὡς ἀδικῶν τὰ ἔσχατα. οὐδὲν ἂν θαυμαστὸν ποιοῖ, οὐδὲ ἀδὲκοῦντα τὸν πατέρα κολάζων παντὶ τρόπῳ, ἀλλὰ δρῴη ἂν ὕπερ θεῶν οἱ πρῶτοί τε καὶ μέγιστοι. ### English translation (Claude) 'Indeed,' he said, 'these stories are harsh and must not be told, Adeimantus, in our city; nor must it be said in the hearing of a young man that in committing the worst injustice he would do nothing remarkable, nor in punishing his father for wrongdoing in every way, but would be doing what the first and greatest of the gods did.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 378b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 2.378b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.39 (Raeder, 78; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-39). ## Discourse 3.40 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-40 - Source: Raeder, 79 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato forbids tales of wars among the gods. ### Greek text οὐδὲ αὐτῷ μοι δοπεῖ ἐπιτήδεια εἶναι λέγειν οὐδὲ ἄλλῳ, ἦν δ᾽ ἐγώ, τὸ παράπαν, ὡς οἱ θεοὶ θεοῖς πολεμοῦσι καὶ ἐπιβουλεύουσι καὶ μάχονται" οὔτε γὰρ ἀληθῆ οὔτε ξύμφορα: εἴ γε δεῖ ἡμῖν τοὺς μέλλοντας τὴν πόλιν φυλάττειν αἴσχιστον νομίξειν τὸ ῥαδίως ἀλλήλοις ἀπεχθάνεσθαι.. πολλοῦ γε δεῖ γιγαντομαχίας τὲ μυθολογητέον αὐτοῖς. καὶ ὑφαντέον καὶ ἄλλας. ἐπιβουλὰς παντοδαπὰς θεῶν τε καὶ ἡρώων πρὸς ξυγγενεῖς τὲ ### English translation (Claude) 'Nor does it seem fitting to me,' I said, 'to say at all that gods war with gods, plot against them, and fight, for it is neither true nor useful, if those who are to guard our city must think it most shameful to quarrel lightly with one another. Far from it must we tell them myths of battles of giants or embroider them, and the many other kinds of enmity of gods and heroes toward their kin and ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 378b–c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 2.378b–c. The quotation ends in 3.41. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.40 (Raeder, 79; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-40). ## Discourse 3.41 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-41 - Source: Raeder, 79 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato bans Homer's tales of quarrels among gods from his city. ### Greek text καὶ οἰκείους αὐτῶν.“ ἔπειτα νομοθετήσας, τίνα χρὴ τίροσφέρειν τοῖς νέοις μαθήματα, προστέθεικε καὶ ταῦτα᾽. Ἥρας δὲ δεσμοὺς ὑπὸ υἱέος καὶ ᾿Ηφαίστου ῥίψεις ὑπὸ πατρός, βέλλοντος τῇ μητρὶ τυπτομένῃ ἀμύνειν, καὶ θεομαχίας, ὅσας Ὅμηρος πεποίηκεν, οὐ παφαδεκτέον εἰς τὴν πόλιν, οὔτε ἐν ὑπονοίαις οὔτε ἄνευ ὑπονοιῶν. ΙΝ ### English translation (Claude) their own household.' Then, having laid down what lessons should be given to the young, he added this: 'But the binding of Hera by her son, and the hurling of Hephaestus by his father when he was about to defend his mother being beaten, and all the battles of gods that Homer composed, must not be admitted into the city, whether with hidden meanings or without them.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 378d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 2.378d. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.41 (Raeder, 79; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-41). ## Discourse 3.42 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-42 - Source: Raeder, 79 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato contradicts himself about the poets. ### Greek text Ταῦτα ἐγὼ οἶμαι καὶ τοῖς πάμπαν λόγων ἀμυήτοις ἐπίδηλα εἶναι, ὡς ἄντιιρυς ἐναντία τοῖς ἐν τῷ Τιμαίῳ γραφεῖσιν αὐτῷ, ἐκεῖ γὰρ ἀδηρίτως τε καὶ ἀναμφισβητήτως τοῖς ποιηταῖς πιστεύειν προσέταξε, καὶ ταῦτα ἄνευ εἰκότων καὶ ἀναγκαίων ἀποδείξεων λέγουσιν" ἐνταῦθα δὲ ἀνέδην αὐτοὺς ἐκωμῴδησεν, ὡς ψευδῆ ἄττα καὶ βλάσφημα διαπλάσαντας. ### English translation (Claude) This, I think, is evident even to those wholly uninitiated in letters: that it plainly contradicts what he wrote in the Timaeus. There he ordered belief in the poets without contention or dispute, even though they speak without probable and necessary proofs; here he openly mocked them as having invented false and blasphemous things. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.42 (Raeder, 79; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-42). ## Discourse 3.43 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-43 - Source: Raeder, 80 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: In the Cratylus Plato allegorizes the names of Cronus, Rhea, and Hera. ### Greek text ταύτῃ τον καὶ ἀλληγορεῖ τῶν θεῶν τὰ ὀνόματα καὶ τὴν τῶν μύθων αἰσχρότητα ξυσκιάζειν πειρᾶται. τούτῶν δὲ τῶν λόγων ὁ Κρατύλος ἀνάπλεως" ἐν ἐκείνῳ γὰρ δὴ τῷ διαλόγῳ τὸν μὲν Κρόνον ποτὲ μὲν Κόρον ὡς τοῦ νοῦ λόγον ὠνόμασε, ποτὲ δὲ ἀρόνον, καὶ ῥοώδη φύσιν τὴν Ῥέαν καὶ ἀέρα τὴν Ἥραν" οὗ γὰρ πολλάκις" φησί »ἵῇ εὖθείᾳ τῆς Ἥρας φησάμενος τὸν ἀέρα γε σαφῶς ἀντὶ τῆς Ἥρας ἐρεῖς. ### English translation (Claude) That is why he allegorizes the names of the gods and tries to cover over the shamefulness of the myths. The Cratylus is full of these arguments. In that dialogue he called Cronus sometimes Koros, as the pure reason of the mind, sometimes chronos, time; Rhea he called the flowing nature, and Hera air: 'For if,' he says, 'you often say the name of Hera rapidly, you will clearly say "air" instead of Hera.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Crat. 396b–404c (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Cratylus 396b, 402b, 404c. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.43 (Raeder, 80; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-43). ## Discourse 3.44 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-44 - Source: Raeder, 80 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Poseidon, Demeter, and the Egyptian gods are explained as natural elements. ### Greek text χαὶ τὴν ὑγρὰν δὲ οὐσίαν Ποσειδῶνα ἐκάλεσεν, ὡς δέοντά τὲ καὶ δεσμοῦντα τῶν βαδιζόντων τοὺς πόδας καὶ προβαίνειν κωλύοντα. Δήμητρα δὲ τὴν γῆν καὶ αὐτὸς καὶ Ὀρφεὺς καὶ ἄλλοι πφοσονομάζουσιν, ὡς δὴ μητέρα οὖσαν καὶ τροφὸν τῶν ἐν αὐτῇ διαιτωμένων ἁπάντων. καὶ Αἰγύπτιοι δὲ τὴν Ἶσιν καὶ τὸν Ὄσιριν ἥλιον εἶναι καὶ σελήνην φασί, Δία δὲ τὸ διὰ πάντων χωροῦν πνεῦμα, Ἥφαιστον δὲ τὸ πῦρ, Δήμητρα δὲ τὴν γῆν, τὴν δὲ ὑγρὰν οὐσίαν Ὡκεανόν. ### English translation (Claude) He called the watery substance Poseidon, as binding and fettering the feet of those who walk and hindering them from going forward. He, Orpheus, and others name the earth Demeter, as the mother and nurse of all that live on it. And the Egyptians say that Isis and Osiris are the sun and the moon, that Zeus is the spirit that pervades all things, Hephaestus fire, Demeter earth, and the watery substance Ocean. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Crat. 402e (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence - Diodorus Siculus, 1.11–12 (Diodorus Siculus, Library of History): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Cratylus 402e–403a; Diodorus Siculus 1.11–12. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.44 (Raeder, 80; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-44). ## Discourse 3.45 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-45 - Source: Raeder, 80 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Other natural allegories of the gods. ### Greek text ταῦτα δὲ καὶ ὁ άνεθως καὶ ὃ Διόδωρος γράφει. τῆς δὲ χθονίας δυνάμεως τὸ ἡγεμονικὸν “Ἑστίαν ὠνόμασαν, Ῥέαν δὲ τὴν πετρώδη καὶ ὄρειον, 4]ήμήτρα δὲ τὴν πεδινήν, τὴν δὲ φυτινὴν δύναμιν Διόνυσον προσηγόρευσαν τὴν δέ γε σελήνην, παρὰ τὸ σέλας ὀνομαζομένην, Ἄρτεμιν ὠνόμασαν, οἷον ἀερότεμιν, ἅτε δὴ διὰ τοῦ ἀξρὸς ἰοῦσαν καὶ τοῦτον Ὑγέμνουδαν." ### English translation (Claude) Manetho and Diodorus write this. The ruling part of the earthly power they named Hestia, the rocky and mountainous part Rhea, the level land Demeter, and the vegetative power Dionysus; the moon, named from its gleam (selas), they called Artemis, as if 'air-cutter' (aerotemis), because she goes through the air, and they called her Hecate. ### Extrabiblical texts - Diodorus Siculus, 1.12 (Diodorus Siculus, Library of History): allusion, medium confidence - Manetho (Manetho, Aegyptiaca): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The last word is garbled in the scan; 'Hecate' is uncertain. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.45 (Raeder, 80; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-45). ## Discourse 3.46 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-46 - Source: Raeder, 81 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Some philosophers allegorized the myths; the Romans rejected that mythology. ### Greek text "ταύτη δὲ τὸν "Απίν, τὸν βοῦν δὴ λέγω; Αἰγύπτιοι ᾿γρέφδυσι, τὸν "δὲ Ἰνεῦϊν᾽ τῷ “ἡμῷ. ὀὕτως ᾿ἐρυθ ιάσαντὲς τῶν. φιλοσύψων τινὲς τόῦς᾽ ᾿μύθύυ τῶν ποιητῶν᾽ εἰφ' ᾿ἀλλήγοῤίάν "ἐϊῥέπνοντο. τὴν" τὲ ἰὐθολογίὰν ἐκείνη οὐδὲ Ῥώμαϊόϊ ᾿προδεδέξαντο πώποτε. ### English translation (Claude) In this way the Egyptians keep Apis, I mean the bull, and the ibis …. So some of the philosophers, blushing at the myths of the poets, turned them into allegory. The Romans never at any time accepted that mythology. ### Translation notes - The scan of this section is badly garbled; parts are translated by sense and one phrase is lost (…). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.46 (Raeder, 81; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-46). ## Discourse 3.47 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-47 - Source: Raeder, 81 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Dionysius of Halicarnassus says the Romans rejected the Greek myths. ### Greek text ἀὰὶ ᾿βάρτὺς ἀξιόχρεως ὃ «Δμιχἀῤναδεὺς Διοόνύσιδζ᾽ ἐν “ἢ “Βωμάϊηῇ ἀῤχάϊο- ὁ ἐππέμνόϊεενος Ὑπὸ Ἰῶν ἑαυτοῦ παϊδὼν παρὰ" “Ῥυβαϊοϊξ᾽ Ἰῶται; οὔτε "Κρόνος ἀφανίξών τ τὰς ξαυτοῦ᾽ γονάς, ᾿φύβῳ τῆς ἐξ αὐτῶν ᾿ἐπίθέσεως, οὔτε Ζεὺς καταλύων " γὴν Κρόνου ᾿δυνὰσείων καὶ καταμλείων ἐν τῷ δεσμωτηρίῳ. τοῦ Τάρτἄρου" Τὸν ἑαυτοῦ πατέρας ᾿ καὶ τὰς ᾿ἄλλαξ᾽ δὲ τῶν “Ἑλλήνων " ὁμοίως ἰΑδθλογίας τὲ καὶ τελετὰς λέγει" παδὰ Ῥωμαϊων᾽ ἐπβάλλεῦθαι. ### English translation (Claude) A trustworthy witness is Dionysius of Halicarnassus in his Roman Antiquities: among the Romans, he says, Cronus is not told of as destroying his own offspring for fear of a plot from them, nor Zeus as overthrowing Cronus's rule and shutting up his own father in the prison of Tartarus; and he says that the other myths and rites of the Greeks likewise are rejected by the Romans. ### Extrabiblical texts - Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Ant. rom. 2.19 (Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Roman Antiquities): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Roman Antiquities 2.19 (paraphrase). The scan is badly garbled and the section is translated by sense. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.47 (Raeder, 81; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-47). ## Discourse 3.48 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-48 - Source: Raeder, 81 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The fourth form of making gods deifies the irrational passions. ### Greek text "Τοῦτο. τρίτον εἶδος. ἐπίνενοῆσθαὶ τοῖς ἜΜηδι θεόλοϊϊάς εἰρίαμέν' ἔστι δέ 7ὲ καὶ᾽ “τέταῤτον, ᾿ἐμβρονθὶ σίὰς καὶ παρὰπληξίας ἐσχάτης μεστόν. ὃ γὰρ πὸθητίλόν"" τε καὶ ἄλογον τῆς “ψυχῆς "ὀνομάζουσι, μόριον," τόῦτο᾽ ᾿θεσηιοῦσιν;" ὕπεῷ τῷ ### English translation (Claude) This is the third form of making gods that we said the Greeks devised. There is also a fourth, full of stupidity and utter derangement. For the part of the soul they call passionate and irrational they deify, though they urge that it be subject to ### Translation notes - The scan is badly garbled; translated by sense. The sentence continues in 3.49. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.48 (Raeder, 81; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-48). ## Discourse 3.49 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-49 - Source: Raeder, 81 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Desire, anger, and drunkenness are made into gods. ### Greek text λογισμῷ" δουλεύειν " ᾿παρε)γυῶσιν."" καὶ τὴν ᾿ἰὲν ἐπιθυμίαν ο᾿ἀφῥοδίτην᾽ καλοῦσι Καὶ Ἐρωτὰ, "Ἄρεα. δὲ τὸν ᾿θύμβὸν" ὁνόμάξουσι, τὴν δὲ᾽ μέθην Διόνυσον" "αὶ τὴν ἂν ᾿ἡλοπὴν τὰς τέχνας, ὡς πυρὶ ξυνεργῷ πεχρημένας. ### English translation (Claude) reason. They call desire Aphrodite and Eros, name anger Ares, drunkenness Dionysus, and … the crafts, as using fire as a helper. ### Translation notes - The scan is badly garbled; a few words are lost (…). Presumably Hephaestus is meant for the crafts. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.49 (Raeder, 81; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-49). ## Discourse 3.50 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-50 - Source: Raeder, 82 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pagans punish vices yet worship the passions that cause them. ### Greek text καὶ οὐκ αἰσχύνονται τῆς μὲν ἀκολασίας κατηγοροῦντες καὶ τοὺς ταύτης ἐργάτας κολάζοντες, πάλιν δ᾽ αὖ ταύτην γεραίροντες ὡς θεόν, καὶ νόμῳ μὲν ἀτιμοῦντες τοὺς ἑταιροῦντας καὶ τὰς πορνευομένας. τοὺς δὲ τὰς ἀλλοτρίας ἀποσυλῶντας εὐνὰς κατασφάττοντες, καὶ μέντοι καὶ τοὺς ἀνδροφόνους ἀνασκολοπίξοντες καὶ ἀποτυμπανίξοντες, τὰ δέ γε τούτων αἴτια τῶν ἁμαρτάδων, τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν καἱ τὸν θυμὸν καὶ τὴν μέθην, θεοὺς οὐρανίους προσαγορεύοντες καὶ θεῖον αὐτοῖς ἀπονέμοντες σέβας. ] καὶ τοὺς μὲν νόμους ἅπαντας διὰ τάδε τιθέντες τὰ πάθη, αὐτὰ δέ γε τὰ πάθη νόμῳ τιμᾶσθαι κελεύοντες, καὶ τὴν ἀρετὴν δι᾿ ἑτέρων μὲν λόγων θαυμάζοντες, ἐν δέ γε τούτοις ὡς περιττὴν ἐξελαύνοντες. ### English translation (Claude) And they are not ashamed to condemn licentiousness and punish those who practice it, and then honor it as a god; by law they dishonor men who prostitute themselves and women who are prostituted, they put to death those who steal other men's beds, and they impale and cudgel murderers to death; yet the causes of these sins, desire, anger, and drunkenness, they call heavenly gods and give them divine worship. They make all their laws because of these passions, yet command that the passions themselves be honored by law; and they admire virtue in other discourses, but in these drive it out as superfluous. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.50 (Raeder, 82; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-50). ## Discourse 3.51 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-51 - Source: Raeder, 82 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: If passions are gods, virtue becomes impiety. ### Greek text εἶ γὰρ δὴ κατὰ τὸν τούτων λόγον ἡ ἐπιθυμία θεός, ὃ ταύτῃ γε μὴ εἴμων παντάπασιν ἄθεος" καὶ εἰ ἧ μέθη αὖ πόλιν καὶ ὁ θυμὸς ὡσαύτως θεοί, ὁ τούτων ἄρα κρατῶν ἀντίθεος ἄντικρυς. φευκτέον οὖν ἄρα τὴν ἀρετὴν ὡς ἐναντίαν οὖσαν θεοῖς, καὶ ἀσπαστέον τὴν ἀκρασίαν ὡς ὠνομασμένην θεόν. ### English translation (Claude) For if by their account desire is a god, whoever does not yield to it is utterly godless; and if drunkenness and anger likewise are gods, whoever masters them is plainly an enemy of god. Virtue, then, must be fled as contrary to the gods, and incontinence embraced, as it has been named a god. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.51 (Raeder, 82; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-51). ## Discourse 3.52 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-52 - Source: Raeder, 82 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Allegory is worse than the myths: out of the smoke into the fire. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ ταῦτα καὶ τῶν ποιητικῶν μύθων ἐστὶ ληρωδέστερά τε καὶ βλαβερώτερα᾽ καὶ τὸν καπνὸν κατὰ τὴν παροιμίαν, ὧς ἔοικε, φεύγοντες, εἰς αὐτὸ δὴ τὸ πῦρ ἐμπεπτώκαμεν᾽ τοιοῦτος γὰρ τοῦ ψεύδους ὁ πλάνος" κἂν ταύτην τις διαφύγῃ τὴν ἀτραπόν, εἰς ἑτέραν ἐμπεσεῖται χαλεπωτέραν. ### English translation (Claude) But these things are even more nonsensical and harmful than the myths of the poets; fleeing the smoke, as the proverb says, it seems we have fallen into the fire itself. Such is the wandering of falsehood: if one escapes this path, he will fall into another more grievous. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.52 (Raeder, 82; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-52). ## Discourse 3.53 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-53 - Source: Raeder, 82 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Antisthenes despised Aphrodite and called love a disease. ### Greek text τοιοῦτον μὲν δὴ τῆς θεοποιΐας καὶ τὸ τέταρτον εἶδος. αὐτίκα τοίνυν ελλντισθένης, ὁ Σωκράτους ἑταῖρος καὶ Διογένους διδάσκαλος, τὴν σωφροσύνην περὶ πλείστου ποιούμενος καὶ τὴν ἡδονὴν μυσαττόμενος, τοιάδε περὶ τῆς ᾿Αφροδίτης λέγεται φάναι" ἐγὼ δὲ τὴν ᾿Αφροδίτην κἂν κατατοξεύσαιμι, εἰ.λάβοιμι, ὅτι πολλὰς ἡμῶν καλὰς κἀγαθὰς γυναῖκας διέφθειρεν. τὸν δέ γε ἔρωτα κακίαν ἐκάλει τῆς φύσεως, ἧς ἥττους ὄντες οἵ κακοδαίμονες, θεὸν τὴν νόσον καλοῦσιν. ταύτῃ τοι μανῆναι μᾶλλον ἢ ἡσθῆναι ἠρεῖτο. ### English translation (Claude) Such is the fourth form of making gods. For instance, Antisthenes, companion of Socrates and teacher of Diogenes, who prized self-control most highly and loathed pleasure, is said to have said this about Aphrodite: 'I would shoot Aphrodite down with arrows if I caught her, because she has corrupted many of our fine and good women.' And he called love a vice of nature, which the wretched, being overcome by it, call a god, though it is a disease. For this reason he chose to be mad rather than to feel pleasure. ### Extrabiblical texts - Antisthenes (Antisthenes (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Antisthenes, fragments (known also from Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 2.20.107). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.53 (Raeder, 82; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-53). ## Discourse 3.54 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-54 - Source: Raeder, 83 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The philosophers disagree even in their allegories. ### Greek text Ὅτι δὲ καὶ κατὰ τὸν τῆς ἀλληγορίας διεφώνουν λόγον, ἴδόν τις ἂν ἀπριβῶς τοῖς τῶν φιλοσόφων ξυγγράμμασιν ἐντυχών. Πλάτων μὲν γὰρ ἀέρα τὴν Ἥραν ὠνόμασε᾽' Πλούταρχος δὲ ὁ Χαιρωνεὺς τὴν γῆν προσηγόρευσεν Ἥραν, “ητὼ δὲ τὴν λήθην ἢ τὴν νύχτα, ἐν ἧ οἷόν τινα λήθην ἡ διάνοια δέχεται. ὁ δὲ Ὀρφεὺς. Γῆ“ φησι μήτηρ πάντῶ ### English translation (Claude) That they disagreed even in the account of allegory, one could see accurately by reading the writings of the philosophers. Plato called Hera air; Plutarch of Chaeronea called the earth Hera, and Leto forgetfulness (lēthē) or night, in which the mind receives a kind of forgetfulness. Orpheus says: 'Earth, mother of all, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Crat. 404c (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence - Plutarch (Plutarch): allusion, medium confidence - Orpheus (attributed), Orph. frag. (Orpheus (attributed), Orphic poems (fragments)): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The Orphic verse continues in 3.55. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.54 (Raeder, 83; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-54). ## Discourse 3.55 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-55 - Source: Raeder, 83 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Epinomis admits earlier theology was badly described. ### Greek text ν, 4ημήτηρ πλουτοδότειρα.Κ ὅτι δέ γε καὶ τὰς ἀλλήλων θεολογίας. ἀνέτρεπον, ὃ Πλάτων ἐν ᾿Επινομίδι δηλοῖ, λέγων ὡδί",»θεολογίαν τοίνυν καὶ ξῳογονίαν ἀναγκαῖον, ὡς ἔοιπε, πρῶτον ἐμοί, κακῶς ἀπεικασάντων τῶν ἔμπροσθεν, βέλτιον ἀπεικάσαι κατὰ τὸν ὕστερον λόγον, ἀναλαβόντα καὶ πρὸς τοὺς εὐσεβεῖς ἐληλυθότα λόγους. ### English translation (Claude) Demeter, giver of wealth.' That they also overturned one another's theologies Plato shows in the Epinomis, saying this: 'Theology, then, and the generation of living beings, it seems I must first, since those before us described them badly, describe better in a later account, taking them up again and coming to pious words.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Orpheus (attributed), Orph. frag. (Orpheus (attributed), Orphic poems (fragments)): quotation, medium confidence - Plato, Epin. 980c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Orphic fragment; Plato, Epinomis 980c. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.55 (Raeder, 83; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-55). ## Discourse 3.56 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-56 - Source: Raeder, 83 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plutarch compares Greek tales of deified humans with Egyptian myths. ### Greek text περὶ δέ γε τῶν θεοποιηθέντων ἀνθρώπων ὃ Πλούταρχος ἐν τῷ ξυγγράμματι τῷ Περὶ τῶν ἐπλελοιπότων χρηστηρίων ὧδέ φησιν «τὰ δὲ Γιψαντικά τὲ καὶ Τιτανικὰ παρ᾽ Ἕλλησιν ἀδόμενα καὶ πολλαί τινες ἄθεσμον πράξεις καὶ Τυφῶνος ἀντιτάξεις πρὸς ᾿ἀπόλλωνα ιφυγα τε "4ιονύσου καὶ -πλάνη Δήμῃτρος οὐδὲν εὐπολεύπουσι -πῶν. Ὀσιρικῶν νκαὶ᾿ “Ῥυφωγικῶν,. ὧν: παρὰ πᾶσιν ἀνέδην «ἔστι ανυθολογουμόπων τἀκούειν.“5. ### English translation (Claude) About the deified human beings Plutarch says this in his work On the Obsolescence of Oracles: 'The tales of Giants and Titans sung among the Greeks, and many lawless deeds, Typhon's battles with Apollo, the flight of Dionysus, and the wandering of Demeter, fall in no way short of the stories of Osiris and Typhon, which one may freely hear told among all.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plutarch, Def. orac. 421e (Plutarch): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plutarch, On the Obsolescence of Oracles 421e. The scan is garbled and the section is translated by sense. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.56 (Raeder, 83; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-56). ## Discourse 3.57 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-57 - Source: Raeder, 84 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plutarch reports that the Solymi deified men killed by Cronus. ### Greek text καὶ -πάλυν ὁ αὐτὸς οκαὶ -τάδε φησίν".»ἐπεὶ -καὶ ἡΣολύμους -πυνθόνομαι, «τοὺς “υκίων προσοίκους, ἐἐν--τὸῖς.. ψάμοτα. εσιμᾶν «τὸν ἐΚρόνον᾽ “ἐπειδὴ. ιἀποκτξίνας. τοὺς ἀρχηγέτας αὐτῶν Ἰάραρλον “αἱ ᾿άρυον καὶ. Τόσοβιν. ἔφυγε καὶ ψετεχώρησεν. ὁπουδήποτε (τοῦτο γὰρ οὐκ ἔχουσιν εἰπεῖν), ἐκεῖνον ἐ μὲν ἀμεληθῆναι.. τοὺς. δὲ. "περὶ Ἰάρσαλον. νακιρρόὺς -θεοὺς προσαγορεῦσαι, καὶ τὰς. πατάρας ὅ8.-ἐπὶ «τούτων «ποιεῖσθαι. ### English translation (Claude) And again the same writer says this: 'For I learn that the Solymi, the neighbors of the Lycians, honored Cronus exceedingly; but since he killed their leaders Arsalus, Dryus, and Trosobius, and fled and moved away somewhere (this they cannot say), he was neglected, while Arsalus and his companions were called stern gods, and the Lycians make their curses by them', ### Extrabiblical texts - Plutarch, Def. orac. 421d (Plutarch): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plutarch, On the Obsolescence of Oracles 421d. The scan is garbled; the names follow Plutarch. The quotation ends in 3.58. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.57 (Raeder, 84; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-57). ## Discourse 3.58 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-58 - Source: Raeder, 84 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry says Egyptians worship a living man at Anabis. ### Greek text ἰδίᾳ «καὶ -δημοσίᾳ «“υκίους.“" "τοὺς δὲ. Αἰγυπτίους. φησὶν ὁ. ᾿Πορφύριος. ἐν. τῇ. πρὸς. ἰΔνεβὼ. τὸν Αἰγύπτιον. ἐπιστολῇ. ἄνθρωπον. σέβειν. ἐν ἸΑνναβὶ. κώμῃ. «καὶ -πούτῳ θύειν,:ἐπὶ τῶν βωμῶν... ἐἶτα προσφέρειν ἀὐτῷ κατὰ αφουρὸν «τὴν. οἰκείαν - τρρφήν. ### English translation (Claude) 'both privately and publicly.' And Porphyry says in his letter to Anebo the Egyptian that the Egyptians worship a man in the village of Anabis and sacrifice to him on the altars, and then bring him his proper food as to a mortal. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Anebo (Porphyry, Letter to Anebo): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Letter to Anebo (fragment; Eusebius, Praep. ev. 3.4.12). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.58 (Raeder, 84; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-58). ## Discourse 3.59 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-59 - Source: Raeder, 84 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The fifth form deifies the wicked demons, as Porphyry admits. ### Greek text ἰδλλὰ, γὰρ οὐδ᾽ δ- τέταρτος. αὐτοῖς: ἀπέχρησε:-πλάνος, ἀλλὰ «καὶ πέμπτον -προσεπενόησαν.“«αἱ. τοὺς -“παμπονήρους. ἐθεο- «ποίησαν δαίμονας “καὶ. τὰς τῆς γοητείας. “παρ᾽. αὐτῶν μαγγα- “φξίας. μεμαθηκότες "τελεταῖς αὐτοὺς - καὶ.θυσίαις ἐτίμησαν. ναὶ τοῦτο ιδεδήλωκεν ὁ «Πορφύριος ἐν τῷ Περὶ τῆς.ἐκ.λο- «γίων «φιλοσοφίας ξυγγράμματι" ἐγὼ δὲ. αὐτοῦ - τὰ. ῥήματα θ0υπαραθήσομαι"..»διὰ μέντοι. ### English translation (Claude) But not even the fourth error was enough for them; they devised a fifth as well. They deified the utterly wicked demons and, having learned from them the trickeries of sorcery, honored them with rites and sacrifices. Porphyry showed this in his work On the Philosophy from Oracles; I shall set down his words: 'Through ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Phil. orac. (Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation follows in 3.60. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.59 (Raeder, 84; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-59). ## Discourse 3.60 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-60 - Source: Raeder, 84 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry describes the evil demons who seek to be gods and feed on sacrifices. ### Greek text τῶν: «ἐναντίων -καὶ.ἡ πᾶσα. χρεία ἐπιτελεῖται. «τούτοις γὰρ μάλιστα -τὴν - τούτων προεστῶσαν πιμῶσιν οἵ -τὰ κακὰ, διὰ. γοητειῶν νδιωπραττόμενοι. -πλήρεις; γὰρ πάσης «φαντασίας. καὶ ἀπατῆσαι. ἱκανοὶ ιδιὰ τῆς τερατουῤῥίας. καὶ" διὰ τοῦ" φίλτρα: καὶ ἐρωτικὰ καταῦκευάξειν οὗ κακοδαίμονες. πᾶσι γὰρ καὶ. πλούτων. ἐλπὶς καὶ δόξης: διὰ. τούτων; καὶ: μάλιστα: ἡ! ἀπάτη. τὺ" γὰρ ψεῦδος τούτοις οὐν κεῖον᾽ βούλονται 7ὰρ εἶναι θέοί καὶ ἦ᾽ προεστῶσα:. αὐτῶν δύναμιξ: δοκεῖ θεὸς. εἶναι. μέγιστος. οὗτον οὗ χαϊροντερ; λοιβῇ τε κνίσῃ, τὲς. εδ ᾿ὧν αὐτῶνς τὸ. σωματυκιὸν' καὶ. πνευ-ματιπὸν πιωίνεναι. ### English translation (Claude) the opposite powers, indeed, all sorcery is accomplished. For those who work evil through sorcery especially honor them and the one who presides over them. For they are full of every kind of illusion and able to deceive through marvels; and through them the wretches prepare love potions and charms. For all hope of wealth and glory comes through them, and above all deceit; for falsehood is their own. For they wish to be gods, and the power that presides over them seeks to be thought the greatest god. These are the ones who rejoice in libation and the savor of sacrifice, by which their bodily and spiritual part grows fat.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Phil. orac. (Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Porphyry, Abst. 2.42 (Porphyry, On Abstinence from Killing Animals): echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (or On Abstinence 2.42; Eusebius, Praep. ev. 4.22). The scan is garbled; translated by sense. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.60 (Raeder, 84; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-60). ## Discourse 3.61 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-61 - Source: Raeder, 85 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Homer's gods, who also love libation and savor, are Porphyry's wicked demons. ### Greek text εἰς καιρὸν δέ: μοι προσήπεν τοῖς. τοῦ Πορφυρίου: παραθεῖναν βῥητοῖρ᾽ τοὺς τῶν. Ὁμηρικῶν θεῶν. λύγους᾽ καὶ γὰρ ἐκεῖνοι" τὴν. λοιβὴν' καὶ τὴν κνίδαν: οἰκεῖον. λάχος. καλοῦσιν: τοιγάρτον: δ΄ Πορφύριος δῆλύξ' ἐστε τοὺς ὑπὸ τοῦ ποιητοῦ θεοὺς καλουμένους: πονηροὺς δαίμονας ὀνομάζων. καὶ γὰρ' ἐμεῖνος ἐκείνους; καὶ οὗτος τούτους: ### English translation (Claude) It is fitting for me to set beside Porphyry's words the words of the Homeric gods; for they too call libation and savor their proper portion. So Porphyry plainly calls those whom the poet calls gods wicked demons; for both the poet of his gods and this man of his demons ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 4.49 (Homer, Iliad): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Iliad 4.49; 24.70. The sentence continues in 3.62. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.61 (Raeder, 85; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-61). ## Discourse 3.62 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-62 - Source: Raeder, 85 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry names Serapis, identified with Pluto, as ruler of the evil demons. ### Greek text Ἰοιβῇ αὶ: κνίσῃ χαίῤειν᾽ ἀναφανδὸν. ἰσχυρίσαντο: ξητητέον. μέντοι; τίνα προεστάναι τῶν πονηρῶν δαιμόνων: δύναμιν. ὁ. Πορφύριος λέγει, ἣν ψευδυμένην μέγιστον: θεὸν ἑαυτὴν: ἔφησεν ὀνομάζειν: ἀλλὰ γὰρ οὐ δεῖ μον πόνου πρὸς ξήτησιν; ἐν αὐτῷ. γὰρ. τῷ ξυγγφάμματι. καὶ! ταῦτά φῆσιν" υτοὺς δὲ: πονηροὺς δαίμονας οὐκ εἰρῇ ὑπὸ. τὸν Σάραπιν ὑποπτεύομεν, οὐδ᾽ ἐκ τῶν ξυμβόλων μόνον ἀναπειθόμενοι; ἀλλ᾽ ὅτι τὰ: μειλίγματα παὶ τὰ τούτων ἀποτρύπαια πρὸς τὸν. Πλούτωνα. γίνεται, ὡς ἔν τῷ πρώτῳ ἐδείκνυμεν. ὁ αὐτὸς δὲ τῷ. Ἠλούτῶνν οὗτος ὃ θεύς, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο μάλιστα δαιμόνων ὁ ἄρχων.“ ### English translation (Claude) openly declared that they rejoice in libation and savor. We must ask, however, what power Porphyry says presides over the wicked demons, which, he said, falsely calls itself the greatest god. But I need no labor for the search; for in the same work he says this: 'We suspect, not without reason, that the wicked demons are under Serapis, persuaded not only by the symbols, but because the propitiations and averting rites for them are made to Pluto, as we showed in the first book. And this god is the same as Pluto, and for this reason is especially the ruler of the demons.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Phil. orac. (Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragment; Eusebius, Praep. ev. 4.23.1–2). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.62 (Raeder, 85; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-62). ## Discourse 3.63 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-63 - Source: Raeder, 85 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry says Serapis and Hecate rule the demons, symbolized by Cerberus. ### Greek text πάλιν δ᾽ αὖ καὶ τάδε προστέθεικεν" μήποτε, οὗτοί εἰσιν. ὧν ἄρχον ὁ Σάραπις, χαὶ τούτων ξύμβολον. ὃ τρικάρανος: κύων, τουτέστιν ὁ ἐν τοῖς τρισὶ στοιχείοις, ὕδατι, γῇ, ἀέρι, πονηρὸς δαίμων, οὺς καταπαύει ὃ θεὸς ἔχων ὑπὸ χεῖρα" ἄρχει δὲ αὐτῶν καὶ ἡ Ἑκάτη, ὡς ξυνέχουσα κατὰ τὸ τρί- ### English translation (Claude) And again he added this: 'Perhaps these are the ones whose ruler is Serapis, and their symbol is the three-headed dog, that is, the wicked demon in the three elements, water, earth, and air, whom the god, holding him under his hand, restrains. Hecate too rules them, as holding together the threefold ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Phil. orac. (Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragment; Eusebius, Praep. ev. 4.23.3). The quotation ends in 3.64. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.63 (Raeder, 85; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-63). ## Discourse 3.64 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-64 - Source: Raeder, 86 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry, an enemy of truth, himself calls the pagan gods rulers of evil demons. ### Greek text στοιχον.“΄ | ταῦτα οὐ Μωῦσῆς ὃ νομοθέτης οὐδὲ Πέτρος ἢ Παῦλος ἢ Ἰωάννης οἵ τῆς ἀληθείας κήρυκες κατὰ τῶν πονηρῶν δαιμόνων ξυνέγραψαν, ἀλλὰ Πορφύριος ὁ τῆς ἀληθείας ἀντίπαλος καὶ τὸν Πλούτωνα καὶ τὴν Ἑκάτην ἄρχοντας τῶν πονηρῶν δαιμόνων ὠνόμασε καὶ ψευδόμενον ἔφησε μέγιστον ἑαυτὸν ὀνομάσαι θεόν. ### English translation (Claude) element.' It was not Moses the lawgiver, nor Peter, Paul, or John, the heralds of truth, who wrote this against the wicked demons, but Porphyry, the opponent of truth, who named Pluto and Hecate rulers of the wicked demons and said that the chief of them falsely calls himself the greatest god. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.64 (Raeder, 86; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-64). ## Discourse 3.65 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-65 - Source: Raeder, 86 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Like Samson's riddle and Balaam's blessing, Porphyry unwillingly testifies for truth. ### Greek text καὶ ἔοικεν ἀτεχνῶς τοῦτο τὸ θαῦμα τῷ τοῦ γενναίου Σαμψὼν προβλήματι" »ὲκ στόματος ἐσθίοντος ἐξῆλθε βρῶσις, καὶ ἐξ ἰσχυροῦ γλυκύ ταῦτα γὰρ δὴ κατὰ τοῦ ψεύδους ὑπὸ τοῦ ξυνηγόρου ξυνεγράφη τοῦ ψεύδους᾽ καὶ ὃ τῆς ἀληθείας κατήγορος ἄκων ὥφθη τῆς ἀληθείας ξυνήγορος. ὁ γὰρ τοῦ Βὰλαὰμ τοῦ μάντεως τὴν γλῶτταν ἐπαράσασθαι βουλομένην εὐλογίαν ὠδῖναι καταναγκάσας, οὗτος δῆτα καὶ τοῦδε τὴν γλῶτταν κατὰ τῆς ἀληθείας λυττῶσαν καὶ ἄττουσαν κατὰ τοῦ ψεύδους ἄκουσαν μετατέθειπεν. ### English translation (Claude) This marvel is exactly like the riddle of the noble Samson: 'Out of the eater came forth food, and out of the strong, something sweet.' For these words against falsehood were written by the advocate of falsehood, and the accuser of truth was seen, against his will, as truth's advocate. For he who compelled the tongue of the seer Balaam, which wished to curse, to bring forth blessing, also turned this man's tongue, which raged and rushed against the truth, against falsehood, unwillingly. ### Scripture references - Judg 14:14: quotation, high confidence - Num 23:11: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.65 (Raeder, 86; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-65). ## Discourse 3.66 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-66 - Source: Raeder, 86 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry's letter to Anebo lists contradictions in the conduct of the gods. ### Greek text οὐ μόνον δὲ τῇδε τοιούσδε λύγους ξυνέγραψεν, ἀλλὰ κὰν τῇ Πρὸς Ἀνεβὼ τὸν «Αἰγύπτιον ἐπιστολῇ τὰ παραπλήσια τέθεικεν. λέγει δὲ οὔτῶς περὶ τῶν θεῶν μὲν καλουμένων; πονηρῶν δὲ ὄντων δαιμόνων᾽ πάνυ. Π θράττει, πῶς ὡς κρείττους παρακαλού-. μδνοι ἐπιτάττονται ὡς χείρους, καὶ δίκαιον εἶναι κατήγοροῦντες τὸν θεράποντα κολάξεσθαι τὰ ἄδικα πράττοντα, αὐτοὶ κελευσθέντες ἄδικα δρᾶν ὑπομένουσι, καὶ καθαρῷ μὲν μὴ ὄντι ἐξ ἀφροδισίων καλοῦντι οὐχ ὑπακούουσιν, αὐὖτοὶ δὲ ἄγειν εἰς παράνομα ἀφροδίσια τοὺς τυχόντας οὐκ ἐκνοῦσιν᾽ ἀπὸ ἐμψύχων μὲν ἀποχῆς κελεύουσι δεῖν εἶναι τοὺς. ὑποφήτας, ἵνα μὴ τοῖς ἀπὸ τῶν σωμάτων ἀτμοῖς γραίνωνται, αὐτοὶ δὲ ἀτμοῖς τοῖς ἀπὸ θυσιῶν μάλιστα δε-. λεάζονται, καὶ νεκροῦ μὲν ἀθιγῆ δεῖν εἶναι τὸν ἐπόπτην, διὰ νεκρῶν δὲ ζῴων αἵ θεαγωγίαι ἐκτελοῦνται. ### English translation (Claude) He wrote words like these not only here, but in his letter to Anebo the Egyptian he set down similar things. He speaks thus about those called gods but who are wicked demons: 'It greatly troubles me how, being invoked as superior beings, they are commanded as inferior; and though they hold that a servant who does wrong should be punished, they themselves submit to being ordered to do wrong; and they do not listen to one who calls them while not pure from sexual intercourse, yet they do not hesitate to lead anyone into unlawful intercourse. They order their interpreters to abstain from animal food, so that they may not be defiled by the vapors from bodies, yet they themselves are especially enticed by the vapors of sacrifices; and the initiate must not touch a corpse, yet the invocations of the gods are performed by means of dead animals. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Anebo (Porphyry, Letter to Anebo): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Letter to Anebo (fragment; Eusebius, Praep. ev. 5.10.1–9). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.66 (Raeder, 86; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-66). ## Discourse 3.67 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-67 - Source: Raeder, 87 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry mocks magicians who threaten the gods and the gods who fear them. ### Greek text πολλῷ δὲ τούτων ἀλογώτερον τὸ μὴ δαίμονι, εἰ τύχοι, ἢ ψυχῇ τεθνεῶτος, αὐτῷ δὲ τῷ βασιλεῖ ἡλίῳ ἢ σελήνῃ ἤ τινι τῶν κατ᾽ οὐρανὸν ἄνθρωπον τῷ τυχόντι ὑποχέίριον ἀπειλὰς προσφέροντα φοβεῖν, ψευδόμενον, ἵνα ἐκεῖνοι ἀληθεύσωσιν. τὸ γὰρ λέγειν, ὅτε τὸν οὐρανὸν προσαράξει καὶ τὰ κρυπτὰ τῆς Ἴσιδος ἐκφανεῖ καὶ τὸ ἐν ᾿Αβύδῳ ἀπόρρητον δείξει. καὶ τὴν βάριν στήσει καὶ τὰ μέλη τοῦ Ὀσίριδος διασκεδάσει τῷ Τυφῶνι, τίνα οὐχ ὑπερβολὴν ἐμπληξίας μὲν τῷ ἀπειλοῦντι, ἃ μήτε οἶδε μήτε δύναται, καταλείπει, ταπεινότητος δὲ τοῖς δεδοικόσιν οὕτω κενὸν φόβον καὶ πλάσματα, ὡς πομιδῇ παισὶν ἀνοήτοις; ### English translation (Claude) Much more irrational than these is that a man, subject to anyone, should threaten and frighten, not a demon perhaps or the soul of a dead man, but King Sun himself, or the Moon, or one of the heavenly beings, lying so that they may tell the truth. For to say that he will strike the heaven, reveal the secrets of Isis, show the secret thing in Abydos, stop the sacred boat, and scatter the limbs of Osiris to Typhon, what excess of madness does it not leave to the one who threatens things he neither knows nor can do, and what baseness to those who fear such empty terror and fictions, as if they were utterly foolish children? ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Anebo (Porphyry, Letter to Anebo): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Letter to Anebo (fragment; Eusebius, Praep. ev. 5.10.8). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.67 (Raeder, 87; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-67). ## Discourse 3.68 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-68 - Source: Raeder, 87 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry concludes that these beings are neither gods nor good demons. ### Greek text καίτοι καὶ Χαιρήμων δ᾽ ἱερογραμματεὺς γράφει, ὡς καὶ παρ᾽ Αἰγυπτίοις θρυλούμενα, καὶ ταῦτά φησι καὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα εἶναι βιαστικώτατα. πολλὰ δὲ καὶ ἄλλα προσθείς, ἐπήγαγε καὶ ταῦτα ογπερὶ δὲ εὐδαιμονίας οὐδὲν ἀσφαλὲς οὐδὲ ἐχέγγυον ἔχουσιν. οὐκ ἦσαν οὖν ἄρα οὔτε θεοὶ οὔτε ἀγαθοὶ δαίμονες, ἀλλ᾽ ἢ ἐκεῖνος ὃ λεγόμενος ### English translation (Claude) And yet Chaeremon the sacred scribe writes that these things are commonly said among the Egyptians too, and says that these and the like are most compelling. And adding much else, he went on to say this: 'About happiness they have nothing secure or trustworthy. They were not, then, either gods or good demons, but either that so-called ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Anebo (Porphyry, Letter to Anebo): quotation, high confidence - Chaeremon (Chaeremon): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Letter to Anebo (fragment). Chaeremon was a Stoic and Egyptian priest of the first century. The quotation ends in 3.69. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.68 (Raeder, 87; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-68). ## Discourse 3.69 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-69 - Source: Raeder, 87 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry himself exposes the pagan gods as deceivers. ### Greek text πλάνος.“ τίς τῶν τὰ θεῖα πεπαιδευμένων καὶ τὸν πλάνον ἐκεῖνον μυσαττομένων ἐναργέστερον ἂν τῶν καλουμένων θεῶν. τὸν ν πλά ἄνον ν διήλεγξεν:, ἀναφανδὸν γὰρ τούτους, ἔφης ἐν ὁ τῆς ἀμηθείας, ἀντίπαλος μήτε θερὺς, εμήτε ἀγαθοὺς ὁ δα. μονας, εἶναι, ς ἀλλὰ τοῦ. ἡμεύδους. διθᾳσκάους καὶ πονηι ἃς πατέρας. ### English translation (Claude) deceiver.' Who among those instructed in divine things and loathing that error could have refuted the error about the so-called gods more clearly? For the opponent of truth openly said that these are neither gods nor good demons, but teachers of falsehood and fathers of wickedness. ### Scripture references - John 8:44: echo, low confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Anebo (Porphyry, Letter to Anebo): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The scan is garbled; translated by sense. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.69 (Raeder, 87; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-69). ## Discourse 3.70 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-70 - Source: Raeder, 88 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato says the gods are not immortal by nature; Homer says they are. ### Greek text τούτους ὃ, Πλάτων, ἔν, τῷ, Πμαίῳ. οὐδὲ φύσει ἀθανάτους, φησίν. τὸν γὰρ͵ ποιητὴν, εἰρηκέναι πρὸς αὐτοὺς λέγει" ἀθάνατοι ΓΙ οὐκ ἐστὲ οὐδ᾽ ἄλυτοι τὸ πάμπαν" οὔτι. μὲν δὴ, λυθήρερθε,. τῆς ἐμῆς βουλήσεως τυχόντες: « καίτοι γε Ὁμήρῳ, τὠγαντία͵ δοκεῖ" ἀθανάτους. γὰρ αὐτοὺς πανταχῇ, πρρασρνομάξει' οὖς γὰρ, σῖτι γί φησιν͵,» δου. » οὐ πίγουφ᾽ αἴθοπα οἶνον᾽ τοὔνεν᾽ ἀναϊμονὲς εἰσι καὶ ἀθάνατοι καλέονται, φ ".Ν ε τιααίη παρὰ τ τοῖς. ### English translation (Claude) Plato in the Timaeus says that these are not immortal by nature either; for he says the Maker said to them: 'You are not immortal nor wholly indissoluble; yet you will not be dissolved, having obtained my will.' Yet Homer thinks the opposite; for he everywhere calls them immortal: 'For they eat no bread,' he says, 'nor drink sparkling wine; therefore they are bloodless and are called immortal.' … ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Tim. 41b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Homer, Il. 5.341–342 (Homer, Iliad): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Timaeus 41b; Homer, Iliad 5.341–342. The end of the section is unreadable in the scan (…). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.70 (Raeder, 88; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-70). ## Discourse 3.71 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-71 - Source: Raeder, 88 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: A fragmentary sentence on the disagreement about the gods' title. ### Greek text πριηταῖς, καὶ φιλοφόφοις, περὶ τῶν ἡ πίαλνος τέχνης ι".- τῆς θείας προσηγορίας ἤίραν. ### English translation (Claude) … among the poets and philosophers, about … of the divine title. ### Translation notes - This short section is almost wholly unreadable in the scan; only a few words can be made out and nothing is supplied. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.71 (Raeder, 88; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-71). ## Discourse 3.72 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-72 - Source: Raeder, 88 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Xenophanes mocks the making of gods in human form. ### Greek text τούτου. δὲ τοῦ πλάνου, εβατηγρρῶν͵ Ἦξ ῥάνης ἃ ὃ Κολοφώνιος͵ τοιάδε, φησίν" ἀλλ οἷ, βροτοὶ, δοκο ΐ εννᾶς ὶ οἴσθησιν ἔχειν φωνῇν τε δέμας. τε." καὶ, πάλιν:. »ἐλλ᾽ ΕΖ ε τοῦ χεῖρας. εἶχον. βόες ἠὲ λέοντες ἣ γράψαι χείρεσσι καὶ ἔργα τελεῖν ὅπερ ἄνδρες, ἵπποι μέν θ' ἵπποισι, βόες. δέτε βουσὶν. ὁμοίας, ὁ αὶ θεῶν, ἰδέας, ἔγραφον καὶ σώματ᾽ ἐποίουν τοιαῦθ᾽, οἷόνπερ παὐτοὶ δέμας εἶχον ἐπὸ τοῦ ἰρὠβιατὸς τῶν ἐΠ. διελέγχει. τὸ ψεῦδος.,τοὺξ; ### English translation (Claude) Accusing this error, Xenophanes of Colophon says this: 'But mortals think that gods are born and have voice and body like their own.' And again: 'But if oxen or lions had hands and could draw with their hands and make works as men do, horses would draw the forms of gods like horses, and oxen like oxen, and would make their bodies such as each of them has.' … he refutes the falsehood ### Extrabiblical texts - Xenophanes, fr. 14 (Xenophanes (fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Xenophanes, fr. 15 (Xenophanes (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Xenophanes, fragments 14 and 15 (Diels–Kranz). The end of the section is garbled (…); the sentence continues in 3.73. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.72 (Raeder, 88; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-72). ## Discourse 3.73 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-73 - Source: Raeder, 89 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Xenophanes says each people draws gods in its own likeness. ### Greek text τὴν ἐξωπάτην», μὲν, “γὰρ Αἰδίοπαξς μέλανας καὶ σἰμοὺς. γοαφεῖν ἔφησε τοὺ ς θεούξ' ὁποῖοι δὴ καὶ ᾿ αὐτοὶ πε ὑχάσι;, μοὺς. δέ γὲ ς τὲ ἃ Ἷ Σ κὰ μέντοϊ καὶ Ποῦς σφίσιν αὐτὸ ἋἝ ἐοὐκότας; ΓΩ “Αἰγυπτίους ὡσαύτῶς ἀὐτοὺς διαμουφοῦν πρὸς τὴν ἃ λείαν μοῤφήν. ### English translation (Claude) and the deception. For he said the Ethiopians draw the gods black and snub-nosed, such as they themselves are, and the Thracians … like themselves …, and the Egyptians likewise shape them to their own form. ### Extrabiblical texts - Xenophanes, fr. 16 (Xenophanes (fragments)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Xenophanes, fragment 16 (Diels–Kranz). The scan is badly garbled; lost words are marked (…). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.73 (Raeder, 89; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-73). ## Discourse 3.74 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-74 - Source: Raeder, 89 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Zeno forbade temples and statues; Plato did not dare. ### Greek text ταῦτα ξυνορῶν καὶ Ζήνων ὁ Καιεὺς ἐ τῷ τὴς Πολιτείας ἀπάγοφεύει βιβλίῳ, καὶ ναρὺς, οἰκοδομεῖν χν ἀγάλματα. τενπαίνειν" οὐδὲν γὰρ εἶναι τούτων φῆσὶ θὲ ὧν. ἄξιον κοναὐχεύασμα. ὁ δὲ ἑ γὲ Πλάτων οὐ πάμπαν. ἀπηγόφευδε τοῦτο πιεῖν, τὴν. ᾿ἀδιραίῶν φιλοτήδιὰν; ὡς ἔοικεν, ὀῤρωδήδὰς καὶ τὸ τῷ ### English translation (Claude) Seeing this, Zeno of Citium in his book on the Republic forbids building temples or making statues; for none of these, he says, is a work worthy of the gods. Plato did not wholly forbid doing this, fearing, it seems, the ambition of the Athenians and the hemlock given to ### Extrabiblical texts - Zeno of Citium, Zeno (Zeno of Citium): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Zeno of Citium, Republic (fragment). The scan is garbled; translated by sense. The sentence continues in 3.75. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.74 (Raeder, 89; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-74). ## Discourse 3.75 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-75 - Source: Raeder, 89 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Laws permits only wooden or stone offerings in temples. ### Greek text Σὼ θάτει, -προσενε θὲν ἐφ γι μενοῦ χῶνειόν᾽ σκώπτει δὲ δι καὶ αὐτὸς τῆς ἀγαλμῷ ποιϊὰς τὰ πλεῖστα καί φῆ; ημὴθεὶς οὖν ἕτερος ἱερὰ παθιξρούτω θεοῖς᾽ χρυσός τε καὶ ἄῤγυρης.. ἐν ἄλλαις τε πόλεσιν ἰδίῳ καὶ ἐν. ἱεροῖς ἐστὶν ἐπίφθο; γον ἀτῇμα" ἐλ φας, δὲ ἀπολελοιπί ες Ὁ ψυχὴν δώμὰος κπὺς πολέμων ὄῤγανα᾽ ξύμνα δέ, ὃ τι ἂν ἐθέλῃ τίς, ιἀνατιθεέτω ἐὰὶ ἐὰ λίθου θου πρὸς π τὰ κοινὰ ἱερά. ### English translation (Claude) Socrates; but he too mocks statue-making in most respects and says: 'Let no one, then, consecrate sacred objects to the gods a second time. Gold and silver, both privately and in temples in other cities, are a possession that excites envy; ivory, from a body that has left its soul, is not a pure offering; iron and bronze are instruments of war; but let anyone dedicate whatever he wishes of wood made from a single piece, or likewise of stone, to the common temples.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 955e–956a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 12.955e–956a. The scan is badly garbled; translated with Plato's text as guide. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.75 (Raeder, 89; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-75). ## Discourse 3.76 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-76 - Source: Raeder, 89 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato allowed only cheap materials so people would not revere the images. ### Greek text γα“ ὅτι, δὲ τὸν ᾿Αθήναϊων. δεδιὼς δῆμον οὐ παντελῶς. ἀπηγόρεὺσε τῶν ἀγαλμάτων τὴν πἰδίησιν, ᾿ ὁδὲν καταμαθεῖν εὐπετές. πὶ σκευάξειν τι τινὰ θεῶν εἰκόνας ἐκώλυ ἐν, ἔ ᾿ "αὶ τ τὸν ἄῤγυρον; ὡς ἐπιφθόνους ζχας. ἀὰ εἶδ ἱξροῦ λίὰν ἐθιζούσας,, ἐξέβαλε ε᾽ τὸν ἐλέφαντα δὲ δυθαγῆ προδηγόφέυσεν᾽ τὸν δέ γὲ γαλπὸν καὶ τὸν σίδηθον πολέμῳ προῦήκειν ἔφησεν, οὐκ ἀγαλματουργίᾳ θεῶν᾽ ἐκ ξύλων δὲ μόνον καὶ λίθων προσέταξε διαγλύφεσθαι, εἰδὼς οἶμαν τὴν ὕλην εὐκαταφρόνητον καὶ πεῖσαι ἱκανὴν τοὺς δρῶντας μὴ θείαν γομίξευν μηδὲ σέβειν τὰ εὐτελῆ τὲ καὶ εὔωνα. ### English translation (Claude) That he did not wholly forbid the making of statues because he feared the Athenian people, one can easily learn from this. He did not prevent anyone from making images of the gods; but he excluded gold and silver as exciting envy and …; he declared ivory unclean; he said bronze and iron belong to war, not to the making of statues of gods; and he ordered carving only from wood and stone, knowing, I think, that the material is contemptible and able to persuade those who see it not to think divine or worship things cheap and easily bought. ### Translation notes - The scan is garbled; a few words are lost (…). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.76 (Raeder, 89; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-76). ## Discourse 3.77 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-77 - Source: Raeder, 90 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah mocks the craftsman who makes a stable idol. ### Greek text καὶ γὰρ ὁ τῶν ὅλων Θεὸς διὰ τοῦ προφήτου τὴν αὐτὴν κατηγορίαν τῶν ταῦτα καὶ ποιούντων καὶ προσχυνούντων πεποίηται" ξύλον γάρ φησιν.,ἄσηπτον ἐκλέγεται τέκτων" καὶ σοφὸς ξητεῖ, πῶς στήσεϊ αὐτῷ εἰκόνα, καὶ ἵνα μὴ σαλεύηται. οὐ γὰρ᾽ μόνον τῆς ὕλης ἀφαιρεῖται τὰ περιττὰ καὶ τῆς ἀνθθρωπείας μορφῆς ἐκτυποῖ τὴν εἰκόνα καὶ τῶν μορίων εὖ μάλα ἕκαστον διαγλύφει, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς ἕδρας καὶ τῆς στάσεως ὅτι μάλιστα προμηθεῖται καὶ ὑπερείσμασί τισι καὶ ἥλοις τὴν στάσιν αὐτῷ πραγματεύεται, καὶ τὸ ἐξ ὕλης καὶ τέχνης ### English translation (Claude) For the God of the universe, through the prophet, made the same charge against those who make and worship these things: 'The craftsman chooses wood that will not rot, and wisely seeks how to set up an image for himself so that it may not be moved.' For he not only removes the superfluous parts of the material, shapes the image of a human form, and carves each part very well, but also takes great care for its base and stance, providing it with supports and nails; and what is collected from material and craft ### Scripture references - Isa 40:20: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Isa 40:20 (LXX). The sentence continues in 3.78. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.77 (Raeder, 90; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-77). ## Discourse 3.78 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-78 - Source: Raeder, 90 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah mocks the man who burns half a log and worships the other half. ### Greek text θὲ) κ᾿ Η ς χὰ νι Δ σ' ἐρανισθὲν θεὸς ὀνομάξεται. οοὐ τὸ ἥμισυ αὐτοῦ! φησι κατέχαυσεν ἐν πυρί, καὶ ὀπτήσας κρέας ἔφαγε καὶ εἶπεν" ἡδύ μοι, ὅτι ἐθερμάνθην καὶ εἶδον φῶς" τὸ δὲ ἥμισυ αὖτοῦ ἐποίησε γλυπτὸν καὶ προσκυνεῖ αὐτῷ καὶ προσεύχεται, λέγων" ἐξελοῦ με, ὅτι θεός μου εἶ σύ οὕτω σαφῶς αὖτῶν πομῳδήσας τὴν ἄνοιαν, ἐπήγαγεν" γνῶτε, ὕτι σποδὸς ἡ καρδία αὐτῶν, καὶ αὐτοὶ πλανῶνται. ### English translation (Claude) is named a god. 'Did he not burn half of it in the fire,' he says, 'and roast meat and eat, and say: "Pleasant to me, for I am warmed and have seen light"? And the other half he made into a carved image, and worships it and prays to it, saying: "Deliver me, for you are my god."' Having so clearly mocked their folly, he added: 'Know that their heart is ashes, and they themselves go astray.' ### Scripture references - Isa 44:16–17: quotation, high confidence - Isa 44:20: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Isa 44:16–17, 20 (LXX). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.78 (Raeder, 90; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-78). ## Discourse 3.79 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-79 - Source: Raeder, 90 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Modern pagans call the myths false yet worship images made from them. ### Greek text ᾿Εγὼ δέ γε τῶν νῦν ἑλληνιζόντων ἐκπλήττομαι τὴν ἀναίδειαν. αἰσχυνόμενοι γὰρ σωφφονοῦσαν τὴν οἰκουμένην καὶ τῆς προτέρας πλάνης ἀπηλλαγμένην, μύθους εἶναι ψευδεῖς λέγουσι τὰ παρὰ τῶν ποιητῶν περὶ τῶν θεῶν εἰρημένα καὶ οὐκ ἐρυθριῶσιν, ὑφ᾽ ὧν δρῶσι, κατηγοφούμενοι. τὰ γὰρ δὴ κατὰ τοὺς μύθους κατεσκευασμένα ξόανα προσκυνοῦσι" πάσης μὲν γὰρ ἑταίρας ἐπὶ τέγους ἑστώσης ἀναιδέστερον τῆς ᾿ἀφροδίτης τὸ σχῆμα. ### English translation (Claude) I am amazed at the shamelessness of those who now practice Greek religion. Ashamed before a world that has come to its senses and been freed from its former error, they say that what the poets said about the gods are false myths, and they do not blush to be accused by what they do. For they worship images made according to the myths; the posture of Aphrodite is more shameless than that of any harlot standing on a roof. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.79 (Raeder, 90; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-79). ## Discourse 3.80 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-80 - Source: Raeder, 91 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Statues show Aphrodite naked and Europa on the bull. ### Greek text τίς γάρ τοι χαμαιτύπην γυμνὴν ἐπ’ ἀγορᾶς ἄτερ χιτῶνος καὶ διαζώματος ἑστῶσαν ἐθεάσατο πώποτε; ἀλλὰ τὴν τούτων διδάσκαλον γυμνὴν καὶ οἵ ἀνδριαντοποιοὶ καὶ οἵ ἀγαλματογλύφον πατασχευάζουσι καὶ οὐδὲ τῷ χιτωνίσκῳ πκαλύπτουσιν. καὶ τὴν Εῤρώπην δὲ ἐπὶ τοῦ ταύρου καθημένην καὶ οἵ ξωγράφοι γράφουσι, καὶ οἵ χαλκοτύποι διαπλάττουσι, καὶ διαγλύφουσιν οἵ τῶν ἀγαλμάτων δημιουργοί" καὶ μέντοι καὶ ὃ Διόνυσος λυσιμελής ### English translation (Claude) For who has ever seen a common prostitute standing naked in the marketplace without tunic or loincloth? Yet sculptors and carvers make the teacher of these women naked and do not even cover her with a short tunic. Painters paint Europa sitting on the bull, bronze-workers model her, and image-makers carve her; and Dionysus too is made by them limb-loosening ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 3.81. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.80 (Raeder, 91; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-80). ## Discourse 3.81 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-81 - Source: Raeder, 91 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Images display the gods' lusts as the poets tell them. ### Greek text τίς καὶ γύννις ὑπὸ τούτων κατασκευάζεταν᾽ καὶ τὸν Πάνα δὲ καὶ τοὺς Σατύρους ἵπποις καὶ ὄνοις παραπλησίως ὀχείας ὀριγνωμένους καὶ θορνυμένους δημιουργοῦσιν᾽ [ οὕτω καὶ τὸν Δία ἐν ἀετοῦ σχήματι κατὰ τοῦ Γανυμήδους λυττῶντα καὶ τῇ “Δήδᾳ ἐν εἴδει κύκνου μιγνύμενον, καὶ μέντοι καὶ εἰς τὸν Δανάης κόλπον χρυσοῦ δίκην φερόμενον" καὶ τἄλλα δὲ ὡσαύτως κατὰ τὰς τῶν ποιητῶν ὑφηγήσεις διαμορφοῦσιν οἱ τῶν ἀγαλμάτων δημιουργοί. ### English translation (Claude) and effeminate; they make Pan and the Satyrs lusting after and leaping on mates like horses and asses; so too Zeus raging after Ganymede in the form of an eagle, mating with Leda in the shape of a swan, and also falling into Danae's lap as gold; and the image-makers shape everything else likewise according to the poets' accounts. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.81 (Raeder, 91; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-81). ## Discourse 3.82 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-82 - Source: Raeder, 91 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: If the myths are false, why honor images of them? ### Greek text εἰ τοίνυν ψευδεῖς μύθους φατὲ διαπλάσαι τοὺς ποιητάς, τί δήποτε τῶν ἀνδριαντοποιῶν καὶ ἀγαλματογλύφων καὶ ζωγράφων ἀνέχεσθε, κρατυνόντων τῇ τέχνῃ τὸ ψεῦδος; ἀνθ᾽ ὕτου δὲ τοσοῦτο σέβας προσνέμετε τοῖς ὑπὸ τούτων τεκταινομένοις ἀγάλμασιν; ### English translation (Claude) If, then, you say the poets invented false myths, why do you put up with the sculptors, image-carvers, and painters, who confirm the falsehood with their art? And why do you give such reverence to the images they make? ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.82 (Raeder, 91; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-82). ## Discourse 3.83 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-83 - Source: Raeder, 91 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Consistency would demand burning the poems and banning the images. ### Greek text ἔδεε γάρ, εἴπερ ἀληθῆ ἄρα κατηγορεῖτε τῶν ποιητῶν, τὰ μὲν ἐκείνων ἐμπρῆσαι ποιήματα, νόμῳ δὲ τοὺς τεχνίτας κωλῦσαι καὶ προσαπειλῆσαί γε θάνατον, ὥστε μηδένα ποτὲ μηδαμῇ τοιαύτας κατασχξυάζειν εἰκόνας, τὸν δὲ παρὰ τὸν νόμον τι ὀφῶντα ξημιοῦσθαι θανάτῳ. ἐχρῆν δὲ καὶ τὰ ἐφ ὕβρει καὶ κωμῳδίᾳ τῶν καλουμένων θεῶν τεκταινόμενα ξυντρίβειν καὶ διαφθείρειν καὶ πείθειν ὅπαντας, ὡς ψευδῆ τὰ περὶ τοὐτῶν παδὰ τῶν ἀὐθωὼν θρυλούμεναι ἀλλὰ τούτων. ### English translation (Claude) For if you truly accuse the poets, you ought to have burned their poems, forbidden the craftsmen by law, and even threatened death, so that no one would ever anywhere make such images, and anyone doing something against the law would be punished with death. You ought also to have smashed and destroyed what is made to insult and mock the so-called gods, and persuaded everyone that what the poets tell about them is false. But none of this ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 3.84. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.83 (Raeder, 91; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-83). ## Discourse 3.84 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-84 - Source: Raeder, 92 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pagans praise the poets and artists and worship obscene images. ### Greek text μὲν οὐδὲν πώπύϊε γεγένηται παρ᾽ ὑμῶν, τἀναντία δὲ τὐύτῶν δρμενὰ ἔστιν ἰδεῖν. θαυμαξομένους ΓΙ τοὺς ποιὴτὸ. ἐπὶ: τοῖς ποιήμασιν» ἐπδινουμένδῦξ᾽ δὲ ἄγαν τοὺς ἀγαλματυγλύφύυς κἀὶ ἀνδριῶντόποιοὺξ καὶ ζωγφάφους ἐπὶ τοῖς σίρετέοὐϊς τεχθήμασι; προδκυνδύμενι! δὲ τὰ τῷ λύγῷ' ποτηγορυύμενὰ ξόανα καὶ θυδίαϊς καὶ τελεταῖς γπραιφόμεναν Χαλ τὸ! σμιϊρὸν ἐκεῖνο ξῴδιόν; τὸν ΤΙρίάπον λέγώ, μετὰ τοῦ μεγίστου: καὶ Τεταμένοῦ μορίου τιμώμενον, καὶ τὸν τοῦ Ζιονύδου φαλλὸν ἐν τῇ φαλλαγῶγίᾳ, ταῤὰ τῶν᾽ ὀργίαξόντων᾽ πρόδκὺ" νούβενον, λαὶ τὸν ἀτένα τὸν γυνδιϊχεῖον (οὕτω: δὲ τὸ γῦναικεῖον ὀνομάζουσι μόῤίον) ἐν τοῖς Θεσμοφοδίοις παρὰ τῶν" τετελεσμένων γυναίῶν θείας τιμῆς ἀξιούμενον: ### English translation (Claude) has ever been done by you; one can see the opposite being done: the poets admired for their poems, the image-carvers, sculptors, and painters greatly praised for their works, and the images condemned in argument worshiped and honored with sacrifices and rites; and that little figure, I mean Priapus, honored with his enormous erect member, and the phallus of Dionysus worshiped by the celebrants at the phallagogia, and the female kteis (so they name the female part) thought worthy of divine honor by the initiated women at the Thesmophoria. ### Translation notes - The scan is garbled in places; translated by sense. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.84 (Raeder, 92; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-84). ## Discourse 3.85 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-85 - Source: Raeder, 92 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Egyptian cities worshiped goats, bulls, wolves, and other animals. ### Greek text Αἰγύπτιοι δὲ τοσοῦτον ταῖς αἰσχροῖς ἐδσυχώθησαν ἡδοναῖς, ὧξ καὶ τὸν τράγον διὰ τὴν περὶ τὰς ἀϊξεις μανίαν ὀνυμάδαι θεόν᾽ Ἱμενδήδιοι δὲ τοῦτον διαφέθόνῥως τιμῶσιν. Ἀἀαὶ τοῖς: ἄλλοις δὲ ξῴδις αἵ ἄλλαι Πύλεις θείὰς τιμὰς ἀφιέρωσαν" ἔσεβον γὰῤ δὴ καὶ Μηεμφῦται τὸν ταῦφον; καὶ «Τυκυπολῆται τὸν λύκον; Ιὰδ Δεοντόπολῖται τὸν λέοντα, ἁἀαὺ μέντοι καὶ Κυνυπολϊνάϊ τὸν κύνα, ἠαὶ ἰχθύν τινὰ λάϊον ὀνόμαξύἀενὸν. τῆς Δατοῦς ὁΐ ὁϊπήτορες, καὶ ἄλλοι τὴν ἶβιν, Καὶ ἕτέροι τὸν ἐροκόδείλον" καὶ ἕλαῦτον δὲ τούτων ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς μἀθιέρωτο; Καὶ τὴν κἀϊάλληλον αὐτῷ πρυσέφεῥον ἐδωδήν" εἶτα; ὡς δεοῖς δῆθεν, τὰς θύσίας ἐπετέλοῦν καὶ τέλευτήθαντα δὲ ταφῆς ἠξίοῦν πολυϊεχοῦο. ### English translation (Claude) The Egyptians were so enslaved to shameful pleasures that they even named the goat a god because of its frenzy for she-goats; the Mendesians honor it especially. The other cities consecrated divine honors to other animals: the Memphites worshiped the bull, the Lycopolitans the wolf, the Leontopolitans the lion, the Cynopolitans the dog, the inhabitants of Latopolis a fish called latus, others the ibis, others the crocodile; and each of these was consecrated in the temples, and they brought it suitable food; then they performed sacrifices to them as to gods, and when one died they thought it worthy of costly burial. ### Translation notes - The scan is garbled in places; the names are restored by sense. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.85 (Raeder, 92; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-85). ## Discourse 3.86 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-86 - Source: Raeder, 93 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ has freed the world from this error. ### Greek text πρσαύτῃ. «πάλαι ποτὲ κατεῖχε πλάνῃ «τὴν οἰκουμένην" ἀλλὰ ταύτην ἄρδην͵ ἠφάνισε καὶ πάμπαν ἐξήλασεν. ὃ παρ᾽ ἁμῶν φροφπυνούμενος : καὶ παρ᾽ ὑμῶν ἀγνοούμενος, αὶ τὴν μεεθιύουσαν «καὶ παραπαίουσαν τῶν ἀνθρώπων͵ φύσιν͵ θαρροεφοῦσαν καὶ, (παθεστηκυῖαν. ἀνίρειξεν. ### English translation (Claude) Such was the error that once held the world; but he who is worshiped by us and unknown to you utterly abolished it and drove it out entirely, and recalled human nature, drunk and deranged, to sobriety and steadiness. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.86 (Raeder, 93; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-86). ## Discourse 3.87 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-87 - Source: Raeder, 93 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pagans object that Christians too honor angels, as they honor lesser gods. ### Greek text ᾿Αλλὰ γὰρ. οἶμαι ὑμᾶς ἐρεῖν, ὡς καὶ ὑμεῖς ἀρράτους ὃ τινὰς. «δυνάμεις φατέ, οὺς καὶ ᾿Αγγέλους.. χαὶ ᾿Αφχαγγέλους εὀνρμάξεγε «καὶ “Προσαγρρεύετε, καὶ ἀρχὰς. χαὶ ᾿Βξοναίας. “καὶ εἰζυριότητας, καὶ «Θρόνους᾽. καὶ ἄλλας αὖ πάλιν κατὰ τὴν “Ἐβοφίων γλῶτταν, Χερουβὶμ. αὶ Σεραφὶμ, ἴστε πιροραγορεῦομένας. ἀνθ᾽ ὅτρυ τρίνυν, ἡμῖν. ψεμεσᾶτε, μετὰ τὸν͵ ἀεὶ ὄντα πρὶ. ὡσαύτως «καὶ, κατὰ. ταὐτὰ ἔχοντα, δευτέρρυς. τινὰς, θεούς, «καὶ φρμμῇ,.γὲ ἐκείνου ἀποδέοντας, νομίξουσί, τὲ καὶ.γεραίφοησιν; ### English translation (Claude) But I think you will say: 'You too speak of certain invisible powers, which you name and call Angels and Archangels, Principalities, Authorities, Dominions, and Thrones, and others again called in the Hebrew tongue Cherubim and Seraphim. Why then are you indignant with us, who after him who always is and is ever the same think and honor certain secondary gods that fall far short of him?' ### Scripture references - Col 1:16: allusion, high confidence - Eph 1:21: allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.87 (Raeder, 93; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-87). ## Discourse 3.88 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-88 - Source: Raeder, 93 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christians do not call angels gods nor worship them. ### Greek text ἐγὼ δὲ ὑἡμολογῶ͵ μὲν. τὴν θείαν͵ ἡμᾶς. διδάξαι. κ70ατὸ φήν, «εἶναι δή τινας, ἀοράτους δυνάμεις, καὶ ὑμνούσας τὸν ποιητὴν. “καὶ ὑπουρχούδας αὐτοῦ τῷ θείῳ᾽ βουλήματι" οὐ μὴν θεοὺς τούτους ὀνομάζομεν. οὐδὲ. εθεῖον. αὐτοῖς ἀπονέμρμὲν σέβας οὐδὲ μερίξομεν εἰς, τὸν. ὄντα Θεὸν. “καὶ. τούτους «τὴν θείαν. προσκύνησιν. ἀλλὰ τούτους τιμιωτέρους͵ μὲν, ἀν- ### English translation (Claude) I admit that the divine Scripture taught us that there are certain invisible powers that hymn the Maker and serve his divine will; but we do not call them gods, nor give them divine worship, nor divide the divine worship between the One who is and them. We say that they are more honorable than ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 3.89. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.88 (Raeder, 93; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-88). ## Discourse 3.89 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-89 - Source: Raeder, 93 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Angels are fellow servants without sex, since immortals need no procreation. ### Greek text θρώπῳν, ὁμοδούλους. δὲ "εἶναί. φαμεν. καὶ οὐ. ιδιαιφοῦμεν «εἰς. ἄρρεν͵ καὶ θῆλυ. τὴν ἀσώματον. φύσιν" “ταύτης γὰρ; δὴ τῆς. διαιρέσεως, ἐνδεὴς τῶν ὑπὸ. τῷ θανάτῳ. τελρύντων͵ ἣ "φύσις. ἐπειδὴ γὰρ. ἐξανδραποδίξει. ταύτην. ὁ θάνατος,. ὁ ιψάμος: διὰ τῆς. -παιδοποιζας, ἀυτεισάγει τ τὸ, δαπανώμενον", οἷον γάρ. τινα. ἐπισκεναστὴν ἀθανασίαν ὁ ποιητὴς τῷ θνητῷ. ἕῴῳ τὴν παιδοποιΐαν ἐμηχανήσατο. ταύτῃ τοι ᾿ ἀναγκαία τοῖς θνητὴν ἐχουδι φύσιν ἡ τοῦ θήλεος χρεία, τοῖς δέ γε ἄθανάτοις γεγενημένοις τὸ θῆλυ γένος παντάπασι περιττόν᾽ οὔτε γὰρ αὔξης προσδέονται, μείωσιν οὐ δεχόμενοι, οὔτε μίξεως, σωμάτων γε ὄντες ἐλεύθεροι. ### English translation (Claude) human beings, but fellow servants; and we do not divide the bodiless nature into male and female; for the nature of those who end in death needs this division. Since death makes it its captive, marriage brings in through childbearing what is consumed; for the Maker devised childbearing for the mortal creature as a kind of restored immortality. That is why those with a mortal nature need the female, while for those made immortal the female sex is wholly superfluous; for they need no increase, since they do not admit diminution, nor intercourse, since they are free of bodies. ### Scripture references - Luke 20:35–36: echo, low confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.89 (Raeder, 93; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-89). ## Discourse 3.90 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-90 - Source: Raeder, 94 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God made humans in a pair, but angels all at once. ### Greek text μαρτυρεῖ δὲ τῷ λόγῳ καὶ τούτων κἀκείνων ἡ ποίησις. τοὺς μὲν γὰρ δὴ ἀνθθρώποὺς οὐ παμπόλλους εὐθὺς ἐδημιούργησεν ὃ Θεός, ἀλλ᾽ ἕνα ἄνδρα καὶ μίαν γυναῖκα διέπλασε καὶ διὰ τῆς τούτῶν κοινωνίας πᾶσαν γῆν καὶ θάλατταν τοῦδε τοῦ γένους ἐνέπλησε᾽ τῶν ἀσωμάτων δὲ τὴν φύσιν οὐ κατὰ δύο πεποίηκεν, ἀλλ΄ ἀθρόαν ἐδημιούργησεν" ὅσας γάρ τοι εἶναι αὐτῶν ἐδοκίμασε μυριάδας, ἐξ ἀρχῆς ταύτας παρήγαγεν. ### English translation (Claude) The making of both bears witness to the argument. God did not at once make very many human beings, but formed one man and one woman, and through their union filled all land and sea with this race; but he did not make the bodiless nature in pairs; he made it all at once; for as many myriads of them as he judged there should be, he brought forth from the beginning. ### Scripture references - Gen 1:27: allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.90 (Raeder, 94; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-90). ## Discourse 3.91 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-91 - Source: Raeder, 94 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Angels are holy servants sent for human salvation, as Hebrews says. ### Greek text διά τοι τοῦτο περιττὴ τοῦ θήλεος ἐκείνοις ἡ χρῆσις, ὡς μὲν ἀθανάτοις αὔξης οὐ δεομένοις, ὡς ἀσωμάτοις δὲ μίξιν οὐ δεχομένοις. τῷ τοι καὶ ἁγίους αὐτοὺς ὀνομάζομεν ὡς γήϊνον οὐδὲν ἔχοντας, ἀλλὰ τῶν περιγείων παθημάτων ἀπηλλαγμένους, ἔργον δὲ ἔχοντας τὴν ἐν οὐρανῷ χορείαν καὶ τοῦ πεποιηκότος τὴν ὑμνῳδίαν, καὶ αὖ πάλιν τὰς ὑπουργίας, ἃς κελευόμενοι διακονοῦσι, τῷ θείῳ βουλήματι, τῆς τῶν ἀνθρώπων εἵνεπα σωτηρίας παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων στελλόμενοι. τοῦτο γὰρ δήπου αὐτῶν πέρι καὶ ὁ θεῖος εἶπεν ἀπόστολος" ],οὐχὶ πάντες εἰσὶ λειτουργικὰ πνεύματα, εἰς διακονίαν ἀποστελλόμενα διὰ τοὺς μέλλοντας πληρονομεῖν σωτηρίαν: ### English translation (Claude) For this reason the use of the female is superfluous for them, since as immortals they need no increase and as bodiless they admit no intercourse. That is why we call them holy, as having nothing earthly but being freed from earthly passions, and having as their work the dance in heaven, the hymning of their Maker, and also the services which they perform at the divine will when commanded, being sent by the God of the universe for the salvation of human beings. This is what the divine apostle said about them: 'Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?' ### Scripture references - Heb 1:14: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.91 (Raeder, 94; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-91). ## Discourse 3.92 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-92 - Source: Raeder, 94 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Ascetics imitate the angels by renouncing marriage and family. ### Greek text τὴν ἐκείνων μιμούμενοι πολιτείαν, ὅσοι τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ θεραπείαν ἠσπάσαντο, ἔφυγον μὲν τῶν σωμάτων καὶ τὴν ἔννομον κοινωνίαν ὧς τῶν θείων ἀφέλκουσαν, κατέλιπον δὲ καὶ πατρίδα καὶ γένος, ἵνα πᾶσαν εἰς τὰ θεῖα μεταθῶσι τὴν μέριμναν, καὶ μηδεὶς τὸν νοῦν ἐπέχῃ δεσμός, εἰς οὐρανὸν ἀναπτῆναι καὶ τὸ ἀόρατον καὶ ἄρρητον τοῦ Θεοῦ κατοπτεῦσαι γλιχόμενον κάλλος. ### English translation (Claude) Imitating their way of life, those human beings who have embraced the service of God have fled even the lawful union of bodies as drawing them away from divine things, and have left homeland and family, so as to transfer all their care to divine things, and so that no bond may hold back the mind that longs to fly up to heaven and behold the invisible and ineffable beauty of God. ### Translation notes - Theodoret describes monastic life; he regards marriage as lawful (ἔννομον). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.92 (Raeder, 94; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-92). ## Discourse 3.93 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-93 - Source: Raeder, 95 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Monks live everywhere, in communities, small groups, or alone. ### Greek text τούτων πλήρεις καὶ πόλεις καὶ κῶμαι καὶ τῶν ὀρῶν αἱ ἀκρωνυχίαι καὶ φάραγγες. καὶ οἷ μὲν κατὰ ξυμμορίας οἰκοῦντες δημιουργοῦσιν ἐν ταῖς ψυχαῖς τὰ τῆς φιλοσοφίας ἀγάλματα, οἱ δέ, κατὰ δύο καὶ τρεῖς διάγοντες, οἵ δὲ καὶ μόνοι καθειργμένοι καὶ τὼ ὀφθαλμὼ τῷ κάλλει τῶν ὁρωμένων ἐπιτέρπεσθαι διακωλύοντες, σχολὴν τῷ νῷ παρέχουσιν ἐπεντρυφᾶν τῇ θεωρίᾳ τῶν νοητῶν. ### English translation (Claude) Cities, villages, mountain peaks, and ravines are full of them. Some live in communities and fashion in their souls the images of philosophy; others live in twos and threes; others, shut up alone and keeping their eyes from delighting in the beauty of visible things, give the mind leisure to revel in the contemplation of intelligible things. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.93 (Raeder, 95; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-93). ## Discourse 3.94 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-94 - Source: Raeder, 95 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: If ascetics live so, the angels' life is beyond words. ### Greek text εἰ δὲ οἱ σώμασι ξυνεξευγμένον καὶ ὑπὸ πολλῶν καὶ παντοδαπῶν ἐνοχλούμενοι παθημάτων ἀσώματον καὶ ὑψηλὴν καὶ οὐρανίοις πρέπουσαν ἀσπάζονται βιοτήν, τίς ἂν ἐκφράσαι λόγος τῶν ἀσωμάτων φύσεων τὴν ἀπαθῆ πολιτείαν καὶ φροντίδων ἀπηλλαγμένην; ### English translation (Claude) If those yoked to bodies and troubled by many and various passions embrace a bodiless, lofty life fit for heavenly beings, what words could describe the passionless and care-free life of the bodiless natures? ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.94 (Raeder, 95; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-94). ## Discourse 3.95 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-95 - Source: Raeder, 95 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pagan myths ascribe to their gods vices worse than any human's. ### Greek text Ταύτην ἔχειν ἡμᾶς τὴν δόξαν περὶ τῶν ἀοράτων μέν, γενητῶν δὲ φύσεων τὰ θεῖα ἐξεπαίδευσε λόγια᾽ ὑμεῖς δὲ τοσαύτην αὐτῶν ἀκολασίαν τε καὶ ἀκρασίαν κατηγορεῖτε καὶ παντοδαπὴν αἰσχρουργίαν, καὶ μέντοι καὶ ἔρεν καὶ πολέμους καὶ τυραννίδα, ὡς μηδὲ τοῖς πονηροτάτοις τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἁρμόττειν τὰ ἐκείνων πέρε μυθολογούμενα. ### English translation (Claude) The divine oracles taught us to hold this opinion about the invisible but created natures; but you accuse yours of such licentiousness, incontinence, every kind of shameful act, and strife, wars, and tyranny too, that the myths about them do not even suit the most wicked human beings. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.95 (Raeder, 95; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-95). ## Discourse 3.96 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-96 - Source: Raeder, 95 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Even the worst men do not commit all the crimes ascribed to Zeus. ### Greek text οὐδὲ γὰρ οὐδ᾽ οἱ ἄγαν παμπόνηρονι πάντα ἔχουσιν, ὅσα τοῦ πατρὸς τῶν θεῶν καὶ πάντων ὑπάτου τε καὶ μεγίστου κατηγορεῖτε. οἵ μὲν γὰρ τῇ περὶ τοὺς νέους ἀκολασίᾳ δουλεύσαντες ἀλλοτρίρυς οὐ διώρυξαν γάμους, οἱ δὲ τῇδε τῇ πάθῃ πέεριπε- 'σόντες. τῶν οἰκειοτάτων ἐφείσαντο" εἰ δέ τις "χα ἀδελφῆς ἐπέσεν,. ᾿ἀλ᾽᾽ οὐ κατὰ μητρός γε ᾿ἐλύτοηθεν "οὐδ᾽ τῇς ατρΐ, ᾿ἀϊν ἠδέσθη τὴν φύσιν᾽ καὶ τὴν τῶν ἀλόγων ὁ ᾿οὐκ ᾿ἐξήλώσεν. ### English translation (Claude) For not even the utterly wicked have all the faults you charge to the father of the gods, the highest and greatest of all. Those enslaved to licentiousness with youths did not break into others' marriages; those who fell into this passion spared their closest kin; and if one fell upon a sister, he did not rage against his mother, nor fail to respect nature toward his daughter, nor imitate ### Translation notes - The scan is garbled; translated by sense. The sentence continues in 3.97. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.96 (Raeder, 95; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-96). ## Discourse 3.97 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-97 - Source: Raeder, 96 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Zeus married his sister and lay with his mother and daughter. ### Greek text ἄνοιαν. ἐπέρσαι δὲ μόνοι, 'τὰ τοιαῦτα δρῶσι, γόμῳ. τινὶ παλαιῷ, ᾿μυσαρωτάτῳ, πειθόμενοι. καὶ “γομεῖν, οὔχ, ἡγούμενοι." ᾿ὀὐτοσὶ᾽ ἱ ὃν θεῶν. τε καὶ ᾿ἀὐδρῶν Πατέρα, ὦνό σεν Ὅμηρος, τὴν “μὲν Ἢ ὁμόϊ γον ἐπονήσατο, τῇ. δὲ Ῥέᾳ, ἣν καὶ “διὸ κ καὶ Ἀήμητρα ᾿ὀνομάξουσι, μ τρί “ γε οὔσῃ, μανικῶς. ἐπεμίγη,. καὶ τὴν Φερέ-. φατταν͵ ἐξ αὐτῆς παιδοποιησάμενος ξύνευνον᾽ ἔσχε καὶ ### English translation (Claude) the folly of irrational animals. Only the Persians do such things, obeying a very ancient and most loathsome law and not thinking they sin. But this one, whom Homer named the father of gods and men, made his sister his wife, lay madly with Rhea, whom they also call Deo and Demeter, though she was his mother, and having fathered Persephone by her, had her as his bedfellow too and ### Translation notes - The scan is garbled; translated by sense. The sentence continues in 3.98. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.97 (Raeder, 96; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-97). ## Discourse 3.98 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-98 - Source: Raeder, 96 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Zeus's other affairs are too shameful to tell. ### Greek text ὅ μέτης ἐγένετο τῆς παιδός. Ι τὰ δὲ, -Τανυμήδους πέρι “Δήδας. καὶ ᾿δανάῴης καὶ “Σεμέχης "αὶ Ψ μμήνης καὶ τῶν ἄλλων͵ τῶν πὶ ὀλλων ἡολογούμενα καὶ λέγειν, αἰσχύνοΓᾺ καὶ περιστὸν. οἶμαι ᾿ ἰδεῖν, πρὸς εἰδότας τούσδε τοὺς μύθους διεξιὼν καὶ τὴν. ποιἠτικὴν θυσοσμίαν. ἀνακινῶν» ὧν τὴν μυθολογίαν. ᾿αἰσχυνόμενοι μὲν ἀποκαλεῖτε ψευδῆ, πάλιν δ᾽ αὖ ὡς ἀληθῆ θεολογίαν᾽ ἀσπάζεσθε. ### English translation (Claude) became the defiler of the girl. What is told in the myths about Ganymede, Leda, Danae, Semele, Alcmene, and the others I am ashamed to tell, and I think it superfluous to go through these myths for those who know them and stir up the poetic stench; you call their mythology false when ashamed, yet embrace it again as true theology. ### Translation notes - The scan is garbled; 'Alcmene' is restored by sense. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.98 (Raeder, 96; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-98). ## Discourse 3.99 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-99 - Source: Raeder, 96 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Comparison shows that pagan gods are demons, not angels. ### Greek text ᾿παράθετὲ τοιγαροῦν τὰ παρ᾽ ὑμῶν περὶ τ τῶν ἀσωμάτων. μέν, γενητῶν͵ δὲ φύσεων μυθολογούμενα τοῖς τ παρ᾽ ἡμῶν περὶ, τῶν ἐπουρανίων. 'δυνάμεν. λεγομένοις,, καὶ ἀθρήσατε ᾿ἢ τὸ διάφορον" καὶ λογισμῷ γε σώῴφρονι͵ διακρίνατε, πότερα τούτοιν 'τὰϊς ἀοράτοις, οὐσίαις. ἁρμοδιώτερα. εὑρήσετε γάρ, ὀρὸῇ᾽ γε, ψήφῳ, διαγινώσκειν ᾿ἐθέλουτες, οὐχ ἁγίοις. ἀγγέλοις, ἀλλὰ "δαίμοσι. πρόσφορα παμπονήροις, τὰ παρ᾽ ὑμῷν ὑ θρησκευόμενα. ### English translation (Claude) So set the myths you tell about the bodiless but created natures beside what we say about the heavenly powers, see the difference, and judge with sober reasoning which of the two better suits invisible beings. You will find, if you wish to judge by a right vote, that what you worship suits not holy angels but utterly wicked demons. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.99 (Raeder, 96; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-99). ## Discourse 3.100 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-100 - Source: Raeder, 96 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret explains the names Satan and devil. ### Greek text Ἐπειδὴ δὲ καὶ δαιμόνων ἐμνήσθην, προύργου οἶμαι καὶ περὶ τούτων ἅ γε δοξάζομεν ἐπιδεῖξαι. ἡμεῖς γὰρ᾽ τούτους καὶ τὸν τούτων γε ἄρχοντα, ὃν Σὰτανᾶν τὰ θεῖα προσαγοφεύει λόγια (δηλοῖ δὲ τοὔνομα’ τὸν ἀποστάτην κατὰ τὴν “Ἑβραίων φωνήν᾽ καλεῖ δὲ αὐτὸν "αἱ διάβολον, ὡς τὸν Θεὸν παρὰ τοῖς ἀνθρώποις συκοφαντοῦντα καὶ αὐτοῖς γε τοῖς ἀνθρώπο ### English translation (Claude) Since I have mentioned demons, I think it worthwhile to show what we believe about them too. We, about them and their ruler, whom the divine oracles call Satan (the name means 'the apostate' in the Hebrew tongue; they also call him devil, as slandering God among human beings and casting strife and conflict among human beings ### Translation notes - Theodoret's etymology 'apostate' for Satan (Hebrew 'adversary') follows earlier patristic tradition. The sentence continues in 3.101. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.100 (Raeder, 96; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-100). ## Discourse 3.101 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-38/#p-3-101 - Source: Raeder, 97 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Demons fell by their own choice through pride; God guards humans but permits the struggle. ### Greek text ις ἔριν πρὸς ἀλλήλους καὶ διαμάχην ἐμβάλλοντα), --- τούτους ἡμεῖς οὐ πονηροὺς ἐξ ἀρχῆς παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων δημιουργηθῆναί. ᾿φαμεν. οὐδὲ τοιάνδε φύσιν λαχεῖν, ἀλλὰ τῇ παρατροπῇ τῆς γνώμης ἀπὸ τῶν ἀμεινόνων εἰς τὰ χείρω μεταπεσεῖν καὶ τοῖς. παρὰ τοῦ πεποιηκότος παραδχεθεῖσιν οὖκ ἀρκεσθέντας, ἀλλ᾽ ὀρεχθέντας μειξόνων εἰσδέξασθαι μὲν τοῦ τύφου τὸ πάθος, ἐκπεσεῖν δὲ καὶ τῆς ἀρχῆθεν δοθείσης γυμνωθῆναι τιμῆς, εἶτα κατὰ τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ὧς εἰκόνι θείᾳ τετιμημένων, λυττῆσαι καὶ τὸν κατ᾽ αὐτῶν ἀναδέξασθαι πόλεμον᾽ τὸν δὲ ποιητήν, τῇ μὲν τῶν ἀγγέλων ἐπιστασίᾳ φρουρῆσαν τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὸ γένος, ὕπως μὴ βίᾳ καὶ τυραννίδι χρώμενος ἀοράτως ἐπιών, οὺὃς διὰ φθόνον ἐμίσησεν, ἀδεῶς διαφθείρῃ, τὴν δὲ ἀγωνιστιπὴν οὐκέτε κωλῦσαι διαμάχην, ἵνα δείξῃ τοὺς ἀρίστους ἡ. πάλη, καὶ γένωνται ἀνδραγαθίας ἀρχέτυπα. ### English translation (Claude) against one another), we say that they were not created wicked from the beginning by the God of the universe, nor received such a nature, but fell from better to worse by a perversion of their will; not content with what the Maker had given them, but reaching for greater things, they took in the passion of pride, fell, and were stripped of the honor given them at the beginning; then they raged against human beings, as honored with the divine image, and took up war against them. The Maker guarded the human race by the oversight of angels, so that the devil, attacking invisibly with force and tyranny, might not freely destroy those he hated out of envy; but he no longer prevented the contest of struggle, so that the wrestling might show who are the best and they might become models of valor. ### Scripture references - 1 Tim 3:6: echo, low confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.101 (Raeder, 97; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-101). ## Discourse 3.102 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-3-102 - Source: Raeder, 97 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God uses the devil's wickedness for good, permitting only temptation of thought. ### Greek text οὗ δὴ εἵνεκα τὴν βιαίαν ἐκείνου προσβολὴν, διακωλύσας, τῇ τῶν ὀγγέλων φρουρᾷ τὴν τῶν λογισμῶν ξυνεχώρησεν ἀγωνίαν, ὕπως τοὺς ἀξιονίκους ἀποφήνῃ τῶν στεφάνων ἀξίους, οὐκ. αὐτὸς μὲν ἐκεῖνον εἰς ἀντιπάλου τάξιν ἀποχληρώσας, εἰς δέον δέ γε τῇ ἐκείνου πονηρίᾳ. χρησάμενος, καθάπερ οἵ ἰατροὶ ταῖς ἐχίδναις εἰς νοσημάτων ἀπαλλαγήν. ### English translation (Claude) For this reason, having prevented his violent assault by the guard of the angels, he allowed the contest of thoughts, so as to show those worthy of victory deserving of crowns; not that he himself appointed the devil to the rank of adversary, but that he used his wickedness to good purpose, as physicians use vipers to rid people of diseases. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.102 (Raeder, 97; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102). ## Discourse 3.103 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-3-103 - Source: Raeder, 98 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Laws posits two world-souls, a good and an evil one. ### Greek text ταῦτα μὲν οὖν ἡμεῖς τῆς ἐναντίας πέρι δοξάζειν δυνάμεως ἐδιδάχθημεν" [ ὁ δέ γε Πλάτων ὁποῖα καὶ περὶ τῶνδε πεφρόνηκε, ῥᾷστα γνοίη τις ἂν ἐντυχών, οἷς ἐκεῖνος ἔγραψεν ἐν τῷ δεκάτῳ. τῶν Νόμων. λέγει δὲ οὕτως" ψυχὴν δὲ διοιπκοῦσαν καὶ ἐνοικοῦσαν πᾶσι τοῖς πανταχῇ πινουμένοις λέγοντας, οὐ καὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν ἀνάγκη. διοικεῖν φάναι; τί μήν; μίαν ἢ πλείους; ἐγὼ ὑπὲρ σφῷν ἀποκρινοῦμαι. δυοῖν μὲν οὖν γέ που ἐλάττω μὴ τιθῶμεν, τῆς τε εὐεργέτιδος καὶ τῆς τἀναντία δυναμένης ἐξεργάσασθ ### English translation (Claude) This is what we have been taught to believe about the opposing power. What Plato thought about these things one could very easily learn by reading what he wrote in the tenth book of the Laws. He speaks thus: 'Since soul governs and dwells in all things that move everywhere, must we not say it governs heaven too? Of course. One or more? I will answer for you both: let us posit no fewer than two, the beneficent one and the one able to bring about the opposite.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 896d–e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 10.896d–e. The last word is split between 3.103 and 3.104. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.103 (Raeder, 98; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-103). ## Discourse 3.104 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-3-104 - Source: Raeder, 98 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato absurdly gives equal power and heaven's management to an evil soul. ### Greek text αι.ς τοιαῦτα μὲν οὖν ἐκεῖνος γέγραφεν" ὅσης δὲ ταῦτα ἀτοπίας μεστά, αὐτίκα δὴ καταμαθεῖν εὐπετές. ψυχὴν γὰρ δὴ κέηληκε τὴν τὰ ὁρώμενα πάντα καὶ μέντοι καὶ τὰ ἀόρατα ἰθύνουσαν δύναμιν᾽ ταύτην δὲ οὐ μόνον τὴν γῆν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν οἰκονομεῖν ἔφησεν. εἶτα ἐρόμενος, εἰ μίαν ἢ πλείους χρὴ λέγειν, ἀπεκρίνατο, ὡς οὐ δεῖ λέγειν τῶν δύο ἐλάττους". καὶ τὴν μὲν ἐκάλεσεν εὐεργέτιν, τὴν δὲ τῶν ἐναντίων ἐργάτιν, καὶ τὴν ἴσην καὶ τῇ ἀγαθῇ καὶ τῇ πονηρᾷ προσεμλήρωσε δύναμιν᾽ καὶ μέντοι καὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν οἶκονομεῖν ἔφησε τὴν τῆς κακίας δημιουργόν. ### English translation (Claude) That is what he wrote; how full of absurdity it is, one can easily learn at once. He called soul the power that steers all visible and invisible things, and said that it manages not only earth but heaven too. Then, asking whether one should speak of one or more, he answered that one must not speak of fewer than two; he called one beneficent and the other the worker of the opposite, allotted equal power to the good and the evil one, and said that the maker of vice manages heaven too. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.104 (Raeder, 98; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-104). ## Discourse 3.105 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-3-105 - Source: Raeder, 98 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Holy Spirit sanctifies angels and the godly; demons rule only those who choose them. ### Greek text ἡμεῖς δὲ τὸ μὲν πανάγιον Πνεῦμα, ὃν καὶ Παράκλητον οἵ θεῖοι προσαγορεύουσι λόγοι, ἰθύνειν καὶ κυβερνᾶν καὶ ἁγιάξειν οὐ μόνον ἀγγέλους καὶ ἀρχαγγέλους καὶ τὰς ἄλλας τῶν ἐπουρανίων ξυμμορίας, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων τοὺς εὐσεβεῖν προαιρουμένους καὶ τὰ θεῖα περὶ πολλοῦ ποιουμένους φαμέν". τοὺς δέ γε δαίμονας καὶ τὸν τούτων ἡγούμενον οὐ μόνον. τῶν οὐρανίων ἁψίδων ἐξεληλάσθαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς τῆς ἀρε-᾿ τῆς ἀθλητὰς ὀρρωδεῖν καὶ δεδιέναι καὶ φεύγειν, μόνους δὲ ἔχειν - ὑποχειρίους τοὺς αὐτομόλως καὶ αὐθαιρέτως τὴν ἐκείνου δουλείαν ἀσπαζομένους. ### English translation (Claude) We, however, say that the all-holy Spirit, whom the divine words also call Paraclete, guides, steers, and sanctifies not only angels, archangels, and the other companies of heavenly beings, but also those human beings who choose to be godly and value divine things highly; and that the demons and their leader have not only been driven from the vaults of heaven, but also shrink from, fear, and flee the athletes of virtue, and have in their power only those who of their own accord and choice embrace slavery to the devil. ### Scripture references - John 14:16: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.105 (Raeder, 98; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-105). ## Discourse 3.106 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-3-106 - Source: Raeder, 99 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The devil works through pleasure as bait, but the wise avoid his snares. ### Greek text ἐν μόνοις γὰρ τοῖς υἱοῖς τῆς ἀπειθείας. ἐνεργεῖν αὐτὸν ὁ θεῖος ἀπόστολος εἴρηκεν. περὶ τούτου πάλιν ὁ Πλάτων καὶ ταῦτα εἴρηπεν ἐν τῷ Φαίδρῳ" οἔστι μὲν οὖν καὶ ἄλλα κακά, ἀλλά τις δαίμων ἀνέμιξε τοῖς πλείστοις ἐν τῷ παραυτίκα ἡδονήν." ταύτῃ γάρ τοι οἷον δελέατι κεχρημένος καὶ τὸ ἄγκιστρον τὸ ὀλέθριον καταπκρύπτων, τοὺς μὲν εὐεξαπατήτους ἀποβουκολεῖ καὶ διόλλυσι τῶν ἀνθρώπων, οἱ δέ γε τὸν νοῦν ἐρρωμένον προὁρῶσι τὰς πάγας καὶ ταύτας ὑπερπηδῶσιν. ### English translation (Claude) For the divine apostle said that he works only in the sons of disobedience. About him Plato too said this in the Phaedrus: 'There are other evils too, but some demon has mixed pleasure for the moment with most of them.' Using this as bait and hiding the deadly hook, he beguiles and destroys the easily deceived among human beings; but those strong in mind see the snares beforehand and leap over them. ### Scripture references - Eph 2:2: allusion, high confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaedr. 240a–b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedrus 240a–b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.106 (Raeder, 99; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-106). ## Discourse 3.107 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-3-107 - Source: Raeder, 99 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: It is more fitting to hold that evil comes from choice, not from God. ### Greek text ἀτὰρ ᾿οὖν καὶ τὰς περὶ τούτων δόξας ἐκ παραλλήλου θέντες, ἀθρήσατε, πότερα τούτων ἁρμοδιώτερα Θεῷ᾽ τὸ τὸν ἀγαθὸν πονηρᾶς φύσεως φάναι δημιουργὸν καὶ τούτῳ μὴ μόνον τὴν γῆν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν ἐγχειρίσαι καὶ ἐπιτρέψαι οἵ πυβερνᾶν, ἦ βούλεται" ἢ τοὐναντίον εἰπεῖν, ὡς ἀναίτιος μὲν κακῶν παντάπασιν ὁ Θεός, αἱρέσει δὲ γνώμης οἵ δαίμονες γεγέγηνται πονηροί, ὥσπερ δὴ καὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων οἱ πλεῖστοι. ### English translation (Claude) So set the opinions about these things side by side and see which is more fitting to God: to say that the Good is the maker of an evil nature and entrusted to it not only earth but heaven too, allowing it to steer as it wishes; or the opposite, that God is wholly blameless of evils, and the demons became wicked by choice of will, as did most human beings. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.107 (Raeder, 99; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-107). ## Discourse 3.108 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-3-108 - Source: Raeder, 99 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Reading Scripture would show how far it surpasses human reasoning. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ γὰρ οἶμαι καὶ ὑμᾶς ξυνομολογήσειν, ὡς ταῦτα ἐκείνων ἀμείνω τὰ δόγματα. ] εἰ δὲ καὶ αὐτοῖς γε τοῖς θείοις λογίοις ἐντύχοιτε καὶ τὸν ἐκείνων σκοπὸν ἀκριβῶς καταμάθοίτε, σαφέστερον εἴσεσθε, πόσῳ τὰ θεόπνευστα λύγια τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων. διενήνοχε λογισμῶν, καὶ ὁποῖα. μὲν τὰ τοῦ. θείου Πνεύματος θόγματα, ὁποῖα ὁ δὲ τὰ τῶν πονηρῶν -δαιμόνων -παιδεύματα. ### English translation (Claude) But I think you too will agree that these doctrines are better than those. And if you would read the divine oracles themselves and learn their purpose accurately, you would know more clearly how far the God-inspired oracles surpass human reasonings, and what the doctrines of the divine Spirit are like and what the teachings of the wicked demons are like. ### Scripture references - 2 Tim 3:16: echo, low confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 3.108 (Raeder, 99; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-108). ## Discourse 4.1 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-1 - Source: Raeder, 100 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Democritus compares good teaching to nature, which reshapes the soul. ### Greek text Δημόκριτον τὸν “αμασίππου τὸν ᾿Αβδηρίτην φασὶ παρὰπλησίαν εἶναι τῇ φύσει λέγειν τὴν ἀρίστην διδασκαλίαν" μεταμορφοῦν γὰρ δὴ. ταύτην καὶ μεταρυθμίξειν πρὸς τὸ βέλτιον τὴν ψυχὴν. καὶ τοὺς παλαιοὺς ἀνανεοῦσθαι χαραντῆρας; ### English translation (Claude) They say that Democritus of Abdera, son of Damasippus, said that the best teaching is like nature; for it transforms and reshapes the soul for the better and renews the old stamps ### Extrabiblical texts - Democritus, fr. 33 (Democritus (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Democritus, fragment 33 (Diels–Kranz). The sentence continues in 4.2. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.1 (Raeder, 100; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-1). ## Discourse 4.2 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-2 - Source: Raeder, 100 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Teaching can reshape character, as Socrates and the converts of Christ show. ### Greek text οὗς ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἡ φύσις ἐνέθηπεν. καὶ ἔγωγε μάλα τόνδε τὸν λόγον εὖ ἔχειν ὑπείληφα. καὶ γὰρ. τὸν Σωκράτην τὸν Σωφρονίσκου φησὶν ὁ Πορφύριος εἰς ἀκολασίαν, ἡνίκα νέος ἦν, ἀποκλίναντα, σπουδῇ καὶ. διδαχῇ τούτους μὲν ἀφανίσαι τοὺς τύπους, τοὺς δὲ τῆς φιλοσοφίας ἐκμάξασθαι. πολλὰ δέ που τοιαῦτα καὶ τὰ θεῖα ἡμᾶς ἐξεπαίδευσε λόγια. καὶ γὰρ καὶ τελώνας ὁ Σωτὴρ ὁ ὺ ἡμέτερος πλεονεκτικὸν βίον ἀσπασαμένους καὶ ἄδικον καὶ χαμαιτύπην λαγνιστάτην καὶ παρονομώτατον λῃστὴν καὶ ἄλλους. πολλοὺς πονηρίᾳ ξυνεξηκότας εἰσηγήσεσι καὶ παραινέσεσιν ἐκ μὲν τοῦ βαράθρου τῆς κακίας ἀνέσπασεν, ἀρετῆς δὲ τελεωτάτης ἀπέφηνεν ἐραστάς. ### English translation (Claude) which nature impressed at the beginning. I think this saying is very good. For Porphyry says that Socrates son of Sophroniscus, who leaned toward licentiousness when young, by effort and teaching effaced those stamps and molded those of philosophy. The divine oracles have taught us many such things. For our Savior, by instructions and exhortations, drew up from the pit of vice tax collectors who had embraced a greedy and unjust life, a most lustful prostitute, a most lawless robber, and many others who had lived in wickedness, and made them lovers of the most perfect virtue. ### Scripture references - Matt 9:9: allusion, medium confidence - Luke 7:37–38: allusion, medium confidence - Luke 23:40–43: allusion, medium confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry (Porphyry, Philosophical History): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophical History (fragment). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.2 (Raeder, 100; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-2). ## Discourse 4.3 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-3 - Source: Raeder, 101 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Through the apostles Christ changed the whole world; so the author persists with unbelievers. ### Greek text . καὶ τί λέγω. τρεῖς ἢ ιτέτταρας ἢ. δέκα ἢ πεντεκαίδεκα; πᾶσαν “γάρ που. τὴν οἰκουμένην οὕτω διαπειμένην - δι᾽ ἐκείνων γε τῶν ὀλίγων, οὺς αὐτὸς μετερύθμισεν, ἀθρόως μετέβαλε καὶ τὴν πάλαι τοῖς ἐξεστηκόσι καὶ. παραπαίουσιν ἐοικυῖαν σωφρονοῦσαν ἀπέφηνεν. τοῦτο σαφῶς εἰδότες ἡμεῖς τὴν σωτήριον ὑμῖν. διδασκαλίαν προσφέρομεν" «καὶ διαμαχομένους ὁρῶντες καὶ ἀντιλέγοντας καὶ τὴν θεραπείαν ἀπωθουμένους οὐκ. ἀπαυδῶμεν, ἀλλὰ τῇ. ὁπογγιᾷ τοῦ λόγου καταιονῶμεν τῆς ἀπιστίας τὸ -πάθοο. ### English translation (Claude) And why do I speak of three or four, or ten or fifteen? Through those few whom he himself reshaped he changed at once the whole world, which was in the same condition, and made it, though long like the deranged and the mad, sound of mind. Knowing this clearly, we offer you the saving teaching; and seeing you fight, contradict, and push away the treatment, we do not give up, but with the sponge of the word we drench the ailment of unbelief. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.3 (Raeder, 101; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-3). ## Discourse 4.4 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-4 - Source: Raeder, 101 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret now turns to the philosophers' conflicting views of the visible world. ### Greek text τρὶφ. 'δὲ (ἤδη τοῦτο δεδράκπαμεν, καὶ. ὕπως ἀναγκαῖον “καὶ ᾿χρήδιμον τὸ τῆς πίστεως ἐπεδείξαμεν φάρμακον τίνα τε χρὴ. δοξάξειν τῆς οὐσίας πέρι τῆς θείας,. καὶ -ὁποῖα προσήκει φρονεῖν - περὶ τῶν ἀοράτων μέν, γενητῶν. δὲ: φύσεων, ἐπεδείξαμεν, καὶ" τὸ τῆς ποιητικῆς μυθολογίας ἀπογυμνώσαντες αἶσχος καὶ «τὴν τερατώδη τῶν φιλοσόφων ἀλληγορίαν Ἑλέγξαντες. ᾿ ἐπειδὴ δὲ καὶ τῆς ὁρατῆς πέρι κτίσεως οὔτε ἀληθῆ. οὔτε. μὴν ξυνῳδά 7ε ἀλλήλοις. ἐδόξασαν, ἀλλ᾽ εἰς. πολλὰς καθάπερ ἐν νυχτομαχίᾳ διεκρίθησαν μοίρας, ἀλλήλοις ὡς πολεμίοις. ἂνἐδην. κεχρημένοι, προύργου οἶμαι καὶ τὰς τούτων ἔν μέσῳ προθεῖναι δόξας. καὶ τῆς θείας. γραφῆς παραθεῖναι τὰ δόγματα “καὶ δεῖξαί γε ἄντικρυς, ὡς λογισμοὶ ἀνθρώπων δειλοί, καὶ. ἐπισφαλεῖς" αἱ ἐπίνοιαι. αὐτῶν,“ ἢ. σοφός τις ἡμέτερος εἴρηκεν. ### English translation (Claude) We have already done this three times: we showed how necessary and useful the remedy of faith is, we showed what one must believe about the divine being and what one should think about the invisible but created natures, stripping bare the shame of poetic mythology and refuting the monstrous allegory of the philosophers. And since about visible creation too they held views neither true nor consistent with one another, but split into many parties as in a night battle, freely treating one another as enemies, I think it worthwhile to set out their opinions, set the doctrines of divine Scripture beside them, and show plainly that 'the reasonings of mortals are timid, and their designs are likely to fail,' as one of our wise men said. ### Extrabiblical texts - Wis 9:14 (Wisdom of Solomon): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Wisdom of Solomon 9:14. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.4 (Raeder, 101; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-4). ## Discourse 4.5 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-5 - Source: Raeder, 101 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Xenophanes contradicts himself on the eternity of the world. ### Greek text Ξενοφάνης μὲν οὖν ὃ Ὀρθομένους. ὁ Κολοφώνιος, ὃ τῆς ᾿Ελεατικῆς αἱρέσεως ἡγησάμενος, ὃν εἶναι τὸ πᾶν ἔφησε, σφαιροειδὲς καὶ πεπερασμένον, οὐ γενητόν, ἀλλ᾽ ἀΐδιον. καὶ πάμπαν ἀκίνητον᾽ πάλιν δ᾽ αὖ τῶνδε τῶν λόγων ἐπιλαθόμενος, ἐκ τῆς γῆς φῦναι ἅπαντα εἴρηκεν. αὐτοῦ γὰρ δὴ τόδε τὸ ἔπος ἐστίν:..ἐκ γῆς γὰρ τάδε πάντα, καὶ εἰς γῆν πάντα τελευτᾷ.“ ἀξύμφωνοι δὲ ἄντικρυς οἵδε οἵ λόγοι. ### English translation (Claude) Xenophanes of Colophon, son of Orthomenes, who led the Eleatic school, said that the universe is one, spherical and limited, not begotten but eternal and wholly unmoving; but again, forgetting these words, he said that all things sprang from earth. For this verse is his: 'For from earth are all these things, and into earth all things end.' These statements plainly disagree. ### Extrabiblical texts - Xenophanes, fr. 27 (Xenophanes (fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Aëtius (Aëtius, Placita): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Xenophanes, fragment 27 (Diels–Kranz); the doxography follows Aëtius and Ps.-Plutarch. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.5 (Raeder, 101; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-5). ## Discourse 4.6 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-6 - Source: Raeder, 102 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: An eternal world cannot have earth as its cause. ### Greek text εἰ γὰρ ἀΐδιος ὃ κόσμος, καὶ ἄναρχος᾽ εἰ δέ γε ἄναρχος, καὶ ἀναίτιος" εἰ δὲ ἀναίτιος, οὐκ ἔχει δήπου μητέρα τὴν γῆν. εἰ δὲ αἰτίαν ἔχει τὴν γῆν, οὐκ ἄρα ἀναίτιος" εἰ δὲ οὐκ ἀναίτιος, οὐδὲ ἄναρχος" εἰ δὲ οὐκ ἄναρχος, οὐκ ἄρα ἀΐδιος. ### English translation (Claude) For if the world is eternal, it is without beginning; if without beginning, it is uncaused; and if uncaused, it surely does not have earth as its mother. But if it has earth as its cause, it is not uncaused; if not uncaused, not without beginning; and if not without beginning, then not eternal. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.6 (Raeder, 102; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-6). ## Discourse 4.7 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-7 - Source: Raeder, 102 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Parmenides agreed with Xenophanes but added fire as a cause. ### Greek text καὶ Παρμενίδης δὲ ὁ Πύρρητος ὁ Ἐλεάτης, Ξενοφάνους ἑταῖρος γενόμενος, κατὰ μὲν τὸν πρῶτον λόγον ξύμφωνα τῷ διδασκάλῳ ξυγγέγραφεν᾽. αὐτοῦ γὰρ δὴ τόδε τὸ ἔπος εἶναί φασιν" οὗλον μουνογενές τὸ καὶ ἀτρεμὲς ἠδ᾽ ἀγένητον. αἴτιον δὲ τῶν ὅλων οὐ τὴν γῆν μόνον, καθάπερ ἐκεῖνος, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ πῦρ εἴρηκεν οὗτος. ### English translation (Claude) And Parmenides of Elea, son of Pyres, who became a companion of Xenophanes, in his first account wrote in agreement with his teacher; for this verse is said to be his: 'Whole, only-begotten, unmoving, and unbegotten.' But he said that the cause of the universe is not earth alone, as Xenophanes said, but also fire. ### Extrabiblical texts - Parmenides, fr. 8.4 (Parmenides (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Parmenides, fragment 8.4 (Diels–Kranz). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.7 (Raeder, 102; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-7). ## Discourse 4.8 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-8 - Source: Raeder, 102 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Melissus held the world infinite, against his teachers. ### Greek text Μέλισσος δὲ ὁ ᾿Ιθαγένους ὁ Μιλήσιος τούτου μὲν ἑταῖρος ἐγένετο, τὴν δὲ παραδοθεῖσαν διδασκαλίαν ἀκήρατον οὐκ ἐτήρησεν᾽ ἄπειρον γὰρ οὗτος ἔφη τὸν κόσμον, ἐκείνων φάντων πεπερασμένον. ### English translation (Claude) Melissus of Miletus, son of Ithagenes, became his companion, but did not keep the teaching handed down to him pure; for he said the world is infinite, while they said it is limited. ### Translation notes - Melissus was of Samos; Theodoret's 'Milesian' follows his source. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.8 (Raeder, 102; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-8). ## Discourse 4.9 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-9 - Source: Raeder, 102 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Democritus, Metrodorus, and Epicurus taught atoms and the void. ### Greek text Δημόκριτος δὲ ὁ Ἀβδηρίτης ὃ Δαμασίππου τὴν τοῦ κενοῦ καὶ τῶν ναστῶν πρῶτος ἐπεισήγαγε δόξαν᾽ ταῦτα δὲ Μητρόδωρος ὁ Χῖος ἀδιαίρετα καὶ κενὸν προσηγόρευσεν, ὥσπερ αὖ πάλιν Ἐπίκουρος ὃ Νεοκλέους ὃ ᾿Δ4θηναῖος, πέμπτῃ γενεᾷ μετὰ ΖΔημόκριτον γεγονώς, τὰ ὑπ᾽ ἐκείνων ναστὰ καὶ ἀδιαίρετα δὴ κληθέντα ἄτομα προσηγόρευσεν. ### English translation (Claude) Democritus of Abdera, son of Damasippus, first introduced the doctrine of the void and the solids; Metrodorus of Chios called these indivisibles and void; and again Epicurus of Athens, son of Neocles, who lived five generations after Democritus, called what they had named solids and indivisibles 'atoms'. ### Extrabiblical texts - Democritus (Democritus (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Epicurus (Epicurus (sayings and fragments)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.9 (Raeder, 102; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-9). ## Discourse 4.10 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-10 - Source: Raeder, 102 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Atoms are compared to motes in a sunbeam. ### Greek text ἀδιαίρετον δὲ καὶ ἄτομον καὶ ναστὸν οἵ μὲν διὰ τὸ ἀπαθὲς ὠνομάὅθαι φασίν, οἱ δὲ διὰ τὸ ἄγαν σμικρόν, ἅτε δὴ τομὴν καὶ διαίρεσιν δέξασθαι οὐ δυνάμενον. καλοῦσι δὲ οὕτω τὰ σμιπρότατὰ ἐβεῖνα καὶ λεπτότατα σώματα, ἃ διὰ τῶν φωταγωγῶν εἰσβάλλων ὁ ἥλιος. δείκνυσιν ἐν ἑαυτῷ ἄνω καὶ κάτω παλλόμενα. ### English translation (Claude) Some say it is called indivisible, atom, and solid because it cannot be affected, others because it is extremely small, as unable to receive cutting or division. They give these names to those smallest and finest bodies which the sun, shining in through windows, shows leaping up and down in its beam. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.10 (Raeder, 102; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-10). ## Discourse 4.11 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-11 - Source: Raeder, 103 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato and Aristotle name different first principles. ### Greek text τούτοις καὶ Ἔκφαντος ὃ Συρακούσιος ὃ Πυθαγόρειὸς ἠκολούθησε᾽ Πλάτων δὲ ὁ Ἀρίστωνος ἀρχὰς εἶναι ὑτῶν ὅλων τὸν θεὸν καὶ τὴν ὕλην καὶ τὰς ἰδέας φησίν" Ἀριστοτέλης δὲ ὁ Σταγειρίτης ὃ Νικομάχου εἶδος καὶ ὕλην καὶ στέρησιν᾽ στοιχεῖα δὲ οὐ τέσσαρα, ἀλλὰ πέντε “πέμπτον γὰρ εἶναι τὸ αἰθέριον εἴρηκεν, ἄτρεπτόν τε καὶ ἀμετάβλητον. ### English translation (Claude) Ecphantus of Syracuse, the Pythagorean, followed these. Plato son of Ariston says that the first principles of the universe are God, matter, and the ideas; Aristotle the Stagirite, son of Nicomachus, form, matter, and privation; and that the elements are not four but five, for he said the fifth is the ethereal, unchangeable and unalterable. ### Extrabiblical texts - Aristotle (Aristotle (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.11 (Raeder, 103; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-11). ## Discourse 4.12 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-12 - Source: Raeder, 103 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Xenocrates, Zeno, Hippasus, Heraclitus, and Diogenes give other principles. ### Greek text ενοκρότης δὲ ὁ Καρχηδόνιος Ϊ ἀέναον. τὴν ὕλην, ἐξ ἧς ἅπαντα γέγονε, προσηγόρευσεν. Ζήνων δὲ ὃ Κιτιεὺς ὃ ἹΜνασέου, ὃ Κράτητος φοιτητής, ὃ τῆς Στωϊκμῆς ἄρξας αἱρέσεως, τὸν θεὸν καὶ τὴν ὕλην ἀρχὰς ἔφησεν εἶναι. Ἵππασος δὲ ὃ Μεταποντῖνος καὶ “Ηράκλειτος ὁ Βλόσωνος ὃ ᾿ἘΕφέσιος ἕν εἶναι τὸ πᾶν, ἀκίνητον καὶ πεπερασμένον, ἀρχὴν δὲ τὸ πῦρ ἐσχηκέναι. ὃ δὲ Ἀπολλωνιάτης Διογένης ἐκ τοῦ ἀέρος ἔφη ξυστῆναι τὸ πᾶν. ### English translation (Claude) Xenocrates of Chalcedon called the matter from which all things came ever-flowing. Zeno of Citium, son of Mnaseas, pupil of Crates, who began the Stoic school, said that God and matter are the first principles. Hippasus of Metapontum and Heraclitus of Ephesus, son of Bloson, said the universe is one, unmoving and limited, and has fire as its first principle. Diogenes of Apollonia said the universe was composed of air. ### Extrabiblical texts - Xenocrates (Xenocrates of Chalcedon): allusion, medium confidence - Zeno of Citium, Zeno (Zeno of Citium): allusion, medium confidence - Heraclitus (Heraclitus (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Crates (Crates of Thebes): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The scan reads 'Carthaginian' for Xenocrates (of Chalcedon); translated by sense. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.12 (Raeder, 103; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-12). ## Discourse 4.13 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-13 - Source: Raeder, 103 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The philosophers disagree on the nature of matter. ### Greek text καὶ τὴν ὕλην (δέ γε Θαλῆς μὲν καὶ Πυθαγόρας καὶ Ἀναξαγόρας καὶ Ἡράλλειτος καὶ ὃ τῶν Στωϊκῶν δρμαθὸς τρεπτὴν καὶ ἀλλοιωτὴν καὶ δευστὴν ἔφασαν εἶναι" Δημόκριτος δὲ καὶ Μητρόδωρος καὶ Ἐπίκουρος ἀπαθῆ τὰ ἄτομα καὶ τὸ κενὸν προσηγόρευσαν. ὁ δέ γε Πλάτων. σωματοειδῆ τὴν ὕλην ἔφησεν εἶναι καὶ ἄμορφον καὶ ἀνείδεον καὶ ἀσχημάτιστον καὶ ἄποιον παντελῶς. ταῦτα γὰρ πάντα, φησίν, ὕστερον παρὰ τοῦ πεποιηκότος ἐδέξατο. Ἀριστοτέλης δὲ αὐτὴν σωματικὴν κέκληκεν, οἷ Στωϊκοὶ δὲ σῶμα. ### English translation (Claude) As for matter, Thales, Pythagoras, Anaxagoras, Heraclitus, and the string of Stoics said it is changeable, alterable, and flowing; Democritus, Metrodorus, and Epicurus called the atoms and the void impassible. Plato said that matter is corporeal, shapeless, formless, without figure, and wholly without quality; for all these, he says, it later received from the Maker. Aristotle called it corporeal, the Stoics body. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.13 (Raeder, 103; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-13). ## Discourse 4.14 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-14 - Source: Raeder, 103 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: They disagree also about the void. ### Greek text τὸ δὲ κενὸν οἱ περὶ Δημόκριτον τῶν ἀτόμων ὠνομάκασι τόπον, οἱ δὲ ἄλλοι ὕπαντες τοῦτόν γε ἄντικρυς κωμῳδοῦσι τὸν λόγον. αὐτίκα τοίνυν ᾿Εμπεδοκλῆς οὕτω φησίν" οὐδέ τι τοῦ παντὸς κενεὸν πέλει οὐδὲ περιττόν οἱ δὲ Στωϊκοὶ ἐντὸς μὲν τοῦ παντὸς μηδὲν εἶναι κενόν, ἐκτὸς δὲ αὐτοῦ πάμπολύ τὲ καὶ ἄπειρον. ὁ δὲ Στράτῶν ἔμπαλιν ἔξωθεν μὲν μηδὲν εἶναι κενόν, ἔνδοθεν. δὲ δυνατὸν εἶναι. ### English translation (Claude) Democritus and his followers called the void the place of the atoms, while all the others plainly mock this account. Empedocles, for example, says this: 'Nothing of the whole is empty or superfluous.' The Stoics say there is no void within the universe, but very much and infinite void outside it. Strato, conversely, says there is no void outside, but there can be within. ### Extrabiblical texts - Empedocles, fr. 14 (Empedocles (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Empedocles, fragment 14 (Diels–Kranz). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.14 (Raeder, 103; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-14). ## Discourse 4.15 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-15 - Source: Raeder, 104 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Some held one world, others infinitely many. ### Greek text Οὐ μόνον δὲ ἐν τούτοις διαφωνίᾳ γε. πλείστῃ, ἀλλὰ κἀν τοῖς ἄλλοις ἐχρήσαντο. καὶ γὰρ δὴ τὸν κόσμον Θαλῆς μὲν καὶ Πυθαγόρας καὶ Ἀναξαγόρας καὶ Παρμενίδης καὶ Μέλισσος καὶ Ἡράκλειτος καὶ Πλάτων καὶ ᾿Αριστοχέλης καὶ Ζήνων ἕνα εἶναι ξυνωμολόγησαν᾽ Ἀναξίμανδρος δὲ καὶ ᾿Φναξιμένης καὶ ᾿Αρχέλαος καὶ Ξενοφάνης καὶ “Διογένης καὶ “Αεύμιππος καὶ Δημόκριτος καὶ ᾿Επίκουρος. πολλοὺς εἶναι καὶ ἀπείρους ἐδόξασαν. ### English translation (Claude) They showed very great disagreement not only in these matters but in the others too. Thales, Pythagoras, Anaxagoras, Parmenides, Melissus, Heraclitus, Plato, Aristotle, and Zeno agreed that the world is one; Anaximander, Anaximenes, Archelaus, Xenophanes, Diogenes, Leucippus, Democritus, and Epicurus held that there are many, indeed infinite, worlds. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.15 (Raeder, 104; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-15). ## Discourse 4.16 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-16 - Source: Raeder, 104 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: They disagree on the world's shape, soul, origin, and end. ### Greek text καὶ. οἵ μὲν σφαιροειδῆ τοῦτον ξἶνῳι, οἱ δὲ ἑτεροειδῆ᾽" καὶ οἵ μὲν μυλοειδῶς, οἵ. δὲ τροχοῦ δὴν περιδινεῖσθαι᾽ καὶ οἵ μὲν ἔωψυχόν τε καὶ ἔμπνουν, οἷ δὲ παντάπασιν ἄψυχον᾽ καὶ οἱ μὲν κατ᾽ ἐπιγνοιαν γενητόν, οὐ κατὰ χρόνον, οἵ δὲ ἀγένητον παντελῶς καὶ ἀναίτιον᾽ καὶ οὗτοι μὲν φθαρτόν, ἐκεῖνοι. δὲ ἄφθαρτον. ### English translation (Claude) Some said it is spherical, others of another shape; some that it revolves like a mill, others like a wheel; some that it is ensouled and breathing, others wholly soulless; some that it is begotten in concept but not in time, others wholly unbegotten and uncaused; these that it is perishable, those imperishable. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.16 (Raeder, 104; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-16). ## Discourse 4.17 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-17 - Source: Raeder, 104 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Thales, Anaxagoras, Diogenes, and Anaximander explain the stars differently. ### Greek text καὶ τοὺς ἀστέρας δὲ Θαλῆς μὲν γεώδεις καὶ ἐμπύρους ὦνόμασεν" ὃ δέ γε ᾿ἀναξαγόρας ἐκ τῆς τοῦ παντὸς περιδινήσεως πέτρους εἶπεν ἀνασπασθῆναι, καὶ τούτους ἐμπυρωθέντας τε καὶ ἄνω παγέντας ἀστέρας ὀνομασθῆναι. καἱ Δημόκριτος δὲ τοῦτον κρατύνει τὸν λόγον᾽ ὁ δὲ Διογένης κισηροειδεῖς λέγει εἶναι τούτους, διατινοάς. τινας ἔχοντας ὃ. δὲ ᾿άναξίμανδρος ξυστήματα -ἄττα. τοῦ ἀέρος ἔφη, ] τροχοειδῶς πεπιλημένα, πυρὸς ἐμπλεα εἶναι, ἀπό τινῶν.. στομίων.. ἀφιέντα τὰς. ### English translation (Claude) Thales called the stars earthy and fiery; Anaxagoras said that rocks were snatched up by the revolution of the universe and, set on fire and fixed above, were called stars; and Democritus confirms this account. Diogenes says they are like pumice, having certain breathing holes. Anaximander said they are certain compressions of air, packed like wheels, full of fire, sending out ### Extrabiblical texts - Anaxagoras (Anaxagoras): allusion, medium confidence - Democritus (Democritus (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 4.18. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.17 (Raeder, 104; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-17). ## Discourse 4.18 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-18 - Source: Raeder, 105 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Diogenes and Plato on falling stars and fiery stars. ### Greek text φλόγας... Διογένης. δὲ, καὶ. ἐμπίπτειν. εἰς τὴν. γῆν. τινας τούτων ἔφησε καὶ δβεννυμένους ἐλέγχεσθαι, ὅτι λίθων ἔχουσι φύσιν, “καὶ. μάρτυρι. χρῆται. τῷ ἐν Αἰγὸς ποταμοῖς ᾿πυροειδῶς πατενεχθέντι ποτέ. ὁ δὲ Πλάτων ὡς ἐπίπαν μὲν τούτους ἔκ τοῦ πυρὸς ξυνεστάναι,.. μετέχειν δὲ. καὶ τῶν ἄλλων στοιχείων φησίν. ὃ δέ γε. Ἡριστοτέλης τοῦ. πέμπτου. σώματοτοὸς εἴρηπε. ### English translation (Claude) flames from certain vents. Diogenes also said that some of them fall to earth and, when extinguished, are shown to have the nature of stones, and he uses as witness the stone that once fell fiery at Aegospotami. Plato says they are mostly made of fire, but share in the other elements too. Aristotle said they are ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 4.19. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.18 (Raeder, 105; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-18). ## Discourse 4.19 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-19 - Source: Raeder, 105 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Aristotle and Xenophanes on the stars. ### Greek text ξυγγενεῖς... Ξενοφάνης δὲ ἐκ. νεφρῶν μὲν «λέγει πεπυρωμένων ξυνίστασθθαι, σβεννυμένους δὲ. μεθ΄ ἡμέραν γύμτωρ πάλιν. ἀναξωπυρεῖσθαι, καθάπερ. τοὺς. ἄνθραλας. ### English translation (Claude) akin to the fifth body. Xenophanes says they consist of clouds set on fire, are extinguished by day, and are rekindled at night like coals. ### Extrabiblical texts - Aristotle (Aristotle (works)): allusion, medium confidence - Xenophanes (Xenophanes (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.19 (Raeder, 105; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-19). ## Discourse 4.20 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-20 - Source: Raeder, 105 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Some Pythagoreans thought each star a world. ### Greek text «(Ἡρακλείδης δὲ καὶ ἄλλοι τῶν. Πυθαγορείων τινὲς ἕκαστον τῶν. ἀστέρων κόσμον ὑπάρχειν. φασί, γῆν. περιέχοντα καὶ ἀέρα καὶ οἷ. μὲν σφαιροειδεῖς. τούτους εἰρήκασι... κωνοειδεῖς δὲ Κλεάνθης ὃ. ### English translation (Claude) Heraclides and some others of the Pythagoreans say each star is a world, containing earth and air; some said they are spherical, Cleanthes the ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 4.21. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.20 (Raeder, 105; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-20). ## Discourse 4.21 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-21 - Source: Raeder, 105 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The philosophers' contradictory views about the sun. ### Greek text Στωϊκός... καὶ. μέντοι. καὶ “τὸν ἥλιον... καὶ τὴν σελήνην ὃ Ξενοφάνης νέφη εἶναι πεπυρωμένα. φησίν᾽ Ἀναξαγόρας δὲ καὶ Δημόκριτος καὶ Μητρόδωρος. μύδρον ἢ πέτρον διάπυρον᾽ Θαλῆς δὲ γεώδης πισηροειδῆ δὲ Διογένης" ὁ δὲ Ἀριστοτέλης σφαῖραν. εἶναι ἐκ, τοῦ. πέμπτου σώματος ξυνεστῶσαν". ὁ δὲ Πλάτων τὸ μὲν πλεῖστον. ἔχειν ἐκ τοῦ πυρός, μετέχειν. δὲ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων σωμάτων᾽ Φιλόλαος δὲ ὁ Πυθαγύρειος ὑαλοειδῆ, δεχόμενον. μὲν τοῦ ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ πυρὸς τὴν ἀνταύγειαν, διηθοῦντα δὲ πρὸς ἡμᾶς τό τε φῶς καὶ τὴν ἀλέαν, εἰδώλου τάξιν ἐπέχοντα" καὶ ἕτεροι δὲ ἕτερα ἄττα περὶ τούτου ἐδόξασαν, ἃ περιττὸν οἶμαι λέγειν, ἵνα μὴ τῆς αὐτῆς μεταλάχω τερθρείας. ### English translation (Claude) Stoic conical. And Xenophanes says that the sun and the moon are clouds set on fire; Anaxagoras, Democritus, and Metrodorus a red-hot mass or fiery stone; Thales earthy; Diogenes like pumice; Aristotle a sphere composed of the fifth body; Plato that it has most of its substance from fire but shares in the other bodies too; Philolaus the Pythagorean that it is glassy, receiving the reflection of the fire in the world and filtering the light and warmth through to us, holding the place of an image. Others held other views about it, which I think it superfluous to tell, lest I share the same trickery. ### Extrabiblical texts - Cleanthes (Cleanthes (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Xenophanes (Xenophanes (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Anaxagoras (Anaxagoras): allusion, medium confidence - Philolaus (Philolaus): quotation, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.21 (Raeder, 105; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-21). ## Discourse 4.22 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-22 - Source: Raeder, 106 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: They disagree on the sun's size and shape. ### Greek text καὶ μεγέθους δὲ πέρι καὶ σχήματος πολλὴ παρ᾽ αὐτοῖς διαμάχη. οἵ μὲν γὰρ. αὐτὸν σφαιροειδῆ φασιν, οἱ δὲ σκαφοειδῆ, οἵ δὲ ἁρματιαίῳ τροχῷ παφαπλήσιον᾽ καὶ ᾿Αναξίμανδρος μὲν ἑπτακαιδικοσαπλασίω τῆς γῆς τοῦτον ἔφησεν εἶναι" ᾿Εμπεδοκλῆς δὲ ἶσον τῇ γῇ" ὃ δὲ Ἀναξαγόρας Πελοποννήσου μείξζονα' Ἡράκλειτὸς δὲ ποδιαῖον. ### English translation (Claude) About its size and shape too there is much fighting among them. Some say it is spherical, some boat-shaped, some like a chariot wheel; Anaximander said it is twenty-seven times larger than the earth; Empedocles equal to the earth; Anaxagoras larger than the Peloponnese; Heraclitus a foot wide. ### Extrabiblical texts - Empedocles (Empedocles (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Anaxagoras (Anaxagoras): allusion, medium confidence - Heraclitus, fr. 3 (Heraclitus (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.22 (Raeder, 106; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-22). ## Discourse 4.23 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-23 - Source: Raeder, 106 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: They disagree about the moon. ### Greek text καὶ περὶ σελήνης δὲ ὁμοίως ὑθλοῦσιν. γεώδη μὲν γὰρ ὁ Θαλῆς φησιν᾽ Ἀἀναξιμένης δὲ καὶ Παρμενίδης καὶ Ἡράκλειτος ἔκ μόνου ξυνεστάναι πυρός" ᾿άναξαγόρας δὲ καὶ “4ημόκριτος στερέωμα διάπυρον, ἔχον ἐν ἑαυτῷ πεδία καὶ ὄρη καὶ φάραγγας" ὃ δὲ Πυθαγόρας πετρῶδες σῶμα" ἩἩραρλείδης. δὲ γῆν ὁμίχλῃ περιεχομένην" καὶ οἱ μὲν μείζονα τῆς γῆς ἀποφαίνονται, οἱ δὲ ἰσόμετρον, οἵ δέ γε ἐλάττονα, ἄλλοι δὲ σπιθαμῆς ἔχειν διάμετρον. ### English translation (Claude) They talk nonsense about the moon likewise. Thales says it is earthy; Anaximenes, Parmenides, and Heraclitus that it consists of fire alone; Anaxagoras and Democritus a fiery solid having plains, mountains, and ravines in itself; Pythagoras a rocky body; Heraclides earth surrounded by mist; and some declare it larger than the earth, some equal, some smaller, others that it has a diameter of a span. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.23 (Raeder, 106; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-23). ## Discourse 4.24 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-24 - Source: Raeder, 106 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: They claim to measure the heavens while ignorant of the sea's depth. ### Greek text καὶ τί δεῖ λέγειν, ὅσα ἐκεῖνον σχημάτων πέρι καὶ ἐκλείψεων καὶ διαστημάτων μυθολογοῦσιν; οὐ γὰρ μόνον ὅσον ἀλλήλων διἑστήκασι, λέγουσιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὅσον τῆς γῆς ἀφεστήκασι" ] καὶ τετρακοσίας ἀριθμοῦσι καὶ μέντοι καὶ πλείους σταδίων μυριάδας, τὰς μὲν ἀπὸ γῆς μέχρι σελήνης, τὰς δὲ ἐκεῖθεν μέχρις ἡλίου" καὶ οὐκ αἰσχύνονται τῆς μὲν θαλάττης ἀγνοοῦντες τὸ βάθος, ἔνθα καὶ δρμιὰν καθεῖναι δύνανται καὶ ἱμονιάν, τὸ δὲ τοῦ ἀέρος καὶ τοῦ αὐθέρος μέτρον σαφῶς εἰδέναι φιλοτιμούμενοι καὶ οὐδὲ τὸ ἀκερδὲς τοῦ πράγματος ἐνθυμούμενον οὐδὲ τῆς «4ἰσχύλου παραινέσεως ### English translation (Claude) And why need I say what myths they tell about its shapes, eclipses, and distances? They say not only how far they stand apart from one another but how far from the earth; and they count four hundred and more myriads of stades, some from earth to the moon, others from there to the sun. They are not ashamed, while ignorant of the depth of the sea, where they can let down a fishing line and a rope, to boast that they clearly know the measure of the air and the ether, not considering the uselessness of the matter nor heeding Aeschylus's advice: ### Translation notes - The quotation follows in 4.25. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.24 (Raeder, 106; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-24). ## Discourse 4.25 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-25 - Source: Raeder, 107 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Such inquiry is useless and impossible, like drawing water with a sieve. ### Greek text ἐπαΐοντες᾽ οοτὰ μηδὲν ὠφελοῦντα μὴ ξήτει μάτην.“ τούτῶν δὲ ἕκαστον εἰ καὶ εὑρητὸν ἦν, ἀνόνητον παντάπασιν ἦν. ἐπειδὴ δὲ καὶ ἀνέφιμτος ἀνθρώποις ἡἣ εὕρεσις, ἀτεχνῶς ἐοίκασι τοῖς καθ' ὕδατος ταφρεύουσιν ἢ ποσπκίνῳ ὕδωρ ἀντλοῦσιν. καὶ οὗτοι γὰρ δὴ κἀκεῖνοι μάταιον ἀναδέχονται πόνον καὶ εἰς οὐδὲν δέον τὴν σχολὴν ἀναλίσκουσιν. ### English translation (Claude) 'Do not seek in vain what brings no benefit.' Even if each of these could be found, it would be wholly useless; and since the finding is beyond human reach, they are exactly like those who dig trenches in water or draw water with a sieve. For both labor in vain and spend their leisure on nothing needful. ### Extrabiblical texts - Aeschylus (Aeschylus (plays and fragments)): quotation, low confidence ### Translation notes - Aeschylus (or another tragedian), fragment; attribution uncertain. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.25 (Raeder, 107; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-25). ## Discourse 4.26 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-26 - Source: Raeder, 107 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Xenophon says Socrates turned from natural philosophy to ethics. ### Greek text τοῦτο δὴ ξυνορῶν ὃ Σωκράτης, μετεωρολόγοις καὶ φυσιολόγοις ἐρρῶσθαι φράσας, τὴν ἠθικὴν διδασκαλίαν ἠσπάσατο. καὶ τοῦτο δεδήλωκεν ὃ Ξενοφῶν ἐν τοῖς ᾿ἀπομνημονεύμασι, λέγων ὡδί" ὅλως δὲ καὶ τῶν οὐρανίων ἕκαστα, ἃ ὁ θεὸς μηχανᾶται, φροντιστὴν εἶναι τούτων ἀπέτρεπεν. οὔτε γὰρ εὑρετὰ ἀνθρώποις αὐτὰ ἐνόμιξεν εἶναι, οὔτε χαρίξεσθαι θεοῖς ἡγεῖτο τὸν ζητοῦντα ταῦτα, ὃ ἐκεῖνον σαφηνίσαιν οὐκ ἠβουλήθησαν᾽ κινδυνεῦσαι δ᾽ ἂν καὶ παραφρονῆσαι τὸν ταῦτα μεριμνῶντα, οὐδὲν ἧττον ἢ ᾿ἀναξαγόρας παρεφρόνησεν, ὃ μέγιστον φρονήσας ἐπὶ τῷ τὰς τῶν θεῶν μηχανὰς ἐξηγεῖσθ ### English translation (Claude) Seeing this, Socrates bade farewell to those who studied the heavens and nature, and embraced ethical teaching. Xenophon showed this in the Memorabilia, saying: 'In general he dissuaded people from becoming students of how the god contrives each of the heavenly things; for he did not think these could be discovered by human beings, nor did he think one who sought what the gods did not wish to make clear would please them; and one who busied himself with these things would risk going mad, no less than Anaxagoras went mad, who prided himself most on explaining the contrivances of the gods.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Xenophon, Mem. 4.7.6 (Xenophon, Memorabilia): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Xenophon, Memorabilia 4.7.6. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.26 (Raeder, 107; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-26). ## Discourse 4.27 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-27 - Source: Raeder, 107 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Xenophon: Socrates avoided cosmology and called its students fools. ### Greek text αι καὶ ταῦτα δ᾽ αὖ πάλιν ὃ αὐτὸς τοῦ αὐτοῦ πέρι γέγραφεν᾽.οοὐδεὶς δὲ πώποτε Σωκράτους οὐδὲν ἀσεβὲς οὐδὲ ἀνόσιον οὔτε πράττοντος εἶδεν οὔτε λέγοντος ἤκουσεν. οὐδὲ γὰρ περὶ τῆς τῶν ἁπάντων φύσεως ἢ περὶ τῶν ἄλλων, ὡς οἱ πλεῖστοι, διελέγετο, σκοπῶν ὕπως ὃ καλούμενος ὑπὸ τῶν σοφιστῶν κόσμος ἔχει, καὶ τίσιν ἀνάγκαις ἕκαστα γίνεται τῶν οὐρανίων, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς φροντίζοντας τὰ τοιαῦτα μωραίνοντας ἀπεδείκνυεν. ### English translation (Claude) And again the same author wrote this about the same man: 'No one ever saw Socrates doing or heard him saying anything impious or unholy. For he did not discuss the nature of all things or the other matters, as most did, examining how what the sophists call the cosmos is ordered and by what necessities each of the heavenly things comes to be; but he showed that those who busied themselves with such things were fools. ### Extrabiblical texts - Xenophon, Mem. 1.1.11 (Xenophon, Memorabilia): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Xenophon, Memorabilia 1.1.11. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.27 (Raeder, 107; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-27). ## Discourse 4.28 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-28 - Source: Raeder, 108 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates noted that cosmologists contradict one another like madmen. ### Greek text καὶ πρῶτον μὲν αὐτῶν ἐσκόπει, πότερόν. ποτὲ νομίσαντες ἱκανῶς ἤδη τὰ ἀνθρώπινα εἰδέναι, ἔρχονται ἐπὶ τὸ περὶ τῶν τοιούτων φροντίζειν, ἣ τὰ μὲν ἀνθῥώπινα παρέντες, τὰ δαιμόνια. δὲ. σκοποῦντες. ἡγοῦνται τὰ προσήκοντα πράττειν. ἐθαύμαζε δέ, εἰ μὴ φανερὸν αὖτοῖς ἐστιν, ὅτι ταῦτα οὐ δύνατόν ἐστιν ἀνθρώποις εὑρεῖν᾽ ἐπεὶ καὶ τοὺς τὰ. μέγιστα φρονοῦντας ἐπὶ τῷ περὶ τούτων λέγειν οὐ ταὐτὰ δοξάζειν. ἀλλήλοις, ἀλλὰ τοῖς μαινομένοις ### English translation (Claude) And first he examined whether they came to busy themselves with such things because they thought they already knew human affairs sufficiently, or whether, neglecting human things and examining divine things, they thought they were doing what was fitting. He wondered that it was not plain to them that human beings cannot discover these things, since even those who prided themselves most on speaking about them did not hold the same views as one another, but were disposed toward one another like madmen. ### Extrabiblical texts - Xenophon, Mem. 1.1.12–13 (Xenophon, Memorabilia): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Xenophon, Memorabilia 1.1.12–13. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.28 (Raeder, 108; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-28). ## Discourse 4.29 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-29 - Source: Raeder, 108 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Xenophon compares the cosmologists' contradictions to madness. ### Greek text ὁμοίως διακεῖσθαι πρὸς ἀλλήλους τῶν τὲ γὰρ μαινομένων τοὺς μὲν. οὐδὲ τὰ δεινὰ δεδιέναι, τοὺς δὲ καὶ τὰ μὴ φοβερὰ φοβεῖσθαι". καὶ τοῖς μὲν οὐδ᾽ ἐν ὄχλῳ δοκεῖν αἰσχρὸν. εἶναι λέγειν ἢ ποιεῖν. ὁτιοῦν, τοῖς δ᾽ οὐδ᾽ ἐξιτητέον εἰς ἀνθρώποὺς εἶναι δοκεῖν" [ καὶ τοὺς μὲν οὔθ᾽ ἱερὺν οὔτε βωμὸν οὐδὲ ἄλλο τῶν θείων. οὐδὲν. τιμᾶν, τοὺς δὲ καὶ. λέθους καὶ ξύλα τυγχάνοντα καὶ θηρία σέβεσθαι. τῶν δὲ περὶ τῆς τῶν πάντων φύσεως μεριμνώντων τοῖς μὲν δοκεῖν ὃν μόνον τὸ ὃν εἶναι, τοῖς δὲ ἄπειρα, τὸ πλῆθος" καὶ τοῖς μὲν ἀεὶ τὰ πόντα κινεῖσθαι, τοῖς. δὲ οὐδὲν ἄν ποτε κινηθῆναι᾽ καὶ τοῖς μὲν ἅπαντα γίνεσθαί τὸ καὶ ἀπόλλυσθαι, τοῖς δὲ οὔτ᾽ ἂν γενέσθαι ποτὲ οὐδὲν οὔτ᾽ ἀπολέσθαι.““. ### English translation (Claude) For among madmen some do not fear even what is dreadful, while others fear what is not fearful; some think it not shameful to say or do anything even in a crowd, others think they must not even go out among people; some honor neither temple nor altar nor anything else divine, others worship stones, chance pieces of wood, and beasts. So among those who busy themselves with the nature of all things, some think that being is only one, others that it is infinite in number; some that all things are always moving, others that nothing could ever move; some that all things come to be and perish, others that nothing could ever come to be or perish.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Xenophon, Mem. 1.1.14 (Xenophon, Memorabilia): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Xenophon, Memorabilia 1.1.14. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.29 (Raeder, 108; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-29). ## Discourse 4.30 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-30 - Source: Raeder, 108 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Xenophon and Socrates, not Christians, made this charge. ### Greek text καὶ ἄλλα δὲ πολλὰ τοιαῦτα διέξεισι, τὴν πολλὴν ἐκείνων ἀδολεσχίαν ἐλέγχων. ταῦτα τοὺς μετεωρολέσχας οὐδεὶς τῶν ἡμετέρων ἐγράψατο, ἀλλὰ Ξενοφῶν καὶ Σωκράτης, τῶν Ἑλλήνων οἵ ἄριστοι. καὶ ῥᾷστον τῷ βουλομένῳ τοῖς Ξενοφῶντος ἀπομνημονεύμασιν ἐντυχεῖν καὶ γνῶναι σαφῶς, ὡς ταῦτά. γε ἐκεῖνος περὶ τῶν πολυθρυλήτων φιλοσόφων γέγραφεν. ### English translation (Claude) He goes through many other such things, exposing their great idle talk. None of our people indicted the stargazers thus, but Xenophon and Socrates, the best of the Greeks. It is very easy for anyone who wishes to read Xenophon's Memorabilia and learn clearly that he wrote this about the celebrated philosophers. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.30 (Raeder, 108; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-30). ## Discourse 4.31 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-31 - Source: Raeder, 108 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Aëtius, Plutarch, and Porphyry confirm the philosophers' disagreements. ### Greek text Ἐϊ δέ τις οἴεται κἀμὲ συκοφαντῆσαι τοὺς ἄνδρας, τὴν παμπόλλην. αὐτῶν διαφωνίαν ἐλέγξαντα, ἀναγνώτω μὲν Ἀενίου τὴν Περὶ" ἀρεσκόντων. ξυναγωγήν; ἀνὰγνώτω “δὲ ΠΠλουτάρχου τὴν: Περὶ τῶν τοῖς φιλοσόφοις δοξάντων ἐπιτομήν" καὶς Πορφυρίου δὲ ἡ Φιλόσοφος: ἱστορία πολλὰ "τοιαῦτα. διδάσκει. ### English translation (Claude) If anyone thinks that I too slander these men in exposing their great disagreement, let him read Aëtius's collection On the Opinions, and Plutarch's Epitome of the Opinions of the Philosophers; Porphyry's Philosophical History also teaches much of this kind. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plutarch, Plac. (Plutarch): allusion, high confidence - Porphyry (Porphyry, Philosophical History): quotation, medium confidence - Aëtius (Aëtius, Placita): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The 'Plutarch' Epitome is the Placita of Ps.-Plutarch. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.31 (Raeder, 108; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-31). ## Discourse 4.32 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-32 - Source: Raeder, 109 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret will praise and criticize Plato's Timaeus. ### Greek text ἀπόχρη δὲ καὶ. τὰ Ξενοφῶντος, ὧν ἀρτίως ἐμνήσθημεν; μαρτυρῆσαι τοῖς παρ᾽ ἡμῶν εἰρημένοις ἀλήθειαν. μάλα. γὰρ ἐκεῖνος’ καὶ τὴν πολλὴν αὐτῶν ἄγνοιαν καὶ ἣν πρὸς ἀλλήλους ἐσχήκασιν ἐκωμῴδησε διαμάχην. ἐγὼ δὲ τοὺς μὲν ἄλλους ἅπαντας παραλείψω, Πλάτωνος δὲ τὰ μὲν ἐπαινέσομαι, -τὰ δέ, ὡς οὐκ εὖ ἔχοντα, διελέγξω᾽ ἐκεῖνα. μὲν γὰρ αὐτοῦ λίαν ἐστὶν ἀξιέπαινα, ἅπερ ἐν τῷ Τιμαίῳ γέγραφε: ### English translation (Claude) But Xenophon's words, which we just mentioned, suffice to bear witness to the truth of what we have said; for he thoroughly mocked both their great ignorance and the fight they had with one another. I shall pass over all the others; of Plato some things I shall praise, others I shall refute as not right. For these words of his are very praiseworthy, which he wrote in the Timaeus: ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.32 (Raeder, 109; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-32). ## Discourse 4.33 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-33 - Source: Raeder, 109 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato says the good God made the world from goodness, not envy. ### Greek text λέγωμεν δὴ δι’ ἥντινα αἰτίαν γένεσιν καὶ τὸ πᾶν τόδε ὃ ξυνιστὰς. ξυνεστήσατο.“ εἶτα ἐπήγαγε τὴν. ἀρίστην ἐκείνην καὶ θαύματος ἀξίαν ἀπόχρισιν᾽,,ἀγαθὺς ἦν᾽ ἀγαθῷ δὲ οὐδεὶς περὶ οὐδενὸς ἐγγίνεται φθόνος. τούτου δὲ ἐκτὸς ὦν, πάντα ὅτι μάλιστα: ἐβουλήθη. γενέσθαι: παραπλήσια ξαυτῷ.“" παραπλήσια δὲ οὐ κατὰ τὴν φύσιν. εἴρηκεν, ἀλλὰ κατ᾽ αὐτό γε μόνον τὸ εἶναι. ὥσπερ γὰρ αὐτός ἐστιν, οὕτως" ἠβουλήθη καὶ τὰ μὴ ὄντα γενέσθαι τὸ καἱ εἶναι᾽ ἀλλ᾽ αὐτὸς μὲν ἔστι, παρ᾽ οὐδενὸς τὸ εἶναι λαβών, τοῖς δὲ: γενητοῖς αὐτὸς τὸ εἶναι δεδώρηται. ### English translation (Claude) 'Let us say for what cause the Constructor constructed becoming and this universe.' Then he added that excellent and admirable answer: 'He was good; and in the good no envy ever arises about anything. Being free of it, he wished all things to be as like himself as possible.' He said 'like' not in nature, but only in being itself. For as he himself is, so he wished the things that were not also to come to be and to be; but he is without having received being from anyone, while to things that come to be he himself has given being. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Tim. 29d–e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Timaeus 29d–e. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.33 (Raeder, 109; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-33). ## Discourse 4.34 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-34 - Source: Raeder, 109 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God made the world without need of honors. ### Greek text ξυγγενῆ δὲ τοῖς εἰρημένοις καὶ τάδε᾽,,οὐ γὰρ. χρείας ἕνεκεν ὃ θεὸς πεποίηκε τὸν κόσμον, ἵνα τιμάς τὲ πρὸς ἀνθρώπων καὶ πρὸς θεῶν ἄλλων. καὶ δαιμόνων καρποῖτο, οἷον πρόσοδόν τινα ἀπὸ τῆς γενέσεως ἀρνύμενος; παρὰ. μὲν ἡμῶν καπνούς, παρὰ δὲ θεῶν καὶ δαιμόνων τὰς ### English translation (Claude) Akin to what has been said is this: 'For God did not make the world out of need, so as to reap honors from human beings and other gods and demons, collecting a sort of revenue from creation, from us smoke and from gods and demons ### Translation notes - The source of this quotation is uncertain; it is not in Plato's extant works. The quotation ends in 4.35. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.34 (Raeder, 109; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-34). ## Discourse 4.35 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-35 - Source: Raeder, 109 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God needs nothing; the 'gods' are angels serving him. ### Greek text οἰκείας λειτουργίας.“ κἀνταῦθα' πάλιν ἀνενδεῆ τὸν Θεὸν ἔφησεν εἶναι, καὶ δι’ ἀγαθότητά γε μόνην τὰ πάντα πεποιηκέναι᾽ θεοὺς δὲ καὶ δαίμονας κέλληκεν, οὃς ἡμεῖς ἀγγέ-" λοὺς προσαγορεύομεν, καὶ τούτους γε λειτουργοὺς ἔφησεν εἶναν τοῦ τῶν ὅλων Θεοῦ. ### English translation (Claude) their proper services.' Here again he said that God is without need and made all things out of goodness alone; and he called gods and demons those we call angels, and said they are ministers of the God of the universe. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.35 (Raeder, 109; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-35). ## Discourse 4.36 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-36 - Source: Raeder, 110 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Republic says the Good gives being and is beyond being. ### Greek text ἀξηέπαινα δὲ κὰν τῇ Πολιτείᾳ ξυγγέγραφεν" τοῖς γενομένοις“ γάρ φησι «μὴ μόνον τὸ γεγέσθαι φάναι ὑπὸ τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ παρεῖναι, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ εἶναί τε καὶ τὴν οὐσίαν αὐτοῖς ὑπ᾽ ἐκείνου προσεῖναι, οὐκ οὐσίας ὄντος τἀγαθοῦ, ἀλλ᾽ ἐπέκεινα οὐσίας, πρεσβείᾳ καὶ δυνάμει ὑπερέχοντος. οὐ γάρ τοι μόνον, φησί, κοινὸν τὸ εἶδος αὐτοῖς, καθάπερ δὴ χαλκοτύπος καὶ χρυσοχόος, ἐντέθεικεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν οὐσίαν αὐτοῖς ἐδημιούργησέ τε καὶ δέδωκεν, οὐ τὴν αὐτὴν ἔχων αὐτὸς τοῖς γεγονόσι φύσιν᾽ ὑπὲρ οὐσίαν γάρ ἐστι καὶ οὐσίας ἐπέκεινα, οὐκ ἀϊδιότητί γε μόνῃ, ἀλλὰ καὶ δυνάμει τῶν ποιημάτων ὑπέρτερος ὦν. ### English translation (Claude) He also wrote praiseworthy things in the Republic: 'For the things that come to be,' he says, 'one must say that not only their coming to be is due to the Good, but their being and essence come to them from it, the Good not being essence, but beyond essence, surpassing it in dignity and power.' For, he says, he did not merely impress a common form on them, as a bronze-smith and goldsmith do, but created and gave them their very essence, not having the same nature as the things that came to be; for he is above essence and beyond essence, superior to his works not only in eternity but also in power. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 509b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 6.509b, followed by Theodoret's paraphrase. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.36 (Raeder, 110; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-36). ## Discourse 4.37 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-37 - Source: Raeder, 110 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Timaeus says the world came to be and has a cause. ### Greek text σαφῶς δέ γε διὰ τούτων δεδήλωκεν, ὡς οὐκ ἐξ ὑποκειμένης ὕλης τὰ πάντα πεποίηκεν ὁ Θεός, ἀλλὰ μὴ ὄντα παρήγαγεν ὡς ἠθέλησεν., ἀγαστὰ δὲ αὐτοῦ κἀκεῖνα καὶ θαύματος ἄξια" »»ότερον ἦν ἀεὶ γενέσεως ἀρχὴν ἔχων οὐδεμίαν, ἢ ἢ γέγονεν ἀπ’ ἀρχῆς τινος ἀρξάμενος γ΄ εἶτα ἀποκρίνεται καί φησι" »γέγονεν καὶ παρέχεται τὴν ἀπόδειξιν" υδρατὸς γάρ' φησιν οῶν» καὶ ἁπτός ἐστιν ἁπτὸς δὲ ὦν, καὶ σῶμα ἔχει" πάντα δὲ τὰ τοιαῦτα αἰσθητά" τὰ δὲ αἰσθητὰ δόξῃ περι ληπτὰ καὶ γενητὰ ἐφάνη. τῷ δ᾽ αὖ γενομένῳ φαμὲν ὑπ᾽ αἰτίου τινὸς ἀναγκαῖον εἶναι γενέσθαι. ### English translation (Claude) By this he clearly showed that God did not make all things from underlying matter, but brought them from non-being as he willed. Admirable and worthy of wonder too are these words of his: 'Has it always been, having no beginning of becoming, or has it come to be, starting from some beginning?' Then he answers: 'It has come to be,' and offers the proof: 'For it is visible and tangible, and being tangible it has a body; and all such things are sensible, and sensible things are grasped by opinion and appear as coming to be. And we say that what comes to be must necessarily come to be by some cause.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Tim. 28b–c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Timaeus 28b–c. Theodoret's inference of creation from nothing is his own reading. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.37 (Raeder, 110; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-37). ## Discourse 4.38 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-38 - Source: Raeder, 110 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato says the Maker is hard to find and impossible to declare. ### Greek text “ ταῦτα περὶ τῶν γενητῶν εἰρηκώς, ἅπερ δεῖ φρονεῖν περὶ τοῦ πεποιηκότος, σοφώτατα ἐξεπαίδευσεν. ἔφη γάρ᾽ «τὸν μὲν οὖν ποιητὴν καὶ δημιουργὸν τοῦδε τοῦ παντὸς εὐρεῖν τε ἔργον, καὶ εὗρόντα. εἰς πάντας ἐξειπεῖν ἀδύνατον᾽ ῥητὸν γὰρ οὐδαμῶς ### English translation (Claude) Having said this about the things that come to be, he taught most wisely what one must think about the Maker. For he said: 'To find the Maker and Father of this universe is a task, and having found him, to declare him to all is impossible; for he cannot be expressed at all ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Tim. 28c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Timaeus 28c, with Letter 7.341c. The quotation ends in 4.39. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.38 (Raeder, 110; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-38). ## Discourse 4.39 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-39 - Source: Raeder, 111 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato says the sun, moon, and planets came from God's reason to mark time. ### Greek text ἐστιν ὡς ἄλλα μαθήματα. δείκνυσι δὲ ἡμῖν καὶ τὸν τοῦ' θεοῦ «“όγον τὰ πάντα δημιουργοῦντα. ἐκ γὰρ τῆς Ἑβραίων καὶ ταῦτα ἐδιδάχθη γραφῆς καὶ βοᾷ λέγων,»νἐξ οὖν λόγου καὶ διανοίας θεοῦ πρὸς χρόνου γένεσιν, ἵνα γενηθῇ χρόνος, ἥλιος καὶ σελήνη καὶ πέντε. ἄλλα ἄστρα, ἐπίκλην ἔχοντα πλάνητες, εἰς διορισμὸν καὶ φυλακὴν ἀριθμῶν χρόνου γέγονεν. σώματα δὲ αὐτῶν ποιήσας ὃ θεὸς ἔθηπεν εἰς τὰς περιφοράς. ### English translation (Claude) as other subjects of learning can.' He also shows us the Word of God making all things; for he learned this too from the Scripture of the Hebrews, and cries out: 'From the reason and thought of God, for the generation of time, so that time might come to be, the sun, the moon, and five other stars, called planets, came into being to distinguish and guard the numbers of time. And God, having made their bodies, set them in their orbits.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Tim. 38c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Timaeus 38c; Theodoret reads logos as 'the Word'. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.39 (Raeder, 111; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-39). ## Discourse 4.40 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-40 - Source: Raeder, 111 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato and Euripides show the heavenly bodies serve humans. ### Greek text ἐν τούτοις δὲ ἡμᾶς ἐδίδαξεν, ὡς οὐ μόνον διὰ τοῦ “Δόγου τὴν κτίσιν πεποίηκεν ὁ Θεός, ᾿ἀλλ᾽ ὅτι καὶ ὃ ἥλιος καὶ ἡ σελήνη καὶ οἱ ἀστέρες σώματά τέ εἶσι γενητὰ καὶ παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ τὸ εἶναν εἰλήφασιν. οὐδὲν δὲ τῶν τοιούτων, καὶ κατά γε τὸν τοῦ Πλάτωνος λόγον, Θεός" εἰς χρείαν γὰρ ἀνθρώπων γεγένηνται. καὶ τοῦτό γε. ἐν ταῖς Φοινίσσαις Εὐριπίδης δεδήλωκε, λέγων ὡδί' » εἶθ᾽ ἥλιος μὲν νύξ τε δουλεύει βροτοῖς᾽ σὺ δ᾽ οὐκ ἀνέξεν δωμάτων ### English translation (Claude) In this he taught us not only that God made creation through the Word, but that the sun, the moon, and the stars are bodies that came to be and received their being from God. None of these, even by Plato's account, is God; for they came to be for the use of human beings. Euripides showed this in the Phoenician Women, saying: 'Then sun and night serve mortals, and will you not endure to have ### Extrabiblical texts - Euripides, Phoen. 546–547 (Euripides (plays and fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Euripides, Phoenician Women 546–547. The quotation ends in 4.41. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.40 (Raeder, 111; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-40). ## Discourse 4.41 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-41 - Source: Raeder, 111 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pagans worship the sun and moon that serve them. ### Greek text ἔχειν ἴσον" ἀλλ᾽ ὁ μὲν Εὐριπίδης τὸν ἥλιον καὶ τὴν σελήνην δουλεύειν ἔφη βροτοῖς᾽ ὑμεῖς δὲ δουλεύειν τοῖς ὑμετέροις γε δούλοις ἀνέχεσθέ τε καὶ τὸ θεῖον αὐτοῖς ἀπονέμετε σέβας. ἐγὼ δὲ αὖθις ἐπὶ τὸν Πλάτωνα μεταβήσομαι. ἐπαινῶ γὰρ αὐτὸν καὶ περὶ τῆς τοῦ παντὸς ξυντελείας παραπλήσια ἡμῖν λέγοντα. ### English translation (Claude) an equal share of the house?' But Euripides said that the sun and moon serve mortals, while you consent to serve your own slaves and give them divine worship. I shall pass again to Plato. For I praise him for saying things close to ours about the consummation of the universe too. ### Extrabiblical texts - Euripides, Phoen. 547 (Euripides (plays and fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.41 (Raeder, 111; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-41). ## Discourse 4.42 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-42 - Source: Raeder, 111 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Timaeus says time and heaven began together and may end together. ### Greek text εἰπὼν γὰρ..εἰ μὲν δὴ καλός ἐστίν ὅδε ὁ κόσμος, ὅ τε δημιουργὸς ἀγαθός, δῆλον ὡς πρὸς τὸ ἀΐδιον ἐβλεπεν' καὶ περί γε τοῦ οὐρανοῦ προστεθεικὼς »» μὲν γὰρ κάλλιστος τῶν γεγονότων, ὃ δὲ ἄριστος τῶν αἰτίων καὶ πάλιν. ἐπαγαγὼν ᾿ηξυνεστήσατο οὐρανὸν ὁρατὸν. "καὶ ἁπτόν," ἐπήγαγε μετ᾽ ὀλίγα᾽ »"θόνος οὖν μετ᾽ οὐρανοῦ γέγονεν;. ἵν᾽ ἅμα γενηθέντες ἅμα καὶ λυθῶσιν.. ἄν ποτε λύσις τις αὐτῶν. ### English translation (Claude) For having said, 'If this world is beautiful and its Maker good, it is plain that he looked to the eternal'; and having added about heaven, 'For it is the most beautiful of things that have come to be, and he the best of causes'; and again, having said, 'He constructed a visible and tangible heaven', he added a little later: 'Time, then, came to be with heaven, so that, having come to be together, they may also be dissolved together, if ever any dissolution of them ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Tim. 29a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Plato, Tim. 38b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Timaeus 29a; 32b; 38b. The quotation ends in 4.43. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.42 (Raeder, 111; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-42). ## Discourse 4.43 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-43 - Source: Raeder, 112 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Statesman says the bodily cosmos must undergo change. ### Greek text γένηταις" κἀν τῷ Πολιτικῷ δὲ τοιαῦτα ἔφη" »"ὸ κατὰ -ταὐτὰ καὶ ὡσαύτως: ἔχειν ἀεὶ. καὶ ταὐτὸν εἶναι. πάντως τοῖς θειοτάτοις προσήκει. μόνοις᾽ δώματος. δὲ ᾿ φύσις οὐ τῆς τοιαύτης τάξεως. καὶ δὴ ὃν οὐρανὸν καὶ κόσμον. ἐπωνομάκαμεν, πολλῶν μὲν καὶ μακαρίων παρὰ τὸῦ πεποιηκότος μετείληφεν, ἀτὰρ οὖν δὴ χεκοινώνηκέ γε καὶ σώματος ὅθεν. αὐτῷ μεταβυλῆς. ἀμοίρῳ γενέσθαι διὰ παντὸς ### English translation (Claude) should occur.' And in the Statesman he said this: 'To be always the same and unchanging and identical belongs only to the most divine of all things; and the nature of body is not of this rank. What we have named heaven and cosmos has received many blessed things from its Maker; yet it has also shared in body. Hence it is impossible for it to be wholly without share in change ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Pol. 269d–e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Statesman 269d–e. The quotation ends in 4.44. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.43 (Raeder, 112; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-43). ## Discourse 4.44 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-44 - Source: Raeder, 112 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Statesman myth of the helmsman releasing the world. ### Greek text ἀδύνατον.“ ᾿ αὐτοῦ δὲ πάλιν καὶ ταῦτα᾽ «τότε δὴ τοῦ παντὸς ὃ κυβερνήτης, οἷον πηδαλίων οἴακας ἀφέμενος, εἰς τὴν αὑτοῦ περιωπὴν ἀπέστη τὸν δὲ κόσμον πάλιν ἀνέστρεφεν εἱμαρμένη τε καὶ ξύμφυτος ἐπιθυμία. πάντες οὖν οἵ κατὰ τοὺς τόπους ξυνάρχοντες τῷ μὲ δγίστῳ δαίμονι θεοίς 'γνόντες ἤδη τὸ γινόμενον, ἀφίεσαν αὖ τὰ μέρη τοῦ᾽ κόσμου. τῆς ἑαυτῶν ἐπιμελείας᾽ ὁ δὲ μεταστρεφόμενος καὶ ξυμβαλών, ἀρχῆς τε καὶ τελευτῆς ἐναντίαν᾽ ὁρμὴν ὁρμηθείς, σεισμὸν πολὺν ἐν αὐτῷ ποιῶν, ἄλλην αὐτῷ φθορὰν ξῴων παντοίων ἐν δὲ τούτοις ξυμφέρεται μὲν ἡμῖν, ἐν οἷς ### English translation (Claude) always.' And again this is his: 'Then the helmsman of the universe, letting go, as it were, the handle of the rudder, withdrew to his place of outlook; and fate and innate desire turned the world back again. All the gods who ruled locally with the greatest divinity, perceiving what was happening, let go of the parts of the world in their care; and it, turning round and colliding, driven by an impulse contrary to beginning and end, causing a great earthquake within itself, wrought another destruction of all kinds of living things.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Pol. 272e–273a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Statesman 272e–273a. The scan is garbled at the end; the phrase 'in these he agrees with us, in which' appears to be misplaced from 4.45 and is not translated here. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.44 (Raeder, 112; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-44). ## Discourse 4.45 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-45 - Source: Raeder, 112 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's account of the world's change mixes truth with error about matter and fate. ### Greek text ἀπειργάσατο.“ τὴν τοῦ παντὸς μεταβολὴν ἔφησε, καὶ ὅτι τοῦ Θέοῦ καταλιπόντος τοὺς οἴακας, ἀφίστανται μὲν ὅσον τῶν ἀοράτων δυνάμεων οἰκονομεῖν τινα μέρη τῆς κτίσεως ἐκελεύσθησαν, ὑπομένει δὲ τὴν ἀλλοίωσιν τὰ ὁρώμενα" τὰ δέ γε ἄλλα ἐκ τοῦ τηνικάδε κατεσχηκότος ὑπομεμένηχε πλάνου, ὅτι τῆς ὕλης ἡ ξύμφυτος ἐπυθυμία τὸν κόσμον ἀνέστρεφε, κατά γε τὴν ξυγκληρωθεῖσαν ἐξ ἀρχῆς εἰμαρμένην. ### English translation (Claude) He spoke of the change of the universe, and that when God lets go the rudder, those of the invisible powers who were ordered to manage certain parts of creation withdraw, and visible things undergo alteration; but the rest he left over from the error that then prevailed, that the innate desire of matter turned the world back, according to the fate allotted from the beginning. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.45 (Raeder, 112; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-45). ## Discourse 4.46 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-46 - Source: Raeder, 113 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato makes matter coeternal with God and evil. ### Greek text ταῦτα γάρ ἐστιν ἅπερ ἐν τοῖς περὶ τῆς κτίσεως λόγοις τῷ φιλοσύφῳ μεμφό-. μεθα᾽ ξυνυπάρχειν γὰρ τῷ Θεῷ τὴν ὕλην καὶ οὗτος ἔφησε, καθὰ καὶ Πυθαγόρας καὶ ““ριστοτέλης καὶ οἱ τῆς Ποικίλης ἐπώνυμοι. καὶ τὴν ὕλην δὲ ἔστιν ὅτε πονηρὰν ὀνομάζει. ἀκούομεν γὰρ αὐτοῦ περὶ τοῦ πόσμου λέγοντος" ««παρὰ μὲν τοῦ ξυνθέντος πάντα καλὰ κέκτηται᾽ παρὰ δὲ τῆς ἔμπροσθεν ἕξεως, ὅσα χαλεπὰ καὶ ἄδικα ἐν οὐρανῷ γίνεται, ταῦτα ἐξ ### English translation (Claude) For these are the things we blame the philosopher for in his accounts of creation: he too said that matter coexists with God, as did Pythagoras, Aristotle, and those named from the Painted Porch. And sometimes he calls matter evil. For we hear him say about the world: 'From its Composer it has acquired all beautiful things; but from its former condition, whatever harsh and unjust things happen in heaven, these it has from that ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Pol. 273b–c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Statesman 273b–c. The quotation ends in 4.47. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.46 (Raeder, 113; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-46). ## Discourse 4.47 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-47 - Source: Raeder, 113 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's view makes evil matter stronger than its Maker. ### Greek text ἐκείνης αὐτός τε ἔχει καὶ τοῖς ξῴοις ἐναπεργάξεται.“ προστέθεικε δὲ καὶ ταῦτα᾽ «τούτων δὲ αὐτῶν τὸ σωματοειδὲς αἴτιον, τὸ τῆς πάλαι φύσεως ξύντροφον, ὅτι πολλῆς ἦν μετέχον ἀταξίας, πρὶν εἰς τὸν νῦν κόσμον ἀφικέσθαι. τούτοις νεμεσᾶν πάντα οἶμαι, ἄνθρωπον, ὑγιᾶ γε τὸν νοῦν ἔχοντα. διαβάλλει γὰρ ἄντικρυς τῆς ὕλης τὴν φύσιν᾽ καὶ οὕτως αὐτῆς ἰσχυρὰν ἄγαν καὶ ἀήττητον λέγει τὴν κάκην, ὡς μηδὲ τὸν πονητὴν δυνηθῆναι ταύτην. ἐπὶ τὸ κρεῖττον μεταβαλεῖν. διέμεινε γὰρ τῇ καχεξίᾳ χρωμένη" καὶ παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ δεξαμένη τὸ εἶδος, τὴν προτέραν οὐκ ἐξέβαλε πονηρίαν. οὗ δὴ χάριν οὐ μόνον ἐν γῇ, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν οὐφανῷ τὰ χαλεπὰ καὶ ἄδικα δρᾷ καὶ τοῖς ξῴοις ἐναπεργάξετα ### English translation (Claude) itself and produces in living things.' And he added this: 'The cause of these is its bodily element, inherent in its ancient nature, because it shared in much disorder before arriving at the present world.' I think every person of sound mind is indignant at this. For he plainly slanders the nature of matter, and calls its evil so strong and invincible that not even the Maker could change it for the better. For it persisted in its bad condition, and receiving form from God, did not cast out its former wickedness. For this reason it does harsh and unjust things not only on earth but in heaven too, and produces them in living things. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Pol. 273b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Statesman 273b. The last word is split between 4.47 and 4.48. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.47 (Raeder, 113; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-47). ## Discourse 4.48 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-48 - Source: Raeder, 113 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Such views contradict Plato's nobler theology. ### Greek text ι, τοῦτα τῶν ἤδη πρόσθεν εἰρημένων ἀνάξια καὶ τῆς ὑψηγορίας ἐκείνης καὶ θεολογίας ἀλλότρια καὶ τῶν χαμαι- πετῶν τε καὶ περιγείων ἔκγονα λογισμῶν. τὸ γὰρ δὴ φάναι κὰν τῷ οὐρανῷ διαμεῖναι τὴν ἀταξίαν, ὡς χαλεπά τινα καὶ ἐν αὐτῷ. τολμᾶσθαι καὶ ἄδικα, τοπάξειν παρασχευάξει τὴν μὲν ὕλην ἰσχυροτάτην, ἀσθενῆ. δὲ εἶναι τὸν ποιητήν. καίτοῦ φησὶν αὐτὸν τὸν οὐρανὸν πρὸς τὸ νοητὸν. 'δημιουργῆσαι. ### English translation (Claude) These are unworthy of what he said earlier, alien to that lofty speech and theology, and offspring of low-flying and earthbound reasonings. For to say that disorder persisted even in heaven, so that harsh and unjust things are dared even there, leads one to conjecture that matter is most strong and the Maker weak. Yet he says that he made heaven itself after the intelligible ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 4.49. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.48 (Raeder, 113; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-48). ## Discourse 4.49 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-49 - Source: Raeder, 114 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: A heaven made after a divine model cannot do injustice. ### Greek text παράδειγμα. λέγει δὲ οὕτως ἐν τῷ Τιμαίφ᾽ »»εότερον οὖν ὀρθῶς ἕνα οὐρανὸν εἰρήκαμεν, ἢ πολλοὺς καὶ ἀπείρους ἦν λέγειν ὀρθότερον; ἕνα, εἴπερ κατὰ τὸ παράδειγμα. δεδημιουργημένος ἔσται.“ παράδειγμα δὲ “οἶμαι λέγειν αὐτὸν ἢ τὸν Θεὸν ὡς ἕνα, ἢ τὴν ἰδέαν, ἡ ἣν ἔννοιαν εἶναι τοῦ θεοῦ λέγει, ἢ τὸν γοητὸν οὐρανόν, ὃν ὑπέρτερον εἶναι τούτου ἡ θεία λέγει γραφή. εἴτε δὲ τοῦτο εἴτε ἐκεῖνο. λέγει παράθειγμα; ἥκιστά γε ἁρμόττει τῷ οὐρανῷ τῶν χαλεπῶν καὶ ἀδίκων ἡ πρᾶξις. ### English translation (Claude) model. He speaks thus in the Timaeus: 'Have we rightly spoken of one heaven, or would it be more right to speak of many and infinite? One, if it is to be made after the model.' By the model I think he means either God, as one, or the idea, which he says is the thought of God, or the intelligible heaven, which the divine Scripture says is higher than this. Whether he means this or that by 'model', the doing of harsh and unjust things hardly suits heaven. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Tim. 31a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Timaeus 31a. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.49 (Raeder, 114; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-49). ## Discourse 4.50 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-50 - Source: Raeder, 114 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Scripture teaches that God made all from nothing by his will alone. ### Greek text , ᾿Αλλὰ τῶν μὲν καλουμένων. φιλοσόφων τοσαύτην ἔχει διαμάχην τὰ δόγματα᾽ ὥρα δὲ λοιπὸν ἐπιδεῖξαι τῆς θείας γραφῆς τὴν εὐγένειαν καὶ τὴν τῆς κοσμογενείας ἀλήθειαν. τοὺς μὲν γὰρ περὶ τῆς ὕλης μύθους εἰς τὸ Ἡσιόδου ἀπέρ-ριψε Χάος᾽ δημιουργῆσαι δὲ τὰ ξύμπαντα ἔφησε τὸν Θεόν, οὐ καθάπερ οἰκοδόμοι καὶ ναυπηγοὶ καὶ χαλκοτύποι καὶ χρυσοχόοι, καὶ μέντοι καὶ ὑφάνται καὶ σκυτοτόμοι καὶ οἵ ἄλλοι τεχνῖται τὰς ὕλας ἐρανιξόμενοι ταύτας εἰδοποιοῦσί τε χαὶ διαγλύφουσι, καὶ τὰ ὄργανα παρ ἀλλήλων ἀντιλαμβάψοντες, ἀλλ᾽ ἅμα βουληθῆναί τε καὶ τὰ μηδαμῇ μηδαμῶς ὄντα παραγαγεῖν. ἀπροσδεὴς γὰρ ὁ τῶν ὅλων Θεός᾽ αἱ δὲ ἀνθρώπιναι τέχναι. ### English translation (Claude) Such is the conflict among the doctrines of the so-called philosophers; it is time now to show the nobility of the divine Scripture and the truth of its account of the world's origin. It threw the myths about matter into Hesiod's Chaos, and said that God made all things, not as builders, shipwrights, bronze-smiths, goldsmiths, and also weavers, leather-workers, and the other craftsmen collect materials, shape and carve them, and receive tools from one another, but that he willed and at the same time brought forth things that in no way existed at all. For the God of the universe needs nothing; but human crafts ### Extrabiblical texts - Hesiod, Theog. 116 (Hesiod, Theogony): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 4.51. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.50 (Raeder, 114; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-50). ## Discourse 4.51 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-51 - Source: Raeder, 114 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Human crafts depend on one another. ### Greek text ἀλλήλων προσδέονται. δεῖται μὲν γὰρ ὃ κυβερνήτης τοῦ ναυπηγοῦ, δεῖται δὲ ὃ ναυπηγὸς καὶ ὑλοτόμου καὶ χαλκέως καὶ πιττουργοῦ καὶ στυππειοποιοῦ, δεῖται. δέ γε καὶ. δ. δρυτόμος. τοῦ φυτουργοῦ,. καὶ. αὖ πάλιν ὁ φυτουργὸς καὶ: γῆς καὶ ἀρδείας καὶ φυτῶν καὶ σπερμάτῶν ἰ καὶ χαλκέως ἐργαζομένου. σμινύην καὶ δίκελλαν, δεῖταν δέ που καὶ ὃ χαλκεὺς οἰκοδόμου καὶ οἰκίσκον. οἰκοδομοῦνετὸς καὶ ξυναρμόξοντος τῷ ξύλῳ τὸν ἄκμονα «καὶ. ἐνείροντοο. τῷ θαιστῆρι- τὸν. στελεόν, καὶ πάντες δὲ ὁμοίως καὶ σκυτοτόμου καὶ ὑφάντου καὶ γηπόνου προσδέονται; ἵνα.τὸ σῶμα: καὶ τρέφωσι καὶ καλύπτωσι, κἀκεῖνοι δ᾽ αὖ. πάλιν τῆς τούτου. γε ἐξήρτηνται τέχνης, ἵν᾽ ἑκάστῳ. τὰ ὄργανα παράσχῃ τὰ πρόσφορα. ### English translation (Claude) need one another. The helmsman needs the shipwright; the shipwright needs the woodcutter, the smith, the pitch-maker, and the tow-maker; the woodcutter needs the planter; the planter in turn needs earth, irrigation, plants, seeds, and the smith who makes hoe and mattock; the smith needs a builder to build a small house, fit the anvil to the wood, and fix the handle in the hammer; and all alike need the shoemaker, the weaver, and the farmer to feed and clothe the body; and they in turn depend on the smith's craft, so that he may supply each with suitable tools. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.51 (Raeder, 114; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-51). ## Discourse 4.52 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-52 - Source: Raeder, 115 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God's will alone suffices to create, as Psalm 135 says. ### Greek text ὁ δὲ τοῦ παντὸς ποιητὴς οὔτε ὀργάνων οὔτε: ὕλης δεδέηται᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ὅπερ ἐστὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις τεχνίταις. καὶ ὕλη καὶ ὄργανα, καὶ μέντοι καὶ χρόνος καὶ πόνος καὶ ἐπιστήμη. καὶ ἐπιμέλεια, τοῦτο τῷ θεῷ τῶν ὕλων ῆ βούλησις νβανται. γάρ, ὅσα ἠθέλησεν, ὃ Κύριος ἐποίησεν ἐν. τῷ οὐρανῷ. καὶ ἐν τῇ γῇ, ἐν ταῖς θαλάσσαις. καὶ ἐν πάσαις. ταῖς ἀβύσσοις (“᾿ ἢ φασιν οἵ ἱεροὶ λόγοι. ### English translation (Claude) But the Maker of the universe needed neither tools nor material; what material, tools, and also time, toil, knowledge, and care are to other craftsmen, the will is to the God of the universe. 'For whatever the Lord willed he did in heaven and on earth, in the seas and in all the deeps,' as the holy words say. ### Scripture references - Ps 135:6 (134:6 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.52 (Raeder, 115; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-52). ## Discourse 4.53 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-53 - Source: Raeder, 115 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God's power is united to his will, but he made only what he willed. ### Greek text ἠθέλησε δὲ οὐχ ὅσα ἠδύνατο, ἀλλ᾽ ὕσαπερ ἀρκεῖν ἐδοκίμασεν. ῥάδιον μὲν γὰρ ἦν αὐτῷ καὶ: μυρίους καὶ δισμυρίους δημιουργῆσανι κόσμους, εἴπερ. δὴ ἄρα τὸ βουληθῆναι ῥᾷστον ἁπάντων τῶν ποιητέων ἐστίν. παὶ γὰρ ἡμῖν τὸ βουληθῆναι πάντων. ἐστὶν. εὐμαρέστατον, ἀλλ᾽ οὐ ξυμπαρομαρτεῖ τῇ γε ἡμετέρᾳ βουλήσει ἡ δύναμις" τῷ δὲ Θεῷ τῶν ὅλων. ὅσα βουλητὰ δυνατά᾽ τῇ βουλήσει γὰρ ἡ δύναμις ἥνωταν᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως οὐ τῇ δυνάμει τὴν πτίσιν' ἐμέτρησεν, ἀλλ᾽ ὅσαπερ ἠθέλησεν ἐδημιούργησεν. ### English translation (Claude) He willed not as much as he could, but as much as he judged sufficient. It would have been easy for him to make ten thousand or twenty thousand worlds, since willing is the easiest of all things to be done. For us too willing is the easiest of all, but power does not accompany our will; for the God of the universe, however, whatever is willed is possible, for power is united to his will. Yet he did not measure creation by his power, but made as much as he willed. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.53 (Raeder, 115; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-53). ## Discourse 4.54 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/3-102/#p-4-54 - Source: Raeder, 115 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God made intelligible beings for heaven and sensible ones for earth. ### Greek text καὶ ἐπειδὴ. τῶν γεγονότων τὰ μέν ἐστιν αἰσθηνά, τὰ δὲ νοητά, καὶ. τὰ μὲν ἐπίγεια, τὰ δὲ ὑπερουράνια, ἀναγκαίως καὶ ζῷα πεποίηκε τὰ μὲν αἰσθητά, τὰ δὲ νοητά" καὶ τοῖς μὲν νοητοῖς τὸν.αἰθέρα καὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν ἀπεκλήρωσε, τοῖς “δὲ αἰσθητοῖς τὴν γῆν δέδωκε καὶ τὴν θάλατταν ἐνδιαίτημα. ### English translation (Claude) And since among things that have come to be some are sensible and some intelligible, some earthly and some above the heavens, he necessarily made living beings too, some sensible and some intelligible; to the intelligible he allotted the ether and the heaven, and to the sensible he gave earth and sea as a dwelling. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.54 (Raeder, 115; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-54). ## Discourse 4.55 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-55 - Source: Raeder, 116 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Fallen spirits were cast down to air and earth to learn the cost of wickedness. ### Greek text ἐπειδὴ δὲ τῶν. νοητῶν τινες εἰς κακίαν ἀπέκλιναν, ἐξηλάθησαν εἰκότως τῶν οὐρανίων χώρων, καὶ τὴν ἐν τῷ ἀέρι καὶ τῇ γῇ διατριβὴν αὐτοῖς ἀπεκλήρωσεν, οὐχ ἵνα ἐπιτελῶσιν, ὅσαπερ ἂν τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ἐπιβουλεύειν ἐπιχειρῶσιν (ἐπέχει γὰρ δήπου τοῦτο ποιεῖν ἡ τῶν ἀγγέλων φρουρά), ἀλλ᾽ ἵνα τῇ μεταστάσει μάθωσιν, ἡλίμων πρόξενος ἡ πονηρία κακῶν. ### English translation (Claude) And since some of the intelligible beings turned aside to vice, they were fittingly driven from the heavenly regions, and he allotted them a dwelling in the air and on earth, not so that they might accomplish whatever plots they attempt against human beings (for the guard of the angels surely prevents this), but so that by the removal they might learn of how great evils wickedness is the cause. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.55 (Raeder, 116; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55). ## Discourse 4.56 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-56 - Source: Raeder, 116 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Animals revolt against humans as humans revolt against God, to teach them. ### Greek text ἐπειδὴ δὲ διχῇ τὰ αἰσθητὰ διέκρινε γένη καὶ τὰ μὲν λογμιὰ πεποίηκε, τὰ δὲ ἄλογα, ὑπέταξε τῷ λογικῷ ξῴῳ τῶν ἀλόγων τὴν φύσιν. τυραννεῖ δὲ ὅμως τινὰ τούτων καὶ στασιάξει πρὸς τὴν ἀρχὴν καὶ ἐπιβουλεύειν πειρᾶται" ἐπειδὴ δὲ καὶ οἱ τούτων ἄρχοντες ταὐτὸ τοῦτο δρῶσι, καὶ λόγῳ τιμηθέντες κατὰ τοῦ πεποιηκότος λυττῶσι, διὰ δὴ τοῦτο καὶ αὐτοὶ στασιάξονται, ᾿Ξ ὅπως δι’ ὧν πάσχουσι μάθῶσιν, ὡς. σχέτλιον καὶ παμπόνηρον τὸ παραβαίνειν τὴν τάξιν καὶ τοὺς κειμένους ὅρους ἀδεῶς ὑπερβαίνειν. ### English translation (Claude) And since he divided sensible beings into two kinds, making some rational and some irrational, he subjected the nature of the irrational to the rational animal. Yet some of these act as tyrants, revolt against the rule, and try to plot against it; and since their rulers do the very same, and though honored with reason rage against their Maker, they themselves are rebelled against too, so that by what they suffer they may learn how wretched and wicked it is to transgress order and freely overstep the appointed bounds. ### Scripture references - Gen 1:28: allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.56 (Raeder, 116; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-56). ## Discourse 4.57 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-57 - Source: Raeder, 116 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The sea keeps the bounds God set for it. ### Greek text τούτους δὲ τοὺς ὅρους ἔστιν ἰδεῖν τὰ ἄψυχα στοιχεῖα φυλάττοντα. καὶ γὰρ ἡ θάλαττα ταῖς καταιγίσι ῥιπιξομένη καὶ κυκωμένη καὶ πρὸς τὴν χέρσον ὠθουμένη τὴν ψάμμον αἰσχύνεται καὶ τοὺς πεπηγύτας ὕρους παρελθεῖν οὐκ ἀνέχεται" ἀλλά, καθάπερ ἵππος ὁρμῶν ἀναχαιτίξεται χαλινῷ, οὕτως ἐκείνη, τὸν ἄγραφον τοῦ Θεοῦ νόμον ἐν ταῖς ἀκταῖς θεωμένη, εἰς τοὐπίσω χωρεῖς. ### English translation (Claude) One can see the soulless elements keeping these bounds. For the sea, whipped up and stirred by storms and driven toward the dry land, respects the sand and will not pass the fixed bounds; but as a horse charging is reined in by the bridle, so it, seeing God's unwritten law on the shores, goes back, ### Scripture references - Jer 5:22: echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 4.58. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.57 (Raeder, 116; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-57). ## Discourse 4.58 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-58 - Source: Raeder, 116 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Rivers, springs, and seasons keep their order. ### Greek text οἷόν τισιν ἡνίαις ἀγχομένη. οὕτως οἵ ποταμοὶ τρέχουσιν ὥσπερ ἐτάχθησαν ἐξ ἀρχῆς, καὶ ἀναβλύξουσιν. αἵ πηγαί, καὶ τὰ φρέατα χορηγεῖ τοῖς ἀνθρώποις τὴν χρείαν, καὶ αἵ τοῦ ἔτους ὧραι ἀλλήλας οὐρύθμως διαδέχονται, καὶ τὴν ἰσότητα τιμῶσαι τοῦ πλείονος οὐκ ἐφίενται. ### English translation (Claude) checked as if by reins. So rivers run as they were ordered from the beginning, springs gush forth, wells supply human needs, and the seasons of the year succeed one another in good rhythm, and honoring equality do not covet more. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.58 (Raeder, 116; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-58). ## Discourse 4.59 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-59 - Source: Raeder, 116 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Day and night share time without strife. ### Greek text τοῦτον τὸν νόμον καὶ ἡμέραι καὶ νύκτες διατηροῦσιν ἐνδελεχῶς, καὶ οὔτε μηκυνόμεναι μεγαλαυχοῦσιν οὔτε σμικρυνόμεναι δυσχεραίνουσιν, ἀλλὰ - παρ᾽ ἀλλήλων τὸν χρόνον πιχρώμεναι πάλιν ἀναμφισβητήτως τὸ χρέος ἐκτίνουσιν, οὐ ξυγομαχοῦσαι πρὸς ἀλλήλας, ἀλλ᾽ ἔριδος δίχα καὶ παρέχουσαι καὶ λαμβάνουσαι. ### English translation (Claude) Days and nights keep this law continually; they neither boast when lengthened nor are vexed when shortened, but lending time to one another, they repay the debt again without dispute, not fighting one another, but giving and taking without strife. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.59 (Raeder, 116; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-59). ## Discourse 4.60 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-60 - Source: Raeder, 117 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Earth and sea stay constant despite constant use. ### Greek text κἀκεῖνα δὲ ὁμοίως τοῦ δημιουργοῦ τὴν σοφίαν ἐπιδειινύει καὶ δύναμιν. οὔτε γὰρ ἡ γῆ ἐν τοσαύταῖς δὴ χιλιάσιν ἐτῶν ἀρουμένη καὶ σπειρομένη καὶ φυτευομένη καὶ τρέφουσα τοὺς καρποὺς καὶ πατουμένη καὶ μεταλλευομένη καὶ ὑομένη καὶ νιφομένη καὶ φλεγομένη, μείωσίν τινὰ “πέπονθεν ἢ τοὺς καρποὺς. ἐλάττους τοῖς γεωργοῦσι προσφέρει, οὔτε ἡ θάλαττα, τῶν νεφῶν. διηνεκῶς ἐκεῖθεν ἀνιμωμένων τῶν ὑδάτων τὴν φύσιν, καὶ τὸν ὑετὸν ὠδινόντων καὶ παρεχόντων. τῇ γῇ, ἐλάττων ὥφθη πώποτε ἢ ποιλοτέρα ἐγένετο ἢ τὰς ἠϊόνας κατέλιπεν, ἃς᾽ πάλαι κατέκρυπτεν, οὔτε μὴν ηὐξήθη πάλιν. τοὺς πανταχόθεν εἰσρέοντας ποταμοὺς δεχομένη. ### English translation (Claude) These things likewise show the wisdom and power of the Maker. The earth, plowed, sown, planted, nourishing fruits, trodden, mined, rained on, snowed on, and scorched for so many thousands of years, has suffered no diminution and does not offer smaller fruits to farmers; nor has the sea, though the clouds continually draw up its waters and bring forth rain and give it to the earth, ever been seen smaller or become hollower or left the shores it once covered; nor again has it increased, though receiving rivers flowing in from every side. ### Scripture references - Eccl 1:7: echo, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.60 (Raeder, 117; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-60). ## Discourse 4.61 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-61 - Source: Raeder, 117 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The sun consumes water, shrinking rivers in summer. ### Greek text καὶ οὔτι λέγω, πόθεν δὴ. ἄρα τῶν ποταμῶν τὰ βεύματα φέρεται (ἄρρητος γὰρ δή μοι πάμπαν καὶ οὗτος ὃ λόγος) ὅπως δὲ καὶ ὁ ἥλιος τὴν ὑγρὰν οὐσίαν πέφυκεν ἀναλίσκειν, εὐπετὲς μάλα τῷ βουλομένῳ καταμαθεῖν. καὶ γὰρ δὴ ξηραίνει τὰ τέλματα καὶ τὰ τῶν ὑδάτων ἀναλίσκει ξυστήματα καὶ τὰ ἡμέτερα σώματα διαυαένει, καὶ μέντοι τοὺς ποταμοὺς σμικρυνομένους ἔστιν ἰδεῖν, ὅταν οὗτος ἀφεὶς τὰ νότια ἐπὶ τὰ βόρεια μέρη τρέχῃ καὶ τὸ θέρος ἐργάζηται. ### English translation (Claude) I do not say from where the streams of rivers come (for this account is wholly beyond my telling); but how the sun naturally consumes the watery substance is very easy for anyone to learn. For it dries up marshes, consumes collections of water, and parches our bodies; and one can see rivers shrinking when it leaves the southern regions, runs to the northern, and makes summer. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.61 (Raeder, 117; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-61). ## Discourse 4.62 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-62 - Source: Raeder, 117 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Nile floods in summer; one should praise God rather than pry into causes. ### Greek text διά τοῦ τοῦτο καὶ τὸν Νεῖλόν φασιν οὐ κατὰ τὸν αὐτὸν τοῖς ἄλλοις ποταμοῖς πλημμυρεῖν καιρόν, ἀλλὰ μεσοῦντος τοῦ θέρους ἐπικλύξειν τὴν ““ἴγυπτον, ὡς τοῦ γε ἡλίου τὴν ᾿βορειοτέραν διαθέοντος ζώνην, καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις μὲν ποταμοῖς ἐνοχλοῦντος, τούτου δέ γε πλεῖστον ιἀπέχοντος. εἰ δὲ καὶ ἄλλας αἰτίας τῆς τούτου γε πλημ- “μύρας εἶναί φασί τινες, ἀλλ᾽ οὐκ ἔμοιγε ἁρμόττειν τόνδε γῶν τὸν λόγον ὑπείληφα. καὶ γὰρ τοῖς ἄλλοις παρεγγυῶ τῆς μὲν θείας οἰκονομίας μὴ πολυπραγμονεῖν τὰς. αἰτίας, θαυμάξειν δὲ τὰ γινόμενα καὶ τὸν ποιητὴν ἀνυμνεῖν. ### English translation (Claude) That is why they say the Nile floods not at the same season as other rivers, but inundates Egypt in midsummer, since the sun is running through the more northern zone, troubling the other rivers but standing furthest from it. If some say there are other causes of its flooding, I do not think this account suits me. For I urge others too not to pry into the causes of the divine management, but to wonder at what happens and hymn the Maker. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.62 (Raeder, 117; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-62). ## Discourse 4.63 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-63 - Source: Raeder, 118 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The air is never used up. ### Greek text διὸ δὴ καὶ ἔγωγε θαυμάξω καὶ τοῦ ἀέρος μὴ δαπανωμένην τὴν φύσιν, τοσούτων "μὲν ἀνθρώπων, τοσούτων δὲ ἀλόγων ζῴων διαπνεόντων τοῦτον διηνεκῶς, τοσαύτης δὲ ἀκτῖνος καὶ οὕτως ἄγαν “θερμῆς τοῦτον διαπερώσης, πρὸς δὲ τῷ ἡλίῳ καὶ τῆς σελήνης καὶ τῶν ἀστέρων ταὐτό γε τοῦτο ποιούντων. ### English translation (Claude) So I too wonder that the nature of the air is not used up, though so many human beings and so many irrational animals breathe it continually, and so great and so hot a ray passes through it, and besides the sun, the moon and stars do the same. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.63 (Raeder, 118; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-63). ## Discourse 4.64 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-64 - Source: Raeder, 118 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God gave creatures power to endure and reconciled contrary elements. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ γὰρ ὑπὲρ θαῦμα τὸ θαῦμα᾽ καὶ κινδυνεύω γε λέγειν, ὡς οὐδὲ θαῦμα τὸ θαῦμα. Θεοῦ γὰρ δημιουργοῦντος, προσήκει θαυμάξειν μὲν ὡς ἥκιστα, ὑμνεῖν δὲ ὡς μάλιστα᾽ πάντα γὰρ αὐτῷ δάδιον ποιεῖν, ὅσα γε αὐτῷ πρόύσ- 'φορα. ἐναπέθετο δὲ καὶ οἷς δεδημιούργηκεν, εἰς ὅσον ταῦτα ξυνεστάναν βούλεται χρόνον, δύναμιν ἀποχρῶσαν. διά τοι τοῦτο καὶ ἡ γῆ μεμένηκεν, οἵαπερ ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἐγεγόνει, καὶ ἡ θάλαττα οὔτε σμιπρύνεται οὔτε αὔξεται, καὶ ὁ ἀὴρ ἣν. ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἔλαχε φύσιν, ἄσυλον διστήρησε, καὶ ὁ ἥλιος δὲ τήκειν οὐ δύναται καὶ διαλύειν, ὃ ὃ διαθέει στερέωμα, οὔτε μὴν τὸ στερέωμα, ὑγρὸν ὄν, θερμὸν ὄντα τὸν ἥλιον σβέννυσιν᾽ ἕκαστον γάρ, ὃν ἐξ ἀῤγῆς ὁ ἔλαχε, διεφύλαξε λῆρον. τὰς γὰρ ἐναντίας. φύσεις ὑγροῦ λαὶ ξηροῦ, ἐαὶ αὖ πάλιν ψυχροῦ χαὶ θερμοῦ, ξυνήγαγεν εἰς" φιλίαν ὁ ὁ “ποιητής. ### English translation (Claude) But the wonder is beyond wonder; and I venture to say that the wonder is no wonder. For when God creates, it is fitting to wonder least and to hymn most; for it is easy for him to do all that suits him. He placed in what he made sufficient power for as long as he wishes them to endure. That is why the earth has remained as it was from the beginning, the sea neither shrinks nor grows, the air has kept inviolate the nature it received from the beginning, and the sun cannot melt or dissolve the firmament through which it runs, nor does the firmament, being watery, quench the sun, which is hot; for each has kept the lot it received from the beginning. For the Maker brought into friendship the contrary natures of wet and dry, and again of cold and hot. ### Scripture references - Gen 1:6–8: allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - 'Firmament' (στερέωμα) as watery follows Theodoret's reading of Gen 1:6–8. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.64 (Raeder, 118; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-64). ## Discourse 4.65 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-65 - Source: Raeder, 119 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The order of the heavens should lead us to hymn their Maker. ### Greek text ὅταν Τοίνυν τοὐτῶν ἕκαστον ἴδωμεν," καὶ τὸν μὲν ἥλιον νῦν μὲν, "τὰ βόρεια, γῦν δὲ τὰ νότια, ἄλλοτε δὲ τὰ μέσα τοῦ οὐρανοῦ διαθέοντα, καὶ τὴν σελήνην αὐξομένην καὶ φθίνουσᾶν,, καὶ τοὺς ᾿ἀστέρας κατὰ καιρὸν ἀνίδχοντάς τε καὶ δυομένους καὶ ἀμητοῦ καιρὸν καὶ σπόρου σημαίνοντας καὶ Τοῖς ναυτίλλομένοις χείμῶνα καὶ γαλήνην. μηνύοντας, μὴ ταῦτά ὦ φίλοι ἄνδρες, θεοπονήσωμεν, ἀλλὰ τὸν τούτων ποιηϊνὴν᾽ χαὶ δημιουργὸν Καὶ κυβερνήτην ἀνυμνήσωμεν καὶ διὰ τῶν ὁρώμένων πρὸς τὸν ἀόρατον ᾿ ἐκδημήσωμεν. ### English translation (Claude) So when we see each of these, and the sun now running through the north, now the south, at other times the middle of heaven, and the moon waxing and waning, and the stars rising and setting in season, signaling the time of harvest and of sowing, and showing sailors storm and calm, let us not, my friends, make these gods, but let us hymn their Maker, Creator, and Helmsman, and through visible things journey to the Invisible. ### Scripture references - Gen 1:14: echo, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.65 (Raeder, 119; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-65). ## Discourse 4.66 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-66 - Source: Raeder, 119 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Faith sees God in nature's gifts; we should hymn him, not pagan deities. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ 7ὰρ ὀὖκ ἐκδημίας ἡμῖν ἀλλὰ πίστεως ᾿ χρεία" διὰ ταύτης 7ὰρ μόνης ἰδεῖν ἐκεῖνον ᾿δυνάμεθα, ὅταν ἴδωμεν εἰς καιρὸν τὰς ὥρας μεταβαινούσας, καὶ τὸν ὑέτὸν τῇ ᾿ γῇ χοφηγούμενον, αὶ ταὐτὴν ᾿φύουσαν χαὶ τῇ πόᾳ καλυπεδμένην, καὶ τὰ λήϊα κυμαίνοντα καὶ τοὺς λεηιῶνας ἀνθοῦντας,, καὶ κομῶντα τὰ ἄλση καὶ βρίθοντα τῷ καρπῷ, πενήσωμεν εἰς ὑμνῳδίαν τοῦ ταῦτα ᾿δεδωρημένου τὴν γλῶτταν, καὶ μήτε ΝΝύμφας᾿ ὀρεστιἄδας ἢ πήγαίας ἢ ποταμίας, ᾿βήτε τὰς Νηρέως θεοποιήσώμεν θυγατέφας, 'μήτε τῇ Δηοῖ τὸν ἴουλον ἄσωμεν͵ ἢ τὸν λιτυέφσαν, μὴ Διονύσῳ τὸν διθύραμβον, Ϊ μὴ τῷ Πυθίῳ μάντει τὸν παιᾶνα, μὴ τῇ ᾿Αρτέμιδι τὸν ὕποιπον᾽ ἀλλὰ τῷ ποιητῇ τῶν ὅλων τὴν “Ἰχυιτικὴν προσενέγκωμεν μελφδίαν καὶ μετ᾽ ἐκείνου βοήσωμεν" »ῶς ἐμεγαλύνθη τὰ ἔργα ὅου, ### English translation (Claude) But we need not a journey, but faith; for through it alone can we see him. When we see the seasons changing in due time, the rain supplied to the earth, the earth sprouting and covered with grass, the cornfields waving and the meadows flowering, the groves in leaf and laden with fruit, let us set our tongue to hymn the Giver of these things; let us not deify mountain, spring, or river Nymphs, nor the daughters of Nereus, nor sing the harvest hymn to Deo or the reapers' song, nor the dithyramb to Dionysus, nor the paean to the Pythian seer, nor the upingos to Artemis; but let us offer the Maker of the universe the melody of David and cry out with him: 'How great are your works, ### Scripture references - Ps 104:24 (103:24 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation of Ps 104:24 ends in 4.67. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.66 (Raeder, 119; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-66). ## Discourse 4.67 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-67 - Source: Raeder, 119 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Birdsong should move us to worship God, not the Muses. ### Greek text Κύῤιε᾽ πάντα ἐν σοφίᾳ ἐποίησας.“ ὅταν δικῶν ὀρνίθων ἀκούσωμεν ποικίλα γε ἀδόντων ἄσματα καὶ διάφορα, καὶ τεττίγων τερετιζόντων, ἐρρῶσθαν φράσαντες Σειρῆσι καὶ Μούσαις, τὸν πάνσοφον καὶ παναλικῆ Θεὸν προσκυνήσωμεν, τὸν καὶ τοῖς μικροῖς πτηνοῖς τοσαύτην μέλους δωρησάμενον ἁρμονίαν καὶ διὰ πάντων καὶ τρέφοντα καὶ τέρποντα καὶ καταθέλγοντα τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὸ γένος. : ### English translation (Claude) O Lord! In wisdom you have made them all.' When we hear songbirds singing various and different songs, and cicadas chirping, let us bid farewell to Sirens and Muses and worship the all-wise and all-powerful God, who gave such harmony of song even to small birds and through all of them nourishes, delights, and charms the human race. ### Scripture references - Ps 104:24 (103:24 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.67 (Raeder, 119; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-67). ## Discourse 4.68 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-68 - Source: Raeder, 120 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Of all accounts, creation from nothing alone befits God. ### Greek text Ταῦτα ταῖς τῶν φιλοσόφων, ὦ φίλοι ἄνδρες, παρεξετάσατε δόξαις,. καὶ σκοπήσατε, ὀρθῇ γε καὶ δικαίᾳ χρώμενον ψήφῳ, τίνα τούτων περὶ Θεοῦ λέγειν πρόσφορα καὶ ἁρμόδια, τὸ ἀγένητον εἶναι τὸ πᾶν, ἢ ἀπὸ ταὐτομάτου ξυστῆναι, ἢ τὸ ἀπὸ τῶν ἀτόμων καὶ τοῦ κενοῦ ξυναρμοσθῆναι, ἢ τὸ ὑπὸ Θεοῦ μέν, ἐκ δὲ τῆς ὕλης γενέσθαι, ἢ τούτων μὲν ἕκαστον περὶ Θεοῦ λέγειν ἀνόσιον, ἐκεῖνο δέ γε. εἶκός τε καὶ ἀληθές, ὡς τῶν ὅλων ποιητὴς ὃ Θεός, οὐ τοῖς ἄλλοις τεχνίταις παραπλησίως ἐξ ὕλης τὰ πάντα δημιουργήσας, ἀλλ᾽ αὐτὸς τὰ πάντα μὴ ὄντα παραγαγὼν καὶ παρασχεῖν ἐθελήσας τοῖς μὴ οὖσι τὸ εἶναι. ### English translation (Claude) Compare these things, my friends, with the opinions of the philosophers, and consider, with a right and just vote, which of them is fitting and suitable to say about God: that the universe is unbegotten, or that it came together by chance, or was fitted together from atoms and the void, or came to be by God but from matter; or whether each of these is unholy to say about God, and that is likely and true: that God is the Maker of the universe, not making all things from matter like other craftsmen, but himself bringing all things from non-being and willing to give being to what was not. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.68 (Raeder, 120; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-68). ## Discourse 4.69 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-69 - Source: Raeder, 120 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God still creates daily, forming bodies from matter and human souls from nothing. ### Greek text ῥῴδιον γὰρ αὐτῷ καὶ ἐκ μὴ ὄντων καὶ ἐξ ὄντων δημιουργεῖν" τοῦτο γὰρ δὴ καὶ πάλαι πεποίηκε καὶ καθ' ἑκάστην, ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν, ἡμέραν ποιεῖ, καὶ γὰρ ἐξ ὑποκειμένων σωμάτων διοπλάττει τῶν ζῴων τὰ σώματα καὶ ἐν μὴ ὄντων δημιουργεῖ τὰς ψυχάς, οὖχ ὅπασι τοῖς ζῴοις, ἀλλὰ μόνοις ἀνθρώποις" καὶ. διὰ τῶν πτηνῶν δημιουργεῖ τὰ πτηνὰ καὶ διὰ τῶν “νηκντῶν τὰ νηχτὰ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων γενῶν ἕκαστον διὰ τῶν ὁμογενῶν διαπλάττει. ### English translation (Claude) For it is easy for him to create both from what is not and from what is; for he did this of old and does it, so to speak, every day. From underlying bodies he forms the bodies of living things, and from nothing he creates souls, not for all living things but for human beings alone; through birds he creates birds, through swimming creatures swimming creatures, and forms each of the other kinds through its own kind. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.69 (Raeder, 120; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-69). ## Discourse 4.70 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-70 - Source: Raeder, 120 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: At first the earth and waters brought forth life at God's command. ### Greek text οὕτω δὴ καὶ τῆς γῆς τοὺς καρποὺς διὰ τῶν σπειρομένων καὶ φυτευομένων τοῖς ἀνθρώποις προσφέρει" πάλαι δὲ ἡ γῆ καὶ ἄσπαρτος καὶ ἀνήροτος ἐβλάστησε πᾶσαν φυτῶν καὶ σπερμάτων ἰδέαν καὶ τῶν ἕρπετῶν καὶ τετραπόδων τὰ γένη᾽ καὶ τῶν ὑδάτων ἡ φύσις ἔφυσεν, ὡς ἐκελεύσθη, καὶ τὰ τοῖς ὕδασιν ἐνδιαιτώμενα ἔα καὶ τὰ τὸν ἀέρα διαπερᾶν πεφυκότα. ### English translation (Claude) So too he offers human beings the fruits of the earth through what is sown and planted; but of old the earth, unsown and unplowed, brought forth every kind of plant and seed and the kinds of reptiles and quadrupeds; and the nature of the waters brought forth, as commanded, the animals that live in the waters and those whose nature it is to pass through the air. ### Scripture references - Gen 1:11–12: allusion, high confidence - Gen 1:20–24: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.70 (Raeder, 120; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-70). ## Discourse 4.71 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-71 - Source: Raeder, 121 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God made the elements from nothing and steers creation. ### Greek text αὐτὴν μέντοι τὴν γῆν καὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὸν ἀέρα καὶ τῶν ὑδάτων τὴν φύσιν καὶ τὸ πῦρ καὶ τὸ φῶς οὐ τῇ ὕλῃ ἀναδοῦναι προσέταξεν, ἀλλὰ μὴ ὄντα παρήγαγεν, αὐτὸς καὶ φυτουργύς" καὶ ναυπηγὸς τοῦ μεγίστου σκάφους τῆς κτίσεως γεγονώς, αὐνὸς καὶ κυβερνᾷ καὶ ἰθύνει, ὃ πανσόφως κατεσκεύασε σχάφος. ### English translation (Claude) But the earth itself, heaven, air, the nature of the waters, fire, and light he did not order matter to produce, but brought them forth from non-being; he himself became planter and shipwright of the greatest vessel, creation, and he himself steers and directs the vessel he built so wisely. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.71 (Raeder, 121; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-71). ## Discourse 4.72 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-72 - Source: Raeder, 121 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The whole of Scripture teaches one Maker of the universe. ### Greek text ταῦτα οὐ μόνον ἡμᾶς εὐαγγελισταὶ παιδεύουσι καὶ ἀπόστολοι, ἀλλὰ καὶ προφῆται καὶ τῶν προφητῶν ὃ κορυφαῖος Μωύσῆς, ὃ τὴν κοσμογένειαν ξυγγράψας, «καὶ πρό γε τούτων “ΔΑβραὰμ καὶ Μελχισεδὲκ καὶ ἅπας τῶν πατριαρχῶν ὁ χορός. ἕκαστος γὰρ τούτων οὐ πολλούς, ἀλλὰ τὸν τοῦ παντὸς ἐθεολόγησε ποιητήν. καὶ τοῦτο εἴσεσθε, εἶ τοῖς θείοις λογίοις ἐντύχοιτε. ### English translation (Claude) Not only evangelists and apostles teach us this, but also the prophets, and the chief of the prophets, Moses, who wrote of the world's origin, and before them Abraham, Melchizedek, and the whole choir of the patriarchs. For each of them spoke of God not as many, but as the Maker of the universe. You will know this if you read the divine oracles. ### Scripture references - Gen 14:19: allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.72 (Raeder, 121; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-72). ## Discourse 4.73 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-4-73 - Source: Raeder, 121 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret urges his readers to embrace Scripture's truth and worship God. ### Greek text ἐκ παραλλήλου τοίνυν μεμαθηκότες, ὕσον τῶν ἀνθρφωπίνων ὑπέρκειται λογισμῶν τῆς θείας γραφῆς τὰ παιδεύματα, φύγετε μέν, ὦ φιλότης, τὸν πλάγον, ἀσπάζεσθε δὲ τὴν ἡλίου φανοτέραν ἀλήθειαν, ἵνα ὑπὸ ταύτης φωταγωγούμενοι καὶ τῶν θείων λογίων τὸν νοῦν θεωρήσητε καὶ τοὺς τούτων διδασκάλους θαυμάσητε, καὶ οδσόντες ἐπὶ πρόσωπον,“ ἀποστολικῶς εἰπεῖν, προσκυνήδητε τῷ Θεῷ, λέγοντες, ὅτι ὄντως ὁ Θεὸς ἐν ὑμῖν ἐστιν ΄ ### English translation (Claude) Having learned by comparison how far the teachings of divine Scripture surpass human reasonings, flee error, my friends, and embrace the truth brighter than the sun, so that, enlightened by it, you may see the meaning of the divine oracles, admire their teachers, and 'falling on your face', to speak with the apostle, worship God, saying that God is truly among you. ### Scripture references - 1 Cor 14:25: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 4.73 (Raeder, 121; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-73). ## Discourse 5.1 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-1 - Source: Raeder, 122 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The magnet draws iron alone and can hold it suspended invisibly. ### Greek text Ἔστι τις λίθου φύσις, ἣν μοαγνῆτιν ὀνομάζουσιν, -ἣ πᾶσαν ἐῶσα τὴν ἄλλην ὕλην ἀκίνητον, τὸν σίδηρον ἐφέλχεται μόνον" ἔστι δὲ ὅτε καὶ δείκνυσιν αἰωρούμενον, οὔτε κάτωθεν ὑπό τινος ἐρειδόμενον οὔτε ἄνωθεν φαινομένῳ τῳ 'ξυνδεδεμένον, ἀφανῶς δὲ τῆς ὑπερκειμένης ἐκείνης ἢ ὑπέρφαινομένης ἐνεργείας ἐξηρτημένον. ### English translation (Claude) There is a kind of stone they call magnet, which leaves all other material unmoved and draws iron alone; and sometimes it even shows the iron suspended, neither supported from below by anything nor tied to anything visible above, but hanging invisibly from that power above or appearing above it. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.1 (Raeder, 122; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-1). ## Discourse 5.2 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-2 - Source: Raeder, 122 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Scripture draws only the faithful, as Paul says of the word of the cross. ### Greek text τοιόνδε τι γινόμενον ἐπὶ τῶν θείων λογίων ἴδοι τις ἄν. πολλοὺ μὲν γὰρ δὴ τούτων, μᾶλλον δὲ ἅπαντες, ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν, ἐπαΐουσιν ἄνθρωποι᾿ οἵ δὲ τῆς πίστεως μόνοι θηρεύονται τρύφιμοι, οὔτε κάτωθεν ὑπό τινος εὐκληρίας ψυχαγωγούμενοι οὔτε ἄνωθεν ὁρωμένῳ τῷ ξυνδεδεμένοι, μόναις δὲ ταῖς ἀφανέσιν ἐλπίσι τὸν νοῦν ξυναρμύσαντες. τῷ τοι καὶ ὁ θεῖος ἀπόστολος τὸν περὶ τοῦ σταυροῦ λόγον τοῖς μὲν ἀπολλυμένοις εἶναι μωρίαν, τοῖς δὲ σωζομένοις Θεοῦ δύναμιν ἔφησεν. ἀλλ᾽ ### English translation (Claude) One might see something like this happen with the divine oracles. Many human beings, or rather, so to speak, all of them, hear them; but only those who delight in faith are caught, neither drawn from below by some good fortune nor tied to anything visible above, but having fitted their mind only to unseen hopes. That is why the divine apostle said that the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to those being saved the power of God. But ### Scripture references - 1 Cor 1:18: allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 5.3. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.2 (Raeder, 122; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-2). ## Discourse 5.3 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-3 - Source: Raeder, 122 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Unlike the magnet, Scripture does not compel; free choice decides. ### Greek text ἐκείνη μὲν ἡ λέθος ἰδιόνητι φύσεως θέειν παρ᾽ αὐτὴν τὸν σίδηρον ἐκβιάξεται᾽ τῶν δὲ θείων λογίων ἡ χάρις οὐκ αὐτὴ τοὺς μὲν προσίεται, τοὺς δὲ ἀποπέμπεται (πᾶσι γὰρ τοῖς ἐμφορεῖσθαι βουλομένοις προχέει τὰ νάματα), ἀλλὰ τὸ τῶν ἀκροωμένων αὐθαίρετον τοὺς μὲν προσάγει διψῶντας, τοὺς δὲ πόρρω ποιεῖ, τόνδε τὸν ἵμερον ἔχειν ἥκιστα βουλομένους. ### English translation (Claude) that stone, by a property of its nature, forces the iron to run to it; while the grace of the divine oracles does not itself welcome some and send others away (for it pours out its streams for all who wish to drink their fill); rather, the free choice of the hearers brings some near, thirsting, and makes others far off, who have no wish at all for this longing. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.3 (Raeder, 122; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-3). ## Discourse 5.4 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-4 - Source: Raeder, 122 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God made rational nature free and does not compel it. ### Greek text ὃ δέ γε τῶν ψυχῶν ἰατρὸς τὴν τῶν οὐκ ἐθελόντῶν ἀπολαύειν τῆς θεραπείας οὐ βιάξεται γνώμην" αὐτοκράτορα γὰρ καὶ αὐτεξούσιον τὴν λογικὴν φύσιν δημιουργήσας, παραινέσεσν μὲν καὶ νόμοις καὶ τῶν χειρόνων ἀποτρέπει καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ κρείττω προτρέπει, οὐκ ἀναγκάζει δὲ μὴ βουλομένην τῶν ἀμεινόνων μεταλαχεῖν, ἵνα μὴ παρακινήσῃ τοὺς ὕρους τῆς φύσεως. ### English translation (Claude) The physician of souls does not force the will of those unwilling to enjoy the treatment; for having made rational nature self-governing and free, he turns it from worse things and urges it to better by exhortations and laws, but does not compel it, if unwilling, to share in better things, so as not to disturb the bounds of nature. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.4 (Raeder, 122; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-4). ## Discourse 5.5 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-5 - Source: Raeder, 123 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The prophets appeal to free will with promises. ### Greek text ταύτῃ τοι καὶ διὰ τῶν προφητῶν βοᾷ.»ξὰν θέλητε καὶ εἰσακούσητέ μου, τὰ ἀγαθὰ τῆς γῆς ἀγεσθει [ καὶ αὖ πάλιν.,δεῦτε τέκνα, ἀκούσατέ" μου, φόβον Κυρίου διδάξω ὑμᾶς. τίς ἐστιν ἄνθρωπος ὃ θέλων ἑωήν, ἀγαπῶν ἡμέρας ἰδεῖν ἀγαθάς; εἶτα τῶν χειρόνων ἀποτρέπων, ἐπιδείκνυσι τὸ πρακτέον᾽ “παῦσον τὴν γλῶσσάν σου ἀπὸ κακοῦ καὶ χείλη σου τοῦ μὴ λαλῆσαι δόλον᾽ -ἔκχλινον ἀπὸ κακοῦ καὶ ποίησον ἀγαθόν. ζήτησον εἰρήνην καὶ δίωξον αὐτήν. δῆλα δὲ τοῖς πενθομένοις ποιεῖ καὶ τῶν πόνων τὰ ἄθλα, ὅτι ὀφθαλμοὶ Κυρίου ἐπὶ δικαίους, ### English translation (Claude) That is why he cries through the prophets: 'If you are willing and listen to me, you shall eat the good things of the land.' And again: 'Come, children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Who is the man who desires life and loves to see good days?' Then, turning them from worse things, he shows what is to be done: 'Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit; turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.' And he makes clear to those being taught the prizes of their labors too: 'The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, ### Scripture references - Isa 1:19: quotation, high confidence - Ps 34:11–15 (33:12-Ps LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation of Ps 34:15 ends in 5.6. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.5 (Raeder, 123; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-5). ## Discourse 5.6 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-6 - Source: Raeder, 123 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God threatens and invites, through prophets and in person in the Gospels. ### Greek text καὶ ὦτα αὐτοῦ εἰς δέησιν αὐτῶν.“ ἐπειδὴ δὲ καὶ ὁ φύβος τοῖς παιδαγωγουμένοις ἁρμόδιος, ἀναγκαίως καὶ ταῖς ἀπειλαῖς τοὺς δαστώνῃ ξυξζῶντας δεδίττεται καί φησιν᾽ πρόσωπον δὲ Κυρίου ἐπὶ ποιοῦντας κακά, τοῦ ἐξολοθρεῦσαν ἐκ γῆς τὸ μνημόσυνον αὐτῶν.“ ὃ δὲ ταύτην προσενεγκὼν διὰ τοῦ προφήτου τὴν παραίνεσιν ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς εὐαγγελίοις οὖν ἄλλῳ τῷ χρώμενος ὑπουργῷ, ἀλλ᾽ αὐτὸς διὰ τῆς σαρπὸς φθεγγόμενος, ἣν ἀνέλαβεν, ἔλεγεν",,εἴ τις. διψᾷ, ἐρχέσθω πρός μὲ καὶ πινέτω.“ καὶ πάλιν᾽ δεῦτε πρός μὲ πάντες οἵ κοπιῶντες καὶ πεφορτισμένοι, κἀγὼ ἀναπαύσω ὑμᾶς." ### English translation (Claude) and his ears toward their prayer.' And since fear also suits those being trained, he necessarily frightens those living at ease with threats too, and says: 'But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to cut off their memory from the earth.' And he who offered this exhortation through the prophet, in the holy Gospels using no other servant but himself speaking through the flesh he assumed, said: 'If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.' And again: 'Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.' ### Scripture references - Ps 34:15–16 (33:16-Ps LXX): quotation, high confidence - John 7:37: quotation, high confidence - Matt 11:28: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.6 (Raeder, 123; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-6). ## Discourse 5.7 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-7 - Source: Raeder, 123 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret urges his readers not to delay their salvation, quoting Hesiod. ### Greek text καὶ ἄλλα δὲ μυρία εὗρον τις ἂν κἀν τοῖς θείοις. εὐαγγελίοις κἀν τοῖς τῶν ἀποστόλων ξυγγράμμαοσι, δηλοῦντα σαφῶς τῆς τῶν ἀνθρώπων φύσεως τὸ αὐθαίρετον. οὗ δὴ χάριν κἀγὼ πέμπτην ὑμῖν, ὦ ἄνδρες, τήνδε προσφέρω. παραίνεσιν᾽ οὐκ ἀξιῶν μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἄγαν γε λιπαρῶν καὶ ποτνιώμενος τὸν τῆς ἰατρείας μὴ προέσθαι καιρὸν μηδὲ ἀναβάλλεσθαι τὴν σωτηρίαν εἰς αὔριον, ἣν οὐκ ἴσμεν εἴπερ δὴ πάντως ὀψόμεθα, ἀλλ᾽ ἀναμνησθῆναι τῆς τοῦ ᾿Ασχραίου ποιητοῦ παραινέσεως" μηδ᾽ ἀναβάλλεσθαι ἔς τ᾽ αὔριον ἔς τε ἔνηφι,"“ προσέχειν -δὲ ἀκριβῶς καὶ τῇ ἄλλῃ τοῦδε τοῦ ποιητοῦ γνώμῃ, ξυνῳδὰ φθεγγομένῃ. αἰεὶ δ’ ἀμβολιεργὸς ἀνὴρ ἄὄτῃσι ### English translation (Claude) One could find countless other passages in the divine Gospels and the writings of the apostles clearly showing the free choice of human nature. For this reason, gentlemen, I offer you this fifth exhortation, not only asking but earnestly entreating and imploring you not to let slip the time of healing nor put off salvation till tomorrow, which we do not know we shall ever see; but to remember the advice of the poet of Ascra, 'Do not put off till tomorrow or the day after,' and to attend carefully to this poet's other maxim, which agrees with it: 'The man who puts off work always wrestles with ruin.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Hesiod, Op. 410 (Hesiod, Works and Days): quotation, high confidence - Hesiod, Op. 413 (Hesiod, Works and Days): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Hesiod, Works and Days 410 and 413. The second verse is incomplete in the section; translated in full by sense. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.7 (Raeder, 123; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-7). ## Discourse 5.8 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-8 - Source: Raeder, 124 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The fifth discourse turns to human nature. ### Greek text ἘἜπειδὴ τοίνυν τοῦ κόσμου πέρι καὶ τῆς ὕλης τίνα προσήκει φρονεῖν, μεμαθήκαμεν, καὶ ὅσον τὸ μέσον τῶν τε θείων καὶ τῶν φιλοσόφων δογμάτων, φέρε λοιπὸν ἐξετάσωμεν, τίνα περὶ τῆς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου φύσεως ἡ θεία γραφὴ φρονεῖν ἡμᾶς ἐξεπαίδευσεν, καὶ τίνα οἱ τῇ εὐεπείῳ τοὺς λόγους παλλύνοντες καὶ ὀνομάτων ὥρᾳ καὶ ῥημάτων ἡβρυσμένων προσενεγχόντες τὸ ψεῦδος. ### English translation (Claude) Since, then, we have learned what to think about the world and matter, and how great the difference is between divine and philosophical doctrines, come, let us now examine what the divine Scripture taught us to think about human nature, and what those taught who embellished their words with eloquence and offered falsehood in the bloom of fine words and phrases. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.8 (Raeder, 124; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-8). ## Discourse 5.9 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-9 - Source: Raeder, 124 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The poets' myths of human origin are set aside; only philosophers are compared. ### Greek text ὅσα μὲν οὖν ποιηταὶ περὶ τούτου μυθολογοῦσιν, ἐατέον ἐπὶ τοῦ παρόντος, οὐ μύρῳ τούτους, κατὰ τὸν Πλάτωνα, χρίσαντας, ἀλλὰ τῇ φερομένῃ παρ᾽ αὐτῶν δυσοσμίᾳ τὰς αἰσθήσεις ἀποτειχίσαντας, ἐκεῖνοι γὰρ οὐ μόνον γηγενεῖς, ἀλλὰ καὶ σπαρτοὺς ἀνθρώπους γεγενῆσθαί φασι καὶ ἐκ δρακοντείων ἀναφῦναι ὀδόντων. } ἃ δέ γε φιλόσοφοι θρυλοῦσι καὶ ξυγγραφεῖς, ταῦτα μόνα τῇ τῆς ἀληθείας παραθετέον διδασκαλίᾳ. ### English translation (Claude) What the poets tell in myth about this must be left aside for now, not anointing them with myrrh, as Plato did, but walling off our senses against the stench they give off. For they say that human beings were not only earth-born but sown, and sprang up from dragon's teeth. Only what philosophers and historians repeat must be set beside the teaching of truth. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 398a (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 3.398a (see 2.6). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.9 (Raeder, 124; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-9). ## Discourse 5.10 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-10 - Source: Raeder, 124 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The philosophers disagree on the origin of humanity. ### Greek text ῥητέον δέ γε πρὸ τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων, ὅσην περὶ τῆς τοῦδε τοῦ γέγους ξυστάσεως ἔριν καὶ διαμάχην ἐσχήκασιν. οἵ μὲν γὰρ ἀΐδιον εἶναι τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὴν φύσιν εἰρήκασι καὶ τοῦδε τοῦ γένους ἀεὶ ἔμπλεων γεγενῆσθαι τὴν γῆν. οἱ δὲ ἐν τῇ ᾿Ζττικῇ πρῶτον φῦναν ἀνθρώπους, ἄλλοι δὲ ἐν Ἀρκαδίᾳ τοῦτο γενέσθαι πρῶτον, ἕτεροι δ᾽ αὖ πάλιν ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ᾽ καὶ ἄλλαις δὲ πόλεσι πολλὴ περὶ τούτου φιλοτιμία γεγένηται. ### English translation (Claude) Before all else we must say how much strife and conflict they had about the origin of this race. Some said human nature is eternal and the earth has always been full of this race; others that human beings first sprang up in Attica, others that this first happened in Arcadia, others again in Egypt; and among other cities too there has been much rivalry about it. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.10 (Raeder, 124; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-10). ## Discourse 5.11 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-11 - Source: Raeder, 125 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Homer and Theognis call human life miserable. ### Greek text πρὸς δὲ τοῖς εἰρημένοις οἱ μὲν ὄλβιον τόδε τὸ ζῷον κερλήκασιν, οἵ δὲ δείλαιον καὶ τρισάθλιον. καὶ Ὅμηρος μὲν ἀκιδνὸν αὐτὸ καὶ ὀϊξυρὸν ὀνομάζει" Θέογνις δὲ ὃ Σικελιώτης ὃ Μεγαρόθεν βοᾷ" υάντων μὲν μὴ φῦναι ἐπιθονίοισιν ἄριστον μηδ᾽ ἐσορᾶν αὐγὰς ὀξέος ἠελίου" φύντα δ᾽ ὕπως ὥκιστα πύλας ᾿Αἴδαο περῆσαι. ### English translation (Claude) Besides this, some called this creature happy, others wretched and thrice miserable. Homer calls it feeble and pitiable; Theognis of Megara, the Sicilian, cries: 'Best of all for earthly beings is not to be born nor to see the rays of the piercing sun; but once born, to pass as quickly as possible the gates of Hades.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Od. 18.130 (Homer, Odyssey): allusion, high confidence - Theognis, 425–427 (Theognis (elegies)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Odyssey 18.130; Theognis 425–427. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.11 (Raeder, 125; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-11). ## Discourse 5.12 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-12 - Source: Raeder, 125 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Euripides and Solon in Herodotus also lament human life. ### Greek text ( ξυνῳδὰ δὲ τούτοῖς καὶ τῆς Ἑὠριπίδου τραγῳδίας τὰ ἰαμβεῖα",,ἐχρῆν γὰρ ἡμᾶς ξύλλογον ποιουμένους τὸν φύντα,θρηνεῖν, εἰς ὅσ᾽ ἔρχεται κακά, τὸν δ᾽ αὖ θανόντα καὶ πόνων πεπαυμένον χαίροντας εὐφημοῦντας ἐχπέμπειν δόμων.“ καὶ Σόλωνα δὲ τὸν ᾿4θηναῖον, τὸν νομοθέτην, Ἡρόδοτος εἰρηκέναι τῷ Κροίσῳ ἔφη" ὦ Κροῖσε, πᾶς ἄνθρωπός ἐστι ξυμφορή ς ### English translation (Claude) The iambic lines of Euripides' tragedy agree with these: 'For we ought to gather and lament the one who is born, for all the evils he comes into, and send the dead man, freed from his toils, from the house with joy and blessing.' And Herodotus says that Solon of Athens, the lawgiver, said to Croesus: 'O Croesus, every man is a misfortune.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Euripides, fr. 449 (Euripides (plays and fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Herodotus, Hist. 1.32 (Herodotus, Histories): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Euripides, Cresphontes, fragment 449 (Nauck); Herodotus 1.32. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.12 (Raeder, 125; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-12). ## Discourse 5.13 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-13 - Source: Raeder, 125 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pythagoras and Plato teach the soul's fall into the body as punishment. ### Greek text Πυθαγόρας δὲ καὶ Πλάτων δῆμόν τινα ψυχῶν ἀσωμάτων εἰσάγουσι καὶ τὰς ἁμαρτάδι τινὶ περιπεσούσας τιμωρίας χάριν εἰς σώματα καταπέμπεσθαι λέγουσιν. τῷ τοι ὁ Πλάτῶν ἐν τῷ Κρατύλῳ τὸ σῶμα σῆμα κέκληκεν, ὡς ἐν τούτῳ τῆς ψυχῆς οἷονεὶ τεθαμμένης. ### English translation (Claude) Pythagoras and Plato introduce a people of bodiless souls, and say that those that fall into some sin are sent down into bodies for punishment. That is why Plato in the Cratylus called the body a tomb (sēma), as though the soul were buried in it. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Crat. 400c (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Cratylus 400c. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.13 (Raeder, 125; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-13). ## Discourse 5.14 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-14 - Source: Raeder, 125 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Philolaus calls the body a tomb; Plato elsewhere says the body helps the soul live rightly. ### Greek text ξύμφωνα δὲ τούτῳ. καὶ Φιλόλαος ὁ Πυθαγόρειος ἔφη" λέγει δὲ ὧδε" ομαρτυρέονται δὲ καὶ οἱ παλαιοὶ θεολόγοι τε καὶ μάντιες, ὡς διά τινας τηιωρίας ἃ ψυχὰ τῷ σώματι ξυνέζευκται καὶ καθάπερ ἐν σάματι τούτῳ τέθαπται.““ ἀλλὰ τῶνδε τῶν λόγων ὁ Πλάτῶν ἐπιλησθείς, τοὐναντίον ἐν τῷ. τρίτῳ τῆς Πολιτείας παραδηλοῖ" ἐπιμελεῖσθαι γὰρ σώματος δεῖν φησι ψυχῆς ἕνεμα ἁρμονίας, δι’ οὗ βιοῦν τε ἔστι καὶ ὀρθῶς βιοῦν, καταγγέλλοντας τῆς ἀληθείας τὸ κήρυγμα. ### English translation (Claude) Philolaus the Pythagorean said things in agreement with this. He speaks thus: 'The ancient theologians and seers also bear witness that the soul is yoked to the body as a punishment and is buried in it as in a tomb.' But Plato, forgetting these words, indicates the opposite in the third book of the Republic; for he says one must care for the body for the sake of the soul's harmony, through which one can live and live rightly, proclaiming the message of truth. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 591c–d (Plato (works)): allusion, medium confidence - Philolaus (Philolaus): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Philolaus, fragment 14 (Diels–Kranz). The Republic reference is probably 9.591c–d; Theodoret's 'third book' may refer to 3.410c. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.14 (Raeder, 125; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-14). ## Discourse 5.15 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-15 - Source: Raeder, 126 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's view that the body aids the soul refutes the soul's preexistence and the body-tomb. ### Greek text εἰ δὲ διὰ. τοῦ σώματος ἡ ψυχὴ βιοῖ τε καὶ ὀρθῶς βιοῖ, οὐκ ἄρα ἦν ποτε πρὸ τοῦ σώματος" εἰ δὲ ἦν πρό γε. τοῦ σώματος, παὶ ἔξη δήπουθεν καὶ ἐβίου᾽ ἀθάνατον γὰρ ἔχει φύσιν καὶ λογικήν. εἰ δὲ ἣν μὲν πάλαι, οὐκ ὀρθῶς δὲ ἐβίου κεχωρισμένη τοῦ σώματος, ἐν τῷ σώματι δὲ γενομένη καὶ τοῦτο ἄριστα παιδοτριβήσασα, τὸν ὀρθὺν κατώρθωσε βίον, διὰ τοῦ σώματος ἄρα τετύχηκε τῶν ἀγαθῶν, ὧν πρὸ τοῦ σώματος οὐ μετέλαχεν. ἀνθ' ὕτου δὴ οὖν τεθάφθαι αὐτὴν ἐν τῷ σώματι καθάπερ ἐν σήματι ἔφης ] ### English translation (Claude) If through the body the soul lives and lives rightly, then it did not exist before the body; and if it existed before the body, it surely lived and had a life, for it has an immortal and rational nature. And if it existed long ago but did not live rightly when separated from the body, but having come into the body and trained it excellently it achieved the right life, then through the body it obtained goods it did not share before the body. Why then did you say it was buried in the body as in a tomb? ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.15 (Raeder, 126; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-15). ## Discourse 5.16 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-16 - Source: Raeder, 126 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret will list the philosophers' views on the soul from Plutarch, Porphyry, and Aëtius. ### Greek text Διὰ μὲν οὖν τούτων σαφῶς ἔγνωμεν, ὡς οὐ μόνον ἀλλήλοις, ἀλλὰ καὶ σφίσιν αὐτοῖς περὶ τῶν αὐτῶν ἐναντία γεγραφήκασιν. ἵνα δὲ τὴν πολλὴν αὐτῶν καταμάθωμεν ἔριν, φέρε πάλιν ἐπιδείξωμεν, τίνα περὶ ψυχῆς οἷ πολυθρύλητοι τῶν φιλοσόφων ἐδόξασαν, καὶ ὅπως αὐτοὺς ἡ κενὴ δόξα, κατὰ τὸν Τίμαιον, «ἔριδι ξυνέηκε μάχεσθαι."' ἃ δέ γε ξὺν Θεῷ λέξω, ἔμ τῶν Πλουτάρχῳ καὶ Πορφυρίῳ καὶ μέντοι καὶ Ἀετίῳ ξυγγεγραμμένων ἐρῶ. ### English translation (Claude) Through these things we clearly learned that they wrote contradictory things about the same matters, not only against one another but against themselves. To learn their great strife, let us show again what the celebrated philosophers held about the soul, and how empty opinion, as Timaeus says, 'set them to fight in strife.' What I shall say, God willing, I shall say from what Plutarch, Porphyry, and Aëtius wrote. ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 1.8 (Homer, Iliad): quotation, medium confidence - Plutarch, Plac. (Plutarch): allusion, high confidence - Aëtius (Aëtius, Placita): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The phrase is Homer, Iliad 1.8; 'Timaeus' may be a slip for Timon of Phlius, who parodied it. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.16 (Raeder, 126; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-16). ## Discourse 5.17 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-17 - Source: Raeder, 126 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The philosophers define the soul differently. ### Greek text Θαλῆς τοίνυν κέηληκε τὴν ψυχὴν ἀκίνητον φύσιν" Ἀλημὰν δὲ αὐτὴν αὐὖτοκίνητον εἴρηκεν᾽ ὃ δέ γε Πυθαγόρας ἀριθμὸν ἑαυτὸν κιγνοῦντα᾽ ξυνεφώνησε. δὲ τῷ λόγῳ καὶ ενοκράτηο᾽ ὃ δὲ φώνη ῷ λόγι Ἀξνοπράτης Πλάτων. οὐσίαν νοητὴν ἐξ ἑαυτῆς κινητήν᾽ ὁ δὲ. Σταγειρίτῆς ἐντελέχειαν πρώτην σώματος φυσιμοῦ ὀργανικοῦ, δυνάμει ζωὴν ἔχοντος" ἐντελέχειαν δὲ τὴν ἐνέργειαν κέκληκεν. ### English translation (Claude) Thales called the soul a nature without motion; Alcmaeon said it is self-moved; Pythagoras a number moving itself, and Xenocrates agreed with this account; Plato an intelligible substance moving itself; the Stagirite the first entelechy of a natural organic body having life potentially, and by entelechy he meant actuality. ### Extrabiblical texts - Aristotle, De an. 412a (Aristotle (works)): allusion, high confidence - Xenocrates (Xenocrates of Chalcedon): allusion, medium confidence - Aëtius (Aëtius, Placita): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The doxography follows Aëtius 4.2. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.17 (Raeder, 126; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-17). ## Discourse 5.18 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-18 - Source: Raeder, 127 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: More conflicting views of the soul's substance. ### Greek text Κλέαρχος δὲ τῶν τεττάρων εἶναι στοιχείων τὴν ἁρμονίαν᾽ οἈναξιμένης δὲ παἱ ᾿δναξίμανδρος. καὶ Ἀναξαγόρας καὶ ᾽49χέλαος Ἵ ἀερώδη. ἀερώδη. τῆ τῆς ψυχῆς ῆἧς τὴν τὴν φύσιν φύσιν εἰρή εἰρήκασιν. οἵ οἱ δέ δέ γ γε Στωϊκοὶ πνευματιπήν, πλείστου μετέχουσαν τοῦ θερμοῦ. Παρμενίδης δὲ καὶ Ἵππασος καὶ Ἡράκλειτος πυρώδη ταύτὴν περλήκασιν᾽ ὃ δὲ Ἡρακλείδης φωτοειδῆ᾽ Ἐπίκουρος δὲ ὁ Νεοκλέους τεττάρων τινῶν ποιοτήτων κρᾶμα, πυρώδους καὶ ἀερώδους καὶ πνευματιποῦ καὶ τετάρτου τινὸς ἀκατωνομάστου" ὁ δὲ Ἐμπεδοκλῆς μῖγμα ἐξ αἰθερώδους καὶ ἀερώδους οὐσίας. Κριτίας δὲ ἐξ αἵματος εἶπε καὶ ἐξ ὑγροῦ" καὶ ἄλλοι δ᾽ αὖ ἄλλα λεληρήκασιν ἐναντία. ### English translation (Claude) Clearchus said it is the harmony of the four elements; Anaximenes, Anaximander, Anaxagoras, and Archelaus said the nature of the soul is airy; the Stoics breath-like, sharing most in heat; Parmenides, Hippasus, and Heraclitus called it fiery; Heraclides light-like; Epicurus son of Neocles a mixture of four qualities, fiery, airy, breath-like, and a fourth unnamed one; Empedocles a mixture of ethereal and airy substance; Critias said it comes from blood and moisture; and others again have talked other contradictory nonsense. ### Extrabiblical texts - Clearchus (Clearchus of Soli, On Sleep): allusion, medium confidence - Epicurus (Epicurus (sayings and fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Empedocles (Empedocles (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The scan repeats several words in this section; they are translated once. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.18 (Raeder, 127; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-18). ## Discourse 5.19 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-19 - Source: Raeder, 127 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pythagoras, Plato, and Xenocrates divide the soul differently. ### Greek text καὶ. μέντοι καὶ περὶ τὴν ταύτης διαίρεσιν πλείστη γε τούτοις γεγένηται διαμάχη. Πυθαγόρὰς μὲν γὰρ καὶ Πλάτων διμερῆ ταύτην εἰρήκασι, καὶ τὸ μὲν αὐτῆς εἶναι λογικόν, τὸ δὲ ἄλογον. διχῇ δ᾽ αὖ πάλιν τὸ ἄλογον. ἔτεμον, καὶ τὸ μὲν αὐτοῦ θυμικὸν εἶναι, τὸ δὲ ἐπιθυμητικόνν, ὁ δὲ Ξενοκράτης, καὶ ταῦτα τρίτος ἀπὸ Πλάτωνος ὥν (Σπευσίππου γὰρ τοῦ Πλάτῶνος ἀδελφιδοῦ γεγένηται φοιτητής), τὸ μὲν αἰσθητικὸν εἶναι τῆς ψυχῆς ἔφη, τὸ δὲ. ### English translation (Claude) About its division too there has been very great conflict among them. Pythagoras and Plato said it has two parts, one rational and the other irrational; and they divided the irrational again in two, one part spirited and the other desiring. Xenocrates, though third from Plato (he was a pupil of Speusippus, Plato's nephew), said one part of the soul is sensitive and the other ### Extrabiblical texts - Xenocrates (Xenocrates of Chalcedon): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 5.20. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.19 (Raeder, 127; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-19). ## Discourse 5.20 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-20 - Source: Raeder, 127 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Aristotle and the Stoics divide the soul into five or eight parts. ### Greek text λογικόν. ὁ δὲ Νικομάχου πέντε εἶναι ταύτης ἔφησεν ἐνεργείας, τὴν ὀρεντιχήν, τὴν. θρεπτικήν, τὴν αἰσθητιπήν, τὴν μεταβατικήν, τὴν διανοητι- "Ὁ χήν, ἀλλ᾽ οὐδὲ τοῦτον οἱ Στωϊκοὶ τὸν ἀρυθμὸν ἔστερξαν᾽ ἐξ ὀχτὼ γὰρ μερῶν ἔφασαν τὴν ψυχὴν ξυνεστάναι, τῆς ὀπτιμῆς αἰσθήσεως καὶ τῆς ἀκουστινῆς καὶ τῆς ὀσφρητικῆς καὶ τῆς γευστικῆς καὶ τῆς ἁπτινῆς᾽ ἕκτον δὲ τὸ φωνητικὸν ἔφασαν καὶ τὸ σπερματικὸν ἕβδομον καὶ τὸ ἡγεμονοῦν ὄγδοον, ὑφ᾽ οὗ τούτων ἕκαστον ἐνεργεῖται. εἶπον δὲ αὐτὴν καὶ ταῖς τοῦ πολύποδος ἐοικέναι πλεκτάναις. ### English translation (Claude) rational. The son of Nicomachus said it has five activities: appetitive, nutritive, sensitive, locomotive, and intellectual. But the Stoics did not like this number either; for they said the soul consists of eight parts: sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch; sixth they named the vocal, seventh the seminal, and eighth the ruling part, by which each of these is activated. They said it is like the tentacles of an octopus. ### Extrabiblical texts - Aristotle (Aristotle (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.20 (Raeder, 127; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-20). ## Discourse 5.21 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-21 - Source: Raeder, 128 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Pythagoreans give five powers of the soul. ### Greek text οἱ δέ γε Πυθαγόρου διάδοχοι ἔκ πέντε στοιχείων τὸ σῶμα κρωθῆναι φάντες | (τοῖς γὰρ τέτταρσι ξυνέταξαν τὸ αἰθέριον), ἰσαρέθμους εἶναι ἔφασαν ταύτῃ καὶ τῆς ψυχῆς τὰς δυνάμεις" καὶ ταύτας ὠνομάκασι νοῦν καὶ φρόνησιν καὶ ἐπιστήμην καὶ δόξαν καὶ αἴσθησιν. ### English translation (Claude) The successors of Pythagoras, saying the body is mixed from five elements (they added the ethereal to the four), said the powers of the soul are equal in number, and named them mind, prudence, knowledge, opinion, and perception. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.21 (Raeder, 128; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-21). ## Discourse 5.22 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-22 - Source: Raeder, 128 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: They disagree on where the soul's ruling part is. ### Greek text ὅσα δὲ καὶ περὶ τῆς τοῦ ἡγεμοψριοῦ χώρας διηνέχθησαν πρὸς ἀλλήλους, ῥῴδιον διαγνῶναι. Ἱπποκράτης μὲν γὰρ καὶ Δημόκριτος καὶ Πλάτων ἐν ἐγκεφάλῳ τοῦτο ἰδρῦσθαι εἰρήκασιν᾽ ὃ δὲ Στράτων ἐν μεσοφρύφ᾽ ᾿Ερασίστρατος δὲ ὃ ἰατρὸς περὶ τὴν τοῦ ἐγκεφάλου 'μήνιγγα, ἣν ἐπικπρανίδα λέγει" ᾿Ηρόφιλος δὲ ἐν τῇ τοῦ ἐγκεφάλου κοιλίᾳ᾽ Παρμενίδης δὲ καὶ Ἐπίκουρος ἐν ὅλῳ τῷ θώρακι᾽ ᾿Εμπεδοκλῆς δὲ καὶ Ἀριστοτέλης καὶ τῶν Στωϊκπῶν ἡ ξυμμορία τὴν καρδίαν ἀπεκλήρωσαν τούτῳ. καὶ τούτων δ᾽ αὖ πάλιν οἵ μὲν ἐν τῇ κοιλίᾳ τῆς καρδίας, οἵ δὲ ἐν τῷ αἵματι" καὶ οἱ μὲν ἐν τῷ περικαρδίῳ ὑμένι, οἱ δὲ ἐν τῷ διαφράγματι. ### English translation (Claude) How much they disagreed about the place of the ruling part is easy to see. Hippocrates, Democritus, and Plato said it is seated in the brain; Strato between the eyebrows; Erasistratus the physician around the membrane of the brain, which he calls the epikranis; Herophilus in the ventricle of the brain; Parmenides and Epicurus in the whole chest; Empedocles, Aristotle, and the company of the Stoics assigned it to the heart, and of these again some in the cavity of the heart, some in the blood, some in the pericardial membrane, some in the diaphragm. ### Extrabiblical texts - Hippocrates (Hippocrates, Hippocratic Corpus): allusion, medium confidence - Democritus (Democritus (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.22 (Raeder, 128; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-22). ## Discourse 5.23 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-23 - Source: Raeder, 128 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Views on the soul's survival after death. ### Greek text καὶ Πυθαγόρας μὲν καὶ Ἀναξαγόρας καὶ Διογένης καὶ Πλάτων καὶ Ἐμπεδοκλῆς καὶ Ξενοκράτης ἄφθαρτον εἶναι τὴν ψυχὴν ἀπεφήναντο᾽ ὁ δὲ ᾿Ἡράκλειτος τὰς ἀπαλλαττομένας τοῦ σώματος εἰς τὴν τοῦ παντὸς ἀναχωρεῖν ψυχὴν ἔφησεν, οἷα δὴ ὁμογενῆ τε οὖσαν καὶ ὁμοούσιον. οἵ δὲ Στωϊκοὶ τὰς χωριξομένας τῶν σωμάτων ψυχὰς διαρκεῖν μὲν καὶ παθ᾽ ἑαυτὰς ζῆν ἔφασαν, ἀλλὰ τὴν μὲν ἀσθενεστέραν ἐπ᾽ ὀλίγον, τὴν δὲ ἰσχυροτέραν μέχρι τῆς τοῦ παντὸς ἐκπυρώσεως. ### English translation (Claude) Pythagoras, Anaxagoras, Diogenes, Plato, Empedocles, and Xenocrates declared the soul incorruptible; Heraclitus said that souls released from the body go back into the soul of the universe, as being of the same kind and the same substance. The Stoics said that souls separated from bodies endure and live by themselves, but the weaker for a short time and the stronger until the conflagration of the universe. ### Extrabiblical texts - Heraclitus (Heraclitus (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.23 (Raeder, 128; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-23). ## Discourse 5.24 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-24 - Source: Raeder, 129 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Some held the soul mortal; Plato and Aristotle differ about plants. ### Greek text 4ημόκπριτος δὲ καὶ Ἐπίκουρος καὶ Ἀριστοτέλης φθαρτὴν εἶναι ταύτην ἀνέδην εἰρήκασι" Πλάτων δὲ καὶ Πυθαγόρας τὸ μὲν λογικὸν αὐτῆς ἄφθαρτον εἶναι, φθαρτὸν δὲ τὸ ἄλογον. καὶ ὁ μὲν Πλάτων καὶ τὰ φυτὰ ἔῷα κέκληκε, τοῦ τρίτου γε τῆς ψυχῆς εἴδους, τοῦ ἐπιθυμητικοῦ, μόνου μετέχοντα᾽ ὁ δέ γε Ἀριστοτέλης ξῷα μὲν αὐτὰ εἰπεῖν οὐκ ἠνέσχετο (τὸ γὰρ δὴ τῆς αἰσθητικῆς μετέχον ψυχῆς τοῦτο καλεῖσθαι ξῷον ἠξίωσε), τῆς φυτικῆς μέντον καὶ θρεπτικῆς ψυχῆς μετέχδινν. ὑπέλαβε τὰ φυτά. ### English translation (Claude) Democritus, Epicurus, and Aristotle openly said it is corruptible; Plato and Pythagoras that its rational part is incorruptible, the irrational corruptible. Plato called even plants living beings, as sharing only in the third form of soul, the desiring; but Aristotle would not call them living beings (for he thought fit to call a living being what shares in sensitive soul), though he supposed that plants share in vegetative and nutritive soul. ### Extrabiblical texts - Democritus (Democritus (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Epicurus (Epicurus (sayings and fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Aristotle (Aristotle (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.24 (Raeder, 129; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-24). ## Discourse 5.25 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-25 - Source: Raeder, 129 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Zeno held the soul transmitted in seed and therefore corruptible. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ τοῦτόν γε τὸν λόγον οἵ τῆς Ποικίλης οὐ προσεδέξαντο᾽ τὴν γάρ τοι φυτικὴν δύναμιν καλεῖν ψυχὴν οὐκ ἠνέσχοντο. Ζήνων δὲ ὁ Κιτιεύς, ὁ τῆσδε τῆς αἱρέσεως ἡγησάμενος, τοιάδε περὶ ψυχῆς δοξάζειν τοὺς οἰκείους ἐδίδαξε φοιτητάς᾽ τὸν γάφ τοι ἀνθρώπινον θορόν, ὑγρὸν ὄντα καὶ μετέχοντα πνεύματος, τῆς ψυχῆς ἔφησεν εἶναι μέρος τε καὶ ἀπόσπασμα καὶ τοῦ τῶν προγόνων σπέρματος κέρασμά τε καὶ μῖγμα, ἐξ ἁπάντων τῶν τῆς ψυχῆς μορίων ξυναθροισθέν. οὗ δὴ χάριν αὐτὴν καὶ φθαρτὴν προσηγόρευσεν. ### English translation (Claude) Those of the Porch did not accept this account; they would not call the vegetative power soul. Zeno of Citium, the leader of this school, taught his pupils to hold this about the soul: he said that human seed, being moist and sharing in breath, is a part and fragment of the soul, and a blend and mixture of the seed of the ancestors, gathered from all the parts of the soul. For this reason he called it corruptible. ### Extrabiblical texts - Zeno of Citium, Zeno (Zeno of Citium): allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.25 (Raeder, 129; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-25). ## Discourse 5.26 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-26 - Source: Raeder, 129 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Numenius reports the Stoic view of the soul's limited survival. ### Greek text Νουμήνιος δὲ ὁ Πυθαγόρειος πρὸς τούτους ἀποτεινόμενος ἔφη «τὴν δὲ ψυχὴν γενητήν τε καὶ φθαρτὴν λέγουσιν, οὐκ εὐθὺς δὲ τοῦ σώματος ἀπαλλαγεῖσαν φθείρεσθαι, ἀλλ᾽ ἐπιμένειν τινὰς χρόνους καθ' ἑαυτήν, τὴν μὲν τῶν σπουδαίων μέχρι τῆς | εἰς πῦρ ἀναλύσεως τῶν πάντων, τὴν δὲ τῶν ἀφρόνων πρὸς ### English translation (Claude) Numenius the Pythagorean, directing himself against these, said: 'They say the soul is begotten and corruptible, yet that it does not perish at once when released from the body, but remains for some time by itself, that of the virtuous until the dissolution of all things into fire, that of the foolish for ### Extrabiblical texts - Numenius (Numenius of Apamea): quotation, medium confidence - Arius Didymus (Arius Didymus, Epitome of Plato’s Doctrines): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Ascribed by Theodoret to Numenius (Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.20.6, gives it to Arius Didymus). The quotation ends in 5.27. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.26 (Raeder, 129; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-26). ## Discourse 5.27 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-27 - Source: Raeder, 129 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Longinus condemns the Stoic view of the soul as an exhalation. ### Greek text ποιούς τινας χρόνους.“ καὶ ὁ “Δογγῖνος δὲ αὐτῶν ἄντικρυς κατηγορεῖ, ὧδε γράψας Ζήνωνι μὲν γὰρ καὶ Κλεάνθει νεμεσήσειεν ἄν τις δικαίως, οὕτω σφόδρα ὑβριστικῶς περὶ τῆς ψυχῆς διαλεχθεῖσιν. ἄμφω γὰρ τοῦ στερεοῦ σώματος εἶναι τὴν ψυχὴν ἀναθυμίασιν ἔφασαν. ### English translation (Claude) some length of time.' And Longinus plainly accuses them, writing: 'One might justly be indignant with Zeno and Cleanthes for speaking so very insolently about the soul; for both said that the soul is an exhalation of the solid body.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Longinus (Longinus (fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Cleanthes (Cleanthes (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Longinus, fragment (Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.21.1). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.27 (Raeder, 129; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-27). ## Discourse 5.28 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-28 - Source: Raeder, 130 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Some say the mind is free; others enslave it to fate and the stars. ### Greek text ἄγτιμρυς δὲ τούτῶν ἐναντία τὰ -“Πυθαγόρᾳ καὶ Πλάτωνι δόξαντα" θείαν γὰρ δὴ μοῖραν τὸν νοῦν ἔφασαν εἶναι. ξυμφωνεῖ δὲ καὶ ὃ Νικομάχου τῷδε τῷ λόγῳ, καίτοι θνητὴν εἶναι ἀποφηνάμενος τὴν ψυχήν᾽ ἄλλο τι γὰρ εἶναν τὸν νοῦν παρὰ ταύτην ὑπέλαβεν. καὶ οἵ περὶ Πλάτωνα δὲ καὶ Πυθαγόραν θύραθεν τοῦτον εἰσκρίνεσθαι λέγουσιν. πάλιν δ᾽ αὖ οἵ μὲν αὐτῶν αὐτοκράτορα τὸν νοῦν ἔφασαν εἶναι καὶ ἄγειν δύνα-1 σθαις ἢ ἂν ἐθέλῃ, τὰ πάθη᾽ οἱ δὲ ἀνάγκης αὐτὸν καὶ εἱμαρμένης ἀπεφήναντο δοῦλον καὶ πρὸς τὰ τῶν Μοιρῶν ἄγεσθαι νήματα, καὶ τῆς τοῦ οὐρανοῦ περιδινήσεως καὶ τῆς τῶν ἄστρων ξυνόδου τὰς τούτου πράξεις καὶ ἐνεργείας ἠρτῆσθαι. ### English translation (Claude) Plainly opposite to these are the views of Pythagoras and Plato; for they said that the mind is a divine portion. The son of Nicomachus agrees with this account, though he declared the soul mortal; for he supposed the mind to be something other than it. And the followers of Plato and Pythagoras say it enters from outside. Again, some of them said the mind is self-governing and can lead the passions as it wishes; others declared it a slave of necessity and fate, led by the threads of the Fates, and its actions and activities dependent on the revolution of heaven and the conjunction of the stars. ### Extrabiblical texts - Aristotle (Aristotle (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.28 (Raeder, 130; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-28). ## Discourse 5.29 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-29 - Source: Raeder, 130 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Laws teaches that the soul is free and can master itself. ### Greek text ὁ δέ γε Πλάτων τὴν ἐναντίαν τούτοις περὶ ψυχῆς ἐξεπαίδευσε δόξαν. ἐλευθέραν γὰρ αὐτὴν εἶναι ἔφησε καὶ δέσποιναν τῶν ἐνοχλούντων παθῶν καὶ ἑκοῦσαν ἢ τῇδε ἢ ἐκεῖσε χωρεῖν καὶ ἐθελουσίως γε ἢ νικᾶν ἢ ἡντᾶσθαι. καὶ τοῦτο σαφῶς ἐν τοῖς Νόμοις δεδήλωκε᾽ λέγει δὲ οὕτως᾽ »μἀνταῦθα, ὦ ξένε, τὸ νικᾶν αὐτὸν ξαυτὸν πασῶν νικῶν πρώτη καὶ ἀρίστη" τὸ δὲ ἡττᾶσθαι αὐτὸν ὑφ᾽ ξαυτοῦ αἴσχιστόν τε καὶ πάχκιστον᾽ ταῦτα γὰρ ὡς πολέμου ### English translation (Claude) Plato taught the opposite opinion about the soul. He said it is free and mistress of the passions that trouble it, and goes willingly this way or that, and willingly either conquers or is defeated. He showed this clearly in the Laws, speaking thus: 'And here, stranger, conquering oneself is the first and best of all victories, and to be defeated by oneself is the most shameful and worst; for these things indicate that there is a war ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 626e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 1.626e. The quotation ends in 5.30. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.29 (Raeder, 130; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-29). ## Discourse 5.30 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-30 - Source: Raeder, 131 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's image of the passions as cords and reason as the golden cord. ### Greek text ἐν ἑκάστοις ἡμῶν ὄντος πρὸς ἡμᾶς αὐτοὺς σημαίνει καὶ αὖ πάλιν μετ᾽ ὀλίγα",.τόδε δ᾽ ἴσμεν, ὅτε ταῦτα τὰ πάθη ἐν ἡμῖν οἷον νεῦρα ἢ σμήρινθοί τινες ἐνοῦσαι σπῶσί τε ἡμᾶς καὶ ἀλλήλαις ἀνθέλκουσιν ἐναντίαι γε οὖσαι ἐπ᾽ ἐναντίας «πράξεις, οὗ δὴ διωρισμένη ἀρετὴ καὶ κακία κεῖται. μίαν γάρ φησιν ὃ λόγος δεῖν τῶν ἕλξεων ξυνεπόμενον ἀεὶ καὶ μηδαμῇ ἀπολειπόμενον ἐκείνης, ἀνθέλκειν τοῖς ἄλλοις μετρίοις ἕκαστον᾽ ταύτην δὲ εἶναν τὴν τοῦ λογισμοῦ ἀγωγή ### English translation (Claude) in each of us against ourselves.' And again, a little later: 'This we know, that these passions in us, like sinews or cords, pull us and drag against one another, being opposed, toward opposite actions, where virtue and vice lie divided. For reason says that each must always follow one of the pulls and never let go of it, and pull against the other cords; and this is the golden guidance of reasoning.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 644e–645a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 1.644e–645a. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.30 (Raeder, 131; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-30). ## Discourse 5.31 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-31 - Source: Raeder, 131 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato shows that sin is not by nature, fate, or stars, but by free choice. ### Greek text ν(5 ἄντικρυς δὲ διὰ τούτων δεδήλωκεν, ὡς οὔτε φύσιν ἐλάχομεν πονηράν, καὶ κατ᾽ ἀνάγκην καὶ βίαν πλημμελοῦμεν οἱ ἄνθρωποι, οὔτε ὑπὸ τῶν τῆς Κλωθοῦς νημάτων ἀγόμεθα οὔτε μὴν ὑπὸ τῆς τῶν ἄστρων ξυνόδου πρὸς τὸ πρακτέον ὠθούμεθα᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ἀγωνίζεται μὲν πρὸς ἑαυτὴν ἡ ψυχή, τοῦ δὲ νικᾶν ἔχει τὴν ἐξουσίαν, ἢν ἐθελήσῃ νεῦσαι πρὸς ἀρετήν᾽ καὶ ἕλκει μὲν ἡ ἐπιθυμία πρὸς ἑαυτήν, ἀνθέλκει δὲ ὁ θυμός, ἔχει δὲ τοῦ πείθεσθαι ἢ μὴ τὴν ἐξουσίαν ὃ λογισμός" ἡνιοχεῖν γὰρ ἐτάχθη καὶ ἄγειν, ἀλλ᾽ οὐκ ἄγεσθαί τε καὶ σύρεσθαι. ### English translation (Claude) By these he plainly showed that we did not receive an evil nature, nor do we human beings sin by necessity and force, nor are we led by the threads of Clotho or pushed toward action by the conjunction of the stars; but the soul struggles against itself, and has the power to conquer if it wishes to incline toward virtue. Desire drags toward itself, anger pulls against it, and reasoning has the power to obey or not; for it was appointed to hold the reins and lead, not to be led and dragged. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.31 (Raeder, 131; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-31). ## Discourse 5.32 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-32 - Source: Raeder, 131 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Laws says each person's character depends on his own will. ### Greek text ἐκράτυνε δὲ τόνδε τὸν λόγον κἀν τῷ δεκάτω τῶν Νόμων, ταῦτα εἰπών",νῖῆς δὲ γενέσεως τοῦ ποιοῦ τινος ἀφῆκε ταῖς βουλήσεσιν ἑκάστου ἡμῶν αὐτῶν τὰς αἰτίας" ὅπῃ γὰρ ἂν ἐπιθυμῇ, καὶ ὁποῖος ἂν ὧν τὴν ψυχήν, ταύτῃ σχεδὸν ἑκάστοτε καὶ τοιοῦτος ἡμῶν γίνεται ἅπας ὡς τὸ πολύ καὶ μετὰ βραχέα δὲ καὶ ταῦτα προστέθειπεν᾽ μείζω δὲ δὴ ψυχὴ κακίας καὶ ἀρετῆς ὁπόταν μεταλάβῃ διὰ τὴν αὑτῆς βούλησίν τε καὶ ὃμιλίαν γινομένην ἰσχυράν, ὁπόταν μὲν ἀρετῇ θείᾳ προσμίξασα γίνεταν διαφερόντως τὰ τοιαῦτα διαφέροντα καὶ μετέλαβε τόπον ἅγιον, ὕλη μετακοσμηθεῖσα εἰς ἀμείνω τινὰ τόπον ἕτερον᾽ ὅταν δὲ τἀναντία, κατὰ τοὺς τἀναντία μεθιδρύσατο ### English translation (Claude) He confirmed this account in the tenth book of the Laws too, saying: 'Of the coming to be of each quality he left the causes to the wills of each of us; for as each desires and as he is in soul, so nearly each time and for the most part each of us becomes.' And a little later he added: 'And when the soul takes a greater share of vice or virtue through its own will and its strong association, when it has joined divine virtue it becomes especially such, and passes to a holy place, being transferred to some other better place; and when the opposite, it transfers ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 904b–d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 10.904b–d. The quotation ends in 5.33. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.32 (Raeder, 131; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-32). ## Discourse 5.33 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-33 - Source: Raeder, 132 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Free choice determines the soul's character and its final place. ### Greek text τὸν αὑτῆς βίον κχἀνταῦθα παραπλησίως ἐδίδαξεν, ὡς τῇ βουλήσει τῆς ψυχῆς ἀπένειμεν ὁ ποιητὴς τῶν κρειττόνων καὶ τῶν χειρόνων τὴν αἶρεσιν. τὸ μὲν γὰρ τῆς γνώμης αὐθαίρετον τῇδε βέπειν ἢ ἐκεῖσε παρασκευάζει, ἡ δὲ ὁμιλία καὶ τὸ πάθος ἰσχυρὰν τὴν ἕξιν ἐργάξεται. ὅταν οὖν ἀρετῆς ἐρασθεῖσα τὴν ταύτης ἰδέαν ἐμμάξηται, εἰς ἕτερόν τινα μεταβαίνει τόπον ἅγιόν τε καὶ πολλῷ τῶν παρόντῶν ἀμείνονα᾽ τὴν δὲ κακίαν ἑλομένη καὶ τὸν ἐπονείδιστον βίον ἀσπασαμέ λαγχά ἡλιν τὸ γλληλ ὥ μένη, λαγχάνει πάλιν τὸν κατάλληλον χῶρον. ### English translation (Claude) its life to the opposite places.' Here too he taught likewise that the Maker gave the choice of better and worse to the will of the soul. For the free choice of the will makes it incline this way or that, while association and feeling make the disposition strong. So when it loves virtue and takes on its form, it passes to another place, holy and much better than the present; but if it chooses vice and embraces the shameful life, it receives in turn the corresponding place. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 904d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.33 (Raeder, 132; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-33). ## Discourse 5.34 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-34 - Source: Raeder, 132 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Republic says God, being good, causes no evil. ### Greek text κἀν τῷ δευτέρῳ δὲ τῆς Πολιτείας ξυνῳδὰ τούτοις ξυνέγραψε" λέγει δὲ ταῦτα οὐκοῦν ἀγαθὸς ὃ θεύς: τῷ ὄντι γε. καὶ λεμτέον οὕτως; τί μήν; οὐδὲν δὲ τῶν ἀγαθῶν βλαβερόν; ἦ γάρ; οὔ μοι δοκεῖ. ἄρα τὸ μὴ βλαβερὸν βλάπτει; οὐδαμῶς. ὃ δὲ μὴ βλάπτει, κακόν τι ποιεῖς οὐδαμῶς. οὐδ᾽ ἄν τίνος εἴη κακοῦ αἴτιον; πῶς γάρ; τί δές ὠφέλιμον τὸ ἀγαθόν; ναί. αἴτιον ἄρα εὐπραγίας; ναί. οὐκ ἄρα γε πάντῶν αἴτιον τὸ ἀγαθόν, ἀλλὰ τῶν μὲν εὖ ἐχόντων πάντων, τῶν δὲ πακῶν ἀναίτιον. ### English translation (Claude) In the second book of the Republic he wrote in agreement with these: 'Is not God good in reality, and must he not be said to be so? Of course. But nothing good is harmful, is it? I think not. Does what is not harmful do harm? Not at all. And what does no harm does no evil? Not at all. Nor would it be the cause of any evil? How could it? And is the good beneficial? Yes. Then it is the cause of well-being? Yes. Then the good is not the cause of all things, but of the things that are well, and is not the cause of evils.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 379b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 2.379b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.34 (Raeder, 132; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-34). ## Discourse 5.35 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-35 - Source: Raeder, 132 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Republic says God causes only good, rejecting Homer's two jars. ### Greek text παντελῶς ἐφήη. οὐκ ἄρα, ἦν δ΄ ἐγώ, ὃ θεός, ἐπεὶ ἀγαθύς, πάντων ἂν εἴη αἴτιος, ὡς οἱ πολλοὶ λέγουσιν, ἀλλ᾽ ὀλίγων μὲν τοῖς ἀνθρώποις αἴτιος, πολλῶν δὲ ἀναίτιος" πολὺ γὰρ ἐλάττω τὰ ἀγαθὰ τῶν κακῶν ἡμῖν καὶ τῶν μὲν ἀγαθῶν οὐδένα ἄλλον αἰτιάτέον, τῶν δὲ κακῶν ἄλλα ἄττα δεῖ ξητεῖν αἴτια, ἀλλ᾽ οὐ τὸν θεόν. ἀληθέστατα, ἔφη, δοκεῖς μοι λέγειν. οὐκ ἄρα, ἦν δ΄ ἐγώ, ἀποδεκτέον οὔτε Ὁμήρου οὔτε ἄλλον ποιητοῦ ταύτην τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ἀνοήτως περὶ τοὺς θεοὺς ἁμαρτάνοντος καὶ λέγοντος, ὡς δύο πίθοι παταπείαται ἐν Διὸς οὔδει κηρῶν ἔμπλειοι,) ὃ μὲν ἐσθλῶν, αὐτὰρ ὁ δειλῶν, χαὶ ᾧ μὲν ἂν μίξας ὁ Ζεὺς ἀμφότερα δῷ, ἄλλοτε μέν τὲ κακῷ ὅ γε ### English translation (Claude) 'Entirely,' he said. 'Then God,' I said, 'since he is good, would not be the cause of all things, as the many say, but the cause of few things for human beings and not the cause of many; for good things are far fewer than evils for us; and of the good things no other must be held the cause, but for the evils one must seek some other causes, not God.' 'You seem to me to speak most truly,' he said. 'Then we must not accept from Homer or any other poet this error, foolishly committed about the gods, when he says that "two jars stand on the floor of Zeus, full of fates, one of good things, the other of bad", and that the one to whom Zeus gives a mixture of both "at one time meets with evil, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 379c–d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Homer, Il. 24.527–530 (Homer, Iliad): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 2.379c–d, quoting Homer, Iliad 24.527–530. The quotation continues in 5.36. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.35 (Raeder, 132; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-35). ## Discourse 5.36 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-36 - Source: Raeder, 133 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato makes it law that God is not the cause of evil. ### Greek text μύρεται, ἄλλοτε δ᾽ ἐσθλῷ“ οὕτω δὲ καὶ τὰ ἄλλα τὰ τοιαὔτα καὶ Ὁμήρου καὶ Ἡσιόδου καὶ μέντοι καὶ Αἰσχύλου. εἶτα ἐπάγει",»καπῶν δὲ αἴτιον φάναι τὸν θεόν, ἀγαθὸν ὄντα, διαμαχητέον παντὶ τρύπῳ, μήτε τινὰ λέγειν ταῦτα ἐν τῇ ἑαυτοῦ πόλει. εἰ μέλλει εὐνομήσεσθαι, μήτε τινὰ ἀκούειν, μήτε νεώτερον μήτε πρεσβύτερον, μήτε ἔν μέτρῳ μήτε ἄνευ μέτρου μυθολογοῦντα, [ ὡς οὔτε ὅσια ἂν λεγόμενα, εἰ λέγοιτο, οὔτε ξύμφορα ἡμῖν οὔτε ξύμφωνα αὑτοῖς. ξύμψηφύς σού εἶμι, ἔφη, τούτου τοῦ νόμου, καί μον ἀρέσκει. οὗτος μέντοι; ἦν δ᾽ ἐγώ, εἷς ἂν εἴη τῶν περὶ θεοῦ γόμων τε καὶ τύπων. ἐν οἷς δεήσει τούς τε λέγοντας λέγειν καὶ τοὺς ποιοῦντας ποιεῖν, μὴ πάντων αἴτιον τὸν θεόν, ἀλλὰ τῶν ### English translation (Claude) at another with good"'; and so with the other such sayings of Homer, Hesiod, and Aeschylus too. Then he adds: 'That God, being good, is the cause of evils, we must fight against in every way, and neither let anyone say this in his own city, if it is to be well governed, nor let anyone hear it, young or old, whether told in verse or without verse, since such words, if spoken, would be neither holy, nor profitable to us, nor consistent with themselves.' 'I vote with you for this law,' he said, 'and it pleases me.' 'This, then,' I said, 'would be one of the laws and patterns concerning God, by which speakers must speak and poets compose: that God is not the cause of all things, but of ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 380b–c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 2.380b–c. The quotation ends in 5.37. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.36 (Raeder, 133; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-36). ## Discourse 5.37 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/4-55/#p-5-37 - Source: Raeder, 133 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato banishes those who make God the author of evil. ### Greek text ἀγαθῶν.“ ταῦτα καὶ περὶ τοῦ πεποιηκότος ἡμᾶς Θεοῦ καὶ περὶ ἡμῶν δέ γε αὐτῶν καὶ φρονεῖν καὶ δοξάζειν ὃ Πλάτῶν ἐδίδαξε καὶ τοὺς κακῶν αἴτιον εἶναι τὸν Θεὸν λέγοντὰς ἐξελαύνειν ἐκέλευσε" καὶ γὰρ ἀνόσιον εἶναι τόνδε τὸν λόγον φησὶ καὶ ἀξύμφορον ἡμῖν καὶ ἀξύμφωνον ἑαυτῷ. εἰ γὰρ ἀγαθὸς ὃ θεός, ὥσπερ οὖν ἀγαθός (ποινὸς γὰρ οὗτος ### English translation (Claude) good things.' Plato taught us to think and believe this both about God who made us and about ourselves, and ordered those who say God is the cause of evils to be driven out; for he says this account is unholy, unprofitable to us, and inconsistent with itself. For if God is good, as he is (for this account is common ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 5.38. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.37 (Raeder, 133; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-37). ## Discourse 5.38 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-38 - Source: Raeder, 134 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Moral evil comes from us, not from God. ### Greek text ὁ λόγος), οὐκ ἄρα κακῶν αἴτιος ὁ ἀγαθὺς γένοιτ᾽ ἄν. δὲ ἀναίτιος ὃ Θεὸς τῶν γινομένων κακῶν (κακὰ δὲ κυρίως ὀνομάζομεν οὐ τὰ παρὰ πολλῶν νομιξόμενα, πενίαν καὶ νόσον καὶ τἄλλα, ὅσα τούτοις ἐστὶ παραπλήσια, ἃς ξυμφορὰς ὀνομάξειν φίλον τισίν, ἀλλὰ κακίαν καὶ ἀκολασίαν, καὶ τὰς ἄλλας παρανομίας), ὑφ᾽ ἡμῶν δὲ ταῦτα τολμᾶται, ἡμεῖς ἄρα τούτων αἴτιοι, καὶ οὐχ ὃ τἀναντία νομοθετήσας Θεός" ταῦτα γὰρ ἡμᾶς φρονεῖν καὶ Σωκράτης καὶ Πλάτων ἐδίδαξαν. ### English translation (Claude) to all), the good could not be the cause of evils. And if God is not the cause of the evils that happen (and we properly call evils not what many think so, poverty, disease, and the like, which some like to call misfortunes, but vice, licentiousness, and the other transgressions), and these are dared by us, then we are their cause, and not God, who legislated the opposite; for Socrates and Plato taught us to think so. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.38 (Raeder, 134; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38). ## Discourse 5.39 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-39 - Source: Raeder, 134 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Alcibiades calls the rational soul godlike. ### Greek text οὗτοι καὶ τὸ λογιπὸν τῆς ψυχῆς θεοειδὲς προσηγόρευσαν, καὶ ἔστιν ὁκοῦσαν Σωκράτους τῷ ᾿Αλκιβιάδῃ λέγοντος (καὶ ταῦτά γε ὁ Πλάτων ξυνέγραψεν)" »ἔχομεν οὖν εἰπεῖν, ὅ τι τῆς ψυχῆς ἐστι θειότατον ἢ τοῦτο, περὶ ὃ εἰδέναι τὲ καὶ φρονεῖν ἔστινς οὖκ ἔχομεν; τῷ θεῷ οὖν τοῦτο ἔοιμεν αὐτῆς᾽ καί τις εἰς τοῦτο βλέπων καὶ πᾶν τὸ θεῖον γνούς, θεόν τε καὶ φρόνησιν, οὕτω καὶ ἑαυτὸν γνοίη μάλι ### English translation (Claude) These men also called the rational part of the soul godlike, and one may hear Socrates say to Alcibiades (Plato wrote this too): 'Can we say, then, that there is anything in the soul more divine than that in which knowing and thinking reside? We cannot. This part of it, then, resembles God; and one who looks to it and knows all that is divine, God and wisdom, would in this way also know himself best.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Alc. maj. 133c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Alcibiades I 133c. The last word is split between 5.39 and 5.40. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.39 (Raeder, 134; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-39). ## Discourse 5.40 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-40 - Source: Raeder, 134 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: In the Phaedo Socrates likens the body to the visible. ### Greek text στα παραπλήσια δὲ κἀν τῷ Φαίδωνι λέγει οο,θῶῷμεν“ γὰρ ἔφη δύο εἴδη τῶν ὄντων, τὸ μὲν ὁρατόν, τὸ δὲ ἀειδές. θῶμεν, ἔφη. "αἱ τὸ μὲν ἀειδὲς ἀεὶ καὶ κατὰ ταὐτὰ ἔχον" ᾿τὸ δὲ ὁρατὸν μηδέποτε κατὰ ταὐτά. καὶ ταῦτα θῶμεν, ἔφη. ἐ φέρε δή, ἦ δ᾽ ὅς, ἄλλο τε ἡμῶν αὐτῶν τὸ μὲν σῶμά ἐστι, τὸ δὲ ψυχής οὐδὲν ἄλλο, ἔφη. πότερον οὖν ὁμοιότερον τῷ εἴδει φαμὲν εἶναι καὶ ξυγγενέστερον τὸ σῶμα; παντί, ἔφη, τοῦτό γε δῆλον, ὅτι τῷ ὁρατῷ, τί δὲ ψυχής ### English translation (Claude) He says similar things in the Phaedo: 'Let us suppose,' he said, 'two kinds of beings, one visible, the other invisible.' 'Let us suppose it,' he said. 'And the invisible always the same, the visible never the same.' 'Let us suppose this too,' he said. 'Come then,' he said, 'is not one part of us body and the other soul?' 'Nothing else,' he said. 'To which kind, then, do we say the body is more like and more akin?' 'To everyone this is plain,' he said: 'to the visible.' 'And the soul, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 79a–b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 79a–b. The dialogue continues in 5.41. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.40 (Raeder, 134; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-40). ## Discourse 5.41 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-41 - Source: Raeder, 135 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The soul is like the invisible. ### Greek text ὁρατὸν ἢ ἀειδές; οὐχ ὑπὸ ἀνθρώπων γ8, ὦ Σώκρατες, ἔφη. ἀλλὰ μὴν ἡμεῖς γε τὰ ὁρατὰ καὶ τὰ μὴ τῇ τῶν ἀνθρώπων φύσει ἐλέγομεν, ἢ. ἄλλῃ τινὶ οἴει; τῇ τῶν ἀνθρώπων.. τί οὖν περὶ ψυχῆς λέγομεν, ὁρατὸν ἢ ἀόρατον εἶναις οὐχ ὁρατόν. ἀειδὲς ἄρας ναί. ὁμοιότερον οὖν ἄρα ψυχὴ σώματός ἐστι τῷ ἀειδεῖ" τὸ δὲ σῶμα τῷ ὁρατῷ; πᾶσα ἀνάγκη, ὦ Σώχρατες. ### English translation (Claude) is it visible or invisible?' 'Not by human beings, Socrates,' he said. 'But we were speaking of things visible and not visible to human nature, or do you think to some other?' 'To human nature.' 'What then do we say of the soul, is it visible or invisible?' 'Not visible.' 'Invisible, then?' 'Yes.' 'Then soul is more like the invisible than body is, and body more like the visible?' 'Necessarily, Socrates.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 79b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 79b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.41 (Raeder, 135; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-41). ## Discourse 5.42 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-42 - Source: Raeder, 135 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The soul is like the divine and nearly indissoluble. ### Greek text πολλὰ δὲ καὶ ἄλλα τοιαῦτα διεξελθών, ἐπήγαγεν" ἔρῳ οὖν ἡ ψυχὴ ἔοικεν; δηλαδή, ὦ Σώκρατες. ὅτι ἡ ποτέρῳ ἢ ψ γῇ μεν; ἡλαῦῆ, ὦ «Σῶ θυ ΟἿ᾽ ἢ μὲν ψυχὴ τῷ θείῳ, τὸ δὲ σῶμα τῷ θνητῷ“ καὶ αὖ πάλιν μετ᾽ ὀλίγα"..τἰ οὖνς τούτων οὕτως ἐχόντων, ἄρα οὐχὶ σώματι μὲν ταχὺ διαλύεσθαι προσήπει; ψυχῇ ὃ αὖ τὸ παράπαν ἢ ἀδιαλύτῳ εἶναι ἢ ἐγγύς τι τούτων; πῶς γὰρ ### English translation (Claude) And after going through many other such things, he added: 'To which, then, does the soul seem like?' 'Plainly, Socrates, the soul to the divine and the body to the mortal.' And again, a little later: 'What then? These things being so, is it not fitting for the body to be quickly dissolved, but for the soul to be wholly indissoluble or nearly so?' 'How could it ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 80a–b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 80a–b. The scan is garbled at one point; translated with Plato's text as guide. The quotation continues in 5.43. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.42 (Raeder, 135; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-42). ## Discourse 5.43 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-43 - Source: Raeder, 135 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Phaedo argues that the soul goes to God and does not perish. ### Greek text οὔτ" εἶτα εἰπών, ὕπως τὸ σῶμα διαλύεται, ἐπήγαγεν",,ἡ δὲ ψυχὴ εἰς τὸ ἀειδὲς ἢ εἰς τοιοῦτον ἕτερον τόπον τινὰ οἱγομένη γενναῖον καὶ ἄριστον καὶ ἀειδῆ, εἰς “Αι δου φοιτᾷ ὡς ἀληθῶς παρὰ τὸν ἀγαθὸν καὶ φρόνιμον θεόν, οὗ ἂν θεὸς ἐθέλῃ » αὐτίκα καὶ τῇ ἐμῇ Ψυχῇ ἰτέον, αὕτη δὲ ἡμῖν ἡ τοιαύτη καὶ οὕτω πεφυκυῖα ἀπαλλαττομένη τοῦ σώματος εὐθὺς διαπεφύσηται καὶ ἀπόλωλεν, ὥς φασιν οἵ πολλοὶ ἄνἿ κὶ,ὔ ᾽ Η, ᾽ " θρωποι; πολλοῦ γε δεῖ, ὦ φίλε Κέβης τε καὶ Σιμμία" ἀλλὰ πολλῷ μᾶλλον ὧδε ἔχει.“ καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς δὲ τῆς αὐτῆς ἔχεται διανοίας καὶ τὴν τῆς ψυχῆς ἀθανασίαν δείκνυσι διαρρήδην. Ἣν τῆς χῆς 0η0η ### English translation (Claude) not be?' Then, after saying how the body is dissolved, he added: 'But the soul, the invisible part, which goes to another place like itself, noble, pure, and invisible, truly to Hades, to the good and wise God, where, God willing, my soul too must soon go, will this soul, being such and of such a nature, be blown apart and perish at once when released from the body, as most people say? Far from it, dear Cebes and Simmias; much rather it is thus.' And what follows holds to the same sense and plainly shows the immortality of the soul. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 80d–e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 80d–e. Some noise at the end of the scanned section is not translated. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.43 (Raeder, 135; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-43). ## Discourse 5.44 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-44 - Source: Raeder, 136 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The philosophers' disputes came from vainglory. ### Greek text Τοσαύτην καὶ ξυγγραφεῖς καὶ φιλόσοφοι καὶ ποιηταὶ καὶ ψυχῆς πέρι καὶ σώματος χαὶ αὐτῆς γε τῆς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ξυστάσεως πρὸς ἀλλήλους ἐσχήκασιν ἔριν καὶ διαμάχην, οἷ μὲν ταῦτα, οἵ δὲ ἐκεῖνα πρεσβεύοντες, οἱ δὲ τούτων τε κἀκείνων ἐναντίαν δόξαν ὠδένοντες. οὐ γὰρ τἀληθὲς μαθεῖν ἐπεθύμησαν, ἀλλὰ κενοδοξίᾳ καὶ φιλοτιμίᾳ δουλεύσαν-. ### English translation (Claude) Such strife and conflict historians, philosophers, and poets had with one another about soul and body and the very constitution of the human being, some championing these views, others those, others bringing forth an opinion contrary to both. For they did not desire to learn the truth, but, slaves to vainglory and ambition, ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 5.45. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.44 (Raeder, 136; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-44). ## Discourse 5.45 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-45 - Source: Raeder, 136 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Each philosopher overturned his teacher. ### Greek text τὲς καινῶν εὑρεταὶ κληθῆναι δογμάτων ἐπεθύμησαν. διὰ δὴ τοῦτο καὶ τὸν πολὺν ὑπομεμενήκασι πλάνον, τῶν ὕστερον ἐπιγενομένων ἀνατετροφότων 'τῶν πρεσβυτέρων τὰς δόξας. καὶ Ἀἀναξίμανδρος μέν, τελευτήσαντος ἤδη τοῦ Θάλεω, τοῖς ἐναντίοις ἐχρήσατο δόγμασι" καὶ Ἀναξιμένης δὲ μετὰ τὸν Ἀναξιμάνδρου γε θάνατον ταὐτὸ τοῦτο πεποίηκε" καὶ ᾿Αναξαγόρας δὲ ὡσαύτως. ### English translation (Claude) they desired to be called discoverers of new doctrines. That is why they have undergone great wandering, as those who came later overturned the opinions of their elders. Anaximander, once Thales was dead, used contrary doctrines; Anaximenes did the same after Anaximander's death; and Anaxagoras likewise. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.45 (Raeder, 136; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-45). ## Discourse 5.46 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-46 - Source: Raeder, 136 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Aristotle attacked Plato in his lifetime. ### Greek text ὁ δὲ ᾿Αφιστοτέλης ἔτι ξῶντι τῷ Πλάτωνι προφανῶς ἀντετάξατο καὶ τὸν κατὰ τῆς ᾿άχαδημίας ἀνεδέξατο πόλεμον καὶ οὔτε τὴν διδασκαλίαν ἐτίμήησεν, ἧς φιλοτίμως ἀπήλαυσεν, οὔτε τοῦ πολυθρυλήτου ἀνδρὸς ἠδέσθη τὸ κλέος οὔτε τὸ ἐν τοῖς λόγοις πιράτος ἔδεισεν, ἀλλ᾽ ἀνέδην πρὸς αὐτὸν παρετάξατο, οὖκ ἀμείνοσιν ἐκείνων, ἀλλὰ πολλῷ γε χείροσι χρησάμενος δόγμασιν. ### English translation (Claude) And Aristotle openly opposed Plato while he was still living and took up war against the Academy; he neither respected the teaching he had eagerly enjoyed, nor revered the fame of that celebrated man, nor feared his power in argument, but openly set himself against him, using not better but much worse doctrines. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.46 (Raeder, 136; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-46). ## Discourse 5.47 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-47 - Source: Raeder, 136 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Aristotle denied the soul's immortality and providence below the moon. ### Greek text καὶ γὰρ δὴ τὴν ψυχὴν ἐκείνου φάντος ἀθάνατον, οὗτος ἔφη θνητήν᾽ καὶ τὸν Θεὸν εἰρηπότος, ἐκείνου προμηθεῖσθαι τῶν πάντων, οὗτος τὴν γῆν, ὅσον ἧκεν εἰς λόγους, τῆς θείας χηδεμονίας ἐστέρησε᾽ τὰ γὰρ δὴ μέχοι σελήνης ἰθύνειν ἔφη τὸν Θεόν, τὰ δέ γε ἄλλα ὑπὸ τὴν εἱμαρμένην τετάχθαι" χαὶ ἄλλα δὲ πάμπολλα ἐνεόχμωσεν, ἃ λέγειν ἐπὶ τοῦ παρόντὸς παρέλκον ὑπείληφα. ### English translation (Claude) For when Plato said the soul was immortal, he said it was mortal; and when Plato said God takes care of all things, he, as far as words go, deprived the earth of divine care; for he said God governs things up to the moon, and the rest are subject to fate. He made very many other innovations, which I think it superfluous to mention now. ### Extrabiblical texts - Aristotle (Aristotle (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret's account of Aristotle follows the hostile doxographic tradition. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.47 (Raeder, 136; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-47). ## Discourse 5.48 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-48 - Source: Raeder, 136 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Falsehood fights itself; truth agrees with itself. ### Greek text ἐκεῖνοι μὲν οὖν τὰς ἀλλήλων εἰαότως χαταλελύκασι δόξας" τὸ γὰρ δὴ ψεῦδος οὐ μόνον τῇ ἀληθείᾳ πολέμιον, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὸ ἑαυτῷ" ἡ δέ γε ἀλήθεια ξύμφωνος ἑαυτῇ καὶ μόνον ἔχουσα τὸ ψεῦδος πολέμιον. ### English translation (Claude) They naturally destroyed one another's opinions; for falsehood is the enemy not only of truth but of itself; but truth agrees with itself and has falsehood as its only enemy. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.48 (Raeder, 136; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-48). ## Discourse 5.49 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-49 - Source: Raeder, 137 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: All the biblical writers agree about human nature. ### Greek text αὐτίμα τοίνυν ἔστιν εὑρεῖν καὶ περὶ τῆς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου φύσεως καὶ ΜΠωῦσέα τὸν νομοθέτην καὶ Δαυὶδ τὸν προφήτην καὶ τὸν γενναῖον Ἰὼβ καὶ ᾿Ησαΐαν καὶ “Ἱερεμίαν ] καὶ ὅπαντα τὸν τῶν προφητῶν χορὸν καὶ Ματθαῖον καὶ Ἰωάννην καὶ Δουκᾶν καὶ Μάρκον καὶ Πέτρον καὶ Παῦλον καὶ πάντα τῶν ἀποστόλων τὸν θίασον ξυνῳδὰ πάντας ἄνθρώπους διδάσκοντας. ### English translation (Claude) For instance, one can find that about human nature Moses the lawgiver, David the prophet, the noble Job, Isaiah, Jeremiah and the whole choir of the prophets, and Matthew, John, Luke, Mark, Peter, Paul, and the whole company of the apostles all teach in agreement. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.49 (Raeder, 137; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-49). ## Discourse 5.50 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-50 - Source: Raeder, 137 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Scripture teaches with one voice that the soul was created after the body, as Gen 2:7 says. ### Greek text οὐ γὰρ ἔστιν ἀκοῦσαι τῶν μὲν τούτους, τῶν δὲ ἐκείνους λεγόντων οαὐτόχθονας, οὐδὲ τῶν μὲν θνητὴν ἀποφαινομένων, τῶν δὲ ἀθάνατον τὴν ψυχήν, οὐδὲ τούτων μὲν αὐτογράτορα τῶν παθῶν καλούντων τὸν λογισμόν, ἐκείνων δὲ ἀνδραποδώδη καὶ δοῦλον ὀνομαξόντων ἅπαντες γὰρ ξυμφώνως διδάσκουσιν, ἀπὸ γῆς μὲν καὶ ὕδατὸς καὶ τῶν ἄλλων στοιχείων διαπλασθῆναι τὸ σῶμα, τὴν δὲ ψυχὴν οὐ προὔπάρχουσαν εἰς τοῦτο παταπεμῳθῆναι, ἀλλὰ μετὰ τὴν τούτου δημιουργηθῆναι διάπλασιν᾽,,ἔπλασεςς γάρ φησιν κ,δ Θεὸς τὸν ἄνθρωπον χοῦν ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς καὶ ἐνεφύσησεν. εἰς τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ πνοὴν ζωῆς᾽ καὶ ἐγέγετο ὃ ἄνθρωπος εἰς ψυχὴν ζῶσαν. ### English translation (Claude) For one cannot hear some of them calling these people and others those people autochthonous, nor some declaring the soul mortal and others immortal, nor these calling reason master of the passions and those calling it slavish and a slave; for all teach in agreement that the body was formed from earth, water, and the other elements, and that the soul did not exist beforehand and was sent down into it, but was created after the body was formed: 'For God formed man of dust from the earth,' it says, 'and breathed into his face the breath of life; and man became a living soul.' ### Scripture references - Gen 2:7: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.50 (Raeder, 137; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-50). ## Discourse 5.51 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-51 - Source: Raeder, 137 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God's breath means the soul's spiritual nature, not a bodily breath. ### Greek text νοητέον δὲ τὸ ἐμφύσημα οὐκ ἐκροήν τινὰ πνεύματος ἐπ στόματος γενομένην (ἀσώματον γὰρ δὴ τὸ θεῖον καὶ ἁπλοῦν καὶ ἀξύνθετον), ἀλλὰ τὴν τὴν φ φύσιν αὐτὴν τῆς ἧς ψυχῆς, ψυχῆς, ὅτι πνεῦμά νεῦμα ἐστι νοητόν τὸ τὲ καὶ λογικόν. ### English translation (Claude) The inbreathing must be understood not as an outflow of breath from a mouth (for the divine is bodiless, simple, and uncompounded), but as the very nature of the soul, that it is an intelligible and rational spirit. ### Scripture references - Gen 2:7: allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - The scan repeats several words; they are translated once. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.51 (Raeder, 137; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-51). ## Discourse 5.52 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-52 - Source: Raeder, 137 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The law on miscarriage shows the soul is created when the body is formed. ### Greek text ταῦτα μὲν οὖν ὁ νομοθέτης ἐν τῇ κοσμογενείᾳ ξυνέγραψε᾽ τὰ παραπλήσια δὲ κὰν τοῖς νόμοις δὲδάσκει. περὶ γὰρ δὴ τῆς ἐγκύμονος τῆς ἔκ τινων πληγῶν ἀμβλωσκούσης διαλεγόμενος, διαμορφοῦσθαι πρότερον ἐν τῇ νηδύϊ λέγει τὸ βρέφος, εἶθ᾽ οὕτω ψυχοῦσθαι, οὐ θύραθέν ποθὲν τῆς ψυχῆς εἰσκρινομένης, οὐδέ γε ἐκ τῆς γονῆς φυομένης, ἀλλὰ τῷ θείῳ ὅρῳ κατὰ τὸν ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἐντεθέντα ἐν τῇ φύσει νόμον δεχομένης τὴν γένεσιν. ### English translation (Claude) The lawgiver wrote this in his account of the world's origin, and he teaches similar things in the laws too. For speaking of a pregnant woman who miscarries from certain blows, he says that the child is first formed in the womb and then ensouled, the soul not entering from somewhere outside, nor springing from the seed, but receiving its coming into being by the divine decree, according to the law placed in nature from the beginning. ### Scripture references - Exod 21:22–23: allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Exod 21:22–23 in the Greek (LXX), which distinguishes a formed from an unformed embryo. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.52 (Raeder, 137; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-52). ## Discourse 5.53 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-53 - Source: Raeder, 138 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Job describes God forming him in the womb. ### Greek text τοῦτο καὶ ὃ γενναῖος Ἰὼβ ἐν τοῖς πολυθρυλήτοις ἀγῶσι πρὸς τὸν ἀγωνοθέτην καὶ ποιητὴν διαλεγόμενος ἔφη ομνήσθητι, ὅτι πηλόν μὲ ἔπλασας, εἰς δὲ γῆν μὲ πάλιν ἀποστρέφεις. ἢ οὐχ ὥσπερ γάλα μὲ ἤμελξας, ἔπηξας δέ μὲ ἴσα τυρῷ; δέρμα καὶ κρέας ἐνέδυσάς με᾿ ὀστέοις δὲ καὶ νεύροις ἕνενράς με ζωὴν δὲ καὶ ἔλεον ἔθου παρ᾽ ἐμοί ἡ δὲ ἐπισκοπή ### English translation (Claude) The noble Job, conversing with the Judge of the contest and his Maker in his celebrated struggles, said this: 'Remember that you formed me of clay, and you return me to the earth again. Did you not milk me out like milk and curdle me like cheese? You clothed me with skin and flesh, and knit me together with bones and sinews; you granted me life and mercy, and your care ### Scripture references - Job 10:9–12: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Job 10:9–12. The quotation ends in 5.54. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.53 (Raeder, 138; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-53). ## Discourse 5.54 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-54 - Source: Raeder, 138 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Job's words describe conception, the soul's creation, and God's care. ### Greek text σου ἐφύλαττέ μου τὸ πνεῦμα.“ διὰ δὲ τούτων ἔδειξε μὲν τὴν γαμιπὴν ὁμιλίαν, ἔδειξε δὲ τῆς παιδοποιΐας τὰς ἀφορμὰς καὶ τὸν σμικρὸν ἐκεῖνον θορὸν εἰς μυρίας ἰδέας μεταμορφούμενον καὶ τηνικαῦτα τὴν ψυχὴν δημιουργουμένην τε καὶ ξυναπτομένην τῷ σώματι, καὶ μέντοι καὶ μετὰ τὰς ὠδῖνας τὴν θείαν ἐπικουρίαν φρουροῦσαν χαὶ χυβερνῶσαν. ### English translation (Claude) guarded my spirit.' By these words he showed marital intercourse, the beginnings of childbearing, and that small seed transformed into countless forms, and then the soul created and joined to the body, and also, after birth, the divine help guarding and steering it. ### Scripture references - Job 10:12: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.54 (Raeder, 138; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-54). ## Discourse 5.55 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-55 - Source: Raeder, 138 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: All humanity descends from one man and one woman. ### Greek text βοᾷ δὲ καὶ ὃ θεσπέσιος ΖΔαυίδ'.,νἱ χεῖρές σου ἐποίησάν μὲ καὶ ἔπλασάν με᾽ συνετισόν με, καὶ μαθήσομαι τὰς ἐντολάς σου. καὶ κατὰ ταὐτὸν καὶ τῆς ποιήσεως ἀναμιμνήσκει τὸν ποιητὴν καὶ τυχεῖν παρ᾽ αὐτοῦ ξυνέσεως ἱκετεύει. καὶ ἅπαντες δὲ οἱ προφῆται ξύμφωνα τούτοις τῆς ἀνθρωπείας πέρι διδάσκουσι φύσεως. ὡς ἂν δὲ μή τις ὑπολάβῃ ἄλλως μὲν “Ἕλληνας φῦναι, ἄλλως δὲ Ῥωμαίους, «καὶ «{ἶγυπτίους ἑτέρως, καὶ Πέρσας καὶ Μασσαγέτας καὶ Σαύθας χαὶ Σαυρομάτας ἄλλης οὐσίας μετειληχέναι, ἐδίδαξεν ὁ τὴν κοσμογένειαν ξυγγράψας τὴν ἡμετέραν, ὡς ἄνδρα ἕνα ἀπὸ γῆς ὁ ποιητὴς διαπλάσας καὶ ἐκ τῆς τούτου πλευρᾶς τὴν γυναῖκα δημιουργήσας, ἐκ τῆς τούτοιν ὁμιλίας ἅπασαν τὴν ᾿μοἰκουμένην ἀνθρώπων ἐπλήρωσε, τῶν παίδων τῶν ἐκείνων καὶ τῶν ἐκγόνων κατὰ μέρος αὐξησάντων τὸ γένος. ### English translation (Claude) And the divine David cries: 'Your hands made me and formed me; give me understanding, and I will learn your commandments.' At the same time he reminds the Maker of his making and begs him for understanding. All the prophets teach in agreement with these about human nature. And so that no one may suppose that Greeks were born one way and Romans another, and Egyptians differently, and that Persians, Massagetae, Scythians, and Sauromatians share another substance, the writer of our account of the world's origin taught that the Maker formed one man from earth and made the woman from his side, and from their union filled the whole world with human beings, their children and descendants increasing the race little by little. ### Scripture references - Ps 119:73 (118:73 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Gen 2:21–22: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.55 (Raeder, 138; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-55). ## Discourse 5.56 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-56 - Source: Raeder, 139 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God made all from one pair, and the woman from the man, to show one human nature. ### Greek text δᾷστον μὲν γὰρ ἦν αὐτῷ προστάξαι καὶ αὐτίκα πᾶσαν γῆν καὶ θάλατταν τῶν οἰκητόρων ἐμπλῆσαι" ἀλλ᾽ ἵνα μὴ διαφόρους. ὑπολάβωσιν εἶναι τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὰς φύσεις, ἐκ τοῦ ἑνὸς ἐκείνου ζεύγους τὰ μυρία φῦλα τῶν ἀνθρώπων γενέσθαι ἐμέλευσεν. ταύτῃ τοι καὶ τὴν γυναῖκα οὐχ ἑτέρωθθέν ποθεν διέπλασεν, ἀλλ ἐπ τοῦ ἀνδρὸς τὰς τῆς γενέσεως λαβὼν ἀφορμάς, ἵνα μηδὲ αὐτὴ φύσιν ἔχειν ἑτέραν ὑπολαμβάνουσα τὴν ἐναντίαν τοῖς ἀνδράσιν ὁδεύῃ. ### English translation (Claude) It would have been very easy for him to command and at once fill all land and sea with inhabitants; but so that they might not suppose human natures to be different, he ordered the countless tribes of human beings to come from that one pair. That is why he did not form the woman from somewhere else but took the beginnings of her coming into being from the man, so that she too, supposing she had a different nature, might not walk the opposite way to men. ### Scripture references - Gen 2:22: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.56 (Raeder, 139; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-56). ## Discourse 5.57 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-57 - Source: Raeder, 139 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Men and women share the same soul, laws, sacraments, and prizes of virtue. ### Greek text διά τοι τοῦτο καὶ τοὺς αὐτοὺς νόμους καὶ ἀνδράσι προσφέρει καὶ γυναιξίν. ἔπειδήπερ ἐν τῷ τοῦ σώματος σχήματι καὶ οὐκ ἐν τῇ ψυχῇ τὸ διάφορον. λογωνὴ γὰρ κἀκείνη ὡς οὗτος καὶ ξυνιέναι δυγαμένη καὶ τὸ πρακτέον ἐπισταμένη, καὶ τί μὲν φυγεῖν, τί δὲ μετελθεῖν, παραπλησίως εἰδυῖα, ἔστι δὲ ὅτε καὶ τοῦ ἀνδρὸς ἄμεινον τὸ ξυνοίσειν μέλλον εὑρίσκουσα καὶ ἀγαθὴ ξύμβουλος γινομένη ὅθεν οὐ μόνον ἀνδράσιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ γυναιξὶν εἰσιτητὸν εἰς τοὺς θείους νεώς, καὶ τῶν θείων μυστηρίων μεταλαχεῖν οὐ τοῖς μὲν ὃ νόμος ἐπιτρέπει, τὰς δὲ κωλύει, ἀλλὰ καὶ ταύτας τελεῖσθαι καὶ μυσταγωγεῖσθαι παραπλησίως ἐκείνοις παρακελεύεται, καὶ μέντοι καὶ τῆς ἀρενῆς τὰ ἀθλα καὶ ταύταις πρύκχξιται ὡς ἐκείνοις, ἐπειδὴ τῆς ἀρετῆς οἵ ### English translation (Claude) For this reason he gives the same laws to men and women, since the difference is in the shape of the body and not in the soul. For she too is rational like him, able to understand and knowing what is to be done, knowing equally what to flee and what to pursue; sometimes she even finds better than the man what will be beneficial and becomes a good counselor. Hence not only men but also women may enter the divine temples; the law does not permit the one and forbid the other to share in the divine mysteries, but bids women to be initiated and admitted to the mysteries just as men; and the prizes of virtue are set before them as before men, since the contests of virtue ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 5.58. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.57 (Raeder, 139; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-57). ## Discourse 5.58 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-58 - Source: Raeder, 139 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Virtue is found among all peoples, as the Greeks admit. ### Greek text ἀγῶνες ““ κοινοί,, οὐ μὴν οὐδὲ τῶν »- γλωττῶν »-» τὸ διάφορον ᾿ τῇ φύσει λυμαίνεται" καὶ γὰρ καὶ ἐν Ἕλλησι καὶ ἐν βαρβάροις ἔστιν ἰδεῖν καὶ ἀρετῆς φροντιστὰς καὶ κακίας ἐργάτας. τῷδε μέντοι καὶ Ἕλληνες ξυμφωνοῦσι τῷ λόγῳ. καὶ γὰρ ᾿Ανάχαρσιν θαυμάξουσιν, ἄνδρα Σκύθην, οὐκ ᾿άθηναῖον οὐδὲ Ἀργεῖον οὐδέ γε Κορίνθιον οὐδὲ Τεγεάτην ἢ Σπαρτιάτην, καὶ τοὺς Βραχμᾶνας ὑπεράγανται, ᾿Ινδοὺς ὄντας, οὐ Ζωριέας οὐδὲ «Αἰολέας οὐδέ γε Ἴωνας ἐπαινοῦσι δὲ χαὶ «Αἰγυπτίους ὡς σοφωτάτους᾽ πολλὰς γάρ τοι καὶ παρὰ τούτων ἔμαθον ἐπιστήμας. ### English translation (Claude) are common. Nor does the difference of languages harm nature; for among both Greeks and barbarians one can see those who care for virtue and those who practice vice. The Greeks too agree with this account; for they admire Anacharsis, a Scythian, not an Athenian, Argive, Corinthian, Tegean, or Spartan; and they greatly admire the Brahmans, who are Indians, not Dorians, Aeolians, or Ionians; and they praise the Egyptians as most wise, for they learned many sciences from them too. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.58 (Raeder, 139; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-58). ## Discourse 5.59 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-59 - Source: Raeder, 140 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Homer and Xenophon praise the virtue of barbarians. ### Greek text οὔκουν ἡ τῶν γλωττῶν ἑτερότης πημαίνει τὴν φύσιν. καὶ γὰρ τοὺς Ἱππημολγοὺς δικαιοτάτους ἐκάλεσεν Ὅμηρος᾽ Θρᾳκικὸν δὲ τοῦτο τὸ γένος᾽ παὶ Κῦρον τὸν Καμβύσου, Πέρσην ὕντα πατρόθεν καὶ Μῆδον μητρόθεν, ἐπὶ φρονήσει καὶ σωφροσύνῃ καὶ δικαιοσύνῃ καὶ ἀνδρείᾳ Ξενοφῶν ὁ Γρούλλου τεθαύμακεν. ### English translation (Claude) So the difference of languages does not harm nature. For Homer called the Hippemolgi most just, and this is a Thracian race; and Xenophon son of Gryllus admired Cyrus son of Cambyses, a Persian on his father's side and a Mede on his mother's, for his wisdom, self-control, justice, and courage. ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 13.5–6 (Homer, Iliad): allusion, high confidence - Xenophon, Cyr. (Xenophon, Cyropaedia): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Iliad 13.5–6; Xenophon, Cyropaedia. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.59 (Raeder, 140; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-59). ## Discourse 5.60 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-60 - Source: Raeder, 140 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The unlettered prophets and apostles filled the world with teaching on virtue. ### Greek text τοιγάρτοι ξυνομολογοῦσι καὶ οἵ Ἕλληνες, καὶ παρὰ τοῖς βαρβάροις εἶναί τινὰ ἐπιμέλειαν ἀρετῆς, καὶ μὴ κωλύειν τήνδε τὴν χτῆσιν τῆς φωνῆς τὸ διάφορον. [ καὶ γὰρ ἅπαντες τῆς ἀληθείας οἱ κήρυκες, προφῆταί φημι καὶ ἀπόστολοι, τῆς μὲν Ἑλληνικῆς οὐ μετέλαχον εὐγλωττίας, ἔμπλεοι δὲ τῆς ἀληθινῆς ὄντες σοφίας, πᾶσι τοῖς ἔθνεσι, καὶ Ἑλληνικοῖς καὶ βαρβαρικοῖς, τὴν θείαν διδασκαλίαν προσήνεγκαν καὶ πᾶσαν γῆν καὶ θάλατταν τῶν ἀρετῆς πέρι καὶ εὐσεβείας ξυγγραμμάτων ἐνέπλησαν. ### English translation (Claude) So the Greeks too agree that among barbarians there is some care for virtue and that difference of speech does not hinder its acquisition. For all the heralds of truth, I mean the prophets and apostles, had no share in Greek eloquence, but being full of true wisdom they brought the divine teaching to all the nations, Greek and barbarian, and filled all land and sea with writings about virtue and godliness. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.60 (Raeder, 140; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-60). ## Discourse 5.61 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-61 - Source: Raeder, 140 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Now all read the apostles and forget the philosophical schools. ### Greek text καὶ νῦν ὅπαντες τῶν φιλοσόφων τοὺς λήρους καταλιπόντες τοῖς τῶν ἁλιέων καὶ τελωνῶν ἐντρυφῶσι μαθήμασι καὶ τὰ τοῦ σκυτοτόμου ξυγγράμματα περιέπουσι᾽ καὶ τῆς μὲν ᾿παλικῆς καὶ Ἰωνικῆς καὶ ᾽Ἔλεατι- "ῆς ξυμμορίας οὐδὲ τὰς προσηγορίας ἐπίστανται (ἐξήλειψε γὰρ αὐτῶν ὁ χρόνος. τὴν μνήμην), τῶν δέ γε προφητῶν, πλείοσιν ἢ ἢ χιλίοις καὶ πεντακοσίοις ἔτεσι τούτων πρόσθεν γε: ### English translation (Claude) And now all, leaving the nonsense of the philosophers, delight in the teachings of the fishermen and tax collectors and cherish the writings of the leather-worker; they do not even know the names of the Italian, Ionian, and Eleatic companies (for time has wiped out their memory), but the names of the prophets, who lived more than fifteen hundred years before them, ### Scripture references - Acts 18:3: echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 5.62. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.61 (Raeder, 140; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-61). ## Discourse 5.62 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-62 - Source: Raeder, 141 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The patriarchs are famous while the Seven Sages are forgotten. ### Greek text γενημένων, τὰς προσηγορίας ἐν τῷ στόματι περιφέρουσιν. καὶ μέντοι. καὶ τοὺς ἔτι τούτων παλαιοτέρους, τὸν “Ἵβραάμ φημι καὶ τοὺς τούτου παῖδας, καὶ τοὺς ἐκείνων ἀρχαιοτέρους, τὸν Ἶ4βελ, τὸν ᾿ἘΕνώχ, τὸν Νῶς καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους, ὕσους ἀριδήλους ὁ ἀξιέπαινος ἀπέφηνε βίος᾽ τῶν δὲ μετὰ τοὺς προφήτας γεγενημένων ἑπτὰ σοφῶν καὶ τῶν ἐκείνους διαδεξαμένων οὐδὲ οἵ τὴν “Ἑλληνικὴν ἀσπαζόμενοι γλῶτταν ἴσασι τὰ ὀνόματα. ### English translation (Claude) they carry about on their lips. And also those still older than these, I mean Abraham and his children, and those more ancient still, Abel, Enoch, Noah, and the others whom a praiseworthy life made famous; while of the Seven Sages, who lived after the prophets, and of their successors, not even those who embrace the Greek tongue know the names. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.62 (Raeder, 141; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-62). ## Discourse 5.63 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-63 - Source: Raeder, 141 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Even the ancients disputed who the Seven Sages were. ### Greek text καὶ τί λέγω τοὺς νῦν; καὶ γὰρ τοῖς πάλαν πολλὴ περὶ τούτων ἀμφιλογία γεγένηται. οἵ μὲν γὰρ τούτοῖς Περίανδρον ξυντάττουσι τὸν Κορίνθιον, οἱ δὲ ᾽Επιμεγίδην τὸν Κρῆτα, οἱ δὲ Ἀἀκουσίλαον τὸν ᾿Αργεῖον, οἱ δὲ ᾿Ανάχαρσιν τὸν Σκύθην, ἄλλοι δὲ Φερεκύδην τὸν Σύριον, ὁ δέ γὲ Πλάτων Μύσωνα τὸν Χηνέα. ### English translation (Claude) And why do I speak of those of today? Even among the ancients there was much dispute about them. Some rank Periander of Corinth among them, others Epimenides of Crete, others Acusilaus of Argos, others Anacharsis the Scythian, others Pherecydes of Syros, and Plato Myson of Chen. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Prot. 343a (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence - Protagoras (Protagoras): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Protagoras 343a. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.63 (Raeder, 141; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-63). ## Discourse 5.64 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-64 - Source: Raeder, 141 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The apostles' names are known to all; the few remaining pagans cling to error. ### Greek text τούτους μὲν οὖν καὶ οἵ πέλας ὄντες ἠγνοήκπασι" τὸν δὲ ᾿ατθαῖον καὶ τὸν Βαρθολομαῖον καὶ τὸν Ἰάκωβον, καὶ μέντοι καὶ τὸν Μωῦσέα καὶ τὸν Δαυὶδ καὶ τὸν ᾿Ησαΐαν καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους ἀποστόλους τε καὶ προφήτας οὕτως ἴσασιν ὡς τὰς τῶν παίδων προσηγορίας. αὐτίκα τοίνυν καὶ κωμῳδοῦσιν ὡς βάρβαρα τὰ ὀνόματα' ἡμεῖς δὲ αὐτῶν τὴν ἐμπληξίαν ὀλοφυρόμεθα, ὅτι δὴ ὁρῶντες βαρβαροφώνους ἀνθρώπους τὴν “Ἑλληνικὴν εὐγλωττίαν νενικηκότας, καὶ τοὺς κεκομψευμένους μύθους παντελῶς ἐξεληλαμένους, καὶ τοὺς ἁλιευτικοὺς σολουκισμοὺς τοὺς Ἀττικοὺς καταλελυκότας ξυλλογισμούς, οὐκ ἐρυθριῶσιν οὐδ᾽ ἐγκαλύπτονται, ἀλλ᾽ ἀνέδην ὑπερμαχοῦσι τῆς πλάνης, καὶ ταῦτα ὀλίγοι ὄντες καὶ ἀρυθμηθῆναι ῥᾳδίως δυνάμενοι καὶ οὐδὲ τῆς “Ελληνικῆς εὐστομίας μετέχοντες, ἀλλὰ τοσαῦτα, ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν, βαρβαρίζοντες ὅσα φθέγγονται, παίδευσιν δὲ ἄκραν καὶ λαμπρότητα λόγων ὑπολαμβανόντες, εἰ ὀμνύν-τες εἴποιεν μὰ τοὺς θεούς“" καὶ μὰ τὸν ἥλιον καὶ τοιοὕτους τινὰς τοῖς λόγοις ἐπιπλάττοιεν ὅρκους. ### English translation (Claude) These even their neighbors did not know; but Matthew, Bartholomew, and James, and also Moses, David, Isaiah, and the other apostles and prophets they know as they know the names of their children. They even mock the names as barbarous; but we lament their folly, because seeing men of barbarous speech conquer Greek eloquence, the elegant myths wholly driven out, and the solecisms of fishermen destroying Attic syllogisms, they do not blush or hide their faces, but openly fight for their error, though they are few and easily counted and have no share in Greek fluency, but commit, so to speak, as many barbarisms as they utter words, and think it the height of education and brilliance of speech if they swear 'by the gods' and 'by the sun' and work such oaths into their speech. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.64 (Raeder, 141; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-64). ## Discourse 5.65 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-65 - Source: Raeder, 142 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The philosophical schools have no successors left. ### Greek text εἰ δὲ ἀληθῆ λέγω, εἴπατε, ὦ ἄνδρες, τίνα Ξενοφάνης ὃ Κολοφώγιος ἔσχε διάδοχον τῆς αἱρέσεως; τίνα δὲ Παρμενίδης ὃ ᾿Ελεάτης; | τίνα Πρωταγόρας καὶ Μέλισσος; τίνα Τ]Πυθαγόρας ἢ ᾿Αναξαγόρας; τίνα Σπεύσιππος ἢ Ξενοκράτης; τίνα ᾿Αναξίμανδρος ἢ Ἀναξιμένης; τίνα Ἀἀρκεσίλαος ἢ Φιλόλαος; τίνες τῆς Στωϊκῆς αἱρέσεως προστατεύουσιν; τίνες τοῦ Σταγειρίτου τὴν διδασκαλίαν πρατύνουσιν; τίνες κατὰ τοὺς Πλάτωνος πολιτεύονται νόμους; τίνες τὴν ὑπ᾽ ἐκείνου ξυγγραφεῖσαν πολιτείαν ἠσπάσαντο; ### English translation (Claude) If I speak the truth, tell me, gentlemen, whom did Xenophanes of Colophon have as successor in his school? Whom did Parmenides of Elea? Whom Protagoras and Melissus? Whom Pythagoras or Anaxagoras? Whom Speusippus or Xenocrates? Whom Anaximander or Anaximenes? Whom Arcesilaus or Philolaus? Who lead the Stoic school? Who uphold the Stagirite's teaching? Who live by Plato's laws? Who have embraced the republic he wrote? ### Extrabiblical texts - Protagoras (Protagoras): quotation, medium confidence - Philolaus (Philolaus): quotation, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.65 (Raeder, 142; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-65). ## Discourse 5.66 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-66 - Source: Raeder, 142 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Scripture has been translated into all the world's languages. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ τούτων μὲν τῶν δογμάτων οὐδένα διδάσκαλον ἡμῖν ἐπιδεῖξαι δυνήσεσθε, ἡμεῖς δὲ τῶν ἀποστολικῶν καὶ προφητικῶν δογμάτων τὸ κράτος ἐναργῶς ἐπιδείκνυμεν᾽ πᾶσα γὰρ ἡ ὑφήλιος τῶνδε τῶν λόγων ἀνάπλεως. καὶ ἡ Ἑβραίων φωνὴ οὐ μόνον εἰς τὴν Ἑλλήνων μετεβλήθη, ἀλλὰ καὶ εἰς τὴν Ῥωμαίων καὶ «Αἰγυπτίων καὶ Περσῶν καὶ Ἰνδῶν καὶ Ἀρμενίων καὶ Σευθῶν καὶ Σαυροματῶν καὶ ξυλλήβδην εἰπεῖν εἰς ἁπάσας τὰς γλώττας, αἷς ἅπαντα τὰ ἔθνη κεχρημένα διατελεῖ. ### English translation (Claude) You will not be able to show us a single teacher of these doctrines; but we clearly show the power of the apostolic and prophetic doctrines; for the whole world under the sun is full of these words. The Hebrew tongue has been turned not only into Greek but into the languages of the Romans, Egyptians, Persians, Indians, Armenians, Scythians, Sauromatians, and, in a word, into all the languages that all nations use. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.66 (Raeder, 142; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-66). ## Discourse 5.67 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-67 - Source: Raeder, 143 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The apostles persuaded all nations of the soul's immortality and freedom. ### Greek text καὶ ὃ μὲν σοφώτατος Πλάτων, περὶ τῆς ἀθανασίας τῆς ψυχῆς παμπόλλους λόγους διεξελθών, οὐδ᾽ Ἀριστοτέλην τὸν φοιτητὴν ἔπεισε τόνδε στέρξαι τὸν ὅρον᾽ οἵ δὲ ἡμέτεροι ἁλιεῖς καὶ τελῶναι χαὶ ὁ σκυτοτόμος καὶ Ἕλληνας ἔπεισαν καὶ Ῥωμαίους καὶ Αἰγυπτίους καὶ ἁπαξαπλῶς ἅπαν ἔθνος ἀνθρώπων, ὅτι καὶ ἀθάνατος ἡ ψυχὴ καὶ λόγῳ τετιμημένη καὶ κρατεῖν τῶν παθῶν δυναμένη καὶ ὀλιγωροῦσα, οὐ βιαζομένη, παραβαίνει τοὺς νόμους" καὶ αὖ πάλιν πρὸς τὸ βέλτιον νεύουσα, τῆς προτέρας ἀπαλλάττεται κακίας καὶ θείους πάλιν ἀναμάττεται χαρακτῆρας. ### English translation (Claude) The most wise Plato, after going through very many arguments on the immortality of the soul, did not persuade even his pupil Aristotle to accept this doctrine; but our fishermen, tax collectors, and the leather-worker persuaded Greeks, Romans, Egyptians, and simply every nation of human beings that the soul is immortal, honored with reason, able to master the passions, and transgresses the laws through negligence, not compulsion; and again, turning to the better, it is freed from its former vice and takes on the divine stamps again. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.67 (Raeder, 143; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-67). ## Discourse 5.68 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-68 - Source: Raeder, 143 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Even laborers and servants know Christian doctrine. ### Greek text καὶ ἔστιν ἰδεῖν ταῦτα εἰδότας τὰ δόγματα οὐ μόνους γὲ τῆς ἐκκλησίας τοὺς διδασχάλους, ἀλλὰ καὶ σκυτοτόμους καὶ χαλκοτύπους καὶ ταλασιουργοὺς καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους ἀποχειροβιώτους᾽ καὶ γυναῖπας ὡσαύτως οὐ μόνον τὰς λόγων μετεσχηκυίας, ἀλλὰ καὶ χερνήτιδας καὶ ἀκεστρίας, καὶ μέντοι καὶ θεραπαίνας᾽ καὶ οὐ μόνον ἀστοί, ἀλλὰ καὶ χωριτικοὶ τήνδε τὴν γνῶσιν ἐσχήκασι" καὶ ἔστιν εὑρεῖν καὶ σκαπανέας καὶ βοηλάτας καὶ φυτουργοὺς καὶ περὶ τῆς θείας διαλεγομένους Τριάδος καὶ περὶ τῆς τῶν ὅλων δημιουργίας καὶ τὴν ἀνθρωπείαν φύσιν εἰδότας ᾿᾽άριστ ### English translation (Claude) One can see these doctrines known not only to the teachers of the church but also to shoemakers, bronze-smiths, wool-workers, and the other manual laborers; and likewise to women, not only educated ones, but also those who work for wages, seamstresses, and even maidservants; and not only townspeople but also country people have this knowledge; one can find diggers, oxherds, and gardeners discussing the divine Trinity and the creation of the universe and knowing human nature ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 5.69. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.68 (Raeder, 143; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-68). ## Discourse 5.69 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-69 - Source: Raeder, 143 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Even simple Christians know more of the soul and of virtue than Plato and Aristotle. ### Greek text οτέλους πολλῷ μᾶλλον καὶ Πλάτωνος, καὶ μέντοι καὶ ἀρετῆς ἐπιμελουμένους καὶ κακίαν ἐκκλίνοντας καὶ τὰ κολαὐτήρια δεδιότας τὰ προσδοχώμενα καὶ τὸ θεῖον δικαστήριον ἀνενδοιάστως προσμένοντας καὶ τῆς αἰωνίου πέρι καὶ ἀνωλέθροὸν φιλοσοφοῦντας ζωῆς καὶ τῆς τῶν οὐρανῶν ἕνεκα βασιλείας πάντα πόνον ἀσπαστῶς αἱρουμένους, καὶ ταῦτα οὐ παρ᾽ ἄλλου του μεμαθηκότας, ἀλλὰ παρ᾿ ἐκείνων, οὺς ὑμεῖς βαρβαροφώνους ἀποκαλεῖτνε᾽ καὶ οὐδὲ ᾿ἀναχάρσιδος ἐπαΐετε ### English translation (Claude) far better than Aristotle and Plato; one can find them caring for virtue, avoiding vice, fearing the punishments awaited, expecting the divine judgment without doubting, philosophizing about eternal and imperishable life, and gladly choosing every toil for the kingdom of heaven; and they learned this from no one else but from those you call men of barbarous speech. Nor do you listen to Anacharsis ### Translation notes - The first word, 'Aristotle', is split between 5.68 and 5.69. The sentence continues in 5.70. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.69 (Raeder, 143; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-69). ## Discourse 5.70 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-70 - Source: Raeder, 144 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Barbarism is relative, as Anacharsis and Paul say. ### Greek text λέγοντος Ὁ ἐμοὶ πάντες Ἕλληνες σκυθίζουσιν.“ τοῦτο γὰρ ἀτεχνῶς ἔοικε τοῖς εἰρημένοις ὑπὸ τοῦ σκυτοτόμου ἡμετέρου" ἐὰν γὰρ μὴ γνῶ τὴν δύναμιν τῆς φωνῆς, ἔσομαι τῷ λαλοῦντί μὸν βάρβαρος, καὶ ὃ λαλῶν ἐν ἐμοὶ βάρβαρος.“ τῷ ὄντι γὰρ ὥσπερ τοῖς “Ἑλλησιν Ἰλλυριοὶ καὶ Παίονες καὶ Ταυλάντιοι καὶ Ἀτιντᾶνες βαρβαρίξειν δοκοῦσιν, οὕτως αὖ ἐκείνοις καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις, ὕσοι τῆς Ελλάδος φωνῆς ἐπαΐειν οὐ δύνανται; ἡ Ἀτθὶς καὶ Δωρὶς καὶ Δἰολὶς καὶ Ἰὰς βάρβαροι εἶναν δοκοῦσιν. ### English translation (Claude) saying: 'To me all Greeks speak Scythian.' This is exactly like what our leather-worker said: 'If I do not know the meaning of the sound, I shall be a barbarian to the speaker and the speaker a barbarian to me.' For truly, just as Illyrians, Paeonians, Taulantians, and Atintanians seem to the Greeks to speak barbarously, so to them and to all others who cannot understand the Greek tongue, Attic, Doric, Aeolic, and Ionic seem barbarous. ### Scripture references - 1 Cor 14:11: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.70 (Raeder, 144; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-70). ## Discourse 5.71 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-71 - Source: Raeder, 144 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: All peoples share one nature and have skill and courage. ### Greek text ὅτι γὰρ τὴν αὐτὴν ἔχει πᾶσα γλῶττα διάνοιαν (μία γὰρ δὴ πάντων ἀνθρώπων ἡ φύσις), ἡ πεῖρα διδάσκαλος. ἔστι γὰρ εὑρεῖν καὶ παρὰ τοῖς βαρβάροις καὶ τέχνας καὶ ἐπιστήμας καὶ τὰς ἔν πολέμοις ἀνδραγαθίας᾽ ἔνιοι δὲ τούτων καὶ σοφώτερα ᾿Ελλήνων πολλάπις ἐξευρίσκουσι μηχανήματα καὶ λόχους ἀμείνους καὶ πανουργοτέρας ἐνέδρας. ### English translation (Claude) That every tongue has the same mind (for the nature of all human beings is one), experience teaches. For one can find among barbarians too arts, sciences, and valor in war; and some of them often devise cleverer engines of war than the Greeks, better ambushes, and craftier snares. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.71 (Raeder, 144; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-71). ## Discourse 5.72 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-72 - Source: Raeder, 144 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Persians reason sharply with nature alone as teacher. ### Greek text εἰσὶ δὲ οἱ καὶ τὴν “Ελλήνων εὐέπειαν βοαχυλογίᾳ νικῶσιν. τοῦτο γὰρ δὴ καὶ Πέρσαις μαρτυροῦσι καὶ οἱ παλαιοὶ ξυγγραφεῖς, καὶ εἴ τις νῦν πρεσβεύων ἢ στρατηγῶν ἢ ἐμπορίαν τινὰ μετιὼν αὐτοῖς ξυνεγένετο. - φασὶ γὰρ αὐτοὺς ὀξέως φωρᾶν τὰς τῶν λόγων κλοπὰς καὶ ὀλίγα φθεγγομένους τοὺς προσδιαλεγομένους νικᾶν, καὶ ξυλλογιστικοὺς ἄγαν εἶναι καὶ διαλύειν ἵκανοὺς τὰ παρ᾽ ἑτέρων πλεκόμενα καὶ παροιμίαις σοφωτάταις καὶ αἰνίγμασι κεχρῆσθαι, οὐκ ἐπειδὴ τοὺς Χρυσίππου καὶ Ἀφιστοτέλους ἀνἔγνωσαν λαβυρίνθους, οὐδὲ ὅτε Σωκράτης αὐτοὺς καὶ Πλάτων. τόδε τὸ εἶδος ἐπαιδευσάτην᾽ οὔτε γὰρ ῥητορικοῖς οὔτε φιλοσόφοις ἐνετράφησαν λόγοις, ἀλλὰ μόνην ἔσχον.τὴν φύσιν διδάσκαλον. ### English translation (Claude) And some outdo Greek eloquence by brevity of speech. The old historians bear witness to this about the Persians, and so does anyone today who has been with them as envoy, general, or in some trade. For they say they quickly detect thefts in arguments, defeat their interlocutors with few words, are very good at reasoning and able to undo what others weave, and use most wise proverbs and riddles, not because they have read the labyrinths of Chrysippus and Aristotle, nor because Socrates and Plato taught them this form; for they were not brought up on rhetorical or philosophical discourses, but had nature alone as their teacher. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.72 (Raeder, 144; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-72). ## Discourse 5.73 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-73 - Source: Raeder, 145 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Indians and the desert Arabs are also wise. ### Greek text τοὺς δέ γε Ἰνδοὺς καὶ τούτων πολλῷ σοφωτέρους εἶναί φασιν. καὶ οἵ Νομάδες δέ, οἵ ἡμέτεροι πρόσχωροι (τοὺς Ἰσμαηλίτας λέγω, 'τοὺς. ἐν. ταῖς ἐρήμοις βιοτεύοντας καὶ μηδὲν τῶν ᾿Ελληνικῶν ξυγγραμμάτων. ἐπισταμένους);. ἀγχινοίᾳ καὶ ξυνέσει κοσμοῦνται καὶ διάψοιαν ἔχουσι καὶ ξυνιδεῖν τἀληθὲς δυναμένην καὶ διελέγξαι τὸ ψεῦδος. ### English translation (Claude) They say the Indians are much wiser than these. And the Nomads, our neighbors (I mean the Ishmaelites, who live in the deserts and know none of the Greek writings), are adorned with shrewdness and understanding and have a mind able to see the truth and expose falsehood. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.73 (Raeder, 145; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-73). ## Discourse 5.74 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-74 - Source: Raeder, 145 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Egyptians and Romans also excel. ### Greek text περὶ δὲ Αἰγυπτίων περιττὸν οἶμαι λέγειν καὶ γὰρ αὐτοὶ τῶν φιλοσόφων οἱ πρῶτοι πρείττους εἶναι τούτοὺς ἔφασαν τῶν ὀνομαστοτάτων γεγενημένων παρ᾽ “Ἕλλησιν. Ῥωμαῖοι δὲ καὶ πονητὰς ἔσχον καὶ ξυγγραφέας καὶ ῥήτορας" καί φασιν ὀΐ ταύτην. γε κἀκείνην ἠσκημένον τὴν γλῶτταν καὶ πυκνότερα τῶν “Ἑλληνικῶν τὰ τούτων ἐνθυμήματα εἶναι καὶ ξυντομωτέρας τὰς γνώμας. ### English translation (Claude) About the Egyptians I think it superfluous to speak; for the first of the philosophers themselves said they were superior to the most famous among the Greeks. The Romans had poets, historians, and orators; and those trained in both tongues say that their thoughts are denser than the Greeks' and their maxims more concise. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.74 (Raeder, 145; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-74). ## Discourse 5.75 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-75 - Source: Raeder, 145 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret does not despise Greek but rebukes those who boast of style over truth. ### Greek text “αἱ ταῦτα λέγω οὐ τὴν Ελλάδα σμικρύνων φωνήν, ἧς ἀμηγέπη “μετέλαχον, οὐδὲ ἐναντία γε αὐτῇ. ἐκτίνων τροφεῖα, ἀλλὰ τῶν ἐπὶ ταύτῃ μεγαλαυχουμένων ξυστέλλων τὴν γνάθον καὶ τὴν ὀφρὺν καταστέλλων καὶ διδάσκων μὴ κωμῳδεῖν γλῶτταν τῇ ἀληθείῳ λαμπρυνομένην μηδέ γε βρενθύεσθαι ἐπὶ λόγοις πομμωτικῇ τέχνῃ. πεποιμιλμένοις, τῆς δὲ ἀληθείας γεγυμνωμένοις, [ ἀλλὰ θαυμάζειν τοὺς τῆς ἀληθείας ὑποφήτας, κομμοῦν μὲν καὶ δαιδάλλειν εὐεπείᾳ τοὺς λόγους οὐ διδαχθέντας, γυμνὸν δὲ δεικνύντας τῆς. ἀληθείας τὸ κάλλος καὶ τῶν ἀλλοτρίων καὶ ἐπεισάκτων ἀνθέων ἥκιστα δεηθέντας. ### English translation (Claude) I say this not to belittle the Greek tongue, in which I have some share, nor to repay it for my upbringing with hostility, but to deflate the cheeks and lower the brows of those who boast of it, and to teach them not to mock a tongue made bright by truth, nor to swagger over words decorated by the art of ornament but stripped of truth, but to admire the interpreters of truth, who were not taught to adorn and embellish their words with eloquence but show the naked beauty of truth and have no need of alien and imported flowers. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.75 (Raeder, 145; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-75). ## Discourse 5.76 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-76 - Source: Raeder, 146 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Scripture teaches truly about body, soul, reason, and the useful passions. ### Greek text Παράθετε τοίνυν, ὦ φίλοι ἄνδρες, τῷ ὕθλῳ τῶν φιλοσόφων τὴν ἁπλῆν τῶν. ἁλιέων διδασκαλίαν, καὶ ἀθρήσατε τὸ διάφορον᾽ καὶ τὰς πολλὰς τῶν ὑμετέρων βίβλων ἀριθμήσαντες μυριάδας, τὴν τῶν λόγων ἀσθένειαν καταμάθετε. οὐδεὶς γὰρ οὔτε τοῖς ποιητιποῖς μύθοις οὔτε ταῖς τῶν φιλοσόφων ἠκολούθησε δόξαις τῶν δὲ θείων λογίων καὶ τὴν ξυντομίαν θαυμάσατε καὶ τὴν δύναμιν ἀνυμνήσατε καὶ μάθετε θείων δογμάτων ἀλήθειαν, σώματος θείαν διάπλασιν, ψυχῆς φύσιν ἀθάνατον καὶ τὸ ταύτης λογικὸν ἡγούμενον τῶν παθῶν καὶ τὰ πάθη ἀναγκαῖα τῇ φύσει καὶ χρήσιμα. ### English translation (Claude) So set the simple teaching of the fishermen beside the nonsense of the philosophers, my friends, and see the difference; and counting the many myriads of your books, learn the weakness of their arguments. For no one has followed the myths of the poets or the opinions of the philosophers; but admire the brevity of the divine oracles, hymn their power, and learn the truth of divine doctrines: the divine forming of the body, the immortal nature of the soul, its rational part ruling the passions, and the passions necessary and useful to nature. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.76 (Raeder, 146; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-76). ## Discourse 5.77 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-77 - Source: Raeder, 146 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Desire leads us to God and also sustains life and lawful procreation. ### Greek text ἥ τε γὰρ ἐπιθυμία προυργιαιτάτη, καὶ ὁ θυμὸς ὡσαύτως, ὁ ταύτης ἀντίπαλος. δι’ ἐκείνην μὲν γὰρ καὶ τῶν θείων ὀριγνώμεθα καὶ τῶν ὁρωμένων ὑπερορῶντες τὰ νοητὰ φανταξόμεθα. καὶ ἐπὶ γῆς βαδίζοντες τὸν ἐν οὐρανοῖς δεσπότην ἰδεῖν ἱμειρόμεθα καὶ ἀρετῆς ἐφιέμεθα, καὶ μέντοι καὶ διαξῶμεν καὶ ἐδωδῆς μεταλαγχάνομεν καὶ ποτῶν, καὶ πρὸς τούτοις αὔξεται διὰ τῆς ἐννόμου παιδοποιΐας τὸ γένος. ### English translation (Claude) For desire is most useful, and anger likewise, its opponent. Through desire we reach out to divine things, look beyond visible things and picture the intelligible, and while walking on earth long to see the Lord in heaven and aspire to virtue; through it too we live and partake of food and drink, and besides, the race increases through lawful childbearing. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.77 (Raeder, 146; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-77). ## Discourse 5.78 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-78 - Source: Raeder, 146 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Anger restrains desire, and together they make virtue. ### Greek text ὁ δέ γε θυμὸς ξυνεργὸς ἐδόθη τῷ λογισμῷ, ἵνα τῆς ἐπιθυμίας κωλύῃ τὴν ἀμετρίαν. ἐπειδὴ γὰρ καὶ πέρα τῶν κειμένων ὅρων ἄττειν ἐπιχειρεῖ, ξυνέξευξεν αὐτῇ οἷόν τινα πῶλον τὸν θυμὸν ὁ ποιητὴς ἀνθέλκοντα, ὅταν γε ἐκείνη πέρα τῆς χρείας προβαίνειν βιάζηται. καὶ καθάπερ ἀντίπαλον μὲν τῷ ψυχρῷ τὸ θερμόν, κεραννύμενα δὲ ἀλλήλοις πρᾶσιν ἀρίστην ἐργάζεται, οὕτως ἢ ἐπιθυμία καὶ ὃ θυμός, ἀλλήλοις περαννύμενα καὶ ὑπ᾽ ἀλλήλων πολαζόμενα, τῆς ἀρετῆς τὴν ἀρίστην ἀπεργάξεται κρᾶσιν. ### English translation (Claude) Anger was given as a helper to reason, to check the excess of desire. For since desire tries to rush beyond the set bounds, the Maker yoked anger to it like a colt pulling against it whenever it presses to go beyond need. And as hot is opposed to cold, yet when mixed together they produce the best temperature, so desire and anger, mixed together and restraining each other, produce the best blend of virtue. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.78 (Raeder, 146; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-78). ## Discourse 5.79 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-79 - Source: Raeder, 147 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Reason must hold the reins of desire and anger. ### Greek text ἔχει δὲ τῶν δρωμένων τὸ κράτος ὁ λογισμός, ὥστε καὶ ταύτην ἐπέχειν καὶ τοῦτον αὖ νύττειν, ἢ τοῦτόν γε ἄγχειν καὶ διεγείρειν ἐκείνην. ταὶ γὰρ ἡ ἐπιθυμία τοῦ θυμοῦ παύει τὴν ἀμετρίαν, καὶ ὁ θυμὸς αὖ πάλιν κολάζει τῆς ἐπυιθυμίας τὴν ἀπληστίαν. ταῦτα μὲν οὖν ἀποτελεῖται, τοῦ λογισμοῦ τὰς ἡνίας ἐπιστημόνως κατέχοντος᾽ ἣν δὲ οὗτος, ἢ τῷ χαλαρῷ καὶ λείῳ τῆς ἐπιθυμίας καταθελχθεὶς ἢ τῷ θυμῷ ἄττοντι παρὰ καιρὸν ξυνεξορμήσας, χαυνοτέρας ἢ προσῆκε τὰς ἡνίὰς ἐάσῃ, οἷ μὲν. ἀτάκτως καθάπερ ἵπποι θέουσιν ἐνδακόντες τὸν χαλινόν, ὃ δὲ συρόμενος φέρεται, καταγέλαστός τὸ καὶ ἐπονείδιστος τοῖς ὁρῶσι. ### English translation (Claude) Reason holds power over what is done, so as to check the one and spur the other, or to choke the latter and rouse the former. For desire stops the excess of anger, and anger again punishes the insatiability of desire. This is accomplished when reason skillfully holds the reins; but if reason, charmed by the softness and smoothness of desire or rushing out with anger at the wrong time, lets the reins go slacker than it should, they run in disorder like horses that have bitten the bit, and reason is dragged along and becomes ridiculous and disgraceful to the onlookers. ### Translation notes - The last word 'becomes' is in 5.80. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.79 (Raeder, 147; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-79). ## Discourse 5.80 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-80 - Source: Raeder, 147 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Punishment by God and by human law proves that sin is freely chosen. ### Greek text γινόμενος. ταύτῃ τοι καὶ δίκας εἰσπράττεται, ὡς ἐθελοντὴς ὑπομείνας τὸ πάθος. καὶ γάρ τοι καὶ οἱ ἀνθρώπειον νόμοι τοὺς πλημμελοῦντας κολάζουσι, καὶ ὁ Θεὸς τοῖς ἁμαρτάνουσι τὸ ἄσβεστον ἠπείλησε πῦρ. ] οὐκ ἂν δὲ οὔτε ὁ Θεός, ἀγαθός γε ὧν καὶ δίκαιος, ποινὴν τοὺς παράνομον βίον ἀσπαζομένους εἰσέπραξεν, εἴπερ ἄρα κατ᾽ ἀνάγκην ἡμάρτανον, οὔτε τῶν ἀνθρώπων οἵ σοφώτατοι τοιούτους ἂν ἔθεσαν νόμους, εἴπερ ἤδεσαν οὐ γνώμῃ τὰ ἀνθρώπεια τελούμενα πλημμελήματα, οὔτε μὴν οἱ τὸ ἄρχειν λαχόντες τὰς ὠμοτάτας ἂν βασάνους τοῖς. τὰ πονηρὰ τολμῶσι προσέφερον, εἴπερ ἐγνώκεσαν οὐχ αἱρέσει γνώμης, ἀλλ᾽ εἱμαρμένης ἢ φύσεως ἀνάγκῃ παραβαθέντας τοὺς “νόμους. εἰ δὲ ξυγγνώμην τοῖς πλημμελοῦσιν οὐ νέμουσι, διδάσχουσιν ἄντικρυς, ὡς γνώμης ἔργον ἡ πονηρία." ### English translation (Claude) For this reason it is also made to pay penalties, as having submitted to the passion willingly. Human laws punish those who do wrong, and God threatened sinners with unquenchable fire. But neither would God, being good and just, have exacted penalty from those who embraced a lawless life if they sinned by necessity, nor would the wisest human beings have made such laws if they knew human faults were not done by choice, nor would rulers have applied the cruelest tortures to those who dare wicked deeds if they knew the laws were transgressed not by choice of will but by the necessity of fate or nature. And if they grant no pardon to wrongdoers, they plainly teach that wickedness is the work of the will. ### Scripture references - Mark 9:43: allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.80 (Raeder, 147; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-80). ## Discourse 5.81 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-81 - Source: Raeder, 148 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The senses, memory, and knowledge show God's wisdom in human nature. ### Greek text Ταῦτα καὶ περὶ τῆς τἀνθρώπου φύσεως φρονεῖν καὶ ἐδιδάχθημεν καὶ διδάσκομεν᾽ καὶ ἀγάμεθα δρῶντες τὴν ἐν ἡμῖν φαινομένην σοφίαν, τὰς διαφόρους τῶν αἰσθήσεων ἐνεργείας ἐξ ἑνὸς μὲν ἐγκεφάλου προφερομένας, ἄλλην δὲ αὐτῷ καὶ ἄλλην προσφερούσας ἀντίληψιν, τὴν “μὲν ὁφάσεως, τὴν δὲ ἀκροάσεως. καὶ ἄλλην ὀσφρήσεως. καὶ ἑτέραν, γεύσξος, καὶ ἄλλην ἁφῆς" καὶ αὖ πάλιν τῶν μορίων ἁπάντων τὴν χρείαν, καὶ τῶν φαινομένων καὶ τῶν χεηρυμμένων, καὶ τὴν μνήμην πάμπολλα καὶ διάφορα δεχομένην καὶ μὴ ξυγχέουσαν, ἀλλ᾽ ἀπήρατα ταῦτα διατηροῦσαν καὶ προφέρουσαν, ὁποῖά πὲρ ἐδέξατο πάλαι καὶ πρόπαλαι, καὶ τὰς πολλὰς ἐπιστήμας οὐ λυμαινομένας ἀλλήλαις, ἀλλ᾽ ἑκάστην εἰς καιρὸν δεικνυμένην. ### English translation (Claude) This is what we were taught and teach to think about human nature; and we admire the wisdom seen in us: the different activities of the senses issuing from one brain and bringing it different perceptions, of sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch; and again the use of all the parts, visible and hidden; and memory receiving very many and different things without confusing them, but keeping them unharmed and bringing them out as it received them long, long ago; and the many sciences not spoiling one another, but each shown at its proper time. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.81 (Raeder, 148; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-81). ## Discourse 5.82 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-5-82 - Source: Raeder, 148 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Human nature surpasses all description; the psalmist confesses this in praise. ### Greek text ὅταν δὲ ταῦτα καὶ τὰ τούτοις προσόμοια καταμάθωμεν, μετὰ τοῦ προφήτου βοῶμεν᾽..ἐθαυμαστώθη ἡ γνῶσίς σου ἐξ ἐμοῦ, ἐπραταιώθη᾽ οὐ μὴ δύνωμαι πρὸς αὐτήν.“ τίς γὰρ ἱκανὸς ἐξικέσθαι λόγος ἢ τῆς ἐν τῷ σώματι φαινομένης ἁρμονίας ἢ τῆς ἐν τῇ ψυχῇ θεωρουμένης σοφίας; πολλῶν γὰρ δὴ τούτων πέρι καὶ Ἱπποχράτει καὶ Γαληνῷ ξυγγραφέντων, καὶ μέντοι καὶ Πλάτωνι καὶ Ξενοφῶντι καὶ Ἀριστοτέλει καὶ Θεοφράστῳ καὶ μυρίοις ἑτέροις, τῶν εἰρημένων πολλαπλάσια παραλέλειπται, τῶν ὑπὸ τῆς θείας γεγονότων. σοφίας τῆς ἀνθρωπίνης διανοίας ἐφικπέσθαι μὴ δυναμένης. οὗ δὴ χάριν καὶ ὃ προφήτης ἐφ᾽ οἷς μὲν κατέλαβεν, ὕμνησεν, ἐφικέσθαι δὲ τῶν ἐν ἡμῖν θεωρουμένων ἁπάντων οὐ δυνηθείς, τὴν ἧτταν σαφῶς ὧμολόγησεν, ἀρκεῖν νομίσας εἰς ὑμνῳδίαν ἀξίαν τὴν τοιαύτην ὁμολογίαν. ] ᾿ ### English translation (Claude) When we learn these things and the like, we cry with the prophet: 'Your knowledge has become too wonderful for me; it is too strong; I cannot attain to it.' For what words could reach either the harmony seen in the body or the wisdom seen in the soul? Though Hippocrates and Galen wrote much about these, and also Plato, Xenophon, Aristotle, Theophrastus, and countless others, many times more than what they said has been left out, since human understanding cannot reach the works of divine wisdom. For this reason the prophet hymned what he grasped, and, unable to reach all that is seen in us, plainly confessed defeat, thinking such a confession enough for a worthy hymn. ### Scripture references - Ps 139:6 (138:6 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Hippocrates (Hippocrates, Hippocratic Corpus): allusion, low confidence - Galen (Galen (works)): allusion, low confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 5.82 (Raeder, 148; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-82). ## Discourse 6.1 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-6-1 - Source: Raeder, 149 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Seafarers have various roles and some are shipwrecked through folly. ### Greek text Τῶν τὸν θαλάττιον βίον ἀσπαζομένων οἱ μὲν τὰς φορτίδας ἐρέττουσιν, οἵ δὲ ταύτας τοῖς οἴαξι διευθύνουσιν, καὶ μέντοι καὶ πᾶς. ἁλιευτὴς ἐφ᾽ ἁλιάδος ὀχούμενος χαλᾷ δίκτυον καὶ θηρεύει τοὺς τῶν ὑδάτων τροφίμους, καὶ ἄλλος ἐπὶ πέτρας ἱδρυμένος καθίησιν δρμιὰν καὶ δελεάξζων περιπείρει " τῷ - ἀγκίστρῳ τῶν ἰχθύων τινάς" εἰσὶ δὲ οὗ καὶ ναυαγίᾳ χρῶνται καὶ ὑποβρύχιοι γίνονται, ἢ ἐξ ἀβουλίας παρὰ καιρὸν ἀναχθέντες ἢ διὰ θράσος τῆς ζάλης κατατολμήσαντες. ### English translation (Claude) Of those who embrace a seafaring life, some row the merchant ships and others steer them with the rudder; every fisherman, riding in a fishing boat, lets down a net and catches the creatures of the waters, and another, seated on a rock, lets down a line and, baiting it, hooks some of the fish; and some suffer shipwreck and go under, either putting out foolishly at the wrong time or daring the storm out of rashness. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.1 (Raeder, 149; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-1). ## Discourse 6.2 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-6-2 - Source: Raeder, 149 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Some praise the Helmsman of creation; others complain at everything. ### Greek text ταῦτα δὲ οὐ τηνάλλως ὑθλῶν διεξῆλθον, ἀλλὰ τῶν τῇ κτίσει προσπταιόντων “καὶ τῶν ἐν ταύτῃ πρυτανευομένων ἀνέδην κατηγορούντων ἐπιδεῖξαι τὴν ὄνοιαν διά τινος εἰκόνος πειρώμενος. καὶ γὰρ τὴν κτίσιν οἵ μὲν ὁρῶσι καὶ τὸν ποιητὴν ἀνυμνοῦσιν, οἵ δὲ πλεῖον ἢ δεῖ θαυμάξοντες ἠλιθίως θεοποιοῦσι" καὶ οἱ μὲν τῶν γινομένων ἕκαστον ὑπεράγανται καὶ τὸν τῶν ὕλων ὁρῶσι κυβερνήτην ἄριστά γε ἰθύνοντα καὶ τὴν ἐπὶ τοῖς οἴαξι φαινομένην εὐφημοῦσι σοφίαν, οἵ δὲ τοῖς γινομένοις ἅπασι νεμεσῶσι, καὶ τῶν δρωμένων αὐτοῖς οὐδὲν τὸ παράπαν ἀρέσκει, ἀλλὰ καὶ πλούτου κατηγοροῦσι καὶ κωμῳδοῦσι πενίαν. καὶ μέμφονται νόσῳ καὶ τοὺς. ὑγιαίγοντας δυσχεραίνουσι, καὶ ξυλλήβδην εἰπεῖν οὐδὲν αὐτοὺς ἤδει τῶν γινομένων, οὐκ εὐπληρία, οὐ δυσκληρία, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν εὐετηρίαν καὶ τὴν τῆς γῆς δυσκολαίνουσιν ἀκαρπίαν, καὶ ὁμοίως αὐτοὺς ἀνιᾷ καὶ πολυπαιδία καὶ ἀπαιδία καὶ εἰρήνη καὶ πόλεμος. ### English translation (Claude) I have not gone through these things as idle talk, but trying to show by an image the folly of those who stumble at creation and freely accuse what is governed in it. For some see creation and hymn the Maker, while others, admiring it more than they should, foolishly deify it; and some greatly admire each thing that happens and see the Helmsman of the universe steering excellently and praise the wisdom seen at the rudder, while others are indignant at all that happens and nothing that is done pleases them at all: they accuse wealth, mock poverty, blame disease, and are annoyed with the healthy; in a word, nothing that happens pleases them, neither good fortune nor bad, but they are vexed at abundance and at the earth's barrenness alike, and are equally troubled by many children and by none, by peace and by war. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.2 (Raeder, 149; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-2). ## Discourse 6.3 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-6-3 - Source: Raeder, 150 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Critics of providence replace it with fate and necessity. ### Greek text οὗ δὴ εἵνεκα τῶν τῆς προνοίας πηδαλίων κατηγοροῦσι᾽ μᾶλλον δὲ παντελῶς αὐτήν, ὅσον ἧκεν εἰς αὐτούς, ἐξελαύνουσι᾽ καὶ εἱμαρμένην καὶ πεπρωμένην. καὶ τύχην καὶ μοίρας εἰσάγουσι καὶ τὴν βιαίαν ἀνάγκην ἐφιστῶσιν ἑκάστῳ καὶ ταύτην φασὶ παρὰ γνώμην ποιεῖν καὶ τοὺς ἀνδροφόνους καὶ τοὺς τοιχωρύχους καὶ τῶν γάμων τοὺς ἐπιβούλους. ### English translation (Claude) For this reason they accuse the rudder of providence, or rather, as far as in them lies, drive it out altogether; they introduce fate, destiny, fortune, and the Fates, set violent necessity over each person, and say that it makes murderers, burglars, and plotters against marriages act against their will. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.3 (Raeder, 150; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-3). ## Discourse 6.4 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-6-4 - Source: Raeder, 150 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Homer shows Zeus unable to save his son from fate. ### Greek text φέρε τοίνυν πάλεν τὰς “Ἑλληνικὰς ἐξετάσωμεν δόξας, καὶ τοῖς ἀἁποστολικοῖς ταύτας καὶ προφητικοῖς παραθῶμεν δόγμασιν. ἀλλὰ τοὺς μὲν ποιητὰς μετὰ τῶν δυσσεβῶν καταλίπωμεν μύθων᾽ καὶ γὰρ τούτων ὃ κορυφαῖος τὸν τῶν θεῶν κορυφαῖον ὀλοφυρόμενον δείκνυσιν, ὡς ἐπαμῦναι τῷ παιδὶ μὴ δυνάμενον, ἀλλὰ τῶν τῆς Κλωθοῦς νημάτων ἡττώμενον καὶ ἀναλῦσαι ταῦτα βουλόμενον μέν, ὑπὸ δὲ τῆς Ἀἀτρόπου καὶ τῆς ““αχέσεως κωλυόμενον καὶ τούτου χάριν ὀλοφυρόμενον καὶ κπωκύοντα καὶ γόον πολὺν ἀναμιγνύντα τοῖς λόγοις. ### English translation (Claude) Come then, let us again examine the Greek opinions and set them beside the apostolic and prophetic doctrines. But let us leave the poets with their impious myths; for the chief of them shows the chief of the gods lamenting because he cannot help his son, but is defeated by the threads of Clotho, wishing to undo them but prevented by Atropos and Lachesis, and for this reason lamenting, wailing, and mixing much moaning with his words. ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 16.431–461 (Homer, Iliad): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Iliad 16.431–461 (Zeus and Sarpedon). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.4 (Raeder, 150; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-4). ## Discourse 6.5 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-6-5 - Source: Raeder, 150 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Homer's Poseidon too is subject to fate. ### Greek text οὗτος καὶ τὸν Ποσειδῶνα δέδειχε τίσασθαι μὲν βουλόμενον τῶν Κεφαλλήνων τὸν στρατηγόν, ὅτι τυφλὸν εἰργάσατο τὸν Πολύφημον, οὐ δυνάμενον" δὲ νικῆσαι τὴν εἱμαρμένην, ἐπειδήπερ εἵμαρτο τῷ “Ἰαέρτου τὴν Ἰθάκην ἰδεῖν. τούτους τοίνυν καταλιπόντες, τὸν τῶν φιλοσύφων ἐσμὸν παραγάγωμεν. ### English translation (Claude) He also showed Poseidon wishing to punish the general of the Cephallenians for blinding Polyphemus, but unable to overcome fate, since it was fated that the son of Laertes should see Ithaca. Leaving these, then, let us bring forward the swarm of philosophers. ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Od. 1.68–79 (Homer, Odyssey): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Odyssey 1.68–79; 5.286–290. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.5 (Raeder, 150; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-5). ## Discourse 6.6 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-6-6 - Source: Raeder, 151 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Diagoras denied God; Protagoras doubted; Epicurus made God indifferent. ### Greek text τοὺς μὲν οὖν ἀμφὶ τὸν Διαγόραν φασὶν ἀθέους ἐπίκλην ὀνομασθῆναν διὰ τὸ πάμπαν ἀρνηθῆναι τὸ θεῖον' Πρωταγόραν δὲ ἀμφίβολον περί γε τούτων ἐσχηκέναι λέγουσι δόξαν᾽ φάναι γὰρ αὐτὸν εἰρήκασιν οὐκ εἰδέναι, οὔτε. εἴπερ εἰσὶ θεοί, οὔτε εἰ παντάπασιν οὐκ εἰσίν. ᾿Επίκουρος δὲ ὃ Νεοκλέους καὶ ἣ ἐκείνου ξυμμορία εἶναι μὲν ἔφασαν τὸν Θεόν, πρὸς αὑτὸν δὲ ἀπεστράφθαι καὶ μήτε ἔχειν πράγματα μήτε παρέχειν ἄλλοις ἐθέλειν. ### English translation (Claude) They say Diagoras and his followers were nicknamed atheists because they wholly denied the divine; they say Protagoras held a doubtful opinion about these matters, for they report him saying he did not know either whether there are gods or whether there are none at all. Epicurus son of Neocles and his company said that God exists, but is turned toward himself and neither has trouble nor wishes to give trouble to others. ### Extrabiblical texts - Epicurus (Epicurus (sayings and fragments)): allusion, high confidence - Protagoras (Protagoras): quotation, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.6 (Raeder, 151; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-6). ## Discourse 6.7 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-6-7 - Source: Raeder, 151 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Aristotle limits providence to the heavens and leaves the rest to fate. ### Greek text ὁ δὲ γε Νικομάχου μέχρι σελήνης ὑπείληφε τὸν Θεὸν πρυτανεύειν, τῶν δὲ μετὰ ταύτην ἁπάντων ἠμεληκέναι καὶ τῇ τῆς εἱμαρμένης ἀνάγκῃ παραδεδωκέναι τὴν τούτων ἐπιτροπείων, καὶ οὐ μόνον πλοῦτον καὶ πενίαν καὶ ὑγίειαν καὶ νόσον καὶ δουλείαν καὶ ἐλευθερίαν καὶ πόλεμον καὶ εἰρήνην διανέμειν ἀνθρώποις, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀρετὴν καὶ κακίαν ἀποκληροῦν. ### English translation (Claude) The son of Nicomachus supposed that God governs as far as the moon, but neglects all things beyond it and has handed their management to the necessity of fate, which distributes to human beings not only wealth and poverty, health and disease, slavery and freedom, war and peace, but also allots virtue and vice. ### Extrabiblical texts - Aristotle (Aristotle (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret's account of Aristotle follows the doxographers. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.7 (Raeder, 151; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-7). ## Discourse 6.8 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-6-8 - Source: Raeder, 151 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Oenomaus attacks Democritus, Chrysippus, and the oracle for destroying free will. ### Greek text τούτων Οἰνόμαος ὁ Κυνικὸς ἐναργῶς κατηγόρησε, καὶ τὸν Πύθιον μάντιν, ὡς τὰ παραπλήσια χρησμῳδοῦντα, τοῖς κατηγορουμένοις ξυνέξευξε᾽ καὶ τὸ μὲν ξύγγραμμα Φώραν γοήτων ὠνόμασε᾽ λέγει δὲ ὧδε".,ἀπόλωλε γάρ, τό γὲ ἐπὶ τοῖς σοφοῖς, ἐκ τοῦ ἀνθρωπείου βίου, ἀπόλωλεν, εἶτε οἴχκά τις αὐτό, εἴτε ἕρμα, εἴτε κρηπῖδα ὀνομάζων χαίρει, τῆς ἡμετέρας ζωῆς. ἡ ἐξουσία, ἣν ἡμεῖς μὲν αὐτοκράτορα τῶν ἀναγκαιοτάτων τιθέμεθα, Δημόκριτος δέ, εἰ μή τι ἠπάτημαι, καὶ Χρύσιππος, ὃ μὲν δοῦλον, ὁ᾽ δὲ ἡμίδουλον ἐπινοεῖ τὸ κάλλιστον τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων ἐπιδεῖξαι. ἀλλὰ τούτῶν ὃ μὲν λόγος τοσοῦτος, ὅσον ἄν τις ἀξιῴη, ἄνθρωπος ὦν, ἀνθρώπους. εἰ δὲ δὴ καὶ τὸ θεῖον ἡμῶν “καταστρατεύεται, παπαί, οἷα πεισόμεθα. ### English translation (Claude) Oenomaus the Cynic clearly accused these, and joined the Pythian seer to the accused, as giving similar oracles. He named his work Exposure of the Charlatans, and speaks thus: 'For, as far as the wise are concerned, there has perished from human life, perished, whether one likes to call it the tiller, the ballast, or the foundation of our life, free will, which we make master of the most necessary things; but Democritus, if I am not mistaken, and Chrysippus try to show the finest of human things, the one as a slave, the other as half a slave. But their argument has only as much weight as one, being human, would allow to humans. But if the divine also campaigns against us, alas, what shall we suffer!' ### Extrabiblical texts - Oenomaus (Oenomaus of Gadara, Detection of Impostors): quotation, high confidence - Democritus (Democritus (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Chrysippus (Chrysippus): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Oenomaus of Gadara, Exposure of the Charlatans (fragment; Eusebius, Praep. ev. 6.7.14). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.8 (Raeder, 151; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-8). ## Discourse 6.9 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-6-9 - Source: Raeder, 152 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Oenomaus mocks fate derived from God or from atoms. ### Greek text πολλὰ δὲ καὶ ἄλλα τοιαῦτα εἰπών, προστέθεικε καὶ ταῦτα᾽ ᾿ φέρε καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀνταγανα- “τήσωμεν. τί δή ποτες ἔνθα ἂν ἡμῖν δοκῇ, ἔσταν τοῦτο καὶ πιστότατον καὶ πρεσβύτατον᾽ ἔνθα δ᾽ ἂν μὴ δονῇ, ἐκεῖ καταδυναστεύει τι λεληθὸς αὐτοῦ, εἱμαρμένη καὶ πεπρωμένη, διάφορα ἑκάστῳ ἡμῶν ἔχουσα, τῷ μὲν ἐκ θεοῦ, τῷ δὲ ἐκ τῶν σμιμρῶν ἐκείνων σωμάτων τῶν φερομένων ἄνω καὶ παλλομένων κάτω καὶ περιπλεκομένων καὶ διαλυομένων καὶ ### English translation (Claude) And after saying many other such things, he added this: 'Come, let us too be indignant in turn. Why then? Where it seems good to us, this will be most trustworthy and most ancient; but where it does not seem good, something hidden from it holds sway, fate and destiny, different for each of us, for one from God, for another from those tiny bodies that are carried up and leap down, entangle, dissolve, and ### Extrabiblical texts - Oenomaus (Oenomaus of Gadara, Detection of Impostors): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Oenomaus (fragment; Eusebius, Praep. ev. 6.7.15–16). The scan is garbled at one point; translated by sense. The quotation continues in 6.10. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.9 (Raeder, 152; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-9). ## Discourse 6.10 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/5-38/#p-6-10 - Source: Raeder, 152 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Oenomaus tells the oracle it does not know what lies in human power. ### Greek text δι σταμένων καὶ παρατιθεμένων ἐξ ἀνάγκης" καὶ αὖ πάλιν μετ᾽ ὀλίγα᾽ «τούτων δὲ εἵνεκα ταῦτα προσήνεγχα τῷ λύγῳ,᾽ ὅτι σε ἐχπέφευγεν, ὦ μάντι, ὧν κύριοί ἐσμεν ἡμεῖς" καὶ ὃ τὰ πάντα εἰδὼς ταῦτα οὔπω ἔγνως, ὧν τὰ πείσματα ἀνῆπται ### English translation (Claude) separate and are juxtaposed by necessity.' And again, a little later: 'I brought these things into the argument because it has escaped you, O seer, what we are masters of; and you who know all things have not yet known these, whose cables are fastened ### Extrabiblical texts - Oenomaus (Oenomaus of Gadara, Detection of Impostors): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Oenomaus (fragment). The quotation ends in 6.11. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.10 (Raeder, 152; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-10). ## Discourse 6.11 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-11 - Source: Raeder, 152 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Chrysippus' etymologies of fate and destiny. ### Greek text ἐκ τῆς ἡμετέρας βουλήσεως.“ ταῦτα ὁ Κυνικὸς κατὰ ταὐτὸν τοῦ Πυθίου καὶ 4ημοκρίτου καὶ Χρυσίππου κατηγόρησεν, εἰκότως ἀγαναχτῶν, ὅτι τοῦ ἡμετέρου νοῦ τὴν ἐλευθερίαν ἐξανδραποδίσαντες, φύσιν, τῇ τῆς εἱμαρμένης παὶ πεπρωμένης ἀνάγκῃ παρέδοσαν. τὴν δὲ πεπρωμένην ὁ Χρύσιππος πεπερασμένην ἔφησεν εἶναι καὶ ξυντετελεσμένην διοίκησιν" τὴν δὲ εἱμαρμένην εἰρομένην τινά, ἢ εἴτε ἐκ θεοῦ βουλήσεως, εἴτε ἐξ οἱασδήποτε αἰτίας" τὰς δὲ Μοίρας ὦνομάσθαι ἀπὸ τοῦ μεμερίσθαι καὶ κατανενεμῆσθαί τινα ἡμῶν ἑκάστῳ: οὕτω. δὲ καὶ χρεὼν παρὰ τὸ χρέος εἰρῆσθαι, τὸ ἐπιβάλλον καὶ καθῆκον κατὰ τὴν εἱμαρμένην. ### English translation (Claude) to our will.' Thus the Cynic accused at once the Pythian god, Democritus, and Chrysippus, rightly indignant that, having enslaved the freedom of our mind, they handed over nature to the necessity of fate and destiny. Chrysippus said that destiny (peprōmenē) is a limited and completed management; fate (heimarmenē) a kind of chain (eiromenē), whether from God's will or from whatever cause; that the Fates (Moirai) are named from being divided and allotted to each of us; and likewise that what must be (chreōn) is named from debt (chreos), what falls due and is fitting according to fate. ### Extrabiblical texts - Oenomaus (Oenomaus of Gadara, Detection of Impostors): quotation, high confidence - Chrysippus (Chrysippus): allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.11 (Raeder, 152; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11). ## Discourse 6.12 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-12 - Source: Raeder, 153 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Stoic etymologies of the Fates, Providence, and Adrasteia. ### Greek text τὸν δὲ ἀριθμὸν τῶν Μοιρῶν. τοὺς τρεῖς χρόνους παραδηλοῦν, ἐν οἷς κυκλεῖται τὰ πάντα καὶ δι᾽ ὧν ἐπιτελεῖται" καὶ «Ἰάχεσιν μὲν κεμλῆσθαι παρὰ τὸ λαγχάνειν ἑκάστῳ τὸ πεπρωμένον, "άτροπον. δὲ κατὰ τὸ "ἄτρεπτον καὶ ἀμετάθετον τοῦ μερισμοῦ, Κλωθὼ δὲ παρὰ τὸ ξυγηλώθεσθαι καὶ ξυνείρεσθαι τὰ πάντα, καὶ μίαν αὐτῶν τεταγμένην εἶναν δόξαν. τὴν δὲ Πρόνοιαν τοῦτο κεηλήκασι, διότι πρὸς τὸ χρήσιμον οἰκονομεῖ ἕκαστα" Ἀδράστειαν δὲ τὴν αὐτήν, ὅτι οὐδὲν αὐτὴν ἀποδιδράσκει. ### English translation (Claude) And that the number of the Fates indicates the three times in which all things revolve and through which they are accomplished: Lachesis is so called from the destined thing falling to each by lot, Atropos from the unchangeable and unalterable character of the allotment, Clotho from all things being spun together and strung together; and that there is one ordained opinion of them. Providence they called this because it manages each thing for usefulness; and Adrasteia the same, because nothing escapes it. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.12 (Raeder, 153; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-12). ## Discourse 6.13 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-13 - Source: Raeder, 153 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Many philosophers made necessity rule all things. ### Greek text οὐ μόνον δὲ οἱ ἀμφὶ τὸν Δημόκριτον καὶ Χρύσιππον καὶ Ἐπίκουρον πάντα κατ᾽ ἀνάγκην ἔφασαν γίνεσθαι, ἀνάγκην καλοῦντες τὴν εἱμαρμένην, ἀλλὰ καὶ Πυθαγόρας ὁ πολυθρύλητος ἀνάγκην εἶπε περικεῖσθαι τῷ κόσμῳ. ὃ δὲ Παρμενίδης τὴν ἀνάγκην καὶ Δαίμονα κέκληκε χαὶ Δίκην καὶ Πρόνοιαν' καὶ ὁ Ἡράκλειτος δὲ πάντα καθ' εἱμαρμένην εἴρηκε γίνεσθαι᾽ ἀνάγκην δὲ τὴν εἱμαρμένην καὶ οὗτος ὠνόμασεν. ### English translation (Claude) Not only Democritus, Chrysippus, and Epicurus and their followers said all things happen by necessity, calling fate necessity, but the celebrated Pythagoras too said necessity surrounds the world. Parmenides called necessity Demon, Justice, and Providence; Heraclitus too said all things happen by fate, and he too named fate necessity. ### Extrabiblical texts - Parmenides (Parmenides (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Heraclitus (Heraclitus (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Aëtius (Aëtius, Placita): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The doxography follows Aëtius 1.25–27. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.13 (Raeder, 153; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-13). ## Discourse 6.14 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-14 - Source: Raeder, 153 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Stoics' definitions of fate. ### Greek text καὶ Χρύσιππος δὲ ὁ Στωϊκὸς μηδὲν διαφέρειν εἶπε τοῦ εἰμαρμένου τὸ κατηναγκασμένον, εἶναι δὲ τὴν εἴμαρμένην κίνησιν ἀΐδιον ξυνεχῆ καὶ τεταγμένην. Ζήνων δὲ ὁ Κιτιεὺς δύναμιν πέλληκε τὴν εἱμαρμένην κινητικὴν τῆς ὕλης, τὴν δὲ αὐτὴν καὶ Πρόνοιαν καὶ Φύσιν ὠνόμασεν. οἱ δὲ τοῦτον διαδεξάμενοι τὴν εἰμαρμένην λόγον ἔφασαν εἶναι τῶν ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ προνοίᾳ διοικουμένων, καὶ πάλιν ἐν ἑτέροις ξυγγράμμασιν εἷρμὸν αἰτιῶν τὴν εἴμαρμένην κεκλήκασιν. ### English translation (Claude) Chrysippus the Stoic said the compelled does not differ from the fated, and that fate is an eternal, continuous, and ordered motion. Zeno of Citium called fate a power that moves matter, and named the same Providence and Nature. His successors said fate is the reason of the things governed by providence in the world, and again in other writings called fate a chain of causes. ### Extrabiblical texts - Chrysippus (Chrysippus): allusion, high confidence - Zeno of Citium, Zeno (Zeno of Citium): allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.14 (Raeder, 153; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-14). ## Discourse 6.15 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-15 - Source: Raeder, 154 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Definitions of fortune by Plato, Aristotle, and others. ### Greek text καὶ τὴν τύχην δὲ ὡσαύτως οἱ μὲν θεὸν ὑπέλαβον καὶ ὡς θεὸν ἐσεβάσθησαν᾽ ὃ δὲ Πλάτων αἰτίαν εἶναι εἶπε κατά τι ξυμβεβηκὸς γινομένην, καὶ πάλιν ξύμπτωμα φύσεως ἢ προαιρέσεως κέκληκεν. καὶ ὁ Ἀριστοτέλης δὲ ὡσαύτως αἰτίαν ἔφη κατὰ ξυμβεβηκὸς ἐν τοῖς καθ᾽ ὁρμὴν ἕνεκέν τινος γινομένοις ἄδηλόν τὸ καὶ ἄστατον. ᾿άναξαγόρας δὲ καὶ Δημόκριτος καὶ οἱ ἐκ τῆς Ποικίλης ὠνομασμένοι ἄδηλον αἰτίαν ἀνθρωπίνῳ λόγῳ. ### English translation (Claude) Likewise some supposed Fortune to be a god and worshiped her as a god; but Plato said it is a cause occurring by some accident, and again called it a coincidence of nature or choice. Aristotle likewise said it is a cause by accident in things done by impulse for some end, obscure and unstable. Anaxagoras, Democritus, and those named from the Porch said it is a cause obscure to human reason. ### Extrabiblical texts - Aristotle (Aristotle (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.15 (Raeder, 154; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-15). ## Discourse 6.16 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-16 - Source: Raeder, 154 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Philemon mocks belief in Fortune and omens. ### Greek text Φιλήμων δέ γε ὁ κωμιπός, καὶ ταῦτα γέλωτος ὧν ποιητής, ἄντιάρυς κατηγοφεῖ, τῶν θεὸν τὴν τύχην ὑπειληφότων καὶ διαρρήδην βοᾷ᾽ »»ὐν ἔστιν ἡμῖν οὐδεμία Τύχη θεός" οὐκ ἔστιν, ἀλλὰ ταῦς τόματον ὃ γίνεται, ὡς ἔτυχ᾽ 'ξκάστῳ, προσαγορεύεται Τύχη“ οὗτος καὶ τοὺς οἰωνοῖς ἢ κληδόσι χρωμένους κωμῳδῶν ἐ ἔφη »ὕταν ἴδω“ φησί »»"αραυηροῦντα; τίς ἔπταρεν, ἢ τίς ἐλάλησεν, ἢ τίς ἐστιν ὃ προϊών, ] σκοποῦντα, ἀπολῶ τοῦτον εὐθὺς ἐν ἀγοῤᾷ. αὑτῷ βαδίζει καὶ λαλεῖ καὶ πτάρνυταν ἕκαστος ἡμῶν, οὐχὶ τοῖς ἔν τῇ πόλει. τὰ πράγμαθ' ὡς πέφυκεν, ### English translation (Claude) Philemon the comic poet, though a poet of laughter, plainly accuses those who suppose Fortune to be a god and cries out: 'Fortune is no god for us; it is not; but what happens of itself, as it chances for each, is called Fortune.' He also mocked those who use omens and chance words, saying: 'When I see a man watching who sneezed, or who spoke, or who is going by, I shall sell him at once in the marketplace. Each of us walks, talks, and sneezes for himself, not for those in the city. Things happen as their nature is.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Philemon (Philemon (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Philemon, fragments 137 and 100 (Kock). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.16 (Raeder, 154; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-16). ## Discourse 6.17 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-17 - Source: Raeder, 154 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Menander mocks a superstitious man over a broken sandal strap. ### Greek text οὕτω γίνεται.“ καὶ ὁ Μένανδρος δὲ ἐν Δεισιδαίμονι παραπλησίως τοὺς τὰ τοιαῦτα παρατηροῦντας γελᾷ, λέγων ὡδί" »ἀγαθόν [μοι] τι γίνοιτ᾽, ὦ πολυτίμητοι θεοί. ὑποδούμενος τὸν ἱμάντα τῆς δεξιᾶς ἐμβάδος διέρρηξ᾽. εἰκότως, ὦ φλήγαφε᾽ σαπρὸς γὰρ ἦν᾽ σὺ δὲ σμικρολόγος, οὐκ ἐθέλων καιγὰς πρίασθαι. ### English translation (Claude) And Menander in The Superstitious Man likewise laughs at those who watch for such things, saying: 'May some good come to me, most honored gods! Putting on my shoe, I broke the strap of my right sandal.' 'Naturally, you babbler; it was rotten, and you are a miser who will not buy new ones.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Menander, Deisid. (Menander (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Menander, The Superstitious Man, fragment. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.17 (Raeder, 154; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-17). ## Discourse 6.18 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-18 - Source: Raeder, 155 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Antiphon jokes about a supposed omen. ### Greek text οὕτως ἤδεσαν καὶ οἵ τὸν ἐν γέλωτι καὶ θεάτροις ἀσπασάμενον βίον, ὡς τὰ τοιαῦτα δείματα καὶ παρατηρήματα λίαν ἐστὶ καταγέλαστα. καὶ ᾿ἀντιφῶν δέ, τιἐνὸς δυσχεραίνοντος καὶ οἰωνὸν χαλεπά τινα σημαίνειν νομίὅαντος, ὅτι ἡ ὗς τὰ οἰκεῖα κατέφαγεν ἔκγονα"..χαῖρεςς εἶπεν οἰπὶ τῷ σημείῳ, ὅτι πεινῶσα τὰ σὰ οὐ κατέφαγε τέκνα." ### English translation (Claude) So even those who embraced a life of laughter and theaters knew that such fears and observations are utterly ridiculous. And Antiphon, when someone was distressed and thought it an omen of something bad that his sow had eaten her own young, said: 'Rejoice at the sign, that being hungry she did not eat your children.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Antiphon (Antiphon the Sophist): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.18 (Raeder, 155; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-18). ## Discourse 6.19 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-19 - Source: Raeder, 155 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Bion mocks the omen of a mouse gnawing a sack. ### Greek text ἔοικε δὲ τούτῳ καὶ τὸ παρὰ τοῦ Βίωνος εἰρημένον. καὶ γὰρ ἐκεῖνος τὰ τοιάδε γελῶν,..ι«ἰ θαυμαστόν“ ἔφη,.»εἰ καὶ ὃ μῦς τὸν θύλακον διέτραγεν, οὖν ἔχων ὅ τι φάγῃς τοῦτο δὲ ἦν θαυμαστόν, εἰ, ὥσπερ Ἀρκεσίλαος παίξων ἐνεχείρει, τὸν μῦν ὃ θύλακος κατέφαγεν. ### English translation (Claude) Like this is what Bion said. Laughing at such things, he said: 'What wonder if the mouse gnawed through the sack, finding nothing to eat? This would be a wonder, if, as Arcesilaus jokingly put it, the sack had eaten the mouse.' ### Translation notes - Bion of Borysthenes, fragment. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.19 (Raeder, 155; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-19). ## Discourse 6.20 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-20 - Source: Raeder, 155 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Diogenes mocks portents and protective inscriptions. ### Greek text καὶ ὁ Διογένης δέ, ὄφεως ὑπέρῳ ἑαυτὸν ἐνειλήσαντος, καί τινος τοῦτο θαυμάσαντος καὶ τέρας εἶναι νομίσαντος, «μὴ θαύμαζες εἶπεν",,ἦν γὰρ παραδοξότερον, εἰ τὸ ὕπερον περὶ ὀρθῷ τῷ ὄφει κατειλημένον ἐθεάσω οὕτω πάλιν οὗτος αὐτὸς ἐν οἰκίᾳ τινὸς μοχθηροῦ ἐπιγεγραμμένον εὑρὼν.,.ὃ}ὃ τοῦ Διὸς παῖς καλλίνικος Ἡρακλῆς ἐνθάδε κατοικεῖ" μηδὲν εἰσίτω κακόν,“,»καὶ ### English translation (Claude) And Diogenes, when a snake had coiled itself around a pestle and someone wondered at it and thought it a portent, said: 'Do not wonder; it would have been stranger if you had seen the pestle coiled around an upright snake.' Again, the same man, finding written on the house of some wicked man, 'Here dwells the son of Zeus, glorious Heracles; let no evil enter,' said: 'And ### Translation notes - The saying ends in 6.21. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.20 (Raeder, 155; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-20). ## Discourse 6.21 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-21 - Source: Raeder, 155 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pagans themselves explained omens as natural events. ### Greek text πῶς“ ἔφη,,Ά κύριος εἰσελεύσεται τῆς οἰκίας ΄ οὕτως ἐκῶωμῴδουν καὶ οἵ τῷ τῆς δεισιδαιμονίας πλάνῳ δεδουλευκότες τοὺς οἰωνοὺς καὶ τὰς κληδόνας καὶ τὰ παρὰ τῶν πολλῶν ἔτι καὶ νῦν νομιζόμενα τέρατα᾽ καὶ πτάρνυσθαι μὲν τοὺς πταίροντας ἔλεγον, οὐκ ἄλλοις τε προσημαίνοντας, ἀλλὰ τὸ ξύνηθες ὑπομένοντας πάθος᾽ καὶ τοὺς διαλεγομένους οὐκ ἄλλοις τι προδηλοῦν, ἀλλὰ περὶ τῶν αὐτοῖς προκειμένων ποιεῖσθαι τοὺς λόγους᾽ καὶ τὸν μῦν ὑπὸ τῆς πείνης ὠθούμένον διατρῆσαι τὸν θύλακον, οὐ χρησμόν τινα τῷ τοῦ θυλάκου δεσπότῃ προλέγοντα᾽ καὶ τοῦ ὑποδήματος τοὺς δεσμοὺς ὡς παλαιοὺς διαρραγῆναν, οὐχ ὡς χρησμολόγους χαλεπόν τι προαγορεῦσαι. ### English translation (Claude) how will the master of the house get in?' So even those enslaved to the error of superstition mocked omens, chance words, and what the many still consider portents; they said that people who sneeze sneeze, not foretelling anything to others but undergoing a usual affection; that those who talk do not foreshow anything to others but speak about their own concerns; that the mouse, driven by hunger, gnawed through the sack, not foretelling an oracle to the sack's owner; and that the straps of the shoe broke because they were old, not to predict something bad as soothsayers do. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.21 (Raeder, 155; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-21). ## Discourse 6.22 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-22 - Source: Raeder, 156 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Epicharmus urges fear of God, the overseer of all. ### Greek text ταῦτα σαφῶς ἐπιστάμενος καὶ Ἐπίχαρμος ὁ Πυθαγόρειος τούτων μὲν ἁπάντων κελεύει καταφρονεῖν, τὸν δὲ τῶν ὅλων ὀπτῆρα δεδιέναι παρεγγυᾷ᾽ λέγει δὲ οὕτως᾽,,οὐδὲν διαφεύγει τὸ θεῖον᾽ τοῦτο γινώσκειν σε δεῖ. αὐτὸς ἔσθ᾽ ἁμῶν ἐπόπτης, ἀδυνατεῖ δ᾽ οὐδὲν θεῷ." ### English translation (Claude) Knowing this clearly, Epicharmus the Pythagorean bids us despise all these things, and urges us to fear the Overseer of all. He says this: 'Nothing escapes the divine; this you must know. He himself is our overseer, and nothing is impossible for God.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Epicharmus, fr. 23 (Epicharmus (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Epicharmus, fragment 23 (Diels–Kranz). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.22 (Raeder, 156; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-22). ## Discourse 6.23 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-23 - Source: Raeder, 156 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Diphilus speaks of Justice's all-seeing eye and judgment in Hades. ### Greek text καὶ Δίφιλος δὲ ὁ πωμριός, ἀληθῆ φιλοσοφίαν τῇ κωμῳθίῳ προσμίξας, τάδε φησίν" οἴει σὺ τοὺς θανόντας, ὦ Νικήρατε, τρυφῆς ἁπάσης μεταλαβόντας ἐν βίῳ, πεφευγέναι τὸ θεῖον ὡς λεληθότας; ἔστιν Δίκης ὀφθαλμός, ὃς τὰ πάνθ᾽ ὁρᾷ. Ϊ καὶ δὴ καθ' “Διδην δύο τρίβους νομίξομεν, μίαν μὲν δικαίων, ἑτέραν δὲ ἀσεβῶν.“ καὶ μετ᾽ ὀλίγα᾽ (μηδὲν πλανηθῆς᾽ ἔστιν ἐν “Ἄϊιδου κρίσις, ἥνπερ ποιήσει θεὸς ὁ πάντῶ ### English translation (Claude) And Diphilus the comic poet, mixing true philosophy with comedy, says this: 'Do you think, Niceratus, that the dead, who had their share of every luxury in life, have escaped the divine as unnoticed? There is an eye of Justice that sees all things. And indeed we think there are two paths in Hades, one for the just and the other for the impious.' And a little later: 'Do not be deceived; there is a judgment in Hades, which God, the Lord of all, ### Extrabiblical texts - Diphilus (Diphilus (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Diphilus, fragment (also in Clement of Alexandria and Ps.-Justin). The quotation ends in 6.24. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.23 (Raeder, 156; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-23). ## Discourse 6.24 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-24 - Source: Raeder, 156 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Because justice is incomplete here, a coming judgment is foretold. ### Greek text ν δεσπότης.“ ἐπειδὴ γὰρ οὐχ ἅπαντες οἵ πλημμελοῦντες τῇδε τίνουδι δίκην, οὔτε μὴν οἵ ἀξιόνικοι τῆς ἀρετῆς ἀθληταὶ τὰ τῶν ἀγώνων ἦὅθλα πάντες πρὸς ἀξίαν ἐνθάδε πομίἕονται, μάλα εἰκότως οὗτος τὸν πάντα ἐφορῶντα ἐπέδειξεν ὀφθαλμὸν καὶ τὴν ἐσομένην προηγόρευσε πρίσιν, ἵνα κἀκεῖνα δειμαίνοντες καὶ τοῦτον ὁρᾶν πιστεύοντες, ὅπαντες τοὺς ἀξιεράστους τῆς ἀρενῆς ἀγῶνας ᾿ἀσπάᾶσωνται κὰὶ μὴ δυσχεφαίνωσι μὴ ὁρῶντες τῶν πόνων τἀπίχειρα. ### English translation (Claude) will carry out.' For since not all wrongdoers pay the penalty here, and not all the athletes of virtue worthy of victory receive here the prizes of their contests as they deserve, he very fittingly showed the eye that oversees all and foretold the coming judgment, so that, fearing the one and believing that this eye sees, all might embrace the lovely contests of virtue and not be vexed at not seeing the rewards of their labors. ### Extrabiblical texts - Diphilus (Diphilus (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.24 (Raeder, 156; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-24). ## Discourse 6.25 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-25 - Source: Raeder, 157 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pindar proclaims God's all-powerful might. ### Greek text καὶ Πίνδαρος δὲ ὁ Θηβαῖος, ἐρρῶσθανι φράσας εἱμαρμένῃ. καὶ τύχῃ καὶ πεπρωμένη, τὴν παναλοῆ δύναμιν τοῦ Θεοῦ διδάσκει τοὺς ἀγνοοῦντας" »θεῷ" γάρ“ φησι »δυνατὸν ἐκ μελαίνας νυχτὸς ἀμίαντον ὄρσαι φάος, κελαινεφέϊ δὲ σκότει καλύψαι καθαρὸν ### English translation (Claude) And Pindar of Thebes, bidding farewell to fate, fortune, and destiny, teaches the ignorant the all-powerful might of God: 'For God,' he says, 'can raise unstained light out of black night, and hide in dark-clouded gloom the pure ### Extrabiblical texts - Pindar, fr. 108 (Pindar (odes and fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Pindar, fragment 108 (Snell). The quotation ends in 6.26. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.25 (Raeder, 157; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-25). ## Discourse 6.26 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-26 - Source: Raeder, 157 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Laws describes God followed by Justice, who punishes the proud. ### Greek text ἁμέρας σέλας.“ ὁ δέ γε Ἀρίστωνος σαφέστερον ἐπιδείκνυσιν ἡμῖν τῶν ὅλων τὸν πρύτανιν τῶν τοῦ παντὸς οἰάκων. ἐπειλημμένον. λέγει δὲ ταῦτα ἐν τοῖς Νόμοις",, μὲν δὴ θεύς, ὡς καὶ ὃ παλαιὸς λόγος, ἀρχὴν καὶ τελευτὴν καὶ μέσα τῶν ὄντων ἁπάντων ἔχων, εὐθείᾳ περαίνει, κατὰ φύσιν περιπορδυόμενος᾽ τῷ δὲ ἀεὶ ξυνέπεται “4ίκη, τῶν ἀπολειπομένων τοῦ θείου νόμου τιμωρός, ἧς ὃ. μὲν εὐδαιμονήσειν μέλλων ἐχόμενος ξυνέπεται ταπεινὸς καὶ κεκοσμημένος" ὃ δέ τις ἐξαρθεὶς ὑπὸ μεγαλαυχίας ἢ χρήμασιν ἐπαιρόμενος ἢ τιμαῖς ἢ καὶ σώματος εὐμορφίᾳ ἅμα νεότητι καὶ ἀνοίᾳ φλέγεται τὴν ψυχὴν μεθ᾽ ὕβρεως, ὡς θή γε οὔτε ἄρχοντος οὔτε αὖ ἡγεμόνος δεύμενος, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἄλλοις ἱκανὸς ὧν ἡγεῖσθαι, καταλείπεται ἔρημος θεοῦ" καταλειφθεὶς δὲ καὶ ἔτι ἄλλους τοιούτους προσλαβών, σκιρτᾷ ταράττων πάντα ἅμα, καὶ πολλοῖς τισιν ἔδοξεν εἶναί τις, μετὰ δὲ χρόνον ὑποσχὼν τιμῶρίαν οὐ μεμπτὴν τῇ θίκῃ, ἑαυτόν τε καὶ οἶκον καὶ πόλιν ### English translation (Claude) light of day.' And the son of Ariston shows us more clearly the Ruler of the universe holding the rudder of all. He says this in the Laws: 'God, as the ancient saying has it, holding the beginning, end, and middle of all things that are, accomplishes his course straight, going round according to nature; and Justice always follows him, avenger of those who fall short of the divine law; whoever is to be happy follows her closely, humble and orderly; but whoever is lifted up by boastfulness, or elated by wealth or honors or beauty of body together with youth and folly, burns in his soul with insolence, as needing neither ruler nor leader but able to lead others, is left alone, forsaken by God; and being forsaken and taking to himself others like him, he leaps about, throwing everything into confusion, and to many he seems to be someone; but after a time he pays a penalty not to be blamed to Justice, and brings himself, his house, and his city ### Extrabiblical texts - Pindar, fr. 108 (Pindar (odes and fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Plato, Leg. 715e–716b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 4.715e–716b. The quotation ends in 6.27. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.26 (Raeder, 157; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-26). ## Discourse 6.27 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-27 - Source: Raeder, 157 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato shows God's patience and final punishment of the wicked. ### Greek text ἄρδην ἀνάστατον ἐποίησεν.“ διὰ τούτων ὃ φιλόσόφος καὶ τὸν τοῦ παντὸς ἔδειξε κηδεμόνα καὶ τὴν ἐπί τινῶν ἔσθ᾽ ὅπῃ μακροθυμίαν καὶ τὴν ἐντεῦθεν τοῖς ἀνοήτοις προσγι᾿“γνομένην λώβην καὶ τὴν εἰς ὕστερον αὐτοῖς ἐπιφερομένην πανωλεθρίαν. ### English translation (Claude) utterly to ruin.' By this the philosopher showed the Guardian of the universe, his long-suffering toward some, the harm that comes to the foolish from it, and the utter destruction later brought upon them. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.27 (Raeder, 157; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-27). ## Discourse 6.28 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-28 - Source: Raeder, 158 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Gorgias: punishment either reforms or makes an example. ### Greek text ἐν δὲ γε τῷ Τοργίᾳ καὶ τὰς τῆς τιμωρίας αἰτίας δηλοῖ, λέγων ὧδί" προσήκει δὲ παντὶ τῷ ἐν τιμωρίᾳ ὄντι, ὑπὸ ἄλλου ὀρθῶς τιμωρουμένῳ, ἢ βελτίονι γίνεσθαι καὶ ὀνίνασθαι ἢ παράδειγμα ἄλλοις γίνεσθαι, ἵν’ ἐκεῖνοι ὁρῶντες πάσχοντα, ἃ ἂν πάσχῃ, φοβούμενοι βελτίους γίνωνται. εἰσὶ δὲ οἵ μὲν ὠφελούμενοί τε καὶ δίνην διδόντες ὑπὸ θεῶν τε καὶ ἀνθρώπων οὗτοι, οἱ ἂν ἰάσιμα ἁμαρτήματα ἁμαρτάνωσιν. ὅμως δὲ δι’ ἀλγηδόνων καὶ ὀδυνῶν γίνεται αὐτοῖς ἡ ὠφέλεια, καὶ ἐνθάδε καὶ ἐν “Διδου᾽ οὐδὲ γὰρ οἷόν τε ἄλλως ἀδικίας ἀπαλλάττεσθαι. ] οἱ δ᾽ ἂν τὰ ξσχατὰα ἀδωνήσωσι. καὶ διὰ τὰ τοιαῦτα ἀδικήματα ἀνίατον γένωνται, ἐκ τούτων τὰ παραδείγματα γίνεται" καὶ οὗτοι αὐτοὶ μὲν οὐκέτι ὀνίνανται οὐδέν, ἅτε ἀνίατοι ὄντες, ἄλλοι δὲ ὀνίνανται, οἱ τούτους ὁρῶντες διὰ τὰς ἁμαρτίας τὰρ μεγίστας καὶ ὀδυνηρότατα καὶ φοβερώτατα πάθη πάσχοντας καὶ τὸν ἀεὶ χρόνον ἀτεχνῶς παραδείγματα ἀνηρτημένους.““ ### English translation (Claude) And in the Gorgias he shows the reasons for punishment too, saying: 'It is fitting for everyone under punishment, rightly punished by another, either to become better and profit, or to become an example to others, so that they, seeing him suffer what he suffers, may become better through fear. Those who profit and pay the penalty at the hands of gods and men are those who commit curable sins; yet their benefit comes through pains and sufferings, both here and in Hades; for it is not possible otherwise to be freed from injustice. But those who commit the worst injustices and become incurable through such crimes, from these the examples are made; and they themselves no longer profit at all, being incurable, but others profit, who see them suffering for their sins the greatest, most painful, and most fearful sufferings, hung up for all time simply as examples.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Gorg. 525b–c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Gorgias 525b–c. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.28 (Raeder, 158; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-28). ## Discourse 6.29 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-29 - Source: Raeder, 158 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's teaching echoes God's punishment of Pharaoh as an example. ### Greek text ταῦτα δὲ ἔοικεν ὃ φιλόσοφος ἐξ τῶν θείων σεσυληκέναι λογίων. ἤκουσε γὰρ πάντως, τίνα Μωῦσῆς ὃ θεσπέσιος εἰρηκέναι, ξυνέγραψε τῷ Φαραῷ τὸν θεόν, ὅτι »εἱς αὐτὸ τοῦτο ἐξήγειρά σε, ὕπως ἐνδείξωμαν ἐν σοὶ τὴν δύναμίν μου, καὶ ὅπως διαγγελῆ τὸ ὄνομά μου ἐν πάσῃ τῇ γῇ“ παμπονήρῳ γάρ τοῦ γεγενημένῳ ἐκείνῳ παντοδαπὰς πολάσεις ἐπήνεγμεν ὃ Θεός, οὐχ ὥστε ἐκεῖνον ἀποφῆναι βελτίονα (ζδει γὰρ αὐτοῦ καὶ τὸν νοῦν ἀντίτυπον καὶ τὸ πάθος ἀνήκεστον), ἀλλ᾽ ὕπως τὰ περὶ ἐκείνου διηγήματα πᾶσιν ὠφελείας γένηται παραδείγματα. ### English translation (Claude) The philosopher seems to have stolen this from the divine oracles. For he surely heard what the divine Moses wrote that God said to Pharaoh: 'For this very purpose I raised you up, that I might show my power in you, and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.' For on that utterly wicked man God brought all kinds of punishments, not to make him better (for he knew his mind was stubborn and his ailment incurable), but so that the stories about him might become examples of benefit to all. ### Scripture references - Exod 9:16: quotation, high confidence - Rom 9:17: echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Exod 9:16, in the form quoted at Rom 9:17. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.29 (Raeder, 158; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-29). ## Discourse 6.30 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-30 - Source: Raeder, 159 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God uses tyrants like executioners, then punishes them. ### Greek text . καθάπερ γὰρ αἵ πόλεις τρέφουσι τοὺς δημίους, ὥστε τοὺς ἀνδροφόνους καὶ τοιχωφύχους καὶ τοὺς ἄλλα ἄττα παρανομοῦντας διὰ τούτων κολάζειν, οὐκ ἐπαινοῦσαι μὲν αὐτῶν, ἀλλὰ καὶ λίαν μισοῦσαι τὴν τοῦ βίου προαίρεσιν, ἀνεχόμεναι δὲ τῆς τούτων ὑπηρεσίας διὰ τὴν χρείαν, οὕτως ὃ τοῦ κόσμου πρύτανις, οἷα δημίους τινὰς γίνεσθαι ξυγχωρεῖ τοὺς τυράννους, ὥστε διὰ τούτων ποινὴν τοὺς ἀσεβοῦντας καὶ παρανομοῦντας εἰσπράττοτειν᾽ ὕστερον δὲ καὶ τούτους αὐτοὺς παντελεῖ παραδίδωσι τιμωρίᾳ, ἐπειδήπερ οὐχ ὡς Θεῷ διακονοῦντες, ἀλλ᾽ οἰκείᾳ πονηρίᾳ δουλεύοντες τὰ δεινὰ ἐκεῖνα δεδράκασιν. ### English translation (Claude) For just as cities keep executioners in order to punish murderers, burglars, and other lawbreakers through them, not praising but greatly hating their way of life, yet putting up with their service because of need, so the Ruler of the world allows tyrants to arise like executioners, in order to exact penalty through them from the impious and lawless; but later he hands them over to complete punishment too, since they did those terrible things not as serving God but as slaves to their own wickedness. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.30 (Raeder, 159; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-30). ## Discourse 6.31 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-31 - Source: Raeder, 159 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God punished Israel through Assyria, then Assyria in turn. ### Greek text οὕτως ἡμαρτηκότα τὸν ᾿Ισραὴλ τῇ τῶν Ἀσσυρίων ὠμότητι παραδέδωκεν᾽ ἐπειδὴ δὲ οὗτοι τῆς τιμωρίας οὐ διέγνωσαν τὸν σποπόν, τηνικαῦτα καὶ τούτων καταλύσας τὴν δυναστείαν, ἑτέροις δουλεύειν ἠνάγκασεν. καὶ ταῦτα ᾿Ησαΐας καὶ Ἰεζετὴλ καὶ πάντες οἵ προφῆται διαρρήδην διδάσκουσι" παρ᾽ ὧν, οἶμαι, ὃ Πλάτων τὰς ἀφορμὰς κεκλοφώς, ἔφη «τοὺς ἀνιάτως διακειμένους εἰς ὠφέλειαν ἑτέρων παιδεύεσθαι. ### English translation (Claude) So he handed over Israel, when it sinned, to the cruelty of the Assyrians; and since these did not recognize the purpose of the punishment, he then destroyed their power too and forced them to serve others. Isaiah, Ezekiel, and all the prophets teach this plainly; from them, I think, Plato stole his starting points and said that the incurably disposed are punished for the benefit of others. ### Scripture references - Isa 10:5–12: allusion, medium confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Gorg. 525c (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Compare Isa 10:5–12. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.31 (Raeder, 159; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-31). ## Discourse 6.32 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-32 - Source: Raeder, 159 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Philebus affirms that mind rules heaven and earth. ### Greek text κἀν τῷ Φιλήβῳ δὲ πάλιν τὸν περὶ τῆς προνοίας ἐκράτυνε λόγον" οάντες. γάρ φησι οοξυμφωνοῦσιν οἱ σοφοί, ὄντως ἑαυτοὺς σεμνύνοντες, ὡς νοῦς ἐστὶ βασιλεὺς ἡμῖν οὐρανοῦ τὲ καὶ γῆς. καὶ ἴσως εὖ λέγουσιν. διὰ σμικροτέρων δέ, εἰ βούλει, τὴν ἐπίσκεψιν αὐτοῦ τοῦ γένους ποιησώμεθα.“ εἶτα ξυλλογισμοῖς παμπόλλοις χρησάμενος, ἐπήγαγε ταῦτα᾽ βούλει δὲ καὶ ἡμεῖς τοῖς πρόσθεν ὡμολογημένοις ξυμφωνήσωμεν, ὡς ταῦτα οὕτως ἔχει, καὶ μὴ μόνον οἰώμεθα δεῖν τὰ ἀλλότρια ἄνευ κινδύνου λέγειν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ξυγκινδυνεύσωμεν καὶ μετασχῶμεν τοῦ ψόγου, ὅταν ἀνὴρ δεινὸς φῇ ταῦτα. μὴ οὔτω ### English translation (Claude) And in the Philebus he again confirmed the account of providence: 'For all the wise agree,' he says, 'truly exalting themselves, that mind is king for us of heaven and earth. And perhaps they speak well. But, if you will, let us make the examination of this kind at greater length.' Then, using very many arguments, he added this: 'Do you wish that we too agree with those before us that this is so, and not only think we should repeat others' words without risk, but share the risk and the blame when a clever man says that this is not so, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phileb. 28c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Philebus 28c, 29a. The quotation ends in 6.33. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.32 (Raeder, 159; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-32). ## Discourse 6.33 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-33 - Source: Raeder, 160 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's ordering wisdom echoes Prov 3:19. ### Greek text ς, ἀλλ᾽ ἀτάκτως ἔχειν χαὶ ἑτέροις δὲ ᾿πλείστοις λόγοις χρησάμενος, καὶ ταῦτα προστέθεικεν᾽ θθὐκοῦν εἰ μὴ τοῦτο, μετ᾽ ἐκείνου τοῦ λόγου ἂν ἑπόμενοι βέλτιον - λέγοιμεν; Ι ὡς ἔστιν ὃ πολλάκις͵ εἰρήκαμεν, ἄπειρόν τε ἐν τῷ παντὶ πολὺ καὶ πέρας ἱκανόν, καί τις ἐπ᾽ αὐτοῖς αἰτία οὐ φαύλη, χκοσμοῦσά τε καὶ ξυνάπτουσα ἐνιαυτούς τε καὶ μῆνας καὶ ὥρας, σοφία καὶ νοῦς λεγομένη.“ καὶ ταῦτα δὲ ἐκ τῶν Ἑβραϊκῶν ναμάτων ἀρυσάμενος ἔχει. ἐκεῖνα γὰρ διδάσκει σαφῶς, ὡς »δ' Θεὸς τῇ σοφίᾳ ἐθεμελίωσε τὴν γῆν, ἡτοίμασε δὲ οὐρανοὺς ἐν φρονήσει,“ καὶ τἄλλα τὰ τούτων. ἀκόλουθα, ### English translation (Claude) but is in disorder?' And after using very many other arguments, he added this too: 'Then if not this, would we not do better to follow that other account and say, as we have often said, that there is in the universe much of the unlimited and enough of limit, and over them a cause of no mean sort, ordering and arranging years, seasons, and months, which may most justly be called wisdom and mind?' He drew this too from the Hebrew streams. For they teach clearly that 'God by wisdom founded the earth, and prepared the heavens in understanding,' and what follows from these. ### Scripture references - Prov 3:19: quotation, high confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phileb. 30c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Philebus 28e, 30c; Prov 3:19. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.33 (Raeder, 160; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-33). ## Discourse 6.34 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-34 - Source: Raeder, 160 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Laws ranks divine goods (virtues) above human goods. ### Greek text ἐν δέ γε τοῖς Νόμοις οὗτος αὐτὸς ὁ φιλόσοφος καὶ διαιρεῖ τῶν ἀγαθῶν τὴν φύσιν καὶ δείκνυσι τὰ μὲν ἀνθρώπινα, τὰ δὲ θεῖα, λέγειν δὲ. οὕτως".,διττὰ δὲ ἀγαθά ἔστι, τὰ μὲν ἀνθρώπινα, τὰ δὲ θεῖα᾽ ἤρτηται δὲ ἐκ τῶν θείων θάτερα. κἂν μὲν δέξηταί τις τὰ μείζονα, κτᾶται καὶ τὰ ἐλάττονα' εἰ δὲ μής στέρεται ἀμφοῖν. ἔστι δὲ τὰ μὲν ἐλάττονα, ὧν ς »" μῆ., ᾽ μφ ᾿, " Ν Υ, :) ν ᾽ ἡγεῖται ὑγεία, κάλλος δὲ δεύτερον, τὸ δὲ τρίτον ἰσχὺς εἴς τὲ δρόμον εἴς τε τὰς ἄλλας πάσας κινήσεις τῷ σώματι, τέταρτον δὲ πλοῦτος, οὐ τυφλός, ἀλλ᾽ ὀξὺ βλέπων, ἄν περ ἕπηται φρονήσει. ὃ δὲ πρῶτον τῶν θείων ἡγεμονοῦν. ἐστιν ἀγαθῶν, ἡ φρόνησις, δεύτερον δὲ μετὰ νοῦ σώφρων ψυχῆς ἕξις, ἐκ δὲ τούτων μετ᾽ ἀνδρείας κραθέντων τρίτον ἂν εἴη δικαιοσύνη, τέταρτον δὲ ἀνδρεία. ταῦτα δὲ πάντα ἐκείνων ἔμπροσθεν τέτακται φύσει" καὶ δὴ τῷ νομοθέτῃ τακτέον οὕτως. μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα τὰς ἄλλας προστάξεις τοῖς πολίταις εἰς ταῦτα βλεπούσας αὐτοῖς εἶναι διαπελευστέον. τούτων δὲ τὰ μὲν μὲν ἀνθρώπινα ἀνθρώπινα εἰς εἰς τὰ θεῖα, » τὰ τὰ ( δὲ θεῖα εἰς εἰς τὸν τὸν ἡγεμόνα ἡγεμό ### English translation (Claude) In the Laws this same philosopher divides the nature of goods and shows that some are human and some divine. He speaks thus: 'Goods are twofold, some human, some divine; and the one depends on the divine. If someone receives the greater, he acquires the lesser too; if not, he is deprived of both. The lesser are those of which health leads, beauty is second, third strength for running and all other movements of the body, fourth wealth, not blind but sharp-sighted, if it follows wisdom. First of the divine goods and leader is wisdom; second, a temperate state of soul with mind; from these mixed with courage, third would be justice, fourth courage. All these are ranked by nature before those, and the lawgiver must rank them so. After this he must bid the citizens that all other commands look to these, and of these the human to the divine, and the divine to their leader, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 631b–d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 1.631b–d. The scan repeats several words at the end; they are translated once. The quotation ends in 6.35. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.34 (Raeder, 160; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-34). ## Discourse 6.35 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-35 - Source: Raeder, 161 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato says the so-called goods are good only for the just. ### Greek text γοῦν ξύμπαντα βλέπει“ εἶτα διδάσκει διὰ πλειόνων, ὡς φύσει μὲν ἀγαθὸν ἀρετὴ μόνη. τὰ δὲ ἄλλα ὁμωνύμως καλεῖται, ὀνόματος μόνου μετέχοντα᾽ «τὰ γὰρ ὑπὸ τῶν πολλῶν φησι «λεγόμενα ἀγαθὰ οὐκ ὀρθῶς λέγεται. λέγεται γάρ, ὡς ἄριστον μὲν ὑγιαίνειν, δεύτερον δὲ κάλλος, τρίτον δὲ πλοῦτος. καὶ ἕτερα δὲ μυρία ἀγαθὰ λέγεται. καὶ γὰρ ὀξὺ ὁρᾶν καὶ ἀκούειν καὶ πάντα, ὅσα ἔχεται τῶν αἰσθήσεων, εὐαισθήτως ἔχειν, ἔτι δὲ καὶ τὸ ποιεῖν τυραννοῦντα ὅτι ἂν ἐπιθυμῇ, καὶ τὸ μὲν τέλος πάσης μακαριότητος εἰς τὸ πάντα ταῦτα κεκτημένον ἀθάνατον εἶναι γενόμενον. ὅτι τάχιστα. ὑμεῖς δὲ καὶ ἐγώ πῃ τάδε λέγομεν, ὡς ταῦτά ἐστι ξύμπαντα δικαίοις μὲν καὶ ὁσίοις ἀνδράσιν ἄριστα κτήματα, ἀδίκοις δὲ κάκιστα ξύμπαντα, ἀρξάμενα ἀπὸ τῆς ὑγιείας. καὶ δὴ χαὶ τὸ ὁρᾶν καὶ τὸ ἀκούειν καὶ τὸ αἰσθάνεσθαι καὶ τὸ παράπαν ξῆν μέγιστον μὲν κακὸν τὸν ξύμπαντα χρόνον ἀθάνατον ὄντα, κεκτημένον πάντα τὰ λεγόμενα ἀγαθὰ πλὴν δικαιοσύνης τε καὶ ἀρετῆς ἁπάσης" ἔλαττον δέ, ὡς ἂν ὀλίγι ### English translation (Claude) mind.' Then he teaches at length that virtue alone is good by nature, while the others are called so equivocally, sharing only the name: 'For what the many call goods,' he says, 'are not rightly so called. For it is said that the best thing is health, second beauty, third wealth; and countless other things are called goods: seeing and hearing sharply and having all that pertains to the senses in good condition, and also doing as a tyrant whatever one desires, and as the crown of all happiness, possessing all these and becoming immortal as soon as possible. But you and I say this: that all these are the best possessions for just and holy men, but all the worst for the unjust, beginning from health; and that seeing, hearing, perceiving, and living at all are the greatest evil for one who would be immortal for all time possessing all the so-called goods except justice and all virtue, and a lesser evil the shorter ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 661a–b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 2.661a–b. The quotation ends in 6.36. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.35 (Raeder, 161; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-35). ## Discourse 6.36 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-36 - Source: Raeder, 161 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret praises Plato's distinction between true and so-called goods. ### Greek text στον ὁ τοιοῦτος χρόνον ἐπιξζῴη.“ καὶ μετ΄ ὀλίγα".,«ἐγὼ μὲν γὰρ λέγω σαφῶς τὰ μὲν κακὰ λεγόμενα [ ἀγαθὰ τοῖς δικαίοις εἶναι, τοῖς δὲ ἀδίκοις κακά" τὰ δὲ ἀγαθὰ τοῖς μὲν ἀγαθοῖς ἀγαθά, τοῖς δὲ κακοῖς κακάς κἀγὼ δὲ πομιδῇ τήνδε ἄγαμαι τὴν διαίρεσιν... μέγιστον γὰρ ἀληθῶς ἀγαθὸν τό γε εἰδέναι, τί μὲν πυρίως ἀγαθόν, τί δὲ τοῦτο λέγεται μέν, γίνεται δὲ πὴ μὲν τοιοῦτος πὴ δὲ τοὐναντίον, ὑπὸ τῶν ἢ εὖ καὶ καλῶς μετιόντων ἢ τὴν ἐναντίαν γνώμην ἀσπαζομένων. ### English translation (Claude) the time such a man lives.' And a little later: 'For I say plainly that the so-called evils are goods for the just and evils for the unjust, and the goods are good for the good and evil for the wicked.' I greatly admire this division. For truly the greatest good is to know what is properly good, and what is called so but becomes sometimes such and sometimes the opposite, by those who pursue it well and nobly or embrace the opposite purpose. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 661d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 2.661b–d. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.36 (Raeder, 161; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-36). ## Discourse 6.37 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-37 - Source: Raeder, 162 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: External goods help the virtuous and harm the wicked; virtues help all who have them. ### Greek text καὶ γὰρ ὑγίεια καὶ κάλλος καὶ ῥώμη σώματος, καὶ μέντοι καὶ πλοῦτος τοὺς μὲν ὥνησέ τε καὶ ἔδειξε τῶν μνημάτων ἀξίους, τοῖς δὲ ὄργανα πονηρίας καὶ ἀκρασίας ἐγένετο. σωφροσύνη δὲ καὶ δικαιοσύνη καὶ τἄλλα ὅσα τούτοις παραπλήσια, τῆς ψυχῆς ἐστι κυήματα, ἃ πᾶσίν ἐστι τοῖς ἔχουσιν ὀνησιφόρα καὶ οὐδένα σίνεται τῶν πεκτημένων. τοῖς δὲ τοιούτοις καὶ τὰ λεγόμενα ἀγαθὰ ξύμφορα κτήματα᾽ δικαίων γὰρ καὶ σωφρόνων οἰκονόμων τυγχάνει. τὰ δέ γε διὰ τούτων ἄριστα γινόμενα κάκιστα φαίνεται, πονηροῖς περιπεσόντα καὶ παρανόμοις" καὶ γὰρ ὁρῶσιν ἃ μὴ δεῖ, καὶ ἀκούουσιν ὧν οὐ δεῖ, καὶ τὰς ἄλλας αἰσθήσεις εἰς ἀκολασίαν παιδεύουσιν. ### English translation (Claude) For health, beauty, and bodily strength, and also wealth, have helped some and shown them worthy of memorials, but have become instruments of wickedness and incontinence for others. Self-control, justice, and the like are offspring of the soul, beneficial to all who have them, and harm none who possess them; and for such people even the so-called goods are useful possessions, for they meet just and self-controlled stewards. But what through these become the best appear the worst when they fall to the wicked and lawless; for they see what they should not, hear what they should not, and train the other senses for licentiousness. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.37 (Raeder, 162; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-37). ## Discourse 6.38 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-38 - Source: Raeder, 162 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The rich and powerful are not happy if they misuse their goods. ### Greek text Μὴ τοίνυν, ὦ φίλοι ἄνδρες, ξυγχέωμεν τῶν πραγμάτων τὰς φύσεις, ἀλλὰ διαγνῶμεν, τί μὲν ἀληθῶς ἀγαθόν, τί δὲ καλόν, τί δέ γε τὴν μέσην τούτων κἀκείνων εἴληχε τάξιν᾽ καὶ μὴ καλῶμεν εὐδαίμονας τοὺς πλουτοῦντας καὶ ῥώμαλέους καὶ δυναστείαν περιβεβλημένους τινά᾽ κακοδαίμονας γὰρ ἀληθῶς καὶ τρισαθλίους προσαγορεύειν προσήκει τοὺς τούτων μὲν μετειληχότας, ὕλην δὲ ἀποφήναντας αὐτὰ κακίας καὶ πονηρίας. ### English translation (Claude) So, my friends, let us not confuse the natures of things, but distinguish what is truly good, what is noble, and what holds the middle rank between these and those; and let us not call happy the rich, the strong, and those clothed with some power; for those who share in these but make them material for vice and wickedness should properly be called unhappy and thrice wretched. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.38 (Raeder, 162; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-38). ## Discourse 6.39 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-39 - Source: Raeder, 162 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Neither the prosperity of the wicked nor the poverty of the good disproves providence. ### Greek text ὅταν οὖν ἴδωμεν παμπόνηρον ἄνθρωπον πλούτῳ περιρεόμενον, μὴ τρισόλβιον ὀνομάξζωμεν, ἀλλὰ δείλαιον, ὕτι τοῦ παρανόμως βιοῦν ἔχει πολλὰς ἀφορμάς" καὶ ὅταν ἕτερον ἐπιεικῆ εἶναι δοκοῦντα θεασώμεθα δυσχληρίᾳ τινὶ καὶ πενίᾳ ξυνεξευγμένον, μήτε ἄθλιον ὑπολάβωμεν μήτε ἄδικον τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ προμήθειαν νομίσωμεν. ### English translation (Claude) So when we see an utterly wicked man flowing with wealth, let us not call him thrice blessed but wretched, because he has many means of living lawlessly; and when we see another who seems decent yoked to some misfortune and poverty, let us neither think him miserable nor consider God's providence unjust. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.39 (Raeder, 162; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-39). ## Discourse 6.40 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-40 - Source: Raeder, 163 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God judges the heart, not appearances. ### Greek text πρῶτον μὲν γὰρ οὐ πάντως τῷ ὄντι δίκαιος ὃ δοκῶν εἶναι δίκαιος" ἑτέρως γὰρ καὶ ταῦτα ὁρᾷ καὶ διακρίνει ὃ πάντα γε ὁρῶν ὀφθαλμός. καὶ τοῦτο Σαμουὴλ τὸν προφήτην αὐτὸς ἐδί-. δαξεν ὁ τῶν ὅλων ὀπτήρ᾽ οὐχ ὡς ἄνθρωποςς γάρ φησιν οὁρῇ, οὕτως ὁρᾷ ὁ θεύς ἄνθρωπος μὲν γὰρ εἰς πρόσωπον, ### English translation (Claude) First, the one who seems just is not necessarily truly just; for the eye that sees all sees and judges these things otherwise. The Overseer of the universe himself taught this to the prophet Samuel: 'For God does not see as man sees; man looks on the face, ### Scripture references - 1 Sam 16:7: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation of 1 Sam 16:7 ends in 6.41. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.40 (Raeder, 163; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-40). ## Discourse 6.41 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-41 - Source: Raeder, 163 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The just man turns misfortune into training in virtue. ### Greek text Θεὸς δὲ εἰς καρδίαν ἵνα δὲ καὶ θῶμεν ἀληθῶς εἶναι δίκαιον τὸν δυσποτμίᾳ τινὶ κατεχόμενον, ἐκεῖνό γε πᾶσιν ἐπίδηλον, ὡς οὐδεμίαν ἐκ τῆς δυσημερίας εἰσδέξεται βλάβην, φέρειν ὡς ἀρετῆς ἀθλητὴς πεπαιδευμένος τὰ δυσχερῆ. ὥσπερ γὰρ οἵ πονηρίᾳ ξυζῶντες καὶ τὰ καλούμενα ἀγαθὰ πονηρίας ἀποφαίνουσιν ὄργανα, οὕτως οἷ τῆς ἀρετῆς ἐρῶντὲς μαὶ τὰ κακὰ νομιζόμενα φιλοσοφίας τῆς ἀληθοῦς κατασμευάζουσιν ὕλας. ### English translation (Claude) but God on the heart.' And even if we grant that the one held by misfortune is truly just, this is plain to all, that he will receive no harm from adversity, having been trained as an athlete of virtue to bear hardships. For just as those living in wickedness make even the so-called goods instruments of wickedness, so lovers of virtue make even what are thought evils materials of true philosophy. ### Scripture references - 1 Sam 16:7: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.41 (Raeder, 163; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-41). ## Discourse 6.42 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-42 - Source: Raeder, 163 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato says God is perfectly just; the Laws addresses deniers of providence. ### Greek text [ οὕτω δὴ τούτων ἕκαστον διακρίνοντες, οὔποτε τὸν Θεὸν ἄδιπον ὀνομάσομεν, ἀλλὰ ξυνομολογήσομεν ὀρθῶς ἔχειν, ὅπερ ὃ Πλάτων ἐν τῷ Θεαιτήτῳ ξυνέγραψεν,. ς θ' " ὐδ “Ἢ ὐδ' δ᾽ ὅδ, ὁλλ᾽ ς ἴό ΜΝ ὃ ὅτι νὁ θεὸς οὐδαμῇ οὐδαμῶς ἄδικος, ἀλλ᾽ ὡς οἷόν τε δὲκαιότατος᾽ καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ὁμοιότερον οὐδέν, ἢ ὃς ἂν ἡμῶν γένηται ὅτι δικαιότατος περὶ τούτου. πάλιν δὲ κἀν τῷ δεμότῳ τῶν Νόμων ἰᾶσθαν πειρᾶται τοὺς τῆς θείας προψο ### English translation (Claude) Judging each of these things in this way, we shall never call God unjust, but shall agree that Plato was right in what he wrote in the Theaetetus: 'God is in no way and by no means unjust, but as just as possible; and nothing is more like him than whichever of us becomes as just as possible.' And again in the tenth book of the Laws he tries to heal those who do not admit the account of divine provi- ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Theaet. 176b–c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Theaetetus 176b–c. The scan has a line of noise before the quotation. The sentence continues in 6.43. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.42 (Raeder, 163; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-42). ## Discourse 6.43 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-43 - Source: Raeder, 163 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Laws answers those who think the gods neglect human affairs. ### Greek text ίας οὐ προσιεμένους τὸν λόγον" λέγει δὲ ταῦτα,,ιτὸν δὲ ἡγούμενον θεοὺς μὲν εἶναι, μὴ φροντίζειν δὲ τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων πραγμάτων, παραμυθητέον ὧδε" ὦ ἄριστε, δὴ φῶμεν, ὅτι μὲν ἡγῇ θεοὺς εἶναι, ξυγγένειά τις θείο, πρὸς τὸ ξύμφυτόν σὲ ἄγει τιμᾶν καὶ νομίέξειν εἶναι" κακῶν δ᾽ ἀνθρύπῶν καὶ ἀδίκων τύχαι, ἰδίᾳ καὶ δημοσίᾳ, ἀληθείᾳ μὲν οὐχ εὐδαίμονες, δόξῃ δὲ εὐδαιμονιξύμεναι σφόδρα, ἀλλ᾽ ἐμμελῶς ὄἄγουσί σε πρὸς ἀσέβειαν. ### English translation (Claude) dence. He says this: 'The one who thinks that there are gods but that they do not care for human affairs must be encouraged thus: "My good man, let us say, that you believe there are gods, some kinship with the divine perhaps leads you to honor what is akin to you and to believe in them; but the fortunes of wicked and unjust men, in private and in public, not truly happy but greatly esteemed happy in opinion, lead you, wrongly, to impiety."' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 899d–e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 10.899d–e. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.43 (Raeder, 163; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-43). ## Discourse 6.44 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-44 - Source: Raeder, 164 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato argues the gods care for small things too. ### Greek text “Ὁ εἶτα διεξελθὼν τὴν νομιξομένην τῶν ἀδίκων εὐπληρίαν, ἐπιφέρει καὶ ταῦτα᾽,»ἀλλ᾽ οὐδὲν τάχα ἂν εἴη χαλεπὸν ἐνδείξασθαι τοῦτό γε, ὡς ἐπεμελεῖς σμικρῶν εἰσι θεοὶ οὐκ ἧττον, μᾶλλον δὲ ἢ τῶν μεγέθει διαφερόντων. ἤκουξ γάρ που καὶ παρῆν τοῖς νῦν δὴ λεγομένοις, ὡς ἀγαθοί ὄντες πᾶσαν ἀρετὴν τὴν ἁπάντων ἐπιμέλειαν, οἰκδιοτάτην αὐτῶν οὖσαν, κέητηνται. ### English translation (Claude) Then, having gone through the supposed good fortune of the unjust, he adds this: 'But it would perhaps not be hard to show that the gods care for small things no less, but rather more, than for things outstanding in size. For you heard and were present at what was just said, that being good with every virtue, they possess care of all things as most proper to them.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 900c–d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 10.900c–d. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.44 (Raeder, 164; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-44). ## Discourse 6.45 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-45 - Source: Raeder, 164 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God, unlike a lazy craftsman, cares for great and small alike. ### Greek text “Ὁ εἶτα ξυλλογισμοῖς κρατύνας τὸν λόγον ἐπήγαγεν᾽ μὴ τοίνυν τὸν θεὸν ἀξιῶμέν ποτε θνητῶν δημιουργῶν φαυλότερον, οἱ τὰ προσήκοντα αὐτοῖς ἔργα, ὅσῳπερ ἂν ἀμείνους ὦσι, τοσούτῳ ἀκριβέστερα καὶ τελεώτερα μιᾷ τέχνῃ σμικρὰ καὶ μεγάλα ἀπεργάζονται᾽ τὸν δὲ θεόν, ὄντα τε σοφόν, βουλόμενόν τε ἐπιμελεῖσθαι, δυνατὸν εἶναις καὶ δυνάμενον μὲν ῥᾷον ἐπιμεληθῆναι, σμικρῶν δὲ ὄντων μηδαμῇ ἐπιμελεῖσθαι δυνατὸν εἶναις καθάπερ ἀργὸν ἢ δειλόν τινα διὰ πόνους ῥῳθθυμοῦντα." ### English translation (Claude) Then, confirming the argument with reasonings, he added: 'Let us not, then, think God inferior to mortal craftsmen, who, the better they are, the more accurately and perfectly they finish their proper works, small and great, by one art; and that God, being wise, willing and able to care, would care for none of the small things, which are easier to care for, as if he were lazy or cowardly and shirking from toil.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 902e–903a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 10.902e–903a. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.45 (Raeder, 164; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-45). ## Discourse 6.46 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-46 - Source: Raeder, 164 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato says the part exists for the whole. ### Greek text ἔπειτα ἐπιφέρει" μηδαμῶς δόξαν τοιαύτην περὶ θεοῦ, ὦ ξένε, ἀποδεχώμεθα᾽ οὐδαμῇ γὰρ οὔτε ὅσιον οὔτε ἀληθὲς τὸ διανόημα διανοοῖτ᾽ ἄν“ καὶ πάλιν μετ᾽ ὀλίγα᾽ «πᾶς γὰρ ἰατρὸς καὶ πᾶς ἔντεχνος δημιουργὸς παντὸς μὲν ἕνεκα πάντα ἐργάζεται πρὸς τὸ κοινῇ ξυντεῖνον βέλτιον" μέρος μὲν εἵνεκεν ὅλου, καὶ οὐχ ὅλον εἵνεκεν μέρους ἀπεργάζεται" σὺ δ᾽ ἀγαφνακτεῖς. ἀγνοῶν, ὕπῃ τὸ περὶ σὲ ἄριστον τῷ παντὶ ξυμβα ### English translation (Claude) Then he adds: 'Let us by no means accept such an opinion about God, stranger; for one would think a thought in no way either holy or true.' And again a little later: 'For every physician and every skilled craftsman does everything for the sake of the whole, striving for what is best in common; he makes the part for the sake of the whole, not the whole for the sake of the part; but you are vexed, not knowing how what concerns you turns out best for the whole ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 903c–d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 10.903a, 903c–d. The word is split between 6.46 and 6.47. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.46 (Raeder, 164; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-46). ## Discourse 6.47 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-47 - Source: Raeder, 165 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The prosperity of the wicked does not show divine neglect. ### Greek text ίνει καὶ μετὰ πλείστους λόγων ἑλιγμοὺς ἐπήγαγεν"..ὃ αὐτὸς δὲ λόγος σον καὶ περὶ ἐκείνων ἂν εἴη, τῶν οὃς σὺ κατιδὼν ἐκ σμικρῶν μεγάλους γεγονότας ἀνοσιουργήσαντας ἤ τι τοιοῦτο πράξαντας φήθης ἐξ ἀθλίων. εὐδαίμονας γεγονέναι, καὶ ὡς ἐν κατόπτροις αὐτῶν ταῖς πράξεσιν ἡγήσω καθεωραπέναι τὴν πάντων ἀμέλειαν θεῶν, οὐκ εἰδὼς αὐτῶν τὴν ξυντέλειαν, ὅπῃ πώποτε τῷ παντὶ ξυμβάλλεται.““. ### English translation (Claude) and for you.' And after very many turns of argument he added: 'The same account would be yours about those whom you saw rise from small to great after committing impieties or doing something of that kind, whom you thought had become happy from wretched, and in whose deeds, as in mirrors, you thought you saw the gods' neglect of all things, not knowing their contribution, how it ever contributes to the whole.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 905b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 10.905b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.47 (Raeder, 165; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-47). ## Discourse 6.48 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-48 - Source: Raeder, 165 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Providence orders each part for the good of the whole. ### Greek text διὰ δὴ τούτων ἁπάντων καὶ τῆς προνοίας τὸ δίκαιον ἔδειξε, ] καὶ ὡς ἕκαστον τῶν γινομένων τῷ παντὶ παθέστηκε ξύμφόρον. οὐ γὰρ τοῦ σμικροτάτου γε μορίου χάριν τὸ ὅλον γεγένηται, ἀλλὰ τὰ μόρια ξυμπληροῖ τὴν τοῦ παντὸς ἁρμογίαν᾽ οὐδὲ διὰ μίαν δακτύλου ἑνὸς σκυταλίδα ὅλον ᾿διεπλάσθη τὸ σῶμα, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸ σῶμα καὶ οἱ δάκτυλοι καὶ αἱ τούτων ξυνηρμόσθησαν σκυταλίδες. ### English translation (Claude) By all these he showed the justice of providence, and how each thing that happens is beneficial to the whole. For the whole did not come to be for the sake of the smallest part, but the parts complete the harmony of the whole; nor was the whole body formed for one joint of one finger, but for the body the fingers and their joints were fitted together. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.48 (Raeder, 165; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-48). ## Discourse 6.49 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-49 - Source: Raeder, 165 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God assigned wealth and poverty so that people would serve one another's needs. ### Greek text ἐἘπειδὴ τοίνυν θνητὴ μὲν γέγονε τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἡ φύσις, θνητὴ δὲ οὖσα πολλῶν ἐστιν ἐνδεής, καὶ γεωργίας καὶ φυτουργίας καὶ ναυτιλίας, καὶ μέντοι καὶ οἰκοδομικῆς καὶ χαλκευτικῆς καὶ ὑφαντυνῆς καὶ σκυτοτομιπῆς καὶ ναῦυπηγιμῆς τέχνης καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ὅσαι ξυνεργοῦσι πρὸς τὴν ἀναγκαίαν τοῦ σώματος θεραπείαν, μάλα γε εἰκότως ὃ τοῦ παντὸς κηδεμὼν τοῖς μὲν πενίαν, τοῖς δὲ ξυνεχλήρωσε πλοῦτον; ἵνα οἵ μὲν τὰς ὕλας παρέχωσιν, οἱ δὲ τὰς χεῖρας ἠσκημένας πρὸς τὰς τέχνας. ### English translation (Claude) Since, then, human nature was made mortal, and being mortal needs many things, farming, planting, seafaring, and also the arts of building, smithing, weaving, shoemaking, and shipbuilding, and the others that help in the necessary care of the body, the Guardian of the universe very fittingly allotted poverty to some and wealth to others, so that some might supply the materials and others hands trained for the arts. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.49 (Raeder, 165; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-49). ## Discourse 6.50 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-50 - Source: Raeder, 166 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Rich and poor depend on one another. ### Greek text ἐξήρτησε δὲ τῆς πενίας διὰ τῆς χρείας τοὺς ἐπὶ πλούτῳ βρενθυομένους τῶν ὅλων ὁ πρύτανις. δέονταν γὰρ οὐ» ἀρτοποιῶν οὐδὲ ὀψοποιῶν μόνον καὶ οἰνοχόων, ἀλλὰ καὶ οἰκοδόμων καὶ γεωργῶν καὶ ταλασιουργῶν καὶ σκυτέων, οἵ δέ γε φιλότιμον καὶ ξωγράφῶν καὶ πλαστουργῶν καὶ τῶν ἄλλων, οἱ περιφανεστέρας ἀποφαίνουσι τῶν πλουτούντων τὰς οἰκίας᾽ δέονται δ᾽ αὖ πάλιν καὶ οἱ χειρώνακτες τῶν εὐπόρων καὶ χρήματα χορηγούντων καὶ ὠνουμένων τὰ παρ᾽ ἐκείνων δημιουργούμενα. ### English translation (Claude) The Ruler of the universe made those who pride themselves on wealth depend through need on poverty. For they need not only bakers, cooks, and wine-pourers, but also builders, farmers, wool-workers, and shoemakers, and the ambitious need painters, sculptors, and the others who make the houses of the rich more splendid; and the manual workers in turn need the well-off, who supply money and buy what they make. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.50 (Raeder, 166; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-50). ## Discourse 6.51 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-51 - Source: Raeder, 166 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Inequality is like the varied colors of a painting or strings of a lyre. ### Greek text ὁ ἢ δὲ Α τήνδ᾽ τῇ ε ΣΝ ἣν διαφορὰν ᾿Ὶ δυσχεραίνοντες καὶ ᾿ χαλεπαίνοντες, " ὅτε μὴ πάντες τῶν αὐτῶν μετεσχήκαμεν, ἐγκαλείτωσαν καὶ τοῖς ζωγράφοις, ὅτι μὴ ἑνὶ χρώματι γράφουσιν, ἀλλ᾽ ἐκ διαφόρων τὰς εἰκόνας δαιδάλλουσι' κατηγορείτωσαν. δὲ καὶ τῶν λυροποιῶν, καὶ μέντοι καὶ αὐτῶν γε τῶν μουσικῶν, ὅτι μὴ ἴσην ἀφιᾶσιν ὅπασαν ἠχὴν αἵ χορδαί, ἀλλ᾽ ἄλλην μὲν ἡ νήτη, ἄλλην δὲ ἡ ὑπάτη, καὶ ἡ μὲν ὀξεῖαν, ἡ δὲ βαρεῖαν, ἡ δὲ μέσον ἔχει τὸν φθόγγον. ### English translation (Claude) Let those who are vexed and angry at this difference, because we have not all received the same things, accuse painters too for not painting with one color but embellishing their pictures with different ones; let them accuse lyre-makers, and musicians themselves, because the strings do not all give an equal sound, but the nētē one, the hypatē another, one high, another low, another holding the middle pitch. ### Translation notes - The scan has noise at the start; translated by sense. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.51 (Raeder, 166; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-51). ## Discourse 6.52 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-52 - Source: Raeder, 166 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Variety is necessary, as in geometry and arithmetic. ### Greek text νεμεσᾶν δὲ αὐτοὺς προσῆκε καὶ τοῖς γεωμέτραις, ὅτι οὐχ ἕν τοῖς τὴν γραμμινὴν μανθάνουσιν ἐπιστήμην ἐπιδεικνύουσι σχῆμα, ἀλλὰ τρίγωνα καὶ τετράγωνα παὶ μηνοειδῆ καὶ κύκλους καὶ τραπέζια καὶ ἄλλα ἄττα τῶν εἰρημένων πολλαπλάσια. ἐπιμεμφέσθωσαν δὲ καὶ τοῖς τὴν ἀριθμητικὴν διδάσκουσιν ἐπιστήμην, ὅτε τῶν ἀριθμῶν οἵ μέν εἰσιν ἄρτιοι, οἵ δὲ περιττοί, οἱ δὲ ἀρτιοπέριττοι, οἱ δὲ περισσάρτιοι, καὶ οἵ μὲν κύβοι, οἵ δὲ κυβεπίκυβοι. ### English translation (Claude) They ought to be indignant with geometers too, because they do not show students of linear science a single figure, but triangles, squares, crescents, circles, trapezia, and many times more than these. Let them blame the teachers of arithmetic too, because some numbers are even, some odd, some even-odd, some odd-even, some cubes, some cubes of cubes. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.52 (Raeder, 166; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-52). ## Discourse 6.53 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-53 - Source: Raeder, 166 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Universal wealth would destroy humanity by want. ### Greek text εἰ δὲ ἀναγκαῖα, καὶ τῶν ἀριθμῶν αἵ ἰδέαι καὶ τῶν σχημάτων τὸ ποικίλον καὶ τῶν χορδῶν τὸ διάφορον καὶ τὰ παντοδαπὰ τῶν χρωμάτων γένη, τί δήποτε δυσχεραίνετε, ὅτι μὴ πάντες Κροῖσον καὶ Μῆΐδαι καὶ 4αρεῖοι γεγένησθε; οὐδὲν γὰρ ἕτερον βούλεσθε, τήνδε τὴν ἰσότητα ποθοῦντες, ἢ λιμῷ καὶ σπάνει τῶν ἀναγκαίων ἄρδην ἅπαν ἀφανισθῆγαι τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὸ γένος. ### English translation (Claude) If the forms of numbers, the variety of figures, the difference of strings, and all the kinds of colors are necessary, why are you vexed that you have not all become Croesuses, Midases, and Dariuses? Longing for this equality, you want nothing else than that the whole human race should be utterly destroyed by hunger and lack of necessities. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.53 (Raeder, 166; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-53). ## Discourse 6.54 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-54 - Source: Raeder, 167 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: No one could supply all his needs alone. ### Greek text τίς γὰρ ἠνέσχετο. ἄν, ἰσοτιμίας πάντων μετειληχότων, τὸν ὑπὲρ τῆς τοῦ πέλας θεραπείας ἀναδέξασθαι πόνον ἢ ἀρόσαι γῆν καὶ σπεῖραι καὶ τοὺς ἀστάχυας ἀμῆσαν ἢ φυτεῦσαι καὶ τρυγῆσαι καὶ ἀποθλίψαι οἴνου καὶ ἐλαίας καρπόν; ἄλλῳ δὲ διακονεῖν ἄλλον τῆς ὁμοτιμίας οὐ ξυγχωρούσης, πῶς ἂν ἤρκεσεν ἕκαστος, βουκόλος ὁμοῦ καὶ αἰπόλος καὶ προβατεὺς καὶ συβώτης γινόμενος, καὶ μέντοι καὶ ὑφάντης καὶ σκυτοτόμος, καὶ οἱκοδόμος καὶ χαλκοτύπος, καὶ ἀρτοποιὸς καὶ ὀψοποιός, καὶ γεωργὸς καὶ φυτουργός, καὶ ναυπηγὸς καὶ ναύτης καὶ κυβεργήτης; τούτων γὰρ ἁπάντων καὶ ἑτέρων γε πολλαπλασιόνων ἕκαστος ἐνδεής. ### English translation (Claude) For if all shared equal honor, who would consent to undertake the toil of serving his neighbor, or to plow and sow the land and reap the ears, or to plant, harvest, and press the fruit of the vine and olive? And since equality of honor would not allow one to serve another, how could each suffice, being at once oxherd, goatherd, shepherd, and swineherd, and also weaver and shoemaker, builder and bronze-smith, baker and cook, farmer and planter, shipwright, sailor, and helmsman? For each needs all these and many times more. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.54 (Raeder, 167; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-54). ## Discourse 6.55 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-55 - Source: Raeder, 167 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The rich who complain most enjoy the most. ### Greek text τί δήποτε τοίνυν οὐχ ὑμνεῖτε τὴν ἀρίστην διανομήν; ἀλλ᾽ ὑμεῖς μάλιστα χαλεπαίνετε, οἵ θεραπαινῶν καὶ οἰκετῶν, καὶ μέντοι καὶ γεωργῶν ἀπολαύοντες ὅτι μάλιστα πλείστων; ὃ μὲν γὰρ γεωργὸς στέργει τὴν τάξιν, ἣν ἔλαχε, καὶ ὃ οἰκέτης ὡσαύτως, καὶ μέντοι καὶ ὃ χειροτέχνης ἀγαπᾷ τὴν τέχνην καὶ τοὺς πόνους, οἷς ξυγκεπλήρωται" ὑμεῖς δὲ τρυφῶντες καὶ ὑπερμαξῶντες καὶ διὰ τῆς ἑτέρων διακονίας παντοδαπῆς χλιδῆς ἀπολαύοντες, λόγοις βλασφήμοις τὸν τούτων κατατοξεύετε χορηγόν. ### English translation (Claude) Why then do you not hymn this excellent distribution? Why are you most indignant, you who enjoy the greatest number of maidservants, household slaves, and farmers? For the farmer is content with the rank he received, the slave likewise, and the craftsman loves his art and the labors allotted him; but you, living in luxury, overfed, and enjoying every kind of indulgence through others' service, shoot blasphemous words at the Giver of these things. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.55 (Raeder, 167; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-55). ## Discourse 6.56 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-56 - Source: Raeder, 167 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Denying providence and asserting fate serve as excuses for vice. ### Greek text τούτους δὲ τοὺς λόγους ὠδίνετε, ἀκρασίᾳ μὲν δουλεύειν αἱρούμενοι, πρόφασιν δὲ ἀπολογίας εὑρίσκειν ἡγούμενοι, πρῶτον μὲν τὸ μὴ τῇ θείᾳ προνοίᾳ κινεῖσθαν τῶν ὅλων τοὺς οἴακας, ἔπειτα δὲ τὸ νομίξειν ὑπὸ τὴν τῆς εἱμαρμένης ἀνάγκην οὐ μόνον τὸ σῶμα καὶ τὰ περὶ τοῦτο τελεῖν, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὴν τὴν αἵρεσιν τῆς ψυχῆς. ### English translation (Claude) You bring forth these words choosing to be slaves to incontinence, and thinking you find a pretext of defense: first, that the rudder of the universe is not moved by divine providence; then, believing that not only the body and what concerns it but even the very choice of the soul is under the necessity of fate. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.56 (Raeder, 167; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-56). ## Discourse 6.57 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-57 - Source: Raeder, 168 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato teaches that virtue is free, God blameless, and the good man cared for. ### Greek text ἀλλ᾽ ὃ Τιλάτων τἀναντία διδάσκει, ὡς,»ἀρετὴ ἀδέσποτον, ἣν τιμῶν τις καὶ ἀτιμάζων πλέον ἢ ἔλαττον ἕξεις. καὶ πάλιν", αἰτία ἑλομένου, θεὸς ἀναίτιος" κακῶν γὰρ ὁ θεὸς οὔποτε αἴτιος.“ καὶ ἐν αὐτοῖς δὲ τοῖς χαλεποῖς κινδύνοις τὸν Σωκράτην δείκνυσιν ὁ Πλάτων φιλοσοφοῦντα καὶ προνοίας πέρι καὶ τοῦ μὴ δεδιέναν θάνατον. καὶ ταῦτα γὰρ ἐν τῇ ἀπολογίᾳ τέθεικεν᾽ «ἀλλὰ καὶ ὑμᾶς χρή, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, εὐέλπιδας εἶναι πρὸς θάνατον καὶ ἕν τι τοῦτο διανοεῖσθαι ἀληθές, ὅτε οὐκ ἔστιν ἀνδρὶ ἀγαθῷ κακὸν οὐδέν, οὔτε ζῶντι οὔτε τελευτήσαντι, οὐδὲ ἀμελεῖται ὑπὸ θεῶν τὰ τούτου πράγματα. ### English translation (Claude) But Plato teaches the opposite: that 'virtue has no master; as one honors or dishonors it, he will have more or less of it.' And again: 'The responsibility is the chooser's; God is blameless; for God is never the cause of evils.' And even in grievous dangers Plato shows Socrates philosophizing about providence and about not fearing death. For he set this in the Apology: 'But you too, judges, must be of good hope toward death, and think this one thing true, that no evil can befall a good man, either living or dead, nor are his affairs neglected by the gods.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 617e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Plato, Apol. 41c–d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 10.617e; Apology 41c–d. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.57 (Raeder, 168; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-57). ## Discourse 6.58 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-58 - Source: Raeder, 168 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Atticus says denying providence encourages wickedness. ### Greek text οὔπουν τῷ ὄντι κακὰ πενία καὶ νόσος καὶ δουλεία καὶ θάνατος, ἀλλὰ καλεῖται μὲν ὑπὸ τῶν ἀνοήτων κακά, ἀγαθὰ δὲ γίνεται. τοῖς εὖ καὶ καλῶς κεχρημένοις. ὅτι δὲ αὔξει τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὴν πονηρίαν τὸ μὴ πιστεύειν ἰθύνεσθοι προνοίᾳ τὰ ξύμπαντα, Ἀττικὸς ὁ Πλατωνικὸς βοᾷ",,ῳὥστε ἕτοιμόν τι χρῆμα πρὸς ἀδικίαν ### English translation (Claude) So poverty, disease, slavery, and death are not truly evils, but are called evils by the foolish, and become goods for those who use them well and nobly. And that not believing all things to be guided by providence increases human wickedness, Atticus the Platonist cries out: 'So that a thing ready for injustice ### Extrabiblical texts - Atticus, fr. 3 (Atticus, Against Those Who Interpret Plato through Aristotle): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Atticus, fragment 3 (des Places), known from Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.5. The quotation continues in 6.59. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.58 (Raeder, 168; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-58). ## Discourse 6.59 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-59 - Source: Raeder, 168 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plotinus rejects chance and says the universe comes from Mind and Logos. ### Greek text ἡ τῆς προνοίας ἀπόγνωσις.“ καὶ Πλωτῖνος δέ (περιφανὴς δὲ χαὶ οὗτος ἐν φιλοσόφοις ξυγγράμμασι) τόδε τὸ προοίμιον τοῖς περὶ προνοίας ἐντέθεικε λόγοις" «,τὸ μὲν τῷ αὐτομάτῳ καὶ τύχῃ διδόναι τοῦδε τοῦ παντὸς τὴν αἰτίαν καὶ ξύστασιν, ὡς ἄλογον καὶ ἀνδρὸς οὔτε νοῦν οὔτε αἴσθησιν πεκτημένου, δῆλόν που καὶ πρὸ ἔργου, καὶ πολλοὶ καὶ ἱκανοὶ πρὸ τούτου. καταβέβληνται δειενύντες λόγοις εἶτα πολλοὺς τοιούτοὺς ἀνελίξας λόγους ἐπήγαγεν" Ϊ οὕτω δὴ ἐξ ἑνὸς νοῦ καὶ τοῦ ἀπ᾽ αὐτοῦ λόγου ἀνέστη τόδε τὸ πᾶν καὶ διέστη.“ ### English translation (Claude) is despair of providence.' And Plotinus (he too is famous for his philosophical writings) put this preface to his discourses on providence: 'To attribute the cause and composition of this universe to chance and fortune, as irrational and belonging to a man who has neither mind nor perception, is plain even before argument, and many sufficient arguments have been laid down before this to show it.' Then, unrolling many such arguments, he added: 'So from one Mind and the Word (logos) proceeding from it this universe arose and was set out.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Atticus, fr. 3 (Atticus, Against Those Who Interpret Plato through Aristotle): quotation, high confidence - Plotinus, Enn. 3.2.1–2 (Plotinus, Enneads): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Atticus, fragment 3 (end). Plotinus, Enneads 3.2.1–2. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.59 (Raeder, 168; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-59). ## Discourse 6.60 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-60 - Source: Raeder, 169 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plotinus, later than the apostles, borrowed from John's Gospel. ### Greek text ταῦτα δὲ καὶ οὗτος ἐκ τῶν ἱερῶν λογίων σεσύληκεν. ἤκουσε γὰρ πάντως τῆς τῶν θείων εὐαγγελίων διδασκούσης θεολογίας, ὡς ο,»διὰ τοῦ λόγου πάντα ἐγένετο, καὶ χωρὶς φαύτοῦ ἐγένετο οὐδὲ ἕν. παμπόλλοις γὰρ ἔτεσιν οὗτός γε τῶν ἀποστόλων νεώτερος. ἐκεῖνον μὲν γὰρ ἐπὶ Τιβερίου Καίσαρος τῶν σωτηρίων ἥψαντο κηρυγμάτων, Τιβέφιον δὲ διεδέξατο Γάϊος, ἐκεῖνον δὲ Κλαύδιος, εἶτα Νέρων καὶ Οὐεσπασιανὸς καὶ Τίτος καὶ Δομετιανὸς καὶ Νερούας καὶ Τραϊανὸς καὶ Ἀδριανὸς καὶ ᾿ἀντωνῖνος ὃ πρῶτος καὶ Οὔηρος καὶ Κόμοδος᾽ ἐπὶ τούτου δὲ Δμμώνιος ὁ ἐπίκλην Σακμᾶς, τοὺς σάκκους καταλιπών, οἷς μετέφερε τοὺς πυρούς, τὸν φιλόσοφον ἠσπάσατο βίον. τούτῳ φοιτῆσαί φασιν ᾿ξδριγένην τὸν ἡμέτερον, τῷ δὲ Πλωτῖνον τουτονί τῆς δὲ Πλωτίνου διδασκαλίας τετύχηκεν ὃ Πορφύριος. ### English translation (Claude) He too stole this from the holy oracles. For he surely heard the theology taught by the divine Gospels, that 'all things came to be through the Word, and without him nothing came to be.' For he is many years later than the apostles. They took up the saving preaching under Tiberius Caesar; Gaius succeeded Tiberius, Claudius him, then Nero, Vespasian, Titus, Domitian, Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus the first, Verus, and Commodus; under him Ammonius, surnamed Saccas, left the sacks in which he carried grain and embraced the philosophic life. They say our Origen studied with him, and so did this Plotinus; and Porphyry received the teaching of Plotinus. ### Scripture references - John 1:3: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.60 (Raeder, 169; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-60). ## Discourse 6.61 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-61 - Source: Raeder, 169 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plotinus learned of the Word from the apostles. ### Greek text τὸν δὲ χρόνον οὐ τηνάλλως ἀδολεσχῶν ἐπεσημηνάμην, ἀλλὰ δεικνύς, ὡς οὐ μόνον τὰ τῶν Ἑβραίων. οὗτος, καθάπερ ὃ Πλάτων, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ τῶν ἁλιέων καὶ τὰ τοῦ σκυτοτόμου παιδευθείς, μεμάθηκεν ἐκεῖθεν, ὡς ἐκ τοῦ νοῦ καὶ τοῦ ἀπ᾽ αὐτοῦ λόγου τὰ πάντα καὶ ξυνέστη καὶ διέστη καὶ τῆς προσηκούσης τετύχηκε ### English translation (Claude) I have noted the date not out of idle talk, but to show that he, educated not only in the things of the Hebrews, as Plato was, but also in those of the fishermen and the leather-worker, learned from there that from Mind and the Word proceeding from it all things were composed and set out and obtained their fitting ### Translation notes - The word 'harmony' is split between 6.61 and 6.62. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.61 (Raeder, 169; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-61). ## Discourse 6.62 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-62 - Source: Raeder, 169 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plotinus says one must judge the world as a whole, not by its parts. ### Greek text ν ἁρμονίας, εἶτα τῶν διαβάλλειν τινὰ τῆς κτίσεως μόρια πειρωμένων διελέγχει τὴν ἄνοιαν, λέγων ὡδί",οὕλον γάρ τι ἐποίησε πάγκαλον καὶ αὔταρκες καὶ φίλον αὑτῷ καὶ τοῖς μέρεσι τοῖς αὑτοῦ, τοῖς τε κυριωτέροις καὶ τοῖς ἐλάττοσιν, ὡσαύτως προσφόροις. ὁ τοίνυν ἐκ τῶν μερῶν τὸ ὅλον αἰτιώμενος ἄτοπος ἂν εἴη τῆς αἰτίας. τά τε γὰρ μέρη πρὸς αὐτὸ τὸ ὅλον δεῖ σκοπεῖν, εἰ ξύμφωνα καὶ ἁρμόττοντα ἐκείνῳ, τό τε ὅλον σμοπούμενον μὴ πρὸς μέφη ἄντα σμικρὰ βλέπειν" τοῦτο γὰρ οὐ τὸν κόσμον αἰτιωμένου, ἀλλά τινα τῶν αὐτοῦ χωρὶς λαβόντα, οἷον εἰ παντὸς ξῴου τρίχα ἢ τῶν χαμαὶ δακτύλ ὧν, ἀμελήσας τὸν " πάντα ’ὔ ἄνθρωπον, Ψ δαιμονίαν τινὰ ὄψιν βλέπειν, ἢ νὴ Δία τὰ ἄλλα ζῷα ἀφείς, τὸ εὐτελέστατον λαμβάνοι, ἢ τὸ ὅλον γένος παρείς, οἷον τὸ ἀνθρώπου, Θερσίτην. εἰς μέσον ἄγοι. ἐπεὶ οὖν τὸ γενόμενον ὃ πόσμος ἐστὶν ὃ ξύμπας, τοῦτον θεωρῶν τάχα ἂν ἀκούσαι παρ᾽ αὖτοῦ, ὡς ἐμὲ πεπονήκει ὁ θεός᾽ κἀγὼ ἐκεῖθεν ἐγενόμην τέλειος ἐκ πάντων ξῴων καὶ ἱκανὸς ἐμαυτῷ καὶ αὐτάρκης, οὐδενὸς δεόμενος, ὅτι πάντα ἐν ἐμοί, καὶ τὰ φυτὰ καὶ τὰ ξῷα καὶ ### English translation (Claude) harmony; then he refutes the folly of those who try to slander certain parts of creation, saying: 'For it made a whole, all-beautiful, self-sufficient, and friendly to itself and to its parts, the more important and the lesser, equally suited. So one who blames the whole from its parts would be absurd in his blame. For one must consider the parts in relation to the whole, whether they agree and fit with it, and in considering the whole not look at small parts. For this is not to blame the world but to take some part of it apart, as if one were to take a hair of a whole animal, or a toe, neglecting the whole man, a marvelous sight; or, by Zeus, leaving the other animals, take the meanest; or passing over the whole race, say of man, bring forward Thersites. Since, then, what came to be is the whole world, contemplating it one might hear from it: "God made me; and from there I came to be perfect out of all living things, sufficient for myself and self-sufficient, needing nothing, since all things are in me, plants and animals and ### Extrabiblical texts - Plotinus, Enn. 3.2.3 (Plotinus, Enneads): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plotinus, Enneads 3.2.3. The quotation ends in 6.63. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.62 (Raeder, 169; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-62). ## Discourse 6.63 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-11/#p-6-63 - Source: Raeder, 170 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plotinus's world speaking of its maker echoes Psalm 19; he ranks beings. ### Greek text ξυμπάντων τῶν γενητῶν ἡ φύσις.“ διὰ δὲ τούτων δεδήλωκεν “ἑτέραν κλοπήν, ὧν ξ σεσύληπεν. ἀκηκοέναι γάρ μοι δοκεῖ τοῦ θεσπεσίου Δαυὶδ λέγοντος" οἱ οὐρανοὶ διηγοῦνται δόξαν Θεοῦ, ποίησιν δὲ χειρῶν αὐτοῦ ἀναγγέλλει τὸ στερέωμα. καὶ μετ΄ ὀλίγα δὲ δείκνυσι τὸ τῶν γεγενημένων διάφορον, καί φησιν᾽ » ὰ μὲν τοῦ εἶναι μετέχειν δοκεῖ μόνον, [ τὰ δὲ τοῦ ξῆν, τὰ δὲ μᾶλλον ἐν τῷ αἰσθάνεσθαι, τὰ δὲ ἤδη λόγον ἔχει, τὰ δὲ πᾶσαν ξωήν᾽ οὐδὲ γὰρ τὰ ἴσα ἀπαιτεῖν δεῖ τοῖς μὴ ἴσοις΄ οὐδὲ γὰρ δακτύλων τὸ βλέπειν, ἀλλ᾽ ὀφθαλμῶν τοῦτο᾽ δακτύλου δὲ ἄλλο, τὸ εἶναι, οἶμαι, δακτύλῳ καὶ τὸ αὑτοῦ ἔχειν. ### English translation (Claude) the nature of all things that come to be."' By this he showed another theft of his. For he seems to me to have heard the divine David saying: 'The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament proclaims the work of his hands.' And a little later he shows the difference among the things that came to be, and says: 'Some seem to share only in being, others in living, others more in perceiving, others already have reason, others the whole of life; for one must not demand equal things of the unequal; for seeing does not belong to fingers but to eyes; to the finger something else belongs, I suppose to be a finger and have its own function.' ### Scripture references - Ps 19:1 (18:2 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Plotinus, Enn. 3.2.3 (Plotinus, Enneads): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plotinus, Enneads 3.2.3. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.63 (Raeder, 170; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-63). ## Discourse 6.64 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-64 - Source: Raeder, 171 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plotinus ranks stones, plants, animals, humans, and spirits. ### Greek text “ μδτέχειν δὲ τοῦ εἶναι μόνον τοὺς λίθους ἔφη καὶ τὰ προσόμοια τούτοις, τὰ δέ γε φυτὰ μεταλαχεῖν καὶ τοῦ ζῆν, αἴσθησιν δ᾽ ἔχειν μέτὰ τοῦ ζῆν τὰ ἄλογα εἴρηκε, λόγου δὲ μενειληχέναι τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὸ γένος; τελείαν δὲ ζωὴν ἔχειν τῶν ἀσωμάτων τὴν φύσιν, τούτοις δὲ ἐπήγαγεν᾽ πῦρ δὲ εἰ ὑπὸ ὕδατος σβέννυται, καὶ ἕτερον ὑπὸ πυρὸς φθείρεται, μὴ θαυμάσῃς" καὶ γὰρ εἰς τὸ εἶναι. ### English translation (Claude) He said that stones and the like share only in being, plants also in living, irrational animals have perception besides life, the human race has received reason, and the nature of bodiless beings has perfect life. To these he added: 'If fire is quenched by water and something else destroyed by fire, do not wonder; for another brought them into being ### Extrabiblical texts - Plotinus, Enn. 3.2.4 (Plotinus, Enneads): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plotinus, Enneads 3.2.4. The quotation ends in 6.65. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.64 (Raeder, 171; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64). ## Discourse 6.65 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-65 - Source: Raeder, 171 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plotinus says vice comes from the soul's own turning and justice follows. ### Greek text ἄλλος αὐτὰ ἤγαγεν καὶ ἀρετῆς δὲ πέρι καὶ κακίας ἐν τῇ αὐτῇ διαλέξει τοιαῦτα διέξεισιν" πολλὰ δὲ καὶ ὑπ᾽ ἄλλων πάδχει, καὶ ἀκόντων τῶν. ποιούντων καὶ πρὸς ἄλλο ἱεμένων... τὰ δὲ δι᾿ αὑτὰ ἔχοντα κίνησιν αὐτεξούσιον ζῷα φέποι ἂν ὁτὲ μὲν πρὸς τὰ βελτίω, δτὲ δὲ πρὸς τὰ χείρω" τὴν δὲ πρὸς τὰ χείρω τροπὴν παρ᾽ αὐτοῦ. ζητεῖν ἴσως οὐκ ἄξιον. ὀλίγη γὰρ κατ᾽ ἀρχὰς τροπὴ γενομένη, προϊοῦσα αὕτη πλέον καὶ μεῖζον τὸ ἁμαρτανόμενον ἀεὶ. ποιεῖ" καὶ σῶμα δὲ ξύνεστι καὶ ἐξ ἀνάγκης. ἐπιθυμία. καὶ παροφθὲν τὸ πρῶτον καὶ τὸ ἐξαίφνης καὶ μὴ ἀναληφθέν, ἀὐτίμα καὶ αἵρεσιν εἰς ὅ τις ἐξέπεσεν ἐνειργάσατο.. ἕπεταί γε μὴν δίκη" καὶ οὐκ ἄδικον τοιόνδε γενόμενον ἀκόλουθα πάσχειν τῇ διαθέσει, οὐδὲ ἀπαιτητέον τούτοις τὸ εὐδαιμονεῖν ὑπάρχειν, οἷς μὴ εἴργασται εὐδαιμονίας ἄξια. οἱ δὲ ἀγαθοὶ μόνοι εὐδαίμονες" διὰ γὰρ τοῦτο καὶ θεοὶ εὐδαίμονες. εἰ τοίνυν καὶ ψυχαῖς ἐν τῷδε τῷ παντὶ ἔξεστιν εὐδαιμονεῖν, εἰ τινες οὐκ εὐδαίμονες, οὐκ αἰτιατέον τὸ πᾶν, ἀλλὰ τὰς ἐκείνων ἀδυναμίας μὴ δυνηθείσας καλῶς ἐναγωνίσασθαι; οὗ δὴ ἄθλα ἀρετῆς πρόπειται. καὶ μὴ θείους δὲ ### English translation (Claude) too.' And about virtue and vice he sets out such things in the same discourse: 'Many things are suffered from others too, the agents being unwilling and aiming at something else. But living beings that have self-determined motion of themselves would incline sometimes to the better, sometimes to the worse; and the turning to the worse it is perhaps not worth seeking from outside. For a small turning at the beginning, going on, makes the fault ever more and greater; and the body is joined to it, and of necessity desire. And what is first overlooked and sudden and not corrected at once produces a choice of what one has fallen into. Justice follows; and it is not unjust that one who has become such should suffer what accords with his disposition, nor must happiness be demanded for those who have not done what is worthy of happiness. Only the good are happy; that is why the gods too are happy. If, then, souls can be happy in this universe, if some are not happy, the universe is not to be blamed, but their weakness, unable to contend well where the prizes of virtue are set out. And that those who have not become divine ### Extrabiblical texts - Plotinus, Enn. 3.2.4 (Plotinus, Enneads): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plotinus, Enneads 3.2.4. The quotation continues in 6.66. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.65 (Raeder, 171; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-65). ## Discourse 6.66 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-66 - Source: Raeder, 172 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plotinus says poverty and sickness harm only the wicked. ### Greek text γενομένους θεῖον βίον μὴ ἔχειν, ἐ τί δεινόν γι εἶτα καὶ σὸς δυσηληρίας ἀπαρυθμεῖται δαὶ λέγει ταύτας ἀναγκαίας, εἶναι τοῖς ἁμαρτάνουσι" ᾿γΠενίαϊς γάρ φησι »»καὶ νόσοι τοῖς μὲν ἀγαθοῖς οὐδέν, τοῖς δὲ καμοῖς ξυμφορά" καὶ ἀνάγκη νοσεῖν σώματα ἔχουσιν. καὶ οὐκ ἀχρεῖα δὲ οὐδὲ ταῦτα παντάπασιν ### English translation (Claude) do not have a divine life, what is terrible in that?' Then he enumerates misfortunes too and says they are necessary for sinners: 'Poverty and diseases are nothing to the good, but a misfortune to the wicked; and it is necessary for those who have bodies to be sick. And not even these are wholly useless ### Extrabiblical texts - Plotinus, Enn. 3.2.5 (Plotinus, Enneads): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plotinus, Enneads 3.2.5. The scan is garbled at the start; translated by sense. The quotation continues in 6.67. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.66 (Raeder, 172; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-66). ## Discourse 6.67 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-67 - Source: Raeder, 172 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plotinus says God uses evil for good ends. ### Greek text εἰς ξύνταξιν καὶ ξυμπλήρωσιν τοῦ ὅλους ἔπειτα διδάσκει, ὡς ἐκ τῶνδε τῶν παραδειγμάτων πλεῖστοι τῶν ἄλλων ὀνίψανται, καί φησιν",,ἢἦ δὲ κακία εἰργάσατό τι χρήσιμον εἰς τὸ ὅλον, παράδειγμα δίνης γενομένη καὶ πολλὰ ἐξ αὑτῆς χρήσιμα παρασχομένη. καὶ γὰρ ἐγρηγορότας ἐποίησε καὶ νοῦν καὶ ξύνεσιν ἐγείρει, πονηρίας ὁδοῖς ἀντιταττομένων" καὶ μανθάνειν δὲ ποιεῖ, οἷον ἀγαθὸν ἀρετή, παραθέσει κακῶν, ὧν οἷ πονηροὶ ἔχουσιν. καὶ οὐ γέγονε τὰ κακὰ διὰ ταῦτα, ἀλλ᾽ ὅτι χρῆται καὶ αὐτοῖς εἰς δέον, ἐπείπερ ἐγένετο, εἴρηται. τοῦτο δὲ δυνάμεως μεγίστης, καλῶς χαὶ τοῖς κακοῖς ἀφήσασθαι Ι δύνασθαν καὶ τοῖς ἀμόρφοις γενομένοις εἰς ἑτέρας μορφὰς χρήσασθαι εανὴν εἶναι. ὅλως δὲ τὸ ### English translation (Claude) for the order and completion of the whole.' Then he teaches that very many others profit from these examples, and says: 'And vice produced something useful for the whole, becoming an example of justice and providing many useful things from itself. For it made people wakeful and rouses mind and understanding as they oppose the ways of wickedness; and it makes them learn what a good virtue is by comparison with the evils the wicked have. And evils did not come to be for these reasons, but, since they came to be, it has been said that it uses them too for what is needed. This belongs to the greatest power, to be able to use even evils well and to use what has become formless for other forms. In general, evil ### Extrabiblical texts - Plotinus, Enn. 3.2.5 (Plotinus, Enneads): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plotinus, Enneads 3.2.5. The quotation ends in 6.68. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.67 (Raeder, 172; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-67). ## Discourse 6.68 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-68 - Source: Raeder, 172 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plotinus: evil is lack of good; do not demand perfection in the mixed world. ### Greek text παχὸν ἔλλευψιν ἀγαθοῦ θετέον(Ξ καὶ μετὰ πολλοὺς δὲ τοιοὕτους λόγους παραινεῖ μὴ ἀκριβῶς ἐν τῷ μικτῷ ζῴῳ μηδὲ ἀκραιφνῶς τὸ ἀγαθὸν ἀπαιτεῖν, καί φησιν' πρῶτον τοίνυν λεκτέον, ὡς τὸ καλὸν ἐν τῷ μυκτῷ ξητοῦντας χρὴ μὴ πάντῃ ἀπαιτεῖν, ἀλλ᾽ ὅσον τὸ χαλῶς ἐν τῷ μεκτῷ ἔχει, μηδὲ ἐν δευτέροις ξητεῖν τὰ πρῶτα, ἀλλ᾽ ἐπειδὴ καὶ σῶμα ἔχει, ξυγχωρεῖν καὶ παρὰ τούτου ἰέναι εἰς τὸ πᾶν, ἀπαιτεῖν δὲ παρὰ τοῦ λόγου, ὅσον ἠδύνατο δέξασθαι τὸ μῖγμα, εἰ μηδὲν τοὔτῷ ἐλλείπει. ### English translation (Claude) must be taken as a lack of good.' And after many such words he urges not to demand the good strictly or purely in the mixed animal, and says: 'First, then, it must be said that those seeking the beautiful in the mixture must not demand it everywhere, but as much as the beautiful holds in the mixture, nor seek first things in second things; but since it has a body too, concede that something comes from this to the whole, and demand from reason as much as the mixture could receive, if it lacks nothing of this.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plotinus, Enn. 3.2.7 (Plotinus, Enneads): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plotinus, Enneads 3.2.5, 3.2.7. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.68 (Raeder, 172; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-68). ## Discourse 6.69 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-69 - Source: Raeder, 172 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plotinus says God helps those who strive, not those who only pray. ### Greek text εἶτα νεμεσᾷ τοῖς ἀγωνίξεσθαι μὲν ὑπὲρ ἀρετῆς μὴ βουλομένοις, σώξεσθαι δὲ ἀξιοῦσι παρὰ Θεοῦ, καί φησιν οονῦν δὲ οἵ μὲν ἄοπλοι᾽ οἱ δὲ ὁπλισθέντες κρατοῦσιν, ἔνθα οὐ θεὸν ἔδει ὑπὲρ τῶν ἀπολέμων αὐτὸν μάχεσθαι᾽ σώξζεσθαι γὰρ ἐκ πολέμων φησὶ δεῖν ὃ νόμος ἀνδριξομένους, ἀλλ᾽ οὐκ εὐχομένους" οὐδὲ γὰρ κομίξεσθαι καρποὺς εὐὖχομένους, ἀλλὰ γῆς ἐπιμελουμένους, οὐδὲ ὑγιαίνειν μὴ ὑγείας ἐπιμελουμένους, οὐδ᾽ ἀγανακτεῖν δέ, εἰ τοῖς φαύλοις πλείους γίνοιντο οἱ καρποί, ἢ ὅλως αὐτοῖς γεωργοῦσιν ἢ ἄμεινον. ἔπειτα γελοῖον τὰ μὲν ἄλλα πάντα τὰ κατὰ τὸν βίον γνώμῃ τῇ ἑαυτῶν πράττειν, κἂν μὴ ταύτῃ πράττωσιν, ἢ θεοῖς φίλα, σώξεσθαι δὲ μόνον παρὰ θεῶν, οὐδὲ ταῦτα πονήσαντας, δὲ ὧν κελεύουσι τούτους οἵ θεοὶ σώξεσθαι. καὶ τοίνυν οἵ θάνατοι αὐτοῖς βελτίους ἢ τὸ οὕτω ξῶντας εἶναι, ὕπωώς ξῆν αὐτοὺς οὐκ ἐθέλουσιν οἵ ἐν τῷ παντὶ νόμοι. ὥστε τῶν ἐναντίων γινομένων, εἰρήνης ἐν ἀνοίαις καὶ κακίαις πάσαις φυλαττομένης, ἀτόπως ἂν ΡΒ ἔσχε τὰ ᾿] προνοΐας, Η ἐώσης,ὔ πρατγδιν οὕτω τὰ χείρω. ἄρχουσι δὲ οἱ κακοί, ἀρχομένων ἀνανδρίᾳ" τοῦτο γὰρ δίκαιον, καὶ οὐκ ἐκεῖνο. οὐ γὰρ δὴ οὕτω τὴν πρόνοιαν ῤ εἶναι ἶναι δεῖ, δεῖ, ὥσ ὥστε μηδὲν δὲν ἡμᾶς ἡμᾶς εἶναι. εἶ πάντα ἔντα δὲ δὲ οὔσης οὔ προνοίας, καὶ μόνης αὐτῆς, οὐδ᾽ ἂν εἴη" τίνος γὰρ ἂν ἔτι εἴης ### English translation (Claude) Then he is indignant with those who do not wish to contend for virtue but expect to be saved by God, and says: 'As it is, some are unarmed, while those who arm themselves prevail, and there it was not fitting for God himself to fight for the unwarlike; for the law says that those who are saved from wars must be brave, not those who pray; for those who pray do not gather crops, but those who tend the land; nor are those healthy who do not care for health; nor should one be vexed if the bad get more crops, or if things go better for them farming generally. Then it is laughable to do everything else in life by one's own judgment, even if not as pleasing to the gods, and to be saved only by the gods, without even laboring at those things by which the gods bid them be saved. And so death is better for them than living thus, as the laws in the universe do not wish them to live. So that if the opposite happened, and peace were kept amid all folly and vice, providence would be absurd, allowing the worse to prevail. The wicked rule because of the cowardice of the ruled; this is just, not the other. For providence must not be such that we are nothing. If providence were everything and alone, it would not be; for of what would it still be, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plotinus, Enn. 3.2.8–9 (Plotinus, Enneads): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plotinus, Enneads 3.2.8–9. The scan repeats several words at the end; they are translated once. The quotation ends in 6.70. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.69 (Raeder, 172; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-69). ## Discourse 6.70 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-70 - Source: Raeder, 173 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plotinus says the good will have a good life laid up hereafter. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ μόνον ἂν εἴη τὸ θεῖον.“ καὶ μετ᾽ ὀλίγα δὲ δείκνυσι τῶν ἀγαθῶν τὰ ἀθλα' Τοῖς μὲν γὰρ ἀγαθοῖς" φησι..γενομένοις ἀγαθὸν βίον ἔσεσθαν καὶ κεῖσθαν καὶ εἰς ὕστερον" τοῖς δὲ κακοῖς τἀναντία. κακοὺς δὲ γενομένους ἀξιοῦν ἄλλους αὐτῶν σωτῆρας εἶναν ξαυτοὺς προεμένους, ### English translation (Claude) but only the divine would exist.' And a little later he shows the prizes of the good: 'For those who have become good,' he says, 'there will be a good life, laid up for later too; for the wicked the opposite. And for those who have become wicked to expect others to be their saviors, having abandoned themselves, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plotinus, Enn. 3.2.9 (Plotinus, Enneads): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plotinus, Enneads 3.2.9. The quotation ends in 6.71. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.70 (Raeder, 173; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-70). ## Discourse 6.71 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-71 - Source: Raeder, 174 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plotinus defends the usefulness of animals. ### Greek text οὐ θεμιτὸν εὐχὴν ποιουμένων “΄ εἶτα καὶ περὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἑῴων ὧδέ. φησιν᾽ »Ἐπεὶ καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις, ὅσα ἐλάττω ζῷα αὐτοῦ κόσμον γῇ φέροντα, μέμφετων οὐδεὶς νοῦν ἔχων. γελοῖον γὰρ εἴ τις μέμφοιτο, ὅτε τοὺς ἀνθρώπους δάπνοι, ὡς δέον αὐτοὺς ζῆν κοιμωμένους. ἀνάγκη δὲ καὶ ταῦτα εἶναι. καὶ αἱ μὲν πρόδηλοι παρ᾽ αὐτῶν ὠφέλειαι, τὰς δὲ οὐ φανερὰς ἀνεῦρε πολλὰς ὁ χρόνος, ὥστε μηδὲν αὐτῶν μάτην μηδὲ ἀνθρώποις εἶναι. γελοῖον δὲ ὅτι καὶ ἄγρια πολλὰ αὐτῶν μέμφεσθαι, γινομένων καὶ ἀνθρώπων ἀγρίων“ ### English translation (Claude) is not a lawful prayer to make.' Then about other animals he says this: 'As for the other animals, the lesser living things that bear the ornament of the world, no one with sense blames them. It would be laughable if someone were to blame them because they bite people, as if people ought to live asleep. These too must exist. Some benefits from them are evident, and time has found out many that were not plain, so that none of them exists in vain even for human beings. And it is laughable to blame them because many of them are wild, when human beings too become wild.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plotinus, Enn. 3.2.9 (Plotinus, Enneads): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plotinus, Enneads 3.2.9. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.71 (Raeder, 174; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-71). ## Discourse 6.72 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-72 - Source: Raeder, 174 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plotinus compares the world to a painting and a drama needing varied parts. ### Greek text καὶ μεθ' ἕτερα δὲ πλεῖστα καὶ ταῦτα ἔφη" ἡμεῖς δέ, ὥσπερ οἱ ἄπειροι γραφινῆς τέχνης αἰτιῶνται, ὡς οὐ καλὰ χρώματα πανταχοῦ, ὁ δὲ ἄρα τὰ προσήκοντα ἀπέδωκεν ἑκάστῳ τόπῳ, ] ἢ εἴ τις δρᾶμα μέμφοιτο, ὅτι μὴ πάντες ἥρωες ἐν αὐτῷ, ἀλλὰ καὶ οἰκέτης καί τις ὄγροικος καὶ φαύλως φθεγγόμενος" τὸ δὲ οὐ καλόν ἐστιν, εἶ τις τοὺς χείρους ἐξέλοι, καὶ ἐκ ### English translation (Claude) And after very many other things he said this too: 'But we are like those inexperienced in painting who blame it because the colors are not beautiful everywhere, while the artist gave each place what was fitting; or like someone blaming a drama because not all in it are heroes, but also a servant, a rustic, and one who speaks coarsely; yet it is not beautiful if one removes the worse characters, since it is completed ### Extrabiblical texts - Plotinus, Enn. 3.2.11 (Plotinus, Enneads): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plotinus, Enneads 3.2.11. The quotation ends in 6.73. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.72 (Raeder, 174; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-72). ## Discourse 6.73 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-73 - Source: Raeder, 174 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret ends his citations on providence. ### Greek text τούτων ξυμπληρούμενον.“ καὶ πᾶσα δὲ ἡ διάλεξις, καὶ ἡ προτέρα καὶ ἡ δευτέρα, τούτων τῶν λόγων ἀνάπλεως, ἐγὼ δὲ τὸ μῆκος φεύγων τὰ πλείονα παρολείψω᾽ καὶ Ἐενοφῶντι τῷ Σωπρατικῷ καὶ ᾿Επικτήτῳ τῷ Στωϊκῷ καὶ ἄλλοις πλείοσι μάρτυσι δυνάμενος χρήσασθαι καὶ φυσικαῖς ἀποδείξεσιν οἷός τε ὧν διελέγξαι τῶν ἀπιστούντων τῷδε τῷ λόγῳ τὴν ἄνοιαν, ἀποχρῆν οἶμαι τὰ ξυνειλεγμένα εἴς γε τὴν τῆς ἀληθείας βεβαίὡσιν. ### English translation (Claude) by these too.' The whole of the discourse, both the first and the second, is full of such words, but to avoid length I shall pass over most of them; and though I could use Xenophon the Socratic, Epictetus the Stoic, and very many other witnesses, and could refute the folly of those who disbelieve this account by natural proofs, I think what has been collected suffices to confirm the truth. ### Extrabiblical texts - Epictetus (Epictetus): quotation, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.73 (Raeder, 174; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-73). ## Discourse 6.74 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-74 - Source: Raeder, 174 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Providence makes the incarnation fitting. ### Greek text ἐκεῖνο δὲ μόνον τοῖς εἰρημένοις προύργου προσθεῖναι νενόμικα, ὡς δήλου γε ὄντος, ὕτι προνοεῖ τῶν ὅλων ὁ ποιητής, ἄμαχος θήπουθεν καὶ ἀναμφισβήτητος δέδεται τῆς τοῦ Σωτῆρος οἰκονομίας ὁ λύγος. ἔπρεπε γὰρ τῷ τὰ πάντα τεκτηναμένῳ καὶ τοῖς μὴ οὖσι τὸ εἶναι δωρησαμένῳ μὴ παριδεῖν διολλυμένην τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὴν φύσιν, ἧς ἕνεκεν τὰ ὁρώμενα κατεσκεύασεν ἅπαντα. ### English translation (Claude) I have thought it worthwhile to add only this to what has been said: that since it is plain that the Maker provides for the universe, the account of the Savior's dispensation is surely beyond fighting and dispute. For it was fitting for the one who fashioned all things and gave being to what was not not to overlook the perishing of human nature, for whose sake he made all visible things. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.74 (Raeder, 174; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-74). ## Discourse 6.75 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-75 - Source: Raeder, 175 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: All creation serves humanity. ### Greek text ἥ τε γὰρ γῆ τούτῶν ἐστὶν ἐνδιαίτημα, καὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν ὄροφον ἔχουσι᾽ καὶ ἀὴρ καὶ θάλαττα καὶ ποταμοὶ καὶ πηγαὶ καὶ νεφῶν ὠδῖνες καὶ δρόσοι καὶ αὖραι, καὶ μέντοι καὶ φυτὰ κάρπιμά τε καὶ ἄκαρπα καὶ ξῷα χερσαῖά τε καὶ πτηνὰ καὶ νηχκτὰ καὶ ἀμφίβια καὶ βοτανῶν γένη μυρία καὶ ὕλαι μεταλλικαὶ τῷ γένει τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὴν χρείαν προσφέρουσιν. ### English translation (Claude) For the earth is their dwelling and they have heaven as their roof; air, sea, rivers, springs, the burdens of the clouds, dews and breezes, and also fruitful and unfruitful plants, land, winged, swimming, and amphibious animals, countless kinds of herbs, and mineral materials supply the needs of the human race. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.75 (Raeder, 175; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-75). ## Discourse 6.76 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-76 - Source: Raeder, 175 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The heavenly bodies divide day and night for humans. ### Greek text καὶ μὲν δὴ καὶ ἥλιος καὶ σελήνη καὶ τῶν ἀστέρων τὸ πλῆθος, διχῇ τὸν χρόνον διελόντες, ἴσως αὐτὸν διενείμαντο᾽ καὶ ὁ μὲν φωτίζει τὴν ἡμέραν καὶ πρὸς ἐργασίαν καλεῖ, ἡ δὲ μετὰ τῶν ἄστρων τὴν νυκτερινὴν ἔλαχε δαᾳδουχίαν. ### English translation (Claude) And indeed the sun, the moon, and the host of stars, dividing time in two, have shared it equally: the one lights the day and calls to work, the other with the stars has received the torch-bearing of the night. ### Scripture references - Gen 1:16: echo, low confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.76 (Raeder, 175; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-76). ## Discourse 6.77 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-77 - Source: Raeder, 175 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God took human form to rescue humanity from sin and death. ### Greek text οὐ τοίνυν παριδεῖν ὁ τοῦ παντὸς Κύριος ὑπέλαβε δίκαιον τὸν οὗ χάριν ταῦτα πάντα ἐγένετο ὑπὸ τῆς ἁμαρτίας πολιορκούμενον καὶ ὡς δορίληπτον τῷ θανάτῳ παραδιδόμενον᾽ καὶ διὰ τοῦτο τὴν ἀνθρωπείαν ὑπέδυ μορφὴν καὶ τὴν ἀόρατον τῇ ὁρωμένῃ κατεκάλυψε φύσιν, καὶ τήν τε ὁρωμένην ἀναμάρτητον διεφύλαξε καὶ τὴν κεκρυμμένην ἀκήρατον διετήρησεν. ### English translation (Claude) So the Lord of the universe did not think it just to overlook the one for whose sake all these came to be, besieged by sin and handed over to death like a prisoner of war; and for this reason he entered the human form and covered the invisible nature with the visible, and kept the visible sinless and preserved the hidden one unharmed. ### Scripture references - Phil 2:7: allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.77 (Raeder, 175; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-77). ## Discourse 6.78 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-78 - Source: Raeder, 175 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God chose the incarnation to show the justice of providence, not mere power. ### Greek text οὔτε γὰρ αὕτη τῶν τῆς. σαρκὸς μετέλαχε παθημάτων, οὔτε ἡ σὰρξ τῶν τῆς ἁμαρτίας κηλίδων μετέσχηκεν. δᾷστον μὲν γὰρ ἦν αὐτῷ καὶ δίχα τοῦ τῆς σαρκὸς προκαλύμματος πραγματεύσασθαι τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὴν σωτηρίαν καὶ βουλήσει μόνῃ καταλῦσαι τοῦ θανάτου τὴν δυναστείαν καὶ τὴν τούτου μητέρα, τὴν ἁμαρτίαν, φροῦδον παντελῶς ἀποφῆναι καὶ τὸν παμπόνηρον δαίμονας τὸν ταύτην ὠδίναντα, ἐξελάσαι τῆς γῆς καὶ παραπέμψαι τῷ ξόφῳ, ᾧ γε μικρὸν ὕστερον αὐτὸν παραδώσειν ἠπείλησεν᾽ ἀλλ᾽ οὐκ ἐβουλήθη τὴν ἐξουσίαν, ἀλλὰ τῆς προνοίας ἐπιδεῖξαι τὸ δίκαιον. ### English translation (Claude) For the one did not share in the sufferings of the flesh, nor did the flesh share in the stains of sin. It would have been very easy for him, even without the veil of the flesh, to accomplish human salvation, to destroy by will alone the power of death, to make its mother, sin, wholly vanish, and to drive the utterly wicked demon who gave birth to it from the earth and send him to the gloom to which he threatened to hand him over a little later; but he did not wish to show his authority, but the justice of his providence. ### Translation notes - Theodoret's statement that the divine nature did not share the sufferings of the flesh reflects his Antiochene Christology. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.78 (Raeder, 175; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-78). ## Discourse 6.79 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-79 - Source: Raeder, 175 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God saved humanity by being born of a virgin, eternal and newly human. ### Greek text ὥσπερ γὰρ οὐρανόθεν διαλεχθῆναι τοῖς ἀνθρώποις δυνάμενος καὶ τοὺς ῥᾳστώνῃ ξυζῶντας δεδίξασθαι, [τοῦτο μὲν οὐ πεποίκεν, εἰδὼς οὐ χωροῦσαν τοῦτο τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὴν φύσιν, ἀλλ᾿ ὀλιγάκις μὲν ἐπεφάνη, ξυμμέτρους τοῖς ὁρῶσι τὰς ἐπιφανείας ποιούμενος, ἀεὶ δὲ δι᾽ ἀνθρώπων ἀνθρώποις καὶ νομοθετῶν καὶ παραινῶν διετέλεσεν, ὑπουργοῖς τῶν λόγων καὶ διακόνοις χρώμενος τοῖς προφήταις, οὕτω δὴ ὕστερον σᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις προσενεγκεῖν ἐθελήσας τὰ σωτήρια φάρμακα, οὐκ ἀγγέλοις ὑπηρέταις οὐδ᾽ ἀρχαγγέλοις ἐχρήσατο οὐδ᾽ οὐρανόθεν γεγωνοτάτην καὶ πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις ξύμμετρον ἀφῆκε φωνήν, ἀλλ᾽ ἐν μήτρᾳ παρθενικῇ τὴν ἀνθρωπείαν ξαυτῷ περιπήξας σκηνήν, προῆλθεν ἐκεῖθεν ἄνθρωπος ὁρώμενος καὶ Θεὸς προσκυνούμενος, ἐκ μὲν τῆς τοῦ Πατρὸς οὐσίας πρὸ τῶν αἰώνων γεγεννημένος, ἐκ δὲ τῆς “παρθένου λαβὼν τὸ φαινόμενον, πρόσφατος ὁ αὐτὸς καὶ αἰώνιος. ### English translation (Claude) For just as, though able to speak to human beings from heaven and terrify those living at ease, he did not do so, knowing that human nature could not bear it, but appeared seldom, making his appearances suited to those who saw them, and always continued to legislate and exhort human beings through human beings, using the prophets as servants and ministers of his words; so later, wishing to offer the saving remedies to all human beings, he used neither angels nor archangels as servants, nor sent forth from heaven a resounding voice suited to all human beings, but, fixing for himself a human tent in a virgin's womb, came forth from it, a man seen and God worshiped, begotten from the Father's being before the ages, taking from the virgin what appeared, the same both new and eternal. ### Scripture references - John 1:14: echo, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.79 (Raeder, 175; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-79). ## Discourse 6.80 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-80 - Source: Raeder, 176 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The two natures of Christ remain unconfused: one suffers, the other works miracles. ### Greek text οὐ γὰρ ξυνέχεε τὰς φύσεις ἡ ἕνωσις οὐδὲ πεποίημεν ὑπὸ χρόνον τῶν χρόνων τὸν ποιητὴν οὐδέ γε τὸ ἐν χρόνῳ γενόμενον ἀπέφηνε προαιώνιον, ἀλλ᾽ ἑκατέρα φύσις μεμέγηκὲν ἀκραιφνής, ἡ μὲν τῶν τῆς φύσεως παθημάτων ἀνεχομένη, πείνης λέγω καὶ δίψης, ὕπνου καὶ κόπου καὶ σταυροῦ καὶ θανάτου, ἡ δὲ ἐνεργοῦσα τὰ θεῖα καὶ ξυνήθως θαυματουργοῦσα, βαδίξειν ἐπὶ θαλάττης σώματος πόδας παρασχευάζουσα καὶ πέντε ἄρτους κόρῳ πολλῶν χιλιάδων ἐξαρκέσαι κελεύουσα καὶ τὸν τότε πρῶτον γενόμενον οἶνον δωρουμένη τῷ γάμῳ καὶ τὰ πεπηρωμένα θεραπεύουσα σώματα; καὶ οὺς μὲν ἣ φύσις ἐν τῇ μήτρᾳ διαπλάττουσα παρέλιπεν ὀφθαλμοὺς πηλῷ δημιουργοῦσα, λόγῳ δὲ: τὰ πάρει. μένα μέλη σφίγγουσα καὶ τοὺς τάφους ἀνοίγουσὰ καὶ. τοὺς κειμένους καλοῦσα καὶ τρέχειν παρασκευάξουσα καὶ - τἄλλα ποιοῦσα, ὅσα αἷ τῶν θείων εὐαγγελίων ἱστορίαι. διδάσκουσιν. ### English translation (Claude) For the union did not confound the natures, nor make the Maker of times subject to time, nor declare what came to be in time to be before the ages; but each nature has remained pure: the one enduring the sufferings of nature, I mean hunger and thirst, sleep and weariness, cross and death; the other working divine things and performing its usual miracles: making the feet of a body walk on the sea, bidding five loaves suffice to fill many thousands, giving the wedding the wine that then first came to be, healing maimed bodies, creating with clay the eyes nature had left out when forming in the womb, binding together paralyzed limbs by a word, opening tombs, calling those who lay in them and making them run, and doing the other things the histories of the divine Gospels teach. ### Scripture references - Matt 14:25: allusion, high confidence - Matt 14:17–21: allusion, high confidence - John 2:1–11: allusion, high confidence - John 9:6: allusion, high confidence - John 11:43–44: allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret's two-nature Christology is translated as written. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.80 (Raeder, 176; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-80). ## Discourse 6.81 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-81 - Source: Raeder, 177 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: It is folly to claim to know a better way of salvation than God. ### Greek text Εἰ δὲ ταῦτα. μὲν. θαυμάξετε καὶ Θεῷ. γε πρόσφορά φατε εἶναις ἀνάρμοστον δὲ τῆς οἰκονομίας καλεῖτε τὸν τρόπον, πρῶτον μὲν πάντολμόν τε καὶ μανικὸν τὸ τῆς τὰ πάντα τεκτηναμένης σοφίας σοφωτέρους ἑαυτοὺς ἀποφαίνειν καὶ μὴ στέργειν τὰ ὑπ᾽ ἐκείνης. γινόμενα, “ἀλλ᾽ ὑπολαμβάνειν ἄμεινον ἐκείνης τὸ πρακτέον. εὑρίσκειν. ἐγὼ δὲ καὶ τοῦτο εὖ οἶδας ὡς εἰ καὶ ἕτερον ἐμηχανήσατο θεραπείας: τρόπον, κἀκείνῳ ἐνεμεσᾶτε ἂν δήπουθεν᾽ δυσάρεστοι γὰρ ὑμεῖς καὶ σκώπτειν μόνον εἰδότες τὰ τῆς θείας οἰκονομίας μυστήρια; ### English translation (Claude) If you admire these things and say they befit God, but call the manner of the dispensation unfitting, first it is utterly reckless and mad to declare oneself wiser than the Wisdom that fashioned all things, and not to be content with what it does, but to suppose one finds what should be done better than it. And I know this well, that if he had devised another manner of healing, you would surely have been indignant at that too; for you are hard to please and know only how to mock the mysteries of the divine dispensation. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.81 (Raeder, 177; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-81). ## Discourse 6.82 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-82 - Source: Raeder, 177 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God's love in the incarnation is so great that unbelievers cannot credit it. ### Greek text ἐπειδὴ δὲ τῆς σοφίας τὴν “ἄβυσσον νικᾶν. ταῖς ἐπινοίαις νεανιεύεσθε, δείξατε δὴ ὑμεῖς τῆς ἡμετέρας σωτηρίας ἀμείγονὰ μηχανήν. ἀλλ᾽ οὐκ ἂν ἐπιδεῖξαι δυνήσεσθε. τοσαύτῃ γὰρ ἐχρήσατο φιλανθρωπίας ὑπερβολῇ, ὡς ἀπιστεῖσθαι. παρ᾽ ὑμῶν καὶ τῶν παραπλησίων ἡμῖν, ὅτι δὴ ὁ μονογενὴς τὸῦ Θεοῦ υἱός. ὁ πρὸ τῶν αἰώνων Θεὸς “Δόγος; ὃ τῶν ὅλων δημιουργός, τὴν ἀνθρωπείαν φύσιν λαβὼν ἐνηνθρώπησε καὶ τὴν ἡμετέραν ἐπραγματεύσατο σωτηρίαν. ### English translation (Claude) Since you boast of overcoming the abyss of wisdom with your notions, show us a better device for our salvation. But you will not be able to show one. For he used such excess of love for humanity that you and those like you disbelieve that the only-begotten Son of God, God the Word before the ages, the Maker of the universe, took human nature, became man, and accomplished our salvation. ### Scripture references - Rom 11:33: echo, low confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.82 (Raeder, 177; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-82). ## Discourse 6.83 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-83 - Source: Raeder, 177 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: People admire physicians who treat the sick with their own hands. ### Greek text καίτοι καὶ τοὺς ἰατροὺς ἐκείνους θαυμάξετε, οἱ οὐκ ἄλλοις προσφέρειν τὴν θεραπείαν κελεύουσιν, [ ἀλλ᾽ αὐτοὶ τῆς ἀμπεχόνης γυμνούμενον καὶ τὸν χιτωνίσκον διαξωσάμενοι τὸν σίδηρον μεταῖςγειρίξουσι καὶ τὴν τομὴν ἐπιφέρουσι καὶ δυσοσμίας ἀνέχονται καὶ τοῦ. ἰχῶρος δέχονται, τὰς ῥανίδας καὶ καταιονῶσι τῇ σπογγιᾷ καὶ τὰ φάρμακα ἐπιπάττουσί. καὶ τἄλλα δρῶσιν, ὅσα τῆς ἰατρικῆς τέχνης ὁ νόμος διαγορεύει. ### English translation (Claude) Yet you admire those physicians who do not bid others apply the treatment, but themselves, stripped of their cloaks and girding their short tunics, handle the knife, make the incision, endure the stench, receive the drops of discharge, drench with the sponge, sprinkle on the remedies, and do whatever else the law of medical art prescribes. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.83 (Raeder, 177; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-83). ## Discourse 6.84 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-84 - Source: Raeder, 178 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: People admire kings who share their soldiers' dangers. ### Greek text καὶ μέντοι καὶ τοὺς βασιλέας ἐκείνους θαυμάξειν τε καὶ εὐφημεῖν φίλον ὑμῖν, οὐ τοὺς ἐν τοῖς βασιλικοῖς τρεφομένους θαλάμοις καὶ χλιδῆς παντοίας ἀπολαύοντας, ἀλλὰ τοὺς προκινδυνεύδξιν τῶν ὑπηκόων ἀνεχομένους καὶ στρατιωτικὴν περιβαλλομένους σκευὴν καὶ πρὸ τῆς φάλαγγος ἀριστεύοντας. ### English translation (Claude) And you like to admire and praise those kings, not those brought up in royal chambers and enjoying every luxury, but those who endure danger for their subjects, put on military armor, and fight bravely before the battle line. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.84 (Raeder, 178; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-84). ## Discourse 6.85 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-85 - Source: Raeder, 178 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Like physicians, God kept the strongest remedy for last. ### Greek text εἰ δέ φατε τί δήποτε μὴ πάλαν τοῦτο δέδρακε τῶν ὅλων ὃ ποιητής; ἐπιμέμψασθε καὶ τοῖς ἰατροῖς, ὅτε. ἔσχατα φυλάττουσι τῶν φαρμάκων τὰ ἰσχυρότερα" τοῖς γὰρ ἠπίοις πρότερον κεχρημένοι, τὰ δυνατώτατα προσφέρουσιν ὕστατα. ### English translation (Claude) If you say, 'Why did the Maker of the universe not do this long ago?', blame the physicians too, because they keep the stronger remedies for last; for using gentle ones first, they apply the most powerful last. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.85 (Raeder, 178; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-85). ## Discourse 6.86 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-86 - Source: Raeder, 178 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: After nature and the law, God gave the final remedy of salvation. ### Greek text τοῦτο δὴ καὶ ὁ πάνσοφος πεποίηκε τῶν ἡμετέρων ψυχῶν ἰατρός. πολλὰ γὰρ δὴ καὶ διάφορα προσενεγκὼν φάρμακα, διὰ μὲν τῆς κτίσεως καὶ τῆς φύσεως πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις, διὰ δὲ νόμου καὶ προφητῶν Ἑβραίοις, ὕστερον τὸ παναληὲς τοῦτο καὶ σωτήριον προσενήνοχε φάρμακον καὶ τὴν νόσον ἐξήλασεν, καὶ μαρτυρεῖ τῷ λόγῳ τὰ πράγματα, γῆ. ### English translation (Claude) This the all-wise physician of our souls did. After offering many and various remedies, through creation and nature to all human beings, through the law and prophets to the Hebrews, he last offered this all-powerful and saving remedy and drove out the disease; and the facts bear witness to the account: earth ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 6.87. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.86 (Raeder, 178; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-86). ## Discourse 6.87 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-87 - Source: Raeder, 178 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The spread of the church, martyr shrines, and monasteries prove the gospel's power. ### Greek text καὶ θάλαττα τῆς προτέρας ἀγνοίας ἀπηλλαγμέναι, πεπαυμένος τῶν εἰδώλων ὃ πλάνος, τῆς ἀγνοίας. ὃ ζόφος ἐληλαμένος, τοῦ τῆς γνώσεως φωτὸς αἵ ἀκτῖνες τὴν οἰκουμένην ἐμπλήσασαί, Ἕλληνες καὶ Ῥωμαῖον καὶ βάρβαροι τὸν ἐσταυρωμένον θεολογοῦντες καὶ τοῦ σταυροῦ. τὸ σημεῖον γεραίροντες καὶ ἀντὶ τῶν πολλῶν καὶ ψευδωνύμων θεῶν τῇ Τριάδι λατρεύοντερ. τὰ τῶν δαιμόνων τεμένη φροῦδα γεγενημένα, οἷ βωμοὶ τῶν εἰδώλων ἐκ βάθρων ἀνεσπασμένοι, ἐκκλησίαν περιφανεῖς πανταχῇ δεδομημέναι, ἐν πόλεσιν, ἐν κώμαις, ἐν ἀγροῖς, ἐν ἐσχατιαῖς σηκοὶ μαρτύρων εἰς κάλλος ἐξειργασμέχω) ἀσκητῶν αταγωγαὶ τὰς τῶν ὀρέων κορυφὰς ἁγιάξουσαι καὶ τὰς ἀοικήτους ἐρήμους οἰκέξουσαι. ### English translation (Claude) and sea freed from their former ignorance; the error of idols ended; the gloom of ignorance driven out; the rays of the light of knowledge filling the world; Greeks, Romans, and barbarians confessing the Crucified as God, honoring the sign of the cross, and worshiping the Trinity instead of the many falsely named gods; the precincts of the demons vanished; the altars of idols torn up from their foundations; splendid churches built everywhere, in cities, villages, fields, and remote places; shrines of martyrs wrought to beauty; dwellings of ascetics sanctifying the mountain peaks and peopling the uninhabited deserts. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.87 (Raeder, 178; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-87). ## Discourse 6.88 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-88 - Source: Raeder, 179 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Prophecies and Gospels confirm each other. ### Greek text Ταῦτα παὶ τὰ τούτοις ὕμοια τῆς τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν οἰκονομίας τὸ θεοπρεπὲς ἐπιδείκνυσι, μαρτυροῦσι δὲ καὶ αἵ παλαιαὶ προφητεῖαι τοῖς εὐαγγελίοις ἀλήθειαν. αἵ μὲν γὰρ τὴν τούτων ἔχουσι πρόρρησιν, τὰ δὲ τῆς προρρήσεως ἐπιδεικνύει. τὸ τέλος. καὶ οὗ μὲν προεῖπον τῆς παρθένου τὴν γέννησιν, οἵ δὲ διδάσκουσι τὴν τῆς προφητείας ἀλήθειαν᾽ οἵ μὲν προεθέσπισαν τὸν σταυρόν, οἱ δὲ δεικνύουσι τὸν σταυρόν᾽ οἵ μὲν προεῖπον τὰ θαύματὰα, οἵ δὲ ἱστοροῦσι τὰ ### English translation (Claude) These and the like show the godly fittingness of our Savior's dispensation, and the old prophecies bear witness to the truth of the Gospels. For the prophecies contain the foretelling of these things, and the Gospels show the fulfillment of what was foretold. The one foretold the virgin's birth, the other teaches the truth of the prophecy; the one foretold the cross, the other shows the cross; the one foretold the miracles, the other narrate the ### Scripture references - Isa 7:14: allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 6.89. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.88 (Raeder, 179; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-88). ## Discourse 6.89 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-89 - Source: Raeder, 179 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The prophecies of salvation and of the Jews' fate are fulfilled. ### Greek text θαύματα' οἷ μὲν ἐχρησμῴδησαν τῆς οἰκουμένης τὴν σωώτηφίαν; ἡμεῖς δὲ τῶν χρησμῶν ἐκείνων θεωροῦμεν τὸ τέλος" ἐκεῖνοι τὴν Ἰουδαίων καὶ ἀπιστίαν καὶ πανωλεθρίαν φροἀπήγγειλαν, ἡμεῖς δὲ αὐτῶν καὶ τὴν ἀπιστίαν καὶ τὴν διασπορὰν καὶ τὴν δουλείαν ὁρῶμεν. ### English translation (Claude) miracles; they prophesied the salvation of the world, and we behold the fulfillment of those oracles; they announced the unbelief and utter ruin of the Jews, and we see their unbelief, dispersion, and slavery. ### Translation notes - Theodoret's polemical view of the Jews' dispersion is translated as written. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.89 (Raeder, 179; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-89). ## Discourse 6.90 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-90 - Source: Raeder, 179 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret urges belief in prophecy, judging the unseen by the evident, as Euripides says. ### Greek text [ ἐγὼ δέ, εἰ μὴ τῷ μή- κει τοῦ λόγου καὶ ὑμᾶς καὶ τοὺς εἰς ὕστερον ἐντευξομένους ἀποκναίσειν ἐτόπαζον, καὶ αὐτὰς ἂν ὑμῖν τῶν θεσπεσίων προφητῶν τὰς προρρήσεις παρέθηκα, ἵνα ἀκριβέστερον διὰ τῶν πραγμάτων ἐμάθετε τὴν τῶν ῥημάτων ἀλήθειαν᾽ ἐπειδὴ δὲ τοῦτό με ποιεῖν οὐκ ἐᾷ τῶν εἰρημένων τὸ πλῆθος, ἀξιῶ ὑμᾶς, ὦ ἄνδρες, καὶ ταῖς προφητείαις πιστεῦσαν καὶ τῶν πραγμάτων ἐπακοῦσαι βοώντων καὶ πεισθῆναι δέ γε Εὐριπίδῃ τῷ τραγῳδοποιῷ ἐν Οἰνομάῳ λέγοντι" »τερμαιρόμεσθα τοῖς παροῦσι τἀφανές.“ καὶ πάλιν ἐν Φοίνικι᾽ οτἀφανὲς τεπμηρίοισιν ἐοιπότως ἁλίσκεται. ### English translation (Claude) If I did not suspect that by the length of the discourse I would weary both you and later readers, I would have set before you the very predictions of the divine prophets, so that you might learn more accurately through the facts the truth of the words. But since the quantity of what has been said does not let me do this, I ask you, gentlemen, to believe the prophecies, to listen to the facts that cry out, and to be persuaded by Euripides the tragic poet, who says in Oenomaus: 'We judge the unseen by what is present.' And again in Phoenix: 'The unseen is fittingly caught by signs.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Euripides, fr. 574 (Euripides (plays and fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Euripides, fr. 811 (Euripides (plays and fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Euripides, Oenomaus, fragment 574; Phoenix, fragment 811 (Nauck). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.90 (Raeder, 179; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-90). ## Discourse 6.91 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-91 - Source: Raeder, 180 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Orators too teach judging the unseen and future by evidence. ### Greek text εἰ δὲ οὐκ ἀξιόχρεως ὑμῖν εἷς μαρτυρίαν τῆς τραγῳδίας ὁ ποιητής, Ὑπερίδου. τοῦ δήτορος ἐπαπούσατε λέγοντος",ν« δ᾽ ἐστὶν ἀφὰνῆ, “ἀνάγκη τοὺς διδάσκοντας τεημηρίοις παἱ τοῖς εἰκόσι ζητεῖν.“ καὶ Ἶσοκράνης δὲ (τῶν ἐνδόξων δὲ καὶ οὗτος ὃ δήτωρ) ξύμφωνα περὶ τούτου γέγραφεν" ο»δεῖζ γάρ φησι «τὰ μέλλοντα τοῖς προγεγενημένοις τεμμαΐρεσθαι.ς ἀλλὰ γὰῤ καὶ Ἀνδοπίδης (εἷς “δὲ “τῶν. δέκα καὶ οὗτος) χρή φησι «τεκμηρίοις ### English translation (Claude) If the tragic poet is not a trustworthy witness for you, listen to Hyperides the orator, who says: 'What is unseen, those who teach must seek by signs and probabilities.' And Isocrates (he too is one of the famous orators) wrote in agreement about this: 'One must judge the future by what has happened before.' And Andocides too (he also is one of the Ten) says: 'One must use what has happened before as signs ### Extrabiblical texts - Isocrates, Demon. 34 (Isocrates (orations)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Hyperides, fragment; Isocrates, To Demonicus 34; Andocides, fragment. The quotation ends in 6.92. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.91 (Raeder, 180; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-91). ## Discourse 6.92 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-92 - Source: Raeder, 180 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret uses the orators so that his readers may accept the incarnation. ### Greek text χεχρῆσθαι τοῖς προγεγενημένοις περὶ τῶν μελλόντων.“ ἐπειδὴ γὰρ τῆς τῶν λόγων εὐεπείας ἐξήρτησθε, ἐντεῦθεν ὑμῖν τὰς ἀποδείξεις προσενηνόχαμεν, ἵνὰ καὶ δι᾿ ἐκείνων “ποδηγηθέντες πρὸς τὴν ἀλήθειαν καὶ διὰ τῶν πραγμάτων κηρυττομένην δρῶντες τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἐπιφάνεῖν, κοὺ τὸν περὶ τῆς οἰκονομίας ᾿ἀσπάσησθε λόγον καὶ ### English translation (Claude) for the future.' Since you depend on eloquence of words, we have offered you proofs from there, so that, guided by them to the truth and seeing the appearing of our God and Savior proclaimed by the facts, you may embrace the account of the dispensation and ### Scripture references - Titus 2:13: echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence ends in 6.93. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.92 (Raeder, 180; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-92). ## Discourse 6.93 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-64/#p-6-93 - Source: Raeder, 180 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: End of the discourse on providence. ### Greek text τῆς ἀξιεράστου καὶ τριποθήτου μὴ διαμάρτητε σωτηρίας. ### English translation (Claude) not miss the lovely and thrice-longed-for salvation. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 6.93 (Raeder, 180; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/6-93). ## Discourse 7.1 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-1 - Source: Raeder, 180 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Most people love ease, so the devil leads them down the easy road. ### Greek text .-Φιλοπαίγμονες ὡς ἐπίπαν καὶ φιλογέλωτες τῶν ἀνθρώπῶν οἱ πλεῖστοι᾽ καὶ θυμήρης αὐτοῖς οὐχ ὁ σπουδαῖος καὶ ξύντονος, ἀλλ᾽ ὃ᾽ ὑγρὸς καὶ ἀνειμένος βίος. ὅθεν δὴ καὶ ῥᾷστα κεκράτηκεν αὐτῶν ὃ παμπόνηρος δαίμων. οὐ γάρ τοι τὴν ὄρθιον ἐκείνην καὶ στενὴν καὶ τραχεῖαν καὶ δύσπορον καὶ προσάντη βαίνειν ἐκέλευσεν, ἀλλὰ τὴν πρανῇ καὶ κατάντη καὶ λείαν καὶ εὔπορον. ### English translation (Claude) Most human beings are, on the whole, fond of play and laughter; what delights them is not the serious and strenuous life but the soft and relaxed one. That is why the utterly wicked demon has very easily mastered them. For he did not bid them walk that steep, narrow, rough, hard, uphill road, but the one that slopes down, smooth and easy. ### Scripture references - Matt 7:13–14: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.1 (Raeder, 180; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1). ## Discourse 7.2 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-2 - Source: Raeder, 181 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The devil enslaved people by permitting vice. ### Greek text οὐδὲ γὰρ σωφροσύνης αὖτοὺς καὶ δικαιοσύνης ἐπιμελεῖσθαι προσέταξεν, ἀλλ᾽ ἀκολασταίνειν αὐτοὺς ἀδεῶς καὶ ἀσελγαίνειν καὶ πᾶσαν. τολμᾶν ἀνέδην παρανομίαν ἐπέτρεψεν. τῷ τοι καὶ μάλα ῥαδίως τοὺς πλείστους ἐξηνδραπόδισεν. τό τε γὰρ ἐπίπονον τῆς ἀρετῆς. ἀποφυγγάνοντες καὶ ἐῶν θείων νόμων τοὺς ἴδρῶτας. διαδιδράσκοντες, ηὐτομόλησαν εὐπετῶς πρὸς τὸν τὰ ῥᾷστα κἀὶ θυμήφη νομοθετοῦντα. ### English translation (Claude) He did not order them to care for self-control and justice, but allowed them to be licentious without fear, to behave wantonly, and to dare every lawlessness openly. That is why he very easily enslaved most of them. For fleeing the toil of virtue and running from the sweat of the divine laws, they easily deserted to the one who legislated what is easiest and most pleasant. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.2 (Raeder, 181; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-2). ## Discourse 7.3 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-3 - Source: Raeder, 181 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The devil replaced knowledge of God with false gods as a basis for corrupt living. ### Greek text τόνδε δὴ οὖν τὸν τρόπον αὐτοὺς δουλωσάμενος, πρῶτον. μὲν τὰξ περὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων, ἃς ἡ φύσις αὐτοῖς ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἐνέγραψεν, ἐξήλευψε δόξας᾽ ἔπειτα δὲ τὰ πονηρὰ τῶν ψευδωνύμων θεῶν ἐξεπαίδευσε δόγματα καὶ τὸν πολὺν τῶν οὐκ ὄντων ὅμιλον. ἀντὶ τοῦ ὄντος ἐδίδαξε προσχυνεῖν, ταύτην ὑποβάθραν καὶ κρηπῖδα τῆς διεφθαρμένης προκαταβαλλόμενος βιοτῆς. ### English translation (Claude) Having enslaved them in this way, he first erased the opinions about the God of the universe that nature had written in them from the beginning; then he taught the wicked doctrines of the falsely named gods and taught them to worship the great crowd of things that are not instead of the One who is, laying this down as the foundation and base of a corrupt life. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.3 (Raeder, 181; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-3). ## Discourse 7.4 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-4 - Source: Raeder, 181 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: To dull conscience, the devil devised a remedy. ### Greek text ἐπειδὴ γὰρ πλημμελοῦντες οἱ ἄνθρωποι ᾿δάκνονται | (κεντεῖ γὰρ αὐτοὺς ὁ λογισμὸς ἔνδοθεν καὶ οὐκ ἐᾷ τῆς ἁμαρτίας ἀκραιφνῆ μεῖναι τὴν ἡδονήν, ἀλλ᾽ ὀδύνῃ ταύτην πικροτάτῃ περάννυσι" καὶ τοῦτο ἴδοι τις ἂν πάσχοντα καὶ τὸν νεκροσυλίαν καὶ τὸν μοιχείαν τολμῶντα, καὶ μέντοι καὶ τοιχωρύχον καὶ λωπο-. δύτην καὶ τὸν προδότην καὶ τὸν ἄλλο τι τῶν ἀπειρημένων ὁρῶντα), --- τοιόνδε φάρμακον. αὐτοῖς ἀναλγησίας ὃ τῆς κακίας ἐμηχανήσατο σοφιστής. ### English translation (Claude) For since human beings who do wrong are stung (for reason pricks them within and does not let the pleasure of sin remain pure, but mixes it with most bitter pain; one can see this happen to the grave-robber and the one who dares adultery, and also to the burglar, the clothes-thief, the traitor, and whoever does any other forbidden thing), the sophist of vice devised for them a remedy of insensibility, as follows. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.4 (Raeder, 181; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-4). ## Discourse 7.5 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-5 - Source: Raeder, 181 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The devil taught that the gods themselves were vicious. ### Greek text περὶ γὰρ δὴ τῶν.«καλουμέγῶν θεῶν πονηρὰς αὐτοὺς ἐξεπαίδευσε δόξας" ἀκολάστους γὰρ αὐτοὺς ἀπέφηνε καὶ λαγνιστάτους καὶ παιδοπίπας καὶ γάμων ἐπιβούλους καὶ πατραλοίας καὶ: μητραλοίας καὶ μητράσι καὶ ἀδελφαῖς, καὶ μέντοι καὶ θυγατράσιν ἀνέδην μιγνυ-. μένους καὶ τὰς εὐνὰς τὰς ἀλλήλων. λῃστεύοντας καὶ ἁλισκοβένους, καὶ παρὰ μὲν τῶν ἠδικημένων δεσμουμένους, παρὰ δὲ τῶν ἄλλων ἀνέδην γελωμένους, καὶ ταῦτα παρὰ μὲν τῶν οὐρανίων, ὡς αὐτοὶ λέγουσιν, ἐν οὐρανῷ τολμᾶσθαι καὶ γῇ, παρὰ δὲ τῶν ἐναλίων ἐν θαλάντῃ καὶ γῇ, παρὰ δὲ τῶν καλουμένων νυμφῶν ἐν ὄρεσι καὶ νάπαις καὶ φάραγξιν. ### English translation (Claude) He taught them wicked opinions about the so-called gods: he showed them licentious, most lustful, corrupters of boys, plotters against marriages, beaters of fathers and mothers, lying openly with mothers, sisters, and even daughters, robbing one another's beds and getting caught, bound by those they wronged and openly laughed at by the others; and that these things were dared by the heavenly ones, as they say, in heaven and on earth, by the sea gods in the sea and on earth, and by the so-called nymphs in mountains, glens, and ravines. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.5 (Raeder, 181; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-5). ## Discourse 7.6 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-6 - Source: Raeder, 182 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The devil spread these myths through writers and other means. ### Greek text τούτους δὲ τοὺς αἰσχρότάτους καὶ βδελυρωτάτους μύθους οὐ μόνον ποιηταῖς, ἀλλὰ καὶ θεολόγοις. καὶ φιλοσόφοις ἐνήχησε, ποικίλως μάλα κατασκευάζων τὸν '“πλάνον καὶ πλείοσι τῆς ἐξαπάτης χρώμενος διδασκάλοις. ἐπειδὴ δὲ οὐχ ἅπαντές εἰσι γραμμάτων ἐπιστήμονες οὐδέ γε πονητικῶν καὶ φιλοσόφων λόγων μεταλαχεῖν ἱκανοί, ἕτερα ἄττα τοῖς ταῦτα μαθεῖν οὐ δυναμένοις κατεσκεύασε θήρατρα. ### English translation (Claude) These most shameful and loathsome myths he sounded into the ears not only of poets but also of theologians and philosophers, contriving the error very variously and using many teachers of deception. And since not all know letters or are able to share in poetical and philosophical writings, he prepared other snares for those who cannot learn these. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.6 (Raeder, 182; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-6). ## Discourse 7.7 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-7 - Source: Raeder, 182 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Images spread the myths to the unlettered. ### Greek text τοὺς γάρ τοι ξωγράφους καὶ χαλποτύπους καὶ τοὺς τῶν λιθίνων καὶ ξυλίνων ἀγαλμάτων δημιουργοὺς τοιαύτας τῶν καλουμένων θεῶν γράφειν καὶ γλύφειν καὶ διαπλάττειν εἰκόνας ἐδίδαξεν, ὁποίας οἵ μυθολόγοι τοῖς λόγοις διέγραψαν, ἵνα ἔχωσιν ἀκολασίας ἀρχέτυπα καὶ τῆς ἐπαράτου διδασκαλίας μὴ διαμάρτωσιν οἱ λόγων μεταλαχεῖν οὐ δυνάμενοι᾽ καὶ τῶνδε τῶν ἰνδαλμάτων οὐ μόνον τὰ τούτων τεμένη πεπλήρωκεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰς ἀγορὰς καὶ τὰς ἀγυιάς, καὶ μέντοι καὶ τῶν εὐπόρῶ ### English translation (Claude) He taught painters, bronze-workers, and makers of stone and wooden statues to paint, carve, and mold images of the so-called gods such as the mythmakers drew in words, so that those unable to share in words might have models of licentiousness and not miss the accursed teaching; and he filled with these images not only their precincts but also the marketplaces and streets, and also the houses of the wealthy. ### Translation notes - The last word is split between 7.7 and 7.8. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.7 (Raeder, 182; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-7). ## Discourse 7.8 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-8 - Source: Raeder, 182 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Images show the gods in animal forms pursuing lusts. ### Greek text ν τὰς οἰκίας, πανταχῇ γὰρ ἔστιν εὑρεῖν τοὺς χαλουμένους θεοὺς ἐρῶντας καὶ λυττῶντας καὶ θορνυμένους, καὶ τὸν μὲν πατέρα τῶν θεῶν ἀετῷ καὶ ταύρῳ καὶ κύκνῳ προσεικασμένον καὶ τόνδε τὸν τρόπον ταῖς ἐρωμέναις μιγνύμενον, τὸν δὲ λόγιον Ἑρμῆν τράγον γινόμενον καὶ τὸν τραγοσχελῆ καὶ αἰγόκερων Πάνα παιδοποιοῦντα. ### English translation (Claude) For everywhere one can find the so-called gods in love, raging, and mounting: the father of the gods likened to an eagle, a bull, and a swan and in this way lying with his beloveds; the eloquent Hermes becoming a goat; and goat-legged, goat-horned Pan begetting children. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.8 (Raeder, 182; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-8). ## Discourse 7.9 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-9 - Source: Raeder, 182 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Myths of Apollo, Daphne, and Persephone are told by poets and allegorized by philosophers. ### Greek text καὶ τί δεῖ λέγειν τοῦ Πυθίου τὸν ἔρωτα καὶ τῆς παρθένου τὴν σωφροσύνην καὶ τὴν τοῦ φυτοῦ λυσσώδη περιπλοκὴν καὶ τὴν τῆς Κόρης ὑπὸ τοῦ Πλούτωνος ἁρπαγὴν καὶ τῆς Δηοῦς τὸν πλάνον; ταῦτα γὰρ ἅπαντα καὶ ποιηταὶ μυθολογοῦσι καὶ θεολύγοι πρατύνουσι καὶ φιλόσοφοι σεμνολογοῦσι καὶ σεμνότήτα μὲν αὐτοῖς τινα περιτιθέναι φιλονεικοῦσι, παταγελαστοτέραν δὲ τῶν μύθων ἀλληγορίαν προσφέρουσιν. ### English translation (Claude) And why need I speak of the Pythian's love, the maiden's chastity, the frenzied embrace of the plant, the rape of Kore by Pluto, and the wandering of Deo? Poets tell all these myths, theologians confirm them, philosophers speak of them solemnly and strive to give them some dignity, but offer an allegory more laughable than the myths. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.9 (Raeder, 182; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-9). ## Discourse 7.10 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-10 - Source: Raeder, 183 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The demon instituted festivals for every god. ### Greek text τούτοις καὶ ξορτὰς καὶ πανηγύρεις καὶ δημοθοινίας ἐπιτελεῖν ὁ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἀλάστωρ ἐνομοθέτησε" ᾿Πάνδια μὲν τῷ 4Διΐ. καὶ 4ιάσια; καὶ “Ἥραια τῇ Ἥρα, καὶ τῇ ᾿4θηνῇ Παναθήναια, καὶ Διονύσῳ Διονύσια, καὶ ᾿Ελευσίνια καὶ θεσμοφύφια τῇ Δηοῖ, καὶ Δήλια καὶ Πύθια τῷ Ἀπόλλωνι' καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις δὲ ὅπασι (πολὺς γὰρ ὃ τούτων ὅμιλος) ἀπεκλήρωσε πανή-: γύρεις, ἑκάστῳ τῶν δαιμόνων ἔπ τῆς προσηγορίας ὀνομάσας τὴν ξορτήν, Ἕρμαια καὶ Κρόνια καὶ Ποσειδώνια καὶ Ἡράπλειὰ καὶ Ἀσκλήπια καὶ Ἀνάκεια. οὐ γάρ τοι μόνον τοῖς καλουμένοις θεοῖς, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀνθρώποις τόδε τὸ σέβας ἀπέγείμαν. ### English translation (Claude) For these the avenging demon of humankind legislated feasts, festivals, and public banquets: the Pandia and Diasia for Zeus, the Heraea for Hera, the Panathenaea for Athena, the Dionysia for Dionysus, the Eleusinia and Thesmophoria for Deo, the Delia and Pythia for Apollo; and to all the others (for their crowd is great) he allotted festivals, naming each feast from the name of each demon: Hermaea, Cronia, Posidonia, Heraclea, Asclepia, and Anaceia. For they gave this worship not only to the so-called gods but also to human beings. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.10 (Raeder, 183; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-10). ## Discourse 7.11 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-11 - Source: Raeder, 183 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The festivals encouraged every licentiousness. ### Greek text ἐν δὲ ταύταις ταῖς ὁμηγύρεσι πᾶν εἶδος ἀκολασίας ἀδεῶς ἐτολμᾶτο. καὶ γὰρ αἵ τελεταὶ καὶ τὰ ὄργια τὰ τούτῶν εἶχεν αἰνίγματα, τὸν «τένα μὲν ἡ ᾿Ελευσίς, ἡ Φαλλαγωγία δὲ τὸν φαλλόν. ἀτὰρ δὴ καὶ δίχα τῶν αἰνιγμάτων τὰ παρὰ τῶν ὀργιαστῶν δρώμενα εἰς πᾶν εἶδος ἀσελγείας τοὺς ὁρῶντας ἠρέθιξεν. ### English translation (Claude) In these assemblies every form of licentiousness was dared without fear. For the rites and mysteries contained the symbols of these things: Eleusis the kteis, the phallagogia the phallus. And even apart from the symbols, what the celebrants did roused the spectators to every form of wantonness. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.11 (Raeder, 183; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-11). ## Discourse 7.12 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-12 - Source: Raeder, 183 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The processions were more shameless than private vice. ### Greek text τίς γὰρ τῶν ἄγαν λαγνιστάτων ἔνδον ἐν τῷ θαλάμῳ τετόλμηκε τοιαῦτα, ὁποῖα τῶν Σατύρῶν ὁ χορὸς ἠσέλγησε δημοσίᾳ πομπεύων, ἔχων ἐν μέσῳ τὸν Σιληνὸν καὶ τὸν Πάνα, τὸν μὲν ἐπιλυττῶντα ταῖς Βάκχαις, τὸν δὲ λελυμένον ὑπὸ τῆς μέθης, τὸν τοῦ θηλυδρίου παιδὸς παιδαγωγὸν καλούμενον; ### English translation (Claude) For which of the most lustful has dared inside his bedchamber such things as the chorus of Satyrs committed wantonly in public procession, having in the middle Silenus and Pan, the one raging after the Bacchants, the other undone by drink, called the tutor of the effeminate boy? ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.12 (Raeder, 183; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-12). ## Discourse 7.13 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-13 - Source: Raeder, 184 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Great sacrifices were offered to these gods. ### Greek text τούτοις ἑκατόμβας καὶ χιλιόμβας κατέθυον καὶ ποίμνια κατέσφαζον καὶ βουκόλια κἀὶ λιβανωτὸν προσέφερον καὶ οἶνον ἔσπενδον ὅτι μάλιστα πλεῖστον καὶ ἕτερα ἄττα, ἅπερ οἵ τούτων ἱεροφάνται προσἔταττον. ### English translation (Claude) To these they sacrificed hecatombs and chiliombs, slaughtered flocks and herds, offered frankincense, poured very much wine, and other things that their hierophants commanded. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.13 (Raeder, 184; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-13). ## Discourse 7.14 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-14 - Source: Raeder, 184 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Homer's gods delight in sacrifice, not virtue. ### Greek text σφόδρα γὰρ αὐτοὺς χαίρειν οἱ ποιηταί φασι τῇ λοιβῇ καὶ τῇ κνίσῃ καὶ τοῦτὸ ἔχειν γέρας αὐτοὺς εἰρηκέναι λέγουσι" διά τοῦ τοῦτο καὶ πρὸς τὰς τῶν «Αἰθιόπων θυσίας ἀποδημεῖν καὶ τὸν “Ἕκτορα πάσης ἀξιοῦν τημελείας, ὅτι δὴ οὔποτε αὐτῶν τὸν βωμὸν ἐνδεᾶ θυσίας κατέλιπεν. καὶ ὁ Χρύσης δὲ τὸν ᾿ἀπόλλω οὐ δικαιοσύνης καὶ σωφροσύνης, ἀλλὰ τῶν πιόνων ἀναμιμνήσκει μηρῶν καὶ τῶν αἰγῶν καὶ τῶν ταύρων καὶ τῶν στεμμάτων, οἷς που τὸν νεὼν κατεκόσμησεν. ### English translation (Claude) For the poets say that they greatly rejoice in libation and savor, and report them saying that this is their honor; that is why they travel even to the sacrifices of the Ethiopians and think Hector worthy of every care, because he never left their altar lacking sacrifice. And Chryses reminds Apollo not of justice and self-control but of fat thighs, goats, bulls, and the garlands with which he decked his temple. ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 1.39–41 (Homer, Iliad): allusion, high confidence - Homer, Il. 24.68–70 (Homer, Iliad): allusion, high confidence - Homer, Od. 1.22–25 (Homer, Odyssey): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Iliad 4.48–49; Odyssey 1.22–25; Iliad 24.68–70; 1.39–41. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.14 (Raeder, 184; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-14). ## Discourse 7.15 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-15 - Source: Raeder, 184 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The gods are mocked for loving the stench of burnt bones. ### Greek text οὕτως αὐτοῖς ἥδιστος ἦν ὁ καπνὸς καὶ τῆς κνίσης ἡ δυσοσμία, καὶ ἀτεχνῶς τοῖς μαγείροις ἐῴκεσαν. ἀλλὰ γὰρ οὐκ ὀρθῶς αὐτοὺς τοῖς ὀψοποιοῖς ἀπεικάσαμεν. οὗτοι μὲν γὰρ τῶν ἄριστα ἐσκευασμένων παὶ ὀσφραίνονται καὶ ἀπογεύονται ὄψων, ἐκεῖνον δὲ ὀστῶν ἐμπιπραμένων τὴν δυσοσμίαν ἐδέχοντο. καὶ ἡμῶν μὲν ἕκαστος, εἰ βραχύ τι τούτῶν εἰς ἐσχάραν ἐμπέσοι, δυσχεραίνει καὶ τὰς ῥῖνας ἐμφράττει καὶ τὴν δυσώδη ὀδμὴν ἀποπέμπεται" οἱ δέ, τῆς ἀμβροσίας καὶ τοῦ νέμταρος ἀπολαύοντες, τῆς τῶν καιομένων ὀστῶν δυσοσμίας ἐξήρτηντο. ### English translation (Claude) So most pleasant to them was the smoke and the stench of the savor, and they were just like cooks. But we did not rightly liken them to cooks. For cooks smell and taste the best-prepared dishes, while they received the stench of burning bones. Each of us, if a bit of this falls on the hearth, is vexed, blocks his nose, and drives off the foul smell; but they, enjoying ambrosia and nectar, hung upon the stench of burning bones. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.15 (Raeder, 184; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-15). ## Discourse 7.16 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-16 - Source: Raeder, 184 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God permitted Israel sacrifice as a concession, ordering them to offer the animals Egypt worshiped. ### Greek text Ταῦτα δὲ τυχὸν καὶ αὐτοὶ περὶ τοῦ ὄντος Θεοῦ καὶ ἀεί γε ὄντος φάναι τολμήσουσιν, ἐπειδὴ τῶν μὲν περὶ θυσιῶν ἐν τῇ θείᾳ γραφῇ κειμένων ἐπαΐουσι νόμων, } τὸν δὲ τοῦ γομοθέτου παντελῶς ἀγνοοῦσι σκοπόν. ἔν γὰρ δὴ τῇ 4}γύπτῳ πλεῖστον ὅσον τὸν ᾿Ισραὴλ διατρίψαντα χρόνον καὶ τὰ πονηρὰ τῶν ἐγχωρίων εἰσδεξάμενον ἔθη καὶ θύειν εἰδώ-λοις καὶ δαίμοσι παρ᾽ ἐκείνων μεμαθηκότα καὶ. παίξειν καὶ χορεύειν "καὶ ὀργάνοις μουσικοῖς ἐπιτέρπεσθαι, τούτων ἐν ἔξεν γενόμενον ἐλευθερῶσαι θελήσας, θύειν μὲν ξυνεχώρησεν, ἀλλ᾽ οὐ πάντα θύειν, οὐδέ γε τοῖς ψευδωνύμοις «Αἰγυπτίων θεοῖρ, ἀλλ᾽ αὐτῷ μόνῳ τοὺς «Αἰγυπτίων προσφέρειν θεούς" ἐθεοποίουν γάρ τοι πάλαν ποτὲ καὶ τὸν βοῦν «Αἰγύπτιοι καὶ τὸ πρόβατον καὶ τὴν αἶγα καὶ τὴν περιστερὰν καὶ τὴν τρυγόνα καὶ ἄλλα ἄττα τῶν οὐκ ἐδωδίμων, ἀλλ᾽ ἀκαθάρτων καλουμένων. ### English translation (Claude) Perhaps they too will dare say these things about the God who is and always is, since they hear the laws about sacrifices in the divine Scripture, but are wholly ignorant of the lawgiver's purpose. For Israel spent a very long time in Egypt and received the wicked customs of the natives, learned from them to sacrifice to idols and demons, and to play, dance, and delight in musical instruments; and wishing to free them, now accustomed to these things, he allowed them to sacrifice, but not to sacrifice everything, nor to the falsely named gods of the Egyptians, but to offer to himself alone the gods of the Egyptians. For of old the Egyptians deified the ox, the sheep, the goat, the dove, the turtledove, and certain others, not of the edible but of the so-called unclean. ### Translation notes - Theodoret's account of the purpose of the sacrificial law is his own interpretation. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.16 (Raeder, 184; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-16). ## Discourse 7.17 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-17 - Source: Raeder, 185 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Israel was told to sacrifice the very animals Egypt worshiped. ### Greek text ἵνα τοίνυν μὴ δυσχεραίνωσιν. ὡς τῶν ἐθῶν ἐκείνων πάμπαν κεκωλυμένοι, τὸ μὲν τοῖς οὐκ οὖσι θεοῖς ἀπηγόρευσε θύειν, αὐτῷ δὲ θύειν ἐνομοθέτησε τὰ πρώην παρ΄ αὐτῶν προσκυνούμενα, ἐπ μὲν τῶν χερσαίων τὴν αἷγα καὶ τὸν βοῦν καὶ τὸ πρόβατον, ἔμ δὲ τῶν πτηνῶν τὴν τρυγόνα καὶ τὴν περιστεράν" ἥμερα δὲ δήπου καὶ φιλάνθρωπα καὶ ταῦτα κἀκεῖνα τὰ ἕξῷα. ### English translation (Claude) So that they might not be vexed as wholly prevented from those customs, he forbade sacrificing to the gods that are not, but legislated that they sacrifice to himself what they had formerly worshiped: of land animals the goat, the ox, and the sheep; of birds the turtledove and the dove; and both kinds are tame and friendly to humans. ### Scripture references - Lev 1:2–14: allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.17 (Raeder, 185; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-17). ## Discourse 7.18 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-18 - Source: Raeder, 185 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Sacrifice taught Israel that Egypt's sacred animals were not gods. ### Greek text τόδε τὸ φάρμακον ὃ πάνσοφος ἰατρὸς τῇ «4ἰγυπτίᾳ προσενήνοχε νόσῳ, θύειν μὲν διὰ τὴν τῶν θυόντων ἀσθένειαν ξυγχωρήσας, τὰ δὲ σεβόμενα παρ᾽ αὐτῶν ἱερατεύειν κελεύσας, ἵνα τῷ θύειν μόάθωσι μὴ θεοὺς νομίζειν τὰ ὡς ἱερεῖα θυόμενα. ### English translation (Claude) This remedy the all-wise physician applied to the Egyptian disease: allowing sacrifice because of the weakness of those who sacrificed, but ordering them to offer as victims what they worshiped, so that by sacrificing they might learn not to think gods what was sacrificed as victims. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.18 (Raeder, 185; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-18). ## Discourse 7.19 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-19 - Source: Raeder, 185 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pork was forbidden and Egypt's sacred animals eaten to discredit them. ### Greek text διά τοι τοῦτο καὶ χοιρείων. αὐτοὺς μεταλαγχάνειν πρεῶν διεκώλυσεν, ἐπειδὴ τούτων μόνων Αἰγύπτιον μετελάμβανον, τῶν ἄλλων ὡς θεῶν ἀπεχύμενοι. ἀκόθαρτα γὰρ νομίζειν ταῦτα νομοθετήσας, ἐσθίειν ἐκέλευσε τὰ θεοποιούμενα, ἵνα εὐκαταφρόνητα φαίνηταν ὡς παρ᾽ αὐτῶν ἐσθιόμενα καὶ μὴ τὸ θεῖον σφετερίζηται σέβαρ. ### English translation (Claude) For this reason he also forbade them to eat pork, since the Egyptians ate only these, abstaining from the others as gods. Legislating that these be considered unclean, he ordered them to eat what was deified, so that it might appear contemptible as eaten by them and not appropriate divine worship. ### Scripture references - Lev 11:7: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.19 (Raeder, 185; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-19). ## Discourse 7.20 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-20 - Source: Raeder, 186 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God used Israel's appetite against its superstition. ### Greek text δεισιδαίμονας γὰρ αὐτοὺς καὶ γαστριμάργους εἰδώς, πάθει πάθος ἀντέταξε καὶ τῇ δεισιδαιμονίῳ τὴν γαστριμαργίαν ἀντέστησεν. τῶν γάρ τον ὑείων ὡς ἀκαθάρτων κελεύσας ἀπέχεσθαι, τῶν δὲ γε ἄλλων ὡς καθαρῶν ἀπολαύειν νομοθετήσας, τῇ τῆς κρεηφαγίας ἐπιθυμίᾳ τῶν θεῶν νομιξομένῶν μεταλαβεῖν κατηνάγκαζεν. ### English translation (Claude) For knowing them superstitious and gluttonous, he set passion against passion and opposed gluttony to superstition. Ordering them to abstain from swine as unclean and legislating that they enjoy the others as clean, he compelled them through the desire for meat to partake of those thought gods. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.20 (Raeder, 186; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-20). ## Discourse 7.21 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-21 - Source: Raeder, 186 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Sacrifice and music were concessions; the perfect law would have been too much for Israel at first. ### Greek text οὐ τοίνυν ἱερείων δεόμενος οὐδὲ κνίσης ὀριγνώμενος, θύειν προσέταξεν ὃ Θεός, ἀλλὰ τῶν ἀρρωστούντων ἰατρεύων τὰ πάθη. οὕτω δὴ καὶ τὰ τῶν εὐήχων ὀργάνων ἠνέσχετο, οὐ τῇ τούτων ἁρμονίᾳ τερπόμενος, ἀλλὰ κατὰ βραχὺ παύων τῶν εἰδώλων τὸν πλώνον:; εἰ γὰρ εὐθὺς τῆς «Αἰγυπτίων ξυνουσίας ἀπαλλαγεῖσι τοὺς τελείους προσενηνόχει νόμους, πάντως ἂν ἀπεσκίρτησαν καὶ τὸν χαλινὸν ἀπωσάμενοι πρὸς τὸν πρότερον ἐπαλινδρόμησαν ὄλεθρον. εἰ γὰρ καὶ τούτων οὕτω πρυτανευθέντων, ἐπειράθησαν τοῦτο δρᾶσαι πολλάκις, τί οὐκ ἂν ἐτόλμησαν, εἰ τὴν εὐαγγελικὴν αὐτοῖς εὐθὺς ἐξ ἀρχῆς φιλοσοφίαν ἐνομοθέ- τησεν; ### English translation (Claude) So God ordered sacrifice not because he needed victims or longed for savor, but healing the ailments of the sick. In the same way he tolerated musical instruments, not delighting in their harmony but little by little stopping the error of idols. For if he had offered the perfect laws to them as soon as they were freed from association with the Egyptians, they would surely have bolted, shaken off the bridle, and run back to their former ruin. For if, even with things managed so, they often tried to do this, what would they not have dared if he had legislated the gospel philosophy for them from the very beginning? ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.21 (Raeder, 186; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-21). ## Discourse 7.22 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-22 - Source: Raeder, 186 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Psalm 50 shows God needs no sacrifices. ### Greek text ] ὅτι δὲ καὶ θυσιῶν χαὶ μουσικῶν ὀργάνων ἀνενδεὴς ὁ Θεός, ἀκούσατε αὐτοῦ διὰ τῶν προφητῶν λέγοντος" νοὐ δέξομαι ἐπ τοῦ οἴκου σου μόσχους, οὐδὲ ἐκ τῶν ποιμνίων ὅου χιμάρους. ἐμὰ γάρ ἐστι πάντα τὰ θηρία τοῦ ἀγροῦ, κτήνη ἐν τοῖς ὄρεσι καὶ βόδς. ἔγνωκα πάντα τὼ πετεινὰ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ' καὶ ὡραιότης ἀγροῦ μετ᾽ ἐμοῦ ἐστιν ἐν γὰρ δὴ τούτοις πάντα τὰ νενομοθετημένα προσφέρειν ἐξέβαλεν; οὐ τὰ χερσαῖα μόνον ζῷα καὶ τὰ “πτηνά, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν ἀποθλιβόμενον οἶνον καὶ τὸ μετὰ σεμιδάλεως καὶ ποπάνων προσφερόμενον ἔλαιον. ### English translation (Claude) That God needs neither sacrifices nor musical instruments, hear him say through the prophets: 'I will not accept calves from your house, nor goats from your flocks. For all the beasts of the field are mine, cattle on the mountains and oxen. I know all the birds of the air, and the beauty of the field is with me.' By these he rejected all the prescribed offerings, not only land animals and birds, but also the pressed wine and the oil offered with fine flour and cakes. ### Scripture references - Ps 50:9–11 (49:9-Ps LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.22 (Raeder, 186; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-22). ## Discourse 7.23 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-23 - Source: Raeder, 187 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God's ownership of all shows he needs nothing. ### Greek text ὡραιότητα γὰρ ἀγροῦ ταῦτα δὴ προσηγόρευσε καὶ ἔδειξεν αὐτοῦ γε ὄντα καὶ ταῦτα κἀκεῖνα ποιήματα, ταύτῃ πῃ διδάσκων, ὡς ἡ θεία φύσις ἀνενδεής. εἶτα μετά τινος εἰρωνείας χαριεστάτης καὶ πάσης ὠφελείας μεστῆς καὶ τὴν ἐκείνων ἄγνοιαν διελέγχει καὶ τὴν οἰκείαν ### English translation (Claude) For he called these 'the beauty of the field', and showed that both these and those are his works, teaching in this way that the divine nature is without need. Then, with a most charming irony full of benefit, he both refutes their ignorance and ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 7.24. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.23 (Raeder, 187; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-23). ## Discourse 7.24 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-24 - Source: Raeder, 187 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God asks a sacrifice of praise instead of animals. ### Greek text ἐπιδείκνυσι δύναμιν᾽ ἔφη γάρ᾽ «ἐὰν πεινάσω, οὐ μή σοι εἴπω ἐμὴ γόρ ἐστιν ἡ οἰκουμένη καὶ τὸ πλήρωμα αὐτῆς.“ οὕτω διὰ τούτων καὶ τὴν δημιουργίαν καὶ τὴν δεσποτείαν ἐναργῶς ἐπιδείξας. ἐκεῖνο τὸ εἰρωνικῶς ῥηθὲν ἐθεράπευσεν, εἰπών" μὴ φάγομαι" κρέα ταύρων ἢ αἷμα τράγων πίομαιγ" καὶ διὰ πάντων περιττὰ δείξας τὰ θύματα καὶ τῆς θείας ἀνάξια φύσεως, καινόν τινα θυσίας ὑποτίθεται τρόπον, οὐ βωμὸν αἰἱματτούσης, ἀλλὰ γλώττῃ καὶ χείλεσι τελουμένης᾽ οοῳθῦσον γὰρ ἔφη τῷ Θεῷ θυσίαν αἰνέσεως καὶ ἀπόδος τῷ ὑψίστῳ τὰς εὐχάς σου καὶ ἐπικάλεσαί μὲ ἐν ἡμέρᾳ θλίψεώς σου καὶ ἐξελοῦμαί σε, καὶ δοξά ### English translation (Claude) shows his own power; for he said: 'If I were hungry, I would not tell you; for the world is mine and all that fills it.' Having thus clearly shown his creating and his lordship, he cured that ironical saying by adding: 'Shall I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats?' And having shown through all this that victims are superfluous and unworthy of the divine nature, he proposes a new manner of sacrifice, not bloodying an altar, but performed with tongue and lips: 'Sacrifice to God a sacrifice of praise, and pay your vows to the Most High; and call upon me in the day of your affliction, and I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.' ### Scripture references - Ps 50:12–15 (49:12-Ps LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.24 (Raeder, 187; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-24). ## Discourse 7.25 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-25 - Source: Raeder, 187 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God accepts praise and repays it with help. ### Greek text σεις με΄ ἀρκεῖ γὰρ αὐτῷ λόγος εὔλογός τε καὶ πρόσφορος ὑπὲρ πάντα τὰ ποίμνια καὶ αἰπόλια καὶ βουκόλια᾽ καὶ τοῦτον δεχόμενος ἀμείβεται τοὺς προσφέροντας, ἐπικουρίαν ὀρέγων καὶ εἰς καιρὸν ἐπαμύνων καὶ τῶν λωβᾶσθαι πειρωμένων ἐλευθερῶν. ταὐτὸ δὴ τοῦτο κὼν τῷ τέλει τῆς μελῳδίας προστέθεικεν᾽,,θυσία αἰνέσεως δοξάσει με' καὶ ἐκεῖ ### English translation (Claude) For a well-spoken and fitting word suffices him beyond all flocks, herds of goats, and herds of cattle; and receiving it he repays those who offer it, holding out help, defending them in time, and freeing them from those who try to harm them. He added the same at the end of the song: 'A sacrifice of praise will glorify me, and there ### Scripture references - Ps 50:23 (49:23 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation of Ps 50:23 ends in 7.26. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.25 (Raeder, 187; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-25). ## Discourse 7.26 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-26 - Source: Raeder, 187 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Other psalms too prefer praise to sacrifice. ### Greek text ὁδός, ἦ δείξω αὐτοῖς τὸ σωτήριον τοῦ Θεοῦ.“ οὐ γὰρ ἀπόχρη τὸ μόνον τὸν εὐεργέτην ὑμνεῖν᾽ προσήκει γὰρ καὶ τὴν ὁδὸν ἐκείνην ὁδεύειν, ἧς τὸ τέλος ἀληθῶς σωτηρία. τοῦτο κἀν ἑτέρῳ “ψαλμῷ πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν εἶπεν ὁ προφήτης᾽ οθυσίαν“" γὰφ ἔφη..καὶ προσφυρὰν οὐκ ἠθέλησας" ὁλοκαυτώματα καὶ περὶ ἁμαρτίας οὐκ ἐζήτησας.“ κἀν ἄλλῃ δὲ μελῳδίᾳ τοῦτο παραδέδωκεν" αἰνέσω γάρ! εἶπε »τὸ ὦ ὄνομα τοῦ Θεοῦ μου μετ᾽ φδῆς" μεγαλυνῶ αὐτὸν ἐν αἰνέσει" καὶ ἀρέσει τῷ Θεῷ ὑπὲρ μόσχον νέον; κέρατα ἐκφέροντα καὶ ὁπλάς ### English translation (Claude) is the way by which I will show them the salvation of God.' For it is not enough only to hymn the Benefactor; one must also walk that road whose end is truly salvation. The prophet said this to God in another psalm too: 'Sacrifice and offering you did not desire; burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not require.' And in another song he handed down the same: 'I will praise the name of my God with a song; I will magnify him with praise; and it will please God more than a young calf with horns and hoofs.' ### Scripture references - Ps 50:23 (49:23 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 40:6 (39:7 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 69:30–31 (68:31-Ps LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.26 (Raeder, 187; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-26). ## Discourse 7.27 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-27 - Source: Raeder, 188 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah 1 too rejects sacrifices. ### Greek text ὡς ἂν δὲ μή τις ὁπολάβῃ ταῦτα μόνον τὸν Δαυὶδ γεγραφέναι, ἀκούσατε, ὦ ἄνδρες, ὁποῖα καὶ διὰ τῆς τοῦ Ἡσαΐου φωνῆς αὐτὸς πάλιν εἴρηκεν ὁ Θεός᾽ αὐτοῦ γὰρ δὴ ταῦτα τὰ ῥήματα" «τί μοι πλῆθος τῶν θυσιῶν ἁμῶν; λέγει Κύριος. πλήρης εἰμί" ὁλοκαυτώματα κριῶν παὶ στέαρ ἀρνῶν καὶ αἷμα ταύρων ἣ τράγων οὐ βούλομαι, οὐδ᾽ ἂν ἔρχησθε ὀφθῆ- ναί μοι. τίς γὰρ ἐξεξήτησε ταῦτα ἐκ τῶν χειρῶν ὑμῶν ### English translation (Claude) So that no one may suppose that David alone wrote this, hear, gentlemen, what God himself said again through the voice of Isaiah; for these are his words: 'What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices? says the Lord. I am full; burnt offerings of rams and the fat of lambs and the blood of bulls and goats I do not want, not even if you come to appear before me. For who required these from your hands?' ### Scripture references - Isa 1:11–12: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.27 (Raeder, 188; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-27). ## Discourse 7.28 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-28 - Source: Raeder, 188 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah shows the sacrificial law was a concession. ### Greek text ἄντικρυς δὲ διὰ τούτων δεδήλωκεν, ὧς οὐ» ἀναγκαίως ταῦτα νενομοθέτηκεν, ἀλλὰ τῇ ἐκείνων ξυγκατιὼν ἀσθενείᾳ. τοῦτο γὰρ σημαίνει τὸ τίς ἐξεξήτησε ταῦτα ἐκ τῶν χειρῶν ὑμῶν;“ εἶτα ἐπήγαγεν" »»"εατεῖν μου τὴν αὐλὴν οὐ προσθήσεσθε. ἐὰν γὰρ προσφέρητέ μοι σεμίδαλιν, μάταιον θυμίαμα βὸδέλυγμά μοέ ἐστι᾿ τὰς νεομηνίας ὑμῶν καὶ τὰ σάββατα καὶ ἡμέραν μεγάλην οὐκ ἀνέχομαι" νηστείαν καὶ ἀργίων καὶ τὰς ἑορτὰς ὑμῶν μισεῖ ἡ ψυχή μου. ἐγενήθητέ μοι εἰς πλησμονήν. ### English translation (Claude) By these he plainly showed that he did not legislate these things as necessary, but condescending to their weakness. For this is what 'Who required these from your hands?' means. Then he added: 'You shall no longer tread my court. If you bring me fine flour, it is vain; incense is an abomination to me; your new moons and sabbaths and great day I cannot endure; fasting, idleness, and your feasts my soul hates; you have become a surfeit to me.' ### Scripture references - Isa 1:12–14: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Isa 1:12–14 (LXX). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.28 (Raeder, 188; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-28). ## Discourse 7.29 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-29 - Source: Raeder, 188 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah, like David, replaces sacrifice with something better: baptism. ### Greek text ἀτεχνῶς δὲ ταῦτα τῇ Ζαυιτικῇ ἔοικε μελῳδίᾳ. κἀνταῦθα γὰρ παραπλησίως οὐ μόνον τοὺς ταύρους καὶ τοὺς τράγους καὶ τοὺς ἄρνας ἐξέβαλεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν σεμίδαλυν καὶ τῶν ἀρωμάτων τὴν εὐοσμίαν καὶ τῶν μεγάλων πανηγύρεων τὸν κατάλογον. ὥσπερ δὲ διὰ τοῦ Δαυὶδ ἀπαγορεύσας τὰς τοιαύτας ἱερουργίας τὴν τῆς αἰνέσεως θυσίαν προσφέρειν ἐκέλευσεν, οὕτω κἀνταῦθα τούτων ἕκαστον ἐχβαλών, τὸ τῆς ἀφθαρσίας αὐτόϊς καὶ παλιγγενεσίας ἐπιδείκνυσι ### English translation (Claude) This is exactly like the song of David. Here too, likewise, he rejected not only the bulls, goats, and lambs, but also the fine flour, the fragrance of spices, and the list of great festivals. And just as through David, forbidding such rites, he ordered them to offer the sacrifice of praise, so here, rejecting each of these, he shows them the baptism of incorruption and ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 7.30. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.29 (Raeder, 188; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-29). ## Discourse 7.30 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-30 - Source: Raeder, 189 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah's 'wash yourselves' points to baptism. ### Greek text βάπτισμα καί φησιν" »λούσασθε, καθαροὶ γένεσθε.ς καὶ ἵνα “μὴ νομίσωσι ᾿προστεταχέναι αὐτὸν τοῖς περιρραντηρίοις τοῖς ξυνήθεσι χρήσασθαι, ἀναγκαίως προστέθεικεν᾽ ἀφέλετε τὰς πονηρίας ὑμῶν ἀπὸ τῶν ψυχῶν ὑμῶν, ἀπέναντι τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν μου τοῦτο δὲ σαφῶς τὴν τοῦ παναγίου βαπτίσματος αἰνίττεται δωρεάν. κἀν τῷ μέσῳ δὲ. τῆς προ: φητείας πάλιν ὃ τοῦ προφήτου Θεὸς διὰ τοῦ προφήτου φησίν: ### English translation (Claude) rebirth and says: 'Wash yourselves; become clean.' And so that they might not think he commanded them to use the usual sprinklings, he necessarily added: 'Remove your wickedness from your souls before my eyes.' This plainly hints at the gift of all-holy baptism. And in the middle of the prophecy again the prophet's God says through the prophet: ### Scripture references - Isa 1:16: quotation, high confidence - Titus 3:5: echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation of Isa 43 follows in 7.31. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.30 (Raeder, 189; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-30). ## Discourse 7.31 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-31 - Source: Raeder, 189 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah 43 says God did not demand sacrifices. ### Greek text οὐ νῦν ἐκάλεσά σε, ᾿Ιακώβ, οὐδὲ κοπιάσαι δὲ ἐποίησα, ᾿Ισραήλ.. οὐκ ἤνεγκάς μοι πρόβατα τῆς δλοκαρπώσεώς σου οὐδὲ ἐν. ταῖς θυσίαις σοὺ ἐδόξασάς με οὐκ ἐδούλευσάς μοι ἐν δώροις, οὐδὲ ἔγκοπόν σε ἐποίησα ἐν λιβανωτῷ' οὐδὲ ἐκτήσω μοι ἀργυρίου θυμίαμα, οὐδὲ στέαρ τῶν θυσιῶν σου ἐπεθύμησα᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ἐν ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις σου καὶ ἐν ταῖς ἀδικίαις σου προέστην σου.΄. ### English translation (Claude) 'I did not now call you, Jacob, nor did I make you weary, Israel. You did not bring me the sheep of your whole burnt offering, nor glorify me with your sacrifices; you did not serve me with gifts, nor did I make you weary with frankincense; nor did you buy me incense with silver, nor did I desire the fat of your sacrifices; but in your sins and in your iniquities I stood before you.' ### Scripture references - Isa 43:22–24: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Isa 43:22–24 (LXX). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.31 (Raeder, 189; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-31). ## Discourse 7.32 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-32 - Source: Raeder, 189 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God promises forgiveness, given through baptism by faith, not works. ### Greek text οὕτω πάλιν δείξας ἀνόνητα τῆς νομικῆς ἱερουργίας τὰ εἴδη, ὑπισχνεῖται τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων τὴν ἄφεσιν, ἣν διὰ τοῦ παναγίου βαπτίσματος ἐδωρήσατο".,ἐγώ εἰμι, ἐγώ εἶμι ὃ ἐξαλείφων τὰς ἀνομίας σου ἕνεκεν ἐμοῦ, καὶ τὰς ἁμαρτίας σου οὐ μὴ μνὴσθήσομοι.“. οὐ γὰρ δὴ δι᾽ ἔργων ἀξιεπαίνων, ἀλλὰ διὰ μόνης πίστεως τῶν μυστικῶν τετυχήκαμεν ἀγαθῶν. ### English translation (Claude) Having again shown the forms of the legal ritual to be useless, he promises the forgiveness of sins which he granted through all-holy baptism: 'I am, I am he who blots out your iniquities for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins.' For not through praiseworthy works but through faith alone have we obtained the mystical goods. ### Scripture references - Isa 43:25: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.32 (Raeder, 189; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-32). ## Discourse 7.33 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-33 - Source: Raeder, 189 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Salvation is by grace, as Paul says; Jeremiah also rejects sacrifices. ### Greek text τῷ τοι καὶ ὁ θεῖος ἀπόστολος. χέχραγεν᾽ «χάριτί ἐστε σεσωσμένοι" καὶ τοῦτο οὐκ ἐξ ὑμῶν Θεοῦ τὸ δῶρον, ἵνα μή τις καυχήσηται.Κ τοῦτο κἀνταῦθα. δηλῶν, τὸ., «ἕνεκεν ἐμοῦ“ τέθεικεν.. ταῦτα καὶ “διὰ “Ιερεμίου διαμαρτύρεται λέγων" τὰ ὅλοκαυτώματα ὑμῶν συναγάγετε μετὰ τῶν θυσιῶν ὑμῶν καὶ φάγετε κρέας, ὅτι οὐκ ἐλάλησα πρὸς τοὺς πατέρας ὑμῶν οὐδὲ ἐνετειλάμην αὐτοῖς ἐν ἡμέρᾳ, ἐν ἧ ἀνήγαγον αὐτοὺς ἐξ Αἰ. ### English translation (Claude) That is why the divine apostle cried: 'By grace you have been saved; and this is not from you; it is the gift of God, so that no one may boast.' Showing this here too, he set down 'for my own sake'. He testifies to this through Jeremiah too, saying: 'Gather your burnt offerings with your sacrifices and eat meat; for I did not speak to your fathers or command them on the day I brought them up out of ### Scripture references - Eph 2:8–9: quotation, high confidence - Jer 7:21–22: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation of Jer 7:22 ends in 7.34. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.33 (Raeder, 189; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-33). ## Discourse 7.34 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-34 - Source: Raeder, 190 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Jeremiah and Amos also reject sacrifices and music. ### Greek text γύπτου, περὶ ὁλοκαυτωμάτων καὶ θυσίας.. ἃ ἃ γὰρ δὴ περὶ τούτων ἐν τῷ νόμῳ προσετετάχει, τῆς ἐκείνων ἦν ἦ ἀναισθησίας, οὐ τῆς αὐτοῦ χρείας τε καὶ βουλήσεως. ταῦτα καὶ ἑτέρωθι λέγει" οΤὰ ὁλοκαυτώματα ὑμῶν οὖν. ἔστι δεητά, καὶ αἱ θυσίαι ὑμῶν οὐχ ἥδυνάν μοι. καὶ αὖ πάλιν βοᾷ' »ἀπόστησον ἀπ᾽ ἐμοῦ ἦχον φδῶν σου, καὶ φωνῆς ὀργάνων ### English translation (Claude) Egypt about burnt offerings and sacrifice.' For what he had prescribed in the law about these belonged to their insensitivity, not to his own need and will. He says this elsewhere too: 'Your burnt offerings are not acceptable, and your sacrifices are not pleasant to me.' And again he cries: 'Take away from me the sound of your songs, and the voice of your instruments ### Scripture references - Jer 7:22: quotation, high confidence - Jer 6:20: quotation, high confidence - Amos 5:23: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Jer 6:20; Amos 5:23. The quotation ends in 7.35. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.34 (Raeder, 190; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-34). ## Discourse 7.35 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-35 - Source: Raeder, 190 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God ordered sacrifices for Israel's healing, not his need. ### Greek text σου οὐκ ἀκούσομαι.“ | καὶ ἄλλα δὲ πάμπολλα τοιαῦτα ἔστιν εὑρεῖν, δηλοῦντα σαφῶς, ὡς οὐ δεόμενος. θυσιῶν ὃ Θεὸς οὐδὲ καπνῷ καὶ κνίσῃ καὶ τοῖς μουσικοῖς. ὀργάνοις ἐπιτερπόμενος ταῦτα τελεῖσθαι προσέταξεν, ἀλλὰ τῆς ἐκείνων προμηθούμενος ἰατρείας. ### English translation (Claude) I will not hear.' One can find very many others like these, clearly showing that God ordered these things to be performed not because he needed sacrifices or delighted in smoke, savor, and musical instruments, but providing for their healing. ### Scripture references - Amos 5:23: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.35 (Raeder, 190; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-35). ## Discourse 7.36 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-36 - Source: Raeder, 190 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry, who studied the prophets, also rejected sacrifice. ### Greek text Μὴ τοίνυν τῆς τῶν ὑμετέρων θυμάτων κατηγορίας ἀπολογίαν τὴν ἀντικατηγορίαν ἔχειν νομίζετε. δῆλον γάρ τοι τὸν τοῦ νόμου σχοπὸν διὰ τῶν προφητῶν ὁ νομοθέτης πεποίηκεν. τούτοις ἀκριβῶς ἐντυχὼν ὃ Πορφύριος (μάλα γὰρ αὐτοῖς ἐνδιέτριψε, τὴν χκαθ’ ἡμῶν τυρεύων γραφήν); καὶ ἀλλότριον εὐσεβείας καὶ αὐτὸς ἀποφαίνει τὸ θύειν, παραπλήσιόν τι τοῖς πιθήκοις καὶ δρῶν καὶ πάσχων. ### English translation (Claude) So do not think that a counter-accusation is a defense against the accusation of your sacrifices. For the lawgiver made the purpose of the law plain through the prophets. Porphyry read them carefully (for he spent much time on them, plotting his writing against us), and he himself declares sacrifice alien to piety, doing and suffering something like apes. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.36 (Raeder, 190; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-36). ## Discourse 7.37 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-37 - Source: Raeder, 190 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry borrowed from Scripture without accepting its truth. ### Greek text χκαθάπερ γὰρ ἐκεῖνοι μιμοῦνται μὲν τὰ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐπιτηδεύματα, εἰς δέ γε τὴν τῶν ἀνθρώπων οὐ μεταβάλλονται φύσιν, ἀλλὰ μένουσι πίθηκοι, οὕτως οὗτος τὰ θεῖα λόγια κεκλοφὼς καὶ ἐνίων τὴν διάνοιαν τοῖς ξυγγράμμασιν ἐντεθεικὼς τοῖς οἰκείοις, μεταμοθεῖν οὐ» ἠθέλησε τὴν ἀλήθειαν, ἀλλὰ μεμένηκε πίθηκος, μᾶλλον δὲ πολοιός, ἀλλοτρίοις σπτίλοις καλλυνόμενος. ### English translation (Claude) For just as apes imitate human pursuits but are not changed into human nature, remaining apes, so he, having stolen the divine oracles and put the sense of some into his own writings, would not learn the truth instead, but remained an ape, or rather a jackdaw, adorned with others' feathers. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.37 (Raeder, 190; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-37). ## Discourse 7.38 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-38 - Source: Raeder, 190 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry cites Theophrastus on the first bloodless sacrifices. ### Greek text οὗτος περὶ τοῦ δεῖν ἐμψύχων ἀπέχεσθαι πολλοὺς λόγους ξυγγεγραφώς, εἰσήγαγε τὸν Θεόφραστον λέγοντα, ὅτι.,οἱ πάλαι ἄνθρωποι οὔτε λιβανωτὸν οὔτε ἄλλο θῦμα προσέφερον, ἀλλὰ χλόης οἷόν τινα τῆς γονίμου φύσεως χνοῦν ταῖς χερσὶν ἀράμενοι κατέκαον,( ταύτῃ τοὺς φαινομένους οὐρανίους θεοὺς τῇ θυσίᾳ δεξιούμενοι. ### English translation (Claude) He, having written many words about the need to abstain from animal food, brought in Theophrastus saying that 'the people of old offered neither frankincense nor any other victim, but taking up in their hands green grass as a kind of down of fruitful nature, burned it,' welcoming in this way with sacrifice the heavenly gods that appeared to them. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Abst. 2.5 (Porphyry, On Abstinence from Killing Animals): quotation, high confidence - Theophrastus (Theophrastus, On Piety): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, On Abstinence 2.5, citing Theophrastus, On Piety. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.38 (Raeder, 190; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-38). ## Discourse 7.39 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-39 - Source: Raeder, 191 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry says bloody sacrifices arose as human lawlessness grew. ### Greek text εἶτα πολλὰ ὄντα τοιαῦτα διεξελθών, ἐπήγαγεν᾽ «πόρρω δὲ τῶν περὶ τὰς θυσίας ἀπαρχῶν τοῖς ἀνθρώποις προϊουσῶν παρανομίας, ἡ τῶν δεινοτάτων θυμάτων παράληψις ἐπεισήχθη ὠμότητος πλήρης, ὡς δοκεῖν τὰς πρότερον λεχθείσας καθ᾽ ἡμῶν ἀρὰς νῦν τέλος εἰληφέναι, σφαξάντων τῶν ἀνθρώπων καὶ τοὺς ### English translation (Claude) Then, going through many such things, he added: 'As lawlessness advanced far among human beings in the offering of first-fruits, the adoption of the most terrible victims was brought in, full of cruelty, so that the curses formerly spoken against us seem now to have been fulfilled, when human beings slaughtered and ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Abst. 2.7 (Porphyry, On Abstinence from Killing Animals): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, On Abstinence 2.7. The quotation ends in 7.40. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.39 (Raeder, 191; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-39). ## Discourse 7.40 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-40 - Source: Raeder, 191 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry and Theophrastus condemn animal sacrifice. ### Greek text βωμοὺς αἱμαξάντων.“ εἶτα πολλοὺς λόγους διεξελθών, ἔφη μὴ χοῆναι θεοὺς ὑπολαμβάνειν τοὺς ταῖς διὰ ξῴων θυσίαις χαίροντας" εἶναι γὰρ ἀδικώτατον τὸ ξῳοθυτεῖν καὶ ἀνόσιον καὶ μυσαρὸν καὶ βλαβερὸν καὶ διὰ τοῦτο μηδὲ θεοῖς προσφιλές. προστέθειμε δὲ καὶ ταῦτα᾽.,εἰκότως ὁ Θεόφραστος ἀπαγορεύει μὴ θύειν τὰ ἔμψυχα τοὺς τῷ ὄντε εὐσεβεῖν ### English translation (Claude) bloodied the altars.' Then, going through many words, he said that one must not think those to be gods who rejoice in animal sacrifices; for sacrificing animals is most unjust, unholy, loathsome, and harmful, and for this reason not dear to the gods. He added this too: 'Rightly Theophrastus forbids those who truly wish to be pious to sacrifice living creatures, ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Abst. 2.11 (Porphyry, On Abstinence from Killing Animals): quotation, high confidence - Theophrastus (Theophrastus, On Piety): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, On Abstinence 2.11–12, 2.24. The quotation ends in 7.41. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.40 (Raeder, 191; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-40). ## Discourse 7.41 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-41 - Source: Raeder, 191 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry says only harmless offerings should be made and recalls human sacrifice at Rhodes. ### Greek text ἐθέλοντας, χρώμενος καὶ τοιαύταις ἄλλαις αἰτίαις.“ εἶτα δείκνυσι, τίνα θύειν προσήκει, καί φησιν “καὶ μὴν θύειν δεῖ ἐκεῖνα, ἃ θύοντες οὐδένα πημανοῦμεν. οὐδὲν γὰρ ὡς οτὸ θύειν ἀβλαβὲς εἶναι χρὴ πᾶσιν καὶ αὖ πάλιν' »ἀφεκτέον ἄρα τῶν ξῴων ἐν ταῖς θυσίαις.“ὀ ἀναμιμνήσκεν δὲ γαὶ τῶν πάλαι τολμηθεισῶν ἀνδροφονιῶν᾽,,ἐθύετος γάρ φησιν ἐν Ῥόδῳ μηνὶ ἹΜεταγειτνιῶνι ἕκτῃ ἱσταμένου ἄνθρωπὸς τῷ Κρφόνφ᾽ ὃ δὴ ἐπὶ πολὺ κρατῆσαν εἰς ἔθος μετεβλήθη. ἕνα γὰρ τῶν ἐπὶ θανάτῳ δημοσίᾳ κατακρυθέντων ### English translation (Claude) using other such reasons as well.' Then he shows what should be sacrificed, and says: 'Indeed one must sacrifice those things by sacrificing which we shall harm no one. For nothing should be so harmless to all as sacrifice.' And again: 'One must abstain from animals in sacrifices.' He also recalls the murders of human beings once dared: 'For in Rhodes,' he says, 'on the sixth of the month Metageitnion, a man was sacrificed to Cronus; and this, prevailing for long, was changed into a custom. For one of those publicly condemned to death ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Abst. 2.54 (Porphyry, On Abstinence from Killing Animals): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, On Abstinence 2.12–13, 2.54. The quotation continues in 7.42. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.41 (Raeder, 191; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-41). ## Discourse 7.42 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-42 - Source: Raeder, 192 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry lists human sacrifices in many places. ### Greek text μέχρι τῶν Κρονίων ξυνεῖχον εἶτα λέγει, ὡς καὶ ἐν Σαλαμῖνι τῆς Κύπρου ἄνθρωπος ἐθύετο τῇ Ἀγραύλῳ τῇ Κέκροπος, [ καὶ ἐν ᾿ἩΜουπόλει τῆς «Αἰγύπτου ἄνθρφωποι κατεσφάξοντο τρεῖς καθ' ἑχάστην ἡμέραν. καὶ «“Δακεδαιμογίους δέ φησι τῷ "άρει θύειν ἄνθρωπον, καὶ ἐν “Δαοδικείᾳ δὲ τῆς Συρίας καὶ ἐν Καρχηδόνι τῆς «Διβύης τοιαύτας πάλαι «θυσίας προσενεχθῆναι, καὶ τοὺς “Ἕλληνας εἰς πόλεμὸν ἐξιόντας ἀνθρωποθυτεῖν, καὶ ἄλλα δὲ πάμπολλα τοῖιαὔτα διέξεισιν. ### English translation (Claude) they kept until the Cronia.' Then he says that in Salamis of Cyprus a man was sacrificed to Agraulus daughter of Cecrops, and in Heliopolis of Egypt three men were slaughtered each day. He also says the Lacedaemonians sacrificed a man to Ares, and that in Laodicea of Syria and in Carthage of Libya such sacrifices were once offered, and that the Greeks sacrificed human beings when going out to war; and he goes through very many other such things. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Abst. 2.54–56 (Porphyry, On Abstinence from Killing Animals): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, On Abstinence 2.54–56. The scan reads 'Hermopolis' for Heliopolis; Porphyry has Heliopolis. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.42 (Raeder, 192; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-42). ## Discourse 7.43 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-43 - Source: Raeder, 192 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Historians and tragedians also record human sacrifices. ### Greek text καὶ Φίλων δὲ ὁ ἱστοριογράφος φησὶν Ἀριστομένη τὸν Μεσσήνιον τῷ Ἰθωμήτῃ Διὶ τριακοσίους ἀποσφάξαι. χαὶ ὁ Πλούταρχος "δὲ ξυνῳθὰ τούτοις Ἱστόρησε, καὶ ἕτεροι ξυγγραφεῖς πολλὰ τοιαῦτα ξυνέγραψαν᾽ καὶ τρας γῳδοποιοὶ. τοιάσδε ξυμφορὰς ἐτραγῴδησαν, Μενοικέως μὲν ἐν θήβαις, Κόδρου. δὲ ἐν ᾿Αθήναις - καὶ τῶν “Δεὼ -θυγατέρων. ### English translation (Claude) Philo the historian also says that Aristomenes of Messene slaughtered three hundred men to Ithomatan Zeus. Plutarch recorded things in agreement with these, and other historians wrote many such things; and the tragedians made tragedies of such calamities, of Menoeceus in Thebes, of Codrus in Athens, and of the daughters of Leos. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plutarch (Plutarch): allusion, low confidence - Clement of Alexandria, Protr. 3.42 (Exhortation to the Greeks): echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The 'Philo' cited is uncertain (perhaps Philo of Byblos, or a corruption of Myron of Priene, cited in Clement of Alexandria, Protr. 3.42). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.43 (Raeder, 192; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-43). ## Discourse 7.44 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-44 - Source: Raeder, 192 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Scripture condemns child sacrifice in Psalm 106 and Ezekiel 16. ### Greek text καὶ ῥῴδιον ἐντυχεῖν. τῷ βουλομένῳ ταῖς παλαιαῖς ἱστορίαις ᾿ καὶ γνῶναι, ὡς τῶν καλουμένων θεῶν ταῦτα κελευόντων ἐθύετο. ὃ δέ γε ποιητὴς καὶ δεσπότης πανταχῇ τῆς τοιαύτης παρανομίας. κατηγορεῖ, καὶ διὰ τοῦ Δαυὶδ μὲν βοᾷ' »καὶ ἔθυσαν τοὺς υἱοὺς αὐτῶν καὶ τὰς θυγατέρας αὐτῶν τοῖς δαιμονίοιρ᾽ καὶ ἐξέχεαν αἷμα ἀθῷον, αἷμα οὗν αὐτῶν καὶ θυγατέρων, ὧν ἔθυσαν τοῖς γλυπτοῖς Χαναάν,“ διὰ δὲ τοῦ προφήτου ᾿Ιεξεκιὴλ πάλιν ἐπιμεμφόμενος λέγει" »παὶ ἔλαβες τοὺς υἱούς σου καὶ τὰς θυγατέρας σου, ἃς ἐγέννησάς μοι, καὶ προσήγαγες αὐτοὺς τοῖς ἐρασταῖς σου. ### English translation (Claude) Anyone who wishes can easily read the ancient histories and learn that these were sacrificed at the command of the so-called gods. But the Maker and Lord everywhere accuses such lawlessness, and through David cries: 'And they sacrificed their sons and their daughters to demons; and they shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters, whom they sacrificed to the carved images of Canaan.' And through the prophet Ezekiel again he blames them, saying: 'And you took your sons and your daughters whom you bore to me and offered them to your lovers. ### Scripture references - Ps 106:37–38 (105:37-Ps LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ezek 16:20: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation of Ezek 16:20 continues in 7.45. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.44 (Raeder, 192; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-44). ## Discourse 7.45 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-45 - Source: Raeder, 193 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Human sacrifice ended with Christ's coming. ### Greek text τοῦτο ὑπὲρ πᾶσαν τὴν πορνείαν σου.“ ταῦτα μὲν οὖν πάλαι παρ᾽ Ἑλλήνων καὶ Ῥωμαίων καὶ «Αἰγυπτίων, καὶ μέντοι καὶ Ἑβραίων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἐτολμᾶτο βαρβάρων᾽ μετὰ δὲ τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἐπιφάνειαν ἐκεῖνα μὲν ἔσβεσταὶ ἅπαντα, οἱ δὲ θεῖοι τῶν εὐαγγελίων πολιτεύονται νόμοι. ### English translation (Claude) This beyond all your harlotry.' These things were once dared by Greeks, Romans, Egyptians, and also by Hebrews and the other barbarians; but after the appearing of our God and Savior all those were quenched, and the divine laws of the Gospels govern life. ### Scripture references - Ezek 16:20–22: quotation, medium confidence - Titus 2:13: echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation is a paraphrase of Ezek 16:20–22 (LXX). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.45 (Raeder, 193; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-45). ## Discourse 7.46 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-46 - Source: Raeder, 193 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Sophocles is cited for one God and against idols. ### Greek text ἐκείνας τραγῳδῶν τὰς μιαιφονίας Σοφοκλῆς ᾿ὖ ᾿4θηναῖος ἄριστα μὲν ἐθεολόγησεν, ἄγαν δὲ σοφῶς ἐκωμῴδησε τὰ τῶν δαιμόνων ἀγάλματα χαὶ τῶν θυσιῶν τὰς παρανόμους σφαγάς᾽ λέγει δὲ οὕτως..»εἷς ταῖς ἀληθείαισιν, εἷς ἐστιν θεός, ὃς οὐρανόν τ᾽ ἔτευξε καὶ γαῖαν μακρὴν πόντου τε χαροπὸν οἶδμα κἀνέμων βίας. θεητοὶ δὲ πολλοὶ καρδίαν πλανώμενοι ἰδρυσάμεσθα πημάτων παραψυχήν, θεῶν ἀγάλματ᾽ ἐκ λίθων ἢ χαλκέων ἢ χρυσοτεύκτων ἢ ἐλεφαντίγῶν τύπους᾽ θυσίας τε τούτοις χαὶ καλὰς πανηγύρεις ### English translation (Claude) Making tragedy of those bloody murders, Sophocles of Athens spoke excellently of God and very wisely mocked the images of demons and the lawless slaughters of sacrifices. He speaks thus: 'One in truth, one is God, who made heaven and the long earth, the gleaming swell of the sea and the force of the winds. But we mortals, much wandering in heart, have set up as a consolation for our sufferings images of gods of stone or bronze, or figures wrought of gold or ivory; and crowning them with sacrifices and fine festivals, ### Extrabiblical texts - Sophocles (Sophocles (plays and fragments)): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Ps.-Sophocles, a Jewish or Christian forgery known also from Ps.-Justin and Clement of Alexandria; Theodoret takes it as Sophocles. The quotation ends in 7.47. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.46 (Raeder, 193; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-46). ## Discourse 7.47 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-47 - Source: Raeder, 193 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates' cock offering refuted the charge of atheism; he knew God needs nothing. ### Greek text στέφοντες, οὕτως εὐσεβεῖν νομίζομεν.“ τοιγάρτοι οὐ μόνον ἡμεῖς, ἀλλὰ καὶ οἵ ὑμέτερον ποιηταὶ καὶ ξυγγραφεῖς καὶ φιλόσοφοι ταῦτα γελῶσιν, ἃ θεῖα νομίζετε. ἐγὼ δὲ οἶμαι καὶ Σωκράτην τὸν Σωφρονίσκου τὸν ἀλεκτρυόνα θῦσαι κελεύειν, ἵνα τὴν κατ᾽ αὐτοῦ γεγενημένην διελέγξῃ γραφήν" ἐγρωψάτην γὰρ αὐτὸν "άνυτός τε καὶ Μέλητος, ὡς εἶναι θεοὺς οὐ νομίξοντα. ὅτι γὰρ ἀνενδεὲς τὸ θεῖον ἠπίστατο, σαφῶς ἐν ἑτέροις δεδήλωκεν. ### English translation (Claude) we think we are thus pious.' So not only we but also your poets, historians, and philosophers laugh at what you think divine. And I think that Socrates son of Sophroniscus ordered the cock to be sacrificed in order to refute the indictment brought against him; for Anytus and Meletus indicted him for not believing there are gods. For that he knew the divine to be without need he showed clearly elsewhere. ### Extrabiblical texts - Sophocles (Sophocles (plays and fragments)): quotation, medium confidence - Plato, Phaed. 118a (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 118a; Apology 24b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.47 (Raeder, 193; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-47). ## Discourse 7.48 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-48 - Source: Raeder, 194 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God made the world without need; sacrifices are mere smoke. ### Greek text αὐτοῦ γὰρ δὴ καὶ ταῦτα, εἴπερ δὴ ἄρα ὁ Πλάτων τὰ ἐκείνου ξυνέγραψε δόγματα" ργθὺ γὰρ χρείας ἕνεκα ὃ θεὸς πεποίηκε. τὸν κόσμον, ἵνα τιμάς τε πρὸς ἀνθρώπων καὶ πρὸς θεῶν ἄλλων καὶ δαιμόνων κχαρποῖτο, οἷον πρόσοδόν τινα ἀπὸ τῆς γενέσεως ἀρνύμενος, παρὰ μὲν ἡμῶν καπνούς, παρὰ δὲ θεῶν καὶ δαιμόνων οἰκείας λειτουργίας.“ ἄντιπμρυς δὲ διὰ τούτων δεδήλωχεν, ὡς οὐδενὸς μὲν δεῖται τὸ θεῖον, καπνοῦ δὲ πλέον οὐδὲν ἔχουσιν αἵ τοιαῦται θυσίαι, καὶ καπνοῦ δυσοσμίας μεστοῦ. ### English translation (Claude) For this too is his, if Plato wrote down his doctrines: 'For God did not make the world out of need, so as to reap honors from human beings and other gods and demons, collecting a sort of revenue from creation, from us smoke and from gods and demons their proper services.' By these he plainly showed that the divine needs nothing, and that such sacrifices hold nothing more than smoke, and smoke full of stench. ### Translation notes - The same quotation as in 4.34; its source is uncertain (not in Plato's extant works). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.48 (Raeder, 194; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-48). ## Discourse 7.49 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-7-49 - Source: Raeder, 194 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret urges readers to offer the sacrifice of praise, persuaded by truth. ### Greek text Ταῦτα δὴ οὖν καὶ παρὰ τῶν ὑμετέρων διδασκάλων μεμαθηκότες καὶ παρὰ τῶν θείων λογίων, παρ᾽ ὧν ταῦτα σεσύληται, τὴν διδασκαλίαν πρατύναντες, τὰ μὲν ὀψοποιοῖς καὶ κρεοπώλαις ἁρμόττοντα μισήσατε θύματα, τὴν δὲ τῆς αἰνέσεως θυσίαν τῷ ποιητῇ προσενέγκατε. πευθέτω δὲ ὑμᾶς τοῦτο ποιεῖν, μὴ τῶν βασιλευόντων οἵ νόμον μηδὲ τῆς τιμωρίας τὸ δέος, ἀλλὰ τῆς ἀληθείας τὸ κράτος, ὃ πάσῃ γῇ καὶ θαλάττῃ γεγένηται γνώριμον. ᾿ ### English translation (Claude) Having learned these things from your own teachers, and having confirmed the teaching from the divine oracles from which they were stolen, hate the victims that suit cooks and butchers, and offer the Maker the sacrifice of praise. Let what persuades you to do this be not the laws of rulers nor the fear of punishment, but the power of truth, which has become known to all land and sea. ### Scripture references - Heb 13:15: echo, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 7.49 (Raeder, 194; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-49). ## Discourse 8.1 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-8-1 - Source: Raeder, 194 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pythagoras's preference of Muses to Sirens means plain truth over ornate speech. ### Greek text Πυθαγόραν ἐκεῖνον, οὗ κλέος εὐρὺ παρ᾽ ὑμῖν, εἰρηκέναι φασὶν οἱ τὰ ἐκείνου ξυγγεγραφότες, ὡς χρὴ τῶν Σειρήνων προτιθέναι τὰς Μούσας. ἐγὼ δέ, εἰ μὲν ἁπλοῖς ἐκεῖνος καὶ διαφανέσιν εἰώθει κεχρῆσθαι λόγοις, ὥσπερ δὴ καὶ ἄλλοι τῶν φιλοσόφων τινές, ἔφην ἂν αὐτὸν ὡς ἡδίω τὴν τῶν ἹΜουσῶν πρόκξπριπέναι φωνήν᾽ ἐπειδὴ δὲ αἰνιγματώδεις οἵ ἐκείνου γε λόγοι καὶ ὕφαλοι (ξυμβολικῶς γάρ τοι τὰς παραιενέσεις προσέφερε᾽ τοιοῦτο γὰρ δὴ τὸ μαχαίρῃ πῦρ μὴ σκαλεύειν“ καὶ.,ἐπὶ χοίνικος μὴ καθῆσθαι καὶ ομελάνουρον μὴ ἐσθίευν(ς καὶ οζυγὸν μὴ ὑπερβαίνειν καὶ τἄλλα τὰ τούτοις ξυντεταγμένα), οἶμαι αὐτὸν Σειρῆσι μὲν ἀπεικάσαι τοὺς κεκομψευμένους καὶ κατεγλωττισμένους λόγους, Μούσαις δὲ τοὺς ἐπείσαλτον μὲν οὐδὲν ἔχοντας, γυμνὸν δὲ τῆς ἀληθείας τὸ κάλλος ἐπιδεικνύντας. ὅσῳ γὰρ ἡ παρὰ τῆς φύσεως ὥρα τῆς ὑπὸ κομμωτικῆς τέχνης διεσκευασμένης ἀμείνων, τοσούτῳ κρείττων τῆς τῶν λόγων εὐεπείας τε παὶ δεινότητος ἡ τῆς ἀληθείας εὐπρέπεια. ### English translation (Claude) That Pythagoras, whose fame is wide among you, is said by those who wrote about him to have said that one should put the Muses before the Sirens. If he had been accustomed to use simple and clear words, as some other philosophers did, I would have said that he preferred the voice of the Muses as sweeter; but since his words are enigmatic and hidden (for he gave his precepts in symbols, such as 'Do not stir the fire with a knife', 'Do not sit on a measure', 'Do not eat the black-tail', 'Do not step over a yoke', and the others ranked with these), I think he likened to the Sirens words that are dressed up and glib, and to the Muses words that have nothing imported but show the naked beauty of truth. For as much as nature's bloom is better than that prepared by the art of adornment, so much is the comeliness of truth superior to the eloquence and cleverness of words. ### Extrabiblical texts - Diogenes Laertius, 8.17–18 (Diogenes Laertius, Lives of the Eminent Philosophers): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The Pythagorean symbols are well known from Diogenes Laertius 8.17–18 and elsewhere. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.1 (Raeder, 194; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-1). ## Discourse 8.2 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-8-2 - Source: Raeder, 195 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God could have made the apostles eloquent, but chose not to. ### Greek text πιστευτέον οὖν ἄρα, ὦ ἄνδρες, εἰ καὶ μὴ ἄλλῳ, τῷ γοῦν πολυθρυλήτῳ φιλοσόφῳ ταῦτα νομοθετοῦντι, καὶ τὰ θεῖα λόγια μὴ παροπτέα νομίἕξειν, ὅτι δὴ τῷ περιττῷ τῶν λόγων οὐ κατακέχρηνται φύσει, ἀλλὰ γυμνὸν ἡμῖν προσφέρουσι καὶ ἀποστίλβον τῆς ἀληθείας τὸ κάλλος. εὐπετὲς μὲν γὰρ ἦν καὶ μάλα δῴδιον τῇ τῆς σοφίας πηγῇ, ἣ καὶ δυσσεβέσιν ἀνθρώποις τὴν καλουμένην εὐστομίαν δεδώρηται, καὶ Πλάτωνος εὐγλωττοτέρους καὶ δεινοτέρους 4ημοσθένους καὶ ὕγκῳ τὸν Ὀλόρου κατακρύπτοντας καὶ τὸν Νικομάχου καὶ Χρύσιππον τοῖς τῶν ξυλλογισμῶν ἀλύτοις δεσμοῖς ἀποφῆναι τῆς ἀληθείας τοὺς ### English translation (Claude) So, gentlemen, we must believe, if no one else, at least that famous philosopher who legislated this, and not think the divine oracles to be disregarded because they have not used superfluity of words but offer us the naked and gleaming beauty of truth. For it was easy and very simple for the spring of wisdom, which has given even impious men what is called eloquence, to make the heralds of truth more eloquent than Plato, cleverer than Demosthenes, surpassing the son of Olorus in grandeur, and the son of Nicomachus and Chrysippus in the unbreakable bonds of syllogisms; ### Translation notes - The son of Olorus is Thucydides. The sentence continues in 8.3. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.2 (Raeder, 195; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-2). ## Discourse 8.3 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-8-3 - Source: Raeder, 196 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God wished all people, learned and unlearned, to be saved. ### Greek text κήρυκας, ἀλλ᾽ οὐκ ἐβουλήθη πέντε ἢ δέκα ἢ πεντεκαίδεκα ἢ ἑκατὸν ἢ δὶς τοσούτους τῶν σωτηρίων ἀπολαῦσαι ναμάτῶν, ἀλλὰ πάντας ἀνθρώπους͵ καὶ Ῥλληνὰς καὶ βαρβάρους, καὶ τοὺς λόγοις ἐντεθραμμένους καὶ τοὺς λόγων οὐ γεγευμένους, καὶ σκυτέως καὶ ὑφάντας | καὶ χαλκοντύπους καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους, ὅσοι τὰς τέχνας μεταχειρίξουσι, καὶ πρὸς τούτοῖς καὶ οἰκέτας καὶ προσαίτας καὶ γηπόνους καὶ ἀλσοκόμους καὶ γυναῖκας ὡσαύτως, τάς τὲ πλούτῳ περιρρεομένας καὶ τὰς πόνῳ ξυνεζευγμένας καὶ ἐκ χειρῶν βιοτεύειν ἡναγκασμένας. ### English translation (Claude) but he did not wish five or ten or fifteen or a hundred or twice as many to enjoy the saving streams, but all human beings, Greeks and barbarians, those brought up on letters and those who never tasted them, shoemakers, weavers, bronze-smiths, and all others who work at crafts, and besides them slaves, beggars, farmers, and gardeners, and women likewise, both those flowing with wealth and those yoked to toil and forced to live by their hands. ### Scripture references - 1 Tim 2:4: echo, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.3 (Raeder, 196; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-3). ## Discourse 8.4 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-8-4 - Source: Raeder, 196 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God served the wine of wisdom in the plain cups of the apostles. ### Greek text τούτου δὴ εἵνεκα ἁλιεῦσι καὶ τελώναις καὶ σπυτοτόμῳ χρησάμενος ὑπουργοῖς, προσενήνοηγε τοῖς ἀνθρώποῖς τὰ σωτήρια καὶ θεῖα μαθήματα, τὰς μὲν γλώττας αὖτῶν, ἃς ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἔλαχον, οὐκ ἀμείψας, τὰ δέ γε διειδῆ καὶ διαυγῆ τῆς σοφίας νάματα διὰ τούτων προχέαρ᾽ παραπλήσιον ποιῶν, ὥσπερ ἂν εἶ τις ἑστιάτωρ οἶνον ἀνθοσμίαν καὶ εὐώδη καὶ ἄριστον προσενέγκοι τοῖς δαιτυμόσι, κύλιξι καὶ φιάλαις ἐγχέας οὐκ ἠσκημέναις εἰς κάλλος, ἀλλ΄ οἵ γε διψῶντες ἐπεμφοροῦνται τοῦ νάματος; οὐκ εἰς τὰς κύλικας ἀφορῶντες. ### English translation (Claude) For this reason, using fishermen, tax collectors, and a leather-worker as servants, he offered human beings the saving and divine teachings, not changing the tongues they received from the beginning, but pouring out through them the clear and transparent streams of wisdom; doing something like a host who serves his guests a fragrant, sweet-smelling, excellent wine, pouring it into cups and bowls not worked for beauty; yet the thirsty take their fill of the drink, not looking at the cups ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 8.5. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.4 (Raeder, 196; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-4). ## Discourse 8.5 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-8-5 - Source: Raeder, 196 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The unlettered apostles became lights to all nations. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ τὸν οἶνον θαυμάξοντες. τοῦτο πάντες ἄνθρωποι δρῶντες διατελοῦσι" καὶ τῶν θείων ἀπολαύοντες φείθρων, οὐ μόνον οὐ κωμῳδοῦσι τῶν ἀποστόλων τὰς γλώττας, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἄγαν θαυμάζουσιν, ὅτι δὴ λόγων στωμύλων ὄντες ἀμύητοι, καὶ οἵ μὲν ἁλιεύειν. παιδόθεν μεμαθηκότες, οἱ δὲ τελωνικμοῖς ἐργαστηρίοις προσηδρευκότες, ἄλλοι δὲ σκυτοτομικὴν μεταχειρίσαντες τέχνην, ἀπεφάνθησαν ἐξαίφνης θείων λόγων διάκονοι καὶ δωρεῶν ἐπουρανίων διανομεῖς,. καὶ σωτῆρες ἀλεξίκακον καὶ φωστῆρες φανότατοι, οὐχ ἕν ἔθνος φωτίξοντες, ἀλλ᾽ ὕσαπερ ὁ ὁρώμενος ἥλιος. ### English translation (Claude) but admiring the wine. All human beings keep doing this; and enjoying the divine streams, they not only do not mock the tongues of the apostles but greatly admire them, because, though uninitiated in fluent speech, some having learned fishing from childhood, others having sat in tax booths, others having practiced shoemaking, they were suddenly shown to be ministers of divine words and distributors of heavenly gifts, saviors who ward off evil and most brilliant lights, illumining not one nation but as many as the visible sun does. ### Scripture references - Phil 2:15: echo, low confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.5 (Raeder, 196; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-5). ## Discourse 8.6 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-8-6 - Source: Raeder, 197 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: After death the apostles benefit all nations. ### Greek text ἄγανται δὲ διαφερόντως ἅπαντες καὶ θαυμάζουσιν, ὅτε δὴ καὶ ετεθνεῶτες ἐπιτελοῦσιν, ἅπερ δὴ καὶ περιόντες εἰώθεσαν ἐνεργεῖν, μᾶλλον δὲ πολλῷ μείζονα καὶ λαμπρότερα τὰ μετὰ τὴν ἐντεῦθεν ἐκδημίαν παρ᾽ ἐκείνων. τελούμενα. ἡνίκα μὲν γὰρ μετὰ τῶν σωμάτων ἐπολιτεύοντο, νῦν μὲν παρὰ τούποὺς, νῦν δὲ παρ᾽ ἐκείνους ἐφοίτων... καὶ ἄλλοτε μὲν Ῥωμαίοις, ἄλλοτε δὲ “Ἰσπανοῖς ἢ Κελτοῖς διελέγοντο᾽ ἐπειδὴ δὲ πρὸς ἐκεῖνον ἐξεδήμησαν, ὑφ᾽ οὗ κατεπέμφθησαν, ἅπαντες αὐτῶν ἐνδελεχῶς ἀπολαύουσιν, οὐ μόνον Ῥωμαῖοι, καὶ ὅσοι. γὲ τὸν τούτων ἀγαπῶσι ζυγὸν καὶ ὑπὸ τούτων ἰθύνονται, ἐλλὰ καὶ Πέρσαι καὶ Σκύθαι καὶ Μασσαγέται καὶ Σαυρομάται καὶ Ἰνδοὶ καὶ Αἰθίοπες, καὶ ξυλλήβδην εἰπεῖν ἅπαντα τῆς οἰκουμένης τὰ τέρματα. ### English translation (Claude) All especially wonder and marvel that even when dead they accomplish what they used to do while living, or rather that what they accomplish after their departure from here is much greater and more brilliant. When they lived with their bodies they went now to these, now to those, and spoke at one time with Romans, at another with Spaniards or Celts; but since they departed to the one who sent them, all enjoy them continually, not only Romans and those who love their yoke and are governed by them, but also Persians, Scythians, Massagetae, Sauromatians, Indians, and Ethiopians, and, in a word, all the ends of the world. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.6 (Raeder, 197; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-6). ## Discourse 8.7 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-8-7 - Source: Raeder, 197 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The apostolic writings are plain in style and in subject. ### Greek text τὰ γὰρ δὴ τούτων ξυγγράμματα, ἁπλᾶ γε ὄντα καὶ τῆς ᾿Ελληνικῆς γεγυμνωμένα λαμπρότητος, καὶ μὲν δὴ καὶ σμικρὰ καὶ ὀλίγα, πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις ἐστὶν ἀξιέραστα, πλὴν ὑμῶν καὶ εἴ τις ὑμῖν παραπλησίως τὴν τῆς ἀπιστίας παταπεχυμένην ἔχων ἀχλύν. ἰδεῖν οὐκ ἐθέλει τῆς ἀληθείας τὴν αἴγλην. οὐ μόνον δὲ τῆς Ἕλληνιπῆς ταῦτα κομψείας γεγύμνωται, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν πραγμάτῶν, ὧν πέρι διδάσκει, τὴν φύσιν οὐ σεμνήν τινα ἔχει καὶ περιφανῆ καὶ περίβλεπτον. ### English translation (Claude) For their writings, simple and stripped of Greek brilliance, and small and few, are lovable to all human beings, except you and anyone like you who, having the mist of unbelief poured over him, will not see the radiance of truth. And they are stripped not only of Greek elegance; the nature of the things they teach is not grand, conspicuous, or admired either. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.7 (Raeder, 197; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-7). ## Discourse 8.8 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-8-8 - Source: Raeder, 197 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Gospels tell of a lowly birth and a shameful death. ### Greek text οὐ γὰρ ὁρωμένην τινὰ τοῖς θιασώταις ἐπιδείκνυσι βασιλείαν, ἁλουργίδει κοσμουμένην καὶ στεφάνῳ λαμπρυνομένην καὶ τῷ τῶν ἀσπιδηφόρων καὶ δορυφόρων χαὶ πλήθει καὶ μεγέθει σεμνυνομένην | καὶ τόσην ἔχουσαν στρατιὰν καὶ στρατηγοὺς ἀριστεύειν ἐν πολέμοις δεδιδαγμένους καὶ τἄλλα, ὅσα πολυθρυλήτους τοὺς κεκτημένους ποιεῖ, ἀλλὰ σπήλαιον καὶ φάτνην καὶ παρθένον χερνῆτιν καὶ βρέφος εὐτελέσι σπαργάνοις ἐνειλημένον καὶ ἐπὶ κενῆς ἐρριμμένον τῆς φάτνης καὶ χωρίον ἄδοξον καὶ σμικρόν, ἐν ᾧ ταῦτα ἐγένετο, καὶ αὖ πάλιν πενίαν αὐξηθέντος τοῦ βρέφους καὶ πεῖναν καὶ δίψος παἱ τὸν ἐξ ὁδοιπορίας πόνον καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα τὸ παρὰ πάντων ἀδόμενον πάθος, τὰς ἐπὶ κόρρης πληγάς, τὰς κατὰ νώτου μάστιγας; τὸ ἰπρίον, τοὺς ἥλους, τὴν χολήν, τὸ ὄξος, τὸν θάνατον. ### English translation (Claude) For they do not show their followers a visible kingdom adorned with purple, brilliant with a crown, dignified by the number and size of shield-bearers and spearmen, having a great army and generals trained to excel in wars, and the other things that make their owners famous; but a cave, a manger, a working virgin, a baby wrapped in cheap swaddling clothes and laid in an empty manger, an obscure small place where this happened; and again, as the baby grew, poverty, hunger and thirst, the toil of travel, and after this the passion sung by all: the blows on the cheek, the scourges on the back, the wood, the nails, the gall, the vinegar, the death. ### Scripture references - Luke 2:7: allusion, high confidence - Matt 27:26–50: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.8 (Raeder, 197; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-8). ## Discourse 8.9 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-8-9 - Source: Raeder, 198 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The apostolic message persuaded many to die as martyrs. ### Greek text ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως ταῦτα καὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα διηγούμενα τῶν ἀποστόλων τὰ ξυγγράμματα ἔπεισεν ὅπαντας ἀνθρώπους, ὅτι υἱὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ Θεὸς προαιώνιος καὶ τῶν ἁπάντων ποιητὴς καὶ δημιουργὸς ὁ τὴν ἀνθρωπείαν ὑποδὺς φύσιν παὶ διὰ ταύτῆς τὴν τῶν ἀνθρώπων πραγματευσάμενος σωτηρίαν. καὶ οὐχ ἁπλῶς ἔπεισεν, ἀλλὰ τοσαύτην γε πίστιν τοῖς πλείστοις ἐντέθεικεν, ὡς ἥδιστα τὸν ὑπὲρ τῶνδε τῶν δογμάτων "καταδέξασθοανι θάνατον καὶ τοῖς ἀρνηθῆναν κελεύουσιν --ἥκιστα μὲν προέσθαι τὰς γλώττας, προτεῖναι δὲ τὰ νῶτά τοῖς ἐθέλουσι μαστιγοῦν καὶ λαμπάσι καὶ ὄνυξι τὰς πλευρὰς καὶ τοὺς αὐχένας ὑποθεῖναι τοῖς ξίφεσι καὶ ἀποτυμπανισθῆναι προθύμως καὶ ἀνασκινδυλευθῆναι, καὶ μέντοι καὶ ἐμπρησθῆναν καὶ θῆρας ἀγρίους ἰδεῖν θοινωμένους τὰ σώματα. ### English translation (Claude) Yet the writings of the apostles that narrate these and the like persuaded all human beings that the Son of God, God before the ages, Maker and Creator of all things, is the one who entered human nature and through it accomplished human salvation. And they did not merely persuade, but put such faith in most that they gladly accepted death for these doctrines, and to those who ordered them to deny, they by no means gave up their tongues, but offered their backs to those who wished to scourge them, their sides to torches and claws, and their necks to the swords, and eagerly let themselves be cudgeled and impaled, and even burned, and saw wild beasts feasting on their bodies. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.9 (Raeder, 198; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-9). ## Discourse 8.10 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-8-10 - Source: Raeder, 199 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Martyrs' souls are in heaven; their relics are honored and their intercession sought. ### Greek text τῷ τοι καὶ ἄσβεστον αὐτοῖς ὁ ἀγωνοθέτης ἐδωρήσατο πλέος καὶ μνήμην νικῶσαν τοῦ χρόνου τὴν φύσιν. μαραίνειν γὰρ δὴ οὗτος ἅπαντα πεφυκώς, τὴν τούτων ἀμάραντον διετήρησε δόξαν. καὶ αἵ μὲν γενναῖαν τῶν νιπηφόρων ψυχαὶ περιπολοῦσι τὸν οὐρανόν, τοῖς ἀσωμάτων χοροῖς ξυγχορεύουσαι᾿ τὰ δὲ σώματα οὐχ εἷς ἑνὸς ἑκάστου κατακρύπτει τάφος, ἀλλὰ πόλεις καὶ κῶμαι ταῦτα διανειμάμεναι σωτῆρας καὶ ψυχῶν καὶ σωμάτων καὶ ἰατροὺς ὀνομάζουσι καὶ ὡς πολιούχους τιμῶσι καὶ φύλακας᾽ καὶ χρώμενοι πρεσβευταῖς πρὸς τὸν τῶν ὕλων δεσπότην, διὰ τούτων τὰς θείας πκομίζονταν δωρεάς" καὶ μερισθέντος τοῦ σώματος, ἀμέριστος ἡ χάρις μεμένηκεν. ### English translation (Claude) That is why the Judge of the contest gave them unquenchable glory and a memory that conquers the nature of time. For time, whose nature is to wither all things, has kept their glory unwithering. The noble souls of the victors move about heaven, dancing with the choirs of the bodiless; and their bodies are not each hidden in one tomb, but cities and villages, sharing them out, call them saviors and physicians of souls and bodies, honor them as guardians and protectors of cities, and using them as ambassadors to the Lord of the universe, obtain the divine gifts through them; and though the body is divided, the grace has remained undivided. ### Translation notes - Theodoret describes the cult of martyrs and their relics in his day. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.10 (Raeder, 199; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-10). ## Discourse 8.11 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/7-1/#p-8-11 - Source: Raeder, 199 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Even a small relic carries the martyr's grace, which pagans mock. ### Greek text καὶ τὸ σμιπρὸν ἐκεῖνο καὶ βραχύτατον λείψανον τὴν ἴσην ἔχει δύναμιν τῷ μηδαμῇ μηδαμῶς διανεμηθέντι μάρτυρι. ἡ γὰρ ἐπανθοῦσα χάρις διανέμει τὰ δῶρα, τῇ πίστει τῶν προσιόντων τὴν φιλοτιμίαν μετροῦσα. ὑμᾶς δὲ οὐδὲ ταῦτα πείθει τὸν τούτων ὑμνῆσαι Θεόν, ἀλλὰ γελᾶτε καὶ κωμῳδεῖτε τὸ τούτοις παρὰ πάντων προσφερόμενον γέρας καὶ μύσος ὑπολαμβάνετε τὸ πελάζειν τοῖς τάφοις. ### English translation (Claude) And that small and tiny relic has power equal to the martyr never divided at all. For the grace that flourishes distributes the gifts, measuring its generosity by the faith of those who come. But not even these things persuade you to hymn their God; you laugh and mock the honor offered them by all and think it pollution to approach the tombs. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.11 (Raeder, 199; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-11). ## Discourse 8.12 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-12 - Source: Raeder, 199 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Greeks, who deify dead heroes like Heracles, cannot object. ### Greek text εἰ δὲ καὶ πάντες ὄνθρωποι τούτοις προσέπταιον, ἀλλ᾽ οὖν Ἕλληνας μόνους νεμεσᾶν τοῖς οὕτω δρωμένοις οὐκ ἔδει" τούτων γάρ τον αἵ χοαὶ καὶ τὰ ἐναγίσματα καὶ οἱ ἥρωες καὶ οἵ ἡμίθεοι καὶ οἵ θεοποιούμενοι ἄνθρωποι. | καὶ γὰρ τὸν Ἡρακλέα, ἄνθρωπον γεγονότα καὶ Ἀλεμήνης παῖδα καὶ “ἀμφιτρύωνος, καὶ θεὸν ἀπέφηναν, ὡς ἐνόμισαν, καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις θεοῖς ξυνηρίθμησαν. ### English translation (Claude) Even if all human beings stumbled at these things, the Greeks alone ought not to be indignant at what is done; for theirs are the libations, the offerings to the dead, the heroes, the demigods, and the deified human beings. For Heracles, who was a man and the son of Alcmene and Amphitryon, they declared a god, as they thought, and counted among the other gods. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.12 (Raeder, 199; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12). ## Discourse 8.13 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-13 - Source: Raeder, 199 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato calls Heracles son of Amphitryon. ### Greek text ὅτι δὲ καὶ ὁ Πλάτων ᾿άμφιτρύωνος αὐτὸν οἶδεν υἱὸν καὶ οὐ τοῦ Διός, ἀκούσατε δὴ αὐτοῦ ἐν τῷ Θεαιτήτῳ λέγοντοο᾽.,ἄλλ᾽ ἐπὶ πέντε καὶ εἴκοσι καταλόγῳ προγόνων σεμνυνομένων καὶ ἀναφερόντων εἰς Ἡρακλέα τὸν ᾿Αμφιτρύωνος ἄτοπα αὐτῷ φαίνεσθαι τῆς σμιπκρολογίας, ὅτι δὲ ᾿ἀμφιτρύωνος εἰς τὸ ἄνω πέμπτος καὶ εἰκοστὸς ἦν, οἵα ξυνέβαινεν αὐτῷ τύχη, καὶ ὃ πεντηκοστὸς ἀπ᾽ αὐτοῦ, γελᾷ οὐ δυναμένων λογίξεσθαί τε καὶ χαυνότητὸ ### English translation (Claude) That Plato too knows him as son of Amphitryon and not of Zeus, hear him say in the Theaetetus: 'And when people pride themselves on a list of twenty-five ancestors and trace them back to Heracles son of Amphitryon, the pettiness seems to him absurd; and that Amphitryon's twenty-fifth ancestor was such as chance made him, and the fiftieth from him, he laughs at those unable to reckon and rid themselves of the vanity ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Theaet. 175a–b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Theaetetus 175a–b. The quotation ends in 8.14. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.13 (Raeder, 199; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-13). ## Discourse 8.14 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-14 - Source: Raeder, 200 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Though Heracles was a man, all Greece built him temples. ### Greek text ς ἀνοήτου ψυχῆς ἀπαλλάττεσθαι. καὶ ᾿Ισοκράτης δὲ ὃ ῥήτωρ ὧδέ φησιν..Ζεὺς γὰρ Ἡρακλέα καὶ Τάνταλον γενγήσας, ὡς οἱ μῦθοι λέγουσι, καὶ πάντες πιστεύουσιν οὕτῶς ἐγέλων οἵ ξυνορᾶν ἱκανοὶ τὰ παρὰ τῶν ἄλλων μυθολογούμενα᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ὕμως ἀνθρώπῳ γε ὄντι καὶ Ἐῤρυσθεῖ δουλεύειν ἠναγχασμένῳ, καὶ νεὼς ἐδείμαντο καὶ βωμοὺς ἐδομήσαντο καὶ θυσίαις ἐτίμησαν καὶ ἑορτὰς ἀπεκλήρωδσαν, οὐ Σπαρτιάται μόνοι καὶ ᾿4θηναῖοι, ἀλλὰ καὶ ξύμπασα ἡ Ἑλλὰς καὶ τῆς Ἑῤρώπης τὰ πλεῖστα. ### English translation (Claude) of a foolish soul.' And Isocrates the orator says this: 'Zeus fathered Heracles and Tantalus, as the myths say and all believe.' So those able to see through what others told in myth laughed at it; yet to him, a man forced to serve Eurystheus, they built temples, raised altars, honored him with sacrifices, and assigned festivals, not only the Spartans and Athenians, but all Greece and most of Europe. ### Extrabiblical texts - Isocrates, Bus. 41 (Isocrates (orations)): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Isocrates, Busiris 41 (approximately). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.14 (Raeder, 200; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-14). ## Discourse 8.15 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-15 - Source: Raeder, 200 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Heracles was worshiped in Asia too, though a licentious man. ### Greek text διέβη δὲ κχαὶ εἰς τὴν ᾿Ασίαν τῆς ἐξαπάτης ἣ νόσος᾽ καὶ γὰρ καὶ ἐν Τύρῳ καὶ ἐν ἄλλαις πόλεσι παμπόλλους καὶ μεγίστους αὐτῷ σηκοὺς φκοδόμησαν. καὶ οὐ μόνον ἐτησίους ἀπένειμαν πανηγύρεις, γε ἄνδρα ἀλλὰ εἰδότες, καὶ τευραετηρικοῖς καὶ ἄνδρα οὐ ἀγῶσιν σώφρονα ἐτίμησαν, οὐδὲ φιλοσοφίαν καὶ ταῦτά ἠγαπηκότα, ἀλλ᾽ ἀκολασίᾳ παὶ λαγνείᾳ ξυνεζηκότα. ### English translation (Claude) The disease of deception crossed into Asia too; for in Tyre and other cities they built very many and very large shrines to him. And they assigned him not only yearly festivals but honored him with four-yearly games, though they knew him to be a man, and a man not self-controlled nor loving philosophy, but one who lived in licentiousness and lust. ### Translation notes - The scan scrambles a few words; translated by sense. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.15 (Raeder, 200; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-15). ## Discourse 8.16 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-16 - Source: Raeder, 200 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Heracles' lust led to his death. ### Greek text ἵνα γὰρ τὴν ἄλλην αὐτοῦ πᾶσαν ἀκρασίαν -παρῶ, φασὶν αὐτὸν ἐν μιᾷ νυκτὶ πεντήκοντα μιγῆναι παρθένοις, τὸν τρίτον καὶ δέκατον ἴσως ἀγωνισάμενον ἄθλον᾽ ἀπόχρη δὲ καὶ τοῦτο δηλῶσαι πᾶσαν τὴν τοῦ βίου προαίρεσιν. καὶ μέντοι τοῦ βίου τὸ τέλος διὰ τοιαύτην ἀκρασίαν πρὸ τῆς ὥρας ὑπέμεινεν. ὁμόξυγα γὰρ ἔχων τὴν 4ηϊάνειραν, ξυνήφθη μὲν ἄλλῃ δι’ ἔρωτα, ὑπὸ δὲ τῆς προτέρας παρὰ γνώμην ### English translation (Claude) To pass over all his other incontinence, they say he lay with fifty virgins in one night, contending perhaps for a thirteenth labor; this suffices to show his whole way of life. And he suffered the end of his life before its time through such incontinence. Having Deianira as his wife, he joined himself to another out of love, and was plotted against unintentionally by the first. ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 8.17. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.16 (Raeder, 200; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-16). ## Discourse 8.17 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-17 - Source: Raeder, 201 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Deianira's potion killed Heracles, who burned himself. ### Greek text ἐπεβουλεύθη, ἐρωτικὸν γὰρ αὕτη κατασκευάσασα φάρμακον καὶ χρίσασα τοῦ ἀνδρὸς τὸν χιτῶνα, πέπομφεν ἡτηκότι, καὶ ἤλπισέ γε ἀγρεύσειν πρὸς ἑαυτήν; διήμαρτε δὲ ὧν ἤλπισεν. ἐκθερμῆναν γὰρ ἐκεῖνο τὸ φάρμακον τοῦ Ἡρακλέους τὸ σῶμα παγχαλέπῳ περιέβαλε νόσῳ. ὃ δὲ ἀλγυνόμενος καὶ μὴ φέρων τὸ πάθος, πυρὰν νήσας καὶ ἕαυτόν γε καταθείς, τοτοῦ βίου τὸ τέλος ἐδέξατο ἄξιόν γε οὐ γὰρ (ἄξιαν τῆς θεοποιΐας τὰ τοῦ παρ᾽ ὑμῶν θεοποιηθέντος ἐπιτηδεύματα. ### English translation (Claude) For she prepared a love potion, smeared her husband's tunic, and sent it to him when he asked, hoping to win him to herself; but she failed of her hope. For that drug, heating the body of Heracles, threw him into a most grievous disease; and in pain and unable to bear the suffering, he heaped a pyre, laid himself on it, and received an end of life worthy of him; for the pursuits of the one you deified were not worthy of deification. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.17 (Raeder, 201; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-17). ## Discourse 8.18 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-18 - Source: Raeder, 201 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pagans still invoked Heracles as savior. ### Greek text ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως καὶ ταῦτα εἰδότες (ταῦτα γὰρ τὰ παλαιὰ διδάσκει ξυγγράμματα), οὐδὲν ἧττον κἀκεῖνον σωτῆρα ἐκάλουν καὶ ἀλεξίκακον προσηγόρευον καὶ τὸ Ἡράκλεις ἄναξ“ τοῖς λόγοις προσέπλαττον. καὶ ὑμεῖς δὲ ὡσαύτως τοῖς τοιούτοις σεμνύνεσθε λύγοις, ἀποχρῆν εἰς παιδείας ἡγούμενοι πξριφάνειαν Ι τὸ τὰ τοιαῦτα ἐπιλέγειν ῥηματίσκια. ### English translation (Claude) Yet knowing this (for the ancient writings teach it), they nonetheless called him savior, named him averter of evil, and worked 'Lord Heracles' into their speech. And you likewise pride yourselves on such words, thinking it enough for brilliance of education to add such little phrases. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.18 (Raeder, 201; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-18). ## Discourse 8.19 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-19 - Source: Raeder, 201 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Apollodorus tells of Asclepius's birth and training. ### Greek text καὶ τὸν Ἀσνληπιὸν δέ φησιν ᾿Απολλόδωρος κατὰ μέν τινὰς 'Ἴρσιγόης εἶναι υἱόν, κατὰ δὲ ἄλλους Κορωνίδος, λάθρα μὲν ἀπόλλωνι ξυνελθεῖν βιασθείσης, κυησάσης δὲ καὶ τεκούσης καὶ ἐμθεμένης τὸ βρέφος, τοῦτο δὲ πυνηγέτας τινὰς εὑρηχότας ὑπὸ κυνὸς τρεφόμενον λαβεῖν καὶ κομίσαι λέγει Χείρωνι τῷ Κενταύρῳ, εἶτα ἐκεῖ τραφῆναί τε καὶ ἀσκηθῆναι τὴν ἰατρικὴν ἐπιστήμην, ἐν Τρίκκῃ δὲ πρῶτον καὶ Ἔπιδαύρῳ δοῦναι πεῖραν τῆς τέχνης. ### English translation (Claude) And Apollodorus says that Asclepius was, according to some, the son of Arsinoe, according to others of Coronis, who was secretly forced to lie with Apollo, conceived, bore, and exposed the child; that some hunters found it being nursed by a dog, took it, and brought it to Chiron the Centaur; that there he was raised and trained in medical science, and first gave proof of his art in Tricca and Epidaurus. ### Extrabiblical texts - Apollodorus (Apollodorus of Athens): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Apollodorus of Athens, fragment; no extrabiblical id exists. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.19 (Raeder, 201; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-19). ## Discourse 8.20 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-20 - Source: Raeder, 202 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Asclepius was a man, killed by Zeus, taught by Chiron. ### Greek text οὕτω δὲ ἄκρως, φησίν, ἐπαιδεύθη καὶ μάλα γε σπουδαίως, ὡς μὴ μόνον τὸὺς ἀρρωστοῦντας ἰᾶσθαι, ἀλλὰ καί τένας τῶν τετελευτηκότων ἐγείρειν" διὸ δὴ τὸν τερπικέραυνον χαλεπήναντα πρηστῆρσι "βαλεῖν καὶ ἐξαγαγεῖν τῆς ζωῆς. τοιγαροῦν καὶ ἄνθρωπος ἦν, οὐδὲ τοῖς ἄλλοις ἀνθρώποις παραπλησίως τραφείς, ἀλλὰ καὶ παρὰ κυνὸς τῆς πρώτης ἀπολαύσας τροφῆς καὶ τῷ τῶν θηρευόντων οἴμτῳ διασωθείς, καὶ οὐκ ἐκ θείας σοφίας καὶ ἐπιστήμης τὸ ἰατρεύειν ἔχων, ἀλλὰ παρὰ Χείρωνος τήνδε τὴν τέχνην ἐκπαιδευθείς. ### English translation (Claude) He was so highly and earnestly trained, he says, that he not only healed the sick but raised some of the dead; for which the thunder-loving one, angered, struck him with lightning and took him out of life. So he was a man, not even raised like other men, but first nursed by a dog and saved by the pity of hunters, and having his healing not from divine wisdom and knowledge but taught the art by Chiron. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.20 (Raeder, 202; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-20). ## Discourse 8.21 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-21 - Source: Raeder, 202 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Asclepius lived in heroic times and died as a mortal. ### Greek text Ὁ οὗτος δὲ ὃ Χείρων καὶ ᾿Αχιλλέως ἐγένετο παιδευτής. ὅθεν δῆλον ὅτι κατὰ τὸν χρόνον τὸν αὐτὸν ἐγενέσθην, ἢ μικρῷ τινι οὗτος ᾿Αχιλλέως πρεσβύτερος, ἐπειδήπερ καὶ τοῖς Ἀἀργοναύταις ξυνέπλευσε, καὶ ὃ τούτου γε παῖς ὁ Μαχάων ξυνεπολέμησεν Ἀχιλλεῖ, καὶ ὃ κεραυνὸς δέ γε καὶ ὃ γενόμενος ἐμπρησμὸς δηλοῖ τῆς φύσεως τὸ ἐπίκηρον. ### English translation (Claude) This Chiron was also the teacher of Achilles. Hence it is plain that they lived at the same time, or that he was a little older than Achilles, since he sailed with the Argonauts and his son Machaon fought alongside Achilles; and the thunderbolt and the burning show his perishable nature. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.21 (Raeder, 202; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-21). ## Discourse 8.22 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-22 - Source: Raeder, 202 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Asclepius is still secretly worshiped with his serpent symbol. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ καὶ οὕτω γε φύντα, ὡς εἴρηται, καὶ σωθέντα γε καὶ τραφέντα καὶ ἐμπρησθέντα, τοῖς ἄλλοις θεοῖς κατέλεξαν καὶ τεμένη γε παθωσίωσαν καὶ καθιέρωσαν βωμούς, καὶ λοιβῇ καὶ κνίσῃ, πάλαι μὲν προφανῶς, νῦν δὲ ἴσως ἐν παραβύστῳ, γεραίρετε καὶ τὰ τούτου ἀγάλματα θείας ἀξιοῦτε τιμῆς καὶ τὸν ἐνειλημένον αὐτῷ θουμάζετε δράκοντα καὶ ξύμβολον εἶναι τῆς ἰατρικῆς φατε, ὅτε καθάπερ ἐκεῖνος ἀποδύεται τὸ γῆρας, οὕτως ἡ ἰατρικὴ τῶν νόσων ἐλευθεροῖ. ### English translation (Claude) Yet, born, saved, raised, and burned as has been said, they ranked him with the other gods, consecrated precincts and dedicated altars, and you honor him with libation and savor, formerly openly, now perhaps in secret, think his images worthy of divine honor, admire the serpent coiled around him, and say it is a symbol of medicine, because as it sheds old age, so medicine frees from diseases. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.22 (Raeder, 202; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-22). ## Discourse 8.23 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-23 - Source: Raeder, 202 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Homer knew Asclepius only as a physician. ### Greek text ὅτι δὲ ἐπὶ τῶν Ὁμήρου χρόνων οὐδέπω οὗτος τῆς θεοποιΐας ἐτετυχήκει, μάρτυς ὁ ποιητής, οὐ τὸν Ἀσπληπιόν, ἀλλὰ τὸν Παιήονα δείξας τὰ τοῦ ἴάρεως θεραπεύσαντα τραύματα (δεῖ γὰρ τουτουσὶ τοὺς θεοὺς καὶ τραύματα ἔχειν καὶ ἰατρούς)" καὶ τὸν Μαχάονα δὲ οὐ θεοῦ λέγει υἱὸν οὐδέ γε. ἡμιθέου, ἀλλ ἰατροῦ" ἔφη γάρ᾽' οφῶτ᾽ Ἡσκληπιοῦ υἱὸν ἀμύμονος ### English translation (Claude) That in Homer's times he had not yet obtained deification the poet is witness, showing not Asclepius but Paeon healing the wounds of Ares (these gods must have wounds and physicians too); and he calls Machaon the son not of a god or a demigod but of a physician; for he said: 'the man, son of Asclepius the blameless ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 5.899–901 (Homer, Iliad): allusion, high confidence - Homer, Il. 4.194 (Homer, Iliad): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Iliad 5.899–901; 4.194. The quotation ends in 8.24. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.23 (Raeder, 202; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-23). ## Discourse 8.24 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-24 - Source: Raeder, 203 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Dionysus, son of Semele, was deified despite his shameful deeds. ### Greek text ἰηνῆρος.““ καὶ τὸν Διόνυσον δὲ Σεμέλης υἱὸν γεγενῆσθαι καὶ Ὅμηρος ἔφη καὶ Ἐὐριπίδης καὶ ἄλλοι γε πλεῖστοι" Σεμέλη δὲ Κάδμου θυγάτηρ. ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως καὶ οὗτος θείας ἠξιώθη τιμῆς, καὶ ταῦτα γύννις ὧν καὶ θηλυδρίας καὶ ἀνδρόγυνος᾽ καὶ γὰρ τοῖς ἐπικουροῦσι μισθὸν ὑπέσχετο δώ-σειν οὐ χρυσὸν ἢ ἄργυρον, ἀλλὰ τὴν ὕβριν τοῦ σώματος" καὶ οὕτως περὶ τὴν βδελυρὰν ἐκείνην ὑπόσχεσιν ἐγένετο φιλαλήθης, ὡς τῶν βεβοηθηκότων τετελευτημότων πρὶν ἢ δέϊξασθαι τὸν πολυάρατον ἐκεῖνον μισθόν, ἑτέρως ἐπινοῆσαι τὴν τῆς ἐπαγγελίας ἐκπλήρωσιν. καὶ σιωπῶ τὸ σύκινον πέος καὶ τὰ ἐπὶ τούτῳ τελούμενα᾽ αἰσχύνομαι γὰρ λέγειν, ἐφ᾽ οἷς ἐπανηγύριξον Ἕλληνες. ### English translation (Claude) physician.' And Homer, Euripides, and very many others said Dionysus was the son of Semele, and Semele was the daughter of Cadmus. Yet he too was thought worthy of divine honor, though he was effeminate, womanish, and man-woman; for he promised those who helped him a reward not of gold or silver but the outrage of his body; and he was so truthful about that loathsome promise that, when his helpers died before receiving that accursed reward, he devised another way to fulfill the promise. I am silent about the fig-wood phallus and the rites performed for it; for I am ashamed to say at what the Greeks held festival. ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 14.325 (Homer, Iliad): allusion, high confidence - Clement of Alexandria, Protr. 2.34 (Exhortation to the Greeks): echo, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Iliad 14.325. The story of Dionysus and Prosymnus is from Clement of Alexandria, Protr. 2.34. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.24 (Raeder, 203; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-24). ## Discourse 8.25 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-25 - Source: Raeder, 203 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Dioscuri were worshiped in Sparta and Athens. ### Greek text καὶ μέντοι καὶ τοὺς Τυνδαρίδας θεοὺς ἐκάλεσαν Ἕλληνες καὶ Διοσκούρους ὠνόμασαν καὶ ᾿Εφεστίους καὶ "άνακας᾽ καὶ τεμενῶν οὐκ ἐν Σπάρτῃ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ Ἡθήνησι τούτους ἠξίωσαν. καὶ τούτοιν μέμνηται Δημοσθένης ὁ δήτωρ, οὑτωσὶ λέγων"..ἐν τῷ πανδοκείῳ τῷ πρὸς τῷ Διοσχουρίῳ. ### English translation (Claude) The Greeks also called the sons of Tyndareus gods, named them Dioscuri, Ephestii, and Anaces, and thought them worthy of precincts not only in Sparta but also in Athens. Demosthenes the orator mentions them, saying: 'in the inn next to the Dioscurium'. ### Extrabiblical texts - Demosthenes (Demosthenes (orations)): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Ps.-Demosthenes, Against Neaera 45.80 (attribution uncertain). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.25 (Raeder, 203; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-25). ## Discourse 8.26 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-26 - Source: Raeder, 203 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Pythia ordered the boxer Cleomedes to be honored as a hero. ### Greek text καὶ τὸ “εωκόριον δὲ τῶν “εὼ θυγατέρων ἐστὶν ἱερόν. καὶ ἄλλους δέ γε παμπόλλους ἀθλίους καὶ τρισαθλίους ἐθεοποέησαν ἀνθρωπίσκους καὶ δημοθοινίαις ἐτίμησαν. καὶ γὰρ ὁ Πύθιος μάντις Ἀλεομήδη τὸν ᾿Αστυπαλαιέα τὸν πύχτην θείου γέρως ἀπολαύειν ἐκέλευσε καὶ τόνδε ἀνεῖλε τὸν χρησμὸν ἡ Πυθία᾽. ὕστατος ἡρώων Κλεομήδης ᾿Αστυπαλαιεύς, ὃν θυσίαις τιμᾶ ### English translation (Claude) And the Leocorium is a temple of the daughters of Leos. And they deified very many other miserable and thrice-miserable little men and honored them with public feasts. For the Pythian seer ordered Cleomedes the boxer of Astypalaea to enjoy divine honor, and the Pythia gave this oracle: 'Last of the heroes is Cleomedes of Astypalaea; honor him with sacrifices, ### Extrabiblical texts - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The scanned page is cropped at the right edge (8.26–8.28); the text here appears complete. The oracle ends in 8.27. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.26 (Raeder, 203; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-26). ## Discourse 8.27 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-27 - Source: Raeder, 204 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Cleomedes killed his opponent and crushed a school of boys. ### Greek text θ᾽, ὡς οὐκέτι θνητὸν ἐόντα“ ἵνα δὲ γνῶτε καὶ ὑμεῖς, ὧν δὴ εἵνεκα τῷ Διὶ καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις ξυνετάχθη καὶ οὗτος, ἐγὼ τὰ περὶ τοῦδε ἐρῶ διηγήματα. οὗτος τὸν ἀνταγωνιστὴν μιᾷ πατάξας πληγῇ, ἀνέφξε μὲν αὐτοῦ τὴν πλευράν, ἐμβα-1 λὼν δὲ εἴσω τὴν χεῖρα τῶν ἐγχάτων ἐλάβετο, εἶτα τῶν ἀθλοθετῶν διὰ τὴν τῆς ὠμότητος χαλεπηνάντων ὑπερβολὴν καὶ τίμημα ἐπιθέντων, ἀνεχώρησε μὲν βαρυθυμῶν, παριὼν δὲ διὰ τῆς ἀγορᾶς, ἕνα τῶν ἐρειδόντων τὸν ὄροφον ἐφελπυσάμενος κίονα, ξυμμορίαν μειρακίων κατέχωσεν, ἣν τῷ. ### English translation (Claude) since he is no longer mortal.' So that you too may know for what reasons he too was ranked with Zeus and the others, I will tell the stories about him. Striking his opponent with one blow, he opened his side, thrust his hand inside, and seized his entrails; then, when the stewards of the games, angered at the excess of cruelty, imposed a fine, he went off in a rage, and passing through the marketplace, pulled down one of the columns supporting the roof and buried a company of boys who happened ### Extrabiblical texts - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, medium confidence - Pausanias, 6.9.6–8 (Pausanias, Description of Greece): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The story is in Pausanias 6.9.6–8. The sentence continues in 8.28. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.27 (Raeder, 204; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-27). ## Discourse 8.28 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-28 - Source: Raeder, 204 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Hadrian deified Antinous; the Spartans honored Hyacinthus. ### Greek text διδασκάλῳ προσεδρεύειν αὐτόθι ξυνέβοινεν. τούτων αὐτὸν εἵνεκα τῶν κατορθωμάτων ὁ Πύθιος ξυνέταξε τοῖς θεοῖς. καὶ ᾿Αδριανὸν δὲ τὸν Ῥωμαίων βασιλέα φασὶν ᾿Αντίνοον, παιδικὰ γενόμενον αὐτοῦ, θεὸν ἀναγορεῦσαι καὶ νεὼν οἶνοδομῆσαι καὶ θείας ἀξιοῦσθαι παρὰ τῶν ὑπηκόων προστάξαι τιμῆς. καὶ τὰ Ὑακίνθια δὲ οἵ Σπαρτιάται ξορτὴν μεγίστην καὶ δημοθοινίαν ἐνόμιζον. ### English translation (Claude) to be attending their teacher there. For these achievements the Pythian ranked him with the gods. They also say that Hadrian, the Roman emperor, proclaimed Antinous, his favorite, a god, built a temple, and ordered his subjects to give him divine honor. And the Spartans considered the Hyacinthia a very great feast and public banquet. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.28 (Raeder, 204; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-28). ## Discourse 8.29 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-29 - Source: Raeder, 205 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christians honor martyrs, not deify them, and tombs do not pollute. ### Greek text Τί δήποτε τοίνυν οἵ τοσούτους νεκροὺς ὠνομακχότες βεοὺς νεμεσᾶτε ἡμῖν, οὐ θεοποιοῦσιν, ἀλλὰ τιμῶσι τοὺς μάρτυρας, ὡς Θεοῦ γε μάρτυρας καὶ εὔνους θεράποντας; ἀνθ᾽ ὕτου δὲ μολυσμοῦ τινος μεταλαμβάνειν νομίξετε τὸν ᾿εταῖς θήκαις τῶν τεθνεώτων πελάζοντα; ἀνοίας γὰρ ταῦτα χαὶ ἀμαθίας ἐσχάτης. ### English translation (Claude) Why then are you, who named so many dead men gods, indignant with us, who do not deify but honor the martyrs as witnesses of God and faithful servants? And why do you think one who approaches the tombs of the dead incurs some pollution? This belongs to folly and utter ignorance. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.29 (Raeder, 205; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-29). ## Discourse 8.30 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-30 - Source: Raeder, 205 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Greek temples held tombs, yet were not thought polluted. ### Greek text καὶ γὰρ Ἀἀθήνησιν, ὡς ᾿Αντίοχος ἐν φῇ ἐνάτῃ γέγραφεν ἱστορίᾳ, ἄνω γε ἐν τῇ ἀκροπόλει Κέκροπός ἐστι τάφος παρὰ τὴν Πολιοῦχον αὐτήν᾽ καὶ ἐν “Δαρίσσῃ τῇ γε Θετταλικῇ πάλιν ἐν τῷ ναῷ τῆς ᾿4θηνᾶς τὸν Ἀκρίσιον τεθάφθαι φησίν᾽ ἐν δὲ Μιλήτῳ τὸν Κλεόμαχον ἐν τῷ ΤΣ ῸΡ τῆς "άρέμιδος. ἐν Μογν γον ταφῆναι Ζήνων ὁ Μύνδιος ἔφη" τὸν ἐν Τελμισῷ δὲ βωμὸν τοῦ Ἀπόλλωνος μνῆμα εἶναι Τελμισέως τοῦ μάντεως ἱστοροῦσιν. ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως οὔτε οἵ τηνικάδε θάψαντες μιαίνειν ὑπέλαβον τοὺς βωμούς, οὔτε οἱ ὕστερον θύοντες ἄγους ἐκεῖθεν μεταλαγχάνειν ἐνόμι ### English translation (Claude) For in Athens, as Antiochus wrote in his ninth history, up on the acropolis is the tomb of Cecrops beside the Protectress herself; and in Larissa of Thessaly he says Acrisius was buried in the temple of Athena; in Miletus Cleomachus in the temple of Apollo; Zeno of Myndus said Leucophryne was buried in the temple of Artemis in Magnesia; and they record that the altar of Apollo in Telmissus is the tomb of Telmisseus the seer. Yet neither those who buried them then thought they defiled the altars, nor did those who sacrificed later think they incurred pollution from there. ### Extrabiblical texts - Clement of Alexandria, Protr. 3.45 (Exhortation to the Greeks): echo, high confidence ### Translation notes - The list is from Clement of Alexandria, Protr. 3.45. The scan is garbled for one name; restored from Clement. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.30 (Raeder, 205; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-30). ## Discourse 8.31 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-31 - Source: Raeder, 205 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Homer's Achilles handled Patroclus's body without fear of pollution. ### Greek text ξον, [ τοπάζετε δὲ τοῦτο μόνοι ὑμεῖς, οἱ δὲ παλαιοὶ τούτων οὐδὲν ὑπελάμβανον. καὶ γὰρ δὴ καὶ Ὅμηρος δείανυσιν ἐν τοῖς ἔπεσι, τὸν Ἀχιλλέα τὸν Πηλέως. τὸν «ἰακίδην, τὸν ἐκ Θέτιδος, τὸν ἐκ Διὸς καθ' ὑμᾶς, περιπτυσσόμενον νεκρὸν τοῦ Πατρόκλου τὸ σῶμα, καὶ ἡνίκα τοῦτο τῇ πυρᾷ προσέφερον οἱ Μυρμιδόνες, τὴν κεφαλὴν φέροντα, εἶτα τὴν πυρὰν κατασβεννύντα καὶ τὰ ὀστᾶ γε ξυλλέγοντα καὶ ταῦτα ἐν χρυσῇ φιάλῃ τυθέντα καὶ ἔνδον εἰς τὴν ὅκηγὴν κομίξοντα τὴν αὑτοῦ. ### English translation (Claude) Only you suppose this; the ancients supposed nothing of the kind. For Homer shows in his epics Achilles, son of Peleus, the Aeacid, son of Thetis, and of Zeus according to you, embracing the dead body of Patroclus, and when the Myrmidons brought it to the pyre, carrying the head, then quenching the pyre, gathering the bones, placing them in a golden bowl, and carrying them into his own tent. ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 23.136–257 (Homer, Iliad): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Iliad 18.317; 23.136–137, 250–257. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.31 (Raeder, 205; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-31). ## Discourse 8.32 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-32 - Source: Raeder, 206 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Thucydides describes Athenian honors for the war dead. ### Greek text καὶ ὃ Θουκυδίδης τῶν ἐν τῷ Πελοποννησιακῷ πολέμῳ τετελευτηκότων διηγεῖται τὸ γέρας, καὶ ὅπως μὲν τὰ εὑρεθέντα σώματα τῶν προσηκόντων ! ἔχαστος ἠξίου τοφῆς, ἡλίκην δὲ τοῖς ἥκιστα εὑρεθεῖσιν ἐμηχανῶντο τιμήν, κυπαρισσίνας μὲν κατασκευάζοντες λάργακας, κοινῇ δὲ πάντες, οἱ μὲν ἡγούμενον τούτων, οἱ δὲ ἑπόμενοι καὶ παρεπόμενοι, καὶ τάφον κατασκευάζοντες μέγιστον τοῖς ὑπὸ οἰωνῶν ἢ κυνῶν ἢ θώων δαπανηθεῖσιν. οὕτω καὶ τῶν ἐν Παραθῶνν παραταξαμένων τοὺς τετελευτηκότας ἐτίμησαν. ### English translation (Claude) And Thucydides describes the honor given to those who died in the Peloponnesian War: how each person thought the bodies of his relatives that were found worthy of burial, and what honor they devised for those not found, preparing cypress chests, all together, some leading, some following and accompanying, and making a very great tomb for those consumed by birds, dogs, or jackals. So too they honored those who fell at Marathon. ### Extrabiblical texts - Thucydides, 2.34 (Thucydides, History): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Thucydides 2.34. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.32 (Raeder, 206; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-32). ## Discourse 8.33 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-33 - Source: Raeder, 206 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Homer shows Odysseus offering libations to the dead. ### Greek text ὅτι δὲ καὶ χοὰς τοῖς τεθνεῶσι προσέφερον, ἴστε μὲν καὶ ὑμεῖς οἱ νύμτωρ ταύτας παρὰ τοὺς νόμους τολμῶντες μαρτυρεῖ δὲ καὶ Ὅμηρος τὸν Δαέρτου δειπνὺς κατά γε τὰς ὑποθημοσύνας τῆς Κίρκης καὶ τὸν βόθρον! ὀρύξαντα "αἱ τὰς χοὰς ἐπιτετελεκότα καὶ ταῦτά γε διηγούμενον τῷ Ἡλωνόῳ᾽,ἐγώϊ γάρ φησιν γορ ὀξὺ ἐρυσσάμενος παρὰ μηροῦ, βόθρον ὄφυξ᾽ ὅσσον τὲ πυγούσιον ἔνθα καὶ ἔνθα᾽ ἀμφ᾽ αὐτῷ δὲ χοὴν χεόμην πᾶσιν νεκύεσσι, πρῶτα μελιιρήτῳ, μετέπειτα δὲ ἡδέϊ οἴνῳ, τὸ τρίτον, αὖθ᾽ ὕδατι, ἐπὶ δ᾽ ἄλφιτα. λευκὰ πάλυνα. πολλὰ δὲ γουνούμην νεκύων ἀμενηνὰ, κάρηνα, ἐλθὼν εἰς Ἰθάκην στεῖραν βοῦν, ἥτις ἀρίστη, ῥέξειν ἐν μεγάροισι πυρήν τ᾽ ἐμπλησέμεν ἐσθλῶν, Τειρεσίῃ δ᾽ ἀπάνευθεν ὕϊν ἱερευσέμεν οἴῳ παμμέλαν᾽, ὃς μήλοισι, μεταπρέπει ἡμετέροισιν. τοὺς δ᾽ ἐπεὶ εὐχωλῇσι λιτῇσί τε ἔθνεα νεκρῶν ἐλλισάμην, τὰ δὲ μῆλα λαβὼν ἀπεδειροτόμήσα ἐς βόθρον' ῥέε δ᾽ αἷμα κελαινεφές᾽ αἱ δ᾽ ἀγέροντο ψυχαὶ ὑπ’ ἐξ ἐρέβευς νεκύων κατατεθνειώτων. ### English translation (Claude) That they offered libations to the dead you yourselves know, who dare them at night against the laws; and Homer bears witness, showing the son of Laertes, at Circe's instructions, digging the pit and performing the libations, and telling this to Alcinous: 'I drew my sharp sword from my thigh and dug a pit a cubit each way, and around it poured a libation to all the dead, first with honey-milk, then with sweet wine, third with water, and sprinkled white barley meal. And I much entreated the strengthless heads of the dead, that when I came to Ithaca I would sacrifice in my halls a barren cow, the best, and fill a pyre with good things, and to Teiresias alone apart would offer a ram all black, which stands out among our flocks. And when I had besought the tribes of the dead with vows and prayers, I took the sheep and cut their throats over the pit, and the dark blood flowed; and the souls of the dead who had died gathered from Erebus.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Od. 11.24–37 (Homer, Odyssey): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Odyssey 11.24–37. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.33 (Raeder, 206; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-33). ## Discourse 8.34 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-34 - Source: Raeder, 207 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christians offer martyrs no sacrifices but honor them as friends of God. ### Greek text εἶτα ἐξη- 6γεῖται, ὕπως ὁ τῶν ψυχῶν ξυνέθεεν ὅμιλος καὶ μεταλαβεῖν ἠπείγετο τῶν χοῶν. καὶ τί λέγω τὸν ποιητήν; Ἀριστονλῆς γὰρ ὃ Περιπατητιπὸς “ύκωνα φάναι τὸν Πυθαγορικὸν ἔφη, ὡς Ἀριστοτέλης ὁ Νιπομάχου θυσίαν τετελευτηκυίᾳ τῇ γυναιηὶ τοιαύτην εἰώθει προσφέρειν, ὁποίαν ᾿4θηναῖοι τῇ Δήμητρι. ἡμεῖς δέ, ὦ ἄνδρες, οὔτε θυσίας, οὔτε μὴν χοὰς τοῖς μάρτυσιν ἀπονέμομεν, ἀλλ’ ὡς θείους καὶ θεοφιλεῖς γεραίρομεν ἄνδρας. οὕτω γὰρ τοῦ πεποιηκότος καὶ σεσωκότος ἠράσθησαν, ὡς τὴν ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ σφαγὴν ὑπολαβεῖν ἀξιέραστον. ### English translation (Claude) Then he narrates how the crowd of souls ran together and hurried to partake of the libations. And why do I speak of the poet? Aristocles the Peripatetic said that Lycon the Pythagorean said that Aristotle son of Nicomachus used to offer his dead wife such a sacrifice as the Athenians offer to Demeter. We, gentlemen, assign neither sacrifices nor libations to the martyrs, but honor them as divine men and dear to God. For they so loved their Maker and Savior that they thought death for him lovable. ### Extrabiblical texts - Aristocles (Aristocles of Messene, On Philosophy): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Aristocles of Messene, fragment (Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.2.8). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.34 (Raeder, 207; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-34). ## Discourse 8.35 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-35 - Source: Raeder, 207 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pindar says the souls of the godly dwell in heaven. ### Greek text Εἰ δὲ ἀναισθήτως αὐτοὺς ἔγειν τῶν γινομένων νομί-ἔετε [ καὶ μὴ θείας τινὸς καὶ τρισολβίας ὄντως λήξεως ἀπολαῦσαι, Πίνδαρος ὃ λυρικὸς ταύτην ὑμῶν ἐκβαλέτω τὴν δόξαν, λέγων ὡδί",νψυχαὶ δ᾽ εὐσεβῶν, ἐν οὐρανοῖς ναίουσαι, ### English translation (Claude) If you think they are insensible of what happens and do not enjoy some divine and truly thrice-blessed lot, let Pindar the lyric poet drive out this opinion of yours, saying this: 'The souls of the godly, dwelling in the heavens, ### Extrabiblical texts - Pindar (Pindar (odes and fragments)): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Pindar, fragment (spurious; known from Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 4.26.167). The quotation ends in 8.36. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.35 (Raeder, 207; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-35). ## Discourse 8.36 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-36 - Source: Raeder, 207 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pindar and Empedocles support the heavenly lot of the godly. ### Greek text μολπαῖς μάκαρα μέγαν ἀείδουσ᾽ ἐν ὕμνοις.“ εἰ δὲ τῶν εὐσεβῶς βεβιωκότων οὐρανὸς ἐνδιαίτημα, ταύτην ἔχουσι τὴν λῆξιν. οἱ μάρτυρεο᾽ τούτων γὰρ οὐδὲν εὐσεβέστερον᾽ καὶ Ἐμπεδοκλῆς δὲ ὃ Ἀπραγαντῖνος οὕτω φησίν"..εἰς δὲ τέλος μάντεις τε καὶ ὑμνοπόλοι καὶ ἰητροὶ καὺ πρόμοι ἀνθρώποισιν ἐπιχθονίοισν πέλονται ἔνθεν ἀναβλαστοῦσι θεοὶ τιμῇ ### English translation (Claude) sing in songs the great Blessed One with hymns.' If heaven is the dwelling of those who have lived godly lives, the martyrs have this lot, for none is more godly than they. And Empedocles of Acragas says this: 'And at the end they become seers and hymn-singers and physicians and leaders among earthly men; and from there they spring up as gods in honor ### Extrabiblical texts - Pindar (Pindar (odes and fragments)): quotation, medium confidence - Empedocles, fr. 146 (Empedocles (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Empedocles, fragment 146 (Diels–Kranz). The quotation continues in 8.37. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.36 (Raeder, 207; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-36). ## Discourse 8.37 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-37 - Source: Raeder, 208 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: If seers and physicians are honored, the martyrs, who had every virtue, deserve more. ### Greek text σι φέριστοι. εἰ δὲ μάντεις καὶ ἰατροὺς τοσαύτης ἔφησεν ἐκεῖνος ἀξιοῦσθαι. τιμῆς, τί ἂν εἴποι τις περὶ τῶν τοσαύτην ἐπιδειξαμένων ὑπὲρ εὐσεβείας ἀνδρείαν, οἷς τούργον οὐ μόγὸν ἀνδρείων, ἀλλὰ καὶ δικαιοσύνην καὶ σωφροσύνην καὶ σοφίαν καὶ φρόνησιν μαρτυρεῖς τί γὰρ σωφρονέστερον τῶν οὐκ ἀνασχομένων ἐκείνων ἐκστῆναι, ὅπερ ἐξ ἀρχῆς εὖ ἔχειν ὑπέλαβον; τί δὲ δικαιότερον τῶν τὰς θείας εὐεργεσίας ἀμειαβον; τί δὲ δικαιότερον τῶν τὰς θείας εὐεργεσίας ἀμει ψαμένων σφαγῇ καὶ τὰ σώματα ἐκμδεδωκότων ὑπὲρ τοῦ τὸ σῶμα παραδεδωκότος σταυρῷ; ### English translation (Claude) most excellent.' If he said that seers and physicians are thought worthy of such honor, what would one say of those who showed such courage for godliness, whose deed bears witness not only to courage but also to justice, self-control, wisdom, and prudence? For what is more self-controlled than those who would not depart from what they judged good from the beginning? What more just than those who repaid the divine benefits with their slaughter and gave up their bodies for him who gave his body to the cross? ### Extrabiblical texts - Empedocles, fr. 146 (Empedocles (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Empedocles, fragment 146 (end). The scan repeats a phrase; it is translated once. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.37 (Raeder, 208; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-37). ## Discourse 8.38 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-38 - Source: Raeder, 208 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The martyrs showed wisdom and courage. ### Greek text τί δὲ φρονιμώτερον ἢ σοφώτερον τῶν οὕτω ταῦτα βουλευσαμένων καὶ τῶν μὲν τῇδε καταπεφρονηκότων, ὡς βέβαιον οὐδὲν ἐχόντων καὶ μόνιμον, ἐρασθέντων δὲ ἐκείνων, ἃ λόγος ἑρμηνεύειν οὐ δύναται: τί δὲ ἀνδρικώτερον τῶν ἀνταγωνισαμένων πρὸς πολλὰ παθήματα καὶ διάφορα καὶ τοὺς κολάξοντας νενικπηκότων᾽ τῇ χαρτερίᾳ τῆς γνώμης; ### English translation (Claude) What more prudent or wise than those who planned thus, despising the things here as having nothing firm or lasting, and loving those that words cannot express? What more courageous than those who contended against many and various sufferings and conquered their tormentors by the endurance of their will? ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.38 (Raeder, 208; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-38). ## Discourse 8.39 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-39 - Source: Raeder, 208 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Martyrs protect against demons; Heraclitus honored those slain in war. ### Greek text τοιγάρτοι οὗτοί γέ εἰσιν. ἀτεχνῶς πρόμον ἀνθρώπων καὶ πρόμαχοι καὶ ἐπίκουρον καὶ τῶν κακῶν ἀποτρόπαιοι, τὰς ὑπὸ τῶν δαιμόνων ἐπιφερομένας ἀποδιοπομπτούμενοι βλάβας. ὃ δέ γε Ἡράκλειτος καὶ τοὺς ἐν τοῖς πολέμοις ἀναιρεθέντας πάσης ἀξίους ὑπολαμβάνει τιμῆς" οἀρηϊφάτουρ', γάρ φησιν οἵ θεοὶ τιμῶσι καὶ ἄνθρωποι.ς καὶ πάλιν" μόνοι γὰρ μείζονες μείζονος μοίρας λαγχάνουσιν ὁ ### English translation (Claude) So these are truly the champions of human beings, their defenders, helpers, and averters of evils, driving away the harms brought on by the demons. Heraclitus thinks even those killed in wars worthy of every honor: 'Gods and men,' he says, 'honor those slain by Ares.' And again: 'For greater deaths win greater portions.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Heraclitus, fr. 24 (Heraclitus (fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Heraclitus, fr. 25 (Heraclitus (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Heraclitus, fragments 24 and 25 (Diels–Kranz). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.39 (Raeder, 208; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-39). ## Discourse 8.40 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-40 - Source: Raeder, 209 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Not everyone slain in war deserves honor, as the sons of Oedipus show. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ τόνδε τὸν λόγον ἔγωγε οὐ προσίεμαι" πλεῖστον γὰρ δὴ παμπόνηρον ἀσπασάμενοι βίον τὸν βίαιον ὑπέμξιναν θάνατον. εἰ τοίνυν τοὺς ἀρηϊφάτους ὥπαντας προσήκει τιμᾶν, ὥρα ὑμῖν καὶ τοῖς Οἰδίπου παισὶ τόδε ἀπονεῖμαι τὸ γέρας, οἱ τὸν πατέρα μὲν κατέλιπον ἀτημέλητον, ἕνεκα δὲ τυραννίδος κατ᾽ ἀλλήλων λυττήσαντες τῷ ἀλλήλων αἵματι τὰς οἰμείας ἐφοίνιξαν δεξιάς. ### English translation (Claude) But I do not accept this saying; for very many who embraced an utterly wicked life suffered violent death. If all those slain by Ares must be honored, it is time for you to give this honor also to the sons of Oedipus, who left their father uncared for and, raging against each other for tyranny, reddened their own right hands with each other's blood. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.40 (Raeder, 209; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-40). ## Discourse 8.41 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-41 - Source: Raeder, 209 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Only those who die for godliness merit honor; Heraclitus says the dead meet the unexpected. ### Greek text τιμητέον δ᾽ ἄρα καὶ τοὺς Πεισιστρατίδας ὑπὸ “Δρμοδίου καὶ Ἀριστογείτονος ἐνδίκως ἀναιρε-᾿ θέντας. ἀλλὰ τοὐναντίον ἔδρασαν ᾿Ηθηναῖοι᾽ τοὺς γὰρ ἀνελόντας χαλκαῖς εἰκόσιν ἐτίμησαν καὶ τῷ γένεν τῷ τούτων ἀτέλειαν ἐδωρήσαντο. οὔκουν πάντας ἀρηϊφάτους κατὰ τὸν Ἡράκλειτον τιμητέον, ἀλλ᾽ ἐκείνους, οἱ τὸν ὑπὲρ τῆς εὖσε-. βείας ἀσπασίως κατεδέξαντο θάνατον᾽ ἐκεῖνοι γὰρ ἀληθῶς, κατά γε τοῦτον αὐτόν, μόνοι μείζονες. οὗ δὴ εἵνεκα καὶ μείξονος ἀπολαύουσι μοίρας, καὶ νῦν τὸ παρὰ πάντων ἀνθρώπων κομιξόμενοι γέρας καὶ τοὺς αἰωνίους στεφάνους προσμένοντες. Ϊ ἐκεῖνο δὲ τοῦ ᾿Ηρακλείτου μάλα θαυμάξω, ὅτι μένει τοὺς ἀνθρώπους ἀποθνήσκοντας, ὅσα οὐκ ἔλπονται οὐδὲ δοκέουσιν. ### English translation (Claude) Then the Peisistratids too, justly killed by Harmodius and Aristogeiton, must be honored. But the Athenians did the opposite; for they honored their killers with bronze statues and granted their family exemption from taxes. So not all slain by Ares are to be honored, as Heraclitus says, but those who gladly accepted death for godliness; for they truly, by his own word, alone are greater. For this reason they enjoy a greater portion, now receiving honor from all human beings and awaiting the eternal crowns. And I greatly admire that saying of Heraclitus, that there await human beings when they die things they neither expect nor imagine. ### Extrabiblical texts - Heraclitus, fr. 27 (Heraclitus (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Heraclitus, fragment 27 (Diels–Kranz). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.41 (Raeder, 209; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-41). ## Discourse 8.42 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-42 - Source: Raeder, 209 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Phaedo says the holy go to pure dwellings above. ### Greek text ὅτι δὲ καὶ θείας λήξεως ἀπολαύουσιν αἵ τῶν ὁσίων ψυχαί, καὶ ὁ Πλάτων δεδήλωκεν ἐν τῷ Φαίθωνι, λέγων ὧδι' οἱ δὲ δὴ ἂν δόξωσι διαφερόντως πρὸς τὸ ὁσίως βιῶναι προκεκρίσθαι, οὗτοί εἰσιν οἱ τῶνδε μὲν τῶν ἐν τῇ γῇ ἀπαλλαττόμενοι ὥσπερ δεσμωτηρίου, ἄνω δὲ εἰς καθαρὰν οἴκησιν ἀφικπνούμενοι. προστέθεικε δὲ μετ᾽ ὀλίγα καὶ ταῦτα᾽ ο»καὶ εἰς οἰκήσεις ἔτε τούτων καλλίους ἀφικνοῦνται, ἃς οὔτε ῥῴδιον δηλῶσαι, οὔτε ὁ χρόνος ἱκανὸς ### English translation (Claude) That the souls of the holy enjoy a divine lot Plato too showed in the Phaedo, saying this: 'Those who are judged to have lived exceptionally holy lives are those who are released from these places in the earth as from a prison and arrive above in a pure dwelling.' And a little later he added this: 'And they arrive at dwellings still more beautiful than these, which it is not easy to describe, nor is there time enough ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 114b–c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 114b–c. The scanned page is cropped at the right edge (8.42–8.46); the text here appears complete. The quotation ends in 8.43. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.42 (Raeder, 209; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-42). ## Discourse 8.43 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-43 - Source: Raeder, 210 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato forbids suicide. ### Greek text ἐν τῷ παρόντι.“ ἵνα δὲ μή τις τούτων ἀκούσας καὶ τῆς θείας ἐκείνης διαγωγῆς ἐφασθείς, δὐαγὲς ὑπολάβοι τὸ βίᾳ τινὶ καὶ ἀνάγκῃ ἑαυτὸν ἐντεῦθεν ἐξαγαγεῖν, ἀναγκαίως ἐπήγαγεν᾽ ροὐ δεῖ δ᾽ ἑωυτὸν ἐκ ταύτης λύειν οὐδὲ ἀποδιδράσπειν καὶ ξυνελόντι εἰπεῖν κακὴν λογίξεσθαι τὴν ὕλην.“ ### English translation (Claude) at present.' And so that no one hearing this and longing for that divine life might think it holy to take himself out of here by some force or compulsion, he necessarily added: 'One must not release oneself from this nor run away,' and, in a word, think matter evil. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 62b (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 62b (paraphrase). The last clause is garbled in the scan; it probably means one must not think the bodily condition evil and is translated by sense. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.43 (Raeder, 210; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-43). ## Discourse 8.44 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-44 - Source: Raeder, 210 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato says the purified soul wins eternal life. ### Greek text λέγει δὲ καί, ὡς αὐτὴ καθ' ἑαυτὴν ἣ ψυχὴ γενομένη δύνα᾿ ταῦ τῆς ἀληθινῆς σοφίας καὶ πρείττονος τῆς ἀνθρωπίνης δυνάμεως μεταλαβεῖν, ὅταν αὐτὴν ὁ ἐνθένδε ἔρως εἰς οὐρανὸν πτερώσῃ, διὰ τῆς φιλοσόφου ἀγωγῆς εἰς τὸ τῆς ἐλπί-.: δὸς τέλος ἀφιπομένην, ἄλλου βίου ἀϊδίου ἀρχὴν λαμβάνουσαν. ### English translation (Claude) He also says that the soul, having come to be by itself, can share in true wisdom and in what surpasses human power, when love from here gives it wings to heaven and, arriving through philosophic training at the end of its hope, it receives the beginning of another, eternal life. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 66e–67a (Plato (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - A paraphrase of themes in the Phaedo and Phaedrus. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.44 (Raeder, 210; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-44). ## Discourse 8.45 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-45 - Source: Raeder, 210 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato calls philosophy a practice of death. ### Greek text καὶ αὖθις ἐν τῷ αὐτῷ διαλόγῳ φησίν. μετ᾽ ἀγαθῆς μὲν ἐλπίδος τὰς καλὰς ψυχὰς ἐνθένδε ἀπιέναι" οἱ πονηροὶ δὲ ξῶσίς φησι μετὰ κακῆς ἐλπίδος. οὗτος καὶ τὴν φιλοσοφίαν θανάτου μελέτην ἐκάλεσε᾽,γκινδυνεύουσι( γάρ φησιν σον τυγχάνουσιν ὀρθῶς ἁπτόμενον φιλοσοφίας, λεληθέναι εἰ τοὺς ἄλλους ὅτε οὐδὲν ἄλλο αὐτοὶ ἐπιτηδεύουσιν ἢ ἀπο- ### English translation (Claude) And again in the same dialogue he says that good souls depart from here with good hope, while the wicked, he says, live with evil hope. He also called philosophy a practice of death: 'For it may be,' he says, 'that others have not noticed that those who rightly take up philosophy practice nothing else than dying ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 64a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 63c, 64a. The quotation ends in 8.46. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.45 (Raeder, 210; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-45). ## Discourse 8.46 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-46 - Source: Raeder, 210 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Republic says the tombs of the good should be honored. ### Greek text θνήσκειν καὶ τεθνάναι ταῦτα μὲν οὖν ἅπαντα ἐν τῷ " Φαίδωνι γέγραφεν ἐν δὲ τῷ δεκάτῳ τῆς Πολιτείας οὕτω φησίν" τῶν δὲ δὴ ἀποθανόντων ἐπὶ στρατείας, ὃς ἂν εὖδοκιμήσας τελευτήσῃ, ἄρ᾽ οὐ πρῶτον μὲν τοῦ χρυσοῦ γένους εἶναν φήσομεν; πάντωθ᾽ μάλιστα καὶ μετ᾽ ὀλίγα"..τἰ δές οὐ μέλλομεν τὸν λοιπὸν χρόνον, ὡς δαίμονας γεγονότας, οὕτω θεραπεύειν τε καὶ προσκυνεῖν αὐτῶν τὰς θήκας; τὰ αὐτὰ δὲ νομιοῦμεν, ὅταν τις γήρᾳ ἤ τινι ἄλλῳ τρόπῳ τελευτήσῃ τῶν ὅσοι ἂν διαφερόντως ἐν τῷ βίῳ ἀγαθοὶ κρυθῶσιν."" ### English translation (Claude) and being dead.' All this he wrote in the Phaedo; and in the tenth book of the Republic he says this: 'Of those who die on campaign, whoever dies with distinction, shall we not say first that he is of the golden race? Most certainly.' And a little later: 'What then? Shall we not for the rest of time serve and worship their tombs as of those who have become divinities? And we shall consider the same when anyone of those judged exceptionally good in life dies of old age or in some other way.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 468e–469b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 5.468e–469b (Theodoret says 'tenth book'). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.46 (Raeder, 210; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-46). ## Discourse 8.47 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-47 - Source: Raeder, 211 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato and Hesiod say the good dead become guardian spirits. ### Greek text νὰν τῷ Κρανύλῳ δὲ τόνδε. τὸν λόγον διεύρυνεν᾽ ἐπαινεῖ γὰρ τὸν ᾿Ησίοδον καὶ. τοὺς ἄλλους γε ποιητὰς εἰρηκότας, ὡς ἐπειδάν τις ἀγαθὸς ὧν τελευτήσῃ, μεγάλην μοῖραν καὶ τιμὴν ἐκεῖ ἔχει, καὶ γίνεται δαίμων κατὰ τὴν. τῆς φρονήσεως ἐπωνυμίαν᾽ «ταύτῃ οὖν τίθεμαι κἀγὼ τὸν δαήμονα ἄνδρας. ὁ δὲ γε Ἡσίοδος περὶ τοῦ χρυσοῦ γένους ταῦτα ἔφη" «αὐτὰρ ἐπειδὴ τοῦτο γένος κατὰ μοῖρ᾽ ἐκάλυψεν, οἵ μὲν δαίμονες ἁγνοὶ ἐπιχθόνιοι καλέονται, ἐσθλοί, ἀλεξίκοκοι, ### English translation (Claude) In the Cratylus he broadened this account; for he praises Hesiod and the other poets for saying that when a good man dies, he has a great portion and honor there and becomes a divinity (daimōn) by the name of wisdom: 'In this way I too set down that every good man is daimōn.' And Hesiod said this about the golden race: 'But since the earth covered this race according to fate, they are called holy divinities on earth, noble, averters of evil, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Crat. 397e–398b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Hesiod, Op. 121–123 (Hesiod, Works and Days): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Cratylus 397e–398b; Hesiod, Works and Days 121–123. The quotation ends in 8.48. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.47 (Raeder, 211; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-47). ## Discourse 8.48 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-48 - Source: Raeder, 211 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christians call the martyrs friends of God, not divinities, as Greek writers themselves honored the good dead. ### Greek text φύλακες θνητῶν ἀνθρώπων.“ εἰ τοίνυν καὶ ὁ ποιητὴς καὶ ἐσθλοὺς καὶ ἀλεξικάκους καὶ φύλακας θνητῶν ἀνθρώπων τοὺς ἄριστα βεβιωκότας, εἶτα τελευτήσαντας, προσηγόρευσεν, ἐμράτυνε δὲ τοῦ ποιητοῦ τὸν λόγον τῶν φιλοσόφων ὁ ἄριστος καὶ χρῆναι ἔφη καὶ θεραπεύειν τούτων καὶ προσκυνεῖν τὰς θήκας, τί δήποτε μέμφεσθε τοῖς παρ᾽ ἡμῶν γινομένοις, ὦ βέλτιστοι; τοὺς γὰρ ἐν εὐσεβείᾳ λάμψαντας καὶ ὑπὲρ ταύτης τὴν σφογὴν δεξαμένους ἀλεξικάκους ἡμεῖς καὶ ἰατροὺς ὀνομάζομεν, οὐ δαίμονας καλοῦντες (μὴ οὕτω λυττήσαιμεν), ἀλλὰ Θεῷ φίλους καὶ εὔνους θεράποντας, παρρησίᾳ χρωμένους καὶ τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἡμῖν ἐπαγγέλλοντας τὴν φοράν. ### English translation (Claude) guardians of mortal men.' If, then, the poet called those who lived best and then died noble, averters of evil, and guardians of mortal men, and the best of the philosophers confirmed the poet's account and said one must serve and worship their tombs, why do you blame what we do, my good men? For those who shone in godliness and received slaughter for it we call averters of evil and physicians, not calling them divinities (may we not be so mad), but friends of God and faithful servants, who have freedom of speech and announce to us the abundance of good things. ### Extrabiblical texts - Hesiod, Op. 123 (Hesiod, Works and Days): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.48 (Raeder, 211; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-48). ## Discourse 8.49 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-49 - Source: Raeder, 211 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Epinomis agrees with Scripture that the righteous are blessed after death. ### Greek text τοῦτο γὰρ δὴ καὶ τῶν φιλοσόφων ὃ κορυφαῖος ἐν τῇ ᾿Επινομίδι δεδήλωκεν᾽ ἔφη γάρ',,οοὔ φημι εἶναι δυνατὸν ἀνθρώποις μακαρίοις τὲ καὶ εὐδαίμοσι γενέσθαι πλὴν ὀλίγων. μέχρι περ ἂν ζῶμεν, τοῦτο διορίξομαι" καλὴ δὲ ἐλπὶς τελευτήσαντι τυχεῖν ἁπάντων. ἀτεχνῶς δέ γε τοῦτο ἔοικε τοῖς ὑπὸ τῆς θείας εἰρημένοις γραφῆς ομὴ μακαρίσῃς ἄνδρα πρὸ τελευτῆς αὐτοῦ καὶ φῶς δικαίοις διαπαντός καὶ ψυχαὶ δικαίων ἐν χειρὶ Θεοῦ χαὶ τὰ τούτοις προσύμοια. ### English translation (Claude) The chief of the philosophers showed this in the Epinomis; for he said: 'I say it is not possible for human beings to become blessed and happy, except a few, as long as we live; this I define; but there is good hope for one who has died of obtaining all.' This is exactly like what the divine Scripture says: 'Do not call a man blessed before his death,' and 'There is light for the righteous always,' and 'The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God,' and the like. ### Scripture references - Prov 13:9: quotation, medium confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Epin. 973c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Sir 11:28 (Sirach): quotation, high confidence - Wis 3:1 (Wisdom of Solomon): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Epinomis 973c, 992c; Sir 11:28; Prov 13:9 (LXX); Wis 3:1. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.49 (Raeder, 211; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-49). ## Discourse 8.50 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-50 - Source: Raeder, 212 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato foresaw the sufferings of the just man. ### Greek text ἈΦὅτι δὲ τοῖς δικαίοις ὕβρεις καὶ λοιδορίας καὶ αἰκίας καὶ μάστιγας κατὰ τὸν παρόντα βίον ξυνδχαλήρωσε τῶν ὅλων ὁ πρύτανις, καὶ ὃ Πλάτων ἐν τῇ Πολιτείᾳ ξυγγέγραφεν᾽ οὕτως γάρ φησι «διακείμενος ὁ δίκαιος αἰκισθήσετο, στρεβλωθήσεται, δεθήσεται, ἐκκοπήσεται τὼ ὀφθαλμώ, τελευτῶν πάντα κακὰ παθὼν ἀνασπινδυλευθήσεται.ς οὐκοῦν τρισάθλιον μὲν οἵ ταῦτα ποιοῦντες, τρισόλβιοι δὲ οἱ πάσχοντες; ### English translation (Claude) That the Ruler of the universe allotted insults, abuse, tortures, and scourges to the just in the present life, Plato too wrote in the Republic: 'So disposed,' he says, 'the just man will be scourged, racked, bound, have his eyes burned out, and finally, having suffered every evil, will be impaled.' Are not those who do this thrice wretched, and those who suffer it thrice blessed? ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 361e–362a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 2.361e–362a. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.50 (Raeder, 212; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-50). ## Discourse 8.51 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-51 - Source: Raeder, 212 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Laws says the souls of the dead care for human affairs. ### Greek text ὅτι δὲ καὶ ἐπιμελεῖσθαι τῶν ἀνθρωπείων δύνανται πραγμάτων αἱ τῶν ὁσίων ψυχαὶ καὶ τοῦ σώματος ἐκτὸς γενόμεναι, ὃ Πλάτων καὶ τοῦτο ἐν τῷ ἑνδεκάτῳ τῶν Νόμὼν ἐδίδαξε᾽ λέγει δὲ οὕτως",»εἴς τινα γὰρ οὖν μοι καιρὸν φαινόμεθα τοὺς ἔμπροσθεν λόγους διεξελθεῖν, ὡς ἄρα τῶν τελευτησάντων ψυχαὶ δύναμιν ἔχουσί τινὰ τελευτήσασαν καὶ τῶν κατ᾽ ἀνθρώπους πραγμάτων ἐπιμελοῦνται. ταῦτα δὲ ἀληθεῖς μέν, μακροὶ δέ εἰσι περιέχοντες λόγοι" πιστεύειν δὲ ταῖς ἄλλαις φήμαις χρεὼν περὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα, οὕτω πολλαῖς καὶ σφόδρα γὲ παλαιαῖς οὔσαις" πιστεύειν δὲ αὐτοῖς ### English translation (Claude) That the souls of the holy can also care for human affairs even when they are out of the body, Plato taught this too in the eleventh book of the Laws. He speaks thus: 'It seems to me timely that we went through the earlier arguments, that the souls of the dead have a certain power after death and care for human affairs. These arguments are true but long; one must believe the other reports about such things, being so many and very ancient; and one must believe ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 927a–b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 11.927a–b. The quotation ends in 8.52. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.51 (Raeder, 212; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-51). ## Discourse 8.52 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-52 - Source: Raeder, 213 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: If Plato says the holy dead care for us, the martyrs most of all deserve this. ### Greek text φομοθετοῦσι ταῦθ᾽ οὕτως ἔχειν ἀλλ᾽ ὃ μὲν φιλόσοφος κελεύει καὶ ταῖς φήμαις πιστεύειν᾽ ὑμεῖς δὲ οὐ μόνον ἡμῖν ἀπιστεῖτε καὶ τῆς τῶν πραγμάτων βοώσης ἀληθείας ἐπαΐειν οὐ βούλεσθε, ἀλλ᾽ οὐδὲ τῷ ὑμετέρῳ φιλοσόφῳ πιστεύειν ἐθέλετε ἄντιιρυς λέγοντι, ὡς αἵ τῶν ὁσίων ψυχαὶ τῶν σωμάτων ἀπαλλαγεῖσαι τῶν κατ᾽ ἀνθρώπους ἐπιμελοῦνται πραγμάτων. τῷ δὲ οὕτως ἁρμόττει τοῦδε τοῦ γέρως τυχεῖν, ὡς τοῖς ἠγαπηκόσι μὲν ἐκθύμως τὰ θεῖα, μεμενηκόσι δὲ μέχρι τέλους οἷς ἐξ ἀρχῆς προείλοντο καὶ τὴν τάξιν ἐν ἢ ᾿σφᾶς, ἔταξαν οὐκ ἀνασχομένοις καταλιπεῖν; ### English translation (Claude) the lawgivers that these things are so.' The philosopher bids you believe even reports; but you not only disbelieve us and will not listen to the truth of the facts that cries out, but will not even believe your own philosopher who says plainly that the souls of the holy, freed from their bodies, care for human affairs. And whom does it suit to receive this honor more than those who loved divine things passionately, remained to the end in what they chose from the beginning, and would not abandon the post in which they placed themselves? ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 927b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.52 (Raeder, 213; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-52). ## Discourse 8.53 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-53 - Source: Raeder, 213 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Apology says one must hold one's post at any cost. ### Greek text τοῦτον δέ γε καὶ ὁ Πλάτων ἐν τῇ ᾿Απολογίᾳ κρατύνει τὸν λόγον᾽ φησὶ δὲ οὕτωρ᾽ ηοὕτω γὰρ ἔχει, ὦ ἄνδρες θηναῖοι, τῇ ἀληθείᾳ" οὗ ἄν τις ἑαυτὸν τάξῃ, ἡγησάμενος βέλτιστον εἶναις ἢ ὑπ᾽ ἄρχοντος ταχθῇ, ἐνταῦθα δεῖ, ὡς ἐμοὶ δοκεῖ, μένοντα πευδυνεύειν, μηδὲν ὑπολογιξόμενον μήτε θάνατον μήτε ἄλλο ### English translation (Claude) Plato confirms this account in the Apology too; he says this: 'For this is so, men of Athens, in truth: wherever someone places himself, thinking it best, or is placed by a ruler, there, as it seems to me, he must remain and face danger, taking into account neither death nor anything else ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Apol. 28d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Apology 28d. The quotation ends in 8.54. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.53 (Raeder, 213; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-53). ## Discourse 8.54 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-54 - Source: Raeder, 213 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates in the Apology says death is not to be feared. ### Greek text μηδὲν πρὸ τοῦ αἰσχροῦ.“ καὶ πάλιν μετ᾽ ὀλίγα" »τὸ γάρ τοι θάνατον θεδιέναι ὦ ἄνδρες, οὐδὲν ἄλλο ἐστὶν ἢ δοκεῖν σοφὸν εἶναις μὴ ὄντα. καὶ αὖθις μετὰ βραχέα" πρὸ γοῦν τῶν παμῶν, ὧν οἶδα ὅτι κακά ἐστιν, ἃ μὴ οἶδα εἰ καὶ ἀγαθὰ ὄντα τυγχάνει, οὐ φοβηθήσομαι οὐδὲ φεύξομοαι.“ καὶ πάλιν" «τά τε γὰρ ἄλλα εὐδαιμονέστεροί εἰσιν οἷ ἐκεῖ τῶν ἐνθάδε, καὶ ἤδη καὶ τὸν λοιπὸν χρόνον ἀθάνατοί εἶσιν “΄ αὐτοῦ δέ, ὦ φίλοι ἄνδρες, καὶ ταῦτα᾽ οἐμὲ γὰρ. ### English translation (Claude) before disgrace.' And again a little later: 'For to fear death, gentlemen, is nothing else than to think oneself wise when one is not.' And again shortly after: 'Before the evils which I know to be evils, I shall not fear or flee things which I do not know whether they may not be good.' And again: 'For in other ways those there are happier than those here, and are immortal for the rest of time.' And this too, my friends, is his: 'For me ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Apol. 29a–b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Plato, Apol. 41c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Apology 29a, 29b, 41c. The quotation continues in 8.55. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.54 (Raeder, 213; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-54). ## Discourse 8.55 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-55 - Source: Raeder, 214 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates says the unjust cannot truly harm the just. ### Greek text οὐδὲν βλάψειεν ἂν οὔτε ἹΜέλητος. οὔτε "άνυτος᾽ οὐδὲ γὰρ ἂν δύψαιντο. οὐ γὰρ οἶμαι ᾿θεμιτὸν εἶναι βελτίονι ἀνδρὶ ὑπὸ χείρονος βλάπτεσθαι. ἀποκτείνειε μέντ᾽ ἂν ἴσως ἢ ἐξελάσειεν ἢ ἀτιμάσειεν᾽ ἀλλὰ ταῦτα οὗτος μὲν ἴσως οἴεται εἶναν καὶ ἄλλος τίς που μεγάλα κακά" ἐγὼ δὲ οὐ» οἶμαι, ἀλλὰ πολὺ μᾶλλον ποιεῖν ἃ οὗτος νυνὶ ποιεῖ, ἄνδρα ἀδίκως ἐπιχειρῶν ἀποκτιννύναι“ ᾿ ### English translation (Claude) neither Meletus nor Anytus could harm; for they could not. For I do not think it lawful for a better man to be harmed by a worse. He might perhaps kill me, or exile me, or disfranchise me; and he and perhaps others think these great evils; but I do not, but much rather to do what he is now doing, trying to kill a man unjustly.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Apol. 30c–d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Apology 30c–d. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.55 (Raeder, 214; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-55). ## Discourse 8.56 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-56 - Source: Raeder, 214 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates died unjustly but did not receive martyrs' honors. ### Greek text Τοιαῦτα μὲν οὖν ὁ Σωκράτης καὶ ἐν οὐτῷ γε τῷ ἀγῶνι πεφιλοσόφηχεν, ὡς ὃ Πλάτων μεμαρτύρηκεν ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως τῆς τῶν μαρτύρων τιμῆς οὐ τετύχηκεν. οὔτε γὰρ σηκὸν ἐκείνῳ ἐδείμαντο οὔτε τέμενος ἀφιέρωσαν οὔτε πανήγυριν ἀπεηλήθωσαν οἵ τῶν ἐκείνου λόγων μετειληχότες, ἀλλὰ καὶ σοφὸν γενόμενον καὶ ἀνδρεῖον, ἀγέραστον εἴασαν, καίτοι ἄδικόν γε κἀκεῖνος ὑπομεμενήκει σφαγήν. ἀλλ᾽ οὐκ ἀρίστην γε εἶχε καὶ ἀκραιφνῆ τὴν εὐσέβειαν" ἀνεμέμικτο γὰρ αὐτῇ τοῦ τηνικάδε πατεσχηπότος πλάνου πολλά. ### English translation (Claude) Such things Socrates philosophized even in that trial, as Plato has testified; yet he did not obtain the honor of the martyrs. For those who shared in his words neither built him a shrine, nor dedicated a precinct, nor assigned a festival; but though he was wise and brave, they left him unhonored, although he too underwent an unjust death. But his godliness was not excellent and pure; for much of the error that then prevailed was mixed with it. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.56 (Raeder, 214; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-56). ## Discourse 8.57 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-57 - Source: Raeder, 214 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Brave pagans like Anaxarchus and Zeno of Elea received no such honor. ### Greek text ὅθεν δὴ οὐδὲ τῆς μετὰ τὴν τελευτὴν ἠξιώθη τιμῆς᾽ οὐδέ γε ᾿ἀνάξαρχος ἐκεῖνος, ὃς ὑπέροις πτισσόμενος σιδηροῖς ἔλεγεν, ὥς φασι,,»πτίσσε, πτίσσξ τὸν ᾿Αναξάρχου θύλακον᾽ ᾿άνάξαρχον γὰρ οὐ πτίσσεις,"΄ οὐδὲ Ζήνων ὁ Ἐλεάτης, ὃς ἀναγκαζόμενος κατειπεῖν τι τῶν ἀπορρήτῶν, ἀντέσχε πρὸς τὰς βασάνους οὐδὲν ἐξομολογούμενος" ὡς δέφησιν ᾿Ερατοσθένης ἐν τοῖς Περὶ ἀγαθῶν καὶ κακῶν, δείσας οὗτος, μὴ τῇ τῶν παθῶν ὑπερβολῇ βιασθεὶς ἐξείπῃ τι τῶν ξυγκειμένων καὶ τοὺς στασιώτας μηνύσῃ, τὴν γλῶτταν τοῖς ὀδοῦσι. ### English translation (Claude) Hence he was not thought worthy of honor after death; nor was that Anaxarchus, who, being pounded with iron pestles, said, as they report, 'Pound, pound the bag of Anaxarchus; you are not pounding Anaxarchus'; nor Zeno of Elea, who, compelled to denounce some secret, held out against the tortures confessing nothing; and as Eratosthenes says in his work On Good and Evil, fearing lest, forced by the excess of suffering, he might tell something agreed and betray his fellow conspirators, he bit off his tongue ### Extrabiblical texts - Eratosthenes (Eratosthenes): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Eratosthenes, fragment. The sentence continues in 8.58. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.57 (Raeder, 214; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-57). ## Discourse 8.58 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-58 - Source: Raeder, 215 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Other philosophers also bore torture bravely. ### Greek text τεμὼν προσέπτυσε τῷ τυράννῳ. ταὐτὸ δὲ τοῦτο καὶ Θεόδοτόν φασι πονῆσαν τὸν Πυθαγόρειον καὶ Παῦλον τὸν “Μακύδου γνώριμον, ὡς ὁ Περγαμηνὸς Τιμόθεος ἐν τῷ Περὶ τῆς τῶν φιλοσόφων ἀνδρείας ξυνέγραψξ' ξυμμαρτυρεῖ δὲ τούτῳ καὶ Ἀχαϊκμὸς ἐν τοῖς ᾿Ηθικοῖς, ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως τούτων ### English translation (Claude) and spat it at the tyrant. They say Theodotus the Pythagorean and Paul, the pupil of Lacydes, did the same, as Timothy of Pergamum wrote in his work On the Courage of Philosophers; and Achaicus in his Ethics bears witness to this too. Yet none of these ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 8.59. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.58 (Raeder, 215; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-58). ## Discourse 8.59 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-59 - Source: Raeder, 215 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Famous generals received no lasting honor like the martyrs. ### Greek text οὐδεὶς τῆς τῶν μαρτύρων ἠξιώθη τιμῆς" οὐδὲ μὴν ἐκεῖνοι οἵ τὰ λαμπρὰ καὶ πολυθρύλητα στήσαντες τρύπαια, οὐ 17ιλτιάδης, οὐ Κίμων, οὐ Περιηλῆς. οὐ Θεμιστοκλῆς, οὐκ Ἀριστείδης ὃ “Δυσιμάχου" καίτοι οὗτος οὐκ ἀνδρεῖος μόνον, ἀλλὰ. καὶ δίκαιος ἐνενόμιστο᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως οὔτε οὗτος οὔτε Βρασίδας ὃ Σπαρτιάτης, οὐ» Ἀγησίλαος, οὐ «“ύσανδρος ὃ τὴν δυναστείαν. καταλύσας τῶν ᾿4θηναίων, οὐ Πελοπίδας ὃ Βοιωτάρχης, οὐκ ᾿Επαμεινώνδας ὃ τὴν Δακωνικὴν ληϊσάμενος καὶ τῇ Σπάρτῃ προσενεγκεῖν τὴν στρατιὰν τολμήσας, οὐχ οἱ Ῥωμαίων περιφανέστατοι στρατηγοί, ὁ Σκιπίων ὁ. πρῶτος, ὗ. ἐκείνου ὁμώνυμος, ὃ Κάτων, ὃ Σύλλας, ὃ Μάριος, ὁ Πομπήϊος, ὁ Καῖσαρ αὐτός. ### English translation (Claude) was thought worthy of the honor of the martyrs; nor were those who set up brilliant and famous trophies: not Miltiades, not Cimon, not Pericles, not Themistocles, not Aristides son of Lysimachus, though he was thought not only brave but just; nor Brasidas the Spartan, nor Agesilaus, nor Lysander, who destroyed the power of the Athenians, nor Pelopidas the Boeotarch, nor Epaminondas, who plundered Laconia and dared to bring his army against Sparta; nor the most famous Roman generals, the first Scipio and his namesake, Cato, Sulla, Marius, Pompey, Caesar himself. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.59 (Raeder, 215; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-59). ## Discourse 8.60 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-60 - Source: Raeder, 215 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Even great kings and emperors are forgotten after death. ### Greek text τούτων γὰρ ἕκαστος ἐν μὲν ταῖς στρατηγίαις καὶ ταῖς ἐν πολέμοις ἀνδραγαθίαις διέπρεψε, τοῦ δὲ τῶν μαρτύρων οὐ μετέλαχε γέρως. καὶ τί λέγω τοὺς, στρατηγούς; οὐδὲ γὰρ οἵ τῆς οἰκουμένης βεβασιλευκότες τὰἀύτης ἀπήλαυσαν τῆς τιμῆς, οὐ Κῦρος, οὐ Δαρεῖος, οὐ Ἐέρξης, οὐκ ᾿Αλέξανδρος ὁ Φιλίππου (τοὺς γὰρ ἐπισήμους κἀταλέγω. μόνους), οὐκ «Αὔγουστος, οὐκ Οὐεσπασιανός, οὐ Τραϊανός, οὐκ ᾿Αδριανύς, οὐκ ᾿Αντωνῖνος᾽ ἀλλ᾽ οὗτοι πάντες ξῶντες μὲν ἦσαν περίβλεπτον καὶ τοὺς βαρβάρους ἐνίκων καὶ μετὰ τὰς νίκας πομπὰς ἐπετέλουν καὶ ἕορτάς, ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἐτελεύτησαν, οὐδὲν τῶν πολλῶν διαφέρουσιν. ### English translation (Claude) Each of these was distinguished in generalship and valor in war, but had no share in the honor of the martyrs. And why do I speak of generals? Not even those who ruled the world enjoyed this honor: not Cyrus, Darius, Xerxes, Alexander son of Philip (I list only the famous), Augustus, Vespasian, Trajan, Hadrian, or Antoninus; all these were admired while living, conquered the barbarians, and after the victories held processions and festivals; but since they died, they differ in nothing from the many. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.60 (Raeder, 215; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-60). ## Discourse 8.61 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-61 - Source: Raeder, 216 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Only the tombs of godly emperors are honored. ### Greek text οὔτε γὰρ τάφοῦς ἔχουσιν ἐπισήμους οὔτε δημοθοινίαις ἐτησίοις γεραίρονται. τίς γὰρ δὴ οἶδε τὸν βέρξου γε τάφον ἢ τὸν Δαρείου; τίς δὲ τὸν ᾿Αλεξάνδρου, τοῦ τοσούτων ἐθνῶν ἐν ὀλιγίστῳ γε χρόνῳ κρατήσαντος; καὶ τί λέγω τοὺς παλαιούς; οὐδὲ γὰρ τὸ Αὐγούστου σῆμα. δῆλόν ἐστιν ἢ τῶν ἄλλων, ὅσοι μετὰ τοῦτον τὴν Ῥωμαίων ἰθύναντες βασιλείαν ἠγνόησὰν τὸν ταύτης δοτῆρα καὶ χορηγόν, μόνων δὲ τῶν εὖσεβῶν βαδιλέων οἱ τάφοι δῆλον καὶ γνώριμοι, οἱ δὲ τῶν μεταξὺ δυσσεβῶς βεβασιλευκύτων φαΐνονταν μέν, τιμῆς δὲ οὐδὲ ἀμιπρᾶς ἀπολαύουσιν᾽ οὐ μόνον γὰρ τῆς βασιλικῆς ἀπεστέρηνται, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἧς οἵ τῶν ἰδιωτῶν μετεσχήκασιν. ### English translation (Claude) For they have no famous tombs and are not honored with yearly public feasts. Who knows the tomb of Xerxes or of Darius? Who that of Alexander, who mastered so many nations in so short a time? And why do I speak of the ancients? Not even the tomb of Augustus is known, nor of the others who after him governed the Roman empire but did not know its Giver and Supplier; only the tombs of the godly emperors are known and recognized, while those of the impious emperors in between are visible but enjoy no honor at all; for they are deprived not only of royal honor but even of that which private persons share. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.61 (Raeder, 216; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-61). ## Discourse 8.62 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-62 - Source: Raeder, 216 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Self-deified rulers lost their honor; martyrs' shrines are splendid. ### Greek text καίτοι τινὲς. τῶν ἀνοήτων καὶ θεοὺς σφᾶς ἀνηγόρευσαν καὶ γεὼς ἑαυτοῖς ἐδομήσαντο. καὶ γὰρ ᾿Αντίοχος ἐπεπλήθη θεός, καὶ Γάϊος ὁ Τιβερίου διάδοχος, καὶ Οὐεσπασιανὸς καὶ ᾿άδριαγὸς μεγίστους ξαυτοῖς νεὼς φκοδόμησαν, ἀλλὰ ξὺν τῇ ξωῇ καὶ “τὴν δυσσεβῆ τιμὴν ἀφῃρέθησαν. οἱ δὲ τῶν παλλινί-. κῶν μαρτύρων σηποὶ λαμιυροὶ καὶ περίβλεπτοι καὶ μεγέθει διαπρεπεῖς καὶ παντοδαπῶς πεποικιλμένοι καὶ κάλλους ἀφιένγεὸ μαρμαρυγάς. ### English translation (Claude) And yet some fools proclaimed themselves gods and built temples to themselves. For Antiochus was called God, and Gaius the successor of Tiberius; Vespasian and Hadrian built very large temples to themselves; but with their life they were deprived of that impious honor too. But the shrines of the triumphant martyrs are brilliant and admired, outstanding in size, adorned in every way, and flashing with beauty. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.62 (Raeder, 216; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-62). ## Discourse 8.63 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-63 - Source: Raeder, 217 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christians visit martyrs' shrines, praying to God and asking the martyrs' intercession. ### Greek text εἰς δὲ τούτους οὐχ ὅπαξ ἢ δίς γε τοῦ ἔτους ἢ πεντάκις φοιτῶμεν, ἀλλὰ πολλάκις μὲν πανηγύρεις ἐπιτελοῦμεν, πολλάκις δὲ ἡμέρας ἑκάστης τῷ τούτων δεσπότῃ -τοὺς ὕμνους προσφέρομεν. καὶ οἱ μὲν ὑγιαίνοντες αἰτοῦσι τῆς ὑγείας τὴν φυλακήν, οἱ δέ τινι νόσῳ παλαίοντες τὴν τῶν παθημάτων ἀπαλλαγήν᾽ αἰτοῦσι δὲ καὶ ἄγονοι παῖδας, καὶ στέριφαν παρακαλοῦσι γενέσθαι μητέρες, καὶ οἵ τῆσδε τῆς δωρεᾶς ἀπολαύσαντες ἀξιοῦσιν ἄρτια σφίσι φυλαχθῆναι τὰ δῶρα᾽ καὶ οἱ μὲν εἴς τινα ἀποδημίαν στελλόμενοι λιπαροῦσι τούτους ξυνοδοιπύρους γενέσθαι καὶ τῆς ὁδοῦ ἦγεμόνας᾽ οἱ δὲ τῆς ἐπανόδου τετυχηκότες τὴν τῆς χάριτος ὁμολογίαν προσφέρουσιν, οὐχ ὡς θεοῖς αὐτοῖς προσιόντες, ἀλλ᾽ ὡς | θείους ἀνθρώπους ἀντιβολοῦντες καὶ γενέσθαι πρεσβευτὰς ὑπὲρ σφῶν παρακαλοῦντες. ### English translation (Claude) And we go to these not once or twice or five times a year, but we often hold festivals, and often each day offer hymns to their Lord. The healthy ask for the keeping of their health, those wrestling with some disease for release from their sufferings; the childless ask for children, barren women beg to become mothers, and those who have enjoyed this gift ask that the gifts be kept safe for them; those setting out on a journey beseech them to be their fellow travelers and guides on the way; those who have returned offer their thanks, not approaching them as gods, but entreating them as divine men and begging them to become ambassadors on their behalf. ### Translation notes - Theodoret distinguishes asking the martyrs' intercession from worshiping them as gods. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.63 (Raeder, 217; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-63). ## Discourse 8.64 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-64 - Source: Raeder, 217 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Votive offerings at shrines testify to healings. ### Greek text ὅτι δὲ τυγχάνουσιν ὧνπερ αἰτοῦσιν οἵ πιστῶς ἐπαγγέλλοντες, ἀναφανδὸν μαρτυρεῖ τὰ τούτων ἀναθήματα τὴν ἰατρείαν δηλοῦντα. οἵ μὲν γὰρ ὀφθαλμῶν, οἱ δὲ ποδῶν, ἄλλοι δὲ χειρῶν προσφέρουσιν ἐκνυπώματα᾽ καὶ οἱ μὲν ἐμ χρυσοῦ, οἵ δὲ ἐξ ὕλης [ἀργύρου] πεποιημένα. δέχεται γὰρ ὃ τούτων δεσπότης καὶ τὰ σμιβρά τε καὶ εὔωνα, τῇ τοῦ προσφέροντος δυνάμει τὸ δῶρον μετρῶν. δηλοῖ δὲ ταῦτα προκείμενα τῶν παθημάτων τὴν λύσιν, ἧς ἀνετέθη μνημεῖα παρὰ τῶν ἀρτίων γεγενημένων. ### English translation (Claude) That those who make their vows in faith obtain what they ask, their votive offerings openly bear witness, showing the healing. For some bring likenesses of eyes, others of feet, others of hands, some made of gold, others of other material. For their Lord accepts even small and cheap things, measuring the gift by the means of the giver. These, set out, show the release from sufferings, of which they were dedicated as memorials by those made whole. ### Scripture references - Mark 12:41–44: echo, low confidence ### Translation notes - The editor brackets 'of silver'; it is left out. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.64 (Raeder, 217; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-64). ## Discourse 8.65 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-65 - Source: Raeder, 217 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The martyrs' power reveals the true God; they were not famous people. ### Greek text ταῦτα δὲ κηρύττει τῶν πειμένων τὴν δύναμιν" ἡ δὲ τούτων δύναμις τὸν τούτων Θεὸν ἀληθινὸν ἀποφαίνει Θεόν. ἐξετάσωμεν γάρ, τίνες καὶ πόθεν οἵ ταύτης ἀξιωθέντες τῆς χάριτος. ἄρά τινες ἐπίσημοι καὶ περιφανεῖς ἢ γένους αὐὖχοῦντες λαμπρότητα ἢ τοῖς τοῦ πλούτου περιρρεόμενοι ῥεύμασιν ἢ ἐν δυναστείας τινὸς γενόμενοι γνώριμοις οὐδαμῶς, ὦ ἄνδρες. ### English translation (Claude) These proclaim the power of those who lie there; and their power shows their God to be the true God. For let us examine who and from where those were who were thought worthy of this grace. Were they some notable and famous people, boasting brilliant birth, or flowing with streams of wealth, or known for some power? By no means, gentlemen. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.65 (Raeder, 217; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-65). ## Discourse 8.66 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-66 - Source: Raeder, 218 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The martyrs were common people: slaves, women, actors, even former pagan priests. ### Greek text τούτων γὰρ οὐδενὸς μετεσχήπασιν, ἀλλ᾽ ἰδιῶται ἦσαν ἣ στρατιῶται, τινὲς δὲ αὐτῶν καὶ οἰκέται γεγένηνται καὶ θεραπαινίδες, ἐν ἀσθενέσι δ᾽ ἄγαν σώμασι γενναίως ἀγωνισάμεναι" καὶ αἱ μὲν σωφρόνως ἕλκουσαν τὸν τοῦ γάμου ξυγόν, αἵ δὲ τί γάμος οὐκ ἐπιστάμεναι. ἀκούω δὲ ἔγωγέ τινας καὶ τῇ σκηνῇ ξυντραφέντας καὶ ἐξαπίνης τοῖς ἀγωνισταῖς ξυνταχθέντας καὶ ἀξιονίκους γεγενημένους καὶ τῶν στεφάνων τετυχηκότας καὶ μετὰ τὴν ἀνάρρησιν σφόδρα δεδιττομένους τοὺς δαίμονας, οἷς ἦσαν ὑποχείριοι πάλαι" πολλοὶ δὲ καὶ ἱερεῖς καὶ νεωκόροι τὰ κατὰ τῆς ἀσεβείας ἀνέστησαν τρύπαια. ### English translation (Claude) They had none of these, but were private persons or soldiers; some of them were even household slaves and maidservants, who contended nobly in very weak bodies; some drew the yoke of marriage chastely, others did not know what marriage is. And I hear of some brought up on the stage who were suddenly enrolled with the contestants, proved worthy of victory, won crowns, and after the proclamation greatly terrified the demons whose subjects they had once been; and many priests and temple wardens set up trophies against impiety. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.66 (Raeder, 218; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-66). ## Discourse 8.67 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-67 - Source: Raeder, 218 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Martyrs' names are known to all and given to children. ### Greek text ἐκ τοιούτων ἀνδρῶν καὶ γυναικῶν ξυνέστησαν οὗ τῶν μαρτύρων χοροί. καὶ φιλόσοφοι μὲν καὶ ῥήτορες παραδέδονταν λήθῃ, καὶ βασιλέων καἱ στρατηγῶν οὐδὲ τὰς προσηγορίας γινώσκουσιν οἵ πολλοί, τὰς δὲ τῶν μαρτύρων προσηγορίας μᾶλλον ἴσασιν ὕπαντες ἢ τὰ τῶν φιλτάτων ὀνόματα᾽ καὶ τοῖς παισὶ δὲ τὰς τούτων προσηγορίας ἐπιτυθέναι σπουδάξουσιν, ἀσφάλειαν αὐτοῖς ἐντεῦθεν καὶ φυλακὴν μηχανώμενοι. ### English translation (Claude) From such men and women the choirs of the martyrs were formed. And philosophers and orators have been handed over to oblivion, and most people do not even know the names of kings and generals; but all know the names of the martyrs better than those of their dearest; and they are eager to give their children these names, contriving safety and protection for them from this. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.67 (Raeder, 218; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-67). ## Discourse 8.68 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-68 - Source: Raeder, 218 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pagan temples have vanished and their stones used for martyr shrines. ### Greek text καὶ τί λέγω φιλοσόφους καὶ βασιλέας καὶ στρατηγούς; καὶ γὰρ αὐτῶν τῶν καλουμένων θεῶν τὴν μνήμην ἐκ τῆς τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐξήλενψαν διανοίας. τὰ μὲν γὰρ ἐκείνων οὕτω παντελῶς διελύθη τεμένη, ὡς μηδὲ τῶν σχημάτων διαμεῖναι τὸ εἶδος, μηδὲ τῶν βωμῶν τὸν τύπον τοὺς γῦν ἀνθρώπους ἐπίστασθαι, αἵ δὲ τούτων ὕλαν καθωσιώθησὰαν τοῖς τῶν μαρτύρων σηκοῖς. ### English translation (Claude) And why do I speak of philosophers, kings, and generals? They have erased from human minds the memory even of the so-called gods themselves. For their precincts have been so wholly destroyed that not even the shape of their forms remains, nor do people now know the outline of their altars; and their materials have been consecrated to the shrines of the martyrs. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.68 (Raeder, 218; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-68). ## Discourse 8.69 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-69 - Source: Raeder, 218 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Martyrs' feasts have replaced pagan festivals and are kept soberly. ### Greek text τοὺς γὰρ οἰκείους νεκροὺς ὁ δεσπότης ἀντεισῆξε τοῖς ὑμετέροις θεοῖς, καὶ τοὺς μὲν φρούδους ἀπέφηνε, τούτοις δὲ τὸ ἐκείνων ἀπένειμε γέρας. ἀντὶ γὰρ δὴ τῶν Πανδίων καὶ 4ιασίων καὶ Διονυσίων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ὑμῶν. ἑορτῶν Πέτρου καὶ Παύλου καὶ Θωμᾶ καὶ Σεργίου καὶ Μαρκέλλου καὶ “Δεοντίου καὶ ᾽άντωνίνου καὶ Μαυρικίου καὶ τῶν ἄλλων μαρτύρων ἐπιτελοῦνται δημοθοινίαι᾽ καὶ. ἀντὶ τῆς πάλαι πομπείας καὶ αἰσχρουργίας καὶ αἰσχρορημοσύνης σώφρονες ἕορτάξονται πανηγύρεις, οὐ μέθην ἔχουσαι καὶ κῶμον καὶ γέλωτα, ἀλλ᾽ ὕμνους θείους καὶ ἱερῶν λογίων ἀκρόασιν καὶ προσευχὴν ἀξιεπαίνοις κοσμουμένην δακρύοις. ### English translation (Claude) For the Lord brought in his own dead in place of your gods; he made those vanish and gave their honor to these. Instead of the Pandia, Diasia, Dionysia, and your other feasts, public feasts of Peter, Paul, Thomas, Sergius, Marcellus, Leontius, Antoninus, Maurice, and the other martyrs are celebrated; and instead of the former processions, shameful deeds, and shameful words, sober festivals are kept, with no drunkenness, revelry, or laughter, but divine hymns, the hearing of the holy oracles, and prayer adorned with praiseworthy tears. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.69 (Raeder, 218; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-69). ## Discourse 8.70 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-8-70 - Source: Raeder, 219 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret urges his readers to follow the martyrs to God. ### Greek text ὁρῶντες τοίνυν τῆς τῶν μαρτύρων τιμῆς τὸ ὠφέλιμον, φεύγετε, ὦ φίλοι, τῶν δαιμόνων τὸν πλάνον᾽ καὶ τούτοις φωστῆρσι καὶ ποδηγοῖς πεχρημένοι, τὴν πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν ἄγουσαν πορείαν ὁδεύσατε, ἵνα τῆς τούτων χορείας ἐν τοῖς ἀνωλέθροις αἰῶσιν μετάσχητε. ### English translation (Claude) Seeing, then, the benefit of the honor given to the martyrs, flee, my friends, the error of the demons; and using these as lights and guides, travel the road that leads to God, so that you may share in their choir in the imperishable ages. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 8.70 (Raeder, 219; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-70). ## Discourse 9.1 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/8-12/#p-9-1 - Source: Raeder, 219 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The pagans want only elegant speech. ### Greek text Ὑμεῖς μέν, ὦ ἄνδρες, κακαλλιεπημένων ποθεῖτε λόγων ἀκούειν καὶ τούτοις κατακηλεῖσθαν ξητεῖτε᾽ οὗ δ᾽ ἂν τούτους μὴ εὕροιτε, γελᾶτε καὶ κωμῳδεῖτε καὶ τὰς ἀκοὰς βύετε καὶ τῶν λεγομένων ἐπαΐειν οὐ βούλεσθε. ### English translation (Claude) You, gentlemen, long to hear elegantly worded speeches and seek to be charmed by them; and wherever you do not find them, you laugh, mock, stop your ears, and will not listen to what is said. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.1 (Raeder, 219; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-1). ## Discourse 9.2 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-2 - Source: Raeder, 219 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Precious things lie in cheap coverings, like pearls in shells. ### Greek text ἔδει δὲ ξυνιδεῖν, ὡς τὰ πολλὰ τῶν ἄγαν τιμιωτάτων ἐν ἐλύτροις εὐτελέσι καλύπτεται. καὶ γὰρ τὸν πολυτελῆ μαργαρίτην καὶ τοῖς πλουτοῦσι τριπόθητον εὐκαταφρόνητον ὄστρεον καὶ τίντεν καὶ τρέφει, καὶ μέντοι καὶ κατακρύπτει᾽ οἱ δὲ τοῦτον ὠνούμενοι, χρυσίον διδόντες ὅτι μάλιστα πλεῖστον, χαίρειν ἐῶσι τὸ ὄστρεον. ### English translation (Claude) But you ought to have perceived that most of the most precious things are hidden in cheap wrappings. For the costly pearl, thrice longed for by the rich, is borne, nourished, and hidden by a contemptible shellfish; and those who buy it, paying as much gold as possible, let the shell go. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.2 (Raeder, 219; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2). ## Discourse 9.3 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-3 - Source: Raeder, 219 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Gems must be cut free of worthless stone. ### Greek text καὶ τοῖς διαυγέσι δὲ λιθιδίοις ἐκείνοις, ἃ τὴν βασιλικὴν διακοσμεῖ κεφαλήν, ἑτέρα λίθου φύσις ἔξωθεν περίκειται παντάπασιν ἄχρηστος᾽ οἱ δὲ τοῦ τοιοῦδε κόσμου δημιουργοί, τοῦτο τὸ περιττὸν τε καὶ ἄχρηστον περιμόπτοντές τε καὶ ἀποξύοντες, τῶν διαφανῶν λίθων ἐκείνων γυμνοῦσι τὸ κάλλος. ### English translation (Claude) And around those transparent little stones that adorn the royal head another kind of stone lies on the outside, wholly useless; and the makers of such ornament cut around and scrape off this superfluous and useless part and lay bare the beauty of those transparent stones. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.3 (Raeder, 219; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-3). ## Discourse 9.4 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-4 - Source: Raeder, 220 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Metals hide in earth, and coins in plain boxes. ### Greek text καὶ τὸν χρυσὸν δὲ τὸν τοῖς πολλοῖς ἀξιέραστον, κα καὶ μέντοι καὶ τὸν ἄργυρον καὶ τὸν χαλκὸν καὶ τὸν σίδηρον ψάμμος καὶ γῆ ξυγκολύπτουσιν᾽ ἀλλ᾽ οἵ τὰς χρυσίτιδας καὶ ἀργυρίτιδας διερευνώμενοι φλέβας διορύττουσι μὲν τὰ μέταλλα, ξυλλέγουσι δὲ τὰ ψήγματα. καὶ ἐπίσημον δὲ γενόμενον τὸν χρυσὸν καὶ τὸν βασιλικὸν δεξάμενον χαρακτῆρα οὗ χρυσὸς ἔξωθεν, ἀλλ᾽ ἣ σκύτιναν ἢ ξύλιναι φυλάττουσι θῆκαι. ### English translation (Claude) Sand and earth cover gold, which the many love, and also silver, bronze, and iron; but those who search the veins of gold and silver dig through the mines and gather the grains. And gold that has been coined and received the royal stamp is kept not in gold outside, but in leather or wooden boxes. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.4 (Raeder, 220; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-4). ## Discourse 9.5 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-5 - Source: Raeder, 220 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The great treasure of truth comes in plain words. ### Greek text εἰκότως οὖν ἄρα καὶ τὴν ἀληθῆ περὶ τῶν θείων καὶ τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων δόξαν οὐ λαμπροί τινες καὶ ὄγκον ἔχοντες, ἀλλ᾽ ἁπλοῖ καὶ πεζοὶ καὶ πᾶσι γνώριμοι κηρύττουσι λόγοι, καὶ τὸν μέγαν καὶ ἄρρητον θησαυρὸν εὐτελεῖς ἄγαν φέρουσι θῆκαι. ### English translation (Claude) Fittingly, then, the true opinion about divine and human things is proclaimed not by some brilliant and weighty words, but by simple, plain words known to all, and very cheap vessels carry the great and ineffable treasure. ### Scripture references - 2 Cor 4:7: echo, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.5 (Raeder, 220; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-5). ## Discourse 9.6 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-6 - Source: Raeder, 220 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The apostles' laws spread farther than any Greek or Roman lawgiver's. ### Greek text ὅσην δέ γε οὗτοι ῥώμην καὶ δύναμιν ἔχουσι, ῥᾷστα ἄν τις ξυνίδοι, τοὺς Ἑλλήνων καὶ Ῥωμαίων γομοθέτας παραγαγὼν καὶ τούτοις τοὺς ἡμετέρους ἁλιέας καὶ τελώνας παρεξετόσας. εὑρήσει γὰρ τοὺς μὲν οὐδὲ τοὺς ὁμόρους πείσαντας κατὰ τοὺς σφῶν πολιτεύεσθαι νόμους, τοὺς δὲ Γαλιλαίους οὐ μόνον Ῥωμαίους πεπεικότας καὶ “Ἕλληνας, ἀλλὰ καὶ πάντα τῶν βαρβάρων τὰ φῦλα τὴν εὐαγγελυνὴν νομοθεσίαν ἀσπάσασθαι. ### English translation (Claude) How much strength and power these have one could very easily perceive by bringing forward the lawgivers of the Greeks and Romans and comparing our fishermen and tax collectors with them. For he will find that those did not persuade even their neighbors to live by their laws, while the Galileans persuaded not only Romans and Greeks but all the tribes of barbarians to embrace the gospel legislation. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.6 (Raeder, 220; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-6). ## Discourse 9.7 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-7 - Source: Raeder, 220 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Minos's laws held only Crete, and not lastingly. ### Greek text καὶ Μίνως μέν, ὃς αὐχεῖ κατὰ τὸν μῦθον πατέρα τὸν Δία, καὶ παρὰ τὸ ἐκείνου γε ἄντρον, ὡς μυθολογοῦσι, φοιτήσας τὰς τῶν νόμῶν ἔλαβεν ἀφορμάς, Κρητῶν μὲν νομοθέτης ἐγένετος οὐκ ἔπεισε δὲ οὔτε Σικελιώτας οὔτε Καρχηδονίους οὔτε μὴν τοὺς Ἕλληνας κατὰ τοὺς αὐτοῦ πολιτεύεσθαι νόμους, ἀλλὰ μόνην τὴν νῆσον ἐκείνην, ἧς ἐβασίλευε, στέρξαι τοὺς νόμοὺς ἠνάγκασε, καὶ οὐδὲ τούτους τὸν ἀεὶ χρόνον" ἐπειδὴ γὰρ Ῥωμαῖοι τῆς οἰκουμένης ἐκράτησαν, κατὰ τοὺς τούτων καὶ οὗτοι πολιτεύονται νόμους. ### English translation (Claude) Minos, who in the myth boasts Zeus as father and, as they tell, received the beginnings of his laws by frequenting his cave, became lawgiver of the Cretans; but he did not persuade Sicilians, Carthaginians, or Greeks to live by his laws, but compelled only that island over which he reigned to accept his laws, and not even them for all time; for since the Romans mastered the world, these too live by their laws. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.7 (Raeder, 220; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-7). ## Discourse 9.8 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-8 - Source: Raeder, 221 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Charondas's laws did not spread and have lapsed. ### Greek text πάλιν τὸν Χαρώνδαν πρῶτὸν Ἰταλίας καὶ Σικελίας νομόθέτην γεγενῆσθαί φασιν᾽ ἀλλ᾽ οὐδὲ οὗτος Τυρρηνοὺς ἔπεισεν ἢ Κελτοὺς ἢ Ἴβηρας ἢ Κελτίβηρας, καὶ ταῦτα ὁμόρους γε ὄντας καὶ ἀγχιτέρμονας, τοὺς ὑπ᾽ αὐτοῦ τεθέντας καταδέξασθαι νόμους. καὶ τί λέγω τοὺς ὁμόρους; οὐδὲ γὰρ οἱ τηνικάδε τούτους θαυμάσαντες καὶ στέρξαντες κατὰ τούτους νῦν βιοτεύουσι᾽ τὸν γάρ τὸν τῶν Ῥωμαϊκῶν νόμων ὑπῆγθθον καὶ οὗτοι ξυγόν. ### English translation (Claude) Again, they say Charondas was the first lawgiver of Italy and Sicily; but he did not persuade Tyrrhenians, Celts, Iberians, or Celtiberians, though neighbors and bordering on them, to accept the laws he made. And why do I speak of neighbors? Not even those who then admired and loved them live by them now; for they too have come under the yoke of Roman laws. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.8 (Raeder, 221; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-8). ## Discourse 9.9 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-9 - Source: Raeder, 221 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Zaleucus's laws were rejected by neighbors. ### Greek text Ζάλευκος δὲ “οκροῖς τέθειμε νόμους, παρά γε τῆς ᾿4θηνᾶς τὴν τούτῶν ἐπιστήμην δεξάμενος, ἡ φασιν οἵ τοὺς μύθους διαπλάττειν φιλοῦντες᾽ ἀλλ᾽ οὔτε ᾿ἀκαρνᾶνες οὔτε Φωκεῖς οὔτε μὴν οἱ ἄλλοι “Δοκροὶ τῆς τούτου νομοθεσίας ἠνέσχοντο, καὶ ταῦτα οὐ μακρὰν οἰκοῦντες, ἀλλ᾽ ἀστυγείτονες ὄντες. ### English translation (Claude) Zaleucus made laws for the Locrians, having received their knowledge from Athena, as those who love to invent myths say; but neither the Acarnanians, the Phocians, nor the other Locrians tolerated his legislation, though they lived not far off but were neighbors. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.9 (Raeder, 221; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-9). ## Discourse 9.10 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-10 - Source: Raeder, 221 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Delphic oracle praised Lycurgus as near-divine. ### Greek text τὸν δὲ “Ζυκοῦργον λέγουσιν οἵ σεμνολογεῖν τοὺς τοῦδε νόμους σπουδάζοντες εἰς Δελφοὺς μὲν ἀφικέσθαι παρὰ τὸν Πύθιον, ἐμπνευσθῆναι δὲ παρ᾽ ἐκείνου καὶ θεῖναι “ακεδαιμονίοις τοὺς νόμους. λέγουσι δὲ καὶ τὸν χρησμόν, ὃν τοῦδε πέρι ὁ Πύθιος ἔχρησεν" ἔστι δὲ οὗτος" «ἥκεις, ὦ “Δυκόεργε, ἐμὸν ποτὶ πίονα νηὸν Ζηνὶ φίλος καὶ πᾶσιν Ὀλύμπια δώματ᾽ ἔχουσιν. δίζω ἤ σε θεὸν μαντεύσομαν ἢ ἄνθρωπον᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ἔτι καὶ μᾶλλον θεὸν ἕλπομαι, ὦ “υκόεργε. ἥκεις εὖνομίην. ### English translation (Claude) Those eager to exalt the laws of Lycurgus say that he went to Delphi to the Pythian, was inspired by him, and gave the Lacedaemonians their laws. They also tell the oracle the Pythian gave about him; it is this: 'You have come, Lycurgus, to my rich temple, dear to Zeus and to all who have Olympian homes. I am in doubt whether to proclaim you god or man; but rather I hope a god, Lycurgus. You have come ### Extrabiblical texts - Herodotus, Hist. 1.65 (Herodotus, Histories): quotation, high confidence - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Herodotus 1.65. The oracle ends in 9.11. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.10 (Raeder, 221; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-10). ## Discourse 9.11 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-11 - Source: Raeder, 222 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Even Sparta's allies did not adopt Lycurgus's laws. ### Greek text διξήμενος᾽ αὐτὰρ ἐγώ τοι δώσω.“ τοιοῦτος μὲν δὴ οὗτος καὶ ὃ περὶ τούτου χρησμός. ἀλλ᾽ οὔτε. τὸ πολὺ τοῦ ψομοθέτου κλέος οὔτε τῆς Σπάρτης ἡ περιφάνεια, οὔτε ὁ τοῦ Πυθίου χρησμὸς ἠνάγκασεν ᾿Αργείους ἢ Τεγεάτας ἢ Μαντινεῖς ἢ Κορινθίους, μάλα πλησίον οἰκοῦντας, τὴν «Ἰακεδαιμονίων καταδέξασθαι πολιτείαν. παὶ τί- λέγω τοὺς ἄλλους; Φλιάσιοι γὰρ πόλισμα μὲν οἰκοῦσε σμιμρόν, ἀεὶ δὲ τὴν “Μακεδαιμονίων ἡγεμονίαν ἠγάπησαν καὶ τούτων ἦσαν ὑπύσπονδοι, ἀλλ᾽ ἤγοντο μὲν ὑπ᾽ ἐκείνων καὶ ξυνεπολέμουν ἀεί, τοῖς δὲ ἐκείνων οὐκ ἐχρήσαντο νόμοις. ### English translation (Claude) seeking good order; and I will give it to you.' Such was he and the oracle about him. But neither the great fame of the lawgiver, nor the glory of Sparta, nor the Pythian's oracle compelled the Argives, Tegeans, Mantineans, or Corinthians, who lived very near, to accept the constitution of the Lacedaemonians. And why do I speak of the others? The Phliasians live in a small town and always loved the leadership of the Lacedaemonians and were their allies; they were led by them and always fought alongside them, but did not use their laws. ### Extrabiblical texts - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.11 (Raeder, 222; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-11). ## Discourse 9.12 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-12 - Source: Raeder, 222 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Even Solon's laws were not adopted by Athens's neighbors. ### Greek text καὶ ἵνα τοὺς ἄλλους νομοθέτας παρῶ, "ἄπιν τὸν Ἀργείων καὶ Μνησίωνα τὸν Φωκέων καὶ τὸν Κυρηναίων Ζημώναχτα καὶ Παγώνδὴν τὸν ᾿Αχαιῶν καὶ τὸν Κνιδίων ᾿Αρχίαν καὶ Βιὔδοξον τὸν Μιλησίων καὶ Φιλόλαον τὸν Θηβαίων καὶ Πιττακὸν τὸν Μιτυληναίων καὶ Νέστορα τὸν Πυλίων, οὗ τοὺς λόγους μέλιτος γλυκυτέρους ἐκάλεσεν Ὅμηρος, --- ἵνα τούτους καὶ τοὺς τῶν ἄλλων ἐθνῶν νομοθέτας παρῶ, Σόλων ὃ πολυθρύλητος καὶ Δράκων καὶ Κλεισθένης νομοθέται ᾿4θηναίων ἐγένοντο. ἀλλ᾽ οὔτε ᾿Πεγαρέας οὔτε Εὐβοέας οὔτε Θηβαίους; ὁμόρους γε ὄντας καὶ ἄγαν πλησιοχώρους, τοῖς τοῦ Σόλωγος ἢ τοῦ Ζράκοντος ἢ τοῦ Κλεισθένους ὑπακοῦσαι νόμοις ἔπεισαν ᾿4θηναῖοι. ### English translation (Claude) To pass over the other lawgivers, Apis of the Argives, Mnesion of the Phocians, Demonax of the Cyrenaeans, Pagondas of the Achaeans, Archias of the Cnidians, Eudoxus of the Milesians, Philolaus of the Thebans, Pittacus of the Mitylenaeans, and Nestor of the Pylians, whose words Homer called sweeter than honey, to pass over these and the lawgivers of other nations: the celebrated Solon, Draco, and Cleisthenes were lawgivers of the Athenians. But the Athenians did not persuade the Megarians, the Euboeans, or the Thebans, though neighbors and very close, to obey the laws of Solon, Draco, or Cleisthenes. ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 1.249 (Homer, Iliad): allusion, high confidence - Philolaus (Philolaus): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Iliad 1.249. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.12 (Raeder, 222; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-12). ## Discourse 9.13 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-13 - Source: Raeder, 223 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Roman law replaced Greek law, but only by conquest. ### Greek text [ καὶ αὐτοὶ δὲ ᾿4θηναῖοι τούτοις ἐρ- ρῶσθαι φράσαντες, καὶ μέντοι καὶ “ακεδαιμόνιοι καὶ.4οκροὺ καὶ Θηβαῖοι καὶ οἱ ἄλλοι δὲ “Ἕλληνες κατὰ τοὺς Ῥωμαίων πολιτεύονταν νόμους. καὶ Ῥωμαῖον δὲ τοὺς παρ᾽ “Ἕλλησι καὶ βαρβάροις ξυναθροίσαντες νόμους καὶ τοὺς ἄριστα κεῖσθαι δόξαντας παρ᾽ ἑκάστου νομοθέτου λαβόντες, ὅσαπερ ἔθνη τὸν τούτων ὑπεισῆλθε ζυγόν, δουλεύειν τοῖσδε τοῖς νόμοις ἠνάγκασαν, τοὺς δὲ παρ᾽ αὐτῶν οὐ βουληθέντοτὰς ἰθύνεσθαι οὔτε ἔπεισαν οὔτε ἠνάγκασαν τὴν σφῶν πολιτείαν ἀσπάσασθαι. ### English translation (Claude) And the Athenians themselves, having bidden these farewell, and also the Lacedaemonians, Locrians, Thebans, and the other Greeks, live by the laws of the Romans. And the Romans, collecting the laws among Greeks and barbarians and taking from each lawgiver those that seemed best made, compelled as many nations as came under their yoke to serve these laws; but those who did not wish to be governed by them they neither persuaded nor compelled to embrace their constitution. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.13 (Raeder, 223; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-13). ## Discourse 9.14 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-14 - Source: Raeder, 223 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Even subject peoples keep their own laws. ### Greek text πολλοὶ δὲ καὶ τὸν τῆς δουλείας δεξάμενον χαλινόν, βιοτεύειν κατὰ τοὺς τούτων οὐκ ἀνέχονται νόμους. οὔτε γὰρ Αἰθίοπες οἷ Θηβῶν τῶν Αἰγυπτίων ὁμοτέρμονες οὔτε τὰ πάμπολλα φῦλα τοῦ Ἰσμαήλ, οὐ “αζοί, οὐ Σάννοι, οὐκ ᾿Αβασγοί, οὐχ οἵ ἄλλοι βάρβαρον, ὅσον τὴν Ῥωμαίων ἀσπάξονται δεσποτείαν, κατὰ τοὺς Ῥωμαίων νόμους τὰ πρὸς ἀλλήλους ποιοῦνται ξυμβόλαια. ### English translation (Claude) And many who received the bridle of slavery do not consent to live by their laws. For neither the Ethiopians bordering on Egyptian Thebes, nor the very many tribes of Ishmael, nor the Lazi, Sanni, Abasgi, nor the other barbarians who embrace Roman rule make their contracts with one another by Roman laws. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.14 (Raeder, 223; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-14). ## Discourse 9.15 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-15 - Source: Raeder, 223 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The apostles brought the gospel laws to every nation by persuasion. ### Greek text οἵ δὲ ἡμέτερον ἁλιεῖς καὶ οἵ τελῶναν καὶ ὁ σχνυτοτόμος ὅπασιν ἀνθρώποις τοὺς εὐαγγελικοὺς προσενηνόχασι νόμους. καὶ οὐ μόνον Ῥωμαίους καὶ τοὺς ὑπὸ τούτοις τελοῦντας, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ Σκυθικὰ καὶ τὰ Σαυρομοατιπὰ ἔθνη καὶ Ἰνδοὺς καὶ Αἰθίοπας καὶ Πέρσας καὶ Σῆρας καὶ Ὑρχανοὺς καὶ Βακτριανοὺς καὶ Βρεττανοὺς καὶ Κίμβρους καὶ Γερμανοὺς καὶ ἁπαξαπλῶς πᾶν ἔθνος καὶ γένος ἀνθρώπων δέξασθαι τοῦ σταυρωθέντος τοὺς νόμους ἀνέπεισαν, οὐχ ὅπλοις χρησάμενοι καὶ πολλαῖς μυριάσι λογάδων οὐδὲ τῇ τῆς Περσικῆς ὠμότητος χρώμενον βίᾳ, ἀλλὰ πείθοντες καὶ δειμνύντες ### English translation (Claude) But our fishermen, tax collectors, and leather-worker brought the gospel laws to all human beings. And they persuaded not only the Romans and those subject to them, but also the Scythian and Sauromatian nations, Indians, Ethiopians, Persians, Seres, Hyrcanians, Bactrians, Britons, Cimbri, Germans, and simply every nation and race of human beings to accept the laws of the Crucified, not using arms and many myriads of picked men, nor the force of Persian cruelty, but persuading and showing ### Scripture references - Matt 28:19: echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 9.16. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.15 (Raeder, 223; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-15). ## Discourse 9.16 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-16 - Source: Raeder, 223 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: They spread the gospel amid dangers. ### Greek text ὀνησιφόρους τοὺς νόμους, καὶ οὐδὲ δίχα κινδύνων τοῦτο ποιοῦντες, ἀλλὰ πολλὰς μὲν κατὰ πόλιν ὑπομένοντες παροινί ### English translation (Claude) the laws to be beneficial; and not without dangers, but enduring many outrages in each city ### Translation notes - A short fragment; the sentence continues in 9.17. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.16 (Raeder, 223; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-16). ## Discourse 9.17 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-17 - Source: Raeder, 224 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Persecution only strengthened the gospel laws, while Greek laws vanished. ### Greek text ας, πολλὰς δὲ καὶ παρὰ τῶν τυχόντων δεχόμενοι μάστιγας καὶ στρεβλούμενοι καὶ καθειργνύμενοι καὶ πᾶσαν ἰδέαν κπολαστηφρίων δεχόμενοι. εὐεργέτας γάρ τοι ὄντας καὶ σωτῆρας καὶ ἰατρούς, ὡς ἐπιβούλους καὶ πολεμίους οἱ μὲν ἐξήλαυνον, οἱ δὲ καὶ κατέλευον, οἵ δὲ πέδαις καὶ ποδοκάκαις ἐδέσμουν, καὶ τοὺς μὲν αὐτῶν ἀπετυμπάνισαν, τοὺς δὲ ἀνεσκολόπισαν, τοὺς δὲ θηρίοις παρέδοσαν. ἀλλὰ τοὺς μὲν νομοθέτας κατηκόντισαν, τὸ δὲ τῶν νόμων οὐ κατέλυσαν πράτος᾽ πολλῷ γὰρ ἰσχυρότεροι μετὰ τὴν ἐκείνων ἀπεφάνθησαν τελευτήν. πρὸς γάρ τοι Πέρσας καὶ Σκύθας καὶ τἄλλα βάρβαρα ἔθνη μετὰ τὴν ἐκείνων οἱ νόμοι διέβησαν τελευτήν καὶ πάντων πολεμούντων, οὐ μόνον βαρβάρων, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτῶν γε 'Ῥωμαίων, διέμειναν τὸ ἴσον ἔχοντες κράτος καὶ πάντα κάλων Ῥωμαῖον κινήσαντες, ὥστε τῶν ἁλιέων καὶ τοῦ σκυτοτόμου ἠαταλῦσαν τὴν μνήμην, λαμπροτέραν αὐτὴν καὶ περιφανεστέραν ἀπέφηναν᾽ καὶ τοὺς μὲν “υκούργον καὶ Σόλωνος καὶ Ζαλεύκου καὶ Χαρώνδου καὶ Μίνωος καὶ τῶν ἄλλων γομοθετῶν ἀργεῖν προσέταξαν νόμους, καὶ ἀντεῖπε τῶν ὑπ᾽ ἐκείνοις πολιτευσαμένων οὐδείς, ἀλλ᾽ ὁ λόγος ἐγένετο νόμος καὶ ἀπέσβη μὲν τῶν πολυθρυλήτων νομοθετῶν ἣ μνήμη, οἱ δὲ Ῥωμαίων νόμοι τὰς τῶν “Ἑλλήνων ἰθύϊνουσι πόλεις. ### English translation (Claude) and receiving many scourges from anyone at all, being racked, imprisoned, and receiving every form of punishment. For though they were benefactors, saviors, and physicians, some drove them out as plotters and enemies, some stoned them, some bound them in fetters and stocks; some of them they cudgeled to death, some they impaled, some they handed over to beasts. But they killed the lawgivers without destroying the power of the laws; for these became much stronger after their death. For after their death the laws crossed to the Persians, Scythians, and other barbarian nations; and though all made war on them, not only barbarians but even the Romans themselves, they kept the same power. And the Romans moved every rope to destroy the memory of the fishermen and the leather-worker, but made it more brilliant and famous; and they ordered the laws of Lycurgus, Solon, Zaleucus, Charondas, Minos, and the other lawgivers to cease, and none of those who lived under them objected; the word became law, the memory of the famous lawgivers was quenched, and Roman laws govern the cities of the Greeks. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.17 (Raeder, 224; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-17). ## Discourse 9.18 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-18 - Source: Raeder, 224 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Athenian and Spartan institutions have disappeared. ### Greek text καὶ ἀργεῖ μὲν παρ᾽ ᾿Αθηναίοις ὁ "άρειος πάγος καὶ ἡ Ἡλιαία καὶ τὸ ἐπὶ Δελφινίῳ δικαστήριον καὶ ἡ τῶν πεντακοσίων βουλὴ καὶ οἱ ἕνδεκα καὶ οἵ θεσμοθέται καὶ ὃ πολέμαρχος καὶ ὃ τοῦ ἐνιαυτοῦ ἄρχων --- ὀνόματα ἄλλως ἐστὶν ὀλίγοις κομιδῇ γνώριμα τοῖς ἀναγινώσκειν ἐθέλουσι τὰ τοῖς πάλαι ξυγγεγραμμένα᾽" παρὰ δὲ “αμεδαιμονίοις ξενηλασίαν οὐκ ἔστιν ἰδεῖν οὐδὲ τὴν τῶν εἰλώτων δουλείαν οὐδὲ τοὺς νεοδαμώδεις οὐδὲ τὴν ἐκ τῶν Δυκούργου νόμων τῆς παιδεραστίας ἄδειαν οὐδὲ τὰς ἐννόμους εἰς τοὺς γάμους παραενομίας. ### English translation (Claude) At Athens the Areopagus is idle, and the Heliaea, the court at the Delphinium, the council of the Five Hundred, the Eleven, the thesmothetae, the polemarch, and the archon of the year: names otherwise known to very few who care to read what the ancients wrote. Among the Lacedaemonians one cannot see the expulsion of foreigners, nor the slavery of the helots, nor the neodamodeis, nor the license for pederasty from the laws of Lycurgus, nor the lawful transgressions regarding marriage. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.18 (Raeder, 224; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-18). ## Discourse 9.19 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-19 - Source: Raeder, 225 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Lycurgus allowed wife-sharing for procreation, which Plato admired. ### Greek text ὃ γάρ τὸν Δυκοῦργος, τῶν. νομοθετῶν ὁ ἄριστος, ὡς δοκεῖ τοῖς τῶν Ἑλλήνων σοφοῖς, διηγόρευσεν ἐν τοῖς νόμοις, ὡς οἵ τὴν Δακεδαιμονίων πολιτείαν ξυγγεγραφότες φασίν, ἐξεῖναι καὶ ἀνδράσι καὶ γυναιξὶν ἤδη δεξαμένοις τὸν τοῦ γάμου ξυγόν, ταῖς μὲν ἐξ ἄλλων ἀνδρῶν, τοῖς δὲ ἔκ γυναιμῶν ἑτέροις ἀνδράσι ξυνεζευγμένων ποιεῖσθαι παῖδας ἀδεῶς μιγνυμένοις᾽ καὶ τούτους τεθαύμακε τοὺς νόμους ὃ Πλάτων καὶ τὴν ὑπ᾽ αὐτοῦ διαπλασθεῖσαν πόλιν κατὰ τούτοὺς προσέταξε πολιτεύεσθαι. ### English translation (Claude) For Lycurgus, the best of the lawgivers in the opinion of the Greek sages, prescribed in his laws, as those who wrote about the Lacedaemonian constitution say, that men and women who had already taken the yoke of marriage might freely beget children, the women by other men, the men by women joined to other husbands, lying with them without fear; and Plato admired these laws and ordered the city he devised to be governed by them. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plutarch, Lyc. 15 (Plutarch): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Compare Plutarch, Lycurgus 15; Xenophon, Constitution of the Lacedaemonians 1.7–9. Theodoret's link to Plato's community of wives (Republic 5) is his own. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.19 (Raeder, 225; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-19). ## Discourse 9.20 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-20 - Source: Raeder, 225 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Lycurgus's laws died at Rome's command; the apostles' laws survived Nero. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ τὸν φιλόσοφον, ὡς φιλόσοφον καὶ τῶν νομοθετῶν εἶναι σεμνυνόμενον ἄριστον, φυλάξωμεν ἔσχατον, νῦν δὲ τῶν Πυθίων νόμων (οὐδὲν γὰρ διαφέρει Πυθίους ἢ “Δυκουργείους καλεῖν) διελέγξωμεν τὴν ἀσθένειαν. ἅμα τὲ γὰρ προσέταξαν οἱ Ῥωμαῖοι τούτους ἀργεῖν καὶ τοὺς σφετέρους κρατεῖν. καὶ διελύθη τῶν 4υκούργου τὸ ἄμαχον πράτος᾽ τῶν δὲ ἁλιέων καὶ τελωνῶν καὶ τοῦ σχηνορράφου τοὺς νόμους οὐ Γάϊος ἴσχυσεν, οὐ Κλαύδιος καταλῦσαι, οὐ Νέρων ὁ μετ᾽ ἐκείνους, καὶ ταῦτα δύο τῶν νομοθετῶν τοὺς ἀρίστους κατακοντίσας (καὶ γὰρ τὸν ### English translation (Claude) But let us keep the philosopher, as a philosopher priding himself on being the best of lawgivers, for last; now let us expose the weakness of the Pythian laws (for there is no difference in calling them Pythian or Lycurgan). As soon as the Romans ordered them to cease and their own to prevail, the invincible power of Lycurgus's laws was dissolved; but the laws of the fishermen, tax collectors, and tentmaker neither Gaius nor Claudius could destroy, nor Nero after them, though he killed two of the best of the lawgivers (for ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 9.21. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.20 (Raeder, 225; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-20). ## Discourse 9.21 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-21 - Source: Raeder, 225 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Emperors who conquered nations could not destroy the gospel. ### Greek text Πέτρον ἐκεῖνος καὶ τὸν Παῦλον ἀνεῖλεν, ἀλλ᾽ οὐ ξυνανεῖλε τοῖς νομοθέταις τοὺς νόμους), οὐκ Οὐεσπασιανός, οὐ Τίτος, οὐ Δομετιανός, καὶ ταῦτα πολλοῖς κατ΄ αὐτῶν καὶ παντοδαποῖς χρησάμενος μηχανήμασι᾽ πολλοὺς γὰρ δὴ τούτους ἀσπαζομένους τῷ θανάτῳ παρέπεμψε, παντοδαπαῖς κολαστηοίων ἰδέ σάμενος. καὶ Τραϊανὸς δὲ καὶ ᾿Αδριανὶ οίων ἰδέαις χρησάμενος. καὶ Τραϊανὸς δὲ καὶ ᾿ἀδριανὸς σφόδρα κατὰ τῶνδε τῶν νύμων παρεταξάτην᾽ ἀλλὰ τὴν μὲν Περσῶν ὁ Τραϊανὸς δυναστείαν κατέλυσε καὶ Ἀρμενίους τῷ “Ῥωμαίων ὑπέταξε χαλινῷ, καὶ μέντοι καὶ τὰ Σκυθικὰ ἔθνη τοῖς σκήπτροις ὑποχύπτειν ἠνάγκασε᾽ τὴν δὲ τῶν ἁλιέων καὶ τοῦ σκυτοτόμου καταλῦσαι νομοθεσίαν οὐκ ἴσχυσεν. ### English translation (Claude) he killed Peter and Paul, but did not kill the laws with the lawgivers); nor Vespasian, nor Titus, nor Domitian, though he used many and various devices against them; for he sent many who embraced them to death, using all kinds of punishments. And Trajan and Hadrian set themselves fiercely against these laws; but Trajan destroyed the power of the Persians, subjected the Armenians to the Roman bridle, and forced the Scythian nations to bow to his scepter, but could not destroy the legislation of the fishermen and the leather-worker. ### Translation notes - The scan repeats a few words; they are translated once. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.21 (Raeder, 225; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-21). ## Discourse 9.22 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-22 - Source: Raeder, 226 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Hadrian, Antoninus, and Verus could not suppress the faith. ### Greek text καὶ Ἀδριανὸς τῶν μὲν τὸν Ἰησοῦν ἐσταυρωκότων ἄρδην τὴν πόλιν κατέλυσε, τοὺς δὲ τούτῳ πεπιστευκότας ἀφεῖναι τὴν ἐκείνου δουλείαν οὐχ ἔπεισεν. καὶ ᾿ἀντωνῖνος δὲ ὃ μετ᾽ ἐκείνους καὶ Οὕὔηρος ὃ ἐξ ἐκείνου πολλὰ μὲν καὶ λαμπρὰ κατὰ βαρβάρων τρόπαια ἐστησάτην καὶ αὐτόνομον βίον ἀσπαζομένοις τὸν τῆς δυναστείας ἐπιτεθεικάτην ξυγόν᾽ τοὺς δὲ τοῦ σωτηρίου σταυροῦ τὸν ξυγὸν φέρειν ἠγαπηπότας οὔτε ἐπεισάτην οὔτε ἠναγκασάτην καταλιπεῖν ὃν ἠγάπησαν, καὶ ταῦτα πολλαῖς μὲν ἀπειλαῖς δεδιξάμενοι, παμπόλλαις δὲ τιμωρίαις χρησάμενοι. ### English translation (Claude) And Hadrian utterly destroyed the city of those who crucified Jesus, but did not persuade those who believed in him to give up his service. And Antoninus after them, and Verus his son, set up many brilliant trophies against barbarians and laid the yoke of rule on those who embraced an independent life; but those who loved to bear the yoke of the saving cross they neither persuaded nor compelled to leave what they loved, though they terrified them with many threats and used very many punishments. ### Translation notes - Theodoret's description of Jerusalem as the city 'of those who crucified Jesus' is translated as written. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.22 (Raeder, 226; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-22). ## Discourse 9.23 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-23 - Source: Raeder, 226 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Great Persecution killed believers by the thousands. ### Greek text καὶ ἵνα Κόμοδον καταλίπω καὶ ἹΜαξιμιανὸν καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους ἅπαντας τοὺς ἄχρις «Αὐρηλιανοῦ καὶ Κάρου καὶ Καρίνου βεβασιλευκότας, τίς ἀγνοεῖ τὴν Διοκλητιανοῦ καὶ Μαξιμιανοῦ καὶ Μαξεντίου καὶ Μαξιμίνου καὶ Διμνίου κατὰ τῆς εὐσεβείας μανίαν; οὐ γὰρ καθ' ἕνα γε οὗτον οὐδὲ χατὰ δύο καὶ τρεῖς τοὺς τῷ Χριστῷ πεπιστευκύτας, ἀλλ᾽ ἀγεληδὸν κατηκόντιζον καὶ κατὰ χιλίους καὶ μυρίους ἀνήρουν. ### English translation (Claude) And to leave aside Commodus, Maximian, and all the others who reigned down to Aurelian, Carus, and Carinus, who does not know the madness against godliness of Diocletian, Maximian, Maxentius, Maximin, and Licinius? For they killed those who believed in Christ not one by one, nor two or three at a time, but in herds, slaughtering them by thousands and tens of thousands. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.23 (Raeder, 226; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-23). ## Discourse 9.24 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-24 - Source: Raeder, 227 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Persecutors burned churches and destroyed all of them at Easter. ### Greek text ἐν δέ τισι πόλεσι καὶ τὰς ἐκκλησίας ἀνδρῶν καὶ γυναιπμῶν καὶ παίδων πεπληρωμένας ἐνέπρησαν" καὶ κατ᾽ αὐτήν γε τὴν τοῦ σωτηρίου πάθους ἡμέραν, ἐν ἢ καὶ τοῦ πάθους καὶ τῆς δεσποτικῆς ἀναστάσεως τὴν μνήμὴν πανηγυρίζομεν, ἁπάσας τὰς ἐν τῇ Ῥωμαίων ἡγεμονίᾳ κατέλυσαν ἐκπλησίας. ### English translation (Claude) In some cities they burned churches filled with men, women, and children; and on the very day of the saving passion, on which we keep the festival of the memory of the passion and of the Lord's resurrection, they destroyed all the churches in the Roman empire. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.24 (Raeder, 227; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-24). ## Discourse 9.25 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-25 - Source: Raeder, 227 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Even Julian and the great emperors could not overcome simple believers. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ τὰς μὲν τῶν λίθων ἁρμονίας διέλυσαν, τὴν δὲ τῶν ψυχῶν εὐσέβειαν οὐ κατέλυσαν. ὁποῖα δὲ χατὰ Χριστιανῶν κἀν τῇ Ἰουλιανοῦ τετόλμηται βασιλείᾳ, ἴσασι μὲν οἵ γεγηρακότες, ἀνηκόαμεν δὲ καὶ ἡμεῖς διηγουμένων τῶν τὴν τραγῳδίαν ἐκείνην ἑξωρακότων᾽ ἀλλ᾽ οὗτοι ἅπαντες, τοσοῦτοί γε ὄντες καὶ τοσαύτην ἰθύνοντεο βασιλείαν καὶ τοσούτων βαρβάρων καταλύσαντες θράσος καὶ λαμπρῶς ἐν πολέμοις ἠριστευκότες, ἀποχειροβιώτων ἀνθρώπῶν καὶ ἀγροίκων καὶ πενίᾳ ξυξώντων καὶ γυναικῶν ἐκ ταλασιουργίας ποριζομένων τὸν βίον, μυρίαις χρησάμενοι μηχαναῖς, οὐκ ἐκράτησαν. ### English translation (Claude) But they dissolved the fitting of stones, not the godliness of souls. What was dared against Christians in the reign of Julian, the old know, and we too have heard from those who witnessed that tragedy. But all these, so many and ruling so great an empire, who destroyed the insolence of so many barbarians and excelled brilliantly in wars, using countless devices, did not overcome manual laborers, rustics living in poverty, and women earning their living by spinning wool. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.25 (Raeder, 227; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-25). ## Discourse 9.26 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-26 - Source: Raeder, 227 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Persecution was like pouring oil on a fire. ### Greek text καὶ τί λέγω ἄνδρας τε καὶ γυναῖπαρ; οὐδὲ γὰρ μειρακίων τὰ πρῶτα στοιχεῖα πεπαιδευμένων τὰς περὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἐκβαλεῖν ἠδυνήθησαν δόξας᾽ καὶ κορυβαντιῶντες καὶ λυττῶντες καὶ τεχνάὅμασι, καὶ σοφίσμασι κεχρημένοι μυρίοις, τοὺς τῶν ἁλιέων οὐ κατέλυσαν νόμους, ἀλλ᾽ ἰσχυροτέρους πολλῷ πολεμοῦντες ἀπέφηναν καὶ ἀτεχνῶς ἐῴκεσαν τοῖς σβεννύναι μὲν ἐθέλουσι φλόγα, ἔλαιον δὲ ταύτῃ προσφέρουσι καὶ σφοδροτέραν ἐργαζομένοις. ### English translation (Claude) And why do I speak of men and women? They could not even drive out of boys taught the first letters their beliefs about our God and Savior; and raving, raging, and using countless contrivances and sophistries, they did not destroy the laws of the fishermen, but by warring made them much stronger, and were just like those who wish to quench a flame but pour oil on it and make it fiercer. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.26 (Raeder, 227; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-26). ## Discourse 9.27 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-27 - Source: Raeder, 227 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Like the burning bush, the church grew under persecution; martyrs' blood watered new believers. ### Greek text καὶ γὰρ δὴ καὶ οὗτοι τῷ κατὰ τῆς εὐσεβείας πολέμῳ κατάδηλον εἰργάσαντο τῆς ἀληθείας τὸ κράτος. καὶ καθάπερ πάλαι τὴν βάτον ἐκείνην καῖον τὸ πῦρ οὐ κατέκαιεν, οὕτως τοὺς πολεμουμένους τὰ τῶν πολεμούντων οὐκ ἀνήλισκε βέλη" ἀλλ᾽ ὥσπερ τῶν δρυτόμων τὰ δένδρα τεμνόντῶν, πολλῷ πλείους τῶν τεμνομένων ἐκ τῶν ῥιξῶν παραφυάδες βλαστάνουσιν, οὕτω δὴ τηνικαῦτα τῶν εὐσεβῶν ἀναιρουμένων. πολλαπλάσιοι τῇ τῶν εὐαγγελίων διδασκαλίᾳ προσήεσαν, καὶ τὸ αἷμα τῶν ἐπτμηθέντων ἀρδεία τοῖς νεοφύτοις ἐγίνετο. ### English translation (Claude) For they too, by their war against godliness, made the power of truth manifest. And just as long ago the fire burned that bush but did not consume it, so the darts of the attackers did not consume those attacked; but as when woodcutters cut trees, many more shoots spring from the roots than were cut, so then, when the godly were killed, many times as many came to the teaching of the Gospels, and the blood of those cut down became irrigation for the new plants. ### Scripture references - Exod 3:2: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.27 (Raeder, 227; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-27). ## Discourse 9.28 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-28 - Source: Raeder, 228 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The church has vastly increased while paganism is forgotten. ### Greek text καὶ μαρτυρεῖ τὰ ὁρώμενα᾽ μυριοπλάσιον γὰρ τῶν πάλαν πεπιστευκότων οἷ νῦν τῷ τῆς πίστεως ὀνόματι καλλυνόμενοι. τῶν γὰρ πολεμίων οἵ παῖδες, τὴν τῶν πατέρων βδελυξάμενον λύτταν, εἰς τὴν τῶν πολεμουμένων μετέβησαν φάλαγγα᾽ καὶ φροῦδα μὲν τὰ τῶν “Ἑλλήνων καὶ παντελεῖ παραδέδοται λήθῃ, τέθηλε δὲ τὰ τῶν ἁλιέων, καὶ ὁ παρὰ τούτων κηρυττόμενος Θεὸς εἶναι τῶν ὅλων πεπί- 128. στευται. ### English translation (Claude) And what is seen bears witness; for those now adorned with the name of the faith are ten thousand times more than those who believed of old. For the children of the enemies, loathing their fathers' rage, went over to the battle line of those attacked; the things of the Greeks have vanished and been handed over to complete oblivion, but the things of the fishermen flourish, and the one they proclaim is believed to be God of the universe. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.28 (Raeder, 228; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-28). ## Discourse 9.29 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-29 - Source: Raeder, 228 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Monks now inhabit the mountains, praising the Trinity. ### Greek text καὶ τῶν ταῦτα φρονούντων πλήρεις μὲν αἱ πόλεις, πλήρεις δὲ αἱ κῶμαι, ἐλεύθερα δὲ τοῦ πλάνου τὰ ὄρη. ἀντὶ γὰρ τῶν βωμῶν ἐκείνων καὶ τῆς παλαιᾶς ἐξαπάτης οἱ τῶν ἀσκητῶν ταῦτα οἰκοῦσι χοροί, τὸν ἐσταυρωμένον ὑμνοῦντες καὶ τὸν ἐκείνου Πατέρα καὶ τὸ πανάγιον Πνεῦμα. ### English translation (Claude) Cities are full of those who think so, villages are full, and the mountains are free of error. For instead of those altars and the ancient deceit, choirs of ascetics live in them, hymning the Crucified, his Father, and the all-holy Spirit. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.29 (Raeder, 228; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-29). ## Discourse 9.30 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-30 - Source: Raeder, 228 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christian emperors' conversion itself shows the strength of the gospel. ### Greek text Εἰ δέ τις ὑπείληφε τὴν τῶν βασιλέων εὐσέβειαν πρατῦναν τῶν ἁλιέων τὰ δόγματα, καὶ ταύτῃ δείκνυσι τὴν τουτωνὶ τῶν δογμάτων ἰσχύν. οὐ γὰρ ἂν καὶ νόμων παλαιῶν κατεφρόνησαν καὶ ξυγγραμμάτων ἀρχαίων καὶ ἔθους μακροῦ καὶ πατρῴων δογμάτων, εἰ μὴ τῶν μὲν ἐθαύμασαν τὴν ἀλήθειαν, τῶν δὲ τὸ μυθῶδες ἐμίσησαν. ### English translation (Claude) If anyone supposes that the godliness of the emperors strengthened the doctrines of the fishermen, he too shows in this way the strength of these doctrines. For they would not have despised ancient laws, old writings, long custom, and ancestral doctrines, unless they admired the truth of the one and hated the mythical character of the other. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.30 (Raeder, 228; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-30). ## Discourse 9.31 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-31 - Source: Raeder, 228 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Past persecutions prove the church's power is divine, not imperial. ### Greek text τί δήποτε δὲ μὴ τοὺς παλαιοὺς τῆς ἐπηλησίας ἐνθυμεῖσθε πολέμους; εὐπετῶς γὰρ μάλα ταύτην διαλύσετε δι’ ἐκείνων τὴν δόξαν. εἰ γὰρ τοσοῦτοι βασιλεῖς καὶ τηλικοῦτοι, κατὰ τῆς εὖσεβείας παντὶ σθένει παραταξάμενοι καὶ μηχανὰς προσενεγκόντες παντοδαπάς, οὐδὲ βραχὺν τοῖς ταύτης περιβόλοις ἔνειργάσαντο χλόνον, ἠλίθιος ἄρα καὶ παντελῶς ἔμπλαητος ὁ μὴ θείαν ὑπολαμβάνων τῶν ἁλιέων τὴν δύναμιν, ἀλλ᾽ ἐκ βασιλιρῆς ταύτην ηὐξῆσθαι δυναστείας γομίξων. ### English translation (Claude) Why do you not consider the old wars against the church? For by them you will very easily dissolve this opinion. For if so many and such great emperors, setting themselves against godliness with all their strength and bringing every kind of device, did not cause even a little shaking in its walls, he is foolish and wholly stupid who does not suppose the power of the fishermen to be divine, but thinks it grew from imperial power. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.31 (Raeder, 228; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-31). ## Discourse 9.32 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-32 - Source: Raeder, 229 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Persian persecution cannot destroy the faith. ### Greek text ἵνα δὲ τοῦτο ὑμῖν ἐκδηλότερον γένηται; τὰ παρὰ Περσῶν νῦν τολμώμενα καταμάθετε. ποῖον γάφ τοι εἶδος σφαγῆς κατὰ τῶν εὖσεβούντων οὐκ ἐπινενόηται τούτοις; οὐκ ἐκδοραί, οὐκ ἐκτομαὶ χειρῶν καὶ ποδῶν, καὶ ὥτων καὶ δινῶν πολοβώσεις, καὶ δεσμοὶ πρὺς ὑπερβολὴν ὀδύνης ἐξευρημένοι, καὶ ὀρύγματα πεχριμένα μὲν εἰς ἀκρίβειαν. μυῶν δὲ τῶν μεγίστων ἀνάπλεὰ τοὺς δεδεμένους θοιναζομένων; ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως τοσαύτας καὶ τούτων πολλαπλασίας κατὰ τῶν εὐσεβούντων τιμωρίας ἐξευρηκότες, αἰκίζονται μὲν καὶ χολοβοῦσν τὰ σώματα καὶ παντάπασι διαφθείρουσι, τὸν δέ γε τῆς πίστεως οὐ λῃστεύουσι θησαυρόν. ### English translation (Claude) To make this clearer to you, learn what is now being dared among the Persians. What kind of slaughter against the godly have they not devised? Flayings, cutting off hands and feet, mutilations of ears and noses, bonds invented for excess of pain, and pits carefully covered and full of the largest rats feasting on those bound? Yet, having devised so many punishments and many times more against the godly, they torture, mutilate, and wholly destroy their bodies, but do not rob them of the treasure of faith. ### Translation notes - Theodoret refers to the persecution of Christians in Persia in his own time. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.32 (Raeder, 229; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-32). ## Discourse 9.33 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-33 - Source: Raeder, 229 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Persian Christians abandoned incest and exposure of the dead despite punishment. ### Greek text καὶ τοῖς μὲν ἄλλοις αὐτῶν νόμοις ἅπαντὰς ὑποηύπτειν τοὺς ὑπηκόους καταναγκάζουσι, τοὺς δὲ τῶν ἁλιέων ἐξαρνηθῆναι τοὺς πεπιστευκότας οὐ πείθουσιν᾽ ἀλλὰ κατὰ τοὺς Ζαράδου πάλαι Πέρσαι πολιτευόμενον νόμους καὶ μητράσι καὶ ἀδελφαῖς ἀδεῶς καὶ μέντοι καὶ θυγατράσι μιγνύμενον καὶ νόμον ἔννομον τὴν παρανομίαν νομίἕξοντες, ἐπειδὴ τῆς τῶν ἁλιέων νομοθεσίας ἐπήκουσαν, τοὺς μὲν Ζαράδου νόμους ὡς παρανομίαν ἐπάτησαν, τὴν δὐαγγελικὴν δὲ σωφροσύνην ἠγάπησαν" καὶ κυσὶ καὶ οἰωνοῖς τοὺς νεχροὺς προτιθέναι παρ᾽ ἐκείνου μεμαθηκότες, γῦν τοῦτο δρᾶν οἱ πιστεύσαντες οὐκ ἀνέχονται, ἀλλὰ τῇ γῇ κατακρύπτουσι καὶ τῶν τοῦτο δρᾶν ἀπαγορευόντων οὐ φροντίζουσι νόμων οὐδὲ πεφρίκασι τὴν τῶν κολαζόντων ὠμότητα᾽ πλέον γάρ που δεδοίκασι τὸ τοῦ Χριστοῦ δικαστήριον᾽ καὶ τὰ ὁρώμενα γελῶντες ὀνειροπολοῦσι τὰ μὴ φαινόμενα καὶ δειμαίνουσιν. ### English translation (Claude) They force all their subjects to bow to their other laws, but do not persuade the believers to deny the laws of the fishermen. Formerly the Persians lived by the laws of Zarades (Zoroaster), lying freely with mothers, sisters, and even daughters, and thinking the lawlessness a lawful law; but since they heard the legislation of the fishermen, they trampled the laws of Zarades as lawlessness and loved gospel chastity. And having learned from him to expose the dead to dogs and birds, the believers now refuse to do so, but hide them in the earth, care nothing for the laws forbidding it, and do not shudder at the cruelty of the punishers; for they fear more the judgment seat of Christ; and laughing at what is seen, they dream of and dread what does not appear. ### Scripture references - 2 Cor 5:10: echo, medium confidence - 2 Cor 4:18: echo, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.33 (Raeder, 229; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-33). ## Discourse 9.34 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-34 - Source: Raeder, 230 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Persians honor the apostolic writings as from heaven. ### Greek text καὶ τούσδε τοὺς νόμους παρ᾽ ἀνδρῶν Γαλιλαίων ἐδέξαντο᾽ καὶ τὴν μὲν Ῥωμαίων δυναστείαν οὐκ ἔδεισαν, τῇ δὲ τοῦ σταυρωθέντος ὑπετάγησαν βασιλείᾳ καὶ κατὰ μὲν τοὺς Ῥωμαίων πολιτεύεσθαν νόμους οὔτε Αὔγουστος αὐτοὺς κατηνάγκασεν οὔτε Τραΐανός, ὃ τὴν ἐκείνων καταλύσας ἀρχήν, τὰ δὲ Πέτρου καὶ Παύλου καὶ Ἰωάννου καὶ ἸΜανθαίου καὶ “ουκᾶ καὶ Μάρπου ξυγγράμματα ὡς οὐρανόθεν κομισθέντα γεραίρουσι, καὶ οἱ ἰθαγενεῖς τοῖς τῶν ξένων καὶ ἐπηλύδων ὑπετάγησαν νόμοις. ### English translation (Claude) And they received these laws from Galilean men; they did not fear Roman power, but submitted to the kingdom of the Crucified; neither Augustus nor Trajan, who destroyed their rule, compelled them to live by Roman laws, but they honor the writings of Peter, Paul, John, Matthew, Luke, and Mark as brought from heaven, and the natives submitted to the laws of strangers and newcomers. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.34 (Raeder, 230; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-34). ## Discourse 9.35 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-35 - Source: Raeder, 230 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Massagetae gave up killing and eating the old. ### Greek text καὶ Μασσαγέται δέ, τρισαθλίους ἡγούμενοι πάλαι τοὺς ἄλλως πως καὶ μὴ διὰ σφαγῆς τελευτῶντας καὶ τούτου εἵνεκα τοὺς γεγηρακότας θύειν καὶ θοινᾶσθαι ποιησάβενοι νόμον, ἐπειδὴ τῶν ἁλιευτικῶν καὶ σκυτοτομικῶν ἐπήπουσαν νόμων, ἐβδελύξαντο τὴν μυσαρὰν ταύτην ἐδωδὴν καὶ σφαγήν. ### English translation (Claude) And the Massagetae, who formerly thought thrice wretched those who died otherwise than by slaughter and for this reason made it a law to sacrifice and feast on the old, since they heard the laws of the fishermen and the leather-worker, loathed this abominable eating and slaughter. ### Extrabiblical texts - Herodotus, Hist. 1.216 (Herodotus, Histories): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Compare Herodotus 1.216. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.35 (Raeder, 230; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-35). ## Discourse 9.36 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-36 - Source: Raeder, 230 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Other barbarian customs ended through the gospel. ### Greek text καὶ Στιβαρηνοὶ τοὺς πρεσβύτας κατὰ κρημνῶν βαθυτάτων εἰθυκότες. ὠθεῖν, τὸν παμπόνηρον τοῦτον κατέλυσαν νόμον, τῶν εὐαγγελυκῶν ἐπακούσαντες νόμων. οὐκέτι δ᾽ οὔτε Ὑρκανοὶ οὔτε Κάσπιοι τοὺς κύνας τοῖς τῶν τεθνεὦτων ἐκτρέφουσι σώμασιν, οὔτε Σκύθαι τοῖς τετελευτηκόσι ξυγκατορύττουσι ζῶντας, οὺς ἠγάπων ἐκεῖνοι. τοσαύτην εἰργάσαντο μεταβολὴν τῶν ἐθνῶν τῶν ἁλιέων οἵ νόμοι. ### English translation (Claude) And the Tibareni, accustomed to push old people over very deep cliffs, abolished this utterly wicked law on hearing the gospel laws. No longer do the Hyrcanians or the Caspians feed their dogs on the bodies of the dead, nor do the Scythians bury alive with the dead those whom they loved. So great a change in the nations did the laws of the fishermen work. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.36 (Raeder, 230; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-36). ## Discourse 9.37 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-37 - Source: Raeder, 231 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato could not persuade even Athens to adopt his laws. ### Greek text Καὶ οὗτοι μὲν καὶ τὰ βάρβαρα ἔθνη κατὰ τοὺς σφῶν ἔπεισαν πολιτεύεσθαι νύμους᾽ Πλάτων δὲ τῶν φιλοσόφων ὁ ἄριστος, νόμους γεγραφώς, οὐδὲ ᾿4θηναίους ἔπεισε τοὺς οἰκείους πολίτας κατὰ τὰς τούτων ὑποθήκας τὴν πολιτείαν ῥυθμίσαι. καὶ μάλα γε εἰκότως᾽ μάλα γάρ εἰσι καταγέλαστοι. ### English translation (Claude) These persuaded even the barbarian nations to live by their laws; but Plato, the best of the philosophers, having written laws, did not persuade even the Athenians, his own fellow citizens, to order their constitution by his precepts. And very fittingly; for they are very laughable. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.37 (Raeder, 231; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-37). ## Discourse 9.38 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-38 - Source: Raeder, 231 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's law of naked exercise for women is cited. ### Greek text καὶ ἵνα μή τις ὑπολάβῃ με συχοφαντεῖν τὸν φιλόσοφον, ἀκούσατε, ὦ ἄνδρες, ὧν ἐκεῖνος νενομοθέτηκεν. κελεύσας γὰρ καὶ τὰς γυναῖκας, οὐ μόνον τὰς νέας, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰς γεγηρακυίας, γυμνάξεσθαι, εἶτα γελῶντας τοὺς προσδιαλεγομένους ἰδών, ὑπολαβὼν ἔφη"..ὃ δὲ γελῶν ἀνὴρ ἐπὶ γυμναῖς ταῖς γυναιξὶ τοῦ βελτίστου ἕνεκα γυμναζομέναις, ἀτελῆ τοῦ ρον σοφίας δρεπόμενος καρπόν, οὐδὲ οἶδεν, ὡς ἔοικεν, ### English translation (Claude) And so that no one may suppose I slander the philosopher, hear, gentlemen, what he legislated. Having ordered women too, not only the young but also the old, to exercise naked, then seeing his interlocutors laughing, he answered: 'The man who laughs at naked women exercising for the best purpose, plucking the unripe fruit of wisdom from his laughter, does not know, it seems, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 457a–b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 5.457a–b. The quotation ends in 9.39. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.38 (Raeder, 231; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-38). ## Discourse 9.39 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-39 - Source: Raeder, 231 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato wanted women trained like men, against nature's division of roles. ### Greek text ᾧ γελᾷ.“ καὶ πάλιν᾽ ο ταὐτὰ δὲ καὶ περὶ θηλειῶν ὁ ἐμὸς λόγος ἂν εἴποι πάντα, ὅσαπερ καὶ περὶ τῶν ἀρρένων, ἴσα καὶ τὰς θηλείας ἀσκεῖν δεῖν. καὶ οὐδὲν φοβηθεὶς εἴς ποιμ᾽ ἂν τοῦτον τὸν λόγον, οὔτε ἱππικῆς οὔτε γυμναστικῆς ὡς ἀνδράσι μὲν πρέπον ἂν εἴη, γυναιξὶ ὃ αὖ οὐκ ἂν πρέπον καὶ τίς οὐκ ἂν εἰκότως τούτων ἀκούων γελάσειεν; ἡ μὲν γὰρ φύσις ἀπένειμεν ἑκατέρῳ γένει τὰ πρόσφορα, γυναιξὶ μὲν ταλασίαν, ἀνδράσι δὲ γεωργίαν καὶ πολεμικὴν ἐμπειρίαν. ### English translation (Claude) at what he laughs.' And again: 'My argument would say all the same things about females as about males, that females must be trained equally; and without fear I would say this, that neither horsemanship nor gymnastics would be fitting for men but not fitting for women.' And who would not fairly laugh hearing this? For nature assigned to each sex what suits it: to women wool-working, to men farming and skill in war. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 457b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Plato, Leg. 804e–805a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 5.457b; Laws 7.804d–805a. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.39 (Raeder, 231; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-39). ## Discourse 9.40 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-40 - Source: Raeder, 231 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Homer distinguished men's and women's work; Plato did not. ### Greek text ταύτῃ γάρ που τῇ διαιρέσει παὶ Ὅμηρος κέχρηται πεποίημε γὰρ ἐν τοῖς ἔπεσι τῇ ᾿ἀνδρομάχῃ τὸν “Ἑχτορα λέγοντα" οοὐλλ᾽ εἰς οἶκον ἰοῦσα τὰ σαυτῆς ἔργα πόμιξε, ἷστόν τ᾽ ἠλακάτην τ᾽ ἠδ᾽ ἀμφιπόλοισι κέλευε ἔργον ἐποίχεσθαι" πόλεμος δ᾽ ἄνδρεσσι μελήσει. ὁ δὲ φιλόσοφος οὐδὲ τὴν τῶν ποιητῶν διέγνω διαίρεσιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ γυμνάξεσθαι τὰς γυναῖκας γυμνὰς καὶ ἱππεύειν ἐκέλευσεν. ### English translation (Claude) Homer too used this division; for in his epics he made Hector say to Andromache: 'But go into the house and see to your own work, the loom and the distaff, and bid your handmaids attend to their work; but war shall be the concern of men.' But the philosopher did not even recognize the poets' division, but ordered women to exercise naked and to ride horses. ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 6.490–492 (Homer, Iliad): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Iliad 6.490–492. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.40 (Raeder, 231; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-40). ## Discourse 9.41 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-41 - Source: Raeder, 232 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's marriage inspection ignores the modesty taught by Candaules's wife. ### Greek text καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς δὲ ξυνομολογεῖ τοῖς προτέροις" ἰ λέγει γὰρ οὕτως᾽ τὴν δὲ τοῦ τῶν γάμων χρόνου ξυμμετρίαν δικαστὴς σκοπῶν κριψέτω, γυμνοὺς μὲν τοὺς ἄρρενας, γυμνὰς δὲ ὀμφάλοῦ μέχρι θεώμενος τὰς γυναῖκας.“ ὁ δὲ ταῦτα νομοθετῶν οὐδὲ τῶν τῆς Κανδαύλου γυναικπὸς λόγων ἐμνήσθη. ἐκείνη γάρ τοι, τοῦ ἀνδρὸς γυμνόν οἱ δεῖξαι τὸ σῶμα κελεύσαντος, μάλα ἔφη σωφρόνως, ὅτι,,ἀποδυομένη τὸν ευθῶνα ξυναποδύεται ### English translation (Claude) And what follows agrees with the earlier: for he says this: 'Let the judge, examining the fitness of the time of marriage, decide by viewing the males naked and the females naked to the navel.' The one who legislates this did not even remember the words of Candaules's wife. For she, when her husband ordered her to show her body naked, said very modestly that 'when she takes off her tunic, a woman takes off ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 925a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Herodotus, Hist. 1.8 (Herodotus, Histories): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 11.925a; Herodotus 1.8. The saying ends in 9.42. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.41 (Raeder, 232; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-41). ## Discourse 9.42 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-42 - Source: Raeder, 232 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Laws has boys and girls dance naked to choose spouses. ### Greek text καὶ τὴν αἰδῶ ἡ γυνή τοιγαροῦν ὃ φιλόσοφος τὰς νυμφευομένας γυμνοῖ τῆς αἰδοῦς χαὶ ἀναίδειαν ἐκδιδάσκει. κἀν τῷ δεκάτῳ δὲ τῶν Νόμων τὰ παραπλήσια γέγραφεν »τῆς γὰρ τοιαύτης“ φησί,,σπουδῆς ἕνεκα χρὴ καὶ τὰς παιδείας ποιεῖσθαν χορδύοντάς τε καὶ γορευούσας, πόρους τὲ καὶ κόρας, καὶ ὅμα δὴ θεωροῦντας καὶ θεωρουμένους, μετὰ λόγου τε καὶ ἡλικίας τινὸς ἐχούσας ἐοινυίας προφάσειθ, γυμνούς τε καὶ γυμνάς, μέχρι περ αἰδοῦς σώφρονος ### English translation (Claude) her modesty too.' So the philosopher strips brides of modesty and teaches shamelessness. And in the Laws he wrote similar things: 'For the sake of such earnestness one should make the children's play, boys and girls dancing together and at the same time seeing and being seen, with reason and at an age offering suitable pretexts, naked, as far as the modest shame of each ### Extrabiblical texts - Herodotus, Hist. 1.8 (Herodotus, Histories): quotation, high confidence - Plato, Leg. 771e–772a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 6.771e–772a (Theodoret says 'tenth book'). The quotation ends in 9.43. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.42 (Raeder, 232; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-42). ## Discourse 9.43 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-43 - Source: Raeder, 232 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Such nakedness breeds shamelessness and lust. ### Greek text ἑκάστων.“ ἐγὼ δὲ τὴν μὲν ἐντεῦθεν φυομένην λώβην ὁρῶ, κέρδος δὲ οὐδὲν ξὺν ταύτῃ φυόμενον. οὐ γάρ που μόνον εἰς ἀναίδειαν ἐπαιδοτριβοῦντο γυμνούμεναν καὶ γυμνοὺς ἄνδρας θεώμεναι, ἀλλὰ καὶ πολλὰς ἀλλήλοις ἀφορμὰς προῦὺξένουν ἀκολασίας. τῶν γὰρ δὴ γυμνῶν σωμάτων ἡ θεωρία καὶ τοὺς ἄνδρας καὶ τὰς γυναῖκας εἰς ἔρωτας ἐντόπους ἠρέθιζεν. ### English translation (Claude) permits.' I see the harm that springs from this, but no gain growing with it. For they were not only trained in shamelessness by being stripped and seeing naked men, but gave one another many occasions of licentiousness; for the sight of naked bodies roused both men and women to unnatural loves. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.43 (Raeder, 232; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-43). ## Discourse 9.44 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-44 - Source: Raeder, 232 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Republic makes wives and children common. ### Greek text Ἀλλ᾿ ἵνα μὴ παντελῶς τὴν ἐκ τῶνδε τῶν νόμων φυομένην ἀπογυμνοῦντες βλάβην λοιδορεῖσθαι τῷ φιλοσύφῳ δόξωμεν, οὐχ ἐλέγχειν, ἐπὶ τοὺς παγχάλους τῶν γάμων μεταβῶμεν νόμους, μετρίους τοὺς ἐλέγχους - ποιούμενοι. ἀκούσωμεν τοίνυν ἐν Πολιτείᾳ λέγοντος" ἀνδρῶν τούτων ἁπάντων πάσας εἶναι γυναῖκας κουνάρ,. ἰδίᾳ δὲ μηδεμίαν μηδενλ ξυνοικεῖν᾽ καὶ τοὺς παῖδας αὖ κοινούς, καὶ μήτε ### English translation (Claude) But so that in wholly baring the harm springing from these laws we may not seem to revile the philosopher rather than refute him, let us pass to his very beautiful laws of marriage, making the refutations moderate. Let us hear him say in the Republic: 'All these women are to be common to all these men, and none is to live privately with any; and the children in turn common, and neither ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 457c–d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 5.457c–d. The quotation ends in 9.45. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.44 (Raeder, 232; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-44). ## Discourse 9.45 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-45 - Source: Raeder, 233 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's guardians will be drawn by erotic necessity to common intercourse. ### Greek text γονέα ἔκγονον εἰδέναι τὸν αὑτοῦ, μήτε παῖδα γονέας εἶτα ἐπιξυνάπτει" οεἰκὼς μὲν τοίνυν, ἦν δ᾽ ἐγώ, γνομοθέτης αὐτοῖς ὥσπερ τοὺς ἄνδρας, οὕτως καὶ τὰς γυναῖκας ἐκλέξας, παραδώσει καθόσον οἷόν τε ὁμοφυεῖς. οἵ "δέ, ὅτε δὴ οἰκίας τὲ καὶ ξυσσίτια κοινὰ ἔχοντες, ἰδίᾳ δὲ οὐδενὸς οὐδὲν τοιοῦτο κεκτημένου, ὁμοῦ! δὴ ἔσονται, ὁμοῦ δ᾽ ἀναμεμιγμένων. καὶ ἐν γυμνασίοις καὶ ἐν τῇ ἄλλῃ τροφῇς ὑπ᾽ ἀνάγκης, οἶμαι, τῆς ἐμφύτου ἄξονται πρὸς τὴν ἀλλήλων μῖξιν. ἢ οὐκ ἀναγκαῖά σοι δοκῶ λέγεινς οὐ γεωμετρικαῖς γε, ἦ δ᾽ ὅς, ἀλλ᾽ ἐρωτικαῖς ἀνάγκαις, οἱ πινδυνεύουσιν ἐκείνων δριμύτεραι εἶναι πρὸς τὸ πείθειν καὶ ἕλκειν τὸν πολὺν λεών.“ ### English translation (Claude) is a parent to know his own offspring nor a child its parent.' Then he adds: 'You, then, as their lawgiver,' I said, 'having selected the women as you did the men, will hand them over, as far as possible of like nature. And they, since they have houses and common meals in common and none possesses any such thing privately, will be together, and being mixed together in the gymnasia and the rest of their upbringing, will be led, I think, by inborn necessity to intercourse with one another. Or do I not seem to you to speak of necessities?' 'Not geometrical,' he said, 'but erotic necessities, which are likely to be sharper than those in persuading and drawing the great multitude.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 458c–d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 5.458c–d. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.45 (Raeder, 233; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-45). ## Discourse 9.46 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-46 - Source: Raeder, 233 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato clearly prescribed sexual community. ### Greek text ὅτι μὲν οὖν ὃ φιλόσοφος κοινὰς εἶναι τὰς γυναῖκας ἐκέλευσε, μακρῶν οὐ δεῖ λόγων εἰς ἔλεγχον. αὐτὸς γὰρ δὴ διαρρήδην νενομοθέτηκξε καὶ τῆς κοινῆς ξυνουσίας τὴν ἀνάγκην ἐπινενόηκεν. »Μοινῇς γὰρ ἔφη »»ἰκοῦντες καὶ κοινῇ ἑστιώμενοι καὶ γυμναζόμενοι, ὑπὸ τῆς ἐμφύτου ἐπιθυμίας πρὸς τὴν ἀλλήλων μῖξιν ὠθήσονται.“ καὶ τοῦτο δὴ χοινοὺς τοὺς τικτομένους ἀποφαίνει, ἀδεῶς ἑκάστου ταῖς προστυχούσαις ὁμιλούντων [ καὶ οἰκεῖά γε νομιζόντων τὰ ὑπὸ τούτων τιιπόμενα. ### English translation (Claude) That the philosopher ordered women to be common needs no long argument to prove. For he legislated it explicitly and devised the necessity of common intercourse: 'Living in common,' he said, 'feasting in common and exercising in common, they will be pushed by inborn desire to intercourse with one another.' And so he makes the children common, each man freely consorting with whatever women he meets and thinking what they bear his own. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 458d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.46 (Raeder, 233; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-46). ## Discourse 9.47 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-47 - Source: Raeder, 234 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's interlocutor names the 'erotic necessities'. ### Greek text τοῦτό τοι νενοηπὼς. ὁ προσδιαλεγόμενος, τοῦ “Σωκράτους εἰρηκότος" » οὐκ ἀναγκαῖά σοι δοκῶ λέγειν“, ἐπήγαγεν",,»οὐ γεωμενριπαῖς γε, ἀλλ᾽ ἐρωτικαῖς ἀνάγκαις, αἱ κινδυνεύουσιν ἐκείνων θρυμύτεραι εἶναι πρὸς τὸ πείθειν καὶ ### English translation (Claude) Perceiving this, his interlocutor, when Socrates said, 'Do I not seem to you to speak of necessities?', added: 'Not geometrical, but erotic necessities, which are likely to be sharper than those in persuading and ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 458d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 5.458d. The quotation ends in 9.48. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.47 (Raeder, 234; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-47). ## Discourse 9.48 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-48 - Source: Raeder, 234 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Modern interpreters wrongly deny that Plato meant sexual community. ### Greek text ἕλκειν τὸν πολὺν λεών.“ ἐγὼ δὲ τῶν νῦν τὰ Πλάτωνος ἑρμηνεύειν ἐθελόντων, μᾶλλον δὲ παρερμηνεύειν πειρωμένων, θαυμάξω τὴν ἀναίδειαν. φασὶ γὰρ αὐτὸν μὴ ξυνουσίαν νομοθετῆσαν κοινήν, ἀλλὰ φιλιπὴν κοινωνίαν, καὶ οὐκ ἀκούουσι λέγοντος᾽..«καὶ οἰκήσεων καὶ ξυμποσίων καὶ γυμνασίων κοινωνοῦντες ἀλλήλοις, ὑπ᾽ ἀνάγκης καὶ τῆς ἐμφύτου ἐπιθυμίας ἄξονται πρὸς τὴν ἀλλήλων μῖξιν5. ### English translation (Claude) drawing the great multitude.' I wonder at the shamelessness of those who now wish to interpret Plato, or rather try to misinterpret him. For they say he legislated not common intercourse but friendly fellowship, and do not hear him say: 'Sharing houses, common meals, and gymnasia with one another, they will be led by necessity and inborn desire to intercourse with one another.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 458d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.48 (Raeder, 234; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-48). ## Discourse 9.49 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-49 - Source: Raeder, 234 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Interpreters should remember that truth is dearer than the teacher. ### Greek text ἀλλ᾽ ἴσως ἐρυθριῶντες ἐπὶ τοῖς καταγελάστοις τοῦ φιλοσόφου νόμοις, ξυγκαλύπτειν πειρῶνται τοῦ διδασκάλου τὴν ἁμαρτάδα᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ἔδει γε τῶν ἐκείνου λόγων ἀναμνησθῆναι, ὅτι φίλος μὲν ὁ ἀνήρ, φίλη δὲ ἡ ἀλήθεια᾽ ἀμφοῖν δὲ ὄντοιν φίλοιν, ### English translation (Claude) But perhaps, blushing at the philosopher's laughable laws, they try to cover the teacher's fault; but they should have remembered his saying that the man is a friend, but the truth is a friend, and of two friends ### Translation notes - The saying, in this form proverbial, derives from Plato, Phaedo 91c and Republic 10.595c (compare Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics 1.6). It ends in 9.50. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.49 (Raeder, 234; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-49). ## Discourse 9.50 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-50 - Source: Raeder, 234 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato fixes ages for bearing children for the state. ### Greek text φίλτερον ἡ ἀλήθεια.“ ἀτὰρ οὖν καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἐπακούσωμὲν νόμων᾽ αὐτοῦ γὰρ δὴ καὶ οὗτοι᾽ γυναικὶ μέν, ἦν δ᾽ ἐγώ, ἀρξαμένῃ ἀπὸ εἰκοσέτιδος τίκτειν τῇ πόλει" ἀνδρὶ δ᾽ ἐπειδὰν τὴν ὀξυτάτην δρόμου ἀκμὴν παρῇ, τὸ ἀπὸ τούτου γεννᾶν τῇ πόλει μέχρι πεντεκαιπεντηχονταετοῦς.“" ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν οὐ μάλα δήλην ἔχει τὴν βλάβην, τὰ δὲ ἑξῆς οὐ γέλωτος, ἀλλὰ καὶ θρήνων ἄξια καὶ πυρὸς τοὺς: ### English translation (Claude) the truth is dearer.' But let us hear the other laws too; for these also are his: 'For a woman,' I said, 'beginning from twenty years, to bear children for the city; and for a man, once he has passed his peak of speed in running, to beget for the city from then until fifty-five.' These do not have very plain harm; but what follows deserves not laughter but lamentation, and fire to consume those ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 460e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 5.460e. The sentence continues in 9.51. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.50 (Raeder, 234; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-50). ## Discourse 9.51 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-51 - Source: Raeder, 235 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Republic orders that children conceived after the set age not be raised. ### Greek text παγκάλους ἀναλίσκοντος νόμους. λέγει γὰρ ταῦτα᾽ οὗταν. δὲ αἵ γυναῖκες οἵ τε ἄνδρες τοῦ γεννᾶν ἐπβῶσι τὴν ἡλικίαν, ἀφήσομέν που ἐλευθέρους αὐτοὺς ξυγγίνεσθαι, ὡς ἂν ἐθέλωσι, διακελευσάμενοι προθυμεῖσθαι μάλιστα μὴ εἰς φῶς ἐκφέρειν κύημα μηδέν, ἐὰν δέ τις βιάσηται, οὕτω τυιθέναι, ### English translation (Claude) very beautiful laws. For he says this: 'When the women and men have passed the age for begetting, we shall leave them free, I suppose, to consort with whomever they wish, bidding them be most eager to bring no conception to light; and if one is forced into the light, to dispose of it so, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 461b–c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 5.461b–c. The quotation ends in 9.52. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.51 (Raeder, 235; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-51). ## Discourse 9.52 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-52 - Source: Raeder, 235 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret condemns Plato's law as enjoining abortion and exposure. ### Greek text ὡς οὐκ οὔσης τροφῆς τῷ τοιούτῳ.“ τίς Ἔχετος ἢ Φάλαρις τοιαῦτα νενομοθέτηπε; τίς δὲ τοιαύτας μιαιφονίας, ὡς ἔνγομά γε δρῶν, τετόλμηκε πώποτε; διακελευσάμενος γὰρ μὴ ἐκφέρειν εἰς φῶς, ἀμβλωθοιδίοις δήπου διαφθείρειν φαρμάκοις τὰ βρέφη παρεγγυᾷ, τὰ δέ γε τοῦ δηλητηρίου φαρμάχκου περιγενόμενα καὶ τιμτόμενα οὕτω τιθέναι, ὡς μηδὲ τῆς τυχούσης ἀπολαῦσαι κηδεμονίας, ἀλλ᾽ ἢ μμῷ ἢ πρυμῷ διαφθαρῆναι ἢ θηρίων γενέσθαι βοράν. ποίαν ταῦτα ὠμότητος ὑπερβολὴν καταλείπει; ### English translation (Claude) as if there were no nurture for such a one.' What Echetus or Phalaris legislated such things? Who ever dared such bloodshed as if it were lawful? For in bidding them not bring it to light, he surely enjoins destroying the babies with abortive drugs, and those that survive the poisonous drug and are born, to dispose of so that they enjoy not even ordinary care, but perish by hunger or cold or become food for beasts. What excess of cruelty does this leave? ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 461c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret's reading that Plato enjoins abortion is his inference from the Greek. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.52 (Raeder, 235; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-52). ## Discourse 9.53 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-53 - Source: Raeder, 235 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Phaedrus promises bliss to lovers. ### Greek text Τοιαῦτα μὲν δὴ περὶ γάμου καὶ παιδοποιΐας νενομοθέτηβεν᾽ ὑποῖα δὲ καὶ περὶ τῆς ἄλλης ἀκολασίας διέξεισιν, εὐπετὲς τῷ βουλομένῳ παταμαθεῖν. τοὺς γὰρ τὴν παρὰ φύσιν ἀσέλγειαν ἀσπαζομένους καὶ τῇδε μακαρίους ὑπείληφε καὶ ἐκδημήσαντας ἐντεῦθεν εὐδαίμονας ἔσεσθαι εἴρηκεν »νὐ μικρόν γάρ φησιν οὖθλον τῆς ἐρωτιῆς Φέρονται. εἰς γὰρ σκότον καὶ τὴν ὑπὸ γῆς πορείαν οὐ νόμος ἐστὶν ἔτι ἐλθεῖν τοῖς κατηργμένοις ἤδη τῆς ὑπουρανίου πορείας, ἀλλὰ φανὸν βίον διάγοντας εὐδαιμονεῖν μετ᾽ ἀλλήλων πορευοὅά ### English translation (Claude) Such are his laws on marriage and childbearing; what he sets out about other licentiousness is easy for anyone to learn. For he supposed those who embrace unnatural wantonness happy here and said they will be blessed when they depart: 'For they carry off no small prize of their love; for into darkness and the journey under the earth it is no longer the law for those who have already begun the heavenly journey to go, but leading a bright life to be happy, journeying with one another, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaedr. 256d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedrus 256d. The quotation ends in 9.54. Theodoret interprets Plato's lovers as engaged in homosexual acts; the passage in Plato concerns lovers who did not wholly restrain themselves. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.53 (Raeder, 235; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-53). ## Discourse 9.54 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-54 - Source: Raeder, 236 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret says Plato praised what even the most dissolute did not praise. ### Greek text μένους καὶ ὁμοπτέφους ἔρωτος χάριν.“ | τούτοις δὲ ἐπιλέγει ταῦτα᾽ »ὦ παῖ, καὶ οὕτω σοι θεία δωρήσεται ἡ ἡ παρ᾽ ἐραστοῦ φιλία. καὶ ταῦτα οὐ περὶ τῶν σωφρόνως, ἀλλὰ περὶ τῶν ἀκολάστως ἐρώντων ἔφη" καὶ δάδιον ἐκ τῶν ἐκείνου διαλόγων ταῦτα μαθεῖν. τοιοῦτον δὲ νόμον οὔτε Νέρων ὁ Ῥωμαίων αἰσχρότατος βασιλεὺς οὔτε Σαρδανάπαλος ὃ ᾿Ασσύριος, ὃ ἐν ἡδοναῖς᾿ καὶ τρυφαῖς διαβόητος, οὔτε ἔγραψεν. οὔτε ἐπήνεσε πώποτε. ἐγὼ γὰρ οἶμαν καὶ τοὺς λίαν ταῖς ἡδυπαθείαις δουλεύοντας οὐκ ἐπαινεῖν τὸ πάθος, ἀλλὰ δουλεύειν τῷ χρόνῳ, τὸ ἔθος ἕξιν ἐργασαμένους. ### English translation (Claude) and to become winged together for the sake of love.' To these he adds this: 'These, boy, are so great and divine the gifts that the friendship of a lover will give you.' He said this not about those who love chastely but about those who love licentiously; and it is easy to learn this from his dialogues. Such a law neither Nero, the most shameful emperor of the Romans, nor Sardanapalus the Assyrian, notorious for pleasures and luxuries, ever wrote or praised. For I think even those who are much enslaved to pleasures do not praise the passion, but serve it in time, custom having made it a habit. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaedr. 256d–e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedrus 256d–e. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.54 (Raeder, 236; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-54). ## Discourse 9.55 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-55 - Source: Raeder, 236 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's penalties for murder are lenient. ### Greek text καὶ τί δεῖ λέγειν, ὅσα καὶ περὶ φόνων παρανόμως ἐνομοθέτησεν; ἀθῷον μὲν γὰρ εἶναι κελεύει τὸν τὸν ἔδιον ἀναιροῦντα οἱκέτην, τὸν δὲ θυμῷ τὸν ἀλλότριον σφάττοντα τὴν τιμὴν μόνην ἐκτίνειν, τὸν δὲ θυμῷ τὸν ἐλεύθερον “τείναντα δύο μόνα φεύγειν ἔτη διαγορεύει, τὸν δὲ καὶ μετ᾽ ἐπιβουλῆς ἀνελόντα τρία ἔτη προστάττει φεύγειν, τὸν δέ γε καὶ μετὰ τὴν φυγὴν τὰ αὐτὰ δεδρακότα ἀειφυγίᾳ ζημιοῖ μόνῃ. παραπλήσια δὲ καὶ πατράσι παῖδας ἀνελοῦσι καὶ παισὶ πατέρας ἀπεχτονόσι καὶ ἀνδράσι γυναῖκας καὶ γυναιξὶν ἄνδρας γενομοθέτηχεν. ### English translation (Claude) And why need I tell what lawless laws he made about murders? He orders the one who kills his own slave to be guiltless, the one who in anger slaughters another's slave to pay only the price, and the one who kills a free man in anger he bids only go into exile for two years; the one who kills with premeditation he orders to be exiled for three years, and the one who after exile does the same he punishes only with perpetual exile. He legislated similarly for fathers who kill children, children who have killed fathers, husbands who kill wives, and wives who kill husbands. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 865c–869e (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - A summary of Plato, Laws 9.865c–869e; Theodoret's summary is not exact in every detail. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.55 (Raeder, 236; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-55). ## Discourse 9.56 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-56 - Source: Raeder, 236 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato persuaded no one to follow his laws. ### Greek text Ἀλλ᾽ ὃ μὲν φιλόσοφος τοιούσδε νόμους ξυνέγραψε καὶ οὐδένα πέπεικεν ἀνθρώπων, οὐ πολίτην, οὐ ξένον, οὐκ ἀστόν, οὐ χωριτικόν, οὐχ Ἕλληνα, οὐ βάρβαρον, οὐ δοῦλον, οὐκ ἐλεύθερον, οὐκ ἄνδρα, οὐ γυναῖκα, οὐ νέον, οὐ πρεσβύτην, οὐ λόγοις ἐντεθραμμένον, οὐ λόγων ἀμύητον, κατὰ τούσδε βιῶναι τοὺς νόμους. ### English translation (Claude) The philosopher wrote such laws and persuaded no human being, citizen or foreigner, townsman or countryman, Greek or barbarian, slave or free, man or woman, young or old, educated or uneducated, to live by these laws. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.56 (Raeder, 236; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-56). ## Discourse 9.57 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-57 - Source: Raeder, 237 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ condemns even the lustful look. ### Greek text ἐγὼ δὲ λοιπόν, οὺς οἱ ἁλιεῖς καὶ οἱ τελῶναι καὶ ὁ σκυτοτόμος ὅπασιν ἀνθρώποις προσἤνεγκαν, ἀναγνώσομαι νόμους. ὑμεῖς δὲ τούτους κἀκείνους ἐκ παραλλήλου θέντες, τὰς θεοπρεπεῖς τούτων ἀκτῖνας θαυμάσατε. ὃ μὲν οὖν φιλόσοφος καὶ τὴν ἀκόλαστον παιδεαὐτίαν ἐθαύμασε καὶ τὰ τρισόλβια ταύτης ἐπιδέδειχεν ἀθλα᾽ Ν Α " ς»,, ΑΝ Ἵ ω ὁ δὲ Σωτὴρ ὁ ἡμέτερος οὐ μόνον τὴν ἀκόλαστον πρᾶξιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν ὄψιν τὴν τοιαύτην κολάζει".,δὃ ἐμβλέψας γὰρ ἔφη «γυναικὶ πρὸς τὸ ἐπιθυμῆσαι αὐτῆς, ἤδη ἐμοίφχευσεν αὐτὴν ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ αὑτοῦ. ### English translation (Claude) Now I shall read the laws which the fishermen, the tax collectors, and the leather-worker brought to all human beings. Set these and those side by side and admire the godly rays of these. The philosopher admired licentious pederasty and showed its thrice-blessed prizes; but our Savior punishes not only the licentious act but even such a look: 'Whoever looks at a woman to desire her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.' ### Scripture references - Matt 5:28: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.57 (Raeder, 237; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-57). ## Discourse 9.58 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-58 - Source: Raeder, 237 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ forbids divorce except for sexual immorality, which alone breaks the marriage. ### Greek text καὶ ὁ μὲν ἀδεῶς καὶ ταῖς ἀλλοτρίαις κοινωνεῖν ἐνομοθέτησε γυναιξίν" ὃ δὲ τῆς φύσεως ποιητής, ἐπειδὴ καὶ δημιουργῶν τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὴν φύσιν ἕνα ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἄνδρα καὶ μίαν γυναῖκα διέπλασε, καὶ τὸ διαλύειν ἀπαγορεύει τὸν γάμον, μίαν δὲ μόνην ἀφορμὴν διαλύσεως ἔδωκε, τὴν ἀληθῶς διασπῶσαν τὴν ξεύγλην᾽ πᾶς“ γάρ φησιν,δἰ ἀπολύων τὴν γυναῖκα αὖτοῦ, παρεητὸς λόγου πορνείας, ποιεῖ αὐτὴν μοιχευθῆναι" καὶ ὃ ἀπολελυμένην γαμῶν μοιχᾶται. ### English translation (Claude) And the one legislated freely sharing even other men's wives; but the Maker of nature, since in creating human nature he formed from the beginning one man and one woman, also forbids dissolving marriage, and gave only one ground for dissolution, the one that truly tears the yoke apart: 'For everyone,' he says, 'who puts away his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who has been put away commits adultery.' ### Scripture references - Matt 5:32: quotation, high confidence - Gen 1:27: allusion, medium confidence - Matt 19:4–6: echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret quotes Matt 5:32 and says that sexual immorality (πορνεία) is the one ground that 'truly tears the yoke apart'. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.58 (Raeder, 237; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-58). ## Discourse 9.59 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-59 - Source: Raeder, 237 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: A husband must bear his wife's faults but may end the marriage for adultery. ### Greek text διὰ δὲ τούτων πάντα φέρειν κελεύει τὰ τῆς γυναικὸς ἐλαττώματα, κἂν λάλος ἢ, κἂν μέθυσος, κἂν εἰς λοιδορίαν προχειροτάτη᾽ εἰ δὲ τοῦ γάμου παραλύσει τοὺς νόμους καὶ πρὸς ἕτερον ἴδοι, τηνικαῦτα λύειν κελεύει τὴν ζεύγλην. ### English translation (Claude) By these words he bids the husband bear all the wife's faults, even if she is a chatterer, a drunkard, or very quick to abuse; but if she breaks the laws of marriage and looks to another man, then he bids loosening the yoke. ### Scripture references - Matt 5:32: allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret takes the exception in Matt 5:32 as permitting the husband to dissolve the marriage when the wife commits adultery; he does not here address remarriage after such a dissolution. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.59 (Raeder, 237; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-59). ## Discourse 9.60 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-60 - Source: Raeder, 237 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul's law of one husband and one wife contrasts with Plato's community of wives. ### Greek text | τοιαῦτα δὲ πάλιν καὶ διὰ τοῦ σκυτοτόμου νενομοθέτηκε᾽ καὶ Κορινθίοις ἐπιστέλλων ἐκεῖνος πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις τοὺς νόμους προσήνεγκεν᾽ μῃαλόνΞ γὰρ ἔφη.,γυναικὸς μὴ ἅπτεσθαι" διὰ δὲ τὰς πορνείας ἕκαστος τὴν ξαυτοῦ γυναῖκα ἐχέτω, καὶ ἑκάστη τὸν ἴδιον ἄνδρα ἐχέτω.“ ὁρᾶτε, ὅσον τῶν τοῦ φιλοσόφου καὶ τῶν τοῦ σπυτοτόμου νόμων ἐστὶ τὸ διάφορον; οὗτος μὲν γὰρ καὶ ἑκάστῃ γυναικὶ τὸν ἴδιον ἄνδρα ἔχειν καὶ ἑκάστῳ ἀνδρὶ τὴν ἰδίαν γυναῖκα προσέταξεν" ἐκεῖνος δὲ τῶν ἀνδρῶν ἁπάντων ἁπάσας εἶναι τὰς γυναῖκας ποινάς. ### English translation (Claude) He legislated such things again through the leather-worker; and he, writing to the Corinthians, brought the laws to all human beings: 'It is good,' he said, 'not to touch a woman; but because of sexual immoralities let each man have his own wife and each woman have her own husband.' Do you see how great the difference is between the philosopher's laws and the leather-worker's? This one ordered each woman to have her own husband and each man his own wife; that one made all the women common to all the men. ### Scripture references - 1 Cor 7:1–2: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.60 (Raeder, 237; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-60). ## Discourse 9.61 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-61 - Source: Raeder, 238 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul forbids spouses to withhold themselves without mutual consent. ### Greek text καὶ περὶ ἐγκρατείας δὲ νόμους τυθείς, οὔτε τῇ γυναικὶ ξυγχωρεῖ τὴν τοῦ ἀνδρὸς ὁμιλίαν φυγεῖν, ἐκείνου τοῦτο μὴ στέργοντος, οὔτε τὸν ἄνδρα, μὴ ξυμφωνούσης τῆς γυναικός" »»] γυνή γάρ φησι..τοῦ ἰδίου σώματος οὐκ ἐξουσιάξει, ἀλλ᾽ ὃ ἀνήρ᾽ ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ ὁ ἀνὴρ τοῦ ἰδίου σώματος οὐκ ἐξουσιάξει, ἀλλ᾽ ἡ γυνή. μὴ ἀποστερεῖτε ἀλλήλους, εἰ μή τι ἂν ἐκ συμφώνου-“ στέρεσθαν γὰρ ὑπολαμβάνει τῆς ξυνουσίας ὁ παρὰ γνώμην μετιὼν τὴν ἐγκράτειαν. ### English translation (Claude) And laying down laws about continence, he neither allows the wife to flee her husband's company when he does not agree, nor the husband when the wife does not consent: 'The wife,' he says, 'does not have authority over her own body, but the husband; likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife. Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement.' For he regards as depriving of union the one who pursues continence against the other's will. ### Scripture references - 1 Cor 7:4–5: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.61 (Raeder, 238; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-61). ## Discourse 9.62 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-62 - Source: Raeder, 238 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul allows abstinence for prayer only for a time, lest Satan tempt. ### Greek text εἶτα κατ᾽ ὀλίγον ἐπὶ τὰ τέλεια ποδηγῶν ἐπήγαγεν᾽ »πρὸς καιρόν, ἵνα σχολάσητε τῇ νηστείᾳ καὶ τῇ προσευχῇ, καὶ πάλιν ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ συνέρχησθε οὕτω δὲ μετρήσας τῇ φύσει τοὺς νόμους, λέγει καὶ τὴν αἰτίαν᾽ οἵνα μὴ πειράζῃ ὑμᾶς ὃ Σατανᾶς.“ καὶ διδάσκων, ὡς παρ᾽ ἡμῶν ἐκεῖνος λαμβάνειν ### English translation (Claude) Then, leading little by little to perfect things, he added: 'For a time, so that you may devote yourselves to fasting and prayer, and come together again.' Having thus measured the laws to nature, he states the reason: 'So that Satan may not tempt you.' And teaching that he takes his openings from us, ### Scripture references - 1 Cor 7:5: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - 1 Cor 7:5, with 'fasting and' as in many manuscripts. The sentence continues in 9.63. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.62 (Raeder, 238; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-62). ## Discourse 9.63 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-2/#p-9-63 - Source: Raeder, 238 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul commends celibacy by advice, not law. ### Greek text τὰς ἀφορμάς, ἐπήγαγεν᾽ «διὰ τὴν ἀκρασίαν ὑμῶν.“ καὶ περὶ ἀγαμίας δὲ οὐ νόμους, ἀλλὰ παραινέσεις εἰσενεγκών, ἔδειξε καὶ τῆς ἀγαμίας τὸ χρήσιμον..ὃ ἄγαμος" γὰρ ἔφη »μεριμνᾷ τὰ τοῦ Κυρίου, πῶς ἀρέσει τῷ Κυρίφ᾽ ὁ δὲ γα μήσας μεριμνᾷ τὰ τοῦ κόσμου, πῶς ἀρέσει τῇ γυναικί ταὐτὰ δὲ καὶ περὶ γυναικῶν ἔφη, διδάσκων, ὡς ἡ παρθενία προξενεῖ βίον φροντίδων ἐλεύθερον. ### English translation (Claude) he added: 'because of your lack of self-control.' And about celibacy he brought in not laws but exhortations, and showed the usefulness of celibacy: 'The unmarried man,' he said, 'cares for the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord; but the married man cares for the things of the world, how to please his wife.' He said the same about women, teaching that virginity provides a life free of cares. ### Scripture references - 1 Cor 7:5: quotation, high confidence - 1 Cor 7:32–34: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.63 (Raeder, 238; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-63). ## Discourse 9.64 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-9-64 - Source: Raeder, 238 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ punishes even anger and insult. ### Greek text Θαυμάσατε, ὦ ἄνδρες, τοῦ σκυτοτόμου τὴν γλῶτταν καὶ τὸν διὰ ταύτης φθεγξάμενον προσκυνήσατε. εἰ δὲ βούλεόθε, καὶ τοὺς φονιποὺς καταμάθετε νόμους. ὁ μὲν γὰρ φιλόσοφος οὐδὲ τὸν ἀπεχτονότα πατέρα τὴν ἴσην ὑποσχεῖν τιμωρίαν ἐκέλευσεν, ὁ δὲ Σωτὴρ ὁ ἡμέτερος καὶ λοιδορίαν κολάζει παρὰ καιρὸν γινομένην καὶ θυμὸν ἀδίκως κινούμενον᾽ ηνᾶς γὰρ ἔφη..ὃ ὀργιξόμενος τῷ ἀδελφῷ αὐτοῦ εἰμῇ ἔνοχος ἔσται τῇ κρίσει" ὃς δ᾽ ἂν εἴπῃ “Ῥχκά, ἔνοχος ἔσται τῷ συνεδρίῳ᾽ ὃς δ᾽ ἂν εἴπῃ Μωρέ, ἔνοχος ἔσται εἰς ### English translation (Claude) Admire, gentlemen, the tongue of the leather-worker, and worship him who spoke through it. If you wish, learn the laws about murder too. The philosopher did not order even the one who killed his father to undergo equal punishment; but our Savior punishes even untimely abuse and anger unjustly moved: 'Everyone,' he said, 'who is angry with his brother without cause will be liable to judgment; whoever says "Raca" will be liable to the council; whoever says "Fool" will be liable to ### Scripture references - Matt 5:22: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation of Matt 5:22 ends in 9.65. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.64 (Raeder, 238; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64). ## Discourse 9.65 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-9-65 - Source: Raeder, 239 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ commands love of enemies. ### Greek text τὴν γέενναν τοῦ πυρός.“ καὶ λόγων δὲ ἀργῶν εὐθύνας ἀπαιτήσειν ἠπείλησεν. καὶ οὐ μόνον τοὺς φίλους εὐεργετεῖν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς ἐχθροὺς ἐκέλευσεν εὖ ποιεῖν",,ἀγαπᾶτες γὰρ ἔφη “τοὺς ἐχθροὺς ὑμῶν καὶ εὔχεσθε ὑπὲρ τῶν διωκόντων ὑμᾶς.“ εἶτα καὶ δείκνυσιν ἄθλον τὴν τῶν ἀγωνιζομένων ὑπερβαῖνον ἀξίαν᾽ ἔφη γάρ᾽ οοἵνα γένησθε υἱοὶ τοῦ πατρὸς ὑμῶν τοῦ ἐν οὐρανοῖς᾽ ὅτι ἀνατέλλει τὸν ἥλιον αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ πονηροὺς καὶ ἀγαθοὺς καὶ βρέχει ἐπὶ δικαίους καὶ ἀδίκους. ### English translation (Claude) the Gehenna of fire.' He also threatened to demand an account of idle words. And he ordered doing good not only to friends but also to enemies: 'Love your enemies,' he said, 'and pray for those who persecute you.' Then he shows a prize surpassing the worth of those who contend: 'so that you may become sons of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust.' ### Scripture references - Matt 5:22: quotation, high confidence - Matt 12:36: allusion, high confidence - Matt 5:44–45: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.65 (Raeder, 239; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-65). ## Discourse 9.66 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-9-66 - Source: Raeder, 239 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ forbids oaths, commends poverty, and promises persecution. ### Greek text καὶ περὶ ὕρκων δὲ νόμους τιθείς. καὶ αὐτοὺς ἀπαγορεύει. τοὺς ὕρκους, ἀποχρῆν λέγων τὸ »γαϊ καὶ τὸ οὔ“ πρὸς ] τὴν τῶν λεγομένων βεβαίωσιν. καὶ τὸν ἀκτήμονα δὲ βίον τελειότατον ἔφη" οοὗς γὰρ ἄν“ φησι »μὴ ἀποτάξηται πᾶσι τοῖς ὑπάρχουσιν αὐτοῦ, οὐ δύναταί μοι εἶναι μαθητής.“ ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως καὶ οὕτως ἀκριβῆ πολιτείαν νομοθετῶν, οὐδέν τι τερπνὸν κατὰ τόνδε τὸν βίον ἢ θυμῆρες δώσειν ὑπέσχετο, ἀλλὰ πενίαν καὶ ταλαιπωρίαν καὶ λοιδοφίας καὶ μάστιγας καὶ διαφόρους σφαγάς" »κἐν τῷ πόσμῳς γὰρ ἔφη..»θλίψιν ἔχετε καί" (μακάριοί ἐστε, ὅταν ὀνειδίσώσιν ὑμᾶς καὶ διώξωσι καὶ εἴπωσι πᾶν πονηρὸν φῆμα καθ' ὑμῶν ψευδόμενοι ἕνεκεν ἐμοῦ" χαίρετε καὶ ἀγαλλιᾶσθε, ### English translation (Claude) And laying down laws about oaths, he forbids oaths themselves, saying 'yes' and 'no' suffice to confirm what is said. And he called the life without possessions most perfect: 'For whoever does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.' Yet, though legislating so strict a way of life, he promised to give nothing pleasant or agreeable in this life, but poverty, hardship, insults, scourges, and various deaths: 'In the world,' he said, 'you have tribulation'; and 'Blessed are you when they reproach you and persecute you and say every evil word against you falsely for my sake; rejoice and be glad, ### Scripture references - Matt 5:37: allusion, high confidence - Luke 14:33: quotation, high confidence - John 16:33: quotation, high confidence - Matt 5:11–12: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation of Matt 5:12 ends in 9.67. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.66 (Raeder, 239; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-66). ## Discourse 9.67 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-9-67 - Source: Raeder, 240 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ promised rewards after life and persecution in it. ### Greek text ὅτι ὁ μισθὸς ὑμῶν πολὺς ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς.“ χαὶ τοὺς μὲν πόνους καὶ κινδύνους ἐπέδειξε, τὰ δὲ βραβεῖα καὶ τοὺς στεφάνους μετὰ τοῦ βίου τὸ τέλος ἀποδώσειν ὑπέσχετο. παὶ ἐν ἑτέρῳ δὲ χωρίῳ φησίν",.εἰ ἐμὲ ἐδίωξαν, καὶ ὑμᾶς διώξουσιν᾽ εἰ τὸν ἐμὸν λόγον ἐτήρησαν, καὶ τὸν ὑμέτερον τηρήσουσιν. καὶ πάλιν",,»εἰ τὸν οἰκοδεσπότην Βεελζεβοὺλ ἐπε-. κάλεσαν, πόσῳ μᾶλλον τοὺς οἰκειαποὺς αὐτοῦς ### English translation (Claude) for your reward is great in heaven.' He showed the labors and dangers, but promised to give the prizes and crowns after the end of life. And in another place he says: 'If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also; if they kept my word, they will keep yours also.' And again: 'If they called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more his household?' ### Scripture references - Matt 5:12: quotation, high confidence - John 15:20: quotation, high confidence - Matt 10:25: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.67 (Raeder, 240; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-67). ## Discourse 9.68 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-9-68 - Source: Raeder, 240 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The apostles believed unseen promises and spread the gospel. ### Greek text Οἱ μὲν δὴ νόμοι τοιοῦτοι" ἄξιον. δὲ ἀληθῶς καὶ τοὺς θεσπεσίους ἄνδρας ἐκείνους θαυμάσαι καὶ τοὺς ἐκείνοις πεπιστευκότας. τοιῶνδε γὰρ λόγων ἀκούοντες καὶ οὔτε πλοῦτον οὔτε δυναστείαν οὔτε σώματος ῥώμην παρὰ τοῦ πεηληκότος δεξάμενοι, ἀλλὰ μακραῖς παὶ ταύταις οὐ φαινομέναις ἐπαγγελίαις πεπιστευκότες, καὶ τοὺς πόνους ἠσπάσαντο καὶ τῶν κινδύνων ἠνέσχοντο καὶ τὴν οἰκουμένην περινοστήσαντες τοῖς ἔθνεσι προσήνεγκαν τὰ μαθήματα. ### English translation (Claude) Such are the laws; and it is truly worth admiring those divine men and those who believed them. For hearing such words, and receiving from the one who called them neither wealth nor power nor bodily strength, but believing long-term promises that did not appear, they embraced the labors, endured the dangers, and traveling round the world brought the teachings to the nations. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.68 (Raeder, 240; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-68). ## Discourse 9.69 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-9-69 - Source: Raeder, 240 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Those who accepted the gospel also gave up their customs and faced danger. ### Greek text οὐδὲν δὲ ἧττον καὶ τοὺς δεξαμένους εὐφημῆσαν προσήκει, ὅτι παρὰ τοῖς κήρυξιν οὐδὲν περιφανὲς ὁρῶντες οὐδὲ περίβλεπτον, ἀλλὰ γλώττας ἁλιευτικάς τε καὶ σκυτοτομιμὰς καὶ πιενίαν ἐσχάτην (οὐδὲ γὰρ τῆς ἀναγκαίας ηὐπόρουν τροφῆς᾽ πόθεν γὰρ δὴ ταύτην εἶχον, οἵ γὲ καὶ τὸ μεριμνᾶν περὶ τῆς αὔθίον νόμῳ κεκωλυμένοι:), οὐ μόνον τοῖς λεγομένοις ἐπίστευσαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν παρ᾽ αὐτοῖς πολιτευομένων κατεφρόγησαν νόμων καὶ τῶν ἐθῶν τῶν πατρῴων ἐξέστησαν καὶ μετὰ χινδύνων καὶ αὐτοὶ τὸν λοιπὸν ἐβίωσαν χρόνον, ὁμοίως μὲν τοῖς διδασκάλοις κηρύττοντες, ὁμοίως δὲ παροινούμενοι καὶ προπηλακιζόμενοι καὶ διὰ τῶν ἴσων “χλυδωνίων ὁδεύοντερ. ### English translation (Claude) No less is it fitting to praise those who received them, because, seeing nothing splendid or remarkable in the heralds, but the tongues of fishermen and leather-workers and extreme poverty (for they did not even have plenty of necessary food; for how could they, who were forbidden by law to worry about the morrow?), they not only believed what was said, but despised the laws under which they lived, departed from ancestral customs, and themselves lived the rest of their time with dangers, preaching like their teachers, abused and insulted like them, and traveling through the same storms. ### Scripture references - Matt 6:34: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.69 (Raeder, 240; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-69). ## Discourse 9.70 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-9-70 - Source: Raeder, 241 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The tombs of those who died for the faith are revered. ### Greek text τοσοῦτο δὲ σέβας τῶν μέχρνυ θανάτου χεκινδυνευκότων καὶ εἶχον ἐκεῖνοι, καὶ μὲν δὴ καὶ ἔχουσιν ἅπαντες, ὡς τὰς ἐκείνων γε θήκας θησαυροὺς ὑπολαμβάνειν ἀγαθῶν παντοδαπῶν χορηγούς. ### English translation (Claude) And they had, and indeed all now have, such reverence for those who faced danger to the point of death, that they think their tombs treasures supplying all kinds of goods. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.70 (Raeder, 241; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-70). ## Discourse 9.71 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-9-71 - Source: Raeder, 241 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Persecutors failed to destroy the gospel; Greek laws died on their own. ### Greek text ἀθρήσατε δὴ οὖν, ὦ ἄνδρες, τῶνδε τῶν νόμων τὴν δύναμιν. τούτους γὰρ καὶ Ῥωμαῖοι καὶ Πέρσαι καὶ οἱ τῆς τούτων ἡγεμονίας ἔξω τελοῦντες καταλῦσαι λίαν ἐσπουδακότες, τὴν μὲν οἰκείαν ἀσθένειαν ἔδειξαν, τὴν δὲ τούτων ἰσχὺν ἐκδηλοτέραν ἀπέφηναν. τοῖς δὲ 4υκούργου καὶ Σόλωνος οὐδεὶς ἐπολέμησε “νόμοις, [ ἀλλ᾽ αὐτόματον κατελύθησαν. ### English translation (Claude) Behold, then, gentlemen, the power of these laws. For the Romans, the Persians, and those outside their rule, eagerly trying to destroy them, showed their own weakness and made the strength of these more manifest. But no one made war on the laws of Lycurgus and Solon; they dissolved of themselves. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.71 (Raeder, 241; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-71). ## Discourse 9.72 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-9-72 - Source: Raeder, 241 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: No one died for Greek laws, but myriads died for the gospel. ### Greek text καὶ οὔτε ὁ Πύθιος οὔτε ἢ Πολιὰς τοὺς ὑπὸ σφῶν τεθέντας ἐκράτυναν νόμους. εὐθὺς δέ γε “Ῥωμαίων προστεταχότων ἐσβέσθησαν. δειξάτω τις ὑμῶν, ὦ ἄνδρες, ἕνα γοῦν Σπαρτιάτην ὑπὲρ τῶν “υκούργου νόμῶν ἀποθανεῖν ἀνασχόμενον, ἢ ἕνα ᾿4θηναῖον ὑπὲρ τῶν Σόλωνος, ἢ ὑπὲρ τῶν Ζαλεύκου Δοκρόν, ἢ Κρῆτα ὑπὲρ τῶν Μίνωος" ἀλλ᾽ οὐκ ἄν τις ὑμῶν τοῦτό γε δείξειεν" ἡμεῖς δὲ δείκνυμεν ὑπὲρ τῶν ἁλιευτικῶν καὶ σκυτοτομικῶν νόμων πολλὰς καὶ ἀνδρῶν καὶ γυναικῶν ἀνασχομένας ἀποθανεῖν μυριάδας᾽ καὶ μάρτυρες οἱ τῶν μαρτύρων σηκοὶ καὶ πόλεις λαμπρύνοντες καὶ χώρας φαιδρύνοντες καὶ ξένοις ὁμοῦ καὶ ἐγχωρίοις τὴν ὠφέλειαν προσφέροντες. ### English translation (Claude) And neither the Pythian nor the Protectress of the city strengthened the laws laid down by them; as soon as the Romans commanded, they were quenched. Let one of you show, gentlemen, a single Spartan who endured death for the laws of Lycurgus, or one Athenian for Solon's, or a Locrian for Zaleucus's, or a Cretan for Minos's; but none of you could show this; while we show many myriads of men and women who endured death for the laws of the fishermen and the leather-worker; and the shrines of the martyrs are witnesses, brightening cities, gladdening countries, and bringing benefit to strangers and natives alike. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.72 (Raeder, 241; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-72). ## Discourse 9.73 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-9-73 - Source: Raeder, 241 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret urges readers to accept the God-given laws of the gospel. ### Greek text ἐπειδὴ τοίνυν καὶ τῶν νόμων καὶ τῶν νομοθετῶν κατάδηλον ἐπ ξυγκρίσεως γεγένηται τὸ διάφορον, καὶ τὰ μὲν ὥφθη λογισμῶν ἀνθρωπίνων εὑρήματα, τὰ δὲ θεόσδοτα καὶ σωτήρια, δέξασθε, ὦ ἄνδρες, τὰ θεσπέσια δῶρα καὶ τὸν μεγαλόδωρον καὶ φιλόδωρον μὴ ἀτυμάσητε χορηγόν. εἴσεσθε δὲ αὐτῶν τὸ θεοπρεπὲς ἀκριβέστερον, εἰ τούτοις ἐντύχητε, τὴν πονηρὰν τῶν ψυχῶν ἐξελάσαντες πρόληψιν. ### English translation (Claude) Since, then, by comparison the difference of the laws and the lawgivers has become plain, the one shown to be inventions of human reasonings, the other God-given and saving, receive, gentlemen, the divine gifts and do not dishonor the generous and gift-loving Giver. You will know their godliness more accurately if you read them, having driven out the wicked prejudice of your souls. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 9.73 (Raeder, 241; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-73). ## Discourse 10.1 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-1 - Source: Raeder, 242 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Tyrants seize power and are overthrown for their cruelty. ### Greek text Οἱ τυραννίδος ἐρῶντες τὴν οὐδαμόθεν αὐτοῖς προσήκουσαν ἁρπάξουσι δυναστείαν, ἀλλὰ τὸ μὲν τῆς βασιλείας περιτίθενται σχῆμα, τὴν ἁλουργίδα, τὸν στέφανον, τὸν θρόψον, τὸ ζεῦγος, τοὺς δορυφόρους, τὸν δὲ βασιλικὸν ξηλοῦν οὐκ ἐθέλουσι τρόπον. οὐ γὰρ ἤπιοι ποθοῦσι καλεῖσθαι πατέρες, ἀλλὰ δεσπόται πικροί, οὐδὲ πηδεμόνες φιλάνθρωποι, ἀλλ᾽ ἡγεμόνες παγχάλεποι. τῷ τοι πολλάκις μὲν αὐτοὺς οἵ ἔννομον χαταλύουσι βασιλεῖς, τοὺς ὑπ᾽ αὐτῶν παρανομουμένους οἰκτείροντες᾽ πολλάκις δὲ καὶ στρατιῶται καὶ δῆμοι γυμνοῦσι τῆς δυναστείας, τὸ θράσος οὐ φέροντες. ### English translation (Claude) Those who love tyranny seize a power that in no way belongs to them; they put on the trappings of kingship, the purple, the crown, the throne, the chariot, the bodyguards, but will not imitate the royal manner. For they do not long to be called gentle fathers but harsh masters, not kindly guardians but very grievous rulers. That is why lawful kings often depose them, pitying those they wrong; and often soldiers and peoples strip them of power, unable to bear their insolence. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.1 (Raeder, 242; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-1). ## Discourse 10.2 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-2 - Source: Raeder, 242 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The demons usurped the name of gods and claimed to foretell the future. ### Greek text τοῦτο καὶ δεδράκασν καὶ πεπόνθασιν οἱ παμπόνηροι δαίμονεφ. τὴν γὰρ δὴ τάξιν καταλιπόντες, ἣν ἔλαχον, καὶ τὴν ἡμερωτάτην τοῦ πεπονηκότος ἀποδράσαντες δεσποτείαν, ἥρπαόαν μὲν τὴν τυραννίδα, τὸ δὲ θεῖον ὄνομα σεσυληκότες, θεοὺς σφᾶς αὐτοὺς προσηγύρευσαν καὶ τὸ θεῖον σέβας σφίσι προσφέρειν τῶν ἀνθρώπων τοὺς ἀνοήτους ἀνέπεισαν᾽ εἶτα κρατῦναι τὴν δυναστείαν σπουδάζοντες, καὶ προγινώσκειν τὰ μέλλοντα καὶ προλέγειν ἐνεανιδύσαντο; ταύτῃ μάλιστα τοὺς εὐαλώτους ἀνθρώπους παραπρουόμενοι. ### English translation (Claude) This the utterly wicked demons both did and suffered. For leaving the rank they received and fleeing the gentlest lordship of their Maker, they seized the tyranny; and having stolen the divine name, they called themselves gods and persuaded foolish human beings to offer them divine worship; then, eager to strengthen their power, they boasted of foreknowing and foretelling the future, by this especially deceiving easily caught human beings. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.2 (Raeder, 242; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-2). ## Discourse 10.3 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-3 - Source: Raeder, 242 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The demons set up oracles and divination everywhere. ### Greek text διά τοι τοῦτο πανταχοῦ γῆς τὰ τῆς ἀπάτης κατεσκεύασαν ἐργαστήρια καὶ τὰς μαντικὰς ἐπενόησαν μαγγανείας, τοὺς ἀλευρομάντεις καὶ στερνομάντεις καὶ νεπυομάντεις καὶ τὴν Κασταλίας ### English translation (Claude) For this reason they set up workshops of deception everywhere on earth and devised the trickeries of divination: diviners by meal, by the breast, and by the dead, and the Castalian ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 10.4. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.3 (Raeder, 242; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-3). ## Discourse 10.4 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-4 - Source: Raeder, 243 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The oracles fell silent after Christ came, proving they were demonic. ### Greek text πηϊγὴν καὶ τὸ Κολοφώνιον ῥεῖθρον καὶ τὴν ἱερὰν δρῦν καὶ τὸ Δωδωναῖον χαλκεῖον καὶ τὸν Κιρραῖον τρίποδα καὶ τὸν Θεσπρώτιον λέβητα, καὶ ἐν “Διβύῃ μὲν τὸ μαντεῖον τὸ ᾿άμμωνος, ἐν δέ γε Δωδώνῃ τὸ τοῦ Διός, ἐν δὲ Βραγχίδαις καὶ Δήλῳ καὶ 4ελφοῖς καὶ Κολοφῶνι τοῦ Κλαρίου καὶ Πυθίου καὶ 4ηλίου καὶ “ιδυμαίου, καὶ ἐν “Δεβαδίᾳ μὲν Τροφωνίου, ἐν Ὡρωπῷ δὲ ᾿Αμφιάρεω, ἐν δὲ τῇ Τυρρηνῶν καὶ Χαλδαίων τῆς νεκυομαντείας τὰ ξοφώτατα ἄντρα, καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ μὲν ᾿Αμφιλόχου, ἀλλαχοῦ δὲ Γλαύκου καὶ ἕτέρῶθι Μόψου καὶ ἄλλων τινῶν δυσωνύμων ἀνθρώπων. ὅτι δὲ παμπονήρων ἦν δαιμόνων ταῦτα χρηστήρια τὴν θείαν προσηγορίαν σεσυλημκότων, ἱκανὴ μὲν τεμμηριῶσαν καὶ ἡ γῶν αὐτοῖς ἐπικειμένη σιγή. μετὰ γὰρ δὴ τὴν τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἐπιφάνειαν ἀπέδρασαν οἱ τήνδε τὴν ἐξαπάτην τοῖς ἀνθρώποις προσφέροντες, τοῦ θείου φωτὸς οὐκ ἐνεγκόντες τὴν αἴγλην. ### English translation (Claude) spring, the stream of Colophon, the sacred oak, the bronze cauldron of Dodona, the Cirrhaean tripod, and the Thesprotian basin; in Libya the oracle of Ammon, at Dodona that of Zeus, at Branchidae, Delos, Delphi, and Colophon those of the Clarian, the Pythian, the Delian, and the Didymaean; at Lebadeia that of Trophonius, at Oropus that of Amphiaraus, in the land of the Tyrrhenians and the Chaldeans the darkest caves of necromancy; elsewhere those of Amphilochus, elsewhere of Glaucus, and elsewhere of Mopsus and other ill-named men. That these oracles belonged to utterly wicked demons who stole the divine name, the silence that now lies on them is sufficient proof. For after the appearing of our Savior those who brought this deception to human beings fled, unable to bear the radiance of the divine light. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.4 (Raeder, 243; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-4). ## Discourse 10.5 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-5 - Source: Raeder, 243 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plutarch, a Greek near Delphi, wrote on the failure of oracles. ### Greek text μαρτυρεῖ δὲ διαρρήδην καὶ Πλούταρχος ὁ Χαιρωνεύς, ἀνὴρ οὐχ Ἕβραϊος, ἀλλ᾽ Ἕλλην καὶ τὸ γένος καὶ τὴν γλῶτταν, καὶ μέντοι καὶ ταῖς “Ἑλληνικαῖς δόξαις δεδουλωμένος καὶ τὸν τῶν χρηστηρίων ἀκριβῶς ἐπιστάμενος πλάνον. οὐ πόρρω γάρ που τῆς “Χαιρωνείας Δελφοὶ καὶ «Δεβαδία καὶ ᾿φφρωπός, ἀλλ᾽ δμοροί τε καὶ πλησιόχωροι. οὗτος πολλὰ μὲν καὶ ἄλλα ξυνέγραψε (πολυμαθὴς γὰρ ὁ ἀνὴρ καὶ μάλα πολύπειρος), ξυνέγραψε δὲ καὶ περὶ τῶν μαντειῶν τινα καὶ τόδε τὸ ξύγγραμμα Πρρὶ τῶν ἐπλελοιπότων χρηστηρίων ἐκάλεσεν’ ἐν τοίνυν τούτῳ πρὸς πολλοῖς ἄλλοις ### English translation (Claude) Plutarch of Chaeronea bears plain witness, a man not a Hebrew but a Greek in race and language, enslaved to Greek opinions, and accurately knowing the error of the oracles. For Delphi, Lebadeia, and Oropus are not far from Chaeronea, but bordering and nearby. He wrote many other things (for the man was very learned and experienced), and he wrote also about oracles, and called this work On the Obsolescence of Oracles. In it, among many other things, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plutarch, Def. orac. (Plutarch): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 10.6. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.5 (Raeder, 243; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-5). ## Discourse 10.6 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-6 - Source: Raeder, 244 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plutarch says demons, not gods, preside over oracles. ### Greek text καὶ ταῦτα ἔφη"..τὸ μὲν οὖν ἐφεστάναι τοῖς χρηστηρίοις μὴ θεούς, οἷς ἀπηλλάχθαι τῶν περὶ γῆν προσῆκόν ἐστιν, ἀλλὰ δαίμονας ὑπηρέτας θεῶν, οὐ δοκεῖ μοι κακῶς ἀξιοῦσθαι" τὸ δὲ τοῖς δαίμοσι τούτοις, μονονουχὶ δραχμὴν λαμβάνοντας ἔκ τῶν ἐπῶν τῶν Ἐμπεδοκλέους, ἁμαρτίας παὶ ἄτας καὶ πλάνας ἐπιφέρειν, τελευτῶντας δὲ καὶ θανάτους ὥσπερ ἀνθρώπων ὑποτίθεσθαν θρασύτερον ἡγοῦμαι καὶ βαρβαρικώτε ### English translation (Claude) he said this: 'That not gods, whom it befits to be freed from earthly things, but demons, servants of the gods, preside over oracles does not seem to me badly held; but to take, as it were, a drachma's worth from the verses of Empedocles and impute to these demons sins, ruin, and wanderings, and finally to suppose deaths for them as for human beings, I think too bold and too barbarous.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plutarch, Def. orac. 418e (Plutarch): quotation, high confidence - Empedocles (Empedocles (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Plutarch, On the Obsolescence of Oracles 418e. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.6 (Raeder, 244; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-6). ## Discourse 10.7 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-7 - Source: Raeder, 244 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: A pagan, not a Christian, says oracles are given by demons for pay. ### Greek text ρον ταῦτα οὐ προφήτης ἡμέτερος οὐδ᾽ ἀπόστολος εἴρηκεν, οὐδέ τις ἄλλος τῶν ἐκείνοις πεπιστευκότων καὶ τὰ ἐκείνων δοξάζειν ἐσπουδακότων, ἀλλ᾽ ἀνὴρ πᾶσαν μὲν ἠσνημένος παιδείαν, τῇ δὲ παλαιᾷ τῶν φιλοσόφων ἐξαπάτῃ δουλεύων᾽ οὗτος ἔφη, πρῶτον μέν, οὐκ εἶναι τοὺς χφῶντας θεούς, ἀλλὰ δαίμονας, ἔπειτα δέ, τοὺς τούτων νεωκόρους καὶ ὑπὸ τούτων κατειλημμένους καὶ ἀναβεβαχχδυμένους ἐπὶ μισθῷ χρησμολογεῖν» προλέγειν δὲ οὐδὲν ἀληθές, ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ τούτων, ὧν τὸν ἀτμὸν καὶ τὴν ἐπίπνοιαν ἔχειν γεανιεύονται, πολλὰ δεινὰ καὶ χαλεπὰ προαγγέλλειν, οὐ μόνον ἄτας καὶ πλάνας, ἀλλὰ καὶ θανάτους ἀνθρώποις παραπλησίως, καὶ τὰ ἔπη δὲ οὐκ ἔκ τινος θειασμοῦ καὶ κατακωχῆς λέγειν, ἀλλ᾽ ἐκ τῆς Ἐμπεδοκλέους συλῶντας πονήσεως. ### English translation (Claude) No prophet or apostle of ours said this, nor anyone else who believed them and strove to hold their views, but a man trained in all learning and enslaved to the ancient deception of the philosophers. He said, first, that those who give oracles are not gods but demons; then, that their temple wardens, seized and driven to Bacchic frenzy by them, give oracles for pay and foretell nothing true, but also announce many terrible and harsh things about those whose vapor and inspiration they boast of having, not only ruin and wanderings but deaths, as for human beings; and that they speak the verses not from any divine inspiration and possession, but stealing them from the poetry of Empedocles. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plutarch, Def. orac. 418e (Plutarch): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret's paraphrase of Plutarch somewhat sharpens his meaning. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.7 (Raeder, 244; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-7). ## Discourse 10.8 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-8 - Source: Raeder, 244 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Introduction to a further quotation of Plutarch. ### Greek text καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς δὲ τὴν αὐτὴν ἔχει διάνοιαν" λέγει γάρφ᾽..μ»αἱ περὶ μὲν ### English translation (Claude) And what follows has the same sense; for he says: 'And about ### Translation notes - A short fragment; the quotation follows in 10.9. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.8 (Raeder, 244; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-8). ## Discourse 10.9 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-9 - Source: Raeder, 245 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plutarch says wild rites appease wicked demons in place of human sacrifice. ### Greek text τῶν μυστικῶν, ἐν οἷς [ τὰς μεγίστας ἐμφάσεις λαβεῖν ἔστι τῆς περὶ δαιμόνων ἀληθείας, εὔστομά μοι κείσθω, καθ' Ἡρόδοτον᾽ ἑορτὰς δὲ καὶ θυσίας, ὥσπερ ἡμέρας ἀποφράδας καὶ σκυθρωπάς, ἐν αἷς ὠμοφαγίαι καὶ διασπασμοί, νηστεῖαί τε καὶ ποπετοί, πολλαχοῦ δὲ πάλιν αἰσχρολογίαι πρὸς ἱεροῖς μανίαι τε ἄλλαν ὀρινομένων ῥιψαύχενι σὺν κλόνῳ, θεῶν μὲν οὐδενί, δαιμόνων δὲ πονηρῶν ἀποτροπῆς ἕνεκα φήσαιμ᾽ ἂν ἐπιτελεῖσθαι, παραμυθίας τῆς παλαιᾶς ποιουμένους ἀνθρωποθυσίας.“ ἐν μὲν οὖν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν ἐξητασμένοις ἔφη μὴ εἶναι τὰ μαντεῖα θεῶν, ἀλλὰ δαιμόνων" ἐνταῦθα δὲ τούτους καὶ πονηροὺς προσηγόρευσε, τεημηρίοις ἐναργεστάτοις τοῖς ὑπ᾽ αὐτῶν δρωμένοις χρησάμενος. τίνι γάρ που προσήκουσιν ὠμοφαγίαι καὶ διασπασμοὶ αἰσχρορημοσύναι τε καὶ αἰσχρουργίαι καὶ μανίαι ὀρινομένων καὶ ῥιυψαυχενούντῶν σὺν κλόνῳ, ἢ δαίμοσι παμπονήροις, τὸ τῶν ἀνθρώπων πημαίνουσι γένος; οἱ πάλαι μέν, οἷα δὴ ἀλάστορες, ταῖς τῶν τρισαθλίων ἀνθρώπων σφαγαῖς ἐπετέρποντο, ἐπειδὴ δὲ βδελυξαμένους εἶδον τοὺς ἀνθρώπους τὴν ἀνδροφονίαν ἐκείνην καὶ μιαιφονίαν τὴν αὐτοῖς ἀξιέραστον καὶ παυσαμένους τοῦ μύσους, τὰς διαμαστιγώσεις καὶ ὠμοφαγίας καὶ τὰς ἄλλας ἐπενόησαν τελετάς. ### English translation (Claude) the mystic rites, in which one can get the greatest glimpses of the truth about demons, let my lips be sealed, as Herodotus says; but festivals and sacrifices, like unlucky and gloomy days, in which there are eating of raw flesh and tearing apart, fasts and beating of breasts, and again in many places obscene language at the temples and madness of people raving with neck-tossing tumult, I would say are performed to no god, but for the averting of wicked demons, as consolations for the ancient human sacrifice.' In what was examined before he said that the oracles are not of gods but of demons; here he called them wicked too, using as clearest proofs the things done by them. For to whom do eating raw flesh, tearing apart, obscene words and deeds, and the madness of raving and neck-tossing with tumult belong, if not to utterly wicked demons who harm the human race? They of old, like avenging spirits, delighted in the slaughter of thrice-wretched human beings; and when they saw human beings loathe that murder and bloodshed so dear to them and cease from the pollution, they devised the scourgings, the eating of raw flesh, and the other rites. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plutarch, Def. orac. 417c (Plutarch): quotation, high confidence - Herodotus, Hist. 2.171 (Herodotus, Histories): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plutarch, On the Obsolescence of Oracles 417c, quoting Herodotus 2.171. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.9 (Raeder, 245; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-9). ## Discourse 10.10 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-10 - Source: Raeder, 245 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plutarch's speakers note that almost all oracles have failed. ### Greek text καὶ ταῦτα δὲ τοῖς εἰρημένοις πφοστέθεικεν᾽ »Ἱαυσαμένου δὲ τοῦ Ἀμμωνίου, μᾶλλον, ἔφην ἐγώ, περὶ τοῦ μαντείου δίελθε ἡμῖν, ὦ ΚλεόμβροτΕ. μεγάλη γὰρ ἡ παλαιὰ δόξα τῆς ἐκεῖ θειότητος, τὰ δὲ νῦν ἔοικεν ἀπομαραίνεσθαι. τοῦ δὲ Κλεομβρότου σιγῶντος καὶ κάτω βλέποντος, ὁ Δημήτριος οὐδὲν ἔφη δεῖν περὶ τῶν ἐκεῖ πυν-θάνεσθαι καὶ διωπορεῖν, τὴν ἐνταῦθα τῶν χρηστηρίων ἀμαύρωσιν, μᾶλλον δὲ πλὴν ἑνὸς ἢ δυοῖν ἁπάντων ἔπλειψιν ### English translation (Claude) He added this to what had been said: 'When Ammonius had stopped, "Rather," I said, "tell us about the oracle, Cleombrotus. For the ancient fame of the divinity there was great, but now it seems to be withering." When Cleombrotus was silent and looking down, Demetrius said there was no need to inquire and be puzzled about things there, seeing the obscuring of the oracles here, or rather the failure of all except one or two.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plutarch, Def. orac. 411e (Plutarch): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plutarch, On the Obsolescence of Oracles 411e. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.10 (Raeder, 245; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-10). ## Discourse 10.11 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-11 - Source: Raeder, 246 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plutarch wrote after Christ; Porphyry admits demons cannot know the future. ### Greek text ὁρῶντας.“ ταῦτα μετὰ τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἐπιφάνειαν ὃ Πλούταρχος ἔγραψεν᾽ τοιγάρτοι ὃ χρόνος δηλοῖ τῆς τῶν χρηστηρίων ἐκλείψεως τὴν αἰτίαν. καὶ ὁ Πορφύριος δὲ ἐν τῷ Περὶ τῆς ἐκ λογίων φιλοσοφίας καὶ ταῦτα ἔφη" »Ἀλλ᾽ ἤδη καὶ τὴν γνῶσιν τῆς φορᾶς τὴν ἀκριβῆ καὶ τὰς ἐκ τούτων διηγήσεις ἀκαταλήπτους εἶναν ἀνθρώποις, καὶ οὐ μόνον τούτοις, ἀλλὰ καί τισι τῶν δαιμόνων᾽ ὅθεν ### English translation (Claude) Plutarch wrote this after the appearing of our God and Savior; so the time shows the cause of the failure of the oracles. And Porphyry, in his work On the Philosophy from Oracles, said this too: 'But now accurate knowledge of the motion of the heavens and the accounts from it are incomprehensible to human beings, and not only to them but also to some of the demons; hence ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Phil. orac. (Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (Eusebius, Praep. ev. 6.5.1). The quotation ends in 10.12. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.11 (Raeder, 246; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-11). ## Discourse 10.12 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-12 - Source: Raeder, 246 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry, the Christians' enemy, says oracular demons lie. ### Greek text καὶ ψεύδονται περὶ πολλῶν ἐρωτηθέντες.“ οὐκοῦν, ὦ ἄνδρες; ἐπειδήπερ ἡμῖν περὶ τῶν ὑμετέρων χρηστηρίων λέγουσιν ἀπιστεῖτε, τῷ ἡμῖν μὲν ἐχθίστῳ, ὑμῖν δὲ προσφιλεστάτῳ πιστεύσατε" ἄσπονδος γὰρ ἡμῶν οὗτος πολέμιος; τὴν προφανῆ κατὰ τῆς εὐσεβείας ἀναδεξάμενος μάχην. οὗτος δὲ ψεύδεσθαι εἴρηκε τοὺς τοῖς καλουμένοις μαντείοις προσεδρεύοντας δαίμονας. ### English translation (Claude) they also lie when asked about many things.' So, gentlemen, since you disbelieve us when we speak about your oracles, believe the one most hateful to us and dearest to you; for he is our implacable enemy, who took up open battle against godliness. He said that the demons that attend the so-called oracles lie. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Phil. orac. (Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.12 (Raeder, 246; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-12). ## Discourse 10.13 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-13 - Source: Raeder, 246 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry says the gods' predictions come from astrology. ### Greek text ὅτι δὲ τοὺς αὐτοὺς καὶ θεοὺς ὀνομάξει καὶ ἀστρολογίαν μᾶλλον αὐτοῖς ἢ θείαν πρόγνωσιν μαρτυρεῖ, ἐν αὐτῷ δεδήλωμε τῷ ξυγγράμματι᾽ | λέγει δὲ ταῦτα᾽ «ἃ γὰρ λέγουσιν οἱ θεοί, εἴπερ τὰ μεμοιραμένα γινώσκοντες λέγουσιν, ἀπὸ τῆς τῶν ἄστρων φορᾶς δηλοῦσι" καὶ τοῦτο σχεδὸν πάντες ἐξέφηναν οἵ ἀψευδεῖς τῶν θεῶν.“ ### English translation (Claude) That he also names the same beings gods and attributes astrology to them rather than divine foreknowledge he showed in the same work; he says this: 'For what the gods say, if they say it knowing what is fated, they show from the motion of the stars; and nearly all the truthful gods have declared this.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Phil. orac. (Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (Eusebius, Praep. ev. 6.1.2). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.13 (Raeder, 246; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-13). ## Discourse 10.14 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-14 - Source: Raeder, 246 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry criticizes an oracle of Apollo on sacrifice. ### Greek text ἀλλ᾽ ος ἐνταῦθα θεοὺς προσηγύρευσε, πάλιν ἔφη μὴ εἶναι θεοὺς ἐν τούτῳ γε καὶ οὐκ ἐν ἄλλῳ τῷ ξυγγράμματι" τοῦ γάρ τοι ᾿ἀπόλλωνος τεθειπὼς τὸν χρησμόν, ὃς διδάσκει, πῶς χρὴ τοῖς ἐπιχθονίοις, πῶς δὲ τοῖς ὑποχθονίοις θύειν θεοῖς, καὶ πῶς μὲν τοῖς ἐναλίοις, πῶς δὲ τοῖς ἐπουρανίοις καὶ αἰθερίοις, διξλέγχει τοῦτον ὡς οὐκ εὖ ἔχοντα τὸν χρησμόν, ### English translation (Claude) But those whom he here called gods he said again were not gods, in this very work and not in another. For having set down the oracle of Apollo which teaches how one must sacrifice to the gods on earth and under the earth, to those of the sea and to the heavenly and ethereal ones, he refutes this oracle as not right, ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Phil. orac. (Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragments)): allusion, high confidence - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 10.15. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.14 (Raeder, 246; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-14). ## Discourse 10.15 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-15 - Source: Raeder, 247 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry and Theophrastus say animal sacrifices suit demons, not gods. ### Greek text μὴ χρῆναι φάσκων θεοὺς ὑπολαμβάνειν τοὺς ταῖς διὰ ζῴων θυσίαις χαίροντας᾽ εἶναι γὰρ πάντων ἀδικώτατον τὸ ξῳοθυτεῖν καὶ ἀνόσιον καὶ μυσαρὸν καὶ βλαβερὸν παἱ διὰ τοῦτο μηδὲ θεοῖς προσφιλές. εἶτα τὸν Θεόφραστον εἰσάγει λέγοντα, ὡς θεοῖς οὐχ ἁρμόξουσιν, ἀλλὰ δαίμοσιν, αἵ διὰ ξῴων θυσίαι. πκωμῳδεῖ δὲ καὶ τὰς τῶν παλαιῶν ἀνθρωποθυσίας καὶ διηγεῖται παμπόλλας παρὰ πολλῶν γεγενημένας. ### English translation (Claude) saying one must not suppose those who rejoice in animal sacrifices to be gods; for sacrificing animals is the most unjust of all things, unholy, loathsome, and harmful, and for this reason not dear to the gods. Then he introduces Theophrastus saying that sacrifices of animals befit not gods but demons. He also mocks the human sacrifices of the ancients and recounts very many performed by many. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Abst. 2.36 (Porphyry, On Abstinence from Killing Animals): allusion, high confidence - Theophrastus (Theophrastus, On Piety): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Compare Porphyry, On Abstinence 2.11, 2.36–58. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.15 (Raeder, 247; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-15). ## Discourse 10.16 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-16 - Source: Raeder, 247 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry warns that bloody sacrifices draw evil demons. ### Greek text ἔπειτα διδάξας, ὡς οἵ πονηροὶ ταύτας τελεῖσθαι ἐκέλευον δαίμονες, ἐπήγαγεν᾽ οοὐνὸ συνετὸς ἀνὴρ καὶ σώφρων εὐλαβηθήσεταν τοιαύταις χρῆσθαι θυσίαις, δι’ ὧν ἐπισπάσεται πρὸς ἑαυτὸν τοὺς τοιούτους, σπουδάσει δὲ καθαίρειν τὴν ψυχὴν παντο ### English translation (Claude) Then, having taught that the wicked demons ordered these to be performed, he added: 'A sensible and self-controlled man will be wary of using such sacrifices, by which he will draw such beings to himself, and will be eager to purify his soul in every ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Abst. 2.43 (Porphyry, On Abstinence from Killing Animals): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, On Abstinence 2.43. The quotation ends in 10.17. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.16 (Raeder, 247; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-16). ## Discourse 10.17 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-17 - Source: Raeder, 247 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Pythian oracle orders offerings to an evil demon, contradicting Porphyry. ### Greek text ίως᾽ παθαρᾷ γὰρ ψυχῇ οὐκ ἐπιτίθενται.“ ἀλλ᾽ ὁ Πύθιος τἀναντία τῷ Πορφυρίῳ νομοθετεῖ". κελεύει γὰρ τῷ χρησμὸν ἐξαιτοῦντι λύτρα τινὰ δοῦναι τῷ πονηρῷ δαίμονι, χοὰς καὶ πυρὴν καὶ αἷμα κελαινὸν καὶ οἶνον παμμέλανα᾽ καὶ τοιαὖτα ἄττα προσθείς, καὶ τὴν εὐχήν, ἣν δεῖ θύοντα προσἐνεγκεῖν, ἐξεπαίδευσεν᾽ «δαῖμον ἀλιτρονόων ψυχῶν διάδημα γῆξυν, ἐδετι "δ ω θ ὑχῶν ἡμὰ λελογχὼς ἡξρίων ὑπένερθε μυχῶν, χθονίων δ᾽ ἐφύπερθεν. καὶ ταῦτα δὲ ὁ Πορφύριος ἐν αὐτῷ γὲ τῷ ξυγγράμματι τέθεικε, τοῦτον διελέγχων ὡς οὐκ ὄντα θεόν, τὸν δὲ οἰκεῖον ἡρατύνων λόγον, ὡς οὐκ εἰσὶ θεοὶ ταῖς θυσίαις οἵ χαίφοντερ. ### English translation (Claude) way; for they do not attack a pure soul.' But the Pythian legislates the opposite of Porphyry. For he orders the one who asks for an oracle to give certain ransoms to the wicked demon, libations, a pyre, dark blood, and black wine; and having added such things, he also taught the prayer that the sacrificer must offer: 'Demon, crown of sinful souls, who has received an allotted portion beneath the airy recesses and above those under the earth.' Porphyry set this down too in the same work, refuting him as not a god and strengthening his own argument that those who rejoice in sacrifices are not gods. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Phil. orac. (Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragment). The oracle's text is partly garbled in the scan and is translated by sense. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.17 (Raeder, 247; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-17). ## Discourse 10.18 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-18 - Source: Raeder, 248 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry admits correcting the oracles' errors and faulty verse. ### Greek text ἵνα δὲ μή τις ὑπολάβῃ ταῦτα ψευδῶς αὐτὸν διαπλάττειν, ὅρκον προτέθειμε τοῦ ξυγγράμματος᾽ ««τοὺς θεούς" γὰρ ἔφη..διαμαρτύρομαι, ὡς οὐδὲν οὔτε προστέθεικα οὔτε ἀφεῖλον τῶν χρησθέντων νοημάτων, εἰ μή τι λέξιν ἡμαρτημένην διώρθωσα ἢ πρὸς τὸ σαφέστερον μεταβέβληκα ἢ τὸ μέτρον ἐλλεῖπον ἀνεπλήρωσα.“ διὰ δὲ τούτων καὶ ἀμαθίαν τοῦ Πυθίου κατηγορεῖ. οὐ γὰρ μόνον τὰς ἡμαρτημένας διώρθωσε λέξεις καὶ σαφεῖς τὰς ἀμφιβόλους ἀπέφηνεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἐπῶν τὴν χωλότητα ἰάσατο, ἣν ὁ Πύθιος διὰ τῶν ὑποφητῶν ἀπεφθέγξατο. ### English translation (Claude) So that no one may suppose that he invented these things falsely, he set an oath at the head of the work: 'I call the gods to witness,' he said, 'that I have neither added nor taken away anything of the meanings of the oracles, except where I corrected a faulty word, changed something for clarity, or filled out a defective meter.' By this he accuses the Pythian of ignorance too. For he not only corrected faulty words and made ambiguous ones clear, but also healed the lameness of the verses which the Pythian uttered through his interpreters. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Phil. orac. (Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles, preface (Eusebius, Praep. ev. 4.7.1). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.18 (Raeder, 248; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-18). ## Discourse 10.19 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-19 - Source: Raeder, 248 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Diogenianus says seers mostly fail. ### Greek text καὶ Διογενιανὸς δὲ τῶν χρησμολόγων θεῶν διελέγχει τὸ ψεῦδος᾽ λέγει δὲ οὕτως" τι δὲ ἀποτυγχάνεται τὰ πολλὰ τοῖς παλουμένοις μάντεσιν, ὃ πᾶς τῶν ἀνθρώπων βίος μάρτυς ἂν εἴη, καὶ οὗτοί γε αὐτοὶ οἱ τὴν μαντικὴν ἐπαγγελλόμενοι τέχνην. ### English translation (Claude) And Diogenianus too refutes the falsehood of the oracle-giving gods. He speaks thus: 'That the so-called seers mostly fail, the whole life of human beings would bear witness, and these very ones who profess the art of divination.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Diogenianus (Diogenianus, Against Chrysippus): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Diogenianus (Eusebius, Praep. ev. 4.3.1). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.19 (Raeder, 248; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-19). ## Discourse 10.20 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-20 - Source: Raeder, 248 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Diogenianus says seers' occasional successes are by chance. ### Greek text καὶ μετ᾽ ὀλίγα᾽ νῦν δὲ τοσοῦτον τοῖς εἰρημένοις προσθήσω, | ὅτι μάλιστα μὲν τὸ ἀληθεύειν ποτὲ τοὺς καλουμένους μάντεις ἐν ταῖς προαγορεύσεσιν οὐχ ἐπιστήμης, ἀλλὰ τυχικῆς αἰτίας ἔργον ἂν εἴη. οὐ γὰρ τὸ μηδέποτε τοῦ προκειμένου τυγχάνειν, ἀλλὰ τὸ μὴ πάντοτε μηδ᾽ ὡς ἐπὶ πλεῖστον μηδ᾽ ὡς ἐξ ἐπιστήμης, ὅταν τις καί ποτὲ τυγχάνῃ, τύχης ἔργον καλεῖν προειλήφαμὲν οἵ διξδιληφότες τὰς ὑφ᾽ ἕκαστον ὄνομα τεταγμένας ### English translation (Claude) And a little later: 'Now I shall add this much to what has been said: that the so-called seers' sometimes being right in their predictions would be the work not of knowledge but of a chance cause. For we who have distinguished the clear notions assigned to each name have presupposed that it is called the work of chance not when one never hits the mark, but when one does not always, nor for the most part, nor as from knowledge, though one sometimes hits it ### Extrabiblical texts - Diogenianus (Diogenianus, Against Chrysippus): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Diogenianus (Eusebius, Praep. ev. 4.3.3). The quotation ends in 10.21. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.20 (Raeder, 248; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-20). ## Discourse 10.21 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-21 - Source: Raeder, 248 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry says the gods are compelled to give oracles. ### Greek text ἐναργεῖς ἐννοίας ἑαυτῶν.“ ὅτι δὲ καὶ ἀναγκαζομένους ὑπ᾽ ἀνθρώπων καὶ τοὺς χρησμολόγους θεοὺς προλέγειν φησὶν ὃ Πορφύριος, ἃ προλέγουσιν, εὐπετὲς τῷ βουλομένῳ μαθεῖν ἐξ ἐκείνου αὐτοῦ τοῦ ξυγγράμματος, ὃ Περὶ τῆς ἐκ λογίων φιλοσοφίας ἐπέγραψε' καὶ αὐτὰς γὰρ ἐκεῖνος παρέθηκε τῶν θεῶν τὰς φωνάς. ### English translation (Claude) in our own minds.' And that Porphyry says the oracle-giving gods are compelled by human beings to foretell what they foretell, anyone who wishes can easily learn from that very work which he entitled On the Philosophy from Oracles; for he set out the very voices of the gods. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Phil. orac. (Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragments)): allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.21 (Raeder, 248; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-21). ## Discourse 10.22 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-22 - Source: Raeder, 249 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Oracles show Hecate and Apollo complaining of being compelled. ### Greek text λέγει γὰρ τὴν Ἑκάτην παρ᾽ αὐτοῦ πληθεῖσαν εἰπεῖν᾽,,ἤλυθον εἰσαΐουσα τεῆς πολυφράδμονος εὐχῆς, ἣν θνητῶν φύσις εὗρε θεῶν ὑποθημοσύνῃσιν.“ καὶ πάλιν αἰτιωμένη τὸν περληκότα «τίνος φησί.,χατίξων, θειοδάμοις Ἕκάτην μὲ᾿ θεὴν ἐκάλεσσας ἀνάγκαις; καὶ ὁ Ἀπόλλων δὲ βοᾷ".»κλῦθί μευ οὐκ ἐθέλοντος, ἐπεί μ᾽ ἐπέδησας ἀνάγκῃ.“ καὶ πάλιν,,»λύετε λοιπὸν ἄνακτα᾽ βροτὸς θεὸν οὐκέτι χωρεῖ. ### English translation (Claude) For he says that Hecate, when called by him, said: 'I have come, hearing your eloquent prayer, which the nature of mortals found by the counsels of the gods.' And again, blaming the one who called: 'Needing what have you called me, the goddess Hecate, by god-compelling necessities?' And Apollo cries: 'Hear me against my will, since you have bound me by necessity.' And again: 'Release the lord at last; a mortal no longer contains a god.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Phil. orac. (Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (Eusebius, Praep. ev. 5.8). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.22 (Raeder, 249; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-22). ## Discourse 10.23 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-23 - Source: Raeder, 249 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The 'gods' are weaker than the magicians who compel them. ### Greek text διὰ δὲ τούτων ἰδεδήλωπεν ὁ Πορφύοιος, καὶ αὐτοὶ δὲ οὗτοι οἵ τὸ θεῖον ὄνομα πεκλοφότες, ὡς δυνατώτεραν αὐτῶν αἱ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐπίνοιαι καὶ αἵ μεμηχανημέναν ἀνάγκαι. καὶ γὰρ ἄνωθεν αὐτοὺς καθέλκουσι καὶ κάτω δεσμοῦσι" καὶ ἀναχωρεῖν οὐκ ἰσχύουσι, πρὶν ἂν οἱ ἄνθρωποι λύσωσιν. καὶ ἄλλα δὲ μυρία τοιαῦτα ἔστιν εὑρεῖν παρὰ τῷδε τῷ ξυγγραφεῖ τὴν ἀσθένειαν αὐτῶν διελέγχοντα. ### English translation (Claude) By these Porphyry showed, and so did these very beings who stole the divine name, that the devices of human beings and the contrived necessities are more powerful than they. For they drag them down from above and bind them below, and they cannot depart until human beings release them. One can find countless other such things in this writer, exposing their weakness. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.23 (Raeder, 249; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-23). ## Discourse 10.24 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-24 - Source: Raeder, 249 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: An oracle demanded human sacrifice to Minos. ### Greek text Ὅσης δὲ αὐτῶν καὶ λώβης μεστὰ τὰ μαντεύματα, τούτοις ἄν τις ἐντυχὼν καταμάθον ῥᾳδίως. λιμοῦ γάρ ποτε ᾿4θηναίοις ἐνσκήψαντος, ἔχρησεν ὁ Πύθιος μὴ πρότερον τοῦτον παύσασθαι, πρὶν ἂν ἑπτὰ παρθένους ᾿4θηναῖοι καὶ τοσούτους ἠϊθέους σφάξωσι τῷ ΜΜίνωϊ. ### English translation (Claude) How full of harm their oracles are one could easily learn by reading them. When a famine once struck the Athenians, the Pythian gave the oracle that it would not stop until the Athenians sacrificed seven maidens and as many youths to Minos. ### Extrabiblical texts - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.24 (Raeder, 249; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-24). ## Discourse 10.25 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-25 - Source: Raeder, 249 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Ambiguous oracles misled Aristomachus to his death. ### Greek text καὶ τῶν χρησμῶν δὲ τὸ λοξὸν πολλοῖς ὀλέθρους προὐξένησεν. καὶ γὰρ ᾿άριστόμαχος, οὐ νενοηκὼς τὴν οστενύγρην,““ τὸν μὲν πορθμὸν καὶ τὰς τριήρεις κατέλιπε, διὰ δὲ τοῦ ἰσθμοῦ προσβαλὼν τὸν βίον κατέλυσεν. ἔδει δὲ τὸν χρησμολόγον μὴ ζόφῳ τὸν χρησμὸν ξυγκαλύψαι, εἴπερ ἄρα τὸ ἐσόμενον ἤδει᾽ ἀλλὰ κακούργως ἀμφίβολον τὴν πρόρρησιν δέδωκεν. ἵνα μὴ τὸ ψεῦδος εὐφώφατον γένηται. ### English translation (Claude) And the obliqueness of the oracles brought ruin to many. For Aristomachus, not understanding 'the narrow water', left the strait and the triremes, and attacking through the isthmus ended his life. The oracle-giver should not have covered the oracle in darkness if he knew what would be; but he villainously gave an ambiguous prediction so that the falsehood might not be easily caught. ### Extrabiblical texts - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.25 (Raeder, 249; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-25). ## Discourse 10.26 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-26 - Source: Raeder, 250 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The ambiguous oracle to Croesus shows the Pythian ignorant or ungrateful. ### Greek text ταὐτὸ δὲ τοῦτο καὶ τῷ Κροίσῳ προὐξένησε τὴν ξυμφοράν᾽,, Κροῖσος γὰρ ἔφη,.;Ἄλυν διαβὰς μεγάλην ἀρχὴν καταλύσεις ποτέραν δέ, οὐ δεδήλωκεν, ἤτοι τὴν οἰκείαν ἢ τὴν τῶν πολεμίων, ἵνα καὶ ἡττηθεὶς καὶ γιμήσας μὴ κανηγορήσῃ τοῦ μάντεως. καὶ ταῦτα ὁ Πύθιος δέδρακε πολυτάλαντα παρ᾽ ἐκείνου δεξάμενος δῶρα. δυοῖν τοίνυν θάτερον, ἢ ἀλαζών ἐστιν ἢ ἀχάριστος. ἢ γὰρ ὃ μὴ οἶδεν εἰδέναι βρενθύεται, [ ἢ ἐπιστάμενος ἑκών γε ἀδικεῖ τοὺς θεραπεύειν ἐσπουδαχότας. ### English translation (Claude) The same brought calamity on Croesus too: 'Croesus,' he said, 'crossing the Halys, will destroy a great empire.' Which one he did not make clear, his own or the enemy's, so that, defeated or victorious, he would not accuse the seer. And the Pythian did this having received gifts of many talents from him. One of two things, then: he is either a braggart or ungrateful. For either he boasts of knowing what he does not know, or, knowing, he willingly wrongs those eager to serve him. ### Extrabiblical texts - Herodotus, Hist. 1.53 (Herodotus, Histories): quotation, high confidence - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Herodotus 1.53. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.26 (Raeder, 250; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-26). ## Discourse 10.27 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-27 - Source: Raeder, 250 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: A passage on an oracle to Julian, which the editor deletes as an addition. ### Greek text [παραπλήσιον δέ τι δέδραβε καὶ ἐπὶ ᾿Ιουλιανοῦ τὴν ὁρμὴν ἔχοντος κατὰ τῶν ᾿Ασσυρίων᾽ νῦν“ γὰρ ἔφη οὐάντες ὡρμήθημεν θεοὶ παρὰ Θηρὶ ποταμῷ νίκης τρόπαια κομίσασθαι. τούτων ἐγὼ ἡγεμονεύσω, ### English translation (Claude) (Deleted by the editor.) ### Extrabiblical texts - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Raeder prints the whole of 10.27 and the opening of 10.28 (an oracle promising Julian victory over the Assyrians: 'Now we gods have all set out to carry off trophies of victory by the river Ther; and I will lead them, the impetuous war-stirring Ares') in square brackets, marking it as an addition to Theodoret's text; it is left out of the translation here. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.27 (Raeder, 250; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-27). ## Discourse 10.28 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-28 - Source: Raeder, 250 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The oracle to Athens before Salamis called the victors wretched. ### Greek text θοῦρος πολεμόκλονος ἴάρης.] προσόμοιον δέ τι καὶ ἐπὶ ᾿4θηναίων πεποίημεν. τοῦ γὰρ δὴ Ξέρξου μετὰ πολλῶν μυριάδων ἐπιστρατεύσαντος, ἔδραμον μὲν παρ᾽ αὐτὸν τῶν ᾿4θηναίων οἵ θεωροί᾽ ὃ δὲ τῶν χρησμῶν οὕτως ἤρξατο᾽ »»ὦ μέλεοι, τί χάθησθε“ τοῦτο δὲ διαρρήδην αὐτοῦ διελέγχει τὴν ἄγνοιαν. ### English translation (Claude) He did something similar in the case of the Athenians too. When Xerxes marched against them with many myriads, the Athenian envoys ran to him; and he began his oracles thus: 'O wretched ones, why do you sit?' This plainly exposes his ignorance. ### Extrabiblical texts - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, high confidence - Herodotus, Hist. 7.140 (Herodotus, Histories): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Herodotus 7.140. The opening words of the section (the end of the oracle to Julian) are bracketed by the editor as an addition and left out; see 10.27. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.28 (Raeder, 250; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-28). ## Discourse 10.29 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-29 - Source: Raeder, 251 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Athenians won, so the oracle was wrong. ### Greek text εἰ γὰρ ἀληθῶς προεγνώκει τὴν νίκην, οὐ μελέους ἂν αὐτοὺς δήπουθεν, ἀλλὰ τρισολβίους ἐκάλεσε" διακοσίας γάρ τοι πρὸς ταῖς χιλίαις τριήρεις καὶ τριαποσίᾳς ἀνδρῶν ἐνίκησαν μυριάδας. νικηφόρον τοίνυν καὶ λίαν ὀνομαστότατοι, ἀλλ᾽ οὐ μέλεοι καὶ τρισάθλιοι, οἵ ἀοίδιμον χαὶ πολυθρύλητον ἀναστήσαντες τρόπαιον. ### English translation (Claude) For if he had truly foreknown the victory, he would surely have called them not wretched but thrice blessed; for they conquered twelve hundred triremes and three hundred myriads of men. So those who set up a celebrated and famous trophy were victorious and very renowned, not wretched and thrice miserable. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.29 (Raeder, 251; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-29). ## Discourse 10.30 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-30 - Source: Raeder, 251 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The oracle contradicted itself about Athena and the wooden wall. ### Greek text εἶτα φυγὴν αὖτοῖς παρεγγύησε, τὴν. τῆς πολιούχου προμηνύσας ἀσθένειαν᾽ οὐ δύναταιζ γὰρ ἔφη., Παλλὰς Ὀλύμπιον ἐξιλάσασθαι, λισσομένη πολλοῖσι λόγοις. τούτῳ δὲ ἄντικρυς ἐναντίον τὸ ἐφεξῆς. εἰπὼν γάρ, ὡς ὁ Ζεὺς οὐ πείθεται ποτνιωμένῃ τῇ ᾿θηνᾷ, ὥσπερ μεταμεληθεὶς ἔφη πάλιν" τεῖχος Τριτογενεῖ ### English translation (Claude) Then he urged flight on them, foretelling the weakness of the city's protectress: 'Pallas cannot,' he said, 'appease Olympian Zeus, though she entreats with many words.' The next words plainly contradict this. For having said that Zeus is not persuaded by Athena's entreaties, as if he had changed his mind, he said again: 'To the Trito-born a wooden wall ### Extrabiblical texts - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, high confidence - Herodotus, Hist. 7.141 (Herodotus, Histories): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Herodotus 7.141. The verse ends in 10.31. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.30 (Raeder, 251; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-30). ## Discourse 10.31 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-31 - Source: Raeder, 251 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The oracle concealed ignorance in ambiguity. ### Greek text ξύλινον διδοῖ εὐρύοπα Ζεύς.“ καὶ τοῖς ἐπὶ ξυροῦ ἀκμῆς ἔχουσι τὰς ἐλπίδας οὐκ ἐπέδειξε ξυντόμως σαφῆ τινα πορείας ὁδόν ἀλλὰ τὴν οἰκείαν ἀμαθίαν τῷ τῶν χρησμῶν ξυνεσκίασεν ἀμφιβόλῳ, τοῦ ψεύδους τὰ φώρια δειμαίνων. ### English translation (Claude) far-seeing Zeus gives.' And to those whose hopes stood on a razor's edge he did not briefly show a clear way to go, but covered his own ignorance with the ambiguity of the oracles, fearing the evidence of falsehood. ### Extrabiblical texts - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.31 (Raeder, 251; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-31). ## Discourse 10.32 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-32 - Source: Raeder, 251 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Salamis oracle was vague; Themistocles' skill won the day. ### Greek text παραπλήσιον δὲ καὶ αὐτὸ τοῦ χρησμοῦ τὸ τέλος᾽ ὦ θεία Σαλαμίς, ἀπολεῖς δὲ σὺ τέπμνα γυναικῶν, ἤ που σκιδναμένης Δημήτερος ἢ συνιούσης.““ ἠγνόει γάρ που, ὡς ἔδειξε, τοὺς τεθνηξομένους, εἶτε Πέρσαι εἶεν, εἴτε ᾿4θηναῖοι. διὰ τοῦτο γυναιπμῶν ἐμνήσθη μόνων, τὸ δὲ τούτων ἔθνος ἐσίγησεν᾽ καὶ τὸ οσκιδναμένης δὲ Δημήτερος ἢ συνιούσης“" ἀγνοοῦντός ἐστι παντελῶς τὸν τῆς νίκης καιρόν. ἀλλ᾽ ἐνταῦθα μὲν ὁ Θεμιστοκλῆς, καὶ ξυνέσει καὶ ἀνδρείᾳ χρησάμενος, οὖν εἴασε τοῦ χρησμοῦ παντελῶς διελεγχθῆναι τὸ ψεῦδος᾽ οὐ μὴν καὶ μελέους τοὺς ᾿4θηναίους, ἀλλ᾽ εὐδαίμονας ἔδειξεν. ### English translation (Claude) The very end of the oracle is similar: 'O divine Salamis, you will destroy the children of women, either when Demeter is scattered or when she is gathered.' For he did not know, as he showed, who would die, whether Persians or Athenians. For this reason he mentioned only women and kept silent about their nation; and 'when Demeter is scattered or gathered' belongs to one wholly ignorant of the time of victory. But here Themistocles, using intelligence and courage, did not let the oracle's falsehood be wholly exposed; yet he showed the Athenians not wretched but happy. ### Extrabiblical texts - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, high confidence - Herodotus, Hist. 7.141 (Herodotus, Histories): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Herodotus 7.141–143. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.32 (Raeder, 251; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-32). ## Discourse 10.33 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-33 - Source: Raeder, 251 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The oracle claimed to give Lycurgus his laws. ### Greek text “ακεδαιμονίοις δὲ καὶ Κνιδίοις οἵ τούτου χρησμοὶ τοῖς μὲν ἧτταν, τοῖς δὲ δουλείαν προὐξένησαν. “Δυκούργῳ δὲ τῷ νομοθέτῃ τοὺς ὠμοτάτους ἐκείνους καὶ αἰσχροτάτους νόμους δεδωκέναι φιλοτιμεῖται. εἰς γὰρ 4ελφοὺς ἀφικομένῳ ταῦτα ἔφη" »ἥκεις, ὦ «Πυκόξργε, ἐμὸν ποτὶ πίονα νηόν; Ζηνὶ φίλος καὶ πᾶσιν Ὀλύμπια δώματ᾽ ἔχουσιν. δίζω ἤ σε θεὸν μαντεύσομαι ἢ ἄνθρωπον" ἀλλ᾽ ἔτι καὶ μᾶλλον θεὸν ἔλπομαι, ὦ “Τυκόεργε, Ι ἥκεις εὖνομίην διξήμενος᾽ αὐτὰρ ἐγώ τοι δώσω. ### English translation (Claude) His oracles brought defeat to the Lacedaemonians and slavery to the Cnidians. And he prides himself on having given the lawgiver Lycurgus those most cruel and shameful laws. For when he came to Delphi he said this: 'You have come, Lycurgus, to my rich temple, dear to Zeus and to all who have Olympian homes. I am in doubt whether to proclaim you god or man; but rather I hope a god, Lycurgus. You have come seeking good order; and I will give it to you.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, high confidence - Herodotus, Hist. 1.65 (Herodotus, Histories): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Herodotus 1.65 (quoted already in 9.10–11). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.33 (Raeder, 251; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-33). ## Discourse 10.34 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-34 - Source: Raeder, 252 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The oracle endorsed Lycurgus's immoral laws and showed ignorance. ### Greek text ὁποίους δὲ οὗτος τέθειλε νόμους, ἐν τῇ πρὸ ταύτης δεδηλώχαμεν διαλέξει. ξενηλασίας γὰρ ἐνομοθέτησε καὶ παίδων ἔρωτας ἀκολάστους καὶ γυναικῶν ὁμιλίας ἀθέσμους, καὶ τοὺς γαμηλίους ἀνατέτραφε νύμους. ἀλλ᾽ ὃ σοφώτατος καὶ μουσιπώτατος μάντις αὐτὸς ἔφη τούτους δεδωκέναι τοὺς νόμους καὶ θεὸν καλεῖ τὸν ταῦτα νομοθετήσαντα καὶ ἀγνοεῖν ὁμολογεῖ, σότερον χρὴ θεὸν αὐτὸν καλεῖν ἢ ἄνθρωπον" καὶ τὸ τεμεότερον δοῦναι θελήσας, οὐ δέδωκεν ὡς θεός, ἀλλ᾽,,ξλπομαιό εἶπεν ὡς ἄνθρωπος. ### English translation (Claude) What laws he made we showed in the discourse before this. He legislated the expulsion of foreigners, licentious loves of boys, and lawless intercourse with women, and overturned the laws of marriage. But the most wise and most musical seer says himself that he gave these laws, calls the one who legislated them a god, and confesses he does not know whether he should call him god or man; and wishing to give the more honorable title, he did not give it as a god, but said 'I hope' as a man. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.34 (Raeder, 252; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-34). ## Discourse 10.35 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-35 - Source: Raeder, 252 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The oracle praises Spartan women. ### Greek text οὗτος καὶ τὰς “ακεδαιμονίων ἐπαινεῖ γυναῖκας ἀδεῶς οἷς ἂν ἐθέλωσι μιγνυμένας καί φησιν.,)χγαίης μὲν πάσης τὸ Πελασγικὸν “ἄργος ἄμεινον, ἵτποι Θρηΐκιαι, «Μακεδαιμόνιαι δὲ γυναῖκες, ἄνδρες δ᾽ οἱ πίνουσιν ὕδωρ ### English translation (Claude) He also praises the women of the Lacedaemonians, who freely lie with whomever they wish, and says: 'Of all the earth Pelasgian Argos is best, Thracian mares, Lacedaemonian women, and men who drink the water of fair Arethusa.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Oracle in Palatine Anthology 14.73 (Parke–Wormell 1). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.35 (Raeder, 252; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-35). ## Discourse 10.36 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-36 - Source: Raeder, 252 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The oracle praised the shameful poet Archilochus. ### Greek text καλῆς ᾿Αρεθούσης.“ οὗτος καὶ τὸν Ἀρχίλοχον, αἰσχρότατον γενόμενον ποιητήν, ἀοίδιμον προσηγόρευσε καὶ ἀθάνατον᾽ καὶ πρὸς τὸν τοῦδε ἔφη πατέρα᾽.,ἀθάνατός σον παῖς καὶ ### English translation (Claude) He also called Archilochus, a most shameful poet, celebrated and immortal; and he said to his father: 'Your son will be immortal and ### Extrabiblical texts - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, high confidence - Archilochus (Archilochus): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The oracle ends in 10.37. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.36 (Raeder, 252; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-36). ## Discourse 10.37 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-37 - Source: Raeder, 252 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The oracle praised Homer's poetry, which Plato banished. ### Greek text ἀοίδιμος, ὦ Τελεσίκλεις, ἔσσετ᾽ ἐν ἀνθρώποις.“ καὶ τῷ Ὁμήρῳ ἔφη,,ὄλβιε καὶ δύσδαιμον,"" τὸ μὲν διὰ τὴν γενομένην τυφλότητα, τὸ δὲ διὰ τὴν ποίησιν, ἣν κατὰ πάντα εὖ ἔχειν ὑπέλαβε᾽ δι’ ἣν αὐτὸν ὁ Πλάτων μύρῳ κατὰ τὰς χελιδόνας ἀλείψας, τῆς ὑπ᾽ αὐτοῦ ξυντεθείσης ἀπέπεμψε πόλεως. ### English translation (Claude) celebrated, Telesicles, among men.' And to Homer he said, 'Blessed and ill-fated,' the latter because of the blindness that befell him, the former because of the poetry, which he thought good in every respect; and for which Plato anointed him with myrrh like the swallows and sent him away from the city he composed. ### Extrabiblical texts - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, high confidence - Plato, Resp. 398a (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 3.398a (see 2.6). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.37 (Raeder, 252; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-37). ## Discourse 10.38 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-38 - Source: Raeder, 253 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The oracle honored the murderous boxer Cleomedes. ### Greek text οὗτος καὶ Κλεομήδη τὸν πύχτην θείας ἐκέλευσεν ἀξιοῦσθαν τιμῆς,ονὕστατος ἡρώων“ φησί,, Κλεομήδης ᾿άστυπαλαιξεὺς, ὃν θυσίαις. τιμᾶθ', ὡς οὐκέτι θνητὸν ἐόντα. ὅσας δὲ οὗτος μιαυφονίας τετόλμηκεν, ἤδη πρόσθεν εἰρήκαμεν. ### English translation (Claude) He also ordered Cleomedes the boxer to be thought worthy of divine honor: 'Last of the heroes,' he says, 'is Cleomedes of Astypalaea; honor him with sacrifices, since he is no longer mortal.' What bloodshed he dared we have already said. ### Extrabiblical texts - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - See 8.26–28. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.38 (Raeder, 253; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-38). ## Discourse 10.39 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-39 - Source: Raeder, 253 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Apollo ordered the Methymnaeans to honor an obscene image of Dionysus. ### Greek text καὶ Μηθυμναίοις δὲ τοῦτον ἔδωχε τὸν χρησμόν" υὐλλά κε ᾿Μηθύμνης ναέταις πολὺ λώϊον ἔσται, φαλληνὸν τιμῶσι Διωνύσοιο κάρηνον καὶ οὐκ ἐρυθριᾷ τῶν θεῶν τὸ ὁ σοφώτατος, ὃν Φοῖβον οἵ ποιηταὶ προσωνόμαζον, ὡς δὴ ἁγνὸν καὶ ἀμίαντον, τοῦ Διονύσου τὸ ἀκροπόσθιον τιμᾶσθαι χρησμῳδήσας. ### English translation (Claude) And he gave this oracle to the Methymnaeans: 'But it will be much better for the dwellers of Methymna if they honor the phallic head of Dionysus.' And the wisest of the gods, whom the poets called Phoebus as pure and undefiled, does not blush to have given an oracle that the foreskin of Dionysus be honored. ### Extrabiblical texts - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The oracle is known from Eusebius, Praep. ev. 5.36 (from Oenomaus). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.39 (Raeder, 253; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-39). ## Discourse 10.40 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-40 - Source: Raeder, 253 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Apollo could not save his temple and blamed the Fates. ### Greek text οὗτος ἐμπιπραμένῳ μὲν οὐκ ἐπήμυνε τῷ οἰκείῳ νεῷ, ἔφη δὲ τοῦτον παρὰ τῶν Μοιρῶν εἰληφέναι τὸν πλῆρον καὶ μονῳδίαν ἦσε, τὸ πάθος ὀλοφυρόμενος. ἐγὼ δὲ ταύτης τὸ τέλος ἐρῶ..«τέτλαθι. ἹΜοιράων ἀμετάτροπα δήνεα θυμῷ᾽ ταῖσι γὰρ οὐρανίδαο Διὸς κατένευσε κάρηνον, ὅττι κε δινήσωσι, μένειν ἀσάλευτον, ἀτράκτοις. αἶσα γὰρ ἦν δολιχοῖσι χρόνοις περικαλλέα σηκὸν πυρσῶν αἰώρῃσι διιπετέεσσι δαμῆναι. ### English translation (Claude) He did not defend his own temple when it was burning, but said it had received this lot from the Fates and sang a dirge lamenting the calamity. I will quote its end: 'Endure in your heart the unchangeable counsels of the Fates; for to them the head of Zeus, son of Heaven, nodded assent, that whatever they spin with their spindles should remain unshaken. For it was the lot, after long ages, for the beautiful shrine to be overcome by fires falling from the sky.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Orac. Apoll. (Oracles of Apollo (Didyma, Claros)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The oracle is in Eusebius, Praep. ev. 6.3. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.40 (Raeder, 253; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-40). ## Discourse 10.41 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-41 - Source: Raeder, 253 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry and Oenomaus collected Apollo's oracles. ### Greek text καὶ ἕτερα δὲ μυρία ἔστιν εὑρεῖν ἐν τοῖς τούτου χρησμοῖς καταγέλαστα. ξυνήγαγε δὲ τούτους οὐ μόνον ὁ Πορφύριος ἐν τοῖς Περὶ τῆς ἐκ λογίων φιλοσοφίας, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὁ κυνικὸς Οἰνόμαος, διελέγχων τῶν χρησμολόγων τὸ ψεῦδος. ### English translation (Claude) One can find countless other laughable things in his oracles. Not only Porphyry collected them in his On the Philosophy from Oracles, but also the Cynic Oenomaus, exposing the falsehood of the oracle-givers. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Phil. orac. (Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragments)): allusion, high confidence - Oenomaus (Oenomaus of Gadara, Detection of Impostors): allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.41 (Raeder, 253; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-41). ## Discourse 10.42 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-42 - Source: Raeder, 254 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: For Christians, the facts suffice to refute the oracles. ### Greek text Οἰνομάου δὲ καὶ Πορφυρίου καὶ Πλουτάρχου καὶ 4Διο- γενιανοῦ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ὑμῶν ἕνεκα ἐπεμνήσθην, ἐπειδήπερ ὑμῖν τὰ ὑμέτερα λέγοντές εἰσιν ἀξιόχφεοι" ἡμῖν δὲ ἀρκεῖ τῶν πραγμάτων ἡ μαρτυρία, γεγωνοτάτῃ κεχρημένη φωνῇ καὶ τὸ τῶν χρηστηρίων διελέγχουσα ψεῦδος. ### English translation (Claude) I have mentioned Oenomaus, Porphyry, Plutarch, Diogenianus, and the others for your sake, since they, speaking of your affairs, are trustworthy for you; but for us the testimony of the facts suffices, using a most resounding voice and exposing the falsehood of the oracles. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.42 (Raeder, 254; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-42). ## Discourse 10.43 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-43 - Source: Raeder, 254 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: When Christ came, the demons fled like robbers at dawn. ### Greek text πρὸ μὲν γὰρ δὴ τῆς τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἐπιφανείας, οἷόν πού τινος ξόφου τὴν οἰκουμένην κατέχοντος, καθάπερ τινὲς λῃσταὶ καὶ λωποδύται, οἱ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἀλάστορες, οἵ παμπόνηθοὸν. δαίμονες, καὶ λόχοις ἐχρῶντο καὶ πάγαις καὶ ἄρπυσι παντοδαπαῖς, ἀγρεύοντες τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὴν φύσιν ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἀνέσχε τῆς ἀληθείας τὸ φῶς, ἐδραπέτευσαν, ὕπαντες καὶ τοὺς οἰμείουο κατέλιπον χηραμούς. ### English translation (Claude) For before the appearing of our Savior, when a kind of darkness held the world, the avenging spirits of humankind, the utterly wicked demons, like robbers and clothes-thieves, used ambushes, snares, and all kinds of nets to hunt human nature; but when the light of truth rose, they all fled and left their own lairs. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.43 (Raeder, 254; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-43). ## Discourse 10.44 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-44 - Source: Raeder, 254 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Demons confessed Christ and his apostles. ### Greek text τῷ τοι ἐβόων αὐτίκα φανέντορ᾽ ἔα τί ἡμῖν καὶ δοί; υἱὲ τοῦ Θεοῦς ἦλθες ὧδε πρὸ καιροῦ βασανίσαι ἡμᾶς." καὶ ἕτερον δὲ πάλιν ὥρπουν αὐτόν, ἵνα μὴ αὐτοὺς εἰς τὴν ἄβυσσον πέμψῃ. ἐν δὲ Φιλίπποις τὸ πνεῦμα τοῦ Πύθωνος περὶ τῶν ἀποστόλων ἐβόα",,οὗτοι οἱ ἄνθρωποι δοῦλοι τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῦ ὑψίστου εἰσίν, οἵ τίνες καταγγέλλουσιν ὑμῖν ὁδὸν σωτηρίας. ### English translation (Claude) That is why, as soon as he appeared, they cried: 'Ah! What have we to do with you, Son of God? Have you come here before the time to torment us?' And another time they begged him not to send them into the abyss. And at Philippi the spirit of Python cried about the apostles: 'These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you a way of salvation.' ### Scripture references - Matt 8:29: quotation, high confidence - Luke 8:31: allusion, high confidence - Acts 16:17: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.44 (Raeder, 254; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-44). ## Discourse 10.45 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-45 - Source: Raeder, 254 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The demons fled before the spread of the gospel. ### Greek text θέεασάμενοι τοίνυν πανταχοῦ διατρέχον τῆς ἀληθείας τὸ πήφυγμα, καθάπερ στρατιῶται φυγάδες πολλὰ δεινὰ καὶ παράνομα δεδρακότες, εἶτα τῆς τοῦ βασιλέως αἰσθόμενοι παρουσίας, ἀπέδρασαν καὶ γυμνὰς τὰς ἐνέδρας κατέλιπον. ### English translation (Claude) Seeing the preaching of truth running everywhere, like runaway soldiers who have done many terrible and lawless things and then perceive the king's arrival, they fled and left their ambushes bare. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.45 (Raeder, 254; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-45). ## Discourse 10.46 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-46 - Source: Raeder, 254 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: All the famous oracles have fallen silent. ### Greek text ὁ δὲ ὅλων παμβασιλεὺς τὰ τούτων κατέλυσεν ὁρμητήρια᾽ καὶ οὔτε τῆς Κασταλίας προαγορεύει τὸ ὕδωρ, οὔτε Κολοφῶνος ἡ πηγὴ προθεσπίζει, οὐχ ὁ Θεσπρώτιος λέβης μαντεύεται, οὐχ ὁ τρίπους ὁ Κιρραῖος χρησμολογεῖ, οὐ τὸ Φωδωναῖον χαλκεῖον ἀδολεσχεῖ, οὐχ ἡ πολυθρύλητος φθέγγεταν δρῦς, ἀλλὰ σιγᾷ μὲν ὁ 4“ωδωναῖος, σιγᾷ δὲ ὃ Κολοφώνιος καὶ 4ήλιος καὶ Πύθιος καὶ Κλάριος καὶ Διδυμαῖος καὶ ἡ Δεβαδία καὶ ὁ Τροφώνιος καὶ ὃ Ἀἀμφίλοχος καὶ ὁ Ἀμφιάραος καὶ ὁ "άμμων καὶ ἡ τῶν Χαλδαίων καὶ Τυρρηνῶν νεπυία. ### English translation (Claude) The King of all destroyed their bases; the water of Castalia no longer foretells, the spring of Colophon no longer prophesies, the Thesprotian basin no longer divines, the Cirrhaean tripod no longer gives oracles, the bronze of Dodona no longer chatters, the much-celebrated oak no longer speaks; the Dodonaean is silent, and silent are the Colophonian, the Delian, the Pythian, the Clarian, the Didymaean, Lebadeia, Trophonius, Amphilochus, Amphiaraus, Ammon, and the necromancy of the Chaldeans and Tyrrhenians. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.46 (Raeder, 254; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-46). ## Discourse 10.47 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-47 - Source: Raeder, 255 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God silenced the oracles; Apollo of Daphne was struck by lightning after the martyr was moved. ### Greek text σιγᾶν γὰρ αὐτοῖς ἐκέλευσεν ὁ ἐπιτιμῶν ἀβύσσῳ, κατὰ τὸν προφήτήν; καὶ ξηραίνων αὐτήν, ὃ λέγων τῇ ἀβύσσῳ »ἐρημωθήσῃ, καὶ τοὺς ποταμούς σου ξηρανῶ. “ χαὶ ὁ Δαφναῖος Ἀπόλλων, τὸν ἡμέτερον παρασκευάσας μετατεθῆναν νεκρόν, οὐρανόθεν ἐδέξατο τὸν σμηπτόν. ### English translation (Claude) For he who rebukes the abyss, as the prophet says, and dries it up, who says to the abyss, 'You shall be desolate, and I will dry up your rivers,' ordered them to be silent. And Daphnaean Apollo, who caused our dead man to be moved, received the thunderbolt from heaven. ### Scripture references - Isa 44:27: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Isa 44:27. The 'dead man' is the martyr Babylas, whose relics were removed from Daphne under Julian, after which Apollo's temple burned (362). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.47 (Raeder, 255; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-47). ## Discourse 10.48 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-48 - Source: Raeder, 255 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The martyr's relics silenced Apollo as Paul silenced the spirit of Python. ### Greek text οὐ γὰρ εἴα προλέγειν αὐτὸν καὶ ξυνήθως ἀποβουκολεῖν τοὺς ἀνθρώπους τοῦ σταυρωθέντος ὁ μάρτυς, ἀλλὰ καθάπερ ὃ μέγας Παῦλος τῷ τοῦ Πύθωνος ἐπετίμησε πνεύματι, οὕτως ἡ τοῦ μάρτυρος πόνις τὸ τοῦ μάντεως ἐχαλίνωσε ψεῦδος. ### English translation (Claude) For the martyr of the Crucified did not let him foretell and beguile human beings as usual; but just as the great Paul rebuked the spirit of Python, so the dust of the martyr bridled the falsehood of the seer. ### Scripture references - Acts 16:18: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.48 (Raeder, 255; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-48). ## Discourse 10.49 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-49 - Source: Raeder, 255 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret will cite biblical prophecies for comparison. ### Greek text ὍὉποῖοι μὲν οὖν τῶν ὑμετέρων θεῶν οἵ χρησμοί, παρὰ τῶν ὑμετέρων μεμαθήκατε φιλοσόφων᾽ ὁποῖα δὲ ὁ τῶν ὕλων προλέγει Θεός, καὶ ὅπως βιωφελῆ καὶ ὀνησιφόρα καὶ τῆς ἀληθείας ἀφιέντα τὴν αἴγλην, ἔξεστι τῷ βουλομένῳ καταμαθεῖν ἀκριβῶς, τοῖς θείοις ἐντετυχηκότι λόγοις. ἐγὼ δέ γε ὀλίγων τινῶν ἀπομνημονεύσω προρρήσεων, ἵνα καὶ ἔν παραλλήλου τὸ διάφορον δείξω. ### English translation (Claude) What the oracles of your gods are like you have learned from your own philosophers; what the God of the universe foretells, and how beneficial to life, profitable, and sending forth the radiance of truth, anyone who wishes can learn accurately by reading the divine words. I shall recall a few predictions, to show the difference by comparison. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.49 (Raeder, 255; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-49). ## Discourse 10.50 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-50 - Source: Raeder, 255 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah foretold the nations coming to the Lord's mountain and peace. ### Greek text [ πρώτας μέντοι ἐκείνας ὅ ἐρῶ, οὗ τὴν τῶν εἰδώλων κατάλυσιν προηγόρευσαν. ἀκούσατὲ τοίνυν ᾿Ησαΐου τοῦ προφήτου λέγοντος",.ἔσται ἐν ταῖς ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις ἐμφανὲς τὸ ὄρος Κυρίου, καὶ ὃ οἶκος τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐπ᾽ ἄκρων τῶν ὀρέων, καὶ ὑψωθήσεται ὑπεράνω τῶν βουνῶν, καὶ ἥξουσιν ἐπ᾽ αὐτὸν πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, καὶ πορεύὅονται, λαοὶ πολλοὶ καὶ ἐροῦσι᾽ δεῦτε χαὶ ἀναβῶμεν εἰς τὸ ὕρος Κυρίου καὶ εἰς τὸν οἶκον τοῦ Θεοῦ ᾿Ιακώβ, καὶ ἀναγγελεῖ ἡμῖν τὴν ὁδὸν αὐτοῦ᾽ καὶ πορευσόμεθα ἐν αὐτῇ. ἐκ γὰρ Σιὼν ἐξελεύσεται νόμος. καὶ λόγος Κυρίου ἐξ ἽἽερουσαλήμ᾽ καὶ κρινεῖ ἀνὰ μέσον τῶν ἐθνῶν καὶ ἐλέγξει λαὸν πολύν᾽ καὶ συγχόψουσι τὰς μαχαίρας αὐτῶν εἰς ἄροτρα, καὶ τὰς ζιβύνας αὐτῶν εἰς δρέπανα᾽ καὶ οὐ λήψεται ἔθνος ἐπ᾽ ἔθνος μάχαιραν΄ χαὶ οὐ μὴ μάθωσιν ἔτι πολεμεῖν.“ ### English translation (Claude) First I shall mention those that foretold the destruction of idols. Hear the prophet Isaiah, saying: 'In the last days the mountain of the Lord will be manifest, and the house of God on the tops of the mountains, and it will be exalted above the hills; and all the nations will come to it, and many peoples will go and say: Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord and to the house of the God of Jacob, and he will declare to us his way, and we will walk in it. For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem; and he will judge between the nations and rebuke many people; and they will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into sickles; and nation will not take up sword against nation, and they will no longer learn to make war.' ### Scripture references - Isa 2:2–4: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Isa 2:2–4 (LXX). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.50 (Raeder, 255; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-50). ## Discourse 10.51 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-51 - Source: Raeder, 256 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah's prophecy is clear and fulfilled. ### Greek text ὁποῖα μὲν οὖν ἐχρησμῴδησεν ὁ προφήτης, ἠκούσατε᾽ πρὸς δὲ τῆς ἀληθείας εἴπατε, εἶ τι λοξὸν ὑμῖν ἐν τούτοις ἢ ἀμφίβολον κατεφάνη ἀλλ᾽ οἶδα, ὡς οὐκ ἐρεῖτε᾽ τῶν γάρ τοι πραγμάτων ὑφορᾶσθε τὴν μαρτυρίαν᾽ ὁρᾶτε γὰρ ἐναργῶς τὸ τῆς προρρήσεως τέλος. ### English translation (Claude) You have heard what the prophet foretold; now tell, before the truth, whether anything in this seemed to you oblique or ambiguous. But I know you will not say so; for you suspect the testimony of the facts; for you see plainly the fulfillment of the prediction. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.51 (Raeder, 256; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-51). ## Discourse 10.52 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-52 - Source: Raeder, 256 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The church's growth, the monks, and peace fulfill Isaiah. ### Greek text ἢ οὐχ ὁρᾶτε τῆς ἐκηλησίας τὸ ὕψος καὶ ἅπαντας ὑποκύπτοντας καὶ ταύτῃ τὸ σέβας προσφέροντας, καὶ τοὺς μὲν πλείστους ἐθελοντάς, τοὺς δὲ ἀντιλέγοντας καὶ παρὰ γνώμην δουλεύοντας; οὐχ ὁρᾶτε τῶν ὀρέων τὰς κορυφὰς τοῦ ὑμετέρου μύσους ἀπηλλαγμένας καὶ ταῖς τῶν ἀσκητῶν πκαταγωγαῖς κοσμουμένας καὶ πάντας πανταχόθεν ξυρρέοντας καὶ τὸν ἐν τῇ Σιὼν ἐπιφανέντα λόγον θεολογοῦντας καὶ τὸν ἐκ τῆς Σιὼν ἀναβλύσαντα νόμὸν ἀσπαζομένους. καὶ τοὺς μὲν πολέμους πεπαυμένους, ἀντὶ δὲ τῶν πολεμικῶν ὅπλων τὰ τῆς γεωργικῆς μεταχειρίἕοντας ὄργανα; ### English translation (Claude) Or do you not see the height of the church, and all bowing to it and offering it reverence, most willingly, some contradicting and serving against their will? Do you not see the mountain peaks freed from your defilement and adorned with the dwellings of ascetics, and all flowing together from every side, confessing as God the Word who appeared in Zion and embracing the law that gushed out of Zion; and wars ended, and instead of weapons of war people handling the tools of farming? ### Scripture references - Isa 2:3–4: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.52 (Raeder, 256; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-52). ## Discourse 10.53 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-53 - Source: Raeder, 257 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: In Isaiah's time many kings ruled the region. ### Greek text ἢ οὐκ ἴστε, ὡς ὁπηνίκα ταῦτα ὃ προφήτης ἐθέσπιξεν, ἄλλος μὲν τῆς “Ἱερουσαλὴμ ἐβασίλευεν, ἄλλος δὲ τῆς Σαμαρείας, καὶ ἄλλος ᾿Ιδουμαίων, καὶ Μωαβιτῶν ἕτερος, καὶ αὖ πάλιν ἄλλος Ἡμμανιτῶν; καὶ ἤάραβες δὲ καὶ Μαδιηναῖοι καὶ Ἀμαληκίται ὑπ᾽ ἄλλοις ἡγεμόσιν ἐτέλουν᾽ καὶ Γάξα δὲ καὶ ᾿Ασκάλων καὶ ἔάζωτος, καὶ μέντοι καὶ. Σιδὼν καὶ Τύρος καὶ Δαμασχὸς ὑπὸ διαφόρων ἀρχόντων ἰθύνοντο᾽ ### English translation (Claude) Or do you not know that when the prophet foretold this, one reigned over Jerusalem, another over Samaria, another over the Idumaeans, another over the Moabites, and another over the Ammonites; the Arabs, Midianites, and Amalekites were under other leaders; and Gaza, Ascalon, Azotus, and also Sidon, Tyre, and Damascus were governed by different rulers? ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.53 (Raeder, 257; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-53). ## Discourse 10.54 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-54 - Source: Raeder, 257 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: At Christ's birth Augustus united the world, as foreseen. ### Greek text οὐ γὰρ δὴ μόνον κατὰ πόλεις, ἀλλὰ καὶ κατὰ κώμας ἐβασιλεύοντο᾽ εὐθὺς δὲ τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν κατὰ σάρκα τεχθέντοτος, «Αὔγουστος Καῖσαρ ἁπάντων ἐκράτησε. καὶ καταλύσας τὰς ἐθναρχίας καὶ μερικὰς βασιλείας τοῖς Ῥωμαίων ἅὅπαντας ὑπέταξεν οἴαξιν. ταῦτα προορῶν ὁ προφήτης τὰ προειρημένα τεθέσπικε καὶ μετ᾽ ὀλίγα τὴν τῶν χειροποιήτων ### English translation (Claude) For they were ruled by kings not only city by city but even village by village; but as soon as our Savior was born in the flesh, Augustus Caesar mastered all, and abolishing the ethnarchies and partial kingdoms, subjected all to the Roman helm. Foreseeing this, the prophet gave the predictions mentioned, and a little later made a tragic lament over the destruction of handmade ### Scripture references - Luke 2:1: allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The sentence continues in 10.55. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.54 (Raeder, 257; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-54). ## Discourse 10.55 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-55 - Source: Raeder, 257 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah foretells people hiding their idols in caves. ### Greek text εἰδώλων κατάλυσιν ἐτραγῴδησεν᾽,,πάντα γάρ φησι «τὰ χειροποίητα κατακρύψουσιν, ᾿εἰσενέγκαντες εἰς τὰ σπήλαια καὶ εἰς τὰς σχισμὰς τῶν πετρῶν καὶ εἰς τὰς τρώγλας τῆς γῆς, ἀπὸ προσώπου τοῦ φόβου Κυρίου καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς δόξης τῆς ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ, ὅταν ἀναστῇ θραῦσαι τὴν γῆν. τῇ γὰρ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ ἐκβαλεῖ ἄνθρωπος τὰ βδελύγματα αὐτοῦ τὰ ἀργυρᾶ καὶ τὰ χρυσᾶ, ὃ ἐποίησαν ξαυτοῖς εἰς τὸ προσκυνεῖν τοῖς ματαίοις καὶ ταῖς νυχτερίσι, τοῦ εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὰς τρώγλας τῆς στερεᾶς πέτρας ] καὶ εἰς τὰ σχίσματα τῶν πετρῶν, ἀπὸ προσώπου τοῦ φόβου Κυρίου καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς δόξης τῆς ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ, ὅταν ἀναστῇ θραῦσαι τὴν γῆν.“ ### English translation (Claude) idols: 'For they will hide all the things made by hands, bringing them into the caves, into the clefts of the rocks, and into the holes of the earth, from before the face of the fear of the Lord and from the glory of his strength, when he rises to shatter the earth. For in that day a man will cast away his abominations of silver and gold, which they made for themselves to worship vain things and bats, to go into the holes of the solid rock and into the clefts of the rocks, from before the face of the fear of the Lord and from the glory of his strength, when he rises to shatter the earth.' ### Scripture references - Isa 2:19–21: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Isa 2:19–21 (LXX). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.55 (Raeder, 257; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-55). ## Discourse 10.56 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-56 - Source: Raeder, 257 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The pagans themselves fulfill this prophecy. ### Greek text ταύτης δὲ τῆς προφητείας τὴν ἑρμηνείαν οὐχ ἡμᾶς προσήκει ποιήσασθαι, ἀλλ᾽ ὑμᾶς θαυμάσαι τοῦ χρησμοῦ τὴν ἀλήθειαν καὶ ξυνομολογῆσαι τὰ παρ᾽ ὑμῶν πολλάκες γεγενημένα. ### English translation (Claude) It is not for us to give the interpretation of this prophecy, but for you to admire the truth of the oracle and to admit what has often been done by you. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.56 (Raeder, 257; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-56). ## Discourse 10.57 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-57 - Source: Raeder, 258 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pagans buried their idols, which Christians dug up. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ μὴ ἐρυθριάσητε, ὦ ἄνδρες" αἰδεῖσθαι γὰρ οὐ τὴν ὁμολογίαν τῆς ἁμαρτίας, ἀλλὰ τὴν πρᾶξιν προσήκει. εἰ δὲ ὑμεῖς λέγειν οὐ βούλεσθε, ἀλλ᾽ οὖν ἴσασιν ἅπαντες αὐτόπται γενό-. μενον τῶν ἐν τῇ γῇ πολλάκις καταχωσθέντων θεῶν καὶ ὑπὸ τῶν εὐσεβεῖν δεδιδαγμένων ἀνασπασθέντων ἐκεῖθεν καὶ θήλων γεγενημένων. ### English translation (Claude) But do not blush, gentlemen; for one should be ashamed not of confessing sin, but of doing it. And if you will not say it, all know, having been eyewitnesses, that the gods were often buried in the earth and were dug up from there by those taught to be godly and made public. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.57 (Raeder, 258; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-57). ## Discourse 10.58 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/9-64/#p-10-58 - Source: Raeder, 258 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The unearthed idols, images of vermin, were mocked in public. ### Greek text οἵ μὲν γὰρ τῇ δυσσεβείᾳ δεδουλωμένοι κατέχωσαν, ἐπικουρεῖν ἡγούμενον τοῖς θεοῖς, οἱ δὲ τοῖς τὰ τοιαῦτα μαστεύουσι κατεμήνυσαν, οἱ δὲ ὀρύξαντες καὶ εὗρον καὶ προὔθεσαν ἐν ταῖς ἀγοραῖς, ὥστε καὶ παρὰ γυναιιῶν ὁ καὶ μειρακίων πωμῳδεῖσθαι τοὺς καλουμένους θεούς. τὰ μὲν γὰρ ἑρπετῶν ἦν, τὰ δὲ τετραπόδων ἰνδάλματα" ἤδη δὲ καὶ νυκτερίδων καὶ μυιῶν εἰκάσματα προσεκύνησαν. καὶ αὐτὰ μὲν ἀναιροῦσι τὰ ζῷα. τοὺς ὄφεις λέγω καὶ τοὺς σπορπίους καὶ τὰς μυίας καὶ νυχτερίδας, τὰ δὲ τούτων ἐθθεοποίουν μιμήματα. ### English translation (Claude) For those enslaved to impiety buried them, thinking they were helping the gods; others informed those who search for such things; others dug, found them, and set them out in the marketplaces, so that the so-called gods were mocked even by women and boys. For some were likenesses of reptiles, others of quadrupeds; they even worshiped images of bats and flies. They kill the animals themselves, I mean snakes, scorpions, flies, and bats, but deified their imitations. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.58 (Raeder, 258; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-58). ## Discourse 10.59 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-59 - Source: Raeder, 258 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah foretells people turning from idols to their Maker. ### Greek text Ἀλλὰ τούτων πέρι πολλοὺς ἤδη διεξήλθομεν λόγους" τῶν ἄλλων οὖν χρησμῶν καταμάθωμεν τὴν ἀλήθειαν. τοῦ δὲ αὐτοῦ προφήτου καὶ ταῦτα τὰ δήματα",.τάδε λέγει Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς Ἰσραήλ᾽ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ πεποιθὼς ἔσται ἄνθρώπος ἐπὶ τῷ ποιήσαντι αὐτόν" οἱ δὲ ὀφθαλμοὶ αὐτοῦ εἰς τὸν ἅγιον τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ ἐμβλέψονται. καὶ οὐ μὴ πεποιθύτες ὦσιν ἐπὶ τοῖς βωμοῖς οὐδὲ ἐπὶ τοῖς ἔργοις τῶν χειρῶν αὖτῶν, ὃ ἐποίησαν οἵ δάκτυλοι αὐτῶν. καὶ οὐκέτι ὄψονται ### English translation (Claude) But we have already gone through many words about these; let us learn the truth of the other oracles. These are the words of the same prophet: 'Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: In that day a man will trust in the one who made him, and his eyes will look to the Holy One of Israel; and they will not trust in the altars nor in the works of their hands, which their fingers made; and they will no longer see ### Scripture references - Isa 17:7–8: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Isa 17:7–8 (LXX). The quotation ends in 10.60. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.59 (Raeder, 258; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59). ## Discourse 10.60 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-60 - Source: Raeder, 258 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah foresaw events a thousand years ahead; the oracles not even three months. ### Greek text τὰ δένδρα οὐδὲ τὰ βδελύγματα αὐτῶν.“ ταῦτα πρὸ πλειόνῶν ἢ χιλίων ἐτῶν τῆς Κωνσταντίνου βασιλείας προηγόρέυσεν ὃ προφήτης, μεθ᾽ ἣν τὰ τῶν δαιμόνων κατελύθη τεμένη. ἀλλὰ καὶ πόρρωθεν ὁ θεοφόρος ἀνὴρ ὡς παρὼν ἑώρα καὶ προὔλεγε τὰ μετὰ τοσοῦτον ἐσόμενα χρόνον᾽ ὃ δὲ Ζωδωναῖος καὶ ὁ Πύθιος οὐδὲ τὰ μετὰ τρεῖς ἐσόμενα μῆνας προειπάτην, ὡς ἔμελλεν ἔσεσθαι, ἀλλὰ τῇδε κἀκεῖσε πλινομένους ἐδιδότην χρησμούς. ### English translation (Claude) the trees nor their abominations.' The prophet foretold this more than a thousand years before the reign of Constantine, after which the precincts of the demons were destroyed. But the God-bearing man saw from afar as present and foretold what would happen after so long a time; while the Dodonaean and the Pythian did not even foretell what would happen after three months as it was to happen, but gave oracles leaning this way and that. ### Scripture references - Isa 17:8: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.60 (Raeder, 258; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-60). ## Discourse 10.61 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-61 - Source: Raeder, 259 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah mocks idol-makers and foretells the casting away of idols. ### Greek text ἀκούσατε δὲ καὶ τῶν ἑξῆς" »ἐπιστράφητε οἵ τὴν βαθεῖαν βουλὴν βουλευόμενοι καὶ ἄνομὸν υἱοὶ Ἰσραήλ, ὅτι τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ ἀφελοῦνταν οἵ ἄνθρῶποι τὰ χειροποίητα αὐτῶν τὰ ἀργυρᾶ καὶ τὰ χρυσᾶ, ἃ ἐποίησαν αἱ χεῖρες αὐτῶν.“ καὶ πάλιν᾽ «ἐγὼ Θεὸς πρῶτος" καὶ εἰς τὰ ἐπερχόμενα ἐγώ εἶμι. εἴδοσαν ἔθνη καὶ ἐφοβήθησαν᾽ τὰ ἄκρα τῆς γῆς ἐξέστησαν᾽ ἤγγισαν καὶ ἦλθον, ἅμα κρίνων ἕκαστος τῷ πλησίον βοηθῆσαι καὶ τῷ ἀδελφῷ. καὶ ἐρεῖ" ἴσχυσεν ἀνὴρ τέμτων καὶ χαλκεὺς τύπτων σφύρας ἅμα ἐλαύνων. ποτὲ μὲν ἐρεῖ" σύμβλημα καλόν ἐστιν᾽ ἰσχύρῶσαν αὐτὸ ἐν ἥλοιο᾽ θήσουσιν αὐτό, καὶ οὐ κινηθήσεται.““ ### English translation (Claude) Hear what follows too: 'Return, you who devise deep counsel and lawlessness, sons of Israel; for in that day people will cast away their handmade things of silver and gold, which their hands made.' And again: 'I am God, the first, and for what is to come I am he. The nations saw and feared; the ends of the earth were amazed; they drew near and came, each deciding to help his neighbor and his brother. And he will say: The carpenter has grown strong, and the smith striking with the hammer, driving at the same time. At one time he will say: It is a good joint; they fastened it with nails; they will set it up, and it will not be moved.' ### Scripture references - Isa 31:6–7: quotation, high confidence - Isa 41:4–7: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Isa 31:6–7; 41:4–7 (LXX). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.61 (Raeder, 259; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-61). ## Discourse 10.62 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-62 - Source: Raeder, 259 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah 42 foretells the gentle Servant, light of the nations. ### Greek text οὔτε γὰρ στῆναι μὴ καθηλωμένα δύναται οὔτε βαδίζειν μὴ παρ᾽ ἄλλων φερόμενα. καὶ αὖθιο᾽ Ἰακὼβ ὁ παῖς μου] ἀντιλήψομαι αὐτοῦ. Ἰσραὴλ ὁ ἐκλεχτός μου᾽ προσεδέξατο αὐτὸν ἡ ψυχή μου. ἔδωκα τὸ πνεῦμά μου ἐπ᾽ αὐτόν' πρίσιν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν ἐξοίσει᾽ οὐ κεκράξεται οὐδὲ ἀνήσει, οὐδὲ ἀκουσθήσεται ἔξω ἡ φωνὴ αὐτοῦ" κάλαμον τεθλασμέψον οὐ κατεάξει καὶ λίνον καπνιξόμενον οὐ σβέσει, ἀλλ᾽ εἰς ἀλήθειαν ἐξοίσει κρίσιν᾽ ἀναλάμψει καὶ οὐ θραυσθήσεται, ἕως ἂν θῇ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς κρίσιν" καὶ ἐπὶ τῷ ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ ἔθνη ἐλπιοῦσιν. οὕτως λέγει Κύριος ὃ Θεὸς Ἰσραήλ, ὁ ποιήσας τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ πήξας αὐτόν, ὁ στερεώσας τὴν γῆν καὶ τὰ ἐν αὐτῇ καὶ διδοὺς πνοὴν τῷ λαῷ τῷ ἐπ᾽ αὐτῆς καὶ πνεῦμα τοῖς πατοῦσιν αὐτήν. ἐγὼ Κύριος ὃ Θεὸς ἐκάλεσά σε ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ, καὶ κρατήσω τῆς χειρός σου καὶ ἐνισχύσω σε καὶ ἔδωκά σὲ εἰς διαθήκην γένους, εἰς φῶ. ἐθνῶν, ἀνοῖξαι ὀφθαλμοὺς τυφλῶν, ἐξαγαγεῖν ἐκ δεσμῶι δεδεμένους καὶ ἐξ οἴκου φυλακῆς καθημένους ἐν σκότει ἐγὼ Κύριος ὃ Θεός᾽ τοῦτό μοί ἐστιν ὄνομα. τὴν δόξα! μου ἑτέρῳ οὐ δώσω οὐδὲ τὰς ἀρετάς μου τοῖς γλυπτοῖς." ### English translation (Claude) For they can neither stand unless nailed nor walk unless carried by others. And again: 'Jacob my servant, I will help him; Israel my chosen, my soul has accepted him. I have put my Spirit on him; he will bring forth judgment to the nations; he will not cry out nor raise his voice, nor will his voice be heard outside; a bruised reed he will not break, and a smoking wick he will not quench, but he will bring forth judgment for truth; he will shine forth and not be crushed until he sets judgment on the earth; and in his name the nations will hope. Thus says the Lord God of Israel, who made the heaven and fixed it, who made firm the earth and what is in it, and gives breath to the people upon it and spirit to those who walk on it: I, the Lord God, have called you in righteousness, and I will hold your hand and strengthen you, and I have given you as a covenant of the race, as a light of the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to bring out from bonds those who are bound and from the prison house those who sit in darkness. I am the Lord God; this is my name; my glory I will not give to another, nor my praises to carved images.' ### Scripture references - Isa 42:1–8: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Isa 42:1–8 (LXX). The scanned page is cropped at the right edge (10.62–10.65); only a few final letters are lost and the words are clear. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.62 (Raeder, 259; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-62). ## Discourse 10.63 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-63 - Source: Raeder, 260 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Servant is Christ, named Israel according to the flesh. ### Greek text ταῦτα ὃ τῶν ὅλων Θεὸς πρὸς τὸν δεσπότην Χριστὸν ὦ. πρὸς ἄνθρωπον ἔφη, ἀπὸ τῆς ὁρωμένης φύσεως Ἰαπὼϊ αὐτὸν καὶ ᾿Ισραὴλ ὀνομάσας" ἐξ ἐκείνου γὰρ δὴ κατὰ σάρκι τοῦ γένους ἀνέτειλε" καὶ ἔδειξεν αὐτοῦ σαφῶς τὴν πραό τήτὰ καὶ τὴν μακφοθυμίαν, ῇ παροινούμενος παρ᾽ Ἰουδαίω ἐχρήσατο. τοῦτον εἰς διαθήκην ἔφη δοθῆναι τοῦ γένους καὶ γὰρ τοῖς πατριάρχαις καὶ αὐτοῖς Ιουδαίοις τὴν δι᾿ αὖ τοῦ σωτηρίαν ὑπέσχετο. ### English translation (Claude) The God of the universe said this to Christ the Lord as to a man, naming him Jacob and Israel from the visible nature; for according to the flesh he rose from that race; and he showed clearly his gentleness and long-suffering, which he used when abused by the Jews. He said he was given as a covenant of the race; for he promised salvation through him to the patriarchs and to the Jews themselves. ### Scripture references - Isa 42:6: allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret's remark on the Jews' treatment of Christ is translated as written. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.63 (Raeder, 260; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-63). ## Discourse 10.64 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-64 - Source: Raeder, 260 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The blind and bound are those in ignorance and sin. ### Greek text ἔφη δὲ αὐτὸν καὶ εἰς φῶς ἐθνῶ: ἀνατεῖλαι, ὥστε τῶν τυφλῶν ἀνοῖξαν τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς πὸ τῶν πεπεδημένων τὰ δεσμὰ διαρρῆξαι καὶ τοὺς ἐν τῷ ζόφι τῆς ἀγνοίας ὡς ἐν εἴρκτῇ καθημένους ἐλευθερῶσαι το σκότους. τυφλοὺς δὲ καὶ πεπεδημένους καὶ ἐν σκότει καθη μένους τοὺς τῆς ἀγνοίας τὴν ἀχλὺν περιπειμένους ἐκάλεο καὶ τοὺς ταῖς σειραῖς τῆς ἁμαρτίας πεπεδημένους. ### English translation (Claude) He said he would also rise as a light of the nations, so as to open the eyes of the blind, break the bonds of the fettered, and free from the darkness those sitting in the gloom of ignorance as in a prison. He called blind, fettered, and sitting in darkness those wrapped in the mist of ignorance and fettered by the chains of sin. ### Scripture references - Isa 42:6–7: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.64 (Raeder, 260; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-64). ## Discourse 10.65 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-65 - Source: Raeder, 260 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah foretells God ending his long silence to overthrow idols. ### Greek text ὅτι ὁ τοὺς τῷ πλάνῳ τῆς δεισιδαιμονίας δεδουλωμένους ᾿ οὕτω ὠνόμασε, μαρτυρεῖ τὰ ἑξῆς",,ἐγώς γὰρ ἔφη,,Κύριος Θεός" τοῦτό μοί ἐστιν ὄνομα. τὴν δόξαν μον ἑτέρῳ ὁ δώσω οὐδὲ τὰς ἀρετάς μου τοῖς γλυπτοῖς.“ ἅμα τε γὰρ ἐπεφάνη καὶ τῆς προσηγορίας αὐτοὺς ἐγύμνωσεν, ἣν ἁρπάσαντες ἑαυτοῖς περιέθεσαν. καὶ μετ᾽ ὀλίγα δὲ ταῦτα πάλιν ἔφη «Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς τῶν δυνάμεων ἐξελεύσεται συντρίψαι πόλεμον καὶ ἐπεγεῖραν ζῆλον καὶ βοήσεται ἐπὶ τοὺς ἐχθροὺς αὐτοῦ μετ᾽ ἰσχύος.“ ἔπειτα διδάσκει, τί δήποτε μὴ πάλαι τοῦτο πεποίηκε, καί φησιν᾽..ἐσιώπησα ἀπ᾽ αἰῶνος μὴ καὶ ἀεὶ σιωπήσομαι καὶ ἀνέξομαι; ἐκαρτέρησα ὡς ἡ τίκτουσα" ἐκφανῶ καὶ ἐκστήσω καὶ ξηρανῶ ἅμα. ### English translation (Claude) That he so named those enslaved to the error of superstition, what follows bears witness: 'I am the Lord God; this is my name; my glory I will not give to another, nor my praises to carved images.' For as soon as he appeared he stripped them of the title which they had seized and put on themselves. And a little later he said again: 'The Lord God of hosts will go forth to crush war, to stir up zeal, and will shout against his enemies with strength.' Then he teaches why he did not do this long ago, and says: 'I have kept silent from eternity; shall I always keep silent and hold back? I have endured like a woman in labor; I will astonish and dry up at once. ### Scripture references - Isa 42:8: quotation, high confidence - Isa 42:13–14: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Isa 42:8, 13–14 (LXX). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.65 (Raeder, 260; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-65). ## Discourse 10.66 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-66 - Source: Raeder, 261 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God's patience and love explain the timing of his action. ### Greek text κἀκεῖνα δὲ μαπροθυμίας, καὶ ταῦτα φιλανθρωπίας, μακροθυμῶν. γὰρ ἐξ ἀρχῆς οὐκ ἐκόλασεν᾽ εἶτα φειδοῖ χρησάμενος τοὺς πλανωμένους ἐκάλεσε καὶ τοὺς πλανῶντας ἐσκέδασεν᾽,,ἐκστήσως γάρ φησι.»καὶ ξηρανῷ ἅμα᾽ ἐρημώσω ὄρη καὶ βουνοὺς καὶ ### English translation (Claude) The former shows long-suffering, the latter love of humankind. For in long-suffering he did not punish from the beginning; then, sparing them, he called those who wandered and scattered those who led them astray: 'I will astonish,' he says, 'and dry up at once; I will lay waste mountains and hills, and ### Scripture references - Isa 42:14–15: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Isa 42:14–15. The quotation continues in 10.67. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.66 (Raeder, 261; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-66). ## Discourse 10.67 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-67 - Source: Raeder, 261 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God leads the blind nations into the way of truth through the apostles. ### Greek text θήσω ποταμοὺς εἰς νήσους καὶ ἕλη ξηρανῶ.“ διὰ δὲ τούτῶν τὰ ἐν τούτοις τεμένη τῶν εἰδώλων ἐμήνυσεν, ὅπερ ἐπιφανεὶς καταλέλυκε καὶ δίκην ἕλους ἐξήρανεν᾽.«καὶ ἄξω ἐπιφανείς ω} ἑδῆρ " τυφλοὺς ἐν ὁδῷ, ἢ οὐκ ἔγνωσαν" καὶ τρίβους, ἃς οὐκ ἤδεισαν, ποιήσω πατῆσαι αὐτούς.“ ἠγνόουν γὰρ οἵ πάλαι πλανώμενοι τὴν τῆς ἀληθείας ὁδόν ξεναγοὺς δὲ καὶ ποδηγοὺς καὶ μέντον καὶ φωταγωγοὺς ἐσχηκότες τοὺς ἀποστόλους. κατέλιπον μὲν τοῦ πλάνου τὰς τρίβους, ἐπέγνωσαν δὲ τὴν τῆς ἀληθείας ὁδόν. ### English translation (Claude) make rivers into islands and dry up the marshes.' By these he indicated the precincts of the idols in them, which he destroyed at his appearing and dried up like a marsh. 'And I will lead the blind in a way they did not know, and paths which they did not know I will make them tread.' For those who wandered of old did not know the way of truth; but having the apostles as guides, leaders, and also illuminators, they left the paths of error and recognized the way of truth. ### Scripture references - Isa 42:15–16: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Isa 42:15–16. A short noise fragment in the scan is not translated. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.67 (Raeder, 261; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-67). ## Discourse 10.68 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-68 - Source: Raeder, 261 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God turns darkness to light and makes a new chosen people of believers. ### Greek text ποιήσω αὐτοῖς τὸ σκότος εἰς φῶς, καὶ τὰ σκολιὰ εἰς εὐθεῖαν." ἀντὶ γὰρ δὴ τοῦ προτέρου σκότους τοῦ νοεροῦ φωτὸς ἀπολαύουσι, καὶ τὰς διεστραμμένας χαταλιπόντες ὁδοὺς τὴν εὐθεῖαν ὁδεύουσιν. εἶτα ὡς ἔτι πλαγωμένοις ἐπιτιμᾷ" γ»αἰσχύνθητε αἰσχύνῃ οἵ πεπουθότες ἐπὶ τοῖς γλυπτοῖς, οἱ λέγοντες τοῖς χωνευτοῖς᾽ ὑμεῖς ἐστε θεοὶ ἡμῶν.“ καὶ μετ᾽ ὀλίγα᾽. ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ ποιῶ καινά, ἃ νῦν ἀνατελεῖ, καὶ γνώσεσθε αὐτά" καὶ ποιήσω ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ ὁδὸν καὶ ἐν τῇ ἀνύδρῳ ποταμούς, ποτίσαι τὸ γένος μου τὸ ἐκλδητόν, τὸν λαύν μου, ὃν περιεποιησάμην, τὰς ἀρετάς μου διηγήσασθαι. γένος δὲ νῦν αὐτοῦ τοὺς πεπιστευκότας προσηγόρευσεν, ὧν ὠνομάσθη πρωτότοκος δι᾽ ἣν ἀνείληφε σάρκα. ### English translation (Claude) 'I will make darkness into light for them, and the crooked into straight.' For instead of the former darkness they enjoy the spiritual light, and leaving the twisted ways, they walk the straight. Then he rebukes those still wandering: 'Be put to shame with shame, you who trust in carved images, who say to molten images: You are our gods.' And a little later: 'Behold, I do new things, which will now spring up, and you shall know them; and I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the dry land, to give drink to my chosen race, my people whom I acquired, to tell my praises.' He now called his race those who have believed, of whom he was named firstborn because of the flesh he assumed. ### Scripture references - Isa 42:16–17: quotation, high confidence - Isa 43:19–21: quotation, high confidence - Rom 8:29: echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Isa 42:16–17; 43:19–21 (LXX). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.68 (Raeder, 261; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-68). ## Discourse 10.69 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-69 - Source: Raeder, 262 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah speaks of salvation for the islands and nations. ### Greek text ὅτι δὲ περὶ τῶν ἐθνῶν ταῦτα ἔφη, τὰ ἑπόμενα μαρτυρεῖ" ο»ὐκούσατε νῆσοι, καὶ προσέχετε ἔθνη" διὰ πολλοῦ χρόνου στῆτε, λέγει Κύριος. ὅτι δὲ τούτων οὐδὲν ουδαίοις ἁρμόττει, καὶ τὸ τῶν νήσων ὄνομα καὶ τὸ τῶν ἐθνῶν μαρτυρεῖ. καὶ πάλιν. ἀκούσατέ μου, λαός μου" καὶ οἱ βασιλεῖς πρός μὲ ἐνωτίσασθε᾽ ὅτι νόμος παρ᾽ ἐμοῦ ἐξελεύσεται, καὶ ἡ κρίσις μου εἰς φῶς ἐθνῶν ἐγγίζει ταχὺ ἡ δικαιοσύνη μου, καὶ ἐξελεύσεται ὡς φῶς τὸ σωτήριόν μου᾽ ἐμὲ νῆσοι ὑπομενοῦσι, καὶ εἰς τὸν βραχίονά μου ἔθνη ### English translation (Claude) That he said this about the nations, what follows bears witness: 'Hear, islands, and attend, nations; after a long time they shall stand, says the Lord.' That none of this suits the Jews, the name of the islands and the name of the nations bear witness. And again: 'Hear me, my people, and you kings, give ear to me; for a law will go forth from me, and my judgment for a light of the nations; my righteousness draws near quickly, and my salvation will go forth as light; the islands will wait for me, and in my arm the nations ### Scripture references - Isa 49:1: quotation, high confidence - Isa 51:4–5: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Isa 49:1; 51:4–5 (LXX). The quotation ends in 10.70. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.69 (Raeder, 262; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-69). ## Discourse 10.70 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-70 - Source: Raeder, 262 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The prophecies foretold the gospel; God's 'arm' means his strength. ### Greek text ἐλπιοῦσιν.“ διὼ δὲ τούτων ἁπάντων τὴν τῶν ἐθνῶν ἐχρησμῴδησε μῷ Ί σωτηρίαν - Ἴρις καὶ ᾿] - τὸν ψ εὐαγγελικὸν -, νόμον μ -“ καὶ »} τὸ τῆ Ἷ. γνώσεως φῶς, ὃ διὰ τῶν ἱερῶν ἀποστόλων πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις προσήνεγκεν. βραχίονα μέντοι οὐ σωματικὸν ὠνόμασε μόριον (ἁπλῆ γάρ τοι ἡ θεία φύσις καὶ ἐλευθέρα ξυνθέσεως), ἀλλὰ τροπικῶς δεδήλωκε τὴν ἰσχύν. ἐπειδὴ γὰρ διὰ τῶν χειρῶν καὶ οἵ πολεμοῦντες παρατάττονται, καὶ οἱ γεωργοῦντες ἐργάζονται, καὶ μέντοι καὶ οἱ ἄλλην τινὰ μεταχειρίζοντες τέχνην, εἰκότως διὰ τοῦ βραχίονος. παρεδήλωσε τὴν ἰσχύν, ἡ θαρροῦντες βοῶμεν᾽..οοὐ φοβηθήσομαν κακά, ### English translation (Claude) will hope.' By all these he foretold the salvation of the nations, the gospel law, and the light of knowledge, which he brought to all human beings through the holy apostles. He did not call 'arm' a bodily part (for the divine nature is simple and free of composition), but figuratively indicated strength. For since those who make war fight with their hands, and those who farm work with them, and those who practice any other craft, he fittingly indicated strength by the arm, trusting which we cry: 'I will fear no evil, ### Scripture references - Isa 51:5: quotation, high confidence - Ps 23:4 (22:4 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The scan has some noise in this section; translated by sense. The quotation of Ps 23:4 ends in 10.71. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.70 (Raeder, 262; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-70). ## Discourse 10.71 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-71 - Source: Raeder, 263 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah foretells the nations calling on Christ. ### Greek text ὅτι σὺ μετ᾽ ἐμοῦ εἶς καὶ αὖθις βοᾷ᾽ «ἰδοὺ μαρτύριον ἐν ἔθνεσι δέδωκα αὐτόν, ἄρχοντα καὶ προστάσσοντα ἔθνεσιν. ἰδοὺ ἔθνη, ἃ οὐκ οἴδασί σε, ἐπιπαλέσονταί σε" λαοί, οἱ οὐκ ἐπίστανταί σε, ἐπὶ σὲ καταφεύξονται ἕνεκεν Κυρίου τοῦ Θεοῦ σου καὶ τοῦ ἁγίου Ἰσραήλ, ὅτι ἐδόξασέ σε ὁρῶντες τοίνυν βασιλεύοντα τῆς οἰκουμένης τὸν δεσπότην Χριστὸν καὶ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη τούτου τὴν δεσποτείαν ἀσμένως ὕμνολογοῦντα, καὶ νοήσατε τὴν προφητείαν καὶ θαυμάσατε τὴν ἀλήθειαν. ἀκούσατε δὲ καὶ τῶν ξξῆς᾽.»καὶ φοβηθήσονται οἱ ἀπὸ δυσμῶν τὸ ὄνομα Κυρίου, καὶ οἱ ἀπὸ ἀνατολῶν ἡλίου τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ τὸ ἔνδοξον.“ καὶ πάλιν᾽, ἐμφανὴς ### English translation (Claude) for you are with me.' And again he cries: 'Behold, I have given him as a witness among the nations, a ruler and commander to the nations. Behold, nations that do not know you will call upon you; peoples who do not know you will flee to you for the sake of the Lord your God and the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you.' Seeing, then, Christ the Lord reigning over the world and all the nations gladly praising his lordship, understand the prophecy and admire its truth. Hear what follows too: 'And those from the west will fear the name of the Lord, and those from the rising of the sun his glorious name.' And again: 'I became manifest ### Scripture references - Ps 23:4 (22:4 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Isa 55:4–5: quotation, high confidence - Isa 59:19: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Isa 55:4–5; 59:19 (LXX). The quotation of Isa 65:1 ends in 10.72. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.71 (Raeder, 263; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-71). ## Discourse 10.72 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-72 - Source: Raeder, 263 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Isaiah 65:1 foretells God found by the nations. ### Greek text ἐγενόμην τοῖς ἐμὲ μὴ ἐπερωτῶσιν᾽ εὐρέθην τοῖς ἐμὲ μὴ ἕξητοῦσιν. εἶπον" ἰδού εἰμι, ἰδού εἰμι, ἔθνη, οἱ οὐκ ἐπεκαλέσαντο τὸ ὄνομά μου.’ καὶ πᾶσα δὲ ἡ προφητεία τῶνδε τῶν λόγων ἀνάπλεως. ᾿ ### English translation (Claude) to those who did not ask for me; I was found by those who did not seek me. I said: Here I am, here I am, to nations who did not call on my name.' And the whole prophecy is full of such words. ### Scripture references - Isa 65:1: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.72 (Raeder, 263; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-72). ## Discourse 10.73 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-73 - Source: Raeder, 263 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Jeremiah foretells the nations gathering to the Lord. ### Greek text Ἀλλ᾽ ἵνα καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους προφήτας ξυνῳδὰ προθεσπίσαντας δείξωμεν, ἀκούσατε ἱἹερεμίου βοῶντος"..ἐν τῷ καιρῷ ἐμείνῳ καλέσουσι τὴν ᾿Ἱερουσαλὴμ Θρόνος Κυρίου" καὶ συναχθήσεται εἰς αὐτὴν πάντα τὰ ἔθνη. καὶ οὐ πορεύσονται ὀπίσω τῶν ἐνθυμημάτων τῆς καρδίας αὐτῶν τῆς πονηρᾶς.“ ### English translation (Claude) But to show that the other prophets foretold the same, hear Jeremiah cry: 'In that time they will call Jerusalem the Throne of the Lord, and all the nations will be gathered to it, and they will no longer walk after the devices of their evil heart.' ### Scripture references - Jer 3:17: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.73 (Raeder, 263; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-73). ## Discourse 10.74 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-74 - Source: Raeder, 263 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pilgrims to Jerusalem fulfill Jeremiah's words. ### Greek text ἀθρήσατε, ὦ ἄνδρες, τῶν βημάτων τὴν ξυμφωνίαν καὶ βλέπετε πάντας πανταχόθεν ἀνθρώπους εἰς ἐκείνην τὴν πόλιν ξυντρέχοντας, ἣ τὸ δεσποτικὸν καὶ σωτήριον ἐδέξατο πάθος, καὶ τὴν μὲν τῶν εἰδώλων ἐξαπάτην βδελυττομένους, τῷ ἐσταυρωμένῳ δὲ τὸ ἐκείνων σέβας προσφέροντας. ### English translation (Claude) See, gentlemen, the agreement of the words, and see all people from everywhere running together to that city which received the Lord's saving passion, loathing the deception of idols and offering the Crucified the worship they once gave them. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.74 (Raeder, 263; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-74). ## Discourse 10.75 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-75 - Source: Raeder, 264 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Jeremiah says Israel refused the good way and the nations heard. ### Greek text τοῦ δὲ αὐτοῦ προφήτου καὶ ταῦτα᾽..τάδε λέγει Κύριος᾽ στῆτε ἐπὶ ταῖς ὁδοῖς καὶ ἴδετε᾽ ἐκζητήσατε τρίβους Κυρίου αἰωνίας, καὶ ἴδετε, ποία ἐστὶν ἡ ὁδὸς ἡ ἀγαθή, καὶ πορεύεσθε ἐν αὐτῇ, καὶ εὑρήσετε ἁγίασμα ταῖς ψυχαῖς ὑμῶν. καὶ εἶπον᾽ οὐ πορευσόμεθα. καθέστακα ἐφ᾽ ὁμᾶς σκοπούς" ἀκούσατε τῆς φωνῆς τῆς σάλπιγγος. καὶ εἶπον" οὐκ ἀχουσόμεθα. διὰ τοῦτο ἤκουσε τὰ ἔθνη καὶ οἵ ποιμαίνοντες τὰ ### English translation (Claude) These words too are the same prophet's: 'Thus says the Lord: Stand by the ways and look; seek the eternal paths of the Lord, and see which is the good way, and walk in it, and you will find sanctification for your souls. And they said: We will not walk. I have set watchmen over you; hear the sound of the trumpet. And they said: We will not hear. Therefore the nations heard, and those who shepherd the ### Scripture references - Jer 6:16–18: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Jer 6:16–18 (LXX). The quotation ends in 10.76. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.75 (Raeder, 264; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-75). ## Discourse 10.76 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-76 - Source: Raeder, 264 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Rejected by the Jews, the gospel went to the nations; Christ is the good way. ### Greek text πρόβατα ἐν αὐτοῖς.“ πρώτοις μὲν γὰρ ᾿ἸΙουδαίοις προσηγέχθη καὶ παρὰ τῶν προφητῶν καὶ παρὰ τῶν ἀποστόλων τὰ θεῖα κηρύγματα᾽ ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἀντεῖπον ἐκεῖνοι, πᾶσιν ἐδωρήθη τοῖς ἔθνεσι τὰ θεόσδοτα δῶρα᾽ καὶ καλεῖ μὲν ὁδοὺς ὃ τοῦ προφήτου Θεὸς τοὺς παλαιοὺς προφήτας, ὁδὸν“ δὲ, ἀγαθὴν“ αὐτὸν τὸν Σωτῆρα καὶ Κύριον. ### English translation (Claude) flocks among them.' For the divine preaching was brought first to the Jews by both prophets and apostles; but since they spoke against it, the God-given gifts were given to all the nations. The prophet's God calls the ancient prophets 'ways', and the Savior and Lord himself 'the good way'. ### Scripture references - Jer 6:18: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret's reading of the Jews' rejection is translated as written. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.76 (Raeder, 264; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-76). ## Discourse 10.77 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-77 - Source: Raeder, 264 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The prophets lead to Christ, the way. ### Greek text καθάπερ γὰρ εἰς τὴν βασίλειον λεωφόρον αἵ ἀπὸ τῶν κωμῶν καὶ τῶν ἀγρῶν εἰσβάλλουσιν ἀτραποί, οὕτως ἅπαντες οἵ προφῆται ταύτην τοῖς πιστεύειν ἐθέλουσιν ὑπεδείννυον τὴν ὁδόν" καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ δεσπότης ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς εὐαγγελίοις βοᾷ' »ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ὁδὸς καὶ ἡ ξωὴ καὶ ἡ ἀλήθεια “' παραιγεῖ τοίνυν Ἰουδαίοις τὰ τῶν προφητῶν ἀναγνῶναι. θεσπίὅματα καὶ ζητῆσαι τὸ θεσπιζόμενον. ### English translation (Claude) For as paths from villages and fields lead into the royal highway, so all the prophets showed this way to those who wished to believe; and the Lord himself cries in the holy Gospels: 'I am the way, the life, and the truth.' So he urges the Jews to read the oracles of the prophets and seek what was foretold. ### Scripture references - John 14:6: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.77 (Raeder, 264; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-77). ## Discourse 10.78 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-78 - Source: Raeder, 264 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The apostles turned to the nations when the Jews refused. ### Greek text ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἀντεῖπον ταῖς προφητείαις, τὴν ἀποστολικὴν προσενήνοχε σάλπιγγα. ἐπειδὴ δὲ πάλιν εἶπον,.,»οὖκ ἀκουσόμεθα,““ βοῶσι πρὸς αὐτοὺς οἱ θεῖοι ἄνδρες, ὡς ὁ “Δουκᾶς ἐν ταῖς Πράξεσιν ἱστορεῖ" οὐὑμῖν ἦν ἀναγκαῖον πρῶτον λαλῆσαι τὸν λόγον τοῦ Θεοῦ" ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἀναξίους ἑαυτοὺς κρίνετε τῆς αἰωνίου ζωῆς, καθαροὶ ἡμεῖς ἀπὸ τοῦ νῦν εἰς τὰ ἔθνη πορευσόμεθα. ### English translation (Claude) And since they spoke against the prophecies, he brought the apostolic trumpet. And since they said again, 'We will not hear,' the divine men cried to them, as Luke recounts in the Acts: 'It was necessary that the word of God be spoken first to you; but since you judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, from now on we will go, clean, to the nations.' ### Scripture references - Acts 13:46: quotation, high confidence - Acts 18:6: echo, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Acts 13:46 with 18:6 ('clean'). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.78 (Raeder, 264; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-78). ## Discourse 10.79 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-79 - Source: Raeder, 265 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Jeremiah foretells the nations renouncing their idols. ### Greek text πάλιν μέντοι ὃ προφήτης τῶν ἐθνῶν τὴν σωτηρίαν θεσπίξει καὶ πρὸς τὸν τῶν ὕλων βοᾷ Θεόν.,Κύριε ἰσχύς μου καὶ βοήθειά μου καὶ καταφυγή μου ἐν ἡμέρᾳ κακῶν, πρὸς σὲ ἔθνη ἥξουσιν ἀπὸ ἐσχάτου τῆς γῆς καὶ ἐροῦσιν᾽ ὡς ψευδῇ ἐκτήσαντο οὗ πατέρες ἡμῶν εἴδωλα, καὶ οὐκ ἦν ἐν αὐτοῖς ὠφέλεια, εἰ πονήσει ἑαυτῷ ἄνθρωπος θεούς, καὶ αὖτο ### English translation (Claude) Again the prophet foretells the salvation of the nations and cries to the God of the universe: 'Lord, my strength and my help and my refuge in the day of evils, to you nations will come from the end of the earth and say: How false were the idols our fathers acquired, and there was no profit in them. If a man makes gods for himself, they ### Scripture references - Jer 16:19–20: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Jer 16:19–20 (LXX). The quotation ends in 10.80. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.79 (Raeder, 265; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-79). ## Discourse 10.80 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-80 - Source: Raeder, 265 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Jeremiah wrote as if he saw the nations' conversion. ### Greek text ὶ οὐκ εἰσὶ θεοί(" τί τούτων ἐναργέστερον τῶν ῥημάτων; ὡς γὰρ παρὼν ὁ προφήτης καὶ θεώμενος τὴν τῆς οἰκουμένης μεταβολὴν καὶ τῆς τῶν ἐθνῶν μεταμελείας ἀκούων | καὶ κωμῳδούντων ἐπαΐων τὴν τῶν εἰδώλων ἀσθένειαν, οὕτω ξυνέγραψε τὸν χρησμόν. ### English translation (Claude) are not gods.' What is clearer than these words? For as if present and beholding the change of the world, hearing the repentance of the nations and listening to them mocking the weakness of idols, the prophet wrote the oracle. ### Scripture references - Jer 16:20: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.80 (Raeder, 265; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-80). ## Discourse 10.81 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-81 - Source: Raeder, 265 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Amos foretells Israel's dispersion. ### Greek text καὶ ᾿Ζμὼς δὲ ὁ προφήτης οὐ μόνον τὴν τῶν ἐθνῶν σωτηρίαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν Ἰουδαίων προλέγει διασποράν, μᾶλλον δὲ διὰ τῆς ἐκείνου γλώττης αὐτὸς ὁ τῶν ὅλων Θεός᾽,,ἰδού γάρ φησιν,.ἐγὼ ἐντέλλομὰν καὶ λιμμήσω ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς ἔθνεσι τὸν οἶκον Ἰσραήλ, ὃν ### English translation (Claude) And Amos the prophet foretells not only the salvation of the nations but also the dispersion of the Jews, or rather through his tongue the God of the universe himself: 'For behold,' he says, 'I command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all the nations, as ### Scripture references - Amos 9:9: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Amos 9:9. The quotation ends in 10.82. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.81 (Raeder, 265; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-81). ## Discourse 10.82 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-82 - Source: Raeder, 265 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Amos foretells the rebuilding of David's tent for the nations. ### Greek text τρόπον λικμᾶται ἐν τῷ λιεμῷ καὶ μετ᾽ ὀλίγα" «τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ ἀναστήσω τὴν σκηνὴν Δαυὶδ τὴν πεπτωνυῖαν᾽ καὶ ἀνοικοδομήσω τὰ πεπτωκότα αὐτῆς καὶ τὰ κατεσκαμμένα αὐτῆς ἀνοικοδομήσω" καὶ ἀνοικοδομήσω αὐτὴν καθὼς αἵ ἡμέραι τοῦ αἰῶνος, ὕπως ἂν ἐμζηνήσωσί μὲ οἱ κατάλοιποι τῶν ἀνθρώπων καὶ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, ἐφ᾽ οὃς ἐπικέκληται τὸ ὄνομά μου ἐπ᾽ αὐτούς᾽ λέγει Κύριος ὁ ποιῶν ταῦτα πάντα.“ ### English translation (Claude) one sifts with a sieve.' And a little later: 'In that day I will raise up the tent of David that has fallen, and rebuild its ruins, and rebuild what was razed, and rebuild it as in the days of old, so that the rest of human beings and all the nations upon whom my name is called may seek me, says the Lord who does all these things.' ### Scripture references - Amos 9:9: quotation, high confidence - Amos 9:11–12: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Amos 9:11–12 (LXX). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.82 (Raeder, 265; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-82). ## Discourse 10.83 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-83 - Source: Raeder, 265 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The tent of David is the Word made flesh. ### Greek text εἰ δέ τις βούλεται μαθεῖν, τίς ἡ σκηνή, ἀκουσάτω τοῦ θεσπεσίου Ἰωάννου λέγοντος" «καὶ ὃ “όγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο καὶ ἐσκήνωσεν ἐν ἡμῖν, καὶ ἐθεασάμεθα τὴν δόξαν αὐτοῦ, δόξαν ὡς μονογενοῦς παρὰ Πατρός" πλήφης χάριτος καὶ ἀληθείας." ### English translation (Claude) If anyone wishes to learn what the tent is, let him hear the divine John saying: 'And the Word became flesh and pitched his tent among us, and we beheld his glory, glory as of the only-begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.' ### Scripture references - John 1:14: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.83 (Raeder, 265; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-83). ## Discourse 10.84 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-84 - Source: Raeder, 266 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Zephaniah foretells worship of God in every place. ### Greek text βοᾷ δὲ καὶ Σοφονίας᾽,»ἐπιφανήσεται Κύριος ἐπ᾽ αὐτοὺς καὶ ἐξολοθρεύσει πάντας τοὺς θεοὺς τῆς γῆς" καὶ προσκυνήσουσιν αὐτῷ ἕκαστος ἐκ τοῦ τόπου αὐτοῦ καὶ πᾶσαι αἵ νῆσοι τῶν ἐθνῶν.“ ἐπειδὴ γὰρ Ἰουδαίους εἰς τὸν ἐν “Ἱεροσολύμοις νεὼν ξυντρέχειν ἐκέλευσεν, ἀναγκαίως προστέθειριεν, ὡς τῶν καλουμένων θεῶν ἀφανῶν γενομένων, τὸν ἀληθινὸν ἕκαστος προσκυνήσει Θεόν, οὐκ εἰς ἐκείνην τρέχειν τὴν πόλιν ἀναγκαζόμενος, ἀλλ᾽ ἐν ταῖς οἰκίαις καὶ πόλεσι καὶ κώμαις καὶ ἀγροῖς τὸ σέβας προσφέροντες. ### English translation (Claude) And Zephaniah cries: 'The Lord will appear against them and will destroy all the gods of the earth, and they will worship him, each from his place, and all the islands of the nations.' For since he had ordered the Jews to run to the temple in Jerusalem, he necessarily added that when the so-called gods vanish, each will worship the true God, not compelled to run to that city, but offering worship in houses, cities, villages, and fields. ### Scripture references - Zeph 2:11: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Zeph 2:11 (LXX). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.84 (Raeder, 266; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-84). ## Discourse 10.85 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-85 - Source: Raeder, 266 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Zephaniah's prophecy is fulfilled in the apostles' tongues at Pentecost. ### Greek text καὶ μετ᾽ ὀλίγα δὲ πάλιν φησίν.,τότε μεταστρέψω ἐπὶ λαοὺς γλῶσσαν εἰς γενεὰν αὐτοῖς, τοῦ ἐπικαλεῖσθαι πάντας τὸ ὄνομα Κυρίου, τοῦ δουλεύειν αὐτῷ ὑπὸ ζυγὸν ἕνα᾽ ἐκ περάτῶν ποταμῶν Αἰθιοπίας οἴσουσι θυσίας μοι." τὴν γὰρ δὴ (αν τῶν ἀποστόλων γλῶτταν, Γαλιλαίαν οὖσαν, εἰς τὰς ἁπάντων τῶν ἐθνῶν κατεμέρισε γλώττας καὶ προσενήνοχεν ὅπασι τὴν σωτήριον χλῆσιν. ### English translation (Claude) And a little later he says again: 'Then I will change the tongue of the peoples for their generation, that all may call on the name of the Lord, to serve him under one yoke; from the ends of the rivers of Ethiopia they will bring me sacrifices.' For he divided the tongue of the apostles, which was Galilean, into the tongues of all nations and brought the saving call to all. ### Scripture references - Zeph 3:9–10: quotation, high confidence - Acts 2:4–11: allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Zeph 3:9–10 (LXX). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.85 (Raeder, 266; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-85). ## Discourse 10.86 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-86 - Source: Raeder, 266 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Zechariah foretells God dwelling among the nations. ### Greek text καὶ μέντοι καὶ διὰ Ζαχαρίου ξύμφωνα προθεσπίζει᾽ «τέρπου καὶ εὐφραίνου, θύγατερ Σιών" διότι ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ ἔρχομαν καὶ χατασκηνώσω ἐν μέσῳ σου, λέγει Κύριος" καὶ καταφεύξονται ἔθνη πολλὰ ἐπὶ τὸν Κύριον ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ καὶ ἔσονταν αὐτῷ εἰς λαόν" καὶ κατασχηνώσω ἕν μέσῳ σου" καὶ γνώσῃ, ὅτι Κύριος παντοκρ ### English translation (Claude) And through Zechariah he foretells in agreement: 'Rejoice and be glad, daughter of Zion; for behold, I come and will dwell in your midst, says the Lord; and many nations will flee to the Lord in that day and will be his people; and I will dwell in your midst; and you will know that the Lord Almighty ### Scripture references - Zech 2:10–11 (2:14-Zech LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Zech 2:10–11 (LXX 2:14–15). The quotation ends in 10.87. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.86 (Raeder, 266; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-86). ## Discourse 10.87 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-87 - Source: Raeder, 266 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: In Zechariah the Son speaks of being sent by the Father. ### Greek text άτωρ ἀπέσταλεέ μὲ πρὸς σέ ἐν δὲ τούτοις ὃ Μονογενὴς καὶ τὸ οἰκεῖον καὶ τὸ τοῦ Πατρὸς ἐπέδειξε πρόσωπον. ἀπεστάλθαι δὲ εἴρηκεν, ἐπειδήπερ οὐχ ὡς Θεύς, ἀλλ᾽ ὡς ἄνθρωπος ἐπεφάνη᾽ πρέπει δὲ αὐτῷ τὴν ὑπὲρ τῶν ἀνθρώπῶν δικαιοσύνην παραγενομένῳ πληρῶσαι καὶ ᾿ δεῖξαι τὴν ἐπαινουμένην ὑπακοήν. ### English translation (Claude) has sent me to you.' In these words the Only-begotten showed both his own person and the Father's. He said he was sent, since he appeared not as God but as man; and it befits him, having come for human beings, to fulfill righteousness and to show the praised obedience. ### Scripture references - Zech 2:11 (2:15 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Matt 3:15: echo, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.87 (Raeder, 266; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-87). ## Discourse 10.88 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-88 - Source: Raeder, 267 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Zechariah foretells the humble king on a colt. ### Greek text καὶ πάλιν᾽,,χαῖρε σφόδρα, θύγατερ Σιών᾽ κήρυσσε, θύγατερ Ἱερουσαλήμ᾽ ἰδοὺ ὁ βασιλεύς σου ἔρχεταί σοι δίκαιος καὶ σώξζων᾽ αὐτὸς πραὺς καὶ ἐπιβεβηκὼς ἐπὶ ὑποζύγιον καὶ πῶλον νέον. [ καὶ ἐξολοθρεύσει ἅρματα ἐξ ᾿Ἐφραϊμ καὶ ἵππον ἐξ ᾿Ἱερουσαλήμ᾽ καὶ ἐξολοθρευθήσεται τόξον πολεμικόν καὶ πλῆθος καὶ εἰρήνη ἐξ ἐθνῶν" καὶ κατάρξει ἀπὸ θαλάσσης ἕως θαλάσσης καὶ ἀπὸ ποταμῶν ### English translation (Claude) And again: 'Rejoice greatly, daughter of Zion; proclaim, daughter of Jerusalem; behold, your king comes to you, righteous and saving; he is gentle and mounted on a beast of burden and a young colt. And he will destroy chariots from Ephraim and horse from Jerusalem; and the bow of war will be destroyed, and abundance and peace from the nations; and he will rule from sea to sea and from the rivers ### Scripture references - Zech 9:9–10: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Zech 9:9–10 (LXX). The quotation ends in 10.89. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.88 (Raeder, 267; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-88). ## Discourse 10.89 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-89 - Source: Raeder, 267 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Zechariah's prophecies are clear and fulfilled. ### Greek text ἕως διεκβολῶν γῆς.“ καὶ μετὰ πλεῖστα.»καὶ ἔσται Κύριος εἰς βασιλέα ἐπὶ πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν᾽ ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ ἔσται Κύριος εἷς, καὶ τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ ἕν, κυκλοῦν πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν καὶ τὴν ἔρημον.“ τί τούτων, ὦ ἄνδρες, ξυνεσκπιασμένον ἢ σαφηνείας δεόμενον; ποῖον δὲ τῶν εἰρημένων οὐκ ἔχει βοῶσαν τῶν πραγμάτων τὴν μαρτυρίαν; ### English translation (Claude) to the ends of the earth.' And after very many things: 'And the Lord will be king over all the earth; in that day the Lord will be one, and his name one, encircling all the earth and the wilderness.' What of these, gentlemen, is obscure or needs clarifying? Which of these sayings does not have the testimony of the facts crying aloud? ### Scripture references - Zech 9:10: quotation, high confidence - Zech 14:9–10: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Zech 14:9–10 (LXX). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.89 (Raeder, 267; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-89). ## Discourse 10.90 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-90 - Source: Raeder, 267 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Malachi foretells a pure sacrifice offered everywhere among the nations. ### Greek text ἀκούσατε δὴ καὶ διὰ ΜΜαλαχίου τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων πρὸς τὸν ᾿Ισραὴλ λέγοντος" οοὐκ ἔστι μοι θέλημα ἐν ὑμῖν, λέγει Κύριος" καὶ θυσίαν οὐ προσδέξομαν ἐκ τῶν χειρῶν ὑμῶν διότι ἀπὸ ἀνατολῶν ἡλίου καὶ ἕως δυσμῶν τὸ ὄνομά μου δεδόξασται ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσι᾽ καὶ ἐν παντὶ τόπῳ θυμίαμα προσφέρεται τῷ ὀνόματί μου καὶ θυσία καθαρά. διότι μέγα τὸ ὄνομά μου ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσι, λέγει Κύριος παντοκράτωρ᾽ ὑμεῖς δὲ βεβηλοῦτε αὐτό.“ ### English translation (Claude) Hear too the God of the universe saying to Israel through Malachi: 'I have no pleasure in you, says the Lord, and I will not accept sacrifice from your hands; for from the rising of the sun to its setting my name has been glorified among the nations, and in every place incense is offered to my name and a pure sacrifice; for my name is great among the nations, says the Lord Almighty; but you profane it.' ### Scripture references - Mal 1:10–12: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Mal 1:10–12 (LXX). Theodoret takes the pure sacrifice as the Christian spiritual sacrifice (10.91). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.90 (Raeder, 267; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-90). ## Discourse 10.91 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-91 - Source: Raeder, 267 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Malachi is fulfilled in the church's spiritual sacrifice everywhere. ### Greek text Παράθετε, ὦ φιλότης, τοὺς λόγους τοῖς πράγμασι καὶ βλέπετε καὶ τὴν Ιουδαίων ἀντιλογίαν καὶ τὴν τῶν ἐθνῶν ὁμολογίαν καὶ τὴν πανταχῇ γῆς καὶ θαλάττης προσφερομένην θυσίαν τῷ Θεῷ τῶν ὕλων πνευματικήν, καὶ ὑμνήσατε τὸν οὕτως ἐναργῶς ταῦτα προαγορεύσαντα. ### English translation (Claude) Set the words beside the facts, my friend, and see the Jews' contradiction, the nations' confession, and the spiritual sacrifice offered to the God of the universe everywhere on land and sea, and hymn him who so clearly foretold these things. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.91 (Raeder, 267; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-91). ## Discourse 10.92 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-92 - Source: Raeder, 268 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God promised Abraham that the nations would be blessed in his seed. ### Greek text εἰ δὲ βούλεσθε, καὶ τοῦ Δανιὴλ καὶ τοῦ ᾿Ιεζεκιὴλ καὶ τοῦ Ἰωὴλ καὶ Μιχαίου καὶ ᾿ἀσηὲ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων προφητῶν ἀνάγνωτε τὰ θεσπίσματα. ἅπαντες γάρ τοῦ τὴν τῶν ἐθνῶν προαγορδύουσι σωτηρίαν᾽ καὶ μέντον καὶ πρὸς τὸν πατριάρχην “Φβραὰμ τὰς ξυνθήκας ποιούμενος. διὰ τοῦ σπέρματος αὖτοῦ δώσειν τοῖς ἔθνεσι τὴν εὐλογίαν ὑπέσχετο,«οὐλογήσω γάρ σε ἔφη..καὶ μεγαλυνῶ τὸ ὄνομά σου, καὶ ἔσῃ εὖλογημένος, καὶ εὐλογήσω τοὺς εὐλογοῦντάς σε, καὶ τοὺς καταρωμένους σε καταράσομαι, καὶ ἐνευλογηθήσονται ἐν τῷ ### English translation (Claude) If you wish, read also the oracles of Daniel, Ezekiel, Joel, Micah, Hosea, and the other prophets. For all foretell the salvation of the nations; and in making covenants with the patriarch Abraham, he promised to give the blessing to the nations through his seed: 'I will bless you,' he said, 'and make your name great, and you will be blessed; and I will bless those who bless you, and curse those who curse you; and in your ### Scripture references - Gen 12:2–3: quotation, high confidence - Gen 22:18: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Gen 12:2–3 combined with 22:18. The quotation ends in 10.93. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.92 (Raeder, 268; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-92). ## Discourse 10.93 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-93 - Source: Raeder, 268 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The blessing promised to the patriarchs is fulfilled in the mission to all nations. ### Greek text σπέρματί σου πάντα τὰ ἔθνη τῆς γῆς.“ καὶ ταύτην αὐτῷ οὐχ ἅπαξ, ἀλλὰ καὶ πολλάκις δέδωκε τὴν ὑπόσχεσιν᾽ καὶ μέντοι καὶ μετὰ τὴν ἐκείνου τελευτὴν τὴν αὐτὴν παρέσχε καὶ τῷ ᾿Ισαὰκ εὐλογίαν, καὶ μετ᾽ ἐκεῖνον πάλιν τῷ ᾿Ιακώβ. ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἐπ τοῦ σπέρματος ἐκείνων τὴν ἀνθρωπείαν φύσιν λαβὼν ὁ Μονογενὴς ἐνηνθρώπησεν, ἐνανθρωπήσας δὲ καὶ τὴν οἰκονομίαν τελέσας εἰς ὅπασαν τὴν οἰκουμένην τοὺς ἀποστόλους ἐξέπεμψε καὶ προσέταξε μαθητεῦσαι πάντα τὰ ἔθνη εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ “Πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος, πιστεύσαντα δὲ τὰ ἔθνη τῆς σωτηρίας ἀπήλαυσεν, εἰκότως ἄρα καὶ τῷ “Φβραὰμ καὶ τοῖς ἐξ ἐκείνου τήνδε παρέσχε τὴν εὐλογίαν, καὶ αὐτοῖς δῆλα ποιῶν τὰ ἐσόμενα καὶ τὸ μέγεθος τοῦ γέρως ἐπιδειενὺς καὶ τοὺς τῶν θείων ἐπαΐοντας λογίων τῇ τῆς σωτηρίας ἐλπίδι ψυχαγῶγῶν. ### English translation (Claude) seed all the nations of the earth will be blessed.' He gave him this promise not once but many times; and after his death he gave the same blessing to Isaac, and after him again to Jacob. For since the Only-begotten took human nature from their seed and became man, and having become man and completed the dispensation, sent the apostles into the whole world and ordered them to make disciples of all the nations in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and the nations believing enjoyed salvation, he fittingly gave this blessing to Abraham and his descendants, making clear to them what would be, showing the greatness of the honor, and attracting those who listen to the divine oracles with the hope of salvation. ### Scripture references - Gen 22:18: quotation, high confidence - Gen 26:4: allusion, high confidence - Gen 28:14: allusion, high confidence - Matt 28:19: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.93 (Raeder, 268; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-93). ## Discourse 10.94 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-94 - Source: Raeder, 268 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Jacob and Moses foretold the nations' hope and joy. ### Greek text καὶ Ἰαμὼβ δὲ ὃ πατριάρχης, εὐλογῶν τὸν ᾿Ιούδαν, τῆς τῶν ἐθνῶν ἐμνημόνευσεν εὐλογίας"..»οὐκ ἐκλείψειζἐ γὰρ ἔφη οἄρχων ἐξ Ἰούδα καὶ ἡγούμενος ἐκ τῶν μηρῶν αὐτοῦ, ἕως ἂν ἔλθῃ ὃ ἀπόκειται" καὶ αὐτὸς προσδοκία ἐθνῶν] καὶ ὃ Μωῦσῆς δὲ ὁ μέγας βοᾷ.οεὐφράνθητε ἔθνη μετὰ ### English translation (Claude) And the patriarch Jacob, blessing Judah, mentioned the blessing of the nations: 'A ruler shall not fail from Judah,' he said, 'nor a leader from his thighs, until there comes that which is laid up for him; and he is the expectation of the nations.' And the great Moses cries: 'Rejoice, nations, with ### Scripture references - Gen 49:10: quotation, high confidence - Deut 32:43: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Gen 49:10 (LXX); Deut 32:43 (LXX). The quotation ends in 10.95. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.94 (Raeder, 268; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-94). ## Discourse 10.95 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-95 - Source: Raeder, 269 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Psalms 2 and 8 foretell Christ's rule over the nations. ### Greek text τοῦ λαοῦ αὐτοῦ.“ τὰς δὲ τοῦ θεσπεσίου Δαυὶδ προφητείας τίς ἂν ῥᾳδίως ξυλλέξειεν; ἐν μὲν γὰρ τῷ δευτέρῳ ψαλμῷ τὸ τοῦ Σωτῆρος πρόσωπον ἀνειληφὼς λέγει",, Κύριος εἶπε πρός με᾽ υἱός μου εἶ σύ" ἐγὼ σήμερον γεγέννηκά σε᾿ αἴτησαν παρ᾽ ἐμοῦ, καὶ δώσω σοι ἔθνη τὴν χληρονομίαν σου, ναὶ τὴν κατάσχεσίν σου τὰ πέρατα τῆς γῆς.“ ἐν δὲ τῷ ὀγδόῳ φησίν᾽ «Κύριε ὁ Κύριος ἡμῶν, ὡς θαυμαστὸν τὸ ὄνομά σου ἐν πάσῃ τῇ γῇ, ὅτι ἐπήρθη ἡ μεγαλοπρέπειά σου ὑπεράνω τῶν οὐρανῶν. ἐπ στόματος νηπίων καὶ θηλαξό ### English translation (Claude) his people.' And who could easily collect the prophecies of the divine David? In the second psalm, taking on the person of the Savior, he says: 'The Lord said to me: You are my Son; today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will give you the nations as your inheritance, and the ends of the earth as your possession.' And in the eighth he says: 'O Lord, our Lord, how wonderful is your name in all the earth, for your majesty is exalted above the heavens. Out of the mouth of infants and nurslings ### Scripture references - Deut 32:43: quotation, high confidence - Ps 2:7–8: quotation, high confidence - Ps 8:1–2 (8:2-Ps LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The quotation of Ps 8:2 ends in 10.96. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.95 (Raeder, 269; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-95). ## Discourse 10.96 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-96 - Source: Raeder, 269 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Psalm 9 asks for a lawgiver for the nations. ### Greek text ντων κατηρτίσω αἶνον ὁρῶμεν δὲ ταῦτα καθ᾽ ἑκάστην τελούμενα. ἐν δὲ τῷ ἐνάτῳ πάλιν πρὸς τὸν τῶν ὅλων λέγει Θεόν' ἀνάστηθι Κύριε᾽ μὴ κραταιούσθω ἄνθρωπος᾽ κριθήτωσαν ἔθνη ἐνώπιόν σου κατάστησον Κύριε νομοθέτὴν ἐπ᾽ αὐτούς" γνώτωσαν ἔθνη, ὕτι ἄνθρωποί εἰσιν.’ ἐπειδὴ γὰρ εἰς ἀλογίαν ἐσχάτην ἐξέπεσε τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὸ γένος, ἀναγχαίως αὐτοῖς δοθῆναι νομοθέτην αἰτεῖ, ὥστε καὶ τὴν φύσιν ἐπιγνῶναι καὶ τῆς θηριωδίας ἀπαλλαγῆναι. ### English translation (Claude) you have perfected praise.' We see this fulfilled every day. And in the ninth again he says to the God of the universe: 'Arise, Lord; let not man prevail; let the nations be judged before you. Appoint, Lord, a lawgiver over them; let the nations know that they are men.' For since the human race had fallen into utter irrationality, he necessarily asks that a lawgiver be given them, so that they might recognize their nature and be freed from savagery. ### Scripture references - Ps 8:2 (8:3 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 9:19–20 (9:20-Ps LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Ps 9:19–20 (LXX 9:20–21). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.96 (Raeder, 269; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-96). ## Discourse 10.97 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-97 - Source: Raeder, 269 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Psalm 22 foretells the nations turning to the Lord. ### Greek text ἐν δὲ τῷ πρώτῳ καὶ εἰκοστῷ"..μνησθήσονται καὶ ἐπιστραφήσονται πρὸς Κύριον πάντα τὰ πέρατα τῆς γῆς, καὶ προσκυνήσουσιν ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ πᾶσαι αἱ πατριαὶ τῶν ἐθνῶν" ὅτι τοῦ Κυρίου ἡ βασιλεία, καὶ αὐτὸς δεσπόζει τῶν ἐθνῶν.“ καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς δὲ τὴν αὐτὴν ἔχει διάνοιαν᾽ προλέγει γὰρ τὸν ἐξ ἁπάντων τῶν ἐθνῶν νέον λαόν. ### English translation (Claude) And in the twenty-first: 'All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations will worship before him; for the kingdom is the Lord's, and he rules over the nations.' And what follows has the same sense; for it foretells the new people from all the nations. ### Scripture references - Ps 22:27–28 (21:28-Ps LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Ps 22:27–28 (LXX 21:28–29), which Theodoret numbers as the twenty-first psalm. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.97 (Raeder, 269; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-97). ## Discourse 10.98 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-98 - Source: Raeder, 270 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Psalms 45 and 46 foretell rule over the earth and exaltation among the nations. ### Greek text Καὶ ἵνα τὰ πλείονα παραλίπω, ἀκούσατε αὐτοῦ ἐν τῷ τετταραποστῷ κχαὶ τετάρτῳ ψαλμῷ λέγοντος᾽ «ἀντὶ τῶν πατέρων σου ἐγεννήθησαν οἱ υἱοί σου" καταστήσεις αὐτοὺς ἄρχοντας ἐπὶ πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν. καὶ πάλιν ἐν τῷ πέμπτῳ καὶ τετταρακοστῷ.,σχολάσατε καὶ γνῶτε, ὅτι ἐγώ εἰμι ὃ Θεός "εὸς ς ὑψωθήσομαι ψο Ἶ ομ " ἐν τοῖς ο' β ἔθνεσιν᾽ ᾿ “-. ὑψωθήσομαι ψ μ μ ἐν τῇ τῇ ### English translation (Claude) And to pass over most, hear him in the forty-fourth psalm saying: 'Instead of your fathers sons have been born to you; you will make them rulers over all the earth.' And again in the forty-fifth: 'Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations; I will be exalted on the earth.' ### Scripture references - Ps 45:16 (44:17 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 46:10 (45:11 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Ps 45:16 (LXX 44:17); Ps 46:10 (LXX 45:11). The scan has some noise; translated by sense. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.98 (Raeder, 270; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-98). ## Discourse 10.99 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-99 - Source: Raeder, 270 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Psalm 47 calls all nations to praise God. ### Greek text γῇ“ ὁ δὲ μετὰ τοῦτον ὅλος τὴν τῶν ἐθνῶν προαγορεύει σωνηρίαν᾽ πάντα γάρ φησι..τὰ ἔθνη προτήσατε χεῖραρ᾽ ἀλαλάξατε ῃ τῷ Ω Θεῷ τς ἐν φὰ φωνῇ ι ἀγαλλιάσεως᾽ γὼ β ὅτι Κύριος Η ὕψιστο μ“ ᾿ Η ### English translation (Claude) And the one after it wholly foretells the salvation of the nations: 'All you nations,' he says, 'clap your hands; shout to God with a voice of exultation; for the Lord Most High is ### Scripture references - Ps 47:1–2 (46:2-Ps LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Ps 47:1–2 (LXX 46:2–3). The scan is badly garbled here; translated with the psalm as guide. The quotation ends in 10.100. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.99 (Raeder, 270; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-99). ## Discourse 10.100 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-100 - Source: Raeder, 270 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The psalms foretell the whole story of Christ and the church. ### Greek text φοβερός, βασιλεὺς μέγας ἐπὶ πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν καὶ ἕβδομος δὲ καὶ ὁ ὄγδοος, καὶ μέντοι καὶ ὃ ἕνατος καὶ πάντες, ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν, οἵ ψαλμοὶ τὴν τῆς οἰκουμένης μεταβολὴν προθεσπίζουσι καὶ τὴν τῶν ἐθνῶν προπηρύττουσι κλῆσιν καὶ πίστιν, καὶ πρός γὲ τούτοις τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν τὴν προαιώνιον ὕπαρξιν, τὴν ἐκ τοῦ Πατρὸς γέννησιν, τὸν ἐκ παρθένου τόκον, τὰ θαύματα, τὰ παθήματα, τῶν ᾿Ιουδαίων τὴν ἀπιστίαν, τὴν ἐκ νερῶν ἀνάστασιν, τὴν εἰς οὐρανοὺς ἀνάβασιν, τὴν τοῦ Πνεύματος ἐπιφοίτησιν, τὸν εἰς ἅπασαν γῆν καὶ θάλατταν τῶν ἀποστόλῶν δρόμον. ᾿ ### English translation (Claude) awesome, a great king over all the earth.' And the forty-seventh, the forty-eighth, and also the forty-ninth and, so to speak, all the psalms foretell the change of the world and proclaim beforehand the calling and faith of the nations, and besides these the eternal existence of our God and Savior, his birth from the Father, his birth from a virgin, the miracles, the sufferings, the unbelief of the Jews, the resurrection from the dead, the ascension into heaven, the coming of the Spirit, and the course of the apostles to all land and sea. ### Scripture references - Ps 47:2 (46:3 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret counts the psalms by the Greek (LXX) numbering. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.100 (Raeder, 270; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-100). ## Discourse 10.101 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-101 - Source: Raeder, 270 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The prophecies cited suffice to show the truth of all. ### Greek text ἘἊΚαὶ μὲν δὴ καὶ οἱ ἄλλοι προφῆται ταῦτα προλέγουσιν ἅπαντες. ἐγὼ δὲ πάσας ξυναγαγεῖν τὰς προρρήσεις πάρεργον ὑπείληφα πολλῶν γὰρ ἂν ἐδεήθην βιβλίων, καὶ πάσας γράφων καὶ περὶ ἑκάστης δέ γε τὰ πρόσφορα λέγων. ἀρκεῖ δὲ ὑμῖν, ἂν ἐθέλητε, καὶ τῶν ἄλλων, ἐξ ὧν ἀκηκόατε, τὴν ἀλήθειαν διαγνῶναι. σαφεῖς γὰρ αὗται καὶ ὀληθεῖς καὶ οἷόν τινὲς ἐναργεῖς εἰσι τῶν πραγμάτων εἰκόνες. ### English translation (Claude) And all the other prophets foretell these things. But I thought it a side-task to collect all the predictions; for I would have needed many books, both writing them all and saying what is fitting about each. It is enough for you, if you wish, to recognize from those you have heard the truth of the others too. For these are clear and true, and like vivid images of the facts. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.101 (Raeder, 270; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-101). ## Discourse 10.102 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-102 - Source: Raeder, 271 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Prophecy compared with fulfillment is like a portrait compared with its subject. ### Greek text ὥσπερ τοίνυν τῶν ἀρίστων ζωγράφων τὴν τέχνην ῥᾷον ἄν τις χαταμάθοι, τῷ ἀληθινῷ καὶ ἀρχετύπῳ χαρακτῆρι παρατιθεὶς τὴν εἰκόνα, οὕτω χρὴ καὶ ὑμᾶς καθάπερ ἰδέαν τινὰ τὴν προφητείαν ὑπὸ τοῦ σοφωτάτου προδιαγραφεῖσαν ξωγράφου παραθεῖναι τοῖς πράγμασιν ἤδη λαβοῦσι τὸ πέρας καὶ τὸ τῆς ὁμοιότητος θεάσασθαν ἀπαράλλακτον. ### English translation (Claude) Just as one could more easily learn the art of the best painters by setting the image beside the true and original features, so you too must set the prophecy, as a kind of model sketched beforehand by the wisest of painters, beside the facts now accomplished, and behold the exactness of the likeness. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.102 (Raeder, 271; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-102). ## Discourse 10.103 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-103 - Source: Raeder, 271 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Fulfilled prophecy is seen, not merely heard. ### Greek text πάλαι μὲν γάρ, πρὶν δέξηται τὸ πέρας ἡ προφητεία, εἶχέ τινα πόνον τὸ πεῖσαι τοὺς τηνικαῦτα ἀνθρώπους, ὡς ἀληθῆ τὰ θεσπίσματα" ἐπειδὴ δὲ τὰ πάλαι καὶ πρόπαλαι προρρηθέντα νῦν ὁρῶμεν τετελεσμένα, καὶ τὰ ῥήματα ἐκεῖνα γενόμενα πράγματα, οὐ δεῖ πόνων ἡμῖν εἰς τὸ πεῖσαι τὰς ἀκοάς. ἔχουσι γὰρ αὗται μαρτυροῦντα τὰ ὄμματα᾽ καὶ περιττὸς ἡμῖν ᾿Ηρόδοτος λέγων, ὅτι »τὰ ὦτα ὑπάρχει ἀνθρώποις ἀπιστότερα ἐόντα ὀφθαλμῶν.“ ὁρῶσι γάρ που οἱ ὀφθαλμοί, ἅπερ ἀκούει ### English translation (Claude) For of old, before the prophecy received its fulfillment, it took some labor to persuade the people of the time that the oracles were true; but since we now see accomplished what was foretold long, long ago, and those words become facts, we need no labor to persuade the ears. For they have the eyes as witnesses; and Herodotus is superfluous to us when he says that 'ears are less trustworthy for human beings than eyes'. For the eyes see what the ears hear. ### Extrabiblical texts - Herodotus, Hist. 1.8 (Herodotus, Histories): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Herodotus 1.8. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.103 (Raeder, 271; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-103). ## Discourse 10.104 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-104 - Source: Raeder, 271 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret urges comparison: light has nothing to do with darkness. ### Greek text Ἐπειδὴ τοίνυν καὶ ὀλίγων προφητειῶν ἐπηκούσατε καὶ τὴν τῶν πραγμάτων ξωράκατε μαρτυρίαν, παράθετε, ὦ ἄνδρες, τοῖς ὑμετέροις χρησμοῖς τῶν προφητῶν τὰ θεσπίσματα καὶ βοήσατε μετὰ τοῦ ἀποστόλου᾽,.τίς κοινωνία φωτὶ πρὸς σκότος; τίς δὲ συμφώνησις Χριστοῦ πρὸς Βελίαρ; ἢ τίς μερὶς πιστῷ μετὰ ἀπίστους τίς δὲ συγκατάθεσις ναῷ Θεοῦ μετὰ ### English translation (Claude) Since, then, you have heard a few prophecies and seen the testimony of the facts, set the oracles of the prophets beside your oracles, gentlemen, and cry with the apostle: 'What fellowship has light with darkness? What agreement has Christ with Beliar? Or what portion has a believer with unbelievers? What agreement has the temple of God with ### Scripture references - 2 Cor 6:14–16: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - 2 Cor 6:14–16. The quotation ends in 10.105. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.104 (Raeder, 271; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-104). ## Discourse 10.105 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-10-105 - Source: Raeder, 272 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret ends with the psalm against idols and a prayer for his readers. ### Greek text εἰδώλων ναοὶ μὲν γὰρ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν προφητῶν οἱ χοροί" εἴδωλα δὲ πωφά, τὰ παρὰ τῶν ἐθνῶν προσκυνηθέντα, περὶ ὧν τὸ θεῖον πνεῦμά φησιν" οτὰ εἴδωλα τῶν ἐθνῶν ἀργύριον καὶ χρυσίον, ἔργα χειρῶν ἀνθρώπων" στόμα ἔχουσι καὶ οὐ λαλήσουσιν" ὀφθαλμοὺς ἔχουσι καὶ οὐκ ὄψονται" ὦτα ἔχουσι καὶ οὐκ ἀκούσονται" ῥῖνας ἔχουσι καὶ οὐκ ὀσῳφρανθήσονται" χεῖρας ἔχουσι καὶ οὐ ψηλαφήσουσι᾽ πόδας ἔχουσι καὶ οὐ περιπατήσουσιν" οὐ φωνήσουσιν ἐν τῷ λάρυγγι αὐτῶν᾽ οὐδὲ γὰρ ἔστι πνεῦμα ἐν τῷ στόματι αὐτῶν. ὅμοιοι αὐτοῖς γένοιντο οἵ ποιοῦντες, αὐτὰ καὶ πάντες οὗ πεπουθύτες ἐπ᾿ αὐτοῖς. ὑμᾶς δὲ γένοιτο μαθεῖν τὴν ἀλήθειαν καὶ τῆς προφητικῆς μὴ μεταλαχεῖν ἀρᾶς. ### English translation (Claude) idols?' For the choirs of the prophets are temples of God; idols are the dumb things worshiped by the nations, about which the divine Spirit says: 'The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the works of human hands. They have mouths and will not speak; they have eyes and will not see; they have ears and will not hear; they have noses and will not smell; they have hands and will not feel; they have feet and will not walk; they will not utter a sound in their throat; for there is no breath in their mouth. May those who make them become like them, and all who trust in them.' May it be granted you to learn the truth and not share in the prophetic curse. ### Scripture references - 2 Cor 6:16: quotation, high confidence - Ps 115:4–8 (113:12-Ps LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 135:17 (134:17 LXX): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Ps 115:4–8 (LXX 113:12–16) with Ps 135:17 (LXX 134:17). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 10.105 (Raeder, 272; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-105). ## Discourse 11.1 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-11-1 - Source: Raeder, 272 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret opens his discourse on the end of life with the younger Aristippus, taught philosophy by his mother. ### Greek text Ἀρίστιππον ἐκεῖνον ἴσως; ὦ ἄνδρες, ἀκούετε, τὸν ἄριστίππου τοῦ Σωκχράτους ἑταίρου θυγατριδοῦν. οὗτος τῇ μητρὶ φιλοσοφούσῃ ξυνών, φιλοσοφίας ὡς πλεῖστον μετείληχδν. ἔλαχε δὲ καὶ ὄνομα ξυντεθὲν ἐκ τοῦ πράγματος" μητροδίδακτον γὰρ αὐτὸν. ### English translation (Claude) You have perhaps heard, men, of that Aristippus, the grandson, through his daughter, of Aristippus the companion of Socrates. He lived with his mother, who practised philosophy, and gained a very large share of philosophy. He also received a name made up from the fact; for they called him 'Mother-taught' ### Translation notes - The younger Aristippus, called Metrodidaktos (“taught by his mother”), was the grandson of Aristippus of Cyrene through Arete. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.1 (Raeder, 272; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-1). ## Discourse 11.2 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-11-2 - Source: Raeder, 272 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Aristippus learned from his mother alone, but the Greeks will not learn the truth from prophets, apostles and teachers. ### Greek text ὠνόμαζον ἅπαντες. ἀλλ ἐκείνῳ μὲν ἤρκεσεν εἰς μετουσίαν φιλοσοφίας καὶ μόνα τῆς μητρὸς τὰ παιδεύματα᾽ ὑμεῖς δέ, καὶ προφητῶν τοσούτων καὶ ἀποστόλων ἀκούοντες. καὶ μέντοι καὶ τῶν μετ᾽ ἐκείνους ἐν διδασκαλίᾳ λαμψάντων, μαθεῖν οὐ βούλεσθε τὴν ἀλήθειαν. ### English translation (Claude) all of them. But for him his mother's teachings alone were enough for a share in philosophy; whereas you, though you hear so many prophets and apostles, and moreover those who shone in teaching after them, do not wish to learn the truth. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.2 (Raeder, 272; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-2). ## Discourse 11.3 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-11-3 - Source: Raeder, 273 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Greeks think Christian teaching profitless because it promises toil, not luxury and wealth. ### Greek text τοῦτο δὲ ὑμῖν ξυμβαίνεν τὸ πάθος, ἐπείπερ ἀνόνητα τυχὸν ταυτὶ νομίζετε τὰ μαθήματα. οὐ γὰρ Συρακχουσίαν χλιδὴν οὐδέ γε ἀνειμένον καὶ ἁβροδίαιτον ἐπαγγέλλεται βίον οὐδὲ υτὸν πολυάρατον πλοῦτον καὶ τῶν ἐκείνου δευμάτων τὸν εὔριπον, ἀλλ᾽ ἵδρῶτας καὶ πόνους καὶ πολιτείαν πολύμοχθον. ### English translation (Claude) This affliction befalls you because you perhaps think these teachings profitless. For they do not promise Syracusan luxury, nor a slack and soft-living life, nor that much-desired wealth … and the flood of his streams, but sweat and toil and a laborious way of life. ### Translation notes - A name seems to be lost before “that much-desired wealth” (the printed υτὸν); the “flood of his streams” suggests a proverbially rich man, perhaps Croesus and the Pactolus; uncertain. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.3 (Raeder, 273; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-3). ## Discourse 11.4 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-11-4 - Source: Raeder, 273 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Greeks see the toil but not its unseen end, for they lack the eyes that faith creates. ### Greek text ταῦτα γὰρ ὑμῖν κατάδηλα, τὸ δέ γε τούτων τέλος ἀθέατον. μόνα γάρ που εἰωθότες τὰ ὁρώμενα βλέπειν, ἰδεῖν οὐ δύνασθὲ τῶν ἀοράτων τὴν φύσιν᾽ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς γὰρ ἐκείνους οὐκ ἔχετε, ὧν ἡ πίστις δημιουργός. ### English translation (Claude) For these things are plain to you, but their end is unseen. For being accustomed, it seems, to look only at what is seen, you cannot see the nature of what is unseen; for you do not have those eyes of which faith is the maker. ### Scripture references - 2 Cor 4:18: allusion, low confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.4 (Raeder, 273; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-4). ## Discourse 11.5 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-11-5 - Source: Raeder, 273 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret proposes to compare the philosophers' definitions of the end with the promises of the Gospels. ### Greek text ἐγὼ δὲ ὑμῖν, ὡς ἔμοιγε δυνατὸν καὶ ὑμῖν χωρητόν, δηλώσω καὶ ταῦτα, τῇ τῶν θείων λογίων πάλιν χρώμενος δαδουχίᾳ. προύργου δὲ οἶμαν δεῖξαι καὶ νῦν ἐκ παραλλήλου τῶν φιλοσόφων τὰς δόξας καὶ τῶν θείων εὐαγγελίων τὰ δόγματα, ἵνα γνῶτε, τί μὲν ἐκεῖνοι τέλος ὡρίσαντο, τί δὲ οἱ θεῖοι ἐπαγγέλλονταν λόγοι. ### English translation (Claude) But I will make these things plain to you too, as far as I am able and you are able to take in, using again the torchlight of the divine oracles. I think it useful now as well to set the opinions of the philosophers side by side with the doctrines of the divine Gospels, so that you may know what end those men defined and what the divine words promise. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.5 (Raeder, 273; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-5). ## Discourse 11.6 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-11-6 - Source: Raeder, 273 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Epicurus made pleasure the end, and Democritus, his forerunner, called the same thing cheerfulness. ### Greek text Ὁ μὲν οὖν ᾿Επίκουρος τὸ ἥδιστα ζῆν ὡρίσατο τέλος" τέλεον γὰρ ἀγαθὸν μόνην ἡγεῖτο τὴν ἡδονήν. Δημόκριτος δὲ ὁ Ἀβδηρίνης, ὃ τῶν τούτου δογμάτων πατήρ, ἀντὶ τῆς ἡδονῆς τὴν εὐθυμίαν τέθεικεν, ὀνομάτων, οὐ δογμάτων ἐναλλαγὴν ποιησάμενος. ### English translation (Claude) Epicurus, then, defined the end as living most pleasantly; for he held pleasure alone to be the perfect good. Democritus of Abdera, the father of his doctrines, put cheerfulness in place of pleasure, making an exchange of names, not of doctrines. ### Extrabiblical texts - Epicurus (Epicurus (sayings and fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Democritus (Democritus (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 2.21.127-2.21.131 (Miscellanies): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The list of philosophers' definitions of the end in 11.6–15 follows Clement of Alexandria, Miscellanies 2.21.127–131, closely. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.6 (Raeder, 273; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-6). ## Discourse 11.7 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-11-7 - Source: Raeder, 273 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Heraclitus made contentment the end, which, being undefined, amounts to whatever pleases each person. ### Greek text καὶ “Ἡράκλειτος δὲ ὁ ᾿Εφέσιος τὴν μὲν προσηγορίαν μετέβαλε, τὴν δὲ διάνοιαν καταλέλοιπεν" ἀντὶ γὰρ τῆς ἡδονῆς εὐαρέστησιν τέθεικεν. ἔχει δέ τινα καὶ ἑτέραν ἔμφασιν οὗτος ὃ ὅρος. ἀορίστως γὰρ τὴν εὐαρέστησιν τέθεικε, τὸ δὲ αὐτῆς ποιὸν οὐ δεδήλωκεν. διάφοροι δὲ τῶν ἀνθρώπων αἵ γνῶμαι" τοὺς μὲν γὰρ ἀρέσκει σωφροσύνη, τοὺς δὲ ἡ ταύτης ἐναντία κάκη᾽ καὶ τοὺς μὲν ἀκρασία, τοὺς δὲ ἐγκράτεια" καὶ τούτους μὲν ἄδικος καὶ πλεονεκτικὸς βίος, ἐκείνους δὲ δίκαιος. τὸ τοίνυν ἑκάστῳ ἀρέσκον, ἡδύ τε καὶ ἀξιέραστον, οὗτος ὡρίσατο. τέλος. ἀντὶ τῆς ἡδονῆς τὴν εὐαρέστησιν τεθειπώς. ### English translation (Claude) And Heraclitus of Ephesus changed the name but kept the meaning; for in place of pleasure he put contentment. This definition also carries another implication. For he set down contentment without defining it, and did not show its quality. But the judgements of men differ: some are pleased by temperance, others by the vice opposed to it; some by incontinence, others by self-control; these by an unjust and grasping life, those by a just one. So he defined as the end what pleases each person and is pleasant and lovable to him, putting contentment in place of pleasure. ### Extrabiblical texts - Heraclitus (Heraclitus (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.7 (Raeder, 273; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-7). ## Discourse 11.8 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-11-8 - Source: Raeder, 274 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Pythagoras, Hecataeus, Antisthenes and Anaxagoras each named a different final good; Anaxagoras's contemplation and freedom is the most fitting. ### Greek text ὁ δὲ πολυθρύλητος Πυθαγόρας τὴν τελεωτάτην τῶν ἀριθμῶν ἐπιστήμην ἔσχατον ὑπέλαβεν ἀγαθόν᾽ ὃ ἱἙκαταῖος δὲ τὴν αὐτάρχειων, ὁ δὲ Ἀντισθένης τὴν ἀτυφίαν, Ἀναξαγόρας δὲ ὃ Κλαζομένιος τὴν θεωρίαν τοῦ βίου καὶ τὴν ἀπὸ ταύτης ἐλευθερίαν, φιλοσόφῳ δὴ πρέποντα ὁρισάμενος ὅρον. μέγιστον γὰρ ἀληθῶς ἀγαθὸν τὸ ξυνιδεῖν τῶν πραγμάτων τὴν φύσιν καὶ τῶν ῥεόντων καταφρονῆσαι καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν ἀδούλωτον καὶ ἐλευθέραν διατηρῆσαι. ### English translation (Claude) The much-talked-of Pythagoras took the most perfect knowledge of numbers to be the final good; Hecataeus, self-sufficiency; Antisthenes, freedom from vanity; and Anaxagoras of Clazomenae, contemplation as the way of life and the freedom that comes from it, laying down a definition fitting for a philosopher. For truly the greatest good is to understand the nature of things, to despise what passes away, and to keep the soul unenslaved and free. ### Extrabiblical texts - Hecataeus (Hecataeus of Abdera): allusion, low confidence - Antisthenes (Antisthenes (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Anaxagoras (Anaxagoras): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.8 (Raeder, 274; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-8). ## Discourse 11.9 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-11-9 - Source: Raeder, 274 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's definition of the end, likeness to God as far as possible, is admirable, because no creature can be like God in every respect. ### Greek text Πλάτων δὲ ὁ Ἀρίστωνος τῇ μεγαλονοίᾳ τοῦ ὅρου καὶ τοῦτον ἀπέκρυψε" τὸ γὰρ οὁμοιωθῆναι τῷ θεῷ κατὰ τὸ δυνατόν" τέλος ὡρίσατο. ἀγαθῶν. ἀξιέπαιννος μὲν οὖν καὶ ἡ περὶ τὴν μίμησιν τῶν θείων παραίνεσις" ἡ δὲ τοῦ «κατὰ τὸ δυνατόν“ προσθήκη ἀξιαγαστότερον τὸν ὅρον ἀπέφηνεν οὐ γὰρ χατὰ πάντα δυνατὸν ὁμοιωθῆγαν Θεῷ, πῶς γὰρ ἄν τις ὁρατὸς ὧν ὁμοιωθείη τῷ ἀοράτῳ, χαὶ βραχὺς ὧν ἃ καὶ τόπῳ σμικρῷ περιγεγραμμένος τῷ ἀπεριγράφῳ καὶ τὴν κτίσιν ξυνέχοντι, καὶ αὖ πάλιν τῷ αἰωνίῳ πρόσφατος ὦν, καὶ τῷ τὰ πάντα τεχτηναμένῳ μηδὲ πηχυαῖον οὐρανὸν δημιουργῆσαι δυνάμενος; ### English translation (Claude) But Plato son of Ariston outdid even him by the loftiness of his definition; for he defined the end of goods as 'to become like God as far as possible'. Praiseworthy indeed is the exhortation to imitate the divine; but the addition 'as far as possible' made the definition still more admirable. For it is not possible to become like God in every respect. For how could one who is visible become like the invisible, one who is small and bounded in a small place like the unbounded who holds creation together, one who is recent like the eternal, and one unable to make even a cubit's breadth of heaven like him who fashioned all things? ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Theaet. 176b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Theaetetus 176b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.9 (Raeder, 274; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-9). ## Discourse 11.10 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-11-10 - Source: Raeder, 274 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: We cannot imitate God's nature, power or wisdom, but can imitate his goodness and kindness, as Christ taught. ### Greek text τοιγάρτοι οὔτε τὴν φύσιν ἐκείνην οὔτε τὴν δύναμιν οὔτε. μὴν τὴν σοφίαν μιμήσασθαι δυνατόν᾽ τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ μέντοι καὶ δικαίου καὶ ἡμέρου καὶ φιλανθρώπου τύπους ἀμηγέπη τινὰς ἐπμάξασθαι. οἷόν τε. καὶ γὰρ ὃ δεσπότης Χριστὸς ταύτην τοῖς τελειό-τητος ἐφιεμένοις τὴν μίμησιν προὔθηκε᾽..γίνεσθε γάρ. φησιν..οἰκτίρμονες, καθὼς καὶ ὃ πατὴρ ὑμῶν ὁ οὐράνιος οἰκτίρμων ἐστέν᾽ ὅτι ἀνατέλλει τὸν ἥλιον αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ πονηροὺς καὶ ἀγαθοὺς καὶ βρέχει ἐπὶ δικαίους καὶ ἀδίκους.“ ### English translation (Claude) Therefore it is not possible to imitate that nature, nor the power, nor indeed the wisdom; but it is possible in some way to take impressions of [his being] good and just and gentle and loving toward humankind. For the Master Christ too set this imitation before those who aim at perfection: 'Be merciful,' he says, 'as your heavenly Father also is merciful; for he makes his sun rise on the wicked and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust.' ### Scripture references - Luke 6:36: quotation, high confidence - Matt 5:45: quotation, high confidence - Matt 5:48: allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - Luke 6:36 combined with Matt 5:45 (Matt 5:48 recalled). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.10 (Raeder, 274; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-10). ## Discourse 11.11 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-11-11 - Source: Raeder, 275 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates called the just man happy and held that only the just is truly advantageous. ### Greek text καὶ ὁ τοῦ Πλάτωνος δὲ διδάσκαλος, ὁ Σωφρονίσκου Σωἀράτης. οὐ τὸν πλούτῳ περιρρεόμενον καὶ ἐξ οὐρίων φερόμένον, ἀλλὰ τὸν δικαιοσύνῃ κοσμούμενον εὐδαίμονα εἰώθεν καλεῖν" καὶ ἀσεβεῖς ὠνόμαζε τοὺς τὸ ξυμφέρον τοῦ δικαίου χωρίζοντας᾽ μόνον γὰρ εἶναι ξυμφέρον τὸ δίκαιον ἔλεγεν. ### English translation (Claude) And Plato's teacher too, Socrates son of Sophroniscus, used to call happy not the man flowing with wealth and borne along by favouring winds, but the man adorned with justice; and he called impious those who separate the advantageous from the just; for he said that the just alone is advantageous. ### Extrabiblical texts - Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 2.22.131 (Miscellanies): allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - Compare Clement, Miscellanies 2.22.131, and Cicero, On Duties 3.11. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.11 (Raeder, 275; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-11). ## Discourse 11.12 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-11-12 - Source: Raeder, 275 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The orators who separated justice from advantage contradicted themselves, for the unjust is harmful. ### Greek text οἱ δέ γε ῥήτορες τούτων ἐπαΐειν τῶν λόγων οὐκ ἤθελον᾽ ἄλλο γάρ τι παρὰ τὸ ξυμφέρον εἶναι τὸ δίκαιον ἔλεγον, ἀξύμφορον ταύτῃ πῃ τὸ ξυμφέρον δεικνύντες" ἄδικον γὰρ δήπουθεν τὸ τοῦ δικαίου κεχωρισμένον" τὸ δέ γε ἄδικον βλαβερόν" τὸ δὲ βλαβερὸν οὐκ ἂν εἰκότως πκληθείη ξυμφέρον. ### English translation (Claude) But the orators would not listen to these words; for they said that the just is something other than the advantageous, in this way showing the advantageous to be disadvantageous. For what is separated from the just is surely unjust; and the unjust is harmful; and the harmful could not fittingly be called advantageous. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.12 (Raeder, 275; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-12). ## Discourse 11.13 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-11-13 - Source: Raeder, 275 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Aristotle departed from Plato by requiring bodily and external goods, besides virtue, for happiness. ### Greek text ὃ μὲν οὖν Πλάτων καὶ Σωκράτης. καὶ ξύμφωνα ἐφάτην καὶ ἀξιέπαινα᾽ Ἀριστοτέλης δέ, τῆς Πλάτωνος διδασκαλίας μεταλαχών, τούτων οὐκ ἀπώνατο τῶν δογμάτων, ἀλλὰ ξυμπληροῦσθαι τὴν εὐδαιμονίαν ἐκ τριγενείας ἔφη, ἐκ τῶν πατὰ ψυχήν, ἐπ τῶν πατὰ σῶμα, ἐκ τῶν ἐκτός᾽ χρῆναι γὰρ τὸν εὐδαίμονα ἔλεγε μὴ μόνον ἀρετῇ κοσμεῖσθαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ ῥώμην ἔχειν καὶ ὥρᾳ λάμπειν καὶ πλούτῳ περιρρεῖσθαι" τὸν δέ τινος τούτων ἐστερημένον ἥκιστα καλεῖσθαν εὐδαίμονα. ### English translation (Claude) Plato and Socrates, then, said things that agree and deserve praise. But Aristotle, though he shared in Plato's teaching, did not profit from these doctrines, but said that happiness is made up of three kinds of goods: those of the soul, those of the body, and external ones. For he said that the happy man must not only be adorned with virtue, but also have strength, shine with beauty and abound in wealth; and that one deprived of any of these is by no means to be called happy. ### Extrabiblical texts - Aristotle (Aristotle (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.13 (Raeder, 275; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-13). ## Discourse 11.14 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-11-14 - Source: Raeder, 276 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Aristotle's view echoes Simonides on health, beauty and wealth, and Theognis's advice to flee poverty at any cost. ### Greek text μᾶλλον δὲ οὗτος, ὡς ἔρώκεν, ἡκολούθησε Σιμωνίδῃ τῷ ποιητῇ ἐκεῖνος γὰρ ἔφη",.ὑγιαίνειν μὲν ἄριστον ἀνδρί" δεύτερον δὲ φυὰν καλὸν γενέσθαι" τρίτον δὲ πλουτεῖν ἀδόλως. καὶ θέογνις δὲ τὴν πενίαν φεύγειν παρεγγυῷ καί εφησιν᾽ οχρὴ πενίην φεύγοντα καὶ ἐς μεγακήτεα πόντον ### English translation (Claude) Or rather he followed, as it seems, the poet Simonides; for he said: 'For a man, to be healthy is best; second, to be born fair in form; third, to be rich without deceit.' And Theognis too urges men to flee poverty, and says: 'Fleeing poverty one must throw oneself even into the deep-gulfed sea ### Extrabiblical texts - Theognis, 175-176 (Theognis (elegies)): quotation, high confidence - Simonides (Simonides): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Simonides, the skolion on the best things (fr. 651 PMG); Theognis 175–176. No controlled id exists for Simonides. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.14 (Raeder, 276; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-14). ## Discourse 11.15 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-11-15 - Source: Raeder, 276 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Stoics defined the end as life according to nature, treated bodily goods as indifferent, and boldly held that human and divine virtue are the same. ### Greek text βιπτεῖν καὶ πετρῶν, Κύρνε, κατ᾽ ἠλιβάτων.“ οἱ δὲ Στωϊκοὶ ἐναντία τούτοις ἄντικρυς ἐψηφίσαντο. τὸ γὰρ ἀκολούθως τῇ φύσει ξῆν ὡρίσαντο τέλος καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν ἔφασαν μηδὲν ὑπὸ τοῦ σώμοτος ἢ ὠφελεῖσθαι ἢ βλάπτεσθαι᾽ οὔτε γὰρ εἰς ἀρετὴν αὐτὴν ἡ ὑγίδξια μὴ βουλομένην βιάζεται, οὔτε εἰς κακίαν παρὰ γνώμην ἡ νόσος καθέλπει᾽ ἀδιάφορα γὰρ ταῦτα ἔλεγον εἶναι. ἐκεῖνο δὲ γε αὐτῶν πομιδῇ τολμηρόν" ᾿ ἀνθρώπου γάρ τοι καὶ θεοῦ τὴν αὐτὴν ἔλεγον ἀρετήν. ### English translation (Claude) and down from steep rocks, Cyrnus.' The Stoics voted directly against these. For they defined the end as living in accordance with nature, and said that the soul is neither helped nor harmed by the body. For neither does health force it to virtue against its will, nor does disease drag it down to vice against its judgement; for they said these things are indifferent. But this point of theirs is very bold: for they said that man and God have the same virtue. ### Extrabiblical texts - Theognis, 175-176 (Theognis (elegies)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Theognis 176 (end of the quotation). The Stoic sayings are not attributed to a named Stoic. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.15 (Raeder, 276; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-15). ## Discourse 11.16 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-11-16 - Source: Raeder, 276 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Epicurus defined happiness as freedom from hunger and thirst and boasted that one who had it could rival Zeus, a blasphemy aimed, Theodoret says, at God himself. ### Greek text ᾿Επίκουρος δέ, τὴν ἐναντίαν τούτοις ὁδεύσας, τὸ μήτε πεινῆν μήτε διψῆν εὐδαιμονίαν ὡρίσατο, καὶ τούτων τὸν ἀπολαύοντὰ ἔλεγε κἂν πατρὶ μάχεσθαι᾽ οὕτως αὐτὸν τὸ φιλήδονον ἐπαιδοτρίβησεν εἰς ἀσέβειαν. μὴ γὰρ δή τις μόνον ἴδῃ τὸ παρ αὐτοῦ πωμῳδούμενον ὄνομα, τὸν Δία λέγω" τὸν γὰρ δὴ τῶν ὅλων Θεὸν οὕτω νοῶν ἐκεῖνος τὴν βλασφημίαν ἐτόλμησεν. ### English translation (Claude) Epicurus, taking the road opposite to these, defined happiness as neither hungering nor thirsting, and said that the one who enjoys these could fight even with the Father; so did his love of pleasure train him into impiety. For let no one look only at the name he ridiculed, I mean Zeus; for it was with the God of all in mind that he dared this blasphemy. ### Extrabiblical texts - Epicurus (Epicurus (sayings and fragments)): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Epicurus's saying (fr. 602 Usener) is that whoever has bread and water could rival Zeus himself in happiness; Clement, Miscellanies 2.21.131 has “Zeus”, the text here “the Father”. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.16 (Raeder, 276; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-16). ## Discourse 11.17 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/10-59/#p-11-17 - Source: Raeder, 276 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Epicurus's atomism denied providence and judgement, but Plato describes the judgement and punishments after death. ### Greek text τοῦτο δὲ πέπονθεν ὁ τρισάθλιος, τῷ αὐτομάτῳ καὶ τοῖς ἀτόμοις πιστεύων καὶ ἀνηγεμόνευτα εἶναι καὶ ἀτημέλητα τὰ πάντα ἡγούμενος καὶ τῶν βεβιωμένων οὐ προσμένων ἐξέτασιν, ἀλλὰ μέχρι τῶν τάφων εἶναι νομίζων τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὴν ξύστασιν. ὃ δὲ Πλάτων καὶ τὰ δικαστήρια τὰ ἐκεῖ καὶ τὰ κολαστήρια δείπνυσι καί φησιν ### English translation (Claude) The thrice-wretched man suffered this because he trusted in chance and in atoms, thought that all things are without guide and without care, did not await an examination of the lives men have lived, but held that the being of men lasts only until the tomb. But Plato shows both the courts there and the places of punishment, and says ### Extrabiblical texts - Epicurus (Epicurus (sayings and fragments)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.17 (Raeder, 276; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-17). ## Discourse 11.18 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-18 - Source: Raeder, 277 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret quotes Plato's myth of Er on the punishment of the wicked tyrant and others. ### Greek text ἐν τῷ δεκάτῳ τῆς Πολιτείας,ἐνταῦθα δὴ ἄνδρες ἄγριοι, διάπυροι ἰδεῖν, παρεστῶτες καὶ καταμανθάνοντες τὸ φθέγμα, τοὺς μὲν ἰδίᾳ παραλαμβάνοντες ἦγον, τὸν δὲ Ἀριδαῖον καὶ ἄλλους, ξυμποδίσαντες χεῖράς τε καὶ πόδας καὶ κεφαλήν, καταβαλόντες καὶ ἐκδείραντες εἷλκον παρὰ τὴν ὁδὸν ἐκτός, ### English translation (Claude) in the tenth book of the Republic: 'There, then, savage men, fiery to look upon, standing by and perceiving the sound, took some away and led them off separately; but Aridaeus and others they bound hand and foot and head, threw them down and flayed them, and dragged them outside along the road, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 615e-616a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 10.615e–616a (Plato names him Ardiaeus). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.18 (Raeder, 277; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18). ## Discourse 11.19 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-19 - Source: Raeder, 277 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Phaedo describes the fiery river that winds beneath the earth into Tartarus. ### Greek text ἐπ᾽ ἀσπαλάθων κνάπτοντες. κἀν τῷ Φαίδωνι δὲ τὰ παραπλήσια λέγει" ο,τρίτος γάρ φησι ποταμὸς τούτων κατὰ μέσον ἐκβάλλει, καὶ ἐγγὺς τῆς ἐχβολῆς ἐχπίπτει εἰς τόπον μέγαν πυρὶ πολλῷ καιόμενον καὶ λίμνην ποιεῖ μείξω τῆς παρ᾽ ἡμῖν θαλάττης, ζέουσαν ὕδατος καὶ πηλοῦ. ἐντεῦθεν δὲ χωρεῖ κύκλῳ θολερὸς καὶ πηλώδης" περιξλιττόμενος δέ, ἄλλοσέ τε ἀφικνεῖται καὶ παρ᾽ ἔσχατα τῆς ᾿Αχερουσίας λίμνης καὶ οὐ ξυμμίγνυται τῷ ὕδατι" περιελιχθεὶς δὲ πολλάκις ὑπὸ γῆν, ἐμβάλλει κατωτέρω τοῦ Ταρτάρου. ### English translation (Claude) carding them on thorns.' And in the Phaedo too he says similar things: 'A third river issues between these, and near its source it falls into a great place burning with much fire, and makes a lake larger than our sea, boiling with water and mud. From there it goes round in a circle, turbid and muddy, and winding about it comes to other places and to the edge of the Acherusian lake, but does not mingle with its water; and having wound many times beneath the earth, it empties into Tartarus at a lower point. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 113a-b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 10.616a (end of the previous quotation); Phaedo 113a–b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.19 (Raeder, 277; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-19). ## Discourse 11.20 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-20 - Source: Raeder, 277 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Phaedo describes Pyriphlegethon and the Stygian river and their courses into Tartarus. ### Greek text οὗτος δέ ἐστιν, ὃν ἐπονομάζουσι Πυριφλεγέθοντα᾽ οὗ καὶ οἵ ῥύακες ἀποσπάὅματα ἀναφυσῶσιν, ὅπου ἂν τύχωσι τῆς γῆς. τούτου δ᾽ αὖ κατάντικρυ ὃ τέταρτος ἐκπίπτει εἰς τόπον δεινόν τε καὶ ἄγφιον. λέγεται δὲ χρῶμα ἔχειν ὅλον οἷον ὁ ἐνανός᾽ ὃν δὴ ἐπονομάξουσι Στύγιον᾽ καὶ τὴν λίμνην, ἣν ποιεῖ ὃ ποταμὸς ἐμβάλλων, Στύγα. ὁ δὲ ἐμπεσὼν ἐνταῦθα καί τινας δυνάμεις λαβὼν ἐν τῷ ὕδατι, δὺς κατὰ τῆς γῆς καὶ περιξ-. λιπτόμενος, χωρεῖ ἐναντίος τῷ Πυριφλεγέθοντι καὶ ἀπαντᾷ ἐν τῇ Ἀχερουσίᾳ λίμνῃ ἐξ ἐναντίας. καὶ οὐδὲ τὸ ταύτης ὕδωρ οὐδενὶ μίγνυται, ἀλλὰ καὶ οὗτος κύκλῳ περιελθὼν ἐμβάλλει εἰς τὸν Τάρταρον ἐναντίος τῷ Πυριφλεγέθοντι.": ### English translation (Claude) This is the one they call Pyriphlegethon, whose streams blow up fragments wherever they happen to reach the earth. Opposite this, in turn, the fourth river falls out into a terrible and wild place, which is said to be all of the colour of lapis lazuli; they call it the Stygian, and the lake which the river makes by flowing in, the Styx. And having fallen in there and taken on certain powers in the water, it sinks beneath the earth and, winding round, goes in the opposite direction to Pyriphlegethon and meets it from the opposite side in the Acherusian lake. And its water too mingles with none, but this one also goes round in a circle and empties into Tartarus opposite Pyriphlegethon.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 113b-c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 113b–c. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.20 (Raeder, 277; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-20). ## Discourse 11.21 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-21 - Source: Raeder, 278 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret refers readers to the Phaedo for Plato's account of graded punishments and quotes a few lines. ### Greek text καὶ ἵνα μὴ πάντα λέγων μακροτέραν ἐργάσωμαι τὴν διάλεξιν, ῥάδιον, ὦ ἄνδρες, ἐντυχεῖν. τῷδε τῷ διαλόγῳ καὶ γνῶναι σαφῶς, ὅπως καὶ τὸ δικαστήριον ἐπιδείπνυσι καὶ τῶν τὰ σμικρὰ ἡμαρτηκότων τὰ ξύμμετρα ἐπιτίμια καὶ τῶν τὰ μεγάλα καὶ πλεῖστα ἠσεβηκότων τὰς ἀνηκέστους κολάσεις. ὀλίγων δέ πῇ τινων ἀπομνημονεύσω κἀγώ" λέγει δὲ οὕτως" ### English translation (Claude) And so that I do not make the discourse longer by telling everything, it is easy, men, to read this dialogue and to learn clearly how he shows the court, and the penalties measured to those who have sinned in small things, and the incurable punishments of those who have committed great and very many impieties. I too will recall a few of his words. He speaks thus: ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 113d-114c (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.21 (Raeder, 278; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-21). ## Discourse 11.22 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-22 - Source: Raeder, 278 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato distinguishes incurable sinners, cast into Tartarus for ever, from curable ones who are released after a year. ### Greek text ..οδἱ δ᾽ ἃ ἂν ν δόξωσιν ἀνηκέστως ἔχειν διὰ τὰ μεγέθη τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων, ἢ. ἱεροσυλίας πολλὰς καὶ μεγάλας ἢ φόνους πολλοὺς ἀδίκους καὶ παρανόμους ἐξειργασμένοι ἢ ἄλλα, ὅσα τυγχάνει τοιαῦτα ὄντα, τούτους δὲ ἡ προσήκουσα μοῖρα ῥίπτει εἰς τὸν Τάρταρον, ὅθεν οὔποτ᾽ ἐκβαίνουσιν. οἱ δ᾽ ἂν ἰατὰ μέν, μεγάλα δὲ δόξωσιν ἡμαρτηπέναν ἁμαρτήματα, οἷον πρὸς πατέρα ἢ πρὸς μητέρα ὑπ᾽ ὀργῆς βίαιόν τι πράξαντες, καὶ μεταμέλον αὐτοῖς τὸν ἄλλον βίον βιῶσιν, ἢ ἀνδροφόνοι ἢ τοιούτῳ τινὶ ἄλλῳ τρόπῳ γένωνται, τούτους δεῖ ἐμπεσεῖν μὲν εἰς τὸν Τάρταρον, ἐμπεσόντας δὲ αὐτοὺς καὶ ἐνιαὐτὸν ἐκεῖ. γενομένους ἐκβάλλει τὸ κῦμα, τοὺς μὲν ἀνδροόνους κατὰ τὸν Κωχυτόν, τοὺς δὲ πατραλοίας κατὰ τὸν Πυριφλεγέθοντα κ΄. ### English translation (Claude) 'But those who are judged to be incurable because of the greatness of their sins, having committed many great temple-robberies, or many unjust and lawless murders, or other things of that kind, these the fitting fate hurls into Tartarus, from which they never come out. But those who are judged to have committed sins that are curable but great, such as having done some violence to father or mother in anger and having lived the rest of their life in repentance, or who have become manslayers in some other such way, these must fall into Tartarus; and when they have fallen in and been there a year, the wave casts them out, the manslayers by way of Cocytus and the parricides by way of Pyriphlegethon.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 113e-114a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 113e–114a. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.22 (Raeder, 278; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-22). ## Discourse 11.23 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-23 - Source: Raeder, 279 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato describes the curable sinners begging their victims for pardon, and then turns to the abodes of the righteous. ### Greek text εἶτα διδάσκει, ὅπως βοῶσί τε καὶ κετεύουσι τοὺς ἠδικημένους δοῦναν σφίσι ξυγγνώμην᾽ ἔπειτα ἐκείνων ἀνανευόντων, ὅπως εἰς τὴν λίμνην αὖθις ἀναπεμπόμένοι τὰς αὐτὰς ὑπομένουσι τιμωρίας. οὕτω δὴ τὰ κολαστήρια δείξας» παραδηλοῖ καὶ τῶν εὖ βεβιωκότων τοὺς ### English translation (Claude) Then he teaches how they shout and beseech those they wronged to grant them pardon; and then, when those refuse, how they are sent back again into the lake and endure the same punishments. Having thus shown the places of punishment, he also indicates the ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 114a-b (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 114a–b (paraphrased). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.23 (Raeder, 279; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-23). ## Discourse 11.24 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-24 - Source: Raeder, 279 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Phaedo promises the holy a pure dwelling above and the philosophers still finer abodes, as the prize of virtue. ### Greek text χώρους, ὧδέ πῃ λέγων" «οἱ δ᾽ ἂν δόξωσι διαφερόντως πρὸς τὸ ὁσίως διαβιῶναι προκεκρίσθαι, οὗτοί εἰσιν οἵ τῶνδε μὲν τῶν τόπων τῶν ἐν τῇ γῇ ἐλευθερούμενοι καὶ ἀπαλλαττόμενον ὥσπερ δεσμωτηρίων, ἄνω δὲ εἰς τὴν καθαρὰν οἴκησιν ἀφικνούμενοι καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς οἰκιζόμενοι. τούτων δὲ αὐτῶν οἱ φιλοσοφίᾳ ἱκανῶς καθηράμενον ἄνευ τε καμάτων ξῶσι τὸ παράπαν εἰς τὸν΄ ἔπειτα χρόνον καὶ εἰς οἰκήσεις ἔτι τούτῶν παλλίους ἀφικνοῦνται, ἃς οὔτε ῥῴδιον δηλῶσαι, οὔτε ὁ χφόνος ἱκανὸς ἐν τῷ παρόντι" ἀλλὰ τούτων δὴ εἵνεκα χρή; ὧν διεληλύθαμεν,, ὦ Σιμμία, πᾶν ποιεῖν, ὥστε ἀρετῆς καὶ φρονήσεως μετασχεῖν. καλὸν γὰρ τὸ ἄθλον, χαὶ ἡ ### English translation (Claude) regions of those who have lived well, speaking somewhat thus: 'But those who are judged to have been outstanding for a holy life, these are the ones who are freed and released from these regions within the earth as from prisons, and come up above to the pure dwelling, and make their home upon the earth. And of these themselves, those who have been sufficiently purified by philosophy live altogether without toils for all time to come, and come to dwellings still more beautiful than these, which it is not easy to describe, nor is the time sufficient at present. But for the sake of these things which we have described, Simmias, one must do everything to share in virtue and wisdom. For the prize is fair, and the ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 114b-c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 114b–c. Theodoret's text reads “without toils” where Plato has “without bodies”. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.24 (Raeder, 279; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-24). ## Discourse 11.25 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-25 - Source: Raeder, 279 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: In the Gorgias Plato tells as true the account of the righteous going to the Isles of the Blessed and the unjust to punishment. ### Greek text ἐλπὶς μεγάλη.“ χἀν τῷ ΓΙ Ὀργίᾳ δὲ τὰ παραπλήσια λέγει" μἄκουε δὴ μάλα παλοῦ λόγου, ὃν σὺ μὲν ἡγήσῃ μῦθον, ὡς ἐγὼ οἶμαι, ἐγὼ δὲ λόγον᾽ ὡς ἀληθῆ γὰρ ὄντα σοι λεγέσθω, ἃ μέλλω λέγειν καὶ μετ΄ ὀλίγα᾽..τὸν δὲ δικαίως τὸν βίον διεληλυθότα καὶ ὁσίως, ἐπειδὰν τελευτήσῃ, εἰς μακάρων γήσους ἀπιόντα οἰκεῖν ἐν πάσῃ εὐδαιμονίᾳ ἐκτὸς κακῶν" τὸν -δὲ ἀδίκως. καὶ ἀθέως εἰς τὸ τῆς πρίσεώρ τε καὶ δίκης ### English translation (Claude) hope great.' And in the Gorgias too he says similar things: 'Listen, then, as they say, to a very fine account, which you will consider a myth, I think, but I consider an account; for what I am about to tell you I will tell you as true.' And a little later: 'The one who has gone through life justly and holily, when he dies, departs to the Isles of the Blessed to dwell in all happiness apart from evils; but the one who has lived unjustly and godlessly goes into the prison of judgement and penalty, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Gorg. 523a-b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 114c (end); Gorgias 523a–b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.25 (Raeder, 279; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-25). ## Discourse 11.26 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-26 - Source: Raeder, 280 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato says the dead must be judged stripped of everything by a judge who looks at the bare soul, so that the judgement may be just. ### Greek text δεσμωτήριον, ὃ δὴ Τάρταρον καλοῦσιν, ἰέναι.Ζ καὶ αὖθις᾽ ἔπειτα γυμνοὺς πριτέον ἁπάντων τούτων τεθνεῶτας γὰρ δεῖ κρίνεσθαι" καὶ τὸν πριτὴν δεῖ γυμνὸν εἶναι τεθνεῶτα, αὐτῇ τῇ ψυχῇ αὐτὴν τὴν ψυχὴν θεωροῦντα ἐξαίφνης ἀποθανόντος ἑκάστου, ἔφημον πάντων δυγγενῶν, καταλιπόντα ἐπὶ γῆς πάντα ἐκεῖνον τὸν κόσμον, ἵνα δικαία ἡ ἧ κρίσις ἢ.“ ### English translation (Claude) which they call Tartarus.' And again: 'Then they must be judged stripped of all these things; for they must be judged when dead. And the judge too must be naked, dead, beholding with his very soul the very soul of each one as soon as he has died, bereft of all his kin and having left behind on earth all that adornment, so that the judgement may be just.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Gorg. 523e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Gorgias 523b; 523e. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.26 (Raeder, 280; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-26). ## Discourse 11.27 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-27 - Source: Raeder, 280 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret claims Plato learned of judgement after death from the Hebrew prophets in Egypt, citing Daniel's river of fire and Isaiah's undying worm and fire. ### Greek text οὕτως ἀκριβῶς ὃ Πλάτων ἐπίστευεν εἶναι τὰ ἐν “Διδου πριτήρια. ἐντυχὼν γὰρ Ἑβραίοις ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ, τῶν προφητικῶν πάντως λογίων ἐπήκουσε καὶ τὸν τοῦ πυρὸς ἔμαθε ποταμόν, ὃν ὁ θεσπέσιος ἐθεάσατο Δανιήλ, καὶ τοὺς Ἡσαΐου τοῦ θειοτάτου κατέμαθε λόγους. ἐκεῖνος γάρ που περὶ τῶν κολαξομένων φησίν᾽..ὃ σκώχηξ αὐτῶν οὐ τελευτήσει, καὶ τὸ πῦρ αὐτῶν οὐ σβεσθήσεται.“ καὶ πάλιν", τίς ἀναγγελεῖ ἡμῖν, ὅτι πῦρ καίεται; τίς ἀναγγελεῖ ἡμῖν τὸν τόπον τὸν αἰώνιον ### English translation (Claude) So exactly did Plato believe that the judgements in Hades exist. For having met Hebrews in Egypt, he surely heard the prophetic oracles and learned of the river of fire which the divine Daniel saw, and studied the words of the most divine Isaiah. For he says somewhere of those who are punished: 'Their worm will not die, and their fire will not be quenched.' And again: 'Who will tell us that a fire is burning? Who will tell us of the everlasting place?' ### Scripture references - Dan 7:10: allusion, high confidence - Isa 66:24: quotation, high confidence - Isa 33:14: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Dan 7:10; Isa 66:24; Isa 33:14 LXX. That Plato met Hebrews in Egypt and learned from their Scriptures is Theodoret's view, shared with earlier apologists (e.g. Eusebius, Preparation for the Gospel 11). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.27 (Raeder, 280; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-27). ## Discourse 11.28 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-28 - Source: Raeder, 280 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato mixed what he took from the prophets with Greek myth, as in the Gorgias passage on Rhadamanthys judging souls. ### Greek text Καὶ ἄλλα δὲ τοιαῦτα πλεῖστα ἔστι παρὰ τοῖς προφήταις εὑρεῖν, ὁ δὲ φιλόσοφος τὰ μὲν ἐκεῖθεν λαβών, τὰ δὲ ἐκ τῶν Ἑλληνικῶν ἀναμίξας μύθων, τοὺς περὶ τούτων ἐποιήσατο λόγους" καὶ τὰ ἐφεξῆς δὲ τὴν. αὐτὴν ἔχει διάνοιαν" »Ττῶν" γάρ φησι δικαστῶν, ὅπερ ἔλεγον, πρῶτον μὲν ὁ Ῥαδάμανθυς ἐκεῖνος, ἂν τοιοῦτόν τινὰ λάβῃ, ἄλλο μὲν περὶ αὐτοῦ οὐκ οἶδεν οὐδέν, οὔτε ὅστις οὔτε ὠντινῶν, ὅτι δὲ πογνηρός τις᾽ καὶ τοῦτο κατιδὼν ἀπέπεμψεν εἰς τὸν Τάρταρον, ἐπισημαινόμενος, ἐάν τε ἰάσιμος, ἐάν τε ἀνίατος εἶναι δοκῇ" ὁ δὲ ἐκεῖσε ἀφικόμενος τὰ προσήχοντα πάσχει. ἐνίοτε δέ, ἄλλην ἰδὼν ὁσίως βεβιωκυῖαν καὶ μετὰ ἀληθείὰς, ἀνδρὺς ἰδιώτου ἢ ἄλλου τινός, μάλιστα μέν, ὡς ἔγωγέ φημι, Καλλίκλεις, φιλοσόφου τὰ αὑτοῦ πράξαντος καὶ οὐ κλυ. πραγμονήσαντος ἐν τῷ βίῳ, ἠγάσθη τε καὶ εἰς μακάρων ### English translation (Claude) And many other such things can be found in the prophets. The philosopher took some things from there and mixed in others from the Greek myths, and so made his accounts of these matters; and what follows has the same meaning: 'Of the judges,' he says, 'as I said, first that Rhadamanthys, if he gets such a one, knows nothing else about him, neither who he is nor of what family, but only that he is a wicked man; and seeing this he sends him away to Tartarus, marking whether he seems curable or incurable; and he, arriving there, suffers what is fitting. But sometimes, seeing another soul that has lived holily and in truth, of a private man or of someone else, but most of all, Callicles, as I say, of a philosopher who did his own business and was no busybody in life, he admired it and sent it off to the Isles ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Gorg. 526b-c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Gorgias 526b–c. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.28 (Raeder, 280; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-28). ## Discourse 11.29 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-29 - Source: Raeder, 281 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Socrates resolves to present a healthy soul to the judge and urges Callicles to the contest of a good life. ### Greek text γήσους ἀπέπεμψεν.“ καὶ μετὰ βραχέα ἐπήγαγεν" «ἐγὼ μέν, ὦ ὦ Καλλίμλεις, ὑπὸ τούτων τῶν λόγων πέπεισμαι καὶ σκοπῶ, ὕπως ἀποφανοῦμαι τῷ πριτῇ ὡς ὑγιεστάτην τὴν ψυχήν. χαίρειν οὖν ἐάσας τὰς τιμὰς τῶν πολλῶν ἀνθρώπων, τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἀσκῶν πειράσομαι τῷ ὄντι, ὡς ἂν δύνωμαι, βέλτιστος ὥν, καὶ ζῆν, χαὶ ἐπειδὰν ἀποθνήσκω, ἀποθνήσκειν. παρακαλῶ δὲ χαὶ τοὺς ἄλλους ἅπαντας ἀνθρώπους, καθ' ὅσον δύναμαι᾽' καὶ δὴ σὲ ἀντιπαρακαλῶ ἐπὶ τοῦτον τὸν βίον, τὸν ἀγῶνα τοῦτον, ὅν φημι ἀντὶ πάντων τῶν ἐνθάδε ἀγώνων εἶναι" καὶ ὀνειδίξω. σε, ὅτι οὐχ οἷός τε εἶ σωυτῷ βοηθῆσαι; ὅταν ἡ δίκη σου ἢ καὶ ἡ κρίσις, ἣν ὃ νῦν ἔλεγον. ### English translation (Claude) of the Blessed.' And a little later he added: 'I, then, Callicles, am persuaded by these accounts, and I consider how I shall show my soul to the judge in the healthiest state. So, bidding farewell to the honours of the many and practising the truth, I will really try to live being as good as I can, and, when I die, to die so. And I call on all other men too, as far as I can; and I in turn call on you to this life and this contest, which I say is worth all the contests here; and I reproach you that you will not be able to help yourself when your trial and the judgement come which I was just now describing, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Gorg. 526d-e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Gorgias 526c–e. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.29 (Raeder, 281; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-29). ## Discourse 11.30 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-30 - Source: Raeder, 281 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato warns Callicles of his helplessness before the judge Aeacus and says no one can show a better life than the just one. ### Greek text ἀλλ᾽ ἐλθὼν παρὰ τὸν δικαστὴν ἐμεῖνον, τὸν τῆς Αἰγίνης υἱόν, ἐπειδάν σὲ ἐπιλαβόμενος ἐχεῖνος ἄγῃ, χασμήσει καὶ ἰλιγγιάσεις οὐδὲν ἧττον ἢ ἐγὼ ἐνθάδε καὶ σὺ ἐκεῖ" καί σε ἴσως τυπτήσει καὶ ἐπὶ κόρρης ἀτίμως καὶ πάντως προπηλακιεῖ, τάχα δ᾽ οὖν ταυτὶ μῦθός σοι δοκεῖ λέγεσθαι, ὥσπερ ὑπὸ γραύς, καὶ καταφρονεῖς αὐτῶν᾽ καὶ οὐδέν γ᾽ ἂν ἦν θαυμαστὸν καταφρονεῖν τούτων, εἰ ἐπιξητοῦντες εἴχομεν τούτων βελτίω καὶ ἀληθέστερα εὑρεῖν" γῦν δὲ ὁρᾷς, ὅτι τρεῖς ὄντες ὑμεῖς, οἵπερ σοφώτατοί ἐστε τῶν Ἑλλήνων, σύ τε καὶ Πῶλος καὶ Γοργίας, οὐκ ἔχετε ἀποδεῖξαι; ὡς χρὴ ἄλλον τινὰ βίον ἐξῆν ἢ τοῦτον, ὕσπερ ἐκεῖσε φαίνεται ξυμφέ ### English translation (Claude) but when you come before that judge, the son of Aegina, and he takes hold of you and leads you off, you will gape and grow dizzy there no less than I here, and perhaps someone will even strike you dishonourably on the jaw and insult you in every way. Perhaps, then, this seems to you a myth, as if told by an old woman, and you despise it; and it would be no wonder to despise it, if by searching we could find something better and truer; but as it is, you see that you three, who are the wisest of the Greeks, you and Polus and Gorgias, cannot show that one should live any other life than this, which appears advantageous there too.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Gorg. 526e-527b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Gorgias 526e–527b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.30 (Raeder, 281; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-30). ## Discourse 11.31 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-31 - Source: Raeder, 282 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato urges care for what frees from punishment hereafter, and in the Crito the laws tell Socrates to put justice first so as to answer for himself in Hades. ### Greek text ρων.“ τοιαῦτα κἀν τῷδε τῷ διαλόγῳ καὶ περὶ τῶν αὖτόθι διεξῆλθε καὶ σοφῶς μάλα παρήνεσεν ἐπιμεληθῆναι τούτων, ἃ τῶν ἐκεῖ πολαστηρίων ἐλευθεροῖ. πὰν τῷ Κρίτῶνι δὲ τοὺς νόμους εἰσάγει λέγοντας τῷ Σωκράτει" ἀλλ᾽ ὦ “Σώκρατες, πειθόμενος ἡμῖν τοῖς σοῖς τροφεῦσι, μήτε παῖ- δὰς περὶ πλείονος ποιοῦ μήτε τὸ ξῆν μήτε ἄλλο μηδὲν πρὸ τοῦ δικαίου, ἵνα εἰς “Διδου ἐλθὼν ἔχῃς ταῦτα πάντα ### English translation (Claude) Such things he went through in this dialogue too about what happens there, and very wisely urged care for the things that set one free from the punishments there. And in the Crito he brings in the laws saying to Socrates: 'But, Socrates, obey us, who brought you up, and do not value children, or life, or anything else above what is just, so that when you come to Hades you may have all this ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Crit. 54b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Crito 54b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.31 (Raeder, 282; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-31). ## Discourse 11.32 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-32 - Source: Raeder, 282 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: In the Apology Plato's Socrates argues that death is either nothingness or a migration of the soul, and so may be a good. ### Greek text ἀπολογήσασθαι τοῖς ἐκεῖ ἄρχουσιν“ ἐν δὲ τῇ ᾿Απολογίᾳ καὶ ἀγαθὸν εἶναν λέγει τὸν θάνατον᾽ »ἐννοήσωμεν γὰρ ἔφη »»αὶ τῇδε, ὡς πολλὴ ἐλπίς ἐστιν ἀγαθὸν αὐτὸ εἶναι. δυοῖν γὰρ θάτερόν ἐστι τὸ τεθνάναι᾽ ἢ γὰρ οἷον μηδέν τι εἶναι μηδὲ αἴσθησιν μηδεμίαν μηδενὸς ἔχειν τὸν τεθνεῶτα᾽ ἢ καὶ κατὰ τὰ λεγόμενα μεταβολή τις τυγχάνει οὖσα καὶ μετοἔκησις τῆς ψυχῆς τοῦ τόπου τοῦ ἐνθένδε εἰς ἄλλον. ### English translation (Claude) to say in your defence to the rulers there.' And in the Apology he says that death is even a good: 'Let us consider,' he said, 'in this way too, that there is much hope that it is a good. For to be dead is one of two things: either it is as it were to be nothing, and the dead man has no perception of anything; or, as is said, it happens to be a change and a migration of the soul from this place here to another.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Apol. 40c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Crito 54b (end); Apology 40c. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.32 (Raeder, 282; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-32). ## Discourse 11.33 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-33 - Source: Raeder, 282 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's teaching on judgement deserves praise, though mixed with myths and with the error that souls are punished without bodies, which he may be pardoned for lacking the apostles' teaching. ### Greek text Δλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν αὐτοῦ ἐπαινετέον, εἰ καί τινα ἐπιμιξίαν ἔχει τῶν νόθων δογμάτων, τὸν Ῥαδάμανθυν καὶ τὸν Μίνω καὶ τὰς μαπάρων νήσους, καὶ μέντοι καὶ τὸ μόνας κολάξεσθαι τὰς ψυχὰς τῶν σωμάτων κεχωρισμένας. ταῦτα γάρ που τῶν τῆς ἀληθείας δογμάτων ἀλλότρια᾽ ἔχει δέ τινα σμικρὰν ἀμηγέπη ξυγγνώμην, τῆς ἀποστολικῆς διδασκαλίας οὐ μετασχών. ### English translation (Claude) These things of his, then, deserve praise, even if they contain some admixture of spurious doctrines: Rhadamanthys and Minos and the Isles of the Blessed, and also that souls alone, separated from their bodies, are punished. For these are foreign to the doctrines of the truth; but he has some small excuse in a way, not having shared in the apostolic teaching. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato (Plato (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret faults Plato for teaching punishment of souls apart from bodies, against the Christian teaching of bodily resurrection. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.33 (Raeder, 282; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-33). ## Discourse 11.34 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-34 - Source: Raeder, 283 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's doctrine of reincarnation, borrowed from Pythagoras, is laughable, as the Phaedo shows. ### Greek text τὰς δὲ μετενσωματώσεις, ἃς ἐκ τῶν Πυθαγόρου δογμάτων ἐκεῖνος ὑφείλετο, παντάπασιν, ὦ ἄνδρες, φευκτέον. κομιδῇ γάρ τοι ἐκεῖνα τὰ δόγματα καταγέλαστα. περὶ γὰρ δὴ τῶν ψυχῶν τῶν εἰς τὰ σώματα καταπεμπομένων ἐν τῷ Φαίδωνι ἔφη, ὡς ἐνδοῦνται αὗται, ὥσπερ εἰκός, εἰς τὰ τοιαῦτα ἤθη, οἷα ἄττα ἂν καὶ μεμελετηκυῖαι ### English translation (Claude) But the reincarnations, which he stole from the doctrines of Pythagoras, must be shunned altogether, men. For those doctrines are utterly laughable. For about the souls sent down into bodies he said in the Phaedo that these are bound, as is likely, into such characters as they had practised ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 81e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 81e. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.34 (Raeder, 283; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-34). ## Discourse 11.35 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-35 - Source: Raeder, 283 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Phaedo says gluttons become asses and the unjust become wolves, hawks and kites. ### Greek text τυγχάνωσιν ἐν τῷδε τῷ βίῳ᾽ «τὰ ποῖα δὴ ταῦτα λέγεις, ὦ Σώκρατες; οἷον τοὺς μὲν γαστριμάργους τε καὶ ὕβρεις καὶ φιλοποσίας μεμελετηκότας καὶ μὴ διευλαβουμένους εἰς τὰ τῶν ὄνων γένη καὶ τὰ τῶν τοιούτων θηρίων εἰκὸς ἐνδύεὔθαι. ἢ οὐχί; πάνυ γε εἰκὸς λέγεις. τοὺς δὲ ἀδικίας καὶ τυραννίδας καὶ ἁρπαγὰς προτετιμηκπότας εἰς τὰ τῶν λύκων τε καὶ ἱεράκων καὶ ἰμτίνων γένη, ἢ ποῖ ἂν ἄλλοσε φαῖμεν τὰς τοιαύτας ἰέναι; ἀμέλει, ἔφη ὃ Κέβης, εἰς τὰ τοιαῦτα.“ ### English translation (Claude) in this life: 'What sort do you mean, Socrates?' 'For example, those who have practised gluttony and insolence and love of drink and taken no heed, it is likely, put on the kinds of asses and of such beasts. Or not?' 'What you say is very likely.' 'And those who have preferred injustice and tyrannies and robberies, the kinds of wolves and hawks and kites; or where else would we say such souls go?' 'Certainly,' said Cebes, 'into such.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 81e-82a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 81e–82a. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.35 (Raeder, 283; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-35). ## Discourse 11.36 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-36 - Source: Raeder, 283 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato even has the civically virtuous reborn as bees, wasps and ants, which contradicts his own account of judgement. ### Greek text καὶ ἵνα μὴ πάντα λέγων μηκύνω, ἔστιν εὑρεῖν αὐτὸν λέγοντὰ τῶν τὴν πολιτικὴν ἀρετὴν ἠσκηκότων τὰς ψυχὰς εἰς μελίττας μετενσωματουμένας καὶ σφῆκας καὶ μύρμηκας καὶ εἴς γε τὸ ἀνθρώπειον γένος. ταῦτα δὲ οὐ μόνον γέλωτος ἄξια, ἀλλὰ καὶ οἷς ἤδη εἴρηκεν ἄντικρυς ἐναντία. ### English translation (Claude) And so as not to lengthen the discourse by telling everything, one may find him saying that the souls of those who practised civic virtue are reincarnated into bees and wasps and ants, and also into the human race. These things are not only worthy of laughter, but also directly contrary to what he had already said. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 82a-b (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 82a–b (Plato names bees, wasps and ants). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.36 (Raeder, 283; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-36). ## Discourse 11.37 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-37 - Source: Raeder, 283 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret sets Plato's punishments in the rivers of the underworld against his reincarnations into animals, mocking the 'reward' of becoming insects. ### Greek text ἐν ἐκείγοις μὲν γὰρ ἔφη πολάξεσθαι τὰς ψυχάς, τὰς μὲν εἰς τὸν Ἀχέροντα καὶ εἰς τὴν Ἀχερουσίαν λίμνην, τὰς δὲ εἰς τὴν Συύγα χαὶ Κωκυτὸν καὶ Πυριφλεγέθοντα βαλλομένας" χαὶ τοὺς μὲν ἀνίατα ἐπταικότας ἐν τῷ Ταρτάρῳ τοῖς τοῦ Πυριφλεγέθοντος ἀεὶ ξυμπεριφέρεσθαι φούμασι, τοὺς δέ γ᾽ ἰάσιμα πλημμελήσαντας, φερομένους ὑπὸ τοῦ πύματος, ἀντιβολεῖν τοὺς ὑπὸ σφῶν ἠδικημένους, ἐπὶ τῆς ὄὕχθης φαινομένους, καὶ πάλιν ὑπὸ τοῦ κύματος εἰς τὴν λίμνην ἀπάγεσθαι᾽ ἐνταῦθα δὲ τοὺς μὲν ταῖς ἡδυπαθείαις δεδουλευκότας ὄνους γίνεσθαι ἔφη, τοὺς δὲ τυραννικὸν καὶ ἁρπαρτικὸν βίον ἠγαπηκότας εἰς τὰ τῶν λύκων τε καὶ ἱεράκων καὶ ἰχνίνων εἰσάγεσθαν σώματα, τοὺς δέ γε τὴν πολιτικὴν ὡσκήσαντας ἀρετὴν τρισολβίων. ἀπολαύειν ἄθλων, σφῆκας γινομένους καὶ μελίττας καὶ μύρμηκας" τοιαῦτα γὰρ τοῖς ἀρετῆς ἐπιμελουμένοις ὁ φιλόσοφος ἀπένειμε γέρα. ### English translation (Claude) For in those passages he said that souls are punished, some being cast into Acheron and the Acherusian lake, others into the Styx and Cocytus and Pyriphlegethon; and that those who had erred incurably are carried round for ever in Tartarus with the streams of Pyriphlegethon, while those who had offended curably, carried along by the wave, entreat those they had wronged, who appear on the bank, and are carried back again by the wave into the lake. But here he said that those who had been slaves to pleasures become asses; that those who had loved a tyrannical and rapacious life enter the bodies of wolves and hawks and kites; and that those who had practised civic virtue enjoy thrice-blessed prizes, becoming wasps and bees and ants. For such are the rewards the philosopher assigned to those who care for virtue. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 113d-114b (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 113d–114b and 81e–82b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.37 (Raeder, 283; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-37). ## Discourse 11.38 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-38 - Source: Raeder, 284 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato contradicts himself: the virtuous go to the Isles of the Blessed, yet are reborn as stinging and thieving insects. ### Greek text καὶ ταῦταῳ δὲ ἄντικρυς ἐναντία᾽ ἕν μὲν γὰρ τοῖς πρόσθεν εἰρημένοις εἰς μωχάρων αὐτοὺς ἀπέπεμψε νήσους. τὰς δὲ τῶν φιλοσόφων οἰκήσεις οὐδὲ λόγῳ δητὰς ἔφησεν εἶναι" ἐνταῦθα δὲ σφηκῶν αὐτοῖς καὶ μελιττῶν καὶ μυρμήκων ἀπεχλήρωσε βίον, καὶ τοὺς ἐν τῷ προτέρῳ βίῳ μηδὲν ἠδινηκότας ἄθλον ἔφη λαμβάνειν τὸ ἀδικεῖν καὶ λωβᾶσθαι τοῖς ἄλλοις. ### English translation (Claude) And these too are directly contrary to each other. For in what he said before he sent them away to the Isles of the Blessed, and said that the dwellings of the philosophers could not even be told in words; but here he allotted them the life of wasps and bees and ants, and said that those who had done no wrong in their former life receive as a prize to do wrong and harm to others. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato (Plato (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.38 (Raeder, 284; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-38). ## Discourse 11.39 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-39 - Source: Raeder, 284 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Wasps, bees and ants harm people, so the 'reward' is a punishment; Plato followed the fame of the doctrine's author without thinking. ### Greek text καὶ γὰρ καὶ σφῆκες καὶ μέλιτται πλήττειν τῷ κέντρῳ πεφύκασι, μύρμηκες συλῶσι τὰ λήϊα καὶ τοῖς γηπόνοις ξυνδιανέμονται τοὺς καρπούς, ἥκιστα χεκοινωνηκότες τῶν πόνων᾽ καὶ οἱ σφῆκες δὲ τοῖς φυτουργοῖς πολεμοῦσι, τὸν τῶν φυτῶν καρπὸν διαφθείροντες᾽ τοῦτο δὲ ἀμηγέπη καὶ αἱ μέλιτται δρῶσιν. ἀλλὰ τούτων οὐδὲν ξυνεῖδε τῶν φιλοσόφων ἄριστος, ἀλλ᾽ εἰς μόνον ἐπεῖδε τοῦ πρώτου γε ταῦτα εἰρηκότος τὸ κλέος: ### English translation (Claude) For wasps and bees are by nature apt to strike with the sting; ants plunder the crops and share the fruits with the farmers without having had any share in the labours; and wasps make war on the gardeners, destroying the fruit of the plants; and in some way bees do this too. But the best of the philosophers perceived none of this, but looked only to the fame of the one who first said these things. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.39 (Raeder, 284; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-39). ## Discourse 11.40 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-40 - Source: Raeder, 285 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: In the Phaedrus Plato says souls regain their wings only after ten thousand years, except philosophers and philosophic lovers of boys, who return after three thousand. ### Greek text καὶ ἑτέρωθι δὲ τοιαῦτα ἄττα μυθολογεῖ καί φησιν᾽ οοεἷς μὲν γὰρ τὸ ὅθεν ἥκει ψυχὴ ἑκάστη, οὐκ ἀφικνεῖται ἐτῶν μυρίων. οὐ γὰρ πτεροῦταν πρὸ τοσούτου χρόνου, πλὴν ἣ τοῦ φιλοσοφήσαντος ἀδόλως ἢ παιδεραστήσαντος μετὰ φιλοσοφίας. αὗται δὲ τρίτῃ περιόδῳ τῇ χιλιετίᾳ ἐῶνται᾽ τρὶς δὲ ἐφεξῆς τὸν βίον τοῦτον οὕτω πτερωθεῖσαι, τῷ χιλιοστῷ ἔτει ἀπέρχονται. αἱ δὲ ἄλλαι, ὅταν τὸν πρῶτον βίον τελευτήσωσι, κρίσεως ἔτυχον᾽ κριθεῖσαν δέ, αἵ μὲν εἰς τὰ ὑπὸ γῆς δικαιωτήρια ἐλθοῦσαι, δίνην τίνουσιν᾽ αἱ δὲ εἰς τοῦ οὐρανοῦ τινα τόπον ὑπὸ τῆς δίμης κουφισθεῖσαι, διάγο ### English translation (Claude) And elsewhere too he tells some such myths and says: 'For to the place from which each soul comes, it does not arrive for ten thousand years. For it does not grow wings before so long a time, except the soul of one who has practised philosophy without guile, or loved boys together with philosophy. These, in the third period of a thousand years, if they have chosen this life three times in succession, having thus grown wings, depart in the thousandth year. But the others, when they have ended their first life, receive judgement; and when they have been judged, some go to the places of justice beneath the earth and pay the penalty, while others, lifted up by Justice into some place in heaven, live ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaedr. 248e-249a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedrus 248e–249a. Theodoret's text reads “in the thousandth year” where Plato has “in the three-thousandth year”; the corrupt ἐῶνται is read as Plato's ἐὰν ἕλωνται, “if they have chosen”. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.40 (Raeder, 285; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-40). ## Discourse 11.41 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-41 - Source: Raeder, 285 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret ridicules the Phaedrus myth for its invented reckoning of years and for giving lovers of boys the same reward as true philosophers. ### Greek text υσιν ἀξίως οὗ ἐν ἀνθρώπου εἴδει ἐβίωσαν βίου.“ καὶ τούτων δὲ τὴν ἀτοπίαν τῶν λόγων καταμαθεῖν εὐπετές. τίς γάρ που αὐτὸν τὰς τῶν ἐτῶν ἐδίδαξε μυριάδας, καὶ ὅτι μυρίων διεληλυθότων ἐτῶν, τότε τῶν ψυχῶν ξκάστη εἰς ἴδιον ἐπανέρχεται χῶρον; τὰ δὲ μεταξὺ τούτων οὐδὲ τοῖς ἄγαν ἀσελγεστάτοις ἥρμοττε λέγειν --- ἤπου γε φιλοσύφῳ; τοῖς γὰρ τὴν ἀκραιφνῆ φιλοσοφίαν κατωρθωπόσι τοὺς ἀκολάστους καὶ παιδεράστας ξυνέζευξε, καὶ τούτους κἀκείνους τῶν αὐὖτῶν ἄθλων ἔφησεν ἀπολαύσεσθαι. ### English translation (Claude) in a manner worthy of the life they lived in human form.' The absurdity of these words too is easy to see. For who taught him the tens of thousands of years, and that when ten thousand years have passed, then each of the souls returns to its own place? And what lies between these it would not have been fitting for even the most licentious to say, let alone a philosopher. For he yoked together with those who had achieved pure philosophy the licentious and the lovers of boys, and said that both the one and the other would enjoy the same prizes. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaedr. 249a-b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedrus 249a–b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.41 (Raeder, 285; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-41). ## Discourse 11.42 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-42 - Source: Raeder, 285 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Republic has Orpheus reborn as a swan and Agamemnon as an eagle; Theodoret concludes Plato was joking about reincarnation, since he elsewhere teaches punishment in Hades. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ τούτων πάλιν τῶν λόγων ἐπιλαθόμενος (τὸν γὰρ οὐρανὸν ταῖς τοιαύταις ψυχαῖς αἷς ἀπεκλήρωσεν), ἐν τῇ Πολιτείᾳ τὴν Ὀρφέως ψυχὴν κύκνειον ἔφη σῶμα λαχεῖν, καὶ ἀετὸν μὲν ἔφη γενέσθαι τὸν Ἀγαμέμνονα, λέοντα δὲ τὸν Αἴαντα, ἀθλητὴν δὲ τὴν ᾿άταλάντην, καὶ πίθηκον τὸν Θερσίνην, οὐκ οἶδα ὕτου χάριν τήνδε τῶν δογμάτων. τὴν ἀλογίαν ἐνθεῖναι τοῖς λόγοις χαταδεξάμενος" δῆλος μέντοι ἐστὶ παίζων μᾶλλον ἢ σπουδάζων ἐν οἷς τὰς μετενσωματώσεις διέξεισι" πολλαχοῦ γὰρ τὰ ἐν “Ἅιδου πολαστήριω δείκνυσιν. ### English translation (Claude) But again forgetting these words (for he had allotted heaven to such souls), in the Republic he said that the soul of Orpheus received the body of a swan, that Agamemnon became an eagle, Ajax a lion, Atalanta an athlete, and Thersites an ape. I do not know for what reason he consented to put this irrationality of doctrine into his words. He is clearly, however, joking rather than being serious when he goes through the reincarnations; for in many places he shows the punishments in Hades. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 620a-c (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 10.620a–c (in Plato, Atalanta chooses an athlete's life). A repeated passage in the scan (dittography) has been removed. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.42 (Raeder, 285; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-42). ## Discourse 11.43 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-43 - Source: Raeder, 286 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret turns to Plato's serious teaching, the myth of Er, who returned to life and reported what he saw after death. ### Greek text ἐγὼ δ᾽ εἰς ταῦτα τρέψομαι πάλιν, ἵνα μὴ ἐπ᾽ ἐκείνων δὴ τῶν γελοίων τὸν φιλόσοφον καταλείπω λόγων. ἀκούσατε τοίνυν αὐτοῦ λέγοντος"..ἀλλ᾽ οὐ μέντοι σοι, ἦν δ᾽ ἐγώ, Ἀλοίνου γε ἀπόλογον ἐρῶ, ἀλλ᾽ ἀλκίμου μὲν ἀνδρός, Ηρὸς τοῦ Ἀρμενίου, τὸ γένος δὲ Παμφύλου" ὃς ἐν τῷ πολέμῳ τελευτήσας, ἀναιρεθέντων δεκαταίων νεκρῶν ἤδη διεφθαρμένων, ὑγιὴς μὲν ἀνῃρέθη, χομισθεὶς δὲ οἴκαδε. μέλλων θάπτεσθαι, δωδεκαταῖος ἐπὶ τῇ πυρᾷ κείμενος ἀνεβίω, ἀναβιοὺς δὲ ἔλεγεν, ἃ ἐκεῖ εἶδεν. ### English translation (Claude) But I will turn again to these things, so as not to leave the philosopher on those laughable words. Hear him, then, saying: 'Yet it is not a tale of Alcinous that I will tell you, but of a valiant man, Er son of Armenius, a Pamphylian by race. He died in war, and when the dead were taken up on the tenth day already decayed, he was taken up sound; and having been brought home, as he was about to be buried, lying on the pyre on the twelfth day, he came back to life, and having come back to life he told what he had seen there. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 614b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 10.614b. “Alcinous” (Ἀλκίνου) is printed Ἀλοίνου in the digital text. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.43 (Raeder, 286; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-43). ## Discourse 11.44 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-44 - Source: Raeder, 286 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: In the myth of Er, judges send the just upward to the right and the unjust downward to the left, marked with their deeds, and Er is made a messenger to men. ### Greek text ἔφη δέ, ἐπειδή. οἱ ἐκβῆναι τὴν ψυχήν, πορεύεσθαι ἤδη. μετὰ πολλῶν, καὶ ἀφιινεῖσθαι σφᾶς εἰς τόπον τινὰ δαιμόνιον, ἐν ᾧ τῆς τε γῆς εἶναι δύο χάσματα ἐχόμενα ἀλλήλοιν, καὶ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ αὐ ἐν τῷ ἄνω ἄλλα καταντικρύ" δικαστὰς δὲ μεταξὺ τούτων καθῆσθαι, οὖς, ἐπειδὰν δικάσαιεν, τοὺς μὲν δικαίους κελεύειν πορεύεσθαι τὴν εἰς δεξιάν τὸ καὶ ἄνω διὰ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, σημεῖα περιρράψαντας τῶν δεδικασμένων ἐν τῷ πρόσθεν, τοὺς δὲ ἀδίκους τὴν εἰς ἀριστεράν τε καὶ κάτω, ἔχοντας καὶ τούτους ἐν τῷ ὄπισθεν σημεῖον ἁπάντων, ὧν ἔπραξαν. αὐτοῦ δὲ προσελθόντος, εἰπεῖν, ὅτι δέοι αὐτὸν ἄγγελον ἀνθρώποις γενέσθαι τῶν ἐκεῖ, καὶ διακελεύεσθαι ### English translation (Claude) He said that when his soul went out, it journeyed with many others, and they came to a certain divine place, in which there were two openings in the earth next to each other, and in the heaven above two others opposite them; and judges sat between these, who, when they had judged, ordered the just to go the way to the right and upward through the heaven, having fastened signs of the judgements on their front, and the unjust the way to the left and downward, these also having on their back signs of all that they had done. And when he himself came forward, they said that he must become a messenger to men of the things there, and they bade him ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 614b-d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 10.614b–d. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.44 (Raeder, 286; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-44). ## Discourse 11.45 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-45 - Source: Raeder, 287 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's myth of Er, sending the good to heaven and the wicked to Hades, is worthy of philosophy and shows that his reincarnation tales were jest. ### Greek text διακούειν τε καὶ θεᾶσθθαν πάντα τὰ ἐν τῷ τόπῳ.“ οὗτοι ἀληθῶς ἄξιοι τῆς φιλοσοφίας οἵ λόγοι. οὐ γὰρ εἰς ἀλόγων σώματα καταπέμπουσι τὰς ψυχάς, ἀλλ᾽ εἰς οὐρανὸν μὲν τὰς εὖ βεβιωκυίας, κάτω δὲ εἰς “Αιδου τὰς τἀναντία προελομένας. δῆλος τοίνυν ἐστίν, ὡς ἐκεῖνα μὲν παίζων, ταῦτα δὲ λέγει σπουδάζων. ### English translation (Claude) listen and behold everything in the place.' These words are truly worthy of philosophy. For they do not send souls down into the bodies of brute beasts, but those that have lived well up to heaven, and those that chose the opposite down to Hades. It is clear, then, that he says those things in jest and these in earnest. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 614d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 10.614d. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.45 (Raeder, 287; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-45). ## Discourse 11.46 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-46 - Source: Raeder, 287 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plutarch's On the Soul tells of Antyllus, brought before the judge by mistake for the shoemaker Nicandas and sent back, which shows belief in judgement after death. ### Greek text καὶ μέντοι καὶ ὃ Πλούταρχος, ἐν οἷς Περὶ ψυχῆς ἔγραψε, καὶ τὸν δικαστὴν ὑπέδειξε καὶ τοῦ δικαστηρίου τοὺς ὑπηρέτας, διήγημά τι τοιοῦτον ἐνθεὶς τῷ ξυγγράμματι »»Ἀντύλλῳ φησί »»τούτῷ “αἱ αὐτοί παρῆμεν ἅμα Σωσιτέλει καὶ Ἡρακλέωνι διηγουμένῳ. ὡς γὰρ ἀβιώτως ἔχειν ἐδόκδι τοῖς ἰατροῖς, ἀνενεχθεὶς. μικρὸν ἔν τινος οὐ βιαίου καταφορᾶς, ἄλλο μὲν οὔτε ἔπραξεν οὔτε εἶπε παραπινητικόν, ἔλεγε δὲ τεθνάναι καὶ πάλιν ἀφεῖσθαι καὶ μὴ τεθνήξεσθαι τὸ παράπαν ὑπὸ τῆς ἀρρωστίας ἐκείνης, ἀλλὰ καὶ κακῶς ἀκηκοέναι τοὺς ἀγαγόντας αὐτὸν ὑπὸ τοῦ κυρίου πεμφθέντας γὰρ ἐπὶ Νικανδᾶν, αὐτὸν ἥκειν ἀντ᾽ ἐκείνου κομίζοντας" ὁ δὲ Νικανδᾶς ἦν σκυτοτόμος.“ λέγει δὲ καί, ὡς τοῦ Νικανδᾶ τελευτήσαντος παραυτίκα ὁ ᾿ἄντυλλοὸς ἐρρώσθη. ### English translation (Claude) And indeed Plutarch too, in what he wrote On the Soul, pointed out both the judge and the servants of the court, putting into his treatise a story of this kind: 'Antyllus,' he says, '— for we ourselves were present, together with Sositeles and Heracleon, when he told it — since he seemed to the doctors to be past living, recovering a little from a stupor that was not violent, neither did nor said anything else that was deranged, but said that he had died and been released again, and would not die at all of that illness; and that those who had brought him had been sharply rebuked by their lord; for they had been sent for Nicandas, and had come bringing him instead. And Nicandas was a shoemaker.' And he also says that when Nicandas died, Antyllus at once recovered. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plutarch, De anima fr. (Plutarch): quotation, high confidence - Eusebius, Praep. ev. 11.36 (Preparation for the Gospel): allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - Plutarch, On the Soul (fragment), also quoted by Eusebius, Preparation for the Gospel 11.36. Stray letters in the digital text around the names Sositeles and Heracleon have been removed. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.46 (Raeder, 287; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-46). ## Discourse 11.47 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-47 - Source: Raeder, 288 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret sums up the philosophers' views on the end and on judgement after death, some base, some nobler but mixed with myth. ### Greek text Ὁποῖα μὲν οὖν τῶν φιλοσόφων τὰ δόγματα; καὶ ὡς οἵ μὲν αὐτῶν τῇ γαστρὶ τὴν εὐδαιμονίαν ἐμέτρησαν, οἵ δὲ καὶ τελειοτέρων ἥψαντο λόγων, καὶ οἵ μὲν μέχρι τῶν τάφων ἐνόμισαν εἶναι τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὸν βίον, οἱ δὲ καὶ τὰς τῶν βεβιωμένων ὠνειροπόλησαν ἀντιδύσεις καὶ ὑπέδειξαν, ὡς ἐνῆν τῷ λόγῳς τὰ φρίνης γέμοντα μολαστήρια, οὐδὲ ταῦτα τῶν ᾿υύθων καταλελοιπότες ἐλεύθερα, δι᾿ ὧν εἰρήκαμεν, μεμαθήρματε. ### English translation (Claude) What, then, the doctrines of the philosophers are; how some of them measured happiness by the belly, while others laid hold of more perfect accounts; and how some thought that the life of men lasts until the tomb, while others dreamed of recompenses for the lives men have lived, and showed, as far as reason allowed, the places of punishment full of horror, though they did not leave even these free of myths — this you have learned from what we have said. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.47 (Raeder, 288; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-47). ## Discourse 11.48 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-48 - Source: Raeder, 288 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Scripture makes the fear of the Lord the beginning of good things and a life ordered by God's law the end. ### Greek text ὥρα δὲ λοιπὸν ὑμᾶς καὶ τὰ θεοπρεπῆ τῶν ἱερῶν εὐαγγελίων δόγματα θεωρῆσαι. ἀρχὴν τοίνυν τῶν ἀγαθῶν οὗτοί γε εἶναί φασι τὸν ἐπαινούμενον φόβον" »ἀρχὴ γὰρ σοφίας φύβος Κυρίου“, κατά τὸν “Σολομῶντα χαὶ τὸν ἐκείνου πατέρα᾽ τέλος δὲ τὸν τοῖς θείοις νόμοις διακοσμούμενον βίον᾽ »μαπάριοι, γάρ φήσιν οἷ ἄμωμοι ἐν ὁδῷ, οἱ πορευόμενον ἔν νόμῳ Κυρίου μακάφιοι οἵ ἐξερευγνῶντες τὰ μαρτύρια αὐτοῦ ἐν ὕλῃ καρδίᾳ ἐκξητήσουσιν ### English translation (Claude) It is time now for you to look also at the God-befitting doctrines of the holy Gospels. They say that the beginning of good things is the fear that is praised, for 'the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom', according to Solomon and his father; and the end, the life ordered by the divine laws: 'Blessed,' it says, 'are the blameless in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord; blessed are those who search out his testimonies; with their whole heart they will seek ### Scripture references - Prov 9:10: quotation, high confidence - Ps 111:10 (110:10 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 119:1 (118:1 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 119:2 (118:2 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Prov 9:10 (1:7); Ps 111:10 (LXX 110:10); Ps 119:1–2 (LXX 118:1–2). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.48 (Raeder, 288; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-48). ## Discourse 11.49 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-49 - Source: Raeder, 288 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ in the Beatitudes calls blessed not the rich but the poor in spirit, the meek and the persecuted, and promises them the kingdom. ### Greek text αὐτόν.“ τοῦτο δὲ κἀν τοῖς θείοις εὐαγγελίοις ὃ τῶν ὅλων Σωτὴρ ἐξεπαίδευσεν. μακαρίζει γὰρ οὐ τοὺς πλουτοῦντας καὶ τρυφῶντας καὶ κατὰ δοῦν φερομένους, ἀλλὰ τοὺς πτῶχοὺς τῷ πνεύματι καὶ τοὺς πραεῖς καὶ τοὺς ἐλεήμονας͵ καὶ τοὺς πεινῶντας καὶ ὄδνψῶντας τὴν δικαιοσύνην καὶ τοὺς ὑπὲρ ἀγαθοῦ τινος κακῶς πάσχειν ἀνεχομένους, καὶ τοῖς ταῦτα καὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα κατορθοῦσιν ὑπισχνεῖται τῶν οὐρανῶν τὴν βασιλείαν. ### English translation (Claude) him.' And the Saviour of all taught this in the divine Gospels too. For he calls blessed not the rich and the luxurious and those borne along by the current, but the poor in spirit, the meek, the merciful, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, and those who bear suffering evil for some good; and to those who accomplish these and such things he promises the kingdom of heaven. ### Scripture references - Ps 119:2 (118:2 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Matt 5:3: allusion, high confidence - Matt 5:10: allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Ps 119:2 (end); Matt 5:3–10 summarized. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.49 (Raeder, 288; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-49). ## Discourse 11.50 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-50 - Source: Raeder, 288 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret quotes the Beatitudes. ### Greek text προύργου δὲ οἶμαν καὶ αὐτοὺς ὑμῖν τοὺς ἐν εὐφημίας εἴδει γραφέντας ἀναγνῶναι νόμους «ιμακάριοι οἱ πτωχοὶ τῷ πνεύματι, ὅτι αὐτῶν ἐστιν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν. μακάριοι οὗ πραεῖς, ὅτε αὐτοὶ πληρονομήσουσι τὴν γῆν. μακάριοι οἵ πεινῶντες καὶ διψῶντες τὴν δικαιοσύνην. ὅτι αὐτοὶ χορτασθήσονται. μακάριοι οἵ ἐλεήμονες, ὅτι αὐτοὶ ἐλεηθήσονται. μακάριοι οἵ καθαροὶ τῇ καρδίᾳ, ὅτι αὐτοὶ τὸν Θεὸν ὄψονται. μακάριοι οἵ εἰρηνοποιοί, ὅτι αὐτοὶ υἱοὶ Θεοῦ πκληθήσονται. μακάριοι οἵ δὲδιωγμένοι ἕνεκεν δικαιοσύνης. ὅτι αὐτῶν ἐστιν ἡ βασιλεία ### English translation (Claude) I think it useful to read you also the laws themselves, written in the form of blessings: 'Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. Blessed are those who have been persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom ### Scripture references - Matt 5:3: quotation, high confidence - Matt 5:5: quotation, high confidence - Matt 5:6: quotation, high confidence - Matt 5:7: quotation, high confidence - Matt 5:8: quotation, high confidence - Matt 5:9: quotation, high confidence - Matt 5:10: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Matt 5:3, 5–10 (5:4 is not quoted). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.50 (Raeder, 288; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-50). ## Discourse 11.51 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-51 - Source: Raeder, 289 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Beatitudes show that Christ directs us not to wealth or health but to the toils of virtue and its unspeakable rewards. ### Greek text τῶν οὐρανῶν.“ καὶ τἄλλα δέ, ὦ ἄνδρες, τὴν αὐτὴν ἔχει διάνοιαν᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ἀρκεῖ καὶ ταῦτα δηλῶσαι τὸν τοῦ νομοθέτου σκοπόν, καὶ πρὸς ποῖον ἡμᾶς ἀφορᾶν ἐδίδαξε τέλος. οὔτε γὰρ πλοῦτον καραδοκεῖν ἐκέλευσεν οὔτε σώματος ὥραν καὶ ὑγείαν, ἀλλὰ τῆς ἀρετῆς τοὺς ἰδρῶτας καὶ τοὺς ὑπὲρ ταύτῆς κινδύνους καὶ τὰ μέγιστα αὐτῆς ἄθλα καὶ ἄρρητα. ### English translation (Claude) of heaven.' And the rest too, men, has the same meaning; but these suffice to show the aim of the Lawgiver and the end to which he taught us to look. For he did not bid us expect wealth, nor bodily beauty and health, but the sweat of virtue, the dangers undergone for its sake, and its greatest and unspeakable prizes. ### Scripture references - Matt 5:10: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Matt 5:10 (end). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.51 (Raeder, 289; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-51). ## Discourse 11.52 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-52 - Source: Raeder, 289 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The heavenly kingdom is beyond words; even Paul, who saw it, could not describe it. ### Greek text τίς γὰρ ἱκανὸς λόγος τεκμηριῶσαι βασιλείαν οὐρανῶν ἀνώλεθρόν τε καὶ ἄπειρον καὶ βίον ἀγήρω καὶ ἄλυπον καὶ φροντίδων ἐλεύθερον; περὶ τούτων ὁ θεσπέσιος Παῦλος βοᾷ᾽..«ἃ ὀφθαλμὸς οὐκ εἶδε, καὶ οὖς οὖν ἤκουσε, καὶ ἐπὶ καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου οὐκ» ἀνέβη, ἃ ἡτοίμασεν ὁ Θεὸς τοῖς ἀγαπῶσιν αὐτόν.“ εἰ δὲ ὁ τούτων αὐτόπτης οὐκ ἴσχυσεν εἰπεῖν, ἅπερ ἰδεῖν ἠξιώθη, σχολῇ γ᾽ ἂν ἄλλος τῶν ἀφράστων κατατολμήσοι. ### English translation (Claude) For what word is sufficient to give proof of a kingdom of heaven that is indestructible and boundless, and a life without age, without pain and free from cares? About these things the divine Paul cries out: 'What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and has not entered into the heart of man, what God has prepared for those who love him.' And if the eyewitness of these things could not tell what he was counted worthy to see, much less would another venture on what cannot be told. ### Scripture references - 1 Cor 2:9: quotation, high confidence - 2 Cor 12:4: allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - 1 Cor 2:9; 2 Cor 12:4 recalled (Paul's vision). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.52 (Raeder, 289; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-52). ## Discourse 11.53 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-53 - Source: Raeder, 289 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul makes eternal life the end for those freed from sin and enslaved to God. ### Greek text ὅτι δὲ καὶ οὗτος τέλος ὡρίσατο τῶν ἀγαθῶν τὴν ζωὴν τὴν αἰώνιον ᾽ ἀκούσατε, αὐτοῦ Ῥωμαίοις γράφοντος" οὗτε γὰρ ἦτε δοῦλοι τῆς ἁμαρτίας, ἐλεύθεροι ἦτε τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ. τίνα οὖν καρπὸν εἴχετε τότε, ἐφ᾽ οἷς νῦν ἐπαισχύνεσθε; τὸ μὲν γὰρ τέλος ἐκείνων θάνατος᾽ νυνὶ δέ, ἐλευθερωθέντες ἀπὸ τῆς ἁμαρτίας, δουλωθέντες δὲ τῷ Θεῷ, ἔχετε τὸν καρπὸν ὑμῶν εἰς ἁγιασμόν, τὸ δὲ τέλος ξωὴν. αἰώνιον: - τὰ γὰρ ὀψώνια τῆς ἁμαρτίας θάνατος᾽ τὸ δὲ χάρισμα τοῦ Θεοῦ δά ξωὴ αἰώνιος ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ τῷ κυρίῳ ἡμῶν“ }; ### English translation (Claude) That he too defined the end of good things as eternal life, hear him writing to the Romans: 'For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. What fruit, then, did you have at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now, having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you have your fruit for sanctification, and the end, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.' ### Scripture references - Rom 6:20: quotation, high confidence - Rom 6:21: quotation, high confidence - Rom 6:22: quotation, high confidence - Rom 6:23: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Rom 6:20–23. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.53 (Raeder, 289; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-53). ## Discourse 11.54 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-54 - Source: Raeder, 290 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret explains Paul: freedom from sin would suffice, but God generously adds eternal life, showing the difference between sin and righteousness. ### Greek text ἀρκεῖ μέν, φησί, καὶ αὐτὴ καθ' ἑαυτὴν ἡ τῆς ἐλευθερίας. δωρεὰ τὸν τῆς εὐσεβείας ὑμῖν ἐπιδεῖξαν καρπόν, ἐκ φιλοτιμίας δὲ ὅμως ὁ φιλόδωρος καὶ μεγαλόδωρος Κύριος καὶ τὴν αἰώνιον ἡμῖν δωρεῖται ζωήν, ἵνα ἁμαρτίας καὶ δικαιοσύνης τὸ διάφορον χκαταμάθητε. ἡ μὲν γὰρ τέλος ἔσχε τὸν θάνατον, ἡ δὲ τὴν ζωὴν τὴν αἰώνιον. ### English translation (Claude) The gift of freedom by itself, he says, is enough to show you the fruit of piety; yet out of generosity the bountiful and munificent Lord also gives us eternal life, so that you may learn the difference between sin and righteousness. For the one has death as its end, the other eternal life. ### Scripture references - Rom 6:22: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.54 (Raeder, 290; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-54). ## Discourse 11.55 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-55 - Source: Raeder, 290 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul names the greatest gift: adoption as God's children and heirs with Christ through the Spirit. ### Greek text εἶτα ἐὐτὰ πλεῖστα καὶ τὸ μέγιστον ἐπιδείανυσι, τῶν δωρεῶν" ονσοι(" γάρ φησι οοπνεύματι Θεοῦ ἄγονται. οὗτοί εἰσιν υἱοὶ Θεοῦ᾽ οὐ γὰρ ἐλάβετε πνεῦμα δουλείας πάλιν εἰς φόβον, ἀλλ᾽ ἐλάβετε πνεῦμα υἱοθεσίας, ἐν ᾧ πράξομεν Ἀββὰ ὁ πατήφ᾽ αὐτὸ τὸ πνεῦμα συμμαρτυρεῖ τῷ πνεύματι ἡμῶν, ὅτι ἐσμὲν τέκνα Θεοῦ. εἰ δὲ τέκνα, καὶ κληρονόμοι" κληρονόμον μὲν Θεοῦ, συγκληρονόμοι δὲ Χριστοῦ, εἴπερ συμπάσχομεν, ἵνα καὶ συνδοξασθῶμεν. ### English translation (Claude) Then he shows the greatest of his very many gifts: 'For all who are led by the Spirit of God,' he says, 'these are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a spirit of adoption, by which we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God; and if children, also heirs: heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.' ### Scripture references - Rom 8:14: quotation, high confidence - Rom 8:15: quotation, high confidence - Rom 8:16: quotation, high confidence - Rom 8:17: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Rom 8:14–17. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.55 (Raeder, 290; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-55). ## Discourse 11.56 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-56 - Source: Raeder, 290 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul repeats the promise of sonship and life with Christ in Galatians and to Timothy. ### Greek text καὶ Ταλάταις δὲ ἐπιστέλλων τὰ παραπλήσια ἔφη..ὥστε οὐκέτι εἶ δοῦλος, ἀλλὰ υἱός" εἰ δὲ υἷός, καὶ »ληρονόμος Θεοῦ διὰ Χριστοῦ.“ καὶ Τιμοθέῳ δὲ τὴν αὐτὴν διάνοιαν γέγραφεν" πιστὸς ὁ λόγος᾽ εἰ γὰρ συναπεθάνομεν, καὶ συξήσομεν᾽ ### English translation (Claude) And writing to the Galatians he said similar things: 'So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, also an heir of God through Christ.' And to Timothy too he wrote with the same meaning: 'Faithful is the word: for if we have died with him, we will also live with him; ### Scripture references - Gal 4:7: quotation, high confidence - 2 Tim 2:11: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Gal 4:7; 2 Tim 2:11. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.56 (Raeder, 290; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-56). ## Discourse 11.57 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-57 - Source: Raeder, 290 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul looks to reign with Christ and to the crown of righteousness laid up for all who love his appearing. ### Greek text εἰ ὑπομένομεν, καὶ συμβασιλεύσομεν. καὶ ἄλλην δὲ γράψας αὐτῷ ἐπιστολήν, καὶ ταῦτα ἐντέθεικεν᾽., ἐγὼ γὰρ ἤδη σπένδομαν καὶ ὃ καιρὸς τῆς ἀναλύσεώς μου ἐφέστηκεν. τὸν καλὸν ἀγῶνα ἠγώνισμαι, τὸν δρόμον τετέλεκα, τὴν πίστιν τετήρηπα᾽ λοιπὸν ἀπόκειταί μοι ὃ τῆς δικαιοσύνης στέφανρὺ, ὃν ἀποδώσει μοι ὃ Κύριος ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ὁ ὃί-᾿ ἤαίος πριτήφ᾽ οὐ μόνον δὲ ἐμοί, ἀλλὰ καὶ πᾶσι τοῖς ἦγαπηκόσι τὴν ἐπιφάνειαν αὐτοῦ. ### English translation (Claude) if we endure, we will also reign with him.' And writing another letter to him, he put this in as well: 'For I am already being poured out as an offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved his appearing.' ### Scripture references - 2 Tim 2:12: quotation, high confidence - 2 Tim 4:6: quotation, high confidence - 2 Tim 4:7: quotation, high confidence - 2 Tim 4:8: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - 2 Tim 2:12; 2 Tim 4:6–8. Theodoret speaks of “another letter” to Timothy, though both passages are in 2 Timothy. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.57 (Raeder, 290; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-57). ## Discourse 11.58 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-58 - Source: Raeder, 291 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul teaches the resurrection of the body, sown in corruption and raised incorruptible. ### Greek text οὗτος καὶ περὶ τῆς τῶν σωμάτων ἀναστάσεως “αὶ Κορινθίοις καὶ Θεσσαλονικεῦσι χαὶ “Φιλιππησίοις καὶ πολλοῖς ἄλλοις ἐπέστειλεν᾽.«καὶ νῦν μέν“ φησι σπείρεται. ἐν. φθορᾷ, ἐ ἐγείρεται ἐν ἀφθαρσίᾳ" σπείφέται ἐν ἀτιμίᾳ, ἐγείρεται ἐν δόξῃ" σπείρεται ἐν ἀσθενείᾳ, ᾿ ἐγείρεται ἐν δυνάμει᾽ σπείρεται σῶμα - ψυχικόν, ἐγείρεται ### English translation (Claude) He also wrote about the resurrection of bodies to the Corinthians and the Thessalonians and the Philippians and many others: 'And now,' he says, 'it is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption; it is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised ### Scripture references - 1 Cor 15:42: quotation, high confidence - 1 Cor 15:43: quotation, high confidence - 1 Cor 15:44: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - 1 Cor 15:42–44. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.58 (Raeder, 291; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-58). ## Discourse 11.59 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-59 - Source: Raeder, 291 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul on the trumpet, the incorruptible resurrection, and the transformation of our body into the likeness of Christ's glorious body. ### Greek text σῶμα πνευματιμόν.“ αὖθις δέ.ο,οσαλπίσει γάρ, καἱ οἵ γεπροὶ ἐγερθήσονται ἄφθαρτοι, καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀλλαγησόμεθα᾽ δεῖ γὰρ τὸ φθαρτὸν τοῦτο ᾿ἐνδύσασθαι ἀφθαρσίαν, παἱ τὸ θνητὸν τοῦτο ἐνδύσασθαι ἀθανασίαν.Κ καὶ πάλιν ἡμῶν δὲ τὸ πολίτευμα ἐν οὐρανοῖς ὑπάρχει ἐξ οὗ καὶ σωτῆρα ἀπεκδεχόμεθα κύριον Ἰησοῦν, ὃς μετασχηματίσει τὸ σῶμα τῆς ταπεινώσεως ἡμῶν εἰς τὸ γενέσθαν αὐτὸ σύμμορφον τῷ ### English translation (Claude) a spiritual body.' And again: 'For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.' And again: 'But our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also await a Saviour, the Lord Jesus, who will transform the body of our humiliation so that it may be conformed to the ### Scripture references - 1 Cor 15:44: quotation, high confidence - 1 Cor 15:52: quotation, high confidence - 1 Cor 15:53: quotation, high confidence - Phil 3:20: quotation, high confidence - Phil 3:21: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - 1 Cor 15:44 (end); 1 Cor 15:52–53; Phil 3:20–21. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.59 (Raeder, 291; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-59). ## Discourse 11.60 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-60 - Source: Raeder, 291 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ himself foretold that all in the tombs will hear his voice and rise, to life or to judgement. ### Greek text σώματι τῆς δόξης αὐτοῦ“ καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ ὃ Κύριος πρὸς τοὺς Ιουδαίους ἔφη" οὔτι υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου ἐστί, μὴ θαυμάξετε τοῦτο᾽ ὅτί ἔρχεται ὥρα, ἐν ἧ πάντες οἱ ἐν τοῖς μνημείοις ἀκούσονται τῆς φωνῆς αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐκπορεύσονται οἵ τὰ ἀγαθὰ ποιήσαντες εἰς ἀνάστασιν. ξωῆς, οἱ δὲ τὰ φαῦλα ### English translation (Claude) body of his glory.' And the Lord himself said to the Jews: 'Because he is the Son of Man, do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming in which all who are in the tombs will hear his voice, and they will come out, those who have done good to a resurrection of life, and those who have done evil ### Scripture references - Phil 3:21: quotation, high confidence - John 5:27: quotation, high confidence - John 5:28: quotation, high confidence - John 5:29: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Phil 3:21 (end); John 5:27–29. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.60 (Raeder, 291; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-60). ## Discourse 11.61 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-61 - Source: Raeder, 291 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ's prophecy of the signs of the end and of the mourning of the tribes of the earth, which Theodoret takes as the lament of unbelievers. ### Greek text πράξαντες εἰς ἀνάστασιν κρίσεως.“ καὶ πάλιν, τὰ περὶ τοῦ κοινοῦ διηγούμενος τέλους, καὶ ταῦτα προστέθεικεν᾽.»εὐθέως δὲ μετὰ τὴν θλίψιν τῶν ἡμερῶν ἐκείνων ὃ ἥλιος σκοτισθήσεται, καὶ ἡ σελήνη οὐ δώσει τὸ φέγγος αὐτῆς, καὶ οἱ ἀστέρες πεσοῦνται ἀπὸ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, καὶ ἀΐ δυνάμεις τῶν οὐρανῶν σαλευθήσονται᾽ καὶ τότε φανήσεται τὸ σημεῖον τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ" καὶ τότε κόψονται πᾶσαι αἵ φυλαὶ τῆς γῆς.“ διὰ δὲ τούτων δηλοῖ τῶν ἠπιστηκότῶν τὸν θρῆνον. ### English translation (Claude) to a resurrection of judgement.' And again, telling of the common end, he added this too: 'Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn.' By this he shows the lament of those who did not believe. ### Scripture references - John 5:29: quotation, high confidence - Matt 24:29: quotation, high confidence - Matt 24:30: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - John 5:29 (end); Matt 24:29–30. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.61 (Raeder, 291; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-61). ## Discourse 11.62 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-62 - Source: Raeder, 292 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret recalls the parables of the virgins and of the talents before Christ's account of the last judgement. ### Greek text εἶτα τὴν περὶ τῶν παρθένων παραβολὴν εἰπών, καὶ ὡς αἵ μὲν εἰσῆλθον εἰς τὸν νυμφῶνα φέρουσαι τὰς λαμπάδας, αἱ δὲ μωραὶ τῆς παστάδος ἀπεστερήθησαν. ἐπειδήπερ αἵ λαμπάδες ἐσβέσθησαν, προσθεὶς δὲ καὶ τὰ τῶν ταλάντων καὶ τῶν οἰκετῶν τῶν σπουδαίων καὶ τοῦ ἀργοῦ τοῦ τὸ τάλαντον κατακρύψαντος καὶ τῷ ἐξωτάτῳ ### English translation (Claude) Then, having told the parable of the virgins — how some went into the bridal chamber carrying their lamps, while the foolish were shut out of the bridal chamber because their lamps had gone out — and having added also the parable of the talents, of the diligent servants and of the idle one who hid his talent and was sent away into the outer ### Scripture references - Matt 25:1: allusion, high confidence - Matt 25:10: allusion, high confidence - Matt 25:25: allusion, high confidence - Matt 25:30: allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Matt 25:1–13; 25:14–30. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.62 (Raeder, 292; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-62). ## Discourse 11.63 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-63 - Source: Raeder, 292 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret quotes Christ's account of the last judgement and the blessing of those who served him in the needy. ### Greek text σκότει παραπεμφθέντος, ἐπήγαγεν᾽ οοὗταν δὲ ἔλθῃ ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐν τῇ δόξῃ αὐτοῦ, καὶ πάντες οἵ ἅγιον ἄγγελον αὐτοῦ μετ’ αὐτοῦ, τότε καθήσεται ἐπὶ θρόνου δόξης αὐτοῦ, καὶ συναχθήσονται ἔμπροσθεν αὐτοῦ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη. καὶ ἀφορίσει αὐτοὺς ἀπ᾽ ἀλλήλων, ὥσπερ ὁ ποιμὴν ἀφορίζει τὰ πρόβατα ἀπὸ τῶν ἐρίφων᾽ καὶ στήσει τὰ μὲν πρόβατα ἐκ δεξιῶν αὐτοῦ, τὰ δὲ ἐρίφια ἐξ εὐωνύμων. τότε ἐρεῖ ὃ βασιλεὺς τοῖς ἐκ δεξιῶν αὐτοῦ" δεῦτε οἵ εὐλογημένοι τοῦ πατρός μου, κληρονομήσατε τὴν ἡτοιμασμένην ὑμῖν βασιλείαν ἀπὸ καταβολῆς κόσμου" ἐπείνασα γάρ, καὶ ἐδώκατέ μοι φαγεῖν᾽ ἐδίψησα, καὶ ἐποτίσατέ με᾽ ξένος ἤμην, καὶ συνηγάγετέ με γυμνός, καὶ περιεβάλετέ με ἀσθενής, καὶ ἐπεσκέψασθέ με ἐν φυλακῇ ἤμην, καὶ ἤλθετε πρός μείς ### English translation (Claude) darkness, he added: 'When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory, and all the nations will be gathered before him; and he will separate them from one another as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; and he will set the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left. Then the King will say to those at his right: Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me drink; I was a stranger and you took me in; naked and you clothed me; sick and you visited me; I was in prison and you came to me.' ### Scripture references - Matt 25:31: quotation, high confidence - Matt 25:32: quotation, high confidence - Matt 25:33: quotation, high confidence - Matt 25:34: quotation, high confidence - Matt 25:35: quotation, high confidence - Matt 25:36: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Matt 25:31–36. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.63 (Raeder, 292; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-63). ## Discourse 11.64 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-64 - Source: Raeder, 292 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The righteous modestly deny their good deeds, but Christ counts what they did for the least as done for him, and sends the cursed into eternal fire. ### Greek text ἐκείνων δὲ φάντων μηδέν τι τούτων πώποτε δεδρακέναι (ἴδιον γὰρ τὸ μετριάζειν τῶν τῆς ἀρετῆς ἀθλητῶν͵ καὶ καταπρύπτειν τὸν πλοῦτον),,,»ἐρεῖζς φησι πρὸς αὐτοὺς ὁ βασιλεύς᾽ ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν, ἐφ᾽ ὅσον ἐποιήσατε ἑνὶ τούτων τῶν ἀδελφῶν μου τῶν ἐλαχίστων τῶν πιστευόντων εἰς ἐμέ, ἐμοὶ ἐποιήσατε οὕτω τούτους ἀνακηρύξας καὶ δεδωκὼς τὰ γέρα τῶν πόνων, (ἐρεῖς φὴσι «καὶ τοῖς ἐξ εὐωνύμων᾽ πορεύεσθε ἀπ᾽ ἐμοῦ οἵ κατηραμένοι εἰς τὸ πῦρ τὸ αἰώνιον τὸ ἡτοιμασμένον τῷ διαβόλῳ. καὶ τοῖς ἀγγέλοις αὐτοῦ.“ ### English translation (Claude) And when they say that they had never done any of these things (for it is the mark of the athletes of virtue to be modest and to hide their wealth), 'the King,' he says, 'will say to them: Truly I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of these least of my brothers who believe in me, you did it to me.' Having thus proclaimed these and given them the rewards of their labours, 'he will say,' he says, 'to those on his left too: Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.' ### Scripture references - Matt 25:37: allusion, high confidence - Matt 25:40: quotation, high confidence - Matt 25:41: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Matt 25:37–41. Theodoret's text adds “who believe in me” to Matt 25:40. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.64 (Raeder, 292; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-64). ## Discourse 11.65 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-65 - Source: Raeder, 293 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The condemned did none of the works of mercy, and unlike the modest righteous they claim to have done them, so they are refuted and punished. ### Greek text δήλας δὲ καὶ τούτοις τῶν τιμωριῶν τὰς αἰτίας ποιεῖ" οὐδεὶς γὰρ ἔδρασεν ἐκείνων, ἃ τῶν δικαίων ἐπετέλεσεν ὃ χορός, καὶ οὐδὲ τὴν ἐσχάτην ἐκείνων ξηλοῦσιν εὐλάβειαν. ἐκεῖνοι μὲν γάρ, πάντα ἐκεῖνα πεποιηκότες, ἠρνήθησαν᾽" οὗτοι δέ, καὶ μὴ δεδρακότες, πεποιηκέναι φασίν᾽ ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν ἔλεγχον δέξονται καὶ τῇ τιμωρίᾳ παραδοθήσονται. ### English translation (Claude) And to these too he makes plain the causes of their punishments; for none of them did what the choir of the righteous accomplished, and they do not even emulate their utmost reverence. For those, having done all those things, denied it; but these, though they have not done them, say that they have; yet they will both receive the refutation and be handed over to punishment. ### Scripture references - Matt 25:44: allusion, high confidence - Matt 25:46: allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Matt 25:42–46. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.65 (Raeder, 293; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-65). ## Discourse 11.66 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-66 - Source: Raeder, 293 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret invites the Greeks to compare the Gospel with Plato, whose better teachings resemble it. ### Greek text Ταῦτα, ὦ ἄνδρες, παραβάλετε τοῖς ἐπαινουμένοις τοῦ Πλάτωνος λόγοις. ὁ γάρ τοι ἄλλος λῆρος καὶ τοῦδε καὶ τῶν ἄλλων τοῦ σκότους ἐκείνου γε ἄξιος᾽ ἃ δέ γε καὶ ἡμεῖς ἐπῃνέσαμεν, ἔχει τινὰ πρὸς ταῦτα ξυγγένειαν. ### English translation (Claude) Compare these things, men, with the much-praised words of Plato. For the rest of the nonsense, his and the others', is worthy of that darkness; but what we too have praised has a certain kinship with these. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato (Plato (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.66 (Raeder, 293; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-66). ## Discourse 11.67 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-67 - Source: Raeder, 293 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's judges, Aeacus, Minos and Rhadamanthys, were flawed men; Christians await as judge their Creator, who knows even their thoughts. ### Greek text τὰς γάρ τοι κολάσεις καὶ τὰς τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἀντιδόσεις κἀκεῖνος εἶναι. ξυνωμολόγησε, καὶ τὰ θεῖα ἐπέδειξε λόγια, καὶ τὰ καινὰ καὶ τὰ παλαιά" δικαστὰς δὲ ἐκεῖνος μὲν ἑτέρους εἰσήγαγε, τὸν Αἰακὸν καὶ τὸν Μίνω καὶ τὸν Ῥαδάμανθυν, ἄνδρας οὐδὲ πάντα ἐπαινουμένους, τοῦ δὲ Μίνω καὶ πολλὰ ἄττα πατηγοροῦσί τινερ᾽ ἡμεῖς δὲ προσμένομεν δικαστὴν τὸν ἡμέτερον ποιητήν, τὸν καὶ τὴν φύσιν, ἣν ἔπλασεν, ἀκριβῶς ἐπιστάμενον καὶ ταύτης οὐ μόνον τὰς πράξεις καὶ τοὺς λόγους γινώσκοντα, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὰ τὰ τῆς ἐννοίας κινήμα ### English translation (Claude) For he too agreed that there are punishments and recompenses for the good, and indicated the divine oracles, both the new and the old. But he brought in other judges, Aeacus and Minos and Rhadamanthys, men not praised in everything — some even accuse Minos of a great many things. We, however, await as judge our Maker, who knows exactly the nature he formed, and knows not only its deeds and words but also the very movements of its thought; ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Gorg. 523e-524a (Plato (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.67 (Raeder, 293; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-67). ## Discourse 11.68 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-68 - Source: Raeder, 293 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ will judge in the human nature he assumed, since the Godhead is invisible; hence he calls himself Son of Man, and Paul told the Athenians God will judge by a man raised from the dead. ### Greek text τα, δικάσει δὲ τὴν τῆς ἡμετέρας φύσεως στολὴν περικείμενος" ἀόρατος γὰρ ἡ τῆς θεότητος φύσις. τῷ τοι καὶ υἱὸν ἀνθρώπου ἑαυτὸν προσηγόρευσεν, ἐπειδὴ ταύτην οἵ κρινόμενοι θεωροῦσι τὴν φύσιν. διὸ δὴ καὶ ὁ θεῖος ἀπόστολος᾽ ἐν ᾿Ιθηναίοις δημηγορῶν οὕτως ἔφη" τοὺς μὲν οὖν χρόνους τῆς ἀγνοίας ὑπεριδὼν ὁ Θεὸς τὰ νῦν παρανγέλλει πᾶσι πανταχοῦ μετανοεῖν, καθότι ἔστησεν ἡμέραν, ἐν ῃ μέλλει κρίνειν τὴν οἰκουμένην ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ, ἐν ἀνδρί, ᾧ ὥρισε, σίστιν παρασχὼν πᾶσιν, ἀναστήσας αὐτὸν ἐκ νεκρῶν." ### English translation (Claude) and he will judge clothed in the robe of our nature; for the nature of the Godhead is invisible. For this reason he also called himself Son of Man, since those who are judged behold this nature. Therefore the divine apostle too, addressing the Athenians, spoke thus: 'The times of ignorance God overlooked, and now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, having given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.' ### Scripture references - John 5:27: allusion, medium confidence - Acts 17:30: quotation, high confidence - Acts 17:31: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - John 5:27 recalled; Acts 17:30–31. Theodoret says the judge, God the Maker, will judge “clothed in the robe of our nature”, because the divine nature cannot be seen. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.68 (Raeder, 293; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-68). ## Discourse 11.69 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-69 - Source: Raeder, 294 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret argues that Christ's fulfilled predictions about this life prove his predictions about the life to come. ### Greek text Εἰ δέ τις ἀπιστεῖ τοῖς λεγομένοις καὶ λῆρον ἡγεῖται τῶν ἀποστόλων τὰ βήματα, τῇδε μαθέτω τὴν τούτων.ἀλήθειαν, πολλὰ περὶ τοῦ μέλλοντος βίου καὶ ὁ δεσπότης Χριστὸς καὶ οἱ τούτου 7ε κήρυκες προηγόρευσαν᾽ ἐθέσπισαν δὲ καὶ ἄλλα ἄττα, ἐκείνῳ μὲν οὐδαμῶς, τῷδε δὲ τῷ βίῳ προσήκοντα. ἐξετάσατε τοίνυν, ὦ ἄνδρες. τὰς τοῦδε πέρι γεγενημένας “προρρήσεις κἂν εὕρητε ἀληθεῖς μπαὶ τοῖς πράγμασιν ἐναργῶς. ξυμβαινούσας, δέξασθε ἀδηρίτως ἐκεῖνα τὰ ### English translation (Claude) But if anyone disbelieves what is said and thinks the words of the apostles nonsense, let him learn their truth in this way. The Master Christ and his heralds foretold many things about the life to come; but they also prophesied certain other things, belonging not at all to that life but to this one. Examine, then, men, the predictions made about this life; and if you find them true and clearly fulfilled in events, accept without dispute those ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.69 (Raeder, 294; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-69). ## Discourse 11.70 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-70 - Source: Raeder, 294 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ foretold the siege of Jerusalem, the destruction of the temple and the dispersion of the Jews. ### Greek text περὶ τῶν μελλόντων τεθεσπισμένα, τοῦτο δὲ ὧδέ πῃ διασκεπτέον" τὴν τῶν Ἱεροσολύμων ὁ ὁ δεσπότης Χριστὸς προεῖπε πολιορκίαν, καὶ ὡς ὃ νεὼς ἐκεῖνος ὁ περιβόητος ἄρδην καταλυθήσεται, καὶ ὡς εἰς ἅπασαν τὴν οἰκουμένην τὸ τῶν ἐσταυρωκότων. αὐτὸν κατασπαρήσεται γένος. ἴδωμεν τοίνυν, εἰ μὴ τὸ. ### English translation (Claude) prophecies about the things to come. This is to be considered somewhat as follows. The Master Christ foretold the siege of Jerusalem, and that that famous temple would be utterly destroyed, and that the race of those who crucified him would be scattered into the whole world. Let us see, then, whether the ### Scripture references - Luke 21:20: allusion, high confidence - Luke 21:24: allusion, high confidence - Matt 24:2: allusion, high confidence - Luke 19:43: allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Luke 19:43–44; 21:20–24; Matt 24:2. The claim about the dispersion of “those who crucified him” is Theodoret's polemical argument, translated as written. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.70 (Raeder, 294; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-70). ## Discourse 11.71 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-71 - Source: Raeder, 294 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Jews' exile and the ruin of the temple, which Theodoret saw himself, fulfil Christ's prediction. ### Greek text πέρας ὃ λόγος ἐδέξατο. καὶ περὶ μὲν Ἰουδαίων οὐκ οἶμαι ὑμᾶς ἀμφισβητήσειν" ἐκείνης τε γὰρ τῆς πόλεως ἐξελήλάνται καὶ τῆς οἰκουμένης γεγένηνται μέτοικοι᾽ τοῦ νεὼ. δὲ καὶ τὴν ἐρημίαν. καὶ τὴν. ἐκ βάθρων κατάλυσιν οἱ μὲν τεθεαμένοι φιλαλήθως ὁμολογήσατε, οὗ δὲ λοιποὶ τοῖς διηγουμένοις πιστεύσατε. αὐτόπτης γάρ που κἀγὼ τῆς ἐρημίας ἐκείνης γεγένημαι. καὶ τὴν πρόρρησιν, ἣν ταῖς ἀκοαῖς ἐδεξάμην. ἐθεασάμην «τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς καὶ τὴν ἀλήθειαν ὕμνησά τε καὶ προσεκύνησα. ### English translation (Claude) word has not received its fulfilment. About the Jews I do not think you will dispute; for they have been driven out of that city and have become sojourners throughout the world. And as for the desolation of the temple and its destruction from the foundations, those of you who have seen it confess it with love of truth, and the rest, believe those who tell of it. For I too have been an eyewitness of that desolation, and the prediction which I received by hearing I beheld with my eyes, and I praised and worshipped the truth. ### Scripture references - Matt 24:2: allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret claims to have seen the ruined temple site in person. His argument from the dispersion of the Jews is translated as written. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.71 (Raeder, 294; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-71). ## Discourse 11.72 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-72 - Source: Raeder, 295 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret turns to Christ's prediction of the apostles' sufferings. ### Greek text ὅτι μὲν οὖν ἀψευδὴς οὗτος ὃ λόγος, τὰϊ ιπράγματα βοᾷ, μεγίστῃ. κεγρημένα φωνῇ" ἐπιξητήσωμεν δὲ καὶ ἄλλης προφητείας τὸ πέρας. προεῖπε τοῖς ἀποστόλοι δι. δεσπότης Χριστὸς τοὺς ἀγῶνας καὶ τοὺς κινδύνους, οὃς- ἔμελλον πείσεσθαι, καὶ τοῖς ἔθνεσι καὶ Ἰουδαίοις τὴν ### English translation (Claude) That this word is without falsehood, the facts cry out with the loudest voice. But let us look for the fulfilment of another prophecy too. The Master Christ foretold to the apostles the contests and the dangers they would suffer in bringing the teaching both to the nations and to the Jews. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.72 (Raeder, 295; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-72). ## Discourse 11.73 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-73 - Source: Raeder, 295 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ foretold that the apostles would be sent like sheep among wolves, handed over, scourged and hated. ### Greek text διδασκαλίαν προσφέροντες".οεἰδού γὰρ ἔφη πρὸς αὐτούς οὐποστέλλω ὑμᾶς ὡς πρόβατα ἐν μέσῳ λύκων. καὶ πάλιν᾽ »παραδώσουσιν. ὑμᾶς εἰς συνέδρια, καὶ ἐν ταῖς συναγωγαῖς αὐτῶν μαστιγώσουσιν ὑμᾶς, καὶ ἐπὶ ἡγεμόνας καὶ βασιλεῖς ἀχθήσεσθε ἕνεκεν ἐμοῦ εἰς μαρτύριον αὐτοῖς καὶ τοῖς ἔθνεσιν καὶ μετ᾽ ὀλίγα᾽ οπαραδώσει ἀδελφὸς ἀδελφὸν εἰς θάνατον, καὶ πατὴρ τέκνα᾽ καὶ ἐπαναστήσεται τέπνα ἐπὶ γονεῖς καὶ θανατώσουσιν αὐτούς᾽ καὶ ἔσεσθε μισούμενοι ὑπὸ πάντων διὰ τὸ ὄνομά μου.. ὃ δὲ ὑπομείνας εἰς τέλος, οὗτος σωθήσεται... ### English translation (Claude) 'For behold,' he said to them, 'I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves.' And again: 'They will hand you over to councils, and in their synagogues they will scourge you, and you will be brought before governors and kings for my sake, as a testimony to them and to the nations.' And after a little: 'Brother will hand over brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise against parents and put them to death; and you will be hated by all for my name's sake; but the one who endures to the end will be saved.' ### Scripture references - Matt 10:16: quotation, high confidence - Matt 10:17: quotation, high confidence - Matt 10:18: quotation, high confidence - Matt 10:21: quotation, high confidence - Matt 10:22: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Matt 10:16–18, 21–22. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.73 (Raeder, 295; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-73). ## Discourse 11.74 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-74 - Source: Raeder, 295 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ foretold that his followers would be reviled and that the gospel would divide families. ### Greek text καὶ αὖθις᾽,»εἱ τὸν οἰκοδεσπότην Βεελξεβοὺλ ἐπεκάλεσαν, πόσῳ μᾶλλον τοὺς οἰκειακοὺς αὐτοῦτ' καὶ πάλιν" γμὴ νομίσητε, ὅτι ἦλθον βαλεῖν εἰρήνην ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν. οὐκ ἦλθον βαλεῖν εἰρήνην, ἀλλὰ μάχαιραν. ἦλθον. γὰρ διχάσαι ὄνθρωπον κατὰ. τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ καὶ θυγατέρα κατὰ τῆς μητρὸς αὐτῆς καὶ νύμφην. “κατὰ τῆς πενθερᾶς αὐτῆς" καὶ ### English translation (Claude) And again: 'If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more those of his household!' And again: 'Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and ### Scripture references - Matt 10:25: quotation, high confidence - Matt 10:34: quotation, high confidence - Matt 10:35: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Matt 10:25, 34–35. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.74 (Raeder, 295; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-74). ## Discourse 11.75 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-18/#p-11-75 - Source: Raeder, 295 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The apostles' mission amid dangers and the shrines of the martyrs everywhere show Christ's predictions fulfilled. ### Greek text ἐχθροὶ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου οἵ οἰκειακοὶ αὐτοῦ.“ τούτων ἕκαστον, ὦ φιλότης, ἔργῳ πεπληρωμένον ἔστιν ἰδεῖν. μετὰ γὰρ τῶνδε τῶν κινδύνων καὶ οἱ ἀπόστολοι τὴν οἰκουμένην ἐφώτισαν, καὶ οἱ μετ᾽ ἐκείνους, ἣν παρέλαβον, διεφύλαξαν πίστιν᾽ καὶ μαρτυροῦσι τῶν μαρτύρων αἵ θῆπαι; πανταχοῦ γῆς καὶ θαλάττης ἀστράπτουσαι καὶ τῶν θείων προρρήσεων κηρύττουσαν τὴν ἀλήθειαν. οὐ γὰρ δὴ μόνον τοὺς κινδύνους, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν νίκην αὐτοῖς προηγόρευσεν. ### English translation (Claude) a man's enemies will be those of his own household.' Each of these things, my friend, can be seen fulfilled in deed. For it was amid these dangers that the apostles enlightened the world, and those after them kept the faith they received; and the tombs of the martyrs bear witness, flashing out everywhere on land and sea and proclaiming the truth of the divine predictions. For he foretold to them not only the dangers but also the victory. ### Scripture references - Matt 10:36: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Matt 10:36. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.75 (Raeder, 295; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-75). ## Discourse 11.76 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-11-76 - Source: Raeder, 296 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ also foretold the Church's victory, and households divided by faith, where believing spouses strive to win the others, also fulfil his words. ### Greek text ..ἐπὶ ταύτῃ“ γὰρ ἔφη τῇ πέτρῳ οἰκοδομήσω μου τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, παὶ πύλαι “Ἄιδου οὐ κατισχύσουσιν αὐτῆς.“ ἔστι δὲ ἰδεῖν καὶ κατὰ τὴν πρόρρησιν μεμερισμένας τὰς. οἰκίας᾽ ἢ γὰρ οἵ ἄνδρες ὑπὸ τῆς πίστεως ξωγρηθέντες ἀπιστούσαις ἔτι ταῖς γυναιξὶ διαμάχονται, ἢ αἵ γυναῖκες τὸν τῆς εὐσεβείας δεξάμεναι ξυγὸν ἀλωμένους ἔτι τοὺς ἄνδρας σαγηνεύειν σπουδάξουσιν. καὶ ἣ ἀναγκαία διαίρεσις ἕνωσιν ἀξιέπαινον πραγματεύεται. ### English translation (Claude) 'For on this rock,' he said, 'I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.' And one can also see households divided according to the prediction. For either the husbands, captured by the faith, contend with wives who still disbelieve, or the wives, having taken on the yoke of piety, are eager to net their husbands who are still wandering. And the necessary division works a praiseworthy union. ### Scripture references - Matt 16:18: quotation, high confidence - Matt 10:35: allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Matt 16:18; Matt 10:35 recalled. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.76 (Raeder, 296; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76). ## Discourse 11.77 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-11-77 - Source: Raeder, 296 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ's prediction that the anointing woman's deed would be told wherever the gospel is preached is fulfilled everywhere. ### Greek text καὶ ἵνα τὰς ἄλλας καταλίπω προρρήσεις, γυνή τις ἀλάβαστρον μύρου τοῖς ἁγίοις αὐτοῦ ποσὶ προσενήνοχεν. ταύτης τὴν πίστιν ἀποδεχόμενος πρὸς τὸν τῶν μαθητῶν ἔφη χορόν᾽ οὐμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν, ὅτι ὕπου ἂν κηρυχθῇ τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τοῦτο τῆς βασιλείας, κηρυχθήσεται καί, ὃ ἐποίησεν ἣ γυνὴ αὕτη, εἰς μαρτύριον αὐτῆς.“ ταύτην δὲ τὴν πρόρρησιν καὶ νῦν ἔστι περατουμένην ἰδεῖν" πανταχοῦ γὰρ γῆς καὶ θαλάττης καὶ τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τὸ θεῖον ἀναγινώσκεται,. καὶ τῆς γυναικὸς ἡ πίστις ἀνακηρύττεται. ### English translation (Claude) And, to leave the other predictions aside: a certain woman brought an alabaster flask of ointment to his holy feet. Accepting her faith, he said to the choir of disciples: 'Truly I say to you, wherever this gospel of the kingdom is preached, what this woman has done will also be told as a testimony to her.' And this prediction too one can see being fulfilled now; for everywhere on land and sea the divine gospel is read and the woman's faith is proclaimed. ### Scripture references - Matt 26:7: allusion, high confidence - Matt 26:13: quotation, high confidence - Mark 14:9: quotation, medium confidence - Luke 7:38: allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - Matt 26:7, 13 (Mark 14:9); the anointing of the feet recalls Luke 7:38. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.77 (Raeder, 296; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-77). ## Discourse 11.78 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-11-78 - Source: Raeder, 296 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ's fulfilled predictions are proofs that his promises about the life to come will also be fulfilled. ### Greek text Ἐπειδὴ τοίνυν καὶ ταῦτα προεῖπεν ὃ δεσπότης καὶ τὰ ἐν ἐκείνῳ γε τῷ βίῳ γενησόμενα προηγόρευσεν, ὁρῶμεν δὲ ἀναφανδὸν τὴν τούτων ἀλήθειαν, ἀναμφισβητήτως κἀκεῖνα δεξώμεθα, ἀπὸ τῶν ἤδη γεγενημένων ποδηγούμενοι πρὸς ἐκεῖνα καὶ κεχρημένοι τούτοις τεκμηρίοις ἐκείνων. ### English translation (Claude) Since, then, the Master foretold both these things and what will happen in that other life, and we see the truth of these openly, let us accept those too without dispute, being led to them by what has already happened, and using these as proofs of those. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.78 (Raeder, 296; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-78). ## Discourse 11.79 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-11-79 - Source: Raeder, 296 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ has even given honours he never promised, such as the veneration of the martyrs, which strengthens belief in what he did promise. ### Greek text τούτου γὰρ δὴ εὔνεκα καὶ ταῦτα κἀκεῖνα προείρηκεν. ἵνα διὰ τούτῶν ἐμπεδώσῃ κἀκεῖνα, καὶ τιμάς, ἃς οὐχ ὑπέσχετο, τοῖς εἰς αὐτὸν πεπιστευκόσι φιλοτίμως ἀπένειμεν᾽ καὶ οὐ μόνον τοῖς ζῶσι παμπόλλην ἔδωκε περιφάνειαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῖς ἄριστα τετελευτηκόσι. πλεῖστον ξυνεχλήρωσε σέβας, ἵνα δὲ᾽ ὧν οὐχ ὑπέσχετο μέν, ἔδωκε δέ, πιστεύσωμεν οἷς ὑπέσχετο. ### English translation (Claude) For it was for this reason that he foretold both these things and those, so that through these he might confirm those. And honours which he did not promise he generously bestowed on those who believed in him; and not only did he give very great distinction to the living, but he also allotted the greatest reverence to those who ended their lives most nobly, so that through what he did not promise but gave, we might believe what he did promise. ### Translation notes - “Those who ended their lives most nobly” are the martyrs, honoured in their shrines (see 11.75). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.79 (Raeder, 296; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-79). ## Discourse 11.80 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-11-80 - Source: Raeder, 297 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: If masters of games and employers keep their promises, God, who created out of goodness and brought the incarnation, will certainly keep his. ### Greek text ὁ γάς τοι τὰ ταῖς ξυνθήκαις οὐκ ἐγκείμενα θωρησάμενος καὶ φιλοτιμίᾳ τὰς ὑποσχέσεις ὑπερβαλὼν δώσει πάντως, ἅπερ ὑπέσχετο, καὶ ἃ τοῖς ἀγωνιζομένοις ἐπέδειξεν ἄθλα. σχέτλιον γὰρ τοὺς μὲν γυμνασιάρχους παρέχειν τοῖς ἀθληταῖς τὸν ὑπεσχημένον μισθόν, καὶ τοὺς ἐπί τῴ τινας μισθουμένους μετὰ τὸν πόνον «πληροῦν τὰ ξυγκείμενα, τὸν δὲ τῶν ὅλων δημιουργόν, ὃς δι ἀγαθότητα μόνην καὶ τοῖς μὴ οὖσι τὸ εἶναι παρέσχε καὶ τὸ τῆς οἰκονομίας μυστήριον ἐπετέλεσε παὶ τοῖς οὐχ ὁρῶσι τὸ φῶς τὸ τῆς θεογνωσίας ἐχαρίσατο φῶς, τοῦτον φάναι τὰς οἰκείας μὴ πληρώδειν ἐπαγγελίας. ### English translation (Claude) For he who has given what was not contained in the agreements, and in his generosity has gone beyond his promises, will surely give what he promised and the prizes he showed to those who contend. For it would be monstrous that the masters of the games provide the athletes with the promised reward, and that those who hire men for some work fulfil the agreed terms after the labour, while the Creator of all — who through goodness alone gave being even to things that did not exist, and accomplished the mystery of the dispensation, and gave the light of the knowledge of God to those who did not see the light — should be said not to fulfil his own promises. ### Translation notes - “The mystery of the dispensation” is the incarnation. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.80 (Raeder, 297; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-80). ## Discourse 11.81 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-11-81 - Source: Raeder, 297 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: God's true promises make Christian teaching profitable: the kingdom and endless life for the obedient, eternal punishment for unbelievers. ### Greek text εἰ δὲ ἀληθής, ὥσπερ, οὖν ἀληθής --- θεία γάρ --- ἡ ὑπόσχεσις, οὐκ ἀνόνητα, ὦ φίλοι ἄνδρες, τὰ τῆς θείας διδασκαλίας μαθήματα. οὐρανῶν. γὰρ βασιλείαν καὶ ἑωὴν τέλος οὐ δεχομένην καὶ φῶς νοερὸν καὶ τὴν μετὰ τῶν ἀσωμάτων χορείαν τοῖς πειθομένοις ὑπέσχετο, ὥσπερ αὖ. κόλασιν αἰώνιον τοῖς ἀπιστοῦσιν ἠπείλησε τοῦτο γὰρ δὴ κἀν τῇ παραβολῇ τῶν ζξιξανίων δεδήλωκεν. ### English translation (Claude) But if the promise is true — and it is true, for it is divine — then the teachings of divine instruction are not unprofitable, my friends. For he promised the kingdom of heaven, a life that has no end, spiritual light, and a place in the choir of the bodiless beings to those who obey, just as, on the other hand, he threatened eternal punishment to those who disbelieve. For he made this plain in the parable of the tares too. ### Scripture references - Matt 13:24: allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Matt 13:24–30 recalled. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.81 (Raeder, 297; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-81). ## Discourse 11.82 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-11-82 - Source: Raeder, 297 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ's explanation of the parable of the tares: the lawless cast into the furnace, the righteous shining like the sun. ### Greek text ταύτην γὰρ ἕρμηνεύσας ἐπήγαγεν᾽ οὕτως ἔσται ἐν τῇ συντελείᾳ τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου᾽ ἀποστελεῖ ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου τοὺς ἀγγέλους αὐτοῦ, καὶ συνάξουσιν ἐκ τῆς βασιλείας αὐτοῦ πάντα τὰ σκάνδαλα καὶ τοὺς ποιοὔντας τὴν ἀνομίαν, καὶ βαλοῦσιν αὐτοὺς εἰς τὴν πάμινον τοῦ πυρός᾽ ἐκεῖ ἔσται ὁ χλαυθμὺς καὶ ὁ βρυγμὸς τῶν ὀδόντῶν. τότε οἵ δίκαιον ἐμλάμψουσιν "ὡς ὃ ἥλιος ἐν. τῇ βασίλείᾳ τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτῶν - ταῦτα εἰπὼν ἐπήγαγεν". »Ἀ ἔχων ὦτα ἀκούειν ἀκουέτω.“.. ### English translation (Claude) For having interpreted it he added: 'So it will be at the end of this age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all the stumbling blocks and those who do lawlessness, and will throw them into the furnace of fire; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father.' Having said this he added: 'He who has ears to hear, let him hear.' ### Scripture references - Matt 13:40: quotation, high confidence - Matt 13:41: quotation, high confidence - Matt 13:42: quotation, high confidence - Matt 13:43: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Matt 13:40–43. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.82 (Raeder, 297; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-82). ## Discourse 11.83 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-11-83 - Source: Raeder, 298 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret ends the discourse by urging, not compelling, his readers to accept God's gifts. ### Greek text ταῦτα καὶ ἡμεῖς. ὑμῖν, ὦ φίλοι ἄνδρες, παραινοῦντές φαμεν. οὐ γὰρ. δὴ ἄκοντας: τὸς. θείας λαβεῖν ἀναγκάξομεν δωρεάς, ἀλλὰ. παρακαλοῦντες καὶ λιπαφοῦντες καὶ τὸ ᾿μέγεθος, τούτων ἐπιδεικνύντες, διά τοι τοῦτο χαὶ τὴν δεσποτικὴν ταύτηὐ καὶ. θαυμασίαν ἐπιλέγομεν ῥῆσιν" ### English translation (Claude) We too say this to you, my friends, by way of exhortation. For we do not compel you to receive the divine gifts against your will, but we exhort and entreat you and show their greatness; and for this reason we also add this wonderful saying of the Master: ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.83 (Raeder, 298; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-83). ## Discourse 11.84 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-11-84 - Source: Raeder, 298 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The discourse closes with Christ's call to hear. ### Greek text οὁ ἔχων ὦτα ἀκούειν ἀκουέτω“ -.-, ### English translation (Claude) 'He who has ears to hear, let him hear.' ### Scripture references - Matt 13:43: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Matt 13:43. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 11.84 (Raeder, 298; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-84). ## Discourse 12.1 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-1 - Source: Raeder, 298 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret opens his discourse on practical virtue with the image of a tree, whose roots are useless without branches, leaves and fruit. ### Greek text Τὰ δένδρα φέρουσι μὲν αἱ ῥίζαν καὶ τρέφουσι, κοσμοῦσι δὲ οἱ κλάδοι καὶ τὰ φύλλα καὶ ὃ μεταξὺ τούτων ἠωρημένος καρπός. εἶ γὰρ δή τις ἐκτέμνοι τοὺς κλάδους καὶ ψιλώσοι τὴν κόμην, ἄχρηστα γίνεται καὶ γυμνοῦται τῆς εὐπρεπείας, καὶ περιττὴ παντελῶς ἡ τῶν ῥιζῶν ἀποφαίνεται βάσις. ### English translation (Claude) Roots bear trees and nourish them, but the branches and the leaves and the fruit hanging among them adorn them. For if one cuts off the branches and strips away the foliage, the trees become useless and bare of their beauty, and the foundation of the roots is shown to be wholly superfluous. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.1 (Raeder, 298; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-1). ## Discourse 12.2 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-2 - Source: Raeder, 298 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The body needs not only eyes but also feet and hands. ### Greek text καὶ τὸ σῶμα δὲ ὡσαύτως δεῖται μὲν ὀφθαλμῶν ὁρώντων καὶ τὰς ἄλλας ποδηγούντων αἰσθήσεις, δεῖται δὲ καὶ ποδῶν μεταβαινόντων καὶ τὸ σῶμα. φερόντων καὶ χειρῶν ἐργαξομένων καὶ τοῖς μορίοις ἅπασι καὶ τροφὴν καὶ πόσιν καὶ τὴν ἄλλην χρείαν ποριζουσῶν. ### English translation (Claude) And the body likewise needs eyes to see and to guide the other senses, but it needs also feet to move about and carry the body, and hands to work and to provide food and drink and every other need to all the members. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.2 (Raeder, 298; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-2). ## Discourse 12.3 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-3 - Source: Raeder, 298 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Cloth needs woof as well as warp. ### Greek text καὶ μέντοι καὶ χιτῶνας καὶ χλαίνας καὶ ἐφεστρίδας καὶ ξυλλήβδην ὅπαντα τὰ ἐσθήματα οὐ μόνοι ποιοῦσιν οἵ στήμονες᾽ χρεία γάρ που καὶ κρόκης ἐνυφαινομένης καὶ ξυναρμοξομένης τοῖς στήμοσιν. ### English translation (Claude) And indeed tunics and cloaks and mantles, and in short all garments, are not made by the warp threads alone; for the woof too is needed, woven in and fitted to the warp. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.3 (Raeder, 298; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-3). ## Discourse 12.4 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-4 - Source: Raeder, 298 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: These images show that knowledge of God, though the greatest good, does not by itself make a person perfect. ### Greek text τί δήποτε ταῦτα διεξῆλθον; οὐ τὸν ὕθλον, ὦ ἄνδρες, στέργων, ἀλλὰ διὰ τῶνδε τῶν εἰκόνων τῆς τελεωτάτης φιλοσοφίας τὰς ὕλας ἐπιδειενύς. μέγιστον μὲν γὰρ ἀληθῶς καὶ παμμέγεθες ἀγαθὸν. τῶν θείων ἡ γνῶσις" ἀλλ᾽ οὐκ ἀπόχρη τέλειον ἀποφῆναι τὸν.ταύτης ἀξιούμενον. ### English translation (Claude) Why have I gone through these things? Not out of love of idle talk, men, but to show through these images the materials of the most perfect philosophy. For truly the greatest and all-surpassing good is the knowledge of divine things; but it is not enough to make perfect the one who is counted worthy of it. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.4 (Raeder, 298; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-4). ## Discourse 12.5 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-5 - Source: Raeder, 299 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Knowledge of truth and faith are the root, eye and warp of the soul, to which good action must be joined. ### Greek text δεῖ. γάρ. που τὴν ἀγαθὴν πρᾶξιν ξυναφθῆναι τῇ γνώσει. ὅπερ γάρ ἐστι δένδρῳ ῥίζα καὶ ὀφθαλμὸς σώματι καὶ οἵ στήμονες τοῖς ὑφάσμασι, τοῦτο ταῖς ψυχαῖς τῆς ἀληθείας ἡ γνῶσις καὶ ἡ βεβαία γίνεται πίστις. ### English translation (Claude) For good action must be joined to knowledge. What the root is to a tree, the eye to the body and the warp to woven cloth, that the knowledge of the truth and firm faith are to souls. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.5 (Raeder, 299; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-5). ## Discourse 12.6 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-6 - Source: Raeder, 299 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: As craftsmen learn in order to practise, lovers of piety must not only learn theology but also live by the laws of practical virtue. ### Greek text χρὴ δὲ οὐ μόνον εἰδέναι, τί προσήκει περὶ τοῦ θείρυ δοξάξειν, ἀλλὰ καὶ κατὰ τοὺς. ἐπείτόνου πολιτεύεσθαν νόμους. ὥσπερ γὰρ οἱ ζωγραφικὴν ἢ σπυτοτομικὴν ἢ ἄλλην τινὰ παιδευόμενοι τέχνην, οὐχ ὕπως μόνον: ἐπίστωνται. ταῦτα μανθάνειν σπουδάξουσιν, ἀλλ᾽ ἵνα καὶ χειρουργῶσι. καὶ μιμητὰς σφᾶς αὐτοὺς τῶν διδασκάλων τοῖς ἔργοις δειμνύωσιν, οὕτω δεῖ καὶ τῆς εὐσεβείας τοὺς ἐραστὰς μὴ μόνον θεολογίαν καὶ φυσιολογίαν παιδεύεσθαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς τῆς πρακτικῆς ἀρετῆς ἐκπαιδεύεσθαι νόμους καὶ τούτους φυλάττειν εἰς δύναμιν καὶ πρὸς τούτους πειρᾶσθαι τῆς ψυχῆς ἐκτυποῦν καὶ διασκευάξειν τὸ εἶδος. ### English translation (Claude) One must not only know what one ought to believe about the divine, but also live according to his laws. For just as those who are trained in painting or shoemaking or some other art are eager to learn not only so that they may know these things, but also so that they may practise them with their hands and show themselves imitators of their teachers in deeds, so too the lovers of piety must be taught not only theology and natural philosophy, but must also be trained in the laws of practical virtue, keep these as far as they can, and try to mould and shape the form of the soul according to them. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.6 (Raeder, 299; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-6). ## Discourse 12.7 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-7 - Source: Raeder, 299 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: One who lives by God's laws becomes a living image of the Lawgiver, as Paul and Christ bid us imitate God. ### Greek text - ὃ γὰρ δὴ οὕτω ῥυθμίξων τε καὶ διαμορφῶν τὴν ψυχὴν οὐ μόνον τῶν θείων νόμων. τοὺς χαρακτῆρας ἐκμάττεται, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτοῦ γε τοῦ νομοθέτου ζῶσά τις εἰκὼν καὶ λογικὴ γίνεται, τοῦτό τοι διδάσκων καὶ ὁ μέγας κῆρυξ τῆς ἀληθείας βοᾷ"..γίνεσθε οὖν μιμηταὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ“. καὶ μέντοι καὶ ὃ τούτου δεσπότης παραινεῖ λέγων.»γίνεσθε μιμηταὶ τοῦ πατρὸς ὑμῶν τοῦ ἐν οὐρανοῖς. καὶ πάλιν᾽,,)λἕίνεσθε τέλειοι, καθὼς ὃ πατὴρ ὑμῶν ὃ οὐράνιος τέλειός ἐστιν.“ ### English translation (Claude) For he who so orders and shapes his soul not only takes on the impress of the divine laws, but also becomes a living and rational image of the Lawgiver himself. Teaching this, the great herald of the truth too cries out: 'Be, then, imitators of God.' And indeed his Master too exhorts, saying: 'Be imitators of your Father in heaven.' And again: 'Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.' ### Scripture references - Eph 5:1: quotation, high confidence - Luke 6:36: allusion, low confidence - Matt 5:48: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Eph 5:1; the saying “Be imitators of your Father in heaven” is not found in this form (compare Luke 6:36); Matt 5:48. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.7 (Raeder, 299; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-7). ## Discourse 12.8 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-8 - Source: Raeder, 300 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: We imitate God by loving what he loves and hating what he hates, as his laws teach. ### Greek text μιμεῖται δέ, ὡς ἔνεστι, τὸν τῶν ὕλων Θεὸν ὃ ποθῶν ἐκεῖνα καὶ ἐχθραίνων ὁμοίως, ὅπερ καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ δεσπότης ἐχθραίνει τε καὶ φιλεῖ, τίνα δὲ αὐτῷ δυσμενῆ, καὶ τίνα αὖ προσφιλῆ, διαρρήδην οἵ θεῖοι διδάσκουσι νόμοι. ### English translation (Claude) He imitates the God of all, as far as one can, who longs for and hates in the same way the things that the Master himself hates and loves; and what is hateful to him and what in turn is dear, the divine laws teach expressly. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.8 (Raeder, 300; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-8). ## Discourse 12.9 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-9 - Source: Raeder, 300 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: David says God hates lawlessness, falsehood and violence. ### Greek text ἀκούομεν γὰρ 'τοῦ θεσπεσίου βοῶντος Ζ4αυίΐδ᾽ οὔτι οὐχὶ Θεὸς θέλων ἀνομίαν σὺ εἶ, οὐδὲ παροικήσει σοι πονηρευόμενος, οὐδὲ διαμενοῦσι παράνομοι κατέναντι τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν σου" ἐμίσησας, Κύριε, πάντας τοὺς ἐργαζομένους τὴν ἀνομίων᾽ ἀπολεῖς πάντας τοὺς λαλοῦντας τὸ ψεῦδος. ἄνδρα αἱμάτων καὶ ### English translation (Claude) For we hear the divine David crying out: 'For you are not a God who wills lawlessness, nor will the evildoer dwell beside you, nor will the lawless abide before your eyes. You have hated, Lord, all who work lawlessness; you will destroy all who speak falsehood. A man of blood and ### Scripture references - Ps 5:4 (5:5 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 5:5 (5:6 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 5:6 (5:7 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Ps 5:4–6 (LXX 5:5–7). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.9 (Raeder, 300; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-9). ## Discourse 12.10 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-10 - Source: Raeder, 300 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: In Psalm 101 David portrays a man who shares God's hatred of evil and love of the faithful. ### Greek text δόλιον βδελύσσεται Κύριος.“ ἐν τούτοις δὲ ἡμῖν ἐπιδείξας τὴν τοῦ νομοθέτου διάθεσιν, ἐν ἑτέρᾳ μελῳδίᾳ πρόσωπον εἰσήγαγε τούσδε τοὺς χαρακτῆρας ἀκριβῶς ἐκμαξάμενον καὶ τῷ νομοθέτῃ προσευχόμενον καὶ λέγοντα οδιεπορευόμην ἐν ἀπακίᾳ καρδίας μου ἐν μέσῳ τοῦ οἴκου σου οὐ προετιθέμὴν πρὸ ὀφθαλμῶν μου πρᾶγμα παράνομον. ποιοῦντας παραβάσεις ἐμίσησα. οὐχ ἐκολλήθη μον καρδία σχαμβή᾽ ἐκκλίνοντος ἀπ᾿ ἐμοῦ τοῦ πονηροῦ, οὐ» ἐγίνωσκον. τὸν καταλαλοῦντα λάθρᾳ τὸν πλησίον αὐτοῦ, τοῦτον ἐξεδίωκον᾽ ὑπερηφάνῳ ὀφθαλμῷ καὶ ἀπλήστῳ καρδίᾳ, τούτῳ οὐ συνήσθιον. οἱ ὀφθαλμοί μου ἐπὶ τοὺς πιστοὺς τῆς. γῆς, τοῦ συγχαθῆσθαι αὐτοὺς μετ᾽ ἐμοῦ" πορευόμενος ἐν ὁδῷ ἀμώμῳ οὗτός μοι ἐλειτούργει" οὐ κατῴκει ἐν μέσῳ τῆς οἰκίας μου ποιῶν ὑπερηφανίαν. λαλῶν ἄδικα οὐ κατεύθυνεν ἐνώπίον τῶν ὀφθολμῶν μου. ### English translation (Claude) deceit the Lord abhors.' Having shown us in these words the disposition of the Lawgiver, in another song he brought in a person who had taken on these features exactly, praying to the Lawgiver and saying: 'I walked in the innocence of my heart in the midst of your house. I set no lawless thing before my eyes; I hated those who commit transgressions. A crooked heart did not cleave to me; when the wicked man turned away from me, I did not know him. Whoever slandered his neighbour in secret, him I drove out; with the proud eye and the insatiable heart, with him I did not eat. My eyes were on the faithful of the land, that they might sit with me; the one who walked in a blameless way, he served me. The one who acted proudly did not dwell in the midst of my house; the one who spoke unjust things did not prosper before my eyes.' ### Scripture references - Ps 5:6 (5:7 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 101:2 (100:2 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 101:3 (100:3 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 101:4 (100:4 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 101:5 (100:5 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 101:6 (100:6 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 101:7 (100:7 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Ps 5:6 (LXX 5:7, end); Ps 101:2–7 (LXX 100:2–7). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.10 (Raeder, 300; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-10). ## Discourse 12.11 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-11 - Source: Raeder, 301 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: We cannot imitate God's creative power or nature, but we can imitate his loves and hatreds. ### Greek text διὰ δὲ τούτων οὐ μόνον ἡμᾶς ἐδίδαξεν, ὅτε μιμήσασθαι δυνατὸν τὸν παναλκμῆ καὶ πάνφοῦφον Κύριον, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὸν ἡμῖν ὑπέδειξε τὸν τῆς μιμήσεως τρόπον. οὐ γάρ τοι οὐρανὸν ἡμᾶς καὶ γῆν καὶ ἥλιον καὶ σελήνην καὶ τἄλλα δημιουργεῖν ἐκέλευσεν οὐδὲ ἁπλῆν ἔχειν καὶ ἀπερίγραφον φύσιν, ἀλλὰ μόνον ἐχθραίνειν, ἅπερ ἐκεῖνος μεμίσηκε, καὶ φιλεῖν, ἅπερ δὴ μάλα πεφίληκεν. ### English translation (Claude) By these words he taught us not only that it is possible to imitate the all-powerful and all-wise Lord, but he also showed us the very manner of the imitation. For he did not bid us make heaven and earth and sun and moon and the rest, nor have a simple and unbounded nature, but only to hate what he has hated and to love what he has dearly loved. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.11 (Raeder, 301; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-11). ## Discourse 12.12 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-12 - Source: Raeder, 301 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Psalms show the prophet honouring God's friends, hating his enemies, and loving his law. ### Greek text ταύτην κατορθώσας τὴν ἀρετὴν ὁ προφήτης πρὸς τὸν δεσπότην ξὺν παρρησίᾳ βοᾷ".»ἐμοὶ δὲ λίαν ἐτιμήθησαν οἵ φίλοι σου, ὁ Θεός" λίαν ἐκραταιώθησαν αἱ ἀρχαὶ αὐτῶν“ καὶ μετ᾽ ὀλίγα" «οὐχὶ τοὺς μισοῦντάς σε, Κύριε, ἐμίσησα καὶ ἐπὶ τοῖς ἐχθροῖς σου ἐξετηκόμην; τέλειον μῖσος ἐμίσουν αὐτούς" εἰς ἐχθροὺς ἐγένοντό μοι’ χαὶ πάλιν᾽ οι,ὔνδρες αἱμάτων, ἐκκλίνατε ἀπ᾽ ἐμοῦ. “Φ καὶ αὖθις᾽" ο,ἐκκλίνατε ἀπ᾽ ἐμοῦ πονηρευόμενοι, καὶ ἐξερευνήσω τὰς ἐντολὰς τοῦ Θεοῦ μου. καὶ πάλιν᾽ » παρανόμους ἐμίσησα, τὸν δὲ νόμον σου ἠγάπησα.“ καὶ πάλιν" οοὡς ἠγάπησα τὸν νόμον σου, Κύριε" ὕλην τὴν ἡμέραν μελέτη μού ἐστιν καί" υὡς γλυκέα τῷ λάρυγγί μου τὰ λόγιά σου" ὑπὲρ μέλι καὶ κηρίον τῷ στόμα ### English translation (Claude) Having achieved this virtue, the prophet cries out to the Master with boldness: 'To me your friends have been greatly honoured, O God; their rule has been greatly strengthened.' And a little later: 'Did I not hate those who hate you, Lord, and waste away over your enemies? I hated them with a perfect hatred; they became enemies to me.' And again: 'Men of blood, turn away from me.' And again: 'Turn away from me, evildoers, and I will search out the commandments of my God.' And again: 'I hated the lawless, but I loved your law.' And again: 'How I loved your law, Lord; it is my meditation all the day.' And: 'How sweet to my throat are your words, more than honey and the honeycomb to my mouth.' ### Scripture references - Ps 139:17 (138:17 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 139:21 (138:21 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 139:22 (138:22 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 139:19 (138:19 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 119:115 (118:115 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 119:113 (118:113 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 119:97 (118:97 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 119:103 (118:103 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Ps 139:17, 21–22, 19 (LXX 138); Ps 119:115, 113, 97, 103 (LXX 118). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.12 (Raeder, 301; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-12). ## Discourse 12.13 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-13 - Source: Raeder, 301 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Moses and all the prophets taught what God loves and what he hates. ### Greek text τί μου καὶ ἕτερα δὲ τῶν εἰρημένων πολλαπλάσια εὕροι τις ἂν ἐν τῇδε τῇ μελῳδίᾳ᾽ ἔμπλεως γὰρ ἡ προφητεία τῆς τοιαύτης διδασκαλίας, καὶ “Μωῦσῆς δὲ ὁ νομοθέτης δείκνυσιν ἐν τοῖς νόμοις, τί μὲν ἀρέσκει τῷ τῶν ὕλων Θεῷ, τί δ᾽ αὖ πάλιν ἐχθραίνει. καὶ μέντοι καὶ Ἡσαΐας. καὶ Ἱερεμίας καὶ Ἰεζεκιὴλ καὶ Δανιὴλ καὶ πᾶς ὁ τῶν προφητῶν χορὸς ταύτὴν ἡμᾶς τὴν διαφορὰν ἐξεπαίδευσεν. ### English translation (Claude) And one would find many times more than these in this song; for the prophecy is full of such teaching. And Moses the lawgiver too shows in the laws what pleases the God of all and what in turn he hates. And indeed Isaiah and Jeremiah and Ezekiel and Daniel and the whole choir of the prophets taught us this difference. ### Translation notes - The section begins with the last syllables of “mouth” (Ps 119:103), divided between this section and the last in the digital text; they are translated in 12.12. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.13 (Raeder, 301; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-13). ## Discourse 12.14 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-14 - Source: Raeder, 302 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ requires doing God's will and keeping his commandments, not words alone. ### Greek text καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ ὃ τούτῶν Θεὸς ἐν τοῖς εὐαγγελίοις ἔφη..οὐ πᾶς ὃ λέγων μοι Κύρις Κύριε εἰσελεύσεται εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἀλλ᾽ ὁ ποιῶν τὸ θέλημα τοῦ πατρός μου τοῦ ἐν οὐρανοῖς.“ καὶ πάλιν ἡ, πονήσας καὶ διδάξας μέγας κληθήσεται ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ τῶν οὐρανῶν.“ καὶ πάλιν'..ὃ ἀγαπῶν με τὰς ### English translation (Claude) And their God himself said in the Gospels: 'Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of God, but the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.' And again: 'Whoever does and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.' And again: 'The one who loves me will fulfil my commandments.' ### Scripture references - Matt 7:21: quotation, high confidence - Matt 5:19: quotation, high confidence - John 14:15: quotation, medium confidence - John 14:21: allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Matt 7:21; Matt 5:19; John 14:15, 21. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.14 (Raeder, 302; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-14). ## Discourse 12.15 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-15 - Source: Raeder, 302 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The parables of the talents, the virgins and the wedding garment show that God requires works as well as the gift received. ### Greek text ἐντολάς μου πληρώσει. καὶ μέντοι κἀν τῇ παραβολῇ τῶν ταλάντων ἔδειξεν, ὡς οὐ μόνον ὧν δέδωκεν. ἀπαιτήσει τὸν ἀριθμόν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν ἐργασίαν εἰσπράξεται" καὶ τὸν ταύτὴν οὐκ ἔχοντα, γυμνώσας τῆς χάριτος, τῷ ζόφῳ παραδώσει πεπεδημένον. καὶ τὰς παρθένους δὲ τὰς ἀρκοῦν οὐκ ἐσχηκυίας τὸ ἔλαιον ἔξω τοῦ. νυμφῶνος κατέλιπε, καὶ ταῦτα παρθένους καλῶν. κχαὶ τὸν ἐσθῆτα περιβεβλημένον οὐχ ἁρμόττουσαν γάμῳ τῶν δαιτυμόνων ἐχώρισε καὶ τῆς εὐωχίας ἐξήλασε᾽ καίτοι κληθεὶς εἰσελήλυθεν, ἀλλ᾽ οὐκ αὐτόματος εἰσεπήδησεν᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ἐπειδὴ διὰ μόνην τὴν τοῦ νυμφίου φιλοτιμίαν ἀπολαύσας τῆς υλήσεως οὐκ ἤμὲένψε τὴν στολήν; ### English translation (Claude) And indeed in the parable of the talents he showed that he will not only demand the number of what he has given, but will also exact the working of it; and the one who does not have this he will strip of grace and hand over, bound, to the darkness. And he left outside the bridal chamber the virgins who did not have enough oil, though he calls them virgins. And the man wearing clothing not fitting for a wedding he separated from the guests and drove out of the feast; and yet he had come in being invited, not leaping in of his own accord. But since, having enjoyed the invitation through the bridegroom's generosity alone, he did not change his robe, ### Scripture references - Matt 25:29: allusion, high confidence - Matt 25:30: allusion, high confidence - Matt 25:10: allusion, high confidence - Matt 22:11: allusion, high confidence - Matt 22:13: allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Matt 25:14–30; 25:1–13; 22:11–13. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.15 (Raeder, 302; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-15). ## Discourse 12.16 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-16 - Source: Raeder, 302 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul warns that wilful sin after knowing the truth leaves only fearful judgement. ### Greek text ἔπαθεν, ἅπερ ἔπαθεν. διὰ τοῦτο καὶ δ᾽ θεῖος ἀπόστολος πέχραγε λέγων᾽ «ἑκουσίως γὰρ ἁμαρτανόντων ἡμῶν μετὰ τὸ λαβεῖν τὴν ἐπίγνωσιν τῆς ἀληθείας, οὐκέτι περὶ ἁμαρτίας ἀπολείπεται θυσία, φοβερὰ δέ τις ἐκδοχὴ κρίσεως καὶ πυρὸς ### English translation (Claude) he suffered what he suffered. For this reason the divine apostle too cried out, saying: 'For if we sin wilfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgement and a zeal of fire ### Scripture references - Heb 10:26: quotation, high confidence - Heb 10:27: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Heb 10:26–27 (Theodoret, like most of his contemporaries, takes Hebrews as Paul's). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.16 (Raeder, 302; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-16). ## Discourse 12.17 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-17 - Source: Raeder, 302 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Hebrews argues from the law of Moses to the worse punishment of those who trample on the Son of God. ### Greek text ζῆλος ἐσθίδιν μέλλοντος τοὺς ὑπεναντίους.“ εἶτα ἐκ παραδείγματος τόνδε κρατύνειν τὸν λόγον". «ἀθετήσας τις νόμον Μωυσέως χωρὶς οἰκτιρμῶν ἐπὶ δυσὶν ἢ τρισὶ μάρτυσιν ἀπο-θνήσηει. πόσῳ δοκεῖτε χείρονος ἀξιωθήσεται τιμωρίας ὃ τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ καταπατήσας καὶ τὸ αἷμα τῆς διάθήκης κοινὸν ἡγησάμενος, ἐν ᾧ ἡγιάσθη, καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα τῆς χάριἴος ἐνυβρίσας: οἴδαμεν γὰρ τὸν εἰπόντα᾽ ἐμοὶ ἐκδίκησις, ἐγὼ ἀνταποδώσω, λέγει.. Κύριος. καὶ πάλιν᾽ Κύριος κρινεῖ ### English translation (Claude) that will consume the adversaries.' Then he strengthens this word with an example: 'Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much worse punishment, do you think, will be thought fitting for the one who has trampled on the Son of God, and counted as common the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said: Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord. And again: The Lord will judge ### Scripture references - Heb 10:27: quotation, high confidence - Heb 10:28: quotation, high confidence - Heb 10:29: quotation, high confidence - Heb 10:30: quotation, high confidence - Deut 32:35: quotation, medium confidence - Deut 32:36: quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Heb 10:27–30 (quoting Deut 32:35–36). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.17 (Raeder, 302; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-17). ## Discourse 12.18 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-18 - Source: Raeder, 303 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul warns of falling into God's hands and of standing before Christ's judgement seat to be repaid for deeds. ### Greek text τὸν λαὸν αὐτοῦ.“ εἶτα τοὺς ῥαᾳστώνῃ ξυζῶντας δεδίττεται καί φησιν᾽ φοβερὸν τὸ ἐμπεσεῖν εἰς χεῖρας Θεοῦ ξῶντος.“ καὶ ἑτέρωθι, βοῦ »γάντες γὰρ. παραστησόμεθα τῷ βήματι τοῦ Χριστοῦ, ἵνα κομίσηταν ἕκαστος τὰ διὰ τοῦ σώματος πρὸς ἃ ἔπραξεν, εἴτε ἀγαθὸν. εἴτε κακόν. “" ### English translation (Claude) his people.' Then he frightens those who live in ease, and says: 'It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.' And elsewhere he cries: 'For we shall all stand before the judgement seat of Christ, so that each may receive according to what he has done through the body, whether good or bad.' ### Scripture references - Heb 10:30: quotation, high confidence - Heb 10:31: quotation, high confidence - 2 Cor 5:10: quotation, high confidence - Rom 14:10: quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Heb 10:30–31; 2 Cor 5:10 combined with Rom 14:10. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.18 (Raeder, 303; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-18). ## Discourse 12.19 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-19 - Source: Raeder, 303 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato in the Laws agrees that one must become like God to be dear to him, and that the temperate man is like God. ### Greek text Ὅτι μὲν οὖν δεῖται ἡ γνῶσις τῆς πρακτικῆς ἀρετῆς, ἱκανὰ καὶ ταῦτα δηλῶσαι᾽ ἴδωμεν δέ, τίνα καὶ τῶνδε πέρι τοῖς “Ἑλλήνων ἔδοξε φιλοσόφοις. ὀψόμεθα γάρ τοι τὸν Πλάτωνα καί τινας ἄλλους, τὴν τούτου φιλοσοφίαν ἐξηλωκότας, τῷδε ξυμφωνοῦντας τῷ λόγῳ" καὶ γὰρ ἐν τοῖς Νόμοὲς οὕτω 'φησίν᾽ «τὸν οὖν τῷ θεῷ προσφιλῆ γενησόμενον, εἰς. δύναμιν ὅτι μάλιστα καὶ ἑαυτὸν τοιοῦτον ἀναγκαῖον γίνεσθαι" καὶ κατὰ τοῦτον τὸν τρόπον ὁ μὲν σώφρων ἡμῶν θεῷ φίλος" ὅμοιος γάρ᾽ ὁ δὲ μὴ σώφρων ἀνόμοιός τε καὶ ### English translation (Claude) That knowledge needs practical virtue, these things are enough to show. But let us see what the philosophers of the Greeks thought about this too. For we shall see Plato and some others who emulated his philosophy agreeing with this teaching. For in the Laws he says thus: 'He who is to become dear to God must, as far as he can, become such himself; and in this way the temperate man among us is dear to God, for he is like him; but the man who is not temperate is unlike and ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 716c-d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 4.716c–d. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.19 (Raeder, 303; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-19). ## Discourse 12.20 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-20 - Source: Raeder, 303 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato agrees that the virtuous imitate God; by 'temperate' he means one who keeps reason sound. ### Greek text διάφορος.“ οὐδὲν τοίνυν ἀλλοῖον οὐδὲ οὗτος εἴρηκεν, ἀλλὰ ξυνομολογεῖ καὶ αὐτός, ὡς δυνατόν, ἐν ταῖς περὶ τἀγαθοῦ διωθέσεσι τὸν πεπονηκότα μιμεῖσθανι Θεόν ἐνταῦθα μέντοι σώφρονα οὐ τὸν ἡδονῶν ἐκάλεσε κρείττονα, ἀλλὰ τὸν σῶον καὶ ἄρτιον τὸ λογικὸν διασώσαντα. ### English translation (Claude) different.' This man too, then, has said nothing different, but he also agrees that the one who has laboured in dispositions toward the good imitates God as far as is possible. Here, however, he called temperate not the man who is stronger than pleasures, but the one who has kept the rational part safe and sound. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 716d (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret plays on σώφρων (“temperate”) as one who keeps reason σῶον (“safe”). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.20 (Raeder, 303; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-20). ## Discourse 12.21 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-21 - Source: Raeder, 303 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Theaetetus urges flight from the evils of this world by becoming like God as far as possible. ### Greek text παραπλήσια δὲ κἀν τῷ Θεαιτήτῳ ξυγγέγραφεν᾽ ἔφη γάρ᾽..ἀλλ᾽ οὔτε ἀπόλλυσθαι τὰ καχὰ δυνατόν, ὦ Θεόδωρε (ὑπεναντίον γάρ τι τῷ ᾿ἀγαθῷ ἀεὶ εἶναι ἀνάγκη), οὔτε ἐν θεοῖς αὐτὰ ἱδρῦσθαι, τὴν δὲ θνητὴν φύσιν καὶ τόνδε τὸν τόπον περιπολεῖ ἐξ ἀνάγκης" διὸ καὶ πειρᾶσθαι χρὴ ἐνθένδε ἐκεῖσε φεύγειν ὅτι τάχιστα. φυγὴ δὲ ὁμοίωσις θεῷ κατὰ τὸ δυνατόν᾽ ὁμοίωσις δὲ δίχα ### English translation (Claude) He has written similar things in the Theaetetus too. For he said: 'But it is not possible for evils to perish, Theodorus (for there must always be something opposed to the good), nor to be established among the gods; but of necessity they haunt mortal nature and this region. Therefore one must also try to flee from here to there as quickly as possible. And flight is becoming like God as far as possible; and becoming like is becoming just ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Theaet. 176a-b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Theaetetus 176a–b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.21 (Raeder, 303; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-21). ## Discourse 12.22 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-22 - Source: Raeder, 304 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's 'flight' means freedom from earthly affairs, not leaving the earth. ### Greek text ϊὸν “καὶ ὅσιον μετὰ φρονήσεως γενέδθαι.“ μάλα δὲ καὶ σαφῶς καὶ σοφῶς ἐν τούτοις τὸν τῆς μιμήσεως ἐξεπαίδευσε τρόπον. πρῶτον μὲν γὰρ φυγεῖν τὰ τῇδε ἐκέλευσεν, οὐκ ἔξω τῆς γῆς γινόμενον, ἀλλὰ τῶν περιγείων, πραγμάτων ἀπαλλαττόμενον᾽ τοῦτο γὰρ δεδήλωκεν, ἔν οἷς ἐπήγαγεν" »φυγήν“ γάρ φησιν,,ἐκάλεσα τὴν πρὸς τὸ θεῖον ὁμοίωσιν.“ ### English translation (Claude) and holy with wisdom.' In these words he taught very clearly and wisely the manner of the imitation. For first he bade us flee the things here, not by leaving the earth, but by being freed from earthly affairs. For he made this plain in what he added: 'I called flight,' he says, 'becoming like the divine.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Theaet. 176b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Theaetetus 176b; the second saying paraphrases the same passage. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.22 (Raeder, 304; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-22). ## Discourse 12.23 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-23 - Source: Raeder, 304 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato wisely limits likeness to God to what is possible for humans and joins justice and holiness to wisdom. ### Greek text ἀξιέπαινος δὲ καὶ ἡ προσθήκη᾽ οὐ γὰρ ἁπλῶς ὁμοιωθῆναι γενομοθέτηκεν, ἀλλ᾽ ὡς ἀνθρώποις ἐστὶ δυνατόν. εἶτα τὸ τῆς ὁμοιώσεως ἐπέδειξεν εἶδος οὁμοίωσιν γάρ φησι,»ροσἡγόρευσα τὸ ὅσιον καὶ δίκαιον γενέσθαι μετὰ φρονήσεως.“ καὶ αὕτη δὲ ἀξιάγαστος ἢ προσθήκη. εἰσὶ γὰρ δή τινες πλείστην μὲν τοῦ δικαίου φροντίδα ποιούμενοι, σπαιότητι δὲ τῷ τοῦ κατορθώματος λυμαινόμενοι κάλλει. ### English translation (Claude) Praiseworthy too is the addition; for he did not lay down simply that we become like God, but as far as is possible for human beings. Then he showed the form of the likeness: 'I named likeness,' he says, 'becoming holy and just with wisdom.' And this addition too is admirable. For there are some who take very great care for justice, but spoil the beauty of the achievement by their clumsiness. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Theaet. 176b (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Theaetetus 176b (paraphrased). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.23 (Raeder, 304; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-23). ## Discourse 12.24 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-24 - Source: Raeder, 304 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato describes the true philosopher as ignorant of the agora, courts, political intrigue and revels. ### Greek text ἔπειτα διὰ πλειόνων ἐν αὐτῷ γε τῷ διαλόγῳ τὴν τελειότητα διδάσκει τῆς ἀρετῆς, ὧδέ πῃ γράφων" «λέγωμεν δὴ περὶ τῶν κορυφαίων. τί γὰρ ἄν τις τοὺς παρανόμως ἐν φιλοσοφίᾳ διατρίβοντας λέγοις οὗτοι δέ που οὔτε εἰς ἀγορὰν ἴσασι τὴν ὁδόν, οὔτε ὕπου δικαστήριον ἢ βουλευτήριον ἤ τι κοινὸν ἄλλο τῆς πόλεως ξυνέδριον᾽ νόμους δὲ καὶ ψηφίσματα λεγόμᾶνα ἢ γραφόμενα οὔτε ὁρῶσιν οὔτε ἀκούουσιν᾽ σπουδαὶ δὲ ἐταιριῶν ἐπ᾽ ἀρχὰς καὶ ξύνοδοι καὶ δεῖπνα καὶ οἱ ξὺν αὐλητρίσι κῶμοι οὐδὲ ὄναρ πράττειν προσίσταται αὐτοῖς᾽ οὐδὲ εἰ κακῶς τις γέγονεν ἐν πόλει. ἤ τί τῷ κακόν ἐστιν ἐκ προγόνων γεγονὸς πρὸς ἀνδρῶν ἢ γυναικῶν, μᾶλλον αὐ-τὸν λέληθεν ἢ τῆς θαλάττης οἵ λεγόμενοι χόες. ### English translation (Claude) Then, at greater length in this same dialogue, he teaches the perfection of virtue, writing somewhat as follows: 'Let us speak, then, about the leaders; for why should one speak of those who spend their time in philosophy unlawfully? These do not know the way to the agora, nor where the court or the council-chamber is, or any other common assembly of the city; laws and decrees, spoken or written, they neither see nor hear. The efforts of political clubs for office, and meetings, and dinners, and revels with flute-girls, do not occur to them to do even in a dream. And whether someone in the city is of low birth, or what evil has come down to anyone from his ancestors on the men's or the women's side, escapes him more than the proverbial number of pints in the sea. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Theaet. 173c-d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Theaetetus 173c–d (Plato's text has “badly” where Theodoret's has “unlawfully”). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.24 (Raeder, 304; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-24). ## Discourse 12.25 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-25 - Source: Raeder, 305 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's philosopher lives in the city only in body, while his mind ranges over earth and heaven. ### Greek text καὶ ταῦτα πάντα οὐδ᾽ ὅτι οὐκ οἶδεν, οἶδεν᾽ οὐδὲ γὰρ αὐτῶν ἀπέχεται τοῦ εὐδοκιμεῖν χάριν. τῷ ὄντι δὲ τὸ σῶμα μόνον ἐν τῇ πόλει κεῖται αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐπιδημεῖ, ἡ δὲ διάνοια, ταῦτα πάντα ἡγησαμένη σμιπρὰ καὶ ὡς οὐδὲν ἀτιμάσασα, πανταχῇ πέταται, κατὰ Πίνδαρον, τά τε γῆς ὑπένερθεν καὶ τὰ ἐπίπεδα γεωμετροῦσα, οὐρανοῦ τε ὕπερ ἀστρονομοῦσα καὶ πᾶσαν ### English translation (Claude) And he does not even know that he does not know all these things; for he does not keep away from them for the sake of reputation. In reality only his body lies and sojourns in the city, while his mind, having thought all these things small and of no account, and despising them, flies everywhere, as Pindar says, measuring the things beneath the earth and the surfaces, studying the stars above heaven, and ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Theaet. 173e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Pindar, fr. 292 (Pindar (odes and fragments)): allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Theaetetus 173e, citing Pindar (fr. 292). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.25 (Raeder, 305; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-25). ## Discourse 12.26 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-26 - Source: Raeder, 305 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's portrait of the philosopher fits Christian ascetics, not Greek philosophers: even Socrates lived amid the city's business, wars, feasts and theatre. ### Greek text πάντῃ φύσιν διερευνωμένη.“ ἐν δὲ τούτοις ὁ Πλάτων τὴν τῶν ἡμετέρων φιλοσόφων ἐξωγράφησε. πολιτείαν" οὐ γὰρ δή τις παρ᾽ ἐκείνοις τοιοῦτος ἐγένετο. ὁ μὲν γὰρ Σωκράτης, τῶν φιλοσόφων ὃ χορυφαῖος, χἀν τοῖς γυμνασίοις κὰν τοῖς ἐργαστηρίοις διαλεγόμενος διετέλει" καὶ ποτὲ μὲν ἐν ἄστει διέτριβε, ποτὲ δὲ εἰς Πειραιᾶ κατιὼν τὰς πομπὰς᾽ ἐθεώρει" καὶ τοῖς ὁπλίταις δὲ ξυνταττόμενος καὶ ἐν Ποτιδαίᾳ καὶ ἐν Δηλίῳ παρετάττετο᾽ καὶ μέντοι καὶ εἰς ξυσσίτια ἀπιὼν ἠνείχετο καὶ Ἀριστοφάνους κωμῳδοῦντος καὶ ᾿Αλκιβιάδου κωμάξοντος (τοῦτο γὰρ διδάσχει τοῦ Πλάτωνος τὸ Ξυμπόσιον)" καὶ εἰς θέατρον ἀναβαίνων ξυνεθεᾶτο τῷ δήμῳ. ### English translation (Claude) searching out every nature in every way.' In these words Plato painted the way of life of our philosophers; for no one among them was of that kind. For Socrates, the leader of the philosophers, continued discussing in the gymnasia and in the workshops; and sometimes he spent his time in the city, and sometimes he went down to the Piraeus and watched the processions; and serving with the hoplites he stood in the line of battle at Potidaea and at Delium; and moreover, going to common meals, he put up with Aristophanes making comedy and Alcibiades revelling (Plato's Symposium teaches this); and going up to the theatre he watched with the people. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Theaet. 174a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Plato, Symp. (Plato (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Theaetetus 174a (end of the quotation); Republic 1.327a (the Piraeus); Symposium (Aristophanes and Alcibiades). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.26 (Raeder, 305; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-26). ## Discourse 12.27 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-27 - Source: Raeder, 305 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's ideal fits the Christian monks, who live on mountains and in deserts in contemplation, free of family and property, shaping their souls by God's laws. ### Greek text ἥκιστα τοίνυν αὐτῷ προσήκει τὰ παρὰ Πλάτωνος εἰρημένα. εἰ δὲ τούτῳ οὐ προσῆκε, σχολῇ γ᾽ ἂν ἄλλῳ τῷ ἁρμόσειεν. οἱ δὲ τῆς εὐαγγελικῆς ἐφασθέντες φιλοσοφίας πόρρωθεν τῶν πολιτικῶν θορύβων γεγένηνται" τὰς δὲ τῶν ὀρῶν ἀκρωνυχίας κατειληφότες ἢ τὸν ἐν ἐρήμοις χωρίοις ἀγαπήσαντες βίον, τῇ θεωρίᾳ τῶν θείων καὶ τῷ ταύτῃ ξυνηρμοσμένῳ σφᾶς αὐτοὺς ἀπεκλήρωσαν βίῳ, οὐ γυναικῶν καὶ παίδων καὶ κτημάτων ἐπιμελούμενοι, ἀλλὰ τὰς ψυχὰς κατά γε τὸν κανόνα τῶν θείων διευθύνοντες νόμων καὶ οἷόν τινες ἄριστοι ζωγράφοι πρὸς τὰ ἀρχέτυπα τῆς ἀρετῆς τὰς νοερὰς αὐτῶν ξζωγραφοῦντες εἰκόνας. ### English translation (Claude) What Plato said, then, by no means fits him. And if it did not fit him, much less would it suit anyone else. But those who have loved the philosophy of the Gospel have gone far away from the tumults of the city; having taken possession of the peaks of the mountains, or having loved the life in desert places, they have given themselves wholly to the contemplation of divine things and to the life suited to it, not caring for wives and children and possessions, but directing their souls by the rule of the divine laws, and, like some excellent painters, painting their spiritual images after the archetypes of virtue. ### Translation notes - Theodoret refers to the monks and hermits of Syria and elsewhere. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.27 (Raeder, 305; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-27). ## Discourse 12.28 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-28 - Source: Raeder, 306 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's philosopher, living like a herdsman with a fold on a mountain and despising large estates, resembles the monks. ### Greek text ὅτι γὰρ δὴ τούτοις ἁρμόττει τὰ παρὰ Πλάτωνος εἰρημένα, μάρτυς αὐτὸς μετὰ πλεῖστα εἰπών" «ἄγροικον δὲ καὶ ἀπαίδευτον ὑπ᾽ ἀσχολίας οὐδὲν ἧττον τῶν νομέων τὸν τοιοῦτον ἀναγκαῖον γίνεσθαι., σηκὸν ἐν ὄρει τὸ τεῖχος περιβαλλόμενον. γῆς δὲ ὅταν μυρία πλέθρα ἢ εἶ τι πλέον ἀκούσῃ ὥς τις ἄρα κερτημένος θαυμαστὰ πλήθη πέχτηται, πάνυ σμικρὰ δοκεῖ ἀκούειν, ὅπασαν εἰωθὼς τὴν γῆν βλέπειν“. ### English translation (Claude) For that what Plato said fits these men, he himself is witness, saying after a great deal else: 'Such a one must become boorish and uncultivated for lack of leisure, no less than the herdsmen, having a fold on a mountain as the wall around him. And when he hears that someone, having acquired ten thousand acres of land or more, possesses an amazing amount, he thinks he hears of something very small, being accustomed to look at the whole earth.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Theaet. 174d-e (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Theaetetus 174d–e. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.28 (Raeder, 306; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-28). ## Discourse 12.29 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-29 - Source: Raeder, 306 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: No Greek philosopher lived on a mountain, and the Greeks resent the monks who do, though Plato praised that life. ### Greek text ὅτι δὲ τῶν παρ᾽ “Ἕλλησι περφιλοσοφηκότων οὐδεὶς ἐν ὄρει σηκὸν δειμώμενος ᾧκησεν, ἱκανὰ μὲν καὶ τὰ παλαιὰ δηλῶσαι ξυγγράμματα, μαρτυρεῖτε δὲ καὶ ὑμεῖς. τοῖς τοῦτον μετιοῦσι νεμεσῶντες τὸν βίον. ἀλλ᾽ ὁ Πλάτων τοῦτον εἴρηκεν ἀξιαγαστότατον εἶναι. ξύμ-. ### English translation (Claude) That none of those who practised philosophy among the Greeks built a fold on a mountain and lived there, the ancient writings are enough to show, and you yourselves bear witness, resenting those who pursue this life. But Plato said that this is the most admirable life. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.29 (Raeder, 306; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-29). ## Discourse 12.30 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-30 - Source: Raeder, 306 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Republic pictures the truly just man who wishes to be, not to seem, good, stripped of all reputation. ### Greek text φωνα δὲ κἀν τῷ δευτέρῳ τῆς Πολιτείας ἔφη" τὸν γὰρ τοιοῦτόν“ φησι »θέντες, τὸν δίκαιον αὖ παρ᾿ αὐτὸν ἱστῶμεν τῷ λόγῳ, ἄνδρα ἁπλοῦν καὶ γενναῖον, κατ᾽ Αἰσχύλον, οὐ δοκεῖν, ἀλλ᾽ εἶναν ἀγαθὸν ἐθέλοντα. ἀφαιρετέον δὲ τὸ δοκεῖν᾽ εἰ γὰρ δόξαι δίκαιος εἶναι, ἔσονται αὐτῷ τιμαὶ καὶ δωρεαί, δοκοῦντι τοιούτῳ εἶναι' ἄδηλον οὖν, εἶτε τοῦ δικαίου εἶνε τῶν δωρεῶν καὶ τιμῶν ἕνεκα τοιοῦτος εἴῃ. ### English translation (Claude) And he said things in agreement with this in the second book of the Republic too: 'Having set up such a man,' he says, 'let us set the just man beside him in our argument, a simple and noble man, who, as Aeschylus says, wishes not to seem but to be good. Then we must take away the seeming; for if he seems to be just, there will be honours and gifts for him for seeming such; it would then be unclear whether he is such for the sake of justice or for the sake of the gifts and honours. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 361b-c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Aeschylus, Sept. 592 (Aeschylus (plays and fragments)): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 2.361b–c, quoting Aeschylus, Seven against Thebes 592. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.30 (Raeder, 306; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-30). ## Discourse 12.31 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-31 - Source: Raeder, 307 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's just man must be stripped of everything but justice and keep it until death while thought unjust. ### Greek text ψυμνωτέος δὴ πάντων πλὴν δικαιοσύνης, καὶ πονητέος ἐναντίως διακείμενος τῷ προτέρῳ. μηδὲν γὰρ ἔχων, δόξαν ἐχέτω μεγίστην ἀδικίας, ἵνα βεβασανισμένος ἢ εἰς δικαιοσύνην, τῷ μὴ τίθεσθαι ὑπὸ κακοδοξίας καὶ τῶν ἀπ᾽ αὐτῆς γινομένων' ἀλλ᾽ ἔστω ἀμετάστατος μέχρι θανάτου, δοκῶν εἶναι ἄδικος διὰ βίου.“ ### English translation (Claude) He must be stripped of everything except justice, and be put in the opposite condition to the former man. Having nothing, let him have the greatest reputation for injustice, so that he may be tested for justice by not being softened by ill repute and what comes from it; but let him be unchangeable until death, seeming unjust all his life.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 361c-d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 2.361c–d. Theodoret's text reads “having nothing” where Plato has “doing no wrong”. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.31 (Raeder, 307; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-31). ## Discourse 12.32 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-32 - Source: Raeder, 307 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christian ascetics, unlike the Cynics, pursue virtue for its own sake, hiding it from all but God. ### Greek text καὶ ταῦτα δὲ ὡσαύτως τοῖς ἡμετέροις ἁρμόττει τῆς ἀρετῆς ἀθληταῖς. οὐ γὰρ Ἀντισθένει καὶ Διογένει καὶ Κράτητι παραπλησίως κενῆς ἕνεκα δόξης, ἀλλ᾽ αὐτοῦ γε εἵνεκα τοῦ τοχολοῦ ὁρῶσιν, ἃ δρῶσιν. διὸ δὴ καὶ πόλεων καὶ κωμῶν πόρρω διάγουσι, τὴν ἀρετὴν κατακρύπτοντες καὶ μόνῳ γε τῷ ταύτης ἀγωνοθέτῃ δεικνύντες. ### English translation (Claude) And these words too likewise fit our athletes of virtue. For they do what they do not, like Antisthenes and Diogenes and Crates, for the sake of empty glory, but for the sake of the good itself. That is why they live far from cities and villages, hiding their virtue and showing it only to the judge of its contest. ### Extrabiblical texts - Antisthenes (Antisthenes (fragments)): allusion, low confidence - Crates (Crates of Thebes): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Antisthenes, Diogenes of Sinope and Crates were Cynic philosophers. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.32 (Raeder, 307; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-32). ## Discourse 12.33 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-33 - Source: Raeder, 307 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Greeks ignore true ascetics and condemn the whole monastic life because of a few unworthy monks, like hating humans because of an ape that mimics them. ### Greek text ἀλλ᾽ ὑμεῖς τοὺς μὲν οὔτῶς ἀγωνιζομένους οὔτε θεωρεῖν οὔτε θαυμάξενν ἐθέλετε. εἰ δέ τινας ἴδοιτε τὸ μὲν πρόσχημα τοῦτο περικειμένους, οὐ πάντα δὲ ξυνομολογοῦντα τῷ σχήματι βίον ἀσπαζομένους, εὐθὺς εἰς λοιδορίαν "ενεῖτε τὴν γλῶτταν. καὶ εἰ μὲν ἐκείνους ἐβάλλετε μόνους, εἶχεν ἄν τινὰ τὸ γινόμενον λόγον᾽ ἐπειδὴ δὲ μετ᾽ ἐκείνων καὶ τοὺς ἄντικρυς ἐναντίως διακειμένους ἐκείνοις καὶ ἀληθῶς φιλοσοφοῦντας κωμῳδεῖν πειρᾶσθε καὶ διασύρειν, τὸν ἀδικώτατον ὑμῶν δῆλον ποιεῖτε σκοπόν᾽ οὐ γὰρ τοῖς πονηροῖς ἀπεχθάνεσθε, ἀλλὰ τὸν ἀξιέπαινον διαβάλλετε βίον, ὅμοιον ποιοῦντες, ὥσπερ ἂν εἴ τις πίθηκον ἰδὼν μιμούμενον ἄνθρωπον, δι᾿ ἐκείνην τὴν μίμησιν καὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων μισήσοι τὴν φύσιν. ### English translation (Claude) But you are willing neither to look at nor to admire those who contend in this way. If you see some who wear this outward garb but do not embrace a life wholly in keeping with the garb, at once you let loose your tongue in abuse. And if you struck at those alone, what you do would have some reason; but since together with them you try to ridicule and disparage also those who are directly opposite to them and who truly practise philosophy, you make plain your most unjust aim. For you are not hostile to the wicked, but you slander the praiseworthy life, doing something like a man who, seeing an ape imitating a man, would because of that imitation hate the nature of men too. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.33 (Raeder, 307; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-33). ## Discourse 12.34 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-34 - Source: Raeder, 307 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato too says it is unsound to condemn a whole kind because of those badly led. ### Greek text ταύτης δέ τοι τῆς γνώμης οὐκ ἐγὼ μόνος, ἀλλὰ καὶ Πλάτων κατηγορεῖ" ἐν γάρ τοι τῷ Θεαιτήτῳ φησίν' οδπεψώμεθα δέ πῃ τῇδε. φέρ᾽. εἶς τιβ αἰγῶν τροφὴν καὶ τὸ ὀῷον αὐτό, "πῆμα ὡς καλόν ἔστιν, ἐπαινοῖ, ἄλλος δὲ τις, ἑωρακὼς αἶγας χωρὶς νεμομένας αἰπόλου ἐν ἐργασίμοις χωρίοις δρώσας κακά, διαψέγοι, καὶ πᾶν θρέμμα. ἄναρχον ἢ μετὰ κακῶν ἀρχόντων ἰδών, οὕτω μέμφοιτο, τὸν τοιοῦτον ψόγον ἡγούμεθα ὑγιὲς ἄν ποτε ψέξαι καὶ ὁτιοῦν; ### English translation (Claude) Not I alone, but Plato too condemns this judgement. For in the Theaetetus he says: 'Let us consider it in this way. Come: if someone praised the rearing of goats and the animal itself, how fine a possession it is, and another, having seen goats grazing without a goatherd in cultivated places and doing harm, blamed it, and, seeing any flock without a ruler or with bad rulers, found fault in this way, do we think that such a one would ever blame anything soundly?' ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 639a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The passage is in Plato, Laws 1.639a; Theodoret says “in the Theaetetus”. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.34 (Raeder, 307; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-34). ## Discourse 12.35 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-35 - Source: Raeder, 308 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato said true philosophers are few, as the Orphic saying has it, and Christ said many are called but few chosen. ### Greek text καὶ πῶςς ταῦτα τοῦ Πλάτωνος, ὦ ἄνδρες, οὐκ ἐμὰ τὰ ῥήματα. ἐδίδαξε δὲ μὴ ἅπαντα σκώπτειν τὰ ᾿θρέμματα διὰ τὰ κακῶς ὑπὸ κακῶν ἀρχόντων ἀγόμενα ἢ ἄρχοντος πάμπαν ἐστερημένα. καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ δὲ πάλιν διαρρήδην διδάσκει, ὡς φιλοσόφων πλῆθος ἀδύνατον γενέσθαι᾽ ωναρθηκοφόροι μὲν γὰρ πολλοίζς φησι, βάκχοι δέ τε παῦροι." τοῦτο δὲ καὶ ὁ δεσπότης ἔφη Χριστός" »»Μολλοίξ' “γὰρ εἶπε »»λητοί, ὀλίγοι δὲ ἐκλεκτοί." ### English translation (Claude) These are Plato's words, men, not mine. And he taught that one should not mock all flocks because of those that are badly led by bad rulers, or are wholly without a ruler. And elsewhere again he teaches expressly that a multitude of philosophers cannot exist: 'For the wand-bearers are many,' he says, 'but the bacchants few.' And the Master Christ said this too: 'For many are called, but few are chosen.' ### Scripture references - Matt 22:14: quotation, high confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Phaed. 69c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Orpheus (attributed), Orph. frag. (Orpheus (attributed), Orphic poems (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Phaedo 69c, quoting an Orphic saying; Matt 22:14 (20:16). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.35 (Raeder, 308; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-35). ## Discourse 12.36 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-36 - Source: Raeder, 308 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: In the Epinomis Plato says few can be blessed in this life. ### Greek text ξυνῳδὰ δὲ τούτοις ὁ Πλάτων κἀν τῇ ἘἘπινομίδι φησίν" οὔ φημι: εἶναι ἀνθρώποις δυνατὸν μακαρίοις τε καὶ εὐδαίμοσι γενέσθαι, πλὴν ὀλίγων. μέχρι περ ἂν ξῶμεν, τοῦτο διορίξομα ### English translation (Claude) In agreement with these, Plato says in the Epinomis too: 'I say that it is not possible for men to become blessed and happy, except for a few, as long as we live; this I lay down; ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Epin. 973c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Epinomis 973c (the Epinomis is of disputed authorship; Theodoret treats it as Plato's). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.36 (Raeder, 308; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-36). ## Discourse 12.37 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-37 - Source: Raeder, 308 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Greeks should admire ascetics who live above nature and pardon those who fall through innate passions, rather than the reverse. ### Greek text ι καλὴ δὲ ἐλπὶς τελευτήσαντι τυχεῖν ἁπάντων.“ τί δήσοτε τοίνυν χαλεπαίνετε, παρ᾽ ἡμῖν ὁρῶντές τινας ψευδομένους, ὃν ἐπαγγέλλονται βίον; ἀνθ᾽ ὅτου δὲ μὴ θαυμάζετε τοὺς. τὸν ὑπερφυᾶ βίον ἠγαπηκότας καὶ ἐν σώματι μὲν ἀγωνιζομένους, τὴν ἀσώματον δὲ πολιτείαν ἐξζηλωπότας; πᾶν γὰρ τοὐναντίον ἔδει ποιεῖν τοὺς μὲν ἄγαν θαυμάζειν ὡς ὑπεραλλομένους τὰ τῆς φύσεως σπάμματα, τοῖς δὲ νέμειν τινὰ ξυγγνώμην, ὡς ὑπὸ τῶν ἐμφύτων κατασυρομένοις παθῶν. ### English translation (Claude) but there is a fair hope, when one has died, of obtaining all.' Why, then, are you angry when you see some among us belying the life they profess? And why do you not admire those who have loved the life above nature and, while contending in the body, have emulated the bodiless way of life? You ought to do the very opposite: greatly admire the latter as leaping beyond the bounds of nature, and grant the former some pardon as dragged down by the passions born in us. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Epin. 973c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Epinomis 973c (end). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.37 (Raeder, 308; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-37). ## Discourse 12.38 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-38 - Source: Raeder, 309 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Virtue is hard for beings of flesh, as Homer and Plato's Cephalus, whose bodily pleasures faded with age, acknowledge. ### Greek text ὅτι γὰρ δὴ ταῦτα παγχάλεπα, ἴστε καὶ ὑμεῖς,,»οὐ γὰρ ἐκ δρυός“, κατὰ τὸν ποιητικὸν λόγον,,.ἢ ἀπὸ πεύκης" γεγένησθε. δεδήλωκε δὲ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ Πλάτων ἐν τῷ τῆς Πολιτείας πρώτῳ διαλόγῳ, τὸν Κέφαλον εἰσαγαγὼν τῷ Σωκράτει διαλεγόμενον καὶ λέγοντα᾽.,εὖ ἴσθι, ὅτι ἔμοιγε ὅσον αἵ. ἄλλαι αἵ κατὰ τὸ σῶμα ἡδοναὶ ἀπομαραίνονται. τοσοῦτον αὔξονται αἵ περὶ τοὺς λόγους ἐπιθυμίαι τε καὶ ### English translation (Claude) For that these things are very hard, you too know; 'for you were not born from an oak,' as the poet's word has it, 'or from a pine.' Plato too showed this in the first dialogue of the Republic, bringing in Cephalus conversing with Socrates and saying: 'Know well that for me, as much as the other pleasures of the body wither away, so much do the desires and pleasures of discussion increase.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Od. 19.163 (Homer, Odyssey): allusion, medium confidence - Plato, Resp. 328d (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Odyssey 19.163 (“not from an oak … or from a rock”; Theodoret's text has “pine”); Plato, Republic 1.328d. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.38 (Raeder, 309; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-38). ## Discourse 12.39 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-39 - Source: Raeder, 309 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Cephalus rejoices to have escaped bodily pleasures as from a raging master. ### Greek text ἡδοναί“ εἶτα πυθομένου τοῦ Σωκράτους, εἰ ἔτι τὸ τῶν ἡδονῶν ἐπανίσταται πάθος, ὑπολαβὼν ἔφη".»οεὐφήμει ἄνθρῶπε᾽ ἀσμενέστατα μέντοι αὐτὰ ἀπέφυγον, ὥσπερ λυττῶντά τινὰ καὶ ἄγριον δεσπότην ἀποφυγών.“ ἐνταῦθα μὲν οὖν περὶ τῆς αἰσχρᾶς ἡδονῆς τοιαῦτα διεξελήλυθεν᾽ ἐν δὲ τῷ ### English translation (Claude) Then, when Socrates asked whether the passion for pleasures still rose up in him, he replied: 'Hush, man; most gladly did I escape them, as one escaping a raging and savage master.' Here, then, he went through such things about shameful pleasure; and in the ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 329c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence - Sophocles (Sophocles (plays and fragments)): allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Republic 1.329b–c, where Cephalus reports the saying of Sophocles; Theodoret gives it as Cephalus's own answer. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.39 (Raeder, 309; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-39). ## Discourse 12.40 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-40 - Source: Raeder, 309 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Gorgias praises the rare man who lives justly though he has power to do wrong. ### Greek text Τοργίᾳ περὶ δικαιοσύνης καὶ ἀδικίας ὧδέ φησιν" "χαλεπὸν ι5.γάρ, ὦ Καλλίκλεις, καὶ πολλοῦ ἐπαίνου ἄξιον, ἔν μεγάλῃ ἐξουσίᾳ γενόμενον τοῦ ἀδικεῖν, δικαίως διαβιῶναι" ὀλίγοι δὲ γίνονται οἵ τοιοῦτοι. ἐπεὶ καὶ ἐνθάδε καὶ ἄλλοθι γεγόνασιν, οἶμαι δὲ ἔσονται καλοὶ καὶ ἀγαθοὶ ταύτην τὴν ἀρετή ### English translation (Claude) Gorgias he speaks thus about justice and injustice: 'For it is hard, Callicles, and worthy of much praise, for one who has come into great power to do wrong to live his life justly; and such men are few. For both here and elsewhere there have been, and I think there will be, men fine and good in this virtue, ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Gorg. 526a (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Gorgias 526a. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.40 (Raeder, 309; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-40). ## Discourse 12.41 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-41 - Source: Raeder, 309 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato's Gorgias concludes that doing wrong is worse than suffering it and that one must be, not seem, good. ### Greek text ν, ἤν τοι δικαίως διαχειρίξζωσιν, ἃ ἄν τις ἐπιτρέπῃ.“ καὶ αὖ πόάλιν᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ἔν τοσούτοις λόγοις πολλῶν ἐλεγχομένων. μόνος οὗτος ἠρεμεῖ ὃ λόγος, ὡς εὐλαβητέον ἐστὶ τὸ ἀδικεῖν μᾶλλον ἢ τὸ ἀδικεῖσθαι, καὶ παντὸς μᾶλλον ἀνδρὶ μελετητέον οὐ τὸ δοκεῖν εἶναι ἀγαθόν, ἀλλὰ τὸ ἀγαθὸν εἶναι καὶ ### English translation (Claude) of administering justly whatever anyone entrusts to them.' And again: 'But among so many arguments, while the others were refuted, this argument alone stands firm: that doing wrong is more to be guarded against than being wronged, and that a man must practise above all not seeming to be good but being good, both ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Gorg. 527b (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Gorgias 526a (end); 527b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.41 (Raeder, 309; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-41). ## Discourse 12.42 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-42 - Source: Raeder, 309 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: In the Crito Socrates teaches that one must never return wrong or harm for harm. ### Greek text ἰδίᾳ καὶ δημοσίᾳ.“ χαὶ τούτους δὲ πάλιν τοὺς λόγους ὃ Σωκράτης τῷ Κρίτωνι προσενήνοχε᾽ μετὰ γὰρ πολλοὺς ἑτέρους καὶ τάδε: προστέθειπεν᾽ οὐδαμῶς ἄρα δεῖ ἀδικεῖν. οὐδὲ ἀδικούμενον ἄρα ἀνταδικεῖν, ὡς οἵ πολλοὶ οἴονται, ἐπειδήπερ οὐδαμῶς δεῖ ἀδικεῖν. τί δὲ δής κακουργεῖν δεῖ. ὦ Κρίτων, ἢ οὔς οὐ δεῖ δήπου, ὦ Σώκρατες. δεῖ δὲ ἀντικακουργεῖν κακῶς πάσχοντας ὡς οἱ πολλοί φασις δίκαιον ἢ οὐ δίκαιον; οὐδαμῶς. τὸ γάρ που κακὸν ποιεῖν ἀνθρώποις τοῦ ἀδικεῖν οὐδὲν διαφέρει. καλῶς λέγεις. οὔτε οὖν ἄρα ἀνταδικεῖν δεῖ οὔτε κακῶς ποιεῖν οὐδένα ἀνθρώπων, οὐδ᾽ ἂν ὁτιοῦν ### English translation (Claude) in private and in public.' And Socrates also put these words to Crito; for after many others he added these: 'One must in no way do wrong, then; nor, then, when wronged, return wrong, as the many think, since one must in no way do wrong. — What then? Must one do harm, Crito, or not? — Surely one must not, Socrates. — And is it just, as the many say, to do harm in return when one suffers harm, or not just? — Not at all. — For doing evil to men differs in no way from doing wrong. — You speak rightly. — Then one must neither return wrong nor do evil to any man, whatever ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Crit. 49b-c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Gorgias 527b (end); Crito 49b–c. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.42 (Raeder, 309; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-42). ## Discourse 12.43 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-43 - Source: Raeder, 310 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates' and Plato's moral teaching accords with nature, for God placed knowledge of good and evil in human nature, and so many Greeks and barbarians hated injustice. ### Greek text πάσχῃ τις ὑπ᾽ αὐτῶν.“ τοιαύτην μὲν οὖν ἀδιρίας πέρι καὶ δικαιοσύνης Σωκράτης καὶ Πλάτων διδασκαλίαν ἐποιησάτην, ἀξιέπαινον ἀληθῶς καὶ λογυνὴν καὶ τῇ φύσει τῇ ἀνθρωπίνῃ ξυμβαίνουσαν᾽ τὰ γὰρ ἠθιπμὰ μαθήματα πάντας ἀνθρώπους ἡ φύσις ἐπαίδευσεν. διωπλάσας γάρ τοι τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὸ γένος ὁ ποιητὴς ἐντέθεικις τῇ φύσει τὴν τῶν ἀγαθῶν καὶ τὴν τῶν ἐναντίων διάγνωσιν. ὅθεν οὐ μόνον Σωκράτης καὶ Πλάτων καὶ Ἀριστείδης ὁ “υσιμάχου καὶ ἄλλοι τινὲς τῶν Ἑλλήνων τὸν ἄδικον ἐβδελύξαντο βίον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν βαρβάρων πολλοί. ### English translation (Claude) one may suffer from them.' Such, then, was the teaching that Socrates and Plato gave about injustice and justice, truly praiseworthy and reasonable and in accord with human nature; for nature has taught all men the moral lessons. For the Maker, having fashioned the human race, placed in its nature the discernment of good things and of their opposites. Hence not only Socrates and Plato and Aristides son of Lysimachus and some others of the Greeks abhorred the unjust life, but also many of the barbarians. ### Scripture references - Rom 2:14: allusion, low confidence - Rom 2:15: allusion, low confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Crit. 49c (Plato (works)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Crito 49c (end). Compare Rom 2:14–15. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.43 (Raeder, 310; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-43). ## Discourse 12.44 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-44 - Source: Raeder, 310 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Barbarian examples of justice and simplicity: the Hyperboreans and the Brahmans. ### Greek text καὶ γὰρ “Ἑλλάνικος ἐν ταῖς ἱστορίαις ἔφη τοὺς Ὑπερβορέους οἰκεῖν μὲν ὑπὲρ τὰ Ῥίπαια ὄρη, ἀσκεῖν δὲ δικαιοσύνην, μὴ πρηφαγοῦντας, ἀλλ ἀπροδρύοις χρωμένους. καὶ τοὺς Βραχμᾶνας ἱστοροῦσιν ἕτεροι ἐν ταῖς ὕλαις διάγειν, φύλλοις τὸ σῶμα παλύπτοντας. ### English translation (Claude) For Hellanicus said in his histories that the Hyperboreans live beyond the Rhipaean mountains and practise justice, not eating meat but living on the fruits of trees. And others relate that the Brahmans live in the woods, covering their bodies with leaves. ### Extrabiblical texts - Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 1.15.72 (Miscellanies): allusion, low confidence - Hellanicus (Hellanicus): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Hellanicus (fragment), probably through Clement of Alexandria, Miscellanies 1.15.72. No controlled id exists for Hellanicus. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.44 (Raeder, 310; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-44). ## Discourse 12.45 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-45 - Source: Raeder, 310 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Scythian Anacharsis showed self-control even in sleep, guarding his tongue more carefully than his body. ### Greek text καὶ ᾿ἀνάχαρσιν δὲ τὸν Σεύθην φιλόσοφον γεγενῆσθαί φασιν. οὕτως δὲ αὐτὸν ὃ τῆς φιλοσοφίας ἐπυρπόλησεν ἔρως, ὡς ὀνομαστότατον γενέσθαι καὶ παρὰ πᾶσιν ἀοίδιμον... οὐ γὰρ μόνον ἐγρηγορὼς πρὸς τὰ τῆς ψυχῆς ἠγωνίζετο πάθη, ἀλλὰ καὶ καθεύδων τὰ τῆς ἐγκρατείας παρεδήλου σημεῖα". εἰώθει γὰρ τῇ μὲν λαιᾷ τὰ αἰδοῖα κατέχειν, τῇ δεξιᾷ δὲ τὰ χείλη ξυνέχειν, ταύτῃ πῃ δηλῶν, ὡς πολλῷ μείζων ἐστὶν ἡ ἀγωνία τῆς γλώττης καὶ μείζονος ἐπικουρίας εἰς ἀσφάλειαν δεῖται. ### English translation (Claude) And they say that Anacharsis the Scythian became a philosopher. The love of philosophy so set him on fire that he became most famous and celebrated among all. For not only when awake did he contend against the passions of the soul, but even when asleep he showed signs of self-control. For he used to hold his private parts with his left hand and keep his lips closed with his right, showing in this way that the struggle with the tongue is much greater and needs greater help for safety. ### Translation notes - The story of Anacharsis's sleeping posture is told elsewhere in antiquity; Theodoret introduces it with “they say”. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.45 (Raeder, 310; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-45). ## Discourse 12.46 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-46 - Source: Raeder, 311 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Chiron was a teacher of justice; Hesiod and Simonides describe virtue's path as steep and hard. ### Greek text καὶ Χείρωνα δὲ τὸν Κένταυρον Ἕρμιππός φησιν ὃ Βηφύτιος δικαιοσύνης γενέσθαι διδάσμαλον, καὶ Ὅμηρος δὲ αὐτὸν »δικαιότατον τῶν Κενταύρων“ ἐκάλεσεν. οὐ τοίνυν μάλα προσήκει θαυμάξειν οὔτε Ἡσίοδον, τραχεῖαν λέγοντα τῆς ἀρετῆς τὴν ὁδὸν καὶ προσάντη καὶ δύσβατον, οὔτε Σιμωνίδην «τὰν ἀρετὰν“ εἰρηκότα ναίειν δυσβάτοις ἐπὶ πέτραις. “ὁ ### English translation (Claude) And Hermippus of Berytus says that Chiron the Centaur became a teacher of justice, and Homer called him 'the most just of the Centaurs'. One should not, then, greatly wonder either at Hesiod saying that the way of virtue is rough and steep and hard to tread, or at Simonides saying that 'virtue' dwells on rocks hard to climb. ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 11.832 (Homer, Iliad): quotation, high confidence - Hesiod, Op. 289-292 (Hesiod, Works and Days): allusion, high confidence - Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 1.15.73 (Miscellanies): allusion, low confidence - Simonides (Simonides): quotation, medium confidence - Hermippus (Hermippus of Berytus): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Hermippus of Berytus, probably through Clement, Miscellanies 1.15.73; Homer, Iliad 11.832; Hesiod, Works and Days 289–292; Simonides, fr. 579 PMG. No controlled ids exist for Hermippus or Simonides. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.46 (Raeder, 311; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-46). ## Discourse 12.47 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-47 - Source: Raeder, 311 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The poets urged the virtue Homer saw in Chiron and the Hippemolgi; Antisthenes preferred madness to pleasure. ### Greek text ἃ γὰρ δὴ τῷ Χείρωνι καὶ τοῖς Ἱππημολγοῖς προσεμαρτύρησεν Ὅμηρος, καὶ ἅπερ ᾿Ανάχαρσις ἔργῳ μετῆλθεν ὃ Σιύθης, ταῦτα λόγῳ παρήνεσαν οἵ ἐπαινούμενοι ποιηταί. καὶ ᾿Αντισθένης δὲ ὁ Κυνικὸς (Σωκρατικὸς δὲ καὶ οὗτος) τοῦ ἥδεσθαι τὸ μαίνεσθαι πρεῖττον εἴρηκεν εἶναι" διὸ καὶ παραἰνεῖ τοῖς γνωρίμοις μηδὲ δάκτυλον ἐπτεῖναί ποτε εἵνεκα ἡδονῆς. ### English translation (Claude) For what Homer bore witness to in Chiron and in the Hippemolgi, and what Anacharsis the Scythian pursued in deed, these things the praised poets urged in word. And Antisthenes the Cynic (he too was a disciple of Socrates) said that it is better to be mad than to feel pleasure; therefore he urges his pupils never to stretch out even a finger for the sake of pleasure. ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Il. 13.5-6 (Homer, Iliad): allusion, medium confidence - Antisthenes (Antisthenes (fragments)): quotation, medium confidence - Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 2.20.107 (Miscellanies): allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - Homer, Iliad 13.5–6 (the Hippemolgi “most just of men”); Antisthenes, compare Clement, Miscellanies 2.20.107. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.47 (Raeder, 311; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-47). ## Discourse 12.48 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-48 - Source: Raeder, 311 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Diogenes the Cynic, Antisthenes' pupil, professed philosophy but was a slave of pleasure, coupling in public. ### Greek text τῆς τούτου διδασκαλίας τετύχηκε Διογένης ὁ Σινωπεύς, λόγῳ μὲν καὶ αὐτὸς τὴν φιλοσοφίαν ζηλώσας, ἡδονῆς δὲ δοῦλος γενόμενος καὶ δημοσίᾳ ταῖς ἑταίραις μιγνύμενος καὶ κάκιστον τοῖς θεωμένοις προσφέρων παράδειγμα. φασὶ δὲ αὐτόν, μεμψαμένου τινὸς τὸ γινόμενον καὶ εἰρηκότος",,τί ποιεῖς, ὦ Διόγενες φάναι ἐκεῖνον, τῇ ξυνήθει λοιδορίᾳ χρησάμενον᾽ ὦ κάθαρμα, εἰ ἐπιτύχοιμι, ἄνθρωπον.“ οὕτως ἀνέδην ἐλάγνευεν. ### English translation (Claude) Diogenes of Sinope received his teaching; he too emulated philosophy in word, but became a slave of pleasure, consorting publicly with courtesans and setting a most evil example before those who watched. They say that when someone blamed what was going on and said, 'What are you doing, Diogenes?', he answered, using his customary abuse: 'A man, you scum, if I succeed.' So shamelessly did he indulge his lust. ### Extrabiblical texts - Diogenes Laertius, 6.69 (Diogenes Laertius, Lives of the Eminent Philosophers): allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - The answer is a known saying of Diogenes (“I am planting a man”); the verb is missing in the text printed here, and the reply is translated as it stands. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.48 (Raeder, 311; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-48). ## Discourse 12.49 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-49 - Source: Raeder, 312 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Crates praised freedom from pleasure and prescribed hunger or a noose against lust, yet married Hipparchia publicly in the Cynic manner. ### Greek text τούτου Κράτης ὃ Θηβαῖος τὸν βίον ἐξήλωσε καὶ πολλαῖς μὲν εὐφημίαις τὴν ἀρετὴν ἐστεφάνωσεν᾽ αὐτοῦ γὰρ δὴ ὅδε ὁ λόγος᾽ «ἡδονῇ ἀνδραποδώδει ἀδούλωτοι καὶ ἄκαμπτοι ἀθάνατον βασιλείαν ἐλευθερίαν τ᾽ ἀγαπῶσιν.“ οὗτος εἰώθει λέγειν, τῆς εἰς τὰ ἀφροδίσια ὁρμῆς κατάπλασμα λιμὸν εἶναι, εἰ δὲ μή, βρόχον. ἀλλὰ τοῦ πάθους ἐπαναστάντος, Ἱππαρχίαν τὴν Μαρωνῖτιν θημοσίᾳ ἔγημε καὶ τὰ πυνογάμια ἐν τῇ Ποικίλῃ ἐτέλεσεν, ἐρρῶσθαι πολλὰ φράσας. ### English translation (Claude) Crates of Thebes emulated his life and crowned virtue with many praises; for this saying is his: 'Unenslaved and unbending to slavish pleasure, they love an immortal kingdom and freedom.' He used to say that the remedy for the urge to sex is hunger, or if not that, a noose. But when the passion rose up in him, he married Hipparchia of Maroneia in public and performed the dog-wedding in the Painted Stoa, having bidden a long farewell ### Extrabiblical texts - Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 2.20.121 (Miscellanies): allusion, low confidence - Diogenes Laertius, 6.86 (Diogenes Laertius, Lives of the Eminent Philosophers): allusion, low confidence - Crates (Crates of Thebes): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Crates' verses, compare Clement, Miscellanies 2.20.121; his saying on hunger or the noose, Diogenes Laertius 6.86. No controlled id exists for Crates. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.49 (Raeder, 312; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-49). ## Discourse 12.50 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-50 - Source: Raeder, 312 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Aristippus kept company with the courtesan Lais, and the Peripatetics praised virtue while honouring pleasure, as they themselves report of Aristotle. ### Greek text τῇ ὑψηγορίᾳ τῶν λύγων. καὶ Ἀρίστιππος δὲ ὃ Κυρηναϊκός, ὀνειδιζόμενος, ὅτι δὴ θαμὰ ξυνεγίνετο τῇ ἑταίρᾳ τῇ Κορινθίᾳ,,,ἔχω“ ἔλεγε..Λαΐδα, καὶ οὐκ ἔχομαι ὑπ᾽ αὐτῆς.“ καὶ οἱ Περιπατητικοὶ δὲ λόγῳ μὲν εὐφήμουν τὴν ἀρετήν, ἐκύδαινον δὲ ἔργῳ τὴν ἡδονήν᾽ καὶ ταῦτα αὐτῶν οὖχ ἄλλοι κατηγοροῦσιν, ἀλλ᾽ αὐτοὶ περὶ τοῦ σφῶν διδασκάλου ξυγγράφουσιν. ### English translation (Claude) to the loftiness of his words. And Aristippus of Cyrene, reproached because he often consorted with the Corinthian courtesan, said: 'I have Lais, and I am not had by her.' And the Peripatetics praised virtue in word but glorified pleasure in deed; and it is not others who accuse them of this, but they themselves who write it about their own teacher. ### Extrabiblical texts - Diogenes Laertius, 2.75 (Diogenes Laertius, Lives of the Eminent Philosophers): allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - Diogenes Laertius 2.75 (Aristippus and Lais). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.50 (Raeder, 312; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-50). ## Discourse 12.51 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-51 - Source: Raeder, 312 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Aristocles reports the charge that Aristotle bathed in oil he then sold and travelled with dozens of bronze dishes. ### Greek text Ἀριστοχλῆς γάρ που ὁ Περιπατητικὸς Λύκωνα ἔφη τὸν Πυθαγόρειον περὶ ᾽άριστοτέλους φάναι, ὅτι ἐν ἐλαίῳ θερμῷ λουόμενος τοῦτο ὕστερον ἀπεδίδοτο᾽ καὶ ἡνίκα δὲ εἰς Χαλκίδα ἀπήει, τοὺς τελώνας ἔφη διερευνωμένους τὸ πλοῖον εὑρεῖν (ἐν) αὐτῷ λοπάδια χαλκᾶ τέτταρα καὶ ἑβδομήκοντα᾽ ἄλλους δέ τινας εἰρηκέναι, τριακοσίας ἐσχηκέναι λοπάδας. ### English translation (Claude) For Aristocles the Peripatetic says that Lycon the Pythagorean said of Aristotle that he bathed in warm oil and afterwards sold the oil; and that when he went off to Chalcis, the customs officers, searching the ship, found in it seventy-four bronze dishes; and that others had said he had three hundred dishes. ### Extrabiblical texts - Aristocles (Aristocles of Messene, On Philosophy): quotation, high confidence - Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.2.8 (Preparation for the Gospel): allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - Aristocles of Messene, as quoted by Eusebius, Preparation for the Gospel 15.2.8–9. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.51 (Raeder, 312; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-51). ## Discourse 12.52 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-52 - Source: Raeder, 312 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Aristotle made happiness depend on bodily and external goods, as the Platonist Atticus showed. ### Greek text καὶ οἶμαι αὐτοὺς μὴ παντάπασι ψεύδεσθαι" ἐν τούτοις γὰρ δὴ ἐκεῖνος τὴν εὐδαιμονίαν ὡρίξετο. εἰώθει γὰρ λέγειν, οὐκ ἄλλως εὐδαίμονά τινα γίνεσθανι ἢ διὰ τῆς τοῦ σώματος εὐπαθείας καὶ τῆς τῶν ἐκτὸς περιουσίας, ὧν ἄνευ μηδὲν τὴν ἀρετὴν ὠφελεῖν. καὶ τοῦτο δὴ σαφῶς Ἀττικὸς ὁ Πλατωνικός, ἐν οἷς πρὸς Ἀριστοτέλην γράφει, δεδήλωκεν. ### English translation (Claude) And I think they are not wholly lying; for it was in these things that he defined happiness. For he used to say that no one becomes happy except through the well-being of the body and an abundance of external things, without which virtue is of no profit. And Atticus the Platonist made this plain in what he writes against Aristotle. ### Extrabiblical texts - Atticus, fr. 2 (Atticus, Against Those Who Interpret Plato through Aristotle): allusion, medium confidence - Aristotle (Aristotle (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Atticus, Against Aristotle (fragment 2), as preserved by Eusebius, Preparation for the Gospel 15.4. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.52 (Raeder, 312; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-52). ## Discourse 12.53 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-53 - Source: Raeder, 313 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato, unlike Aristotle, says the body should be cared for only for the sake of the soul's harmony. ### Greek text τὰ τοίνυν κατ᾽ αὐτοῦ λεγόμενα βεβαιοῦσιν οἱ λόγοι" ὁ δὲ Πλάτων ἄντικρυς ἐναντία διδάσκει. ἐν γὰρ τῷ τρίτῳ τῆς Πολιτείας ἐπιμελεῖσθαι κελεύει τοῦ σώματος ψυχῆς εἵνεκα ἁρμονίας, δι᾽ οὗ βιοῦν τε ἔστι καὶ ὀρθῶς βιοῦν, καταγγέλλοντας τῆς ἀληθείας τὸ κήρυγμα. ### English translation (Claude) Their words, then, confirm what is said against him; but Plato teaches the very opposite. For in the third book of the Republic he bids us care for the body for the sake of the harmony of the soul, through which it is possible to live and to live rightly, proclaiming the message of the truth. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 410c-412a (Plato (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Compare Plato, Republic 3.410c–412a (also 9.591c–d). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.53 (Raeder, 313; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-53). ## Discourse 12.54 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-54 - Source: Raeder, 313 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul likewise bids Christians put off the works of darkness and make no provision for the flesh. ### Greek text τοῦτο καὶ ὃ θεῖος ἀπόστολος παραινεῖ λέγων᾽ »»ἡἦ νὺξ προέκοψεν, ἡ δὲ ἡμέρα ἤγγικεν. ἀποθώμεθα οὖν τὰ ἔργα τοῦ σκότους καὶ ἐνδυσώμεθα τὰ ὅπλα τοῦ φωτός" ὡς ἐν ἡμέρᾳ εὐσχημόνως περιπατήσωμεν, μὴ κώμοις καὶ μέθαις, μὴ κοίταις καὶ ἀσελγείαις, μὴ ἔριδι καὶ ξήλῳ᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ἐνδύσασθε τὸν κύριον Ἰησοῦν Χριστὸν καὶ τῆς σαρκὸς ### English translation (Claude) This the divine apostle too urges, saying: 'The night is far gone, and the day has drawn near. Let us, then, put off the works of darkness and put on the armour of light; let us walk decently, as in the day, not in revelling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in strife and jealousy; but put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh ### Scripture references - Rom 13:12: quotation, high confidence - Rom 13:13: quotation, high confidence - Rom 13:14: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Rom 13:12–14. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.54 (Raeder, 313; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-54). ## Discourse 12.55 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-55 - Source: Raeder, 313 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The body should be cared for only so that it serves the soul, in which Plato agrees with Christian teaching. ### Greek text πρόνοιαν μὴ ποιεῖσθε εἰς ἐπιθυμίας.“ οὐ γὰρ τοσαύτην αὐτῷ προσφέρειν δεῖ θεραπείαν, ὥστε κατασκιρτᾶν τῆς ψυχῆς. ἀλλ᾽ ἵνα ὑπουργῇ καὶ ξυνεργῇ καὶ τοῖς ἐκείνης ἕπηται γεύμασιν. ξυμπεφώνημε τοίνυν ἐν τούτοις ὃ Πλάτων τοῖς ἡμετέροις, τὴν ἀναγκαίαν ἐπιμέλειαν ποιεῖσθαι παρεγγυήσας τοῦ σώματος. ἐπέδειξε δὲ καί, ὕπως ἄρχεταί τε καὶ αὔξεται ### English translation (Claude) to gratify its desires.' For one must not give it so much care that it leaps up against the soul, but only so that it serves and works together with the soul and follows its nods. In this, then, Plato agreed with our teachers, urging the necessary care of the body. And he also showed how the passion of desire begins and grows: ### Scripture references - Rom 13:14: quotation, high confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato (Plato (works)): allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - Rom 13:14 (end). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.55 (Raeder, 313; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-55). ## Discourse 12.56 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-56 - Source: Raeder, 313 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Desire begins with sight and grows by hope, memory and habit, as virtue grows from its first shoot; Socrates warned against needless eating and drinking and the kisses of the beautiful. ### Greek text τῆς ἐπιθυμίας τὸ πάθος᾽,οἡμεῖς γὰρ ἔφη.»λέξοιμεν ἂν ἴσως οὐκ ἀτόπως, ὅτι ἄρχει μὲν ἔρωτος ὅρασις, αὔξει δὲ τὸ πάθος ἐλπίς, τρέφει δὲ μνήμη, τηρεῖ δὲ ξυνήθεια τοῦτο δὲ αὐτὸ καὶ περὶ τῆς ἀρετῆς εἴρηκεν᾽ παντός γὰρ ἔφη φυτοῦ ἡ πρώτη βλάστη, καλῶς ὀρθωθεῖσα πρὸς ἀρετήν, τῆς ἑαυτοῦ φύσεως κυριωτάτη τέλος ἐπιθεῖναι τὸ πρόσφορον. καὶ Σωκράτης δὲ φυλάττεσθαι ἐκέλευσε τὰ ἀναπείθοντα μὴ πεινῶντας ἐσθίδιν καὶ μὴ διψῶντας πίνειν, καὶ τὰ βλέμματα καὶ τὰ φιλήματα τῶν καλῶν, ὡς χαλεπώτερον σκορπίων ᾿ καὶ φαλαγγίων ἰὸν ἐνιέναι πεφυκότα. ### English translation (Claude) 'We might say,' he said, 'perhaps not absurdly, that sight begins love, hope increases the passion, memory nourishes it, and habit preserves it.' And he said this same thing about virtue too: 'For of every plant the first shoot, rightly directed toward virtue, is most decisive in bringing its own nature to a fitting end.' And Socrates bade us guard against the things that persuade us to eat when we are not hungry and to drink when we are not thirsty, and against the glances and kisses of the beautiful, as apt to inject a poison more harmful than that of scorpions and spiders. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 765e (Plato (works)): quotation, medium confidence - Xenophon, Mem. 1.3.6 (Xenophon, Memorabilia): allusion, medium confidence - Xenophon, Mem. 1.3.12-13 (Xenophon, Memorabilia): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The saying on love is not found in Plato's extant works; the saying on the first shoot is Plato, Laws 6.765e; Socrates' warnings are in Xenophon, Memorabilia 1.3.6, 1.3.12–13. Raeder's edition has no section 57 in this discourse; the next section is numbered 58. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.56 (Raeder, 313; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-56). ## Discourse 12.58 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-58 - Source: Raeder, 314 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret charges that Socrates' words were not matched by deeds, for Plato's dialogues show him seeking out beautiful youths in the gymnasia. ### Greek text ἀλλὰ ταῦτα ῥήματα ἦν ἄλλως ἔργων γεγυμνωμένα. εἰς γὰρ δὴ τὰ γυμνάσια τῶν νέων εἵνεκα καὶ καλῶν εἰώθει φοιτᾶν καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς εἱστία τῇ κακῇ θεωρίᾳ. καὶ μαρτυρεῖ Φίληβος καὶ Φαῖδρος καὶ Ἀντερασταὶ καὶ Χαρμίδης καὶ ἄλλοι πολλοὶ διάλογον τοιαῦτα ἔχοντες διηγήματα. ### English translation (Claude) But these were merely words stripped of deeds. For he used to frequent the gymnasia for the sake of the young and beautiful, and to feast his eyes on the evil sight. And the Philebus and the Phaedrus and the Rivals and the Charmides and many other dialogues bear witness, containing such stories. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Charm. 153a-155e (Plato (works)): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - There is no section 57 in Raeder's numbering of this discourse. The dialogues named are Plato's (Rivals is now generally thought spurious). Theodoret's polemic against Socrates is translated as written. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.58 (Raeder, 314; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-58). ## Discourse 12.59 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-59 - Source: Raeder, 314 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret declines to repeat Alcibiades' speech about Socrates in the Symposium as harmful. ### Greek text ἃ δὲ Ἀμηβιάδης ἐν τῷ Ξυμποσίῳ περὶ Σωκράτους ἔφη, Πλάτων μὲν ἔγραψεν, ἐγὼ δὲ φειδοῖ τοῦ Σωκράτους εἰπεῖν οὐκ ἀνέξομαι" τοσαύτην ἔχουσιν ἀτοπίαν καὶ παροινίαν Σωκράτους καὶ λώβην τοῖς ὀξυρρόποις περὶ τὸ πταίειν ἐκεῖνοι οὗ λόγον ἐν ἐκείνῳ τῷ διαλόγῳ. ### English translation (Claude) What Alcibiades said about Socrates in the Symposium Plato wrote down, but I, sparing Socrates, cannot bring myself to repeat it; so much absurdity and drunken insult to Socrates, and harm to those quick to fall, do those words in that dialogue contain. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Symp. 215a-222b (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Symposium 215a–222b. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.59 (Raeder, 314; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-59). ## Discourse 12.60 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-60 - Source: Raeder, 314 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Symposium shows Socrates drinking all night while the others slept. ### Greek text καὶ ἑσπερίσαι αὐτὸν καὶ διανυκτερεῦσαι πίνοντα ἔφη, καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἀπειρηκότων ἤδη καὶ τὸν ὕπνον ἀσπασαμένων, ἐγρηγορότα μεῖναν πίνοντα καὶ μεταξὺ διαλεγόμενον, ὀνησιφόρον μὲν οὐδέν, ἃ δὲ ᾿άλκιβιάδῃ καὶ Ἀριστοφάνει χαὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις ἥφμοττε κωμασταῖς. ### English translation (Claude) And he said that he spent the evening and the whole night drinking, and when the others had given up and embraced sleep, he stayed awake drinking and conversing meanwhile, about nothing profitable, but about the things that suited Alcibiades and Aristophanes and the other revellers. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Symp. 223c-d (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Symposium 223c–d. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.60 (Raeder, 314; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-60). ## Discourse 12.61 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-61 - Source: Raeder, 314 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry, citing Aristoxenus, says Socrates was quick-tempered. ### Greek text καὶ ὁ Πορφύριος δέ, τὴν Φιλόσοφον. Ἰστορίαν ξυγγράψας, πρῶτον μὲν αὐτὸν ἀκρόχολον καὶ εὐόργητον εἴρηκε γεγενῆσθαι, Ἀριστοξένῳ μάρτυρι πδχρημένος τὸν Σωκφάτους βίον ξυγγεγραφότι. ### English translation (Claude) And Porphyry, who wrote the Philosophical History, says first that he was quick-tempered and easily angered, using as his witness Aristoxenus, who wrote the life of Socrates. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry (Porphyry, Philosophical History): quotation, medium confidence - Aristoxenus (Aristoxenus): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophical History (fragment), citing Aristoxenus's Life of Socrates. No controlled ids exist for these works. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.61 (Raeder, 314; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-61). ## Discourse 12.62 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-62 - Source: Raeder, 314 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Aristoxenus found Socrates uniquely persuasive in voice, bearing and appearance. ### Greek text ἔφη γὰρ μηδενὶ ἑτέρῳ ἐντετυχηκέναι πιθανωτέρῳ ἐκείνου" τοιαύτην εἶναι τήν τὲ φωνὴν καὶ τὸ στόμα. καὶ τὸ ἐπιφαινόμενον ἦθος καὶ πρὸς ἅπασι δὲ τοῖς εἰρημένοις τὴν τοῦ εἴδους ἰδιότητα. ### English translation (Claude) For he said that he had met no one more persuasive than him: such were his voice and his mouth and the character that showed in him, and, besides all these, the peculiarity of his appearance. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry (Porphyry, Philosophical History): quotation, medium confidence - Aristoxenus (Aristoxenus): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophical History, citing Aristoxenus. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.62 (Raeder, 314; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-62). ## Discourse 12.63 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/11-76/#p-12-63 - Source: Raeder, 314 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: When angry, Socrates was said to restrain neither word nor deed, and Porphyry also shows him a slave to pleasures. ### Greek text γίνεσθαι δὲ τοῦτο, ὅτε μὴ ὀργίξοιτο᾽ ὕτε δὲ ληφθείη ὑπὸ τοῦ πάθους τούτου, δεινὴν εἶναι τὴν ἀσχημοσύνην οὐδενὸς γὰρ οὔτε ὀνόματος ἀπέχεσθαι οὔτε του πράγματος. καὶ ἄλλα δὲ τοιαῦτα διεξελθών, δείκνυσιν αὐτὸν καὶ ταῖς ἡδυπαθείαις δεδουλωμένον᾽ ### English translation (Claude) And this was so when he was not angry; but when he was seized by this passion, his unseemliness was terrible; for he held back from no word and no deed. And going through other such things, he shows him to have been enslaved to pleasures too. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry (Porphyry, Philosophical History): quotation, medium confidence - Aristoxenus (Aristoxenus): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophical History, citing Aristoxenus. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.63 (Raeder, 314; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-63). ## Discourse 12.64 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-64 - Source: Raeder, 315 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry, after Aristoxenus, reports that Socrates had two wives at once, Xanthippe and Myrto. ### Greek text λέγει δὲ οὕτως" πρὸς δὲ τὴν τῶν ἀφροδισίων χρῆσιν σφοδρότερον μὲν εἶναι, ἀδικίαν δὲ μὴ προσεῖναι" ἢ γὰρ ταῖς γαμεταῖς ἢ ταῖς κοιναῖς χρῆσθαι μόναις. δύο δὲ σχεῖν γυναῖκας ἅμα, Ξανθίππην μὲν πολῖτιν καὶ κοινοτέραν πῶς, Μυρτὼ δὲ Ἀριστείδου θυγατριδῆν τοῦ “υσιμάχους καὶ τὴν μὲν Ξανθίππην προσπλακεῖσαν λαβεῖν, ἐξ ἧς ὃ Δαμπροκλῆς ἐγένετο" τὴν δὲ ΜΜυρτὼ γαμηθεῖσαν, ἐξ ἧς Σωφρογίσκος καὶ Μενέξενος. ### English translation (Claude) He speaks thus: 'In the use of sexual pleasures he was rather vehement, but no injustice was involved; for he used only wives or common women. He had two wives at the same time: Xanthippe, a citizen of somewhat common sort, and Myrto, the granddaughter of Aristides son of Lysimachus. Xanthippe he took when she had attached herself to him, and from her Lamprocles was born; Myrto he married, and from her came Sophroniscus and Menexenus. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry (Porphyry, Philosophical History): quotation, medium confidence - Aristoxenus (Aristoxenus): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophical History, citing Aristoxenus. The report that Socrates had two wives at once was disputed in antiquity. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.64 (Raeder, 315; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64). ## Discourse 12.65 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-65 - Source: Raeder, 315 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Socrates' two wives quarrelled and turned on him because he laughed at them; he was also quarrelsome in conversation. ### Greek text αὗται δὲ ξυνάπτουσαι μάχην πρὸς ἀλλήλας, ἐπειδὰν παύσαιντο, ἐπὶ τὸν Σωκράτην ὥρμων, διὰ τὸ μηδέποτε αὐτὰς μαχομένας διακωλύειν, γελᾶν δὲ καὶ ἀλλήλαις καὶ αὐτῷ μαχομένας ὁρῶντα. εἶναι δέ φησιν αὖτὸν ἐν ταῖς ὁμιλίαις ἐνίοτε φιλαπεχθήμονα καὶ λοίδορον ### English translation (Claude) These would join battle with each other, and when they stopped, they would rush at Socrates, because he never stopped them when they fought, but laughed when he saw them fighting with each other and with him.' And he says that in conversation he was sometimes quarrelsome and abusive ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry (Porphyry, Philosophical History): quotation, medium confidence - Aristoxenus (Aristoxenus): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophical History, citing Aristoxenus. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.65 (Raeder, 315; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-65). ## Discourse 12.66 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-66 - Source: Raeder, 315 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry reports that Socrates as a boy disobeyed his father. ### Greek text καὶ ὑβριστικόν καὶ ταῦτα δὲ περὶ τοῦ Σωκράτους ὁ Πορφύριος ἔφη" «ἐλέγετο δὲ περὶ αὐτοῦ, ὡς ἄρα παῖς ὧν οὐκ εὖ βιώσειεν οὐδὲ εὐτάκτως. πρῶτον μὲν γάρ φασιν αὐτὸν τῷ πατρὶ διατελέσαι ἀπειθοῦντα, καὶ ὁπότε κελεύσειεν αὐτὸν λαβόντα τὰ ὄργανα τὰ περὶ τὴν τέχνην ἀπαντᾶν ὁπουδήποτε, ὀλιγωρήσαντα τοῦ προστάγματος περιτρέχειν αὐτόν, ὅπου ποτὲ δόξειεν. ### English translation (Claude) and insolent. And Porphyry said this too about Socrates: 'It was said of him that as a boy he did not live well or in an orderly way. For first, they say, he continued to disobey his father, and whenever his father bade him take the tools of his craft and meet him somewhere, he neglected the order and ran about wherever he pleased. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry (Porphyry, Philosophical History): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophical History. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.66 (Raeder, 315; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-66). ## Discourse 12.67 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-67 - Source: Raeder, 316 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry says that Archelaus, pupil of Anaxagoras, became Socrates' lover and teacher. ### Greek text ἤδη δὲ περὶ τὰ ἑπτακαίδεκα ἔτη προσελθεῖν αὐτῷ ᾿Αρχέλαον τὸν Ἀναξαγόρου μαθητήν, φάσκοντα ἐραστὴν εἶναι᾽ τὸν δὲ Σωκράτην οὐκ ἀπώσασθαι τὴν ἔντευξίν τὲ καὶ ὁμιλίαν τὴν πρὸς τὸν ᾿Αρχέλαον, ἀλλὰ γενέσθαν παρ᾽ αὐτῷ ἔτη συχνά" καὶ οὕτως ὑπὸ τοῦ Ἀρχελά ### English translation (Claude) And when he was about seventeen years old, Archelaus, the disciple of Anaxagoras, approached him, saying that he was his lover; and Socrates did not reject meeting and keeping company with Archelaus, but was with him for many years; and so he was turned by Archelaus ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry (Porphyry, Philosophical History): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophical History. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.67 (Raeder, 316; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-67). ## Discourse 12.68 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-68 - Source: Raeder, 316 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry's reports show that the philosophers praised virtue in word but served pleasure. ### Greek text ου προτραπῆναι ἐπὶ τὰ φιλόσοφα εἶτα μετ᾽ ὀλίγα" »νἣν δὲ καὶ τῶν ἐπιτιμωμένων καὶ τάδε Σωκράτει, ὅτι εἰς τοὺς ὄχλους εἰσωθεῖτο καὶ τὰς διατριβὰς ἐποιεῖτο πρὸς ταῖς τραπέζαις καὶ πρὸς τοῖς “Εἰρμαῖς.“ ταῦτα περὶ Σωκράτους ὁ Πορφύριος ἔφη καὶ ἄλλα ἄττα, ἃ ἑκὼν εἶναν παρέλιπον᾽ ἐξ ὧν καταμαθεῖν ἔξεστιν, ὡς λόγοις ἐπήνουν ἐκεῖνοι τὴν ἀρετήν, ἠσπάξοντο δὲ τὴν ἡδονὴν καὶ τοῖς πάθεσι δουλεύειν ἠνείχοντο. ### English translation (Claude) toward philosophy.' Then a little later: 'This too was among the charges against Socrates, that he pushed his way into crowds and held his discussions at the bankers' tables and by the Herms.' These things Porphyry said about Socrates, and certain others, which I have willingly left out; from them one may learn that those men praised virtue in words but embraced pleasure and endured being slaves to the passions. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry (Porphyry, Philosophical History): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Philosophical History. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.68 (Raeder, 316; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-68). ## Discourse 12.69 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-69 - Source: Raeder, 316 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: From Porphyry's and Plato's reports Theodoret concludes that Socrates' philosophy did not govern his life. ### Greek text εἰ γὰρ δὴ κατὰ τὸν Πορφύριον καὶ περὶ τὰ ἀφροδίσια ὁρμητικῶς εἶχε καὶ δύο γυναιξὶ κατὰ ταὐτὸν ὁμιλῶν οὐκ ἐλάμβανε κόρον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ταῖς κοιναῖς ἀνέδην ἐχρῆτο καὶ τῶν ἐν ταῖς παλαίστραις γυμνουμένων νέων κατὰ τὸν Πλάτωνα τὴν θέαν ἠσπάζετο καὶ δυσόργητος ἦν καὶ μόγις ἄττοντα κατέχειν ἠδύνατο τὸν θυμὸν καὶ λοίδορον εἶχε τὴν γλῶτταν καὶ ἀχαλίνωτον, ποῖον ἄρα εἶδος φιλοσοφίας μετήει; ### English translation (Claude) For if, according to Porphyry, he was impetuous in matters of sex, and, living with two wives at the same time, was not satisfied, but also used common women shamelessly; and if, according to Plato, he welcomed the sight of the young men stripped in the wrestling schools; and if he was hot-tempered and could hardly restrain his darting anger, and had an abusive and unbridled tongue — what kind of philosophy, then, did he pursue? ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato (Plato (works)): allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - Theodoret's polemical use of these reports about Socrates is translated as written. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.69 (Raeder, 316; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-69). ## Discourse 12.70 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-70 - Source: Raeder, 316 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: A letter ascribed to Xenophon accuses Plato of seeking Egyptian and Pythagorean lore and the favour of tyrants. ### Greek text ὅτι δὲ καὶ Πλάτωνος κατηγοροῦσι τῶν παλαιῶν τινὲς ὡς πολλὰ πεποιηκότος φιλοσοφίας ἀνάξια, ἀκούσατε Ξενοφῶντος λέγοντος ἐν τῇ πρὸς «Αἰσχίνην ἐπιστολῇ" »»Αἰγύπτου γὰρ ἠφάσθησαν καὶ τῆς Πυθαγόρου τερατώδους σοφίας᾽ ὧν τὸ περιττὸν καὶ μὴ μόνιμον ἐπὶ “Σωκράτει διήλεγχεν ἔρως τυραννίδος, καὶ ἀντὶ διαίτης λιτῆς ### English translation (Claude) That some of the ancients also accuse Plato of having done many things unworthy of philosophy, hear Xenophon saying in his letter to Aeschines: 'For they laid hold of Egypt and of the marvel-mongering wisdom of Pythagoras; whose excess and lack of constancy toward Socrates was exposed by a love of tyranny, and instead of a simple diet, ### Translation notes - Pseudo-Xenophon, Letter to Aeschines (one of the later Socratic Epistles, not by Xenophon). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.70 (Raeder, 316; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-70). ## Discourse 12.71 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-71 - Source: Raeder, 316 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Plato lived in luxury at the court of Dionysius in Syracuse, was imprisoned and sold as a slave, and, says Plutarch, traded oil in Egypt. ### Greek text Σικελιῶτις γαστρὸς τράπεζα.“ αἰνίττεται δὲ διὰ τούτων τὴν μετὰ Διονυσίου τοῦ τυράννου ἐν Σικελίᾳ διατριβήν. τὰς γὰρ ᾿άθήνας καταλιπὼν ἐκείνῳ. ξυνῆν, Συρακουσίας ἀπολαύων χλιδῆς, καὶ μετὰ τὴν ἐκείνου τελευτὴν τῷ ἐκείνου παιδί. τοσοῦτον δὲ παραινῶν τὸν τύραννον ὥνησεν, ὡς καὶ δεθῆναι κἀν ταῖς λυθοτομίαις εἰρχθῆναι᾽" ὕστερον δὲ αὖτὸν καὶ ὡς ἀνδράποδον ἀπέδοτο “βάρβαρον. καὶ ὁ Πλούταρχος δέ φησιν ἔλαιον αὐτὸν εἰς τὴν Αἴγυπτον ἐμπορίας χάριν μετακομίσαι. ### English translation (Claude) a Sicilian table for the belly.' By this he hints at his stay with Dionysius the tyrant in Sicily. For, leaving Athens, he lived with him, enjoying Syracusan luxury, and after his death with his son. And his counsel profited the tyrant so much that Plato was even bound and shut up in the stone quarries; and later he even sold him as a slave to a barbarian. And Plutarch too says that he carried oil to Egypt for the sake of trade. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plutarch, Sol. 2.8 (Plutarch): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Plutarch, Solon 2.8 (Plato's oil trade in Egypt). The stories of Plato's imprisonment and sale are reported by various ancient biographers. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.71 (Raeder, 316; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-71). ## Discourse 12.72 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-72 - Source: Raeder, 317 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Despite these faults, Theodoret admires and urges others to profit from what Plato said well. ### Greek text ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως καὶ τῶν τοιούτων ψόγων ἀκούοντες, θαυμάζομεν αὐτοῦ τὰ καλῶς εἰρημένα καὶ τὴν ἐκ τούτων ὠφέλειαν καὶ ὑμᾶς ἀξιοῦμεν ξυλλέγειν. ### English translation (Claude) But nevertheless, though we hear such reproaches, we admire what he said well, and we ask you too to gather the benefit from it. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato (Plato (works)): allusion, low confidence ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.72 (Raeder, 317; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-72). ## Discourse 12.73 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-73 - Source: Raeder, 317 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Greek women such as Lysidice, Philotera and Theano were praised for their modesty and chastity. ### Greek text καὶ γὰρ δὴ καὶ γυναῖκας γεγενῆσθαι παρ᾽ Ἕλλησιν ἀξιεπαίνους ἀκούομεν. Δυσιδίκη μὲν γάρ, ὥς φασιν, ἐλοῦτο μηδὲ τὸν χιτωνίσκον ἐκδυομένη, διὰ τὴν ὑπερβολὴν τῆς αἰδοῦς. ἡ δὲ Φιλωτέρα κατιοῦσα εἰς τὴν πύελον κατὰ βραχὺ τὸ τῷ ὕδατε καλυπτόμενον ἐγυμνοῦτο τοῦ σώματος, ἀναστέλλουσα κατ᾽ ὀλίγον τὸν χιτῶνα" καὶ αὖ πάλιν ἀνιοῦσα παραπλησίως ἠμπίσχετος Θεανὼ δὲ ἡ Πυθαγορική, ἀποβλέψαντός τινος εἰς αὐτὴν καὶ εἰπόντος" ««καλὸς ὃ πῆχυς“,.»ἀλλ᾽ οὐ δημόσιος’ ἀπεκρίνατο. ἐρωτηθεῖσα δὲ πάλιν᾽ ο“ποσταία γυνὴ ἀπὸ ἀνδρὸς εἰς τὸ Θεσμοφόριον κάτεισιν:..ἀπὸ μὲν τοῦ ἰδίου παραχρῆμα ἔφη,,,(ἀπὸ δὲ τοῦ ἀλλοτρίου, οὐδέποτε.“ ### English translation (Claude) For we hear that among the Greeks there were also women worthy of praise. Lysidice, as they say, bathed without even taking off her shift, because of her exceeding modesty. And Philotera, going down into the bath, uncovered little by little the part of her body that was covered by the water, drawing up her tunic gradually; and again, when coming up, she clothed herself in the same way. And Theano the Pythagorean, when someone looked at her and said, 'A fine arm', replied, 'But not public.' And when asked again, 'On what day after being with a man does a woman go down to the Thesmophorium?', she said: 'After her own, at once; after another's, never.' ### Extrabiblical texts - Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 4.19.121-122 (Miscellanies): allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Compare Clement, Miscellanies 4.19.121–122. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.73 (Raeder, 317; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-73). ## Discourse 12.74 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-74 - Source: Raeder, 317 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret approves Plato's praise of marriage as a means of continuing the race, and blames Democritus and Epicurus for rejecting marriage and children for the sake of pleasure. ### Greek text ταῦτα καὶ ὅσα τοιαῦτα καὶ ἐπαινοῦμεν καὶ φιλοσοφίας εἶναι ἄξιά φαμεν. καὶ ἀποδεχόμεθα τὸν Πλάτωνα τοῖς ἀγαθοῖς τὸν γάμον ξυντάξαντα καὶ ἀθανασίας ἐπίνοιαν καὶ διαμογὴν τοῦ γένους καλέσανταἈημοκρίτῳ δὲ καὶ ᾿Ἐπικούρῳ λίαν μεμφόμεθα, παραιτεῖσθαι καὶ τὸν γάμον καὶ τὴν παιδογονίαν κελεύουσιν. τὴν γάρ τοι ἡδονὴν ὁρισάμενοι τέλος; τὰ φροντίδας ἔχοντα καί τινας ἀηδίας παντελῶς ἀπεκήρυξαν. ### English translation (Claude) These things, and all others of this kind, we both praise and say are worthy of philosophy. And we accept Plato for ranking marriage among good things and calling it a thought of immortality and the continuance of the race; but we greatly blame Democritus and Epicurus, who bid men refuse both marriage and the begetting of children. For having defined pleasure as the end, they entirely renounced whatever brings cares and some unpleasantness. ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Leg. 721b-c (Plato (works)): allusion, high confidence - Democritus (Democritus (fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Epicurus (Epicurus (sayings and fragments)): allusion, medium confidence - Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 2.23.138 (Miscellanies): allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - Plato, Laws 4.721b–c; compare Clement, Miscellanies 2.23.138 (Democritus and Epicurus). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.74 (Raeder, 317; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-74). ## Discourse 12.75 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-75 - Source: Raeder, 318 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Stoics counted marriage indifferent, but Scripture praises chosen celibacy, ordains chaste marriage, and condemns sexual immorality. ### Greek text οἵ δὲ τῆς Ποικίλης μέσην τινὰ ὁδὸν ὥδευσαν᾽ τοῖς γὰρ ἀδιαφόροις τὸν γάμον καὶ τὴν παιδογονίαν ξυνέζευξαν. οἵ δὲ θεῖοι λόγοι τὴν μὲν διὰ φιλοσοφίαν ἐπινοουμένην ἁγνείαν ὑμνοῦσιν, ὡς βίον προξενοῦσαν φροντίδων ἐλεύθερον᾽ τὸν δὲ σώφρονα γάμον νομοθετοῦσιν, ὡς καὶ τὸ γένος αὔξοντα καὶ λαγνείας τοὺς σωφρονεῖν βουλομένους ἐλευθεροῦντα᾽ πορνείας δὲ καὶ τῆς ἄλλης ἀκολασίας ὡς συώδους κατηγο ροῦσιν. ### English translation (Claude) Those of the Porch went a middle way; for they yoked marriage and the begetting of children to the indifferent things. But the divine words praise the chastity that is chosen for the sake of philosophy, as bringing a life free from cares; and they lay down temperate marriage as a law, as both increasing the race and freeing from lust those who wish to be temperate; and they condemn sexual immorality and all other licentiousness as swinish. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.75 (Raeder, 318; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-75). ## Discourse 12.76 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-76 - Source: Raeder, 318 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Paul honours marriage, permits it to those without self-control, and forbids sexual immorality. ### Greek text «τίμιος γὰρ ὁ γάμος ἐν πᾶσι, καὶ ἡ κοίτη ἀμίαντος φησὶν ὃ θεῖος ἀπόστολος᾽ ««πόρνους δὲ καὶ μοιχοὺς κρινεῖ ὁ Θεός.“ καὶ πάλιν" «λέγω δὲ τοῖς ἀγάμοις καὶ ταῖς χήραις᾽ καλὸν αὐτοῖς ἐστιν, ἐὰν μείνωσιν ὡς κἀγώ" εἰ δὲ οὐκ ἐγκρατεύονται, γαμησάτωσαν.“ καὶ ἑτέρωθι᾽' οαπορνεία. δὲ παὶ ἀκαθαρσία μηδὲ ὀνομαξέσθω ἐν ὑμῖν, παθὼς πρέπει ἁγίοις. καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ" μή τις πόρνος καὶ βέβηλος ὡς ### English translation (Claude) 'For marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled,' says the divine apostle, 'but the sexually immoral and adulterers God will judge.' And again: 'I say to the unmarried and to the widows: it is good for them if they remain as I am; but if they do not exercise self-control, let them marry.' And elsewhere: 'But let sexual immorality and impurity not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints.' And elsewhere: 'That no one be sexually immoral or profane like ### Scripture references - Heb 13:4: quotation, high confidence - 1 Cor 7:8: quotation, high confidence - 1 Cor 7:9: quotation, high confidence - Eph 5:3: quotation, high confidence - Heb 12:16: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Heb 13:4; 1 Cor 7:8–9; Eph 5:3; Heb 12:16. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.76 (Raeder, 318; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-76). ## Discourse 12.77 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-77 - Source: Raeder, 318 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christian teachers prescribed a life fit for rational beings, while Plato wrote licentious laws on marriage and pederasty, and Hippodamus grounded friendship partly on benefits. ### Greek text Ἡσαῦ οἵ μὲν οὖν ἡμέτερον διδάσκαλοι τὸν λογικοῖς πρέποντὰ διεθεσμοθέτησαν βίον οἵ δὲ τῶν φιλοσόφων ἄριστοι καὶ αὐτοὶ ταῖς ἡδοναῖς ἐδουλώθησαν καὶ νόμους ἔγραψαν ἀκολασίαν διδάσποντας᾽ τοιοῦτοι γὰρ οἵ περὶ γάμων καὶ παιδεραστίας τοῦ Πλάτωνος νόμοι. καὶ μέντοι καὶ περὶ φιλίας Ἱππόδαμος ὁ Πυθαγόρειος οὕτω γέγραφεν" ο»ἁ μὲν ἐξ ἐπιστάμας θεῶν, ἁ δὲ ἐκ παροχᾶς ἀνθρώπων, ἁ δὲ ἐξ ### English translation (Claude) Esau.' Our teachers, then, laid down the way of life that befits rational beings; but the best of the philosophers were themselves enslaved to pleasures and wrote laws that teach licentiousness; such are Plato's laws about marriages and pederasty. And indeed Hippodamus the Pythagorean wrote thus about friendship: 'One kind comes from knowledge of the gods, another from the bounty of men, another from ### Scripture references - Heb 12:16: quotation, high confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Plato, Resp. 457c-468c (Plato (works)): allusion, medium confidence - Hippodamus (Hippodamus): quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - Heb 12:16 (end). Plato, Republic 5.457c–461e and 468b–c (common wives; kisses for the brave). Hippodamus the Pythagorean (fragment, preserved also in Stobaeus); no controlled id exists. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.77 (Raeder, 318; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-77). ## Discourse 12.78 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-78 - Source: Raeder, 318 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Christ taught a love that lays down life for friends and loves enemies, while Hippodamus based friendship on benefits. ### Greek text ἁδονᾶς ζῴων.“ ὁ δὲ δεσπότης Χριστὸς ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς εὐαγγελίοις φησίν᾽ ομείξονα ταύτης ἀγάπην οὐδεὶς δύναται δεῖξαι, ἵνα τις θῇ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ ὑπὲρ τῶν φίλων αὐτοῦ." τὰ τελεώτατα δὲ ἐκπαιδεύων; καὶ τοὺς ἐχθροὺς ἐκέλευσεν ἀγαπᾶν" ὁ δὲ τὴν Πυθαγόρειον ἐκπαιδευθεὶς τετρακτὺν τὴν ἀνθρωπίνην φιλίαν ἐκ παροχῆς ὡρίσατο κατορθοῦσθαι. ### English translation (Claude) the pleasure of animals.' But the Master Christ says in the holy Gospels: 'No one can show greater love than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.' And teaching the most perfect things, he commanded us to love even our enemies; whereas the one trained in the Pythagorean tetractys defined human friendship as achieved by bounty. ### Scripture references - John 15:13: quotation, high confidence - Matt 5:44: allusion, high confidence ### Translation notes - John 15:13; Matt 5:44. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.78 (Raeder, 318; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-78). ## Discourse 12.79 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-79 - Source: Raeder, 319 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Friendship does not come from benefits; rather benefits come from friendship. ### Greek text οὐ μόνον δὲ ἀπῴδων ὅδε ὁ λόγος, ἀλλὰ καὶ πάμπαν ἀξύστατος. πολλοὺς γὰρ ἐχθρῶν εὐεργέτας γεγενημένους εὑρίσκομεν᾽ πολλοὺς δὲ εὖ μὲν παρά τινῶν πεπονθότας, ἀχαρίστους δὲ μάλα περὶ τοὺς εὐεργέτας γεγενημένους. οὐ τοίνυν παροχῆς ἔκγονος ἡ φιλία, ἀλλὰ καρπὸς φιλίας ἡ παροχή. ### English translation (Claude) This word is not only out of tune but altogether incoherent. For we find many who have become benefactors of enemies, and many who, having been well treated by others, have become very ungrateful to their benefactors. Friendship, then, is not the offspring of bounty, but bounty is the fruit of friendship. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.79 (Raeder, 319; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-79). ## Discourse 12.80 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-80 - Source: Raeder, 319 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret urges the Greeks to move from human teachings to the perfection of the divine, without excuses. ### Greek text ᾿ Ταῦτα πάλιν, ὦ ἄνδρες, παφεξετάσαντες καὶ γνόντες, ὅσον θείων καὶ ἀνθρωπίνων τὸ μέσον, δι ἐκείνων, οἷον δή τινῶν στοιχείων, ἐπὶ τὴν τούτων᾽ ὁδεύσατε τελειότητα καὶ μὴ προφασίζεσθε προφάσεις ἐν ἁμαρτίαις,“ ὅ φησιν ἡ μελῳδία τοῦ Πνεύματος. ### English translation (Claude) Having again examined these things side by side, men, and having learned how great the distance is between the divine and the human, go on through those, as through first elements, to the perfection of these, and 'do not make excuses in sins', as the song of the Spirit says. ### Scripture references - Ps 141:4 (140:4 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Ps 141:4 (LXX 140:4). The digital text repeats several words of the quotation; the repetitions have been removed. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.80 (Raeder, 319; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-80). ## Discourse 12.81 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-81 - Source: Raeder, 319 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Greeks praise the Gospel's laws but use Christians who break them to discredit the laws. ### Greek text ιὕταν γὰρ τοὺς εὐαγγελικοὺς ἐπιδείξωμεν νόμους πολλῷ τῆς Ελληνικῆς φιλοσοφίας ὄντας ὑψηλοτέρους, τηνικαῦτα ὑμεῖς τοὺς μὲν νόμους ἐπαινεῖτε, τοὺς δὲ τούτους παραβαίνοντας ἀδεῶς εἰς μέσον προφέρετε καὶ δι᾿ ἐκείνων πειρᾶσθε διαβάλλειν τοὺς νόμους. ### English translation (Claude) For when we show the laws of the Gospel to be far loftier than Greek philosophy, then you praise the laws, but you boldly bring forward those who transgress them, and through them try to slander the laws. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.81 (Raeder, 319; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-81). ## Discourse 12.82 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-82 - Source: Raeder, 319 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: As no one condemns a craft because of bad craftsmen, the Greeks should blame transgressors, not the Gospel's laws. ### Greek text ἔδει δὲ ψέγειν μὲν ἐκείνους, ἀλλὰ μὴ τῶν νόμων κατηγορεῖν. οὐδὲ γὰρ. διὰ τὰς φαύλας ἀμπέλους φεύγομεν τὰς ἀρίστας, οὐδὲ διὰ τὰς πιμρὰς ἀμυγδάλας καὶ τὰς γλυκείας ἀποστρεφόμεθα, οὐδὲ διὰ τὸν ὑπόχαλπκον χρυσὸν καὶ τὸν ἀκίβδηλον διαβάλλομεν, οὐδὲ διὰ τὴν ἐψευσμένην πορφύραν καὶ τὴν ἀληθινὴν σκώπτομεν; οὐδὲ τῶν ἀμαθῶν ἕνεκα ξωγράφων καὶ τῶν ἐντέχνων κατηγοροῦμεν, οὐδὲ διὰ τοὺς πονηροὺς ἀνθρώπους καὶ τοὺς σπουδαίους μισοῦμεν, οὐδὲ ἤν τινὰ εὕρωμεν ἀνεπιστήμονα ἰατρόν, ἤδη καὶ τὴν ἰατρικὴν ἀπαγορεύομεν τέχνην, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ξωγράφων καὶ τῶν ἰατρῶν, καὶ μέντοι καὶ τῶν σκυτοτόμων καὶ τῶν χαλκοτύπων καὶ τῶν χρυσοχόων τοὺς μὲν ἀρίστους θαυμάζομεν, τοὺς δὲ τὴν τέχνην οὐκ ἀκριβοῦντας σκώπτειν εἰώθαμεν᾽ τὰς δέ γε τέχνας. κἂν μηδένα ἐπιστήμονα εὕρωμεν, διαβάλλειν οὐκ ἀνεχόμεθα. ### English translation (Claude) But you ought to blame those men, and not accuse the laws. For we do not shun the best vines because of the bad ones, nor turn away from sweet almonds because of the bitter, nor disparage pure gold because of gold alloyed with copper, nor mock true purple because of counterfeit purple; nor do we accuse skilled painters because of unskilled ones, nor hate good men because of wicked ones; nor, if we find some ignorant doctor, do we at once forbid the art of medicine. Rather, of painters and doctors, and indeed of shoemakers and coppersmiths and goldsmiths, we admire the best and are accustomed to mock those who do not practise the art exactly; but the arts themselves, even if we find no one skilled in them, we do not allow ourselves to slander. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.82 (Raeder, 319; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-82). ## Discourse 12.83 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-83 - Source: Raeder, 320 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Blaming the laws for those who break them is as absurd as blaming sight for blindness. ### Greek text τῶν γὰρ ἀτοπωτάτων διὰ τοὺς τυφλώττοντας τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς καὶ αὐτὴν τὴν ὀπτικὴν αἴσθησιν διαψέγειν ὡς ἄχρηστον, καὶ διὰ τοὺς τὴν γλῶτταν πεπεδημένους τῶν τῆς φωνῆς ὀργάνων ὡς οὐκ ἀναγκαίων κατηγορεῖν, καὶ διὰ τὰ βεβυσμένα ὦτα τὴν ἀκουστικὴν αἴσθησιν περιττὴν ὀνομάζειν. ### English translation (Claude) For it would be among the most absurd things, because of those who are blind in their eyes, to blame the very sense of sight as useless; and because of those whose tongues are bound, to accuse the organs of voice as unnecessary; and because of blocked ears, to call the sense of hearing superfluous. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.83 (Raeder, 320; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-83). ## Discourse 12.84 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-84 - Source: Raeder, 320 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: As a carpenter's mistakes are not the fault of his straight line, transgressions are not the fault of the laws. ### Greek text οὕτω τοίνυν ἀληθῶς σγχέτλιόν τε καὶ ἄδικον τῶν τοὺς νόμους παραβαινόντων εἵνεκα καὶ αὐτῶν τῶν νόμων κατηγορεῖν καὶ τῶν τούτους φυλάττειν ἐσπουδακότων. οὐδὲ γὰρ εἴ τὰς τέκτων κατὰ λόγον μὲν εὐθύνοι τὴν στάθμην, παρὰ λόγον δὲ τῷ σχκεπάρνῳ χρώμενος διαφθείροι τὰ σημεῖα τοῦ μέλανος, ἢ περαιτέρω ταύτης τῶν ἔνδον ἀφαιρούμενος ἢ περιττὰ ἔξωθεν καταλείπων, τὴν στάθμην αἰτιατέον, ἣ τὸ εὐθὲς ἐπιδείκνυσι" τῆς γάρ τοι τοῦ τέκτονος ἀμαθί ### English translation (Claude) So it is truly monstrous and unjust, because of those who transgress the laws, to accuse both the laws themselves and those who have been eager to keep them. For if a carpenter sets his line correctly, but, using his adze wrongly, spoils the marks of the ink, either cutting away from inside beyond it or leaving superfluous parts outside, the line is not to be blamed, which shows what is straight; for the error belongs to the carpenter's ignorance. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.84 (Raeder, 320; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-84). ## Discourse 12.85 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-85 - Source: Raeder, 320 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The laws are a straight rule; those who stray from them, not the laws, are to blame. ### Greek text ας ἡ ἁμαρτίας οὐκοῦν οἵ νόμοι στάθμης τινὸς καὶ καγόνος καὶ γνώμονος ἐπέχουσι τάξιν᾽ τῶν δὲ τούτοις χρωμένων οἵ μὲν ἄριστα τὸν οἰκεῖον διευθύνουσι βίον, οἵ δὲ τὰ ῥᾷστα ἀντὶ τῶν βελτίστων προαιρούμενοι ἔξω τῆς τούτῶν εὐθύτητος βαίνουσιν. τοιγάρτοι τούτων μὲν κατηγορητέον, τοὺς δὲ νόμους ἐπαινετέον. ### English translation (Claude) So the laws hold the place of a line and a rule and a square; and of those who use them, some direct their own life excellently, while others, choosing the easiest things instead of the best, go outside their straightness. These, then, are to be accused, and the laws praised. ### Translation notes - The section begins with the end of a word divided between this section and the last in the digital text; it is translated in 12.84. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.85 (Raeder, 320; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-85). ## Discourse 12.86 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-86 - Source: Raeder, 320 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: A patient who disobeys his doctor, not the doctor, is to blame for his worsening illness. ### Greek text οὐδὲ γὰρ εἴ τιρ ἄριστος ἰατρὸς ἐπιτάξοι τῷ κάμνοντι τῶν μὲν μεταλαβεῖν, τῶν δὲ μὴ μετασχεῖν παντελῶς, εἶτα ἐκεῖνος, ὀλίγον τῶν ἰατρικῶν ὑποθηκῶν φροντίσας, τῆς θεραπείας προτιμήσοι τὴν ἡδονὴν καὶ τὰ ἀπειρημένα φαγὼν ἢ πιὼν αὐξήσοι τὴν νόσον, τὸν ἰατρὸν ὡς ἐπίβουλον αἰτιώμεθα. ἐκ γὰρ δὴ τῆς τοῦ κάμνοντος ἀκρασίας, οὐκ ἐκ τῆς τοῦ ξυμβουλεύσαντος προμηθείας ἡ νόσος ηὐξήθη. ### English translation (Claude) For if an excellent doctor should order a patient to take some things and not to touch others at all, and the patient, caring little for the doctor's advice, should prefer pleasure to the cure and, by eating or drinking what was forbidden, increase the disease, we do not blame the doctor as a plotter. For the disease increased through the patient's lack of self-control, not through the foresight of the one who advised him. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.86 (Raeder, 320; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-86). ## Discourse 12.87 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-87 - Source: Raeder, 321 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The Greeks should praise the Lawgiver and his laws, honour those who keep them, and judge transgressors with distinction. ### Greek text ᾿Ταῦτα τοίνυν ξυλλογισάμενοι καὶ ὅσα τούτοις προσόμοια, τὸν μὲν τῶν σωτηρίων νόμων νομοθέτην ὑμνήσατε, αὐτῶν δὲ τῶν νόμων θαυμάσατε τὸ βιωφελὲς καὶ ὀνήσιμον᾽ καὶ οἷον θεωροί τινες τῶν ἀξιεπαίνων ἀγώνων γινόμενοι, τοὺς μὲν τούτων ἀνακηρύξατε φύλακας, κατὰ δὲ τῶν παραβεβηκότων μὴ τὴν ἴσην ἐξενέγκητε ψῆφον. ### English translation (Claude) Having reasoned out these things, then, and all that is like them, praise the Lawgiver of the saving laws and admire the life-giving usefulness of the laws themselves; and, like spectators at praiseworthy contests, proclaim those who keep them as victors, and do not bring the same verdict against all who have transgressed. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.87 (Raeder, 321; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-87). ## Discourse 12.88 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-88 - Source: Raeder, 321 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Not all transgressions are alike: some are involuntary, like accidental killings, which Herodotus too records. ### Greek text οὐ γὰρ ἴσῳ γε σμοπῷ παραβαίνουσιν ἅπαντες. πολλὰ γὰρ δὴ καὶ παρὰ γνώμην πλημμελοῦμεν οἱ ἄνθρωποι "αὶ ταῦτα καὶς αὐτοί γὲ οἵ νόμοι καλοῦσιν. ἀκούσια. καὶ γὰρ δὴ κατὰ κυνός τις ἢ ἄλλου του λίθον. ἀκοντίσας, τοῦ μὲν᾽ διήμαρτεν, ἄνθρωπὸν δὲ κατέκτεινε᾽ τοιαῦτα γὰρ δὴ πάθη καὶ ᾿Ηρόδοτος ἄδει. ### English translation (Claude) For not all transgress with the same purpose. We human beings commit many faults even against our will, and these the laws themselves call involuntary. For someone throws a stone at a dog or something else, misses it, and kills a man; Herodotus too sings of such misfortunes. ### Extrabiblical texts - Herodotus, Hist. 1.35-45 (Herodotus, Histories): allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - Compare Herodotus 1.35–45 (Adrastus's accidental killings). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.88 (Raeder, 321; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-88). ## Discourse 12.89 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-89 - Source: Raeder, 321 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The law pardons involuntary acts such as a flying axe-head, and among voluntary acts distinguishes killing in sudden anger from premeditated murder. ### Greek text πολλάκις δέ τις πέλεκυν ἔχων καὶ ξύλα τέμνων κατά τινος "παριόντος ἄκων ἠκμόντισε τὸν σίδηρον. τούτοις καὶ τοῖς τοιούτοις, ὡς ἀκουσίοις, ξυγγνώμην οἱ νόμοι προσνέμουσιν. καὶ τὰ ἑκούσια δὲ οὐ σμικρὰν ἔχει διαφοράν. οὐδὲ γὰρ ἴσον ὑπό τινος ὀργῆς καὶ θυμοῦ τινα παροξυνόμενον ἐνὸν πατάξαι τὸν πέλας καὶ παραπέμψαι τῷ θανάτῳ, οὐ τοῦτο προβουλευσάμενον οὐδὲ ἐπὶ τούτῳ γε παίσαντα, καὶ τὸ ἐξ ἐπιβουλῆς καὶ λόχου καὶ προνοίας τυρεῦσαν τὸν θάγατον᾽ τὸ μὲν γὰρ ἦν ἀκρασίας θυμοῦ, τὸ ὃὲ πονηρίας ἐσχάτης καὶ τὸ μὲν οὐχ ὅλον, τὸ δὲ ὅλον τῆς γνώμης. ### English translation (Claude) And often someone holding an axe and cutting wood unwillingly sends the iron flying at a passer-by. To these and such as involuntary the laws grant pardon. And voluntary acts too differ not a little. For it is not the same thing, when provoked by some anger and rage, to strike one's neighbour and send him to his death, without having planned it beforehand or struck for that purpose, and to contrive death by plot and ambush and forethought. For the one was a lack of control over anger, the other extreme wickedness; and the one is not wholly of the will, the other wholly. ### Scripture references - Deut 19:5: allusion, medium confidence - Exod 21:13: allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - Deut 19:5 (the axe-head); compare Exod 21:12–14. Repeated words (dittography) and stray letters in the digital text have been removed. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.89 (Raeder, 321; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-89). ## Discourse 12.90 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-90 - Source: Raeder, 321 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Some fall into lust suddenly and unwillingly, others make a life of seeking it. ### Greek text οὕτω καὶ ταῖς τῆς ἡδυπαθείας οὐχ ἅπαντες ὁμοίως οἱ ἄνθρῶποι περιπίπτουσιν ἁμαρτίαις" ἀλλ᾽ οἵ μὲν ἥκιστα περιερ- 'ψαζόμενοι τὰ εὐπρεπῆ τῶν σωμάτων περιπείρονται, ἔσθ᾽ ὅπῃ δὲ καὶ ὁρῶσιν ἐξαπίνης καὶ καταδουλοῦνται τῷ πάθει, τοῦ λογισμοῦ τῆς ἡγεμονίας ἐξισταμένου᾽ οἱ δὲ βίον ἔχουσι τὸ τῇ τοιᾷδε θεωρίᾳ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς ἑστιᾶν. ### English translation (Claude) So too not all people fall alike into the sins of pleasure. Some, without in the least going about looking, are pierced by comely bodies; sometimes they see suddenly and are enslaved to the passion, reason being driven from its command; but others make it their life to feast their eyes on such sights. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.90 (Raeder, 321; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-90). ## Discourse 12.91 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-91 - Source: Raeder, 322 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Some struggle against appetite and lose; others feed and inflame it deliberately. ### Greek text καὶ οἷ μὲν οὐδὲ σιτίων οὐδὲ ποτῶν. ἀπολαύουσιν ἀδεῶς, ἡττῶνταν δὲ ὕμως παλαίοντες, ἐπειδὴ παλαίειν ἐπιστημόνως οὐ βούλον- ται οἱ δὲ ὑπερμαξῶσι καὶ τρυφῶσιν καὶ πᾶν εἶδος ἐπινοοῦσι χλιδῆς καὶ τὰς ἄλλας ὀρέξεις διερεθίξζουσι παντοδαπαῖς ἐπινοίαις, καὶ μέντοι καὶ σβεννυμένων ἀσχάλλουσιν. ### English translation (Claude) And some do not even enjoy food and drink without fear, and yet are defeated though they wrestle, since they will not wrestle skilfully; while others gorge and live in luxury and devise every kind of indulgence, and stir up their other appetites with all sorts of devices, and are even vexed when these are quenched. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.91 (Raeder, 322; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-91). ## Discourse 12.92 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-92 - Source: Raeder, 322 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Weak sinners should be helped and healed, while the openly swinish should be lamented and given Sardanapalus's epitaph. ### Greek text ἐπειδὴ τοίνυν τοσαύτη τῶν παρανομούντων διαφορά, οὐ χρεὼν ἅπασι χαλεπαίνειν ὁμοίως, ἀλλὰ τοὺς μὲν προδήλως τὸν συώδη βίον ἀσπαζομένους μυσάττεσθαι, τοῖς δὲ ἄλλοις καὶ ξυμβουλεύειν καὶ παραινεῖν καὶ χεῖρα ὀρέγειν καὶ θεραπεύειν ἐπιμελῶς καὶ προσφέρειν τῆς ὑγιείας τὰ φάρμακα" ἐκείνους δέ, ἤν τοι ἐπιμένωσι θηριωδῶς βιοτεύοντες, καὶ περιόντας θρηνήσωμεν παὶ ἀποθανοῦσι τὸ Σαρδαναπάλου ἐπίγραμμα. ### English translation (Claude) Since, then, the difference among transgressors is so great, one should not be equally harsh with all, but should loathe those who openly embrace the swinish life, while for the others one should give counsel, exhort, stretch out a hand, treat them carefully and bring them the medicines of health. As for those, if they persist in living like beasts, let us lament them while they live, and when they die let us apply to them the epitaph of Sardanapalus. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.92 (Raeder, 322; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-92). ## Discourse 12.93 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-93 - Source: Raeder, 322 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret quotes the epitaph of Sardanapalus. ### Greek text προσενέγκωμεν. τῷ γὰρ δὴ ἐκείνου ἐπεγέγραπτο τάφῳ᾽.»τόσσ᾽ ἔχω, ὅσσ᾽ ἔφαγον καὶ ἐφύβρισα καὶ μετ᾽ ἔρωτος τέρπν᾽ ἔπαθον᾽ τὰ δὲ πολλὰ καὶ ὄλβια πάντα λέλειπται. ### English translation (Claude) For on his tomb was inscribed: 'I have as much as I ate and wantonly enjoyed, and the delights I experienced with love; but all those many happy things are left behind. ### Extrabiblical texts - Diodorus Siculus, 2.23.3 (Diodorus Siculus, Library of History): quotation, low confidence ### Translation notes - The epitaph of Sardanapalus is quoted by several ancient authors (e.g. Diodorus Siculus 2.23.3). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.93 (Raeder, 322; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-93). ## Discourse 12.94 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-94 - Source: Raeder, 322 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Sardanapalus's epitaph is false: the dead keep nothing of their pleasures, only the stench of a lawless life that torments the soul. ### Greek text χαὶ γὰρ ἐγὼ σποδός εἶμι, Νίνου μεγάλης βασιλεύσας. ἀλλὰ γὰρ καὶ τοῦτο ψευδῶς οἱ γεγραφότες ἐπέγραψαν. οὐ γὰρ ἔχει ὁ τελευτήσας, ἅπερ ἔφαγε καὶ ἔπιεν, ἀλλ᾽ εἰς τὴν δυσὦδη φθορὰν ἐκεῖνα κεχώρηκεν᾽ ἔχεν δὲ μόνον τοῦ παρανόμου βίου τὴν δυσοσμίαν, ἣ διηνεκῶς τὴν ψυχὴν ἀλγύνει καὶ ἀνιᾷ, ξυνειδυῖαν ἑαυτῇ τὰ κάκιστα καὶ μεμνημένην ὧν παρανόμως εἰργάσατο. ### English translation (Claude) For I too am ash, who ruled as king over great Ninus.' But those who wrote this inscribed it falsely too. For the dead man does not have what he ate and drank; those things went into foul-smelling corruption; he has only the stench of his lawless life, which pains and grieves the soul for ever, conscious as it is of the worst deeds and remembering what it did against the law. ### Extrabiblical texts - Diodorus Siculus, 2.23.3 (Diodorus Siculus, Library of History): quotation, low confidence ### Translation notes - Ninus is Nineveh. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.94 (Raeder, 322; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-94). ## Discourse 12.95 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-95 - Source: Raeder, 322 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret concludes: the Greek philosophers' teachings are forgotten, while the Gospel flourishes everywhere and the false gods have been driven out. ### Greek text Ταύτην ὑμῖν, ὦ ἄνδρες, δευτέραν καὶ δεκάτην διάλεξιν προσενήνοχα, καὶ ἐπέδειξα, τίνα μὲν περὶ Θεοῦ καὶ ὕλης καὶ κτίσεως, καὶ μέντοι καὶ ἀρετῆς καὶ κακίας τοῖς τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἔδοξε φιλοσόφοις, καὶ τίνα ἡμᾶς οἱ θεῖοι ἐξεσταίδευσαν λόγοι, καὶ ὡς ἔσβεσταν μὲν τὰ ἐκείνων ἅπαντα καὶ παραδέδοται. τῷ ξόφῳ τῆς λήθης, ἀνθεῖ δὲ ταῦτα καὶ τέθηλε καὶ. πολλὰς ἔχει καθ' ἑκάστην καὶ πόλιν καὶ χώραν ἄκροατῶν μυριάδας καὶ διδασκάλους, τὴν μὲν Πλατωνικὴν εὐέπειαν οὐκ ἔχοντας, τὴν δὲ τῆς ἀληθείας ἰατρείαν προσφέροντας᾽ καὶ τῶν μὲν ψευδωνύμων θεῶν τὸν πλάνον ἐληλαμένον, τοῦ δὲ ἡμετέρου Σωτῆρος τὰ δόγματα πηρυττόμενα. ### English translation (Claude) This twelfth discourse I have offered you, men, and I have shown what the philosophers of the Greeks thought about God and matter and creation, and also about virtue and vice, and what the divine words have taught us; and how all their teachings have been extinguished and handed over to the darkness of oblivion, while these flower and flourish and have in every city and country many myriads of hearers and teachers, who do not have Platonic eloquence but offer the healing of truth; and how the error of the falsely named gods has been driven out, and the doctrines of our Saviour are proclaimed. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.95 (Raeder, 322; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-95). ## Discourse 12.96 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-96 - Source: Raeder, 323 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry himself complained that since Jesus has been honoured the gods, Asclepius among them, no longer help the city. ### Greek text τοῦτο γὰρ δὴ καὶ ὁ Πορφύριος, ἐν οἷς καθ' ἡμῶν ξυνέγραψεν;. εἴρημεν' νυνὶ δέ φησι ο,θαυμάξουσιν, εἰ τοσούτων ἐτῶν κατείληφε νόσος τὴν πόλιν, Ἀσχληπιοῦ μὲν ἐπιδημίας καὶ τῶν ἄλλων θεῶν οὐκέτι οὔσης᾽ Ἰησοῦ γὰρ τιμωμένου, οὐδε ### English translation (Claude) For Porphyry too said this in what he wrote against us: 'But now,' he says, 'they wonder that disease has held the city for so many years, there being no longer any visitation of Asclepius and the other gods; for since Jesus has been honoured, no one has perceived any ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Chr. (Porphyry, Against the Christians (fragments)): quotation, high confidence - Eusebius, Praep. ev. 5.1.10 (Preparation for the Gospel): allusion, low confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Against the Christians (fragment), also quoted by Eusebius, Preparation for the Gospel 5.1.10. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.96 (Raeder, 323; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-96). ## Discourse 12.97 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-97 - Source: Raeder, 323 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Porphyry's complaint concedes that faith in Jesus after the cross has put the gods to flight, like bats before the light. ### Greek text μιᾶς δημοσίας τις θεῶν ὠφελείας ἤσθετο ταῦτα ὁ πάντων ἡμῖν ἔχθιστορ Πορφύριος εἴρηκε, καὶ ἀναφανδὸν ὧμολόγησεν, ὡς πιστευόμενος ὁ Ἰησοῦς φρούδους ἀπέφηνε τοὺς θεούς, καὶ μετὰ τὸν σταυρὸν καὶ τὸ σωτήριον πάθος οὐκέτι φενακίζει τοὺς ἀνθρώπους Ἡσκληπιός, οὐδὲ ἄλλος τις τῶν καλουμένων θεῶν. ἅπαντα γὰρ αὐτῶν τὸν ὁρμαθόν, οἷόν τινὰς νυκτερίδας, τῷ σκότῳ παρέπεμψεν ἀνατεῖλαν τὸ φῶς. ### English translation (Claude) public help from the gods.' This Porphyry, the most hostile of all to us, said, and openly confessed that Jesus, being believed in, made the gods vanish, and that after the cross and the saving passion Asclepius no longer deceives people, nor any other of the so-called gods. For the light, having risen, sent their whole string, like bats, into the darkness. ### Extrabiblical texts - Porphyry, Porphyry, Chr. (Porphyry, Against the Christians (fragments)): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Porphyry, Against the Christians (fragment, end). ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.97 (Raeder, 323; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-97). ## Discourse 12.98 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-64/#p-12-98 - Source: Raeder, 323 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: Theodoret ends by inviting the Greeks to share the light and offering his work as a healing remedy. ### Greek text ταύτης καὶ ὑμᾶς τῆς ἀκτῖνος μεταλαχεῖν ἀξιῶ" τοῦδε γὰρ χάριν καὶ τὸν πόνον ἀνεδεξάμην. καὶ οἷόν τινας βοτάνας πανταχόθεν ξυλλέξας, τὸ ἀλεξίκαχον ὑμῖν κατεσκεύασα φάρμαπον. ### English translation (Claude) I ask you too to share in this ray; for it was for this that I took on the labour. And having gathered herbs, as it were, from every side, I have prepared for you the medicine that wards off evil. ### Citation (SBL) Theodoret, Graec. aff. cur. 12.98 (Raeder, 323; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/p/theodoret-graecarum-affectionum-curatio/12-98).