Tiresias: The Ancient Mediterranean Religions Source Database

9246

Philo Of Alexandria, On The Embassy To Gaius, 75-100
nan Again, he takes with him his caduceus or herald's wand, as a token of reconciliation and peace, for wars receive their respites and terminations by means of heralds, who restore peace; and wars which have no heralds to terminate them cause endless calamities to both parties, both to those who invade their neighbours and to those who are endeavouring to repel the invasion.
nan (for he was inferior to no one in the senate), and the knights by the execution of Macro (for he, like the leader of a chorus, had long been considered the very first man of the knights for reputation and glory), and all his blood relations by the slaughter of his cousin and joint inheritor of the kingdom, he no longer chose to remain fettered by the ordinary limits of human nature, but aspired to raise himself above them, and desired to be looked upon as a god.
nan And at the beginning of this insane desire they say that he was influenced by such a train of reasoning as the following: for as the curators of the herds of other animals, namely cowherds, and goatherds, and shepherds, are neither oxen nor goats, nor sheep, but men who have received a more excellent portion, and a more admirable formation of mind and body; so in the same manner, said he, is it fitting that I who am the leader of the most excellent of all herds, namely, the race of mankind, should be considered as a being of a superior nature, and not merely human, but as one who has received a greater and more holy portion.
nan Accordingly, having impressed this idea on his mind, like a vain and foolish man as he was, he bore about in himself a fallacious fable and invention as if it had been a most undeniable truth; and after he had once carried his boldness and audacity to such a pitch as to compel the multitude to admit of his most impious deification, he attempted to do other things consistent with and conformable to it, and in this way he advanced up to the highest point by slow degrees as if he were ascending up steps.
nan For he began at first to liken himself to those beings who are called demigods, such as Bacchus, and Hercules, and the twins of Lacedaemon; turning into utter ridicule Trophonius, and Amphiaraus, and Amphilochus, and others of the same kind, with all their oracles and secret ceremonies, in comparison of his own power.
nan In the next place, like an actor in a theatre, he was continually wearing different dresses at different times, taking at one time a lion's skin and a club, both gilded over; being then dressed in the character of Hercules; at another time he would wear a felt hat upon his head, when he was disguised in imitation of the Spartan twins, Castor and Pollux; sometimes he also adorned himself with ivy, and a thyrsus, and skins of fawns, so as to appear in the guise of Bacchus.
nan And he looked upon himself as being in this respect superior to all of these beings, because each of them while he had his own peculiar honours had no claim to those which belonged to the others, but he in his envious ambition appropriated all the honours of the whole body of demigods at once, or I should rather say, appropriated the demigods themselves; transforming himself not into the triple-bodied Geryon, so as to attract all beholders by the multitude of his bodies; but, what was the most extraordinary thing of all, changing and transforming the essence of one body into every variety of form and figure, like the Egyptian Proteus, whom Homer has represented as being susceptible of every variety of transformation, into all the elements, and into the animals, and plants, which belong to the different Elements.
nan And yet why, O Gaius! did you think yourself in need of spurious honours, such as the temples and statues of the beings above-mentioned are often filled with? You ought rather to have imitated their virtues. Hercules purified both the earth and the sea, performing labours of the greatest possible importance and of the highest benefit to all mankind, in order to eradicate all that was mischievous and calculated to injure the nature of each of the elements.
nan Bacchus rendered the vine susceptible of cultivation, and extracted a most delicious drink from it, which is at the same time most beneficial to the souls and bodies of men, leading the first to cheerfulness, working in them a forgetfulness of evils and a hope of blessings, and making the latter more healthy, and vigorous, and active, and supple.
nan And individually it renders each man better, and alters populous families and households, leading them from a squalid and laborious life of vexation to a course of relaxation and cheerful happiness, and causing to every city on earth, both Grecian and barbarian, incessant festivity, and mirth, and entertainment, and revelry; for of all these things is good wine the cause.
nan Again, it is said that the twin sons of Jupiter, Castor and Pollux, are partakers of immortality. For since the one was mortal and the other immortal, the one who had had the more excellent portion assigned to him did not choose to behave in a selfish manner, but rather to display his good will and affection towards his brother;
nan for having acquired the idea that eternity was never-ending, and considering that he was to live for ever, and that his brother was to be dead for ever, and that in conjunction with his own immortality he should likewise be enduring an undying sorrow on account of his brother, he conceived and carried out a most marvellous system of counterbalancing, mingling mortality with himself and immortality with his brother, and thus he modified inequality, which is the beginning of all injustice, by equality, which is the fountain of justice. XII.
nan All these beings, O Gaius! were admired on account of the benefits which they had conferred on mankind, and they are admired for them even up to the present time, and they were deservedly thought worthy of veneration and of the very highest honours. But come now, and tell us yourself in what achievement of yours do you pride yourself and boast yourself as being in the least similar to their actions?
nan Have you imitated the twin sons of Jupiter in their brotherly affection, that I may begin with that point? Did you not rather, O hard-hearted and most pitiless of men! inhumanly slaughter your brother, the joint inheritor of the kingdom with you, even before he had arrived at the full vigour of manhood, when he was still in early youth. Did you not afterwards banish your sisters, lest they also should cause you any reasonable apprehension of the deprivation and loss of your imperial power?
nan Have you imitated Bacchus in any respect? Have you been an inventor of any new blessings to mankind? Have you filled the whole of the habitable world with joy as he did? Are all Asia and Europe inadequate to contain the gifts which have been showered upon mankind by you?
nan No doubt you have invented new arts and sciences, like a common pest and murderer of your kind, by which you have changed all pleasant and acceptable things into vexation and sorrow, and have made life miserable and intolerable to all men everywhere, appropriating to yourself in your intolerable and insatiable greediness all the good and beautiful things which belonged to every one else, whether from the east or from any other country of the universe, carrying off everything from the south, everything from the north, and in requital giving to and pouring down upon those whom you had plundered every sort of mischievous and injurious things from your own bitter spirit, everything which is ever engendered in cruel, and destructive, and envenomed dispositions; these are the reasons why you appeared to us as a new Bacchus.
nan But I suppose you imitated Hercules in your unwearied labours and your incessant displays of valour and virtue; you, O most wretched of men! having filled every continent and every island with good laws, and principles of justice, and wealth, and comfort, and prosperity, and abundance of other blessings, you, wretched man, full of all cowardice and iniquity, who have emptied every city of all the things which can conduce to stability and prosperity, and have made them full of everything which leads to trouble and confusion, and the most utter misery and desolation.
nan Tell me then, O Gaius! do you, after having made all these contributions to universal destruction, do you, I say, seek to acquire immortality in order to make the calamities which you have heaped upon mankind, not of brief duration and short-lived, but imperishable and everlasting? But I think, on the contrary, that even if you had previously appeared to be a god, you would beyond all question have been changed on account of your evil practices into an ordinary nature, resembling that of common perishable mortals; for if virtues can make their possessors immortal, then beyond all doubt vices can make them mortal.
nan Do not, therefore, inscribe your name by the side of that of the twin sons of Jupiter, those most affectionate of deities, you who have been the murderer and destruction of your brethren, nor claim a share in the honours of Hercules or Bacchus, who have benefited human life. You have been the undoer and destroyer of those good effects which they produced. XIII.
nan But the madness and frenzy to which he gave way were so preposterous, and so utterly insane, that he went even beyond the demigods, and mounted up to and invaded the veneration and worship paid to those who are looked upon as greater than they, as the supreme deities of the world, Mercury, and Apollo, and Mars.
nan And first of all he dressed himself up with the caduceus, and sandals, and mantle of Mercury, exhibiting a regularity in his disorder, a consistency in his confusion, and a ratiocination in his insanity.
nan Afterwards, when he thought fit to do so, he laid aside these ornaments, and metamorphosed and transformed himself into Apollo, crowning his head with garlands, in the form of rays, and holding a bow and arrows in his left hand, and holding forth graces in his right, as if it became him to proffer blessings to all men from his ready store, and to display the best arrangement possible on his right hand, but to contract the punishments which he had it in his power to inflict, and to allot to them a more confined space on his left.
nan And immediately there were established choruses, who had been carefully trained, singing paeans to him, the same who had, a little while before, called him Bacchus, and Evius, and Lyaeus, and sang Bacchic hymns in his honour when he assumed the disguise of Bacchus.
nan Very often, also, he would clothe himself with a breastplate, and march forth sword in hand, with a helmet on his head and a shield on his left arm, calling himself Mars, and on each side of him there marched with him the attendants of this new and unknown Mars, a troop of murderers and executioners who had already performed him all kinds of wicked services when he was raging and thirsting for human blood;
nan and then when men saw this they were amazed and terrified at the marvellous sight, and they wondered how a man who did exactly the contrary to what was done by those beings to whom he claimed to be equal in honour, did not choose to imitate their virtues, but assumed the outward character of each with the most abominable conduct. And yet all those ornaments and decorations which belonged to them were attached to his statues and images, which indicated by symbols the benefits which the beings who are thus honoured confer upon the race of mankind.
nan Mercury, for instance, requires wings attached to his ankles. Why so? Is it not because it behoves him to be the interpreter and declarer of the will of the gods (from which employment, in fact, he derives his Greek name of Hermes), announcing good news to mankind (for not only no god but no sensible man ever will become the messenger of evil), and therefore it is necessary for him to be exceedingly swift-footed, and all but winged, from the unhesitating rapidity with which he requires the proceed. Since it is right that beneficial news should be announced with great promptness, just as bad news ought to be brought slowly, unless indeed any one should prefer saying that such ought to be entirely suppressed in silence.

Intertexts (texts cited often on the same page as the searched text):

24 results
1. Hebrew Bible, Deuteronomy, 4.28 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE) 4.28. וַעֲבַדְתֶּם־שָׁם אֱלֹהִים מַעֲשֵׂה יְדֵי אָדָם עֵץ וָאֶבֶן אֲשֶׁר לֹא־יִרְאוּן וְלֹא יִשְׁמְעוּן וְלֹא יֹאכְלוּן וְלֹא יְרִיחֻן׃ 4.28. And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men’s hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell."
2. Hebrew Bible, Exodus, 19.3, 19.22, 20.21, 33.20, 34.29-34.35 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE) 19.3. וּמֹשֶׁה עָלָה אֶל־הָאֱלֹהִים וַיִּקְרָא אֵלָיו יְהוָה מִן־הָהָר לֵאמֹר כֹּה תֹאמַר לְבֵית יַעֲקֹב וְתַגֵּיד לִבְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל׃ 19.22. וְגַם הַכֹּהֲנִים הַנִּגָּשִׁים אֶל־יְהוָה יִתְקַדָּשׁוּ פֶּן־יִפְרֹץ בָּהֶם יְהוָה׃ 20.21. מִזְבַּח אֲדָמָה תַּעֲשֶׂה־לִּי וְזָבַחְתָּ עָלָיו אֶת־עֹלֹתֶיךָ וְאֶת־שְׁלָמֶיךָ אֶת־צֹאנְךָ וְאֶת־בְּקָרֶךָ בְּכָל־הַמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר אַזְכִּיר אֶת־שְׁמִי אָבוֹא אֵלֶיךָ וּבֵרַכְתִּיךָ׃ 34.29. וַיְהִי בְּרֶדֶת מֹשֶׁה מֵהַר סִינַי וּשְׁנֵי לֻחֹת הָעֵדֻת בְּיַד־מֹשֶׁה בְּרִדְתּוֹ מִן־הָהָר וּמֹשֶׁה לֹא־יָדַע כִּי קָרַן עוֹר פָּנָיו בְּדַבְּרוֹ אִתּוֹ׃ 34.31. וַיִּקְרָא אֲלֵהֶם מֹשֶׁה וַיָּשֻׁבוּ אֵלָיו אַהֲרֹן וְכָל־הַנְּשִׂאִים בָּעֵדָה וַיְדַבֵּר מֹשֶׁה אֲלֵהֶם׃ 34.32. וְאַחֲרֵי־כֵן נִגְּשׁוּ כָּל־בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וַיְצַוֵּם אֵת כָּל־אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר יְהוָה אִתּוֹ בְּהַר סִינָי׃ 34.33. וַיְכַל מֹשֶׁה מִדַּבֵּר אִתָּם וַיִּתֵּן עַל־פָּנָיו מַסְוֶה׃ 34.34. וּבְבֹא מֹשֶׁה לִפְנֵי יְהוָה לְדַבֵּר אִתּוֹ יָסִיר אֶת־הַמַּסְוֶה עַד־צֵאתוֹ וְיָצָא וְדִבֶּר אֶל־בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֵת אֲשֶׁר יְצֻוֶּה׃ 34.35. וְרָאוּ בְנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶת־פְּנֵי מֹשֶׁה כִּי קָרַן עוֹר פְּנֵי מֹשֶׁה וְהֵשִׁיב מֹשֶׁה אֶת־הַמַּסְוֶה עַל־פָּנָיו עַד־בֹּאוֹ לְדַבֵּר אִתּוֹ׃ 19.3. And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying: ‘Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel:" 19.22. And let the priests also, that come near to the LORD, sanctify themselves, lest the LORD break forth upon them.’" 20.21. An altar of earth thou shalt make unto Me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt-offerings, and thy peace-offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen; in every place where I cause My name to be mentioned I will come unto thee and bless thee." 33.20. And He said: ‘Thou canst not see My face, for man shall not see Me and live.’" 34.29. And it came to pass, when Moses came down from mount Sinai with the two tables of the testimony in Moses’hand, when he came down from the mount, that Moses knew not that the skin of his face sent forth abeams while He talked with him." 34.30. And when Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face sent forth beams; and they were afraid to come nigh him." 34.31. And Moses called unto them; and Aaron and all the rulers of the congregation returned unto him; and Moses spoke to them." 34.32. And afterward all the children of Israel came nigh, and he gave them in commandment all that the LORD had spoken with him in mount Sinai." 34.33. And when Moses had done speaking with them, he put a veil on his face." 34.34. But when Moses went in before the LORD that He might speak with him, he took the veil off, until he came out; and he came out; and spoke unto the children of Israel that which he was commanded." 34.35. And the children of Israel saw the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses’face sent forth beams; and Moses put the veil back upon his face, until he went in to speak with Him."
3. Hebrew Bible, Psalms, 115.5, 135.15-135.18 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE) 115.5. פֶּה־לָהֶם וְלֹא יְדַבֵּרוּ עֵינַיִם לָהֶם וְלֹא יִרְאוּ׃ 135.15. עֲצַבֵּי הַגּוֹיִם כֶּסֶף וְזָהָב מַעֲשֵׂה יְדֵי אָדָם׃ 135.16. פֶּה־לָהֶם וְלֹא יְדַבֵּרוּ עֵינַיִם לָהֶם וְלֹא יִרְאוּ׃ 135.17. אָזְנַיִם לָהֶם וְלֹא יַאֲזִינוּ אַף אֵין־יֶשׁ־רוּחַ בְּפִיהֶם׃ 135.18. כְּמוֹהֶם יִהְיוּ עֹשֵׂיהֶם כֹּל אֲשֶׁר־בֹּטֵחַ בָּהֶם׃ 115.5. They have mouths, but they speak not; Eyes have they, but they see not;" 135.15. The idols of the nations are silver and gold, The work of men's hands." 135.16. They have mouths, but they speak not; Eyes have they, but they see not;" 135.17. They have ears, but they hear not; Neither is there any breath in their mouths." 135.18. They that make them shall be like unto them; Yea, every one that trusteth in them."
4. Hebrew Bible, Isaiah, 46.7, 66.3 (8th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE) 46.7. יִשָּׂאֻהוּ עַל־כָּתֵף יִסְבְּלֻהוּ וְיַנִּיחֻהוּ תַחְתָּיו וְיַעֲמֹד מִמְּקוֹמוֹ לֹא יָמִישׁ אַף־יִצְעַק אֵלָיו וְלֹא יַעֲנֶה מִצָּרָתוֹ לֹא יוֹשִׁיעֶנּוּ׃ 66.3. שׁוֹחֵט הַשּׁוֹר מַכֵּה־אִישׁ זוֹבֵחַ הַשֶּׂה עֹרֵף כֶּלֶב מַעֲלֵה מִנְחָה דַּם־חֲזִיר מַזְכִּיר לְבֹנָה מְבָרֵךְ אָוֶן גַּם־הֵמָּה בָּחֲרוּ בְּדַרְכֵיהֶם וּבְשִׁקּוּצֵיהֶם נַפְשָׁם חָפֵצָה׃ 46.7. He is borne upon the shoulder, he is carried, and set in his place, and he standeth, from his place he doth not remove; yea, though one cry unto him, he cannot answer, nor save him out of his trouble." 66.3. He that killeth an ox is as if he slew a man; he that sacrificeth a lamb, as if he broke a dog’s neck; He that offereth a meal-offering, as if he offered swine’s blood; he that maketh a memorial-offering of frankincense, as if he blessed an idol; according as they have chosen their own ways, and their soul delighteth in their abominations;"
5. Hebrew Bible, Jeremiah, 10.5, 10.8, 10.14 (8th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE) 10.5. כְּתֹמֶר מִקְשָׁה הֵמָּה וְלֹא יְדַבֵּרוּ נָשׂוֹא יִנָּשׂוּא כִּי לֹא יִצְעָדוּ אַל־תִּירְאוּ מֵהֶם כִּי־לֹא יָרֵעוּ וְגַם־הֵיטֵיב אֵין אוֹתָם׃ 10.8. וּבְאַחַת יִבְעֲרוּ וְיִכְסָלוּ מוּסַר הֲבָלִים עֵץ הוּא׃ 10.14. נִבְעַר כָּל־אָדָם מִדַּעַת הֹבִישׁ כָּל־צוֹרֵף מִפָּסֶל כִּי שֶׁקֶר נִסְכּוֹ וְלֹא־רוּחַ בָּם׃ 10.5. They are like a pillar in a garden of cucumbers, and speak not; They must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them, for they cannot do evil, Neither is it in them to do good." 10.8. But they are altogether brutish and foolish: The vanities by which they are instructed are but a stock;" 10.14. Every man is proved to be brutish, without knowledge, Every goldsmith is put to shame by the graven image, His molten image is falsehood, and there is no breath in them."
6. Anon., Joseph And Aseneth, 8.6 (4th cent. BCE - 2nd cent. CE)
7. Anon., 1 Enoch, 94.7, 97.8, 98.2, 99.2, 99.7-99.9 (3rd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE) 94.7. Woe to those who build their houses with sin; For from all their foundations shall they be overthrown, And by the sword shall they fall. [And those who acquire gold and silver in judgement suddenly shall perish.] 97.8. Woe to you who acquire silver and gold in unrighteousness and say: ' We have become rich with riches and have possessions; And have acquired everything we have desired. 98.2. For ye men shall put on more adornments than a woman, And coloured garments more than a virgin: In royalty and in grandeur and in power, And in silver and in gold and in purple, And in splendour and in food they shall be poured out as water. 99.2. Woe to them who pervert the words of uprightness, And transgress the eternal law, And transform themselves into what they were not [into sinners]: They shall be trodden under foot upon the earth. 99.7. And again I swear to you, ye sinners, that sin is prepared for a day of unceasing bloodshed. And they who worship stones, and grave images of gold and silver and wood (and stone) and clay, and those who worship impure spirits and demons, and all kinds of idols not according to knowledge, shall get no manner of help from them. 99.8. And they shall become godless by reason of the folly of their hearts, And their eyes shall be blinded through the fear of their hearts And through visions in their dreams. 99.9. Through these they shall become godless and fearful; For they shall have wrought all their work in a lie, And shall have worshiped a stone: Therefore in an instant shall they perish.
8. Anon., Jubilees, 11.16-11.17, 12.1-12.8, 20.7 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE) 11.16. And in the thirty-seventh jubilee, in the sixth week, in the first year thereof, he took to himself a wife, and her name was ’Îjâskâ, the daughter of Nêstâg of the Chaldees. And she bare him Terah in the seventh year of this week. 11.17. And the prince Mastêmâ sent ravens and birds to devour the seed which was sown in the land, in order to destroy the land, and rob the children of men of their labours. 12.1. And it came to pass in the sixth week, in the seventh year thereof, that Abram said to Terah his father, saying, "Father!" And he said, "Behold, here am I, my son. 12.2. And he said, "What help and profit have we from those idols which thou dost worship, And before which thou dost bow thyself? For there is no spirit in them, For they are dumb forms, and a misleading of the heart. Worship them not: 12.3. Worship the God of heaven, Who causeth the rain and the dew to descend on the earth, And doeth everything upon the earth, And hath created everything by His word, And all life is from before His face. 12.4. Why do ye worship things that have no spirit in them? For they are the work of (men's) hands, And on your shoulders do ye bear them 12.5. And ye have no help from them, But they are a great cause of shame to those who make them, And a misleading of the heart to those who worship them: Worship them not. 12.6. And his father said unto him, "I also know it, my son, but what shall I do with a people who have made me to serve before them? 12.7. And if I tell them the truth, they will slay me; for their soul cleaveth to them to worship them and honour them. Keep silent, my son, lest they slay thee. 12.8. And these words he spake to his two brothers, and they were angry with him and he kept silent. 20.7. and mutual corruption through fornication. br"And guard yourselves from all fornication and uncleanness, And from all pollution of sin, Lest ye make our name a curse, And your whole life a hissing
9. Dead Sea Scrolls, 4Q491, 0 (2nd cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
10. Dead Sea Scrolls, 4Q491, 0 (2nd cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
11. Dead Sea Scrolls, Epistle of Jeremiah, 63 (2nd cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
12. Septuagint, Wisdom of Solomon, 13.6-13.7, 13.17, 14.12-14.31, 15.5, 15.15, 15.17 (2nd cent. BCE - 1st cent. BCE) 13.6. Yet these men are little to be blamed,for perhaps they go astray while seeking God and desiring to find him. 13.7. For as they live among his works they keep searching,and they trust in what they see, because the things that are seen are beautiful. 13.17. When he prays about possessions and his marriage and children,he is not ashamed to address a lifeless thing. 14.12. For the idea of making idols was the beginning of fornication,and the invention of them was the corruption of life 14.13. for neither have they existed from the beginning nor will they exist for ever. 14.14. For through the vanity of men they entered the world,and therefore their speedy end has been planned. 14.15. For a father, consumed with grief at an untimely bereavement,made an image of his child, who had been suddenly taken from him;and he now honored as a god what was once a dead human being,and handed on to his dependents secret rites and initiations. 14.16. Then the ungodly custom, grown strong with time, was kept as a law,and at the command of monarchs graven images were worshiped. 14.17. When men could not honor monarchs in their presence, since they lived at a distance,they imagined their appearance far away,and made a visible image of the king whom they honored,so that by their zeal they might flatter the absent one as though present. 14.18. Then the ambition of the craftsman impelled even those who did not know the king to intensify their worship. 14.19. For he, perhaps wishing to please his ruler,skilfully forced the likeness to take more beautiful form 14.20. and the multitude, attracted by the charm of his work,now regarded as an object of worship the one whom shortly before they had honored as a man. 14.21. And this became a hidden trap for mankind,because men, in bondage to misfortune or to royal authority,bestowed on objects of stone or wood the name that ought not to be shared. 14.22. Afterward it was not enough for them to err about the knowledge of God,but they live in great strife due to ignorance,and they call such great evils peace. 14.23. For whether they kill children in their initiations,or celebrate secret mysteries,or hold frenzied revels with strange customs 14.24. they no longer keep either their lives or their marriages pure,but they either treacherously kill one another,or grieve one another by adultery 14.25. and all is a raging riot of blood and murder,theft and deceit, corruption, faithlessness, tumult, perjury 14.26. confusion over what is good, forgetfulness of favors,pollution of souls, sex perversion,disorder in marriage, adultery, and debauchery. 14.27. For the worship of idols not to be named is the beginning and cause and end of every evil. 14.28. For their worshipers either rave in exultation,or prophesy lies,or live unrighteously, or readily commit perjury; 14.29. for because they trust in lifeless idols they swear wicked oaths and expect to suffer no harm. 14.30. But just penalties will overtake them on two counts:because they thought wickedly of God in devoting themselves to idols,and because in deceit they swore unrighteously through contempt for holiness. 14.31. For it is not the power of the things by which men swear,but the just penalty for those who sin,that always pursues the transgression of the unrighteous. 15.5. whose appearance arouses yearning in fools,so that they desire the lifeless form of a dead image. 15.15. For they thought that all their heathen idols were gods,though these have neither the use of their eyes to see with,nor nostrils with which to draw breath,nor ears with which to hear,nor fingers to feel with,and their feet are of no use for walking. 15.17. He is mortal, and what he makes with lawless hands is dead,for he is better than the objects he worships,since he has life, but they never have.
13. Septuagint, 3 Maccabees, 4.16 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE) 4.16. The king was greatly and continually filled with joy, organizing feasts in honor of all his idols, with a mind alienated from truth and with a profane mouth, praising speechless things that are not able even to communicate or to come to one's help, and uttering improper words against the supreme God.
14. Anon., Sibylline Oracles, 3.30, 3.105-3.161, 8.359, 8.366, 8.375-8.399, 8.402 (1st cent. BCE - 5th cent. CE) 3.30. 30 This is the God who formed four-lettered Adam 3.30. As foolish men go seeking day by day 3.105. 105 Creation itself together and pick out 3.106. What is pure. No more laughing spheres of light 3.107. Nor night, nor dawn, nor many days of care 3.108. Nor spring, nor winter, nor the summer-time 3.109. Nor autumn. And then of the mighty God 3.110. 110 The judgment midway in a mighty age 3.111. Shall come, when all these things shall come to pass. 3.112. O navigable waters and each land 3.113. of the Orient and of the Occident 3.114. Subject shall all things be to him who come 3.115. 115 Into the world again, and therefore he 3.116. Himself became first conscious of his power. 3.117. But when the threatenings of the mighty God 3.118. Are fulfilled, which he threatened mortals once 3.119. When in Assyrian land they built a tower;– 3.120. 120 (And they all spoke one language, and resolved 3.121. To mount aloft into the starry heaven; 3.122. But on the air the Immortal straightway put 3.123. A mighty force; and then winds from above 3.124. Cast down the great tower and stirred mortals up 3.125. 125 To wrangling with each other; therefore men 3.126. Gave to that city the name of Babylon);– 3.127. Now when the tower fell and the tongues of men 3.128. Turned to all sorts of sounds, straightway all earth 3.129. Was filled with men and kingdoms were divided; 3.130. 130 And then the generation tenth appeared 3.131. of mortal men, from the time when the flood 3.132. Came upon earlier men. And Cronos reigned 3.133. And Titan and Iapetus; and men called them 3.134. Best offspring of Gaia and of Uranus 3.135. 135 Giving to them names both of earth and heaven 3.136. Since they were very first of mortal men. 3.137. So there were three divisions of the earth 3.138. According to the allotment of each man 3.139. And each one having his own portion reigned 3.140. 140 And fought not; for a father's oaths were there 3.141. And equal were their portions. But the time 3.142. Complete of old age on the father came 3.143. And he died; and the sons infringing oath 3.144. Stirred up against each other bitter strife 3.145. 145 Which one should have the royal rank and rule 3.146. Over all mortals; and against each other 3.147. Cronos and Titan fought. But Rhea and Gaia 3.148. And Aphrodite fond of crowns, Demeter 3.149. And Hestia and Dione of fair lock 3.150. 150 Brought them to friendship, and together called 3.151. All who were kings, both brothers and near kin 3.152. And others of the same ancestral blood 3.153. And they judged Cronos should reign king of all 3.154. For he was oldest and of noblest form. 3.155. 155 But Titan laid on Cronos mighty oath 3.156. To rear no male posterity, that he 3.157. Himself might reign when age and fate should come 3.158. To Cronos. And whenever Rhea bore 3.159. Beside her sat the Titans, and all male 3.160. 160 In pieces tore, but let the females live 3.161. To be reared by the mother. But When now 8.359. Bringing the likeness antitypical 8.366. And a fish of the sea live thousand men 8.375. 375 Shall search the heart and bare it to conviction; 8.376. For of all things is he himself the ear 8.377. And mind and sight, and Word that maketh form 8.378. To whom all things submit, and he preserve 8.379. Them that are dead and every sickness heals. 8.380. 380 Into the hands of lawless men, at last 8.381. And faithless he shall come, and they will give 8.382. To God rude buffetings with impure hand 8.383. And poisonous spittle with polluted mouths. 8.384. And he to whips will openly give then 8.385. 385 His holy back; [for he unto the world 8.386. A holy virgin shall himself commit.] 8.387. And silent he will be when buffeted 8.388. Lest anyone should know whose son he i 8.389. Or whence he came, that he may talk to the dead. 8.390. 390 And he shall also wear a crown of thorns; 8.391. For of thorns is the crown an ornament 8.392. Elect, eternal. They shall pierce his side 8.393. With a reed that they may fulfill their law; 8.394. For of reeds shaken by another spirit 8.395. 395 Were nourished inclinations of the soul 8.396. of anger and revenge. But when these thing 8.397. Shall be accomplished, of the which I spoke 8.398. Then unto him shall every law be loosed 8.399. Which from the first by the decrees of men 8.402. But gall for food and vinegar to drink
15. Philo of Alexandria, On The Confusion of Tongues, 96-97, 95 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE) 95. But it is a peculiar property of those who serve the living God neither to regard the work of cup-bearers, or bakers, or cooks, or any other earthly employments, nor to trouble themselves about arranging or adorning their bodies like bricks, but to mount up with their reason to the height of heaven, having elected Moses, the type of the race which loves God, to be the guide of their path;
16. Philo of Alexandria, On The Preliminary Studies, 65 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE) 65. But still what advantage is derived from all that is said? For men, instead of attending, turn their mind in other directions, some to marine and mercantile affairs, others to rents and agriculture; some to public honours and affairs of state, some to the gains to be derived from each different profession and art, others to revenging themselves upon their enemies, others again to the enjoyments to be derived from the indulgence of the amorous appetites, and in short every body is under the influence of some distracting idea or other; so that, as far as the subjects of the discussion are concerned, they are completely deaf, and are present with their bodies only, but are at a distance as to their minds, being in no particular different from images or statues.
17. Philo of Alexandria, On The Decalogue, 76 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
18. Philo of Alexandria, On The Posterity of Cain, 14, 13 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE) 13. These suggestions and such as these are what he gives to the rest of the world, but he himself so insatiably desires to behold him, and to be beheld by him, that he supplicates him to display to his eye his nature of which it is impossible to form a conjecture, so that he may become acquainted with it, that thus he might receive a most well-grounded certainty of knowledge that could not be mistaken, in exchange for uncertain doubts; and he will never cease from urging his desire, but even, though he is aware that he desires a matter which is difficult of attainment, or rather which is wholly unattainable, he still strives on, in no way remitting his intense anxiety, but without admitting any excuse, or any hesitation, or vacillation; using all the means in his power to gain his object. V.
19. Philo of Alexandria, On The Life of Moses, 2.71 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE) 2.71. And while he was still abiding in the mountain he was initiated in the sacred will of God, being instructed in all the most important matters which relate to his priesthood, those which come first in order being the commands of God respecting the building of a temple and all its furniture.
20. Philo of Alexandria, On The Embassy To Gaius, 102-116, 12, 19, 21, 39, 53, 68, 75-99, 101 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE) 101. But for what purpose did Gaius assume the winged sandals of Mercury? Was it because he wished to spread with power, and rapidity, and loudness that miserable and ill-omened intelligence which ought rather to be buried in silence altogether, conveying his voice everywhere with unceasing celerity? And yet what need had he of such rapid motion? for even while standing still he poured forth unspeakable evils upon evils as if from an unceasing fountain, showering them down upon every portion of the habitable world.
21. Josephus Flavius, Against Apion, 2.33-2.34 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE) 2.33. 4. But let us now see what those heavy and wicked crimes are which Apion charges upon the Alexandrian Jews. “They came (says he) out of Syria, and inhabited near the tempestuous sea, and were in the neighborhood of the dashing of the waves.” 2.34. Now, if the place of habitation includes any thing that is reproachful, this man reproaches not his own real country [Egypt], but what he pretends to be his own country, Alexandria; for all are agreed in this, that the part of that city which is near the sea is the best part of all for habitation.
22. New Testament, 1 Corinthians, 8.4, 12.2 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE) 8.4. Therefore concerning the eating of things sacrificed to idols, we knowthat no idol is anything in the world, and that there is no other Godbut one. 12.2. You know that when you were heathen, you were ledaway to those mute idols, however you might be led.
23. New Testament, Apocalypse, 9.20 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE) 9.20. The rest of mankind, who were not killed with these plagues, didn't repent of the works of their hands, that they wouldn't worship demons, and the idols of gold, and of silver, and of brass, and of stone, and of wood; which can neither see, nor hear, nor walk.
24. New Testament, John, 1.18, 6.46, 14.9 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE) 1.18. No one has seen God at any time. The one and only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has declared him. 6.46. Not that anyone has seen the Father, except he who is from God. He has seen the Father. 14.9. Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you such a long time, and do you not know me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father. How do you say, 'Show us the Father?'

Subjects of this text:

subject	book bibliographic info
abraham	Stuckenbruck, 1 Enoch 91-108 (2007) 399
abraham (patriarch)	Allen and Doedens, Turmoil, Trauma and Tenacity in Early Jewish Literature (2022) 53
agrippa i (jewish king), relationship to gaius	Edwards, In the Court of the Gentiles: Narrative, Exemplarity, and Scriptural Adaptation in the Court-Tales of Flavius Josephus (2023) 139
ahasuerus/artaxerxes (persian king), in antiquities	Edwards, In the Court of the Gentiles: Narrative, Exemplarity, and Scriptural Adaptation in the Court-Tales of Flavius Josephus (2023) 139
alexander, tiberius julius	Taylor and Hay, Philo of Alexandria: On the Contemplative Life: Introduction, Translation and Commentary (2020) 4
alexandria, social conflict in	Taylor and Hay, Philo of Alexandria: On the Contemplative Life: Introduction, Translation and Commentary (2020) 4
alexandria	Taylor and Hay, Philo of Alexandria: On the Contemplative Life: Introduction, Translation and Commentary (2020) 4
apion, of antiquities account of agrippa i	Edwards, In the Court of the Gentiles: Narrative, Exemplarity, and Scriptural Adaptation in the Court-Tales of Flavius Josephus (2023) 139
apollo, of god and israel (marriage metaphor)	Lester, Prophetic Rivalry, Gender, and Economics: A Study in Revelation and Sibylline Oracles 4-5 (2018) 115
apollo	Lester, Prophetic Rivalry, Gender, and Economics: A Study in Revelation and Sibylline Oracles 4-5 (2018) 115; Taylor and Hay, Philo of Alexandria: On the Contemplative Life: Introduction, Translation and Commentary (2020) 124
apostasy	Stuckenbruck, 1 Enoch 91-108 (2007) 399
astray, to lead/go/wander	Stuckenbruck, 1 Enoch 91-108 (2007) 399
babylon	Lester, Prophetic Rivalry, Gender, and Economics: A Study in Revelation and Sibylline Oracles 4-5 (2018) 115
cicero, marcus tullius	Allen and Doedens, Turmoil, Trauma and Tenacity in Early Jewish Literature (2022) 53
claudius	Taylor and Hay, Philo of Alexandria: On the Contemplative Life: Introduction, Translation and Commentary (2020) 4
cohon, samuel s.	Allen and Doedens, Turmoil, Trauma and Tenacity in Early Jewish Literature (2022) 53
combat myth	Lester, Prophetic Rivalry, Gender, and Economics: A Study in Revelation and Sibylline Oracles 4-5 (2018) 115
delphi	Lester, Prophetic Rivalry, Gender, and Economics: A Study in Revelation and Sibylline Oracles 4-5 (2018) 115
demons, worship of	Stuckenbruck, 1 Enoch 91-108 (2007) 399
divine judgment	Lester, Prophetic Rivalry, Gender, and Economics: A Study in Revelation and Sibylline Oracles 4-5 (2018) 115
esther, book of, josephan alterations to	Edwards, In the Court of the Gentiles: Narrative, Exemplarity, and Scriptural Adaptation in the Court-Tales of Flavius Josephus (2023) 139
exile\u2002	Luther Hartog and Wilde, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim Travel Experiences: 3rd century BCE – 8th century CE (2024) 149
fools/foolishness	Stuckenbruck, 1 Enoch 91-108 (2007) 399
gaius (roman emperor), depiction in josephus	Edwards, In the Court of the Gentiles: Narrative, Exemplarity, and Scriptural Adaptation in the Court-Tales of Flavius Josephus (2023) 139
gaius (roman emperor), literary connections to ahasuerus/artaxerxes (persian king)	Edwards, In the Court of the Gentiles: Narrative, Exemplarity, and Scriptural Adaptation in the Court-Tales of Flavius Josephus (2023) 139
georgi, dieter	Allen and Doedens, Turmoil, Trauma and Tenacity in Early Jewish Literature (2022) 53
gold	Stuckenbruck, 1 Enoch 91-108 (2007) 399
gospel of john, johannine epistemology	Luther Hartog and Wilde, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim Travel Experiences: 3rd century BCE – 8th century CE (2024) 149
gospel of john, johannine travel	Luther Hartog and Wilde, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim Travel Experiences: 3rd century BCE – 8th century CE (2024) 149
heaven\u2002	Luther Hartog and Wilde, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim Travel Experiences: 3rd century BCE – 8th century CE (2024) 149
help	Stuckenbruck, 1 Enoch 91-108 (2007) 399
idolatry	Allen and Doedens, Turmoil, Trauma and Tenacity in Early Jewish Literature (2022) 53; Stuckenbruck, 1 Enoch 91-108 (2007) 399
idols, making/fashioning of	Stuckenbruck, 1 Enoch 91-108 (2007) 399
idols	Stuckenbruck, 1 Enoch 91-108 (2007) 399
images, material for idols	Stuckenbruck, 1 Enoch 91-108 (2007) 399
instruction/teaching, false	Stuckenbruck, 1 Enoch 91-108 (2007) 399
journey, spiritual journey	Luther Hartog and Wilde, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim Travel Experiences: 3rd century BCE – 8th century CE (2024) 149
knowledge\u2002	Luther Hartog and Wilde, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim Travel Experiences: 3rd century BCE – 8th century CE (2024) 149
masculinity	Lester, Prophetic Rivalry, Gender, and Economics: A Study in Revelation and Sibylline Oracles 4-5 (2018) 115
menzel, paul	Allen and Doedens, Turmoil, Trauma and Tenacity in Early Jewish Literature (2022) 53
metals, fashioning of	Stuckenbruck, 1 Enoch 91-108 (2007) 399
plato	Allen and Doedens, Turmoil, Trauma and Tenacity in Early Jewish Literature (2022) 53
rabbinic writings\u2002	Luther Hartog and Wilde, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim Travel Experiences: 3rd century BCE – 8th century CE (2024) 149
silver	Stuckenbruck, 1 Enoch 91-108 (2007) 399
spirits, evil/of evil	Stuckenbruck, 1 Enoch 91-108 (2007) 399
terah	Stuckenbruck, 1 Enoch 91-108 (2007) 399
traditions\u2002	Luther Hartog and Wilde, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim Travel Experiences: 3rd century BCE – 8th century CE (2024) 149
violence)	Lester, Prophetic Rivalry, Gender, and Economics: A Study in Revelation and Sibylline Oracles 4-5 (2018) 115
violence, divine violence	Lester, Prophetic Rivalry, Gender, and Economics: A Study in Revelation and Sibylline Oracles 4-5 (2018) 115
violence	Lester, Prophetic Rivalry, Gender, and Economics: A Study in Revelation and Sibylline Oracles 4-5 (2018) 115
worship'	Stuckenbruck, 1 Enoch 91-108 (2007) 399