Clement of Alexandria — Stromata 14
Now, of what I may call the passionlessness which we attribute to the Gnostic (in which the perfection of the believer, advancing by love , comes to a perfect man, to the measure of full stature, Ephesians 4:13 by being assimilated to God , and by becoming truly angelic), many other testimonies from the Scripture , occur to me to adduce. But I think it better, on account of the length of the discourse, that such an honour should be devolved on those who wish to take pains, and leave it to them to elaborate the dogmas by the selection of Scriptures. One passage, accordingly, I shall in the briefest terms advert to, so as not to leave the topic unexplained. For in the first Epistle to the Corinthians the divine apostle says: Dare any of you, having a matter against the other, go to law before the unrighteous, and not before the saints ?
Do you not know that the saints shall judge the world? 1 Corinthians 6:1-2 and so on. The section being very long, we shall exhibit the meaning of the apostle's utterance by employing such of the apostolic expressions as are most pertinent, and in the briefest language, and in a sort of cursory way, interpreting the discourse in which he describes the perfection of the Gnostic . For he does not merely instance the Gnostic as characterized by suffering wrong rather than do wrong; but he teaches that he is not mindful of injuries, and does not allow him even to pray against the man who has done him wrong. For he knows that the Lord expressly enjoined to pray for enemies.
Matthew 5:44 To say, then, that the man who has been injured goes to law before the unrighteous, is nothing else than to say that he shows a wish to retaliate, and a desire to injure the second in return, which is also to do wrong likewise himself. And his saying, that he wishes some to go to law before the saints , points out those who ask by prayer that those who have done wrong should suffer retaliation for their injustice , and intimates that the second are better than the former; but they are not yet obedient , if they do not, having become entirely free of resentment, pray even for their enemies. It is well, then, for them to receive right dispositions from repentance, which results in faith . For if the truth seems to get enemies who entertain bad feeling, yet it is not hostile to any one.
For God makes His sun to shine on the just and on the unjust , Matthew 5:45 and sent the Lord Himself to the just and the unjust . And he that earnestly strives to be assimilated to God , in the exercise of great absence of resentment, forgives seventy times seven times, as it were all his life through, and in all his course in this world (that being indicated by the enumeration of sevens) shows clemency to each and any one; if any during the whole time of his life in the flesh do the Gnostic wrong. For he not only deems it right that the good man should resign his property alone to others, being of the number of those who have done him wrong; but also wishes that the righteous man should ask of those judges forgiveness for the offenses of those who have done him wrong.