From Jebus to Jerusalem: the soul that sees peace
I move from the letter—though I have already taken the road the word gave—onto each soul already counted worthy to see peace. For after the divine lessons you have become Jerusalem, having formerly been Jebus. History says that one's name was Jebus; then second it changed the name and it became Jerusalem. Children of the Hebrews say Jebus is interpreted 'Trodden.'
So Jebus—the soul trodden by opposing powers—has been changed and has become Jerusalem, Vision of peace. If then, when you changed from Jebus so as to become Jerusalem, you sinned and trampled the Son of God and counted the blood of the new covenant common (as that Jerusalem did, and you too) and are in hard sins, it will be said also about you: 'Who will spare you, Jerusalem? And who will look gloomy over you?'—if you become such as to betray Jesus. Each of us, when we sin—and especially if the sins are greater—sins against Jesus.
And if one is also an apostate, still more does he do to Jesus spiritually what Jerusalem did to him bodily. Therefore: 'How much worse punishment do you think will be deserved by the one who has trampled the Son of God and counted common the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and insulted the Spirit of grace?' If you have trampled the Son of God and insulted the Spirit of grace, who 'will spare you? Who will look gloomy over you? Who will turn back to ask after the things that make for your peace?' The sinner's soul has betrayed the very Son of God who asked after the things that make for your peace. Who can turn back again and plead concerning peace? Knowing then that 'it is impossible to renew again to repentance those who were once enlightened and tasted the heavenly gift and became partakers of the Holy Spirit and tasted the good word of God and powers of the age to come, and fell away, crucifying again in themselves the Son of God and making a spectacle of him,' let us do everything so that it may not also be said about us: 'Who will spare you, Jerusalem? And who will look gloomy over you? Or who will turn back to ask after your peace?'
Greek
Μεταβαίνω ἀπὸ τοῦ γράμματος, καίτοιγε ὁδὸν ἀσχηκώς, ἥν ἔδωκεν ὁ λόγος, ἐπὶ ἑκάστην ψυχὴν ἤδη ἀξιωθεῖσαν τοῦ ὁρᾶν τὴν εἰρήνην· μετὰ γὰρ τὰ μαθήματα τὰ θεῖα γέγονας Ἱερουσαλήμ, τὸ πρότερον οὐσα Ἱεβούς. ἡ ἱστορία λέγει, ὅτι τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ ἐκείνου ἦν Ἰεβούς, δεύτερον δὲ μετέβαλε τὸ ὄνομα καὶ Ἱερουσαλήμ. Ἰεβούς φασιν Ἑβραίων παῖδες ὅτι ἑρμηνεύεται Πεπατημένη.
Ἰεβοὺς οὖν, ἡ Πεπατημένη ὑπὸ δυνάμεων ἀντικειμένων ψυχή, μεταβέβληται καὶ γέγονεν Ἱερουσαλήμ, Ὅρασις εἰρήνης. εἰ οὖν, ὅτε μεταβέβληκας ἀπὸ Ἰεβοὺς εὐς τὸ γενέσθαι Ἱερουσαλήμ, ἥμαρτες καὶ Ε;τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ θεοῦ καταπεπάτηκας καὶ τὸ αἷμα τῆς καινῆς διαθήκης κοινὸν ὡς ἐκείνη καὶ σύ) ἡγήσω< καὶ ἐν ἁμαρτήμασι χαλεποῖς, λεχθήσεται καὶ περὶ τοῦ· τίς φείσεται ἐπὶ σοί, Ἱερουσαλήμ«; καὶ τίς σκυθρωπάσει ἐπὶ σοί«, ἐὰν γένῃ τοιοῦτος ὡς προδοῦναι τὸν Ἰησοῦν; ἕκαστος ἡμῶν ἁμαρτάνων. καὶ μάλιστα εἰ μείζονα, εἰς Ἰησοῦν ἁμαρτάνει.
ἐὰν δὲ καὶ ἀποστάτης ᾖ, ἔτι μάλιστα ταῦτα ποιεῖ τῷ Ἰησοῦ πνευματικῶς ἃ ἐποίησεν αὐτῷ Ἱερουσαλῆμ σωματικῶς. διὸ «πόσῳ δοκεῖτε χείρονος ἀξιωθήσεται τιμωρίας ὁ τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ θεοῦ καταπατήσας καὶ τὸ αἷμα τῆς διαθήκης κοινὸν ἡγησάμενος, ἐν ᾧ ἡγιάσθη, καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα τῆς χάριτος ἐνυβρίσας«; εἰ κατεπάτησας τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα τῆς χάριτος ἐνύβρισας, τίς «φείσεται ἐπὶ σοί; τίς σκυθρωπάσει ἐπὶ σοί; τίς ἀνακάμψει ἐρωτῆσαι τὰ εἰς εἰρήνην σου«; αὐτὸν τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ θεοῦ τὸν ἐρωτήσαντά σοι τὰ εἰς εἰρήνην προέδωκεν ἡ τοῦ ἁμαρτωλοῦ ψυχή· τίς δύναται παρακαλέσαι ἀνακάμψας πάλιν περὶ τῆς εἰρήνης; τγινώσκοντες οὐν ὅτι «ὐδύνατον τοὺς ἅπαξ φωτισθέντας γευσαμένους τε τῆς δωρεᾶς τῆς ἐπουρανίου καὶ μέτόχους γενηθέντας πνεύματος ἁγίου καὶ καλὸν γευσαμένους θεοῦ ῥῆμα δυνάμεις τε μέλλοντος αἰῶνος, καὶ παραπεσόντας, πάλιν ἀνακαινίζειν εἰς μετάνοιαν, ἀνασταυροῦντας ἐν ἑαυτοῖς τὸν οἱὸν τοῦ θεοῦ, καὶ παραδειγματίζοντας« πάντα πράττωμεν, ἕνα μὴ καὶ περὶ ἡμῶν λέγηται τὸ «τίς φείσεται ἐπὶ σοί, Ἱερουσαλήμ; καὶ τίς σκυθρωπάσει ἐπὶ σοί; ἢ τίς ἀνακάμψει ἐρωτῆσαι εἰς εἰρήνην σοι«;
About this text
Origen on Jeremiah. Twenty Greek homilies survive. This page publishes the Pass B English for Homilies 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20. Homily 8 remains a machine draft and is not shipped yet. The rest of the volume is still being translated.
English follows Erich Klostermann, Origenes Werke III (GCS, 1901). A second transcription of that same edition (First1KGreek TEI) was checked; where the TEI drops or garbles a line, the page image wins. This is a reading translation for study, not a new critical edition of the Greek. Homilies that survive only in Jerome’s Latin are not on this page yet. When they are, they will be marked at those homilies.
Witnesses
- Copy-text Klostermann, Origenes Werke III (GCS, 1901) (Greek · Homilies 1–20 Greek (this page: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20))
- Checked print Archive.org page image and DjVu of GCS III (Greek · Same print as the copy-text)
- Checked print First1KGreek TEI of GCS III (Greek · Same print; encoding errors deferred to the page image)
Where the prints differ
- Homily 1.1 — The TEI omits Ἑβραῖον. English follows the GCS page image: Jonah is “a Hebrew prophet.”
- Homily 1.5 — The TEI dropped Ἰσαάκ. English follows the GCS page image: Isaac born of promise.
- Homily 1.11 — The TEI/OCR of this line is garbled. English follows the GCS page image and the quoted verse: “I have sanctified you.”
- Homily 3.2 — The TEI gaps Matthew 5:45 (sun on the evil and [gap]; rain on [gap] and the unjust). English follows the Gospel wording.
English is newly prepared for study from the stated edition. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.