Second Clement. William Varner
but has existed from the beginning. For she was spiritual, as was also our Jesus, but he was manifested in the last days so that he might save us.
3.And the church, which is spiritual, was manifested in the flesh of Christ, showing us that if any of us guard her in the flesh without corruption, he will receive her back again in the Holy Spirit. For this flesh is a copy of the Spirit. Therefore no one who has corrupted the copy will partake in the original. So, then, he means this, brothers: guard the flesh, so that you may partake of the Spirit.55
4.And if we say that the flesh is the church and the Spirit is Christ, then the one who abused the flesh has abused the church. Such a person, therefore, will not partake of the Spirit, who is Christ.
5.So great is the life and immortality this flesh is able to partake of, if the Holy Spirit is joined with it, that no one is able to express or to speak of the things “which the Lord has prepared” for his chosen ones.
Chapter 15
1.Now I think that I have not given unimportant advice about self-control, which if anyone follows he will have no regret, but will save both himself and me, his advisor. For it is no small reward to turn to salvation a wandering and perishing soul.
2.For this is the return which we can pay back to God who created us: if the one who speaks and hears both speaks and hears with faith and love.
3.Let us, therefore, remain righteous and holy in our faith, that we may boldly ask God, who says, “While you are speaking, I will say, ‘Behold, I am here’.”56
4.For this saying is the sign of a great promise, for the Lord says that he is more ready to give than we are to ask.
5.Let us then share in such great kindness, and not begrudge ourselves the gaining of such good things, for as great is the pleasure that these words bring to those who do them so severe is the condemnation they bring to those who disobey.
Chapter 16
1.So, brothers, as we have received no small opportunity to repent, while we have time, let us turn to the God who calls us, while we still have the one who accepts us.
2.For if we renounce these pleasures and conquer our soul by not doing its evil desires, we will receive Jesus’ mercy.
3.But you know that the day of judgment is already approaching like a burning oven, and some of the heavens will melt, and the whole earth will be like lead melting in a fire, and then both the hidden and the open deeds of people will be made visible.
4.Charitable giving is, therefore, as good as repentance from sin. Fasting is better than prayer, but charitable giving is better than both; and love “covers a multitude of sins,”57 but prayer from a good conscience rescues from death. Blessed is everyone who is found to be full of these things, for charitable giving lightens the burden of sin.
Chapter 17
1.Therefore, let us repent with our whole heart, so that none of us perish. For since we have commands that we should do this, to tear men away from idols and to instruct them, how much more must we save from perishing a soul who already knows God?
2.Let us then help one another, and restore those who are weak in goodness, so that we may all be saved, and turn each other around and admonish each other.
3.And let us not only appear to believe and pay attention now, while we are being admonished by the elders; but also when we have returned home, let us remember the commandments of the Lord, and let us not be dragged off by worldly desires. Rather by coming here more frequently, let us attempt to progress in the commands of the Lord, so that we may all think the same way and be gathered together for life.
4.For the Lord said, “I am coming to gather together all the nations, tribes, and languages.”58 Now by this he means the day of his appearance, when he will come and rescue us, each one according to his deeds.
5.And the unbelievers will see his glory and power, and they will be astonished when they see the sovereignty of the world given to Jesus; and they will say, “Woe unto us, because it was you, and we did not know it or believe it, and we did not obey the elders who proclaimed to us about our salvation.” “And their worm will not die and their fire will not be quenched, and they will be a spectacle for all flesh.”59
6.He means the day of judgment, when they will see those who were ungodly among us and who perverted the commands of Jesus Christ.
7.But the righteous who have done good, who endured torture, and who hated the pleasures of the soul, when they see those who have gone astray and denied Jesus by words or deeds punished with terrible torment in unquenchable fire, will give glory to their God, saying that there will be hope for the one who served God from his whole heart.
Chapter 18
1.Let us then also be among those who give thanks, who have served God, and not among the ungodly, who are judged.
2.For I myself am also completely sinful, and I have not yet fled from temptation, but while still in the midst of the devil’s tools, I am endeavoring to pursue righteousness, so that I may have the strength at least to come near to it, while in fear of the coming judgment.
Chapter 19
1.So then brothers and sisters, following the God of Truth, I am reading you an appeal to pay attention to what is written, so that you may both save yourselves and the one who is the reader among you. For as a compensation I ask you to repent from all your heart, giving yourselves salvation and life. For when we do this, we will set a goal for all the younger ones who wish to devote themselves to piety and the goodness of God.
2.And we should not be displeased or be indignant in our foolishness when anyone admonishes us and attempts to turn us away from unrighteousness to righteousness. For sometimes, when we do evil, we do not realize it because of the double-mindedness and faithlessness that is in our breasts, and we are darkened in our understanding by useless desires.
3.Let us then do righteousness, so we may be saved at the end. Blessed are those who obey these instructions; although they may suffer evil for a short time in this world, they will reap the immortal fruit of the resurrection.
4.So then, the godly person should not grieve if he endures misery at this present time; a blessed time awaits him. He will live again with the fathers above and will rejoice in an age when there is no sorrow.
Chapter 20
1.But neither let it disturb your mind that we see the unrighteous being wealthy and God’s servants being oppressed.
2.Let us then have faith, brothers and sisters. We are competing in the contest of the living God and being trained in the present life, so that we may be crowned in the coming one.
3.None of the righteous has received fruit quickly but waits for it.
4.For if God paid the wages of the righteous quickly, we would immediately be engaged in commerce and not in godliness, for we would appear to be righteous when we were pursuing not piety but gain. And because of this, divine judgment punishes a spirit that is not righteous and burdens it with chains.
5.To the only invisible God, the Father of Truth, who sent forth to us the Savior and Founder of immortality, through whom he revealed to us the truth and the heavenly life, to him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
32. I have preferred the translation “brothers” even though ἀδελφοί generically includes “and sisters.” This decision provides clarity to an authorial conscious choice in 19.1 and 20.2. There the author switches to “brothers and sisters.”
33. Isa 54:1; cf. Gal 4:27. Unless otherwise noted, canonical scriptures cited in this translation and commentary are the author’s translations.
34. Matt 9:13; Mark 2:17; Luke 5:32.