Letter 510: You of all people, Ophelios, understand that words are not the things they describe.
That many things are unclear to us and not easily captured by human reasoning is plain. And that those things escape us — and this profitably — which do not contribute to our salvation, this too is clear. Let us therefore consider what profits us for blessedness and what does not, and in this way let us examine what is said. To say whether the heaven is a sphere or a hemisphere; and to busy oneself with the swiftest course of the sun, the waxings and wanings of the moon, and the position of the stars; and to inquire about the earth, whether it is a cylinder or dish-shaped or the center of the universe, and to know the distances of these bodies — what does this contribute to the best way of life? I for one do not see. If someone claims to have an answer, he may perhaps speak, but he will not persuade. But to know and to practice justice, courage, prudence, temperance, and whatever is akin to these — this sends those who possess such knowledge up to the highest blessedness. One must therefore abstain from things that profit us nothing, and hold fast to those that do profit us.
To Gottus — On the polygamy of the two patriarchs, Abraham and Jacob: The polygamy of the two patriarchs (for Isaac consorted with one wife alone) did not arise from negligence or love of pleasure, but was shaped, as one might say, by the necessity of circumstances. Therefore they were pardoned. For observe, following the Scripture, how it came about. Abraham, if he had not been urged by his wife — who herself ought to have been jealous — to approach the maidservant, would never have approached her. For he was not seeking pleasure (and the long time that had passed proves this), but desiring children. He left aside the most beautiful and fair woman, who had set all Egypt aflutter with her beauty, and was compelled to sow an ugly and lowborn field instead. So pure was he from every passion that even after the maid conceived and perhaps dishonored her mistress by acting like a queen — since the authority would pass to the child born of her — he expelled her from the house, and she went into the desert, with necessity as her guide. And if he took Keturah, it was after the death of both Hagar and Sarah. As for Jacob, if he had obtained the one he loved from the beginning, he would perhaps never have touched another woman. And that this is no mere conjecture is clear from the following: the father-in-law put the elder daughter, who was plain, in the place of the younger who possessed an irresistible beauty, and laid her beside him. But when Jacob eventually discovered the deception, he was indignant yet did not cast her out, thinking it unseemly to send away a woman who had in whatever way been wedded to him. Then the father-in-law, being accused as a deceiver, offered of his own accord to give him the other daughter as well, this being an entirely customary and anciently permitted practice. When Jacob accepted, the elder, though not dear to his heart, bore children; but the one who had captured him with her charm had not even a hope of the thing. She, overcome with grief, threatened to destroy herself if she did not bear children. "Give me children," she said, "or else I shall die" — that is, I shall do away with myself. And when she despaired, she urged him to approach her own maidservant, so that the children born of her might be adopted as her own, and she might seem to have some consolation for her misfortune. For childlessness was then considered the greatest evil. And he did not submit from being enslaved to passion — for he would not have left the one of surpassing beauty to give himself to a maidservant — but wishing to deliver her from despondency, he consented. And when the maidservant bore a child, the elder wife again grew jealous.
AI-assisted translation — This translation was produced with AI assistance and has not been peer-reviewed. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek below for scholarly use.
Latin / Greek Original
Ὅτι μὲν πολλὰ ἄδηλά ἐστιν ἡμῖν, χαὶ λογισμῷ οὐκ εὐθήρατα ἀνθρωπίνῳ, δῆλον. Ὅτι δὲ ἐχεῖνα ἡμᾶς. διαφεύγει (), καὶ τοῦτο χρησίμως, τὰ μὴ συντελοῦντα ἡμῖν εἰς σωτηρίαν, χαὶ τοῦτο δῆλον. Σχοπήσωμεν οὖν, τί ἡμῖν λυσιτελεῖ εἰς μακαριότητα, τί δ᾽ οὔ" χαὶ οὕτως βασανίσωμεν τὰ λεγόμενα. Τὸ λέγειν ἣ σφαῖραν εἶναι τὸν οὐρανὸν, ἣ ἡμισφαίριον" χαὶ τὸ πολυπραγμονεῖν, ἡλίου μὲν τὸν ὠχύτατον δρόμον, σελήνης δὲ μειώσεις τε χαὶ αὐξήσεις, καὶ τῶν ἄστρων τὴν θέσιν" χαὶ τὸ ζητεῖν περὶ γῆς, ἣ χύλινδρός ἐστιν ἣ λιχνοειδὴς, ἣ χέντρον τοῦ παντὸς, χαὶ τὸ τὰ ἐχείνου ἣ ταύτης διαστήματα εἰδέναι, τί συμθδάλλεται εἰς ἀρίστην πολιτείαν, ἐγὼ μὲν οὐ συν- ορῶ. Εἰ δέ τις λέγειν ἔχοι, λέξει μὲν ἴσως, οὐ πείσει δέ. Τὸ δὲ δικαιοσύνην, χαὶ ἀνδρείαν, χαὶ φρόνησιν, χαὶ σωφροσύνην, χαὶ εἴ τι τούτων συγγενὲς, εἰδέναι τε χαὶ πράττειν, τοῦτ᾽ εἰς τὴν χορυφαιοτάτην μαχα- ριότητα ἀναπέμπει τοὺς ἐπιστήμονας. Χρὴ οὖν τῶν μὲν μηδὲν ἡμῖν λυσιτελούντων ἀπέχεσθαι, τῶν δὲ λυσιτελούντων ἀντέχεσθαι. ΔὈΘ ΪΠΘΔΠΉΙ8 : Θἃ Δυίδιη ΟΣ ΣΟΔ'. --- ΓΌΤΤΩ (). Περὶ τῆς τῶν δύο πατριαρχῶν ποιλυγαμίας, ' ᾿Αδραάμ τε καὶ ᾿Ιαχώδ. Ἢ πολυγαμία τοῖν δυεῖν πατριάρχοιν (ὁ γὰρ Ἰσαὰκ μιᾷ ὠμίλησς γυναιχὶ) οὐχ ἀπὸ ῥᾳθυμίας ἣ φιλοπαθίας ἐγένετο, ἀλλ᾽ ἐχ τῆς τῶν πραγμάτων ἐπλάχη, ὡς ἄν Ο τις εἴποι, ἀνάγκης. Διὸ χαὶ συνεγνώσθησαν. Θέα γὰρ, τῇ Γραφῇ ἀχολουθῶν, ὅπως ἐγένετο, Ὁ μὲν γὰρ ᾿Αύραὰμ, εἰ μὴ παρεχλήθη ὑπὸ τἧς γυναιχὸς, τῆς χαὶ ζηλοτυπεῖν ὀφειλούσης, πλησιάσαι τῇ παιδίσχῃ, οὐχ ἂν ἐπλησίασεν " οὐ γὰρ ἡδυπαθῶν (καὶ δείχνυσιν ὁ παρεληλυθὼς χρόνος μαχρὸς ὧν), ἀλλὰ παίδων ἐπιθυμῶν τὴν εὐμορφοτάτην χαὶ εὐειδεστάτην, χαὶ πᾶσαν τὴν Αἴγυπτον τῷ χάλλει ἀναπτερώσασαν ἀφεὶς, ἄλλην [χαὶ] δύσμορφον χαὶ δυσγενῇ ἢναγχά- ζετο σπείρειν ἄρουραν (). Οὕτω γοῦν χαθαρὸς ὧν πάθους παντὸς, ὅτι χαὶ μετὰ τὸ χνῆσαι τὴν παῖδα, χαὶ βασιλίζουσαν ἴσως ἀτιμάσαι τὴν δέσποιναν, ὡς τῆς ἡγεμονίας εἰς τὸν ἐξ αὐτῆς τεχθησόμενον περι- στησομένης, ἐξήλασε τῆς οἰχίας, ὅτε χαὶ ἀπῆλθεν ἐχείνη εἰς τὴν ἔρημον ὁδηγῷ τῇ ἀνάγχῃ χρησαμένη. Εἰ δὲ χαὶ τὴν Χεττούραν ἔσχεν, ἀλλὰ μετὰ [τὴν] τῆς Ἄγαρ χαὶ τῆς Σάρας τελευτήν. Ὃ δ᾽ Ἰαχὼόδ, εἰ ἧς ἦρα [ἐξ ἀρχῆς] ἔτυχεν, ἴσως οὐδ᾽ [ἂν] ἄλλης ἥψατο γυναιχός. Καὶ ὅτι οὐχ ἔστι στοχασμὸς τὸ λε- γόμενον, ἐχ τούτου δῆλον. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ χηδεστὴς τὴν πρεσδυτέραν ἄμορφον οὖσαν, ἀντὶ τῆς νεωτέρας τῆς ἀμήχανον χάλλος ἐχούσης αὐτῷ παραχατέχλινεν. Ὃ ΥΑΒΙΖ ΓΚΕΟΤΙΟΝΕΘ ΕΤ ΝΟΤΑ͂. () Ρεγο διαφεύγει Δι οοὐ. γαιὶς. εἰ ΑἸι. αἰ τἰδο βογίθυν! δισφεύγει. ΡΟΒΒΙΝ. () : αρ᾽ϑιοία ᾿π οοι,. Υ4ϊ. εἰ ΑἸ!Ι. ἰηβογί- υἱίυνγ ποῖ ᾿όττῳ, Οοίέο, δε Γότθῳ, (οίπο. ἴν. () Σπείρειν ἄρουραν. Ποῃεδία πιδίομιιογα, ἃ πνι δυοιοτίυυπ υϑυρρείλ, ἀξ αυοά [,διὶ εεὶ, ἐἰϑοτὶς ἀατα ορεέταπι. ϑὶς ΤΙ οαπ5 μάργον ἄνδρα - ἰοδίδίυγ, ὅστις ἄρ᾽ ἀλλοτρίην βούλετ᾽ ἄρουραν ἀροῦν, 4ιΐνα,, 6ϑὶ δριιὶ Ρίδυϊυ., [ἡ αἰΐδηυιη οοἤϊι, Ἰπουϊαπι [μη] γοπὶ ἀδδογί!. Τ4 ογὰϊ νοίυβ Αἰ ἰοὰ [ογπιυϊα σου! γαἰδη αι πιαἰτϊπιομία, ἐπὶ νομίμων παίδων σπορᾷ, ἀδ αι. ] ἰοἰάυγι5. ἰπ1Πττ. ἘΡΙΘΤΟΙΑΕΙΝ .Π]. -- ΕΡΙΘΤ. ΟΟἸΧΧΙΨΥ.. δὲ ὀψέ ποτε γνοὺς τὴν ἀπάτην, ἡγανάχτησε μὲν, οὐχ Α πηι]! Γαπ) διιἰφίε5οι. Θυοάιδ ΠΟΙ πηθ γα σοηδείυ ΓΑ ἐξέδαλε δὲ, ἄτοπον ἡγούμενος τὴν ὅπως δήποτε παρ᾽ αὐτοῦ νυμφευθεῖσαν ἀποπέμψασθαι. Εἴτ᾽ ἐχεῖνος ἐγχαλούμενος ὡς ἀπατεὼν, αὐτεπάγγελτος ἐπὶ τὸ χᾶϊ τὴν ἄλλην αὐτῷ δοῦναι ὥρμησε, νενομισμένου πάντω: τοῦ τοιούτου, χαὶ συγχεχωρημένου ὑπὸ συν- ηθείας ἀρχαίας. Τοῦ δὲ χαταδεξαμένου, ἡ μὲν πρεσδυτέρα, χαίτοι μὴ καταθύμιος αὐτῷ οὖσα, ἕτι- χτεν᾽ ἡ δὲ χειρωσαμένη αὐτὸν τῷ φίλτρῳ, οὐδ᾽ ἐλπίδα τοῦ πράγματος εἶχεν " ἥτις καὶ τῇ λύπῃ χαταχράτος ἁλοῦσα, ἠπείλει ἀναιρήσειν ἑαυτὴν, εἰ μὴ τέχοι. ε Δός μοι γὰρ, φησὶ, τέχνα" εἰ δὲ μὴ, τελευτήσω ἐγὼ, » τουτέστιν, ἐμαυτὴν χειρώσομαι. ὭὩς δ᾽ ἀπέγνω, πα- ραχέχληχεν αὐτὸν τῇ θεραπαινίδι ἑαυτῆς πλησιάσαι, ἵνα τὰ ἐξ ἐχείνης τιχτόμενα τεχνοποιήσηται, χαὶ δόξῃ παραμυθίαν τινὰ ἔχειν τῆς τοιαύτης συμφο- ρᾶ; (). ᾿Εδόχει γὰρ τότε μέγιστον χαχὸν εἶναι ἡ ἀτεχνία. Ὁ δὲ () οὐ πάθει δουλωθεὶς (οὐ γὰρ ἂν τὴν ἄλεχτον χάλλο: ἔχουσαν ἀφεὶς, θεραπαινίδι ἑαυ- τὸν ἐξεδίδου), ἀλλ᾽ ἐχείνην ἀθυμίας ἀπαλλάξαι βου- λόμενος, πείθεται. Ὡς δ' ἕτεχεν ἡ θεράπαινα, πάλιν ἡ πρεσδυτέρα ζηλοτυπήσασα,
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