Polycarp
THE EPISTLE OF POLYCARP TO
THE PHILIPPIANS
Polycarp, and the presbyters with him, to the Church of God sojourning at
Philippi: Mercy to you, and peace from God Almighty, and from the Lord Jesus
Christ, our Saviour, be multiplied.
CHAPTER I.--PRAISE OF THE PHILIPPIANS.
I have greatly rejoiced with you in our Lord Jesus Christ, because ye have
followed the example of true love [as displayed by God], and have accompanied,
as became you, those who were bound in chains, the fitting ornaments of saints,
and which are indeed the diadems of the true elect of God and our Lord; and
because the strong root of your faith, spoken of in days long gone by, endureth
even until now, and bringeth forth fruit to our Lord Jesus Christ, who for our
sins suffered even unto death, [but] "whom God raised froth the dead, having
loosed the bands of the grave." "In whom, though now ye see Him not, ye believe,
and believing, rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory; " into which joy
many desire to enter, knowing that "by grace ye are saved, not of works," but by
the will of God through Jesus Christ.
CHAPTER II.--AN EXHORTATION TO VIRTUE.
"Wherefore, girding up your loins," "serve the Lord in fear" and truth, as
those who have forsaken the vain, empty talk and error of the multitude, and
"believed in Him who raised up our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead, and gave Him
glory," and a throne at His right hand. To Him all things" in heaven and on
earth are subject. Him every spirit serves. He comes as the Judge of the living
and the dead. His blood will God require of those who do not believe in Him. But
He who raised Him up from the dead will raise up us also, if we do His will, and
walk in His commandments, and love what He loved, keeping ourselves from all
unrighteousness, covetousness, love of money, evil speaking, falsewitness; "not
rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing," or blow for blow, or cursing
for cursing, but being mindful of what the Lord said in His teaching: "Judge
not, that ye be not judged; forgive, and it shall be forgiven unto you; be
merciful, that ye may obtain mercy; with what measure ye mete, it shall be
measured to you again; and once more, "Blessed are the poor, and those that are
persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of God."
CHAPTER III.--EXPRESSIONS OR PERSONAL UNWORTHINESS.
These things, brethren, I write to you concerning righteousness, not because
I take anything upon myself, but because ye have invited me to do so. For
neither I, nor any other such one, can come up to the wisdom" of the blessed and
glorified Paul. He, when among you, accurately and stedfastly taught the word of
truth in the presence of those who were then alive. And when absent from you, he
wrote you a letter, which, if you carefully study, you will find to be the means
of building you up in that faith which has been given you, and which, being
followed by hope, and preceded by love towards God, and Christ, and our
neighbour, "is the mother of us all." For if any one be inwardly possessed of
these graces, he hath fulfilled the command of righteousness, since he that hath
love is far from all sin.
CHAPTER IV.--VARIOUS EXHORTATIONS.
"But the love of money is the root of all evils." Knowing, therefore, that
"as we brought nothing into the world, so we can carry nothing out," let us arm
ourselves with the armour of righteousness; and let us teach, first of all,
ourselves to walk in the commandments of the Lord. Next, [teach] your wives [to
walk] in the faith given to them, and in love and purity tenderly loving their
own husbands in all truth, and loving all [others] equally in all chastity; and
to train up their children in the knowledge and fear of God. Teach the widows to
be discreet as respects the faith of the Lord, praying continually for all,
being far from all slandering, evil-speaking, false-witnessing, love of money,
and every kind of evil; knowing that they are the altar s of God, that He
clearly perceives all things, and that nothing is hid from Him, neither
reasonings, nor reflections, nor any one of the secret things of the heart.
CHAPTER V.--THE DUTIES OF DEACONS, YOUTHS, AND VIRGINS.
Knowing, then, that "God is not mocked," we ought to walk worthy of His
commandment and glory. In like manner should the deacons be blameless before the
face of His righteousness, as being the servants of God and Christ, and not of
men. They must not be slanderers, double-tongued, or lovers of money, but
temperate in all things, compassionate, industrious, walking according to the
truth of the Lord, who was the servant of all. If we please Him in this present
world, we shall receive also the future world, according as He has promised to
us that He will raise us again from the dead, and that if we live worthily of
Him, "we shall also reign together with Him," provided only we believe. In like
manner, let the young men also be blameless in all things, being especially
careful to preserve purity, and keeping themselves in, as with a bridle, from
every kind of evil. For it is well that they should be cut off from the lusts
that are in the world, since "every lust warreth against the spirit; " and
"neither fornicators, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
shall inherit the kingdom of God," nor those who do things inconsistent and
unbecoming. Wherefore, it is needful to abstain from all these things, being
subject to the presbyters and deacons, as unto God and Christ. The virgins also
must walk in a blameless and pure conscience.
CHAPTER VI.--THE DUTIES OF PRESBYTERS AND OTHERS.
And let the presbyters be compassionate and merciful to all, bringing back
those that wander, visiting all the sick, and not neglecting the widow, the
orphan, or the poor, but always "providing for that which is becoming in the
sight of God and man ; " abstaining from all wrath, respect of persons, and
unjust judgment; keeping far off from . all covetousness, not quickly crediting
[an evil re port] against any one, not severe in judgment, as knowing that we
are all under a debt of sin. If then we entreat the Lord to forgive us, we ought
also ourselves to forgive; for we are before the eyes of our Lord and God, and
"we must all appear at the judgment-seat of Christ, and must every one give an
account of himself." Let us then serve Him in fear, and with all reverence, even
as He Himself has commanded us, and as the apostles who preached the Gospel unto
us, and the prophets who proclaimed beforehand the coming of the Lord [have
alike taught us]. Let us be zealous in the pursuit of that which is good,
keeping ourselves from causes of offence, from false brethren, and from those
who in hypocrisy bear the name of the Lord, and draw away vain men into error.
CHAPTER VII.--AVOID THE DOCETAE, AND PERSEVERE IN FASTING AND PRAYER.
"For whosoever does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh, is
antichrist;" and whosoever does not confess the testimony of the cross, is of
the devil; and whosoever perverts the oracles of the Lord to his own lusts, and
says that there is neither a resurrection nor a judgment, he is the first-born
of Satan. Wherefore, forsaking the vanity of many, and their false doctrines,
let us return to the word which has been handed down to us from the beginning;
"watching unto prayer," and persevering in fasting; beseeching in our
supplications the all-seeing God "not to lead us into temptation," as the Lord
has said: "The spirit truly is willing, but the flesh is weak."
CHAPTER VIII.--PERSEVERE IN HOPE AND PATIENCE.
Let us then continually persevere in our hope, and the earnest of our
righteousness, which is Jesus Christ, "who bore our sins in His own body on the
tree," "who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth," but endured all
things for us, that we might live in Him. Let us then be imitators of His
patience; and if we suffer for His name's sake, let us glorify Him. For He has
set us this example s in Himself, and we have believed that such is the case.
CHAPTER IX.--PATIENCE INCULCATED.
I exhort you all, therefore, to yield obedience to the word of righteousness,
and to exercise all patience, such as ye have seen [set] before your eyes, not
only in the case of the blessed Ignatius, and Zosimus, and Rufus, but also in
others among yourselves, and in Paul himself, and the rest of the apostles.
[This do] in the assurance that all these have not run in vain, but in faith and
righteousness, and that they are [now] in their due place in the presence of the
Lord, with whom also they suffered. For they loved not this present world, but
Him who died for us, and for our sakes was raised again by God from the dead.
CHAPTER X.--EXHORTATION TO THE PRACTICE OF VIRTUE.
Stand fast, therefore, in these things, and follow the example of the Lord,
being firm and unchangeable in the faith, loving the brotherhood, and being
attached to one another, joined together in the truth, exhibiting the meekness
of the Lord in your intercourse with one another, and despising no one. When you
can do good, defer it not, because "alms delivers from death."" Be all of you
subject one to another? having your conduct blameless among the Gentiles," that
ye may both receive praise for your good works, and the Lord may not be
blasphemed through you. But woe to him by whom the name of the Lord is
blasphemed! Teach, therefore, sobriety to all, and manifest it also in your own
conduct.
CHAPTER XI.--EXPRESSION OF GRIEF ON ACCOUNT OF VALENS.
I am greatly grieved for Valens, who was once a presbyter among you, because
he so little understands the place that was given him [in the Church]. I exhort
you, therefore, that ye abstain from covetousness, and that ye be chaste and
truthful. "Abstain from every form of evil." For if a man cannot govern himself
in such matters, how shall he enjoin them on others ? If a man does not keep
himself from covetousness, he shall be defiled by idolatry, and shall be judged
as one of the heathen. But who of us are ignorant of the judgment of the Lord ?
"Do we not know that the saints shall judge the world ?" as Paul teaches. But I
have neither seen nor heard of any such thing among you, in the midst of whom
the blessed Paul laboured, and who are commended in the beginning of his
Epistle. For he boasts of you in all those Churches which alone then knew the
Lord; but we [of Smyrna] had not yet known Him. I am deeply grieved, therefore,
brethren, for him (Valens) and his wife; to whom may the Lord grant true
repentance! And be ye then moderate in regard to this matter, and "do not count
such as enemies," but call them back as suffering and straying members, that ye
may save your whole body. For by so acting ye shall edify yourselves.
CHAPTER XII.--EXHORTATION TO VARIOUS GRACES.
For I trust that ye are well versed in the Sacred Scriptures, and that
nothing is hid from you; but to me this privilege is not yet granted. It is
declared then in these Scriptures, "Be ye angry, and sin not," and, "Let not the
sun go down upon your wrath." Happy is he who remembers this, which I believe to
be the case with you. But may the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and
Jesus Christ Himself, who is the Son of God, and our everlasting High Priest,
build you up in faith and truth, and in all meekness, gentleness, patience,
long-suffering, forbearance, and purity; and may He bestow on you a lot and
portion among His saints, and on us with you, and on all that are under heaven,
who shall believe in our Lord Jesus Christ, and in His Father, who "raised Him
from the dead. Pray for all the saints. Pray also for kings, and potentates, and
princes, and for those that persecute and hate you, and for the enemies of the
cross, that your fruit may be manifest to all, and that ye may be perfect in
Him.
CHAPTER XIII.--CONCERNING THE TRANSMISSION OF EPISTLES.
Both you and Ignatius wrote to me, that if any one went [from this] into
Syria, he should carry your letter with him; which request I will attend to if I
find a fitting opportunity, either personally, or through some other acting for
me, that your desire may be fulfilled. The Epistles of Ignatius written by him
to us, and all the rest [of his Epistles] which we have by us, we have sent to
you, as you requested. They are subjoined to this Epistle, and by them ye may be
greatly profited; for they treat of faith and patience, and all things that tend
to edification in our Lord. Any more certain information you may have obtained
respecting both Ignatius himself, and those that were with him, have the
goodness to make known to us.
CHAPTER XIV.--CONCLUSION.
These things I have written to you by Crescens, whom up to the present time I
have recommended unto you, and do now recommend. For he has acted blamelessly
among us, and I believe also among you. Moreover, ye will hold his sister in
esteem when she comes to you. Be ye safe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with
you all. Amen.