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Lost Scriptures:Books That Did Not
Make it into the New
Testament
Bart D. Ehrman
OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS
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Lost
Scriptures
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LOST
SCRIPTURES BOOKS THAT DID NOT MAKE IT
INTO THE NEW T ESTAMENT
BartD.Ehrman
12003
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1
Oxford NewYork
Auckland Bangkok BuenosAires CapeTown Chennai
DaresSalaam Delhi HongKong Istanbul Karachi Kolkata
KualaLumpur Madrid Melbourne MexicoCity Mumbai
Nairobi SãoPaulo Shanghai Taipei Tokyo Toronto
Copyright2003byOxfordUniversityPress,Inc.
Published
by
Oxford
University
Press,
Inc.
198MadisonAvenue,NewYork,NewYork 10016
www.oup.com
Oxfordisaregisteredtrademark of OxfordUniversityPress
Allrightsreserved.Nopartof thispublicationmaybereproduced,
storedinaretrievalsystem,ortransmitted,inanyformorbyanymeans,
electronic,mechanical,photocopying,recording,orotherwise,
withoutthepriorpermissionof OxfordUniversityPress.
Libraryof CongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Lostscriptures:booksthatdidnotmakeitinto
the
New
Testament
/
[edited
by]
Bart
D.
Ehrman.
p.cm. Includesbibliographicalreferences.
ISBN0-19-514182-2
1. Apocryphalbooks(NewTestament)
I. Ehrman,BartD.
BS2832.E372003 229'.9205209—dc21 2003045965
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
PrintedintheUnitedStatesof America
onacid-freepaper
http://www.oup.com/http://www.oup.com/http://www.oup.com/
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Contents
GeneralIntroduction 1
NON-CANONICALGOSPELS 7
TheGospelof theNazareans 9
TheGospelof theEbionites 12
TheGospelAccordingtotheHebrews 15
TheGospelAccordingtotheEgyptians 17
TheCopticGospelof Thomas 19
Papyrus
Egerton
2: The
Unknown
Gospel
29 TheGospelof Peter 31
TheGospelof Mary 35
TheGospelof Philip 38
TheGospelof Truth 45
TheGospelof theSavior 52
TheInfancyGospelof Thomas 57
TheProto-Gospelof James 63
TheEpistleof theApostles 73
The
Coptic
Apocalypse
of
Peter
78 TheSecondTreatiseof theGreatSeth 82
TheSecretGospelof Mark 87
NON-CANONICAL ACTSOF THE APOSTLES 91
TheActsof John 93
TheActsof Paul 109
The
Acts
of
Thecla
113
TheActsof Thomas 122
TheActsof Peter 135
NON-CANONICALEPISTLES ANDRELATEDWRITINGS 155
TheThirdLettertotheCorinthians 157
Correspondenceof PaulandSeneca 160
v
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vi CONTENTS
Paul’sLettertotheLaodiceans 165
TheLetterof 1Clement 167
TheLetterof 2Clement 185
The
“Letter
of
Peter
to
James”
and
its
“Reception”
191
TheHomiliesof Clement 195
Ptolemy’sLettertoFlora 201
TheTreatiseontheResurrection 207
TheDidache 211
TheLetterof Barnabas 219
ThePreachingof Peter 236
Pseudo-Titus 239
NON-CANONICAL APOCALYPSES ANDREVELATORY
TREATISES 249
TheShepherd of Hermas 251
TheApocalypseof Peter 280
TheApocalypseof Paul 288
TheSecretBook of John 297
On
the
Origin
of
the
World
307 TheFirstThoughtinThreeForms 316
TheHymnof thePearl 324
CANONICALLISTS 329
TheMuratorianCanon 331
TheCanonof Origenof Alexandria 334
The
Canon
of
Eusebius
337 TheCanonof Athanasiusof Alexandria 339
TheCanonof theThirdSynodof Carthage 341
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General
Introduction
Even
though
millions
of
people
world-wide
read
the
New
Testament—
whether from curiosity or religious devotion—very few ask what this
collection of books actually is or where it came from, how it came into
existence,whodecidedwhichbookstoinclude,onwhatgrounds,andwhen.
TheNewTestamentdidnotemergeasanestablishedandcompleteset
of books immediately after the death of Jesus. Many years passed before
Christians agreed concerning which books should comprise their sacred
scriptures,withdebatesoverthecontourof the“canon”(i.e.,thecollection
of sacredtexts)thatwerelong,hard,andsometimesharsh.Inpartthiswas
because
other
books
were
available,
also
written
by
Christians,
many
of their authors claiming to be the original apostles of Jesus,yetadvocating
pointsof viewquitedifferentfromthoselaterembodiedinthecanon.These
differences were not simply over such comparatively minor issues as
whether a person should be baptized as an infant or an adult, or whether
churches were to be run by a group of lay elders or by ordained priests,
bishops,andpope.Tobesure,suchissues,stillcontroversialamongChris
tianchurchestoday,wereatstakethenaswell.Butthealternativeformsof
Christianityintheearlycenturiesof thechurchwrestledovermuchlarger
doctrinal
questions,
many
of
them
unthinkable
in
most
modern
Christianchurches, such as how many gods there are (one? two? twelve? thirty?);
whetherthetrueGodcreatedtheworldorwhether,instead,itwascreated
byalower,inferiordeity;whetherJesuswasdivine,orhuman,orsomehow
both;whetherJesus’deathbroughtsalvation,orwasirrelevantforsalvation,
or whether he ever even died. Christians also debated the relationshipof
theirnewfaithtothereligionfromwhichitcame,Judaism.ShouldChris
tians continue to be Jews? Or if not already Jews, should they convert to
Judaism? What about the Jewish Scriptures? Are they to be part of the
Christian
Bible,
as
the
“Old
Testament”?
Or
are
they
the
Scriptures
of
a
differentreligion,inspiredperhapsbyadifferentGod?
SuchfundamentalissuesareforthemostpartunproblematictoChris
tians today, and their solutions,asa result,appearobvious:There isonly
oneGod;hecreatedtheworld;JesushisSonisbothhumananddivine;his
deathbroughtsalvationtotheworld,infulfillmentof thepromisesmadein
theOldTestament,whichwasalsoinspiredbytheonetrueGod.
One of the reasons these views now seem obvious, however, is that
onlyonesetof earlyChristianbeliefsemergedasvictoriousintheheated
1
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2 GENERAL INTRODUCTION
disputesoverwhattobelieveandhowtolivethatwereragingintheearly
centuries of the Christian movement. These beliefs, and the group who
promoted them, came to be thought of as “orthodox” (literally meaning,
“the
right
belief
”),
and
alternative
views—such
as
the
view
that
there
are
twogods,or that the trueGoddidnotcreate theworld,or thatJesuswas
notactuallyhumanornotactuallydivine,etc.—cametobelabeled“heresy”
(�falsebelief)andwerethenruledoutof court.Moreover,thevictorsin
thestrugglestoestablishChristianorthodoxynotonlywontheirtheological
battles, they also rewrote the history of the conflict; later readers, then,
naturallyassumedthatthevictoriousviewshadbeenembracedbythevast
majorityof Christians from theverybeginning,all thewayback toJesus
and
his
closest
followers,
the
apostles.
Whatthenof theotherbooksthatclaimedtobewrittenbytheseapos
tles,theonesthatdidnotcometoformpartof theNewTestament?Forthe
mostparttheyweresuppressed,forgotten,ordestroyed—inonewayoran
other lost, except insofar as they were mentioned by those who opposed
them,whoquotedthempreciselyinordertoshowhowwrongtheywere.But
weshouldnotoverlook thecircumstancethatinsometimesandplacesthese
“other”writingswereinfactsacredbooks,readandreveredbydevoutpeo
plewhounderstoodthemselvestobeChristian.Suchpeoplebelievedthat
they
were
following
the
real
teachings
of
Jesus,
as
found
in
the
authoritativetextsthattheymaintainedwerewrittenbyJesus’ownapostles.
Historians today realize that it is over-simplified to say that these
alternative theologies are aberrations because they are not represented in
theNewTestament.FortheNewTestamentitself isthecollectionof books
thatemerged fromtheconflict,thegroupof booksadvocatedbythesideof
the disputes that eventually established itself asdominantandhanded the
booksdowntoposterityas“the”ChristianScriptures.
This triumph did not happen immediately after Jesus’death.Jesus is
usually
thought
to
have
died
around
30
ce.1
Christians
probably
began
toproducewritingsshortlyafterwards,althoughourearliestsurvivingwritings,
the lettersof Paul,werenotmade foranother twentyyearsor so (around
50–60ce).Soonthefloodgatesopened,however,andChristiansof varying
theologicalandecclesiasticalpersuasionwroteallkindsof books:Gospels
recordingthewords,deeds,andactivitiesof Jesus;accountsof themiracu
louslivesandteachingsof earlyChristianleaders(“actsof theapostles”),
personalletters(“epistles”)toandfromChristianleadersandcommunities;
prophetic revelations from God concerning how the world came to be or
how
it
was
going
to
end
(“revelations”
or
“apocalypses”),
and
so
on.
Some
of thesewritingsmaywellhavebeenproducedbytheoriginalapostlesof
Jesus. But already within thirty or fortyyearsbooksbegan to appear that
claimed to be written by apostles, which in fact were forgeries in their
names(see,e.g.,2Thess.2:2).
1I.e.,30of the“CommonEra,”whichisthesameastheolderdesignation,AD30.
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3GENERAL INTRODUCTION
Thepracticeof Christianforgeryhasalonganddistinguishedhistory.
We know of Gospels and other sacred books forged in the names of the
apostles down into the Middle Ages—and on, in fact, to the presentday.
Some
of
the
more
ancient
ones
have
been
discovered
only
in
recent
times
by trainedarchaeologistsorrummagingbedouin,includingGospelsalleg
edly written by Jesus’ close disciple Peter, his female companion Mary
Magdalene,andhistwinbrotherDidymusJudasThomas.
The debates over which texts actually were apostolic, and therefore
authoritative, lasted many years, decades, even centuries.Eventually—by
about the end of the third Christian century—the views of one group
emergedasvictorious.Thisgroupwasitself internallydiverse,butitagreed
on
major
issues
of
the
faith,
including
the
existence
of
one
God,
the
creator
of all,whowastheFatherof JesusChrist,whowasbothdivineandhuman,
whoalongwiththeFatherandtheHolySpirittogethermadeupthedivine
godhead.Thisgrouppromoteditsowncollectionof booksastheonlytrue
and authentic ones, and urged that some of these books were sacred au
thorities, the “New” Testament that was to be read alongside of and that
was at least as authoritative as the “Old” Testament taken over from the
Jews.
When was thisNew Testament finallycollectedandauthorized?The
first
instance
we
have
of
any
Christian
author
urging
that
our
current
twenty-sevenbooks,andonlythesetwenty-seven,shouldbeacceptedasScripture
occurred in theyear367ce, ina letterwrittenby thepowerfulbishopof
Alexandria (Egypt), Athanasius. Even then the matter was not finally re
solved, however, as different churches, even within the orthodox form of
Christianity, had different ideas—for example, about whether the Apoca
lypseof JohncouldbeacceptedasScripture(itfinallywas,of course),or
whethertheApocalypseof Petershouldbe(itwasnot);whethertheepistle
of Hebrewsshouldbe included (itwas)or theepistleof Barnabas(itwas
not);
and
so
on.
In
other
words,
the
debates
lasted
over
three
hundred
years.TheissuesIhavebeenaddressinginthepreviousparagraphsarehighly
involved,of course,andrequireagooddealof discussionandreflection.I
havedealtwiththematgreaterlengthinthebook writtenasacompanion
tothepresentcollectionof texts: Lost Christianities:The Battles for Scrip-
tureand theFaithsWe Never Knew (NewYork: Oxford UniversityPress,
2003). There I discuss the wide ranging diversity of the early Christian
movement of the first three centuries, the battles between “heresies” and
“orthodoxy,” the production of forged documents in the heatof the battle
by
all
sides,
the
question
of
how
some
of
these
books
came
to
be
included
inthecanonof Scripture,onwhatgrounds,andwhen.Thepresentvolume
isintendedtoprovideeasyandreadyaccesstothetextsdiscussedin Lost
Christianities—that is, revered texts that werenot included in the canon.
Manyof thesetextswereexcludedpreciselybecausetheywerethoughtto
embodyhereticalconcernsandperspectives.Otherswereacceptedas“or
thodox,”butwerenotdeemedworthyof acceptanceinthesacredcanonof
Scripture,foronereasonoranother.
I have called this collection of other sacred texts “Lost Scriptures,”
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4 GENERAL INTRODUCTION
eventhoughthewritingsIhaveincludedhereareobviouslynolongerlost.
Butmostof themwere lost, forcenturies,until they turnedup inmodern
times in archaeological discoveries or in systematic searches through the
monasteries
and
libraries
of
the
Middle
East
and
Europe.
Some
of
them
are
known only in part, as fragmentsof once-entire textshaveappeared—for
example,afamousGospelallegedlywrittenbytheapostlePeter.Othersare
citedbyancientopponentsof heresyprecisely inorder toopposethem—
for example, Gospelsusedbydifferentgroupsof earlyJewishChristians.
Yetotherbookshaveturnedupintheirentirety—forexample,theGospel
allegedlywrittenbyJesus’twinbrotherJudasThomas.Andyetothershave
beenavailableforalongtimetoscholars,butarenotwidelyknownoutside
their
ranks—for
example,
the
account
of
the
miraculous
life
of
Paul’s
female
companionThecla.
Scholars have never devised an adequate term for these “Lost Scrip
tures.” Sometimes they are referred to as the Christian“Pseudepigrapha,”
basedonaGreek termwhichmeans“writtenunderafalsename.”Butsome
of the books are anonymous rather than pseudonymous.Moreover, in the
judgment of most New Testament scholars, even some of the books that
wereeventuallyincludedinthecanon(e.g.,2Peter)arepseudonymous.
And so, more often these texts are referred to as the early Christian
“Apocrypha,”
another
problematic
term,
in
that
it
technically
refers
to“hiddenbooks”(theliteralmeaningof “apocrypha”),hiddeneitherbecause
theycontainedsecretrevelationsorbecausetheysimplywerenotmeantfor
general consumption. A number of these books, however, do not fit that
designation, as they were written for general audiences. Still, so long as
everyone agrees that in the present context, the term “early Christian
apocrypha”maydesignatebooksthatweresometimesthoughttobescrip
turebutwhichwerenonethelessfinallyexcludedfromthecanon,thenthe
termcanstillserveausefulfunction.
The
present
collection
of
early
Christian
apocrypha
is
not
meant
to
beexhaustive,noristhistheonlyplaceonecanturnnowtofindsomeof these
texts.Mostothercollectionsof thelostScriptures,however,coveronlycer
tainkindsof documents(e.g.,non-canonicalGospels)2 ordocumentsdiscov
eredinonlyoneplace(e.g.,thecacheof “gnostic”writingsdiscoverednear
NagHammadiEgyptin1945).3 Ortheyincludeseveralof the“other”scrip
turaltextsonlyasapartof awidercollectionof earlyChristiandocuments.4
Themajorcollectionsthatcontainallof theseearlyChristianwritings—and
evenmore—arewrittenforscholarsandembodyscholarlyconcerns.5 The
2See,forexample,thehandycollectionbyRonCameron,TheOther Gospels(Philadelphia:WestminsterPress,1982)andmorerecentlybyRobertMiller,TheCompleteGospels: Annotated ScholarsVersion(Sonoma,CA:PolebridgePress,1994). 3E.g.,JamesRobinson,ed.The Nag Hammadi Libraryin English,4thed.(NewYork/Leiden:E.J.Brill,1996). 4Forexample,BartD.Ehrman, After the NewTestament: A Reader in EarlyChristianity(NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress,1999).5Mostaccessibly,J.K.Elliott,The Apocryphal NewTestament: ACollectionof ApocryphalChristian Literaturein EnglishTranslation(Oxford:ClarendonPress,1993),andyetmorecomprehensively,WilhelmSchneemelcher,ed. NewTestament Apocrypha,2vols.,tr.R.McL.Wilson(Louisville,KY:
Westminster/JohnKnox,1991).
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5GENERAL INTRODUCTION
purposeof thepresentcollectionistoprovidethenon-scholarwitheasyac
cesstotheseancientChristiandocumentsthatweresometimesregardedas
sacredauthoritiesforChristianfaithandpractice.Ihaveorganizedthecol
lection
in
traditional
rubrics,
based
for
the
most
part
on
the
genres
that
even
tually came to comprise the New Testament:Gospels,Acts,Epistles,and
Apocalypses(includinginthefinaltwocategoriesrelatedkindsof writings).
I have also included several “canonical lists” from the early centuries of
Christianity—thatis,listsof booksthatwerethoughtbytheirauthorstobe
the canon. This final category shows how even within “orthodox” circles
therewasconsiderabledebateconcerningwhichbookstoinclude.
Altogetherthereareforty-sevendifferenttextshere,eachprovidedwith
a
concise
introduction.
Most
of
the
texts
are
given
in
their
entirety.
For
some of the very long ones, I have given sufficiently lengthy extracts to
provideasenseof whatthebookswerelike.Eachisinamodernandhighly
readableEnglishtranslation.Nineteenof thetranslationsaremyown.
InconclusionIwouldliketothank thosewhohavemadethisvolume
apossibility:mywife,SarahBeckwith,whoseinsatiablecuriosityandvast
knowledgemakeher,amongotherthings,anextraordinarydialoguepartner;
mygraduatestudentattheUniversityof NorthCarolinaatChapelHill,Carl
Cosaert,whosediligenceasaresearchassistantissans pareil;DarrylGless,
my
unusually
supportive
Senior
Associate
Dean,
and
the
entire
dean’s
officeatUNC-ChapelHill,whoprovidedmewithamuchneededacademicleave
frommy dutiesaschair in theDepartmentof ReligiousStudies,allowing
me to complete the project; and especially my editor Robert Miller,who
convincedmetoproducethebook andoncemorewentaboveandbeyond
thecallof editorialdutyinhelpingmebringittocompletion.
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NON-CANONICAL
GOSPELS
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8 NON-CANONICAL ACTSOF THE APOSTLES
Introduction
There
were
many
Gospels
available
to
early
Christians—not
just
the
Matthew,Mark,Luke,andJohnfamiliartoreadersof theNewTestamenttoday.
Even though most of these other Gospels have become lost from public
view,somewerehighly influentialwithinorthodoxcirclesthroughoutthe
Middle Ages. These would include, for example, the intriguing Infancy
Gospel of Thomas, which tells of the miraculous and often mischievous
deedsof Jesusasayoungboybetweentheagesof fiveandtwelve,andthe
so-called Proto-Gospelof James,which recordsevents leadingup to (and
including) Jesus’birth by recounting the miraculous birth, early life, and
betrothal
of
his
mother,
the
Virgin
Mary—an
account
highly
influential
onpictorialartinsubsequentcenturies.
Othersof theseGospelsplayedasignificantroleinonecommunityor
anotherinantiquity,butcametobelost—knowntousonlybynameuntil
modern times,whenuncoveredbyprofessionalarchaeologistslookingfor
themorbyaccident.Of these,somehavebeenuncoveredintheirentirety,
asisthecaseof theCopticGospelof Thomas,acollectionof 114sayings
of Jesus,someevidentlyrepresentingactualteachingsof thehistoricalJesus,
but others conveying “gnostic” understandings of Jesus’ message. Other
Gospels
have
been
recovered
only
in
fragments,
including
the
famousGospelallegedlywrittenbyPeter,Jesus’apostle,which,amongotherthings,
recordstheactualeventsof theresurrection,inwhichJesusisseenemerging
fromhistomb,tallasagiant.Yetothersareknownonlyastheyarebriefly
quoted by church fathers who cite them in order to malign their views,
including several Gospels used by various groups of Jewish Christians in
theearlycenturiesof thechurch.
I have included fifteen of our earliest non-canonical Gospels in the
collectionhere.Theyareof varyingtheologicalpersuasion:someappearto
be
perfectly
“orthodox”
in
their
views
(e.g.,
Egerton
Papyrus
2);
others
representaformof JewishChristianitythatlatercametobecondemnedas
heretical(e.g.,theGospelof theNazareans);yetothersappeartohavebeen
written by early Christian “Gnostics”1 (e.g., the Gospel of Philip). These
textsarenotcompletelyrepresentativeof thevariousformsof earlyChris
tian belief about Jesus’words,deeds, and activities;butsince theyderive
fromawiderangeof timeandplacefromwithinthefirstthreecenturiesof
early Christianity, they give some sense of the rich diversity of Christian
viewsfromthisearlyperiodof thechurch.
1Fortheviewsof Gnostics,seeEhrman, Lost Christianities,113–34.
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The
Gospel
of
the
Nazareans
Jewish
Christians
in
the
early
centuries
of
the
church
were
widely
thought
tohavepreferred theGospelof Matthewtoallothers,sinceitisMatthew
thatstresses the importanceof keeping theJewishLawdown toevery jot
andtittle(5:17–20)andthatemphasizes,morethananyother,theJewishness
of Jesus.1 According toanumberof ancientsources,onegroupof Jewish
Christians,sometimesknownastheNazareans,producedtheirownversion
of Matthew, translated into Aramaic, the language of Jesus and of Jews
livinginPalestine.2 Thisversionwouldhavebeenproducedsometimenear
the
end
of
the
first
century
or
the
beginning
of
the
second.
Eventually this “Gospel of the Nazareans” fell intodisfavorwith the
Christiancommunityatlarge,bothbecausefewChristiansinlatercenturies
couldreadAramaicandbecausetheGospel’sJewishemphaseswerecon
sideredsuspicious.Asaresult,theGospelcametobelost.Nowweknow
of itonlythroughquotationsof itstextbychurchfatherslikeJerome,and
byreferencestoitinthemarginsof severalGreek manuscriptsof theGospel
accordingtoMatthew.
These quotations reveal clearly the Jewish-Christian concerns of the
Gospel
and
show
that
the
Gospel
contained
stories
of
Jesus’
baptism,
publicministry,death,andresurrection.Itevidentlydidnotinclude,however,the
firsttwochaptersof Matthew’sGospel,whichrecordtheeventssurrounding
Jesus’miraculousbirth.ForaccordingtomanyJewishChristians,Jesuswas
not born of a virgin, but was a natural human being who was specially
chosentobethemessiahbecauseGodconsideredhimtobemorerighteous
thananyoneelse.
Todayscholarsdebatewhetherthechurchfatherswererightinthinking
that the Gospel of the Nazareans was an Aramaic version of Matthew; it
may
have
instead
been
an
original
composition,
in
Aramaic,
based
on
oral
traditions about Jesus that were in wide circulation and available both to
thisauthorandtheauthorof Matthew.
1SeeBartD.Ehrman,The NewTestament: A Historical Introductiontothe EarlyChristianWritings,
3rded.(NewYork:Oxford,2003),chap.7. 2SeeEhrman, Lost Christianities,99–103.
TranslationbyBartD.Ehrman,basedontheGreek,Latin,andSyriactextsinA.F.J.
Klijn, Jewish-ChristianGospelTradition(VCSupp17;Leiden:E.J.Brill,1992)47–115.
9
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10
1
NON-CANONICAL GOSPELS
Thefollowingarethefragmentsof theGospelquotedinoursurviving
sources.
ItiswritteninacertainGospelthat
is called “according to the He
brews”(if inanyeventanyoneisinclined
to accept it, not as an authority, but to
shedsomelightonthequestionwehave
posed) that another rich man asked [Je
sus],“Master,whatgoodthingmustIdo
to
have
life?”
He
replied
to
him,
“O
man,youshouldkeep the lawand theproph
ets.”Heresponded,“Ihavealreadydone
that.”Jesussaidtohim,“Go,sellallthat
you have and distribute the proceeds to
thepoor;thencome,followme.”
Buttherichmanbegantoscratchhis
head, for he was not pleased. And the
Lord said to him,“Howcan you say, ‘I
have
kept
the
law
and
the
prophets?’
Forit is written in the law, ‘You shall love
your neighbor as yourself.’ But look,
manyof yourbrothers,sonsof Abraham,
are clothed in excrement and dying of
hunger while your house is filled with
manygoodthings,notoneof whichgoes
forthtotheseothers.”Heturnedandsaid
tohisdiscipleSimon,sittingbesidehim,
“Simon,
son
of
Jonah,
it
is
easier
for
a
cameltopassthroughtheeyeof aneedle
thanforarichperson toenter theking
dom of heaven.” (Origen,Commentary
on Matthew,15,14)
[Cf.Matt.25:14–30]FortheGos2 pel that has come down to us inHebrew
letters
makes
the
threat
not
against the one who hid the (master’s)
moneybutagainsttheonewhoengaged
in riotous living. For [the master] had
threeslaves,onewhouseduphisfortune
with whores and flute-players, one who
invested the money and increased its
value,andonewhohidit.Thefirstwas
welcomed with open arms, the second
was
blamed,
and
only
the
third
was
locked up in prison. (Eusebius, Theo-
phania,4,22)
3 But[theLord]taughtaboutthereasonforthedivisionof thesoulsinthehouses,aswehavefoundsomewhere
intheGospelusedbytheJewsandwrit
ten in Hebrew, where he says “I will
choose
for
myself
those
who
are
good—
those given to me by my Father in
heaven.”(Eusebius,Theophania4,12)
4 In the Gospel that is called “according to the Hebrews,” for thewords, “bread to sustain our lives” I
found the word “mahar,” which means
“[bread] for tomorrow.” (Jerome,Com-
mentary
on
Matthew,
6,
11)
In the Gospel that the Nazareans5 andEbionitesuse,whichIrecentlytranslated fromHebrew intoGreek,and
whichmostpeopleconsidertheauthentic
versionof Matthew,themanwithawith
eredhand isdescribedasamason,who
sought for help in words like these: “I
was
a
mason
who
made
a
living
with
my
hands; I beseech you, Jesus, restore my
health so I do not have to beg for food
shamefully.” (Jerome, Commentary on
Matthew,12,13)
6 In the Gospel the Nazareans use,we find “son of Johoiada” insteadof “sonof Barachia.”(Jerome,Commen-
tary
on
Matthew
23,
35)
Thenameof thatone(i.e.,Barab7 bas)isinterpretedtomean“sonof their master” in the Gospel written ac
cording to the Hebrews. (Jerome,Com-
mentaryon Matthew27,16)
In the Gospel we have often re8 ferred to, we read that “the enormous
lintel
of
the
temple
was
broken
and
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11 THEGOSPEL OF THENAZAREANS
split apart.” (Jerome, Commentary on
Matthew27,51)
In
the
Gospel
according
to
the
He9
brews,whichwasactuallywritten
in the Chaldean or Syriac language but
withHebrewletters,whichtheNazareans
still use today and which is the Gospel
according to the Apostles, or, as most
believe,accordingtoMatthew—aGospel
that can also be found in the library of
Caesarea—the
following
story
is
found:
“Behold,themotherof theLordandhis
brothers were saying to him, ‘John the
Baptist isbaptizing for theremissionof
sins.Letusgoandbebaptizedbyhim.’
Butherepliedtothem,‘WhatsinhaveI
committedthatIshouldgotobebaptized
byhim?UnlesspossiblywhatI justsaid
was spoken in ignorance.’” (Jerome,
Against
the
Pelagians, 3,
2)
10 And in the same volume thefollowing is found: “[Jesus]said,‘If yourbrothersinsbyspeakinga
word against you, but then makes it up
to you, you should accept him seven
times a day.’HisdiscipleSimon said to
him, ‘Seven times in a day?’The Lord
responded,
‘Yes
indeed,
I
tell
you—evenup to seventy times seven! For even
among the prophets, after they were
anointed by the Holy Spirit, a word of
sin was found.’” (Jerome, Against the
Pelagians, 3, 2)
VariantReadingsNotedinNew
Testament
Manuscripts
11
• OnMatthew4:5.TheJewish
Gospel does not have, “into
the holy city,” but “in Jeru
salem.”(MS566)
• On Matthew 5:22. The words
“withoutcause”arenotpresentin
some copies, nor in the Jewish
Gospel.
(MS
1424)
• OnMatthew7:5.Inthisplacethe
JewishGospelreads:“Evenif you
arerestingonmybreastbutdonot
do
the
will
of
my
Father
in
heaven,
I will cast you away from my
breast.”(MS1424)
• On Matthew 10:16. The Jewish
Gospelsays,“morethanserpents.”
(MS1424)
• On Matthew 11:12. The Jewish
Gospel reads, “plunders.” (MS
1424)
• On Matthew 11:25. The Jewish
Gospelsays,“Igiveyou thanks.”
(MS1424)
• On Matthew 12:40. The Jewish
Gospeldoesnotread,“Threedays
andthreenights.”(MS899)
• On Matthew 15:5. The Jewish
Gospel says, “That which you
would
have
had
as
a
benefit
fromusisnowanoffering[totheTem
ple?].”(MS1424)
• OnMatthew16:2–3.Thepassages
markedwithanasterisk arenotset
forth in other copies, nor in the
JewishGospel.(MS1424)
• On Matthew 16:17. The Jewish
Gospel says, “son of John.” (MS
566)
• On Matthew 18:22. After the
words “seventy times seven” the
Jewish Gospel reads: “For even
among the prophets, after they
wereanointedbytheHolySpirit,
a word of sin was found.” (MSS
566,899)
• On Matthew 26:74. The Jewish
Gospel
says,
“And
he
made
a
denial, and swore, and cursed.”
(MSS4,273,899,1414)
• On Matthew 27:65. The Jewish
Gospel says, “And he gave them
armedmentositoppositethecave,
to keep watch over it day and
night.”(MS1424)
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The
Gospel
of
theEbionites
TheEbioniteswereagroupof JewishChristianslocatedindifferentregions
of theMediterraneanfromatleastthesecondtothefourthcenturies.1 What
distinguishedthisgroupof Christiansfrommanyotherswastheirattempt
to combine Jewish views and lifestyles with the belief that Jesus was the
messiah.Inparticular,theyweresaidtohaveemphasizedbelief inonlyone
God to such an extent that they denied, as a consequence, Jesus’ own
divinity.
At
the
same
time,
the
Ebionites
differed
from
non-Christian
Jews
inassertingthatJesuswasthesacrificeforthesinsof theworldandthatall
other sacrifices had therefore become meaningless. Among other things,
this belief led them to embrace a vegetarian diet, since most meat was
procured, in the ancient world, through the religious act of sacrificingan
animal.
Oneof thesacredbookstheseJewishChristiansappealedtoinsupport
of their views was known in antiquity as the Gospel of the Ebionites.
Regrettably,
the
book
as
whole
has
been
lost;
but
we
are
fortunate
to
have
somequotationsof it in thewritingsof anopponentof theEbionites,the
fourth-centuryheresy-hunter,Epiphaniusof Salamis.Thesequotationsgive
us a good idea of what the entire Gospel must have looked like. It was
written in Greek, and represented a kind of harmony of the Gospels of
Matthew,Mark,andLuke.Thiscanbeseenmostclearlyintheaccountof
thevoiceatJesus’baptism.Inthethreecanonicalaccounts,thevoicesays
slightlydifferentthings.Thesedifferencesareharmonized,however,inthe
Gospel according to the Ebionites, where the voice comes from heaven
three
times,
saying
something
slightly
different
on
each
occasion,
correspondingtothewordsfoundineachof thethreeearlierGospels.
Some of the Ebionites’ distinctive concerns are embodied in their
1SeeEhrman, Lost Christianities,chap.6.
TranslationbyBartD.EhrmanbasedontheGreek textfoundinEgbertSchlarband
DieterLührmann,Fragmenteapocryphgewordener Evangelieningriechischer und
lateinischer Sprache(Marburg:N.G.Elwert,2000)35–39.
12
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13 THEGOSPEL OF THEEBIONITES
Gospel.Thisisshown,forexample,inthereferencetothedietof Johnthe
Baptist,inwhichthecanonicalstatementthatheatelocusts(i.e.,meat)and
wild honeywasmodified by thechange of simplyone letter,so thatnow
the
Baptist,
in
anticipation
of
the
Ebionites
themselves,
maintains
a
vege
tariancuisine:hereheissaidtohaveeatenpancakesandwildhoney.
It is difficult to assign a date to this Gospel, but since it betrays a
knowledgeof Matthew,Mark,andLuke,andpresupposesathrivingcom
munityof JewishChristians, it isperhapsbest to locate itsometimeearly
in the second century. The following extracts are all that remain of the
Gospel, drawn from Epiphanius’s work, the Panarion (�The Medicine
Chest ),Book 30.
1 The beginning of the Gospel theyuse reads as follows: “And so inthe days of Herod, King of Judea, John
came baptizing a baptism of repentance
intheJordanRiver.Hewassaidtohave
come
from
the
tribe
of
Aaron,
the
priest,andwasthechildof ZachariasandEliz
abeth. And everyone went out to him.”
(Epiphanius,Panarion,30,13,6)
For by chopping off the genealo2 gies of Matthew they make theirGospelbeginasweindicatedbefore,with
thewords:“Andsointhedaysof Herod,
King
of
Judea,
when
Caiaphas
was
highpriest, a certain one named John came
baptizingabaptismof repentanceinthe
JordanRiver.”(Epiphanius,Panarion,30,
14,3)
3 And so John was baptizing, andPharisees came to him and werebaptized, as was all of Jerusalem. John
wore
a
garment
of
camel
hair
and
a
leatherbeltaroundhiswaist;andhisfood
was wild honey that tasted like manna,
like a cake cooked in oil. (Epiphanius,
Panarion,30,13,4–5)
Andafteragooddealmore,itsays:4 “When the people were baptized,Jesus also came and was baptized by
John.Whenhecameupoutof thewater,
theheavensopenedandhesawtheHoly
Spiritintheformof adove,descending
andenteringhim.Andavoicecamefrom
heaven,‘YouaremybelovedSon,inyou
I
am
well
pleased.’
Then
it
said,
‘TodayI have given you birth.’ Immediately a
great light enlightened the place. When
John saw this,” it says,“he said tohim,
‘Who are you Lord?’Yet again a voice
came from heaven to him, ‘This is my
beloved Son, with whom I am well
pleased.’ And then,” it says, “John fell
beforehimandsaid,‘Ibegyou,Lord—
you
baptize
me!’
But
Jesus
restrained
himbysaying,‘Letitbe,foritisfittingthat
allthingsbefulfilledinthisway.’”(Epi
phanius,Panarion,30,13,3–4)
5 In the Gospel that they call “according to Matthew”—which isnot at all complete, but is falsified and
mutilated—whichtheyrefertoastheHe
brew
Gospel,
the
following
is
found:
“Andsotherewasacertainmannamed
Jesus,whowasaboutthirtyyearsold.He
istheonewhochoseus.Whenhecame
to Capernaum he entered the house of
Simon,alsocalledPeter,andheopened
his mouth to say, ‘As I was passing by
the lake of Tiberias I chose John and
James,thesonsof Zebedee,andSimon,
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14
Andrew, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot,
andJudasIscariot;andIcalledyou,Mat
thew, while you were sitting at the tax
collector’s
booth,
and
you
followed
me.
I want you, therefore, to be the twelve
apostlesasawitnesstoIsrael.”(Epiphan
ius,Panarion,30,13,2–3)
Againtheydenythathewasaman,6 evenbasingtheirviewonthewordtheSaviorspokewhenitwasreportedto
him,
“See,
your
mother
and
brothers
are
standing outside.” “Who,” he asked, “is
mymotherandbrothers?”Stretchingout
hishandtohisdiscipleshesaid,“These
aremybrothersandmotherandsisters—
those who do the will of my Father.”
(Epiphanius,Panarion,30,14,5)
Theydonotallegethathewasborn
7
from
God
the
Father,
but
that
he
NON-CANONICAL GOSPELS
wascreatedasoneof thearchangels,yet
wasmadegreaterthanthey,sinceherules
over the angels and all things made by
the
Almighty.
And,
as
found
in
their
Gos
pel, they say that when he came he
taught,“Ihavecome todestroythesac
rifices. And if you do not stop making
sacrifice, God’s wrath will not stop af
flictingyou.”(Epiphanius,Panarion,30,
16,4–5)
They
have
changed
the
saying
and
8
abandoned its truesequence,asis
cleartoeveryonewhoconsidersthecom
binationof thewords.Fortheyhavethe
disciplessay,“Wheredoyouwantusto
makepreparationsforyoutoeatthePass
over lamb?” And they indicate that he
responded, “I have no desire to eat the
meat of this Passover lamb with you.”
(Epiphanius,
Panarion,
30,
22,
4)
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The
Gospel
According
totheHebrews
The Gospel according to the Hebrews is quoted by a number of church
fathers connected with the city of Alexandria, Egypt—Clement, Origen,
DidymustheBlind,andJerome(whostudiedwithDidymusinAlexandria);
forthisreason,scholarsassumethatitwasused,andpossiblywritten,there,
probablyduring thefirsthalf of thesecondcentury.Regrettably,thebook
nolongersurvivesintact,butonlyinthescatteredreferencestoitinthese
other
authors’
writings.
Its
name
probably
derives
from
the
circumstance
thatitwasusedprincipallybyJewish-Christiansinthatlargeandthriving
metropolis—i.e.,itwascalledthisbyoutsidersof thatcommunity,notby
thosewhoactuallyusedit.
TheGospelaccordingtotheHebrewswaswritteninGreek andnarrated
importanteventsof Jesus’life, includinghisbaptism,temptation,andres
urrection.Itappears,however,thatthesestorieswerenotsimplytakenover
and modified from the Gospels that came to be included in the New
Testament.Theywereinsteadalternativeformsof thesetraditionsthathad
been
passed
along
orally
until
the
unknown
author
of
this
Gospel
heard
themandwrotethemdown.
The Jewish emphases of the Gospel are evident in a several of the
survivingquotations,suchasfragment5,whichpresupposestheimportance
of James,thebrotherof Jesus,theheadof theJewish-Christiancommunity
inJerusalemafterJesus’death.Yetsomeof thesayingsof theGospelhave
a Gnostic tone to them (see fragment 1, which is quite similar to Coptic
Gospelof Thomas2).1 Itmaybe,then,thatthisparticularJewish-Christian
community
was
more
sympathetic
than
others
to
the
prominent
Gnostic
teachers in Alexandria in the second century. In any event, the Gospel
evidentlycontainedanumberof Jesus’ethical teachings(fragments4and
7). And some of its accounts were highly legendary—including thepost
1OnGnosticism,seeEhrman, Lost Christianities,113–34.
TranslationbyBartD.Ehrman,basedontheGreek,Latin,andSyriactextsinA.F.J.
Klijin, Jewish-ChristianGospelTradition(VCSupp17;Leiden:E.J.Brill,1992)47–115.
15
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16
1
NON-CANONICAL GOSPELS
resurrectionappearanceof JesustoJames,whohadswornattheLastSupper
(inastoryfoundinthisGospel,butnotcitedbyanyotherauthority)notto
eatuntilheshouldseeJesusraisedfromthedead(fragment5).
The
following
are
the
quotations
of
the
Gospel
that
survive
in
our
ancientsources.
AsitisalsowrittenintheGospel
according to the Hebrews, “The
one
who
is
amazed
will
rule,
and
the
one
who rules will find rest.” (Clement of
Alexandria, Miscellanies,2,9,45)
If anyone accepts the Gospel ac2 cording to the Hebrews, there theSavior himself says, “Just now my
mother,theHolySpirit,took mebyone
of my hairs and carried me up to the
great
mountain,
Tabor.”
(Origen,
Com-mentaryon John,2,12)
It may appear that Matthew is3 namedLeviintheGospelof Luke.But in fact that isnotso; it isMatthias,
the one who replaced Judas, who is the
sameasLevi,knownbytwonames.This
isfoundintheGospelaccordingtheHe
brews.
(Didymus
the
Blind,
Commentary
onthePsalms,184,9–10)
AswereadintheHebrewGospel,4 theLordsaidtohisdisciples:“Youshould never rejoice except when you
look uponyourbrotherinlove.”(Jerome,
Commentaryon Ephesians,5:4)
TheGospelthatiscalled“accord5
ingtotheHebrews,”whichIhave
recently translated into both Greek and
Latin, a Gospel that Origen frequently
used,recordsthefollowingaftertheSav-
ior’s resurrection: “But when the Lord
had given the linen cloth to the servant
of the priest, he went and appeared to
James.ForJameshadtakenavownotto
eatbreadfromthetimehedrank thecup
of
the
Lord
until
he
should
see
him
raised
fromamongthosewhosleep.”Andsoon
afterthisitsays,“TheLordsaid,‘Bring
atableandbread.’”Andimmediatelyit
continues, “He took the bread and
blessed it,broke it,gave it toJames the
Just, and said to him, ‘My brother, eat
yourbread.FortheSonof Manisrisen
fromamongthosewhosleep.’”(Jerome,
Illustrious
Men, 2)
ItisstatedintheGospelwrittenin6 Hebrew,whichtheNazareansread:“The entire fountain of the Holy Spirit
willdescendonhim.FortheLordisthe
Spirit, and where the Spirit of theLord
is, there is liberty.”Later in thatGospel
thatwehavementionedwefindthefol
lowing
written:
“It
came
to
pass
that
when theLordcameupfromthewater,
theentirefountainof theHolySpiritde
scendedandrestedonhim;anditsaidto
him,‘MySon,inalltheprophetsIhave
beenexpectingyoutocome,thatImight
restonyou.Foryouaremyrest,youare
my firstborn Son, who rules forever.’”
(Jerome,Commentaryon Isaiah11:1–3)
AndintheGospelaccordingtothe7 Hebrews,whichtheNazareansareaccustomedtoread,thefollowingisde
scribedasamongtheworstoffenses:that
someone should make the spirit of his
brother sad. (Jerome, Commentary on
Ezekiel,18:7)
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The
Gospel
of
theEgyptians
TheGospelof theEgyptiansisanotherGospelthathasbeenlostsincethe
early centuries of Christianity. The only access we have to it is in the
quotations of an early church father, the late second-century Clement of
Alexandria,whoatonepointidentifiesoneof hisnon-canonicalquotations
of thewordsof Jesusashavingcomefromthisbook (fragment5).Mostof
Clement’squotationsof theGospelinvolveconversationsbetweenJesusand
a
woman
named
Salome,
mentioned
in
the
New
Testament
as
one
of
thewomenwhodiscoveredJesus’emptytomb(Mark 15:40;16:1).
EventuallySalomebecameaprominentfigureinsomecirclesof Chris
tianity,includingthosethatproducedthisGospelaccordingtotheEgyptians,
whereherquestionsandcommentsleadtoimportantsayingsof Jesus.These
sayings embody ascetic concerns, in which the desires of the flesh and
sexual activity are condemned as being opposed to the will of God. In
particular, the Gospelappearsoriginally to have condemned thepractices
of marriage and procreation. In a number of instances Clement himself
interprets
these
sayings;
it
is
sometimes
difficult
to
know,
however,
whetherClement’s interpretations represent the views of the Gospel’s anonymous
author,orareinsteadClement’sownattemptstomakesenseof theGospel
inlightof hisownviews.
Atleastoneof thesayingsstressesaGnosticnotionthattherevelation
of Godwillbecompletewhenpeopletrampleon the“shamefulgarment”
(� thehumanbody?)andall thingsarerestored to theirultimateunity—
includingmaleandfemale,whichwillnolongerbedifferentiatedbutmade
one (fragment 5). Similar notions can be found in the Coptic Gospel of
Thomas,
also
used
in
Egypt
(see
Gospel
of
Thomas
22,
37,
114).
SomescholarsmaintainthattheGospelwasnamed“accordingtothe
Egyptians”todifferentiateitfromanotherGospelusedinEgypt,theGospel
“accordingtotheHebrews”—thelatterinuseamongJewish-Christiansand
theformer,therefore,amongGentileChristians.Othersfinditmorelikely
TranslationbyBartD.EhrmanbasedontheGreek textfoundinEgbertSchlarband
DieterLührmann,Fragmenteapocryphgewordener Evangelieningriechischer und
lateinischer Sprache(Marburg:N.G.Elwert,2000)29–31.
17
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18
2
NON-CANONICAL GOSPELS
thatthebook wasfirstgiven itsnamebythoselivingoutsideof Egypt,to
identifyitasabook incommonusethere.
Since the Gospel is well-known to Clement and, evidently, his com
munity,
it
may
have
been
composed
already
by
the
first
part
of
the
second
century.
When Salome asked, “How long1 will death prevail?” the Lord replied,
“For
as
long
as
you
women
bear
children.”Buthedidnotsaythisbecause
lifeisevilorcreationwicked;insteadhe
was teaching the natural succession of
things; for everything degenerates after
comingintobeing.(Clementof Alexan
dria, Miscellanies,3,45,3)
ThosewhoopposeGod’screation
because
of
self-control—which
at
leastsoundsgood—quotethewordsspo
kentoSalome,thefirstof whichwehave
alreadymentioned,found,Ithink,inthe
Gospel according to the Egyptians. For
they claim that the Savior himself said,
“Ihavecometodestroytheworksof the
female.”By“thefemale”hemeantdesire
and by “works” he meant birth and de
generation.
(Clement
of
Alexandria,
Mis-cellanies,3,63,1)
WhentheWordmadeareasonable3 disclosureconcerningtheconsummationof allthings,Salomeasked,“How
long will peoplecontinue to die?”Now
Scripture refers to people in two ways,
as
having
a
visible
part
and
the
soul,
that
is,thepartthatissavedandthepartthat
isnot.Andsiniscalledthedeathof the
soul. For this reason, the Lord replied
shrewdly, “For as long as women bear
children”—that is to say, for as long as
desirescontinuetobeactive.(Clementof
Alexandria, Miscellanies,3,64,1)
Whydothosewhoadheretoevery4
thingexceptthegospelruleof truth
not cite the following words spoken to
Salome?Forwhenshesaid,“ThenIhave
donewellnottobearchildren”(suppos
ingthatitwasnotsuitabletogivebirth),
theLordresponded,“Eateveryherb,but
not the one that is bitter.” (Clement of
Alexandria,
Miscellanies,
3,
66,
1–2)
5 ThisiswhyCassianindicatesthatwhen Salome asked when thethings she had asked about would be
come known, the Lord replied: “When
youtrampleontheshamefulgarmentand
when the twobecomeoneand themale
with the female is neither male nor fe
male.”
The
first
thing
to
note,
then,
is
that
we do not find this saying in the four
Gospels handed down to us, but in the
Gospel according to the Egyptians.
(Clementof Alexandria, Miscellanies, 3,
92,2–93,1)
And when the Savior said to Sa
6
lome,
“Death
will
last
as
long
as
womengivebirth,”hewasnotdenigrat
ingbirth—sinceitis,afterall,necessary
for the salvation of those who believe.
(Clement of Alexandria, Excerpts from
Theodotus67,2)
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The
Coptic
Gospel
of Thomas
TheCopticGospelof Thomaswasoneof themostsensationalarchaeolog
ical discoveries of the twentieth century.1 The document was unknown
exceptbynamebefore1945,whenpeasantsdiggingforfertilizernearthe
village of Nag Hammadi, Egypt accidentally uncovered a jar containing
thirteenleather-boundmanuscriptsburiedsometimeinthelatefourthcen
tury.When themanuscriptscame to theattentionof scholarsof antiquity,
their
significance
was
almost
immediately
recognized:
they
contained
fifty-
two tractates, principally of “heretical” writings of Gnostic Christians.2
AlthoughoriginallycomposedinGreek,thewritingswereinCoptic(ancient
Egyptian) translation. Many of them had been previously known by title
only.Todaythesewritingsareknownasthe“NagHammadiLibrary.”3
None of the fifty-two tractates has attracted more attention than the
Gospelof Thomas.Forthisisacollectionof Jesus’sayingsthatclaimsto
have been written by Didymus Judas Thomas. According to some early
Christianlegends,ThomaswasJesus’twinbrother.
The
book
records
114
“secret
teachings”
of
Jesus.
It
includes
no
other
material: no miracles, no passion narrative, no stories of any kind.What
ultimately mattered for the author of Thomas was not Jesus’ death and
resurrection, which he does not narrate or discuss, but the mysterious
teachingsthathedelivered.Indeed,theGospelbeginsbystatingthatanyone
who learns the interpretation of these words will have eternal life (say
ing1).
Manyof thesayingswillsoundfamiliartoreadersalreadyconversant
with
the
Gospels
of
Matthew,
Mark,
and
Luke.
For
example,
here
one
finds,
in slightly different wording, the warning against the “blind leading the
1Forafulldiscussion,seeEhrman, Lost Christianities,44–66. 2Onwhatsuch“Gnostics”believed,
seeEhrman, Lost Christianities,122–25. 3Fulltranslationsof allthewritings,withincisiveintroductions,canbefoundinJamesRobinson,The Nag Hammadi Libraryin English,4threv.ed.
(Leiden:E.J.Brill,1996).
TranslationbyThomasO.LambdininJamesRobinson,The Nag Hammadi Libraryin
English,3rded.(Leiden:E.J.Brill,1988)126–38;usedwithpermission.
19
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20 NON-CANONICAL GOSPELS
blind” and the parables of the sower and of the mustard seed (sayings9,
20,34).Othersayings,however,arequitedifferentandappeartopresuppose
aGnosticpointof view,inwhichpeopleareunderstoodtobespiritswho
have
fallen
from
the
divine
realm
and
become
entrapped
in
matter
(i.e.,
in
theprisonsof theirmaterialbodies).Salvation,accordingtothisperspective,
comes to those who learn the truth of their plight and so are enabled to
escape this impoverished material existence by acquiring the knowledge
necessary forsalvation (e.g.,sayings11, 22, 29, 37, and 80).Jesus is the
onewhoconveysthisknowledge.
Some scholars have maintained that the sayings of Thomas may be
closertowhatJesusactuallytaughtthanwhatwefindintheNewTestament;
others,
however,
have
pointed
out
that
the
theology
implicit
in
the
more
Gnostic teachingscannotbe dated with confidenceprior to the beginning
of thesecondcentury.Thus,whilesomeof thesesayingsmaybequiteold—
may,infact,goback toJesushimself—thedocumentasawholeprobably
came to be written sometime after the New Testament Gospels(although
perhapsindependentlyof them),possiblyintheearlysecondcentury.
Thesearethesecretsayingswhichthe days old about the place of life, and he
living Jesus spoke and which Didymos will live. For many who are first will
JudasThomaswrotedown. become last, and they will become one
1Andhesaid,“Whoeverfindsthein- andthesame.”
terpretationof thesesayingswillnotex- 5Jesus said, “Recognize what is in
periencedeath.” your(sg.)sight,andthatwhichishidden
2Jesussaid,“Lethimwhoseekscon- fromyou(sg.)willbecomeplaintoyou
tinue seeking until he finds. When he (sg.).For there isnothinghiddenwhich
finds,
he
will
become
troubled.
When
he
will
not
become
manifest.”becomestroubled,hewillbeastonished, 6His disciples questioned him and
andhewillruleovertheall.” said to him, “Do you want us to fast?
3Jesus said, “If those who lead you Howshallwepray?Shallwegivealms?
say to you, ‘See, the kingdom is in the Whatdietshallweobserve?”
sky,’thenthebirdsof theskywillprecede Jesussaid,“Donottelllies,anddonot
you.If theysaytoyou,‘Itisinthesea,’ dowhatyouhate,forallthingsareplain
thenthefishwillprecedeyou.Rather,the inthesightof heaven.Fornothinghidden
kingdomisinsideof you,anditisoutside will not become manifest, and nothing
of
you.
When
you
come
to
know
your- covered
will
remain
without
being
selves,thenyouwillbecomeknown,and uncovered.”
youwillrealizethatitisyouwhoarethe 7Jesussaid,“Blessedisthelionwhich
sonsof thelivingfather.Butif youwill becomes man when consumed by man;
notknowyourselvesyoudwellinpoverty and cursed is the man whom the lion
anditisyouwhoarethatpoverty.” consumes,andthelionbecomesman.”
4Jesussaid,“Themanoldindayswill 8Andhesaid,“Themanislikeawise
not hesitate to ask a small child seven fisherman who cast his net into the sea
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21 THECOPTICGOSPEL OF THOMAS
anddrewitupfromtheseafullof small
fish. Among them the wise fisherman
foundafine large fish.He threwall the
small
fish
back
into
the
sea
and
chose
the
largefishwithoutdifficulty.Whoeverhas
earstohear,lethimhear.”
9Jesussaid,“Nowthesowerwentout,
took a handful (of seeds), and scattered
them. Some fell on the road; the birds
came and gathered them up. Others fell
onrock,didnottakerootinthesoil,and
did
not
produce
ears.
And
others
fell
on
thorns; they choked the seed(s) and
worms ate them. And others fell on the
good soil and it produced good fruit: it
bore sixty per measure and a hundred
andtwentypermeasure.”
10Jesussaid,“Ihavecastfireuponthe
world, and see, I amguarding ituntil it
blazes.”
11
Jesus
said,
“This
heaven
will
passaway,andtheoneaboveitwillpassaway.
Thedeadarenotalive,andthelivingwill
notdie.Inthedayswhenyouconsumed
whatisdead,youmade itwhatisalive.
When you come to dwell in the light,
whatwillyoudo?Onthedaywhenyou
wereoneyoubecametwo.Butwhenyou
becometwo,whatwillyoudo?”
12
The
disciples
said
to
Jesus,
“Weknowthatyouwilldepartfromus.Who
istobeourleader?”
Jesussaidtothem“Whereveryouare,
youaretogotoJamestherighteous,for
whose sake heaven and earth came into
being.”
13Jesus said to his disciples, “Com
paremetosomeoneandtellmewhomI
am
like.”
SimonPetersaidtohim,“Youarelike
arighteousangel.”
Matthewsaid tohim,“Youare likea
wisephilosopher.”
Thomas said to him, “Master, my
mouth is wholly incapable of saying
whomyouarelike.”
Jesussaid,“Iamnotyour(sg.)master.
Becauseyou(sg.)havedrunk,you(sg.)
have become intoxicated from the bub
bling
spring
which
I
have
measured
out.”
And he took him and withdrew and
toldhimthreethings.WhenThomasre
turned to his companions, they asked
him,“WhatdidJesussaytoyou?”
Thomassaidtothem,“If Itellyouone
of thethingswhichhetoldme,youwill
pick upstonesand throw thematme;a
fire
will
come
out
of
the
stones
and
burn
youup.”
14Jesussaidtothem,“If youfast,you
will give rise to sin for yourselves; and
if youpray,youwillbecondemned;and
if you give alms, you will do harm to
yourspirits.Whenyougointoanyland
and walk about in the districts, if they
receiveyou,eatwhattheywillsetbefore
you,
and
heal
the
sick
among
them.
Forwhatgoesintoyourmouthwillnotdefile
you, but that which issues from your
mouth—itisthatwhichwilldefileyou.”
15Jesussaid,“Whenyouseeonewho
wasnotborn of woman,prostrateyour
selves on your faces and worship him.
Thatoneisyourfather.”
16Jesus said, “Men think, perhaps,
that
it
is
peace
which
I
have
come
to
castupon the world. They do not know that
itisdissensionwhichIhavecometocast
upontheearth:fire,sword,andwar.For
there will be five in a house: three will
beagainsttwo,andtwoagainstthree,the
fatheragainsttheson,andthesonagainst
thefather.Andtheywillstandsolitary.”
17Jesus said, “I shall give you what
no
eye
has
seen
and
what
no
ear
has
heard
andwhatnohandhastouchedandwhat
hasneveroccurredtothehumanmind.”
18ThedisciplessaidtoJesus.“Tellus
howourendwillbe.”Jesussaid,“Have
youdiscovered,then,thebeginning,that
youlook fortheend?Forwherethebe
ginningis,therewilltheendbe.Blessed
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22
is he who will take his place in the be
ginning; he will know the end and will
notexperiencedeath.”
19Jesus
said,
“Blessed
is
he
who
came
intobeingbeforehecameintobeing.If
you become my disciples and listen to
my words, these stones will minister to
you. For there are five trees for you in
Paradisewhichremainundisturbedsum
merandwinterandwhoseleavesdonot
fall. Whoever becomes acquainted with
them
will
not
experience
death.”
20ThedisciplessaidtoJesus,“Tellus
whatthekingdomof heavenislike.”
Hesaid to them,“It islikeamustard
seed. It is the smallest of all seeds. But
when itfallson tilledsoil,itproducesa
great plant and becomes a shelter for
birdsof thesky.”
21Mary said to Jesus, “Whom are
your
disciples
like?”
He
said,
“They
arelikechildrenwho havesettled inafield
whichisnottheirs.Whentheownersof
thefieldcome,theywillsay,‘Letushave
back our field.’ They (will) undress in
their presence in order to let them have
back their field and to give it back to
them.Therefore Isay, if theownerof a
houseknowsthatthethief iscoming,he
will
begin
his
vigil
before
he
comes
andwillnotlethimdigthroughintohishouse
of his domain to carry away his goods.
You(pl.),then,beonyourguardagainst
the world. Arm yourselves with great
strength lest the robbers find a way to
cometoyou,forthedifficultywhichyou
expectwill(surely)materialize.Letthere
be among you a man of understanding.
When
the
grain
ripened,
he
came
quickly
withhissickleinhishandandreapedit.
Whoeverhasearstohearlethimhear.”
22Jesussawinfantsbeingsuckled.He
saidtohisdisciples,“Theseinfantsbeing
suckled are like those who enter the
kingdom.”
They said to him, “Shall we then, as
children,enterthekingdom?”
NON-CANONICAL GOSPELS
Jesus said to them, “When you make
the two one, and when you make the
inside like the outside and the outside
like
the
inside,
and
the
above
like
the
below,andwhenyoumakethemaleand
thefemaleoneandthesame,sothatthe
malenotbemalenorthefemalefemale;
and when you fashion eyes in place of
an eye, and a hand in place of a hand,
andafootinplaceof afoot,andalike
nessinplaceof alikeness;thenwillyou
enter
[the
kingdom].”
23Jesussaid,“Ishallchooseyou,one
out of a thousand, and two out of ten
thousand,andtheyshallstandasasingle
one.”
24Hisdisciplessaidtohim,“Showus
theplacewhereyouare,sinceit isnec
essaryforustoseek it.”
He said to them, “Whoever has ears,
let
him
hear.
There
is
light
within
a
manof light,andhelightsupthewholeworld.
If hedoesnotshine,heisdarkness.”
25Jesussaid,“Loveyour(sg.)brother
like your soul, guard him like the pupil
of youreye.”
26Jesussaid,“You(sg.)seethemote
inyourbrother’seye,butyoudonotsee
the beam in your own eye. When you
cast
the
beam
out
of
your
own
eye,
thenyouwillseeclearlytocastthemotefrom
yourbrother’seye.”
27Jesus said, “If you do not fast
as regards the world, you will not find
the kingdom. If you do not observe the
Sabbath as a Sabbath, you will not see
thefather.”
28Jesussaid,“I took myplaceinthe
midst
of
the
world,
and
I
appeared
to
theminflesh.Ifoundallof themintoxi
cated;Ifoundnoneof themthirsty.And
mysoulbecameafflictedforthesonsof
men, because they are blind in their
hearts and do not have sight; for empty
theycameintotheworld,andemptytoo
theyseek toleavetheworld.Butforthe
momenttheyareintoxicated.Whenthey
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23 THECOPTICGOSPEL OF THOMAS
shake off their wine, then they will
repent.”
29Jesus said, “If the flesh came into
being
because
of
spirit,
it
is
a
wonder.
Butif spiritcame intobeingbecauseof
thebody, it isawonderof wonders.In
deed, I am amazed at how this great
wealth has made its home in this
poverty.”
30Jesus said, “Where there are three
gods,theyaregods.Wheretherearetwo
or
one,
I
am
with
him.”
31Jesussaid,“Noprophetisaccepted
in his own village; no physician heals
thosewhoknowhim.”
32Jesussaid,“Acitybeingbuiltona
high mountain and fortified cannot fall,
norcanitbehidden.”
33Jesussaid,“Preachfromyour(pl.)
housetopsthatwhichyou(sg.)willhear
in
your
(sg.)
ear.
For
no
one
lights
a
lampand puts it under a bushel, nor does he
putitinahiddenplace,butratherhesets
it on a lampstand so that everyone who
entersandleaveswillseeitslight.”
34Jesussaid,“If a blind man leadsa
blindman,theywillbothfallintoapit.”
35Jesus said, “It is not possible for
anyonetoenterthehouseof astrongman
and
take
it
by
force
unless
he
binds
hishands; thenhe will (beable to) ransack
hishouse.”
36Jesus said, “Do not be concerned
from morning until evening and from
evening until morning about what you
willwear.”
37Hisdisciplessaid,“Whenwillyou
becomerevealedtousandwhenshallwe
see
you?”
Jesussaid,“Whenyoudisrobewithout
being ashamed and take up your gar
ments and place them under your feet
likelittlechildrenandtreadonthem,then
[willyousee] thesonof the livingone,
andyouwillnotbeafraid.”
38Jesus said, “Many times have you
desired to hear these wordswhich I am
sayingtoyou,andyouhavenooneelse
to hear them from. There will be days
whenyouwill look formeandwillnot
find
me.”
39Jesus said, “The pharisees and the
scribeshavetakenthekeysof knowledge
(gnosis) and hidden them. They them
selves have not entered, nor have they
allowedtoenterthosewhowishto.You,
however, be as wise as serpents and as
innocentasdoves.”
40
Jesus
said,
“A
grapevine
has
been
planted outside of the father, but being
unsound,itwillbepulledupbyitsroots
anddestroyed.”
41Jesus said, “Whoever has some
thinginhishandwillreceivemore,and
whoeverhasnothingwillbedeprivedof
eventhelittlehehas.”
42Jesussaid,“Becomepassers-by.”
43
His
disciples
said
to
him,
“Who
areyou, thatyoushouldsay these thingsto
us?”
Jesus said to them, “You do not
realizewhoIamfromwhatIsaytoyou,
but you have become like the Jews, for
they (either) love the tree and hate its
fruit(or)lovethefruitandhatethetree.”
44Jesus said, “Whoever blasphemes
against
the
father
will
be
forgiven,
andwhoeverblasphemesagainstthesonwill
be forgiven, but whoever blasphemes
againsttheholyspiritwillnotbeforgiven
eitheronearthorinheaven.”
45Jesus said, “Grapes are not har
vestedfromthorns,norarefigsgathered
from thistles, for they do not produce
fruit.Agoodmanbringsforthgoodfrom
his
storehouse;
an
evil
man
brings
forth
evil things from his evil storehouse,
whichisinhisheart,andsaysevilthings.
Foroutof theabundanceof thehearthe
bringsforthevilthings.”
46Jesus said, “Among those born of
women,fromAdamuntilJohntheBap
tist, there is no one so superior to John
the Baptist that his eyes should not be
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24
lowered (before him). Yet I have said,
whicheveroneof youcomestobeachild
willbeacquaintedwiththekingdomand
will
become
superior
to
John.”
47Jesus said, “It is impossible for a
man to mount two horses or to stretch
two bows. And it is impossible for a
servant toserve twomasters;otherwise,
hewillhonortheoneandtreattheother
contemptuously.Nomandrinksoldwine
and immediately desires to drink new
wine.
And
new
wine
is
not
put
into
old
wineskins,lesttheyburst;norisoldwine
put into a new wineskin, lest it spoil it.
An old patch is not sewn into a new
garment,becauseatearwouldresult.”
48Jesussaid,“If twomakepeacewith
each other in this one house, they will
saytothemountain,‘Moveaway,’andit
willmoveaway.”
49
Jesus
said,
“Blessed
are
the
solitaryandelect,foryouwillfindthekingdom.
For you are from it, and to it you will
return.”
50Jesus said, “If they say to you,
‘Where did you come from?’, say to
them,‘Wecamefromthelight,theplace
where the light came into being on its
own accord and established [itself] and
became
manifest
through
their
image.’
If theysaytoyou,‘Isityou?’say,‘Weare
its children, and we are the elect of the
living father.’If they ask you, ‘What is
the sign of your father in you?’, say to
them,‘Itismovementandrepose.’”
51His disciples said to him, “When
will the reposeof thedeadcomeabout,
andwhenwillthenewworldcome?”
He
said
to
them,
“What
you
look
forwardtohasalreadycome,butyoudonot
recognizeit.”
52Hisdisciplessaidtohim,“Twenty
four prophetsspoke in Israel,andallof
themspokeinyou.”
He said to them, “You have omitted
theonelivinginyourpresenceandhave
spoken(only)of thedead.”
NON-CANONICAL GOSPELS
53His disciples said to him, “Is cir
cumcisionbeneficialornot?”Hesaidto
them, “If it were beneficial, their father
would
beget
them
already
circumcised
from their mother. Rather, the true cir
cumcision in spirit has become com
pletelyprofitable.”
54Jesus said, “Blessed are the poor,
foryoursisthekingdomof heaven.”
55Jesussaid,“Whoeverdoesnothate
hisfatherandhismothercannotbecome
a
disciple
to
me.
And
whoever
does
not
hatehisbrothersandsistersandtakeup
his cross in my way will not be worthy
of me.”
56Jesus said, “Whoever has come to
understandtheworldhasfound(only)a
corpse,andwhoeverhasfoundacorpse
issuperiortotheworld.”
57Jesussaid,“Thekingdomof thefa
ther
is
like
a
man
who
had
[good]
seed.His enemy came by night and sowed
weeds among the good seed. The man
didnotallowthemtopulluptheweeds;
hesaidtothem,‘Iamafraidthatyouwill
go intending to pull up the weeds and
pullup thewheatalongwith them.’For
onthedayof theharvesttheweedswill
beplainlyvisible,andtheywillbepulled
up
and
burned.”
58Jesussaid,“Blessedisthemanwho
hassufferedandfoundlife.”
59Jesussaid,“Takeheedof theliving
onewhileyouarealive,lestyoudieand
seek toseehimandbeunabletodoso.”
60TheysawaSamaritancarrying
a lamb on his way to Judea. He said to
his disciples, “That man is round about
the
lamb.”
Theysaidtohim,“Sothathemaykill
itandeatit.”
Hesaidtothem,“Whileitisalive,he
willnoteatit,butonlywhenhehaskilled
itandithasbecomeacorpse.”
They said to him, “He cannot do so
otherwise.”
Hesaidtothem,“Youtoo,look fora
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25 THECOPTICGOSPEL OF THOMAS
place for yourselves within repose, lest
youbecomeacorpseandbeeaten.”
61Jesussaid,“Twowillrestonabed:
the
one
will
die,
and
the
other
will
live.”
Salomesaid,“Whoareyou,man,that
you . . . have comeuponmycouchand
eatenfrommytable?”
Jesussaidtoher,“Iamhewhoexists
fromtheundivided.Iwasgivensomeof
thethingsof myfather.”
. . . “Iamyourdisciple.”
. . .
“Therefore
I
say,
if
he
is
destroyedhewillbefilledwithlight,butif
he is divided, he will be filled with
darkness.”
62Jesussaid,“It isto those[whoare
worthy of my] mysteries that I tell my
mysteries.Donotletyour(sg.)lefthand
know what your (sg.) right hand is
doing.”
63
Jesus
said,
“There
was
a
rich
manwho had much money. He said, ‘I shall
putmymoneytousesothatImaysow,
reap, plant, and fill my storehouse with
produce,with theresultthatIshalllack
nothing.’ Such were his intentions, but
thatsamenighthedied.Lethimwhohas
earshear.”
64Jesussaid,“Amanhadreceivedvis
itors.
And
when
he
had
prepared
the
dinner, he sent his servant to invite the
guests.Hewenttothefirstoneandsaid
tohim,‘Mymasterinvitesyou.’Hesaid,
‘I have claims against some merchants.
They are coming to me this evening. I
mustgoandgivethemmyorders.Iask
tobeexcusedfromthedinner.’Hewent
to another and said to him, ‘My master
has
invited
you.’
He
said
to
him,
‘I
have
justboughtahouseandamrequiredfor
theday.Ishallnothaveanysparetime.’
Hewenttoanotherandsaidtohim,‘My
masterinvitesyou.’Hesaidtohim,‘My
friendisgoingtogetmarried,andIam
topreparethebanquet.Ishallnotbeable
to come. I ask to be excused from the
dinner.’He went to another and said to
him,‘Mymasterinvitesyou.’Hesaidto
him,‘Ihave justboughtafarm,andIam
onmywaytocollecttherent.Ishallnot
be
able
to
come.
I
ask
to
be
excused.’
Theservantreturnedandsaidtohismas
ter,‘Thosewhomyouinvitedtothedin
nerhaveaskedtobeexcused.’Themaster
said to his servant, ‘Go outside to the
streets and bring back those whom you
happen to meet, so that they may dine.’
Businessmen and merchants [will] not
enter
the
places
of
my
father.”
65He said, “There was a good man
who owned a vineyard. He leased it to
tenantfarmerssothattheymightwork it
and he might collect the produce from
them. He sent his servant so that the
tenantsmightgivehimtheproduceof the
vineyard. They seized his servant and
beathim,allbutkillinghim.Theservant
went
back
and
told
his
master.
The
mastersaid,‘Perhapshedidnotrecognizethem.’
Hesentanotherservant.Thetenantsbeat
thisoneaswell.Thentheownersenthis
son and said, ‘Perhaps they will show
respect to my son.’Because the tenants
knewthatitwashewhowastheheirto
thevineyard,theyseizedhimandkilled
him.Lethimwhohasearshear.”
66
Jesus
said,
“Show
me
the
stonewhich the builders have rejected. That
oneisthecornerstone.”
67Jesus said, “If one who knows the
allstillfeelsapersonaldeficiency,heis
completelydeficient.”
68Jesus said, “Blessed are you when
youarehatedandpersecuted.Wherever
youhavebeenpersecuted theywillfind
no
place.”
69Jesus said, “Blessed are they who
havebeenpersecutedwithinthemselves.
It is they whohave trulycome toknow
thefather.Blessedarethehungry,forthe
bellyof himwhodesireswillbefilled.”
70Jesus said, “That which you have
will save you if you bring it forth from
yourselves.Thatwhichyoudonothave
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26
within you [will] kill you if you do not
haveitwithinyou.”
71Jesus said, “I shall [destroy this]
house,
and
no
one
will
be
able
to
build
it [ . . . ]”
72[A man said] to him, “Tell my
brotherstodividemyfather’spossessions
withme.”
Hesaidtohim,“Oman,whohasmade
meadivider?”
He turned tohisdisciplesandsaid to
them,
“I
am
not
a
divider,
am
I?”
73Jesussaid,“Theharvestisgreatbut
the laborers are few. Beseech the lord,
therefore, to send out laborers to the
harvest.”
74He said, “O lord, there are many
around the drinking trough, but there is
nothinginthecistern.”
75Jesus said, “Many are standing at
the
door,
but
it
is
the
solitary
who
willenterthebridalchamber.”
76Jesussaid,“Thekingdomof thefa
ther is like a merchant who had a con
signment of merchandise and who dis
covered a pearl. That merchant was
shrewd. He sold the merchandise and
bought the pearl alone for himself.You
too,seek hisunfailingandenduringtrea
sure
where
no
moth
comes
near
to
devourandnowormdestroys.”
77Jesussaid,“ItisIwhoamthelight
which isabove themall.It isI whoam
theall.Frommedid theallcomeforth,
and unto me did the all extend. Split a
piece of wood, and I am there. Lift up
thestone,andyouwillfindmethere.”
78Jesus said, “Why have you come
out
into
the
desert?
To
see
a
reed
shaken
by the wind? And to seea manclothed
in fine garments [like your] kings and
yourgreatmen?Uponthemarethefine
garments,andtheyareunabletodiscern
thetruth.”
79A woman from the crowd said to
him,“Blessedarethewombwhichbore
NON-CANONICAL GOSPELS
you and the breasts which nourished
you.”
He said to [her], “Blessed are those
who
have
heard
the
word
of
the
father
and have truly kept it.For therewillbe
days when you (pl.) will say, ‘Blessed
are the womb which has not conceived
and the breasts which have not given
milk.’”
80Jesussaid,“Hewhohasrecognized
theworldhasfoundthebody,buthewho
has
found
the
body
is
superior
to
the
world.”
81Jesussaid,“Lethimwhohasgrown
richbeking,and lethimwhopossesses
powerrenounceit.”
82Jesus said, “He who is near me is
nearthefire,andhewhoisfarfromme
isfarfromthekingdom.”
83Jesus said, “The images are mani
fest
to
man,
but
the
light
in
them
remainsconcealedintheimageof thelightof the
father.Hewillbecomemanifest,buthis
image will remain concealed by his
light.”
84Jesus said, “When you see your
likeness,you rejoice.Butwhenyousee
your images which came intobeingbe
fore you, and which neither die nor be
come
manifest,
how
much
you
will
havetobear!”
85Jesussaid,“Adamcameintobeing
from a great power and a great wealth,
but he did not become worthy of you.
Forhadhebeenworthy,[hewould]not
[haveexperienced]death.”
86Jesus said, “[The foxes have their
holes]andthebirdshavetheirnests,but
the
son
of
man
has
no
place
to
lay
his
headandrest.”
87Jesus said, “Wretched is the body
that is dependent upon a body, and
wretchedisthesoulthatisdependenton
thesetwo.”
88Jesus said, “The angels and the
prophets will come to you and give to
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27 THECOPTICGOSPEL OF THOMAS
you those things you (already) have.
And you too, give them those things
which you have, and say to yourselves,
‘When
will
they
come
and
take
what
is
theirs?’”
89Jesussaid,“Why do you wash the
outside of the cup? Do you not realize
thathewhomadetheinsideisthesame
onewhomadetheoutside?”
90Jesussaid,“Comeuntome,formy
yokeiseasyandmylordshipismild,and
you
will
find
repose
for
yourselves.”
91Theysaidtohim,“Telluswhoyou
aresothatwemaybelieveinyou.”
Hesaidtothem,“Youreadthefaceof
theskyandof theearth,butyouhavenot
recognized the one who is before you,
and you do not know how to read this
moment.”
92Jesussaid,“Seek andyouwillfind.
Yet,
what
you
asked
me
about
in
formertimesandwhichIdidnottellyou then,
now I do desire to tell, but you do not
inquireafterit.”
93Jesus said, “Do not give what
isholy todogs,lesttheythrowthemon
the dung heap. Do not throw the pearls
[to]swine,lestthey . . . it [ . . . ].”
94Jesus [said], “He who seeks will
find,
and
[he
who
knocks]
will
be
let
in.”
95[Jesussaid],“If youhavemoneydo
notlenditatinterest,butgive[it]toone
fromwhomyouwillnotgetitback.”
96Jesussaid,“Thekingdomof thefa
ther is like[acertain]woman.She took
a little leaven, [concealed] it in some
dough,andmadeitintolargeloaves.Let
himwhohasearshear.”
97
Jesus
said,
“The
kingdom
of
the
[father] is like a certain woman who was
carrying a [jar] full of meal.While she
was walking [on the] road, still some
distancefromhome,thehandleof the jar
broke and the meal emptied out behind
her[on]theroad.Shedidnotrealizeit;
she had noticed no accident. When she
reached her house, she set the jar down
andfounditempty.”
98Jesussaid,“Thekingdomof thefa
ther
is
like
a
certain
man
who
wanted
to
killapowerfulman.Inhisownhousehe
drewhisswordandstuck itintothewall
in order to find out whether his hand
could carry through. Then he slew the
powerfulman.”
99The disciples said to him, “Your
brothers and your mother are standing
outside.”
Hesaidtothem,“Thoseherewhodo
thewillof myfatheraremybrothersand
mymother.Itistheywhowillenterthe
kingdomof myfather.”
100TheyshowedJesusagoldcoinand
saidtohim,“Caesar’smendemandtaxes
fromus.”
He said to them, “Give Caesar what
belongs
to
Caesar,
give
God
what
belongstoGod,andgivemewhatismine.”
101Jesussaid,“Whoeverdoesnot
hate his [father] and his mother as I do
cannot become a [disciple] to me. And
whoeverdoes[not]lovehis[fatherand]
hismotherasIdocannotbecomea[dis