Myths and Secrets

Myths and Secrets

For the Sethians, the disciples were deluded in believing that Christ had risen in a bodily form and deliberately appeared to them to prove that the resurrection was spiritual not physical. Mary is often depicted in Gnostic works as a visionary who understood through her hallucinations more than the orthodox apostles. Tradition has it that she was mad or unstable and the verses added to the gospel of Mark in the second century might confirm it. She had had seven devils in her. 

In the Gospel of Mary, Mary explains her vision to the disciples but they are thoroughly skeptical, especially Peter. She is conscious of the constant presence of Jesus but Peter is suspicious of such intangible revelation. Mary like Paul felt her awareness of the risen Jesus was more valid than the historical knowledge the appointed apostles had of him. Her sincerity and distress wins them over and they believe. The story expresses the point at which the Jesus of history, the leader of a band of rebels against the Roman usurpers of God's kingdom—Israel, disappears and instead becomes a myth. 

Jesus became mythical for both orthodox and Gnostic churches but the orthodox Church wanted its organization to reflect the political organization of the empire whereas the Gnostics retained an element of revolutionary outlook, abhoring central authority in favour of personal revelation. The Church offered its solace to "the many" (hoi polloi, from the word the Essenes used of their congregations) but Gnostics retained the exclusive outlook of the Essenes claiming the additional insight of secret teaching for the few prepared to seek it. The distinction possibly reflects a dissappointment with the apocalyptic outlook of the Essenes, the result of repeatedly foiled beliefs that the terminal battle had begun. 

Gnostics like Valentinus, according to Irenaeus, thought that passages like Mark 4:11, in which Jesus says he speaks in parables, following the Essene tradition, intended to be hard to understand for gentiles and unreligious Jews, meant that he had reserved certain secret knowledge for his apostles alone—the hidden things of the Essenes. They believed the apostles in turn taught this secret knowledge only to those who were ready to receive it. 

In fact, the followers of Jesus had mainly been his converts and those of John the Baptist, the simple of Ephraim and backsliders desperate to make amends with God before the kingdom came. Mostly these were not people who were sophisticated in Judaism and therefore took away with them, after the death of their leader, whatever they knew of him and his teachings in a fairly undigested pieces. Those who remained loyal told others the story and by degrees it became mythologized. Others of course, Jews or Greek observers, also saw the story unfold and regarded it in a much more skeptical way. Critical stories of a renegade monk from them would keep conflicting with the preferred story of a pacific holy teacher and had to be countered. They could not be ignored because they were widespread and tied in with the stories of the faithful quite often, so they had to be altered. 

Eventually, we had the gospels stories, which became the basis of orthodox Christianity. Those who believed that there was more to it however began to seek in the stories the hidden secrets that they thought were there. They interpreted the stories in an even more mystical way when the correct way to get the truth from the distortions of the bishops was to disentangle the genuine tradition from the inventions. The Gnostics also followed Paul in believing that Jesus continued to reveal himself after death. In 1 Corinthians 2:6 Paul sounds just like one of the revealers of hidden things. Gnostics, like Paul, were not interested in the real life of Jesus, but the life they felt for themselves—much like most pious Christians today. The risen Jesus, the spiritual being, is of interest to them, not the humble Essene Poor Man who led an obscure band of converts against the Romans in Palestine. 

Many Gnostic works presume that the Jesus of the flesh is dead. Their Jesus is the Christ, the redemptive superbeing. He appears to them as he did to Paul in mystical experiences, like the Old Testament God, as a bright light, as an appropriate form or as an ever changing form. Each visionary sees him as they want to see him. Gnostics also wrote pseudepigraphic gospels, supposedly written by those close to Jesus. For the orthodox Church these were blasphemous even though their own four canonical gospels were also not written by eye witnesses. 

Irenaeus tells us that Gnostics were encouraged to write down their intuitive spiritual revelations. Irenaeus found this offensive, as attributing merely human feeling to the divine. He felt the Gnostics were boasting that their own revelations were superior to those of Peter and Paul, and this he found absurd in itself but also threatening towards the authority of the apostles, and therefore of the bishops and priesthood in general. Gnostics opposed a professional priesthood, preferring to chose people from among their own number at each service. Irenaeus also pressed the claims of the church of Rome in settling disputes on doctrine, because it had been founded by Peter and Paul, was the oldest church, and because of its "pre-eminent authority". 

There is much to be said for letting people express their spiritual selves in writing, and without disparagement. Everyone, for a Gnostic had a spark of the divine, and it would have the chance of revealing itself through religious creativity. Those which were appreciated would be read, given that people had the opportunity; those that were relatively valueless would not. The Holy Ghost could work through anyone and would manifest itself through its effect. Thus, Gnostics wrestling with one problem or another would feel themselves inspired by one or other of Jesus's companions and would write in their spirit. Modern Gnostics should do the same. Works which are popular could be kept in libraries and those which are not can be archived like old holy books of a synagogue genista. 

The Gnostics and the Essenes

The Gnostics and the Essenes

Gnosticism was widespread and must have been influenced from several sources. Judaism, Christianity, Persian religion and Greek philosophy can all be seen in Gnosticism, but its fount was in Jewish alienation and pessimism with the world and God. The place where these strands meet is in Essenism. 

The heart of apocalyptic belief is the notion that the world is evil. God would destroy it and thus destroy all evil but then renew the world, resurrecting righteous people into this renovated world—a perfect world, a heaven on earth. Essene belief was that Good and Evil forces were engaged in perennial conflict but eventually would come the End Time, preceded by identifiable signs. Then would begin Armageddon, a forty year battle, on earth and in the heavens, which concluded when God intervened on the side of the righteous. A messianic prince on earth would lead the fight and God would send his archangel Michael with a host of angels to end it. 

The fact that links the Essenes to Gnostics is the failure of God to fulfil His promises. The apocalypse which would save the Jews from oppression, and turn the tables to make them the emperors of the world, never came. The apocalyptic sects felt they had tried repeatedly to show to God that they spurned the invaders but God refused to act. The destruction of the temple in 70 AD and then its razing in 136 AD led the despairing apocalyptic Jews to reject their god. He had rejected them proving that he was a false god after all. When continual destruction led to no renewal or resurrection, it required merely an extension of the evil into the realms of the spirit world to explain that God had failed because he was deceitful. 

We can see evolution of this in the New Testament. In 2 Thessalonians 2:2 Paul is apocalyptic, telling the Thessalonians not to think that the Day of the Lord had yet come. In later writings he becomes increasingly Gnostic (see below). Both Paul and John dilute the apocalyptic idea of the coming of the kingdom of God in favour of individual spiritual salvation like that of the Gnostics. 

Like Christianity, the Gnostic sects became strongly anti–Jewish, but Christianity retained the Jewish scriptures as they were—even finding far more messianic prophecies than the Jews had ever noticed—whereas the Gnostics reinterpeted and re–wrote the legends to suit their new pessimism. 

The Essenes were experts in seeking hidden things in the scriptures, and in their despair and disillusion might have used their skills for radical re-interpretations. Instead of heaven coming to earth as the kingdom of God, it was up to individuals to seek it in another space or level—a spiritual place. There was no hope on earth. The Zealots, according to Josephus, came to doubt that God had ever lived in His house—the temple. Since Zealots seem to have been a branch of the Essenes, they were already part way to rejection of Judaism in believing that the priests of the Jerusalem temple were delinquent or froward priests. In their disappointment it was perhaps only a small step to believe that the priests' employer, God, was a delinquent god. The failure of their expectations led to their disillusionment with their former beliefs and then a reaction against them. 

Gnostics had lost faith in Yehouah as the Most High God and abandoned the law of Moses. Some even denied resurrection, suggesting some had their origins in the temple priesthood, the Saducees. The God of the Jews, the creator, was accursed in Gnosticism because he created the world full of difficulties, tragedies and hurts, and because he sent tedious laws that had to be obeyed, just to make life difficult. The messiah, who was to redeem or save, that is free, Israel from foreign bondage, became a mystical Saviour or Redeemer. And so he has remained. 

Among Essene splinter groups some recognized Jesus as a saviour, and some came to reject the Jewish intrerpretations of scripture. In this confusion, Gnosticism grew, especially when it attracted gentiles who had no cultural attachment to the Hebrew god. The seekers of hidden things sought to reinterpret scriptures such that a redeeming figure identifiable with Jesus came into a wicked world to save it from those that had made it wicked and held mankind in bondage in it. The redeemer of every Gnostic sect is Jesus Christ or someone similar, apparently confirming what Hippolytus had asserted—Gnosticism came out of the sect of the Nazarenes. 

Justin of Samaria, an early Christian writer, lists as well as Sadducees and Pharisees, Galilaeans as a Jewish sect related to Baptists, Genistae, Meristae, and Hellenians. The Genistae and Meristae seem to have been dualistic sects, presumably influenced by Persian religion and the Hellenians must have been those influenced by Greeks like the Hellenistic camp of the Nazarenes. 

The Jewish Christian writer Hegesippus, according to Eusebius, says James the Just discussed Jesus with seven Jewish sects, Essenes, Galilaeans, Hemerobaptists, Masbotheans, Samaritans, Sadducees and Pharisees. Mostly they rejected Jesus’s resurrection and his return as the Melchizedek. James fought a constant battle against the Hellenists in the Nazarene movement, who certainly believed it, and ultimately, Jewish Christianity factionalized and out of it came gentile Christianity and Gnosticism. 

Angelology

Nearly all the ingredients later found in Gnosticism were already present in the life and literature of the Essenes. The dualism of Gnosticism is present in the scrolls. The cosmic battle they expected to start by engaging the men of darkness never started. They reasoned that if they, the righteous had done what was needed to trigger the battle, but no hosts of angels had arrived with the archangel Michael to defeat the evil hosts of Belial, despite repeated revisions of their interpretations, then the only explanation was that there were no good angels—all angels were evil and manipulated men for their evil ends. Essenes had seen the calendar as of vital importance and remained sure that the escape route for good men must be in the heavens. 

The influence of Persian religion on Gnostic mythology is strong as it was in the scrolls of the Dead Sea and it seems to be a continuation and extension of the influence of exile on Judaism. After the disappointments of the failed apocalypses, it seems some of the sages looked again to the east for inspiration in the reinterpretation of the scriptures. The idea that the world was created by angels, and not God, is Persian and cannot be explicitly found in Jewish mythology, though there were hints that mankind was an angelic creation, and that angels had handed down the Law (Jub 1:27; see also Gal 3:19, Acts 7:53, Heb 2:2). In Ezekiel 40:3, Zechariah 1:9 and Daniel 9:22 there are angels which inspire prophecy. 

Gnosticism has seven spirits which seem to echo the seven archangels of Tobit, the Testament of Levi, Enoch and the Apocalypse of John. The original seven were not antagonistic to mankind but that is how they became in Gnosticism. They must have come to believe this in their despair because in Enoch the seven planets transgress the commandments of God and have to be punished, and in the Testament of Reuben seven spirits appear which seem to oppress man. 

In the Greek philosophic religion of Platonism, the seven planets are gods and an eigth force is a "power from above" which enfolds the others. In the Timaeaus by Plato, the Demiurge who is the creator, does not make men because if he had they would have been immortal so he leaves it to lesser spirits who make men out of the four elements. The Demiurge sends immortal souls down for them but the material being of mankind is corruptible and the seat of pleasure and pain. 

In Persian religion, the Supreme God, Ormuzd, is opposed by Ahriman who creates, according to Putarch, six more minor gods (angels) hostile to Ormuzd. Plutarch tells us that Ahriman represents darkness and ignorance. In the Apocryphon of John, Ialdabaoth is the First Archon of Darkness, an ignorant god with the form of a lion and a snake. The evil god, Ahriman, was always depicted in Mithraic imagery as being a lion headed figure in the coils of a snake. The spirit of the archangel Michael was associated with a lion and that of the archangel Raphael with a snake. The Apocryphon says Ialdabaoth set the seven spirits to rule over the planets and the days of the week. 

Ahriman was the model of the Jewish Satan or Belial, as the Essenes knew him. In the Jewish religion he was never the equal of God but a rogue angel acting in defiance of God and, in the scrolls, his challenge is serious enough to lead to a cosmic conflict which is only defeated by God’s will. Belial leads all the sons of darkness and in the New Testament opposes Jesus, tempting him. Paul (2 Cor 4:4) calls Satan "the god of this age", and John (12:31; 14:30; 16:11) calls him "the Archon of the world". In John’s gospel Jesus can tell the Jews that their Father is not God but the devil, apparently identifying the Hebrew God with Satan. 

There seems to be some justification for this in the scriptures when 1 Chronicles 21:1 is compared with 2 Samuel 24:1. The scribe of Chronicles has realized that the people were not to be numbered and so has Satan not God telling David to number the people. The scribe of Samuel has the original story, the rule against numbering the people being a much later introduction than the time of David anyway. When the two are seen side by side it sems that God is Satan, just the sort of discovery relished by those who were seeking hidden things. 

Furthermore Jubilees, beloved of the Essenes, seems to make God the pawn of the evil angel, Mastema. The writer is trying to save God the responsibility of some hostile acts in the scriptures but only succeeds in leaving opportunities for Gnostic exegesis. Jubilees also tells us that Moses wrote the Torah under the influence of an angel. Finally the many names of God in the scriptures, partly the result of the merging of different religious traditions in ancient times, leaves a perfect opportunity for reinterpreters to see them all as different entities—the recreation of an angelic pantheon from the one god. 

Since the authorities of Judaism had been scattered after the uprising, there was no adequate way of controlling the speculation that became rife. Thus creation stories refer to Yehouah and Elohim and elsewhere they are called angels, not names of God. In Exodus 4:4 Gnostics thought Yehouah tried to kill Moses with a serpent, so seemed hostile. So, the world was created by angels and at least one of them seemed to be unfriendly. This one fooled the Jews into believing that he was their god, but really he was Satan as the scriptures prove. 

For the despairing the world was evil because its creators in heaven were evil. The Supreme God lived at higher levels that had to be ascended into. The Essenes seemed to believe that the soul would be reborn into a renovated body when the kingdom came. In Baruch however the body was a new one. Josephus said the Essenes believed the soul was immortal and glad to be free of the confines of the body. Once dreams of the kingdom were dashed, dreams of resurrection had to be abandoned. The immortal soul had to aspire to something else—the ascent to the highest heaven. The Testament of Levi, 2 Enoch and 2 Baruch all have this idea. The highest heaven in 2 Esdras 7:88–99 is the seventh where the spirit can see the face of God. Jewish thought and Greek thought met just as Persian thought and Greek thought met to produce Mithraism. 

The Greek word "archons" simply means rulers but in Gnostic mythology they are the evil rulers of the lower levels of existence. Philo says that the planets were archons of the heavens. The psalms speak explicitly of archons and says that they are hostile to God, probably meaning the rulers of the nations that were the enemies of the Jews but interpreted by Gnostics to be wicked angels. In the Greek of Psalms 24, archons seem to be lifting up eternal gates to let the king of glory enter. Ascending spirits had to know the archons of the various heavens so that they could be addressed by name. Paul claims with false modesty in 2 Corinthians 12:2–4 that he has ascended to the third heaven. Josephus tells us that the Essenes had to know the names of the angels. Magical passwords were also needed and some Gnostic sects like the Ophites took with them to the grave Gnostic jewels with magical inscriptions. 

The Gnostic believer had the spark and waited for it to return, following the route of the Saviour, to the higher level. meanwhile he had to avoid being controlled by demons; he had to remain celibate, free of the taint of women; and many such avoided meat like the Orphics. 

Why was there a belief that Christ had descended from the higher spheres? Paul in 1 Thessalonians 4:16 says he would descend again in the future (cf Phil 3:20) presumably because his resurrection and ascension had placed him in heaven. In Ephesians 4:8–10, in an exegesis of Psalms 68:18, the descent is taken to be implied by the ascent. John 3:13 also says the Son of man has descended. In the scriptures, emanations of God dwell on earth—the name of God (Jer 7:12; Ezek 43:7; Ps Sol 7:5) and the Wisdom of God (Sirach 24:3,8; 1 Enoch 42:2 ; the Book of Wisdom 7:27). The Jews call these the Shekinah or the Presence of God which in the Rabbinic tradition appeared ten times on earth. These notions explain John and Paul’s belief that Jesus as an aspect of God could descend to earth. Jesus was commonly considered the Name in the first century as the Didache and the Shepherd of Hermas show. 

But pre–Christian Jewish literature does not have the idea that the messiah will descend from heaven. For the Essenes there was perhaps an implication that because heaven and earth became one, the messiah as the leader of the earthly hosts would conjoin with the archangel Michael as leader of the heavenly hosts to form the Melchizedek. 

More extensions of Essene thought occur in the contrast between the fall of Adam who wanted to be like God (Gen 3:5) and was punished by toil and labour for his presumption and Jesus who was humble enough to suffer the degration of a felon and be rewarded by God as the Name above all (Phil 2:6–11). Jesus was not a pre–existent Name and so the Name was a reward though he might have had the honour beforehand because in 2 Corinthians 8:9 Paul says Jesus was rich and became poor for mankind’s sake. There is a lot here about Essene humility and the idea that seniority depended upon service so that the last (most humble) were first. 

Post–exilic Judaism had a strongly dualist tendency which appears most strongly in the scrolls. In Persian religion the Supreme God originally had two apects, good and evil and Mithras was the corpus callosum between them, but later Ahriman as darkness and evil developed into the adversary of Mithras who was the sun and therefore goodness and light. In Jewish dualism, God, like Ormudz, stood above the conflict of light and dark below because he had created them. The ethical dualism between good and evil of the Essenes which led to the victory of good and the kingdom of God was replaced in Gnosticism by the notion that the lower levels of the world were themselves dark and evil and the enemy of God. In Persian religion the element of free–will was pronounced—men chose between the two spirits. In Essenism, men were born with varying degrees of goodness and wickedness within them but could achieve salvation—entry into god’s kingdom—by good works and submission to the grace of God. God decided, but he was just and a life of good works could overcome one’s intinsic badness. In Christianity men are intrinsically bad because of the original sin of Adam but works do not save them, only the acceptance of a faith in the Saviour, Christ. Gnosticism was similar. Men are intrinsically wicked but some of them have a spark of the divine and therefore can be saved. They show that they have the spark by believing in gnosis. 

Cerinthus was a Jew who identified Yehouah as an angel, the Supreme God being unknown. Thus the good God is disassociated from the evil world. Cerinthus accepted that Jesus was a man who had the special power of the Christ from his baptism. He did not accept that Jesus had yet been resurrected although he had been crucified. He would be resurrected along with others at the general resurrection, begin his reign on earht in Jerusalem where the Elect would enjoy banquets and marriages, pleasures and sacrifices. The kingdom would last a thousand years whereupon everything would be restored in some way (Irenaeus). This system has many features in common with Revelation and is quite close to the beliefs of the Essenes. Indeed Eusebius says Cerinthus not John was the auther of Revelation. The Jewish God is only an angel and the future king is Christ not God. It sounds like an intermediate step between Essenism and Gnosticism. 

Ancient Historians & the Essenes

Ancient Historians & the Essenes 

In any attempted restoration of an ancient Order, even when that restoration is under direct heavenly guidance, it is still important to establish a historical link between the modern restoration and the ancient historical expression. Unfortunately, these historical links are often based on biased historical writers who are often not sympathetic to the original movement nor cognizant of its true essence. Nevertheless, we must make due with those crumbs from the table that history offers us. 

Ancient writers such as Josephus, Philo, Pliny, Dio Chrysostom and Hippolytus of Rome spoke of the Essenes. Josephus speaks mainly of the Ossaeans of Qumran, while Philo speaks of the Theraputae who were a branch of the Nasaraean Essenes. 

First hand reports concerning the Essenes comes to us from the Jewish philosopher of the Egyptian dispersion, Philo of Alexandria, who lived between 30 B.C. and 40 A.D. Philo's writings about the Essenes comes down to us through two works, 'Quod omnis probus Fiber sit' and 'Apologia pro Judais.' The second work has been lost but the information was retained in Eusebius' 'Praeparatio Evangilica.' 

Another writer contemporary with the Essenes was Flavius Josephus, the famous Jewish historian and priest-general at the time of the Jewish war. His most elaborate description of this group is contained in 'The Jewish War', followed by an interesting, but far less detailed account in 'Jewish Antiquities.' Josephus wrote his first work sometime between 70 and 75 A.D., and the second somewhat later, but before 100 A.D., the year of his death. 

Another first-hand report concerning the Essenes comes from the Roman writer, Pliny the Elder, who, in his work entitled 'Natural History,' incorporated information about the sect , Pliny died in 79 A.D. 

A Greek orator and philosopher, Dio Chrysostom, also mentioned in passing the existence of an Essene community near the Dead Sea. His report is dated somewhat later than Pliny. 

Writing two centuries later, Hippolytus of Rome detailed a long account of the Essenes that, for the most part, is said to have paralleled Josephus' information, but in a few instances provided unique material, though he was not an eyewitness of this sect. 

There is, recorded in both Josephus and in the Talmud, the story of one Onias the Righteous, a man who was stoned to death in about 65 B.C. who was particularly saintly and who is believed to have been able to bring rain through his prayers. He is, according to Millar Burrows, thought to have been an Essene. 

Historical information regarding the existence of numerous groups in Palestine exists, which includes the following groups: 

The Qumran 'Covenanteers 

Zealots 

Followers of Judas the Galilean 

Followers of Saddoch the Pharisee 

Sicarii 

Bandits 

Self-proclaimed Messiah's 

Magharians, or cave dwellers 

The Baptists 

Genistae 

Meristae 

Hellenists 

Nasaraioi 

Essenoi 

Philo's (first account) 

"They do not offer animal sacrifice, judging it more fitting to render their minds truly holy. They flee the cities and live in villages where clean air and clean social life abound. They either work in the fields or in crafts that countribute to peace. They do not hoard silver and gold and do not acquire great landholdings; procuring for themselves only what is necessary for life. Thus they live without goods and without property, not by missfortune, but out of preference. They do not make armaments of any kind. They do not keep slaves and detest slavery. They avoid wholesale and retail commerce, believing that such activity excites one to cupidity. With respect to philosophy, they dismiss logic but have an extremely high regard for virtue. They honor the Sabbath with great respect over the other days of the week. They have an internal rule which all learn, together with rules on piety, holiness, justice and the knowledge of good and bad. These they make use of in the form of triple definitions, rules regarding the love of God, the love of virtue, and the love of men. They believe God causes all good but cannot be the cause of any evil. They honor virtue by foregoing all riches, glory and pleasure. Further, they are convinced they must be modest, quiet, obedient to the rule, simple, frugal and without mirth. Their life style is communal. They have a common purse. Their salaries they deposit before them all, in the midst of them, to be put to the common employment of those who wish to make use of it. They do not neglect the sick on the pretext that they can produce nothing. With the common purse there is plenty from which to treat all illnesses. They lavish great respect on the elderly. With them they are very generous and surround them with a thousand attentions. They practice virtue like a gymnastic exercise, seeing the accomplishment of praiseworthy deeds as the means by which a man ensures absolute freedom for himself." 

Philo (second account)

"The Essenes live in a number of towns in Judea, and also in many villages and in large groups. They do not enlist by race, but by volunteers who have a zeal for righteousness and an ardent love of men. For this reason there are no young children among the Essenes. Not even adolescents or young men. Instead they are men of old or ripe years who have learned how to control their bodily passions. They possess nothing of their own, not house, field, slave nor flocks, nor anything which feeds and procures wealth. They live together in brotherhoods, and eat in common together. Everything they do is for the common good of the group. They work at many different jobs and attack their work with amazing zeal and dedication, working from before sunrise to almost sunset without complaint, but in obvious exhilaration. Their exercise is their work. Indeed, they believe their own training to be more agreeable to body and soul, and more lasting, than athletic games, since their exercises remain fitted to their age, even when the body no longer possesses its full strength. They are farmers and shepherds and beekeepers and craftsmen in diverse trades. They share the same way of life, the same table, even the same tastes; all of them loving frugality and hating luxury as a plague for both body and soul. Not only do they share a common table, but common clothes as well. What belongs to one belongs to all. Available to all of them are thick coats for winter and inexpensive light tunics for summer. Seeing it as an obstacle to communal life, they have banned marriage. 

Flavius Josephus

The first reference to the Essenes comes from Josephus, writing about the death of Antigonus in 103 B.C. Josephus relates that the Essenes had an uncanny ability to successfully predict future events, and that the death of Antigonus at the hands of his brother, Aristobulus, ruler of Judea, had been accurately forecast by an Essene named Judas. 

Josephus states that 'Judas was an Essene born and bred, indicating that he had been born into the movement at least a few decades earlier. 

On this occasion, according to Josephus, Judas was sitting in or near the Jerusalem temple with a number or his pupils, showing that he was an Essene teacher of the Law and that he was able to speak his views apparently quite freely in Jerusalem at the end of the second century B.C. 

"The sect of the Essenes maintain that Fate governs all things, and that nothing can befall man contrary to its determination and will.These men live the same kind of life which among the Greeks has been ordered by Pythagoras."

"The Essenes are Jews by race, but are more closely united among themselves by mutual affection, and by their efforts to cultivate a particularly saintly life. They renounce pleasure as an evil, and regard continence and resistance to passions as a virtue. They disdain marriage for themselves, being content to adopt the children of others at a tender age in order to instruct them. They do not abolish marriage, but are convinced women are all licentious and incapable of fidelity to one man. They despise riches. When they enter the sect, they must surrender all of their money and possessions into the common fund, to be put at the disposal of everyone; one single property for the whole group. Therefore neither the humiliation of poverty nor the pride of possession is to be seen anywhere among them. They regard oil as a defilement, and should any of them be involuntarily anointed, he wipes his body clean. They make a point of having their skin dry and of always being clothed in white garments. In their various communal offices, the administrators are elected and appointed without distinction offices. They are not just in one town only, but in every town several of them form a colony. They welcome members from out of town as coequal brothers, and even though perfect strangers, as though they were intimate friends. For this reason they carry nothing with them ashen they travel: they are, however, armed against brigands. They do not change their garments or shoes until they have completely worn out. They neither buy nor sell anything among themselves. They give to each other freely and feel no need to repay anything in exchange. Before sunrise they recite certain ancestral prayers to the sun as though entreating it to rise. They work until about 11 A.M. when they put on ritual loincloths and bathe for purification. Then they enter a communal hall,where no one else is allowed,and eat only one bowlful of food for each man, ! together with their loaves of bread. They eat in silence. Afterwards they lay aside their sacred garment and go back to work until the evening. At evening they partake dinner in the same manner. During meals they are sober and quiet and their silence seems a great mystery to people outside. Their food and drink are so measured out that they are satisfied but no more. They see bodily pleasure as sinful. On the whole they do nothing unless ordered by their superiors, but two things they are allowed to do on their own discretion: to help those 'worthy of help', and to offer food to the needy. They are not allowed, however, to help members of their own families without permission from superiors. They are very careful not to exhibit their anger, carefully controlling such outbursts. They are very loyal and are peacemakers. They refuse to swear oaths, believing every word they speak to be stronger than an oath. They are scrupulous students of the ancient literature. They are ardent students in the healing of diseases, of the roots offering protection, and of the properties of stones. Those desiring to enter the sect are not allowed immediate entrance. They are made to wait outside for a period of one year. During this time each postulant is given a hatchet, a loincloth and a white garment. The hatchet is used for cleanliness in stooling for digging and covering up the hole. Having proved his constinence during the first year he draws closer to the way of life and participates in the purificatory baths at a higher degree, but he is not yet admitted into intimacy. His character is tested another two years and if 'ne proves worthy he is received into the company permanently. 

They are sworn to love truth and to pursue liars. They must never steal. They are not allowed to keep any secrets from other members of the sect; but they are warned to reveal nothing to outsiders, even under the pain of death. They are not allowed to alter the 'books of the sect, and must keep all the information secret, especially the names of the angels. The name of the Lawgiver, after God, is a matter of great veneration to them; if anyone blasphemed the name of the Lawgiver he was sentenced to death. Those members convicted of grave faults are expelled from the order. In matters of judgement Essene leaders are very exact and impartial. Their decisions are irrevocable. They are so scrupulous in matters pertaining to the Sabbath day that they refuse even to go to stool on that day, They always give way to the opinion of the majority, and they make it their duty to obey their elders. They are divided into four lots according to the duration of thier discipline, and the juniors are so inferior to their elders that if the latter touch them, they wash themselves as though they had been in contact with a stranger. They despise danger: they triumph over pain by the heroism of their convictions, and consider death, if it comes with glory, to be better than the preservation of life. They died in great glory amidst terrible torture in the war against the Romans. They believe that their souls are immortal, but that their bodies are corruptible. They believe the soul is trapped in the body and is freed with death. They believe that there is a place 'across the ocean' where just souls gather, a place reserved for the immortal souls of the just. The souls of the wicked, however, are relegated to a dark pit, shaken by storms and full of unending chastisement. Some of the Essenes became expert in forecasting the future."

Josephus (second account)

"The Essenes declare that souls are immortal and consider it necessary to struggle to obtain the reward of righteousness. They send offerings to the Temple, but offer no sacrifices since the purifications to which they are accustomed are different. For this reason, they refrain from entering into the common enclosure, but offer sacrifice among themselves. They are holy men and completely given up to agricultural labor."

Pliny the Elder

"To the west (of the Dead Sea) the Essenes have put the necessary distance between themselves and the insalubrious shore. They are a people unique of its kind and admirable beyond all others in the whole world; without women and renouncing love entirely, without money and having for company only palm trees. Owing to the throng of newcomers, this people is daily reborn in equal number; indeed, those whom, wearied by the fluctuations of fortune, life leads to adopt their customs, stream in in great numbers. Thus, unbeleivable though this may seem, for thousands of centuries a people has existed which is eternal yet into which no one is born: so fruitful for them is the repentance which others feel for their past lives!" 

Eusebius

(Eusebius, Bishop of Caesarea, writing around A.D.300) 

"Even in our day, there are still those whose only guide is Deity; ones who live by the true reason of nature, not only themselves free but filling their neighbours with the spirit of freedom. They are not very numerous indeed, but that is not strange, for the highest nobilty is ever rare; and then these ones have turned aside from the vulgar herd to devote themselves to a contemplation of nature's verities. They pray, if it were possible, that they may reform our fallen lives; but if they cannot, owing to the tide of evils and wrongs which surge up in cities, they flee away, lest they too be swept off their feet by the force of the current. And we, if we had a true zeal for self-improvement, would have to track them to their places of retreat, and, halting as supplicants before them, would beseech them to come to us and tame our life grown too fierce and wild; preaching instead of war and slavery and untold ills, their Gospel of Peace and freedom, and all the fullness of other blessings." 

The Perspective of 1 Enoch and Jubilees on the Essenes

The Perspective of 1 Enoch and Jubilees on the Essenes

1 Enoch, composed between the 3rd century BC and the 1st century AD and Jubilees are works which were warmly held by the Essenes, which in the case of Enoch was also until the time of Jerome and Augustine, numbered among the Christian apocrypha, but rejected from the Hebrew canon. Eleven copies of Enoch were found at Qumran and twelve of Jubilees. Enoch was the imortal seventh partiarch who was mythically taken up to heaven or sacrifced as Moses was Gen 5:24 "And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him." He has ancient parallels with the seventh king in the Sumerian king list and the seventh Sumerian sage. The Book of Jubilees similarly singles out Enoch as the one chosen by God "to forsee and fortell the future right down to the Day of Judgement" (Cohn 1993 177).

Both 1 Enoch and Jubilees are unmistakable products of Hellenistic civilization. A world view so encyclopaediac that it embraced the geography of heaven and earth, astronomy, meteorology, medicine was no part of Jewish tradition - but was familiar to educated Greeks, but attempting to emulate and surpass Greek wisdom, by having an integrating divine plan for destiny, elaborated through an angelic host with which Enoch is in communication through his mystical travels. (Cohn 1993 178).

More clearly than in the Hebrew Bible, these works tell of a last judgement which is to occur at the consummation of time. "On the day of great condemnation ... judgement is executed on all who have corrupted their ways ... for every creature and for every kind" - Jubilees. Even rebellious stars are punished with fire. This message purports to be not inconsistent with the Sinai law, (for example even the [male] angels were circumcised), but being much older, and for all mankind. Sinfullness is presented as a form of disorder, an offence against the divinely appointed order of the universe. The Jewish lunar calendar was believed to be erroneous by comparison with solar calendar of the Jubilees putting the heavenly sabbath and other rituals out of alignment because the "great eternal light which for ever and ever is named the sun" appointed the heavenly course of time. Many of these factors are consistent with Persian influence, including the sun worship and the conflict between order and disorder.

These works consequently include a form of the devil mastema, which unlike the Old Testament shaitan of Job is a genuinely evil chaos entity, accompanied by a host of angels tarnished by cavorting with women (Cohn 1993 182): Gen 6:2 The sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose." God had to send the flood to destroy the resulting race of giants, similar to the Titans who tore apart Dionysus. These spirits were locked away in the earth, but Mastema persuaded God to keep out one in ten to tempt humanity until the judgement and to commit all forms of transgression.

In the Day of Judgement all such spirits will be consigned to eternal torment and humanity renewed in spirit back to the generations of Adam:

"And the days will begin to grow many and increase amongst the children of men
till their days draw night to a thousand years ...
And there will be no old man ...
For all will be as children and youths"

The Tree of Life, fragrant and wonderful to behold will be returned to the centre ground, and the New Jerusalem will be built by God - just as later described in Revelation.

However when the righteous dead are mentioned in 1 Enoch or Jubilees, they seem to be destined for a blissful existence as disembodied souls, a notion so un-Jewish that it is presumed to be a Greek idea. No particular sect is identified in these works although they were used extensively at Qumran.

The Role of The Teacher of Righteousness

 The Role of the Teacher

The Teacher of Righteousness is described as a figure in the history of the sect, who in at least some of the scrolls is claimed to have already fulfilled the attributes of a messianic figure. The title being one "of Righteousness" occurs also in the Zadokite fragments and as a messianic name in Enoch as "The Righteous One".

According to Edmund Wilson (65) The Commentary on Habakkuk refers to the struggle between the Teacher of Righteousness and the Wicked Priest, or Prophet of Untruth, who persecutes the Teacher "swallowed him up in the heat of his anger" has "dared to strip him of his clothing" and and has struck him "in the execution of iniquitous judgements" when "odious profaners have committed horrors on him and vengeance on the body of his flesh". But later on the resting of the Day of Atonement the Teacher of Righteousness "appeared in splendour to them for the purposes of swallowing them up" and that in the sight of he and his counsel "was given into the hands of his enemies to abuse with smiting".

Brownlee (145) notes that it had already been suggested that the Qumran sect believed in the coming of three eschatological figures of Messianic significance: a prophet, a priest, and king. Although initial identifications in the texts were for a coming Messiah, this Prophet, according to Vermes, was none other than the Righteous Teacher, the author of the Hymns. Although future in the Manual of Discipline, the passage in the Manual may be older and reflect an earlier point of view in which the Teacher had not yet become identified with the coming Prophet. That the theme was applied to the Teacher of Righteousness, however, is clear from the Hymn passages quoted in following sections.

This passage ascribed to the Teacher of Righteousness indicates his secret source of inner knowledge:

My eyes have gazed
on that which is eternal,
on wisdom concealed from men,
on knowledge and wise design
[hidden] from the sons of men;
on a fountain of righteousness
and on a storehouse of power,
on a spring of glory
[hidden] from the assembly of flesh.
God has given them to His chosen ones
as an everlasting possession,
and has caused them to inherit
the lot of the Holy Ones

Habakkuk 2:1-2 states: "I will take my stand to watch, and station myself on the tower, and look forth to see what he will say to me, and what I will answer concerning my complaint. And the Lord answered me: "Write the vision; make it plain upon tablets, so he may run who reads it." The Commentary explains the passage: "God told Habakkuk to write down that which would happen to the final generation, but He did not make known to him when time would come to an end. And as for that which He said, 'That he who reads may read it speedily' ["so he may run who reads it" in Habakkuk 2:2]. Interpreted, this concerns the Teacher of Righteousness, to whom God made known all the mysteries of the words of His servants the Prophets" (Habakkuk Commentary 7:1-5).

Brownlee (138-143) defines the roles of the Teacher as five-fold:

1. To fulfill the title of Teacher of Righteousness: - moreh - teacher, guide and rain. As a "guide," his function was "to lead" God's people "in the way of His heart." As "rain," he appears as a fruitful source of the word of God following Isaiah 55:10: "And thou O my God hast placed in my mouth (teaching) like an autumn shower of rain".

2. To interpret the prophets: The Habakkuk Commentary describes him as "the priest in [whose heart] God put [understand]ing to explain all the words of his servants the prophets." These explanations of the teacher were all concerned with the fulfillment of prophecy in the interpreter's own day or in the not distant future. In this role the Teacher was like Daniel, who was able to interpret not only dreams and the mysterious handwriting on the wall, but also Jeremiah's prophecy of seventy years in Daniel 9."

3. To enact a new covenant: "I do thank Thee, O Lord; for my face Thou enlightenedst for Thy covenant's sake. Yea, from [evening until morning] do I seek Thee; and as the sure dawn for [per]fect illumination] hast Thou appeared to me." This reminds us both of Moses descending radiant (or horned) and Jesus face in 2 Corintians 4 "the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ".

4. To build the congregation of God's people: "Its interpretation concerns the priest, the Teacher of Righteousness whom ... God has established to build for him the congregation of [His elect]." (Commentary on Psalm 37). Similar to Jesus' promise to Peter, "On this rock I will build my Church."

5. To be the servant of the Lord: Isa 40-55 sets out the well-known theme of the Suffering Servant.

a. Set apart as a spokesman from youth as in Isaiah 49 "I have called thee from thy mother's womb" and Isaiah 53 "grown up as a young sprout".

"For Thou hast known [or loved ] me from my father and from the womb Thou hast sanctified me, and from the body of my mother Thou hast bestowed kindness upon me, And from the breasts of her who conceived me have Thy compassions come to me, and in the bosom of my nurse ... And from my youth hast Thou appeared to me in the wisdom of Thy Law, and by Thy fixed truth hast Thou supported me, and by Thy holy spirit hast Thou delighted me. (IQ H ix, 29-32)

b. He possessed the Servant's gift of teaching: One of the Hymns declares: "My tongue is like that of Thy (the Teacher's) disciples."

c. He fulfilled the Servant's ministry of consolation: This is already apparent in the preceding reference; and it is probably to be seen in the following fragmentary passage echoing Isa 61:1:

"According to Thy truth a herald of glad tidings . . . Thy goodness, to herald glad tidings to the poor according to Thy abundant compassions. (IQ H XViii, 14)

d. He was endowed with the Spirit like the Servant of the Lord: Echoing Isa 42:1 we have:

"I, Thy servant, know the Spirit which Thou hast put within me." (IQ H Xiii, x8f.)

" As for me, Thy servant, Thou hast favored me with the Spirit of knowledge. (IQ H xiv, 25)

" Thou hast shed Thy holy Spirit upon Thy servant." (IQ H XVii, 26)

e. He suffered like the Servant: Isaiah 53:3 is echoed in a fragmentary passage of the Hymns speaks of him: ". . dwelling with diseases; and I underwent trial with plagues, And I was as a man forsaken, despised . . . " (IQ H Via, 26f.)

 Light and Darkness

---

Welcome to Pleroma Pathways apocalyptic and mystic Christianity where we explore esoteric and apocalyptic texts.

Light and Darkness

The ancient Persian Zoroastrian influence, particularly the monistic version where Zurvan (Time) created both Ahura Mazda (the principle of good) and Angra Mainyu (the principle of evil), has left a distinct imprint on Jewish religious heritage (Cohn 1993, 193). This influence is notably reflected during the period of the Jewish exile and return, with the Persian king Cyrus himself being proclaimed the Messiah or "anointed one" for his role in fostering the return of the Jewish people from Babylonian captivity.

The natural affinity between these two patriarchal religious visions encouraged a degree of cultural assimilation. Persian ideas were absorbed into Jewish thought, especially in the opposition of darkness and light, and the development of eschatological views about cosmic renovation at the end of days. This dualistic contrast between light and darkness, along with a developed resurrection hope, differed from earlier Hebrew beliefs.

While the Sadducees adhered to the traditional Jewish belief that after death souls would descend into Sheol—existing as pale, disembodied shades—and rejected the resurrection of the dead, the Pharisees embraced the apocalyptic vision found in the Book of Daniel. Rabbi Hillel, a contemporary of Jesus, taught that the dead would be kept in heaven or hell until the Day of Judgment, an idea that echoes Persian eschatology. However, the Pharisees did not go so far as to accept the notion of a great satanic opponent to God, such as Belial or Mastema, as the Essenes did (Cohn 1993, 220–226).

Among the Essenes, one of the most crucial doctrines was the "Morality of the Two Ways," a concept entirely unknown to ancient Hebrews. This doctrine set forth the Way of Light and the Way of Darkness, with each representing moral and cosmic realities—light symbolizing order and goodness, darkness symbolizing chaos and evil. This perspective is clearly linked to Zoroastrian dualism and cosmic renovation, as well as later Gnostic sentiments, such as those found in Manichaeism. It also resonates strongly with aspects of the Gospel of John, previously thought to be Hellenistic but now increasingly understood as deeply rooted in Jewish thought.

"The Messiah or Teacher of Righteousness is opposed to a Demon of Evil, most frequently known as Belial. The way of Good leads to salvation; the Way of Evil to torment. There is to be a Last Judgment at the end of time—equally unknown to ancestral Judaism—when the Messiah shall divide the world" (Wilson, Edmund, The Scrolls from the Dead Sea, p. 71). During this time, the Elect will be saved and the faithful avenged. Until then, the sect was to remain pure, participating in sacred meals and ritual baptisms as acts of purgation and preparation.

The Manual of Discipline, a key Qumran text, elaborates further:

"[The God of Knowledge] has created man to govern the world, and has appointed for him two spirits in which to walk until the time of His visitation: the spirits of truth and falsehood. Those born of truth spring from a fountain of light, but those born of falsehood spring from a source of darkness. All the children of righteousness are ruled by the Prince of Light and walk in the ways of light, but all the children of falsehood are ruled by the Angel of Darkness and walk in the ways of darkness..." (Manual of Discipline 3:18–21).

The opposition of light and darkness is depicted as an ongoing battle:

"For God has established the spirits in equal measure until the final age, and has set everlasting hatred between their divisions. Truth abhors the works of falsehood, and falsehood hates all the ways of truth. And their struggle is fierce in all their arguments for they do not walk together" (Manual of Discipline 4:16–18).

Nevertheless, God has "ordained an end for falsehood, and at the time of visitation he will destroy it forever."

Two prominent texts among the Dead Sea Scrolls dealing with this theme are The War of the Children of Light against the Children of Darkness and the Commentary on Habakkuk. The latter, dating to around 41 BC, identifies the oppressor as the "Kittim," likely a reference to the Romans and their allies. The Commentary on Habakkuk is of particular significance regarding the Teacher of Righteousness, a messianic figure whom we will consider further elsewhere.

Some scholars, reflecting on the Qumran discoveries, have re-evaluated the Gospel of John. Whereas it was once believed to have been heavily influenced by late Hellenistic or Gnostic ideas, it now appears that John may be the most deeply Jewish of the Gospels, rooted firmly in Essene thought.

At the beginning of John’s Gospel, the conflict between light and darkness is immediately introduced:

"In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it" (John 1:4–5).

Moreover, many of John's phrases—"the spirit of truth," "the light of life," "walking in the darkness," "children of light," and "eternal life"—find parallels in the Manual of Discipline. One remarkable similarity lies in the description of the Logos:

"And by his knowledge everything has been brought into being. And everything that is, he established by his purpose; and apart from him, nothing is done" (Manual of Discipline 11:11).

Compare this with John 1:2–3:

"He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made."

The connection between Qumran and New Testament thought is further exemplified in 2 Corinthians 6:14–15:

"Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever?"

The exclusive division between light and darkness, the use of the name Belial, and the portrayal of a divided humanity echo strongly the Essene worldview.

Thus, the dualistic theology of Light and Darkness, introduced into Judaism under Persian influence and developed by the Essenes, profoundly shaped early Christian thought and left a lasting mark on apocalyptic and mystical traditions.

The Impact of the Understanding on Apocryphal Transitional Texts

**Welcome to Pleroma Pathways apocalyptic and mystic Christianity where we explore esoteric and apocalyptic texts.**

# The Impact of the Understanding on Apocryphal Transitional Texts

The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls dramatically reshaped our understanding of the apocryphal documents produced during the intertestamental period, offering a clearer view of the transitional literature bridging Judaism and Christianity. With this find, a new dimension of religious thought emerged, revealing the dynamic evolution from the strict Law of the Pentateuch toward a messianic hope more characteristic of early Christianity. As Edmund Wilson observed, "The invocation of the Saviour-Messiah becomes more important and pressing than... in the canonical books; and the new writings more and more take the form of apocalypses—that is, of supernatural visions which reveal past, present and future under the guise of a phantasmagoria of symbolic persons and animals, divine and diabolical beings, celestial and infernal phenomena" (Wilson, 61).

In the post-Exilic period, the Judaic Law had become revered as the final revelation of God, leaving no place for independent prophets. Wilson notes, "The Judaic Law of the Pentateuch had come to be conceived as the final and supreme revelation of God... there was now no room for independent representatives... such as the post-Exilic prophets" (Wilson, 62). This rigidity is evident in Zechariah's parable of the Foolish Shepherd, where setting oneself up as a prophet could warrant death. Consequently, new authors resorted to pseudonyms, attributing their works to figures like Isaiah and the ancient patriarch Enoch.

Among the scrolls at Qumran are fragments of commentaries on Habakkuk, Isaiah, Daniel, Tobit, Jubilees, Enoch, and the Testament of Levi. These texts offer invaluable insights into the Messianic doctrines of the community, particularly their expectation of divine judgment at the end of days. The *Manual of Discipline* (or *Community Rule*) especially reveals the community’s structure and values. It exhorts adherents to live a divine life and describes a stark division between the children of the Covenant and the forces of Belial. Punishments for offenses such as blasphemy, lying, gossiping, or rebellion were severe, often resulting in temporary or permanent excommunication.

The *Manual* emphasizes several theological points:

1. **Mystical Knowledge**: There is a deep focus on purity and spiritual illumination achieved through celibacy, mortification, prayer, baptism, and sacred meals.

2. **Interpretation of the Law**: A symbolic reading of the Law allowed the community to bypass traditional Levitical blood sacrifices, preferring a solar calendar similar to that found in *Jubilees*.

3. **Apocalyptic Expectation**: A vivid prophecy proclaims: "Until the coming of the prophet and the Messiahs of Aaron and Israel" (Manual 9:11).

In examining the transitional period, the figure of the Suffering Servant in Isaiah became pivotal for early Christian claims. Wilson writes, "One of the most impressive pieces of Old Testament literature in support of the Christian claim that the advent of Jesus as Messiah had been prophesied is the Suffering Servant of the second Isaiah 53 'despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows, who has been wounded for our transgressions,' and yet by whose stripes we are healed" (Wilson, 61). While some scholars proposed that this Servant referred to Israel or to prophets like Jeremiah, Dupont-Sommer suggested that the figure may actually represent the Teacher of Righteousness, a key leader of the Qumran sect. He urged that many Old Testament passages involving an Anointed One or a Prophet's violent death should be reconsidered, especially Daniel, Zechariah, and Psalms (Cohn, 171).

An important textual insight comes from Brownlee, who noted that a minor alteration in the Isaiah Scroll changed Isaiah 52:14’s meaning. Instead of "his appearance was so marred beyond semblance," the reading becomes "I so anointed his appearance beyond anyone (else)." This revision clarifies the puzzling transition to the next verse, rendering it: "so shall he sprinkle many nations" (King James Version) instead of the Revised Standard's "startled many nations" (Brownlee, 204). This suggests a coherent Messianic image: an anointed figure who brings purification to the nations. Brownlee, like Dupont-Sommer, saw connections between this figure and the Anointed One “cut off” in Daniel 9:24–27.

Such reinterpretations suggest that Jesus entered a world already primed for a suffering Messiah figure. "Jesus may thus have found prepared for him a special Messianic role, the pattern of a martyr's career, which he accepted and to which he aspired," Wilson notes. This is consistent with Jesus’ lament that prophets were killed throughout Israel’s history.

Another key piece of pre-Christian literature, *The Martyrdom of Isaiah*, may also reflect the experience of the Teacher of Righteousness. In this text, Isaiah is sawn in two for declaring he had seen God—a claim Moses said was fatal—and for claiming a deeper knowledge than Moses. Echoing the *Manual of Discipline* 3:5, it asserts: "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewal in the Holy Spirit."

The *Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs*, another apocryphal work likely completed by the late second century BC and associated with the Qumran community, further anticipates the suffering redeemer motif. Wilson quotes: 

> "And a man who reneweth the law in the power of the Most High, ye shall call a deceiver; and at last ye shall rush (upon him) to slay him, not knowing his dignity, taking innocent blood through wickedness upon your heads... and ye shall be among the Gentiles a curse and a dispersion until he shall again visit you, and in pity shall receive you [through faith and water]" (Wilson, 87).

In conclusion, the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls illuminates the profound and intricate theological and prophetic frameworks within apocryphal literature. These texts reveal a vibrant and turbulent religious milieu that directly shaped the transition from late Judaism to early Christianity, providing not only a backdrop but a prophetic and doctrinal foundation for the advent of Jesus as the Suffering Messiah.

---

John 17:5 Valentinian perspective

 John 17:5 presents a profound moment in the Gospel of John, where Jesus prays to the Father, saying, "And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed." This verse, from a Valentinian perspective, offers deep insights into the nature of the Logos, the divine aspect of Christ, and challenges conventional understandings of his relationship with God the Father.

### The Pre-existence of the Logos

In this prayer, Jesus refers to a "glory" that he shared with the Father "before the world existed." This statement indicates the pre-existence of the Logos, the divine Word or Mind of God, which was present with God in the beginning, before the creation of the material world. The Logos, from a Valentinian perspective, is not merely a creation of God but is intimately connected to the divine, possessing a unique status that transcends the physical realm.

The concept of pre-existence is critical here because it asserts that the Logos, which later becomes manifest in Jesus, existed in a state of divine fullness and glory prior to entering the material world. This existence is not tied to the temporal order of creation but is part of the eternal nature of the divine. The Logos, therefore, is not an ordinary being but one that is fundamentally divine, sharing in the essence and nature of God, albeit in a distinct form.

### The Glory of the Logos

The "glory" mentioned by Jesus is not to be understood as mere human recognition or honor. Instead, it refers to the divine splendor and majesty inherent in the Logos. In this context, glory signifies the radiance of divine truth, wisdom, and power, all of which are attributes of the Logos. This glory is intrinsic to the Logos' identity and is not something that can be diminished or lost; rather, it is a reflection of the Logos' divine origin and nature.

However, when the Logos enters the material world, this glory is, in a sense, veiled or obscured by the limitations of the physical form. The Logos takes on human nature in Jesus, and while the divine glory is still present, it is not fully revealed or recognized by the world. Jesus' prayer in John 17:5, therefore, is a request for the restoration of this glory—a return to the full manifestation of the divine nature that the Logos had before the world was made.

### The Relationship Between the Logos and the Father

In this verse, the relationship between the Logos and the Father is one of deep unity yet distinct roles. The Logos, while divine, is portrayed as having been with the Father "before the world existed," indicating a relationship that is both intimate and eternal. This unity does not imply sameness but rather a profound connection in which the Logos shares in the divine essence but also possesses a unique role within the divine economy.

The prayer for glorification can be seen as the Logos’ desire to return to the original state of divine fullness, a state that reflects its true nature. This request is not about acquiring something new but about a restoration and a return to the divine presence in a way that fully expresses the Logos' divine identity. The Logos, while on earth, performs a specific mission—revealing the divine to humanity and providing a path to spiritual knowledge and salvation. Yet, the Logos' ultimate goal is to return to the Father, to once again exist in the fullness of divine glory.

### The Implications for Understanding Jesus

From a Valentinian perspective, Jesus, as the manifestation of the Logos, is not merely a human teacher or prophet but the embodiment of the divine Word. His life and actions on earth are the workings of the Logos, which has temporarily entered the material world to fulfill a divine purpose. John 17:5 reveals that this mission is not the final state for the Logos; rather, the Logos seeks to return to its original, glorified state with the Father.

This understanding challenges traditional views that see Jesus as solely a historical figure or as one-third of a Trinitarian Godhead. Instead, it emphasizes the distinct and pre-existing nature of the Logos, which transcends the physical world and ultimately seeks reunification with the divine source. The Logos, while fully participating in the divine nature, is also distinct in its role and purpose, serving as the bridge between the divine and the material, and ultimately returning to its divine glory after completing its mission on earth.

### Conclusion

In conclusion, John 17:5, when interpreted from a Valentinian perspective, highlights the unique and divine nature of the Logos. This verse underscores the pre-existence, glory, and intimate relationship the Logos shares with the Father. The prayer for glorification is a profound expression of the Logos' desire to return to its divine fullness, a state that reflects its true nature and origin. This perspective deepens our understanding of Jesus as the manifestation of the Logos, emphasizing his divine mission and ultimate return to the divine presence.

From a Valentinian perspective, John 17:5 offers a critical point of reflection that challenges the traditional Christian understanding of the Trinity. The Valentinian interpretation, rooted in Gnostic cosmology, diverges significantly from orthodox Trinitarian doctrine, particularly in its understanding of the Logos (the Christ) as an emanated Aeon rather than as a co-equal, co-eternal person within the Godhead.

### Valentinian Cosmology and the Aeons

In Valentinian Gnosticism, the cosmos is structured through a complex system of emanations, with the divine realm, known as the **Pleroma**, consisting of 30 Aeons. These Aeons are spiritual beings or principles that emanate from the ultimate, unknowable God, often referred to as the **Bythos** or **Depth**. Each Aeon represents different aspects of the divine fullness, and they collectively form the entirety of divine reality within the Pleroma.

The **Logos** or **Christ** is one of these Aeons, emanated as part of the divine order. Unlike the traditional Christian understanding of the Trinity, where the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are co-equal and co-eternal persons within one Godhead, Valentinian theology posits that the Logos is a secondary emanation, dependent on the higher Aeons and ultimately on the Bythos.

### John 17:5 and the Emanation of the Logos

In John 17:5, Jesus prays, "And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed." From a Valentinian perspective, this verse highlights the pre-existent, divine nature of the Logos, but not in the sense of Trinitarian co-equality. Instead, it emphasizes the Logos as an Aeon who once existed in perfect unity within the Pleroma before being sent forth into the material world.

The "glory" that Jesus refers to is interpreted as the divine fullness or the spiritual perfection that the Logos possessed within the Pleroma, a glory that is not inherently his own, but rather a reflection of his origin from the higher Aeons and the Bythos. The Logos, as an emanated being, does not possess this glory independently or eternally but receives it through his emanation from the divine source. This understanding contrasts sharply with the Trinitarian view, where the Son (the Logos) possesses divine glory inherently and eternally, as an equal member of the Godhead.

### The Valentinian Critique of the Trinity

Valentinian theology, therefore, provides a critique of the traditional doctrine of the Trinity by emphasizing the hierarchical and emanative nature of the divine. In this system, the Logos is not an equal, co-eternal person within a triune Godhead but is rather a derived being, emanated from the divine fullness of the Pleroma. The very concept of an Aeon as an emanation undercuts the idea of co-equality among the persons of the Trinity.

If the Logos is an Aeon, as Valentinians argue, then he cannot be equal to the Father in the same way that orthodox Trinitarian doctrine asserts. Instead, the Logos is a subordinate being, whose existence and glory are contingent upon his emanation from the higher realms of the divine Pleroma. This fundamentally alters the relationship between the Logos and the Father, positioning the Logos as an intermediary rather than as a fully divine person in his own right.

### Implications for the Doctrine of the Trinity

From a Valentinian perspective, John 17:5 serves as evidence that the Logos, while divine, is not part of a triune Godhead but is an emanated being with a derivative glory. This interpretation challenges the orthodox Christian understanding of the Trinity by proposing that the Son (the Logos) is not co-eternal or co-equal with the Father but is instead a distinct and subordinate entity within a broader hierarchy of divine emanations.

The traditional Trinitarian concept, which posits that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are of one essence and co-equal, does not align with the Valentinian view of the Logos as an Aeon. In Valentinian thought, the Son's request to be glorified with the glory he had before the world existed underscores his dependent nature, seeking a return to the fullness of the Pleroma from which he was emanated, rather than affirming his co-equality with the Father.

### Conclusion

In conclusion, John 17:5, when viewed through a Valentinian lens, not only underscores the pre-existence of the Logos but also highlights the dependent, emanated nature of the Logos as an Aeon. This interpretation challenges the doctrine of the Trinity by rejecting the notion of the Logos as co-equal and co-eternal with the Father. Instead, it presents a view of the divine that is hierarchical and emanative, with the Logos occupying a subordinate position within the broader context of the Pleroma's 30 Aeons. This perspective fundamentally contradicts the orthodox Christian conception of a triune God, offering a radically different understanding of the nature of Christ and his relationship to the divine.

From a Valentinian perspective, John 17:5 can be interpreted in a way that challenges the orthodox Christian doctrine of the Trinity, particularly the idea of the consubstantiality (being of the same substance) of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Valentinians held a more nuanced and hierarchical view of the relationship between God, Christ, and the material world, which diverged from the Trinitarian doctrine that became central to mainstream Christianity.

### Valentinian Interpretation of John 17:5

In John 17:5, Jesus prays, "And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed." The Valentinian interpretation of this verse emphasizes the distinction between the earthly Jesus and the pre-existent Christ (the Logos). The prayer is understood as the Logos inside the earthly Jesus asking to be reunited with the divine glory he shared as the pre-existent Christ before descending into the material world.

In this framework:

1. **Pre-existence of the Logos**: Valentinians believed that Christ, as the Logos, existed in a state of divine glory with the true God (the Father) before the creation of the world. This Christ is a distinct entity, sent into the material world to bring gnosis (knowledge) and liberation to the spiritual beings trapped in the physical realm.

2. **Earthly Jesus as a Vessel**: The earthly Jesus is seen as the physical vessel that temporarily housed the Christ. His role was to manifest in the material world, but his human nature is not considered divine in itself. The prayer in John 17:5 is therefore interpreted as a request for the earthly Jesus to return to the state of divine glory, effectively reuniting with the pre-existent Christ.

3. **Rejection of Consubstantiality**: Valentinians rejected the idea that Jesus (in his human form) and the Christ (as the Logos) were of the same substance as God the Father. Instead, they saw a hierarchy in which the true God (the Father) is supreme, the Logos (Christ) emanates from the Father but is not equal to Him, and the Holy Spirit plays a distinct, often intermediary, role. This challenges the orthodox Trinitarian view that all three persons of the Trinity are co-equal and co-eternal.

### How John 17:5 Challenges the Trinity

1. **Distinctiveness of the Son**: John 17:5, in the Valentinian reading, underscores the distinction between the pre-existent Christ and the Father. The request for glorification implies that the Son (Christ) is not inherently in the same state of glory as the Father, suggesting a subordinate or distinct status rather than equality within the Godhead.

2. **Temporal Separation**: The notion that Christ had a glory "before the world existed" but now seeks to return to it introduces a temporal element to the relationship between the Father and the Son. In contrast, Trinitarian doctrine posits that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are eternally co-existent and co-equal. The Valentinian interpretation sees the earthly Jesus as a temporary manifestation, which contrasts with the Trinitarian idea of the eternal Son.

3. **Christ as an Emanation**: Valentinians often viewed the Christ as an emanation from the true God rather than as an equal. This emanation was seen as a divine but not wholly equal entity, tasked with interacting with the material world. This emanationist view inherently denies the Trinitarian concept of three persons sharing one divine essence.

4. **Role of Gnosis**: In Valentinian theology, salvation is achieved through gnosis, or knowledge of the divine, rather than through the incarnation and atoning sacrifice as understood in orthodox Christianity. This further separates the understanding of Jesus' mission from the Trinitarian framework, where the incarnation is central.

### Conclusion

From a Valentinian perspective, John 17:5 is not proof of the consubstantiality or co-equality of the Father and the Son but rather evidence of their distinctiveness. The verse highlights the pre-existence of the Christ as a separate entity who temporarily took on human form and now seeks to return to divine glory. This interpretation challenges the Trinitarian doctrine by emphasizing the hierarchical and emanationist relationship between God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit, rather than seeing them as three co-equal persons in one Godhead. This view fundamentally contrasts with the orthodox Christian understanding of the Trinity, where the Son is eternally one with the Father and the Holy Spirit.

How the Divine Name Refers to the Emanation of the 30 Aeons

 # How the Divine Name Refers to the Emanation of the 30 Aeons

The divine name **Yahweh**, composed of the Hebrew letters **Yod (י), Hay (ה), Wav (ו), Hay (ה)**, plays a significant role in emanation theology, especially within Valentinian thought. By examining the metaphysical framework developed by Marcus, we see how each letter of the name corresponds to a specific set of Aeons, each reflecting a facet of the divine nature and unfolding creation. The emanation of the Aeons follows the pattern of the Tetrad, with each Aeon originating from the divine realm of Mind (Nous), Truth (Aletheia), Logos (the Word), and Zoe (the Life). The 30 Aeons are derived from these and their relationships to the divine name.

### The Tetrad and the Four Letters of Yahweh

In Valentinian theology, the Tetrad—comprising the first four Aeons—is foundational to the structure of creation. Each letter of **Yahweh** corresponds to one of these initial Aeons, emanating from the divine principle of **Bythos** (the One) and extending through **Nous** (Mind), **Aletheia** (Truth), and **Logos** (the Word). These foundational pairs form the base from which the entire system of Aeons emanates. 

1. **Yod (י)** represents **Bythos (the One)** and **Charis (Grace)**, the first two Aeons in the Valentinian framework. The letter **Yod**, symbolizing a "hand" or "arm," signifies the power and action of God in initiating creation. As the creative force, it embodies the role of **Bythos**—the first emanation of God—ushering the creation of the divine world. Alongside **Bythos**, **Charis**, or Grace, emerges, reflecting the divine favor and unifying presence that flows from the One.

2. **Hay (ה)** represents **Nous (Mind)** and **Aletheia (Truth)**. The **Hay** is often depicted as a "man with arms raised," indicating revelation and divine manifestation. In this context, **Nous** and **Aletheia** emerge as intellectual and spiritual principles, representing the divine thought and the truth that underpins creation. **Hay** emphasizes the process of revealing these higher, transcendent truths to creation. As the divine thought or intelligence, **Nous** is the blueprint of all things, while **Aletheia** reveals the truths of the cosmos and existence, ensuring divine purposes are manifest.

3. **Wav (ו)** represents **Logos (the Word)** and **Zoe (the Life)**. The **Wav**, symbolizing a "nail" or "hook," suggests the joining or binding of the spiritual and material realms. As the unifying principle, **Logos** connects the eternal, divine mind with the created world. **Zoe**, or Life, emanates from **Logos**, giving vitality to all creation. Together, **Logos** and **Zoe** serve as the channel through which divine order and life are maintained in the world, highlighting the bridge between the divine and the created order.

4. **The second Hay (ה)** represents **Anthropos (Man)** and **Ecclesia (Church)**. This second **Hay** reaffirms the process of divine revelation and self-manifestation, emphasizing the completeness of God's unfolding plan. **Anthropos** and **Ecclesia** symbolize humanity and the church, the bearers of divine knowledge and purpose in the created world. The repeated **Hay** shows the ongoing divine interaction with creation, ensuring the eternal purpose is continually revealed and fulfilled in humanity and the community of believers.

### Conclusion

The divine name **Yahweh**, expressed through the Hebrew letters **Yod (י), Hay (ה), Wav (ו), Hay (ה)**, aligns with the emanation of the 30 Aeons in Valentinian theology. Each letter corresponds to a specific emanation, starting with the Tetrad and continuing through the subsequent pairs of Aeons. The name Yahweh embodies the active, creative force of God, His revelation, His connection between the spiritual and physical realms, and the completeness of His self-manifestation. Through this framework, the divine name serves as a key to understanding the unfolding of creation and the ongoing process of divine revelation and action.

To align the 26 Aeons with the four letters of **Yod-Hay-Wav-Hay** using the framework of Valentinian emanation theology and Marcus's metaphor, we can divide the Aeons into four groups that correspond to each of the four letters. Each of the four groups will include six pairs of Aeons, emanating from the central principles of **Nous** (Mind), **Aletheia** (Truth), **Logos** (Word), and **Zoe** (Life), and then further distributed across **Anthropos** (Man) and **Ecclesia** (Church). Below is how the 26 Aeons can be aligned with each letter.

### **Yod (י) - The Creative Hand, Action, and Power**

The **Yod** represents the divine creative power and the initiation of the process of emanation. It signifies the first step of divine action, bringing forth the first set of Aeons. The Aeons emanating from **Nous** (Mind) and **Aletheia** (Truth) would form the first group.

1. **Bythios** (Profound) and **Mixis** (Mixture)

2. **Ageratos** (Never old) and **Henosis** (Union)

3. **Autophyes** (Essential nature) and **Hedone** (Pleasure)

4. **Acinetos** (Immovable) and **Syncrasis** (Commixture)

5. **Monogenes** (Only-begotten) and **Macaria** (Happiness)

6. **Paracletus** (Comforter) and **Pistis** (Faith)

### **Hay (ה) - Revelation, Manifestation, and Breath**

The **Hay** represents divine revelation, manifestation, and the breath of life. It suggests the unveiling of divine truths and the communication of these truths to creation. The next set of Aeons emanates from **Logos** (the Word) and **Zoe** (Life), continuing the unfolding of creation and truth.

1. **Patricas** (Paternal) and **Elpis** (Hope)

2. **Metricos** (Maternal) and **Agape** (Love)

3. **Ainos** (Praise) and **Synesis** (Intelligence)

4. **Ecclesiasticus** (Son of Ecclesia) and **Macariotes** (Blessedness)

5. **Theletus** (Perfect) and **Sophia** (Wisdom)

6. **Logos** (Word) and **Zoe** (Life)

### **Wav (ו) - Connection, Binding, and Unification**

The **Wav** is a symbol of connection, binding, and unity, representing the joining of the spiritual and material worlds. It reflects the binding force that holds creation together. These Aeons emerge from the union of **Anthropos** (Man) and **Ecclesia** (Church), demonstrating the active role of humanity and the community in realizing the divine plan.

1. **Bythios** (Profound) and **Mixis** (Mixture)

2. **Ageratos** (Never old) and **Henosis** (Union)

3. **Autophyes** (Essential nature) and **Hedone** (Pleasure)

4. **Acinetos** (Immovable) and **Syncrasis** (Commixture)

5. **Monogenes** (Only-begotten) and **Macaria** (Happiness)

6. **Paracletus** (Comforter) and **Pistis** (Faith)

### **Second Hay (ה) - Continuous Revelation and Divine Presence**

The second **Hay** reinforces the idea of continuous revelation and divine presence. It emphasizes the completeness of God's ongoing manifestation in creation. The final set of Aeons emanates from **Anthropos** (Man) and **Ecclesia** (Church), ensuring that divine wisdom and perfection are continually revealed through humanity and the faithful community.

1. **Patricas** (Paternal) and **Elpis** (Hope)

2. **Metricos** (Maternal) and **Agape** (Love)

3. **Ainos** (Praise) and **Synesis** (Intelligence)

4. **Ecclesiasticus** (Son of Ecclesia) and **Macariotes** (Blessedness)

5. **Theletus** (Perfect) and **Sophia** (Wisdom)

6. **Logos** (Word) and **Zoe** (Life)

### Final Overview:

- **Yod (י)**: **Bythios** (Profound), **Mixis** (Mixture), **Ageratos** (Never Old), **Henosis** (Union), **Autophyes** (Essential Nature), **Hedone** (Pleasure), **Acinetos** (Immovable), **Syncrasis** (Commixture), **Monogenes** (Only-begotten), **Macaria** (Happiness), **Paracletus** (Comforter), **Pistis** (Faith).

- **Hay (ה)**: **Patricas** (Paternal), **Elpis** (Hope), **Metricos** (Maternal), **Agape** (Love), **Ainos** (Praise), **Synesis** (Intelligence), **Ecclesiasticus** (Son of Ecclesia), **Macariotes** (Blessedness), **Theletus** (Perfect), **Sophia** (Wisdom), **Logos** (Word), **Zoe** (Life).

- **Wav (ו)**: **Bythios** (Profound), **Mixis** (Mixture), **Ageratos** (Never Old), **Henosis** (Union), **Autophyes** (Essential Nature), **Hedone** (Pleasure), **Acinetos** (Immovable), **Syncrasis** (Commixture), **Monogenes** (Only-begotten), **Macaria** (Happiness), **Paracletus** (Comforter), **Pistis** (Faith).

- **Second Hay (ה)**: **Patricas** (Paternal), **Elpis** (Hope), **Metricos** (Maternal), **Agape** (Love), **Ainos** (Praise), **Synesis** (Intelligence), **Ecclesiasticus** (Son of Ecclesia), **Macariotes** (Blessedness), **Theletus** (Perfect), **Sophia** (Wisdom), **Logos** (Word), **Zoe** (Life).

This configuration places the Aeons into a meaningful relationship with each of the four letters of the Name **Yahweh**, aligning their metaphysical roles and their significance in the Valentinian cosmology.

the Aeons into four groups that correspond to each of the four letters. Each of the four groups will include six pairs of Aeons, emanating from the central principles of Nous (Mind), Aletheia (Truth), Logos (Word), and Zoe (Life), and then further distributed across Anthropos (Man) and Ecclesia (Church). Below is how the 26 Aeons can be aligned with each letter

The Tetrad is itself linked with the fact that the divine name is expressed by four letters in Hebrew.

In Valentinian theology, the Son emanates a series of divine attributes or 'Aeons'. The Aeons follow the pattern established in the first Tetrad and are arranged into pairs (syzygies). The relationship of the Son to the Aeons is unclear without taking account of the notion of the Name. How the Aeons are related to the Name (Son) is clearly spelled out in the teacher Marcus as follows: "The pronunciation of the Name took place as follows. He spoke the first word of it which was the beginning, and that utterance consisted of four letters. He added the second and this also consisted of four letters. Next he uttered a third and this again embraced ten letters. Finally, he pronounced a fourth which was composed of twelve letters. The enunciation of the whole Name consisted of thirty letters or elements, and of four distinct utterances" (Irenaeus Against Heresies 1:14:1) Using the metaphor developed by Marcus, each of the Aeons correspond to an individual letter of the Name. In addition to the Tetrad, there are twenty-six Aeons. Again we note a connection to Judaism. In Hebrew numerology, the divine name has a numerical value of twenty-six. Four and twenty-six give a total of thirty Aeons.

The Emanations of the Father and the Son**

 ### **Introduction: The Emanations of the Father and the Son**  

In Christian theology, the **Aeons** represent divine attributes and qualities emanating from God, reflecting His nature and actions in creation, redemption, and sanctification. These Aeons are deeply connected to the foundational theological concepts of **God (Theos)** and His manifestation through the **Son**, the **Logos**. The doctrine of Aeons touches on both **metaphysical** and **mystical** aspects of God’s existence and actions in the world. It can be understood as a **divine procession**, where divine qualities flow from God the Father through the Son and are then manifested in the created order.

In **John 1:1-4**, we see a profound unveiling of the **Logos** (the Word) as both **God** and the means by which all creation comes into being: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made. In Him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind" (John 1:1-4, NIV). This passage introduces the Logos as an emanation of the Father, revealing **the Son’s divine nature** and His role in creation and redemption.

In this context, **26 Aeons emanate from the Son**—representing **Christ’s divinity** and His transformative influence in creation, redemption, and sanctification. These emanations are seen in divine attributes such as **Life (Zoe)**, **Light (Phos)**, **Truth (Aletheia)**, and **Man (Anthropos)**, each of which carries mystical significance as they point to Christ’s role in revealing the fullness of God’s plan. 

At the same time, **4 Aeons emanate from the Father**, establishing the transcendent and eternal nature of the Deity: **God (Theos)**, **Beginning (Archē)**, **Wisdom (Sophia)**, and **Glory (Doxa)**. These terms emphasize the Father's ultimate role as the **source and foundation** of all creation, with the Son being the vehicle through which these attributes are manifested in the world. 

### **Emanations from the Father (4 Aeons)**

1. **Theos (Θεός, God)** – The ultimate source of all being and existence, the Father is the eternal and uncreated God who brings forth all life (John 1:1, 1 John 5:20).  

2. **Sophia (Σοφία, Wisdom)** – The divine principle guiding creation and order. Wisdom is seen as intimately connected with the creation process (Proverbs 8:22-30, 1 Corinthians 1:24).  

3. **Archē (Ἀρχή, Beginning)** – The origin and foundation of all creation. "In the beginning, God created..." (Genesis 1:1, John 1:1).  

4. **Doxa (Δόξα, Glory)** – The radiant and majestic manifestation of God's divine presence, seen in Christ’s transfiguration (Matthew 17:2, John 1:14).  

These four Aeons emanate from the Father and set the stage for the creation and revelation of God’s glory through the **Son**. In a metaphysical sense, **the Son’s emanation** as **Logos** is rooted in the Father’s essence, but the Son’s personal existence and creative work distinguish Him in His role as the mediator and redeemer.

### **Emanations from the Son (26 Aeons)**  

#### **Core Aeons from John 1:1-4**  

5. **Logos (Λόγος, Word)** – The organizing principle through which all things were made (John 1:1-3).  

6. **Zoe (Ζωή, Life)** – The eternal life that the Logos imparts to creation (John 1:4).  

7. **Aletheia (Ἀλήθεια, Truth)** – Christ as the ultimate revelation of God’s truth (John 14:6).  

8. **Phos (Φῶς, Light)** – The divine illumination and revelation that dispels darkness (John 1:9, 8:12).  

9. **Anthropos (Ἄνθρωπος, Man)** – Christ as the perfect embodiment of humanity, representing the image of God (John 1:14, Colossians 1:15).  

10. **Ecclesia (Ἐκκλησία, Church)** – The gathering of believers united in Christ’s redemptive work (Matthew 16:18).  

#### **Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23)**  

11. **Agape (Ἀγάπη, Love)** – The self-sacrificial, unconditional love of God (Romans 5:8).  

12. **Chara (Χαρά, Joy)** – The joy found in union with Christ (John 15:11).  

13. **Eirene (Εἰρήνη, Peace)** – The peace that Christ brings to the world (John 14:27).  

14. **Makrothymia (Μακροθυμία, Forbearance/Patience)** – Christ’s long-suffering with humanity (2 Peter 3:9).  

15. **Chrestotes (Χρηστότης, Kindness)** – The kindness of God revealed through Christ (Romans 2:4).  

16. **Agathosyne (Ἀγαθωσύνη, Goodness)** – Christ as the good Shepherd (John 10:11).  

17. **Pistis (Πίστις, Faithfulness)** – Christ as the faithful witness (Revelation 1:5).  

18. **Praotes (Πραΰτης, Gentleness)** – The gentleness of Christ, as seen in His meekness (Matthew 11:29).  

19. **Egkrateia (Ἐγκράτεια, Self-Control)** – The self-control of Christ, even in temptation (Matthew 4:1-11).  

#### **Additional Divine Attributes**  

20. **Elpis (Ἐλπίς, Hope)** – The hope of eternal life through Christ (Romans 5:5).  

21. **Eleos (Ἔλεος, Mercy)** – Christ’s mercy extended to sinners (Matthew 9:13).  

22. **Dikaiosyne (Δικαιοσύνη, Righteousness)** – Christ’s righteousness imparted to believers (2 Corinthians 5:21).  

23. **Eikon (Εἰκών, Image)** – Christ as the perfect reflection of the Father (Colossians 1:15).  

24. **Metanoia (Μετάνοια, Repentance)** – Christ’s call to repentance and transformation (Mark 1:15).  

25. **Katallagē (Καταλλαγή, Reconciliation)** – Reconciliation with God through Christ (Romans 5:10-11).  

26. **Parakletos (Παράκλητος, Comforter)** – The Holy Spirit sent by Christ to comfort and guide (John 14:16-17).  

27. **Hagnos (Ἁγνός, Purity)** – Christ’s sinless purity (Hebrews 4:15).  

28. **Monogenēs (Μονογενής, Only-Begotten)** – Christ as the unique and beloved Son (John 3:16).  

29. **Makarios (Μακάριος, Blessedness)** – The blessedness found in Christ (Matthew 5:3-12).  

30. **Teleios (Τέλειος, Perfection)** – Christ as the fulfillment of God’s purpose (Matthew 5:48).

### **Structure and Significance**  

1. **The Father’s Emanations (4 Aeons):** These Aeons reflect the **Father’s transcendent and eternal nature**, His role as the source and origin of all creation, and His divine wisdom and glory.  

2. **The Son’s Emanations (26 Aeons):** These represent the **Son’s divine and redemptive work** in creation, salvation, and sanctification, with His attributes flowing from the Father and being made manifest in the world through His incarnation, death, and resurrection.

### **Mystical and Metaphysical Perspective**  

This list of Aeons encapsulates the **divine procession** from the Father to the Son, unveiling the metaphysical and mystical nature of God as He is revealed in Christ. The relationship between the Father’s **eternal emanations** and the Son’s **redemptive work** creates a harmony that reveals the **fullness of the divine** in both creation and salvation. Each Aeon is a part of the **Pleroma**—the complete and comprehensive expression of God’s will and purpose in the world, drawing believers into a deeper understanding of their union with the divine through Christ.

Here’s a revised list of **30 Aeons** based on **Greek words** found in the **Bible**, inspired by **John 1:1-4** and the **fruit of the Spirit** in **Galatians 5:22-23**:  

---

### **Tetrad (Root Aeons)**  

1. **Theos (Θεός, God)** – Supreme source of the Pleroma.  

2. **Charis (Χάρις, Grace)** – Manifestation of divine favor.  

3. **Logos (Λόγος, Word)** – The creative and organizing principle.  

4. **Zoe (Ζωή, Life)** – The essence of spiritual vitality.  

---

### **From John 1:1-4**  

5. **Aletheia (Ἀλήθεια, Truth)** – Revealer of divine reality.  

6. **Phos (Φῶς, Light)** – Illumination and divine revelation.  

7. **Anthropos (Ἄνθρωπος, Man)** – The spiritual archetype of humanity.  

8. **Ecclesia (Ἐκκλησία, Church)** – The community of the redeemed.  

---

### **The Nine Fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23)**  

9. **Agape (Ἀγάπη, Love)** – The highest form of divine love.  

10. **Chara (Χαρά, Joy)** – Deep spiritual gladness.  

11. **Eirene (Εἰρήνη, Peace)** – Harmony and reconciliation.  

12. **Makrothumia (Μακροθυμία, Forbearance/Patience)** – Long-suffering endurance.  

13. **Chrestotes (Χρηστότης, Kindness)** – Benevolence and generosity.  

14. **Agathosyne (Ἀγαθωσύνη, Goodness)** – Moral integrity and uprightness.  

15. **Pistis (Πίστις, Faith/Faithfulness)** – Trust and fidelity to the divine.  

16. **Prautes (Πραΰτης, Gentleness)** – Humility and meekness.  

17. **Enkrateia (Ἐγκράτεια, Self-Control)** – Mastery over one’s desires and impulses.  

---

### **Other Biblical Concepts**  

18. **Sophia (Σοφία, Wisdom)** – The guiding principle of creation.  

19. **Doxa (Δόξα, Glory)** – The radiant manifestation of God.  

20. **Elpis (Ἐλπίς, Hope)** – Anticipation of divine fulfillment.  

21. **Eleos (Ἔλεος, Mercy)** – Compassion and forgiveness.  

22. **Dikaiosyne (Δικαιοσύνη, Righteousness)** – Justice and moral order.  

23. **Eikon (Εἰκών, Image)** – The perfect reflection of the divine.  

24. **Metanoia (Μετάνοια, Repentance)** – Transformation of the mind.  

25. **Katallagē (Καταλλαγή, Reconciliation)** – Restored relationship with God.  

---

### **Completion of the Triacontad**  

26. **Archē (Ἀρχή, Beginning)** – The origin of all things.  

27. **Dynamis (Δύναμις, Power)** – Creative and sustaining force.  

28. **Monogenēs (Μονογενής, Only-Begotten)** – The unique and beloved one.  

29. **Teleios (Τέλειος, Perfect One)** – Fulfillment of divine purpose.  

30. **Makarios (Μακάριος, Blessedness)** – Eternal happiness and favor.  

---

This list blends the divine attributes and qualities found in **John 1:1-4**, **Galatians 5:22-23**, and other prominent scriptural themes, creating a cohesive set of Aeons that represent the fullness of God’s nature and the spiritual life. Let me know if you'd like further refinement!