The
Gospel
of Thomas and The Gospel
of Truth
The Gospel
of Truth was used as a commentary for
The Gospel
of the Living Jesus which was scribed by Thomas.
This
Gospel of The Living Jesus is the power of God to those
who believe,
and the manifestation of hope for those who discover its meaning.
(C.f. Romans
1:16, 1
Corinthians 1:18, Sayings 1-2, and sayings 22-26 viewed below)
A Meditative Study:
Uncover the Meaning and Experience
the Power.
Compare and contrast these two writings by using this
side by side color coded
sequential correlation of thought, word, and rhetoric.
|
|
The
Gospel Of Thomas
(The
Gospel of The Living Jesus)
Translated by Thomas O. Lambdin
|
The
Gospel of Truth
(From the Nag Hammadi Library)
Translated by Robert M. Grant
|
The Introduction
Ignorance of the Father brought about terror and fear.
|
These are the
secret sayings which the
living Jesus
spoke and which
Didymos
Judas Thomas wrote
down.
|
The
gospel of truth is joy to those
who have received from the
Father of
truth the gift of knowing him by the
power of the Logos, |
| (1) And he said, "Whoever
finds the interpretation of these sayings will not
experience death." |
who
has come
from the Pleroma and who
is in the thought and the mind of the Father; |
| (2) Jesus said, "Let
him who seeks continue seeking
until he finds. When
he finds, he will become troubled. When he becomes
troubled, he will be astonished, and he
will rule over the All." |
he
it is who is called "the Savior," since that is the name of the work
which he must do for the redemption of those
who have not known the
Father. For the name of the gospel is the
manifestation of hope, |
| (3) Jesus said, "If those
who lead you say to you,
'See,
the kingdom is in the sky,' then
the birds of the sky will
precede you. If they say to you, 'It is in the sea,' then the
fish will
precede you. Rather, the
kingdom is inside of you, and it is outside of
you. When
you come to know yourselves, then you will become known,
and
you
will realize that it is you who are the sons of the living father.
But
if you will not know yourselves, you dwell in poverty and it is you
who are that poverty." |
since
that is the discovery of those
who seek him, because the All
sought him
from whom it had come forth. You
see, the
All had been inside of him,
that
illimitable, inconceivable one, who is better than every thought.
This
ignorance of the Father brought about terror and fear. And
terror
became dense like a fog, that no one was able to see. Because of this,
error became strong. But it worked on its hylic substance vainly,
because it did not know the truth. |
| (4) Jesus said, "The
man old in days will not
hesitate to ask a
small child seven days old about the
place of life,
and he will live. For
many who are first will become last, and they
will become one and the same." |
It
was in a fashioned form while it
was preparing, in power and in beauty, the
equivalent of truth. This
then, was not a humiliation for him, that
illimitable, inconceivable
one. |
|
(5) Jesus said, "Recognize
what is in your sight,
and that
which is hidden from you will become plain to you. For
there
is nothing hidden which will not become manifest." |
For
they were as nothing, this terror and this forgetfulness and
this figure of falsehood, whereas this
established truth is unchanging,
unperturbed and completely beautiful.
For
this reason, do not take error too seriously. |
The First Day -
The First Seal
He
enlightened those who were in darkness
because of forgetfulness.
|
(6) His disciples questioned him
and said to him,
"Do
you want us to fast? How shall we pray? Shall we give alms? What
diet shall we observe?"
Jesus said, "Do
not tell lies, and do not do what
you hate, for all
things are plain in the sight of heaven. For
nothing
hidden will not become manifest, and nothing covered will remain
without being uncovered." |
Thus, since it had no
root, it was in a fog as regards the Father, engaged in preparing
works
and forgetfulnesses and fears in order, by these means, to
beguile
those of the middle and to make them captive. The
forgetfulness of
error was not revealed. It
did not become light beside the Father.
Forgetfulness did not exist with the Father, although it existed
because of him.
|
(7) Jesus said, "Blessed is the
lion which becomes
man when consumed
by man; and cursed is the
man
whom the
lion consumes,
and the
lion becomes man." |
What
exists in him is knowledge, which was revealed so
that forgetfulness might be
destroyed and that they might know
the
Father, |
| (8) And he said, "The man is like
a
wise fisherman
who cast his net into the sea and drew it up from the sea full of small
fish. Among them the
wise fisherman found a fine large fish. He
threw
all the small fish back into the sea and chose the large fish
without
difficulty. Whoever
has ears to hear, let him hear." |
Since forgetfulness
existed because they did not know the
Father, if
they then come to know the Father, from that moment on
forgetfulness will cease to exist.
That
is the gospel of him whom they seek, which he has revealed to the
perfect through the mercies of the Father as the
hidden mystery, Jesus
the Christ.
|
| (9) Jesus said, "Now
the sower went out, took a
handful (of seeds), and scattered them. Some
fell on the road; the
birds came and gathered them up. Others fell on the rock,
did not take
root in the soil, and did not produce ears. And others fell on thorns;
they
choked the seed(s) and worms ate them. And others fell on
the good
soil and it
produced good fruit: it bore sixty per measure and a
hundred and twenty per measure." |
Through him he
enlightened those who were in darkness
because of forgetfulness. He
enlightened them and gave them a path. And
that path is the truth which he taught them. For
this reason error was
angry with him, so it persecuted him. It
was distressed by him, so it
made him powerless. He
was nailed to a cross. He
became a fruit of the
knowledge of the Father. He did not, however, destroy them
because they
ate of it.
|
| (10) Jesus said, "I have cast
fire upon the world, and see, I am guarding it until it
blazes." |
He rather caused those who ate of
it to be joyful because of
this
discovery. |
(11) Jesus said, "This
heaven will pass away, and
the one above it will pass away. The dead are not alive,
and the living
will not die. In the days when
you consumed what is dead, you made it
what is alive. When
you come to dwell in the light, what will you do?
On
the day when you were one you became two. But when you
become two,
what will you do?"
|
And
as for him, them
he found in himself,
and
him they found in themselves,
that
illimitable, inconceivable one, that
perfect Father who made the
all, in whom the All is, and whom the
All lacks, since he
retained in
himself their perfection, which he had not given to the
all. The Father
was not jealous. What jealousy, indeed, is there between
him and his
members? |
The Second Day - The Second Seal
He
became a guide, quiet and in leisure.
He
took that book as his own.
(I.e. The Book given by The Father which is known as The Gospel of Thomas.)
Oh,
such great teaching!
|
(12) The disciples said to Jesus,
"We
know
that you
will depart from us. Who
is to be our leader?"
Jesus said to them, "Wherever
you are, you are to go
to James the righteous, for
whose sake heaven and earth came into
being." |
For, even if the Aeon had
received their perfection, they
would not have been able to approach the perfection of the Father,
because he
retained their perfection in himself, giving
it to them as a
way to return to him and as a
knowledge unique in perfection. He
is the
one who set the All in order and in whom the All existed and whom the
All lacked. |
(13) Jesus said to his disciples,
"Compare
me to someone and tell me whom I am like."
Simon Peter said to him, "You
are like a righteous angel."
Matthew said to him, "You
are like a wise philosopher."
Thomas said to him, "Master,
my mouth is wholly incapable of saying whom you are like."
Jesus said, "I
am not your master. Because you have
drunk, you have become intoxicated from the bubbling spring which I
have measured out."
And he took him and withdrew and told
him three
things. When
Thomas returned to his companions, they asked him, "What
did Jesus say to you?"
Thomas
said to them, "If I tell you one of the
things which he told me, you will pick up stones and throw them at me;
a fire will come out of the stones and burn you up."
|
As
one of whom some have no knowledge, he desires that they
know him and that they love him. For what
is it that the All lacked, if
not the knowledge of the Father?
He
became a guide, quiet and in leisure. In
the middle of a school he came
and spoke the Word, as a teacher. Those
who were wise in their own
estimation came to put him to the test. But he discredited
them as
empty-headed people. They
hated him because they really were not wise
men. After
all these came also the little children, those who possess
the knowledge of the Father. When
they became strong they were taught
the aspects of the Father's face. They
came to know and they were
known. They were glorified and they gave glory. In
their heart, the
living book of the Living was manifest, the book which was written in
the thought and in the mind of the Father,
|
| (14) Jesus said to them, "If you
fast, you will give
rise to sin for yourselves;
and if you pray, you will be condemned; and
if you give alms, you will do harm to your
spirits. When
you go into
any land and walk about in the districts, if they receive
you, eat what
they will set before you, and heal
the sick among them. For what goes
into your mouth will not defile you, but
that which issues from your
mouth - it is that which will defile you."
|
and from before the
foundation of the All, is in
that incomprehensible part of him.
This
is the book which no one found possible to take, since it
was reserved
for him who will take it and be slain. No
one was able to be manifest
from those who believed in salvation as long as that book had not
appeared. For this reason, the compassionate, faithful Jesus
was
patient in his sufferings until he took that book,
|
| (15) Jesus said, "When you see
one
who was not born
of woman, prostrate yourselves on your faces and worship him. That one
is your father." |
since he knew
that
his death meant life for many. Just as in the case of a
will which has
not yet been opened, ( C.f. The Book that Jesus
took, and the worship that followed, Revelation
5: 1, 4, 8-9 ) |
| (16) Jesus said, "Men
think, perhaps, that it is
peace which I have come to cast upon the world. They do not know that
it
is dissension which I have come to cast upon the earth: fire,
sword,
and war. For there will be five in a house: three
will be against two,
and two against three, the father against the son, and the son against
the father. And they
will stand solitary." |
for the
fortune of the deceased master of the
house is hidden, so also in the case of the All which had been hidden
as long as the
Father of the All was invisible and unique in himself,
in whom every space has its source. For this reason Jesus appeared. He
took that book as his own. He
was nailed to a cross. He affixed the
edict of the Father to the
cross. (C.f. The
Tau-Rho Cross
& Sword
hidden in his
book: i.e. in the gospel known as Thomas)
|
| (17) Jesus said, "I
shall give you what
no eye has
seen and what
no ear has heard and what
no hand has touched and what
has never occurred to the human mind." |
Oh,
such great teaching! He abases himself even unto death,
though he
is
clothed in eternal life. Having
divested himself of these perishable
rags, he
clothed himself in incorruptibility, which
no one could
possibly take from him.
|
(18) The disciples said to Jesus,
"Tell
us how our end will be."
Jesus said, "Have
you discovered, then, the
beginning, that you look for the end? For where
the beginning is, there
will the end be. Blessed
is he who will take his place in the
beginning; he
will know the end and will not experience death." |
Having entered into the empty
territory of
fears, he
passed before those who were stripped by forgetfulness, being
both knowledge and perfection, proclaiming the
things that are in the
heart of the Father, so that he
became the wisdom of those who have
received instruction. But those
who are to be taught, the living who
are inscribed in the book of the living, learn for themselves,
|
The Third Day - The Third Seal
He
has turned many from error. ( The
letters  )
are pronounced
only when
they are known.
It has
revealed his image. His
love took bodily form
around it
( C.f. The Joint-Body:  )
|
(19) Jesus said, "Blessed
is he who came into being
before he came into being. If
you become my disciples and listen to my
words, these stones will minister to you. For
there are five trees for
you in Paradise which remain undisturbed summer and winter and whose
leaves do not fall. Whoever
becomes acquainted with them will not
experience death."
|
receiving
instructions from the Father, turning to him again.
Since
the perfection of the All is in the Father, it is necessary for
the All to ascend to him. Therefore,
if one has knowledge, he gets what
belongs to him and draws it to himself. For he
who is ignorant, is
deficient, and it is a great deficiency, since
he lacks that which will
make him perfect. |
(20) The disciples said to Jesus,
"Tell
us what the kingdom of heaven is like."
He said to them, "It
is like a mustard seed. It is
the smallest of all seeds. But when it falls on tilled soil, it
produces a great plant and becomes
a shelter for birds of the sky." |
Since the
perfection of the All is in the Father, it
is necessary for the All to ascend to him and for each one to get the
things which are his. He
registered them first, having prepared them to
be given to those who came from him. |
(21) Mary said to Jesus, "Whom
are your disciples like?"
He said, "They are like children who
have settled in
a field which is not theirs. When the owners of the field come, they
will say, 'Let us have back our field.' They
(will) undress in their
presence in order to let them have back their field and to give it back
to them. Therefore I say, if the owner of a house knows
that the thief
is coming, he will begin his vigil before he comes and will not let him
dig through into his house of his domain to carry away his goods. You,
then, be on your guard against the world. Arm yourselves
with great
strength lest the robbers find a way to come to you, for the difficulty
which you expect will (surely) materialize. Let
there be among you a
man of understanding. When the grain ripened, he came
quickly with his
sickle in his hand and reaped it. Whoever
has ears to hear, let him
hear." |
Those whose name he knew first
were called last, so that the
one who
has knowledge is he whose name the Father has pronounced.
For he whose
name has not been spoken is ignorant. Indeed, how shall one hear if his
name has not been uttered? For
he who remains ignorant until the end is
a creature of forgetfulness and will perish with it. If
this is not so,
why have these wretches no name, why do they have no sound? Hence, if
one has knowledge, he is from above. If
he is called, he hears, he
replies, and he turns toward him who called him and he ascends to him
and he knows what he is called. Since he has knowledge, he does the
will of him who called him. He desires to please him and he finds rest.
He receives a certain name. He
who thus is going to have knowledge
knows whence he came and whither he is going. He
knows it as a person
who, having become intoxicated, has turned from his drunkenness and
having come to himself, has restored what is his own.
|
(22) Jesus saw infants being
suckled. He said to his
disciples, "These
infants being suckled are like those who enter the
kingdom."
They said to him, "Shall we then, as
children, enter the kingdom?"
Jesus said to them, "When
you make the two one, and
when you make the inside like the outside and the outside like the
inside, and the above like the below, and when you make the
male and
the female one and the same, so that the male not be male
nor the
female female; and when you fashion eyes in the place of an
eye, and a
hand in place of a hand, and a foot in place of a foot, and a
likeness
in place of a likeness; then
will you enter the kingdom."
|
He
has turned many from error. He went before them to their
own places,
from which they departed when they erred because of the depth of him
who surrounds every place, whereas there is nothing which surrounds
him. It
was a great wonder that they were in the Father without knowing
him and that they were able to leave on their own, since
they were not
able to contain him and know him in whom they were, for indeed his will
had not come forth from him. For he revealed it as a knowledge with
which all its emanations agree, namely, the
knowledge of the living
book which he revealed to the Aeons at last as his
letters, displaying
to them that these are not merely vowels nor consonants, so that one
may read them and think of something void of meaning;
|
(23) Jesus said, "I shall choose
you, one out of a
thousand, and two out of ten thousand, and they
shall stand as a single
one."
|
on the contrary,
they
are letters which convey the truth. They are pronounced
only when
they are known. Each
letter is a perfect truth like a perfect book,
|
(C.f.
The Letters T & P =
The Tau-Rho
Cross:
The Gospel of Jesus
in a nutshell. )
|
|
(24) His disciples said to him, "Show
us
the place where you are, since it is necessary for us to
seek it."
He said to them, "Whoever has ears, let
him hear.
There
is light within a man of light, and he lights up the whole world.
If he does not shine, he is darkness."
(C.f.
Study the links in Sayings 22-26 for
insight into the message of the letters.)
|
for
they are letters
written by
the hand of the unity, since the Father
wrote them for the Aeons, so that
they by means of his
letters
might
come to know the Father.
While his
wisdom mediates on the
logos,
|
(25) Jesus said, "Love
your
brother like
your soul, guard
him like the pupil of your eye."
|
and since his
teaching
expresses it, his
knowledge has been revealed. His
honor is a crown
upon it. |
| (26) Jesus said, "You
see the mote in
your brother's
eye, but you do not see the beam
in your own eye. When you cast
the
beam out
of your own eye, then
you will see clearly to cast the mote
from your brother's eye." |
Since his joy agrees with it, his
glory exalted it. It
has
revealed his image. It has obtained his rest. His
love took bodily form
around it. His trust embraced it. Thus the logos of the Father
goes
forth into the All, being the fruit of his heart and
expression of his
will. |
| (27) <Jesus said,>
"If you
do not fast
as
regards the world, you will not find the kingdom. If you
do not observe
the
Sabbath as a Sabbath, you will not see the
father." |
It supports the All. It chooses
and also takes the form of the
All, purifying
it, and causing it to return
to the Father and to the
Mother, Jesus of the utmost sweetness. The
Father opens his bosom, but
his bosom is the Holy Spirit.
|
(28) Jesus said, "I
took my place in the
midst of
the world, and I
appeared to them in flesh. I found all of
them
intoxicated; I found none of them thirsty. And my soul became afflicted
for the sons of men, because they are blind in their
hearts and do not
have sight; for
empty they came into the world, and empty too they seek
to leave the world. But for
the moment they are intoxicated. When
they
shake off their wine, then they will repent."
|
He
reveals his hidden self which is his
son, so that through
the compassion of the Father the
Aeons may know
him, end their wearying search for the Father and rest themselves in
him, knowing that this is rest. After he had filled what
was
incomplete, he
did away with form. The form of it is the world, that
which it served. For where
there is envy and strife, there is an
incompleteness; but
where there is unity, there is completeness.
|
| (29) Jesus said, "If the
flesh came into
being
because of spirit, it is a wonder. But if spirit came into
being
because of the body, it is a wonder of wonders. Indeed, I am amazed at
how this
great wealth has made its home in this poverty." |
Since
this
incompleteness came about because they did not know the
Father, so
when they know the Father, incompleteness, from that moment on, will
cease to exist. As one's ignorance
disappears when he gains knowledge,
and as darkness disappears when light appears, |
| (30) Jesus said, "Where there are
three
gods, they are gods. Where there are two or one,
I
am with him." |
so also incompleteness
is eliminated by completeness. Certainly,
from that moment on, form is
no longer manifest, |
| (31) Jesus said, "No
prophet is accepted
in his own village; no
physician heals those who know him." |
but
will be dissolved in fusion with unity. For
now
their works lie scattered. |
| (32) Jesus said, "A
city being built on
a high mountain and fortified cannot fall, nor
can it be hidden." |
In
time unity will make the spaces complete.
By
means of unity each one will understand itself. By
means of
knowledge it will purify itself of diversity
with a view towards unity, |
The Fourth Day
- The Fourth Seal
In
time unity will make the spaces complete.
Error
was disturbed not knowing what it
should do.
Truth
appeared; all its emanations recognized it.
All
the spaces are his emanations.
But the
Father is perfect. He knows every space which is within
him.
|
| (33) Jesus said, "Preach
from your
housetops that
which you will hear in your ear. For no
one lights a lamp and puts it
under a bushel, nor
does he put it in a hidden place, but rather he
sets it on a lampstand so that everyone
who enters and leaves will see
its light." |
devouring
matter within itself like fire, and darkness
by light, death
by life.
Certainly, if these
things have happened to each one of us, it is
fitting for us, surely, to think
about the All so that the house may be
holy and silent for unity.
|
(34) Jesus said, "If
a blind man leads a
blind man, they
will both fall into a pit."
|
Like
people who have moved from a
neighborhood, if they have some dishes around which are
not good, they
usually break them. |
| (35) Jesus said, "It
is not possible for
anyone to
enter the house of a strong man and take it by force unless he binds
his hands; then he will (be able to) ransack his house." |
Nevertheless
the householder does not suffer a
loss, but rejoices, for in the place of these defective
dishes there
are those which are completely perfect.
|
| (36) Jesus said, "Do
not be concerned
from
morning
until evening and from evening until morning about what
you will wear." |
For this
is the judgement which
has come from above and which
has judged every person, a
drawn
two-edged sword cutting on this side and that. |
(37) His disciples said, "When
will you
become revealed to us and when shall we see you?"
Jesus said, "When you disrobe
without
being ashamed
and take up your
garments and place
them under your feet like little
children and tread on them, then
will you see the son of the living
one, and you will not be afraid" |
When
it appeared, I
mean, the Logos, who is in the heart of those who pronounce it - it was
not merely a sound but it has become a body - a
great disturbance
occurred among
the dishes, for some were emptied, others filled: some
were provided for, others
were removed; some were purified, still
others were broken.
All
the spaces were shaken and disturbed
|
| (38) Jesus said, "Many
times have you
desired to
hear
these words which I am saying to you, and you have no one
else to
hear them from. There
will be days when you will look for me and will
not find me." |
for they
had no composure nor stability. Error
was disturbed not knowing what it
should do. It was troubled; it
lamented, it was beside itself because
it did not know anything.
|
| (39) Jesus said, "The
pharisees and the
scribes have
taken the keys of knowledge (gnosis) and hidden them. They
themselves
have not entered, nor have they allowed to enter those who wish to.
You,
however, be as wise as serpents and as innocent as doves." |
When
knowledge, which is its abolishment,
approached it with all its emanations, error is empty, since there is
nothing in it. Truth
appeared; all its emanations recognized it. They
actually greeted the Father with a power which is complete and which
joins them with the Father.
|
| (40) Jesus said, "A
grapevine has been
planted
outside of the father, but being
unsound, it will be pulled up by its
roots and destroyed." |
For each one loves truth
because truth
is
the mouth of the Father. His
tongue is the Holy Spirit, who joins him
to truth
attaching him to the mouth of the Father |
| (41) Jesus said, "Whoever
has something
in his hand
will receive
more, and whoever has nothing will be deprived of even the
little he has." |
by his tongue at the
time he
shall receive the Holy Spirit.
This
is the
manifestation of the Father and his revelation to his
Aeons.
|
(42) Jesus said, "Become
passers-by."
(Alternate translation: Passing away, come
into being.)
|
He
revealed his hidden self and explained it. For
who is it who exists if
it is not the Father himself?
|
(43) His disciples said to him, "Who
are
you, that you should say these things to us?"
<Jesus said to them,> "You
do not realize who
I am from what I say to you, but you have become like the
Jews, for
they (either) love
the tree and hate its fruit (or) love
the fruit and
hate the tree."
|
All
the spaces are his emanations. They
knew that they stem from him as children from a perfect man.They
knew
that they had not yet received form nor had they yet received a name,
every one of which the Father produces. If
they at that time receive
form of his knowledge, though they are truly in him, they do not know
him.
|
| (44) Jesus said, "Whoever
blasphemes
against the
father will be forgiven, and whoever
blasphemes against the son will be
forgiven, but whoever blasphemes against the holy spirit
will not be
forgiven either
on earth or in heaven." |
But the
Father is perfect. He knows every space which is within
him. If he pleases, he
reveals anyone whom he desires by giving him a
form and by giving him a name; and he does give him a name
and cause
him to come into being.
|
(45) Jesus said, "Grapes
are not
harvested from
thorns, nor are figs gathered from thistles, for they do not produce
fruit. A
good man brings forth good from his storehouse; an
evil man
brings forth evil
things from
his evil
storehouse,
which is in his
heart, and says evil
things. For out
of the abundance of the heart he
brings forth evil
things."
|
Those
who do not yet exist are
ignorant of him
who created them. I
do not say, then, that those who do not yet exist
are nothing. But they
are in him who will desire that they exist when
he pleases, like the event which is going to happen. On
the one hand,
he
knows, before anything is revealed, what he will produce. On
the
other hand, the fruit which has not yet been revealed does
not know
anything, nor
is it anything either. |
(46) Jesus said, "Among those
born of
women, from
Adam until John the Baptist, there
is no one so superior to John the
Baptist that his eyes should not be lowered (before him).
Yet I have
said, whichever
one of you comes to be a child will be acquainted with
the kingdom and will become superior to John."
|
Thus each
space which, on its
part, is in the Father comes from the existent one, who,
on his part,
has established it from the nonexistent. [...] he
who does not exist at
all, will never exist.
What,
then, is that which he wants him to think?
|
| (47) Jesus said, "It
is impossible for a
man to
mount two horses or to stretch two bows. And it is impossible for a
servant to serve two masters; otherwise, he
will honor the one and
treat the other contemptuously. No
man drinks old wine and immediately
desires to drink new wine. And new wine is not put into old wineskins,
lest they burst; nor is old wine put into a new wineskin, lest it spoil
it. An
old patch is not sewn onto a new garment, because a tear would
result." |
"I am like the shadows
and phantoms of the night." When morning comes, this
one knows that the
fear which he had experienced was nothing. Thus they were
ignorant of
the
Father; he is the one whom they did not see. Since
there had been
fear and confusion and a lack of confidence and doublemindness and
division, there
were many illusions which were conceived by him, the
foregoing, as well as empty ignorance |
(48) Jesus said, "If
two make peace with
each other
in this one house, they will say to the mountain, 'Move
Away,' and it
will move away."
|
- as
if they were fast asleep and
found themselves a prey to troubled dreams. Either there
is a place to
which they flee, or
they lack strength as they come, |
(49) Jesus said, "Blessed
are the
solitary and
elect, for you
will find the kingdom. For you
are from it, and to
it
you will return."
|
having
pursued
unspecified things. Either they
are involved in inflicting blows, or
they themselves receive bruises.
Either they
are falling from high
places, or
they fly off through the air, though they have no wings at
all. |
| (50) Jesus said, "If
they say to you,
'Where did you
come from?', say to them, 'We
came from the light, the place where the
light came into being on its own accord and established itself and
became manifest through their image.' If they say to you, 'Is it you?',
say, 'We
are its children, we are the elect of the living father.'
If
they ask you, 'What
is the sign of your father in you?', say to them,
'It is movement
and repose.'" |
Other
times, it is as if certain people were trying to kill them,
even though there is no one pursuing them; or, they
themselves are
killing those beside them, for they
are stained by their blood. Until
the moment when they who are passing through all these things
- I mean
they
who have experienced all these confusions - awake,
they
see
nothing because the dreams were nothing.
|
(51) His disciples said to him, "When
will the
repose of the dead come about, and when will the new world come?"
He said to them, "What
you look forward
to has already come, but you do not recognize it." |
It
is thus that they who cast
ignorance from them as sleep do not consider it to be anything, nor
regard its properties to be something real, but they
renounce them like
a dream in the night and they
consider the knowledge of the Father to
be the dawn.
|
The Fifth Day -
The Fifth Seal
Many
received the light and turned towards him.
And happy
is the man who comes to himself and
awakens.
Foster
men who love.
Raise up and awaken those who sleep.
Turn
your attention to yourselves. For
the Father is sweet and his will is good.
|
(52) His disciples said to him,
"Twenty-four
prophets spoke in Israel, and all of them spoke in you."
He said to them, "You
have omitted the
one living in your presence and have
spoken (only) of the dead." |
It
is thus that each one has acted, as if he were asleep,
during the time when he was ignorant and thus he
comes to understand,
as if he were awakening. And happy
is the man who comes to himself and
awakens. |
(53) His disciples said to him,
"Is
circumcision beneficial or not?"
He said to them, "If
it were beneficial,
their
father would beget them already circumcised from their mother.
Rather,
the true circumcision in spirit has become completely profitable." |
Indeed,
blessed is he who has
opened the eyes of the blind.
And the
Spirit came to him in haste when it raised him. Having given its
hand to the one lying prone on the ground, it placed him firmly on his
feet, for he had not yet stood up.
|
(54)
Jesus said, "Blessed
are the poor,
for yours is the kingdom of heaven."
|
He
gave them the means of knowing
the knowledge of the Father and the revelation of his son. For when
they saw it and listened to it, |
(55)
Jesus said, "Whoever does not hate
his father
and his mother cannot become
a disciple to me. And whoever does not
hate
his brothers and sisters and take
up his cross
( )
in my way will not
be worthy of me."
|
he
permitted them to take a taste of
and to smell and to grasp
the
beloved son.
He
appeared, informing them of the Father, the illimitable
one.
|
| (56)
Jesus said, " Whoever
has come to
understandthe
world has found
(only) a
corpse, and whoever
has found
a
corpse is
superior to the world." |
He
inspired them with that which is in the mind, while doing his will.
Many
received the light and turned towards him. But material
men were
alien to him and did
not discern his appearance nor recognize him. |
| (57)
Jesus said, "The
kingdom of the
father is like
a man who had good seed. His enemy came by night and sowed
weeds among the
good seed. The man did not allow them to pull up the
weeds; he said
to them, 'I am afraid that you will go intending to pull up the weeds
and pull up the
wheat along with them.' For on the day of the harvest the
weeds will be plainly visible, and they
will be pulled up and burned." |
For
he came in the likeness of flesh and nothing blocked his way because it
was incorruptible and unrestrainable. Moreover,
while saying new
things, speaking about what is in the heart of the Father, he
proclaimed the faultless word. Light
spoke through his mouth, and his
voice brought forth life. He gave them thought and understanding and
mercy and salvation
|
| (58)
Jesus said, "Blessed
is the man who
has suffered and found life." |
and
the
Spirit of strength derived from the
limitlessness of the Father and sweetness. He
caused punishments and
scourgings to cease, |
(59)
Jesus said, "Take heed of the
living one while
you are alive, lest
you die and seek to see him and be unable to do so."
|
for
it
was they which caused many in need of mercy
to astray from him in error and in chains - and he
mightily destroyed
them |
(60)
<They saw> a
Samaritan carrying a lamb on
his way to Judea. He said to his disciples, "That
man is round about
the lamb."
They said to him, "So that he
may kill
it and eat it."
He said to them, "While it is alive, he
will not eat
it, but only when he has killed it and it has become a corpse."
They said to him, "He cannot do so
otherwise."
He said to them, "You
too, look for a
place for
yourself within repose, lest you become a corpse and be eaten." |
and
derided them with knowledge. He
became a path for those who
went astray and knowledge
to those who were ignorant, a discovery for
those who sought, and a support for those who tremble, a purity for
those who were defiled.
He
is the shepherd who left behind the ninety-nine sheep which had not
strayed and went in search of that one which was lost. He rejoiced when
he had found it. For ninety-nine is a number of the left
hand, which
holds it. The
moment he finds the one, however, the whole number is
transferred to the right hand. (C.f. The Lost Sheep Thomas
107 )
|
(61)
Jesus said, "Two
will rest on a
bed: the
one will die, and the other will live."
Salome said, "Who are you, man, that you
... have come up on my couch and eaten from my table?"
Jesus said to her, "I am he who exists
from the
undivided. I was given some of the things of my
father."
<...> "I
am your disciple."
<...> "Therefore
I say, if
he is destroyed, he
will be filled with light, but if he is divided, he will be filled with
darkness."
|
Thus
it is with him who lacks the one,
that is, the entire right hand which attracts that in which it is
deficient, seizes it from the left side and transfers it to the right.
In
this way, then, the number becomes one hundred. This number
signifies the Father. ( C.f. Coptic
for 100, Pronunciation of 100
? )
He
labored even on the Sabbath for the sheep which he found fallen into
the pit. He saved the life of that sheep, bringing it up
from the pit
in order that you may understand fully what that Sabbath is, you who
possess full understanding. It
is a day in which it is not fitting that
salvation be idle, so that you may speak of that heavenly day which has
no night
and of the sun which does not set because it is perfect. |
| (62)
Jesus said, "It is to those
who are
worthy of
my mysteries that I tell my mysteries. Do not let your
left (hand) know
what your right (hand) is doing." |
Say
then in your heart that you are this perfect day and that in you the
light which does not fail dwells.
|
| (63) Jesus said, "There
was a rich man
who had much
money.
He
said, 'I shall put my money to use so that I may sow, reap,
plant, and fill my storehouse with produce, with the result that I
shall lack nothing.' Such
were his intentions, but that same night he
died. Let him who has ears hear." |
Speak
concerning the truth to those who seek it and of knowledge to
those who, in their error, have committed sin. Make
sure-footed those
who stumble and stretch forth your hands to the sick. Nourish
the
hungry and set at ease those who are troubled. |
(64) Jesus said, "A
man had received
visitors. And
when he had prepared the dinner, he sent his servant to invite the
guests.
He went to the first one and said to
him, 'My
master
invites you.' He said, 'I have claims against some
merchants. They are
coming to me this evening. I must go and give them my orders. I
ask to
be excused from the dinner.'
He went to another and said to him, 'My
master has
invited you.' He said to him, 'I have just bought a house and am
required for the day.
I
shall not have any spare time.'
He went to
another and said to him, 'My
master
invites you.' He said to him, 'My friend is going to get married, and I
am to prepare the banquet. I shall not be able to come. I
ask to be
excused from the dinner.'
He went to another and said to him, 'My
master
invites you.' He said to him, 'I have just bought a farm,
and I am on
my way to collect the rent. I shall not be able to come. I ask to be
excused.
The servant returned and said to his
master, 'Those
whom you invited to the dinner have asked to be excused.'
The master
said to his servant, 'Go outside to the streets and bring back those
whom you happen to meet, so that they may dine.' Businessmen
and
merchants will not enter the places of my father."
|
Foster
men who love.
Raise up and awaken those who sleep. For you are this understanding
which encourages. If the strong follow this course, they are even
stronger. Turn
your attention to yourselves. Do not be concerned with
other things, namely, that which you have cast forth from yourselves,
that which you have dismissed. Do
not return to them to eat them. Do
not be moth-eaten. Do not be worm-eaten, for you have already shaken it
off. Do not be a place of the devil, for you have already
destroyed
him. Do
not strengthen your last obstacles, because that is
reprehensible. For the lawless one is nothing. He harms
himself more
than the law. For
that one does his works because he is a lawless
person. But this one, because he is a righteous person,
does his works
among others. Do the will of the Father, then, for you are from him.
For
the Father is sweet and his will is good. He knows the
things that are
yours, so that you may rest yourselves in them. For
by the fruits one
knows the things that are yours, that they are the
children of the
Father, and one knows his aroma, that you originate from the grace of
his countenance. For this reason, the
Father loved his aroma; and it
manifests itself in every place; and when it is mixed with
matter, he
gives his aroma to the light;
|
The Sixth Day
- The Sixth
Seal
For
the Father is sweet and his will is good.
His
will is incomprehensible.
For
the Father knows the beginning of
them all as
well as their end.
|
(65) He said, "There was a good
man who
owned a
vineyard. He leased it to tenant farmers so that they
might work it and
he might collect the produce from them. He sent his servant so that the
tenants might give him the produce of the
vineyard. They seized his
servant and beat him, all but killing him. The servant went back and
told his master. The master said, 'Perhaps
he did not recognize them.'
He sent another servant. The tenants beat this one as well. Then the
owner sent his son and said, 'Perhaps they will show respect to my
son.' Because the tenants knew that it was he who was the heir to the
vineyard, they
seized him and killed him. Let
him who has ears hear."
|
and into his rest he
causes it to ascend
in every form and in every sound. For there are no
nostrils which smell
the aroma, but it is the Spirit which possesses the sense of smell and
it draws it for itself to itself and sinks into the aroma of the
Father. He is, indeed, the place for it, and he takes it to the place
from which it has come, in the first aroma which is cold. It
is
something in a psychic form, resembling cold water which
is [...] since
it
is in soil which is not hard, of which those who see it think, "It
is earth." Afterwards, it becomes soft again. If a breath
is taken, it
is usually hot. The cold aromas, then, are from the division. For
this
reason, God came and destroyed the division and he brought
the hot
Pleroma of love,
|
| (66) Jesus said, "Show me the
stone
which the builders have rejected. That
one is the cornerstone." |
so that the cold may not return,
but the
unity of the
Perfect Thought prevail. |
| (67) Jesus said, "If one
who knows the
all still
feels a personal deficiency, he
is completely deficient." |
This
is the
word of the Gospel of the finding of the
Pleroma for those
who
wait for the salvation which
comes from above. |
| (68) Jesus said, "Blessed
are you when
you are hated
and persecuted. Wherever
you have been persecuted they
will find no
place." |
When
their hope, for
which they are waiting, is waiting - they
whose likeness is the light
in which there
is no shadow, |
| (69) Jesus said, "Blessed are
they who
have been
persecuted within
themselves. It is they who have truly
come to know
the father. Blessed are the
hungry, for the belly of him who desires
will be filled." |
then at that time the
Pleroma is about to
come. The
deficiency of matter, however, is not because of the
limitlessness of the Father who comes at the
time of the deficiency. |
(70) Jesus said, "That
which you have
will save you
if you bring it forth from yourselves. That
which you do not have
within you will
kill you if you do not have it within you."
|
And
yet no one is able to say that the incorruptible One will come in
this manner. But the
depth of the Father is increasing, and the
thought
of error is not with him. |
(71) Jesus said, "I
shall destroy this
house, and no one will be able to build
it [...]."
|
It
is a matter of falling down and a matter
of being
readily set upright at the finding of that one who has
come to
him who will turn back.
For
this turning back is called "repentance".
|
(72) A
man said to him, "Tell my
brothers to divide my father's possessions with me."
He said to him, "O
man, who has made me
a divider?"
He turned to his disciples and said to
them, "I
am not a divider, am I?" |
For
this reason, incorruption
has breathed. It followed him
who has sinned in order that he may find
rest. For forgiveness is that which remains for the light in the
deficiency, the word of the pleroma. For the
physician hurries to the
place in which there is sickness, because that is the desire which he
has.
|
| (73) Jesus said, "The
harvest is great
but the
laborers are few. Beseech the Lord, therefore, to send out
laborers
to
the harvest." |
The
sick man is in a deficient condition, but
he does not hide
himself because the
physician possesses that which he lacks. |
| (74) He said, "O Lord, there are many
around the drinking trough, but there
is nothing in the cistern." |
In this
manner the
deficiency is filled by the Pleroma, which
has no
deficiency, which has given itself out in order to fill
the one who is
deficient, |
| (75) Jesus said, "Many
are standing at
the door, but it
is the solitary who will enter the bridal chamber." |
so
that grace may take him, then, from the area which is
deficient and has no grace. Because
of this a diminishing occurred in
the place which there is no grace, |
| (76) Jesus said, "The
kingdom of the
father is like
a merchant who
had a consignment of merchandise and
who
discovered a
pearl. That
merchant was shrewd. He
sold the merchandise and bought
the
pearl alone for himself. You too, seek his
unfailing and enduring
treasure where no moth comes near to devour and no worm destroys." |
the
area where the one
who is small,
who
is deficient, is taken hold of.
He
revealed himself as a Pleroma, i.e., the
finding of the light of truth
which has shined towards him, because
he is unchangeable. For this
reason, they
who have been troubled speak about Christ in their midst
|
| (77) Jesus said, "It
is I who am the
light which is
above them all. It
is I who am the all. From
me did the all come forth,
and unto
me did the all extend. Split a piece of wood, and I am
there.
Lift up the stone, and you will find me there." |
so
that they may receive a return and he may anoint them with
the
ointment. The
ointment is the pity of the Father, who will have mercy
on them. But those
whom he has anointed are those who are perfect. For
the
filled vessels are those which are customarily used for anointing.
|
| (78) Jesus said, "Why
have you come out
into the
desert? To see a reed shaken by the wind? And to
see a man clothed in
fine garments like your kings and your great men? Upon them are the
fine garments, and they are unable to discern
the truth." |
But when
an anointing is finished, the vessel is usually empty, and the
cause of its deficiency is the consumption of its ointment.
For then
a
breath is drawn only through the power which he has. But the
one who is
without deficiency
|
(79) A
woman from the crowd said to him,
"Blessed
are the womb which bore you and the breasts which nourished you."
He said to her, "Blessed
are those who
have heard
the word of the father and have truly kept it. For there
will be days
when you will say, 'Blessed
are the womb which has not conceived and
the breasts which have not given milk.'" |
- one
does not trust anyone beside him nor does one
pour anything out. But that
which is the deficient is filled again by
the perfect Father. He
is good. He knows his plantings because he is
the one who has planted them in his Paradise. And his Paradise is his
place of rest.
This
is the perfection in the thought of the Father and these are the words
of his reflection. Each one of his words is the work of his will alone,
in the revelation of his Logos. |
| (80) Jesus said, "He
who has recognized
the world
has found the
body, but he
who has found the
body is superior to the
world." |
Since they
were in the depth of his
mind, the
Logos, who was the first to come forth, caused
them to
appear, |
| (81) Jesus said, "Let
him who has grown
rich be king, and let
him who possesses power renounce it." |
along with an
intellect which speaks the unique word by
means
of a silent grace. It was called
"thought," |
| (82) Jesus said, "He
who is near me is
near the fire, and he who is far from me is far from the
kingdom." |
since they
were in it
before becoming manifest. It happened, then, that it was
the first to
come forth - |
| (83) Jesus said, "The
images are
manifest to man,
but the
light in them remains concealed in the image of the light of
the father. He
will become manifest, but his image will remain
concealed by his light." |
at the moment pleasing to the
will of him who desired it;
and it
is in the will that the Father is at rest and with which
he is
pleased. Nothing
happens without him, nor does anything occur without
the will of the Father. |
| (84) Jesus said, "When you see
your
likeness, you
rejoice. But
when you see your images which came into being before you,
and which neither die not become manifest, how
much you will have to
bear!" |
But his will is incomprehensible.
His
will is
his mark, but no one can know it, nor
is it possible for them to
concentrate on it in order to possess it. But that which
he wishes
takes place at the moment he wishes it - |
(85) Jesus said, "Adam
came into being
from a great
power and a great wealth, but
he did not become worthy of you. For had
he been worthy, he
would not have experienced death."
|
even if the view does not
please anyone: it is God`s will. For
the Father knows the beginning of
them all as
well as their end. For when
their end arrives, he will
question them to their faces.
|
(86) Jesus said, "The
foxes have their
holes and the
birds have their nests, but the
son of man has no place to lay his head
and rest."
|
The end, you see, is the
recognition of
him
who is hidden, that is, the Father, from whom the
beginning came
forth and to whom will return all who have come from him.
|
(87) Jesus said, "Wretched is the
body
that is
dependant upon a
body, and wretched is the soul that is dependent on
these
two."
|
For they
were
made manifest for the glory and the joy of his name.
And
the name of the
Father is the
Son. It is he who, in the beginning,
|
(88) Jesus said, "The
angels and the
prophets will
come to you and give
to you those things you (already) have. And you
too, give
them those things which you have, and say to yourselves,
'When
will they come and take what is theirs?'"
|
gave
a name to him who
came forth from him - he is the same one - and he
begat him for a son. He
gave him his name which belonged to him - he,
the
Father, who possesses everything which exists around him. He
possess the name; he has the son.
|
| (89) Jesus said, "Why do you wash
the
outside of the
cup? Do
you not realize that he
who made the
inside is the
same one who
made the
outside?" |
It
is possible for them to see him.
The name, however, is invisible, for it alone is the
mystery of the
invisible about to come to ears
completely filled with it through the
Father`s agency.
|
(90) Jesus said, "Come unto me, for my
yoke is easy
and my
lordship is mild, and you will find repose for yourselves."
|
Moreover, as for the Father, his
name is not
pronounced, but it
is revealed through a son. Thus, then, the name is
great.
|
(91) They said to him, "Tell
us who you
are so that we may believe in you."
He said to them, "You read the
face of
the sky and
of the earth, but you
have not recognized the one who is before you,
and you
do not know how to read this moment."
|
Who,
then, has been able to pronounce a name for him, this great name,
except
him alone to whom the name belongs and the sons of the
name in
whom the name of the Father is at rest, and who
themselves in turn are
at rest in his name, since
the Father has no beginning?
|
(92) Jesus said, "Seek and you
will
find. Yet, what
you asked me about in former times and which I did not
tell you then,
now
I do desire to tell, but you do not inquire after it."
|
It is he alone
who engendered it for himself as a name
in
the beginning before he had
created the Aeons, that the
name of the Father should be over their
heads as a lord - that
is, the real name,
|
| (93) <Jesus said,> "Do
not
give what is holy
to dogs, lest they throw them on the dung-heap. Do not
throw the
pearls
to swine, lest they [...] it [...]." |
which is secure by his
authority and by his perfect power. For the
name is not drawn from
lexicons nor is his name derived from common name-giving,
|
(94) Jesus said, "He
who seeks will
find, and he
who knocks will be let in."
|
But
it is
invisible. He gave a name to himself alone, because he
alone saw it and
because he
alone was capable of giving himself a name.
|
(95) Jesus said, "If
you have money, do
not lend it
at interest, but give
it to one from whom you will not get it back."
|
For he
who does
not exist has
no name. For what name would one
give him who did not
exist? Nevertheless, he who exists also with his name and he alone
knows it,
|
(96) Jesus said, "The
kingdom of the
father is like
a certain woman. She took a little leaven, concealed
it in some dough,
and made
it into large loaves. Let
him who has ears hear."
|
and to him alone the
Father gave a name. The
Son is his name.
He did not, therefore, keep
it secretly hidden, but the
son came into
existence. He himself gave a name to him. The
name, then, is that of
the Father,
|
(97) Jesus said, "The
kingdom of the
father is like
a certain woman who was carrying a jar full of meal. While
she was
walking on the road, still
some distance from home, the handle of the
jar broke and the meal emptied out behind her on the road. She
did not
realize it; she had noticed no accident. When she reached
her house,
she set the jar down and found it empty."
|
just as the
name of the Father is the Son. For otherwise,
where would compassion find a name - outside
of the Father? But someone
will probably say to his companion, "Who
would give a name to someone
who existed before himself, as if, indeed, children did
not receive
their name from one of those who gave them birth?"
Above all, then, it is fitting for us to think this point over:
|
| (98) Jesus said, "The
kingdom of the
father is like
a certain man who wanted to kill a powerful man. In
his own house he
drew his sword and stuck it into the wall in order to find out whether
his hand could carry through. Then
he slew the powerful man." |
What is
the name? It is the real name. It is, indeed, the
name which came from
the Father, for it is he who owns the name. He did not,
you see, get
the
name on loan, as in the case of others because of the form
in which
each one of them is going to be created. This,
then, is the
authoritative name. |
(99) The disciples said to him, "Your
brothers and your mother are standing outside."
He said to them, "Those
here who do the
will of my
father are my brothers and my mother. It
is they who will enter the
kingdom of my father." |
There
is no one else to whom he has given it. But
it
remained unnamed, unuttered, `till the moment when he, who is
perfect, pronounced it himself; and it
was he alone who was able to
pronounce his name and to see it. |
(100) They showed Jesus a gold
coin and
said to him, "Caesar's men demand taxes from us."
He
said to them, "Give Caesar what
belongs to
Caesar, give
God what belongs to God, and give
me what is mine." |
When it pleased him, then, that
his
son should be his pronounced name and when he
gave this name to him, he
who has come from the depth spoke of his secrets, because
he knew that
the Father was absolute goodness. |
(101) <Jesus said,>
"Whoever does not hate his
father and his mother as I do cannot become
a disciple to me. And
whoever does not love his father and his mother as I do cannot become a
disciple to me. For my mother [...], but my true mother
gave me life."
|
For this reason, indeed, he
sent this
particular one in order that he might speak concerning the place and
his place of rest from which he had come forth, and
that he might
glorify the Pleroma, the greatness of his name and the sweetness of his
Father.
|
| (102) Jesus said, "Woe
to the pharisees,
for they
are like a dog sleeping in the
manger of oxen, for neither does he eat
nor does he let the oxen eat." |
Each
one will speak concerning the place from which he has come forth, and
to the region from which he received his essential being, he
will
hasten to return once again. |
| (103) Jesus said, "Fortunate
is the man
who knows
where the brigands will enter, so
that he may get up, muster
his
domain, and
arm himself before they invade." |
And he
want from that place - the place
where he was - because he tasted of that place, as
he was nourished and
grew. And his
own place of rest is his Pleroma. All
the emanations from
the Father,
|
(104) They said to Jesus, "Come,
let us
pray today and let us fast."
Jesus said, "What
is the sin that I have
committed,
or wherein have I been defeated? But when
the bridegroom leaves the
bridal chamber, then let
them fast and pray." |
therefore, are Pleromas, and all his
emanations have their
roots in the one who caused them all to
grow from
himself. He
appointed
a limit. They,
then, became manifest individually in order that they
might be in their own thought, for that
place to which they extend
their thoughts is their root,
|
(105) Jesus said, "He who knows the
father and the mother will be called the son of a harlot."
|
which lifts them upward through
all
heights to the
Father. They reach his head, which is rest for them,
|
The Seventh Day - The Seventh Seal
And they
do
not go down to Hades.
Children
of this kind are those whom he loves.
|
| (106) Jesus said, "When
you make the two
one, you
will become the sons of man, and when you say, 'Mountain,
move away,'
it will move away." |
and
they
remain there near to it so that they say that they have
participated in
his face by means of embraces. But these of this kind
were not manifest,
|
| (107) Jesus said, "The kingdom is
like a
shepherd
who had a hundred sheep. One
of them, the largest, went astray. He
left
the ninety-nine sheep and looked for that one until he
found it. When
he
had gone to such trouble, he said to the sheep, 'I care
for you more
than the ninety-nine.'" |
because they have not risen above
themselves.
Neither have they been deprived of the glory of the Father nor
have
they thought of him as small, nor bitter, nor angry, but as absolutely
good, unperturbed,
sweet, knowing
all the spaces before they came into
existence and having no need of instruction.
|
(108) Jesus said, "He
who will drink
from my mouth
will become like me. I myself shall become he, and
the
things that are
hidden will be revealed to him." |
Such
are they who possess
from above something
of this immeasurable greatness, as
they strain
towards that unique and perfect one who exists there for
them. |
| (109) Jesus said, "The kingdom is
like a
man who had
a
hidden treasure in his field without knowing it. And
after he died,
he left it to his son. The
son did not know (about the treasure). He
inherited the field and sold it. And the
one who bought it went plowing
and found the treasure. He
began to lend money at interest to whomever
he wished." |
And they
do
not go down to Hades. They have neither envy nor moaning,
nor is
death in them. But they
rest in him who rests, without
wearying
themselves or becoming involved in the search for truth.
But, they,
indeed, are the truth, and the Father is in them, and they are in the
Father, since
they are perfect, inseparable from him who is truly good. |
(110) Jesus said, "Whoever
finds the
world and becomes rich, let
him renounce the world."
|
They
lack nothing in any way, but they
are given rest and are refreshed
by the Spirit. |
| (111) Jesus said, "The
heavens and the
earth will be
rolled up in your presence. And
the one who lives from the living one
will not see death." Does not Jesus say, "Whoever
finds himself is
superior to the world?" |
And they listen to their
root; they
have leisure for
themselves, they in whom he will find his
root, and
he will suffer no
loss to his soul.
Such
is the place of the blessed; this
is their place. |
| (112) Jesus said, "Woe
to the
flesh that
depends on the soul; woe
to the soul that depends on the
flesh." |
As for the rest,
then, may they
know, in their place, that it
does not suit me, |
(113) His disciples said to him, "When
will the kingdom come?"
<Jesus said,> "It
will not
come by waiting for
it. It will not be a matter of saying 'here it is' or
'there it is.'
Rather, the
kingdom of the father is spread out upon the earth, and men
do not see it."
|
after
having been in the place of rest to say anything more. But
he is the
one in whom I shall be in order to devote
myself, at all times, to the
Father of the All and the true brothers, those upon whom
the love of
the Father is lavished, and in
whose midst nothing of him is lacking.
It
is they who manifest themselves truly |
(114)
Simon Peter said to him, "Let Mary
leave us, for women
are not worthy of life."
Jesus said, "I myself shall lead her in
order to
make her male, so that she
too may become a living spirit resembling
you males. For
every woman who will make herself male will enter the
kingdom of heaven."
|
since
they
are in that true
and eternal life and
speak of the perfect light filled with the seed of
the Father, and which is in his heart and in the Pleroma, while
his
Spirit rejoices in it and glorifies him in whom it was,
because the
Father is good. And his children are perfect and worthy of his name,
because he is the Father. Children
of this kind are those whom he loves.
|
|
The
Gospel of Thomas Audiobook
(Or The Gospel of the Living Jesus)
Translated by Thomas O. Lambdin |
The
Gospel of Truth Audiobook
From
Robert M. Grant, Gnosticism
(Harper & Brothers, New York, 1961),
as quoted in Willis Barnstone, The
Other Bible
(Harper & Row, San Francisco, 1984).
|
Meditatively match each color coded phrase in the Gospel of Thomas
with the corresponding phrase in the The Gospel of Truth.
Consider the connections in thought, word, and rhetoric
and discover the
intentionally hidden messages found within the
text.
More on the Seven
Days and the Seven
Seals.
|
For
similar
comparison and contrast within other Scripture see
"The Testimony
of Jesus
- New Testament Cross Reference Study"
|
HOME
|
|
