Tyconius (fl. c. 370–390) was a lay theologian of Roman North Africa whose Liber Regularum — the first Latin treatise on the interpretation of Scripture — was influential enough that Augustine summarised it at length in De Doctrina Christiana, notwithstanding that Tyconius was a Donatist whom his own party censured and finally expelled. He wrote no commentary on Colossians; what follows is a selection of excerpts from the Book of Rules, taken from F. C. Burkitt’s 1894 edition at the points where Tyconius cites the epistle — Colossians 2:19, 1:24, 2:16 and 3:5–6. The passages turn chiefly on his first rule, the distinction between Christ the Head and the Church his body, and on the discernment Scripture requires when it passes from the one to the other without saying so.
SOURCE: Tyconius. The Book of Rules of Tyconius. Edited by F. C. Burkitt. Texts and Studies: Contributions to Biblical and Patristic Literature III.1. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1894. Internet Archive.
TRANSLATION: Tyconius. “Excerpts on Colossians.” In The Book of Rules. Translated by Phil Thompson. Greenville, SC: Institute for Colossians Studies, 2026.
Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0): https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Text
Translation of Pages 2–3 [Cites Colossians 2:19]
[Page 2] or because the force of truth is so great, it compels this admission. In other cases, we are dealing with a single person, yet the different roles described teach us that this person is twofold.
Thus, through Isaiah, it says: “He will bear our sins and suffers for us; he himself was wounded for our crimes, and God handed him over for our sins,” and so on, with the other passages that the voice of the entire Church proclaims refer to the Lord. But it continues, saying of the same one: “And God wishes to cleanse him from the wound, and God wishes to take away the suffering from his soul, to show him the light and to form him with understanding.” But how could God want to show light to the one he handed over for our sins, or form him with understanding, when Christ himself is the light and wisdom of God? Is this not meant for his body? Therefore, it is clear that only through reason can we discern when the scripture transitions from speaking of the head to speaking of the body.
Daniel also says that the Lord is the stone cut from the mountain that struck the body of the kingdoms of the world and ground it to dust, but that his body is the mountain that was formed and filled the whole earth. For it is not as some say—and I say this not without sorrow, as it is an insult to the kingdom of God and to Christ’s invincible inheritance—that the Lord occupied the whole world by his power and not by the fullness of his body. They claim the world was filled by that mountain in the sense that a Christian is now permitted to make offerings in any place, which before was only permitted in Zion. But if this is so, there was no need to say that a mountain was formed from the stone and that it took over the world by its growth. For our Lord Christ had this glory before the foundation of the world, and when the Son of God became man in him, he did not receive all power in heaven and on earth gradually like the stone, but all at once. The stone, however, became a great mountain through stages of growth, and in growing it covered the whole earth. But if he had filled the whole [Page 3] earth by his power and not by his body, he would not be compared to a stone. Power is an intangible thing, whereas a stone is a tangible body.
Nor is it by reason alone that it is revealed that the body, not the head, grows; it is also confirmed by apostolic authority: “We grow,” it says, “in all things into him who is the head, Christ. From him the whole body, built up and connected through every joint that supports it, grows and builds itself up according to the measure of each individual part.” And again: “Not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, supported and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.” Therefore, it is not the head, which is the same from the beginning, that grows, but the body that grows from the head.
Let us return to the main point. It is written concerning the Lord and his body—and we must discern by reason to which of them it applies: “He has commanded his angels concerning you, to guard you in all your ways. They will carry you in their hands lest you strike your foot against a stone. You will walk upon the asp and the basilisk; you will trample the lion and the dragon. Because he has hoped in me, I will deliver him; I will protect him because he has known my name. He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I am with him in his trouble; I will deliver him and glorify him. I will fill him with length of days and show him my salvation.” Surely God does not show His salvation to the very one whom His angels were commanded to serve? Is this not for his body?
Again: “He has placed a diadem on me as on a bridegroom, and adorned me with jewelry as a bride.” It speaks of one body of both sexes, of the groom and the bride, but reason allows us to know what applies to the Lord and what to the Church. And the same Lord says in the Apocalypse: “I am the bridegroom and the bride.” And again: “They went out to meet the bridegroom and the bride.”
And again, what belongs to the head and what to the body must be discerned by reason, as is declared through Isaiah: “Thus says the Lord to Christ…”
Translation of Pages 5–6 [Cites Colossians 1:24]
[Page 5] is coming.” And again: “Just as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming.” Again, concerning this same hostile body: “For if this one who comes preaches another Jesus.” This is why the Lord, when asked about the sign of his coming, began to speak about the kind of arrival that can be imitated with signs and wonders by this enemy body. “Beware,” he said, “that no one deceives you; for many will come in my name”—that is, in the name of my body. But at the final coming of the Lord—the consummation and full manifestation of his arrival—no one, as some think, will be able to falsely imitate him. However, so that these things may be discussed more fully, we will leave them for their proper place.
Nor will it seem absurd that we understand the whole body to be represented by a single figure, such that the “son of man” signifies the Church. This is because the Church—that is, the children of God brought together into one body—is called the “son of God,” called “one man,” and even called “God.” As the apostle says of the man of sin who opposes himself “to everything that is called God or is an object of worship,” the thing that is “called God” is the Church, while the “object of worship” is the most high God. When it says he “sits in the temple of God, showing himself to be God,” it means he shows that he himself is the Church. It is as if he had said, “he sits in the temple of God, showing himself to be the temple of God,” or “he sits in God, showing himself to be God.” But the apostle wished to obscure this meaning with synonymous terms.
Concerning the final king, Daniel says, “his place will be glorified into a god,” meaning it will be made glorious; just as he will install the abomination of desolation in the place of the Church, in the holy place, he will install it “into God”—that is, into the Church. The Lord calls the entire people his bride and sister; the apostle calls it a holy virgin, while he calls the opposing body the “man of sin.” And David calls the whole Church “Christ,” saying: “Showing mercy to his Christ, to David and to his seed forever.” And [Page 6] the apostle Paul calls the body of Christ “Christ,” saying: “For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so also is Christ”—that is, the body of Christ, which is the Church. Again: “I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ”—that is, of the Church. For nothing was lacking in Christ’s own passions, since “it is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher.” Therefore, we should interpret the “coming of Christ” according to its different contexts.
Likewise, in Exodus, we learn that all the sons of God are one son, and all the firstborn of Egypt are one firstborn, as God says this: “You shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Israel is my firstborn son.” And I said to you, “Let my people go, so that they may serve me.” But you have refused to let him go. So, behold, I will kill your firstborn son.’” And David speaks of the Lord’s vineyard as one son, saying: “God of hosts, return! Look down from heaven and see; visit your vineyard. Perfect the one which your right hand has planted, and the son you have strengthened for yourself.”
And the apostle calls him who is united with the Son of God the “Son of God”: “Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he had promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was born for him from the seed of David according to the flesh, who was predestined Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness from the resurrection of the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord.” If he had said, “concerning his Son from the resurrection of the dead,” he would have indicated one son; but as it is, he says “concerning his Son from the resurrection of the dead of Jesus Christ our Lord.” But he who was made Son of God from the res—
Translation of Pages 63–64 [Cites Colossians 2:16]
“Do not bring burdens in through the gates”? For no one brings burdens into a city over the walls and roofs.
Jerusalem is twofold, and its gates are twofold. Through the gates of hell, one exits the holy Jerusalem, and through those same gates, one enters the accursed one. But those who enter through the gates of heaven enter the eternal Jerusalem, like kings sitting on the throne of David in chariots and on horses. As it says through Isaiah: “They will bring all your brethren from all the nations as a gift to the Lord, with horses and chariots, in the splendor of mules with canopies, to my holy city.”
The holy gates of the city of Jerusalem are Christ, and his vicars are the guardians of the law—who are also the ones who kill the prophets and stone those sent to them. The other gate is the devil, and his vicars are the false apostles, the preachers of the law who conceal the keys of the kingdom of heaven through their abstruse interpretations. These are the gates that do not prevail against the Church, which is founded upon the rock, for the firm foundation of God stands, as it is written: “The Lord knows those who are his.”
However, if anyone enters by way of the precepts of those who preside on the chair of Moses, he enters through Christ, for the precepts are Christ’s. That person lays down the burden of his sins, and without that burden, he enters into the rest of the Sabbath. But if anyone enters not by the precepts but by the deeds of those presiding on the chair, he will become more a son of Gehenna than they are. And while all those who gathered manna before the Sabbath are resting, he will be found with his burden on the Sabbath day, a day on which one can neither gather manna nor lay down a burden. This is because such people refuse to hear the voice of the Son of God crying out in the Church, saying, “Come to me, all you who are burdened, and I will give you rest.”
These are the thieves who do not enter through the true door but through their own gates into their own Jerusalem, and God will kindle a fire [Page 64] in the gates of that Jerusalem; it will devour its main roads and will not be extinguished. For the literal fire that burned the gates of the earthly Jerusalem has been put out; but the apostle says that the Sabbath and the other mandates of the law are a figure of what is to come, in this way: “Therefore, let no one judge you in matters of food and drink, or with respect to a festival, a new moon, or Sabbath days, for this is a shadow of the things to come.”
Translation of Pages 82–83 [Cites Colossians 3:5–6]
[Page 82] “your sons; they are gathered and have come to you. ‘As I live,’ says the Lord, ‘you will be clothed with them all, and you will put them on like the ornament of a new bride; because your desolate and ruined places will now be too narrow for their inhabitants.’” And in the Apocalypse, the same city is constructed, founded on twelve stones. “Every precious stone,” it says, and it enumerated twelve of them to show perfection in that number.
For all things that God made are good; the devil changed their use, not their nature. And all people of excellent sense and powerful intellect are by nature gold, silver, and precious stones, but they will belong to him whom they serve. They enjoy their natural gifts according to their own will, for whomever one commits himself to in obedience, he is a slave to the one he obeys, whether of sin or of justice.
Thus it is that the devil also has gold, silver, and precious stones; all of them are not his by origin, but they are his by allegiance. For it is also written in Job concerning the devil: “All the gold of the sea is under him.” And the apostle says that there are gold and silver vessels that are for dishonorable use. For he did not, as some think, condemn all vessels of wood and clay, since some of them are for honorable use; he himself says that a potter fashions from the same lump of clay one vessel for honor and another for dishonor, and from wood, one item for preparing food and another for sacrilege. He said that some made of gold and silver—that is, the great and brilliant—are unclean. For in the Apocalypse the harlot—that is, the opposing body—is adorned with purple, scarlet, gold, silver, and precious stones, holding a golden cup in her hand full of the abominations and impurities of the whole earth. These, therefore, are the devil’s ornaments, the precious stones with which he imitates the stones of fire.
And a person has within himself treasures of wickedness as well as treasures of brilliance. For he himself is the carrier of his own possessions, and his own faculties have bound him like shackles. Besides those things that are brought forth for adornment by the devil’s body, their hearts are also set on those things which they have buried. For where the treasure is, there a person’s heart will be also. For the old [Page 83] man and his earth are one body, since he himself is also earth. Therefore the apostle defined not only those things which can be committed with the body, but also greed itself as a “member” of the one who possesses it, saying: “Therefore, put to death your members that are on the earth: fornication, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which is the service of idols, on account of which the wrath of God comes.”
“From the day you were created, I placed you with a cherub on the holy mountain of God”—that is, in Christ or in the Church. “You were in the midst of the stones of fire”—that is, of holy people, who when gathered together make up the mountain of God. (For angels, being of another substance, cannot be called stones, because they do not have bodies.) “You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, until iniquity was found in you through the multitude of your trading.”
Peter says the Church is stones: “And you, brothers, like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house.” And God says that this house is fiery and that it burns against evil brothers, in this way: “The house of Jacob will be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, but the house of Esau will be stubble; and they will set them ablaze and consume them, and there will be no survivor for the house of Esau, for the Lord has spoken.” For when a person sins, he is cast down from the mountain of God and, having lost the Spirit, will not be a survivor, but is burned to ash.
“You have sinned and have been cast down from the mountain of God, and the cherub has driven you out from the midst of the stones of fire.” The cherub is the ministry of God, which excludes all evil people from the Church, but does so spiritually. For whoever does not have a wedding garment is excluded in this age from the midst of those who recline at the feast. Finally, he is sent into the darkness—that is, into hardness of heart—until he descends into the eternal fire. For in the age to come, no one who will later be excluded will be mingled with the choir of the saints.
“Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; your wisdom was corrupted on account of your splendor.” For the wisdom of one who knowingly and deliberately errs is corrupted, and with a zeal for contrived wisdom, having concealed the truth, he asserts a lie, as the Spirit says: “When…”
Latin Text
Source Link: https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.167130/page/n3/mode/2up
p. 2
Body Text
uel quia tanta est uis ueritatis extorquet. alias una persona conuenitur quam duplicem esse diuersa duorum officia edocent.
Sic per Esaiam: Hic inquit peccata nostra feret et pro nobis dolet, ipse uulneratus est propter facinora nostra, et Deus tradidit eum pro peccatis nostris, et cetera quae in Dominum conuenire omnis Ecclesiae ore celebratur. sequitur autem et dicit de eodem: Et Deus uult purgare illum a plaga et wult Deus a dolore auferre animam eius, ostendere illi lucem et formare illum prudentia. numquid ei quem tradidit pro peccatis nostris uult ostendere lucem, et eum formare prudentia, cum ipse sit lux et sapientia Dei, et non corpori eius? qua re manifestum est sola ratione uideri posse quando a capite ad corpus transitum facit.
Danihel quoque lapidem de monte praecisum et inpegisse in corpus regnorum mundi et in puluerem commoluisse Dominum dicit, montem uero effectum et impleuisse uniuersam terram corpus eius. non enim sicut quidam dicunt in contumeliam regni Dei inuictaeque hereditatis Christi, quod non sine dolore dico-Dominus totum mundum potestate et non sui corporis plenitudine occupauit. dicunt enim eo monte mundum impletum, quod liceat Christiano in omni loco, quod antea non nisi in Sion licebat offerre. quod si ita est, non opus erat dicere ex lapide montem effectum et incrementis mundum cepisse. Dominus enim noster Christus ante mundi constitutionem hanc habuit claritatem, et cum homo in illo Dei filius fieret non paulatim ut lapis sed uno tempore accepit omnem potestatem in caelo et in terra. lapis autem incrementis factus est mons magnus et crescendo terram omnem texit. quod si potestate implesset uniuersam
Marginal Notes
RV (M) 16 10, 11 Esai liii 4, 5, 6 ef Dan ii 34, 35 of Ioh zvil 5, ante mundi constitutionem hanc habuit claritatem, et cum 24 Dan ii 35
Footnotes
2 diuersa] om R 3 edocet V*
6 eum] illum V
5 ipse] pret VM
ecclesiae B, et sic aliquando (sic) 13 corporix R*
Rrubro; daniel hoc loco
4 sic] pr IN ISALA (sic) R rubro
7 dominum] dm R
8,9
illum purgare V
omni V
r
9 aufere R
14 faciat V 15 danihel] pr IN DANIELO
praecisum] precissum R
commoluisse] comminuisse V
et] om V
16 puluere R
23 antea] ante ea R
25 coepisse R
27 in illo] ille V
29 magnus] om V
30 implesset] implesse R
p. 3
Body Text
terram non corpore, lapidi non compararetur. potestas res est inpalpabilis, lapis uero corpus palpabile. nec sola ratione manifestatur corpus non caput crescere, sed etiam apostolica auctoritate firmatur: Crescimus inquit per omnia in eum qui est caput, Christus, ex quo omne corpus constructum et conexum per omnem tactum subministrationis in mensuram unius cuiusque partis incrementum corporis facit in aedificationem sui. et iterum: Non tenens caput, ex quo omne corpus per tactus et coniunctiones constructum et subministratum crescit in incrementum Dei. non ergo caput, quod ex origine idem est, sed corpus crescit ex capite.
Ad propositum redeamus. scriptum est de Domino et eius corpore-quid cui conueniat ratione discernendum-: Angelis suis mandauit de te ut custodiant te in omnibus uiis tuis, in manibus ferant te ne offendas ad lapidem pedem tuum. super aspidem et basiliscum ambulabis, et conculcabis leonem et draconem. quoniam in me sperauit eripiam eum, protegam illum quoniam cognouit nomen meum. inuocabit me et exaudiam eum, cum ipso sum in tribulatione, eripiam et glorificabo eum. longitudinem dierum adimplebo eum et ostendam illi salutare meum. numquid de cuius obsequio mandauit angelis suis Deus eidem ostendit salutare suum, et non corpori eius?
Iterum: Sicut sponso imposuit mihi mitram et sicut sponsam ornauit me ornamento. unum corpus dixit utriusque sexus sponsi et sponsae, sed quid in Dominum quid in Ecclesiam conueniat ratione cognoscitur. et idem Dominus dicit in Apocalypsi: Ego sum sponsus et sponsa. et iterum: Exierunt obuiam sponso et sponsae.
Et iterum quid capitis quid corporis ratione discernendum sit per Esaiam declaratur: Sic dicit Dominus Christo
Marginal Notes
[Eug] (M) REGVLA PRIMA. RV Eph iv 15, 16 Col ii 19 Ps xc 11-16 § Eng 866 Esai Ixi 10 Eug sponsam ornauit me ornamento. unum corpus dixit utriusque sexus sponsi et sponsae, sed quid in Dominum quid in Ecclesiam conueniat ratione cognoscitur. Ap xxii 16, 17 Mt xxv 1 Esai xlv 1
Footnotes
Ed. M. I: manifeste.
Ed. Ruaci p. 37. in notis: „Mss. nostri: omnium; sed legendum videtur cum editis: hominum.”
I Tim. II, 5.
Ed. Ruaei p. 692. et p. 37. in textu: “sine ipsius data esse non dicitur,” eadem tamen p. 37. in notis: editi,” (e. c. edd. Merlini,) et Msc. Sorbonicus: in ipsius data esse dicitur. Caeteri vero Mss. ut in textu.”
Rom. VII, 12.
Desideratur “et” in ed. M. 1.
1 potestas]+enim V; pr quia M
3 manifestatur] monstratur V
8 per tactus] peractux V*; per tactum Vcorr M
14 te 20] om V*
17 eum] illum V
18 inuocauit RV, uide Sabat. ad loc; ἐπικαλέσεται LXX
19 exaudiam] pr ego V ipso] eo V eripiam]+eum V
20 longitudinem] longitudinex V*; longitudine RVcorr; μακρότητα Lxx (codd)
21 obsequiux V* 22 salutare suum V* vid
25 ornamentum V* vid
31 isaiam V
uide p 7127
unum] unus R* vid 27 in eccla V*M
30 quid corporis] & corpori V
1-2
p. 5
Body Text
uenit. et iterum: Sicut audistis quia antichristus uenit. iterum de eodem corpore: Si enim iste qui uenit alium Iesum praedicat. unde Dominus cum de signo aduentus sui interrogaretur, de illo aduentu suo coepit disputare qui ab inimico corpore signis et prodigiis imitari potest. Cauete inquit ne quis uos seducat; multi enim uenient in nomine meo, id est in nomine corporis mei. nouissimo autem aduentu Domini, id est consummationis et manifestationis totius aduentus eius, nemo ut aliqui putant mentietur. sed quo plenius ista dicantur ordini suo relinquimus.
Nec illud erit absurdum quod ex uno totum corpus uolumus intellegi, ut filium hominis Ecclesiam; quoniam Ecclesia, id est filii Dei redacti in unum corpus, dicti sunt filius Dei, dicti unus homo, dicti etiam Deus sicut per apostolum: Super omne qui dicitur Deus aut quod colitur, qui dicitur Deus Ecclesia est, quod autem colitur Deus summus est, ut in templum Dei sedeat ostendens se quod ipse est Deus, id est quod ipse sit Ecclesia. quale si diceret: in templum Dei sedeat ostendens se quod ipse sit Dei templum, aut: in Deum sedeat ostendens se quod ipse sit Deus. sed hunc intellectum synonymis uoluit obscurare.
Danihel de rege nouissimo in Deum inquit locus eius glorificabitur, id est clarificabitur; ueluti Ecclesiam in loco Ecclesiae, in loco sancto, abominationem uastationis in Deum, id est in Ecclesiam, subornabit. et Dominus totum populum sponsam dicit et sororem; et apostolus uirginem sanctam, et aduersum corpus hominem peccati. et Dauid totam Ecclesiam Christum dicit: Faciens misericordias Christo suo Dauid et semini eius in aeternum. et
Marginal Notes
RV (M) 1 Ioha ii 18 2 Co xi 4 Mt xxiv 4 2 The ii 4 cf Dan xi 36,88 cf Dan xi 31; Mt xxiv 15 Cant v 1 2 Cor xi 2 Rom vi 6 Ps xviii 51
Footnotes
3 iesum] ihm RM; xpm V
5 imitare R
7 id est] idē V*
9 mentietur] metietur V* mox corr
10 quo] quod R
dicentur V*
ordine V* 11 absordum R. (cf p 2614)
15 qui dicitur 1°] Reorr
(? apm); quod dicitur R*vid V 17 templum] RV*; templo VM
sedeat] redeat R* (sedeat Rª) ipse est] ipse sit VM 18 templo VM
19 ostendit V
21 synonymis] scripsi, suadente WR Smith: si non nimis R (ex sinonimis); non nimis nouimus V obscurare.] sic punctum habet R
22, 23 danihel…clarificabitur] supra ras in R
22 rege] regno R 23, 24 in loco ecclesiae] om V*; add Vcorr 24 abominationem] abominatione RV
25 subornauit RV
28 christum] om ∇∗; habet in marg
misericordiam V* vid
29 in aeternum] usque in saeculum V
p. 6
apostolus Paulus corpus Christi Christum appellat dicens: Sicut enim corpus unum est, membra autem habet multa, omnia autem membra ex uno corpore cum sint multa unum corpus est, sic et Christus, id est Christi corpus quod est Ecclesia . iterum: Gaudeo in passionibus pro uobis et repleo quae desunt pressurarum Christi, id est Ecclesiae . nihil enim defuit Christi passionibus, quoniam sufficit discipulo ut sit sicut magister . sic ergo aduentum Christi pro locis accipiemus . item in Exodo omnes filios Dei unum filium et omnes primogenitos Aegypti unum primogenitum esse sic Deo dicente cognoscimus. Dices inquit Pharaoni: Haec dicit Dominus, Filius meus primitiuus Israhel. dixi autem, Dimitte populum ut seruiat mihi; tu autem noluisti dimittere eum . uide ergo, ecce ego occido filium tuum primitiuum . et Dauid uineam Domini unum filium sic ait: Deus uirtutum conuertere, respice de caelo et uide, visita uineam tuam. Et perfice eam quam plantauit dextera tua et in filium conroborasti tibi.
Et apostolus filium Dei dicit qui filio Dei mixtus est: Paulus seruus Iesu Christi, uocatus apostolus, segregatus in euangelium Dei quod ante promiserat per prophetas suos in scripturis sanctis de filio suo, qui factus est ei ex semine David secundum carnem, qui praedestinatus est filius Dei in uirtute secundum Spiritum sanctitatis ex resurrectione mortuorum Iesu Christi Domini nostri . si diceret de filio suo ex resurrectione mortuorum, unum filium ostenderat ; nunc autem de filio inquit suo ex resurrectione mortuorum Iesu Christi Domini nostri . sed qui factus est filius Dei ex re-
p. 63
Nolite inferre per portas? non enim aliqui per muros et tecta infert onera in ciuitatem.
Hierusalem bipertita est, et portae eius bipertitae. per portas inferorum exitur de Hierusalem sancta, et per easdem intratur in maledicta. qui autem per portas intrant caeli intrant in aeternam Hierusalem, ut reges in curribus et in equis sedentes in sede David, sicut per Esaiam: Adducent fratres uestros ex omnibus gentibus donum Domino cum equis et curribus in splendore mulorum cum umbraculis in sanctam ciuitatem. sanctae portae ciuitatis Hierusalem Christus est, et uicarii eius custodes legis, interficientes uero prophetas et lapidantes missos ad se. porta diabolus est, et uicarii eius pseudoapostoli praedicatores legis, claues regni caelorum alto sensu abscondentes. ipsi sunt portae quae non uincunt Ecclesiam, quae supra petram fundata est, quoniam firmum fundamentum Dei stat, sicut scriptum est: Cognouit Dominus qui sunt eius. si quis autem per praecepta praesidentium cathedrae Mosi introiit, per Christum intrat ipsius enim sunt praecepta, ipse exponit onus peccatorum suorum, et sine illo intrat in requiem sabbati. si quis uero non per praecepta sed per facta praesidentium cathedrae intrat, fiet filius gehennae magis quam illi, et requiescentibus uniuersis qui ante sabbatum manna collegerunt, ille cum onere suo inuenietur in die sabbati, in quo non est manna colligere neque onus exponere. quia nolunt audire uocem filii Dei clamantis in Ecclesia et dicentis: Venite ad me omnes qui onerati estis, et ego uos requiescere faciam.
Isti sunt fures qui non per ianuam ueram sed per portas suas intrant in suam Hierusalem, et succendet Deus ignem
p. 64
in portis Hierusalem, et conburet itinera eius et non extingetur. ignis enim qui specialis Hierusalem portas exussit extinctus est; apostolus autem sabbatum et alia legis mandata figuram esse futuri sic ait: Nemo ergo uos iudicet in cibo et potu aut in parte diei festi aut neomeniae aut sabbatorum, quod est umbra futuri.
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filios tuos, collecti sunt et uenerunt ad te. uiuo ego, dicit Dominus, quia omnibus illis indueris, et superinpones illos tibi sicut ornamentum nouae nuptae; quia deserta tua et diruta et quae ceciderunt nunc angustiabuntur ab inhabitantibus. et in Apocalypsi eadem ciuitas duodecim lapidibus fundata construitur. Omnem inquit lapidem optimum, et enumerauit duodecim, ut ostenderet in duodenario numero perfectionem. omnia enim quae fecit Deus bona sunt: horum diabolus usum non naturam mutauit. et omnes homines excellentis sensus et potentis ingenii aurum sunt et argentum et lapides pretiosi secundum naturam, sed eius erunt in cuius obsequio <uoluntate non> natura suis fruuntur, quoniam cui se adsignauerit quis in obedientiam, seruus est eius cui obaudit, siue peccati siue iustitiae.ita fit ut et diabolus habeat aurum et argentum et lapides pretiosos; omnia quidem non sua secundum originem, sed sua secundum uoluntatem. nam et in Iob scriptum est de diabolo: Omne aurum maris sub eo est et apostolus uasa aurea et argentea dicit esse quaedam in contumeliam. non enim sicut quidam putant omnia lignea et fictilia reprobauit, cum ex eis sint aliqua in honorem, ipso dicente figulum luti aliud quidem fingere in honorem aliud uero in contumeliam, et ex ligno, aliud ad praeparationem escae aliud in sacrilegium. ex auro et argento, id est ex magnis <et> perspicuis, dixit inmundos. nam et in Apocalypsi meretrix, id est corpus aduersum, purpura cocco et auro et argento lapidibusque pretiosis ornatur, habens poculum aureum in manu plenum execrationum et inmunditiarum totius terrae. ista sunt ergo diaboli ornamenta, lapides pretiosi quibus lapides igneos imitatur. et homo in se habet thesauros tam facinorum quam perspicuos. ipse enim suorum portator est, quem facultates suae uelut compedes ligauerunt. praeter illa quae ab utroque sexu corporis diaboli ornanda eduntur, etiam his quae defossa habent insitum est cor; ubi enim erit thesaurus, illic erit et cor hominis. uetus enim
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homo et terra eius unum corpus est, quoniam ipse quoque terra est. unde apostolus non solum ea, quae corpore admitti possunt, sed et auaritiam membrum esse possidentis ita definiuit dicens: Mortificate itaque membra uestra quae in terra sunt, fornicationem, inmunditiam, passionem, concupiscentiam malam, et auaritiam, quae est idolorum seruitus, propter quae uenit ira Dei.
Ex qua die creatus es tu cum cherubim inposui te in monte sancto Dei, id est in Christo uel in Ecclesia: in medio lapidum igneorum fuisti, id est hominum sanctorum, qui adunati montem Dei faciunt. angeli enim alterius substantiae lapides dici non possunt, quia corpus non habent. Abisti sine macula tu in diebus tuis ex qua die creatus es tu, donec inuenirentur iniquitates tuae in te a multitudine negotiationis tuae. lapides Ecclesiam dicit Petrus: Et uos fratres tamquam lapides uiui coaedificamini domus spiritalis, quam domum igneam esse et hanc in malos fratres ardere sic dicit Deus: Erit domus Iacob ignis, domus autem Ioseph flamma, domus uero Esau stipula; et exardescent in illos et comedent eos, et non erit ignifer in domo Esau, quoniam Dominus locutus est. cum enim peccat homo, deicitur de monte Dei, et non erit ignifer amisso Spiritu, et succenditur in cinerem.
Peccasti et uulneratus es a monte Dei, et abduxit te cherubim de medio lapidum igneorum. cherubim ministerium Dei est, quod exclusit uniuersos malos de Ecclesia, sed spiritaliter. qui enim vestitum nuptialem non habet, hic in saeculo excluditur de medio recumbentium. denique in tenebras, id est in obdurationem, mittitur, donec in ignem aeternum descendat. futuro enim saeculo nemo miscebitur choro sanctorum qui postea excludatur.
Exaltatum est cor tuum in decore tuo, corrupta est scientia tua in decore tuo. corrupta est enim scientia eius qui sciens prudensque errat, et studio affectatae sapientiae asserit dissimulata ueritate mendacium, sicut Spiritus dicit: Cum
Institute for Colossians Studies 