Origen: Homilies on Jeremiah and I Kings 28
Overview
Souls existing before their bodies, witches summoning dead prophets from the underworld, the return of the damned—and the Devil himself—to God in the end, and many other theological speculations surprise the reader of Origen’s Homilies on Jeremiah and I Kings 28. Some of these very theses of the third-century priest from Alexandria, Egypt, were condemned in the Second Council of Constantinople. But plumbing the mystical depths of the Prophecy of Jeremiah is the central point of the homilies.
Presented in this volume are the remains of 22 homilies and a collection of fragments delivered by Origen around AD 240. The original texts of the homilies on Jeremiah have not come down to us completely; two of the homilies survive only in a Latin translation of St. Jerome. The homily on I Kings 28, while not a part of the homilies on Jeremiah, deals with the Witch of Endor and has been added to this volume in virtue of its own inherent interest.
In this collection, Origen seeks understanding of the significance of the hostility of the Chosen People towards the Prophet Jeremiah before their captivity in Babylon. Origen in many ways identified with the great prophet and thought of Jeremiah as a type for Christ in the Hebrew Scriptures. Origen realized that Jeremiah came at a crucial time in the history of Israel, the time of captivity, and he views this event and the events around it as pregnant with meaning for the people of his time.
Watching a master grapple with admittedly difficult, obscure texts and give them compelling, forceful delivery must have impressed Origen’s congregation. Readers will find it no less engaging to read his homilies now and experience some of that exhilaration of hearing a true expert highlight every subtlety of the pericope and make plain what once was obscure.
In the Logos edition, this volume is enhanced by amazing functionality. Important terms link to dictionaries, encyclopedias, and a wealth of other resources in your digital library. Perform powerful searches to find exactly what you’re looking for. Take the discussion with you using tablet and mobile apps. With Logos Bible Software, the most efficient and comprehensive research tools are in one place, so you get the most out of your study.
For more of the church fathers, check out the Fathers of the Church: Fathers of the Ante-Nicene Era (23 vols.).
Top Highlights
“The Devil is a dark mountain, the rulers of this age who are abolished126 are dark mountains, and the little demon of lunacy was a mountain. And it was a dark mountain concerning which the Savior was saying, You will say to this mountain.…127 For concerning lunacy, when the Word is sought and the disciples say, Why could we not cast it out? the Savior answered that if you had faith as a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain—which you have raised up, about which you have inquired—you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move:128 from here, away from the man, to there, to the place of its home.” (Page 125)
“For I think God has exhibited us Apostles as last.70 Even if I cannot be an Apostle, it is possible for me to become last, so that God who raises up clouds from the last of the earth may raise me up.” (Page 80)
“For what is it which has been written? And the woman said: Whom shall I bring up for you?27” (Page 322)
“Observe the differences between Jeremiah and Isaiah. Isaiah said: I am one who has unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people who have unclean lips and I have seen the King, the Lord of Sabaoth, with my eyes.109 And since he did not confess to having unclean works but only words—for until this point he was a sinner—the Lord did not stretch forth his hand, but one of the Seraphim touched his lips with his hand and said, ‘Behold, I have taken away your iniquities’.110 But since Jeremiah was sanctified from the womb of his mother, tongs are not sent for him, nor a coal from the altar111—he had nothing worthy of the fire—but the hand itself of the Lord touched him.” (Page 17)
- Title: Origen: Homilies on Jeremiah and Homily on 1 Kings 28
- Author: Origen
- Series: The Fathers of the Church
- Volume: 97
- Publisher: Catholic University of America
- Print Publication Date: 1998
- Logos Release Date: 2014
- Pages: 379
- Era: era:ante-nicene
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
- Subjects: Bible. O.T. 1 Kings 28 › Sermons; Bible. O.T. Jeremiah › Sermons; Sermons, Greek › Translations into English
- ISBNs: 0813200970, 9780813200972
- Resource ID: LLS:HMLSJRMHKNGS28
- Resource Type: text.monograph.sermons
- Metadata Last Updated: 2024-03-25T19:59:40Z
Origen of Alexandria (ca. 182–ca. 251) was a Christian scholar and presbyter in the third century. He is thought to have been born at Alexandria, and died at Caesarea.
