Chapter 13
The appeal to live a correct life
| 1 Ταπεινοφρονήσωμεν οὖν, ἀδελφοί, ἀποθέμενοι πᾶσαν ἀλαζονείαν καὶ τῦφος καί ἀφροσύνην καὶ ὀργάς, καὶ ποιήσωμεν τὸ γεγραμμένον, λέγει γὰρ τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον· Μὴ καυχάσθω ὁ σοφὸς ἐν τῇ σοφίᾳ αὐτοῦ μηδὲ ὁ ἰσχυρὸς ἐν τῇ ἰσχύϊ αὐτοῦ μηδὲ ὁ πλούσιος ἐν τῷ πλούτῳ αὐτοῦ, ἀλλ'[1] ὁ καυχώμενος ἐν κυρίῳ καυχάσθω, τοῦ ἐκζητεῖν αὐτὸν καὶ ποιεῖν κρίμα καὶ δικαιοσύνην· μάλιστα μεμνημένοι τῶν λόγων τοῦ κυρίου Ἰησοῦ, οὓς ἐλάλησεν διδάσκων ἐπιείκειαν καὶ μακροθυμίαν. |
Therefore, let’s be humble, brothers. Put away all arrogance, conceit, foolishness, and anger. Let’s do what is written. The Holy Spirit says, "Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, nor the strong in his strength, nor the rich in his wealth. Instead, let the boaster boast in the Lord by seeking Him out and doing justice and righteousness." {Jer. 9:23-24; I Cor. 1:31; II Cor 10:17} Most of all, let’s remember the words of the Lord Jesus which He spoke teaching gentleness and patience. |
[1] Alt. text: Adds ἢ
| 2 οὕτως γὰρ εἶπεν· Ἐλεᾶτε, ἵνα ἐλεηθῆτε· ἀφίετε, ἵνα ἀφεθῇ ὑμῖν· ὡς ποιεῖτε, οὕτω ποιηθήσεται ὑμῖν· ὡς δίδοτε, οὕτως δοθήσεται ὑμῖν· ὡς κρίνετε, οὕτως κριθήσεσθε· ὡς χρηστεύεσθε, οὕτως χρηστευθήσεται ὑμῖν· ᾧ μέτρῳ μετρεῖτε, ἐν αὐτῷ μετρηθήσεται ὑμῖν. |
For He said this: "Be merciful in order to receive mercy. Forgive in order that you may be forgiven. As you do, so will it be done to you. As you give, so will it be given to you. As you judge, so will you be judged. As you show kindness, so will kindness be shown to you. With whatever measure you use, that’s the measure returned to you." {Matt. ch. 5-7; Luke 6} |
| 3 ταύτῃ τῇ ἐντολῇ καὶ τοῖς παραγγέλμασιν τούτοις στηρίξωμεν ἑαυτοὺς εἰς τὸ πορεύεσθαι ὑπηκόους ὄντας τοῖς ἁγιοπρεπέσι λόγοις αὐτοῦ, ταπεινοφρονοῦντες· |
With this commandment and these precepts, let’s be strengthened so that we might walk in obedience to His holy words with humility. For the holy word says, |
| 4 φησὶν γὰρ ὁ ἅγιος λόγος· Ἐπὶ τίνα ἐπιβλέψω, ἀλλ' ἢ ἐπὶ τὸν πραῢν καὶ ἡσύχιον καὶ τρέμοντά μου τὰ λόγια. | "Upon whom will I look, except upon the one who is gentle and quiet and who trembles at My words?" |
Summary
In Chapter 13, Clement transitions from his extended catalog of Old Testament heroes to direct moral exhortation, applying those lessons directly to the factious members of the Corinthian church. He urges them to embrace humility (tapeinophrosynē) and strip away arrogance (alazoneia and typhos).
To anchor this appeal, Clement weaves together three strands of sacred authority:
Prophetic Scripture: Citing Jeremiah 9:23–24 regarding boasting solely in the Lord and practicing justice.
The Words of Jesus: Citing authoritative early Christian oral or written Jesus traditions (closely echoing the Synoptic Sermon on the Mount / Luke 6:36–38) centered on reciprocity, mercy (eleos), and forgiveness.
Isaiah’s Promise: Citing Isaiah 66:2 to highlight that God looks favorably upon the gentle, quiet person who trembles at His word.
Significant Greek Expressions
Ταπεινοφρονήσωμεν... ἀποθέμενοι πᾶσαν ἀλαζονείαν καὶ τῦφος (Let us be humble-minded... casting aside all arrogance and pride): Combines tapeinophrosynē (humble-mindedness, the core virtue counteracting schism) with alazoneia (boastful pretension) and typhos (literally smoke or being "puffed up" with conceit). Clement targets the intellectual and social pride fueling the Corinthian rebellion.
Λόγους τοῦ κυρίου Ἰησοῦ (Words of the Lord Jesus): A formal introduction to authoritative Jesus traditions. Clement preserves teachings on mercy, measure-for-measure reciprocity, and forgiveness that closely parallel the Gospel materials, demonstrating that apostolic leaders treated Jesus’s sayings as binding ethical law.
Ἐπιείκειαν καὶ μακροθυμίαν (Gentleness and patience): Epieikeia denotes sweet reasonableness, forbearance, or equity under provocation; makrothymia represents long-suffering endurance. These virtues are presented as the exact temperament modeled by Jesus and required to heal church divisions.
Ἐλεᾶτε, ἵνα ἐλεηθῆτε (Show mercy, that you may receive mercy): A string of asyndetic, imperative moral pairings reflecting early Christian catechism and catechetical instruction based on the ethics of the Kingdom.
Τρέμοντά μου τὰ λόγια (Him who trembles at My words): Quoting Isaiah 66:2 LXX. Tremō conveys holy awe and reverence before divine authority, contrasting sharply with the reckless insubordination of the Corinthian agitators.