The Shepherd of Hermas (Similitude 9 – Similitude 10)
The Shepherd of Hermas
continued
Chapter 24
The seventh mountain
1 “As for the seventh mountain: its plants were green and cheerful, and the whole mountain was thriving. Every kind of livestock and the birds of the sky fed on its plants, and the plants they fed on grew even more lush. The believers from this mountain are like this. 2 “They were always sincere, innocent, and blessed, holding nothing against one another. They always rejoiced in God’s servants and were clothed in the holy spirit of these young women. They were always compassionate toward every person, and from their labors they supplied everyone without scolding and without hesitating.[131] 3 “So the Lord, seeing their sincerity and complete childlike innocence, made them prosper in the work of their hands and showed them favor in everything they did. 4 “I, the angel of repentance, tell you who are like this: stay as you are, and your descendants will never be wiped out. The Lord has tested you and written you into our number, and all your descendants will live with the Son of God, for you have received from his Spirit.”
Chapter 25
The eighth mountain
1 “Believers from the eighth mountain, where there were many springs and all the Lord’s creation drank from the springs, are like this: 2 “apostles and teachers who preached to the whole world and taught the word of the Lord with reverence and purity. They never kept back anything at all for themselves out of evil desire, but always walked in righteousness and truth, just as they had received the Holy Spirit. So such people have their way in with the angels.”[132]
Chapter 26
The ninth mountain
1 “Believers from the ninth mountain, the desert one, with reptiles and wild animals on it that destroy people, are like this: 2 “Those with the stains are ministers who served badly. They plundered the livelihood of widows and orphans and made a profit for themselves out of the ministry they had received. If they stay in the same greed, they are dead and have no hope of life. But if they turn around and complete their ministry in purity, they will be able to live.[133] 3 “Those who were scabby are those who denied their Lord and did not turn back to him. They became barren and desolate. They do not stay close to God’s servants but keep to themselves, and so they are destroying their own souls. 4 “A vine left in a fenced place and neglected is ruined and overrun by weeds, and in time it grows wild and is no longer any use to its master. In the same way such people have given up on themselves and become wild and useless to their Lord.
5 “For these there is repentance, if they are not found to have denied him from the heart. But if someone is found to have denied him from the heart, I do not know whether he can live. 6 “I do not say this for the present days, as if someone could deny him now and then receive repentance. It is impossible for anyone who denies his Lord from now on to be saved. But repentance seems to be available for those who denied him in the past. So if anyone is going to repent, let him hurry before the tower is finished. Otherwise the women will destroy him completely, to the point of death.[134] 7 “The chipped ones are deceitful and slanderous people, and they are the wild animals you saw on the mountain. Just as wild animals destroy and kill a person with their venom, so the words of such people destroy and kill a person.
8 “These are chipped away from their faith because of the way they behave within themselves. But some repented and were saved. The rest who are like this can be saved too, if they repent. But if they do not repent, they will be put to death by those women whose power they have.”[135]
Chapter 27
The tenth mountain
1 “Believers from the tenth mountain, where there were trees sheltering some sheep, are like this: 2 “bishops and hospitable people who always gladly welcomed God’s servants into their homes without hypocrisy. The bishops always sheltered those in need and the widows by their service without ceasing, and always lived in purity.[136] 3 “All of these will be sheltered by the Lord forever. Those who have done these things are glorious before God, and their place is already with the angels, if they continue serving the Lord to the end.”
Chapter 28
The eleventh mountain
1 “Believers from the eleventh mountain, where there were trees full of fruit, each decorated with different fruits, are like this: 2 “those who suffered for the name of the Son of God, who suffered willingly with their whole heart and gave up their lives.” 3 “Sir,” I said, “why do all the trees have fruit, but the fruit of some is more beautiful?” “Listen,” he said. “All who have ever suffered for the name are glorious before God, and the sins of all of them were taken away, because they suffered for the name of the Son of God. Now listen to why their fruits differ and some are better than others.[137] 4 “Those who were brought before authorities, questioned, and did not deny, but suffered willingly, are more glorious before the Lord. Their fruit is the finest. But those who were fearful and hesitated, who debated in their hearts whether to deny or to confess, and then suffered, have smaller fruits, because that thought came into their hearts. It is an evil thought that a slave would deny his own master.[138]
5 “So you who are thinking such thoughts, be careful that this thought does not remain in your hearts, or you will die to God. But you who suffer for the name ought to glorify God, because God has thought you worthy to carry this name and have all your sins healed. [1 Peter 4:15-16] 6 “Count yourselves blessed. Yet you think you have done something great if any of you suffers for God. The Lord is giving you life, and you do not realize it. Your sins weighed you down, and if you had not suffered for the name of the Lord, you would have died to God because of your sins.[139] 7 “I am saying this to you who hesitate over denying or confessing. Confess that you have a Lord, so that you are not handed over to prison for denying him.[140] 8 “If the Gentiles punish their slaves when one denies his master, what do you think the Lord, who has authority over everything, will do to you? Take these thoughts out of your hearts, so that you may live to God forever.”
Chapter 29
The twelfth mountain
1 “Believers from the twelfth mountain, the white one, are like this: they are like little babies, in whose hearts no evil arises and who have never known what wickedness is, but have always stayed in innocence. 2 “Such people will live in the kingdom of God without doubt, because in nothing did they defile the commandments of God, but stayed in innocence with the same mind all the days of their lives.[141] 3 “All of you, then, who stay like this and are like babies with no wickedness will be more glorious than all those mentioned before. All babies are glorious before God and come first with him. Blessed are you who remove evil from yourselves and put on innocence: you will be the first of all to live to God.”
The stones taken out of the plain
4 After he had finished explaining the parables of the mountains, I said to him, “Sir, now explain to me about the stones that were taken from the plain and put into the building in place of the stones taken from the tower, and about the round stones that were put into the building, and those that are still round.”
Chapter 30
1 “Listen,” he said, “to all of this too. The stones taken from the plain and put into the building of the tower in place of the rejected ones are the roots of the white mountain. 2 “Since all believers from the white mountain were found to be innocent, the lord of the tower ordered these to be taken from the roots of this mountain and put into the building of the tower. He knew that if these stones went into the building of the tower, they would stay bright and none of them would turn black. 3 “If he had added stones from other mountains, he would have needed to visit the tower again and cleanse it. But all of these, both those who have believed and those who will believe, were found white, for they are of the same kind. Blessed is this kind, because it is innocent.[142] 4 “Now listen about the round, bright stones. They also are all from the white mountain. Listen to why they were found round. Their riches have hidden them a little from the truth and darkened them, but they never left God, and no evil word came from their mouths, but only fairness and the virtue of truth.
5 “When the Lord saw their mind, that they could favor the truth and stay good, he ordered their wealth to be trimmed back, but not removed entirely, so that they could do some good with what was left to them. And they will live to God, because they are of a good kind. That is why they were trimmed a little and put into the building of this tower.
Chapter 31
The round stones
1 “The others, which still remained round and were not fitted into that building because they had not yet received the seal, were put back in their place, since they were found to be very round. 2 “This world and the empty things of their riches must be cut away from them, and then they will be fit for the kingdom of God. They must enter the kingdom of God, for the Lord has blessed this innocent kind. So not one of this kind will perish. Even if one of them is tempted by the most wicked devil and does something wrong, he will quickly return to his Lord. 3 “I, the angel of repentance, call you all happy who are innocent like infants, for your portion is good and honored with God. 4 “But I say to all of you who have received this seal: keep simplicity, do not hold grudges, and do not stay in your wickedness or in the bitter memory of offenses. Be of one spirit. Heal these evil divisions and remove them from among you, so that the lord of the sheep may rejoice over them.
5 “He will rejoice if all of them are found healthy and none of them has fallen away. But if some of them are found to have fallen away, it will be woe to the shepherds. 6 “And if the shepherds themselves are found to have fallen away, what will they say to the master of the flock? That they fell away because of the sheep? They will not be believed, for it is unbelievable that a shepherd should be harmed by the sheep. Instead they will be punished for their lie. I too am a shepherd, and I must most surely give an account for you.[143]
Chapter 32
1 “Therefore, set yourselves right while the tower is still being built.
The final exhortation of the shepherd
2 “The Lord lives among people who love peace, for peace is dear to him. But he stays far from the quarrelsome and from those who have been ruined by malice. So give him back your spirit whole, just as you received it. 3 “Suppose you gave a launderer a new, whole garment and wanted it back whole, and the launderer gave it back to you torn. Would you accept it? Wouldn’t you immediately lose your temper and chase him with abuse, saying, ‘I gave you a whole garment. Why did you tear it and give it back to me useless? Because of the tear you made in it, it can’t be used.’ Wouldn’t you say all this to the launderer about the tear he made in your garment? 4 “If you are upset about your garment and complain that you did not get it back whole, what do you think the Lord will do to you? He gave you the spirit whole, and you have returned it completely useless, so that it can be of no use to its master, because it has been spoiled by you. Won’t the Lord of that spirit punish you with death for what you have done?”
5 “Certainly,” I said, “he will punish all those he finds holding on to the memory of wrongs.” “Do not trample on his mercy,” he said, “but honor him instead, because he is so patient with your offenses and is not like you. Repent, then, with the repentance that is useful for you.
Chapter 33
1 “All these things written above, I, the shepherd, the angel of repentance, have shown and spoken to God’s servants. If you believe and listen to my words, walk in them, and correct your ways, you will be able to live. But if you stay in malice and in the memory of offenses, none of that kind will live to God. Everything I had to say has been said to you.” 2 The shepherd said to me, “Have you asked me about everything?” I said, “Yes, sir.” “Then why did you not ask me about the marks of the stones set in the building, why we filled in the marks?” I said, “I forgot, sir.” 3 “Listen now,” he said, “about them. These are the ones who have heard my commandments and repented with their whole heart. When the Lord saw that their repentance was good and pure, and that they could remain in it, he ordered their earlier sins to be erased. Those marks were their sins, and they were smoothed over so that they would not show.”
Similitude 10
Chapter 1
The final vision of the Angel
1 After I had written this book, the angel who had handed me over to the shepherd came to the house where I was and sat down on the couch, and the shepherd stood at his right. Then he called me and said to me: 2 “I have handed you and your house over to this shepherd, so that you can be protected by him.” “Yes, sir,” I said. “So if you want to be protected from all trouble and all cruelty,” he said, “and to have success in every good work and word and in every virtue of righteousness, walk in his commandments, which I have given you, and you will be able to rule over all wickedness. 3 “If you keep his commandments, every desire and pleasure of this age will be subject to you, and success in every good undertaking will follow you. Take on his maturity and moderation, and tell everyone that he is held in great honor and dignity by the Lord, and that he is a ruler of great authority and powerful in his office. To him alone, in all the world, has authority over repentance been given. Doesn’t he seem powerful to you? But you people despise his maturity and the modesty he shows toward you.”
Chapter 2
1 I said to him, “Sir, ask the shepherd himself whether, since he has been in my house, I have done anything out of line that might have offended him.” 2 “I know,” he said, “that you have done nothing out of line, and that you will not do so. That is why I am speaking to you like this, so that you will persevere, for he has given me a good report of you. But you will tell these words to others, so that those who have repented or will repent may think as you do. Then he may give me a good report of them, and I may give one to the Lord.” 3 “Sir,” I said, “I make known the mighty acts of the Lord to everyone. I hope that all who have sinned before, if they hear this, will gladly repent and recover life.” 4 “Stay, then,” he said, “in this ministry and complete it. Whoever carries out his commandments will have life, and this shepherd will have great honor with the Lord. But those who do not keep his commandments are running away from their own life and setting themselves against him. They do not follow his commandments but hand themselves over to death, and each of them becomes guilty of his own blood. But I tell you to keep these commandments, and you will have a cure for your sins.”[144]
Chapter 3
Hermas and the maidens
1 “I sent these young women to you to live with you, because I saw they were friendly to you. So you have them as helpers, to be better able to keep his commandments. These commandments cannot be kept without these young women. I also see that they are with you willingly. But I will order them not to leave your house at all.[145] 2 “Only make your house clean. They will gladly live in a clean house, for they are pure, chaste, and hard-working, and all of them are in favor with the Lord. So if they find your house pure, they will stay with you. But if even a little uncleanness comes into it, they will leave your house at once, for these young women love no uncleanness of any kind.” 3 I said to him, “I hope, sir, that I will please them, so that they will gladly live in my house always. And just as the one to whom you handed me over finds no fault with me, they will find no fault with me either.”
4 The angel said to the shepherd, “I know that the servant of God wants to live, that he will keep these commandments, and that he will give the young women a pure place to live.” 5 After saying this to the shepherd, he handed me over to him again. He called the young women and said to them, “Since I see that you gladly live in this man’s house, I commend him and his house to you, so that you never leave his house.” They were glad to hear these words.
Chapter 4
1 Then he said to me, “Carry out this ministry with courage. Make known to everyone the mighty acts of the Lord, and you will have favor in this ministry. So whoever walks in these commandments will live and be happy in his life. But whoever neglects them will not live and will be unhappy in his life. 2 “Tell everyone who is able to do right not to stop. Doing good works is useful to them. I say that every person ought to be rescued from distress, for the one who is in need and suffers hardship in daily life is in great torment and necessity. 3 “Whoever rescues the soul of such a person from need gains great joy for himself. The person troubled by such distress is tortured with the same torment as someone in chains. Many people bring death on themselves because of calamities like these, when they cannot bear them. So whoever knows the distress of such a person and does not rescue him commits a great sin and becomes guilty of his blood.[146]
4 “So do good works, all of you who have received from the Lord, so that the building of the tower is not finished while you are slow to do them. The work of building has been paused for your sake. Unless you hurry to do right, the tower will be finished and you will be shut out.”[147] 5 After he had spoken to me, he got up from the couch, took the shepherd and the young women, and left. But he told me that he would send the shepherd and the young women back to my house.
Notes
[131] “Without scolding” echoes the language of James 1:5, where God gives to all generously “without reproaching.”
[132] The word translated “way in” (parodos, “passage, entrance”) is unusual here. It probably means they will enter glory in the company of the angels.
[133] The word for “ministers” is diakonoi, from which we get “deacons.” In the early church deacons often handled the distribution of money and food to the poor (compare Acts 6:1-6), so Hermas’s complaint is about misusing charitable funds.
[134] “The women” are the women dressed in black from earlier in the parable, who stand for vices such as Unbelief, Self-indulgence, Disobedience and Deceit (Similitude 9.15.3).
[135] “Those women” are probably the twelve women dressed in black from earlier in this parable (9.9.5; 9.15.3). They stand for vices, among them Deceit and Slander. People who take on their character share their “power,” and that power leads to death.
[136] “Bishops” here translates episkopoi, “overseers.” In Hermas’s Rome the leadership seems to have been shared by a group (see Vision 2.4.3, where he speaks of “the presbyters who lead the church”). The duties stressed here are hospitality and care for the poor.
[137] Hermas says that suffering for Christ’s name took away the martyrs’ sins (see also 26.28.5–6). The New Testament teaches that sins are cleansed by Christ’s blood and sacrifice (1 John 1:7; Hebrews 9:14; Revelation 1:5). It also speaks of suffering for Christ as a gift and a mark of belonging to him (Philippians 1:29; 1 Peter 4:14–16). The idea that martyrdom cleanses sin was later developed by writers such as Tertullian, who called martyrdom a “second baptism” (On Baptism 16).
[138] The Greek word kyrios means both “master” (of a slave) and “Lord.” Hermas is playing on this: denying one’s master is a picture of denying the Lord.
[139] The Greek verb for “you think” can also be read as a command, “think that you have done something great,” and some translators take it that way. The translation above takes it as a rebuke, which fits the following sentences: suffering is the Lord’s gift of life to them, not their own great achievement.
[140] Denying Christ was the way to be released by a Roman court. So the “prison” threatened here is probably God’s punishment, as the next verse suggests.
[141] Compare Matthew 18:3 and 19:14, where Jesus says that the kingdom belongs to those who are like children.
[142] Near this point the main Greek manuscript of the Shepherd breaks off. For the rest of the book the text is known mainly from ancient Latin translations, with only a few Greek fragments, such as 31.5–6 below. This version follows the Latin where the Greek is lacking, and the Greek where it survives.
[143] The idea of a shepherd who must “give an account” for those in his care recalls Hebrews 13:17.
[144] The Latin says literally “and this one will have great honor with the Lord.” Elsewhere in this passage “this one” refers to the shepherd, but it could also mean the person who keeps the commandments.
[145] These young women are the twelve virgins of the ninth Parable, who are explained there as holy spirits, powers of the Son of God, and are named as virtues such as Faith, Self-control, and Love (Parable 9.13–15).
[146] Compare James 2:15-16 and 1 John 3:17-18 on the sin of seeing a brother in need and doing nothing. The phrase “guilty of his blood” recalls the language of Ezekiel 3:18 and 33:6, where the watchman who fails to warn is held responsible for the blood of those who die.
[147] In Hermas the tower stands for the church (see Vision 3 and Parable 9).