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The Stromata, or Miscellanies

Clement of Alexandria

Book 1 · Chapter 23

About this work

A wide-ranging collection on faith, knowledge, philosophy, Scripture, ethics, and Christian maturity that intentionally mixes subjects while portraying the ideal Christian knower formed through disciplined inquiry.

Author: Clement of Alexandria
Date: c. AD 195–215
Origin: Alexandria
Genre: Theological Treatise

Chapter XXIII.—The Age, Birth, and Life of Moses.

Moses, originally of a Chaldean family,

‹ Book 1 · Chapter 22 Book 1 · Chapter 24 ›

was

born

in

Egypt

,

his

ancestors

having

migrated

from

Babylon

into

Egypt

on

account

of

a

protracted

famine

.

Born

in

the

seventh

generation

,

and

having

received

a

royal

education

,

the

following

are

the

circumstances

of

his

history

.

The

Hebrews

having

increased

in

Egypt

to

a

great

multitude

,

and

the

king

of

the

country

being

afraid

of

insurrection

in

consequence

of

their

numbers

,

he

ordered

all

the

female

children

born

to

the

Hebrews

to

be

reared

(

woman

being

unfit

for

war

)

,

but

the

male

to

be

destroyed

,

being

suspicious

of

stalwart

youth

.

But

the

child

being

goodly

,

his

parents

nursed

him

secretly

three

months

,

natural

affection

being

too

strong

for

the

monarch’s

cruelty

.

But

at

last

,

dreading

lest

they

should

be

destroyed

along

with

the

child

,

they

made

a

basket

of

the

papyrus

that

grew

there

,

put

the

child

in

it

,

and

laid

it

on

the

banks

of

the

marshy

river

.

The

child’s

sister

stood

at

a

distance

,

and

watched

what

would

happen

.

In

this

emergency

,

the

king’s

daughter

,

who

for

a

long

time

had

not

been

pregnant

,

and

who

longed

for

a

child

,

came

that

day

to

the

river

to

bathe

and

wash

herself

;

and

hearing

the

child

cry

,

she

ordered

it

to

be

brought

to

her

;

and

touched

with

pity

,

sought

a

nurse

.

At

that

moment

the

child’s

sister

ran

up

,

and

said

that

,

if

she

wished

,

she

could

procure

for

her

as

nurse

one

of

the

Hebrew

women

who

had

recently

had

a

child

.

And

on

her

consenting

and

desiring

her

to

do

so

,

she

brought

the

child’s

mother

to

be

nurse

for

a

stipulated

fee

,

as

if

she

had

been

some

other

person

.

Thereupon

the

queen

gave

the

babe

the

name

of

Moses

,

with

etymological

propriety

,

from

his

being

drawn

out

of

“

the

water

,

”

—

for

the

Egyptians

call

water

“

mou

,

”

—

in

which

he

had

been

exposed

to

die

.

For

they

call

Moses

one

who

“

who

breathed

[

on

being

taken

]

from

the

water

.

”

It

is

clear

that

previously

the

parents

gave

a

name

to

the

child

on

his

circumcision

;

and

he

was

called

Joachim

.

And

he

had

a

third

name

in

heaven

,

after

his

ascension

,

as

the

mystics

say

—

Melchi

.

Having

reached

the

proper

age

,

he

was

taught

arithmetic

,

geometry

,

poetry

,

harmony

,

and

besides

,

medicine

and

music

,

by

those

that

excelled

in

these

arts

among

the

Egyptians

;

and

besides

,

the

philosophy

which

is

conveyed

by

symbols

,

which

they

point

out

in

the

hieroglyphical

inscriptions

.

The

rest

of

the

usual

course

of

instruction

,

Greeks

taught

him

in

Egypt

as

a

royal

child

,

as

Philo

says

in

his

life

of

Moses

.

He

learned

,

besides

,

the

literature

of

the

Egyptians

,

and

the

knowledge

of

the

heavenly

bodies

from

the

Chaldeans

and

the

Egyptians

;

whence

in

the

Acts

he

is

said

“

to

have

been

instructed

in

all

the

wisdom

of

the

Egyptians

.

”

And

Eupolemus

,

in

his

book

On

the

Kings

in

Judea

,

says

that

“

Moses

was

the

first

wise

man

,

and

the

first

that

imparted

grammar

to

the

Jews

,

that

the

Phœnicians

received

it

from

the

Jews

,

and

the

Greeks

from

the

Phœnicians

.

”

And

betaking

himself

to

their

philosophy

,

he

increased

his

wisdom

,

being

ardently

attached

to

the

training

received

from

his

kindred

and

ancestors

,

till

he

struck

and

slew

the

Egyptian

who

wrongfully

attacked

the

Hebrew

.

And

the

mystics

say

that

he

slew

the

Egyptian

by

a

word

only

;

as

,

certainly

,

Peter

in

the

Acts

is

related

to

have

slain

by

speech

those

who

appropriated

part

of

the

price

of

the

field

,

and

lied

.

And

so

Artapanus

,

in

his

work

On

the

Jews

,

relates

“

that

Moses

,

being

shut

up

in

custody

by

Chenephres

,

king

of

the

Egyptians

,

on

account

of

the

people

demanding

to

be

let

go

from

Egypt

,

the

prison

being

opened

by

night

,

by

the

interposition

of

God

,

went

forth

,

and

reaching

the

palace

,

stood

before

the

king

as

he

slept

,

and

aroused

him

;

and

that

the

latter

,

struck

with

what

had

taken

place

,

bade

Moses

tell

him

the

name

of

the

God

who

had

sent

him

;

and

that

he

,

bending

forward

,

told

him

in

his

ear

;

and

that

the

king

on

hearing

it

fell

speechless

,

but

being

supported

by

Moses

,

revived

again

.

”

And

respecting

the

education

of

Moses

,

we

shall

find

a

harmonious

account

in

Ezekiel

,

the

composer

of

Jewish

tragedies

in

the

drama

entitled

The

Exodus

.

He

thus

writes

in

the

person

of

Moses

:

—

“For, seeing our race abundantly increase, His treacherous snares King Pharaoh ’gainst us laid, And cruelly in brick-kilns some of us, And some, in toilsome works of building, plagued. And towns and towers by toil of ill-starred men He raised. Then to the Hebrew race proclaimed, That each male child should in deep-flowing Nile Be drowned. My mother bore and hid me then Three months (so afterwards she told). Then took, And me adorned with fair array, and placed On the deep sedgy marsh by Nilus bank, While Miriam, my sister, watched afar. Then, with her maids, the daughter of the king, To bathe her beauty in the cleansing stream,

Came near, straight saw, and took and raised me up; And knew me for a Hebrew. Miriam My sister to the princess ran, and said, ‘Is it thy pleasure, that I haste and find A nurse for thee to rear this child Among the Hebrew women?’ The princess Gave assent. The maiden to her mother sped, And told, who quick appeared. My own Dear mother took me in her arms. Then said The daughter of the king: ‘Nurse me this child, And I will give thee wages.’And my name Moses she called, because she drew and saved Me from the waters on the river’s bank. And when the days of childhood had flown by, My mother brought me to the palace where The princess dwelt, after disclosing all About my ancestry, and God’s great gifts. In boyhood’s years I royal nurture had, And in all princely exercise was trained, As if the princess’s very son. But when The circling days had run their course, I left the royal palace.”

Then, after relating the combat between the Hebrew and the Egyptian, and the burying of the Egyptian in the sand, he says of the other contest:—

“Why strike one feebler than thyself? And he rejoined: Who made thee judge o’er us, Or ruler? Wilt thou slay me, as thou didst Him yesterday? And I in terror said, How is this known?”

Then he fled from Egypt and fed sheep, being thus trained beforehand for pastoral rule. For the shepherd’s life is a preparation for sovereignty in the case of him who is destined to rule over the peaceful flock of men, as the chase for those who are by nature warlike. Thence God brought him to lead the Hebrews. Then the Egyptians, oft admonished, continued unwise; and the Hebrews were spectators of the calamities that others suffered, learning in safety the power of God. And when the Egyptians gave no heed to the effects of that power, through their foolish infatuation disbelieving, then, as is said, “the children knew” what was done; and the Hebrews afterwards going forth, departed carrying much spoil from the Egyptians, not for avarice, as the cavillers say, for God did not persuade them to covet what belonged to others. But, in the first place, they took wages for the services they had rendered the Egyptians all the time; and then in a way recompensed the Egyptians, by afflicting them in requital as avaricious, by the abstraction of the booty, as they had done the Hebrews by enslaving them. Whether, then, as may be alleged is done in war, they thought it proper, in the exercise of the rights of conquerors, to take away the property of their enemies, as those who have gained the day do from those who are worsted (and there was just cause of hostilities. The Hebrews came as suppliants to the Egyptians on account of famine; and they, reducing their guests to slavery, compelled them to serve them after the manner of captives, giving them no recompense); or as in peace, took the spoil as wages against the will of those who for a long period had given them no recompense, but rather had robbed them, [it is all one.]

Notes

302
This is the account given by Philo, of whose book on the life of Moses this chapter is an epitome, for the most part in Philo’s words.
303
“He was the seventh in descent from the first, who, being a foreigner, was the founder of the whole Jewish race.”—Philo.
304
[See Ex. ii. 10.]
305
[Concerning this, see Deut. xxxiii. 5. And as to “mystics,” with caution, may be read advantageously, the article “Mysteries,” Encyclop. Britann., vol. xxiii. p. 124.]
306
Acts vii. 22.
307
Adopting the reading φιλοσοφίαν ἀΐ´ξας instead of φύσιν ἄξας.
308
Acts v. 1.
309
[Eusebius, Præp Evang., ix. 4.]