Opening the library…

Home Bible Corpus Discover You

Search the Bible

Banquet of the Ten Virgins

Methodius of Olympus

Chapter 4

About this work

A literary symposium in which ten women offer speeches on virginity, creation, Scripture, virtue, and Christian perfection, consciously adapting the form of a classical philosophical banquet.

Author: Methodius of Olympus
Date: Late 3rd century
Origin: Eastern Mediterranean
Genre: Dialogue

Chapter IV.—The Passage Explained; The Queens, the Holy Souls Before the Deluge; The Concubines, the Souls of the Prophets; The Divine Seed for Spiritual Offspring in the Books of the Prophets; The Nuptials of the Word in the Prophets as Though Clandestine.

Now if any one should have a doubt

‹ Chapter 3 Chapter 5 ›

about

these

things

,

inasmuch

as

the

points

are

nowhere

fully

wrought

out

,

and

should

still

wish

more

fully

to

perceive

their

spiritual

significance

,

namely

,

what

the

queens

and

the

concubines

and

the

virgins

are

,

we

will

say

that

these

may

have

been

spoken

concerning

those

who

have

been

conspicuous

for

their

righteousness

from

the

beginning

throughout

the

progress

of

time

;

as

of

those

before

the

flood

,

and

those

after

the

flood

,

and

so

on

of

those

after

Christ

.

The

Church

,

then

,

is

the

spouse

.

The

queens

are

those

royal

souls

before

the

deluge

,

who

became

well

-

pleasing

to

God

,

that

is

,

those

about

Abel

and

Seth

and

Enoch

.

The

concubines

those

after

the

flood

,

namely

,

those

of

the

prophets

,

in

whom

,

before

the

Church

was

betrothed

to

the

Lord

,

being

united

to

them

after

the

manner

of

concubines

,

He

sowed

true

words

in

an

incorrupt

and

pure

philosophy

,

so

that

,

conceiving

faith

,

they

might

bring

forth

to

Him

the

Spirit

of

salvation

.

For

such

fruits

do

the

souls

bring

forth

with

whom

Christ

has

had

intercourse

,

fruits

which

bear

an

ever

-

memorable

renown

.

For

if

you

will

look

at

the

books

of

Moses

,

or

David

,

or

Solomon

,

or

Isaiah

,

or

of

the

prophets

who

follow

,

O

virgins

,

you

will

see

what

offspring

they

have

left

,

for

the

saving

of

life

,

from

their

intercourse

with

the

Son

of

God

.

Hence

the

Word

has

with

deep

perception

called

the

souls

of

the

prophets

concubines

,

because

He

did

not

espouse

them

openly

,

as

He

did

the

Church

,

having

killed

for

her

the

fatted

calf

.

Notes

2
[Here allegorizing is refuted and perishes in fanciful and over-strained analogies.]
3
Luke xv. 23.