Opening the library…

Search the Bible

On the Flesh of Christ

Tertullian

Chapter 22

About this work

Author: Tertullian

Chapter XXII.—Holy Scripture in the New Testament, Even in Its Very First Verse, Testifies to Christ’s True Flesh. In Virtue of Which He is Incorporated in the Human Stock of David, and Abraham, and Adam.

They may, then, obliterate the testimony of the devils

‹ Chapter 21 Chapter 23 ›

which

proclaimed

Jesus

the

son

of

David

;

but

whatever

unworthiness

there

be

in

this

testimony

,

that

of

the

apostles

they

will

never

be

able

to

efface

.

There

is

,

first

of

all

,

Matthew

,

that

most

faithful

chronicler

of

the

Gospel

,

because

the

companion

of

the

Lord

;

for

no

other

reason

in

the

world

than

to

show

us

clearly

the

fleshly

original

of

Christ

,

he

thus

begins

his

Gospel

:

“

The

book

of

the

generation

of

Jesus

Christ

,

the

son

of

David

,

the

son

of

Abraham

.

”

With

a

nature

issuing

from

such

fountal

sources

,

and

an

order

gradually

descending

to

the

birth

of

Christ

,

what

else

have

we

here

described

than

the

very

flesh

of

Abraham

and

of

David

conveying

itself

down

,

step

after

step

,

to

the

very

virgin

,

and

at

last

introducing

Christ

,

—

nay

,

producing

Christ

Himself

of

the

virgin

?

Then

,

again

,

there

is

Paul

,

who

was

at

once

both

a

disciple

,

and

a

master

,

and

a

witness

of

the

selfsame

Gospel

;

as

an

apostle

of

the

same

Christ

,

also

,

he

affirms

that

Christ

“

was

made

of

the

seed

of

David

,

according

to

the

flesh

,

”

—

which

,

therefore

,

was

His

own

likewise

.

Christ’s

flesh

,

then

,

is

of

David’s

seed

.

Since

He

is

of

the

seed

of

David

in

consequence

of

Mary’s

flesh

,

He

is

therefore

of

Mary’s

flesh

because

of

the

seed

of

David

.

In

what

way

so

ever

you

torture

the

statement

,

He

is

either

of

the

flesh

of

Mary

because

of

the

seed

of

David

,

or

He

is

of

the

seed

of

David

because

of

the

flesh

of

Mary

.

The

whole

discussion

is

terminated

by

the

same

apostle

,

when

he

declares

Christ

to

be

“

the

seed

of

Abraham

.

”

And

if

of

Abraham

,

how

much

more

,

to

be

sure

,

of

David

,

as

a

more

recent

progenitor

!

For

,

unfolding

the

promised

blessing

upon

all

nations

in

the

person

of

Abraham

,

“

And

in

thy

seed

shall

all

nations

of

the

earth

be

blessed

,

”

he

adds

,

“

He

saith

not

,

And

to

seeds

,

as

of

many

;

but

as

of

one

,

And

to

thy

seed

,

which

is

Christ

.

”

When

we

read

and

believe

these

things

,

what

sort

of

flesh

ought

we

,

and

can

we

,

acknowledge

in

Christ

?

Surely

none

other

than

Abraham’s

,

since

Christ

is

“

the

seed

of

Abraham

;

”

none

other

than

Jesse’s

,

since

Christ

is

the

blossom

of

“

the

stem

of

Jesse

;

”

none

other

than

David’s

,

since

Christ

is

“

the

fruit

of

David’s

loins

;

”

none

other

than

Mary’s

,

since

Christ

came

from

Mary’s

womb

;

and

,

higher

still

,

none

other

than

Adam’s

,

since

Christ

is

“

the

second

Adam

.

”

The

consequence

,

therefore

,

is

that

they

must

either

maintain

,

that

those

(

ancestors

)

had

a

spiritual

flesh

,

that

so

there

might

be

derived

to

Christ

the

same

condition

of

substance

,

or

else

allow

that

the

flesh

of

Christ

was

not

a

spiritual

one

,

since

it

is

not

traced

from

the

origin

of

a

spiritual

stock

.

Notes

1
Commentator.
2
Originis carnalis: i.e. “origin of the flesh of.”
3
Matt. i. 1.
4
Rom. i. 3; 2 Tim. ii. 8.
5
In nomine: or, “for the sake of.”
6
Gal. iii. 8, 16.
7
Censetur.