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On the Flesh of Christ

Tertullian

Chapter 24

About this work

Author: Tertullian

Chapter XXIV.—Divine Strictures on Various Heretics Descried in Various Passages of Prophetical Scripture. Those Who Assail the True Doctrine of the One Lord Jesus Christ, Both God and Man, Thus Condemned.

For when Isaiah hurls denunciation against our very heretics,

‹ Chapter 23 Chapter 25 ›

especially

in

his

“

Woe

to

them

that

call

evil

good

,

and

put

darkness

for

light

,

”

he

of

course

sets

his

mark

upon

those

amongst

you

who

preserve

not

in

the

words

they

employ

the

light

of

their

true

significance

,

(

by

taking

care

)

that

the

soul

should

mean

only

that

which

is

so

called

,

and

the

flesh

simply

that

which

is

confest

to

our

view

,

and

God

none

other

than

the

One

who

is

preached

.

Having

thus

Marcion

in

his

prophetic

view

,

he

says

,

“

I

am

God

,

and

there

is

none

else

;

there

is

no

God

beside

me

.

”

And

when

in

another

passage

he

says

,

in

like

manner

,

“

Before

me

there

was

no

God

,

”

he

strikes

at

those

inexplicable

genealogies

of

the

Valentinian

Æons

.

Again

,

there

is

an

answer

to

Ebion

in

the

Scripture

:

“

Born

,

not

of

blood

,

nor

of

the

will

of

the

flesh

,

nor

of

the

will

of

man

,

but

of

God

.

”

In

like

manner

,

in

the

passage

,

“

If

even

an

angel

of

heaven

preach

unto

you

any

other

gospel

than

that

which

we

have

preached

unto

you

,

let

him

be

anathema

,

”

he

calls

attention

to

the

artful

influence

of

Philumene

,

the

virgin

friend

of

Apelles

.

Surely

he

is

antichrist

who

denies

that

Christ

has

come

in

the

flesh

.

By

declaring

that

His

flesh

is

simply

and

absolutely

true

,

and

taken

in

the

plain

sense

of

its

own

nature

,

the

Scripture

aims

a

blow

at

all

who

make

distinctions

in

it

.

In

the

same

way

,

also

,

when

it

defines

the

very

Christ

to

be

but

one

,

it

shakes

the

fancies

of

those

who

exhibit

a

multiform

Christ

,

who

make

Christ

to

be

one

being

and

Jesus

another

,

—

representing

one

as

escaping

out

of

the

midst

of

the

crowds

,

and

the

other

as

detained

by

them

;

one

as

appearing

on

a

solitary

mountain

to

three

companions

,

clothed

with

glory

in

a

cloud

,

the

other

as

an

ordinary

man

holding

intercourse

with

all

,

one

as

magnanimous

,

but

the

other

as

timid

;

lastly

,

one

as

suffering

death

,

the

other

as

risen

again

,

by

means

of

which

event

they

maintain

a

resurrection

of

their

own

also

,

only

in

another

flesh

.

Happily

,

however

,

He

who

suffered

“

will

come

again

from

heaven

,

”

and

by

all

shall

He

be

seen

,

who

rose

again

from

the

dead

.

They

too

who

crucified

Him

shall

see

and

acknowledge

Him

;

that

is

to

say

,

His

very

flesh

,

against

which

they

spent

their

fury

,

and

without

which

it

would

be

impossible

for

Himself

either

to

exist

or

to

be

seen

;

so

that

they

must

blush

with

shame

who

affirm

that

His

flesh

sits

in

heaven

void

of

sensation

,

like

a

sheath

only

,

Christ

being

withdrawn

from

it

;

as

well

as

those

who

(

maintain

)

that

His

flesh

and

soul

are

just

the

same

thing

,

or

else

that

His

soul

is

all

that

exists

,

but

that

His

flesh

no

longer

lives

.

Notes

1
Isa. v. 20.
2
Istos.
3
Prædicatur.
4
Isa. xlv. 5.
5
Isa. xlvi. 9.
6
John i. 13. Tertullian’s quotation is, as usual, in the singular, “natus.”
7
Gal. i. 8.
8
Comp. de Præscr. Hæret. c. xxx. p. 257, supra.
9
1 John iv. 3.
10
Disceptatores ejus.
11
Ceteris passivum.
12
Acts i. 11.
13
Tantundem.
14
Tantummodo.