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On the Resurrection of the Flesh

Tertullian

Chapter 7

About this work

Author: Tertullian

Chapter VII.—The Earthy Material of Which Flesh is Created Wonderfully Improved by God’s Manipulation. By the Addition of the Soul in Man’s Constitution It Became the Chief Work in the Creation.

But perhaps the dignity of the flesh may seem to

‹ Chapter 6 Chapter 8 ›

be

diminished

,

because

it

has

not

been

actually

manipulated

by

the

hand

of

God

,

as

the

clay

was

at

first

.

Now

,

when

God

handled

the

clay

for

the

express

purpose

of

the

growth

of

flesh

out

of

it

afterwards

,

it

was

for

the

flesh

that

He

took

all

the

trouble

.

But

I

want

you

,

moreover

,

to

know

at

what

time

and

in

what

manner

the

flesh

flourished

into

beauty

out

of

its

clay

.

For

it

cannot

be

,

as

some

will

have

it

,

that

those

“

coats

of

skins

”

which

Adam

and

Eve

put

on

when

they

were

stripped

of

paradise

,

were

really

themselves

the

forming

of

the

flesh

out

of

clay

,

because

long

before

that

Adam

had

already

recognised

the

flesh

which

was

in

the

woman

as

the

propagation

of

his

own

substance

(

“

This

is

now

bone

of

my

bone

,

and

flesh

of

my

flesh

”

)

,

and

the

very

taking

of

the

woman

out

of

the

man

was

supplemented

with

flesh

;

but

it

ought

,

I

should

suppose

,

to

have

been

made

good

with

clay

,

if

Adam

was

still

clay

.

The

clay

,

therefore

,

was

obliterated

and

absorbed

into

flesh

.

When

did

this

happen

?

At

the

time

that

man

became

a

living

soul

by

the

inbreathing

of

God

—

by

the

breath

indeed

which

was

capable

of

hardening

clay

into

another

substance

,

as

into

some

earthenware

,

so

now

into

flesh

.

In

the

same

way

the

potter

,

too

,

has

it

in

his

power

,

by

tempering

the

blast

of

his

fire

,

to

modify

his

clayey

material

into

a

stiffer

one

,

and

to

mould

one

form

after

another

more

beautiful

than

the

original

substance

,

and

now

possessing

both

a

kind

and

name

of

its

own

.

For

although

the

Scripture

says

,

“

Shall

the

clay

say

to

the

potter

?

”

that

is

,

Shall

man

contend

with

God

?

although

the

apostle

speaks

of

“

earthen

vessels

”

he

refers

to

man

,

who

was

originally

clay

.

And

the

vessel

is

the

flesh

,

because

this

was

made

of

clay

by

the

breath

of

the

divine

afflatus

;

and

it

was

afterwards

clothed

with

“

the

coats

of

skins

,

”

that

is

,

with

the

cutaneous

covering

which

was

placed

over

it

.

So

truly

is

this

the

fact

,

that

if

you

withdraw

the

skin

,

you

lay

bare

the

flesh

.

Thus

,

that

which

becomes

a

spoil

when

stripped

off

,

was

a

vestment

as

long

as

it

remained

laid

over

.

Hence

the

apostle

,

when

he

call

circumcision

“

a

putting

off

(

or

spoliation

)

of

the

flesh

,

”

affirmed

the

skin

to

be

a

coat

or

tunic

.

Now

this

being

the

case

,

you

have

both

the

clay

made

glorious

by

the

hand

of

God

,

and

the

flesh

more

glorious

still

by

His

breathing

upon

it

,

by

virtue

of

which

the

flesh

not

only

laid

aside

its

clayey

rudiments

,

but

also

took

on

itself

the

ornaments

of

the

soul

.

You

surely

are

not

more

careful

than

God

,

that

you

indeed

should

refuse

to

mount

the

gems

of

Scythia

and

India

and

the

pearls

of

the

Red

Sea

in

lead

,

or

brass

,

or

iron

,

or

even

in

silver

,

but

should

set

them

in

the

most

precious

and

most

highly

-

wrought

gold

;

or

,

again

,

that

you

should

provide

for

your

finest

wines

and

most

costly

unguents

the

most

fitting

vessels

;

or

,

on

the

same

principle

,

should

find

for

your

swords

of

finished

temper

scabbards

of

equal

worth

;

whilst

God

must

consign

to

some

vilest

sheath

the

shadow

of

His

own

soul

,

the

breath

of

His

own

Spirit

,

the

operation

of

His

own

mouth

,

and

by

so

ignominious

a

consignment

secure

,

of

course

,

its

condemnation

.

Well

,

then

,

has

He

placed

,

or

rather

inserted

and

commingled

,

it

with

the

flesh

?

Yes

;

and

so

intimate

is

the

union

,

that

it

may

be

deemed

to

be

uncertain

whether

the

flesh

bears

about

the

soul

,

or

the

soul

the

flesh

;

or

whether

the

flesh

acts

as

apparitor

to

the

soul

,

or

the

soul

to

the

flesh

.

It

is

,

however

,

more

credible

that

the

soul

has

service

rendered

to

it

,

and

has

the

mastery

,

as

being

more

proximate

in

character

to

God

.

This

circumstance

even

redounds

to

the

glory

of

the

flesh

,

inasmuch

as

it

both

contains

an

essence

nearest

to

God’s

,

and

renders

itself

a

partaker

of

(

the

soul’s

)

actual

sovereignty

.

For

what

enjoyment

of

nature

is

there

,

what

produce

of

the

world

,

what

relish

of

the

elements

,

which

is

not

imparted

to

the

soul

by

means

of

the

body

?

How

can

it

be

otherwise

?

Is

it

not

by

its

means

that

the

soul

is

supported

by

the

entire

apparatus

of

the

senses

—

the

sight

,

the

hearing

,

the

taste

,

the

smell

,

the

touch

?

Is

it

not

by

its

means

that

it

has

a

sprinkling

of

the

divine

power

,

there

being

nothing

which

it

does

not

effect

by

its

faculty

of

speech

,

even

when

it

is

only

tacitly

indicated

?

And

speech

is

the

result

of

a

fleshly

organ

.

The

arts

come

through

the

flesh

;

through

the

flesh

also

effect

is

given

to

the

mind’s

pursuits

and

powers

;

all

work

,

too

,

and

business

and

offices

of

life

,

are

accomplished

by

the

flesh

;

and

so

utterly

are

the

living

acts

of

the

soul

the

work

of

the

flesh

,

that

for

the

soul

to

cease

to

do

living

acts

,

would

be

nothing

else

than

sundering

itself

from

the

flesh

.

So

also

the

very

act

of

dying

is

a

function

of

the

flesh

,

even

as

the

process

of

life

is

.

Now

,

if

all

things

are

subject

to

the

soul

through

the

flesh

,

their

subjection

is

equally

due

to

the

flesh

.

That

which

is

the

means

and

agent

of

your

enjoyment

,

must

needs

be

also

the

partaker

and

sharer

of

your

enjoyment

.

So

that

the

flesh

,

which

is

accounted

the

minister

and

servant

of

the

soul

,

turns

out

to

be

also

its

associate

and

co

-

heir

.

And

if

all

this

in

temporal

things

,

why

not

also

in

things

eternal

?

Notes

1
Gen. iii. 31.
2
A Valentinian notion.
3
Gen. ii. 23.
4
Rom. ix. 20.
5
2 Cor. vi. 7.
6
Col. ii. 11.
7
Invehi.
8
Dominari.
9
John iv. 24.