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Demonstration of the Apostolic Preaching
St Irenaeus of Lyons, tr. Robinson, 1920
Chapter 12
Now, having made man lord of the earth and all things in it, He secretly appointed him lord also of those who were servants in it. They however were in their perfection; but the lord, that is, man, was (but) small; for he was a child;1 and it was necessary that he should grow, and so come to (his) perfection. And, that he might have his nourishment and growth with festive and dainty meats, He prepared him a place better than this world,2 excelling in air, beauty, light, food, plants, fruit, water, and all other necessaries of life: and its name is Paradise. And so fair and good was this Paradise, that the Word of God continually resorted thither, and walked and talked with the man, figuring beforehand the things that should be in the future, (namely) that He should dwell with him and talk with him, and should be with men, teaching them righteousness. But man was a child, not yet having his understanding perfected; wherefore also he was easily led astray by the deceiver.
Notes
- IV. lxii. 1: νήπιος γὰρ ἦν.
- That Paradise was in a region outside this world is not quite distinctly stated here, but the opening words of c. 17 seem to support this view. The view of Irenaeus, however, is clearly given in V, v. 1: Ποῦ οὖν ἐτέθη ὁ πρῶτος ἄνθρωπος; ἐν τῷ παραδείσῳ δηλονότι, καθὼς γέγραπται (Gen. ii. 8) . . . καὶ ἐκεῖθεν ἐξεβλήθη εἰς τόνδε τὸν κόσμον παρακούσας. He goes on to speak of this as the Paradise into which St Paul was caught up (2 Cor. xii. 4). Moreover he identifies it with the resting-place of just men, such as Enoch and Elijah. So in the Apocalypse of Peter the just are dwelling in a μέγιστον χῶρον ἐκτὸς τούτου τοῦ κόσμου. Irenaeus is silent as to whether Paradise is in the third heaven. But the Slavonic Secrets of Enoch, referred to above, places it there. In the shorter and apparently more original recension we read as follows (c. 8): “And the men removed me from that place, and brought me to the third heaven, and placed me in the midst of a garden; a place such as was never seen for the goodliness of its appearance. And every tree is beautiful, and every fruit ripe; all kinds of agreeable food springing up with every kind of fragrance. And (there are) four rivers flowing with a soft course; and every kind of thing good, that grows for food,” etc. The Valentinians, according to Irenaeus (I, i. 9), placed Paradise ὑπὲρ τρίτον οὐρανόν.
Comp. the Anaphora in the Liturgy of St Basil (Swainson, p. 80): ἐξώρισας αὐτὸν ἐν τῇ δικαιοκρισίᾳ σοῦ, ὁ θεός, ἐκ τοῦ παραδείσου εἰς τόνδε τὸν κόσμον.