Table Of ContentTHE FATHERS
OF THE CHURCH
VOLUME 91
THE FATHERS
OF THE CHURCH
EDITORIAL BOARD
Thomas P. Halton
The Catholic University of America
Editorial Director
Elizabeth Clark Kathleen McVey
Duke University Princeton Theological Seminary
Robert B. Eno, S.S. Robert D. Sider
The Catholic University ofA merica Dickinson College
Frank A. C. Mantello Michael Slusser
The Catholic University ofA merica Duquesne University
Cynthia Kahn White Robin Darling Young
The University ofA rizona The Catholic University ofA merica
David J. McGonagle
Director
The Catholic University of America Press
FORMER EDITORIAL DIRECTORS
Ludwig Schopp, Roy J. Deferrari, Bernard M. Peebles,
Hermigild Dressler, O.F.M.
Edward Strickland
Staff Editor
ST. EPHREM
THE SYRIAN
SELECTED PROSE WORKS
COMMENTARY ON GENESIS
COMMENTARY ON EXODUS
HOMILY ON OUR LORD
LETTER TO PUBLIUS
Translated by
EDWARD G. MATHEWS, JR.
The University of Scranton
Scranton, Pennsylvania
and
JOSEPH P. AMAR
The University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, Indiana
Edited by
KATHLEEN McVEY
Princeton Theological Seminary
Princeton, New Jersey
THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA PRESS
Washington, D.C.
The preparation of this volume was made possible in part by a grant from
the National Endowment for the Humanities, an independent federal agency.
Copyright © 1994
The Catholic University of America Press
All lights reselved
Printed in the United States of America
First paperback edition 2004
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of
the American National Standards for Information Science-Permanence of
Paper for Printed Library materials,
ANSI Z39-48-1984
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA
Ephraem, Syms, Saint, 303-373.
[Selections. English. 1994]
Selected prose works / St. Ephrem the Syrian; translated by Edward G.
Mathews,.Jr. andJoseph P. Amar; edited by Kathleen McVey.
p. cm. - (The Fathers of the church; V. 91)
Includes bibliographical references and indexes.
Contents: Commentary on Genesis - Commentary on Exodus - The
homily on our Lord - Letter to Publius.
ISBN 0-8132-0091-1 (d.) 0-8132-1421-1 (pbk.)
1. Bible. O.T. Genesis-Commentaties-Early works to 1800. 2. Bible.
O.T. Exodus-Commentaries-Early works to 1800. 3.Jesus Christ
Sermons-Early works to 1800. 4. SpiIituallife-Chlistianity-Early
works to 1800. I. Mathews, Edward G., 19.')4- . II. Amar,Joseph P.,
1946- . III. McVey, Kathleen E., 1944- . IV. Title. v. Selies.
BR60.F3E64213 1994
[BR632.ES]
270 s-dc20
[270.2] 94-7480
CONTENTS
Foreword vii
Preface ix
Abbreviations XIII
Select Bibliography xv
General Introduction 3
Commentary on Genesis
Introduction
Commentary on Genesis
Commentary on Exodus
Introduction 217
Commentary on Exodus 221
The Homily on Our Lord
Introduction
The Homily on Our Lord
Letter to Publius
Introduction 335
Letter to Publius 338
Indices
General Index 359
Index of Holy ScIipture 388
v
FOREWORD
The Editors presented volume 1 of FOTC, The Apostolic
Fathers (New York, 1947) as the first of a projected series of
seventy-two and promised: "In general, these Fathers will
prove to be a reproach to all narrowness and exclu
sivism .... If ever we forget the part that Christian poetry
has played in the propagation of Christian truth, we have
only to recall the hymns and lyric lines of Ambrose,
Ephraem, Pope Damasus, Prudentius and Boethius." Al
ready we have gone beyond the projected seventy-two vol
umes and, while we have had two volumes devoted to the
poetry of Prudentius [FOTC 43 (1962) and 52 (1965)
trans. Sr. M. Clement Eagen], this is our first venture out
side the Greek and Latin Fathers, and it is particularly ap
propriate that it be devoted to the "Harp of the Spirit,"
Ephrem.
Like Ambrose, Ephrem composed homilies and commen
taries as well as hymns, and we are fortunate to have on our
Editorial Board, Professor Kathleen McVey, whose recent
volume, Ephrem the Syrian Hymns, Classics of Western Spiritu
ality (New York, 1989) will have whetted the appetites of
English-speaking readers for more Ephrem, and who acted
as editor of the present volume of Selected Prose Works. We
hope that this in turn will encourage the appearance of
other volumes devoted to Fathers whose first language was
neither Greek nor Latin.
THOMAS HALTON
Editorial Director
VII
PREFACE
This volume contains a selection of the prose works of
Ephrem the Syrian: the Commentary on Genesis, the Commen
tary on Exodus, the Homily on Our Lord, and the Letter to Pub
lius. These four works comprise approximately two-thirds of
Ephrem's genuine Syriac prose works known to have sur
vived. Among the others, the Commentary on the Diatessaron
will appear in a forthcoming volume in this series, and the
Prose Refutations have already been rendered into English
(see bibliography). While Ephrem is justly renowned for his
poetic works, the works translated here also manifest
Ephrem's genius as spiritual writer, theologian, and teacher.
Study of Ephrem has gained tremendous impetus in the last
two or three decades, particularly in Europe, but of late in
the United States as well. Recent translations of Ephrem's
works published here bear clear witness to this. We are
proud to have made this small contribution to that ongoing
effort and hope that others will soon follow.
With respect to the translations contained in this volume,
the division of our labor has been one of nearly total inde
pendence. Dr. Amar translated and annotated the Commen
tary on Exodus and the Homily on Our Lord, while Mathews
was responsible for the Commentary on Genesis and the Letter
to Publius. The introduction, intended to provide a funda
mental guide to the world of Syriac Christianity as well as to
Ephrem, was researched and written by Mathews, although
the final version benefitted much from comments and sug
gestions by Dr. Amar. Mathews also compiled the bibliogra
phy, the purpose of which extends beyond the four works
translated here; it is intended to provide for the reader the
available editions of Ephrem's works, a generous selection
of studies on Ephrem available in English, along with the
IX
