---
title: "Fathers of the Third Century: Tertullian, Minucius Felix, Commodian and Origen"
author: "Various Church Fathers"
translator: "S. Thelwall and others; A. Cleveland Coxe (ed.)"
languages: [en]
shelf: "Church Fathers"
section: 81 of 199
url: https://scriptura.si/works/church-fathers-tertullian-minucius-felix-commodian-origen/81/
cite: "Various Church Fathers, tr. S. Thelwall and others; A. Cleveland Coxe (ed.), Fathers of the Third Century: Tertullian, Minucius Felix, Commodian and Origen, section 81. Scriptura (scriptura.si), https://scriptura.si/works/church-fathers-tertullian-minucius-felix-commodian-origen/81/"
---

# Fathers of the Third Century: Tertullian, Minucius Felix, Commodian and Origen

*Various Church Fathers, tr. S. Thelwall and others; A. Cleveland Coxe (ed.)*

Tertullian, Minucius Felix, Commodian, and Origen's On First Principles and Against Celsus.

## 81. Of the Harmony of the Fathers of the Old and New Testaments · 8 of 10

Source: https://scriptura.si/works/church-fathers-tertullian-minucius-felix-commodian-origen/81/ · cite a paragraph as https://scriptura.si/works/church-fathers-tertullian-minucius-felix-commodian-origen/81/#p-N

[¶0] 295 Lightening the world with light; comrades of Christ

[¶1] And apostolic men; who, speaking truth,

[¶2] Heard with their ears Salvation, with their eyes

[¶3] Saw It, and handled with their hand the late

[¶4] From death recovered body, and partook

[¶5] 300 As fellow-guests of food therewith, as they

[¶6] Themselves bear witness.

[¶7] Him did Paul as well

[¶8] (Forechosen apostle, and in due time sent),

[¶9] When rapt into the heavens, behold: and sent

[¶10] By Him, he, with his comrade Barnabas,

[¶11] 305 And with the earlier associates

[¶12] Joined in one league together, everywhere

[¶13] Among the Gentiles hands the doctrine down

[¶14] That Christ is Head, whose members are the Church,

[¶15] He the salvation of the body, He

[¶16] 310 The members’ life perennial;

[¶17] He, made flesh, He, ta’en away for all, Himself first rose

[¶18] Again, salvation’s only hope; and gave

[¶19] The norm to His disciples: they at once

[¶20] All variously suffered, for His Name,

[¶21] 315 Unworthy penalties.

[¶22] Such members bears

[¶23] With beauteous body the free mother, since

[¶24] She never her Lord’s precepts left behind,

[¶25] And in His home hath grown old, to her Lord

[¶26] Ever most choice, having for His Name’s sake

[¶27] 320 Penalties suffered. For since, barren once,

[¶28] Not yet secure of her futurity,

[¶29] She hath outgiven a people born of seed

[¶30] Celestial, and been spurned, and borne the spleen

[¶31] Of her own handmaid; now ’tis time to see

[¶32] 325 This former-barren mother have a son

[¶33] The heir of her own liberty; not like

[¶34] The handmaid’s heir, yoked in estate to her,

[¶35] Although she bare him from celestial seed

[¶36] Conceived. Far be it that ye should with words

[¶37] 330 Unlawful, with rash voice, collectively

[¶38] Without distinction, give men exemplary

[¶39] (Heaven’s glowing constellations, to the mass

[¶40] Of men conjoined by seed alone or blood),

[¶41] The rugged bondman’s name; or that one think

[¶42] 335 That he may speak in servile style about

[¶43] A People who the mandates followèd

[¶44] Of the Lord’s Law. No: but we mean the troop