SWIFTLY RUNS THE WORD: PHILO'S DOCTRINE OF MEDIATION IN DE VITA MOSIS
by
Emily Parker
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at
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\ TABLE OF CONTENTS:
ABSTRACT vi
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS USED vii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ix
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ..1
CHAPTER TWO: PHILO'S WORKS, LIFE, AND INTELLECTUAL MILIEU 12 (2.1) Mos. and the Philonic Corpus 12 (2.2) Philo and the Pax Romana -...... 19 (2.3) Philo's Intellectual Milieu: The Middle-Platonists 21 (2.4) The Elements of Moses: Pythagoras, Plato, and the Stoic Sage 23
CHAPTER THREE: PHILOSOPHY, KINGSHIP AND THE LAW 39 (3.1) Philo's Introduction 39 (3.2) Preliminary Activities 42 (3.2.1) Birth, Early Education, and Return to the Nation 42 (3.2.2) Philosophical Training in Exile 45 (3.2.3) Call to Kingship: The Burning Bush 48 (3.2.4) Miraculous Demonstrations and Punishments in Egypt ....54 (3.3) Moses as King 57 (3.3.1) Introduction to Kingship 57 (3.3.2) Educating the Nation 58 (3.4) Moses as Legislator 68 (3.4.1) Introduction to the Legislative Office 68 (3.4.2) The Virtues and the Universality of the Law 71 (3.4.3) The Parts of Scripture and the Generic Quality of Their Content 73
CHAPTER FOUR: HIGH PRIEST AND PROPHET 76 (4.1) Moses as High Priest 76 (4.1.1) Introduction to the High Priest's Office 76 (4.1.2) The Symbolic Creation 79 (4.1.3) Appointing the Priesthood 87
IV (4.2) Moses as Prophet 97 (4.2.1) Introduction to the Prophetic Office 97 (4.2.2) Question and Answer Prophecy 100 (4.2.3) Prophecy by Divine Inspiration 108 (4.3) Philo's Conclusion 115
CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSION 118
BIBLIOGRAPHY: 139
v ABSTRACT
This thesis examines Philo of Alexandria's doctrine of mediation mDe Vita Mosis. Acting through his official roles as philosopher-king, legislator, high priest, and prophet, Philo's Moses is a divine mediator who reveals, completes, and fulfills the hierarchy of created beings, enabling the restoration of the human soul to a state of perfection beyond that of the pre-fallen human nature. Philo's interpretation of the Septuagint depends on philosophical elements drawn from Plato, the Stoics, and the Pythagoreans. Philo, like other Middle Platonists, develops the doctrine of Plato's Timaeus by locating the ideas in the mind of God, which enables him to posit an unbroken chain of created existents, hierarchically arranged from the creator to the creation, thereby making the constitution of Moses not just cosmic, but divine. Despite Philo's evident reliance on the Hellenic philosophical tradition, we have no evidence that any Hellene had articulated their roles with such precision and exactitude before Philo.
VI LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS USED
Philonic Treatises
Abr. De Abrahamo Agr. De Agricultura Cher. De Cherubim Conf. De Confusione Linguarum Cong. De Congressu Eruditionis Gratia Decal. De Decalogo Det. Quod Deterius Potion Insidiari Soleat Ebr. De Ebrietate Flacc. In Flaccum Fug. De Fuga et Inventione Gig. De Gigantibus Her. Quis Rerum Divinarum Heres Sit Ios. De Iosepho LA Legum Allegoriarum (Books 1-3) Legal Legatio Ad Gaium Migr. De Migratione Abrahami Mos. De Vita Mosis (Books 1-2) Mut. De Mutatione Nominum Opif. De Opificio Mundi Post. De Posteritate Caini Praem. De Praemiis et Poenis Prob. Quod Omnis Probus Liber Sit QE Quaestiones et Solutiones in Exodum QG Quaestiones et Solutiones in Genesim Sacr. De Sacrificiis Abelis et Caini Sobr. De Sobrietate Somn. De Somniis (Books 1-2) Spec. De Specialibus Legibus (Books 1-3) Virt. De Virtutibus
Other Works:
SVF Stoicorum Veterum Fragmenta
Standard works of Philonic Scholarship:
vii SPh Studia Philonica SPhA Studia Philonica Annual ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
To my teacher of seven years, Dr. Wayne Hankey, I owe my utmost thanks. Dr. Hankey's contribution to this thesis is significant, yet it represents only the smallest fraction of his contribution to my development as a scholar, and as a soul, turned towards the good. I am extremely grateful for the careful insights delivered with expediency by my two readers, Dr. Michael Fournier and Dr. Eli Diamond. I thank Donna Edwards, for her foresight and attention to detail. For his support and sound advice relating to my overall direction as a graduate student, I thank Dr. Peter O'Brien. Through many conversations with Tim Riggs and Simon Fortier, I have been able to recognize and express crucial ideas, which have formed this thesis. During my first year as a grad student I participated in a large share of fun, thanks to Andra Striowski and Michelle Wilband. And, of course, I am extremely appreciative of the constituent members of my oikos, Marija, Hugh, and Annie, who have gone out of their way many times to make my life easier.
IX CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
In the book of Exodus, the children of Israel say to Moses: "Speak thou to us, and let not God speak to us, lest we die."1 Indeed, we see Moses acting as mediator who tells to the people what God has told to him. Philo Judaeus of Alexandria takes up and expands upon the notion that Moses is the medium for the divine message. In Quis
Rerum Divinarum Heres Sit (Her.), Philo explains that Moses' role as messenger and spokesman is divinely sanctioned by the Father of the universe: "to the archangel and eldest logos the father that created the whole has given the special prerogative to stand in the middle separating the created from the maker."2 In De Vita Mosis (Mos.), Philo retells the life of Moses, drawing from the whole Pentateuch, but with a particular concentration on the book of Exodus, in order to describe his activities as philosopher- king, legislator, high priest, and prophet. Throughout Mos., Philo presents Moses as a divine figure on account of his excellence in general, and in relation to his achievements in the official roles: "for he was named god and king of the whole nation."3 By the first century CE, Greek and Roman authors began to ascribe divine status not only to the heroes of Greek mythology, but also to more contemporary figures, such as Pythagoras and Emperor Augustus, whose eminence as philosophers and kings, afforded them the highest of praise. Edwards identifies a trend among the Hellenistic Greek biographers, who locate the teachings of all philosophical truths in one divine source. Edwards states:
"for the Greeks of the Roman period.. .both Parmenides and Plato were disciples of
1 Exodus 20:19 KCU surav npbq Moouofjv XaXr\aov au r^lv Kai |ifi XaXeixu> Tipoc; fuifiq 6 Qeoq |j.r|7iox£ OOTOG&VCOUSV 1 Her., 205. xa> 5s apxayyeXco Kai 7ipsaPuxaxcp Xoyco 5copeav e5a>Kev E^aipsxov 6 xa 6A,a yswiiaac; 7taxf|p, iva usGopioc; oxac; xo ysvoiievov SiaKpivji xoi3 7i£7ioi.r|K6xo<; 3 Mos., 1.158. cbvouda6r| yap olou xofi eOvouc; 6s6g Kai fiaaikevq- 1 Pythagoras."4 According to Edwards, the purposes of the Greek biographers were slightly different than those of the Latin authors: "to the Greeks of the time biography was a keepsake from the wreck of history.. .whereas Latin writers of biography took the
Emperors as their subject, Greeks extolled the masters of the intellectual disciplines in which their own supremacy was admitted."5 According to Edwards, the Hellenistic world provides a context wherein the lives and deeds of great men came to be seen as divine:
It is true that in these times a "holy man" could enjoy the global, rather than merely civic, eminence that was necessary to make a true celebrity.. .the true divine man was the one who has inured himself so perfectly to the ways of truth and virtue that he appeared to derive his insight from the gods.6
According to Edwards, the 'divinity' of a man is seen relative to the degree of his assimilation to virtue and his knowledge, and that the eminence of these figures increases in proportion to the expansion of the Hellenic polis into the Hellenistic cosmopolis.
Ian Scott compares Mos. to Hellenic and Hellenistic biographies of divine men.
In the Greek and Roman accounts, during the first century CE, Scott maintains that a great deal of ambiguity surrounds the status of the divine men: "in part because Greek theology had not worked out a clear or universal understanding of the various ranks of intermediate beings."7 Scott rejects the notion that 'theios aner' refers to a distinctive type which would have shared the same definition by all authors who used it: "some ancient men can be called divine in the sense that they manifest some superhuman power
4 Mark Edwards, "Introduction," Neoplatonic Saints the Lives ofProclus and Plotinus by their Students Trans. M. Edwards (Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2000), xvii. 5 Edwards, "Introduction," xx. 6 Edwards, "Introduction," xiv. 7 Ian Scott, "Is Philo's Moses a Divine Man?" in SPhA 14 (Atlanta: Scholar's Press, 2002), 92. 2 or special inspiration though they remain mere mortals. Others, however, were understood as being, or becoming a demi-god."8 Scott whittles down the issue of Moses' divinity to a question of his ontological status: "the question here is whether Moses' unique contemplation of divine realities makes him ontologically divine, comparable to
Hellenistic divine men."9 Scott determines that Moses' ascent on Sinai represents, for
Philo, contemplation of a form of the good, because of which Moses earns the title theos.
Philo uses both the Platonic philosopher-king and the Stoic sage as his model for Moses, who "perceives divine reality and is thus given authority over the world insofar as he reflects that divine reality [Scott's italics]. " For Scott, there is no connection between elevated forms of contemplation and an elevation of ontological status and he denies that
Philo's account of Moses resembles any accounts of Hellenic or Hellenistic divine men.
In By Light, Light, E.R. Goodenough also holds that Philo's Mos, describes a contemplative ascent through several stages of 'mysteries' into which Moses is initiated.
However, unlike Scott, Goodenough maintains that that each stage corresponds to an elevated ontological status." Goodenough sees these stages epitomized by four incidents, namely: (1) the revelation at the burning bush where God as being is mediated through a triune image of the logos, and the creative and regent powers; (2) Moses' ascent on Sinai, where he attains a higher, more immediate knowledge of God; (3) the giving of the torah; and (4) Moses' death. For Goodenough, the attainment of the mediated knowledge of God (1) precedes kingship, and anticipates (2), which is required before assuming the office of high priest. Goodenough associates (3) with the
8 Scott, "Is Philo's Moses a Divine Man?" 90. 9 Scott, "Is Philo's Moses a Divine Man?" 107. 10 Scott, "Is Philo's Moses a Divine Man?" 109. '' E.R. Goodenough, By Light, Light: the mystic gospel of Hellenistic Judaism (Amsterdam: Philo Press, 1961).
3 commandments received on Sinai (which Philo does not explicitly mention in Mos.) At his death, (4) Moses is restored to his essential nature as to on, above the mind itself.
Through these mysteries, Moses draws increasingly closer to the source of the divine light stream. Goodenough's student Samuel Sandmel notes that Philo uses Greek religious terminology to describe this ascent: "It is universally acknowledged, even by
Goodenough's opponents, that Philo utilizes terms common in the Greek mysteries, such
1 J as initiation, illumination, and perfection." Nonetheless, scholars continue to disagree on how these terms function in Philo. We shall consider one author's interpretation of
Philo's mysticism and discuss the repercussions this interpretation has in the thought of a later scholar. By identifying certain elements that are required for a correct interpretation of Philo, we shall establish the core element of the method by which we will proceed.
In Henosis : L 'union a Dieu chez Denys L 'Areopagite, Ysabel de Andia compares the mystical ascent of Moses as described in Dionysius, Gregory of Nyssa, and Philo, and concludes that, unlike Gregory and Dionysius, "Les etapes de l'ascension n'interessent pas Philon qui ne voit pas, dans l'ascension de Mo'ise, un progres spirituel, mais ecrit la
Vie de Mo'ise en fonction de ses titres. Ici [Mos. 2.74], il s'agit de la pretrise."13 De
Andia finds in Gregory and Dionysius a complex metaphysics, which is lacking in Philo.
Here in de Andia, we find that the notion of spiritual progress is implicitly connected to a metaphysical system on which it is based. Though de Andia cites a number of other treatises where Philo discusses the key terms (such as darkness and place) relevant to her evaluation, she has neglected a great deal of information, showing us that her understanding of Mos. has not taken enough of the Philonic corpus into account.
12 Samuel Sandmel, Philo of Alexandria (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1979), 144. 13 Ysabel de Andia, Henosis: L 'union a Dieu chez Denys L 'Areopagite (Leiden: Brill, 1996), 318. 4 Gregory Sterling, general editor of the Studia Philonica Annual commentary series, recognizes the fundamental need to address Philo's thought in a systematic and coherent manner: "the complexities of Philonic argumentation make extended studies on aspects of Philonic thought a difficult undertaking," and "the difficulty of properly using the corpus is raised exponentially for those who are not specialists.. .this is especially true of the allegorical expositions... this inaccessibility is a grave problem."14 The nature of the Philonic corpus is such that the majority of the individual treatises cannot be properly understood when they are read in isolation from the other texts. Mos. is, perhaps, the best example of a treatise which depends on information that Philo supplies elsewhere in his corpus. For example, Mos. 1.21-24 describes Moses' education in Egypt, and 1.47-84 recounts Moses' philosophical pursuits in exile, but how the two stages differ is not immediately clear. When read in light of De Congressu Eruditionis Gratia {Congr.) 1-3, where Philo explains that Hagar the Egyptian represents the encyclical studies because they are occupied with matters in the realm of sense (Egypt), we understand that Moses' education in Egypt is occupied with sensible objects. Furthermore, since "Sarah, virtue, bears, we shall find, the same relation to Hagar, education, as the mistress to the servant maid, or the lawful wife to the concubine," we know that the encyclical curriculum has a limited scope, and in order for Moses to become virtuous, he requires further education.15
Unless the reader has extensive knowledge of the rest of the corpus, it is very difficult to understand Mos. properly. We have found a range of exegetical parallels in
Philo - many of which Goodenough has used to support his argument - that show us two
14 Gregory Sterling, "Announcement: Philo of Alexandria Commentary Series," in Studia Philonica Annual 7 (1995): 163. 15 Congr., 23. ov 5r] ^oyov e^si SsoTioiva |IGV rcpoc;8epcataivi5a , yuvf) 5e acmi npbq iiaXlaKtiv, TOUTOV E^EI TOV A,6yov dpEir) Sdppa ;ip6c; 7iai5£iav Ayap- .5 things: (1) Philo is fundamentally concerned with stages of spiritual ascent in Mos.; and
(2) any serious attempt to understand Philo's thought in general must necessarily draw from the information he provides throughout the entire corpus. At present, there is no hope of understanding Philo unless we undertake the task of reading all of Philo, and this must precede the examination of secondary literature. By explaining how de Andia's representation of Philo reappears in Dominic O'Meara's Platonopolis, we strengthen our assertion.
In Platonopolis, Dominic O'Meara describes the way in which Eusebius has elevated the authority of the Platonic philosopher king, from a specific city to a universal city, by means of a fuller, more detailed metaphysics than described by Plato. O'Meara seeks the origin of this modification and suspects that the alteration of Plato's doctrine originated in the second century Platonists, such as Numenius of Apamea. However,
O'Meara suggests that it is possible that Eusebius may have been influenced by the
Neoplatonism of Iamblichus and Porphyry: "Perhaps we might note that the Platonic metaphysics sketched above is not exclusively second-century, but could also pass as a simple expression of the world of Plotinus and even of Iamblichus." The developments
O'Meara finds in Eusebius and attributes to the Middle and Neoplatonists, are clearly found in Philo, whom O'Meara mentions only once in Platonopolis, citing him in a footnote. Let us remember that we have the Philonic corpus today, thanks mainly to
Eusebius' writings in which it was preserved. However, if O'Meara does not recognize the complexity of the Philo's metaphysics, then this could explain his need to look at later sources for determining influences on Eusebius. It is evident that O'Meara views Philo's
16 Dominic O'Meara, Platonopolis (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003), 149. 6 position as occuring before the development of Plato's metaphysics. In the footnote,
O'Meara writes:
It is true that Exodus mentions a model which God shows Moses and which Moses must imitate in the construction of the sanctuary. However, Dionysius interprets this model as the archetype of which all priestly institutions are an image. The interpretation of Moses as legislator in the light of Plato's Rep. can already be found in Philo of Alexandria, Eusebius and Gregory of Nyssa. The interpretations of Moses in Philo, Gregory of Nyssa, and the Pseudo-Dionysius are compared in detail by de Andia.17
If O'Meara relies on Ysabel de Andia's comparison of Moses in Philo, Gregory of Nyssa, and Dionysius, it is no wonder that he does not recognize the metaphysical framework in
Philo and must speculate as to the source of Eusebius' doctrine. Furthermore, it is our position that Dionysius' interpretation of the universal character of the model shown to
Moses is in full agreement with that of Philo's. In Somn., Philo writes, "for it is the copies-of which [Bezaleel] is the chief builder, whereas Moses builds the paradigms; for this reason, the one drew an outline as it were of shadows, while the other constructed no shadows, but the existences themselves that served as archetypes."1 When we examine the office of high priest, we shall see that the priesthood appointed by Moses reflects the three fold order of immortal souls relative to the entire created order, which is represented by the tabernacle. The nature of Moses' union on Sinai encompasses every order of creation and Philo maintains that the archetypes that Moses constructs and renders accessible to the high priest are no different than those from which the world was created. De Andia's representation of Philo and its reappearance in O'Meara highlights
17 O'Meara, Platonopolis, 165. 18 Somn., 1.206. tot yap m|xf||i(XTa ouxoq, ra 5e 7tapa5siy|ion:a apxiTCKiovei Mcouafji;- 5ia xoi59' 6 \ibv ola GKiac; t>7t£ypd(pETo, 6 8' oi> aKidq, amac, 5e mc, ap%ex\)-n.ovq e5r||iioupyei (puaetq.
7 the necessity of providing a comprehensive account of Philo's position, which has taken into account all of the relevant information that Philo supplies in his corpus.
Let us take a closer look at an aspect of the metaphysical system that O'Meara has identified in the later Platonists, and that we identify in Philo. According to O'Meara, political life is an expansion of the philosophical life and constitutes a stage in the process of divinization. The political virtues correspond to proper life in the external human community and can only be brought to fruition by a ruler who has succeeded in bringing his own soul into a state of order and who has privileged access to the divine:
"More simply, the point is made that assimilation to god means not only attaining knowledge but also exercising a 'providential', i.e. political function."19 The soul- ordering activity of the individual philosopher is extended to others when he assumes the role of king. O'Meara delineates the path to divinization as an ascent through higher levels of virtue, which correspond to higher forms of knowledge; the gradations of virtue correspond both to metaphysical levels in a hierarchically ordered reality and to progressive stages of divinization. Moreover, attaining the lower forms of virtue is required before attaining the higher: "if the goals of the 'political' and the purificatory virtues are different, the former imposing measure on the passions associated with the activities of human nature, the latter seeking detachment from these passions, the latter cannot be reached without the former." Philo agrees that in order to reach a state of apatheia, the mortal human must first learn to moderate himself, and when we discuss the passions in the next chapter, we shall see that his position is a combination of Peripatetic,
Platonic, and Stoic doctrines. Furthermore, in Mos., Philo outlines certain virtues that
19 O'Meara, Platonopolis, 200. 20 O'Meara, Platonopolis, 45. 8 characterize each office. For example, concerning the virtues of the legislator, Philo writes, "[the legislator] has for its brothers and close kinsfolk these four [virtues] in particular: love of man, love of justice, love of goodness, and hatred of evil."21 Philo has systematized the virtues according to the official functions, which must correspond to the prior attainment of some form of knowledge, and he outlines a spiritual progression.
However, it remains for us to outline this progression in Mos. in order to discover how the offices and their respective virtues correspond to these stages.
By means of the examples we have cited above, we have indicated that it is largely due to the complexities presented by the Philonic corpus, that there is no scholarly consensus as to the nature of Philo's philosophical position. Our objective in this thesis is to help solidify a foundation that must be established before we can bring Philo to bear on larger questions. Since providing a systematic explanation of the philosophical system presented in each of the Philonic treatises is a task that is far beyond the scope of this thesis, we confine our analysis to Philo's doctrine of mediation in Mos. However, as it shall become clear in the following chapters, Mos. is of primary importance to understanding Philo's philosophy. Our work will significantly contribute both to the comprehension of the overall argument in this treatise and to an understanding of the role and function of divine mediation here and elsewhere in Philo's texts.
Let us review the questions, which fall within the scope of our treatment. We must examine the stages of spiritual ascent in Mos. and determine their connection to the offices of king, lawgiver, high priest, and prophet. What exactly does Moses attain on
Sinai, and does he achieve it through the pursuit of philosophy? Do the stages through
21 Mos., 2.9. vo^oGETiKfj §' dSslcpa Kat ouyYEvfj xsxxapa xauxi Siacpepovxax; eaxi- xo (piMvGpcortov, xo (pita>5iKaiov, xo (piXdyaBov, xo niao7rovr|pov 9 which Moses progresses correspond to an elevated ontological status? The combination
of philosophy and prophecy implies a hierarchy of knowledge because the prophet
receives knowledge of things that exceed the capacity of human reason, while the
philosopher achieves his wisdom by the power of human reason. What characterizes
Moses' knowledge as a prophet, and how does he communicate this to others? Not only
is Moses the source of sacred revelation as the author of the Pentateuch, but Philo
maintains that he is also the pre-eminent teacher and fountain of truth from which all
subsequent philosophers have derived their wisdom. So, what exactly is the relationship between philosophy and prophecy in Mos.l How do the philosophical schools contribute
to Philo's position? How do modern readers address Philo's use of allegory, and his
method of allegorical exegesis? We shall now conclude this chapter by outlining the method we use in the remaining chapters.
In the next chapter, we have four objectives. (2.1) We begin by situating Mos. within the Philonic corpus and considering its place within a group of treatises known as the Exposition of the Law. We include in this discussion our overall analysis of the
In order to structure our argument effectively, we have adapted certain criteria given by the editorial board of the Studio Philonica Annual Journal for the production of individual commentaries on Philo's treatises. Their requirements are as follows: Each commentary is composed of three parts: an introduction, an English translation of the treatise, and the commentary proper. The introduction deals with eight sub- units, namely: (1) the place of the individual treatise within the Philonic corpus; (2) the literary genre of the treatise; (3) an analysis of the argument/structure of the treatise; (4) the intellectual milieu of the treatise; (5) the thought of the tractate itself, including major thematic developments; (6) the subsequent reception of the treatise; (7) special issues, such as deficient textual transmission; (8) the situation of the commentary with respect to scholarship on the individual treatise. The commentary proper deals with individual units of text, according to (3) the analysis given in the introduction. Each unit of text is given (a) an analysis of its argument; (b) detailed comments on important phrases which contribute to the proper understanding of the treatise; (c) an excursus which takes up thematic concerns that have not been addressed through the introduction, (a) or (b); and (d) remarks on the Nachleben of the unit under consideration. However, it is important to note that we have modified and shortened the SPh guidelines to meet our present purpose. For example, we will not provide a new English translation of the Greek text with a critical apparatus. We will not give line-by-line comments, nor will we comment on any issue that does not pertain to our question. Finally, we do not aim to explain every passage in Mos. and we will often skip over much more material than would be preferable in a commentary. Insofar as the production of such a commentary aims to encompass information relevant to a wide range of disciplines, we have modified their criteria in relation to our particular scope. Sterling, "Announcement," in SPh A 7 (1995): 161-168.
10 argument in Mos., which provides the structure through which we shall proceed in the third and fourth chapters. (2.2) We shall then outline Philo's attitude towards the Roman ideal state in order to recognize the importance of both the king and the priest, and to anticipate some of the ways in which they differ. (2.3) We shall briefly consider Philo's
'Middle-Platonism.' (2.4) Our final objective is to provide an assessment of the Stoic,
Platonic, and Pythagorean contributions to Philo's thought in Mos.
In chapters three and four, our discussion proceeds according to the structure outlined in (2.1). For each individual sub-section, we provide an analysis of the argument, which focuses in depth on the thematic and conceptual content contained therein. This analysis will rely primarily on exegesis taken from other works in the
Philonic corpus, which have explained the passage in question. We conclude each sub section with a summary wherein we note the highlights of our analysis, we make relevant comments on any issue that surfaces relative to the analysis, and we explain the function of the section within the treatise as a whole. Where pertinent, we will point out how
Philo incorporates themes and ideas from other philosophical positions that were available to him. In chapter five, we revisit our initial questions in light of our findings in chapters two, three, and four in order to clarify Philo's doctrine of mediation.
11 CHAPTER TWO: PHILO'S WORKS, LIFE, AND INTELLECTUAL MILIEU
"f] TTAaxcov 4>iAcovt£ei T\ QiAcov TrAaTcovi^Ei"23
(2.1) We begin this chapter by examining the Philonic corpus and the classification of the treatises contained therein. (2.2) We shall then locate Philo within his historical context, allowing us to outline his attitude towards the Roman ideal state.
Philo values the Roman ideal because it retains the necessity of both king and priest within a state and preserves their different roles; this sentiment is reiterated in Mos. and is essential to understanding Philo's position. (2.3) We shall briefly consider the characteristics of Philo's 'Middle-Platonism,' and outline the obstacles we face relative to determining his sources with absolute precision. (2.4) Following the order of the argument in Mos., we shall discuss how Philo draws from the Greek philosophical tradition to constitute his doctrines.
(2.1) MOS. AND THE PHILONIC CORPUS
Here, we turn to our discussion of Mos. and its place within the Philonic corpus.
Scholars divide Philo's writings into four groups of texts, namely: (1) Historical
Writings, (2) Questions and Answers, (3) Allegory of the Law, and (4) Exposition of the
Law. (1) The Historical Writings is a category under which spurious texts, fragments, and his accounts of non-biblical subjects - such as In Flaccum (Flacc.) and De Legatio
23 Saint Jerome, Illustrious Men and their Lives, Trans. Thomas P. Halton (Washington D.C.: Catholic University of America Press, 1999), 24, "Either Plato philonizes, or Philo platonizes." See also; Philo of Alexandria, 4, where Sandmel attributes this statement to Numenius of Apamea. 12 ad Gaium (Legat.) - are placed. The other three groups provide running commentaries on the Pentateuch and are classified according to the way in which Philo presents the subject matter. (2) The Questions and Answers contains two treatises, one dealing with
Genesis, the other with Exodus, that share the name of their genus and proceed by questioning the purpose and meaning of a short passage from scripture, and providing a brief philosophical answer. The texts within (3) Allegory of the Law form a running, line by line, commentary on the book of Genesis. Twelve treatises comprise (4) The
Exposition of the Law, which is, according to Runia, "the most systematic and thematically unified of the commentaries.. .the fundamental division of the work is based on a tripartition of the Pentateuch into a part on creation, a part on history, and a part on legislation."24 The parts on creation and history take up the book of Genesis, while the part on legislation covers Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. De Opificio
Mundi (Opif.) deals with the part of Genesis on creation. The biographies of the three patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob - of which only De Abrahamo (Abr.) survives - and the biography of the statesman Joseph De Iosepho (Ios.) deal with the historical part of Genesis. De Decalogo (Decal), De Specialibus Legibus (Spec), De Virtutibus (Virt.), and De Praemis et Poenis (Praem.) pertain to the third divided section of the Pentateuch, the part on legislation.
On account of common features exhibited by the other treatises in the Exposition, we know that Mos. belongs to this group of texts. However, with the exception Mos., the logical sequence of each treatise in the Exposition is straightforward and corresponds to
Philo's division of the Pentateuch. Mos. has the same form of the four biographies that correspond to the historical part of Genesis. However, insofar as Mos. begins with
24 Runia, On the Creation of the Cosmos According to Moses (Leiden: Brill, 2001), 6. 13 Moses' birth at the beginning of Exodus, and concludes with his death at the end of
Deuteronomy, it covers the legislative part of the Pentateuch, which Philo has described by means of his treatises on the laws, virtues, and vices. Thus, it is unclear whether we should understand Mos. as part of the history, or as part of the works on legislation, and whether we should place Mos. after the biographies and before Decal, or whether this treatise is placed at the end of the Exposition. Matters are further complicated when we compare the introductions to each treatise in the Exposition. Philo's introduction to Abr. clearly places this treatise subsequent to Opif., and his introduction to Ios. refers to the treatises that precede it - the three biographies. Philo's introductory remarks in Decal. explain that it follows the biographies of the founding fathers, and precedes the account of the particular laws given in Spec. The introduction to Mos., although similar to the other introductions in the Exposition, remains silent as to where it should be placed within the Exposition. Although Moses is frequently mentioned throughout the
Exposition, Philo formally introduces him to his readers only once - in the introduction to
Mos. Based on this, it appears that Mos. could also be the first treatise in the Exposition.
The ambiguity as to whether Mos. occupies the first, the sixth, or the twelfth place in the sequence of the Exposition is, in our view, likely a deliberate ambiguity. We shall return to the question later in this chapter when we discuss Philo's doctrine of the tripartite soul.
However, it is crucial for us to examine how Mos. encompasses the three parts of the
Pentateuch, thereby containing Philo's entire doctrine in the Exposition.
The first thing for us to recognize is that the creation of the world does not end when history begins. In his introduction to Abr., Philo explains that the book of Genesis is given its name from its account of the creation of the world, which includes a variety of
14 other matters: "for it tells of peace and war...how fire and water wrought great destruction of what is on earth; how on the other hand plants and animals were born...and so too men, some of whom lived a life of virtue, others vice."25 For Philo, the entire book of Genesis describes the coming forth of creation: "since some of these things [depicted in Genesis] are parts of the cosmos, and others events which befall it, and the cosmos is the complete consummation which is completely filled with them all, he dedicated the whole book to it." Opif. outlines the order according to which the cosmos is made; this order is the law of nature according to which the lives of the Patriarchs are aligned.
Here, we arrive at our second point. Not only is the historical part of the
Pentateuch understood in terms of creation, but, through both creation and history, the law is also revealed. Philo explains that Moses extolled the Patriarchs for two reasons:
[FJirst he wished to show that the enacted ordinances are not inconsistent with nature; and secondly that those who wish to live in accordance with the laws as they stand have no difficult task seeing that the first generations before any at all of the particular statutes was set in writing followed the law with perfect ease, so that one might say that the enacted laws are nothing else than memorials of the life of the ancients, preserving to a later generation their actual words and deeds.27
Philo shows that the unwritten law of nature is fulfilled through the lives of the
Patriarchs, which serve as paradigms for human activity. The lives of the Patriarchs are the enacted - or lived - law, which is prior to the written law. Philo writes, "since it is necessary to undertake our examination of the laws in order, let us postpone our
25 Abr., 1. oca Kat' sipr|vr|v f) 7to^8(j.ov... xhq [XEyiaTac; TCOV eni yf}<; cpGopdi; Sid nvpbq Kai uSaxoi; f\ Touvavxiov yevsaeic; Kai Eikpocpiac; t^cpcov Kai cpincov... Kat TCOV £Tr|alcov cbpcov ewpaaiav dv8pcov TCOV \xev apeTfj TCOV 8E KaKia aunPicoadvxcov 26 Abr., 2. aW enei TOUTCOV Td \xev ecm TOU Koafiou Lispr), Td Ss 7ia0f||aaTa, Te^eioxaTOv 8E Kai 7tA.r)pEOTaT0v 6 KOOIIOC;, ai)Tco TT)V 6A.r|v pipA,ov dve9r|Ksv 27 Abr., 5. oi yap enyuxov Kai Xoyucoi VOLKH avSpsq EKEVVOI y&yovaaiv, oftc; 8uoTv yapw SOE^VUVEV EVOC; |isv POUA-OJIEVOC; £7ii8eT^ai, OTI Td xsOsijiEva 8vaxdy|j.aTa xfjc; cpijoEcoq OUK d7id8£i, 8&UT£pou SE OTI ov> noXvc, novoc, TOIC; eQekovai KaTd TOIX; KEIIIEVOUC; v6|xouq ^fjv, OHOTE Kai dypdcpco zf\ vo|io9£oia, rcpiv TV xr\v dp/r)v dvaypacpfjvai TCOV SV jaepei, paSicoc; Kai simETcoi; Expiiaavxo oi 7tpcoToi- cbc; 8E6VTCOC; dv Tiva cpdvav, TOIX; TEOsvTag vonouq |ir]5£v aKk' fj vnonv^axa Eivai piou TCOV 7taA,aicov, apxaioXoyowrac; £pya Kai Aoyouc;, oic; EXpfjaavTo. 15 consideration of the particular laws, which are, so to speak, images, and examine first those which are more general and may be called their archetypes."28 Here, we reach a third crucial point: the order of the Exposition is modeled on the order of the Pentateuch, which proceeds from the universal to the particular manifestations of the law.
Furthermore, according to Philo, the structure of the Pentateuch corresponds to the structure of the whole created order as it has come forth from God.
Let us remember that Moses not only appears in the Pentateuch as the giver of the
Decalogue and the Special Laws, but, as Philo sees it, he is also the author of the whole
Pentateuch and as such cannot be contained in any of its parts. Moses is the author of the unwritten laws revealed in the first part of Genesis, the living laws in the Patriarchs, and the particular laws contained in the four Pentateuchal books subsequent to Genesis.
Genesis as the account of the generation of the cosmos and the various types of human souls is itself a written copy of "the immortal book of nature where good actions are registered." Insofar as the Pentateuch reflects the order of reality for Philo, he sees in
Moses, a reflection of God, who, like Moses, is both above and within his creation. Thus, the content of the Exposition of the Law, which treats the coming forth of the creation as the coming forth of the law is somehow contained, elucidated and fulfilled in Philo's
Mos. The law revealed by Moses encompasses all forms of the law - both written and unwritten, and all forms of creation - including those which transcend the power of - human reason. The precise relation between natural human knowing and revelation shall be the focus of our consideration in subsequent chapters. It is sufficient to conclude our consideration of Mos. relative to the other treatises in the Exposition by stating that Mos.
28 Abr., 3. S7iei 8e TOUC; vonouc;...T(bv £7ii nspouq Kai ac, av skovcov imepGsciv 7TOITIO&HEVOI TOUC; Ka0oA,iK(OT£poui; Kai cbc; av ap%evbno\>c, npozepoxx; 5i£p£uvf|aco|i£v 29 Abr., 11. xfjc; EV dOavatqj xfj cpuoei, 7tap' f\ mq anovdaiaq upd^eig dvaypdOTTOtK; Eivai aunPEPriKEV 16 is the treatise through which we are able to understand the relation between .all forms, or modes, of the law that are taken up separately by the other treatises contained therein. In the following paragraphs, we shall comment briefly on the transmission of the text of
Mos., followed by an analysis of the basic structure of Mos., according to which our third and fourth chapters proceed.
Concerning the transmission of the Greek text, F.H. Colson writes, "we find nothing which corresponds to the difficulties and corruptions that we found in the first five volumes." First, Colson explains that Cohn and Whittaker used a greater number of manuscripts for transcribing the treatises in the Exposition, than for those in the
Allegorical Commentary, and that this alleviated the need to rely on inaccurate codices.
Furthermore, Colson explains that these discrepancies between manuscripts are much less significant than those in the Allegorical Commentary, and consequently Cohn has made few emendations to the text, and Colson has proposed only one.
Mos. is divided into two books, the first deals with Moses' official functions as king, and the second with his roles as lawgiver, priest and prophet. Philo provides both an introduction and a conclusion to his work, and clearly demarcates his treatment of each office by means of the short introduction he gives to each. The introductions to the four offices provide a brief recapitulation of what Philo has established thus far in the treatise and anticipate key points in the text that follows. Philo's work easily lends itself to division based on his treatment of each one of the four offices moving from king, to lawgiver, to priest, to prophet. To these four major divisions, we add three - the
30 F.H. Colson, "General Introduction," in Philo VI LCL 289 (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1935), xviii. 17 introduction to the treatise, its conclusion, and the section of the text prior to Philo's treatment of Moses as king, which we have labelled 'Pre-official activities.'
In the following scheme, we present our seven divided parts of Mos. in bold type, according to the order they appear in the treatise. Aside from the introduction and conclusion, which admit no further division, each of the remaining five parts is divided further into sub-topics that occur within their range. The numerals in square brackets indicate the portion of text that is encompassed by each division.
Introduction [1.1-4]
Pre-official activities [1.4-146]
1. Birth and early education and return to the nation [1.4-46]
2. Philosophical training in exile [1.47-62]
3. Call to kingship: the burning bush [1.63-84]
4. Miraculous demonstrations and punishments in Egypt [1.85-146]
King [1.147-334]
1. Introduction to kingship [1.147-162]
2. Educating the nation [1.163-334]
Legislator [2.1-65]
1. Introduction to legislative office [2.1-8]
2. Legislative virtues, universality of the law, translation of the Septuagint [2.8-44]
3. The parts of scripture and the generic quality of their content [2.45-65]
High Priest [2.66-186]
1. Introduction to high priesthood [2.66-70]
2. The Tabernacle [2.71-140]
18 3. Installation of the Priesthood [2.141-186]
Prophet [2.187-287]
1. Introduction to the prophetic office [2.187-191]
2. Question and answer prophecy [2.192-245]
3. Prophecy by divine inspiration [2.246-287]
Conclusion: Moses' death and restoration
(2.2) PHILO AND THE PAXROMANA
Flacc. and Legat. are Philo's only two works which provide information about his life and social context. In Legat., Philo's account of the embassy he led to Rome, he describes himself as an old man. Based on this comment, Philo is estimated to have been born in 20 BCE and to have died in 50 CE, twenty years before the Romans destroyed the temple in Jerusalem. Philo occupied a prominent position in Alexandria, especially amongst the Jews, as he acted on their behalf as the decisive mediator in a treacherous political situation. With the accession of Roman Emperor Gaius Caesar, the semi- autonomous community of Jews in Alexandria began to disintegrate. Philo describes the
Jewish pogrom in 37 CE, launched by the Alexandrian mob with permission (or, at least without resistance) from the prefect Flaccus. Gaius had installed his statues in synagogues across the empire with the order to worship them as God. When the Jews in
Alexandria refused to recognize the statues, the mob, enabled by Flaccus, seized this opportunity to attack the community, legitimizing their actions by claiming they were defending Rome from Jewish dissent. Philo led an embassy to Rome in order to persuade
19 Gaius not to condone the violence against the Jews, and not to force them to propitiate his statue as God.
Philo's manifest disapproval of Gaius and Flaccus leads Goodenough to conclude that Philo equally disapproved of the Roman ideal state. In The Politics ofPhilo
Judaeus, Goodenough proposes that Flacc. and Legat. are written as instructions for
Gaius' successor Claudius, and for the Alexandrian prefect following Flaccus:
The official function, for its success or failure, is represented as hinging directly upon the attitude the ruler takes toward the Jews. Philo's hatred of the Empire is veiled in his flattery of a Roman [Augustus] who would respect Jewish "rights," but there is recurrent indication that not only will God strike a man who lacks proper respect for Jewish ways and people: the Jews themselves.. .constitute a great menace to the whole Empire.31
In contrast to the veiled hatred Goodenough sees in Philo, David Runia maintains that
Philo valued the stability of the Roman state, which was overturned by the degeneracy of
Gaius and Flaccus. Runia writes, "the notion of order and sound organization of the complexities of social and political life is precisely what Philo valued in the city." As
Philo sees it, Moses provides the standard against .which kings and priests are measured, and the Roman ideal is very much in accordance with this pattern.
Philo's commitment to the Roman society - an image of the cosmos itself- is reiterated by his presentation of Moses, in whom the ideal king, lawgiver, priest, and prophet are united. In the Roman constitution of Augustus, Judaism is both protected by its laws, and it provides the means through which the Jews enact their full civic duties as law-abiding citizens, which includes offering prayers and sacrifices in the name of the emperor. So, how is it that the legislation of the king protects the duties of the Jewish
31 E.R. Goodenough, The Politics ofPhilo Judaeus, 19-20. 32 David Runia, "The Idea and the Reality of the City in the Thought of Philo of Alexandria," in Journal of the History of Ideas 61.3 (2000), 364. 20 priesthood without claiming sovereignty over it? As we examine Mos., it becomes clear that the king and priest abide by different manifestations of the same constitution, and their activities are in accordance with the particular way in which the law is manifest to their office. So, what then is the role of the legislator? Moreover, if the constitution of the city follows the laws of the cosmos - which can be discovered through philosophy - what is the role of the prophet? Before we turn to Mos., we must examine the ways in which the philosophical schools have contributed to Philo's position relative to the aforementioned questions.
(2.3) PHILO'S INTELLECTUAL MILIEU: THE MIDDLE-PLATONISTS
Philo's corpus displays his rich philosophical learning, including various elements from the diverse schools of thought available to him in Alexandria. Nonetheless, it is crucial to note, that Philo himself would see things differently. In his paper "Reclaiming the Heritage of Moses," John Dillon characterizes Philo's view: "And yet all the time
[Philo] is speaking not as a Platonist, but as an exegete of Mosaic philosophy, whose privilege it is, however, as the representative of the father of all philosophy, to criticize the aberrations of the later Greeks."33 In other words, for Philo, Moses is both the divinely inspired author of the Pentateuch, and the pre-eminent philosopher from whom
Plato, Pythagoras, and Aristotle derived their doctrines. Philo is not unique in this respect; he is part of a tradition of Pagans, Jews, and - later - Christians, who believed that either Plato taught Moses, or Moses taught Plato. Philo undeniably maintains the latter of these two positions.
33 John Dillon, "Reclaiming the Heritage of Moses," in SPhA 7 (Atlanta: Scholar's Press, 1995), 116. 21 In the preface to The Contemplative Life, The Giants and Selections, John Dillon counters a popular condemnation of Philo's philosophical coherence on account of his so- called eclecticism. Dillon writes, "to view Philo as an eclectic because of the apparent amalgam of Platonist, Aristotelian and Stoic doctrines observable in his works is to ignore the developments which had taken place within Platonism by Philo's time."34
Dillon continues, "this combination of Stoicizing Platonism with a Pythagorean- influenced view of the transcendence of God, and of the significance of Number, together with a more austere ethics...is the Platonism which Philo inherited."35 The synthesis of
Platonic, Aristotelian, Stoic, and Pythagorean thought that Dillon describes above is the combination that characterizes the Middle Platonic period that spans approximately 300 years (80 BCE - 220 CE). Middle Platonism is a term scholars use to describe the development of Platonic philosophy occurring prior to the Neoplatonism of Plotinus (204
- 270 CE). Dillon lists the Platonic dialogues most frequently taken up by the Middle
Platonists:
The Timaeus remained the single most important dialogue for the Middle Platonic period, supported by chosen texts from the Republic, Phaedrus, Theaetetus, Phaedo, Philebus and Laws.. .particularly close is the interweaving of the myth of the Phaedrus, and its account of the celestial ride and subsequent fall of the soul, with the Timaeus.3,6
Understanding Philo's reliance on the Platonic dialogues is relatively uncomplicated compared to the task of identifying the influences of other philosophical movements within the Middle Platonic period for the primary reason that we still possess the dialogues and are able to compare these with Philo's work.
34 John Dillon, "Preface," in Philo of Alexandria, The Contemplative Life, The Giants and Selections Trans, and Introd. by David Winston (Toronto: Paulist Press, 1981), xiii. 35 Dillon, "Preface," xiii. 36 John Dillon, The Middle Platonists (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1977), 9. 22 The Stoic philosophical school began near the cusp of the third and fourth centuries BCE, and the majority of their writings are no longer extant. Dillon points out that Philo is a major source for our knowledge of the Stoics, but that it is often quite difficult to be sure which elements in Philo are truly Stoic:
A perusal of Von Arnim's Stoicorum Veterum Fragmenta will reveal how much, in the absence of primary authorities, Philo has contributed to our knowledge of Stoic doctrine and terminology. However, superimposed upon this Stoic base are certain characteristics which might be considered Jewish, but might also be claimed as Pythagorean.
In our examination of the Stoic contributions to Philo's thought, wherever possible, we have cited contemporary sources, like Seneca. We understand these sources as reflections of the standard Stoic teachings of that time, and do not wish to imply that we are positing direct influence, or direct exchange of ideas, between Philo and any specific
Stoic writer that we cite.
(2.4) THE ELEMENTS OF MOSES: PYTHAGORAS, PLATO, AND THE STOIC SAGE
We shall begin by analysing two complementary perspectives according to which
Philo discusses the human soul. According to one perspective, akin to the position found in Plato's Republic, the whole soul is divided into three parts, its rational, spirited, and appetitive faculties.38 Each division corresponds to a part of the human body, and to one of the four cardinal virtues: the rational - the highest part - corresponds to the head and is associated with phronesis, which concerns and circumscribes what must be done ; the spirited corresponds to the breast and is associated with andreia, things to be endured;
37 Dillon, The Middle Platonists, 148. 38 Plato, Republic, 441c-443e. See also, SVFII, 829. Here, Origen attributes this position to Epicurus and the Stoics. 23 and the lowest part - the appetitive - corresponds to the belly and is associated with sophrosune, things to be chosen. Dikaiosune, concerned with things to be imparted is achieved through the harmonious relation of the three. The natures of individual human souls are ranked according to the part of the soul that they have actualized - some are rational, some are spirited, and some are moved by appetite alone. The state, for both
Philo and Plato, as an image of the just soul reflects this order, and the citizens are assigned their civic roles in accordance with their natural capacities. In both Plato and
Philo, justice in the state is not entirely separable from justice in the individual soul insofar as the founding of a just state requires the justice of individual souls, and the individual soul requires the state to become just through education, and they maintain that the different kinds of souls require different forms of education, and the content of education is reflected in the student's activity. For Philo, the rational soul discovers and aligns itself with the rational principle of order in the cosmos, the spirited soul learns to be virtuous by imitating the activities of a just ruler, and an appetitive soul is able to make correct choices through obeying a well-defined set of laws.
According to Philo, these three modes correspond to the paradigms established by
Abraham, who is taught justice, Isaac, who is just by nature, and Jacob, who becomes just through practice. Each of the three living laws actualize justice according to their natural capacity without the mediation of a state. Although Philo would not deny the possibility for individual souls to reach some form justice according to their proper modes outside of the state, the natures and inclinations of most humans are such that this would be a rare occurence. Furthermore while periods of solitary life are components in the purification of some souls, for Philo, the inability or unwillingness to participate in a greater whole
24 indicates a failure, or lack on the part of that embodied soul. A thing is perfect as it is a whole, and the perfection of wholes are graded according to the diversity of parts contained and ordered by their embrace. As king, Moses forms a well-ordered state - a whole in which many individual souls - whose natures are idealized in Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are gathered together and united. We shall return to Philo's doctrine of the tripartite soul, its education, and its virtues when we examine Mos. in subsequent chapters. Let it suffice to note that we find a three-fold hierarchy in the faculties of the human body, of the individual soul, and in the community, and that the perfection of each is achieved when the three parts are contained in their proper order.
Let us now examine a second perspective according to which Philo treats the soul; this method is not according to a three-fold division, but through a division into opposites
- rational and irrational. The rational element is indivisible, whereas the irrational element is divided further into seven parts, constituted by the five senses, the reproductive faculty, and speech. This method corresponds to the Stoic eight-fold division of the soul; ideally, the rational part is associated with the Stoic hegemonikon.39
According to Philo, every human soul regardless of its kind, (rational, spirited, appetitive) is divided in two; however, the dominant element, the hegemonikon, must be considered relative to the disposition of the individual soul. Unless they are moved to their objects by the reason within, souls are drawn outwards to external goods and particular circumstances, through the seven faculties of the irrational part. Only the human soul that has become fully rational can properly contain its opposing parts (rational and
39 We must note that, less frequently, Philo also speaks of the division of the soul into eight parts, not into opposite halves, one part of which undergoes a secondary division. See QG 1.75. 25 irrational) in a balanced way. However, the rational soul is only fully rational insofar as it is ruled by the mind above it. In De Sobrietate (Sobr.), Philo writes:
If we hold that goodness is alone beautiful, the end is contracted and narrowed, for it is bound to one thing out of countless beings, the mind that leads us; but if we connect that end with three different kinds of interests - what concerns the soul, the body and the things outside - the end is split up into dissimilar parts and thus broadened.40
The human soul perfects and achieves its nature by acknowledging that it has a higher cause for its existence and by seeking its principle as its proper end. The soul is a whole when the ruling faculty is aligned to its proper end, and as such, it controls, limits, and contains its movement outwards through the five senses, the reproductive faculty, and the faculty of speech.
As he appears in the first book of Mos., Moses is very much the Stoic sage who is moved according to reason, and embodies his philosophy by knowing and living in accordance with the universal standard of equity and justice. According to Seneca, to be virtuous requires the correct motivation, or intention:
Conduct will not be right unless the will to act is right; for this is the source of conduct. Nor, again, can the will be right without a right attitude of mind; for this is the source of the will. Furthermore, such an attitude of mind will not be found even in the best of men unless he has learned the laws of life as a whole and has worked out a proper judgement about everything.
The degree to which an action is good is the degree to which it is generic - elevated above particular circumstances. The Stoic term for actions that are undertaken for the sake of one's own survival is 'appropriate.' Appropriate action is not virtuous because it
40 Sobr., 60. xou ayaOov r|you|ievoi) T6 KaXov (iovov eaxaA,xai K
Philo uses the incident where Moses kills the Egyptian overseer to emphasize the limitations of acting in relation to the actions of another. The notion of the good, which is knowledge of the truth, is required for any rational act, and without this notion, one is not acting rationally, which is to say - for the Stoics - that one does not act at all.
Activity and passivity are fundamental for the creation of the Stoic cosmos, in which an active cause shapes a passive recipient. If the passive recipient, in turn, becomes a principle of causation it is considered a relative (pros ti) cause. Having arranged the world and all of its constituent parts in the most perfect possible way, the rational principle in nature supplies the notion of the good. The principle of reason in nature is always active in maintaining its order, which is characterized by stability, equality, and regulation. Once the Stoic sage attains knowledge of the truth, he is not liable to err insofar as he no longer forms opinions (which belong to a lower kind of knowing) and therefore never assents to anything false. Freedom from fate is achieved through self- generated, autonomous action in accordance with the stable principle of reason in nature.
As we shall see when we examine Moses' exile, activity in accordance with reason discerned in nature is a crucial stage in the soul's progression towards becoming a whole.
However, unlike the Stoics, Philo does not consider this as the goal of the rational human; as we mentioned above, in order for the soul to actualize its nature, it must align its activities from within itself by recognizing its dependence on a power higher than that which is found in nature.
With regards to the passions, Philo has incorporated two ideals: metriopatheia - the peripatetic doctrine of moderating the passions - and apatheia - the Stoic doctrine of
27 their extirpation. Seneca writes, "The question has been raised whether it is better to have moderate emotions or none at all. Philosophers of our school reject the emotions; the Peripatetics keep them in check." Philo values both metriopatheia and apatheia, depending on the natural disposition of the person in question. In his article 'The
Pleasures and Perils of Soul Gardening,' Dillon explains, "Philo is on the whole more sympathetic to apatheia as an ideal and elsewhere...[he] attributes it to the perfected sage
Moses, while Aaron, who symbolizes the prokoptbn, or, the man still making progress in virtue, can only attain to metriopatheia.'"4'1' Let us note that in the Republic, Plato associates apatheia with the immutable and perfect nature of the divine.44 For Philo,
Moses is an image of God's stable perfection and must reflect the changelessness of the divine nature. O'Meara's description of the Stoic sage reflects the degree of perfection that Moses accomplishes:
The Stoic ideal, the sage, is then a godlike figure, as invincible, as infallible, as perfect as the cosmic god. So extreme is this ideal of divinization that it was a moot point whether there had ever existed or would ever exist a Stoic sage, even though the divine exemplar was not some remote transcendent principle, but an immanent cosmic force.. .[T]he life of the Stoic divine man, the sage, was not conceived as solitary: the sage would constitute, with other sages and the god(s) of the universe, a cosmic community (cosmopolis) of friendship and mutual understanding. 5
God's goodness extends to every level of creation, and as the image of God, Moses the divine sage and king, extends beneficence to others through the creation of a state. In the
Republic, Plato calls our attention to the lack of virtuous rulers: "but the figure of a man
'equilibrated' and 'assimilated' to virtue's self perfectly, so far as may be, in word and
42 Seneca, SVF III, 443. Utrum satius sit modicos habere adfectus an nullos, saepe quaesitum est: nostri illos expellunt, Peripatetici temperant. 43 John Dillon, "The Pleasures and Perils of Soul Gardening," in SPhA 9 (1997): 191. 44 Plato, Republic, 379b-381c. 45 O'Meara, Platonopolis, 34. 28 deed, and holding rule in a city of like quality, that is a thing they have never seen in one case or in many." Philo values the Roman ideal state, ruled by a virtuous Emperor because it addresses, (in theory) the need for a ruler who is also a visible role model for his citizens. Furthermore, Rome acts as a container which orders, preserves, and unifies its various parts. Through imperial expansion, Rome is geographically inclusive, and through its constitution, which protects Jewish custom, it is culturally inclusive also.
Although Philo takes up several fundamental teachings of Plato's Republic such as the doctrine of the tripartite soul, which is mirrored in the state, Philo's notion of law is quite different from Plato's notion. Both Philo and the Stoics maintain that the best law is the law of nature, and as such, they disagree with how Plato's philosopher king enacts his constitution, looking both to the virtues and to the characteristics of men. 7
Marcianus quotes Chrysippus the Stoic philosopher:
Law is the king of all things both divine and human; and it must be the guardian, ruler, and leader with regard to what is noble and what is base. Consequentially, it is the standard of what is just and what is unjust, and for naturally social animals it commands what ought to be done and prohibits what ought not to be done.
Because, for Philo, the human is not the measure of justice, it cannot be a model for creating a constitution by which it is guided. Philo magnifies the scope of Plato's political philosophy in the Republic by transforming the philosopher-king of a particular city into the divinely sanctioned ruler who looks to the universal constitution and enacts cosmic justice. Dillon explains that the principles of Philo's political philosophy are
Plato, Republic, 498e-499a. avSpoc 8e apexf) 7iapiaconevov Kat cbuououevov ne/pi TOU 8uv(rcoi3 xeXeac, spyco is Kai Aoycp, SwaoxsuovTa EV nokei eiepa TOiauir), ox> 71
29 "ultimately Stoic, filtered through contemporary Platonism, and also perhaps through that of certain Neopythagorean writings." The key element common to both Philo and the
Stoics is the logos, which, as the law of nature, is the principle of order and justice seen in the cosmos. However, the Stoic logos is a lower manifestation of the Philonic logos, insofar as the sensible cosmos in which the Stoic logos is discerned is, for Philo, created in the likeness of the intelligible cosmos, which also has the logos as its principle of order and justice.
Philo's dependence on Stoic principles of philosophy, ethics and natural legislation contribute to his expanded concept of the philosopher-king. However, because for the Stoics, all reality is of a corporeal nature, Philo's dependence on the Stoic doctrines cannot account for the way in which he considers the visible cosmos, the human soul, and the earthly city as images of an intelligible order within a hierarchy of created beings. In Plato's doctrine, we find certain key elements which later thinkers develop into the notion that the creation of a state reflects the creation of the entire cosmos. O'Meara writes:
In summarizing the political theory of the Republic at the beginning of the Timaeus, Plato suggests a cosmic background to the divinized state: as the philosopher-king orders a city after the divine pattern of the Forms, so, on a larger scale, does the divine craftsman (the 'demiurge') of the world put it into order after the pattern of the Forms. The world is chaos brought into order, divinized.50
Just as the state is a created image subordinate to, and contained within, the superior order of the cosmos, for Philo, every order of created being is contained, limited, and perfected by its superior. Philo's development of Plato's doctrine of creation in the
Timaeus enables him to espouse this position. Dillon explains that in Philo's treatise on
49 Dillon, The Middle Platonists, 154. 5C'O'Meara, Platonopolis, 36. 30 the creation of the world, Opif., "the model or paradeigma of Plato's Timaeus, which was there something independent of the Demiurge, becomes [God's] creation... once the Ideas are agreed to be the thoughts of God, the dependence of the paradigm on God would seem to follow."51 By associating the Platonic ideas with the thoughts of God, Philo is able to posit a continuous, hierarchical order of creation.
Through expanding on Plato's use of the Pythagorean mathematical model,
Philo's explanation of first principles is in accordance with the biblical text. Dillon writes, "within the Decad, the first four numbers (the Tetraktys) came to play a major part in Plato's cosmogony, as they did in those of his successors. They are the principles providing the link between the absolute unity of the One and the three-dimensional physical multiplicity around us."52 For Philo, the four (which also corresponds to the
Tetragrammaton) represents justice which becomes fully manifest in the realm of creation with the ten (or, the Decalogue). Not only does the Pythagorean mathematical model provide the link between the One and the many, but it also enables Philo to posit an unbroken constitution that orders and maintains all levels of created beings, and is in accordance with the Scriptures.
Insofar as the creation and governance of a state is, for Philo, an image of the creation and governance of the cosmos, which itself is also an image of the creation of the superior, incorporeal order in which it is contained, Philo's political and legislative theory is much more akin to certain ideas in Plato's Laws. For example, in the Laws, the constitutions of Minos and Lycurgus are not human constructions, but are records of
51 Dillon, The Middle Platonists, 159. 52 Dillon, The Middle Platonists, 3. 31 divine pronouncements. Such is the case with the laws of Moses, which are not constructed by mortals, but are the creation of God. Moreover, in the Laws, Plato depicts a hierarchical order comprised of gods, spiritual natures, and human nature, which is in accordance with the law that each species is ruled by its superior order. Just as humans are appointed as rulers over all the subordinate species, "the god, in his kindness to man, did the same; he set over us this superior race who took charge of us with no less ease to themselves than convenience to us."5 This superior race, according to Plato, is that of the daimones, which Philo calls the angels. The angels are responsible both for ensuring justice in the realm of souls and for revealing knowledge to humans unattainable by the power of their reason alone.
Although, according to Plato, in the perfect society, there would be no need of laws, the best possible society with the superior law-code "is one where the old saying is the most universally true of the whole city. I mean the saying that friend's property is indeed common property."55 For Philo, however, a society is perfect insofar as its laws are those of the universal, all-encompassing constitution. In Philo's introduction to the office of king, we find a curious reformulation of Plato's statement asquoted immediately above: "For if, as the proverb says, what belongs to friends is common, and the prophet is called the friend of God, it would follow that he shares also God's possessions, as far as it is serviceable."56 Philo's reformulation enables us to see a critical connection between the offices of king, legislator, and prophet. For Philo, the best society has the superior
53 Plato, Laws 632d. 54 Plato, Laws, 713d-e. raikov 8r) Kai 6 Qeoq apa Kai (pildv8pW7to<;
32 law code, which is universally valid, possessed by both God and man, in virtue of having been revealed by the prophet and understood through philosophy. Philosophy, an activity proper to human nature, cannot attain knowledge beyond the human. Philosophy encompasses three spheres in which theoretical wisdom is sought and attained, which then provides the basis for practical activity; through physics, the individual becomes aligned to the cosmic order, through ethics, the individual becomes aligned to himself, and through politics, the individual aligns himself relative to others. In order for the human to understand that the laws followed by individual souls, visible in the cosmos, and enacted in the city are but images of the greater constitution in which they are contained, they require revelation.57 Through their own efforts, the knowledge of embodied humans pertains to the corporeal realm and thus cannot attain knowledge of the divine. Revelation supplements proper human knowing with images, symbols, and concepts through which the unknowable God is represented in the best approximate way.
In QuodDeterius Potiori Insidiari Soleat (Det.), Philo writes, "Let us not then, the pupils of Moses, be any longer at a loss as to how man came to have a conception of the invisible God. For Moses himself learned it from a divine communication, and has taught us how it was."58 For Philo, the Pentateuch (the revealed law) is an image encompassing the whole of reality and shows that the cosmic law discovered by philosophy, and embodied by the philosopher king, follows the same law that operates throughout all levels of created being. Furthermore, in the same way that nature's secrets are revealed through philosophy and embodied by virtue, philosophy is required for the
57 Without speculating on Philonic influence (which is well beyond our scope), it is significant to note that this holds true for certain Neoplatonic philosophers such as Iamblichus, Proclus, and Dionysius. 58 Det., 86. (inKST' ouv &7iop<»usv, jrcoq ewoiocv ekafiev avOpcoTioc; 9sof5 TOU aeiSooc;, oi Mcouaeax; yvcopiuov Tf)v yap aixiav xpn0^ uaOcbv ambq r\\xlv i) However, as we shall see in our next chapter, the knowing that is proper to human nature entails the recognition that it depends on a higher kind of knowing as its principle, which is entirely beyond its scope. In Praem., Philo describes the futility of seeking God in created things: And, in short, is not all light seen by light? And in the same manner God, being his own light, is seen by himself alone, nothing and no other being co operating with or assisting him, or being at all able to contribute to the pure comprehension of his existence; therefore those persons are mere guessers who hasten to see the uncreated through the medium of the things which he created, acting like those persons who seek to ascertain the nature of the monad through the dyad, when they ought, on the other hand, to employ the investigation of the monad itself to ascertain the nature of the dyad; for the monad is the first principle. But these men have arrived at the real truth, who form their ideas of God from God, of light from light.59 When Moses ascends Sinai and enters the divine darkness, he attains a vision that is far beyond the capacity of human knowing and is ultimately its principle. Moses descends from this vision as ineffable light that reveals the sacred rites and mysteries associated with the office of priest, and endows the prophet with three kinds of inspiration through which divine knowledge is revealed. The character of this illumination is such that human nature can never properly contain it as its own, which is to say that it exceeds the limits of philosophy. Nonetheless, philosophy prepares the disposition of the human to receive illumination from the divine source, and it is the means through which the revealed truths are fully recognized and confirmed as divine gifts. 59 Praem., 45-47. KCCI ovvoXiaq TO cpcbc; ap' ov> 34 In the Euthyphro, we find an important statement on the service of the divine as a necessary activity for the just human being. Euthyphro says to Socrates, "I think that the part of justice which is religious and is holy is the part that has to do with the service of the gods; the remainder is the part of justice that has to do with the service of mankind."60 Throughout the dialogue, Socrates depicts the faults in Euthyphro's position, not because he disagrees with Euthyphro's statement but because Euthyphro thinks that the gods are benefited by the services paid to them by mankind. In the Republic, Plato gives us an indication of how knowledge of the correct service of the gods is to be obtained. Socrates explains that there is nothing left for them to do with respect to legislation, but that Apollo and the Delphic oracles must make the remaining laws of highest importance. Socrates describes these laws as follows: The founding of temples, and sacrifices, and other forms of worship of gods, daemons, and heroes, and likewise the burial of the dead and the services we must render to dwellers in the world beyond to keep them gracious. For of such matters, we neither know anything, nor in the founding of our city if we are wise shall we entrust them to any other or make use of any other interpreter than the god of our fathers. For this god surely is in such matters for all mankind the interpreter of the religion of their fathers who from his seat in the middle and at the very navel of the earth delivers his interpretation.61 Here, Plato makes an integral distinction, which he will expand in book X of the Laws, whereby the precise method with which service is rendered to the gods is not the business of earthly king and legislator. In Spec, Philo discusses the two main topics, which are 60 Plato, Euthyphro, 12e. TOUTO xoivuv enoiye 5OKEI, CO ScoKpatec;, TO nepoq xox> 5IKOUOU sivai euaepsq is Kai ooiov, TO 7iepi TT]V TCOV OECOV OepoOTEiav, TO 5S 7iepi TT|V TCOV avOpcbrccov TO Xourov eivai TOP 5ixaiou Hepoq. 61 Plato, Republic, All b-c. ra 7iota; rj 5' 6<;. iepcov T8 I5pua£i<; Kai Ouaiai Kai aXkax OECOV TE Kai 5atLi6vcov Kai ripcbcov 0spa7i£iai: TEA.£i>TriodvTcov 35 studied on the seventh day: "that which concerns duty to God through piety and holiness, and that which concerns duty to man through philanthropy and dikaiosune.^2 According to Philo, affairs of the king concern the service of mankind through the harmonious ordering of human activity in a community allowing each individual to live according to their fullest capacity. Nonetheless, according to Philo, a state cannot achieve complete perfection, which corresponds to attaining dikaiosune, without the priesthood, whose business is the service of God. Both Plato and Philo agree that the service of the gods is the business of the priesthood and that the sacred rites are revealed by means of a power that transcends human reason; however, Philo has carefully developed Plato's positions in his system where the roles of the king, lawgiver, priest, and prophet are at once interconnected and clearly defined. Plato's treatment of prophecy in the Phaedrus is invaluable for understanding the different forms of prophecy in Mos. Here, Plato outlines three different kinds of madness {mania): (1) that of the prophets and priests; (2) religious rites which purge misfortune, or pollution; and (3) literary inspiration by the muses. Socrates tells Phaedrus "the greatest blessings come by way of madness, indeed of madness that is heaven sent." Through this heaven-sent madness, the prophetesses at Delphi and the priestesses at Dodona benefit both the state and the individual. Furthermore, according to Plato, the Sybil and others endowed with the power of divine prophecy guide many humans with their knowledge of future events. Since the second kind of mania consists of prayer and purification as a remedy for pollution, it is seen as beneficial. Inspiration by the muses 62 Spec, 2.63. TO xe npbq 9sov 5i' EuaePelaq Kai oaioxrixoq Kai TO npoc, avQpanovq 8ia (pilavOpamiac; Kai 5iKaioouvr)<;- 63 Plato, Phaedrus, 244a. vuv 8s xa nsyioxa xcov dyaGcov f)|itv yiyvsxca §ia naviaq, 0eia |aevxoi Soaei 5i5o^evr|<;. 36 results in the expression (usually, in lyric poetry, according to Plato) of the glorious deeds of ancient times for instructing posterity. Both god-sent madness and prophecy are superior to what is brought about by the human: "the ancients testify that in proportion as prophecy is superior to augury, both in name and in fact, in the same proportion madness, which comes from god, is superior to sanity, which is of human origin."64 Inspiration by the muses is distinguished from poetic skill in the same way: the former is a gift from the divine; the latter is produced by human effort. Thus, according to Plato, true divine inspiration benefits both state and individual and is superior to the products of the human intellect. This notion is essential for understanding how the prophet and priest function relative to the king in Mos. The knowledge revealed by the priest and prophet cannot be attained by human power, but must be given through divine inspiration. The knowledge mediated by the king is achieved through the theoretical and practical efforts of understanding the cosmos and the human soul, and manifesting its order through virtue. Finally, let us notice the character and purpose of the knowledge revealed through Plato's first and third types of mania. Literary inspiration provides knowledge from the past, which serves a didactic, or instructive, purpose. Figures like the Sybil are prophets associated with the first kind of mania, and they guide humans through their knowledge of future events. Through the inspiration of the priesthood, the sacred rites of divine service - which are a necessary part of justice - are revealed. As we shall see, Philo ascribes to Moses pre-eminent authority and superiority with respect to didactic tales of great ancient men, the rites of the priesthood, and the most accurate guidance for human beings through knowledge of the future. How Philo is able to assign these various forms 64 Plato, Phaedrus, 244d. oacp 5f) ouv xs^sfbxEpov Kai evxi^oxEpov navxiKf) oicoviaxiKfjc;, TO TE 6vo|aa xou 6v6|iaTO<; epyov x' epyou, xoaco K&AAIOV |iapxupouaiv oi rcaXaioi (iaviav omcppoauvrn; xf)v EK Osoti tfjq rap' &v9p 37 of knowledge to Moses depends largely on the way in which he understands the Pentateuch. Before we turn to our examination of Mos., let us summarize the major points we have outlined in this chapter. First, Philo's Exposition of the Law is modeled on his understanding of the Pentateuch as an image of the tripartite soul, and Mos. is to the Exposition what dikaiosune is to the soul. Just as dikaiosune is the virtue that accompanies the harmony of parts in a whole, so too Mos. accompanies the Exposition as its arche and telos. Philo uses both Plato's tripartite model of the soul, and the Stoic division of the soul into eight parts, the latter of which enables him to explain how the soul becomes autonomous by aligning itself to a higher power. Plato's philosopher king meets the Stoic sage in Philo's consideration of kingship, which reflects the universal values of the. ideal Roman state, wherein the autonomy of the Jewish priesthood is protected and maintained. Philo understands Stoic natural legislation within a metaphysical framework that encompasses not only corporeal reality, but also psychic and intellective reality, within which each realm is guided by its superior. While it is the duty of the human to pursue philosophy in order to achieve its proper place in the structure of reality, the natural form of human knowing requires prophetic revelation in order to attain full perfection. In the next chapter, we shall examine how Philo implements these various philosophical ideas in his presentation of Moses as king and lawgiver. 38 CHAPTER THREE: PHILOSOPHY, KINGSHIP AND THE LAW In the following chapter, we shall discuss the offices of kingship and legislation in Mos., in accordance with our general analysis given in the previous chapter, and our method outlined in the introduction. Thus, we begin by (3.1) remarking on Philo's introduction to the treatise, followed by (3.2) a treatment of Moses' pre-official activities, which include (3.2.1) early life and education, (3.2.2) philosophical training, (3.2.3) the burning bush, and (3.2.4) the demonstrations in Egypt. Then, we move to (3.3.1) the office of king, wherein Philo describes (3.3.2) the education of a community, which is conveyed in the account of the desert wanderings. We shall then turn to the beginning of book two, where Philo begins his discussion on (3.4.1) the legislative office, (3.4.2) the legislative virtues and translation of the Septuagint, and (3.4.3) the division of the Pentateuch, and the conflagration and deluge. (3.1) PHILO'S INTRODUCTION The content of Philo's introduction will inform our understanding of the rest of the work; here, he relates the purpose and audience of the treatise, he justifies his method - the biographical genre, and he states his sources. Since, according to Philo, "the ends are often determined by the beginnings,"65 we shall consider the introduction in light of Philo's conclusion to Mos., where he describes how at the end of Moses' life, his dyadic nature - body and soul - was re-unified into "the most sun-like mind."66 Philo straightaway relates his general purpose and audience: "I intend to record the life of this 65 Mos., 1.251. TO T£^r| xdxc, apydx^ nokXaKX^ Kptvexar 66 Mos., 2.288. vow f)Xio8i8eaTaxov 39 greatest and most perfect man of all to the knowledge of those who deserve not to remain in ignorance of it."67 With the end in mind, we understand that by recording the exemplary life of Moses, Philo is writing a didactic treatise about the perfect form of life for the embodied soul. Philo justifies the biographical genre by pointing to the misdirected efforts of other writers, who should have used their talents to record the lives of good men: "in this way they might have ensured that nothing of excellence, old or /TO new, should be consigned to oblivion, and to the extinction of the light it could give." Here we recognize Philo's objective is two-fold; Mos. is written to preserve ancient wisdom and to illumine his worthy readers. Philo's account draws from two sources: "But, I.. .will tell the story of Moses as I have learned it, both from the sacred books, the wonderful monuments of his wisdom which he has left behind him, and from some of the elders of the nation. For I always interwove what I was told with what I read, and thus believed myself to have a closer knowledge than others of his life."69 The 'things heard' refers to the knowledge acquired by the power of the human reason and passed along through the elders of the nation, whereas the things he reads are the divine oracles recorded in scripture.70 It is extremely significant that we recognize what Philo is telling his readers here: it is through the combination of human reason and divine revelation that he is able to know the paradigmatic human life most accurately. Philo's enterprise is not - in his eyes, at any rate - an attempt to reconcile Judaism with Greek philosophy. Moses' whole life demonstrates that natural - human - knowing and divine revelation are 67 Mos., 1.1. TOV (3iov dvaypdv|/ai 8isvof|9r|v, dvSpoq xa 7tdVca neyioroi) K 40 the two essential parts which must be combined for the greatest and most perfect form of human knowing and living: thus Philo assumes that in Moses, they are already reconciled. Let us note that in the introduction, Philo does not mention Moses' four offices as he will do at various points in the treatise. It is only at Mos. 1.155-162, a break in the narrative where Philo introduces kingship, that he mentions the other offices. The narrative that precedes the office of king, describes the individual pursuit of philosophy, which is a pre-requisite for all four offices, which are media that communicate certain forms of knowledge. Through Mos., Philo defines the function of each office, he outlines their pre-requisites, and he sets limits on the jurisdiction of each; Through the office of king and lawgiver, Moses educates and rules a community of mixed capacities for learning, in accordance with the wisdom reached through human reason. As priest and prophet, Moses mediates, to the same community, knowledge that he receives from God. By means of Mos., Philo highlights the limitations and scope of human knowledge and defines certain modes of divine revelation, in order to show the necessity of combining both sides. 41 (3.2) PRELIMINARY ACTIVITIES (3.2.1) Birth, Early Education, and Return to the Nation Philo begins by relating that Moses is of Chaldaean ancestry, but born and raised in Egypt, seven generations after the founder of the Jewish nation (Abraham) had emigrated there to escape famine in Babylon. For us to attain the full meaning of Moses' lineage, we must refer to Congr. 49, where Philo relates that abiding in Chaldaea means remaining in the study of astrology, with the theological correlative that the creation is honoured before the creator, which is to say that Abraham abandoned the Chaldaean consideration that the world is God in favour of considering the world a work of God.71 When we consider that for Philo, Egypt is a symbol of the mind which is occupied by sense perception, passion, and the body, we understand that, although the Jews have reached the knowledge that the world is created, they remain trapped by the bodily pleasures of the sensible realm. In De Migratione Abrahami {Migr.) Philo modifies and expands upon the account in Exodus to emphasize the miraculous character of Moses' survival and best possible upbringing, which he attributes to God's watchful care.73 Philo relates young Moses' proficiency as a learner, whose education included the Greek encyclical curriculum (arithmetic, geometry, music, grammar, logic, rhetoric), and the astronomical sciences of the Chaldaeans and the Egyptians. It is significant that the encyclicals are undertaken in Egypt, because this conveys that the content of this knowledge is fundamentally bound up with the sensible world; furthermore, they prepare 71 Congr., 49. xfjc, yap XaX8aiKfj<; on (xsTaviaxaxai x&po-c,, TOUTEOTI Tfjq nepi acrcpovoulav Oecopiaq oi) Sia^suyvutai, TO YEVOUEVOV 7ipo TOU 7is7ioir|K6TO<; Kai KOOLXOV Tipo GSOTJ T£Tiur|Kcbc;, \xaXkov Ss TOV KOCUOV auiov 9sov autoKpaxopa vout^cov, OUK auTOKp&Topoc; epyov Oeou 72 Migr., 77. Totq Kaxa ai'o9r|cnv f\ naQoq f\ aco^a, cbv screw f) AiyvmTOU x&pa cnj(j.po^ov 73 At 1.12, Philo relates that it was according to God's forethought (KOTO 9EOV 7tpour|8oi>nEvov) that Moses' sister kept watch over him after he was left in the river. At 1.17, it was according to God's plan (enwoia 6sou) that Moses was nursed by a natural source. 42 the student for the practice of appropriate activity corresponding to the lowest part - the appetitive faculty - of the tripartite soul. Philo describes Moses' efforts to restrain and soften his passions, and then to watch the impulses from which the passions arise, and cause both good things and bad things: "good when they obey the guidance of reason, and the opposite, when they stray off course into anarchy." Here, Moses practices sophrosune, the activity which deals with things to be chosen, and corresponds to the appetitive faculty of the soul. Moses' good sense was atypical among the Egyptians, causing them to wonder "what the mind which dwelt in his body like an image in a shrine could be, whether it was human or divine, or a mixture of both."75 At this point, Moses is able to harmonize life with logos by displaying his philosophical dogma through the practice of his daily activities. Philo describes Moses' reaction to the slavery of his people in order to demonstrate the limitations of the encyclicals and the instability of the lowest part of the soul. Moses was depressed and angered by this situation and lacked the power to punish the oppressors, and to alleviate the suffering of the oppressed. So, Moses attempts to resolve the difficulties by means of exhortatory speeches: "With such soothing words, like a good physician, he thought to relieve the sickness of their plight, terrible as it was."76 However, Moses' rhetorical efforts are of no use: "just as with physicians, what is called 'word medicine' is far removed from assistance to the sick, for diseases are Mos., 1.26. dyaOfiv \iev, oxav f|ye(j.6vi Xoyco neiQapx&ci, xa>v 8' svavxicov, oxav sic, dvapxiav EKSlCUTCOVTai 75 Mos., 1.27. xk; apa 6 EVOIKCBV auxoC xa> ocbuaxi KOU dyo$.naxo(popoi>HEvoc; vouc; saxi, rcoxspov dv0pd)7i£ioi; r\ 9sto<; f\ HIKXOC; si; ducpotv 16 Mos., 1.42. XOIOUXOK; KaxsTrdScov a>a7iep dya9o<; iaxpoq rosxo xdc; voaouq mixoi |3apuxdxac; ovaaq OTlKOVKpiElV- 43 cured by drugs and surgery and prescriptions of diet, but not with words." Moses is moved by external circumstances, and attempts to alleviate the suffering of others are futile, as he is ignorant of the cause of suffering. Moses is overcome by his own anger and kills a particularly cruel overseer. Although the action was appropriate, it was not virtuous. Moses lacked good intention and was moved to reaction. At this point, Moses leaves Egypt (the sensible ream) and undertakes contemplative philosophy in Arabia. Through this portion of the narrative, Philo connects the life of Moses to the divine providence, he highlights the instability of the lower part of the soul, and he outlines the limitations of the encyclical curriculum. In Congr., we find a reiteration of these limits, and an anticipation of what we will find in the next portion of Mos. In Congr., Philo writes, "just as the school studies contribute to the acquirement of philosophy, so does philosophy to the getting of wisdom. For philosophy is the practice or the study of wisdom, and wisdom is the knowledge of things divine and human and their causes."78 In the next section, Philo will elaborate on the nature of this wisdom and its corresponding practice. Before moving to our analysis, it is necessary to note that in the following section we see Moses attain an elevated ontological status. According to Philo, God's knowledge (or, his seeing), his word, and his effective deed are simultaneous and indistinguishable. The activity of God knowing himself is the act by which he is the highest form of existence that causes the existence of each subsequent realm of being. In De Sacrifwiis Abelis et Caini (Sacr.), Philo explains that unlike mortals, God needs no 77 Congr., 53. a>G7iep yap ev iaTpotq r\ \eyo\iiyr\ A,oyiaTpeia noku xr\q x&v Ka|iv6vT0)v cb(psA.eiac; d7toaxaxei cpapia&KOic; yap Kai xeipoupyiau; Kai 8iarcai<;, ak\' ou A,6yoic;, ai voooi OepaneuovTai 78 Congr., 79. Kai \ir\v axraep id syKUK^ia ounPdHsiai npbq cpiXoaoqnat; avakr\\\nv, oikco Kai (pikoaotpia npbc, cocpiaq Kifjaiv. eon yap cpi^oaocpia £7iiTri5euaii; aocpiaq, oocpia 8e e7tiaTri|uri Geicov Kai dvOpomivcov Kai T&V TOUTCOV aixicov 44 time to complete his work: "God spoke and it [the creation] was done - no interval between the two - or it might suggest a truer view to say that his word was his deed."79 The principle which causes all else to come to be is represented using light imagery. The image of light conveys the simultaneity of the divine activity, the divine thinking, and the divine word. With respect to the human soul, in Legum Allegoriarum {LA), Philo writes, "exceedingly well did God the framer of living beings contrive the order in which they are created." It is only with respect to potency that mind is made before perception; in actuality, these come to be at the same time. Philo explains, "the soul brings all together with herself some parts in virtue of actual existence, others in virtue of their potential to arrive even if they have not reached their consummation."81 By undertaking philosophy, Moses' thoughts, words, and deeds become harmonized and effective, which prepares him to fully actualize his nature and receive his portion of the divine light at the burning bush. (3.2.2) Philosophical Training in Exile Philo reflects the Stoic position that virtue is active, whereas other behaviours - such as Moses' reaction to the overseer - are fundamentally passive. In order to be truly active, the correct theory is required; without acting, the theoretical knowledge remains in potency. The sciences of the visible realm, as undertaken in Egypt, are concerned with appearances; however, in exile Moses seeks truth, and sets as his "one goal the orthos 79 Sacr., 65. 6 yap Geoq A-sycov a^ia STOIEI, |ir|5ev iisia^i) a^cpotv nGeit;- el 8s xpf] 56y|ia Kiyetv dXriGeoxepov, 6 Xoyoc; epyov r\v amou. 80 LA, 2.73. 7tdvu KaXtbq 6 C,a>on\aGTr\q Qebq e5rmiov>pyr|GE TT)V id^iv 81 LA, 2.73. a^ia yap eauTfj yu^f) Ttdvxa emcpepsTai, aXka td \xev svie^sxeia, id 8e TCO SuvaaGou ysvsaGou, ei Kod [ir\K(o 7ipoa£iXr|(p£ TO ZEXOC,. 45 logos of nature, the sole source and spring of virtues." Implicit here, is the Stoic division of soul into two equal and opposite parts, the logikon and the alogon, which is given a seven-fold division, forming seven parts (the five senses, voice, and reproductive faculty). The content of Moses' theoretical wisdom is that the division of the individual soul corresponds to the cosmic order, in which the seven-fold division produces the seven planetary circuits. In the same way that the heaven is in the cosmos, the soul is in the human. Philo writes, "thus it follows that the two natures, the rational and the intellectual, one in man and the other in all, are complete and indivisible."83 Through practice, Moses has made his soul an image of the macrocosmic order in the exterior cosmos; just as the seven planetary spheres obey the undivided intellectual nature, so too are the seven parts of Moses' irrational soul ordered to serve his undivided rational nature. In imitation of the just ordering in nature, Moses "at times showed a gallant temper beyond his fund of power, for he regarded justice as power invincible, which urged him on his self-appointed task to champion the weaker."84 Philo uses the account of the maidens at the well in order to illustrate Moses' capacity to act in accordance with "the heavenly eye of justice,"85 which favours proportional equality in human and natural affairs. When Moses acts justly, he becomes an agent of providence, and is rewarded accordingly by the father of the maidens, who "was at once struck with admiration of his face and soon afterwards of his disposition, for great natures are transparent and need no 82 Mos., 1.49. e While God's providence was credited several times in relation to Moses' early life, here, the emphasis is on Moses' capacity to become a providential agent of cosmic justice. We must note that at the beginning of the section, Moses prays for the salvation of the Jews and the punishment of the Egyptian oppressors, and to double the gift by allowing him to be the agent. Here, Moses' prayer disposes him to a greater intention, which allows us to recognize that here the philosophical life is necessary as a means to an end, but, for the perfect man, is not the end itself. Let us note also that we encounter Philo's first mention of divine inspiration when Moses chastises the injustice of the shepherds at the well: "as he proceeded thus, they were seized with fear that they were listening to some oracular utterance, for as he spoke he grew inspired and was transfigured into a prophet." It is our position that in this section, Moses has attained the first major stage in a spiritual ascent, which is the harmonization of the individual soul to the external cosmic order and represents an elevation of Moses' ontological status, which is evident through his capacity to be inspired and to restore justice through his speech. In the following section, Philo outlines the next step in the contemplative ascent, where Moses studies intellectual causation and aligns his soul to a higher power within. In De Agricultura (Agric.) we find a fitting summary of what we have related in our examination of Moses' activities in exile: [The cosmos is] the holy flock God leads in accordance with justice and law, setting over it his right reason and first born son, who shall take upon 86 Mos., 1.59. 6 5E TraTip ir)v [xev 6v|/iv EUOIX; TO 5S Pou^rma oMyov uaTCpov KaTa7iA,ay£ii; api5nA,oi yap ai nsyataxi (phasic; Kai ov iir|K£i xP°vou yvcopi^oixevai Philo notes that the father is also a priest. 87 Mos., 1.57. Toaka Sie^iovroq, (poPnGevxsc;, snel Kai Xeycov a(xa svsOouaia |i£Ta|xop(poij|i£vo<; eiq 7ipo(pf|Tnv, |if) xpnoiioijc; Kai Xoyia 0£a7ri^ei 47 him its government like some viceroy of a great king... [L]et therefore even the entire universe, that greatest and most perfect flock of the existent god, say "the Lord shepherds me and nothing can fail me." Let each of its parts too utter this same cry, not with the voice that glides forth over the tongue and lips, not reaching beyond a short space of air, but with the voice of the understanding that has wide scope and lays hold on the limits of all.88 Let us note that, here, the universe is shepherded by God, as are the parts of the universe, which are souls. In the following section, we will find out what it means not simply to praise the divine shepherd, but to actually become a shepherd. (3.2.3) Call to Kingship: The Burning Bush Having brought his soul into harmony with the cosmos, Moses undertakes preparation for kingship as a shepherd: "for the shepherd's business is a training ground and a preliminary exercise in kingship for the one who is destined to command the herd of mankind, the most civilized of herds.. .thus irrational animals subserve as matter wherewith to gain practice in government in times of both peace and war."89 Philo maintains that the only perfect king (basileus teleios) is the one who is also a skilled shepherd: "for accomplishment in the lesser must precede accomplishment in the greater."90 Shepherding is not only an activity that requires providing sustenance and care for bodily natures, which is required in kingship, but it is also an internal activity of 88 Agric, 51-53. 6 7toi[JT|v Kai PaoiA,£\)c; Geoq ayei Kcrra 5iKr|v Kai vofiov, 7rpoaxr|od|j.£voc; xov 6p06v auxou "kbyov Kai 7ipG)x6yovov uiov, 6c; xf)v em^sleiav xfjq iepficj xauxrn; a.yzkr\q old xiq ^EydA-ou pam^Ecoc; i)7rapxo<; 5KX5EC]£TOU. .. ^EyeTCi) xoivuv Kai 6 Koa^oc; anaq, f| |aEyioxr| Kai XElscoxaxri xoti ovxocj GEOO Jtoi^vr)- "Kupioq 7toinaiv£i us, Kai OV>5EV |IE uatEpfiasi" XsysTCO Kai EKaaxoc; xa>v EV (XEpei TO auxo xouxo \IT\ xfj Sid ytabxxr|<; Kai aionaTocj pEouori cpcovfl npbc, PpaxsTav dEpoc; Ecjiicvouiasvri (iotpav, aXka xr\ Tfjcj 5iavoiacj EupuvojiEVTi Kai Tcov xou 7tavt6<; a7rTO(i£vri 7i£pdTcov 89 Mos., 1.60. Jioi(i£viKri yap ns^£Tr| Kai 7tpoyu(ivaaia paaiA-siac; xcp (XEM-OVTI tfjcj fmspcotdtricj x&v dvGpclmcov EiriatatsTv ayekr\q, KaGdrcsp Kai totcj 7TOA,EHIKOTCJ xdc; (puasicj xd Kuvriysoia... xrov d>.6ycov old xivocj x>Xr\q imoPspA,r]H£va>v 7tp6c; daKr)aiv xfjcj KaG' EKdxspov Kaipov dpxfjc;, xov XE 7coA,£(iou Kai xov Eipf|vricj 90 Mos., 1.62. yap xd (i£ydXa Jtpo xwv ^iKprov x£?i£a6fjvai. 48 ordering the parts of the soul so as to receive illumination from a higher source. This activity consists of examining incorporeal causes and refining perceptive capacities so that they are not pulled outward by the power of external objects, but are moved by the power within.91 When the rational part of the embodied human soul is able to contain and guide its interactions with the external world without being pulled away from itself through its faculties, the soul has actualized its proper nature. As such, the soul is its own ruler and its activity does not depend on external objects, but is aligned to the mind above it. Insofar as the soul retains its proper sovereignty and it is not swayed by its subjects, it has made itself a reflection of God's governance and complete self-sufficiency. The soul has brought its latent potencies into being, and as a result, it has ascended to a higher level of being. While shepherding, Moses sees a bush, which, "though enveloped from root to twigs in a mass of fire which looked as though it were spouted up from a fountain, remained whole instead of being consumed, and seemed to be some unaffected substance instead of being fuel for the fire, it actually fed on it." The bush symbolizes the capacity of the irrational and passive part of Moses' soul to receive the influence of the higher, active power, to which he has aligned himself. Furthermore, the apparition foretells Moses' future as king: the bush represents the Jews suffering in Egypt, and the 91 In Sacr., 105 Philo relates that the term 'cattle' symbolizes general sense perception, which encompasses both 'wild' and 'tame': "they are wild when, throwing off the control of their herdsman the mind, they are carried away in their unreason into the outer sphere of things perceptible by them. They are tame when they respond submissively to reflection, the ruling element in our compound nature, and accept its guidance and control." 7te(puKev ouv icai TO aia0f)aecov yevoc; xfj usv dxi9aaov xfj 5' sivai xsiponGet;- dxiGaaov u£v oxav d(pnvidaav cooTiep (3oi)K6A.ot) xoti vou (pspnxai npbq xd EKXOC; dA,6ycoc; aiaOnxd, fjij,Epov 8e oxav vmeT^av 7t£i0nvicfl<; xco XOU ouyKpiuaxo<; riyeuovi Xoyiaucp Kupspvaxai is mi rrvioxfjxat npbc, auxou 92 Mos., 1.65. (3dxo<; rjv, aKavOcoSei; xi (puxov Kai da9evsoxaxov ouxoq, OUSEVOC; 7ri)p TtpooevEyKovxoi; s^akpvni; dvaKaisxai Kai 7iEpioxs9£iq 6Xoq EK pi^nq eiq dKpsuova 7toM.fj (pXoyi KaGdrcep d7to xivoq Jtnyfjc; dvouppoucrnc; 5IEIXEVE acpoc;, ou KaxaKoaouEvoc;, old xi<; dnaGf]q ouaia Kai oux vXr\ nvpbc, ambq &v, dXka xpocpfj xpwusvoq xu 7irjpi. 49 fire, their oppressors. In the midst of the apparition was a form of light, brighter than fire, this light was an angel symbolic of God's providence that silently relieves the greatest dangers and exceeds all hope. When we understand 'shepherding' according to its higher signification, we recognize that Philo intends for us to understand that the bush is a mental vision, which Philo clarifies in Migr. Here, Philo writes, "nous is the prompter of logos, and God of nous... whereas the logos interprets dianoia for humanity, dianoia becomes the logos for God." Moses represents dianoia which is expressed through speech, and in turn is that through which nous expresses itself, which in turn is that through which God is expressed. Mind derives its power from God, and dianoia derives its power from mind, and speech from dianoia; priority in the chain of empowerment corresponds to an elevated ontological status. The 'herdsman' has ordered the parts of his soul in such a way that they are guided by the higher power of mind, and not by external objects; as such, the soul is maintained in unity by a higher power, which is analogous to the way that the soul is the higher power that keeps the body whole.94 In De Fuga et Inventione (Fug.), Philo takes up God's warning to Moses in Exodus 3:5, not to approach the bush for the place on which he stands is holy ground. He interprets this to mean that Moses has reached the limits of the human reason, which is able to recognize that it is caused by a higher form of knowing, but is unable to apprehend the nature of its cause. The study of divine causation is "a subject which He has assigned to divine natures only, deeming no human being capable of dealing with the 93 Migr., 81-82. 6 Xoyoq, xmofioXsvc, 5s Xoyou voi3<;, cbq vov Qe6c,...akX, 6 uev ^6yo<; epunveix; 8iavo(ac; npbc, avOpamouc;, r\ 5s Suxvoia yivexou xw Xoyco xa 7tp6<; xov 9SOV 94 See Fug., 112. Here, Philo explicitly asserts that the ability to hold different parts in a whole depends on power. The logos is the bond that holds together all existence, which is like mind that holds together soul, which, in turn, is like soul's power to maintain the body. Separation of parts is contrary to nature. f\ x' enl uepouc; \|/uxn,> Ka96aov 8uvd|iEcoq usuoipaxai, xa>v xoti acbuaxoc; OUSEV anoaxi^eoQai Kal ajtoxsuvsaGai uepcov 7rapa qruaiv ea 50 study of causation." Human reason actualizes its highest potential by moving from particular effects to general causes, which begins by undertaking the sciences of the sensible (external) realm, moving to the study of physics through which the logos underlying the visible cosmos is discerned before it turns inward. Through containing and ordering the activities of its parts, the soul becomes the governing principle and cause of its own activity. However, this does not mean that the soul is an independent cause of its own being; rather, it must recognize that it derives its causal power from a higher source in which it is contained and by which it is governed. At this stage, the rational soul is the mean standing between mortal and immortal natures. On the one hand, the rational soul participates in the activity of its incorporeal principle, which is the the circular, intellectual motion of the spheres governing and containing the motion of their celestial bodies. On the other hand, the rational soul does not immediately possess its nature, but must reach it in time. Furthermore, although the soul controls its activities through its body, it cannot fully contain the natural motions of its body which is firmly planted in the realm of generation and corruption as a composite of the four elements which move according to their natural place, and are also subject to the influences of the celestial bodies. The knowledge created in Moses' soul by the angel is the way in which God speaks to Moses. Through God's 'speech' Moses' soul receives impressions which are usually made by external, sensible objects. Let us recall the fundamental division of the soul is into rational and irrational parts: dianoia belongs to the active, rational faculty, whereas perception (aesthesis) belongs to the passive, irrational part of the soul, where 95 Fug., 163. "6 yap TOJIOC; ev cp ax> EGTqKac;" cpr|ai "yf) ayia saxi" ndioc, mnoc,; f\ SfjXov OTI 6 amoA,oyiic6<;, 5v )^6vov Tatq Geioac; avfjys cpuaeaiv, avGpamcov ouSsva vo(iiaaq iicavov eivai amoA-oyiac; £(pav|/aa0ou; 51 impressions are received. What Moses has accomplished through the exercise of his natural powers is the alignment of his faculties in accordance with the ordered levels of created being. Through the full exercise of dianoia, Moses participates in the higher power of mind and has aligned himself within the hierarchy of all created being; through this, he has made himself capable of receiving illumination from the divine overflow of light. In LA, Philo explains the meaning of 'breathed into' found in Genesis 2:7: "the expression clearly brings out something that accords with nature. For three things are necessary, that which 'breathes into,' that which receives, and that which is breathed." God is that which breathes, the mind receives, and the spirit is that which is breathed: "Henosis of the three occurs when God sends forth his own power through the mediating spirit until it reaches what lies below it so that it might obtain a conception of him.97 Henosis is productive of light, and through Moses' reflection on intellectual causation and the regulation of his soul's powers, Moses' dianoia is now the hupokeimenon which receives illumination from above. The divine knowledge overflows from nous and is received in Moses' dianoia, the highest, rational, part of the soul, which, in turn illumines the passive - irrational - part which receives the light as phantasia as a result of divine overflow, and not projection onto external objects. This illumination enables Moses to sustain the autonomy proper to his soul and it provides him with the knowledge he needs to make himself a visible, or living, image of God. When the soul aligns itself and looks to nous, it has opened itself to receive the light by which he can then reflect to others 96 LA, 1.37. EiKpaivsi 5s TI Kai (puaiKcbtepov r\ 7ipocpopa Tpia yap sivai 8ET, TO EUTTVEOV, TO SE^OUEVOV, TO EUTCVEOUEVOV 97 LA 1.37. EVCDOK; yivsTOU TCOV xpuov, xeivavToq TOU GEOC TT)V & Through God's 'oracular speech' Moses' soul receives its call to kingship. God instructs Moses to return to Egypt, and equips him with demonstrations that prove his divine authority, each of which caters to a different mode of understanding and a different ontological status. Through the first 'name' of God, Moses is able to communicate to those who are capable of learning that though the human can know that God exists, the human cannot know what God is, and therefore cannot properly assign names to God. By naming the God of the three patriarchs, Moses is able to communicate the existence of God to weaker natures through exemplary mediators of divine activity. For the people who still do not believe, God equips Moses with two further instruments of persuasion - the rod that transforms into a snake, and the colour change of his hand. God promises a third instrument to Moses, which must wait until Egypt - the water in the river will turn to blood - which symbolizes the punitive aspect of divine providence. Finally, God instills in Moses the understanding that he will have recourse to speech - his brother Aaron - for expressing the understanding that has been impressed upon his dianoia. In Det., Philo explains that when Moses pleads ineloquence to God, "he is saying that he has no gift for the kind of oratory which is but specious guesswork at what 98 Opif., 146. f) 5e auyyevsia tic;; naq avQpanoc, Kara ^ev TTJV 5idvoiav COKSICOTOI A,6yco 0sicp, ifj<; \ioxapiaq cpuaecoq SKiiayeTov r\ dwioaTtaafxa f\ craauyaaiia yeyovcbc; 53 seems probable." The election of Aaron to act as interpreter signifies the reclaiming of the practical sciences which will be put to the service of truth by defeating false opinions proposed by sophistical arguments. In the same way that the senses are realigned to obey the mind within through shepherding, so too the practical arts of the encyclical curriculum are restored to serve a higher good. It is our opinion that this is one of the most significant portions of Mos., because it is here, that Moses achieves the summit of wisdom by the power of human reason. The refined ability to control the faculties of the soul from within represents a higher power and knowledge than that of the sage, who was moved according to an external principle of justice. The herdsman is closer to the divine insofar as he now imitates God as creative principle, which is done through a higher, less mediated power than imitation of his external effects. Because Moses has aligned himself to a higher power through actively ordering the parts of his soul, he has the capacity to receive his appointment to kingship. The burning bush represents both a recognition of the scope and limitations of human knowledge, and a vision of a greater whole, the creation of which Moses will have the capacity to undertake as king, having created and ordered the parts of his soul. The knowledge of the proper expression of the soul through speech enables the ruler to mediate the wisdom he has acquired appropriately and persuasively, which is the subject of our next section. (3.2.4) Miraculous Demonstrations and Punishments in Egypt In this section of Mos., Philo describes how Moses implements the demonstrations of divine providence, so as to convert the "prevailing unbelief to belief in 99 Det., 38. IOOV TCO \ir] 7tE(puKevai npbc, Tf|v TCOV eu^oycov icai 7u0ava>v eiKacn:iKf)v pr|Top£iav 54 his words." Moses' confrontation with the magicians represents his victory over sophistry, his rod represents his arguments, arid its transformation into the snake signifies the pleasure gained through persuasive argumentation. In Philo's account, Moses' snake swallows all the other snakes which demonstrates that his position is the most persuasive. Despite Moses' demonstrated authority, the Egyptians persist in their impious ways, "and therefore a severer visitation was needed, and volley of those blows whereby fools whom reason has not disciplined are brought to their senses."101 The ten plagues serve as stronger medicine needed to loosen the Hebrews from the grips of Egypt. Philo has reordered the plagues in Exodus in accordance with a hierarchy of both human and natural power. Aaron, who represents human expression through speech, is granted the first three plagues which are associated with the denser elements, earth and water that constitute bodily qualities. These plagues attack the false opinions of those who ascribe corporeality to God, or who deify parts of the cosmos. Moses is the agent of the three plagues associated with air and fire, the purer elements constituting soul, which administer punishment to those who deify the cosmos. Moses and Aaron are partnered in administering the seventh plague, which punishes the body and soul of those who admit no stable faith in the saving power of God and resort to mortal remedies in times of distress.102 The last three plagues were brought about without human agency, but through divine providence and the agency of nature. The dog fly is a combination of terrestrial and celestial natures, and attacks the flesh and blood of its victims. The dog fly symbolizes the absurdity of inverting nature's order which occurs when an unprepared 100 Mos., 1.90. EK xfjq Enexovar\q amotion; eic, niaxw TCOV A,eyo|i£VG)v [lemfiaksiv 101 Mos., 1.95. 8(j.Ppv9soTEpaq E7iavaT&aeax; e5sr|as Kai 7tA.r|ycov £a|iOU, aic; oi cfoppovsq vouOeTowcai, oiji; A,6yo<; OUK SJIOUSSUOS 102 See Sacr., 69-71. 55 king assumes power. The murrain punishes the pharaoh's neglect of the necessary activity of the shepherd, and the death of the firstborns is the inevitable result of assuming the office of king without proper preparation. By means of the plagues, Philo demonstrates the inherent principle of justice pervading the whole cosmos and its natural tendency to restore order among its parts: "God's judgment was that the materials which had served to produce the world should serve also to destroy the land of the impious." Furthermore, Philo shows that disturbance in the microcosm - the individual soul - is subject to realignment through macrocosmic agency: "he began with the plagues by water; for since the Egyptians had paid especially high honours to water, thinking it to be the generative principle of the whole, he thought it fitting to call water first to reprove and admonish its votaries."104 Through the plagues, Philo outlines a hierarchically ordered social structure comprised of different capacities for learning and the corresponding modes of persuasion: rhetoric, philosophy, and force. Finally, Philo demonstrates that as long as one remains attached to the perceived goods in the corporeal realm, they remain subject to its order and law. By means of this section, Philo demonstrates that not only must a good king order the faculties within himself and return to life in the sensible realm, but he must also repossess the skills which are taught by the practical arts as means to communicate the truth; furthermore, the king must employ these skills in the demonstration of his wisdom and his aptitude as a ruler. Moses' descent from the theoretical speculation of spiritual 103 Mos., 1.96. §iKaicbaavTO<; 0eoi>, olq &7i£T£A,ea9r| 6 Koa|ao<;, xryv aaEpcov %&>pav (pGapfjvai 104 Mos., 1.98. Kai 7tpcbTa<; {biupspsiv apxsxcn rac; dtp' uSatoq- 87iev8f) yap TO uScop AiyimTioi 8va(pep6vTco^ SKT£Tl|if|K(XaiV &PXT1V TX\C, TCOV O^COV yEVEOECOC; TOUT' eiVCU VO|ll^OVT£i;, 0CUTO 7tpa>TOV f|^VG)G£ K 56 natures into the realm of corporeal objects corresponds to his re-entrance in Egypt, equipped with the means to demonstrate truth and eliminate vice. (3.3) MOSES AS KING (3.3.1) Introduction to Kingship Philo's account of kingship begins after Moses leads the Hebrews from Egypt into the desert. On account of Moses' demonstrated capacity, God - creator and governor of the whole - puts Moses in charge of the nation: "through his nobility of soul and greatness of spirit and natural hatred of evil, He who presides over and takes care of the whole thought it good to requite him with the kingship of a more populous and mightier nation." Moses demonstrates his capacity to rule others by exercising the appropriate virtues, on account of which he has earned the office as a reward. On account of his participation in the creative and regent powers of God, Moses is allotted not a part of the land, but the whole cosmos as his portion, "and that is but fitting, for he is a citizen of the cosmos, and therefore not on the roll of any city of human habitation."106 The illumination Moses receives at the burning bush not only fully perfects his own nature, but he is also equipped with three ways of communicating the existent God to others. Through the appropriate communication of God to the people, Moses imitates God, who bestows his gifts according to the mode of the recipient. By leading the people out of Egypt, Moses extends the divine goodness to others, by which they will be led to a better state of being. Now Moses is not only an image of the divine self-sufficiency, but he is 105 Mos., 1.149. 8ia v|/uxfjc; suysveiav Kai (ppovfmaraq (isyEGoi; Kai TO |nao7i6vr|pov (puasi, TCO 7tpv>Tavei3ovn. Kai EJU|i£>.ounEV(B TCOV olcov e8o^ev auiov d^eiv|/aa9ai pacnXsia 7toA,uav9pa>7toTspoi) Kai KpstrTOVcx; eQvovc, 106 Mos., 1.157. H^KO*' EIKOTCOC;- Koo(xo7ioA,iTri<; yap screw, r\c, xapiv aixiaq ouSe^uS TCOV Kara xf)v oiKOUHEvr|v 7i6X£COV eveypacpri 57 also reflects the divine benificience. Due to Moses' kinship with the father and maker of the whole, "he was named god and king of the whole nation."107 It is crucial to mention that according to Philo, names used in the Pentateuch "are marks of powers, the small signs of greatness, sensible of the intelligible, the unseen revealed. And these powers are found in in the best doctrines, in unerring and pure notions, and in the betterment of i no souls.",uo Here we see clearly, an elevation of Moses' ontological status. At the bush, Moses receives the power to express God correctly and according to the capacity of the receiver. Through using this power, Moses actualizes his kinship with God the Father and Maker and he becomes god and father to the citizens in the nation he is about to create. While Moses is called god, as king, he draws from the power and knowing that belongs to the perfected human nature. Athough Moses is able to lead the nation to higher states of being, he is unable to secure their ultimate freedom from their mortal desires and enable them to achieve immortality after bodily death. The remainder of book one deals with kingship and is concerned with the difficulties of educating and ordering a community of various capacities. (3.3:2) Educating the Nation The events wherein Moses provides food and drink for the people symbolize their theoretical education, and the events which describe the battles symbolize the struggle to overcome vice through the practice of virtue. In Mos. 1.182-187, Philo describes how 107 Mos., 1.158. mvondoGri yap okov TOU S9VOU<; Gsoq Koci PacnXsik; 108 Mut., 65. dM.cc xa TOiauTa xapaKxfjpsi; 8uvd(ie6v Eim, $pa%£iq (xsydtaov, aicGiycot vor|Ta>v, cpavspoi a?>r\kwv ai 5s SUV&HEK; EV 56y|aaaiv dpiatoi<;, EV ayEuSeoi Koci KaGapaTc; iraoX,f|\|/Ecnv, EV ^iv%r\q p£A,Tici)a£aiv E^Exd^ovTai 58 Moses sweetens the bitter water, which represents instilling desire for the good which is the proper end of their toil in the desert. In Congr., Philo writes, "for what is sweet in toil is the yearning, the desire, the fervour, in fact the love of the good."109 Having established the knowledge of and desire for the end of their struggles, Moses brings the people to Elim. In Fug., Philo explains that "Elim means gateways, a symbol of the entrances to virtue; for just as gateways are the beginnings of a house, so too are the encyclical studies the beginnings of virtue."110 After Elim the Hebrews are still overcome by bodily necessities, such as hunger, which Moses nourishes with the heaven sent Manna: "for when they have been given the water to drink, they are filled also with the most generic of all that exists, for the manna is called "what", and the most generic is God, and the second most is the logos of God, but all other things subsist in logos alone, but in their active effects are in some cases as good as not subsisting."111 By teaching that the genus is superior to the species, Moses teaches that it is better to act according to a unified principle, rather than according to particular interests: "for genus is one which is above all, but people is a name for many."112 Furthermore, virtue is a whole, which is seen as a genus through its division into four primary species: prudence, temperance, courage, and justice. Philo relates that the division of genera into species is the activity of ordering chaos and confusion: "and so too we must train our logon, which so long as it flows in a disordered current, but when divided into its proper heads, with the arguments 109 Congr., 166. TO yap EV 7tovo) yA-wu spcog eoti Kai 716601; Kai ^fjA,oc; Kai cpiXia TOU KaX,oC. '10 Fug., 183. AiWu nvX&vec, EpunvEoovTai, eia68ou tfjc; 7tpo<; dpexr)v auuPoXov a>a7cep yap oiiciac; apxai n\>X&vsq, Kai dpsTfjq id EyKi>K>aa 7rpo7iai5ei>|j.aTa. See also, Gig., 60: "[the mind], which pursues the encyclia and each and every art, which sharpens and whets itself, and trains and drills itself solid in the contemplation of what is intelligible by mind." Td syKUKlia Kai xhq aXkaq area^ a7tdaa<; e7tiTn8ei)£i xeyyaq, 7tapaGf|ycov Kai drovcov ETI TS yvjuvd^cov Kai auyKpoxcbv ev TOiq vonxoti; aikov 1'' LA, 2.86. 7tOTia9eiCTai 8e Kai TOU udwa £U7U7t>.avTai TOU yEviKcoxaxop KaXsvcai yap TO udwa "u," 6 TtdvTcov sari yevoq, TO 5e yeviKCOTaTOv EOTIV 6 9EO<;, Kai SsuTepoc; 6 Gsou A,6yo<;, Td 8' akka Xoyco uovov U7tdp%£i, epyoii; 5E ECTIV OIJ '(aa TW oi>x vjjxdpxovTi 112 Sacr., 6. yevoi; uev yap EV TO dvcoTdTCO, A,ao<; 8s ovoua TCX,EI6VCOV 59 and demonstrations suited to each, will, like a living animal be compacted of parts complete in themselves, and made into a harmonized whole."113 Division, however, is not sufficient for wisdom: "continued exercise makes solid knowledge as its absence makes ignorance."114 In Numbers 11:8, Philo interprets the 'grinding in a mill' as the activity of division, and the 'pounding in a mortar' as the exercise of solidifying the knowledge produced by division.115 Philo maintains that the virtuous soul is nourished by the heavenly and divine food of wisdom, and not with the food that sustains the body and is subject to decay, having been produced by the earth: "you see of what sort the soul's food is. It is the logos of God continuous like dew, embracing all in a circle, leaving no part without a share in it."116 That the manna is portioned out each day signifies the necessity of progressively building a capacity to know higher things. Furthermore, the daily portions remind the people that the self-sufficient goods they receive have been given by God, on whom they rely on God for all that remains. When Philo deals with Numbers 11:17 in Gig., he explains that 'taking of the spirit' and allotting portions of it to the seventy elders does not at all decrease, lessen, or sever the divine spirit of wisdom: "rather it is, as when they take fire from fire, for though the fire should kindle a thousand torches, it is still as it was and is diminished not at all. Such is the nature of knowledge."117 Knowledge is Sacr., 85. xov xe A,6yov, be, OUK dxdKxco puur] cpepouevoq dadcpeiav epydaexai, xunSsic; Se eic; xd oiKeta K£(pdA,ava Kai xdc; eic, EKaaxov anobei^eiq aaizep t&>ov £K XEX,E1COV uepcov auu7iayric; dpuooGr|aexai 114 Sacr., 86. aw£/r|c; ydp aaKnaic; sbuoxfiunv 7tdyiov Epyat,exai, mc, duaGiav dueA,£Tr|cria' 115 See also LA, 3.170, where Philo again discusses Numbers 11:8. Philo compares the logos of God to a coriander seed which is capable of innumerable divisions from each of which a plant can grow as if from the whole seed; "such too is the logos of God, able to confer benefits both as a whole and through all parts." xoiofixoc; Koii 6 9eou A,6yoc;, Kai 8i' oXcov cbcpsArixiKOi; KOU 5id navxbc, |i£pouq. 116 LA, 3.169 bpac, xfjc; i|/uxn.c; xpoqjfrv oia eaxi- Xoyoc; Geou auvexiiq, EOVKCOI; 5poaq>, KUK^CO jtaaav 7ispi8iA,n(p(bc; Kai un5sv uspoc; duexoxov amov ecov. 117 Gig., 25. alX' oiaysvoix' av arco jtupoc;, 6, KSV uupiac; 5a5a<; £^dv|/r), (isvei ur|5' oxvouv ev ouoico xoiauxn xiq EOXI Kai xfjc; £7iicxf]uri<; r\ cpuoiq- 60 never lessened by the number, or the degree to which, beings possess it, nonetheless no creature is permitted to take more than its share. Philo writes, "Gather together, therefore, O soul, what is adequate of itself and suitable, and neither more than sufficient so as to be excessive, nor, on the other hand, less so as to fall short, that dealing in just measures, thou mayest do no injustice."118 Through the provision of food and water, Moses instills the knowledge of and desire for the good in the Hebrews according to the various capacities of the individuals. Through the battle scenes, Philo relates the challenges which face the nation as a whole. The Hebrews battle with the Phoenicians, under the leadership of the appointed general Joshua, whose name means 'saviour of the Lord,' which is the name for the best possible state: "the state is everlasting, active, perfect; the individual is mortal, acted upon, and imperfect; and the imperishable is higher and greater than the mortal, and the acting cause than that on which it acts."119 Moses' hands rose and fell in accordance with the success of the people. When the Jews were winning, Moses' hands rose, and when the Phoenicians were winning, they fell. Philo writes, "thus, by symbols, God showed that earth and the lowest regions of the universe were the portion assigned as their own to the one party, and the ethereal, the holiest region, to the other; and that, just as heaven holds kingship in the universe, and is superior to earth, so this nation should be victorious over its opponents in war."1 ° The defeat of the Phoenicians represents a victory over particular, perishable, interests in favour of the greater whole. Furthermore, Philo shows 118 LA, 3.165. cnjvays ouv, co yvxr), xa onkapiai Kai KaGfiKovta Kai \ir\ie TCA^ICO TCOV ucavcov cbg vraspp&Alsiv larjTE sXaxxm naXw toe, evSetv, vva LIETPOK; 8iKaioi<; xPwI^Evrl W dSiKfjc; 119 Mut., 122. r\ LIEV yap sfyq aiSiov svspyow, xekeiov, 6 8e 710161; GVT|T6V, rtdaxov, axekeq- Kpevrtov 8s 0vr)Tou LIEV TO acpGapxov, 7tdo"xovTo<; 8s TO 8pcov amov, TO 8E TSXEIOV aTe^oui; 120 Mos., 1.217. nr|vuovTO<; 8l<* ounPokov TOU Osoti, on TCOV |iev son yfj Kai ai xox> navxbq EoxctTiai K^fjpoq oiiceToc;, TCOV 8' aiGf]p 6 ispcoTaTOi;, Kai cocrasp ev TCO TtavTi fiaaikzvsi Kai KpaTst yfjc, oupavoq, OUTCO Kai TO sGvoq Tcspiecrcai TCOV CXVTITIOXELIOUVTCOV 61 the correlation between the higher portions of the cosmos and the state - which must have precedence over the lower, individual portions, just as the genus must preside over the species. Moses dispatches twelve scouts to survey the lands for possible settlement. The scouts have been appointed guides to lead their ascent up a mountain in order to behold the whole that lies below. The spies had been guided to a higher perspective which afforded them the knowledge of the battles they have yet to face. From the summit, they behold the whole land within which cities - here taken to mean kinds of souls - are well fortified with both man-made walls, and natural barriers.121 The inhabitants of the cities are innumerable and giant-like in corporeal size and strength, and represent the corporeal powers cultivated within the borders of the soul. Just as the health of the individual body depends on the health of the soul which is dependent on the mind for its power, so too does the health of the individual depend on the health of the state, which in turn is empowered by its ruler. Ten of twelve were discouraged by the prospect of additional struggle, and feared their formidable opposition. The cowardice localized in the individual souls of the ten emissaries was vocalized to the people upon return from the mission, and their confusion spread to the multitude like a plague: "for the profitable is followed by toil, the noxious with ease. And fools because they prefer ease to toil are naturally at enmity with those who advise them to their profit." The foolish majority, in their preference for ease, attacked the truthful emissaries, "and nearly stoned them in 121 See Fug. 176, which likens generic virtues to cities, and specific to houses. See De Confusione Linguarum (Conf.) 107 for 'soul-cities.' 122 Mut., 170. 7tovoc; (xev yap xoiq cuinpepouai, paaxa>vr| 8e xoTq p^apepoTc; enexai- novou 8e paoxcovriv rcpoKpivavTec; EUCOXOK; xoic; xa auiicpspovxa eiar|yoi)|j.8voi<; &7iex9&vovxai 62 their preference of the pleasant sounding to the profitable and of deceit to truth."123 When the natural ordering of power both in the individual and in the state is subverted, its defenses disappear and through its weakness, the organism is prone to foreign attack: "for the ten cowardly spies perished in a pestilence with those of the people who shared their foolish despondency." Philo uses this account to show that the confused state of the soul is an inversion of its natural power, and when it is expressed to a body of people, the confusion spreads to the souls of the hearers, corrupting both the order of the state as a whole, and the souls and bodies of the individual citizens. For Philo, the passion that characterized Egypt is rooted in the avoidance of painful sensations and the pursuit of pleasurable sensations, and as such, the soul in Egypt represents a state of naive ignorance. The Phoenician battle represents the ongoing struggle of the appetitive faculty to live according to the soul and not the body. In relation to the state, the Phoenician battle represents the choice between particular interests and the common good. The incident with the spies corresponds to the spirited faculty of the soul and its respective virtue - courage. The battle with the Canaanites represents the voluntary choice between virtue and vice, with the full knowledge of good and evil and correlates to the highest faculty of the soul, the rational. When the Hebrews reach Canaan, the Canaanite army seizes a large number of the Hebrews. Philo explains that "the reason has by this time advanced to a higher degree of vision, and while it apprehends both alternatives, good and evil, chooses the worst, because mortality is so large an ingredient in the reason and evil is native to mortality as its opposite, good, is 123 Mos., 1.235. KOU role; 8uaiv E7u8pa|K>VTE<; nixpoi) Kaia^suouaiv auxout; f)8ovfiv ctKofjq TOU ou^cpepovTOi; Kai &7raTr|v &>.r|9siac; 7ipoKpivavtsq 124 Mos., 1.236. oi |iev 5ei>toi SsKa Xoi|id)5Ei voacp SiacpGeipovxai IIETCI TCOV EK TOC 7iA,r]Go\)(; auva7iovor|0svTCOv 63 native to the divine." Nonetheless, the courageous zeal of those who remained unscathed made up for the deficiency caused by the lost comrades, and they easily overpowered their enemies, devoting all spoils to God. Philo writes, "for just as every pious person gives firstfruits of the year's produce, whatever he reaps from his own possessions, so too the whole nation set apart the kingdom which they took at the outset."126 This victory marks the beginning of the successes of the nation. At the borders of Canaan, the Hebrews come upon a spring of water, a well that is dug by kings. In De Ebrietate {Ebr.), Philo writes, "for it belongs to leaders to search for and accomplish wisdom.. .who through the powers of the soul have conquered the medley and confusion of the multitude which beset it."127 The people form a chorus dear to God, both singing praises of thanks and "raising a song of victory in their desire for the perfect powers that befit the leaders."128 The people have attained knowledge of the orthos logos as the source from which virtue springs, which corresponds to Moses' wisdom in Arabia. However, Moses derived his wisdom directly from the just ordering of the cosmos, while the people have achieved this wisdom through the mediation of the state. On account of their insight, the people are now well-disposed to receive direction from Moses, and he reorders them in accordance with the principle of justice in nature and in his own soul, enclosing the naturally weaker with the stronger citizens who surround and protect them. The swift victory over the Amorites demonstrates the 125 Congr., 84. r)5r| TOU A,oyio|aou npbc, TO o^ucoTteatspov E7U5£8(JI)K6TO<; iced KaiaXauPdvovToq HEV d|^(p6x£pa, dyaGov TE ax> Kai KCIKOV, TO 5E xeipov aipou^iEvou 5id TO nokb HETE/EIV TOU 0vr)TO\5, q> TO KOIKOV OIKEIOV, E7t£i Kai TouvavTiov Tcp GEICO, TO dyaGov 126 Mos., 1.254. KaGdirsp yap elc, EKOCOTOC; TCOV EUOEPOUVTCOV hub TCOV ETrjoicov drcdpxETai Kap7icov, oi)<; av EK TCOV i5icov auyKo^i^ri KTr|LidTCOv, TOV aikov Tporcov Kai 6A,ov TO EGVOI; \izyakx\c, xwpac; 127 Ebr., 113. (isydlcov yap f|y£Liovcov dva^riTfjoai Kai KaTspydaacGai ao(piav, ov>xi TCOV bnXoiq yfjv Kai GdXaTTav irariynEvcov, aKka TCOV yoxi\c; 5uva^scn TOV 7roX,uTpo7tov aikfjc; Kai mydSa Kai 7iecpopr)Li£vov 6xX.ov KaTriycoviajxEvcov l2S Ebr, 114. EoiKaaiydp Kai OUTOI 7idA,iv EJUVIKIOV ao|xa E^dpxsiv TEX,EICOV Kai f)y£|ioviKcov Swansea v £(pi£|X£VOl 64 nation's faith in Moses as their leader, despite their own substantial power and knowledge: "if we repose our trust in our own reasonings, we shall construct and build up the city of mind that corrupts the truth; for "Sihon" means "corrupting.""129 The news of the Hebrew victory over the Amorites spreads to the other nations who fear that they will fall to their power. The plot against the Hebrews concocted by Balak the Mesopotamian king, with the advice of Balaam, the false prophet, establishes the constant human struggle against seduction by bodily necessities. Philo uses this account to show that regardless of their victories over passion and vice, the nation is still comprised of mortal parts, vulnerable to the enticement to passion through the lower part of the soul, which is in contact with bodily natures. The nation itself, as ordered by Moses with the stronger surrounding the weaker, is an image of the soul. Though phronesis and andreia are able to construct enclosing walls separating the higher parts of the soul from their opposites (foolishness and cowardice), sophrosune is unable to contain the lower part of the soul and defeat desire and pleasure. By means of this account, Philo clearly defines the limitations of kingship which are connected to the weakness of mortal souls and thereby establishes the necessity for the high priest's office. Philo relates that Balaam, "knowing that disobedience to the law is the one way through which the Hebrews could be overthrown, he set himself to lead them, through lust to impiety, through a great sin to a greater sin, and put before them the bait of LA, 3.228. sav 5s Before crossing the Jordan, which Philo explains is symbolic of the return from contemplative life into life in the sensible realm, the two tribes of herdsman approach Moses hoping to secure the fertile land which lies before the river in order to secure it 131 Mos., 1.295. si5(b<; yap 'EPpaiou; |iiav 656v akmaeaq 7tapavo|iiav, 8ia XayvEiaq KOCI ctKo^aaiai;, Heyakov KaKoi), npbc, nei^ov KCXKOV, daePsiav, ayeiv amove, ea7ioi35aoev fi5ovf)v 5e^sap 7tpoGeic; 132 LA, 3.242. bXkh TOV "GEipo|adoTr]v" TOUTEGTI TOV ^rjtaoTiKov Xoyov A.aPcbv O\>K d7ioaTf)o'ETai, npiv r\ "EKKsvTfjaai TTIV MaSiavmv" xf|v £KKEKpi|j.svr|v Gsiou xopou (puaiv "Sia xfjq \xx\xpac, autfjc;", vva |ir|8e7roTe io%i3ar| cputov f\ a7tep|aa KaKiaq dvaxeiXai- 133 Mos., 1.304. cpOdvei SE xpTFlKrii; 8copr)od(XEvo<; 6 OEOC; OVVEEI TO (XEyvaiov dyaGov, sipfivr|v, 6 jxriSeiq iKavdc; dvGpcbTicov 7iapaaxsTv, 7rpo<; 5e if) eipr|vr| Kai 7tayKpaTr|aiav lEpcoawTi*;, auxco KOU ysvEi K^fjpov dva(paip£Tov 66 from invasion while they are away at battle. Moses, unaware that the tribes intended well, chastises them on the proper reception of allotted portions: "the whole is not an appendage to its parts, for it is quite the opposite - it is on account of the whole that the parts are worthy of their portions."134 The nation, like the perfected embodied soul, is a whole that unifies and maintains the distinction of its various parts. We have seen aspects of Moses' early life and philosophical education reflected through the office of king; however, the differences between Moses' education and that of the Hebrews are notable because they distinguish Moses' capacity from the rest. For example, the Hebrews required that Moses 'sweeten' the water before their consumption - or instill in them the knowledge of and desire for the good. In contrast, Moses contains this wisdom within himself, which is signified by his name: "since he had been taken up from the water, the princess gave him a name derived from this, and called him Moses, for mou is the Egyptian word for water." Similarly, the encyclical studies were 'consumed' - or, taken within from outside - by the Hebrews, whereas Moses' gifted nature was such that "his seemed a case rather of recollection than of learning."136 The nation receives the knowledge of the orthos logos mediately through Moses, and are ordered accordingly by Moses, whereas Moses apprehended the orthos logos in the cosmos without mediation through the state, and ordered himself accordingly. As such, he was able to undertake the study of incorporeal causes and empower his whole soul from within. Although his soul becomes the principle of its embodied activity, it is nonetheless able to regulate the changes to which his body is subject due to the natural 134 Mos., 1.323. ouSe xcpoa0r|Kr|v TO 6XOV nepoix; slvar xouvavTiov yap eveKa TCOV oA/ov za nepr| K?ir|povo |itac; d^iouxai 135 Mos., 1.17. slxa 5i5a>oiv 6vo(ia 9enevr| Mcoocfjv STOIICOC; Sid TO 8K TOU uSaToq aikov dve>.ea0av TO yap uScop |iah) 6vo|id^o\)oiv AiyimTioi 136 Mos., 1.21. dx; dvd(ivr)aiv sivai 5oKetv, oi) |idGrioiv .67 motion of the elements from which it is composed. The nation is comprised of many individuals whose natures are not capable of internal empowerment, and thus they always run the risk of enticement by pleasures associated with their appetitive faculty. The problem, for Philo, lies not in the embodied state of the soul, but in the balancing of the embodied soul's attention, which is liable, and in most cases guaranteed, to err. Because the state is composed of mortal human individuals, it cannot be truly whole because it does not completely contain all of its parts; as such, the state requires the divine rites and intercession of the priesthood in order to purify and maintain the cohesion of its parts. (3.4) MOSES AS LEGISLATOR (3.4.1) Introduction to the Legislative Office In his introduction to the office of legislator, Philo describes the close relation of the ruling and legislative functions and reiterates the necessity for the priesthood, which he had established in his treatment of kingship: It is a king's duty to command what is right and forbid what is wrong. But to command what should be done and to forbid what should not be done is a peculiar function of the law; so that it follows at once that a king is a living law and the law a just king. But the king and lawgiver ought to have under his purview not only human but divine things; for, without God's directing care, the affairs of kings and subjects cannot go aright. And therefore, he needs the chief priesthood.. .but since to this king, lawgiver, and high priest who, though possessed of so generous a heritage of fortune's gifts, is after all but a mortal creature, countless things both human and divine are wrapped in obscurity, Moses necessarily attained prophecy also, in order that through the providence of God, he might discover what by reasoning he could not grasp. For prophecy finds its 1 ~\1 way to what the mind fails to reach. 137 Mos., 2.4-6. paaiXsi 7tpoaf|KEi Ttpoax&TTEiv a yjpr\ Kod OOTayopeijeiv a |j.ri xpiy 7tp6aTa^i<; 5e TWV TipaKxecov Kori curaYopeuaic; TCOV OU 7tpaKT£cov iSiov vo^ou, cog EUGVX; EIVCU TOV JXEV pciGiAia vo^ov s^yuxov, TOV 5s vo^ov Paai^Ea SIKCUOV paaiXsuq 5e KOU VOUOGETTH; ocpeiXsi LIT) Tav9pco7isia ^ovov aXka KOU ia OeTa auv£7uaK07t£iv oi) yap ctveu Gsiaq E7iuppocyrjvr|<; KaiopOoikcu xh PaaiAicov Kai imr|K6cov npay\iaxa- 5v' fjv 68 Let us notice that, here, Philo's statement reflects a crucial distinction between the forms of knowledge proper to each office. On the one hand, kingship and legislation are explicitly connected and are activities which concern human affairs. On the other, the high priest and the prophet are concerned with revealing divine things and human activities relative to God. According to Philo, the benefits conferred through the priesthood extend well beyond the Jews themselves. In Spec, Philo writes, "the Jewish nation is to the whole inhabited world what the priest is to the state. For the holy office belongs in very truth to the nation because it carries out all the rites of purification and both in body and soul obeys the injunctions of the divine laws."138 So, both the state and the priesthood obey divine law, and the state requires the priesthood for its perfection, and as we shall discover in the next chapter, the sacred rites of the high priest extend their salvific power to the entire cosmos. But, does the priesthood need the matters of the state, such as philosophical kingship and cosmic law? In Spec, Philo affirms that education through the state is a preparatory lesson on the priesthood. Philo writes, "legislation is a kind of lesson on the holy office, and life in accordance with the laws leads to the priesthood, rather, the high priesthood in the judgment of truth."139 So, the high priest, who completes the state by providing purification and providential airiav s8sr|os TW TOIOUTCO zf\q npfoxr^ ispco 69 intercession for its citizens, must be practiced in legislation and live life in accordance with the law, which means making his soul a reflection of the cosmic order. Since the offices of king and legislator are two sides of the same coin, what is Philo's reason for treating them separately? Through the office of king, Philo describes how the law is embodied in a monarch, who reflects both creative and providential aspects of the divine logos. In Abr., Philo writes: In my opinion, that one was the truly existent, who held it fitting that he should be present to give good gifts by his own agency, but should leave the execution of the opposite of good in the hands of his powers acting as ministers so that he might appear to be the cause of good only, but not directly the cause of anything evil. This is the practice, I think, of kings also, who imitate the divine nature. They are their own agents in granting gifts, but employ others to enforce punishment.140 Philo's discussion on the legislative office pertains to the communication of the divine law through a written medium, whereas his discussion of the king pertained to the mediation of the constitution through a living being. In the following analysis, we shall discover that the same cosmic order mediated by the king is reflected through the medium of scripture. But, why does Philo include an example of prophecy through divine inspiration in his treatment of the legislative office? Why does Philo leave the Decalogue entirely unmentioned in Mos., and why does he not discuss the special laws in relation to the duties of the lawgiver? In the remainder of this chapter, we shall see that Philo endeavours to establish the universal and generic character of the Mosaic law, which is brought to full perfection in the mortal realm through the Decalogue, which provides, in turn, the foundation from which the special laws are derived. 140 Abr., 143-144. oq Kaid ys if|V S(XT)v EWOKXV rjv 6 npoq a^Gsiav a>v, dpnorcov imoXaPcbv Eivai xa |asv dya0d rcapcbv 5i' auToO xapi^eaQai, ^ovau; 5' EJUTPSJIEIV rale; Suvd^eai KCXO' U7tr|pecriav m Evavtia Xevpoupyetv, iva i^ovcov dyaGcov amo<;, KOKOU 8E p.r|5£v6<; 7tporr/oun£va)c; vo|il^r|Tou TOUTO HOI SOKOUCI KOU TCOV paoi^scov oi ni|^oi)|a,EVOv rr\v 0£iav cpuaiv npaxxew, zac, HEV %apuac, 8i' sauicov 7ipoxEivovTE<;, xac, 5E TiHcoptai; 8i' ETepcov PEPOUOUVTEC; 70 (3.4.2) The Virtues and the Universality of the Law Associated with the legislative faculty in particular, are the following four virtues: love of humanity, love of justice, love of goodness and hatred of evil.141 These four virtues are mediated through the scriptures, which, according to Philo are "likenesses and copies of the patterns enshrined in the soul."142 Furthermore, the supremacy of Moses as lawgiver is demonstrated in the universal character of his laws: "But Moses is alone in this, that his laws.. .stamped as it were with the seals of nature herself, remain secure since the day when they were first enacted until now, and we hope that they will remain for all future ages as though immortal, so long as the sun and the moon and the whole heaven and universe exist." Philo makes scripture a medium for justice in the soul by addressing the legislative virtues it manifests; moreover, the enduring nature of the laws described in scripture accords with the enduring nature of the cosmos. Thus, Philo shows that the Pentateuch is the preeminent written authority and corresponds to the state by reflecting justice .in the soul and in the cosmos. Philo gives an account of the translation of the Septuagint based on the Letter of Aristeas, which serves three purposes in the context of Mos. 44 First, it is an example that reiterates Philo's assertions of the magisterial nature of the laws in the Pentateuch, by Mos., 2.9. TO (piWcvBpomov, TO (pita)5iKaiov, TO (pitaxyaGov, TO uiao7t6vr|pov 142 Mos., 2.11. TCOV dya^uaTXKpopouuevcov ev xfj v)/i>xfj jtapaSevyudTcov d7r£iKovicruaToi Kori uiurmotTa 143 Mos., 2.14. T& 5e TOUTOU uovou PePaia, dadA,E\)Ta, dxpaSavTa, KaGdrcep ocppaykn (pTJoeax; auTfjq oEcmuaaueva, UEVSI rcayiax;dcp ' rj<; f|U£pac; sypdcpn usxpi vi5v KOU npbq TOV ETrerca rcavTa SiausvsTv iXitic, carca aicova a>o7rep dOdvaTa, eaq av r\\ioc, KOU oeXf)vr| KOU 6 avimac, oupavot; TE Kai Koa|io<; r\ 144 We recognize that the historical reliability of the story related in the Letter of Aristeas - thought to have been written in the first half of the last century BCE - is often contested by scholars, some of whom claim the letter is nothing more than Jewish apologetic myth, others contest the accuracy of the letter on the basis that the Septuagint was thought to have been the result of a gradual process, and not the outcome of a single event. In either case, here we are concerned only with the role of the account in the context of Mos., and • not with its historical validity. 71 depicting the outside (non-Jewish) recognition of the law. Second, the story functions to give the same divine authority to the Greek text as is given to the original so that the translation has independent status and needs no further reference for its justification. Greek Judaism is genuine Judaism and does not owe allegiance to any other form of Judaism. Third, by describing the conditions under which the translation was produced, Philo takes up the distinction Plato makes in the Phaedrus,l45 that literary inspiration by the muses is a lower form of prophecy. Philo understands the translation to be a result of this kind of prophecy. Though Philo's conception of literary inspiration has some evident differences from that of Plato's, it is significant that he includes this form of prophecy within his discussion of the lawgiver, and not under his treatment of the prophetic office, which pertains to the kinds of prophecy particular to Moses. Philo retains the distinction made by Plato, and will ascribe the highest form to Moses alone. There are several notable ideas in Philo's version of the Letter, that we must discuss, namely, the connection to the offices of king and high priest, the wisdom of the translators, and the quality of the translation. The importance and nobility of the request for a translation is located in the authority of King Ptolemy Philadelphus, third in succession to Alexander the Great, who was not only the best among all contemporaries, but also the best of the Philadelphian dynasty, which surpassed all other dynasties: "the creditable achievements of this one man almost outnumbered those of all the others put together, and, as the head takes the highest place in the living body, so he may be said to head the kings."146 Ptolemy dispatched his request to the high priest and king of Judea - let us note that both offices are held by one person - who happily complied with his 145 Plato, Phaedrus, 244 a-d. 146 Mos., 2.30. oaa yap elq s8paaev oikoc; E7iaiv8xa, notac; BKEVVOI 7tdvT£q dGpooi 5iE7ipd^avro, ysvonevoc, Ka9d7isp sv C,coca TO fiye^oveuov K£(paA,f) xponov Tiva xcov paaiXscov 72 request. That both offices were held by the same person is significant because it demonstrates that compliance to Ptolemy's request was granted by a divine and human authority. The character of the place in which the sacred revelation (hierophanteseiri) was made, was such that no outside disturbance, whether human or natural, would impede the efforts of the translators. Nothing was present except the parts of nature, earth, water, air, and heaven, on whose genesis they were about to write. According to Philo, the scribes "became, as it were, possessed, and prophesied not each something different but the all the same names and words as though dictated to each by an invisible prompter."147 The purity of the location corresponds to the purified state of the souls which were to undertake the translation; the scribes made themselves receptive to the divine spirit which possesses them outside of normal modes of human consciousness and activity. The translators, Philo relates, are more accurately regarded "not as interpreters, but prophets and priests of the mysteries whose sincerity and singleness of thought has enabled them to go hand in hand with the purest of spirits, the spirit of Moses."148 So, it is clear, that, for Philo, the production of the Septuagint is not undertaken as a linguistic exercise; the prophets experienced the things of scripture themselves, and immediately expressed the content of their experience in the appropriate language. (3.4.3) The Parts of Scripture and the Generic Quality of Their Content Philo reports that the sacred books are composed of two parts, the historical part and the part which details commands and prohibitions. The historical is subdivided into 147 Mos., 231. Ka9&7t£p evOouaicovxeq rcpoecprixsuov oi>K aXka ak"ko\, xa 5' auxa navzec, ovonaxa Kai pfmaxa, aaitep imo|3oA,£GJc; eicdaxoic; aopaxcoi; svrixouvxoc; 148 Mos., 2.40. oi>x spuTyveac; SKSIVOUC; aW ispocp&vxac; Kai Ttpocprjxa^ 7ipoaayopEV)ovxe<; olq E^syevexo auv5panetv A-oyionotq siA.iKpiveai xcp Mcoucsax; KaSapcoxaxco 7tvei3(iaxv. 73 two parts, the first of which describes the creation of the world; the second is concerned with genealogy, which is concerned with the punishment of the impious and the honouring of the just. When we look at Philo's explanation as to why Moses wrote the creation account first, we find a curious use of terms. Philo states that Moses, "surveying the greatness and beauty of the whole law code with the accurate discernment of the eye of his understanding, and thinking it to be too good and Godlike to be confined within any earthly walls, he inserted the genesis of the great city, holding the laws the most faithful image of the cosmic polity."149 What does Philo mean by great city? Is this term synonymous with the cosmopolis, in which Moses is cosmopolites, that Philo used in his introduction to the office of king (Mos. 1.157)? In Opif, Philo describes the relation between the cosmic citizen, and the citizen of the great city: Now, since every well-ordered state has a constitution, the cosmopolites enjoyed of necessity the same constitution as the entire cosmos: and this is the orthos logos of nature, more properly called an ordinance or dispensation, being divine law, in accordance with which there was duly apportioned to all existences that which rightly falls to them severally. This city and polity must have had citizens before man. These might justly be called megalopolitai having allotted to them as their dwelling place the greatest compass, and having been enrolled in the greatest and most perfect polity. And who should these be but rational and divine natures, some incorporeal and intellectual, and some not without bodies such as are the stars? 15° Mos., 2.51. npbc, TO neys6o<; Kori KoXkoq xfj<; 5X\\q VOUOGEOIOK; aKpiPeaidTr) 6\|/ei xfj Kara Sidvoiav oauSuv Kai vo|iioa<; auxf)v Kpsixxova Kai GEioxspav r\ waie ICUK^CO xivi xcov em yfjq opiaGfjvai, xfjq yLEjakanoXsmc, xr\v yevEoiv £iar|yiiaaxo, rove, vo\iovc, S|i(p8peaxdxr|v sucova xfjc; xov ic6a|iou nokneiac, fiyrio&nevoc; stvai. 150 Opif. 143-144. ETisi 8s 7taaa nohq ex>vo\ioc, E%E\. 7io>ax£lav, dvayKairoc; auve(3aiv£ xcp Koo(i07ioMxr| Xpfjo6ai 7to>axsia fj Kai ov\mac, 6 KOC^CX;- amr\ 8E ECXIV 6 xfjq (puascoi; opGoc; A,6ycx;, 6<; Kupicoxspa KATICTEI jipooovo|id^exai 6£0|a.6i;, v6p.o<; QsXoq cov, Ka9' 6v xd 7tpoofiKOVxa Kai EmPdAAovxa EKdaxou; d7i£ve|af|0r| xauxqc; xfj<; noXeaq Kai rcoXixEiaq ESEV xivdq sivai Jtpo dvGpd)7to\) noXuaq, o'i ^syoivx' av EVSIKCOI; HEyaA.o7ioA.Txai xov |i£yiaxov 7ispiPoAov OIKEVV Aa^ovxEt; Kai xw Hsyiaxcp Kai xEAsioxdxco 7toAix£i>|j.axi syypacpEVTEi; ouxoi 8e XIVEI; av EIEV OXV |if) Aoyucai Kai Gslai (puasiq, ai (xev dacb^axoi Kai vorixai, di 5E OUK avsu aco(idxcov, OTCOIOW; cu|xPsPr)K£v sivai xovq daxspac;; 74 The created human, in its perfect state before the fall, is the cosmopolites and has as its natural dwelling place, the cosmos. The megalopolites is a spiritual nature, and can be either a corporeal celestial being, or an incorporeal intellectual nature beyond and before the cosmos itself. Philo locates the cosmic law within the hierarchy of all created being; the spiritual natures obey a higher form of the constitution than human nature follows, which corresponds to their elevated ontological status. Natural law is the divine law and the cosmos of our senses is an image of the higher, spiritual polity. The divine law is enacted in the terrestrial world by the agency of natural justice which moves to restore the balance and harmony of all of its parts. Philo's retelling of the conflagration and deluge expresses the generic character of the providential order in the corporeal world, which always restores balance to its parts. Furthermore, by leaving Lot and Noah unnamed in Mos., Philo removes the particularity of each account, presenting the generic character of the laws which they demonstrate. Through the first book of Mos., and his account of the legislative office, Philo has effectively dealt with the historical part of the sacred books, by showing the kinship between King and Lawgiver, who mediate God's creative and providential powers, which are knowable by the power of human reason because they are discerned in the order of the soul, and the cosmos. Furthermore, Philo has located the nature of the human as kosmopolites (and we must remember that Moses' progression to this stage was achieved by his ascent through higher states of existence) within an ontological hierarchy of spiritual natures. 75 CHAPTER FOUR: HIGH PRIEST AND PROPHET In the following chapter we shall deal with the offices of high priest and prophet. We begin with (4.1.1) Philo's introduction to the High Priest's office, followed by (4.1.2) the symbolic construction of the tabernacle, and we conclude our treatment of the high priest's office by examining (4.1.3) the appointment of the priesthood. Our treatment of the prophetic office covers (4.2.1) Philo's introduction to the office, (4.2.2) question and answer prophecy, and (4.2.3) prophecy by inspiration. We conclude this chapter by discussing (4.3) the conclusion to Mos., which anticipates our fifth and final chapter where we summarize our findings and conclude our discussion. (4.1) MOSES AS HIGH PRIEST (4.1.1) Introduction to the High Priest's Office In the introduction to the priesthood, Philo states that the main virtue of the priest is piety. The practice of piety and the life of philosophy combine to beget perfection (teleiogoneo) - the fruits of virtue shown through words and deeds. By combining piety and natural virtue, Moses attained the two virtues of the high priest: to love God and be loved by him. Prior to receiving instruction in the liturgies and the sacred rites of service, Moses "had to be clean, as in soul so also in body, to have no dealings with any passion, purifying himself from all calls of mortal nature, food, drink, and intercourse with women."151 By 'intercourse' Philo refers to the activity of generation, which encompasses the generation of human beings, of knowledge and concepts through the 151 Mos., 2.68. £8ev 6s Jipotepov coo7tep xr\v yu/fiv Kai TO aco(xa KaOapsCaai, HT|5EV6I; TtdGouq 7tpooa\]/d|i£vov, all' dyvsuaavxa OOTO TC&VTCOV ooa xfjt; 0vr|Tfjc; ecm (puoecoc;, avricov ical 7iotcov Kai tfji; npbc, yuvouicac; 6|j.iA,ia<; 76 study of philosophy, and of speech which is the external manifestation of what is inside of the speaker. By abstaining from food and drink, Moses cleanses himself of mortal necessity, which is sustained by the consumption and assimilation of corruptible matter. Philo cites Plato's Timaeus in his description of the dual function of the mouth: "through this, as Plato says, mortal things have their entrance and immortal their exit; for food and drink enter it, perishable nourishment of a perishable body, but words issue from it, undying laws of an undying soul, by means of which the life of reason is guided."152 Through his total purification, Moses is sustained and perfected from above. Philo writes, "doubtless because he had the better food of contemplation, through whose inspiration, sent from heaven above, he improved first in dianoia, then in body, through the soul, in both so advanced in strength and well being that those who saw him afterward could not believe their eyes." Moses' complete purification results in a state of total passivity, and entails cessation of all motion and activity, including the activity of dianoia which enabled him to receive illumination from a higher power at the burning bush. However, Moses unification on Sinai is productive of the light that extends through all levels of created being. Having descended from communion with God, the power of Moses' illumination extends well beyond his own soul: "those who saw him were filled with awe and amazement; nor even were their eyes able to bear the dazzling brightness that flashed from him like the rays of the sun."154 As philosopher-king, Moses 152 Opif., 119. oxoumi, 8i' ou yivExai 9vr|xa>v uiv, cbq scpn IlXdxcov, eiao8oq, ztphoo, 8' d(p9dpxcov Ejteiaepx£iai usv yap auxco aixia Kai 7toxd, cpGapxou acbuaxoc; However, the degree of perfection Moses attains on Sinai entirely exceeds any created thing: in contrast to the straight road that Moses paved as king, Philo describes the place to which Moses is raised on Mount Sinai as impassible and inaccessible to all things other than Moses. This place is the unknowable and ineffable source of all being. Thus, Moses has transcended the ontological hierarchy, which depends on the union of God and his word, as its source. As philosopher-king and lawgiver, Moses paved the way for fallen humans to elevate themselves to higher states of existence according to their natural powers. As Moses descends through the hierarchy of created beings, he brings to them all a greater share of the divine light, which enables the full perfection of embodied souls and enables them to return to the immortal fellowship of souls after their death. Through the high priest and the prophet, the perfecting power of the divine light is revealed as acting in the world, whereas through the unaided power of human reason, it is seen acting at a distance from the world. In chapter three, we discussed the ontological stages through which the embodied soul must pass in order to achieve the fullest existence according to nature. In Philo's account of the consecrated orders, we learn of the ontological ordering of immortal, unembodied souls. 155 Gig., 64. 6 5E TOIOUTOC; ra> svi ^IOVCO 7ipocTKeKA,r)pcoxai GECO, OU yivonevot; 67ta86<; suBuvsi xt)v atpoutov TOU 7tavTOi; ptou PaaiXucfj TCO ovxi %pcb|i£voq 65w xfj TOU |iovou Paai^sax; Kai 7tavTOKpaTopoc;, ETC! nr|5eTepa &7toKMva>v Kai £KTpe;r6n£voc; 78 In his account of the priest's office, Philo does not depict Moses directly assuming the role of either the high priest of the priest. Rather, Moses acts through the consecrated persons in the construction of and care for the tabernacle which is a reflection of the entire created order. As Philo indicated in his introduction to the legislative office at Mos. 2.6, the offices of the priesthood are occupied by mortals whose knowledge must be supplemented by the wisdom Moses receives through prophecy. Thus, it remains for us to determine the way in which Moses communicates the entire created hierarchy through the high priest and the priests. (4.1.2) The Symbolic Creation In this section, Philo explains the significance of the tabernacle and the sacred objects, emphasizing that he is discussing the arrangement as it exists before its actual construction. The sensible construction is the duty of the priests, whose appointment Philo describes subsequent to the arrangement of the holy place. Accordingly, we must understand that Philo is conveying the content of Moses' knowledge prior to its communication through the priesthood. The first lesson Moses receives through his initiation into the mysteries (mystagogeo), concerns the constitution of the tabernacle, which is to be the earthly image of the holy city (hieropolis) . In Somn., Philo explains that "the divine place and the holy land is full of incorporeal logoi; and these words are immortal souls. Of these words, he takes one, choosing as best the topmost one, occupying the place which the head does in the whole body and sets it up close to his 79 understanding."156 The scheme of the tabernacle, like that of the city, and of the soul, mirrors the order of creation. By appointing the priests, who are responsible for the construction and maintenance of the holy place, Moses reflects the immortal soul's proper place in the order of creation. Just as the state is the place in which embodied souls are schooled in natural virtue and participate in the common good through their sacrifice of particular interests, the tabernacle is the place where the mortal individuals are schooled in divine virtue and participate in the divine activity by performing forms of sacred work (hierourgia) suited to their capacities. Philo explains that while on Sinai, Moses learns the arrangement of the tabernacle which is communicated by inspired i words. Moses receives the archetypical scheme, which must be translated through the noetic and psychic realms before its sensible image is constructed: "[Moses] saw with his soul the incorporeal ideas of the bodily things about to completed, relative to which the sensible copies had to reflect the archetypical plan and the intelligible paradigms."157 Here, Philo makes a crucial distinction between the activities of high priest and prophet by assigning a different aspect of this translation to each office; however, it is imperative to note that Philo does not assign these two activities to two different individuals. The construction (demiourgeo) of the sanctuary is the duty of the high priest, but "enshrined in the dianoia of the prophet was the paradigmatic shape of what had been preformed and pre-inscribed secretly without matter by the invisible forms. The fully completed work was constructed in accordance with that shape by impressing the seals of the artist upon 156 Somn., 1.127-128. 6 Oetoq xonoq KOU f) iepd x«>pa JtX,r|pr|c; daoo|iaTCOV eaxi ^oycov yuxai 8' sioiv dGdvarot oi Axyyoi OUTOI. TOUTCOV 8f\ TWV Xoycov sva Xaficbv, dpiaxiv8r|v enikeyo\iEvoq TOV &VCOT&TCO icai cbaavri a Through prophecy, he receives the paradigmatic shape immaterially in his dianoia, and acting as high priest, he recollects the impressions received in his dianoia, thereby engraving its shape on his" soul as the incorporeal ideas from which the material likenesses are constructed. The influence of the Pythagorean cosmology of numbers is evident in Philo's description of the framework of the tabernacle. The inside of the tabernacle symbolically corresponds to the realm of the intellect, and the courtyard to the realm of sense: "he assigned the position on the border to the five pillars, for what lies inside them verges on the inmost sanctuary of the tabernacle, which symbolically represents the intelligible, while what lies outside them verges on the open air space and court which is the sensible."15 Without counting the five that separate the inner court from the outer, the remaining pillars total fifty: "the most sacred number, the square of the sides of the right angled triangle, the original source from which the whole is generated."1 Curtains complete the enclosure of the intelligible from the sensible part of the structure; the materials for which, were selected on the basis of their likeness to the four elements: "for it was necessary that in framing a hand-made holy place for the father and ruler of all, he should take the substances like those with which the whole was constructed."161 The 158 Mos., 2.76. 6 (lev ouv TU7ioc; TOU napaSstyi^aioi; eveacppayi^STO xfj 8iavoia TOU 7:po After describing the framework of the sacred place, Philo then treats the five sacred objects with which the tabernacle is furnished, namely: the ark, the candlestick, the table, the altar of incense, and the altar of burnt offerings. The ark is placed inside the tabernacle, within a third enclosure - the inner sanctuary. The ark contains the sacred oracles and is covered by 'the mercy seat,' which Philo interprets in two ways: "physically, it symbolizes the gracious power of god; ethically, as dianoia gracious to itself and feeling the duty of repressing and destroying with the aid of knowledge the conceit which in its love of vanity uplifts it in unreasoning exaltation and puffs it with pride." The mercy seat represents the fully actualized human nature, which is gracious to itself by means of purging passion and false opinions, and lifts itself to its given nature. The mercy seat supports "the two winged creatures which in the father tongue are called cherubim, and as the Hellenes would say full knowledge and understanding."1 The cherubim represent the two powers of God, which in themselves are not divided, but must be apprehended separately by the human subject. Through the examination of the sensible realm, the human gains the understanding that a pair of opposites forms a whole, and through the resolution of a pair of opposites, the whole is known. By apprehending the two powers as a pair of opposites, the human comprehends that, in reality, the powers form an undivided whole, but are divided for the sake of human understanding. 162 Mos., 2.96. OTiep EOIKEV stvai m>|iPoA.ov (puaiKOJispov ^EV xfjc; iXsco xou 0eou 5\)vdnea)q, f)9vKcbTepov 8s 8iavoia<; nakxv, 'ftsco 8' eawfj, tf)v repot; VMJOC, akoyov aipouaav icai (puacooav oirjoiv cmxpiac; spam aw e7iiOTf)nri oxskls.iv icai KaOaipsTv a£,wx>or\<; 163 Mos., 2.97. JITWCOV Suotv, a 7t Placed outside in the courtyard, is the great altar, which Philo calls the 'sacrifice keeper,' alluding "not to the parts and limbs of the victims, whose nature it is to be consumed by fire, but to the intention of the offerer." The success of a sacrifice depends upon the intention of the offerer, which remains whole, as the sacrifice is consumed by fire. With a pure and just intention, the offering stands firm, even if no victim is brought to the altar. Philo explains that "the true ispoupyia, what else could it be but the devotion of a soul which is dear to God? The thanks-offering of such a soul receives immortality, and is inscribed in the records of God, sharing the eternal life of the Mos., 2.101. TOV yap usaov tauxa xov K6C|IOU T07iov KSKtapcoTar 165 Mos., 2.106. aiviTTonsvoq oi> xa ^ekr\ Kai xa (ispr) TCOV iepoupyoufXEVCDv, txnep 8a7iavaa0cu Jtupi 7iE(puKev, aXkd xr\v 7ipoaipsow xox> jipocnpepovTcx;- 83 sun and the moon and the entire cosmos."166 Internal disposition determines the efficacy of the external sacrifice, and is the grounds on which an individual soul is rewarded by immortality after the death of its body. We shall return to the discussion of rewarding internal dispositions when we discuss the appointment of the priests, and in our analysis of question and answer prophecy. The vesture of the high priest reflects the structure of the tabernacle insofar as it too is a symbolic depiction of the whole created order: "we have in it a whole and in its parts an image and a copy of the cosmos and each of its parts."167 The black gown, extending from the sternum to the feet, represents air, and is.adorned with flowers and pomegranates, which symbolize earth and water, respectively. The gown as a whole symbolizes the realm of generation and corruption: "as the gown is one, the three said elements are of a single kind, since all below the moon is alike in its liability to change."168 The breastplate is placed above the gown and is set with four rows of three stones symbolizing the division of the zodiac circle into the four seasons, each of which contains three of the twelve signs. Gold chains link the breast piece to the two shoulder pieces signifying the link between the two principles of reason in the universe: human and natural, the former being a copy of the latter. The two shoulder pieces are formed 166 Mos., 2.108. f) yap &^r|9r]q ispoupyia TIC; av sin 7tXfrv yuxfj^ 9so(piA,ou<; suaspEia; r\q TO suxapicxxov a9ava"rit,£T0u Kai dvdypa7tTOv cnTi^iTEueTai 7iapd 9sa> aw8ioucovit,ov f)Mcp Kai GsW|vr| Kai TCO 7ravri KOO(XCO 167 Mos., 2.117. 6Xn usv 8f) ysyovsv d7ieuc6vio"ua Kai uiur|ua tou KOOUOU, TO 5S uspn x&v KOIG' EKaaxov usparv. 168 Mos., 2.121. cbc; yap 6 xnrov siq, Kai id XsxOsvTa tpia atovxeta uidq iSsac, eativ, erceiSr) id KaTco-cepco aeXr\vr\q anavxa xponaq e%ei Kai nETaPoA,d<;- 169 The shoulder pieces represent the motion of the same, (universal reason) which are connected by golden chains to the breastplate, the motion of the different (human reason). This reflects Plato's cosmological description in the Timaeus, 38e-39a. Here, Plato writes, "now, when each of the stars which were necessary to the creation of time had come to its proper orbit, and they had become living creatures having bodies fastened by vital chains, and learned their appointed task - moving in the motion of the diverse, which is diagonal and passes through and is governed by the motion of the same - they revolved, some in a larger orbit, and some in a lesser orbit." redpepyo^ cov rcAiova v epyov wv sveKa Aiyexai 7rapdcyxoi. tauxa uev ouv tococ; xdx' av Kaxd a%oXf]v tiorspov xr\q afyaq TUXOI 8myr|0£coc;: E7tsi5f) 8e oriv eic, tf)v eauxco 84 by dividing a sphere of emerald into halves, and they represent the two hemispheres of the sky that revolve daily around the earth: "for just as the stones are equal to each other, so too the hemisphere above the earth is equal to the hemisphere below."170 From the shoulders to the feet, the vesture is a symbol of the order in both the celestial and terrestrial realms. The high priest wears a turban on his head "expressing the judgment that he who is consecrated to God is superior when he acts as a priest, not only to the layman but also to kings."171 The high priest reflects the entire hierarchy of created being, of which the king reflects only a part. Thus, Philo writes, "the priesthood is the most fitting honor for a pious man, who is eager to serve the father, servitude to whom is not only better than freedom, but also better than kingship."172 The golden plate inscribed with the tetragrammaton is a symbol of the inspired words that are communicated to the high priest through the prophetic function: "above the turban is the golden plate on which the shapes of the four letters are stamped, indicating, as we are told, the name of the self-existent." The high priest wears the vesture so that when he withdraws into the inner sanctuary, he takes the entire universe along with him. Philo offers another possible reason that the high priest might wear the vesture: Perhaps too, he is preparing the servant of God that if it is beyond him to be worthy of the world's maker, he should try to be throughout worthy of the world. For as he wears a vesture that represents the world, his first duty is to carry the paradigm enshrined in his dianoia, and so be in a sense transformed from a man into the nature of the world; and, if one may dare 7tp87iouaav SKOCOTOV aqnKETO (popav Twv 6aa 8§£i cruva7t£pyd££a0ai xpovov, 8Ea|K>T<; TE E|i\|/i3xoi<; aa>|iaTa SEGSVTOI (j&a £y£wr|0r| TO TE 7ipooTax0£v enaQev, Kaxa Sf) -cr\v Oaispou (popav nkayiav ouaav, Sia tfjq TauTou (popai; iouor|c; TE Kai Kpaxounsvrn;, TO \IEV [ieiCpva auxcov, TO 8' E^aTxco KUKXOV iov 170 Mos., 2.122. i'oa TE yap ax; oi A,i0oi TO TE trasp yfjv Kai vnb yfjv 171 Mos., 2.131. SiKaicov TOV ispa>|xsvov TW 0EG), Ka9' 6v xpovov tEparai, 7tpo(psp£iv aroxvicov Kai nn (xovov iSicoTcov d^d Kai paoiXscov 172 Spec, 1.57. TT) 8' oxiyspac; okEioxaTOv suosPoOq avSpoc; ispcoauvr) Oeparcsiav E7tayy£M,o|xevri xou TiaTpoc;, & TO 8OUA,EIJ£IV OUK £A,Eu6£piai; |iovov aMit Kai fiaaikeiac, anevvov 173 Mos., 2.132. i)7i£pdvco 8s TO xpvaovv EOTI 7t£TaX.ov, cp TWV TETTdpcov ai yA,ucpai ypa(i|idTCOv £V£ocppayia0r|crav, e^ &v 6vo|j.a zov 6VTO<; cpaai |xrivuEa0av 85 to say so - and in speaking the truth one may well dare not to deceive - be himself a little world.'74 The vesture of the high priest corresponds to the order of creation, and reflects the structure of the tabernacle. By wearing the universe as he moves through the parts of the tabernacle, he symbolizes the complete mediation of the cosmos, joining the high with the low, the inner with the outer, the same with the different, and the one with the many. A laver is placed at the entrance to the courtyard which is made, from mirrors offered by the women as sacrifices. The women, eager to demonstrate their piety, "with spontaneous ardor at no other bidding than their own, they gave the mirrors which they used in the adorning [SuxKocusTaBm] of their comely persons, a truly fitting firstfruit offering of their modesty and chastity in marriage, and in fact of the beauty of their 1 7S soul.""J The mirrors reflect the sensible image of the embodied soul, the last stage in the procession of all things from God, and by offering the mirrors, the women have initiated the first step in the return of all things to their source. The mirrors are reworked to form the basin in which the priests cleanse their bodies with water before entering the tabernacle to perform the sacred rites. Just as the mirror reflects the state of cleanliness of the physical body, the physical body reflects the purity of the soul, which is required for the performance of the sacred works. To conclude his schematic description of the tabernacle, Philo writes, "when [Moses] had been taught the paradigms of the holy tabernacle, and had passed on the lesson to those who were of quick understanding and happily gifted to undertake and 174 Mos., 2.135. iaco<; nevToi Kai 7tpo8iSdaKei TOV TOU 9eou 9epa7ievTf|v, ei Kai \LI\ TOU KOO(I07IOIOU Suvaxov, bXko. TOU ye KOG|XOU 5ir|vsKco<; ofyov elvoa 7ieipao9ai, ou TO (lifxrma ev5u6|^evoc; ocpe&ei ifj Siavoia TO 7iapd5siYna euOuc; dyaA.naTO(popa>v mkdc; Tporcov Tiva 7ipo<; Tf]v xov KOC^OU cpuaiv s^ avSpcoTtou He0r)p(i6a0ai Kai, ei Ge^uc; ei7teiv Ge^ii; 8e d\|/eu5eTv Ttepi alr|9eia<; A,eyovT(x Ppa/wc; KOG(XOC; eivai. 175 Mos., 2.137. KciT07tTpa yap, ok; ei)|iop(piav ekbGaai 8iaKoa(ieio9ai, (ir)5evo<; 7tpoaTd£avToc;, av>TOKeXeuo"T(p 7tpo9i)|iig acocppoawrn; Kai Tfjq rcepi yd(iov dyveiag Kai ri yap 6XV f\ \i/Myjxo\> KokXov^ imapyf\v JipSTrcoSeoTdTTyv dTifip^avTo 86 complete the works in which their handicraft was necessary, the construction of the sacred fabric followed in natural course."176 We have just seen how the scheme of the tabernacle reflects the structure of the entire created order. As we examine how the priesthood is appointed, and we outline function of each appointed order with respect to the schematic structure of the tabernacle, we shall see that the appointed orders reflect a gradation of souls in the cosmos. (4.1.3) Appointing the Priesthood In this section Philo discusses Moses' appointment of three ranks of consecrated persons: the high priest, the priests, and the temple attendants.177 In explaining how each position is assigned, Philo takes care to avoid ascribing particular biases to Moses: "accordingly he selected out of all the people his brother as high priest on account of his merits [apicTivSnv], and appointed that brother's sons as priests, and in this he was not giving precedence to his own family, but to the piety and holiness he observed in their characters."17 Let us remember that virtue is expressed as an activity that actualizes and reflects an internal recognition of the good. At the level of mortals, virtue is manifest to others through its external expression in speech and deeds. However, when Moses appoints the priests, he does so on the basis of their innate disposition to virtue, which determines their 'suitability' (epitedeiotatous) to lead the sacrifices, and to perform the 176 Mos., 2.141. 5i5ax6evn 5' auxcp xd 7tapa8eiy(j.axa xfjc; ispou; aKnvfjc; Km dva5i8di;avxi xouq 8iavoia o^stq Kai eixpucbi; sxovxac; 7ipo<; dvd>.r|\|/iv Kai xeXeicoauv epycov, oatep dvayKaicoc; slxe 8r||iioupyr|0fivai Kaxd xo siKoq ispou KaxaoKeuaaOevxoq 177 Strictly speaking, the high priest and the priests are ranked as one order, as they form a whole with the high priest at its head. 178 Mos., 2.142. xov (iev oiW abehpov ii, drcdvxcov e7tiKpivaq dpiaTivSnv dpxiepea, xouq 8' EKEIVOU 7iaT5ac; iepeic; exsipoxovei, 7ipovouvav oi) xa> oixeicp yevsi 8i6oi3q, aW 6\)OE(3eig Kai 6aioxr|xi, at; evecbpa xoic; dv8pdaiv imouaai; 87 sacred work. As ministers of both altars, the priests perform both material and immaterial rites. The movement between the two altars represents the soul's fall from contemplation - of which the circular motion of the planets is an image - and its inhabitation of a body in the terrestrial world. Through realigning the soul to its original nature by the cultivation of virtue, at the death of the mortal body, the soul is re- assimilated to its former nature. The high priest is permitted access to both altars, and also to the inner sanctuary which is forbidden to the priests and is the place where he performs his rites. The high priest represents the perfect soul that descends into a mortal body for the sake of purifying and perfecting created life. Although the nature of the perfect soul remains unstained by its descent, its nature becomes dormant upon entering a body, and must be reawakened through its activities. Philo describes the way in which a perfect soul reawakens its latent nature in his account of Moses' education. In contrast to other kinds of souls which must work to assimilate external forms of knowledge, Moses' education is depicted as a recollection of knowledge that is already latent within himself. Like the high priest, the perfect soul wears the entire cosmos as an adornment (diakosmeisthai). Even as he puts on the entire world, the perfect soul remains a stable, self-moving image of the world's maker. Three sacrifices precede the transmission of the rites and liturgies to the consecrated persons. First, a calf is offered "in order to gain remission of sin, showing by this figure that sin is congenital to every created being, even the best, just because they are created, and this requires prayers and sacrifice to propitiate the divine, lest its wrath 88 be roused and visited upon them." All embodied souls have somehow fallen short of their true nature, "since even the perfect man, insofar as he is a created being, never escapes from sinning."180 The difference between the sins of the perfect souls and those of the other kinds of souls, is that the sins of the former are involuntary, and those of the latter are voluntary: "the true high priest, who is not falsely called high priest, does not participate in sin, and if he ever slips, it will be something imposed on him not because of what he does himself, but because of some lapse common to. the nation. And that lapse is not incurable but easily admits of some healing treatment."181 The second offering is a ram which is burnt whole in thanksgiving for the well ordered whole, and the life sustaining benefits received from the elements. The third sacrifice is a ram offered on behalf of the priests consecrated through purifications so that they might attain complete perfection through receiving the rites and liturgies. For seven days following the three sacrifices, Moses the hierophant instructs Aaron and the other priests in the rites. On the eighth day, the last day which completed the previous seven, the prophet and the high priest withdraw to the inner sanctuary in order to learn its rites. The seven days correspond to the seven parts of the divided soul, which, in turn correspond to the uniform motion of the seven planets. Despite their superior kind of motion, the divided revolutions are nonetheless inferior to the undivided, which is represented by the eighth day: "to the undivided belongs the primal, highest, and undeviating revolution presided over by the unit; to the divided, another revolution, 179 Mos., 2.147. iva Qvar\ 7tEpi OKpeascoc; djiaptrnidTcov, aivnronEvoc; on navxl yevr|Tcp, KSV oTrouSatov fj, 7tap6oov r\kQev eiq ysveoiv, ou^wpuei; TO d(iapxdveiv SGTIV wisp ou TO GeTov si>xai? Kai Guoiaiq dvayKatov s^euHEvi^EaOav, ^ir\ 5iaiavr]0sv emGelxo- 180 Spec, 1.252. TO av9pco7toc; elvai Kai yap 6 TEAEIOI; fj y£vr|To<; OUK EKcpEuysi TO 5ia|xapTdv£vv 181 Spec, 1.230. 6 rcpdc; dAx|G£iav dpxispsuc; Kai |if] V|/EU8CDVUHOC; a^ixoxoc, d(^apTri|idTcov EGTIV, EI 8' 6X,ia9r)aov JIOTE, 7i£iaETai TOUTO OU 5I' auTOv, aMxx 5id KOIVOV TO\) EGVOUC; acpdA.ua- TO 5E acpd^na OUK dviaTov, aXka pa8ico<; T^V 0£pa7isiav EV8EX6HEVOV 89 secondary in both value and order, under the governance of the seven."182 The withdrawal of the high priest on the eighth day is an image of Moses' elevation to God on Sinai; just as God raised up Moses, the prophet calls up the high priest to him and impresses on his dianoia the entire order of created being. As Moses and Aaron come forth from the inner sanctuary offering prayers, a great mass of flame is issued from the shrine. Philo considers that this issue of fire is "the clearest proof that none of these rites was without divine care and supervision."183 The flames of both the burning bush and the inner shrine represent a higher kind of fire than that which consumes matter and subserves the necessities of human life. After Moses' illumination at the bush, he retained the light within his soul, and communicated his knowledge through his interpreter Aaron by means of philosophical demonstration and rhetorical persuasion. Now, when the sacred rites and prayers of Moses are performed and spoken audibly by Aaron, the high priest, they have the power to call up the higher form of fire and manifest it externally. Following the appointment of the high priest and priests, Philo describes the appointment of the temple attendants: "these again were chosen in a very novel and unusual manner. He selected and appointed one of the twelve tribes as most meritous, 1 84. giving them the office as their prize and reward of a deed well pleasing to God." Moses, atop Sinai, communes alone with the alone {monos mono), but is nonetheless cognizant of the echoes which reach him from the chaotic assembly of many men below. Moses is aware of the general nature of the situation, seeing the distinguishing marks of 182 Decal, 103. r\ \isv ouv ayLepivToc, xf|v np(hxr\v mi avcoxaxco KOU &7tA,avfj 7t£pupopav eiXr]%ev, fjv \iovaq £7iiaK07tEi, f) §E nspioTf] xr|v Kai 5uv6t(iei Kai xd^ei Seuxspav, fjq ennponevev ifi§o\iac, 183 Mos., 2.154. npbc, oi|iai aa(psaxaxr|v 5T|A,CDOVV, oxi OI>5EV OIVEU 9eia<; OTKppoauvrn;ErcsxeA-Eix o 184 Mos., 2.160. f] §' dipemc, eyivexo nakw raivoxaxov ak\' ou xov sicoGoxa xporcov |iiav xcov 8cbSsKa cpulcov ETtiKpivat; &pioxiv5r)v Exsipoxovei 0£ocpiXo(J<; spyou 7ipo0si<; d9A,a Kai dpioxEta 90 passions in the souls below and has no way to choose between his priestly virtue and that of the lawgiver. Moses receives a divine message which commands him to descend, and instructs him on the specific details of the tumult below. Though Moses descends to a perspective through which he sees the situation below with more distinction, he nonetheless lacks the immediate details, and apprehends the confusion as a plague (nosos), though he is aware that among the crowd, some people suffer from their hatred of evil (misoponeros). Moses must distinguish (diagnonai) three groups: (1) the incurable, (2) the curable (those who had sinned but repented), and (3) those who suffer because they hate evil. Moses separates the third group from the rest by issuing the following proclamation: "if anyone is on the Lord's side come to me."185 Philo explains exactly what is meant by these words: "if anyone holds that neither hand-made things nor anything created are gods, but that there is one, the ruler of the whole, let them join 1 86 me." The Levites stood out from the crowd and were visible to Moses, because his proclamation contained the name of the Lord. From the power of this one signification (henos sunthematos), the latent piety in the souls of the Levites was stirred up and they ran quickly to Moses. The Levites receive a command to slaughter the incurable but to spare those who repented. By fulfilling this order, the Levites complete the tripartite distinction of the crowd. Moreover, the Levites demonstrate their mental capacity to distinguish between the two groups, and the slaughter itself serves to punish the wicked and to persuade the survivors to obedience through fear. The Levites are rewarded by Moses, who appoints them to serve God as temple attendants. Mas., 2.168. "ei' TIC;" yap (prioi "npbc, Kupiov, vrco 7cpo<; HE." 186 Mos., 2.168. ei' TIC; [ir\dkv TWV xeipo7iovf|Tcov |xr)5' baa ysvr|T I on gained ground here also." The Levites thought that their numerical superiority entitled them to the priesthood and they enlisted the support of many people from eldest tribe who thought they were entitled to the power as their birthright. Moses saw the firmness with which their opinions were impressed and "besought God to show them by clear demonstration that there had been no dishonesty in his choice of persons for the 1 RS priesthood."' Moses and Aaron take twelve rods into the inner sanctuary, and only the rod inscribed with Aaron's name comes back cut visibly changed. Aaron's rod, which was growing shoots and was laden with nuts, provides three parables which correspond to the ways in which the three grades of souls possess the four cardinal virtues, which is reflected in the roles of the consecrated persons. The nut is the only kind of fruit whose seed and edible part are identical, sharing the same form. Furthermore, the fruit of the nut is enclosed by a hard, bitter shell making it difficult to access the fruit within. Taken as a whole, the nut is a parable of perfect virtue, whose 187 Mos., 2.11 A. f) noKkoXc, noXkajov nupicov aixia KOCKCOV Ysvo|i£vr| 7tepi 7ipcoTEicov cxaaic, enenoXace K&vTaOGa 188 Mos., 2.177 IKETEUEI 5s TOV GSOV £(i(pav£iq a7to8ei^ei(; aikotq 7tapaox£?v 7i£pi TOU nr|5sv E\|/EI>O0CU Kara Tf)v xf\q lEpcoowrii; ai'psaiv 92 beginning (seed) and end (fruit) are the same; perfect virtue corresponds to the perfect soul. Each of the divided virtues begins from no power other than its own, and has as its end the aspiration to live according to nature. This notion corresponds to the rational souls who embody the virtues through their own power by living according to nature. The second parable corresponds to the practicing soul who must bravely endure toil (the shell) in order to reach the virtue inside. However, through toil, they are followed by the holy company of the four cardinal virtues. The rod itself is a parable of the orthos logos - from which all virtue grows. Perfect, undivided virtue is like the nut, whose beginning and end are together in one form (mian idean). Each of the divided virtues is a beginning, insofar as it comes forth from its ov/n power, and is an end insofar as it is the aspiration of the life in accordance with nature. Through philosophy, the rational human soul achieves the whole of virtue after attaining each of its divided parts. The Levites, the spirited human soul, must endure toil bravely, which is the virtuous activity that is in accordance with their nature. By acting in accordance with their nature, spirited souls participate in the order above them, and are rewarded by the company of its various parts. Through their demonstrated capacity to distinguish between proper and improper forms of worship and to enact the power of divine providence, the Levites are allotted their duties as the protective shell that surrounds the holy place to which they are forbidden entrance. The duties of the priests transcend their natures, but by remaining outside, the Levites exercise their natural power and participate in the divine community according to their capacity. The appointments of the consecrated orders are determined according to the internal predisposition for certain forms of virtue. Here, Moses knows and acts from a 93 much higher perspective than human nature; he views the human souls from above and knows the general nature of the affairs below, but requires God's command to move him to descend, and uses human agents to apprehend the specific details. The high priest and the priests are chosen for their natural merit and their suitability to be divine agents by carrying out the sacred works and sacrifices. ' The priests are rewarded with the office on account of their piety and holiness, which are also reflected by the high priest. However, the high priest must also have achieved natural perfection through the study of philosophy, and undergo additional purifications which make him fit to receive the impressions of the entire created order in his dianoia. By examining De Gigantibus (Gig.), where Philo describes the grades of soul in both their undescended and descended states, it is clear that the appointed orders of the priesthood reflect these psychic gradations. In Gig., Philo demarcates three kinds of souls, and three kinds of men, which generally correspond to each other. The three grades of souls are the perfect, the rational, and the irrational. The men are defined according to their parentage; some men are god born, others are heaven born, and the rest are earth born. The high priest, who moves through all three areas of the tabernacle, is an image of the perfect soul that descends for the sake of assisting the demiurge "whose wont it is to employ them as ministers and helpers to have charge and care of mortal man."190 Although the perfect soul descends into a body, its true nature remains intact, this is represented in the way that the high priest puts on the cosmos before he performs 189 In Theurgy and the Soul (University Park: Pennsylvania State University, 1995), Gregory Shaw writes, "Epitedeiotes was the term that Iamblichus used to describe the "fitness" or "aptitude" to receive a form. Coined in the second century C.E. to describe the kind of Aristotelian "potency" (dunamis) sufficient for the "actualization" (energeia) of a form, epitedeiotes came to be used by the Neoplatonists to account for differences in mystical experience," 86. It is precisely in the way that Shaw describes, that Philo also uses the term. 190 Gig., 12. 6 Snuioupyoc; EICOGS xpfjoOai Ttpoq Tfrv TCOV 0vnra>v sTtiaiaaiav 94 his sacred duties. The high priest belongs to the class of god-born men, who "have refused to accept membership in the commonwealth of the world and to become citizens therein but have risen wholly above the sphere of sense perception and have been translated into the world of the intelligible registered as freemen in the commonwealth of imperishable and incorporeal ideas."191 The priests who move between the inside and the outside of the tabernacle represent the fall and return of the rational souls. The rational souls enter into an embodied state, devoting themselves to "genuine philosophy and from first to last study to die to the life in the body so that a higher existence, immortal and incorporeal, in the presence of the ungenerated and immortal, might be their portion."192 The heaven born men belong to this class of soul whose undescended state is characterized by its motion: "they move in a line most akin to mind - the circle."193 The third class of descended souls are the earth-born men, who have died to the true wisdom, and value unstable things of chance and indulge in corporeal pleasures. The temple attendants, by acting in accordance with their spirited natures, are elevated above and preside over the earth-born men; nonetheless, they cannot be properly considered rational souls, as they lack the rational disposition. However, by participating in the governance of a whole, the spirited souls participate in reason, and are rewarded accordingly at death. Because the spirited souls govern bodily natures, they are images of the zodiac circle, which governs the fluctuations in the realm of generation and corruption. In De Somniis (Somn.), Philo tells us that "it is not only men who have a mad craving for glory, but the 191 Gig., 61. 9EOI> 5e av9pco7ioi iepelc, Kai rcpocpfjxai, o'mvec; OUK r^iooaav KoXu&iaq zf\q naph xw K6a|ia> Tuxetv Kai Koa|io7to>axai yeveoGai, TO 8e aic0r|xdv nav U7t£picu\|/avx£c; eic; xov vorjxov KOOI^OV (i£xav£axr|aav K&K£V0I qciKrioav EYYpa(pEVTS<; d(pGdpxcov Kai docondxcov i8scov 7ioA,vreia 192 Gig., 14. auxca |iev oi5v sioi \\iv%ai xcov dvoOcoc; (pv^ooo(pr|advTcov si; apyx\c, ajpi xskovc, \ieksT(baai TOV |iexd aajudxcov d7io0vrioKEiv piov, iva xfjq docondxou Kai dcpGdpxou napa xa> dyevrixa) Kai dcpGdpxco ^cofji; (j.exaXdxcoaiv 193 Gig., 7. napo Kai KUKtap Kwouvxai xfjv auyy£veoxdxr|v va> KIVTIOIV 95 1 stars too have rivalry for preference and consider it right that the greater should have the lesser for their squires."194 Once again we hear an echo of Plato's Republic. At this point, Philo is taking up Plato's myth of the metals195 which is used to teach the guardians that civic roles are determined by hereditary natural disposition. Before concluding our discussion of the priesthood, it is worthwhile for us to turn to De Mutatione Nominum (Mut.), where Philo distinguishes between the terms kyrios and theos. Philo's discussion reflects the findings of our analysis above, and it also provides a framework to which we will return when discussing prophecy by inspiration. Humans receive the powers according to their capacity; kyrios is used to denote the providential aspect of God's power, whereas theos denotes the creative. Philo writes, "He is shown to be the Lord of the foolish in that he holds over them the terrors that are proper to the sovereign. Of those who are on their way to betterment it is written He is God."196 The Levites participate in the power of the Lord by instilling fear into the souls of the multitude, through the punishment of the wicked. It is best that the motive for virtue is reverence of God, but if this cannot be the case, then fear of the Lord is the next best motive: "thus may the divine spirit of wisdom not lightly shift His dwelling and be 1 07 gone, but long, long abide with us, since He did thus abide with Moses the wise." The priests possess the proper motive for their virtue, whereas it was instilled by the name of the Lord in the souls of the Levites. The perfect man is both guided by the Lord, and 194 Somn., 2.114. OI>K av9pcojioi |xovoi 8o^o(iavoi)ovv, aXka Kai oi daTspsi; Kai rcspi 7rpcoxeicov aii\Xk(b[ievoi SiKououaiv oi (xei^ouc; aei 7ipo<; tcov etanrovcov SopucpopetoOai 195 Plato, Republic, 3.415c. 196 Mut., 23. OUKOCV Kupioc; cwppovcov eTtiSsSsiiccai TOV apxovtoc; EJtavaT£iva|i£Vo<; OIKETOV (po|3ov, Gsoc; 5e PeXxiou(xev(ov ypa (4.2) MOSES AS PROPHET (4.2.1) Introduction to the Prophetic Office Philo's transition from the high priesthood to the prophetic office begins with a summary of the four adjuncts possessed by a perfect leader, namely: kingship, legislation, priesthood, and prophecy. Philo writes, "having discussed the first three and shown that Moses was the best of kings, of lawgivers, and of high priests, I have to go on to show the conclusion that he was a prophet of the highest quality."199 Philo notes that, although the sacred books are oracles delivered through Moses, here, he will confine his discussion to the kinds of prophecy that belong exclusively to Moses. The types belonging especially to Moses are three. The first kind is "spoken from the countenance of God through an interpreter, the divine prophet."200 These prophetic utterances are signs of the divine virtues, of grace, of excellence, through which all men are benefited, especially the race that serves him. Philo writes, "now, the first kind must be left out of the discussion. They are too great to be praised by human lips; scarcely indeed could the heaven and the cosmos and the whole of nature worthily sing their praises, and besides, they are spoken through an interpreter, and interpretation and prophecy are two different things." The 198 Mut., 24-25. yap ouxoc; eiadmav dxp£7ixoc;, EKSTVCX; 5S rcdvxcoq eativ av9pa>7ioc; Gsou. 5r|ta>i>T0u 8s XOUXO [lakvaQ' wc, eiti Mcouaecoi;- 199 Mos., 2.187. 5i£ilsY|isvoq nepi xarv 7ip©TC0v xpiarv Kai e7ii6s5eix 97 second form of prophecy is obtained through question and answer and involves combination and partnership. The prophet asks questions of God and learns the answers. The third kind of prophecy is given from the countenance of Moses, and properly belongs to the lawgiver, who foresees the things that will happen in the future on account of his gift from god - the power of foreknowledge (prognostics dunameos). Divine inspiration, which characterizes the third kind, is the condition by which a speaker is most aptly considered a prophet. Before we address the second and third kinds of prophecy, it is beneficial for us to review the instances thus far in Mos. where Philo has used the term 'prophet.' Our review establishes the questions that shall guide us through the following two sub sections. (1) At 1.57, Philo describes Moses' indignation at the shepherds at the well, on account of which he was transformed into a prophet. Let us remember that it is not until Moses' return to Egypt from exile that he is able to express himself accurately through speech, which is why, here, he must be transformed into a prophet. The transformation occurs on account of Moses' urge to restore justice; however, his inspiration was unintentional. (2) Philo uses the term at 1.266 in relation to Balaam the soothsayer, in order to show the characteristics of a false prophet. (3) When Philo describes the translation of the Septuagint at 2.40, he calls the scribes hierophants and prophets (hierophantas kai prophetas) who run along (sundramein) with the most pure spirit {katharotato pneumati) of Moses. This, as we have already discussed, corresponds to a different kind of prophecy that is not particular to Moses; however, as the writer of the sacred books, Moses is somehow the author of the content of their prophecies. It remains for us to consider what this means. (4) In the introduction to the office of king, Philo 98 connects the term to Moses' ascent to the darkness of God on Sinai where he beheld what is invisible to mortal nature. (5) When introducing the legislative office, he explains that Moses obtained prophecy to supplement the other three offices, which are held by mortals. (6) The term appears at 2.76 when Philo states that the shape of the tabernacle was engraved on the dianoia of the prophet. As we discovered in our analysis of the high priest's office, the dianoia of the prophet is the dianoia of the high priest, who, through recollection, translates and engraves the content of the most elevated word, the prophetic message - which is represented by the golden plate inscribed with Tetragrammaton - into his soul. Insofar as the content of the prophecy is received as an immaterial intuition, it cannot be shared with others unless it is mediated through the words and deeds of the high priest. It is our position that (4), (5), and (6), on the one hand, refer to the highest kind of prophecy that Philo excludes from his discussion. On the other hand, (1) and (3) provide examples of kinds of prophecy that do not belong exclusively to Moses. Philo uses (2) in order to show the characteristics of a false prophet. In our previous discussions, we have seen how the philosopher-king is a paradigm of justice in the individual soul, which provides the model for the creation of a state. It is on account of the harmony of the virtues in the king's soul that he is considered a living law. Through his treatment of the lawgiver, we have come to understand that for Philo, the Pentateuch is a means through which the lawful ordering of reality is revealed. The same law is revealed through nature, through the virtuous soul, through the city, through the sacred texts, and through the rites of the priesthood. In the following, we must consider how prophecy functions relative to justice and the ways in which Moses conveys what 99 exceeds reason. On account of what features is Moses the paradigmatic prophet, and why is this necessary for Philo? (4.2.2) Question and Answer Prophecy The four examples of question and answer prophecy all present situations in which Moses requires divine intervention so as to avoid error or arbitrary action. In the first two examples Moses requires divine intervention in order to determine an appropriate punishment. The second two pertain to the proper distribution and reception of rewards. The offender in the first example is "a base-born man, a child of unequal marriage, his father an Egyptian, his mother a Jewess."202 Not only does this man turn away from his ancestral customs in favour of atheism, but he also "extended his impiety from earth to heaven.. .[and] cursed him, whom even to bless is a privilege not permitted to all but only to the best, even those who have received full and complete purification." Moses seeks divine intervention lest he enact too light a penalty: "for to devise adequate punishment for such impiety was beyond human powers."204 The one who curses God not only overturns the natural order in which humans revere God, parents, and kings, but such a person also reviles this order. Furthermore, the utterance of a curse is received as impressions that create an image within the souls of those who hear it. God reveals that stoning is the appropriate punishment. Philo gives the following two reasons for this particular choice of punishment, namely: (1) stoning is appropriate according to the stony, hardened soul of the man, and (2) this form of punishment can be 202 Mos., 2.193. scj dvo^oicov xi<; JEVO^EVOC, avOpomoq voGoq, AiywtTiou |asv Ttaxpoq, ^ipoc; 5e 'IouSaiac; 203 Mos., 2.196. and yx\q sic; oupavov STEIVE xr\v dasPsiav... KaTapaaajxevocj Si' u7ieppoX.f)v KCXKICOV OV OU8' xmb TT&VTCOV aXka ^ovcov TCOV dpioxcDv £i)A.oyeia0ai 0E|iii;, oooi TCK; xsA,sia<; KaO&paeic; eSe^avio 204 Mos., 2.197. iaoppcmov yap e7iivofjaai npbq Toaauiriv daepsiav KoXaaiv wQpamoc, OUK av laxuasv 100 shared by all of those who were violated by the curse. Philo writes, "execution by missiles appeared to be the only mode in which so many thousands could take part."205 Following this incident, a new law is written up: "whoever curses god, let him bear the guilt of his sin, but whoever names the name of the Lord, let him die."206 Philo explains that here, the term 'god' refers to created idols and statues, which are falsely considered as gods, but nonetheless must not be reviled. However, insofar as the sacred texts use both theos and kyrios to refer to the God that created the whole, the Jews recognize that to name one is to imply the other. Let us turn to the second example of question and answer prophecy, which concerns the Sabbath. Philo explains that the seventh day must not be spent engaging in any kind of work from which a profit is made, but is to be spent pursuing the true philosophy, "which is woven from three strands, intentions, words, and deeds, harmonized in one form for the attainment and the enjoyment of happiness."207 Philo notes that the observance of the Sabbath is a practice carried on by his contemporaries: Even now this practice is retained and every seventh day the Jews occupy themselves with the philosophy of their fathers, and dedicate that time to acquiring knowledge and theory of the things concerning nature. For what are the places of prayer in the cities, other than the schools of prudence, courage, temperance, and justice, and also of piety and holiness, and all of the virtues by which human and divine things are known and rightly performed?208 Here, the violation occurs after the people have received knowledge of the ten laws in their souls and consists in gathering sticks on the Sabbath: "now a certain man, setting at 205 Mos., 2.202. |i6vr|c; 5' 101 naught this ordinance, though the echoes of the oracles concerning the sacred hebdomad were ringing in his ears, oracles which God promulgated without a prophet, through a voice that - most paradoxically - was visible."209 In order to appreciate the significance of this statement, we must briefly outline the way in which the ten commandments are given. In Decal., Philo explains that of all the laws, some God gives through himself, and others are given through the prophet Moses: "Now we find that those which he gave in his own countenance speaking through himself alone include both laws and heads of the particular laws, but those in which he spoke through the prophet all belong to the former class."210 The 'heads' refer to the ten commandments, which are given through the voice of God, which also gives some of the special laws. Philo explains that when Moses descended from Sinai, he purified the souls of his followers in preparation for receiving the laws: "they had kept pure from intercourse with women and abstained from all pleasures save those which are necessary for the sustenance of life."211 Philo proceeds to explain the nature of the visible voice. The voice of man is audible, but the voice of God is visible, insofar as what he says are his works, which are judged by the eyes. Concerning the statement that the voice proceeded from fire, Philo gives the following explanation: [F]or the oracles of God have been refined and assayed as gold is by fire. And [the statement] conveys, through a symbol, some such meaning as this: since it is the nature of fire both to give light and to burn, those who resolve to be obedient to the divine utterances will live forever as in 209 Mos., 2.213. en TOXIC, xpr)a|aoi)q evav'kovc, excov TOVC, nepl xf\q iepac, s^86^r\q, ovq e0EO7tiaev aveu 7rpo(pf)TOU 6 6eo<; 5ia cpcovfjc; TO 7tapa8o^oTaTOv opaTfjc; 210 DecaL, 19. xovq (iev ouv oa>To;ipoad)7ico<; 6ea7tia6evxa<; 5i' amov LIOVOU at)(i(3ePriKe Kai VOLIOUI; slvav rat VOLICOV TCOV ev Lispei KscpaXaia, TOXIC, 5E 8ia TOU jipocprjTou rcdvxac; en' EKsivotx; avacpspsaOai 21' DecaL, 46. 7tapeiaTr|K8i 5s 6 Xemq ayvewac; o^iAicov TCOV npbq YUVCUKOU; Kai iraacov f)6ovcov E^CO TCOV 7ipo<; Tpocpac; dvayKaicov aTiocxonevoc; 102 unclouded light with the laws themselves as stars illuminating their souls, while all who are rebellious will continue to be burnt, burnt to ashes by their inward lusts, which like a flame will ravage the whole life of those in whom they dwell.2'2 Let us recall Philo's interpretation of the burning bush in the first book of Mos. Here, the bush represents the nation, which is surrounded, and fed by, the higher kind of flame. In the midst of the apparition is an angel, a light brighter than any fire, the image of divine providence. Just as Moses sees the angel and hears the divine voice through the flames, so too the people see Moses -the brightest light - and hear God's voice proceed through the flames as the laws are given. We shall look at the notion of the divine providence more carefully when we examine Philo's conclusion. Now that we understand that the transgressor who has the voice of God ringing in his ears has full knowledge of the law he intends to oppose, we shall return to the second instance of question and answer prophecy. Like in the first example, Moses knew the proper punishment (death), but was unsure of the appropriate means to this end, and he sought the invisible judgment seat for the answer, which again was stoning. However, here, it is the mind of the perpetrator, not his soul that is likened to stone on account of this ultimate transgression. The prohibition of lighting fires on the seventh day is a special law enacted to support the general commandment. Fire symbolizes the activity of the original cause, "and if this 212 Decal, 48-49. 7iayKdXcoc;n£VToi Kai 6eo7ip£7i<»c; dprixai EK TOU nvpbc, r\ (pcovf] 7tpoepx£a9ar f|KpipcoTai yap Kai pepaa&vicrrai xa TOU 9EOU A.6yia KaGdnep XPU°6? rcupi. (irivuei 8e Kai 5ia aunP6A,ou TI TOioi)Tov£7rsi5fi TOU nvpbq to \ikv (pam^eiv TO 5s Katevv ;i£(puK£v, oi |^EV TOK; xpn0^0^ a^iouvTEc; Eivai KaTa7tsi0£i<; 6a; EV daKicp (pcoxi TOV dsi xpovov Picbcovxai xovq vo^iouc; auTouq doTspai; EXOVTEC; EV \|/uxfj (pcoocpopowcac;, oooi 6' d(pr|viaoTai, Kai6(a.£voi Kai KaTaKai6|i£voi 8iaT£^ouaiv IOTO TCOV EV8OV s7n9i>mcov, a'i (pA,oyoi; TpoTiov 7cop0f|oouai TOV ounrcavTa TCOV EXOVTCOV piov. 103 ceased, he knew that the activities of the parts would cease also."213 Resting on the seventh day acknowledges the dependence of all creation on God, and it imitates God's rest after the six days of creation. The offender was charged as if he lit a fire, because through gathering fuel, the offender demonstrates not only his intention to violate the commandment he just received in his soul, but also that he considers himself to be completely self-sufficient - as if he were a god. By collecting sticks, the deeds of the transgressor were the words that revealed his intention; in this act, he wholly opposes the three aspects of the true philosophy - intentions, words, and deeds. The third and fourth examples of question and answer prophecy concern situations where enactment of the special laws is prevented by natural circumstances. The third example concerns the inability of several maidens to participate in the Passover sacrifice at the temple in Jerusalem due to the mourning of their deceased father. This sacrifice is a festival that allows all citizens to act as priests by bringing and performing their own sacrifices; by undertaking these holy works they participate in the honours allotted to the priesthood. Moses pitied the maidens; however, their violation of the law that protects this annual observance acted as a counterbalance to his sympathy, on account of which he became inspired and received the answer. The divine judgment was revealed through an oracle which applied not only to the particular situation, but also to similar situations that would occur in subsequent generations. As a result, it is permitted that mourners and those who live in distant lands and cannot arrive with their fruits at the appointed time, are permitted to form a second group of sacrifices that follow the same rule and method as the first group. Mourning is a natural circumstance that affects the 213 Mos., 2.219. (bq apxriyiKcbTatov amov KOU 7tpEapUTaiov epyov, oi> f\a-oxaaavToq ivevor\Qr\ KCU xa Kara (iepoc; cog eiKoq auvr|cruxaa£iv 104 internal disposition of the soul and therefore prevents the participation of mourners in the holy rite, which must be kept free from all pollution voluntary, and involuntary. Because, as we explained earlier, pure intention is critical for a successful sacrifice, the particular attachments associated with grief detract from the purity of the requisite intention, and are considered to be pollution that defiles the sacred deed. Not only are mourners not to be punished as offenders of the law, they should not be denied the honours of participating in the sacrifice, on account of this involuntary natural circumstance. The final example of question and answer concerns the succession to an inheritance. Five daughters approach Moses upon the death of their father, and hoping to preserve the name and reputation of their father, they ask him that they not be denied a share of his inheritance, insofar as he bore no sons. Moses, while amazed at the good sense of the maidens and their loyalty to their father, was unable to render judgement because his pity was counterbalanced by the law according to which men divide the inheritances amongst themselves as rewards for their military service, and that by nature, women are exempt from battle and therefore also from its rewards. Moses' dianoia inclined both ways and so he sought God, "who alone, as he knew, can distinguish by infallible and absolutely unerring criteria the finest differences and thereby show his truth and justice."214 Moses receives his response from the maker of the whole, the father of the cosmos, the ruler of gods and men. Philo writes, "the response, held something more than a judgment, given by the kind and gracious one who has filled everything entirely 214 Mos., 2.237. 6v fl8£i i^ovov Accordingly, see that those who seem to be hungry and unfortunate are not treated as worthless and negligible in the judgment of God of whose empire, the least honoured parts are the kingdoms everywhere in the civilized world, for even everything encompassed in the sphere of the earth is but the outermost fringe of his works, and take the necessary lesson.216 Philo explains that the terms used in scripture clearly delineate charitable gifts from deserved benefits: the maidens receive gifts, but not payments. The maidens are benefited by the gifts given through the gracious power of the divine, which extends through the entire creation; whereas, a payment is a benefit that is owed to its recipient. The inheritance is 'put around' the daughters, as though it were an external ornament: "for what is 'put around' does not have an intimate connection with what it adorns, and harmony and union are other to it." The law that concerns the succession of inheritances is in accordance with the law of nature. First in the line of inheritance are the sons, who participate in the goodness of the father. If there are no sons, the daughters are second in order, but they do not receive the inheritance as the proper possession according to their natural disposition (suggenes), but rather as a gift. Here, we observe a parallel to the way in which the priests and temple attendants are ranked. First, let us note that the high priest, who symbolizes the perfect soul, is adorned with the cosmos when he puts on his robe. Unlike the maidens, however, the cosmos adorns the perfect soul because the essence of this soul is unifed with a supra-cosmic entity, which remains Mos., 2.238. ypmiaxiaac, 5s KOU nteov TI 7tapeaxsv f\ Kara 5iKaaTf]v 6 £U(ievf)q Kai 'ikeaq, 6 7tdvTa Sid jtdvtcov 7te7i>.ripcoKcbi; tfj<; euspysTiSot; eautou 5uvd|X£co<;- 216 Mos., 2.241. Kai KOCTISOVTEC; on OUTCO tanEivoi Kai dxuxEit; sivai SOKOUVTEI; OUK EV E^OUGEVTIHEVOI Kai dcpavsoi idTTOViai rcapa tw Qe&, OV Tfjc; dpxfjq TO diviiOTaTov i^spoc; riaiv ai 7ravTaxoi5 Tfjq oucounsvric; PaoiMai, 5IOTI Kai 6 xfj^ yf\q anac, ev KUKXCO nepipolaq saxaxid TCOV gpycov EOTIV autoC, 8s^aa9£ vouGsalav dvayKaiav 2,7 Mos., 2.243. TO yap 7ispiTi0sn£vov ou5e^tav oiKeicooiv EXEI Tipoc; TO 8iaKoa|ioi3n£vov dp^oviat; Kai Evcboxooc; aAAmpioiJuEvov. 106 unaffected by the changes in the realm of becoming. The priests are of the same nature as the high priest, their father, who contains their divided virtues in an undivided way; however, the attendants are not of the same nature and are given their positions as a reward. Through this example, Philo shows that things of a similar innate disposition share the same taxis, and that the status of the taxis determines the proportion of the gifts allotted to it. '. In all four examples of question and answer prophecy, the moment of divine intervention occurs when Moses is presented with a situation from the realm of mortals and requires divine assistance in order to either determine a particular manner in which a general action must be carried out, or to pass a judgement on a situation which presents equally valid reasons in support of opposite actions. Moses' question seeks the appropriate solution to the dilemma in his soul, on account of which, he becomes inspired and receives his answer. Question and answer prophecy supplements Moses' general perspective with concrete particulars, such as the logically appropriate means to an end. Because Moses is not swayed by natural circumstance and is unable to choose (because choice involves the possibility of error), he requires guidance from God. Precisely because Moses is presented with two situations wherein a judgement in favour of either party could be accused of personal bias, his verdict must have divine validation. Philo also establishes a correspondence between the knowledge of an individual and the way in which they are punished or benefited. The more one knows of the good, the more they are rewarded if they act accordingly, and the more severely they are punished for choosing lower forms of the good. Furthermore, the capacity for knowing the good is determined by natural disposition, which means that the degree to which activity and 107 knowledge is in accordance with one's own nature corresponds to the degree of reward or punishment received. All of the above cases concern the enactment of a special law, pertaining either to a reward or to a punishment, and is fully in accordance with the order of nature. Furthermore, with the second example, primarily, we begin to understand how the special laws function in relation to the Decalogue. The Decalogue is a whole which is divided into ten heads, under which the special laws are formed. The ten laws must be recognized and followed by the whole nation insofar as they are the laws of nature, although their general character necessitates interpretation in the realm of specific differences. Through enacting the special laws, Moses prevents the dissolution of the constitution through manifold interpretations. The special laws provide detailed guidance to future generations and are the means by which the whole nation is sustained in accordance with the perfect justice of the Decalogue. As we examine the third type of prophecy, it becomes evident that even these laws are not enough to sustain the weakest of human natures. Furthermore, although Moses is again responding to a situation in the mortal realm, in the third type of prophecy, Moses' inspiration does not seek guidance on the appropriate course of action; rather, Moses' inspiration is immediate and initiates the the appropriate counterbalance to the injustice caused by the weaker natures. (4.2.3) Prophecy by Divine Inspiration Philo's account of the third form of prophecy involves retelling four events which we have already encountered in Mos. The first two events - the crossing of the Red Sea and the provision of manna - Philo has already treated as part of the office of king. The 108 second two events - the well-pleasing deed and the revolt of the temple attendants - were encountered in the office of the priest. In order to appreciate the characteristics of prophecy by inspiration, we must highlight the ways in which the second versions differ from the first. With regards to the first story, the Red Sea, the crucial differences between the two stories involve the immediacy with which Moses becomes inspired, and the character of his prediction. As king, Moses hears the complaints of his subjects, and "uses his mind and his speech simultaneously for different purposes, with the former, he silently interceded with God to save them from their desperate afflictions, and with the latter, he encouraged and comforted the loud-voiced malcontents."218 After spending some time silently addressing God, and outwardly addressing the people, Moses becomes filled with the divine spirit and makes a general prediction of the events that would occur that evening. As prophet, Moses sees the nation's troubles, and immediately "was taken out of himself by divine possession, and made an inspired declaration."219 As king, Moses predicted that on that same evening, the enemy would completely disappear under the depths, never to be seen again. However, as prophet, Moses tells the people, "you see them [the enemies] still alive, I have the impression of them dead, and today you too will see their corpses."220 Soon after his speech, the people "began to find by the experience of facts the truth of the heavenly message. For what he prophesied came to pass through divine powers, though more unbelievable than any fable. " As prophet, Moses has immediate access to inspiration, whereas the king was required to seek divine assistance 2,8 Mos., 1.173. Siavsi^ac; TOV VOW Kai xov ^oyov Kara TOV autov xpovov TCO \XEV Evsxuy^avEv dcpavcoc; t(p 0ew, iv' it, h\u\yav(i>v puar|Tca auncpopwv, Si' ox> 5' sGapouvs Kai 7iapr|y6pEi TOIK; KaxapocovTac; 219 Mos., 2.250. OUKET' COV EV sauico 9EO(pop£ixai Kai GSOTU^EI T(X5E- 220 Mos., 2.252. X>\IEXC, \IEV ETI ^COVTCOV aia9dv£a0e, TE6V£6TCOV 5' sycb (paviaoiav taxuP&vw tfmspov 8e Kai \)\xelq VEKpouq aikoui; OE&OEOOE 221 Mos., 2.253. oi 8' £7t£ipcbvTO spyoic; Tf}<; respi TO tayyiov dXriOEiaq &7i£Paivs yap xd xpn°6£VTa 9evan; 5uvd|I£Ol HU0COV d7tlOTOTEpa- 109 through prayer, which enabled him to become inspired. The content of the prophet's message provided a detailed prediction that was greater than all hope and was demonstrated to the people through their experience of the works that immediately followed. However, unlike the works of the prophet which were greater than all hope, the deeds which followed the prediction of the king were simply unexpected (paralogos). The differences between the two accounts describing the provision of manna reinforce the notion that the people that Moses addresses through kingship, and those he addresses as prophet are of very different aptitudes. In the account of the king, God sends manna for the purpose of instructing Moses' followers in the virtue of courage, which allows them to endure hardship patiently through the expectation of a better future. When the people see the amazing sight seen by no man before them, they ask their king the meaning and purpose of what has happened. Moses, under the inspiration of the spirit reveals the answer to them, which as we have already outlined, concerns the knowledge of, and participation in, the generic virtues. However, when the prophet sees the heavenly food, and under inspiration, he straightaway orders the people to gather it reminding them that "we must trust God as we have experienced his kindnesses in deeds greater than we could have hoped for."222 Moses instructs the people not to store any of the food they gather, whereas in the first instance, the people learned for themselves not to store the food. Despite their clear instructions, many people disobeyed the prophet, disbelieving him through their incapacity for learning.. As king, Moses is the living constitution by embodying the virtues that the laws of nature inculcate; his specific function is the creation of a state that reflects the cosmic constitution through educating the people in the activity of virtue. By the simultaneous 222 Mos., 2.258. mcxEUEVv 5sT T© GEQJ mnzxpayL&Joxic, aikou TCOV eitepysaubv ev ^ieiC,oaw iXniboc, npay\x.a<3\v 110 activities of speech and thought, each of which are undertaken for a different purpose, the soul of the king is filled with the divine breath. On the basis of this kind of inspiration, the king is able to make general predictions, and answer the questions of his people. Through the former examples, Philo shows that Moses, as inspired prophet, is dealing with the weaker natures that dwell at the level of appearance and cannot learn virtue. The prophet immediately knows that the nature of the people requires persuasion beyond the paralogos; accordingly, through his power of prognosis, Moses gives the people demonstrations that support his words and surpass all hope. In the second account of the well-pleasing deed, the primary difference from the first account lies in the immediacy with which Moses apprehends the situation. In relation to the priest, the story begins with Moses' communing with God on Sinai when he receives a vague apprehension of the situation below, which was the result of the slippery slope of internal passion. However, as prophet, Moses completely apprehends the specific nature of the transgression, which the people commit with full knowledge of the law. The prophet changed himself completely and under inspiration said: "Who is there who has no part in this delusion and has not given the name of lordship to no-lords? Let all such come to me." In the first instance, Moses' proclamation evokes the disposition for virtue in the souls of the Levites, and his instructions test their understanding and serve to distinguish those who repented their sins from those who are incurable, by ordering them to kill the latter. However, here, the people know the law which functions in the same way as the sunthemata in the first instance. Furthermore, in the first story, Philo explains the meaning of Moses' proclamation as calling those who 223 Mos., 2.272. "TIC; ecmv 6 [if\ TCO nXava ouvsvexOsk; |ir|5s TO Kupocj en\.(pr]\iiaa<; zoic, ddcupou;; naq 6 TOlOUTOCj E(iOl 7ipOdiTC0" 111 know that there is one ruler of the whole, and that no created things are God. However, Philo does not offer an additional explanation of the call in the second story. The Levites were seeking a leader who would have the authority to instruct them as to the right time and manner of attack and rush to Moses' call without delay. Discovering the rage of the tribe, Moses was even more possessed by the divine than before and orders that they "slay not only those who are strangers to you, but also the very nearest of your friends and kinsfolk. Mow them down holding that to be a truly righteous deed which is done for truth and God's honour, a cause which to champion and defend is the lightest of labours."224 Because in the first case, the crime was committed with a greater degree of ignorance, the people who repented were spared, and learned obedience through their fear. However, in the second account, none are spared insofar as they were fully aware of the truth which "is illumined by its own light, the intelligible and incorporeal, compared with which the light of the senses would seem to be as night compared with day."ZZJ As we established in our examination of question and answer prophecy, the more one knows of the truth, the greater the crime it is to oppose it. However, as inspired prophet, Moses completely possesses both the full awareness of the crime, and the appropriate method of punishment. Moreover, his inspiration is not due to a balance in his soul, but acts as a balance in the world. Just as in the retelling of the well-pleasing deed, in the revolt of the temple attendants, Philo refers to Moses' righteous anger as the condition under which he is inspired. Like in the initial version of story, the temple attendants consider their 224 Mos., 2.273. KTEivET© \xr[ fiovov aAXoxpiouc; akXa Kai qntaov Kai auyyevcov tovq oiKEioxaxouc; £7u Moses burns with the righteous anger of the higher kind of fire - as he burns, he is not consumed, but grows in strength, and issues the following words: Disbelief hardly falls on the disbelievers alone. Such are schooled by facts alone and not by words. Experience will show them that I do not lie, since they cannot know by learning, they will discern this with the end of their lives. If the death they meet is in the ordinary course of nature, my oracles are a false invention; but if it be of a new and different kind, my love of truth will be attested.227 Moses declared that the earth would open up, and the impious would be dragged down into Hades and upon completing his speech, if the event came to pass. Furthermore, those who organized the sedition were consumed entirely by thunderbolts. Both the earth and heaven shared in the punishment of those whose wickedness was rooted in the earth, but extended to heaven. Again, we see that Moses' words are demonstrated immediately by the works that follow them, and that his words are issued from his burning anger. Moses attains his power of prognosis on account of his ascent to a superior level of intelligence; the degree with which one knows the particularity of all things totem simul, corresponds to their degree of ascent in the intelligible realm. In themselves, God's logoi and erga are simultaneous and indistinguishable; however, mediated through the prophet, they are extended in time and occur in succession. However, in our final example, there 226 Mos., 2.211. 5i3o sv Toukco 7iap We maintain that the first, ineffable type of prophecy corresponds to Moses' union with God on Sinai. When Moses enters the darkness of God, he is the hupokeimenon - the mind that receives God's powers through the mediation of his spirit, in order to obtain a conception of himself. The logos is the word conveyed through the prophet which proceeds from the divine union as light. Philo does not speak of this kind of prophecy in Mos., insofar as the details concerning this kind of inspiration completely surpass the capacity of human thought and speech and the message is communicated through various intermediaries. In the second form of prophecy, inspiration occurs on account of the question in Moses' soul and is manifest as a special law. In the third, the imbalances caused by the weaker natures are balanced by Moses' inspired words, which are apprehended as works. As philosopher-king and living law, Moses embodies perfection according to human nature, and by paving the way for others, he brings his followers up towards god. Through the priesthood, the rites, liturgies, and the sacred construction, Moses communicates the place of the human soul within the entire created order, and allows the nation to participate in the divine works of creation. In Somn., we find Philo's exegesis of the ladder, or stairway, of Genesis 28:12. Along this ladder, angels (which, according to Philo are called daimons by the 114 philosophers) ascend and descend, acting as divine logoi, divine mediators, sent on behalf of humans, who are incapable of sustaining either God's gifts or punishments directly. Just as there is a ladder in the universe, so too there is a ladder in the soul, along which logoi ascend and descend. In addition, Philo characterizes the different human dispositions as on a ladder reaching from the depths of the foolish to the heights of the wise: "it is the portion of the wise to dwell in the heavenly region of Olympus since they have ever learned to make the heights their resort, and the depths of Hades is the abode allotted to the bad."228 Finally, in each of the three kinds of prophecy, Moses communicates the divine logos as it is manifest at different levels of the created universe, from the highest, which is delivered from God's countenance, to the lowest, delivered by Moses himself. By traversing the ladder which extends from the bottom to the top (or, the top to the bottom) of the ontological hierarchy, Moses elevated human nature as far as its various dispositions permit, and brought down the divine in accordance with the capacities of all natures. Moses has completed the full procession of the divine into creation, he has enabled the return of the creatures to their source, and is about to be called back to rest with the father. (4.3) PHILO'S CONCLUSION Philo begins his last remarks of the treatise by describing the restoration of Moses' nature: Later on, when he was about to be ready to migrate from here into heaven, departing the mortal life to be aimed at immortality, called up by the father, who was realigning his dyadic being into one, disposing his whole 228 Somn., 1.151. oocpoi \xev yap TOV oXunmov icai oupdviov x&pov sA,axov oiKetv, avco cpoitav del HenaGriKOTSc;, Kaicoi 8s xovq sv 'Ai8ou nuxouc; 115 nature into the most sun-like mind. Then, holding back along his way, he seemed to utter oracles, no longer to the nation collectively, but according each particular tribe, concerning the things that were to become, and thereafter would come to pass.229 As a result of staying his course, Moses leaves a great legacy of oracles and inspired words to the great diversity of people in the generations which follow him. By mentioning that Moses' heirs encompass many people of different descent on their mother's side, Philo indicates that Moses' legacy is not exclusive to the Jews; rather, as nous, Moses' legacy extends to all those who benefit from truth. However, Philo thinks that even greater than this legacy "is the end of the sacred writings, which is to the whole law as a head to a living creature." Again, Philo describes Moses pausing in the process of his ascension and, while he is still a living mortal, he prophesizes about his own death. Moses states that he will be laid to rest by immortal powers in a place unknown to the human. Philo concludes: "Such is the life, and such is the end of the king, lawgiver, high priest and prophet Moses, revealed through the sacred books." There are several critical notions relative to Philo's conclusion which we must mention before moving to our own. In Sacr., Philo describes how the various human natures are rewarded after death. Some, like Abraham are added (prostithetai) to the genus of incorporeal and happy souls who are equal to the angels. Others, like Isaac, have been transferred {metanistanai) into the genus of the perfect. However, "there are others, whom God has advanced even higher, and has trained them to soar above genus 229 Mos., 2.288. xpovoiq 5' uatspov, 87tei8f) Tf)v ev0svSe cmoiKiav e\ieXksv ei<; oupavov ateKkeadm tcai TOV 0vr)Tov d7ioAuicbv ptov &7ra0avati^ea0ai [LemKkrfiEv; imo TOU 7taTpo<;, 6<; aikov 8i>d5a ovxa, oro^a Kai i|/i>Xrjv, six; novdSoi; dveoToixeiou tpuaiv 6Xov 8i' oAxov |xs0ap^io^6nsvoi; etc; vouv f|Aioei5£ and species alike. Such is Moses, to whom God says, "Stand here with me.'" Philo explains that God lends Moses to the creation, and that as he descends, his nature suffers no change or diminution, which is the reason no man knows his grave. Moses is transferred, through the voice (rhematos) issued from the first cause (in itself, untranslatable), into the word (logos), through which, and for which the entire cosmos was constructed so that others may learn that God honours the wise man equally to the world. Later in Sacr., Philo explains that Moses' motion from the cause to the creation is not a change of place: "[his] motion is not discursive, leaving a place to occupy another, Til but it is a motion of extension." Among mortals, their spoken word is the swiftest of all things that can be perceived, keeping pace with their dianoia. Nonetheless, Philo writes, "thus as the uncreated anticipates all created being, so the word of the uncreated outruns the word of the created, though this rides with all speed upon the clouds."234 232 Sacr., 8. siai 8e ovq dvcoTepco Trpoayaycov ei'5r| \iev KOCI yevr) navza u7iep7CTfjvai 7iapeaKEi3aaev, i'Spuas 5E jt^rjaiov EOIUTOVJ, Ka9a KCU Mcouafjt; co q>r\av "cm 5e aoxofj axfjGi |^ET' snofj". 233 Sacr., 68. ov> ustaPatiKcog Kivoi3|j.svoq, To conclude our thesis, we shall first review our findings in chapters two, three, and four and then revisit the problems we outlined in our introduction in order to clarify Philo's doctrine of mediation in Mos. Our examination of Mos. has drawn from our familiarity with the Philonic corpus, which has enabled us to conclude that in Mos., Philo is fundamentally concerned with stages of spiritual ascent that correspond to elevated forms of cognition which are in accordance with an ontological hierarchy and a detailed metaphysics. Indeed, Philo's Moses is the divine mediator who reveals, completes, and fulfills the hierarchy of created beings, enabling the restoration of the human soul to a state of perfection beyond that of the pre-fallen human nature. Moses not only fulfills the creation, but he also stands at the culmination of a divine history, which describes the fall of the human, and a gradual restoration through higher forms of knowing. In De Posteritate Caini (Post.), Philo writes, "the unlimited wealth of God has given as starting points to others the goals reached by the ones before them...the highest point of wisdom reached by Abraham is the initial course in Moses' training." As author of the written laws and giver of the sacred rites, Moses provides the way by which every kind of human soul has the capability to participate in justice on earth and to partake in sacred rites which secure immortality for their souls after death. Drawing from the whole Pentateuch, with a particular concentration on the book of Exodus, Philo reflects an emerging trend among Graeco-Roman authors, by presenting Moses as a divine figure on account of his excellence in general, and in relation to his achievements in the official roles as philosopher-king, legislator, high priest, and prophet. 235 Post., 174. Kod TOV &7tepiYP who locate the teachings of all philosophical truths in one divine source, and among Roman biographers who present their divine emperors as paradigms for virtue, to which humans can align their activity. Let us recall that according to Edwards, the 'divinity' of a man is seen relative to the degree both of his knowledge and of his assimilation to virtue, and that the eminence of these figures increases in proportion to the expansion of the Hellenic polis into the Hellenistic cosmopolis. Keeping in mind the exalted degree to which Philo's Moses is the teacher of truth and virtue, it remains for us to identify who - or what - Moses is for Philo. We shall briefly summarize the stages of spiritual ascent in Mos. and their connection to the four offices. But first, we must remind ourselves of the central role of Mos. with respect to the other treatises in the Exposition, and how the philosophical schools contribute to Philo's position. Philo's Exposition of the Law is modeled on his understanding of the Pentateuch as an image of the tripartite soul: Mos. is to the Exposition what dikaiosune is to the soul. Just as dikaiosune is the virtue that accompanies the harmony of parts in a whole, so too Mos. accompanies the Exposition as its arche and telos. Philo regards the life of Moses as that which encompasses and perfects all forms, or modes, of the law that are contained in the three parts of the Pentateuch; with the first part on the creation, or the unwritten laws, the second part dealing with the history or the living laws, and the third part on the written laws. Philo employs both Plato's tripartite model of the soul, and the Stoic division of the soul into eight parts, the latter of which allows him to explain how the soul interacts with the external world through its seven media. Plato's philosopher king meets the Stoic sage in 119 Philo's consideration of kingship, which reflects the universal values of the ideal Roman state, which protects and maintains the autonomy of the Jewish priesthood. Philo understands Stoic natural legislation within a metaphysical framework that encompasses not only the corporeal reality - which the Stoics hold to be the only level of reality - but also psychic and intellective reality, which form the whole of reality wherein each realm is guided by its superior. On account of his combination of elements drawn from the Stoics, Plato, and the Pythagoreans, Philo's consideration of the constitution on which the earthly polis is formed includes all levels of creation. Philo, like other Middle Platonists, develops Platonic metaphysics by locating the ideas in the mind of God, which enables him to posit an unbroken chain of created existents, hierarchically arranged from the creator to the creation, thereby making the constitution of Moses not just cosmic, but divine. As such, book X of Plato's Laws is crucial for Philo, as it outlines the necessity of legislating correct beliefs about the gods. Furthermore, Laws X necessitates a written constitution, and assigns to the lawgiver the duty of persuading - in writing and in speeches - the citizens to uphold the laws. Finally, Laws X provides the general framework wherein sacred duties serve a role which must be protected by civic laws but are, nonetheless, the exclusive business of the priests and prophets. Philo takes up and expands upon Plato's delineation of three kinds of divine mania in the Phaedrus. Philo draws out distinctions implicit in Plato's highest kind of mania, which is expressed through oracles, by the prophets, priests, and priestesses, in order to present the three types of prophecy peculiar to Moses. Furthermore, Philo follows Plato in asserting that literary inspiration is not in the same category as the 120 highest form of prophecy. Although we find Philo's account of the priest and prophet drawing on certain elements already expressed in the Greek philosophical tradition, we have no evidence that any Hellene had articulated their roles with such precision and exactitude before Philo. The four offices in Mos. are media that communicate certain kinds of knowledge. Through Mos., Philo defines and limits the roles of the four offices, he outlines their pre requisites, and he describes certain virtues which correspond to each of them. In Praern., Philo writes: [TJherefore all the virtues are presented as virgins. And the most excellent of all, having taken the post of leader as if in a chorus, is piety and righteousness, which were possessed in the most eminent degree by the theologian Moses, on account of which, besides an innumerable host of other circumstances which are recorded of him in the accounts which have come down to us of his life, he has received also four most especial prizes, in being invested with sovereignty, lawgiving, prophecy, and high priesthood. The preliminary exercises Moses undertakes prior to his illumination at the burning bush are required for all of the four offices. As we have discovered, these preliminaries include the traditional encyclical curriculum, which is clearly necessary but limited in its capacity to be effective. Philo uses the incident where Moses slays the overseer to show the limitations of the sciences belonging to the sensible realm and the need for further training. Before Moses can reclaim the use of the practical arts, we see him pass through two important stages while undertaking philosophy in exile by which he fully perfects the nature of his soul. At the attainment of each stage - which corresponds to higher states of existence, Moses manifests his theoretical wisdom through effective speech which serves 236 Praem., 53. 7taaai |isv ouv ai apexai TtapGevoi, KaXkiaxevei 6E (bq EV xopw rcapataxpouaa xr|v riysnoviav r) suosPeia, f]V EK^ripcoaaxo Siacpspovxcoq 6 0£oA,6yoc; Mcouafjq, 8i' f]v |i£xa |iupicov ixXkcav, arcsp ev xoT<; ypoupstai nepi xoti KCIT' auxov piou ns\ir\vmai, Textapcov aOXcov s^aipexcov xuyxavsi, TU/WV paaiA,eiac;, voiioGsaiac;, Ttpocprixeiaq, apxiepcoauvrn; 121 justice by restoring things to their proper order. The first stage involves harmonization of the soul to the orthos logos underlying the visible cosmos, which Moses manifests as effective activity when he chastises the shepherds at the well. The next step in the contemplative ascent is the study of intellectual causation and the alignment of the soul's faculties to the mind above. By gaining the control of the soul's impulses and using them to serve a higher power, Moses' soul has become fully rational and is capable of receiving wisdom through illumination from above. Such illumination - which corresponds to attaining the virtue dikaiosune - occurs through an angel, as we have seen when we treated the burning bush; it is through the means of such wisdom that Moses is able to reclaim the practical arts. By employing Aaron - speech - as his interpreter, Moses maintains his distance from the snares of the sophists, and his arguments are entirely measured and controlled; persuasive speech and dialectical arguments are the mode, or practical method, of enacting justice proper to the rational soul. Through the ten plagues, Philo understands that there is an inherent principle of justice pervading the whole cosmos, and that disturbance in the microcosm - the individual soul - is subject to realignment through macrocosmic agency. Moreover, Philo outlines a hierarchically ordered social structure comprised of different capacities for learning and the corresponding modes of persuasion: rhetoric, philosophy, and force. Finally, through the ten plagues, Philo shows that as long as one remains attached to the perceived goods in the corporeal realm, they remain subject to its order and law. By leading the Hebrews from Egypt, Moses reflects a higher aspect of the divine activity on account of which he is given the name 'god.' According to Philo, the name of a thing is a mark of its power, and thus, when Moses receives his appellation, Philo has 122 indicated that a king must reach an ontological status beyond that of the perfected human nature. As we have seen, Moses achieves his elevated status by extending his powers to benefit and rule others; in doing so, Moses becomes a more accurate reflection of God who fills the entire creation with his goodness and sovereignty. Through the office of king, Moses educates and rules a community of people with various capacities for learning, in accordance with the wisdom he reached through the powers of human reason. However, unlike their king Moses, whose education is a paradigm of the perfect human nature, the Israelites are a community of mixed capacities, and education must be modified to suit their modes. Although their journey is quite different from Moses', we are nonetheless able to discern a progression of knowing through which the Hebrews are led. For Philo, the passion that afflicted the Hebrews in pre-exodus Egypt is characterized by the avoidance of painful sensations and the pursuit of pleasurable sensations and corresponds to a state of naive ignorance. The battles in the desert following the exodus from Egypt represent characteristic struggles with the passions, and each kind of passion involves a greater degree of knowledge than the last. The Phoenician battle represents the ongoing struggle to choose the good according to the soul and not the body; relative to the state, this is the choice between particular interests and the common good. Hairesis is the activity belonging to the appetitive faculty of the soul, and, insofar as the act of choosing implies ignorance as to which is the right choice, the aim of the soul is to act according to higher principles and alleviate its need to choose. It is significant that, despite the higher forms of knowing involved, each battle entails choice. The incident with the twelve spies corresponds to the spirited faculty of the soul and its respective virtue - courage. This incident is a lesson on the catastrophic effects 123 caused when authorities show cowardice. The battle with the Canaanites represents the voluntary choice between virtue and vice, which entails the full knowledge of good and evil and correlates to the highest faculty of the soul, the rational. Having defeated the Canaanites, the people recognize the orthos logos as the source from which virtue springs, and this corresponds to the state Moses achieves prior to chastising the shepherds at the well. However, Moses derived his wisdom directly from the just ordering of the cosmos, while the people have achieved this wisdom through the mediation of the state. On account of their insight, the people are now well-disposed to receive direction from Moses, and Philo follows Plato's Republic when he describes how Moses reorders them in accordance with the principle of justice both in nature and in his own soul, enclosing the naturally weaker souls with the stronger citizens who surround and protect them. Philo uses the account of Balak's plot against the Hebrews to show that regardless of their victories over passion and vice, the nation is still comprised of mortal parts, vulnerable to the enticement to passion through the lower part of the soul, which is in contact with bodily natures. By means of this account, Philo clearly defines the limitations involved with the perfection of souls through the state, these limits are connected to the weakness of mortal souls and they establish the necessity of the high priest's office. Thoughphronesis and andreia are able to construct enclosing walls separating the higher parts of the soul from their opposites (foolishness and cowardice), sophrosune is unable to contain the lower part of the soul and defeat desire and pleasure.237 The nation receives the knowledge of the orthos logos mediately through Moses, and are ordered accordingly by Moses, whereas Moses apprehended the orthos logos in the cosmos without the state as intermediary and ordered himself accordingly. 237 LA, 1.86. r) 5s acocppoauvr) &5I)VOITET KUictabaaaOca xnv £7U0u|xiav Kai f)8ovf)v 124 As such, he was able to study intellectual causation and empower his whole soul from above. The nation is comprised of many individuals whose natures are incapable of ordering themselves in a community let alone in their souls, and thus they always run the risk of enticement by pleasures associated with their appetitive faculty. It must be noted, however, that, for Philo the problem lies not in the embodied state of the soul, but in the balancing of the embodied soul's attention, which is liable, and in most cases guaranteed, to err. The state, which is composed of mortal human individuals, cannot be truly whole until it contains all of its parts in their proper order; as such, the state requires the divine rites and intercession of the priesthood in order to purify and maintain the cohesion of its parts. The perfected human soul is capable of leading others to virtue by means of instruction. However, unlike the perfect soul who is a self-motivated learner, the other kinds of souls experience education as toil and must be encouraged and guided by another. Inspiring and exciting others to learn is an act of creation. Philo explains that when Moses sweetened the bitter water at Marah, he instilled in the people a love of labour: "for being the demiurge, he knew that it is impossible for us to rise superior to anything unless a vehement love of such effort be implanted in us. No pursuit that men engage in, where affection does not draw them, gains its fitting end."238 The eros for higher forms of the good is innate to Moses, but must be instilled in the souls of the Hebrews. Because another instills eros, it does not properly belong to the Hebrews, and consequently runs the risk of becoming misdirected or lost. The way in which the roles of the king and high priest interact yet maintain clearly separate responsibilities, corresponds to the way in which Philo sees the ideal 238 Post., 157. fl5ei yap, axe Sruiioupyoq rov, on xa>v OVXCOV ouSevoi;, si |if| Tipooyevoixo ocpoSpoc; epcoq, EVECTTI 7repiy£vea9ou. oaa ouv emxriSeuouaiv avGpamoi, 8v/a p.sv oiKeicbaecoq xf\g npoq aura to ap^ioxxov xsX,o<; oi) A.a|ipdvEi 125 Roman Emperor interact with the High Priest of Judea. The primary role of the king is to establish harmony within the city by educating its citizens in virtue, and by ensuring they do not succumb to passions. However, because the state is composed of mortals who are unable to contain their appetitive faculties, the state requires the purificatory rites performed by the priest, the prayers of intercession made by the high priest on behalf of the people, and the participation in the sacrificial offerings which enable the soul's salvation. In order to realize justice in the state and enable the soul to achieve immortal life after its bodily death, the state requires the high priest. We shall provide further remarks on the office of the high priest, but first, we must treat that of the lawgiver. Philo's discussion on the legislative office pertains to the communication of the divine law through a written medium, whereas his discussion of the king pertained to the mediation of the constitution through a living being. In Mos., Philo's treatment of the legislative office is crucial for several reasons. Here, Philo reiterates the continuity between the constitutions found in the city, the soul, and nature and then draws into this continuity the written laws of Moses. Furthermore, Philo's account of the Letter of Aristeias emphasizes the continuity between written law and the realities in the cosmos, access to which is granted by prophetic illumination made possible through separation and purification of the scribes on the island of Pharaos. Finally, Philo removes the particular details from his account of the conflagration and deluge in order to emphasize the generic message of each story, which is that the whole always restores order among its parts. By means of Mos., Philo highlights the limitations and scope of human knowledge and defines certain modes of divine revelation, in order to show the necessity 126 of combining both sides. Through high priest and prophet, Moses mediates to the Hebrews knowledge that he receives from God. The degree of perfection Moses attains on Sinai entirely exceeds every created thing: in contrast to the straight road that Moses paved as king, Philo describes the place to which Moses is raised on Mount Sinai as impassable and inaccessible to all things other than Moses. Moses' complete purification entails cessation of all motion and activity, including the activity of dianoia through which he was illumined at the burning bush. However, when Moses comes forth from the divine darkness, he proceeds as light that extends through all levels of created being. In his account of the priest's office, Philo does not depict Moses directly assuming any position within the appointed orders. Rather, Moses acts through the consecrated persons using the high priest as his primary agent. Moses' illumination on Sinai determines the offices of the priesthood, positions that are occupied by mortals who look to their superiors for instruction in their duties. The superior position, occupied by the high priest is no exception to the hierarchy of instruction; however, he does not receive his orders from a mortal. Instead, by making contact with the realm of existence superior to the soul, the prophetic faculty of the high priest receives divine light which is communicated through the ranks of priests to the nation of worshippers. The archetypical scheme of the tabernacle is translated through the noetic and psychic realms before its sensible image is constructed. Although Philo assigns the high priest and the prophet each a different aspect of this translation, in reality, the two moments cannot be assigned to two different individuals. Thus, the high priest is also a prophet. The vesture of the high priest corresponds to the order of creation, and reflects the structure of the tabernacle. By wearing the universe as he moves through the parts of 127 the tabernacle, he symbolizes the complete mediation of the cosmos, joining the high with the low, the inner with the outer, the same with the different, and the one with the many. In Somn., Philo describes the mediating role of the high priest, whose nature is midway between God and man: "[the priest] is contiguous with both extremes, which form, as it were, one his head, the other his feet." Philo reiterates this sentiment when he describes the laver at the entrance to the outer court, which is crafted from mirrors. Even the lowest levels of the material world reflect the divine presence and can be used by the soul to initiate its return. The priests are appointed according to their innate dispositions to virtue, which determine their 'suitability' to lead the sacrifices, and to perform the sacred work. As ministers of both altars, the priests perform both material and immaterial rites. Their movement from inner to outer altar reflects the movement of the kind of soul that declines from contemplation - of which the circular motion of the planets is an image - and is drawn outward toward sensible objects in terrestrial world. Through realigning the powers of the soul by the cultivation of virtue, at the death of the mortal body, the soul is re-assimilated to its former nature. The high priest represents the perfect soul that descends into a mortal body for the sake of purifying and perfecting created life. Although the essence of the perfect soul remains untainted by its descent, its activities become temporarily dormant upon entering a body, and must be reawakened through philosophy. Like the high priest, the perfect soul puts on the world as an adornment; clothed in their garments, both remain stable, self-moving images of the world's maker. Both the perfect soul and high priest are distinct from others insofar as any sins they commit are involuntary. 239 Somn., 2.189. dXk' eKaxepoDv TCOV aicpcov, cbc; av p&aecoq mi KecpaWjq, scpoOTtonevoc; 128 The Levites, who are appointed as temple attendants, do not belong to the same taxis as the priests . Although the Levites demonstrated their capacity to act virtuously, their souls did not properly possess the power to actualize this virtue, which was instilled by Moses' sunthemata. Their position relative to the tabernacle corresponds to their inability to embrace virtue as their own proper possession: they were posted on the outside of the structure as its guards and keepers. The entire structure of the tabernacle represents the structure of reality, in which the appointed orders represent the cosmic roles of the various types of human souls. The sacred rites of service function to improve the dispositions of their participants. In Det., Philo explains why it is inadequate to compare the service of God to the service of a master by a slave: [I]t follows that while to masters, slaves render services that will benefit them, to God men can bring nothing except a disposition full of love to their master. For they will find nothing which they can improve, everything that their master has being perfect to start with; but they themselves will vastly benefit by taking steps to be admitted to intimacy with God.240 Philo, following Plato's Laws X, is adamant that prayers and sacrifices cannot influence God. Rather, according to Philo, participation in the rites of service is the means by which souls raise themselves towards God and dispose themselves to receive divine things. In his introduction to the office of the prophet, Philo explains that, though there are a variety of kinds of prophecy, there are three, which belong particularly to Moses. All three of these kinds require the perfection of the human soul through philosophy. Other kinds of divination, such as that of the augur, involve guesswork and are inherently unstable, producing "ideas which differ at different times because the things on which 240 Det., 56. MOTE EKEIVOIC; JIEV ia dxpsXriaovTa aikoix; vmripeTOuai, z&> 8' ou8ev E^CD (piXo6£07t6Tou yv\x.x\c, TiapE^ouar PEXTUOCJOU \xev yap OIJSEV £i>pf|cxoucn, xcov 8£a7ioTiKa>v rcavTcovE £ &pxfj<; ovxcov dpiaxcov, nsy&A,a 8' auTouq 6vr) God. Such results are particularly worrisome when the medium involves decaying matter, such as entrails, or when the diviner communicates with the dead. In such cases, the diviner seeks truth not from the stable source of all existence but to the very lowest things which are degenerating into non-existence. The first kind of prophecy is ineffable and indescribable and on this account, Philo excludes it from subsequent analysis. However, it is our position that this kind of prophecy corresponds to the ineffable contact with the divine made by the prophetic faculty of the high priest, which is conveyed to the community by means of the sacred rites and objects. The second kind of prophecy is obtained when the prophet has a question, and God supplies the answer. Question and answer prophecy supplements Moses' general perspective with concrete particulars, such as the logically appropriate means to an end. Because Moses is not swayed by natural circumstance, he requires divine assistance. Philo also establishes a correspondence between the knowledge of an individual and the way in which they are punished or benefited. The third type, given through divine inspiration, is characterized by the prediction of miraculous events that happen soon after the words are spoken. Philo shows that Moses, as inspired prophet, is 241 Spec. 1.61. aXkoxe akXaq anb TWV OIUTCQV (pavxaaiaq Xanfiavovzec,, 5ia TO \IT\TE T Moses has completed the full procession of the divine into creation, he has enabled the return of the creatures to their source, and is about to be called back to rest with the father. In light of our summary, let us now revisit the issues we outlined in our introduction. Ian Scott takes up the question of whether Philo's Moses is a divine man, which he denies on the basis that Mos. does not reflect a progression through elevated forms of knowing, rather, the progression corresponds to higher reflections of the good. Scott's position relies on too sharp a distinction between theoretical and practical activities. While Scott is correct to point out that, for Philo, the good becomes fully manifest through virtuous activity, his position fails to account for the fundamental link between knowledge, existence, and activity. For Philo, only at the very bottom of the created hierarchy are the theoretical and practical aspects of virtue two separate things achieved in temporal succession. Virtue is an activity either simultaneous with or following upon a conception of the good. Insofar as virtues are images of the divine activity - which is not separate from the divine knowing - virtues are always in accordance with some form of knowing. Thus, Scott's position is misleading insofar as he divides far too sharply between theory and practice; this leads to his distortion of Philo's actual position. As we 131 have seen, the degree to which Moses reflects the good corresponds to the degree to which he knows the good. Furthermore, Philo follows Plato in asserting a fundamental correspondence between knowability of an object, the stability of its being and the identity of subject and object. Both maintain that the degree of stability of the object known corresponds to its rank among existents and its proximity to the good. E.R. Goodenough also holds that that Philo's Mos. describes a contemplative ascent through several stages of 'mysteries' into which Moses is initiated and that each stage corresponds to an elevated ontological status. Goodenough sees these stages epitomized by four incidents, namely: (1) the revelation at the burning bush where God as Being is mediated through a triune image of the logos, and the creative and regent powers; (2) Moses' ascent on Sinai, where he attains a higher, more immediate knowledge of God; (3) the giving of the torah; and (4) Moses' death. For Goodenough, Moses draws increasingly closer to the source of the divine light stream as he moves through these four stages. We agree with Goodenough that the four moments reflect an increase in superiority; however, in light of our analysis of Mos., these four moments are not best described in terms of a sequential ascent through higher forms of knowing. In Henosis Ysabel de Andia finds absent in Philo but present in Dionysius and Gregory a spiritual progression, which entails - among other steps - purification, illumination, and perfection. Through our examination of Mos., we have shown that there are several movements in Mos., which depend on these three terms. First, is the movement of the rational soul which is purified through philosophy, aligns its lower faculties to the higher, and aligns itself with its higher principle by acknowledging its limits and by participating in its activity. In virtue of this participation, the rational soul 132 is perfected through the illumination it receives from above. This process is re-enacted in a modified way when, acting as king, Moses educates the nation. However, the illumination the nation reaches by the aid of the king is incomplete; it is only after Moses descends from Sinai and establishes the offices of high priest and prophet that the people are prepared to receive the Decalogue, which symbolizes the full manifestation of justice in the created realm, and enables the people access to full perfection. In Philo's version of the Letter of Aristeas, the translators undergo a process of purification before they achieve their prophetic illumination. A higher kind of purification is required for the high priest. At this level, the soul must separate itself completely from other mortals and purify itself of all its characteristic forms of mental activity, in order to become a completely passive receptacle for divine wisdom. When Moses undertakes this higher form of purification prior to his ascent on Sinai, he establishes this higher form of katharsis as an additional requirement for the high priest and prophet. However, it is clear that no soul is capable of attaining the same degree of elevation as Moses, who is elevated far beyond the nature of souls to the place which contains all created being - the divine darkness. Rather, Moses' descent as the light that proceeds from the divine darkness establishes the illumination received by the high priest who is a connecting link and mediator, through whom the divine light is made manifest in the terrestrial world. As such, Philo's high priest plays a role that is very much akin to Dionysius' Ecclesiastical hierarch. Through our examination of the office of high priest, we have seen that insofar as the tabernacle and the priesthood form an image of the entire created order, the archetypes after which they were fashioned are those from which the world was created. Hence, our position is that Dionysius' interpretation of the universal character of the 133 model shown to Moses is in full agreement with that of Philo's. However, Philo's high priest does not operate using concealed truths beneath shadowy images and enigmatic symbols that encode what Moses received on Sinai. Philo's high priest is endowed with power and light from the realm above, which he communicates to the ranks below him according to their capacities. The symbols, objects, and prayers used in worship are endowed with this divine power, which, according to Philo, is validated by the god-sent sign when the flames issue from the altar in book two of Mos. According to O'Meara, political life is an expansion of the philosophical life and constitutes a stage in the process of divinization. The political virtues correspond to proper life in the external human community and are brought to fruition by a ruler who has succeeded in bringing his own soul into a state of order and has privileged access to the divine: the soul-ordering activity of the individual philosopher extends to others when he assumes the role of king. O'Meara describes the path to divinization as an ascent through higher levels of virtue, corresponding to higher forms of knowledge, and to progressive stages of divinization. Thus, attaining the lower forms of virtue is pre- required for attaining the higher. In O'Meara's view, the Neoplatonic political virtues impose measure on passions associated with the activities of human nature, whereas the theurgic, or purificatory, virtues seek detachment from the passions, as such, the political is necessary to reach the purificatory. Philo agrees that the virtues of the king are a lower, and a necessary step to attaining the higher virtues associated with the office of high priest (who in many respects is similar to the theurgist); however, only Moses possesses apatheia, and Moses is superior to the high priest Aaron who must attain metriopatheia. For Philo, purification is not simply a virtue of the priesthood. For Philo, 134 each stage in the spiritual ascent involves some degree of purification in order to achieve the knowledge and perfecting activity that belong to that stage. Although Philo has allotted certain virtues which belong particularly to each office, these virtues are used to describe the qualities, or activities, of those who assume the official function, and are not graded hierarchically. While the high priest and prophet communicate higher forms of wisdom than the king does (and we see the lawgiver function as mediator of both earthly and heavenly wisdom), they do not form higher stages in a spiritual progress. However, when we examined the parable of the nut near the end of our treatment of the high priest, we saw that Philo does posit a hierarchy involving the four cardinal virtues. The four cardinal virtues are achieved differently by the different types of souls, which are ordered hierarchically according to their perfection. However, the four offices do not correspond neatly to stages in a graded hierarchy through which Moses ascends. Rather, the offices are used to outline the ways through which divine knowledge is communicated to the various grades of human souls, and they enable us to understand that the constitution revealed by Moses is truly the divine law, wherein the various levels of creation are joined in an unbroken chain. Finally, we must consider who - or what - exactly Moses is, according to Philo. Through our analysis, we have seen that Philo depicts Moses in various ontological states. The progress and activity through which Moses passes in the first book of Mos. correspond to stages belonging to the embodied human soul. However, when Moses emerges from God's darkness on Sinai, it is as the primary light which extends to all created being. In Mos., Philo describes Moses both as fully human, and as fully God. While it is true that Philo maintain the superior position of God over creation, we cannot 135 agree with Scott that "Philo never appears to have wavered in his conviction that 'there is a vast chasm between Creator and creature.'" Scott's evaluation of Philo's Moses as an "agent of one incalculably greater than himself enables him to conclude that he "cannot serve as a bridge between that Pythagorean sage and the early Christian treatment of Jesus of Nazareth."243 It is our position that Moses is the eternal activity of the existent God, which in itself is one, but is revealed to mankind as the logos. By being both God and man, Moses binds the creature to the creator, and he is not simply an entity that separates, or divides, two extremes. It is through revisting Philo's reliance on the Pythagoreans for his interpretation of the Decalogue that we can understand how Moses is both existent God and logos. The Decalogue corresponds to the Pythagorean decad, which represents the total fulfillment of all created being and the actualization of the four - which represents justice and is Philo's divine logos. In Opif., Philo writes: [The four] is the base and the source of the ten, the complete number, for what ten is actually, as is evident, four is potentially; that is to say that, if the numbers from one to four be added together, they will produce ten, and this is the limit set to the otherwise unlimited succession of numbers; round this as a turning point they wheel and retrace their steps.244 Like the decad, which encompasses all logical relations, all forms of knowing, and all forms of being, the Decalogue is the full and complete actualization of the four - the divine light - in the human dianoia. According to Philo, the numbers in the decad are divided into three categories: numbers that create and are not created, numbers that are 242 Scott, "Is Philo's Moses a Divine Man?" 110. 243 Scott, "Is Philo's Moses a Divine Man?" 110. 244 Opif., 41, f\v 8SK&8OC; xx\c, navTzkziaq OUK av 5ia|xdpToi TI<; &(pop|if|v elvai Aiycov KOU 7inyf|v 6 yap EVie/lexsig dexdc,, TOUTO Terpen;, To conclude, we shall outline one of the many areas of research in which Philo must be considered. As we have shown, the developments O'Meara finds in Eusebius 245 Cher., 96-97. 7ipo xcov ELicpavcov xa acpavfj KaxaOsaaGai cpcoxl xpcoLievov Eauxco 6 yap tou ovxoc; 6(p9a^|x6<; cpcoxoc; exspou 7ipo<; KaxcW.r|V|/iv ou Sstxai, ambq 8' cov ap^exrraoc; auyf] (xupiac; ducxtvac; zK^akl&i 246 Fug., 112. 6 XE yap xou ovxoq Xoyoc; Seanoq cov xcov arcavxcov, cbc; ei'pr|xai, Kai GUVE/EI xa LiepT] Tiavxa Kai ocpiyysi KCOA-UCOV auxa 5iali3ea9ai Kai 8iapxao0ai 137 and attributes to the Middle and Neoplatonists, are clearly found in Philo. Insofar as we owe the existence of Philonic corpus largely to Eusebius' writings in which it was preserved, and that Eusebius explicitly relies on Philo as an authority, the question is not whether Philo influenced Eusebius' political philosophy, rather it is a question of how. It is not difficult to understand why the early Christians were attracted to Philo. Philo confronts the relationship between the biblical tradition and Hellenic culture by presenting a system in which both traditions are fully preserved. Emerging out of Judaism, early Christianity faced many of the same problems as Philo had faced, and sought the guidance of this Alexandrian Jew in matters of philosophy, secular authority, doctrine, and scriptural interpretation, to name a few. Arising from our accomplishments in this thesis, we feel that it is necessary to articulate the importance of Philo's work with respect to how Christians in the eastern Empire defined themselves relative to Judaism and Hellenism. With respect to the Christians, we have identified two major avenues for future research, one of which shall examine the notions of history and divine kingship in Eusebius and Philo, and the other shall explore the role of the Philonic high priest relative to the Dionysian hierarch. 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