Disasters and Providence in Early Christianity

Origen, Against Celsus Direct teaching

... not serve demons. Is it not true that all things are ordered according to God's will, and that His providence governs all things? Is not everything that happens in the universe, whether it is the work of God, of angels, of other demons, or of heroes, regulated by the law of the Most High God? Have not these beings been assigned different areas of rule, according to what each was considered worthy of? Is it not just, then, that the one who worships God should also serve those to whom God has assigned such power? Yet it is impossible,” he says, “for a man to serve many masters.” Notice again how he decides at once a number of questions that require serious study and deep knowledge of the most hidden matters in the government of the universe. For we must examine the meaning of the statement that all things are ordered according to God's will, and find out whether sins are included among the things that God orders or not. For if God's rule extends to sins, not only in men but also in demons and in any other spiritual beings capable of sin, then those who speak this way must consider how troublesome the expression is, that all things are ordered by the will of God. For it follows fr

Clement of Alexandria, The Stromata (Miscellanies) Direct teaching

There being then a Providence, it were impious to think that the whole of prophecy and the economy in reference to a Saviour did not take place in accordance with Providence.

Lactantius, The Epitome of the Divine Institutes Supporting witness

Chrysippus, a man with an active mind, saw this when he discussed providence. He accuses as foolish those who think that good is caused by God, but say that evil is not caused by Him in the same way. Aulus Gellius explained his view in his books called Attic Nights, saying this: Those who do not think that the world was made for the sake of God and human beings, and that human affairs are ruled by providence, think they are using a strong argument when they speak this way: "If there were providence, there would be no evils." For they say that nothing is less consistent with providence than this: that in this world, for the sake of which it is said that God made human beings, the power of troubles and evils should be so great. In answer to these things, Chrysippus, while arguing in his fourth book on providence, said: "Nothing could be more foolish than the people who think that good things could exist if evils did not exist in the same place. For since good things are opposed to evil things, they must necessarily stand against each other, and rest, so to speak, on mutual and opposite support. So one opposite cannot exist without the other. For how could there be any understanding o

Clement of Alexandria, The Stromata (Miscellanies) Supporting witness

calls Providence holy and good; and has its being in the knowledge of divine and human affairs, by which it deems the opposites that are in the world to be the fairest harmony of creation.

Minucius Felix, Octavius Supporting witness

It seemed to signify the overruling of Providence, and the power of God to turn the folly, not less than the wrath, of men, to God's praise. See Herod., book iii. cap. lxxxvi.

Lactantius, The Divine Institutes Supporting witness

Wherefore he ought not to have supposed that the world was not made by divine providence, because its matter was not made by divine providence;

Victorinus, Commentary on the Apocalypse Supporting witness

...d near it another tree, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He gave a command and decreed a judgment against sin. He preserved the most righteous Noah from the dangers of the flood, because of the merit of his innocence and faith. He translated Enoch. He chose Abraham into the fellowship of His friendship. He protected Isaac. He increased Jacob. He gave Moses as a leader to the people. He delivered the groaning children of Israel from the yoke of slavery. He wrote the law. He brought the offspring of our fathers into the land of promise. He instructed the prophets by His Spirit, and through all of them He promised His Son Christ. And at the time when He had covenanted that He would give Him, He sent Him. Through Him He desired to come into our knowledge, and to pour out on us the generous riches of His mercy, by giving His abundant Spirit to the poor and lowly. And because He is generous and kind of His own free will, lest this whole world, having turned away from the streams of His grace, should dry up, He willed that the apostles, as founders of our family, should be sent by His Son into the whole world. This was so that the condition of the human race might become awa

Novatian, Treatise Concerning the Trinity Supporting witness

...d near it another tree, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He gave a command and decreed a judgment against sin. He preserved the most righteous Noah from the dangers of the flood, because of the merit of his innocence and faith. He translated Enoch. He chose Abraham into the fellowship of His friendship. He protected Isaac. He increased Jacob. He gave Moses as a leader to the people. He delivered the groaning children of Israel from the yoke of slavery. He wrote the law. He brought the offspring of our fathers into the land of promise. He instructed the prophets by His Spirit. And through all of them He promised His Son Christ. And at the time at which He had covenanted that He would give Him, He sent Him. Through Him He desired to come into our knowledge, and to pour out on us the rich stores of His mercy, by giving His abundant Spirit to the poor and lowly. And because He is generous and kind of His own free will, lest this whole world, turned away from the streams of His grace, should wither, He willed that the apostles, as founders of our family, should be sent by His Son into the whole world. Thus the human race might become conscious of its Founder. And if it sho

Apostolic Constitutions, Apostolic Constitutions Supporting witness

...e hardly escape our miserable condition? The heavens declare Your rule, and the earth trembles with earthquakes and, hanging on nothing, declares Your unshaken firmness. The sea, raging with waves and feeding a flock of countless creatures, is bounded by sand, standing in awe at Your command, and it compels all men to cry out, "How great are Your works, O Lord! In wisdom You have made them all; the earth is full of Your creation." And the shining host of angels and the intellectual spirits say to Palmoni, "There is but one holy Being." And the holy seraphim, together with the six-winged cherubim, who sing to You their song of triumph, cry out with unceasing voices, "Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of hosts! Heaven and earth are full of Your glory," Isaiah 6:3. And the other multitudes of the orders—angels, archangels, thrones, dominions, principalities, authorities, and powers—cry aloud and say, "Blessed be the glory of the Lord out of His place," Ezekiel 3:12. But Israel, Your Church on earth, taken from the Gentiles, imitates the heavenly powers night and day, and with a full heart and a willing soul sings, "The chariot of God is tens of thousands, thousands rejoicing; the Lord is

Origen, Against Celsus Supporting witness

Belief in Antinous, then, or in any other such person, whether among the Egyptians or the Greeks, is, so to speak, unfortunate. But belief in Jesus would seem to be either fortunate, or the result of thorough investigation. To the multitude, it has the appearance of the former; to exceedingly few, of the latter. And when I speak of a certain belief as, in the judgment of the multitude, unfortunate, I in such a case refer the cause to God, who knows the reasons for the different fates allotted to each person who enters human life. The Greeks, moreover, will admit that even among those considered to be most richly endowed with wisdom, good fortune has had much to do with it. This is seen in the choice of one kind of teacher rather than another, in meeting a better class of instructors, since there were teachers who taught the most opposite doctrines, and in being brought up in better circumstances. For many were brought up in surroundings of such a kind that they were prevented from ever receiving any idea of better things. Instead, from their earliest youth, they passed their life either as the favorites of licentious men or of tyrants, or in some other wretched condition that kept

Wisdom of Solomon 17:2 Background

For when unrighteous men thought to oppress the holy nation; They being shut up in their houses, the prisoners of darkness, and fettered with the bonds of a long night, Lay there exiled from the eternal providence.

3 Maccabees 4:21 Background

Now this was the active interference of the unconquerable Providence which assisted the Jews from heaven.

Wisdom of Solomon 14:3 Background

But thy providence, O Father, governeth it: For thou hast made a way in the sea, And a safe path in the waves;

Daniel 4:21 Background

Whose leaves were fair, and the fruit thereof much, and in it was meat for all; under which the beasts of the field dwelt, and upon whose branches the fowls of the heaven had their habitation:

Ezekiel 31:4 Background

The waters nourished it; the deep made it grow tall, making its rivers flow around the place of its planting, sending forth its streams to all the trees of the field.

Lactantius, The Divine Institutes Background

...oof from something uncertain in order to overthrow what was certain. For that the world was made by divine providence—to say nothing of Trismegistus, who declares this; to say nothing of the verses of the Sibyls, which announce the same thing; to say nothing of the prophets, who with one impulse and in one united voice bear witness that the world was made and that it was the work of God—even the philosophers almost all agree. For this is the view of the Pythagoreans, the Stoics, and the Peripatetics, who are the chief schools of every sect. In short, from those first seven wise men down to Socrates and Plato, this was held as an accepted and unquestioned fact, until many ages later when the mad Epicurus appeared. He alone dared to deny what is most clear, no doubt because he wanted to discover new ideas so that he might establish a sect under his own name. And because he could find nothing new, he wanted at least to seem different from the others, and so he tried to overthrow old opinions. But in this, all the philosophers who snarled around him refuted him. Therefore, it is more certain that the world was arranged by providence than that matter was gathered together by providen

Theophilus of Antioch, To Autolycus Background

...consistent other people, and in fact almost the majority, have been in what they said about God and providence. Some have completely denied God and providence. Others, however, have affirmed God and declared that all things are governed by providence. Therefore, the intelligent listener and reader must pay close attention to their words. Simylus also said, "It is the custom of poets to use one common name for both the extremely wicked and the excellent; therefore we must make distinctions." Philemon also says, "A foolish man who sits and only listens is a troublesome thing, for he does not criticize himself, so foolish is he." So then, we must pay attention and think carefully about what is said, examining critically what the philosophers and the poets have spoken.

Origen, Against Celsus Background

Now from this it follows that the general statement of Celsus, even according to the Greeks, who hold the doctrine of Providence, is false, that if any whole be a god, its parts necessarily are divine.

Apostolic Constitutions, Apostolic Constitutions Background

An Enumeration of the Several Instances of Divine Providence, and How in Every Age from the Beginning of the World God Has Invited All Men to Repentance.

Theophilus of Antioch, To Autolycus Background

And did not the poets Homer and Hesiod and Orpheus profess that they themselves had been instructed by Divine Providence?

Arnobius, Against the Heathen Background

Did not bygone days witness cities with their populations engulphed by huge rents of the earth?

Cyprian, Treatises Direct teaching

5. Moreover, that wars continue frequently to prevail, that death and famine accumulate anxiety, that health is shattered by raging diseases, that the human race is wasted by the desolation of pestilence, know that this was foretold;

4 Maccabees 9:24 Supporting witness

by which means our just and paternal Providence, becoming merciful to the nation, will punish the pestilent tyrant.

Lactantius, On the Workmanship of God Supporting witness

Therefore they blamed those things in which providence wonderfully expressed its divinity, as those things which I have related concerning diseases and premature death;

Clement of Alexandria, The Stromata (Miscellanies) Supporting witness

...s the following about those who are punished by martyrdom: “For I say this: Whoever falls under the afflictions mentioned, because he has unconsciously transgressed in other matters, is brought to this good end by the kindness of Him who brings him there, though he is accused on other grounds. This is so that he may not suffer as one condemned for acknowledged iniquities, nor be reproached as an adulterer or a murderer, but because he is a Christian. This will comfort him, so that he does not seem to suffer. And if someone who has not sinned at all suffers—a rare case—even he will not suffer anything through the schemes of power, but will suffer as the child would suffer who seems not to have sinned.” Then farther on he adds: “As, then, the child that has not sinned before, or committed actual sin in itself, but has that which committed sin, when it is subjected to suffering, receives good, reaping the benefit of many hardships, so also, although a perfect man may not have sinned in act, while he endures afflictions, he suffers in a similar way with the child. He has within himself the sinful principle, but does not embrace the opportunity of committing sin, so he does not sin.

Dionysius of Alexandria, Exegetical Fragments Supporting witness

...world you shall have tribulation." In the same way, He also says through the prophet, "Many are the afflictions of the righteous." But I think He is referring to this not entering into temptation when He speaks, in the prophet's words, of being delivered out of afflictions. For He adds, "The Lord will deliver him out of them all." And this agrees exactly with the Savior's word, by which He promises that they will overcome their afflictions and share in the victory that He has won for them. For after saying, "In the world you shall have tribulation," He added, "But be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." Again, He taught them to pray that they might not fall into temptation when He said, "And lead us not into temptation," which means, "Do not allow us to fall into temptation." And to show that this did not mean that they should not be tempted, but rather that they should be delivered from evil, He added, "But deliver us from evil." But perhaps you will say, "What difference is there between being tempted and falling, or entering, into temptation?" Well, if someone is overcome by evil—and he will be overcome unless he struggles against it himself, and unless God protects him

Archelaus, Disputation with Manes Supporting witness

...o each person the sense of free will. In keeping with that standard, He also established the law of judgment. To sin is ours, and that we do not sin is God's gift, since our will is formed to choose either to sin or not to sin. And you surely understand this well enough yourself, Manes. For you know that even if you brought together all your disciples and warned them not to commit any transgression or do any unrighteousness, every one of them might still pass by the law of judgment. And certainly, whoever wills may keep the commandments. And whoever despises them, and turns aside to what is contrary to them, will still, without doubt, have to face this law of judgment. For this reason also, certain of the angels refused to submit themselves to God's commandment, and resisted His will. One of them indeed fell like a flash of lightning upon the earth, while others, harassed by the dragon, sought their felicity in intercourse with the daughters of men, and so brought on themselves the deserved sentence of the punishment of eternal fire. And that angel who was cast down to earth, finding no further entrance into any of the regions of heaven, now flaunts about among men, deceiving th

Lactantius, The Divine Institutes Supporting witness

not only by fire and the sword, but also by continual earthquakes and overflowings of waters, and by frequent diseases and repeated famines.

Hermas, The Shepherd (Pastor) Supporting witness

and if he endure the afflictions that come upon him, He who created all things, and endued them with power, will assuredly have compassion, and will heal him;

Dionysius of Alexandria, Exegetical Fragments Supporting witness

And to the same effect also He says by the prophet, Many are the afflictions of the righteous.

Wisdom of Solomon 19:13 Supporting witness

And punishments came upon the sinners Not without former signs by the force of thunders: For they suffered justly according to their own wickedness, Insomuch as they used a more hard and hateful behavior toward strangers.

Psalms 34:19 Supporting witness

Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all.

Deuteronomy 28:59 Supporting witness

then the LORD will bring on you and your offspring extraordinary afflictions, afflictions severe and lasting, and sicknesses grievous and lasting.

2 Thessalonians 1:6 Supporting witness

since indeed God considers it just to repay with affliction those who afflict you,

1 Thessalonians 5:9 Supporting witness

For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,

1 Peter 4:12 Supporting witness

Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.

Proverbs 11:8 Supporting witness

The righteous is delivered from trouble, And it comes to the wicked instead.

Jeremiah 1:14 Supporting witness

Then the LORD said to me, “Out of the north disaster shall be let loose upon all the inhabitants of the land.

Ezekiel 7:26 Supporting witness

Disaster comes upon disaster; rumor follows rumor. They seek a vision from the prophet, while the law perishes from the priest and counsel from the elders.

Psalms 46:8 Supporting witness

Come, behold the works of the LORD, how he has brought desolations on the earth.

Wisdom of Sirach 11:14 Supporting witness

Prosperity and adversity, life and death, Poverty and riches, come of the Lord.

Jeremiah 33:20 Supporting witness

Many are the afflictions of the righteous: But out of them all the Lord will deliver them.

Baruch 2:25 Supporting witness

And lo, they are cast out to the heat of the day, and to the frost of the night, and they died in great miseries by famine, by sword, and by pestilence.

2 Chronicles 15:6 Supporting witness

And nation shall fight against nation, and city against city; for God has confounded them with every kind of affliction.

Lamentations 3:1 Supporting witness

I AM the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of his wrath.

Dionysius of Alexandria, Epistles and Epistolary Fragments Direct teaching

It is true that many terrible disasters had already happened to us before this. First, they drove us away. Even though we were completely alone, hunted by everyone, and close to being killed, we still kept our festival, even at that time. And every place where any of us suffered, one after another, became a place for our sacred meetings: the field, the desert, the ship, the inn, and the prison alike. The happiest festival of all, however, was celebrated by those perfect martyrs who sat down at the feast in heaven. After these things, war and famine came upon us. These were disasters that we did indeed share with the heathen. But we also had to bear, by ourselves alone, those evils with which they attacked us. At the same time, we also had to endure our share in the things they did to each other or suffered at each other’s hands. Yet again, we greatly rejoiced in that peace of Christ which He gave to us alone.

Arnobius, Against the Heathen Direct teaching

...ned the air people breathed into deadly poison and ordered the destruction of mortals by plague and pestilence? If the magistrate who presided over the games was too careless to learn who had been led across the circus on that day, and blame was therefore incurred, what had the unhappy people done that they should suffer in their own persons the penalty for another man's offenses, and be forced to rush out of life by contagious pestilence? No, what had the women done, whose weakness did not allow them to take part in public affairs? What had the grown maidens done, the little boys, and finally the young children, still dependent on their nurses for food? What had these done, that they should be struck with equal severity, the same severity, and that before they tasted the joy of life they should feel the bitterness of death?

Arnobius, Against the Heathen Direct teaching

My opponents say that because of the Christians, the gods bring all calamities on us, and the heavenly deities ruin our crops. When you say these things, I ask, do you not see that you are accusing us with shameless boldness, with obvious and clearly proven falsehoods? It has been almost three hundred years, a little less or more, since we Christians began to exist and to be noticed in the world. During all these years, have wars never stopped? Has there been a crop failure every year? Has there been no peace on earth? Has there been no time of low prices and abundance of all things? For the one who accuses us must first prove this: that these calamities have been unending and constant, that men have never had any breathing space at all, and that without any break they have gone through dangers of many kinds.

Tertullian, Ad Nationes Direct teaching

If the Tiber has overflowed its banks, if the Nile has remained in its bed, if the sky has been still, or the earth been in commotion, if death has made its devastations, or famine its afflictions, your cry immediately is, This is the fault of the Christians!

Lactantius, The Divine Institutes Supporting witness

...First of all, therefore, it is not probable that the matter from which all things arose was made by divine providence, but that it has, and has had, a force and nature of its own. As therefore the builder, when he is about to erect any building, does not himself make the materials, but uses those which are already prepared, and the statuary also uses the wax; so divine providence ought to have had materials at hand, not of its own production, but already prepared for use. But if matter was not made by God, then neither were the earth, and water, and air, and fire, made by God." Oh, how many faults there are in these ten lines! First, the man who in almost all his other arguments and books defended divine providence, and used very sharp arguments against those who denied that providence exists, now himself, like a traitor or deserter, tried to take providence away. If you want to oppose him in this matter, no thought or labor is needed. It is only necessary to remind him of his own words. For no one could refute Cicero more strongly than Cicero himself. But let us grant this to the custom and practice of the Academics: that men may speak very freely and hold whatever opinions the

Arnobius, Against the Heathen Supporting witness

But assuredly this would not occur if the gods, who had been laid under obligation, were able to ward off, to turn aside, those evils from those who merited this favour.

Cyprian, Treatises Background

...elf blessed that, by an earlier departure, you are taken away and delivered from the shipwrecks and disasters that are near?

Tertullian, Apology Background

...an obstinate refusal to offer sacrifices, he found in their religious services nothing but meetings early in the morning for singing hymns to Christ and God, and sealing their way of life by a united pledge to remain faithful to their religion, forbidding murder, adultery, dishonesty, and other crimes. In reply, Trajan wrote back that Christians were by no means to be sought out. But if they were brought before him, they should be punished. O miserable deliverance. Under the necessities of the case, it is a self-contradiction. It forbids them to be sought out, as innocent, and it commands them to be punished, as guilty. It is at once merciful and cruel. It passes by, and it punishes. Why do you play this game of evasion with yourself, O Judgment? If you condemn, why do you not also inquire? If you do not inquire, why do you not also absolve? Military stations are set throughout all the provinces for tracking robbers. Against traitors and public enemies every man is a soldier. Search is made even for their confederates and accessories. The Christian alone must not be sought, though he may be brought and accused before the judge, as if a search had any other end than that! And so

Early Liturgies, Divine Liturgy of St. Mark Background

From evil days, from famine and pestilence, and from the assault of barbarians, defend, O Lord, this Christ-loving city, humble and worthy of Your compassion, just as You spared Nineveh long ago.

Lactantius, The Epitome of the Divine Institutes Background

...e sword, and at other times by repeated earthquakes; now by floods of water, and now by disease and famine. The earth will produce nothing. It will be barren either because of extreme cold or extreme heat. All water will be partly changed into blood and partly ruined by bitterness, so that none of it will be useful for food or healthy for drinking. To these evils, signs from heaven will also be added, so that people will lack nothing that could cause fear. Comets will appear often. The sun will be darkened with lasting paleness. The moon will be stained with blood, and it will not regain the light it has lost. All the stars will fall, and the seasons will no longer keep their proper order, because winter and summer will be confused. Then the year, the month, and the day will all be shortened. And Trismegistus has declared that this is the old age and decline of the world. And when this happens, it must be understood that the time is near when God will return to change the world. But in the middle of these evils, an impious king will arise, hostile not only to mankind but also to God. He will trample on, torment, harass, and put to death those who were spared by that former tyran

Early Liturgies, Divine Liturgy of St. Mark Background

From evil days, from famine and pestilence, from the assault of barbarians, defend, O Lord, this Christ-loving city, lowly and worthy of Your compassion, as You spared Nineveh of old.

Ezekiel 7:15 Direct teaching

The sword is without, and the pestilence and the famine within: he that is in the field shall die with the sword; and he that is in the city, famine and pestilence shall devour him.

Ezekiel 5:17 Direct teaching

So will I send upon you famine and evil beasts, and they shall bereave thee: and pestilence and blood shall pass through thee; and I will bring the sword upon thee. I the LORD have spoken it.

Ezekiel 14:21 Direct teaching

For thus says the Lord God: “How much more it shall be when I send My four severe judgments on Jerusalem—the sword and famine and wild beasts and pestilence—to cut off man and beast from it?

2 Chronicles 6:28 Direct teaching

If there should be famine upon the land, if there should be death, a pestilent wind and blight; if there should be locust and caterpillar, and if the enemy should harass them before their cities: in whatever plague and whatever distress they may be;

1 Chronicles 21:12 Direct teaching

either three years of famine, or that thou shouldest flee three months from the face of thine enemies, and the sword of thine enemies shall be employed to destroy thee, or that the sword of the Lord and pestilence should be three days in the land, and the angel of the Lord shall be destroying in all the inheritance of Israel. And now consider what I shall answer to him that sent the message.

2 Chronicles 7:13 Direct teaching

If I should restrain the heaven and there should be no rain, and if I should command the locust to devour the trees, and if I should send pestilence upon my people;

Ezekiel 7:5 Direct teaching

“Thus says the Lord GOD: Disaster after disaster! Behold, it comes.

Acts 11:28 Supporting witness

And there stood up one of them named Agabus, and signified by the Spirit that there should be great dearth throughout all the world: which came to pass in the days of Claudius Caesar.

Cyprian, Treatises Background

For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and earthquakes, and pestilences, in every place.

Tatian, The Diatessaron Background

And when you hear of wars and tidings of insurrections, see to it, be not agitated: for these things must 40 first be;

Irenaeus, Connection to Romans 5:17 Background

Much more they who receive abundance of grace and righteousness for [eternal] life, shall reign by one, Christ Jesus.

Exodus 9:3 Background

behold, the hand of the Lord shall be upon thy cattle in the fields, both on the horses, and on the asses, and on the camels and oxen and sheep, a very great mortality.

1 Kings 8:37 Background

If there should be famine, if there should be death, because there should be blasting, locust, or if there be mildew, and if their enemy oppress them in anyone of their cities, with regard to every calamity, every trouble,

Ephesians 5:17 Background

So I will send forth against thee famine and evil beasts, and I will take vengeance upon thee; and pestilence and blood shall pass through upon thee; and I will bring a sword upon thee round about. I the Lord have spoken.

Ephesians 6:12 Background

He that is near shall fall by the sword; and he that is far off shall die by the pestilence; and he that is in the siege shall be consumed with famine: and I will accomplish mine anger upon them.

Habakkuk 3:5 Background

Before him went pestilence, and plague followed at his heels.

1 Corinthians 2:2 Background

to bring upon us great plagues, such as never happened under the whole heaven, as it came to pass in Jerusalem, according to the things that were written in the law of Moses;

Baruch 2:2 Background

to bring upon us great plagues, such as never happened under the whole heaven, as it came to pass in Jerusalem, according to the things that were written in the law of Moses;