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Memoirs of Edessa and Other Ancient Syriac Documents
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[3480] Lit., “made captive.”
[3481] For *** read ***.
[3482] No verb is found in the lexicons to which *** can be referred. It may perhaps be Eshtaphel of a verb ***, cognate with ***, “to be bent.”
[3483] For *** read ***.
[3484] Or “moderation.”
[3485] Cureton: “dumb.” The word *** has both senses.
[3486] Or “penitent.”
[3487] So Dr. Payne Smith, who is inclined to take *** in the sense, “it goes before, it is best, with respect to it.” Cureton translates, “it should also proceed to practice,” joining *** with the participle just mentioned; whereas Dr. Smith connects it with ***, thus: “but that it should be put in practice is best with respect to it.”
[3488] This appears to show that the life of learned seclusion which he has been recommending is one of celibacy—monasticism.
[3489] Or, “and thou shalt be to me a comfort,” as Cureton.
[3490] That is, “myself.”
[3491] Such appears to be the sense of this obscure passage. The literal rendering is, “We acknowledged of old that we received equal love and honour to the fullest extent from her multitude” (or, from her greatness); “but the time forbade our completing those things which were already accomplished in our mind.” What things he refers to (for his words seem to have a particular reference) is not clear. The word rendered “greatness,” or “multitude,” is in reality two words in pointedmss. Here it does not appear, except from the sense, which is intended.
[3492] Lit., “We are putting ourself to the proof to see how far we can stand in wisdom,” etc.
[3493] “This is a very hopeless passage.…Perhaps the codex has ***, ‘the kingdom of our ruin,’ i.e., the ruined country in which we used to dwell. For possibly it refers to what he has said before about the ruined greatness of his city, captured by the Romans. I suppose Mara was a Persian.”—Dr. Payne Smith.
[3494] Or, “the time.”
[3495] This piece has much in common with the Discourse to the Greeks (Λόγος πρὸς ῞Ελληνας), ascribed by many to Justin, which is contained in vol. i. pp. 271–272 of this series. Two things seem to be evident: (1) That neither of the two pieces is the original composition: for each contains something not found in the other; (2) That the original was in Greek: for the Syriac has in some instances evidently mistranslated the Greek.
[3496] The Greek ὑπομνήματα.
[3497] Lit., “and in the beginning of his words.”
[3498] Lit. “what is the newness and strangeness of it.”
[3499] The word also means “sin;” and this notion is the more prominent of the two in what follows.
[3500] It is difficult to assign any satisfactory meaning to the word ***, which appears, however, to be the reading of the ms., since Cureton endeavours to justify the rendering given. “Calamities,” a sense the word will also bear, seems no easier of explanation. If we could assume the meaning to be “nations” (nationes), a word similar in sound to that found in the text, explaining it of heathen peoples, Gentiles (comp. Tertullian, De Idol., 22, “per deos nationum”), this might seem to meet the difficulty. But there is no trace in this composition of a Latin influence: if a foreign word must be used, we should rather have expected the Greek ἔθνη.
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