Third “Lord”; “I see you are a prophet”; five husbands versus Heracleon’s six
The woman says to him, “Lord, I see that you are a prophet.” This is already the third time the Samaritan woman names the Savior “Lord”: first, “Lord, you have no bucket”; again, “Lord, give me this water”; and now when she also calls him a prophet.
We read, “You have had five husbands.” Beside Heracleon we found, “You have had six husbands,” and he takes the six to mean the whole of material evil.
She does not yet think him greater than the prophets, nor the one the prophets foretold, but only a prophet. So too the heterodox mind: once her five earlier husbands and the later seeming-husband have been exposed, she calls the Word that exposed them a prophet — someone divine, better than a mere human.
Greek
Λέγει αὐτῷ ἡ γυνή · Κύριε, θεωρῶ ὅτι προφήτης εἶ σύ. τρίτον ἤδη ἡ Σαμαρεῖτις κύριον ἀναγορεύει τὸν σωτῆρα, πρότερον μὲν ὅτε · Κύριε, οὔτε ἄντλημα ἔχεις · καὶ πάλιν · Κύριε, δός μοι τοῦτο τὸ ὕδωρ · νῦν δὲ ὅτε καὶ προφήτην αὐτὸν εἶναί φησιν.
ἡμεῖς μὲν ἀνέγνωμεν · Πέντε ἄνδρας ἔσχες · παρὰ δὲ τῷ Ἡρακλέωνι εὕρομεν · Ἓξ ἄνδρας ἔσχες. καὶ ἑρμηνεύει γε τὴν ὑλικὴν πᾶσαν κακίαν διὰ τῶν ἓξ ἀνδρῶν δηλοῦσθαι.
πλὴν οὐδέπω οἴεται εἶναι τῶν προφητῶν κρείττονα οὐδὲ τὸν προφητευθέντα, ἀλλά τινα προφήτην. καὶ ἡ ἑτερόδοξος δὲ γνώμη, διελεγχθέντων αὐτῆς τῶν τε προτέρων πέντε ἀνδρῶν καὶ τοῦ μετ’ ἐκείνους δόξαντος εἶναι ἀνδρός, τὸν ἐλέγξαντα λόγον προφήτην εἶναί φησιν, θεῖόν τινα ἔχοντα ἀνθρώπου κρεῖττον.
About this text
Origen’s Commentary on John, Book 13 (later tomoi). Complete on this page: §§1–64.
English follows Preuschen, Origenes Werke IV (GCS 10, 1903). Heine FOTC was not used as wording. This page is Book 13 §§1–64 of the later books (13, 19, 20, 28, 32).
Witnesses
- Copy-text Preuschen, Origenes Werke IV = GCS 10 (1903) (Greek · Book 13 §§1–64)
English is newly prepared for study from the stated edition. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.