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In Diognetus, the gods of the Greeks are described as deaf and blind, and the people who serve them as ending up like them, echoing the language of Psalm 115, where idols cannot see or hear and those who make them end up like them.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Psalm 115:8
Hebrew Bible
1 Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name bring honor, for the sake of your loyal love and faithfulness. 2 Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?” 3 Our God is in heaven. He does whatever he pleases. 4 Their idols are made of silver and gold—they are man-made. 5 They have mouths, but cannot speak; eyes, but cannot see; 6 ears, but cannot hear; noses, but cannot smell; 7 hands, but cannot touch; feet, but cannot walk. They cannot even clear their throats. 8 Those who make them will end up like them, as will everyone who trusts in them. 9 O Israel, trust in the Lord. He is their deliverer and protector.
Epistle to Diognetus 2:5
Early Christian
4 Could not these things which are now worshipped by you, by human hands again be made vessels like the rest? Are not they all deaf and blind, are they not soulless, senseless, motionless? Do they not all rot and decay? 5 These things you call gods, to these you are slaves, these you worship; and you end by becoming altogether like them. 6 Therefore you hate the Christians, because they do not consider these to be gods. 7 For do not you yourselves, who now regard and worship them, much more despise them? Do you not much rather mock and insult them, worshipping those that are of stone and earthenware unguarded, but shutting up those that are of silver and gold by night, and setting guards over them by day, to prevent their being stolen?
Date: 150-250 C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
“... The elegantly written work is similar to Aristides’s Apology, but not dependent upon it. Like Aristides’s work, it blends Hellenism and Judaism. It uses such apologetics as are to be found in Psalm 115, in the Wisdom of Solomon, and in the Sibylline Oracles. Its understanding of creation also is anthropocentric, the world being understood as having been made for humanity’s sake. ...”
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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