Texts in Conversation
The Christian theologian Dionysius of Alexandria quotes the book of Tobit, demonstrating how Christian tradition used Jewish texts such as Tobit as authoritative sources of theology and practice, showing how he was influenced by Jewish traditions.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Tobit 12:7
Deuterocanon
5 And he called him and said, Take the half of all that you had when you came for your wages, and go in peace. 6 Then he called them both privately, and said to them, Bless God, and give him thanks in the sight of all that live, for the good things which he has done to you, to bless and praise his name. The words of God show forth to all men with honour and do not be slack to give him thanks. 7 It is good to keep close the secret of a king, but to confess and reveal the works of God. And confess them with honour. Do the good, and evil shall not find you. 8 Better is prayer with truth, and alms with righteousness than riches with unrighteousness; it is better to give alms than to lay up gold: 9 almsgiving does deliver from death, and it purges away all sin. They that do alms shall be fed with life;
Dionysius of Alexandria, Dionysius Epistles 10
Early Christian
I fear that I run the risk of being charged with great folly and senselessness, placed as I am under the necessity of giving a narrative of the wonderful dispensation of God's providence in our case. Since, however, as one says, it is good to keep close the secret of a king, but it is honourable to reveal the works of God, I shall come to close quarters with the violence of Germanus. I came to Aemilianus not alone; for there accompanied me also my co-presbyter Maximus, and the deacons Faustus and Eusebius and Chaeremon; and one of the brethren who had come from Rome went also with us. Aemilianus, then, did not lead off by saying to me, Hold no assemblies. That was indeed a thing superfluous for him to do, and the last thing which d one would do who meant to go back to what was first and of prime importance: for his concern was not about our gathering others together in assembly, but about our not being Christians ourselves. From this, therefore, he commanded me to desist, thinking, doubtless, that if I myself should recant, the others would also follow me in that. But I answered him neither unreasonably nor in many words, We must obey God rather than men. Moreover, I testified openly that I worshipped the only true God and none other, and that I could neither alter that position nor ever cease to be a Christian. Thereupon he ordered us to go away to a village near the desert, called Cephro.
Date: 248–264 CE (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... This is a frequent proverb. It occurs in various sources, including the Elephantine Aḥiqar 105, the Armenian Aḥiqar 2:1. See ANET 428–429; APOT 2.729. Ecclesiastes 8:2–4; Judith 2:2 ... The idea of acknowledging the works of God and making them manifest finds its way into Christian tradition. According to Eusebius (HE 7:11.2) Dionysius of Alexandria quotes these words ..."
* 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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