Pistis Sophia

“But now, Peter, I see thy power in thee, that it understandeth the solution of the mystery of the repentance which Pistis Sophia hath uttered. Now, therefore, Peter, speak the thought of her repentance in the midst of thy brethren.”

“thou who hast said unto us: 'Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.' Concerning the word which thou hast spoken unto Philip: 'It is thou and Thomas and Matthew on whom it hath been enjoined--to you three by the First Mystery, to write all the discourses of the kingdom of the Light and thereto to bear witness '; hearken, therefore, that I may proclaim the solution of this word. This is what thy light-power prophesied aforetime through Moses: 'By two or three witnesses shall every matter be established.”

“He said unto her: Well said, Mary.” Jesus continued again and said unto his disciples: “It came to pass then thereafter, when the emanations of Self-willed oppressed Pistis Sophia in the chaos,”

“--mayest thou take his from him. “8. And may all his powers of his light in him finish, and let | another of the three triple-powers receive his sovereignty. “9. May all the powers of his emanation be lightless and may his matter be without any light in it. “10. May his emanations remain in the chaos and not dare to go to their region. May their light in them die away and let them not go to the thirteenth æon, their region. “11. May the Receiver, the Purifier of the lights, purify all the lights which are in Self-willed, and take them from them. 12. May the rulers of the lower darkness rule over his emanations, and let no one give them shelter in his region; and let no one hearken to the power of his emanations in the chaos. 13. Let them take away the light in his emanations and blot out their name from the thirteenth æon,”

“This then is the word and its solution.”

It came to pass then, when the power of Adamas had come down into the chaos unto all the emanations of Self-willed,--it came to pass then, when that demon came down into the chaos, that it dashed down Pistis Sophia. And the lion-faced power and the serpent-form and the basilisk-form and the dragon-form and all the other very numerous emanations of Self-willed surrounded Pistis Sophia all together,

“and they could not come nigh me.' And the word which thy power hath spoken: 'Thy face was with me, saving me in thy grace,”

“that he said: Well said, Mary, blessed one.” It came to pass then thereafter, that the First Mystery continued again in the discourse and said unto the disciples: “I took Pistis Sophia and led her up to a region which is below the thirteenth æon, and gave unto her a new mystery of the Light which is not that of her æon, the region of the invisibles.”

“15. Let them give thanks unto the Lord for his graciousness and his wondrous works unto the children of men. “16. For he hath shattered the gates of brass and burst the bolts of iron asunder. 17. He hath taken them unto himself out of the way of their iniquity. For they were brought low because of their iniquities. 18. Their heart abhorred all manner of meat and they were near unto the gates of death.”

“It came to pass then, when Jesus had finished speaking these words,”

“and why superfluity hath arisen. And that mystery knoweth why the hoar-frost hath arisen”

“And that mystery of the Ineffable is moreover also a one and only word, which existeth in the speech of the Ineffable, and it is the economy of the solution of all the words which I have spoken unto you.”

“Say unto them: Be good, that ye may receive the mysteries [of the Light] and go on high into the Light-kingdom.”

“The Saviour answered and said unto Mary in the midst of the disciples: Concerning this mystery on which ye question me, I have given it unto you at another time; but I will repeat it and speak the word unto you: Now, therefore, Mary, not only ye, but every man who shall accomplish the mystery of the raising of the dead,”

Now, therefore, concerning these words which thou sayest, my mind hath brought forward four thoughts in me and my light-man hath led me and exulted and seethed, desiring to come forth out of me and enter into thee. Now, therefore, my Lord, hearken that I may tell thee the four thoughts which have arisen in me.

“For this cause have I said unto you: All men who shall receive the mysteries, if they knew the time when they come out of the body, would watch themselves and not sin, in order that they may inherit the Light-kingdom for ever.”

And I will tell you the type of every one of the souls;

“The Saviour answered and said unto Mary: Amēn, amēn, I say unto you Before I did come into the world, no soul hath entered into the Light.”

“He established another five great rulers over them,--that is these who are on the way of the midst. The first ruler of the way of the midst is called Paraplēx, a ruler with a woman's shape, whose hair reacheth down to her feet, under whose authority stand five-and-twenty archdemons which rule over a multitude of other demons. And it is those demons which enter into men and seduce them, raging and cursing and slandering;”

Nothing more excellent is there, therefore, than these mysteries on which ye question, save only the mystery of the seven Voices and their nine-and-forty powers and their ciphers. And there is no name which is more excellent than them all, the name in which are all names and all lights and all powers.

And every one who shall receive the mystery which is in the space of the universe of the Ineffable, and all the other mysteries which are united in the Limbs of the Ineffable, concerning which I have not yet spoken unto you, and concerning their expansion and the manner of their setting-up and the type of every one, how it is and wherefor it is named the Ineffable

“and it is they which carry off hence and in ravishment the souls and dispatch them through their dark smoke and their evil chastisements.”

“Who then knoweth that name, if he cometh out of the body of matter, nor smoke nor darkness nor authority nor ruler of the Fate-sphere nor angel nor archangel nor power can hold down the soul which knoweth that name;”

And in their great agitation and their great fear they withdrew as far as | the region of the great invisible Forefather, and of the three great triple-powers.

“The first thought hath arisen in me concerning the word which thou hast spoken: 'Now, therefore, the soul giveth the apology and seal unto all the rulers who are in the region of the king, the Adamas, and giveth the apology and the honour and the glory of all their seals and the songs of praise to the region of the Light,'--concerning this word then thou hast spoken unto us aforetime,”

“yea rather take his name for ever out of that region. “14. And on the lion-faced power let them bring the sin of him who emanated it, before the Light, and not wipe out the iniquity of the matter which hath brought him [sc. Self-willed] forth. “15. And may their sin be altogether before the Light eternally, and may they let them not look beyond [the chaos] and take their names out of all regions; “16. Because they have not spared me and have oppressed him whose light and | whose power they have taken away, and also conformably with those who set me therein, they desired to take away my whole light from me. “17. They loved to descend to the chaos; so let them abide therein, and they shall not be brought up [therefrom] from now on. They desired not the region of Righteousness for dwelling-place, and they shall not be taken thither from now on. '''18. He put on darkness as a garment, and it entered into him as water, and it entered in into all his powers as oil. 19. Let him wrap himself into the chaos as into a garment, and gird himself with the darkness as with a leathern girdle for ever. 20. Let this befall them who have brought this upon me for the Light's sake and have said: Let us take away her whole power.”

“The three witnesses are Philip and Thomas and Matthew.”

“that Mary Magdalene started forward and said: My Lord, my indweller of light hath ears and I comprehend every word which thou sayest.”

“But their manner of turning, or facing, I changed to another order, and made them other six months face towards the works of their influences in the squares on the right and in their triangles and in those in their aspect and in their octagons. And I made them to be confounded in great confusion and deluded in great delusion |--the rulers of the æons and all the rulers of the Fate and those of the sphere; and I set them in great agitation, and thence on they were no longer able to turn towards the refuse of their matter to devour it, in order that their regions may continue to delay and they [themselves] may spend a long time as rulers. But when I had taken away a third of their power, I changed their spheres, so that they spend a time facing to the left and another time facing to the right. I have changed their whole path and their whole course,”

“When then the Saviour had said this unto his disciples, he said unto them: Understand ye in what manner I speak with you?” Mary answered and said: “Yea, my Lord, with precision have I precisely followed all the words which thou hast said.”

Grace' is the spirit which hath come down out of the height through the First Mystery, for it hath had mercy on the race of men and sent its spirit that he should forgive the sins of the whole world, and they should receive the mysteries and inherit the Light-kingdom.

“And Peter answered and said unto Jesus O Lord,”

“Say unto them: Renounce all, that ye may receive the mysteries of the Light and go on high into the Light-kingdom.”

--that which healeth the demons and all pains and all sicknesses and the blind and the lame and the maimed and the dumb and the deaf, which I have given unto you aforetime,--he who shall receive [that] mystery and accomplish it,

“And he who will receive the one and only word of that mystery which I shall now say unto you, and all its types and all its figures, and the manner of accomplishing its mystery,--for ye are perfect and all-perfect and ye will accomplish the whole gnosis of that mystery with its whole economy, for unto you all mysteries are entrusted,”

“And moreover I gave her a song of the Light, so that from now on the rulers of the æons could not [prevail] against her. And I removed her to that region until I should come after her and bring her to her higher region. It came to pass then, when I had removed her to that region,”

“and why the healthful dew hath arisen. And that mystery knoweth why the dust hath arisen”

And now, therefore, when I am come, I have opened the gates of the Light and opened the ways which lead to the Light.

and I will tell you the type of the souls of the men and of those of the birds and of those of the wild beasts and of those of the reptiles. And. I will tell you the type of all the souls and of those of all the rulers which are sent into the world, in order that ye may be completed in all gnosis.

desiring to take from her anew her powers in her, and they oppressed Pistis Sophia exceedingly and threatened her. It came to pass then, when they oppressed her and alarmed her exceedingly,

and that it is the total Fulness.

“that she uttered the ninth repentance, saying: “1. O Light, smite down them who have taken away my power from me, and take away the power from them who have taken away mine from me. 2. For I am thy power and thy light. | Come and save me. 3. Let great darkness cover my oppressors.”

“--it is the word which Pistis Sophia hath spoken: 'Thy light was with me, saving me in thy light-stream.' And the word which thy power hath spoken: 'I was despised in the sight of many and cast out,”

“19. They cried unto the Lord in their affliction and he saved them out of their necessities. 20. He sent his word and healed them and freed them from their miseries.”

“It came to pass then, when Jesus had heard this word, that he said: Well said, Mary,”

“--it is the word which Pistis Sophia hath spoken: The emanations of Self-willed constrained me and took my power from me, and I have been despised before them and cast out into the chaos, with no light in me.' And the word which thy power hath spoken: I have become as lead in their sight,”

“21. Let them give thanks unto the Lord for his graciousness and his wondrous works unto the children of men.”

“and why the delightsome freshness hath arisen. And that mystery knoweth why the hail hath arisen and why the pleasant snow hath arisen. And that mystery knoweth why the west wind hath arisen and why the east wind hath arisen. (''And that mystery knoweth why the fire of the height hath arisen and why the waters have arisen.”

when they brought thee the piece of money and thou didst see that it was of silver and copper and didst ask: 'Whose is this image?' They said: 'The king's.'

“that she again uttered this song thus: 1. In faith have I had faith in the Light; and it remembered me and hearkened to my song. 2. It hath led my power up out of the chaos and the nether darkness of the whole matter”

but if it cometh out of the world and sayeth that name to the fire, it is quenched and the darkness withdraweth.

“21. But do thou, O Light, have mercy upon me for the sake of the mystery of thy name, and save me in the goodness of thy grace. “22. For they have taken away my light and my power; and my power hath inwardly tottered, and I could not stand upright in their midst. “23. I am become as matter which is fallen; I am tossed hither and thither as a demon in the air. “24. My power hath perished, because I possess no mystery; and my matter hath become dwindled because of my light, for they have taken it away. 25. And they mocked me; they looked at me, nodding at me. 26. Help me according to thy mercy.' |”

Truth' on the other hand is the power which hath sojourned with me. When it had come forth out of Barbēlō, it became material body for thee, and hath made proclamation concerning the region of Truth.

or wherefor it standeth expanded with all its Limbs and how many Limbs are in it and all its economies, | of which I will not tell you now, but when I come to the expansion of the universe I will tell you all severally,--to wit, its expansions and its description, how it is, and the aggregation [?] of all its Limbs, which belong to the economy of the One and Only, the unapproachable God in truth,

“And now, therefore, let him who shall do what is worthy of the mysteries, receive the mysteries and enter into the Light.” Mary continued and said: “But, my Lord, I have heard that the prophets have entered into the Light.”

And because of the great fear of their agitation, the great Forefather, he and the three triple-powers, kept on running hither and thither in his region, and they could not close all their regions because of the great fear in which they were. And they agitated all their æons together and all their spheres and all their orders, fearing and being greatly agitated because of the great light which was about me--not of the former quality that it was about me when I was on the earth of man-kind, when the light-vesture came over me,

“--hearken, therefore, now, that I may tell you that mystery, which is [ . . .?]. He | then, who shall receive the one and only word of that mystery, which I have told you, if he cometh forth out of the body of the matters of the rulers,”

“For Jesus had said to his disciples: That mystery surroundeth that universe”

“Say unto my power: I am he who will save thee. “4. Let all those who would take away my light from me utterly, lack their power. Let them face about unto the chaos and become powerless, who would take away my light from me utterly. “5. Let their power be as dust, and let Yew, thy angel, smite them. “6. And if they would go into the height, let darkness seize upon them and let them slip down and turn to the chaos. And let thy angel Yew pursue them and cast them down into the darkness below. “7. For they have set a lion-faced power as a trap for me, although I have done them no ill, from which its light will be taken; and they have oppressed the power in me, which they will not be able to take away. “8. Now, therefore, O Light, take away the purification from the lion-faced power without its knowing it,--the thought which Self-willed hath thought, to take away my light; take away his own and let the light be taken away from the lion-faced power, which set the trap for me. “9. But my power will exult in the Light and rejoice that he will save it. 10. And all the portions of my power shall say: There is no saviour but thee. For thou wilt save me out of the hand of the lion-faced power, which hath taken away my power from me, and thou savest me out of the hands of them who have taken away my power and my light from me. 11. For they have risen up against me, lying against me and saying | that I know the mystery of the Light which is in the height, [the Light] in which I have had faith. And they have constrained me, [saying:] Tell unto us the mystery of the Light in the height,”

and I have made the path of their course to hurry, so that they may be quickly purified and raised up quickly. And I have shortened their circles, and made their path more speedy, and it will be exceedingly hurried. And they were thrown into confusion in their path, and from then on were no more able to devour the matter of the refuse of the purification of their light. And moreover I have shortened their times and their periods, so that the perfect number of souls who shall receive the mysteries and be in the Treasury of the Light, shall be quickly completed.

Now, therefore, my Lord, on account of the word which thou hast spoken: 'All the souls of the race of men who shall receive the mysteries of the Light, will go into the Inheritance of the Light before all the rulers who will repent, and before those of the whole region of the Right and before the whole region of the Treasury of the Light,'

All this will I tell you at the expansion of the universe. And after all this I will tell you wherefor all this hath come to pass.

“These are all the boundaries of the ways for those who are worthy of the mysteries of the Light.”

“Concerning this word then thou hast spoken unto us aforetime: 'If the house-holder knew at what hour in the night the thief cometh to break into the house, he would keep awake and not suffer the man to break into his house.”

“Mary said: | I shall behave badly to question thee. Be not wroth with me if I question on all things.” Jesus said: “Question what thou wilt.”

thereafter then, if he ask for all things, for poverty and riches, for weakness and strength, for . . . and healthy body, and for all healings of the body and for the raising of the dead and for healing the lame and the blind and the deaf and the dumb and all sicknesses and all pains,

“that she cried again to the Light and sang praises, saying: “1. O Light, it is thou who hast helped me; let thy light come over me. 2. For thou art my protector, and I come hence unto thee, O Light, having faith in thee, O Light. 3. For thou art my saviour from the emanations of Self-willed and of Adamas, the Tyrant, and thou shalt save me from all his violent threats.”

“give ear that I may speak the thought of her repentance, of which aforetime thy power prophesied through the prophet David, uttering her repentance in the seventieth Psalm: 1. O God, my God, I have trusted in thee,”

“and it hath led me up. It hath removed. me to a higher and surer æon, lofty and firm; it hath changed my place on the way which leadeth to my region. 3. And it hath given unto me a new mystery, which is not that of my æon, and given unto me a song of the Light. Now, therefore, O Light, all the rulers will see what thou hast done unto me, and be | afraid and have faith in the Light.”

For had I not changed their courses,

“When then Mary had said this, the Saviour said: Well said, thou spiritual Mary. This is the word.” The Saviour continued again and said unto his disciples: “Now, therefore, herald ye unto all men who shall receive mysteries in the Light,”

“This then, my Lord, is the solution of the song which Pistis Sophia hath uttered.”

--for the world could not bear the light such as it was in its truth, else would the world at once be destroyed and all upon it,--but the light which was about me in the twelve æons was eight-thousand-and-seven-hundred-myriad times greater than that which was about me in the world among you.

“The Saviour continued and said unto Mary: Amēn, amēn, I say unto you: No prophet hath entered into the Light; but the rulers of the æons have discoursed with them out of the æons and given them the mystery of the æons. And when I came to the regions of the æons, I have turned Elias and sent him into the body of John the Baptizer,”

“Hearken, therefore, that I may discourse with you concerning the soul according as I have said: The five great rulers of the great Fate of the æons and the rulers of the disk of the sun and the rulers of the disk of the moon breathe into that soul, and there cometh out of them a portion of my power, as I have just said.”

“--in a word, he who shall accomplish that mystery and ask for all the things which I have just said, then will they quickly come to pass for him.”

“And that mystery knoweth why the east wind hath arisen. [? miscopied.]) And that mystery knoweth why the south wind hath arisen and why the north wind hath arisen. And that mystery knoweth why the stars of the heaven and the | disks of the light-givers have arisen”

Righteousness' is thy spirit, who hath brought the mysteries out of the height to give them to the race of men.

“--that which I know not. “12. And they have requited me with all this ill because I have had faith in the Light of the height; and they have made my power lightless. 13. But when they constrained me, I sat in the darkness, my soul bowed down in mourning. 14. And do thou, O Light--for that reason sing I praise to thee--save me. I know that thou wilt save me because I fulfilled thy will ever since I was in my æon.”

“And when Pistis Sophia had said this,”

“Mary said: My Lord, reveal unto us in what manner they carry off hence the souls in ravishment, that also my brethren may understand it.”

“--it is the word which Pistis Sophia hath spoken: 'When they had taken my light from me, I became as heavy-weighing matter before them.' And moreover the word which thy power hath spoken: 'Through thee | I have gotten a power for me which helped me,”

And when thou sawest that it was of silver and copper mixed,

--up to what region, therefore, every one shall receive the mysteries in the space of the Ineffable, up to that region will he inherit up to which he hath received. And those of the whole region of the space of that Ineffable

“Unto, such, therefore, who have renounced in this renunciation, give the mysteries of the Light and hide them not from them at all, even though they are sinners and they have been in al! the sins and all the iniquities of the world, all of which I have recounted unto you, in order that they may turn and repent and be in the submission which I have just recounted unto you. Give unto them the mysteries of the Light-kingdom and hide them not from them at all;”

“this is the solution of the word. Now, therefore, do thou, Philip, come forward and proclaim the solution of the fifth repentance of Pistis Sophia, and thereafter take thy seat and write all the discourses which I shall speak, until the number of thy portion which thou hast to write of the words of the kingdom of the Light is completed. Then shalt thou come forward and speak what thy spirit shall understand. But do thou | then now proclaim the solution of the fifth repentance of Pistis Sophia.”

--on account of this word, my Lord, thou hast said unto us aforetime: 'The first will be last and the last will be first,'--that is, the 'last' are the whole race of men which will enter into the Light-kingdom sooner than all those of the region of the Height, who are the first.'

“Now, therefore, let him whose spirit is ready, come forward and utter the solution of the twelfth repentance of Pistis Sophia.”

“And if it sayeth it to the demons | and to the receivers of the outer darkness and their rulers and their authorities and their powers, they will all sink down and their flame will burn and they will cry out: 'Holy, holy art thou, most holy of all holies.”

“of which I have spoken unto you from the day when I met with you even unto this day.”

and if the retributive receivers come and free him from the body of matter of the rulers,--that is those [receivers] who free from the body all out-going souls,

And when the Saviour had said this unto Mary, she smote her breast,

let me no more be put to shame for ever.

“--it is again the word which Pistis Sophia hath spoken: 'And thereafter came a light-power unto me through thee which saved me.' And the word which thy power hath spoken: 'Thou hast set lamps on my right and on my left, so that no side of me may be without light,”

thou saidst: 'Give therefore the king's unto the king and God's unto God,'--that is: If the soul receiveth mysteries, it giveth the apology to all the rulers and to the region | of the king, the Adamas; and the soul giveth the honour and the glory to all those of the region of the Light. And the word: 'It hath glistened, when thou didst see that it is made up of silver and copper,'

“And Philip answered and said unto Jesus: “My Lord, hearken that I may speak the solution of her repentance. For thy power hath prophesied aforetime concerning it through David in the eighty-seventh Psalm, saying: “1. Lord, God of my salvation, by day and by night have I cried unto thee. 2. Let my weeping come before thee; incline thine ear to my supplication, O Lord. 3. For my soul is full of evil,”

then at the commandment | of my Father, the First Mystery which looketh within, I sent again Gabriēl and Michaēl and the great light-stream, that they should help Pistis Sophia. And I gave commandment unto Gabriēl and Michaēl to bear Pistis Sophia in their hands, so that her feet should not touch the darkness below;