Hesychius of Jerusalem was a Christian
presbyterPresbyter in the New Testament refers to a leader in local Christian congregations, then a synonym of episkopos...
and exegete, probably of the fifth century. Nothing certain is known as to the dates of his birth and death (433?), or, indeed concerning the events of his life. Bearing as he does the title
tou presbyterou, he is not to be confused with Bishop Hesychius of Jerusalem, a contemporary of
Gregory the GreatPope St. Gregory I , better known in English as Gregory the Great, was pope from 3 September 590 until his death...
.
Attribution
The writings of Hesychius of Jerusalem have been in part lost, in part handed down and edited as the work of other authors, and some are still buried in libraries in manuscript. Whoever would collect and arrange the fragments of Hesychius which have come down to us must go back to the manuscripts; for in
MigneMigné is a commune in the Indre department in central France.-References:*...
's edition of the Fathers the works of various writers named Hesychius are thrown together without regard for order under the heading "Hesychius, Presbyter of Jerusalem". About half of the matter under "Hesychius" must be discarded, namely, the commentary on
LeviticusLeviticus or Vayikra is the third book of the Hebrew Bible/Christian Old Testament, and the third of five books of the Jewish Torah or Pentateuch....
(787-1180) which is extant only in Latin and is unauthentic, being based on the
VulgateThe Vulgate is an early 5th-century Latin version of the Bible, largely the result of the labors of Jerome, who was commissioned by Pope Damasus I in 382 to make a revision of old Latin translations...
text rather than the
SeptuagintThe Septuagint , or simply "LXX", referred to in critical works by the abbreviation ...
, and therefore the work of a later Latin (Isychius). The collection of ascetic maxims (1479-1544) is the work of
Hesychius of SinaiHesychius of Sinai was a hieromonk of Thorn-bush monastery on Mount Sinai, and an ascetic author of the Byzantine period in literature....
, and not of his namesake of Jerusalem. Neither are all the homilies (1449-80) as certainly the work of Hesychius of Jerusalem as the sixth, the authenticity of which is supported by an ancient
EscorialEl Escorial is a historical residence of the king of Spain. It is one of the Spanish royal sites and functions as a monastery, royal palace, museum, and school...
manuscript. This collection does not include the homily on
BethlehemBethlehem is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank, approximately south of Jerusalem, with a population of about 30,000 people. It is the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate of the Palestinian National Authority and a hub of Palestinian culture and tourism...
from the Turin manuscript. Subjoined to the "Legend of the Martyrdom of
Saint LonginusLonginus is the name given in medieval and some modern Christian traditions to the Roman soldier who pierced Jesus in his side with a lance while he was on the Cross...
" is the testimony of "Hesychius Presbyter of Jerusalem" himself, that he had found the manuscript in the library of the Holy Sepulchre at Jerusalem.
Method and importance of his exegetical writings
Judging from the extant fragments, Hesychius must have been a very prolific writer on Biblical, particularly
Old TestamentIn Christianity, the Old Testament is the collection of books that form the first of the two-part Christian Biblical canon. These works correspond to the Hebrew Bible , with some variations and additions. In the Eastern Orthodox Church the comparable texts are known as the Septuagint, from the...
, exegetics. The notice in the
Greek Menology under 28 March, in which mention is made of the exposition of the entire Scriptures, can refer to none other than Hesychius of Jerusalem. In
hermeneuticsHermeneutics is the study of interpretation theory, and can be defined as either the art of interpretation, or the theory and practice of interpretation. Traditional hermeneutics - which includes Biblical hermeneutics - refers to the study of the interpretation of written texts, especially texts in...
he adheres closely to the allegorico-mystical method of the Alexandrines; he finds in every sentence of the Bible a mystery of dogma, and reads into texts of the Old Testament the whole complexus of ideas in the
NewThe New Testament is the name given to the second major division of the Christian Bible, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament, both terms being associated with Supersessionism...
. He follows Origen of Alexandria in choosing for the enunciative form of exegesis the shortest possible marginal gloss (paratheseis).
His comment on
IsaiahThe Book of Isaiah is a book of the Bible traditionally attributed to the Prophet Isaiah, who lived in the second half of the 8th century BC. In the first 39 chapters, Isaiah prophesies doom for a sinful Judah and for all the nations of the world that oppose God. The last 27 chapters prophesy the...
, xix, 1, "the Lord will ascend upon a swift cloud, and will enter into Egypt" is "
ChristJesus of Nazareth —also known as Jesus Christ or occasionally Jesus the Christ—is the central figure of Christianity. Within most Christian denominations...
in the arms of the
VirginMary , usually referred to by Christians as the Virgin Mary or Saint Mary, was a Jewish woman of Nazareth in Galilee, identified in the New Testament as the mother of Jesus of Nazareth. Muslims also refer to her as the Virgin Mary or Syeda Mariam which means Our Lady Mary...
". Water represents always to him "the mystical water" (of
baptismIn Christianity, baptism is the ritual act, with the use of water, by which one is admitted to membership of the Christian Church and, in the view of some, as a member of the particular Church in which the baptism is administered.The usual form of baptism among the earliest Christians was for the...
), and bread, "the mystical table" (of the
EucharistThe Eucharist, also called Holy Communion, Sacrament of the Table, the Blessed Sacrament, or The Lord's Supper and other names, is a Christian sacrament or ordinance, generally considered to be a commemoration of the Last Supper, the final meal that Jesus Christ shared with his disciples before his...
). It is this hyper-allegorical and glossarial method which constitutes the peculiar characteristic of his exegesis, and proves a valuable help to the literary critic in distinguishing authentic Hesychiana from the unauthentic.
The anti-Semitic tone of many
scholiaNot to be confused with skolionScholia , are grammatical, critical, or explanatory comments, either original or extracted from pre-existing commentaries, which are inserted on the margin of the manuscript of an ancient author, as glosses...
may find an explanation in local conditions; likewise geographical and topographical allusions to the holy places of
PalestinePalestine is a conventional name used, among others, to describe a geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands.As a geographical term, Palestine can also refer to 'ancient Palestine,' an area...
would be expected of an exegete living at
JerusalemJerusalem is the capital of Israel and its largest city in both population and area, with a population of 747,600 residents over an area of if disputed East Jerusalem is included...
. The importance of Hesychius for textual criticism lies in the fact that many of his paraphrases echo the wording of his exemplar, and still more in his frequent citation of variants from other columns of the
HexaplaHexapla is the term for an edition of the Bible in six versions. Especially it applies to the edition of the Old Testament compiled by Origen of Alexandria, which placed side by side:#Hebrew...
or Tetrapla, particularly readings of
SymmachusSymmachus, also known as Symmachus the Ebionite was the author of one of the Greek versions of the Old Testament. It was included by Origen in his Hexapla and Tetrapla, which compared various versions of the Old Testament side by side with the Septuagint...
, whereby he has saved many rare texts.
He is likewise of importance in Biblical
stichometryStichometry is a term applied to the measurement of ancient texts by στίχοι or verses of a fixed standard length.It was the custom of the Greeks and Romans to estimate the length of their literary works by measured lines...
. His "Capitula" and commentaries show the early Christian division into chapters of at least the
Twelve Minor ProphetsA minor prophet is one of the writings in the Twelve Prophets section of the Hebrew Bible, also known to Christians as the Minor Prophets of the Old Testament...
and Isaiah, which corresponds to the inner sequence of ideas of the respective books better than the modern division. In the case of certain separate books, Hesychius has inaugurated an original stichic division of the Sacred Text—for the "citizen of the Holy City" (hagiopolites) cited in the oldest manuscripts of
catenaeA catena is a form of biblical commentary, verse by verse, made up entirely of excerpts from earlier Biblical commentators, each introduced with the name of the author, and with such minor adjustments of words to allow the whole to form a continuous commentary.The texts are mainly compiled from...
of the
PsalmsPsalms is a book of the Hebrew Bible , included in the collected works known as the "Writings" or Ketuvim.-Etymology:...
, and the
CanticleA canticle is a hymn taken from the Bible. The term is often expanded to include ancient non-biblical hymns such as the Te Deum and certain psalms used liturgically.-Roman Catholic Church:From the Old Testament, the Roman Breviary takes seven canticles for use at Lauds, as follows:*...
s, is none other than Hesychius of Jerusalem. It was discovered by
Giovanni MercatiGiovanni Mercati was an Italian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archivist of the Vatican Secret Archives and Librarian of the Vatican Library from 1936 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1936.- Biography :Giovanni Mercati was born in Villa Gaida, Reggio...
that in some manuscripts the initial letter of each division according to Hesychius is indicated in colour. Hesychius must have been generally known as an authority, for he is quoted simply as Hagiopolites, or, elsewhere, by the equally laconic expression "him of Jerusalem" (tou Hierosolymon).
Separate commentaries
It is certain that Hesychius was the author of consecutive commentaries on the Psalms, the
Canticle of CanticlesThe Song of Songs , is a book of the Hebrew Bible—Tanakh or Old Testament—one of the five megillot...
, the Twelve Minor Prophets, Isaiah, and
LukeThe Gospel of Luke is the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels. This synoptic gospel is an account of the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. It details his story from the events of his birth to his Ascension...
(Chapter i?). His name occurs in catenae in connection with an occasional scholium to texts from other books (Genesis,
1 and 2 SamuelThe Books of Samuel are part of the Tanakh and also of the Christian Old Testament. The work was originally written in Hebrew, and the Book of Samuel originally formed a single text, as they are often considered today in Hebrew bibles.Together with what is now referred to as the Book of Kings,...
,
EzekielThe Book of Ezekiel is a book of the Hebrew Bible named after the prophet Ezekiel, a prophet from the sixth-century BC. This book records Ezekiel's preaching. His name means "God strengthens" or "May God strengthen". Ezekiel lived out his prophetic career among the community of exiled Judeans in...
,
DanielThe Book of Daniel is a book in both the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. Originally written in Hebrew and Aramaic, it is set during the Babylonian Captivity, a period when Jews were deported and exiled to Babylon following the Siege of Jerusalem of 597 BC...
,
MatthewThe Gospel of Matthew is one of the four canonical gospels in the New Testament. This synoptic gospel is an account of the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth...
,
JohnThe Gospel of John , is the last of the four canonical gospels. This non synoptic gospel is an account of the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth...
,
ActsThe Acts of the Apostles is the fifth book of the New Testament. It is commonly referred to as Acts and outlines the history of the Apostolic Age...
, the
Catholic EpistlesGeneral epistles are books in the New Testament in the form of letters. They are termed "general" because for the most part their intended audience seems to be Christians in general rather than individual persons or congregations as is the case with the Pauline epistles...
), which, however, apart from the question of their authenticity, are not necessarily taken from complete commentaries on the respective books. Likewise the citations from Hesychius in ascetic florilegia are taken from exegetical works. The most perplexing problem is the connection of Hesychius with the commentary on the Psalms attributed to him. The numerous citations from Hesychius in catenae of the Psalms and the exegetical works on the Psalms handed down over his name, particularly in Oxford and Venice manuscripts, are so widely at variance with each other as to preclude any question of mere variations in different transcriptions of one original; either Hesychius was the author of several commentaries on the Psalms or the above-mentioned commentaries are to be attributed to several authors named Hesychius. As a matter of fact Spanish manuscripts clearly distinguish between Hesychius the Monk, author of commentaries on the Psalms and Canticles, and Hesychius the Priest. In 1900 the commentary on the Psalms included among the works of
Saint AthanasiusAthanasius of Alexandria , also given the titles Athanasius the Great, Pope Athanasius I of Alexandria, and Athanasius the Apostolic, was a Christian theologian, bishop of Alexandria, Church Father, and a noted Egyptian leader of the fourth century. He is best remembered for his role in the...
was explained as the glossary of Hesychius issued over a pseudonym. This hypothesis has since been confirmed by further evidence.
A complete commentary of Hesychius on the Canticles of the Old and New Testament, which are known to have constituted a distinct book in the early Christian Bible, is preserved in manuscript; any edition of this must be based on the Bodl. Miscell., 5, saec. 9. Another codex which would have been particularly valuable for this edition and for the solution of the Hesychius problem, the Turin manuscript B, VII, 30, saec. 8-9, has unfortunately been destroyed by fire. The
MechitaristsThe Mechitarists , are a congregation of Benedictine monks of the Armenian Catholic Church founded in 1712 by Mechitar of Sebaste. They are best known for their series of scholarly publications of ancient Armenian versions of otherwise lost ancient Greek texts.-History:Their eponymous founder,...
of
San LazzaroSan Lazzaro degli Armeni is a small island in the Venetian Lagoon, lying immediately west of the Lido; completely occupied by a monastery that is the mother-house of the Mekhitarist Order, the island is one of the world's foremost centers of Armenian culture.The islet's isolation, at some distance...
have in their possession an Armenian commentary on
JobThe Book of Job is one of the books of the Hebrew Bible. It relates the story of Job, his trials at the hands of Satan, his theological discussions with friends on the origins and nature of his suffering, and finally a response from God...
over the name of Hesychius of Jerusalem. The scholia of Hesychius to the Twelve Minor Prophets are preserved in six manuscripts at Rome, Paris, and Moscow. His commentary on Isaiah was discovered in 1900 in the anonymous marginal notes to an eleventh-century Vatican manuscript (
VaticThe Vatican Library is the library of the Holy See, currently located in Vatican City. It is one of the oldest libraries in the world and contains one of the most significant collections of historical texts. Formally established in 1475, though in fact much older, it has 75,000 codices from...
., 347) and published with a facsimile; the authenticity of these 2860 scholia was later confirmed by a ninth-century Bodleian manuscript (Miscell., 5).
Scholia to the
MagnificatThe Magnificat is a canticle frequently sung liturgically in Christian church services. The text of the canticle is taken directly from the Gospel of Luke where it is spoken by the Virgin Mary upon the occasion of her Visitation to her cousin Elizabeth...
, in the
catenae of Canticles, and manuscripts at Paris and
Mount AthosMount Athos is a mountain on the peninsula of the same name in Macedonia, of northern Greece, called in Greek Agion Oros , or in English, "Holy Mountain". In Classical times, the peninsula was called Aktí...
establish beyond doubt the fact that Hesychius left a commentary on the Gospel of St. Luke, at least on the first chapter. For evidence as to the authenticity of the "Harmony of the Gospels" the treatise on the
ResurrectionIn the Christian Gospels, the Resurrection of Jesus was the return to bodily life of Jesus after his death by crucifixion. Christian doctrine, ritual and theology are based on the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus being actual events in history...
must first be examined. This is extant in two forms, a longer (under
Gregory of NyssaGregory of Nyssa was a Christian bishop and saint. He was a younger brother of Basil the Great and a good friend of Gregory Nazianzus. His significance has long been recognized in the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Roman Catholic branches of Christianity...
and a shorter, the latter an abridgement of the former and as yet unpublished. In tenth-, eleventh-, and twelfth-century manuscripts of the former, to "Hesychius Presbyter of Jerusalem" is added the further title "the theologian".