De Fuga Et Inventione

"And Sarah afflicted her, and she fled from before her face. And the angel of the Lord found her sitting by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by a fountain which is in the way to Shur. And the angel of the Lord said unto her: 'Thou handmaiden of Sarah, whence art thou come? and whither art thou going?' And she answered and said: 'I am fleeing from the face of Sarah, my mistress.' And the angel of the Lord said unto her: 'Return unto thy mistress, and be thou humbled beneath her hands.' And the angel of the Lord said unto her: 'Behold, thou art with child, and thou shalt bring forth a son, and shall call his name Ishmael, because the Lord has heard the cry of thy humiliation. He shall be a rude man; his hand shall be against every man, and every man’s hand against him.'" [*](Genesis xvi. 8. )

Having in our former treatise spoken what was becoming respecting the preliminary branches of education, and respecting affliction, we will now proceed in regular order to discuss the topic of fugitives. Now Moses often mentions persons who flee, as here he says concerning Hagar, that being afflicted she fled from the face of her mistress.

I think therefore that there are three causes for flight—hatred, fear, and shame. Now women leave their husbands out of hatred, and for the same reason men desert their wives. But children flee from their parents, and servants from their masters, out of fear. And lastly, friends avoid their companions out of shame, when [*](Genesis xvi. 8. )

Now of all these three causes, one may find instances revealed in the sacred scriptures. Accordingly, Jacob, the practiser of virtue, fled from his father-in-law Laban out of hatred, and from his brother Esau out of fear, as I shall show presently.

But Hagar flees out of shame. And a proof of this is, that the angel, that is the word of God, met her, with the intent to recommend her what she ought to do, and to guide her in her return to her mistress’s house. For he encouraged her, and said unto her: "The Lord has heard the cry of thy humiliation," which you uttered, not out of fear, nor yet out of hatred. For the one is the feeling of an ignoble soul, and the other of one which loves contention, but under the influence of that copy of temperance and modesty, shame.

For it was natural, if she had fled out of fear, that he would have encouraged her mistress, who was holding out threats to alarm her, to comfort her, and to restore her to tranquillity. For then it would have been safe for the fugitive to return, and not before. But no one intercedes for her to her mistress, inasmuch as she was already appeased by herself. But this angel, who is reproof, at the same time friendly and full of advice, out of his good-will teaches her not to feel only shame, but also to entertain confidence, for that modesty is but half a virtue, when separated from proper boldness.

Therefore the account which follows will show these characteristics more accurately. But we must return to the heads of the question which we have already set forth, and begin with those who flee under the influence of hatred. "For," says the scripture, "Jacob concealed his purpose from Laban the Syrian, so as not to tell him that he was fleeing, and he fled, he and all that he had." [*](Genesis xvi. 8. )

What then was the cause of his hatred? For perhaps you are desirous to hear this. There are some persons who make to themselves gods of substance destitute of all distinctive quality, and species, and shape, neither knowing the cause which puts things in motion, nor showing any anxiety to learn of those who do know, but [*](Genesis xvi. 8. )

Laban now is one of this kind of persons; for the sacred scriptures attribute to him a flock devoid of all distinctive marks. And matter, without any distinctive characteristics, is without any marks in the universe, and so is in men the soul, which is destitute of learning and which has no instructors.

But there are others who belong to a better portion, who say that the mind has come and arranged everything, bringing the disorder which arose from an ochlocracy among all existing things, into the order established by the legitimate authority of kingly power. Of this company Jacob is a follower, who presides over the marked and party-coloured flock. On the other hand the species in the universe is distinguished by marks and is of varied colour, and so also in men is the mind which has been well instructed and which is fond of learning.

And he who is marked, and who is the companion of true kingly power, having received a great deal of the social affection from nature, goes to him who has no distinguishing marks, and who, as I have said, makes himself gods of the material powers, and who thinks that besides them there is no effectual cause of anything, to teach him that his opinions are not correct.

For the world has been created, and has by all means derived its existence from some extraneous cause. But the word itself of the Creator is the seal by which each of existing things is invested with form. In accordance with which fact perfect species also does from the very beginning follow things when created, as being an impression and image of the perfect word.

For the animal when first created is imperfect as to quantity; and a proof of this is the gradual growth which takes place at each successive age. But it is perfect as to quality. For the same quality remains in it, as having been stamped upon it by the divine word which abides permanently and never charges.

But seeing that he is dumb with respect to learning and to all desirable and legitimate authority, he very naturally thinks of flight. For he is afraid that in addition to not being able to derive any advantage, he may even be injured. For all connections with the foolish injures us, and very often the soul

In reference to which fact the powers devoted to practise and meditation, when they are set free, cry out, giving a full account of the causes of their hatred: "Have we not any longer a share and an inheritance in the house of our father? Are we not now accounted aliens by him? For he has sold us, and he has eaten up and devoured our money. All the wealth and all the glory which God took from our father shall belong to us and to our children." [*](Genesis xxxi. 14. )

For those who are free both in name and also in their minds do not consider any foolish person as either rich or glorious, but look upon all such persons, so to say, as inglorious and poor, even if they exceed the fortune of wealthy kings. For they do not say that they will have the riches of their father, but the riches which have been taken away; nor do they say that they shall possess his glory, but the glory which has been taken away from him.

But the wicked man is deprived of all genuine riches and of all true and honourable glory; for these blessings are procured by wisdom, and temperance, and the kindred dispositions of the soul, and are inherited by those souls which love virtue.

Therefore, it is not the things which belong to the wicked man, but those of which he is destitute, that are the abundance and the glory of the good. And he is destitute of virtues which are their possession, in order that what is said in another place may be consistent with the passage already quoted: "Let us sacrifice the abominations of Egypt to the Lord our God." [*](Exodus viii. 26. ) For the virtues are perfect and blameless offerings, and so are the actions in accordance with virtue, which the Egyptian body, being devoted to the passions, abominates;

for, as in this passage, those things which, according to the principles of natural philosophy, are reckoned profane among the Egyptians are called sacred by the Israelites who see acutely, and are all offered as sacrifices; so, in the same manner, the man who is the companion of virtue will be the heir of those things of which every foolish man is deprived and destitute. And these things are true glory, which in fact differs in no [*](Genesis xxxi. 14. ) [*](Exodus viii. 26. )

Very naturally, therefore, that person will flee from him who has no participation in divine blessings, who even in the matters in which he accuses another does without perceiving it accuse himself also, when he says, "If thou hadst told me I would have sent thee away." [*](Genesis xxxi. 27. ) For this very thing was a worthy cause for your being deserted, if you, being the servant of an infinite number of masters, pretending to have been invested with command and authority, proclaimed liberty to others.