Parable And Prophecy

Διὰ πολλὰς τοίνυν αἰτίας ἐπικρύπτονται τὸν νοῦν αἱ γραφαί, πρῶτον μὲν ἵνα ζητητικοὶ ὑπάρχωμεν καὶ προσαγρυπνῶμεν ἀεὶ τῇ τῶν σωτηρίων λόγων εὑρέσει, ἔπειτα ὅτι μηδὲ τοῖς ἅπασι προσῆκον ἦν νοεῖν, ὡς μὴ βλαβεῖεν ἑτέρως ἐκδεξάμενοι τὰ ὑπὸ τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος σωτηρίως εἰρημένα. Διὸ δὴ τοῖς ἐκλεκτοῖς τῶν ἀνθρώπων τοῖς τε ἐκ πίστεως εἰς γνῶσιν ἐγκρίτοις τηρούμενα τὰ ἅγια τῶν προφητειῶν μυστήρια ταῖς παραβολαῖς ἐγκαλύπτεται· παραβολικὸς γὰρ ὁ χαρακτὴρ ὑπάρχει τῶν γραφῶν, διότι καὶ ὁ Kύριος, οὐκ ὢν κοσμικός, ὡς κοσμικὸς εἰς ἀνθρώπους ἦλθεν· καὶ γὰρ ἐφόρεσεν τὴν πᾶσαν ἀρετὴν ἔμελλέν τε τὸν σύντροφον τοῦ κόσμου ἄνθρωπον ἐπὶ τὰ νοητὰ καὶ κύρια διὰ τῆς γνώσεως ἀνάγειν ἐκ κόσμου εἰς κόσμον. Διὸ καὶ μεταφορικῇ κέχρηται τῇ γραφῇ· τοιοῦτον γὰρ ἡ παραβολή, λόγος ἀπό τινος οὐ κυρίου μέν, ἐμφεροῦς δὲ τῷ κυρίῳ ἐπὶ τἀληθὲς καὶ κύριον ἄγων τὸν συνιέντα, ἤ, ὥς τινές φασι, λέξις δι´ ἑτέρων τὰ κυρίως λεγόμενα μετ´ ἐνεργείας παριστάνουσα. Ἤδη δὲ καὶ ἡ οἰκονομία πᾶσα ἡ περὶ τὸν Kύριον προφητευθεῖσα παραβολὴ ὡς ἀληθῶς φαίνεται τοῖς μὴ τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἐγνωκόσιν, ὅταν τις τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ τὰ πάντα πεποιηκότος σάρκα ἀνειληφότα καὶ ἐν μήτρᾳ παρθένου κυοφορηθέντα, καθὸ γεγέννηται τὸ αἰσθητὸν αὐτοῦ σαρκίον, ἀκολούθως δέ, καθὸ γέγονεν τοῦτο, πεπονθότα καὶ ἀνεσταμένον ὃ μὲν λέγῃ, οἳ δὲ ἀκούωσιν, Ἰουδαίοις μὲν σκάνδαλον, Ἕλλησι δὲ μωρίαν, ὥς φησιν ὁ ἀπόστολος. Διανοιχθεῖσαι δὲ αἱ γραφαὶ καὶ τοῖς ὦτα ἔχουσιν ἐμφήνασαι τὸ ἀληθὲς αὐτὸ ἐκεῖνο, ὃ πέπονθεν ἡ σάρξ, ἣν ἀνείληφεν ὁ Kύριος, Δύναμιν θεοῦ καὶ σοφίαν καταγγέλλουσιν. Ἐπὶ πᾶσί τε τὸ παραβολικὸν εἶδος τῆς γραφῆς, ἀρχαιότατον ὄν, ὡς παρεστήσαμεν, εἰκότως παρὰ τοῖς προφήταις μάλιστα ἐπλεόνασεν, ἵνα δὴ καὶ τοὺς φιλοσόφους τοὺς παρ´ Ἕλλησι καὶ τοὺς παρὰ τοῖς ἄλλοις βαρβάροις σοφοὺς ἠγνοηκέναι τὸ ἅγιον ἐπιδείξῃ πνεῦμα τὴν ἐσομένην τοῦ Kυρίου παρουσίαν καὶ τὴν ὑπ´ αὐτοῦ παραδοθησομένην μυστικὴν διδασκαλίαν. Εἰκότως ἄρα κηρύσσουσα ἡ προφητεία τὸν κύριον, ὡς μὴ παρὰ τὰς τῶν πολλῶν ὑπολήψεις λέγουσα βλασφημεῖν τισι δοκοίη, ἐσχημάτισε τὰ σημαινόμενα φωναῖς ταῖς καὶ ἐπὶ ἑτέρας ἐννοίας ἄγειν δυναμέναις. Αὐτίκα οἱ προφῆται πάντες οἱ προθεσπίσαντες τὴν παρουσίαν τοῦ Kυρίου καὶ σὺν αὐτῇ τὰ ἅγια μυστήρια ἐδιώχθησαν, ἐφονεύθησαν, καθάπερ καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ Kύριος διασαφήσας αὐτῶν τὰς γραφὰς καὶ οἱ τούτου γνώριμοι οἱ κηρύξαντες τὸν λόγον ὡσαύτως μετ´ αὐτὸν τὸ ζῆν παρεβάλοντο. Ὅθεν καὶ ὁ Πέτρος ἐν τῷ Κηρύγματι περὶ τῶν ἀποστόλων λέγων φησίν· Ἡμεῖς δὲ ἀναπτύξαντες τὰς βίβλους ἃς εἴχομεν τῶν προφητῶν, ἃ μὲν διὰ παραβολῶν, ἃ δὲ δι´ αἰνιγμάτων, ἃ δὲ αὐθεντικῶς καὶ αὐτολεξεὶ τὸν Χριστὸν Ἰησοῦν ὀνομαζόντων, εὕρομεν καὶ τὴν παρουσίαν αὐτοῦ καὶ τὸν θάνατον καὶ τὸν σταυρὸν καὶ τὰς λοιπὰς κολάσεις πάσας ὅσας ἐποίησαν αὐτῷ οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι, καὶ τὴν ἔγερσιν καὶ τὴν εἰς οὐρανοὺς ἀνάληψιν πρὸ τοῦ Ἱεροσόλυμα κτισθῆναι, καθὼς ἐγέγραπτο ταῦτα πάντα, ἃ ἔδει αὐτὸν παθεῖν καὶ μετ´ αὐτὸν ἃ ἔσται. Ταῦτα οὖν ἐπιγνόντες ἐπιστεύσαμεν τῷ θεῷ διὰ τῶν γεγραμμένων εἰς αὐτόν. Κλήμης ὁ Ἀλεξανδρεύς, Στρωματεων, Λογος Ϛ’, Κεφ' ΙΕ’ Source: Migne PG 9.349b-352c

For many reasons, then, the Scriptures hide the sense. First, that we may become seekers and always be vigilant for the discovery of the words of salvation. Then because it was not suitable for all to understand, so that they might not be harmed by receiving in a different way the things spoken for salvation by the Holy Spirit. Whence it is for chosen men, picked out for knowledge because of their faith, that the holy mysteries of the prophecies are kept veiled in the parables; for the style of the Scriptures is parabolic. So indeed the Lord, who was not of the world, came to men as one who was of the world. For He bore all virtue to lead man, nurtured by the world, from one world to another by the things of the intellect and to the principle truths by knowledge. Whence also He also made use of metaphorical description; for the parable is such a thing, an account of something which is not the principal subject but similar to the principal subject, and it leads him who understands it to what is the true and principal thing. Or, as some say, it is a mode of speech presenting with vigour, by means of other things, what is the principal subject. And now also the whole economy which made prophecy of the Lord indeed appears as a parable to those who do not know the truth, when someone speaks and they hear that the Son of God, the Son of Him who made everything, assumed flesh, and was conceived in the Virgin's womb, as far as His material flesh was produced, and subsequently, as happened, suffered and rose again. It is 'a stumbling-block to the Jews, and foolishness to the Greeks,' as the Apostle says. 1 But when the Scriptures are opened up, they declare the truth 'to those who have ears,' 2 proclaiming that the suffering endured by the flesh which the Lord assumed is 'the power and wisdom of God.' 3 Finally, since the parabolic style of Scripture is of the greatest antiquity, as we have argued, it abounded most, as is to be expected, in the prophets, so that the Holy Spirit might reveal that the philosophers of the Greeks and the wise men of the Barbarians were ignorant of the future coming of the Lord and of the spiritual teaching that He was going to give. Fittingly then, the prophecy that proclaimed the Lord, so that it might not seem to some to blaspheme while speaking what was beyond the ideas of many, fashioned its speech in ways which were able to lead to different ideas. Now all the prophets who foretold the Lord's coming and the holy mysteries that would come with it, were persecuted and slain, as even the Lord Himself, He who, in explaining the Scriptures, used parables, as likewise did His disciples who preached the word like Him after His passing from life. Whence also Peter, in his Preaching, speaking of the Apostles, says: 'But we, unrolling the books of the prophets which we have, who name Jesus Christ in parables and enigmas, and expressly and in its own words, find His advent and death and cross, and all the rest of the torments the Jews inflicted on Him, and His resurrection and ascension to heaven prior to the establishment of Jerusalem. 4 As it is written, 'All these things it befitted Him to suffer, and what shall be after Him.' 5 Recognising these things, then, we believed in God because of what is written about Him.' Clement of Alexandria, The Stromata, Book 6, Chapter 15 1 1 Cor 1.23 2 Mt 11.15 etc 3 1 Cor 1.24 4 Likely the New Jerusalem, cf Apoc 21.2 5 Source Unknown