Gospel of Philip

On the five mysteries — baptism, chrism, eucharist, redemption, and the bridal chamber — the temple, the holy of holies, and the rending of the veil.

1It is not possible that any should see anything of the things that truly are, save he be made like unto them. It is not so with man in the world: he beholdeth the sun without being a sun, and beholdeth the heaven and the earth and all things else, and is not them. But thou hast seen something of that place, and hast become those things; thou hast seen the Spirit, and hast become spirit; thou hast seen Christ, and hast become Christ; thou hast seen the Father, and shalt become Father.

2Therefore in this place thou seest everything, and thyself thou seest not. But in that place thou seest thyself — for thou shalt become what thou seest.

3Faith receiveth, love giveth. No man can receive without faith; no man can give without love. Therefore, that we may receive, we believe; and that we may truly give, we love. For if a man give without love, he hath no profit of what he gave.

4He that hath received aught not as the Lord giveth is yet a Hebrew.

5The apostles before us called things by these names: Jesus the Nazoraean, Messias — that is, Jesus the Christ. The last name is Christ; the first name is Jesus; and the middle name is the Nazarene. Messias hath two meanings: the Christ, and the Measured. Jesus in Hebrew is the Redemption; Nazara is the Truth. Therefore the Nazarene is the Truth. The Christ hath been measured. The Nazarene and Jesus are they who measured.

6When the pearl is cast down into the mire, it groweth not the more despised; nor, if anointed with balsam, doth it become more precious. But it ever holdeth its honour with its master. So with the children of God: wheresoever they may be, they hold their value with their Father.

7If thou say I am a Jew, none shall tremble. If thou say I am a Roman, none shall be troubled. If thou say I am a Greek, a barbarian, a slave, a free man — none shall be disquieted. If thou say I am a Christian — at this name the world shall tremble. May I receive him whose name the rulers cannot endure to hear.

8God is a man-eater, and for this cause man is sacrificed unto Him. Before man was sacrificed, beasts were sacrificed, for they were not gods unto whom they were sacrificed.

9Vessels of glass and vessels of clay are made by means of fire. But if vessels of glass break, they are made over again, since they came to be by a breath; vessels of clay, however, if they break, are destroyed, since they came to be without breath.

10An ass that turneth a millstone went a hundred miles walking; when he was loosed, he found himself yet in the same place. There are men that walk many roads and travel nowhere. When evening was upon them, they had seen no city, no village, no creature, no nature, no power, no angel; in vain have the wretches laboured.

11The Eucharist is Jesus. For He is called in Syriac Pharisatha — that is, the One spread out. For Jesus came to crucify the world.

12The Lord went into the dye-house of Levi. He took seventy-two colours and threw them into the vat. He took them all out white. And He said: Even so the Son of Man came as a dyer.

13Sophia, who is called barren, is the mother of the angels, and the companion of the Christ is Mary the Magdalene. The Lord loved Mary more than all the disciples, and used to kiss her often upon the mouth. The rest of the disciples were displeased; they said unto Him: Why lovest thou her more than all of us? The Saviour answered and said unto them: Why love I not you as I love her?

14When a blind man and a sighted man are both in darkness, no difference is between them. But when the light cometh, the sighted shall see the light, and the blind shall remain in darkness.

15The Lord said: Blessed is he that is, before he came into being. For he that is, both was and shall be.

16The exaltation of man is not manifest, but it is hidden. Therefore he is master of the beasts that are stronger than himself, and great according to the manifest things and according to the hidden. So he giveth them their existence. But if a man be cut off from them, they kill one another and devour one another. They devoured one another because they had no food. But now they have food, for man tilled the soil.

17If any go down into the water and come up without having received aught, and saith I am a Christian, he hath taken the name as a loan. But if he receive the Holy Spirit, he hath the name as a gift. He that hath received a gift hath not to give it back; but to him that hath taken on loan, repayment is demanded. Such is what befalleth us when one is in a mystery.

18Great is the mystery of marriage. For without it, the world should not be. Yet the constitution of the world dependeth upon man, and the constitution of man dependeth upon marriage. Then think of the immaculate union; for it hath great power. Its image consisteth in defilement.

19Among the unclean spirits there are males and females. The males have congress with the souls that dwell in the female form, and the females are united in marriage with them that are in the male form. None can escape from these spirits if they take hold of him, save only he be a man and a woman together. The image and the angel are united with one another. Then no spirit shall presume to come upon man or woman.

20He that cometh out of the world cannot be detained, in that he was in the world. Plainly he is above both lust and fear; he is master of nature; he is mightier than envy. If they come and lay hold of him, and would choke him, how shall such an one not be able to escape, by means of the power of these two? How indeed shall they be afraid?

21The Lord did everything in a mystery: a baptism, a chrism, a eucharist, a redemption, and a bridal chamber.

22He said: I came to make the things below like unto the things above, and the things outside like unto the things inside. I came to make them one in this place. By means of types and images: they that say there is a heavenly man, and one above him, are wrong. For the heavenly man is the One revealed; he is called Him of the place below; and to whom the hidden belongeth — that one is above him.

23It is right to say: the inner and the outer, and that which is outside the outer. Therefore the Lord called destruction the outer darkness — for there is nothing outside it. He said: My Father is in the secret place. He said: Enter into thy chamber, and shut thy door behind thee, and pray to thy Father which is in the secret place — He that is the inmost. The inmost of these is the fulness, and beyond it there is nothing else within. This it is of which they say: It is the upmost.

24Before Christ some came forth. From whence they had been able to come, they could no more enter; and from whither they had been able to go, they could no more leave. But Christ came. Them that had entered He took out, and them that had gone out He put in.

25When Eve was yet in Adam, death existed not. When she was separated from him, death came to be. If she enter again, and he take her unto himself, death shall no more be.

26My God, my God! Why, O Lord, hast Thou forsaken Me? It was on the cross that He spake these words; for it was there that He was rent in twain.

27He that hath been begotten by Him, He hath begotten not from this place. The Lord arose from the dead. He came as He had been before. But His body was wholly perfect; for it was flesh, but it was true flesh. And our flesh is not true flesh, but our flesh is an image of the true flesh.