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| Of the Hieroglyphics found in the Temple of Serapis.
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Chapter XVII.—Of the
Hieroglyphics found in the Temple of Serapis.
When the Temple of Serapis was
torn down and laid bare, there were found in it, engraven on stones,
certain characters which they call hieroglyphics, having the forms of
crosses.741
| 741There are several cruciform signs among the Egyptian
hieroglyphics, as e.g. the simple determinative 5, meaning ‘to
cross,’ ‘to multiply,’ ‘to mix’ (see
Birch, Egyptian Texts, p. 99); or the syllabic *, phonetically
equivalent to am (see Birch, ibid. p. 101); or the cross
with a ring at the head *; or the still more elaborate * (see Brugsh,
Thesaurus Inscript. Egyptiacarum, p. 20; also Champollion,
Grammaire Egyptienne, XII. p. 365, 440). To which of these
Socrates refers it is impossible to say from their mere form. They
occur commonly and we must infer that the discovery described in this
passage is not the first bringing into light of the sign mentioned, but
its occurrence in the Serapeum. The third of the above signs is usually
interpreted as ‘life’ either ‘happy’ or
‘immortal,’ which agrees with the meaning given to the
cruciform sign here mentioned.
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Both the Christians and pagans on seeing them, appropriated and applied
them to their respective religions: for the Christians who affirm that
the cross is the sign of Christ’s saving passion, claimed this character as peculiarly theirs;
but the pagans alleged that it might appertain to Christ and Serapis in
common; ‘for,’ said they, ‘it symbolizes one thing to
Christians and another to heathens.’ Whilst this point was
controverted amongst them, some of the heathen converts to
Christianity, who were conversant with these hieroglyphic characters,
interpreted the form of a cross and said that it signifies ‘Life
to come.’ This the Christians exultingly laid hold of, as
decidedly favorable to their religion. But after other hieroglyphics
had been deciphered containing a prediction that ‘When the cross
should appear,’—for this was ‘life to
come,’—‘the Temple of Serapis would be
destroyed,’ a very great number of the pagans embraced
Christianity, and confessing their sins, were baptized. Such are the
reports I have heard respecting the discovery of this symbol in form of
a cross. But I cannot imagine that the Egyptian priests foreknew the
things concerning Christ, when they engraved the figure of a cross. For
if ‘the advent’ of our Saviour into the world ‘was a
mystery hid from ages and from generations,’742
| 7421 Cor. ii.
7, 8; Eph. iii. 5, 6; Col. i. 26.
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as the apostle declares; and if the devil himself, the prince of
wickedness, knew nothing of it, his ministers, the Egyptian priests,
are likely to have been still more ignorant of the matter; but
Providence doubtless purposed that in the enquiry concerning this
character, there should something take place analogous to what happened
heretofore at the preaching of Paul. For he, made wise by the Divine
Spirit, employed a similar method in relation to the Athenians,743
and brought over many of them to the faith, when on reading the
inscription on one of their altars, he accommodated and applied it to
his own discourse. Unless indeed any one should say, that the Word of
God wrought in the Egyptian priests, as it did on Balaam744
and Caiaphas;745
for these men uttered prophecies of good things in spite of themselves.
This will suffice on the subject.
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