Vigiliae Christianae

Vigiliae Christianae 61 (2007) 445-469

www.brill.nl/vc

From the Prayer of the Apostle Paul to the Three Steles of Seth: Codices I, XI and VII from Nag Hammadi Viewed as a Collection
Louis Painchaud and Michael Kaler
7 Burneld St., Toronto, Ontario, Canada M6G1Y4

Abstract While the individual texts in the various codices found near Nag Hammadi have been studied and discussed, relatively little attention has been paid to the motives underlying their original selection and organisation. Codices I, XI and VII in particular have been shown on palaeographical and codicological grounds to make up a sub-collection within the larger Nag Hammadi collection. Despite their doctrinal diversity, the texts found in these three codices were intended by their compilers to be read in sequence. The purpose of this article is to examine the logic behind this choice and arrangement of texts, and to advance the hypothesis that this three volume collection is intended to progressively introduce the reader to a heterodox and esoteric doctrine of religious conict and polemic, in which the reader is invited to identify him- or herself with an embattled minority group within the larger Christian community, a group who nonetheless see themselves as enlightened and as being of the lineage of the Father. Keywords Valentinians, Sethians, Tripartite Tractate, Allogenes, Silvanus, Hypsiphrone, Apocryphon of James

Because of the material characteristics of the codices and the presence of multiple attestations of individual texts,1 it is generally recognized that the Nag Hammadi collection, comprising 13 codices or remnants of codices,
Within the Nag Hammadi collection there are three versions of the Apocryphon of John (in codices II, III, and IV), two versions of the Holy Book of the Great Invisible Spirit, also known as the Gospel of the Egyptians (in codices III and IV), two versions of Eugnostos (in codices III and V), two versions of the Gospel of Truth (codices I and XII), and two versions of the Writing without Title on the Origin of the World, also known as On the Origin of the World (in codices II and XIII). It is presumed that sub-collections, that is, collections of
Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2007 DOI: 10.1163/157007207X186042
1)

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was formed by bringing together at least four smaller collections.2 In the hopes of contributing to the understanding of the last phase of the life and transmission of these texts,3 and also in the hopes of elucidating the concerns of some of their collectors, in this paper we will examine one of these sub-collections, the one made up of codices I, XI, and VII, and present a hypothesis as to the motives behind its arrangement. We will rst show that there are solid material reasons for arguing that these three codices form a sub-collection, despite the extreme disparity of their content. Having established this, we will examine the characteristics of this sub-collection by analyzing the selection and arrangement of the material, rst with regard to each individual codex, and afterwards with regard to the entire sub-collection, establishing that the three codices can
several codices intended for the same destination, would not contain duplicate copies of texts, and this is borne out through the analyses of handwriting and codex construction. It must be observed however that one of these sub-collections, codices II and XIII, which were presumably written by the same scribe, contained at least one duplicate, i.e. the Writing without Title on the Origin of the World (NH II, 5 and XIII, 2) and that they might have contained two copies of the long recension of the Apocryphon of John, as has been suggested by Yvonne Janssens (Le codex XIII de Nag Hammadi, Le Muson 87 [1974] 342, and La Prtennoia Trimorphe [Bibliothque copte de Nag Hammadi, section Textes, 4, Qubec: Les Presses de lUniversit Laval, 1978], p. 2). Since it is unlikely that the same text was copied twice for the same patron, this duplication suggests that codices II and XIII share the same origin, i.e. they were copied by the same scribe, but that they had two dierent destinations. We can therefore summarize by saying that shared material characteristics such as similarity of the covers or the handwriting point towards the same origin, while the presence of doublets does not point towards dierent origins, but rather toward dierent destinations. 2) These collections are composed, respectively, of codices IV and VIII, and possibly V (see on this Michael Williams, The Scribes of Nag Hammadi Codices IV, V, VI, VIII and IX, pages 334-342 in M. Rassart and J. Ries [ed.], Actes du IV e Congrs Copte, Louvainla-Neuve, 5-10 Septembre 1988, vol II: De la linguistique au gnosticisme [Publications de lInstitut Orientaliste de Louvain 41, Louvain-la-Neuve: Institut Orientaliste, 1992]); codices VI, IX and X, and possibly also codices II and XIII; codex III; and the sub-collection with which this article will be concerned, namely that made up of codices I, XI and VII. See James M. Robinson, The Facsimile Edition of the Nag Hammadi Codices, Introduction, (Leiden: Brill, 1984), pp. 71-86, particularly note 63. It is entirely possible that these subcollections might only have been brought together at the time that they were put in a jar and hidden: see Stephen Emmel, Religious Tradition, Textual Transmission, and the Nag Hammadi Codices, in John D. Turner and Anne McGuire (ed.), The Nag Hammadi Library after Fifty Years. Proceedings of the 1995 Society of Biblical Literature Commemoration (Nag Hammadi and Manichaean Studies 44, Leiden: Brill, 1997), p. 36. 3) For a discussion of the dierent phases of the life of these texts, see Emmel, Religious Tradition, Textual Transmission, and the Nag Hammadi Codices.

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be read as an ensemble, forming a sort of meta-text with a distinct message, structured in a developmental and almost narrative way. As this analysis will show, not only have the texts within each codex been carefully selected and organized, as Michael Williams has convincingly demonstrated,4 but the same care has also been taken with the sub-collection as a whole.

1. Codices I, XI, and VII as a Sub-collection We are led to consider these three codices as a sub-collection by the similarities in their binding,5 but also and especially by the links between the scribes who copied them. The rst three texts in codex I, namely the Prayer of the Apostle Paul, the Apocryphon of James, and the Gospel of Truth, were copied and paginated by one scribe (A). This scribe then left blank the last third of page 43 and the next seven pages, and resumed work, including the numbering of pages,6 with the Tripartite Tractate on page 50. A second scribe (B) then copied the Treatise on the Resurrection on the blank pages that were left by the rst scribe,7 but for whatever reason this scribe did not add in page numbers.
Michael Williams, Interpreting the Nag Hammadi Collection(s) in the History of Gnosticism(s), in L. Painchaud and A. Pasquier (ed.), Les textes de Nag Hammadi et le problme de leur classication. Actes du colloque tenu Qubec du 15 au 19 septembre 1993 (Bibliothque copte de Nag Hammadi, section tudes, 3, Qubec/Louvain-Paris: Les Presses de lUniversit Laval/ditions Peeters, 1995), pp. 3-50, and also taken up, in less detail, in chapter 11 of his Rethinking Gnosticism: An Argument for Dismantling a Dubious Category (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1996). See below for more detailed discussion. 5) For a discussion of the codicological divisions of the Nag Hammadi codices (divisions which accord well with palaeographic distinctions), see Robinson, The Facsimile Edition . . ., Introduction (esp. pp. 77-86). 6) Eric Turner notes that page numbers were often not written by the scribe that copied the text: It would seem, therefore, that it was not running pagination utilized by the scribe to keep his sheets in order, but was added subsequently (e.g., by a librarian) (Typology of the Early Codex [Haney Foundation Series 18, Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1977], p. 75). In the present case, however, it seems likely that the page numbers of codex I were written in by the same scribe that copied the text (noting in particular the distinctive way that the supralinear stroke is formed). Now, it is clear that scribe A knew what text scribe B was to add to the codex, and scribe A also left a calculated amount of space for it, but for whatever reason Scribe A did not choose to number the blank pages, and neither did scribe B. 7) See Williams, Interpreting the Nag Hammadi Collection(s) in the History of Gnosticism(s), p. 12.
4)

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We know that scribe Bs work was done after scribe A had nished because the Treatise on the Resurrection ends halfway through page 50, and the rest of the page is left blank. If scribe B had copied the Treatise after scribe A had done the Gospel of Truth, and then scribe A had resumed work with the Tripartite Tractate, scribe A would have picked up immediately after the Treatise on the Resurrection, rather than leaving half a page blank. Scribe B also copied the rst two texts in codex XI, the Interpretation of Knowledge and the Valentinian Exposition, as well as the liturgical supplements that follow them. Then a third scribe (C) copied the last two texts of this codex, as well as the whole of codex VII. These three codices are thus clearly linked both by their binding and by the interaction of the scribes who copied their contents. In addition, the alternation between scribes A and B in codex I shows that the order of texts in at least this codex was carefully planned. However, the content of these three codices is far from homogeneous. From the linguistic point of view, we note that the texts copied by scribes A and B are in the L6 dialect of Coptic, while those copied by scribe C are in the Sahidic dialect. The dierent dialects, or more often dialectal tendencies, to be found among the Nag Hammadi texts are indications of the dierent histories lying behind the texts, from their translation into one or another dialect of Coptic, sometimes followed by retranslations into other dialects, until their compilation into the Nag Hammadi collection.8 In terms of their doctrine, the two untitled texts copied by A and B at the end of their respective sections, texts which modern researchers refer to as the Tripartite Tractate and the Valentinian Exposition, are clearly Valentinian, while the texts copied by C towards the end of codex XI, and at the end of codex VII, namely Allogenes and the Three Steles of Seth, unquestionably belong to the so-called Sethian tradition.9 Unfortunately, the last text copied by scribe C in codex XI, Hypsiphrone, is in such bad shape that one cannot be sure if it ought to be considered to be Sethian as well.
See on this Wolf-Peter Funk, The Linguistic Aspect of Classifying the Nag Hammadi Codices, in Painchaud and Pasquier (ed.), Les textes de Nag Hammadi, pp. 145-146. 9) See in particular the work of the late Hans-Martin Schenke, Das sethianische System nach Nag-Hammadi-Handschriften, in Peter Nagel (ed.), Studia Coptica (Berliner Byzantinische Arbeiten, 45, Berlin: Akademie Verlag, 1974), pp. 165-173 and The Phenomenon and Signicance of Gnostic Sethianism, in Bentley Layton (ed.), The Rediscovery of Gnosticism. Proceedings of the International Conference on Gnosticism at Yale, New Haven, Connecticut, Marc 28-31 1978, vol. 2, Sethian Gnosticism (Studies in the History of Religion, 41, Leiden: Brill, 1981), pp. 588-618. Also John D. Turner, Sethian Gnosticism, a Literary History, in Harold Attridge, Charles W. Hedrick, and Robert Hodgson (ed.), Nag
8)

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The following table provides a summary of these dierent doctrinal characteristics. Codices I, VII and XI
Codex I Scribe A Scribe B Dialect L6 Primarily Valentinian A. Pr. Paul 1. Ap. Jas. 2. Gos. Truth 4. Treat. Res. 3. Tri.Trac. 1. Interp. Know. 2. Val. Exp. 3. Allogenes 4. Hypsiph. Codex XI Codex VII Scribe C Dialect S Primarily Sethian 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Paraph. Shem Treat. Seth Apoc. Pet. Teach. Silv. Steles Seth

Furthermore, because of the poor quality of scribe As calligraphy, the participation of two scribes each in the copying of codices I and XI, and the juxtaposition of two quite dierent dialectical norms in codex XI, we conclude that these two codices were intended for use in the same milieu where they were produced: they do not seem to have been intended for commercial use. This conclusion extends the point already made by E. Thomassen with regard to codex I, who argues that, based on the quality of the calligraphy and the presence of certain ornamental signs at the beginning of the codex, Tout dabord, comme il est improbable quun manuscrit commercial ait t dcor de cette faon, ces signes dmontrent que le scribe a fait ce manuscrit pour son propre usage (et pour le groupe auquel il appartenait). Dailleurs, la calligraphie mdiocre de lcriture appuie ce point de vue.10 This hypothesis can also be extended to codex VII. Despite the markedly superior quality of its calligraphy, the scribal note with which it ends suggests a close relationship between the scribe and those for whom the codex was intended: This book belongs to the fatherhood. It is the son who wrote it. Bless me, father. I bless you. Peace. Amen (NH VII 127.28-32).

Hammadi, Gnosticism and Early Christianity, (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1986), pp. 55-86 and Typology of the Sethian Gnostic Treatises From Nag Hammadi, in Painchaud and Pasquier (ed.), Les textes de Nag Hammadi, pp. 149-217. 10) Einar Thomassen and Louis Painchaud, Le Trait tripartite (Bibliothque copte de Nag Hammadi, section Textes, 19, Qubec: Les Presses de lUniversit Laval, 1989), p. 3.

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In addition, we should take into consideration the scribal notes found at the start of codex I (B.9-10), following the Lessons of Silvanos in codex VII (118.8-9), and at the very end of that codex. One such note, written in Greek and placed at the end of the Prayer of the Apostle Paul, is made up of the formula en eirhnh o xristos agio=, with the word xristos being represented by a superimposed x and r ( ) (B.9-10). The second note, found in codex VII at the end of Silvanos, is made up of the acrostic xuys followed by the Greek words uayma amhxanon, and could be translated Jesus Christ, Son of God Saviour, extraordinary marvel, and is accompanied by a triple f, a triple h, the letters t and y, and a symbol that might represent an anchor (118.8-9).11 These notes show that the texts that they accompany were positively received by the scribes who copied them. Thus we would argue that these three codices were produced for the personal use of their scribes or people in their vicinity. Our conclusion is also supported by Sheltons analysis of place names found in the cartonnage used to stien the covers of these three codices, which concludes that at least Codices I, V, VII, and XI were bound using material from the general neighbourhood of the place where the codices were bound.12 This specic conclusion coheres with Kim Haines-Eitzens general point that in early Christianity as a whole, literature tended to be transmitted through private scribal networks: Scribes and readers, interested members of Christian communities, formed networks that enabled the transmission of early Christian literature. That these networks were private and theologically (ascetically, socially) driven [is] clear . . . nowhere do we nd evidence that Christian scriptoria existed during the second or third centuries; rather, transmission of Christian literature . . . appears to have proceeded along the personal channels of friendship and acquaintance.13 Transmission through such networks, of course, would heighten the possibility of idiosyncratic and unique collections such as codices I, XI and VII being made. There are two other important conclusions that we can draw from this examination of the arrangement and content of these codices. The rst is that
11) See on this subject Williams, Interpreting the Nag Hammadi Collection(s) in the History of Gnosticism(s), pp. 18-20, and Clemens Scholten, Die Nag-Hammadi-Texte als Buchbesitz der Pachomianer, Jahrbuch fr Antike und Christentum 31 (1988) 161-162. 12) John W. B. Barns, Gerald M. Brown, and John C. Shelton, Nag Hammadi Codices: Greek and Coptic Papyri from the Cartonnage of the Covers (Nag Hammadi Studies XVI, Leiden: Brill, 1981), p. 11. 13) Guardians of Letters: Literacy, Power and the Transmitters of Early Christian Literature (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000), p. 104.

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codex I was not copied from a single source, but rather that its contents were drawn from at least two other codices, which presumes that the material copied into codex I was deliberately chosen.14 The second conclusion is that the second through fth texts in codex I were arranged in a particular order (the rst text, the Prayer of the Apostle Paul, is written on the yleaf of the codex and might serve as an introduction, or a benediction).15 The deliberate choice of the order of the second through fth texts is shown by the care taken by scribe A to leave available for scribe B a precise amount of space in the middle of the codex: the Treatise on the Resurrection was obviously intended to follow the Gospel of Truth and precede the Tripartite Tractate, and scribe A must have had a good idea of the length of the work, presumably from having seen or read it before. This has led Michael Williams to conclude that the choice and the arrangement of the contents of codex I, at least for texts 2-5, correspond to a precise design: . . . the most signicant thing we learn is that the order of at least tractates 2-5 in Codex I seems to have been carefully planned.16 Although the study of the logic, the selection and arrangement of texts for inclusion in heterogeneous codices17 is in its infancy, other Nag
14) John D. Turner draws on their linguistic similarity to suggest that the rst two writings in Codex XI could both have been translated into Coptic by the same translator (Introduction to Codex XI, in Charles W. Hedrick [ed.], Nag Hammadi Codices XI, XII, XIII [Nag Hammadi Studies 28, Leiden: Brill, 1990], p. 11). Without going quite so far, one can certainly view this linguistic similarity as indicating that they share a common provenance, and an examination of the language of the Treatise on the Resurrection, the one text in codex I copied by this scribe, suggests that this conclusion could be extended to that writing as well. At least in the case of codex IV, there is evidence that the same scribe copied texts with dierent dialectal traits (Williams, The Scribes of Nag Hammadi Codices p. 336), and thus we cannot assume that this linguistic similarity was the work of the scribe copying the texts. This scribe, like the scribe of codex IV, could have been concerned to follow dialectical peculiarities in the exemplar(s), rather than to produce a dialectically uniform version (ibid.). 15) The logic behind the use of the Prayer of the Apostle Paul as the introduction to codex I has been analysed by Michael Kaler, The Prayer of the Apostle Paul in the Context of Nag Hammadi Codex I, paper delivered at the Society for Biblical Literature, Nag Hammadi and Gnosticism Section, Nov. 2006. 16) Williams, Interpreting the Nag Hammadi Collection(s) in the History of Gnosticism(s), 13. 17) By which we mean codices where originally independent works have been assembled. The one great exception is of course the New Testament, but otherwise, scholarship has paid relatively little attention to the possible logic lying behind the selection and arrangement of disparate material, despite signicant papers by Williams (Design in Codex

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Hammadi codices do show clear signs of deliberate organization (and choice?) of otherwise disparate contentssee for example the work of F. Morard (Les apocalypses de Codex V de Nag Hammadi) and M. Kaler (L Apocalypse de Paul, pp. 149-153) on codex V.18 Particularly relevant
Composition: The Case of Bodmer P72, presented at the AAR/SBL meeting in Seattle November 1999; for another analysis of the internal logic of this codex see Haines-Eitzen, Guardians of Letters, pp. 96-104) and Franoise Morard (Les apocalypses de Codex V de Nag Hammadi, in Painchaud and Pasquier (ed.), Les Textes de Nag Hammadi). On codex V see also Kaler in Jean-Marc Rosenstiehl and Michael Kaler, L Apocalypse de Paul (NH V,2) (Bibliothque copte de Nag Hammadi, section Textes, 31, Qubec/Louvain: Les Presses de lUniversit Laval/ ditions Peeters, 2005), pp. 149-153. Ancient references to the logic lying behind particular collections are hard to come by. There is, of course, Augustines rst letter to Firmus, concerning the de Civitate Dei, in which he gives advice on how he would like the work divided: There are twenty-two books which are too bulky to bind into one volume. If you want two volumes they must be divided so that one volume has ten books and the other twelve . . . If, however, you prefer more than two volumes then you must have ve volumes of which the rst will contain the rst ve books . . . [and the second] the second group of ve. The next three volumes which follow must have four books each (translation from Harry Gamble, Books and Readers in the Early Church: A History of Early Christian Texts [New Haven: Yale University Press, 1995], p. 134). Gamble goes on to note that it is interesting to see Augustines insistence that the bibliographic format of the work should correspond to the divisions of the subject matter and the phases of the argument. The physical form of the work is to follow its content. And, for our purposes, it is quite signicant to note that this physical form is clearly and consciously spread over several codices. (For further discussion of the rst and second letters to Firmus and the signicance of Augustines proposed arrangements for the text, see Johannes van Oort, Jerusalem and Babylon: A Study into Augustines City of God and the Sources of his Doctrine of the Two Cities [Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae 14, Leiden: Brill, 1991], pp. 171-175.) There is also the mention by Cassiodorus (Inst. 1.2.12) that he collected the relevant writings on I and II Kings into one volume, but left empty places so that writings yet to be found . . . may be added to the commentaries mentioned above (trans. James Halporn, Cassiodorus: Institutions of Divine and Secular Learning and On the Soul [Translated Texts for Historians 42, Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2004], p. 117) a procedure similar to that which scribe A seems to have followed in leaving space in the codex for the Treatise on the Resurrection. 18) This codex seems to have been assembled by a collector of apocalyptic literature, and in this regard suggests similarities to Bodmer codex Vis-G (P. Bodmer XXIX-XXXVIII, known as the Visions Codex, and containing selections from the Shepherd of Hermas, as well as the Vision of Dositheos): see on this Rodolphe Kasser and Guglielmo Cavallo, Description et datation du Codex des Visions, in Andr Hurst, Olivier Reverdin, and Jean Rudhardt, ed., Papyrus Bodmer XXIX: Vision de Dorothos, dit avec une introduction, une traduction et desnotes (Cologny-Genve: Fondation Martin Bodmer, 1984), pp. 99-120. More recently, Hurst and Rudhart have argued that the codexs internal logic does not derive from the

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here is M. Williams analysis of the codices IV and VIII, which he sees as forming a collection arranged according to a history of revelation scheme.19 He argues that the collection moves from primordial origins and an overview of existence (Apocryphon of John as a rewritten Genesis, then the Gospel of the Egyptians as the autobiography of Seth, a divine gure from the primordial world), then (codex VIII) ancient testimony from Zostrianos (a human gure from the distant, but not quite primordial, past, dealing with the nature of the transcendent realms), and at last nishing with a revelation of Christ to his disciples (Epistle of Peter to Philip), which gives an explicitly Christian sheen to the whole collection, ts its chronological survey into Christian sacred history, and also brings it up to date by linking it with the contemporary period. If Williams argument is correct, then we would have evidence of another multi-volume collection, of which the individual volumes could nonetheless be read separately, as seems to be the case with codices I, XI, and VII. This volume would also have been the product of the collaboration between several dierent scribes, increasing its similarity to codices I, XI and VII.

2. The Selection of the Material The table below gives a list of the texts contained in the three codices, along with a brief summary of their content and an indication of their possible or probable sectarian aliations. Content of codices I, XI et VII
Codex I 1 2 3 4 5 (A-B) (1-16) (16-43) (43-50) (51-138) Title20 Prayer of the Apostle Paul <Apocryphon of James> <Gospel of Truth> Treatise on the Resurrection <Tripartite Tractate> Content Short prayer attributed to Paul Dialogue of Jesus and disciples Homily (exoteric ?) Letter on the resurrection Systematic doctrinal expos Doctrinal aliation Probably Valentinian Undetermined Probably Valentinian Probably Valentinian Valentinian

visionary nature of some of its contents, but rather that the shorter poems draw on the themes of repentance and martyrdom that are found in the longer workssee their Papyri Bodmer XXX-XXXVII: Codex des Visions, Pomes divers (Munich: Saur, 1999), pp. 4-13. 19) Rethinking Gnosticism, p. 249. 20) Many of the writings in these codices were untitled, and the titles that modern research has given them are put between brackets.

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(cont.)
Codex I Codex XI 1 (1-21) 2 (22-39) 3 (40-44) 4 (45-69) 5 (69-72) Codex VII 1 (1-49) 2 (49-70) 3 (70-84) Title Interpretation of Knowledge <A Valentinian Exposition> <Liturgical Supplements> Allogenes Hypsiphrone The Paraphrase of Sem Second Treatise of the Great Seth Apocalypse of Peter Content Exhortation to reconciliation Systematic doctrinal expos Baptism and Eucharist Revelation discourse ? Apocalypse, treating rst and last things Fate of the Saviour and those who are his Fate of the Saviour and those who are his Sapiential teachings Revelation discourse Doctrinal aliation Possibly Valentinian Valentinian Valentinian (?) Sethian Undetermined undetermined undetermined Basilidian (?) undetermined Sethian

4 (84-118) Teachings of Silvanos 5 (118-27) Three Steles de Seth

We have no idea which or how many texts were originally known and available to the scribes, and from which they made their selection. All that remains to us is the selection itself. That being said, there are things that we can deduce about their procedure. When one considers the three codices as forming an ensemble, it is clear that their selection was not made on a sectarian basis (assuming, of course, that our modern divisions, particularly between Sethian and Valentinian writings, correspond to ancient divisions). Nor does the selection have to do with the themes of the various writings, or with their literary genre. In terms of the individual codices, there does seem to be a certain doctrinal element to the selection, at least insofar as codex I as a whole appears more or less Valentinian, whereas codex VII does not contain any texts that could be linked to Valentinianism. Among the writings copied by scribes A and B, we nd some of the most clearly Valentinian texts of the Nag Hammadi collection (with the exception of the Gospel of Philip), namely the Tripartite Tractate and the Gospel of Truth in codex I, and the Valentinian Exposition in codex XI,21 while among the writings copied by scribe C one nds some of the most clearly Sethian writings, such as Allogenes in codex XI and the Three Steles of Seth in codex VII.
21)

See Thomassen, Notes pour la dlimitation dun corpus valentinien Nag Hammadi, Painchaud and Pasquier (ed.), Les Textes de Nag Hammadi, pp. 243-259.

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Furthermore, each of these two groups of writings (those copied by scribes A and B, and those copied by scribe C) include works which, while not belonging quite as evidently to the Valentinian or Sethian traditions, nonetheless show anities with these traditions and could easily have been read as Valentinian or Sethian works, as the case may be. Thus, while the Treatise on the Resurrection (codex I) and the Interpretation of Knowledge (codex XI) are not so explicitly Valentinian as the Tripartite Tractate, they can nonetheless be read as Valentinian texts.22 The same would apply to the Second Treatise of the Great Seth or the Paraphrase of Shem in codex VII, with regard to the Sethian tradition. One can therefore say that codex I shows overall a dominant Valentinian tendency, while codex VII shows a Sethian one, and the two tendencies coexist in codex XI. Its rst half is doctrinally aligned with codex I, while its second half is linked to codex VII. This doctrinal split coincides with a dialectal fracture between S (Sahidic) and L6 (a branch of the Lycopolitan dialect), and is the result of the stages of transmission of these texts, their trajectories and their translators.23 The evidence suggests that in this case works of similar doctrinal tendencies had circulated together, or in similar milieus. In the following section we will show that the selection of texts is coherent both in terms of the arrangement of texts within each individual codex, and within the three codices viewed as an ensemble.

3. The Arrangement of the Material Michael Williams analysis of the arrangement of texts in codices I, XI and VII led him to argue that codex I was organized around a scriptural model, codex XI around a liturgical model, and codex VII around a model that, as with codex I, one could call scriptural. Williams himself does not use the term with regard to this codex, although he does suggests that the Paraphrase of Shem takes the place of the Old Testament.24 His reconstruction of the logic behind these arrangements of texts, which we will examine below, is plausible overall.

Ibid. See on this Wolf-Peter Funk, The Linguistic Aspect. 24) Williams, Interpreting the Nag Hammadi Collection(s) in the History of Gnosticism(s) , p. 17.
23)

22)

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In addition, Williams has pointed out another, and very signicant aspect of the arrangement of codex XI. He notes that in codex XI there is a gradual crescendo from the more exoteric homiletic material to the mystical visions at the end.25 This same perception, if slightly modied, is applicable to codex I as well, with its culmination in the elaborate doctrinal exposition of the Tripartite Tractate. Codex I Williams argues that the texts in this codex have been organized in a scriptural pattern. Setting the Prayer of the Apostle Paul to one side (it would have functioned as a brief invocation to open the volume),26 the codex begins with the Apocryphon of James (a sort of gospel), followed by Gospel of Truth (which in its focus on exposition and parenesis takes the place of the letters in the NT), then the Treatise on the Resurrection, dealing with eschatology. Finally, the Tripartite Tractate plays the role of a more comprehensive systematic theology for which the small collection of scripture in the rst part of the codex sets the stage.27 Although this understanding is certainly possible, one could also argue that within codex I the texts are organized in a progressive manner. If we exclude for the moment the Prayer of the Apostle Paul, whose position in the codex marks it as separate from the rest of the works,28 the codex starts with the non-Valentinian Apocryphon of James adopting a mild polemical stance against what could be called mainstream Christianity. Then come two texts whose Valentinian character is only implicit. Then the codex nishes with the Tripartite Tractate, a systematic expos that covers all the aspects of Valentinian doctrine. Such an arrangement is best explained by the hypothesis that the codex was intended to give a progressive introduction to the Valentinian doctrine for non-initiates. This would provide a more comprehensive explanation of the arrangement of the material in codex I than Williams hypothesis of a neo-testamentary model, a model which is inadequate to explain the position of the Tripartite Tractate in the codex. Our hypothesis also has the advantage of taking into account the later addition of the Prayer of the
Op. cit. p. 16. Rethinking Gnosticism, p. 14. 27) Op. cit. p. 15. 28) And whose vocabulary and concerns mark it as a general introduction to the codex as a wholesee below, and also Kaler, The Prayer of the Apostle Paul.
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Apostle Paul to the yleaf of the codex: it would have functioned as a sort of captatio benevolentiae, a gesture intended to recommend the contents of the codex to the uninitiated readers by putting it under the patronage of the great apostle. We know that Pauls writings were quite popular with esotericallyminded Christians of all sorts, including Valentinian authors, who interpreted them as being coded expositions of Valentinian ideas. Furthermore, as Griggs has pointed out,29 Paul was known in the early church quite as much, if not more, for his apocalyptic visionary experience (Gal 1:13-17; 2 Cor 12:1-4; etc.) as for his theology, and thus he would be an ideal guarantor for a series of codices designed to lead the reader from theoretical knowledge to personal enlightenment. Finally, it is to be noted that Paul is the one major apostolic gure that could not be present at the gathering of apostles described at the start of the Apocryphon of James. With the addition of the Prayer, the apostolic circle becomes complete. In addition to legitimizing the collection, the Prayer could also have subtly commenced the process of initiation. Although it is indebted to Pauls letters and also conforms generally to the norms of Hellenistic invocations as found for example in the Corpus Hermeticum I.31-32, there is a clear gnostic tinge to it that would have helped ensure the readers receptivity to what follows. Furthermore, despite its short length (less than 50 lines), the Prayer contains a remarkably high number of words with esoteric or technical gnostic associations that play important roles in the other texts in codex I. It thus introduces the reader to many themes and ideas that will be taken up at greater length later in the codex. Codex VII Scribe C has taken a completely dierent approach to the arrangement of the contents of codex VII. As was mentioned above, codex VII does not have the progressive sort of organization that one nds in codices I and XI. In strong contrast to codex I, codex VII opens with a particularly obscure and dicult text, the Paraphrase of Sem, which is then followed by the Second Treatise of the Great Seth and the Apocalypse of Peter. Both these latter texts are strongly docetist and include violent polemics against adversaries who are identied with rival Christian movements. The Second
C. Wilfred Griggs, Early Egyptian Christianity from its Origins to 451 C.E. (Coptic Studies 2, Leiden: Brill, 1990), p. 6.
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Treatise of the Great Seth has Jesus tell his followers that we were hated, not only by those who are ignorant, but also by those who think that they are advancing the name of Christ (59.22-26), while the Apocalypse of Peter directly attacks those who name themselves bishop and also deacons (79.22-26). These texts are followed by the Teachings of Silvanos, a sapiential writing with no marked heterodox traits, and the codex closes with the Three Steles of Seth, a Sethian revelation. The absence of a progressive aspect like that found in codex I should not be taken to mean that the codex lacks order. Rather, Codex VII, to a much greater degree than Codex I, has been organized according to a scriptural model. Thus we see that the Paraphrase of Shem, which takes the place of the Old Testament, is followed by two texts (the Second Treatise of the Great Seth and the Apocalypse of Peter) which emphasize their interpretation of the Passion and death of the Saviour and which can therefore be understood as standing in for the Gospels.30 After these texts comes the Teachings of Silvanos, which could be seen as taking the place of the Pauline letters. This is rendered likely by its paranetic content, the explicit reference to Paul which it contains (108.30) and by its title, as the Silvanos to whom the text is attributed could be identied with the Silas or Silvanos who is described as a companion of Paul (Acts 15:22; 1 Thess 1:1; 2 Th 1:1). The Three Steles of Seth, whose complete title is The revelation (poyvn ebol) by Dositheos of the three steles of Seth (118.10-12) would then have been the equivalent of the biblical book of Revelation. Codex XI As we have seen, codex XIs content is extremely varied. Michael Williams was the rst to have suggested that, despite this disparity, the scribes who copied this codex could have nonetheless perceived it as forming a unied whole, proposing that the codex could have been read as an order of worship,31 with a gradual crescendo from the more exoteric homiletic

Secondary reasons might also have inuenced the arrangement of these texts. It is possible, for example, that the title of the Second Treatise of the Great Seth was the reason that it was put second in the codex. 31) Williams, Interpreting the Nag Hammadi Collection(s) in the History of Gnosticism(s) , pp. 15-17.

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material to the mystical visions at the end.32 Following his interpretation, it begins with a homily on community (Interpretation of Knowledge), followed by a catechism for initiates (Valentinian Exposition), then rituallyoriented texts (the Liturgical Supplements), followed nally by the mystical ascent and vision of Allogenes. With regard to the Interpretation of Knowledge, it is necessary to revise and expand Williams analysis. As has been convincingly argued, Interpretation of Knowledge could not be considered as a homily since it is written in the second person singular.33 It would be better described as an exoteric writing about reconciliation.34 Its mild sectarian orientation (crypto-valentinian?) as well as its strong Pauline coloration might well play the same role of captatio benevolentiae at the beginning of codex XI as the Prayer of the Apostle Paul at the beginnning of codex I. These objections aside, however, Williams understanding of the organisation underlying the diversity found in the rest of the codex appears fundamentally sound. When looking at codex XI, as with the other Nag Hammadi codices, we should keep in mind the general principle that the form that they have been given has been produced by the arrangement of pre-existing texts. These codices are compilations, and there is no evidence of signicant redactional activity at the time that the texts were compiled into codices. As Williams notes, in at least most of the codices, the way in which tractates are arranged suggests that scribes perceived complete theological consistency within the volumes. Or to put it another way, the arrangement itself in most instances seems to be the scribal method of demonstrating or establishing the theological coherence among the works. A revelation received by an ancient Shem or Zostrianos or Eugnostos or Melchizedek is shown to be an anticipation of revelation from (or in) Christ. The ascent of an Allogenes is the mystical visionary communion beyond even baptism and eucharist. Testimony to the truth about Christ as [a] great physician is discovered hidden in traditions associated with the Greco-Roman god of

Op. cit. p. 16. Stephen Emmel, Exploring the Pathway That Leads from Paul to Gnosticism. What Is the Genre of The Interpretation of Knowledge (NHC XI,1), in Martin Fanacht et al. (ed.), Die WeisheitUrsprnge und Rezeption. Festschrift fr Karl Lning (Mnster: Aschendor, 2003), pp. 257-276. 34) As argued by Ismo Dunderberg in The School of Valentinus, in Antti Marjanen et al. (ed.), A Companion to Second-Century Christian Heretics (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae 76, Leiden: Brill, 2005), pp. 64-99.
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healing, Asclepius. And so on.35 Thus we should not expect their contents to be completely in accord either with each other or with the overall structure of their collection. This general principle applies to the sub-collection made up of codices I, XI, and VII as a whole, and to the individual codices themselves. If we examine codex XI as a member of the sub-collection formed by codices I, VII and XI, another aspect of its internal coherence becomes apparent. The rst part of this codex, which as we recall was copied by scribe B, follows the same progression that was observed in codex I, albeit more limited in extent. Thus we have the Interpretation of Knowledge, whose probable Valentinian character is not accentuated, followed by the Valentinian Exposition, which oers a systematic presentation of the Valentinian doctrine which is comparable to that found in the Tripartite Tractate at the end of codex I. This doctrine is then applied to ritual practice, in the Liturgical Supplements. Allogenes, the next text and the rst to have been copied by scribe C, has a much more developed narrative frame than the prior writings. It presents the divine visions granted to a certain Allogenes and his visionary escape from the body and the world, as told to his son Messos, and is very reminiscent of the writings found in codex VII. With its description of the reception of revelation and its narrative focus, Allogenes could be read as providing a practical application of the theoretical material exposed in the writings that precede it. While in these texts the reader was told about the true, mystical nature of things, in Allogenes we see the actual process of the reception of enlightenment and escape from the body. The last text in the codex, Hypsiphrone, is in extremely fragmentary condition, and thus one cannot speak with certainty about it. However, it is possible that in its complete form it told of the descent of a divine being, Hypsiphrone, from the higher realms to the world, and of her rescue by another heavenly being, Phainops. If reconstruction is accurate, we would see a similar mythical structure to that shown in the Exegesis on the Soul (NHC II,6), but more importantly, we would also see a counterpart to the story that Allogenes presents, taking a dierent point of view and reversing the genders of the main characters, but nonetheless being complementary rather than contradictory.

Williams, Interpreting the Nag Hammadi Collection(s) in the History of Gnosticism(s) , p. 40.

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Accordingly, if we look at the material contained in codex XI in the light of the other codices of its sub-collection, it seems as though codex XI was designed to summarize the material exposed in codex I in its rst half, and to demonstrate its practical application in a way which would simultaneously prepare the reader for the material presented in codex VII in its second half. And so we see that the arrangement of the material within codex XI suggests that this codex was intended to smoothly conduct the reader from codex I to codex VII. If this is the case, then the Liturgical Supplements might have been chosen and placed precisely at the juncture between the two bodies represented by codices I and XIa on the one hand and XIb and VII on the other hand as a liturgical application of the content of codices I and XIa. Its function would be to mark by means of a reference to the rituals of anointing, baptism and eucharist, the passage from a rst step of initiation to a second, more advanced one. Thus Allogenes (and possibly Hypsiphrone) ought to be seen as the visionary result of this ritual passage and the pivot of the whole three-volume collection. Allogenes is ideally suited for this role: its ecstatic outbursts and its actualization of the revelatory process would give its readers graphic and exciting evidence of the end to which the preceding theoretical exposs were devoted, and for which the liturgical fragments served as preparation. At the same time, its markedly dierent vocabulary and mind-set would prepare readers for what is to come. We can say, then, that Williams observation regarding codex XI, namely that its contents might have been perceived as a unied whole by the scribes who compiled it, could be extended to the entire sub-collection formed by these three codices. In this case, codex XI would function as the hinge between codex I and codex VII, leading the reader from the progressive enlightenment of the former codex to the alternate bible found in the latter. It is possible that we have another hint as to the unity of this subcollection in the presence of almost the same phrase at the beginning of the Prayer of the Apostle Paul, copied by scribe A at the very beginning of the sub-collection, and also at the beginning of the First Stele of Seth copied by scribe C close to its end. The relevant sections read as follows: Prayer of the Apostle Paul: [I] am yours, the [one who] has come forth from [you]. You are [my In]tellect (e [anak] p ete pvk, p [ent]a ei abal, [] it o [ otk ] N tak p [ e pan ] oys [NHC I A, 5-6])

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Three Steles of Seth: I am your son and you are my Intellect (e anok 36 pete pvk Nhre ayv Ntok pe pano ys [NH VII 118,30-119,1]). To sum up: It is clear that each of the three codices has its own internal logic that governs the arrangement of the texts that they contain. Furthermore, they are linked one to the other by the interaction of their various scribes and by their binding. And when this is taken into account, and the three codices are examined together, then it is seen that from the Prayer of the Apostle Paul to the Three Steles of Seth, everything takes place as if the content of the three codices has been carefully chosen and arranged in order to deliver a single, coherent and continuous message. Not only are the codices coherently arranged in themselves, but they make up a coherent, three-volume whole as well.

4. The Progression Leading up to Codex VII As we saw, there is a progressive and developmental logic underlying codex I. The reader is, so to speak, initiated gradually into esoteric (Valentinian) teachings. In the rst half of codex XI this gradual initiation is continued, and then, with the sacramental instructions, we are given the means by which this theoretical knowledge can be ritually actualized. After this, we are shown the enlightenment that comes when this knowledge is actualized and manifested in visionary experiences. These two codices can also be understood from the point of view of the reader and his/her relationship to the larger Christian community. In the Apocryphon of James, the reader is introduced to a new way of viewing the universe, one that comes from Jesus and is guaranteed by its historical framework. The Apocryphon of James is by far the most down to earth and historically-minded text, in codex I. It situates both its revelations, and those to come in other texts, in a salvation-historical context (postresurrection, pre-ascension) that is very traditional for such revelations, it features Jesus in a prominent role, its use of the letter format gives it a historical veneer, its frame story aims at verisimilitude, and it provides a historical rationalization for the novelty of its teachings by presenting them
The observation was made by Dieter Mueller, Prayer of the Apostle Paul, in Harold W. Attridge (ed.), Nag Hammadi Codex I (The Jung Codex). Introductions, Texts, Translations, Indices (Nag Hammadi Studies 22, Leiden: Brill, 1985), p. 7, who suggested a common source.
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as secret wisdom revealed only to James and Peter (2.33-39). It is thus ideally suited to begin the reader on his or her journey into progressive enlightenment. Following this, more instruction comes by way of an awe-inspiring and inspirational speech from an enlightened teacher who has achieved gnosis (the Gospel of Truth). Then the Treatise on the Resurrection signals a return to the nitty gritty, the mechanics of salvation. Finally, the Tripartite Tractate provides the background for the context within which this salvation is eected. Codex I has been focused on the individual, on his or her progressive journey into the realms that its texts open up to him or her. With codex XI, the focus then turns to the integration of the individual into his/her community. The Interpretation of Knowledge discusses the problems that can arise between the enlightened individual and his or her (not necessarily equally enlightened) community, emphasizing the need to overcome these potential problems through having the proper, Christian attitude and lack of jealousy. Then the Valentinian Exposition gives the theoretical underpinnings of how one is to understand exoteric church teachingsthat is, how one is to integrate ones new knowledge into Christian life. And it is signicant to note that Interpretation of Knowledge ends with an invocation of the Father, and Valentinian Exposition begins with one, making the transition from one to the other very easy. The theme of the integration of esoteric knowledge into exoteric rituals is carried on in the Liturgical Supplements, which explain the true nature of the various rites. Having been intellectually enlightened, and then having learned how to integrate that enlightenment with his or her community and having learned as well how to perceive it within church teachings and rituals, the reader is prepared for the illumination that Allogenes provides. The integration of the personal/intellectual and the social permits the ascension into mystical enlightenment, the utter change of ones self and ones worldview, and consequently of ones understanding of reality. The reader is thus prepared to dive into a new myth, having reinterpreted and transcended the old.

5. The Message of Codex VII The end result, the goal, of all this enlightenment is to be found in Codex VII. Once one has learned about these esoteric mysteries, and then has actualized them through properly-understood ritual, one becomes enlightened.

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It is at this point that the reader turns to codex VII, which has in eect become a new bible for him or her. And this codex, taken in its totality, can be read as an exposition of the history of a spiritual group or race continually opposed by hostile forces. Signicantly, these opponents are not pagans: rather, as the texts of codex VII show the reader, they are rival Christians. The origin both of the spiritual group and of the forces that oppress it is exposed in the Paraphrase of Sem. This same group of spirituals are the intended recipients of the Second Treatise of the Great Seth, who are hated and persecuted not only by those who are ignorant, but also those who think themselves rich in the name of Christ, although they are empty of knowledge, not knowing who they are, like dumb animals (59.22-30). These ignorant ones mislead their followers and make them into slaves (60.20-29). But the eventual victory of the spirituals is certain, due to their celestial origin (60.3-12), because they belong to the nobility of the Fatherhood (61.28-30)if, that is, they live in harmony and friendship of brotherly love (62.19-21). Their adversaries, on the other hand, who are violently opposed in this text, are described as being blind, senseless, and murderous slaves of the Law (65.14-18), while the recipients of the treatise are exhorted, through the knowledge and words of the Saviour, to join together in a holy community (67.19-68.5). The Apocalypse of Peter takes a similar position. From the start, it asserts the existence of two groups. The rst of these, with which the readers of the text are intended to identify, is made up of those who belong to the Father and who are from above (70.20-22). The second group, the sons of this age (73.18), which includes bishops and deacons (79.22-26), opposes the rst group. Uncleanness, error, hairesis, blasphemy, calumny, corruption, and slavery characterise these adversaries. They are deaf and blind and mislead others with their evil words and misleading mysteries (76.20-27). Their doctrine is a counterfeit, created in order that the little ones might not believe in the true light (78.15-22). They rule over these little ones (80.11), whom they have made their prisoners (79.19-21; cf. 73.32-74,2). Among the adversaries can be found bishops and deacons, who behave as though they had received their authority from God, although in truth they are only motivated by their desire for elevated positions.37
37) It is interesting to note that this calumny is found on both sides of the heterodox/orthodox divide: a common heresiological ploy was to ascribe the creation of heretical movements to the frustrated ecclesiastical ambition of the heresiarchs.

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They are described as dry canals (79.22-31, and see 2 Peter 2.17). But when error will have reached its completion, the little ones shall rule over those who are now their rulers (80.14-16). At rst sight, the sapiential content of the Teachings of Silvanos is far removed from this ferocious polemic. However, when read with regard to the texts that precede it in codex VII, its presentation of the passions as enemies who must be fought takes on an entirely dierent connotation. In fact, Silvanos treats the passions of the soul in the same way that the two prior texts treated the opponents of the spiritual race. The author declares, My son, does anyone want to be a slave? Why, then, do you trouble yourself wrongly? My son, do not fear anyone except God alone, the exalted one. Cast the deceitfulness of the Devil from you (88.6-11). In the context of the preceding writings, one can easily understand the opponents denounced in them as the living incarnations of vices such as wickedness, love of glory, quarrelsomeness, jealousy, anger, etc.vices which the Silvanos urges its readers to oppose (84.20-25), exhorting them not to swim in just any water, and do not allow yourselves to be deled by strange sorts of knowledge (92.29-34). To allow oneself to be dominated by passion is to condemn oneself to slavery, to ignorance, and to blindness (88.6-34); it is to obey ones animal nature (89.2-3)and it is noteworthy that the adversaries in the Second Treatise of the Great Seth are also described as being animalistic in nature (59.29). Silvanos is an invitation to return to the true father and to ght against the adversaries (91.1-16). Nor should one allow oneself to be misled by those who cast spurious knowledge in your heart in the guise of mysterious words (96.3-6). Rather, one must free oneself from every bond so as to acquire liberty (105.19-21), separating oneself from animality and keeping clear of barbarians (108.7) and brigands (113.31). In sum, it is necessary to ght the great ght against all the powers of the Adversary (114.1-6). Reading the Teachings of Silvanos immediately after having read the Second Treatise of the Great Seth and the Apocalypse of Peter, it would be impossible not to understand such passages as applying to the same opponents that the prior texts had denounced. Finally, Dositheus revelation in the Three Steles of Seth, which concludes the codex in a triple benediction, conrms the nal, inevitable triumph of this spiritual race whose origins were revealed in the Paraphrase of Shem (24.1-15). There are no polemics in this text, but despite this it arms the existence and the eventual eschatological triumph of a living and unshakable race (118.12-13), one made up of the elect (118.17), the perfect

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(121.5; 124.7) and the saved (121.10-14; 125.15-16; 126.24-25) who belong to the One (122.16) and on whom the light of the Spirit shines (125.6-11), a race made up of those who are truly alive (127.22). By way of summary, we can say that the order of the contents of this codex shows a vast tableau of salvation history. In reading the codex we see the origin of the spiritual race; its lot here below and that of the Saviour or Revealer sent to it by the Father; its never-ending battle against constantly renewed enemies (identied with the church hierarchy in the Apocalypse of Peter); the extension of the nature of these enemies so that they are seen to be not merely external forces but also evil tendencies and desires that try to seduce the members of the spiritual race from within; and, nally, the glorious eschatological triumph of the spiritual race. By means of this history a sense of the lineage and identity of the codexs audience is constructed, establishing their true identity as members of an embattled group dening itself in the face of its opponents perhaps as the lineage of the true Father. This self-understanding might explain the scribal colophon at the end of codex VII: This book belongs to the lineage of the Father (pe vvme pa<mNteivt) (NH VII, 127.28-29). This colophon has been taken to refer to the codex as a whole, and not specically to the Three Steles of Seth.38 We have paid special attention here to the contents of codex VII. Nonetheless, although it is not so blatantly displayed as in codex VII, the same opposition between a group of spirituals and its worldly opponents is at least suggested throughout the triptych made up of codices I, XI, and VII. Codex I opens with the Apocryphon of James, which contains a subtle contestation of institutional control. It presents itself as not being meant for the many (1.20-23), and its focus seems to be on setting up a series of oppositions whose function is to challenge the institutional structures that mediate salvation. Following this, there is the denunciation of error as the enemy of truth that is found in the Gospel of Truth. It opens with an exposition of the work of error, creating anguish and deceit and forgetfulness in order to take captive its victims (17.28-36). This error is by no means the work of the Father, but rather has been revealed to those who are perfect (18.1-13). These perfect ones are the living whose names are inscribed in the Book of the Living (21.3-5). Only these living ones are truly aware, and the text opposes them to those who are not aware, who are creatures of ignorance,
38)

On it, see Clemens Scholten, Die Nag-Hammadi-Texte als Buchbesitz der Pachomianer.

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and destined to oblivion (21.33-35). Read immediately following the Apocryphon of James, the Gospel of Truth could quite easily be understood as a conrmation of the Apocryphons ecclesiological message. Another denunciation follows, that of the false teachings on the resurrection in the Treatise on the Resurrection. This text begins with the opposition of two groups. The one to which the narrator belongs knows the truth, while the other group desire to learn, but they have not stood within the Word of truth (43.25-44.3). The group of the elect have been predestined since the beginning to gain access to wisdom and truth, and not to fall into ignorance and folly (46.25-32). Finally, we come to the salvation-history presented by the Tripartite Tractate, which presupposes an antagonism between two groups of Christians. After establishing the existence of three races of humans, dening the role of the spirituals in salvation history, and describing their nal destiny in contrast to that of the materials or hylics, the eschatological nale of this text (108.13-138.17) can be read as the summit of the codex as a whole, and also as an expos of the ultimate fate of those who hold the dierent conceptions of the church that we nd exposed in the Apocryphon of James at the start of the codex. Overall, then, we can say that codex I presents an excellent introduction to the themes which will become so prominent in codex VII. The same could be said for the rst two texts in codex XI, both of which assume the existence of two antagonistic groups, and which prepare the reader for the revelation of the attainment of individual perfection that is shown in Allogenes (45.6-8). In the rst text in codex XI, the Interpretation of Knowledge, one notes the same game of oppositions that is found in the writings of codex I, as for example in the opposition of faith to worldly incredulity (1.30-38). Furthermore, the Interpretation assimilates the material slavery to which the principalities and authorities have reduced the inner man to a division found within the church itself (6.25-38), and it explicitly sets up a contrast between two teachers, the teacher of immortality and an arrogant teacher whose teaching leads to death (9.17-26). In his warning not to call anyone father in the world (9.28-29), and by his use of egalitarian terms such as brothers and companions (9.27-37), this teachers instruction resembles that of the Saviour in the Apocryphon of James in codex I, while also anticipating the polemic to be found in the Second Treatise of the Great Seth and the Apocalypse of Peter in codex VII. This teacher of immortality has awakened in the hearts of the texts readers the memory of the goodness of

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the Father and their own nature (10.16-17), reminding them that they are the light of the world (9.29-30). Finally, the Interpretation ends with a long paranetic section, exhorting its readers to be thankful for charismatic gifts, no matter who receives them, and not to be jealous of one another (15.20-19.??). The writing presupposes a group that is identied with the members of God the Father, and who are known by him since the beginning (2.31-34), a group undoubtedly including the readers of the Interpretation, and it opposes to them another group, who do not belong to them (20.3). To the former group, the athletes of the Word, the Interpretation promises the crown of victory, just as their head, Christ, has been gloried by the Father (21.31-34). The second text in codex XI, the Valentinian Exposition, presents a systematic expos of Valentinian theology, dealing with protology, anthropology, soteriology and eschatology. Like the Tripartite Tractate, this writing presents a division of humanity, although here only into two groups, namely those of the right and those of the left, those whose nature is spiritual, and those whose nature is material (38.27-33), and it urges its readers to take part in an eschatological battle against the powers of the devil (40.11-17). In this regard, the allusion to Lk 10:19 in the rst part of the Liturgical Supplements (so that we might be able to trample [upon] the [snakes] and [the heads] of the scorpions and [all] the power of the devil, XI 40.18-20) could be seen as an anticipation of the polemical content of codex VII and an invitation to ght against the opponents identied therein. After this comes Allogenes. With its focus on perfect individuals who dwell together (45.6-8, but note that the text is extremely lacunous at this point: the reconstruction is probable but not certain), this text echoes the exhortation to group unity that dominates the paranetic section of the Interpretation of Knowledge. Thus we can see that the same theme is heard throughout the threevolume collection, but that it is more muted in codices I and XI, only being brought to full expression in codex VII. In other words, codices I and XI can be seen as leading up to and preparing the reader for the revelations to be found in codex VII. What had been only hinted at is there graphically expressed.

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Conclusion From the Prayer of the Apostle Paul to the Three Steles of Seth, in the content of the texts as in the alternation of their scribes, everything takes place as if the content of these three codices had been chosen and arranged according to a precise design in order to progressively introduce the non-initiated reader to a heterodox doctrine of conict and polemic, in which the reader is invited to identify him- or herself with the embattled minority group who nonetheless are of the lineage of the Father. And in fact, one could quite well see the unique linguistic, scribal and doctrinal heterogeneity of this sub-collection as being in itself a clue to the importance of this design for the person or people who ordered the copy of this material. This papers goals are modest, and we will refrain from speculating here as to the nature and identity of the group or the individuals responsible for this collection in the area of Chenoboskeion in the mid-fourth century. Nevertheless, we hope that this paper will stimulate our collective historical imagination39 and provoke thought and discussion not just on the nature of this sub-collection, but more generally on the much debated questions of the nature and function of the Nag Hammadi library in its Coptic phase and of its Sitz im Leben in the context of fourth century Egyptian Christianity.

39)

Wolf-Peter Funk, The Linguistic Aspect, p. 145.

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