Hippolytus first touches on the theme of persecution in the church when he comes to the passage of the two wicked elders spying on Susanna walking in the garden. He allegorically interprets the story and applies it to the contemporary situation in the church, later on in his commentary he becomes more explicit about the persecution that his fellow Christians suffered.
“And it happened as the people departed in the middle of the day Susanna entered to walk around in the garden of her husband and the Elders saw her everyday and became inflamed in lust for her .”
For concerning what happened to Susanna by the Elders, these things are even now in the same way done by the chiefs of the people in Babylon. For Susanna is a foretype of the church, Jehoiakim her husband is Christ. The garden was the calling of the saints as the fruit bearing tree produces fruit in the church. Babylon is the world. But the two Elders represent the type of two peoples scheming against the church, one who is of the circumcision and one who is of the gentiles. For it is said, “They were appointed as chiefs and judges of the people,” signaling that in this age they have authority and power, unrighteously judging the righteous. But they zealously watched Susanna walking in the garden every day, this signals that until now they, who are both from the Gentiles and the Jews from the circumcision, watch and interfere in the business of the church, wishing to bring false testimonies against us, just as the apostle says, “On account of the secretly introduced false brethren, who were brought in to spy out the liberty which we have in Christ Jesus.”
-update- Fixed a grammatical error
Fascinating stuff. When do you think the whole commentary would be available?
Keep up the Good work!
Thanks Tap, well it all depends how much free time I find myself having over the next several months and how precise I want to be in my translation. I hope that I can post this by summer at the latest, perhaps even in the Spring. But we’ll see what happens.