2.18.1
XVIII. Πολύς γε μὴν τῷ λόγῳ καὶ πλατὺς ταῖς διανοίαις, ὑφηλός τε ὢν καὶ μετέωρος ἐν ταῖς εἰς τὰς θείας γραφὰς θεωρίαις γεγενημένος, ποικίλην καὶ πολύτροπον τῶν ἱερῶν λόγων πεποίηται τὴν ὑφήγησιν, τοῦτο μὲν εἱρμῷ καὶ ἀκολουθίᾳ τὴν τῶν εἰς τὴν Γένεσιν διεξελθὼν πραγματείαν ἐν οἷς ἐπέγραφεν Νόμων ἱερῶν ἀλληγορίας, τοῦτο δὲ κατὰ μέρος διαστολὰς κεφαλαίων τῶν ἐν ταῖς γραφαῖς ζητουμένων ἐπιστάαεις τε καὶ διαλύσεις πεποιημένος ἐν οἷς καὶ αὐτοῖς καταλλήλως Τῶν ἐν Γενέσει καὶ τῶν ἐν Ἐξαγωγῇ ζητημάτων καὶ λύσεων τέθειται τὴν ἐπιγραφήν. ἔστι δ’ αὐτῷ παρὰ ταῦτα προβλημάτων τινῶν ἰδίως πεπονημένα σπουδάσματα, οἷά ἐστι τὰ Περὶ γεωργίας καὶ τὰ Περὶ μέθης τοααῦτα, καὶ ἄλλα ἄττα διαφόρου καὶ οἰκείας ἐπιγραφῆς ἠξιωμένα, οἷος ὁ Περὶ ὧν νήφας ὁ νοῦς εὔχεται καὶ καταρᾶται καὶ Περὶ συγχύαεως τῶν διαλέκτων, καὶ ὁ Περὶ φυγῆς καὶ εὑρέαεως, καὶ ὁ Περὶ τῆς πρὸς τὰ παιδεύματα συνόδου, Περί τε τοῦ τίς ὁ τῶν θείων ἐστὶ κληρονόμος ἢ Περὶ τῆς εἰς τὰ ἴσα καὶ ἐναντία τομῆς, καὶ ἔτι τὸ Περὶ τῶν τριῶν ἀρετῶν ἃς αὺν ἄλλαις ἀνέγραφεν Μωυσῆς, πρὸς τούτοις ὁ Περὶ τῶν μετονομαζομένων καὶ ὧν ἕνεκα μετονομάζονται, ᾧ φησι αυντεταχέναι καὶ Περὶ δια- θηκῶν ἁ β΄ ἔστιν δ’ αὐτοῦ καὶ Περὶ ἀποικίας καὶ βίου σοφοῦ τοῦ κατὰ δικαιοαύνην τελειω- θέντος ἢ νόμων ἀγράφων, καὶ ἔτι Περὶ γιγάντων ἢ περὶ τοῦ μὴ τρέπεσθαι τὸ θεῖον, Περί τε τοῦ κατὰ Μωυσέα θεοπέμπτους εἶναι τοὺς ὀνείρους ἁ β΄ γ’ δ’ ἑ . καὶ ταῦτα μὲν τὰ εἰς ἡμᾶς ἐλθόντα τῶν εἰς τὴν Γένεαιν, εἰς δὲ τὴν Ἔξοδον ἔγνωμεν αὐτοῦ Ζητημάτων καὶ Λύσεων ἁ β΄ γ’ δ’ ἑ, καὶ τὸ Περὶ τῆς σκηνῆς, τό τε Περὶ τῶν δέκα λογίων, καὶ τὰ Περὶ τῶν ἀναφερομένων ἐν εἴδει νόμων εἰς τὰ συντείνοντα κεφάλαια τῶν δέκα λόγων β΄ γ’ δ’, καὶ τὸ Περὶ τῶν εἰς τὰς ἱερουργίας ζῴων, καὶ τίνα τὰ τῶν θυσιῶν εἴδη, καὶ τὸ Περὶ τῶν προκειμένων ἐν τῷ νόμῳ τοῖς μὲν ἀγαθοῖς ἄθλων, τοῖς δὲ πονηροῖς ἐπιτιμίων καὶ ἀρῶν. πρὸς τούτοις ἅπααιν καὶ μονόβιβλα αὐτοῦ φέρεται ὡς τὸ Περὶ προνοίας, καὶ ὁ Περὶ Ἰουδαίων αὐτῷ συνταχθεὶς λόγος, καὶ ὁ Πολιτικός, ἔτι τε ὁ ἢ περὶ τοῦ λόγον ἔχειν τὰ ἄλογα ζῷα ἐπὶ τούτοις ὁ Περὶ τοῦ δοῦλον εἶναι πάντα φαῦλον, ᾧ ἑξῆς ἐστιν ὁ Περὶ τοῦ πάντα σπουδαῖον ἐλεύθερον μεθ’ οὕς συντέτακται αὐτῷ ὁ Περὶ βίου θεωρητικοῦ ἢ ἱκετῶν, ἐξ οὗ τὰ περὶ τοῦ βίου τῶν ἀποστολικῶν ἀνδρῶν διεληλύθαμεν , καὶ τῶν ἐν νόμῳ δὲ καὶ προφήταις Ἑβραϊκῶν ὀνομάτων αἱ ἑρμηνεῖαι τοῦ αὐτοῦ σπουδὴ εἶναι οὗτος μὲν οὖν κατὰ γάιον ἐπὶ τῆς Ῥώμης ἀφ’· ἱκόμενος, τὰ περὶ τῆς Γαϊου θεοατυγίας αὐτῷ γραφέντα, ἃ μετὰ ἤθους καὶ εἰρωνείας Περὶ ἀρετῶν ἐπέγραφεν, ἐπὶ πάσης λέγεται τῆς ‘ Ρωμαίων συγκλήτου κατὰ Κλαύδιον διελθεῖν, ὡς καὶ τῆς ἐν βιβλιοθήκαις ἀναθέσεως θαυμασθέντας αὐτοῦ καταξιωθῆναι τοὺς λόγους.
XVIII. Philo was rich in language and broad in thought, sublime and elevated in his views of the divine writings, and had made various and diverse his exposition of the sacred words. He first went through the subject of the events in Genesis in connected sequence, in the book which he entitled “The Allegories of the sacred Scriptures.” He then made detailed arrangement into chapters of the difficulties in the Scriptures and gave their statement and solution in the books to which he gave the suitable title of “The Problems and Solutions in Genesis and in Exodus.” There are, besides this, some specially elaborated treatises of his on certain problems, such as the two books “On Agriculture,” and as many “On Drunkenness,” and others with various appropriate titles, such as “The Things which the Sober Mind desires and execrates,” “On the Confusion of Tongues,” “On Flight and Discovery,” “On Assembly for Instruction,” and “On the Question who is Heir of the Divine Things,” or “On the Distinction between Odd and Even,” and further “On the Three Virtues which Moses describes with others,” in addition to this, “On those whose names have been changed and why they were,” in which he says that he has also composed Books I. and II. “On the Covenants.” There is also a book of his “On Migration and the Wise Life of the Man initiated into Righteousness, or Unwritten Laws,” and also “On Giants or the Immutability of God,” and Books I., II., III., IV., V., “On the Divine Origin of Dreams according to Moses.” These are the books which have come down to us dealing with Genesis. On Exodus we know Books I., II., III., IV., V. of his “Problems and Solutions,” the book “On the Tabernacle,” and that “On the Ten Commandments,” and Books I., II., III., IV., “On the Laws specially referring to the principal divisions of the Ten Commandments,” and the book “On Animals for Sacrifice and the Varieties of Sacrifice,” and “On the Rewards fixed in the Law for the Good and the Penalties and Curses for the Wicked.” In addition to all this there are also some single volumes of his, such as the book “On Providence,” and the treatise composed by him “On the Jews,” and “The Statesman,” moreover, “That irrational animals have reason.” In addition to this, “That every wicked man is a slave,” to which is appended “That every good man is free.” After these he composed the book “On the Contemplative Life, or Suppliants,” from which we have quoted the passages dealing with the life of the men of the Apostolic age, and the interpretations of the Hebrew names in the Law and the Prophets are said to be his work. He came to Rome in the time of Caius, and in the reign of Claudius is said to have read before the whole Senate of the Romans his description of the impiety of Caius, which he entitled, with fitting irony, “Concerning Virtues,” and his words were so much admired as to be granted a place in libraries.