Second Clement

Second Clement is the oldest extant Christian sermon outside the New Testament. It is not a letter nor was it written by Clement but is a transcription of a sermon by an anonymous presbyter based on Isaiah 54:1. In all the extant manuscripts Second Clement always follows First Clement, indicating that the sermon may have been preached in Corinth, or sent to Corinth for some reason. The text has been dated anywhere from A.D. 100 to 120.


Outline Summary by Chapters:

1. Praise for God’s salvation, calling us out of idolatry in order to serve him through Jesus Christ.

2. He quotes Isaiah 54:1 and interprets in a way that applies to the hearers’ present circumstances: The barren woman without children was the church who now has children through Christ’s work on the cross. The call for the woman who has no labor pains to rejoice is a call to the church to praise God for salvation. The phrase concerning the deserted woman having more children than the one having a husband refers to the fact that the church now has more believers than the Jews.

3. The preacher quotes Jesus’ words about men acknowledging him and the need to do it from the heart and not merely from the lips (Matthew 10:32 and 12:30) , indicating that we will be rewarded if we truly acknowledge Christ and not be like the people predicted by Isaiah 29:13 (quoted by Jesus in Matthew 15:8) who merely honor God with their lips and not their hearts.

4. It is not enough to merely call him “Lord” but we must show it in our actions by loving each other (quoting Matthew 7:21).

5. The preacher admonishes his hearers to not hold onto this world but live for the world to come. He quotes Jesus telling his disciples that they will be like lambs among wolves (Luke 10:13; Matthew 10:16, 28; Luke 12:4-5). He then quotes from the Gospel of the Egyptians where Peter asks, “What if the wolves tear the lambs to pieces?” To which Jesus replies that we should not fear those who can destroy the body but not the soul; rather we should fear God who can destroy both in hell.

6. He then quotes Jesus’ saying that we cannot serve two masters (Matthew 16:26; Mark 8:36; Luke 9:25), so believers should not be friends with the world.

7. He then uses the analogy of a earthly race or contest and the need to compete by the rules, lest one should be punished. He doesn't quote Paul but it appears he was familiar with several of Paul’s uses of the race metaphor.

8. There is a call to repent because once you die you will no longer have a chance to repent. He quotes from the Gospel of the Egyptians and possibly Luke 16:10-12. There is also an allusion to the potter and the clay of Isaiah 45:9.

9. The preacher emphasizes the fact that we are flesh and will be resurrected again in the flesh to face judgment. Jesus himself was a spirit who became flesh (wn men to prwton pneuma, egeneto sarx), so we too must repent now in the flesh so we may enter the kingdom of God.

10. The preacher calls his hearers to forsake sin and ungodliness: “let us abandon that evil mindset, the forerunner of our sins, and flee ungodliness lest evil things overtake us.” If we do good, we will have peace; if we do evil we will never find peace.

11. He quotes several passages from an unknown source to challenge his readers to remain true to the faith and not be double-minded.

12. He urges his hearers to wait patiently for the kingdom of God since we don’t know the day of God’s appearing (epeidh ouk oidamen thn hmeran thß epifaneisaß tou qeou). He then quotes from the Gospel of the Egyptians or the Gospel of Thomas but completely misinterprets it.

13. He gives another call to repentance because their sinful lifestyle is causing God’s name to be blasphemed (Isaiah 52:5). Instead, we should live lives of extraordinary goodness so people will marvel and praise God (Luke 6:32, 35).

14. We must take care not to defile the church, which is the flesh while Christ is the spirit. The church has existed from the beginning and was spiritual and was revealed in the flesh of Christ (efanerwqh en th sarki Cristou). Therefore, whoever abuses the church abuses Christ.

15. Those who repent will be rewarded as will the one who calls them to repentance. God is eager to answer our prayer (Isaiah 58:9).

16. Repent while you have a chance for the day of judgment is coming like a blazing furnace (Malachi 4:1) and this world will be destroyed (Isaiah 34:4). This seems to echo 2 Peter 3:10-12. Repentance, fasting, prayer, and charitable giving should be practiced in order to secure God’s blessing.

17. Repent and call others to repent because those caught up in worldly pleasures will be judged in the fires of hell, where “their worm will not die and their fire will not be quenched, and they will be a spectacle for all flesh” (Isaiah 66:18, 24).

18. The preacher then confesses his own sinfulness and his present struggle against sin and evil as an encouragement for his hearers to pursue righteousness and escape the coming judgment.

19. The preacher reads the scriptural exhortation and encourages his hearers to take the calls to repentance seriously and continue to seek righteousness even if it results in present suffering.

20. Patience and endurance is essential since none of the righteous ever received his reward quickly. Nor should be do it simply for the reward but out of sincerity and love for God. He then ends with a benediction, invoking the name of God as “To the only God, invisible” as a quote of 1 Timothy 1:17.


This sermon gives us glimpse into the worship of the church, which appears at least in this instance, to center on the reading of scripture (here an Old Testament text), followed by a sermon filled with scriptural quotes and allusions, some from the Old Testament, some from the New Testament, and others from texts not in the canon. This sermon focused primarily upon a call to repentance and a turning from sin.

This sermon also shows that the divinity and humanity of Christ were considered fundamental truths, though the relationship of the Son to the Father is not address, nor is the relationship of the two natures of Christ. This sermon seems to be refuting Docetism, which saw Christ as a spirit who only appeared to have a body (cf. 1 John which also deals extensively with this issue).

One issue for further research would be whether this is the full text of the sermon or an abridged transcription. It has the feel of a spoken message while the ideas don’t seem to be fully developed, nor is there always a smooth transition from one idea to another.