28. Philo of Alexandria (20 BC – c.50 AD)

Original language: Greek.

Philo was Hellenistic Jewish philosopher who lived in Alexandria, Egypt.

I read the green-covered Loeb Classical Library edition of Philo Volume 1 (1929), translated by F.H. Colson and G.H. Whitaker.

It has the Greek and English on facing pages, which I mention not because I can read Greek (I can’t), but because I like the way it looks.

On the Creation, and Allegorical Interpretation of Genesis II and III 

Philo’s work is not what I expected it to be. He was very influenced by the Pythagoreans, and there is lots and lots of numerology and discussion of numbers. Philo was very fond of the numbers 6 and 7. 

It’s hard to believe that Philo’s book is one of the world’s most influential books. I don’t know of anyone it influenced. 

Philo’s book is an act of literary criticism. Even though he does not see the Bible as literature (he sees it as religion), it is textual criticism and close reading. 

Philo takes a censorious, grim, and life-denying view of pleasure. He’s always against it. “Pleasure … is always and everywhere guilty and foul” he says. 

Philo is crazy. A shovel mentioned in Deuteronomy, to him, is not a shovel. The shovel is Reason. 

Last thoughts on Philo

Ugh, what a waste. Pleasure is bad, virtue is good. Pleasure corrupts. Over and over and over.


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