top 1 Clement ch 42

Chapter 42

The proper order of church ministers

1 Οἱ ἀπόστολοι ἡμῖν εὐηγγελίσθησαν ἀπὸ τοῦ κυρίου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, Ἰησοῦς ὁ Χριστὸς ἀπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ ἐξεπέμφθη. The Apostles received the Gospel for us from the Lord Jesus Christ; Jesus Christ was sent forth from God.
2 ὁ Χριστὸς οὖν ἀπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ οἱ ἀπόστολοι ἀπὸ τοῦ Χριστοῦ· ἐγένοντο οὖν ἀμφότερα εὐτάκτως ἐκ θελήματος θεοῦ. Christ, therefore, is from God, and the apostles are from Christ. Both, therefore, came from the will of God in good order.
3 παραγγελίας οὖν λαβόντες καὶ πληροφορηθέντες διὰ τῆς ἀναστάσεως τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ καὶ πιστωθέντες ἐν τῷ λόγῳ τοῦ θεοῦ, μετὰ πληροφορίας πνεύματος ἁγίου ἐξῆλθον εὐαγγελιζόμενοι, τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ θεοῦ μέλλειν ἔρχεσθαι. Therefore, after they received their orders and been fully assured through the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ and being faithful in the word of God they went forth with the full assurance of the Holy Spirit preaching the good news that the kingdom of God was about to come.
4 κατὰ χώρας οὖν καὶ πόλεις κηρύσσοντες καθίστανον τὰς ἀπαρχὰς αὐτῶν, δοκιμάσαντες τῷ πνεύματι, εἰς ἐπισκόπους καὶ διακόνους τῶν μελλόντων πιστεύειν. Then preaching from country to country and city to city, they appointed their first fruits, after they had tested them by the Spirit, to be bishops and deacons for those about to believe.
5 καὶ τοῦτο οὐ καινῶς· ἐκ γὰρ δὴ πολλῶν χρόνων ἐγέγραπτο περὶ ἐπισκόπων καὶ διακόνων. οὕτως γάρ που λέγει ἡ γραφή· Καταστήσω τοὺς ἐπισκόπους αὐτῶν ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ καὶ τοὺς διακόνους αὐτῶν ἐν πίστει. They did this by no new method, for it had been written about bishops and deacons from long ago, for the scripture says somewhere, "I will appoint their bishops in righteousness and their deacons in faith" (Isa. 60:17 LXX only).