My son as the world reckons
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ⲛⲉⲓ̈ϣⲁϫⲉ ⲇⲉ ⲁⲥϫⲟⲟⲩ ⲛ̅ϭⲓⲧⲡⲓⲥⲧⲓⲥ ⲥⲟⲫⲓⲁ· ⲧⲉⲛⲟⲩ ϭⲉ ⲡⲉⲧⲛⲟⲓ̈ ⲙ̅ⲡⲛⲟⲏⲙⲁ ⲛ̅ⲛⲉⲓ̈ϣⲁϫⲉ· ⲙⲁⲣⲉϥⲉⲓ̅ ⲉⲑⲏ ⲛϥ̅ⲧⲁⲩⲉ ⲡⲉⲩⲃⲱⲗ· ⲁⲥⲉⲓ̅ ⲇⲉ ⲉⲑⲏ ⲛ̅ϭⲓⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ ⲧⲙⲁⲁⲩ ⲛ̅ⲓ̅ⲥ̅ ⲡⲉϫⲁϥ ϫⲉⲡⲁϣⲏⲣⲉ ⲕⲁⲧⲁⲡⲕⲟⲥ ⲙⲟⲥ ⲡⲁⲛⲟⲩⲧⲉ ⲁⲩⲱ ⲡⲁⲥⲱⲧⲏⲣ ⲕⲁⲧⲁⲡϫⲓⲥⲉ ⲕⲉⲗⲉⲩⲉ ⲛⲁⲓ̈ ⲧⲁⲧⲁⲩⲉ ⲡⲃⲱⲗ ⲛ̅ⲛ̅ϣⲁϫⲉ ⲉⲛⲧⲁⲥϫⲟⲟⲩ ⲛ̅ϭⲓⲧⲡⲓⲥⲧⲓⲥ ⲥⲟⲫⲓⲁ· ⲁϥⲟⲩⲱϣⲃ̅ ⲇⲉ ⲛ̅ϭⲓⲓ̅ⲥ̅ ⲡⲉϫⲁϥ ϫⲉⲛ̅ⲧⲟ ϩⲱⲱⲧⲉ ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ· ⲧⲁⲓ̈ ⲉⲛⲧⲁⲥϫⲓⲙⲟⲣⲫⲏ ⲉⲧϩⲛ̅ⲧⲃⲁⲣⲃⲏⲗⲱ ⲕⲁⲧⲁⲑⲩⲗⲏ· ⲁⲩⲱ ⲁⲣⲉϫⲓⲉⲓⲛⲉ ⲉϩⲛ̅ⲧⲡⲁⲣⲑⲉⲛⲟⲥ ⲙ̅ⲡⲟⲩⲟⲓ̈ⲛ ⲕⲁⲧⲁⲡⲟⲩⲟⲓ̈ⲛ ⲛ̅ⲧⲟ ⲙⲛ̅ⲧⲕⲉⲙⲁⲣⲓϩⲁⲙ ⲧⲙⲁⲕⲁⲣⲓⲟⲥ· ⲁⲩⲱ ⲛ̅ⲧⲁⲡⲕⲁⲕⲉ ϣⲱⲡⲉ ⲉⲧⲃⲏⲏⲧⲉ ⲁⲩⲱ ⲟⲛ ⲛ̅ⲧⲁϥⲉⲓ̅ ⲉⲃⲟⲗ ⲛ̅ϩⲏⲧⲉ ⲛ̅ϭⲓⲡⲥⲱⲙⲁ ⲛ̅ⲑⲩⲗⲏ ⲉϯϣⲟⲟⲡ ⲛ̅ϩⲏⲧϥ̅ ⲡⲁⲓ̈ ⲉⲛⲧⲁⲓ̈ⲧⲃ̅ⲃⲟϥ· ⲁⲩⲱ ⲁⲓ̈ⲥⲟⲧϥϥ̅· ⲧⲉⲛⲟⲩ ϭⲉ ϯⲕⲉⲗⲉⲩⲉ ⲛⲉ ⲉⲧⲣⲉⲧⲁⲩⲉⲡⲃⲱⲗ ⲛ̅ⲛ̅ϣⲁϫⲉ ⲛⲁⲓ̈ ⲉⲛⲧⲁⲥϫⲟⲟⲩ ⲛ̅ϭⲓⲧⲥⲟⲫⲓⲁ·
These words, then, Pistis Sophia uttered. Now therefore, whoever understands the meaning of these words, let him come forward and declare their solution. Then Mary, Jesus’ mother, stepped forward and said: My son as the world reckons, my God and my Savior as the height reckons, command me to declare the solution of the words Pistis Sophia uttered. Jesus answered and said: You too, Mary, you who received form, the form that is in Barbelo, according to matter, and received likeness, the likeness that is in the Virgin of Light, according to light — you and the other Mariham, the blessed one; and because of you the darkness came to be, and moreover out of you came forth the body of matter in which I live, which I have cleansed and refined: so now I command you to declare the solution of these words that Sophia uttered.
Jesus opens the floor. The one who steps forward is not Mary Magdalene but Mary his mother, and he answers her with a genealogy of her own body.
There are two Marys in this book, and the text is careful to tell them apart. The questioner of chapters 17, 19 and 36 — the one Peter cannot endure, the one called blessed beyond all women — is Mary Magdalene, usually written with the Semitic spelling <em>Mariham</em>. The woman who steps forward here is "Mary the mother of Jesus", and Jesus himself draws the line a few sentences later: "you and the other Mariham, the blessed one." The mother’s opening address is the most carefully balanced sentence in the chapter. "My son according to the world, my God and my Savior according to the height": <em>kata</em>, the Greek preposition of measurement, is used twice to hold two true relations apart without cancelling either. She is his mother down here; she is his creature up there; she says both in one breath and then asks for an order, <em>keleue</em>, so that her speaking is obedience.
Jesus answers her with an account of where she comes from. Her <em>morphē</em>, her form, is a copy of the one in <em>Barbēlō</em>, the great mother-power of the upper world; her likeness is a copy of the one in the Virgin of Light; and she and the other Mary share this double parentage. Then the hard sentence: because of you the darkness came to be, and out of you came the body of matter I live in, which I have cleansed and refined. The verb is <em>sōtf</em>, the same straining-and-refining verb that described what the wreath did to Sophia’s matter in the first passage. The incarnation and the rescue of Sophia are, in this book’s eyes, the same operation performed twice: light takes on <em>hylē</em>, and then sifts it. The mother is not blamed for the darkness; she is named as the place where the work of purification began.
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