Philo of Alexandria on the eternity of the world (De aeternitate mundi, 20–73)

In the treatise ‘On the Eternity of the World’, translated below, Philo appears not only as a key figure in the history of the interpretation of the biblical books, but also as a crucial witness to the development of Platonism in the first century BCE. This philosophic work of the Alexandrian exegete can be subdivided into two unequal parts. In an introductory part (sec. 1-19) Philo speaks for the most part on his own behalf, making comparison between Aristotelian, Stoic, Epicurean, and Platonic approaches to the problem of the elemental status of the world and the question of its everlasting existence; the reader will find it published in the previous issue of the journal (Schole 19.2 (2025) 1243-1257). A section of the doxographic part of the treatise (sec. 20–73), translated in this publication, systematically presents the positions of other philosophers, most notably curious arguments of the Peripatetic Critolaus and the Stoic Chrysippus for whom Philo is a unique witness. He also discusses the original Platonic arguments based on the idea of the closed nature of the world and its immunity to disease, the integrity of its composition, its transformation and the impossibility of its complete disintegration, moving from the Peripatetic idea of natural movements to teleological considerations and criticising the Stoic theory of the cosmic cycle from various angles. The treatise not only provides a wealth of important information about the philosophical discussions on the eternity of the world that preceded Philo, but also allows us to better understand his own theological position, which is not always clearly stated in his exegetical works.