The Gospel of Barnabas - chapter 184

Sacred-Texts Islam
  

184.

'Tell me, is this true?' said Jesus.

The disciples and the scribe answered: 'It is most true.'

Then said Jesus: 'He who in truth of heart recognizeth God as the author of all good, and himself as the author of sin, shall be truly humble. But whoso shall speak with the tongue as the child speaketh, and shall contradict [the same] in act, assuredly he hath false humility and true pride.

'For pride is then at its height when it maketh use of humble things, that it be not reprehended and spurned of men.

'True humility is a lowliness of the soul whereby man knoweth himself in truth; but false humility is a mist from hell which so darkeneth the understanding of the soul that what a man ought to ascribe to himself, he ascribeth to God, and what he ought to ascribe to God, he ascribeth to himself. Thus, the man of false humility will say that he is a grievous sinner, but when one telleth him that he is a sinner he will wax wroth against him, and will persecute him.

'The man of false humility will say that God hath given him all that he hath, but that he on his part hath not slumbered, but done good works.

'And these Pharisees of this present time, brethren, tell me how they walk.'

The scribe answered, weeping: 'O master, the Pharisees of the present time have the garments and the name of Pharisees, but in their heart and their works they are Canaanites. And would to God they usurped not such a name, for then would they not deceive the simple! O ancient time, how cruelly hast thou dealt with us, that hast taken away from us the true Pharisees and left us the false!'