| Clement passage | Greek gospel citation | Synoptic parallels | Markan corridor location |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strom. 2.5.22.4 | θᾶττον κάμηλον διὰ τρυπήματος βελόνης διελεύσεσθαι ἢ πλούσιον φιλοσοφεῖν | Mark 10:25; Matt 19:24; Luke 18:25 | Mark 10:17–31 (rich man pericope) |
This citation shows that Clement is directly engaging a saying located squarely within the Markan discipleship corridor, specifically the rich man pericope of Mark 10:17–31. The formulation he uses is fully compatible with Mark 10:25 and does not display distinctive Matthean redactional features. The logion appears as a fixed and authoritative dominical saying, treated as self-sufficient, which accords with Mark’s presentation of it as the climactic interpretive statement within the episode.
At the same time, the way Clement deploys the saying is significant. In Stromateis 2.5.22.4 it functions as an isolated ethical maxim, detached from narrative sequence and without any attempt to reconstruct the surrounding Markan scene. Clement neither draws in adjacent Markan material nor fuses the saying with elements dispersed elsewhere in Matthew or Luke. This stands in contrast to Quis Dives Salvetur, where the same saying is embedded within a sustained exposition of the entire rich man pericope and clearly presupposes a continuous Markan narrative framework.
The agreement between the two works is therefore important but limited. There is no detectable difference in the form of the saying itself, no alternative harmonization, and no evidence that Clement is drawing on two distinct gospel texts. Rather, Stromateis presumes the same Markan logion that Quis Dives Salvetur later situates within its full corridor context. The difference is contextual rather than textual.
Accordingly, this passage confirms Clement’s familiarity with, and reliance upon, Markan material within the discipleship corridor, but it does not in itself advance the stronger claim that Clement is here working from a harmonized or “Secret” Markan gospel. It establishes compatibility with Mark, not dependence on a Mark-shaped composite tradition. In short, Stromateis 2.5.22.4 belongs securely within the Markan corridor, but remains evidentially neutral with respect to the more ambitious “Secret Mark” hypothesis.
