The Authoritative Teaching is a gnostic text that makes implications of a divine spirit being placed on the immoral Earth to face the trials of evil and regain its elevated place in the heavens through attaining knowledge. The text gives a metaphoric teaching about a soul (her) from a divine world that comes to see the material world but gets distracted and creates earthly attachments. Some of the metaphorical identities that the soul is given include a prostitute, a contestant, a bride, an invalid, a fish, and wheat. However, God watches over the soul and warns the soul of earthly attachments such as Lust, Pride, Greed, Fraud, Ignorance, Envy and Vanity.
Year: 150-300 AD